#cause d a ng it's pretty

[yourlocalartsonist]

ROTTMNT Moths Fly In Packs - Chapter Eight

A/N: I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG OH MY GOD. I genuinely didn’t expect it to, chapter 8 was supposed to be way shorter but uh yk my brain didn’t like that apparatnly. So now it’s uh 10K words. I think it’s genuinely worth the wait and read tho so hey, alls well that ends well or something. I’m gonna try to be faster with updates now. I’m FAIRLY CERTAIN chapter nine will be much shorter or at least nothing crazy like 8 or 10k. But what I can guarantee is chapters 10-13 will most definitely be short and lead up to the grand arc finale of chapter 14. We’re getting pretty close to it and I’m literally vibrating from excitement but no spoilers. Anyway enjoy the chapter! :D

Credit to: @sweaterrat and @yosajaeofficial for being my beloved beta readers! This story wouldn’t be able to have the quality it does without them so please give them some love and check out their ROTTMNT stories too!

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Chapter One

Disclaimer: Chapter involves depressive thoughts, mentions of bullying, depressed behavior, mentions of Kr*ng, PTSD behavior, violence, very lightly graphic description of injuries, blood, and curse words. If you’re sensitive to that stuff, scroll past and stay safe!

Outside the window, you can make out a bird’s nest sat in one of the trees. It’s been here for a week now, perfectly timed with when I got back to a consistent school life. But lately, the mother’s been staying at the nest more often. I’m guessing they’ve got babies on the way, she’s probably incubating her eggs right now. I think I’ve gotten attached to them, that small family of robins. The parents are so dedicated, aren’t they? The mother especially, never leaving the nest unless absolutely necessary. 

On the contrary to my peaceful view, the classroom is noisy, hectic, and cluttered. No real science work for today so everyone’s just doing their own thing. Very loudly. Jaiden and Zane are chatting and laughing with each other next to me. I think things are better between us, I still don’t really know where Jaiden and I stand right now but at least Zane seems fine with me. Though I won’t lie, I’ve been feeling more and more like a third wheel around them. 

“Dude! I’m telling you, we have to play this game together! We’d have so much fun!” 

“I already said I would, Jaiden! Man, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you laugh like this. Shame you’re letting such a pretty smile go to waste.”

“Yeah? Let’s hang out more often then and maybe I won’t do that.”  

Like right now.

Lowkey, I’ve been feeling invisible around those two. Jaiden barely pays any attention to me, it’s as if Zane was their best friend instead of me! I mean, I know friends can drift apart, I definitely know. But still, I never imagined it would happen to us. I still don’t wanna believe that’s what’s happening. I wanna keep hope.

“And ironically, you’re being pretty quiet today, Salena. Did you two switch personalities or something?” 

“You are weirdly quiet, actually. What’s up?”

Oh lookie, I’ve been acknowledged. “Nah, you guys don’t have to worry about me. Just lower on energy than usual.” 

I went back to my routine of staring out the window like the main character in a music video. In the reflection, Zane was still watching me. With the way his eyes lingered, I had a feeling he’s not falling for my excuse. 

Seems like Jaiden’s not too worried, though. “Oh, Zane! You wanna hear about this new skate park I found?” Just went right back at it with Zane. Who’s weirdly still staring at me.

“…Actually, I’m kinda hungry. Jaiden, you mind getting me a snack from the vending machine?”

“Huh? But I wouldn’t know what to get you. N-not that I don’t pay attention to what you like! But, you know… Salena has better taste in these things! She should go-”

“She always goes.”

“‘Cause she knows what she’s doing.”

“Jaiden.”

“Guys, it’s fine! It’s fine. I’ve got this.” I didn’t want them to fight again so I got up from my seat. “Be back soon.”

Jaiden gave me their most gleeful smile I’ve seen them make in a while. I think seeing them smile makes this gesture worthwhile. Even if it’s just for a little bit.

The walk to the vending machine shouldn’t have been long, it’s not super far away. But my legs dragged on forcing each step to be slower than the last. I feel guilty thinking like this but a part of me wants this dumb walk to go on forever. I can’t stand being near them and I don’t know why! It’s not like we’ve got bad blood, they’ve both been normal towards me since I came back. So why am I acting like this? I’m seriously starting to doubt Splinter’s theory of me not being the problem here…

I approached the machine, stopping as I heard a struggling voice in front of me. 

“Argh! How’d she say these things worked again?” 

His finger pressed against the glass, tracing the code for the snack he wanted. He tapped the buttons on the screen. Nothing happened. Scratching his head, he leaned forward to read the next instructions. Finally, he pulled out a dollar bill.

…Before proceeding to insert it in the wrong way. And taking it out. And inserting it back in. And repeating the process. I can feel my soul exiting my body from second-hand embarrassment. 

I recognized the fluffy black hair. With a crooked smile, I pulled out my own wallet.

“You’re supposed to put it in this way.” I slid my bill into the slot, the granola bar he selected successfully being pushed down soon after. “Good to see you again.”

“Woah, cool!” He stared at the giant food box almost with a childlike wonder, pausing for a few minutes before turning to me. “And hey! Yeah, it’s really nice seeing you again, too.” His eyes remained locked for a while before he scrambled to hand me the bill he had. “Here! Let me pay you back-“

“No, no, no, don’t worry about it! Really! Consider it my apology for, um, last time.” 

“Apology? I mean, you weren’t the one doing anything weird so I don’t think you’ve gotta apologize.” He stuck out his hand. “I’m Casey Jones Jr. I was gonna introduce myself the first time we met but, you know.”

“Salena Moni! So, how’s everything holding up? You joined pretty late in the year so if you need any help reviewing stuff I’m more than happy to.”

 

“Oh, don’t worry! It’s actually going alright. Still technically my first time going to a real school, so it’s a little bit of a challenge but I already knew most of the material anyways. I didn’t have to catch up on much.”  

“Wow, that is… remarkably impressive.” If only I handled transferring as well as this guy. “Wait, hold up, real school? Were you homeschooled?”

“You could… say that. My uncle taught me everything, he was the smartest person I knew! Just turns out it was literally everything.”

“Cool! I guess we can check grades off the box, then! So, is everyone being nice? Made any friends?”

I bit my lip as I received my answer in the form of his face freezing mid-speech. “W-well uh…”

Oh, you poor thing…

I guess he could read my face since he immediately tried reassuring me, as if he wasn’t the victim in this scenario. “I-I mean it’s not awful! A couple people were nice to me, including you! Sure, some are a little… hostile. But it’ll get better eventually.” 

“Y-yeah! It definitely… definitely will.”

And cue the classic awkward silence that stars in any first conversation. A little overdue for this one now that I’m thinking about it. 

I’m so conflicted. I know damn well he’s not gonna have the high school dream he’s probably imagining right now. No one does. I may not have been at this school for long, but I’ve been here long enough to know how the people are. April told me it gets even worse every year as cliques start getting established and people grow past the initial politeness. I’m glad she did, she never kept anything about high school from me no matter how bad it was. Nothing was in my control but at least I knew it was coming.

And here I am playing the exact opposite role for Casey. I hate giving people false hope, I hate it with a passion! But I’m supposed to, I think. In a situation like this I’m supposed to hype him up. Ignorance is bliss! Wouldn’t it just ruin his spirits if I broke the glass? 

“Anyway, it was nice to meet you! I guess I’ll see you around?”

“Y-yep! Hope things get better for you soon!” 

“Me too.”

Ugh, the guilt is eating me up! I’m acting like I’ve never told a lie in my life but it’s not that. It’s his pure mindset that’s completely fucking with my morality! 

I know to keep my mouth shut, I do. I don’t want him to hate me like everyone else does. I haven’t met someone who’s been so nice to me in this stupid ass school before, I don’t want to ruin this chance now that I finally got it. Plus, he might not even believe me…

I watched him turn to walk away. 

Fuck it, social norms are for losers!

“W-wait! Casey?” He turned back around and I nearly shit myself from fear. “So, don’t be mad but I may have um… lied about something?” 

“Uh, sorry?”

I took a deep breath, bracing myself. “Well, here’s the deal. Things aren’t really gonna get better, sorry. Or, actually! I don’t mean that extremely literally, I guess...” 

Focus on your hands, it’ll be okay. “Just… People here are mean. Really, really mean. You’re homeschooled, you’re new, and you’re nice. It’s a recipe for disaster here whether it’s today or even a year after you’ve settled in!”

I can’t even read his expression and get an idea of his reaction. He’s got a scary good poker face, I’m curious which relative taught him that one.

“Casey, please don’t take this the wrong way. I-I’m not saying any of it is your fault! Or that you need to change or do anything. I’m only saying this so you don’t have any… unrealistic expectations so to speak.” 

God, his silence is more terrifying than anticipated.

So much so I couldn’t help letting out a quiet breath of relief when he finally did speak. “You know, you’re the first person here who’s told me that.”

“…Is that bad?”

“Not at all. All my family, they never got the chance to go to school. Hell, I didn’t think I’d have the opportunity. But here I am! First time in a new building with weird people and absolutely no clue what to expect. I’m usually good with surprises but this one is just so… different. Different is scary, you know?” 

I nodded. I most definitely did know.

“Anyway, you’re right that people are just mean here. I don’t even know why, I mean, I’ve met my fair share of dicks before but at least they had good reasons! We were under so much stress… But that’s not what I hate. It’s the fact that any time I tell an adult, they say the same thing over and over again!” 

“Let me guess.” I cleared my throat and enhanced the performance with my intoxicated Mrs. Doubtfire voice. “Just ignore them and give it time and it’ll magically fix itself ‘cause boredom beats bullies or some shit, right?”

“Yeah, exactly!” His laugh is like holding your parent’s hand when you’re getting the flu shot, it’s magical! “They say that to everyone, don’t they? God, what’s up with that? I’m so not used to adults lying to me.”

“Dude, what? You’re kidding, your whole community’s gotta be amazing if you’ve never been lied to by an adult.” 

“Eh, more or less… Anyway, um, thank you. For telling me the truth. And the granola bar. I seriously owe you for this.”

…I take it back, Splinter might’ve actually been onto something.

I mean, he’s a little strange, I won’t lie about that. This is the first time I’ve heard someone actually be grateful for me telling the truth. In the past it either got me isolated or in huge trouble, depending on who I was honest with. Maybe this is why I’m so used to lying. I hate it but I’ve had to do it so much. I’ve never met someone who finally lets me relax about it, not until Casey Jr it seems.

Maybe he deserves me being a little braver for a change. 

“Well, here’s a way you can repay me. By us being friends!”

…

This was a lot more epic in my head without his speechless pause. Maybe I got the vibe wrong-

“REALLY!? OMIGOSH! That would be so cool! I’ve literally been thinking about asking you the same thing ‘cause I keep wanting to talk to you but never run into you but now we can talk whenever we want, IT’LL BE GREAT!!!” Spoke too soon, he is literally shaking me by the shoulders. It feels unnatural not being on the other side of this scenario. 

“Casey, my stomach doesn’t approve of this-“

“Sorry, sorry!” He finally stopped and allowed me to remember the pleasant feeling of absolute stillness. “I just can’t believe you actually wanna be friends with me!” 

Still, his surprising enthusiasm gave me a good laugh. “Dude, it’s alright! It’s kinda more surprising you wanna be friends with me.”  

“Why wouldn’t I? You’re the kindest person I’ve ever met in my entire life, anyone who’s friends with you is lucky to have you!” 

Lucky to have me?

Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit, unexpected compliments go burn in a fire but also don’t leave, it actually feels really nice. 

“Salena, are you okay? Did I say something wrong?”

“N-no, I mean, all I did was buy you a snack and tell you people are jerks. I’m not too sure I should be receiving the title of the ‘kindest person you’ve ever met’ and stuff.”

“O-oh yeah, you have a point.” He got a little flustered at that, despite it really being my fault for not being able to take compliments. “I don’t know, I mean, I still think you’re really cool. I’m just so happy you wanna be friends with me!” 

He looked like a child on Christmas morning as I tippy-tapped my number into his phone. Come to think of it, I know I’ve definitely reacted excitedly towards certain people - or turtles, I should say - but having someone do it to me? Feels kinda nice.

I looked up at the clock. “Shit. We should probably head back to class before we get in trouble.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re right. But hey,” his eyes closed as the corners delightfully wrinkled “it was great running into you again! Fate really wants us to be friends.”

He has a really nice smile. 

“Funny how life works, ay?”

I skipped my way back to class, mind too deep in thought to realize how fast I went.

This guy, Casey Jones, he’s giving me certain vibes. I don’t mean the creepy, stalkerish, "I need to get the hell outta here” vibes. More like deja-vu. I can’t pin what exactly, but something about him feels so… foreign yet familiar. Homey, if you may. Like a nice, warm fire in mid-winter night. It’s really soothing. 

And immediately I’m thrown into emotional whiplash as I went back inside the annoying ass classroom of teenage chaos. So much for soothing vibes. I plopped back in my desk as Zane slowly scanned me.

“You took a while. Did you get my snack?…”

…Fuck. “Sorry! I completely forgot!”

“How did you forget when it’s the literal reason you even left?” Jaiden doesn’t seem as chipper as before.

“I know, I’m so sorry. I got a bit distracted. Gimmie a sec, I’ll be right back-”

“No, wait! It’s fine, I’m not hungry anymore.”

“Really? Okay, suit yourself.” I shrugged, getting settled in again. He leaned closer to me, both confused and concerned.

“You seem happier right now. Did something good happen?”

“Oh, yeah, I guess! Just ran into a new friend.”

His face scrunched up, going back to chatting with Jaiden. I have no clue why he glared when I said that, I don’t think I said anything wrong or alarming. Honestly, bro has worse mood swings than I do. It's seriously annoying sometimes but whatever, they’ve gone back to their little bubble now so I shall go back to mine.

I pulled out my phone, greeted with Casey’s excited text already.

CJ: Hey! Not really doing anything in class so if you’re free too, text me back :D

Smiling, I let myself get engrossed in my phone, happily typing away. He’s a fun guy to talk to. His enthusiasm and bubbliness is a little surprising considering how borderline timid he seemed at first. Goes to show, never judge a book by its cover! I felt my mood lifting, less gloomier than before.

Until I remembered something he said.

“My uncle taught me everything, he was the smartest person I knew!”

Was?...

***

Ah, midnight. A time when the mentally sane and emotionally stable would be sleeping. Turns out I’m neither of those folks, I’ve got better things to do. I have weapons now but I’ve gotta actually practice using them if I don’t wanna render them useless. Besides, in bed or out here, I’m not falling asleep either way. At least this serves as a good distraction! And won’t give me a headache like my phone will.

The blades cut through the air as I twirled them, striking at an imaginary enemy soon after. 

I try not to think about life when I’m training, it distracts me too much. Sometimes I feel like Casey’s the only thing making school bearable anymore. We don’t share any classes so we text more than talk but I don’t have to do any mental gymnastics to figure out how he views me. I’m still confused as hell if Jaiden likes me or hates me and have no damn clue what Zane’s deal is anymore. He keeps staring at me. More than usual. Sure, I could always sit there and ponder for hours on end what the fuck is going on, but I doubt even that’d get any results.

The sickles, however, do show results. They feel lighter, smoother, easier to duel. I’m getting faster with them and my arms don’t feel as broken after training anymore! It’s something I can lose myself in, track the improvement. It’s so much simpler than everything else.

It keeps my mind occupied. If I focus on them, I don’t think about anyone from school or anything bad that’s happening! Or at least, I usually don't. I guess I’m thinking about it now, though…

“Someone’s training hard.”

“AHH!!!”

Immediately I jerked to turn and held up a blade in defense. However, it turned out to be a false alarm as instead of some midnight mugger I expected to see, I’m greeted with a smirking blue idiot standing in front of me.

“Woah, hey! I come in peace!” The stupid bitch held his hands up, mocking me with his fake fear. “Been a while, huh?” 

“Leo? Oh god, you scared me! Where did you even come from?” 

“The better question would be: Where did you disappear to? We haven’t gone out in like a week! You kept leaving me on read when I texted you but seemed fine in the group chat. What gives?” 

“…I forgor?”

“Really?” I could tell he wasn’t satisfied by my answer. “You just forgot to respond to me? Every single time?”

“W-well sorta. I mean, it’s nothing you did so please don’t take it personally! It’s with everyone. I’ve just been a little bad at responding to dms…” My social battery’s been so low lately I question if it’s even charged at all. “That’s entirely on me, though! I’m so sorry.”

He crossed his arms and looked me up and down. He’s doing that nonchalant poker face again, the one he does when he doesn’t wanna be read, otherwise he’s an open book. 

“You know you can tell me if something’s up, right?”

I guess he also does that face when he’s trying to read someone else. “Yeah, I know. I’m alright. It’s just… I dunno, things are a little weird but it’s fine. It’s really nothing to worry about.”

He hummed in response. I don’t really think he bought it but his eyes eventually drifted to my weapons, dropping the topic regardless. He must not wanna push it.

“Sooo, sick weapons! Where’d you get ‘em?”

“Oh, these? Draxum gave them to me!”

He gagged, interrupting me. “You met Draxum? The sheep guy? Oh, poor you! Was he awful to deal with? I bet he was! You know, like always.” 

“Oh come on, he wasn’t that bad! A little grouchy at first but in his defense, I caught him in the middle of his shift, so.”

“Please, sheep bitch doesn’t need a reason to be a jerk! He’s just an old cranky loser who spends his days yelling at kids and smuggling whatever mystic bullshit of the week he found from the Hidden City! It’s giving Oscar the Grouch, just missing the lemon. Oh wait, that’s ‘cause unlike Oscar, he doesn’t even have one single thing that makes him uncharacteristically happy!” 

“Wow, angry aren’t we?” It’s rude to laugh, but I can’t help myself around this dork. He looks like a kid who got denied an Xbox when he crosses his arms like that. “Leo, be real. This is because he threw you off a roof, isn’t it?”

“You know!? I mean-“ He laughed, trying to hide his poorly made lie. “What? Of course not… Maybe just a little but that’s not important.” 

Leo grumbled on with some incoherent noises for a minute, before cooling down and moving on from the “sheep bitch”. 

“Ugh, well anyway, if you got it from that moron, they’re definitely mystic or something, right?”

“Oh, absolutely! They’re actually super cool, I mean-“ For a good five minutes I kept blabbering on and on about the sickles and how they function and all my progress that I didn’t notice Leo - bless his heart - trying and horrifically failing to pay attention. He doesn’t really hide it well when he spaces out.

“And they- Uh, Leo, you good?” 

“…Would you be mad if I said I got like, none of that?” 

I sighed but gave a gentle smile. I knew he had a short attention span so I can’t really act like it’s his fault I forgot about that. 

“Actually, do you want me to just like… act it out instead? I think I’ve gotten pretty good at using these so I don’t mind showing instead of telling!”

He shrugged “Nothin’s stopping you. Go on, impress me!” 

Well, nothing except my nerves. But hey, it’s just Leo. If I mess up, he’ll laugh with me a bit and then I’ll just retry. No real pressure around him. I could use a progress check right now, anyway.

“Aight, so we only know two out of who knows how many powers for these things, they’re the only two I’ve been practicing. First up!”

 

I spun them around, careful to not mess up my handling. My goal is to form blades strong enough to crack a dent through the concrete edge of this building. So the sickles need to be made out of metal or steel. I usually go with metal but I do actually wanna impress him and steel’s stronger. I aimed at the edge and swung my arm forward, the sickle shot through the air and sliced through the concrete like a knife to a cake.

“OH SHIT!”

“I got it!” He teleported to catch the flying solo sickle and came right back within a matter of seconds. Oh, what I’d give to experience never having to walk again. 

“Sorry about that! They’ve never broken the edge like that before!”

“Sorry!? You’re not allowed to be sorry, that was so cool! It went clean through!” I’ve never seen him gush about something this way. I’ve gotta admit, it’s kind of adorable. “Okay, I’m hooked! What’s the other thing it can do?”

“Invisibility! But I can’t do it for long, at least not yet. I made progress, though! Went from only three seconds to five!”

“Wait, actually, back up a bit. I get that Baron Ass told you how the sickles work and blah blah blah, but how’d you learn how to fight with ‘em? Ya know, the non-mystic aspects.” 

“Oh, YouTube tutorials at first. But honestly, sickle fighting is mid so I did a lot of improv, really.”

He chuckled and eventually lost to his giggles as if me saying that wasn’t completely justified. “Did you just call an ancient form of martial arts mid?” 

“Stop judging me, I’m right! Sickles were improvised weapons. They’re good for the last resort, not the first choice!”

“I’m not judging, I’m not judging! Promise! I respect it, even!” He leaned against the roof’s edge, gradually collecting himself. “But if they’re that bad, why didn’t you ask for a different weapon? One that’s cooler and not ‘the last resort’?”

Oh boy, where to begin?

I then explained how I essentially found myself wrapped in some “chosen one” bullshit through the sickles. They still don’t work any time Barry touches them but are perfectly fine in my hands. It’d be pretty dumb to pass up these weapons for a different one, even if sickles aren’t the coolest thing to own. Although, he’s definitely acting like they are judging by how intensely his eyes are staring at them. They’re sparkling brighter than I thought eyes realistically could. 

“Well, now I’m offended! Mystic mystery sickles that do all kinds of glowy stuff for you specifically? How could you not tell me about these sooner!? They’re so amazing!”

“I know, I’m real sorry, Leon.” He’s joking around, his tone’s too light to be mad. But I do still feel bad for accidentally ignoring him like that. “Anything I can do for you as an apology?”

“Well…” His smirk revealed that thing was the main reason he came here in the first place. “We could make up for the lost time and go on a run together tonight. It is a weekend so you’d still have tomorrow and the day after to rest up. But hey, that’s just an idea…”

It's Friday again. Just like the first time we did this.

He held out his hand as an offer and I took it with a grin. “You make a convincing argument.”

And off we went, dashing through the night. It’s a bit humid today so the wind from sprinting so fast is greatly appreciated. Not to mention my speed is so much better than before! 

The daily restrictions of civil life can go suck my dick and feed my liver to their uncles ‘cause oh my god nothing beats this feeling! No one else is here, no one who could stop us! Sure, jumping off roofs isn’t the safest way to have fun, but everything else in my life is already so safe! I’m allowed to have this one thing, this one moment to be free.

I’m so distracted that I didn’t realize I’m actually giving Leo a run for his money this time! Hehe, run. God, I’m so funny.

“Looks like you can actually keep up with me now!”

“I know, right!? It feels fucking amazing!” 

Judging from his mischievous ass face, I probably should’ve kept my mouth shut. “I don’t mean to burst your bubble but…”

 A blue light appeared as a hole ripped in the sky and the lovely piece of shit went right through, appearing again somewhere way ahead of me. “I’m still faster!~”

“Hey! No portals allowed!”

“Uh, last time I checked, portalling is totally allowed.”

“Says who!?”

“Says me and I’m leader! Whatever leader says goes!”

To add insult to injury, he doesn’t just portal himself. As I’m trying to catch up to him mid-jump, the jackass opens a portal right under me, sending me back even further than I already was with no time to recover. 

“Leo, you cheat!”

Bro’s giggling his ass off as he blinked in and out of sight. I’m no different with how sore my face is, so I can’t even pretend to be mad. 

Instead, all I can do is try my best to speed up and catch up, plotting my revenge in the meantime. Easier said than done, that dude’s faster than the Flash right now since he’s, ya know, portalling. Doesn’t help that he keeps appearing right next to me every few minutes just to taunt me and disappear again.

A few minutes into our little cat and mouse game though, I lost track of him and he hadn’t shown up in a while to pester me. So, I started calling out his name, trying to look for him. You’d think it’d be easier to find a 5’5” giant, green turtle man but I guess they wouldn’t be ninjas if that were the case.

“Leo? Leo!? Le- Huh?”

I finally found him. But instead of the shit-eating grin he gave me earlier, he’s silent and still behind the edge of a roof, his back facing me. It’s starting to freak me out a little, he looks like he’s going fucking Blair Witch mode. No words, no witty remarks, nothing. Just ghostly staring at whatever the view is. Only thing I can see from here is a museum. 

“Hey, Leon, you okay?”

“Shh!”

With his eyes still fixed up ahead, Leo took my hand and guided me forward. He eventually looked at me and nodded towards the street below us. Gazing in that direction, I saw a large purple truck with the logo of that one weird shoe store I browsed a few years ago. From what I’ve gathered these past few weeks, big trucks mean bad news. 

But maybe that’s not what I should be focused on. Standing near the truck were two people, their skin an unnatural shade of purple. One’s large and brutish, the other tall and slender. They’ve got foot marks on their faces and flames on their bald heads. Exactly how Mikey described…

“The Foot Clan.”

He nodded. “I don’t understand, those guys were all turned into Krang during the invasion.”

Sorry, what? “You’re sure it was those two specifically? I haven’t heard about any cures or vaccines for the Krang victims on the news. It’d make headlines if there were.” I haven’t heard anything about them for a while now that I think about it.

“Yeah, I’m sure.” He leaned closer to the edge, as close as he could get without getting caught. “They’re parked a street away from a museum, the hell are they up to now?” 

I mimicked his actions, trying to hear the Foot people better. The slender one’s on the phone, sounding frustrated. He’s doing that whisper-yelling thing people do when they wanna be mad quietly to avoid societal shame. 

“Yeesh, someone’s having a bad day.”

“You can hear them?” Why does he look so confused?

“Yeah, can’t you?”

Leo shook his head. “Whatever, what are they saying?” 

I cocked my head to the side, spying in on their conversation.

His voice is scratchy, a little sore on my ears. “What do you mean you can’t get it off? Just bring the whole thing and hurry! We can’t risk alerting anyone!” Neither of us can tell what he’s referring to, unfortunately. The Foot dude avoids naming it. 

I looked back at Leo scanning around for any clues. He stared at the back of the museum for a minute before his eyes widened. “I know where we are. It’s the Historical Society Museum. Donnie mentioned wanting to come here once.” 

“I think I’ve heard of it. Isn’t there a lot of ancient stuff in there? Like, from centuries back?”

Nodded again. He’s being unnervingly quiet, considering it’s Leo. He stared at the clan, then at the museum, then back at the clan. He looked… scared. Scared in a way I’ve never seen him before. I felt my hand being subconsciously squeezed. I didn’t even notice he hadn’t let go in the first place.

…I have to help him.

I readied myself for whatever his idea was, no matter how outlandish or risky it may seem. “Alrighty, what’s the plan?” 

“Right.” He hesitated, before gripping his katanas and turning back. “…The plan is for me to portal you home, kick some Foot ass, and pick you up so we can continue our run.” 

WHAT!?

“What do you mean ‘portal me home!? I’m not leaving!” I was prepared for anything, but this!? “We just stumbled across the Foot Clan who are for some reason not freaky alien zombies and messing with ancient artifacts that do who knows what!”

“Yeah, that’s why I’m sending you home before your adrenaline junkie ass can do something stupid.”

“And what makes you think I’d do that!?”

He held up my scarred left arm and stared at me unimpressed.  

“…Okay, that’s a low blow even for you.” 

Though as much as I hate to admit it, he kind of has a point. I sighed. “Alright, tell me. If I leave, will you at least call your brothers to help you out?”

“Yes!”

“Leo.”

“Fine, I lied.” The steel fucking balls of- “But still! I’ll be okay! I’ve gone against them plenty of times before.”

“Doesn’t mean you’re invincible!”

Before I could say anything more, I heard the sound of a truck starting up. I looked down and Leo followed my line of sight to see the Foot getting ready to drive. 

Shit, they’re getting away!

“Okay, okay! Listen, I promise, I promise I won’t run off on my own and do something dumb this time. Anything the leader says goes! Just please let me join!” I can’t leave him alone!

I could sense him debating on what to do. His eyes look so conflicted, there’s definitely more than what he’s telling me. Nevertheless, I’m not budging. I don’t wanna sit at home being useless and worry the entire time.

He took a deep breath in, and let out a loud sigh. He looked at me with a defeated smile. “I’m not getting rid of you, am I?”

“Nope.”

“Alright, fine, but you’re sticking close.”

Before I could celebrate too much, I felt the ground beneath me disappear into bright blue light. Not anything sudden, more gentle really. Even then, I felt disoriented with my feet going from firmly grounded to touching the air! Not to mention how light my whole body felt. Gravity did a complete 180 and I got flipped around, landing under the truck. 

I nearly lost my grip but a hand on my back kept me in place long enough for me to recollect myself. Leo portalled us here.Well, obviously he did, it just caught me off guard again. It’s not really too bad going through his portals but it sure is a fucking trip when it’s unexpected. Either way, it got the job done. 

They drove for quite a damn while. It wasn’t the most pleasant experience having to cling on to the bottom of a moving truck as the only scents to breathe in were that of oil and gasoline, but we probably looked super cool! My ears disagreed but oh well. They parked in front of a mall this time. Not just any mall, the fucking World Trade Center! We’re literally on the other side of the city, what on Earth could they need here?

I wanted to follow them in but Leo was against it. He said it’d be safer for us to spy from a distance for now so we went to the roof of a neighboring building, looking in at them. The Foot are on one of the higher floors, almost seeming like they’re scavenging for something. 

Leo’s trying to figure out another way in for us. I still don’t understand why we didn’t just follow them. I know Leo’s not a total reckless nutcase or anything, but being this cautious felt a little unlike him. 

“Hey, look, I don’t mean to shoot your own words back at you or anything. But you know you can tell me if something’s up, right?” 

For a split second, he looked different. His eyes were dead, his lips shut and neutral. He stared at me but he looked so… lost. Empty. 

And then his smile returned, face back to normal. Or at least what he convinced me was normal. I’m not so sure anymore. He flicked my forehead again. Even softer than the first time he did it. “Stop worrying so much! You’re gonna give yourself a chasm worse than Raph’s.”

I didn’t know how to take it from there. So I just watched him.

He eventually decided on portalling us into the building’s vent system. It’s a little cramped but was the only place we can eavesdrop without being immediately spotted. Though honestly, I don’t mind this one bit! I’m controlling the impulsive adrenaline ,however, he didn’t say shit about internal adrenaline! I can’t help it if stealth makes me giddy!

“Hehe! It’s like we’re in a movie!”

“Love your enthusiasm as always but remember to not get too caught up in it.”

I momentarily shoved my excitement to the side as we both tried listening in on the Foot Clan. The skinny dude, who I now know to be the Lieutenant, is barking orders at the rest of the soldiers scouting around while talking to the giant Brute. 

“You disabled the cameras, correct? You know we can’t make it any harder for them!”

“Of course I did, it’s a no-brainer! Why’d ya have to ask it like that?” Woah, villain or not, his New Yorker accent is one to admire! “You know, sometimes I feel like you think I’m just stupid and nothin’ more.”

“Oh, don’t start now. Focus on finding good metal. The sooner we finish this the better.”

Hearing his raspy voice makes my own throat itch a little. I lightly clawed at it, trying to not make too much noise as I moved. 

I leaned a little closer to Leo “What do you think they need metal for?” 

“Not sure. Could be to make more soldiers or something? It’d be a cool upgrade from their paper soldiers.”

Leo’s tone seems a little lighter than before, I’m glad to hear him joke around again. “They could make paper soldiers?”

“Yeah! And they’re completely sentient, one of them even became besties with Raph! Anyway,” he pointed down at a handful of soldiers collecting metal artifacts “they’re probably trying to make those origami soldiers again with something stronger.”

“But how would you fold metal?”

“Beats me, Mikey would know more on this. He’s figuring out how to recreate whatever spell they used so we could get some help with patrolling. Word of advice though, salami origami does not work as a substitute.”

“No shit. Who’s bright idea was that?”

“...You don’t know him.” His guilty face says it all.

We were giggling a little too loudly, I suppose. One of the Foot dudes stopped and started listening for our voices again. He shrugged and moved on soon enough. I didn’t realize I was covering my mouth till I let myself breathe again.

“We should probably be a little quieter and take this stealth thing more seriously.”

I nodded in agreement. He’s not upset, honestly he’s struggling just as much as I am to choke down more giggles. It’s like we’re hiding under a blanket during a sleepover pretending we’re not awake in front of the parents and not in a likely life or death situation spying on the black-magic cult. I’m trying my best but it’s already hard enough to keep my adrenaline addiction in check and Leo being here makes it worse in the best ways possible. 

Still, I don’t wanna know what happens if we get cau- What was that creaking sound?

CLANG! 

It would seem those were not really sturdy vents. 

You know that moment from the Ice Age sequel when the vultures surround the main cast with hungry, devilish eyes ready to feast on them at any given moment? Yeah, let’s just say I wouldn’t be surprised if the Foot Clan randomly bursts into song about “glorious food” full on broadway musical style.

“Uh… Hey, fellas! Long time no see, am I right?” Despite his demeanor, I caught the real reason he raised his hands. I reached back for mine as well.

A sheath of metal filled the air as Leo took his katanas out their case, perfectly timed with the Lieutenant’s new orders.

“GET THEM!” 

“Run, hide first then get the stolen thingie if you can. I’ll keep ‘em busy!” Leo charged into the fight, holding them off to make sure they couldn’t get to me.

Unfortunately, there’s like a bajillion of them that can easily outnumber us. I’ve learned to be quite a slippery sprinter but even then two already managed to block my path.

Now would be a good time to turn invisible!

“Come on, come on!” I could barely get the sparks to even start spreading. Turns out stress is a huge fucking factor I neglected in my training. 

I wouldn’t have minded if it just took a few seconds to work but the real issue was I couldn’t keep it working. I didn’t even really go invisible, just sorta flashed in and out of transparency for a few seconds! The only reason I haven’t gotten caught yet is ‘cause these two morons are too busy laughing at me.

“Is that really the best you can do!? Whoever you are, little girl, you’ve got your work cut out for you!” 

“Oh no! She’s… she’s… blinking like an old flashlight!! We’re so scared!”

…BITC-

Resorted to traditional methods. I made the sickles the consistency of a metal pot and threw it at one of their heads, knocking them down. The other I kicked straight in the chest while they were distracted by their idiot teammate, also knocking them down. I’d love nothing more than to give some extra special attention to them but this old flashlight’s gotta run for the shadows while they’ve got an open chance. 

A blue portal opened in front of me. “Hey Salena, so this fight’s a little more intense than I expected and I wanted to quickly check if you’re really sure about-”

“Leo, I’m fine! I’m not leaving mid-battle!”

“No, no, that’s fine! That’s great! Just a reminder there’s no shame in calling it- DUCK!”

 

Without hesitance, I dropped to the ground right as his sword swung above me to block one of the soldier’s attacks. Maybe I should let Leo handle this guy since I can’t really do much while laying on the floor. Then again, doesn't mean I can’t do anything. And also I don’t have good impulse control.

“OW!!! WHAT THE FUCK!?”

I bit on to his ankle as hard as I desired despite his pleading cries. I didn’t let go until Leo broke out of his shock and finally punched him unconscious. Fighting might actually be a really good way to get out my urges.

“Why-“

“Don’t. If it works, it works.”

I flashed a grin, got back on my feet, and bounced away. I need a better vantage point if I wanna find the stolen item, especially with the chaos over here. I quickly made my way up to the indoor balcony thingie. Terrance? The second floor? Whatever the fuck it is. I’ll have to admit, despite how absolutely pumped I’m feeling right now, it kinda feels nice getting away from the clusterfuck for a bit. I heard Leo still spamming all his dialogue options to keep the main two creeps occupied. Actually, I’m pretty sure I can see them from up here, too. 

“So, you guys are looking great! Never thought I’d say this, but I am loving the old look making a return.” His hands did more tricks than usual, keeping his swords flowing like an intricate dance. There are multiple soldiers practically hounding him yet he’s fending them off almost gracefully.

“Can’t you stupid children stay out of our way for one night! There’s great evil being put on the hold right now for your antics!”

“Hey, speaking of evil, what’s with the normal amount of eyes? Not that I’m missing the other option but- GAH!”

And yet, even with Leo’s skilled moves, he’s struggling to keep up with the two leaders specifically. I deadass would’ve been slaughtered by now if I didn’t listen to him about hiding. 

“We got some outside help. Now, stop askin’ annoying questions and maybe we’ll go easier on ya!” He swung his axe again, thankfully missing Leo.

I gotta wonder, from Mikey’s stories, they’ve fought the Foot Clan with ease several times in the past. Leo was doing fine just now, too. So why does it look like this could be his first time facing off the Lieutenant and Brute? Nobody’s perfect but I don’t think either of us expected him to lose his grace and become borderline clumsy against them.

Wait, no! Distractions! Leo can handle himself, I need to focus on my own task. Stolen thingie! But where the hell is it?

Just as I was about to think they left it in the truck like common sense would dictate, a soft, reflective red glow caught my eye. The moon was on my side tonight.

“There she is!”

Or maybe I was being too optimistic. In fairness, I should’ve known I couldn’t stay here for long.

It would be really fucking nice to turn invisible now. Sickles? No? Oh, okay, fuck me then I guess.

I hopped off the edge before they could reach me and slinked to the other side of the room, following the red gleam. Despite the sickles betraying me with horrific timing twice tonight, I got them to cover me long enough to reach the ruby ring the glow came from. The light bled past the folds of the drape covering their stolen prize. I lifted it to find a… weird mannequin bust? With arms. Decorated with several ornaments and jewelry including the ring. What the fuck are they using this for, a fashion show? 

I flinched to the sound of a loud thud paired with Leo’s groan. Flipping my head behind me, I saw him cornered against a wall, swords shielding him from the Brute’s axes.

“Okay, either you two got a lot stronger or my body isn’t what it used to be.”

I gotta calm myself down, Leo’s a trained ninja and will likely be completely and totally fine! A tiny slip doesn’t mean inevitable doom!

 

…I hope.

I turned my attention back to the mannequin thing to mentally measure its size. I’m fairly certain it’ll fit inside my backpack, it’s not too big. Just gotta get it in now.

Another sound interrupted me. This time, it was loud metallic clanking off the floor. Leo’s katanas…

“On second thought, maybe it’s both.” His weapons were away from him, too far out of reach. His voice sounded weaker, arms wrapped around his torso.

Oh no.

Neither of them were holding back. As soon as he was down, they were practically hammering at him. His arms were up, defensively blocking his head. I’m supposed to stay away from this. I’m supposed to listen and focus on my task. But I can’t stop my body from turning when I see something like this happening. 

He’s in the air now. I need to move. He’s being swung. I need to be faster. 

“Let this be a lesson, turtle. Our battles have drastically changed.”

The window shattered from the force of his body.

“LEO!”

I don’t remember ever sprinting this fast, but I was out the window right after through the very hole he created. The height couldn’t scare me if it tried. My arm outstretched, I caught him with one hand and had my sickle in the other. Careful to not dare mess up my timing, it snatched onto a power line just as my blades turned to rubber, thick enough to not get us shocked from the voltage. 

“N-nice… nice catch.”

“Thanks.” It’s harder to talk when I’m panting like a dog and trying to limit my shaking limbs.

His weight felt like it would rip my arms apart. I didn’t expect a giant muscular turtle to be light but that doesn’t make it hurt any less. Still, some-fucking-how, I’m able to keep us both hanging from the wire, comprehending the fact that we’re not dead. Thank fuck for Raph forcing me to work out sessions.

“You, uh, you doing good up there? You’re breathing kinda heavily. Hey, heavily! Didn’t even mean to make that one!”

“Leo I will drop you.”

He convinced me to suffer a little longer and try to swing him, giving enough momentum for him to catch onto the side of the neighboring building. Then, I swung myself, Leo catching me to soften the landing. We scampered up to the roof, coincidentally the same one we were on a while ago. 

“And literally back to square one. Fantastic.” He sighed, clearly annoyed by our failure. His attention quickly shifted once he noticed me rubbing my sore arms. “Hey, you okay? Want me to take a look at you?”

“Me? Take a look at yourself first, idiot!” 

I’m not gonna pretend I’m not in pain, but it’s nothing close to the tragedies on his body currently. His arms are bruised and cut from the fight. One was actively bleeding with bits of glass still stuck in some places. Luckily it was the only fleshy place he took damage on, everything else was protected, albeit a little cracked.

“It’s… It’s fine. My shell took most of the hit, anyway.” This bitch. “Besides, I’ve got bigger things to worry about.”

Despite his condition, he started walking to the edge of the roof, heading back towards the WTC.

“Where the hell are you going?”

“To get my katanas back.”

“Oh, no, no, no, you are not going back in there! Can’t you just make new swords or something?”

“And help the foot by practically gifting them Hamato weapons?”

“You said they’re made from your magic! Shouldn’t that protect them from other people trying to use them?”

“I don’t know, we only learned about this ninpo stuff, like, last year! I don’t know enough to be sure nothing will happen if I leave them with the Foot. I’m not doing that.”

“Well, I can’t let you go back.” I stood in front of him to block his path. “We can figure something else out but you are not going back in there! Look at you, it’d be crazy!”

“I was crazy once-” My hand shut his stupid, smug mouth before he could complete the ritual. 

“Leo, you were thrown out a window! You’re hurt!”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay! I’ve been through worse! I’m just gonna get my swords back, that’s all.” He put a hand on my shoulder and threw on a fake smile to comfort me. The blood is literally dripping down his arm as he did, defeating the point. I looked back at his eyes, not bothering to hide how furiously concerned I am. If I’m reading him right, he’s not oblivious to reality. He’s a medic, he knows it better than I do.

He took a shaky breath in. “Fine, you’re right that I’m a little hurt. But we can’t waste time patching me up, I need to get my swords! Rule number one of basic survival is never let the Foot come into possession with highly mystic material ever.”

“Then I’ll go while you take care of yourself.” 

“NO!” His head perked up as his eyes grew wider. He tried saving his initial reaction. “No way, not happening. It’s a safer plan if I go in, I’m more used to them” Safer for us or for just me. 

“And yet, you got beaten to a pulp, isolated from your weapons, thrown out a window, and are now bleeding with shards of glass sticking out your body. Did I miss anything?” He’s neglected himself all night being overly cocky and confident nothing bad would happen to him. That’s what’s led to him turning out like this! “They didn’t exactly go easy on you, Leo-”

“Then imagine what they’d do to you!”

His brows knit together, staring at me, not blinking. I guess my wish was granted since he finally stopped disguising his true fear.

“Salena, please. Stay here, I’m going in.”

I almost let him go. Almost.

Too bad for him, I yanked him by the mask tails and pulled his stunned face back to face me. 

“Hey, wh-”

“Alright, listen. I know whoever these guys are, they’re dangerous as fuck. I know I’m nowhere near as skilled of a fighter as you and I probably never will be. And I know I am way in over my head about this. But none of that matters to me.” 

He kept quiet. So I continued. “What matters is that I’m your friend. Friends don’t let each other jump into losing battles, okay? You’re hurt, Leo. Please, just let me help you.”

I looked up at the sky. The clouds are covering the moon now and should stay that way for a little while. I could take advantage of the newfound darkness. 

I stood on the ledge, mentally preparing myself to reignite the flames. Sure, I talked big about being able to handle myself and whatnot but I’m just trying to fool myself into thinking I’m not scared. If I can keep myself level-headed and use my sickles, I’ll be able to stay invisible for a short bit. If I play my cards right, that should be all I need.

I felt a hand grab my wrist. Turning around, I readied myself to once again reassure Leo I’d be fine but stopped when he put something in my palm. I recognize them, they’re tanto knives.

“Hey.” His smile is forced but not disingenuous. 

“You’ve got this.”

So off I went with the last little push I needed. The cool night air feels fantastically refreshing on my skin. Every leap leaves me more confident I’ll succeed. I have to. He needs someone he knows he can depend on. 

I scouted around and found an open window to sneak back in through. Judging by how crazy strong these guys are, my best bet is the element of surprise and for these oversized lethal boomerangs to actually work in my favor. Which they hadn’t before. But nothing’s ever hopeless. The reflection off the moon was their main source of light, with the clouds hiding it now and my knowledge of the floor’s layout, I think I might have a working plan this time.

I rushed over to the balcony I was at previously, this time being more cautious of any look-outs. There were three of them up here so I’m glad I didn’t choose the reckless route. I took my sickles out my backpack, breathed in, and turned invisible. A little harder to do since my nerves haven’t completely disappeared but it’s going smoother than before. 

I snuck up to the soldier at the back of the trio, covering his mouth and dragging him to the dark, knocking him out shortly after. His two buddies were a piece of cake after that, hit one with a blunt-force sickle and take the other by hand at the same time. No one noticed a thing. 

With the balcony cleared, I reclaimed my little sighting spot and looked over the entire floor, making note of every nook and cranny I could hide in. The clan’s focus changed since last time, they’re trying to get out as fast as possible. Seems like they’re taking Leo’s katanas with them since Lieutenant Itchy McSore-Throat was holding onto them.

“All of you hurry up! We must get out of here!”

I spotted the stolen mannequin in the distance. It’s actually not too far and surprisingly not removed. The two leaders seem distracted by someone. Perfect timing. I crept down and started taking out some more soldiers, listening in to the conversation at the same time. 

“What about getting all the mystic metal we can?” That’s a new voice.

“Forget the metal, we’ve got enough for today. We need to leave or that turtle will bring reinforcements!” 

“Yeah, sure, whatever makes ya happy, boss.” 

“You better not be questioning my authority.”

“Our authority, he means. We’ve had your type before, and they grew to be traitors. I suggest you don’t test the patience of the Foot ‘cause it’s growin’ thin.”

“Nice phrasing! Even if you shouldn’t have interrupted me.” I can’t tell if these two have workplace tension or workplace bromance anymore. “But he’s right. You’d do well to remember your place, rookie.” 

“Hey, I wasn’t tryna question anything guys. Just sayin’ maybe we should’ve planned this better in case we got caught.”

“So you may be right. We’ll keep it in mind but work on your delivery when it comes to criticism. Now quickly, go join the others.”

“Can I at least hold the magic swords?”

“No.”

She grumbled and left through the door, likely exiting the building. Her attitude was a pleasant surprise. I’ll admit, I kinda assumed all the Foot soldiers had brain-numbing levels of obedience. 

The clouds were clearing up, though. The moonlight brightened the room back up, I can’t use the darkness for cover much longer. Alas, if only I knew how to use my literal invisibility powers for longer than a few seconds but you know what? This is genuinely perfectly okay. I’ve taken out enough of them to only leave a few left standing, not to mention the majority of them are already out the building. I gotta take these freaks head on if I wanna get Leo’s swords. No more hide and seek.

I let the light illuminate me. 

“Hey guys!~” I waved gleefully as the Foot idiots finally noticed my presence. “Remember me? Hope it hasn’t been too long.”

“You!” The Brute turned to me first. “You’re the Hamato ally from earlier!”

“What are you doing here! Why have you returned!”

“You sure have a way of asking questions that makes them feel like statements. Anyway, I’m here to collect something you stole from my friend.”

He gripped the swords as he scowled at me. I held my own sickles tighter.

“You foolish child! You leave us no choice but take you out permanently.”

“Oh, really now? You and what army.”

I scoffed when I caught his expression change. Everyone looked at each other, noting how very few of them are suddenly in the room. So distracted they barely noticed me going for my first blow. 

He quickly got ready to block me with Leo’s weapon, absolutely bewildered when I only zoomed past him and sliced at the leg of another soldier behind him. It wasn’t too deep but poor guy was still rendered useless. I dashed to my left at another soldier, dodging his attack and punching right up his chin. 

“What’s going on!? Those sickles were dull the last time she used ‘em!”

 

“They must be mystic…” 

“Right you are, Lieutenant! I kept them dull on purpose, my mistake.” 

I threw a tanto at a cultist’s shoulder. 

“You threw Leo out a window. I think you can bear to see some blood.”

One by one, I went around the room, sprinting past anyone chasing after me and immobilizing anyone with their guard down. I got in a groove good enough to keep myself progressing along while getting out my rage. I wasn’t kidding before, I would’ve kept my blades dull again. I’m still careful to not do anything fatal but I’m not gonna be exactly merciful, either. They deserve this.

Fighting felt like dancing, gliding across the room in an energetic fashion. I’m not crazy enough to go for the Lieutenant or Brute which ended up being a plus for me. They was more than ready to protect themselves, but not their team. At last, I got them all exactly where I needed them. 

Alright, stay calm. Turn invisible no matter what.

My sickles shone with a pink glow, allowing me to disappear from their sight. I scampered past them, reaching the bejeweled mannequin behind them. It feels a little different? But there isn’t any concrete proof for this so my brain’s just tricking me. Whatever, no time to lose. I shoved it in my bag, getting myself used to the weight, and aimed a sickle at his arm.

 

“Where’d she go!?”

“Stay alert! Don’t let her catch you off guard!” 

A bit late for that buddy. 

My blade sliced through, leaving a massive gash on his arm. He screamed and dropped Leo’s sword. I ran through, catching it just as I became visible again. I snatched the other one as quickly as possible and sprinted to create some distance.

I held my arm up to my face, making good use of the wraps’ built-in comms. “Leo! Heads up!”

I threw a katana out the window, smashing the glass as it flew outside. I stopped in my tracks with a smirk. I knew we won.

I dodged the last attacks of the night, accelerating faster than I realized I could go. “Well folks, this was quite a fun match! Hope to never see you again!” Blue light sparked across my body. I leapt in the air, gave a quick peace sign purely to piss ‘em off, and bid my farewell.

“Toodles~”

Teleportation isn’t actually too bad if you know it’s coming.

The cool night air returned on my skin. I was floating for a few seconds before crashing to the roof on my knees. I didn’t even care about the pain, I was too busy enjoying the hug I received for my success! 

“I DID IT! I FUCKING DID IT! WOOHOO!!!”

“Celebrations later, escaping now! Come on!” 

Leo dragged me up and pulled us through another portal.

***

“We are the champions!~

“Gone with the losers ‘cause we are the champions!” 

I handed another slice of pizza to Leo, half the box pepperoni for him and the other half plain cheese for me. We already dropped off the mannequin back to the museum and I gave an anonymous tip to 911 so now we’re simply chilling on the roof singing to celebrate our victorious night. I’m honestly still hyper as hell over it.

“I can’t believe we actually did it! I can’t believe I actually did it! Salena one, Foot Clan NONE BABY, FUCK YEA!”

“Man, I am so happy you came out okay. You have no idea how relieved I was when I saw you again.” He bit into the cheese, the least stressed I’ve seen him all night.

I couldn’t realize it earlier but that hug he gave wasn’t for my success. It’s clear to me now.

“Leo?”

“Hm?” He looked towards me as he bit into the cheese.

“Thanks for trusting me.”

He mirrored my smile. “Hey, we’re friends, right? That’s what I’m here for.”

The spring breeze feels so sweet. The view of the city is rewarding as always. A safe city, a safe night. I can see why they’re so into this whole hero gig. Everything about this moment feels absolutely perfect.

Buzz! Buzz!

I swear to god if my fucking phone’s gonna ruin it again. I quickly checked the notif to see if it was anything important. To my surprise, it’s Jaiden.

They sent me a text. The first one in weeks. It’s a dumb meme I saw earlier today.

We used to do this a lot in the past. Whenever we got into a fight, it’d be our way of ending it. We could never stay mad at each other for more than a day. In the past at least.

I guess this means they’re not mad at me anymore.

“Everything okay?” Leo stared at me, probably concerned by my change in demeanor. 

I double tapped to like Jaiden’s meme and put my phone away, going back to normal.

“It’s nothing important. Just, uh, highschool stuff. You wouldn’t get it.”

He laughed “Oh, okay, well. I know I’m too fabulous to be the average, uncool, normal teen guy doing normal teen things like going to highschool that you want right now but…”

“If you ever need someone to lend a shoulder, you know who to call.”

He’s an idiot, but a very sweet one when he wants to be. 

“Thanks, Leo, but I mean it this time. It’s nothing.” I raised up my slice to request a toast of some sorts. “Let’s go back to celebrating, shall we?”

He let out a satisfied chuckle, returning my toast. I didn’t wanna let anything ruin the way I felt tonight, even if their text tainted the vibe a bit. But hey, it’s technically a win, too! I got my confirmation that Jaiden and I are indeed still friends.

Though I gotta admit, I’m not as happy as I thought I’d be.

Next Chapter

[smolwritingchick]

The Bangtan Gal Chapter 66- BTS GAYO Tracks 3-9

Chapter Summary: Jennie and Jungkook team up to reenact a kiss scene from The Heirs K-Drama. Bangtan continue to play various activities to win and avoid penalties.

Words: 5,000+

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GAYO Track 3

Jin announced, “Let’s enjoy good K-Pop with BTS. Bangtan~!”

“Gayo!” everyone announced

“Yay~!” J-Hope started jumping around. “It’s been a while!”

After recapping what happened in the last episode, the members revealed that today’s theme is OST songs.

‘Re-act scenes with great OST. Five chances are given, the team that acts without NG wins.’

Jen was not quite familiar with a bunch of movies and K-Dramas but she’s seen some that should give her some familiar vibes. The members were exposed to each song, bringing up specific scenes from each drama or movie.

“Your roles are in the box.” they were told as everyone went to grab a piece of paper.

“What’s yours Ennie?!” Taehyung rushed over to take a peek at her paper.

“Boy, back up. Don’t touch my paper.” she moved away, bumping into Jimin. 

After he saw what was on her paper, he met up with Taehyung and thought of a plan to get JenKook together for this one. They had to rush around to try to sneak glances at everyone else’s papers to make sure JenKook had the same category. As everyone was scrambling around, Jimin snatched Jen’s paper out of her hands.

“H-hey! Give that back!”

“Hehehe, sorry!” he handed her another piece of paper, while Taehyung snatched Jungkook’s paper and got chased by him until he had given him another paper.

After things calmed down, one by one the members announced their K-Drama and character. Jungkook had gotten ‘The Heirs, Park Shin-hye’ while Jimin and Taehyung anxiously waited to see if Jen had the same.

“The Heirs, Lee Minho,” Jen announced, causing Jimin and Taehyung to grin widely.

“Ahhh they’re doing the rooftop scene~!” Jimin beamed

“Jennie’s the boy, Jungkook is the girl.” Taehyung giggled.

“D-did you want to switch roles?” Jungkook asked her, blushing a little from the guys teasing him.

“It’s cool. I’m sure I can play Lee Minho well for the scene,” she reassured him.

They soon found that J-Hope and V were paired up, Jin and Jimin were paired, and Rapmon and Suga were also a pair.

“Eat the stick cookie until 3cm is left.” Suga read his objections for him and Rapmon.

“Acting is not easy,” Rapmon mentioned

Jen read her objections with Jungkook. It was similar to what Suga had read about the pocky stick.

“Can they not do pocky? Can’t they just kiss for real?” Taehyung blurted out

“Hyung!” Jungkook exclaimed.

“The pocky stick is corny! You two kissed the last time! Kiss again!” Jimin said.

“Since the kiss is abrupt, why not let me place my thumbs on your lips and kiss them?” Jen suggested.

“I-if that’s what you want, we’ll do that.” Jungkook nodded.

“It’s a two-way street. You want to do that?” she asked and once he said yes, she grabbed his hand and pulled him away from the group so they could work on the scene. “This is what I was thinking of.”

She demonstrated by placing her thumbs on his lips. Rising up on her tippy toes, she started leaning in as his eyes widened, becoming Jungshooked. She closed her eyes and kissed her thumbs for a moment before releasing him and stepping back.

Looking at his face, she began laughing as the camera filmed them. 

'Jungkook.Exe Has Stopped Working'

“His face!” she walked away, trying to control her laughter. 

If the cameras weren’t on them and if they were alone, he’d feel more at ease.

Pulling herself together, they begin to practice the scene. 

“Looks like I’ll have to yell at him.” she rewatched the scene on her phone with him.

After practice, each group got to their station, watching group by group perform. First V and J-Hope performed a scene from Secret Garden. V held J-Hope’s feet while he did sit-ups and rose up to meet V’s face closely.

“Mr. V. Since when you’ve been so pretty? From last year?” Hobi acted out. V pushed him and stood up. “Hey, it was a joke.”

Jen had to refrain herself from laughing when V had to pop the balloon on Hobi’s butt. The first kick caused Hobi to jump and yell out in pain while the members laughed. After the third try, V successfully popped the balloon as V high fived Jungkook and Jennie. Next up was JenKook.

“Let’s try to do this on the first try, no mistakes so we can win,” Jungkook told her as she nodded.

Their station had a big table that represented the edge of the rooftop.

“I can’t wait to see this.” Yoongi looked on.

“Can we start?” Jen asked and got the OK.

They begin the scene with Jungkook’s back towards her. 

“Are you hurt anywhere?” she acted with concern in her voice. When he had nodded, she approached him. “Let me see.”

“Don’t come! You’re going to get your clothes dirty.” Jungkook exclaimed. 

She pressed her lips together and grabbed him by the wrist to turn him around. “Stay still, let me see.”

“I’m fine!” he yelled.

“I said stay still!” she yelled back and checked his hand. 

His phone began to buzz and she grabbed it to see who was calling but Jungkook snatched it back, placing it against his chest as she let go of him.

“Don’t! I have to answer it.”

“Don’t answer it.”

“You saw him earlier. Avoiding him and ignoring him doesn’t work. He knows that I’m not rich.”

“It’s okay if he doesn’t. Don’t answer it.” She firmly responded as they stared at each other intently.

“How is it okay? He knows everything!” he yelled

“I said don’t answer it!” she yelled back.

“Wow~!” Rapmon and Yoongi murmur, engrossed by their acting. 

Jimin and Taehyung watched with heart eyes as their plan worked. Things were going great.

“She’s so short, and he’s so tall, he’s looking down at her while she takes his phone.” Jin giggled.

The members watched JenKook intently as they acted passionately, and were impressed by their yelling and intense facial expressions.

Jungkook opened the phone to answer it. “Hello-“

Jennie snatched the phone and pulled him close, placing her thumbs on his lips to kiss him while he stood there, shocked. The members started jumping up and down, freaking out once they see their kiss. 

Pulling away, Jen said, “Try answering it again. You will see me go crazy. I’m going to kill the person who calls you. I never go halfway”

Jungkook quickly got out of her grasp and walked away, looking troubled while Jen clenched her jaw, watching him leave. After the scene ended, JenKook high fived each other and sat with V and J-Hope while Jin and Jimin prepared their scene from I’m Sorry I Love You.

“Jimin and Jin, action!” Rapmon announced. 

Jin covered his face while Jimin sat next to him, pretending to drive but then Jimin began to laugh as J-Hope pointed out mistakes

“NG, NG!” Yoongi called out

They started again with Jimin yelling, “Stop crying! Damn, I can’t do this.” 

Jimin hunched forward and got out of his seat, making the members laugh. J-Hope fell back and cackled, clapping his hands. “My voice is not for acting.”

“That team is screwed. They will receive the punishment.” J-Hope declared.

Once they tried it for the third time, Jimin couldn’t do it and everyone laughed again.

“I want to act!” Jin exclaimed.

Starting over again, Jimin finally got it together, “Stop crying! If you cry, I’ll live with you! Let’s eat. Let’s eat something.”

“Stop the car,” Jin murmured sadly

“Let’s eat.”

“Stop the car.”

“Will you eat or kiss me?”

“Stop the car!” Jin yelled while Jennie looked on impressed.

“Will you eat!? With me!? Or die?!” Jimin placed 15 pieces of candy in Jin’s mouth. “Eat! I don’t want to do this again! Eat!”

The members laughed at the way Jimin was yelling. 

“He is so cute.” Jen giggled as they finally completed their scene. 

Last up was Suga and Rapmon acting out a scene from Architecture 101, Suji and Jehoon’s first kiss scene. Rapmon laid his head on Suga’s shoulder, sleeping while the members burst into laughter because of his acting. Suga placed a pocky stick in his mouth and they chewed it until it was 3cm. But they get an NG because Rapmon forgot his line.

Trying it again, Rapmon said the line and then they had to jump rope together, continuing to get an NG. Their biggest challenge was the jump rope but Rapmon continued to step on the rope. 

“AHHHHHH~!” Rapmon yelled and fell to his knees in despair against the wall while Jen cackled.

In the end, Rapmon failed to get the last tissue off the floor. 

For the punishment, Suga opened the paper. “Cheesy and corny action. Show your great performance.”

After playing rock, paper, scissors, Rapmon received the punishment and got into character.

“He’s immersed in emotions.” Jungkook pointed out

“Rap Monster scene 1, monologue. Action!” Suga announced.

“I say that my ideal type is a girl wearing Converse high tops.” Rapmon started. “That’s because of you, Red Converse high tops. I lost my mind for your body figure.”

Jennie cringed and pursed her lips together just like the Conceited reaction meme in front of the camera to give ARMY another reaction photo to use while the other members silently laughed at his monologue.

“PD is wearing red Converse high tops?” Rapmon went on. “Be my Converse high tops.”

“AHHHHHH!” The members cringed

---------

GAYO Track 4

“Time for K-Pop with BTS! Bangtan Gayo!” Jungkook announced.

After recapping the previous show, Jungkook revealed the next challenge which was songs by lyrics, Bangtan Karaoke.

Step 1: Memorize the lyrics and sing in turns.

Step 2: Do the missions for special chances

Step 3: Snacks if you finish within 10 tries.

“There’s also a dreadful penalty if you fail. Tasty sand eel.” The PD announced.

“Wow, you are just the person with the good news today, huh?” Jen added while the members groaned at the possibility of the penalty. 

She already knew she was going to lose. She wasn’t all that familiar with a bunch of karaoke songs in Korea. Sitting on the floor, pretzel style, Jen sat in between V and Rapmon. 

The first song came on as the lyrics blared out, ‘Hey you, look my way. And tell me I’m pretty. Imagining you falling for me.’

The whole time, Jennie had a confused facial expression. She had no idea what this song was. It was announced that it was the follow-up song for FINKLE’s 1st album in 1998.

“When Jungkook and Jennie were two. I recognize the song.” Suga spoke up

“Uh...” Jen murmured, looking confused with Jungkook.

Each member took a piece of paper to choose which number that would be. And of course, with bad luck, Jennie was number one. J-Hope would be next then Rapmon, Jin, Jimin, Suga, Jungkook and V.

“Why...? Just why?” she complained.

For the first attempt, a light and joyful song came on as the members danced around, swaying side to side.

“Okay! Okay! I got this.” Jen prepared, getting into the song.

“1! 2! 3! 4!” the members announced and turned to her to start the song.

Swaying around, clapping her hands, “I don’t know the words but I’m singing on key. You might as well give me that penalty. Cause Miss Bangtan doesn’t know this song~!” she sang out, making the members laugh as her face warmed up. 

It threw everyone off track.

“At least she was honest! Hahah.” Rapmon laughed while each member got hit with a hammer.

J-Hope helped her with the lyrics and she tried to remember as she finally sang the right words.

Starting the song properly, J-Hope sang, “Hey you, look my way. And tell me I’m pretty.”

“Imagine me...” Rapmon messed up while the members figured out the song.

Starting again, the members danced around while Hobi did his stretch dance. Jen managed to say the right words but Rapmon kept messing up and as a punishment, they had Jin remove a stocking off his feet within 30 seconds and he did it quickly. As the members continued to bicker around to know the lyrics, JenKook remained quiet, watching the members. But they all kept failing and continued to get penalties.

“I dunno what the hell is going on.” Jen looked at the camera, amused while they all tried to figure out the lyrics.

During their sixth attempt, they made it to Jimin, “Like the movie yesterday, hug me and tell me you wanna kiss.”

“Look my way always in your eyes.” Suga sang in his deep voice. “I’m a little girl.”

“It’s yet awkward to say, love.” Jungkook sang

“But in your heart, I’ve become a lady. My love now-na na na-” V forgot the rest of the lyrics which caused the members to go crazy.

“Ahhhh!” Suga yelled

Jimin and Rapmon threw their pieces of paper and stood up frantically, yelling.

“What are you doing!?” Rapmon yelled. “SHE OPENED HER EYES!”

Jimin marched up to V and started yelling at him, “Opened her eyes!”

“Why can’t you open her eyes!?”

Jennie fell on her back, cracking up before she went over to try to protect V, calming Jimin down. “Leave my baby V alone, ahaha! It’s okay!”

For the seventh attempt, V correctly got the lyrics right and started dancing around.

“Call call give a call!” Jungkook sang

‘Wait, wait, we’re going back!? I don’t know the rest of the song!’ Jen looked on in fear. 

Oh, she was screwed. The members were going to kill her when she messed up.

“Whatever you want, I will give.” Rapmon sang.

“In your arms, your arms.” J-Hope messed up the lyrics, causing the members to stare at him.

Rapmon shoved J-Hope away. “You stupid!” he yelled

“You said you knew!” The members rushed up while Jimin and Yoongi stomped on J-Hope. 

Jungkook threw a pillow at him to finish him off. Now everyone had to have a shuffle change and this time, Jen would be next to Jin, at the end.

“Okay, so can you help me? What am I singing? A girl does not know this song.” she asked Tae for help as he went over the song with her.

For their eighth attempt, they sang along but once it came to Jin, he messed up before Jen could. For their ninth attempt, Jin finally sang right but when it came to Jennie, she hesitated and messed up the words.

“JENNIE~!” Rapmon yelled while Jimin rushed up and grabbed a hold of her

“Do you wanna die!?” Jimin yelled while the members attacked her with pillows

“I’m sorry!” she shouted, shielding her body from the assault.

Finally getting it during the next try, it was Rapmon who messed up the final line and they opened the next challenge which was to eat jelly on your face without hands. They allowed Jin to do it but he failed when it dropped. Yoongi went next and it fell to his tongue but it fell off. Last up was Jimin who successfully got it in. 

For their last attempt, they finally sang the song with no errors as Rapmon dramatically sang the final verse, “Just like this, in your arms, take me.”

“I’m yours!” The members yelled and finally celebrated that they won.

For the penalty drink, they had to take numbers and were forced to get their drink. Everyone drank but then suddenly, it was Jennie who got the penalty drink because she spit it out and started coughing.

“Oh God! Oh my God! No! Lord Jesus, have mercy!” she whined over the members teasing her.

“Bangtan Gayo, see you next time!” Yoongi waved goodbye

---------

GAYO Track 5

“Ayooo, BTS here and it’s time to enjoy some K-Pop music,” Jen announced, standing in the middle with a bright smile. 

“BTS’s K~Pop!” she announced with them.

“Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo!” Hobi shouted excitedly.

“Last episode, I had the great pleasure of drinking that gross drink. Thank you. My tastebuds are dead.” she announced while everyone chuckled.

“You look like you were about to cry, smartie. Was it that bad?” Suga asked.

“I mean, would you like to taste it for yourself?”

“Nah, I’m good.” He chuckled

“It was nauseating. My breath still was smelling bad after the mouthwash. Anyway, what’s going on today?” she received the card. “GAYO 5. Association quiz by inference.”

Elders vs Youngsters. It would be the Hyung team vs Maknae team. Guess the other team’s singer and song. 

After writing the penalty, they began the challenge. The Makane line sat first while the hyung line stood. For the first question, Suga started blowing in his hands

“Trumpet, maybe?” Jen guessed.

“No, balloon,” V spoke as they watched Jin portray carrying a balloon. 

Before they knew it, Jungkook walked up to the camera

“TVXQ’s Balloon,” he answered, getting it correct.

Jen hated games like this because it did take her a while to figure out what was what and she felt like she would slow her team down.

“A-yo!” Rapmon interpreted

“I’ght you goin’ have to give us a little more than an ‘A-yo’,” Jen replied while Jungkook got hit with a hammer after trying to guess.

“Oppa car, bought, pick you up.” Rapmon tried to explain. “Sunglasses.”

Jen was still confused but her team knew it was Jinusean. 

“I don’t know anything, man, damn,” she complained as she watched her team try to guess but constantly get hit in the head.

But finally, Jungkook got the correct answer. Next was the Hyung line freaking out like they won something.

Jin suddenly pointed to Jennie. “You were just listening to this song.”

“Oh!” she rushed up to the camera. “First I want to give a shoutout to my boys Block B because the song is Jackpot by Block B.” she rapped some of the song while she got it correct.

After they finished guessing, it took them ten minutes and 31 seconds. Next was the Hyung line and they were easily breezing through all the songs. Once EXO’s growl came on, Jen immediately performed the dance after her teammates were trying to growl around, confusing the Hyung Line.

Jin rushed to the camera. “EXO’s growl.”

It took the Hyung line six minutes and 27 seconds and now it was time for the penalty. Opening up the paper, Jimin revealed it to be closing with 17 candies. So one person had to eat 17 pieces of candy.

“I’ll do it,” Jen announced before her team could play rock, paper, scissors. “I’ve been craving candy today so it shouldn’t be that bad. Let me at em.”

“Wow, this is a first that anyone offered to take one for the team,” Rapmon said.

“Oh that’s great, you’re a lifesaver.” Jimin sighed out of relief.

“Taking one for the team, respect.” Jungkook patted her on the back.

Given the candy, she exhaled, looking at how big they were. “Oh God...” 

She placed them all in her mouth as the members started pinching her cheeks. Her mouth was full and she tried to speak but the members teased her for how she was sounding.

----------

GAYO Track 6

Jimin was the MC for this episode while Jennie sat in between Jin and Suga. After recapping the previous episode, they explained that this episode’s topic is Fans’ special vote on BTS’ top 5 dances. Before getting started, it was announced to pick the worst dancers as a warm-up. V had forgotten about the Tomorrow choreography and Jimin spotted his mistake. The members continued laughing at Rapmon’s dancing. In the end, they picked Suga as the worst dancer in his team.

“Really? How come? It’s not fair!” Suga stood up. “Did you pick me for fun?”

“I mean...” Jennie snickered and shrugged, earning a dirty look from him.

“I took a closer look at how Suga danced. It was really funny.” V giggled.

“I pick Smartie as the worst dancer,” Suga called out.

“Me, too!” Rapmon added with a laugh.

“Bish whet?!” she stood up and turned to them as Rapmon, Jin, and Suga laughed loudly and moved out of their seats. “Don’t start something you can’t finish, Suga.” 

“You wanna go?” he demanded with a laugh while the members looked back and forth, amused.

“Bring it on, old man, bring it on!”

“Dance battle! Play the music!” Jimin announced.

Danger soon came on, which confused the both of them. It had been a while. And lowkey, she absolutely hated performing the song. It took a while, but then they got a groove and managed to perform in sync with the guys cheering in the background. Jennie ended up missing a few steps, while Suga went on. Needless to say, she was a bit irritated that she messed up due to her competitive nature.

“I guess Suga won,” V said after they finished while Jen and Suga shared a laugh and high fived.

“Everyone decide who won,” Jimin said

“Suga,” Rapmon announced

“Jennie!” Jungkook raised his hand with a bright smile.

After a heated discussion, it was announced that Jennie was ranked at the bottom for dancing and would be the special MC with words of consolation.

“Ooh, I get to MC? Let’s get it!” she quickly made her way to Jimin as he dramatically presented her the mic. “Thank you, my good sir.”

“You’re welcome. Thank you for taking my MC position.” He responded with envy

“You are quite welcome.” she laughed and ruffled his hair. Turning to the group, she happily smiled. “Gentlemen, I’ll be your awesome MC for today. So, let us see the top 5 dances of Bangtan voted by the fans. Write down your answers on the board. First up, let’s think of the number one dance.”

After writing, they revealed their answers and surprisingly it was between I Need U and Dope.

“To me, Dope is the most awesome,” Suga said

“I Need U has very artistic choreography,” Jungkook argued.

“Oh, wow...am I the only one who thinks it’s neither of those?” Jen spoke. “I was thinking of maybe Bulletproof or Tomorrow.”

“Why you think it’s tomorrow?” Jin asked.

“Because it’s sexy and every time we body roll, 'errbody goes crazy and screams.” she shrugged. 

“But fans would vote for something that looks fabulous,” Rapmon added

“Exactly. Us body rolling and so on in tomorrow is quite fabulous from all them screams if you asked me.” she let out a soft chuckle. “Anyway, let’s see what it is. The first choice is...”

‘I Need U’

Jungkook and Jimin immediately started laughing because they were the only ones who chose that song and 42% of fans voted for that as their number one dance. Jimin began running around, yelling in celebration while the rest remained bewildered that it wasn’t Dope.

“Let’s guess the 4th best dance,” Jen announced. 

After a while, the members revealed their answers and it was a variety of different dances about Danger, MBC, No More Dream, and Tomorrow. 

“Number four is...one of my favorites, Tomorrow! Now with number three, it comes with a punishment so...choose wisely~!”

After they revealed their various answers, the members were offered the choice to change their answers. It amused Jennie how conflicted they looked as they tried to ponder if their answer was right or if they should change it.

“He says nothing,” Suga called Jin out who remained quiet the entire time.

“Hey, focus on the show.” J-Hope laughed at Jin.

“Doesn’t he need to change?” Suga pointed at Jin’s board which had No More Dream written on it.

“Why? You stick to your way!” Jin stood up. “Why do you ignore No More Dream?” he pointed his arm forward and danced, making Jen’s eyes widen and Jimin lean forward with laughter.

“What was that!?” she laughed and mimicked the dance move he had done.

Before she knew it, the boys began to have another heated discussion about the dances, as she tried to restore order. 

“Aye! Aye! Aye! Relax!” she yelled, getting their attention. “Let’s see what ARMY said. Number three is...from the 2014 Korea Music Festival.”

“Yeah!” Jimin yelled, jumping in celebration while he was the only person that got it right.

“Always go with your gut guys, don’t get influenced by each other.” she reminded and gave Jimin a high five. “What is behind door number two!”

As soon as Dope was revealed, Jin jumped up and repeatedly yelled “jjeoreo!”

Since there were only two stockings, Jungkook and V would have to dance battle and then Rapmon and Jin would have to as well. 

“We should be able to see something new. A fresh version of the choreography.” J-Hope announced.

When Dope came on, V and Jungkook dance battled. The members began to get hyped and laughed when Jungkook was extra as usual with his dancing.

“Are you okay!?” Jennie laughed when Jin fell on his butt. She helped him up and patted him on the back. 

In the end, Rapmon and V were the ones who received stockings on their heads as Jennie placed one on Rapmon’s head and Jimin placed the other on V’s.

“That stocking reminds me of Rookie King.” She laughed. “Remember when Jungkook had a stocking on his head?”

The members laughed at the fond memory and began to portray how he was with the stocking.

--------

GAYO Track 7

For this episode, the topic will be songs of male singers based on dance. They were split up into teams after playing the palm-up or palm-down game. Team Red consisted of V, Jennie, Jimin, and Suga, while Team Black and White had Rapmon, Jin, Hobi, and Jungkook. It will be a speed quiz between the two teams. They would have to explain the song and the singer by dance and body language. 

Jennie, Suga, and Jimin sat by the table while V had the sign with the songs as Jungkook’s team went first to begin guessing. Team Red was bewildered at how fast the opposing team was getting the dances right. 

“Are we going to lose?” Jennie asked

“No! We will win! Stay optimistic!” Jimin exclaimed and shook her.

As soon as Rapmon came up to dance around, their team began to struggle because they could not get anything until J-Hope finally got it after a while. Jimin and Jennie held onto each other while laughing once Jungkook spaced up and struggled to try to think of what to do for the next song. After they were done, Jennie sat in between V and Jimin while Suga began to explain the first dance.

“BANG BANG BANG!” Jen yelled over V and Jimin, causing the guys to laugh. 

Running up to the front, she watched Jungkook turn the page.

‘Uh...how did it go...?’ she pondered as her body began to move on its own to perform the choreography as she hit her head multiple times.

“Don’t hurt yourself.” Jin laughed.

“Mamacita by Super Junior!” Jimin called out and rushed to the front.

“EXO’s Growl!” Jen, V and Suga answer while Team Black and White complain about how easy their songs are to guess.

As Team Red continued to rush to the front while answering correctly, Team Black and White continued to complain about how easy it was for them. Jennie looked confused when Suga was back up, throwing his hands up but Jimin answered it correctly.

“This is it.” V made a dramatic face

“Oh! It’s my boys! Block B’s Her!” Jen answered and went back to the front. 

As soon as she leaned forward and started snapping, the boys immediately yelled, “Sherlock by SHINee!”

Next was Suga but they continued to struggle on the song.

“Go away!” Jennie stood and shoved Jungkook away after he continued to dance the choreography of Bang Bang Bang to ‘help’ out. Jungkook’s loud giggling filled the room while she went back to her seat to focus on Suga.

But in the end, they weren’t able to get the right answer and lost the game. After playing Rock, Paper, Scissors, V, and Jimin were sitting in front of each other while the members surrounded them. Soon after, a flustered Jimin went to kiss V on the cheek and then began to run around.

-------

GAYO Track 8

After recapping the previous episode, the members find out that they will learn trot songs that represent Korea. The rules were to have V read the trot song lyrics and the others would say the title and signer. The guessing team that sings it right will win the round. The first team to get three out of five will be declared the winner. Team Tall consisted of Jungkook, Jin and Rapmon while Team To Be Tall had Jimin, J-Hope, Jennie and Suga.

Once they heard the first song, the members laughed once V started dancing and singing with his gold jacket. 

“Sing it!” Jen cheered.

“V’s trot class. Everyone is ready to learn about trot?” V announced, sitting in between the two teams.

The first lyrics were, ‘I called dibs on an attractive girl. Her appearance is so sexy. Her face is dazzling. Her body is dazzling.’

Jungkook and Suga immediately rushed to the mic. Suga got to it first and answered, “Park Hyun-bin. The song is Dazzling Dazzling.”

“Trot singers have dancers behind them!” J-Hope announced as the members danced behind Suga when he began to sing but he forgot the lyrics. Soon after, Jungkook took over, dancing around with his teammates.

“Dazzling, dazzling. She’s so smoking hot. I’m so attractive that everyone loves me. I called dibs on a girl.” Jungkook sang, and glanced right at Jennie, “Beautiful, her appearance.”

While Jennie was snickering at how extra Team Tall was, she had caught him looking at her while he sang as her face warmed up. After he finished singing, Team Tall won the first round.

‘If others call me, I will think about it. If you call me, I will run unconditionally. I’ll run to you unconditionally’ was the next set of lyrics as Jungkook walked up to the mic.

“I don’t know who the singer is.” He answered as everyone laughed.

“Isn’t it Park Sang-cheol?” Rapmon asked.

J-Hope rushed up to the mic, “Park Sang-cheol’s Unconditionally.”

When the song came on, J-Hope sang while his team stood next to him and danced in the background. But apparently, he got the lyrics wrong so they redeemed themselves to sing it correctly.

“Whether it’s day or night, I will run to you anytime! I will run unconditionally! Jajara, jarajara, janjanjan!” Team To Be Tall sang and jumped up and down.

As the game went on, the two teams were tied 2 and 2. Now it was the final round and a random song would be played and if anyone knew it, they would have to sing it. As soon as they heard the music, Team Tall rushed to the front and answered with Kim Soohee, A South Bound Train, which was correct. Jennie kept nodding her head at how passionately Jin was singing but then V interrupted the team when they sang a lyric wrong.

“We’ll take that, thank you.” Jennie walked past Team Tall with the rest of her teammates as Suga smoothly grabbed the mic out of Jin’s hands. 

As the song replayed again, the team sang the song but then messed up when they said: “for the South.” Instead of “In the South.”

During Team Tall’s second attempt, they sang the wrong lyrics again. Suga and J-Hope went up to the mic while they made Jimin stay behind because he messed up the song before.

“Hey, bring Jimin, this is a team effort. Come on, look at the face.” Jen pointed out.

“Smartie, do not fall for that puppy dog look of his,” Suga replied.

“But it’s Jimin, you can’t say no to him or reject him.”

“Park Jimin, do not come over here.” J-Hope pointed.

“’ight then I’m staying with Jimin.” Jen stayed in her seat with him as he laughed.

“Jennie, get over here!”

“No one leaves Jimin behind,” she answered firmly.

“Aish...fine. Bring him.” Suga gestured as she and Jimin stood with them by the mic.

In the end, Team To Be Tall won the game while Team Tall sat there in defeat. For the punishment, Team Tall would part their hair 2:8 and sing dramatically while everyone laughed.

--------

GAYO Track 9

For Track 9, the members were seated. Jen sat in between Jin and Jungkook and the members would have to guess the top five BTS songs selected by fans. On top of that, they would have to get the rankings right and they only have three chances to do so. If they fail, they’ll be punished. The members have to guess ranking 2, 4 and 5.

“What do you think J-Hope?” Suga, who was the MC for this episode, asked.

“I personally think our title songs would get more votes.” He answered.

“Don’t underestimate our B Side songs though. It’s tricky.” Jen added.

“What do you think Jennie?” Suga asked.

“I think Tomorrow is on here.”

“You always talk about tomorrow.” Rapmon laughed

“What? It’s a great song!”

“Why thank you,” Suga said with appreciation.

After the members were talking about which songs they thought were on the list, they began to write their answers down. Jennie wrote down Tomorrow for number 2, Dead Leaves for number 4 and Bulletproof for number 5. She remained quiet for the majority of this episode, concentrating hard on what songs she thought were the right ones.

“Tomorrow is number 2,” Suga revealed.

“YASSSS~!” she tossed her board down and got up to dance in celebration while the rest of the members tossed their boards down, annoyed that they got it wrong. 

As a punishment for Jin, he wore a tight shirt which made the members laugh. When it was time to guess the fifth song, which was revealed to be BTS Cypher Part 3, the majority of the members got it correct while Jen sighed in defeat. So far I Need U was number one, Tomorrow was number two, and Let Me Know was number three. Lastly was the fourth song while Suga announced that the punishment is to drink an unknown beverage.

“I’m staying away from drinks. I don’t feel like dealing with what happened on Track 4,” Jen said.

After being given five seconds to answer, Jen kept the song that was on her mind as they all revealed their answers but in the end, Miss Right was the correct one. Jennie facepalmed while the members talked about the rest of the top songs on the list.

[cew644]

My personal interpretation of the FF16 ending

Back on my FF16 BS again since I've been replaying NG+. I haven't changed my mind much about the ending, but I think there could be two possible routes.

Major spoilers for the ending below:

So, for the people who haven't done the late-game side quests, there are quite a few narrative elements that could point towards Clive's survival.

In Jill's quest, there is a bit where she wishes to Metia (the red star) that Clive come back to her. Since Clive is like her treasure and her dawn. In the ending credits, we see Metia fade away, and Jill begins crying. She runs away to mourn but looks up and sees the dawn rising once again, and she smiles. This, alongside the lyrics of "My Star", have people speculating that Clive lives. I can get behind the Metia symbolism, but not the lyrics. The song closes with the lyrics: "And though our night is over you shall always remain, forever, my treasure, my star." That just seems like accepting and mourning the loss of a loved one, but that's just me.

The next most clear one is in the Hypocrates quest with Dion. After reuniting the two, Hypocrates thanks Clive and gives him a quill to document his journey after the fight. The bonus after-credits scene then has a book written by Joshua Rosfield. This, along with Clive seemingly narrating the book's intro and conclusion, could mean he lives.

So this is where I start to differ in my opinion on the ending. I've seen a lot of people say that this is just Clive taking his brother's name to write the book since "the phoenix's power can't bring back the dead."

There is no ending in my mind where Joshua dies. Clive did everything he could to try and help his brother. Joshua surviving Pheonix Gate and coming back is almost like a second chance to protect his family once again. Joshua dying again would go against this sort of second chance that Clive now has. So, Joshua clearly dies from Ultima, but Clive also absorbs Ultima's power of creation. I think you can pretty safely say he can use both Ultima and the Pheonix to bring Joshua back.

So with all this preamble out of the way, here are my two possible endings:

Clive lives: So in this one, all 3 of them live. We take all the sidequests as narrative foreshadowing. Clive still succumbs to the Cystals curse but lives long enough on the beach for Jill to find him. Her wish to Metia once again, came true. His hands are no longer functional, so rather than write the novel himself, he has his brother write down his story. This is why Clive is narrating the game, and Joshua's name is on the book. And if the brothers get to live, so does Dion. I abide by the film-making rules where if you do not see a dead body, they are not dead. The man is a dragoon. He can fall from crazy heights. The medicine girl and Terence can find him or something idk. This, plus his promise to Hyprocates to go and retrieve the Wyvern's Tail, could also point to his survival. This would be the best possible ending for the trio.

Clive dies: In this one, Clive is consumed by the curse completely. Joshua lives, and Dion is probably dead. Joshua, Jill and all the people in the hideaway write down a chronicle of Clive's adventure. As discussed in the sidequests, Gav takes up Cid's name and works with all the hideaway members to try and help the people learn to live without magic. All the people that Clive helps can still work to try and live in this new magicless world that Clive died to make. A world that Clive chose how he would live and die for. It's very true to the "a world where people choose how they live and die" that Cid and he vowed to make together. And for that reason, even though it's much more sombre, I prefer this interpretation. It also makes more sense to me because it's very clear that they didn't want Jill in the final boss cause they couldn't kill her and Joshua and make the healing scene make any sense. The theme is also about brotherhood. It's just an eldest sibling thing to do lol. Edit: Grammar.

[rose4pup]

Fun facts about me

I'm a m!n0r but anyone can interact just don't be weird

I'm new to tumblr (I came from tiktok 4n4 community its very different on here.)

My whole family is 0bese SOOO

I'm a f00d addict despite trying so overwhelming hard to res

I first image is what I dress and look like vs what I want to look like is second image.

I want to be a game developer for horror games

I love Fnaf, Anime, Creepyspasta,Little pet shops, Welcome home, drawing even though i suck, despite wanting to make horror games i am easily scared.

My whole life i have been 0bese except for when I was 8 and had to move to a different Country City??? I was very close to d!abetic and had to be put on a vegan diet with my sister. we got very th!n and I still thought i was f@t even then. then when we moved out with our dad because he thought they weren't taking care of us when he figured out the conditions. we gained a ton of weight, both me and my sister. i forgot to mention since like 3rd grade I refused to eat lunch, then in 5th grade (184 lbs) i started p*rging and skipping bre@kfast and lunch then b!ng!ng at home. I stopped doing that during summer and gained back so much weight.in 6th grade I would redo the not e@ting,b!nging, and p()rging cycle all over again. during that summer I gained to 194. I then starting locking in, first time I got a calorie counter and steps tracker. but i Iwas more wannarex!c, I'm pretty sure I'm a 4n0rex!c or at least junk0rex!c but whatever. then I moved with my dad again and bought a scale and got more in control. I lost to 175 lbs. and then I had to move with my mom because of financial issues. so, I moved back to my birthplace. then I gained back so much, like I mentioned majority of my family is obese or at least overweight so with all the unhealthy eating, lack of a scale, no self-control, constant fast food and my granny's cooking I got to a disgusting 225. Now I'm trying to lose back all that shit and keep failing. as of writing this i have only had liquids except for my f@t@ss eating four mini reeses from my uncle.

I was really slow in k-2 grade then in 3-7 i got a random boost of intelligence but i wasn't really smart just have good memory and I'm always reading cause I've been a gacha kid since 2018. (if your reading this I promise this isn't my best grammar)

I like danganronpa but i am broke so i watch kubz scouts and biju mike play it. I'm watching the playthroughs in the wrong order no spoilers please. I love fnaf, butI enjoyed the movie despite hating the lore changes.

I liked wonyoungism and in the beginning of 7th grade i had a huge kpop phase but thats gone now.

In 5th grade I thought a was bisexual andIi was a feminist, 6th grade I was a man h@ter and a lesbian despite me being obsessed with male gay romance but whatever. now I'm realizing I was straight and in denial(plus i started hearing stories about crimes commited by men on women and how common it is but now i'm realizing anyone can be evil so i no longer hate me i hate everyone. true EQUALITY) I only had two crushes on girls, and they were just my close friends and I had misread feelings, i was jealous of my best friend(5-now) thinness, beauty, curly hair, fashion, and personality i literally wanted to be her and i was obsessed but i misread it as a crush. then my other friend who treated me like shit despite me being her first real friend. in the past i wanted her validation but now I don't and that makes her mad. Idk but her treating me unfairly and always mocking me for my weight despite being overweight herself manifested in me craving her validation and believing it was a crush.

I've been a gacha tuber for 4 out of the 5 years i've been a youtuber and I only have 1,500 subs i feel like i should give up but i genuinely like my story telling but i never make the videos because i hate nearly everything i make so i never try anymore.

I like minecraft,roblox,gacha,pinterest,wattpad,AO3, and idk what else to add currently.

when i say i'm an anime fan i mean i know a few popular ones, jjk,beaststars,demonslayer,black butler,made in a abyss,danganronpa, ajin demi human,tokyo ghoul,hunter x hunter, Komi can't communicate, blue exorcist, attack on titan,chainsaw man,my hero,helluva a boss if that counts.

I like melanie martinez,aesteria,6 rarely human,ketseki,mitski,ayesha erotica,lumi athena,odetari,rebyzx,thats a few most songs i listen to i only like that one song by the artist and not the rest.

I litterally have no life and sit in bed all day with dreams and hopes but never getting up to do them but the funny part is i can get up to eat like bro thats the one thing i don't want to do but for some reason i was end up eating while thinking i'm never g0nna e@t again, promising to fast tomorrow just to b!nge.

I know its cringe and common but my favorite animals are wolves, A+ for loyalty an family team work. I also love cheatahs.

I love animal facts and documentaries.

I didn't grow up in jamaica,i'm only half jamaican.

Since I was only skinny for 2 years i ate the fact, I have barely any pictures plus the fact in most pictures I do have I realized its very unlikely I will have a thigh gap as skinny me looked skeletal up top like literally dead but for some reason my thighs were still muscly. but ! have grown alot since then.

I love lavender,rose pink and black.

If you want to know (sukuna 1,gojo 2,toji 3, choso 4,I know none of yall like mahito but he 5, geto/kenjaku 6. smk.)

Bye now and I hope i'm not sharing to much.

block don't report ig

[bardic-tales]

2.19.2024

tw: death. illness. chronic pain.

I am slowly getting back into reading and writing. I tend to bite off more than I can chew, and I thought that an overarching plot spanning all my fandoms would be an interesting thing to work on.

I also wanted to work on several original projects. Unfortunately, my health and family circumstances made it so that I have always been in bed with extreme fatigue and my body hurting.

Over the last two years, we lost 3 members in my little family: my husband's cousin who passed away in a car accident at 17, my husband's aunt who contracted COVID during last Thanksgiving and passed away on that holiday, and, finally, my grandfather last month. My grandfather was like a father to me. Then, as I documented on here during last June, I lost my cat, Loki.

I also have been dealing with very low Vit. D levels. I had a blood test last Friday which showed my levels at: 9.3 ng/ml. I am waiting for a call from my doctor at 9 am to discuss treatment options and possibly further tests to figure out why those levels are too low.

I've been too exhausted to really do anything. It makes sense as I often experienced severe joint pain when I sat and wrote or even attempt to game. I downloaded the FF 7: Rebirth demo and just haven't been able to play it. Same thing for Crisis Core. I feel bad since I want to announce the new work I have been working on, but I just don't really have the energy to.

Author’s commentary:

I have been working on creating a map of the Abyssal Realm for my huge fandom project: Fantasy Worlds Collide. I did create a timeline for the Heavenly War and made it so that the war started due to the Creator Deity forbidding his angels from loving mortals. This was after Lucifer fell in love with the 1st human: Lilith.

This sets the stage for Bianca Moore to love both Sesshomaru and Sephiroth. I love the thought of love condemning her and causing her to doubt her path to Heaven.

I am also reworking her powerset to fit her new role in this overarching plot: the destroyer of the Omniverse. Her powers are consistent to space, time, and interdimensional capabilities, as well as reality-bending.

Her profile will flow better. There is a new section devoted to the space between time where all portals to every dimension and the Edge of Creation is.

Snippet: A drabble I wrote on Valentine's Day.

tw: death mention.

As always, this is my trash draft. There will be grammar issues and sometimes incorrect grammar. It is unpolished.

"Pretty pathetic, hm?" Bianca tilted her head into his touch. His fingers slipped through strands of her dark hair. "You are only one of two men I have ever known like this, the only men I have ever loved."

The sun had crested over North Crater. The tent's entrance flapped in the icy breeze, but she didn't feel the cold on her skin. Bianca held some sort of immunity to the frozen temperatures, which was a very dangerous thing, in itself. Her organs still could freeze.

"Do you believe in soulmates?" Turning in the sleeping bag, she pulled the covers up over her shoulder and snuggled closer to him. The dark grey fur blanket lay over them as an extra layer of warmth. "How can I love you so deeply when we were not supposed to meet in the first place? We both lived in different dimensions and different versions of Earth."

"Perhaps, we are bound for more than just..girlfriend and boyfriend." Sephiroth looked down at the woman in his arms. His silver hair mixed with her black hair. Her left wing wrapped around them while her other one lay stretched out behind her. "You were always bound for the Reunion, Bianca."

"I think you are right. You were under distress from learning your true origins, and I was under duress from my father who had just murdered the only other man I had loved."

Different Fandom Taglist

@starryeyes2000, @residentdormouse, @megandaisy9 @themaradwrites @prehistoric-creatures @arrthurpendragon @serenofroses

[neragufetta]

The following is a list of BNHA plot elements, in no specific order, that are still unresolved at current chapter (or, at least, that I consider unresolved).

This post is totally open to suggestion :D

I plan to update it whenever I feel ;)

Enjoy!

NG

P.S. - Sooo, life happened and I couldn't find a moment to review my "open theories" list.

Since my last update (regarding chapter 405), we received pretty much a tremendous amount of new details and events. First of all, AFO actually died. Now, his death could mean that any theory about him is no longer on the table but I am not so sure, which is why you'll still find them listed.

Also, this post has become way longer that I planned it to be but it can't be helped, I have so much to say and so little time and ability to say it in an efficient (and grammarly correct) way.

Have fun!

***

Current last chapter:

412

HIGH PRIORITY:

1. How did Shigaraki solve to put Star and Stripe's quirk "New Order" under control? > Solved in vol. 34: New Order dissolved on itself but it caused Tenko to regain some level of consciousness > HOWEVER chapter 412 might suggest that the "New Order" plotline was not limited to free Tenko's counsciousness just a little bit but there could be more to it. Fan theories about what this plotline might be futher below.

2. Why did AFO do all of this? What are his reasons and origin? > We got his reasons in chapters 407-408 but I'm not totally convinced that he chose an apprentice just for the sake of having a new body

3. Will Deku be able to reach Tenko?

4. Who is going to survive? At the moment I think these are the name at risk right now:

. Bakugo > confirmed alive in 403 . All Might > still alive in 404, confirmed alive in 405 . Toga . Dabi . Hawks . Endevour . Edgeshot > still alive in 405 . Fat Gum (399)

6. What is Ojiro's, Sato's and Sero's whereabout? (399)

7. What is Eraserhead, Present Mic and Kurogiri's whereabout?

...

OPTIONAL STUFF

1. How was it possible for Yoichi to pass OFA to the second user? (i.e. how did he realize that he could pass his quirk?) > I'm not crossing this one out for we still don't have an explanation from Yoichi's perspective; however in chapter 408 is suggested that it happened the day Yoichi died and Kudoh has felt off ever since. I want to add that we don't know of any organic exchange from Yoichi to Kudoh, my opinion about it below.

2. Is Deku's father ever going to make an appearance? I know, I know that, aat this late point in the story, he can only be either AFO himself or noone interesting, but still, why did Horikoshi mentioned that Izuku's father would appear at some point in the story? Did he change his mind?

3. Is this picture ever going to make sense?

For further explanation, this seems to be a partial picture that was present at a BNHA exposition in Japan but, to my knowledge, does not have an explanation. > The full art, however, showed Aoyama, so it might be a hint about Aoyama's role? I'm not convinced and therefore I'm keeping this point active.

4. Why AFO needed Shigaraki's hatred? (Rif. chapter 311. For further explenation see section "Open theories", n. 3) > In chapter 410 it seems that Shigaraki is now able to steal, if not the whole OFA, at least singular quirks in it but it stays unexplained how or why.

5. Are we going to see Deku and Bakugo face each other one last time?

...

OPEN THEORIES (that I enjoy or consider interesting for some reason)

1. Dad for one (alias All for one is actually Deku's father) > With the flashback we had in chapter 407-408, it seems to me that, even though it is possible that AFO had intercourse with women, I just can't see him actually marry someone, and Inko mentioned her "husband" while discussing Izuku's lack of quirk; however, it is still possible that she called him that way just for the sake of appearences or that they actually married for some reason. I don't know, I really don't like this theory but I understand the appeal of it.

2. Decay is not Shimura Tenko's original quirk > Again, AFO's death in 410 might cross this one out but I'm still suspicious about the man in 235 that brought Tenko back home.

3. Shigaraki can actually take One for All quirk without Deku's will > confirmed in chapter 410, even though we still don't know how or why.

4. Deku is suppressing his emotions > Pikahlua wrote an amazing perfect explanation about this theory and I'm convinced they're right.

5. Two for one (alias One for all is passed on both Izuku & Katsuki) (404) > I think we can call this one discarded, for my understanding is that people thought this could be possible because of four factors:

.Bakugo and Izuku being both hinted as All Might successors, but this could just be meant as a symbolic Legacy instead of an actual quirk . All Might vestige in Bakugo's mind in chapter 362, which I get is still suspicious but I consider it not enough, at least right now . Second movie being labeled as canon, which is true but A. in the movie is also mentioned that OFA decided on its own to stay with Izuku and B. I just don't find sensible that such an important subplot is only mentioned outside the manga and C. if that was the case we should see Bakugo's vestige in Izuku's OFA world as well . Bakugo's sparks in 360. We now know that those parks were in fact Explosion's evolution.

6. AFO is (related to) the Luminescent baby (405) > I'm not a fan of this theory but the fact that AFO has been referred to as "glowing" three times in the recent chapters makes me wonder. > Confirmed in 407 and even though I said I was not a fan of this one, AFO stealing his quirk out of crave makes much more sense than and I love it.

7. Izuku will replace OFA with:

7a. His own personal quirk that, similarly to Yoichi's one, was so unformed to be practically useless but grew up thanks to OFA. 7a-i. If we believe the DFA theory, his quirk might be an evolution of AFO or OFA has always had the ability to take quirks but OFA's user never tried or even think it was possible.

7b.New Order (412) and it has to do with Star & Stripe arm

7c. Nothing, he'll go quirkless again. (This is the only one I actually like) 7c-i. But his use of OFA has already created a vestige in OFA and Kudoh is planning to let Shigaraki steal OFA in order to gain access to Tenko's memory and finally start to connect with is soul and therefore to save him. 7c-ii. But, following the empty glass/full glass theory, Shigaraki won't be able to keep it for too long, without facing problem (like the 4th dying of old age at 40).

8.OFA only transfer out of will, while hair or any other organic material just served to picture the passage in one's mind. > I've always thought it was illogic that Yoichi, without knowing it, was able to figure out that he could pass his quirk by letting someone ingest hair, blood or whatever. Like, he didn't know he had a quirk with such an ability in the first place, how could this be possible? It might only have happened (and from 408 we now know it indeed happened) by chance, because Yoichi wanted his brother to be stopped so much he instinctively activated his own quirk and the transfer occurred. Now, we know that: a. Kudoh has felt weird ever since AFO's assault, b. on that assault, Kudoh was running away while holding Y's hand, c. Yoichi was killed while they were running How is it possible that, in such a dire moment, Kudo ingested anything? I strongly believe he didn't and therefore, OFA can transfer only throuh will, no other element is required.

8a. As an alternative possible explanation, since OFA started stocking extrapower and multiple quirks, even though at the beginning a physical transfer was not required, it eventually became mandatory. (Like, email can only have attachment up to N Mb, in order to transfer bigger file you need a physical drive).

Ok, I'm exhausted and I'll go rest for a bit.

Bye!

[tubbietommo]

real question here for someone who never saw primer Seb live, was Seb ever a racist misogynistic piece of **** as Max has been? the fking Seb fans on twitter defend MV0 while ignoring that even when Seb was an asshole he was not raised as MV0 and even when toxic he was never a bad person like this, Seb himself got into this when he chose to defend RB and Massi after the 2021 fiasco, now fans are still defending MV0 behaviour and saying they are the same which they are FUCK*NG NOT.

I think we genuinely need to get away from the idea that Seb was an asshole. An asshole does intentionally things to piss people off.

I unfortunately didn't see Seb in his Red Bull years (started watching in 2015 as a Verstappen fan lol, the more you know), but I would like to say that I've seen enough/ if not everything from his red bull years inside the car and outside. Seb was brutal, he was rightfully so confident, quite cocky and people took the whole 'oh he was such an asshole back then' because the media took all that and made Seb into a villain. Which is kinda funny cause if I watch old Red Bull videos I see literally the same Seb that just retired (only difference is that Seb now decided that there's more to the world than racing and that he has a voice to speak that out).

The only "controversy" outside of the car that I can think of is his interview with Lee Mckenzie about the red dress. But that shouldn't even count cause those two have a good relationship (she even knows his family) and Lee Mckenzie addressed that pretty recently and took that as banter. (I'm mentioning this cause I remember there was a time on here when people just were looking for problematic things, took this Seb x Lee thing and just ran with it. It was pretty dumb.)

I had a disagreement on twitter with one of my seb mutuals about the whole seb asshole thing (note: I was sick, was bored and had nothing else to do lol) and the only thing they defend themselves with is either things that happen in the heat of the moment on track (like saying fuck you to Charlie, calling someone an idiot) like sorry but that's more being a human being with emotions, full with adrenaline and pretty much a microphone under their mouths (and I have the same feelings towards Verstappen about this. Like I don't care if he calls someone an idiot or a dickhead) than that they are assholes. Like as long as you don't use words that you know you shouldn't be using you good. And you can use A LOT of words. And if you accidentally let one slip out of your mouth because it's unfortunately (and weirdly) pretty standard in your country, and people are offended, fucking apologize??? It's genuinely not that hard to say sorry.

The only thing that is the same between Seb and Verstappen is that they race(d) for Red Bull, won championships with them (one less controversial than the other), and they both aren't PR-trained robot's (which I appreciate). But the thing is when Seb raced against his rivals (Alonso and Lewis) it was always done with a lot of respect. I don't like Alonso, and to me he was pretty toxic outside the car. But damn Seb and Alonso racing each other has always giving us some of the most amazing things to watch. Even the past two years I got excited when those two had to fight each other cause you know it would be good without them crashing each other out (always gotta leave that space).

Anyways there's a reason why Seb never said that he saw his younger self in Verstappen and I agree (seriously, if Verstappen was racing for Mercedes and winning championships with them no one would be comparing those two)

Hope this kinda answers the questions you have. If someone wants to add to this go ahead, if someone disagrees go ahead, if someone thinks saying fuck you to someone else is an asshole thing go ahead and call me an asshole caus I've done that plenty in less stressful moments, etc.

[grishaverse-chaos]

as promised, here is:

grishaverse ships as taylor swift songs!!

malina - im only me when im with you

THE childhood friends to lovers song!!

just a small town boy and girl! living in a crazy world! trying to figure out what is and isn't true!!

and I'm only me when I'm with you!!!

don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground!!

it's SO malina

darkl!na - dear john (censoring the ship name so it doesn't show up in tags!)

sksadgshdh I had to

on a serious note it does fit very very well

don't you think I was too young to be played by your dark twisted games!! regret how I ignored when they said run as fast as you can!!

you'll add my name to your long list of traitors!!!! the darkl!ng literally DID add her name to a list of traitors sjdhshdgjdhd

genyadavid - paper rings <3

it's just..... so cute and soft, I love it sm

and you know something? david DOES like shiny things and he WOULD marry her with paper rings!!

nikolina - getaway car

taylor literally wrote this song for nikolina, I take no criticism

you were driving the getaway car!! we were flying but we'd never get far!! should've known I'd be the first to leave!!

no but they LITERALLY met in a getaway car. they were LITERALLY flying. but they didn't get far.

I'm sorry I will never shut up about this ever

ANYWAY!!

kanej - renegade

that one scene in soc where inej goes "I will have you without armour or I will not have you at all"

it's literally just GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER SO I CAN LOVE YOU!

there was nowhere for me to stay but I stayed anyway!! you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody!!!

GOD the accuracy of this is killing me.

I can't lie I could write a whole essay on every line of this song and how perfectly it fits kanej.....

you fire off missiles cause you hate yourself but don't you know you're demolishing me!! let all your damage damage me!!

wesper - enchanted

idk how to explain this one it's just the Vibes

walls of insincerity.... playful conversation starts, counter all your quick remarks

just the whole thing where they first meet reminds me SO MUCH of enchanted I can't even

helnik - miss americana and the heartbreak prince

.....yet another that I could write a whole fucking essay on

nina IS miss americana!!

my team is losing! battered and bruising!

boys will be boys then, where are the wise men!

IT'S YOU AND ME THAT'S MY WHOLE WORLD, THEY WHISPER IN THE HALLWAY SHE'S A BAD BAD GIRL

and I'll never let you go!! cause I know this is a fight! that someday were gonna win!!!

zoyalai - peace

tbh I considered ciwyw as well but in the end I think this is ALSO such a zoyalai song I couldn't not pick it

honestly I can see this being from either perspective.... neither of them can give the other peace! and that's what they love about each other!!

I can't even choose any lyrics to highlight, just the whole song

actually wait that was a lie.

okay so think about zoya believing nikolai is too good for her. now think about "your integrity makes me seem small, you paint dreamscapes on the wall... it's like I'm wasting your honour....."

SIT WITH YOU IN THE TRENCHES!!!

the chorus.... I can't imagine it any other way than nikolai singing it to zoya tbh. I'll keep your brittle heart warm?? I would die for you in secret??

but you got a friend in me = as my general. as my friend. as my bride.

this is probably incoherent but OH WELL

tamadia - invisible string

again I cannot explain it's just the Vibes

isn't it just so pretty to think all along there was some invisible string tying you to me?

it's so CUTE and I love it

also "cold was the steel of my axe"

because tamar and axes.

anyway! that's it!! this definitely got super incoherent and rambling towards the end but I hope y'all enjoyed it :D

[certified-anakinfucker]

10 Characters, 10 Fandoms, 10 Tags

How to play: name 10 of your favourite characters from 10 different fandoms, then tag 10 people to do the same.

tagged by @kiwikipedia and @chiafett, i’m giving them both a gentle muah and an obligatory apology for mobile’s bullshittery

Cheerilee | My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

Take a wild guess where I got this screen name from LMAO it has survived a loooooooooong time. I think I first took it when I was 11? 12? on a hellscape sns. Now I brought it back bc I like the vibes :) At the time I wanted to be a teacher like her (and my mom), and plus her coat color was probably my favorite color at the time. I just loved her a lot.

Christophe Giacometti | Yuri!!! on Ice

He got subjected to the “fuck you he’s mine” treatment, but really I just. Adore him. He showed up like a whore who was DEFINITELY seeing Viktor so long ago and now they’ve turned into the closest friends anyone could ask for with the most beautiful sense of “I love you but you’re going to pay for that” rivalry. He is so pretty. I kind of want to bring him back for SW but I dunno what he’ll be doing :(

[Redacted] | [Data Expunged]

I like my men pathetic and miserable and they can’t do jack nor the shit without causing a cascade failure on an unimaginably catastrophic scale and bringing about destruction to everything he’s ever loved BECAUSE he loved so hard and now everyone sees him with such a sour (bittersweet at best) taste in their mouth and he’s resigned himself to the background in so many things he used to be the proudest of his prowess in but he’s so pretty and dainty and and and and and-

Anakin Skywalker | Star Wars

Me and the scrungly blorbos ass-up in untreated trauma from abandonment issues and being thrust into high positions of power without proper support despite others insisting that we ARE being properly supported at all measures but there are people scared and jealous of us and we keep refusing to admit how deeply it effects our daily lives and relationships until it inevitably destroys what good we do see around us and we have to make the decision on whether to learn and grow from this or just shrug and keep it trucking in the trenches. Neither of us made the right choice here and that’s banger. We’re doing great wdym?

Jedediah | Night at the Museum

Can’t believe I had to split up Jedediah and Octavius for this but I just genuinely admire him. He is so cool. Maybe it’s the free-spirited gay cowboy gender.

Loki | M*rvel

Shut up he’s hot

Wheatley | Portal (2)

Don’t speak to me he’s so so so stupid

Jazz | Transformers

This is entirely Mikey’s fault and I will make sure she knows this daily. Jazz is so just like me fr

Honorable Fandom Mentions

Basically, fandoms I only dipped a toe into but not deep enough to pick just one favorite!

Hades (Game)

WHERE IS MY MOTHER NYX. WHERE IS SHE. I deeply admire anyone’s ability (namely @purgetrooperfox) in sitting through this game.

Red Dead Redemption / 2

What if I turned Micah and Dutch into mulch? What if Arthur lived an amazing life instead? This game makes me feel so many emotions what the fuck I should play it someday 🥲

Tags <3

i’m dumb and wasn’t paying much attention to who was already tagged so. @milf-maul @jekyllnahyena @spaceydragons @sithbian @friedennic @walk-ng-d-saster @kemendin @grandninjamasterren @perasperaadastrawriting @kkrazy256

[actualbird]

good day po fave online kuya kong si kuya zak 🫶🏽🫶🏽

feel free to delete this from ur inbox if u don wanna answer i genyuweenly won't mind <33 pero how did u decide on a senior high school?? a strand?? A COLLEGE???? a career too doot doot doot

idk school and the future has been stressing me out :pain: also any debate tips cause in my head ur a very good speaker...... my first debate is graded so it's taking a toll on my grp 😓😓😓😓 AND labag sa kalooban namen ung topic AHAHHAHAHHA so namamlastik lang kami

thank u sm ule kuya kahit na idelete mo to, typing it out made me calmer ng onti seryoso ueuueue

>hopefully friendly neighborhood (marikenyo) grade 10 student

ps; ur luke cos is so cos goals the luke stan in me is screaming crying cause im curious if im taller than u /j im only 5'2" lawl UR WIG IS SO NICE TOO LIKE GENUINELY !!!! the styling is mwa chefs kiss

hi hi anon!! omg first off can i just say i got a nice boost of happy chemical from being called kuya zak like,,,,oh das me :'D

and it's alright, i dont mind this at all!! i really understand how the future can be stressful huhu, especially when ur in high school, so helping out in any way wld be my pleasure

i'll go thru this one by one (and under a readmore) cuz it seems uve been following here for a while so siguro by this point, siguro alam mo na na madaldal ako esp sa mga ask responses JHVKAJHSFVJKAHS

how did i decide a senior high school strand/college degree/career?:

unfortunately, i cannot help on on the High School Strand kasi 'di ko naabutan yung strand system in high school VSJHFVKSJDHGSD. my batch graduated right when they started doing strands, so i never got to experience it, huhu, nor do i understand the process (even after my younger sibling has tried many times to explain it to me, minsan bobo ako jVKJSHF)

but maybe my next stuffs can help out :D

in choosing a college course i.....really kinda just picked what i wanted to do. and this was a huge privilege i'll always be grateful to my family for, whatever i wanted to study, they'd support me. the courses i applied for in diff schools were the following, in order of first to last choice: Creative Writing, English/Comparative Literature, and BA Psychology (tho disclaimer: i only put this last one on application forms cuz it was needed, i didnt actually want to study that very much HAHA, it was writing or lit for me all the way)

on why i wanted those courses is....idk it's another thing that i think is also a privilege. ive always known that ive wanted to write, to study writing, and to pursue it later on. ive been writing and reading ever since i was a kid and i was pretty deadset on it from an early age.

i know that a lot of people dont have a similar experience tho sometimes, but i guess my advice for how to pick a college course is: what can you see yourself enjoying learning more and more and more about?

ofc, this gets a bit more complicated if ur family is strict and will only allow u to take certain degrees huhu. but if uve got the freedom to choose, i'd say dont just think about what you like, but what you'd like to learn about.

cuz college is work. it's a LOT of work. and while liking something can help, that Like can fall flat when youve gotta be doing all the requirements. it helps if, whatever u choose, it's something uve got a craving for knowledge for.

and honestly, if you dont know what to get or if you choose something and realize it isnt for you, thats okay too! you can shift courses in college! or if you want to learn more, you can take a minor degree! sometimes your first choice wont work, and thats okay. you can choose again and see what fits.

how i chose my career was a bit different from this cuz....the ph job market is in shambles JHVASFVASKJFHASVKFJAH

i currently work as a copywriter and despite the stresses, i really enjoy my job! but this wasnt my first job (my first job fucking sucked so bad that i resigned within a month) and i didnt land it straight out of college (i was out of college for over a year before landing my current gig). i got lucky with my current job, bc when it comes to careers, it's a lot harder to have a choice.

of course, all the jobs i was looking into were writing related: content writer, SEO writer, scriptwriter, etc etc. but theres a lot of companies out there that treat writers like absolute shit, a lot of companies who wont get back to you after an interview, a lot of companies who wont take you. i didnt choose my career so much as get lucky in the job market gacha (lol), but my advice here is that like...search within the industries you think you'd, at best, enjoy working in or, at minimum, can endure being in

which is a very depressing statement, i know.....life is tough, but there are good jobs out there with ppl who wont treat u like crud. if i got lucky, i can only hope more ppl can get this kind of experience too

and like i said in the college bit, if u find urself in a job u dont vibe with and u have the privilege/stability to be able to quit it:.....just quit it

a lot of these life choices are made to be really Big by schools and teachers and everybody really, but you dont have to get it right the first time. you can start over, it's alright, youve got your whole life ahead of you. if your life allows u the privilege and freedom to choose and discover new things, dont hold yourself back

i hope this could help somehow. i realize that a lot of this is medj philosophical jHVJHSFKJSD but back when i was in college, i wish somebody told me that it's not the end of the world if i didnt get it right the first time. so thats what i'll tell you, cuz it's true :'D

and as for debate tips HAHA, okay heres where i can give some more concrete advice because i LOVE DEBATING. I LOVE PUBLIC SPEAKING AND PRESENTING OMG OMG. it's a dream come true for me, people HAVE to listen to what ive got to say, it's a huge power trip JVSKJHFVAJS

ANYWAY, DEBATE TIPS:

i am so sorry that the topic that got assign to u and ur grp isnt something u like huhu. but my overall tip for debate (and any public speaking tbh) is. fake it

like, legit, just fake it. the delivery portion of debate, to me, is basically theatre and acting HVKJHVFKJAHFAS

imagine the most confident speaker uve ever seen urself, maybe somebody so confident na nainis ka sa kaniya, and do exactly that:

get that good posture, make motions with your hands because this helps get people's attention. if eye contact makes u nervous (it makes me so nervous huhu) u can blur/unfocus ur eyes, U Do Not See It

maintain a good rhythm with your speaking too. speak with moderate loudness and emphases for the less important, and then idiin mo in the bits na gusto mo parang mic drop moment ahfjshfa (which is usually saved best for the latter portion of an argument, but good to pepper it in as well thru the whole thing with ur most important pieces of info)

tho ofc thats all only on the public speaking bit. if im remembering correctly, high school debate does also rely heavily on the research/outline stuffs u have to do prior to the debate, and for that, i have less advice huhu. im not all that great of a researcher, but as long as uve got ur reputable sources all arranged well, oks na yan!

i feel like at this point i shld tell u that in high school, medj patapon ako na estudyante, basta pumasa ako, ok na yan sakin JHVJSHFVKDSJHFKS

that being said, pls take all my advice w a grain of salt, ha! because what works for me might not work for you. everybodys got different methods of speaking, researching, choosing degrees and careers. but even if what i said doesnt match what wld work for u, i hope ur main takeaway na lang is that u can do whatever u want in whichever way works best for you

anyway, thats all ive got to say for now! i hope smthng here could be of use and that you have a great week, anon :'D

(P.S. WAAHH, THANK U FOR UR KIND WORDS ON MY LUKE COSPLAY :DDD!! i got the wig secondhand for a steal price HAHA and......yes, you are taller than me, im 5'1" JHVJSHDFVKSDJHFVDSKJHFDSKJJKHVKJH)

[robairegif]

ROBAIRE HIDGO FLUFF ALPHABET.

genre : only fluff.

note : hehe, no english translations, sorry. also, i really enjoyed writing this one ! anw enjoy !

A = Admiration (what do they absolutely adore about you?)

HE ADORES EVERY SINGLE THING ABOUT YOU. but if we're talking about “ favorite ” ??? he loves your eyes, he doesn't give a fuck if you're insecure about your eyes or something, he will always remind you that your eyes are pretty and he loves you.

B = Body (what is their favorite part of your body?)

your hands. and he loves kissing the back of your hand, and he love love loves holding them whenever you walk with him. and he also loves to intertwine his hands to yours.

C = Cuddling (how do they like to cuddle?)

he loves cuddles after study dates when the both of you study to their house. well actually he's shy to ask you so please ask him first and he will not hesitate to say yes.

D = Dates (what does their ideal date with you look like?)

timezone dates with robaire are the best. but if you're more on to studying, study dates with hidalgo is for you. well, actually study dates with hidalgo often occur.

E = Emotions (how do they express emotion around you?)

he's always smiling, and grinning whenever he's with you. BUT ONLY WITH YOU. i mean, he doesn't often show his warm expression with his tropa kasi they mostly do shit and hit each other, but it's their love language sooo.

F = Family (do they want one? If they do, when?)

hidalgo wants a family with you. dun pa nga lang sa pagtulong sa pag aalaga ng pamangkin mo iniimagine na nya na pamilya nyo yun, but he actually wants to have a family around 25 or 28 years old? y'know? or if you don't want a child or a family, it's completely okay with that, having you around him, is enough for him.

G = Gifts (how do they feel about gift giving? What are their habits when it comes to this?)

hidalgo loves giving you origami papers, like mini paper flowers, paper hearts, paper rings, and so on. the reason why he does that is kesho naaalala ka daw nya whenever he sees ganto ganyan.

H = Holding Hands (when/how do they like to hold hands?)

HE LOVES HOLDING HANDS WITH YOU SO MUCH. whenever sinusundo ka nya or hinahatid, lagi kayong magkaholding hands. yes. opo. and he sometimes kisses the back of your hand, like i said before.

I = Injury (how would they act if you got hurt?)

SYEMPRE OBVIOUS BAA????? MAN'S GON BE WORRIED AF. like if na sprain mo accidentally yung paa mo, HE'D BE SO WORRIED. but sometimes, he tries to get rid of his worries, and reassures himself that you're okay, but sometimes they just don't go away :/ and he'd be sad kapag hindi ka makakapasok sa school kasi wala syang ihahatid at susunduin at aasarin sa school :(((((

J = Jokes (do they like to joke around with or prank you? how?)

robaire loves to tease you about your height kapag pandak ka, but he's really observant and sensitive. sometimes he wanna tease you, but ends up not telling you cause he might offend you, and he tries not to offend you to every joke he makes, and tries to play harmless pranks on you.

K = Kisses (how do they like to kiss you?)

hidalgo's pecks are superior, but his kisses are >>>>>>>> , and he is a good kisser??? his kisses doesn't last that long, but bro they are so lovingggggg

L = Love (how do they show you they love you?)

he shows his love through physical touch, like hugging you, pinching your cheeks, and holding your hand. and he also shows his love for you through acts of service. he helps you with little things, like kapag nasa bahay nyo sya, he helps you with your chores and he does help you with babysitting of your pamangkin.

M = Memory (favorite memory together?)

his favorite memory with you is that time where the both of you went for a study date in their house, then ends up being a cuddle session.

N = Nightmare (what is their worst fear?)

his BIGGEST NIGHTMARE is basically you leaving him. he doesn't know what to do if ever that shi happens. ikaw ang lakas at pahinga nya, so he doesn't really know what to do without you. kapag absent ka sa school, sobrang lanta nya, sobrang tahimik as in.

O = Oddity (what is one quirk they have?)

MAN'S TALL AS FUCK. HE'S 5'7'' SO IF PANDAK KA, SYA MAG AADJUST KAPAG GUSTO MO NG KISS. ( and he teases you na kesho “ perfect lang yung height ko para ma kiss yang noo mo. ” if you're pandak. ) and if you're taller than him, he likes to ask forehead kisses often.

P = Pet Names (what do they like to call you?)

IT'S MY FUCKING TIME TO SHINE. OKAY WAIT LANG.……. he loves calling you tangi, lablab, sinta, beloved, ai ( which mean love in japanese), and laloves.

Q = Quality Time (how do they like to spend time with you?)

robaire likes to listen to your chikas. he loves the way you talk about something enthusiastically. and he kinda find it cute or funny??? whenever you rant abour something. but he really, really likes listening to you. he'd waste his time listening to you, talking about things.

R = Rhythm (what song reminds you of them?)

songs that reminds me of him is, ligaya by eraserheads, panalangin by apo hiking society, only by lee hi, dito ka lang by moira dela torre, never goodbye by nct dream, lover by taylor swift, shout out by enhypen, hype boy by newjeans, and musika by dionela.

S = Secrets (how open are they with you?)

he doesn't hide secrets, he's more than being honest. he's not the type to keep secrets, but he balances some things that should be kept as a secret, and some things that you should know.

T = Time (how long did it take you to get together?)

well, i think 1-2 months?? but if your parents are strict, it probably took 4-6 months.

U = Upset (how do they act when you’re upset?)

syempre, THE USUALLLLLL. magaling po manuyo si hidalgo, sa sobrang sweet eh lalanggamin na.

V = Vaunt (what are they proud of? Do they like to show you off?)

he loves to show you off. he's proud of everything you do. when you feel like you're not good enough, he's always there to remind that you're good at everything you do. he always reassures you, he doesn't give reassurance when you need some, he ALWAYS gives you reassurance.

W = Warrior (how do they feel about you fighting? Would they fight for you, beside you, etc?)

MOTHERFUCKER WOULD FIGHT FOR YOU. HE WOULD DO ANYTHING FOR YOU. HE LOVES YOU SO MUCH. handa s'yang ipaglaban ka kahit kanino. period.

X = X-Ray (how well are they able to read you?)

hidalgo can read you like an open book. he can tell if you're happy, sad, pissed off, uncomfortable, and so on. he memorized it already since he's always with you. so if hidalgo sees someone straight up making you uncomfortable, he will not hesitate to break that bitches nose.

Y = Yes (how would they propose to you?)

pwede ba na secret muna to?? hehe, i'm making a fic about this kasi sooo hehe :)))

Z = Zen (what makes them feel calm?)

your hugs. your hugs calms him down whenever he's pissed off or nervous. a simple word from you, and your hug??? he's already calm.

[freebooter4ever]

unrelated to the stick but have you seen cooking with geno?

Haaaaaaaaaaaa. I have :) i mean...what self respecting geno fangirl hasnt? If im honest i think it was the first thing with him that i watched, but i was not paying attention to him at all at all then. Aside from noticing that Fuck He's Exactly My Type If I Ever Had One and being very annoyed by it. My ADHD research spiral in the summer of 2022 went something like this: ra*ngers -> pana*rin -> russ*an red w*ngs -> larion*ov...and then i side tracked over to alyonka's mental health/ E*D*O videos, and then her podcast which also interviewd several hockey players including her brother (which are really interesting btw)...tldr i actually watched that video more curious about alyonka than geno, cause in her more current stuff she talks a lot about those early 2000's days and what it was like working in the league as a woman. Unfortunately for geno at that point the only thing i knew about him was that he was on the penguins and that he said some shit in one interview about bread, and i had already decided based on that and his instgrm that he looked like an asshole. I cannot find that interview quote about breadman, for all i know it could have all been made up, but it reaaaaally made me dislike him. So the first time i watched the video i was doing my best to ignore geno and pretend like he wasnt radiating attractiveness. My one conclusion about that video and a few other old pens videos with alyonka (and not geno but other players) i watched was that i was surprised how much more informal things used to be. She felt very casual and more like a friend to the players than the more professional style interviews i have seen while watching this stuff live now.

And if none of that research spiral makes sense just be grateful you dont have ADHD.

ANYWAY then lucky for geno he features in my favorite hockey photo ever - that one of him sitting on the boards with the snow and baby blue jersey. So i had to draw that photo, and then i started paying more attention to him that season, and watched that dan and sushi interview, and realized shit i might have been wrong about this guy. And maybe my change of heart only has a little to do with his Very Pretty Eyes.

And moooooonths (a year?) later i finally rewatched the cooking with geno video and had to basically admit that my initial gut instinct of Oh Shit He's Hot reaction remained the same. He's a terrible cook, somehow even worse than me which is saying something cause i'm really fucking bad at it myself. But his physicality/personality rather shines in the clip. (i have heard people say he was sexualizing or staring at alyonka??? It doesnt look like that to me, they just seemed very comfortable with one another and maybe a little teasing but im not the best at recognizing flirting etc). Young Geno's got that same confidence/swagger as old(er) geno that in most guys would come across as arrogant but with him it's very quiet and understated. He makes a lot of dumb jokes. Even on my second viewing i still didnt understand the basketball joke. He didn't talk much but there were a lot of shy smiles. He reminded me a lot of my old friend ethan in attitude and height - just like how he kind of awkwardly looms in the background at times, and how all his obvious strength is sort of soft in a gentle way. He also seemed like a guy very willing to listen, which was cute. But -and this might be me projecting. But sometimes when people try to 'teach' me how to cook i play dumb just so i can check out and not use my brain and let them do all the thinking and tell me exactly what i need to do. Its very lazy and i recognize this but sometimes my brain is tired. And i swear geno was maybe doing that to alyonka at times. Like i think his effort in the video was at most 70%. Maybe 50%. It takes one lazy cook to know another one. And i am a very lazy cook.

Sorry anon, ive been cleaning and working all day so you got more than you asked for, basically a character study, whoops.

Oh, also on the second rewatch i realized the weird short grimlin who only appeared to eat the food and then disappeared was tanger. I did NOT recognize him. I still cant really believe thats him.

[benefits1986]

Bright Side, Blind Side

The fog brain experience hits hard as I come closer to the “morbidity” universe.

Yesterday was a cringe day but very humbling, too. I was in a series of unfortunate events that exposed my fog brain. The past weeks, I chose to take it easy because I feel tired easily. :( However, I have to be up to speed and go all out. For instance, I know I have an rehearsed line for my huddles pero parang may sheer curtain ‘yung utak ko. First time ito. I thought sabaw moment lang pero no. As in. I tried to downplay it in the name of choosing to be kinder to myself, pero hindi e. Nakaka-panic siya as an overthinker. While at it, as in gusto ko na lang lumubog. Gusto ko na lang mag-maldita pero hindi, this hits different. Ganito ba may dementia? Early onset na ba talaga ito? Paano na ‘to? Dami ko na demerits on top of it, but, you know what keeps me up and running? 

These days and nights, I am choosing to look at the bright side which is pretty much a derivative of the blind side. Actually, I am embracing the blind side bit by bit. I am someone who has a love-hate relationship with the blind side. When I watched The Blind Side, naiyak talaga ang ferson. Like bawling levels. Tapos, ayun na nga... I think I talked about this brouhaha na fake news pala lahat. LOL. But, as I said, take the content and the creator separately. The blind side is where the magic happens. It is where the comfort zone ends and where growth begins. The bright side is where your depressive state turns into a sedated and then neutralized state. Sineskwela, pasowkkk. And I used these two phrases yesterday for the first time, I guess. Or baka eto na naman ako sa fog brain moment in time ko. LUH. Kidding aside, I’m in metamorphosis szn mala-Power Rangers na Maroon x Blue. :D Panget ng joke ko. BLECH. Pati hirits ko, foggy na. Oh, no!!! To lighten up my overthinking shit hole, sabi ko na lang senior “high” moment siguro ito. Like now, I usually type fast. The past weeks, parang mas hindi agit ‘yung galaw ng kamay ko sa keyboard. FUDGE. But, sige, let’s be crazier than usual. Eto pa... sobrang kakahiya. I was pitching something about TS and fuck, I overshared. UGH. Alam mo ‘yung nag-autopilot ‘yung thoughts ko and I could have said it in a classier way? But no. Hell no. :( It sounded like a senior high fangirl. :(( Two bosses pa naman kausap ko. Me to myself: Talaga, Bene? Talaga ba? Ganyan ka na kakanal ngayon? In this get back meeting at this hour? Bobo ka? Bobo ka. Approved naman but, nakakahiya levels 1000000000. Santa Santita Taylor Swift, hayup ka. Dinarang mo ako nung may sakit ako. Ngayon, parang no turning back na tayo. 

This may be my reminder to take it as calmly as possible because there’s always limits and there’s always time to step on the breaks. Even when I was driving, the gas pedal is lit. While I am causing liabilities to my team, I feel like they are trying to give me a runway; not tolerating ha. More of okay, you got this, still. Slow and steady lang. HUHUHUHUHU. Killing me with kindness and compassion. Stress; but sige, let’s give this a try. Maiba naman. I’m so used to beating the shit out of me to the point na ubos na and walking dead na ako e. So, 180-degree turn ito. Shemay, mamiiiii. YOKO NA. Kaya ko ba? Bagal ko mag-type. Thank u, universe for AI assists. I came across a content saying that AI would allow humans to make more with their limited time. Me: Limited time on earth ba ‘to? Or limited time sa work and life? HAHAHAHAHAHA. Very dry and dark humor right there, yowwzaaa, mama. Simplehan ko lang kasi kahit minsan, for godsake. Try ko lang ‘di ba? 

More importantly, I guess I’m also overthinking na naman because our new hire holds so much potentials and I feel baka I don’t have the guns to power her up in this kind of frail state. UGH. I don’t give super details about work in general, but, let this be reminder of me trying to power through with my vulnerabilities. SHEMAY. Dalisay season na ba talaga ako? Kakanood ng pagkatalo ng bargas gaming ng Maroons kasi. I got dibs on Archers - Maroons game but, no Satan. Alam ko na what will happen and it did. Hindi na ako bibili ng NB 327 na may maroon na N because, with how things are going, strategic play wins tactical play all the time. Second dad lambasted me saying that Maroon championship is but a chamba. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I didn’t negate him. Sapul e. Hindi rin naman ako tanga. Bright side and blind side gaming nga ‘di ba?  Also, the players are strong but there’s something so off when they pounce. As in. Butas talaga play mga sir. Isipin ko na lang na on top of my fog brain, nursing a broken hidden maroon heart drama ko para mala-faux pas. 

My lucid dream is so weird. I was with a chixxx whom I do not know tapos clingy super. Happy pa ako nung first few scenes then, ewan ko ba, got bored na eventually. Nothing weird naman sa dream pero I may XY din umeksena. I was like WTF is this person doing here? LOL. Anyway, dreams are but dreams, so tabi. Need ko maka-recover. Baka wala na forda bills ang ferson. LOL. Bright side and blind side szn is on.  Look at this Maroon MV. YT talaga a. You know my vibe. :D Hahahaha. Cuties na poppin’. <3 Eto na tayo, Tuesday. Cute nila. The shit show is slaying. Kaso may mga weird acting pero we can let that go. Sana, I power through not for my ego lang, but for the greater good. May INXS pa and indie watering hole which reminds me of another hahahahahahaha moment. Sorry na po, Lordeeee sa lahat ng kalokohan ko noon. Mabait na po ako now. Ang agaaaa. Let’s goooowww. 

[repromed15062023]

Dna Fragment And Library Prep Equipment, Sparq Vwr

However, as with most fertility issues, Jessica urges couples not to panic should you get a foul outcome. "Experts are pointing to the actual fact now that the sperm analysis is unreliable and pretty useless. And but when a pair goes for their preliminary round of exams the woman is told to strive clomid to come out a couple of extra eggs" she continues. At present, 32,000 women are handled for infertility in the UK per year, whereas there is an 8-9pc improve every year throughout Europe in the variety of couples presenting to clinics.

Nevertheless, in humans, a fraction of spermatozoa has a relative excessive diploma of DNA fragmentation. This injury can derive from aberrant chromatin packaging during spermatogenesis, defective apoptosis, or excessive manufacturing of reactive oxygen species within semen analysis the ejaculate. Furthermore, DNA harm can be induced by environmental exposure to genotoxic brokers whose effectivity relies upon also on the accessibility of DNA (Bennetts & Aitken 2005, Chohan et al. 2006, Perry 2008, Sakkas & Alvarez 2010).

This may cause hormonal imbalances in men leading to lowered sperm amount and likewise affecting high quality and DNA fragmentation. Aim to reduce your plastic exposure, avoid handling until receipts, use extra pure private hygiene merchandise and try to eat as natural produce the place sperm count test you can. We know that conception charges improve through the summer time which may show a job for vitamin D in fertility and sperm have receptors for vitamin D. Be cautious when supplementing with vitamin D; it is essential to tailor your complement ranges to meet your wants.

As shown by the histograms, in one other way from DNAse I treatment, the quantity of DNA lesions induced by H2O2 was related within the completely different species. The alkaline comet assay gave a dose-dependent enhance in the imply values of fraction tail DNA, whereas this parameter was not enhanced utilizing the neutral protocol, reinforcing the notion that H2O2 prevalently induces DNA SSBs. The TUNEL assay (Terminal Transferase dUTP Nick End Labelling), the sperm chromatin construction assay (SCSA) and the COMET assay (the single-cell gel electrophoresis assay). Each test measures completely different elements of sperm chromatin damage and consequently have variable ranges of diagnostic and prognostic energy. A semen analysis is amongst the most necessary exams within the evaluation of Male fertility.

Now, she has six staff and all the testing on the samples to-date is done in their workplaces and labs on the Royal Victoria Hospital web site. The health of a man’s sperm not solely impacts his fertility but it can have an result on the well being of his child, too. Diseases similar to epilepsy, autism and cancer have all been linked to sperm from older men the place the chance of sperm DNA harm is far larger. One in six couples will fail to conceive and, in 40pc of instances, the primary drawback is on the man’s aspect.

Furthermore, the Trk signaling cascade have to be activated for this response to occur. Because the expression of those receptors diminishes in adulthood, neurotrophin utility may dna fragmentation test be most appropriate within the pediatric inhabitants. Sequencing information from DNA fragment libraries generated from 50 pg to a hundred ng of sheared E.

Fertility issues can cause huge stress to individuals, who are normally 30-somethings at the top of their careers and maybe haven’t faced a unfavorable life occasion but. The strain on them is so great, it can male fertility test ireland even lead to relationships breaking down. Examen analysis reveals that sperm from men whose partners have a history of miscarriage have higher levels of sperm DNA fragmentation than sperm from these whose companions ship wholesome infants (Figures 7 and 8).

[trolloled]

Argumi, talk about Helios and Newsen.

Aw man, Hel|xs |s pretty cxxl txx. Yxu almxst never meet a lxwblxxd w|th ps|xn|cs that can actually blxck what my pxwer dxes.

| dxn't even need my dampener arxund h|m. Real b|g rel|ef, yxu knxw? | mean, | can't cheat tx knxw what he's th|nk|ng, but |'ll take hav|ng tx use my eyes and ears xver hear|ng what he th|nks abxut me any n|ght.

| mean, | can at least tell he's gxt a funny-|sh way xf lxxk|ng at th|ngs. L|ke, |'ve never met a persxn whx d|dn't really get the d|fference between |nstantly knxw|ng a whxle bxxk's stxry, and tak|ng |t page by page.

Maybe |t's just 'cause xf h|s pxwer? Whx knxws. |'m just glad he f|nally cxnv|nced me tx gx see a dxctxr. Real glad he seems n|ce txx - guy lxxks l|ke he can prxbably l|ft me l|ke xne xf thxse l|ttle tra|n|ng we|ghts!

Newsen, hxwever, very much the xppxs|te.

| can k|nd xf hear what he th|nks frxm t|me tx t|me. Never judge a bxxk by |ts cxver? Nuh uh, w|th Newsen, the cxver |s the bxxk.

He's real bent xut xf shape that | gxt prxmxted xver h|m, but he dxesn't want tx hear that |t's because he spent every hxur gxss|p|ng abxut whx's |n redrxm w|th whx, xr what h|ghblxxd sa|d sxmeth|ng xr xther...

|t's a shame, yxu knxw? He dxes have a real dr|ve and pass|xn, but |t's px|nted |n the wrxng d|rect|xn. | guess that's why |'m |n charge xf h|m, tx px|nt h|m the r|ght way.

And alsx, yxu knxw, tx censxr half the stuff he subm|ts as 'news.'

[chuuyrr]

hi po! pede po bang pa request ng baby! Fushiguro x bsd na nag ka crush sa port mafia? kayo na po bahala kung sino and pede nyo naman din hindi gawin yung request (´∀`)

scarlet witch! baby fushiguro! reader has a crush on akutagawa

jujutsu kaisen x reader x bungou stray dogs

masterlist of the series

╰➤ CW(s): possible bungou stray dogs spoilers, themes of fluff, soft(?) akutagawa

╰➤ PAIRING(s): platonic! bungou stray dogs x reader

hello yes i opened requests as of 06/09/22 :D thank you so much for requesting bb!! i couldn't decide which port mafia scarlet fushiguro bb reader will have a crush on, so im doing akutagawa ryunosuke because he's so pretty, and so is gin (insert bi panic) and i might do a separate one for chuuya because im biased but idk yet, anyway enjoy ♡

apart from the armed detective agency, you spent time in the port mafia base too, mostly because chuuya was there. it started when you came back to their world and ended up straight to where chuuya was because you missed him. he panicked at first because the port mafia isn't a place for children. two, he doesn't know how mori and the other members will react.

but that was until you ended up running straight to elise, and she ended up liking you a lot. so as to not upset elise-chan, mori, and the rest of the mafia, they treat you nicely, but also because they want to get on your good side since they discovered you were a special gifted person who has great aim and wits, and you could be a valuable asset to them.

you haven't really met the black lizards since you were often at chuuya's office or at mori's office because elise, your playmate, was there. so, while you were at mori's office, coloring and doodling on paper together with elise while chuuya and mori were discussing mafia business, the door opened to reveal a young man with choppy black hair with side bangs that reach his chin and turn white at the tips and sharp gray eyes dressed in a long black coat and white dress shirt with layered ruffles on the chest.

"[name]-chan? [name]-chan?" elise noticed you had stopped drawing and was staring at the boy, who had just entered the office, with wide eyes. "what's wrong?"

"nothing!" you quickly responded to her and returned to your drawing, smiling at elise, who was perplexed.

but you kept sneaking glances at him as he bowed to chuuya and mori, and that's how your small crush on the rashomon ability user blossomed, and it wasn't long before chuuya and the rest of the port mafia discovered it.

"oi, [name]-chan! why are you ignoring me?" chuuya pretended to pout as he furrowed his brows at you, who had her attention else where. the two of you were playing cards together somewhere in the port mafia base since it was his break. "i thought i was your favorite and not dazai."

"i'm not ignoring you." you responded without even batting an eye.

"yes, you are! who are you staring at anyways?" chuuya huffed and narrowed his eyes, feeling a little jealous.

"pretty boy!" you pointed your index finger at the boy in the long black coat who was conversing with the girl in the ponytail who had her face hidden.

"pretty what?!" chuuya's eyes widened in surprise as he dropped the cards in his hands.

"him!" you cried out again, a smile on your face, as you tugged on chuuya's sleeve.

chuuya screamed, "AKUTAGAWA?!"

you nodded vigorously before leaping from your seat and sprinting towards him, causing the black-haired boy to take a step back when you placed yourself in front of him. you extended your hand, pointing at him, with a determined expression and a smile on your face.

"i like you!" you exclaimed.

as his sister and the rest of the mafioso in the room paused from whatever they were doing, akutagawa shifted his gaze to you and pointed at himself, perplexed. "me?"

"yes, and i'm gonna marry you too!" with that, you ran right into him, wrapping your tiny arms around his legs and rubbing your cheek against his stomach.

his normally sharp and devoid gray eyes widened as a faint blush of pink spread across his cheekbones. gin, on the other hand, couldn't help but laugh quietly behind her mask as the other mafiosos in the room stared at you as if you were insane. you couldn't really blame them. because of all the people you had to choose from, it had to be the merciless and blunt mafioso over someone sweeter like chuuya.

"o-oi! what the hell are you saying?!" akutagawa stammered out, attempting to distance himself from you.

"i said i like you and i will marry you!" you repeated, and this time, his face burned beet red instead of pink.

"stop spouting nonsense kid! you are not marrying me!" akutagawa grabbed you with rashomon, a black tendril wrapped around your body that yanked you upwards in the air, away from him.

"yes i am! it's not nonsense! it's love!" you giggled as you traced a heart in the air with your now red glowing index fingers.

"shut up! s-stop that!" he scowled at you before gently handing you into chuuya's arms and storming away, his face flushed with embarrassment.

"jesus christ, kid. why did it have to be him? dazai and the agency is going to freak out." chuuya shook his head and mumbled, as you waved your hand at akutagawa as he walked away.

and, true to chuuya's words, dazai and the armed detective agency freaked out when they discovered your crush on a port mafia member, specifically the scariest and meanest mafioso. our poor detectives truly believed that someone with a special ability or some sort of black magic was behind all of this.

"you like akutagawa ryunosuke?! why?"

atsushi was in so much disbelief.

what do you see in that guy that they don't..?

"mhm! he's a pretty boy and his ability is super cool. everything about him is just dreamy!" you expressed, throwing your arms in the air before clasping your hands together. "and i already made up my mind that i'm gonna marry him!"

dazai instantly became a splitting image of your dad, gojo satoru. "no, no, no. you're not marrying anyone little missy! not on my watch, ya' hear?" he placed his hands on his hip, peering down at you.

"but why?" an adorable pout contorted on your face at that instant.

"because you're too young and you should only marry the person you really love!" dazai argued, puffing his cheeks.

"then i'll marry him when i get older!" you bit back. "i love him already!"

"why not.. i don't know.. someone like.. chuuya-kun? actually, no. nevermind that. he's a terrible choice, [name]-chan." dazai scratched his head, grimacing a bit when he mentioned his old partner.

"i don't like chuuya-nii!" you stuck your tongue out, folding your arms.

"ah, thank goodness! i'm glad you agree!" dazai draped the back of his hand on his forehead as leaned back dramatically, faking a tear.

"i'm still marrying him! you can't stop me!" you persisted, running towards the door to head to your "one true love".

dazai gasped, immediately getting up from the couch to chase after you as you left. "no you will not! get back here, [name]-chan! no marrying!"

"and dazai calls me a 'mother-hen'." kunikida drew out a sigh, shaking his head as atsushi sweatdropped.