#don’t listen to the naysayers… watch it and enjoy! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bbrandy2002 · 4 years

Text

Fool’s Rush In

Part 15

Book: The Royal Romance

Pairing: Liam x MC

Warnings: mild violence

Series Premise: With two weeks until Liam is to marry Madeleine – his pick during the social season – the guys throw him a bachelor party in Vegas. After a drunken night, he finds himself with more than he bargained for.

Thanks @burnsoslow for the beta read.

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

Supposedly, the more a person suffered in the name of love, the more it showed they really cared.

At least, that's what Riley thought.

After nightfall of this particular evening -- when she least expected it -- she never realized how much truth that belief held.

Or how much it would hurt to sacrifice the one person who made her believe she was worthy of love and saw who she really was on the inside.

Her dainty arm -- a delicate bronze in color, sleek, with a glittering red strap across one shoulder -- linked through the arm of the man she had grown to love more than life itself as they entered the palace ballroom. Working tirelessly over the last week to ensure everything went off without a hitch had taken its toll on her. All she could think about, as she shook hands and charmed dignitaries with a sparkle in those twinkling brown eyes, was how much sleep she planned to make up for after the ball ended.

This ball was to introduce the King and his new bride to the Cordonian court for the first time. A show of solidarity and, hopefully, strength. A way to establish that what happened in a tiny chapel 10,000 miles away weeks ago between two strangers wasn't a careless mistake, and that she could handle the duties bestowed on her as a common American woman.

Or at least pretend she could for now.

However, for the King and the "Jewel of His Heart" whom he escorted through the curious crowd of pretentious naysayers in extravagant gowns and tuxes, with their fake smiles and tedious posturing ...

It was nothing less than fate.

Riley was the key that unlocked that safe space deep inside Liam's heart that had been sheltered for so long, waiting for the perfect person to come along and open it. This was the place where he kept his most sacred feelings: a genuine love, never-ending laughter, joy, romance, ecstasy, and every dream he ever held for the future -- one he presumed would never exist in any form he longed for.

But she didn't just unlock it. Riley shattered it wide open, where everything came flooding out at once and consumed him like a raging wildfire.

And it was the most remarkable, intoxicating experience of his life.

Liam showed her off all evening as they mingled during their rounds, danced, and conversed with the variance of nobility. She was the sexiest woman in that room, and he'd dare say the looks of envy shot in his direction from high-class men as he proudly cavorted her around didn't bother him in the least. Not that that was her only quality -- far from it. There were so many things about Riley that were special. But he couldn't help feeling a sense of pride that she was all his.

And without question, he was all hers.

Seated at the head table, Riley swallowed a morsel of the veal medallion she wanted to be served for this occasion. When given a choice between fish and lamb, the fish never stood a chance. The memory of that smelly, god-awful lunch with Regina three weeks ago was not something her palate had forgiven her for yet. As wonderful and savory as this extravagant meal, covered in a light brown mushroom sauce and served with a side of broccoli rabe, was, it couldn't hold a candle to what she craved the most: a slice of white pizza from Carmine's back in Brooklyn.

Or a slab or two of the New Yorker.

With maybe some cheesecake.

Covered in chocolate.

And a sausage rice ball. A Frito pie smothered with sour cream. Definitely a rainbow bagel from The Bagel Store. Barbecue ribs and beans from the mom-and-pop diner hidden just off the strip in Vegas.

Of course, her grandma’s country fried steak with white gravy sounded delicious too.

For sure, a fried Twinkie like the one she ate at the New York State Fair in 2013.

"You've outdone yourself, sweetheart," Liam marveled while wiping at the corner of his mouth with a napkin. "The meal was delicious, and our guests appear to be enjoying themselves." The others seated at the table looked up, adding their compliments.

Still dreaming about a fat slice of New York-style pizza, Riley smiled graciously back at him, until she noticed the server refilling Liam’s glass with merlot, causing her to do a double-take.

Hot tears pooled in her eyes, and a heavy feeling of sadness swelled in her chest as she panicked. "I asked for the Pinot Noir. Not the merlot,” she rasped meekly. “You don't like merlot, Liam. And the Pinot Noir was from the 'C' place where Duke Hakim lives. He'll be so disappointed and think I'm slighting his duchy. They’ll all hate me forever and ... wait a minute." She trailed off as a realization hit her, and Riley quickly glanced down at her plate before scanning each of the dishes from those seated around her.

The anxiety intensified; she could no longer suppress the heartbroken sob that wailed out of her. "Where are all the potatoes? We were supposed to have the potatoes, Liam. They didn’t serve the potatoes. Now the whole night is completely ruined, and it’s all my fault. I'm such a failure as a queen, and you should just send me to the dungeon now and throw away the key. I apologize to all of you for my incompetence and the lack of potatoes with your meal." Riley’s red-hot face, full of tears, plunged into the palms of her hands, then quickly sprung back up as Liam hesitantly tried to place a hand on her shoulder. A strong urge to use the restroom ended her crying spell as if it never happened. “Oh, oh. I gotta pee so bad. I’ll be right back.” She gave a warm smile and excused herself as she pushed her chair back and scurried merrily toward the nearest restroom.

Liam, Regina, Leo, Maxwell, and Olivia watched with confusion as she happily took off, not knowing what to say or what to make of the sudden shift in her moods.

“What the hell was that?” Olivia scowled, her eyes fixed on Liam.

“Is she all right, dear?” a concerned Regina asked.

Liam scratched the back of his head, nearly at a loss for words. “I ... I don’t know. I’ve never seen her that upset … especially over potatoes.” He paused in thought. “She was a little on edge this morning. Still, she’s been working a lot on the preparations and everything else going on. It must have gotten to her.”

Maxwell shrugged. “Maybe she just finally snapped.”

Leo shook his head, swallowing a forkful of beef. “Or maybe she has the premenstrual syndrome.”

“Leo!” The group admonished.

“What?” Leo bit back, taking in each of their disappointed glares. “Don’t act like it’s not true. Trust me, when I have cramps and bloating, I can go from a happy little Leo to a Bertrand, just like that.” He snapped his fingers, following it up with a frown. “It ain’t pretty, you all.”

Maxwell looked across the table at Liam and agreed, “He has a point.”

Wanting to shed his skin and slither away, Liam pinched the bridge of his nose. “Can we not discuss something so personal and private, especially while several hundred people are dining around us?”

“I’m just saying, little brother, that you need to be understanding and gentle during this special time of your wife’s 'lady business.' You should speak softly and slowly to her because Shark Week messes with a girl's mind, man. Their brains short-circuit, and there’s nothing left up there but a couple of crickets and man-eating rattlesnakes. One second, you think she’s fine, but if you’re not careful, in the next second, you’ll find yourself with two venomous fangs rattling from your nut sack, dude. She will tear you apart and spit you out like a rabid dog. You can make it through these next few days, but only if you take my advice.”

“That is the single dumbest thing I’ve ever heard you say,” Olivia spat, boring her eyes into him. “And you’ve said a lot.” She turned to Liam, whose face was slightly pale and void of expression. “Don’t listen to his sexist drivel. Why you haven’t declared him insane yet is beyond me. You should have sent him away with that filthy hairball to Valtoria you had caged earlier.”

“IT WAS MONGO!” Leo erupted, causing the dishes on the table to clatter as he jumped to his feet and hovered over the redhead. Every head in the ballroom whipped around to see what was happening, and a deafening silence filled throughout. Even the orchestra stopped playing their classical tune.

A wide-eyed Regina smiled sheepishly as she glanced out at the quiet audience who were waiting to see what all the fuss was about. She thought fast before calling out, “We were just playing a little game of … 'It was Mongo.'” The former queen snatched Maxwell’s Sunset Rum punch from his hand, thrusting the drink up at her stepson, towering beside her, and instructed in a grandmotherly tone, “Be a good lad, Leo. You lost this round. It's time to chug-a-lug, my boy.” With his face burning, Liam slid down in his seat.

“Ooooo, I wanna go next.” Maxwell bounced excitedly while the guests resumed the festivities. "How do we play?"

“I think I want to go, too,” Liam replied, straightening back up before hurling his napkin on the table. “I’m going to go find Riley.”

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

Riley exited the ladies' room, clutch in hand and a fresh dab of clear gloss gleaming on her pink lips. She stopped walking just as the door closed behind her and smiled with a look of surprise at seeing Liam leaning against the opposite wall. "What are you doing out here?"

He pushed himself off the wall, closing the distance between them and meeting her in the middle of the empty corridor. They wrapped their arms around each other, indulging in the warmth of their lovers' embrace. "Would you believe me if I told you I just missed you?" he answered, placing a tender kiss on her lips that skimmed lower to her jawline.

"I missed you, too," she moaned with each gentle pressure of his seductive lips, suckling and nibbling along the spot that trailed behind her ear that he knew drove her crazy. "But something tells me that's not the only reason you left the ballroom."

Their gazes met simultaneously. "Leo."

Riley chuckled softly. "Do I even want to know?"

Liam sighed, smoothing back a loose hair behind her ear. "You know my brother and his wonderful words of wisdom." There was no way in hell he would tell her what they really discussed after she left; he could only imagine her embarrassment. "Everyone was just a little worried about you, that's all."

"I didn't mean to scare everyone. I just wanted tonight to be perfect. Instead, so many things went wrong. I can only assume what the court thinks about me now." She lowered her gaze to the red carpeting where they stood. "I let you down."

"I don't want to ever hear you say that again. Riley, sweetheart, you can never let me down. Do you understand that?" Liam lifted her chin; her tentative eyes stared back at him for a moment before nodding. "Good. And just so you know, our guest are used to bombings, stabbings, kidnappings, shootings, and terror plots at most of my palace events --"

"Wait. What?"

" -- I assure you, just the fact alone, that none of that took place tonight, and they're all going to leave here soon -- alive -- will be huge for them. Not having potatoes with the meal or the right wine was the least of their worries. They will consider this night a success. And a testament to their new queen. You should, too. I'm so very proud of you."

"I have so many questions about everything you just said."

Liam smiled, caressing Riley's petal-soft cheeks and lowering his head to kiss her again. "All in due time, my love.”

Riley let out a deep, drawn-out yawn she lightly covered with her palm before stretching and rolling her neck. A couple of weeks' worth of planning and endless decisions had left heavy tension in her shoulders and overwhelming exhaustion like nothing she'd felt before. None of it went unnoticed by Liam, who placed his hands on her shoulders and gingerly kneaded the taut muscles.

"What do you say about heading back to our quarters, taking off all of your clothes, and I'll be up soon to massage this gorgeous body from head to toe? And hopefully, when I'm through, you'll massage parts of me, too … with any part of your body that you'd like." His lips curved into an inviting smile.

"Mmm, that's tempting," she purred, rubbing her hands over his ample chest. "But I can't just leave. It's the Queen's Ball. Without me, it's just ... The Ball." She chuckled, despite herself.

“Don’t you worry your pretty little panties over the ball. Just go upstairs and take them off. I’ll handle everything down here. Then … “ He squatted down to her eye level. “ … I’ll handle you.”

Her heart fluttered every time Liam spoke to her that way. The way he desired only her. She bit the corner of her lip teasingly. “I love you so much.”

Liam smiled. “You better. You’ve got one hell of a husband. I’d even venture to say you’re the luckiest woman on the whole damn planet right now.” Before Riley could respond to his jest, he put both of his hands on her cheeks to hold her head still and began placing playful, wet smooches all over her face, causing her to laugh riotously. After a few seconds of her squirming around and cackling at his antics, he paused to look at her. “You know I love you, too. Now go on up. I’ll be right behind you soon.”

With a pat to her backside, they went their separate ways.

---------

Liam returned to the ballroom, having offered to finish what little time was left without her. He would offer his apologies for her absence, but in reality, the King couldn’t have cared less what anyone there thought. Since his bachelor party weeks ago, he had grown from a man who had no choices to one who made his own. His marriage and relationship with Riley came first. Her wellbeing was the main priority -- to hell with anyone who had a problem with that.

As Riley placed a hand on the elegant wooden handrail of the grand staircase and took the first step up, her thoughts meandered to where she had been in her life one month ago and how vastly it had changed in such a short time. For the first time in years, she was happy, and it felt so good to be in that place where she could finally let go of the past and move on. Liam was a game-changer, and she was thoroughly convinced he was the only person on the planet who could have gotten her out of her own head and to this level of blissful existence.

Rounding the corner at the top of the stairs, she reached into her clutch to pull out the key card to her quarters, exhaustion slowing her strides. Shuffling past a row of closed office doors and framed artwork, she made her way to the residential wing.

The squeak of a door behind her and the click of heels drew her attention, causing her to stop and turn to see who was there.

The color drained from her face as Madeleine casually stepped out, her hands behind her back and a devious, unsettling grin cemented on her face.

It wasn't the fear that made Riley's heart pound with a sickening thud, but more shock than anything. No one had seen or spoken to the Countess since the confrontation in Las Vegas when she showed up unexpectedly after finding out Liam had married Riley the night prior.

Now, suddenly, there she was, as if out of nowhere, a gleam in her eye, looking all too pleased to have this run-in with Riley.

"A little dramatic, don't you think?" Riley scoffed, taking one step back the closer Madeleine approached. "What are you even doing here?"

"I'm not going to hurt you, if that's what you're worried about," she answered contemptuously. Her green eyes drifted to one of the cameras mantled at each end of the hallway. Riley placed a shaky hand over her stomach, letting out a low, relieved breath, hoping that was the truth. "Not physically, anyway."

"Well, that sounds promising," Riley replied sardonically. "Now, if you don't mind ..." She turned away, wanting nothing more than to escape this conversation and make it back to her quarters.

Madeleine reached out and grabbed the Queen by her elbow, pulling her back and harshly twisting her around so they were now face-to-face. "You're not going anywhere until I'm through with you," she hissed with an icy glare. "I told you I would make you regret what you've done."

Riley jerked her arm, trying to free herself. "Let go of my arm, Madeleine!"

"Not until you hear what I have to say."

"I'm not interested in anything you have to say! Now LET ME GO!" Riley hoped someone heard her yell or at least witnessed what was happening on the camera. Where the hell is security?

While continuing to struggle to free herself, she reached up with her free hand in an attempt to pry off Madeleine's bony fingers that were squeezing tight grooves around her elbow, her manicured nails digging deeper into Riley's skin. "You're hurting me. I said to let me go."

"Very well, then." The woman, who had twice lost her chance at the crown, released her firm grasp, knowing that the momentum would cause Riley to stumble back as soon as she let go.

Just as predicted, Riley planted a foot behind her for leverage before drawing her arm back as hard as she could, one last time. Her eyes grew wide, and she let out a sharp gasp that sounded well down the corridor. Riley sailed backward, tripping over herself and toppling to the ground. She finally landed with a hard blow on her backside, the rear of her head just inches from slamming to the floor.

A shockwave of pain coursed up Riley's spine from hitting so abruptly. Before she had a chance to respond or process what happened, Madeleine crouched down beside her, holding a DVD up and gaining Riley's attention.

The pain had morphed into a throbbing ache that was soon forgotten as the Queen stared quizzically at the object displayed in front of her like a grand prize.

"What is that?" her voice trembled.

"It's my ace in the hole," Madeleine stated, then wagged a finger. "Someone used to be a very naughty girl."

Furrowing her brows, Riley responded. "I don't know what you mean."

"You know precisely what I mean, but just in case, please allow me to refresh your memory," Madeleine smirked before rising to her feet and prancing around as if she were having the time of her life. "I did a little digging after my brief visit to Las Vegas and came across a man who knew you very, very well at one time. I made some calls. We exchanged e-mails, a transfer of money or two. And he was all too eager to accept my offer of payment for any dirt he could give me on you."

There was no point in asking "who" -- she already knew; the thought made her nauseous. Riley closed her eyes and muttered. "Tyler?"

"Yes," Madeleine beamed, " Your ex-husband. He had a lot to say about you."

"I'm sure he did. Does it even matter to you that he's a liar and a cheat -- not to mention greedy? He would make up anything if he thought he could profit off of it."

"Oh, it matters. Personally, I don't believe a damn thing he had to say. Honestly, Riley ... even someone like you could have done better than that slime."

Riley cringed in pain as she pushed herself off the floor and turned to her oppressor. "Just get to the point, Madeleine. Clearly, he gave you something you thought was valuable enough to use against me, so just spit it already."

Madeleine smiled, "How very astute of you. You're correct. He did." She held up the disc as Riley regarded it suspiciously. "On this disk are several hours of the two of you ... together. Very graphic, if I do say so myself." Riley's jaw dropped upon hearing those words as Madeleine continued, "Now don't worry. I only watched it long enough to make sure the video was legit --"

"Give me that!" Riley reached out to snatch the DVD, but Madeleine pulled it away just out of her grasp. A burning sensation filled inside her chest and spread across her face. "You're lying. I never made videos like that."

"Oh, I think you did," the blonde countered with a mirthful tone. "You just didn't know about it. Your ex admitted as much to me ... an asshole move, for sure. But nonetheless, I purchased the copy from him for a hefty sum. And ... well ... here we are now. You're more than welcome to take this disc and see for yourself; I have it downloaded as a backup, knowing you'd want proof."

At that moment, all Riley wanted was for Liam to walk down that corridor where she now stood, pick her up in his arms, whisk her away to safety, and tell her it was all a bad dream. Not that she did anything wrong -- she was married at one time to the man, presumably on the video, and would have been a consenting adult.

No, it was the fact that Tyler Brooks had taken intimate videos with her during their marriage, without her knowledge. Now Madeleine had possession of them.

God only knew what she planned to do with them, but Riley had a pretty good idea. "What do you want?" she whispered in defeat, afraid to hear the answer.

Madeleine grinned from ear-to-ear. "For you to leave Cordonia tonight and never return, or I release everything to the press."

Riley shook her head. "No. As much as I don't want anyone to see that video, I did nothing wrong, and I won't be blackmailed or intimidated by you so that you can get your grubby little paws on the crown."

"Is that so?" It wasn't a question so much as a remark meant to convey who was in control.

Maintaining her position, Riley raised a brow, refusing to give in.

Madeleine was far from giving up, though; she had manipulation in her blood. "Very well, then. I'll release the video in the morning. It should be interesting to see how the world reacts to yet another scandal by this monarchy. Their Queen plastered all over the internet again, except this time, uploaded on every porn site on the web.

"The news will run the story with your blurred-out silhouette in the background. Your father will see it, and his business will become a target.: Your friends. Family. Students. They'll all be inundated with your sexual proclivities. But the worst part will be the tribunal. The council will have no choice but to question Liam's decision-making abilities after not only squandering his pick of queen on some American nobody, but now one whose ass will be featured on the desktops of teenage boys across the world. It's a shame that he'll lose his reign, all because of you. Would you really do that to Liam? Do you genuinely believe you're worth all the trouble it will cause him?"

Riley froze. She knew Madeleine was taunting her with the people she cared about the most. The last thing she wanted was to embarrass each of them. But to possibly cause Liam to lose his legacy, his birthright, and the rulership of a country he loved so much? It was something she couldn't shake.

Staring blankly, twisting the bands of gold that belonged to Liam's mother, she couldn't get the question Madeleine just asked out of her mind: Did Riley believe she was worth the trouble it would cost him?

Nothing was damning on that video, aside from the fact that she never knew it existed. But she already had so much to prove; another video in the press' hand would tarnish Liam. Maybe the Countess of Fydelia was right: He would lose it all.

"Time is ticking," Madeleine reminded Riley as she tapped her watch. "What's it going to be?"

----------

@burnsoslow @dcbbw @ao719 @hopefulmoonobject @jessiembruno @texaskitten30 @janezillow @merridithsmiscellany-blog @mskaneko @callmeellabella @queenjilian @sirbeepsalot @drakexwillow @caroldxnvxrs @jovialyouthmusic @forthebrokenheartedthings @bebepac @kingliam2019 @lovablegranny @cordoniaqueensworld @amandablink @liamxs-world @choiceskatie @iaminlovewithtrr @hopelessromanticmonie @charlotteg234 @annekebbphotography @txemrn @thecordoniandiaries @alyssalauren @cordonianroyalty @monsoonbloom12 @mom2000aggie @theroyalheirshadowhunter @princessleac1 @kimmiedoo5 @graceful-leah @iam-the-kind-and-thoughtful @thegreentwin @gkittylove99 @cinnamonspongecake @lifeaskim @neotericthemis @pink-diamond13 @walker7519 @natureblooms24 @yourmajesty09 @gabesmommie1130 @sweatyrysconnoisour @kat-tia801 @debmcg1106

Liam x MC: Cordonia-gothqueen

FRI Series Tags: @narrytheworld @queenwalton @cordonianprincess @zaffrenotes @zilch3 @drrookie @sfb123

#liam x mc #liam x riley #prince liam #king liam #the royal romance #trr #choices liam x mc #Fools Rush In #bbrandy2002

142 notes · View notes

aesterblaster · 3 years

Text

The Facility: Chapter One

Ok ok so you know that idea I had about a horror version of blue lock? If you don't then here is where I first put the idea, its second to last on the list. There are going to be some changes from cannon/twists since this is an au but yeah enjoy!

Summary: Isagi and 299 other kids enter blue lock expecting a soccer camp. But the elimination process is more gruesome than they bargained for.

TWs: Blood and injury mention, general horror also an animal attack

Isagi watched with wide eyes as the man on stage finished his speech. "There will be an intense elimination. But the last 30 standing will get a chance to progress and show what they have. That's all for the details. You can leave if you like, but as soon as you go through that door you are unlocking the chance to be the best striker in the world!"

The others around Isagi buzzed with excitement, what could he say. This Ego guy had a way with words. He had never heard of this philosophy, leaving your teammates behind and scoring your own goals? It was crazy! So crazy it just might work. Suddenly a hand raised.

"Hey! Sorry, but I can't agree with what you just said."

It was Kira, the only one here Isagi knew. The other teens stepped back from him as if his bravery was contagious. Ego's eyes narrowed as the star player began attacking the facility. A few people agreed with him. Nodding and shouting out their concerns. Ego only scratched his head, "I see, all of you are really fucked in the head. Then leave."

His harsh words and critiques quickly whipped all the naysayers into shape. But Kira still looked doubtful. The doors whirred open and all 300 kids ran through, including Isagi. What choice did they really have?

If only they knew what was waiting for them, maybe they wouldn't have been so eager.

. . . . 35 minutes later . . . .

Isagi walked through the hall, examining his new uniform. It was sleek but there were a lot of pockets and a chain like wrist band with a red dot. A tracker? Before he could think about it Kira poked his head out a "Team Z" door and waved to him. "Hey there! You're in the same room as me."

"Oh cool." At least there was a familiar face. Isagi scanned the other kids sitting around the room. It was surprisingly dark and there was one big screen on the wall that lit up with the Blue Lock logo after he closed the door. He'd be lying if he said there wasn't a pang of disappointment in his chest at the fact he couldn't socialize before it started. Get to know everyone's strengths and weaknesses.

"Hello everyone. The people around you right now are your team and will be your team for the foreseeable future. This first part is about survival." That wasn't Ego's voice. A shiver went down Isagi's spine. It sounded like a robot and the screen showed no face, only the logo. "Whoever gets injured will not see the next phase."

"What's going on!? I thought we'd be playing soccer, not fucking around playing caveman!" one boy with short hair and eyeliner said, a vein bulging in his forehead. The voice carried on, if it heard him it made no sign.

"Yeah I want to go back home!"

"This is weird, but I think we should listen. Maybe we can get a grip on what's happening.." a player with spiky orange hair muttered. At least there was someone who was being reasonable. Isagi sighed with relief.

"Step one of this phase is water. There is a map in one of the pockets of your suits. Marked in blue are the places with water and marked in black are the places with buckets for the water. The lights will come on after this message is over and you will have to store away as much of it as you can. You never know when the tap will shut off."

There was a sickening laugh from the robotic voice. "If you haven't guessed it already, this isn't Ego or his little assistant. Please only refer to me as Quill. The only way to escape is major injury since the fences and exit doors are wired with electrocution. Showers will happen every other day, but you are not allowed to bring any buckets with you or fight. The discussion on food will happen later. The doors will only be locked when it's time to sleep and trust me you'll need it."

"Good luck."

"What the fuck." Isagi whispered. The lights turned on.

A boy with blue hair already had his map out and spread on the floor. Most of the others were still in shock. "There are buckets near us, someone should go get those."

"Are you seriously going through with this?" Kira shouted. "This is hacked! We have to find some way out. Not play some little death game."

"Do you have any better ideas? He said he'd turn off the water soon right? Oh great Buddha have mercy!" someone whimpered.

"Come on, this is a high tech place." the blue haired one continued. "They'll fix the hacker soon enough and everything will be back to normal. For now let's just go along and not get hurt."

"And introduce ourselves? He said we're going to be together for the foreseeable future right?" it was the guy with spiky hair again.

"Yeah." Isagi spoke up. "Let's do that, it'll help with our nerves."

"Well, I'm going to go get water." someone with long red hair stood up and opened the door. Walking out without another word. The group went around and introduced themselves when he came back with three buckets full. The only one who didn't talk was someone who was asleep on the floor. More of the group went out and soon the corner of the dim room was crowded with buckets of fresh water

"We have water right? We should be stable for now." Iemon reasoned slumping against the wall. "Anyone have any games to pass the time?"

. . . . 22 minutes later . . . .

The more the boys talked with each other the more they relaxed. The guy who was asleep eventually woke up and introduced himself as Bachira. "I heard the whole thing, don't worry." he said with a nervous laugh as he twisted some of his hair around his finger.

The games continued, but there was this nagging sense that disaster would strike any moment. And it did. "You mean there's no fucking water left?" a voice outside Team Z's door boomed. Everyone froze as it got quiet again. Whoever was speaking had others with him because now there were talking in whispers. In deep discussion about what to do probably.

"Maybe we should barricade the door." Naruhaya said quietly.

"Hell no, we should go out there and help them!" Kira, ever the hero, argued.

"Agreed. We have more than enough for us." Kunigami added. No one else spoke up. Isagi wanted too, but it was best to stay put in this situation right? And Kunigami and Kira could handle any negotiations just fine. He'd only be dead weight in that situation.

"What is wrong with you? I can't believe you don't think they deserve help too." Kira adressed the whole room but it felt as if he was staring at Isagi.

"No it's not that it-" Gagumaru couldn't finish before both him and Kunigami left. The whole room waited for them to come back. The silence combined with the terrible lighting covered the room like a thick blanket. There was a scream and some muffled shouting. Was that a dog barking? Ten minutes went by. Kuon convinced everyone to stay put.

"There could be a hundred people out there for all we know! Think logically, those screams could be someone else!" He was right, and the unknown was terrifying. But a pit of guilt still sat in everyone's stomach. Two minutes passed. Fifteen. Twenty. Thirt-

Kunigami opened the door and closed it abruptly, Kiras arm was hoisted over his shoulders and he was groaning in pain. "What happened out there?" Isagi asked tentatively.

"There are other people out there. They look terrible. I think they've been here for weeks. I'll explain more in a second just, get Kira some rest, something. He's badly hurt."

The boys rushed to make a pillow out of the maps in their suits. Kira was laid down gently and quickly passed out. "I have a flashlight in my suit." Imamura said. He took it out and shined the beam on Kira. The arm of his suit was ripped off and his skin had three bite marks that broke the skin.

There was that thick, thick blanket of silence again. Chigiri threw up.

"What the fuck did that!?" Raichi whispered. "What happened?"

"We found a couple of people close to our door who had no water. We started to talk to them and they introduced themselves as Okawa and Niko. Then we heard that fucking voice again, the Quill guy. I dunno how he saw we were in the hallway but he said we weren't supposed to meet each other yet." There was a pause.

"Then he sicked a dog on us, it came bowling through the hallways like it's tail was on fire. Those two ran away but Kira thought it was a hologram or something. It wasn't." He stopped there. There was a mass gasp and cry of shock

"You're telling me Quill has bodyguard dogs?" Bachira asked.

"I guess we shouldn't get on his bad side. That's all. We'll be fine."

"Kira isn't! He's fucking bleeding out what are we gonna do?"

"Maybe he wouldn't be if you didn't go out there? Huh? We could be playing charades right now!"

Igaguri started praying. An argument broke out. Isagi wish he could see who was fighting but they flashed in and out of view. Where was that flashlight anyway? It was a mess.

"Everyone shut the fuck up! Kira is dead!" It was Kuon who spoke up. "I checked his pulse. He's dead. Shock and blood loss I think." Whatever fight was happening stopped as Isagi felt tears well up in his eyes. This couldn't be happening. Everything was moving too fast. Just an hour ago, just an hour ago he had just won the local tournament. And yet here he was, his arm a mangled mess of blood and tattered mesh.

The screen turned on again.

end of chapter one

#blue lock fanfic #my writing #bllk #blue lock #hurygf87tu9fjhyguf #blue lock manga

13 notes · View notes

fortune-fool02 · 3 years

Photo

A Fishy Vacation (Y/N and the Stardust Mer Trio)

————-

The weather was perfect for a nice day at the beach: warm and sunny, but not too hot, especially for the three mermen in Y/N’s backseat who certainly would not appreciate getting very dry. Y/N felt that the boys needed to experience a little freedom now and then, after being cooped up at home in a little pool or in their tanks at the aquarium for a long time.

Not that they were kept prisoner in any way, mind you, as they stayed on their on volition: all of them staying due to a fond friendship with Y/N, Kakyoin being curious and fascinated with the sights and sounds of land, Polnareff due to his jolly disposition and his fondness for meeting new people, and Jotaro…he just enjoyed the peaceful solitude of the aquarium’s largest tank where nobody could bother him.

It had been almost half a year since the mermen were found hurt on the shore, and were nursed back to health by Y/N and the aquarium crew. But during their stay there, they’d made new friends and enjoyed their new life, so much that they’d refused to go back in the sea even when the aquarium gave them the choice to be released back to the ocean. And so the trio stayed, and became more than just residents of the aquarium, but members of the staff as well– even with their own salary that Y/N helped them manage.

Still, Y/N thought it was only fair for them to get to be in their natural habitat now and then, and so drove them to the beach on weekends. They loved car rides, eagerly peeking out the windows, especially Polnareff, who enjoyed the view of the countryside, the city, and the cliff overlooking the seaside. They were perfectly fine on land so long as they kept themselves moist, which Y/N had draped wet towels over the backseat for that very purpose.

Eventually they reached their destination at the beach, which was only fairly crowded at this time of day. Y/N parked their car on the softer sand, next to the beach, and dismounted, opening the door for the mermen at the back. “We’re here!” they told the trio cheerfully.

Eagerly, the three mermen scooted over to the edge of the seat and pushed themselves out one by one, landing on their bellies on the soft sand with a loud, wet flop. They had no legs, and could not stand or walk, of course, but their strong arms and muscular upper bodies were not only for show, and were put to good use whenever they were outside the water, so long as the ground wasn’t too rough.

Before the mermen could crawl away, though, Y/N first had to set some rules for the three, which they knew were known to sometimes get troublesome at times. “I’d love to see all of you have fun,” they said, “but as the beach today is more crowded than it usually is, I would appreciate it if you avoided bothering the people here if they don’t like to interact. Remember to always stay close by to me, at least just close enough to see you, and keep yourselves wet so you won’t get dehydrated. Otherwise, you’re good to go! Enjoy yourselves and have fun!” they said with an encouraging gesture.

At once, the three mermen went shuffling away across the sand, propelled by their muscular, toned arms and helped along by small pushes of their tails. It looked rather odd, awkward and clumsy from a human perspective, and Y/N couldn’t help a giggle as they watched them move, but the mermen didn’t mind, and at the least their ungainly means of locomotion got them going wherever they wanted to go, so they weren’t complaining.

“Tres bien! What a wonderful place!” Polnareff exclaimed, looking all around like an excited child as he wriggled his way along.

“Is that cherry ice cream they’re selling there?” asked Kakyoin, clearly distracted by a vendor on the beach and the prospect of his favorite land food.

“Yare yare daze, make it quick, everyone.” grumbled Jotaro with a sigh, the least enthusiastic of the bunch. “I just want to get back to the aquarium and be alone.”

The three mermen soon split up, with Polnareff crawling off to explore the boardwalk, Kakyoin checking out the vendor stalls by the beach, and Jotaro heading off towards the sea, where he sat next to the rushing waves and rested his colorful tail in the cool, soothing water. All of them, of course, remembered what Y/N had said, and promised to keep within sight.

It wasn’t long before the sight of three mermen crawling about on the beach began to attract some attention. Their existence of course was now well-known around the city, having been in public view at the aquarium for many months: but still, it was an unusual sight for many, and children would excitedly squeal and point, while older folks sometimes stopped to snap pictures.

Polnareff absolutely reveled in the attention. He loved meeting the land people, and enjoyed showing off. As a small crowd began to gather around him, he lay on his side on the boardwalk, striking poses and blowing kisses, and proudly showed off his shiny silver tail which gleamed brilliantly in the sunshine. He, ever being the romantic, also couldn’t resist throwing some playful flirts to the ladies who gathered to admire his toned physique and beautiful tail.

Alas for him, his attempts were met with awkward giggles at best and scorn at worst. “Sorry, fish boy, but we prefer our guys with legs,” said one lady dismissively. Pol gave a dejected-looking glance at Y/N, who smiled reassuringly and gave him a pat on the shoulder. “You’re perfect just the way you are, legs or not,” they told him. “Come on, let’s go check on the others.”

Y/N strolled over to the vendors and the kiosks, Polnareff following suit. Among the three, he was the best at traversing land, and could crawl fast enough to keep up with Y/N, pausing only for them to moisten his gills and tail with the spray bottles Y/N had brought along to keep them hydrated. Soon they reached the stalls, where Kakyoin sat on the smooth floors, trying to make a bargain with a confused ice-cream seller.

“For the last time, we only accept cash,” said the exasperated vendor, glancing down at the sitting merman and his offering of clam shells. Kakyoin sadly gazed down at his collection of shells, which he had spent hours in the shallow sea gathering the prettiest ones he could find. “Not even this nice one?” he pleaded, holding up a colorful conch shell.

“That’s not how it works, Kak!” Polnareff yelled out at him, as he crawled his way over, his tail sliding behind as he clambered onto the tile floor. “The land people only trade with the leafy greens!” he said, prompting a laugh from Y/N, who had struggled to explain to Polnareff what dollar bills were, when they recieved some from the aquarium as the mermen’s salary as honorary aquarium staff. “Come on, Y/N, give the guy some of the greens.”

“It’s called money,” Y/N explained to the two mermen. “It’s how we humans trade goods and services. Like doctor appointments, or groceries, or ice cream,” they told as the two mermen listened in intrigued fascination. “We can’t just trade random objects for something in return,” they added as they made their purchase on the redhead merman’s behalf.

Soon Kakyoin had his ice cream and was happily licking away at his cone. “There you go,” smiled Y/N. “Now I’ve got to go and check how Jotaro’s doing.” They headed off to the seashore along with Polnareff, while Kakyoin stayed behind, as he was holding and eating an ice cream cone and couldn’t follow as he needed his hands to crawl. “I’ll just join you later,” he said with a wave.

Y/N and Polnareff headed to the shore, only to be met along the way by Jotaro crawling back inland, followed by a group of curious children, who had gathered around him, asking all sorts of questions. Jotaro normally didn’t mind children, and got along with them just fine, but their silly questions of these ones were beginning to get exasperating.

“Are you a mermaid?” asked a wide eyed little girl. Jotaro sighed. “No, I am a merman.”

“Why are you crawling on land?” asked another, a little boy. “Yare yare, can’t you see I don’t have any legs?” Jotaro replied, trying to be nice but clearly irritated by the repetitive nonsense questions.

“What happened to your legs?” piped in a third. Jotaro groaned. “I said I don’t have any because I’m a merman!"

"Alright you kids,” Y/N intervened, sternly but kindly. “I’m a friend of the merman. If you have any questions about them ask me instead, I’ll be glad to answer them! Jotaro here doesn’t like it when people get too loud around him. Please respect his space.”

The children happily complied, and Y/N spent most of the afternoon answering any questions the children had about the mermen: where they lived, what they ate, where they came from. Polnareff too joined in, as he was more open to attention than Jotaro was, and he was nice enough to let the curious children see his tail up close, flexing and bending it to convince a few naysayers in the crowd that his tail was indeed real and that he wasn’t just a “man in a costume”.

Soon Kakyoin, having finished his ice cream and followed them into the sea, joined in the fun, where he had a great time interacting with the kids, demonstrating his beautiful singing voice, and even teaching them how to swim: merman-style, with an undulating dolphin-kick. Y/N watched the whole commotion with a smile, glad the mermen were enjoying themselves, while Jotaro retreated to the warm shallow water, glad that he could finally have some peace and quiet now the kids were preoccupied with the other two.

Soon the sun began to set, and eventually one by one the tourists departed, the children waving their goodbyes to the mermen as their parents called them home. It wasn’t long until it was just Y/N and the mermen left on the beach, sitting by the shore as the gazed at the fiery glow of the twilight horizon.

“This is always the best part of going to the beach”, Kakyoin sighed pleasantly. “A beautiful view of the sunset. Something that happens everyday, yet is always beautiful each time you see it.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself, cherry boy,” Polnareff added, stretching out his arms and tail with a yawn. “It’s been a long and fun day, I’m all tired out,” he moaned.

“Alright, boys, I guess it’s time for us to go home now,” Y/N said, as the last tangerine sliver of the sun disappeared below the horizon. The three mermen wholeheartedly agreed, and followed Y/N as they walked back to their car, crawling with far less vigor than they did at the beginning of the day. Y/N smiled as the exhausted mermen approached the car with sleepy looks.

“Hold on, I’ll help you climb back up onto the seat,” they said, as they sprayed the towels draped on the backseat to keep them wet again. With a little struggle, they lifted the mermen one by one into the car, first Polnareff, then Kakyoin, and finally Jotaro, who usually hesitated at being handled when on land, but was now too exhausted to even care.

With the trio in place, and Y/N making sure no fins were at risk of getting caught in the door, Y/N mounted the driver’s seat and started the engine. Soon they were driving off the beach and back onto the road, as they headed back to the aquarium for the night.

“So, how was your day? Did you have a great time?” Y/N asked, glancing back at the mermen

But no answer came but Polnareff’s faint snores, as the mermen, exhausted from their long day at the beach, were quickly, and soundly, already fast asleep.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Thank you so much, anon! I absolutely loved this!

#merman au #stardust mer trio #merman jotaro #merman kakyoin #merman polnareff #submission

20 notes · View notes

jencsi · 3 years

Text

Let’s Talk- Finn and Russell;

From the very beginning, we get the hint, notion, presence of a deeper connection between Julie Finlay and DB Russell. In Seeing Red, when she hears him, not even having to look and know he’s there during the crime scene reconstruction, just his voice alone makes her roll her eyes, gets her fired up with some sort of passion, anger, emotional reaction. As evidenced from their conversation about the blood spatter case, her resistance to proceed further with him again shows she is not quite over what has happened to them in the past and it makes viewers want to know, what the heck happened? What could this seemingly unbothered hippie like guy have ever done to cross this already sullen yet spirited woman? Despite her futile attempts to deflect him, she cannot help but be drawn to the case, he sought her out after all, he must be desperate. When she retrieves the file he leaves behind and it piques her interest, she gives in, with probably a lot of hemming and hawing off screen, before venturing to CSI for the first time.

That single solitary scene cemented in my brain their dynamic from that day forward. There was no going back for me. Whatever they had in the past, whether that be something romantic, friendly or just work related, my soul ached to know more and even better, my heart yearned to watch them more, to listen, to observe the bantar, the sarcasm, the snark, the sheer and utter pure honesty that comes from their conversations. DB Russell is not trying to trick Finn, he’s not trying to make her figure out some silly puzzle or game, he just wants her expertise and guidance. Once she accepts his offer, her personality begins to shine via her work (Should I wrap it up and take it back to the lab? Took the words right out of my mouth smart ass” “You know me so well” “And you know blood, better than anyone I know”) her bonding with her colleagues, and even better, the little hints at what was between her and Russell back in Seattle.

When we finally do get to see that past revealed, ripped open like a fresh wound, via CSI on Fire, we see the headstrong and overheated Finn on a mission, prove that Tom Cooley is a killer and bring justice to the families of his victims. Of course that journey is not without complications and wild accusations, of course Finn would never kill anyone, that I firmly believe, unless of course it’s to save a friend or colleague (saving Greg from that supposed innocent victim of the Gig Harbor Killer in The Twin Paradox) but Cooley rattles her, gets under her skin in a way different from Russell. In fact it’s Russell warning her to be careful, to go with caution, but her typical rebellious nature of “I’m not listening” pushes her further to the truth and to danger at every turn.

Her tone when speaking to Russell about the discovery of Cooley’s body in his hotel shifts our thinking that maybe she isn’t the same person she was two years ago. If what we are observing right now is the casual cool collected Finn, just how reckless was she in Seattle? She feels the disappointment from Russell in his tone, the way he looks at her, and she hates that, she doesn’t want to disappoint anyone, especially him. His presence in her life since the Seattle days has created this combination of not wanting to let him down or disappoint him mixed with her fierce loyalty to the truth, to the victims and their families, clashing with her exuberant personality.

With CSI on Fire resolved, Finn melts back into a rhythm with her ex-husband, also a component of her former life in Seattle, all seems right between Russell and her, a trademark of their friendship, forgiveness and acceptance.

Looking at their dynamic from the perspective of the actors who portray them, Ted Danson has referred to them as the bickersons, like oil and water, but at the same time, Finn/Elisabeth and her characters intrusiveness helps him do his job better and see things clearly when it comes to cases as well as other aspects of his characters life. Elisabeth meanwhile seemed to enjoy the back and forth dialogue and the testiness of their relationship, she seemed invested in their past in Seattle and wondered where the writers would take that.

In Homecoming, the season 12 finale, we see corruption and problems arise amongst the police force and Russell apologies for seeming to drag Finn into this mess and bringing her there to work but she states that she makes her own decisions and doesn’t seem bothered by the issues until she is thrown into the chaos of it all when she trails Crenshaw and stumbles into the violence they have created around them with the assistance of McKeen and Kimball.

The Finn and Russell dynamic gets tested here when Katie, Russell’s grand daughter is kidnapped and Finn attempts to save her. In the chaos, she sends Katie out into the unknown alone while she does battle with Crenshaw (a violent but epic struggle, major kudos to the stunt work they did here, it felt so real and made me love Finn even more, seeing how far Elisabeth was willing to take this character) Russell is devastated to learn Finn let Katie escape alone but is also distraught knowing both were hurt and in danger. His anger at Finn boils over when she insists she’s fine, how he refers to her as “Finn” on the phone instead of the sweeter Jules we are used to hearing, and when she discusses the case with him in the bedroom where Katie was taken from and he punched the wall, leading to a missed clue. Despite the resentment towards her, they figure out Katie’s whereabouts and stop McKeen from carrying out his plans. We can see and feel Finn’s guilt deep down for her mistakes, even if everything works out, the way she stands holding the phone, the way she looks at Moreno who tries to assure her it will be okay.

At the end of Karma To Burn, Finn and Russell reconcile again, not so much with words but in the way she snaps him out of his fantasy of ever having to use his gun in a real life situation, of how far he was almost pushed to the brink when it comes to saving his work family, not just Katie. His use of the nickname Jules on several occasions, something she claims to hate but also doesn’t, comes back when Barbara inquires if she will stay for dinner. All is well again.

The final blow and perhaps the deepest cut of their relationship occurs with the reopening of the Gig Harbor Killer case. From the get go, we start off with a bang, literally and figuratively. It is Russell who is at the mercy of Winthrop who demands he admit they did not capture the correct killer in order to relinquish Finn from the confines of her bomb invested car. With much reluctance, he admits their mistake and Finn is spared. The hug they share in the parking lot after she is freed breaks me every time and just further adds to the complicated but always present nature of their relationship. The next go around, Maya, Russell’s daughter is targeted, but this time, she is used as bait to try and lure the copycat out to play and be captured. When that fails, Finn unwillingly becomes the next target and once again Russell is thrown for a loop. This time however, there is no mercy, no chance at redemption, Finn is ripped from him violently and with no regard. Worse still, we get to see a tiny bit of his life afterwards, via CSI Cyber, when he observes another coma patient in Hack ER. Avery Ryan takes notice of his demeanor and quietly brings up Finn. Russell’s memories play out in quick flashbacks and we see where his heart belonged the entire time. He speaks of reading to her, hoping she’d wake up, then darkness, never to see her eyes pierce him again, no more bantar, no more snark, no more intrusiveness. The fact that almost a whole year later we get a resolution for Finn and get to see Russell pine for her one last time gives us closure and really showcases how strong this bond was for three and a half years.

I will always wish for a better outcome for Finn, as originally scripted, but somewhere in the chaos of writing and producing, we lost her. I will always be sad we didn’t get to see more of Russell at her bedside waiting for her to wake up. That emotion would have been so raw and real coming from Ted. These characters deserved a proper ending and reunification because it just wasn’t justified to wreck their metaphorical ship that was so strong and sailing along fine before colliding with the iceberg of violence. Nevertheless, this dynamic holds strong in my heart to this day. There are plenty more examples to pull from the show, every time they chatted about cases and made progress just by talking it out, every time they fought about their thought processes and reckless behavior, every soft sweet utterance of “Jules” will forever gut me, weaken me, bring me to my knees, but somehow give me strength. That’s how powerful their relationship was and appeared to me on screen, they were a paradox, love, hate, push, pull, oil and water as Ted stated before, give and take, and boy did they give me so much more than any naysayer could ever attempt to take from me. No matter where anyone stands on the fandom line, so much heart and soul went into Russell and Finn, and when you really sit down and watch and listen with perspective and acceptance, you can see it and feel it. I think that type of power transcends just your typical acting alone, it truly feels real. Give me that dynamic everyday, sign me up. I don’t think I’ll ever be as lucky as I was to witness such greatness on the screen between these two. Good things don’t happen twice, as I have unfortunately learned the hard way over the years, once it’s gone, it’s gone.

But in the heart and soul of Russell and Finn is an incredible ability to keep a stronghold on viewers like me, or maybe not, maybe I’m just crazy, but here were are, years after things have ended and the screen has faded to black.

#julie finlay #db russell #ted danson #elisabeth shue #thank you for coming to this ted talk #literally #csi crime scene investigation #that novel I’ve been working on #here you go #let’s talk

6 notes · View notes

greyfongschemmenti · 4 years

Text

Under Pressure 11|15

FryeArcana

Chapter 11

Busted

Summary:

You deal with being suspended from your job. A visit to Mako might help you find some resolution along with Bolin's premiere of the finale of his movers.

The metal door slides open as you walk in and see Mako slouched on the metallic cold bed. “long time since I’ve seen you” you mutter as Officer Song closes the door behind you as you take a seat at the chair in the corner. Mako perks up as he looks at you “y/n! I see you’re not cuffed.” He signed in relief. You shook your head, but frown upset with yourself “no, but I did get suspended. I’m off the case. Chief is furious with how I handled things.” You look and leaning over with your hands clasp together. “she thinks you played me…. I’m only going to ask this once Mako, but I have to know…. Did you have a hand in stealing Asami’s property”. Once a Triple Threat, Always a Triple Threat, Gang’s voice rings in your head. You look at him, analyzing him. Mako looked you in the eyes “No, I would never hurt Asami like that. I care about her” you listen to his voice, so sure of himself nothing to tip you off that you lower your head and sigh. “I know you wouldn’t, but I just had to know for sure” you put your hands over your head. “you believe me? with the whole Varrick theory” he’s surprised. He thought with the whole bust at his apartment that he lost your trust and you would turn your back on him too. Mako looks like he has some hope creeping up on him. “I thought for sure after that bust, I would have lost your trust” he looked down. The corner of your lip slightly curls up “I did think that at the time…but on the ride to my apartment and then watching Chief search my things. It became clear that Varrick wanted us handled. I’m surprised though…my place came out clean.” You look out the small opening from the door and check to see if anyone is out there before looking back at Mako as he thinks. “Varrick must’ve assumed that once Chief Beifong learned that you were involved that you wouldn’t gotten suspended or kicked off the force. I was present at every situation, the hiring, the ship, then at the mover set. I was the one doing all the digging.” You slowly nod your head understanding “yeah, I guess so. That makes sense. Lock up the badgermole and it stops it from digging any more holes.” You mutter softly then clear your throat “I don’t know what I can do since I’m off the investigation. I don’t even think I should even be here. Chief might arrest me for some lame excuse like tampering the investigation. I should go before there is any alarm” You stand up and walk over to the door, Mako stops you grabbing your arm “wait, y/n…thanks. Despite everything against me you’re sticking to believe me. I…” he looks down and you smile putting a hand on his shoulder “I trust you Mako. You’re great at your job. I know we had a rocky start when you first started, but during this whole mess I’ve gotten a better understanding of you. I’ll try and find some way to clear your name.” you squeeze his shoulder and knock on the door to be let out. Mako speaks up softly “Where’s Asami…” your face softens, and you think back at how your friend is taking this news “she’s…. trying to grasp the situation. I’m sure she trusts and believes you but….” You sigh and shrug as Song lets you out. “I’ll catch you later, Mako” you wave goodbye.

Walk down the stairs and looking around corners trying not to get caught by Lin. You’re just about to make it down the lobby when Lin walks in from the entrance and her eyes widen when she sees you. “what are you doing here. Do you not understand what being suspended means” she puts her hand on her hip. You groan out “relax, I’m not here to work. I was actually walking out.” You walk past her and she grips your arm to stop you looking over her shoulder up to you “If I find out that you’re still investigating on the case. Consider your career over.” She narrows her eyes keeping her voice down, but you can feel the anger in her tone. You put your hand on hers and peel her hand off your arm, not wanting to jerk your arm away in anger or be rude. You still love this woman even though she doesn’t agree with you. you glare back at her and give her a sly smirk “is that a threat, chief?” you look at her eyes. She snarls at you and huffs “it’s a promise, Lieutenant” She rebuffs. You glance down at her lips then back at her eyes and your face softens, hurt imprinted on your face. You look away and brush past her walking out the station.

A strange envelope in the mail is in your mailbox once you get inside you open it. It’s from Bolin, he’s invited you to the big finale of his mover Nuktuk: Hero of the South. “Well at least something good has come out of this mess, Bolin is a mover star now.” You mutter under your breath as you put the letter down then open the box that came with it, filled with Nuktuk merch and a large poster of the mover “huh…there’s writing on the top..”

Dear y/n,

Nuktuk says, ‘Keep Reaching For The Stars.’

From,

Bolin aka Nuktuk aka Hero of the South

p.s. Pabu says hi and he misses you

You roll your eyes but silently laugh, typical Bolin. You set the poster down and frown sighing. “I guess I could go, show support to Bolin. It’s not like I got anything better to do.”

“man this collar is kind of tight” you tug on the collar of your shirt as you sport out your pant suit as you walk through the crowd to get inside when you catch a glimpse of Lin and you groan “of course she’ll be detailing the security tonight. President Raiko is here after all” you rub your face then make your way over to her direction. “didn’t ping you as a mover fanatic” you speak up and Lin turns around when she hears your voice “what are you doing here?” she snaps and you smirk “I was invited, what about you?” you look back at Lin, her eyes dart to check your outfit out. While your eyes dart to her lips as she fashions a dark shade of red. “I’m here for only security purposes. President Raiko is in attendance so I have the best to keep watch.” You look around and let out a laugh “yeah… sure, the best” Lin’s cheeks redden and balls her fists “what” and you point in the direction of Lu and Gang “I think your “best” would rather be scarfing down varri-cakes than guarding their posts, Chief.” You slide a hand in your pocket and laugh. Lin’s cheeks heat up with embarrassment as she groans and starts stomping away. You grab her arm and pull her back to you catching her in surprise “For security purposes you sure wear that shade of red very well. Is that for anyone in particular?” you talk in a hushed low growl looking down at her as she looks at you. Her eyes glance down to your lips as you slightly bite your lip and she huffs trying to hid her blush, “Of course not” she snaps as she pushes off of you and stomps away. You watch her walk up to the detectives yell their ear off giving them orders to get to their posts. You snicker while you head inside looking for your seat, while Lin glances at your direction with her arms folding and watches you walking away looking down and sighs deeply.

You find your way to the box that Bolin mentioned in his letter and greet Asami, Bolin, and Ginger. “Hey everyone, Ginger nice to see you again” you warmly smile at you. Bolin excitedly walks up to you and hugs you picking you up “y/n! I’m so glad you made it” he smiles, and you pat his shoulder to get him to put you down “yeah, I wouldn’t miss this for the world, buddy. What’s a friend without supporting your projects.” You smile awkwardly then look at Asami “hey Sami, you look great as usual” you softly smile at her before giving her a small hug which she returns. “yeah, all things considered” you all look down as a sad feeling washes over you as you all think about Mako. Bolin clears his throat “come on, let’s not thinking about Mako for tonight. This is Nuktuk time!” he smiles brightly as he poses in a hero stance. You nod and give him a small nod “sure let’s take our seats. I think Varrick is about to start” everyone makes their way towards their seats as you take the open seat by Ginger and listen to Varrick’s speech.

“thank you all for coming to the finale of Nuktuk: Hero of the South. You know, when I first started this project, there were a lot of naysayers out there.

“you can’t make pictures move,” They said.

“you can’t take some knucklehead earthbender and make him a star,” they said.

“you can’t teach a polar bear dog to speak,” they said.

Well, they’re wrong. Thanks to the magic of the movers, our furry friends have found their voices and you’ll be shocked to hear what they have to say.

They speak of the injustice that’s happening in the Southern Water Tribe right now. My hope is that their words and this epic mover will inspire a real-life hero to rise up and help.” Varrick takes a moment to let the words sink into the audience “thank you again. Enjoy the show.”

Varrick surely is a master manipulator. Your eyes roll after he’s done and you look over at Bolin who seems to look sad, he’s usually always chipper. Maybe he’s sad Mako isn’t here to experience this with him? You frown a bit but look back at the screen and try to enjoy the mover. You watch Nuktuk grieving a dying Juji and suddenly you see Bolin get up from his seat and walk out the box you look at Asami who exchanges your glance before whispering “I’ll go talk to him” you nod as you watch Asami get up and walk out the box after him.

“…I will be the ruler of Ice Earth” a dramatized evil Unalaq cackles in the mover and you laugh quietly. They got the evil power hungry chief right. You sense a large bang coming next door then the next second a guy in waterbender clothes is flying out landing in the water below. Your grip the arms of the chair and look over the railing before looking over at the box and notice the commotion. You jump out of your seat, jump up on the bar above and swing over to the other side of the wall into the next box kicking a guy down landing on his back. Then hop off of him accessing the scene and find Bolin “Bolin? What’s going on” he shouts, “they’re kidnapping the president!” as he gets down knocking out two guys by bending columns out the ground before warning the President and his wife to stand back. You help the president and his wife out from the box before three more men come running in your direction. You stand in front of them and tell them to stand aside as you get in your fighting stance dodging their attacks. You send a series of boulders their way before kicking up a slab of earth and send spike it towards their stomachs knocking them out. You grab the President and his wife “hurry, this way. The police should be on their way to get you to safety.” You escort them down the hall then you run into three officers who are about to knock you down before Raiko stops them “she saved us from those men” they nod then recognize you. you guess without your uniform you don’t look familiar to them. One of the officers look at you “we’ll take it from here” and you nod bowing out before running back and check on Bolin.

You run back into the president’s box when you see Bolin about to send a disc at one of the waterbender’s head question who sent him. The guy cowers in fear and points at Varrick’s box and you glare, “Varrick…. gotcha” you mutter as you smirk finally getting your confirmation. I have to get him before he escapes. You run out the box and start sprinting down the hall to Varrick and run into Lin and her force stopping. Lin watching her men arrest Varrick and Zhu Li turns her head to look at you then looks down feeling slightly guilty. You give her a soft nod and turn around walking away from the situation when you find it’s being handled.

“huh I guess he really is Nuktuk” you smile crossing your arms as you stand next to Asami. Both of you watching the cameras of the paparazzi in a frenzy taking photographs of Bolin to which he poses smiling big and bright. “yeah, he’s a real hero” Asami smiles as she watches Bolin then both your eyes widen when Ginger pulls Bolin into a kiss, “I can’t believe my boyfriend is a real-life hero.” She exclaims and you perk your eyebrows up. “When did Bolin get a girlfriend I thought Ginger was for publicity.” You lean over at Asami and whisper to which she shrugs just as shocked and confused as you. Asami walks up to Bolin “Bolin, you saved the president, and you proved Mako was right all along! We have to go tell him what happened” she tells him while he is in the middle of making out with Ginger. “yeah!” Bolin mumbles against Ginger’s lips then goes back to kissing her before Asami clears her throat and steps back “oh you meant right now.” You laugh and step forward “yeah, come on lover boy”

You pat him on the back when you hear a noise coming from the sky and look up to see “Oogi?” you mumble as you watch Oogi land at the entrance and you three run over enough to hear Korra say “…Unalaq wants to destroy the world” you subconsciously stand beside Lin as Bolin starts questioning Korra “Unalaq is gonna destroy the world? He really does have a doomsday device?”

“he’s trying to release a powerful dark spirit during Harmonic Convergence, which is only a few days away. If he succeeds, the world as we know it is over. Sir, we desperately need your help.”

Your eyes wide at Korra’s report and turn to the President, surely now he will change his views and want to fight. This is no longer a civil war, it’s now a world issue. He waits a moment before responding “I’m sorry, Korra, but my answer is still no.” everyone eyes widen at his respond and Tenzin speaks up heated evidently not happy of his comment which surprises you because Tenzin is never this angry unless it was Korra doing something juvenile “There are lives on the line! And my daughter is one of them. Raiko, you must reconsider” he barks out. Wait what, his daughter? Jinora or Ikki? What happened to them? “Sir, I strongly suggest you reconsider, this is no longer a civil matter between two tribes. It is now a world issue..” you but in trying to reason with the president. “Enough!” Raiko shouts then sighs “I’m aware that lives are on the line, and that’s precisely why my troops are staying here. If the world is going to be thrown into chaos, like you claim, I need to protect my citizens. I’m sorry.” He laments as Bolin steps forward with a newfound confidence putting a hand on Raiko’s shoulder “Sir…Nuktuk needs your help. I know you love helping people.” Oh he’s acting as Nuktuk. Raiko eyes him down “Son, I appreciate you saving my life,” He looks over at you “you too, Lieutenant” then looks back at Bolin “I’m a big fan of your work, but my decision is final.” He turns around and leaves the group, everyone wondering what to do know. Bolin looks down “I never should’ve saved that guy” you join him “you and me both” you sigh. Asami turns to Korra “if you guys need help, I’m here for you” Bolin joins in “yeah, me too” you smile and step forward pointing your thumb at your chest “count me in too” Korra smiles appreciatively at the three of you “Thank you. it’s so good to see you guys again” then looks around “wait, where’s Mako” Bolin, Asami and you share glances before you speak up “he’s being held in prison. It’s a long story. We should go wait for him at the station when he gets out.” Everyone nods and Tenzin offers to give everyone a ride to the station.

You’re sitting at one of the benches further from the crowd as you wait for Mako to get released. You wanted to spend some time by yourself having your head down as you go over what transpired tonight. Your eyes open when you hear those metallic steps you know so well approach you and stands in front of you, you look up and crack a smile

“Chief, Looks like a nice evening to release a prisoner”. Lin sighs and uncrosses her arms

“you were right. I should have should’ve trusted Mako and…. I should have trusted--believed you.” you lean back in on the bench and sigh looking at Lin not saying anything for a couple of seconds before a smirk appears on your lips

“I’m willing to look past this and blame Raiko for stressing you out” you say smugly then you soften

“I wouldn’t be putting my job on the line if I didn’t think there was some truth in what Mako was saying” you quiet your voice as you put your hand on your thighs to push yourself up to stand up and face her.

“I know that now, but you shouldn’t have lied to me, y/n” she lowers her voice as she looks at you.

“you’re right, I shouldn’t have lied, but it had to be done or else we wouldn’t have gotten close to figuring out Varrick. You would’ve put a stop to it and would further delay or worse let Varrick get away” you mutter and before she can respond you quickly add

“you can’t tell me I’m not right on that” you smile as you fold your arms.

She sighs deeply “you’re incorrigible” she mutters. “I’m going to send Bolin to release Mako” she gives you the news as she turns around

“what about my job?” you ask as she turn her head over back to you

“I would figure you would have the intuition to know that you’re reinstated” she gives you a smile before dropping it as she turns back around but you quickly grab her arm stopping her before letting go realizing where you are and lower your voice even quieter

“what about us?” Lin stiffens up then whispers back “we’ll talk about that later…” before she finally walks away and gives Bolin the order and you watch him run inside. It takes a couple minutes, but you start to hear footsteps coming from the halls and you stand up walking over and stand besides Lin and the other officers and start to clap when you see Mako. Everyone follows your suit and Lin speaks up

“Nice job, Mako. You’re going to make a great detective.” She smiles at Mako. I guess she does smile in public. Lu and Gang’s jaws drop and look at each other confused

“but, chief, there aren’t any detective openings right now.” Chief looks over and responds nonchalantly

“Actually, we have two openings.” You cross your arms and looking down at the floor to hide your grin. Fucking finally they’re gone. Mako glances over at Asami and smiles while Korra pushes past the crowd and hugs him before giving him a kiss. She’s talking to him like their still together. You and Bolin watch the two with your eyes widen and really confused you eye Asami before glancing back at the couple(?). Mako surprised to see Korra here and Bolin tries to smooth the situation over.

“oh yeah…. Korra’s back”. Mako and Korra talk to which he asks her if they remember the big fight they had. Korra looks down and shakes her head

“no, not really. I got attacked by a dark spirit and I lost my memory for a little while. Maybe it hasn’t all come back yet. Was it a bad fight?” Yes. You guys broke up. You answered in your head but hoped Mako has matured and be man enough to tell Korra those words.

“uh……..” Mako drags out as everyone looks at this show. You and Bumi with your arms crossed, Lin has her hands on her hips and everyone else just waiting for his response.

“….mm… no. No, it—it wasn’t that bad.” he finally retorts. Asami looks mad and crosses her arms and you quietly smack her head down on your palm. Well this is awkward. Tenzin steps up to clear the tension and change the subject. Yes, let’s cut and dodge this whole scene, good job Tenzin put those airbending moves in action.

“Korra, we don’t have much time. We need to figure out how to deal with Unalaq.” Bolin looks at Tenzin

“I think I know just the man to talk to.”

“why wouldn’t I be surprised” you muttered as you see Varrick’s prison chamber.

“Varrick industries built this prison, and I had this cell made special. I had a feeling I’d end up here one day” he smirks, and you run your hands down into your pockets as you watch him order his assistant around.

“Don’t tell me you guys are still mad about everything that happened.” You groan out

“Yup, why wouldn’t we be” you glare at him. “I did some good things too” he sounds hurt “like what?” you talk back to him to which he started naming a good thing he’s done for every person.

“Korra, who warned you about Unalaq? I did”

“Bolin, who got you into the movers? I did”

“Asami, who saved your company? I did”

“You…actually I’m coming at a blank….” He steps up the cell and eyes you Zhu Li speaks up

“That’s y/n, sir. She’s Asami’s close friend and also works under Chief Beifong as a Lieutenant” You look over at Zhu Li and give her a short nod before looking back at Varrick as he smirks at you

“right… y/n, hmm sorry didn’t do anything for you… I guess, I didn’t” he steps away as you roll your eyes as he points at Mako

“Mako, who got you thrown in jail? I did!.... oh yeah, I guess that was a bad thing. 3 out of 5 ain’t bad.” He looks down counting on his fingers.

“it’s not good either…. You did all that stuff to fool and manipulate them into your grand scheme.” You snap at him as Asami steps up “you stole everything from me, and you tried to kidnap the president. Those are pretty bad too.”

“I wasn’t going to hurt him. I just needed to start a war. Well, a bigger war.” As he extends his arms apart to show how big he wanted this war to be.

Bolin jumps “well we’re gonna end it.”

You look from Bolin then turn to Varrick “Where’s all the stuff you stole from Asami?”

Varrick puts his arms on his hips “the Future Industries stuff? It’s on my battleship.”

Korra raises an eyebrow “you have a battleship?”

“Of course I do! I bought the first on they made, named her the Zhu Li”

You frown “that’s nice…. I guess”

Bolin proceeds to ask, “you named your battleship after your assistant?”

“yep. They’re both cold, heartless war machines.”

“um, never mind about it being nice” you mutter out loud

“Look, I am truly sorry for the mess I caused. Let me make it up to you. Take Zhu Li…. My battleship, it’s yours, and everything on it.”

Korra perks up “it’s not the fleet we were looking for, but it’s the next best thing.”

Bolin jumps up excited and happy “Alright! Team Avatar is back in business!” he pulls Korra, Asami and Mako into a group hug as they all laugh. He tries to grab you, but you step aside and smile “come y/n you’re part of the team too!” he looks at you and you shake your head “I wasn’t at that initial meeting” you laugh and Bolin puts a finger on his chin as he thinks “well you’re part of T.A.B” he smiles and your eyebrow raises confused “um…T.A.B.? I’m a tab?” you cross your arms slightly feeling offended as he quickly waves his hands “not tab, T.A.B! Team Avatar B! The team consists of Tenzin, Kya, Bumi, General Iroh, Chief Beifong, and you”. You and Lin exchange a glance then look back at Bolin “um, right…T.A.B” you smile softly. “well let’s get packed up, take a quick nap and embark first thing in the morning” you smile then walk over to Asami making sure she’s okay with everything with Mako and then plan for her to swing by your place and give you a ride. We got a crazy evil north chief to stop.

#lin x reader #lin beifong x reader #fanfic #linbeifong #lin beifong #TLOK2UnderPressure #fyrefics #linxreader #linbeifongxreader #linbeifong x reader

12 notes · View notes

misssunflowersandsangria · 4 years

Text

Please Have Snow and Mistletoe- Chapter 3

My deers! Merry Christmas Eve, eve from my little corner of the world. Thanks again for going on this journey with me. I hope you’re enjoying it so far. Just two more chapters! Enjoy babes!

Summary: Sweet treats lead to honest hearts.

Chapter 3: Sweeter than a Sugar Plum

The next morning Shikamaru tried to make up for his behavior. It wasn’t fair to keep Temari at a distance just because he might have some confusing feelings for her. So instead of having breakfast altogether, he had it made so they wouldn’t have to leave the warm bed. Now though they were just lying there together enjoying the peaceful morning.

Temari thoroughly enjoyed being spoiled by him and having more time to talk. She learned more about his past and just what he’d managed to accomplish in just a few years. She was completely impressed by him but he was pretty dazzled by her as well. It was very affirming to have him be in just a bit of awe of her.

“I just don’t understand how you can stay away from all of this?” She gestured around the room. Thinking of his parents and his friends who were over the moon to have him home. “Work is important but there’s just so much more.”

Shikamaru looked up at Temari from where his head was resting on her lap. “I wanted to prove myself. I’ve lived with the pressure of being the Nara family heir. I wanted to show the world that I was worthy of carrying that name. But also that I could accomplish things without my last name. If that makes sense. I’ve silenced a lot of those naysayers and critics. There’s little else that I need to accomplish. I’ve done what I set out to do.”

Her hand was gently carding through his hair. “Are you happy?”

He considered his response carefully. “I think so, but something still feels like it’s missing.”

“Think you’ll ever figure out what that is?”

“I might be getting closer to knowing.” She settled back against the headboard analyzing everything she’d learn about him.

For Temari, Family had always come first. Moving away had been the first selfish thing that she’d done but it was what was for the best. What she needed to grow. But she always came back to them.

Shikamaru was just a little lost. It wouldn’t be hard to find his way back.

“So what’s on the schedule for today?” She was able to go through the number of clothes he’d ordered for her. It was far too many things for just two more days but he was insistent that she take it home with her. The uneasiness of the previous evening was long gone and they were back on familiar and comfortable ground.

“Christmas cookies with the Akimichis”

An amused grin crossed her face. “Really?”

“Yup, ever since we were kids we’d have a gingerbread house decorating contests and decorate cookies for Santa.”

She couldn’t help but think about how sweet of a tradition that was.

Choji and Karui’s home was incredible. Welcoming and inviting a delicious smell filled the air. The decorations reminded her of a winter wonderland.

“Temari!” Ino eagerly gathered her into a hug and Temari easily reciprocated the affection. It was easy to love the blonde.

“Welcome to our place. I’m so happy that you could come. Shikamaru hasn’t been around to do this with us. I doubt that he’s going to be very good at it.” Karui teased giving Temari another welcoming hug.

“Ya, ya, don’t listen to them Tem. They’re all mean to me.” Temari just grinned and followed Karui into the kitchen. It was huge, state of the art, and outfitted with the newest technology. On the counter and the island were icing, sprinkles with trays of cookies ready to be decorated. Along with supplies ready for them to make their own batches.

“Okay team Nara, here’s your aprons. Feel free to use anything in the kitchen.” Temari couldn’t help but laugh at the matching cheesy reindeer themed aprons they’d been given. She still hadn’t quite learned what the obsession was with deer.

“Let me help you with that.” Temari felt her skin warm at the casual way he brushed away her hair to tie the apron around her neck. His fingertips lightly touched the skin there. His hands grazed along her sides to pull the ties around her waist.

“Than-thank you.” She stammered flushed and felt a little too warm. He nodded before securing his own apron.

“You look ridiculous.”

He chuckled and while that might be true she looked absolutely adorable.

“I don’t know, I’m pretty sure I’ve never looked better.” Temari laughed before taking his hand to drag him towards their supplies.

“Okay Nara, let me see what you can do.”

—

“Those look terrible.” Ino criticized Shikamaru while holding up a goblin looking elf creature.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. “I’m sorry that we can’t all be as artistic as Sai.”

The named man just grinned showing off another perfectly decorated snowflake-shaped cookie with elaborate icing.

“I’m sure they taste better than they look!” Temari interjected trying to be supportive.

Temari bravely took a bite before her expression changed into one of horror. She swallowed it down before taking a large drink of cocoa.

“Yup, delicious.”

The group all began to laugh out loud offering her pats of comfort and refilled her drink.

“She must really love you if she’s willing to eat a cookie you made Shikamaru.” Chouji grinned, throwing an affectionate arm around her.

“Come on they can’t be that bad.” After taking a bite his expression matched hers as she sent him an amused look.

“Why would you people let me make these things every year?” That cookie was absolutely disgusting.

“It’s a tradition. Besides you just usually ended up eating everyone’s cookies while we kindly fed yours to the trash can.” Chouji explained

“Ugh fine, Tem let me try one of yours then.” She gladly handed one over, and the delicious flavors floored him.

“Is there anything you’re not good at?” She grinned, flicking her hair over her shoulders.

“Probably not.”

The other two couples watched them with delighted eyes. Their teasing jabs, casual touches, and heated looks were signatures of a couple that was in love.

“How have we never met her before?” Sai whispered to Ino. His Love was the mother hen of their group. If Shikamaru had been seeing someone she’d have been the first to know.

“I don’t know. He clearly knew how to keep her a secret and I’ve been busy with work. Oh well. She’s here now and he’s happy.” Was there much else she could ask for her friend?

“These are delicious!” Temari groaned happily taking a bite of a snowman shaped cookie. Shikamaru just smiled at the bright and content look across her face.

“Let me get that.” Shikamaru’s thumb moved towards her mouth to rub away some red icing.

His thumb lightly traced along the soft skin of her bottom lip while Temari held her breath. His hand curved around her chin slowly moving her face towards his.

Temari’s eyes looked up, meeting his gaze before he dropped his hand in surprise.

“I got it.”

“Thanks.”

“Ahem, well all this sexual tension is really hot so why don’t we finish up here so I can go fuck my husband,” Ino announced shamelessly. Shikamaru rolled his eyes but appreciated that the attention was no longer on him.

They cleaned up and packed up all the treats they made except Shikamaru’s. Karui gave Temari a full batch of her famous cookies to take home with her.

After their moment in the kitchen, Temari intentionally tried to keep some distance between herself and Shikamaru. Her feelings toward him were already confusing. Each moment they shared together was only making it worse. She didn’t know how many more almost-kisses she could take.

“Drinks tonight!” Ino announced her great idea before everyone left.

“Ino-“

Ino leveled Shikamaru with a look. “No, you’re not invited. Just me Karui and Temari. You and the boys can stay home.”

“I don’t-“

Temari placed a hand on his arm. “Shikamaru, it’s okay. Ino I’d love to.”

“You’re so much more fun than him. Okay, I'll pick you up tonight.”

—

“You know you didn’t have to agree right.” Drinking with Ino could be classified as an extreme sport.

Temari rolled her eyes “Come on. I’ve only known her for a few days, it’s obvious that you can’t say no to that girl. Besides, it would look really weird if I didn’t want to hang out with your friends. I promise I won’t say anything that will reveal our secret. I’ll be fine.”

Turns out that high altitude and strong drinks were a lethal combination.

“I really like him!” Temari complained out loud. She wasn’t sure how many drinks in she was but she was feeling giggly and happy.

Karui laughed while taking another drink. “Of course you do, he’s your boyfriend!”

“He’s so annoyingly handsome and he’s smart, that's so hot,” Temari complained with a frown.

“We need to make this a new tradition! Drinks with the girls on Christmas Eve, eve!” Ino declared and they raised their glasses in agreement.

Ino threw her arms around Temari. “I’m glad he met you! There were some real bitches that were trying.”

Temari’s eyes sharpened “Where are they? Shikamaru is mine! I’ll kill them.”

Karui’s fist tightened. “Ya let’s go get them!”

Ino stood up before sitting right back down. “Wait, I can’t drive. Let me call Sai and then we will go get those bitches! “

“Hello?” Shikamaru groaned answering his phone. He’d text Temari a few hours ago and she assured him that she was fine. With nothing else to do, he’d gone to bed.

“Hey, Choji and I are coming to get you. My girl got your girlfriend and Karui drunk. This isn’t a job for one person.” Sai explained on the other line.

Shikamaru sighed, how did he know this would happen. “Of course she fucking did. Okay, I'll be ready.”

—

The girls were the loudest in there and would have probably been kicked out if everyone didn’t know who they were.

Temari stumbled into Shikamaru’s arms with a grin.

“You okay Tem?”

“Yes! Ino gave me a drink that tasted like a cookie. Now we are going to go after all those bitches that tried to hook up with Shikamaru.”

He rubbed at his tired face. In her drunken haze, she didn’t seem to recognize him. Chouji and Sai both had their hands full too. “We don’t have to do that.”

“Yes, we do! He’s mine, they need to know.”

“It’s okay Tem. He knows that you are his too.”

An adorable but unsure look crossed her face. “Shh, that’s a secret. Don’t tell Shikamaru that I think he’s cute.”

He grinned amusedly. “Okay I won’t, ready to go home? I’m sure Shikamaru misses you.”

“Yes!”

“Sai! I want to keep drinking.”

“Beautiful I think it’s time to go.” Sai tried to reason with her.

Ino stomped her foot. “You never let me do anything I want.” She pouted. They all knew that was a lie.

Temari intervened and wrapped her arms around Ino. “Ino, stop I want to go home. I miss Shikamaru.”

The other blonde perked up and nodded. “Okay, let’s go.”

Chouji already had Karui asleep on his back.

Shikamaru drove Ino’s car back while Sai and Chouji took the other. Temari was sitting content in the passenger side with a grin on her face.

“Do you think that Shikamaru likes me?” She wondered out loud. He was still amused that she didn’t realize who he was.

“You don’t think he does?”

Temari shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s so fast but he makes me feel special. I feel all floaty when I’m around him. He could have anyone though. Why me?”

His hand reached out to hold hers comfortingly. “Because you’re you. That’s enough for him.”

Her loopy grin was far too cute. “Thank you, stranger. I think I really like him too.” She leaned her head against the window and with that he heard her breathing even out.

Temari had unknowingly pushed him to face his feelings about her. She was someone different that was for sure. Beautiful, kind, smart, and wonderful.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. Their arrangement was only meant to last for a few days, easy and simple. Sing some carols, eat a few meals together. That was it. Now though, his heart felt tied up in knots.

This wasn’t realistic. You didn’t just fall for someone after knowing them for a few days. He’d gone his entire life never feeling this way about anyone. And yet Temari had so easily brought these emotions to the surface in such a short amount of time.

This couldn’t be real? He was just getting caught up in Christmas and being home. In a few days, everything would be back to normal and life could continue on.

—

“Why are you up?”

Shikamaru looked up seeing his father standing there. “I just got back. Ino got Temari drunk so she's sleeping it off right now.” Shikaku just chuckled and took his spot across the Shogi board from his son.

“It’s been nice having you home Shikamaru.”

“I, I’m sorry I know I haven’t been home much.”

“I understand, I don’t particularly like it but I get it. Your mother though.”

“I know.”

Shikaku moved his piece before looking out towards the forest. “I haven’t seen her smile as much as she has the last few days. Having the house filled with people and laughter. You and Temari helped me give her back her smile.”

“Dad…” Shikamaru struggled with not revealing the truth and just admitting everything.

“I’m not trying to pressure you. That’s your mother’s domain. I’ll just say that if you can find someone that can make you smile, who pushes you to be better, that inspires and supports you. Well, don’t let them go. You’re my son, that’s enough. I’m proud of you regardless of what you’ve accomplished not because of them. The Nara name is safe with you.”

They played well into the night. As busy as his father was when he was younger he was always up for a game of Shogi. For Shikamaru, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d let himself play. It was a sobering realization.

Shikamaru made his way back to the room thinking about what his next moves would be. He couldn’t imagine on the 26th returning back to his busy lonely life. The world wouldn’t end if he stepped away from the fast-paced existence he’d built for himself. The new year would bring with it a new and better way of living. What remained to be seen was who would be standing next to him.

“Temari?” He was surprised to see her sitting up holding onto his stuffed deer.

“I woke up and didn’t find you here. I got worried.” She admitted.

He nodded and settled under the covers before pulling her in close. His hand rubbed up and down along her back. Temari sank into his warmth.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m okay, I took the medicine and water you left out. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I didn’t say anything embarrassing did I?” When she drank she knew that she became loud and talkative.

“Nothing too bad, just that you think I’m cute.” He replied with a cheeky grin.

Even in the dark, he could make out the blush across her cheeks “Oh my God.” She ducked her warm face against his chest.

“You, Ino, and Karui were also planning on going after anyone that tried to date me in the past.”

“Ahh! Say no more.” He chuckled pulling her in close.

There was a little more but he’d keep that information to himself for now. “Christmas Cookie cocktails will make anyone a little loopy. Thanks for going out with them.” He never thought about how important it would be for his significant other to get along with his friends.

“They’re both great, in another lifetime I’m sure that we would be great friends.” It could be this lifetime but that wasn’t the case.

“Get some sleep Tem, it’s Christmas Eve, we'll have a busy day.”

Christmas Eve, their last day together. Their inevitable end.

Temari reached up to place a soft kiss against his cheek. Her lips lingered against his skin for just a little longer.

“Good night Shikamaru.”

Please Have Snow and Mistletoe

Chapter 1: Flight 4XMAS

Chapter 2: A Scene from a Snowglobe

Chapter 3: Sweeter than a Sugar Plum

I want to believe that in the Naruto-verse the InoShikaCho moms all hang out. I’m working on the last two chapters right now because I want them to be out by Christmas. Alas, I’m a procrastinator and have gifts to wrap too so :fingers crossed: it all comes out on time. Again, my sincere thanks for your support my sweet loves.

6 notes · View notes

yakuzacasual · 4 years

Note

You’re like the only person who writes for Judgment, and you do a great job!! I get if you can’t/don’t wanna, but could you do Saori and Mafuyu with a female reader? I’m just so in love with Saori 👉👈

PREFACE

I have a beef with Yakuza series when it comes to women, because I don’t get nearly enough queens to respectfully simp over. And then Judgment came along with Mafuyu and Saori, as well as the less plot related, but still wonderful Matsuoka and Amane, and my wlw heart just went absolutely doki doki.

In short, the request was a delight to work on and I hope I did it justice. Thank you so much for stopping by, Non! Please enjoy and stay cool!

THE JUDGMENT GIRLS��™ WITH A FEMALE S/O

SAORI SHIROSAKI

Saori doesn’t care much for other people’s opinion or approval, especially when it comes to her personal relationships that do not in any way influence work environment. She likes you a lot and wants to date you and no naysayer can change her mind no matter how much they try. She just shoots down every argument, reasonable or not, with the smuggest “And?” you’ve ever heard in your life.

Her favourite date activity is, surprisingly enough, shopping for clothes. She absolutely adores watching you try on different kinds clothing - especially everything cute and frilly - and giving you her very honest opinions. If she doesn’t like it, she may come across as curt, but to balance things out, Saori will shower you in delightful compliments whenever something fits you well.

Will make use of her friendship with Hoshino, who has gone from a bit of a salty ex to your number one wingman and supporter of wlw, in order to find proper jewelry that would fit the things you buy together. Sometimes she will ask him to help with her own outfit, not because she doesn’t believe that you could assist her, but rather because she wishes to surprise you! And that she certainly will, it feels like the goddess herself has stepped down from the heavens to have a date with you. Saori will constantly remind you, that it is still just her and that you are no less gorgeous.

She keeps an eye on your menstrual cycle and as a result is always perfectly prepared to handle your period. Always fully stocked on your favourite pads or tampons, as well as variety of painkillers and relaxants to aid you in the more troubling moments. In case of evenings spent in, she will have a few movie options ready along with snacks of your choice. If these snacks happen to be sweets, you better be thankful that she had enough self restraint to save them for you.

Saori definitely has a thing for your hair and nothing calms her more than playing with it. If it’s on the short side, she will learn how to give you the best, most relaxing scalp massages you have ever experienced. For longer hair, she likes to braid and style it in thousand different ways, but won’t allow you to see the result until she’s done. Turns out he has quite a knack for it and can come up with various lovely hairstyles.

MAFUYU FUJII

Mafuyu’s situation is very complicated. The position she holds as a prosecutor is very important to her and as such, she is expected to be on her best behaviour at all times. While she know your relationship isn’t in any way illegal or bad and is more than happy to take down any smartass claiming otherwise, she has a reputation to uphold. One that very unfortunately requires her to keep your relationship very lowkey.

As a result of being separated from you for longer periods of time, Mafuyu gets incredibly needy and maybe even a bit possessive, if your first meeting together in a while takes place in a group of friends. In case the group is not informed of the relationship you two have, she finds most devious ways to show her affection for you, while still being able to play it off as just “a girl thing” that you both do.

There is no better place to rest for her after a long day, than your chest. No matter the size, she is incredibly comfortable just burrowing her face between your breasts, where she can hear your soothing heartbeat loud and clear. She will settle for tights, if your chest is not available or if you just don’t feel comfortable this way, but only if you read something out loud for her or tell a story. Mafuyu just loves listening to you speak.

She absolutely loves playing around with makeup in her free time. Getting you involved in that little passtime of hers is like a dream come true. She would try out all kinds of cute looks that would complement your beauty and would gladly do your makeup in the morning, if you let her. Remember that picture of a girl doing makeup for her gf/homie on bed? 100% a thing with Mafuyu. And she is pretty good at that.

Whenever she sees a cute little something that she feels would suit you, like a new charm to your favourite bracelet or maybe matching straps for both of your phones? She just can’t help herself and impulsively buys it. You can expect an overabundance of small, but very well chosen gifts and she’s going to be nothing but all smiles if she catches you actually wearing or using them.

#Ryu ga Gotoku #yakuza #Judgement #judge eyes #yakuza x reader #judgment x reader #mafuyu x reader #saori x reader #mafuyu fujii #saori shirosaki #x reader #Headcanon #imagine #request

18 notes · View notes

throughthewwods · 4 years

Text

100 Days of Productivity . 46

Yesterday was one of those, “I wish I had accomplished more” days, yet when I review it here I see I touched on all my bases. Also feeling pleased with myself that I have ✨ 💯 in Health Psych,

Which feels particularly gratifying given that I’ve never written a wellness program proposal before. I think this has probably been one of my favorite classes. I’ve had to take so many research oriented courses that lacked interpersonal components that when I find myself in one that relates to counseling it’s quite the gem.

It’s also not just about tacking on another A to my GPA (which every little bit helps), but that this particular professor is my research and listener certification supervisor. Taking a class with her, putting myself in a position to be evaluated and graded by her, could’ve been shooting myself in the foot. Getting a glowing letter of recommendation from her is a game changer for my grad school applications and ups my chances of getting accepted into my present university’s finicky program. it also kind of be bragging rights. 😆 ( admittedly, most of my accomplishments are fueled by spite: all the naysayers who said I couldn’t do The Thing, which compelled me to do The Thing with gusto haha) but I know not to put all my eggs in that exclusive basket.

📚 watched a trauma lecture

📚 loosely read a trauma article

💚 had a doctors appointment about my digestive stuff

looks like I’ll be living off chicken and rice for a couple weeks

‼️ Kiddo and I got out of the house! And people’d 😁 🎉 And got exercise

Grateful my leg was OK with all that walking

🍪 got Kiddo to her social-distance play date on time

⭐️ got my dog out of the house and some exercise

📚 scheduled a meeting with my professor

🍪 help Kiddo deliver her first boxes of cookies to our neighbor

🍪 got Kiddo to her Girl Scout meeting

My mega German shepherd puppy is being stubborn and ecstatic. Asserting myself as the Alpha has never been fully received. It makes me laugh when people see me struggling to wrangle him. I’m always open to suggestions. I also know all the different methods I’ve tried to even get us to this point.They assume that his stubbornness is just lack of training and with a little condescension, attempt to show me the magical technique they saw on a YouTube video only to be humbled.

She was right though that letting him off the leash went surprisingly well. it was touching watching the herd of children chase after him for the ball, yet always in protective proximity of Kiddo. There’s a certain jubilance we briefly reclaimed that edge-of-spring, Tuesday afternoon. There’s children’s wild laughter as my dog periodically lets them catch up only to dart off. I’m chitchatting with the other troop mom in a fragmented sort of way like parents do. I can’t remember how long it’s been since I hung out with someone other than my boyfriend or fairy godmother. It’s surreal, as an introvert, missing peopling so much. I may emerge from my Covid cocoon an extrovert.

The Girl Scout troop meeting project was a bust. The healthier, non-Pringles lack the curvature for the engineering project of a Pringles ring, but I don’t think any of the children minded feasting on chips. They giddily make plans for a unicorn, past-your-bedtime, zoom, movie night. I’m grateful for finding this troop for Kiddo. It’s made this year suck less for her, helped her feel a part of something still, and given her something to look forward to.

RB came over. We are still cuddly and enjoy our show. He’s not in a bad mood, but I’m picking up on something I can’t put my finger on that feels like mild irritation, mild sharpness. He mentioned he’s been weaning himself off his anti-depressant and feeling less brain fog with more energy. I want to be supportive and glad it’s boosting his confidence at work, but I’m also a little nervous that he will become someone else in temperament than the man I’ve come to love and get on with so well.

#journal #diary #writing #my writing #motherhood #100 days of productivity #parenting #studystudystudy #student

1 note · View note

unlockthelore · 5 years

Text

To Mourn and Love

With his freedom close at hand, the youko does the one thing he never thought he would — hesitate.

Chapter 6 of A Mother’s Love on Ao3. For more updates, follow the a mother’s love tag on this blog.

If there was nothing Kurama wanted more, it was for this act to end.

His time as Minamino Shuuichi had been both irritatingly blasé and filled with nostalgia. Namely centered around that woman, Minamino Shiori. She was always looking over him and after him, paying close attention to everything in their home — asking him to make friends, to enjoy himself, to be a child for as long as he could.

She didn’t understand that he hadn’t been a child for centuries and her attempts were incomprehensible. No matter how cold he was, or how much trouble he made, she never raised a hand or her voice. Much different than some parents he’d seen in the Ningenkai and the Makai.

Of course, there were many in the Ningenkai who didn’t like his behavior. They tried to police Shiori, give her guidance on how to steer him in the right direction. Make him do what she says, so they put. Kurama highly doubted that he would bend his will to anyone, let alone a human, but the idea of pain for his transgressions irritated him.

If pretending to be the perfect little boy was one way to maintain this lifestyle, then so be it. He could suffer his pride until the end of this act. Chang his behavior in a way that makes him seem wiser but softer. Obeying his mother’s whims, staying close to her side, putting on a smile for her sake. And for the most part, it works. Shiori listens less and less to the naysayers and disapproval turns into compliments.

Another thing that he despises about the Ningenkai and humans in general. Compliance is met with applause while defiance is abhorred. All in all, Kurama couldn’t wait to be rid of this place and of her as soon as possible.

His only comfort coming in the form of the garden growing in their backyard, a hobby that he started at Shiori’s “insistence” after seeing his interest in nature. She brought him many blooms but most of them were pulled from the ground by his youki.

To say that he preferred the company of his flowers over humans would’ve been an understatement. At least their intentions were laid plain when he was tired of the poor games that humans played.

Returning home one day, Kurama went to the kitchen to grab a few items he’d need for gardening. A bright smile forcing its way onto his face when he saw Shiori at the sink, washing what smelled like vegetables.

“You’re back already, Shuuichi?” Shiori asked, glancing over her shoulder at him. Her dark hair tied back in a low ponytail, brown eyes watching him while he moved from one side of the kitchen to the next, a twinkle of amusement as he grabbed the rickety stool they used to reach the higher shelves.

As much as he wanted to ignore her, it would’ve only spurred her on to ask him more questions and the forced smile remained in place until his back was to her. “I didn’t want to stay after today so I could get some gardening done,” Kurama said, not quite a lie but not entirely the truth. He didn’t have any interest in playing human any longer than necessary and he’d have to prepare his arsenal for when he made his departure back to the Makai.

Shiori hummed softly, a lilting tune suggesting that she had more questions but would keep them to herself for now. Kurama huffed as he tilted forward on the stool and the legs wobbled unsurely beneath him. The weight of her gaze drifting from his back allowing him to focus on the task at hand. Several vases were pushed further into the cupboard and with his short stature, it was difficult to reach them. And he loathed to ask for help.

If she wasn’t in the room, he could’ve used his plants to grab it or jumped onto the counter itself and grabbed it before making his descent. But because of her presence he had to keep up this facade. His fingers brushed against the cool glass of one of the vases and he leant further, closing his fingers around the rim of it and pulling backward. His heel pressing down against the surface of the stool made the legs tilt again, but this time something went wrong.

He didn’t realize he was falling. Not until the world turned sideways and a loud shout of his human name echoed off the walls. Glass shattering and his eyes squeezed shut, a curse caught between his lips that would’ve surely earned him a scolding, if the broken vase hadn’t. The stool rolled uselessly to the side and Kurama would have glared at it if not for the smell of iron tinging the air.

He could hear the water running, see the glass and ceramic pieces shattered near him, but he couldn’t feel pain. Any pain at that. Even his human form wasn’t capable of healing that fast and he didn’t have time to avoid with Shiori being in the room.

Kurama’s eyes widened and he tipped his head back. Dark hair brushing against his forehead and slipping over his cheeks, pained brown eyes crinkling at the corners, lips drawn into a tight smile — Shiori.

A tremor rushed through Kurama as the building pinpricks that couldn’t be anything less than fear pulsed through him. He twitched and hesitantly glanced down, his upper body supported by warm hands pressed to his lower back, her torso supporting his head. Red dripped onto the floor tiles, staining them with deep crimson, the smell of iron fresh and thick in the air.

Her arms.

Pieces of glass were embedded in her skin, some larger than others, and he couldn’t tell how many were there but it was enough that her arms were shaking, and bleeding profusely.

“Shuuichi,” Shiori’s eerily calm tone snapped Kurama’s attention back to her tight smile and glazed eyes. “Are you alright?”

No. No. What was she doing?

Why would she do that?

Even if she didn’t know, his human form would have healed easily despite the inconvenience of having to take the time to let it set properly. She could have fussed over him like she always did. Not throw herself into harms way. A bubble of rage was tempered by confusion. His lips trembling and his eyes wide, unable to find his voice.

Shiori carefully shifted forward and the hands supporting his back were moved to his head, gently petting his hair. The trickle of blood along her tanned skin reminding him of the vines he’d use and the energy that coursed through him. Energy that she lacked. The wounds may have been deep, she would scar, and he was sure that she would resent him.

But why did she do it?

“That must have been scary, huh?” Shiori cupped his cheek, her fingers gliding across his skin, thumb rubbing slow circles beside his eye. “It’s alright now, it was an accident.”

Kurama laid there for a second longer until he could find his voice, scrambling to sit up and face her, her hands carefully brought into his own so he could see her arms. His eyes widened, breath hitching, as the criss-crossed marks outlined in a deep red wept.

“You’re hurt..”

Shiori turned her hands over in his grip, returning the squeeze. “Don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt that much…” Her voice trailed off and a sigh of relief chilled him to his core. Why was she happy? Why did she seem like she was happy now?

“Why?” Kurama blurted out before he could stop himself, clinging to her hands, desperate to know how she could be smiling — how she wasn’t furious with him.

Shiori blinked at him slowly, as if his behavior was odd. As if she wasn’t the one bleeding because of his literal misstep.

“I’m your mother,” she says, squeezing his hands. “The last thing I want is to see you hurt.”

Why was she trying to comfort him when she was the one who was hurt?

Her fingers ran through his short red hair, gently brushing underneath his jaw to tilt his head up. The tightness in her smile, the pain hidden in her eyes, she was bleeding and yet trying to be strong for him. Kurama’s lips trembled and he pressed them together to keep from shouting and yelling.

“It was an accident, right?” Shiori pressed a trembling kiss to his forehead and something inside of him broke. “Run along and play, I’ll clean up here.”

She was lying. A human couldn’t endure that much pain, and so much blood loss would’ve made her light-headed at most. If he left her now, she was likely to stay on the floor for awhile longer. She could have died if —

“I want to help,” he blurted out.

Shiori’s eyes widened and he hated the surprise on her face. Was it so odd that he cared for her this much? That he wanted to see her well?

Yes it is, a traitorous voice echoed in the back of his mind. He was going to leave her. So why pretend as if he cared now?

“It’s been clear skies all day,” Shiori said, her smile falling into place. “Why don’t you go out and do some gardening?”

Kurama shook his head vehemently, feeling every bit the small child that she believed him to be. He couldn’t wrap his mind around it. Why would she do such a thing? The wounds were deep and they would surely scar even with some of his best remedies, and the vase and the glasses, she had them since before his human father passed — wasn’t she upset? Wasn’t she angry at him?

He held her hands in his smaller ones, trying to will himself not to tremble. “I want to help,” he repeated, the voice in his ears quieter and smaller. The voice of Minamino Shuuichi, not Youko Kurama.

Shiori squeezed his hands, her smile slipping into a frown as she glanced aside. Likely trying to find some other way of dissuading him. He squeezed her hands and she sighed, looking at him with a fondness that shook him to his core.

“Okay,” she said with a soft sigh, squeezing his hands, a little smile mismatched with the twitch in her brow. “But you have to promise me not to pick up anything sharp with your bare hands. I think we have some gloves beneath the sink..”

Kurama nodded though he wanted to ask what she would do. She was less likely to heal quickly than he was. But Shiori wouldn’t budge on this, her eyes trained on him as he carefully let go of her hands, careful to stand up and hurry to the sink. The gloves tucked between a few more things that he’d sen her place below the sink. The darkness of the cupboard reminding him of that hole, his mother looking down at him with the moon haloing her, a soft saddened look in her eyes as she covered him from view.

The cold dread swept over him, irrational thoughts bursting to the forefront of his mind. A cruel realization when he saw the tree that bloomed with his mother’s youki. Symbolic that she was gone and let nature reclaim what belonged to it. That he was now alone.

And Shiori.

Would Shiori also —

He clutched the gloves tightly in his hand, the rubber squelching in his white-knuckled grip. No. She couldn’t. Peering over his shoulder, the dread pooled in his stomach like a rock sinking to the bottom of a lake. She had been quiet for too long. Was she alright?

He glanced down at her feet tucked beneath her and his eyes widened. Rivulets of crimson stained her socks, blooming along the white like flowers, a grotesque ensemble that Kurama didn’t want to see. Pulling on the gloves, he set to the task of helping her pick up the pieces. Shiori’s smile and the sweat on her brow, her careful movements as she directed him, distracting him from thinking of a way to help properly. Distracting him from wanting to understand why he wanted to help at all.

Once the larger pieces had been disposed of, Kurama eased the gloves from his hands, clenching his fists to hide the trembling.

“Shuuichi, could you get the first aid kit from the bathroom?”

Kurama hesitated, looking from the gloves in his hand to her. He wanted to be able to do more for her. He could have helped her pull the shards from her arms and her feet if she knew the truth. He could have healed her wounds easily. He could have made her smile less pained.

But she didn’t know anything, and that was his plan. For her to stay in the dark long after it was time for him to leave. But now, he hesitated even leaving her side to grab the first aid kit. Shiori’s smile patient if not a bit worn as she looked at him, her arms cradled close to her chest but the grimace of pain hidden with a wavering smile.

Stop smiling.

He tried to will her to stop smiling at him like this. His heart hammering in his chest as he walked out into the hall, using his speed to blur up the stairs once he was out of her sight and dart into the bathroom. The gloves dropped as he grabbed the kit, rushing downstairs as fast as his feet could carry him. Hoping that she was still there. That she wouldn’t disappear.

A beautiful tree with full boughs bursting with life. A young kit curled up at its base, whining for his mother’s return.

Not again. He couldn’t do it again.

Stepping into the kitchen, his lungs shuddered with a labored breath as he saw her sitting there. Her eyes shuttered and the front of her apron stained with crimson as she held her arms, applying pressure to stem the bleeding. Slowly, she raised her head and the blank expression she wore eased into another sweet smile.

“Thank you,” she said, holding out a trembling hand to him. “You’re a big help, Shuuichi..”

Kurama’s lips trembled. Why did he care?

He stepped closer to her, handing her the first aid kit, pulling his hand away as if burned when their fingers brushed. If she noticed, she said nothing, setting the kit down and beginning to work with opening it. Kurama sank down to his knees at her side, resting his hand on her arm.

Being attached to her wasn’t part of his plan.

Caring when she was hurt wasn’t something that he should have minded.

You’re a big help, Shuuichi.

He wasn’t a big help. He wasn’t doing anything and it grated at his nerves. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve to look like that.

Shiori sighed, setting to the task in front of her as she picked out the shards. Kurama’s hand pressing to her arm, his youki coursing through him to his fingertips, a light violet hue to his fingers that was faint against her skin but traversed through her. Her own dwindling energy building and tinged with his own, steadily growing.

She continued picking at the shards, unaware of what he was doing, but the pain in her eyes lessened as he focused on giving her small traces of his energy. Kurama watched her movements to make sure that she wouldn’t hurt herself. Frustrated that he couldn’t do more.

“Dinner will be late,” she said, a bitter tinge to her voice, the metallic clatter of the shards hitting the small tin she kept them in interrupting her. “Let’s say that we were having take out, what would you like?”

Kurama glanced up at her, barely hearing her as his thoughts consumed him. His hand brushing against her arm as he leant forward, resting his forehead on her upper arm. “I want your favorite,” he muttered.

“Are you sure? You can have anything you want,” Shiori pressed, a tremor in her energy as she started to clean her wounds. The smell of the disinfectant mingling with the iron scent of blood making his stomach turn. He was no stranger to death, nor blood, but hers was nauseating.

Kurama clutched tightly to her shirt, careful not to tear the fabric in his tight grip. “I want to get something to make you happy..”

Shiori shifted slightly and he could hear the gentle tear of bandages as she worked them around her arm. “I know it must be a little scary…” Her hand settled on the back of his head, pressing him closer to her side. Kurama’s eyes widened and trembling as she ran her fingers through his hair. “But I’m not angry.”

Shiori hugged him closer and Kurama was certain that she could hear the pounding of his heart. The wheels turning in his mind as he tried to understand. How couldn’t she be angry? How couldn’t she be at odds with him? Indignation warned with relief and he pressed closer to her, pulling at her shirt as she pressed a kiss to his head.

“The plates can be replaced, but I can’t replace you. There’s only one of you..” Shiori’s other hand rested at his shoulder and she hugged him tightly. The bandages brushing against his cheek as she wrapped her arms around him, cradling him close to her. “I don’t want to replace you, Shuuichi, so I’m glad that you’re safe.”

His eyes burned and he pressed his face against her side, gripping her shirt tighter. How? How could she be like this?

“Why don’t we have your favorite tonight and we can have mine tomorrow, okay?” Shiori rested her cheek against his head, her fingers running through his hair. “You already make me happy, and knowing you’re safe is the best news anyone could give me..”

Kurama’s stomach turned. What if she awoke to him being gone? What face would she make? Would he care? His only response was a subtle nod, his thoughts consuming him again. He had a bag packed upstairs, ready for when he wanted to leave. He was prepared to leave when she was sound asleep. There was a limited window of opportunity. If he was too late then his energy wouldn’t be able to pass through the barrier and he would be trapped here.

Trapped with her.

But would that be such a bad thing?

Shiori kissed the top of his head and pulled away, smiling down at him. “Alright, I’ll order us something a—“ She paused, her smile slowly falling. “… Shuuichi?”

Kurama trembled. Would it be such a bad thing to be trapped here with her? She never raised a hand to him, she cared for him, she bled for him.

Just like her.

Just like his mother before.

“Shuuichi, what’s wrong?” Shiori asked, cradling his head in her hands. He startled at her touch, realizing that she was talking to him and stared up at her.

“… I’m worried about you, mother.”

Shiori blinked at him then smiled, and he wondered if it was genuine or simply a reflex to reassure him. “I’m fine, Shuuichi..” She rubbed her thumb back and forth beneath his eye, her voice soft and hypnotic. “I am. It’s okay if you worry, but they’ll heal.”

Eyeing the bandages on her arm, he knew they would scar. Hesitation warred within his chest and he nodded. “C—Can we sleep on the couch together tonight?”

He hadn’t asked to sleep in the same bed as her no matter how old he pretended to be. But if he was going to leave her, if this would be their last moment together, the least he could do was give her affection from the son that she loved. That’s all.

That’s all.

“I…” Shiori seemed caught off guard, looking him over. “… Sure. And you can watch as much TV as you like, and tomorrow if I’m feeling up to it, we can make a cake together.” She leant closer to him, kissing his forehead with the gentleness that sent warm tingles throughout his body. “Okay?”

Kurama nodded, offering her a small smile in return. He wasn’t sure how much of it was an act and what of it was genuine. The lines seeming to blur together. For now, he would ease her pain and once she slept, he would leave.

Night fell over Sarayashiki and the hours ticked closer to his time of departure, Kurama’s energy stirring beneath the skin in anticipation or was it fear? He wasn’t sure and it was driving him mad.

Shiori brought down her blankets and their pillows, setting them on the couch. Their usual ritual of eating dinner together done at the low table in the living room. His eyes unable to tear away from the bandages on her arm as she asked him question after question.

How was his schooling?

Was he making any friends?

Did he have any preferences for sports?

Would he want to go visit Inari’s shrine on the weekend?

A number of questions he didn’t have the answer to and couldn’t summon the will to care about. Half-hearted answers and mumbled replies worrying her but she smiled.

She always smiled.

Once he was dressed in his pajamas, they settled on the couch and Shiori tucked him close to her, the drone of the television in the background.

“You’re getting taller,” she muttered in his hair after a moment of comfortable silence.

“I’m not that much taller…” Kurama grumbled. He was far smaller than his liking and compared to how he used to be, he was pitiful.

“Mm, no.. I think you’re a bit taller.” Shiori kissed the top of his head, her cheek pressed to the pillow and dark hair loose over her shoulders.

Kurama gently nuzzled his head against her chest, hugging her closer to him. The noise from the television distracting him from his thoughts, dulled by her steady heartbeat as she drifted in and out of consciousness. Her arms wrapped around him tightly, hands idly stroking his hair and his back. Slowly she drifted off to sleep and her breaths evened out. Tipping his head back to look at her, Kurama listened to her breathing and waited until she was deep into sleep before slowly and carefully sliding out of her arms.

His footsteps were quiet as he lowered himself to the floor, returning to his room and looking over as his vines dragged the bag from beneath his bed. He had the ability to move faster and he knew it. But he found himself admiring the pictures on his desk, the toys that she had bought for him, the books piled on his shelf. The plants that grew in his room. The peace and quiet that lingered in the dead of the night despite the hammering of his heart attempting to escape his chest.

His vines left the bag at his feet, brushing against his skin before receding. Their sluggish movements mirroring his confusion. Why was he hesitating? He shouldered the bag and turned to make his way downstairs, glancing up at the pictures on the walls and in the kitchen as he went. The certificates and ribbons that he’d accumulated proudly displayed. His heart clenched as he caught sight of the cake mix that was set out on the counter.

If I’m feeling up to it, we can make a cake together.

Kurama swallowed thickly, walking to the back door. Shiori’s sleeping form shifting on the couch but otherwise remaining still as she slept. He frowned when he heard her moving, looking over his shoulder at her silhouette. The television long-since turned off and the living room only lit by the light of the moon.

What would she do if she woke up and found him missing?

The plates can be replaced, but I can’t replace you. There’s only one of you. I don’t want to replace you, Shuuichi.

His own mother with her soft smile, the gentle kiss to his knuckles.

I will love you always… Wherever you go, whatever you do, never forget that, Kurama.

The cool night air swept over him as he opened the door, staring out into the backyard. The roses swaying with a gentle breeze, moonlight paving his way. But he couldn’t move. Realization dousing over him in a cold dread. He stepped back inside, sliding the door shut and hurrying upstairs, shoving the bag beneath his bed.

He didn’t want to go.

He didn’t want to leave her.

The look of pain she’d wear at seeing him gone. Kurama’s heart clenched and he gritted his teeth, hurrying downstairs to where Shiori slept none the wiser.

“Mom…”

Shiori’s face scrunched as she stirred, opening her eyes and peering at him groggily. “Mm?” She rubbed at her eyes, a quick wince of pain before she was sitting up, looking down at him. “… What’s wrong, Shuuichi?”

Kurama pressed his lips together, trying not to tremble or shake at the pain that showed on her face. He was worried about shifting her arms or trying to move them to cuddle closer to her. Feigning a sleepy and unhappy look, he looked up at her. “I had a bad dream.”

Shiori’s eyes softened and she sat up, wincing at the sudden movement but quickly covering it with a faint smile. “It’s okay, come here..” She lifted the blanket for him, accepting him into her arms as he crawled up beside her. His head nuzzling against her cheek while she hugged him closer, rubbing her hand in slow circles on his back. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Kurama hesitated. He had always hidden things from her, not wanting to give her more than necessary so that he could continue playing his role. But would she understand? That the child that she loved had been merged with something sinister. That she was harboring someone who was both a murderer and a liar? Who until this day would have left her without a second thought?

He swallowed, burying his face against her chest. “.. You were gone,” he lied, muttering quietly and his voice wavered. “I was alone and I couldn’t find you no mater how hard I tried.”

Shiori smoothed down his tousled hair, pressing a kiss to the top of his head, her silence allowing him to gather his thoughts. Though his words were a half-lie, he wasn’t sure which mother he was speaking to. The one that he was trying not to abandon now or the one that had given her life for him.

“I’m here, Shuuichi..” Shiori whispered into his hair. “Your mom isn’t going anywhere. It must have been scary, neh? Being by yourself? But I’ll stay… I’ll watch you grow up and long after for as long as I can.”

Kurama closed his eyes and he hugged her tightly. It’d been so long since he felt this. Kuronue’s death had hardened him, his time as a “king” worsened his loneliness, and the more he chased after what he thought would fill the void — the more he yearned to go back to that time. His mother’s unconditional love. Shiori’s.

“… Promise?”

He knew that it wasn’t an easy thing. Explaining death to a child after a nightmare wasn’t ideal. But he knew death. He knew the sordid feelings that came with it. But he felt the determination building in the swell of Shiori’s energy.

“I promise.”

Kurama squeezed his eyes shut and sighed. He knew that he would live longer than she would. That there would come a day when his human vessel would give out and she would be gone. But until then, he would be her son.

“I love you, mother…”

“I will love you always, Shuuichi.”

He was happy enough just to be her son.

#yu yu hakusho #yyh #kurama #shiori minamino #a mother's love #fanfiction #my fanfiction

12 notes · View notes

ragewerthers · 5 years

Text

A Little Fall Of Rain

Summary: After battling through a torrential downpour to get to a meeting, Ignis attempts to struggle his way through it. Luckily Gladio is having none of it and is there to make sure Ignis is taken care of.

A/N: This is another fic written for @bgn846 for our F3S! Her prompt was to have Ignis caught in the rain and to attend a meeting where Gladio was also attending. The Shield sees him shivering and has to figure out how to help!This was super fun to write and I am ALWAYS up for some good old gladnis whump! :D

You can also read on AO3 at: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20036353

Enjoy, my friend! :D

Word Count: 3096

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

“Clear skies with the temperatures rising.”

That had been the exact words he’d heard uttered from the radio this morning from the local weatherman.

“Cl-Clear skies, my arse!” Ignis growled as he wiped at his face, trying to catch a reprieve from the torrential downpour assaulting Insomnia this morning. Currently he had ducked under the small awning of a coffee shop, the enticing smell from inside making him wish that he could just call the whole day a wash, step inside and play hooky for the day.

Sadly it wasn’t in his DNA to simply play hooky. Not to mention the meeting scheduled at this hour was far too important for him to merely blow off.

There were enough naysayers to his presence in the Council room and he didn’t want to give them another reason to try and push him out. Tardiness and absence would be easy wins for them and he refused to let them win.

Taking one last deep breath of the coffee filled air, Ignis wiped a hand over his face before stepping back out into the downpour. His glasses had long since been tucked away into the front pocket of his drenched shirt in a poor attempt to keep them dry. At this point they would’ve been more of a hindrance anyway so at least it wasn’t all for nought.

Sadly, no amount of hiding his glasses or careful micro adjustments could’ve saved him from the early morning delivery truck that decided to drive just a little too close to the pavement and through the worlds largest puddle Insomnia had ever seen.

Now… Ignis wasn’t one for literals, but a literal tidal wave of water was kicked up from the speed and force of the trucks tires. Ignis didn’t even have time to raise his briefcase as a sort of mini shield before the wave was rising over him crashing down leaving him drenched to his very core.

As the truck continued on its merry way down the road, Ignis’s thoughts turned darker than that of the sky overhead. He brought a hand up to wipe at his face before dropping it to his side once more, realizing the action was futile.

“Clear skies and the temperature rising,” he growled under his breath before starting once more down the pavement and toward the rest of a very long, soggy and miserable day.

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

The squeak of wet shoes on the polished tile floor echoed along the hallway leading to the Citadel’s Council Rooms.

Considering it had been raining all morning the noise should’ve been considered acceptable, but this was the Citadel. Here, no one dared to show that they could be affected by anything, much less something as simple as the weather. Thus why the noise was so startling to some, causing people to turn their heads to see who could be so human as to make such a racket.

However, not a word was said as they seen the culprit was none other than the Crown Prince’s Royal Retainer and Advisor, Ignis Scientia.

No one expected to see the man looking quite so… out of sorts. He was always so put together, not a hair out of place, not a wrinkle to be seen. The young man seemed to embody the meaning of being prim and proper at all times. So to see him so unlike himself was just a little unsettling.

His wet hair lay plastered to his forehead, glasses speckled with water droplets and his clothing absolutely soaked through and through. His cheeks were also tinged red from the wind whipping up outside and all in all he looked the definition of miserable. On anyone else it would’ve looked comical, but the sheer anger in Ignis’s eyes kept anyone from uttering a single syllable in his direction.

His hurried footsteps soon carried him into the Council room, his eyes glancing down to his watch only to find it waterlogged and unreadable. Another quiet growl rumbled through his chest as he brought his drenched briefcase up to set on the table, earning a few judgmental looks to be cast his way though he tried his best to ignore it.

Opening up his briefcase he was at least happy to see his reports had been spared from the rain and the puddles. He carefully began laying out the files before finding someone stepping up beside him.

Glancing up, the figure was blurred slightly from the rain that still lingered on his glasses, and he quickly took them off only to be met with a pair of worried amber eyes.

“Iggy? What the hell happened to you?” the Shield in training asked, taking Ignis’s glasses carefully from his hands so he could try to wipe them dry with his uniform jacket.

Ignis was so stunned by the action and the sudden appearance from Gladio that he easily allowed his spectacles to be taken from his chilled fingers. However, the gesture that his partner had taken finally caught up with his waterlogged mind and his pride took precedence over everything else.

“Just a little rain, nothing you should worry yourself with,” he said simply, trying to brush off what he’d just been through and really, it was just a little rain. “And you don’t have to clean my glasses for me. I’m sure I could’ve…,”

“What? Added more water to them trying to do it yourself?” Gladio asked with a quirked brow, handing the now dry glasses back over to Ignis. “You look like you just went through a hurricane.”

“Yes. Because the weathermen of Insomnia are all liars,” Ignis grumbled, putting his glasses back on a bit more roughly then he meant to as a sniffle escaped him. Fantastic. That’s all he needed was to start sniffling during an hour’s long meeting.

“Iggy… don’t you have a change of clothes in the training hall locker room? Why don’t you sneak out for a second and change? No one will notice,” Gladio tried to offer, glancing around the room as the other members soon began filing in.

Ignis looked around as well and shook his head, feeling a few water droplets fall from his bangs and onto his forehead. “The meetings almost ready to begin and you know how most of the people here feel about having… someone like me sit in on such things.”

Gladio’s expression instantly darkened as he heard those words, knowing full well what the his partner meant. He hadn’t been deaf to the comments of some council members and their feelings on having a ‘refugee’ so close to the Crown. It seemed like the more responsibilities pushed onto Ignis’s shoulders only fueled the flames of dislike in those around him.

The Shield soon felt a squeeze to his forearm and looked back to Ignis, seeing a tired smile pulling slightly at the corner of his lips.

“It’s alright, Gladio. I’m a tough one. A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me,” he tried to reassure. Though no sooner had he said it then his eyes widened and he quickly turned his head away, bringing the crook of his elbow up to cover his mouth as a rattling cough escaped him. “A-apologies…,” he quickly tried to amend, his cheeks feeling just a little warmer now, though he was positive it was more from embarrassment than anything else.

Gladio’s expression was worried as he watched Ignis coughing like that. Sadly, before he could force the issue of getting Ignis out of there the meeting was being called to order and Gladio had to go and stand at his post at the entryway.

“Don’t push yourself, Iggy,” he murmured softly, reaching forward to give his fingers a gentle squeeze before moving away.

Ignis could only give a small nod at that, though the warmth of Gladio’s touch against his own clammy fingers made him desperately wish for the warmth of their bed. Taking a little breath he tried to refocus. This wasn’t so bad. He could handle a little meeting with a bit of discomfort.

As he took his own seat, the squish of his wet trousers against his legs made him cringe.

Astrals preserve him this meeting wouldn’t be able to end soon enough.

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

Standing at the door, Gladio felt his mind wandering slightly as he listened to Councilman Garusen continue to recount the minutes from the last meeting and lay out the bullet points of today’s topic. As interesting as it was to learn about the Refuse Removal Act that was soon to be implemented in outer Cleide, Gladio’s gaze was soon drawn to movement near the left side of the conference table. As much as the man was trying to hide it, Gladio could see the tremble of Ignis’s shoulders where he sat.

Quiet sniffles could also sometimes be heard every once in a while and Gladio knew he wasn’t seeing things when the Advisor turned his head, his cheeks far too red even as his lips seemed pale.

The idiot was really just going to sit there and weather this meeting like this? All because of a bunch of pretentious assholes who didn’t think he belonged here?

Gladio had to close his eyes and take a deep breath through his nose, slowly releasing it through his mouth so as not to let his temper get the better of him. What he needed to do was figure out how to get Ignis out of here while helping the man keep face in front of these jackels.

He bit his lip, trying to come up with some sort of plan, but the longer he watched Ignis shiver the harder it became to concentrate. However, the Astrals seemed to be smiling on him today because an answer was soon forthcoming.

A few more minutes into his failed ideas to extricate Ignis, he heard a knock on the door and jumped slightly, glad that the other recruit standing guard with him seemed to not have noticed.

Quietly, so as not to disturb the discussion going on inside, he opened the door to a young intern who apparently had made a wrong turn and knocked on their door by mistake. The sight of Gladiolus was enough for the poor guy to realized instantly that he’d made an error and didn’t want to stay around long enough to see what he’d just interrupted. After stuttering apologies the kid was gone before Gladio could bat an eye, but… it gave him an idea.

“Yes, Sir. Okay. I’ll let him know,” he said in a hushed tone to absolutely no one, giving a little salute and closing the door before turning back to the room.

With purposeful steps he made his way over to his shivering partner, the poor man’s hands trembling so much that Gladio wondered how he was even keeping hold of his pen at this point.

Gently he laid a hand on the Ignis’s shoulder, feeling the way his shirt was chilly and damp, yet the heat emanating just under the fabric was almost hot to the touch.

Ignis jumped under the contact and turned his gaze up to see who had interrupted his misery, only to find Gladio ducking down to speak against his ear.

“The Prince has requested to see us and apologizes for interrupting the meeting, but the matter is urgent,” he said quietly enough for Ignis to feel like the message was just for him, but loud enough that a few council members nearby would hear.

Ignis expression seemed slightly dazed and Gladio wondered if perhaps his words had even gotten through when Ignis suddenly seemed to find himself. Shaking his head a bit he cleared his throat and nodded. “Oh y-yes. Of course,” he rasped slightly and Gladio stepped back as the Adviser in training tried to clear his files and notes up and pile them back into his briefcase.

It took Gladio everything he had in him not to reach out and help as Ignis’s fumbling fingers and shaky hands seemed incapable of completing the task.

Finally… Finally… Ignis had his belongings in order and after whispering a few apologies to a few members they made their way toward the door. Gladio could feel a few eyes on him, but knew that no one could make a comment now. Not when Ignis had been ordered by the Prince.

Once out in the hall, Gladio closed the door behind them and quickly turned back to Ignis.

“I’m taking you home. You are in no shape to be here right now, Ignis,” he murmured, quickly removing his uniform jacket and draping it over Ignis’s shaking shoulders.

“What? But… Noct’s sent a summ-..CHOO!” Whatever he was going to say was cut off by the sneeze that echoed down the quiet hall, a miserable little groan soon following as Ignis rubbed at his temple.

“No. He didn’t. I… sort of…,” Gladio rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly before simply sighing in resignation. “I lied, alright? I know you think you’re invincible and you don’t like to show weakness in front of others, so… I gave you an easy out. You can be angry at me later though. Right now, I need to get you home, get you into some dry clothes and get you resting before you get any worse.”

Ignis tried, he really did, to be upset with Gladio for lying to him, drawing him out of a meeting and for leaving his post like that… but with his body riddled with chills, his head pounding and his throat feeling like sandpaper the allure of an easy out was too much to pass up. “I… I must admit not having soggy trousers and socks does sound wonderful,” he sniffled miserably and Gladio couldn’t stop a soft chuckle escaping.

Reaching forward he easily took his lover’s briefcase from his fingers, shifting it into his other hand before wrapping an arm around Ignis’s shoulders to guide him down the hall and offer a little extra warmth. “I knew you’d see it my way,” he murmured gently, leaning over to press a little kiss to his partners still damp hair.

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

The drive back to their apartment was a quiet one as Ignis had managed to nod off during the ride. Granted, Gladio turning on the heated seats definitely had a hand in causing that effect.

Before they’d taken off though, Gladio had sent a quick text to Cor letting him know about what was happening with Ignis. For as much of a hard ass as the Marshal could be, even he could see that getting Ignis back home and resting was far more important that watching over a meeting on trash. Though the man did warn him that if he planned on pulling this stunt again he might not be so forgiving.

That was perfectly fine with the young Shield though. If it meant he could look after Ignis then it was all worth it.

Currently, Gladio was guiding a slightly groggy Ignis down the hallway to their apartment, the man leaning heavily against his side as the Shield stopped to unlock their front door.

“Almost there, Iggy,” he murmured gently before opening the door and managing to shuffle them both inside.

Once the door was locked behind him and prying eyes could no longer see them, Gladio instantly dropped Ignis’s briefcase on the counter and swept the man up into his arms bridal style.

The sudden shift made Ignis’s eyes instantly fly open and his arms reflexively wrapped around Gladio’s neck.

“Gladiolus!? Put me down this instant! I’m not an invalid!” he rasped, but Gladio was a man on a mission.

“Not a chance. If I don’t make sure you look after yourself then nobody will!” he warned, though his expression was gentle.

Before long he had Ignis sitting on the edge of their bed and began moving around the bedroom before disappearing for a moment. When he returned he knelt beside his miserable looking partner and began to gently divest him of his damp and chilled clothing.

Ignis shivered more as Gladio helped him out of his shirt and the Shield offered an apologetic expression. “We’ll get you nice and toasty soon, love,” he murmured, watching Ignis’s already pink cheeks tinge a slightly darker shade. The man was weak for endearments and he only ever really let Gladio get away with them when he was at his most vulnerable… so hardly ever.

It took a little bit more shimmying, gentle jostling and one inadvertent kick to his ribs when he tried to get Ignis’s socks off and accidentally tickled the man, but soon he had him undressed. A buzz from the hallways grabbed Gladio’s attention and he excused himself for a few moments before coming back with a bundle of clothes.

“I thought putting them in the dryer a bit would give you a little extra warmth,” he admitted gently before helping to redress the man.

Normally Ignis’s pride wouldn’t have allowed for such things, but the allure of finally getting warm and having Gladio there to look after him helped to soothe any little bit of unease he might’ve felt.

Soon he was bundled up in a pair of his grey sweatpants, a hoodie two sizes two big, bundled around his frame that Gladio knew the man coveted when he was in need of a bit of extra warmth.

“There… now… why don’t you get under the covers, okay, sweetheart?” Gladio murmured softly, reaching forward to carefully remove Ignis’s glasses and set them on the nightstand.

Ignis’s eyes were already closed as the warmth of the dry clothing seemed to seep into his cold and clammy skin, his body no longer shivering as it was earlier.

“M’kay,” he murmured as Gladio gently guided him to lay wrapping their comforter up around him

Gladio took a seat next to him on the edge of the bed then, soothing his hand along Ignis’s back to try and help lure him into the rest he needed. As Ignis buried his nose into the covers with a little hum, Gladio bit his lower lip to keep from laughing and soon the mans breathing evened out and the Shield knew his partner had nodded off.

The man may have to put on a mask and be stoic and strong in the face of adversity from his peers, but as long as Gladio was around he would make sure the man was always taken care of.

Gladio may not be a weatherman, but he’d ensure nothing but clear skies for his Ignis.

#ffxv #gladnis #gladiolus amicitia #ignis scientia #nontickle fic #my fics #i love them so much #f3s #whump #fluff

45 notes · View notes

irljiroukyouka · 5 years

Note

How about Kyouka?

Well, first is obviously YaoJirou. Shorter rock gal Jirou is very very gay for tall, gorgeous, intelligent, and powerful sweetheart Yaoyorozu. The first time Yaoyorozu shyly kabedon-ed her, Jirou had a religious experience.

My second fav is KamiJirou, or as I secretly refer to them as, Bi Squared, because they’re Bi and bi also means two. The “You’re a dumbass, but you’re MY dumbass,” dynamic.

My third fav would probably be BakuJirou, oddly enough. Their relationship isn’t romantic, but platonic, but it could be I guess. They don’t do so well together in combat most of the time, with Bakugo’s explosions threatening Jirou’s hearing, but they do hang out together and play music sometimes. She’s secretly jealous about how sharp he can do eyeliner.

For fourth, is KoudaJirou. Very soft, lots of cuddles. She enjoys watching and listening to Kouda ramble, both verbally and with his hands. Kouda’s mom adores Jirou. Kouda’s naysayers and bullies shiver when they see the scary gal in dark clothes behind Kouda silently draw a headphone jack over her throat, a silent warning to not start shit.

Fifth and finally is AshiJirou! I don’t know why, I just like them together! My two good good gals.

#boku no hero academia #my hero academia #ask meme

11 notes · View notes

cplaysbclarinet · 4 years

Text

Blog Post #17/18

Socially Responsible Music Consumption

I have not purchased a lot recently, but with the things I have purchased there have only been a few factors influencing me. The first is if I actually want the thing and if I have the money for it. The biggest one, however, is the influence of another party on my action.

The last music thing that I had purchased was my new low c bass clarinet.

I really wanted to buy this bass clarinet because I wanted a bass clarinet that went lower then low Eb. Also, this synthetic bass clarinet was cheaper than a wooden low c bass clarinet. I bought this because I wanted an improvement and it was cost effective.

I really enjoy listening to alternative/pop music such as twenty one pilots and Panic! At the Disco. Instrumental wise - I really enjoy listening to jazz music.

I listen to all of my music on Spotify or YouTube.

The current music industry is really not doing too hot. There is a lot of over saturation of genres and artists who think that their music is amazing. The industry is in a constant state of trying to find the next big thing. They are the next big thing for a week, and then it is gone. No quality is constant.

My favorite musicians don’t really have an influence on me or my actions. I listen to them and enjoy their music, but it does not define me or influence my actions.

My favorite musicians have slight influence on what I purchase, but only in the realm of their merchandise.

Honestly, I am a simple man and have not really made a lot of my decisions based on social responsibility or ethical considerations. If I had the money, I would try to support artists as much as I can.

The only thing I can think of as bands or musicians acting in socially responsible behavior is them playing at benefit concerts, and donating to charities.

When I go to music events, I always act like a well functioning human being and I am not a distraction to the people around me. I, also, try to donate if I can.

A socially responsible musician should know what is best for their audience but can also act in good fashion toward their fans. They try to make their music accessible to every person.

Yes it is important that they act in a socially responsible way because they are headliners of society and everyone is watching them.

Yes, I would be more likely to buy an album from a socially responsible musician.

I have not attended an musical event due to the socially responsible aspect of it.

I feel like they are almost equal in certain aspects. People have certain ideals about socially responsible behavior that drive their decisions, but they also might follow decisions due to music consumption.

In the aspect of showing their authenticity, artists and consumers only want to see what the artist truly acts like. They do not want a fake persona put on by the artist (p.237). There are some naysayers who say the opposite, that they have to accept that they are famous and must conform to role model standards (p.237). Artists that show their true selves have higher fan bases compared to “fake” artists.

“I don’t know if people have a responsibility to do that….It shouldn’t be expected of you, the idea that just because you are a musician and that you make music people like that somehow you should be a role model and live your life in a certain way. I don’t really agree with that.” “I think it’s part of these people being in the limelight. They have to accept that they’re role models and that they have a certain position in society that they’re privileged to have..” (p.237-238).

I have not really witnessed an artist promoting something that they did not truly believe in because I believe that most artists alway do something they want to be apart of. Over this quarantine, Andrew Lloyd Webber and twenrty one pilots have both produced music that has some money going to different organizations.

youtube

Protest Song Article

I think that an effective and good protest song needs to be able to capture the attention of a wide range of people, but should be focused on a specific topic.The article brings up the “three” leg rule where a song must be “a strong performance about an urgent topic with a specific audience in mind.” I believe that these capture the true and effective essence of making a protest song. In order to make a song that works, it needs to be performed in a strong manner to where it affects a person’s emotions and outlook on the world. The urgent topic would be seen by society because it must be something important. The specific audience would only build up the effective nature of the song. I feel as if the article correctly displays what makes a good protest song.

I asked my friend if they knew a good protest song artist and they told me to look up some of the songs by Van Halen. Van Halen has performed for many different benefit gigs and have given to multiple charities. Their lyrics in their protest songs always advocate for something going on in the world.

I think in their song “Right Now” they advocate for a lot of change in the world. It is a “modge podge” of different ways the world could be better. I do not really know if it could be considered helpful or effective because it is not focused on one object. They are fairly popular and have captured the attention of their fans, but the general populous might not believe it.

youtube

1 note · View note