#dragonball z fic

[big-boah]

Chapters 34 & 35 just posted ‼️ It's party time 😏 plus a lil fluff chapter and we finally get to Vegeta not having to write things as much! I'm thinking it's going to be a 2-3 month time skip after this. So many exciting things coming up for our boys 😄

As always, this is an 18+, self-projecting, NSFW DBZ Kakavege fic centered around Vegeta if he was a human semi-verbal autistic guy.

Enjoy! 🐉🟠💙

[kenconffetti]

Lil doodles💗💗💗 (x)

[degenerate-otaku]

YOUNG MASTER ROSHI AND MASTER SHEN!!!

Some alternative versions!!

sorry for having the thoughts about obscure dragonball characters it will happen again

[dipplinduo]

Okay but where is Ribombee dipplin. >:[

She's getting a makeover. 💋💄

[amaranthine-enihtnarama]

Plastic (Broly x fem! human! Reader)

angst/comfort fic ; Paragus abus3d his son and I am going to beat his ass if he ever pulls up to my city ; not proofread, pls forgive me :,)

He’d crashed into her backyard without any grace or warning, making the windows and dishes tremble as Y/N jumped out of her couch, her laptop nearly clattering to the floor as she ran to grab a knife from the kitchen and hide—she’d known it was only a matter of time until one of those crazy alien dictators Goku loved to antagonize would come for her.

She ran upstairs and into her bedroom, locking the door behind her and grabbing her phone. Immediately, she speed dialed Bulma, crouching by the window, hesitantly wanting to get a peek.

“Y/N—thank god, I was just about to call you!”

“Something just crashed in my backyard,” she reported in a hushed, urgent voice, “Get one of the Saiyans or something, it sounded really—!”

“That’s what I was going to call you about,” Bulma suddenly said, voice overtaking Y/N’s even through the phone, “It’s Broly! He was totally crazy during his training with Goku then flew away!”

Y/N frowned. Broly?

She looked over the windowsill, and the alarm that had gripped her heart released at the sight of a familiar bright green pelt. With a heaving sigh, she let her knife clatter to the ground, laughing uneasily.

“Oh, oh my gosh, it’s just Broly, of course—I’m so ridiculous, of course it’d be one of the guys! Sorry for wasting your time Bulma.”

“No, wait—!”

She flipped her phone shut and tossed it onto her bed, looking through the window. Her relief faded into worry the longer she looked at him. He was tense all over, she could even tell from her distance. He’d seemed to be shrinking himself—she couldn’t be too sure without her glasses, but he looked like he was curled into a ball.

She let out a sigh, remembering what Bulma had said.

Training with Goku, huh?

After getting her glasses, she made her way through the kitchen to go to Broly in the backyard.

***

It didn’t take long for Y/N to be able to sense something was wrong when Broly didn’t acknowledge her as she stepped on the grass. His shoulders relaxed slightly, but he didn’t look up. He was tight. Frozen. The air around him was rigid; and it admittedly gave Y/N a bit of a scare, although his hair wasn’t bright green which was a good sign.

Slowly, she took a seat in the grass in front of him, eyeing him cautiously.

"Broly?"

He stayed quiet. Y/N sighed, reaching out and gently running her fingers through his hair. He jerked up slightly, muttering, and Y/N jumped slightly in response.

"Uhm, Broly?"

"Y/N..."

The soft, low rumbling of his voice eased the worry that had constricted Y/N's shoulders, and she scooted closer, cupping his face in her hands. She tried to get him to sit up, but he resisted.

"Broly, look at me," she encouraged gently, "Honey, are you alright?"

She rested Broly's head in her lap and quickly felt how his face was contorted, how his irregular breathing fluttered the cotton of her skirt and hummed sympathetically in realization.

"Sparring got a bit too heavy for you?"

He didn't speak, but wrapped his arms around her hips, pulling himself closer. She kept stroking his hair, heart breaking at the sight of him in such a reduced state. Whenever she looked at him, she could never imagine anyone standing up to Broly, let alone hurt him to this point. He was always so strong, so good, so gentle. The thought of anyone hurting his heart in such a way filled her with such rage and grief it overwhelmed her.

"He's gone, Broly. He can't hurt you," she soothed, "Me, Goku--all of us, we've got your back. You're never going to be on your own again. I promise."

Droplets fell from her eyes onto her fingers as she felt his hold loosen.

"You can trust us," she assured softly, "You can trust us."

She added, with a half-hearted smile, "Even Vegeta."

His face had relaxed against her, and she let out a trembling sigh, biting her lip.

"Yeah, that's it, honey, come back to me. Come back here; I got you."

She cupped his face again, and this time he sat up, meeting her eyes hesitantly.

"I'm sorry," he apologized weakly, "I made you sad."

She shook her head profusely. "No, no, never. I'm here for you. It just...breaks my heart when I think of your heart being broken."

He sat up fully, and Y/N quickly found herself pulled into his firm embrace.

"I'm sorry. I want you to be happy...what will make you happy again?"

She laughed softly. "If you can smile for me, I can smile for you."

Pulling back, Y/N took his face in her hands again, searching his eyes.

"We'll get through this, okay?"

She rose her eyebrows, giving a little smile. Broly stared at the curve of her lips, leaning towards her slightly, but Y/N pulled back.

"Give me a smile, and I'll give you a kiss."

She kissed his nose with a growing smile, then his cheek, then one of his eyelids, then, at the sight of his lips easing into a smile, her favorite place of all.

"Better?"

He smiled again, looking at her softly. "Yes."

[birdantlers]

There was no word for 'orphan' in Namekian. Community and family were synonyms, without any notion of 'us' or 'them.' Every child was yours, and to reject one was to disown your entire Clan. It was sacrilegious. Unheard of.

Piccolo has a family. It's strange, piecemeal, and not at all bound in blood—but it's his. And he wouldn't have it any other way.

Unfortunately, life isn't always so considerate.

(Piccolo has a kid. Drama ensues)

Chapters: 1/4

Gen (Piccolo, Dende, Gohan, Goku, TBA)

WC: 5,604

Yeah I'm doing the fankid thing what of it lmao. Reblogs appreciated! 🙏

[nehswritesstuffs]

Trick or treat!!

I know that you really did like Law becoming my 7yo OC's Cora-san dad vaor, so here's an excerpt from the next installment in the series. 208 words, retreads stuff from the prior two fics because it also deviates from the main story before they have this talk.

“Listen, I know I’m…” Fuck, this was awkward. “I know I’m not your real dad, but while we’re doing this, we should probably at least pretend like I am so no nosy aunties try anything.” “Law-san… you are my real dad,” Nauja replied. There was an uncomfortable silence between them, the only sounds being the waves against the sides of the ship. “My first dad… he wasn’t like you. He wasn’t mean, but…” She avoided eye contact, instead seeming very interested in what was going on behind Professor Nanuk’s ear. “What did you call your dad? In Flevench?” “Vaor, Vader, Papa…” “My dad wasn’t mean, but he also didn’t really like me,” Nauja said, her head bobbing in a nod. “My vaor loves me, because he teaches me, and tells me I’m good and smart, and does things to protect me that my dad would have never done. You gave up the crew for me… and I don’t know why, other than that you’re my vaor… and he would have never done that.” “Come here,” he requested, holding open his arms. The little girl stepped forward and allowed herself to be enveloped in his grasp, both glad that the hug was so warm against the cool night air.

Want a little fic snippet, WIP, behind-the-scenes info, or otherwise, hit up my ask (multiple callers accepted and encouraged)!

[anysin]

Fic: First Time For Everything

For @rmjagonshi, a Dragonball Z fic with Piccolo/Krillin and “kiss  as a joke/in a teasing manner”. You said angst is okay so here is a fic set in the timeline where  the androids wreak havoc, warnings for angst and end-of-the-world feels.

First Time For Everything

It's only a matter of time until their foes arrive.

"Should I even be here?" Krillin wants to wring his hands, but he forces the urge down. He and Piccolo are so far the only ones here, but the others - well, just Gohan and Tenshinhan at this point - will come soon. He glances at Piccolo, who is staring off to the distance, his arms crossed over his chest.

"What can I do?" Krillin asks. "I'm the weakest on the field."

"We need everyone." Piccolo looks at him over his shoulder. "Although if you are scared-"

"Of course I am! But it's not about that." Krillin narrows his eyes at Piccolo, fuming inside, but he also wraps his arms around himself, giving himself a little squeeze of comfort. It's pathetic, but *he's* pathetic, so he will take it. "I don't want to get in the way. I don't want to be a burden."

The words are full of self pity, to the point Krillin cringes at himself. Piccolo keeps looking at him, his face as hard to read as it's ever been, but he sighs, turning to face Krillin fully, unfolding his arms.

"As I said, we need everyone. None of us have the power to fight them alone." Piccolo's expression, which has been some kind of stern this whole time, turns a little hesitant, and Krillin doesn't understand why until Piccolo reaches out for him, touching his shoulder lightly with the tips of his fingers.

"We saw what happened to Vegeta," Piccolo says in a serious voice. "Facing them alone gets you killed. Together we have a chance."

Piccolo hesitates again before grasping Krillin's shoulder fully, giving it a tentative squeeze. Krillin can only stare at him in awe; although Piccolo isn't a bad guy anymore, he hasn't particularly tried to bond with anyone else but Gohan, and this is certainly something new. He supposes he should be touched by this, impressed that Piccolo is trying.

Instead, it's making him wonder if they are going to make it even as a team.

Still, Krillin chooses to smile.

"Yeah, we gotta try," he says, patting the back of Piccolo's hand. An idea strikes him, making him chuckle. "Hey, how about a kiss of good luck?"

He fully expects Piccolo to snatch his hand away, maybe scold him for taking all of this lightly. But much to his surprise, Piccolo doesn't move.

"Do you think it would help with your courage?" Piccolo asks. "I have no personal experience about it, but if it helps, I can try."

Now, Krillin is sure that neither of them are going to walk out of this battlefield alive; there is no way Piccolo would be willing to do this, even as a joke, even if it was supposed to help, if he had slightest hope about their survival. But if that's the case-

"Me neither," he says. "But it can't hurt. Lean over."

Krillin can't sense Tenshinhan or Gohan yet, but he can only imagine how shocked they would be to see Piccolo bending down towards Krillin, closing his eyes while Krillin reaches out to cup Piccolo's face between his hands, holding him as he leans close to Piccolo. He can't believe he's doing this, but he's not backing out now. If he's going to die, he's going to kiss someone before he does.

Piccolo's lips are soft and smooth as Krillin rests their mouths together, his own eyes sliding shut. He's not sure what to do - he knows there are tongues, but there is no time to figure out what to do with them - so he keeps his mouth there, brushing his lips delicately against Piccolo's. Piccolo doesn't respond first, allowing Krillin to have control, but eventually, he returns Krillin's soft touch, just as softly, catching Krillin's lower lip between his own lips. It's weird, it's strange, it's- it's not unpleasant. It sends a shiver running down Krillin's spine, while at the same time his face burns.

Slowly, Krillin pulls back, licking his lips. Piccolo is staring at him, his face openly confused, as if he's not sure what just took place between them. Krillin doesn't quite know either.

"We gotta talk about this if we live," Krillin says, releasing Piccolo.

Piccolo blinks at him, slowly straightening up again. "I agree," Piccolo replies. "We will discuss this."

Piccolo turns away, and Krillin lets him. They will talk about this. They will live.

[tinyfrenchowl]

Purrsuasion (1821 words) by chocolatedreams Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Dragon Ball Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Vegeta & Scratch Characters: Vegeta (Dragon Ball), Scratch (Dragon Ball) Additional Tags: very background vegebul, 3 year gap, Fluff, Comfort, Scratch is the true master of Capsule Corp and you can't change my mind, 5+1 Things Summary:

5 times Scratch and Vegeta shared their kingdom, and one time they didn’t.

(I wrote a thing. And apparently that means breaking open a new relationship tag on AO3. Again. You're welcome ^^)

[big-boah]

Just posted Chapters 36 & 37 ‼️ Some stuff happened instead of a time skip!

It was cathartic to write, and it felt like a natural part of the story to include, but I'm sorry in advance it might be tough to read. 😅

As always, this is an 18+, self-projecting, NSFW DBZ Kakavege fic centered around Vegeta if he was a human semi-verbal autistic guy.

Enjoy! 🐉🟠💙

[milkyway247]

Last half of 'The Flower Princess' now up on Ao3! Zarbon seduces Raditz keeping up with the disguise of being female...

[nvaelahrn]

Goku on the news being congratulated for saving the world yet again: *all smiles and crap*

The world: thank you so much Goku, how can we ever repay you?

Goku: well, *pats stomach* some lunch would be great *smile, smile*

Chi-Chi at home watching him on TV raging: Why Goku, why?! You save the world hundreds of times but we still paying off our mortgage? *Crying*

[fanfic-lover-girl]

Goku may have failed Gohan in some ways as a father, but Piccolo was never and will never be Gohan's Daddy

So when I was younger, I enjoyed a handful of fics centred on Piccolo and Gohan's relationship. I love how much Piccolo came to care for Gohan and it was nice to see Dad!Piccolo every now and then...but Dad!Piccolo can't ever measure up to fics where Goku is a great dad. I understand why some people may believe Piccolo is Gohan's true dad but I don't agree, especially now as an adult woman with my father now dead.

Disclaimer: I am basing this off my experience watching Dragonball, DBZ, DBGT and most of the DBZ/GT movies. I have not watched DBS nor will I ever. That series can screw itself.

Piccolo's responsibility in destroying Gohan's childhood

Piccolo is the one who thrust Gohan into the world of fighting and world-ending battles. He kidnapped Gohan and left Gohan to fend for himself for months. I will argue that Piccolo started Gohan's warrior path on a traumatic note and that's partly why Gohan does not gravitate towards fighting as he grows older. Yes, Piccolo changed but the damage can not be undone.

Difference in species

This may look superficial at first glance but it is significant as you look into it. Namekians are radically different from humans/saiyans physically, emotionally and sexually. That means that Piccolo can not advise Gohan on various aspects of his life as he grows older, especially during puberty. Piccolo can't teach him to shave. Piccolo can't give him the sex talk and talk to him about girls. Piccolo can't help Gohan with his friendships. Piccolo can't relate to whatever saiyan or human urge Gohan may experience. A father is supposed to model a good man for his kids and teach his son to be one. Piccolo can't offer that to Gohan, unfortunately.

Emotional distance

I see Gohan as a very emotional and affectionate person. You see this when he interacts with Goku, Goten and Videl. Piccolo is more reserved and closed off. Usually when Piccolo and Gohan interact, there's always some kind of distance between them. However, there are a few times when Piccolo will rest his hand on Gohan's head or shoulder when he feels extremely proud like after the Cell games. However, I don't think this would have been enough from a father figure for Gohan. When Gohan is crying after Goku's sacrifice, it's Krillin who steps up and comforts Gohan. When the Z fighters go to the lookout after Gohan's victory, it's Yamcha who carries Gohan. This does not mean Piccolo does not care for Gohan! I am just saying that Gohan likes physical forms of affection too, but that's not Piccolo's love language.

Fighting is all they have in common

We don't see Piccolo and Gohan have any extensive scenes together outside the context of battles and fighting. What exactly do they do together for fun? What do they talk about? In the movies, we see kid Gohan being silly around Piccolo and Piccolo tolerating him, but that hardly counts. I get the vibe from the series that Gohan's visits to Piccolo are brief and they don't have much small talk. With Goku, we see Gohan and him enjoy pastimes together like fishing, bathing and eating. In the lead-up to the Cell games, we see them reminisce about Gohan's childhood and have fun as a family at Gohan's birthday party. Why wasn't Piccolo there?

Piccolo is not involved wholistically in Gohan's life

Piccolo only really exists and functions in the fighting realm of Gohan's life. This is why their relationship does not feel as close as Gohan grows older and starts his career and family. Piccolo hardly expresses any interest in the other facets of Gohan's life. I don't even recall Piccolo interacting at all with Pan or Videl at the end of Z or GT. He is not close with Chi Chi and Goten, Gohan's family. I think Piccolo is closer to the Son family in Super but I don't care. Compare this with Goku who encourages Gohan to study, teases him about Videl and spends time with Pan.

Conclusion: Goku is Gohan's daddy and Piccolo can't fill that gap.

This does not take away the fact that Piccolo protected Gohan and loved him in his own way. Sacrificing himself for Gohan multiple times. Piccolo was the one who understood Gohan's mindset during the Cell games (probably because he was the one who beat baby Gohan into a fighter and saw his timidness up close vs. Goku who came back to life and only saw hero Gohan being badass all the time) and was the first Z fighter to step in during Gohan's fight against Cell. But Piccolo is better labelled as a friend or mentor to Gohan. Maybe uncle or big brother. Goku is Gohan's father, Gohan sees Goku as his daddy, and Piccolo will never fill that role for Gohan.

[amaranthine-enihtnarama]

Feel Alright (Goku x Reader)

(it’s going to be more fun than it sounds; manic pixie dream BOY; s3x; crushes; grief; hiding the past; friendships; jealousy; slow burn; “friends”; healing; growing; will-they-won’t-they; tension baby!!!!; canon blender >:)

inspired by @sevenstarsinning’s “Sweat”

TW: death mentions, suggestive situations!

taglist: @ilove-evanpeters @moonyscardigans @twinshii @raspberryhaterade @iwenttoshiratorizawa @uselessdoodlesdude @khai-luvs-iida @ferneskin @burneraccountant @de4ds0up @bellaisasleep @arougeme @aurorarevenclaw1927 @applecandy14 @fingersnapples @langdoncult @loona-thebadchild @anlin2058 @dont-feel-so-good-peter

When Bellatrix moves to the city after a personal tragedy under the wing of her friend Bulma, her life is completely turned around after she leaves everyone—including herself—stunned with the discovery of her own powers. Suddenly she finds herself swept up in a world of aliens, new bizarre planets and training, along with prospects of romance. One problem, though; she can’t leave the past behind to answer the new life that’s knocking at her door.

𝖕𝖆𝖗𝖙𝖘 (((𝖔(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)𝖔)))♡: part one : 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 / part two: 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

part three | nothing is fair in love or war

“You ready?”

I leaned against the rock Goku propped me up on, pulling my blanket tighter around me. I gave a thumbs up.

“Yup, blast away.”

He smiled. “Alright, I’m going to aim for that rock over there.”

“I mean, that’s going to destroy the entire landscape but go ahead—“

“Ka…me…”

I immediately fell silent as the hairs on my arms stood to attention. Goku’s entire demeanor had changed from happy-go-lucky into deadly warrior within a split second. The look in his eyes could’ve made the rock formation explode on his own, but as his stance deepened and his muscles rippled, I had a feeling that whatever was creating the vibration in the air around us and tickling my nose was going to blast those rocks out of existence. I jumped in surprise as blue light began to form between his palms, adding dramatizing shadow to his already severe expression.

“…ha…me,” he continued, voice gaining volume as the orb between his hands grew.

I started feeling uneasy then as the ground beneath me started to tremble and it crossed my mind I might’ve been too close to the ‘splash zone’ per-se; and scooted to the right again as the ground under Goku started to crack and float around him. The light he was creating was so bright it had illuminated him and drowned me in his shadow so I could only make out his silhouette. His head turned to me for a second, but I couldn’t make out his expression.

“Here goes,” he said, “…ha!”

I gave a thumbs up that quickly disappeared as his voice echoed across the valley and an intense, blinding beam of light shot out from his hands and towards the rock formation. I clung to my little rock for dear life but couldn’t tear my eyes away from the absolute spectacle I was witnessing. The force of the blast was making the wind whip against my face and even pushing Goku backward slightly as it reached the rocks on the horizon, slid between the cracks, and, after a moment of stillness, devoured them in an earth-shattering explosion.

A shiver ran through my entire body at the sight of it, and I lifted off of the ground a bit as it passed down my back. My heartbeat had gotten a little faster, and my physical state seemed like an afterthought for a moment as I stared at the newly empty land in front of us, then looked slowly back to Goku.

He let out a little sigh, placed his hands on his hips, then turned to me with a smile.

“How’d you like that,” he questioned proudly.

I had to find the words for a moment as I processed fully what I’d just witnessed. Not only was an alien in front of me, smiling like a kid in a candy store, but he’d just showcased something that I would’ve never believed possible by any living being without having experienced it firsthand. I swallowed thickly.

“That was…fucking…incredible.”

Goku’s smile seemed to get even bigger from my answer, and he laughed, coming over to me.

“Want to see me go Super Saiyan?”

“First off, yes, secondly, what the hell is that?”

“It’s kind of like a fighting form,” he said, picking me up again, “It makes you stronger, faster and your attacks more powerful.”

“You mean…”

I pointed to the newly cleared path between the rocks.

“That can get even stronger?”

He only chuckled, lifting us into the sky again.

“We’ll go over to the rocks so you can have a little distance,” he said, “You almost started flying yourself when my blast hit them.”

I looked away from him with an embarrassed blush. “Well, when you show a scientist the impossible, flying into the air is an understandable reaction.”

The remnants of the formation grew bigger the closer we got, and my body tensed.

“Um, those seem a little high, don’t you think?”

“Not really, why?”

I could feel my cheeks burning as anxious knots formed in my stomach. “I’m…still afraid of heights, you know…”

“I thought you were only scared of flying,” he remarked with genuine confusion.

“I’m scared of flying because I’m scared of heights.”

“Then how can you live so high up?”

I smiled grimly, tightening my hold on Goku’s shoulders. “I try not to think about it.”

“Well, we can find someplace—“

Goku suddenly went quiet, eyes sharp like they were before. My heart stilled as the air around us seemed to grow heavy with his pinpointed stare. We were still now, and the thought of a distracted Goku holding me this high up made my stomach twist.

“…Goku?”

“Something’s coming from over there,” he said, “It doesn’t seem like anything powerful, but I just got a really bad feeling from it.”

I frowned. “Huh? What do you mean?”

The sound was faint, but it started to reach my ears too—it was familiar, and not in a good way.

“Oh god,” I muttered to myself.

A helicopter approached in the distance: dark red with a logo I’d been fighting to get out of my mind for the past two weeks. My grip on Goku tightened as it started to get closer, and I shook my head to myself. Nope, nope, not today, none of this shit.

“Instant transmission,” I said quietly.

“What? What’s wrong? I thought—“

“Show me Super Saiyan later, just instant transmission now!”

He shrugged. “Okay.”

I bit my lip and squeezed my eyes shut as we teleported back to the medical ward in Capsule Corp, and the air conditioning nipped at my cheeks.

“Holy fuck, what the fuck was that,” I muttered to myself.

“Uh, Bellatrix…”

“What the hell are the chances—“

“I knew that helicopter would scare you back here.”

I fell silent, staring blankly at the wall.

“Should I let you—“

“No,” I asserted quietly, “Wait—no—yes, put me down, put me down.”

Goku let me down, and I hesitantly turned to face her. Her jet-black hair was as glossy and perfectly curled as ever, her red lip was flawless; there was nothing about her perfectly tailored appearance that would suggest that Delilah Blackthorn ruined my life—or, at least, that she gave a shit—I couldn’t hold back the disgust that creeped into my expression.

“So, we still haven’t learned that stalking is bad, have we,” I said coldly, crossing my arms.

She laughed, flashing her perfect smile and dimples. “Look at you, trying to be tough after your adorable little entrance.”

She was definitely jealous a man like Goku was carrying me. I gave her a plain look, unimpressed by her display for the bodyguards that had filled the room, holding back Bulma and, oddly enough, crowding Vegeta into submission. I frowned at the sight, and Delilah quickly gloated for my clarity.

“Oh, it’s just so sweet. I only had to twist Brief’s arm a little to get the spiky-haired one in line. Isn’t that just precious?”

“What do you want,” I suddenly snapped, surprising myself, “The thought of you makes me sick enough, I’d hate to vomit all over this shiny floor.”

Her blue eyes flashed with a mixture of hurt and anger as she looked me over.

“Well, someone’s gotten rude.”

“If you think I was going to be remotely polite to you, you’re as deluded as that crazy mummy you called a father.”

Her silvery voice lost some of its gentle airs. “I don’t appreciate you talking about my father that way.”

I only smiled bitterly, holding her gaze. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly with upset, then she sighed, looking away.

“Well, since you’re so disgusted by the sight of me, I’m glad to be the bearer of good news. My facility is moving locations, so it’s likely you won’t see me again.”

I snorted. “I doubt that.”

“I don’t appreciate being berated, so you don’t need any doubts,” she retorted with slight offense.

“Oh, but you do love to win.”

The silence in the room was heavy, and I stared her down, surprised by how my fight or flight instinct was backing me up right now. Goku was still behind me, and I knew because Delilah’s eyes were flitting between me and him more and more as the seconds passed, and her lips were slowly pressing into a thin red line.

“You’re not going to introduce me to your new friend?”

“No need. Why should I care if you’re moving the lab?”

She gave a slightly tight-lipped smile, cocking her head. “Well, since you decided to so graciously jump ship, your office has remained a museum for the last month and a half. I figured you wouldn’t want me touch your things.”

“Never stopped you before,” I shot back with a shrug. “Why didn’t you hire a new researcher?”

“Nothing can replace the best,” she said, giving a little smile.

I sighed, staring at her impatiently.

She glanced away with frustration. “What’s the point of this performance, Bel-bel? Showing off for him, or the short one?”

I ignored her provocation, turning my attention to Bulma and Vegeta. “Let them go. You’ve relayed your message, I’ll come pick my stuff up tomorrow. And don’t call me that.”

My pulse was starting to raise as she peered at me, dismissing my request.

“You don’t look so good,” she observed, “Are you sick?”

I sighed sharply. “Delilah, it’s time for you to leave. And tell your silly entourage to back off.”

Genuine concern suddenly washed over her face. “Have you been taking your medication?”

Anger bubbled up inside of me. “Wow, what a brilliant question, Delilah. Have I been taking my insane ex-girlfriend’s medication that she told me I needed because I was ‘unstable’? Fuck, that’s a real head-scratcher, isn’t it?”

She suddenly turned dead serious.

“Bellatrix, you need to take those,” she insisted gently, stepping towards me.

My chest tightened as I took a step back. “Don’t get any closer to me.”

She frowned at my words, maintaining her severity. “Did you…run out?”

“If by run out you mean I threw them over my balcony after breaking everything in my apartment at two in the morning, then yes, I ran out.”

Delilah sighed heavily. “Look, Bellatrix, I’m—“

She looked up at Goku behind me with some discomfort.

“Can we talk somewhere else?”

“No. You’re a big girl. You can apologize with someone else besides me in the room. Just means it has to be sincere for once.”

I crossed my arms. She stepped towards me indignantly, lowering her voice.

“I have always been sincere to you. I—I loved you.”

My back ached from the tension in my muscles. I could smell her perfume; floral, light. It filled my nose the longer I looked into her eyes. A sharp pain erupted in my forehead as I looked at her. I clenched my fists, feeling the knot in my throat and trying to get rid of it before answering.

“You,” I bit my lip in annoyance hearing my voice waver, “You don’t know what love is. If you did, you’d know you never hurt someone you love the way you hurt me.”

Her eyes glistened, and she looked away before doubling down and reached out to touch me. I slapped her hand away in alarm, eyes widening.

“Bel—“

“Do not touch me.”

“Darling, please. I can’t stand to see you like this.”

“Then maybe you shouldn’t have made me this way!”

A light burst behind her, and Delilah shrieked, whirling around. I didn’t expect my voice to raise the way it did; it just came out, I didn’t mean to yell at her—

“Bellatrix, you need your medicine, okay? Please come with me.”

“What? No, no, don’t touch—“

Before I could stop her, she reached out and grabbed my wrist, and my strong front shattered as my skin crawled and my stomach lurched. I snatched my arm away, feeling a surge of what felt like rage, an anxiety attack, and a caffeine rush mixed into one. My mind went blank with nothing but the urge to get rid of her.

“Get! Out! I’m sick of you! I’m sick of you! Get the hell out! You selfish bi—“

“Woah, woah, Bellatrix!”

Someone grabbed me and I shoved them off, but when they grabbed me again I wasn’t strong enough to push them away. I let out a cry, struggling until I recognized Goku’s scent, then his voice, then blinked, looking around at the flickering, swinging lights above us, the strewn bedclothes all over the floor, the broken windows and the TV monitor which was now securely in the wall above my upside down hospital bed. My muscles were tense and aching, I realized, and I relaxed, looking around the room with disorientation.

Bulma, I remembered.

I turned my head to see a frazzled and shocked Bulma guarded by a bewildered Vegeta in the corner of the room. The bodyguards had disappeared. As loose wires sparked above us, I looked down at Delilah, who was pale as death. Her hair was a mess now; completely ruffled out of its pressed, shiny state from before. There were tears in her eyes. They made my breath catch in my throat.

“This is what I meant by unstable. Your emotions are completely unregulated. It makes your…”

She cleared her throat, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

“Your affliction volatile.”

I looked at her in disbelief. “What…what just…?”

“You’re not well. You need to get that under control before a bad day ends up with someone dead.”

She got to her feet shakily, brushing off her black trench coat and putting her heels back on, clearing her throat again. Despite her grave demeanor, which usually meant I was in trouble, she headed to the door. She turned to Bulma before she left.

“I know you all hate me, but Bellatrix can’t have whatever this is—“

She gestured to the demolished room tensely.

“Running wild. Someone’s going to end up hurt or dead. It could be her, but it’ll be one of you before that happens.”

“Seems like that someone would be you if you don’t get the hell out,” Vegeta suddenly said, giving her the usual glare as he crossed his arms again.

She looked him up and down, then managed a cold smile. “Aren’t you just the most devastating Napoleon complex.”

Vegeta obviously had no idea what than meant, but his glare still deepened in offense.

“See you later, Bel-bel.”

She gave a wave, not even looking at me as she left and walked down the hall. I didn’t say a word until the elevator pinged and the doors closed. I let out the breath I was holding, clenching my fists.

“What…did I do? Did—I didn’t do all of this, right? What’s going on?”

Goku made a pleased sound, and I turned to look up at him in confusion. He smiled at me.

“I knew your energy was strong.”

***

“Bulma, I feel fine,” I protested again with a frown.

“I don’t care, I’m still making sure your vitals are good. Now do it again.”

I huffed, looking to Goku and Vegeta. The former smiled and gave me a thumbs up, while the latter just glared—or it was his usual face; I’m still working on discerning that.

“C’mon, don’t worry about them,” Bulma pushed, “Close your eyes and do it again.”

She was understandably testy after Delilah’s bodyguards manhandled her and she said god knows what to her while they were waiting for me to come. I was a little annoyed, but I ignored her spike in temper.

“Okay, okay, I’m doing it.”

“Remember to relax your your body, okay?”

I looked over at Goku with an ‘I-got-it’ smile, then focused on the metal target at the other end of the testing hall. It was uncomfortable with all of the wires hanging off of me, but I tried to ignore it.

I closed my eyes, shut everything out, and relaxed my body. My heartbeat started to slow down, and as I kept still, I felt the thud beating against my chest and sending blood flowing through my veins. The awareness of my body sent tremors through it again, but I only breathed through the feeling and kept focusing on the inner tension that released within me before. For a moment I heard beeping somewhere, but then I was encapsulated in silence. A small chill passed over my skin, and my mind wandered back to Goku’s kamehameha from before—the feeling of power in the air, the ground buckling beneath my feet, the sound of the blast rushing against my ears as my stomach flew into my throat—then it clicked. I was floating.

I felt something bump against me from behind, and I opened my eyes. It all came rushing in; the sound of metal creaking and bending, swirling wind, crashing here and there, alarms, bright sunlight overtaking the sterile, artificial ones, and the grunts of effort coming from Goku behind me, who had his arms wrapped around me as we slowly inched backward from the force of an invisible explosion. I could feel the energy flowing from my palm, but it wasn’t like Goku’s. It was cold, empty, and almost seemed…consuming.

I looked at the destruction ensuing in front of me as I began to hear the urges of Bulma and Vegeta for me to stop. The metal wall was warping and curling back like burning paper, and the target from before was a charred memory of what it used to be. My eyes widened as a huge crack split the wall in half, and it began to reach the ceiling. With alarm, I shut my eyes, trying to close whatever I’d opened, and it shut off bluntly, sending Goku and I flying against the wall behind us faster than either of us could think.

“Ugh…”

I curled onto my side, catching my breath. Goku panted, giving a half hearted half.

“I’m impressed,” he said, “Once you get that under control, you’ve got to let me spar with you. Need help getting up?”

“I’m not done lying on the cold, hard ground; thank you very much,” I said, turning onto my back as Goku got to his feet and gave me a hand.

I stood up with a groan, rubbing my back. I looked at the mayhem in the testing hall, pausing. My brain was starting to scramble.

“This was all me?”

A loud crash nearly sent me flying through the roof and I screamed. The lights flickered as I jumped, and everyone tensed a little. Goku chuckled uneasily.

“Why don’t we go outside so you can cool down,” he offered, ushering my outside.

I shook my head. “No, I want to see what the data was. I’m going to need a really good explanation for that.”

I pointed to the source of the loud crash—the metal wall had fallen to the ground, still peeling away.

“Someone get samples of th—“

“—Samples of that then one of you two destroy it.”

Bulma and I both dictated the same thing to the room,and looked at each other. I smiled weakly, then I let my shoulders drop as I hesitantly went over to the monitors. I leaned over onto the desk next to Bulma, surveying the screens.

“Whaddya got—oh…”

The screens were jumbled nonsense flickering all over the place. I jumped as a few sparks flew here and there. I looked to Bulma, who was staring at me in silence. I frowned, but didn't pay it any mind.

“What happened?”

She didn’t answer, and I looked at her again. “Bulma?”

She was pale, and, now that I read her expression better, completely stunned in silence. I waved my hand in front of her face.

“Bulma?”

Her eyes pupils shrank and she jumped, covering her face.

“Don’t blast me!”

I gave her an annoyed look. “Bulma, what happened to the computers?”

“They crashed,” she said, peeking out between her fingers, “At a certain point, the numbers for your heart rate and brain activity just went crazy—random numbers, then zeroes, and then the screens glitched out like this while I was hanging on to them for dear life.”

I gave her a look as she frowned at me.

“Don’t get that blaming tone with me like I did it on purpose.”

I leaned on the desk as the screens continued to glitch and spark. I looked over at the destroyed wall, and blushed in embarrassment as Bulma’s parents peeked in from outside.

“I don’t even know what’s going on…oh god. Someone catch—“

I groaned as the room spun, and my legs gave while I collapsed to the floor. I tensed my entire body as a brutal wave of nausea went through me, and the sound of metal creaking made me freeze as it passed.

Goku came over and helped me up, but everyone else was staring at the gaping hole where a wall used to be—even Vegeta. Or…at least that’s what I thought until I saw the piece of broken wall.

It was compressing like a piece of crumpled paper. I stared in disbelief until a sharp pain erupted in my stomach, and I folded over, crying out, hearing metal grinding against metal horribly. It was shrill and grating like nails on a chalkboard. I forced myself to look up, and watched as the metal crumpled more and more, then seemed to almost smooth out until I couldn’t take it anymore and put all of my weight on Goku in exhaustion.

“Okay, let’s get you back in bed,” Goku said, genuine worry coloring his voice.

I only muttered back. “Bed. Nice.”

He picked me up and walked us to the elevator then to the medical ward. I stared up at the ceiling lights as my sight started darkening. I was starting to feel weak, too. My arm slid off of Goku’s shoulder, dangling behind us. For some reason, in this state my mind cleared enough to process what I’d experienced for the last thirty minutes.

I had superpowers. I had genuine, Professor X, alien-superhero-fucking superpowers. And my crazy ex-girlfriend somehow knew before I did.

***

I woke up a week later with a dry mouth and a mild, constant anxiety attack. I couldn’t manage to speak very much, too much talking and I was left winded. The world seemed much too bright and loud every time I woke up, and with Goku as company, my ears were being assaulted until he got the message to quiet down from Bulma.

It seemed that every time I woke up, a new person was watching me. First Goku, then Bulma, then some short guy without a nose, a pretty unassuming guy if it weren’t for his equally insane muscles, a bald man with three eyes and a tiny clown-looking kid as a sidekick, and, finally, a fucking GIANT green alien-looking guy.

It was only when I woke up to Vegeta glaring at me in the corner that I was worried I was losing my mind. The new people would appear and disappear as the days passed, but I kept seeing them, which didn’t exactly rule out them being hallucinations, but Goku and Bulma saw them too, which put me at ease.

“Just because the woman can move things around with a little ki doesn’t mean she has any potential,” Vegeta said curtly, “She’s still just a human.”

“Is she, though,” Bulma chimed in, “Is she really?”

I groaned, breathing heavily as I tried to move or open my eyes. What the hell were they getting on about; of course I was human!

“Look, all I know is that Bels was a kid when I met her in high school. A kid. Literally. She was probably a few years older than when I first met Goku! And her brain was this total supercomputer, it was remarkable to see her work on experiments or proofs. She’s smarter than me, and I’m a genius. Also, sidenote, I don't think she's ever had a period."

I heard a groan--probably Vegeta.

“If she was so smart, then why didn’t she know she had any abilities in the first place?”

“I’m sure Bels will be happy to answer once she’s well enough to talk again,” Bulma smoothly deflected.

“And how long with that be taking exactly?”

Bulma huffed, and I heard her stomping. “Look! Her vitals are improving, so we just have to wait! I know that’s like pulling teeth for you, your royal highness, but you’re just gonna have to manage!”

I drifted away again as Vegeta grumbled and muttered to himself.

I wasn’t sure how much time passed until the night I woke up ready to go. I wanted a smoke, so I knew I was at a hundred percent again and got out of my bed. I’d awoken to an empty, silent room, and an uncomfortably still medical ward. Everything was dark, but the lights would flash on and off as I passed under them. I would’ve been more interested in that if my body wasn’t so heavy and uncoordinated as I swayed through the halls to the elevator—I poked the button for the floor Bulma’s lab was on and rested my forehead against the doors. I let out a sigh, closing my eyes and slumping my shoulders. Everything I remembered felt like months ago.

I jumped as the elevator pinged, catching myself on the doorframe as it opened. I groaned, punching the button to close the doors, and collapsed against the wall as I pondered Vegeta’s words.

Why didn’t I know anything about my own powers?

Based off of my last two experiences, I didn’t remember anything after I used them, so it would make sense I wouldn’t know anything during Delilah and I’s relationship. But…what about my parents? My entire family? My brothers and sisters? Not one of them had powers? Why didn’t they have powers?

Why didn’t he?

The realization hit me as the elevator dinged, and I slid down to the floor, sitting. I stared at the floor. All this time I had powers. If I’d never taken those stupid pills she made me, I could’ve changed so much. I could’ve done something that day. A tight ball of grief knotted up my rib cage and I clenched my fists.

Why did everyone lie to me? Why was this secret kept? Why, why, why did I have to know about it now when it didn’t matter anymore?

When I could’ve saved Adam’s life?

The elevator creaked, and I jumped, looking up as tears fell from my eyes. I should probably get out of here if I’m going to have another emotional breakdown. I took my breaths, shutting my eyes and calming down. One, two, three, four, hold, just like that doctor lady had taught me. Then I got up, pushed myself from the wall, and walked into the hall.

“Bulma? You up?”

My voice sounded fragile as it echoed and floated back to my ears. I didn’t want to walk anymore; my body had become sapped of everything. I couldn’t clear the images from my mind, no matter how hard I tried. The way the motorcyclist’s bones twisted after flying through the air, Adam’s wide, glassy eyes staring past me and fixing themselves on the clouds. I crumbled to my knees, groaning, wiping my hands frantically on my hospital gown. I could feel his blood pooling around my knees, hot and sticky against my fingers and palms, spilling out into a halo around his empty eyes, matting into his curls. I vomited.

The next thing I knew I was blinded the same lights on the ceiling, and there was an awful noise. A shrill, almost screeching kind of noise, that I was too tired to cover my ears to block. I could smell dried bile on my lips, along with a familiar earthy scent. I froze up in embarrassment in Goku’s arms, meeting his eyes. They searched mine with worry.

“You were crying,” he said simply, “I felt your energy spike, and when I found you, you were crying in your sleep.”

And lying in a pool of my own vomit, I figure.

I sniffed, wiping my eyes defensively. “It’s…loud.”

The next thing I knew, we were on my balcony, and my insides were doing somersaults. I yelped, glaring at him as I slapped my hand over my mouth to hold back a wave of sickness.

“I’m not well enough for that,” I sharply muttered, wiggling out of his arms.

“Sorry, you just seemed fine last time we did it so…”

“Fight or flight, Goku, fight or flight.”

My ears rang in the silence of the patio—city sounds aside—and I collapsed onto the lounge chair. Goku sat down next to me, still watching me intently. I could feel the question bubbling up in the air; practically hear it forming in his mind.

“Bellatrix, why were you crying?”

I frowned deeply, glaring at the skyscrapers through the glass. At my silence, Goku spoke more carefully.

“Was it..your ex?”

He seemed hesitant to ask; I wondered if he thought just the mentioning of Delilah would set me off. I sighed sharply, looking at him.

“Look, I get that—“

His gaze was gentle. Attentive. He was in full listening mode, which seemed…new. It made me self-conscious, preparing to shove away his concern, thinking of his kindness over the past week. I looked away and slumped my shoulders.

“Can this stay between us? Like a secret?”

He nodded. “Yeah, of course.”

I hadn’t even told Bulma yet. I hadn’t even gone to visit my parents to see if they were alright. I’d barely faced it myself since it had happened, and it loomed over my constantly. Why was it so easy to tell him? Why could I tell him anything right now?

“When I left my ex, I went to stay with my older brother Adam.”

“You have a brother?”

My stomach twisted. “I, uh, had an older brother, yeah.”

He easily connected the dots. His face softened as he looked me up and down. I tried to ignore it, but it didn’t help, the tears still formed.

“Delilah had hired this P.I.—a uh, private investigator. Maybe she thought I had found someone else, or that I was losing it, who knows. I knew I was being watched, I could sense it, but I couldn’t see anything. I was scared out of my mind, but I didn’t tell Adam because I wanted things to feel fine. Just for once. He was so…”

I clasped my hands, breathing shakily.

“Uh, anyways, one day we were leaving a movie and the P.I. was there in plain sight. I just laid my eyes on him and knew. I didn’t know he was a P.I. at the time. I thought that it was just some crazy guy, or a stalker, or one of Delilah’s bodyguards come to beat me into a pulp and drag me back to her, so I told Adam.”

My throat tightened as I looked up at the clouds. I could see it in my head as I told Goku, my voice quivering.

“I tried to stop him. I couldn’t. I couldn’t do anything. A single fucking thing. Him and the P.I. started getting physical, and it escalated, it all happened so fast. Next thing I knew Adam…”

I fell quiet, wiping my palms again.

“Adam what,” Goku gently prodded.

I looked to him, remembering he was there. I interlaced my fingers.

“A motorcyclist hit him in the street. The motorcyclist ended up paralyzed from the waist down, but Adam…”

A few tears rolled down my cheeks.

“He died there in the street. I held his head in my hands as blood oozed out of him, and I was crying and screaming for am ambulance even though I knew there was no point. I couldn’t do anything but watch. Watch as he left me alone forever. And it was all Delilah’s fault.”

We sat in silence. Goku didn’t say anything, which I couldn’t decide made this better or worse. I sniffed, drying my eyes.

“So, um, I guess I was crying because now I have these powers or whatever, and it doesn’t mean a fucking thing.”

“Of course it means something,” he protested.

I looked at him. “I can’t save my brother’s life, I can’t fix the gaping wound in my family where he was, and I can’t…I can’t even at least scrape it all from my mind. I’m just—just…a fucking public safety hazard now! I can’t even use it consciously, I’m just fucking crazy, and unstable, and fucking weak above it all.”

Realizing I was starting to get angry, I sat up and massaged my temples, trying to calm down.

“Just—what am I supposed to do with this?”

He suddenly smiled and rose to his feet.

“That’s easy: you get stronger.”

I stared up at him as he placed his hands on his hips, eyes fixed on me as he waited for a response. I blinked.

“So, what, I become a fighter like you?”

“Sure,” he said, “Why not?”

I squinted at him. “You’re not joking right now, are you?”

He frowned, confused. “Why would I be joking?”

He was so sincere, it made me laugh.

“Goku, your confidence is very…sweet…but I’m not a fighter, not at all. I am a brain, and all of this crap—“

I waved my arms and legs and smushed my face. “—Is an unfortunate meat case for that I’m stuck with cleaning and feeding.”

“That sounds horrible.”

I only smiled and shrugged. “Yup.”

“Okay, I need to go shower and change and…god, I need to smoke.”

Goku nodded. “I’ll wait out here.”

I nodded, yawned, them gestured for him to turn around, which he did. I stood and stepped over the chair, ripping off my hospital gown and throwing it to the floor.

I flicked my lighter with annoyance, tugging my sweater closer around my neck.

“Ah, shit.”

“I can light it for you,” Goku offered.

“Oh, no, no, it’ll light.”

I flicked it again, and euphoria washed over me at the sprouting of a flame. I hurriedly lit my cigarette, smiling at Goku.

“See? What’d I tell you?”

I took a long drag, and exhaled. My eyes scanned over the cityscape below us briefly until I scurried back to the center of the roof, planting my butt on the ground.I sighed, placing the cigarette between my lips.

I was still playing with the thought of what Goku was suggesting I do with my life. I was never going to be some kind of warrior; I couldn’t even imagine it. I had the stamina of a depressed corpse, and about the same physical force as a sheet of paper.

But, still.

You need to get that under control before a bad day ends up with someone dead.

Superhero pipe dreams aside, I had a dangerous force inside of me that was hungering to unleash itself at any given moment. I couldn’t just let it rule my life as do as it pleased, leaving me with memory loss and an almost certain anxiety disorder.

I had to control it. I had to make it mine—not the other way around, or I was never going to be allowed in any lab ever again.

“Hey, Goku?”

“Yeah?”

“How fast could you teleport and catch someone if, say, theoretically, they’d fallen from a building like this?”

“Probably pretty fast, why?”

I stared at the railing on the edge of the roof, narrowing my eyes. I felt my cigarette burn hotter in my fingers.

“Let’s go back to where we went to do your blast.”

***

Goku lowered us onto a cliff, eyeing me strangely. I slid from his arms, pressing my feet on the earth. Closing my eyes, I inhaled the fresh air, tossing my cigarette stump aside.

“You sure you’re gonna be okay up here?”

I exhaled deeply. “Nope. That’s kinda the idea.”

I opened my eyes, looking down at the ground below us, dimly illuminated by the moon. Fear immediately took my body, seeping into my knees and feet. I swallowed, timidly peering over the edge and seeing the steep fall it would be. Goku came up next to me.

“Uh, what’s going on, exactly?”

“This would be a pretty gnarly fall, don’t you think?”

He hesitated in confusion. “Yeah, probably.”

“My body would probably just break on impact.”

I kicked some rocks over the edge and listened to their clacking as they fluttered out of my sight.

“Pretty terrifying thought. Splattering all over the ground.”

I looked at Goku, raising my eyebrow. He smiled uneasily.

“Should…I call Bulma?”

“Don’t call Bulma,” I told him, turning away from the edge and returning to the middle, “We’re just conducting an experiment, that’s all.”

“Experiment?”

I smiled at him as he followed me back to where we landed.

“My power’s triggered by intense emotion overriding everything else in my mind, like a security system.”

I awkwardly averted my eyes. “Which is why it’s so volatile and likely to come out at any moment, since…well…”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

I turned to face the edge again. “Putting that aside for a moment, I’ve never voluntarily triggered it, and if I’m going to control this, that’s my first step. I’m obviously not going to cry over my dead brother and failed relationship every time I want to use this thing, so I’ll go for my next best option of turning the switch.”

“Which is?”

I met his eyes. “Fear.”

“If I’m about to splat, I’ll call out for you and you can catch me.”

He looked at me in alarm. “I don’t usually say this, but I don’t think this is the best idea right now.”

I smiled. “You better be as fast as you say, because if I die, Bulma’s coming for your ass first.”

I stepped backwards, creating room, feeling the strong breeze against my legs and back, feeling my muscles trembling at what I was about to do. Oh, I was going to shit my fucking pants.

“Don’t catch me until I say, alright?”

“Bellatrix, I think you’re shaking.”

I gave him a pointed look. “Alright?”

He frowned, but crossed his arms in resignation. “Okay.”

I nodded. “Okay.”

I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath. I could do this, I could do this. I didn’t need Delilah’s creepy medication, and I sure as hell didn’t need to listen to her. I could control this, no matter what she thought. Or what my parents thought, or even what Bulma, Goku, and Vegeta thought.

I settled my eyes beyond the edge, skipping my feet to get myself ready. I was going to learn this power, I was going to control it, and then I was going to find my way back to some kind of a normal life. The thought of this spurred me.

“Bellatrix—“

Without letting myself think, I sprinted forward, leaping right over the edge and flying into the air.

Gravity immediately took hold of my body and started to drag me to the ground. My stomach wrapped around my lungs and crushed them as I watched the stars grow further away from me. I was weightless; paralyzed by the force of the wind that beat beat against my ears and shoved my limbs around like they were papier-mâché. My locs beat against my face—I was frozen; too shocked to be afraid, and too afraid to snap myself out of it.

“Bellatrix, you’re getting close to the ground!”

The sound of Goku’s voice shot me into action. I started flailing, then found myself spiraling through the air with the sounds of my swearing barely keeping up with my mouth. My sight was a blur of rock, stars, the moon, and the ground, which was getting closer — much, much, fucking closer. Heart slamming into my chest, I bit down on my lip indignantly: there was no way I was going to call for Goku. I was a big girl, I was going to do this!

Grunting with effort, I fought against the choppy wind and twisted myself to face the ground and holy fuck I was feet away from it! My terror spiked, and I thrust my arms out in front of me, squeezing my eyes shut.

Break my fall, I willed desperately, break my fall damnit!

Then—nothing. I felt no resistance, no magical force, no explosions. I surrendered to the force of the winds, gliding with the rough push and pull of the air. I braced myself for the splat. Or, I should probably call-

“Hey, nice job!”

I opened my eyes in surprise at the sound of Goku’s voice so close, and looked over to see him looking up at me from the ground with a beaming smile. His eyes were alight with excitement.

“You really are a quick learner, huh?”

I gasped as I looked over my shoulder—I was hovering.

“How do you feel?”

“It feels like I’m in a very cozy bed. I’m warm.”

I felt a sudden wave of relief as I lowered myself to meet Goku’s eyes, and found myself smiling, then laughing. The sound filled my ears.

“Holy shit! I did it!”

“Yeah!”

“I’m fucking flying right now!”

Goku laughed along with me, fed by my own excitement.

“And look—“

I reached out to him, holding out my hand in front of his face. He tensed a little, looking between my hand and my smile uneasily. I rose my eyebrows.

“No explosion.”

“Oh—good.”

He relaxed again, rubbing his nape.

“That was a real leap of faith you did,” he remarked, “You weren’t really going to call me, were you?”

My cheeks ached, and I tried to calm down. I let out a sigh, rubbing my face. “Not really…”

He laughed. “Sounds like something Vegeta would do!”

My happiness dropped immediately. “Please take that back.”

He only kept laughing, then stared at me after he cooled down a bit. His eyes were sparkling like onyx in the moonlight, but aside from that, they held an odd glow to them. It was warm, and fond. I continued floating awkwardly, glancing around shyly under his gaze. Then, he pressed his palm against mine, and my stomach flipped.

“Why don’t I help you get on the ground?”

I felt myself start to blush and laugh nervously. Oh god, how embarrassing. I could feel it coursing through me as we held each other’s stares; my body felt lighter—probably my soul trying to crawl its way out of me.

“Uh—yeah…sure—oh no no no—“

I was starting to lift into the air, and I grabbed Goku’s hand tightly in an attempt to stop it. He laughed. He was laughing. I glared at him as I grabbed onto his forearm desperately.

“Are you laughing right now?!”

“Don’t worry! I’ve got you, it’ll be fine—“

“Goku!”

I shrieked as I lurched up into the sky out of nowhere, clinging onto Goku’s arm for dear life while he calmly rose with me, still laughing.

“Goku, stop laughing or I swear to—oh my god—“

We flew up past the clouds, and I did my best to hold in the scream that was trying to claw its way from my lips.

“Hey, hey,” he encouraged, “You’re doing great!”

I faltered in the air slightly and yelped, looking to Goku in a panic. He placed his hand over mine reassuringly, which didn’t do much for calming my nerves. My blood pressure slowly lowered as we fell still in the sky, and I looked at the stars with a mixture of terror and wonder inside of me.

“Why don’t you try moving yourself upright?”

I broke my admiration of the night sky to look at Goku incredulously. I smiled uneasily. “Oh, I can give you many reasons why not.”

“I can catch you in time if anything happens,” he assured, “Besides, you can’t fly around on your back.”

“Says who?”

He laughed softly, floating away. I heard his voice at my feet.

“Just stop, then tilt your body to face me, okay?”

I frowned, eyes darting to either side of me. “How am I supposed to stop, exactly?”

“Just relax and let it happen. Trust yourself.”

He made it sound so easy. I sighed, closing my eyes.

“Alright.”

I stretched my limbs out wide, spreading my fingers and reaching to feel the air around my body. I frowned, opening my eyes. How the hell does one just stop, exactly? What does that even mean?

“Am I supposed to be feeling something?”

“Do you feel something?”

“Goku…” I warned.

“Okay, okay,” he relented, giving a chuckle, “let’s try something.”

He suddenly appeared above me, and placed his hands in front of his chest.

“Put your hands against mine,” he instructed.

I hesitated. He smiled, looking at me expectantly. With furrowed eyebrows, I obliged and pressed my palms against his again. I waited for more directions, but he didn’t say anything. He was just…staring at me.

“Uh…what now?”

No answer, only a playful grin in return. I couldn’t manage to hold his gaze anymore and looked away. He turned my chin back towards him—my eyes widened and fixed on his timidly.

“Keep looking at me,” he encouraged.

His knuckle grazed my jaw briefly. I swallowed, chuckling nervously. Goku’s eyes, kind as they were, enveloped me the longer I looked into them. His hands were so big compared to mine.

“Goku, is there a point to this?”

“Of course; I want you to push me.”

I frowned at him. We both knew I wasn’t strong enough to even trip him.

“Make sense.”

“You should feel a kind of aura around your body,” he clarified, “I want you to use it to push me away.”

I blinked. “Hm. Okay.”

I shut my eyes instinctually to focus but Goku pinched my cheek. Yelping, I slapped his hand away.

“What was that for?”

“I want you to keep your eyes on mine.”

“Why?”

“Because you get so nervous,” he said with a laugh, “It helps to be uncomfortable.”

My face burned, but now I was stubbornly holding his gaze.

“I don’t get nervous.”

“Yeah, you do! And you get really nervous when I hold your hand like this.”

He intertwined his fingers with mine and I felt ready to melt. What the hell was happening? Was this Bulma’s doing? What happened to nice Goku?

The air grew heavier around us and my skin prickled.

“Feel that?”

I slowly nodded, trying to mask my shallow breaths. I shivered as my aura tickled the back of my neck.

“Okay, I feel it.”

“Great! Now push me away from you.”

I pushed against his hands, but he didn’t come close to budging. In fact, he pushed back, and I found myself slowly moving to the ground again.

“C’mon, push me back.”

I could feel the power coursing through his body buzzing in his hands. His eyes were starting to grow...intense. Not in a threatening manner, but enough to make me want to shrink out of his sight. They held a challenge, an immovable resolve that thoroughly intimidated me. He wasn’t going to blast me, was he? He suddenly leaned in, making my heart fall into my stomach.

"What -- what are you doing," I muttered.

He gave me that same boyish grin, pulling me close enough for our noses to brush.

"Oh nothin', just getting a little more friendly."

My voice wavered. "You're completely invading my personal bubble."

"I know," he breezily dismissed, "but what're ya gonna do about it?"

I glared lightly at him and tried to push his hands away again.

“We both know that’s not gonna work. You gotta use your ki.”

Great, more new words. With a grumble, I tried harder to focus my energy into my hands while still handling Goku’s proximity and stare. My effort didn’t satisfy Goku, though.

“You’re still holding back, Bellatrix,” he lightly reprimanded, “Just let go, I can take it.”

“I’m trying,” I insisted.

He suddenly smiled again, and I swallowed thickly.

“Maybe I still need to get closer, then…”

“How much closer can you get?”

Goku’s eyes crinkled as he gave me another playful smile, and his arm wrapped around my waist. I made a sound—maybe a squeak—and felt something switch on throughout my entire nervous system. Energy surged through every vein, every sinew of my body, making my hands and scalp tingle. He released my waist, placing his hand back over mine. His eyes widened excitedly.

“Yeah, that’s it!”

I growled, lifting us back up into the air, separating his hands from mine.

“Good, good! Keep going!”

“If you say so.”

Feeling my adrenaline spike, I swiftly unleashed the blast out of my hands, sending both Goku and I flying away from each other.

“Woah!”

I chuckled as Goku’s voice echoed loudly in the sky, then yelped as I slammed into the ground, crashing through the surface and collapsing in the center of a crater. I stared wide-eyed at the broken clouds above me in a daze.

“Ouch.”

Goku suddenly appeared above me with his fingers to his forehead, his clothes torn and ratty.

“Heh! That’s some energy you’ve got.”

I smiled meekly. “I think my brain rattled around my skull just now.”

“Eh, happens to the best of us. Want to head back?”

I gave a thumbs up. He gently gathered me in his arms, and I winced.

“Shit, my back.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I gotcha.”

“I—woah—okay—“

He hinged me over his shoulder. “Is that better?”

I blushed. Admittedly, it was.

***

“That was some nice power for your first time.”

I shrugged off my shirt, hanging on the edge of the bed. With a grumble, I struggled to get it off as it hung onto my arms, which I couldn’t move well. Goku’s voice suddenly sounded behind me.

“Let me help you with that.”

I sighed, feeling the soreness throughout my entire torso. I wasn’t in much of a position to refuse.

“‘Kay.”

He eased the shirt off of my arms and tossed it to the floor. I tensed up as I felt his fingers fiddling with the fastener of my bra, my face going up ten times its normal temperature.

“Goku?”

He huffed. “Sorry, I just don’t know how to take this off.”

I shook my head slightly at his oh-so innocent apology.

“Goku, you don’t need to so that,” I reassured, “I’ll leave it on for now.”

“Oh, then should I help you with it later?”

I turned to look at him incredulously. He cocked his head, raising an eyebrow.

“What?”

I started to say something, but simply gave it up. I smiled.

“I’ll take care of it, alright? Don’t worry about it.”

“Okay. Still, this bruise is looking pretty nasty.”

I sat up straight as Goku’s fingers pressed on my spine. Pain shot through my back.

“Goku!”

“Sorry—I just wanted to check if it hurt any.”

“It hurts plenty.”

The bed shifted as he stood up.

“Hm?”

“Just lie down, I’ll be right back.”

I frowned, but crawled out onto my stomach as he disappeared from the room. As I shut my eyes, he returned.

“Okay, here. Eat this.”

He sat down next to me, holding a bean to my lips. I looked at him questioningly.

“It’ll help with your back.”

“Normally, I’d be inclined to question you, but I’m far past disbelief these days.”

I took it from him, eating it and lying back down. A surge of energy shot through me, and goosebumps rose on my entire body. My back loosened easily, and I relaxed into my bed.

“Feel better?”

“Mhm.”

“Good. Wanna eat?”

I turned over, sighing. “Mhm. Why don’t you show me Super Saiyan afterward?”

“Sure, I’ll show you all of them.”

My ears perked up, and I looked at him with what I hoped was subdued excitement.

“All of them?”

He grinned. I sat up, swinging my legs over the bed.

“Okay, show me first, then we’ll eat.”

“Awe, but I’m hungry!”

I rolled my eyes. “Fine, fine, let’s go to Bulma’s.”

“Great!”

Before I could go to my dresser and put on a shirt, Goku took my hand and instant transmission-ed us right in front of Bulma.

And Vegeta.

On her bed.

We all stared at each other, with Bulma crimson red, and Vegeta looking like he’d just been caught doing something awful. Goku and I shared a glance, then he laughed awkwardly and moved us to a different room.

We stood there quietly until Goku broke into another quiet laugh, and I grinned, covering my mouth.

“Stop laughing,” I insisted, voice wavering, “St—stop that.”

“Oh wow, Bulma and Vegeta...”

I elbowed him gently in the ribs, shaking my head and placing a finger over my lips.

“What?”

“That’s inappropriate. Besides, it wasn’t like they were doing anything. We probably shouldn’t mention anything.”

“But you’re smiling!”

I used my fingers to straighten the corners of my mouth.

“No, I’m not.”

He chuckled again, and I pinched his cheek hard.

“Bulma’s going to be embarrassed, so stop. Besides, we’re the ones who are half naked—“

I paused, looking down and shyly covering my chest and heading for the door.

“I’m going to find a shirt.”

Before I could touch the knob, Bulma nearly opened the door in my face. I jumped back before even processing it, staring straight at her.

“We, uh, didn’t see anything.”

“I thought we weren’t going to say anything about it,” Goku piped up behind me.

“It just kinda…slipped out.”

Bulma blushed lightly, but didn’t give any other signs of being affected besides that. She examined us in confusion.

“Why aren’t either of you wearing shirts?”

I rubbed my back unconsciously. “I may or may not have bruised my spine recently.”

She sighed. “Hanging out with Goku’ll do that.”

“What do you want, Kakarot?”

Vegeta emerged behind her, barging into the room. He gave me a hard look, and I rose an eyebrow at him, crossing my arms.

“And what are you doing here?”

I frowned. “What are you?”

“I LIVE HERE.”

I knew it would annoy him more, but I couldn’t help giving Bulma a questioning look.

“Why is he living here?”

“Don’t ignore me!”

Goku walked up to us with an easygoing smile and put his hand on Vegeta’s shoulder.

“Hey, calm down Vegeta! We didn’t see anything you and Bulma were doing.”

Vegeta gritted his teeth with a blush. “Ngh…we weren’t doing anything!”

Now I was annoying him on purpose. “Yet, I’m sure.”

“Quiet, earth woman!”

Bulma nudged Vegeta aside with a sigh. She was surprisingly calm, it was odd.

“Goku, Bels, what are you doing here?”

I pointed at Goku. “Dinner.”

She looked at him tiredly. “The chefs are already asleep.”

I furrowed my eyebrows. “And you don’t have a microwave?”

Goku whined. “A microwave?”

I gave him a harsh look. “What?”

“Can’t one of them just wake up?”

“Goku, the chefs are humans, they need rest—especially if they’re already feeding one Saiyan regularly.”

“Microwaves make the food less good, though,” he complained.

I groaned. “Oh, my gosh, fine, I’ll cook something for you!”

“Really? Thanks, Bellatrix!”

I grabbed his wrist, dragging him along with me to the kitchen, grumbling.

“Stupid, hungry Saiyan…you two are helping me!”

Bulma and Vegeta followed.

“Bulma, I know you can handle a knife better than that,” I lightly chided.

“I’ve never cooked for myself in my life, give me a break!”

Something about having to slice vegetables had taken away some of Bulma’s cool from before. I chuckled, checking on Vegeta again discreetly to make sure I hadn’t hallucinated—he was strangely adept in the kitchen.

“Goku, keep stirring,” I instructed, eyeing the pot I’d put him in charge of.

I slid past Bulma to lower the burner under it. He smiled at me.

“It’s smelling really good!”

I leaned past him, smelling it, then went to the spice rack, smelling a few of those as well before settling on a couple and coming back over to add them.

“That should be good,” I muttered to myself.

“Will it be done soon?”

I shrugged. “Yeah, but I don’t know if we made enough.”

I looked to the table full of large, competed dishes, humming thoughtfully.

“Well, I’m sure it’s gonna be great anyways,” he said, “thanks a lot.”

I sighed. “Yeah, yeah.”

“Where’d you learn to cook anyway?”

“My family has a farm and a garden at home; I always cooked with them. We were a big family, I’m used to cooking a lot of food.”

“Wow, that sounds great.”

I smiled a little. “Yeah, it was.”

“I’d love to meet them,” he said brightly, “If they’re anything like you, I’m sure they’re great.”

“O-oh…cool.”

I opened the larger pot next to Goku, checking the broth and smelling it, hoping the steam would clear my head.

“Chi-chi cooked a lot too, but our family was way smaller.”

I looked at him in surprise. “Family?”

Something dropped and Bulma yelped. I looked over at her in alarm, seeing she’d knocked over a can of oregano. I sighed.

“I’ll get the broom.”

***

“Wow, this is amazing Bels,” Bulma remarked, patting my head gently, “I forgot you were so good at cooking.”

“Yeah, this is really great,” Goku concurred before shoveling more food into his mouth.

I smiled as I watched him eat so enthusiastically, oddly pleased by the thought he loved my food so much. Bulma nudged me.

“What?”

“You’re staring,” she cooed.

I glared at her defensively, making her laugh.

“I’m not.”

“You sure are spending a lot of time with him,” she said quietly, smile playing on her lips, “Are you really sure there’s nothing going on there?”

I rolled my eyes, pouring myself a glass of wine.

“I suppose I’d call him my friend.”

She giggled, and I frowned deeply.

“I said my friend.”

“Right, right,” she teased, “Your friend.”

I gave her a look, smirking. “If we want to talk about friends, now…”

“We were just talking,” she quickly dismissed.

“Mm, yeah, I’m sure. I’m sure you’ll have plenty of deep, thorough conversations in the future.”

“You’re disgusting,” she whispered, slapping my arm.

I grinned, laughing. Goku looked at us curiously.

“What’s so funny?”

Bulma’s cheeks colored slightly. “Nothing.”

After a filling dinner, Bulma quickly went to bed, followed by Vegeta announcing he would do the same and earning a suggestive look from me. He glared at me before leaving. Then, it was just me and the well-fed Saiyan. He let out a sigh, smiling at me, eyes shining.

“Man, you’re amazing Bellatrix,” he remarked, “you’re strong, and you can cook.”

“Don’t go marrying me,” I joked, “Sounds like I’m your type.”

He laughed as I got up and started to gather the dishes.

“What’re ya doing,” he asked, eyeing me curiously.

I chuckled at the question. “Cleaning up?”

“Why?”

I gave him a look instead of gracing that with an answer, and took my two stacks of dishes to the kitchen. When I got back, he was stacking plates too. I smiled.

“Thanks.”

“The quicker we finish, the sooner I can show you Super Saiyan, right?”

I scoffed in amusement; always a one-track mind with him.

“Yeah, but don’t break anything.”

Once we got all of the dishes to the kitchen, I handed Goku a sponge.

“What’s this for?”

“All that eating you do and you haven’t washed some dishes before?”

He blushed slightly, looking away. “I think Chi-Chi might’ve done all of that…”

I shivered at the thought. “Your ex-wife sounds like a saint.”

He laughed. “Yeah, Chi-Chi’s the best. That’s why Gohan’s turning out so well, getting smart and everything.”

I rose my eyebrows. “Gohan?”

“Oh, right! Gohan’s my son.”

I nearly dropped the giant bowl I was washing. My eyes met Goku’s in disbelief.

“You have a son? Why didn’t you mention him sooner?”

“Bulma told me not to, she said you might not like me as much if you knew. But you like me now, so it’s fine.”

I scrunched up my face in an attempt to grasp such warped logic.

“Why wouldn’t I like you if you had—“

I blinked, then glared at the plate I was rinsing soap duds off of. Bulma was trying to set me up, wasn’t she? What the hell? After I told her I wasn’t ready?

“Hey, watch the plate!”

Goku took the plate from my hands swiftly, eyeing it with worry.

“Awe, you cracked it. Bulma’s going to be so annoyed…”

I huffed, throwing my sponge into the sink and storming out of the kitchen.

“Hey, where are you going? Should I keep washing the dishes?”

I made my way to Bulma’s room, knocking harshly, then opening the door and turning on the lights. She groaned, sitting up.

“What the hell, Ve—Bels?”

I frowned at her, crossing my arms.

“What’s up?”

I closed the door behind me with my foot.

“I want an explanation.”

She quickly grasped she was caught, and shielded herself with a pillow.

“Don’t explode me! Don’t be mad, okay?”

“No, it’s not okay. What the hell are you trying to play matchmaker for? I told you that I wasn’t ready for a relationship.”

She leered at me over the pillow. “Who said anything about a relationship—"

I glared and she retreated back behind it quickly.

“—okay, okay I’m sorry!”

“Sorries are cheap, Briefs. I want a space telescope.”

“Okay, fine!”

“Hm.”

“I’m sorry Bels, I just…”

I eyed her curiously.

“I wanted to cheer you up, I guess. I wanted to make you happy, and Goku, even with his flaws, always leaves people happier than he found him.”

I sighed. “That’s a nice thought, but you might as well have gotten me a dog if you wanted a warm body to cheer me up with.”

“Well, I wanted you to get laid too!”

“Bulma!”

She grinned, waving her hand dismissively.

“Oh please, I’ve seen the way you two have been acting, you’re probably halfway there.”

I blushed, stiffening. “We are not!”

“You’re blushing, Bels, I can tell,” she teased, laughing, “Have you guys already gotten to first base?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” I shot back, retreating to the door.

“You’re running away because I’m right,” she called.

“Space! Telescope!”

I slammed the door as she giggled, turning my back to the door as my cheeks burned. I had to admit…she wasn’t far off. With a huff, I turned and opened the door again looking at Bulma and walking back in, closing the door and putting my hands on my hips.

“Look, Goku’s sweet, and yes, I’ll admit he cheers me up a bit. But nothing’s going to happen between us, okay? Besides, the man has a son. We’re friends, and all we’re going to be is friends. I don’t want anything more than that. So don’t try and play us again.”

Bulma smiled at me, then sighed. “Alright, alright, I’ll stop.”

“Thank you.”

I rubbed my forehead, leaning on her vanity table.

“Right now, all I want is a little peace. I just want to get my mind off of everything and go back to how I was before.”

Bulma got out of bed and came over to me, putting an arm around my shoulders. She pulled me close.

“Bels, we can never go back to how things were. No one can revive the past once it’s over. Trying to live in the past is like trying to shrink yourself—it doesn’t work.”

I looked down at my feet quietly. “I’d rather shrink than feel like this.”

She sighed. “I wish I could help, Bels. I hate seeing you so miserable.”

I smiled at her, taking her hand. “You are helping. And, honestly, Goku is too. He’s got me doing something new every five seconds, so I don’t have any time to wallow in misery.”

She laughed, then hugged me tightly.

“I’m sorry for trying to trick you, Bels.”

“It’s okay. I…I know you wanted to help.”

We sat in our silent embrace, Bulma’s head on my shoulder and mine resting on hers. Then, I sat up.

“Oh! You know how you can make it up to me?”

She rose an eyebrow. “Besides the space telescope?”

“Mhm,” I nodded, “Get those two Saiyans to help me clear out my office tomorrow.”

Bulma’s face soured. “Oh, right. The Blackthorn’s research facility. Do you have to go?”

I chuckled. “I’ve abandoned my things there for too long anyway. And once that’s done, I can forget her forever.”

“Well, that’s all you had to say! I’ll get Goku and Vegeta and we’ll head over to the Ice Continent bright and early!”

“Thanks. I owe you a bunch.”

“Make us dinner again and we’ll be even,” she offered, smiling sweetly.

I rose a brow, then jumped.

“Oh shit, the dishes.”

I straightened up. “I left Goku there to wash them.”

“They’re probably not washed,” she joked.

“They’re probably not.”

[dianamoth]

Project Copy-Knight

Hi tumblr,

I woke up this morning to a new AO3 comment on my most liked Naruto fic, but this comment was unlike any other I ever got before. It will interest fanfic writers around, especially anime fanfic, so allow me to share it:

Hello, Unfortunately, your work may have been stolen by content farms to create YouTube videos here: (link removed by dianamoth) If you have granted permission for this uploader, you can safely ignore this comment. If not, you should report these videos here: DMCA Complaint Form. You should re-confirm the video contents before you file the report. Note that only the original creator for this work can submit a complaint. When filing the complaint, do not select the "Scheduled: Send a 7-day notice" option, or they won't get a copyright strike from you. We recommend that you do not negotiate with the channel before-hand. Remember to include a link to your work in the 'Title' section of the complaint form. Channels like this have stolen many more works from other writers as well, so your efforts in reporting this channel will also help other writers. See full list of stolen works here: Google sheets Your authorship was identified a while ago by an automated detector under Project Copy-Knight, but for anti-spam reasons we could not inform you until we have manually confirmed each case. If you would like us to notify you as soon as possible, please include this text in your profile page to grant us permission. To prevent a build-up of our notification comments on inactive accounts, we will only send you a maximum of 3 messages before you grant us permission. This is message 1 out of 3. This message was sent automatically, but your case was manually confirmed, and replies to this comment are monitored. If you need additional guidance on how to take the video down, just reply to this comment. To learn more about what we do, please read this article or join our Discord server. From Project Copy-Knight, EsquireBot

I did not give consent for my fic to be used on youtube, ofc.

I was skeptical at first (for context, I write OC Naruto fanfics, who the hell would be interested in that on youtube, I thought?), but this is a well-crafted message with all the ways to verify this claim, so verified it I did!

And hello and behold, this is all true! I'm Amazed. This Project Copy-Knight is quite impressive, it seems well organized and everything, so I thought I would share the word about their existence so that people are aware that this is a problem that exists, that someone is working on it, that it's not spam, and how you can participate, etc... I recommend checking the article they mentioned and the Discord server if you have time to help.

Also, for those who might be in the same case as I and want to report a youtube video (because obviously I'm going to, can you believe this? Just read further to see what a mess it is), let it be known that the link above only works if you have a channel. If not, you have to send your complaint to copyright@youtube.com

Now, if you're interested in seeing what a MessTM this is, continue reading about this video that stole my work.

Guys, this is the presentation of the video:

The title (and the pictures) has absolutely NO link whatsoever to the plot of my fic, to be clear.

The pictures inside of the slideshow are about DragonBall Z! XD

But yes, it is indeed a generated "podfic" of my OC fic (but only part of it? it cuts in the middle of a scene at around half of the story)!

When you click on the description of the video, there is a link that actually contains a list of links on fanfiction.net. So they actually didn't steal it from AO3 but ff.net. Writers from ff.net, be aware!

The video has 1,4k views and 37 likes in 2 months. What the heck.

But the comments, guys!

I find this frankly hilarious. I mean, there is so much confusion here. Obviously the basic Naruto fans that would hate on (female) OCs are expected, but someone listened to it long enough to realize it was not the complete story. Respect to them.

Can you believe that with such a mess this channel has 5,37k subscribers? Please people, have some self-respect.

[oatmealcrisp-freak]

here's the first part of the break up fic cus idk when/if this'll be finished :3

“I really can’t stand,” Aren growled out between knitted teeth. “Dishonest people.”

Those words hit him like a truck.

Kusuo looked at his lunch tray, seated right next to Aren’s, with a hollowness rising in his stomach. Across the table, Kaidou laughed and the conversation turned to the newest release of SiCy but Kusuo barely heard it. His ears were ringing. He was nauseated. Shame welled up in his mouth - it tasted like acid.

It wasn’t directed at him.

It didn’t matter.

He closed his eyes and did his best to breathe.

Perhaps sensing his unease, Aren’s hand slid around the small of his back and attached itself to his hip with thoughtless demeanor. Kusuo looked upon it, upon its wide and scarred expanse on the green of his slacks. Took note of the heat where it pressed into him.

He clenched his teeth.

Who the hell was he fooling.

He reached down and took the hand from his hip then stood and grabbed his lunch tray. He was done. He couldn’t eat anymore. He couldn’t sit here anymore. He couldn’t let Aren touch him anymore.

Not after hearing that.

He was done.

“Kusuo?” Aren asked as Kusuo stepped out from the bench.

He could feel Aren’s eyes burning into his back.

He sucked in a breath, clamped it all down and back, and walked away.

For the rest of the day he tried to put it out of his head, but it refused to stay gone. It scratched at him, a scraping scalpel digging relentlessly at his composure.

Who had he been fooling? Seriously? Getting together with Aren, having hope for once for the future - he’d been stupid. Aren had gotten into his head somehow and made him forget the very pertinent reasons for avoiding relationships. For two glorious months he’d deluded himself that he could have something human.

Aren made him stupid.

Aren made him selfish.

He wanted to keep this, Kusuo thought as he stared out the window during a lecture on economics. He wanted to keep going like he’d never heard Aren say that. He wanted to keep pretending to this sweet normality that he’d been walking in as though his powers didn’t exist.

He really, dearly wanted to.

It would be more convenient that way too. This was the new status quo that he’d foolishly agreed to. Could he afford to disturb it?

He looked over at Aren, and could tell right away he was doing his best to pay attention as well as he could. His leg was jiggling furiously and his brows were mired in concentration, his sharp eyes purely focused on the board as he took his notes. How good those notes were was debatable. There was a zit on his chin. Kusuo had noticed it this morning. He knew it was rude to stare at zits, because normal people didn’t like them for some reason, but he couldn’t help but be a little enamoured of it. Aren’s nose scrunched - he was having trouble wrapping his head around a concept. There went another doodle of his motorcycle, joining several more and a medley of Dragonball Z characters because Aren wasn’t Aren if Aren could concentrate on a lesson without drawing. That in turn made Kusuo look at his hands. The cuticle of his thumb was frayed. His nails were clipped short. Kusuo was a big fan of Aren’s hands. He liked it especially when they were on him.

He liked holding onto them too.

Aren liked it when he did that even, which was the real shocker. For some reason Kusuo couldn’t divine, Aren liked him. Aren liked touching him. Worse, Kusuo had found he didn’t actually mind being touched if it was Aren - something as simple as holding hands, or a kiss on the cheek, or a cuddle, he’d warmed quite quickly to all of those things that Aren enjoyed too. It felt safe.

He wanted to keep that.

He remembered the way it’d felt when Aren had touched his hip in the cafeteria after saying what he had - how polluted it’d felt. How he suddenly hadn’t been able to stand it. How he’d run away.

Aren hated liars.

How could Kusuo let him touch the single biggest liar of them all? It’d felt so wrong. It’d made him sick.

How had he deceived Aren into loving him? 

Him, of all people?

Kusuo looked back out the window, heart beating a sluggish, sick pace.

‘Everything looks so normal.’ He thought as he took in the blue sky.

Funny, that, given it felt like the world was crumbling.

It sayed with him for the rest of the day. The school doors opened ahead of him and Kusuo looked up. Aren’s purple bangs shifted over his sky hewn eyes as he looked down at him, and he smiled.

There wasn’t a single miserable thought in his head. He couldn’t sense it. How strange. Usually his instincts were so keen.

Something inside Kusuo trembled. It was a miracle it didn’t reach his hands.

“Want to get some coffee?” Aren asked, and reached up to scratch at his cheek as it blushed red. “We can go to the usual place.”

“Ou, the lovebirds are gonna make smoochy smoochy faces at each other,” Nendo jeered then yelped as Kaidou elbowed him. 

Aren blushed deeper but laughed. “If he’ll let me, sure.”

“Come on you big oaf, leave them alone. We’ll see you tomorrow, yeah?” Kaidou asked, trying to pull Nendo away and failing.

“Yeah.” Aren waved, then looked back at him and held out his hand.

Kusuo looked at it, feeling as though his heart was dripping right out of him.

It would be strange to ignore it.

He took it, and it made him feel like a monster.

Kusuo knew what he had to do.

~~~~

Aren had a boyfriend.

His first, he thought as he looked down at the pink head next to him, and his last, because this was the man he was going to marry someday.

He squeezed the hand in his, hoping that Kusuo would look up at him instead of staring at the ground. Kusuo didn’t look at him, but did squeeze back. His fingers were laced around Aren’s firmly, firm enough that it’d take effort to pull away.

His eyes seemed shadowed.

Aren wasn’t a fan of that.

It was hard, granted, to see the exact nuance of Kusuo’s eyes through his glasses and hair, but something about his face reminded Aren of that disturbing moment at lunch when Kusuo had taken his hand off him and left without a word.

Mind, Aren was used to Kusuo simply leaving a conversation when it suited him. It was one of his more endearing charm points. 

This had felt different.

But now they were holding hands.

So it was fine.

Right?

It didn’t feel fine. Some instinct in the back of his head was telling him that something was wrong here, something very difficult not to listen to because Kusuo so rarely shied from his touch. In the two months they’d been together, he’d had the joy of witnessing a steady dripping thaw in the other boy, a reciprocity, and a deep fondness for cuddling that Aren was really enjoying. Most of the time if Kusuo was in a mood, all Aren had to do was hug him, and that was all it took to make Kusuo feel better.

It was a privilege to be able to do that. It was one Aren held close to his heart.

With school he hadn’t really gotten the chance for a good snuggle since lunch, however, and Kusuo was touchy about public displays of affection besides. Best to secret his boyfriend into the privacy of a booth and give him a good cuddle there.

If Kusuo would let him.

Aren would admit, Kusuo shying from his touch had really taken it out of him.

Something was clearly not okay. But it would be okay. He was certain of it.

After all, they had each other, and that was what mattered.

Aren pulled Kusuo’s hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. When he opened his eyes again, Kusuo was finally looking back at him with something shattered in his eyes.

Aren felt his gut curl in concern, and tried to smile.

Kusuo looked away, and Aren’s concern mounted.

Fortunately, Cafe Mami was found in short order. Aren settled his arm over Kusuo’s shoulders and led him to a booth, a nice private one toward the back. Cafe Mami was Kusuo’s favourite cafe. If there was anything that could cheer him up, it was some of their coffee jelly, and a good snuggle. Aren was certain of that.

Hell, it’d cheer him up too. He was worried.

He just wanted Kusuo to feel better.

Kusuo wasn’t loosening up into his touch. It was like holding a cardboard cut out. They settled into the booth, but Kusuo sat away from him on the other side. Aren stared at the other boy, trying to make out any expression in his face and finding none - an eerie blank wall was looking back at him.

‘What the hell is going on?’ Aren swallowed and opened his mouth to ask, but it was at that moment that a waiter came to their table and cheerily asked for their order.

“Uh.” It took Aren a second to recalibrate. He tried for a smile in answer to the waiter’s own. “Coffee please. Black.”

“Sure thing. And you, sir?”

Kusuo stared at him with empty eyes. “Nothing. Please.”

A stammer of goosebumps swept up Aren’s back. Heart in his stomach he stared back at Kusuo, then flicked his eyes to the waiter, then looked at Kusuo again and tried to figure out why that was so unnerving. Kusuo wasn’t getting coffee jelly? He was getting nothing?

He was staring…

Even the waiter seemed confused. “Ah. Alright. But if you change your mind let me know.”

He wrote it down on his little pad then nodded at Aren with a customer service smile. “I’ll be right back with your coffee.”

“Thanks…” Aren said, not looking away from Kusuo.

The waiter walked away from their booth and they were left in the remote silence, the soft happy music playing on the crescendo of Aren’s nerves with awful, sticky, contrast. He swallowed it back and gave his head a shake. What the hell, dude. What was he so afraid of? 

This was his boyfriend.

Aren put on a smile. “So that’s-”

Kusuo sucked in a breath that rode his shoulders up to his ears. “I’m breaking up with you.”

“-not,” Aren blinked. “...What?”

Had he heard that right? No. No there was no way he’d heard that right. His smile cracked and expanded around the edges. “What’d you just say?”

But Kusuo just looked at the table, his eyes round and his lips pencil thin rashes of paleness on his face. He turned his head to the right. To the left.

He shifted, and started to slide out of the bench.

No. Hell no. Aren quickly got out and slid into the opposite bench, blocking Kusuo in. He reached out and grabbed the other’s hand but it wouldn’t budge into his, staying firm and tightly laced to the seat.

“Kusuo,” He lowered his voice, doing his best to catch Kusuo’s eye. “Look at me. What’s going on?”

Kusuo said nothing. He wasn’t exactly given to talking to begin with, granted, and Aren had loved that about him, had loved his quietness and the way Kusuo could turn even that companionable. Cohabitation of space was a symptom of his trust and affection, Aren was pretty sure - slicing that up with mindless chatter simply wasn’t Kusuo’s style. Aren had experienced that so rarely before, a peaceful quiet, but with Kusuo it felt like his life was made of it. He was hooked. He was addicted.

He couldn’t lose this.

“C’mon, babe,” Aren hissed and pressed in closer, his heart pounding in his ears as he gripped the wrist tighter. “Talk to me, tell me what’s wrong. You can’t-not just like that, you gotta-”

Fuck, what the hell was he even saying?

“Your coffee, sir.”

Aren flinched and whipped around, his fist slamming into the pleather backrest. 

“Can’t you see we’re having a moment here?!” Was out of his mouth before he could even try to claw it back, and the startled expression on the waiter’s face only made it worse.

“S-Sorry,” Aren stammered. “Just. Uh. Th-thanks.”

The waiter put the coffee down and left. Aren turned back. Kusuo still wasn’t looking at him. He wasn’t fucking looking at him.

Aren thought he was going to be sick.

“Kusuo, come on.” He said and reached out, pulling Kusuo’s chin to face him and begging to see his eyes. Fuck, he was pathetic. “Tell me what this is about so we can fix this-”

Kusuo finally looked at him in the eye but it wasn’t a comfort because his gaze was empty and cold, stealing Aren’s breath and plowing right through him. This wasn’t a friendly, familiar look - this wasn’t the Kusuo he was used to. This wasn’t even the Kusuo he’d met on his first day at P.K., this was something different.

Worse.

“It’s not you,” Kusuo said, pulling at his wrist and jaw both to take them from Aren’s hands. “It’s me. Let me out.”

What-

What the fuck was that?!

And just like that, Aren was fucking enraged.

“What the FUCK are you talking about?!” Aren didn’t even try to keep his voice down. “‘It’s not you, it’s me’?! That’s some bullshit people say when they don’t give a shit and I know you, I know that’s not you! You CARE about me, Kusuo.”

Kusuo’s jaw seemed to twitch for all of a second before it was gone, barely a wobble then it was tensing up tighter than Aren’s fists and he was lifting his chin in that confrontational way that drove Aren fucking nuts.

“No,” Kusuo’s eyes were chillier than an arctic blast. “I don’t.”

Aren saw red.

He couldn’t fucking stand this.

He grabbed Kusuo’s chin again and shoved their mouths together in a sharp clack of teeth, his fingers crunching down on jaw bone and the smooth clavicle of Kusuo’s shoulder. He had to make him see sense. He’d kiss it into him if he had to-!

Kusuo groaned under his mouth and a warm hand clasped down onto his wrist. It wasn’t working. Kusuo wasn’t softening. What was this?

Where had the boy he thought he’d known gone? Where was the Kusuo who would sigh into him, who would search for him with his lips, who’d confessed to him during a quiet night that he’d used to hate kissing until it was just the two of them, where was he?

Where had he gone?

The fingers on his wrist turned in tight and with a surprising show of strength wrenched his hand away from Kusuo’s chin, and Kusuo shortly ripped his mouth away. There was a searing gaze haunting behind spectral green shades for a second and then Kusuo was stepping onto the booth, stepping between Aren’s legs, and jumping down from the bench.

He was-

He was leaving him-

Aren’s body moved before he knew it, his hand grabbing Kusuo’s wrist.

“Don’t-” He gasped through his buzzing, fumbling lips, his eyes desperate upon Kusuo’s face. “Don’t go.”

Kusuo gave him one more cold, searing stare, and then slapped his hand away. He turned. He walked away.

Aren’s legs were too numb to go after him. He stared after the departing back of his boyfriend, collapsing slowly into the bench. And then Kusuo was gone.

Aren stared at the doors for longer than he knew before it hit him.

Kusuo was gone.

Kusuo had broken up with him.

Aren scrubbed his hands through his hair, leaning over the table, completely numb and broken through to the quick all at once.

‘He didn’t even tell me why.’ God. All he could see was those blisteringly cold eyes boring into him. Kusuo had said he didn’t care. Kusuo had said it wasn’t Aren, it was him, like it was all some fucking joke.

Kusuo, Aren shut his eyes and tried to reach for the memory of the soft and pliant boy he’d just been getting to know, could be a real fucking asshole sometimes.

Fuck.

What did he do now?

Right now, Aren barely felt like he could move.

It wasn’t fair, he thought as he buried his face in his hand and sucked in a harsh, stuttering breath. It wasn’t fucking fair.

‘He didn’t even tell me what I did wrong.’

Leaving the cafe was an exercise in humiliation, when Aren finally got his legs under him. It felt like every eye in there was staring at him, and after that little fiasco why wouldn’t they be? It pissed Aren off, which was good, he fucking needed it.

“Fucking staring at me, square up to me homey and I’ll show you all what’s good,” He hissed as he slammed the door shut behind him. He stomped as he walked, his hands shoved deep into his pockets as he furiously rattled his brain for what the fuck to do now.

It took him seven blocks to realize he was crying.

That just pissed him off even more.

He scrubbed a hand over his eyes and threw back his head, giving a loud yell of fury to the sky. Of course that meant everyone stopped to stare at him again, and he barked, “What the fuck do you think you’re looking at!?” before he could begin to think of stopping himself. The people on the sidewalk around him quickly went back on their way and Aren stared around himself, seething.

Where did Kusuo get off?

Where the FUCK did he get off, making Aren feel this way?

He started back on his way, to where he didn’t know but away from here was fucking grand, and clenched his fists tightly.

He didn’t know what to do, but he couldn’t live without Kusuo in his life. That was the man he was going to marry someday. 

The desperation was tearing him apart. It couldn’t end this way. 

It couldn’t.