#each of them are matching w one member in one way but still different i specifically made sure of that | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

tangledinink · 1 year

Text

I told y'all I was still working on this project! >:3c Chapter 26 of I'm Sorry, Teenage Mutant What Now? is out! Thank you so so so much to everyone recently who's taken the time to comment/send asks/etc etc etc, it makes me very happy... ; w ; The Hamatos are slowly improving upon their ninja skills, and the latest mission goes off without a hitch...! Mostly...? Read it on ao3 or below the cut.

[ prev ]

If you had tried to describe this scene to April a few months back, there’s no way she would have ever believed it. Hell, if you had tried to describe it to her a few weeks ago, she still probably wouldn’t have believed it, because the concept was just so… alien. Even after she knew about her brothers’ ‘mutant origins,’ it still felt alien. She couldn’t help but see them as anything but… people! Those were just her brothers. And the right way to see them was just the way she had always known them; as humans. And seeing them in ‘turtle mode,’ as Mikey had taken to calling it, felt so strange and uncomfortable. Not just because she wasn’t used to it, but because she knew that they weren’t used to it, and the way they had held themselves just always seemed so… unhappy. Like their own skin was burning them. She couldn’t help but look at them and the way they moved and how they held themselves and think, oh my god, they’re sick. Something is wrong. I have to help them. I have to take care of them.

But jesus, the way Mikey moved now? It was the most natural thing in the world. It was like he had been this way his entire life, and he couldn’t possibly seem more comfortable or at ease. All April could really think was, wow. He’s in his element, isn’t he?

She had been vaguely aware of this new ‘thing’ the guys were working on for a while, but this was the first time they actually tried it out for-real-for-real, out in the field, on some low-stakes outing. There wasn’t even a Dark Armor piece here or anything; they were just staking the place out because Foot Shack merchandise trucks came in and out of this parking garage a lot, and they were looking into it, just in case. Just practice, more than anything, with Raph leading the way and Yoshi once again on standby…

It was just so fluid. April watched in silent awe as her littlest brother slipped in and out of two different bodies like water, seamlessly transitioning from one to the other as he moved. Five fingers would be conjured to undo a latch on a grate, and then tucked back away again as if they had never been there. He’d flit from form to form to match each shadow and blend in.

At one point, even, when they were ascending a fire escape, making their way up to the roof to get a bird’s eye view, Mikey misstepped and he slipped-- and he fell. Every single person had jumped for a moment, and April could tell that all her brothers were about ready to dive after him. She was, too.

But they didn’t need to.

He was tucked into the safety of his shell before he even hit the ground.

And by the time the hard carapace was bouncing back up after smacking against the pavement, eliciting only a short clack with the impact, he was a human again, his feet under him, jumping back onto the fire escape to catch up again as if nothing had ever happened.

Raph and Leo were doing it, too, but… God. Not like Mikey.

But April had to admit-- even Raph and Leo were beginning to get the hang of it. They all were.

Well… All of them except for Donnie.

“You know,” she mumbled at some point once they got to the top of the roof, heaving her way upwards. Donnie reached over to grab her arm, helping hoist her the rest of the way up. “If either of us fell, we’d be totally screwed.”

“Yes, well,” they muttered in a deadpan. “Just trying to offer some solidarity to you, our sole human team member. I know it must be very difficult to be a minority.”

April scoffed softly, but didn’t push it.

Leo grinned big, stretching his arms over his head as the whole group made their way up to the rooftop. “Okay, uhhh, I don’t wanna jinx it--”

“Then don’t--” Donnie hissed.

“But this is actually going, like, really well?”

��Why would you say that?” Donnie sighed deeply, shaking his head.

“Oh, psh. As if you believe in all that, anyway,” Leo scoffed, waving him away with a flick of his wrist. “I’m just saying, like, we’re kind of being badasses!”

“All we’re doing is sneaking around an empty parking garage,” Donnie pointed out dryly, quirking a brow as he crossed his arms over his chest. “It’s not exactly high stakes.”

“See, Dee, this is your problem,” Leo sighed, shaking his head as he placed a hand on his hip. “You’re always focused on the negatives…!”

“Both of you shut up,” Raph said. “Leo is right--”

“HAH! Suck it--”

“Shut up,” Raph pressed, smacking a large palm over his little brother’s face in order to quiet him. “He’s right that we did good. Or. Well. We’re doin’ good so far. And Dee, nice job figurin’ out the bracelet thing! It’s way easier to swap back and forth without having to actually take it off.”

Donnie puffed up his chest a bit, seeming smug. “Yes, well, it isn’t a terribly complicated mechanism, it just took a bit of studying for me to unravel, truly no great feat--”

“Don’t get carried away,” April mumbled, leaning over to hip-check her brother briefly. Donnie huffed.

“Sooooo… now what do we do?” Mikey asked, turning to glance over the side of the roof, resting his elbows on the ledge. “‘Cause, uhhh, no offense? But this place is… suppperrrr boring!”

“Well,” Raph said, seeming a bit unsure of himself. “We, uh… We didn’t find anything evil or anythin’. Which is good! So I guess we…”

“Document the hell out of everything!” Donnie declared happily, moving to join Mikey’s side with a grin. “Snag pictures of the layouts, all exits and entrances, stairwells, and anything else that may be pertinent, and I can reverse engineer blueprints of the entire place with some beta software I have back home-- this would be the perfect chance to try it out. And then, if anything evil does ever happen here, we will be completely prepared!”

“Uh, yeah!” Raph agreed after just a beat of hesitation. “What Donnie said! That’s what we’re doing.”

“Impeccable leadership as always, dear Raphala,” Donnie sang, wasting no time at all in slinging his backpack from his back, beginning to unpack a cacophony of tech. “Now, I have HD, nightvision, two different drones, one macro and one micro, body cams, magnetic sonogram machines, patent pending, and a RED, which no, Mikey, you may not touch--”

“Aw, what!? No fair!”

“Ask Dad for your own!”

“But you already have one--”

April sighed deeply, rolling her eyes and resisting an exasperated smile. Oh boy. Donnie came prepared prepared.

That meant… This might take a while.

---

Casey had been told her entire life that she was too loud.

So she was well aware of the fact.

Her mother had told her, back when she was in contact with her. Her teachers had told her, back when she went to school. And her Senseis had told her, too, over and over again, gently informing her each time her volume got away from her that she needed to dial it back a bit. She was aware. She knew she was too loud.

But no one ever had anything to say when she was quiet.

Because she was capable. She had dedicated years of her life training to be a ninja-- obviously, she could be quiet. And really, she had always known how to be quiet. She had been good at it ever since she was small.

It was just that when she was quiet, no one ever had anything to say.

No one ever looked at her when she was quiet.

She’d fade away.

So it was easy, really, to find hiding places around the Foot’s hideout any time she had free time on her hands to burn away. She was quite good at tucking herself into little cracks and crevices, and always had been. The layout of their base really only lent to this. And she had only gotten better at it as time passed.

Perched up on the catwalk, curled up small and bent over, she could watch members of the Foot returning from their latest mission, greeted excitedly by the rest of their clan. They had been gone for some time now-- one of the many elite strike teams sent out to fetch more far-flung armor pieces. They weren’t all just conveniently clustered in New York, after all.

They had started sending these teams out months ago. And now, one by one, they all slowly returned, each with another piece of the armor in hand to add to their growing collection.

Every day, they got closer. She could feel the energy in the air, ever pitching higher and sharper the closer they got to their goal. Even her senseis were infected by it, brighter than she had ever seen them before.

And that was amazing. That was wonderful.

She remembered the praise she had gotten after that one mission-- after she faced down the Hamato Clan in a department store of all places. How pleased they had been with her. And god, that had been amazing.

But now she simply resented its absence.

And even though she had always known that there wasn’t really any chance that she’d be sent to join any of these special teams-- to be sent out to join them in the field and contribute to something greater, to be a true part of the clan and show them what she could do…

Every time another came back, it just sealed the reality of the matter that that door had closed. And she wasn’t going anywhere.

---

“Donnie, seriously--”

“What!? Do you want the 3D model to be accurate, or don’t you!?” He cried, whipping around to face her, and April groaned loudly, dragging her hands down her face.

“Why do we need a 3D model again!? Just make a blueprint!”

“Ah, yes, well, I could…” Donnie said, spinning on his heels with a grin. “But why have an inferior, two-dimensional recreation of a space when I could make a far superior, three-dimensional recreation!? That’s a whole entire other dimension!”

“Donnie!” April barked, scowling. “We have been here for hours. Do you have any idea what time it is?!”

“No, not really.”

“Well how about you check!?”

“Fine, fine, yes, the time is approximately-- Oh, sweet Galileo. Is it actually that late?”

“Yes!” All four of his siblings chorused, and Donnie scowled, a little pout blossoming on his face.

“... But… My model…”

“Donnie, you’ve already documented nearly every square inch of this place--”

“I’m sure the model will be fine, Purple,” Yoshi’s voice crackled over the radio. “It is time to go home.”

Donnie sighed deeply, giving a dramatic heave of his chest… but he reluctantly began to pack his gear away. “Okay, okay, fine. I will concede. But if there comes a time when we are in desperate need of a one-hundred-percent accurate third-dimensional model of this establishment, I hope you will all be prepared to eateth thy--”

“Shush. We’re on a stealth mission, remember?” Raph muttered, swiping at his head lightly. “C’mon, you guys. Leo, wake Mikey up, let’s go.”

Leo sighed, allowing the video he was playing on his phone to wrap up before he pocketed it, beginning to nudge his younger brother, curled up and slumped against him.

“C’mon, Angie, we’re going home,”

“Whaaaaa…” Mikey mumbled, blearily beginning to open his eyes-- blinking away the few stray rays of orange light that fluttered around his eyelashes even when he was just dozing. “Did we… win…?”

“Yep, we totally won. C’mon. Get up.”

Raph sighed deeply. “Do you want me to carry--?”

“No! I can do it!” Mikey woke up properly now, quickly scrabbling up to his feet.

April sighed deeply. “My parents are going to kill me for being out this late,” she grumbled. “And when they kill me, I’m killing all of you, just for the record!”

“Don’t kill me! Kill Donnie!” Leo protested.

“Oh, like any of you were keeping track of time and keeping him from going totally Donnie about this whole thing!”

“Hey--”

“Neither were you,” Mikey pointed out, and April scowled, grinding her teeth.

Dammit.

She hated when he had a point.

“Whatever. C’mon, let’s get out of here,” she said with a huff. “You good, Donnie?”

“All set,” he replied, tossing his bag back over his shoulder. “Let us bounce.”

And so they did.

The good news was that Leo was getting a lot better about this whole portalling thing with the help of the weird mystic sword he had! Which was cool, so the commute home? So do-able!

The bad news was that it was still way past her curfew. She quietly cursed herself for letting them be out so late. She hadn’t even realized the time until she glanced at her phone and noticed all the texts… and the missed calls.

“You good, April?” Raph questioned, frowning a bit as she hurriedly gathered her things, having traded her certified Ninja Gear for street clothes, quickly shoving things into her bag and toeing on her shoes.

“I’m fine, it’s all good,” she muttered.

“Do you want me to walk you home…?” Yoshi questioned, his brows furrowed. “I’m sure I could talk to your parents--”

“It’s fine, Yosh. Don’t worry about it. They’re chill! They probably, like… barely noticed I’m late!” She said, forcing a smile.

“Alright, well, if you need anything--”

“Right! Got it, thanks, bye!” She chirped, throwing herself out the door and slamming it shut behind her before she could look at their sad, guilty faces any more. Ugh. It wasn’t their fault, really. I mean, it was, but no more than it was her own.

I should have set an alarm, she thought bitterly.

On a stealth ninja mission? So it can go off in the middle of you trying to sneak past a bad guy or something? Yeah, brilliant plan, she thought immediately after.

When April quietly crept back into her own apartment, slipping her key into the side door, the house seemed quiet. The kitchen lights were off, and there was no screaming or yelling right off the bat. That was a good sign.

The living room lights, however, she could already see from here… were on. That was a less good sign.

Drawing in one last deep breath, she darted the rest of the way inside, bumping the door closed with her hip.

“Hey, guys, I’m home…!”

“April!” Her mom responded to the call almost immediately, and half a second later, April was no longer alone in the kitchen. Warm yellow light flooded the space as a light switch was clicked on, and April winced slightly, blinking a few times to adjust. “There you are-- where in the world have you been?! Do you have any idea what time it is?!”

“Uh, yeah, my bad!” She laughed nervously, throwing her hands up as if to surrender. “Kinda lost track of time, uh, I was just over at the Hamatos doing homework and stuff…”

“Oh, were you?” That was her dad, now, and April winced a tiny bit at the tone he used, which meant that she had fucked up. “Because we went over knocking on their door ten minutes ago to come and get you, and no one answered.”

Oop. Fuck.

“Oh, yeah, we ran over to the corner store to get some snacks, so…?”

“In the middle of the night? By yourself?” Her mom protested, and April huffed softly, rolling her eyes.

“Uh, no? I literally just said that I went with the Hamatos--”

“Hey! Watch the attitude, miss,” her dad immediately cut in, and April winced. “I don’t think you have any room to be being huffy at us when you’re coming home two hours past curfew, and wouldn’t pick up your phone… Do you have any idea how many times we called you!?!”

“I’m sorry!” She said, throwing up her hands. “I forgot I had it on silent, I just, I wasn’t looking at the clock…!”

“For two hours?” Her mom cried. April bit the inside of her cheek, feeling her stomach flip-flop in response to the slight crack in her mother’s voice. “April, baby, you-- you can’t do that! This isn’t okay!”

“It was an accident--!”

“You can’t just disappear!” She continued. “You can’t just leave us not knowing where you are, we can’t--!”

“I know! I know, I’m sorry, okay? It was an accident!” April pressed, her face flushed. “I know, okay? I really, really didn’t mean to…! I just… I wasn’t paying attention. Okay?”

She frowned, wrinkling up her nose and glaring at her feet.

“Sorry.”

For a few long moments, the kitchen was silent.

Her father heaved a long, shuddering sigh.

“No more phone on silent,” he finally said. “When we text or call you, we expect you to answer right away. Understood?”

“... Yeah. Okay,” April grumbled softly, kind of toeing at the kitchen tile. She was sure Donnie could help her… figure out a way to make that work when they were out on missions and stuff…

“And this is the last time you miss curfew,” he added in, his eyes narrowed. “Full stop. We are not doing this again. Understood?”

“... Yeah.”

“April.”

“Yes. Understood, Dad,” she sighed loudly, tilting her head back and resisting the urge to roll her eyes, frustration prickling at her stomach.

“... Go to bed,” her dad finally said, his arms still crossed over his chest. “And you come straight home after school tomorrow.”

“Wha-- but Dad! I was gonna--”

“Do not argue with me April O’Neil,” he snapped. “Bed. Now. We’re not discussing this any further.”

April really, really thought about discussing it further.

But she didn’t.

For a lot of reasons. One being that she valued her life and freedom.

The other being that she couldn’t stand to look at her mom’s face anymore. Not when she was staring at her like that.

It wasn’t like she had never lied to her parents before. Of course she had! What teen doesn’t? She had fibbed about plenty of things before. Yes, I did brush my teeth already. No, I didn’t unlock all the parental controls on the computer. Yes, I am going to Bailey’s to study for chemistry and not anywhere else or for any other reason. Etc. etc. etc.

But she had never lied… like this before.

April ground her teeth, kicking her door shut as she threw her bag down, flopping down onto her bed and burying her face into the nearest pillow with a scowl. She suddenly felt unwelcome tears pricking at the corners of her eyes, and she tried to will them away, though with mixed success.

A little part of her thought, they’d understand if you explained everything to them.

But a much larger part of her said, are you literally insane?

Because, really… how do you explain something like this? How would she even begin? What would she say? And even if she did try, even if she did think it was a good idea, even if she did want to, she…

She couldn’t.

Because it wasn’t her secret to tell.

April had known Raph, Donnie, Leo, and Mikey since she was six. She used to go over to their house every day after school until her parents came home. Their families went on day trips together. They celebrated holidays together. Her parents knew the Hamatos nearly as well as they knew her. They had always had this… weird, amazing blend of Hamato and O’Neil, pressed close in such a way that it was hard to see where one started and the other began sometimes.

And she had always loved that. She had always adored this.

But she had never felt a pull like this before.

She had never felt like she had to choose between being an O’Neil or a Hamato before.

---

“Daddy!” April shrieked.

She waited a moment, pausing to see if she’d get a reply, but after five seconds passed without a response, she breathed in deep, repeating the call with the volume cranked up.

“Daddy!”

That one worked. Her dad’s head popped out from the apartment a moment later, peering through the door that was always kept propped open when she played in the alley like this. “I’m comin, I’m comin, baby, hang on--”

“Come look!” April bade, waving her arms hurriedly. “Hurry up!”

“I’m hurrying! I’m hurrying!” Her dad laughed, quickly toeing on some sneakers before venturing out into the concrete jungle, half-jogging his way over to where she was crouched in the alley, moving to squat down next to her.

“What? What is it?”

“Lookit what I found!” She squeaked excitedly, pointing to a single feather resting on the asphalt. “Look! A feather!”

“Oh, wow! Good find, sunshine.”

“Can I pick it up!?”

“... Yeah, okay, so long as you wash your hands afterward.”

April absolutely wriggled with excitement, immediately snatching the feather up from the ground, turning it over in her hands a few times to examine. One side of it was this pale, cloudy gray, all fluffy and soft, but the other side was a sleek, shiny shade of cobalt blue. Just holding it made her grin, and she looked up at her dad with wide eyes.

“What kinda feather is it?”

“I dunno,” her dad said, shrugging a bit, resting his elbows on his knees. “But I bet we could find out.”

---

“Casey.”

Casey whined softly, curled up a bit further under the covers. Was it time for school already…? But she didn’t wanna get up…

“Hey. C’mon, Casey. Wake up.”

Wait, wasn’t it a Saturday…?

“Noooo…”

“No?”

“Noooooo.”

“What’s wrong, Case?”

“I’m sleeping, Daddy…”

“Oh, you’re sleeping?”

“Yeah!”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize,” her father exclaimed with faux surprise, drawing back slightly. “Well, if you’re sleeping, and you don’t want to go hiking up on Newton Hill with me--”

Casey’s eyes shot open.

“You’re going out into the woods?!” She gasped, immediately upright in bed, her eyes wide.

“I am,” her dad confirmed, this big, wide grin growing on his face. “I was hoping you’d come with me, but, I mean, if you’re still sleeping…”

“No! No, I’m awake!” She squeaked, just barely managing to contain herself and keep her volume down. She threw her covers back, scrambling quickly from bed. “I swear I’m awake! Please can I come hiking with you?!”

Her dad laughed.

“Ah, how can I say no to that face?” He teased, reaching down to ruffle her hair. “Hurry up and get dressed, sunshine, and let’s get out of here.”

---

April gasped, jumping over her dad’s arm so that she could point at the screen of his laptop.

“That one! That’s the feather!” She exclaimed. “It looks just like ours!”

“Hmmm…” Her father hummed appraisingly, leaning into slightly to squint, before he gave a firm nod. “I do concur, April, I think that is our feather! Here, let’s double-check. Are the colors the same?”

“Yeah!” April said, grinning wide as she held the feather up. “Look! It’s the same blue.”

“And the same shape, right?”

“Uh-huh!”

“And we measured it--”

“And it’s twelve centimeters! Look, Daddy! It’s this one!” She insisted, and her father laughed.

“Yeah, okay. You’re right. Definitely our feather.”

“What bird is it!?”

“According to this, it’s a mallard feather.”

“A mallard?” April echoed. “What’s that?”

“It’s a type of duck!”

“A duck!?” April cried, her eyes widening, holding her prize up in amazement. “This is a duck feather!?”

“It sure is, sunny girl.”

“Whoa! That’s so cool!”

“You know,” her dad said. “I bet if we went down to the park, we might be able to find some more feathers…”

---

Cassandra was absolutely alight with energy, bouncing from foot to foot as she scampered around, practically doing laps around her dad. The drive over had been equal parts exhilarating and tortuous, with Casey wriggling in her car seat the entire time, her face pressed up against the window.

This was her favorite thing in the world.

She loved Newton Hill.

“Daddy, I wanna go all the way to the top!!!” She exclaimed, bouncing up and down, grabbing onto his pants leg to yank at him.

“All the way to the top?” He echoed dramatically.

“Yes!”

“Alright, you got it,” he hummed, fishing something from his pocket before kneeling down next to her. “All the way to the top. I think we can do it.”

“We can,” Casey agreed excitedly, leaning against his knee and leaning over slightly so she could peer at the item in his hands.

“Alright. Let’s do it,” her dad enthused. “But first-- I have got a job for you, Casey.”

Casey blinked in surprise as her father pressed the stopwatch into her palm, tilting her head slightly to the side.

“I have a job?”

“You have a job,” he confirmed. “You are gonna be in charge of timing us.”

“Timing us?”

“Yep! Here, you press this button to start the time-- and this button to end it. And you--” He pointed to her decisively, this big, mischievous grin on his face. “Are gonna find out how long it takes us to get from here to the top of the trail.”

Casey tilted her head to the side.

“Why?”

“Because,” her father declared, his hands on his hips as he rose back up to his feet. “David from work bet that I couldn’t get all the way up to the top in four hours. So now I’ve gotta prove him wrong.”

Casey stared at her father for a second.

And then she gasped.

“He bet we couldn’t do the whole trail in four hours!?” She shrieked in offense.

“He sure did, Case.”

“HOW DARE HE!” She wailed, throwing her head back.

This was the other best part of Newton Hill. She could be as loud as she wanted out here.

“Exactly!” Her father sighed, throwing out his hands with a dramatic shake of his head. “I knew you’d understand. So obviously, we have to show him up! You up for the challenge, sunshine?”

“Yes!” She cried, immediately setting off-- hesitating only long enough to run back, grabbing onto her dad’s pants leg and yanking at him. “Come ON! Hurry up! We are gonna WIN! Let’s GO!”

---

“Come on! Hurry up! Let’s go!” April squealed, yanking at her Dad’s hand impatiently. “Look! I see one!”

“I’m coming, April, I’m coming!” Her dad laughed, jogging slightly to keep up with the enthusiastic five-year-old. “Hang on, sunshine.”

April darted across the lawn, hopping over wayward twigs or stones until she got to the water’s edge, waving her arms excitedly as she knelt down to pluck the feather from the ground.

“Look!” She said, beaming as she turned to show her dad. “Do you think it’s another duck feather?!”

“Might be. Or it could be a goose.”

“I hope it’s a goose,” April said, scampering her way back over to her dad, who knelt down to hold open the ziploc baggie for her. April deposited the feather inside, along with the several other specimens they had already collected. “We already have a duck feather.”

“Yeah, but maybe it’ll be a different kind of duck,” her dad countered, zipping the baggie back up once their prize was safe inside. April paused at this, tilting her head to the side slightly. Oh! Another kind of duck? She hadn’t even thought about that!

“Well, then, I hope it’s a different kind of duck. Or a goose,” she declared, grinning big. “When we get back home, can we show Mommy all the feathers?”

“Of course we can,” her dad said. “I’m sure she’ll be thrilled for you to show her. Especially if you can tell her which feather is which!”

“I will. I’m gonna look it up. I’m gonna do research,” April declared proudly, grinning as she spun around on her heel. “Come on! We gotta find some more. I wanna have a bunch for mommy.”

---

Casey froze in place, her body going rigid as a tiny little gasp caught itself in her throat.

“Daddy!” She whispered, her voice hushed, but fervent. “Daddy, lookit! Under the rock!”

After hiking for two hours now, Casey only occasionally electing to ride on her dad’s shoulders rather than racing up the trail, poking at every leaf, stone, and mushroom they came across, the pair had finally elected to take a break, settling down on the stones of a creekbed to rest and munch on the snacks her father had packed along. The stopwatch she was wearing around her neck was still ticking away-- but they were making good time. Certainly enough time to catch their breath.

And it was here that Casey spotted a tiny black-and-yellow snake-- just barely poking its head from beneath the shadows of a stone just inches away from them. Its little pink tongue flicked out a few times as it examined the world hesitantly, turning its head from side to side, as if checking for something.

“Whoa!” Her dad breathed, keeping care to keep his voice soft once he spotted the creature. He slowly moved to place a hand on her shoulder, patting her gently. “Nice eye, Casey.”

“It’s a real snake!”

“It is.”

“What kind is it?”

“Probably a garter snake, I’d bet,” he whispered, grinning ever so slightly. “I bet he wants to come out and sun himself on the rocks.”

“Why?”

“Reptiles are cold-blooded, Casey. They’ve gotta warm themselves up with the sun, or else they get too cold.”

“Oh,” she said, her eyes wide. “... He’s so cool…”

“He is,” her dad agreed, shooting her a small grin. “Good job, sunshine. I never even would have noticed that little guy! I would have totally missed him.”

Casey absolutely beamed. “Really?”

“Yep!” He confirmed, chuckling softly, leaning over to ruffle her long black hair, carding his fingers through it briefly. “But you’re so smart, of course you saw it… Alright. You ready to get moving again? I bet that little dude would be pretty excited if he got to come out in peace and warm himself up.”

She nodded excitedly, wasting no time at all in beginning to get herself back to her feet. Despite all the running and jumping and climbing she had already done, she was suddenly filled with energy once more.

“I’m ready, Daddy!”

---

“And this one is a pigeon…”

“Mmm-hmmm…”

“And this is a pigeon…”

“I see…”

“And this one a pigeon feather, too…”

“Ah…”

“And this is a starling!”

“Oh!”

“And this is a pigeon!” April exclaimed excitedly, spreading the feathers out on the paper towel slightly, grinning big. “... There are a lotta pigeon ones.”

“That does make sense,” her mom said, smiling a tiny bit. “Thank you so much for showing me, baby! This is so impressive! I can’t believe you found all of these all by yourself!”

“Nu-uh!” April protested, turning to grin big up at her mother. “Daddy helped me! Except for the first one. I found that one all on my own.”

“Well, then, good job to your Daddy, too,” her mom remarked, and April just caught her shoot a smile across the kitchen to her dad, who was busy preparing dinner. He smiled a tiny bit, too.

“I’m gonna make a chart for them and stuff. In a book,” she declared proudly, beginning to climb her way up into her mom’s lap, absolutely beaming as she did so.

“April, sweetheart, you need to wash her hands--”

“Will you help me make it? Pleasseeee? I wanna make it look cool.”

---

Casey was so tall.

Every time they got all the way up here, to the very top of the hill, up as high as they could go, she would always think, wow. This is the tallest we can get. This is so tall.

And then every time, her dad would pick her up and put her on his shoulders, and then she’d be even taller.

And it had only taken them three hours and forty-two minutes to get here.

“There’s not even any clouds!” Casey marveled, eyes absolutely sparkling as she leaned back slightly, clinging to her dad’s head to keep her balance. “It’s just blue!”

“Yeah, it’s a nice day, isn’t it? Perfect for hiking,” he declared, grinning. “Can you believe David said we couldn’t make it!?”

“David is WRONG!” She declared, just as loud as she possibly could, and she grinned at how her voice carried. It made her feel all shimmery. Her dad laughed.

“You wanna yell?”

“YES!” She gasped. “You do it, too! I wanna do it together!”

“Okay, okay. We’ll go on the count of three. You ready?”

“Mmm-hmmm!”

“Okay. One… Two…”

Casey took a deep breath in.

“Three!”

Throwing her head forward, her eyes shut tight and her hands balled into fists, Cassandra reached as deep into her little six-year-old chest as she could possibly reach, and she dredged up the biggest, longest, loudest howl that she could possibly conjure. It always hurt her throat a little, but it never hurt more than it felt good. It made her entire body vibrate. And her dad was screaming, too, holding onto her hands with his own big ones, the two of them harmonizing together as they screamed out into the woods from the top of the hill, their voices echoing out into the sky.

She kept going until there was no more left in her, running out of air entirely and left with just shaking, heaving breaths, her shoulders trembling as she panted.

And for a second, both of them were both quiet. And then finally, her dad chuckled, tossing his shoulders a few times to jostle her slightly.

“One of these days, you’re gonna shatter my eardrums, sunshine. I hope you know that,” he laughed, and Casey just grinned, hanging onto him.

“I like yelling,” she hummed.

And for a bit longer, it was quiet again.

Just the two of them on the top of the world.

And then Dad’s cellphone began to ring.

Casey paused, frowning slightly as she watched her father fish the device from his pocket, glancing at the screen and scoffing in such a way that Casey already knew who was on the line.

“Damn. Too bad we still have service up here, huh?” He tsked, and Casey frowned.

“Don’t be mean to mommy,” she muttered petulantly. “I don’t like it.”

“Sorry, Casey. My bad,” he sighed, crouching down so he could ease her down off his shoulders and back onto her own two feet. “Here. Just gimme two seconds to talk to her, okay?”

“Can I talk to her when you’re done?” She asked, and Dad hesitated.

“Uh, maybe! Lemme just talk to her real quick first and see what she wants. I promise it’ll be fast. Here, hang on. You can time me, okay?” He said, returning the stopwatch back to her hands. “Think you can do that?”

“Yeah…”

“Good girl. I’ll be right back,” Dad said, offering her one last crooked smile before turning away, looping off a few paces before finally picking up his phone.

“Hello?”

“Yeah?--”

“Yeah, I know.”

“No, we just went up hiking--”

“I know that, but it’s just one day. Yeah, I know that… I’m going to!”

“She loves it up here!”

“I will, just-- Could you please just listen to me?-- No, I didn’t--”

Casey frowned. She settled down to sit in the grass and hit the ‘start’ button on the stopwatch.

[ next ]

#sorrywhatnowau #sorrywhatnowau fic #sorrywhatnowau fanfic #rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rise of the tmnt #tmnt 2018 #rottmnt au #rottmnt fanfiction #rottmnt human au #fanfic #writing #rottmnt april #rottmnt casey jones #rottmnt cassandra jones

230 notes · View notes

satureja13 · 23 days

Text

When the Boys just were about to finish their Yoga/Meditation/Tantra practise, Leander and Wesley arrived. That wasn't planned. The Boys were supposed to spend the day alone ö.ö Vlad sighed. Leander, his arch enemy... And Wesley, his first love...

Leander: "Hey Boys. Vlad. Ms Coombes asked Wes to prepare her next Defense against the Dark Arts lesson. So I thought I'd accompany him and hold my History of Magic lesson today. Meet me on the top floor after you showered." And even though Ji Ho knows how much Vlad despises Leander (and to a certain degree Wesley too), he can't help his feelings taking the downward path - again - into the blurry, red-hazed realm of jealousy, distrust and anger. And their Bond is still utterly quiet. Giving him no sense of Vlad's love for him - nor the slightest bit of reassurance. Over the last two years the Bond was Ji Ho's anchor. Whenever he felt unsure and helpless, the Bond was there, wrapping him in the utter security that Vlad will always love him. No matter what. Which carried him through all the hardships. And now he fears that this love was just a trick from the Council. Initiated by a Siren's Spell of his own grandfather... And all these overwhelming feelings he dug out only intesify these fears.

The History of Magic Classroom. Decorated with paintings and photographies of the members of the Resistance. One might think that History of Magic is a quite boring subject. But it wasn't. There's so much to learn and the Boys barely ever got any insights about how the Resistance was founded and by whom.

After a brief overview, Leander talked about the most famous accomplishments by other members of the Resistance. And the most devastating failures. Then he gave the Boys their homework. Each creature is different. Each has their own, very unique, abilities and traits. And each has their weak spots. There is no established method to succeed. So Leander asks them to collect their own abilities and weak spots - and the ones of their opponents. And after that - work out strategies. And lots of plan B's...

Meanwhile Ji Ho is in his own personal hell. Why do Leander and Vlad look at each other like this? Has something changed between them? He knows it is crucial to listen and pay attention and to do everything in his powers to find a way to detect and destroy that spell, but he just can't. He's fighting for every breath he takes and every beat of his heart right now. As if none of the things his body usually does on his own stopped working and he had to manage them all manually.

Jack doesn't do any better. The heat has its firm grip on him. But it's not his feelings. It's his body he can't control. His heart is racing, he can barely breathe, his intestines are intertwining... He tries to act as normal as possible to not upset Sai and Ji Ho any further. Only his good mate Kiyoshi seems to know what's going on with him and watches him worriedly.

After classes, they went down to the yard again. Vlad, Leander and Wesley are putting their heads together and talk quietly. And Ji Ho is watching them. What does that mean? Ji Ho is raging. First Jack is stirring Vlad up with his Omega pheromones and now Vlad is voluntarily hanging out with his exes! Is it possible they were finally able to cut the Bond? Because Ji Ho is a danger for Vlad?

Ji Ho ran away - crying. Adriano: "Oh no!" Kumo: "What are we supposed to do?" Little Goat: "I hope he isn't about to do something silly!"

Leander: "Don't worry. It will all be well in the end. We are going to take good care of you." Oh no! I've heard this before...

Jeb and Kiyoshi are in their own world. Jeb's talk with Sai lies ahead. And poor Jeb is losing it. Kiyoshi tries to reassure him. But of what help can he be after messing it all up with Jack and his relationship...

And the party goes on.

Skully dug out a matching song and sings along:

'I was dreaming of the past And my heart was beating fast I began to lose control I began to lose control

I was feeling insecure You might not love me anymore I was shivering inside I was shivering inside

I was trying to catch your eyes Thought that you was trying to hide I was swallowing my pain I was swallowing my pain'

Jealous Guy - John Lennon or, another great version by Roxy Music

From the Beginning 🔱 Underwater Love 🔱 Latest

Current Chapter: 'Here comes the Sun' from the beginning ▶️ here Last Chapter: 'Who killed Jack?' from the beginning ▶️ here

📚 Previous Chapters: Chapters: 1-6 ~ 7-12 ~ 13-16 ~ 23-28

46 notes · View notes

st4rwon · 1 year

Text

dates w skz

maknae line x reader (separate)

hyung line ver.

warnings: none that i’m aware of!

jisung 지성

han takes you on arcade dates at least once a month

he is definitely a bit competitive

but likes to let you win just so he can see your pretty smile

both of you have every two player game they have

tried to win you things from the claw machine to impress you

but half the time it doesn’t work

loves to buy you stupid things with the tickets you earn

he’ll buy you stuffed animals, yo-yos, tiny trinkets, you name it

you have a small area on your desk where you keep all the stuff he’s gotten you

“we should definitely name him sam” you said, smiling at the bear jisung had gotten you “what the fuck, no” you shot his a look of disappointment “what’s wrong with sam?” “it’s hyunjin hyung’s english name, there’s no way you’re naming him that” “aww you jealous ji?” you said poking him as his cheeks heated up “whatever, let’s just think of a better name for our child” you giggled at his words “alright you baby”

other members under the cut!

felix 페릭스

picnic dates!! or cafe dates

always comes to pick you up with a bouquet of flowers (each time they are different and they always have a meaning to them) and some chocolates

such a sweetheart

constant compliments

“you look so pretty baby” “ooh that necklace is so pretty! isn’t it the one i got you?”

makes sure you’re enjoying the date and always caters to your needs

“oh you’re not feeling well? well let’s just stay inside then, i’m sure we can still find something fun to do”

makes you smile so much that your mouth hurts

“felix how did you find this place??” you said looking at the beautiful flower field around you. “i have my ways” he giggled “i’ll take it as you like it?” felix questioned “like it? i love it! i get to spend the day with my favorite boy and be in such an amazing place place!”

seungmin 승민

night time dates

seungmin really enjoys the atmosphere at night

it’s quiet, you can hear the insects, and the wind blows just enough to keep you from getting hot

he likes taking you on walks, sometimes around the neighborhood, or around the park

he likes the fact that he is able to see your face illuminated by the streetlights

though whenever he finds you to be a bit too cute he moves away so that his blush is hidden

little does he know that you’ve caught on to this and mentally give yourself a pat in the back for getting the kim seungmin embarrassed

you and seungmin walked hand in hand, walking towards the park that you typically went to. it was by the convenience store so the two of you would typically grab some snacks and go sit in the field. “minnie” you spoke, grabbing your boyfriend’s attention. he turned his head towards you in response, “you look so pretty today” you said grabbing his arm, pulling it next to you. seungmin lifted the mask further up his face, “no darkness for you to hide your blush today” you snickered. “you knew?” he questioned, “of course! i always pay attention to you” you said proudly, but before you could speak again you felt yourself falling forward, you held tightly onto seungmin’s arm. he swiftly pulled you up with both arms, now it was his time to laugh. “maybe most more attention to yourself pretty”

jeongin 정인

100% shopping dates

all the time!

tbh you guys actually don’t buy many things

it’s just fun to be around each other and try of different clothes to see what styles look good

you’ve definitely bribed him to buy matching clothes a couple times

but how could you not? they were so perfect for the two of you!

whenever you go to the mall, you’ll both run around different stores until you get tired and end up in the food court

jeongin is so happy to have someone that loves his passion for fashion just as much as he does

he’ll also keep in mind what your eyes are on, so that he is able to buy them as future gifts

“innie you need to try this on!” you said dragging him towards a rack, “ooh i love the color” he said, picking it up by the hanger. you both walked over to the dressing room and tried on your respected clothing. “looks nice…” jeongin said, as you twirled around showing him your outfit, “but i feel like the color clashes with you, it doesn’t fit your personality. the outfit you put on earlier complimented your skin tone perfectly! it really brought out all my favorite features on you” “really??” you asked surprised, “i thought it pointed out some of my flaws…” you mumbled. “baby you’re flawless in my eyes, and trust me with this. this color suits you really well! lets find some more” jeongin smiled. “let me go change back,” you said turning to the dressing room, “wait you haven’t tried on your clothes yet” you frowned. “it’s okay, i can always shop later. i wanna get something special for you first”

please don’t spam like posts, repost, translate, or use my work without my permission. all work is fictional and only used for entertainment purposes. © azurez 2023

209 notes · View notes

ququb444hm · 10 months

Text

𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐬 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭, 𝐜𝐮𝐩𝐢𝐝

part 31 / old man ☆

masterlist

important note!! there is the implication of a panic attack in this part so if that makes u uncomfortable, please do not continue reading! i am sorry in advance if i offend anyone by the way i write out the panic attack. i have not experienced one before and am basing the information solely on research i have done beforehand as well as the experiences of my friends. and for anyone who has experienced a panic attack, U R ONE OF THE STRONGEST PEOPLE EVER!

“geez, the school needs to start providing free umbrellas or something!” coach ukai exclaimed. he stared at his two players and team manager– tetsu, kozume, and yn were all dripping wet and shivering from the intense weather. “we’re ending practice a bit early so just grab a towel and dry yourselves up a bit or go take a quick shower in the locker room so you at least don’t catch a cold before the game next week.”

“yes, coach.” the three nodded, quickly making their way to the showers.

“yn!” mori called out, running up to his friend with a hoodie in hand. “change into this after so you’re not cold.”

yn eyed the material, smirking once she realized who it belonged to. “did rinnie give this to you?” she mused, “ohoho, so are you guys talking or what?”

“oh shut up, go take a shower. you smell like wet dog.” mori grumbled, shoving the hoodie into yn’s arms. yn giggled, thanking mori before heading into the girls locker room.

(note: guys.. i don’t actually ship mori n rin LOL js a disclaimer bc ik (or im pretty sure) they like haven’t met in the actual series…? they’re more of a sub-plot like cece n tetsu bc i love side character lore! anyways back to the storyyy)

once yn was done freshening up, she joined coach ukai and mr. takeda on the bleachers to talk about the game. "the team is looking good," coach examined. he watched as the players went up against each other in a quick match. "i just don't know what to do about kozume and keiji." he rubbed the back of his neck, deep in thought as he analyzed the papers yn gave him last practice.

"what do you mean?" yn asked. she didn't recall writing anything weird about the two.

coach ukai shrugged. "maybe it's because i've known these kids since they were freshmen, but something just feels off between the two. i compared your notes from the beginning of the semester to last week, and there's a slight decline in their abilities."

yn furrowed her brows, taking the papers from coach ukai to see the difference herself. "a decline?" her eyes scanned the data and much to her surprise, he was right. kozume's agility went down by 2.5% and keiji's been struggling to successfully set the ball up for kou which puts the team at a big disadvantage since kou is normally always on the court and has the most trust in keiji to send him the ball.

(note again: idk what i js pulled out of my ass w this one >o< i don’t play volley but wtvr! :3)

"speaking of kozume and keiji, where are they?" mr. takeda piped up. tetsurou finished showering at the same time as yn and was currently talking to a few members, assumingly giving them tips for next week, but kozume was still nowhere to be seen. there couldn’t have been only one working shower right?

"bokuto!" coach ukai called out, "where's your setter?"

"uhh-" kou looked around, "not on the court, coach!"

keishin groaned. "well, obviously.."

"keiji is in the locker room, pretty sure.” kei answered instead. he heard the setter excuse himself to grab something in the locker room, but what would he need in there when they usually dropped their things off on the bleachers? the middle blocker shrugged it off, not caring too much about his upperclassman.

“uhm i think kozume is also still in there.” shoyou added. his eyes met yn’s, both of them starting to feel a bit uneasy after talking about the two last night. “do you want me to go grab them?” keishin sighed, motioning for shoyou to retrieve the two missing players.

as shoyou neared the red-painted metal doors, his ears picked up keiji’s voice. he sounded annoyed. really annoyed. “you can’t be seriously telling me you won’t leave yn alone, right? right? kozume c’mon,” keiji laughed in mockery, his voice was getting a bit louder, but not loud enough to reach the ears of the other people on the other side of the gym. “you’re just going to keep hurting her. she doesn’t deserve that. you don’t deserve her.”

“like you have any place to talk,” kozume barked back. though not as aggravated as keiji, kozume was firm with his words. “you made yn feel unimportant the whole time the two of you were in a relationship. you were the one who had an interest in her first, yet you barely took the time to show any effort. you couldn’t even go to one of the most important events in her life! she worked so hard, she always does, for the annual art exhibition, but you forgot about it.”

“i had an important meeting that day-” keiji tried to reason.

kozume only scoffed. “oh please.”

“okay. fine.” shoyou could hear heavy footsteps. keiji was corning kozume into the lockers. he pressed an accusing finger against his chest. “missing the art exhibition was a dick move, but am i the one who’s going for their friend’s ex? am i the one who would publicly reject yn, yet give her mixed signals behind closed doors, continuously confusing her and manipulating her feelings? am i the one who can’t make up his mind, slowly declining yn’s mental and emotional well-being? no, kozume, i’m not. you are. know your place. yn doesn’t need you.”

it was quiet for a few seconds before shoyou could hear keiji’s footsteps walking toward the door he was pressing his ear against. in a quick panic, the ginger hid behind a nearby scoreboard until he saw keiji far enough to where he wouldn’t see the worried sophomore slip into the locker room.

“kozume!” shoyou cried out. the blond was in a fetal position on the floor against the lockers. he rocked back and forth, the frantic movement almost causing him to hit his head against the hard metal. his breathing was short and unstable, almost like he was choking. it was even more difficult to breathe due to his strained cries. the state of his close friend made shoyou sick to his stomach, his body trembled, not knowing what to do. “what- whats happening?!” he tried to prevent kozume from accidentally injuring himself, but once his hand made contact with kozume’s shoulder, the blond slapped his hand away.

“don’t touch me!” he cried out. his eyes grew in panic, everything around him was overwhelming him past his limit.

shoyou fell back at the sudden impact, “kozume-”

“i’m sorry,” kozume dug his head back into his arms. “i’m sorry i’m sorry i’m sorry i’m sorry i’m sorry-” he repeated the same words over and over again, each apology more desperate than the last. ‘i hit shoyou? why did i hit shoyou?’ “i didn’t mean it- i didn’t i-” his voice was restless, saying the same thing over and over as his mind grew louder by the second. ‘i hurt shoyou. i hurt yn. i can’t stop. i don’t know what to do. i can’t stop. it hurts. everything hurts. i hurt yn. my heart wont shut up. it’s so loud. everything is so loud. please shut up. please shut up. shut up. shut up. shut up-’

“kozume i don’t know what to do!” shoyou sobbed. the situation was getting to much for him, he needed to call someone for help. “i’m going to get yn, she’ll know what to do-”

“SHUT UP.” shoyou stopped in his tracks, body cold at the sudden yell. kozume’s head jerked up at his own words, disbelief written across his face. was he the one who yelled that? “please don’t get yn. please- shoyou please.” he was tirelessly begging. tears constructing his vision enough to not even know if shoyou was opening the door or not. “please. please don’t call yn. i don’t- she can’t know. please. i’m sorry i yelled. i’m sorry- just. just- don’t move.”

shoyou slowly removed his hand from the door handle. his movements were slow, scared that he might suddenly alarm kozume again. he squeezed his eyes shut, breathing long and slow to calm his nerves so that he could at least provide some sort of ease to kozume. “okay…” he whispered, slowly opening his eyes. shoyou bent down to kozume’s level, leaving a foot of space between them as he tried to calm the blond’s nerves as he just did his own. “it’s okay koz. it’s okay.” continuing the breathing exercise he was previously doing, shoyou used his hands to motion each inhale, each hold of breath, and each exhale.

“i’m sorry.” kozume murmured, unable to meet shoyou’s gaze. he was slowly regaining stable breathing, the pain in his chest diminishing.

“don’t apologize!” shoyou scolded. “i’m the one who should say sorry, kozume.” the ginger choked back his tears, refraining from overwhelming his friend. “i didn’t know what to do and i couldn’t help you..”

kozume shook his head, “you did help, sho. thank you.” a small smile graced his features, reassuring his friend.

the two sat in silence for a few minutes until shoyou decided to let his curiosity flow free. “kozume, can i ask you something?” the blonde nodded. “what's happening between you and keiji? and why can’t yn know about this? why are you hiding it from her?”

kozume let out a weak laugh. “that’s more than just a something.”

“sorry, i just don’t get it!” shoyou whined. “yn likes you, a lot, and i thought you really like yn too. so why are u letting keiji get in the way and talk you down like that? why are you so afraid of letting yourself be happy?”

the familiar question rang through kozume’s mind. a previous conversation from tetsurou suddenly resurfacing.

“are you afraid of letting yourself be happy or something? look, i’m not saying you should’ve prevented keiji from asking yn out, but you’ve liked my sister since what? the second grade? and you just let some new guy sweep her off her feet? that’s just crazy, man! i know for a fact that he could never have the same connection you and her have, trust me, i’m like psychic or something. i know you’re the better person–- the only person, actually, for yn.”

“it’s not that…” kozume groaned. “i’m afraid that…if yn and i do become something more than what we are now, i’ll disappoint her more than i already do. what if, once we start dating, she realizes she doesn’t actually like me?”

shoyou frowned. keiji’s words were dug deep into kozume’s heart. nothing he could say, no amount of reassurance could ever directly change kozume’s mindset. it needed to come from her–

knock. knock. knock.

“sho? kozume? are you guys okay? i- uhm we’re getting worried…you two have been in there for a long time, is everything okay?”

there she was. the only person who could dissolve all of keiji’s cruel words from kozume’s distraught soul.

“sorry, we’ll be out in a sec, nn!” shoyou called out. he reached a hand out for kozume to take. “are you okay to go outside?”

the blonde took a deep breath. “we have a game next week, don’t we?” he placed his hand on shoyou’s, pulling himself up.

the two opened the door to reveal yn’s big doe eyes brimming with concern. “what happened? did you lose your towel? was the water too cold?” she enveloped kozume’s hands into her own, feeling the difference in temperature. “if you didn’t have any warm water, you should’ve told us! taking a cold shower after being soaked in the rain isn’t good for you!”

“hey!” coach ukai irked, already frustrated that kozume would only have less than an hour to practice. “stop feeling the boy up and let him get his ass to work!”

yn’s eye twitched at the suggestive assumption. she quipped her head at keishin and flipped him off. “shut up, old man!”

part 30 sassy man apocalypse <- | masterlist | -> part 32 nipples in a twist

note(s): hnnghghghgrfijwfmgh next part is a text msg part

✩⡱ taglist !! + @writing-for-the-hell-of-it @sherryuki-callmeyuki @anny-bah @ast4rg1rl @sukunasrealgf @dani-shitting-around @whokillednyx @vernon-dursley @limaswife @sugawara-levi @sixxze @ryoiii @literally-a-ferret @444sunarin @llearlert @lloyd4x @usermins @2baddies-1porsche @vernon-dursley @lyzisbitchingagain @h3xi2g0n3 @l0v3do11 lmk if u want to be added (msg or inbox)ヾ(･ω･`；)ﾉ

#🐈.thanksalotcupid #kozume kenma #kenma kozume #kozume kenma x reader #kozume kenma x fem!reader #kenma kozume x reader #kenma kozume x fem!reader #kenma x reader #kozume x reader #smau #kenma smau #haikyuu #haikyuu smau #haikyuu!!#haikyuu!! smau

64 notes · View notes

pencil-peach · 1 year

Text

GWitch Onscreen Text: Episode 8

Part 9 in my ongoing attempt to transcribe all the written text in G Witch, cause I'm just that cool ! We're currently on Episode 8: "Their Choice."

<<Click here to return to episode 8!

Let us begin!

Not text, but in the opening scene, Lilique is told by Aliya that she'll "have trouble with men" in the near future during their divination session. This is foretelling how Renee will destroy her MS in the Grassley duel because she rejected John Van Simmon's lunch invitation.

TEXT: GUND-ARM Inc.

During Miorine's impromptu enlisting of Earth House to help run GUND-ARM, we see the spray painted sign that Miorine and Suletta made beforehand leaning outside the door. Given that they definitely didn't make the sign at Earth House, I like to imagine that they made the sign, and Miorine was like:

"This is the worst. Suletta, help me carry this sign to Earth House."

S: "W-why, Miorine-san?"

M: "They're going to be working at the company so I'll just have them make a better sign."

S: "Oh, did you ask them?"

M: "Not yet."

S: ????????????????????????????

TEXT DUEL BETTING ODDS TYPE OF BETTING: SINGLE RANK | ID. No | NAME | ODDS

| KP003 | SHADDIQ ZENELLI | 1.3

| LP041 | SULETTA MERCURY | 1.9

| KP002 | ELAN CERES | 2.7

| KP001 | GUEL JETURK | 3.4

| KP014 | SABINA FARDIN | 6.9

| LP029 | OLTA SHUBACCA | 7.6

| KP013 | LAUDA NEILL | 9.1

| LP022 | JONAS MOUWEN | 9.8

| MP028 | RAGNAR OOLES | 11.4

| LP013 | RENEE COSTA | 13.3

During this scene where Martin and Ojelo are talking, we get a look into the betting program he and Nuno are always using, and we get to see the top 10 ranked duelists at Asticassia at the time of this episode.

Of special note: Shaddiq is currently at rank 1, and due to the gray up arrow next to his rank, we can see this is a recent change in his rank. But considering that he doesn't duel very often, (at this point he currently has 7 wins and 0 losses) we can probably assume this is because Suletta has knocked both Guel and Elan from the top spots, leaving him alone at the top. His Odds are at 1.3

Suletta is currently at Rank 2, and we can also see by the gray arrow that this is a recent promotion. She probably rose up after defeating Elan. Her odds are 1.9.

Elan is Rank 3, and the red down arrow means he's recently been demoted, presumably after losing to Suletta. His odds are 2.7

Guel, surprisingly, is still rank 4 with a 3.4. Because he's the only pilot at the school to have won a double digit number of duels, his Win - Loss ratio is still presumably one of the best, even with 2 official losses.

Sabina is rank 5, with a 6.9. She's not only the second highest ranked pilot in Grassley House, but is the 4th best among all the other members of the main 3 houses. Even at that, her rank is 6.9, 3.5 points below Guel's. It really goes to show the gulf between the best pilots and the VERY best pilots at Asticassia.

Lauda is rank 7, with a 9.1. Still top 10, but he's eclipsed by Guel even at his lowest. It's nice to see proof pre-Schwarzette that Lauda can hold his own, and it gives more context to his statement that "[With a Gundam's power], he's a match for his brother." He's probably never beaten Guel in a duel, and with the difference in their results, he's probably never come close, either. On some level, he probably resents him for that.

Renee is rank 10, with odds of 13.3. We don't learn much about Renee, but we know now that she's the 3rd highest ranked pilot within Grassley, underneath Sabina and Shaddiq, but the gulf is large.

I don't think there's any way in hell to figure out how the odds are calculated, (I've tried.) but we know that the lower the odds, the higher your rank.

Because the names are color coded, we can actually see how many members of each house are in the top ten. Grassley - Shaddiq, Sabina, Renee (3/10) - 30% Peil - Elan (1/10) - 10% Jeturk - Guel, Lauda, Ragnar (3/10) - 30% Earth - Suletta (1/10) - 10% Unknown House - Olta, Jonas (2/10) - 20% (These two names are color coded the same, so I'll assume they're in the same house, as 'unhoused' students have the standard blue color coding : e.g Miorine)

Okay, we're ALMOST done here, but, because Ojelo often says the odds of a duel out loud during it, we can actually track the odds of Guel, Elan, and Suletta up to this point. (Ojelo always says the odds in terms of Person he's betting on's odds - Opponent's odds.)

Guel: Episode 3 Odds: 1 Episode 5 Odds: 1.4 Episode 8 Odds: 3.4 1 - 1.4 - 3.4

Elan: Episode 5 Odds: 1 Episode 6 Odds: 1 Episode 8 Odds: 2.7 1 - 1 - 2.7

Suletta: Episode 3 Odds: 8.6 Episode 6 Odds: 2.7 Episode 8 Odds: 1.9 8.6 - 2.7 - 1.9

HUAHH okay, let us continue

This is the Recording System that opens when Prospera sends her all of Aerial's past data. The screen is similar to the one that appears when Eri is speaking to Lfrith, but other than that there's not much info that can be gleaned here.

Not text, but I really how during the scene where Suletta asks Prospera why she lied to her, and Prospera continues to lie to her about why, Suletta's face is drawn in a way that's uncomfortable to look at once she falls for her manipulation.

This scene is also where Prospera tells her outright that Gundams are safe, and for nearly the entire rest of the series, Suletta repeats this, even when faced with direct evidence to the contrary because she wholeheartedly believes her mother would never lie to her for no reason.

Okay okay FINAL non text thing I PROMMY, but this scene implies that at some point, Suletta spoke with Shaddiq about the situation with her mom for at least a little bit at some point. I wish we got to see that.

TEXT: NEXT > THE ASTICASSIA SCHOOL OF TECHNOLOGY WE WILL SHORTLY ARRIVE...

I wonder why Shaddiq was on this flight anyway. Probably to talk to Sarius or something.

TEXT: Preparing disclosure documents for investors Application for Registration of Incorporation (Benerit Group Student Business Startup Program) Articles of Incorporation to Benerit Group Legal Certification Division Business Plan for Benerit Group Internal Entrepreneurship Committee Business Plan for Student Business Startup Program Documents for Benerit Group Grant Review Committee Broadcast License for PR Video Documents to Open Corporate Account Application for Special R & D Financial Transaction Business Application for MSP Certified Factory Application for Establishment of Sustainable Enterprise

This is the list of all the various things and registrations the company needs to take care of

Not text (sorry i lied) but I think it's interesting that the video Miorine watches of her father's speech is a secondhand recording and not an actual recording of the event.

Some closer looks at the editing software used to create the PR video. The name of the raw video file is GUND-ARMInc.PV01, and the placeholder text for the GUND-ARM Inc. Logo is GUND-ARMInc.PV02.

Also all of the silly visual effects like the hearts and musical notes make sense when you realize they had Suletta edit the actual video.

We can actually see Till's rough sketch of the GUND-ARM logo on his tablet screen, complete with construction lines. That's why they have to use a placeholder in the editing software, it's not complete yet.

When Miorine chooses the data files to cast to the screen, the 3 video files are named GUND CARDO NABO MS

The files are dated by year, so all of these files were recorded in A.S. 101.

youtube

Here is all of the editing (blessings) in the GUND-ARM PR Video 1. When Suletta walks into frame, the video is covered in a filter that makes hearts and stars appear on the screen. When the video cuts the first time, the filter changes to one that makes various musical notes appear on the screen. Then when it cuts again the filter is gone. 2. Suletta walks into frame, and then tries to correct her position, and then it cuts back to a shot of her in the original spot she was standing in. 3. Aerial is horribly keyed into the shot, and you can see bits of the green screen behind it. Tiko also walks in front of it and they didn't know how to edit him out. 4. When they begin the dance, each step cuts to a later time of day and Suletta looks noticeably more exhausted, which means they kept having to re-record it. 5. They kept having to edit Aerial's arms to make the dance moves work.

They move them around

And they stretch them.

I like that Prospera laughs at the video, because for her, it's probably like watching her daughters having fun and playing together.

The food for the party that Suletta and Miorine are bringing are from ASTICASSIA FOODS.

TEXT: ASTICASSIA SCHOOL OF TECHNOLOGY STUDENT REGULATIONS

STUDENT REGULATIONS >> SUPPLEMENTAL STUDENT BUSINESS STARTUP REGULATIONS ARTICLE 53 PARAGRAPH 3 SAFETY VERIFICATION OF NEW TECHNOLOGY USED IN STUDENT BUSINESSES. EDIT APPLY

The part of the school regulations that Sabina edits for Shaddiq.

HOYAAAHHH!!! MISSION COMPLETE! This one was a DOOZY...but i've actually been wanting to talk about the betting program for a WHILE and I'm glad I finally got to..! My final gift...errmmm

In a way, I guess they did, in the end, huh?

Click here to go to Episode 9. >>

Click here to go to the Masterpost.

#g witch #gundam the witch from mercury #Youtube

34 notes · View notes

dearweirdme · 3 months

Note

https://www.tumblr.com/dearweirdme/755876028037070848/httpswwwtumblrcomdearweirdme7558150664131870?source=share

Jk said that in 2016, according to you, anon, but most of the instances of JK being uncomfortable were from 2019-2020, but it was still going on until their last concerts together. 2020 was especially weird between jkk and even jkkrs noticed and had break up theories.

What I think it's fair to argue, is that Jm is only doing his job (considering that many time it happened during concerts and fs), and you can think that JK is overreacting or not setting clear boundaries. My interpretation is that JK wanted to be the one leading the interactions, deciding when and how it would happen, and Jimin didn't agree with him, because we can also see the opposite, JK initiating it and Jm not having it and not interacting and showing signs of irritation. I think that at some point Jm got fed up of that situation and stepped away. I know it's hard to believe it now that they are having a show together, but Jm pretty much stopped feeding jkkrs in the last couple of years and really limited his interactions with JK. In recently years, JK fed (purposely or not) jkkrs much more than Jm did.

The problem is people believing that is up to them to solve w/e issue jkk may have in their rs. They can deal if it alone, they dont need we taking sides.

Hi anon! I kinda think this conversation is missing a lot of nuances. Feeling uncomfortable to me is on a spectrum going from 'meh, you are in my personal space a bit' to 'Omg, I nearly feel assoulted'. I think we can all agree that the way Jk reacts to Jm does not fall in the latter category by miles.

Yes, I think some of the instances were because Jm tried to play it up for the fans when Jk wasn't feeling it. Energies have to match for those things to play out. People's energies also vary a lot and the way someone reacts to something might therefore differ. So I think at times it was a miscalculation as well. And it does happen the other way around as well, and it happens between other members also.

I do agree that Jm does seem to... avoid Jkkry more than Jk does. I don't think it's Jk trying to actively feed them, but rather he doesn't want to limit his reactions to his friend.

All in all... I don't really see a problem with the way Jk and Jm interact. I think they know each other well enough to communicate any issues they might have. I have also grown up with younger siblings... so to me the pushing of boundaries, or the teasing, or whatever name is most appropriate.. is very natural.

#jmjk

7 notes · View notes

lordystrange · 2 years

Text

It’s time to open a new gate:

#namegate - Why is Will Byers named Will?

All the other Byers-Hopper family members’ names start with the letter J. Except Will’s. And since the writers of the show have said that we should really pay attention to the details, this is the detail I’m paying attention to now.

Will’s full name is William Jacob Byers. So why wasn’t he named Jacob William Byers, to match Joyce, Jonathan, Jim and Jane?

The theories are:

1. Will isn’t a part of the Byers(-Hopper) family

Now ofc Will is a part of that family, but what if he’s not actually Joyce’s child and Jonathan’s brother. I have two options on this, and they both connect to the #twelvegate:

A) Will is a random lab kid (number 012) who’s parents are not Joyce and Lonnie, but who somehow after the massacre ended up living with them

B) Will has a twin, who is 012, and the lab either had to exchange the twins for some reason or 012 was in the UD for some reason and Joyce and Hopper found him (meaning the original Will is dead or somewhere else)

2. Will’s name had to have a meaning, and a connection to Billy

The name William means ”Vehement protector”, and I think that might mean something in s5. What? Well Idk but I’m guessing that Will will be very protective of everyone he loves and hopefully about himself too

The connection to Billy, I think, is for a contrast. In s2 Will was possessed but managed to break out of it to warn and help, to protect, Mike and others. Billy also broke out of the possession and protected El and others.

They were also both abused by their fathers. The difference is, Billy became bad himself, but Will stayed good. (Which is why he won’t die!)

3. M for Mike is upside down W for Will

This is my oldest theory and my favorite one. Take a look at this first:

Above the yellow line is our world and below it is the UD.

We know that Will was in the UD (and still has a connection) and that Mike was the key to get him back to our world (S1 not giving up on him, finding El who could help, S2 pulling him back from those episodes and the possession…).

I read a theory (in @andiwriteordie ’s fic) about Max’s consciousness being stuck in the UD. Her body is in our world, Vecna took his mind, but when Hawkins and Russia groups grilled the shit out of him, Max’s mind got freed, but still stuck in the UD, just floating there kinda like a ghost. Therefore Max is sideways on that figure I made. She’s stuck in between worlds.

El is also in between worlds but not sideways, because she’s not stuck. She can come and go in her mind whenever she likes (maybe not whenever but you get the point). Also she’s opposite from Max, meaning that she’s probably her way to become ’unstuck’.

And those 4 names’ connection to each other would be the reason Will’s first name is William and not Jacob.

Thank you for reading!

Like I said earlier, the last one is my favorite. But I think that if twelvegate is happening, this could tie into it somehow. And if options 1 and 3 are too much of a reach, theory 2 is quite mundane but still nice to notice. 💚

#namegate #byler #will byers #twelvegate #stranger things #stranger things theory #byler theory #will byers theory #mike wheeler #eleven jane hopper #max mayfield #elmax #byler tumblr #joyce byers #jonathan byers #billy hargrove

137 notes · View notes

anotherwvba · 3 days

Text

Finding Your Place, pt. 2

The intense lights of the WVBA Studios cast a bright halo around Sahara Sands. She stood confidently in the center of the room, fists clenched inside her bright yellow gloves. It was photo day, the day when all the promo pictures and videos for the upcoming card were shot. Some of the boxers loved it, a chance to be in front of the cameras and show-off. Others found it tedious, a necessary evil between them and the ring. Sahara was definitely the former.

She was decked out in her new blue and yellow ring gear, colors she picked for her new ring name. Razor Sharp. It was a tribute to her father’s beginnings in the sport, long before he was called Mr. Sandman. He was Tyrone “The Razor” Sands, a boxer so good that the establishment could deny him… until they did.

Things in the sport were different now. Now, the league that her father was a founding member of wasn’t a renegade outfit, it’s the major leagues. No doubt, the WVBA was still boxing’s isle of misfit toys in many ways, but now there were plenty of boxers around the world that saw the WVBA as their life’s goal, not their last resort.

Again, Sahara… Razor was the former. She worked her whole life to this point, first as an amateur, then turning pro. She fought in bingo halls and bars, wherever she could get a match. She wanted to earn her way into the WVBA, not get in on her father’s name. Twelve wins and eight knockouts later and here she was, taking promo pics for her WVBA debut.

Razor owned the room. She was in her stance with a look on her face that promised pain as the photographer flitted around her. The sounds of shutter snaps were interspersed with mutters of “nice” and “perfect” in a light British accent.

Colbi Shutters, a more appropriate name for a photographer you’d never find, moved to change the lens on her camera for the next series of shots. “Alright, Razor, for this next batch, let’s get confidence. Like you just know you’re winning.”

“Girl,” Razor popped her hip, resting one glove on it as she held the other loosely by her chin, “what do you mean like I know?”

“That’s what I’m talking about, sunshine,” Colbi smiled, snapping her new lens in place. “Did you catch Luna’s stream this morning? She was talking some mad shite.”

Razor laughed as she shifted to another pose, “Little girl thinks she’s got hands ‘cause she’s got three wins against YouTuber’s and Instagram models. She’ll learn.”

Colbi smiled as moved through various angles, “Show me. Give some fierce action shots, but like, pause at the end of each punch.”

“Fierce is what I do,” Razor shifted into her boxing stance, bouncing and glaring down the lens. “Luna’s gonna see. She thinks she can outlast me. Me? I mean, for real. Razor Sharp’s not just a name, it’s a warning. She act like she don’t know, but she will.”

The intensity gave Colbi a moment of pause. “Um, love? This is starting to sound a mite personal.”

Razor’s face softened into a sly smile, “You wanted fierce, remember? But, naw, it ain’t personal. Look, I ain’t gonna hate on a girl for her hustle, and Luna’s got plenty of hustle. There’s a reason she’s got the following she’s got. Hard. Work. Period. But, this is my world and I got a job to do.”

Shifting seamlessly back into fight mode, Razor threw an uppercut just shy of Colbi’s camera lens, stopping so the photographer could get a shot as if on the receiving end, “And that job’s to put these gloves on that girl and that girl on her ass. Her Luna-tics are gonna see their girl starched and ain’t nothin’ she can do.”

“Nice! Oh, let’s get a few like you’ve just knocked her down.” Colbi laid down on the floor, framing her shot.

Razor set her stance, pointing her right fist straight toward the camera lens with a menacing smirk, “Out. You mean to say ‘knocked her out.’ When a Sands lays you down, you go to sleep.”

“You are right and truly up for this, aren’t you?” Colbi smiled, shutter clicking away. “Uh, gimme another pose.”

“This good?” Razor shifted to look like she was walking away and giving her foe an intimidating glance. Colbi nodded as Razor struck the pose. “And yeah, girl. I’m so ready. I mean, I’ve had thirteen pro fights, but this just hits different. You know? People gonna look at me and have their doubts. They gonna think I’m a nepo hire. ‘Her daddy’s a legend, that’s how she got in.’ I’mma shut that down before it starts. Just sucks for Luna. Girl ain’t my opponent. She’s my proof.”

Just as Colbi and Razor found their rhythm, the door to the studio burst open, sounding like a gunshot. The light, playful energy of the shoot vanished. Replacing it was a voice that sent ice water through Razor’s veins.

“Yo! Let’s get this over with.” The Sandman, Andre Sands, walked in oblivious to everyone and everything. He was in his signature black ring gear, gloves in hand. “I gotta get back in the gym. Ain’t like Don Flamenco’s got a chance, but I wanna embarrass that fool. Bull needs to know who’s comin’ for him.”

Sandman, booming voice and all, slid his gloves on as he scanned the room. He first saw Colbi picking herself up from the floor, then he saw Razor… and passed her, taking in the rest of the room. The dismissive smirk on his face made Razor’s fists instinctively clench tight in her gloves.

“Andre,” Razor’s voice lost all humor as she fixed a hard glare on her brother.

His name, his real name, brought Sandman’s eyes shooting back to Razor. The look on his face was familiar to the younger sister. Contempt. Lifting an eyebrow and tilting his head, Sandman’s smirk returned, “Sahara, didn’t see ya’ there. And, you know better. It’s Sandman.”

“Sandman is our father, not you,” Sahara held his gaze, no reservation, no fear. “You? You’re just Andre and you’re early. This is my studio time.”

“Get out.” Andre’s jaw flexed. His eyes darkened. He never looked away from Razor for an instant. “I didn’t stutter. Leave. Now!”

Colbi, shaking slightly, looked to Razor, unsure of what was even going on, much less what to do.

“You good, girl.” Razor, like her brother, never shifted her eyes away. But, her voice was calm and reassuring as she addressed Colbi. “This won’t take long. We can wrap up in a minute.”

As Colbi quickly gathered her things and scurried out while the Sands siblings continued their staredown. The door closing behind the photographer did nothing to ease the tension in the room.

“Aight, big bro,” Razor stepped closer to her brother, voice low, tapping her gloves together with clear intent. “You ran Colbi outta here. You want somethin’?”

“Little girl,” Sandman looked down at his sister with hard eyes and a menacing sneer. “You don’t want the smoke. Step off.”

“Make me.” Razor popped her gloves together again, loud and deliberate.

Sandman chuckled softly and shook his head.

“Andre,” Razor’s voice was clear. Her patience was running thin. “You know when your shoot starts and you know who’s ahead of you in the studio. So… What. Do. You. Want.”

“I told you what I want, Sahara,” Sandman, too, dropped all pretense. “Did you think I was talking to the photog? Get out. Get out of the WVBA. Go back to your bar cards and your state fairs and wherever else they willing to let you fight. Just stay out of my ring.”

Now, It was Razor’s turn to chuckle, “I get it, bro. You scared. You scared that people gonna see me and see our legacy. Our family. What we mean to this sport. What our dad…”

“Our dad ain’t shit!” Andre’s voice no doubt boomed beyond the studio walls. “Tyrone Sands is a washed up, punch drunk, bitter old man that ain’t got the grace to walk away and I don’t need nobody reminding the world of who he was, especially his prized little princess.”

“And there it is,” Razor sounded so disappointed. “You hate dad, don’t you? The man that raised us, made sure we wanted for nothing. He could’ve kept fighting when the WVBA closed up the first time. He was in his prime. But, he walked away, for family. For us. For you.”

Sandman’s jaw clenched as his gaze dropped to the floor, “You wouldn’t understand.”

“Then what I said before stands,” Razor’s voice picked up a warmth with her brother’s reaction. She reached out with her glove and raised her brother’s chin, meeting his eyes again. “Make me. Please.”

For a moment, a long moment, they stood there. Their eyes locked. There were no ring names, no personas. For a moment, they were just Andre and Sahara, the oldest and youngest children of five children. The moment passed.

“I ain’t got time for this,” Sandman turned to go to the door.

As his back turned, Razor’s resolve hardened, “You can tell me or I can tell you. How you want it?”

Sandman stopped, but didn’t turn around. “You gonna tell me what?”

“Dad failed you on your pro test.” Razor’s voice was flat, matter of fact.

In one quick, angry move, Sandman wheeled on his sister, closed distance, right hand cocked, aimed at her jaw. “Who the hell told you that?! Answer me, girl, or so help me…”

“Or what?!” Her guard shot up, body coiled, muscles tensed, ready for anything. “What Andre? We gonna go?”

Razor stood her ground and her brother suddenly realized who he had raised his fist to. He lowered his hand. His face softened, slightly, but the anger was just below the surface. “I ain’t never told that to anybody.”

“Dad told me.” Razor lowered her guard as her brother’s fist lowered. “He was one of the judges for you to get into the WVBA when it reopened. He didn’t think you were ready.”

“He was scared I’d overtake his legacy,” Sandman spat.

“He was scared you’d get hurt, dumbass,” Razor spat back.

Sandman’s expression was a cocktail of confusion, anger, and disbelief.

“Look,” Razor started moving around the room. She was getting restless and needed to move, but her eyes never left for brother. “You walked into that pro test 22 and 0 with 18 knockouts. Everyone thought you were in.”

“All except a bitter old man.” Sandman folded his arms across his chest.

“All except a concerned father,” Razor stopped and mirrored her brother’s resting posture. “No one there had fought in the WVBA except dad. He knew. He knew you could rule this league, just not then. That’s all. He fought 450 pound ex-sumo, brawling Texan bull riders, and drunk Russian bar bouncers. And it damn sure ain’t gotten any easier.”

“Says the girl that’s fighting a Twitch streamer.” Sandman’s snark was unmistakable.

Razor chuckled, “A Twitch streamer that would run my ass ragged if she had any more experience. See, that’s the difference. I see game and recognize it. You see game and rag on it. You’re damn good, big bro, but you think you way better than you are.”

“Ain’t nobody better than me, baby sis,” Sandman smirked. “And it ain’t that I see game and don’t recognize it. It’s that I see chumps that call themselves champs and I’m gonna put ‘em all to sleep. Then, the only Sandman anybody’s gonna remember is me. Not the jealous has-been that tried to hold his own blood back.”

“And that’s the difference between you and dad,” Razor’s gaze turned to stone. “Flamenco can beat you. Bald Bull gave dad trouble in his prime. And yeah, Bull’s older, but he’s a better boxer than when he fought dad. Dad respected every opponent. You don’t.”

“Respect don’t win fights,” Sandman raised his gloves up. “These do.”

“These don’t lose fights,” Razor raised her own gloves. “Disrespect does.”

“Man,” Sandman shook his head, frustration mounting. He started pulling his gloves off and again turned to leave, “I ain’t got time for this. I got work to do.”

As Sandman turned to leave, Razor smiled. She won this round, but she couldn’t resist one more jab. “You know, bro, funny thing about you taking dad’s name. The people, the fans, his fellow fighters, they gave dad the name Sandman. He didn’t have to give it to himself.”

Sandman’s posture stiffened for a moment, but without a backward glance or another word, he left.

Colbi Shutters is an OC belonging to @cyrah-is-cool101 and is used with permission.

#punch out #super punch out #punch out wii #punch-out!!#super punch-out!!#punch-out!! wii #punch out oc #punch out fanfic #wvba #razor sharp #the sandman andre sands #colbi shutters

5 notes · View notes

aihoshiino · 11 months

Note

sorry for barging into your inbox for the second time today but c. 131 unlocked the brain worms sjsksks

what really gets me is the difference between kyun's view in viewpoint b and takamine's (assuming shes 45510 narrator)

like you said, takamine saw and still sees ai as the perfect idol, a fan striving to keep her perfect image (kind of paralleling akane and kana's fan-actor situation where akane hates but also adores kana as an actor but where takamine bought into ai's façade despite knowing her backstory and the clear evidence that ai tried to be as honest as possible yet still labelling her as a liar/perfection and refusing to see her as anything else, akane strove to understand kana and her situation instead) and her own words put ai up on a pedestal and in the process characterizes ai only in relation to that pedestal and refusing to look any further, thus sending the chance for any connection down the drain

in contrast, as i was rereading viewpoint b, kyun struck me as having a sort of? awareness? about ai and her own perception of her because kyun actually reflects about the "idea of ai", considering that that "perfect woman" was actually a mirage from memory. she doesn't actually break out of the mirage, but she's honest with herself in a way takamine isnt, in that she knows her view of ai as inhuman is probably a falsehood, but she had decided to take that view anyway

conversely thats what allows kyun to actually connect with ai, even if she misses the mark sometimes, rather than getting caught up in the façade and clam up like kanan does earlier, kyun instead opens up, confirmed in the story itself as kyun even says that her choosing to view ai this way is what allows her to be able to tell ai things she wouldn't tell anyone else

and its because of that very mindset along with the fact that she markedly makes the effort to try and understand ai where everyone else didn't that she manages to see ai's suffering and chooses the lyrics to match what she was able to see

i think this is why ai felt that kyun was the member she was closest to, because kyun opening up allowed the way for ai to open up and the song that was a joint effort made between them, of true feelings they both expressed to each other

"from miserable me, to miserable you" a summation of that conversation between ai and kyun

[img. id in alt text]

uh. hope you enjoyed this mess of an analysis? bye!

OH NO.... ONE OF MY OSHI NO MOOTS ANALYZING MY FAVE SIDE STORY IN MY INBOX.... WHATEVER WILL I DO.... 🥺

Joking aside, I think this is a pretty spot on analysis of Kyun and her relationship w/Ai in Viewpoint B. Honestly, what I found really fascinating while going through the process of translating them both is just what a study in contrast they were. Kyun starts off Viewpoint B talking about how angry she is but what came out to me much stronger was this persistent melancholy, a sort of soft nostalgic sadness. By contrast, 45510 is incredibly angry and hostile, to the point where it can honestly be a little uncomfortable to read!

The main difference is, as you said, that sense of self awareness – both Kyun and the 45510 narrator take part in dehumanizing Ai but while the 45510 narrator either isn't aware or willing to admit what she's doing, Kyun not only freely admits to it but is able to identify and explain pretty clearly why she feels she has to do it and, notably, does not blame Ai for this -- as she herself puts it, it's an issue of her own jealousy and her own feelings and so while it's maybe not the healthiest way to do it, there's something oddly considerate about her doing her best not to resent Ai for something that's so out of her control.

The real point of contrast comes when both of them are unavoidably confronted with Ai's humanity in ways that threaten their perception of her. The 45510 narrator responds with not just hostility but revulsion and goes out of her way to irrevocably destroy this trace of the real Ai, so the eternal idol can survive in her mind, untarnished.

Kyun responds much differently – she accepts this challenge to her worldview and to an extent, she accepts Ai as well. It's kind of heartbreaking that the thing Ai wanted most of all, to have someone see her for who she really was and accept her, was so close by and the two of them just sort of... missed each other. I've said this before, but I wonder so often just how many things could have changed if Ai and Kyun's friendship had stuck and given Ai the support within B-Komachi she so desperately needed.

Something I found myself wondering as I was mulling over all this is maybe it's a matter of age and perspective?

Kyun is around 18 at the time Viewpoint B takes place, which puts her at around 3 or 4 years older than Ai while the 45510 narrator's age is never given but she confirms she was a middle schooler like the rest of the founding members, which would make her roughly the same age as Ai, so probably around twelve or so when they debuted.

Kyun also didn't have a ton of prior brain poisoning from the entertainment industry; as she puts it, she was primarily a musician who only gravitated towards being an idol as a way of being able to make music her career in any way she could. The 45510 narrator, by contrast, seems to have been inducted into the industry and its standards at a relatively young age which gave them plenty of time to fry her brain.

I hope we get more deets about the B-Komachi girls soon........................ I'm really hopeful that the Spica novel's Ai story will have at least a few tidbits about the founding members since it focuses at least partially on Ai's early time there. Mr Akasaka, please.... my crops, they're withering.....!!!!!

#oshi no ko #oshi no posting #ai hoshino #kyun #b-komachi

13 notes · View notes

lyncirenzei · 2 years

Text

Anya Mmiri - Shuri x Namor Oneshot

Summary: Shuri grapples with the aftermath of the decisions she’s made and those made for her. She thinks she needs to grieve alone. Namor thinks otherwise.

Rating: Teen 13+

Word Count: 6.8k

AN: I can’t believe I wrote fanfic again after this long. But these two grabbed me by the throat and threatened me. So I had no choice.

It seemed, to everyone but Shuri, that Wakanda had its strength back. That they were, by all intents and purposes, on the right track back to their former glory.

Thanos had been defeated and the souls lost for five years, returned.

The loss of their great King and protector T’Challa was mourned and celebrated before a new Black Panther rose in his place.

The heart shaped herb was restored.

And the balance of power after the loss of their Queen Mother, Ramonda, settled.

Yes, for all intents and purposes, to everyone else Wakanda handled its issues with grace and perseverance. They always came out stronger on the other side.

But to Shuri, she felt as lost as if it was all suddenly happening to her again. Like someone had taken a spear and stabbed her through the gut with it.

She sighed at that thought, placing a hand against the spot that had now fully healed, but still felt phantom pain in.

All of her emotions felt like an assault against her body. But during her physical fight with him, she realized how much they actually matched. One didn’t hurt any more than the other. Every punch, slam, scratch, throw, and even stab felt like the same pain of rectifying that she couldn’t save her brother, her mother, or protect Wakanda from an invasion of people who went undetected by their sensors.

It was all the same to Shuri. All of it was overwhelming. So she ran.

She needed time apart from everyone and everything. Nakia was the first to be so kind as to give her that place to rest her head. And to give her something even more precious. Her nephew. The future King of Wakanda, a second T’Challa, a second chance for her to protect him. To be there for him.

But even with a place away from it all, her eyes couldn’t seem to stay dry these days. With so little to occupy her time, she was forced to be with her thoughts and her emotions. And the more she felt them, the more they seemed wild and uncontrolled. They would flare up in her chest at the most inopportune moments and she hated how weak they made her feel. She wanted to scream and shout, to punch something or someone, and that was what scared her the most. With such violence playing right under the surface, she didn’t always feel comfortable being in such close quarters with the last living members of her family. She loved them too much to take her anger and frustration out on them.

So she planned a getaway from her getaway. Somewhere she could go that was isolated, where she could use her new strength to break rocks if she needed to. And scream into the air without judgment or worry from others.

And she found it on that same slab of land that she almost died on.

It was completely isolated, and still held the story of her first visit. The ship she flew in on that first time was still in pieces, scattered in the sand and bits of grass. The rock she was pinned to, still had the broken spear sticking out of it. And though some time had passed, the dents left in the sand from their powerful struggle with each other had still not been completely marred by any wind or rain that may have happened.

This was the perfect place for her to sit with her thoughts. A visual reminder of how damaged things could get when she didn’t remember who she was. When she let the greed of vengeance get in the way of what the mantle of the Black Panther was created for.

She was meant to be a protector.

That’s what she kept telling herself.

But she knew her reasons for recreating a hybrid of the heart-shaped herb was purely selfish. Afterall, she was splicing a plant that gave completely different abilities when mixed with vibranium and ingested by organic matter, with another plant that gave a different set of abilities. She didn’t take the time to study the effects it could have on a person.

She didn’t care if they could be lethal, debilitating, dangerous. At that time, she’d rather die than not get a taste of his blood on her hands like she promised herself. So she took the herb and made herself Black Panther as a means to her own ends. She put elite warriors and tribe leaders in danger for those same goals. And now, though the outcome was favorable, she was ashamed of her actions.

But they had all moved on so quickly. If they thought at all about how she used them, they gave her no idea about it. Instead, they focused on their tentative alliance with him. Namor. And on the dangers of the other world powers that would be knocking at their door. Without their attention, it left her feeling isolated and alone.

As she sat in the sand, gathering the small bits in her hands, she wondered about a many great things. All of them painful in one way or another. The tears she stored in her eyes ran as freely as her thoughts, and she didn’t bother to swipe them away. She left them to run over her smooth brown skin, down her cheeks and drip off her chin right onto her legs folded beneath her.

If she kept up this amount of water loss, she’d have a puddle surrounding her. But that was the point of sitting on this violently disturbed land. To allow herself this reprieve of exposure without being exposed.

In her distracted thoughts, she allowed herself to swim in circles, picturing a past self that she could no longer be again. Because the people who shaped her were no longer here.

She sniffled, the sound mixing in with a splash from the ocean that was a distance from where she sat. As she looked through the blur of tears that filled her eyes, she saw what she hoped was an apparition. But she knew it could only be him with that smooth tan skin, and strong, broad body decked in vibranium gold and jade.

Her breath hitched in her throat, almost causing her to choke as she hopped lightly to her feet and activated her necklace that housed the Black Panther suit.

Her entire body was covered in less than 2 seconds and she was crouched in a fighting stance. Ready.

Her eyes scanned his tight body, all the way down to the once symmetrical wings that adorned his ankles. One was missing, and she loathed herself for feeling bad about something that made her feel so good when she ripped it from him.

“What are you doing here, Namor?” She sneered his name as she called out to him, engaging her claws the more he approached.

He didn’t stop walking until he was completely on land, but he never took his eyes off of her, nor did he open his mouth to answer. They only stared at each other for a minute before his sharp eyebrows began to knit together, “Did we not come to be allies, Panther?”

“Our nations are allies,” she yelled to him. “But you and me? We’re nothing.”

She was shaking as she looked at him—he who looked so cool and unbothered by her anger. He never did hide his feelings since the moment she met him and because of that his face held many expressions. They display in the way his eyebrows moved, the sneer of his mouth, the flare of his nostrils around his jade septum piercing, or the squint of his eyes. Sometimes it was all of those things. Right now, it was just his eyes.

He wished her no harm, she could tell, even if he hadn’t said it. Instead, he raised his hands in a universal gesture of meaning peace before he turned his back to her and sat in the sand closer to the water.

She sucked in a deep breath, neck straining where she held it in as she watched him. She could feel her face twitching underneath the mask before she realized he was going to stay sitting there no matter how long she stared at his back, ready to strike.

A few clouds covered the sun, shifting the light, before she stood straight and sat back down in the sand. She kept her suit engaged, wrapped in the cocoon of a suit that offered no protection from him physically and certainly not mentally. But emotionally, he couldn’t see her face if he tried. And any protection from the one who made her feel so unlike herself, was better than nothing at all.

So she sat, quietly, holding in her anger at his presumptuousness and his silent demand to sit on the same shore that she was sitting on. He had the rule of the ocean and could have ended up anywhere, but he came back here. Why? When this place should offer him nothing but a reminder of how close he came to death?

It didn’t make sense, but then again, it didn’t make sense that with one appearance from him he was now all she could think about.

Nothing about what made sense to him or didn’t, should be her concern. She was here to heal. That was all that mattered.

Except…

When she returned the next day, there he was again.

And again.

Every time she made it to the beach and sat near the boulder she almost lost her life pinned to, he would come out of the water and sit. His back would be facing her, and he wouldn’t say a word. They did the same routine for weeks, everyday. Until, eventually, a month passed of them sitting a distance away from each other, silently.

Nakia reached out to Shuri when she realized the girl hadn’t returned to Wakanda and was, instead, somewhere she didn’t know.

Shuri assured her that she was fine. She was healing, but in her own way.

Nakia told her in times of grieving a person shouldn’t be alone. But that was the catch and she stared at its back everyday. Another person was with her. So was she actually alone?

When the first day of the second month started, she felt safe enough to remove her mask. He never turned around after sitting down and she was tired of having the itchiness of her tears pressed against her cheeks unable to dry.

But as soon as he came out of the water, instead of taking the few steps to his usual seat, he walked further up the sand towards her.

Her breath hitched in her chest the closer he got, and she got to her feet when he was only a few steps away, “Hold it! Why are you approaching me?”

She was blinking rapidly as she processed the sight of him before her.

There was a false level of comfort that eased her, knowing he would come on to the shore, sit in his usual spot, and not speak with her. Being able to expect that allowed her to relax. But now, he was suddenly doing something different, something she didn't expect and therefore could not prepare herself for.

“Why do you come here everyday?” He asked, stopping a few feet away from her. He wasn’t looking at her, she noticed. But his eyes were locked onto the boulder behind her, where the broken vibranium spear was run through.

“Why do you?” She said through clenched teeth, watching as his eyes slowly turned to rest on her frame. He examined her exposed face all the way down to her feet and Shuri rued that the one time she needed the mask, she’d been so caught off guard that she didn’t engage it.

She was sure he could clearly see her watery, pink eyes. And she knew the frown she wore was a bad mixture of anxiety and frustration.

“I come here to remember,” he answered her. “Though, what happened here isn’t something I can forget.”

He nodded towards her after speaking, as if to say it was her turn to share. She scoffed, turning her head from him, “I come here for silence and not to be bothered.”

If he had any intelligence about him, which Shuri knew he had plenty, he’d take the hint and leave her alone like he had been. But she also knew he was persistent, and the way he stepped closer to her before taking a seat highlighted that trait of his.

“What are you doing?” The shock in her voice was apparent and her feet carried her a few steps away from him. “I didn’t invite you to sit with me.”

“Didn’t you?” She heard him mutter. “I will be silently here, not bothering you as you requested.”

Her mouth balled up and her eyes widened as she processed his words, “I don’t want you sitting by me. I really don’t want you here at all, but I tolerate it. This is an affront!”

He didn’t look at her nor did he move which left her with the choice of relocating to another spot or bearing his presence closer to her.

She looked around the land, not wanting to move, not when she chose this spot for a reason. So she swallowed her irritation and took a seat after taking two more steps to the right and away from him. He was sitting slightly in front of her, so she could keep her eye on him just in case. But after a while it became obvious to her that she wasn’t only watching him because she was weary. There was something else she couldn’t place that drew her eyes to him. She didn’t know if it was the dark length of his clustered eyelashes, or the soft frame of his dark hair in general. But he looked like some type of art she was meant to study.

She shook her head, that made no sense no matter how she tried to reframe it. And eventually she snatched her eyes away from him all together with a frustrated huff.

At this point, he shouldn’t have any amount of control over her. But he did.

He’d been manipulating her from the moment he rose out of the river and accosted her and her mother. His honesty in his feelings, and his conviction towards his goals were always expressed very clearly. It was something she appreciated. And therein layed the problem. She appreciated things about him that she didn’t want to acknowledge. She wanted to hate him for what he took from her and for what he gave to her. He was just as culpable for restoring the Black Panther mantle to Wakanda the same way he was culpable for taking away a beloved Queen of the nation. And it was not fair how Shuri had to suffer for both when she wanted neither.

The mantle belonged to her brother or anyone more deserving.

And her mother, her mother belonged by her side, guiding her with her wisdom, grace, and beauty. She was her role model and what she thought was the last living member of her family. It was a sweet reprieve to be introduced to Toussaint, T’Challa son of T’Challa.

She sighed, allowing the sound to leave her mouth with no regard to whether he heard her or not.

He didn’t matter.

After a week of him sitting much closer to her, he began to come ashore with random objects.

At first, when he brought her a rock deposit from a cave near Talokan, she didn’t know what he expected her to do with it. Until he told her, “For your studies.”

She didn’t respond.

When he came with something else the next day, garnering no response from her but her eyes weary on his frame, he simply sat it next to her and then sat next to it.

That had been the closest she’d been to him since they traded blows—but unlike that time, this time she didn’t know what he wanted.

“Where did you get that from?” She looked down at the bent rock that seemed to have some sort of metal deposit within it.

“A cave near the land called India,” he said, voice sounding as warm as the sun shining above. “I gave some to our engineers. But you should have some as well. For your—”

“Studies,” she interrupted. “Right. I get it.”

“It is something else for you to focus on,” he spoke again. “When you are finished here.”

“Finished?” Her right eye twitched. “How will I know when I’ll be finished? If I’ll even finish?”

“If you let your grief consume you, then you won’t finish,” he looked at her, eyes soft. “Coming here everyday for unbothered silence will not help you.”

Her chest felt full, like she might be sick if she listened to another word he said. She’d grown to hate listening to him make sense when she couldn’t agree. Didn’t want to.

“I was here first, Namor,” she said. “And I will be here until I am done. You do not have to be here giving me your judgment and unwanted opinions.”

“I do not judge,” he was quick to say.

“You’re not helping either,” she bit out, raising to her feet. “Go away.”

He rose behind her, following in her steps until she turned around to yell at him, “Go away!”

“No, Panther,” he said in a calm, but firm manner. “I don’t think you should be alone.”

“I don’t think,” she stepped closer to him. “That what you think matters. Not in regards to me anyway. If I want to be alone, you will allow it ‘cause I don’t need your permission!”

He squinted his eyes at her tense frame, “You’re being loud is not going to get me to stop following you.”

“I’m not being loud for the fun of it, Namor,” she said through clenched teeth. “I really want you to leave me alone.”

He held his head high, looking down the slope of his nose at her contorted face filled with despair and anger, “I will not come close. But I will keep you in my sights, Panther.”

Her lips parted, ready to argue a point he would not listen to. This was as good as she was going to get without getting physically violent with him. And she wanted to. So very badly. She wanted to sink her claws into his back again, pull him close,and release all the pain she’d stored up over him. But she remembered the blows he traded with her. She didn’t want to feel those against her, not when he was looking at her the way he was. So she took off, running as quickly as her vibranium infused muscles would take her to put great distance between them. Without his wing fully healed, he’d have a hard time flying to see her and she was counting on it.

When she slowed and looked behind her, she didn’t see him. Not even at a distance. It was like he disappeared.

Without anyone around her for the first time, she felt empty—almost lost.

It was the complete opposite feeling of what she was begging for just a moment ago.

She wanted to be alone, away from him, and now that she was…

She screamed.

The sound came from her core, so deep down it felt as if the ground was shaking. Her suit deactivated, allowing her skin to breathe in the tropical breeze that was blowing. Her knees bent until she eventually fell onto them and reached for the earth below. Water poured from her eyes in the form of salty tears as her voice broke on the pain she was releasing.

This was what she wanted. The opportunity to let out all her pain without watching eyes. Even though she knew he was around, somewhere, she couldn’t see him so she pretended he couldn’t see or hear her either.

Her fingers grabbed at the sand and grass that was beneath her before her wail tempered out to whimpers of lingering grief.

Torture.

That was what she felt like she just let out of her body. A twisted form of torture she both controlled and didn’t.

After some time passed with her crouched to the ground, she fell onto her side, laying on the cool sand and staring blurry eyed out ahead of her.

In her immediate line of sight were two brown feet walking towards her with white wings sticking from the sides. One wing was noticeably missing. And when those feet stopped directly in front of her, she didn’t flinch away. When she felt a large, warm hand press onto her damp cheek, she closed her eyes but she didn’t tense up. When that same hand traced a finger down the length of her jaw to her quivering lips, her eyes opened again.

There was a warning welling up in her, like a siren wailing in her heart, but not because she felt in danger from his touch. She didn’t feel at all like she would have expected. She’d thought she would be ready to fight, to defend herself from his cold, callousness and the heavy blows he brought down upon her during their battle.

But, instead, his touch felt so warm, gentle—and what was worse—soothing.

She turned her face from him, pressing her forehead and the tip of her nose into the sand for a brief moment before forcing herself to sit up. Carefully, she wiped her face where the sand stuck and her tears dried. As she got to her feet on unsteady legs, she dusted off her body. All of this she did without meeting his gaze that she could feel never left her.

“I still don’t understand why you’re here,” she finally muttered around a throat that felt ripped raw.

She heard him sigh, but she still didn’t look up at him, “I came to remember, like I said. At first, I wanted to be here as a form of closure. I thought maybe you needed to do the same. Eventually, I realized you were not doing that.”

How could he know anything about her? Did he read minds too?

“You have no idea what I’ve been doing here,” she snapped, finally looking at him. But her face didn’t match the tone of her voice. There were tears filling her eyes again and she knew the expression she made right before crying was anything but threatening.

“I didn’t want you to be alone while you were grieving,” he ignored her. “I’ve lost enough people I’ve cared about overtime to know it is not something a person gets used to. But you shouldn’t be alone while doing so. It is not our way.”

“It’s not ours either,” she admitted, voice cracking. “But when I lost my father I had my mother and brother to share my pain. And when I lost my brother,” she sucked in a stuttered breath. “I had my mother,” she shook her head as she shrugged. “Now that she is gone, who do I have?”

She looked up at him, meeting his eyes directly so he could see all the pain and accusation in her face. She didn’t know what she was expecting to see when she met his eyes, but the soft gaze he captured her in was not it.

“I am sorry for all of your loss, Panther,” he said. “To not have one's family is like not having the very organs we need to live. And to lose a mother is like losing your heart.”

“How can you say that?” She whimpered. “If you know how painful this feels then why would you take her from me?”

“If I could have seen past my own desperate rage,” he muttered, reaching out to her. “Things would’ve been different.”

She slapped his hand away, backing up from him, “I told you it could have and you didn’t listen. You had your mind set on your way only. And now we’re here. I’ve sacrificed everything to get to this point and it's a place I don’t even want to be!”

“You can be angry with me,” he looked at the hand she slapped away. “I accept your anger. I understand it. And I deserve it.”

Her eyes closed at his words, forcing more tears down her face, “I won’t be in this place forever. I don’t know when I’ll move past this hurt. But I will. And when that happens, I’ll forgive you. But not for your sake. It’ll be for myself.”

He nodded, eyes following her as she walked past him, “Will you be here tomorrow?”

She thought about lying to him, telling him she wouldn’t ever return, “Yes, I will be.”

During the second week of the second month she spent sitting near the boulder, Namor sat directly next to her everyday. There were more and more things he’d collected for her to give her scientific opinion about. Eventually she asked him what his own scientist thought of the things he brought them.

“Do you wish to speak with them?” He asked, almost sounding eager.

“No,” she was too quick to answer. She didn't know why she said no, but she felt a fear about seeing other Talokani again so soon. “Not, not right now.”

“Of course,” he nodded. “Whenever you are ready.”

Her eyes dropped down his face, noting his sincere expression, “When I go back to Wakanda, I’ll be pretty busy in the labs thanks to you.”

“Well,” he smiled. “You’re welcome.”

She grimaced at his smile, hating the way it changed his face and automatically made him approachable. It was bad enough she never felt truly uncomfortable in his presence, even when she wanted to kill him. And now that he was by her side everyday as she tried to heal her grief, that comfort seemed to be increasing.

She found it a minor problem.

“I have so many questions to ask you about Talokan,” she said, quickly glancing at him but not being able to hold eye contact. “I don’t know where to start.”

He didn’t reply, only looked on at her picking at the grass growing through the sand. It took her more than a minute to realize he hadn’t said anything. So she looked over to him, surprised when her eyes immediately met his. They sparkled some times when he spoke, especially when he was passionate. And right now, they were doing the same thing without him saying a word.

Was it the setting sun, casting a glow and adding shadows that made him look more dazzling? Or was her eyes playing tricks on her from the amount of tears she’d shed? It could be both, or it could be neither.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Her voice didn’t have the usual strength behind it that it usually did when addressing him. “I don’t like it.”

A lie.

“My apologies,” he dropped his eyes from her. “Sometimes when I look at you, I see something that I’ve not seen in a very long time.”

She didn’t know what he meant and she wanted to ask, but she also didn’t want to know. Her feelings were all bundled up in her mind, making it hard to think and focus. She began to nibble at her lips before her whole face morphed into one of pure worry. It wasn’t until she felt his thumb right below the line of her bottom lip and the rest of his fingers pressing underneath her chin that her thoughts stopped completely.

When he tilted her head up to look at him, she noticed his eyes were sparkling again as he looked at her. They struck her, and she held her breath the longer he held her face. His head tilted to the side, dropping his eyes over the entirety of her face, “You’re impressive, Panther. It is something I cannot deny. You are of the land and no one here truly impresses me. But this is something I cannot take from you.”

She let out the breath she was holding, “I’m so happy to have your approval, Namor. It’s all I ever wanted.

His smile was soft as he dropped her chin, giving her her space back. She relished in it, while wanting to chase him, ask for him to touch her again. Why would she want anything from him, she had no idea. And that alone was part of the torture she was having trouble escaping.

She was drawn to the visage of him the moment he rose from the water and she realized it was a man with wings on his ankles, decked in vibranium, speaking to her. Then when she spent time in his company and got an idea of what kind of person he was, she knew if she could convince him to change his tactic, they could be really good friends.

Friends.

That’s all she would have wanted from him anyway. Not anything else. Well, maybe she did want his opinion on things, and his attention. But that was it.

“Someone like you doesn’t need my approval,” he muttered. “I don’t think you ever did.”

She squinted at his statement, knowing what it sounded like, but not knowing if she was interpreting the meaning correctly.

“Is there something you want from me,” she asked, wanting clarity. “I keep getting this feeling that you are waiting for me to give you something and I don't know what it is.”

“Hm,” he tilted his head towards the sun. “Something I’d want from you?” He glanced at her again, catching her eye, “After everything I have done to you, I’d only request that you are eventually able to be alright.”

“I’m a Wakandan woman,” Shuri said, sitting up straighter. For the first time, she could picture her mother’s face, her elegance and strength even in the face of tragedy. “I’ll be alright.”

In the third week of the second month, Shuri finally felt well enough to go home.

Not to Nakia and Toussaint, but back home to Wakanda.

There was so much she was sure she had missed out on by cutting herself off from the world. She only allowed contact with Nakia to check in and let her know she was still alive.

Her tears had finally dried, though melancholy would probably follow her for a while longer.

When Namor came from the waters that day, dripping wet and positively eye-catching, her decision was made.

She was spending too much time in his company. And the more she did the more liberties she allowed him to take. He had closed the distance between them completely over the month and half that he’d spent daily in her company. She found herself wanting things from him she shouldn’t want from a person who was just a friend. And she knew, even though he wished her to be well, that there might be more he’d take from her if she gave it.

That was something she wasn’t ready for. Not really.

It’d be a glorious distraction from what was going on in their lives, but it would only add so much more to an already heavy situation.

So when he pulled her to her feet instead of sitting next to her, she knew this would have to be the last day she spent here. He walked her to the shore, his large hand almost completely encapsulating her slender one and sending sparks of warmth all the way up her arm.

“Here,” he stopped as soon as their feet touched the warm water. “Would you like to meet someone?”

She immediately looked at him, “Someone from Talokan?”

She looked to where he pointed over the ocean, only to see one large fin come from under the water and make quite the splash when it went back under, “Is that a blue whale?”

“Incantu,” he said. “She swam most of this way with me.”

“How can I meet her?” She was gripping his hand just as tightly as he was holding hers, the excitement running through her was such a nice feeling after nearly drowning in despair.

“Want to go for a swim?” He asked, pulling her deeper into the water before she could say yes. The smile she wore so brightly on her face was enough for him to know exactly what she wanted even though her shirt and shorts were not the appropriate attire.

“Hold onto my shoulders,” he told her once the water became deep enough. “I will take us there.”

She did as he instructed, gripping the firm muscles that were his shoulders and relishing at how warm and soft his skin was. Before she knew it, they were speeding off into deep waters towards a Blue Whale—a majestic creature she never thought she’d actually meet.

As soon as they got close enough, he brought her hand directly to the thick skin of the creature. She was filled with an eagerness as she rubbed her hand over the wet flesh. He had one of his hands pressed onto her back while he was saying some things to the whale in his native tongue, “Incantu, this is Shuri, the great Black Panther.”

She laughed lightly at his introduction of her and startled when the whale made a loud noise, almost as if in greeting. She kept looking over at Namor, wondering what he could be thinking, “The first time I interacted with a blue whale was when I was first taken to Talokan. It was amazing then, but I was far too scared to really appreciate it.”

“Yes,” he nodded. “It was Incantu here that carried you to our home with Attuma and Namora.”

Her eyes widened, “Seriously?” She looked at the sheer largeness of the whale she was floating next to. “Does she remember me?”

“She does,” he smiled. “Come, she must leave now.”

He pulled her close to him, holding her up in the water as Incantu started to swim down deeper into the ocean. His grip was sure and firm around her waist. She didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, but with him that close, she found she couldn’t think of much else.

“Thank you for letting me meet her,” she said to him. “It is an honor really.”

“Anytime,” his voice was like a whisper so close to her ear. She knew if she turned to face him exactly what she would see and when she did turn it still startled her just how close her face was to his. It didn’t help that she was instantly captured in his dark, sparkling eyes.

This was why she had to leave this place and never return. Whatever had started between them when she first visited Talokan had been stamped down by his unwillingness to listen to reason. But now that time had passed and she found herself back in his company, her rage settled. The wall of protection she built was melting as if it were only made of ice and the man holding her now was the sun.

He leaned towards her, just enough to press the flat of his forehead and nose to hers. Every inch of his skin that was touching her was warm with his adorned jewelry being a cooling contrast.

It was intimate. And it felt—necessary. Like a completion to all they had been through, all they had put each other through.

When she opened her eyes again, she felt bold, stronger than she did previously. As if the man in front of her was only that. A man.

A man she wanted a lot of things from.

Who she currently wanted to feel more from.

Slowly, she tilted her head, sliding her forehead to the side until her cheek dragged against the soft hair of his face. He sighed and she could feel his breath fan against her ear and jaw. It tickled, it felt good, it made her hold him tighter.

Just a sigh from him made her feel powerful in his arms.

She ran her hands up from his strong shoulders, against the back of his neck where the nape of his feather light hair started and squeezed. The pressure elicited another sound from his mouth, a sound of pleasure, she was sure, because who didn’t like their heads massaged? She kept the pressure firm and rhythmic as she made her way up his scalp. He buried his face in her neck, where she felt his mouth beginning to gently press into the sensitive skin there. His lips traced up the tattoo she had along her neck that ended behind the fold of her ear. All of this was new, and elicited sensations she’d never thought to imagine let alone actually experience. The warm waves lapped at them as they floated in each other’s arms, tentatively exploring one another.

It sent electric shocks up her spine when she felt his teeth pinch the flesh of her ear with the lightest amount of pressure possible. But that was what she needed to be jolted out of her reverie. She gripped the length of his hair tight between her fingers, and with her power, she tugged his head back enough for him to arch into her. Her eyes were as intense as his while he looked down his nose at her, completely suspended in her grip. She could see it wasn’t because she was stronger, no, that wasn’t it at all. It was only because he allowed it. There was a glint in his eyes that told her she could venture as far to say he might have even liked it.

Slowly, she loosened her grip after staring in his eyes for an intense second. He lowered his head the looser her grip became. His own hands that were firm around her waist stayed steady, fingers flexing into her back and his thumb rubbing circles into the taunt flesh of her abdomen.

“There is a line somewhere between us, Namor,” Shuri finally whispered to him. “And I don’t think it should be crossed. Not now.”

He didn’t say anything at first, instead he ran his hands up her sides and then back down to her slender hips, causing her to shiver in his hold, “Whatever you say, Panther.”

She could tell from his tone of voice and squint of his eyes that he would have preferred to push the issue, but out of respect he did not.

“Come,” he finally released her to grab onto her hands. “Allow me to take you back to land.”

She did, holding onto him as he swam through the warm waves.

There were plenty of thoughts running through her mind about her position in life after everything. And she would be remiss to not consider just where Namor fit in amongst that position. The sun moved along in the sky, denoting the passing of time. And just like the sun, her relationship with Namor rose and fell, but it never failed to rise again. He wasn’t just some foreign King of a magnificent and powerful nation that she only had to see for political reasons. It was apparent that they could at least become friends if they haven’t already over the course of sitting with their emotions for nearly two months.

But there was so much more that could develop. It was innate, the relationship they could have. But that was between them and only them.

Right now, it was not something Shuri could seriously pursue.

As he helped her out of the water and back onto the warm sand, she tugged at him a little so she’d have his attention, “I won’t be here tomorrow. I think it’s time.”

The sparkle in his eyes dimmed some, but it was still there, lingering, “When will I see you again?”

She looked down with a shrug, “I don’t know. But I imagine not too much time will pass between now and then.”

“I hope not,” he said honestly with a playful glint in his eyes.

She looked up at him, a small smile on her lips despite herself, “For now, it’s goodbye.”

He nodded, letting go of her hand and backing up into the water. She watched him go, amazed that so little time had passed since they met, but so much had happened and developed between them.

She wished she had her family to share these new feelings with. For the first time, there was a man scratching for entrance to her heart that wasn’t her baba or brother. But she didn’t have them, and for the first time, she accepted that. She would never be the same as she once was. But she lived on, and with her, the story continued.

45 notes · View notes