#formatting on this one is a little wonky but I am on mobile so whatever

[fish-bowl-2]

Edd Moodboard consisting exclusively of images saved on my phone.

[pavlovianfuckery]

I don’t use Ao3 and it looks a bit wonky on mobile phones to click/open the Ao3 links from Tumblr. Just weird formatting! Please keep posting on here! The thing about Tumblr is that the more often you post original works, the more people will start to interact. I can’t tell you how many times on here I would find a writer that I loved, and then they would start hardly ever posting actual written work and I would just forget about it eventually. Regular posting of your stories will grow a steady/increasing group of people who love to interact and reblog/like! One story posted once every century (exaggerating here/Sandman reference lol), people will forget to tune in and will start to forget/lose the feeling that your works gave. You are so talented and one of my favorites, and I’m very new to your writing so I am heavily advocating for you to keep it going!!! So many writers on here start with high engagement and then start hardly ever posting their work, and wonder where everyone went/why everyone disappeared. Please stay on tumblr! Also having a masterlist would be insanely beneficial!!!! No one wants to have to scrounge around and look for bits and pieces of written works, bc we don’t know if we’re actually seeing it all and it’s confusing on mobile phones!!

Hopefully I didn’t come across like a bitch lol I am a huge fan of yours!! 💛

And now I'm crying into my can of Monster over here, the thought of people enjoying my silly little fics is pretty alien but you just made my day :)

Maybe I should try to make a masterlist, I never really thought about that since I only started posting my fics on here fairly recently, but it's probably a good idea. Trying to post more often is tough since I only really write one-shots and I have times where I'm in a frenzy and putting out a couple per week, then months of nothing. And reblogging my own stuff always feels a bit dumb, and it gets kind of hard to keep doing that when nobody else seems to be looking at it anyway.

edit: I think I made a masterlist! lmk if links are broken or whatever else I might have done wrong lol

[astralscrivener]

hey you’re a voltron blog i’ve been following for a while i thought you might have an answer: where the fuck did leakira come from?? like what’s the origin of that bc it’s not from canon unless i fucking missed something

i am confusion, sincerely, a tired bitch who someone still cares about voltron

hello!! thank you for the question

leakira is not canon! basically season 7 happened and a Lot of people realized that klance was dead in the water, and for a Lot of us it was a comfort ship and it had very real impacts on our mental health, which is a whole other can of worms but a lot of us were really bummed out, especially after being strung along for a while

(and yes, klance was used as bait, in a more subtle way than adashi and that is Another can of worms i don’t have time to get into but living through seasons 3-8 in real time was Something Else)

and so this girl named lexi (idk if she still goes by lexi and she/her bc she disappeared from my timeline a little while later) was Really torn up about it, and she was best friends with the artist captainlumin, who was at the time a pretty popular artist in the fandom

and so they came up with this au version of lance and keith in a cyberpunk world and called them leandro and akira. it literally started out as a coping mechanism between two friends who loved klance and wanted to see them as canon, so they made an au

the fandom Latched The Fuck Onto It, and klance was arguably at one of its peaks (the other peak being around the time s3 dropped), and lexi and captainlumin were like “haha yeah do whatever with them!” and the fandom Did Whatever with leakira. and as fandom does, facts got twisted and things got out of control, people made cyberpunk versions of the rest of the cast (and this is where we get the accidental racist moment where someone decided that shiro would be named hachiko, which is basically the japanese version of the dog lassie). shallies cried foul and bitched and moaned that people were “so mad that their precious klance isn’t canon that they were making up a whole au to spite dreamworks and planning on buying the show rights to make it canon!!!” (because this was when shallies still kissed lm and jds’ asses bc they had hoped sh//th would still be canon at this point despite two (2) “youre my brother” scenes)

(and, indeed, this is about the time when some people Actually Did Try To Get Unofficial Reboots going, and the time when i began writing my s4-8 fix-it fic, but none of those “reboots” ended up actually going anywhere)

of course, lexi and captainlumin ended up facing a lot of backlash even tho they had Only made up leandro and akira, and the rest of the stuff was the kl fandom at large. eventually, captainlumin and lexi disappeared from their voltron accounts (as far as i know captainlumin is still active in a different fandom under a different name, but for the sake of their privacy i wont say anything further) and i have no idea where lexi is, i’m presuming and hoping she’s doing alright

but yeah, tl;dr: two friends made up leandro and akira to cope w s7, then the fandom took it and ran with it and. stuff happened.

anyway that’s been your fandom history lesson for today!

(also sorry if the formatting is wonky, i’m on mobile)

[diyeoracha]

IwaOi Fanfiction Masterlist with 90+ Works

Hello! In celebration accumulating over 290 bookmarks on my AO3 account featuring IwaOi, Haikyuu S4 part 2, and @haikyuuweek2020​ (Day 7 - Free Choice), I decided to create a masterlist of all of my favorite Iwaoi fics in order to keep myself organized as well as contributing to more traffic for those works! Works are split up into genres such as alternate universe (either not childhood friends or set on Earth), angst, canon compliant (post timeskip with spoilers), canon divergent (childhood friends but divergent timeline post timeskip), high school, and university au

Formatting update: Jan 13, 2021 (spacing is wonky on the mobile app!).

Fic update: Jan 7, 2021

This is incomplete as I got distracted while re-reading a lot of these and have only gone through half of my bookmarks, but feel free to check my own page here for the rest of them! I really do hope you guys enjoy reading these and leave comments and kudos! Please reblog and like so more people can enjoy

Titles marked with (♡) are my absolute favorites and there’s a chance I cried while reading them but otherwise they’re in alphabetical order

Alternate Universe

an allegory of all the things we could’ve been

Word count: 16k

Summary: “I don’t know anything about some red string,” Iwaizumi murmurs into the cracks of Oikawa’s skin, “or even about lifetimes or fate. But no matter where you are, I’ll find you. Gods or otherwise.” Reincarnation AU

And All the Prince’s Men

Word count: 65k

Summary: “Father only loves that which he owns, and I am the one thing that can never truly be his.” Royalty AU

Built a Temple in Me

Word count: 55k

Summary: Up the mossy mountain steps, past the komainu guardians and the faded red gate, and beyond the boundaries of the green shrine—that’s where the forest and the spirit world within it lies. That’s were Hajime met him, and where their story began.But intertwining of destinies can be ugly business, Hajime finds, when their first meeting begins with blood and the too-human eyes of a beast. God Oikawa AU

Quote: It fills his heart anyway, heals the hole in his chest that had been bleeding since he cut Tooru so forcibly from him.

Cotton Breathing

Word count: 13k

Summary: Long-distance and summer only but childhood friends AU

Conquering the Great King

Word count: 105k

Summary: Oikawa's lips twitched into a smirk and he brought them hovering just over Iwaizumi's, "One time thing, Two time thing, what's it matter as long as it's not a Relationship thing?"

Quote: Oikawa's eyes twitched wide for less than a second, his knee pressed in hard against Iwaizumi's thigh, "I may be gorgeous, but I'm not a doll."

dear diary, i met a boy

Word count: 15k

Summary: Iwaizumi's first impression of his upstairs neighbor involves getting woken up at two in the morning to the sound of Oikawa singing along to trashy pop music. He'd thought it would get better, but it all just goes downhill from there. Modern AU

Desperado

Word count: 82k

Summary: Clearly Iwaizumi had a checkered past. Kyoutani has never asked about it, nor has Iwaizumi ever brought it up. He knows it’s a sore spot for his mentor, just like the gorgeous Monte Carlo he keeps hidden away is, so he leaves it alone. Out on the streets, you learn a little something about when to turn a blind eye in order to survive; Kyoutani knows better than most to leave the past of men like Iwaizumi well alone. Heist AU

Even Heroes (have the right to dream)

Word count: 20k

Summary: Oikawa Tooru, ace reporter of the superhero beat of Asahi Shimbun, hates superheroes. Or maybe he just hasn’t met the knight one yet. Superhero AU

♡Infinite Risks

Word count: 8k

Summary: “It’s my fate,” Oikawa responds slowly. He’s crying. “It’s too lonely,” Iwaizumi’s heart sounded broken. “And I’m not there with you. Not really.” Edge of Tomorrow AU

In Defense of Reptiles

Word count: 9k

Summary: In their seventh year, Oikawa is chosen to be the Hogwarts champion in the Triwizard Tournament, and Iwaizumi suffers. Harry Potter AU

Quote: “You are so spoiled,” Iwaizumi tells him, but lets him shuffle down until Iwaizumi’s hand is now running through Oikawa’s hair instead of rubbing his shoulder.

In the Telling

Word count: 6k

Summary: Muggleborn Iwaizumi could not be less impressed with pureblood Oikawa Tooru. Harry Potter AU

♡Lockdown

Word count: 72k

Summary: Within the first few months of his stay, Oikawa gets caught up in a war between cellblocks, becomes a prime target, and must decide just how far he's willing to go to protect Iwaizumi Hajime. Prison AU

♡long nights, no peace

Word count: 18k

Summary: It's the steady knowledge that Iwaizumi Hajime will always be someone that he can rely on, that no matter what the world throws at the two of them, they share in a piece of each other's soul. Pacific Rim AU

Quote: Quiet settles between them softly, like the warm pressure of the blanket, or Iwaizumi's fingers curling to lightly hold the fabric of Oikawa's shirt.

The Long Light

Word count: 36k

Summary: Iwaizumi Hajime's seventh year at Hogwarts begins, and begins, and begins, and begins. Somehow, Oikawa Tooru is always there. Harry Potter AU

Magic Man

Word count: 12k

Summary: Oikawa is named the most desirable wizard in France. Iwaizumi is not impressed. Harry Potter AU

Quote: You keep saying partner or them. Is it rude of me to ask you to clarify?

Meet me in the grey area

Word count: 24k

Summary: Set in a hero/villain AU with Iwa as our trusty hero and Oikawa as our charming villain

Saw You at the Fish Market

Word count: 14k

Summary: In other words, Oikawa befriends hot part-time worker Iwaizumi and tries to impress him both off and on the court, in hopes of more.

♡♡ (sing with me) A Song of Conquest and Fate

Word count: 26k

Summary: When Seijou receives a missive from Aobajousai to discuss a potential peace, its emperor Oikawa Tooru could not have foreseen the series of events that would follow. Historical fantasy AU

Similar Creatures

Word count: 53k

Summary: "What's your name?" "Whatever you want it to be."(Or, Oikawa gets directions from an attractive stranger on a street corner.). Escort AU

♡Something Like Us

Word count: 28k

Summary: Friends since childhood, Oikawa and Iwaizumi now live together, both playing for the National Team. It's no secret that athletes who are bonded perform better. So if the two of them happen to bond...It'd be for the good of the team, right? A/B/O AU

Space

Word count: 44k

Summary: Tries not to think of his rooftop garden, or the apartment he used to inhabit, or Hajime’s broken expression on the night they whispered their goodbyes before Tooru’s launch, attempting to push it all to the back of his mind behind visions of this alien world terraformed. Astronaut AU

Stop the Time

Word count: 10k

Summary: Iwaizumi Hajime, 27, E.R. nurse at University of Tokyo Hospital. Hospital AU

♡♡The Loyalty of A Traitor

Word count: 76k

Summary: Iwaizumi Hajime was an undercover officer with a single objective: Infiltrate the Seijoh Syndicate of the Yakuza and tear them down from the inside out. His primary target was the boss, Oikawa Tooru. The job itself was simple enough, until Iwaizumi got in too deep and absconded not only from the mission, but from the city itself. Yakuza AU

These Flowers I Stole For You

Word count: 3k

Summary: ANBU don't cry. They tear themselves apart, bit by bit, and then they stitch themselves whole again. Naruto AU

on shipwreck shore

Word count: 8k

Summary: “I’m going to murder you in cold blood and feed you to the basilisks,” Iwaizumi says conversationally. “You can’t do that, I’m your boss,” Oikawa sings, positively sparkling. “Also we’re partners, which means,” he points at Iwaizumi and leans in, “you’re stuck with me.” Detective AU

Page 305 of 304

Word count: 53k

Summary: “…she called you ‘papa’,” iwaizumi managed. oikawa just stared for a moment longer before relaxing in a smile. “yeah. cute, right? but you can call me ‘daddy’ if you want.”

Temporary fix

Word count: 12k

 Summary: “And you’ve shampooed his hair how many times now? Hmm. Yeah, that’s not technically a bromance.” A/B/O AU

Tokyo Boy

Word count: 16k

Summary: He has feelings for Iwaizumi Hajime, who probably has casual lovers just like him in every major city he visits on business. Oikawa is just his Tokyo Boy, just another pit-stop on Iwaizumi’s travels. Businessman AU

Trial by Fire

Word count: 78k

Summary: (lawyer!AU - in which Iwaizumi loves his objections, Oikawa is beautiful, and they have more chemistry than two opposing attorneys probably should.)

Watch Me

Word count: 32k

Summary: Oikawa's a cam model. It’s been a month since Iwaizumi first spoke in his chat. When they meet in person, things get complicated. Cam model AU

Angst

open when

Word count: 1k

Summary: Iwaizumi knew it was coming, but it still hurt. It still hurt when he opens one letter and drowns it in the tears he cannot keep at bay.

Chasing Paper Suns

Word count: 10k

Summary: Post-high school,     Oikawa makes it to the national volleyball team but Iwaizumi doesn't. The     next three years become an exercise in growing up without growing apart

Quote: “ ‘it’s just—I’m     just trying so hard—’‘What, and I’m not?’

Timeless (We Have 30 Days)

Word count: 12k

Summary: Or AU where you're branded 50 days before you die. But Oikawa doesn't tell anyone so now there's only 30 days left.

the weight of water

Word count: 6k

Summary: “Again,” he says, the smallest tremor in his voice, and Oikawa blinks at him a moment before smiling, soft and sweet. “Iwa-chan,” he replies, and Iwaizumi closes his eyes. “Again.” “Iwa-chan.”

Canon Compliant

Are You Listening?

Word count: 4k

Summary: 30 times oikawa said i love you and 1 time he didn't have to

Quote: “Iwa-chan, watch out for the log—!” Oikawa looked on in horror as his best friend tripped and fell flat on his face.

Edge of the balcony

Word count: 8k

Summary: Iwaizumi looks older, he realizes. Oikawa knew he had aged as well, and so did everyone around him, but the thing was when you see people often, you don't notice the subtle changes in appearance. And Oikawa hadn't seen Iwaizumi in four years.

How can this loser ever win

Word count: 2k

Summary: everyone is in stupid love with Iwaizumi Hajime and he has no idea

♡♡♡Lost in Translation

Word count: 9k

Summary: Because misfortune come in threes, Iwaizumi Hajime starts his Thursday having a screaming fight with Shittykawa, spends his lunch break listening to the UCI women's volleyball team gossiping about how Ushijima Wakatoshi had gone public about his longtime love affair with Oikawa Tooru, and closes out the day by drunkenly dropping his phone into a sewer grate.

maybe we could be enough

Word count: 9k

Summary: iwaizumi hums in reply as the car goes silent, frank ocean crooning from the speakers. they stop at a red light when iwaizumi feels eyes at the side of his face, and turns to look at oikawa.

Most people never even get a single high school rival

Word count: 5k

Summary: Team Argentina gets to know Iwaizumi Hajime (27) Athletic Trainer.

Primavera

Word count: 8k

Summary: They say it takes twenty-six years, for certain breeds to fully bloom.

Quote: Did you know that distance is only me, growing towards you?

♡♡♡rest on your laurels

Word count: 4k

Summary: In Iwaizumi’s heart of hearts, untouched by time, they are young and alive, burning with the hearth of home and bright as winter light. Unbreakable. Invincible.

♡♡♡Something Borrowed

Word count: 16k

Summary: In which Oikawa and Iwaizumi have always been a foregone conclusion to everyone else, but a massive, unanswered question to one another.

‘Til Infinity

Word count: 2k

Summary: “Hey,” he says, “that cloud looks kind of like a dick.”

Quote: “I got you ladybug”

♡♡♡ You Set Off a Dream In Me

Word count: 15k

Summary: In which Oikawa is 41 and ready to retire. He's at the top of his game and ready to find a new challenge. Turns out his new challenge is pretty familiar. It's high school, round 2.

Quote: A past with an Iwaizumi that wasn’t on the opposite side of the net, monsters on all sides, guiding a setter that had lived the dream left behind in the ruins of Tooru’s past self.

Canon Divergent

a world alone

Word count: 60k

Summary: Iwaizumi has his medical books on the musculoskeletal system. Oikawa has his research papers on parallel universes. It isn't until much, much later that they realize they have each other.

♡Almost a Stranger

Word count: 16k

Summary: Iwa-chan's leaving Kapan. Tooru's not sure he can forgive him, but he's not going to admit his long-held feelings, either. A trip to Miyajima complicates everything.

Quote: There are only two things that have ever broken Oikawa Tooru’s heart. Iwa-chan would say Tooru has no heart to break, but that’s simply untrue.

Count your blessings, it goes 1,2,3, me

Word count: 7k

Summary: He's unsettled by the undefined boundaries of their relationship so it's all his luck that he accidentally wins three wishes to be granted just for him, and all that comes to mind is Iwaizumi.

Quote: Now, as an adult, past convenience of circumstance and the haze of hormonal lust, exactly none of his feelings have worn off

♡♡♡the courtship ritual of the hercules beetle

Word count: 66k

Summary: Tooru is pretty sure he could manage the mating habits of a mosquito. It’s the mating habits of people he can’t seem to get right.

♡days fall away

Word count:17k

Summary: Except now he’s back home, so close to his old haunts and to Oikawa himself, and it's—weird.

Quote: “You and Tooru,” he begins, and then shrugs. “I was just thinking, you look at each other a lot.” And he walks away, leaving Hajime winded, and sort of aching, somewhere deep in his chest. Whatever that means.

♡here comes your man

Word count: 8k

Summary: Iwa-chan, it reads, Have a good day today! Good luck! <3 <3 <3 Suga chokes. It’s hard to imagine anyone calling the scowling and fierce Doctor Iwaizumi “Iwa-chan.” But marriage probably comes with all sorts of liberties. Doctor AU

♡♡In damp earth my body

Word count: 15k

Summary: Onscreen, the nation’s favorite setter has arranged himself so that he’s bowing, forehead pressed to the court, like he’s thanking everyone for their kindness thus far, like he’s asking for forgiveness. Hajime thinks: shit, it’s really happening

In the Business of Love

Word count: 22k

Summary: Meet Oikawa Tooru: He's a best-selling shoujo manga artist, a hardcore romantic and you won't believe where he's getting his lovey dovey fodder from...Enter Iwaizumi Hajime: He's Oikawa's best friend, a realist who also happens to be a wedding magazine writer despite not believing in romance...

Quote: A flare of pride lit in Oikawa as he watched Iwaizumi's eyes crinkle with mirth and in that yawning second, it bloomed into a warmth that bordered on a burn, forcing a bittersweet inhale.

it's been so long (nobody knows me the way you do)

Word count: 8k

Summary: Tooru hums, only half-listening. Somewhere along the way, Hajime’s palm has settled itself over the curve of Tooru’s cheek, thumb tracing over the line of his jaw.

Quote: Iwaizumi blushes even more. “That you’re here, I mean. I’m happy that you’re here. With me.”

♡♡♡Mint

Word count: 19k

Summary: It's the December after Iwaizumi’s last year in university when Tokyo welcomes him with a new ad campaign for Bright Days toothpaste, and Oikawa Tooru—fresh off a run at the 2016 Summer Olympics—has decided to grace the city with his signature grin, a flip of his wayfarer sunglasses, and the most irrepressible tag line for the signboard above.

Quote: "To be able to tell him, in the new year."  This comes under Oikawa's breath, so low that Matsukawa and Hanamaki can't hear, and the game continues.

Six-Month Lover

Word count: 89k

Summary: Iwaizumi barks out a laugh. “I’m still trying to get over the fact that you made a PowerPoint presentation about why we should date.” Oikawa doesn’t tell him the file has existed for the last twelve years, constantly receives updates, and that the original copy contained almost a hundred slides before he forced himself to get a grip.

Special Relativity

Word count: 22k

Summary: Time moves differently for people in different inertial reference frames. Oikawa goes on a two-year exploratory mission in space. Iwaizumi's been waiting for a lot longer than that.

♡♡sunset towns

Word count: 33k

Summary: In the summer of 2020, Oikawa Tooru returns home from his first successful stint as captain of Japan’s national volleyball team. In one hand, he holds the undisputed weight of an Olympic medal, and in the other, his unresolved feelings for a childhood best friend.

♡♡Thirty Years and Change (the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad)

Word count:     19k

Summary: It’s July 10th, 2024, and Oikawa Tooru is an Olympian. His smiling face airs on an NHK promo every 45 seconds. He’s captain of the national men’s volleyball team, reigning star of the professional leagues, and he hasn't spoken to Iwaizumi Hajime in two years.

Quote: Oikawa’s grin in  the last set of the morning’s game. Oikawa’s grin as they sat on their asses on a golf course. Oikawa’s grin when they were in college. When they were in high school. When they were twenty-two, seventeen, fifteen, twelve, six.

High School

Bet On It

Word count: 13k

Summary: Hajime knows exactly how shitty Oikawa's personality is, and has no scruples whatsover about betting Oikawa six thousand yen that he can't be nice for an entire week.

Quote: The whole instant-compliance thing was seriously creeping him out. Oikawa from a week ago would have made a crack about how if he'd wanted something cold, he could have just put his face on Hajime's shoulder.

Betweens

Word count: 2k

Summary: Iwaizumi is asleep in the club room. Oikawa is blindingly awake in the club room. The sun moves slowly across the sky, and Iwaizumi’s skin is gold underneath it. Oikawa watches the changing shadows on Iwaizumi’s face and thinks about nothing in particular.

Don’t think too much

Word count: 6k

Summary:  In which Oikawa and Iwaizumi have a confusing, drunken encounter and then deal with the (sticky) consequences.

Quote: As soon as that thought crossed his mind, though, Oikawa did what he always did:  exactly the opposite of what Hajime wanted

Gates

Word count: 12k

Summary: The day after their graduation ceremony, they drive to the beach at Shirahama. Iwaizumi drives, because it’s his car, and as he has told Oikawa on multiple occasions, he’d rather die than let him touch the wheel.

Quote: ‘Yeah,’ he says, because they’re on a beach, and they’re supposed to be on a metaphorical journey, and they’re supposed to be growing up, and completing rites of passage, so it’s honesty, today - just for today, at least.

♡♡i sing the body electric

Word count: 8k

Summary: It was never part of the plan, falling in love with his best friend, but then again, most things in Iwaizumi’s life that involve Oikawa rarely unfold the way he thinks they will.

Quote: But Iwaizumi thinks about Oikawa laughing with that girl in the low light of the gym, a particular kind of quiet intimacy that Iwaizumi’s only ever read about in books hovering in the air, and all it makes him feel is small and petty and spiteful.

it’s better than words

Word count: 3k

Summary: [ or : oikawa makes iwaizumi participate in three bonding activities for new friends, and iwaizumi just wants to know why oikawa's being so weird about this]

Make sure you cross the line

Word count: 4k

Summary: With graduation just around the corner, Iwaizumi knows he has to gather the courage to really ask Oikawa out.

Quote: He’s been asking Iwaizumi to go out with him every single day this past week, increasingly panicked about getting his time and attention now that they’re nearing the end of this season of their lives.

Only the jellyfish know

Word count: 6k

Summary: Their third and final year at Aoba Jousai has come to an end, and the guys decide to go to the beach the day after graduation. That day, the ocean water is salty, the watermelon is sweet, and the people are sweeter.

static

Word count: 6k

Summary: Being snowed in with all of Seijou volleyball in his childhood home brings back a lot of memories for Iwaizumi, because it's kinda Oikawa's childhood home too.

Quote: It's fate that brought them together and choice that keeps them that way. The closest description in Hajime’s vocabulary is partners, but only because Oikawa taught him what its true definition is.

Told before and told again

Word count: 3k

Summary: This is how Hajime and Tooru fall in love, through the accounts of those around them.

Quote: When Oikawa lets out a long, heavy breath, Iwaizumi looks up at him and frowns, and flings a towel over Oikawa’s head to cover his face. Then, he tugs, once, on Oikawa’s fingers, and leads him down the hallway, Oikawa walking quietly in tow.

♡we can do better than that

Word count: 16k

Summary: Oikawa and Iwaizumi go on a road trip during the summer after their high school graduation. It doesn't go as expected, but maybe that's not such a bad thing after all.

Quote: Because Iwaizumi’s known Oikawa nearly all his life and never felt anything more than vague affection usually followed by intense irritation for him. But then suddenly at eighteen years old and nearly two weeks into a very badly planned road trip, it’s like someone flipped a switch somewhere inside Iwaizumi

♡when it starts to rain, they go inside

Word count: 33k

Summary: “Where?” starts Iwaizumi.“ My parent’s old lakehouse, silly, didn’t you hear me the first time?” OR: Oikawa takes Iwaizumi to his lakehouse for two weeks, post-graduation.

reassemble it

Word count: 15k

Summary: When Tooru was six years old, he discovered—unbeknownst to him at the time—two of the most important things in his life: volleyball and Iwaizumi Hajime. It was ironic that he had stumbled upon them hand in hand—quite literally, too.

♡things that change, things that stay the same

Word count: 8k

Summary: Oikawa realizes he's in love with his best friend; it sucks for a while. (But only a while.)

Quote: Iwaizumi’s expression right now is less terrified than it used to get back then, but he’s tight-lipped with concern, and his broad body blocks out other passengers as if their stares might be a danger to Tooru too.

University AU

An Archaeology of Affection

Word count: 23k

Summary: For Hajime, it is a riddle and simultaneously so evident. It fills his chest, surging like water, paints heat up his neck. In retrospect, it eats up his days, makes them its own until it feels like his heart has always been in his throat at the smile thrown over Oikawa’s shoulder, the stilling of his fingers on Hajime’s sleeve.

closure

Word count: 22k

Summary: In his first year of university, Oikawa builds a new friendship and upgrades an old one. Or: Ushijima is not a great wingman, but he tries his best.

Quote: “On the first day of his university career, Oikawa Tooru walks into his dorm, spots his assigned roommate, and turns one hundred and eighty degrees and walks right back out. He dials a familiar phone number - the first one he ever memorized - and starts complaining before Iwaizumi even gets the chance to say hello. “Iwa-chan,” he says, “tell me why Ushiwaka is in my dorm room.”

♡♡♡galaxies, within you

Word count: 21k

Summary: Hajime and Tooru move in together at the start of university. Too bad they’re stuck with the two gremlins that haunt their apartment.

Quote: I AM A HEADASS

Hands to yourself

Word count: 11k

Summary: He missed his parents, and he missed Takeru, and Takeru's badly behaved puppy. He missed Aoba Jousai, and he missed the volleyball team. He even missed Karasuno and Shiratorizawa, just a little.

Home, and how we made ours

Word count: 3k

Summary: “No, I like it here.” There’s a rustling as Iwaizumi shifts, inching closer. “I like it here, as in this crappy apartment—with you.”

Quote: “Do your fights end up being like—you know, about actual things and then extending into toddler days and suddenly you’re accusing Iwaizumi of kissing the girl you used to like in preschool?”

in progress to you

Word count: 6k

Summary: The eventuality of Oikawa and Iwaizumi falling toward each other is dramatically lackluster. Still, it's a process to go through.

Quote: “But what if you didn’t eat my pudding all the time?” Iwaizumi asks flatly, ignoring the way Oikawa is slapping his thigh to get out of his chokehold. “Do you think I buy them for you, huh? I buy them for me, you turd.”

Like we’re made of starlight

Word count: 6k

Summary: (a look into iwaizumi hajime’s journey of falling in love with oikawa tooru, from when they’re babies meeting for the first time to young adults moving in together.)

Ninety nine percent

Word count: 14k

Summary: more than anything, oikawa tooru wants to be with iwaizumi hajime, but he's only ninety nine percent of the way there.

Quote: Their ace was lining up for the ball, knees bent and arm pulled back, just as Tooru tosses the ball……to Hajime.

no sleep in the city

Word count: 7k

Summary: Along their journey to find Tokyo's best ramen, Iwaizumi finds himself asked again and again why Oikawa is still single.

Quote: “I was only telling Hanamaki literally yesterday that your personality isn’t as vile as before,” Iwaizumi informs, slightly stiff from the way Oikawa’s got an arm looped through his own. “Why do you make me such a liar to people I care about?”

Out of nowhere

Word count: 8k

Summary: They move in together after graduation and it's doing weird things to Iwaizumi's heart. He's a little in denial about it.

Quote: Oikawa excitedly ran up to him when Iwaizumi came home with groceries the other day. Not about the food but just to say how boring everything is when Iwaizumi's not there, eyes shining, and he couldn't meet his gaze after from blushing down to his neck. He doesn't know how much more he can take.

♡♡shiver

Word count: 16k

Summary: Oikawa was always the brave one. Hajime just followed two paces behind.

Quote: “I’m in love with you,” Oikawa tells him three days after they graduate junior high, head in his lap and hands gently folded over his chest and completely and totally unconcerned that he’d just shattered Hajime’s world.

Terpischore

Word count: 38k

Summary: They’d ended up going to different universities, Tooru and he. The distance was good for them. The confession Hajime dropped in both their laps wasn’t. That’s how it’d ended – a lifetime of friendship crumbled to dust in the space of five minutes. (Or, a lesson in learning to move on from things you can't have, in finding old loves in new ways and in understanding that life is never truly simple... till it is.)

terrarium

Word count: 11k

Summary: At this point, is he really happy with just staying best friends forever? Will he be writing journals and collecting rocks forever (he will, he knows, but that is aside from the point)?

these foolish things (remind me of you)

Word count: 3k

Summary: Oikawa helps Iwaizumi move into his new college dorm.

Quote: He’s desperate for something to happen. It must show on his face because Iwaizumi blushes and looks away. The thing is, Oikawa always looks at him like this when Iwaizumi isn’t paying attention.

They say it rains diamonds on Jupiter

Word count: 35k

Summary: "You're in love with him. "Hajime considers denying it. "Yeah," he says instead.

Quote: “Share the weight of your feelings with me, Hajime wants to beg when he hears Tooru's first hitched breath. Let me carry some of your burdens”

to be first, to be best

Word count: 26k

Summary: Hajime is apparently something of a masochist, and as he stares down at the tie-dyed AREA51 T-shirt in his hands, he thinks “I’m totally in love with this asshole, aren't I?”

Undecipherable

Word count: 4k

Summary: "Koi no yokan," he says. "The sense one can have upon first meeting a person that the two of you are going to fall in love."

Quote: Because for all the bravado, for all the flaunting Oikawa does, he wants Hajime by his side, and no one else.

♡we shine like diamonds

Word count: 26k

Summary: "You know Abe-kun from class?" they snicker, hands cupped around their mouths like they're passing along a filthy secret. "I hear his older brother is... gay."

Where you are (I’ll be)

Word count: 6k

Summary: Theirs is a love that starts out like a seed and it takes two sets of hands tending it for a shoot to appear. There are no dramatic declarations of love, only a pair of hands that find each other again and again and again.

Quote: Oikawa broke off into giggles as Hajime slowed the descent of his hand from a slap to the back of Oikawa’s head to a gentle ruffle of the taller boy’s hair

♡♡with every second that you could give

Word count: 9k

Summary: The journey of Iwaizumi and Oikawa going for gold.

Quote: He knows they’re too close. Iwaizumi knows it too, and they both decided to move in together anyway.

Your love is sunlight

Word count: 6k

Summary: It's Iwaizumi's birthday, and they have a talk about the future.

Quote: But Hajime doesn’t think any present could top this: them, kissing in a sun-dappled bathroom, Oikawa’s skin warm under his hands, and the promise of a life together stretched out before them.

[onmywaytobe]

Dissidia Writeblr March 2021 Week 2

Ooo she do be late but she tried her best! Thank you @maple-writes for working with me and thanks @dissidia-writeblr for running this amazing event!

(apologies for any wonky formatting I’m posting on mobile and I’ll fix it tomorrow)

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

As Sichoris walks in front of Warren and Leo, he turns back with a smile. “You were summoned to this world from your worlds. But it’s only temporary. Normally, people who are summoned here are returned in a few weeks.” Leo doesn’t pay much attention, absently noting that his dreams weren’t usually this lore-heavy. “This world is facing a crisis,” Sichoris continues. “The magic in this world has gone out of control and is randomly changing people into beings of light or darkness who prey on humans. Some people want to find a way to change the beings back, but Ritania has faced the bitter truth that once changed, no one can change back. So, we are trying to find a solution to the problem that caused all this. Someone performed the summoning spell, and the leader I work for wants to see if the people who have been summoned have anything that can help us fight the beings. You’ll be meeting him soon.”

He sounds very serious as he leads them into the big city. The buildings loom tall and impassive, metal and stone against the clear blue sky. The soldiers standing guard watch them, but they don’t say anything. There aren’t many people walking on the streets. Leo is surprised to see the city so empty. From afar, it had looked like a bustling metropolis. Yet the majority of the inhabitants of the city seem to be hiding away, leaving the soldiers the only ones outside. Sichoris looks back at Warren and Leo. “Ritania is actually at war at the moment, so that’s why there are so many soldiers around.”

“War, huh?” Warren mumbles, taking a sip from their travel mug and seeming awfully casual about the whole thing. Maybe there’s something brewing under the surface. Or maybe they’re used to things like this.

Leo stares at them, wondering at how out of place they look here in their office attire. Probably not. “Magic, war... what is this, Harry Potter?” He rolls his eyes, a little annoyed with his own imagination. Maybe he’s been watching too many movies with Carter.

“Who’s that?” Warren asks, but Leo wasn’t in the mood to explain.

“Carter would love this,” he mutters. Now that he’d thought of her, he was sure that was the explanation, her influence on his mind.

“Who?” Warren asks again, looking concerned. Now Leo feels a bit rude. He doesn’t want to leave Warren confused, even if they were just in his mind.

But now he has to figure out how to describe Carter. “She’s...” Who is she to him? There isn’t one word for her, what she means to him. Their relationship isn’t exactly conventional. “A friend,” Leo eventually settles on. “She loves good stories.”

Trying to be friendly, even if they don’t understand, Warren gives him a small smile. “I guess whenever we wake up you’ll have a new one for her. Might not make much sense though,” they add.

“Doesn’t matter.” Leo sighs. “She likes them when they’re exciting, that’s all that counts.”

God, he misses her. Maybe the next time they meet he could tell her about this dream. He needs something to talk about, something lighter to take their minds off work. Everything is always so serious. Although this dream is starting to get serious too, with all the talk of soldiers and war. He can practically hear Carter’s voice, insisting that conflict is what makes stories interesting. She really would love this, Leo thinks. She’d probably be interviewing this guy Sichoris, trying to find out more about the politics of the country and trying to uncover the inside scoop about the war.

Something Sichoris said starts nagging at Leo. What if this isn’t a dream? What if he really has been transported to another world? Without his meds, who knows how long he’ll last here. He doubts he would make it the few weeks that Sichoris mentioned. Which means he will never see Carter again. The thought is almost too much to bear.

Apparently this distress is showing on his face, because Warren leans in close and says, “Is something wrong?”

Leo hesitates, trying to decide how much to reveal. “I’m in love with her and I can’t say anything, just show her as best I can and hope she gets the message,” he says, referring to Carter. “And it’s killing me,” he adds, sharing an inside joke with himself. He doesn’t want to worry Warren too much, so he doesn’t mention his illness. Leo is uncomfortable even sharing this much, so he tries to shift the attention away from himself. “What about you? All shiny like that, you’ve got to have someone back home.”

He wasn’t expecting much of a response, given how quiet Warren has been so far. Their face softens, smiling as they think of their special someone. “I do. We’ve known each other since we were kids.” Warren grows quiet as the three of them pass a few soldiers, glancing at them with a nervous laugh. Leo wishes they hadn’t stopped talking. It made it too easy for repressed thoughts of his own childhood love to flood back. “She’d probably be able to figure out what’s going on here a lot better than me.”

“Childhood sweethearts, huh?” Leo says, hardly listening to Warren. His mind is full of thoughts of Jules, his own sweetheart from long ago. This is far from where he’d thought this conversation would go. Asking about Warren’s love life had seemed like such an innocent question, not one that would bring up some of his worst memories. Desperately trying to stay on track, he asks, “What’s she like?”

“Oh, she’s lovely,” Warren responds immediately. “She’s clever and tough and talented... We don’t get to see each other as much as we used to before—“ Perhaps this line of questioning had been a mistake. Warren seemed to have their fair share of problems when it came to romance too. “Well, she got herself into some trouble and has been laying low for awhile, but we still talk as often as we can.” They sighed, smile wavering. “It’s unfortunate, but we make do. She does visit sometimes though.”

“She sounds wonderful,” Leo says, and he means it. He can tell Warren cares a lot about this woman. “I’m sorry you don’t get to see her anymore. There’s nothing worse than being separated from the ones you love.” He hopes Warren can tell that his sympathy is genuine, that he speaks from experience.

They look like they understand. “Thanks,” Warren says with a sigh, meeting Leo’s eyes. “And I hope for you things work out with Carter.”

They’re too kind, and Leo looks away. He’s not used to such kindness from strangers. Before he has the chance to think of a response, Sichoris leads them to a large building that looks like it holds offices. So they’ve reached their destination.

He shows them down an endless hallway lined with dozens of doors and knocks on one of them before letting himself in. Warren and Leo follow, and they are met with a man with short, black hair and pale gray eyes.

He also has angel wings, one black and one white. Leo blinks, not quite believing his eyes. And here he had been entertaining the idea that he wasn’t dreaming.

The winged man smiles at them and bows slightly. “My name is Tidis, and I am a humble servant of Ritania. You two must have been summoned here, correct?” Leo supposes this is what Sichoris meant when he said everything would be explained. Tidis sounds like he knows what’s going on and was willing to tell them everything.

“I can help you,” Tidis continues. “If you will just come with me and answer a few questions, I can heal any ailments you have and let you return to your normal lives.” He holds out his hand to shake. “Will you come with me?”

Leo doesn’t have to think twice. Even if this is a dream, the chance to heal any ailments is too good to pass up. If this Tidis has that capability, Leo would do whatever it took to make that happen.

He steps forward and shakes Tidis’s hand.

[eurydium]

home box office — stranger things

Pairings: Robin Buckley x Reader, Steve Harrington x Reader

Category: fluff

Summary: Being Robin and Steve’s co-worker at Family Video is pretty much the best thing ever, but it takes quite the toll on your gentle (and very much bisexual) heart. 

     Requested by: @the-desert-shewolf  !

Word Count: 1.7k 

Author’s Notes: This is best read on the website rather than the mobile app, the app flubs up the formatting of it all 

This is the first request that’s done with both Robin and Steve and I really liked the idea! Just in case, this trio of the reader, Robin, and Steve comes up again (it probably will) it will be found in both of their respective master lists with ‘stranger things’ as writing ‘s.h & r.b’ looks wonky to me. 

Also, I’m really sorry if this feels a little rushed/short/not splendid :// 

buckley master list || harrington master list

“I swear to God I’m gonna strangle Keith,”

     Steve muttered as he wandered back over to you and Robin while you both were perched on top of the counter. You laughed as you pulled out the board — one similar to the board from Scoops Ahoy. You hissed at you added a tally to the ‘Keith’ side of the board as Robin shook her head at the once teenage heart-throb. Thus far, Keith had a good tally of six women that he’s scared away while Steve had a tally of two that he won over — both of which occurred while Keith was sick.

    “You’ve lost your touch, Harrington,” You commented, chuckling as you lowered the board behind the counter once more. “Your body count is so unfortunately stagnant,” You puppy-frowned at him while Robin cackled next to you. 

    “Shut the hell up,” Steve rolled his eyes, turning around and leaning against the counter — somewhat perched but mostly standing. He sighed and leaned his head against you, closing his eyes for a few moments. 

    “Where am I going wrong?” Steve groaned exaggeratedly, running his hands through his hair. Robin gave a nice pat to Steve’s hand from across you, looking at him firmly. 

    “Didn’t you learn your lesson last summer, dingus?” Robin snarkily questioned, causing Steve to crack open his eyes and send a glare her way. “You gotta stop acting like you’re the most popular guy in school. If you couldn’t tell, we’ve graduated and working at minimum wage,” She added in with a roll of her eyes. 

    “Exactly, you don’t have to act cool anymore. Just be good ‘ol Steve,” You chuckled, ruffling his hair with a teasing grin. Steve rolled his eyes endearingly before standing fully, pushing off the counter. He fixed his hair again, making sure he was perfect and hot as can be. He glided away from you both and approached two women, once again reverting to his old ways. 

    “He’ll never learn,” Robin smirked. 

    “He really won’t,” 

—

    “You ladies down for a movie night?” Steve asked with a grin, looking between you and Robin. Robin gave a simple thumbs-up, and both of their gazes affixed onto you. You pursed your lips, brushing hair behind your ear as you glanced over at Keith. 

    “I kinda promised Keith I’d stay a little late to help clean up and organize,” You awkwardly drawled, looking back to both Robin and Steve with an upset gleam in your eyes. “It’s only for an hour, but you guys would probably want to start sooner and everything,” You added with a small, almost forced grin. 

    “Compromise. Steve and I will buy snacks and you supply the movies?” Robin suggested, looking to Steve for an ‘okay’ to the idea. Steve crossed his arms and nodded with a pleased smile, his gaze shifting from Robin and then onto you. 

    “We wouldn’t have a movie night without you for the world,” Steve commented. Your face flushed slightly, elated that they liked you that much. “We can wait an hour for you, don’t worry,” Steve winked, getting a hum of an agreement from Robin. 

    “We’ll come back around to pick you up,” Robin stated, causing you to grin brightly. 

    “Perfect,” You chuckled. Robin glanced down at her watch, realizing that it was time for them to finally clock out after quite an exhausting day. 

    “Be back for you soon, sweetheart,” Robin teased with a cheeky wink, pushing Steve out of the store. 

    “I’ll see you losers in a few. Wish me luck,” You saluted the two as they made their way out the door. You walked over to the Rom-Com section of the movies and began to re-sort them alphabetically, glancing over to see Keith fixing up the Sci-Fi section. 

    There was a pleasant silence between you both while soft music played throughout the store. You hummed along with the music, and it seemed that only now did Keith’s attention fall over to you —  as if you haven’t been there the whole time. He kept his mouth zipped for another minute, but you could sense him just staring you down for quite a bit. 

    “Yes, Keith?” You asked aloud, looking in his direction as he stared you down slack-jawed. 

    “Which one do you like?” Keith said pretty vaguely, causing you to raise your brows in a confused manner. 

    “Excuse me?” 

    “Robin or Steve, it’s obvious that you like one of them,” He pointed out with a roll of his eyes as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. You paused from shuffling the movies, taking a moment to actually think about this. 

    You weren’t certain of yourself either. 

    Both Robin and Steve fueled most of the joys in your life, and almost every moment of bliss had been with both of them. The night at Lovers’ Lake was the one you reminisced about the most.

    “The stars look like little fireflies,” You giggled as you laid flat on your back — reaching your hands up to the sky and trying to grab at them. 

    “No, dumbass, they’re like, baby moon bits,” Robin countered with a drunken laugh, rolling over and resting in the crook of your next. 

    “You’re both wrong! They’re, like, stars,” Steve retorted loudly, staring both of you down with a serious stare. The moment of silence passed and you all collapsed in fits of laughter. Steve giggled and laid on top of you, causing you to laugh even more due to his dramatic fall. The three of you kept rolling around together along the edge of Lovers’ Lake — drinking, singing, and laughing to your hearts’ content. 

    That night: the alcohol was good, the music was better, and the drunken (but not forgotten) stolen kisses were the best. 

    Of course, there were your separate adventures with the two, but both were honestly an equal match and you had no preference of whom you liked more — whether platonically or romantically. You had your fair amount of 711 slushie runs with Robin and horror movie dates when Steve would be too scared to watch them, but you also had your long talks over the phone with Steve and your sporadic nights drinking and walking down the abandoned railroad tracks. 

    Really, you loved them both. 

    “I don’t have to answer that,” You responded after a short while of thinking, a sly smile on your face but paired with apologetic eyes. 

    “Ugh, whatever,” Keith groaned, upset to not hear your side of the juicy gossip. You giggled at his complaint and continued sorting for the next hour, the time flies by quickly as you and Keith exchanged the occasional quip about movies while you were fixing them up. 

    “Hey, we’re back!” Steve called through the store, noticing you in the back chuckling at whatever dumb comment Keith made about Star Wars. He sauntered over to you and swung an arm around your shoulders. 

    “Ready to jet?” Steve asked with a cute grin, glancing up at Keith for a moment before looking back down to you. You noticed Keith’s dropped expression (as he obviously still detested Steve), but it was followed by a little smirk. You hastily averted your eyes away from Keith. 

    “Almost, gimme a sec and I’ll join you in a bit,” You told Steve, shooing him out of the store for just a few more moments.

    “So it’s Steve, huh?” Keith grinned menacingly, but of course, you brushed him off and began picking up some movies. 

    “I told you I don’t have to answer to you, even if you are my boss,” You chuckled, picking up The Apartment from the shelf. 

    “So Robin?” Keith offered once more. You rolled your eyes and walked over to another section, picking up Hidden Fortress. 

    “No comment!” You replied in a sing-songy manner, finally picking up Children of Paradise. Steve wasn’t the best connoisseur of movies, so naturally, you picked up Robin’s favorites so he can watch some good fucking cinematography. 

    Before you walked out, you noticed one last movie from the corner of your eye. You smiled to yourself as Steve’s description of the movie rang through your memory. You picked up the movie without a beat and gave one last smile to Keith. 

    “See you on Monday,” You sweetly chimed before exiting the store with the four movies in hand, strolling to the car with a smile. You hopped into the back seat and immediately Robin turned around to you. 

    “Cherry slushie, your favorite,” Robin smiled before handing you the large drink. You graciously smiled and eagerly took the drink from her hands —  your fingertips gently grazing against her soft hands. 

    “We also got some gummy worms, chocolate bars, and jiffy pop!” Robin added in with a delighted smile, shuffling through the candies she had stored in the bag. She swiftly turned back around to face forward before shouting, “Drive Harrington! Drive!”

    During the car ride to Robin’s place, you couldn’t help but ponder on Keith’s words a little more deeply. You were somewhat bothered by his invasive question, but not in an awful way. You really liked both of them and you couldn’t decide, but that doesn’t mean that you had to choose. 

— 

    After Back to the Future, you all were already feeling a bit drowsy. It was an oddly cold night in Indiana, and the three of you were bundled in the largest and softest blanket Robin had owned. You claimed the middle spot for personal reasons of your own and felt completely content when Robin wrapped an arm around your waist and both of them laid their heads on your shoulders. 

    The night ran late and before you knew it, both of your companions fell asleep on you. Robin hugged your torso and Steve ended up lying in your lap. Both slept peacefully, and the sight of them both brought a joy to your heart. They had been asleep for an hour now, and in that time you came to your conclusion in regards to Keith’s badgering question. 

    You didn’t care for choosing one over the other. You were content with the sweet nothings, friendly holding of hands, and teenage bliss. There was a lot of life to live, and love to give — and it could only be properly spent and expressed with both of them prominent in your life. 

You loved them both, and you were content in that.

[crazyloststar]

I’ll Keep You Safe

Happy Holidays!! 

I participated in the @owarinosecretsanta and I got @angrysnakes! I went with mythical creature au with mikayoi [i can’t say no to a chance to write mikayoi]. I put most of it under a cut, in case mobile does something wonky to the formatting.

Hope you enjoy, and I hope you have a great day! 

The woods were always dangerous. But if there was one set period of time where no one should be there, it was during winter. 

There were monsters in the woods. Ones the village hadn’t even seen in hundreds of years, because anyone who had seen them, had never returned. 

But there Yoichi stood, buried up to his shins in snow, and crouched behind a large tree. Listening. 

He didn’t believe the stories about monsters in the woods. He believed in feeding his family. 

And currently Yoichi was focused on the largest reindeer he was sure he had ever seen, and all he had in his sights so far was the backside of one. They would be able to eat for weeks if he could bring it home. 

He took a slow breath to steady his heart. He couldn’t afford to be shaky. Not now. 

He slowly twisted to look around the tree once more - the reindeer was still there, it’s upper half of its body obscured by more trees. But it was clearly distracted by something, perhaps moss growing on the tree it was behind? 

Yoichi appreciated the distraction, whatever it was. A reindeer this size was most likely male, and thus would be more aggressive if he caught on to Yoichi’s presence. He had to be slow, quiet, and careful. 

A wind howled through the trees, and Yoichi froze as the reindeer shifted, looking as though it might move on. He steadied his bow as he moved around the tree, still staying low to the ground as he took aim. 

He released one more breath, and then Yoichi let the arrow fly. He held his position as it soared through the air. 

Another gust of wind came ripping through, this one stronger than the first. Yoichi’s eyes widened as the arrow got caught in its path. He said a silent prayer that the arrow would just lose its aim and fall into the snow. 

Yoichi wasn’t so lucky. 

The arrow landed right in the trunk of the tree the reindeer was next to. He saw the way the body of the animal tensed as it made contact with a loud sound that seemed to echo in the quiet woods. 

Yoichi spun back around so he was hidden from view. Reindeer were aggressive but also adverse to danger - hopefully this one would look around, not see anyone, and choose to just move along. Yoichi removed any hope of catching this one from his head. There should be others, if he waited. 

He heard the distant sound of bushes rustling, and snow crunching. Yoichi stayed still, not wanting to move too soon and give himself away. 

Snow started to fall. He lifted his head up and against the tree to watch -- 

And instead he looked right into a pair of red eyes. He blinked as everything pieced together in his brain - red eyes, wild blond hair framing a pale face. 

Huge antlers springing out from the blond hair. 

Yoichi stopped breathing. 

The...person…stepped around the tree, not taking his eyes off Yoichi. And it took every ounce of willpower for him to not let out a loud scream. 

The person was not a person. Not entirely. Their upper body was human - covered in a fur vest and fur lined leather bracers up both arms. But after his stomach, the body was that of a reindeer. 

A million things ran through his head - there were monsters in the woods, this creature murdered other villagers, he was next. He was a fool. 

He let out a small sigh and braced against the tree as the creature moved to stand directly in front of him and stared him down. He still held his bow in hand, but knew there was no way he could pull an arrow and fire it off before those antlers would be driving through him. 

“You should leave.” The creature spoke with a low voice. 

Yoichi blinked, because he understood the words from the creature. And that it spoke at all and was not instantly spearing him to the tree. 

“Um,” Yoichi cleared his throat, “I need-” he struggled to figure out how to tell this creature that he needed to kill something or he would be going back home without any food. 

“I have to feed my family.” Yoichi tried to sound strong as he clung tighter to his bow. He stared back at the creature, trying not to be scared of the dark red eyes that narrowed at him. 

“There’s only us here, now. The reindeer have all moved on. But there’s smaller game, if you want I can take you there.” 

Yoichi blinked again. “You...would help me?” 

The creature looked away, as if watching for something. “If it means getting you back to your village sooner, yes. It’s not safe out here.” 

Yoichi couldn’t help staring, but he took the chance that he wasn’t about to be maimed and stood slowly. “I’m Yoichi.”  He held out one gloved hand in between them. 

The creature looked at the hand, but didn’t offer his own up. Instead he turned around slowly. “I’m Mikaela. We need to get moving.” 

Yoichi tried not to be flustered. This….person? Had their own customs. But. “Wait.” 

Mikaela looked over his shoulder at him. 

“First, I need to know you don’t intend to drag me off into a cave and eat me.” 

Mikaela visibly puffed up, as if the very notion offended him. “I don’t eat humans.” 

Yoichi took a few steps, so that he was just at Mikaela’s side. “That’s reassuring.” 

Mikaela snorted. “You’re very trusting.” 

“Wait! Does that mean you will eat me?” Yoichi stepped away, but Mikaela reached back and grabbed him by the wrist to pull him up towards him. 

“Stop being foolish. Something will eat you if you don’t get out of here soon. It’s Winter Solstice, don’t you have any sense of self preservation?” 

Yoichi pulled his arm away and they started walking. The snow hadn’t picked up much aside from a few flurries yet, which he was grateful for. 

“So what is out there?” Yoichi pressed after some silence passed between them.

“The witch.” Mikaela said so matter of factly. “He is the one who has been stealing your humans. My kind, we are the protectors. But you humans are foolish and wander into places that aren’t safe.” 

Yoichi worked through Mikaela’s words carefully. “I’ve never heard anything about a witch. Just a monster.”

“It’s easy to make things up when no one survives to tell the truth.” Mikaela huffed and stopped moving. “We need to move faster. You’re too slow.” 

Yoichi narrowed his eyes. “I’m going as fast as I can in the snow!” 

He motioned with his chin. “I can carry you.” 

Yoichi’s eyes widened. But Mikaela had already turned away, arms crossed and clearly waiting.“Well, if there is a witch out there I guess I have no choice,” he muttered. 

Yoichi tucked his bow across his back and mindfully placed his hands on Mikaela’s back and in the middle of his….reindeer. Side. He wasn’t sure how to refer to it yet, but he managed to hoist himself up without hopefully causing any offense. Once seated, he held onto the back of Mikaela’s vest. 

“Wrap your arms around me, I won’t be holding back and you’ll fall easily.” Mikaela’s feet stomped the ground a bit, as though he were impatient. Yoichi wrapped his arms around Mikaela’s waist and nestled his cheek against his back. 

Before he could shout he was ready, Mikaela took off. Yoichi yelped but held on tight as Mikaela charged through the snow. The wind picked up and snow started to come down harder, making Yoichi cling tighter from the cold and the dampness soaking into his clothes. He kept his eyes shut and trusted they would end up somewhere safe. 

Soon, Mikaela slowed, and Yoichi trusted himself enough to sit up a little to look around. The snow had become a full storm, gusts of wind blowing even more snow around them. They moved into a large cave that appeared in front of them. 

“Where are we?” Yoichi asked as he hopped off and dusted the snow off his clothes. It appeared to be a large cave, with a small fire pit towards the back. 

“Just a shelter we use sometimes. It’s safe here, the witch doesn’t come out this far.” Mikaela set about to starting a fire, while Yoichi stared outside. It was completely white - no sign of trees anywhere, even though he knew they were close. 

“After the storm,” Mikaela continued, “I’ll take you somewhere to get food for your family. Then help you get home safely.” 

Yoichi turned and slowly removed his bow and quiver, setting them down carefully. “Why are you helping me?” 

Mikaela paused as he stoked the small flames lapping at the wood, then resumed. “My kind, centaurs, we’re the protectors of the woods.”

Centaurs. Yoichi had heard the word tossed around in stories, but it was in passing. They were legends, silly stories of hunters about beautiful women they would swear they would catch glimpses of, before seeing them run away and discovering they weren’t human. Most people believed the stories to be just the hallucinations of drunk men lost in the forest. 

Yoichi stepped forward and sat next to the fire as Mikaela did the same with a huff. “I always thought centaurs were...uh… part horse?” He motioned to the antlers. Now having the chance to really look at Mikaela, he was struck with how regal he looked, his human body upright, strong shoulders, and the antlers that seemed to be almost as long as his upper body. 

“There are horses. There are many of us. But here, in this part of the world, we are this.” He spoke so matter of factly as he watched the fire. 

Yoichi shivered and scooted closer to the fire. The wind would whip into the cave every so often, but Mikaela’s body was protecting the fire. 

“Do you protect humans usually?” Yoichi questioned, focused back on the fire. 

“We try, but sometimes they go into places we don’t.” He sighed, “the witch’s territory is a dark place, but your kind can’t sense it like we can. You happened to be on the edge, which is why you….saw me.” 

“I,” Yoichi looked up to meet intense red eyes, “I’m sorry I tried to shoot you. I had no idea.” 

“Thank you for not attacking me, when you saw me for who I am.” 

Yoichi stuttered. “I wouldn’t ever want to harm someone like you, you’re amazing! Especially if you’ve been here protecting us all this time.” 

The words fell out of his mouth before he could catch them, and Mikaela was certainly also caught off guard. His face returned to a more stoic expression quickly though. 

“You should rest.” 

“What about you?” Yoichi tried to get as close as he could without getting into the fire, but the chill in the air hadn’t been fought off yet by the heat of the fire. 

“I don’t need that much rest.” Mikaela studied him, and Yoichi fidgeted under his gaze. He wondered how many humans he had interacted with himself. 

“You’re cold?” 

Yoichi hesitated, and then nodded. “I’ll warm up eventually I’m sure, just need to lay down next to the fire.” 

Mikaela shifted a little, then cleared his throat. “You can...come lean against me.” 

Yoichi sat up a little straighter. Mikaela looked away. 

“My fur, it’s warm. And I’m blocking the wind. You’ll be better off here.” 

Yoichi stared, and then slowly nodded before his body seemed to move without his permission towards the centaur. Centaur. At Mikaela’s side, he carefully leaned his back against the soft fur. It instantly did feel warmer, and he couldn’t help a small sigh and smile. 

“Thank you,” he resisted the urge to run his fingers through the soft coat and instead crossed his arms to prevent himself for doing something that could be offensive. 

Mikaela just hummed in response. “I’ll wake you soon.” 

Yoichi turned a little so his face was against Mikaela’s body, and he soon felt himself drifting off to sleep, feeling safe and warm.

[twin-moons-ffxiv]

So here’s the thing.

I’m gonna go on a bit of a rant. And I’m on mobile so. Formatting is going to be a little wonky.

Lately I’ve been seeing a lot of “Play what you want” posts and I think that’s lovely. Positivity is a great thing in a community and I, for one, am glad to see such.

However.

I think that there’s some confusion when it comes to acceptance of these characters.

So let me enlighten folks:

Can you play whatever character you want? With whatever flaws and tropes and unique things you want?

Of course you can! You’ve got an interesting story to tell and I think that’s wonderful!

But here’s the thing... roleplay isn’t just about your character. It’s about collaboration with multiple people to tell a story together.

Not everyone is going to be okay with your character. Not everyone is going to be satisfied with playing a background role to your story you’re trying to tell with your unique character.

And you know what? They’re allowed that. Because it’s their happy fun pretendy time too.

Be open to criticism. Don’t take that shit and internalize it because that’s unhealthy. But accept that not everyone is going to love your idea and find some people who DO. Because I promise you, they are out there and they are going to LOVE YOU.

But most importantly, own your character. Love your character even if nobody else does because they are YOUR creation. Your expression of your creativity and NO ONE ELSE in the WORLD has your unique perspective on things.

Not everyone is going to love you. And that’s okay. That doesn’t make them bad people. It just means you don’t fit together. And that is O. K.

Find the people who do and surround yourself with that warmth and positivity.

It’s okay to struggle to find your place. It just means you’ll have wisdom for the experience.