#he is very interested in astrology -nods nods-

[darabeatha]

:enjoys stargazing with u:

[belovedspector]

Written in the Stars

Pairing: Steven Grant x gn!reader (implied Marc Spector x gn!reader and Jake Lockley x gn!reader)

Word Count: 800

Summary: Steven doesn’t have a birthday. He takes the task of choosing one very seriously.

Content: Fluff, one use of a pet name (love)

A/N: This follows Leap Year, but it’s not necessary to read that first. I don’t know a ton about astrology, so I’m learning as I go. Enjoy! :)

Masterlist

“Here it is!” you say triumphantly, pulling a purple book off one of Steven’s lower shelves.

Steven takes the book in his hands gingerly, as if it’s something sacred. “Why do you have this, anyway?”

You shrug. “My college roommate was really into astrology and tried to get me interested, too. I just never got rid of it. It’s sentimental, I guess.”

Steven nods, already flipping through the pages as he makes his way to the couch. “So, what signs are Marc and Jake, again?” he asks, not looking up.

You join him on the couch. “Both Pisces, oddly enough,” you remark.

He hums. “Maybe I should be, too.” He quickly consults the table of contents before flipping to the page on Pisces. “‘Empathetic, imaginative, creative,’” he reads. He skims a few more pages before saying, “It’s all a bit vague, innit?”

You laugh. “I guess it is, yeah.”

“Well, you can turn on the telly or grab your own book, if you like. This will take me a bit to get through.”

You stare at him. “You’re not gonna read the whole thing, are you?”

He looks back at you, confused. “How else will I know what sign I am?”

“I don’t think it’s that serious,” you say. “Jake just picked a date he liked.”

Steven just shrugs. “I’d like to see what the book says, I think.”

“Alright,” you say with a shrug of your own. “Knock yourself out.” You scooch towards the other end of the couch, where your latest read is waiting on the end table. You turn on the lamp and settle in.

Steven’s a fast reader. In the time it takes you to slog through a few chapters, he’s closing the astrology book with a satisfying thump. “All done,” he announces.

You close your own book after marking your place with a bookmark (a slightly crumpled receipt counts as a bookmark, right?). “And? What’d you pick?”

“Virgo,” he says.

“Yeah?” you ask, interested. “Why’s that?”

Steven finds the appropriate page and reads, “‘Intelligent, analytical, hard-working.’” He looks to you, his confidence wavering. “That…sounds like me, right?”

You offer him a kind smile. “I think so, yeah. Did you pick a date?”

He shakes his head. “Not yet.” He briefly looks down again. “Says here I can do any day from the twenty-third of August to the twenty-second of September.”

You hum.

“Wait a second…” Steven trails off, grabbing his phone out of his pocket and typing something in.

“What?” you ask.

“Aha!” he says. “Twenty-fourth August. That’s what I want my birthday to be.”

“How come?”

“Tomb Buster premiered on that day in 1990. I reckon us Steven Grants should have the same birthday,” he explains with a grin.

You can’t help but match his smile. “August twenty-fourth it is, then. I’ll add it to my calendar.”

He closes the book again and hands it back to you. “Thank you for lending that to me, love.”

“Any time,” you say, taking the book and returning it to its spot on the bookshelf. You glance at the clock. “Ready to start on dinner?”

“Sounds good to me,” Steven says, standing up and following you to the kitchen.

After dinner has been taken care of and you’ve watched a movie, you’re in the bathroom getting ready for bed. You can hear Steven talking outside the door. You assume he’s conversing with his alters.

When you exit the bathroom, you see Steven standing at the fish tank, bottle of fish food in hand. He doesn’t seem to notice you as he continues on speaking. You realize he’s talking to the fish.

“Maybe I should’ve picked Pisces, Gus,” he muses.

Gus II and his two tank-mates, Tom and Jerry (named together by Marc and Jake, despite Steven’s protests), swim around in slow circles, seemingly waiting for Steven to feed them.

He shakes the bottle, watching the flakes drop gently into the water. “Then all three of us would be the same. And Pisces is fish, innit? It fits.”

“Steven!” you groan playfully. “You can’t just change your zodiac sign!”

“Why not?” he counters. “I just picked it today. There should be some sort of trial period, right?”

You snort. “Maybe, but I like the day you picked. It means something to you.”

“Alright, fine,” Steven says. He bids the fish good night before following you to the bed.

You settle in under the covers and say good night to one another. Your eyes are closed when you hear Steven ask into the darkness, “Do I get a cake for my birthday?”

You smile to yourself. “If you want one.”

“And presents?”

“Of course.”

It’s quiet for a moment. Then, “What about balloons?”

“Whatever you want, Steven,” you say fondly. “Whatever you want.”

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! Please feel free to let me know what you think. :)

[m-ayo-o]

i t s ⋆ w r i t t e n ⋆ i n ⋆ t h e ⋆ s t a r s ⋆

zodiac event : reader x 21+ CAPRICORN MEGUMI FUSHIGURO ♑︎ genre : fluff, discussing horoscopes note : this one isn't reader oriented but the rest hopefully will be a little :3 thank u for sending rqs + waiting! wc : 1k

“Megumiiii~?”

You call his name while he sits snugly on a comfy chair in your living room. He doesn't even look up from his book to grunt his reply- he already knows you're A, going to ask for a favour or B, say something kind of dumb.

“Mm?”

You sit between his legs, draping your arms over his knees, waiting to see if he'll even put his book down.

“Do you know your star sign?”

There's a little pause– his eyes shift from side to side.

“No”

“Well, I thought it could be fun… to look at ours together?”

He graces you with a mild Fushiguro glare, followed by a slight eyebrow raise.

“Did you?”

You get a little huff now, like you're interrupting him unnecessarily.

~

With a little coaxing, and promising that it won't take too long, you're kneeling on the carpet between his legs with your astrology book spread open.

You flick through the pages, showing him all the mystical signs, their associated creatures and enchanting descriptions.

It's safe to say that he is showing very little interest in the information thus far– you look up at him now and then to witness that vacant stare, as if he's busy plotting how he'll make you pay for wasting his time.

Then you find the page you're looking for, opening the book wide to show him the mythical sea goat that you're getting quite excited about. It is pretty cute.

“Capricorn!! This is you, Megumi!”

You beam, now sitting up to clamber onto his lap. He invites you in, circling his arms around your waist with the book propped on your knees so you can both see.

All the diagrams and charts are just so interesting and magical to you.

“And what do Capricorns do?”

He indulges you, holding you close, seemingly enjoying the heat from your body more than anything else.

“So,” you start reading through, finding a section listing the traits of the sign, “they're dedicated, hard working, logical…”

Of course, none of this is news to you.

“Intense,” you give him a coy smile, which earns you an eye roll. Not even a little smile.

“Stubborn,” you nod, insisting that he look at the page, as if for proof.

You skim to a section listing their worst traits, tracing your index finger over the words.

“Unimaginative,” your eyes shift to his after each addition, “critical–” you pause, feeling a little hesitant to say this last one, “unemotional.”

You know he really does put in a marked effort to show you how he's feeling. Telling you is another matter entirely. But you have learned, through his actions you can read him. It was slow, and you have disagreements, sure, but you're gradually coming to understand each other's language.

His glaring has got a bit more intense than earlier, black brows starting to arch into a frown.

“Don't you think that's enough about Capricorns?”

“No, no–” he tries to take the book from you but you're intent on finishing his page, “we didn't get to the best part!!”

“And what might that be?”

He releases the book again after you give him your best pouty face that makes him all soft.

“Capricorns in love”

“But I already know–”

You give him a peck on the cheek, which makes him melt a little more. He sighs deeply and lets you continue.

You skim to the section that specifically refers to Capricorn men in romantic relationships.

“When he dates– he– seeks a– mate!!”

You read aloud parts that make you giggle.

“He can be shy, but incredibly romantic~” you hum with pleasure, knowing this to be completely true.

And you come to a section that makes you blush and pause for a moment. He tilts his head away from your neck and peers down at the book.

“What's the matter, you want me to read this bit?”

“Um–” it's got you flustered.

“Capricorn men have strong sexual stamina.”

You can't deny it.

You see a little smile tug at his lips. You think he might like this part. He reads the rest aloud, telling you all about the sensual and passionate love making tendencies of his sign, and by the time he's done your face is pink from the bridge of your nose to the tip of your ears.

“What do you think?”

He whispers into the shell of your ear, being overly seductive on purpose just to wind you up.

“You think that's right?”

He sucks on your earlobe and places a few warm kisses on your neck. He swears you're about to burst into flames, or melt into some kind of fiery magma, with how hot you're getting.

“Y-yes- I knew that anyway–”

“That's what I was telling you, sweetheart. This book is a waste of time–”

He slips it out of your hands and closes it, carefully placing it on the coffee table.

He turns back to you with a little smile, bringing his lips to yours and slowly showing you all of those deep and romantic behaviours you were just reading about. Everything he does for you shows you that, without a doubt, he is utterly infatuated. And, he may not say it right now, but he's willing to take this all the way. He sees a future with you.

But you're happy with the unwavering support, the protection, how you can rely on him, and how open he's become with you. It makes you feel so lucky that you get to see so many sides of him, and you swear you'll never take it for granted.

You're happy that you can trust every word that he speaks.

And when he tells you he loves you, you know he means it.

megumi | m.list | zodiac event

[flowersandbirdsflyingfree]

Hiii ✨️ I have a little ask for you!

How would the Primis crew react to a fem S/O that's generally quiet and reserved, only to learn that she is a big nerd when it comes to her special interests? Maybe she info-dumps and gushes about her knowledge of her special interest, and that's how they learn that she's really smart.

I, myself, am a huge nerd when it comes to astrology. Yet not many people know that 😅

Do take your time. I love your work 🩷

-🌾

AAAAAAAAAAAA THANK YOU SO MUCH💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

I know I have to do this one!!! As a bonus, I'll throw in my personal headcanons for their astrological signs

Reactions of Primis: Quiet Fem S/O Excitedly Info-Dumps Their Passions (Includes Personal Perspective about Astrology)

Edward Richtofen - Sagittarius

His mind is always running a mile a minute all the time. So already listening to his s/o talk about their interests helps distract from The Horrors™️. Seeing you bounce about with joy after weeks of turmoil puts the softest smile on his face... And the biggest kiss on yours!

Intellectual conversation of any kind is something he needs for a close connection. Sharing one-on-one quality time like this is exactly what helps him thrive in a relationship. Even if a topic isn't something he is knowledgeable with, it will have importance to him if it's important to you.

Richtofen is rather strict about his scientific profession and typically scoffs at any pseudosciences. This is all a façade. What he will never tell you is that he secretly practiced alchemy in the past and has occult involvement with the Illuminati. Nevertheless, he would always be gentle to his s/o. The doctor will simply stay respectful and curious about your interest with astrology. I think in the long-term he might just spill a tiny bit about his practices to you.

Tank Dempsey - Scorpio

Seeing his soft-spoken sweetheart so suddenly excited is a very pleasant surprise (and he hasn't been able to find many good surprises this whole shitshow of an expedition). The fact that you trust him enough to open up so brightly like this helps him grow closer to you. Tank is a very good listener, but please forgive his dopey smiling the whole time. Your soothing voice and happy little mannerisms are making his heart throb. It's truly a sweet thing to see.

You never fail to open his mind to new experiences and interest. You can be both sharp-minded and sweet. Those are just some of many shining reasons why he loves you so much. With that being said, please come to him the moment you need an ear to let you infodump. Tank Dempsey is best known for his loyalty and reliability, so please remember that.

He thinks the mythology behind all the constellations are really cool! Orion is his favorite one. I suggest explaining to him during a stargazing date about the various celestial events while lying down on his chest. If it gets cold at night, he'll have you burrow underneath his leather jacket to keep warm. As for astrology readings, he would like to have his horoscope read (and perhaps get a tarot reading as well with you!)

Takeo Masaki - Libra

Takeo is a strong support who's always there to listen no matter what is on his partner's mind. He’s someone who will listen and nod without interruption. He may chuckle if you start to get jittery with joy about what you’re lecturing to him. Such a vibrant soul hidden in such a timid angel!

Takeo’s presence is very patient. If by chance you feel worried about “talking too much”, he reassures you that you could never do such a thing. You deserve to be able to thrive in what makes you so happy. And for shame on whoever tried to invalidate what you had to say!

Out of everyone in the Primis Crew, Takeo is the most spiritual without a doubt. He very much believes every soul carries a fundamental purpose. Being a more introverted soul, he can often be found reflecting in solitude. He would be able to discuss the philosophy of destined fate and similar divination topics with ease. Because it can go hand in hand, I think he would be able to perform a bit of Reiki healing if you were feeling particularly stressed.

Nikolai Belinski - Aries

Nikolai is already doting on you to begin with as his quiet yet kind girlfriend. Once something inspires you to express yourself, he is taken aback by how much passion you have for your special interest. It keeps him wondering more about you. You’re just a beautiful enigma he so desperately wants to know more of!

He’s more of a listener, but his add-ons to the conversation are either genuine questions to learn more about said topic or slipped-in compliments about how brilliant you are. Nikolai also may bring up stories it reminds him of. He could spend hours learning about just about anything you tell him.

The Soviet Union repressed a lot of expression, one of them being astrology. Because of this, Nikolai is completely new to it. Typically, he is a skeptic approaching anything that he comes across. But being his beautiful little treasure, you have the gift to get him to understand that the universe wants what’s best for him. He would grow to trust the divine and the guiding light of fate itself. He says the most profound things that would touch your soul with an enlightening comfort.

[catre33]

Good Omens and Harry Potter crossover

I've seen quite a number of these in which Crowley and Aziraphale are professors

But consider:

1977

Crowley was standing outside of the local bookshop of an isolated Scottish village. The cocoa he had bought to surprise Aziraphale was growing cold in his hand. For the third time, he miracled it warm.

"What's taking him so long?" he complained aloud. He glanced through the window to see  Aziraphale still engaged in conversation with the owner. Crowley caught a glimpse of the angel's grin and quickly swivelled his head back 'round, his race red. Crowley was the first to figure out that demons could blush, although some argue it was Aziraphale.

His gaze wandered over the street, and a group of young adults, (or possibly teenagers; he wasn't very good at assuming age.) caught his eye. One in particular. In Crowley's opinion, the most well-dressed of the three of them.

The youth was incredibly pale, and his long black hair astonishingly contrasted this. He had tattoos practically plastered across his skin, and many of them depicted astrological symbols.

But what truly piqued Crowley's interest was his clothing (which differed greatly from his friends', they were much more academic casual.) He wore tattered jeans and a graphic T-shirt. Merchandise of a band led by a dear friend of Crowley's.

Crowley thought for a moment and decided anyone with such an interest must be worth having a chat with.He made his way across the cobblestone.

---

Sirius Orion Black was having a jolly good time. This was the fourth occasion in the self-proclaimed Marauders' seventh year in which they had successfully snuck out of Hogsmeade and into the nearest Muggle village.

He, James, and Peter were all standing on the street while Remus perused an antique shop. Sirius had opted for his favourite Muggle clothes, while the others had simply chosen to discard their robes.

The group had just finished discussing how to avoid Lily and Remus' NEWTS studying schedules when they were approached, quite out of the blue.

The man's hair was a red to rival Molly and Arthur's, though it was more fiery than real ginger. He wore sunglasses, despite the gloom of the day; and his clothes were all varying shades of black and grey.

He appeared to have a devilish look about him, with a hint of a smirk in his scowl - if that was possible. From afar, Sirius had taken him for a Muggle; but closer now, he was no longer certain. The feeling was hard to describe, other than an odd sensation to his presence.

"Erhm, hallo." the strange man greeted them with a timid wave. "Couldn't help but notice... Uhm..." He trailed off. He could have been staring into the distance, but it was impossible to tell with his sunglasses.

The Marauders exchanged glances and silently motioned for the man to continue.

He pointed at Sirius' chest.

"You like Queen?" he asked.

Sirius stiffened immediately. He'd been criticized on numerous occasions for his taste in Muggle music.

"Yeah, so?" he replied, agitated.

The man spread his hands in surrender.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Nothing like that," as if he could see straight through Sirirus' thoughts, "simply wanted to talk to a fellow fan." the man extended his hand congenially. "the name's Crowley."

"Thank GOD." James surged forward and seized Crowley's hand, making the man and his eyebrows jump. "Sirius will not stop talking our ears off. 'Queen this, Freddie that.' You saved us in the nick of time; we were on the brink of insanity."

"I-," Sirius scoffed, "I don't talk about it that much."

"That's true," Peter piped in, "sometimes he talks about Bowie!"

"Bowie's good, too!" Crowley added, nodding vigorously.

James patted Sirius' shoulder, 'See? You've made a friend!"

Sirius grinned and shoved James away, then nodded to Crowley.

"This is James and Peter. I'm Sirius."

"Yeah, I caught that; but what's your name?" Crowley said through a smirk.

"Ha, ha. You're a riot." Sirius rolled his eyes. "Just Crowley?"

"Ah, well. Anthony, if you like."

The bell jingled behind Sirius and he turned to see Remus walking out of the shop.

"Moony! You're finished!"

"Hey Pads," Remus walked up and gave Sirius a quick peck on the cheek before pulling him close.

"Oh, who's this?" Anthony asked; looking surprised, yet elated.

"Anthony, this is my boyfriend Remus. Moons, he came over to talk to me about Queen!"

"Is that so?" Remus shook his head and chuckled. "Anthony... Italian roots?"

"Ehrm..." he paused and shrugged, "Ssssure?"

The odd response raised eyebrows all around, but before they could ask further, another joined the party.

"Crowley? Is that you?"

This newcomer was the absolute polar opposite of Anthony. He had very cherubic features: bright fluffy hair, sparkling eyes, and a brilliant grin. He wore a well-loved and well-kept waistcoat, which looked a couple of decades old.

Upon seeing him, Anthony became flushed.

"Agh, hallo, angel. Got you this." Anthony handed him the cup he was holding, which was suddenly steaming.

"Cocoa? Oh, thank you, dear boy!"

Anthony growled and turned away. Sirius and Remus exchanged a knowing look.

"Sooo," Remus started, "you gonna introduce us, Anthony?"

"This is my...uhrm..." he looked lost, "This is Aziraphale." he finished quickly.

"I thought you didn't make friends," Aziraphale said slyly, peering up over the rim of his cup.

"Shut it." Crowley hissed, his face reminiscent of a cherry.

Sirius and Remus shared another glance and a chuckle.

"You two off, then?" James asked.

Aziraphale nodded. "Got to get these back to my shop in London," he replied, lifting the bag he carried.

"Fun meeting you lot," Crowley threw over his shoulder, suddenly feet away."

A pleasure!" Aziraphale shook everyone's hands before hurrying after Anthony, who hadn't halted sauntering away.

The Marauders waved after them.

"Bit of an odd pair, aren't they?" Peter remarked.

"Yeah, but a pair," Sirius replied.

James looked over. "You think so?"

"Definitely," Remus affirmed. "Let's head home."

THIS TOOK WAY TOO LONG

I'll write more if people like it.

[kannedia]

FFXIV Write 2024 - Day 7 - Morsel

Tataru put down her pen and gently put her paperwork to the side with a sigh. She needed a break and the tea Oscar had prepared was waiting for her. She picked up the cup, took a sip, and promptly wished that she hadn't.

"Oscar?" She questioned before sheepishly taking another sip.

"Yes?" The young man responded from the bookshelf behind her desk. He had a book on Astrology in his hands.

"Who exactly taught you to make tea?" She grimaced.

Oscar looked at her with mild confusion, "Oh. I did."

Tataru could only sigh and hold back the refrain that it showed.

"This is very nice of you Tataru."

Tataru looked up at the beaming young man next to her, to the kitchen counter before them then back at him again. Nice would be one way of putting it. Another would be the fact that she didn't want him or anyone else to drink such burnt swill again.

"Don't worry about it." She replied as she climbed the small step ladder she had set up. "Black tea is the easiest to make. So we'll start with that."

Oscar was watching as she set up the kettle with keen interest. It was kind of cute. She explained the process to him carefully, pointing to each item as it was mentioned.

Tataru turned to him after and said "Now you try it."

He seemed to think for a moment before nodding. The measurements went well enough. There was just enough tea leaves in a little more than just enough water.

She just had to tug on his sleeve to remind him to take the thing off the water when the time came.

"Sorry Tataru. I was just thinking of what we could have with the tea." Oscar stated sheepishly.

"Oh." Tataru grinned. "That I already have planned."

[lippskinn]

Blackinnon Fest 2024 | Day 6

Word Count: 314

Prompt: Quaint

The man in the portrait casually leaned against the golden frame. He eyed Marlene suspiciously; his narrow, dark eyes followed the movement of her quill. He had raised his eyebrows and stretched his head to get a better view of her chart as if he could look straight through her. Like an exam invigilator, he hovered behind her, which sent cold shivers down her spine. 

Afraid to make a sound, she nudged Lily under the table and nodded towards the portrait. 

"Do you see that guy over there?" she whispered. 

"Who? Black? Yeah, he's been staring for a while," Lily shrugged. She had barely looked up from the paper to notice him. 

"Not Sirius," she replied loud enough for the professor to raise their head.

"Uhhhh," Lily looked intrigued, "already on first-name terms. Suddenly, he's 'Sirius'."

She mustered the four boys at the table conspicuously until Sirius and James caught her watching, and they had to suppress to burst out laughing in the classroom. 

The wizard in the portrait cleared his throat loudly and began walking up and down the painting. His shoes made a clicking sound with every step. That was when Lily finally noticed him. 

"You have another admirer," Lily giggled, "creepy portrait guy. Looks like Venus is totally in your favour this month." 

"Ms Evans and Ms McKinnon, five points from Gryffindor for chatting in class," the professor said without looking up from their newspaper, "I'm sure you are still missing the descending houses in your chart." 

"We were just talking about Venus in the 8th house, professor," Marlene replied seriously, which nearly sent Lily into a laughing fit, "we were wondering what impact Venus had on relationships." 

"Oh yes, interesting," the professor folded his paper, "Venus in the house of Transformation, Death, Possession and Intimacy. The time for passionate love, that new beginning after a breakup, the deep connection with each other." 

Lily raised her eyebrows and nodded in Sirius' direction. 

"But beware!" the professor continued, "it's also the time for the big mysteries in life, the time for lurking strangers in the dark and healing from hardship. Very well, Ms McKinnon 10 points to Gryffindor."  

"Very well, Ms McKinnon," Lily repeated mockingly, "thank you for sharing your love life with us." 

Marlene rolled her eyes and threw a piece of parchment at her, "Èist do bheul!"

"Oh, be quiet yourself. Now that you know you're in for passionate love, why not ask him out?"

"Only if you finally go out with that Potter guy," Marlene made a couple of kissing sounds. 

"Urgh, I'd rather go on a date with that creepy portrait guy; that mysterious stranger lurking in the dark." 

"Quiet! Or I'll take another 5 points off Gryffindor!" the professor warned them, and they spent the rest of the lesson quietly completing their astrology charts. 

When the lesson was finished and the girls packed their stuff, James, Sirius, Remus and Peter approached their table. 

Lily dove out of the way and left the room as quickly as possible, leaving Marlene alone with the boys. Sirius grinned obnoxiously with that air of haughtiness as he leaned against her table and blocked the way to the door. 

"I was wondering if you still need help with Venus in your 8th house", he smirked. 

Marlene shouldered her bag, crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows. The other boys were already in stitches with laughter. 

"As it happens, Scorpio is the ruler of the 8th house, and I should know all about that." 

Marlene burst out laughing, "That's the quaintest pickup line I've ever heard!" 

Sirius raised his eyebrows, too, tilted his head and said, "But did it work?"

[iwriteasfotini]

Jegulus Excerpt

In honor of Jegulus day, I’m breaking my own rule and revealing something earlier than scheduled.

My whole series is based off some interesting astrological facts (not this one though). I’m going to post three little excerpts from Book 3 which is written from James’ POV. On Monday I shared some budding Wolfstar from The Heir and the Spare, and here is some budding Starchaser from Chapter VI (of a totally different book, just to clarify). 

The first Wednesday of October, James had the entire day lesson free after Transfiguration ended at nine forty-five. He had an essay to work on for Professor Flitwick, the topic being cheering charms, and two chapters to read for Ancient Runes, plus practice of the Relashio jinx for Mwalimu, but those things could wait until after he went flying. He bid a hasty farewell to the other boys, then hustled up to his dorm to grab his Nimbus and change into flying gear. 

It was just past ten when he made it to the quidditch pitch, having to walk most of the way down as the corridors were crowded during the passing period between lessons. Much to his chagrin, as he approached the pitch, he saw a slight figure in black robes mount a broomstick identical to James’ own and rocket into the air. The temptation was too great, James threw his leg over his own broom and shot off the ground, in pursuit of the other flier. 

His mysterious fellow swooped and dived, turning at high speed before rocketing off in the new direction. James followed as best he could, it was a great workout, not knowing what the other person was going to do, and then copying them. Finally, the flier pulled up, and it happened so fast James went rocketing past them before slowing his own broom and flipping around. 

And there, hovering in mid-air was Regulus Black. James did a double take, then let out a chuckle. 

“What’s so funny,” asked Regulus. 

“I didn’t know you could fly,” said James, and his mouth fell into a frown. This was not good. He would have to tell Marlene about this revelation immediately. Regulus on the Slytherin Quidditch Team would mean trouble for the rest of the school. 

“Well now you do,” Regulus flipped his broom around and rocketed off. But James was right on his tail. Regulus slowed again, and this time James came up beside him. 

“So, do you play quidditch?” said James; no subtly at all, that was him. 

“I play seeker.”

“But Black, other Black, female Black, plays seeker.”

Regulus nodded. 

“So, you aren’t playing this year but you want to play after she leaves?”

Regulus nodded. 

James let out a breath of relief. 

“That’s good news because I was about to inform my team Captain we needed to up our game if someone as good as you was flying on the Slytherin Team.”

“Guess you don’t have to try now, huh?” Regulus sneered. 

“We train plenty hard, thank you very much. But with a seeker like you, matches are going to last minutes, not hours. The strategy needs to be adjusted.”

Regulus shook his hair out of his eyes, and scoffed, “I’m so happy you won’t have to adjust your strategy then, for another year at least.”

James was thinking they now had an entire year to prepare for this inevitable situation, but he also said, “do you fly often?”

“Sometimes.”

“Me too.” 

But Regulus had apparently had enough. Without so much as a rude departing hand gesture, he plummeted to the ground and dismounted, walking with his broom back up towards the castle. James watched him go, shrugged, then went back to his own flying drills. If he and Sirius hadn’t been in their weird fighting-notfighting phase, he may have mentioned the unexpected meeting to him, as it was, he kept the information to himself. 

…

You can find more info on this series in my pinned post. Unfortunately, this is from Book 3, which is fully written but doesn’t have an announced posting date as of yet. But it’s coming to AO3, I promise! On Sunday I'm announcing the Title, POV, and posting date for Book 2 in my Weekly Update.

[mothmags]

omg nashi dragneel headcannons that no one asked for!

part 1 - part 3

is the bitch who would say "thats so Scorpio rising of you" ironicly and she intentionally gets the persons star sign wrong because she thinks its funny

she knows everyones birthday by heart, and their star sign, rising sign and the list goes on

gives people either very criptic or very specific horoscopes whether they ask for it or not

not just interested in astrology but also astronomy and can read celestial maps really well.

She would randomly say space facts as a kid and natsu would just smile and nod not knowing if she was just fucking with him

theres like a 50/50 chance that she is

she wanted to be an astronaut growing up

space is very much so her special interest

has cried to The Planets - Jupiter and will cry again (me too)

she becomes very emotionally attached to the bots the Fiore Space Institute (FSI) send into space

she does a lot of writing

After literal years of begging, Natsu and Lucy help her get into the FSI Mage Program when she was 14

its where they utilize celestial and other space based magic to better understand the cosmos

In-between jobs, she studies and researches for FIS and is eventually considered an accomplished astronomer when she's older.

when shes in what her family calls "research mode" she will forget to take care of herself

Is "best friends" with gray and juvias middle kid, Maree

She takes her out to the middle of the ocean occasionally to stargaze (they are definitely not dates. they dont know what you are talking about)

lightweight when it comes to alcohol

LOVES traveling and seeing new places

cat person (obviously)

is a sarcastic little shit in the best way

she and leo have little outings every week - like to get boba or to a bakery to get snacks

as the designated older sibling leo is "forced" to pay

he hands his card over to the cashier with a fake groan and complains about how unfair it is that HE has to pay despite nashi not saying shit about him paying

Fiercely independent, like oh my god girl its ok to ask for help jfc

It mainly stems from the pressure of living up to the dragneel name in the eyes of the public

being in one of the most famous guilds with your parents being some of the strongest in said guild will do that to you

she's working on it, guys. i promise

her love language is touch

shes always hooking her arm around someone elses, holding onto their sleeve or leaning on people she cares about

she might be independent, but she's a daddys girl at heart and will hook her arm around his whenever she can

she gets cold fast, so in the winter months, she constantly has her arm hooked around his

[neopuff]

title: guilt word count: ~1680 ships/characters: holiday, rex, bobo, six summary: Holiday gets the news that she's going to space. ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/55763179

x

“You’re dismissed.”

Holiday nodded at White Knight on the screen, almost absentmindedly, her mind stuck on the topic of their conversation. It was a large group call with several scientists from Providence-affiliated organizations around the world; where they’d begin the next (and hopefully final) step of the project that’d taken up the majority of her non-Rex-related time over the past two months.

The next step would take place on the Providence Space Station.

That next step would be in space.

She, Dr. Rebecca Holiday, the nerdy, quiet girl from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was going to go to space.

It was very difficult to walk down the hallway from White’s office to her lab without screaming it at everyone she saw. She was going to space! A dream she’d had since she was a small child. And not only would she go to space, she was traveling with (mostly) respectable colleagues, and if everything went well, the work they did would go in every history book.

She held her clipboard close to her chest, feeling the excitement trying to explode right out of her.

“Hey, Doc!”

Holiday didn’t even notice Rex passing by - he and Bobo caught up to her from an adjacent hallway. “Rex! What’s going on?”

“Nothing much…what’s up with you?” he asked, leaning towards her. “You look like you’re about to jump out of your skin.”

She laughed and tried to loosen her grip on the clipboard. “I’m just excited. Got a new assignment from Knight and it’s…” Holiday took a deep breath. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”

Rex and Bobo made eye contact, then looked back up at her. Bobo took the lead and spoke first. “He’s letting you take a shot at him?”

Rex elbowed Bobo in the shoulder. “It’s gotta be cooler than that! Maybe…is it…” Rex tapped his chin curiously. “Something to do with gene splicing?”

Holiday smirked, entertained by their guesses. “You’re both overthinking. I’m going into space.”

“Whoa!” The two of them reacted simultaneously, then Rex reached out and put a hand on her arm. “That’s awesome, Doc! Can I come with? I’ve always wanted to go to space!”

“This is a very sensitive project, Rex,” she answered quietly, gently removing his hand from her arm. “The less people who go up, the less risk there is.”

Rex frowned, feeling slightly rejected but knowing he just needed to put himself in her shoes. “Yeah, yeah, that’s fair. Six’ll need me down here, anyway.”

“Exactly!” Holiday smiled at him and patted his arm lightly. “And if everything goes well, you’ll have a lot more free time, Rex. A lot more.”

That cheered him up - Rex smiled and leaned against his chimp sidekick. “Free time sounds great to me! I can catch up on my shows.”

With that, Holiday continued down the hall, only halfway to her destination. She knew there was still plenty of regular work to do for the day, but she was stuck. All she could think about was her upcoming trip. Into space.

Going into space had never been her number one goal, though as a small child it was definitely one of the subjects that got Rebecca really interested in science. She and Beverly had bonded over a shared interest in stars and planets many times - though Beverly was more into astrology than astronomy, the planet’s physical and historical facts were the same.

Holiday made it to her lab and felt a sudden wave of guilt splash over her as she thought about Beverly again. If everything went well, she might be able to cure Beverly. Beverly would’ve been so excited to hear about her going into space. She’d want to know all about it.

She almost wished she could take her sister into space, too.

She wandered over to the nearest chair and sat down, the wave of guilt transforming into an overwhelming sense of responsibility and pressure. Not that Holiday wasn’t feeling massive pressure every single day, but at that particular moment it was hitting her harder than usual.

A trip to the Hole was in order, she realized. Whether Beverly understood her or not, Holiday wanted to tell her sister all about her next exciting endeavor.

Before she could catch her breath and start her journey to the Petting Zoo, the door to her lab opened up and Six’s familiar footsteps echoed in the room. Holiday smiled a bit and turned to greet him.

“Hey,” she said casually, giving him a small wave. “How's your day going?”

He stared at her silently for a few moments longer than usual before speaking up. “What's wrong?” he asked, ignoring her question.

“Huh?” Holiday stared at him, confused. “What do you mean?”

Six walked closer, a concerned look on his face. He glanced around the room quickly before responding. “You've been crying. Did…” He paused and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “...was it Knight? I can-”

“No, Six, I'm fine!” Holiday opened up her laptop, but didn't turn it on, using the black screen as a makeshift mirror. He wasn't wrong, there were distinct streaks of tears going down her cheeks. It happened occasionally when she thought about Beverly, but even moreso when she was excited about something and then started thinking about Beverly. “I was just…I don't know. I didn't realize,” she said, wiping away what was left of the tears.

As uncomfortable as Six looked in the situation, he grabbed a chair and sat down near Holiday rather than running away like she expected. “Did something happen?”

Holiday felt embarrassed at how concerned he was. There wasn't an easy way to explain to him that anytime she felt even a semblance of happiness, it would immediately be shrouded by guilt. Why should she be allowed to be happy when Beverly couldn't be? Beverly couldn't feel anything except rage and fear and confusion. And her big sister, who was supposed to protect her, was off galavanting into space.

“It's nothing. Nothing bad, I mean,” Holiday started, an achy feeling in her chest. “I just got word from Knight - I’ll be going to the space station with some other scientists to finally put our modified nanite project into action later this month.”

Six raised a single eyebrow. “You've been talking about that for a while now.”

“I have been, yeah.” She felt awkward under his gaze. Obviously, he was still very confused about why she'd been crying. She didn't really want to explain it. “If this works, we'll be so much closer to having a cure that doesn't rely on Rex. It'd be life-altering.”

He nodded. “And that…made you cry? The thought that it might not work?”

Holiday sighed. “No, I mean. That's always a possibility. I'm used to it.” She turned away from him a bit, looking towards the Petting Zoo. “I was just…thinking about Beverly.”

“Ah.” Six’s reaction made it clear that he suspected as much, though he didn't want to say so in case he was wrong. “Even if you get your cure, that doesn't mean it'll work on incurables.”

“...no, it doesn't.” Holiday’s hands were balled into fists, sitting on her lap, and she took a moment to stop herself from squeezing too tightly. “Not to mention the fact that Beverly always wanted to go to space, too. She would've been so jealous. But also so excited for me.”

Six stared at Holiday's profile, frowning. He wasn't good at comforting people, especially when their fears were completely rational. He could tell her that it'd all work out, but there was a very good chance that it wouldn't.

He also had his own qualms about the situation - namely the fact that Holiday would be in a potentially fatally dangerous situation and he would be completely unable to help her. There was absolutely no chance that Knight would allow Six (or Rex) to accompany her onto the space station, which meant they'd have to sit and wait while she risked her life for hours, or maybe even days.

Her life was at risk every day, but normally he could help. He couldn't offer her anything at that moment. Not protection, not comfort. Nothing helpful.

“Do you want to go to the Hole?” he asked suddenly.

Holiday lifted her head and looked at him with a confused expression.

After a moment of her not saying anything, he leaned back and glanced towards the Zoo. “I could…accompany you. Make the trip a little safer.”

She continued to stare at him. It was a very rare offer from Six and there was a big part of Holiday that wanted to take him up on it. He didn’t approve of her visits to her sister - he’d frequently remind her of the physical and emotional dangers of the Petting Zoo. It would be nice to have him go with her and keep watch. Keep the other soldiers away so they wouldn’t eavesdrop on Holiday talking to her sister like they often did.

But it was also very private and very personal and Holiday didn’t want to involve him. Beverly was her sister and her responsibility. She needed to handle her own problems without needing a big, strong man by her side.

“Thank you, Six. But I think I’d like to go alone.”

He didn’t react openly to her response, simply stared back. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. But I really appreciate the offer.” Holiday gave him a gentle smile. “I’m fine, honestly. You don’t need to worry about me.”

Six continued to stare, unemotional as ever. He stood up and nodded at her. “I know.”

Holiday watched as he left her lab and sighed. As much as she enjoyed Six’s company, sometimes it felt like a lot of effort to socialize with him. Especially when she wanted to keep things to herself.

She absentmindedly did some hand stretches as she realized that Six never said why he came to her lab in the first place. She’d have to ask him about it later.

After she went to talk to Beverly.

[averbaldumpingground]

Dialogue Prompt: "That is way above my pay grade."

It had seemed like such a good idea on paper when Darcy had told her, armed with her nice curling iron and that one dress from the absolute back of Jane's closet that had been hanging there, still in its dry cleaner plastic, since probably some time in the Cretaceous Period judging by how many mom jeans and flannels Darcy had had to excavate past just to find it, that they were going out. An excellent idea, really. An absolute stroke of pure genius.

And, more importantly, her brilliant plan had been working. Jane, pleasantly tipsy, was actually making friends.

Well, one friend. One very easy on the eyes male friend. Who had been totally okay with Jane interrupting his pool game to lecture him and like half the bar about physics or applied geometry or something. Darcy didn't know, but it sounded smart and very Jane-after-two-shots-of-tequila, so it probably still made sense. To people with a bajillion graduate degrees. Or engineers or something.

But Darcy didn't need to understand. She could totally tell that Mr. Tall, Somewhat Bewildered, and Probably-a-Pool-Shark was into it. Like really into it.

And sure, the dude had been wearing some kind of shapeless JC Penney funeral suit, but he was hot. Like really hot but kind of trying not to be. It wasn't working. Darcy still knew he was hot. Because she knew these things. Better than physics or quadratic equations or whatever.

The stranger in the creepy flasher trench coat she sat next to had just nodded. So he had probably agreed. Or been confused. He'd looked a little confused. But Darcy didn't mind. She was so right and she knew it.

And Jane knew it too. Because she was actually flirting!

Or, well, she was talking about gamma arrays. And something about nucleuses. Nucleii. Nuclice? Those tiny little atom thingies that blew up. Yeah, those!

Flasher Dude just blinked at her and kind of cocked his head. So okay, Darcy was drunk enough to narrate these things out loud. It was fine. Totally fine. And Jane showing interest in a guy was worth like a whole David Attenborough documentary's worth of narration. Well a guy who--

And that's when it happened. Because apparently Darcy had jinxed them by thinking about it.

"Really, Foster? The GRETA project? That's how you start talking dirty?"

Darcy groaned. Just one night. Just one frigging night.

"But the structural advancements--"

No. Not this again. Darcy really didn't even want to hear it. She banged her head against the bar. Mr. Probably Drives a White Van poked her shoulder. He looked concerned. Or maybe constipated. Darcy didn't know and didn't want to find out and--

"--really so pedestrian of you. The readings out of Cheyenne--"

"--Uh, Jane, was it? I think I'm probably--"

"--but germanium provides a--"

--just gonna go now?"

The hot guy had set down his pool cue. Nooo! This wasn't how the evening was supposed to go. Darcy had checked both their lab schedules. She knew she did. Overly Pedantic Jerkface was supposed to be babysitting the freshman astrology section tonight. Astromony? Astromasomething. That thing where they stayed up past 2 and--

"Man, that is way above my paygrade."

Hot Guy had gotten his jacket. And Jane hadn't even noticed. No, not even a little. Because she was glaring daggers at Overly Pedantic Jerkface, still in the center of the bar, the two of them openly doing that thing, where they were whisper shouting and stupidly close and Jane was waving her arms in his face. Something something Berkeley blah blah blah Dr. Whatsherface said-- Darcy was very much done.

And the worst of it was that she wasn't even surprised. Nope. Not a little. She had been totally on track to finally getting Jane laid. Which Jane really, really needed.

But then of course he showed up. Of course.

Darcy turned her head, the sticky mojito residue plastering her hair to her cheek. She sighed. Even the trench coat guy had left.

"--the long term implications of--"

She sighed again, signaling for another of whatever was the last thing the bartender had given her.

It was going to be a terrible night.

[gyllenhaalstories]

What do you think David Loki’s zodiac sign is? Do you think he genuinely believes in horoscopes or not?

hi, anon!!! this is a really interesting question! unfortunately, i must be the most unqualified person on this planet to answer such a question because i truly know nothing about astrology. i think my whole birth chart is a made up lie because nothing fits (and what fits can be very easily explained by my anxiety), so yeah, i never dug too deep into the topic. but... let's give it a try together, shall we?

I checked this website that says David is most likely an Aquarius. They write this: "As an Aquarius zodiac sign, Detective Loki is intellectual and cerebral. Aquarians often finds themselves lost in thought while analyzing something or brainstorming solutions to problems. With a thirst for knowledge, Detective Loki is highly intelligent and has a strong desire to learn about all kinds of topics." This page on the Allure website (going strong with the serious sources, I know!) specify a few things about Aquarius that fit with the first description. They point out that Aquarius signs are known to be stubborn and go about things in their own way. The Aquarius personality, based off what the astrologer said in the Allure text, contradicts what Jake said about David with the whole 'works alone and is too eccentric to respect authority figures' (which... I mean, yeah, we see David confront the Captain). But Jake said, in this interview (but I'm going off this page), that David has been searching for an institution, for a found family. Jake pushes the idea of institution further by precising that "Loki represents an institution".

I found two Reddit posts (one, two) that discuss Detective Loki and someone pointed out the tattoos on his right knuckles: the zodiac signs for Leo, Scorpio, Aries and Virgo. I think this could be an interesting indicator. Are these his big four? Are these the signs of people in his life, from his past? Perhaps parents, guardians, figures he trusted or friends from the boys home? Maybe. If we go with the possibility that the tattoo represents his own birth chart, then I'm going back to the Allure website. Leo (loyal, consistent, magnetic, proud), Scorpio (intuitive, calculated, determined, passionate), Aries (impulsive, motivated, explosive, bold) and Virgo (systematic, destructive, resourceful, meticulous) all share characteristics that match Detective Loki.

Out of all the Jake characters, Det Loki seems to me like the one guy who would believe in this the most. I'm not saying he'd base his entire life around it, but he might seek answers in astrology and in people's signs. Loved ones, friends or partners, he would probably like to figure out their birth charts and he would try to understand them better as a person depending on the placements and planets and all that jazz. It'd be cute to read the horoscope in the newspapers, at home or at the restaurant perhaps, and discuss the vague warnings and descriptions it gives. It's safe to say Loki is a man of symbols and the meaning he gives to these symbols (astrology, the masonic ring, religion, his other tattoos) is a big part of the mystery that surrounds him. We know he, although playfully, inquires the waitress about hers and her boss' Chinese Zodiac sign. He reads the description for rooster and nods in agreement. I think there's a certain interest and fascination for astrology in Loki that is hard to find in other characters. I doubt that he would see astrology as factual, but I think he'd entertain the idea that some elements are not just coincidental.

i've always associated detective loki with winter so i want to support anything that validates my claim but i'm not too convinced about aquarius. i'd be more inclined to see him as a scorpio (i saw @/gyllenflower's answer and dan suggested scorpio as well so that's nice!). loki is very november vibes. although i can't lie, i do see a lot of virgo in david. his virgo attributes can easily be explained by just being good at his job but... what if? what if loki is the virgo character i've been searching for? my virgo self would be very happy. also yes i have spent three hours researching and reading about fictional people's fake and unconfirmed zodiac signs. my laptop hates me for having about 20 open tabs. i'm not sure that trying to go factual and trying to cross reference random posts and websites is the right way to approach a question about astrology but it is the way i chose to approach this question. i think i put more effort in answering this than in writing any final essays i have submitted in my awfully long student life. thank you so much for giving me an excuse to forget about the world and just think about detective loki for a while!

[misiwrites]

Mayblade Day 3

[previous: chapter 1 & 2]

CHAPTER 3 prompt: pets characters: hiromi, salima, kane, ayaka, kai (+ emily) pairings: i guess there's implied kane/salima and emily/kai

Hiromi gathered all her courage at the beginning of the lunch break. Before the inseparable red-and-blue pair had the chance to get up and leave, she took a deep breath and made her move, she scurried over to Salima’s desk with a pitter-patter pulse in her throat.

“Um, hi,” she started and raised a hand. “Sorry. Do you have a minute?”

Kane and Salima both turned to look at her, puzzled but friendly. Salima, brushing off her denim jacket, exuded her usual big-sisterly aura as she replied: “What is it?”

Hiromi hoped she wasn’t looking too weird, too nervous as she presented her question. She explained that her club was short of members and, only slightly stumbling and rambling in the process, asked if, perchance, Salima happened to be interested in joining. Then included Kane as a clumsy afterthought, realizing how rude it was to only ask the other – not that she’d ever heard of a guy interested in astrology, but maybe there were some out there? What did she know.

Kane turned to look at Salima, who in turn gave Hiromi an empathic head-tilt and an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, but I’m already very busy with taking care of the council duties while attending the kendo club. It was kind of you to invite me, though. I can ask around if someone else would be interested.”

“Oh. That would be nice. Thanks.” Hiromi was at a momentary loss, she wondered how she’d forgotten that Salima – and Kane, too, of course – was in the kendo club on top of the student council, of course she wouldn’t have time for another club and such a pointless one too, how stupid of her to even ask.

And to her further horror, Salima then raised her voice at the person who’d just passed them on her way to the door: “What about her? Hey! Ayaka!”

The girl with red-brimmed glasses and short baby blue hair spun on her heels at the sound of her name, gave them a quizzical look, and was right by Salima and Kane’s desks the next moment.

“’Wassup?”

“Tachibana here is looking for new astrology club members,” Salima told her, and the fact that she called her by surname in such formal fashion only deepened Hiromi’s shame. “You have some interest in that kind of thing, don’t you?”

Ayaka directed her attention at Hiromi as if only just noticing her for the first time. Maybe she did. “You have a club for astrology?”

Hiromi nodded. “Well, it’s for other types of pseudoscience too – we just call it that for simplicity.” I call it that, she corrected in her mind; after all, she was now the sole member of the club.

“You do tarot and stuff?” asked Kane, to Hiromi’s surprise. He was wearing a smirk that she couldn’t quite read. He could have been making fun of her but didn’t appear hostile.

“Yeah, I do tarot readings sometimes,” she said meekly.

“Sounds cool. But I’m not sure if I have time for two clubs.” Ayaka slung the strap of her bag over her shoulder. “I’m in the engineering club, I’ve been working on a neat AI project lately. Feel free to come check it out sometime if you’re interested!”

Hiromi’s heart sank, again. She mumbled something about keeping it in mind while some eighty-five percent sure she would not go check the engineering club out. In theory, she did enjoy math, physics, and chemistry – she enjoyed most subjects, in fact, and was the top of the class in most – but the hands-on side of computers or tinkering with gadgets and such had never exactly been her thing.

“Don’t give up,” Salima said and gave her an encouraging pat on the shoulder, to Hiromi’s surprise. “If you’d like some help with ideas for promoting your club, feel free to come ask the student council for resources any time. Good luck!”

Then Salima and Kane sprang up and left the classroom together, leaving Hiromi to stare after them in silence with an undercurrent of confused gratitude for Salima’s kindness towards a near stranger like her.

And surprised further still she was when Ayaka leaned over to say, quietly: “They’re Sagittarius and Libra, all over each other.” With that, she too was gone.

In a week’s time, Hiromi had given up on the astrology club.

Turned out that everyone in Bey High was already preoccupied being established members of either some other clubs or one of the notorious gangs who went around terrorizing the rest. (She found the latter a questionable choice and odd at best; being the diligent and hardworking type, she rarely came across these school hoodlums in her everyday life.) Simply put, she was far too late with trying to lure in any members this late into the semester. So she gave up and accepted her inevitable solitude.

It was an ordinary Saturday, the sun up high and the air mellow, and she left the house to take the family dog out for the usual weekend midday walk. She’d had to recently alter her route due to roadworks that blocked one of the pedestrian streets in the neighborhood and, this time, decided to head to a park slightly further away than she usually bothered to walk. The weather was good and she wasn’t in any hurry anywhere.

There, while minding her own business, she suddenly saw someone she recognized in the distance. A boy from her school, tall, one year her senior. With a shiba inu following him on a leash, it was unmistakably Hiwatari Kai. Hiromi stopped in her tracks, let her own Pomeranian wander exploring the scents in their surroundings for a moment, and stared.

It was a strange sight, the notorious boss of the Shell Killers, the mob that Ayaka’s older brother was also part of, having a leisurely stroll with a cute dog in the public park. Usually dressed dramatically like a glam rock star from the seventies, now Kai wore a tacky sports top and shorts, the indigo triangles missing from his cheeks. And a cone of ice cream in his other hand. He not only looked deceptively normal but nothing like someone earning the title of the most popular bad boy of the school.

And then their eyes met. Hiromi had stood staring for too long; Kai caught her red-handed and stared back, listless.

Hiromi rushed her eyes away. She wondered if Kai recognized her back. Unlikely, as they’d never even talked to each other. In fact, most of what she knew about him had been second-hand information through Emily who was deep into all the school gossip. Emily found that stuff spicy – and she, like apparently every girl in their school, had a bit of a crush on Kai, or had at least had one at the beginning of the school year. “I mean, he’s just so cool, you know?”

After following the antics of her dog for a minute, Hiromi glanced up again and saw that Kai had moved a few meters to the left with the shiba that was now aggressively sniffing a lamppost. He wasn't looking her way anymore.

Was he cool? She couldn’t really tell. He didn’t look very cool to her. He looked like, well, just some guy. Sure his arms were nicely trained and all, but his pallid skin and the silvery grey dye in his hair made him look like either a ghost or a middle-aged tourist on the Spanish coast in mid-November. A sun-colored mango melon ice cream in hand.

Hiromi swallowed the urge to start giggling and carried on with her walk. I’ve got to tell Emily during the club tomorrow…

Alas, she then remembered that the club was no more.

[solarsystementertainment]

Fashion Irritation

The Zodiac members get ready for an award show

The Zodiac dorm was currently in a level of chaos it hasn’t seen yet. The rookie group was nominated for several awards including the Asian Artist Award, which is the event the members were currently getting ready for. Ten of the members were running around the dorm getting ready. They might be trying to find their formal shoes, they might be trying to figure out how to tie their tie. Or maybe they were eating and some sauce fell on to their formal shirt and they were frantically trying to get the stain out.

Arthur had locked himself in his and Merlin's shared room and he was on the brink of tears. He was having a very bad day in terms of his fluctuating muscle weakness and fine motor skills. He was going to need to attend the award show while on his crutches. He's already nearly fallen over five times just in the dorm, so there was no way he was going to walk the red carpet or whatever without his mobility aid.

As frustrating as that is, Astrologers are aware that he occasionally needs crutches due to a childhood accident that flares up from time to time. Therefore it wasn't as frustrating as what was currently happening.

Arthur has spent the past twenty minutes trying to button his shirt. Yes he has been timing it. The thing is, his fine motor skills have decided to leave the building today, and he was still working on the first button. Normally this wouldn't be too much of an issue because he'd just wear a pull-over or find Merlin. Given the nature of the event, he couldn't wear a pull-over. Merlin also wasn't home.

Merlin had frantically run out of the dorm earlier with his garment bag. There had been some kind of emergency at the Venom-mal dorm and Jihye, Merlin's sister had texted him, telling him to come quick. Anyway, Merlin quickly packed up his outfit in his garment bag and told the group that he'd meet them at the venue for the award show.

Either way, since Arthur is unable to ask his boyfriend for help, he's going to need to ask one of the other members for help. It's honestly slightly embarrassing. He's not really embarrassed when Merlin helps him because one, they're in a relationship. And more importantly, two, they've known each other since they were in diapers and Merlin has always been there to help him whenever he needed it. It was almost like second nature. There's just something slightly awkward and embarrassing about having to ask someone for help. Especially when it's something you feel you shouldn't have issues with in the first place. Arthur sighed as he began thinking about which member he should ask for help.

Arthur grabbed his crutches and made his way out of his room. The scene he walked in on was somewhat humorous. His three hyungs were all dressed and looked rather pristine. Meanwhile Taehoon is underneath the pile of animals, who all apparently crawled on top of him for a nap. Jihoon was sitting with Jasper at the dining table doing some kind of homework. Youngbin and Junseok were in the kitchen, fighting over a bottle of hot sauce.The interesting thing is that the three oldest seemed to be watching the others out of their periphery, but didn’t seem that concerned about the chaos. Meanwhile Woong looked like he was about to blow a gasket.

The main thing is that Arthur didn't feel like bringing attention to himself right now. But if he goes into the common area to ask one of his members for help, that's exactly what he'll be doing. Ultimately, he decided to go back to his room and use his phone to text one of them to come and help him.

Arthur turned around to go back to his room. Just as he was turning the door knob of his door, he saw Minseok exit their room out of his periphery. Arthur chose to take his chance.

"Minseok-ah, can I please talk to you in my room?" He asked. Minseok nodded their head and followed Arthur.

"What's up, hyung?" They asked.

"I need help getting dressed." Arthur said, only to get a confused look in response.

"Why do you need help? You look like you're doing just fine on your own." Arthur sighed, once again feeling tears beginning to form.

"I can't get my shirt buttoned. Everytime I try, the button falls out of my grip." Out of the sheet frustration of the whole situation, the tears that had been threatening to come out finally spilled.

"Alright hyung." Minseok said. The younger grabbed either side of Arthur's shirt and buttoned it far quicker than Arthur could have on a good day.

"Thanks, Min. By the way, which tux did you decide to wear?"

"No problem, hyung. I chose the tux with the tails. I'm also going to put my hair in a bun. It'll look great." Minseok said excitedly before leaving the room to finish getting ready.

Now that Arthur’s shirt was buttoned, he finished getting dressed and finally joined the others in the common area. It wasn’t much longer before it was time for the group to leave for the award show. All eleven men were clad in black tuxedos. Some with tails, some without. Arthur was very much still a bit annoyed that he would be walking his very first red carpet while on crutches, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle.

Merlin had arrived at the venue before the group arrived, and he wasn’t matching the rest of the group. Instead of wearing a black tux, his was navy blue. Jehyuk looked a tiny bit annoyed at that, but there wasn’t much that could be done.

“Lin, why is your tux blue? It was black this morning.” Arthur asked his boyfriend. As much as he’d like to kiss him right now, he didn’t because they weren’t out to the public yet and their company told them to wait a bit longer.

Merlin had a somewhat fond smile on his face as he answered. “Apparently the emergency that Jihye messaged me about was of the fashion variety. Her group is also coming to this award show, but Joey’s tux was apparently too long. Jihye guessed that I’m the same size as Joey, so she asked me to bring my tux over. They only had black thread at the dorm and because of that it would be easier to hem a black tux over a navy blue tux. We switched tuxedos, then I helped with the process of hemming.” Jehyuk looked a little less annoyed at the explanation.

“You do realize that fans of both groups will likely notice the color change right?” Jehyuk asked.

“Yes, we’re all aware. Jihye messaged her group’s manager and he’s in contact with pr. Besides we all know it’s just going to be a rumour at most, if anything comes out. Also it might cause management to let us come out to the public sooner rather than later.” Merlin smirked as he said this. Literally the entire group rolled their eyes, but they had to agree with the point. What better way to get management to agree to revealing a relationship than causing a rumour of a non-existent relationship.

Sure enough Astrologers and Anti-Venom noticed that Merlin and Joey were wearing different colors compared to the rest of their groups. It also wasn’t super long before dating rumours between the did actually begin circulating. Merlin had also been right in that the dating rumour between himself and Joey did cause their company to allow Merlin and Arthur to come forward with their relationship much sooner.

[theallenshorefangirl]

I have made an In Sound Mind Oc(well, maybe Self insert???)

The Sorrowful(Sorrow for short)

The Sorrow is an interesting shadow form based on sleep deprivation, and having Allen's schizophrenia is shy and almost quiet as a mouse.Like Allen's Shade form, she hates lights and loud noises. Her level is like a mix of astrology and gothic like architecture (since I'm a sucker for that kinda stuff) The real self works at Homa Mart during the day and at night she fills in at the Lighthouse for her friend she calls more of a brother Allen Shore.

Attack:Sorrow uses the loud noise to track Desmond,if he's in sight, she uses her ability to make Desmond sleepy, causing him to slowly take 5-10 damage depending on how long he can get out of her line of sight.Use hiding spots,Lights and Stealth to avoid her.Another attack is her wax jacket,when on the hunt for Desmond,she's alittle peeved off causing her jacket to drip wax which is a trap like liquid (kind of like the dark asphalt Shade has) it can trap Desmond til he uses either his flashlight or flare or the level item.She has mask that she flip flops around one when no one's around and one where you piss her off.If Desmond is down she can drag him into a "Danger zone" it is a room where you have to escape before he falls into a forever sleep (Rainbows there waiting for his chance to attack)which using the vents is key to escape.

Level Item:Flash Beacon found in her astronomy telescope room.

Tape:Her tape is a purple and yellow tape with black speckles on it

Level Photo:It's the Sorrow and The Shade doing a peace sign on the photo it has "Siblings of the Dark"

Tape intro-

Desmond:All right, I'm recording if that's ok with you miss?

Zoe:it's Zoe I don't like using my last name *yawns*

Desmond:So do you do work that tires you? You look very tired?

Zoe:Well, I work at Homa Mart during the day, and I fill in for a friend who isn't at the lighthouse right now......*nodding off*

Desmond:Oh, Mr Shore,I mean, I know what happened. I'm guessing he showed you the ropes?...Zoe? *he snaps his fingers*

Zoe:Huh.....oh, sorry....

Tape ending - ???????

[miirshroom]

Thinking about how Elden Ring serves as a Spiritual Successor to a Certain Fantasy Series

I find fascinating the lore ouroboros from reading Elden Ring in context of the Wheel of Time and vice versa. Significant spoilers ahead for Elden Ring and minor spoilers for Wheel of Time.

There's the surface level stuff like:

The Erdtree Guardians wield sword-spears and are guarding offshoots of the Tree of Life like the Aiel with Avendesora? Neat!

The previous Elden Lord fought with an axe and was succeeded by an Elden Lord who fights with a hammer and runs with wolves? Sounds a lot like the character arc of Perrin Aybarra. The Beastman of Farum Azula in Limgrave could even be a wolf brother who was "lost to the wolf"

Interesting choice to have a Commander Niall at Castle Sol, considering that Wheel of Time has Pedron Niall, the Lord Captain Commander of the Children of the Light. A villain who thinks that his cause is righteous. This has...implications...considering Miquella's connection to Castle Sol...

It gets more pointedly specific:

Raya Lucaria academy being located in a anatomically shaped body of water and governed by a woman sounds pretty similar to Tar Valon. But maybe it's just a trick of my eyes that the lake looks like an anatomical heart with the roadways and landmasses located at the major veins and arteries (I've sketched this out and it seems legit - it's an uncommonly seen angle of the heart though)

Radagon's name can be rearranged to "a dragon", is red-haired like Rand al'Thor, and his personal rune is a loose rendering of a woven Pattern - one of the central motifs of Wheel of Time. That seems a little beyond simple homage by GRRM to the works of a fellow author who he was well acquainted with (a nod from one book in A Song of Ice and Fire: "Archmaester Rigney wrote that history is a wheel, that the nature of man is fundamentally immutable. According to him, what has already happened will happen again, without remedy.").

So, what can Elden Ring be saying about Wheel of Time, a series that infamously has lingering questions that will never be answered due to literal death of the author.

There's a statue of a bearded man in the underground areas with a tablet at his feet that depicts the Imago Mundi - a real world artefact that is a map of Mesopotamia. This is implied to be the earliest age of civilization in Elden Ring just as real world civilization emerged from the river basin between the Tigres and Euphrates Rivers. This is where the ouroboros wraps back around to realizing that there may be some symbolism in Wheel of Time beginning at protagonist Rand al'Thor's home in a region called the Two Rivers.

The "Loux" in Hoarah Loux is a Germanic surname meaning "Lynx Eyed", or having sharp eyesight. The kind of eyesight that would be useful for a man out at sea navigating by the stars. The Prologue of Wheel of Time begins with the previous incarnation of the Dragon before Rand, a man named "Lews" Therin Telamon. "Theron" is a Greek word meaning "hunter". "Telamon" is the name of one of the Argonauts who sailed with Jason to find the Golden fleece. So the full name could mean "sharp eyed hunter, a seeker of the Golden fleece". It seems appropriate that Rand the 'Dragon Reborn' starts off his journey as a shepherd who tends sheep.

The Western Zodiac consists of 12 astrological signs (and sometime Ophiuchus), of which Aries is the first sign. The story associated with the constellation Aries is the story of the Golden Fleece. Wheel of Time was also supposed to be 12 books long. It was very important to author James Rigney (pen name Robert Jordan) that the series end with the 12th book - but circumstances being what they were the series eventually concluded with Brandon Sanderson writing the 12th, 13th and 14th volumes.

That's about as much as can be covered without getting really into the deep lore of Wheel of Time. I have a lot more thoughts about how both Wheel of Time and Elden Ring are thematically bound to the wheel of Vedic Astrology and invoking themes of a dreamlike collective unconsciousness (the Jungian thing). Also the alchemy stuff.