#hints of

[1n-bl0om]

obscure tbp hcs

just some thoughts tbh (hints of brance and finbin)

goes between modern day and the 70s

- griffin would definitely send death threats to people online at the most minor inconveniences. nobody expects the innocent ones

- billy knows how to play the hermonica

- vance would be one of those toxic gamers. the ones that just yell and scream and blow air into the mic

- bruce the type of mf to actually slip on a banana peel

- robin goes around school and does those interviews with a tiny mic

- billy and vance would do the “devious lick” trend that happened early last year. mfs would steal the whole bathroom sink

- the guys try to recreate the breakfast club table scene and the table ends up collapsing

- one time griffin jumped in a pool and immediately started drowning

- finney is extremely good at solitaire

- bruce has held a boombox outside of vance’s window after a fight. vance closed his blinds after seeing him

- griffin would run a stan acc on twt. no further comment.

- robin has doodled “F + R” in his notebook

- when gwen and finney go shopping, finney is the designated bag holder

- bruce owns one of those crusty white dogs with a human name

- gwen has definitely been chased by geese at a park

- the guys have made one of those “cooking in the cafeteria” videos but caught something on fire

- billy spams the gc with tik toks that no one ever watches

- vance and robin are the number one instigators. they will hear people arguing and go, “you gonna let them talk to you like that?”

- finny watches interstellar every week

- robin has accidentally grated his hand while grating cheese

- griffin doing something feral and vance going “what if i told you griffin got that dawg in him?”

- finney follows those niche fire alarm accs that post rare fire alarms

- bruce has five pairs of the same shirt and gets clowned for it. the guys call him a cartoon character

- billy sleeps with like 10+ stuffed animals

- vance's mom has a doll collection and it freaks everyone out

- gwen goes around and takes those .5 photos of everyone

- vance and robin working at a local fast food place together and just hiding in the back whenever a customer comes through the drive thru

- billy yelling “stroke that thang cuzzo” when bruce goes to hit at a game

- robin scares finney at any chance he has

- one time griffin ate five corn dogs before going on a rollercoaster, it did not end well

- vance definitely go to house shows. those diy shows in peoples basements, backyards, garages, etc. whatever, you name it. sometimes robin joins and he takes bruce one time

- griffin has a pet goldfish that somehow doubled in size

- gwen has a collection of half burned, unscented candles. they are all carious colors and her dresser has wax embedded into it

- bruce watches golden girls. period

- gwen and finney sometimes have a “sleep over.” which just consists of finney sleeping in gwens floor and her forcing him to play dolls and do prank calls

!! bonus !!

left image: left - everyone else, right - griffin

right image: finbin with e/o & brance with e/o

me posting about the black phone?!? woah!! unheard of

[onyxstone14]

hurting fushiguro would be the last thing you'll do

[circus-blades]

"replaceable" 

[seytazen]

🌹🌹🌹🌹

This is so late but dammit life has been rough lately I hope you can forgive me but here's an Earthspark ficlet for ya.

Optimus tapped a digit on the desk, staring at the data form waiting for him to read, fill out, and file it. He glanced at his chronometer mentally noting he had been at this for about an hour now… and not even the first question was done. 

Tap tap tap tap tap. 

This form was a field report for GHOST, he told himself. Therefore important. This report was already late, so it’s a priority now. Either way it must be done. He shifted in his seat, leaning forwards to get a closer look at the sentence.

Why couldn’t his processor just process the information? He knew how to read in English, so why are these English words registering as gibberish? He fidgeted with the stylus in his hand trying to keep his mind off of the terrible helmache brewing. He was also so tired… he hadn’t actually gotten any recharge in- 42 hours? 

His optics glanced over to the other parts of his paperwork he had not gotten to yet. The large messy stack that took up a terribly large portion on his desk contained the various unread reports, to do paperwork, receipt copies covered with sticky notes, empty reusable energon cubes, and an empty orange prescription bottle. 

Right… that was why. 

He shook his helm. He couldn’t dwell on that too much, Ratchet said there was a shortage of the compounds he needed, but there was a shipment on the way. He just needed to hold out for another week. 

Mind over matter…

Tap tap tap tap. 

Oh come on, he had done this sort of stuff before. He just had worked through all sorts of things… a helmache and a little fatigue? It should be a walk in the park. He scratched behind his audio with another loud sigh. There's a million things he’d rather be doing right now… basketball sounded like fun. Maybe Elita would be free for a one on one- NO. 

No no no. 

Important paperwork first.  

Important very late paperwork first.

Focus. 

He flipped the stylus he was holding around in his right servo. He could do this, it was just a field report… Question one. 

Question one… 

Question…one. 

He fiddled absentmindedly with the stylus in his servo. He sure had a lot of paperwork to do today. He had been terrible about letting it pile up this past week. And he knew that he had to have it finished if he wanted to watch the Lakers Game on Thursday. He still had the budget to do for this quarter, several reports from Megatron and Elita to read, Prowl’s patrol schedule for everyone needed to be confirmed, he still had this field report and the other three to do too for Executive Agent Croft, Agent Schloder had a few wordy reports in here as well.

 There were also Arcee’s reports to read and file…

 It’s been a little while since he checked up on Bumblebee too-and then the Terrans training needed to be checked up on. Dottie had mentioned something about them. What was it again? Right- he had been meaning to visit and Nightshade was rather curious about Cybertronian history and he still had a few textbooks laying around his quarters that he could loan out. Anything to keep Cybertron’s history alive and breathing right? Now that he thought about it, where did he put those? He knew they were in his quarters somewhere-but where? He really ought to clean his room sometime soon- he was certain that he was the main culprit of the missing cubes from the recreation room. He didn’t even know how many he had accidentally hoarded away, but Jazz was getting very persistent with the base wide emails asking- no pleading for them to be returned. Prowl wouldn’t be very happy if he had to give in and order some more to keep the rest of the autobots fueled. He should set a reminder to do that right now on his comm- oh right- he turned his comm off and he also couldn’t use the internet in his office right now- the router was unplugged. Well it was kind of important that he get a reminder on his comm about the missing reusable cubes, otherwise he would forget about it and then he would feel worse the next time he checked his emails and found another base wide demand for people to return the cubes when they were done with them. Speaking of emails, he should give his inbox a glance while he had his comm on-

Wait, now he was off track again. 

Scrap. 

He rubbed at his optics tiredly. His helm ached and he could go for a quick powerdown… after he does at least half of this paperwork because he wanted to go to the game on Thursday. Where was that ticking noise coming from? Right right- Earth clocks make noise because they have mechanisms that keep the time. There was one on the wall. How had he wasted another 20 minutes staring at this datapad?? 

Tap tap tap. 

He narrowed his optics to it. Earth time was a lot faster than Cybertronian time, and it was dwindling away in front of him. He leaned against the back of the chair glaring down at the datapad again. 

These were his responsibility. People needed him to get his paperwork in. And they needed it like yesterday. There were no excuses for a Prime being so lazy, so he just needed to get it done. 

He stayed right where he was. It was like he was stuck…He glanced over at his comm’s full inbox blinking in his peripheral. He needed to do something about that, there was no telling how many messages he had missed while he sat here struggling to do anything about the massive pile of work he had neglected. Oh, there were a few missed calls from Bumblebee here too… maybe he should check up on him, it must be somewhat urgent if he’s calling- wait no! He was doing it again! He had turned off his comm specifically so he wouldn’t get distracted with a call or emails or TikTok videos! These papers were urgent too, and if Bumblebee needed something Elita and Megatron were both available to back him up. 

He slumped over, putting his helm in his folded arms with a groan.

It was time to stop messing around. Stop procrastinating, and just do it. He had to. He had to. He had to… 

Do it. Do it. Do it, do it, do it. DO IT NOW. 

…

This was pointless…

Maybe a walk would help get his helm in order.

Optimus stood up slowly and walked to his office door in defeat, once again guiltily leaving the pile of paperwork behind him. Just 15 minutes. 15 minutes and he would try again. He had to, there was too much to do for him to not get anything accomplished again. 

He shut the door behind him quietly as he looked back and forth down the empty hallway. He turned to walk down the hallway. Base was pretty much a long rectangle if you took the halls around the long way. Just to get some energon flowing, he’d take a quick walk and then go back to doing paperwork. 

He paced down the hallway, letting his mind wander a little bit, but still watching for humans underfoot. 

“OP! There you are, I was hoping I’d catch you,” a familiar voice called from behind him, the footsteps quickening to catch up to him.  He froze in his steps before slowly turning around in dread.

Please don’t have another report. 

“Elita,” he greeted back watching the pink femme walk up to him with a datapad in hand. He hoped that wasn’t what he was assuming it was… “What can I do for you?” 

“Glad you asked,” she replied, holding the datapad out. He grimaced behind his mask, taking it from her servo. She continued to speak, “Saw the Do not Disturb sign so I held off, but hey, since I ran into you might as well give it to you. Getting all caught up?” She elbowed him gently. 

He thought about telling her briefly. He really did. But if he admitted he was so far behind she would be appalled and ask why- and then he would have to explain why he couldn’t focus on measly data work, and that would lead to him trying to explain the disorder he had, and THAT would lead to her asking all sorts of questions about how he can want to do something but somehow can’t do it, and he didn’t have the time or the patience.

He didn’t want to be shamed for this, he was already ashamed of this problem as it was and that she knew he was behind in the first place. 

“Um. Yes! Yes, I am,” he replied with a stiff nod, keeping a forced smile on his face. He was practically gritting his teeth. He didn’t care about lying, he really didn’t, but he didn’t want to make excuses for a hole he dug for himself. “Nothing quite like getting caught up on paperwork! I’ve just been churning them out, one right after the other!” He chuckled, hoping deeply she would buy it. “Just taking a little bit of a break and then I’ll get right back to work on them. Should be done really soon… Yes, another report should be no issue. Thank you, Elita.” 

“Yeah, no problem! Keep up the good work, yeah? I’ll let you get back to your break,” she smiled, giving him a firm pat on the shoulder. “I’m hitting the gym. See ya at the watch party OP! Go Lakers!” She called as she jogged away. 

He waved to her even as she disappeared around a corner. He slumped where he stood once she was completely out of view looking down at the training report he was just handed. The watch party… if he didn’t finish his paperwork he wouldn’t be permitted to go. And he had been looking forward to this game. He sighed, shaking his helm. What was one more anyway? He slowly turned back around and continued to walk. 

He turned another corner through the hallways, holding the datapad from Elita in one hand as he let his thoughts wander as he walked. There was a soft tapping on his shoulder. He turned to see what it could be. He felt more weight settled on top of the report he was already holding. His optics widened a little bit, turning back to look down at his hands. He blinked, finding another two sitting on top of Elita’s newest report. 

“Turning in my scouting reports! Thanks Optimus!” Arcee’s voice called from behind him. He wrenched his helm back behind him, watching her frame disappear around the corner he had just turned. 

He sighed softly, turning back to stare harshly at the total of three new reports in his servos. “No problem…” he muttered. 

…

He completed the loop around the base he had meant to walk, he still had zero interest in doing any of the work already piled on his desk, and he had somehow accumulated 7 more datapads to do. 

There was an unpleasant pressure in his chest as he dropped them roughly on top of the pile. How frustrating- he just wanted to throw them all against the wall! He stared at the mess every passing second rage gathering in his spark. He could identify at least 65 different tasks he could do, and yet he couldn’t pinpoint on a single one to start on! 

He stared harder, clenching his fists.

Annoyance/Frustration/Overwhelmed colored his field.  

This was officially a breaking point. There was too much of it and he was sick of looking at it. 

The only way there was to get it out of his sight was to do it. 

He could do this. 

All he had to do was start. 

Just one at a time.  

Knock knock knock. 

Dammit, not now! 

Knock knock knock.

He slowly turned to stare at the door. He could pretend he wasn’t here… 

Knock knock knock 

“Optimus? It’s Megatron. I know you’re in there!” He called through the door. 

Optimus felt his optic twitch. So much for that idea. Begrudgingly, he opened the door a little bit. “What can I do for you, Megatron?” He asked, trying not to sound annoyed, but he knew he had failed when Megatron took a small step back.  

Megatron gave him a small sheepish smile. “So how are the reports going?” 

His optic twitched as he took a slow vent in. “…good. They’re going good,” he replied stiffly, not breaking optic contact with Megatron. 

“Great! That’s great, So you won't mind if I hand you a few more?” He asked, pulling another three datapads from behind his back. 

Optimus felt like he was on the verge of glitching. He took a deep intake staring at the additional three reports. 

On top of the mess. 

Frustration was rapidly building. 

“Yes. I can definitely take those. That will not be a problem at all,” he replied, reaching out and trying to take them. 

He must not be doing a good job at masking his building anxiety because Megatron gave him a look and pulled the pads back out of his reach. He frowned, raising an eyebrow. “Are you…sure?” 

Optimus hesitated. He must have had a tone. He straightened up a little bit, speaking slowly and reminding himself that this was his fault- not Megatron’s. “Yes. I’m sure,” he sighed. “Sorry, I’m just a little tired is all.” 

Megatron slowly tried to look over his shoulder and Optimus quickly sidestepped to block his view of the messy office. Megatron narrowed his optics just a little bit. “Optimus, are you absolutely sure you’re okay taking these now? I can always bring them back later if you aren’t caught up-“ 

“I am caught up! I am. I’ve got it under control. So I’ll just take these now,” he replied, panic seeping into his voice. He couldn’t let Megatron figure out he was drowning in procrastination! Elita finding out was doable, but Megatron would certainly judge him. “It’s no issue! I assure you.” 

Megatron seemed to hesitate, looking at Optimus critically. “You just seem kind of… jittery. You know, if you’re having trouble catching up…” Optimus narrowed his optics a little bit, beginning to grow rather short tempered all of a sudden.

“I’m not having any trouble catching up-“ Optimus replied in a low warning tone. 

“All I’m saying is if you need a little help-“

“Megatron, I assure you, there’s nothing to worry about. I am on top of it. I do not need help and I am perfectly capable of datawork so why don’t you just hand over the reports!” He snapped, exasperated by Megatron’s concern. 

A low whistle from behind him caught his attention. “Wow… quite the stack there, huh?” 

His spark sank rather quickly. He knew Dottie was standing by his desk. Shame was burning through him as he turned around to face her. “Lieutenant Malto…”

Dottie chuckled. “I was starting to wonder why my paperwork is still pending…” 

Megatron stepped inside the office now that Optimus had been found out and was no longer focused on keeping him out. . “Yikes… and I thought I was terrible with paperwork,” he teased. A part of Optimus knew it was meant to be in good nature, but it tugged at him. 

“Usually I’m not this terrible with it…” he replied softly, shutting the door behind Megatron and watching Dottie scale the side of his desk. “Trust me, no one is more frustrated with this mess than I am. If I could I would, but I just… can’t. 

“So what’s going on then, Big Rig?” Dot asked as she searched for another crevasse to further her climb up.  

Megatron strolled over to the side of the desk to give Dot a boost. The orange bottle caught his optics. He sat Dot down and slowly picked it up. 

Optimus visibly bristled at it averting his optics. 

Dottie looked between Optimus and the empty bottle Megatron held. “I assume it has something to do with that?” She asked, crossing her arms. 

Megatron gave him that concerned look he had practically mastered over the last 15 years. 

The one that merely said ‘spill it.’ 

No point in hiding it now…

He sighed heavily leaning against the door and folding his arms. He looked down at the floor. “…I’ve always had trouble doing desk work,” he said, shaking his helm. “It’s boring and monotonous and I sit down to do them, and I get… stuck… I-I know it sounds strange. I want to sit down, focus, and finish my paperwork, but I can’t do it.” 

“Can you elaborate on that?” Dottie asked crossing her arms and looking up and down the piles that towards precariously around her. 

Optimus looked back up at the orange bottle Megatron was holding. “It’s not that I don’t want to do it… it’s like my mind won’t let me. I’ll get distracted with thinking about all the other tasks I need to do, or I’ll try to focus on what is in front of me suddenly I’m unable to comprehend any data input I observe, or I’ll set it down for two minutes and accidentally forget I was supposed to do it in the first place, or its something ridiculous- like the sound of electricity or air conditioning drowns out my thoughts. I talked to Ratchet about it years ago, and after I talked to Ratchet I went through a series of tests and he diagnosed me with this uncommon computing disorder. It’s a little bizarre and it sounds like I just don’t want to do it, I know, but It really does render me unable to ‘regulate my attention.’ Ratchet makes this medication for me to help fix it. I don’t know everything that’s in it, but I do know when I take it, it helps me feel much better… I’m able to focus, I feel more in control, and I don’t forget things as often,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“So… why is this bottle empty then?” Megatron asked, shaking it gently to illustrate his point. “Why not go get more medicine from Ratchet?” 

Optimus sighed, rubbing a servo down his face. “Ratchet can’t refill my prescription right now. He doesn’t have the components he needs to make it…” 

Megatron let out a quiet “oh.” Dottie walked over the edge of the desk and sat, her legs dangling. “Sounds a lot like something humans have sometimes. We call it ADHD. It’s actually pretty common on Earth. How long have you been without your meds OP?” 

“What day of the week is it?” He asked frowning, trying to remember. “Tuesday.” 

Optimus recounted the days. “A week ago?” 

“Bots have something called withdrawal, Megs?” Dottie asked, looking over at the former decepticon. “You know, you stop taking something and you get jittery and you start feeling a little sick?” 

Megatron gave a firm nod. “We do. It’s not fun,” he said, shaking his helm. “And that certainly explains why you look like you haven’t recharged in a good while.” 

Optimus sighed faintly letting himself slide down against the door to sit on the floor, his field still buzzing with distress. He felt pressure beginning to build behind his optics. He felt horribly small in that moment- Optimus Prime defeated by mounds of datapads and sticky notes- that was a line for the history books. He pulled his knees to his chest staring at the floor. “I want to get it over and done with- but all I can think about is how badly I want to sleep and how much my helm aches, and the fact that Prowl is going to end me if he ever finds out about how many cubes I’ve forgotten to return, and how deeply embarrassing it is that I’m still a week and a half behind on data work after I’ve taken every precaution to limit distractions, and I’m never going to catch up ever let alone by Thursday evening because my CPU doesn’t work right.” 

“Why is Thursday the deadline?” Dottie asked, tilting her head. “The basketball Game,” Megatron replied, all too familiar with Optimus’s love of the Earth custom. “The game is televised on Thursday night and there’s a watch party. He wants to go, but obviously if Croft or Schoder or Primus forbid- Prowl catches him doing extracurriculars while he’s this far behind on paperwork- they aren’t going to be happy.” 

Optimus nodded with a heavy sigh. “There’s 78 datapads on that desk. I’ve completed 3 of them in 10 days. If I want to watch the game with everyone else then I need to complete at least 26 of them today, 26 tomorrow, and 26 before 6 o’clock on Thursday.” 

Megatron hummed thoughtfully before he sat down in Optimus’s office chair looking down at the report sitting open and ready to be filled out. “A week ago, you engaged a rogue decepticon during your scheduled patrol, right?” 

Optimus frowned, recalling that afternoon. “Yes.” “Out of curiosity- what happened?” Megatron asked, picking up a stylus. “I was patrolling the Southeast quadrant of my route during the morning and I came across a trail of muddy footprints that were far too large to be anything other than a cybertronian’s, so I followed them through a clearing in the tree line. I found and identified Hook, a known Decepticon Medic. I confirmed my suspicions that he was alone then I cornered him and asked him to comply and told him I was arresting him. He resisted, there was a short exchange of blaster fire, I temporarily stunned him with a good shot that landed on his shoulder, I overpowered him and he submitted. He was taken back to base loaded in my trailer.” 

There was a beat of silence and the sound of a pen scribbling away. He blinked slowly looking up from the floor and at Megatron. It was only a moment more before the datapad he was writing away at was tossed in his “finished” basket. 

Optimus watched as he grabbed the next datapad off the pile. 

“Megatron,” he said, frowning. “You really don’t have to do my paperwork for me. It’s my responsibility not yours…I’ll just not go to the watch party- it’s fine.” 

He clenched his fists, willing himself to not sound quite so upset about it, because it was just a game- but still. 

“I’m not doing your paperwork for you,” he said looking up from the datapad. “You’re telling me what to write. I’m just moving my hand accordingly, Prime.” 

They locked optics for a moment, Optimus’s confused and Megatron’s sympathetic. “Why are you helping me with this?” He asked, sounding far smaller than he ever would admit. “I’m sure you’d rather spend your off time doing anything else.” 

Megatron gave a small shrug, a ghost of a smile tugging on the corner of his mouth. “Maybe I want my fraggin paperwork processed. And I guess, maybe I also know what it's like drowning in crap you have to get done when it feels pretty damn hard to function and I’ve got some sympathy hidden away in my spark for your sorry backside, Prime.” 

“But-” 

“But nothin!” Megatron interrupted, pointing the stylus at Optimus. “Let’s just get these blasted datapads where they belong, hmmm? If you feel that bad then you can thank me by owing me a favor later.” 

Optimus paused in his half formed protest and slowly smiled at Megatron. “Fine, then.” he sighed, letting one leg stretch out in front of him. “Let’s hear the next one…” 

-end

[fandsart]

El: There was this really mean girl back in Lenora?

Dustin: How mean? On a scale Eddie to Vecna?

Eddie, hand to chest: You consider me the nicest person you know?

Dustin: No, I consider you level one ‘really mean.’ El’s the nicest person I know.

El: Aw!

Eddie: What, how am I ‘really mean’?!

Dustin: You’re a DM, Eddie.

Eddie: Oh. Yeah, ok...

[real-jaune-isms]

I Got You a Flower, Samurai-kun~

Robin: Zoro, do you know what today is?

Zoro: Hmm… pretty sure it’s a Tuesday. Guess that means Luffy’ll be wanting tacos again. We never should have stopped on that island, he loves that weekly themed meal thing too much…

Robin: Fuhuhuhu~ Yes, I suppose his enthusiasm about that is quite abundant. But that’s not quite what I meant, because it’s a rather special Tuesday.

Zoro: Oh yeah? Do tell, is it the day you get the latest book in some series you like delivered or something?

Robin: Not quite. It’s the sort of day where some cultures would dictate a lot of sweets being exchanged, and I can think of a few times I’ve seen people dressing up more than usual~

Zoro: Oh damn, have I lost track of time that bad? It’s already Halloween again?

Robin: Hmph~ Your internal clock isn’t quite that distorted, no. It’s still in the beginnings of the year, and your lack of awareness on all this is almost appalling enough to dampen your charm. But not quite~

Zoro: Alright, I give up then, you’re too crafty for me so you better just clue me in. Whatever it is, it’s probably why the stupid cook was swooning more than usual and Nami was so ready to dock here, I could hear her scheming about “getting her money’s worth at the classiest restaurant they have”. I assume it’s also why Usopp’s been sitting in the Mini Merry sighing about his friend back home.

Robin: Yes, those are likely symptoms of this event, just like Luffy’s behavior today. I’m amazed our captain has figured out how to find songs on a transponder snail, much less has a preference for that rising diva pop star… but he’s been sitting on his favorite perch all day humming along to her New Genesis.

Zoro: And what about you? You know about all this off brand behavior crap but you’re not affected?

Robin: I never said that. In fact, here. A small gift.

*she hands him a red box, one shaped like a heart*

Robin: I’ve never seen you have much of a sweet tooth, but these are made with alcohol which I know you’re more fond of~

Zoro: Damn… I wish I was better with sentimental shit so I could give you a good thank you. I’ll be sure to enjoy’em.

Robin: Fuhuhu~ I’m sure you will.

*leans in and gives him a brief kiss*

Robin: Happy Valentine’s Day, Zoro-chan~

[greyskyflowers]

I just can't explain how much I love the idea of Nami and Zoro being chaotic bffs.

When women won't leave Zoro alone, drapping themselves over him and ignoring how he looks uncomfortable. They don't listen to the way he tells them to leave him alone or when he tries to shrug them off. Nami strolling over with a smile more fitting for a lioness baring her teeth and settles in his lap with an arm over his shoulder. She spits words at them like swiping claws until they get the hint and leave with tails tucked between their legs. Zoro squeezes her side in thanks, one of his giant hands feeling rough like bark against the soft skin of her side before shoving her off him.

Someone trying to drug Nami's drink and Zoro happens to see them doing it. He makes himself big when he stands up and feels the guy watch him go over to Nami. He grabs her drink and chugs it before slamming the mug down, he makes eye contact with the guy the whole time. Anger and bloodlust bleed off him like letting a cloak slide from his shoulders and he knows Nami is leering at the man from behind him, taunting the man for thinking he could try anything.

They tan together on the deck. Well, Nami tans and Zoro sleeps. She lays in her chair and sips on a bright drink while Zoro sprawls on the ground next to her and enjoys the day.

They can drink more than most and love to prove it. People always accept their bets and challenges, thinking they can outlast Zoro or looking at Nami with disbelief. They always leave the bar with heavy pockets, usually running and laughing.

Nami talks his ear off about blue hair and a smile brighter than the sun on desert sand. He never says much, hums his acknowledgement and nudges their shoulders together when her lower lip trembles at how much distance can be between two people.

Zoro ignores the way she pokes at him about ocean eyes and long legs. She gives his hand a squeeze and holds tight when he doesn't let himself even imagine he could deserve something like that.

They punch and yell at each other. They annoy the hell out of each other. Nami throws a punch and Zoro lets it connect. Zoro yells at her and Nami lets him.

They support and adore each other. She feels safer with Zoro at her back and he trusts her guidance through every storm.

It's all good.

[the-fandom-is-now-my-life]

After another day full of people you lay down on various carpets and cushions in the lounge room while eating some dates, it is still too soon to eat lunch yet you find yourself bored enough that you got mouth hunger

" Even if the dates are great i can't shake the craving for lemon pie with meringue" you bring the dried date to your mouth, it isn't the sweet and sour filling for the pie but it was good enough

Trying to evade spoiling your appetite you decide to explore around

"So… what else can I do with this" your fingers fly seemingly in the air until a light blue box pops up there is a white rectangle next to a magnifying glass "I guess I have to search for what I want?"

After thinking for a second You look up 'encyclopedia'

ERROR …

" What?" You tap on the three red dots and an explanation appears

VAGE SEARCH. PLEASE SPECIFY

Now thinking more deeply about that you try to swift the search finer "hope this work just fine"

'Edible herbs encyclopedia'

SEARCH CONCLUDED SHOWING NUMBER OF RESULTS: 786

RESULTS HAVE BEEN COMPACTED AND SHARED INTRO REGIONAL BOOKS FOR CONVENIENCE. TO UNDO FOLLOW THE STEPS IN THE 'HELP' PAGE

The next second seven books appear, one for each nation all being color coded for their respective element. Touching the light green one you are suddenly greeted by a index dividing the herbs inside by part used (seed, bark, leaf, root or fruit) or function they have (medicinal, culinary, aromatic)

" This seems like it could come in handy. Especially if I can get recipes to make medicines or ointments, maybe I could even get a pretty penny for it too…"

Well most of the ointment or culinary recipes you could think of need hand mixers or similar things to puree the herbs but you haven't seen anything like that since you arrived…

" Wait… can I download blueprints for hand mixers and ask the technology school to make them?"

Without missing a beat you missing a beat you look it up, soon enough you see various models, from old timey ones to modern looking ones

" I feel in heaven" you catch yourself from crying, you can almost feel the sweet taste of meringue without the ache on your arms

Now viewing a decent model you start to wonder " how am I supposed to have someone make something only I can see the blueprint for?" Immediately you see another button with the words 'project' written.

As soon as you touch it you see the same image that was in a static window now displayed on the wooden table in front of you " i guess this means i could trace the blueprint then" running to your office you grab both a pencil an a sheet of paper to draw on. Slowly but sure you follow along the lines to the best of your abilities yet the straight ones showed how excited for this idea you were and the curved ones having bigger or smaller angles than expected

Now with your masterpiece done you sigh in relief, soon you will be eating your beloved lemon pie and the deviously delicious meringue

Folding the drawing and putting it in an envelope you issue it to kaveh, partially because of his great craftsmanship and partially to piss off al-haitham. along you send a letter that could be boiled down to ' i heard you are soooo great i dare you make this' plus a flirty undertone because, knowing kaveh, he would keep shut about it and bother al-haitham more, bringing delight to your soul

What you didn't expect was the first thing to greet you the next morning wasn't al-haitham but kaveh next to the headmaster of Kshahrewar asking about the idea of a mechanical hand mixers to which you could only answer

"I like my eggs fluffy"

[corgiplays]

@ronanceisintheair

Me and Nancy had to sit through the little nuggets speech so now st*ve should have to sit through Nancy's speech of why he left her during her darkest time. Why he ignored her trauma. Why he thinks it's okay to tell her this when she's with Jonathan.

Robin should be there. And Nancy should look at Robin, the most painful tears and disgust in her eyes "do you even know why we broke up. Did he tell you?"

Enough time has not gone by for the writers to act like this girl isn't still crying regularly over losing her best friend. (And yall know she still blames herself😭)

^This post is what sparked this

————

Thoughts so many thoughts

TW: mentions of attempted suicide and past self harm

————

Nancy felt her skin crawl as Steve told her his dream of her having his six kids, how they would end up exactly like her parents in a loveless relationship in that cul-de-sac on the corner. She wanted to run, hide somewhere so far away that she could forget about Steve and his nightmare of a dream, she wants to forget that this conversation ever existed in the first place that Steve still dreamed about her.

But there was Robin, Robin who somehow always knew how to save her from awkward situations where she wasn't in control. And she pushed away the whole conversation with Steve, pushed it far back into her mind and locked it in a box hoping that the key is lost somewhere in the ocean of her mind never to be found again. There were more important things to think about like killing Henry Creel once and for all.

——4 days after the fight——

Somehow in the middle of the world ending the party still wanted a movie night hosted generously by the Wheelers basement, and as the only one with a car Nancy had to get the movie, but for the past eight minutes she's been sitting here in the Family Video parking lot hyping herself up so she could walk in and face Steve. She hasn't seen much of him since the final battle and whenever she did she made sure to keep their interactions short but now going into where Steve works was like walking into a lion's den. Seven more minutes passed before she left her car and made her way to the front entrance, the glass doors revealing Steve and Robin inside lounging around the counter as a movie played on the tv behind them.

The bell above the door rang as Nancy slipped in hastily making her way to the sci-fi section without muttering out a hello. In and out that's all she needed to remind herself, go in, pick a movie, pay to Robin and leave, and all without interacting with Steve. But nothing went to plan as heavy steps came up too loud and close to her making her panic as she hazardously skimmed through grabbing a random movie and moving around the one half on the store to the cash register. Nancy watched as Robin gave a confused glance to her side thinking Steve would be with her.

"Hey Nance...you getting a movie for the kids tonight? Because I never took you for someone who would watch 'Back To The Future'" Robin's rambling was a welcomed sound to Nancy's all too tense body. She let her shoulders drop from her ears and unclenched her jaw letting her body relax before speaking.

"Yeah, who would've thought that even as the world is ending the kids really are just kids." Nancy suddenly remembers that even though her brother and his friends are in high school they lost four years of their childhood to this, El never had a childhood to begin with. Nancy looked at Robin and suddenly she saw the worry lines, the deep purple circles under her eyes that were a stark contrast to the sickly pale skin on Robin's face, the jagged pink lines and dark purple and yellow bruises from where vines tried to kill the girl. They all were too young to have known and dealt with this. And as Robin opened her mouth a worried look passed her eyes as she looked at Nancy. The same heavy steps from before were coming up to her and Nancy's body went ridge.

"Nance," A shiver of disgust racked her body as she turned around unwillingly to see Steve too close to her with a soft smile and even softer eyes, "I hope you're not avoiding me, because that would make everything really weird." Steve didn't seem to notice or he was just ignorant to how Nancy was reacting to him being around her. A retort of "It's already been weird when you told me you dreamed about me carrying your six children and traveling in a Winnebago." but all she could manage was an awkward chuckle.

"Hey Nance, you're all checked out so you can go, the movie is on the house." Nancy could kiss Robin for her impeccable timing as she once again saved Nancy from getting second hand embarrassment from Steve.

"Thanks Robbie." Nancy watched as a light dusting of pink found its way onto Robin's cheeks from the nickname, but as her hand reached for the bag it was suddenly taken out of Robin's hand and into Steve's.

"Robin, hold down the fort I'm going to walk Nancy to her car." Steve looked so happy with himself as the white bag with the Family Video logo on the side, that Nancy wanted to smack out of his hand so much.

"No Steve, it's okay, I can walk to my car by myself." Nancy had to physically bite her tongue from saying anything more, a metallic taste filled her mouth from the force of the bite.

"No, no, Nance, what kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't walk you to your car." Nancy couldn't stop the eye roll that would probably give her a headache later, could Steve really not take the hint. Nancy lunged for the bag but Steve moved it above his head making Nancy run into his chest making it easier for him to slip his arm around her waist to 'steady' her. In an instant Nancy was thrashing against Steve, not fighting for too long as Steve let go with a hurt expression settling on his face.

"Seriously Steve, give Nancy the bag." Robin's sudden intervention let Nancy take a breath as Steve took his gaze off her and onto Robin who moved to the two of them.

"Come on Robin Nancy doesn't mind, it's just how she flirts with me all hit and cold." If Nancy could get whiplash from that sentence she would have suffered severely. Steve spoke so confidently that Nancy was flirting with him that bile rose up Nancy's throat before she swallowed, feeling the burning after taste.

"Steve I am not flirting with you nor have I ever since we broke up." Nancy felt suffocated under Steve's look of confusion and hurt all on his face.

"But I thought you shared my dream?" And god Nancy was about to really punch Steve Harrington.

"Steve I never said I shared your dream, in fact I actually hate your dream Steve it's my own personal nightmare. Everything about it makes me feel like I'm always going to be stuck here, forced to be what everyone expects me to be just how you expected me to be okay after barely a month after Barb's death." Nancy couldn't stop herself as words tumbled out of her mouth, a fire burned brightly behind her eyes, and Steve had the audacity to look wounded.

"Come on Nance I've changed, you've changed. You got over Barb's death, I'm not a douche bag and you can't deny that you weren't obviously flirting with me over spring break." Steve's words burned Nancy like hell fire.

You got over Barb's death

"No Steve, I never did get over my best friend's death. But how would you know that when all you wanted to do was forget about everything as if Will wasn't traumatized, as if I didn't lose someone close to me...you were so eager to just forget-" Nancy's throat closed up on her as tears stung at her eyes and fell down her cheeks leaving wet trails. Her gaze lands on Robin who looks shocked standing there letting her eyes flicker from the two of them. "Do you even know why we broke up? Did he tell you how when Barb went missing all he cared about was to not let his dad find out he was drinking. He couldn't even act as if he cared even a little bit, and when Jonathan stayed over after I saw the demogorgon he decided that instead of talking to me I deserved to be shamed publicly as a slut. I broke down crying in the Holland's bathroom and when I left you didn't even fucking ask me anything, even a stupid fucking 'are you okay?' nothing, you never cared about how I felt, you never did because it was all about you. I suffered, I had to live with the fact that my best friend is dead and I was the reason she died because I tried so hard to be your perfect girlfriend. I tried killing myself Steve, I tried to reach out to you but all you wanted was to pretend like nothing happened and I was so fucking stupid to have tried to pretend like you that I wasn't sleeping because of nightmares, that the scars lining my thighs aren't self made, that I didn't put my gun to my head because I deserved her same faith. We were toxic Steve, we were never good for each other. And after years and you claiming you've changed it's not true. Because your fucked up dream is all about you, I don't want to make six kids and live with an atomic family and you would have known that if you but some effort and listened or talked to me but you never did. And for Christ's sake Steve I'm with Jonathan, I'm dating someone and you think I would have flirted with you. Maybe if you looked past your fucking hair you would see how uncomfortable I've been, how anything you took as flirting was just me being concerned because if you haven't fucking noticed THE WORLD IS FUCKING ENDING." Nancy was hysterical by the time she finished, tears fell faster from her eyes as a lump in her throat kept her from speaking anymore. Steve's face was unreadable as she stared at the ground unable to make eye contact with Nancy but Robin, she was looking at Nancy like she was fragile glass. The hurt and concern in Robin's eyes made Nancy feel exposed so she did the one thing she does best, Nancy ran. Out the story and into her car starting it and diving away with blurry vision.

————

Nancy came back red eyed and without a movie for the kids, really teens, downstairs. Mike didn't even have the heart to banter with his sister when he saw the state she was in. She was now laying in her bed in sweats and an oversized hoodie Robin gave her after being vecna'd with a plush highland cow pressed tightly to her chest. Nancy hated the fact that she had an outburst in Family Video and now she had a headache from crying which made her just want to sleep till her body had no more fight left in it. A knock at her door made her sit up causing her headache to worsen from her quick movement.

"It's open." Her voice came out hoarse as she waited under the covers for whoever to come in. Nancy wasn't expecting Robin of all people to have come in with a bag in her hand. She instantly moved over to Nancy placing the back on the bed before plopping herself next to it.

"Okay so I'm not sure if you want to talk about what happened and if you don't that's completely fine with me but if you do I'll listen. I stopped by a 7/11 on my way here so I have gatorade, skittles, heresy's, some sour candy and mozzarella sticks. I'm not sure which one would give you more comfort so I just grabbed everything. Drink some of the gatorade first because crying dehydrates you and you would probably lose nutrients from that, then the mozzarella sticks because I'm worried you haven't eaten anything yet today and then we can cuddle if you want and eat comfort food. And I want to apologize, I never knew the whole story between you and Steve and I should have talked to you before saying stupid remarks like old flames being snuffed out, but I will try my hardest to make sure I'm there for you. I will always have time for you Nance." Robin's speech made Nancy start sobbing again, never has she gotten this much love and understanding from anyone. Robin was holding her in a matter of seconds letting Nancy burrow her head into Robin's chest as the plush got trapped between the two of them.

"Thank you, so much Robin." Nancy's voice was barely heard but Robin could tell what Nancy muttered against her.

"Always, belle, always." Robin spoke back into Nancy's hair as her fingers gently combed through the curls.

————

Wow…

Belle is french for beautiful

I had to hype myself up with my own experience of having and dealing with suicidal ideation so I could get Nancy's outburst down and Robin is the best person to help like she went to a 7/11 just to get stuff for Nancy

Hope you enjoy the angst :)

[moonstone-blues]

[saawek]

What if... after Wu Ming died... Xie Lian could actually keep the mask... and what if.... he did....  small story there

[sea-owl]

In your matchmaker Philip au, I can see penny and philip bonding with marina's children (awkwardly on phils side but he's still sorta attentive)

And also, I would like to see the bridgerton siblings (mainly C and E) see the very private intimate moments by accident, just a random moment where they were both passed out cuddling with each other or just them reading a book with pen on phils lap.

I would really like to see them meet the infamous michael stirling who would help philip in his intentions 😉

Oh lord, we adding the merry rake to this crazy cocktail mix now? Phillip and Penelope already got no boundaries in this AU, Michael is about to make it worse.

For those curious here is the first post for the Matchmaker Phillip Au aka childhood friends Phillip and Penelope, Link

The day Phillip finally gets a chance to talk to Eloise about helping him matchmaking polin it did not go as he expected.

Phillip and Penelope went book shopping to get away from their parents, and unknown to them Eloise was at that same bookstore.

Eloise just so happened to turn the corner when Phillip effortlessly lifted Penelope up and then hold her there as they both read from a book she had pulled down from a high shelf. Phillip's head resting on Penelope's shoulder. Eloise doesn't hear what they say to each other but she makes sure to corner Phillip when Penelope goes to another part of the store.

"Mr. Crane," Eloise coldly greeted. She honestly didn't know why she felt jealous seeing Penelope spend all her time with this man. They haven't spoken to one another since their fight last season.

"Ah, Miss Bridgerton," Phillip said. "I was hoping I could talk to you. Do you think you could help me match make your brother and Penny?"

Eloise blinked. What?

[meirimerens]

hiii hello i wanna ask!! how do u perceive vlad jr and capella? what characterises them?? some headcannons maybe?? are they dry or wet

hiiiiii bestie ok i'm going to try to do my best bc i just worke up (yes at 1:30 in the afternoon bro i work into 4AM)

dry-wet spectrum:

vlad jr is wet to me like in a very Kinda Pathetic way. his wetness comes not from blood or tears, more from... like rainwater flowing down the well in his shack + general Swimming Tru It attitude.

capella is relatively dry in the same way the shore is. like a Dry outcrop in a vast sea of Wet. she appears a LIL wetter in PCHD design-wise but most PCDH designs are kinda wet to me regardless so you have to elaborate over the designs.

headcanons:

this ones dear to me and based I KNOW THIS on an image I've seen but for the love of god i can't find it anymore anyways when vlad got to hold his newborn sister when he was like 14 he cried (as opposed to maria who when she saw her newborn brother for the first time was like "ewwww")

he was a very good older brother for the first like 10-ish years of capella's life. loved to take her on supervised adventures and whatnot. loved to bring her out to the steppe and show her the odonghe and the herb brides and be like "those are our neighbors they're different from us but we must accept this difference because we're stronger together then" and stuff. i say "first 10-ish years" bc when his father started Really Hammering In that he wanted him to conform to the mold he had set or get the fuck out, Vlad Jr did in fact get the fuck out, and since then he's been distant

since he didn't Love his mother (but felt other things) and his relationship with his father is Strained To Say The Least, capella was like the one family member who he didn't feel like utter shit thinking/talking about/being with.

this is i think a brew of some p1 & p2 lore (or maybe not honestly girl I'm barely awake) but he 1) gets his ass drunk at the broken heart often [p2 lore] to cope with grief/a general Hollow left by the death of his mother and 2) met here rubin who's Also trying to cope with war trauma [p1] lore and The Rest Of It All. they bond over having massive daddy issues and not a fun kind. vlad jr "admires" (?) rubin for being way less of a massive coward as he feels like, and rubin just hangs out and absorbs through him the Needing To Be Like Father that he will never have to worry about anymore after Isidor's death bc Isidor chose the "other son" over him

capella looooves sweet things she loves little desserts and all. with the plague and the trains cutting them off from the rest of the world, she can't get like ingredience and it drives her a lil crazy but she keeps it together. eventually the trains work again and she can have her sweet treats. she's bad at baking/cooking but still tries bc she wants her sweet. vlad jr is not too horrible at baking/cooking sweets but if you asked him for a stew he'd unintentionally poison you, so he makes sweets sometimes and leaves them by capella's door without being noticed.

i think she'd play the piano i think she'd love to play the piano... i think her parents tried to teach vlad first but he was relatively uninterested, but it's different for her

i think she knows. about things and in general.

i don't mention the khan & capella p2 diurnal ending wedding hint a lot bc it's important to me to pretend I'm not seeing it as arranged marriages are like one of my most abhorred tropes ever, makes me want to kill somebody fr. But thinking about it a lil, within this marriage that they have as adults i think she very much knows he has no romantic love for her, and she has no romantic love for him, but they do care for each other a lot and they're fantastic wing(wo)men to each other to keep their freedoms on the sides. she goes out of her way to use her clairvoyance to find ways to let him leave on the wedding night unnoticed & tell him at what time he should be back so people don't think of anything, and he goes out of his way to cover for her when people ask questions about her, wonder about this and that, etc. in a way i think she likes the fun and excitement of it because it's not something anyone in her family experienced. even as the novelty of it wears of, they both keep doing that and entrenching themselves in the secret bc it makes them closer together, and it's how they keep their freedoms, their priceless freedoms. she lets her brother in on the secret & the arrangement because she knows he also does a lot of stuff on his own and has Many An Arrangment.

i don't have too much now bc i'm barely emerging but this is some of the lore;.. of the witnessing...

[st-clements-steps]

The Grey King and the Dragon Nagga

Once there was a boy who was the youngest of four.

His father would not look on him, for he was a little thing who cried too loud when he was hurt and laughed too loud at no more than the seaweed hung to dry that danced in the wind or at the gulls wheeling overhead and swooping all of a sudden. No, his father preferred the boy's elder brothers who kicked him, and slapped him, and left him to stumble across the rocks behind them. His father even preferred the boy's elder sister, though she might spit one day and be full of sweet caresses the next.

So the boy played by himself in the dirt. The soil on that isle was scourged by the wind and little grew in it. It was fine and grey and it got under the boy's fingernails, he breathed it in and smeared it accidentally across his face, until he too was grey and people no longer called him by his name, they called him the grey boy instead.

Now it was at this time that the Dragon Nagga came into the halls of the Drowned God and began feasting upon the subjects of the Drowned God, not merely the silvery fish and the floating jellyfish, but also the leviathan and the great kraken. The Drowned God’s wrath swelled and swelled and the seas became tumultuous and boats were dashed upon the rocks of the grey boy’s isle and people wept for their lost loves and the Drowned God fought with the great Dragon but he could not quell it.

And so the Drowned God let out a great decree that whoever could rid him of the Dragon Nagga would be granted his own daughter’s hand in marriage and a great dominion of their own, be it on sea or on land.

Well the heroes of that time set forth to find the Dragon Nagga and kill her. But the Dragon Nagga was stealthy and her jaws were strong and her tail could dance through the air quicker than any axe and her claws could clutch any man and pierce him quick and neat. So it was that no heroes ever stayed the Dragon’s great feast, nor stilled her greedy jaws and many were slain in the attempt.

The grey boy’s father sent his eldest sons out to fight the Dragon Nagga that he might claim their glory as his own. They did not return, for they were slain, one far from home and one at the walls of his own keep.

And so the grey boy was brought before his father.

“I cannot have him as my heir, look at him,” his father declared and he made the grey boy’s elder sister his heir instead.

The Storm God looked down and saw his brother’s pain and he was pleased. He laughed and great thunder shook the clouds and a storm came and still the Dragon Nagga feasted.

In the quiet after the Storm, the Storm God contemplated his brother’s proposition. Surely, he, with his lightning ferocity and his thundered strength would be able to defeat the dragon and then his brother would have to gift his daughter to the Storm God, and dominion in the sea. The bright brutality of all the power he might gather flashed before the Storm God’s eyes.

There, on the shore sat the little daughter of the Drowned God herself, she was a sweet little thing, who sat combing her brown hair and biting her lip as she watched her father’s tumultuous waves. So the Storm God came down to her and told her of his plans and she tried to smile sweetly, though she was afraid and did not want to marry the Storm God, for she knew he would not treat her with kindness and what is more he would use her to overthrow her father and gain control of both the sea and sky.

When the Storm God had returned to the clouds the Drowned God’s daughter slipped into the sea and though the shining fish span about her and the gentle octopi caressed her cheek, though the dolphins cavorted for her, she could not be happy and she cried.

The grey boy was standing then, in the shallows, bow in hand, skewered fish ready to be laid in the sun and dried at his back. He pierced another fish, lifted it from the sea, slid it carefully from the arrow, caught his finger on the sharp bone point. He lifted his pricked finger to his mouth and tasted the Drowned God’s daughter’s tears amongst his own blood.

The salt of them was sharp and it called to the grey boy.

“Who cries?” The grey boy asked the sea.

The bright dolphins raised their heads and clicked their thoughts at him, so he swam to them. He swam with the bow at his back and his catch of fish and his sharp arrows. He swam to them and gentle octopi wove their tentacles around his limbs and pulled him under, and the shining fish kissed little bubbles of air to him that he might breathe. And he took the Drowned God’s daughter in his arms and comforted her. Later still she sat with him on the rocks and told him of the reason for her tears.

And then she looked at him, her brown eyes wide in the dark of the moonlight and she asked, “what if you were to defeat the Dragon Nagga?”

“Me?” The grey boy laughed, “my own father thinks I am not fit to hold his keep, how would I rule a great dominion?”

He returned to filing his sharp bone arrowheads on the great rocks beside her.

The Drowned God’s daughter looked at him again with her wide brown eyes.

So the grey boy laughed, “me?” Once more. “How would I defeat the great Dragon Nagga? I have no skill with an axe, nor any great strength, I have only my bow.”

The Drowned God’s daughter bit her lip but her brown eyes were no longer filled with tears, they were soft with the light of her thoughts. Then she drew the grey boy close to her and she whispered a plan.

*

When the night was done and the dawn came reaching its hopeful fingers through the clouds the Drowned God’s daughter and the grey boy went their separate ways.

The Drowned God’s daughter slipped back into the sea and down down down she swam, right under the little isle that was the grey boy’s home. There at the very depths of the ocean she found a great golden kraken, sleeping so still you might have mistaken it for the very seabed it self. The Drowned God’s daughter woke the beast with a quiet song and a sweet caress of its gleaming tendril. And the great kraken was happy to see her for it loved the Drowned God’s daughter and had sworn long ago to protect her. It listened to her bidding and then rose, swooped up towards the grey boy’s little isle. Its great tentacles took hold of the little island and shook.

The kraken shook and shook the isle, though the inhabitants screamed and the sea foamed with the tremors. The golden kraken shook and shook until a dark seam opened on the isle and soft black rock poured forth unbidden.

The grey boy stood waiting for this and when it happened, he took a great lump of the black rock and shoved it away. His hands were darkened by the strange stuff but he rubbed them and soon his skin was as grey as ever. Then the grey boy set out, in long strides for the only tree that had managed to knot its roots firmly enough into the loose useless soil of his isle. He scrambled up the half dead thing and balanced precariously in the upper branches.

Once there the grey boy called out to the Storm God, “Storm God, STORM GOD, STORM GOD,”

“You ugly, useless, gnarled old thing,” the grey boy called.

And he continued taunting the Storm God, until the clouds darkened and thunder rolled in the sky and the Storm God boomed out mighty echoing, “who are you, grey boy, that you call me so?”

“I am the lover of the Drowned God’s daughter and you’ll never please her now, for she has known me and if you come anyway near her she’ll put out your pale eyes like the pulsating little oysters anyone might swallow down, and she’ll tear out your horrid teeth, like seaweed slimed rocks and she’ll bite off your wormy useless little cock.”

“How dare you?” Thundered the God, and he struck down a great shaft of lightning at the grey boy.

Just then the grey boy jumped from the tree and if you had been watching him you would have said it was as if he flew, for he landed light and unhurt on the ground, whilst the tree blazed above him. The smoke flew up and caught in the Storm God’s pale eyes. And whilst the Storm God was blinded, the grey boy took a branch of the burning tree and he placed the black rock amongst the flames until it caught and burnt bright. Then he scooped up the now glowing rock into a little pot and he slipped into the sea where the cavorting dolphins and the Drowned God's daughter led him away.

Meanwhile thunder sounded in the skys whilst the Storm God reeled against the smoke in his eyes. But before the clouds could split with rain there came a little boy and an old woman who had seen how the grey boy had taken the Storm God’s fire and used it for himself and they took up pieces of the black rock themselves and placed them in the fire so they glowed hot and took them away to their own homes. And that is how it came to be that the grey boy stole fire from the God and gifted it to men.

The grey boy and the Drowned God’s daughter swam for a long time. The grey boy was a fine enough swimmer but eventually he became tired, yet still they kept swimming and still the rock full of fire glowed hot.

Eventually they came to the place where the Dragon Nagga was, she was not feasting just then, she was sleeping, quite peaceful and still, under a little isle that nearly covered her. Now the sea creatures brought a caul and the Drowned God’s daughter used it to catch a great swathe of air, then she tied this over the pot containing the glowing rock and she kissed the grey boy as she pulled him under the water and then he could breathe like the fishes and they swam down to where the Dragon Nagga snored contentedly and they let themselves be carried on the current into the Dragon’s great mouth and they let themselves be swallowed down, down, down. Until they lay in the awful Dragon’s insides.

The grey boy took out the burning rock and he twisted the strongest of his arrows into the thing, till he had an arrow with a bright hot burning point. In the darkness he picked out the creature’s spleen and he loaded his bow and he fired the burning arrow into the Dragon’s flesh.

The Dragon Nagga awoke. Her insides burned. She writhed and roared in agony. She squirmed and spun as if it might dislodge the awful burning. She twisted and gnashed her teeth. Inside the Dragon, the grey boy and the Drowned God’s daughter were thrown about against her awful flesh. Suddenly they were jolted up and then they fell back.

Then the Dragon Nagga was retching and gasping, coughing and choking and the grey boy and the Drowned God’s daughter were propelled out of the Dragon and on to the little isle.

The Dragon’s great body had been thrown by writhing onto the land and now she could not breathe for she was a sea dragon. She needed the water in her gills and the cold air was drowning her.

The Dragon writhed and squirmed, but slower now, she moaned, she dragged in breaths that made her retch. She moved her desperate head about searchingly. Eventually she was still.

The grey boy and the Drowned God’s daughter washed the Dragon from themselves in the sea. They lay happily on the beach until the Drowned God came and declared the grey boy king of all the isles thereabouts and declared his daughter as the queen of all the seas surrounding those isles.

The grey boy and the Drowned God’s daughter had a long and fruitful marriage which gave them one hundred sons and one hundred daughters, but what happened to them is a story for another time.

We can say that the grey boy’s father knelt to him and they called him the grey boy no more. For a thousand years and ever since they have called him the Grey King. And he taught us to honour the Drowned God and he taught us to stand strong in the face of the Storm God.

[fistfuloflightning]

Even before the one-armed woman returns to the village, Hinata knows she’ll be forever second-best.

It’s nothing said explicitly.

But there is no such thing as a secret kept in a ninja village. Nothing hidden behind closed doors ever stays hidden, not when secrets are currency and whispered knowledge is worth more than cash in hand. And when it’s the last Uchiha who is the source of all the disruption, tongues will wag.

Naruto fights to get the village to accept her. He’s done the impossible many times over. There is little that would stop him. His determination sometimes comes at the cost of the exclusion of everything else.

Her frustration leaks through and he remains oblivious. Not uncaring, because Naruto cares too much. But Hinata knows her husband simply doesn’t understand, can’t comprehend, what this means to her.

He offers platitudes because that’s all he’s able to provide. Everything else is Sasuki’s. It all leads back to Sasuki. Hinata is not a vindictive woman, but jealousy is a poison. And she sometimes wishes that, wherever that woman had gone when she fled the village, she had stayed there. She sometimes wishes her husband had not gone after her and brought her back, along with a child of her own.

The boy is small, young enough to have been born during Naruto’s last mission to Grass Country, Hinata’s heart whispers when she’s not paying attention. As she listens to his slow, easy breathing at night. It’s clear he’s made his choice, she whispers back. He’s here with Hinata—not with her. And if anything, the boy looks most like the clan-killer—like Itachi.

Hinata latches onto that, holds it close and nurtures it with the poisoned water of her jealousy. She knows Sasuki has a heart made for leaving, not loving. She is dedicated to revenge and her clan. Not to the village Naruto cherishes so dearly. Hinata doesn’t want to think that she’s lost her husband completely to the one-armed woman. She doesn’t want to think of how they complement each other, the other half of their whole. How there has only ever been each other.

No, Hinata is not a vindictive woman, but there is a little bit of poison in her heart.

[greyskyflowers]

I just have so many feelings about feral, loyal, protective Zoro.

The kind of feral that comes from wanting to see blood and the way it hits his skin like rain on cracked, dry earth.

The kind of feral that comes with someone threatening something that you love, that wild and wrathful feeling that makes it easy to understand why some wars have been started over a handful of people.

The agony of loyalty that keeps him on an unknown shore when everything in him is desperate for his captain, eyes searching the horizon for a silhouette that he knows he won't see.

The same thing that makes every ache and burn in his body, every night he jerks awake with gasping breathes, every time he lays on the ground and thinks of death all worth it.

And it's both terrifying and wonderful.

It's love and fear and all the other scary things that don't go away.

He had his dream, a clear goal that would have been a lonely road but it would have been his.

Now he has theirs too.

It feels like holding small flames in his hand and shielding them from the wind or having multiple heart beats in his chest at once.

He feels powerful with their trust, scared of what the comes with that.

Because there is danger in that kind of love.

He thinks of Nami tearing into her skin to get out the ink of her sins.

Robin screaming into the wind that she wants to live.

Sanji forced back to a family that was never anything more than a cold and lonely cage.

Luffy on his knees in the middle of a battle field with his brother dying in his arms.

He think of the pain they've all gone through and he burns. He smolders with it and although the situations have been resolved, he carries those feelings with him.

Zoro would rip into the world with teeth and steel for them. He never really thought that love could be desperate or that loyalty laid through his body like it's own nervous system. He knows now though that he would fight the earth and crack the ground for them. Fight until there is no place for him to stand. He'd face the sea and draw his blades through each wave until his swords have rusted and his lungs burn with salt.

He'd take their pain like breathing in cursed air and stand in the rubble with his skin painted in his own blood. Relief in knowing that they wouldn't hurt even if it meant he would.

He'd do it all if it meant them being safe.

He knows how quickly the body is destroyed. He knows there's something bloodthirsty in him, something old and hidden. That the cursed swords hanging at his hips and whispering for blood aren't needed for him to want to spill it.

They have nothing on him though. Not cursed swords or warlords or admirals. Not distance or time or anything divine. Nothing compares to the devotion for his captain and crew.

He lays on the deck of the Sunny one night and burns low with love. The sky turning pink to orange to purple to black. Everyone's full of amazing food and half listening to Usopp tell stories and make shadow figures on the wood. They twist on the walls and flicker in the edge of his eye as he points out constellations with Luffy and Sanji. He's arguing with Luffy over what the constellations are and smiling because he loves the happiness in Luffy as he insists that Ace taught him it's actually this. Zoro, you're wrong! Sanji, tell him!

The smell of the tea that Robin and Nami are drinking drifts over on a warm breeze. Something soothing that Sanji recommends before bed, the glass clinks softly when they take a drink and it's hardly audible as they talk lowely to each other.

Franky is working on something small, the details lost in the shadows and night but the movement is steady. Relaxing and confident.

Chopper a warm weight curled into his side and watching Usopp. Occasionally wiggling in happiness and poking at Zoro who pretends to have been paying attention.

Brook plays a soft, low song that settles in his bones like home.

The earth is miles below his feet, past warm waters that bleed into cold and the heavy darkness that only comes from the sea. He can hear the waves against the ship and smell them in the air.

But laying there with his crew and drifting on the sea is the steadiest he's ever felt.