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tsukimefuku · 7 months

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❅ Sand and Snow | Chapter 5

ALL CHAPTERS HERE | PREVIOUS CHAPTER HERE.

In the city of Odate, Akita, there have been multiple deaths in the past few weeks. The first-grade sorcerer Nanami Kento is sent out to investigate the snowy city, not knowing that it would be his last mission as a Jujutsu High student.

Why Nanami left Jujutsu High to become a 9/5 corporate slave.

Tags: Murder/mystery, canon typical violence, POV Nanami, Post Star-plasma Vessel Arc, Canon compliant, Angst but I'm not Gege

Gojo Satoru is a little shit. OC's are a dynamic duo as well. We meet the last targets and find out more about the cursed objects.

WC: 3.75K | on AO3 here.

"Shit, what the hell?" Shiori said, as she fell ass-first on the snow for the tenth time. "How are you so goddamn fast?" She had barely been able to reinforce her arms with cursed energy before he threw a high kick at her, knocking her off her feet and onto the ground. Gojo had briefly explained his techniques, but never mentioned it made him move at the speed of light or anything of the sort.

It was early in the morning. They were outside, Nanami was sitting down on the porch sipping tea peacefully, watching the whole scene, as Gojo trained Shiori on the basics in protecting herself from strikes using cursed energy. She had already demonstrated her innate cursed technique, but it was clear she had no fine control over the specifics of it — if it always had the corrosive element or not, how much cursed energy was spent, how long it took for exploding, and how strong each grenade would be. This was unexpected, considering she had a pretty good grasp on cursed energy manipulation for defending herself or even imbuing objects.

"Well, you've got a defense, and you can actually take a hit. That's good." He said, putting his hands on his waist and tilting his head to the side. "But do you know how to hit someone?"

"Not much, that was my brother's strong suit, not mine." She admitted, starting to worry if she'd survive this "training" session. Shiori wondered if he was just looking for an excuse to kick her ass for calling him 'pretty boy' earlier.

"So, let's try that. Come, hit me." He said. "Come on... Here. Here. Hit here." He pointed at his hand stretched forward, like he was talking to a five-year-old.

This dude can't be for real, Shiori thought, as she got up and punched his hand. It was a terrible, limp and poorly executed punch overall.

"I meant with cursed energy, though I don't think cursed energy could've saved whatever that was."

"Well, why didn't you say so!?" She started pouting. "Your teaching skills are terrible."

"Speaking of which, surprise quiz time!" He said. She started asking herself if it was really worth the trouble. "Question number one, what do we have for breakfast today?"

"Eh?!" She couldn't believe that. "Are you serious?!"

"Terribly." He replied.

"Well, nothing. There is nothing anymore." She said, sighing deeply.

"Precisely! And why is that?" Gojo asked, putting on a 'very serious teacher' voice.

"Because you ate everything!"

"No, wrong answer! Because you have no money for groceries and still refuse to work as a jujutsu high employee with us!"

She threw a better punch imbued with cursed energy directly at his face, hitting the infinity. "I'm poor, leave me alone!"

"Well, that's a little more like it!" Gojo said, smiling lively. "But your attacks are still half-assed as hell. You should focus on defense for now." He cleared his throat. "You know, about the food, people need potions if they want to have MANA!"

"Fine, let's go to town and buy something to eat!" She yelled, walking away, cursing Gojo under her breath.

"Why are you insisting she goes to Jujutsu High, even though her family and the institution have a terrible relationship, and after she explicitly told you she doesn't want to?" Nanami asked, putting his tea cup away.

"Well, I have a dream, and to fulfill it, I'm going to need good allies." He pointed in her direction. "Her combat skills are awful, but she's got potential as a healer. I'd like to see if she can learn reverse cursed technique from Shoko. This apparently is something that occurred more frequently in her clan, according to Ijichi's findings."

Nanami could see Gojo was brewing something. He definitely wasn't the same Satoru Gojo that failed Riko Amanai years ago — Gojo was growing into a fine sorcerer. Maybe Nanami could respect him a little, after all.

"Now, let's go, Nanamin! Did you know that pastry making is more suited for cold weather? Yes! That is why-" Gojo started blabbing about food and customs to each location, and what he wanted to eat before they left Odate. Nanami sighed as he changed his mind.

***

"Please, could you do it?" Shiori asked.

"No." Nanami replied.

"Please? Even if I promise I'll stop calling you a stalker?" She said, trying to convince him.

They were outside Odate Ryokan, and Shiori's phone was dead. She didn't want to go in to ask for Yoko to lend her some money, wanting to avoid encountering Yoko's grandmother. Nanami thought that was foolish and refused to help. Gojo was behind a wall of girls fawning over him and heard nothing of the conversation.

"I'm listening." He said.

"You just have to go inside and let her know 'her friend' is outsi-"

The hotel's door opened, and Yoko came out. "Shiori! I thought I heard your voice!" She said, as she hugged her friend.

"Yoko! Hi! I need to borrow some money!" She exclaimed, hugging Yoko back.

"Again?! And also, you're terrible, at least ask me how I'm doing first!" Yoko replied, somewhat offended.

"I'll pay you back, I promise!" Shiori said, with a wide smile on her face.

"Oh, I have heard that so many times before..." Yoko replied. She finally noticed Nanami was there. "Oh, hey! I'm so sorry for what happened here at the hotel."

"I have recovered fully." He answered.

"Well... Where are you staying?! We can pay for any hotel in the area. Please, accept it as our apology."

Nanami pointed at Shiori. "At her house."

"What?!" Yoko said, incredulous, as she thought he would only be getting treatment for his wounds and wait for his colleague there. She then turned her face into a mischievous smile and approached Shiori. "So, he is sleeping at your house?"

"I'll slap you." Shiori retorted, annoyed.

Yoko chuckled. "Just teasing you." She gave Shiori a little forehead flick.

"Hey, how about you pay me for his stay at my house?"

"Never gonna happen." Yoko said. Shiori had no talent for money making. "Uh, and what about him?" Yoko said, pointing to Gojo, that was still getting fawned over. The girl screaming around was loud.

"Hey, pretty boy, come over!" Shiori yelled. "Let's go grab something to eat."

Satoru waved, as if he was saying goodbye to his loyal fans, and moved over to meet them. The group of girls left disappointed. "So, what are we eating? I'm starving!"

"Well, there is a great bakery just around the corner that serves amazing options for breakfast!" Yoko replied. "Should we go there?"

"About that..." Shiori replied, grabbing her empty wallet.

Yoko sighed. "Fine, I'm paying for you. But only you!"

"It's ok! Pretty boy and stalker guy can foot their own bill!" Shiori said smiling, while pointing to Gojo and Nanami.

"Please, stop calling me that." Nanami said.

"Stalker?" Yoko asked, puzzled.

"Well, I can start calling you 'side bangs' if you would prefer." Shiori retorted jokingly.

"I would not." Nanami responded, irritated.

"So 'stalker' it is!" She concluded, grinning widely.

Gojo and Yoko were at a loss for what was happening.

They made their way into another restaurant, which had similar features as the previous one Shiori and Nanami had been at. They all sat at the table and placed their orders.

"So, are you two private investigators?" Yoko asked.

"Yes, they are." Shiori replied.

Yoko looked at Nanami, seemingly puzzled. "Aren't you a little too young to be investigating people dying? Also, I thought these people died because they were bitten by a venomous animal. What is the investigation?" Yoko was a very curious person, and never really thought much before speaking. It was a family trait.

"He's... The intern." Shiori answered.

"That's right! He's my promising intern looking for a position at my private investigation business." Gojo answered, putting his arm over Nanami's shoulders with a smirk on his face. Nanami sighed.

"Oh, I see." Yoko answered. "But why are private investigators looking into this, anyway?"

"One of the deceased's widowers asked us to see if there was any foul play." Nanami promptly made up on the spot. Gojo and Shiori were impressed.

"Oh. And there was?"

"We unfortunately can't disclose that information." He answered.

"Hey, Yoko, stop interrogating them." Shiori said, smiling uncomfortably. "Their work seems so stressful already, how about we talk about something else, shall we?"

Yoko was disappointed, but nodded. "It's just that nothing interesting ever happens here!"

"Yoko, 9 people died." Shiori said, stunned.

"That wasn't interesting, that was terrifying. Having private investigators around, however, is something interesting." Yoko started pouting.

"Yoko, nothing interesting happens to you because you're still in Odate working for your family with that old hag on your case." Shiori said as their food arrived. Yoko was frowning and seemed slightly offended, but knew her friend was right.

Gojo had ordered an assortment of sweets, meanwhile Nanami ordered his classic deli sandwich. Shiori and Yoko both ordered a bread basket with different types of toppings to put on. Shiori did her previous 'mix absolutely everything you can', taking a spoonful out of each topping, putting it over some toasts in a profane way and began eating the desecrated bread, eliciting the same appalled look from everyone at the table. How can she taste anything?

With her mouth full, Shiori started speaking again. "And Odate is boring, anyway. After Shiro is back, I'm going to travel. I've never been to the beach!"

"What? Noshiro is very close, like an hour and a half away from here." Gojo replied, a little incredulous.

"I know! It's just that..." Shiori sighed, embarrassed. "I'm always broke." She smiled as Yoko facepalmed.

"Shiori, why are you still in Odate?" Yoko asked. "Anyway, at least something exciting happened to you! You're fostering two good-looking men in your house."

Shiori nearly gagged. "Yoko, what the hell?!" Gojo was very pleased with himself behind his glasses, and Nanami awkwardly moved around in his seat while looking away, nearly blushing. She really had no filter.

"What?!" Yoko protested.

Shiori sighed. "Yoko, it’s not appropriate to comment on someone’s appearance to their face." She replied.

“I see no problem if it’s a compliment.” Yoko retorted, crossing her arms and lifting an eyebrow as she looked at the guys. Gojo was even more pleased, and Nanami felt even more embarrassed.

Shiori sighed yet again, and decided not to address that. "And I'm only waiting for Shiro to come back. I know he will."

Yoko looked at her with a hint of concern in her face as they all started to eat.

***

"So, what do you think we should say? The truth?" Shiori asked, as she accompanied Gojo to Ayako's house. Nanami went to see how the situation was at Miyuki's house. They got a call from Ijichi shortly after breakfast, who gave them their locations.

"Whatever will make her let us in and help." He responded. "Don't you know these people?"

"I had so many relatives. These two particularly, I don't remember, since I was very young when I stopped having any relationship with the family. My brother and I just received some financial aid from an aunt that died around 2 years ago. They might know who I am, though." She shrugged. "Even if we don't get to do anything, I believe we should tell them they're in danger and that they should go to the police for protection or something."

"Maybe, maybe not." Gojo replied.

"Why is that?" Shiori asked.

"The curse user. He's killing these people and clearly doesn't have much of an issue invading enclosed spaces. He might even be using his shikigami for that."

"I see. What do we do, then?"

"We kick his ass and take him to Jujutsu High. Or kill him." He answered. Gojo had that same menacing aura as he said that, even though his face was covered with a frivolous smile. This guy must be monstrously powerful, Shiori thought.

"And about the cursed object thing..." He started saying.

"Rescue ladies first. Find my brother second. Every information you could hope for third." She replied, fearing for her physical integrity as she did. The world was definitely lucky this guy wasn't a genocidal maniac.

He just sighed and answered "Fine." Gojo thought for a moment. "That girl, Yoko, is she a close friend?"

"Yes. She's actually my best and only friend." Shiori responded. "We've been friends since middle school, when kids used to bully me and my brother because of my family. Yoko stood up for me." She said, smiling to herself.

"I see." He answered, reminiscing his own school life and most recent events for a moment. Satoru sighed silently.

"She has a lifelong crush on my brother, even if her comments about you and Nanami didn't make it seem like it." Shiori chuckled. "Those two are really something."

Gojo laughed softly. "Your friend is definitely a little loony." He then changed his tone to something more serious. "Shiori, what will you do if your brother never comes back?" Gojo asked, looking at her directly.

"He will come back." She answered straight-up. Even if Shiori was saying that, though, she had said that so many times it started to sound fake.

"You don't know that. What if you're stuck here forever, always holding onto people who left, when you could be doing something better with your life and your abilities?"

Shiori was silent. She knew exactly why she never left Odate, or her parents' house, for that matter, even when all of her uncles, aunts, cousins and such were going away to live their lives in other places all throughout Japan.

As they got to the door to knock, they saw the lock was bust open.

"Shit!" Shiori exclaimed.

They both bolted inside, and saw a woman with long black hair lying on the ground over a puddle of blood. Beside her, was the already familiar wooden box, completely empty. Shiori crouched beside her to check her pulse. There were cursed energy remains all over, and some holes in the walls around, covered with a thick black corrosive substance — the same type Shiori's grenades would leave behind.

"Gojo, she's still alive!"

When she rolled the woman's body, it was possible to see that Ayako had no bite marks on either wrist, but a deep cut in her torso area, which had just barely missed her internal organs. Shiori turned her with the stomach area up, so the blood would stop leaking to the floor, and started trying to wake her up. The woman wasn't moving.

"You, go after the one who did this!" She shouted. "I'll take care of her and call an ambulance. Go!"

Satoru ran outside and focused on trying to find someone, but the surrounding area was already empty. Nothing, not even cursed energy traces for him to follow. Given how they found Ayako, the curse user didn't use his technique this time around. He went back inside the woman's house, and saw that Shiori had already packed her wounds with some gauze she found. She was applying pressure and had the woman's blood all over her coat.

The lady started to wake up, just barely.

"Ms. Ayako, stay with me. Stay awake!" Shiori shouted.

"Hm... Who, Itsuki?" Ayako was slowly coming back to her senses.

"No, it's Shiori."

"You... Itsuki's daughter?"

"Yes! Good to see you're awake. Stay with me." Shiori was still keeping pressure on the wounds.

"Who did this?" Shiori asked.

"Sh… Shogo…"

Shiori tensed up immediately. "Shit." She looked at Gojo. "Call Nanami."

***

Nanami knocked on Miyuki's door, and the woman promptly answered. Shiori had instructed him to use her parents' name if necessary, or even her own, to gain the woman's trust in order to help her.

"Hello, how can I help you?" she asked.

"Hello, Ms. Miyuki. My name is Nanami Kento, and I'd like to talk to you about something regarding Yamada Itsuki."

She got visibly tense and stared at him for a few moments.

"Why?"

"Her daughter, Shiori, asked me to come and see if you were fine." He replied. "And you might be in danger. You probably know about the recent deaths occurring in Odate."

She was still very unsure about opening her door and letting him in.

Nanami's phone rang. He answered, it was Gojo.

"Gojo, I just got here at Ms. Miyuki's house."

"Tell her she is in danger, and that the culprit's name is Yamada Shogo. Ayako was hurt pretty badly and was nearly dead when we arrived here." He replied.

Nanami stared at Ms. Miyuki. "Do you know an individual by the name Yamada Shogo?"

She widened her eyes. "Yes, I do."

"Apparently, he just attacked Yamada Ayako. Do you know her?"

Miyuki's face was hard to read, but she seemed to be... angry? "Yes, I do." She inhaled deeply and closed the door. Nanami called out to her, and she simply screamed from inside the house for him to leave her alone. He sighed.

"Gojo, please ask Shiori to come." Nanami said on the phone.

"She is holding the woman in one piece here." Gojo replied.

"Hey, you just have to apply pressure. Come here!" Shiori yelled at Gojo. She grabbed the phone and started talking. "Tell me, what is going on there? Is everything ok?"

"For now, yes, but she didn't let me in. I believe it would be better if you sorted this out with your relative."

"Ok, I'll be there soon." She replied.

"What? What do I do here then?!" Gojo asked on the other side.

"Just keep applying pressure until the ambulance arrives so she doesn't bleed out! Have you never had any basic first aid training in your life, and you're a jujutsu sorcerer?!" Shiori yelled, incredulous.

"I've never had to learn that! That is not what I do, I fight and use reverse cursed technique on myself!" Said the most powerful jujutsu sorcerer of our era.

"Well, just do something about it! Nanami, I'm on my way right now." She said as she hung up the phone. Shiori then removed her coat and left it covering Ayako's legs, trying to provide some warmth. "You will be fine, okay? I'm leaving now, but I already called an ambulance." Shiori said beside Ayako.

As she was getting up, Ayako grabbed the end of Shiori's sleeve. "You're... Itsuki's daughter?"

"Yes, I am."

"Be... careful." Ayako said.

Shiori and Gojo looked at each other, and she seemed concerned. Ayako was drifting in and out of consciousness. Shiori finally made her way out of the door.

***

"Well, this is bad." Miyuki said as she lit up a cigarette. She opened the door as soon as Shiori got there and told her everything Nanami said was true.

"You're really in danger, Miyuki." Shiori said. "We need to get you out of here as soon as possible."

Miyuki was a woman in her early 40s, with the same black hair and green eyes that Shiori had — there was a clear family resemblance. She got up, went inside her bedroom, and came out holding the same wooden box the other Yamadas had. She handed it to Shiori. "Please, take this and leave."

"Miyuki, you're not listening. If you stay, you will die, having this around or not!"

"I have my unresolved business with Shogo, though." She answered, furious. "How does he know all that, anyway? Everyone that he has to go after?"

"I don't know, but I don't think it matters." Shiori replied. "What unresolved business?"

"Do you know why he was cast out from the family?" Miyuki asked.

"No."

"Well, then. Let me tell you." She inhaled deeply. "Well, the Yamada family and the Jujutsu Society run by Tengen are not on good terms. That is because a member of the golden clans got our family's leader killed centuries ago, and Tengen thought it'd be better to just let it go instead of taking action and punishing someone. So you can imagine the disappointment we felt when Shogo was working alongside them. Worse, retrieving our cursed objects for them, right under our noses!"

Shiori and Nanami were silent, taking in the relevance of all that just had been said.

"Well, that's not all of it, though. He relayed the information about the veil realm to those little shits. So, we cast him out and had to disband the entire family." Miyuki looked at Shiori and sighed. "I never got the chance to tell you, but I'm truly sorry for your parents leaving."

"Veil realm?" Nanami asked.

Shiori was taken aback. Clearly, her parents left to protect her and her brother, as well the cursed object Miyuki had just mentioned. She took a few moments to ground herself back to the conversation after hearing everything Miyuki told them. "Yes." Shiori said. There was not much of a leverage anymore. "Veil realm."

Miyuki started explaining. "It's a special grade object that has infinite space for storage of curses and cursed objects once you open it, but, to open it, you need 15 different keys. We have been passing them down generation after generation." She pointed to the box. "Mine is in there. We all take a binding vow to give them to our first child as soon as they are born, just to be sure it is kept within the family."

"I know." Shiori answered. She pulled her own key from inside her clothing. "I keep mine with me all the time."

"Where?" Miyuki asked.

Shiori blushed. "None of your business." She sighed. "And there is no changing your mind?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"We can use this to our advantage, then." Nanami said. Shiori looked at him, incredulous, as she realized what he meant by that.

"You can't possibly be suggesting using her as bait!" Shiori said angrily, looking at him.

"That is not a bad idea, actually." Miyuki said. "And I can hold my own pretty well. I have our inherited cursed technique, melt grenade."

" Me too." Shiori answered. "But this is still a bad idea."

"Ms. Miyuki, we're in the middle of a residential area. You can't use that very effectively to defend yourself without collateral damage or attracting too much attention." Nanami replied. Ayako clearly had tried and failed miserably.

"Oh, true." She replied. "What do you suggest, then?"

"Just come to my house. We can sort this out there. And when he comes, we will be ready." Shiori said. She looked at Nanami. "What do you think?"

"It's a plan." He replied.

End notes:

To avoid postponing posting this one, I just decided to not proofread it to exhaustion. It is written, it is here, and if it has anything poorly written, I'm sorry, but I won't be going back to fix it anytime soon 😅

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lucyprobablyfine · 1 year

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5th entry - Why I suck at sports

When I was young, I wasn't the most at sport. I used to flinch at balls coming right at me and had no good reaction to any of it. I have grown of the opinion that parents should watch their children have basic reaction skills in sports, I had to learn them in 8th grade.

When I was very young I remember me and my brother played all across the apartment and spread the toys all over the place, but our father wasn't pleased. He was self-employed in his one-man-company and had often "soon professional guests" over that couldn't "see this mess". Over the years in middle/high school I buried memories of that, because the way he made us clean up wasn't limited to screaming. One of the first memories that came back was of me sitting on the side of my parents bed, after toys spread to even there, and I was pleading "No, please don't!" while I remember him raising his left hand and me holding up my hand before my face, that was the first time this wasn't followed by a swift and repeating hit.

My father is a liar and a hypocrite. I despise his actions. Over the years I have seen him play nice with people and then demeaning them, talking bad about them behind their back, trying to convince them of his way of life while trying to seem like he wasn't. He always acted nice to me when someone was around especially family members. He screamed at my mother repeatedly in the kitchen. Don't get me wrong, my father is a fine cook, but I dreaded going in that kitchen when yelling and screaming came from there and I did not wish to risk moving when I was already in there and my father was in a yelling fit.

Freezing and flinching were made part of survival strategy from early on and I think I could've been a lot more popular if I was more about moving and fighting in sports.

#parental abuse #physical abuse

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interlunium-opus · 3 years

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"I hate him spending time with you more than I hate running so you know, priorities." [ Jay. ]

[ Jay | fluff ]

Author’s Note: Here's a fluff in response to the following request "Can you maybe do a fluff/crack for Jay where maybe he felt a little jealous when you praised someone for their skill and he immediately goes competitive mode and openly tries to show how he's far better indirectly to the guy?" Hope it's close to what you have in mind and hope you like it :3

“Do you have anything to explain to me?”

You jumped, startled, as Jay appeared beside you while you were busy shoving your textbooks into your locker, “Jay! What did I say about sneaking up on people?”

“And what did I say about not keeping secrets between us?” Jay snapped back, arms crossed, brows raised, “Is this how much our friendship is worth?”

“My goodness, what is it this time?” You sighed as he fished his phone out of his pocket, turning it to show you a candid picture of you and Sunghoon from last night.

“I mean seriously, of all people to date, you have to go for this pretentious prick?” Jay scoffed before gesticulating wildly, “Look, I know I said that you need to stop being aromantic and start planting some sort romantic interest somewhere — but Sunghoon is just ain't it. In fact ! I’d rather you date the spawn of the devil, Jungwon, instead.”

You snorted a laugh before shaking your head dismissively, “Dude, we were just running last night okay? Does that even look like a date to you?”

“Okay,” he repeated sarcastically, “but you love running alone! So why are you suddenly running with someone — and not just anyone but this prick???”

“I really don’t get why you two hate each other so much,” you raised an eyebrow at Jay, “Look we just happened to bump into each other last night and since we were heading the same way, he asked if I don’t mind him tagging along for the remainder of the way — no big deal.”

“Ughh, that’s the oldest trick in book,” Jay scrunched his face, “And you said yes?”

“I mean — we’re not exactly strangers, we have been in the same tutorial class together for more than a year now," you mumbled as you zip your bag up, "He's a good running partner too. His pace was so stable and steady that it made me stuck to mine as well — I mean, duh, he's an athlete after all."

"Hey, I can run well too," Jay grumbled defensively, "You know if you needed a running partner, you could've called me right?"

“Maybe if you were as fit as I am, she would have,” Sunghoon suddenly appeared beside Jay, peering over his shoulder to look at the picture on his phone, “That’s a good picture of me and y/n — no wonder you got jealous.”

“Speak of the devil,” Jay rolled his eyes, “Aren't you a bit too greedy over what I have? first, you took up my spot for the dance competition and now you're trying to make a move on my girl."

"Jay, that was 2 years ago — get over it. You've taken my spot afterwards for the Summer competition anyway so we're actually even," Sunghoon retorted, "Also, she's not your girlfriend anyway so your territorial behaviour is pretty misplaced."

"Guys, cut it out," you shut your locker close with extra force in an effort to shut the squabbles, "Also, why am I suddenly dragged into your petty fights."

"Right sorry about that, he's just always trying to pick a fight with me," Sunghoon shook his head dismissively before turning to you and beamed, "Just stopping by to ask if you're running again tonight 'cause I would love to join again. It’s off season for ice-skating so I thought it's the perfect time to get back to running again."

“Oh? Yeah I am going tonight as well, just a tad bit late in the evening though. I want to finish up some work at the library first,” you smiled back at Sunghoon, ignoring Jay’s burning stare, “You know you can start ahead if you want — don’t want you waiting too long in case I'll take too much time at the library.”

“I’ll go when you go, don’t worry,” he reassured as he backed away, joining Heeseung who was waiting for him, “I’ll text you alright? Looking forward to tonight!”

You nodded and waved at him before turning to Jay, “What?”

“That’s it,” Jay clasped his hands together, “I’ll run with you tonight — and the next.”

“Jay, don’t be ridiculous, you hate running,” you emphasized, “which is why I never asked you to run with me.”

“Hey — I can love running if it’s for you,” he winked, wrapping an arm over your shoulders, dragging you past the crowded hallway towards your next class, “Or let me paraphrase: I hate him spending time with you more than I hate running so you know, priorities.”

“your priorities are all skewed then," you clicked your tongue, "Well, as long as you don't hurt yourself."

_________________________________________________________________________

The next morning however Jay did not show up in Modern Political Thought seminar that you guys have every Thursday morning. Though the guy is such a sleepyhead, he never misses a class even when he pulled up an all-nighter the night before. So this sudden absence, paired with the fact that he managed to run a whole 5km without stopping last night, was sowing seeds of suspicions and guilt within you. To make things worse, he did not even respond to any of your messages for the last 5 hours.

That was why you ended up being in front of Jay's apartment instead of having your lunch that noon. "Hi!" you immediately say as the door of Jay's apartment opened. It was Jake, his flatmate, with his lids only half-opened and hair all disheveled, "y/n?"

"Sorry for waking you up Jake," you smiled apologetically, "Is Jay home? He missed a Politics seminar this morning and he didn’t respond to my text at all — just wanna make sure he’s alright.”

“mmhmm, pretty sure he’s in," he answered drowsily before yawning, "but probably, still hibernating.”

“Oh okay, do you mind if I come in?”

Jake nodded, backing up as he held the door open, “Of course, come in — it’s messy though.”

“Don’t worry about it,” you reassured, making your way towards the room at the end of the hallway. As you knocked on his door, Jake suddenly shouted from the kitchen, “don’t bother knocking y/n — that guy sleeps like a log. Just go in.”

“Uhh…” you bit your lip, slightly hesitating but relented when your subsequent knocks yielded no answer.

“Jay? I’m entering okay?” you say as you let yourself in, carefully navigating around the dark room, stumbling a few times against some random furnitures.

"Jake, get out okay-" you hear him grumble from underneath the covers, tossing the other way, "just let me... sleep mo..re."

As you neared his bed, you reached over to his bedside table and turned on the lamp. Suddenly, Jay rose from the covers, his hand gripping your wrist, grunting "Jake what did I just say-"

Trailing off, he looked at you with brows furrowed in a mix of annoyance and confusion, before his expressions gradually soften "y/n?"

"dude, you almost gave me a heart attack," you muttered, sighing exasperatedly.

"Sorry, I thought it was Jake trying to disturb me again," he softened his grip and rubbed your wrist as if he had just hurt it, "Did I hurt you?"

"My heart, almost but my hand is fine," you pulled your hand away, "How about you?"

"What about me?"

"You missed class this morning," you crossed your arms.

"It's just one class, no big deal. I just overslept-"

"Is that all?" you raised an eyebrow before pointing at the crumpled muscle relief patch packs and pain relief creams strewn messily across his bedside table, "Did someone overexert himself last night?"

"Fine, I didn't come to class partly because my legs are sore," he shrugged, "but hey, I ran as much as Sunghoon did! Aren't you proud of me?"

"Not if it's at the cost of your legs!" you replied exasperatedly, "Come on, where is the rational Jay that I know? he wouldn't have let his competitiveness and ego cloud his judgements like this."

"It's just normal post-workout sore, I've had it a couple of times before," he reassured, "Also, I may hate running. But I'm actually good at HIIT and strength training so I'm not all that unfit as you think I am. Or he thinks."

"All that just so you can prove him wrong?"

"No of course not, I couldn't care less about him," he huffed, "I just wanted you to know that I can pace well with you too."

"Jay, that does not make it any better-"

"Probably also to convince you that I make a better running partner than Sunghoon," he sniggered.

"Well, guess what, you can't run if your legs are hurt," you quipped.

"Oh shit, that's true," he muttered under his breath, "Well post-workout sore usually last between 3-7 days so I'll be good as new after that. Running partners?" he stretched his hand out as if asking for a handshake.

You sighed, grabbing his outstretched hand, shaking it as if you guys are signing on a pact, "Only if you promise not to overexert yourself next time."

"Promise," his smile widened, "Have you had lunch? I'll cook something up for you."

"Your legs are hurt though."

"They're sore not hurt," Jay emphasized, scooting to the edge of his bed, "Also even if they are hurt, I cook with my hands not legs so..."

You chuckled, "Well sir, if you insists."

"Of course, wouldn't let my girl go out of this house famished," he wrapped an arm over your shoulder, grinning gleefully.

#enhypen #enhypen imagines #enhypenwriters #enhypen jay #enhypen jay imagines #enhypen scenarios #jay park #park jongseong #enhypen fluff #kpop imagines

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velvett-tearss · 3 years

Text

Black Tea & Blushes — L. Ackerman

summary: The two of you never got along, but there were times that even fire and ice made a perfect pair.

warnings: cursing, no spoilers for anything past early s1, Levi’s a little shit at first (surprise, surprise), mentions of blood (they’re fighting titans :-) lol) gn!reader (no pronouns mentioned)

genre: semi-canonverse, fluff, enemies to lovers (?)

word count: 3.3k

a/n: this was very self-indulgent lmao, sorry if it’s a bit messy 😭, <Hange, Connie & Sasha3 make an appearance bc I love them and you should too, hope you enjoy it <3

"Couldn't you have gotten a cadet to do this?"

You raised a sharp brow at the man, trying to keep yourself from flipping his desk over. "Would you have yelled at them like you just yelled at me?"

The man's grey eyes didn’t meet yours, but there was a scowl on his face. Despite his steely eyes, he didn't say anything back. Instead, he pursed his lips and turned back to continue his paperwork.

You huffed in an attempt to ground yourself after being yelled at for the past two minutes. You took a sip from your own cup of the tea you had prepared for him, letting yourself savor the taste.

"I don't understand." you said, tasting the earthy, black tea. "You said it was too cold last time, so I made sure it was extra warm. What's wrong with it? Is it too sour for you? I only added a few drops of lemon this time."

Levi remained silent, but you stood your ground, tapping your boot against the pavemented floor as you waited at his desk for an answer. You wouldn't let him win, not this time. Day after day, it seemed like he only grew ruder and ruder.

Your dislike for Levi Ackerman started the day you met him. He was still just a soldier when you joined the Survey Corp, and it wasn't long after that he become Captain.

He was mean, and he never seemed to care about anything, but God forbid you make a reckless move out in the field. It was as if all hell broke loose if you used a bit too much gas when slicing the nape of a Titan's neck.

"Not everyone is Humanity's Strongest." you had spat at him when he scolded you on the way back to the walls. That only earned you a glare, seeing as Hange managed to secure your safety. If it weren't for them, you were certain you would've gotten stuck with stable duty for a month's end.

You were glad he was nice to them, at least.

At some point, you got promoted to Captain as well. One would think that since you shared the same rank, he would grow warmer to you, but that was another one of your mistakes.

Everything about him rubbed you the wrong way, from his disagreeable manners to his awful way of speaking to soldiers. And, it was your disdain for him that got you stuck in this mess.

"A cadet could've done this." Levi stated again; you felt like you were being patronized. He raised a brow at you, holding the teacup in his hand. "A cadet could’ve made better tea than you.”

"Obviously not, Captain." you threw back sourly, snatching the cup from his hand. "A cadet could not have done this because if I hadn't interfered two weeks ago, who knows what you would've done to the poor man. And, all he did was make your tea wrong!”

Levi blinked at you, appearing bored with your conversation. "If you hadn't interfered, that soldier would be back with those good for nothing Military Police Officers doing what they're best at."

You gritted your teeth. "And, what are they good for, Captain Ackerman?”

His brow twitched slightly. “Absolutely nothing."

You let out a bitter laugh, placing the white ceramic teacups back on the tray you had brought in. "Now that you say it out loud, that reminds me a lot of someone I know."

"What an awful way to talk about yourself.” Levi threw back with ease.

The urge to roll your eyes at him was weighing on you, but you were stronger than the immaturity he seemed to bring out in you. "Captain, you must be growing old if you've already forgotten we're the same rank."

Your decision of keeping yourself calm in his presence payed to be of use when you noticed the slight pause in his pen strokes at your words.

But, you were well aware of how trustworthy Levi was in the sense that you knew he could always come back with something even worse than what he's told you before.

"If you were of any use, you would know what's wrong with your tea. I'm sure even King Fritz could tell good tea from awful tea, and he's the most useless of them all." Levi told you, pen moving over the papers in front of him swiftly.

"He could probably also tell a grown man from a spoiled brat," you told him, taking the tray with you as you left his office. "But, you make even that task seem impossible."

You had to stop the triumphant grin from growing on your face when you heard his faint scoff from the other side of the wooden door.

Even if you managed to snag the last word of that argument, it didn’t feel as good as it usually did. The only reason you involved yourself in Levi Ackerman’s nightly tea was because 1) you didn’t like the way he spoke to the poor soldier who got stuck with job of handling it, and 2) Erwin asked that you try and be a bit nicer to your fellow captain.

You only did it to keep your job, really, and you would never let your Commander think less of you, even if he did favor Levi. Even Hange had tried to coax you into not letting The Ackerman’s sharp tongue get to you, but that didn’t seem to work.

Levi and you would never be friends, if that’s what Erwin meant when he pulled you aside at supper a few nights before. It was a lie to say you didn’t admire the man’s impressive skills, because you did.

But, admiration and respect were two separate things.

The two of you were jagged edges of broken glass that didn’t fit together, and that was perfectly fine. You didn’t mind being Levi being a sharp piece of glass, just as long as he kept his corners to himself and far from you.

Erwin, as observant as usual, caught on to the solution to your problem, and he even made sure you and Levi would rarely ever cross paths when the Scouts were out on an expedition. The two of you worked on opposite sides of the formation.

The only time you would ever work together would be if there were no other options, but both of you were reliable in your own senses: him with his... whatever he called it, and you with your wits.

You didn't mind being farthest from him, and if it were up to you, you'd go even farther.

“Hey, you got new glasses.” you stated, noticing the new pair of brown frames that Hange wore the morning as the Scouts waited for the signal to begin the expedition.

“Oh, don’t remind me.” they said with a frown, holding the glasses in their hands. “Last night, Moblit and I were doing some research, and someone must’ve stolen my glasses because I couldn’t find them this morning.”

“Stole? Isn’t that a big accusation?”

They let out a hearty laugh. “It is! That’s why I’m saying it!” Hange replied, golden eyes widened at you in exasperation. “I’ve been stuck with these, and they’re too big for my face. All they do is fall off.”

“So maybe don’t wear them?” you wondered as you caught a glimpse of the dark head of hair you knew too well. “What’ll you do if you lose them out in the field? Better safe than sorry.”

“I wish, but I’m as blind as a bat without them.” Hange reasoned with a sigh before quickly composing themselves. “But, now that you mention it, I never did mind a challenge.”

The smirk growing on their face was one you didn’t quite like. Before you could talk some sense into them (if that were even possible) the signal went off to begin the mission.

They gave a wide smile and a thumbs up as a good luck token. "Don’t do anything crazy!” you called out when the two of you parted ways, taking your squad with you. “I mean it, Hange!”

Hange waved you off, charging in faster in their horse. It was up to poor Moblit to chase right after them.

Your squad remained close together for the majority of the mission. There wasn't much to do on your end of things, which was a relief. At some point, you decided to stop for a quick break before pushing forward.

If you were able to see five mintues into the future, you would never have let your squad talk you into taking a lunch break. Just as you were relaxing a bit, there was an Abnormal coming from the thick trees.

Your sense of smell wasn't as skilled as Miche, and if it weren't for one of the younger cadets on your squad who had a keen sense of hearing, you all would've been Titan food.

It didn't take long for you to spring into action, your squad following suit. You made sure to use the plans Erwin had issued out on previous Scout meetings.

When the Abnormal finally made it to where you and your squad stopped, the beastly creature managed to catch one of your soldiers in midair. As the young boy was raised in the air, his stomach couldn't contain his recent lunch.

Gravity works in wonders, you thought when his earlier lunch fell onto you with a splat! You couldn't blame the poor boy; it was better upstairs than downstairs. As terrible a feeling it was to have chunky vomit all over you, you knew it would be as even worse feeling if the boy died under your care.

Your squad got to him before any damage was permanent, at least physically. When the killing blow was done, you tended to your soldier. He muttered out apologies for having thrown up on you, but you were merely in the line of fire.

"It's okay, Connie." you reassured him after pulling off your green cape that had been soiled in aid to shield you. “I’d rather it be your lunch on me than your organs.”

You ordered that he ride with your other cadet, Sasha. He let out a pained laugh at your words, leaning against her on her horse. She scolded him for “wasting so much food,” to which lead to their silly banter, which you didn’t mind as long as they were safe.

As unfortunate as it was, that incident wasn't the last of it. There wasn't much time between Connie getting his ribs crushed by a Titan and the numerous amount of red flares that were being shot into the air. The amount of red powder in the sky was enough to cast a shadow of worry over you.

By the time your squad made it to where the red flares had been signaled, it was a mess. Abnormal and Pure Titans were ambushing the rest of whatever was left of the Survey Corp. Your squad wasted no time in following your orders as you made a beeline for the trees where a group of Abnormals were huddled together.

When you finally got a good look at the scene in the forest, your sight was met with Titan smoke and blood of fallen comrades. It was a disaster, as it always was. But you knew, where there was smoke, there was definitely fire.

And, that fire was Humanity’s Strongest Soldier.

He looked ablaze, nothing but a flash in the distance. Slicing Titan limbs as if they were merely flowers in his way, Levi Ackerman was kicking ass. It was in moments like this — where he looked like the answer to all the prayers of the people inside the walls — that you wondered if you truly hated him all along.

“Section Commander!” Moblit cried, chasing after Hange as they swung on the highest tree of the forest. It seemed as though they forgot all about how loose their glasses were as they did a number of twirls in the air. His voice was enough to snap you out of your trance and assist your fellow comrades.

You managed to fight off three Pure Titans and two Abnormals for what seemed like forever. It might’ve been even worse if not for Connie Springer’s lunch all over you that acted as Titan Repellant.

Perhaps you would tell Hange of your new discovery, but every time you managed to get close to them while fighting off the Titans, all they did was badger you with questions upon questions.

“Are you sure you haven’t you seen them?!” Hange cried for the fifth time, eyes squinted at you from their branch opposite you. Moblit was fighting off a creepy Abnormal with ugly teeth a few feet from you.

“No, I haven’t! And, didn’t I tell you your glasses would fall if you took them with you?!” you shouted back from your place on the tree before taking a breath to try to slice the neck of your second Pure Titan. “Go back to the wagon, Hange, before you get yourself killed!”

They huffed and puffed, but they let Moblit guide them to the wagon to wait until the rest of the Scouts could find a moment to retreat back to the walls.

After finally slicing the nape of your final Titan, you looked over to where you had last seen Levi. Only, he was nowhere to be found. A panic set in when you couldn’t find any sight of him.

“Captain?” you called out from your place on a tree branch where you were catching your breath. You squinted your eyes to get a farther look, but it didn’t help that much. “Captain Ackerman, are you there? Do you—”

But, that’s when you felt a jostle of wind hit your back. You turned quickly to see the dark-haired man swinging through the trees, holding an unconscious Oluo.

You followed him, figuring if you took his squad member off his hands that Levi would have a better chance of taking down more Titans. Maybe even with a man who weighed far more than himself in his hands, Levi could still have a better chance than you.

“Captain, I’ve got him. I’ll take—”

But, Levi wouldn’t budge. It was like he wasn’t listening to you, and you didn’t know if it was by choice or coincidence. You huffed and rushed quicker to help him in carrying Oluo.

Maybe it was just your luck, or maybe it was just his, but right before you managed to reach him, a Titan’s jaw came from below him, wide and ready for lunchtime.

There was nothing for him to do, not with his hands full. Surely he knew that from the way his grey eyes finally broke through from that awful void he’d placed you in, the one where all you ever got from him was scoldings and insults and cold stares that often made you wonder if he actually did hate you.

And, for the first time, you saw panic flash through his grey eyes, his life flash before his eyes.

“Levi!” you cried, using the rest of your ODM gear’s gas to catch up to him. You knew if he were to survive such an event, he would scold you for wasting your gas on an old lump like him.

But, for once, Levi had something to say about you that didn’t regard your incompetence to make decent tea or your recklessness that spurred you to use all your gas just to save him and the bullheaded, baboon by the name of Oluo.

It was your astonishing speed.

You got to the two men right before the great wide jaws of the Titan could snap closed and swallow the three of you for its meal, which Levi had to admit (but probably never would) was quite impressive.

“Shit!” you hissed out when the three of you landed on another tree branch. As quick as you got to the branch was as quick as Miche was to come and ensure your safety, slicing the Titan’s nape with ease.

Oluo was still unconscious and a little bloodied up and battered, but he was safe.

“What the hell were you thinking?!” Levi yelled, voice slightly hoarse from everything that had just happened. His hair was a mess, and you held back a laugh at the sight of him. “Why— why would you? I mean, what— and, why do you smell like—”

“A thank you is perfectly fine, Ackerman.” you coughed out, catching your breath from the overexertion you just forced yourself through. Carrying two grown men was tough, especially when it was between life or death. “As for the smell, one of my soldiers threw up on me.”

Levi blinked at you, his expression consisting of disgust and confusion. “What?”

“My soldier. He threw up on me earlier.”

“I heard you the first time.” he told you, blinking quickly as if it were going to grant him some clarity. You didn’t know if his confusion was from your act of saving him and his squad member or from not knowing what to say to you after.

He looked funny, with his hair that of a bird’s nest and his cheeks flushed pink.

“Did you hit your head on the way down?”

“W-what?”

“Your head? Did you hit it?”

“No, I-I’m fine.” he scrambled upright, finding purchase on the unconscious Oluo’s shin. Your eyes flickered to where his hand was placed, and he snatched it right off immediately, burning a deeper shade of pink.

“Oh.” you muttered, holding back a chuckle. There was no way Levi was without a concussion, not with the way he was acting all of a sudden: stuttering and turning pink on you. It was a wonder you caught up to him before he collapsed.

“Are you sure you’re okay, Captain?” you asked again, fixing your uniform before getting to your feet. You wobbled a bit; Levi raised a brow at you. “You look sick. Why don’t you sit in the injury wagon for a bit on the way back? Just in case.”

He waved you off, standing on his two feet as well. You didn’t want to cause a fight, not right after what had just happened and not outside the walls, so you decided to say nothing about his seeming concussion.

The two of you lifted Oluo off the ground, blood seeping from the side of the man’s mouth. “Is it his ribs? Was it an Abnormal? They were awful today.” you questioned, looking to Levi for answers.

“He bit his tongue, again, before ramming into a tree.” Levi told you, averting his gaze from you as he shifted the man against his shoulder for a better grip. “He said something f-fell from the sky.”

You nodded, letting yourself chuckle. “What could it’ve been? Bird shit?”

Levi shrugged at your words.

He was far too quiet for your liking. Maybe he did have a concussion. It wouldn’t be good if he rode back like that. Perhaps if you spoke to Erwin or Hange about it, one of them could convince Levi to get checked out once you got back to the walls.

The two of you managed to get back to the rest of the Scouts safely. You helped Levi placing Oluo in the wagon with the wounded and the fallen while everyone else was getting accounted for.

All the while, Hange was trying to persuade Erwin into letting them form a search party for their glasses that had fallen while they were swinging on the trees.

Though you were straining to listen to their conversation, you were more than certain that Erwin would never allow such a thing, but you had to admire Hange’s efforts, as fruitless as they were.

“Thank you.”

You snapped your head to Levi.

He refused to meet your gaze again, busying himself with readjusting his soldier’s cape. If not for the obvious step into uncharted territory between the two of you, you would’ve commented on the rosy blush he adorned.

Suddenly, you were overcome with a laughter, waving him off with your hand quickly. “I was just joking about that, Captain. Sorry, I don’t mean to laugh, but I’m just surprised you actually—”

He scoffed, the expression on his face shifting to one of impatience. “Don’t be a brat. Just take the compliment.” Levi huffed out, visibly annoyed with your chatter.

A look of shock overtook your face. “Oh, so you’re complimenting me? Why didn’t you just say so, then?”

“Oi, that’s not what I meant—”

“No, it’s fine. I heard you, loud and clear.” you interrupted, smiling widely at him. “You’re oh-so very welcome, Captain Ackerman, and if you ever need me to save your ass again, you know where to find me.”

Levi opted to say nothing back, merely shaking his head at you when you gave a lazy salute and started back to the other side of the formation where your horse and squad awaited you.

“Besides,” you shrugged, turning back for a moment to catch him looking at you. “Who else would teach me how to make tea?”

note: I don’t think I specified it, but Oluo was knocked unconscious bc some object (Hange’s glasses) fell from the sky lmao 🐸

#snk x reader #attack on titan x reader #aot x reader #shingeki no kyojin #snk #aot #aot x you #levi ackerman x y/n #levi ackerman #levi ackerman x you #levi ackerman x reader #levi ackerman fluff #levi ackerman scenario #levi ackerman imagine #attack on Titan #snk x y/n

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number5theboy · 4 years

Note

Please elaborate on how Five could've turned into the most insufferable character to watch

Thanks for asking me to elaborate on this text post:

@tessapercygranger, @waywardd1 and @margarita-umbrella also wanted to see a more detailed version of it, and I ended up writing an essay that’s longer than some of my actual academic essays. So buckle up.

WHY NUMBER FIVE SHOULD BE THE MOST OBNOXIOUS CHARACTER IN TV HISTORY, AND HOW HE MANAGES NOT TO BE

Number Five: The Concept That Could Go Horribly Wrong

Alright, let’s first look at Five in theory in an overarching way, without taking into account the execution of the show. The basic set-up of the character, of course, is being a 58-year-old consciousness in a teenager’s body, due to a miscalculation in time travel. Right off the bat, Five is bar none the most overpowered of the siblings; by the end of Season 2, no one has yet been able to defeat him in a fight. He is a master assassin – and not just any master assassin, but the best one there is – and a survival expert, able to do complex maths and physics without the aid of a calculator, shown to have knowledge of half a dozen languages, has very developed observational skills and, to top that all off, he can manipulate time and space to the point where he can literally erase events that happened and change the course of history. And Five knows how skilled he is; he is arrogant, self-assured and sarcastic, and his streak of goodness is buried deep inside. David Castañeda once described Five in an interview as 90% chocolate with a cherry in the middle, meaning that you have to get through a lot of darkness and bitterness before knowing there is a good core, and I think it’s an excellent metaphor. However, Five is also incredibly, fundamentally terrible at communicating with anyone, and, because he is the only one with time travel abilities, the character a lot of the actual plot - and the moving forward of it - centres around. Also he’s earnestly in love with a mannequin, who is pretty much a projection of his own consciousness that functions as a coping mechanism for all the trauma he has endured. All in all, this gives you a character who looks like a teenager, but with the smug superiority of a fifty-something, who a) is extremely skilled in many different things, b) has a superiority complex, is arrogant and vocal about it, and most of the superiority is expressed through cutting sarcasm, c) has one very hidden ounce of goodness that he is literally the worst at communicating to other human beings, d) is what moves the plot along but is also bad at talking to anyone else, meaning that the plot largely remains with him, and e) his love interest is essentially a projection of himself. Tell me that’s not a character who is destined to be just…obnoxious, annoying, egocentric, a necessary evil that one has to put up with to get through this show. There are so many elements of this characterisation that can and should easily make Five beyond insufferable, but the show manages to avoid it, and I’m putting this down to three aspects.

That Trick of Age and Appearance

Bluntly put, Five as a character would not work if he was anything else than an old man in a 13-year-old body. Imagine this character and all his skills and knowledge, but actually just…a teenager. Immediately insufferable. Same goes for him being around 30, like his siblings, all of which are stunted and traumatised by their father’s abuse. If Five, being comparatively unscathed by Reginald to the point where he explicitly does not want to be defined by his association with his father, were 30 like his siblings, it would just take the bite out of that plot point and also give him a lot less time in the apocalypse, reducing the impact it had on him as a person. And making Five his actual 58-year-old self would make him very similar to Reginald, at least on surface level, with the appearance and attitude. Five and Reginald are two fundamentally different people, but having one of the siblings being a senior citizen that’s dressed to the nines and bosses his siblings around in a relatively self-centred way does open up that parallel, and would take away from Five’s charm as a character. Because pairing the life experience of a 58-year-old with the appearance of a teenager gives you the best of both worlds. You get the other siblings (and a lot of the audience, from a glance in the tags of my gifsets) feeling protective and paternal about Five, but his age and experience also give the justifications for his many skills, his arrogance, in a way, and his ability to decimate a room full of people. It’s the very interesting and not new concept of someone dangerous with the appearance of something harmless, a child. This is also where Five’s singular outfit comes in. I know we like to clown on Five to get a new outfit, but I think what gets forgotten often is how effective this outfit is at making the viewer take him seriously. The preppy school uniform is the perfect encapsulation of the tension between old man in spirit and young teenager in appearance. The blazer, vest and especially the shirt and tie are quite formal, relatively grown up. They’re not something we, the audience, usually associate with a teenage boy wearing; it makes Five just a little bit more grown up. But there is also a reason characters in this show keep bringing up Five’s shorts and his socks, because those are not things that we associate with grown men wearing; they’re the unmistakably childish part of his school uniform. Take a moment and imagine Five wearing a hoodie or a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers; would that outfit work for him as well as the uniform does? Would he be able to command the same kind of respect or seriousness as a character? I don’t think so; the outfit is a lot more pivotal in making Five believable than a lot of people give it credit for.

Writing Nuance

The other big building block in not making Five incredibly insufferable is the writing. Objectively speaking, I think Five is the most well-written, and, more importantly, most coherently written character on the show (which does have to do with the fact that the show’s events are all sequential for him), and his arc and personality remain relatively intact over the course of the two seasons. More to the point, a giant part of what makes Five bearable as a character is that he is allowed to fail. He is written to have high highs and low lows, big victories through his skills and his intelligence, but also catastrophic failures and the freedom to be wrong. His superior intellect and skillset are not the be-all end-all of the plot or his character, just something that influences both. His inability for communication has not (yet) been used to fabricate a contrived misunderstanding that derails the plot and left all of us seething; instead, it’s a characteristic that makes him fail to reconnect with the people he loves. This is a bit simplified, as he does find common ground with Luther, for example, but in general, a lot of the rift between Five and his siblings is that they can’t relate to his traumas and he does not understand the depth of Reginald’s abuse, which is an interesting conflict worth exploring. Another thing that really works in Five’s favour is that he is definitely written to be mean and sarcastic, but it is never driven to the point of complete unlikability, and a lot of the time, the context makes it understandable why he reacts the way he does. Most of the sarcastic lines he gets are actually funny, that certainly helps, but in general, Five is a good example of a bearable character whose default personality is sharp and relatively cold, because it is balanced out with many moments of vulnerability. Delores is incredibly important for this in the first season, she is the main focus of Five’s humanising moments, and well-written as she totes the line between clearly being a coping mechanism for an extremely traumatised man and still coming across to the viewer as the human contact Five needs her to be. In the second season, the vulnerability is about his guilt for his siblings, it’s about Five connecting a little bit better to them. There’s also his relationship with the Commission and the Handler specifically – which honestly could be an essay on its own – that deserves a mention, because the Handler is why Five became the man he is, and this dynamic between creator and creation is explored in a very interesting way – their scenes are some of the most well-written in the entire show. And TUA never falls into the trap of making Five a hero, he is always morally ambiguous at best, and it just makes for an interesting, multi-faceted character, well-written character, and none of the characteristics that should make him unlikeable are allowed to take centre-stage for long enough to be defining on their own. I know a lot of people especially champion the scenes where Five goes apeshit, but without his more nuanced characterisation, if he was like that all the time, those scenes would not hit as hard.

Aidan Gallagher’s Performance is Underrated

But honestly, none of the above would matter that much if the Umbrella Academy didn’t luck out hard with the casting of Aidan Gallagher. I think what he achieves as an actor in this show is genuinely underappreciated. Like, the first season set out to cast six adults having to deal with various ramifications of childhood trauma, and a literal child that had to be able to act smart and wise beyond his years, seamlessly integrate into a family of adults while seeming like an adult, traumatised by the literal end of the world, AND had to be able to create the romantic chemistry of a thirty-year-long marriage with a lifeless department store doll. The only role I could think of to compare is Kirsten Dunst in Interview with a Vampire, where she plays a vampire child who, because she is undead, doesn’t age physically, but does mentally, so she’s 400 in a child’s body. And Kirsten Dunst had to do that for a two-hour movie. Five is a main character in a show that spans 20 episodes now. That’s insane, and it’s a risk. Five is a character that can’t be allowed to go wrong; if you don’t buy Five as a character, the entire first season loses believability. And they found someone who could do that not only convincingly, but also likeably. As I said, he is incredibly helped by the costuming department and the script, but Aidan Gallager’s Five has so much personality, he’s threatening and funny and charming and arrogant and heartbreaking. He has the range to be convincing in the quiet moments where Five’s humanity comes to show and in the moments where Five goes completely off the rails. Most child actors act with other children, but he is the only child in the main cast, and holds his own in scenes with adults not as a child, but as an adult on equal footing with the other adult characters. That’s not something to be taken for granted. But even apart from the fact that it’s a child actor who carries a lot of the plot and the drama of a series for adults, Aidan Gallagher’s portrayal of Five is also just so much fun. The comedic timing is on point, he has the dramatic chops for the serious scenes, the mannerisms and visual ticks add to the character rather than distract from him, and his line deliveries, paired with his physical acting, make Five arrogant and smug but never outright malicious and unlikeable. It’s just some terrific acting that really does justice to the character as he is written, but the writing would not be as strong if it wasn’t delivered and acted out the way Aidan Gallagher does. He is an incredible asset for this show.

Alright, onto concluding this rambling. If you made it this far, I commend you, and thank you for it. The point of all of this is that Five, as a character, could have been an unmitigated disaster of a TV character. He is overpowered, arrogant, uncommunicative and could so easily have been either unconvincing or completely unlikeable, but he turned out to be neither. It’s a combination of choices in the costume department, decisions in the writing room, and Aidan Gallagher’s acting skills that make the things that should make him obnoxious and annoying incredibly entertaining, and I hope you liked my long-winded exploration of these. Some nuance was lost along the way, but if I had not stopped myself, this would’ve become a full-blown thesis.

#thanks for the ask again #TUA #The Umbrella Academy #Five Hargreeves #tua s2 spoilers #my meta #i guess #Replies #Anonymous

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starlessskies94 · 3 years

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Consequence (Joel Miller x OC)

Summary: What if Joel survived his injuries from the Abby and Fireflies attack but ends up with really bad amnesia. He can’t remember his wife, Ellie, or the Outbreak; only before. How will his family bring back the man they once knew?

Pairing: Joel Miller x OC

Notes: I wanted to apologise for a stupid mistake I made in the last chapter, I mentioned that Ada fixed Joel's injury with no medical knowledge; only to remember weeks later that she's a vet as part of her character skills and I completely overlooked it while writing the last chapter so I'm sorry for that. And sorry to my lovely Adaline; because it makes total sense that she would be able to tend to his wound rather easily so I hope that doesn't spoil that last flashback too much my bad hehe

Also I apologise that it's been a while since my last chapter, I'm not going to lie this one has been a bitch to write and I'm still not 100% happy with it so I just sincerely hope it doesn't disappoint.

Chapter Twelve

Ada didn't remember falling asleep. But she certainly felt it when she woke up. Her joints cracking and popping from the curled up position she was laid in all night. Everything ached from her shoulders, to her back and her toes.

The last of her dreams faded as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. A quick glance at the clock telling her that she had slept through the better part of a day and half and although she had slept; she didn't feel rested in the slightest. The memories came flooding back, bringing with it that weight that pushed against her chest so tightly until she could barely breathe. Everything that had happened the day before felt like a bad nightmare, where her fears and worries had all come true. Joel hated her. Had more or less disowned her and Ellie. And it was her fault. The sadness and the tears were gone leaving her numb. All she had left was anger.

Yes she had made the wrong call leaving Joel as she had but it was Tommy who had thrown her under the bus. Not giving her the time she had needed to explain. It had all happened so quickly it had made her head spin. It wasn't fair.

There was no logic or reason in leaving her home and storming through the town to find her brother in law. There was no reason to slug the poor man in the face with a swift right hook either but that still didn't stop Ada from doing it away when she saw him.

The world only came back into focus when Maria had restrained her; her vision finally clearing to see Tommy holding his bloody nose.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Ada?!" Maria cried in shocked anger. "What has gotten into you?!"

"Let me go, Maria!"

"Not until you tell me what's going on!" The blonde demanded, holding Ada's arms behind her back: her grip getting tighter the more she struggled. Tommy stumbled forward still holding his nose, spitting a mouthful of blood by his feet before looking up at his wife.

"Maria it's okay...let her go." He asked woefully. Maria just scoffed in disbelief at his request, as if it was the most crazy thing in the world. She attempted to argue but the younger Miller just waved a dismissive hand at her words; his other pinching the bridge of his nose in a bid to stop the bleeding, that was now staining it's way down the front of his shirt. The townspeople were beginning to gather, a rumble of murmurs breaking out amongst the crowd at the sight of their leader being injured by one of their own.

That still didn't stop Ada from taking another swing at Tommy. Only this one didn't make contact as Maria stopped her, twisting her arm and pinning it to her back again.

"That is enough!" She roared, staring down both her husband and her sister in law. "Now you two had better tell what in the hell is going on!"

Tommy winced against the pain shooting through his nose and jaw; turning to look at the crowd staring with wide eyes. His own falling to the floor, not quite able to look at both women in front of him.

"Maybe we'd better go inside to talk." He suggested quietly; making his way back towards his home with Ada and Maria following behind. The brunette struggled her way out of Maria's grip and reluctantly she gave in and let go; turning on her heel and barking orders at the crowd to disperse and get back to whatever it was they were doing before. They did eventually albeit hesitantly. Ada glanced over her shoulder and watched them go as she made her way towards Tommy's; her brain quickly catching up with her actions. God... what they must think of her now. She was just grateful Ellie hadn't seen it; just as grateful as she was that the teen had chosen to stay with Dina the day before. Heaven only knew what she would've thought had she heard Joel's cold words when he'd left. She tried not to think about it as she looked down at her shaking hands; her right now turning red and swelling slightly. The shame engulfed her almost as rapidly as the anger had. And now she had to face the consequences of that anger.

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"...And after that he just left? You didn't even try to stop him?" Maria asked sadly as she poured Ada another whisky into her glass. She didn't waste any time downing the brown liquid as quickly as she did her first; coughing slightly as it burned her throat.

"What would've been the point? I tried to explain things and he made it perfectly clear that he wasn't in the mood to listen."

The nausea had come back; whether it was caused by the whiskey on an empty stomach or the stress of retelling what had happened between her and Joel yesterday, Ada wasn't sure. Though she guessed it was probably the former, if her headache was anything to go by. She slumped further into her chair as a deep sigh left her lungs; everything was such a mess and she was tired of feeling so hopeless. She turned the empty glass along her hand that grasped it, her eyes red and raw from the tears and the worst night of sleep she'd had in weeks. "Maybe Joel is right." She wondered aloud. "Maybe this is all my fault and I deserve this. I'd hate me too."

Maria shook her head defiantly at Ada's words, reaching over to take the glass from her and placing it back onto the coffee table between them. "Joel doesn't hate you. And as far as blame goes...I'd say we're all at fault for how we handled this. Some of us more than others." She stated bitterly, her blue cold eyes glaring at her husband sitting across from her on the living room couch. A small rag of wrapped ice held to his face. The man rolled his eyes and scoffed, pulling the ice pack from his nose and resting it by his knee as he leaned forward.

"I already told you that I was sorry. I don't know what else you want me to say."

"And I told you to keep that damn ice on your nose to take down the swelling." She berated without taking a breath. "You had no right to go behind Ada's back like that! And Joel didn't deserve to find out the way he did either!"

She was right. Tommy knew she was right. Always was. He owed his brother a hell of a lot more than yelling the truth at him like he had. But he had just been so angry. So frustrated; it had come out before he could stop it and then it had been too late to take it back. He honestly hadn't expected Joel to react the way he did. So cold and harsh with the way he'd shouted at Ada...Tommy knew how much his brother loved her. And yet he'd all but ambushed the poor woman to get answers. He uttered another apology and sat back with the ice cooling his throbbing nose that was now beginning to bruise. He didn't blame Ada for hitting him either; he'd definitely deserved it. There were a lot of things all of them wished they could've done differently. Hindsight was a nice thing in theory but now it was proving to be painfully useless once the damage was already done.

His sister in law rose from her seat and as he watched her pace about the room, the more his guilt niggled at him. She ran her hands through her greying roots and down through the fading brunette locks that cascaded down her back, they were still shaking as she moved to rest them on her neck while she continued pacing.

"Ada..." He tried cautiously." Ada..."

"You shouldn't blame Tommy for this Maria, this is my fault." She interjected and paused looking down at the blonde who could only give the woman a look of pity in return. "I mean it, Joel was right with everything he said. I'm a fucking coward!" The couple shared a look as Ada laughed bitterly at her words. "I was too afraid to deal with what happened so I left. Because I was terrified that if I had stayed...If I had tried to help him remember, forcing him to live with a damn stranger; he'd eventually decide that life was better without me. It's stupid and it's selfish..." her voice quivered as she held back tears, her arms falling from her neck to hold herself. "...but there it is."

Maria was quick to reassure her; rushing to her feet and pulling her into a hug. Ada pulled back as she was offered an old handkerchief from the other woman's pocket. Her sniffles subsiding as she was encouraged to sit down again.

"Ada, Joel loves you. He might not remember that but it doesn't just go away. You still have a chance to fix things."

Ada scoffed out a wet sob and shook her head. "No...it's over Maria. As far as he's concerned; I'm just the coldhearted bitch that abandoned him."

"Wait...Joel actually said that?" Tommy asked aghast, his eyes wide. The woman just shrugged dismissively. "He didn't have too...Though it's nothing less than I deserve.

Tommy wished she would stop being so hard on herself. He understood her guilt more than most and he hadn't even agreed with the plan in the first place. It just hadn't sat right with him to lie to Joel about his family. But then he'd spoken to his brother and realized just how much of his memory had been lost. And it seemed that he was losing himself in it. Joel was becoming angry and bitter at the world for taking something from him, for harming him in a way he hadn't been able to control. It was eerily similar to the darkness he'd descended into when he'd lost Sarah. When he'd lost all hope for happiness and decency. There was no mercy or love. It was just a means to an end in order to survive. That wall that Joel had built around himself to keep the world out. To keep emotions just out of reach. And Tommy feared his brother falling into it again. Ellie and Ada had pulled him out of it once, he had hoped they would've been able to do it again. Now he was starting to worry he'd been wrong.

He pulled back the rag and thankfully it seemed as though his nose had stopped bleeding. He discarded the spoiled cloth on the coffee table; taking in the silence that had fallen in the room. Both his wife and sister in law sat quietly with the same tired looks and stern frowns upon their faces. No one had the answers anymore, no matter how much they pretended they did.

"Ada..." his voice was quiet but it caught her attention as she glanced up at him. "I'm sorry."

She nodded meekly and smiled. "Me too. I'm sorry I punched you in the face." He laughed; waving his hand coolly as he shrugged. "Nah, don't worry about it. I mean I'm pretty sure you broke my nose but ya know...we're good sis." Ada laughed as Maria jokingly rolled her eyes at her husband's dramatics. It was badly bruised at best, both they and Tommy knew that. But Ada appreciated him trying to lighten the mood. It was the first time in a long time that she'd truly laughed since Joel's attack. And it was nice to feel something other than grief for even a second.

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Ellie tried to keep up with the rushing of her mind the quicker her pace picked up. She'd already been home to find the place empty, the only other place she could think to check would be Tommy and Maria's to find her mother. Her sneakers skidded slightly against the porch wood when she stopped to tap on the door. Her surrogate aunt greeting her with a warm smile as she opened the front door.

"Is my mom here?" The teen asked softly. Maria simply nodded, letting the young girl inside and following her into the living room. She walked in to find her mom and Tommy sat together chuckling lowly at their shared stories and fond memories. A half emptied bottle of whiskey sitting between them, with three half drunk glasses on the table. Ellie figured the three of them must've been here most of the day. Her mom shifted when she noticed her daughter, scooting along the couch to make room for her. Ellie made her way around the coffee table towards them, wincing when she saw the state of Tommy's face. "Jeez what the fuck happened to you?" She asked in concern. But Tommy just snorted a laugh. "It's a long story, don't worry about it."

The girl scoffed, a sarcastic smile spreading across her face as sat down.

"Is everything okay?"

She couldn't stop herself from fidgeting at her mother's question, instantly going back to her nervous habit. Her fingernail beds were already sore from the hours she'd spent picking at them. "I uh...I can't find Joel. I wanted to talk to him. I stopped by the house but he wasn't there." Stunned silence filled the room at Ellie's admission, Tommy's face full of confusion when he glanced at her beside him.

"Why'd you want to talk to him?" He asked. She took a moment before answering, looking to her mom with sadness in her eyes.

"I heard what happened between you two yesterday. I know what he said about us."

"Oh sweetheart, come here." She didn't say anything as Ada pulled her into her arms, instead just snuggled further into her warmth. Her head leaning against her shoulder. Hands once buried inside her jacket sleeves.

"I just thought maybe I could try talking to him...maybe if I tell him everything he'd understand or he'd forgive us for leaving." She explained." This is my fucking fault! This happened to him because of me; because of what he did to protect me...I need him to know I'm sorry...that I'm trying to fix things. That I'm trying to make it better and when we find them we can--"

"Wait, hold on, find who?"

Oh shit now Ellie had done it. She pulled back from her mother's arms, a look of guilt pulled at her brows as she chewed nervously at her lip. She tried to avoid eye contact but was only greeted with more accusing stares from Maria and Tommy.

"Ellie.." Maria uttered disapprovingly. But she didn't answer once again, attempting to avoid the eyes staring at her.

"Ellie what aren't you telling us?"

"Promise you won't get mad?" It was a big ask. Ellie knew that when she finally took the chance to look her mother in the eye, hoping that she'd soften even just a little bit. But all she saw was worry and that only made her feel worse for lying to her.

"Ellie." She warned sternly and the girl knew she had to come clean. She took a deep breath, her head falling in defeat as she finally gave in.

"Okay...I lied before. I wasn't staying at Dina's the last couple of days...we've been staying at one of the outposts outside of town tracking the fireflies...or what was left of them from Abbey's group."

"I'm sorry you've been doing what?!" "Are you insane?!" She flinched at both her mother and Maria's outbursts that echoed together in the heavy silence of the room. She shared a look with Tommy as he flashed her a small smile of gratitude but it flickered away as quickly as it came when both women rose to their feet in a rush of anger and frustrated annoyance.

"Ellie, we've talked about this and we agreed to leave it alone."

"No you fucking decided!" The teen challenged as she snapped to her feet, her face snarling into a roaring temper that could easily rival her mother's. "Those fuckers could come back! They already found us once, what's stopping them coming back to finish what they started?!"

Ada scoffed at Ellie's argument throwing her hands up, exasperated they were having this argument yet again! She understood her daughter's worries but she was certain the Fireflies had no reason to come back. They thought Joel was dead and she was determined to keep it that way. They'd had this same conversation again and again and yet every time Ellie would always push back.

"She's right."

The girls all fell silent to the single voice that spoke up, as all eyes turned to Tommy. Maria seething at her husband and Ada downright irritated that he'd shamelessly encourage this reckless behaviour. Ellie just appreciated having Tommy on her side at least.

"Tommy..." Maria warned, her eyes pleading him to stop.

"Well she is! Do you really wanna live the rest of our lives looking over our shoulders?! Just hoping to God that those bastards don't come back. Yeah they think Joel is dead but for how long? They already managed to get word he was living in Jackson in the first damn place...what do you think they'll do when they realise that he's not quite as dead as they thought?" He paused, stopping to look at Ada as she held back her tears, her bottom lip quivering and he was quick to her side. His hand resting on her shoulder.

"Look I'm sorry... I know this is not what you want to hear right now but Ellie has a point. We can end this. If it were any of us, Joel would be halfway there already."

She shook her head, her breath catching in her throat. "No he wouldn't." She argued.

"He absolutely fucking would!" Ellie shouted. Her words stopped them all dead. Knowing looks exchanged between the adults before walking to huddle by the table. They knew Ellie was right. If any one of them in that room had been attacked; Joel would be doing everything he could to get them the justice they deserved. He'd never lay down and let them get away with it. Ada let out a sigh of defeat as she looked back to Ellie, gesturing for her to sit back down. She did, though moved hesitant at first. Ada sat silent, her mind clearing and calculating for a second as she sat with her hands rested against her mouth before she eventually lowered them to speak. "So...you were tracking those bastards...did you find any?" She asked apprehensively. Ellie swallowed hard and cleared her throat, sitting up in her seat before nodding.

"Yeah...Dina and I watched the area for hours. Most of the group left but a couple stayed behind at the hunting lodge. Two of them...I don't know their names. They were packing up their stuff. We followed them out when they went hunting for food. Managed to lure some infected on the way back..." Ellie didn't realise she was shaking as she spoke until her mother took her hand and squeezed it gently. "We stood and watched as the clickers tore those fuckers apart.."

"Good riddance." Tommy stated bitterly.

"I came back to tell you what happened but then I heard the neighbours gossiping about what happened between you and Joel, all that stuff he said. I thought I could fix it. But when I went to the house he wasn't there. So I sent Dina to ask around town if anyone had seen him and I came here." Adaline nodded slowly, taking everything in. She looked at Tommy and Maria both sharing the same lost look on their faces. They all knew what they needed to do next. It was just a case of whether they had any strength left to do it.

Though Ada never got the chance to answer; instead their heads turned to the direction of stomping footsteps and the door bursting opening to a breathless Dina, panting as she almost slipped on the doormat under her boots. Ellie flew to her feet and darted to her girlfriend, asking her what was wrong.

"It's Joel!" She gasped. "He's gone..."

#the last of us #Joel Miller #joel and ellie #the last of us part 2 #joel miller x oc #the last of us part ii #ellie williams #fanfiction #tlou #joel miller #starlessskies writes

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carboniteprincess · 4 years

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Warnings: 18+, Minors DNI, Canon-typical violence, mentions of blood, character death, murder, you're literally a rebel sniper, it's enemies to lovers boba is not going to be nice to you yet, love at first fist fight, I cannot stress this enough, ENEMIES TO LOVERS, he's kind of arrogant? but he's young give him time

Pairing: Boba Fett x F! Reader | 2.0k words

You're arguably the best sniper in the entire rebel alliance, with hundreds of high ranking Imperial officials on your belt. When you're given the order to kill Boba Fett, you are under the impression that this would be like any other mission. Unfortunately, he seems to have great skill of getting out of situations that aren't in his favor. Now you're on Tatooine, where your comrade Orda has lured him into discussing business in a shady restaurant under the guise of being an Imperial Commander. His luck has to run out at some point, and you intend that to be today.

Crossposted on Ao3!

Being a rebel wasn't as glamorous as you thought. You weren't conducting high-level espionage or anything of the like. Instead, your penchant for sniping was homed in on, making you one of, if not the best in the entire squad. The only flaw you had, was arrogance. Never have you let a target walk away, never have you allowed yourself into a tight spot.

You were always ahead of the enemy, so when your general gave you the order to kill Boba Fett. You assumed it would be an easy in and out job, perhaps he would've posed a threat to other members of your squad. But to you it would be simple, right? Unfortunately not.

This is your third attempt at some kind of ambush, luring him into a perfect position. Mandalorian armor had few weak points, meaning you had to meticulously spend hours figuring out where would land a good, clean blow. His neck. If angled correctly, one tilt of his helmet and it would be over. Right through the jugular, no more bounty hunter. Another imperial dog to add to your list.

If he would just turn his head, a little more to the right. Sweat beads on your forehead, eyes focused down the scope. Being a good assassin was all about your ability to linger, to wait. You're positioned on a balcony, a blind spot to the restaurant below. Your associate kept him talking under the guise of being an Imperial Commander, negotiating pay for the next rebel target. Boba Fett sits across from him, drink untouched. If you could see his face you'd swear he seemed bored. His legs wide open, leaning back nonchalantly.

Fingers clenching on the trigger, you close your left eye. It wasn't like you enjoyed your job, when this war was over you'd swore to never lift a weapon again. The Empire made you, molding you like clay into a perfect killer. A painful truth, a driving force. Your parents. Both were medical professionals, caught smuggling medication to the galaxy's poorest. Promptly executed and then you, an orphan. A street urchin, nothing more.

It wasn't long into your teens that you heard of the resistance, your heart burned with a want of revenge. So you got stronger, learned how to use a blaster, pilot and any skills that would make you useful to their cause. But you weren't a rebel, not really. You didn't care for politics, didn't even bother listening to the speeches about restoring the Republic. It didn't matter to you, but what did matter was taking out as many Imperials as you could before you die in battle or finally become numb to the anger.

Self-preservation was no concern of yours, and that made you dangerous. A loose cannon, hot-tempered, and scarily a woman. You were used to being underestimated by your peers on gender, height, birth planet…. and you were the one who gets the high-profile missions. You were the one who has the highest accuracy, years of practice which left your trigger finger calloused, and every other emotion muted.

Boba Fett had become a real thorn in your side. Threatening your record, career and possibly your sanity. His uncanny talent for escaping situations, even if all cards were against him, was exasperating. You would be lying if you didn't have some modicum of respect for him though, you were somewhat alike. Respect, no matter how great, does not destroy a death warrant.

Someday soon his luck would run out, and it would be you at the other end of the blaster. That day was today. Lips twitching into a smirk, you watch his neck turn. Bingo. You steady your rifle, pulse pounding in your ears. At last, this mission would be over. You'd become a legend, the woman who killed Boba Fett.

Bang. You take the shot, accurate as ever. A hum leaves your lips, watching him fall to the ground. Your calculations were correct, there was a weak point. Every armor has one, even Mandalorian. It was like a drug, the puzzle pieces clicking together with every fragility you discovered.

The restaurant below descends into chaos, even the bartender is panicking. All guests rushing from their tables, abandoning their meals as your associate checks the man's pulse. You stare down your scope, watching the ordeal. He gives a thumbs-up, definitely dead. A buzz in your ear alerts you to a comlink.

"He's dead. But I think you'll want to come down here." Orda replies through static. Your brow creases, what the hell could've gone wrong. Muscles twitching with irritation, you make your way through the currently uninhabited building. You were ordered to avoid collateral damage by all means necessary, a false fire alarm did the job well.

Your feet tap against the stairs as you make quick work of assessing your surroundings— if something is wrong, then it's always better safe than sorry. It seemed to be all clear, so you proceeded out the door and onto the street. This area of Mos Eisley was pretty habitable, aside from the abundance of criminal undertakings. Dust kicks as you march into the restaurant, pushing through various guests who were piling out at lightspeed.

With a gruff, you finally make it to the rooftop, an exclusive VIP spot which proved difficult to doctor identity necessary to enter. You're about to start asking what the hell could've been so important that he dragged you down here, but your eyes meet Orda's now slumped body, face down with all color residing. A frustrated sigh leaves you, he was a good man. Even worse, he was a great rebel. His heart was in it, unlike yours. He shouldn't have been the casualty here. You reach down, pulling out his identichip and stashing it in your pocket. An action that you've taken with far too many of your comrades.

Painfully you pull yourself from Orda's body, standing upright. Lingering would be a deathwish, whoever killed Orda was skilled. An impressive marksman, obviously one of Boba's accomplices who mistakenly thought he was the one that shot him. You could go over what-ifs later, right now you were going to finish the fucking job.

The sun was beginning to set, painting the sky in crimson constellations as the wind settled. Inspecting Boba's body was your primary concern, whatever Orda discovered, it cost him his life. You were determined to find out what exactly it was, from a glance it seemed like Boba Fett. With a grimace, you move his drooping head around. Concerningly heavier than expected, beskar is light and durable.

You hook your fingertips under the helmet, pulling it off and coming face to face with…. not your target. Fuck. You'd be deceived, spectacularly. Knuckles white, feeling bile in your throat threatening to explode in a cocktail of frustration and admiration. The crudely made edges of the helmet abrasive against your palm, a reminder of your failure.

Without a second thought, your balled fist comes into contact with the wall, encasing the helmet and sending tendrils of pain, a shock wave through your arm as you verbalize your confliction with a strangled scream. Orda died for nothing, you were a joke. Everything you had built, buried and locked away was floating to the surface.

But you haven't felt this alive in years. Being outsmarted, so cunningly sent a morbid thrill up your spine. You could almost laugh, had you not heard footsteps approaching. Impulsively your hand fell to your blaster, making a mental note to thank your teacher for always carrying more than one.

"Surely you didn't believe it was that easy to kill me." Before he can finish you turn, firing your blaster in his direction. Of course, his armor deflects it with ease. "I must admit, I'm impressed. Not everyone could distinguish beskar through weight alone." A snort leaves him at your feeble attempt to hold ground, looking over your pathetic secondary weapon that could barely injure an Ewok.

"Go thing I'm not everyone then." You stand, keeping your right arm extended, blaster aimed at his inner thigh. It wouldn't kill him, however it would allow ample time for escape. "You killed my friend." He's circling you now. "Who's your Intel? How did you know I'd be here?"

"You are hardly in the position to be making demands, little rebel." Another chuckle, you'd heard of him toying with his advisories before, but this was different. A teacher disciplining a student.

"You're going to kill me anyway, what's the harm." You huff, shrugging. He stops pacing, chewing over your words.

"Killing you would be a waste." That bastard. "Of my time and resources." He adds matter-of-factly.

"Orda wasn't?" You spit, voice cracking in frustration. Figuring out what made others tick was your specialty, but the lack of motivation and reason within Boba's actions is what baffled you.

"That was a favor." He sounds like you should be grateful, almost insulted that you hadn't figured it out yet even with him practically dangling the answer in front of you. Perhaps you weren't as clever as he thought.

"A—favor? How would killing my comrade benefit me!" You reply astounded, cheeks burning red, hand shaking on your blaster.

You think for a second, taking your eyes off him. Why did it take until after the kill for Orda to realize what was wrong with the body… He isn't… wouldn't…could've of… you've been double-crossed. "He wouldn't— I've spent months with him—"

"And every little thing you did, he told me." His admission is calm, you look over Orda's body, no longer do you feel remorse. Just shame. You couldn't even see betrayal under your nose.

You walk closer to him, the barrel of your blaster getting dangerously close. Nothing could stop you from finishing your mission right now, but he's letting you. Knowledge is far more appealing than rewards in the resistance.

With your grip around the handle tight, you slam it down across his helmet, your knee reaching his groin. "You're very easy to fool." A smirk replaces the look of misery on your face, it was a dangerous game to pretend to let your guard down. Your risk paid off, managing to get a shot at his thigh.

Swiftly, you press all your weight on him, knocking him back just enough to make a run for the edge of the balcony. He groans in pain, you're so close to the edge, escape almost in your grasp— when a grappling hook wraps around your ankle.

You struggle against the cold floor, doing anything you can to wriggle free from his grasp.

It's fruitless, as soon as he's in reach you're kicking him, hurtling all kinds of abuse. Your attempts to wrestle him are almost comical and in a frenzy, you grip the only thing that seems viable. His Helmet. You manage to free it, your fingers hooking under and pulling it off his head, sending it on the floor beside you. For a moment you're the one stunned, not him.

Dark curls frame his face, a beautiful border to tanned skin. His nose is prominent but compliments his features. Scars pepper his face, but he's young. Younger than you thought. You watch as his forehead crinkles in anger, hands pinning yours beside your head.

Wasting no time, you bring your head to crack his, sending him back with a kick to the stomach. Your nose pours from impact, dripping onto the floor as you clamber to your feet.

"This isn't over." You hear his voice, unmodified. You rush to the edge, peering over and assessing if you can land in one of the speeders below. He stands, trying to rush over to stop you. "Don't!"

With a wink, you throw yourself over the side. In seconds you're hurtling onto the street, watching a bare-faced Boba Fett grow smaller with each passing second. His eyes are widened in either admiration or shock for your bravery.

He eventually dares to look over and finds that you're gone. Whoever you were, he finally had a worthy opponent. He would find you again. His little rebel.

#boba fett x reader #boba fett #boba fett x female reader #the mandalorian #star wars #fic #mine #this fic is lowkey my baby #and there def will be a chapter 2 I'm just stupid and can't work ao3 #anyway #enjoy💖#I know I know I'm bad at proof reading #I try

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thewakingcloak · 3 years

Text

March 2021

I'm back!!!

Oh man it feels good to be doing gamedev again (and actually enjoy it).

So first things first, we had a baby!

This lil guy is super cute and has made an awesome addition to our family. As you can probably guess, this is why I spent a few months not doing gamedev. Even when I had time, I didn't have the emotional or mental bandwidth to work on ProtoDungeon. And that's to be expected!

But there was another issue: a weird bridge bug. Essentially, you could walk under a bridge... and if you tried to walk on it, you’d fall through it. I could not figure this thing out. Collision was working, options were all set up correctly, etc. Every time I thought about working on my game, I knew this bug was facing me down and I’d have to address it. And I couldn’t get over the mental block.

So I took another tack (I make it sound like this was a choice, but it was more a compulsion): something I’d been thinking about for a while was learning 3D. I wanted to see if I could get some kind of fusion between 3D and pixel art. I won’t go into all that here, but I had a good time, and it really primed the creative pump. If you’re interested here’s my twitter thread, and here’s a thing I made:

At last, around mid-May I had worked up enough courage to finally address the bridge bug back in ProtoDungeon. My 3D journey not only got me some cool skills, but warmed me up. And also the more I thought about it, the more I was sure it was due to one particular piece of code: the edge slip.

This was here so you didn’t run into scenarios like this, where you're "floating" on the edge:

Basically it would slip you off the edge if you were that far over it. Makes sense, right?

Well, unfortunately, there are a LOT of weird edge cases (haha) where this is straight up broken. Like the bridge. The bridge was so narrow that it just always assumed you were on the edge, so it’d just push you off (rude). And there were plenty of places where you could fall off and just get horribly stuck.

And, sure enough, deleting that code made all of these things miraculously start working.

That felt really good. And even better, I felt like I could keep going! I decided to listen to something my instincts had been saying about the lv3 boots: the dash roll wasn’t working.

The lv3 boots, while equipped, would transform the roll into a dash, making it faster and giving you i-frames (invincibility).

This was fun, but it had problems. It wasn't intuitive or consistent with how the other items worked. I could've figured out a way to teach the player how to use it, probably, but it also wasn't particularly useful. It meant, first, I’d have to contrive some kind of environment mechanics to make the dash useful, and I don’t want to get too contrived. And second, it meant the standard roll was not actually very useful at all.

I brought this up on the Studio Spacefarer Discord server and after some discussion, I decided to go back to one of my very early ideas from years ago: adding a Pegasus Boots-style dash which the player uses by holding down the item button, “charging it up” via a jump and sprinting on hitting the ground. It sounds complicated, but it feels really good. No invincibility, just crazy speed. Then the roll could get the i-frames, making that more useful too. So behold, the new dash:

And, uh, yeah, this is SUPER fun. And while it’ll be useful in puzzles and stuff, it’s also a good way to just get around (as long as you don’t crash into anything... or maybe even if you do). The boots are all about travel and movement, and while a dash-roll could be included in that, I think a dash-sprint gives a lot more bang for your upgrade buck.

I’m happy to say I got a lot of other stuff done in March, even though I only worked about two weeks total. Here’s the full list...

Changelog:

Fixed some incorrect z-object cliff placement .

Added bridges that work with the new system (can go over/under them).

Fixed a bug that caused bridges to be submerged at the wrong level.

Things fixed by removing the edge-slip code.

Fixed coming out of the water onto a ramp.

Fixed umping up to a ramp.

Adjusted the ground logic to prevent getting stuck when falling down a ledge onto a ramp.

Completed moving the beach “down” on the z-axis to accommodate tide rising and falling.

Removed the old roll dash for the lv3 boots and replaced it with a sprint dash which can be “charged up” with a jump.

Added i-frames to the roll.

Force the switch to the “item get” state to prevent issues with sprinting and rolling into items.

Started testing various other previous bugs to see if they were resolved with the latest changes (a few are, so far!).

That’s all for this month. Thanks for reading!

#devlog #devblog #The Waking Cloak #ProtoDungeon #gamemaker #game development #pixel art

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vreedleedleedle · 3 years

Note

So I've been thinking more about Argit and Kevin's relationship. (Yes it's interesting to think about)

And apart from Argit not wanting to change Kevin, I think I may know another reason why Kevin hung around Argit so much.

Think about everything Kevin has been through his entire life growing up. He had an incredibly shitty childhood. Everybody hates him. He had every reason to be sad and depressed. Possibly commit suicide even.

So then imagine in the mist of his sad backstory, his meets this Goofy, Cartoony looking Alien Rat thing, who doesn't seem to care about who or what Kevin is.

This Goofy Alien also isn't here for that Debbie downer sad backstory shit. He just wants to steal shut, con people, and maybe most importantly: Have Fun.

Keep in mind that Argit was kidnapped by Servantis as a small child, stuck in the Null Void, and was most likely tortured by Servantis through experiments as well.

And yet, none of that managed to damage Argit from a Psychological standpoint. While he's a prick yes, he never became traumatized or angsty.

Despite his backstabbing ways, Argit is a Fun loving, cocky, arrogant, Funny, and Oddly Endearing little guy. Completely Angst free.

He was exactly the type of person Kevin needed in his Darkest times (or at least what Kevin thought he needed)

I also noticed in Argit's very first appearance ("Kevin's Big Score"), one of his very first lines is this:

Argit: "Oh Come on Kev! Why you always gotta be such a downer...?"

Argit most likely tried to keep Kevin from getting too Emo when they were together.

And there's also this tidbit from "The Purge"

Argit: "Remember all the good we used to do together?"

Ben/Gwen: "No"

Kevin: "Yes! 🙂"

Now keep in mind that "The Purge" chronologically takes place after episodes like "Andreas Fault" and "Enemy of my Enemy" where Kevin "supposedly" stops being friends with Argit.

And in the latter episode, Kevin literally tried to kill him no less.

But it does prove that Kevin still had fond memories of his times with Argit despite everything that happened in the series.

I honestly wish there could've been an episode that focused on their history. I bet it could've been great.

Awww yeah their relationship is sweet. I love how unapologetically hedonistic Argit is.

I think Argit helped Kevin get good at figuring out whether he was just grumpy cause he was hungry. Like Kevin was angry and trying to kill people and Argit was like “hey why don’t we get you some food and a nice hot bath and then see if you’re still angry ok?” And Kevin over time got into the habit of figuring out if he was really angry or just tired or hungry. I know kwarrel taught Kevin how to let go of his anger, but he couldn’t reinforce the knowledge over time because he died. I think Argit ended up teaching Kevin a lot of the coping skills he has in the show, but Kevin doesn’t realize it. Maybe Argit doesn’t realize it either because of his take is that you shouldn’t try to change your friends.

I love how Kevin tried to kill him and Argit just moved on like “hi buddy! Great to see you!” For a villain he’s very forgiving. Usually in Ben 10 villains hold really petty grudges like “ooh that bitch stole one of my many books!” But not Argit, it’s so sweet lol. Even when Kevin is trying to kill him, he tries to talk it out first and then when it fails he tries to knock him out with his quills. Argit has a gun on him, but he didn’t try to shoot Kevin if I remember correctly, he just tried to run away. He also didn’t fight back when Kevin hit him in Andreas fault. It’s clear he doesn’t get any pleasure out of hurting people, even if they wronged him. I think that probably helped his friendship with Kevin even if Kevin was in the wrong about something- kevin was a mean kid, and he’s still kinda mean when he’s 16-17, but if he was ever mean to Argit it wouldn’t have affected their friendship.

I think that kind of example of forgiveness and letting things go probably really helped Kevin out in the long run.

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doorbloggr · 3 years

Text

Friday 28/5/21: Media Recommendations #4

Its Friday again, so that means I gotta nerd out about things I've had on my mind lately and recommend other people go enjoy them too.

Today's topics of interest will be:

Manga/Anime: Fullmetal Alchemist

Videogame: Monster Hunter Rise

Music: Kiss from a Rose; Seal

In past weeks, I have picked my recommendations based on shows/music etc that are not as mainstream as I think should be, hence I am recommending them with the intention of increasing the audience. But this week, I am sure these three pieces of media are very widely known already. And its not wrong to like popular things, they got popular for a reason. So this week I'm gonna gush about why I like these popular things.

Fullmetal Alchemist (Fullmetal Alchemist)

In the vaguely European-esque country of Amestris, those gifted by natural or acquired powers can reshape the world around them using the power of Alchemy. In this world, magic users, called Alchemists, are publicly known and acknowledged. The government even employs many State Alchemists, who receive funding for their specific alchemic research, in exchange for their cooperation during military conflicts.

Fullmetal Alchemist has one of the most well put together and interesting fantasy settings in all of fiction (in my opinion). It is both medieval fantasy but also late 1800s europe, and this helps create a world where magic has very strict metaphysical and political rules.

The story within this world focuses on the brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric, who become the youngest known State Alchemists as part of their quest to restore Edward's limbs and Alphonse's entire body which were lost to a tragic alchemic experiment gone wrong. Ed has classic napoleon complex, and detests anyone looking down on him, but he often has more than enough bite to back up his bark. Al is much more calm and collected, but despite his soul inhabiting an imposing suit of armour, he is the younger brother and often emotionally immature. The two have an interesting dynamic, where the older brother is small and snappy, but still feels responsible and protective over his towering, intimidating younger brother who speaks with a very child-like voice, but could easily knock you out.

FMA is not a very complicated story, but it has depth. Its rich world, with a variety of interesting and endearing characters, make for a very engaging time. It is a story of growth, trust, bonds, and rebuilding what was once lost, while maintaining what you are still working on.

There are 3 ways to experience this story. I have gone back and read the original Manga, and if you prefer Manga as your story form, it is a very fun read. There are two anime adaptations, one that was in production and finished before the manga was complete, and another that came a few years later. The former has a different ending to the latter, and I can only recommend the latter, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, seeing as I never watched the original series. But I have heard on good authority that both are worth the watch, so it is up to you. I can't really decide on a definitive favourite anime, but Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is easily always top 3.

Videogame: Monster Hunter Rise

Sometimes, the rich lore and story are what makes or breaks consumable media, but sometimes, all you need is pure stupid fun. Monster Hunter is a series built on a simple premise that does not need much fluffing to be enjoyed. You are a hunter: a very skilled and powerful warrior who weilds, often oversized, powerful weapons of many types, and it is your duty to go out and hunt monsters: powerful creatures who can co-exist with the world but on a case by case basis, put the people and wildlife around them in harm's way.

Monster Hunter Rise is the newest game in the series, and is on the Nintendo Switch. Many players I've talked to have said that this is the easiest game to get into, but that does not make MHR an simple, boring game, and top-level play is definitely a grind. The draw of Monster Hunter is that every "level" is a boss battle, and that battle takes place over a huge map. In this game, the hunter is tasked with finding the monster, and then using their own gear, plus the help of nature around them, to incapacitate the target monster.

This game has fourteen weapons to choose from, and using each is like playing a completely different action game. They can be grouped as Heavy, Light, and Technical Weapons, but the truth is, all weapons are unique, and depending on which specific model of a weapon you use, they can be even more unique within that weapon. Monster Hunter games are RPGs, but rather than gaining EXP, and stat changes indicating growth, Hunters use bits of the monsters they've hunted to make themselves stronger.

Both new weapons and armour require monster parts, and you're never guaranteed to get all the parts you need from one hunt. So the game encourages you fight the same monsters multiple times, learning patterns, honing your skills. When you have made your ideal weapons and armour, you have gotten significantly better at hunting those monsters. Monster Hunter Rise introduces Wire Bugs, a resource with a variety of uses ranged from spiderman-ing up and across mountains, to lending themselves as super moves for your weapons. Breath of the Wild held a place in my heart for ages because of how good it feels to traverse, but honestly, Monster Hunter Rise's wall-running and grapple-hooking blow BotW out of the water. Its just fun to move! If you enjoy action games and boss fights, Monster Hunter Rise is 100% a game you should check out.

Music: Kiss From a Rose; Seal

In my very deep Spotify library, there's a lot of music I will just sometimes skip. Not because I don't like it, but because I need to be in the right mood. But there's also a select handful of songs where I will never skip because I will always be in the mood to shout those lyrics, no matter when or where. Seal's Kiss from a Rose is one of those songs.

The song was originally part of the soundtrack for Batman Forever, but it is not a song explicitly about that movie. I didn't even know this myself until a while after I was obsessed with this song. Kiss from a Rose is an emotional, almost melancholy song with a very hard to place meaning. Seal has said it could've been about a difficult relationship, but I feel it is up to the listener how they interpret it.

The instrumentals are subtle yet powerful, soothing yet exhilarating. It is just a very engaging song and the lyrics are just hard to not sing along to. If you've heard it, you know. If you haven't, take a listen and meet your favourite song this week.

youtube

#blog #blog post #media recommendations #anime recommendations #manga recommendation #videogame recommendations #music recommendation #music #anime #manga #videogame #fullmetal alchemist #fullmetal alchemist brotherhood #monster hunter rise #monster hunter #kiss from a rose #seal

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storydays · 4 years

Text

Chapter 1: The Adventure Begins p1

The elven king, Xaius stands on the parapet of a great citadel overlooking a massive, smoldering battlefield. "Archers! Fire on my signal! Catapults! Hold for the next wave!" He turned to give an order, when a hideous creature, a gargoyle made of twisting shadow, swoops in toward him. Xaius reaches for his sword,as a blast of light catches the gargoyle in the side, blowing it into nothingness. The king turned to see his second-in-command, the battle mage Ellara, approaching with a gentle smile. "It looked like you needed a hand, my love" "I had it handled. What's your status?" Xaius asked.

"The Shadow forces are many, but they're weak. Our front lines are driving them back. " The elvlen woman smiled wearily. "I-I can't believe it..but we might actually win this th--" She gasped hearing a thunderous roar in the distance. "Gods above...it's the DreadLord! Those madmen actually summoned the DreadLord." Xaius gasped, but looked down to see Ellara's gentle but firm grip. "My love, what do we do?" She whispered. Xaius turned to her, eyes sparkling, his face hard and stoic. "We fight. We die. And we pray that some day, a hero will rise to avenge us..someday."

*Two thousand years later*

In a quaint little tavern in the town of Riverbend, a grinning pair of brothers downed their drinks, as the younger continued telling one of his favorite stories."So what happened next?" chuckled a 21 year old Ezra. His white hair had now grown down to his bottom but he kept it in a braid that hung around his shoulder, bangs brushed to the left side of his face, covering his birthmark, but allowed his gold eyes to peek out. He set down his mug of wine, and locked eyes with his brother across the table.

"The Dreadlord strode down the battlefield, boom,boom BOOM! And then--" His brother was cut off by the grumpy bartender. "We've been hearing this story for years, Kade. The Dreadlord attacked and destroyed the great elven empire." He stated, wiping down a nearby table. Kade scoffed. "Well, yeah, that's the short version....but you don't have the flair for storytelling that I do." Kade crossed his arms and pouted like a child, instead of the 16 year old he was.

Ezra leaned back in his seat, and looked around. They were sitting at their favorite table in the Dancing Pig Tavern, listening to his brother tell another story. 'It's crazy to think that 10 years ago, we were watching over Kade through his sickness...now he's here telling tall tales like those books he likes to read.' Kade and Ezra weren't only brothers, but they were also best friends. Kade was well known through Riverbend but not everyone was as easily amused as the elf was. Kade blended in well with the humans, with his short brown hair, bright green eyes, and freckles splashed across his face, while Ezra stuck out like a sore thumb.

Ezra tuned back into the conversation to hear: "I don't care how well you spin your tales! You still need to pay for your drink." The bartender gruffed at the smaller human. "Barkeep, you wound me." Kade huffed, his mood darkening slightly. Chuckling, Ezra paid his half of the tab and gave the younger a look. "Pay up, Kade. Mother taught us better than that." He stated seriously. "You too, Ezra? I swear, no one in this town appreciates the value of a good tale! Fine, I'll pay. But we're not coming back here!" Kade cried dramatically.

"Yes we are." Ezra and the bartender laughed louder when Kade added at the end, "Well, not tonight at least!" Ezra downed his wine and Kade finished his soda, before paying his side of the tab, and the two left the bar for the night. Ezra looked around their humble village before letting out a long sigh. "Another night in Riverbend. Same as any other." He mumbled gloomily. "That's not true. Some nights I manage to get us free drinks." Ezra barked a laugh before shoving his brother playfully, unable to stay gloomy around his brother.

"You know what I'm--" Ezra's sentence was cut off when he bumped into a tall human heading towards the outskirts of the village. "Hey, watch it!" "Ugh, sorry 'bout that." Ezra stepped back, eyeing the person in front of him. He was a rugged looking man with tanned skin,wavy shoulder length brown hair, glowering brown eyes, and he had a scar on his left eyebrow. He was wearing a cream long sleeved shirt, shoulder guards, wrist gauntlets, green cargo like pants, with a dagger on his left hip.

"Who're you?"Ezra asked, while the man retorted, " None of your business, that's who." Two people that the elf did recognize followed the handsome man. Town Constable Angus and his tough as nails apprentice Grenn. "This here's Mal Volari, from Whitetower." The elder man explained. "He's a world-famous adventurer!" Grenn grinned. "Wait, really?" Kade asked shocked. "Well..I wouldn't say world famous, more like continent-famous really." Mal snickered to himself.

"Well, it's nice to meet you." Ezra said, minding his manners. His poor mother would be rolling in her grave if he didn't at least pretend to be nice. "Yeah, great, nice to meet you too. Now if you don't mind, we've got some important business to get to..." Mal was interrupted by Kade, "Adventurer business? Around here?" "Mal's got a lead on a powerful ancient artifact in the elven ruins to the south! If we can get it, it'll sell for a fortune!" Grenn said excitedly. "Damn the Gods, Grenn, keep it down!" Hissed Angus, "You want everyone in this town to hear about it?" "No need to be so nasty about it." Ezra mumbled, noticing Mal's raised eyebrow at him.

"You mean...to the north, right? There's no ruins to the south." Kade corrected. Mal shoots Angus a glare and the man shrugs. "Y-Yes! To the north! That's what she meant!" He fumbled over his words. "Hang on...there's a powerful ancient relic somewhere around here? And you're going to get it?" Ezra spoke up, excitement coloring his voice. "I got a tip, okay? A good one. From someone willing to pay a whole lot of gold. Angus and Grenn here, they're going to help me claim it. Now if you don't mind..." Mal made to leave again when Ezra gasped the man's arm, and stated, "We'd like to come along." "E-Ezra!" Kade gaped.

"What? It's the chance of a lifetime." Gold eyes playfully sparkle at his brother's expression. Mal eyed the elf before letting out a weary sigh. "No can do. This is dangerous ancient crypt business. I can't have some rookie along bumbling things up." The human noted how the elf stiffened, and prepare himself for an argument.

"I'm not a rookie." glared Ezra. "Really? Ever pried a jewel from the hands of a cursed skeleton, knowing one wrong move would bring the whole room down on your head?" Mal challenged, making Ezra falter. "I mean, not technically.." He deflated. "Ever stabbed a snarling croctopus through the eye on the deck of a burning ship?" Mal continued. "I don't..know what that is." admitted Ezra. "How about this? You ever killed a man? You ever been in a real fight?" Ezra hesitated. ""Yes, I have to both of those." He said darkly, sending chills down everyone's back. "That's what I thought. I like your hustle, I really do. But I don't have time for some kit who's still wet behind the ears." " 'Kit?' " wondered the elf.

"It's a term for new adventurers..you know, like an apprentice?" Kade whispered." "See? You don't even know the terms. Which means you've got a long way ahead of you. Get out there, have some adventures of your own, learn some skills. Then come find me, we'll talk." Mal walked off towards the village gate, Angus laughing as he followed, Grenn sending her old friend a sad look. "Sorry, Ezra." "Well, that was a thing that happened." Kade laughed nervously at Ezra's silent fuming. "He's wrong. I could've done it. I'm the one who taught Grenn to be the adventurer she is today! Angus is an old drunk ass who can barely stay on his feet half the time! 'Learn some skills' I've got plenty of skills!"

The duo began walking again, when Kade asked aloud, "Like..what?" "Well Father taught us to fight bare hand, and I've learned some things about wielding a sword from my travels with Mother. I'm not useless." Ezra ran a finger over the silver ring on his left ring finger in habit. "That Mal guy really got under your skin, didn't he?" astonished the green eyed brother. "I don't know, I suppose I'm just jealous. I want to go on grand adventures and explore." He sighed dreamily. "And get fabulously rich." Kade grinned, Ezra matching him. "That too."

"Aw, don't be hard on Riverbend. This town's been good to us! Not every human village would take such care of a couple of kids like us." 'Or would allow an elf to stay without being treated horribly.' went unsaid between the two. "I know, Kade! And it'll always be my home. I just...want to experience something more. It's not like a great adventure is just going to drop into my lap." Ezra huffed, brushing his bangs to the side again. Green eyes watch his older brother for a moment before clapping his shoulder. "Well, don't worry, brother. We'll experience it all together. " Ezra chuckled softly. "I can always count on you, Kade."

"But for now, all we've got is Riverbend. So, where do you want to start tonight?" Ezra grinned, "Let's head to the night market." "Uh, did you miss the part about having little coin?" Kade raised a eyebrow. "And you think I'm going to let that stop me? Come now, brother, you know me better than that."

The brothers weaved their way through the bustling night market, listening to vendors call out what was for sale: Fruits, meats, silks from the capital, and fish from the shore. An elderly food vendor turned and shook her head at the boys with a warm smile. "Well, well. If it isn't my two favorite customers. Two copper pieces will get you the finest pears we have." "Watch this." Ezra mumbled to Kade, before confidently walking towards the vendor, with a sly grin.

"My dear vendor, we don't have any coin..but is coin what really matters in this world?" "Excuse me?" The vendor chuckled, used to the young man's antics. "Love...passion...a moment of intimacy. Why, what is coin compared to that? Surely a beauty like you can understand." The white haired elf purred, his voice smooth like silk, eyes aglow. The woman barked a laugh at Ezra. "You are an absolute rascal, you know that? Now take these and get out of here boys." Laughing, she handed him two fresh pears, as he winked his thanks.

Ezra bit into his as Kade stared at his back with wide eyes. "How? How did that possibly work?" He raced to catch up with Ezra. "What can I say? I'm the best flirt in Riverbend." His brother laughed before finally eating his pear, walking to the town square when he spoke up again.

"You see? Riverbend isn't so bad. They've taken good care of us." "You're right. I just wish--" "HELP! Please HELP!" A shout echoed through the air. The duo turned to see a young woman in priestess's robes ran into the town square, before grabbing into Ezra, gripping his arms to keep herself from falling,Ezra eyes her.

She had long red hair the fell down to her armpits in ringlets, some strands falling into her face, framing her light brown eyes. She was wearing light pink robes, with a silver and violet necklace on her neck. "You need to help me! Please!" She begged. "Whoa there, what's wrong?" Ezra asked. The woman straightened herself out, standing tall. But Ezra could see behind her disciplined posture, was a hint of fear.

"I am Nia Ellarious, a priestess of the Light. My mentor and I are on a pilgrimage...but we were attacked by an owlbear on the road! I managed to escape while he distracted the beast. But he needs help! Now!" "Have no fear, young priestess..we are brave adventures." "Really?" Kade snorted at his brother's antics. "Shh! Don't mess this up!" hissed Ezra as Nia smiled in relief. "Thank you so much! Please, hurry now. He's just down the road." She began rushing off as Ezra and Kade shared a hesitant look before running after the ginger, but not before Ezra grabbed his sword on the way, strapping it to his left hip.

"Let's go."

@imturaxamara @bladesappreciationweek #bladesAW

https://bladesappreciationweek.tumblr.com/

#blades of light and shadow #choices #mal valori #nia ellarious #bolas kade

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secret-engima · 5 years

Note

Could.. Could I request any snippets you'd be willing to share? Or something you want to ramble about? Mom Regalia? Nox Verse? Your new LC Seer? I'm ok physically but emotionally I'm still a little shaky; my roommate and one of my best friends was wrongfully held at gunpoint this evening and I need a bit of a distraction from the fact I could've lost him.

hgffgh Of course! I’m so sorry to hear that happened to him!

Lemme see if I have anything fluffy.... I think all I have is angst rn but I’ll check-.

... (okay I have a REALLY short bit on my Seer LC one-shot, this is literally all I have on it, I’ll check for other things in just a sec but here)

Static and fire danced just below her skin, fury stealing away the pain that usually came with stomping around shelving books. Even if she had been able to feel the pain —and she would later, she was certain—, she would have done it anyway. Because it was either useful activity or closing the shop so she could go scream into her pillow and probably make the neighbors complain about her “smoking habits” again. She took a step off the stepladder, felt her ankle turn, giving underneath her for no reason other than the fact that her joints apparently hated doing what they were supposed to and she clutched the shelves with a curse and regretted leaving her cane behind the counter. That had been a stupid move of hers to be sure.

She was so caught in her own head she didn’t hear the bell tinkle. But she did feel the soft ripple of ozone and old stones that shouldn’t have been possible in her tiny nook of a shop, and she looked up hastily, still cursing and leaning desperately against the shelves in search of the source. The man who peaked around the corner was not the one she expected —that was good, she honestly didn’t know what she’d do if That Man walked into her shop—, and for a moment the two of them stared at each other. Her half on and half off a stepping stool, clutching her bookshelves like a lifeline and in the middle of swearing like a sailor in all her four foot eight inch glory, him in his casual street clothes and what she estimated to be six feet one inch of surprise.

She finished stepping off the stepladder, tested her ankles for a moment before straightening up with a wince and letting go of the shelf, “Welcome to the Second Sight second hand bookshop and cafe. Can I help you?”

The man blinked and stayed where he was, with the shelf halfway shielding him like she might bite, “Yeah, I was looking for a book?”

Cyra bit back in instinctive sarcasm of how she might need a little more clarification than that and instead gestured at the shelves around her, “Well, you’ve come to a likely place then. Do you know the title and author or are you looking to try something new? I have everything organized by genre, then alphabetically by author.”

The man dared to step around the shelf and stop in front of her and Cyra tried not to feel annoyed with how freaking tall he was. It wasn’t his fault that Cyra had inherited all the short genes of her family at once.

...(Next up is Stand Strong! I have brought you hilarity feels and a much longer snippet)

Of course, while out in the city proper and on their way to one of the few favored plotting spots that wasn’t in the Galahdian sector —less chance of Amissa stumbling across them and putting a stop to their ideas that way—, a few of the rougher Insomnian locals identified them as Galahdian. Their scents stunk of fear and disgust as they made the warding signs that were so popular in the lower sectors of Insomnia —signs to ward off evil and unnatural things, like the Galahdians were monsters in human skin to fend off rather than just refugees missing their homes—. Nyx and Crowe, as always, played along, recoiling with low hisses and quiet gurgling snarls and flashes of their teeth —because if they thought the Galahdian sector was home to horrible monsters, the gangs would stay away and leave them alone and that was worth a little public shunning—.

Behind them, Libertus kept his reaction a little more subdued, but still made a show of flinching away and growling in the back of his throat.

Tredd went overboard, shrieking and recoiling into a catlike spring-warp combination that ended with him perched on top of a lamppost in a way that attracted far more attention than Nyx’s and Crowe’s reactions. Because Tredd. He could never do things by halves, even when they weren’t actively trying to get the attention of the Insomnian passersby so much as scare off the superstitious gangsters eyeing them with pale skin and trembling scents. The gangsters hurried away, still making the warding signs, and pedestrians shuffled away from them with fear and uneasy disgust in their scents that made Nyx growl deep in his chest at them —rude, flinging their scents around was bad enough, but they could at least try to mind their own business and not take the side of the obvious gangsters that had just left—.

As they slunk away from the scene, hissing irritably at Tredd for making that much of a scene, none of them were expecting to hear the Marshal’s voice hail them from a nearby storefront, “Kingsglaives. Is there a … problem?”

Nyx startled and Tredd yipped softly, none of them had sensed the Marshal’s presence. After spending their childhoods with Axis and Amissa, being snuck up on like that was extremely rare, and while Nyx knew the Marshal was skilled, he hadn’t thought he was … that…

Nyx could sense that he was not the only one in the group staring as he blurted in Old Galahd, “Mamaí, why are you holding his hand?”

Amissa, their wayward Mamaí, didn’t even bat an eyelash at Nyx’s squawk, just slightly raised the hand in question, dragging the Marshal’s limb up with the motion because their fingers were intertwined, “This? Stealth training. He got curious. He’s a good student too, for an arrogant prodigy Insomnian.” She added that last part in Old Galahdian with an amused twitch of her lips, as if oblivious to how Nyx’s group were staring in a sort of dawning horror. Tredd took a deep whiff of the nearby air, prowled closer to the two until the Marshal stiffened warily and Amissa chuffed scoldingly at him.

Tredd slunk back and hissed, “It’s him,” in Nyx’s ear, just low enough for him, Crowe, and Libertus to hear. Nyx kept staring in a vague sort of horror as Amissa raised an eyebrow, “Stop acting like pups,” she scoffed, “I held your hands during stealth training.”

The Marshal blinked and, to Nyx’s dawning horror, looked amused beneath his solemn mask as he muttered sidelong to Amissa, “So this is your standard training method?”

“You are a unique and special man, Leonis, but not enough to warrant special treatment from me,” Amissa retorted in a bland voice that was betrayed by the way her different colored eyes twinkled in amusement.

The corner of the Marshal’s mouth ticked up and there for just the briefest flicker, Nyx caught it. The faint scent that had begun to linger on Amissa’s clothing. It was from Cor Leonis. The Marshal of the Crownsguard, the Immortal. The one man outside their Pack and their king that Titus had ever offered his throat to, even if only in a particular vicious spar several years ago. Amissa, their Amissa, was being scented by Cor Leonis.

And the worst part was … Nyx didn’t think either of them were aware of it. Or, if the Marshal was aware and doing it intentionally, he wasn’t giving any sign of it. Not physical, not vocal, and not in the tiny wisps of scent Nyx managed to pick up before they were gone again, locked down tight in that way that had made all the Glaive appreciate working with him over the rest of the Crownsguard. Which meant, if the Marshal wasn’t doing it intentionally, then it probably wasn’t just a Pack-scenting.

Astrals above please no.

Amissa narrowed her eyes at the prolonged horrified staring and the Marshal was beginning to tense again, “What’s wrong with you four? If this is about my training non-Pack-.”

Nyx felt Libertus’s hand clamp on the back of his neck in just the right place to make his knees weaken and his angry words die on his tongue —stupid Lib, abusing Nyx’s instincts like that, at least he was doing it to Tredd too—, “Nope, that’s not a problem, Mamaí. We’re just surprised is all. This where you’ve been running off to every weekend?”

A half-blink and a slow relaxing over her shoulders as she started walking, the Marshal falling in step with her far too easily for Nyx’s brain to handle, “Pretty much.” She tilted her head, “I was thinking of starting in on group training in another week or two, if Leonis has no problem with it. Do you want to help? He’ll have better luck against you than he will against Axis.” The Marshal made a low noise of protest that just made Amissa look amused. Nyx felt like he was watching a slow train wreck as pieces began to click together. The easy touching, the oddly relaxed set to the Marshal’s shoulders now that they were moving and he wasn’t being gaped at, the sandwich the Marshal had brought in all those weeks ago —just one of many, if he remembered what the Marshal had said correctly—.

Nyx groaned, “Mamaí,” he couldn’t keep his voice from a whine, “Mamaí please don’t be doing what I think you’re doing.”

She narrowed her eyes, baffled and annoyed, and Lib slapped the back of Nyx’s head and hissed a dark, “We’ll talk later, not in front of him,” then swapped back to a language the Marshal would understand, “Sure, if the Marshal wants to, we’d be happy to help. Hunt Touch to start with? Or are we going straight to Night Raid?”

“Hunt Touch to start with,” she hummed, “no need to throw him into the deep end quite yet.”

“He,” pointed out the Marshal with a tone akin to long-suffering, “is right here and can hear everything. I’m also going to need an explanation on what those training exercises are before anyone starts off with anything.”

... (and since I’m out of snips atm I shall spiral back to a few quick Nox HCs for you, all hail the Nox/Nyx romance!)

-Nyx likes to steal Nox’s shirts. She doesn’t care that she’s actually taller than him so they don’t fit right and kinda show off her middle just a bit, she likes them and its the principle of the thing.

-Nox finds this habit of hers both extremely annoying (those are his shirts!) and extremely hot (yes, okay, he likes seeing his wife in his clothes, sue him).

-Nyx likes to nip during make-outs. Nox has never been able to figure out if its a Nyx thing, an Ulric thing, or an all-out Galahd thing but when they’re getting really into a make-out, Nyx is basically guaranteed to pull away from his lips for a few seconds to nip his jawline and gently run her teeth down his throat and it always, ALWAYS makes his brain go hgfdghgfds.

-He retaliates by twisting his fingers in her hair at the base of her head and lightly squeezing, often steering her head so he can gently kiss the pulse point of her neck, and once he experimentally nipped her back on the earlobe. He could have sworn she purred, but he was a little distracted by the sudden discovery that his wife was strong enough to pick him up and pin him against the wall.

-Nox has actually worn Nyx’s shirts by accident, because Nyx doesn’t go for girly stuff, but instead goes for black with simple designs often picked out from the men’s sections of stores and her shirts always smell really nice and like her so when Nox is operating 80% asleep (read: most mornings) there is a 50/50 chance he’ll snag one of her shirts instead of his and shuffle around in it until he wakes up enough to hear her snickering.

-Nyx likes to play with Nox’s hair. Anytime, any place. His hair is wispier and silkier than hers and she’s almost jealous, but he lets her do basically whatever she wants with it so it’s fine.

-Nox has played with her hair too, but somehow this is much more likely to devolve into a make-out session than when Nyx is playing with Nox’s hair. Neither is sure why.

-Everyone pls picture Nox having an Insecure Moment, probably not long after he realized they had accidentally married, curling up against her and gently trailing kisses up her neck before breathing in her ear, “Let me love you? Please. Please, let me love you.”

-And she knows it’s not a proposition but an honest plea and so she pulls him closer and catches his lips with hers before touching their foreheads together and whispering, “Forever. Forever and more.” I will have no one else. I want you and you don’t have to be afraid of that. I’m not going anywhere.

(Hope this helps @rayearthdudette!)

#SE asks #rayearthdudette asks #Secret Engima Rambles #Melodies and Manuscripts #Nox verse #Stand Strong Verse #Seer LC verse #i hope your friend and roommate is/are okay #I will pray for the both of you

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punkscowardschampions · 4 years

Text

Jac & Jesse

Jac: [Okay, so it's year 2, so she would be just 18 and Jesse would be just 17, it's their last year of school and exams are looming etc etc, all the behaviour has become business as usual so everyone would've just stopped freaking out as hard because you'd wear yourself out otherwise it isn't sustainable, I'm vibing that this is around Christmas time, just because I'm cruel and then we can use the worried Xmas picture LMAO] Jesse: [I like that because then it's not that far into school year 2 aka close to uni looming but it has been ages since her and Amelia started their whole fwb bs so a mood] Jac: [I think it makes sense because it's like, a year since everything started really so it's as raw in a weird way 'cos it's like a shit anniversary lol] Jesse: [agreed, soz boy that I haven't fleshed you out enough to know what's been going in your life for this year besides fame] Jac: [you can be vague, at least, because this convo will not be about you, fill in the blanks later, not all of us are wilding all the time] Jesse: [and not all of us are oversharers like Savannah lol he'd be keeping shit to himself even if it was all kicking off] Jac: [true tea, anyway, I will start this] Jac: Hey, where are you? Jesse: [somewhere he likes to go to write and generally have privacy] Jac: Oh, okay Jac: never mind, it's cool Jesse: ? Jac: I just was gonna ask Jac: well, I don't know what I was gonna ask actually so yeah, ignore this Jesse: What's wrong? Jac: I looked and I couldn't find it Jac: but it was kind of a hole so maybe I just missed it Jac: but I was sick loads and loads I had to get off the bus so I know that's gone Jesse: hang on, what? Jac: You know Jac: I'm not a total mess Jac: I always make sure, after Jac: even if I'm super gone, I've never forgot Jesse: alright Jesse: stop talking in riddles for a sec, I dunno what you're going on about Jac: I went to this party, a week ago Jac: no Jac: more like two, fuck, three? Jac: I don't know, but anyway Jac: I remember looking for a condom in the bin on the floor in the sheets whatever Jac: and I remember because I didn't find one so it got through the haze Jac: and then when I was coming home I was sick and I'd literally just dry-swallowed my pill 'cos I keep them in my bag or my bra or whatever I've got on me Jesse: Fuck Jesse: alright, we can sort this Jac: Where do I go? is it the GP or do I have to go to one of those clinics? Jesse: I'm having a look Jesse: where are you now? Jac: I don't want to go to the doctors Jac: can they tell mum and dad Jac: it's meant to be patient confidentiality but literally everyone found out when Millie H got crabs Jesse: you don't have to do nowt you don't want Jesse: I'll figure something out Jac: I don't have no one else to ask Jac: sorry Jesse: shut up Jesse: you don't need to ask anyone else, I'll sort it Jac: I don't know why I didn't get the morning after Jac: well I do but it's so fucking stupid to say it now Jesse: you never said where you were Jac: just got out of work Jesse: I'll be there as soon as Jesse: get a ☕ Jac: I feel like all of my insides are gonna come out Jac: this is bad Jac: what the fuck am I gonna do, Jess Jesse: don't start, you'll do your own head in before owt's even happened Jac: how the fuck does this even happen Jac: it's ridiculous Jesse: [sends her whatever he's been working on like distract yourself with telling me how crap this is etc] Jac: What are you doing Jesse: what kind of question is that? Jesse: just sent you it Jac: why Jac: I don't have the time or desire to listen to that right now Jesse: are you waiting for me or what? Jac: I don't know what I'm doing, I don't know if you got the general vibe of my messages Jesse: sit down for a bit Jac: fine Jesse: It'll be alright Jesse: I know where we're going Jac: that's the first step in this marathon shitshow, I suppose Jesse: 👍 Jac: your downplay isn't really helping, just so you know Jesse: we can't both lose it, dickhead Jac: if there's a time for it, it's now Jesse: might be in a bit, not now Jac: so you're waiting for your moment, okay Jesse: that alright with you? Jac: not really Jac: but whatever, it's the least of my problems now Jesse: you're 18, they can't say nowt to ma and da that's one less Jac: oh, true Jac: thank god I waited 'til after September to ruin my life then Jac: as long as the receptionists don't catch wind Jesse: they won't give it me, as a lad case I were forcing it down some lass's throat against her will Jac: what do you mean Jesse: if I could just leg it in there for you I would Jac: obviously you can't Jac: we don't know if it's even happened Jac: or what I'm gonna do if it has Jesse: yeah Jac: you're thinking of morning after Jac: but they don't give that to blokes now either Jesse: about as much I know about this, that Jac: have much experience then Jesse: not really Jac: you'd know if you had Jac: probably wait 'til you've earnt more money to rinse you of it Jesse: sounds about right Jac: not worth the negatives at this stage Jesse: tah Jac: not me doing you a favour by not getting pregnant Jesse: obviously Jac: 🙄 Jesse: 🙄 Jac: shut up Jac: you're so annoying Jesse: 🤐 Jac: ugh Jac: you say nothing yet you still say the wrong thing Jac: it'd be a skill if it wasn't clearly the opposite Jesse: what's the right thing? Jac: If I knew that there'd be no need for you or the conversation Jesse: come on Jac: what? Jesse: you reckon I'm getting it wrong, you must have some clue what ain't Jac: I don't Jac: you're just Jac: I don't know Jesse: say it Jesse: might make you feel less shit Jac: ha Jac: wouldn't that be nice Jac: miraculous, even Jesse: 🎄🎅 Jac: I wasn't looking to be the next Mary, tah Jesse: that were Jude's role in the nativity, not yours Jac: her years seriously lacking in talent Jesse: Dunno how top we can say ours is for having me stick a tea towel on my head Jac: it's not a musical Jac: the shit film was made Jesse: could've been if they'd let me have any lines instead of that 🐑 to chuck about Jac: as damning as this glimpse into your psyche is Jac: you really think you chatting about 4 year olds singing silent night is the thing I need right now Jesse: alright, kids ain't the ideal subject Jesse: I get it Jac: no shit Jac: you all do my head in with this shit Jac: honestly, peaking at vaguely racial costuming is the saddest thing I've ever heard Jac: and my life is currently in the toilet Jesse: piss off have I peaked at owt Jesse: ain't even properly packed for my gig yet, like Jac: it's you who's bitter at being snubbed for joseph Jac: no need to read between the lines, dickhead Jesse: never said that Jesse: he was well fit and had 🥇 line delivery Jac: don't be disgusting Jac: I don't know why you even remember these things, any of you Jesse: leave it out Jac: you Jesse: it's bollocks that you're saying you don't Jac: I don't Jac: and I don't care either Jac: and if I have to spend one more minute around you chuntering on about this shit that doesn't matter and never did Jac: I'm actually going to scream Jesse: go for it Jesse: I'm here now, you can properly aim it at me Jac: [just staring him down to make a point of looking at him like #unphased 'you got an appointment?'] Jesse: [we just nodding like yep let's go but not moving because we're rushing no bitch especially not for something like this] Jac: [obviously walking in whatever direction we need to] Jesse: [love a silence that should be awkward but is actually comfortable] Jac: [for you anyway but us losing our mind be happening regardless so yeah] Jesse: [we know he is too but shh because now is not the time for you to be scared sir] Jac: [get this appointment done so you can go away and think about what you're doing] Jesse: [hit her with the feelsy JJ lean while you're waiting so she knows you care though thank you] Jac: [just getting out of there like 'I wanna go to work but I've only just left and they're shut' no place to go casually] Jesse: [he should take her somewhere feelsy even if it is because it's not, if that makes sense, like for it's normality] Jesse: [I'd suggest his work but that's unlikely to be shut unless they had that appointment at a really weird hour lol] Jesse: [somewhere she'd actually appreciate being rn is the point anyway] Jac: [we'll just go anywhere rn 'cos truly nowhere else to go] Jesse: [even if he's just driving/walking you around aimlessly, we're giving you time to think gal] Jac: [we're just scrolling furiously through our phone right now to the socials/texts from said night] Jesse: [meanwhile he's ignoring his because we blatantly have shit that we're supposed to be doing that we're obviously not] Jac: [thrusting the phone in his face casually with a picture of this dude like it means anything 'do I call him now?'] Jesse: [a look like do you want to because we don't know this dude and even if we did it's up to her if she wants to have that convo with him or not] Jac: [when you do that pause like well, elaborate please] Jesse: ['it don't need to be now' cos it really doesn't like you literally just found out and are probably in shock] Jac: [nods like okay 'so what am I doing now?' we literally just wanna be told what to do] Jesse: [we're taking her to get sugary tea and some food even if she doesn't eat or drink it, leading her there like she is a bub] Jac: [probably automatically eating and drinking without complaint we are that out of it] Jesse: [it's okay he's got enough wits about him to go somewhere where they won't run into millions of people they know because not rn thank you] Jac: [just a ball of energy because we need to do something but what can you right now] Jesse: [such a bobbing lil leg under that table, both of y'all] Jac: ['this is not-' shakes head] Jesse: [just looking at her like what because not the time either to put words in her mouth] Jac: ['this was not in my plan'] Jesse: ['do you wanna stick to the one you had or have a different crack at it?'] Jac: ['if it were that easy-' face like it'd be done and we wouldn't be sat here] Jesse: [nods and drinks that tea] Jac: ['this changes it regardless' letting that sit there and sink in] Jesse: [let it hit him how big of a deal this actually is because up until now we haven't let ourselves think about it/have been focused on the minute by minute actions of all this] Jac: ['no matter what I do'] Jesse: ['I'll be about no matter what' like love you babe always gonna be here for you 'dead comforting that, yeah?'] Jac: [scoffs 'yeah, condemning everyone to the same life sentence of an unwanted child about or the gnawing guilt of murdering it is exactly what I wanted'] Jesse: ['murder's a bit strong'] Jac: [shrugs 'not really'] Jesse: [shrugs back like if that's what you reckon] Jac: ['I know what you reckon I should do, alright'] Jesse: [a look like yeah obviously because I think you should do what's right for you] Jac: ['well it isn't that fucking simple, Jesse, so just' the hand mime that's like closing your fingers like sh] Jesse: [mimes the 🤐] Jac: ['you might not say much but you're loud with it, I know you, remember'] Jesse: [a look back like and I know you too] Jac: ['he already has some'] Jesse: [😒 because how old is this man tbh and who is he we don't stan] Jac: ['not like I knew at the time, but I've checked him out since, obviously'] Jesse: [gestures like gimme your phone so I can look] Jac: [does, he can easily be in his 20s and my vibe is a kid when he was like 17/18 and then one a few years later] Jesse: [just stalking this dude and drinking our tea, looks fun and casual but isn't] Jac: ['he has a right to know, right?' like genuinely ?] Jesse: ['Probably, but I ain't gonna force you to tell him if you don't want to'] Jac: ['you aren't going to force me to do anything, or anyone else; but morally...' shrugs 'it'd be better not to know, in loads of ways'] Jesse: ['Did he say owt to you after?' because there is that condom uncertainty so like did he wanna follow up is our question or was he not bothered] Jac: ['no, I don't know him' like duh 'I had to ask Darla his name'] Jesse: [a look like there you go then, don't worry too much about him rn because clearly he ain't worried about if he got your pregnant or not] Jac: [🙄 'obviously it's not a concern until it happens, that's kind of the point'] Jesse: [🙄 back because it is a concern before it happens for loads of people but whatever] Jac: ['is this helpful? he didn't wear a condom, that doesn't mean he doesn't wanna be or deserve to be contacted, by that rhetoric the only people who would would be the ones you didn't need to'] Jesse: ['never said it did, and I never said don't bother contacting him'] Jac: ['just because you don't vocalize it, doesn't get you out of any responsibility for implying it with what you don't, for fuck's sake, when are you gonna grow a backbone?'] Jesse: 'what I vocalised were it don't have to happen right the fuck now and it don't, take a sec for fuck's sake'] Jac: ['no because we're on a fucking timeline here, we don't have a sec!' raising our voice assumedly higher than the hushed tones we've been keeping] Jesse: [putting a hand on her arm like calm down but not a patronising calm down just like the equivalent of the JJ soft hey but not in words] Jac: ['no' and pushing his hand away but in a more calm manner not aggressively so 'the longer you delay this the worse it gets, it has to be dealt with now'] Jesse: [eye contact because we will not be fobbed off hen 'I get that but you only found out about an hour ago, like'] Jac: ['I fail to see the point in meditating on it, like' looking back obvs 'and anyway, the fact remains I still DON'T know what I'm going to do so you've got what you want there anyway'] Jesse: [a look like don't be a dickhead 'you don't reckon you might be in a bit of shock or whatever, nah?' but it's not a question cos we know you are and then a look like you can piss right off if you think this is what I want] Jac: ['and what? if I sleep on it this will be any less of a life-changing, earth-shattering shock?' shakes head like don't be stupid] Jesse: [a sigh because we don't know what to do or what to say] Jac: ['it's very sweet of you to want to fix this-' our tone suggests we think otherwise lol '-but that ain't why I called you'] Jesse: [a look like yeah no shit because we know she didn't have anyone else to call] Jac: ['I literally just need you to help me make the decision and then be there, not make me fucking okay with it, that isn't what this is'] Jesse: ['alright' genuinely we do mean it] Jac: ['thank you' big sigh] Jesse: [getting more tea for you both, it won't fix it but it is our love language] Jac: [just be having a google about all the possible things you could ever need to know for every available option] Jesse: [you too boy while you're waiting for that tea because why not] Jac: [casually terrifying ourselves lol but necessary evil 'cos yeah, can't not do this shit 'I hope you feel fucking lucky not to have a uterus'] Jesse: [nodding because we do after all this googling if we didn't before] Jac: [ah the biological unfairness of being born a girl lol] Jesse: [I hate it and all I've had to deal with are periods so] Jac: [literally being a straight girl/girl who has sex with men is lowkey mental torture like constant worry and if it does happen any outcome is bad like] Jesse: [agreed and y'all are gonna have to go home eventually and that upsets me to think about] Jac: [let us say that's hit you rn bitch 'what are we gonna...am I gonna say? I don't-' we mean speak 'cos literally tis the season lol] Jesse: [when that hits you then because again there's no right answer to this 'if you owt to be said, I can'] Jesse: [*want] Jac: ['I don't want it but-' a massive pause whilst we try to get our voice back to how it usually sounds and not straining 'cos you're about to cry 'cos we don't want that, then when you speak again it's barely audible '- how many more secrets am I expected to carry'] Jesse: [scoots his chair as close to her as he physically can because it's time for another feelsy lean that means 1. I love you 2. you can tell me anything 3. most importantly you can tell this whole fam literally anything even Jude who is a lot] Jac: [shakes head like clearly not but we don't move away] Jesse: [letting this moment happen because it's been so long for you both] Jac: [literally a year in all the senses lol] Jesse: [soz that we've done this to you lads] Jac: ['I don't think I can do any of this'] Jesse: ['you ain't got a choice, not to sit back and do nowt, I mean'] Jac: ['I know'] Jesse: [pushes her tea towards her like drink up because again it's our love language and they can't stay forever] Jac: [at least there's an excuse to go to the bathroom and filmically have a moment] Jesse: [and at least when they get home she's in the basement so he can be doing music shit lowkey all night without it being blatant that he's checking on her] Jac: [we can skipperoo to that] Jesse: [agreed] Jac: [say that she was out of work 5 ish, say that took an hour at the least two at the most, they get home 7 ish, this is like late/early AM] Jac: Are you awake? Jesse: 👍 Jesse: [strums a note on the guitar or presses one on the keyboard like hello] Jac: I thought you were meant to be talented Jesse: where'd you hear that? Jesse: sounds like a load of bollocks Jac: Probably Jac: isn't everything on the 'gram Jesse: ✔ Jac: you'll have to come with me Jesse: Alright Jac: I just need to decide how to do it Jac: obviously I can't have it Jesse: did you work out how many weeks ago it were? Jac: three Jesse: I can give 'em a ring in a few hours, see how long you'll have to wait to get an appointment Jac: it can be up to 2 weeks Jac: that's what it says Jesse: I'll take the first one they offer us Jac: maybe that's to get it done Jac: it's all confusing Jac: and you can get the pills online and they won't prosecute you now but I still don't know how safe or fast that'll be either Jesse: soon as I can speak to someone, I'll ask whatever we ain't worked out Jac: pills have to be faster, even if they have to order them in, that's only a day or two Jac: two weeks is too long Jac: but the operation might be less scary Jac: I don't know Jesse: [sends her whatever he can find about people's actual experiences even though it's probably terrifying because the only way to really decide] Jac: I don't want to do this Jesse: I know Jac: this is why everyone does it Jac: has the kids Jac: I can't do this Jesse: can you do that though? Jac: I can't do any of this Jesse: not to be a dickhead, but you have to Jac: I know that Jesse: [playing some kind of song from their childhood whether that's a JJ or grandma Ali mood like this will comfort us while we ponder] Jesse: I dunno about waiting times for it but if you want it over and done sooner, the operation takes less time Jesse: couple of hours and you'll be back home Jac: yeah Jac: the pills can take days Jac: and you have to make sure it all comes away what if it doesn't Jac: how would I know what's too much blood Jesse: you'd have to call 'em or I would Jac: I wish they'd knock you out for the operation Jac: that's all Jesse: yeah, I get that Jac: it's punishment anyway Jac: there's no lesser it's just picking one and sticking to it Jesse: are you gonna tell anyone else, other than me and him? Jac: I don't know Jac: there's no point, I guess Jesse: might be a bit of a headfuck doing the 2nd pill at home if ma and da don't know, all I were thinking Jesse: but we could go somewhere else Jac: I don't want them to know Jac: I wish I didn't know Jesse: Alright Jac: when it's over forget you ever did Jesse: come on Jac: keep it to yourself then Jac: I don't want to talk about it Jesse: you might and I'll be about if you do Jesse: don't mean I'll be shouting about it Jac: nah Jesse: up to you, that Jac: just leave it Jesse: I heard you Jesse: I'll leave it out Jac: Good Jesse: ☕? Jac: no thanks Jac: I don't need stained teeth as well as a ruined womb Jesse: I'll pick you up a whitening kit when I go work in a bit Jac: 🙄 Jac: can't really drink tea through a straw like you can your coffee Jesse: if you're willing to look like a twat you can do owt Jesse: nobody's about to 👀 any road Jesse: I've had customers cracking on with all sorts Jac: I'd sooner be found dead in a ditch than be one of your customers Jesse: charming Jac: like it weren't obvious Jesse: never said it weren't Jesse: still a bit rude Jac: what, that I'm not a pretentious hipster that likes to pretend shit music is amazing and everyone else is too stupid to get it Jesse: that you'd rather 💀 than have a ☕ off me Jac: I don't know why you'd expect different Jesse: I never said that either Jac: then why say anything at all Jesse: 🤐 Jac: about right Jesse: 🤏 Jac: what does that even mean Jesse: it'll do Jac: whatever Jac: not as if there's any choice in the matter Jesse: what does that mean? Jac: you're annoying and you've got nothing to say Jac: that's just how it is Jesse: alright then Jac: yeah, case in point Jesse: suits you often enough that it's the case Jac: yeah, love that I hate you all Jac: it's a right laugh Jesse: for us an' all Jac: as I said, no choice in the matter Jac: just get on with it Jesse: 👍 Jac: I'll do the pills Jesse: I'll be about Jac: whatever Jesse: you've gotta have somebody with you Jac: I'm sure plenty didn't and don't Jac: if it gets to much, call an ambulance Jesse: you heard, I'll be here Jac: and I said, whatever Jesse: let me know when then Jac: 👍 Jesse: 👌 Jac: no, it's not Jesse: no shit Jac: so quit with this shit and acting like it is Jesse: you Jac: I'm not Jac: I just wanna face my time and do it Jesse: I'm getting my head round it Jac: why? Jac: what's to get, it won't be here Jesse: that's to get if nowt else Jesse: you've gotta do this Jac: so, that has nothing to do with you Jac: it's my mistake my problem Jesse: all that shit I've read ain't just going in one 👂 and out the other Jesse: and it don't have to be my mistake or problem for me to be bothered Jac: then don't get someone pregnant Jac: really welcome for the cautionary tale Jesse: tah Jac: just go away and go to bed Jesse: I ain't finished, there'll be sod all point going to bed when I am Jac: great Jesse: I'll live Jac: I don't care about you Jac: I'm trying to sleep Jesse: crack on then Jesse: I won't stop you Jac: I can't sleep when you're down here Jesse: alright, I'll piss off Jac: thank you Jesse: night Jac: yep Jac: [the next day/day after potentially] Jac: I got the pills Jac: if you're still interested Jesse: they give you the 1st one at the clinic or what? Jesse: how I read it Jac: then you know Jac: I'm gonna fake an abortion for your attention? Jac: obviously not Jesse: piss off Jac: I'm not in the mood Jesse: I'd have gone with you Jac: no need Jesse: do you need picking up now? Jac: I had a cab Jac: they make sure you aren't gonna get off in a car and crash or whatever Jesse: you home? Jac: where else Jesse: is anyone else about or what? Jac: yeah, if you didn't want to do this Jac: you should've said from the start Jac: then I wouldn't have bothered with any of this Jesse: if you'd have said you were doing it I'd be there waiting for you Jac: forget it Jac: you're more of a hindrance than a help Jesse: for not being a 🧠📖 yeah alright Jac: no, for making this remotely about you Jac: and being such a fucking pushover Jac: sometimes, you don't take no for an answer Jac: I was fucking terrified last night and you just left Jac: so fuck you, I don't need you now Jesse: you told me to leave Jac: and? Jac: I can't do this right now, Jesse Jac: I'm literally fucking killing my baby as we speak and you still wanna say you were just doing what I said, anything for an easy life Jac: you're not my problem now, I shouldn't have picked you, simple as Jesse: well you fucking did pick me Jesse: and you know why Jesse: that's about you, not me Jac: because at one point you could be fucking relied upon Jac: my mistake you're actually useless now, well great, thank you SO much Jesse: I got it wrong Jesse: I'm sorry Jac: I needed you to break through Jac: at least try, my God Jesse: I thought you needed space Jesse: I don't know Jac: I don't have enough of that Jac: it's convenient for you to all leave me alone now Jac: you don't like me, whatever Jac: I just needed you to put that aside for this Jesse: piss off, I've fucking tried for a year Jesse: I don't know how to do this with you any more, I don't know you Jac: this isn't run of the mill Jac: it's pretty special circumstances Jac: it is to me Jesse: tah for that, I hadn't realised Jesse: fucking hell Jac: can you just stop Jesse: yeah Jac: Are you gonna come home or what? Jesse: I'm on my way Jac: okay Jesse: is anyone else there or what? Jac: I think Cammie and Jameson were but I just came straight down so they didn't try to talk to me Jac: they might've gone by now Jesse: I'll come in that way Jac: I wasn't just being a bitch, by the way Jac: I bled through the pad I put on Jesse: it don't matter if you were, they'll live Jesse: do you need me to get you anything? Jac: they're used to it too Jac: I've got the painkillers Jesse: I'll just hurry up then Jac: won't be going anywhere Jesse: [we're not saying anything because we're hurrying lol] Jac: [fairplay hen] Jesse: [is gonna bring her loads of things that she could possibly want though obvs to a laughable degree] Jac: [a hot water bottle is a good idea so say you thought of that lol] Jesse: [yeah, cue montage of him giving her a comical amount of things that she lowkey doesn't want or need but there will be some useful shit in there too] Jac: [okay so just watched a quick video, and the worst is infection, sepsis as very worst, it not all coming away, or the tablets not working and this is worked out by going through more than 2 pads an hour with blood, a bad smell down there, a really high fever and the pain not being helped like at all by pain relief methods; we'll let that not happen because it is enough lol, so the basics are severe pain, cramps and blood, nausea, vomiting, diarhea, being shivery hot, you pass tissue and clots and this is meant to take 1-2 days but can last TIL YOUR NEXT PERIOD, the cramps also last about TWO WEEKS, pregnancy symptoms should ease after a couple of days, like being sick, but you can still have tender breasts for several weeks, you can't take the test to confirm the pregnancy is terminated 'til THREE WEEKS later, because the hormones stay around, you aren't allowed sex for 2 weeks BUT IF YOU DO YOU CAN GET PREGNANT IMMEDIATELY AFTER AN ABORTION but like we won't be, you're also not allowed to bath for 2 days and if you have a shower you have to have someone there in case you faint] Jac: [thought we should have this v basic rundown] Jesse: [thank god he is there and not leaving her for a bloody second because I can't even] Jac: [this is what we say when nobody WANTS an abortion hun, this is brutal, we're so rude] Jesse: [worst christmas ever] Jac: [yeah this tops last year and yours before that Amelia, not that we having a competition but hey ho] Jesse: [also thank god that we said that birthday flower drama happened and they broke up so Amelia isn't there casually like oh hey] Jac: [I was thinking if we do want her to know/be real drama, she could try to hit her up, it is Christmas lol] Jesse: [yeah that's always an option because she'll never get you pregnant hun] Jac: [oops, I meant that the other way around, did not write that properly, like Amelia tryna be a bit casual like hey don't be mad it's Xmas and then Jac could flip and it'll obviously be more than the flowers] Jesse: [well that makes sense because it's Amelia she's probably bought her a christmas gift yet again lol] Jac: [that was my vibe lol, god knows how my boo will be feelsy/rude with that] Jesse: [I was thinking she should get her another gay book that relates to their life like she did last year but like folded up inside is a portrait cos she hasn't done one of her since that one when they were like tweens] Jac: [you can find a list I bet, at least you don't know about the gay baby there isn't, that would be too close to the nose] Jesse: [blatantly like a chanel lipstick because we got the lip balm a year before, a theme so yeah leave that for the bae like you did last year] Jac: [a vibey vibe tbh, soz you do not know what you're coming into] Jac: [but yes, this is gonna be a bonding moment for you two, because it'll stop being like let's talk about it and you'll just have to do it, at least 2 days of the worst, you'll have to distract and comfort anywhich ways you can think of, probably lots of old movies and eating comforting junk, I'm just deciding if we tell JJ ourself or make Jesse rn hmm] Jesse: [I love that for you two even though it has to be in such horrible circumstances, I think he should do it because they'll blatantly still speak to her but at least she won't have to start the convo herself] Jac: [yeah, that makes sense as a moment 'cos we aren't stupid and this is gonna be suspish to all of us but at least then we can keep the other kids mainly Jude from being like HEWWO] Jesse: [yeah because Jude is the last thing we need rn no offense hen but he's literally not leaving her and even he isn't the music bit THAT much plus we said he had a show that he's just skipping which Jude would probably know so she'd be like ??! if not] Jac: [like, I'm down for mentioning that is a thing or having her come into the inbox but we don't need it to get to deathcon 5 levels, like we don't have the energy so she'd just be ignored and I won't make you self-RP] Jesse: [we know it's a thing and we know the vibe] Jac: [mhmm, like at the minute we've probably simply forgotten but we will circle back 'round when we're not quite so in traumatic shock] Jesse: [poor Jude just like why is everyone ignoring me, god bless] Jac: [lmao GIMME THAT ATTENTION, truly JJ I dunno how you tell someone to stop without giving up the info but you've gotta somehow] Jesse: [distract her somehow lads, it's nearly christmas there is shit you can do] Jac: [just going on a suspish amount of Christmas activities haha i live] Jesse: [I feel bad for you hen but like all will become clear one day] Jac: [sadly how it's gonna be]

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chronicallylatetotheparty · 5 years

Text

Blush

Adrien remembered what it felt like the first time he laid eyes on Kagami.

Or rather, the first time he saw her without her helmet. Adrien admitted he'd been cocky going into the fight. In his defense, he was like that with everyone.

Not like Kagami was any better. She'd been downright arrogant, marching in unannounced and demanding a match! It was incredibly attractive.

Their swords met and Adrien realized pretty quickly that Kagami's confidence was well earned. Their skills with a blade were born of years of practice. But he was no prodigy; she was.

None of his fencing teammates came close to Kagami's level and D'Argencourt was so far above him. Fighting someone on equal footing was... exhilarating. Being beautiful too was almost unfair.

Kagami was so stunning. Adrien still remembered his cheeks flushing and jaw dropping when she took off her helmet. He was so flustered his words came out in a stutter.

That was the first of many times Adrien would be left a flustered mess by Kagami.

It was part of the reason Adrien loved making Kagami blush. It was only fair he took every opportunity, as she didn't always react the same way twice. He was sure she'd be indifferent to it if he wasn't so persistent.

Kagami didn't mind blushing around him if it came naturally. Even if she was a bit shy about it... Apparently, trying to make her blush on purpose didn't count.

But really, gushing about Chat Noir like that was cheating! Particular emphasis was placed on his alter ego's determination. The way he never gave up, how he held the civilians' safety as top priority, his dedication to Ladybug...

And there he went again. Red as Nathaniel's hair. Well, if Adrien was gonna be a tomato, he wouldn't be the only one.

Mentioning Ryuko was fair game. Her skill with a sword, the way she protected the main duo, her ferocity against the villains. She was definitely competing for the title of Favorite Superhero. Plus, she had a cool outfit.

Kagami's reddening cheeks were definitely worth the effort.

Of course, she knew exactly what he was doing. It brought out her competitive nature. Even if Kagami didn't have as much practice in making people flustered on purpose, she made up for it by making every compliment count. Each one heartfelt enough to make Adrien flush.

He loved the feeling.

Kagami wasn't exactly sure why Adrien felt the need to make her face burn. But she wasn't about to let that stop her. His challenge would not go unanswered!

One would think Adrien would choose something he had an advantage in. Instead of... well, he was easily flustered. Face flushing at the smallest indication that Kagami returned his feelings. Even if he did recover quickly after the first few times.

Really, he turned red at the slightest provocation! The only reason Kagami didn't hopelessly outmatch him was because of her lack of experience in such matters... Though, he did have other advantages.

Differentiating between when her boyfriend was purposefully teasing her and when he was being his usual, compliment prone self was a bit of a chore for Kagami. Although, the latter was usually accompanied by a softer smile. The other one was far too mischievous.

Take their fencing matches for example. When they weren't sassing each other Adrien could praise her earnestly, with eyes full of admiration. Or he could praise Kagami specifically to make her face flush, with a smug smirk on his lips.

It really depended on his mood.

Still, she wouldn't change it at all. If a little teasing was the price for a boyfriend that placed her in such high regard, and constantly reminded her why he chose her, Kagami would gladly pay it. And respond in kind.

Getting Nino's help was tricky. She couldn't just say it was to mess with his best friend; he might take it the wrong way. No, Kagami had to be 'subtle'. Or, at least as close as she could get.

Under the, admittedly true, guise of learning more about Adrien she found great ammunition.

He was a romantic. She'd seen it, of course, but Kagami didn't realize just how much he was holding back. Nino had to talk him out of buying her dozens of bouquets, live bands for all their dates, visiting every remotely romantic locale in Paris...

Okay, that last one still sounded nice. And it gave her an idea.

"So!" Adrien inquired. "We going anywhere in particular?"

They walked beside each other through the park. Kagami had checked what spaces were relatively empty during this time so they wouldn't be disturbed. Plus, fewer eyes made her more comfortable.

"Here," Kagami replied, as they turned a corner. She gestured to a table covered with patterned cloth and a fancy centerpiece.

Adrien's eyes took in the arrangement appreciatively. "Candles?"

Kagami realized it was far too early for candles but she was committed now. "It's for aesthetic," she explained, which was technically true, and pulled out Adrien's chair for him.

He accepted graciously. "I like it," he smiled.

Sitting in her own chair Kagami averted her eyes as she attempted to fight down the blush that threatened to bloom on her face.

At that point the waiter appeared from nowhere and placed their appetizer down before disappearing back where he came from.

Blinking in surprise Adrien's head turned from the waiter to their bread-filled bowl. "If you wanted to go on a 'picnic' you could've just asked."

"But then it wouldn't be a surprise," Kagami reasoned. "And you've already planned a disproportionate number of our dates."

"I'll make sure to let you plan the next few then," he teased.

The waiter returned with two plates of spaghetti and meatballs, the steam indicating it was freshly prepared, and two tall glasses of water. He set them down before vanishing again.

"Spaghetti! It's been forever since I've... eaten..." His eyes went over the checkered tablecloth and stylized centerpiece. Adrien stared as understanding dawned in his eyes. "I know this one."

Kagami pretended not to know what he meant while blowing on a forkful of food. "Do you?"

Leaning casually on the table Adrien played with some of his food. "You know," he stated not-so-innocently. "Romantic dinners usually take place at night."

"... I thought the musicians could use more light."

"Accordion and violin?" Adrien asked, even as said musicians came into view and began to play a familiar song. "Thought so," he grinned.

"Have I really become so predictable?" Kagami watched as her boyfriend closed his eyes to savor the music, his head swaying slightly.

"Remember our last training session? When you told me I was announcing my moves I realized the same was true of you." He opened his eyes slightly to peak at his girlfriend. "We know how to read each other too well."

"I see." Kagami felt heat spread across her face. "I shall endeavor to not project my intentions so openly."

"... Why?"

That was an excellent point and it deepened her rose hue. "This was supposed to be part of your game."

"Then..." Adrien reached for his glass and drank, seemingly unconcerned. "You weren't just trying to be romantic?"

The music continued, rising and falling as Kagami collected her thoughts. "I enjoy seeing you blush. Perhaps not as much as you but I do. The game was always fun even when you teased me because it was a way to express your, our, emotions without feeling like we were moving too fast."

Kagami disliked this awkwardness that made her avert her eyes. It made voicing her thoughts difficult. "I followed the game because I couldn't let you win unopposed, yes. But also because knowing I have such an effect on you means you feel the same way I do. It makes it easier to say 'I love you' and-"

A soft gasp brought Kagami's sight back to Adrien. He was beet red and staring at her with big, vulnerable eyes. All trace of his nonchalant act gone.

"Do you... mean that?"

"... You have to ask?"

Adrien smiled shyly and reached for her hand. Kagami returned the gesture. His reaction calmed the fluttering in her stomach and her face didn't burn as strongly.

"I love you, too." It wasn't the first time Adrien said it but that did not diminish it's effect on her.

Kagami smiled as she looked away. The musicians kept playing throughout their little display as though nothing had happened. This hadn't gone according to plan but...

They finally got around to tasting their meal. Adrien mmmh-ing appreciatively and giving compliments to the chef. Their conversation flowed naturally after their awkward start. Kagami asked how he could praise people for their virtues so easily.

He turned his head slightly, confused and said: "It's true though, isn't it?"

And it was. Adrien didn't give compliments he didn't mean. When the musicians finished a song he clapped earnestly, when Kagami told him of her recent victory against an archery rival he praised her unreservedly, when the waiter returned to take their empty plates Adrien thanked him for a job well done.

As the sun began to set they finally had reason to light the candles. Despite there still being plenty of light.

Kagami smiled at Adrien and he gave her one of his own. No, the day didn't go as she expected. But she wouldn't change a thing.

@adrigami-week

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