#i guess that's how i ended up with nine cats. i can't say no to any animal i'm too weak. i want to help them all

[the-casbah-way]

i saw a tiny fox cub today i don't know why it was on its own i hope it is ok i love baby foxes so much i've never seen one in person before it was SO SMALL

[teaberrii]

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Our Happy Ending

Alhaitham has the looks and the smarts. He will also be the stand-in CEO for his grandfather's company for a year.

But, he's been mysteriously cursed to turn into a cat every night since his eighteenth birthday… until he meets you, an employee at his grandfather's company, who rescues him as a cat and changes him back with one kiss.

Alhaitham/You

Notes:

Cross-posted on AO3

Female reader

Chapter index at the end of chapter one

Chapter notes: Brief smut scene in this chapter

You can’t stop thinking about that kiss.

It’s been a few weeks since Zhongli’s wedding. You and Alhaitham have been casually texting, but neither of you brings up the kiss. It’s as if you’re treading through a grey area. Despite what's happened, your feelings toward Alhaitham haven't changed, but that’s only half the battle.

After Zhongli's wedding, you've been giving this a lot of thought. Throughout all of this, Alhaitham has been on your side. His mother is also taking full responsibility.

But no matter how you look at it, the stigma will always remain.

If you choose to be with Alhaitham, you'll be in a relationship with the son of the woman who left your father to die. That’s a fact that will never change. Can you live with that? You can. You have your reasons, but… What does your mother think about this? 

Then, there’s Alhaitham.

Throughout your conversations, he hasn’t pressured or asked you to give him an answer. But you know you can’t leave him hanging for too long.

In addition to all that, today just hasn’t been your day.

You found out that Signora's script got chosen to get the biggest budget of the year. You know you can't win all the time, but it's still not a great feeling. So, even though yours didn't get chosen, you're taking it upon yourself to make changes and submit it again for production. This, of course, is on top of the other responsibilities you're assigned to.

You’re sitting at a desk in the company lounge when you overhear two women sitting at the table in front of yours.

“She was so pretty. They looked like a celebrity couple.”

"Alhaitham is like a celebrity, though." A small laugh. "He should try modelling as a side hustle."

This is something you've been hearing a lot amongst your colleagues. Apparently, Alhaitham has been seen with a “tall, beautiful woman.” It doesn’t take you long to figure out that the woman in question is Layla. While you don’t know the details, you know there’s a business venture happening between the company and hers, which explains why she and Alhaitham have been seen together.

“Hey.” It’s then you notice Childe sitting in front of you. As his mother’s condition has considerably improved, he’s back in Sumeru. “Took you long enough,” he jokes. He takes a peek at your laptop. “Whatcha workin' on?"

"Revisions for my script." You sigh. “Writer's block has never hit so hard,” you say as the women stand up and leave. You close your laptop screen. “It doesn’t help that my team got assigned to other projects. So… I’m pretty much on my own.”

“Well… maybe this will take your mind off things." A small pause. "It's about the curse."

“Did it change?”

Childe nods. “Things have started to improve with my parents, and I noticed that I’m changing a lot later.”

“...I guess our love theory was right."

“You think?" A small pause. "Maybe we’ll find out through you and Alhaitham,” Childe says. Your eyes meet his. “How’re things with him?”

“We’re talking." When you catch a suspicious look in Chlde’s eyes, you say, “Just talking. Nothing else.”

Childe slowly nods. “...Maybe he’s waiting for an answer after everything's over.” He smiles slightly. "Alhaitham's a good guy.” You smile back and nod. Then, he taps your closed laptop. “You said you’re making revisions to your script, right? Why not take inspiration from him?”

Before Childe came along, you have been thinking about how to add an extra… oomph to your story. You feel like something’s missing but you can’t put your finger on it. Childe’s question gets you thinking… Love in the Spotlight had been loosely inspired by your past relationship with Dottore. Who’s to say you can't work that magic again?

Suddenly, it hits you, and you quickly open your laptop. Childe looks from you to your screen as you start typing. Then, he smiles.

“My Boss is My Cat, huh? I like that title.”

You smile back. “You think? I’ll have to rework a lot of it, but… the ideas are already flowing.”

Childe chuckles. “I know it’ll be a hit.”

◆◆◆

It starts as a business meeting but turns a little personal toward the end. Alhaitham and Layla aren’t surprised. They are friends after all.

“By the way… how did the dinner go?” Layla asks.

Ah. Right. His mother had tried to get Layla involved. So, Alhaitham gives her an update but skims the details, only telling her what’s needed to understand the big picture. 

“I see… So, you two are still on a break?”

Yes? No? Alhaitham doesn't have a clear answer. There's texting happening, but nothing concrete to show you two are officially together again. Yes, there's the kiss, but that happened because of an emotional high. It shouldn't be trusted... even though it was the best kiss he's ever had.

“We’re talking,” he says.

Layla nods. “Well, I think that's a good sign. I’d usually say why not try to woo her again, but that’d be risky.”

Alhaitham knows you still need space. But, how long can he keep waiting?

“Hey.” Alhaitham looks across the table and sees Layla giving him a small smile. “It’s good you’re thinking about her feelings, but don’t forget to think about yourself.”

Alhaitham’s phone buzzes with a message just as Layla gets a call. She answers hers while he opens the message from Kaveh.

Drinks tonight?

Well, why not?

“I have to run,” Layla says, after getting off her call. “If it’s any reassurance, I know you two will be fine.”

She gives Alhaitham a friendly hug before she leaves. Then, his phone buzzes again.

Should we invite Catnip?

Catnip?

When Alhaitham leaves the restaurant, he gives Kaveh a call.

“‘Sup, Junior?”

“Who are you talking about?”

Kaveh laughs. “Oh, you mean Catnip? I’m talking about Sis, of course. You did say she’s your catnip, didn’t you? I think it’s a cute nickname.” Alhaitham sighs. “...Wait. Have you two not made up yet?”

“There are still things we have to talk about.”

"I think I get it." A small pause. "Is it something like... What's her new stance on your mother? Will she ask you to cut ties with her so you two can be together? Am I right?"

“...It’s not just about my mother. If we date again, I… have no idea what her mother might say.”

“Dude, you’re like the dream son-in-law that every mother wants.” Kaveh sighs. “But, geez. You’re giving this a lot of thought. I get it, though. You’re serious about her.”

“...I always have been.”

Kaveh smiles. “So, let’s get together tonight and take a little breather. You deserve it.”

◆◆◆

Your manager looks at your laptop screen and reads the title.

“My Boss is My Cat. An interesting title.” Then, he looks up at you. “You want to do a rewrite?”

"I know the leadership team has already decided on Signora's script. This is just a personal project I want to send for review and see if I can get it produced."

“You’d be doing a lot of extra work.”

“I understand, but”—you look at your laptop screen—“I really want to see this through.”

Your manager smiles. “Well, who am I to stop you?”

“Really?”

“As long as it doesn’t interfere with your other responsibilities. You get the green light.”

“Thank you!”

Then, you pick up your laptop and hurry out of your manager’s office.

After finishing your work responsibilities for the day, you spend the rest of your time planning and writing this new script which makes you lose track of time.

Before you know it, you're the only one left in the office. You stop typing and stretch just as your phone rings.

“Hey, Mom,” you say.

“Where are you? It’s late!”

You look at the time on your laptop. “Sorry. I got caught up with some things at work.”

“Don’t tell me you’re planning on sleeping over there?” she jokes. “Or… are you going back to your place?”

Despite you and Alhaitham being on friendly terms, you're still staying at your mother's place. You spin your chair around and look out at the beautiful night scenery.

“...Hey, Mom. Can I… ask you something?”

“Of course, honey.”

“...What do you think of me dating Alhaitham?”

A small pause.

"I had a feeling you'd ask eventually," your mother says. "...I want to hear your thoughts. You're asking me this because you want to continue your relationship with him, right?"

“I do.”

You’re a little surprised at how naturally you said it.

“...But, would it be disrespectful to Dad?” you ask quietly. “I’d be dating the son of the woman who really shouldn’t deserve forgiveness.”

“...Under regular circumstances, I would be opposed to it,” your mother says, leaning against the kitchen counter. “I’m not saying this because I’m on his side, but he did do a lot for us. Let me give you an update.”

Then, your mother tells you they've decided to settle this out of court. But that doesn't mean his mother will avoid wrongdoing. She will compensate the full amount and abide by the punishment given to her by law.

“I won’t be able to forgive his mother, but I don't want to harbour any resentment towards her,” your mother finishes. "I am not opposed to you dating him." You feel a weight lift off your shoulders. “It really depends on you.”

“I… guess I’m a little afraid.” Then, you tell her about your nightmares. “I know I shouldn’t care about what other people say. But sometimes… I can’t help but think what they will say about me or Alhaitham if they find out.” You sigh. “It’s silly.”

“It’s not silly at all, honey. As much as we all say we don’t care about other people’s opinions, we all care to some extent. Some more than others.”

You smile. “But, you know, I just realized something.”

“What’s that?”

“You, Lumine, and Aether are the only opinions I should care about.”

Your mother smiles. “...Perhaps it’s fate that brought you and Alhaitham together, so we can finally have closure.”

The conversation takes a lighter turn when you tell your mother about what you've been working on. Of course, she’s super supportive, which gives you a heightened motivation to finish this personal project.

It's past dinnertime when you get off the call with your mother. After turning off the lights, you head towards the elevator when your phone rings. This time, it's from someone unexpected.

“Sis! Are you home?”

“I’m going to be,” you say. “What’s wrong?”

“Erm, well, Haitham had too much to drink, and I thought he would have hangover pills or something… but”—Kaveh sighs—“the guy's empty.”

“...Are you the one who got him addicted to catnip?”

“What! How can you think that it's me?”

A small pause.

“Okay. I gave it to him once and he… liked it. I swear I tried to stop him.”

You sigh. “Is he okay? I’ll pick up something on my way back.”

Kaveh smiles. “Really? You’d do that for someone who's just a friend?”

“I’ll be right over," you deadpan.

Back at Alhaitham’s apartment, Kaveh slips his phone inside his pocket and looks at his friend who’s sitting on the sofa with a small frown.

“This is your chance, Junior. Don’t waste it.”

“Did you really have to lie?”

"Well, she won't rush over if you're all fine and dandy. So, at least try to look like you're half-dead when she gets here." Alhaitham sighs, and Kaveh smiles. "It's time to make your acting debut."

By the time you reach Alhaitham’s apartment, it’s already late evening. As soon as you knock, Kaveh opens the door.

“Hey, Catnip!”

“...What did you just call me?”

Kaveh laughs. “It’s a cute nickname, don’t you think?”

“Sure." You look around. "Where’s Haitham?”

“In his room.”

As soon as you get there, you see Alhaitham as a cat curled up on top of the sheets. Then, you turn to Kaveh.

“...He looks fine.”

“That’s 'cause he’s a cat. He was dying earlier. Trust me.”

You look at the pills and other hangover-related medication in the bag you’re holding. “Well, I don’t think he can take these right now.”

You hear a soft meow. When you turn, you see Alhaitham struggling to get up. It's not until you're at his side that he immediately walks onto your lap.

“Well, he’s all yours! Good luck.”

Before you can say anything else, Kaveh is out the door.

You look down at Alhaitham who’s lying on his back, his belly facing upwards. His face looks as if he’s in pain, and you gently rub his fluffy belly.

“Let me get you some water.”

You’re about to get off the bed when Alhaitham suddenly gets up, stands on his hind legs, and pushes you down. What just happened? Alhaitham is on top of you, his front paws above your breasts as you stare at each other.

Alhaitham meows again, and you’re wondering if he wants you to kiss him. Well, you can, but certainly not in this position. You pick him up, sit upright, and lean against the wall. You smile as you hold him in front of you.

“Looks like someone’s fine.”

Alhaitham looks down but quickly looks back and groans softly as if in pain.

“You should probably take some acting lessons from Ayato.”

Alhaitham gives you a deadpan look which makes you laugh.

“What? Did I say something wrong?”

His ears droop and you gently tap his nose. Then, you bend your legs and put him belly-up on your legs.

“...I talked to my mom about us.”

Alhaitham’s ears slowly move back up. You’re slightly blushing, so his tail sweeps upwards. Can this mean what Alhaitham thinks it means…?

“I want to be with you, Haitham,” you say, and his little kitty heart has never raced so fast. “...But, I won’t be able to forgive what your mother did. No matter what.” You smile slightly. “I’m not going to ask you to pick between us. I know you still care about her, obviously. But after everything that’s happened, I still want to be with you.”

Alhaitham leans forward, his paws landing on your collarbone. Then, he kisses your nose…

Your eyes widen when a hand is suddenly beside your head. Alhaitham is staring at you, his eyes just as wide as reality sinks in. He has you cornered against the wall. What just happened?

But before you can even contemplate, Alhaitham kisses you full on the mouth. You can taste the wine on his lips as your hands go around his neck. He nips your top lip, caressing it before moving to the bottom. The cold chill you feel against your back is in glaring contrast to the hot, demanding heat pulling you closer… and closer…

Your hand is on his chest but soon becomes entangled with Alhaitham’s. He holds your hand tightly, your bodies flush against one another. Your pulse is thundering as one kiss after another communicates more passion and longing than words ever can.

When Alhaitham finally pulls away, his expression is sincere and intense.

“I love you,” he says.

You immediately kiss him again but only for a moment. You gently nip his lips as you pull back.

“I love you, too.”

His expression turns slightly worried. “...But, what does your mother think?”

“She’s okay with us dating.” You smile. “...I already talked to her.” Then, you push him down, your hand running down his torso. “Did you and Kaveh trick me here?"

“...That’s—”

You kiss him, and you feel his hand in your hair, pulling you closer. Your hand travels lower, and you break the kiss just in time to hear a soft moan when you gently stroke his hardening sex.

Then, you lean forward and whisper, “...Someone deserves to be punished.”

It doesn’t take long for your teasing to reduce him to a panting mess who’s dying to touch you as you ride him deep and hard. Your hands are on top of his, pinning them to the bed. Alhaitham shuts his eyes as he relishes in the pleasure only you can give him. When you suddenly stop, he opens his eyes and sees you tug at one of your hardened nipples with a slightly teasing smile.

Alhaitham immediately sits up, your legs naturally going to either side of his waist. Then, he grabs your hips and pins you to the bed with his body. Your legs are dangling on either side of him, your face flushed.

“...It’s my turn.”

His hips slowly rock into you, allowing you to feel every inch of his hardened sex. And, slowly, as he picks up the pace, he grabs your knees and spreads your legs even wider. When he hears that loud, satisfied moan from your lips, he pins your hands to the bed and leans over and kisses you. Coupled with how he’s angling his hips to drive himself deeper into you, you soon shudder violently with unwilling pleasure.

Alhaitham’s muscles become taut as the sensation builds… builds… and builds until he lets out a short but satisfied cry. With just enough strength to prevent himself from falling on top of you, he brushes some of your hair out of your face.

“...I could do that again,” you joke.

Alhaitham leans upright and pulls you up. Your arms go around his neck. “...Who am I to refuse such a request?”

◆◆◆

The following morning, you wake up in Alhaitham's bed to a delicious scent. As he isn't beside you, you have a feeling that he's already in the kitchen making breakfast. You put on your clothes and head to the washroom. Once you enter the living room, you see Alhaitham putting two plates on the table.

He smiles. “Morning, love.”

“Ooh, what are we having this morning?” you ask, sitting down.

“The Alhaitham special,” he answers, kissing your head.

You laugh. "The what?" Then, he puts a round plate in the middle of the table. It looks like pizza as it's round with meat and vegetables on top. You take a piece and bite into it. Your eyes widen in surprise. "Oh, wow. Not bad."

“...It’s what my Dad used to make,” Alhaitham says, sitting on the opposite side of you. Before you can ask, he continues, “I finally got in touch with him.”

“Really?”

“It was when we were taking time apart. My grandfather was the one who found him.”

“...Did your father tell you anything about the divorce?”

“...I never thought I’d get to talk to you again, Haitham. Does your mother know about this?”

“She does,” Alhaitham answered. “A lot of things have happened… and I think she finally came to her senses.”

“It’s hard to imagine she changed.”

“What happened between you and Mom?”

“She didn’t tell you?”

“...She was very vague,” Alhaitham said.

His father sighed. “...Your mother became obsessed with her career. When she got a promotion, she was already thinking about the next one. I found it admirable at first, but she started using questionable methods to get there.”

“...Questionable methods? Like what?”

“She would use people. And, after getting what she wants, she tossed them aside. I… made a suggestion to her one day, but when things didn’t go as planned, she changed entirely.”

“...What happened?”

“One of her colleagues stole her work. It was a market research report that your mother had been working on for a couple of months. Their company hired someone new after one of her colleagues left. Your mother was a top performer, so”—he sighed—“I suggested she let that new colleague take a look at her report so he can learn from her."

“And that person stole it?”

“...That’s right. He handed it in as his own. I think that was when our relationship really spiralled downwards”

“...Does your mom know that you know about this?” you ask.

“She knows I talked to him, but she didn’t ask about the details. Perhaps she doesn’t want to deal with the past anymore.”

A small pause.

“...I have to say,” you begin, and Alhaitham looks at you. “Your mother may have been trying to protect herself, but selfishness can only go so far before it comes back to bite you.”

“...That’s true. It’s a lesson she learned the hard way.”

And you hope she’ll never forget it.

…

…

…

Two years later

“Do you ever miss being a cat?” Childe asks.

You, Alhaitham, and Childe are having lunch together at Lambad’s Tavern on a sunny afternoon.

That’s a question Alhaitham never thought he’d have to answer. But… it has finally happened. Ever since you and Alhaitham officially got back together, he has never turned back into a cat.

“What about you?” you ask Childe.

As Childe's relationship with his parents got progressively better, his cat transformation also began to die. Now that more of his scripts are getting approved for production, Childe hasn't transformed for nearly a month.

“There’s not really a lot of perks to being a cat,” Childe says. “The only perk would be cuddles with Lumine.”

You give him a slight deadpan look, and he smiles.

Then, you hear Ayato’s voice.

The three of you turn to the TV and see him and his female co-star talking to a journalist.

“He’s been really busy nowadays,” Alhaitham says.

Childe looks at you. “We have you to blame for that."

It’s been almost two years since you officially finished the script for My Boss is My Cat. You’ve worked on it tirelessly, but you had a great support system. After telling Alhaitham that it was loosely based on your relationship with him, he gave you a kiss and said that it would be an absolute hit.

Well, he wasn’t entirely wrong.

You may not have won Best Screenwriter for the effort you put into My Boss is My Cat, but you’re still proud that the company liked it enough to produce it. In the end, Ayato got cast as the male lead and was in the running for a few awards.

The last time you and The Strays talked to him, Ayato said that his transformation was also wearing off. But it was when he was nominated that he noticed that he hasn’t been transforming during his kiss scenes. You still remember the small smile he had when he said he never thought he’d be wishing to transform into a cat.

“Well, what can I say?” you ask with a small smile. “Everyone likes a good cat story.”

“Maybe I should write one, too,” Childe jokes. Then, he looks at you and Alhaitham. “By the way, aren’t you two moving in together?”

You and Alhaitham look at each other and smile. That’s right. You and Alhaitham are moving in together. After Alhaitham’s temporary tenure as CEO, he went on to pursue a higher position than before at Akademiya. And since he’s no longer your boss, your relationship is no longer a secret. What’s more convenient is now that Lumine got a new job as a character designer for a gaming company, she’s looking for a new place. Yours just happen to be free and closer to her company.

“...So, don’t tell me it’s just going to be the two of you,” Childe continues.

“Someone’s nosy,” Alhaitham says, half-jokingly.

“Aw, man, I just want to know if there’s like… I don’t know! A wedding or something!”

You and Alhaitham look at each other again. Then, you look at Childe. “When the time is right, it’ll happen naturally.”

Childe sighs. “So, I guess I won’t be a Godfather anytime soon.” When Childe catches a knowing look between you and Alhaitham, he gasps. “Wait, don’t tell me you’re…”

"No," you say. "But... I wouldn't say we're completely child-free."

Childe looks from you to Alhaitham. “What is this supposed to mean? I need an explanation!”

◆◆◆

Later that weekend, you and Alhaitham invite Lumine and Childe over for lunch. As soon as Alhaitham opens the door, your newly adopted kitten slowly gets up from his cat bed and walks over. 

“He’s so cute!” Lumine gushes as she crouches. She extends her arms and the kitten walks closer so she can pick him up. "What did you name him?"

“When we adopted him, the person says he responds to the name Kazuha,” you say.

“Kazuha?” Childe asks. “Why Kazuha?”

“Not sure. It was the name that was in the box they found him in."

“How could anyone abandon a poor, innocent animal like that?” Lumine huffs, standing up with Kazuha in her arms.

Childe walks over and leans close to the cat who stares at him. “Is it just me or is he kinda quiet?”

You laugh. “You have no idea how much he tried to attack Haitham’s hair.”

“His hair?”

You point to the strand of hair that’s sticking out from the top of Alhaitham’s head.

“Glad it’s still in one piece,” Childe says with a smile.

"And I hope it stays that way," Alhaitham says.

Kazuha hops out of Lumine's arms and onto the couch. "Wouldn't it be funny if Kazuha isn't actually a cat?" she jokes.

You and Alhaitham glance at each other. "What makes you say that?" he asks.

“Oh, it’s nothing. I just thought it would be funny if you happened to adopt a cat who’s also afflicted with the curse.”

“Surely we would’ve noticed a stranger in the house," you say. "We adopted him a while ago."

Lumine chuckles. “Yeah, that’s true.”

Then, your sister and Childe head to the kitchen to grab drinks. You and Alhaitham are about to follow them when you hear a soft meow. Both of you stop and turn around. After Kazuha cleans his face with his paw, he looks at you and Alhaitham and winks.

You've heard of cats winking, so this shouldn't be anything unusual. Right? You and Alhaitham glance at each other.

...Right?

End Notes:

...FIN.

You and Haitham are now proud parents of cat Kazuha who may or may not be... the real Kazuha. XD.

Will there be a sequel of you and Haitham raising Kazuha? ...Erm, probably not.

BUT

There might be a separate spin-off cat Kazuha story in the future. I already have an idea for it. Of course, the pairing will be You/Kazuha but the "you" in that story will obviously not be the same one here. It'll be a separate story with mentions/references to this one.

It still hasn't hit me that MBIMC is over. But you and Alhaitham's story has ended. When I started this story three or so months ago, I never thought it would get this many views. So, thank you for all the love and support <3

And now... I can finally start on the fic that's been plaguing me for months LOL. Any Honkai Star Rail readers here? :> You may see me pop up in that fandom soon...

But until then, TAKE CARE <3

Tag list: @suoshiii @lordbugs @lxry-chxn @seirenspinel @sakiimeo @ash-in-lavender @ceylestia @forsh4dow @deathkat657 @kalpie @elernity @sentieence @chichibleeps @sunsethw4 @hjjks @tanspostsblog @nqctre @just-simping-over-genshin @uchihaeirin @vynbin @ayanokomu @dksfl920 @rin1802 @itztaki @thetwinkims @imkaaayy @angeilix @starlighttotheleft @letthewindlead @certaindreampost @winterpein @theprinceofkhaos @warrior-of-justice @vvyeislazzy @n8mareee

[han-jislay]

underrated bokuaka fics #2

these are only some fics i have read, they're all underrated!! they make me feel giddy and they feed my bokuaka addiction.

ex revenge hot line | Lxnn word count: 63, 388

akaashi's side job is to get hired from someone who got hurt to date their ex and break their heart

↳ a little angsty at the end, but happy ending never the less. "you're not evil, just heartbroken."

say yes | kazzydolyn word count: 7, 721

5 times bokuto asks akaashi a question and 1 time akaashi has a life changing question for bokuto

↳ very cute and makes me feel single in 100 ways. 5+1 trend!!

call me koutarou | kazzydolyn word count: 2, 888

akaashi tries to break the enduring habit of calling bokuto "bokuto-san"

↳ i see this as very canon, this story is so well depicted! not ooc at all.

soft blue | groaninlynch word count: 6, 031

akaashi is unaware he lost his sketchbook and bokuto takes a sneak peek

↳ literally the reason why i wanted to make this list. 100% underrated!!! i love this so much

the great mystery of a hickey | sunnybluesky word count: 25, 479

hinata, atsumu and sakusa go on a mission to find the mystery lover that gave bokuto a hickey

↳ a bit long, and the trio is a bit stupid but it's bokuaka so no complaints

i pretend you're mine, all the damn time | glitterati word count: 4, 326

bokuto asks akaashi for kissing practice because of a girl

↳ oh how the turns have tabled. this story got me hanging by a thread.

cat and kid | norio word count: 2, 817

kenma gets a misunderstanding about akaashi and his cat, bokuto-san

↳ norio's works are so good yet underrated!!! this story was a rollercoaster and i swear i had no idea what was happening. poor kenma must've felt 2x worse.

the impaled | norio word count: 2, 184

bokuto is a vampire hunter and akaashi owns an antique store

↳ you know when you want a part two so bad?? yeah. this one is the one.

cookies and cream | norio word count: 5, 840

akaashi has a habit of stress baking

↳ i think this is one of my favourites, i love baking and bokuaka, what a perfect combination.

nine hundred lies | norio word count: 8, 454

akaashi is a big fat liar. happy ending

↳ it's a happy ending, but akaashi lies through his teeth. do you think there's a confession?

one in a hundred | norio word count: 4, 080

though he has no proof, bokuto thinks dating akaashi would be easier if he didn't try to break up with him all the time

↳ akaashi second guesses himself so much, it projects onto his relationship. damn

4am | talonyth word count: 13, 448

akaashi doesn't call often, let alone at an ungodly hour

↳ i was quite conflicted about this story but it's actually quite good, especially at the end! almost like a slow burn. but medium. so medium burn.

wing man | CheekyBrunette word count: 8, 366

kuroo doesn't let anyone date bokuto that doesn't meet his standards. fortunately, akaashi does

↳ bokuroo is like peak comedy and friendship goals! oh to have a friend like kuroo. this story was quite nice and it's more of kuroo's pov than anything.

hanging by a moment | gabstar word count: 1, 169

finding the perfect moment isn't always easy

↳ my descriptions are so bad oml, i can't really remember what this was about, but i do remember that akaashi and bokuto has their own pace, and a lot of people like to interfere.

[halfetirosie]

🐾 ☀︎ Babes and Babies! (I'm having a great time already!!!) ☀︎ 🐾

(Exercise 01 - 03 React-os!)

1) Yup, of course my workaholic wife here would be a fan of the fitness craze 😂😂😂

Edmond will 100% be taking this opportunity to introduce his HELLISH TRAINING ROUTINE to the public... Tell you what, doing that would make the exercise trend die down in a hurry! 😂😂😂

2) Not 2 seconds later and he's already at it!

I read a fanfic about this a while ago, actually--where Yaku is going through some self-esteem struggles and also trying to bond with Edmond, and they end up training together... I don't have the time to search for it right now, though. Just trust me, it exists!

3) FUCK, talk about a reminder of Quincy's insane strength!!! (⊙ ⌓ ⊙)

Kinda funny that of all things to compete in, he's doing an arm-wrestling contest---which the devs said he wouldn't take seriously if he were up against Olivine, because he wouldn't take it seriously.

I know this situation is different, since he's competing for the prize, but still... It makes me wonder; if Olivine was competing against him in this contest (and not just arm-wrestling casually for fun), would he take it seriously THEN??

Damn, I would love to see that!

4) !!!!!

SOOLEYYYY!!!!!!! OUR BOYYYY!!!!!!

FUCKING FINALLY, an event that includes him!!!!! I missed him!!!! (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)

5) Gahhhh!!!

CUUUTTTEEEE!!!!!!

The heroic return of 🐾 Cat Dad Dante 🐾 !!! ♡♡♡

Omg this is such a typical Pet Owner thing to say---"It's not Fluffy's fault he tried to attack you! Fluffy is a perfect angel! You're the problem!" 😂

6) These absolute ICONS---

I love it when we get to see Dante's competitive side--it is soooo fuckin CUTE!!!! Add in Karu--- DOUBLE CUTE!!!!!---Add Casual Quincy---TRIPLE CUTE!!!!!!!!

(I feel like I'm the only one that ever calls Quincy "cute." Like, Everyone calls him hot and sexy and all that jazz, but why not cute?? This friendly sleepy giant is CUTE!!!)

I also love how Eiden is subtly gushing over these three's athleticism. We see him fawning over their sexiness like all the time, but here he's focusing on their achievements. ✨

(Not that he never does that. It's just nice to see!)

7) Oh???? It's not a part-time job mentioned this time, but a college Phase???

I honestly cannot picture Eiden ever being a gym rat.

(I suspect a large motivation of his gym attendance was checking out the hot guys---which is certainly in-character---but other than that? Very unexpected! I guess I'm too used to the Out-Of-Shape-Corporate-Slave Eiden to see him at the gym regularly. 😅)

8) PFFFFT!!!!! 😂😂😂

It's so in-character for Kuya to 1) suddenly pop up out of nowhere, and 2) show such intense interest in Eiden explaining Normal Earth Things™.

It's so damn endearing, it almost makes me forget how pissed I got at his foxy-bitchness last event!

Almost. (⊙ - ⊙)

9) Morvay Sweetie, I love you so much! 🤣

I mean, the joke was right there (and TWICE, at that)!

♡ He's so stupid and I love him! ♡

10) SOMEONE NEEDS TO STOP EIDEN FROM NAMING ANYTHING, EVER!!!!!

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Poor Topper---he has to deal with so much nonsense because he can't speak human language. ♡

11) HIS INTROVERT LEVEL IS OVER NINE THOUSANDDDDD!!!!

Quincy, babes, you should know better than to resist their antics. You'll get pulled into it eventually!

:D

12) YOUR SILENCE SPEAKS LOUDER THAN YOUR WORDS

😈 ♥︎ 😈 ♥︎ 😈 ♥︎ 😈 ♥︎ 😈 ♥︎ 😈 ♥︎ 😈 ♥︎ 😈 ♥︎ 😈

You know, it's honestly impressive how the characters are so well-written that their silence is sometimes more powerful than their actual dialogue.

Less seriously---Aster is SO REAL FOR THIS.

He knows exactly how to bait people (or guess, Dante in particular) to do his bidding!

Eiden is the best motivation!!! 😈😈😈

13) (⸝⸝ o̴̶̷ ◡ o̴̶̷ ⸝⸝)

♡♡♡ Baby ♡♡♡

🐾 End of report! 🐾

[thegeminisage]

star trek update time! monday we did voy's "prey" and ds9's "honor among thieves" and last night we did voy's "retrospect" and ds9's "change of heart."

prey (voy):

man, i guess we really are just dealing with the hirogen for the rest of this season and possibly more huh...

like, theyre just not that interesting or scary? it's fun that they turn guys into little empty water balloons and all but that's really all they've got going for them

idk, voyager has a such a unique opportunity to do multiple cool "villain" aliens given the nature of their journey and they just keep coming up with duds. like at least romulans and klingons are cool, you know? the borg are cool. the kazon, vidiians, and hirogen have all kind of sucked. at least the vidiians had fun creep potential. they did wear that one guy's face.

however it gets a reluctant semi-pass from me because firstly the ethical debate was not so clear-cut - at first you were like yeah this alien is going bananas on our ship let this guy hunt it and then when he hunted it and it was so pathjetic and just wanted to go home you were like eeeh maybe just let it go home. not anything particularly deep, but still

and SECONLDY seven of nine and janeway's tension...fucking crackling. i don't like that janeway was so mean to her at the end and seven has a GREAT point that janeway is sort of afraid of who she's becoming (someone "cold") and wants her to become a more acceptable kind of person...man, the autism. anyway that scene was great. the rest of the episode kind of sucked though

honor among thieves (ds9):

the premise of this one is awfully shaky...like, starfleet can just order o'brien to do undercover work against his will? sure??

also, i know this bond was supposed to be more father/son but honestly they just played it like two byofriends falling in love. which was hilarious, but cannot sustain an episode

like. most of it was pretty boring. we didn't even get a good little vorta freak. i know they can't use weyoun bc he would have recognized o'brien instantly but also can we not find some other little freaky twink...we've done it before. come on

also, it was a fucking bummer. like he had to leave behind his cat and just die.

like it had very little substance or lasting impact...it wasn't even a good o'brien suffering episode. idk. surprising dud from ds9

retrospect (voy):

ooh when i tell you this episode made me mad.

i actually saw the summary on imdb, suspected it would be hinky, and then read the background info on memory alpha to get a better idea of what was gonna go down. i figured it would makle me really really REALLY mad and i was right but if i had sat thru that whole episode thinking seven had been raped or sorry metaphorically raped or whatever and then it turned out the aesop was about the danger of FALSE MEMORIES AND FALSE ACCUSATIONS i would have been beside myself

like sure yes false memories can and do happen and that's real bad. however, this whole episode was anti believe women. like, the emh looks like a stupid jackass for believing a woman. tuvok and janeway look smart for doubting and questioning her. etc etc

and then of course seven gets traumatized when she's ALREADY having a bad time/in trouble and then has to feel bad that this guy killed himself or whatever

and then on memory alpha it says they meant to leave it deliberately vague as to whether he assaulted her or not which 1. that didn't seem very vague, it seemed like seven was a silly little liar for believing the emh and the emh was fucking stupid for believing seven. and then poor uwu guy who killed himself 2. IS NOT EVEN A GREAT STAND-UP GUY. DID WE NOT SEE HIM SHOVE HER AND YELL AT HER. maybe if he shoved her he deserved to get his nose broken! lmao at how everyone wanted to two-sides that encounter as well when we clearly saw him get physical first 3 IF IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE VAGUE WHY DID EVERYONE AT THE END CHOOSE TO BELIEVE IT WAS FALSE like it's """left open""" but also the emh begs janeway to KILL HIM at the end so he can never fuck up this bad again?? it's not left vague, it's a fucking copout

whoever wrote this should be ashamed. they probably vote third party. fucking asshats. easily the worst in s4 so far and perhaps in the ranking for worst voyager episode so far

change of heart (ds9):

WAHHHH this one was so good

i've always thought worf and dax were cute but i was never INVESTED before this. you know?? now i'm invested. and i do unfortunately know how things go for jadzia in the futuire

i really thought worf would never leave her there but he DID and then he went back..........wah

AND!!!!!!!!!!!!! sisko had to yell at him about it officially but personally told him he did the right thing WAHHHH

i hope jadzia got the honeymoon of her fucking life later. jesus christ she's got him totally wrapped around her little finger. like the heart eyes he gives her...absolutely incredible

card game: i thot bashir was acting to put quark off guard. like he was pretending to be sad. but no. he really did get got.

hilarious also that quark continues to pine.......she really did break so many hearts huh. worf got sooo lucky

TONIGHT: we haven't decided yet, it's either voy's "killing game parts 1 & 2" or ds9's "wrongs darker than death or night" and "inquisition." i definitely know which of those I'M looking forward to most.

[humanoidtyphoons]

sugar apple fairy tale vol 3 / episode 9-12 comparison thoughts:

-ah, so the anime totally cuts hugh meeting the workshop masters, and mentioning his history, of how he was an orphan and took on an sugar candy apprenticeship and now, twenty years later, guess who is an amazing silver sugar viscount? this guy! yeah, i can see why the anime cut this, but it does explain how hugh was such a good pickpocket enough to steal challe's wing.

-ngl, i... i kinda ship challe/kat. like. kat breathes, and challe, without any prompting, decides it's time for a cat pun. and he knows it drives kat mad!!! he's absolutely having the time of his life provoking kat, and i'm just like. you gotta be having some kind of big dumb crush on kat and can't handle it, because oh my god challe. it's way more prevalent in the light novel, and i cannot help but snicker. look, it's just. if challe disliked kat, he could easily treat him coldly, like he does with bridget, he could be polite and aloof like he tends to be with everyone else. but nooooo, challe loves making the cat puns, and kat is just!!! why!!!! why does this amuse you so!!! that cat pun doesn't even make sense! chaIle just loves winding kat up, bless him, and no one can stop this menace! so i think challe also loves kat's unchanging reactions! (it is v. v. cute!)

-they merge the meeting of anne/keith in the radcliffe workshop. in the light novel, anne briefly meets keith when he puts a stop to jonas and the radcliffe boys in book 2, nine months pass, and anne thinks he looks familiar but can't place him when they meet again in book 3. in the anime, they meet for the first time. tbh, this makes sense to save time for the story.

-also omg, anne/keith is so so cute! like i absolutely noticed how swoony keith gets, he has a couple of romantic moments in the anime, where the music swells, and rereading the novel, it's so cute how keith does naturally bring out a lightness in anne? he gets her to relax and feel comfortable and have fun, and those interactions are adorable! he respects her as a fellow sugar artisan, he treats her as a warm friend, and like, yeah, by the end i kinda do want them to have crushes on each other, they think so highly of each other! i also like the similarity of their backstory: how they're both children of sugar viscounts, and that he briefly met emma halford.

-lmaooo at jealous!challe tho. how he thinks he's selfish with anne, but also... cannot stop himself, cannot figure it out what he's feeling, what it means, so unlike his relationship with liz, but he must draw comparisons, because how else is he going to make sense of it!! ngl, i think the voice actor does a terrific voice making challe sound extra emotional when he's around anne, like it's just so good! it's warm! she's precious to him! he does not want to leave her!!!

-matchmaker!mithril!!!! stupid cute!!! i love mithril asking challe silly questions that are supposed to be for anne's benefit, but challe just doesn't get it, and tho anne is flattered at the help, it... still annoying tho... but then she tries to ask the same question herself and chickens out. anne!!!

-tbh, while i do think bridget & anne are good foils to each other, how they treat challe, i was actually kinda interested in bridget being foils with both challe & jonas this time around. bridget thinks she's in love with challe, but what she feels is nothing more than entitlement, which challe tries to spell out to her, to no avail, when she's actually in love with orlando, i think? it's been a while since i watched part 2 of the anime. but challe thinks he's in love with liz, and doesn't really get why liz says he's not, and actually he's in love with anne and can't recognize it for what it is. jonas & bridget being foils, again, falsely claiming that they're in love with anne/challe, but also being the reason anne & challe separate this time around, jonas forces anne to send anne away to create his escape from duke alburn, bridget forces challe to barter himself in order to save anne.

-oh jonas, i can never hate you. his arc has been so interesting to me, that i can't help but wonder what's in store for him, honestly! i wish i could have found out what he intended to make but alas: expulsion from the radcliffe workshop. i don't think he hates anne, despite what he says, but he can't really deal with his emotions, and it's easier to misdirect them so people don't know what he's really feeling. like honestly, i think he's ashamed of himself, and while he doesn't like anne all that much right now, he does owe her, and he doesn't want her hurt. so he just -- he's not sure what to do with himself, or how to deal with his insecurity besides leave anne alone, for most part. i think he wavers slightly more in the light novel, tbh, like he looks out for her in his own awkward way, but only barely.

-i think it's interesting how the anime changed anne&challe visiting the cathedral slightly. in the light novel, people aren't supposed to know the fairy king's name, at least say it aloud, and they get directed elsewhere if they want to know the history, and if they can read highlandian: luckily challe can, so he whispers it all into anne's ear, so no one can hear them. totally makes sense to cut some of this tbh, bc it's not that necessary, and the anime includes the important parts, but it was still a neat worldbuilding detail tbh.

-so sad that mithril driving kat (and benjamin, tho he was snoozing for most of it) insane got cut tho!!! mithril, the best wingman!! staying behind to give anne some privacy spending time with challe!! he's doing his best!! meaning that he hangs out with kat instead!!!

-also!!! i kind of didn't get why benjamin would call mithril suru-suru in the light novel, honestly? but rewatching the anime, and benjamin sleepily calls mithril... sithril...? i got it more. like i knew he was mispronouncing mithril's name, but it's easier to make sense of it in the anime because of the audio imo.

-anne and challe's separation is way more emotional in the anime, tbh? like it is sad in the light novel too, but the way everything gets animated and played out in the anime, i just get swept up in the emotion of it all. these star crossed lovers!!! how can i not cry! whereas the light novel, bc it's more interested in the aftermath of the competition: keith & anne looking forward to future competitions, anne understanding what the real/imitation meant when it happened with duke alburn, and then the slow dawning of anne & challe separating... doesn’t feel quite as sad, i think imo? anne's voice actor is really great, as she's trying to figure out why challe is leaving, and he doesn't properly explain himself beyond that he doesn't want to leave her, but he has to. the anime's visuals... tore at the heartstrings.

so, in the end, i think i'm bumping up my rating of 9/10 to a 10/10, because i do think the anime did a great job at capturing the fairy tale feeling of it all, the slice of life moments, the friendships anne forms along the way and the obstacles she overcomes. i like how the confectionery looks different to the normal graphics. it did a wonderful adaptation, and did justice to the characters, and how they're slowly falling in love with each other, and no matter what format i consume this story, it is just delightful in every way!

[lyrahaven]

The official title for my fourth book, coming in October of 2024, is These Dark Hours! (actual cover coming soon)

This book is a M/M paranormal romance about Alex, a reluctant psychic who just wants to run his bookshop in peace. Unfortunately, he can see ghosts and when he finds a dead body, he can't exactly explain to the cops that he found it because the ghost led him there. Add in the fact that the man he's been flirting with turns out to be a detective and his best friend is a snarky ghost with a trashy reality tv addiction and you've got a recipe for chaos!

Below is a tiny snippet from early on in the book. His living best friend, Raina, runs a coffeeshop called Buns 'n' Roses with her girlfriend, Camille. Alex has had a bad day and ends up in the hospital.

*********************************************************

As badly as I wanted to tell Raina, I couldn’t bring myself to say the words. I knew I could trust her, but what if I was wrong? I couldn’t lose her, but I couldn’t lie to her face, either.

“I… I found a dead body,” I whispered into the brittle silence. I couldn’t tell her the whole truth, but I could give her something.

“What?!” She clapped her hand over her mouth when it came out as a screech, belatedly stifling herself.

“Out by the lake,” I nodded. “I called the police, but I think I was in shock or something, so they took me here.”

“Are you fucking serious?”

“I wish I was fucking Sirius. The actor who played him in the movies was hot.”

Raina blinked and I could tell she was torn between laughing and slapping me. Both won, in the end, and she was fighting back a smile when she smacked my arm. “Alex, come on. You know what I mean.”

“I know. I just really, really want to forget about it. It was… fuck, Raina. It was bad.”

“What were you even doing out at the lake this early, though? You can barely drag yourself to the coffee shop before nine to meet up with Donovan. I mean, I’m gay as hell and can still see he’s worth getting out of bed for.”

“I mean, I was kind of hoping to be getting into bed with him, but…”

“Alex.” She didn’t smack my arm again, but I could tell it was close.

“You’ve got the whole ‘mom voice’ thing nailed. God help any kids you and Camille decide to have,” I teased. She didn’t take the bait this time, though, just leveled a steady glare at me until I subsided. “I couldn’t sleep.”

“So you decided to go walking in the middle of the night, in November, by a lake?”

Maybe she should be working with Donovan. At least I could practice my lies with her before the actual police inevitably came to question me. I was surprised they weren’t here already, honestly.

“I wanted to get to the old clearing. Remember the one I showed you, on the far side?” It wasn’t much, a tiny outcropping jutting out into the lake, but it was private. Only a few locals knew about it and most didn’t bother walking all that way when there was a perfectly good beach right by the entrance.

“It couldn’t have waited until after sunrise, though?” she pressed.

“It seemed like a good idea at the time. Aunt Lizzie was the one who first took me there, back when I was a kid. I guess I just needed to feel close to her for awhile.” Grief choked off my words. Even after six years, her death still hurt. At least I knew she’d forgive me for using her in a lie like this. She’d want me to protect myself.

“So you took off walking in the middle of the night. Ugh. Men,” Raina sighed, voice heavy with resignation. “You’ve literally watched crime shows with me and bitched about how stupid people are for going wandering in the woods.”

“It’s always the people out exercising and walking their dogs that find the dead bodies. That’s why I have a Netflix subscription and a cat,” I agreed.

*****************************************************************

[lostusagis]

MUSE QUESTIONAIRE ( TO BE ANSWERED IC. )

name / “My name is Kamui!”

are you single ? “Yeah, and I plan to keep it that way.”

are you happy ? “Sure, I get to do whatever I want, fight whenever I want. I'm really happy!”

are you angry ? “Not right now I guess?

are your parents still married ? “Next question.”

NINE FACTS !

birth place / “The planet called Rakuyo.”

hair colour / “Auburn? I think? I don't know a lot of color names.”

eye colour / “Blue.”

birthday / “June 1st!”

Mood / “I’m in a pretty good mood right now!”

Gender / “Male.”

summer or winter / “Winter obviously, Yatos can't handle the sun.”

morning or afternoon / “Doesn't really matter to me.”

EIGHT THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE !

are you in love? “No.''

you believe in love at first sight ? “Sounds like crap in my opinion.”

who ended your last relationship ? “I’ve never been in one.”

have you ever broken someone’s heart ? “Who knows, if I did, I hope they're suffering a lot for being stupid enough to fall in love with me.''

are you afraid of commitment ? “Not interested in dating at all actually.''

have you hugged someone within the last week ? “No.”

have you ever had a secret admirer ? “I've had annoying women try and pursue me, but I usually take care of them once they start getting annoying.”

have you ever broken your own heart ? “No?”

SIX CHOICES !

love or lust / ''

lemonade or ice tea / “Lemonade!”

cats or dogs / “Cats! I love cats. Dogs are for idiots, like my sister and her ugly, overgrown dog.”

a few best friends or many regular friends / “Friendship is for idiots.”

wild night out or romantic night in / “A wild night out!”

day or night / “The night so I won't have to carry my umbrella around.”

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS !

been caught sneaking out / “As a kid I did used to sneak out sometimes, I got caught every time.”

fallen down / up the stairs / “Neither, I'm not that much of an idiot.”

wanted something / someone so badly it hurt ? “…Hahaha, how about we skip this question.”

wanted to disappear / “..........”

FIVE PREFERENCES !

smile or eyes / “I guess I really like smiles?”

fat or skinny / “Don't really care about that.”

shorter or taller / “Don't care about that either.”

intelligence or attraction / “I actually would prefer if I was able to fight them.”

hook - up or relationship / ''Neither.''

FAMILY !

do you and your family get along ? “My relationship with my sister has improved a lot, but I hope my bald father steps into a pit of lava and perishes”

would you say you have a “ messed up life ” ? “I kill for fun, so probably.”

have you ever ran away from home ? “No.”

have you ever gotten kicked out ? “Uhhh no?”

FRIENDS !

do you secretly hate one of your friends ? “Again, I think friendship is stupid and pointless!”

do you consider all your friends good friends ? “I don't have any friends!”

who is your best friend? “No one.''

who knows everything about you ? “I guess..... Abuto would be one, I've known him for a really long time, and my sister.”

[benkyoutobentou]

31 Days of Productivity Reading: Day twenty six

Before: I’m going to the bookstore today! The next volume of Guardian by Priest comes out in English today so I’ll be picking that up and using the opportunity to study some more. I should probably study Japanese today, though…

I don’t really have any other goals for today. Based on the amount of pages I have left in ベルばら, even if I only read for my minimum hour I should still have time to read some 憎らしい彼.

After: Second chamomile harvest of the season! My first harvest is still drying so I haven't had any tea from my garden yet, but I'm very excited for that day to come!

I also finally started a new anime today after feeling like there just wasn't anything I wanted to watch for quite some time. I'm watching 美少年探偵団 now! I read the book a few years back and it was honeslty a supremely bizarre experience. It was the first book I ever read in Japanese, it was extremely difficult to get through (and would probably still be hard for me, based on what others in the book club had said), and I think the majority of us in the book club, myself included, didn't realize going into it that it was a parody novel. I suddenly remembered that it had an anime adaptation, and absolutely had to watch it. Knowing the original, watching it is so much fun. It's supremely ridiculous in every single way and, personally, I find that to be a bonus, especially going in expecting it. And afterwards, I had a dog and a cat laying in my lap, so I couldn't just get up. Luckily I had planned to be trapped in my seat and wasn't caught without my book, so I also got some reading in.

I also had a bit too much success at the book store. In addition to my usual book store study time, I went for Guardian and ended up picking up A Botanical Daughter by Noah Medlock as well. I knew that there was a book I had looked up recently that was in stock at my store, but couldn't remember what it was. As soon as I saw this, though, I knew that that was the one for me. And while I'm thinking of it, I'm going to put some of my books on my tbr into the little free library near my house. There are a couple that I just don't see myself reading anymore, and I would rather free up that space to house books I actually want to read.

I finished ベルサイユのばら volume two today! I read 69 pages over an hour and one minute for an average reading pace of 1.1 pages per minute. So, I guess I was wrong about being able to finish the volume in under an hour, but I still have time in the day to get to more reading tonight. I think it's fair to say now that my average reading pace with this series is a page per minute, which is actually really nice in giving myself a close estimate as to how long a single volume is going to take me. Also, even with just two volumes under my belt, I'm noticing that I'm getting used to the style and vocabulary of the series. I'm looking up less words as I see the same ones appear and reappear.

I'm already thinking about what manga I want to read tomorrow, and I think I might jump ship to another series... This is why I read so many one shots and 2-3 volume series; I just can't stick to one thing long term unless I'm a little bit too obsessed. I'm a one volume at a time type of person.

Even though I didn't get a whole lot of time to read 憎らしい彼 today, I did read some! I read eight pages today over thirty eight minutes, for an average reading pace of 4.75 minutes per page. That's certainly not my best reading pace, but it id getting pretty late, so that might be slowing down my pace. My total reading time for the day was an hour and thirty nine minutes.

[besidesitstoowarm]

Davies era recap?

sorry i've been procrastinating on this one so bad. i spent three weeks in costa rica thinking about jurassic park. tbh i don't know what to say about the specials or the era overall that i haven't said already

nine feels so beautiful post-time war, traumatized and snappish but also light and warm and kind. he was once a father and grandfather and now he is neither but he is still a doctor!! s1 feels so much richer after having seen "day of the doctor" tbh i know how we got here! it was hard, agonizing, impossible choices. yet he's still here, and he chooses love every time. a coward. he would rather doom the entire universe as long as it kills him too; he cannot survive another genocide. he can't see it happen again. if he can't prevent it, he just wants to not see it. i love nine so much

and then ten. ten is more built from nine than ANY other regeneration i can think of. ten is rose, he's bad wolf, he's nine. he's the echo of donna, of tentoo. ten is someone struggling to find his place between "where he's already been, as remembered by rose" and "where he is destined to go, via donna" like he is so dragged along by fate. mf is a full on greek tragedy, he does NOT know what is going on

that's what makes the specials such a wreck (good/bad). when he was with rose, they were a painful but understandable match. with martha, kinda middle ground. with donna, it was fate. after them? after tentoo, after the most important woman in all creation? he's adrift. he clings to randos, he tries to be the hero so hard. and he fails. he trips and cries and sobs like a huge loser, over and over again. i do love him (and tennant is fully failed by 2/4 specials) but he's unraveling! little baby duck imprinted on their mommy who is gone. what's left, after that? martyr/savior complex and dubiously gay shit, i guess

tennant is a marvel, i have to say this. eccleston too, in different ways. davies has such a wonderfully human touch with these characters, iirc moffat draws a lot from fairy tales while davies pulled a lot from modern social commentary. jack is... something, but it was a different time. ten/master is sooooooo much. this era ended more than a decade ago

all in all, davies era is beautiful, it's decadent. it's complete nonsense bullshit a good chunk of time, but i don't think that's a negative; doctor who is like star wars to me, where i truly genuinely believe it's at its best when it's kind of bad. i mean, late 60s is MY era of who. base under siege nonsense galore. farting aliens. doctor who should be bad, in order to be good. i mean this, genuinely. attack of the clones is great. you get it

i feel more comfortable leaning into this ending knowing what comes later; knowing that davies comes back, knowing that ten becomes fourteen eventually and cleans up his shit, knowing that donna gets a better, more complete ending. it's honestly hard to say what i would think about this era without knowing about the 60th; i do think "journey's end" is a nonsense bullshit episode that is nonetheless very fun to watch, however cruel an ending it is for donna. very grateful we got a redux. moffat is writing for this new davies era too i'm so excited i want to throw up

anyway! excited to re-enter the moffat era but davies had so much sway over the new tone of the show, so much feels so dated but there's no denying the impact his episodes had at the time. there were cat people. it was thematically consistent. god i love it all so much. quel domage!

[demonsfate]

LAYER ONE: THE OUTSIDE.

name: abaddon, but only azazel knows him by that name. most call him devil, but some will call him devil jin or, more affectionately, dj

eye color: bright red, gold post purification.

hair style/color: raven spiky hair, ends split since it's a lil messy, bangs hang down his face but are parted in the middle.

height: 6'0"

clothing style: gothic - like, usually prefers to wear black, even if it's just casual tees. he loves wearing suits & big jackets because he thinks they make him resemble a king. he loves leather, too. to adorn his look, sometimes he'll wear a necklace.

best physical feature: eyes & lips. but he does have an 8-pack ...

LAYER TWO: THE INSIDE.

your fears: "is it weird to say i can't think of anything? i suppose the only fear i have as of current is failing jin and the people i care about."

your guilty pleasure: "why would i feel ... okay, i do sometimes smell humans, and get hungry ... i really like smelling them because of that, but i'll never eat somebody again, i swear."

your ambitions for the future: “before, i wanted to conquer the world, and eventually eradicate humanity. now? i think i just want to live with jin. i know i'll never make up for my actions, but i hope to make amends as much as i can."

LAYER THREE: THOUGHTS.

your first thoughts waking up: “i wonder what jin will do today, and what i'll do when he gives me my time of the day. it feels like i can do so much yet so little at the same time...”

what you think about most: "i spend a lot of time thinking about the past. yes, it's something i've accepted, but it's still something that creeps up on me at times. a habit i need to get over.”

what you think about before bed: "excited to find out what i'll learn about humans and living tomorrow."

what you think your best quality is: "my strength. i think i'm capable of using it for good.”

WHAT’S BETTER?

single or group dates: “every date's a group date when you share your body with someone.”

to be loved or respected: “hm... loved.”

beauty or brains: “can i say strength?”

dogs or cats:  “i don't know... cats climb me, but dogs bark at me, both of which annoy me. can i say neither?”

LAYER FIVE: DO YOU…

lie:  “aside from fighting, lying used to be what i was best at. i try to refrain from it now.”

believe in yourself: “absolutely.”

believe in love: “i do now.”

want someone: “yes.”

LAYER SIX: EVER BEEN…

been on stage: “what kind of stage? i used to give many speeches as the zaibatsu leader.”

done drugs: “weed, i guess.”

changed who you were to fit in: “does pretending to be someone else for the benefit of a plan counts?”

LAYER SEVEN: FAVORITES.

favorite color: “black and red!”

favorite animal: “i'm still not very interested in animals. Birds are somewhat fascinating, though.”

favorite movie: “jin and i watched riki-oh recently and it was funny."

favorite game: “super mario bros. 3 has been quite entertaining."

LAYER EIGHT: AGE.

day your next birthday will be: “august 5th.”

how old will you be: “23, i guess.”

age you lost your virginity: “hmm...” ( depends on verse, but usually 21/22)

does age matter: “sometimes. usually i prefer someone within my age range. obviously, i don't want them 80, and i don't want them to be children either, yuck.”

LAYER NINE: IN A PERSON.

best personality: "i like confident people who are strong and can put up a good fight. high spirited people who are ready to take on the world are to be admired."

best eye color: “it doesn't matter much to me.”

best hair color: “this also doesn't matter much, but i prefer darker hair colors over lighter.”

best thing to do with a partner: "bowling! or volleyball! or eating together! or sparring! or gaming! there are a lot of fun things to do with a partner. i might even find more fun things to do soon!”

LAYER TEN: FINISH THE SENTENCE.

i love: “relaxing in bed with a nice sandwich after a long, busy day.”

i feel: “grateful.”

i hide: “nothing, not anymore.”

i miss: “the zaibatsu's wealth.”

i wish: “things could've been different from the start.”

TAGGED BY: i did this a while ago lol. but i realized a lot of the information was outdated and has been changed since then. though, i also answered this as pre-purified devil, as this was an old thing before tek8 was released. it was still outdated tho. answered this as purified devil bc... even if dj was like That for a while, he is purified in current / main verse, so...

TAGGING: since it's been a while since i filled this, i'll try to tag new ppl i think haven't done it yet. @rockstarsoldier @ourladyoflight @littledancingphoenix @bravesung @bittcnneck

[what-if-nct]

Stray Kids As Taylor Swift Lyrics

Bangchan: "But something happened, I heard him laughing. I saw the dimples first and then I heard the accent. They say home is where the heart is. But that's not where mine lives" - London Boy

"You're beautiful. Every little piece, love, don't you know? You're really gonna be someone. Ask anyone. And when you find everything you've looked for. I hope your love leads you back to my door. Oh, but if it don't, stay beautiful" - Stay Beautiful

Minho: "They say looks can kill and I might try. I don't dress for women. I don't dress for men. Lately I've been dressing for revenge. I don't start shit, but I can tell you how it ends. Don't get sad, get even. So on the weekends. I don't dress for friends. Lately I've been dressing for revenge" - Vigilante Shit

"You make me so happy, it turns back to sad, yeah. There's nothing I hate more than what I can't have. Guess I'll just stumble on home to my cats. Alone, unless you wanna come along, oh" - Gorgeous

Changbin: "But one of these things is not like the others Like a rainbow with all of the colors. Baby doll, when it comes to a lover. I promise that you'll never find another like me" - Me!

Hyunjin: "And it's like snow at the beach. Weird, but fuckin' beautiful Flying in a dream. Stars by the pocketful. You wanting me tonight, feels impossible. But it's comin' down, no sound, it's all around. Like snow on the beach. Like snow on the beach. Like snow on the beach. Like snow, oh" - Snow On Beach ft Lana Del Rey

"You got that long hair, slicked back, white T-shirt. And I got that good girl faith and a tight little skirt. And when we go crashing down, we come back every time. 'Cause we never go out of style, we never go out of style" - Style

Han: "'Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play. And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake. I shake it off, I shake it off " - Shake It Off

Felix: "I'm only up when you're not down. Don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground. It's like no matter what I do. Well, you drive me crazy half the time. The other half I'm only trying. To let you know that what I feel is true. And I'm only me when I'm with you" - I'm Only Me When I'm With You

"She said, "I was seven and you were nine" I looked at you like the stars that shine. In the sky, the pretty lights" - Mary's Song

Seungmin: "You are somebody that I don't know. But you're taking shots at me like it's Patrón. And I'm just like "Damn, it's 7:00 a.m." Say it in the street, that's a knock-out. But you say it in a Tweet, that's a cop-out. And I'm just like, "Hey, are you okay?" - You Need To Calm Down

Jeongin: " Yeah, we're happy, free, confused and lonely at the same time. It's miserable and magical, oh yeah. Tonight's the night when we forget about the deadlines. It's time, oh-oh. I don't know about you. But I'm feeling 22. Everything will be alright if. You keep me next to youYou don't know about me. But I'll bet you want to. Everything will be alright if. We just keep dancing like we're 22, 22 " - 22

[nebulouscoffee]

10, 15, 35, 43 for the Trek ask game?

Thank youuuu and sorry for the late answer! Love these questions <3

10. Which alien pet would you most want for your own?

Honestly I have always been very charmed by Worf's childhood pet domesticated targ (portrayed by Russian wild boar Emmy-Lou😂) - but I would happily adopt a Bajoran hara cat, Cardassian vole, or that cute lizard who climbs over Jadzia on the jungle planet

Anyway look at this lil guy!!!

15. Top 3 favorite alien crewmembers?

Oooh, this is tough. Am I choosing my favs overall, or based on how much I like their alien-ness specifically? If it's the former, then Kira, B'Elanna, and Dax - if it's the latter, then Odo, Worf, and Saru (Discovery). (Deanna and Kes leaving you out Hurt Me but they didn't write you alien enough for the latter list!! Still top 5 favs though <3)

35. A minor character you wish had become a main character?

Okay let's talk about the long-form arc potential both Seska and Suder had. Literally my favourite thing about the Suder episodes is the questions about restorative justice they raise- is there any point in locking a man up after he's sincerely reformed and no longer dangerous? Is it possible to be? Is it fair to the victim's loved ones to give him the right to roam around like nothing happened? What sort of thing could count as "reparations" in Voyager's situation? What if they really had been stranded with him for 75 years? Would he ever have been able to move on from what he did? What sort of hobbies might he take up in his new life? What would it take to win Janeway's trust? Would the victim's friends ever forgive him? Would he rather disembark the ship and start anew somewhere, or remain with his own people? Would he have been able to make new friends? Are you reading this string of questions in Jonathan Frakes's voice too? Would our main characters all have been able to get past his actions? Would it cause disagreements? How would his relationship with Tuvok have progressed? What issues would their getting back to Earth early raise for him? ... Aaaaand then the show decided to give us none of that😂 (well. except for Jonathan Frakes in a brief cameo that is :D) As for Seska I really don't know what they were thinking with her lol. She starts off as such a promising villain- literally the "reveal" in 'State of Flux' gives me chills! And you can actually understand her actions, her unexpected attachments to Chakotay and the crew. Instead of the whole pregnancy subplot (which made no sense) I would've loved to have seen her grow increasingly afraid she'd made a mistake in teaming up with the Kazon, and try to defect back to Voyager - the questions that would raise would be similar to Suder's, though in this case a bit more personal for characters like Chakotay and B'Elanna. Is she for real? Is she just doing this to trick them again? How do the Bajoran crew members feel about this? What would it take for her to win back people's trust? Say she does something messed up again, does she get a third chance? Would she make friends with Seven of Nine; someone she never personally betrayed who is also seeking redemption for past actions? Society if we'd gotten her as a regular character all the way till S7 - like an actually great redemption arc, where she ends up on good terms with a lot of them by the end (sort of like what they did with Garak on DS9) - ahhh the possibilities!!!

43. Order of shows from most to least favorite?

This is hard😅 okay I'm going to tier rank them that's easier!

Fav tier: DS9 (It's the best <3) Second tier: TNG (I can't not put it here this show literally changed my life) & VOY (has wonderful characters and has also become very important to me) Third tier: TOS movies (love them), Discovery (I have developed a nostalgia for it by now. Plus Michael is blorbo!) Fourth tier: TOS, SNW, Enterprise, Lower Decks (shows I've enjoyed but only really seen once so far) and I guess the AOS movies lol (imo 'Beyond' is the best one) Fifth tier: Picard (if it was just the first season it would've been higher! I actually liked that one) & the TNG movies (ugh) (I am yet to see TAS and Prodigy)

[catras-witchy-girlfriend]

Midnight picnic date with catra. That's it, that's the ask :)

Hell yeah! 🌻🌻🌻

This was definitely your idea!

Everything with the horde had kept Catra very preoccupied and she barely ever had any time to just sit and relax, but now the war was over, and you were determined to take her out on an actual date!

"I know things have been stressful since the war ended...and since the war was in motion... okay, I know our whole lives have been very stressful!" You look at her warmly, "but...the war is over now, kitten, and...I want to do something special for you...for us..."

You end up talking her into it with your cute little face and that sweet little loving look you give her!

You do your best to keep everything a surprise, but when your girlfriend is an ex-force captain and has heightened hearing and smell...it gets kinda tricky.

"What's all the food for? Are we having people over?"

"What do you mean I can't eat it yet!?"

"You're sooo lucky you're cute."

You work through it.

When midnight comes around, well...Catra is a little less than pleased to be woken up and told to get dressed, but you promise her it'll be worth it.

You decide you wanna go the full nine yards, so you convince Catra to dress up in her red suit and you dress up in a matching fancy garb...because you're that couple.

Then you two are off!

"This better be good, princess~"

"Don't worry, kitten, I wouldn't interrupt your cat nap for nothing."

"Not. A. Cat. Nap."

But when you finally arrive at the park, you can see by the way her ears perk up and she begins to purr that she's happy.

And that was all you wanted.

So you take her hand and guide her to sit down on the picnic blanket with you.

"Gotta give it to you, princess, you sure know how to throw a surprise."

"Yeah well, it wasn't easy with you being so nosy all the time, kitten~"

"Yeah we'll, lying isn't your strong suit either, princess."

For the next hour yourself and Catra indulged in all the premade food, a lot of it being Catra's first time trying it!

You took note on how much she seemed to love the sweets you had made and mentally promised yourself to make more for her soon.

Once you two finished eating you crawled over to her and gave her lips a soft sweet kiss.

"Was everything okay, kitten?"

From the soft fond look in her multicolored eyes and her quite rumbling purrs you could guess her answer, but it was still nice hearing her say how happy you'd made her and how everything was perfect.

"You know I'mma try and one up this in the future, right princess~?" She teased you as you rested your head on her shoulders.

You giggled and between another loving kiss you shot back, "in your dreams, kitten-"

"in your dreams~"

🌻🌻🌻

[astorythatwritesitself]

OC interview

Stealing from @commander-krios because why not xD No-pressure tagging @mxanigel @wintersstreams & @korblez ! Take the questions and answer them in-character as an OC of choice!

{Takes place post Omega 4, pre-Arrival}

name ➔ Adrian Olivier Shepard II. ... my parents were... very starry-eyed over the idea of being among the first to establish their legacy away from Earth.

are you single ➔ No. It... still feels a little wild saying that. -grins-

are you happy ➔ More than I thought I'd be.

are you angry ➔ More than I'd like to be.

are your parents still married ➔ Yes- just celebrated their thirty-second anniversary as a matter of fact.

NINE FACTS

birthplace ➔ The SSV Victoria, somewhere in... the Hades Gamma cluster?

hair colour ➔ Brown

eye colour ➔ Brown that's frequently mistaken as black.

birthday ➔ Going by Earth's calendar: April 11th, 2154.

mood ➔ Not bad, but exhausted and vaguely lost- but that's pretty much been my answer since about Eden Prime.

gender ➔ (Editor's note: preceeded by about three minutes of silence) ... I genuinely don't know how to answer that one right now. Sometimes? I guess??

summer or winter ➔ Haven't experienced either enough to have a firm opinion, but summer seems more appealing on the whole.

morning or afternoon ➔ Afternoon, or whenever there's more people up and about. ... I'm starting to come around to mornings, though.

EIGHT THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

are you in love ➔ Yes, and it's still a little terrifying. Wouldn't trade it for anything.

do you believe in love at first sight ➔ I've been informed that no less than three people will violently oppose my answering anything other than 'yes', but: I certainly believe in intense attraction and infatuation at first sight. Love itself takes some time.

(Unidentified voice: 'Must I remind you of Dr. Solus' Illium report?' unquote.)

who ended your last relationship ➔ Eh... well, however you define 'relationship', it was me. It's just a matter of whether we're talking 'kicked out of bed' or...

... no, we'll just. We'll just count that first one.

have you ever broken someone’s heart ➔ I don't think so. Let people down? Absolutely, but I don't think it ever veered into outright heartbreak? I hope not.

are you afraid of commitments ➔ I can't say 'yes'. I can't say 'no', either.

have you hugged someone within the last week? ➔ Yes.

have you ever had a secret admirer ➔ Do we count 'never outright said anything but literally everyone could tell'?

have you ever broken your own heart? ➔ More than once.

SIX CHOICES

love or lust ➔ Both. Both are good.

lemonade or iced tea ➔ Tea with enough lemon it could qualify as both.

cats or dogs ➔ Honestly they both kind of freak me out. I'm sticking with fish. (Unidentified voice: 'You've gotten upset over not getting to keep one of those creepy-ass barreleye fish, normal pets should not freak you out')

a few best friends or many regular friends ➔ A few best friends, quality over quantity. Not saying no to any friendships, though!

wild night out or romantic night in ➔ Ideally, split the difference for a romantic night out, but of the given choices... night in. We don't get nearly enough real downtime.

day or night ➔ Either one, though I don't get to truly experience either much.

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS

been caught sneaking out ➔ A few times when my family lived on the Citadel, there haven't been a ton of opportunities otherwise.

fallen down/up the stairs ➔ Look, when you're trying to run from something like a charging krogan, survival is key and there shouldn't be any judgement-

(Unidentified voice: 'Yes. To both. On multiple occasions.')

wanted something/someone so badly it hurt? ➔ Gods yes, to both.

wanted to disappear ➔ Honestly? I've only just hit a point where I'm okay with this whole 'continuing to be alive' thing, wanting to disappear has been a constant for a while.

FOUR PREFERENCES

smile or eyes ➔ Eyes. Anyone can fake or hide a smile, but if you know what to look for, you can always see it in the eyes.

shorter or taller ➔ Close to even with me, really, strong difference either way is kind of a turn-off.

intelligence or attractive ➔ I want to say 'intelligence', but again, promise of violent retaliation... though really, it's hard to maintain attractiveness without the brains or personality to back it up. (But goddamn, when you're handed beauty itself, gift-wrapped in tight leather- *transcript cut*)

hook-up or relationship ➔ Relationship now, but historically I was more into casual hook-ups. Soldier and minimal romantic leanings, you know?

FAMILY

do you and your family get along ➔ On the whole. There's been some friction, but who doesn't have that?

would you say you have had a “messed up life” ➔ It probably answers this and a few other questions that I heard this as, 'would you say you have messed up your life'. Yes to that one- but on the whole, everything was pretty okay until I was like, twenty-three.

have you ever run away from home ➔ No, but considering the only option I had to run to was 'the infinite cold void of space', that's not saying much.

have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ No.

FRIENDS

do you secretly hate one of your friends ➔ No, but I wouldn't consider someone I hate to be a friend in the first place. I can be civil towards people I hate, but that isn't the same as what I'd call friendship.

do you consider all of your friends good friends ➔ There are a few who fall more into the range of... 'work friend' than someone I'd hang out with on shore leave.

who is your best friend ➔ That's a category, not a single person, and there's six I can think of off the top of my head.

[wildernessuntothemselves]

A bad feeling about the place? What the fuck does that mean? It’s just a beach, what could possibly go wrong there?

Waiting for bro to pull the "My girlfriend died there" card here again like he did with the baby thing 😭

Still, you hesitate. You didn’t think that anything could go wrong by being friends with Taehyun either and that Beomgyu was being overly jealous and paranoid but here you are. Maybe if you go there you'll fucking drown or something crazy like that.

No girl he's afraid he's going to drown.. in something else..past memories

But you really wanted to visit that place. Maybe you should go when he's at work…

Yes yes yees yesss please go 😁

God, you hate hearing that false word fall out of his mouth. You're pretty sure Beomgyu has never been sorry for anything in his life.

Beomgyu is like a cat with more than nine lives, and I can assure you he has never felt sorry for anything he did. 

As I'm seeing OC roast him so badly in moments like these, I feel like there's some hope she won't be very tolerant of him once she finds out the truth, but I guess we'll see once I finish reading this chapter. I love the chapter so far 😭each detail is so perfect. Thank you for this, Mort ❤

"Gods?” You laugh. That’s new. “I'm your only god, baby.”

“Yeah… only you.”

THIS.

I really think that he does not even see the gods as what they are. He doesn't even care about their judgment as long as he has her. Like, it kind of feels like he only sees her as his god.

“No!” It feels strange defending something that a possibly fictional, possibly real version of you may have done because she's not you!--or is she? You didn’t leave him but you did. You don’t have to answer for her crimes but you feel compelled to try to anyway. “I thought I was saving you.”

But that just makes him angry, his fury so deep it couldn’t possibly have just been born today. It feels ancient, the edge of it sharpening over centuries. “Don't lie. That's not why you left.”

both of them are right but hate how none of them try to understand each other

“And the right choice is you?” You ask and he scoffs, looking affronted by the mere idea of there being a question about it. “It clearly isn't him. After all he's done to you. He imprisoned you. He raped you… He killed you.”

Very valid points were made here. As much as I want them to be together, I just can't see it happening logically. Maybe he can't either, that's why he says this in the fight next.

To your surprise, it is not Beomgyu but Taehyun who speaks up, his voice so uncharacteristically weak coming out of his almost crushed windpipe. “Let him kill me. Maybe then I'll be rid of you.”

The coldness in his voice freezes the air in your lungs, forming jagged icicles that tear you apart from the inside. 

“You've made a fool of me too many times before. I will not live out another life as a fool. Free me of you.”

This is the closest happy ending we could've gotten, so I'll just take it. 

This fight scene was so well constructed, I can really see the effort put into it.

I guess he finally made up his mind now; it's so fitting for his character. I love this.

He rolls his eyes, standing up and pulling you flush against his body. “He’ll live. Might take some time to recover, or better yet he’ll be dumber for it, but he’ll live just like you wanted. Now forget about him and just focus on me.” He grabs your chin and turns your gaze away from the unconscious Taehyun and towards his own face. “You have to hold up your end of the bargain now princess or you'll pay with his life.” 

That was so cruel, Gyu.

But I feel like he'll live, he has to. What else can an avoidant do?

It will take some time, but I hope he gets well from everything. ' This avoidant life is so lonely, man.

-👺

ohhh he should have. but he can't use the same cards too much

well if i continue after this ending she'd be visiting the old palace and if i do the tyun ending then she'd be going to the castle

unfortunately he gets her anyway. once again it's taehyun's life on the line that does her in.

gyu definitely does not give a shit about anything except oc. he hates the gods for separating her from him and he would literally kill them and bring the world to its knees if it meant he could keep her

yeah like oc did always consciously or unconsciously choose gyu but she also was very pressured into it even if tyun doesn't want to admit it

he won't move on from this unfortunately. he'll bring hell down on them for it.