#i keep forgetting really important facts though like ‘what was wrong with that guy? oh i remember now. HE’S A CANNIBAL.’

[rabbits-of-negative-euphoria]

.

[nikosama13]

"Confess Properly!" (Law x Reader)

Description: Law was puzzled about something… you. He can’t place his finger on whether it’s that you pay close attention to him or that you are an easy-going person. On top of all of that you were in fact, beautiful and you always had everyone’s back. You were like an angel in Law’s eyes, but it’s not like he’d tell you that. But one day that all changes when the rest of the crew speaks about your traits and personality.

Side Notes: Hey loves! I’m new to writing fanfic’s so please go easy on me. (I'm also running off of 2 energy drinks and One Piece) ⚆ _ ⚆ (Most likely spelling mistakes)

~~~

Law had always been fond of you ever since he saw you and even before he had formed an alliance with Straw Hat Luffy. But there’s one thing that puzzles him.. he doesn't know why, but he much preferred you over anyone else in the crew. Probably because you made him onigiris when you paid close attention to his dislikes such as bread or the fact that you were peaceful and it didn't take much to please you.

However one day things change.. His hold on his glass mug tightened, seeing as Bartolomeo swoons and fanboys over you. He gritted his teeth as jealousy ran through his veins, it took all of him not to use his devil fruit.

"Tch. Damn Rooster-ya."

~~~

The ocean air had a cool yet refreshing breeze. The sun shined bright as birds chirped happily above, the waters being surprisingly calm as the smell of salty water filled the air. It was a nice break from all the chaos and action on the ship.

Law was still in a bad mood as he leaned against the wooden railing of the deck.

You were out on the same small deck looking out at the view in the distance, with a plastic old chair you took from your room.

“Oh hi Law..” you said tiredly.

He glanced up at you, seeing your innocent smile that had the chance to make anyone's day better, made him soften just a little bit.

The doctor sighed as he leaned back on the railing, crossing his arms to keep himself from doing something he'd regret. He had to keep a poker face.

"Ah, uh, hey."

“What's with the grumpy mood..?” you said peacefully.

"..nothing."

He replied in a monotone voice, trying to not look at you. He wasn’t trying to be rude but definitely came off as he was. He was just jealous that those other guys were drooling all over you.

“Well it seems like something..”

Law scoffed, and leaned on the railing again, he hated it when you saw through his facade. He clenched his fists as he looked down at the waters below. Why did he feel this way about you? What was it about you..

"..forget about it. It's nothing important."

Law crossed his arms a little tighter as he glared out into the ocean, trying to suppress his emotions. It seemed pretty clear you knew something was wrong, it seemed his face told a lot more than he wanted it to.

"..it's nothing, just a little irritated from all that.. Attention…"

“What attention..?”

"You know what attention."

He grumbled as he clenched his fists tighter. This was exactly why he hated Bartolomeo and hated how much he loved you.

"The way he keeps going on and on, those other guys- it's just so annoying. All they do is drool and worship you."

“Oh.. I dont care much about them..”

"…r-really?"

Law's gaze snapped towards you as you casually mentioned not caring about them. He couldn't help but feel a small bit of jealousy rise up again from that. He hated this feeling.

"I know…it's just annoying, all of it. They keep saying how you're ‘perfect’ and everything else.. they're right though.." He muttered under his breath.

“Wait did you just-”

"…did I do what?"

He glanced back at you, he was trying to keep a stiff upper lip with the way his cheeks were burning. He didn't want to admit it, he didn't want to say what he really meant.

“Did you just agree with them..?”

He sighed as he leaned on the railing once more. If this was a different situation he would give an answer in a snarky tone but with that small amount of jealousy he couldn't manage it.

"..yes."

“So that means..”

"It means what?!"

He grumbled as he felt his cheeks getting a little bit hot. He didn't want to admit anything, but his emotions were betraying him.

“You know..”

Law couldn't help but feel a little bit red from how obvious it was getting. He sighed as his gaze went back towards the waters below, the sun setting in the distance made everything a little more romantic and pleasant.

"…yeah. I do."

“Then confess to me properly.”

"…are you serious?"

He raised an eyebrow at you, maybe he wasn't hearing this properly. He was already surprised you had a pretty good clue on how he felt about you, so he didn't think you'd actually want him to say it.

“Come on, there is no point in hiding it.”

"I…"

He had to clear his throat, he had always been a very stoic and calm one so he didn't like how much you were making him stutter. But you were right, it was pretty obvious how he felt about you. He didn't need to hide anything.

"I like you." He muttered quickly, waiting for you to say something to his confession.

“..and I like you back.”

Law was taken aback by you saying those words back to him. He had been expecting a "Sorry" or a "no" but not an "I like you back" he was stunned into silence for a minute, trying to gather his thoughts.

"You…you feel the same way about me?" He asked as he looked at you, surprised and hopeful that you did.

His cheeks heated up as he couldn't believe what he was hearing. He was overjoyed to hear you say such things to him. He had liked you for so long and it had been obvious to everyone else how much he was into you. Hearing you liked him back was something he had always dreamed out.

~~~

The End~

(This took soo long to make and I’m super happy with it.) ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ Consider Following..?

Thank you for reading.

[wakanai]

Happy Birthday to My Beloved Blorbo, Oda Sakunosuke! 🎉

AAAAAAA

he's so beautiful I can't-

(long post ahead)

this is the guy who

used to be an assassin at age 14

quit his job after reading a book and meeting its author (asagiri behavior btw - the 'left his job cause he wanted to write' part lol)

saw an injured dazai and brought him in his house (lit the equivalent of seeing a random injured criminal and knowingly bringing him into your house lol)

wrapped dazai in a blanket, trapped him in his house until he recovered safely

reacted to dazai's unhinged behavior and threats with an 'oh okay' attitude (unironically btw. he's really just like that TT)

was strong enough to be mistaken for a WHOLE organization

no one even had clues that it was him TT

made dazai embarrassed

“Of course, you would be wary of the switch. So, I had to distract you by conversation.”

“So, the games and the flow of conversation till now, were both according to your plan, you mean?”

“Hehe. Saying important things as a camouflage to get what you want. That is the basis of the negotiation technique.”

I ask as I organize the cards, “Which is camouflage of which?”

Dazai's expression turns blank for a second, as if he has been caught off guard. But it is only for a moment. He turns his head to the side to hide his expression and smiles. If I am not wrong, there is an embarrassed expression on his face. It is under the dark lighting of the bar, so I might have been mistaken though.

-- The Day I Picked Up Dazai (TDIPUD) (translation by @popopretty; you can find it in her tags i think)

^^ LOL. Oda 'I might have been mistaken' Sakunosuke (this is the guy who understood Dazai the most)

had a conversation with Shibusawa in Dead Apple and wasn't killed - in fact, Shibasawa even wanted to talk to him again if he had the chance (Oda TT he's got that 'I attract mentally unstable people and fix them' rizz lmao. Fyodor, take down notes).

did not expect Dazai to ask for a second meeting:

Dazai’s wounds have already crossed the most critical time. Just leave them like that and they will heal on their owns. My role here is over. So is our relationship.

Dazai nods and takes the cards from me. Then in a casual tone, he says those words.

“When are we meeting next?”

I stop what I am doing and look at Dazai.

-- TDIPUD

(Oda really said 'no' to attachment issues SAJDIAFJ. he's the kind of wonderful guy you meet once online and feel sad cause you can't find them again TT)

was the lowest ranking member in the mafia (and he slayed it too. did the jobs no one else wanted ugh)

despite the typical black-suit-shades look that low ranking mafiosos wore, Oda wore a BRIGHT COLORED, beige cream coat (do yall realize how much this must have made him stand out?? in a pool full of black - he stood out. Also the fact that mafiosos wear black so that blood isn't visible when it stains -- but Oda DECIDED TO STOP killing people hence why he didn't need to wear black. UgH such an icon ✨.)

survived the Dragon Heads Conflict (obviously 🙄)

adopted 5 orphans from that conflict

supported them financially, visited them on weekends, left them under the care of the curry-shop owner, connected w them!!!

managed a few shops for the mafia (reread Dark Era if you missed this detail; p. 94)

listener friend; listened to Dazai's antics and took them seriously (I bet he's the type who never forgets any minor detail their friend tells him)

joined in Dazai's chaos and hugged and tickled Ango (sibling behavior lol. Oda's just as chaotic - only difference is he does it with a straight face 😭 if Oda was in the ADA, Kunikida would grow white hair LOL. Imagine the chaos he and Dazai would bring TT - plus Dazai would be 10x happier. friendly reminder that Dazai gave Ango and Oda drugged food and when he offered to cook again, Oda's response was 'If it keeps you from getting tired, then it might be pretty useful before a hard day's work' like BRUH elfeofk.)

this isn't noticeable at first but despite always seeing himself as less than Dazai cause of their rank, Oda literally called Dazai by his name in front of the other mafia members (and no - he didn't even consciously think about it 😭). Imagine being a random mafioso and suddenly you see the lowest ranking member call an executive informally. like??? Oda's co-workers would call Dazai 'Dazai-san' while Oda be out there speaking casually like 'hey dude.' It's funny cause Oda is dense so he prob didn't even think of 'Office Codes' (yk the typical social rules where if ur friends w ur boss u call them formally at work? yea. Oda does not care LOL.)

He has good intuition

[Then I looked myself in my room and cycled through my thoughts [...] I listened only to my heartbeat as I observed the emotions bubbling up from within me like foam. I had a feeling something would happen[...]it was the small tinge everyone gets before something's about to happen. But realistically, there was virtually nothing I could do about it until it actually occurred and slapped me in the face. The world isn't kind. You have to be tough.] << relatable.

He sassed Mori HELP 😂😭

"At any rate, you just got here. You did not see a thing. Understand?"

"Yes, sir." I nodded in agreement. [...] "I only just arrived. Thank you for taking a break from undressing a young girl and chasing her around the room for me. So what was it you needed me for?"

The boss pinched his brows together for a few moments to think before nodding as if he had made up his mind. -- The Dark Era

He can see into the future

this is honestly a cool ability with so much potential. I'm going to promote this post by @raaanpo because why not. it's cool. :)

Such a caring friend (he gave Ango the benefit of the doubt, was crushed at the betrayal, and the way he thinks about dazai i cant- TT)

I already knew what Dazai was trying to say and what his intentions were and yet I had no choice but to scrutinize his every word to find some sort of silver lining.

"Maybe Ango really was lying but he's an informant who deals with top-secret information on the Mafia. It's only natural he'd have a secret meeting or two. You can't blame him for that"

-- p.46, Dark Era (DE)

**

"Hey Dazai" [...] "Is there any possibility that someone framed Ango and is pulling the strings from behind the scenes?" -- p.61, DE

**

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ango turn his back to me before leaving with the Special Forces. [...] My tongue numb, I called out to Ango as he left, but even I didn't know what I was saying. An indescribable feeling of loneliness was the only thing filling my heart...as if I were floating at the end of the universe. Even that was swallowed by darkness. My consciousness faded to black. -- p.90, DE

**

"Dazai, stop" I begged in a hushed tone. [...]

"Dazai!" I screamed. I felt as though we were thousands of miles apart. [...]

"Sorry to shock you like that" (&lt;< dazai's the one speaking here btw) [...]

Had our ranks or relations been any different, I probably would have punched him right then. (note: this reminds me of when Fukuzawa slapped Ranpo TT) However, I am me and there was nothing I could do to him.

After returning my gun to its holster, I turned my back to Dazai and began walking away. With every step I took, I felt as if the ground were going to collapse, creating a bottomless hole that I would fall through for an eternity. Dazai's expression as he placed his finger on his forehead and approached the enemy-- that of a child about to burse into tears--remained burned into my eyes. -- chap 1, DE

^^ it's giving friend-who-knows-you're-depressed-but-waits-for-you-to-tell-them energy like 😭😭bruh Oda knew. he knew dazai was depressed but he didn't push him about it. he just listened to any of dazai's ramblings and was there for him. ugh. Oda TT

also oda and ango :")

Ango looked at us and continued, "If there ever comes a time when the Division and the Mafia no longer exist...if we're ever freed from the confines of our work...do you think we can drink here again like this?"

"Don't say any more, Ango" a voice said nearby. It was my voice. "Just don't." [...]

I figured that was probably the last time I would ever see him.

(I still maintain the belief that Oda only said this because he knew the tensions were high and Dazai literally just threatened to torture and kill Ango moments ago. That last line hurts, man.)

Insecure king

(despite being a powerful ex assassin and supporting 5 kids - my goodness does Oda have insecurity issues :") )

These are just some scenes of Oda not realizing what a king he is 😭

This was Dazai though; he was probably just talking out of his ass. A man in his twenties isn't going to be much of a balm for anyone's soul. -- p.17, DE

(help why does this sound so funny 😂)

I nodded. Dazai was always right and I was always doing the wrong thing. -- p.40, DE

"Maybe I should recruit them.." Dazai smirked while wiping his sweat. "I heard all about it, Odasaku. You're raising five kids, huh? And not only that, they're orphans from the Dragon Head's Conflict."

Even if I'd tried to hide it, Dazai would've been able to figure it out with just half a day's worth of research. -- p.56, DE

(says the guy who managed to hide the painting without anyone knowing. Ngl Dazai was kind of being a dick here TT).

Even if I took Ango's side there, nothing would change. (note: oda sweetie, you're starting to act like Dazai TT.) There was no way to break out of Dazai's trap around the bar's perimeter and the children would be killed if I betrayed the Mafia. --p.119, DE

^^ see what I'm talking about? tensions were high. it's not like Oda hated Ango. He just didn't want to escalate the situation. And plus, Oda's never been a false-hope type of guy. So when he rejected Ango's wish, it doesn't mean he hates him or doesn't want to be friends anymore. he's just protecting himself from getting his hopes up and being realistic. On another note, I think being in the Mafia def affected Oda negatively. He was much more confident in TDIPD. :(

Lost king

After getting into the car, I recklessly hightailed it to the office. I don't really remember much about what happened along the way; I might've driven down the three-lane highway in the wrong direction two or three times. -- chap 1, DE

If someone were to peer inside my mind at that moment, they would've witnessed something akin to a massive volcanic eruption. Countless question marks would have been blasting out of the crater, blanketing the sky in its entirety. And yet, the only visible reaction I had was a twitch of a finger. -- p.18, DE

I ended up standing in front of the son and introducing myself. As “the person who killed your father.” There was no word that could describe how angry the son was. He had all the rights to be angry. [...] He was hitting me, throwing stuff at me, and attacking me with all sorts of insults. I could easily dodge all of his attacks, but there was no way to avoid the insults.

When he became exhausted from all the rampage and finally sat down, I explained to him about the killing. After that, he demanded a compensation. For his father’s life, and for the rental fee of that book I took without permission. -- TDIPD

(bruh. Oda's wildin 😭 pulled up at the front door and said 'yeah I killed your father' like DJFWEIJF. If Oda became an author, he would def be openly weird like the author of chainsaw man and he'd be the type to share life lore w his fans despite it being illegal😭:

'Oda! I'm a big fan! I have a question. Did you ever kill a person? Why is your writing so good at capturing that stuff?'

I'm willing to bet good money he would actually answer that question honestly.

RBF king

I was sure I looked even grumpier than usual [...] I wasn't actually in a bad mood though. It was merely a problem of balance because my hands were full [...]. You'd need a little training to carry these with a smile. -- p.121, DE

('you'd need a little training to carry these with a smile.' << it's giving uncle vibes 😭)

Writer's block king

"Because there's only one story I want to write, and it's in here." I tapped my temple. "Unfortunately, I don't have the necessary tools or skills to bring this story to life. I feel like a lost mountaineer standing before the tallest, most sacred mountain in the world with just a single, tiny ax" -- BEAST LN

(Oda stop being so relatable...)

Was a good mentor to Akutagawa in BEAST LN (lit trained him, was okay w his antics, and was willing to go against the Mafia for him. Dazai who? Akutagawa was WAY more stable with Oda as his mentor 😭)

"How are you earning enough to take care of them?" (<< Aku asking)

"That's a secret." Oda let out a faint, almost inaudible laugh.

**

What I needed to do now, however, was worry about the new recruit, since he was a hundred times more messed up in the head than me.

**

Dazai walked over with a faint, indecipherable smile. "I've been training Atsushi for four and a half years, yet you beat him. It's hard to believe..." (uhm duh. that's cause he was trained by Oda 🙄💅who doesn't abuse his students unlike y-)

**

"Akutagawa, it was actually Oda who obtained this video," said Tanizaki who was seated. "Even with Ranpo's Super Deduction and Oda's extraordinary skill, Flawless [...], it took them three whole days to sneak into the secret facility and steal the footage. That just shows you how extremely dangerous the mission was and how hard it was to get this information."

That was when it hit Akutagawa. He had just recently been asked to watch over the orphans for three days while Oda was out of town on business.

ugH. KING behavior 😩👑

He's read the Bible

"John 12:24. You're surprisingly well read, Sakunosuke." --p.144, DE

^^ imagine if he and Fyodor had a conversation. that would be p. interesting.

was kind to the curry shop owner (ill elaborate later cause im so sleepy rn)

--- and so much more. I actually have a whole fanfic in my head of Oda TT (and that Oda is a lot different from the one in canon but is based off of him. yeah...I like Oda if u couldn't alr tell.😭)

I urge yall to please read Dark Era and The Day I Picked Up Dazai. It captures his character way more than the anime.

To end this post, I want to give tribute to the IRL! Oda Sakunosuke cause that's who the bsd character is based from and Oct 26 is his actual birthday 😸

About the Real Oda:

List of some of his works:

Thank youu 🥳

I hope this post encourages more oda love lol. he's such a king. 💅

tagging @carbonateds-oda because I need someone to share my unhinged Oda thoughts too 😭😩

(feel free to ignore btw or lmk if it bothers u. i feel like ive been too interactive lately TT)

anywy, happy birthday odasaku! 🥳🥳👑

[arthurtaylorlester]

whispers into your inbox "jmart was the worst thing that could have happened in tma; it wrecked Jon's character and is the most transparent 'how do we not have our mc become suicidal?' I have ever seen. TMA then falls into the hole of the only important or good enough relationships being romantic, discarding previous character development to throw everything into romance solves all ~ ♡ I hate it and I hate how much Jon is woobified and infantilized in the fandom to drool over Martin and I hate how everyone acts like their relationship is good, when I think either of them with 5 years of a normal life would realize how awful the relationship was for both of them." Anyway lol I expect no response or post of this I am just being spicey on anon

oh anon you thought i was gonna see a take like this and not post it?

i need you to out yourself to me because goddamn this is an interesting take!

look, i love jmart, but even with 5 seasons of development they still somehow managed to feel rushed?

i disagree in that their relationship being unhealthy is a bad thing for them, because like the appeal of podcasts for me is the fucked up relationships. fucked up characters = fucked up relationships, yknow? like john and arthur from malevolent, normally, they'd hate each other without much of a second thought, but that's not the point, they love each other despite that, and that kind of extends to jmart for me.

i also totally agree with the fandom criticism, woobifying jon is like the only tma content i see on twt and it is soooooo annoying.

my personal qualms with tma however is in part the lore decisions and how the fandom treats the lore (and also the whole podcast).

s1 is easily the best season, mostly because you have no fucking idea what's going on, but after s2 things really start feeling like they're being drawn out, at least to me? like i think season 3-4 couldve been one thing, and um. season 5 is fun if you like jmart and the eye ig. i know most of this is a gross oversimplification (not forgetting yall basira&daisy fans) but after the core cast of season 1-2 i could not really get the other characters being fundamental in the story (not georgie. i love georgie)

don't get me wrong, the not-sasha arc was amazing! but after tim died, and martin fucked off for most of a season being sad, i was a bit bored. the buried isnt interesting to me sorry.

and also they under-utilize basically every fear, including the eye, and the one that upsets me the most is the stranger. oh what is it? circus and clowns ig. LIKE OPEN UP YOUR EYES THE WORLD IS OPEN TO YOU THE UNCANNY VALLEY AS SO MANY NICHES PLEASE

and by the end of the show, it just feels like they keep rotating the same 3 fears, and the others just kind fade into the bg

and then there's the fandom. i'm sorry but some of you guys act like tma is the end-all-be-all of fiction horror podcasts. when it's just not. sorry, but the magnus archives, after s1, just isnt scary. you know what's going on, the fears! which are neatly tied into these categories of oddities!

and the show explicitly states that the 14 fears categorization is arbitrary and that they all bleed into one another, but the fandom just. ignores that? like i've heard so many people go to other podcasts and say ''oh x is so eye avatar-coded!!'' and then x just has some vague eye symbolism that isnt even the point (this is about arthur lester)

and like i don't understand how tma manages to be the most mainstream fiction podcast nowadays, when welcome to night vale is right there ! and yes, i am implying that wtnv is objectively better than tma, because wtnv despite running for 12 goddamn years has never bored me with an episode, and it has roughly the same amounts of episodes! they both have similar formats that could repetitive quick (radio show vs statements) and even though i'd say statements have more creative freedom, wtnv still manages to not be boring. this might also just be a fact of better and more varied authors but hey, this is just my opinion

i want it to be clear that i'm not trying to start discourse, i still like tma! the fanartists are some of the most talented artists i've seen, and the fics are just aughhhhhhhhhhhh /pos

[lake-archive]

Surprise Party!

AO3 Link - A Shared Love Between Our Posse Masterlist

Fandom: Hypnosis Mic

Characters: Ramuda Amemura, Gentaro Yumeno, Dice Arisugawa, Ann Wolff (OC)

Pairing: Fling Posse x Ann

Words: 1,448

If someone knew how to catch them literally off guard… Ramuda was the man for the job. No, really, he knew exactly how to keep Ann at bay every single time. And there was nothing they could really do about it. He would decide things almost on a whim or at the very last second. That or his questions were… Out of nowhere. But at that time it was… A little weird. In fact it had been something which they heard of him for a while.

“Ann–Chan! Your birthday was on the 2nd June, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Great! I’ll keep it in mind!”

And ever since then it had been radio silence for the rest of the week. They checked up a few times, sending him a message which always got the same answer. “I’m fine~” but not much more than that. At least he was still alive, yeah, but… This had not been like him. Something was up.

And it got even weirder when Gentaro and Dice both had similar responses, just in their own way of phrasing it.

“Your birthday is soon, isn't it?  … Ah right, the second of next month. Very well.”

“Hey Ann, ya got time on the 2nd? I remembered that it’s your day! I mean your birthday! Haha! Better make room for us, will ya?”

Seriously, they didn’t even know what was up with any of that, let alone what to make of it. This was all just bizarre to them. Had they done something wrong? No, there was nothing off with those messages outside of being short. That’s pretty much it. And yet they were still not sure what to make of any of this. This time things were a little… Mysterious dare they say. Or… Wait no, wrong word. It’s not that. Rather… Were the three up to something or just busy? They couldn’t tell yet they tried to figure it out. But whenever trying to look for them or sneak to the usual spots the trio hung out at there was nothing. 

Though they soon felt silly about it all the same. ‘Maybe I should just leave them be and have their time alone. That’s only fair.’ It had shot through their mind pretty much right away and there they decided to leave it be. They didn’t mind to begin with… Yet they could have been open about it. 

But things would soon take a different turn. In fact they had today, very early in the morning…

‘Yahoo Ann–Chan~ Do you have some time today?’ A text from  Ramuda, pretty much out of nowhere. They stared at it for a few seconds yet soon responded. 

‘Yeah. Why do you ask?’

‘Hehe~ Then come to the studio in the afternoon. Pretty please~?’

‘The studio? Well… Sure. Did something happen?’

‘Hmm… Yeah, you could say that. It’s pretty important!’

‘Shouldn’t I come right away then?’

‘No no! 4 pm is early enough! It’s nothing life threatening or anything like that!’

‘If you say so… Alright, I will see you there.’

‘Great! Thank you~’

It had left them a little confused and yet there was not much they could do either way. They had informed Eli about this who told them to go on ahead. “Oh, but make sure you’re home later this evening.” He had added however.

“Uh… Why?”

“You didn’t forget the date today, did you?”

“The da— Ah, second of June… Wait how—”

“Ole told me. Anyways, be back. Guess you can bring the guys too if you want… But if they stay over you find out how you squeeze them into your room, got it?”

“I don’t think they— Actually… Maybe Dice would… But sure, I’ll let them know.”

If there would even be time for that…

In any case, soon enough they had arrived at the studio, as told. They knocked yet no response, no ‘coming in’ or anything like that. It was just silent. It had them worried though maybe that was also an understatement. Their hand first hesitated though only for a second. If something serious had been going on and something had happened then… No, they had to do something about this! 

So, from one moment to the next, they decided to slam the door open right then and there, wanting to shout something from the top of their lungs. However, all they got out was “Ramuda! A—” Yet they were silenced in an instant by feeling a pair of arms trapping them from the back. Not just that but another set of arms had them soon trapped from the front, cornering them and making them unable to move. And then, before knowing it, they heard: “1… 2…” before the lights suddenly turned on and two voices said rather loudly, right into their ears: “Happy Birthday~!”

Ann had barely any time to process this. They felt how flustered they had been and only then did they look around. The studio was occupied with not much but enough to indicate that some type of event had been going on. The coffee table had been filled with snacks and drinks as well as a cake right in the middle. Not just that but there had been some decorations. Not just that but there seems to be hiding something in the backroom… 

To top it all off two guys had been clinging onto them. Judging from the size as well as the oversized jacket they saw thanks to the sleeves the one in the back was Dice. He had pressed them somewhat tightly against him, making them not just take in his scent but also feel his chest clearly.

As for the front… One looked down and they spotted Ramuda right then and there, holding onto them while having leaned his head against their chest, even looking up with a wide smile. The belt tail he had may as well be wagging non stop as well given his awfully wide smile. “So? How is that for a surprise?” He even asked with that grin on his face. 

“Th… That… Uhm…” They stuttered, turning their gaze a little sideways. Ah, this was—

“Told ya! They’re speechless!” Dice added ever so confidently, then freeing them only a little yet only to ruffle through their hair. “Ain’t I right Ann?”

“That—”

“The two of thee art just overwhelming them.” A third voice would add with a sigh, someone approaching from the side. One turn there and… Yeah, Gentaro. Yet unlike the other two he seemed to stare somewhat seriously, at least for a short moment. “Art thou trying to give them a heart attack?”

“Aww, you’re no fun~ It was just a sudden surprise~” Ramuda countered while nuzzling more against Ann’s chest, getting very comfortable. “Right?”

“Ya bet’cha!” Dice agreed, not stopping to move his hand in their hair. They had to be red beyond belief now. This was embarrassing! And yet they didn’t get a word out, only being trapped at this very moment.

“What would one do with the two of thee?” The brown haired male sighed, shaking his head for a moment. Yet then his expression shifted finally, a small yet warm smile finally on his lips. “It cannot be changed now. Where are my own manners? A happy birthday to you Ann.”

“Uh… Th… Thanks…” They responded, only calming down somewhat finally. This was all overwhelming when having come in but once things started to settle… They started to feel more and more comfortable. Though it was a little sudden. Having a surprise, today of all days… Honestly, they expected this to be like any other day but this… Was quite nice. “Uhm… Can you two let go now?”

“No, a bit longer! I missed this…” Ramuda only mumbled, sounding a little needy however. “It’s been too long without Ann–Chan cuddles.”

“It has only been a few days.” Gentaro decided to throw in but… He was alone on this. Because not even Dice seemed to agree.

“Dude, that can be a lot. ‘sides, I missed holdin’ ‘em too.” He admitted before leaning in closer as well, trapping the one in question yet again. 

“Hah… How cruel, being left out like this.” The third sighed but then added: “Alright, I shall wait my turn. At least I can have them all to myself for that time~”

“Wait what!?” Though it had only been Ann yelling this because the other two were occupied with them. Not like they got an answer to begin with, given the smile they received, a smile lasting the entire time the other two were nuzzling and cuddling against them.

Looks like today is going to be a long day either way, isn’t it?

[halothenthehorns]

Chapter 15: I WRESTLE SANTA'S EVIL TWIN

Magnus read the new title with that usual feeling he was taking two steps forward and one step back in the constant insanity of this book. "Santa's real?" He repeated. "And has a twin?" Okay, fine, can't get any stranger. "Percy can wrestle?" Nope, the trifecta left him forgetting how to function like a normal human. Which he probably wasn't...

"Deep breaths Magnus," Alex always had such a domineering way of speaking, always being so easy for her to keep everybody's attention. Especially his. "Maybe Percy gets an early Christmas present if he wins. Like Annabeth. With a bow around her neck."

"Was that supposed to make me feel better?" He asked blearily, even though it had. It was a nicer way to think about than the constant insanity like getting past the fact that every stupid sitcom that never questioned where the magic presents came from were more right than their reality somehow.

"Yes," Alex said as confidently as ever. "Now hop to the part where Percy uses cookies and that beard to put saint nick in a headlock or I will."

He knew if she'd really wanted to she would have snatched the book away from him to read it herself. Instead he found himself smiling as he took a breath and firstly informed, "I don't know anything about wrestling, so I hope the rules get explained first."

"When is it ever that easy?" Percy reminded as he lounged back in his chair and kept doing his best to remind Thalia she wasn't being abducted by angels flying off with her right now by making gusts of water soak into her socks and then absorbing it back. She had a pretty specific scowl on him as she kept trying to kick him for doing it, so his plan was at least working.

"Tell me when it's over," Thalia said. Her eyes were shut tight. The statue was holding on to us so we couldn't fall, but still Thalia clutched his arm like it was the most important thing in the world.

"It was," Thalia promised, she still looked a tad green around the edges just remembering the feeling. Her hands were in a strangle motion though because she was still considering wringing Percy's neck if he didn't cut it out.

"Everything's fine," I promised.

"Are... are we very high?"

"Lie again," Jason mock whispered, but he was completely serious.

I looked down. Below us, a range of snowy mountains zipped by. I stretched out my foot and kicked snow off one of the peaks.

Thalia went from green to the ugly pale of glue gone wrong.

"At least you knew Zeus wouldn't strike you down for this one," Will clearly thought he was being helpful while Thalia tried to get in a shuddering breath. "This was sanctioned by him."

Percy rubbed the back of his head and muttered an awkward apology, quickly waving Magnus on before they had to linger on this long enough for Thalia to come back to herself and pulverize him for sharing that.

"Nah," I said. "Not that high."

"Good man," Jason sighed, resisting the urge to squeeze Thalia's shoulder for comfort. She probably wouldn't take well to anybody but Percy right now as she sat as far back in her seat as she could with her feet planted firmly on the ground.

"We are in the Sierras.'" Zoe yelled. She and Grover were hanging from the arms of the other statue.

Thalia gulped at the visual she hadn't needed and took a deep breath. Then another, this kind of situation called for it.

"I have hunted here before. At this speed, we should be in San Francisco in a few hours."

"Hey, hey, Frisco!" our angel said. "Yo, Chuck! We could visit those guys at the Mechanics Monument again! They know how to party!"

"Oh, man," the other angel said. "I am so there!"

"You guys have visited San Francisco?" I asked.

"We automatons gotta have some fun once in a while, right?" our statue said.

"What kind of Toy Story shenanigans caused security not to notice whatever I just heard," Magnus rubbed at his ear like that one physically pained him.

"That's an interesting one," Will grinned as he considered. "Would the Mist have the statues there when they weren't so as not to have the humans freak out they could move? Or were they programmed to have memories and personalities? I'll ask a few Hephaestus kids when we get to Camp if they have any insights."

"Looking forward to it," Magnus said only a bit reluctantly. If one of them told him to open a hatch, he would bail.

"Those mechanics took us over to the de Young Museum and introduced us to these marble lady statues, see. And—"

"Hank!" the other statue Chuck cut in. "They're kids, man."

"At least somebody remembers every once in a while," Alex frowned.

Percy looked as relieved as anybody to have that interrupted, even as he wondered about those creepy lifelike marble statues he'd seen and what exactly he wouldn't want to hear a bunch of Yancy morons try to brag about in comparison.

"Oh, right." If bronze statues could blush, I swear Hank did.

"Now that takes some talent," Jason grinned.

"Being able to make a robot that can blush, or making a robot blush?" Percy asked.

"Both," Jason nodded.

"Back to flying."

We sped up, so I could tell the angels were excited. The mountains fell away into hills, and then we were zipping along over farmland and towns and highways.

Grover played his pipes to pass the time. Zoe got bored and started shooting arrows at random billboards as we flew by. Every time she saw a Target department store—and we passed dozens of them—she would peg the store's sign with a few bulls-eyes at a hundred miles an hour.

Jason let out an impressed whistle as he watched Thalia. She gave him a weak but genuine grin as she elaborated, "we might be blessed with talent when we join, but it still takes time to build up being that good. Zoe could still outshoot practically anybody I know," she finished a tad wistfully, almost chasing away her tight fear.

Thalia kept her eyes closed the whole way. She muttered to herself a lot, like she was praying.

Thalia swallowed hard against admitting the truth. She'd been reciting an old song Luke had made up. Some goofy one-minute tongue twister he'd play on an old harmonica while collecting money in a cup while she'd gone around and picked a few pockets. She wasn't sure now any more than she was then why that memory had come to mind.

"You did good back there," I told her. "Zeus listened."

It was hard to tell what she was thinking with her eyes closed.

Same as in here where she purposely wasn't looking at anyone now to give away her massively twisted feelings about Percy reminding her of that. Zeus had saved her, twice, but what had he let happen to his son? Had her guess been skewed by hindsight and her path to Annabeth was just pure luck? Or was her father and his favorite daughter guiding them along on a fate's string to her family all this time? She was getting sick to her stomach even trying to figure it out, let alone dumping all of this on anyone else.

"Maybe," she said. "How did you get away from the skeletons in the generator room, anyway? You said they cornered you."

"Percy never told you that," Alex frowned. "He showed up and you started arguing about burritos."

"I figured it out from the way he came bursting in all hysterical," Thalia shrugged, which at least looked casual again while she was still shaking slightly.

I told her about the weird mortal girl, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, who seemed to be able to see right through the Mist. I thought Thalia was going to call me crazy, but she just nodded.

"I can still call you crazy if you want," Thalia offered.

"There is no right answer to that," Percy sighed.

"Some mortals are like that," she said. "Nobody knows why."

Will raised his hand like they were in class and even said, "ooh! Oh!"

Magnus slowly lowered the book with an uneasy smile, like he wasn't sure he wanted to hear the answer to this. It would probably be more confusing than the idea itself.

Will's smile was inviting, the kind that made you grin along just for being around him as he told Thalia, "I have this theory they're descendants of other demigods! I know most of us die young and they're mostly mortal now, but they have just a hint of godly blood left."

"Like a legacy," Jason agreed slowly, clearly likening to the idea.

"Most of us don't live long to populate that well," Thalia didn't seem very convinced.

"My mom's like that," Percy murmured for himself. He wasn't sure how he felt about it, since that might mean he was descended from some other god than Poseidon, or worse, some long, long line of inbreeding might have happened? Both ideas freaked him out to much to want to know more.

"It's a cool idea though," Magnus nodded. At least it hadn't made his brain hurt worse.

Suddenly I flashed on something I'd never considered.

My mom was like that. She had seen the Minotaur on Half-Blood Hill and known exactly what it was. She hadn't been surprised at all last year when I'd told her my friend Tyson was really a Cyclops. Maybe she'd known all along. No wonder she'd been so scared for me as I was growing up. She saw through the Mist even better than I did.

They'd all guessed that from the beginning. Sally had never batted an eye or made any strange comment about Grover's goat legs, and even the way she spoke of Poseidon seemed...more than any mortal should.

"Well, the girl was annoying," I said.

Percy groaned and looked at Rachel's empty seat. "First time I'm glad she got poofed away, she might have stabbed me with a marker."

"And that's starting kind," Thalia snorted.

"But I'm glad I didn't vaporize her. That would've been bad."

"At least I still got that going for me," Percy smiled.

"I'm sure she'll be glad to know you still don't want her vaporized," Thalia agreed.

Thalia nodded. "Must be nice to be a regular mortal." She said that as if she'd given it a lot of thought.

It had been on her mind near constantly while going to school with Annabeth. Slowly learning how to use a keyboard and constantly glancing over her shoulder while girls around her texted without a second thought. Their careless laughter and loud shrieks, hugging the same friends before and after every class as they casually wondered what was for lunch while Annabeth whispered and muttered about battle strategies to employ if this or that attacked them next.

"Where you guys want to land?" Hank asked, waking me up from a nap.

Thalia looked at him appalled. "You slept while we were dangling for our life!"

He gave her a sheepish smile and said, "at least I didn't try to hold your hand? You would have opened your eyes just to watch me die."

"True," she nodded grumpily. It was worlds better batting the drool off her face than having him keep trying to talk to her. At least she'd been able to pretend just for a few heart-stuttering moments the world wasn't going to end if she opened her eyes while imagining whatever she wanted in her head without interruption.

I looked down and said, "Whoa."

I'd seen San Francisco in pictures before, but never in real life. It was probably the most beautiful city I'd ever seen: kind of like a smaller, cleaner Manhattan, if Manhattan had been surrounded by green hills and fog. There was a huge bay and ships, islands and sailboats, and the Golden Gate Bridge sticking up out of the fog. I felt like I should take a picture or something. Greetings from Frisco. Haven't Died Yet. Wish You Were Here.

"Your mom would love that," Will nodded.

"And me without a stamp," Percy sighed.

"There," Zoe suggested. "By the Embarcadero Building."

"Good thinking," Chuck said. "Me and Hank can blend in with the pigeons."

We all looked at him.

"Kidding," he said. "Sheesh, can't statues have a sense of humor?"

"They can if it's a good one," Nico muttered.

"I'll take a bad sense of humor over no sense of humor," Will offered.

Nico watched him nervously for a moment, wondering if Will was implying he thought he had no sense of humor? Will just kept smiling at him without explanation though and he had no idea why.

As it turned out, there wasn't much need to blend in. It was early morning and not many people were around. We freaked out a homeless guy on the ferry dock when we landed. He screamed when he saw Hank and Chuck and ran off yelling something about metal angels from Mars.

"Poor guy," Alex said with a kind of sympathy that meant she'd have rolled her eyes at another person needing medication they couldn't afford and mildly indulging this.

Magnus felt a quiver of guilt. Were the countless people he'd met like that not crazy at all, but just seeing through the mist and constantly suffering for it? Even if he told them all they were right now, it would only make them feel better for a moment before their world collapsed like his did realizing monsters were real and it wasn't all in their heads.

We said our good-byes to the angels, who flew off to party with their statue friends.

That's when I realized I had no idea what we were going to do next.

We'd made it to the West Coast. 

Jason let out a blistering sigh of frustration. Percy had ended up here, twice, and he was starting to feel like there should be a laugh track mocking him for why that still felt so important. 

Artemis was here somewhere. Annabeth too, I hoped.

"So near, yet so far," Magnus muttered anxiously. Thalia at least didn't seem too distressed over Annabeth's fate, and he knew the world hadn't ended at the very least, but wondering what agonizing details would be awaiting all of that in between still left him on edge.

But I had no idea how to find them, and tomorrow was the winter solstice. Nor did I have any clue what monster Artemis had been hunting. It was supposed to find us on the quest. It was supposed to "show the trail," but it never had.

"You've had a surprising lack of monster attacks on this," Jason agreed in surprise. "We all didn't think it could be the lion. Only the skeletons and the manticore really. Grover summoned the pig, so I don't think that counts."

Thalia kept the comment to herself Jason was slacking, not counting something as cute as Bessie as a monster.

"The one time I can't be grateful I wasn't chased across the country by some fearsome beast," Percy agreed with a scowl.

Now we were stuck on the ferry dock with not much money, no friends, and no luck.

"Percy, I'm hurt," Thalia pressed her hand to her heart. "I thought we made friends along the way? Grover would be crying right now! and Zoe-"

"I get it, you breeze brain," Percy swatted at her.

"That's worse than air head," she scoffed.

After a brief discussion, we agreed that we needed to figure out just what this mystery monster was.

Magnus swallowed the traitorous comment to Percy he'd switched up his priorities. He was still adamant finding Annabeth, and by proxy Luke, was the most important task and everything would follow.

The argument between him and Jason had never come to a head, let alone simmered all this time as they focused on the path to get there, but Percy said now with his own sense of justification, "Grover and Zoe both agreed finding the monster was about the only thing we could do and I didn't have a better idea how to start finding anything." He glanced at Thalia who had still gone oddly quiet since the metal angel ride.

She gave an unconvincing smile and said, "err, yeah, needed to get the urge to kill something out of my system." She had not been looking forward to confronting Luke. It had been her only driving force as she ran headlong towards it.

"But how?" I asked.

"Nereus," Grover said.

I looked at him. "What?"

"What do you mean what?" Will looked personally offended like Percy had forgotten he was in the room.

"How do you forget advice from a god?" Jason seemed just as baffled at Percy's existence once again.

Percy had to really think for moment, going back a few chapters to recall why he vaguely recognized that name. It had come up around the time he'd been assigned haiku homework. 

Apollo had helped them quite a lot, his passage stopping right before the town where Grover had his Pan breakthrough. Yet the prophecy, as always, was only clear with hindsight, and they still had no clue what the rest of it was going to lead to.

Sure they'd gone as far west as they could without leaving America, but they felt no closer to the answer. There had yet been a bane of Olympus? The Hunters and Campers hadn't exactly prevailed along the way so much as just learned not to hate each other while losing one. The last two lines felt as ominous as ever as Percy stewed over what they didn't know. As much as when they'd started all of this. With one day left to figure it all out.

"Isn't that what Apollo told you to do? Find Nereus?"

I nodded. I'd completely forgotten my last conversation with the sun god.

"How do you even?" Thalia would swear he didn't have a brain sometimes if she wasn't forced to hear it right now.

"I've had other things on my mind," Percy reminded with a very obvious look at her. He'd been well distracted by running for his life by a pig and saving Thalia's bacon, then losing Bianca. It hadn't crossed his mind again since.

"The old man of the sea," I remembered. "I'm supposed to find him and force him to tell us what he knows. But how do I find him?"

Zoe made a face. "Old Nereus, eh?"

"You know him?" Thalia asked.

"I'm starting to think she knows everybody," Will said, clearly impressed.

"Being immortal has to come in handy for something," Thalia muttered, still coming to terms with the idea herself.

"My mother was a sea goddess. Yes, I know him, he is never very hard to find. Just follow the smell."

"Err," Magnus looked from the book and around like he was missing something. "Are we still talking about evil Santa? Are you chasing peppermint cookies in San Fran?"

"I couldn't guess," Percy reminded with his own bewildered stare.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Come," she said without enthusiasm. "I will show thee."

Percy was pretty sure Zoe liked him enough now she wouldn't be so unhappy about leading him to his doom, but he still wasn't feeling better about the coming wrestling match. There was just to much he didn't know about what was left of all this.

I knew I was in trouble when we stopped at the Goodwill drop box.

"Because you have no good Will with you?" Will asked innocently.

"I am going to duck tape your mouth," Percy tried to say through a laugh.

"You're only mad because he's right," Thalia chuckled.

Five minutes later, Zoe had me outfitted in a ragged flannel shirt and jeans three sizes too big, bright red sneakers, and a floppy rainbow hat.

"Letting your real colors out I see," Alex studied Percy in a way that concerned him. "If you ever want another wardrobe change, do let me know."

"I will keep that in mind," Percy said nervously, clutching his orange shirt closely while Nico swallowed uncomfortably. At least Percy hadn't started screaming his disgust at wearing a rainbow.

"Oh, yeah," Grover said, trying not to bust out laughing, "you look completely inconspicuous now."

Zoe nodded with satisfaction. "A typical male vagrant."

Magnus looked a little ruffled what that was supposed to mean. He still had on the same clothes he'd been dumped in here with, five layers of shirts with one ripped up black jacket with the stuffing threatening to fall out and the only pair of jeans he owned with hiking boots a half size too small. Did he look like a typical male vagrant?

Compared to Thalia's punk clothing with pins underneath her silver camo, Nico's black aviator jacket that looked just as worn and held on by the seams, and not even getting started on Alex, he wasn't sure what a typical anyone looked like anymore.

"Thanks a lot," I grumbled. "Why am I doing this again?"

"I told thee. To blend in."

"Pretty sure we already looked like homeless kids by that point," Thalia smirked. They'd been running around for days with little sleep in the same clothes they'd left camp in. Grover even still had a chunk of guacamole in his hair she hadn't the chance to mention.

"You couldn't have mentioned that then?" Percy protested.

"And ruin your makeover?" She asked innocently. "Those clothes smelled better than what you had on."

"I'm going to glue a cowboy hat to your head and ruin, this," he waved at her outfit for emphasis.

"I would rock a banjo," she said without concern.

Percy sighed and let it go, knowing a win he couldn't have when he saw one against her.

She led the way back down to the waterfront. After a long time spent searching the docks, Zoe finally stopped in her tracks. She pointed down a pier where a bunch of homeless guys were huddled together in blankets, waiting for the soup kitchen to open for lunch.

Magnus and Alex were both starting to get creeping sensations up their spines. Like they were waiting for the others to turn to them and ask if they were okay and wanted extra blankets. When none did, they unintentionally exchanged relieved looks, and sympathized with Nico keeping his mouth shut about his dad more than ever. Nobody wanted to walk around with a label you couldn't pick for yourself.

"He will be down there somewhere," Zoe said. "He never travels very far from the water. He likes to sun himself during the day."

"How do I know which one is him?"

"Sneak up," she said. "Act homeless. You will know him. He will smell... different."

Jason's nose dilatated on instinct, like he was trying to get a whiff of that now. The smell of the ocean never brought up a pleasant memory in mind, but he'd swear on the styx he should have an idea what Zoe meant. For a moment the flutter of a purple cape rippled in his mind before Thalia gave him a painful nudge, dislodging him from his scrunched up face.

"Like when you accidentally mix cologne and perfume together different?" Alex asked. "Like play-doh you baked? Like fur on fire?"

"You worry me," Percy told her. "I didn't want to ask her what she meant, I'm terrified of how you know any of those."

"I've clearly led a more interesting life than you," she shrugged without concern, and wow was it worrisome to the others she really seemed to mean that after all she'd heard.

"Great." I didn't want to ask for particulars.

"How!?" Jason looked at him dumbfounded anew. "How do you not want to know every detail of what you're about to get into?!"

"I do best when I go in without a plan," Percy shrugged. Why dwell on something that would go wrong anyways?

"And once I find him?"

"Grab him," she said. "And hold on. He will try anything to get rid of thee. Whatever he does, do not let go. Force him to tell thee about the monster."

Jason opened his mouth with a sharp, "make sure the second net has cross-patterned to throw over-" before he stopped with such a strong sense of deja vu. He looked around at Thalia and didn't recognize her for a moment. Equal bouts of pain and electricity zinged down his neck before he shivered. He didn't want to shake it off! Percy was in the area for one page and already actual memories were starting to come back of some life he couldn't begin to guess at.

"I wish we'd thought to bring a net," Percy nodded as he watched him just like everybody else with concern what he'd gotten up to in another life.

"We've got your back," Thalia said. She picked something off the back of my shirt—a big clump of fuzz that came from who-knows-where. "Eww. On second thought... I don't want your back. But we'll be rooting for you."

Grover gave me a big thumbs-up.

I grumbled how nice it was to have super-powerful friends.

Which they were all getting a live reaction of as their chuckling accompanied it.

Then I headed toward the dock.

I pulled my hat down and stumbled like I was about to pass out, which wasn't hard considering how tired I was. I passed our homeless friend from the Embarcadero, who was still trying to warn the other guys about the metal angels from Mars.

Magnus stamped down on the comment Percy was doing a good job off the bat. Maybe they could hang around in line sometime and compare traumas if it wasn't for the fear he still had of Sally getting involved.

He didn't smell good, but he didn't smell... different.

Jason still looked like he wanted to pull his hair out Percy was just going in expecting to figure out what one thing didn't belong in a sea of the strangest people mortals had to offer.

I kept walking.

A couple of grimy dudes with plastic grocery bags for hats checked me out as I came close. "Beat it, kid!" one of them muttered.

"On brand," Thalia sighed, making Alex and Magnus do double takes at her. She'd never said how much time she spent on the streets looking after Annabeth, but it seemed time enough for her to know they wouldn't get sympathy spots to go in first just because of their age. If anything they often got resentment, some assuming they could just go back home if they shut their mouth and sucked it up.

I moved away. They smelled pretty bad, but just regular old bad. Nothing unusual.

There was a lady with a bunch of plastic flamingos sticking out of a shopping cart. She glared at me like I was going to steal her birds.

Magnus was almost smiling for a second, a strange thing in itself to anybody but him. There were crazy bag ladies in every city, it made the world feel not so strange for a second.

At the end of the pier, a guy who looked about a million years old was passed out in a patch of sunlight. He wore pajamas and a fuzzy bathrobe that probably used to be white. He was fat, with a white beard that had turned yellow, kind of like Santa Claus, if Santa had been rolled out of bed and dragged through a landfill.

Magnus squinted his eyes at the book for a moment before he nodded in conclusion. "Got it, Santa still isn't real and you were just being, you."

"I didn't name these chapter titles!" Percy protested. "Don't blame me every time you have a meltdown at them!"

"Fair point," Magnus nodded, "I blame Oceanus."

"Got to give the guy mad props for his writing style though," Alex said with honest admiration. "He's clearly a grumpy old coot at the bottom of the ocean, but he's got a knack for describing all this bizarre stuff."

"Gods help me if it is that Titan posting my thoughts," Percy groaned.

"Gods help him," Thalia smirked. Percy was going to inevitably have a brawl with him before this was over, she knew him to well.

And his smell?

As I got closer, I froze. He smelled bad, all right—but ocean bad. Like hot seaweed and dead fish and brine. If the ocean had an ugly side... this guy was it.

"Fascinating," Will said genuinely. "Does your sweat smell like that Percy?"

"And you all think I'm the crazy one," Percy sighed, and that was the only answer Will was going to get.

I tried not to gag as I sat down near him like I was tired. Santa opened one eye suspiciously. I could feel him staring at me, but I didn't look. I muttered something about stupid school and stupid parents, figuring that might sound reasonable.

"More than you think," Alex muttered. It was the first time she hadn't said something loud and proud for everyone to hear, and it made Magnus want to lean in even closer.

Santa Claus went back to sleep.

I tensed. I knew this was going to look strange. I didn't know how the other homeless people would react.

"Depends on the individuals there," Thalia said. She and Grover would have stepped in if any of them had rushed to help, but most had run before the cops were called, and a fair few just stood there dumbfounded. Only two looked like they'd really want to jump in, so she'd snapped the Mist into helping them see a couple of sea lions wrestling instead.

But I jumped Santa Claus.

"Ahhhhhl" he screamed. I meant to grab him, but he seemed to grab me instead. It was as if he'd never been asleep at all. He certainly didn't act like a weak old man. He had a grip like steel.

Jason gave one last eye roll Zoe might have thought to warn Percy of a trick if the guy had asked, but it was overshadowed by his sickening sense he'd known this himself. It was a great feeling of frustration not targeted at Percy. Whatever plan they'd tried to concoct catching this guy, he got the feeling it hadn't worked.

"Help me!" he screamed as he squeezed me to death.

"That's a crime!" one of the other homeless guys yelled. "Kid rolling an old man like that!"

Nico was surprised that any of them cared. He was homeless and not many people looked at him twice when he was chased by anything the Mist had them see.

I rolled, all right—straight down the pier until my head slammed into a post. I was dazed for a second, and Nereus's grip slackened. He was making a break for it. Before he could, I regained my senses and tackled him from behind.

"I don't have any money!" He tried to get up and run, but I locked my arms around his chest. His rotten fish smell was awful, but I held on.

"I lived through Smelly Gabe Land!" Percy cried triumphantly, not even plugging up his nose.

"Not something I'd brag about, but I see your point," Thalia was waving her hand under her nose, she could still vividly remember that reek and she'd been breathing through her mouth as much as possible talking to him.

"I don't want money," I said as he fought. "I'm a half-blood! I want information.'"

"I'm surprised he doesn't just know that," Will frowned. "If he's supposed to be wise enough my dad recommends him, shouldn't he already know the question you want to ask and is just fighting you to earn it?"

"Will, I think you're putting a little to much faith in your dad," Percy tried to say not unkindly.

"Maybe he's like any old man and needs some time to wake up," Nico managed slightly better until he started snickering.

That just made him struggle harder. "Heroes! Why do you always pick on me?"

Thalia was still watching Jason from his last little episode and saw the tick that crossed his face. She felt a pain lance through her, like she was sharing his headache. Heard her mother managing the awful words again through her slurred speech. He'd been in California all along, a place she'd fled when she couldn't find him. What if she'd stayed, tried harder?! Had he been a part of that homeless camp and she'd passed right over him...

"Because you know everything!"

He growled and tried to shake me off his back. It was like holding on to a roller coaster.

"Cool," Alex said.

"How many amusement parks have you been thrown out of?" Magnus asked with resignation already. At least that was one thing he'd never have to worry about paying to get into, sneaking would already be involved when they went- shit-wait-what?

"I'll never tell," she raised a single brow and grinned in a way that made his stomach preform a roller coaster ride of its own.

He thrashed around, making it impossible for me to keep on my feet, but I gritted my teeth and squeezed tighter. We staggered toward the edge of the pier and I got an idea.

"Oh, no!" I said. "Not the water!"

"Percy, with the mad acting skills over here," Jason at least got a good laugh out of that.

"Thank you," Percy grinned, giving his wrist a flippant little twirl he'd learned from Rachel.

The plan worked. Immediately, Nereus yelled in triumph and jumped off the edge.

Together, we plunged into San Francisco Bay.

"That poor, poor fool," Will almost sounded sorry for how bad this guy was about to be beat now.

He must've been surprised when I tightened my grip, the ocean filling me with extra strength. But Nereus had a few tricks left, too. He changed shape until I was holding a sleek black seal.

"Cool!" Magnus blurted. "I didn't think this could get weirder than Santa Claus!"

Alex was studying Magnus, and the book in his hands, and seriously considering turning into a seal right now just to show off. She decided she was going to do it, maybe Magnus would scream, or want to pet the seal...but it didn't work. An eerie, creeping sensation surrounded her for a moment, the horror of being unable to change again- but she had been. She'd felt as normal as ever yesterday. So why couldn't she change animal forms?

And how was it fair Percy had got to keep his hydro powers?!

I've heard people make jokes about trying to hold a greased pig, but I'm telling you, holding on to a seal in the water is harder.

"More like impossible," Thalia said confidently. "You're basically the only one who could."

"Good to know I'm useful for something, wrestling wild hogs into snow and seals in the harbor," he rolled his eyes.

"We can write a children's book about you when we get back," Will snorted.

Nereus plunged straight down, wriggling and thrashing and spiraling through the dark water. If I hadn't been Poseidon's son, there's no way I could've stayed with him.

Nereus spun and expanded, turning into a killer whale, but I grabbed his dorsal fin as he burst out of the water.

A whole bunch of tourists went, "Whoa!"

I managed to wave at the crowd. Yeah, we do this every day here in San Francisco.

"You're a walking tourist attraction," Jason looked a little envious of that like he was thinking of selling tickets to the next show. Like that city needed more revenue.

Thalia could only guess what his real problem was. How much time did he spend in the Bay area? Was it possible he'd been there at that moment, a ghost in the crowd she'd been to distracted to notice by watching Percy pull a Sea World stunt?

Nereus plunged into the water and turned into a slimy eel. I started to tie him into a knot until he realized what was going on and changed back to human form. "Why won't you drown?" he wailed,

"You just said he changed back to human form," Will smirked for the pun.

"You have the worst sense of humor of all," Percy sighed, "nobody laughs at puns except the person who made them."

"Aw, Percy, nobody's ever told me I have a sense of humor before," Will's grin widened, so Percy just let it go before this got any worse.

pummeling me with his fists.

"I'm Poseidon's son," I said.

"Curse that upstart! I was here first!"

Finally he collapsed on the edge of the boat dock. Above us was one of those tourist piers lined with shops, like a mall on water. Nereus was heaving and gasping. I was feeling great. I could've gone on all day, but I didn't tell him that. I wanted him to feel like he'd put up a good fight.

"I don't know if that would win you any favors with him," Nico shook his head. He could probably tell Percy was faking. His admiration was there as always, Percy really was kind to everyone he met.

"I get credit for trying?" He asked innocently.

Nico's heart did a swoop, a tiny little one almost like his emotions had forgotten how to do it as Percy smiled at him and looked away. "Uh, yeah, sure," he muttered far to late.

My friends ran down the steps from the pier.

"You got him!" Zoe said.

"You don't have to sound so amazed," I said.

"She could sound a little more impressed," Magnus agreed, he couldn't imagine anything close to doing that.

"It's quite amazing when Percy manages to do anything without blowing something up," Thalia reminded.

Nereus moaned. "Oh, wonderful. An audience for my humiliation! The normal deal, I suppose? You'll let me go if I answer your question?"

"I've got more than one question," I said.

"Only one question per capture! That's the rule."

I looked at my friends.

This wasn't good. I needed to find Artemis, and I needed to figure out what the doomsday creature was. I also needed to know if Annabeth was still alive, and how to rescue her. How could I ask that all in one question?

"How do we win the quest," Alex said sharply.

"This isn't a game," Jason scowled as he tried to cobble together the best answer.

"There's no downside to what his answer would be though," Alex still shrugged without that much concern.

"What if it has to be more specific and you wasted a question, he just bolts and Percy can't-"

"Hey you two," Thalia put a placating hand on Jason's shoulder while watching Alex carefully. "Let's focus on what did get asked." Swallowing a wince of guilt as Magnus was trying to hold his breath so he didn't read ahead, while side eyeing Percy who looked immensely sick to his stomach.

She knew as well as anyone what he'd most desperately wanted to ask, and a part of her wanted to go back and duck tape Zoe's mouth shut so she couldn't complain when they did ask about Annabeth.

They needed one goal though. The beast a goddess had thought would sway Zeus to their side. It's what Annabeth would have wanted.

A voice inside me was screaming, Ask about Annabeth! That's what I cared about most.

But then I imagined what Annabeth might say. She would never forgive me if I saved her and didn't save Olympus. Zoe would want me to ask about Artemis, but Chiron had told us the monster was even more important.

"We really should have just brought Chiron on this quest," Thalia smacked the side of her head. "Not me and Zoe being right, not even Annabeth! Nooo, it's Chiron!"

"He would have been a faster ride too," Percy nodded like she'd made a great point.

I sighed. "All right, Nereus. Tell me where to find this terrible monster that could bring an end to the gods. The one Artemis was hunting."

The Old Man of the Sea smiled, showing off his mossy green teeth.

"Ew," Magnus muttered, once again wondering how the homeless people up above had better descriptions than some of these gods.

"I bet I could pull that look off," Alex said.

Magnus once again just watched her, like he was imagining it. He still didn't turn away with anything resembling disgust.

"Oh, that's too easy," he said evilly. "He's right there."

Nereus pointed to the water at my feet.

"Can, can he play made you look?" Jason asked mystified.

"Dionysus sits around playing games all day, I wouldn't put it past any of the others," Percy huffed.

"Where?" I said.

"The deal is complete!" Nereus gloated. With a pop, he turned into a goldfish and did a backflip into the sea.

"Now he's just showing off," Alex scowled, and she looked a little more hacked off than usual somebody other than her was doing that.

"You tricked me!" I yelled.

"Wait." Thalia's eyes widened. "What is that?"

"It's not that sea monster Chiron thought it could be is it?" Magnus asked wearily.

"You'll certainly never see it coming," Thalia said with a grim smile.

"MOOOOOOOO!"

Alex and Magnus's mouths flopped open. They didn't even laugh like they had the last two times. Jason looked like he'd tried to swallow Bessie tail first. Percy was cross-eyed.

Thalia smirked she'd been right, again.

I looked down, and there was my friend the cow serpent, swimming next to the dock. She nudged my shoe and gave me the sad brown eyes.

"Duude," Jason finally sounded like his brain was melting too. Percy gave him a commiserating fist bump.

"I don't get it," Magnus was looking from the book to them like he was still waiting for a trick. "Is it a shape shifting monster? Is it trying to steal Percy's heart?"

Alex gave him a distasteful look he'd slipped into calling Bessie non-gender pronouns just because she was revealed to be a monster and decided she was grateful she had kept some of her secrets to herself.

"Oh trust me, Zoe explains," Thalia sighed. There was a hint of unease in her expression again, she was not proud of what happened next and swallowed back the usual selfish need to steal the book away and just gloss over the rest. Her friend had already learned one of her secrets, did Percy need to remember what a gullible selfish idiot she was too?

Jason hadn't judged her fear of heights, maybe she'd get lucky again and her little brother wouldn't want to disown her finding this out too. She still held back a longing she had no idea what kind of hero he was. Did he perhaps have the same fatal flaw as her and would have hesitated too, or was he better than her like she'd always hoped he could be?

"Ah, Bessie," I said. "Not now."

"Mooo!"

Grover gasped. "He says his name isn't Bessie."

"It's comforting that's all he said to Grover, instead of like, die, or, doom," Alex shrugged.

"But why did he hear a cow at the dam but heard Bessie now?" Magnus frowned.

"Eye contact matters," Jason chuckled. He had no clue, but who knew, it usually did elevate conversations.

"You can understand her... er, him?"

Grover nodded. "It's a very old form of animal speech. But he says his name is the Ophiotaurus."

"Why can't things in Greek ever have pronounceable names?" Percy sighed.

Nico bit back the laugh that sprung to mind about Bob the Titan not being as menacing as Iapetus. Some names just had a certain ring to them.

"The Ophi-what?"

"It means serpent bull in Greek," Thalia said.

"Of course it does," Percy sighed.

Jason's face was glazed over with sudden want as he asked greedily of her, "do you have a translation book handy?"

"I study, unlike this dingdong," Thalia smiled in surprise, even a hint of joy. She could still impress her little brother.

"But what's it doing here?"

"Moooooooo!"

"He says Percy is his protector," Grover announced. "And he's running from the bad people. He says they are close."

I was wondering how you got all that out of a single moooooo.

"Dude, I've been wondering that since the poodle," Magnus said.

"Wait," Zoe said, looking at me. "You know this cow?"

I was feeling impatient, but I told them the story.

Thalia shook her head in disbelief. "And you just forgot to mention this before?"

"When would it have come up?" Percy huffed. "When we were running for our lives from that helicopter and Bianca was talking about magical subways? When you weren't talking to me in the car? Oh I know, during that awesome flight with the metal angels!"

Thalia looked ready to spear his guts if he didn't shut up, so Magnus graciously kept reading to prevent that mess.

"Well... yeah." It seemed silly, now that she said it, but things had been happening so fast. Bessie, the Ophiotaurus, seemed like a minor detail.

"I'll give Percy that," Will nodded. "He did say he goes out and rescues hippocampi from that situation all the time. Unless he just sporadically mentioned it for no reason, it didn't seem like it would come up."

"Thank you," Percy grinned.

"He's still a smart ass," Thalia scoffed.

"We have that in common," Percy smirked.

"I am a fool," Zoe said suddenly. "I know this story!"

"What story?"

"From the War of the Titans," she said. "My... my father told me this tale, thousands of years ago. This is the beast we are looking for."

"I still feel like that Nereus question was wasted," Percy grumbled, knowing he probably would have mentioned Bessie to Annabeth and she probably knew that myth too. They'd have figured it all out together.

Thalia fidgeted with her bracelet in silent relief Percy hadn't thought about the rest of what Zoe had just said. That Zoe's father apparently put her to sleep with bed time stories of monsters destroying the world.

"Bessie?" I looked down at the bull serpent. "But... he's too cute. He couldn't destroy the world."

"That is how we were wrong," Zoe said. "We've been anticipating a huge dangerous monster, but the Ophiotaurus does not bring down the gods that way. He must be sacrificed."

"MMMM," Bessie lowed.

"I don't think he likes the S-word," Grover said.

I patted Bessie on the head, trying to calm him down. He let me scratch his ear, but he was trembling.

"How could anyone hurt him?" I said. "He's harmless."

Zoe nodded. "But there is power in killing innocence. Terrible power. The Fates ordained a prophecy eons ago, when this creature was born. They said that whoever killed the Ophiotaurus and sacrificed its entrails to fire would have the power to destroy the gods."

"And Percy just, stumbled across this thing?" Jason looked like he was being had. "In the backyard of his camp? Is this some sort of trap?"

"It's always a trap," Percy shivered at his words. It all felt very final all of a sudden, and the cold chill breaking out on the back of his neck promised the end would not go quietly.

"MMMMMM!"

"Um," Grover said. "Maybe we could avoid talking about entrails, too."

"Would one of you please learn to censor yourself around the embodiment of the innocent creature," Will chuckled.

"At least he probably didn't hear our dam jokes," Thalia grinned.

Thalia stared at the cow serpent with wonder. "The power to destroy the gods... how? I mean, what would happen?"

"No one knows," Zoe said. "The first time, during the Titan war, the Ophiotaurus was in fact slain by a giant ally of the Titans, but thy father, Zeus, sent an eagle to snatch the entrails away before they could be tossed into the fire. It was a close call. Now, after three thousand years, the Ophiotaurus is reborn."

"You know what Percy, I take it back," Alex laughed. "I've never met someone in person who would name a world destroying creature something as cute as Bessie."

Magnus grinned to himself as he imagined showing her the sign Hearth made up for Hagrid, knowing she'd get a kick out of that later. Maybe they could sit around and read that book next...

"Why thank you," Percy gave a gracious bow.

Thalia sat down on the dock. She stretched out her hand. Bessie went right to her.

Thalia placed her hand on his head. Bessie shivered.

Thalia's expression bothered me. She almost looked... hungry.

"I'd always wanted to try rattlesnake," she tried and failed at convincing sarcasm. She had been in awe Percy had found this thing, the power he could have had without even realizing it, but of course he'd fallen naturally into the roll of protector first and foremost. How the prophecy seemed shaped in that moment like countless times before to pin them against each other... and who would come out on top.

"We have to protect him," I told her. "If Luke gets hold of him—"

"Luke wouldn't hesitate," Thalia muttered. "The power to overthrow Olympus. That's... that's huge."

"Glad we can agree on that," Percy muttered uneasily. Thalia looked, conflicted, in here. That look of hunger was long gone in memory only, but it disturbed him a bit she hadn't denied it either.

"Yes, it is, my dear," said a man's voice in a heavy French accent.

"Oh gods, not the French," Alex smirked.

"I'd rather somebody try to convince me to eat a snail than have this guy back," Magnus groaned.

"And it is a power you shall unleash."

The Ophiotaurus made a whimpering sound and submerged.

I looked up. We'd been so busy talking, we'd allowed ourselves to be ambushed.

Jason looked nauseous at such a fumble while Percy shifted from his usual bemused expression at how his life was going, to battle ready. The power that lit up his eyes should have that manticore running.

Standing behind us, his two-color eyes gleaming wickedly, was Dr. Thorn, the manticore himself.

"This is just pairrr-fect," the manticore gloated.

Percy had never thought he'd agree with a monster, but his sword in hand did so for him. He owed this manticore a world of pain...if only he hadn't been caught at the worst time! He had to protect the Ophi-whats-it-Bessie!

He was wearing a ratty black trench coat over his Westover Hall uniform, which was torn and stained. His military haircut had grown out spiky and greasy. He hadn't shaved recently, so his face was covered in silver stubble. Basically he didn't look much better than the guys down at the soup kitchen.

"Sounds to me like he grew a wee bit obsessed," Nico muttered. Yes he was speaking from personal experience.

"He should have more than one hobby," Will agreed brightly, making Nico snort in surprise.

"Long ago, the gods banished me to Persia," the manticore said. "I was forced to scrounge for food on the edges of the world, hiding in forests, devouring insignificant human farmers for my meals. I never got to fight any great heroes. I was not feared and admired in the old stories! But now that will change. The Titans shall honor me, and I shall feast on the flesh of half-bloods!"

"I knew that," Jason grinned with delight. "I don't know where I read that, but I knew it."

"I never really wanted to know what a monsters dream job was," Magnus looked a little uncomfortable, he'd never thought he'd tell someone not to follow their passion before.

"Well the guys about to be famous now," Percy's scowl promised. "The first manticore to ever be drowned by me!"

On either side of him stood two armed security guys, some of the mortal mercenaries I'd seen in D.C. Two more stood on the next boat dock over, just in case we tried to escape that way. There were tourists all around—walking down the waterfront, shopping at the pier above us—but I knew that wouldn't stop the manticore from acting.

Percy's confidence was already starting to feel weighted down though. He didn't know how he'd made that toilet explode. He couldn't possibly use the water to just shield his friends without causing a massive hurricane, and even if he could, he was not comfortable setting up mortals to die like he did that pig Ares set after him. They were plenty trapped.

"Where... where are the skeletons?" I asked the manticore.

He sneered. "I do not need those foolish undead! The General thinks I am worthless? He will change his mind when I defeat you myself!"

I needed time to think. I had to save Bessie. I could dive into the sea, but how could I make a quick getaway with a five-hundred-pound cow serpent? And what about my friends?

Magnus bit back the comment they weren't likely to be followed into the water, and he'd used an air bubble last time to at least make sure Annabeth could keep breathing. He didn't know the extent of how Percy's powers worked, maybe even he didn't know that.

"We beat you once before," I said.

Nico made an uncomfortable little frown as he swallowed the idea of correcting Percy on something. Technically they really hadn't, Annabeth had saved them.

"Who's this we?" Alex had no problems calling out. "You're on this quest because Annabeth pulled this guy over a cliff."

"What I said sounded better than reminding me of that," Percy scowled, though he'd happily launch Thorn over another cliff with Annabeth safely beside him if that was how this monster was destined to die.

Nico let out a brittle sigh and a good mental scolding. It was no wonder Percy never took notice of him, he never gave him a reason to. There had been no good reason not to say that and at least garner Percy's temporary eye roll like Alex got. He had no one to blame but himself for constantly feeling invisible to him, but there was still that fear lodged in him. That if he ever did try to have anything resembling a conversation with Percy, it would somehow be worse than he was feeling now.

Though that was hard to believe at the moment.

"Ha! You could barely fight me with a goddess on your side. And, alas... that goddess is preoccupied at the moment. There will be no help for you now."

Help. The word still burned in Thalia's memory of all the ways it had come in vastly different forms. Her own father, Apollo and Artemis, Athena, hell even Dionysus saving their bacon while Percy always helped her remember the best parts of herself. Thorn had no idea what kind of help they had on her side, and her dark smile set all of their hair on end to much to ask. Nobody would ever make her feel helpless again.

Zoe notched an arrow and aimed it straight at the manticore's head.

"I'm more surprised she didn't do that while he was monologuing," Alex admitted.

"She was probably feeling a little homesick, Persia being mentioned and all," Thalia shook her head. Alex still had a unique form of annoyance, picking on their surprise.

The guards on either side of us raised their guns.

"Wait!" I said. "Zoe, don't!"

The manticore smiled. "The boy is right, Zoe Nightshade. Put away your bow. It would be a shame to kill you before you witnessed Thalia's great victory."

"What are you talking about?" Thalia growled. She had her shield and spear ready.

"Surely it is clear," the manticore said. "This is your moment. This is why Lord Kronos brought you back to life. You will sacrifice the Ophiotaurus. You will bring its entrails to the sacred fire on the mountain. You will gain unlimited power. And for your sixteenth birthday, you will overthrow Olympus."

Percy's nerves quivered in place like an interpretive dance. A flimsy idea that had gained more traction the more he thought about it and always sounded more believable each time.

It was like she'd told him, she'd already lost everything. This quest was supposed to get her only family back, but somewhere along the way even Thalia had shifted her focus to finding the monster over Annabeth. She was losing faith in why she was fighting.

Percy would just have to remind her, and he opened his mouth to do just that before Magnus kept reading, and the vivid scoff followed by his disparaging voice showed how much Magnus thought of that idea himself. He might not have spent much time around his cousin since they were little, but they were quite similar. Annabeth would never lose faith in Thalia, she'd remember that.

No one spoke. It made terrible sense. Thalia was only two days away from turning sixteen. She was a child of the Big Three. And here was a choice, a terrible choice that could mean the end of the gods. It was just like the prophecy said.

"We actually don't know the exact words of the prophecy," Jason reminded sharply, sounding very much like Chiron. A scholar not letting his class get away from the thesis. "For all we know neither of you are, stop worrying about details you can't control."

"This coming from the guy who's been marking every little detail he can find," Thalia's smile was a bit strained. She was about to massively disappoint Jason and take back whatever pride he might once have had on her when he heard she'd actually hesitated.

I wasn't sure if I felt relieved, horrified, or disappointed. I wasn't the prophecy kid after all. Doomsday was happening right now.

"The worst part is always the waiting," Magnus agreed like he had some degree in psychology he'd never shared.

"The worst part is the constant interruptions," Nico muttered. They'd be done by now otherwise.

I waited for Thalia to tell the manticore off, but she hesitated. She looked completely stunned.

"I think you compartmentalized too well," Jason told her with a little to much confidence. "You filed the idea away and managed to lose it in the shuffle."

She looked miserable as her eyes darted to him and away. Jason had her spot on, she had been managing to put off the worry of everything except finding Annabeth so well she'd barely felt a thing during this quest except angry, tired, and for one brief moment drunk and loopy with laughter before fear took over. Her mother and all who Beryl reminded her of, Bianca, even her impending birthday had been collecting dust in safe corners of her mind until that moment where Thorn threw in her face she could fix it all. Have the power to do anything, like bring her brother back, fix her family.

"You know it is the right choice," the manticore told her. "Your friend Luke recognized it.

He'd managed to say the exact right thing to her too. He'd answered a question she'd been asking herself since she woke up. Luke had seen no other way out, and there had been a moment, a split second as her mind conjured up the image, she could have him back too. Happy, beside her, to finish what they'd started together...

You shall be reunited with him. You shall rule this world together under the auspices of the Titans. Your father abandoned you, Thalia. He cares nothing for you. And now you shall gain power over him. Crush the Olympians underfoot, as they deserve. Call the beast! It will come to you. Use your spear."

"Thalia," I said, "snap out of it!"

She looked at me the same way she had the morning she woke up on Half-Blood Hill, dazed and uncertain. It was almost like she didn't know me. "I... I don't—"

'I don't know how to give it up,' she'd almost stuttered. The power, the yearning for more. If her fatal flaw wasn't hubris like Annabeth's, than it was certainly a craving to be needed. Like her father. Not in charge, she'd resented Zoe for a multitude of reasons, but sharing the decisions was a personal problem she tried to over come. No, Thorn had dug right into her strongest desire to make the world bend to her will so nobody could ever take her family away from her again.

"Your father helped you," I said. "He sent the metal angels. He turned you into a tree to preserve you."

Her father who had let her die, let her brother vanish...the same father who might have led her right to Annabeth and Luke when she'd needed them most and saved enough of her to be reborn in just the right circumstances. It had to be impossible he'd know one day she'd get a chance to come back, but Percy had looked at her and promised yet another answer she'd woken up in this world needing. Maybe Zeus had let her tree be poisoned, had done nothing to save the camp, because it helped get her out.

Her hand tightened on the shaft of her spear.

I looked at Grover desperately. Thank the gods, he understood what I needed. He raised his pipes to his mouth and played a quick riff.

The manticore yelled, "Stop him!"

The guards had been targeting Zoe, and before they could figure out that the kid with the pipes was the bigger problem,

"A rather dumb mistake on their part, those things are the most dangerous weapon there," Magnus said confidently. They could both do magic and bash someone's head in.

the wooden planks at their feet sprouted new branches and tangled their legs. Zoe let loose two quick arrows that exploded at their feet in clouds of sulfurous yellow smoke. Fart arrows!

"And here I thought she reserved those only for me," Thalia said with her usual grin in place like nothing had happened.

Percy breathed a sigh of relief and gave himself a mental kick for each time he'd doubted her in here.

Jason was still looking at her kind of wearily, but in a concerned way, like he wanted to ask if she was alright but thought she might use that spear on him if he tried.

The guards started coughing. The manticore shot spines in our direction, but they ricocheted off my lion's coat.

"Grover," I said, "tell Bessie to dive deep and stay down!"

"Moooooo!" Grover translated. I could only hope that Bessie got the message.

"What would happen if he spoke ox right then or something?" Magnus couldn't help but laugh even in this most serious of situations.

"He'd tell Bessie with an accent I hope," Percy frowned with plenty of worry for both of them.

"The cow..." Thalia muttered, still in a daze.

"Yes, very good Thalia," but there was no mocking in Alex's voice for Thalia somehow unintentionally repeating her and Magnus's joke this whole book.

"Maybe next time I'll identify what Percy is," she agreed with a cheerful, if reluctant enough smile.

"Come on!" I pulled her along as we ran up the stairs to the shopping center on the pier.

We dashed around the corner of the nearest store. I heard the manticore shouting at his minions, "Get them!"

"I always hated redundant orders like that," Nico rolled his eyes. "After them, catch them, stop right there, action speaks louder than words!"

"If I ever have an evil mad man chasing me I'll be sure to tell him he's being cliché," Will grinned.

Tourists screamed as the guards shot blindly into the air.

We scrambled to the end of the pier. We hid behind a little kiosk filled with souvenir crystals—wind chimes and dream catchers and stuff like that, glittering in the sunlight.

"This isn't the kind of bad vibe I think they'll be able to take away," Percy scowled.

"I bet the kiosk person will still try," Jason squirmed, still watching Thalia more than paying attention.

There was a water fountain next to us.

"Could you squirt them in the face with that Percy?" Magnus asked with a resigned air of having to ask.

"Maybe to annoy them," he frowned.

"To bad there's not a bathroom around, we could use you becoming one with the plumbing again," Thalia smirked.

"You guys are never letting that go," Percy groaned.

"Nope," she agreed.

Down below, a bunch of sea lions were sunning themselves on the rocks.

"At least somebody's having a good time," Jason muttered, squinting a bit at nothing in here. He'd still swear this whole scenario should feel familiar, minus the being chased by an angry French manticore, though that didn't seem as wildly out of place as it should have.

The whole of San Francisco Bay spread out before us: the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, and the green hills and fog beyond that to the north. A picture-perfect moment, except for the fact that we were about to die and the world was going to end.

"Couldn't ask for better circumstances?" Will offered.

"The not dying part!" Percy scoffed.

"You didn't," Will waved at him obviously, "and now you get to remember that lovely view you'll probably never see again."

"I'm going to shove your optimism so far up your-" Percy sounded more exasperated at his kidding at a time like this than anything, but Nico still cleared his throat to get a move on already.

"Go over the side!" Zoe told me. "You can escape in the sea, Percy. Call on thy father for help. Maybe you can save the Ophiotaurus."

Percy had just reminded Thalia that their parents weren't uncaring, but he still swallowed a bitter taint of his own his father might deliver one scrap of help, and a self-serving one at that in protecting a beast who could destroy him. If he asked his dad for anything more, like saving all of his friends too right there on the ocean front, it would probably be to close to that whole pesky interfering business.

She was right, but I couldn't do it.

"I won't leave you guys," I said. "We fight together."

"You have to get word to camp!" Grover said. "At least let them know what's going on!"

"The most awkward part is I don't even think a tsunami in California would make the headlines in New York," Alex said. More likely the reason Percy couldn't do that was he didn't have control enough of his powers to not swipe up his friends and countless pedestrians in the crossfire, again. Man it would be more helpful if the bad guys would stop catching up to them in places Percy couldn't conveniently destroy.

Then I noticed the crystals making rainbows in the sunlight. There was a drinking fountain next to me...

"Get word to camp," I muttered. "Good idea."

I uncapped Riptide and slashed off the top of the water fountain. Water burst out of the busted pipe and sprayed all over us.

Thalia gasped as the water hit her. The fog seemed to clear from her eyes. "Are you crazy?" she asked.

"Always," Percy agreed. "What does that make you Thals?" His smirk grew at calling out how similar they were.

She smirked in the exact same way and agreed, "crazier."

"Bet I'm declared craziest by the end of this," Percy said with way to much confidence.

"Only because we're following your adventures," she reminded with an even more annoying smirk than the last one. "Now if we were following the Hunters around-"

"It's not like that's my fault," Percy groaned, giving her a shove. "If I could trade I would!"

"No you wouldn't," she said softly, her mind on one person.

Percy sighed, but agreed, "no I wouldn't," his mind on the same blond.

But Grover understood.

"And that is why Grover is my first best friend," Percy said with pride, elbowing Thalia even more. "He goes right along with my crazy schemes while you were in a fog!"

"I was having an identity crisis," she agreed without a drop of chagrin. "You're lucky I came out of it, or you would have been my first victim."

He laughed again, properly without a bit of hesitation, and she sighed everything felt almost back to normal for a second.

He was already fishing around in his pockets for a coin. He threw a golden drachma into the rainbows created by the mist and yelled, "O goddess, accept my offering!"

The mist rippled.

"Camp Half-Blood!" I said.

And there, shimmering in the Mist right next to us, was the last person I wanted to see: Mr. D, wearing his leopard-skin jogging suit and rummaging through the refrigerator.

Percy slammed his palm into his face in an almost painful sounding strike, and then dragged his hand down to his chin like slowly dripping acid.

"I'm very sad to see you didn't learn your lesson about this the first time," Magnus agreed with that display.

"Chiron is one less syllable than your camp, it's faster," Jason agreed like that was going to make all the difference next time.

Percy still had his head bowed towards his hand like he wanted to slap himself again. How were they not all dead?

He looked up lazily. "Do you mind?"

"Where's Chiron!" I shouted.

"How rude." Mr. D took a swig from a jug of grape juice. "Is that how you say hello?"

"Hello," I amended. "We're about to die! Where's Chiron?"

"If that place ever got a phone, that should be the recorded message," Alex nodded.

"Who says it isn't?" Will grinned. "It's option two though, you don't want to know what one is." Why Dionysius had insisted on offering a connection to Olympus that left you on hold forever first they'd never know...

Mr. D considered that. I wanted to scream at him to hurry up, but I knew that wouldn't work. Behind us, footsteps and shouting—the manticore's troops were closing in.

"About to die," Mr. D mused. "How exciting.

"Is it really though?" Magnus frowned. "It sounds to me like it happens at that Camp all the time."

"Maybe iris-messaging has more entertainment value than the real stuff," Percy rolled his eyes.

"I doubt the quality is better, and the off screen developments have to be lacking," Thalia sniffed with distaste.

I'm afraid Chiron isn't here. Would you like me to take a message?"

"I have several for him," Alex's tone promised an expletive after every word.

I looked at my friends. "We're dead."

"You're not doing a very good job of that," Jason at least sounded relieved to contradict that.

Thalia gripped her spear. She looked like her old angry self again. "Then we'll die fighting."

"I really don't want that to be your last words," Percy said, while sounding genuinely in awe of his friend.

"Hasn't happened yet," her smile was grim but proud as Percy gave her one of those looks that meant he was on the exact same wavelength as her. Jason, to her surprise, was still watching her with the same concern like she was still in that foggy state. It was surprisingly kind of him, though she couldn't imagine why he was.

"How noble," Mr. D said, stifling a yawn.

"Does he have a permanent hangover?" Alex rolled her eyes.

"Wouldn't surprise me," Magnus couldn't imagine any hair of the dog could cure him.

"So what is the problem, exactly?"

I didn't see that it would make any difference, but I told him about the Ophiotaurus.

"Mmm." He studied the contents of the fridge. "So that's it. I see."

"You don't even care!" I screamed. "You'd just as soon watch us die!"

"Let's see. I think I'm in the mood for pizza tonight."

Percy looking grudgingly respectful of that for a moment. He'd want that to be his last meal too. Didn't make him less of a jackass.

I wanted to slash through the rainbow and disconnect, but I didn't have time. The manticore screamed, "There!" And we were surrounded. Two of the guards stood behind him. The other two appeared on the roofs of the pier shops above us. The manticore threw off his coat and transformed into his true self, his lion claws extended and his spiky tail bristling with poison barbs.

"Excellent," he said. He glanced at the apparition in the mist and snorted. "Alone, without any real help. Wonderful."

"Well now he went and done it," Will scoffed with the same amount of confidence as ever. The one way to piss off any god was to tell them what they couldn't do.

"You could ask for help," Mr. D murmured to me, as if this were an amusing thought. "You could say please."

"When pigs fly!" Percy snapped. He'd go down in any fight with his head high and pride intact before he pleaded for help, only to hear the maniacal laughter from the wine god!

When wild boars fly, I thought. There was no way I was going to die begging a slob like Mr. D, just so he could laugh as we all got gunned down.

Percy managed a smile through his gritted teeth as he kept a tight hold on his pen. It was a relief in some part he hadn't changed to much over the years.

Zoe readied her arrows. Grover lifted his pipes. Thalia raised her shield, and I noticed a tear running down her cheek. Suddenly it occurred to me: this had happened to her before.

Thalia had never felt shocked before. She was usually the one doing that. The kind of heart-skip, breath catching feeling as she quickly rubbed at her cheek to hide any such thing had been there as she did a double take at Percy. Damn this boy for always noticing everything but the battle at hand!

She couldn't say what sort of expression would have been on his face at the time. Her sole focus had been on Thorn. She saw now though. It was pity mingled with yet more understanding in those sea green eyes. He would have done anything to save her in that moment.

Like make a pig fly, or something even more unthinkable.

She had been cornered on Half-Blood Hill. She'd willingly given her life for her friends. But this time, she couldn't save us.

How could I let that happen to her?

"Please, Mr. D," I muttered. "Help."

"Percy," she didn't have the words. She hadn't heard what he'd said when he'd muttered all those years ago. She'd thought it had been a self serving act, that Dionysius had changed his mind when Thorn had spoken to spare her. Even Mr. D wouldn't want her falling into the wrong hands, it was more convenient to save her.

Her friend just gave her a casual grin of no regrets. Percy gave her a little tip of his head, and then pressed his finger to his lips and pointed at the book. Despite his calm mood back as placid as ever, he clearly was going to pretend he didn't know if it had worked until the book said so. Not to spare her having to choke out a thanks or anything.

Of course, nothing happened.

The manticore grinned. "Spare the daughter of Zeus. She will join us soon enough. Kill the others."

Magnus felt like the words were being jerked out of him one syllable at a time. Camp Half-Blood had felt like a morbid place to him the second it was described, a 'home' designed to train kids that were just going to die inside the boarders as quickly as outside.

He found in this moment though a sense of understanding, like group therapy. A way to accept an outcome all those kids were going to face, because he was obviously the only one still gob-smacked over the careless words out of that monsters mouth.

The men raised their guns, and something strange happened. You know how you feel when all the blood rushes to your head, like if you hang upside down and turn right-side up too quickly? There was a rush like that all around me, and a sound like a huge sigh. The sunlight tinged with purple. I smelled grapes and something more sour—wine.

SNAP!

It was the sound of many minds breaking at the same time. The sound of madness. One guard put his pistol between his teeth like it was a bone and ran around on all fours. Two others dropped their guns and started waltzing with each other. The fourth began doing what looked like an Irish clogging dance. It would have been funny if it hadn't been so terrifying.

"I think it can be both just fine," Thalia promised. Zoe had been just as guilty as her giving a self pinch and Grover's mouth had fallen comically wide open.

"No!" screamed the manticore. "I will deal with you myself!"

His tail bristled, but the planks under his paws erupted into grape vines, which immediately began wrapping around the monster's body, sprouting new leaves and clusters of green baby grapes that ripened in seconds as the manticore shrieked, until he was engulfed in a huge mass of vines, leaves, and full clusters of purple grapes. Finally the grapes stopped shivering, and I had a feeling that somewhere inside there, the manticore was no more.

Percy's fingers twitched once in regret. That he hadn't gotten his revenge for this creature making him think Annabeth was dead.

It only lasted a moment as relief swept over him and he gave a cheerful high-five to Thalia. Another day they lived!

She gave him a rueful shake of her head as she gave him an enthusiastic answer by doing so back.

"Well," said Dionysus, closing his refrigerator. "That was fun."

"Was it?" Magnus asked in concern. "Because I'm now over here shitting myself how long range he has!"

Nobody answered him, as usual, which probably meant he'd never stop hyperventilating if he got an answer.

I stared at him, horrified. "How could you... How did you—"

"Such gratitude," he muttered. "The mortals will come out of it. Too much explaining to do if I made their condition permanent. I hate writing reports to Father."

"They have to file reports?" Alex looked personally offended paperwork existed at that moment.

"I'm sure he just makes the satyrs do it," Will grinned, making them all smile for a moment as they realized Mr. D was just brushing off his moment where he'd saved their life.

He stared resentfully at Thalia. "I hope you learned your lesson, girl. It isn't easy to resist power, is it?"

Thalia blushed as if she were ashamed.

"We really are a lot a like, it's eerie how Annabeth called that," Percy told her without surprise. "We both over came our fatal flaws on our first quest, got our asses saved by a surprise god, Grover even got to start both by saving some dumbass kid."

"Hey," Nico frowned, even if he found himself glowing with shock and pride Percy had really just compared them. The words had really come out of his mouth, he'd seen it in person!

"Stop trying to be all happy and encouraging Percy, it's creepy," Thalia was doing anything but flushing with shame now as she rolled her eyes at him with her usual grin.

"Mr. D," Grover said in amazement. "You... you saved us."

"Mmm. Don't make me regret it, satyr. Now get going, Percy Jackson.

Magnus stuttered over his name like he was Jason trying to read Greek. "Did he just say your name?"

"Holy toledo!" Jason yelped just as loudly. "I didn't think he learned your names!"

"He has to get them wrong on purpose somehow," Percy looked just as dazed, even plugging his nose up for a moment to make sure that crazy smell of grapes and minds snapping wasn't affecting him.

Will looked downright smug as he savored all of their shock. It was almost sad, he was the only one not surprised. Mr. D did care about them, in his way. It took some time to get used to him and his subtleties, but considering he'd never actually blasted a kid, he'd always been sure of it.

Nico picked at his lip curiously for a moment before he said to nobody in particular, "names have power. It's possible the god was even evoking a little something extra, never saying any names unless he meant it."

Percy looked at him like he was crazy now. "Have you been sniffing the grapes? There's no way Mr. D thinks of us as worthy of that kind of idea."

Nico didn't feel very abashed though, especially since Will looked extremely interested beside him like it was something he'd want to ask Mr. D about. Nico watched as Percy turned back to the book, and then made himself look away too without expecting more, which was growing easier with practice.

I've bought you a few hours at most."

"The Ophiotaurus," I said. "Can you get it to camp?"

Mr. D sniffed. "I do not transport livestock. That's your problem."

"Isn't his sacred animal big cats or something? Shouldn't he be able to oversea that?" Magnus asked. He figured that was why he always wore the printed jogging outfit.

"In some myths it's also a donkey," Thalia snorted.

"I have so many questions," Magnus muttered, rubbing his forehead in exhaustion.

"I'm sure the answer in this particular case is, he's done more work in those five seconds than he's had to in centuries," Alex reminded.

"But where do we go?"

Dionysus looked at Zoe. "Oh, I think the huntress knows. You must enter at sunset today, you know, or all is lost. Now good-bye. My pizza is waiting."

"He didn't even threaten to throw you off another building," Jason said in admiration.

"Must have been a good pizza," Percy said, just as dumbstruck.

"Mr. D," I said.

He raised his eyebrow.

"You called me by my right name," I said. "You called me Percy Jackson."

"You weren't supposed to point it out!" Alex laughed. "Now he might have been the one to erase your brain just for this!"

Percy flinched uneasily, that wasn't a joke he'd laugh lightly at, but it didn't feel right either.  Dionysius could have been sporadically causing memory problems to all the kids at Camp if he'd ever cared enough about one before.

"I most certainly did not, Peter Johnson. Now off with you!"

He waved his hand, and his image disappeared in the mist.

All around us, the manticore's minions were still acting completely nuts. One of them had found our friend the homeless guy, and they were having a serious conversation about metal angels from Mars.

"Now where's my B Alien movie over that," Magnus grinned.

"Awaiting popcorn and the Claymation on us," Alex smirked. Magnus wondered for a moment if that crazy juice was leaking through the book. That wasn't a date proposal. Right?

Several other guards were harassing the tourists, making animal noises and trying to steal their shoes.

"I swear you bring the strangeness of New York with you everywhere you go," Jason told while giving one last annoyed sigh as he curled his toes up in his sneakers and rubbed at his forehead. He still felt like the crazy one in the room for swearing some of this should be familiar!

I looked at Zoe. "What did he mean... 'You know where to go'?"

Her face was the color of the fog. She pointed across the bay, past the Golden Gate. In the distance, a single mountain rose up above the cloud layer.

"The garden of my sisters," she said. "I must go home."

"Do they still remember she exists?" Magnus asked, his mouth dry as sandpaper, his tongue feeling rough with the stress even if he wouldn't be the one reading it. "What happens when you're blotted out of existence and try to go back."

Percy was making grumbling noises of protest and had his eyes closed to bully down the pain of any idea what was coming, so Alex quickly made a swipe for the book. The more he paid attention to these books rather than whatever that was, the better for all of them.

[foxfireartist]

Potential/actual spoilers for Pokémon Scarlet & Violet

(+ ~20 updates as I finished the game)

Me: *sees Director Clavell in the trailer* He’s the villain.

Me: *starts game* …I think I might’ve been mistaken… he’s too genuine…

First conversation with Turo:

Me: HELLO HOT GUY!!!… he’s the villain, isn’t he…

Note: I haven’t finished the game yet but I’m in area zero and I think I might be right this time. If Turo is the villain then I will gladly turn myself over and surrender to whatever possibly world ending plan he’s cooked up.

Update: I knew about the time machine. I guessed from the existence of the paradox Pokémon. Turo still might be evil but I’m starting to get the sense that he wasn’t neglectful to Arven out of a lack of caring. Just that circumstances prevented him from contacting his son. I’m still not sure how to feel about this man.

Update 2: Turo, you sexy fucker! It’s rude to eavesdrop!

Update 2.5: Turo’s journals scattered about definitely seem to hint at a consumed by knowledge/create utopia (for my family?) narrative. Something kinky hinky is going on. I feel in my… bones. Definitely my bones.

Update 3: Nemona, you have billions of brain cells and they’re all too consumed by violence for you to spare even ONE for rationality or common sense. Seriously?! |Penny: One wrong step and we’re dead. Nemona: Oh yeah, we’re mortal beings who can’t fly. I forgot. Good call, Penny! 😃| Good lord. I love ya, darlin’ but you’re dumb as a brick in a sock and just as useful.

Update 3.5: Turo mentioned earlier that there was a second Miraidon and Arven mentioned after that that his father came home with it one day and asked Arven to take care of it and keep it secret. But then it went crazy one day and attacked a bunch of Pokémon so Turo took it back to the zero lab and Arven blamed it for not seeing his dad in forever. I’m wondering if the Miraidon we have is actually the second Miraidon and not the one Arven took care of that went nuts.

Update 4: WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?! Bro starts with the ominous “Hello, children” (always comforting)

and then starts breaking up. I know there’s probably just some interference given how destroyed this room is but it’s still creepy… wait…

…is he a robot… NEW THEORY: sexy Turo was replaced by a robot! (Or the communication/monitoring system is just that fucked.)

Update 5: …

…Fuck.

Update 6: *nervous laughter* OH HELL NO!

“They just don’t understand my brilliance,” probably followed by regret at some point and then his letters to Arven stopped because he might’ve decided that his family was more important and then he was kidnapped and replaced by his double. That’s my current theory. (Also our Miraidon might’ve been the original one after all. 🤷🏽‍♀️ I can be wrong sometimes.)

Update 7: Oh, Nemona, you naïve, sheltered, little princess. No wonder you’re always looking for a fight. Also, SPEAK ARVEN!!! YOU KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON!!! TELL US!!!

Update 8: AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!! I WAS RIGHT!!! TURO IS AN EVIL ROBOT!!! THIS IS CREEPY AS SHIT! Now the question is: where’s the real Turo…?

Update 9: HE’S DEAD?! Not sure I believe AI Turo but that does explain why the letters to Arven stopped. Dammit, don’t you dare make me cry, game.

Update 10: …Miraidon… killed… that explains why it won’t enter its battle form…

Update 11: “[…] his physical body sustained grievous injuries and made it unable to sustain life. This fact may be difficult for his son, Arven, to accept.” NO SHIT!! THAT KID COULDN’T EVEN HANDLE THE FACT THAT HIS DOG ALMOST DIED!! Although, it might be slightly easier to accept since Turo wasn’t really in his life. Speaking from experience, though, that’s a small and bitter comfort.

Update 12: Wait so Turo WAS the villain (kinda). He orchestrated a situation that would ultimately create (read: destroy) the “perfect world” even in his absence. His AI double literally warns you, “Oh, before I forget, if you try to stop the time machine, I’ll probably attack you.” So the AI’s programing is advanced enough that it likely calculated that the professor would’ve wanted to stop this situation if he understood the full gravity of it, but it can’t calculate the “don’t get into a fight with the person you asked to save the world” action. I guess it makes sense if he died and therefore can’t update the software with new insight but the fucker created adaptive AI programming that made a call on it’s own to stop the time machine but he still couldn’t make it think entirely for itself? Bullshit! Lazy bastard really didn’t bother going all the way with it? Bro really just stopped at, “good enough, it does what I need it to do.” REALLY?! This is why you shouldn’t be lazy with your AI programming, kids. You’ll destroy the world.

Update 13: “Please. Defeat me.” WHY IS IT SO SAD?! IT’S A FIGHT!! NOOOO!!! 🥺

Update 14: Ghosts and ghost Pokémon exist… Either the AI’s programming really is advanced enough to create and pass on a final goodbye… or it’s the real professor Turo… We’ll probably never really know.

Update 15: When good foresight screws you over. I think the real Turo would’ve wanted this to stop at this point too. HOW COULD THIS HAVE POSSIBLY GOTTEN SADDER?!!

Update 16: Shit.

Update 17: So the AI CAN think for itself. Or, rather, it seems to be more than an AI… I’m not crying. YOU’RE crying.

Final update: @morezizan, you bastard. Sometimes I hate it when you’re right.

[vulgarloon]

I think I am trying to come to terms with the fact that I might spend the rest of my life alone. Seems like romantic love avoids me, or maybe (more likely) I am avoiding it myself. And I don’t know how people have friends nowadays. I feel so disconnected from everyone, and whenever I stop reaching out, it seems like everyone forgets about my existence.

I want to be seen, to be loved and handled with care, to put a “fragile” label on myself. I want to be held and kissed and fucked and cared for. I have confusing feelings about sharing this, but I am in my 30s and I never had sex in my life. Not because I didn’t want it, I just never felt safe enough with anyone to let them see me in such a vulnerable state. I don’t trust men. No sexism or “they are all the same” from my side, I just really, honestly can’t recall a time when I felt safe and comfortable with a man last time. Have I ever?…

I don’t know what I am doing wrong. I’m trying to be a good friend, to reach out, to widen my social circle, but.. I don’t feel reciprocity so often, that at some point I start feeling very angry and I want to disconnect. They don’t see me. They don’t understand me and most importantly, don’t really care. I am not silent, if that’s what one might think. I am talking about my needs, discussing issues, sharing something about myself to try to keep it a healthy relationship. But still.

The last time I was in love he was hot and cold, and good and bad and maybe he was gay, but he was not sure, and then he flirted and shared some of the very private secrets of his with me, and spent hours with me, and even Friday nights, and followed me everywhere, looking me in the eyes with longing for like 20 times per short conversation. And then.. he tells everyone that he has a girlfriend and had one long before this whole shit started.

The guy before that was sweet and it felt like he cared, until he suddenly disappeared without any comments and when I asked (3 times) what happened, it was the usual “it’s not you, it’s me…”.

And then the other one, with whom we’ve been friends for 4 years, and he said he wanted me to date him. And even though I asked him several times before we started a relationship if he really was over his ex.. would you guess, left me, as soon is his ex reappeared.

And of course the guy that offered me to date right after his breakup to “help him heal his wounds and fill the emptiness she left”. And the one that called me lesbian, because he wasn’t nice to me and I didn’t want to meet him again. Or the one bringing a friend to our date..

I hate this. I hate them. I don’t want any of this. I don’t get it, how there’s always someone more important to everyone than me. I’m never anyones first choice. Just an option. And oh how I am sick of this feeling, of working as a mirror for all their bullshit, for caring but not being taken care of. Of loving and being tricked. Of trying to be open and honest and getting lies in response.

I really should talk to my therapist again. There’s definitely something’s that I am missing.

[knowlessman]

it finally crossed my mind to watch this at the magic hour of fifteen minutes past midnight again so here we go (bnha s6e1-6)

oh yeah, libertaria happened; Mosquito from Soul Eater got his entire city's ass handed to him by pajama sam. and I think hawks fucking killed best jeanist to keep his double agent cover intact. I forget whether Endeavor is in the hospital atm or what, if I didn't know any better I'd swear the bit with the smart nomu was two entire seasons ago -- OH FUCK, AND SLENDERVOID TURNED OUT TO BE AN OLD STUDENT FROM UA. there was a whole thing with him and eraser head and present mic

oh boy, and Chapped Komaeda's quirk leveled up too apparently

new OP to go with the new season? I thought this didn't happen with anime. …I miss Carousel 'XD

oh yeah, and Twice unlocked the ability to use his power on himself freely too.

ah, we're finally learning more about Robotnik

"of course, he does have a quirk, it just wasn't in the records" dangit, show keeps dodging opportunities to have quirkless characters in important roles (and have them, y'know, stay quirkless). I don't know for a fact that the detective guy doesn't have one, but assuming he doesn't, he's like the only one. Hell, even that quirkless-centered faction in that movie had no quirkless members who even had faces, much less names; cept maybe that one nameless police chief guy

(outro showing deku and tomura standing across from each other) gawd I hope these two don't get to have a conversation, deku's gonna piss me off so bad

oh no, she killed the ugly platypus

… no yeah I officially miss Carousel. I should go find the other intros and listen to them again, I'm sure there must've been at least one that I liked more than Carousel and just didn't remember the name of (speaking of which, I'm like 50/50 on whether it's Carousel or Merry-Go-Round)

"in all, we only have five High End nomus, including Woman" really? …is her quirk having hair

Mirko goes pretty damn hard, huh

heh. Pichu has Lightning Rod, then. Kinda doubt this means he's worked past that recoil tho. (misc, ngl that amplivolt guy is kinda hot. lights his cigarette with his sparks. not quite the absolute legend that Dilf Legoshi (Chimera from the second movie) is, but still, not bad)

'XD poor Twice is just racking up the L's when it comes to introducing new friends

"Dark Shadow! Ragnarok!" pfft, calling him by his government name now, eh? 'XD

…wait hawks is a fucking child soldier? what the fuck

"no! mewtwo's not ready yet! he can't be taken out of the machine until it beeps!"

danganronpa 4's looking legit

you're not gonna get very far in tetris with a setup like this, not unless you've got some ungodly T-spins

you had ONE JOB, dollar-tree cyclops. one job. "take care of shigaraki." your dumb ass didn't even take him out of the goop, you just HAD to shoot the bad guy machine with your dinky eye laser before doing anything else so it'd spark up and defibrillate him, even though that probably shouldn't have done anything because HIS HEART WAS ALREADY STOPPED

-- (defibrillators don't start your heart, they force it to stop so that your body freaks out and starts over trying to pump it in a proper rhythm. or something like that anyway, lol I got a D in survey of anatomy and learned from tv tropes that writers have been repeating misinformation about zappy shock pads for ages)

(cyclops got jean-gray'd, probably, I don't know x-men) yooo, tomura takin this dipshit's cape and making it his new wardrobe like Liliana taking that angel's hairpiece, I dig it -- or xykon taking that one guy's crown ig. …okay not that xykon isn't a cool villain but I think I just stopped being impressed by this trope

o_o tokoyami you're even weaker to fire than hawks is (probably), the fuck you think you're doing here? -- "this hero friend of yours killed an enemy" okay here's a take: hawks's subplot and entire deal, even his backstory, is in the wrong genre. that's kind of it. spies do this shit, and even kill their own allies, all the time in intrigue stories. it doesn't stop it from being dark af, but their genre is all about necessary evils (albeit, those evils are often only "necessary" for the purposes of their countries', or worse, governments', interests). this is a kids' show. …fine, a teenagers' show. this isn't where those themes generally show up. -- "those pros you admire so much play dirtier than guys like me" also dabi is talking out of his ass here but I feel like that's pretty obvious, he's just trying to demoralize tokoyami and company

'''XD fuckin A! a shitload of ice explodes out and knocks toko and hawks free of dabi, and it wasn't todoroki??? it was just some named rando villain with ice powers? I think I vaguely remember him from when pajama boy took over, but I could swear I recall him getting completely thrashed last time -- "I know you did what was right, hawks!" aw 'XD you kinda can't avoid meeting your heroes in this show. such a shame

oh dammit, and now bigfoot's woken up -- OH TOMURA'S HIS MASTER NOW? FUCK 'XD

just realized something. I don't think we've seen deku yet this whole five episodes. …oh wait, no yeah he and the others showed up way at the beginning, they're in the back ranks and out of the fighting. …author get bored of them? 'XD -- oh, speak of the devils

oh shit, the avatar spirits are sensing whatshisfuck waking up. …there was raava, I think, was the blue one. the hell was the red one called? think it also might've started with an R. ryukyu? probably not. rakdos, idfk 'XD

ayyyup. boomboom levels are approaching the lower end of the DBZ scale

okay this OP is wayyy too chill and upbeat for this arc 'XD

(toga's on the move) spah stabbin mah heroes

"it's like I've had them since I was born" ayyyyup, papa's got a brand new bag of tricks to back up his signature moves

"where are you going?" deku: "uh, I forgot something!" yeah sure, you left the stove on in the hospital that looks like piccolo threw a tantrum on it -- "following you? what, you think you're the main character now?" …gawd bakugo is annoying. catch up, mr verbal-abuse-is-my-only-language -- "you're the bait" HAHAHAHAHAHAHA get dusted, ya swaglesss vegeta knockoff

0_0 RYUKYU'S DEAD HE TOUCHED HER. …oh wait, hat n clogs is on the scene. it's a fight. hot damn, but what tricks are chapped komaeda packing now that hat n clogs can't turn off? -- …(finally looks up the bleach character I keep associating aizawa with) …wait this guy's blond. he doesn't even have black hair. …why do I think Aizawa looks like him? even their personalities are completely different, so it's not that

gran torino: "bakugo knows about one for all, right?" yeah, I don't know why they trust him with it either

…goddammit, that was six episodes, I don't WANNA keep going, I should try to sleep! 'XD eh, I'll try to make that gif and post these later (there was a split second where I'm pretty sure an indistinct figure during one of the crowd fighting shots was breakdancing, but fuck it nvm)

[fictionfixations]

angry ranting time

(i curse. a lot.)

hi. heres my reveal that i play magic awakened

about the story. can we talk about the fact that for some reason NO ONE BLINKS AN EYE at the use of the memory removal charm whatever the fuck??? like i havent been in this fandom for so long so i forgot a lot, but is it legal to just remove memories from people?? (lets not even talk about muggles…) like. okay. so the grandma removed the memory from her grandkid (traumatic memory). but she was so shit at it (she 'rushed' it so then ivy(? I FORGOT THE NAMES) had memory issues all the time and didnt even remember her SISTER??? HELLO?) like okay even if its 'legal' id have to assume youd need some sort of permit or whatever the fuck to be allowed to use it, and to be skilled at it too to not mess someone up. because memories are such an important part of you that taking them away has to be a crime!? (AND ITS NOT?? you can just ruin someones life and be like '…it was rushed' AND NO ONE BATS AN EYE? ARE YOU SERIOUS?!)

if ivy didn't actually disappear her sister (and it was the sister who disappeared herself by accident which made ivy think she did it) how the fuck did the quibbler end up talking about it? howd they even hear of it?? usually i support the quibbler and hate the daily prophet but like. seriously…? (if they learned it from law enforcement didnt the grandma explain that the sister did it to herself?! YOU FUCKING INCOMPETENT--) "Local Girl Make Sister Disappear to Keep Her Out of Hogwarts" HELLO? YOUR INFORMATION IS WRONG. YOU MF. HOW DARE YOU YOU DISAPPOINTMENT. (im. so pissed off.)

i forgot how much the fandom makes me so angry though because everyone in the storys kind of an idiot and huifsheiuf???? i want to SCREAM. (tldr; adults are still shit)

i thought ivy was kinda something like neville but it isnt that shes just forgetful, shes forgetful because her gRANDMA decided it was a good idea to MEMORY WIPE her. like. guys… the magic world needs like fucking therapists or some shit to talk this through instead of using super powerful spells to do whatever the fuck. (WHO thought it was a good idea to teach children [AT MAXIMUM AT 11 YEARS OLD. because Ivy's sister knew it BEFORE Ivy got her hogwarts letter.] the vanishing spell oh my god. oh wait. the grandma. BITCH.)

LIKe. SERIOUSLY??? it baffles me how things like this can just happen

ALSO there are still like dark wizards

and i mean yeah people are still gonna be evil but now theres ANOTHER evil oh my god (i know theres meant to be something to make the story interesting but im sobbing where the fuck are the adults to deal with this shit)

theres this thing called NOTME (wow. excellent naming skills.) that wants to reveal magic to the muggles by doing illegal things (okay well illegal things can be vague because just revealing it is illegal. but more like. think magical things in front of a crowd. ..which is very likely to lead to just utter panic because its so many.)

idk i didnt really pay attention because im just. tired at this point (harry potter has a way of doing that to me).

also one sad moment that gets an honorable mention. so you know george weasley? i think thats the twin that survived (i am SO bad with names)

we encounter him and he talks about pranking umbridge with his twin

and hes just saying 'we' and im thinking 'wait is he alive??' but no hes just. saying it (even if technically we probably dont know about his twins death so we might be confused) and it just

makes me sad. :(

anyway

also i forgot what i was meant to do here so im just kind of waiting for my doods to finish it since idk what im supposed to do

(it passed onto 13 minutes and then something happened and i won?? IDFK i got so confused. ive gone to the bird but nothing happens and my attacks dont affect it so idk)

[aajjks]

tpoljk! '''-----Yn was just surprised about Jungkook's suggestion, girlfriend? This man is crazy, he's no different from her neighbors, the difference is that he's rich---'''

Yn: when are you- oh, just forget it, I'm not going to be your girlfriend - ¨¨she puts her hand on Jungkook's head¨¨ - there's a screw missing in there… you say things on impulse…

'' '--- when she looks at Jungkook she is met with a pair of shining eyes and a cheek that was so red it looked like he had turned into a tomato ---' '

Yn: why are you blushing? you are hot! arh you should just go home it's cold and you're wearing that thin suit you'll get sick if you stay like this, I'll just go in it's late, Goodbye Jungkook!

''------Even though she doesn't understand the obvious, Yn is just going to check on her mother, who seemed to still be awake---'''

Yn: mom? Have you seen what time it is? you need to sleep, it's late….

'''---Yn spends time with her mother until the sick lady falls asleep in bed, in the bath Yn can't stop thinking about Jungkook and creating theories about that man, and of course she can't stop thinking about beauty , she reflects on his face but also on his body, which seemed to stand out with that white formal blouse he was wearing in the restaurant, with each breath it seemed like the buttons on the blouse were fighting for their life in keeping the blouse closed----' ''

Yn: he must work out a lot…surrounded by important people, and luxury I could never imagine…why isn't he married or has a girlfriend? This is so strange…. he's a little crazy in the head but even so, guys like him should already have a trophy wife and lovers to satisfy him….. could it be that he has some bizarre fetish????? ?

'' '--- Yn trembles just from the thoughts, she finishes the bath with Jungkook still in her thoughts imagining that there is something wrong with him for practically begging for a girlfriend in half thoughts she falls asleep ----' '

👀

Can I ask you to write Jungkook's POV too, when she touches his head and he is at home?

:')

You are definitely still born, but that’s what attracted the most to you he enjoys your resistance. it’s really nice to have some thing to chase.

But the thing is that he wants to be with you, and he hopes that you let him in and agreed to his girlfriend, because right now you think that he’s a crazy man desperate to have you as his girlfriend.

Which is partially true because he’s desperate to help you as his girlfriend, but he’s not sure if you’re ever going to accept him, the fact that you are a hard worker and you don’t a man to survive. It was just really nice.

But the way you interacted with him tonight when he got you home, it was really sweet, and the way just touched him checking if he’s got fever that really got his heart shaking. How can you not expect him to fall for you? You’ve got his heart in your palm.

So please just accept him, before he loses his patience.

[faeiapalette]

LEAVE AYATO ALONE.

Y’all only focus on what’s bad about him, yeah yeah it was his fault but you are neglecting his struggles too. If you don’t like his stans or character, then stop seeking for attention posting those stupid opinions online that do no good.

Ayato deserves to be the main guy of DL and if you don’t like it then go cry in a corner. Everyone did bad stuff but be fucking for real Ayato is the Sakamaki who was always the most helpful and never gave up on anyone and he redeemed himself the fastest out of everyone else.

The fact so many people are defending him doesn’t make those people toxic and maybe not even all of them are Ayato stans, have you thought of it? He’s a good boy who tries his best to protect everyone close to him and has such a heart of gold that forgives all his enemies but suuuuure let’s quickly forget about those details. Not to mention he’s the only one out of his bros who actually got balls lul

You’re a fucking Laito stan and dare to talk ill about AYATO? He was Laito’s saviour in Lost Eden, have you forgot it?

Nah girl, if you really want to be different, then start with keeping your mouth shout because spreading so much hate about a character that is loved for good reasons will make you toxic too.

I never said i don’t value his struggle. 🤨 Again (sighhhhh. I don’t know how many time i have to tell yall that I. Just. Shared. A. Different. Perspective. From. Yall. ‘S. And that EVERYONE ELSE is at fault, but he’s at fault too. Saying that doesn’t mean i hate him? 😅 Yall are putting words in my mouth again. His struggles are value? Yes. Absolutely. But how about all the other people struggling everyday, tiptoeing around him because their lifes are being threatened, and the whole clan’s future being threatened? Dude literally blew up the whole place bc of a brother quarrel. Not the brother quarrel that wounded his sibblings, it’s the ones before that. So his brothers aren’t worth one cent? The clan doesn’t matter?

Second of all. I don’t seek attention 🤨? I just posted my opinion then yall jump in? It’s yall who think i “seek attention”, not me.

Third. “He deserves” doesn’t mean “he is”. I gave yall a solution that doesn’t make the 12 other boy’s routes extras or not as important as Ayato and yall be mad at me? 🤨 Another fair declaration being assumed into “discrediting Ayato” huh.

Next. By that logic, back then if a lot of people saying that the earth is the center of the universe, they aren’t wrong. So why are we believing in Galilleo’s solar system rn? And about what makes them “toxic”, haven’t some of the ask mentioned that? That they couldn’t say anything bc yall will assume things about them and attack them?

Oh and. His thoughts and wills, indeed, indicate that he wants to protect people. Though some of his actions said otherwise. He pushed people away? Insulted them? If you’re using his mindset as a scale for “golden heart”, please include all-of-his-actions too. Oh and did we have a talk about toxic forgiveness?

“Savior”. That’s a big word. Again, he was having intention of “saveing Laito”, but did he, successfully, save him? No? Then don’t call him Laito’s savior then. Use “He has good intentions” instead.

Finally! Am i the toxic one for saying the truth, or is it this community the toxic one, for assuming, attacking, entitling, force-feeding people and make them sit in a mold? By that logic, again, if being different means that i have to keep my mouth shut, then all of us queers should have shut our mouth and let people walk on us for eternity, don’t you mean?

[sacredsorceress]

Distraction || Bucky Barnes

pairing: bucky barnes x avenger!reader

request: “bucky x reader where reader is really attracted to bucky’s fighting side while he’s defeating the bad guys?”

a/n: moved this request to the top because hello last episodes fight scenes were so good??

word count: 2.5k

warnings: mentions of guns, getting shot, fighting, not really angsty, fluff

masterlist || request

“This feels like a bad idea.” You called to the two men as you followed them into the abandoned factory. 

“Trust me, Y/n. It’s going to be fine.” Sam assured you. “And when have I ever been wrong?”

As soon as the sentence escaped his mouth, both you and Bucky stopped in your tracks, turning to face Sam while quirking your eyebrows.

“Would you like a list?” You asked.

“I can think of a few-”

“You know what? Forget it. You two suck. It’s not important.” Sam said, cutting Bucky off, continuing his pace into the building. “What is important is that we catch these guys before they can do anything else, okay?”

Not inclined to argue, you continued to follow Sam’s lead with Bucky by your side. As you climbed up a rotted staircase, you couldn’t help but turn to stare at the super soldier by your side, gun ready in his hands. 

“Nervous?” He asked, not even turning to face you, but seeing the smirk playing on his lips, you knew he caught you staring out of the corner of his eye.

Embarrassed, you quickly turned away and faced the path in front of you.

“W-what? No.” You cleared your throat, attempting to mask how flustered he made you.

In the short time that you had known James “Bucky” Barnes, you had learned that he was expertly skilled in making you a flustered mess. The fact that he asked you if you were nervous was almost comical considering the most nervous you ever were was when you were with him- not because he was the winter soldier or because he had a vibranium arm or because he could end you in a second- but because he made your heart fill a little more every time he looked at you and you would melt every time you shared more than two words.

“Good. You shouldn’t.” He told you, finally turning to face you. When you felt his hand land on your arm, you met his eyes.

“Yeah?” You asked. “Why shouldn’t I? Fighting super soldiers isn’t really my area of expertise.”

He knew you were right.

Although you had spent nearly five years alongside the likes of Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff during the blip, you weren’t nearly as experienced in truly fighting as the rest of them and you were especially amateur at hand-to-hand combat compared to the man in front of you.

You discovered during the blip that you had powers similar to those of Wanda Maximoff. When you did, you sought the help of the remaining Avengers. Though you trained among the best, you were never truly taken to physical combat, instead expanding your knowledge on your power- magic- to use to your advantage.

Although Bucky Barnes was utterly fascinated by your abilities- unbeknownst to you- you still grew nervous in situations such as the one you were in now where someone could easily attack you before you had the chance to act.

“Sam already told you that they don’t have the serum.” He reminded you.

“Oh yeah, because Sam’s always right.” You laughed. “What happens if he’s wrong?”

He shrugged. “Then I’ll handle it.”

Before you could even say anything back, you watched as he quickly went still before shoving you against the wall.

“Wha-” You attempted to whisper before he quickly shushed you.

His face inches from yours, you watched as he focused on the wall behind you, attempting to listen to what was going on around the both of you. Both you and Sam turned to face each other, questioning what was going on before you turned to face Bucky.

You would be lying if you said your heart wasn’t racing from the feeling of his hands on your arms, face inches from yours, so close you could make the details out on his face.

Before you could allow yourself to fall any deeper into the hole of your own thoughts, his eyes met yours, speaking to both you and Sam.

“I can hear them downstairs.” He whispered.

Before anyone could say anything else you watched as Sam deployed redwing from his own suit, the drone flying over the open room below.

“How many are there?” You asked.

“Ten.”

“What’s the plan?” You asked, looking between the two men.

Bucky pulled away from you finally and gestured for you and Sam to follow him up the remainder of the staircase. When you met them at the top of the steps, you found yourself on a balcony overlooking the large, open room of the factory below. When you hit the last step, Bucky pulled you into a crouch in between him and Sam as they scanned the room through the bannister.

“I think we should just go in now.” Bucky whispered and you were once again realizing how close you were to the man, feeling his breath on your face.

“I think we should wait.” Sam said.

“For what?” Bucky shook his head. “So they can realize we’re here? I have a vibraniu-”

“-vibranium arm.” You and Sam finished his sentence for him in unison.

Bucky scoffed.

“We know, man.” Sam said.

Bucky pulled himself up from his crouching position beside you. “I’m not going to wait up here for them to find us.” He told Sam, then turning to you. “You stay up here and make sure none of them leave. Keep an eye on them. Sam, you get the stuff and I’ll handle them.”

Both you and Sam turned to each other before looking back to Bucky.

“Are you sure about this, Buck?” You asked.

Bucky reached out his hand to you, pulling you to your feet. “You’ve got nothing to worry about, Y/n. I got this.”

How could you say no when he said your name? Or anything at all?

Before another word could slip out of your mouth you watched as he ran down the steps you had just climbed a minute before to apprehend the men in the room below. Turning back to observe the area, you felt Sam stand besides you, the makeshift wings extending from his suit.

“When we see him, block off the room and I’ll go get the stuff, okay?”

“You’ve got it boss.” You told him, grinning.

He chuckled, placing the goggles over his eyes. “Good to know that cyborg hasn’t changed you too much.”

“Wait what-”

Before he could even reply, he took off and you leaned over the bannister, and your eyes immediately landed on Bucky, watching as he snuck up behind one of the men carrying a gun. He placed his vibranium hand on his shoulder, yanking him backwards and when he did, he pulled the gun out of his grasp with his other hand. As soon as he did, a gunshot rang from the gun, prompting the other men in the room to turn their attention towards Bucky. As they did, you snapped out of your own thoughts, stretching out your hands to create a forcefield around the room, blocking the men from escaping through any exits.

Although Sam used the distraction of the gunshot to his advantage, stealing the information he needed without any intervention, you watched as Bucky essentially took on ten men across the room.

With your arms still holding the forcefield in place, you couldn’t help but watch as the super soldier grabbed the wrist of a man coming after him with a knife, twisting his wrist in the opposite direction until it fell from the man’s hands onto the floor. At the sound of the clatter of the knife, he pulled the man towards him, kneeing him in the stomach and flipping him onto the floor, knocking him unconscious.

You couldn’t help but feel your heart begin to race in your chest- not because you were worried for Bucky, but because as much as you hated to admit it- it was hot. Although you struggled with hand-to-hand combat, Bucky made it look easy, taking on each man with giving any hint that it was strenuous.

Your job was simple- keep the forcefield up and make sure no one leaves. All you had to do was keep your arms up. What you weren’t anticipating, however, was for one of the men that should have been going after Bucky, to notice you standing on top of the bannister.

Just as Bucky noticed the man across the room, raising a gun to you, it was already too late.

You heard the shot sound from the gun and immediately after, a searing pain shoot throughout your upper arm. You immediately dropped your arms, your hand gripping the wound. The forcefield fell around you as you yelped in pain, falling against the bannister and onto the floor.

The next thing you knew you heard Bucky’s footsteps, stomping up the stairs as Sam landed in front of you. Pushing Sam out of the way, Bucky dropped to his knees besides you.

“Fuck.” He cursed, moving his hands to your arm. “Are you okay? I’m gonna go back down there and kill that guy, Y/n, I swear.”

You shook your head. “It’s fine, Buck. We got what we needed, right?”

Sam nodded, slipping a hard drive into his pocket. “Yeah. Are you sure you’re alright though? You just got shot.”

Prompted by his question, you finally pulled your hand away from your arm, noticing the tear in your sleeve where the bullet scraped through your arm. As you moved your trembling hands, you finally noticed the blood coating your palms. Bucky was quick to take hold of your bloodstained hand and examine the wound.

“Shit. I should’ve been paying attention.” He told you, shaking his head.

You shook your head, placing your hand on his shoulder. When he finally met your eyes you spoke.

“Don’t blame yourself, Buck. It was my fault.” You sighed. “I should’ve been paying attention. I’m sorry. I was... distracted.”

Bucky furrowed his eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

When you opened your mouth to speak, Sam- who was still standing to the side- cleared his throat. “Well... you guys seem to have this covered so I’m going to go ahead and meet Torres outside. I’ll leave you guys to... whatever this... is.”

And with that he left, this time making his way down the staircase.

An awkward silence existed between you and Bucky with his departure until Bucky finally spoke.

“What distracted you?” He asked again, still kneeling at your side.

You knew he wouldn’t let this go and you began hoping to whatever higher power there was above that he wouldn’t completely judge you and that your partnership wouldn’t completely fall apart.

“You.” You told him, shyly, refusing to meet his eyes.

You felt him shuffle closer to you, gripping your hand that was still in his.

“Me?” He asked. “What about me?”

Maybe it was the loss of blood or just the situation in general, but you couldn’t help but laugh. It only made the man beside you more confused.

“You know,” You began, finally meeting his eyes. “For someone over a century old, you can be really naive.”

What you didn’t know was that Bucky- along with his fascination for your powers- was infatuated with you. As much as the stubborn super soldier tried to hide it the best he could, he could feel his heart racing trying to piece together the situation.

“I’m not naive.” He told you, pretending to be offended. “You’re the one who just got shot when you could see the whole room in front of you. Some lookout.”

“Shut up!” You laughed shoving his arm. “I literally just got shot!”

Bucky laughed back before squeezing your hand.

“I’m serious. Just tell me. What was it?” He asked.

You looked up, met his eyes and smiled. You allowed yourself to take in his face, still a hint of a smile gracing his lips, trying to memorize the moment incase you were never able to experience it again.

“It was you, Buck.” You told him, sighing. “I was distracted... by you.”

“What-”

“I was distracted by you fighting.” You chuckled, now realizing you just got shot because you found Bucky Barnes knocking a man unconscious attractive. “And I know what you’re thinking, but I have to be honest- it wasn’t because I was worried about you. I didn't have to worry for a second.”

“Then why?” He asked.

You shrugged, feeling yourself grow flustered again. You could basically feel his eyes on you- he really stared a lot didn't he?

“Because... I thought you looked... hot.” You told him, physically cringing as the last word slipped out of your mouth.

In that moment, Bucky realized for the first time in eighty years that he had lost his “charm”. Although a part of him was so filled with confidence in knowing that you found him not only attractive, but hot while he was fighting, he had no idea what to say in a way that wouldn’t make him a stuttering mess which was the last thing he wanted to come across as in this moment.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn't have said that-”

“You like seeing me fight?” He asked finally.

You paused. 

“Yeah.”

Finally you felt yourself breathe a sigh of relief when you watched as a grin stretched across his face.

“I think you lost a lot of blood.” He laughed.

You swat him again. “Shut up! I’m being serious, Buck.”

“I just can’t believe you got shot because you liked the way I kicked some guy’s ass.” He teased.

“I always like the way you look.”

As soon as it slipped out of your mouth, you regret it, focusing your eyes on anywhere besides Bucky. Your undeniable feelings for James “Bucky” Barnes had really come to torment you today.

You began running through all of the ways to escape from the situation when he finally spoke up.

“I... like you too.” He told you, finally pushing himself off of his knees and onto his feet, looking down at you.

It took you a minute for your brain to register the information.

“You like me?” You asked, staring up at him.

“And I’m the naive one?” He asked, reaching out his hand to pull you up.

You gladly took his hand with your good arm, pulling yourself to your feet.

“I don’t believe you.” You told him, standing only inches apart.

He sighed, chuckling to himself before facing you.

“Remember two weeks ago when I got that bad gash in my side?” He asked and you nodded. “I was checking you out.”

Your mouth dropped, not even sure how to respond. You could barely even believe that after all this time of you getting flustered over every little thing that he did, he was feeling the exact same way about you. 

“No way!” You finally said, taking a step closer to him.

“Yeah um,” He chuckled, scratching where the chain of the dog tag met the back of his neck. “You looked... good.”

When your faces were only inches apart, you placed your hand against his chest, planting a kiss on his cheek before pulling away, smiling.

“No more getting ugly scars for each other, okay?”

He smiled.

“No promises.”

[simply-wins-little-sis]

The Conference of Hidden Genius

Request:  I had an idea for a Winchester sister thing where the brothers go to a parent/teacher night expecting to hear you are average &keep your head down but your teacher goes on about your good grades and societies you're in (arts/sports/science/whatever) and how you won a funded place at a summer school at a (random) college and will they reconsider letting you go. They ask you about why you don't talk about school and you didn't think they'd care as its not hunting and that's all they care about xx

Tags: @winchesters-favorite-girl​ @percussiongirl2017  @the-third-winchester-warrior  @hellhoundlover @emmazach @sisterwinchesterwriter  @fandom-queen-of-wonderland @staticweekes @hi-my-name-is-riley @a-paranoid-bastard @because-you-never-know-when @enchantingempathhumanoidturtle @alexwinchester23 @winchesterhound

A/N: Not sure if this will be one imagine for awhile or if this means I’ll be back regularly. Love you all xx Also this is a tad different if you want it rewritten lemme know!

An average Tuesday night. That’s all it was to any normal family attending the local high school’s parent night. Each time slot filled with the expectation of a progress report and comments on student behavior. It was the average American system of pining parents and children against teachers, or sometimes the other way around. 

You had been nervous all week, walking on thin ice around your brothers, forgetting to remind them. That’s why when they both knocked on your door and told you they were going to go you shot up like a rocket. 

“No guys, it’s really okay!” you protested, without doing much to make it seem suspicious. 

“Nah babygirl, Dad would miss this stuff for us and we’d miss out on some decent extra credit, plus I heard they’re supposed to have a dessert spread” Dean smirked as he left the room. 

“It’ll be good to know where you stand amongst your classmates Y/N” Sam gave a small smile and followed him. You groaned, throwing a pillow over your head. Falling out of the pillowcase was the brochure to an expensive summer program, one you’d secretly prayed to Castiel on, even though he was nowhere to be found.

When the boys arrived at the school they were shocked to find they were the last guardians to be scheduled. It seemed as though they were thrown on last minute, almost as if your marks had been forgotten. 

Dean was disappointed to find that the dessert spread had been long demolished. 

Entering your homeroom a cheery red head with matching lipstick greeted them. 

“Oh I had no idea Y/N had two fathers! How lovely!”

The boys choked, holding back vile, “Actually we’re her older brothers,” Sam greeted, “But lovely to meet you.” 

“Lovely indeed,” Dean winked. 

With a grin she took the boys to her desk, sitting on the other side. 

“Well, to be honest I don’t really know why you two are here.” She began. 

Both boys cocked their heads to the side. 

“Y/N is a great student, so smart and kind. Quite the little leader. She has perfect scores in all of her classes and is honestly on track to becoming top student,”

The boys looked to each other. 

“Are you sure you’re talking about the right Y/N?” Dean asked. 

“Y/N Winchester, you know, quiet, keeps to herself,” Sam started. 

“Isn’t really good at turning things in on time, often sleeps in class?” Dean recalled his own experience being a hunter in training while doubling as an adolescent student. 

“I fear as though you aren’t hearing what I am saying. Your little sister is really great. One of the best actually. Always turns everything in on time, never sleeps in class, and is charming and kind to everyone she meets or works with. She’s quite the class discussion starter too. In fact, she’s been offered a full scholarship to the Eastern Scholars Summer Program. I know how you both feel she shouldn’t go, but I have to say, you have a bright young person on your hands and not letting her go is the biggest mistake I’ve ever seen guardians make.” 

The two looked at each other again. “The what now?”

“Y/N said you two won’t let her go. But I’m begging you, the girl we have here is different then the one you’re describing, and if you just give her the chance she’ll prove you wrong. I promise.”

When the boys got home you were in the library, reading. 

“Y/N” Dean called. 

“In here!” You yelled back. 

“Why wouldn’t you tell us about the Summer program?” Sam asked. He leaned against the doorframe as Dean leaned on a bookcase. 

You pushed your hair back from your face. “It’s really not that important. It’d just get in the way.”

“Y/N according to your grades you’re smarter then Sam. And Sam is Sam.”

Sam rolled his eyes, “What he’s trying to say is that you’re not telling us about how good you’re actually doing in school. Not to mention you have the opportunity for something really-” he started. 

“No stop,” you interupt him, “This is exactly why I didn’t want to tell you. You guys expect me to be one thing. To live this life or get out completely and to be honest I don’t know what I want. I won’t lose you for a picket fence future, but I also don’t know if I can keep looking death in the eyes, literally.

“The summer program would be the first time I’ve ever gone away. Alone. I don’t know if I’m smart enough let alone ready to face that without you guys. “

They both looked at you. “Well at least talk to us next time, don’t just keep us in the dark, okay?” Sam asked. 

You nodded. 

“I think you should go though,” Dean whispered. 

You looked at him, tears spilling over your bottom eyelids. 

“Okay.”

“But this report card is going on the fridge regardless of what you say,” Sam laughed. 

“The teacher’s phone number on that?” Dean asks. 

“DEAN!” both you and Sam chirp.

[yesimwriting]

hiii, this might seem weird but do u have any head cannons for when the reader is pregnant and how the Darkling would react?

a/n love this concept,, it's not weird at all!! i feel like there's so much here!! also i leave for college this month and im lowkey starting to freak out so ive been watching star wars movies for comfort 😭and now i have half a mind to write for them, especially the prequels (cough, cough,, anakin) 😭 😭 that should tell you where i am mentally

anyways lets get into the headcanons:))

--

- okay so like most of my headcanons, this is probably going to be all over the place bc i feel like so many different things could change how he would react. Like if the darkling x reader have been trying to get pregnant, or an unplanned pregnancy with someone he really likes, i also think whether or not the reader is a grisha affects his reaction too

- in general though, i think he'd lowkey have a breeding kink he'd def find something about the thought of you having his child really attractive bc for one thing, he wouldn't have to worry about being left alone and now he has an excuse to be a real 'protector'.

- also if youve read my other headcanons i am 100000% convinced that he has this thing where if he really likes someone he needs them to need him (let's all remember the whole 'i will strip you of everything you know and love speech until I'm your only shelter' speech he gave to Alina)

- also i kinda want to write a fic or blurb series or something that's just the darkling being super toxic in super thoughtful ways LMAO if that makes sense, like he's being super sweet but it's to make sure the reader is dependent on him

- and he def wants to be the protector to give himself some sense of assurance bc he's so desperate to not be alone anymore and bc the reader is the only person he has/loves, he wants to feel in control and like he's the less attached one

- okay,, let's get back to the pregnancy thing, anyways, your pregnancy is most definitely activating all of those senses and this was meant to be a sub plot but it kind of became it's own thing lol

- so lets get to the actual pregnancy reaction

if you two have been trying to get pregnant:

- when you tell him, he kind of like, pauses bc it's not every day that he gets surprised so it takes him a moment to register that he's experiencing shock lol, so he tenses and goes islent

- and then after he realizes that he's surprised and that it's bc of a good thing, he manages to relax

- meanwhile you're kind of freaking out bc he got so quiet?? you start to wonder if he's regretting ever wanting a child with you? and you're like two seconds away from a downspiral and then he...

- he touches your cheek and looks at you in a way you've never seen him look at anyone,, not even you

- the look is so warm and strong and full of fierce admiration that you feel foolish for ever thinking he didn't want this. And then he says something about how you're carrying his child and how he didn't realize he could adore you more and then he kisses you and it's all :)) warm:)

- he doesn't want anyone to know that he's expecting a child as long as possible bc of how many enemies he has and how he has to worry about you enough when people just know that you're his 'lover' (a title you never really liked, but one he tells you is necessary to make sure no one realizes the extent of his attachment)

- if you really want to tell your mother or someone of that relation, he won't be mad about it, but he just needs to know

- Genya is the only exception bc the darkling basically instructs her to look out for you,, but when you tell her she's like oh?? you guys just found out?

- miss girl most definitely noticed like a day and a half ago after you cried bc she couldn't find you ice cream the other night 😭and she just assumed you knew but weren't ready to tell anyone

- okay so this what i think is his most problematic expecting father trait would be. So i just ranted about how important secrecy would be to him but he's also the most overprotective person in the entire world,, like he was bad before but once he knows your with child?? yeah, if a man asks you about the weather, he's done for

- he's next to you in a second, ordering either you or the man to do some asinine task

- if you get mad about this (rightfully so) or even just point out how nothing is wrong and you having a casual conversation with a man who isn't even looking at you sexually won't hurt you or the baby, he'll lose rationality

- it depends on how much you push, but it'd be super easy to make him super possessive bc like i said, being bonded by a child has made him so much more intense (and he was pretty intense before)

- and if you push too much he'll lowkey forget about how cautious he's trying to be with you and pin you against the nearest wall and say something along the lines of 'are you already forgetting you're mine? that i own you, body and soul--is my child growing in you not enough of a reminder? because i'll give you another one if you need it.' (AH--i want to write a whole fic based on this line)

- also if the reader is grisha, especially if she's a sun summoner/special grisha like him, he def talks about the power that they've created and how proud he already is and how he can't wait to train together and be the most powerful family in the world

- not everything is perfectly happy though, bc now he feels more pressure to complete his plan and establish the world he wants his child to be born into

- so sometimes when he's working extra hard or is extra aggressive for no reason, you have to work at calming him down and reminding him that the best thing he can do for his child is be there for them (and the child's mother,, lol)

- sometimes he'll respond by actually listening to you and trying to make up for his absence or his aggression by being extra soft until you finally forgive him

- you never last that long, it's hard to be mad at him when he's coddling you and whispering such sweet things about he's so happy to have you and your future child

- overall, his first reaction is to swell with emotion, which he isn't used to, and so he becomes super protective but also extra lovey and you know that his overreactions are just him trying to show that he cares about you and your future child more than anything

If the pregnancy was unplanned:

- the initial reaction is pretty similar, only his state of shock lasts longer

- like i said at the beginning, he's not used to being surprised and an accidental pregnancy is so much more surprising than a planned pregnancy

- this really sucks for you bc he's not exactly known for his patience so you just kinda sit there and genuinely wonder if you're going to be a single mom or if you're going to want to deletus the fetus or something

- but then he takes a step towards you and you see how he's looking at you and you just know that that fierceness has to mean something good

- and at this point you're scared and nervous and feel so alone so tears are pricking at your eyes,, so he wipes his thumb across your cheek to wipe away tears you won't let spill

- he then whispers something really sweet about how you two are now together forever, as you should be

- it's really relieving bc you felt so alone and uncertain and he's such a smooth speaker that by the end of the night, you feel like this is a good thing

- if youre still hesitant/weighing your options, he's not above trying to (gently) manipulate you into thinking that what he wants may be the only way

- by that,, i don't mean outright tricking you bc he means everything he says, but he def is pushing the keeping the baby agenda,, especially if you're a grisha,, and even more so if you're a grisha with similar power levels to him

- he won't get angry at first bc he's not so out of touch that he's unaware of how shocking a pregnancy is to a woman who wasn't planning one,, but his patience is limited and if you fight it too much he will get mad and yell

- but unless you really don't want to have a child, it won't get to that bc he makes the idea of having a baby with him sound so perfect?? like you genuinely don't understand how he did that

- he chases away all of your worries and assures you that youre not alone and that even though it isn't planned he wouldn't rather anyone else carry his child

- the initial conversation would probably end in you two sleeping together again bc he finds the fact that you're carrying his child so attractive and bc being aware of the pregnancy makes him more possessive

- it's also a good way to fight any of your doubts

- speaking of being possessive though,, i feel like he could be a little more possessive/protective of a reader who didn't plan on getting pregnant bc your relationship has been less established

- no one sees you as anything to him and he doesn't want to start rumors now bc it's important to him that his enemies don't find out about you or his future child so he doesn't want that to change

- but he almost forgets about all of those reasons each time he sees a man get a little too close,, especially if that guy is flirty

- it takes all of his will power to not just go 'she's mine and if i wasn't worried about the stress that witnessing something violent would cause our unborn child, you'd be dead already, but if you're not gone by the time i turn around, i'll forget about caution'

- lots of close calls ngl!! at one point youre like 'if it bothers you so much, maybe you should tell someone??' and he's like 'no,, maybe,, shut up' and then you raise one eyebrow and he just closes his mouth and is like 'i mean,, i'll kiss you to shut you up, haha--dont be mad'

- youre the one that's pregnant but sometimes you think he might be the one experiencing the mood swings i swear 😭

- so your little theory gets tested,, he's not the type to gossip with his besties and be like 'guess who's officially my girlfriend, i knocked her up but it's not like it sounds--'

- so he's like ig you can tell genya

- once again genya is like ?? yall thought you were keeping that secret? couldn't be me

- but having it a little out in the open helps ease him just enough that youre actually capable of consoling him when he becomes jealous

- still though,, he's quick to go into possessive/pregnancy kink sex

- youre most def not mad about it,, unless pregnancy has you particularly sore

- he's normally pretty understanding about that and def doesn't mind pulling his weight in the bedroom when he needs

- honestly he'd be really good at being a source of calmness at the beginning, but as time goes on he becomes more and more worried about finishing his plans bc he didn't expect to have a child right now

- so he'd be more adamant about working/becoming more tense and would be more difficult to console if it was an accidental pregnancy

- when you call him out on it--or on anything while your pregnant--it's frustrating for you both bc the number one thing everyone knows is stress is bad for baby, so he's trying to keep you calm without backing down

- these argument always end with one of you clinging to the other,, and then the more angrier of the two just like shuts up, rolls their eyes, and lets go of the argument...at least for now

- the main difference between an accidental and intentional pregnancy would probably be how you perceive him,, bc an intentional pregnancy means youve talked about things but since you havent talked about anything your shocked about how soft he becomes ??

[zukump3]

ignoring them for 24 hours ✧ hc

you ignore your boys for 24 hours. or, at least, you try to.

genre: fluff

requested: yes! i added todoroki just cause

as perceptive as he is

izuku probably notices immediately how you’re avoiding him

you two wake up at similar times because you go to sleep at similar times, but this time you woke up before him

he gave you a sweet “good morning” and kissed your cheek, but you only smiled and went to the bathroom

he thought that was strange. you usually say good morning back

but then again, it was such a small thing that he didn’t really overreact over it

however, when you left his dorm without saying goodbye or anything like that he got a little worried

once classes were beginning, he went to your dorm to pick you up and walk you to class like usual but

you were already gone.

“what the...” he would murmur to himself, frowning now

what was up with you? were you ignoring him or something?

what even annoyed him further was that you spent the whole day with fucking bakusquad!

bakugo didn’t seem to like it of course, but kirishima and the others accepted your company like it was nothing

he tried to sit next to you at lunch but once bakugo noticed his presence, he immediately yelled at the green haired boy to “fucking beat it!”

“but i-“

“WHAT DID I JUST SAY?!”

the fact that you didn’t even come to his defense kind of hurt him

he didn’t even eat at lunch

he was so bummed out that he just poked at his food with a frown on his face

of course you noticed this. you had been watching him all day and it broke your heart to see your baby like this omg ㅠㅠ

you couldn’t do it anymore. you got up and sat next to him at lunch and you swear he shined brighter than the sun when he saw you

“y/n! i-you-“

“i was trying to praaank you,” you pouted. “but you looked so upset after what that bomb bitch said-i couldn’t do it anymore.”

his pout matched yours.

“don’t do that again... i was seriously worried!”

he makes you stay by him for the rest of the day 😭

ignoring him for 24 hours challenge: failed.

y/n only lasted 5-6 hours.

todoroki literally doesn’t notice at all

he doesn’t talk much, and seeing that you don’t talk to him much in the morning doesn’t really bother him

he just assumed you were tired and didn’t really care

you two usually got coffee together in the morning but as he went to the common room to wait for you, he was a bit peeved that you didn’t show up

he just assumed you fell asleep or something, or maybe you weren’t in the mood

not gonna lie, he was already missing your presence but he wouldn’t push you to interact with him if you weren’t in the mood

when he goes to class though, he sees you laughing and smiling with the rest of dekusquad

having a good time, apparently

he sits with you guys and listens, and his brows furrowed when he heard you say

“i wish i would’ve gotten coffee this morning. really wanted some mocha.”

...?

did you forget that you two got coffee literally every morning?

okay, whatever. something was definitely wrong with you but he wouldn’t push.

you two also sit together during lunch but you sat between tsu and izuku instead

he’s like

what. the fuck.

he stares at you for the entirety of lunch time 😭

he doesn’t even mean to, he’s just so confused?

like why are you ignoring him? you guys didn’t fight or anything last night so ?? why??

the day continues like that

whenever he comes around you leave, whenever he talks you look away from him

he’s a mixture of irritated and annoyed

irritated bc he doesn’t know why you’re acting this way, and annoyed because he wants to fucking talk to you

you’re one of the only people in this class he talks to on a daily basis and you’re pushing him away??

he only says something when it’s kind of late and everyone is tucked away in their dorms

he has a key to your dorm room don’t ask why so he goes ahead and enters

you’re on your bed, giggling about how well the prank is going to mina when you hear the doorknob jiggle and your boyfriend enter the room

“shoto!”

“we need to talk, y/n.”

you make a face. “actually, i-“

“y/n.”

the sternness in his voice makes you look up at him, kinda scared at just how serious he looks

“you’ve been ignoring me all day. why? did i do something?”

“i—“

“if i did, please tell me. communication is important in every relationship and our relationship is very special. if you do not talk to me, i have no way of knowing what i did to hurt you and-“

“shoto! oh my god, it was just a prank!” you tell him quickly, standing up and holding out your arms.

he lowkey makes a 🤨 face.

“a prank...?”

“yeah. ignore your boyfriend for 24 hours prank,” you sigh. “i was so close.”

he sighs with you, walking over to hug you tightly, which feels so good after today.

“it’s a very stupid prank.”

you giggle against his chest.

“yeah. very stupid.”

ignoring him for 24 hours challenge: failed.

y/n only lasted 18 hours.

another one that notices immediately

you went the extra mile as to leave his dorm way earlier than he wakes up, which-

how tf did you do that

he automatically doesn’t fucking like that.

“y/n?!” he’ll yell out into his bathroom and grumble when you aren’t in there, or anywhere else in his room

he doesn’t even see you until class starts, sitting and laughing with fucking dekusquad

not only that, with midoriya

“hey dumbass, why’d you leave my dorm so early today?!” he asks you, and your eyes don’t even meet his.

you just continue scribbling at your desk.

his eyes turn white.

“i’m talking to you!”

“bakugo, please go have a seat. you’re being incredibly too loud.” aizawa would tell him, slipping his face out of his yellow sleeping bag.

he looks at his teacher, then at you, then back at his teacher before cursing and marching to his desk

probably always glancing at you through the day

the fact that you’re smiling and laughing with fucking deku

that just makes his mood even worse

you’re supposed to be smiling and laughing with him, not that crybaby

obviously his friends notice how mad he is

“dude, why so pent up?” kirishima would ask him and bakugo would literally snark

the red head smirks. “oooh—its y/n isn’t it.”

bakugo pauses.

“how the fuck did you know-“

“you know she’s pranking you, right?” kirishima would laugh at the look of anger that crosses bakugo’s face.

you’re ignoring him for a... a...

a PRANK?!

he’s livid.

during training he will not hesitate to march up to you

“you think it’s funny to ignore your boyfriend for a stupid prank, huh?! you think that’s so funny don’t you?!”

“bakugo, i-“

“SILENCEEEE!” he’ll literally roar at you and blast you like 10 feet away 😭

cue him being your partner and beating you up for practice

ignoring him for 24 hours challenge: failed.

y/n only lasted 5 hours.

kirishima understands the concept of “personal space”

he knows that sometimes, you don’t wanna be bothered

and sometimes, he doesn’t wanna be bothered

but sometimes he doesn’t care about that concept.

he will poke and pester at you if you do this challenge.

if you wake up and don’t say anything to him, he’ll yank you down to the bed and whine at you until you manage to squirm out of his arms and go to your own dorm room

he’ll stand right next to you during breakfast

and i mean he will always be standing next to you.

no matter how many times you move around the tables, he’ll somehow end up next to you

like ?? does he have super speed or something 😭

he will not tolerate you ignoring him

like not at all

during class if he cracks a few jokes and you don’t respond to them he’ll probably fake cry

“y/n, you’re making me feel very unmanly right now!”

you swear you didn’t know it would be this hard

he probably notices it’s a prank though when he’s walking next to you in the halls and you’re not even speaking to him, just staring forward

“ahh... you’re trying to play a little joke on me or something? well, we’ll see how long you keep that up!”

retorts to making you jealous the entire day.

hangs out with literally every girl, even the fucking invisible bitch

you can’t take it anymore when it nears 6pm and he asks uraraka to come back to his dorm and watch movies with him

being the amazing girlfriend you are, you get up, land in his lap, and cuddle up to him tightly

he grins at you, preppering you with kisses

“told you you wouldn’t last, y/n.”

ignoring your boyfriend for 24 hours challenge: failed.

y/n only lasted 11 hours.