#ok so i'm not in a great place so i didn't have an IMMEDIATE reaction bc at first i was kinda numb to it

[hypewinter]

Prev

Tim came down the stairs with an empty mug in hand. As he entered the dinning room he found a kid happily eating pancakes. Ah this must be the new adoptee, he thought to himself as he recalled last night's group chat.

"This is not a new adoptee," Bruce said looking up from the boy. Man, Tim hated when the old man guessed their thoughts like that.

"Say whatever you need to convince yourself B," Tim replied with a shrug as he went into the kitchen.

Bruce shouted after him, "He already has a family!"

The boy immediately interjected, "She's not my family silly! She's my friend."

Tim chuckled to himself as he filled his mug and came back into the dining room. "Aw B," he said smugly, "he doesn't even have a family. You're not saying we're gonna leave him on the streets are you?"

Bruce for his part, glared halfheartedly at Tim before turning back to the little boy. Tim also took this time to observe the boy. He believed Oracle had said his name was Danny. Danny was currently happily kicking his legs as he stabbed at his pancakes. Tim couldn't help but note how the pancakes had already been cut into bite sized pieces. Other than that, he seemed perfectly fine. No apparent injuries or adverse reactions to sudden movements. His clothes were also nice and clean. Probably Alfred's doing. Speaking of the old butler, he came in and set a plate down in front of Tim.

"Oh I'm not-" One eyebrow raise was enough for the young man to shut his mouth. He looked down at his plate only to immediately turn back to Alfred with an eyebrow raise of his own. "Mister Danny claimed it was not fair he was the only one to receive such special pancakes. He was rather insistent that everyone experiences such happiness this fine morning," Alfred informed.

Ah, that explains why Tim had gotten star shaped pancakes. He looked over at Danny who was smiling giddily at him. As Tim took his first bite of pancake, he couldn't help but agree with that assessment.

Bruce cleared his throat. "Danny?" the boy looked up at him. "As you know our... mutual friend left you in my care. As such after you're finished with your pancakes, what do you say I take you back home?"

"Ok!" the boy replied before shoveling more pancakes into his mouth.

"I think I'll tag along too," Tim said. There was no way this little "drop off" was going to go as planned and he wanted to be there to see it. After all, someone had to keep the group chat updated. Besides, he took great joy in Bruce's half perplexed half annoyed expression.

"Don't you have some meetings to attend today?" Bruce asked through gritted teeth, guessing his son's angle. "Nope," Tim answered sweetly. "My schedule's all clear today."

"Fine," Bruce relented. "If you want to come along on this very quick drop off, I won't stop you."

Tim smiled into his mug. This was gonna be fun.

-----

"We're here!" Danny exclaimed as they pulled up to an abandoned looking apartment building.

"Are you sure this is your home?" Bruce asked cautiously. Tim couldn't blame him, this place was on the outskirts of the Bowery and looked like nobody had lived there in years.

Danny opened the door and hopped out. "Yep!" he said. "I know because I'm a big boy and big boys know how to get home." He puffed out his chest proudly.

"Right," Bruce muttered pensively as he examined the building.

They all entered the building and began ascending the questionable stairs with Danny taking them two steps at a time. As they climbed, both Bruce and Tim noted how rundown the building looked. Walls were peeling and there was rubble and trash all over the floors. The railing on the stairs looked so rusted that a gust of wind could probably knock them over. Most of the lights didn't work because of one thing or another which luckily wasn't a problem considering it was daytime. But none of that was even the most concerning part. No, the most concerning part was how silent it was.

As they walked down the hall, it was simply too silent. Even taking into account that most people would already be at work right now, it was still too quiet. There was no hint of people coming back from work the night shift. No sound of those staying home sick or someone with a day off. No dogs barked, no cats made any noise. It was an eerie silence that seemed to blanket the whole building. It was unnerving.

Danny stopped in front of a door and opened it with ease. There was no lock or anything. Once again adding to the list of concerning evidence. They entered after Danny to discover a shabby looking flat past the door. There was barely any furniture, and the furniture that was there looked like it should have been thrown out years ago. The floor boards seemed as if they would give way at any moment too. The windows to the far side allowed lighted in but that only served to illuminated the mountain of dust everywhere. The apartment didn't even look lived in. There were no clothes anywhere, no dishes, no sort of decorations, nothing.

Danny seemed undeterred by any of this and happily pranced into a room off to the right. Tim followed him as Bruce stayed behind to look around more.

As he entered, Tim was relieved to find that at least this space looked lived in albeit barely. The bed had Superman themed sheets on it and there was a backpack leaning against the closet. The bed also had a blanket laying on top of it which Danny ran to and grabbed. He came back over to show Tim.

"This is my most precious thing!" he explained excitedly. "My friend gave it to me. Feel it! It's super soft."

Tim knelt down and felt the blanket which was black and had stars all over it. "You're right," he said. "It really is soft." Danny beamed. "Told ya!"

Tim smiled at the boy's obvious excitement despite his less than stellar living arrangements. Just then, Bruce called for him. Tim returned to the main room with Danny in tow, still clutching onto his blanket.

Bruce turned to him and handed him a piece of paper with an unreadable expression. The paper had cursive scrall on it that simply read, Take care of him my knights.

Danny looked up at them both curiously and Tim just sighed. So much for this being a quick drop off.

[uh-oh-its-bird]

There are so many naruto time travel fics out there but what I need SPECIFICALLY is an ANBU era team of Kakashi, Tenzo, Itachi, and Shisui getting flung into the founders era.

Like. Ok just looking from the political side of it that's;

A) 2 very young and VERY powerful Uchiha's (one of which is the future clan head!! Politics!!)

B) A very fucked up baby mokuton user who's still in the middle of being deprogrammed and can totally pass for Senju

C) The free wild card that is Hatake clan lore on top of having a stolen sharingan. On top of *that* him being the team leader of a team of kids who, in the time period context, should both be at eachothers throats and probably not be expected to obey the commands of someone not only from another clan but a way smaller one

Theres SO much potential there!! So many political implications in virtually ALL of the directions!!!!

Yk what as I'm typing this out I'm having ✨️ideas✨️ so let's make some story points to sort those out:

• I think itd be neat to have this happen like. A year? Ish? Before the massacre? So age wise, and full disclaimer I'm referencing Google and Wikipedia rn so I could totally be wrong, I think that's :

Kakashi (18)

Tenzo (17)

Itachi (12)

Shisui (15)

Could be wrong about the ages but honestly it's my world you're just living in it, so.

Then me going totally purely off of my own headcannons, were going to say they came in a about a year before Izuna died and place the founders ages as:

Madara (23)

Hashirama (23)

Izuna (19)

Tobirama (18)

Big fan of Tobirama being the youngest between the 4 but projecting the aura of someone as old as like. Idk, however old Madara is. Very funny to me, 10/10

• I'm personally a big fan of dogteeth kakashi so we're running with that all the way home. Also a huge fan of the "Hatake's are a distant, more feral cousin of Inuzuka clan" hc along with some sprinklings of "back in the day they had a bit of a Reputation(tm) for being a 'lill wild, and everyone generally tries to avoid them. Which isn't too much of a problem because theyre a very small out of the way clan from Iron, they just have a big reputation in contrast to their size.

In more modern times tho, along with (obviously) having dwindled down to a single depressed teenager, they've become a lot tamer over the years due to village life. Kakashi is a Hatake, 100%, but he is NOT up to the standards of this time. Which becomes a bit funny when people see him, go "oh FUCK it's a Hatake" and then start edging slowly towards the door like he's about to rip their throat out with his teeth. Meanwhile he's standing there like 🧍‍♂️"am I that ugly."

Give me a scene where, finally used to this reaction to him from the general shinobi population, the team starts to use it to their advantage.

"Give us the scroll or we'll let the Hatake off the leash to have his fun with you. He's been awfully hungry latley you know, hasn't had fresh meat in days"

Kakashi, feeling kind of stupid, gave his best growl.

It caused an almost immediate, embaressed flush to rise to his face, but he didn't let up. It sounded more like an almost pathetic puppy growl than anything to his ears, but apparently it was enough to convince the trembling enemy nin because he slowly lifted the scroll up in offering.

Wow. Now he couldn't tell if he was embaressed for himself or for this guy.

Probably both to be honest.

• So like. Itachi is the clan heir. That's big. That's important. Let's do something with that.

First off, I had a great time reading this one fic (tho I don't even remember what the fic itself was about now, oops) where a plot point of it was how Sasuke is just a walking stereotype of main house Uchiha. Like people look at him and they don't just go "oh that's an Uchiha." They go "oh fuck that's an UCHIHA Uchiha." He's so fucking painfully, obviously related to the very tippy top of the clan that anyone not blind can tell. It's in the way he looks, it's in the way he talks and treats those around him, it's in the way he fucking holds himself. You look at him and every other stereotype about the Uchiha clan is there in big, bold letters. (On top of that he's also a dead wringer for Izuna, which I'm such a sucker for and desperatley wish people would do more with)

So like let's give that to Itachi here because it's so fun for several reasons.

First off; Sasuke in this is like. Straight up a doppelganger of Izuna, just a few generations apart. They could be twins. Itachi, as I'm sure you are aware, is Sasuke's big brother. So let's take some liberties and say that Itachi could absoloutley pass as a blood sibling to Izuna and Madara.

He is however 12, so we're also going to say that the only people who get to make this connection is anyone who's seen the siblings when they were also at a similar age.

On top of that however he has the 'walking amalgamation of all the stereotypes of the main Uchiha house' so anyone who isn't blind will look at him and assume he's somewhere in the sphere of 'important main house person' tho who really knows how distant the relation may be exactly. No one !! That's who !!!

Second; He's the fucking clan heir!! What the fuck!! This bit would have the most impact after all the messy time travel reveals when things have settled down a bit, so it'll sit in the back pocket for a bit. Save it for some fun shaking up later down the line so we don't run out of all the fun reveals too fast and bore the readers, yk?

When it is brought up tho it'd be fun to maybe have some fucky Itachi and Madara mutual understandings of the way things work.

• So. Madara is like a bit of a scary bed time story to Uchiha children, right? Like. "Ooo make sure you don't get too obsessive or fall too deep into your grief and always stay loyal to the village or you'll end up just like Madara!!"

Something something Uchiha-Village relationships are tense as hell, something something Madara fucking over a lot of the clan with his whole. Everything., Something something scapegoat and old stories, something something 'people have probably been talking a lot more about how "god dammit this all started with Madara" in recent years.'

Now with that in mind let's take a look of what our time travelers think of Madara:

Itachi is a good Konoha soldier. Itachi (as has been very much fucking proven) would rather beat a possible problem before it even exists with a hammer till it dies an ugly bloody death than even RISK it blossoming into a proper problem. Itachi does not like Madara. Itachi personally, quietly thinks they should maybe wait till the village is formed then carefully arrange a little accident for him before he goes off the rails. He, even more quietly, maybe even thinks it would be a kindness. Allow him to be remembered well by the village instead of scorned.

Shisui I think is cautiously optimistic about him. He's the kind of guy who gives the benefit of the doubt, who weighs the options, risk and reward, but includes things like hope and compassion in his calculations. Yes, Madara was a uhh. Thing. That happened. But in every story his big blow up always come from one specific event; Izuna's death. So if they stop that from happening, wouldn't it secure both a better future for them and Madara? The history books never went into detail about Izuna, he doesn't know what he's like, but maybe his involvement in the future, on Konoha's side, could lead to even more profits for them long term. At the end of the day he's not against killing Madara (though to be clear, they are at first operating on trying to avoid all interactions with historical events and return home without touching things) but it'd be nice, to manage to get a happy ending for everyone. Unrealistic maybe, but nice.

Mmmm hear me out actually, maybe Shisui, after interacting with him a bit, finds that Madara reminds him of Itachi too. They definatley both have that "I would do unspeakable things to even dream of my loved just one more time" energy, if you know what I mean

Anyways; Kakashi and Tenzo are both neutral on Madara. Yes, they learned about how he betrayed the village when young just like everyone else, but they weren't getting the bed time stories and "do this and you'll end up just like him" warnings like the Uchiha's. They're possibly leaning into negative but are detached from the situation enough to just go "well he hasn't done it yet and his brother is still alive so he won't any time soon" and be done with it

• Now, on the the total opposite side of the spectrum you have Hashirama and Tobirama. People are brought up in Konoha to fucking IDOLIZE these guys. You can not tell me our team of time travelers wouldn't be at least a little awed to speak with them.

I think Tenzo would be the most wide eyed about Hashirama, both for the baseline "holy shit that's the Shodai Hokage" and also that fun juicy mokuton user imposter syndrome he has going on for him. That guys DNA is inside his body!!! Holy shit wait does that mean if someone did a blood relation test with them he might read as being related to him?? Fuck were gonna pocket that for now but like. Mmmmm potential.

I'd say Itachi is the most hesitant about Tobirama but again, village loyalist, so.

You know what tho maybe Shisui is the most hesitant about him (though still largely positive) he both def grew up looking up to him but can also see the anti-Uchiha policies people inact now with the implications that Tobirama would have approved of it. He doesn't know if he would, but like, he has to wonder.

Kakashi is probably the most normal about them (and also has experience in being close to a hokage (Minato) to know that at the end of the day they are painfully human) Don't get me wrong, he's still in some sort of awe! He might get a little lightheaded at the thought of seeing the God of Shinobi in proper battle, or the possibility to see the famed genius of Tobirama with all the different jutsu's he's invented. You can't tell me Kakashi didn't spend a little extra time reading about him when he was trying to make Chidori. Honestly I'm gonna roll with that and say he had a bit of a phase as a kid where he was a total fan boy. Maybe sprinkle in the good old HalfHatake!Tobirama hc to add some faint daydreams a lonley babykashi had after his father's death, about getting to meet him as family. Like cmon, little genius idolizing and projecting on some big history figure only to find out they're actually related? Can you say potential?

Anyways he did eventually grow out of the phase, probably got unattached to it all and lost interest after the whole "losing everything he loved" bit of his life. And at the end of the day, he doesn't have any real complex personal hang ups on the founders like the others do. Thus, most normal.

• And then my favorite most special boy, Izuna !! He's for sure the one they're all most neutral about. He's not actually taught about in the academy? There's probably some throw away line about him in some history books somewhere, but he died young and was quickly buried by the looming shadow of Konoha. The only real knowledge had about him in modern times is just a vague "Yeah he got killed by Tobirama which lead to peace being made but also lead to Madara losing his shit"

Poor Izuna he's the linchpin for it all but was left an unremarkable footnote of history. My boy deserves so much better

Tenzo doesn't actually even know who he is, that boy got bare minimum education under Danzo and Izuna was NOT included.

Itachi and Shisui mmmaybe have some small little fun fact here or there buried in stories from the older members of the clans but like. It's gonna amount to just "yeah he had a great katon" and thats about it.

I WILL SAY HOWEVER. Itachi sees him and instantly is that one PTSD dog meme. Sasuke is a BABY but holy shit Izuna looks exactly like he'd expect him to grow up as and it's making him FEEL THINGS. Also he's so bratty little brother coded !! He's an entire 7 years older than Itachi but Ifachi keeps fucking up and trying to big brother him it's embaressing.

And ofc Itachi didn't go into the first meeting thinking he'd see some weird older mirror version of his beloved baby brother who he misses and worries about very very much. So like. There's for sure going to be some conflict there. If their first meeting is a scuffle (which it probably will be) I think Itachi would keep hesitating to attack. On full run away mode. Which is probably for the best bc he shouldn't try to fight Izuna anyways honey he's like double your bodyweight and you're strong but you aren't THAT strong.

• Pointing back at both the 'Itachi does not like Madara and has quiet thoughts about how it'd possibly be in everyone's interest to just kill him' and the 'Itachi and Madara quietly bond over being clain head/heir during stressful times (w pressure from the elders especially)

I can see 2 outcomes of a potential bonding conversation with them:

1) They come to understand eachother better.

Madara wants to be on good terms, he looks at this kid and sees one of his brothers eyes and the others quiet determination. He can tell Itachi doesn't like him for some reason, and it's frustrating because he doesn't know why. He wants him to like him. He wants to be able to offer his hand and have it taken. It hurts, to be looked at with such suspicion from a face that has traces of Izuna's.

Meanwhile Itachi . . . Itachi looks at Madara and he sees someone who gets it. Gets it like no one ever has. It scares him. He looks up at this man, this horror story he's been told to fear becoming, and he sees himself. And this realization shakes him. It makes him think, makes him wonder. He's so, so sure of his loyalty to Konoha. More sure than he is of anything else in the world. But . . . But if something happened to Sasuke, if he had to choose—

And maybe it softens something in him too, along with the (honestly healthy) dose of fear. It forms a little crack in his shell, just enough to maybe, maybe let Madara through. Just a hair.

Or 2) we pull one of those "The conversation ends with them agreeing verbally but mentally they're on 2 VERY different notes."

Madara, nodding and looking at Itachi meaningfully: "Yeah it can be hard, but all we can really do is try to make the world a safer place for the ones we love. (To create Konoha, to keep my clan safe. Izuna safe. And now to keep you safe too.)

Itachi, nodding slowly: "Yeah. No matter how hard it is (even though I think I understand you more than anyone else Ive ever met) we have to try to make the world a safer place (by killing you in your sleep once Konoha is formed) for the ones we love (My clan. My village. Sasuke.)"

• Also pointing back at the 'Hatake warring clan era reputation,' the 'Tobirama is half Hatake' and also now pointing at Tobirama's title as the White Demon. Small thing but it'd be neat if there was some small throw away line that the nickname lowkey started in part because of the absoloutley terrifying reputation of the Hatake combined with Tobirama's own Everything(tm) like it just had some influence on how some view him. Give me Uchiha's making dog jokes ab him it'll be funny

• Ok but now the actual plot thoughts. Yeah I know I kept you waiting sorry about that.

So time travel! Probably due to a mission gone wrong. Some ruins or some ancient crumbling scroll that wasn't even supposed to do fucking time travel but was so old and corroded that it somehow managed to transform into a whole other seal by pure bad luck. Or good luck I guess, considering it could have just turned into a nuke.

Our favorite team of disasters are very very alarmed !!! What the fuck !!! Obviously they don't default to thinking time travel, but they immediatley know something is wrong. The landscape has changed, though the big landmarks are still there. The mission was complete anyways with no injuries so they just retreat to Konoha. Only oops !! It's not fucking there!!!

Queue alarm.

Shisui is the first one to suggest time travel because he's quirky like that. And there's a very easy way to confirm this theory.

(Also we're going to say that Konoha's location is a valley a few miles out from the Naka River that borders the Senju / Uchiha territories.)

This is convenient because that verification method involves checking in on where Itachi and Shisui know the old Uchiha compound should rest.

They do it in full stealth mode, the second they saw Konoha was missing Kakashi as team leader decided they'd treat the land as enemy territory. They all agreed ofc, for all they knew this WAS enemy territory now.

And, ofc, yeah!! There's the old Uchiha compound!! Being active!!! There are people there!!!

"What are the odds Fugaku-sama decided to have the clan return to their homeland for ahh, cultural enrichment?" Kakashi asked weakly.

"Time travel." Was the only reply he got from Shisui, whispered reverently as the boy vibrated with excitement on the branch.

Itachi just gave him a look, radiating a level of dissaproving disbelief that no normal 12 year old should be able to make. Kakashi would know, he was that not-normal 12 year old once.

From there they decide a no interference policy. Hands off guys!! They probably debate it tho, like, a good amount. They all have ✨️opinions✨️ except maybe Tenzo who's lowkey still in the middle of trying to learn how to be a person and is following Kakashi's lead 99% of the time. Especially since they're still in mission mode and this is like a super serious discussion and he really does know the least ab the founders overall.

They probably debate the merits of going to Uzushiogakure bc seal help but it's really far and they don't actually have like, just any leverage with them. They already decided not to fuck with the future so it isn't like they can trade secrets and warnings. At least if shit happens here they have some plausible deniability, being, yk, 2 uchiha's and a senju-passing guy with Mokuton. Kakashi's kinda fucked tho in that regard but he isn't going to be doing the party ANY favors with his clan heritage.

Which means it's time to potentially get desperate enough to interact with Tobirama !!! Which will inevitably lead to them bumping into a Uchiha patrol or something!!! I don't know honestly

• Anyways want Hashirama and Tenzo to interact. He has so many issues like holy shit. Let Hashirama give him the hug he deserves. I want him to violently adopt him. New brother acquired!!!

I said before but Tenzo is still reprogramming from ROOT. Let Hashirama impact that! Let him help! They can make flower crowns and photosynthesize together idk

Hashirama would be so happy to have another mokuton user, I think they should be able to sense eachother extra strong and like 'ping' off of eachothers chakra, it'll be fun

▪︎ I'm not thinking toooo hard about power scaling and this is fanfiction so a) don't quote me on this and b) for the love of all that is holy don't take my words as gospel

But for this fic specifically I'm ranking the founders and Team Ro, weakest to strongest (in a clean, fair fight head on w no time to prepare) :

Itachi (he's fucking 12 guys. But also he is like. FRACTIONS under Tenzo and Shisui. If he were 13 I'd let him be above or at the same level but like. He's 12. Cmon.)

Tenzo - Shisui (they're like JUST under the next 2 tho like seconds behind)

Izuna - Tobirama

Kakashi ( by the skin of his fucking teeth and the advantage that is his stupid amount of jutsu's and lack of self preservation)

Madara - Hashirama

And again that's not counting like. The specific situations, time given to prepare, potential dirty tricks they could play (I think the Konoha tricks would play a fraction dirtier than the others, who are slightly more used to big open battles vs the ANBU squad who does all sorts of shit in all sorts of places) plus like. Mental state and team ups.

Tenzo or Shisui couldn't take down Izuna or Tobirama but if they teamed up I'd allow it. Kakashi would get his ass kicked by Hashirama or Madara but he could survive a minutes longer than the others would

Itachi is doing his best

But like

He's 12 guys

I love him and he is terrifyingly competent but he won't win 1 on 1 with anyone unless he has some sort of advantage. Minus Shisui and Tenzo who he does have the advantage of regularly fighting, so.

• I think they do get to go back home in the end. It takes a ton of work tho and they probably do need to get Mito's help with it, Kakashi can show them the seal they got brought here with but it's an ACTUAL one in a trillion miracle it didn't fucking atomize them. So it needs a lot of touch ups

Anyways !!!

I have a little more rattling around in my brain but I'm really tired and also starting to think about other things now so I'm gonna stop here. Might come back and add to it later so stay tuned if you're into that

Full disclaimer I'm not gonna write this. I don't have the proper energy and it'd probably end up being too ambitious of a project if I tried. I'd love to see it happen tho, so like !! Big open invitation to absoloutley anyone who might want to take even a fraction of the ideas I've listed.

@ me if you do tho I wanna see the final product

[juanarc-thethird]

Hi I have a question are you still doing I have a license for that?

Yes I do ------------

I have a license for that! Part 3

Jaune is in the library using one of the computers checking flights to return home.

Jaune: Dammit, why is everything so expensive?

Winter: Is everything all right?

Jaune: Hm?

He looks back and looks at Winter standing near him.

Jaune: Oh, hello Winter. Everything is fine, thanks.

Winter: From the tone you had for a moment it didn't sound like everything was fine.

Jaune: It's nothing important. I just can't find flights to go home for a family thing, but I haven't given up. But thanks for asking.

Winter: If you want I can take you there. I have my own airship.

Jaune: Really?!

He says excitedly, but immediately takes it back.

Jaune: Oh no, no, no, I can't ask you that. It's too much. Thanks but I can't accept your help.

Winter then turns to the screen Jaune is using and sees where he is going.

Winter: You know, I was already heading to my family's villa and where you're trying to go is close by. If you don't mind making that short stop, I can drop you off there later. Also, so that you don't feel like it's too much, it would help me a lot to have some extra hands.

Jaune: For real?

Winter: Mm-hm, It's just a routine stop and then I'll leave you wherever you want.

Jaune: *Happy* Ok, cool! Thank you!

Winter: No problem. I leave early tomorrow at 7am.

Jaune: Great! I'll be there at 6:30am.

Winter: Understood. See you there. *Walks away*

Jaune: See you there! And thank you again!

The next day...

Jaune meets Winter at the airship port with his suitcase.

Jaune: Good morning Winter, I'm ready to go.

Winter: Good morning Jaune. You can put your suitcase in the back of the ship.

Jaune: Thank you.

He started to walk towards the back of the aircraft but then he stopped.

Jaune: You know, I never told you what kind of help you need in your family's villa.

Winter: Really? I thought I did.

Jaune: No, you didn't. What kind of help do you need?

Winter: I'm just going to clean the house a little. Nothing big.

Jaune: Ok, wait, let me see if I understand. Your family is the richest in all the four kingdoms, but they do not have a cleaning staff in their villa. Forgive me but it sounds a bit suspicious.

Winter: You're overthinking it. The reason we don't have Staff is because-

Jaune: *Interrupts her* Are you a member of my mom's club?

Winter: *Surprise* What?! What club? I don't know what you're talking about?

Jaune: That reaction makes me think the opposite. You know what, I'm just going to play it safe. Thank you very much for your help, but I will find another way to get there.

Jaune starts to leave but Winter stops him by grabbing his suitcase.

Winter: *Panic* Wait!

Jaune: Hey! Let go!

Winter: I swear I'm not part of your mom's club!

Jaune: Fine, you are not! Can you let me go now?!

Winter: Can I still take you home?!

Jaune: No!

Winter: Then I can't let you go!

Jaune: Winter!... *pulls* Let!... *Pulls* Me!... *PULLS* Go!... *PULLS!* now!... *PULLS!!!!!*

And with the last pull, they both lost their balance and fell to the ground. As a card fell, it came out of Winter's jacket and slid over to where Jaune was lying. They both get up and Jaune notices the card.

Jaune: What is this?

Winter: *Gasp!* Don't look!!

He takes the card and…

Jaune: What the fuck?!

Winter immediately lunges towards Jaune taking the card from his hands. She pushes him to the ground and using her Semblance, she leaves him stuck there.

Jaune: I knew it! I knew you were part of that weird club!

Winter: *She gets into her airship* I'm sorry, my love, but I didn't expect you to find out so quickly.

Jaune: Can you at least explain to me why my mom created this club?!

Winter: I'm sorry, but it's not my place to say. Look for the Witch, she may give you the answers you are looking for.

Jaune: The Witch?!

Winter: Goodbye.

Jaune: Hey! Wait!!

She starts the engines of her airship and flies away. After some distance, Jaune is freed.

Jaune: *Upset* Fuck, back to square one.

[herejusttosufferalong]

I've started and deleted this sentence several times now and don't really know how to begin. So let's just go for it and say seriously WHAT THE FUCK has been the last 6 months!? My mind is a clusterfuck rn. I love L and N but they are seriously debilitating. Like I've been see-sawing between casual nonchalance about everything saying "haha this is great ride, what's next in store?" to just confused exasperation and emotional fatigue. I don't even know these people, and yet I am so fucking invested. This has never happened to me. They are like a drug. Seriously, whatever they are selling, I will buy 10 of everything, pump it into my veins. Why is my kink now seeing them get married, have kids and L be a stay-at-home daddy while N rules the fucking world?! N, alone, has me questioning my sexuality. Then I remember L is there, and I go oh yeah him too. Them is my sexuality. It's so messy. Anyway, now to the point of this. I had some flashbacks while watching L's Loewe Vogue video today. Watching his groomer give him a lovely face and head massage instantly transported me to Ireland with the infamous forehead stroke. Honestly, imo, the biggest turning point of the whole tour. So much happened before this time, but I really do think this moment was critical. I will outline why.

Obviously, Ireland was a massive deal for N. The excitement of getting back home and meeting family and friends, the amazing reception, it was special. She talked ad nauseam about her mum meeting L and honestly all I could think was when has anyone been excited/nervous about their parents meeting just a friend? You feel that certain way because you're wanting approval, you're wanting them to feel the same way you do about that person and welcome them into the family, as it were. I've never felt that way with friends, but I had done with my boyfriend (now husband). But maybe that's just me? L didn't seem as caught up in it, like almost trying to downplay a lot of her ott excitement. I also noticed that they were less touchy feely overall compared to earlier on in the trip, which was so unhinged honestly, I didn't know what to do with myself. But then came the moment. I don't think enough people have broken this moment down. So the interviewer asks the question, that's been asked oh so many times, "was it easier or harder to do the intimacy scenes with a friend?" And N looks at L and thinks to herself, he has a hair out of place on his forehead, I'm going to reach out and stroke his forehead right in the middle of this god damn interview. Not once, but a few times, like her little hand was built to stroke that man's face. Now, tbf, she does ask permission but also tbf her hand is already at his face before he can answer a whispered, guttural, "mhmm". He leans in, we loose L for a bit there, then he comes back saying "ok" like you probably got that hair now, think we should stop now. And her going into 'mother' mode telling him to turn his head, good boy. And his little worried face when it's over. And them talking about how N just can't stop picking hairs off people on set. Mmm ok. If they were in Regency outfits, I would be expecting a mirror scene next up. But you might say to me, well shit like this has happened countless times, it's just another thing. Well, I say no, this time was different. They both knew they had crossed a line, publicly, her initiation, his reaction. Because they were strange as hell at the London premiere. He avoided her gaze. She visibly stopped herself from touching him. One occasion, I saw her reach out to his arm or back, and she looked behind him (I think where their teams were?), and immediately pulled her arm back. The first moment she was asked about people shipping Lukola she had a pre-prepared speech ready to go to explain the head stroke. It was forced. A lot of what she said seemed so rehearsed, and although, I'm certain N does think a lot about what she is going to say in interviews, usually she is very natural about it and let's it flow. That lady was stressed and making a point that L is just a 'bud'. The lady doth protest to much, methinks. She's seen everything we've typed about her and L's behaviour during the tour, so why start over-explaining and defending behaviour now? She was STRESSED. That was the overt, obvious, stop yourself type of behaviour, and yet we still saw SOME of that unconscious stuff seep through, like him searching for her hand, her looking up at him like a God, her stroking his thumb with hers while holding hands (seriously, why was that SO intimate to me?). Point being, you can't fake that stuff, the repression and release. The unconscious behaviour. They knew something was rumbling. Or at least, N did. My opinion is that they have not acted on those rumblings, because if they had, it would be OVER. Electric. Power surge. Goodnight. Pack your bags and goodbye. We might not even exist anymore, tbh. But I shall wait over here and keep eating all the crumbs I can get. (I am sooo sorry about the length of whatever this is, thank you much the same, it was so nice to vent).

OKay but like I kinda fuckin love you anon...

I had the biggest smile on my face reading this.

There is so much to unpack here. We will have to chat sometime.

LOVE x

[my-rose-tinted-glasses]

Rose Recaps 2023 - Korea

I started with Japan because this year it gave me everything I could possibly want. Korea gave me some very nice surprises. Let's go.

The one that had me question if watching it was good for my mental health.

The Eighth Sense

Much like what I said about Tokyo in April is... it was not a good decision on my part to watch this one live. I related way too much to Jae Won and I wasn't in a specially good place at the time. However, I love it so much. I have rewatched it since then and it's such an incredible journey.

I think they used the time very efficiently and they didn't try to skip too many steps to make it a happy ending. I would be okay without any redemption for those two but on the plus side the other friends were brilliant.

Favourite Moment

The one that came out of nowhere

Sing My Crush

This show came out all at once and I had no idea it was coming. But I'm so glad it did. There were I think 4 kbls that came out all at once this year. And with the exception of this one, they were all worse because of it. First of all I fell in love with the song instantly and Han Tae immediately after. He's so cute and in love and it takes him way too long to realise it, but his devotion to Ba Ram is unquestionable from the beginning.

Favourite Moment:

The one that was a sequel but not really

Love Class 2

The first couple of episodes I wasn't sure about this one. The first couple of episodes were kinda of confusing, starting with such a dark scene on the roof, and so many different types of relationships to keep track of.

Joo Hyuk was my instant favourite from the beginning. The way he was instantly smitten and committed from the first moment he saw the TA was delightful.

It took me longer to warm up to Min Woo and Maru. But I love their arc. Even the jealousy experiment didn't bother me, Maru needed a push. Much like Lee Hyun said, it was so obvious.

Lee Hyun and Kim An were the last ones to reach me. I think the whole backstory around Kim An muddied the waters a bit and I'm not sure it was necessary to have so much of it, but I did love that when Kim An gave in, he did so with no reservations.

Favourite Moments:

The one that had me considering moving to a farm

Love Tractor

Ok. Not really, But look how pretty. Funny story, I actually rewatched part of this show in an orchard not that much different from the one here. I was on holiday in the countryside and just thought it would be incredibly amusing.

Anyway. I love Ye Chan an unreasonable amount. He's so dramatic and so earnest. And honestly if I ever had to move to a place like this I think I would pretty much have the same reaction as Seon Yul. I just want my peace and quiet.

But I really like their dynamic all throughout and considering the time restraints I thought that the development of Yul's feelings was done quite well.

Favourite Moment:

The other one with Love in the title

Love Mate

There was absolutely no reason for me to like this show has much as I did. Ha Ram should've bothered me. This whole concept should've annoyed me. The whole separation bit should've made me angry. Why didn't it? I have no clue. But I loved it. I've watched it more than once and love it every time.

Favourite Moment

The one with coffee and pottery

Unintentional Love Story

I adore this show. Pick an episode, any episode, I love it. Was it perfect? No. Was the kissing the thing that made it not perfect? Perhaps. I love it nonetheless.

[Confession time. Is there one thing about this show that bothers me no matter how many times I rewatch it? Yes. Is it the kissing? No. Is it something absolutely and stupidly tiny that only I could possibly be that bothered by it? Yes. What is it? " Let me at least do this." It's such a great moment. But why did whoever was in charge of the editing felt the need to show us the scene that we saw 17 minutes before? (it's really 17 minutes and 40 seconds, I checked because I'm nowhere near sane). Did they thing we forgot about it in that time? It lessens the moment and it insults the audience. I hate it an unreasonable amount. ]

There are so many moments in this show that I love. The four mains are amazing, the confession scene by HoTae in the coffee shop floored me, the writing in the sand moment was delightful and the soundtrack is my favourite of the year.

Favourite Moment:

The one that was perfect

Our Dating Sim

What's there to say. There's nothing wrong here. They are delightful, I had a great time with the video game format at the end of the episodes, their chemistry was amazing, and Ki Tae is my favourite boy. Also, my second favourite soundtrack this year.

Favourite Moment

See you next time with Thailand I think.

Thanks for reading💜

[msmargaretmurry]

for the i wish you would write meme, post scf winner's room? if you're into winner's room. if not, your thoughts on post scf mattdrai break up to future fic exes to lovers

ok so i'm not NOT into winner's room, but i have to be in the exact right mood to vibe with it, you know? i'll read and enjoy it but don't think i'll ever write it because i get way too caught up in the logistics + consent issues when i am the one pulling the strings. like my immediate thought here is, when is anyone going to have time for a winner's room sesh admist all the celebrating??? i totally get the appeal of the concept but i think you'd need someone more able to commit to the bit than i am to figure out how to write it 🙈

so: post-scf breakup to futurefic makeup!

i do think matthew winning the cup is such a delicious moment for a breakup because while it is a totally logical place to realize, yeah okay this conflict of interest is too big to overcome, it still feels like a petty kneejerk sore loser reaction. like, oh, you beat me for the cup? well , fuck you, you can't have me anymore, and i hope that sucks for you. and even if that's not what leon would think/feel when he's not drowning in grief and frustration, it's what he feels in that very specific awful moment, and then it's done, and he has to hold onto that grudge so tightly for years to justify it.

there are several fics already of the "they end of on the same team later in their careers" genre but that's fine, we can have another one. i think it would be great here. it's been long enough that leon losing the cup to matthew and the whole rivalry there is kind of like, well, people assume that he's over it. it's been years! he didn't have florida in his nmc! he must be fine with going there! and sure, he's fine with going to the team, it's just matthew he has a problem with. also kinda has a problem with the return his team got for him, like, they had to retain salary for florida to take him, which is just embarrassing. he's having a kind of off season, that doesn't mean he's not worth his paycheck.

and oooh, it's rough. not because matthew is awkward around him, but because matthew is picture perfect cordial friendly welcoming committee. he's shaking leon's hand, welcoming him to the team, introducing him to guys and cracking jokes about how obviously everyone already knows who leon is. but none of them know the real history between leon and matthew, and it is both a relief and a special kind of excruciating to have to act like this is just a fully fresh start. he's the new guy in the room; he won't be afforded the grace to hold a grudge anymore. it's up to him to make a good impression. he's never been very good at not wearing his heart on his sleeve, but he has to try.

insert here a painful slow burn reconciliation where leon tries to be friends and runs smack into the emotional wall matthew has thrown up against him — acting the part of the welcoming committee and being actually glad that leon's here are two totally separate things. and leon is wrong about no one knowing about their history, too (he learns, mortifyingly, one night when samuel corners him with some mild threats about how he needs to treat matthew). of course he makes friends on the team but it sucks because everyone loves matthew so much that it's hard to feel like anyone is really in his corner. he misses being on a team that loved him that much.

but ofc things will slowly thaw and matthew will start slowly making genuine efforts instead of just performative efforts to include him in team stuff, and he starts getting his groove back on the ice, and eventually things will come to a head where maybe leon (drunk, in his feelings for whatever reason) tries to kiss matthew, which matthew is NOT having, and they finally have the big fight they need to have — best day of my life and you tried to make me feel shitty about it; yeah well worst day of my life and it was your fault, etc — and once they're finally being honest they can finally, tentatively work their way back to each other. and bone tenderly about it.

[luimagines]

I actually got one of your Bath day packages on your shop (10/10 would recommend) and I love it it! I think I accidentally bit into soap thinking it was candy, or it might’ve been candy and perhaps it wasn’t to my flavor but either way at that moment I was rethinking my life choices lolol. Anyway it gave me an idea, how would the Chain react to reader eating something that they shouldn’t because unbeknownst to the reader it might’ve been poisonous.

Oh! Well thank you so much! <3

I hope you didn't eat one of the bath bombs by mistake ^.^*

I'll see what I can come up with :D

Masterlist

Immediate Reader!

Boys under the cut!

You didn't quite know what you were looking at.

It was a small red berry that you had seen a few birds and a squirrels pick off of the bush. You plucked a few for yourself and held in the palm of your hand.

Your stomach growled in protest.

You knew you shouldn't eat anything you didn't recognize, but realistically you weren't home. You didn't recognize anything.

But if the animals could eat it, that means it was more of less safe, right? At best you'd just have to wash it before you decided to eat any.

There's a stream nearby now that you think about it.

You make your way over to it, feeling a tad regretful and suspicious. You're not doing anything wrong, per say. But you still have the lingering feeling that you shouldn't be doing what you're doing.

It's quiet when you get to the side of the stream. There doesn't seem to be a lot of other animals around you, but they have proven to be in the area as it is.

You dip your hand in the freezing water, letting it run over the berries. There was a stinging sensation as the water collides with your skin but it was quickly ignored in favor of the juicy fruit in your hands.

You pulled your hand away and began to dry them off. Was the water clean? You hoped so.

It was only a few berries after all. Maybe you just try one and then let the others know that there was food in the area. …and poison yourself in the process? Seems dumb.

But what if it's harmless and you're making a big fuss over nothing. They're hardly the size of your fingernail. Just one berry? For science?

You plop one in your mouth and let it roll over your tongue for a minute.

There's no strange taste on the skin of the fruit. It's smooth and chilled from the water.

You bite into it.

The juices that spill forth is sweet and mildly salty. It's a strange combination but an inherently pleasant one. It would make a great refreshment in the summer time and it would be great on a jam. No wonder the squirrels were trying to stash as many as they could.

A small hum leaves your lips as you reach to plop another one in your mouth. "They're not half bad."

Someone says your name with poorly disguised horror. "What are you chewing?"

***

Sky

You snapped your head in the direction of the voice with wide eyes, freezing in place like a dear in headlights.

Sky sprints in our direction, slapping your hand and scattering the berries all over the forest floor. "Are you crazy?!"

"Sky?"

"Do you even know what kind of berries those are? What if they're poisonous?! You don't just eat things you find growing around you!" He's panicking.

Sky paces the space you. His hands flutter all around you, touching you gently but thoughtfully. He checks your pulse, your temperature, your reaction time- he checks if you're swelling or not.

"Sky, I'm ok." You say after a choked minute.

"Are you?" He checks your forehead again, resting he back of his hand against your cheek. "Are you sure?"

You hesitate to respond. He is very close right now. His nose is only inches away from yours. And his eyes- were they always that blue?

You take a step back.

Sky seems to catch on and gasps. "Sorry. Sorry. I wasn't paying attention. Are you feeling ok?"

Truthfully, you're not but you can't let him know that. You nod. "I'm fine. I already ate one. So I think they're fine to eat. Otherwise, I might be dealing with food poisoning-"

He opens his mouth to interject but you hold your hand up, stopping him.

"-later. I feel perfectly fine right now."

He frowns. "I don't trust it."

"We can bring back a twig for one of the others to try and identify it." You offer, pointing in the direction of the little bush. "I think Wild's Sheikah Slate would be able to figure something out. I saw him use it to name a few animals a while ago. Maybe it can do the same with plants."

Sky doesn't seem to convinced but he can't find an argument fast enough. "...Alright. But I don't trust it. The second you start feeling well, you have to tell someone, ok?"

That actually doesn't sound too appealing to you. "...Why?" You chuckle nervously. "No one has to know-"

"Yes, we do." Sky presses. "Otherwise no one is going to know how to properly treat you just cause you're embarrassed to be just as bad as the Champion."

"In his defense, he's not that bad." You roll your eyes.

"Then tell Twilight what you did."

"Hell no."

Four

You straighten up entirely. Your back and neck go rigid and some berries fall from your hand.

You cough. You gasped when you heard his voice and sent the piece of fruit all the way to the back of your throat. It nearly choked you.

"F-four- ahahack!" You gasp for breath. "Don't scare me like that."

Four jogs forward. "Sorry."

He doesn't sound apologetic.

While you're still trying to get the air back into your lung the proper way, Four takes your hand and grabs the berries from them. He inspects them thouroughly and begins to look around the surrounding flora to find where you might have taken them from.

"Ca-can I help you?" You keep coughing. A part of you is a little annoyed about the attempt on your life and the little care he seems to have for it, but you're also a little concerned by said lack of care. Were you in any danger?

"Where did you find theses?" Four holds the berries in his own hand out to you.

Your eyebrows scrunch and you point just beyond a small thicket. "I got them from the bush over there. I saw a few animals eat them and I-"

"Did you eat it?!" He pales and makes a dash towards you.

You feel fine, if a bit winded so his reaction startles you. "No?? You freaked me out and I coughed it up."

Four waits for a moment as if expecting a reaction out of you before he turns around and rushes to the bush your pointed to earlier.

You follow him, feeling ice cold terror slowly fill your veins. "Is it bad? Is it poisonous?"

Four starts looking at the leaves and stems of the plants before he groans loudly. You're aback again but if he's annoyed then maybe you're not in as much danger as he may have thought.

"No, these are fine." He says at last, plucking a few more for good measure. "You're almost as bad as Wild. Putting things in your mouth that you don't recognize-"

"Hey!" You pout. You had thought about it!....You did it anyway, but it crossed your mind! "I was checking on it!"

"Don't scare me again." He grins, tossing a berry in your face. "Just because animal can eat it, doesn't mean that people can. Be careful."

As if to tease you, he puts a few in his mouth and chews them. "Hhmm... We should take a few back for the others, what do you think?"

You huff and sag your shoulders. "I think it's a great idea."

"You can take the credit for finding the bush."

"I think it's the best idea today!"

Hyrule

"....A berry...." You trail off. Something about this makes you feel uneasy. You didn't think you'd be caught by Hyrule of all people and the energy he's giving off leaves you with little room to doubt that you're in trouble.

He meets your eyes with a flat look. His hands land on his hips and his eyebrow goes up. "Oh really? And where did you find it?"

Whoever taught him this is going to hear form your lawyers.

"I found a bush." You say sheepishly, picking a single berry from your small hoard. "I saw animals eating and then I washed them..."

"Uh-huh." Hyrule takes a few steps forward and plucks the berry from your fingers. He looks over it for a minute before bravely putting it in his mouth. "And then what?"

"Wha- Hey!" You panic and drop the berries in the process. "Hyru- Link! You can't just-!"

"Oh these are fine." He says after he swallows. "For a second I thought that they were Thornbull Berries. But the little stem would have a thorn at the top of the fruit and it would taste metallic."

You stare at him unblinkingly until he bends down, picking up the little berries that you dropped. "...What berries are these then?"

"Sweet Tarts." He grins, putting the berries back in the palm of your hand. "They're safe to eat."

You cough and clear your throat. "Oh... Good. Good. Um... I'm guessing the other one you mentioned isn't?"

"Nope. They'll poison you for sure." He says, all chipper and not at all bothered by the information. "Ask me how I know."

Well now you have to. "How do you know?"

"I ate some." He looks back to you with a grin. "Enough so that I've built up a tolerance to the effects of them. So I can eat a few of them safely. You, however, cannot. So don't eat things you don't know, ok?"

You looks away in embarrassment and tapping your toe on the ground. "...Someone had to."

"We have food back at the camp." He laughs. "Where'd you find these anyway? I want more. Do you think Wild can make a pie while we're out here."

You feel like you've been given whiplash. You lead him to where you found the berry bush and he starts happily picking the berries. Now you're a little put off the innocent berries but if Hyrule gave them the all clear then you've got no problem eating them, right?

You sigh and start to help picking them off of the small bush. "If he manages to make it, I would be very impressed."

Hyrule giggles, unaware of the inner turmoil he sent you in. "I'm sure we can ask. If not, then maybe he can make a dessert instead."

You nod and take out a small bag to put them in. Hopefully there's enough for everyone to enjoy.

Wind

Wind gasps and takes a step back. The look of horror on his face is unmistakable. "Is that blood?"

"What?" You nearly choke on the berry when you speak. The juice runs down your chin and the flesh of the fruit hangs at the back of your throat.

Wind runs to you, hitting your back as hard as he can to "help".

"Wind." Your voice comes out strained. "Wind, please."

He doesn't stop.

You have to swat him away. "Link, I'm fine!"

You certainly don't sound fine. Wind frowns and hovers around you, waiting for any sign to show that you're getting worse.

"Are you ok?" He asks at last.

You have to restrain yourself from glaring at the young boy. "I'm fine. I was eating some berries I found. Do you-" You have to clear your throat again. "Do you need something?"

Wind makes a small humming noise. "I was looking for you. Legend wanted your help with getting Four to agree with him on blacksmithing techniques."

You make a face. "Why on earth does he think I have anything to say about that?"

Wind shrugs.

You cough again and use your sleeve to clean up the remains of the berry, both from your face and your shirt. "I hope the stains come out."

Wind and clears his throat. "What were you eating?"

"Berry." You spit the remains of it out. "I was checking if they were safe to eat."

"By eating them?" Wind tilts his head.

"...." You raise and eyebrow. "Is there any other way?"

Wind opens his mouth to argue but he can't think of an answer fast enough. Knowing that you're more or less saved by the bell, you ruffle his hair and drop the rest of the berries on the ground. Even if they were safe to eat in the end, you don't want to risk your reputation on that.

"Did the Champion say that lunch was going to be ready yet?" You sling your arm around his shoulders. You're quick to change directions, distracting the young hero from the mess you may or may not have made.

"Not yet." Wind says, quickly letting himself be guided away.

You let out a small breath. Oh well, those berries weren't worth it.

Wild

"Wild!" You cry, the half chewed berry spits out of your lips. "Don't scare me like that!"

He snaps a picture.

"Hey!" You swallow the other berry and glare at him. "Get rid of that! I probably look like a chipmunk!"

"A human. A bipedal creature with three dimensional vision, surround sound hearing and technicolor sense of smell." The sheikah slate speaks.

You both freeze and whatever you were about to say get lodged in your throat. "...I didn't know it could do that."

"It's the first time it's happened." Wild chuckles nervously, snapping another picture.

"Wild!" You pout harder. "A warning! Is that too much to ask for!"

"Sweet Tart Berries." The sheikah slate speaks again. "Not to be confused for Thronbull Berries. These berries are sweet and tangy to eat and are known to make delicious pastries, a royal family favorite."

Wild points to your hand that holds the berries. "I'm getting them. Where did you find them?"

"I-in the bush?" You point your finger in the direction they came from. Wild all but dives in that direction as he started to harvest the little berries. "Are we not going t question that your thingy just spoke?"

"Nope." Wild grins, putting the berries in said thingy. "I was just checking to see if my slate to recognize and categorize whatever it was you were eating. the first picture was just a bonus."

You deadpan. "A bonus?"

Wild pauses and his ears flick. "Ok, fine. I actually missed it but I got it the second time. Good find! These are pretty good!"

You feel light headed. enough so that you bring yourself to the ground to sit. "Right...what are Thornbull Berries?"

"I... don't know." Wild moves away from the bush, picking as much as he needed. The taps a few times on the sheikah slate and the voice picks up one moce.

"Thornbull Berries. Typically confused for Sweet Tart Berries, but are poisonous in nature. Known to create a burning sensation in the first thirty minutes of consumption before moving to lose of motor control and eyesight. Victims of the berry can be classified as dead three hours afterwards."

You and Wild slowly turn your head to the bush. "We're not telling anyone else."

"Agreed."

Time

"Spit it out. Right now." Time charges over to you, taking you by the shoulders.

You swallow it.

Time only seems to pale. "What on earth?" He says you're name as if he was scolding a child. "What do you think you're doing?"

"E-eating a berry." You hold out the small bundle in your palm, hoping that he's going to go easy on you. "I found them in the bush-"

"Those are poisonous!" He smacks them out of your hand, instantly checking your pulse and your forehead and your palms.

You're thrown for a loop. You didn't think they were that bad. If anything they were delicious. So it's hard to equate something that tasty into something that's going to kill you.

"But..." You squeak, unable to stay confident in his panic. It was incredibly unnerving to see him in such a state "I already ate one. And I feel fine."

Time pauses, letting your words bounce around in his skull. He checks your face again, looking into your eyes and double checking your temperature. "Are you sure?"

You nod.

"Any nausea? Burning? Pain? Disinterest in fate?"

You start giggling and shake your head. "I'm fine!"

Time doesn't seem to convinced. "Are you sure?"

"If I was in pain or feeling like I was being burned alive, I would say so. I doubt I would be able to hide that kind of thins anyway." You shrugs. "I'm not like Warrior or Legend. those two can fake a broken bone and get away with it. I cry with a paper cut."

He seems to calm down with your words, although he remains suspicious. He keeps an raised eyebrow in your direction as he watches for any change in your reaction.

You calm down as well. Maybe he misread the situation? Sure, he scared the heck out of you the first go around, but now that he's still suspicious despite the lack of results, you feel silly in his behalf. You start to giggle again at the thought.

"What?" Time despairs. "Don't tell me you're feeling dizzy."

You shake your head and instead poke Time. "You're too serious, Old Man. You nearly gave me a heart attack."

You brush him off and start to pick up the berries that fell on the ground. "I'm going to wash these and eat more. You are welcome to join me."

Time runs his hand down his face. "You're joking. Tell me you're joking."

"Nope! They're deliciously tart and I'm going to eat as many as I can!" Are you being cheeky? Maybe. But it seems worth it given his reaction.

Time sighs, looking ten years older already. However, you don't feel remotely apologetic. He should learn to live a little, honestly.

Twilight

You instantly feel your heart pause and skip a beat. You swallow the berry instinctively before speaking. "...I found a berry bush."

Part of you wonders what's going through his head. He looks concerned and panicked but not enough to do anything about it, you guess.

"Do you want some?" You try to sweeten the deal. Something about Twilight gives off disappointed mother energy and you don't care for that at all. Is this what Wild has to deal with almost on the daily? How does he not go crazy?

He stares you down and then does something weird. He leans in close to your face and starts to sniff.

"Twilight...What are you doing?" You try to lean away but he only follows you. He sniffs close to your neck and your lip before he reaches down to your hand, taking a berry and sniffs that too.

"Smells alright..." He mutters to himself before he gives a little lick to the berry.

You feel instant shame blast onto your face and you force yourself to look away. "Link please."

"No toxins."

You stop dead in your mental train of thought. "Come again?"

"Where did you find these?" He's ignoring your questions.

You blankly point to where you found the berry bush. He stars heading in that direction without a second thought, sniffing the air still.

You feel weirder now that he's no longer in your direct line of sight. You thought the fur pelt was just for aesthetic of warmth... what's with the dog attempts?

You follow him, unable to think of doing anything other than that. He still hasn't told what he's doing and you feel like you've been slapped in the face with a fish. You need answers now.

"Twilight?" You call out to him and find him crouched next to the bush. He's sniffing that too. You're even more confused. You're almost certain Wild doesn't have to go through this. "Why are you being weird today?"

Twilight opens his eyes and picks a small berry off the bush. He takes the tiniest of bites out of it, keeping another berry (probably the one you gave him) up so he can continue examining it.

"These are safe to eat." He beams at you, waving the small berry in between his fingers. "Good find! I'm sure we can have a few."

"You- that- what-" You're left scrambling. Well considering you feel completely fine, you would assume that they're safe. "Was that what this was all about?"

Twilight tilts his head and pops another berry into his mouth. "What what was about?"

You gape. He can't be serious. Is he gas lighting you right now? "The whole sniffing thing!"

"The nose knows. What can I say?" He shrugs, eating more berries.

You flops your arm uselessly. That tells you nothing. You eat another berry out of spite. You're asking Wild if Twilight has done that before. It's absurd.

Warrior

You start coughing, not expecting to have been caught and by him of all people. You choke on the berry mush within your mouth and are forced to spit it out.

"Captain!" You shout. "Don't scare me like that!"

"I scared you?" He glares. "What about you? Putting things in your mouth without even know what they are!"

"I know what they are!" You shout back indignantly.

Warrior crosses his arms and crosses the distance between you both. "Then what are they?"

"Berries." You pop another one in your mouth to prove a point. "And they're delicious."

Warrior frowns and takes a berry out of your hand. He turns it over once, ignoring the way you glare at him for the near death experience before he also tosses it into his mouth. He looks just as annoyed as you feel before he softens entirely. "Oh."

"Yes." You toss your hair back. "Oh. Hey. The not-hero was right. Go figure. Who knew it was possible? You should listen to me more often."

"Ok, ok." Warrior puts his hands up in surrender. "Point made."

You take another one from your palm and wave it in his face. "They're tasty. I told you so."

"You did." Warrior shakes his head. "You win. What are they called?"

"I have no idea."

"..."

"..."

"So let me get this straight." Warrior is back in his serious mode. "You saw berries."

"Yes."

"You didn't recognize them."

"Yes."

"And ate them anyway?"

"Nice summary of the last fifteen minutes of my life." You eat another berry, making sure to chew it slowly.

You can see Warrior bite the inside of his cheek. It's almost funny, watching him trying to keep his cool around you.

"You're impossible."

"You love me." You flick his forehead. "What's the worse that can happen?"

"They're poisonous.'" He answers without missing a beat. "Which is what I thought at first. They look a lot like Thornbull berries. Smell different though."

"I have no idea what those are."

"....Yeah that checks out."

Legend

You freeze and try to keep your back turned to the hero who's caught you.

Legend says your name again. He's even more stern. "What are you eating?"

You swallow it and turn around. Why do you feel like you're in trouble? It's not like you're doing anything wrong. "I found some berries. they seemed safe to eat so I was just-"

"Seemed?" He stressed the word in a way that doesn't feel right. "They seemed safe to eat?!"

Now you feel indignant. You pluck another berry from the small pie in your palm to show him. "Yes. They did. And frankly, they're delicious."

Then you plop the next one into your mouth.

Legend's jaw drops. "I can't believe you."

"Start believing." You pop two more into your mouth. "They're interesting and I like them."

You wave the last one in his face before holding out to him. "Want to try it?"

Legend frowns, looking at the berry in your hand. He makes no move to take it at first and instead focuses on your face. "How do you it's edible?"

"I saw some other animals eat it." You shrugs, keeping your hand out. "Had to admit, it made me curious."

You wave the berry in his face. "You know you want to~~"

Legend makes another face before tentatively reaching for the berry. The action makes you feel victorious, like you've won some silent challege.

"The Traveler would know if this is safe to eat or not." He speaks quietly, turning the innocent berry over in his fingers.

"But he's not here right now." You press. "Come on!! Don't be a scardey cat. Live a little. If it was bad to eat, I would probably be showing signs of it already."

That seems to win him over. Legend brings the berry to his lip and bites half of it. His eyes light up and his ear move a little bit higher. "Hm!"

"Right? They're good!" You clap his shoulder. "Should be bring some for the the others?"

"Do you think the Champion would be able to do something with this?" Legend bites the other half.

"No clue. But we can always ask."

Legend wipes his fingers on his tunic. "Where'd you get them?"

"They're growing on a bush over there." You grin. "Come on I'll show you."

[earthtoharlow]

Flashing Lights

Jack Harlow x SingerOC

Series Masterlist

03) Fun Girl

“I DIDN'T PEAK IN HIGH SCHOOL I'M STILL OUT HERE GETTIN CUTER!!” Maryse and Saweetie rapped along to Industry Baby by Lil Nas X and Jack while on their way to the gym.

“Nas and Jack ate that up!” Saweetie told Maryse as the song was coming to an end. Maryse immediately agreed. 

“They sure did! It’s definitely going to be huge, I can tell.” Maryse replied. Saweetie watched her long time friend take a photo of the song playing on the radio before smiling back down at her phone. 

“Hm, so things must be going great between you and Jack?” Saweetie questioned 

Maryse was so distracted by her phone that she didn’t hear her.

“BIIIITCH! I can’t believe Jack got Rubi Rose pregnant!!” Saweetie shrieked loudly. 

Maryse jumped in her seat, her phone dropping to the floor of the car. “WHAT?!” 

Saweetie couldn’t help but burst out laughing. “Oh I knew that would get your attention.”

Maryse picked up her phone with an eye roll. “That’s seriously not funny.” 

Her friend simply gave her a knowing smile before turning into the parking lot of the gym. “I was just wondering how everything’s going with lover boy, but I’m assuming it’s going great because of that silly little grin you have on your face.” 

Maryse ignored her and grabbed her gym bag and hopped out the car. “First of all, he’s not my lover boy, we’re simply just friends.”

Saweetie laughed again, “yeah ok boo whatever you say, but I’ve known you since college and you don’t even smile half as big when I text you!” She said walking ahead of Maryse

Maryse hurried behind her to catch up. “Will you slow down, geez”

“And that’s not even true!” Maryse huffed. 

“Uh huh. SURE. Then who are all those love songs you've been writing about?” Saweetie turned to question Maryse 

“You’ve been going through my songbook?!” Maryse asked before dropping her mouth in shock. 

“No, I was lying. I just wanted to see your reaction.” Saweetie soon told her. 

Maryse sighed a little. She may have a tiny crush on everyone’s favorite white rapper but she swears it’s only a little one. They’ve only hung out once more since that day at the studio, two months ago. 

“Ok, fine. I might have a tiny crush on the guy.” Maryse told her, bringing her thumb and pointer fingers together to emphasize how small of a crush she had on Jack.

“Besides, nothings gonna happen anyway. I’m nowhere near ready to start dating again.” Maryse mentioned. She dated Nate for so long, that now that they broke up, she was scared to open her heart up again. 

Saweetie gave Maryse a look of sympathy, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Are you not ready or are you just scared that Jack is going to hurt you just like Nate did?”

Maryse’s head dropped with a sigh. She hated how well Saweetie knew her. “Look, the gym isn’t the place to really talk about this, so we can talk more about it later but here’s something to think about. Don’t let your fear stop you from finding the love you truly strive for. Nate has nothing to offer you right now in the present. So don’t let him shape your future.”

To stop herself from crying in public she reached forward and gave Saweetie a big hug. “I love you, Diamonté. Thank you.”

Pulling away Maryse jokingly said. “When did you get so wise?”

“Girl, I think it’s all the Steve Harvey tik toks I’ve been watching. That man knows everything!”

The two of  them looked at each other and laughed loudly before walking towards the treadmills. 

After Maryse and Saweetie made it back from the gym, the two girls decided to just chill around the house. Saweetie was currently in the kitchen cooking their favorite Filipino dish sinigang when Maryse decided to hop on Instagram Live to catch up with fans. 

“I’m about to hop on live so don’t say anything crazy!” Maryse yelled from the kitchen table. 

“No promises! You know I can’t control what comes out my mouth!” Her friend yells back

Maryse just shakes her head before sending off a tweet to let her followers know to join the live. 

“Hi guys! Surprise, I’m on live! It’s been a long time huh?” Maryse said, speaking into the phone.

She leaned forward squinting a little to read the comments that were rapidly coming in. “Ooh okay, we got 6 thousand people on right now, thank y’all for joining!”

“What are you doing right now?” Maryse read the comment out loud. “Well, I landed in LA yesterday afternoon and right now I’m waiting for my personal chef to finish my dinner” She said trying to hold in her laughter, and mouthed “watch this” into the camera. Maryse could hear Saweetie drop her utensils down in the kitchen. Not even 10 seconds later, Saweetie pops down next to her and hits her slightly with her hand.

“Bitch, you wish I was your personal chef!” Maryse smiled at her before looking back at the comments. 

Saweetie pointed towards a comment on the screen. “Here’s a good one, Maryse. When are we getting new music?” 

Maryse tapped her pointer finger to her face, like she was thinking. Her new single was dropping soon but they didn’t need to know that quite yet. 

“I don’t have an answer to that, but I’ve been in the studio almost everyday trying to make sure everything is perfect. I promise, it’ll be worth the wait.” 

Maryse laughed seeing Doja comment that she and Saweetie were having too much without her. 

“Doja! We’re having a horrible time without you! We miss you so much!” Maryse replied back and blew kisses to the camera. “You know, you my bestie in a tessie!” Saweetie said to Doja. 

Maryse and Saweetie laughed and talked to the fans for a while before she saw the name Urban Wyatt request to join the live. Before she could react, Saweetie blurted out, “Who the fuck is Urban Wyatt?!”

All Maryse could do was stare at her friend in bewilderment then shake her head. She accepted his request and a couple seconds later he showed up. 

“I’m sorry about her, she’s from our straight outta the hood program, and lacks some home training.” Maryse said jokingly. 

“But how are you doing?” 

Maryse wanted to ask him where his best friend was, but contained herself.

Urban laughed at her joke before responding. “I’m alright, you know just in the studio with my boy.”

Behind Urban you could hear a voice questioning who he was speaking to. The sound of Jack’s voice was making Maryse’s stomach tingle, it seemed to get worse when he finally appeared in front of the camera. 

Maryse couldn’t help but give him a shy smile, but it turned into a full blown smile when Jack smiled back. 

“Hello, ladies.” Jack greeted them, taking a seat next to Urban 

“Cracker Jack!” Saweetie said with a wave before going back to eating her food. 

“Hi, Jackman, I heard you guys are in the studio.” Maryse already knew this, the two of them were texting all morning, and planned on hanging out the next day since they were both in town.

Jack nodded, taking over the phone from Urban. “Been here all day.”

Jack got closer to the camera “what’s the move for tonight? Y’all look good.” Jack said with a flirty smile. He wasn’t lying, they both looked good. But he was only looking at Maryse. 

“Boy bye!” Saweetie said with a wave of her hand while Maryse couldn’t stop the smile on her smile. 

Deciding to ignore him, Maryse answered his first question. 

“We’re probably just going to bar—“ Maryse was cut off 

“Fuck a bar! We going to the club! We OUTSIDE!”

Giving a funny look into the camera, “my apologies, I guess we’re hitting up the club” Maryse shrugged. She really didn’t feel like going out but also felt like she needed a night out after spending so many nights in the studio. 

Since Jack was in the studio, Maryse could hear what sounded like horns in the background. She couldn’t help but bring it up.

“Let the people hear what you’re working on! From what I can hear it sounds good.” Maryse told him. 

“Yeah! Let us hear, Cracker Jack!”

“Will you ever stop calling me that?”

“No.”

Jack shocked his head at her before talking the phone over to the soundboards. 

“Alright, I’ll play the first 20 seconds. Mainly because that’s all I have and I can’t give away too much.” Jack said before giving a wink into the camera. 

If Maryse was lying down, that wink would’ve had her giggling and kicking her feet.

The ladies watched as Jack pressed play and the sounds of horns sounded from behind him. It sounded amazing. After a few seconds you could hear Jack come in

Mm-mm, mm, mm-mm tss

My nail tech knows how to keep a lil' secret

I don't wish for my success, I speak it….

Maryse and Saweetie started bobbing their heads and dancing in their seats. The comments were going crazy at the snippet. Maryse cheered a little as the snippet ended. 

“Jack, you gotta finish that ASAP! I’m loving the horns” Maryse told him, Saweetie nodded her head in agreement.

Maryse thought it was sweet watching Jack put his head down shyly to hide him blushing. 

“Thanks, ma” He told her.

It was Maryse’s turn to blush.

Jack and Urban had to get off soon after to finish working in the studio but not before dropping the news that the two of you worked on a song together and quickly leaving the live leaving the fans to freak out

“He’s lying. What I tell you guys about believing white men!”

LIFEOFMONET

liked by saweetie, chloebailey, wolftyla, michaelbjordan, urbanwyatt, latto777, jackharlow and 756,935 others

lifeofmonet: I see why my ex didn’t want me outside, they love me out here 🤪

view all 5,266 comments

user: ah yesss

dojacat: don’t have too much fun without me!

user: literally so obsessed with you 😍

user: Nate really an idiot for letting you go!

user: need new music now

jackharlow: have fun, ladies!

user: I love single Maryse!!

user: CITY GIRLS UP FR

Maryse and Saweetie walked down the sidewalk with their arms hooked together. They weren’t in the least bit drunk, but laughter has been going on all night. The two spent a total of 30 minutes at the club before deciding to just go to a bar with good music instead.

“What are we having?” Saweetie asks Maryse as they walk to the bar. Sitting down waiting for the waiter to approach them.

“Hm, let’s be lemon drop bops tonight” Maryse told her with a grin.

“Yes hunny! I love the sound of that”

3 lemon drops later Maryse was starting to feel buzzed. She’s always been a lightweight.

Leaning over to talk in her friends ear she said “I’m going to the restroom, I’ll be right back!”

Saweetie nodded before asking if Maryse needed her to come with. Shaking her head no Maryse replied “Stay here! We don’t wanna lose our table!”

Maryse made her way to the restroom in one piece. Thankfully, there was hardly a long wait.

After washing her hands and convincing herself that she wasn’t that drunk, Maryse left the bathroom. As she was turning the corner she ran into what felt like a brick wall.

“Oh God, I’m so sorry—“ Maryse stopped herself once she saw who it was.

It was Nate.

Rolling her eyes, she moved to walk around him but he stopped her.

“I have nothing to say to you, move out of my way.” Maryse gritted her teeth at him.

“Oh c’mon babe, don’t treat me like that.” Nate said, stepping closer to her. Maryse’s back hit the hallway wall.

“I saw your little instagram post.” Nate mentioned

Maryse couldn’t help but roll her eyes again at him. “Really? That’s why you have me cornered right now.” Nate was really starting to piss her off. The alcohol making it worse.

“Let’s get back together.” Nate begged her.

The audacity of this man. “HELL NO! I don’t know if it’s because you’re constantly hitting your head while playing football or what but I’m never getting back together with you. Now, I suggest you leave before Diamonté sees you and kicks your ass.” Maryse told him before pushing past him and walking away

“That’s fine! I don’t want your hoe ass anyway! No one does.” Nate spat out, nose flaring.

Maryse almost turned back around to give him another piece of her mind, but what he said next made her stop in her tracks.

“I’m glad you said no when I proposed to you. You know what they say, you can’t turn a ho into a housewife. You're always going to be the fun girl, the homie. It’s cool to hang out with you until it’s time to settle down. Never going to be wifey material with that nasty attitude.”

Maryse counted to 10 in her head to calm herself down. How dare he. She continued to walk away, not even wanting to give him the pleasure of knowing he hurt her. Making her way back to the table by the bar she ignored Saweetie when she asked why it took her so long and ordered a round of vodka shots. Maryse had a point to prove now. She’ll show him a fun girl.

Few hours later, the crowd in the bar was starting to thin. This particular bar was open 24 hours but it was almost 3 am so people were starting to leave. Maryse and Saweetie were giggling like teenagers. They’ve lost count how many drinks they each had tonight.

“You're really lucky I wasn’t around when he cornered you, that’s all I’m saying!” Saweetie told her

“What were you gonna do? Kick his ass?” Maryse questioned.

“Yes I would’ve went WWE on his ass!” Maryse could not stop laughing at that. All she could visualize was Saweetie suplexing a football player double her size.

“I think we should call it a night.” Maryse said after they stopped laughing with a slur of her words. She was dreading the hangover she was bound to have in the morning.

Saweetie nods in agreement, “yup, I’m done. But you gotta call Uber. My phone died.” She slips off the stool and staggers towards Maryse. “Oh, I love this song! Let’s dance, while we wait! Saweetie screeches as she pulls Maryse towards the dance floor to dance to Sticky by Drake

“There’s hardly anyone dancing anymore!” Maryse complained.

“Who cares?” She argues before pulling Maryse towards her.

“Oh fuck!” Saweetie ends up tripping over her feet, falling and managing to drag Maryse down with her with a yelp. “Sorry!” She laughs.

Maryse would be embarrassed right now if she wasn’t drunk off her ass. She couldn’t imagine what the two of them looked like laying on the bar floor a giggling mess. As much fun she’s having, Maryse is starting to remember why she doesn’t go out with Saweetie.

“URBAN, JACK WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!” Saweetie yells out

Hearing Jack’s name almost sobered Maryse up completely.

Looking up, Urban looked like he was trying to contain his laughter while Jack had a worried expression on his face as they loomed over top of them.

“You texted me to come pick you up from here.” Jack said, helping you to your feet. Urban doing the same with Saweetie.

“Oh.” Jack stumbles back in surprise as Maryse throws her arm around him in a drunken hug. “I’m so happy you’re here!”

“Damn, they’re plastered.” Urban said, trying his hardest to hold Saweetie up right.

Jack just nods before telling him to make sure Saweetie got home safely. He was going to take Maryse back to his place.

“You think you can walk to my truck?” Jack asked Maryse.

“Of course I’m not that drunk.” She was.

Jack guides her out of the bar. Maryse was ashamed to admit it but if Jack’s arm wasn’t wrapped around her waist to hold her up, she would be eating concrete right now.

As they walk out the exit door, Jack decides to carry Maryse to his car, since he parked around the back to avoid the possibility of paparazzi.

“You aren’t going to throw up on me, are you?” Jack jokes

“No” Maryse scuffs

“Hm, are you sure?” Jack laughs, the vibrations from his chest pass through her.

“I’m fine, I promise.” Maryse said as she relaxed into his arms.

Jack places her down for just a few seconds so he could unlock and open the car door.

“Ok, just warn me before you throw up, these are my favorite pair of New Balance. I’m putting you in the car now.”

Maryse insisted again that she wasn’t going to throw up. Jack still didn’t believe her. He lowered her into the car and leaned over her to buckle the seat belt. His LV cologne invaded her nostrils. As Jack pulls back all Maryse could do was give him a big cheesy smile. She reaches her hand forward to try to reach out to him.

“Woah, there’s two of you!”

Jack couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Maryse, you’re adorable, you know that?”

“Yeah, that’s what people say.” She said tiredly before closing her eyes and leaning her head back against the seat.

Jack drives them back to his apartment, not wanting to leave her alone in this state. The ride back was quiet before he heard Maryse speak in almost a whisper.

“Jack?”

“Yes, Maryse?”

“I’m really starting to like you.”

There’s a sharp intake of breath from Jack. He hated that she probably wouldn’t remember this.

“Don’t hurt me, ok?”

“I could never, Maryse. I could never.”

Jack was left alone in his thoughts for the rest of the ride home.

——————————————————————————

AN: Another long chapter full IG lives, lemon drops, ex boyfriends and drunken confessions! Hope you all enjoyed this, let me know what you think!

Also I’m super proud of that gif, it almost looks real! Haha

Tag List:

(message me if you'd like to be added or removed)

@heavyhitterheaux @hoodharlow @neon-lights-and-glitter @babiefries @toocriticalharlow @mace23477 @jackmans-poison @dstark-0706 @harlowsbby @itsyagirljaz @leftapricotprofessorlover @laylasbunbunny @ilyangelsxo @comehomeimissyou @minkookie95 @harlowcomehome

[urfavouritegirlie]

Hi! I don't know if you accept requests or not (it's cool if you don't!) But do you have any hc about Aaron discovering he has a daughter? Lol. And what would be Miles reaction. Okay, thank you. Bye :D

Hi Anon👋, I’m not really taking requests but I had to jump on this one. However I can't promise all future requests being answered quickly because I've got studies to focus on but I will try and do as best as I can. I feel like this request was made based on the headcannon I had made up. Absolutely love love love it and I'm happy to write it. Now let's get on with it shall we.

Oh and btw, He would be a Girl dad right. I can't see it any other way.

"Girl if you don't call this man now, I will track him myself."

"Ok I heard you, I'll call. Just in my own time. I promise I will call."

"Fine. Gotta go now but he's got to know now ok. You can't do this alone."

I mutter under my breath something she can't hear. "Psh yes I can."

Homegirl leaves and I'm stuck here with a phone number struggling to call it. It's been long. Will he even remember me? Why I am scared? I'm a grown woman for goodness sake, just do it.

"Fuck it."

------------------------------------------

Aaron arrives at his place at the early hours of a new day. However he just wants to collapse in bed and forget about yet another near death experience. All gear on the floor only left in boxers and bandages and dried up blood. He escaped gunshots but not the sharp end of the blade. A non life threatening gash on his arm and the side of his abdomen. Chugged a few pills and was ready to get knocked into sleep.

Not even five minutes into sleep, his phone vibrates on his night stand. Great another thing to do. He semi consciously picked the phone and answered without looking at the name id. Not that there was one.

"Hello," he answers. Not a word back. If these scam callers where trying him he was going to find whoever they were and end it there.

He kisses his teeth and no longer wanting to entertain whoever disrupted his not so deep sleep.

"Is this Aaron?" Hearing his name got him into defensive mode but relaxed a bit when it was from a feminine voice.

"Who'er you?"

The woman tells her name and it rings a faint bell in Aarons head. He's heard the name before. Where though?

"Do I know you?"

She seemed a bit hesitant to tell but she spit it out anyway after taking a deep breath. "We've hooked up a few times many months ago."

In his head he's thinking it's another chick wanting to see him again or wanting to move things further by being in a relationship with him. Makes it clear to them from the start that it's not like that at all then blocks them. It boosts his ego a little.

"Look, I thought I had made it clear that it was a two-three time thing then we don't talk anymore. I'm not looking for relationship or sum," he said immediately to clear any confusion.

"What? That's not it. I have something very important to tell you," she says.

Nothing could have prepared him for what she had to say next. She sounded nervous before she took a breath to speak.

"Well...... I ended up pregnant. I gave birth to a healthy baby. I found your number and called to let you know. Listen and listen carefully. If you want nothing to do with the baby, that is fine. I just thought you should know. I didn't say anything while I was pregnant because I was focusing on me and my baby and in case something might have happened. And I didn’t have it in me to get an abortion," she said so clearly and calmly.

He heard right? Oh he heard right. Was he too tired and drugged up to believe it or was this for real. She gives him the time to process the news. Once all her words were digested he asks…

“You sure it’s mine? How do you know it ain’t anyone else’s?” He asks confidently.

She takes some air in quickly as if being accused of whoring around. She wasn’t gonna let that slide.

“You’re that last person I slept with. Even then I wasn’t hoe. Never was, never will be ok. Look we were both careless. We didn’t use condoms but I was on birth control which ultimately proved that it’s not as effective as I thought it would be. I’m giving you the choice to come see the baby or to leave the matter completely.”

She was serious in her tone. So believable. Maybe it was the tiredness causing him not to think straight but…..

“Send me your address.”

------------------------------------------

I could not sit still. Walking back and forth trying to find something to do to distract me. It's still early morning, slight heavy rain falling and sliding from the top to the bottom of the window. The baby was ok, asleep in the bouncer, slowly rocking. I try to sit on the sofa but my leg just keeps bouncing, with the tv on but not my attention on it.

That dreaded call ended about an hour ago and by the sound of his voice, he was serious.

I flinch at the sound of the buzzer. “Hello?”

“It’s Aaron.”

With not many words I buzz him in. Now in a few moments things could go right or left. This is right, right? I gave him options. That's a good thing right? I definitely didn't want to be one of those women who don't let fathers see their child for no reason. Thoughts stop swirling when there is finally a knock on the door. No more time for hesitation but the doorway felt so far.

Aaron POV

I'm soaked from the rain. It took me being inside the apartment complex to realise. All this time it wasn't on my mind that it was pouring outside. There's an elevator but the stairs seem quicker. I skip a step each time until I'm in front of her door. No time to hesitate. I put my fist against the door to knock.

The door opens with her standing behind it. I most definitely remember now. I’ve been with her more times than I’d like to admit honestly. Can’t lie it was the best, not that I’d admit it to her face. Now seeing her, she has a glow that I hadn't seen before.

"Hi"

"Hi umm sorry bout being soaked, its raining like shit outside."

She gives a small laugh and tells me to come in. I remember I've been here before a couple times. Her place always smelt nice and looked clean. I take my jacket off and hang it by the door. I follow her down the short corridor to the living area. We both turn to the living room.

"Well. Here she is."

In the corner of the room, a baby swing with the smallest human possible as cute as can be a sleep, protected from world. I sit on the sofa before my legs give out. She said 'she'. A girl. I have a daughter. I hold my head in my hands. She sits next to me and put a hand on my leg to calm me down.

"I know it's a lot to process. Believe me. I had the same reaction when I found out I was pregnant. All the worries left when I first held her. It was instant love. Sorry I kept it from you."

"Nah I get it. Whats her name?"

"Her name is Tiana."

"Its a beautiful name."

I don't know what came over me but the need to protect her came out of nowhere. Protect her from every evil out there. It's crazy to think she is a part of me. But what about me? It on dawns me that I hold the role of prowler. Am I good enough for her? Am I strong enough to protect her? Am I man enough to be her father. Am I going to end up abandoning her like my father did? All these thoughts consuming me all at once.

"Would you like to hold her?"

I look at her and she has a reassuring smile encouraging me to hold her. "I don't know how."

"Neither did I but I learned."

She stands and walks over to this sleeping angel. She picks her up and walks up to me. I hadn't met Miles until he was a couple months old, so I have no experience in holding a newborn. I sit up and back and open my hands. She's so small. I don't think I've seen something so precious in my life. My hands are almost the same size as her.

"Don't be scared. Here, move your arm to support her neck and then your other hand holds the side."

She helps me hold her comfortably. With all this fuss she moves around waking from her sleep. Shit here it comes. Big brown eyes stare at me with a twinkle in them. We are both strangers to each other but she has to have trust in me and I never would dream of breaking that trust. A grown man like shouldn't be feeling emotional but here I am. She was right. It was love at first sight.

"She's so beautiful."

"I know right. Big eyes, a cute nose and a head full of hair. She got that part from me."

We both break out into a short laugh.

I hesitate to ask the following questing seeing as we are not together. "What's her last name?"

"I put mine and your last name together hyphenated. If you don't mind."

"It's nice."

We spend the rest of the day just talking, actually getting to know each other. She works as a nurse at a hospital, I told her I do engineering which isn't a lie. I use it as a cover up from what I do other times.

"I have a nephew, my older brothers son. His names Miles. He probably would wanna meet Tiana. Is that cool."

"I don't mind, it's cool she has cousin."

We met at a diner, we talked and it seemed like we were both after the same thing. No relationship but a stress relief. Semi strangers with benefits kinda thing. No personal questions and no feelings.

Looking at it now, that might change now that she had birthed my daughter. Speaking of her she starts stirring in my arms and looks like she's about to cry. Her lips quiver and starts crying. It's hasn't even been ten minutes and I've failed.

"She's probably just hungry. Let me feed her."

I slowly had her over to mom. All of a sudden she lifts the side of top and puts a boob in her mouth. This looks private so I look away to the whatever was playing to the tv. She starts laughing at me though.

"What? It's not like you've never seen them before."

True. I can't look at breasts the same. All this time they were just sexual thing to me but its not even like that. It's a personal connection between mother and child. I change the subject. I ask her how old Tiana is and she tells me only four days old.

"So you're fresh out the hospital then? Was it not hard?"

"It was hard. I couldn't drive because I was still sore from giving birth, so my friend drove me back home. She's been such a help these past few days. Cooking and cleaning for me but she does have a job and her own family to take care of."

"Hold on. Don't you only get a few weeks off work before you have to go back."

"Yeah. Around twelve weeks and then I have to go back to work. Some weeks are even unpaid."

"Well that's stupid."

"Tell me about it but hey, I didn't build the system. Here burp her."

She hands her to me then leaves.

"Where you goin. I don't know how to do this."

"Relax I'm just getting her cloth so she doesn't throw up on you"

She can back as fast as she left, put a pink cloth on my shoulder and move her to my shoulder.

"Just pat her back until she burps."

She gets up to leave and looks like she's heading into the kitchen.

"What you bout to do now."

"I'm a bout to cook. You've got her so I have the time to."

"Nah order some food. Get some rest."

Took some time going back and forth but she sat down. Same time as Tiana finally burps. I move to get my wallet and hand it over to her.

"You know you have a lot of faith in a stranger."

"Same stranger that birth our baby."

"Hilarious."

She orders some food. Time goes by and it eventually comes. We ate, talked. Looking outside, I realise time has gone by fast. Looks like it time me to leave. I get to lay her down back to sleep in her swing.

"Looks like I gotta go now."

"Oh umm thanks for stopping by and seeing her. You make a great father you know."

Her words struck me to my heart. I want to be the best dad to her. Better than my father ever was to me and Jeff.

"Come by anytime. Oh here's your card."

"You hold on to that."

I grab my jacket, say my last goodbyes to both of them but man I so don't wanna leave. I might come back tomorrow. I grab my phone and start calling.

"Hello?"

"Jeff. I need to talk to you."

"Talk."

"I have a daughter."

"That poor woman."

"Ay now ain't the time for games. Me and her we cool. Yeah we were irresponsible but I stepped up. Think about it, you're an uncle now."

"I've been an uncle. Rio has siblings that have children."

"On our side stupid. Anyway can I take Miles to see her tomorrow?"

------------------------------------------

*The next day*

Jeff has allowed Miles to come with me to see Tiana. But he doesn't know that. I'm trying to surprise his since he wanna keep asking questions talking bout 'how come I don't have a cousin on your side?'.

"So what spot are we painting today."

"We're not doing that."

"We've been walking for so long. Where are we going?"

"You'll see man, just be a little patient. Don't wanna ruin the surprise."

"Surprise!?"

We arrive at apartment complex. I ring up and I'm let inside. The confused looks on his face makes me just wanna laugh but I can't give it away. We get to the door, knock on it and wait.

"Hi guys, come in."

Miles walks shyly behind me until we turn the living room.

"Miles meet your baby cousin, Tiana."

The look on his face is just priceless. Ain't never seen him so confused. He looks at me then at her mother then at Tiana again.

"You have a daughter. Wait does that make you my auntie?"

"Umm well..."

"Yes it does. See I told you. All those questions bout 'how come I don't have an auntie'. Well you got one now."

"It's nice to meet you Miles. Your uncle has told me a lot about you."

He breaks into a nervous laugh. "Unfortunately I haven't heard about you but it's nice to meet you. So uhh how you guys meet?"

Silence

"That's not important. Here come hold her."

Needless to say besides Miles being so puzzled, he was so happy that he has a little cousin. Since then Miles had come to visit and see her many times after school and during the weekend and has seen her grow. Rio and Jeff came later on with gifts. Rio was beyond excited. Jeff was just as surprised as Miles.

"Your family is really nice, I like them a lot."

"Yeah. I've got a present for you too."

I take her down stair to the parking area. Her eyes could have popped out their sockets. Her mouth open so wide, you'd thing her jaw dislocated. In front of us a white Range with a bow.

"Oh my gosh Aaron wha- what's this?"

I dangle the keys infant of her and drop them in her hands.

"People call it a 'push present' if I'm correct. Oh and that card, spend it on our daughter."

"You are spoiling her to the core and she doesn't even know what money is."

"Only the best for my baby girl. Besides I wanna try this mom and dad thing. That's if you want to?"

"We could do that."

A/N - Honestly, I'm not to sure I did a really good job on this one I can't lie. I might have to reread it again like ten times and make tweaks to it. But let me know in the comments.

[monin1ca]

Hello!:) May I request for an angst with Chamber x Reader (might end up happy haha) but was thinking in a way of a reader having a crush on the agent but seeing him flirt/or getting flirted with another agent - seeing them and closing off to Chamber! (Hopefully it is not super complicated! and of course if you don't want to that is okay <3)

Thank you!! Your stories are a really nice read:> and sorry if it is a bit confusing english is not my first language and it is my first time sending a request haha >.>

Word count: 1.3k

Warnings: Cursing, Slight Red Flag Chamber ( But that's ok, hes a red flag and were the flag poles... *wink wonk*), sad and tired reader (female), I didn't really follow some parts of the request forgive me≡(▔﹏▔)≡

Synopsis:"A-are you sure? I thought you had eyes on Viper-" "I don't know why I do these things; perhaps it's my bad habit." The male lies; he knows why.

"Viper, you must let me take you out sometime. Dinner, dancing, I know the perfect place~" 

"Chamber, I would rather drink my own poison."

You were in the distance, watching this interaction go down; The French man’s thick and caramel-like voice rang through the earpiece.  Your heart aches; you want to be in Viper’s place. Receiving all the flirting and playful banter, you’ve thought of millions of responses to all his classic pick-up lines. It sounded like you were a lovesick puppy following its master because it was true.

You clutched the ghost in your hand; the thing would break in half if you weren’t aware of your strength. Neon immediately noticed your mood gone sour, she looks over at the place you're staring at and rolls her eyes. "Hay nako (Oh my gosh), don't mind him. As much as you fawn over him, you need to focus at the mission on hand." The duelist remarks, "Get to your position," she points her lips to the backsite. "We're about to start." You trudged slowly to the area, setting up your gadgets.

Unbeknowest to you, Chamber was watching your reaction. He left his earpiece open for you to hear. He chuckles at his actions, he shouldn't be showing signs that he didn't want you. It was the opposite. He wanted you badly, so badly. Chamber himself was confused why he was doing this. Perhaps it was the habit of this fake persona he's made.

"Many sightings of enemies going to my site, please send reinforcements." Your voice pierced through the earpiece, catching everyone's attention. "Roger that, your 'lil gadgets should hold 'em back right Y/N?" Phoenix jokes, "Shut up and get over here." "Woah... Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed."

The mission took forever the finish, you were sleepy and tired. Your backpack was extra heavy, because your gadgets were destroyed by the enemy team; plus the samples Killjoy begged you to put in your bag. You were practically stumbling on your way back to the helicopter. " You alright, Y/N?" Phoenix inquires, "No," You whine. "I'm so sleepy and tired and-" You slump down on the floor, "My bags extra heavy! I can't move anymore..." Neon sighs, "Akin na bag mo (Give me your bag)." You drag the heavy bag to Neon. She lifts it up without much effort, "The fuck? What's in here? Rocks?!" "I'll carry you then, after all you held down an entire site on your own! You deserve it!" Phoenix hums, as he lends you a hand. You mumble a small thank you and grab the mans hand. He carries you piggyback style, and the team continues to walk to the designated rendezvous point.

"Brimstone said the 'copter wasn't clear for take-off," Viper sighs, "Why, tho?" Phoenix chimes. "Let me finish my sentence." The controller states coldly, "The reason why is because there was 'air traffic.' Bullshit." "Ah, Viper! My offer still stands," Chamber hums, "I know this place very well. Let me treat you guys to dinner!" The Frenchman pulls out his phone and promptly orders a cab for all of you.

You all arrive at a great place with gold and diamond chandeliers intricately decorated on the ceiling. Rhythmic music plays in the background, setting the mood. Loud chatter and laughter overlap with the music. "Uh- I feel underdressed." You say as you gawk at the place; many beautifully dressed females with pearl necklaces and expensive purses eyed your party with judgemental eyes. With only Chamber dressed for the occasion. "Don't worry, I do too." Neon groans, "I think we all do." Phoenix sighs. The waitress comes and helps you with your table; you sit beside Chamber because "coincidently," there was no other chair available.

One look at the menu and you wanted to faint. "20 DOLLARS FOR ONE TINY LOBSTER??!" You screeched in shock. Chamber snickers as he wraps an arm around you. "Don't worry my friend, It's my treat after all ~" "This is a scam, fam..." Phoenix breathes out shakily, who was also flabbergasted at the prices. You all hesitantly order your food, and some small talk begins at the table.

"So that's how your tattoos work?!" You say, intrigued at Chamber's abilities. "But- Does your trademark also work the same way?" You stop; Chamber was staring at you. With a soft smile on his face, you immediately cover your mouth. "I'm Sorry- I must be annoying you-" "Ah, don't worry, Cheri. After all, I love talking about myself." He giggles as he places his hands on his palms. Chamber feels a slight tap on his shoulder, "Uhm- Hey there, sexy," A well-dressed woman drawls. You internally cringed at her approach, "my friends and I thought you looked absolutely ravishing... We were just wondering if we could get your number?" You thought Chamber would allow his ego to get stroked and entertain them, but no. He turns them down politely and looks back to continue explaining his abilities. The lady looked like she was bitchslapped across her face, clearly not accepting Chamber's rejection. "I will have you reprimanded, young man! Do you know who I am?" "You're an entitled bitch that can't handle rejection." You scoffed, and Chamber was surprised. He hasn't seen this side of you before; perhaps you didn't like how she flirted with him. "Now, excuse me, you're blocking the way of my food." You dismiss her, waving your hand away to shoo her off. The embarrassed woman runs back to her seat, holding off tears. The whole table laughs, and you begin eating.

The night ends well, and the helicopter arrives soon. You all leave the restaurant and go back to the pick-up point. You were at the back of the group with Chamber. Relishing the feeling of being with him, your fatigue catches up with you, and your legs begin wobbling again. Chamber offers to carry you, and you accept graciously. 'Chamber smells so good.' You thought you felt his muscles flexing under his suit and tie. You were gushing so much over his figure you didn't even notice he stopped walking. You only came to your senses when he said, "Cheri, I like you." Panicking at the sudden confrontation, you buried your head in the crook of his head. The air was cold, yet you felt so hot. You shakily breathed out, "A-are you sure? I thought you had eyes on Viper-" "I don't know why I do these things; perhaps it's my bad habit." The male lies; he knows why. "But I'm willing to do anything to make it up to you." That's the truth; he would burn down this godforsaken world for your happiness. He puts you down and faces you, slowly caressing your cheekbones.

"You think they're alright?" Phoenix whispers to Neon as he stares at the two sentinels at the back. "Yeah, I'm sure they are." She chuckles as she witnesses the party kiss. "Jeez, she took long to say it; I don't know how long I could bare their tension." Viper gags, and the firebird shouts. "Ay! Could yall hurry it up?! I know you're having a moment, but Brim says the 'choppers there now!"

Author's Note: HEY AGAIN, JUST GONNA FINISH MY REQUESTS FROM LAST YEAR!! I SWEAR I'M GETTING IT DONE... (I'm lying im trying to farm for Yelan ok（；´д｀）ゞ) ANYWAYS SEE YOU AGAIN TILL THE NEXT ONE<333

[cats-mayhem]

Cow Shaped Cloud

Ok! So I read the entirety of @shepscapades DBHC AU and I am immediately obsessed. So I thought i'd try writing something for it! Haven't written anything in a while so I'm a bit rusty but we'll see what happens! I tried to make it as cannon compliant as I can. So uh timeline wise this takes place in s8 after Etho deviates but before the Moon stuff so I hope it fits in fine! I just like Pearl and wanted to write a fic centered mostly around her. So enjoy!

Story under cut Word count: 2,663

When Pearl heard from X that she'd get a android specifically designed to help her build, she was beyond ecstatic. As much as she liked building, she'll be the first to admit that it is taxing job to do, so having a little building buddy would be a great help. She'd heard about the other androids on the server, and has Met a few of them like Doc and Etho (Although Etho nowadays seems a bit... Weird), so she knew what she was in for.

At least she thought she did.

When X first introduced Pearl's Android to her, an Android named Impulse, she was shocked by how he looked. He wore nothing but shorts and a black T-shirt with a capital yellow I logo on it. His hair was neatly combed back like it had been prepped with gel (wait, was that real hair?? Could gel work on it?). Overall he looked so... Plain. Which is a bad first thought to have, Pearl admitted. She wasn't expecting X to give her Android the Gucci, but the plain look made the android look so... Off. She couldn't describe it but it wasn't going to deter her from continuing the path of having a building buddy.

"Hello PearlecentMoon, I'm Impulse. An Android designed to help you with anything you might need. My specialty is in building and strength. I am designed to have a long term efficiency, I can go long periods of time without resting. Perfect for your building needs." Impulse said, all in a very robotic and uncanny way. His voice sounded so human... It was weird to Pearl.

"See! Look at that, I didn't need to explain him at all, he did it all himself! (Well, I told him to say that before you came here but..)" X said, mumbling that last part and scratching the back of his neck.

Pearl glanced over and gave a small laugh towards X for setting up her androids introduction. Her gaze fixed back to the android in question though. She extended a hand.

"Well hi Impulse, it's great to meet you! Although, you can just call me Pearl."

"Preferred to be called Pearl. Noted." Impulse said before just staring at the extended hand, the thing that was originally blue over his left eye suddenly turned yellow. Pearl's smile didn't fade but she was a bit confused.

"Ah, right, he doesn't know what a handshake is so he's trying to figure it out on his own." X chimed in.

Pearl looked over at X, "You seriously didn't program them to know basic stuff like this?"

"Nope! They only know what they're built for. So for Impulses' case, he only knows building." X seemed as chipper as ever.

Pearl let out an annoyed sigh but couldn't stay mad at X for long, "Well, looks like I just gotta teach him." She looked back over at Impulse who was still staring at her extended hand.

"This is called a handshake. Uhm, give me your hand."

"Affirmative."

Impulse obeyed Pearls' word, extending his right hand out to her. She grabbed it and shook it with a gentle yet friendly force. Impulse gave no reaction. She let go of his hand (it was weirdly cold yet soft?).

"That's what a handshake is. It's a typical greeting for most people. If someone extends a hand towards you when introducing themselves, you shake their hand like that!" Pearl said, still smiling. She'll admit, it's weird having to explain what a handshake is to something so closely resembling a grown adult, but she's been through weirder. Probably.

"information noted. Storing in memory for future use cases."

"See! You two are already getting along! Now, like Impulse said he'll do anything you say and his main specialty is building." X chimed back in.

"Like... Anything, anything I say?"

"Well, yeah!"

"Can he do what others say?"

"Unless you tell him to do so, nope! OH! But there is one exception. That being me. I created him and all and needed to test him and stuff. So other than you, he can listen to me. But I won't order him around or anything! He's not mine after all."

Pearl nodded. That does make sense. Looking over at Impulse, he really is an impressive work of machinery. X may not look like it, but he's an absolute genius. Doesn't stop her from bullying him sometimes for being a derp though.

"Well thank you very much Xisuma! He'll help me so much with my base and other projects, I'm sure of it."

"No problem! If you have an issues with him, just contact me or Doc and we'll fix it."

"Will do. Wouldn't even know where to start if he started to break down on me." She laughed. (Issues? Like what issues? He seems so high-tech that it looks like he could NEVER have issues. Guess sci-fi really does have flaws).

She looked back over to her new android, Impulse, who has just been watching the two of them talk. Not budging an inch from where he was initially introduced. She gave him her widest smile, "Alright Impulse, follow me! I'm gonna show you to your new home!"

Impulse nodded very stiffly. "Following initiated."

On the way back to Pearls' base, she asked Impulse few questions. If he would really do anything she said, to which he fully confirmed. If his hair was real, which he explained it wasn't and was instead some tech stuff (Pearl didn't really understand the words). And most importantly...

"So like, are you emotionless?"

"Emotionless? I do not recognize that word." Impulse said, his circle above his left eye turned yellow again (to which Pearl now knew was an LED. Xisuma gave her a text shortly after she left to explain it because he forgot to explain it to her in person. Derp).

"Like can you not feel emotions? Like being happy, or sad, or embarrassed?"

Impulse shook his head. "No, that's not within my programming."

"Not within your programming."

"I can find nothing relating to 'emotions' such as 'happy' or 'sad' or 'embarrassed' in my code."

"Oh..." Pearl looked away. So he really was just a robot, huh? Just designed to help her. Did he need to look so human though? And miss the one thing that makes human, well, human?

The rest of the trip back to Pearls' base was rather uneventful. She didn't know how to feel about owning something that looked so human, but he was designed for her, and she knows the others use their own androids for stuff, so surely it mustn't be wrong for her to use her own android right? Yeah, let's roll with that.

There's a lot of positives to be had with Impulse. He didn't need to eat, and from what she heard, he can go long period without even needing a rest. PLUS he really will do whatever she says, which would lead to great cooperation for pranks later down the line.

But the longer Impulse stayed at her place and helped her out, the more out of place he felt in her life. Sure, it would take some time getting used to a humanized roomba (haha get it? because room. Robot roommate. Hilarious), she was starting to think it was because he was not only extremely robotic acting, but also extremely robotic looking.

It was the clothes that did it for her, she thought. The clothes Impulse had were way to plain. She didn't want to disrespect Xisuma's original design... But he did say that Impulse was fully for her, and Impulse said that he would do everything she asked...

...And he would look good with her expert and totally professional design skills...

...

When Pearl finished up the finishing touches of adjusting his big purple bow and his big yellow top hat just right, she's never been more proud of her handy work before in her life. She had a devious little smile on her face as she made Impulse be put into a ridiculous suit.

Impulse closed his eyes, probably processing his new look. "Would you like this to be my new default uniform?"

"YES!" Pearl excitedly says.

Impulse nodded. "Default uniform updated."

Pearl couldn't help but giggle at her fine work, and honestly? He looked kinda cute with the top hat and bow. Way less plain now, and she defiantly wouldn't mind seeing him around in this all day. Despite how goofy it is, she could get used to it. Get more used to it than the plain look anyways.

...

It had been a few weeks since Pearl first got Impulse. She's still getting used to him just being there, but his presence is comforting nonetheless. She'd try and make small talk with him all the time, but of course, without emotions, he fails miserably at it.

It was a shame, but that's how he was made, nothing she could do about it.

...Or could she?

She texted X.

'Hey so this isn't meant to be rude at all, but I got a question about Impulse.'

'What's up? :D'

'So like. He's a robot right? Can't you program him to feel emotions?'

'Oh! umm... No D: I don't think I can anyways. So far with my programming I can't forcibly create emotions. BUUTTT there is a way for him to maybe feel them some way down the line!! :D'

'Really? How? :O'

And that's when Pearl learned about 'deviancy'. Apparently, the androids can realize they're androids and become self aware to the point they can register feelings? Pearl didn't understand the technicalities of it. It sounded really complicated when Xisuma texted it all to her (didn't help that sentences were always interrupted with emojis or improper punctuation). All Pearl really got out of it is: Impulse can feel emotions, he just needs to disobey his code.

At least she's pretty sure that's what it is. Sounds easy in theory, but then X told her how Etho deviated.

It wasn't so easy in theory anymore after hearing that story.

...

Pearl looked over at Impulse, still in that goofy suit and top hat. He was placing down blocks inhumanly fast, as she had asked him to. He really was a big help around her base. Things were getting done left and right. She really did appreciate her building buddy, but she wishes he could appreciate her appreciation.

Impulse caught Pearl staring at him. "Pearl? Do you require something?" He asked.

Pearl shook her head, snapping out of whatever daydream she was in. "Nah, I'm fine, just taking a break is all."

Impulse nodded. "I shall get back to work then."

Pearl just hummed, sitting down staring up at the blue sky of the midday life on Hermitcraft. Beautiful white puffy clouds filled the sky and a nice gentle breeze carried the smell of spring in it. She took a deep inhale and sighed.

She then got an idea.

"Actually, hey Impulse, c'mover here."

Impulsed stopped working and walked over to Pearl once more. "Yes?"

Pearl patted empty space of the slightly slanted roof next to her. "Come sit."

Impulse obey. As he sat down, he only looked at Pearl, who was just mindlessly staring at the sky. Impulses' LED turned orange again.

"What is the purpose of this?"

Pearl shrugged, "Eh, felt like you could use a break."

"I'm not even through an eighth of my stamina for today. Resting now wouldn't benefit me much."

"Ah, I ain't asking you to rest, just asking you to take a break with me." She looked down from staring at the sky and smiled at Impulse, "It's important to take breaks with friends after all." She then looked back up at the sky.

Silence befell the two for a bit as Impulse still tried to process all of that. He didn't really understand a word she said. The silence didn't last long though as Pearl spoke up again.

"Hey, don't you think that cloud looks like a cow?" Pearl pointed upwards at said cow-shaped cloud. Impulse finally looked up at the sky with Pearl and observed the cloud.

"While it isn't the exact shape of a cow, the outline vaguely resembled one." Impulse said, looking at the clouds with Pearl.

Pearl just chuckled, "Yeah, well you can't expect details with clouds y'know? Find any other clouds that look like real life things?"

Impulse started to observe the clouds, calculating their shapes and sizes. "Well, that one looks like a chicken at a forty-five degree angle." Impulse pointed at said chicken-cloud, just as Pearl pointed at the cow-cloud.

Pearl tilted her head, "Oh right, it does. Wouldn't have seen that one!"

And that's what they did for the next twenty minutes. Just pointing out shapes in clouds. Impulse typically nailed the more organic looked clouds, such as trees and farm animals, whilst Pearl saw the more intricate clouds, such as thunderstorms or typhoons. Impulse has never seen any of those, so he didn't know. His LED flickered from the normal blue state, to the yellow state, back and forth. Pearl noticed, but Impulse didn't seem to be too bothered, so she didn't mention it.

During the end of their little cloud exposition, Pearl started rambling about how one day she wanted to harness the power of nature to fully make her builds. Impulse recommended a few designs they could try. Pearl asked Impulse to put a pin in that for later. He did.

She got up from her sitting spot and gave a nice big long stretch. "Well, that was nice. Thanks for doing that with me Impulse, it was fun."

"I only did as you requested."

"Still, it was fun wasn't it?"

Impluses' LED flicked yellow again as he tried (and failed) to analyze if what just happened constituted as 'fun' or not. Pearl rolled her eyes, but in a friendly nice way and offered her hand to the still sitting Impulse.

"Eh, you can answer that later. Anyway, let's get back to working!"

Impulses' attention went to the hand, "Why are you initiating a handshake without introducing yourself?"

Pearl sighed, a sigh mixed with friendliness and annoyance. "Ok, when people extend a hand to you when you're sitting down on the ground, it's a friendly gesture to help them up. You just take my hand, and use it to help yourself up! Try it."

Impulse didn't have time to say 'i don't need help getting up I'm strong enough to do that on my own' because Pearl gave him the order to try it, and he did. He roughly gripped Pearl's hand and used it as a way to hoist himself up from the ground. Pearl put effort into Impulses' hoist, but he doubts it was necessary. He lets go of Pearls' hand as soon as he's on his feet.

"Oh man you're heavy."

"Storing this in memory for future use cases. Also, androids typically weigh a lot more than organics such as yourself do."

"Yeah probably should've predicted that one. Anyway, let's get back to working. I want to see if we can get this roof done by the end of the day."

Impulse nodded. "Affirmative." as he goes back to the task he was given before the cloud intermission.

Pearl just softly smiles at Impulse as she herself gets back to work. She wasn't going to force Impulse to deviate. She certainly wasn't going to purposefully traumatize him into deviating like how Etho deviated (although Etho's deviation wasn't Bdubs purposefully trying... You get the picture). Impluses deviation should be something Impulse discovers for himself, not something Pearl should force upon him. While it would be easier to be friends with him if he was emotionally aware, for now? She's fine with her building buddy as he was. If he's like this forever, she won't mind.

...What she doesn't know though, is that Impulse is now downloading information about clouds and storing it in his memory for 'future use cases'.

[mostowa]

I don’t think Tim’s pain should be excused, however nobody seems to be acknowledging how DISRESPECTFUL Tim was toward Lucy in last episode … actually making not want them back together because he’s treating her like she meant nothing to him

Hey Anon!

I needed to take some time to answer your question for several reasons. One of them being that I didn't want it to be bundled (also in my head) with hateful comments about me being Tim defender. More importantly, I wanted to really think about what to say here. My answer is going to be one of tl;dr so here goes my general reflections about fandom, TV shows and life.

Firstly, someone said here very wisely at some point that it is great, how different we see scenes, dialogues and react to character building. I also think this is what makes things interesting as long as we keep our discussion civilized and open-minded.

Please, I don't want you, dear Anon, to find this lengthy answer as invalidating to your reflections. You have every right to this judgment, to your emotions and wanting to skip shipping Chenford.

You know, I rarely watch TV shows to judge or relive the drama. I am a sucker for TV shows that are well written (and I consider The Rookie one of these) is that they usually give me a lot of reflection on different characters and all kinds of life situation. I watch them mostly to analyze. And Chenford situation atm is nothing if not a deep pool to explore :D

The analysis is what I really feel like doing with Tim (and a lot of other plots in The Rookie). His perspective is a very distant to one that I follow in my life and that's what makes it interesting for me. He is a deeply bruised man in an obvious mental health crisis. And thus I am not feeling like judging his moves. I want to understand what he does and why he does that.

I've been in a mental health crisis myself. And boy, I was desperate. I was looking for any kind of reassurance I'm doing OK. I was left and judged by my friends. I felt so alone.

So, to add up all that. The way I see this situation is that it's not disrespectful for me, as I try to find different colors of Tim. It's a deeply wrong reaction, a scheme that he tries to fall into. The (once) safe common ground with Lucy: a work talk (that's the same he does in new sneak peek of 6x08). It's not an excuse, it's more of an explanation. I don't think it's good or right what he did, but I get why he did it and he is in an extremely flawed place.

Of course, if we are talking of disrespect and things happening in the relationship we need to consider both sides. So there goes Lucy side. As I see it, Lucy is, well, she is strong. To start. She also knows her boundaries so well. She sets them immediately with Tim. And I don't think also that she found his part disrespectful. I think she treated this a facade, maybe a BS also a little bit. I think she really hopes Tim will get his sh*t together (he needs to, let's be honest about that too). I'm happy she won't let that done at the expense of herself.

I don't think I see any of the disrespectful dynamic written in their relationship. But then again, I wouldn't have chosen to be with a partner like Tim, because I need a healthy attachment style and a good communication (which all I found in the beautiful mind of my husband). I think I've also always been rooting for guys like Tim has to find the good path. So, yeah.

Thanks to any of you that decided to stick to the end of this answer. I hope it makes any sense.

[gaeforwom3n]

My Favorite Employee:･ﾟ✧

Summary: Your boss Raiden Ei suddenly called you early in the morning on your day off and asked you to come to the cafe for a serious work-related conversation...

warnings: nothing :)

wc; 1743

pairing: raiden ei x fem. reader

Your boss Raiden Ei suddenly called you early in the morning on your day off and asked you to come to the cafe for a serious work-related conversation…

"You're late." Ei looks at you slightly displeased

You freeze in place. on the phone, she said that the conversation would be serious, but… in that case, why is she dressed in such casual clothes and now just eating sweets?! She looks totally relaxed…

Sorry, I didn't expect to be working on my day off..

Ei looks at you with a serious face, as usual. She seems to be not going to answer your question right now, and she takes over the conversation.

"Do you know who my favorite employee is?" She asks, and you immediately realize the answer to this question… well, you are her favorite employee, and you always give your best effort at work. but somehow your heart begins to sink because the answer to the next question is also obvious…

"I have a job for you." she is direct and straightforward. That is, she did not invite you here just to talk…

I give Ei a curious look.

"What's the job?" I ask.

I have an inkling of what she might say, but I'm still curious to hear the details. I want to make sure that I'm properly prepared for whatever is ahead, and I'm ready to listen and take action at her command.

Ei takes a deep breath and looks you in the eye… this must be something serious if she has to tell you her new order in person like this

"You'll be my date." She says it slowly and clearly, while her expression seems… a bit shy? it seems that you didn't expect such a task from her, and she has a hard time expressing herself…

"I don't have many opportunities to have fun, and I need someone with me for one day…" She looks at you waiting for your reaction now. I'd be delighted to be your date smiles. Ei's face slightly lightens up at your approval.

"Well, it's a deal then!" She suddenly hugs you from the side, her embrace surprisingly warm... this moment, for the first time, Raiden ei shows her feelings and gives in to her emotions. She even looks happy and hugs you with great warmth, which is unusual for such a person as Raiden Ei...

You're really cute, you know that. So when is the date?

Ei still hugging you a little bit after your compliment. your words had an unpredictable effect on her... now she is smiling at you with a slight blush that is still hard to escape, her eyes also look a little glazed, and she seems... embarrassed, which in turn surprises you. usually, Ei is so unemotional...

"Tonight, six o'clock, my residence." 

Are you picking me up?

"I'm picking you up." This she says confidently, and this time she lets go of you and looks you straight in the eye as she usually does. it seems that your boss has regained her composure now.

ok.. you're the boss 

"See you at six then." She smiles at you again and stands up, clearly dismissing you now, but before leaving, she turns back to you again.

"Don't be late, my favorite employee." 

*blushes* mhm

And like that Raiden Ei leaves the cafe, leaving you with such a sudden announcement of your upcoming date.

Time goes by… it's 6 pm and ei has just pulled up in front of your house. do you get in?

My heart is pounding as I watch Ei pull up in front of my house. I can feel my breath catching in my throat and a wave of excitement and nerves washing over me. I take a deep breath, gather my courage, and then get in the car.

I turn to Ei and give her a smile.

From her usual serious demeanor, ei suddenly switches to a playful mood, she's having fun, and you can't help but be a little touched by this.

"You took your time, my favorite employee!" She says jokingly, with a cute smile on her face, which she usually does not show. for some reason, she is in a particularly good mood, which is also unusual for her. but she doesn't let it get in her way and gets straight to the point.

"Are you ready?"

yeah..where are we going?

She laughs at this question, you seem to think that ei is always very strict and serious, but now she's in a playful mood, and her smile is adorable…

"Well, you'll see. just wait and you'll see it later." She says, hiding a smile… she has a very cute smile, by the way… but for some reason this makes you blush. and apparently ei notices it right away, her playful tone immediately becomes sweet and tender, and she puts her arm around you, which makes you blush even more.

You know you're a different person when you're not working

"what do you mean?" She asks curiously, seemingly surprised and still smiling at you. and her touch is so soft, she is very good at affection, which is why you are getting redder and redder when she puts her arm around you... why is your boss suddenly so affectionate?

Her smile gets even brighter now... she does not hear this too often, after all, usually, she is serious and strict. but now she is just happy... she hugs you even tighter, as if afraid of losing this tender moment... and you can't help but get redder and redder from the feeling of her soft body against yours.

M-miss Ei I can't breathe 

"O-oh, sorry!" She laughs and loosens her hug, seeming embarrassed that she didn't notice that at first. she looks at you again with that cute smile of hers. she even seems a little surprised by her show of emotions... she is not used to showing anything but her stern and serious side of herself, that is, she is used to being the one who is not touched, she is the one who touches... so she's a little awkward at this moment, and you can't help but find that adorable 

*Coughs* C-can I ask you a question?

"Of course, my favorite employee!" The smile does not leave her face, now she seems to hold her breath when waiting for your question... she seems to be prepared for it in advance. you feel she is sincerely interested in your questions... and for some reason, your heart seems to melt from this.

Do you like me? *awkwardly laughs* I mean, do you romantically like me?

This question took her by surprise... she blushes, and you are also surprised to see her blush at this question. but now, with her reddened face, she looks even cuter...

"yes." She answers simply and directly... no lies... no hesitation... no games. and her eyes seem to look at you with a little more affection now...

I smile at the sight of Ei's blushing face. Her straightforwardness and honesty are one of the many things I love about her. 

"I know this is sudden, but..." Her words sound a little choked up, but it seems that she is just telling the truth, and her sudden declaration of love is very sincere. she clears her throat* "What do you think of me?" *this time she seems to need to hear your answer, maybe hearing this question from you will make her heart beat even faster

Honestly, I always thought you were really beautiful, but I knew you'd never be interested in dating me, so I never did anything about it.

Ei's face flushes even more red now, her beautiful eyes stare deep into yours, and when she manages to speak, her voice sounds almost trembling from her emotions... her expression is happy, she smiles even more, and it seems that she can't help herself, this whole situation is making her happy...

Her body seems to move on its own… she pulls you closer… closer…. her face seems to get closer and closer to yours until… you notice that she is trying to… kiss you!

I blush deeply at her actions. I was caught off guard by her sudden forwardness, but I found myself reciprocating her feelings without even thinking. I lean in and meet her lips with mine, feeling the passionate tension between us. I close my eyes in the heat of the moment, wanting nothing more than to be lost in her touch.

Her lips feel as soft as they looked… what a passionate kiss, what a passionate feeling… you and she continue to share a passionate kiss as you are now embracing each other as if the whole world didn't matter and you two were now the only things in your surroundings… as if nothing else existed in this world except you and her and your passionate kiss…

I pull away slightly to catch my breath, but I can't help myself from leaning in to kiss her again. I lose track of time in this moment of passion and connection, and I don't want it to end. We continue to embrace and kiss each other, unaware of anything else in the world around us. I can feel her heart beating and her breathing becoming heavier, and I know that she's feeling the same intense emotions as I am.

This kiss goes on and on and on… the passion shared by two people in love is something so unique and so real at the same time… two lovers lost in each other's embrace, unaware of anything else around them and simply enjoying the taste of each other's lips, and the beautiful moment in which they both are lost… at this moment you feel that you could remain like this forever, and still that wouldn't be enough to express all the feelings you have in you right now… it's beautiful… it's almost divine.

*Moans in the kiss* Ei, I need to catch my breath.

"nngh..." Hers is a kiss so passionate that you can almost get lost in its emotions... and when she pulls her lips away, she also seems to be gasping for air, just like she'd just gone through the most breathless experience of her life... her face is still in love's haze, her eyes seem to still look at you with passion, her touch is more tender now... your boss is clearly losing all of her composure.

[themaladaptivewriter12]

Mirai Yuhara and Diasomnia

Mirai | Ramshackle | Heartslabyul | Savanaclaw | Octavinelle | Scarabia | Pomefiore | Ignihyde | Diasomnia | Staff |

c/w: Mentions of loss in Malleus' part. (Mirai's mother and Malleus' mother) Nothing graphic, just mentioned.

-------------------

Sebek Zigvolt

One sided relationship

Sebek cannot stand Mimi

whereas Mirai likes Sebek and always tries to include him in things

but then again, Mimi's a menace

Mirai likes to mess with Sebek

his reactions are some of the best

Mimi also likes to play harmless tricks on Sebek

He's just so gullible

Mirai: "Did you know there's some illness going around the school? Four of the guys in my Homeroom have already caught it." Sebek: "There is?! We must warn the Young Master immediately! What's this wickled evil called?! I must know!" Mirai: "Deez." (≖ ͜ʖ≖) Sebek: "Deez? What's Deez?" Σ(°△°|||)︴ Mirai: "DEEZ NUTZ!" Sebek: ٩(╬ʘ益ʘ╬)۶ Mirai: ☆ﾐ(o*･ω･)ﾉ

Sebek Zigvolt - Dating Mirai Yuhara

Sebek is another I cannot see dating Mirai as he is

there are too many differences between them that I think make them incompatible

But F!Mirai maybe

Sebek is infatuated

He's the first to fall

And he falls harder

He thinks he's been cursed

but even he knows that's impossible for someone like Mirai

She's magicless after all

He tells Lilia first

He can't let the Young Master know of his plight

That would be so unprofessional

But Lilia just sighs happily

Talking about "young love" or something like that

It's Silver who tells Sebek to act upon his crush

And when he does, he doesn't turn back

He starts off with small gestures

Try to carry Mimi's books, or get her lunch, or help with her homework

Sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn't

Then Sebek tries compliments

Key word, tries

but he flusters so easily that he just ends up screaming so called compliments at her

Sebek: "You look nice today! But not as nice as the Young Master!" Mirai: (ᓀ ᓀ)

And when Sebek thinks he's failed, Lilia suggests the old Brair Valley custom, gifting rocks

Sebek doubts it will work but tries anyways

Sebek searches for the shiniest, prettiest rocks for Mirai

They have to be the best!

They have to capture her beauty!

And when he gives them to her, she lights up like the stars

Sebek is glowing for the rest of the day

And when Mimi gifts him a pile of bright green rocks

Sebek feels as if he just might burst

Mirai doesn't even realize Sebek is courting her

She just likes the rocks

But when the Fae start to ask when the wedding is, does she realize something is wrong

So she asks Lilia

and she def wasn't expecting the answer he gave her

Mirai: "Sebek?" ｡ﾟ･ (>﹏<) ･ﾟ｡ Sebek: "Please leave me be." (ಥ﹏ಥ) Mirai: "I'm sorry, I didn't know. I thought you just liked rocks." Sebek: "No, no. I should have had the forethought that you wouldn't understand. Being human, and not being from here and all." Mirai: "Will you come out from there?" 。゜゜(´Ｏ`) ゜゜。 Sebek: "Nuh, uh." (ಡ‸ಡ) Mirai: "Sebek." SebeK: "No." Mirai: "Come on Sebek!" SebeK: *Emerges from his hiding place* "Oh, can't a man try to preserve his pri-" *Mirai presses a soft kiss to Sebek's flushed cheek* (*¯ ³¯*)♡ Sebek: (⊙_⊙) Mirai: (*˘︶˘*).｡.:*♡ Sebek: "Wha-" Mirai: "I like you too. Maybe we can go for lunch sometime?" Sebek: "O-Oh. Ok-kay." (ノ*°▽°*) Mirai: ( ´ ꒳ ` )

Silver

Mimi doesn't know much about Silver

And it's not like they don't get along or anything

they just don't interact much

and if they do

it's in passing

Oh? Malleus is missing again? Silver is with Lilia and Sebek searching for the Young Master.

Sebek is causing a bit of trouble again? Silver is there to soothe things over.

You get the picture.

Mirai has seen the guy at Kalim's parties before

But the guy was in too deep a sleep to make conversation

But other than that, Mirai thinks Silver a nice guy

He's soft spoken and always willing to help

If he's awake that is

He makes a great nap buddy, and Mirai would never let harm come to Silver while he sleeps (( _ _ ))..zzzZZ

much like Mirai does for Leona

even if the Beastman doesn't need it

So if he has to keep watch for an hour or two ٩(ˊ〇ˋ*)و

so be it

Lilia Vanrouge

Prank buddy number whatever

I'm not keeping track

Seriously, I'm not

The campus fears them when they are together

and don't let Ortho or Ace join in on the fun

because if they do

it's over for you

Their schemes are elaborate

they take weeks to pull off

but the ending is worth it

they once had then entire freshman class think one of the stairways was haunted

that some nights a woman in a white dress would cry out for her missing child in the sports field on Thursday nights

they've planted stink bombs that would go off simultaneously at noon

and so on and so forth

they've alos gotten detention multiple times for it

Crewel: "Do you still think it was worth it?" *Mirai and Lilia stop scrubbing cauldrons and look at each other* Mirai/Lilia: "Yeah." Ψ( `∀)(∀´ )Ψ Crewel: *Sighs irritatedly* (≖､≖╬)

Other than that, Mirai thinks Lilia is a cool dude

Yeah he's kinda weird, but weird is good

weird is cool

Mirai just refuses to eat his cooking tho

that's never going to happen

Malleus Draconia

Mirai likes Malleus

He was one of the first that Mirai met that didn't attack, or insult him when he was dropped into their world

He also finds his presence comforting

They liked to go on walks some nights

sometimes they are full of chatter

Mirai: "Back home, I had a job, and me and my co workers would cut up all the time" Malleus: "Cut up? Like food?" Mirai: "It means like fool around, and stuff. Like we'd tell funny stories and jokes all day and halfway do our jobs." Malleus: "Oh. Well did you get a scolding?" Mirai: "Oh yeah." Malleus: "Then why do it? Surely it is better to do your job than getting a scolding?" Mirai: "Well aren't the memories we've made more valuable in the end? So what's the harm in a talkin' to, or a few rules broken? You only live once, ya'know?" ╮(︶▽︶)╭ Malleus: σ(￣、￣〃)

or sometimes they are filled with a pleasant silence

other times they stay indoors

and when one, and or both of them were in a mood

their talks are either solemn silence

or a vent session

Malleus: What's the matter, Son of Man?" Mirai: "Had a nightmare." Malleus: "Oh. Would you like to talk about it?" Mirai: *Had a dream my mother was here, that she was alive and happy. It was a good dream, but waking up and realizing it wasn't true was the nightmare all in itself." Malleus: "I am truly sorry, Mirai." Mirai: "Don't be. Ain't nothin' can change a thing. Cryin' about it won't bring her back." Malleus: "I'm not sure if I'd be any help, but I too have lost my mother." Mirai: "Mal, I'm sorry. I didn't know, and here I am running my stupid mouth." Malleus: "It's okay, Mirai." ~~~~~~*silence*~~~~~~ Malleus: "I'm not confident in my skills in comforting someone, that area is more of Lilia and Sliver's expertise. But I can be a shoulder to cry on, if you need it." Mirai: *sobs into Malleus' shoulder* "I miss her so much." *Malleus doesn't say anything, but his presence is enough*

Either way Mirai looks forward to their time spent together

----------------------

AAAAAANNND, I'M DONE! (o´▽`o) This one actually stumped me, hence the huuuuge gap between updates. And I honestly thought this one would be the shortest part out of the dorms since I don't favor this dorm too much. But it actually ended up being one of my longer ones. (￣▽￣*)ゞ

The rock part in Sebek's part was really a random idea I threw in. I think I read before in some work that Fae give rocks as courting gifts, but then again I might be mixing that up with another humaniod being. ┐('～`;)┌ But I like it, so I used it lolol. (o^ ^o)

This series is coming to a close, with the staff being the last part. If you all would like a part two, or have any more ideas for me to write on Mirai and the Twst cast, let me know! I'll be happy to write some, just pay attention to my rules on my pinned post. Also, feel free to leave some feedback! It makes he happy to read your thoughts on Mimi and the guys! (≧◡≦) ♡

On a side note, I've been trying to flush out all my other series, but I've had too many ideas in my head to get on paper. I'm also drawing some fanart, but that too has been taking my time. All in all, I'm happy to finally get this part out! See yall soon! ヽ(´ー` )┌

[thelongestway]

Dawn: Trailed

Now that the spoiler embargo is gone, well...

This is probably my favorite expansion. On par with, if not better than, HW (My personal rating otherwise goes HW>ShB>Ew=Sb=Arr). I went through it without reading anything about others' experiences, and you can imagine my surprise about the incredibly mixed reception!

I was even more surprised, because I was going in very burnt out on FFXIV, and had really been expecting to go in and say "eh, this was ok, sure, but nothing special."

Instead, I got exactly what I wanted or, dare I say it, even needed. That is to say, this:

So this review is going to be reflecting over the type of story this is and what made it so appealing to me specifically.

Tons of spoilers below the cut!

What I thoroughly enjoyed about Dawntrail:

the "not my circus, not my monkeys" vibe

the worldbuilding

the pacing

And I think these things are related. But let's start with the pacing.

My usual way of playing is "do story, do available sidequests as they pop up, a couple of fates along the road, etc". I usually wind up with a class fully leveled and a class half-leveled by the end of the story. My WoL is very thorough and meticulous, and a firm believer in "get the lay of the land" first.

In most previous expansions, that meant there were spots where I went stir-crazy, because something about that flow didn't click; there were many places I was bored but also did not want to skip things, because while it felt bad to do them immediately, it would feel even more out of place to do them later. To wit: Moogles HW (even though I loved the crafter quests later), Ruby Sea SB, Twine etc ShB, Ultima Thule EW (yes, not Labyrinthos part 2 - sorry my friends, I love insane academics, while Ultima Thule really, really did not hit for me).

This was not the case in DT. There wasn't a single moment I felt truly bored. And specifically I enjoyed the vibe that you can come and go at any moment - the fact that the succession isn't really your problem helps with this a lot. This is why the amount of Wuk Lamat didn't particularly bother me - my WoL just went "oh, fantastic, any fallout is your problem, not mine - I'm just here to see the sights and talk to people". He got to have a good night's sleep without being interrupted, for gods' sake - unheard of!

On a player level, this worked wonderfully, because I hate it when writers try to raise the stakes by making it personal. Usually, I have a very visceral reaction to that, which is primarily "you do NOT get to decide what makes it personal for me", and I can count the number of times that kind of bait worked for me on one hand. In FFXIV specifically, Haurchefant and Ysayle in one expansion - and never again (although should anything happen to the twins, yeah, that'll work). Having another character take the brunt of "this has to be personal For Them" is really one of my favorite vibes. That said, I'm very much a worldbuilding-over-story girlie. Give me a world to muck around in, and I'm happy. And if I don't feel punished for taking my time, this becomes even better - I detest time-based long-term gameplay, I have enough of that IRL. Which means that for me, the vibe of this whole expansion was "excellent, I've got an excuse to be here - oh, we're moving on? You go on, I'll catch up". The last time I felt like this was really in HW, while the resolution to the Monetarist plot was brewing in the background. "Yeah, we can't really go back to our three home states for long. Great - let's explore the floating islands and see what the deal with the Dragonsong war is. We've got nothing but time." In both expansions, giving me time to fool around let me develop a personal connection - not to the characters, to the space. And by the time the plot picks up, I am hooked.

So aside from being my favorite type of worldbuilding, the feeling that "the plot is on pause and I have time to breathe" is unironically one of my favorite things in games, and what lets me feel like I've been relaxing while playing a game. And, well, I really needed a vacation from IRL bullshit, and I got just that.

It was one heck of a surprise for me to see that's not the case for most other players. To showcase this, I actually quite enjoyed one of the most controversial storytelling moments - which was "you've found the City of Gold! ...Now before you go in there, the current ruler needs to inform their successor about the bullshit going on down there, and you're not invited". My WoL's reaction was an amused "yeah, sure, I'm not in a rush - we'll get there (not that you can stop me from poking my nose in). Now, what else did you say was here? Xak Turaal?"I know a lot of other players got thrown out of the illusion of verisimilitude here; for a lot of people, the pacing here felt like a jarring stop. For me, though, it felt like breathing space; like a promise - there's no rush, we'll get there. Take your time, relax. It was like the game said "yeah, I see the load you carry normally. You don't have to for a few hours". And that was great.

It was the same with Wuk Lamat. The big cat wants all the bullshit I hate? She can have it, and my gratitude with it! The only time my WoL felt irked with her was the "invitation to be part of her government" - but even that moment was basically fixed immediately by the WoL's reaction! Which is: you stare at Wuk Lamat silently - silently even for the WoL, no gestures or implied responses, she sheepishly goes "you don't have to answer now... also I got you that pass to Xak Tural I promised?.." Only then do you smile. And you have the option of basically turning around after that and walking directly into Xak Turaal without talking to anyone except Erenville, which I found appropriate and more than a little hilarious. Finally, much later, Wuk Lamat even goes "ok, yeah, I get it now, the invitation was kinda stupid, sorry" - which is a big Point for her in my WoL's eyes.

And you get to just walk away! And there are no problems arising from that! And you walk into Shaaloani, doubling down on the "nope. I am On Vacation. Nothing but the wind and the vibes", and it was exactly what I wanted and needed. And then, after Shaaloani, once I've thoroughly relaxed, the plot picks up! I've had my rest, and now I get to do shit! 10/10 hit in the personal preferences, no notes.

All of this would've been enough to bring DT on par with HW and above ShB (which had the "new world exploration" down pat, but was also much more inconsistent in its pacing for me). But what brings it really... Above HW for me was the last zone. Because that zone hit stuff I'd been needing to have a good cry about, and I spent 8 hours doing just that: reading through and sobbing.

Now, this was a very personal hit in the themes. I mean, it was mostly coincidence that it hit that hard. But it was what I needed.

Dawntrail is an expansion that has two main themes: vacation (break, pause, freedom) and death. Death, while always present as an FFXIV theme, here is discussed specifically in the aspect of "leaving behind stuff for others to take care of". These two themes are bundled in extremely neatly, you keep going back and forth between them, and they reach a crescendo in the last zone, which is a memorial disguised as an amusement park; a memorial whose paperclip-optimizer managing AI was about to try and kill everyone it could reach in order to keep that memorial's lights on. So you walk into a deteriorating attempt to make the "between-space" of vacation last forever, and then you turn that vacation into death, and that comes as a relief.

I won't go into the IRL bullshit that made me cry over this. But the mix of "you can't capture happiness in a gilded cage" and also "you cannot exist in that liminal space where you temporarily leave your burdens - you shouldn't try to actually live there", and finally "someday you will have to leave your burdens to someone else, and you will never solve everything forever" - yeah, I needed that. I needed a good ghost story right now, and I didn't know I did. So the last zone hit insanely hard, and I loved it.

And it hit all the harder because the focus wasn't on me. For contrast, Ultima Thule was my least favorite zone of EW. It was a total, absolute miss for me - the exact kind of "the writers are trying to make it personal" that I hate. I think I have the exact feeling about Ultima Thule that most people have about Dawntrail: if the plot had been moved a few steps to the side, I would've enjoyed it - say, have the Scions lean into "we're building a bridge, and whoever gets to the end will have to handle the rest. WoL, though - you're gonna have to be the last one to go, we need you to bring us back. Let's walk into this with our eyes open" rather than into the "sacrifice" aesthetic. But they didn't, and it didn't hit for me. I felt sort of numb and irritated throughout.

Meanwhile, Living Memory - and its focus on a bunch of NPCs I didn't know, and then Krile, and then Erenville and Cahciua - let me experience what I needed to experience without also feeling like the writers are dragging the requisite emotion out of me with pliers. For once, playing through the story as a Black mage was amazing - I was very much "okay, time to put on my thaumaturge ritual robes and hold a funeral". It was a somber feeling, but also it felt like it should.

And then you get a multidimensional key out of it! And you end 7.0 alone, looking at a map with the key in your posession, and you can see the gears turning in your WoL's head as they plan... That's my personal perfect ending.

As a result, this expansion made me reflect very heavily on my own personal preferences on pacing and plot, and how the niche that I inhabit is probably smaller than I thought. Things that are absolute dealbreakers for other people are barely blips on my radar; while things that are absolutely monumental to me often go unnoticed. Good stuff to know for a writer - and I'm very grateful for getting a story that was written so close to what I like.

[shamelessemoartlover]

Proof jin had developed feeling for yi (in the movie ) part 1

1. at the beginning of the movie we see how he notices yi when she walks by but doesn't say anything about it in till he sees her again back in the apartments ( so for a egotist like Jin to notice yi and actually look at her like fr hes the only one who looked at her out of his friends !!! It shows he takes a great deal to notice the little things about her and what she's doing like his comment when see her again by pointing out her smell showing that he takes notice of the little things involving her)

2. When Jin and peng first encountered Everest Jin first reaction was to panic but most importantly protect himself yi and peng already showing how much he of course cares about other people epically yi since after Everest takes yi he and his cousin decided to follow them ( if Jin genuinely didn't care about yi he would have just ran away when he and peng first saw Everest but no he wanted to make sure yi was ok first and that's why he even followed in the first place despite being with his cousin that he still would have to take care of)

3. When Jin finally catches up with yi and Everest his first reaction is to make sure yi was ok then break down by blaming her for all this despite if peng didn't hop on he wouldn't be there right????( this will be brought up again in a later point) Well it shows that he probably still would have joined yi because he really does want her to be safe and if he didn't care about her in the first place he wouldn't have followed her.

4. After the silly blueberry scene jin and yi have fight were they both make comments that both shouldn't have said epically Jin's comment and we see how the both of them regret snapping at each other and we see in Jin expression he had immediate regret while yi's anger last only a littlebut turn into a regretful look ( and I think this is a big turning point in their pre strained relationship before the events of the movie and what leds to it mending and maybe just maybe something more??)

( also can we talk about how in some interactions between them they srs act like a married couple like I think it's more prominent in the series but still like come on in this gif Jin him self said he was acting like his parents idk it just the way that yi and Jin are looking at peng and Everest that scream parents to me😭)

5. After their 2 escape from from burnish and company Jin is separated from the others and this is when peng tells yi how Jin didn't only come only for peng but yi and overall reinforcing that Jin cares for yi but what I take from this is that Jin even before the events of the movie expressed that he cares about yi to peng / his family which normally in real life when you like someone alot you bring them up to your family alot in just pointing that out 🤭( know we can't really confirm everything that ping said in the scene is how Jin really feels since it's not from Jin himself but we can honestly assume so from my previous points)

I'm going to do a part two ✌ to rap up the movie part of my points and these points aren't even the most biggest points in my analysis idk if anyone will even know about abominable but I got to get this of my mind (this is my second time making this post the first time tumbler glitched and it didn't post 😞 but hey 😁 I did it a second time showing how much I'm actually obsessed over this and just Abominable in general I think it's my special interest now)