#plus in the scene he was literally nervous and rambling out of his ass anyway

[jamesheathridge]

i saw people on tiktok bashing steve harrington for saying “i would date [robin]” in season 4. have any of you people ever talked to another human being before

[zoroara]

Okay you know what I wanna share another type of interaction analysis, I did this yesterday but got nervous. Anyway It's about Squalo's loyalty and then lead into just noting the reactions of Squalo being harmed by Xanxus, when and why they happen. This is how my rambling works Idk why, though the first half is definitely more interpretation the part where I get into the harming is more direct analysis. Short note: It's actually used really sparingly only really once an arc but at specific key moments. but the longer one will be below.

Squalo's intense loyalty is just an inherent trait to squalo I think it's very interesting to make it sheer willpower and drive that Squalo does most of his things, he's shown to be incredibly motivated to anything he puts his time into, to an overzealous degree. I really do think he was simply Impressed by Xanxus' ambition, strength as well as his wrath as Squalo himself claims, and wanted to see where it would go, as it presented many opportunities to improve himself further which it kind of has. He's also eternally focused on many causes, such as wanting Yamamoto to be at his best so they can fight again and he can win. He literally hates being in the same room as Yamamoto, gets pissed off at Yamamoto's light treatment of something he devoted his life to, yet just for his goals he spent an entire week alone in the forest with the kid JUST to make sure he could be ready to fight Genkishi again and take back that loss. Not only that shown to be loyal to the vongola, protecting them twice in future arc, trying to stop shimon, so on, he's an very intense and despicable man, but the things he chooses to be important to him are what he will devote himself to, no matter the cost to himself It's more to me that Squalo is willing to suffer through things to get what he wants one way, or another. So Squalo allowing Xanxus to take the leader spot isn't an act of submission to Xanxus. But he saw it beneficial to what his own wants were. it should be noted the fact that Squalo only ever really takes being harmed in the present but when then that's only because the scene moves far too much for him to stay focused and mad at Xanxus usually be interrupted by things by everyone literally having to haul ass somewhere, and when given the chance to do so in the future he has to be held back by Luss. The man is READY to at least give Xanxus what for, just more important things prevent him to doing such because unlike a good amount of other varia members, he very much focuses on what objective is most important at the moment.

Squalo's VERY first instance of being harmed is when he failed with the rings, and it's immediately "okay we need to move fucking NOW", It's not that squalo just accepts it, he just needs to move right away. plus this one specifically Squalo realizes that he failed, so of course he's a little more stunned than he usually is when it happens. he didn't KNOW and has to process he was also TRICKED.

The next, is the whiskey scene, however, in the manga it cuts off before we see any resolution, clearly more of an egg on, and we do not know Squalo's reaction after this, and honestly I would not be surprised if he kicked the shit out of xanxus. But also in this scene, both times in Varia arc Xanxus does have a clear reason for his actions. One was punishment for failure, and one was because Squalo was literally insulting him and what he was doing.

This was however changed to Squalo leaving the scene in the anime, leaving a different feel to this. Which is honestly a really good way to show how a small change can lead to a very different feeling in a scene. Because the anime version makes it seem like Squalo accepts this treatment. In the manga by having it hold on both of their eyes, the tenseness never relieves itself and makes it seem like they are prepared to clash instead. Emphasizing the next thing Dino said.

The ONLY time Squalo has time to react to this and isn't in the middle of something, is only in future that we get to see the after in the manga, and then there's someone to actually hold him back. which feels more consistent to the manga version of after the alcohol gets thrown at him. and he's ready to beat the shit out of xanxus(maybe he learned after the previous time not to throw shit at Squalo while they're alone.)

then, the last and final example, he is once again distracted because this happens in the middle of the hibari/fon fight in rainbow so he needs to focus immediately after it happens, with Mammon's little petty complaints against fon(A majority of panels being flashback panels so it feels like it takes longer) only in the middle of these two things in real time.

It's used very sparingly, usually when the viewer least expects it for emphasis which is why it sticks out so much in our minds. But not only that, there's usually some things that influence Xanxus' when and why for doing this.

As already stated, the TIMES Xanxus actually does this are usually chosen in the sense that a good 90% of the time, Squalo actually has his hands tied and can't retaliate at all, either by virture of other people being there, OR by virtue of something far more important happening there was only ONE time where it was just them But one of the most consistent reasons is that Xanxus is doing this to literally knock him down a peg(and then it doesn't work) it's not a good reason but it's still notable as a reason.

First one he's literally saying he deserves a reward for his work(without knowing he failed). Second he was telling Xanxus this was a waste of time and that he was going to win. Third he was asking if the vongola kids manages to survive and saying how they would have to help them. Fourth he literally was talking shit to hibari and Fon on how easy to beat them it would be. Xanxus is narratively used to bite down when Squalo's pride goes too far. But Squalo FAR from accepts this treatment.

Additionally, if you're choosing to count gags and such, Squalo isn't actually the only target to it. There are ones where they complain that Xanxus does this with all of them and he even blows up the whole castle because they were all annoying him. So when it comes to jokes there's more of an equality about it, just Xanxus is generally violent. Though! Even then I've noticed that he's only explicitly that violent when it won't backfire against him in non-gag scenarios. His rage is a little more tempered when you look at him, it's just when he knows it's not going to be an issue it's at 100. Xanxus is a lot more logical than even I initially realized but that's a different post.

[hatsukeii]

Hiii do you have any relationship Hc's for goshiki

Hmmm this is gonna take a bit, but I have some ideas in mind:D

Our weird bowl cut boy lol

He’s gonna be Shiratorizawa’s ace... someday.

I’m gonna split this to two parts, because I write long hcs and I wanna write out how you guys dealt with your feelings before actually dating.

👾Goshiki👾

✨Confession✨

- Really clueless at first.

- By really clueless I mean REALLY CLUELESS.

- When you joined the volleyball team as manager, he definitely tried to talk big, trying to give you a good impression of who is and why you “shouldn’t mess with him.”

- He refused to get close to you, despite your efforts in trying to get him to loosen up.

- “You’re just gonna be a distraction.”

- “I’m here to beat Ushijima and become the ace of Shiratorizawa, not make friends.”

- Ah yes, the typical no bullshit shounen anime protagonist that ends up somehow becoming the little brother of the team.

- And also ends up as a tiny crush for a certain someone.

- You don’t really know when you started noticing him that much. He was kinda just... there.

- But alas, seeing how determined he is to get to the top? Mad respect.

- Maybe with time that respect slowly became admiration and attraction.

- You wanna know how determined he is? Think Kageyama, but times ten.

- This bitch waits for everyone to leave the gym after practise, then continues to train his ass off for hours. I’m talking 4-5 extra hours of training.

- You only know this because you stay behind in the gym to clean up the equipment, and he doesn’t leave the gym when you do, which is about an hour or two after practice ends.

- Whenever you ask him when he’s leaving, he just waves you off halfheartedly, usually muttering a casual “I’ll be leaving soon, don’t worry.”

- And if you think that’s it? Oh nononono.

- There has been one instance where you saw him passed out.

- Like Goshiki trained so hard he just blacked out due to exhaustion.

- How you found him?

- Well,

- Your dumbass left your textbooks in the gym, so you had to go back and retrieve it.

- It was like what, 8 in the evening, but the lights and air conditioning were still on.

- You were already weirded out, so you decided to be extra careful. You know how high schoolers are these days, who knows what they’re doing behind closed doors sometimes.

- You creak the doors open just a bit, taking a peep.

- And your eyes land on a motionless Goshiki just laying on the gym floor.

- That scene scared the shit out of you.

- You checked his pulse, and his breathing. To your relief, his pulse was still there, although it wasn’t as strong as it should be. However, his breathing was definitely shallower than usual.

- Thank god for that emergency treatment course you enrolled for last year. You knew how to treat Goshiki almost immediately, raising his legs and keeping them up with a stool you found. What you didn’t expect, was for him to not wake up even after 5 whole minutes of you checking on him.

- That time you literally called an ambulance.

- Needless to say you definitely scolded him when he woke up, before forcing him to eat and drink something.

- Turns out for the past months or so, he’s been training for an extra 4-5 hours a day, without enough food or water to replenish himself.

- It would be about 9-10pm when he got home, where he had to finish his homework and finally get some food in his system, mostly leftovers. When he’s done with homework, it would be around 1am, which would be when he actually cleans up and hauls his ass to bed.

- He has to wake up at 5am for morning practise.

- You were about to punch him when he told the doctor all that.

- Since that worrying experience, you’ve forced Goshiki to leave the gym after a maximum of two hours.

- You walked him to the bus station after every single practise, just to make sure he doesn’t pass out.

- (And also to stare at him while he listens to music and tosses the ball occasionally, but he doesn’t need to know that.)

- Goshiki honestly appreciates the walks to the bus stop and the casual conversations you guys can hold.

- And to be honest, he was pretty surprised you’d actually go along with what you said in the hospital and “Walk him home every single day until he’s done with volleyball in highschool.”

- These days you patiently wait for him to finish his extra practise, and set an alarm for 2 hours. Once those 2 hours are up, you’re dragging his ass out of the gym with his stuff all packed neatly. No buts, nope, don’t wanna hear it.

- Maybe it was the determination you had to make sure he was safe and healthy, or the dumb conversations you had every single day about mermaids getting laid and unicorns getting horny.

- Because with time, Goshiki eventually succumbed to his feelings and admitted to himself.

- He had fallen for you. Hard.

- And there was nothing he could do about it.

- Except,

- Avoid you as much as he could.

- Poor little Goshiki was so clueless that he thought avoiding you would eventually cause his feelings to just disappear like how my dad went to get the milk.

- Whenever he saw you in the hallways, he’d just blush and walk the other way, even if it was the opposite direction of where he was supposed to be going.

- Nope, no fist bump, hi five, nothing.

- Alas, he couldn’t avoid you much anyways, since you were the manager for the volleyball team, and you also persisted on walking him to the bus stop every single god damned day.

- All he could do was try and muster up the driest possible responses to anything you said.

- “So, how was practice? You feeling anywhere near as powerful as Ushiwaka yet?”

- “Eh, it was okay.”

- “You want something to eat or drink? We can go to that boba store around the corner from last week and get something.”

- “Nah, I’m good.”

- You were weirded out, to say the least.

- Since when did Goshiki pass on boba?

- “Oi, Tsutomu, are you feeling okay? You’re acting a bit odd.”

- You raised your hand to his forehead, feeling the warmth on your palm as Goshiki flared 50 different shades of red.

- “U-uh, my stop’s there, I’ll see you tomorrow bye-” he rambled, stuttering over his words before zooming towards the wrong station.

- “What just happened?”

- All Goshiki could do was get home as quick as possible, finish all his work, eat up, clean himself, and just scream into his pillow.

- “I’ve been avoiding her for so long, why is she still stuck in there?”

- He was being so blatantly obvious with avoiding you that the volleyball team eventually had to speak up.

- That went terribly.

- “Goshiki, why aren’t you focusing these days? Is there something troubling you?” -Shirabu

- “Plus, you haven’t even spared a glance at y/n, let alone talked to her. Aren’t you guys like best friends?” -Tendou

- “Goshiki do you like her?” -Ushijima

- Goshiki almost choked on his water.

- No, not almost. He definitely choked on his water.

- “What? ME? PLEASE! OF COURSE NOT!” -Goshiki, in denial, blushing

- “Seems like you do to us.” -Ushijima, as blunt as usual

- “Well then, you should’ve just told me Goshiki. I never knew you disliked me.” 

- Oh shi-

- Well isn’t it convenient? You were standing right there with volleyballs in hand when he decided to belt out that statement.

- For the next few weeks, you both avoided each other as much as you can. You even stopped walking him to the bus stop.

- Until the day before their match against Karasuno.

- At this point, Goshiki had had enough.

- This was troubling him to an extent already, and he also had the match to worry about.

- At the end of practice, he waited until all the members of the team (especially Tendou) left the gym, before harshly pulling you into the storage room, pulling you down to sit next to him on the floor.

- “What do you want Goshiki-”

- “I like you. That’s it.”

- What the hell.

- Your mouth hung open, you face and neck feeling hot, as he made his way back into the gym, practising yet again. All you could do was sit in the storage room, still not comprehending what had just happened.

- Not knowing how to deal with this, you grabbed your stuff, and made your way home as quick as you can, not wanting to deal with the situation at hand yet. You flop onto your bed once you reach your room, and scream into the pillow out of frustration.

- “Why did I do that? That was my chance, I blew it! I’m so stupid oh my god.”

- Goshiki was also being extra aggressive with the volleyballs too. By the time he had finished his extra practise, his palms were scathed and sore, red marks scattered all over.

- During the match agaisnt Karasuno, he was extra nervous, not wanting to screw up.

- But at the same time, the events of yesterday replayed in his mind like a broken record. The way you stared at him in shock, not even making a sound. How you left the gym as quick as it happened, not sparing even a glance at him. It made him regret ever befriending you in the first place. He should’ve known that this was bound to happen.

- This led to him being extra aggressive during the match. Both teams were shocked and quite frankly, a bit intimidated too.

- Goshiki was fueled by all his pent up rage against himself, a seemingly dark aura radiating off of him on the court. He was stupid. An absolute imbecile. A moron. An idiot that put his heart on his sleeve, not once thinking about the consequences it could bring.

- When coach Washijo decided to scream “if you’re gonna stare, at least stare at a damn girl” at him, he sneered so hard at him his face was about to become permanently contorted. Even his own coach, the spawn of satan, was taken aback.

- The fact that Shiratorizawa ended up losing did not help. At all. All that did was make his day even shittier.

- Until you finally told him you reciprocated his feelings.

- Not long after the loss, the team all went their own way home, feeling miserable about the game.

- Goshiki had his earphones in, walking towards the bus station, head hung low as he silently sobbed, feeling like absolute shit.

- You caught up to him, before basically engulfing him in a huge hug from behind, nuzzling your head into his shoulder, refusing to let go.

- He was flustered, to say the least. Frozen in place, tears continued to stream down his face in steady streaks.

- “I’m sorry for your loss today, and for yesterday too.”

- His eyes widened at your apology as he furiously wiped the hot tears, his eyes still slightly puffy and his nose still red.

- At this moment, Goshiki needed someone. Desperately. In one swift motion, he had turned around and held you with an iron grip, a hand pushing your head into his chest, his back hunched with his head in the crook of your neck as he cried, this time letting the sobs and whimpers become audible. His salty tears met your skin, rolling down to your collarbone.

- “So the reason why you’ve been avoiding me was because you liked me?”

- Goshiki nodded into your neck, still crying.

- “Well I’ve liked you since the start of the school year too, so don’t worry. I’m here for you.”

- Hearing that, he detached himself from your neck, staring at you, surprised at how calm you were and how dense he had been.

- “Wait for real?”

- You were in a hurry, since you promised to run some errands, so you did the first thing that popped into your mind.

- On your tiptoes, you gave his lips a quick peck, before running away, your face completely red.

- “For the record Tsutomu, we’re dating now I guess.”

✨Dating✨

- What a sweetie.

- At first, he’s super secretive with the relationship, not wanting people to find out.

- Especially not his parents. He would have hell personally sent to him in a cute little death package if they ever found out he was dating someone.

- He tried his best not to show any trace of him being in a relationship during practice.

- But alas, Tendou once sneaked up on you two holding hands at school and instantly knew.

- This redhead announced it to the whole team that you two were dating and you almost beat him up.

- Now, he’s opened up a lot more about this than when it first started.

- No, his parents still don’t know about you two.

- But his friends knew not to hit on you, and the volleyball team would constantly tease him when you walked by, making kissy noises and over the top fake moans. Tendou once shoved two balls up his chest just to imitate you. You looked over to see your third year senior with an ahegao face, two volleyballs unevenly shoved into his shirt as he skipped around. You stared in disgust, giving him a slight scowl before turning around and continuing with your shit.

- Needless to say his other balls were absolutely wrecked by Goshiki.

- Will spoil you so badly like damn.

- Occasional gifts from lil bowl cut is something you should definitely expect.

- Sometimes you’ll just randomly find a new pair of earrings or a new phone case on your desk with a note from him, while your classmates stare in awe and lowkey envy you from afar.

- Very, very frequent dates.

- I’m talking like every weekend, and sometimes even after school on friday.

- Dates planned by Goshiki aren’t ever extravagant or anything, but god damn do they make you feel blessed. Usually it’s just to a cute cafe, maybe a carnival, or a movie date.

- Dates planned by you though? Ohohohoho he was in for so much fun. I’m talking trampoline parks, amusement parks, gaming cafes, volleyball dates, all that fun shit.

- You would let him teach you how to play volleyball, and end up laughing your ass off at how incredibly bad you were while he kinda just gives up on teaching you and goofs around.

- Your hands running through his hair is literally the best thing he has ever felt no cap.

- Likes to cup your cheeks a lot, just to make you flustered.

- (Secretly loves it so much when he’s able to make you all blushy because oh my god you look so cute.)

- You’re not allowed to sleepover at his, nor is he allowed to sleepover at yours because strict parents!

- The rare times when your parents allow you to go “help your friend Goshiki study,” you guys actually do serious studying.

- Then right after that comes the cuddling.

- Okay let’s be real, Goshiki would probably be really awkward at the start.

- He’d probably try make sure you were comfortable, so his body would be twisted into some weird position.

- But he eventually found his favourite way to cuddle with you, in a way where both of you could just lay in peace comfortably without breaking your backs.

- Most times, he would lie sideways on his bed facing you. He’d snake one hand around your lower back, the other to your head as he pulls you in close, resting you against his chest. You could hear his heartbeat, which sped up every time you nuzzled against him.

- Cute.

- Will give you pecks on the lips every single morning when he first sees you, wherever he is.

- It do not matter to him how many people are watching, he do not care. At all.

- Holds your hand e v e r y w h e r e .

- He’s also very fond of forehead kisses.

- He just finds them so heartwarming and intimate in a non sexual way.

- Every time something was bothering you, or you were just breaking down because of how shitty life was, he knows exactly what to do.

- He’d pull you into a tight hug, kissing the top of your head while drawing circles on your back with his fingers.

- If it was worse and you were crying, he likes to wipe your tears for you, kissing the stains on your cheeks, before planting a soft kiss on your forehead.

- Loves it when you wear his hoodies.

- They’re oversized on you and oh my god sweater paws are the death of him. 

- You’re honestly relieved he’s not looking for anything sexual. 

- He’s too pure for that shit, keep his innocence.

- You made a promise to cheer for him wearing his jersey whenever he played in matches, and you’ve never broken it.

- PDA.

- SO MUCH PDA.

- This boy. He loves showing you off to his teammates so much.

- “I may not be as good as Ushijima at volleyball yet, but at least I’m not a crusty single bitch.” -Goshiki to some rando that insulted his skills and personality

- “You guys go look for your own plus ones to the school dance, I’m keeping y/n.” -Goshiki to his friends

- “Stop imitating her Tendou-san, it’s insulting to her. You’re too odd to get even close to imitating her accurately.” -Goshiki to Tendou who had volleyballs in his shirt and pants

- Please just protect him at all costs, he’s so precious.

Love how the request was for relationship hcs and I ended up writing more backstory lmaoo

Still hope you liked it though I worked on this for days xx🥺🥰

[iamthegaysmurf]

I saw your follower post. It’s so deserved! Your Spooky Road Trip fic was AMAZEBALLS. How did you pull all of that research together? How did you even write it? It’s so great.

Thank you so much, anon!  I just feel truly grateful to have such wonderful followers.  You guys give me feedback and encouragement and ask me important questions and even send me silly things from time to time.  Honestly, it’s more than I ever could have hoped for!  :D

The research for Spooky Road Trip was definitely a process.  lmao

When I first got tagged to write this prompt, I knew I was going to have my work cut out for me.  I wanted to give Waverly and Nicole sort of a standalone, monster-of-the-week type adventure for just the two of them, because I’ve always felt like they make an incredible team when working together.  Both intellectually and physically.  The “brains vs brawn” thing was an extremely important concept I wanted to include.

So, with that being said, it was time to start looking for the right monster.  I studied up on myths surrounding desert environments, the majority of which were primarily grounded in Persian mythology.  The one that stood out to me the most was the ghoul, which I definitely liked, but then the question was…  How do I make this fit?

And that’s when I began searching legends and lore specific to the region where they would be road tripping.  And I discovered that the American Southwest is flooded with incredibly rich folklore.  Some of the stories I read were fascinating.  I worked as many of them into my story as I could – even as red herrings – but, seriously.  If you ever get the chance to read up on some of the history and legends surrounding the deserts and the settlers and the Civil War and the gold rush, I promise you won’t be disappointed.  :)

When I found the three legends that all had such similar elements, that’s when I knew that I’d found my story.  Obviously, they wouldn’t all fit together in their original form, but I thought that with a bit of tweaking and modification, I could blend them into one single, larger tale that would make for a good story.  Then it just became a matter of filling in the blanks.

I think one of my favorite parts of the research was going in search of an acceptable fiancé for Marisol (credit to @piratekane for choosing her name, btw).  He was originally going to be just a standard guard for the stagecoach.  And then for a while, he was going to be Pinkerton, hired by the people that had lost their haul.  

But then an amazing opportunity presented itself…  What if he was a U.S. Marshal?  I knew that I didn’t want to actually turn this adventure into a BBD case.  That would have been too coincidental, even for me.  But I thought it would be a really neat lead-in for the story of the ghost being held captive.  Plus the extra added bonus of him having heard of Wyatt Earp.  ((I’m aware the dates are a little off for that to have actually been true, but.  As I said.  I had to take a bit of creative license with the rest of the story, so I figured a little wouldn’t hurt here, too.))

And that’s when the hunt began.  Because, sure, I could have just fabricated a U.S. Marshal.  But, honestly…  where would have been the fun in that?  lmao

I researched pages and pages and pages of Marshals from roughly the right time period and roughly the right area.  (Pirate laughed at me because at one point, I randomly screamed into our chat “WHY ARE ALL OF THE GOOD AND INTERESTING MARSHALS FROM ARIZONA?!”)

But then I found him.  The perfect Marshal.  John Hicks Adams.  He was from the right time frame.  He was from California.  He served time as both a Sheriff and a Marshal.  And he already had an incredible history with the Mason Henry Gang, known for robbing stagecoaches.  

He was more perfect than I ever could have hoped for.  His own personal built-in nemesis just added that much more weight to the story I wanted to tell with the ghostly legends.

I never really dreamed that I would get so attached to his character.  But the more I wrote about him, the more I began to see the opportunity to have him be a parallel reflection of Nicole.  It just…  I felt like he (and his literal undying love for Marisol) made my story so much stronger than it started out to be.  I would be lying if I said it wasn’t difficult for me to write the part when he was killed.  I accidentally got more attached than I thought.  lol

Anyway.  I’ve rambled on long enough about this.  Sorry for that.  But needless to say, the rest is history.  Once I had all of my players lined up and fleshed out, and the legends pieced together to make a single cohesive story, all that was left was actually writing it.

I was a little nervous about being able to pull it all together.  About the pacing, and keeping things interesting for you guys without revealing too much of the facts too quickly.  About building the suspense in a natural and organic manner.  About the payoff of the major action scene not being a let down after all of the build-up.  And, of course, about the resolution and breaking of the curse.  (And then also the bonus epilogue, and whether or not you guys would feel like it belonged, or if it was an unnecessary addition.)

But, thankfully, I got an incredible amount of support from @piratekane, who did everything from help me iron out some of the smaller details of bringing everything together, to kicking my ass daily to make sure I would hit my deadline in time.  And also some amazing encouragement from @belikebumblebee, who didn’t get to know the story in advance, but still took the time to just help keep me motivated and encouraged when I was doubting myself.  This story seriously wouldn’t have happened without the two of them.  So be sure to drop them a little love, too.  Tell them the Smurf sent you.  ;)

And that is how the Spooky Road Trip came to be.  

[subtlehysteria]

Pride and Prejudice (2005) Voltron AU because why the f*ck not

Keith = Mr. Darcy

Shiro = Mr. Bingly

Lance = Lizzy

Allura = Jane

In this case, I think Lance and Allura would be cousins and Alfor is alive, although he is starting to get old

(Coran will make a later appearance)

Pidge and Hunk would be Lance’s friends

Pidge refuses to conform to the restricting societal norms and wears the most amazing breeches and jackets

Their brother is super supportive and gives the evil eye to anyone who objects

(Lance also loves wearing Allura’s dresses to balls sometimes, depending on his mood)

So it’s the usual setting, everyone hears about Takashi Shirogane moving to town

A public ball is held and Lance and Allura insist on going because Uncle Alfor/Dad we never get to do anything around here

Alfor agrees, much to their delight

It’s not a super fancy ball, more a small public dance than anything, so Lance just wears his nicest dress shirt and blue breeches.

Allura steals the show in a simple pink dress

Everyone is asking her for a dance

She obliges because she’s too nice to say no, even though Lance tells her as much

 Enter Takashi Shirogane and his moody friend, Keith Kogane

“He was left a fortune twice as big as Mr. Shirogane’s when he was only ten. His family died in an accident.” - Pidge, aka. the town gossip who can get any and all info on anyone, for a handsome price of course

Keith is only starting to get involved in his family’s estate now, with Shiro’s help. He doesn’t like it, but he doesn’t hate it either.

He’s more interested in horseback riding and fencing. He likes to get out and actually do stuff

Except balls. He hates balls

Why does he need to dance to get to know someone? like??? he doesn’t even want to be here in the first place

but Shiro insisted because he’s nervous entering a new society

so of course, Keith will tag along

but that does not mean he’s going to socialize

Back to the ball. Long story short, Shiro and Keith get introduced to everyone.

Allura and Shiro meet eyes and they’re both immediately smitten (Jane Austen fans, you know the story)

Lance tries to talk to Keith but Keith just outright rebuffs his attempts at conversation

Suffice to say, Lance hates the guy and by the looks of things, Keith returns the sentiment

Allura is invited to dine with Shiro (and Keith, who is staying with Shiro)

Unfortunately, their carriage is out of commission, so Allura goes on horseback

It rains ceaselessly, Allura gets sick and has to stay at Shiro’s home until she feels better

Lance goes on a walk to visit her

When he arrives at Netherfield (i’m going to just call it that cause I can’t think of a Voltron-related name right now) his coat is dripping with mud and his hair is a complete mess from the wind

Keith still thinks he looks absolutely beautiful

but he’s not going to say that because wtf is feelings even

Lance visits every day until Allura is feeling better

The Hand Scene

Keith doesn’t even realize what he’s doing until he feels Lance’s hand in his own and he’s helping him into the carriage

and his hand is shaking as he walks away

No, scratch that, everything is shaking and he can’t think straight

Shiro gives him a knowing look once Lance and Allura’s carriage has finally disappeared into the distance

Keith tells Shiro to focus on his own love interest

Shiro blushes profusely

Shiro invites everyone to a private ball at Netherfield and so Lance and Allura are out shopping for ribbons when Lance bumps into a soldier

His name his Lotor and he is an absolute charmer

He wins Lance’s sympathy when he explains that he and Keith and grew up together and that Keith recently cheated him of his inheritance

Lance hated Keith before, now he’s downright disgusted

(i am so sorry, this is more like an outline for a fic which i am so writing but yeah, Imma keep rambling)

Shiro’s Ball

Lance and Allura are stunning

Hunk says as much when he meets them inside

(Shiro hired Hunk to do the catering when Lance recommended him)

Alfor is very much in the know about Shiro’s intentions and is practically interrogating him on the spot

Shiro is low-key scared shitless but he still proves to be a very admirable young man

Poor Allura is kinda just standing there like Dad, stooop!

Keith actually greets Lance somewhat cordially, not really looking him in the eye though because he’s too pretty

seriously, how is he pulling off that light-blue dress so well??? and are those flowers in his hair

Lance is suspicious, even more so when Keith asks him to dance but he goes along with it because he wants answers

it is a battle of wits during their dance

like, Lance didn’t realize how sharp of a tongue Keith had and his temper is just something else entirely

Lance actually starts enjoying riling him up

Pidge warns Lance that Allura is being too reserved about her feelings towards Shiro

They’re worried Shiro might get the wrong idea and think his feelings are one-sided

Lance also tries and fails to find a certain white-haired soldier bc. once Lotor heard Keith was going to be there, he ducked out

Everyone is exhausted the next day

Lance is going to try and talk to Allura about being more open with Shiro

but when he finds her she has a letter in her hands and she’s trying not to cry but it isn’t working

Shiro and Keith have left the town without warning

even Pidge doesn’t know why

All Shiro’s letter says is that Allura is a very amiable young woman and that he hopes to be in her company again someday

He might as well have just written NOT INTERESTED

Allura is heartbroken, but she puts on a brave front

Lance sees through it though

A few months go by without a word from Shiro

The militia have moved on, meaning Lotor isn’t around to talk shit about Keith anymore

Matt invites Pidge to come visit him, seeing as he finally has some to himself

he runs a small estate, built it up himself. He’s a genius engineer, thanks to Mr. Holt putting him through a good school

Pidge invites Lance along

Hunk can’t go because has his catering business to run, plus he’s meeting Shay’s (his sous chef) family and may or may not be planning to start courting her soon

Lance is hesitant to go. He doesn’t want to leave Allura who is still a little down in the dumps

But she insists that Lance go so eventually he gives in

Pidge and Lance arrive just in time for supper only to find that Matt has another visitor

Keith fucking Kogane

Apparently, Matt, Shiro and Keith all went to the same school and Keith was in the area so he’s staying for a few days

Lance is not pleased

although, Keith is acting a little differently

Like, he’s actually trying to hold conversations?

and he and Pidge are actually getting along because they share the same sense of humour

and Lance is just confused

And then Keith visits him in his room

Keith is a bundle of nerves and keeps stopping halfway through his sentences

he remarks on the weather, on how nice the room is, literally looking anywhere but Lance

and then Pidge comes knocking and Keith is out of there before Lance can even get a word in edgewise

Next day they’re walking through the gardens

Keith and Pidge are up ahead and Pidge is laughing their ass off about something and Keith is actually smiling

And somehow Matt lets it slip that Keith is the one that separated Shiro and Allura

CUE THE RAIN SCENE

Lance is pissed and he’s dripping wet and cold and then of all people, Keith appears

And he’s proposing to Lance

And Lance snaps because there is no way he’s marrying some hot head who thinks splitting couples is a good thing

And they argue

Holy flying quiznak do they argue

And when Lance mentions Lotor? Keith snaps

because the man he loves is ripping his heart to shreds and he doesn’t look one bit sorry

And then the famous line: “From the first moment I met you your arrogance and your selfish disdain for the feelings of others made me realise that you were the last man I would ever prevail upon to marry”

And Keith just goes blank

He apologizes and leaves Lance and Lance should be happy, he’s finally told off that asshole

so why does he feel so empty?

And then there’s the letter

And Lance feels like the utmost fool and just sad

he was so wrong

so so wrong

Lance returns home just in time to find that Uncle Coran has come to visit

Coran is as flamboyant as they come

Can you imagine Coran in turquoise breeches because I can

Anyway, Coran invites Allura and Lance to come with him on a trip to the countryside, seeing as they both need a change in scenery

They visit Keith’s estate, Pemberley, because “it’s always open for guests to have a look”

Lance is hesitant but he goes along

SCULPTURE SCENE

Lance can’t stop looking at the bust of Keith

He looks so handsome

And somehow the sculptor managed to capture the intelligence in his eyes

When Lance finally comes back down to planet earth, he’s alone

The rest of the group has moved on without him

And then he hears someone yelling

He stumbles upon a room where Keith is busy practising his fencing

and he is good, as in he’s a fucking pro

And they meet eyes and Lance runs because he can’t see him, not after all he said

But Keith catches up to him and they talk and it so awkward and yet

Keith is softer, more gentle

Maybe he always was

He invites Lance and them to dinner and insists on walking them back to their hostel

And that’s when Allura gets a letter

Alfor is sick and the doctor says it isn’t long now before he passes on

Lance still has so many things to say to Keith, wants to apologize but they have to go

They arrive home in time to say goodbye to Alfor, who leaves their small estate to Allura, even though that’s technically against the law (leaving property to a woman, but screw it, Alfor knows Allura can handle his estate better than anyone else)

Lance, being the only male heir, refuses the property, much to the family laywer’s surprise. It belongs to Allura. Always has, always will.

And they adapt.

Coran stays with them while Allura settles into her new position as an estate manager, helping her when he can

They’re busy enjoying tea when Pidge bursts through their front door with Hunk not too far behind

Shiro is back in town

And damn but he looks determined

And Keith is with him

Cue the super awkward attempted-proposal scene where Coran ends up messing up Shiro’s entire plan of proposing to Allura

So Shiro and Keith go out and practice what he’s going to say, much to Keith’s amusement

And when Shiro does finally propose Allura doesn’t even hesitate to say yes

Lance should be happy for her, but his chest feels hollow and he knows why but he refuses to acknowledge it

He doesn’t sleep and decides to go for a walk, the sun’s nearly up anyway

And Lance is sitting, waiting for the sun to rise when he spots a figure in the mist

It’s Keith

Lance immediately apologizes and Keith says that he shouldn’t, that he was just as stupid

They were both so clueless, honestly

When Keith starts to propose, Lance stops him

He gets on one knee, in the mud, and proposes

Keith says yes