#rather than special notes like what he provided the idiot trio

[thelazyhermits]

Got more Fortune (Yuu) in Twisted Wonderland under the cut cause the Twst brainrot is real lol 😂

Right now, I’m thinking about those final exams that everyone takes in book 3 and what Yuu did to prepare for them. 

In a previous post, I mentioned that Yuu did well since she has always been the type to do well academically. However, in this scenario, she wouldn’t have done well just through sheer book smarts.

That’s because she’s dealing with so many new subjects that she has zero experience with. Being magicless puts her at a real disadvantage compared to everyone else.

As a result, Yuu has to work her butt off to do well at NRC. She’s always very attentive in class and takes good notes, always does her homework, and studies like crazy for tests.

Thanks to her hardworker mindset and all the time she’s willing to put into her studies, Yuu does pretty well for someone who’s a total newb in comparison to everyone else, so she never really has to worry about failing anything.

She also does rather well with Vargas’s flight class, even though she obviously can fly without magic, since she can handle running laps thanks to her great stamina. While she’s not an expert at all forms of exercise (she sucks at pull-ups and sit-ups thanks to her zero upper body strength lol), she’s able to get by overall and earn Vargas’s approval. 

Vargas likes that she has some muscles on her, but he thinks she could use some more so he’s all about encouraging her to get more buff which she’s not really opposed to since being more muscular would be to her advantage in an environment where all she can rely on to protect herself are her two fists and her Quirk.

(All of the staff members end up taking a strong liking to Yuu since she’s a good, hardworking student that never gives them any trouble. No one was too fond of the idea of a magicless girl being stuck in an all boys’ school, but since there really wasn’t anything else that could be done with her, they just do their best to look out for her when they can.)

Going back to Yuu’s studies, she does well enough that she doesn’t have to worry about failing, but she isn’t satisfied with just passing. She wants to do the best she can because being under Tokumei’s tutelage and always trying and failing to impress him with her great grades led to her becoming an overachiever. 

Plus, since she’s a two-in-one student with Grim, Yuu is worried about how the grading will be done for them. While they both have to take the exams separately, it’s possible the grades will be all rolled into one, and since Grim does so poorly with his studies, Yuu feels it’s her responsibility to make the best possible grades to keep the two of them afloat.

That’s why Yuu works extra hard when she’s studying for final exams. She also tries to get Grim/Ace/Deuce to do the same but isn’t very successful. (cause the idiots went and made a contract with Azul lol)

After countless failed attempts to get the idiot trio to study, Yuu gives up and assumes that she’ll be stuck helping them with last minute cramming, so she should just focus on herself so that she’ll be ready when they finally start asking for help.

This doesn’t mean that Yuu ends up doing all her studying alone, however. That’s because Yuu is a very smart girl who knows how to use her resources wisely.

Whenever Yuu has any trouble with a subject, Yuu goes to an upperclassmen she knows and asks them for help. Obviously, because this is NRC, these guys aren’t all going to just help out of the goodness of their heart, which Yuu totally expects, which is why she is ready and willing to bribe them if necessary lol

In the case of Riddle, Trey, & Cater, Yuu doesn’t really need to bribe them. Riddle helps her because he approves of anyone willingly trying to improve themselves, and he basically sees her as his responsibility cause of her help with his Overblot and all the other things she has done for his dorm.

That’s why Trey helps her out as well and cause he just feels pity for everything she goes through cause of Ace & Deuce lol However, I could see him having her help him around the kitchen as a form of payment, even though he doesn’t really make her do a lot.

Cater helps Yuu out in exchange for allowing him to keep the picture he unconsciously took of her when she was unintentionally using the puppy dog eyes on the three upperclassmen while she was asking them to help her with her studies lol 😂

The use of bribes really comes into play with Savanaclaw cause Ruggie doesn’t do anything for free. Thankfully, he’s easy enough to convince. Give him food, and he’ll give whatever study tips he has available lol

Leona is tougher to deal with, but eventually, Yuu manages to wear him down with promises of steak, chess, and anything else she can think of along with lots of compliments about his intellect lol He mostly gives in to get her to leave him alone but also cause he’s got a little soft spot for her, not that he’d ever admit it haha

Kalim & Jamil end up helping Yuu when Kalim spots her in the library and approaches her. Kalim is all too eager to help when she asks for pointers, but in the end, it’s mostly Jamil that does the helping, which he does since he knows Kalim won’t let the two of them leave without helping her.

During one of her nighttime teatime chats with Malleus, Yuu gets the idea of asking for his advice since he seems very smart. He’s very surprised since he’s not used to anyone asking for his help like this and might even say as much, which surprises her since he’s so nice and easy to talk to.

Malleus ends up being a big help during their little impromptu study session and even goes a step further by later preparing some notes for Yuu which he asks Lilia to pass along to Yuu the next day.

(I just really love the thought of Malleus being really happy about being depended on by Yuu like this and her thinking he’s easy to talk to. He’d probably soak up all the positive attention she gives him during their study time like a sponge. I love these two positive attention-starved cuties so much 😭)

Malleus’s desire to further help Yuu leads to Lilia and Silver lending her a hand with her studies since they both came to deliver the notes on behalf of “Tsunotarou”. 

Lilia wants to help her out as thanks for making Malleus so happy, and he brings Silver, who also wants to help once he hears the whole story, along for the ride.

They’re both helpful with giving out pointers/advice, although Silver ends up falling asleep at one point. Thankfully, Yuu has some mint-flavored gum which she shares with him to help keep him awake.

At this point, Yuu has gotten a lot of help, more than she expected, so she intends to stop actively seeking study help since she’s already gotten so much good help and she doesn’t wanna bother the upperclassmen she’s already studied with further. 

Her plans of not seeking more help end up changing when Floyd happens upon her one day and snatches her up, demanding that she do something fun with him. 

Initially, she’s very reluctant since there’s no telling what Floyd will have her do and just how long he’ll make her his current source of entertainment. 

Of course, she also doesn’t want to put Floyd in a bad mood. While she can handle his usual squeezes, she doesn’t wanna find out just how strong they can become lol

This leads to Yuu making a deal with Floyd. In exchange for entertaining him, she wants him to provide some study advice/pointers since she has heard about him being a genius, even if it all depends on his mood. She’s hoping that by putting him in a good mood that he’ll be very helpful with studying.

Floyd’s amused since she’s sounding like Azul by wanting to make a deal with him. He’s also confused by why she doesn’t just make a deal with Azul to get his special study notes.

Yuu explains that she wants to get good grades by her own efforts. Yes, she’s willing to seek out others for help, but she has no intention to make anyone do the work for her. She doesn’t want Azul’s notes that she knows will guarantee her a good grade.

In the end, Floyd accepts the deal since he wants to play with her, and that’s what they do for the next several hours, much to Yuu’s internal distress lol

Even with her good stamina, Yuu is exhausted by the time Floyd has had his fill of entertainment, which ranged from basketball to every other activity under the sun that he could think of.

However, she’s not so exhausted that she forgets about having him uphold his end of the deal, and since he’s in a good mood by this point, he doesn’t mind helping her out.

Of course, this doesn’t stop Floyd from wanting more entertainment, so to keep himself from getting bored, he picks Yuu up and plops her into his lap so he can squeeze and poke her the whole time he’s going over the study materials lol

At this point, Yuu’s too tired to really care. Plus, him bracing her keeps her tired body from falling over, and his actions actually keep her from getting distracted since they keep her alert when she’d normally be pretty lethargic after everything he put her through.

All in all, it’s a somewhat productive study session. Yuu still thinks Floyd got the better end of the deal, but it’s not like nothing good came out of it so she won’t complain, especially when Floyd’s wearing quite the big grin when they finally part ways.

The encounter with Floyd leads Yuu to wondering if she should try to approach Jade for advice too since he seems like the type who does well with his studies.

Obviously, like his brother, Jade wouldn’t just do this for free, so Yuu would need to have something to give him in exchange.

Which leads to Yuu coming up with the idea of harvesting some wild mushrooms since she knows how much Jade likes them. Having heard from Jade about his exploits in the Mountain Lovers Club, Yuu knows about the mountain near NRC, which is where he goes to collect mushrooms, which is where she decides to head.

Since there could be wild animals there, Yuu decides to ask Jack to accompany her for protection purposes. Plus, she thought she could make this into a training exercise for herself since it involves hiking, and she figured Jack might be interested. 

In the end, Jack agrees since, while he won’t outright admit it, he doesn’t want her going up the mountain on her own, which is what would happen since Grim/Ace/Deuce have no interest in accompanying her even after she offered to share her study notes with them.

Much to her surprise, Jack invited Epel to join the two of them since he figured Epel would enjoy this kind of activity. Plus, since Yuu is willing to share her notes with whoever helps her, Jack thought Epel would jump on that opportunity.

(Jack was right on all counts, but what he didn’t expect was Epel to show up at the meeting spot excited at the prospect of fighting off wild animals lol 😂)

This is Yuu’s first time really interacting with Epel since they’re not in the same class. She doesn’t mind him being there, though, since the more help with mushroom picking she gets, the better.

One of her first thoughts upon seeing him is how pretty he is, but she quickly gets distracted from that train of thought by Epel’s enthusiasm about fighting off wild animals which he for some reason thought was one of the main goals of this excursion lol

Thanks to that, Yuu realizes he is a good example of don’t judge a book by its cover. While it’s not obvious just from looking at him, Epel has a rowdy side to him and is more manly than he looks.

Since Yuu is familiar with dealing with those kinds of guys, she doesn’t have much difficulty interacting with Epel, and they end up hitting it off pretty well since Epel likes that she treats him like a regular guy and doesn’t bring any attention to his pretty looks.

Thanks to Epel & Jack, the mushroom hunting trip is successful, even though there were some bumps along the way. Because they were so helpful, Yuu promises to share all her notes with them, not just whatever she gets out of Jade, which is what they were initially expecting, so they end up making plans to hold study groups together, which ends up happening throughout the remainder of the time leading up to final exams.

When it comes time to approach Jade, Yuu goes to the Mostro Lounge and presents what she refers to as an offering, much to his amusement. His amusement turns into delight when he sees the large of array of mushrooms she, Epel, & Jack managed to find.

Since he’s clearly pleased with the offering, Yuu asks Jade for study help, and he agrees, both because of the offering and because he heard from Floyd how much fun he had with her the other day which piqued his interest.

While he has her take a seat in the lounge, Jade goes to put away the mushrooms and prepare some tea for them. Not long after Jade leaves, she hears a yell of dismay coming from the kitchen which signals that Floyd has seen the present she brought for Jade, which leads to her internally apologizing to Floyd lol 😂

At this point, the Mostro Lounge isn’t officially open yet. Yuu got in since she works part-time there, so as a result, Jade is able to dedicate some time to her since he doesn’t have any other work matters he needs to attend to at the moment.

Floyd ends up joining them cause he wants to complain about the mushrooms and mess with Yuu in retribution lol

Eventually, Azul shows up on the scene, which leads to him finding out what Yuu has been up to. As expected, he’s quick to bring up his amazing study guide, but Yuu politely declines and gives him the same explanation she gave Floyd.

Azul accepts her reasoning but looks noticeably displeased, which, to her, makes sense considering he’s all about making deals. 

What she doesn’t realize is that he’s quietly sulking over the fact that he’s now the only one she hasn’t asked for help which bothers him more than he’d like to admit lol

Jade & Floyd realize this immediately and have no issue with exposing him. Azul adamantly denies their claims, but Yuu gets the feeling he’s not being completely honest, considering how flustered he now is. 

Plus, she can understand why he would feel left out if he was the only one she didn’t ask for help, so she apologizes for that since it wasn’t her intention to be mean/rude. She just doesn’t want to ask for help if it means signing a contract/giving up money/having someone else do all the work for her.

At that moment, Yuu takes notice of how tired Azul looks and gets the idea of offering to let him using her magic lap pillow in exchange for his help with her studies.

(Like in TABF, Yuu’s lap pillow has the power to put just about anyone to sleep within seconds once they lay their head down. Floyd was the first person to discover this secret ability of hers, and it was entirely by accident. He had just plopped into her lap and almost immediately dozed off. He quickly pulled away from her once he realized what was happening, thinking sleeping magic was somehow being used, but once he realized that wasn’t the case and having reconfirmed that Yuu can’t use magic, Floyd ended up plopping back down cause her lap’s comfy and fell asleep lol

While Jade found the whole situation very amusing, Azul was less than thrilled with this turn of events since this could basically be considered sexual harassment which would not look good for business. He tried to get Yuu to sign a NDA to ensure that she wouldn’t make any reports about this to Crowley, and she almost agreed, since she really didn’t see this as sexual harassment, before realizing she should try to get something in exchange.

In the end, in exchange for promising to not make any sexual harassment reports against the Mostro Lounge, Yuu asked for Azul’s written agreement that she would be protected from sexual harassment and physical harm at the hands of the students of his dorm since a girl in her situation needs all the protection she can get. Plus, thanks to this, she felt more comfortable about asking for a part-time job at the lounge, which really caught Azul off guard lol)

After hearing Yuu’s offer, Azul splutters and turns bright red much to Jade and Floyd’s delight. They are enjoying every minute of his embarrassment.

Since Azul vehemently refuses her lap pillow as a form of payment, Yuu asks what else she could offer in exchange for his advice that wouldn’t involve paying him/signing a contract.

In the end, Azul probably has her help clean up the lounge or some other task that would benefit him but not greatly inconvenience her. He does this, claiming he’s feeling generous and inspired by his underclassman’s thirst for knowledge, but the twins know that he just doesn’t want to be the only one whom Yuu didn’t rely on since it’s a stab at his pride lol

(By this point in time, Yuu hasn’t really interacted with Ortho and the upperclassmen in Pomefiore and Ignihyde, so she wouldn’t have gotten any help from them. That’s why I won’t include them in this scenario.)

Thanks to all the help she received, Yuu ends up doing very well with her exams. She might have even gotten into the top fifty, considering all the expert advice she received, but if she did, she would’ve been near the very bottom of the ranking.

All in all, it’s a very productive exam period. Unfortunately, Yuu doesn’t get to bask in her great accomplishment for long thanks to a certain idiot trio who gets themselves into trouble that she has to bail them out of lol

[deprecavi]

Aether had roped Kaeya into another round of his new favorite game, though he hadn’t had to talk much to convince Kaeya to play. It was actually kind of fun, similar to a game he’d played as a child, and Aether was clearly taking great delight in arranging these mini matches. He’d chosen Wuwang Hill as the playing field this time, and while he hadn’t found Klee, he had somehow convinced Albedo to play. Kaeya followed the pair of blondes up the hill toward the small stone building nestled amid a shallow pool bisected by a rough path, noting the gloomy atmosphere in the area.

“Man, what a place for a ghost story,” he commented, watching a blue wisp of light float by. “I bet this place already had loads of stories about it with these things floating around.” He reached toward it, but it evaded him. Ahead of them, he saw the other two players, whom Aether must have arranged to meet here. The same funeral consultant he’d seen before was there, which surprised Kaeya a bit. The effort the man had put into hiding in Springvale had been so laughable that Kaeya had figured he hadn’t wanted to play in the first place.

Aether introduced the other as Yanfei, a legal consultant with an enormous tome of laws at her fingertips. Kaeya saw Albedo eyeing the book as if he wanted a closer look and suppressed a chuckle. In his experience, Albedo would read anything in his reach if he was given the chance to do so. Yanfei’s book was securely attached by a belt though, so it was unlikely Albedo would be getting a peek at it any time soon. Aether led Zhongli a bit apart from the other three, designating him as the hunter. Well, that suited Kaeya fine, he was ready for a shot at playing the rebel, and liked the notion of being on the same team as Albedo.

Kaeya glanced over at Albedo as Aether gave the signal for the rebels to move out and was surprised when the blonde essentially vanished from sight. He’d nearly forgotten that Aether had given them special camouflage tokens that would allow them to move virtually undetected for a short while. Leave it to Albedo to ensure the hunter didn’t even see which way he was setting out. Kaeya was fairly certain that Albedo was going to be good at this game, at least as far as applying a strategic approach went. He had a cool and logical mind and was good at spotting patterns.

Realizing he was still standing and staring stupidly at the spot Albedo had been standing instead of moving, essentially wasting his own head start, Kaeya shook off his momentary stupor and took off at a brisk jog. He jumped down the short rocky cliff face into the watery pool that filled a large portion of the playing field. The sound of water splashing was sure to give him away if he stuck to this level, so he quickly ran across it, hoping Zhongli’s hearing wasn’t sharp enough to discern which way he was heading. He chanced a glance back in the direction he’d come, but couldn’t see Zhongli from this angle, which hopefully meant Zhongli couldn’t see him either as he started to climb. 

There was a small pavilion up on top of the hill that looked promising as a vantage point. Kaeya made his way further up the cliffside and scaled the tree next to it, though he slipped and fell out when he was halfway up, scraping his hands. With a muttered curse under his breath, he started to climb again even as he heard Aether calling for Zhongli to start the hunt. Kaeya froze, halfway up the tree again, eyes scanning the area below for a sign of the hunter to ensure he wouldn’t be spotted as he finished his climb and made the leap over to the pavilion’s roof.

The pavilion itself had a secondary tier to the roof, typical Liyue architecture, and it allowed Kaeya to crouch and keep an eye on the surrounding area without being completely exposed up on top of the hill. As he scanned the area below again, he heard Aether announcing that Albedo had been captured and he raised an eyebrow in surprise. He’d expected Albedo to be captured last, or perhaps not at all, outsmarting his competition. To be caught in such a short window of time suggested the alchemist was not bringing his full talents to bear, or perhaps he hadn’t actually wanted to play after all. It was rather odd that he’d agreed to come all the way to Liyue if he hadn’t wanted to play, though Kaeya had seen his gaze flicker past Aether to meet his own before he agreed to come.

At the very least, Kaeya supposed he could get Albedo’s opinion on this game as a potential way to entertain Klee at a later date now that the blonde had played a round, however brief. Dragging his thoughts away from his occasional babysitting charge, Kaeya noticed Zhongli had made his way up onto the hill with the pavilion while he was distracted. The man circled it, made a small noise of disapproval, and looked up at Kaeya with his arms crossed.

“I believe you called my hiding place poor, and yet you chose to neglect the disguises Aether provided,” he called up at Kaeya. Kaeya chuckled, shifting closer to the other edge of the roof in case he needed to jump down and sprint away. Zhongli circled the pavilion again and Kaeya kept the central raised circle of the roof between them. “How did you even get up there?” Zhongli asked curiously. Kaeya chuckled again.

“I hardly think that’s a secret I need to be sharing with you.” Across the field, Aether announced he was throwing in the favor. Zhongli gave Kaeya one last small frown and headed down into the watery area to go in search of the glowing green orb. Kaeya stayed where he was, appreciating the view his vantage point gave him, though he did stretch a little. Zhongli wasn’t an idiot, he would eventually realize there were other things in the area taller than the pavilion, and when he attempted to scale them Kaeya intended to run.

Zhongli used his favor to locate and capture Yanfei as Kaeya idly stretched first one leg and then the other. That was probably in Zhongli’s best interest, as he had very clearly seen Kaeya’s so-called ‘hiding spot,’ and either predicted that Kaeya wouldn’t move or hoped as much. Kaeya watched him climbing back up toward the pavilion, which he circled again, clearly trying to work out how Kaeya had managed to get past the eaves.

“I suppose using my vision is cheating,” Kaeya heard him musing to himself as he pondered the pavilion and surrounding area.

“If you use yours it’s only fair that I get to use mine,” Kaeya answered, and Zhongli looked up at him with a small smile, clearly not having realized Kaeya could hear him.

“I will not violate the guidelines Aether has set for us.” He moved to the back of the pavilion area, where a sheer cliff towered over it and started to climb. He moved quickly and Kaeya was impressed as he practically jumped up the cliff face, but Kaeya had been waiting for this. Before Zhongli could even turn to push himself off the cliff face to leap for the pavilion’s roof, Kaeya leapt from the roof himself, tucking and rolling and activating the invisibility token Aether had gifted him. He sprinted forward past a couple of crates and dove into one of them just as the token wore off.

From his new hiding place, he could see Zhongli jump down, glider wings fluttering as he veered first left, then right, then glided down into the watery area below. He was surprised Zhongli hadn’t seen him diving into the crate, but the other man hadn’t even looked in the direction he’d come, going back to the wide central area instead of onto the small ledge Kaeya currently perched on. Zhongli was surveying the area with a small frown, his gaze sweeping over the area from the ground, his sweep from the skies having given nothing away. He looked right past the trio of crates Kaeya was now occupying one of and started back up the hill on the other side when Aether called out the time limit.

Kaeya extricated himself from the box, grateful he didn’t have to stay cramped in that position for long. Aether clearly hadn’t taken people with long limbs into account when sizing his hiding place options. The barrels barely held Kaeya at all, requiring some effort to get into. The crates were slightly roomier but still required some contortion. He grinned as he approached the other three players and Aether, pleased by another win.

“Well played,” Zhongli congratulated him, offering a handshake as he approached. Albedo was nose deep in Yanfei’s book, having apparently convinced her to let him have a look while they waited on Kaeya and Zhongli’s standoff to end. Kaeya accepted the handshake and congratulated Zhongli on his two captures. “Perhaps next time we will be on the same side,” Zhongli added. Kaeya laughed, but he could tell from the look on Aether’s face that the blonde was already scheming up another round. Maybe he and Zhongli might just end up playing together again soon after all.

[bellatrixobsessed1]

Wrought Iron Machine (Part 7)

It is almost distracting, the notion of part-taking in S.A.S again. Her mind wanders some during the performance. She wonders if she should remake some of their old songs with a new flavor, that seems like a good way to ease into trying something entirely new. She leans closer to the crowd and belts out the final note, holding it a few beats longer than she would normally. She waits for the instruments to die out, holds the note a little longer, and drops off as well, letting the final note echo about the venue. She dips her head and her braid falls over her shoulder. She takes a deep breath and looks up as the applause sounds.

As they had done the last time, Kuvira leads Wrought Iron Machine backstage and allows the crowd’s anticipation to swell into a climax before re-emerging. She has something special in mind, a way to end the show memorably. “Capital City!” She addresses. “Are you ready for one more song?”

She lets the cheers and claps answer for themselves.

“Let’s do it then.” P’Li shouts.

She decides to go with one of their first songs, ‘In Rafters’. A little ode to the days when she’d taken up parkour as a hobby. A particular night when she had climbed to the highest skyscraper in Republic City, reaching the top at the climax of a sunset. It had been an accomplishment to say pridefully that she had done it without metal nor earthbending.

The song opens with no instrumental backing. Slowly, Ming enters with her drums and then P’Li subtly works her way in with her lead guitar. Baatar enters with his rhythm guitar next and then Ghazan with his bass until they have a full and powerful song.

Only when the song reaches its full speed and intensity, a point where the guitars wail the loudest and Ming’s drum beats per minute increase to her fastest does Kuvira lift her hands to create a flare of metal. Shifting it until it spiked out and glittered in the spotlights. She will leave pyrotechnics to the firebenders, she rather enjoys an explosion of metal in place of a shower of sparks.

Time and time again, P’Li suggested using fire--and perhaps she will one day--but Kuvira likes what they have. It separates them from other bands. Kuvira lifts the raises the final metal spire and climbs atop it and leans towards the crowd for the final verse.

It is another successful performance with another successful encore. She can’t say that Capital City beat the reception they had in Yon Rha’s Village, but it is a success no less. A rather strong way to end their Fire Nation tour if she must say. It is enough to keep her mood elated and optimistic.

Which is why it throws her off when a bought of melancholy and perhaps even doubt works its way in as she lies awake. She doesn’t know where it has come from and she has half the mind to ask P’Li for a light. She puts a hand to her head, she has decided once and for all that she won’t fall back into old habits. Southern Air Sounds has given her the extra push she needed to resist.

But the sudden wave of stress pushes her towards a smoke. Instead she inhales sharply and nudges Baatar awake.

"You’ve had a long night. Why aren't you asleep yet?" He replies after a brief period of quite.

She can’t answer, because she can’t exactly place the reason herself. Maybe the past has decided to surface itself again because she had ended her tour with such a nostalgic song. She was so young…

Finally she answers. "I’m just thinking. Thinking too much perhaps."

 "About?"

 It is a great many things with varying degrees of distressfulness. So she starts with the least pressing, the one that everyone on that bus could understand. “I’m just wondering. How it is that we can have a rivalry with a band that's only about a month old…a band that's made up of four children."

 "It only took them that month to ruin our tour." Baatar points out. “And they sure can drink like adults…”

 "Maybe we should just forget about that." Kuvira mutters, had Fire Of Agni even ruined their tour or had they just been trying to shift the blame? “We’ve never even met them.” She doesn’t think that their brief encounter truly counted as meeting them. Frankly, the more she thinks about it the better it sounds. They have enough to worry about without fueling their little petty feud. For the time being Kuvira is rather content to let the past be the past. And in this day and age there is quite a lot she'd like to put behind her. P’Li’s even pettier fude with Ghazan, for one. The one that is putting a rift in their band, the one that is probably part of what had almost ruined their tour. More pressingly she itches to forget, once and for all, about the lack of support her parents provided.

That above all else is what keeps her awake on that night.

That above all accounts for the sudden was of somber.

 Southern Air Sounds is the most important show she'll ever lead her band through…the last true shot to bring them back into relevancy. The best shot she has to find a name for them among the legends, among the musical game changers. And her parents can’t be bothered to come, not that she expects them to. She had lost contact with them long ago and has long since let go of her dream; the hope that they would see her in the headlines or on a mover screen and go out of their way to seek her out and reconnect.

 “They make themselves hard to forget.” Baatar replies.

 But Kuvira has already moved on from that subject. She doesn’t mean to jump around on her fiance, but something bothers her so much more than Fire Of Agni. “I was only eight when I took a shine to singing. I was fond of Jazz.”

 Baatar sat up and furrowed his brows. “Where’d that come from.” She detects a chuckle.

 “I signed up for a school talent show, I did a cover of a Rough Rhinos song.”

 That time her words elicit a blunt chuckle. “Of course you did.”

 “I practiced every night and I won. I did all of my school work. I kept my grades up. They still didn’t like it…” She trails off.

 “They?”

 “My parents.” She clarifies. “After I received my trophy I ran up to my mother smiling like an idiot. I was proud. Because I worked hard, and I won. I beat the older children.” She pauses. “I thought that they were going to congratulate me. I thought that my mother was going to hug me and that my father was going to ruffle my hair and say, ‘good job Ku-Ku’. Instead they were quiet the whole way home.”

 She leaves Baatar room to ask questions or make commentary, but he doesn’t fill the silence.

 “We got home and had dinner. After that I got a lecture about how singing, painting, writing, all of that, were to be hobbies only and nothing more. That I shouldn’t get so invested just because I won a single competition for children.”

 Kuvira sees Baatar go tense. She has told him about her abandonment before, in fact it had been one of the first things she spoke with him about. But she has never given him the details, just little hints as to how much it hurt and still hurts.

 “A few nights later the school hosted a teacher to parent meeting. My teacher--her name slips me--decided to show my dream book project to my parents. She didn’t know…”

 “Didn’t know what?”

 Kuvira gives a bitter laugh, “How my parents were.” She dabs at a tear that managed to escape. “It was on the last page. There was a question about dream careers. Do you know what I filled in, Baatar?”

 “You said that you wanted to be a rockstar?”

 “No. I wanted to sing in a Pop-Jazz trio. I even wrote some lyrics.”

 “We should use those in a song!” Baatar tries to ease the tension.

 And it works, but only for a moment. “I’d rather have P’Li blast me to pieces.” She meant it as a joke, but the look on her face said that her tone had been too deadpan or too dismal.

 “Don’t say things like that.” He mumbled.

 Kuvira rolls her eyes. “Do you really think that I actually want that?”

 “Sometimes it’s hard to tell with you.” He mumbles.

 Kuvira sighs and gets back on track, with a dismissive wave. “Anyhow, I also wrote my idea of what a perfect stage performance would look like. I was scared, Baatar. When they saw that page, I was scared. I thought that my mom was going to slap me. But...but…” Kuvira falters. “But she...she smiled. Father said that it was ‘cute’ and ‘refreshingly optimistic’. But as soon as we got away from my teacher and into the car, it was ‘a silly dream’. My mother asked me if I was serious about that dream. And father told me that it was nonsense and I’d never get anywhere. I don’t got a word in.” It wouldn’t have mattered if they had given her time, she recalls vividly that she had been crying much too hard to get out anything tangible.

 “They didn’t…”

 “No. They didn’t hit me. They let me sleep in my bed, as usual. The next morning…” she wraps her arms around her middle, her head dipping some. “The next morning I was on the streets. For parting words my father told me that, it didn’t matter because the streets would be where I’d end up anyways. He said that there was no sense in delaying the inevitable.” It had been cruel.

She takes in a shaky breath. Raava, she could use a cigarette.

Baatar opens and closes his mouth a few times before settling on simply pulling her closer to him, muttering apologies for crimes that aren’t his own. He strokes her hair. “I had to prove him wrong Bataar. I have to prove him wrong.”

“You already have?”

“He’s waiting for our spotlight to burn out, I know that he is.” Kuvira remarks. “We have to win.”

“We’ll be fine. All we need to do is get Fire Of Agni out of the way.”

Kuvira sits up straighter. “No.” She says firmly. “All we need to do is forget about Fire Of Agni, and focus on Wrought Iron Machine.”

Baatar swallows. “Kuvira…”

“We’re putting too much energy into them and not enough into the music.” Just in case he wants to debate more, she adds, “they want attention anyways.”

Baatar’s lip curves up. “That’s true.”

With a soft yawn, Kuvira snuggles up against Baatar again. “I just want to prove them wrong…”

But is it really?

No. Deep down she knows that what she really wants is to win her parents’ affection.

“Don’t worry about them. You have Su and the rest of our family. My mom has been wanting to catch a show since we left the Earth Kingdom.”

Our family.

The notion was reassuring. It isn’t the family she was born into, but it is a family. A family that will welcome her back home.

“Get some sleep.” Baatar says. “You’re going to need it if you want to prove your point.”

She is already drifting into sleep.

[waraupiero]

Yomo and Uta for the character meme?

hey!!! thank you so much for asking my special kids ✧(σ๑˃̶̀ꇴ˂̶́)σ

yomo renji

first impression:

this man … he’s so muscular … he’s so stoic … what is his fucking deal man

like why the fuck is he like this

impression now:

yomo is hands down my favourite character in tokyo ghoul. i would easily die for him. i make speeches about his personality and character development daily. my flatmate is sick to death of him. i basically live to stan yomo at this point

favourite moment:

YOMO VS. ARIMA 2.0. GOD THAT KILLED ME. tbh talk about hikari at all and i’ll fucking die. but when yomo talks about his hope?? his goals in life??? his FAMILY??? if i didn’t love yomo before i definitely love him now … fuck that scene still haunts me every day and is so inspiring … yomo is the best man everyone else can go home

idea for a story:

lmao outside of the fourth ward doujinshi that i’m never shutting up about nowadays … tbh i really love AUs and i’d love to one day write or draw a fantasy story set in alternate feudal japan, with yomo as the main character … it would be really cool to have him be a samurai who serves the daimyo kaneki ken, and his friends are an onmyoji (uta) and innkeeper itori (who is secretly a fox spirit). the shogunate (ccg) is weakening and yomo has personal beef against it (arima exists). some daimyos and important figures are secretly conspiring against the shogun, and although daimyo kaneki does not want the shogunate to fall or change hands, he does want to use this as an opportunity to put forward his own agenda. does yomo fight for kaneki as the latter attempts to make an advantageous arrangement with the shogunate? or does he go rogue? …

if anything, he decides to get to the bottom of why the shogunate is failing, and possibly even put kaneki up as the new shogun (but does kaneki want that?). will his friends help him in his personal venture? or will they doom him for their own interests …

wow this sounds boring but the truth is i just want him being a feudal japanese spy and rooting through government secrets with the Very Questionable uta and itori

unpopular opinion:

do i have an unpopular opinion about yomo? i don’t know. i guess i don’t see yomo as 100% a faultless and pure man. he’s a good man, but he’s got some shady ass ways of dealing with things, and although he tries to be honest about things i can’t help but think he’s lying to himself and other people throughout the entire series. i think that makes him definitely more interesting than if he were just mr. goody two-shoes 

favourite relationship:

his friendship with uta and itori!! i could write essays about this!! i have written essays about this!! their relationship is honestly one of the most inspiring ones i have ever witnessed

favourite headcanon:

yomo leaves the ‘door’ to his shipping/storage container home unlocked, because 1. no one can beat him if they break in 2. there’s nothing he has that other people would want to steal. so as a result uta and itori kind of wander in and out of it whenever they please, to hang out with yomo. if yomo’s not in, they’ll wait for him (and chat if they’re waiting together), or they’ll leave him a note. sometimes they leave presents. as a result, yomo never has to meet up with his friends. they do all the work and just show up. though if he wants them out, they’ll give him his peace. sometimes one (or both) of them will stay over. it reminds them of their youth, when all three of them would sleep in the same room and keep each other up with weird questions or anecdotes … :’)

uta

first impression:

fun fact, i only got to know about tokyo ghoul because someone sent me a picture of uta and said ‘this guy’s got your aesthetic’. so i was like?? who the hell is this fucker who has my aesthetic?? it’s mine??

though once i started reading + watching the series i thought that he was a very nice man

impression now:

he is NOT a very nice man but i love him all the same. i think he’s an idiot as well, but that makes him relatable. i say that i hate him but that’s just repressed self-hatred speaking (unfortunately my friend was more right that i thought … we also have similar personalities and it’s bad because i hate myself haha). he’s an amazing character and i’m very invested in his character development. i hope he gets to be happy …

favourite moment:

when he and yomo have their chat on the roof or signal tower or whatever … just?? seeing him be there for someone other than himself?? for agreeing to help yomo unconditionally because they’re friends?? him smiling reassuringly at yomo whilst yomo smiles a little back?? y’all this is one of the most beautiful uta moments i’ve ever witnessed, my boi is being so good here

idea for a story:

ready for … another AU, folks? … uta is the leader of a gang of juvenile delinquents in high school. they have a transfer student, who seems to think that he’s some hot shit, taking over the gang’s lunch spot on the roof of the school, commenting rudely on uta’s cool as shit sunglasses, not even speaking in a nice way to them, even though he’s the new kid and they’re classmates … uta is NOT going to let this slide. however, this new kid beats up uta’s entire gang in five minutes flat. now that’s an asset that uta, as the king of juvenile delinquents, can’t afford to not have (or maybe he just doesn’t want to admit that he lowkey fell in love) … so instead he invites yomo to join his gang. (the rest of the gang thinks that uta is going to haze him to death, but no uta genuinely likes this new kid and it’s baffling)

along with the boss of the girl gang in the all-girls’ school next door, itori, the three of them cause terror at their schools and wreak some small-scale havoc in modern day tokyo. at the same time, they’re all trying to figure out their own problems and place in society, and decide on what to do with their lives now graduation is on the horizon …

unpopular opinion:

uta’s a logical man who likes to be in control of the things in his life. however, that does not mean that he is stable at all. i think he’s only managing some level of stability/coherence by suppressing a lot of his emotions and thoughts. everything inside of him is actually jumbled up, and that’s why his logic is messed up, but it all makes sense to him. what ishida is depicting uta as right now is by no means out of character, nor it is a drastic ‘new direction’ for uta. he’s always been like this.

this is a smaller thing but i don’t think uta is ‘feminine’ in any way at all? i guess a lot of this comes from the way he dresses, but those are all fairly masculine fashions in japan imo. maybe in one calendar illustration he’s wearing a woman’s kimono rather than a man’s (i don’t remember clearly), but men crossdress in japanese punk/metal subculture all the time, and it isn’t considered the same way drag is in the west. it doesn’t diminish the actual masculinity of these men. i feel like gender really isn’t all that ‘important’ or exact in japanese alternative culture than western readers think … all of his mannerisms and speech are very masculine to me as well …

favourite relationship:

of course i love the relationship of the fourth ward trio in general, but i feel like yomo is special to uta in an unusual and very one-sided way. i’ve written a lot about the way uta feels about yomo, so i won’t reiterate all of my points here … but i’m very much fascinated by how uta views yomo … i’m hoping ishida can provide some clearer explanation because i can’t help but feel a little presumptuous when i express my own opinions/theories on this.

favourite headcanon:

uta sleeps in all the time. it’s bad for business but it isn’t his fault if he can’t hear his alarm clock, is it? (he hid it in the broom closet.) he sometimes falls asleep when he’s out with itori and yomo, much to itori’s annoyance. he falls asleep often during the day because he’s always up all night (uta is a night owl don’t argue with me. he stays up googling weird shit or just reads. yes, uta loves reading!! i like that headcanon a lot too because how else do you explain him knowing fucking martial). yomo is more lenient with uta sleeping wherever he pleases. he’ll let him nap in anteiku/:re, or if uta’s at his house, he’ll let him sleep on the couch and put a mug of coffee next to him for when he wakes up (yomo is the best, most considerate friend ok).

send me a character!

[tripstations]

Walking the Great Wall of China: How did Dong Yao-hui cover it all?

Luanping, China (CNN) — On a warm spring morning in 1984, Dong Yao-hui and his two young friends, Wu De-yu and Zhang Yuan-hua, pulled on military surplus backpacks and boots and set out on a hike along a stretch of the Great Wall of China.

Their walk began at Laolongtou — or the Old Dragon’s Head — in Shanhai Pass, where what was once believed to be the easternmost stretch of the Wall reaches into the Bohai Sea. From there they forged westward toward the mountains of Hebei province and the vast Chinese territory stretching out beyond.

By sunset the first night, they’d made good progress and took shelter in a crumbling fortification that, centuries ago, had accommodated the men who once stood guard on the Wall, perhaps watching for invaders from the north.

There they contemplated the journey ahead of them — a walk of 17 months and 8,850 kilometers (5,500 miles) that would test their endurance, but also take them into the record books as the first people ever to walk the length of the wall.

It was a trip that would not only change the lives of the three friends but would change the fortunes of the wall itself, helping preserve it and elevate it to the revered status it holds today.

First Great Wall expedition

Dong Yao-hui has spent the last three decades protecting and promoting China’s Great Wall.

Harry Forbes

“It was the first time ever for humans to go on an expedition of the entire Great Wall, leaving the first complete set of footprints,” recalls Dong, now 62. “It was a nonstop uphill and downhill journey.

“The heat from summer, the snow in winter and the exhausting hikes were all challenging but they weren’t insurmountable. We just walked and walked and we made notes of what we saw. It was very repetitive like how a farmer tends to his farms.

“Little did we know when we were on the journey that it would end up becoming a lifelong project.”

Back in May 1984, the Great Wall was famous beyond China as the structure that could — so the legend goes — be seen from space. At that time, however, more was perhaps known about the surface of the moon than the contours of the wall.

Work on it began more than 2,500 years ago, its origins dating back to China’s Spring and Autumn Period of around 770 BC to 476 BC. Various sections were added in subsequent eras as competing dynasties and factions sought to exert their control.

Work eventually stopped in the 17th century. Today the wall reaches over 21,000 kilometers, winding its way through 15 provinces, 97 prefectures and 404 counties.

And while certain parts had long attracted tourists, both from within and outside of China, such was its size that by the 1980s — when the country was emerging from the turmoil of its 1949 communist takeover and the excesses of the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and ’70s — many sections had slipped into obscurity, disrepair and sometimes oblivion.

Dong Yao-hui, Wu De-yu and Zhang Yuan-hua were the first men to walk the entire length of the Ming Dynasty Great Wall.

courtesy Dong Yao-hui

This is where Dong enters the story. At 25, he was working as a power cable technician — and poet — in his hometown of Qinhuangdao, close to the Shanhai Pass, where he would later start his odyssey.

“I climbed power towers, often next to the Great Wall,” he recalls. “Slowly, I developed an interest in the Great Wall. ‘Who built it? When was it built? Why was it built?’ I had all these questions but there weren’t a lot of books you could read about it — not even the government had such a record then.”

Soon Dong’s interest formulated into a plan. And after two years of preparation, he and his two friends embarked on the epic trek that they thought would take them three years, but would in fact be completed in just 508 days.

An unexpected lifelong project

Dong, Wu and Zhang decided to focus only on the 8,851.8-kilometer Great Wall stretch that was restored and built during the Ming Dynasty — around 600 years ago. It’s the most well-preserved section and the part most commonly referred to when we talk about the Great Wall today.

“Our hiking outfits were military uniforms provided by troops stationed at each area,” recalls Dong. “Our rucksacks were donated by China’s Mountaineering Association — which were used during their expedition to Mount Everest. We were considered well equipped in the olden days.”

Instead of referencing a map, they simply followed the wall and recorded their own path on paper as well as their observations on the wall’s condition. At night, they usually slept inside the wall’s gates and fortresses, which were physically separated from the main structure, so they could document them too.

“Just think how tiring it was for us to walk the Great Wall… But today we keep taking it apart, so is society more civilized now? Or more idiotic? ”

Dong Yao-hui

“Little did we know when we were on the journey that it would end up becoming a lifelong project,” says Dong.

On completing their journey, the expedition team spent the following two years consolidating and publishing their experiences in a book titled “Ming Dynasty Great Wall Expedition.”

But what they initially thought would be the end of their obsession with the Great Wall would transpire to be just the beginning as the repercussions of their journey rippled much further than expected.

Prior to their expedition, Dong couldn’t find much documentation about the Great Wall.

courtesy Dong Yao-hui

“We had another plan originally to trek along China’s 18,000-kilometer seashore,” says Dong. “But our affair with the Great Wall was unstoppable once ignited.

“The further I went, the more it became a responsibility to society rather than just a self-fulfilling project.”

As they shared tales of their adventures, it became clear to the trio that it was not just the physical demands that left lasting impressions, but also the emotional impact of seeing how much of the wall had fallen into ruin.

So much so that they alerted authorities.

“When we told the ruling officials they said, ‘Right. Right. Right,'” Dong says. “But actually no one took it seriously, so we felt pain.

“Just think how tiring it was for us to walk the Great Wall, let alone how it must have been to build it. But today we keep taking it apart. So is society more civilized now? Or more idiotic?”

Today Dong comes across as a gentle, scholarly figure, one who has dedicated more than half his life to the study and preservation of the Great Wall, but contemplating its parlous condition revives the youthful indignation that propelled him on his original quest.

“Yes, I admit I can be reckless and emotional when talking about the damage sometimes,” he says. “It’d be better if I could deliver my message in a more rational and gentle way.

After trekking 508 days, the trio arrived at Jiayu Pass in 1985.

courtesy Dong Yao-hui

“But I can’t control it. I’m so upset — it’s a pain that comes from the bottom of my heart.”

Dong’s anguish isn’t without justification, with the wall continuing to face threats. In 2014, the Great Wall Society, which Dong founded and is now vice president of, reported that only 8.2% of the structure was in good condition.

Dong tries to put such stories in a positive light, saying the fact that these issues are even appearing in the news suggests there’s been a change in attitude regarding the Great Wall.

“In these 35 years, the effort to protect the Great Wall has changed [immensely],” he says.

“Before the nation reformed, every village was destroying the Great Wall so it wasn’t considered news. Today, the media fights to report on it and people condemn it. The overall awareness of Great Wall preservation has improved.”

Witnessing the damage being done to the Great Wall, Dong devoted his life preserving it.

Harry Forbes

Cable technician-turned-‘Son of the Great Wall’

Dong can, of course, take a lot of credit for this. These days he’s known as the “Son of the Great Wall,” with a reputation as its leading authority. When US Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton visited the wall, he was their designated expert guide.

The respect conveyed on Dong is on display on another spring day earlier this year as CNN Travel joins him during a visit to the Jinshanling section of China’s Great Wall, in Hebei province, about two and a half hours northeast of Beijing.

Wearing a modest checkered shirt and a pair of dress pants, he is welcomed by a village of local officials and managers, before putting on a red hiking jacket to climb up the wall’s stairs, his agile frame always a step ahead of the crowd.

“Mr. Dong hasn’t been here for a while now,” one of the managers says with a broad grin, before updating the special visitor on the status and conservation works happening along this section of the wall.

The bespectacled scholar quietly nods and occasionally whispers short inquiries.

A survey carried out in 2014 found that only 8.2% of the Great Wall is in good condition.

Yong Xiong/CNN

Work to preserve the Great Wall began in earnest in 1987 — three years after Dong’s hike — when UNESCO inscribed it was a World Heritage Site. Since then, China has implemented a number of measures to protect the world-famous attraction.

The Cultural Relics Administrative Department was given control over the overall protection of the Great Wall.

Meanwhile, a new daily visitor cap of 65,000 has recently been implemented at the popular Badaling section of the Great Wall to improve the overall experience and prevent deterioration. A three-grade warning system will also be deployed to warn tourists about the size of the crowd on the wall — all in real-time.Other measures include the demolition of a heavily commercialized tourist market at the foot of Badaling. It’s to be replaced with a Great Wall-themed cultural square by 2022.

China’s Great Wall was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

Yong Xiong/CNN

Great Wall tourism: Turning the poorest into the wealthiest

“Great Wall tourism gives the local community a tremendous push as it develops,” says Dong.

“Look at Mutianyu, a village at the foot of the Great Wall. It was once the poorest village in Huairou district. Some 30 years after it has tapped into Great Wall tourism, it’s now the wealthiest village.

“How did it go from the poorest to the wealthiest? It didn’t steal and sell a single brick from the Great Wall — what it sells is the culture of the Great Wall.

“We must develop local economies so the local farmers can enjoy the benefits and fruits of Great Wall preservation. Then you don’t even need to ask them to stop damaging the wall or stealing bricks — they just wouldn’t do it.”

Dong places his palm on the weathered wall, still contemplating it as he did 35 years younger. But today, he ruminates on a mission grander than his own journey.

“Someone, once upon a time, dug up some earth, molded it into a brick,” he says. “Someone else brought it all the way up the mountain and built a wall. Then many people guarded the wall for hundreds and thousands of years.

“The Great Wall is definitely alive. It isn’t just a cold, stone wall. When you put your palm on the wall, you’re holding hands with countless of ancestors from over the years.”

The post Walking the Great Wall of China: How did Dong Yao-hui cover it all? appeared first on Tripstations.

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[r3almellow]

Nothing More Chapter 9

A/N: One of my favorite chapters! 

Rating: M

Ship: Nalu

Series: Fairy Tail

Chapter 8

xxx

Dan seemed to have frozen at the sight of Lucy. "Wow." Was all he could muster up.

Wow? Just wow? Lucy deserved so much more than that.

Dan quickly snapped out of his trance and handed a bouquet of roses to her.

Roses? How cliché.

Lucy smiled sheepishly and took the bouquet from him, resting it on the counter. " You don't look so bad yourself," she laughed.

Natsu rolled his eyes and scoffed.

She quickly turned to glare at him.

Lucy moved from the doorway to let the man in. "Dan, you remember Natsu."

Dan looked over at Natsu. "You mean the great Salamander who helped lead the Mag U's soccer team to nationals three years in a row? Kind of hard to forget." He held out a hand.

Natsu looked down at the stretched-out hand, wondering what to do.

Smack his hand away? Sounds like something a five-year-old would do. Then again, age was nothing but a number.

Natsu decided to take the more adult approach and responded to the handshake with a firm one of his own.

He forced a grin and looked over at Lucy who gave him a quick thumbs up. The guy was lucky he had an angel looking over his ass.

"Leaving a mark on the world is what I do the best," he said.

"Hopefully I can follow your example." Dan took a quick glance at Lucy.

To the untrained eye a person would have missed the mischievous glint, but Natsu caught that shit within seconds.

Natsu tightened his grip. "Be careful. My world isn't as easy as she- it looks. There are a lot of people that are more than willing to take you down a few notches."

"I'll make note of that, Dragneel." Dan's gripped Natsu's hand just as tightly.

"I can feel the testosterone from over here!" Lucy huffed.

Dan was the first to pull away from the handshake. "Just a simple greeting between men, beautiful."

"Right…" Natsu mumbled.

Natsu secretly hoped she didn't believe that for a second. He desperately wanted her to know how unhappy he was about this.

"Shall we get going?" Dan asked, completely forgetting about the man in front of him.

Lucy gave an excited nod, linking her arm with his.

She turned to Natsu with a small smile.

"I'll be back soon! Make sure the roses get some water," she said.

Those roses were going to die.

"Whatever…" That came out harsher than he intended.

He wondered if she could tell just how jealous he was.

Natsu saw Lucy frown out of the corner of his eye, but stood his ground as they left.

Just as the door was about to close, Natsu stuck his head out to watch them.

He watched as they walked towards the elevator Natsu called for their attention. "You better get back safe! I'm not afraid to go to jail for murder!" He didn't even wait for the two to respond before heading back into the apartment.

Natsu huffed falling back onto the couch.

Once again Dan was ruining what could have been the best night of his life.

It was college all over again.

xxx

It was the biggest party of the year.

The fraternity Quatro Cerberus threw one every year just for the hell of it. The DJ was always on point, there was an infinite amount of drinks, and the food was catered by the finest restaurant in all of Magnolia.

Anyone who was anyone got an invite and it was always a party that left people talking for months.

Natsu had arrived on his own with hopes to meet up with the others. He spotted Lucy walking in not long after. She donned her college hoodie along with a pair black leggings and her hair had been tied into a messy bun.

It was nothing special and yet she still found a way to look cute.

She smiled brightly when she saw him and walked over.

"Want a drink?" He offered, pointing to the table filled with various bottles of alcohol.

Lucy shook her head. "You know I'm not much of a drinker."

"That's because one sip is all it takes to get you shit faced," he snickered.

"That's not true!" She pouted.

He smirked. "Need I remind you of our graduation party?"

Lucy's eyes widened in horror.

Graduation night was probably one of the most embarrassing nights of Lucy's life and Natsu loved every minute of it.

Although, he could have been down without her thinking clothes were irrelevant and wanting to strip in front of everyone.

Lucy groaned at the memory. "Most embarrassing night of my life."

"I thought me walking in on you dancing to Britney Spears in a towel was the most embarrassing," he teased.

Natsu cackled at the sight of Lucy's red colored cheeks. Seeing her get embarrassed had to be the funniest thing ever. It made her cuter than she already was.

He poked her cheek playfully prompting her to try to bite his finger. With quickly reflexes Natsu pulled away just in time and wagged his unscathed finger in front of her.

She was ready to go in for another bite when Cana slid in between the two and wrapped an arm around Lucy's waist.

"I'm borrowing this cutie for a second." Was all Cana said before she dragged Lucy off to who knew where.

"Save a dance for me?" He yelled.

As Lucy was pulled through the crowd she smiled brightly. "Of course!"

Natsu knew he was grinning like an idiot, but he couldn't care less.

"A shame she came here alone. There are a lot of hungry wolves out there," said a masculine voice.

Natsu turned his attention to the voice that belonged to Dan Straight, captain of the Magnolia University's soccer team.

Natsu didn't speak to the man much unless he had to. He had no opinion of him nor did he really care about being in his presence. They were from two different cliques that were on the same team and that was it.

So, why of all nights wasn't he making himself scarce tonight?

Natsu's eyebrows furrowed. "You're making it sound like Lucy isn't capable of taking care of herself."

"I believe Lucy can manage on her own, but she needs someone who is on her level."

Natsu's eyes narrowed at his remark. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Dan's lips formed into a condescending smirk. He glanced around the room until something caught his attention.

Or rather someone.

He had heard Dan was quite the ladies' man around campus. Going through girls as fast as Cana went through booze. Not really someone he wanted to be associated with.

Dan chuckled. "Just as daft as ever… It means exactly what it's supposed to mean. You don't have what it takes to provide for a woman born from money. She might not say it out right, but Lucy is part of a world much too big for someone who can't even tell the difference between diamonds and pearls."

Dan continued, "A woman with her looks deserves a man with fine tastes and with a body like hers, who wouldn't want a taste of that?"

Natsu balled his hands into a fist. There were many things he could forgive. Showing blatant disrespect towards Lucy was not one of them. Anyone who referred to her as a piece of meat was going to meet their end.

College scholarship be damned. "You son of a bitch!"

Right as he was about to raise his fist, Natsu felt a firm hand grab his wrist. Natsu turned to whoever had the balls to stop him from killing the bastard. He was met with Gray's cold stare and an equally angry Gajeel behind him.

Gray's grip tightened, looking from Natsu to Dan with a grimacing look. "Get lost, Straight."

Dan stared the three men down. He was a lot of things, but he wasn't stupid enough to take on Mag U's Iron Dragon, Ice Devil, and Salamander.

The man only smirked and made his way past the trio.

Natsu scowled, turning his attention to his friends.

"Gray, what the shit?" Natsu yelled, ripping his hand away.

Gray ignored his friend's glare as he watched Dan move across the dance floor. "You can't beat the shit out of him in front of everyone."

"Too many witnesses," Gajeel added.

Natsu looked around and saw that they had gained a few of the party goer's attention, but that wasn't going to stop him. "I don't care about that! He-"

Gray rested a hand on Natsu's shoulder. "We heard and we'll deal with him later."

"Let's get some drinks! If we're going to fuck someone up, I need some Corona in me." Gajeel said with a low grumble. Natsu knew he felt the same way as Gray in regards to Lucy. He might not say it, but he cares for his friends and wouldn't mind beating the hell out of someone to protect them.

It didn't take long for Natsu to end up on his own again. Juvia managed to pull Gray away and Gajeel got a bit preoccupied with his girlfriend.

Natsu let out a deep sigh as he sat on the steps leading into frat house with Dan's words continuously playing over in his head.

He didn't have what it took to be there for Lucy?

That was a load of bull.

When she graduated top of her class at Magnolia High, he was there.

When she got accepted as an intern for Sorcerer Weekly, he was the first person she called.

When her dad got into a car accident and had to spend two months in the hospital, whose shoulder was she crying on?

His!

Where was Dan? Most likely screwing his way through life.

Natsu didn't spend most of his years alive with Lucy to have some asshole tell him otherwise.

"I didn't expect to see you sitting out here alone." Said a young female voice.

Natsu looked up to see Lisanna Strauss staring down at him with a small smile. Natsu had known Lisanna from their childhood days. She was the total opposite of her siblings. While young Mira was a complete terror to be around and Elfman was painfully shy, Lisanna was very outgoing and friendly.

He smiled. "Yeah, it was getting a little crowded so I figured I'd get some air."

"Mind if I join you?" she asked.

He gave her a halfhearted smile and moved over for her to sit. "Not enjoying the party?"

"I was just stopping by to see a few friends. I'm going out to dinner with big brother and Mira. It's going to be our last one until big brother comes back from his two-months of training on Tenrou Island. They should be here any minute now."

Natsu raised a brow. "Training? I thought he was supposed to take a break."

She let out a heavy sigh. "You know how he is. He claims that a break isn't 'manly' and he doesn't want to slack off. Mira offered to help him, but he declined."

Natsu chuckled. "Afraid he'll get his ass kicked again?"

Lisanna nodded and laughed. "He claims her training regimen is too intense. He's a walking contradiction."

A contradiction that Natsu understood completely. Mira was Erza-level scary when she wanted to be.

They sat in silence for a few minutes just enjoying each other's company.

"H-hey, Natsu." She called.

He turned to her with a quizzical look. A blush graced her cheeks and she avoided his gaze the moment he faced her.

Was she getting sick?

"Lis, you oka-"

Without warning Lisanna leaned in to plant a soft kiss against Natsu's lips. His eyes widened at the sudden contact.

His brain couldn't comprehend what was happening nor could he move. How could a simple conversation lead to whatever the hell this was?

A few seconds went by and before he heard the faint sound a door closing then a car horn.

Natsu blinked a few times and looked around to realize he was no longer lip locked with young Strauss and he was alone again.

When did she leave?!

The level of shock he was in must have shut his brain down completely or he could have imagined the whole thing.

That last part was highly unlikely when there was only one woman he thought about kissing.

Natsu was brought from his thoughts when he heard the DJ's voice from one of the open windows.

"Let's slow things down with a little love song! Grab your special someone and hit the dance floor!"

A love song?

When your legs don't work like they used to before

He'd have to worry about Lisanna later, this was his chance!

Natsu bolted up from his seat heading back into the frat house.

When Natsu entered the vast room, couples were happily swaying to the music.

Moving further inside He found Gray with an eager Juvia pulling him onto the makeshift dance floor. Gray stopped when he saw Natsu and leaned down to whisper something into Juvia's ear. Juvia's smile fell once she looked over at Natsu, a worried expression visible on her face.

And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70

And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23

Gray probably used him as a scapegoat to get her off his back, as usual.

The two parted ways and soon Natsu found himself face to face with the young man. "Let's get out of here. I heard there's a better party down the street."

And I'm thinking 'bout how people

fall in love in mysterious ways

"Can't. Looking for Lucy." Natsu responded, his eyes scanning the crowd of people for his blonde-haired friend.

Gray frowned. "Natsu, maybe we should-"

Natsu pushed past him without a word. He was on a mission. He didn't have time for Gray's sudden interest in leaving. If it was to get away from Juvia that was something he had to deal with on his own.

Maybe just the touch of a hand

Well, me—I fall in love with you every single day

And I just wanna tell you I am

It didn't take long for Natsu to find her nor did it take long for his heart to drop and anger to flare.

So, honey, now

Take me into your loving arms

There she was in the middle of the dance floor…with Dan.

Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars

Dan's arms wrapped firmly around her waist and face buried into her blonde locks. Her eyes closed and head resting on his chest as the two moved in sync with the music.

Place your head on my beating heart

There was a small smile resting on her lips and while Natsu loved seeing that smile, this time it made his blood boil.

I’m thinking out loud

"Natsu.." Gray began, but Natsu was already walking away. He had seen more than he needed to and had no interest in staying for the rest of the shit show.

"Natsu, wait!" Gray called out but his words fell on deaf ears.

Maybe we found love right where we are

Before he knew it, Natsu was back at his dorm with Happy curled up next to him. He would glance at his phone to see the various unanswered text messages and missed calls from his friends. Mostly Gray.

Gray: Where are you?

Gray: We need to talk about this.

Gray: Gajeel says stop being a punk.

Gajeel: STOP BEING A PUNK!

Gray: We can still kill him.

Even Erza sent him a message.

Erza: We can make his death slow and painful.

Gray: NATSU!

Gray: Damn it, Flame Brain! Answer me!

The messages continued for another hour or so before they stopped. He wasn't going to deal with his friends pitying him. Not right now.

The last message he read before passing out was from Lisanna.

Lisanna: I wanted to apologize. I wasn't in my right mind and I hope this doesn't make things awkward between us!

She ended the message with a smiley face and Natsu smiled faintly.

Natsu: No worries!

He thought about texting Lucy to tell her he had left, but he decided against it.

She was fine without him.

The next few days were uncomfortable between Natsu and Lucy which didn't go unnoticed by more than half of the university residents. He didn't understand why she was so distant from him, but he couldn't judge since he too thought it was best to stay away.

Hanging out after practice stopped, sneaking into her shared dorm with Levy ceased, and pigging out on fast food at three in the morning while cramming for exams was no longer an option.

They rarely spoke and when they did, Lucy would cut their conversation short, claiming she had things to do.

It got worse when Lucy revealed she agreed to be Dan's girlfriend.

He didn't see her as much after that.

The only time he would see her was when they had classes, a game or when the whole group was present. Even then he had to see her with HIM. Wherever she was, Dan was there like an unwanted infection.

Despite the awkwardness, Natsu was fed up with not being able to see her. He did everything he could to be around her and while Lucy was still hesitant, she quickly realized she couldn't get away from him even if she wanted to.

When she got her internship at Sorcerer Weekly and moved into her apartment at the beginning of senior year, Dan was MIA for the first few weeks. He was involved with some military project halfway across Fiore which left Lucy on her own for a while.

Natsu couldn't complain.

Being able to have her all to himself again was like losing your most prized possession after years without it and suddenly having it in your arms again.

Lucy wasn't a thing, but Natsu cherished her like she was the finest jewelry that he was lucky to have all to himself.

On top of that, he got to stay at her place whenever he wanted, which was all the time. She rarely complained about his presence.

He knew she enjoyed his company.

Alas, his time with her was cut short when Dan returned.

Natsu tried to get over it, he really did. He saw how happy Lucy was and that was more than enough for him, but the constricting feeling he felt in his chest wouldn't go away.

After months of watching the two, Natsu concluded that there was only one way to get over his feelings. Find someone new and move on with his life. That was where Lisanna came in.

His friends tried to talk him out of it, but Natsu liked doing the complete opposite. They didn't understand the thought of not being with Lucy was killing him and he needed an out.

What he didn't realize was that he was using Lisanna and made her go through years of deception. She was his rebound and Natsu was too stupid to realize that.

Right after Natsu and Lisanna made things official, Lucy's relationship took an unexpected turn. Dan revealed he was leaving Magnolia and would be moving. He broke things off with Lucy, claiming long distance relationships never worked.

Something within Natsu told him that was big lie.

If you love someone, distance will never be an issue.

He did his best to comfort Lucy once Dan left, but he couldn't lie to himself and say he wasn't happy.

Things were back to the way they used to be and he had full access to his best friend again.

Natsu felt like such an asshole for feeling as happy as he was, but that happiness was cut short. While Lucy was free, he was still in a committed relationship.

Natsu highly doubted Lisanna would be okay with him being close with Lucy again.

How many boyfriends got the chance to sleep over another woman's house without it looking suspicious?

How many girlfriends were okay with seeing their significant other spending more time with their best friend than with them?

Natsu found himself in a situation that he didn't know how to get out of.

Breaking up with Lisanna sounded easy, but the guilt of hurting her just to be with Lucy weighed heavy on his heart. Natsu had to make peace with the idea of not being with Lucy like he wanted.

He couldn't stare at her without her noticing just to take in her beauty.

He couldn't hug her like he used to.

He couldn't kiss her like he wanted to.

Those were things he told himself he had to get used to.

Now, he was given a second chance.

If he was going to get Lucy's attention, waiting at her place like some lovesick puppy wasn't going to cut it. It was time to get fired up!

xxx

A/N: There you have it! Let's hope whatever Natsu has planned won't get him into too much trouble!

I'd love to know everyone's thoughts on relationships! I feel like Natsu being, to put it simply, stuck in his relationship with Lisanna is a common thing people go through. They stay with the person not out of romantic love, but out of obligation even if they don't want to admit it. They don't want to hurt the person and that's how relationships end poorly.

Next chapter we are back to our favorite stubborn blonde! Stay tuned and review!