#rose actually explains some basics and is slow paced enough for a new fan to get to grips with it

[tenthdocter]

Feel free to reblog and add your thoughts in the tags!

[currywaifu]

𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: purple lilac (shine a little love) 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩: usui masumi/gn! reader (not director) 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: sfw 𝐰𝐜: 1.3k+ words

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: basically masumi working up to a confession  𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞: this was a normal fic which got combined with a flower fic, hence the alt title. full a/n + dedications at the end of the fic.

It was strange. He was being strange, or at least that was what he thought of himself. Even with his headphones positioned atop his head, blasting one of his favourite songs in the playlist, he found it difficult to block out his thoughts. Specifically, his thoughts of you.

You shine a little love on my life You shine a little love on my life You shine a little love on my life And let me see

Masumi was surprised by himself. When it came to Izumi, he had always been vocal about his adoration for her, romantic or otherwise. Previously, he had little to no issue with bombing her with (ultimately pushed aside) proposals, (not taken seriously) confessions, (failed attempts to give her) gifts on days that weren’t even special occasions;

yet he couldn’t so much as speak up on his growing affection for you.

Having approached him for the pure intention of wanting to be friends, with enough persistence it wasn’t very difficult for you to worm into his heart, different from the rest in the sense that it was something beyond the friendship he’d slowly come to know during his stay in the dorms.

“Family, then?” when he expressed those feelings to you some months ago, you quickly turned away from him, gaze avoidant as you closed your eyes. It was a befuddling reaction, but it seemed like you were just taking your time to think before coming to a conclusion.

“Family…” he repeated those words to you, testing out how it sounded but more importantly, testing out the idea of family with you in the equation.

“Yeah, like siblings or something… oh, nevermind! Guess I won’t be calling you onii-chan~ any time soon.”

He must have cringed visibly, because you were quick to laugh it off and bounce back with a different topic ready at the tip of your tongue.

Family and siblings were an entirely different thing.

Masumi hoped you didn’t take it the wrong way, that you took it as him not liking you enough to be on the same level as the Spring troupe or even the other actors in Mankai Company… he wouldn’t spend so much time talking to you otherwise, but there was no way in hell he could see you in the same light as Sakuya or Tsuzuru, or heaven forbid Chikage or Sakyo. Gross. Just imagining himself being all affectionate with the latter two makes him sick in the stomach.

Remember, tonight We're gonna say, we'll never stop We got a good thing going on

Hours after that conversation and finally in the comfort of his room, he pressed his face against his pillow, finally coming to the realization that he was thrust upon a familiar situation once again, similar and yet all the more scarier.

Masumi wasn’t the type of person to joke around or play with someone’s feelings, you knew that well. The moment he finally articulated into words how he felt for you, then everything would change.

Would you feel the same? Yes or no?

He didn’t want to ruin anything.

So he lets the months pass by and though he remains mostly quiet about it, his actions speak differently. He neither wanted to just sit quietly and wait for his feelings to go away (they weren’t any time soon, by the way things were looking), nor was he about to wait for you to make the first move (you didn’t look like you had any plans to). The nosier guys in the dorm quickly found out and tried to help him, but he’d this time… he’d rather just do things his way.

Making you a playlist of songs he thought you’d like, offering to help you pick out new earphones after you broke your old ones, late night calls and messages.

It wasn’t like there was no pay off either.

Everything he’d do, you’d respond in kind.

A day after he sent you his playlist, you quickly followed up with one of your own, a playlist of songs that made you think of him, apparently, and with your words alone you rendered a blush out of him, not that you were physically there to see it. However, his roommate looked far too amused for his liking.

Then you wanted to test your new earphones by sharing the two pieces between yourselves, and though he was more of a headphones guy there was something heart fluttering about the distance (or lack thereof) between the two of you, shoulders pressed together as you listened to the same song (coincidentally, a song from the playlist he made for you).

And on the nights that he chose to stay up with Tsuzuru as the latter wrote the night away, you’d be there a call away, keeping him company for as long as you could before eventually falling asleep. Your steady and quiet breaths, a telltale sign of your slumber, warming his heart as he lingered for a few more seconds before ending the call.

Even if you somehow got the hint and tried reciprocating, as Muku and Kazunari so often insist, nothing would be official until one of you said something.

I know you've heard it all before But I really need you, darling Every day, I need you more

“Do you know about flower language, Masumi-kun?” Tsumugi asked him, on the way home after doing street acts together all afternoon.

He was being pretty sus. Normally Izumi would decide for them, but Tsumugi had specifically requested for the two of them to be a pair under the guise of having a specific idea for an improv, which while interesting wasn’t exactly groundbreaking.

“Only a little bit.”

Tsumugi hummed in response, and the younger boy couldn’t help but wonder what the Winter troupe leader was up to.

“Not everyone expresses their feelings the same way. Flowers are a good example– it’s indirect and subtle at first glance, but the gesture and meaning of whatever you choose make your feelings clear as day.”

Though his nonchalant tone implied otherwise, wasn’t his small talk actually a disguise for something else?

He’d been pretty doubtful of the “confession techniques” suggested to him by the others, from a poem (he’d rather just straight up confess) to a kabedon (wouldn’t that just confuse you?) to getting down on one knee and– (a proposal?);

Coming from Tsumugi, however, the suggestion didn’t seem that bad. Actually, you might like it– he didn’t doubt that you’d at least appreciate both the aesthetic and thought put behind the present.

“What if they don’t get it?” although the blue haired man’s smile remained perfectly serene, but something hidden within his eyes spoke volumes about his true intentions.

“Then you either, A, explain out loud and confess, B, tell them to look up the flowers online, or C, mix some red roses within the bouquet. Nothing’s more obvious than red roses.”

Tsumugi’s pace slowed to a stop, looking somewhere thoughtfully. Even without glancing back, the flowery scent quickly invaded his senses. Taking this route home… even this much was planned, then?

“Masumi-kun, is it okay if we take a look here before going home?”

Can you understand (yes, I understand) Can you feel it's right (I know it is) Will you be the same (I'll do it all again)

When he presents you the bouquet he’s chosen, you make the same expression you did all those months ago, shut eyes and head turned sideways. The only striking difference being the red patched across your face, matching one of the flowers in the bundle of 12.

The sight gives him more confidence, squashing some of his nervousness and giving him the courage to keep talking.

“The meaning of the red roses should be obvious, but you said you liked purple so I added lilacs to the bouquet, too… I thought you’d find them pretty. Do you like it?”

You peeked at him first, before focusing your gaze on the red and purple ensemble as you stumbled to say yes. Cute… if you keep acting this cute, he’ll just buy you flowers every day, then. Anything to get you this flustered again.

You shine a little love on my life You shine a little love on my life You shine a little love on my life And let me see

“Then, do you like me back?”

“ thank you for your hard work today at the flower shop! here, feel free to take home this purple lilac with you~ ”

【 purple lilac 】 represent the beginning of love or a first love, and are a perfect gift for new couples

“ maybe you’d like some more flowers before heading home? ”

-ˋˏflower series masterlistˎˊ- |  -ˋˏregular fic masterlistˎˊ-

𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐨: for inspiration I listened to progressive rock bands, and I honestly… really vibed with them. Electric Light Orchestra was one of the bands I liked most. the meaning of this song is different, but I decided to just pick and choose the lyrics that have a more innocent/pure pining connotation, please don’t fight me progressive rock fans ue ue.

𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞: i realized that going “hey, this fic is dedicated to xyz” kind of put off people from reading huhu, even though i still made sure it was written to be readable by anyone so i’ll just put all the dedications below huhu. again i apologize if you didn’t get your favourite character huhu

𝐝𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: aish, ☔M~, lyd

[ganymedesclock]

if Blue Diamond has hydrokinetic powers, what kind of powers do you think the other diamonds possess? Yellow Diamond moved a bunch of bubbles in That Will Be All. Could that indicate her having telekinesis?

My theory at this point is each of the Diamonds have a major elemental affinity, though they probably have other powers on the side. Since I’m a fan of the Rose Diamond theory, I kind of use Rose’s capabilities as a rough measurement for how I feel each of the Diamonds operate. Rose has a couple of auxiliary abilities- floating, the healing tears- but the primary bulk of her powers are related to plant generation and control. 

Another small assumption here, is, while there’s four Diamonds, it would make sense to assume they adhere to the four element system of fire/water/earth/air, my thinking is that they actually seem to adhere to four of the five points on the five element system of fire/water/earth/wood/metal. So I don’t think there’s an “air” Diamond, and while I’m not sure where exactly element earth is, my rough thought is Pink - Wood, Yellow - Fire, Blue - Water, and White - Metal. Going into more details here:

Blue

My thinking is that Blue is primarily a weather manipulator- both hydrokinesis and aerokinesis- since both the Gems under her and the blue-colored areas we’ve seen appear split evenly between oceanic motifs and sky motifs. This might implicate her as the source of the “weather bomb” geode from House Guest.

It’s also a pretty clear building off Lapis’s powers as we’ve seen them since, while it’s thus far not been commented on, multiple episodes have shown the sky clouding over or clearing abruptly in response to Lapis’s moods. This makes sense as clouds are mostly water and Lapis’s powers have an impressive range to them- easily enough to reach clouds however high above her they are. 

This also fits with my assumption that Lapis’s partner would be the missing “Moon Goddess”- thus, heavy on the sky motifs. So I think if/when we meet that partner, she’d be aerokinetic, which would seem to fit with the Lighthouse Gem we saw in Horror Club. 

She manipulates objects, spinning them like it’s in a whirlwind, she’s able to recreate people’s voices (a property of breath) and she can literally breathe life into things like the scarecrows and fake bats. When she forcibly manifests herself in the lighthouse, she uses a mouth- mouths are thought of as consuming, but, to a Gem that doesn’t need to eat, the mouth is the primary avenue of both breath and speech.

If we assume Lapis and her partner operate the way Ruby and Sapphire do in Garnet- that is to say, their separate, equal elemental spheres create a new domain when fused, the logical overlap of “ocean” and “atmosphere” is weather- especially if you consider on a massive scale, something like hurricanes are only born from the warmth and moisture of tropical seas, so logically you couldn’t have an air-manipulating Gem create a storm like that without impressive control of water as well.

As far as auxiliary powers, I think that some of Lapis’s mirror abilities and LG’s propensity for “echoes” probably overlaps. I don’t think Blue has a means of discerning the future, but I think she does have some kind of power over the past- possibly, if we’re going to set her up as a thematic opposite to Garnet, who is precognitive, Blue is postcognitive- able to access and view things that happened in the past? It’d obviously have to have limits like Garnet’s future vision to not be a total game breaker, but that would be interesting in the context of my theory that Blue came to Earth in The Answer because something about Pink Diamond’s death wasn’t adding up and she wanted to investigate.

White

As I’ve mentioned, I think White is associated with metal and this is a pretty easy connection to draw considering the composition of the pyramid temple. Not only does it have a lot of shiny, silvery metal, in the spike traps and lower chambers, but thematically, it’s a death course that challenges people to have the resilience of steel- to be able to stand up to searing heat, freezing cold, and incredible pressure.

This would seemingly set White up as the opposite of Pink Diamond, which might suggest they were at odds. While wood is the concept of growth, renewal, adaptation and evolution, metal evokes permanence, immortality, but also something, to a degree, cold and lifeless. I think it’s very interesting if the pyramid temple is in fact White’s mausoleum, that she is not only the only Gem we’ve seen involved in some kind of funerary practice, but the Crystal Gems were notably very uneasy about coming in there in the first place, and it was an episode about facing fear.

White’s design, just going by her murals and obelisk, would also seem to be split between white and black, which are both colors that have been associated with death and mourning. Thematically, interesting, if she’s the one of the Diamonds who actively succumbed to grief- but it also would explain if she has a particularly ominous or foreboding reputation if I’m right in my theories that only White could’ve become the corruption bomb.

That said, I don’t think White’s metal manipulation is nearly her main trick as much as Blue or Pink’s elemental powers are theirs.

I think that we’ve seen White’s powers and roughly how she fights: in the form of the robot shooty thing from Lion 2: The Movie.

Metals are identified by generally being good conductors- of temperature (heat and cold) and also electricity. The RST fights with fire, ice, and lightning, by alternating between three different phases.

That’s what I think White does- she blinks herself into different colored “phases” and wields multiple elements to a lesser degree than the other Diamonds. I think her affinity for metal, and possibly, magnetism, actually falls to the wayside while her “triple threat” fire/ice/lightning trick takes the main stage. 

Yellow

Yellow I think of as not only fire-associated, but with a sun motif. In practice this works because she’s trying to convince everyone they can rebound and move forwards from the war. She’s the biggest force trying to drag the rest of Homeworld forwards out of the aftermath, she’s trying very hard to be the rising sun of new hope and progress.

Stars run on nuclear fusion, and my read that this concept is how YD’s powers operate has gained a lot of traction as it’s how her emotions operate. The thing is, nuclear fusion creates absurd amounts of energy. And YD is an incredible force- driven, hardworking, incredibly focused- but she’s one that burns herself out rapidly. She just is not in a state to keep that pace up for long until her own sense of exhaustion and despair derails her. But at the same time, she’s pushing herself well past thresholds.

So I think YD’s powers are incredibly, devastatingly powerful- massive amounts of light and heat, and with her aptitude for technology I’m pretty sure YD has found new ways to crank the heat up even further.

But I think she’s playing a dangerous game at this point- because while a fusion reactor can tick away perfectly happily as long as everything’s accounted for, YD at this point basically has most of her safeguards sawed off. She can’t allow herself to rest or slow down for fear of succumbing to her own issues and she’s surrounded by people who are already there- the incredibly self-destructive coping mechanisms she’s stocking in are the only things she has keeping her on the move and in her eyes, Homeworld needs her. They need somebody at the helm keeping them moving and thanks to the rhetoric built around roles and duties, YD sees it as a situation where she’s the only one who can possibly steer this ship, and so she’s lashing herself to the steering wheel and refusing to let go.

So power-wise I feel like YD can only exert herself in very short bursts without serious complications. I see her as the antithesis of Steven, whose powers are heavily angled towards healing, defense, and communication- YD’s powers can destroy almost anything with little effort, but that includes herself. She’s capable of throwing out more light and heat than she herself can actually handle.

Annd we don’t really need to talk about Pink since *motions at Rose Quartz*