#says the guy who picks fights over any opinion she disagrees with

[unethicalexperiments]

is it me or is everyone on this website so fucking miserable about everything these days. about every show every movie every book every musician/band every post regarding social issues every art piece. actually not even just on this website on all social media type platforms. the sheer amount of posts/youtube videos i see titled “x is bad and here’s why”. y’all talk about people/problems that have never even remotely crossed my mind as a possibility of existing like it’s plaguing the earth as we speak. things that people act like are major problems in [x fandom] or whatever that i’ve straight up just never seen before. in circles i’m active in. not even in a “let people enjoy things!!!” type of way. just why are you so hung up on something minor clearly making you so upset. i’m a guy who loves to fight but like why are we fighting when it’s not even fun for either of us. and you know what i’m probably guilty of this too at this point but jesus christ. whatever. can we all just sit outside in the park and smoke a blunt and chill out like we used to.

[yuri-is-online]

Okay so Trey in the Blotpocalypse timeline or where Yutu comes from also Overblotted right??

And I like to imagine he became an extreme sadist or really really evil once he overbloted, and his Yutu does NOT buy the stories of Trey being actually a very chill and “I don’t want problems, don’t involve me with whatever shenanigans you have” guy.

And when goes to the timeline of now he just.

“Wait, this guy fr??? I saw this guy overbloted and being a sadist maniac, the FUCK you mean he is just the son of the baker”

¬‿¬ you read my mind camrastuff. Overblot Trey is a sadistic bastard, and his children are three of his favorite people to pick on... because yeah the original idea for Trey! Yutu passed peer review, and Furubatsu was kind enough to give us the names Yutres and Yushi for the other two triplets. You will regret giving me this power because I am going to use it to hurt you ψ(｀∇´)ψ

notes: they/them used for Yuu, for context on the fyuuture kid au can be found here and here. This post is heavier on the angst than the other Yutu posts and contains references to gore, depression, and major character death. Please engage responsibly.

They grew up associating home with violets.

Yuu would always keep a few plants on their bedroom windowsill, but the violets spilled all over the house. "They remind me of your father." They would always say, with a gentle look in their eyes that turns sad when they reach for the memories that just aren't there. As the triplets grow, they take turns caring for them so Yuu can rest and wonder about what that man was like and how Yuu came to associate him with the flowers. Yutres is the one who brings up their association with newlyweds and wonders if they were planning a wedding.

"There would be a record of it if they got married." Yushi says it like she's searched for the license already, and knowing his sister like he does Yutu is pretty sure she has. Yutres pulls her blanket around herself in embarrassment and Yutu finds himself speaking up before she can feel any worse.

"She was just saying it's romantic." Yutu doesn't like fighting with his sisters. He likes it even less when they fight with each other, everyone who isn't the two of them says it's because he's the oldest. That he has an instinctive need to protect them as their big brother, . "A lot of the things they say about dad are very romantic." Yushi rolls her eyes, but doesn't disagree. Domestic is the word Yutu would prefer to use for how Yuu talks about his father. They think about him most when they're cooking or taking care of him and his siblings. It's not enough to give him a clear picture of the man, but it's enough to feel like he might have loved him. He's willing to go with what Yushi theorized after looking far harder than he or Yutres, that Yuu ran away from home and settled down with their dad, only for him to die and ruin the good future they were trying to build with each other. It does nothing to dissuade Yutres from seeing it as romantic, or Yushi from blaming him for all their problems. Yutu refuses to take sides, forever the peacemaker destined to drown his own opinion under the weight of not wanting to make anyone mad. Deep down though, he doesn't care about what his dad was like. He just wishes someone was there to help, to make things less financially strained so he could play a sport at school and maybe make some friends.

When he meets his father he takes it all back. He wishes he never met the man at all.

Yutu per tradition is the oldest sibling, Yutres is the second born and Yushi the third. I like to think they have darker colored hair since Trey's green hair is rather dark, their eyes are "normal" for Yuu's world but turn yellow when they arrive in Twisted Wonderland. Yutres inherits Trey's height and poor eyesight, and she's deeply insecure about both due to the large amount of bullying she received growing up. Yutu is also tall, just not as tall as his sister while Yushi is at least a half foot shorter than her siblings and enjoys complaining about it. She accuses her siblings of stealing her height in the womb, but says it's ok because she got all the brains.

The kids grew up extremely poor. Three kids on a single parent's salary is no joke, Yuu was deeply stressed for a lot of their younger years. None of the fyuuture kids like Yuu's home town but the triplets especially hated it there. They felt like animals in a zoo or cast members of a freak show with how acceptable it was to point and stare at them. When they moved away once Yuu managed to secure a place with a better middle school for them to attend they were ecstatic. It was a nice change of pace to just be bullied for being poor.

They spent a lot of time as children playing made up games with each other, a lot of them revolved around cooking since Yuu seemed to really like doing that. They used to run pretend restaurants, or ice cream parlors, or cafes, anything that served food really. They always colored the menus together and asked Yuu to give them good reviews (5 stars for the babies obviously, yuu has a bunch of them in a folder somewhere they look at when things get rough)

I really like the idea of Trey being with a Yuu who has a vague interest in candy making? Because it's a similar interest to baking but still very different and I really like the idea of one of the triplets being interested in it. As the three get older, Yutu and Yutres learn as much about cooking and baking as they can, from Yuu, from the internet and the local library while Yushi applies herself more to experimenting with making things like taffy and caramel. She convinces her siblings to sell their product on the down low at school to bring in some money they can hopefully use to start a business someday. She's the most business minded of the three of them, Yutu privately thinks she has the biggest personality in an effort to make up for being the shortest.

The three of them are obviously major sweet tooths, but they disagree about what desert is best. Yutu loves custards and ice creams, Yutres thinks cake is best especially if it's fluffy, and Yushi likes things made with jams and candied fruits. It made trying to do something for their birthday a nightmare until Yuu realized they all loved hot chocolate and was able to convince them to have a "tea party" for their birthday where they got copious amounts of hot chocolate and some homemade cookies. It's a memory they all treasure and recreate when they arrive in Twisted Wonderland.

That arrival is much easier on the three of them than it is on a lot of the other Yutus. It helps having two other siblings you're deeply connected to when learning you're from another world, your parent is dying from a curse, and that magic is real but only two of you have it. NRC has ceased to be a boys only or even a mage's only school at this point, but it's still hurts for Yutres to learn that her siblings have something special about them while she's still just her. Crewel takes her aside to speak with her as the ceremony goes on without him, asking her if she thinks poorly of Yuu for just being themselves and Yutres can't fathom why she would do that. "Because that's what you're doing to yourself. Your siblings won't love you any less and you won't be of any less help. You are your parent's child after all." Something that Crewel sees as being made all the more true when two first year Heartslabyul students burst through the door and start whining for their sister to do their make up.

Yutres draws a Spade on Yutu to represent a knight's spear, because she thinks of her brother as someone who wants to protect people, and she's deeply grateful for all of the times he's stuck up for her. Yushi gets a diamond because Yutres thinks her sister is very classy and well put together, "diamonds are a girl's best friend or something" is how she words it, but that trademark Clover smirk is there to suggest there's more to it than that. She settles in to Ramshackle almost immediately after meeting the ghosts, who are overjoyed to have another Yuu in their happy haunt.

Heartslabyul suits her siblings well enough. Yutu thinks all these rules are exhausting but he tries his best to do his best so as not to rock the boat. Yushi is more or less the same, but she sort of wants to become Dorm Leader so she can throw a bunch of Unbirthday Parties because those sound fun. The lack of fresh food available to cook with is a drag sure, but she's sure she can at least find some good teas to serve... she just feels like the people around her could use some hope and she drags Yutu into figuring out how to find it.

That journey is long, at the end of it are six known phantoms wreaking havoc on their father's world and one that so few people know about they aren't sure he exists. At some point, all three triplets join a mission to the Queendom and debriefed by S.T.Y.X. about the phantom that roams there.

"Your quest is not to kill the Queen or her mini boss level minions." Idia is a strange person, Yutu can tell he's on the same page as his sisters without bothering to look. "You're just there as support for the front line mages and to get a realistic idea of what they're fighting against." He lets his hands fall to his sides and drops eye contact, chewing on his lower lip as he hesitates. Finally he takes a deep breath and turns towards the display, flicking through footage of the various monsters he had been talking about earlier. "A phantom is a husk using what's left of an overblotted mage to find and feed off of new magic sources. They can get very creative in how they do that." He focuses on a video of the Phantom Hatter, enlarging it so the triplets can get an uncomfortable look at it's facial features and know why Idia was struggling to talk to them. The monster is tall, with glasses and a top hat that would be sort of comical if he wasn't overseeing a table filled with rotting cakes and pastires for a party attended by corpses in varying states of decay. "This one talks. Don't listen to a word it says."

Trey has lines during lessons and in various other places suggesting he could never obey the Queen, and since Riddle is more Queen now than himself Trey has a degree of independence when compared to the other card soldiers. The S.T.Y.X. staff classify him as a rogue phantom and highly dangerous. He can talk, he uses his unique magic to make people confused about their surroundings, to mimic the voices of their loved ones and lure them towards packs of monsters where he'll watch silently as they die. He's picky about who he "invites" to his mad tea party, it's difficult to get a drone close enough to his base to analyze who the victims are.

Idia was vehemently against sending the Clover triplets anywhere near an area that the Hatter could be. That's beyond cruel to them and extremely dangerous, he just knows that Trey will find them and that it won't go well. Phantoms corrupt the natural instinct of the person they're feeding off of, and while Idia thinks Trey was always a sketchy bastard he knows that he was a domestic one too. If there's enough of him left to recognize his children... his worries are soothed by Ortho promising to keep an eye on them and the fact the mission isn't in Trey's usual territory.

It doesn't help. A familiar sees the strange looking children and speeds off to fetch its master. The Phantom Hatter doesn't show himself immediately, he watches, waits for everyone to relax just a little bit before he strikes, chasing everyone into one of the Queendom's many hedge mazes and isolating them from one another. The stress causes Yushi to discover her unique magic as she desperately tries to feel for her siblings, she is able to form a brief telepathic connection with someone she knows and see things as they are. She can tell that Yutu and Yutres are in danger, and decides to run for her brother first. She's sure he'll be half way to their sister by the time she finds him, he's the oldest. He always knows what to do. And while she's right she's also wrong, by the time she finds Yutu he's already found Yutres, but someone else has too. The Hatter doesn't blink. He doesn't breathe either she notices, but her sister still shrinks back, pulling an injured Yutu closer to her.

"Well that's just rude." It's not a voice they've heard before, but he's somehow so familiar. Like they heard this voice before, sometime long ago, whispered into the warmth that existed before they were torn from this world to be born in another one. "I'm just trying to say hello." Yushi doesn't think he's noticed her yet, she focuses on holding her breath and looking for a way out. Yutres maintains eye contact with the monster as she applies a potion to Yutu's wound and prays, to who or what she doesn't know, that he heals. "Have we met before? You seem awfully familiar." The monster summons bones up from the ground, closing in around the triplets and knocking Yushi out of hiding as the phantom looks over his shoulder to tip his hat and wink. It's an opening Yutres immediately takes, throwing Yutu behind her and jumping to hit at the monster's rib cage, landing a blow that causes a sickening crunch.

"RUN!" Yushi screams, she thinks she grabs her sister and brother's hands and drags them on instinct and adrenaline back to the base camp until a senior smites down the phantom the Hatter had mimic her sister and takes an unconscious Yutu to the medical tent.

Ortho tries to track down Yutres, but he's unsuccessful. It's months later when Idia finally thinks to send drones to check what's left of the Clover family bakery and finally finds her body. She's been laid in a children's bed, covered with a blanket. He can't tell if what's left of Trey couldn't bear to look at his dead daughter or if the phantom thought he was just putting her to sleep. It's too much even for Idia, he personally retrieves her and helps the surviving kids plan the funeral. It's not the first time he's felt responsible for getting someone's child killed, but it's the most personal.

Yutu's numb. Yushi is looking to him for guidance, and he doesn't know what to say to comfort her or to make it better. They're missing a part of themselves and are much too quick to agree to Idia's plan to send them back in time, their parents are the last thing on their minds they just want their sister back. When Yushi arrives in the Queendom she's able to tell where everyone is and go searching for them. When Yutu arrives at NRC he's terrified he's lost his only remaining sister, and that's before he has to deal with his dad.

Trey is a freak, but he's a domesticated freak. A domesticated freak who is deeply in denial about being in love with you or anything other than normal. He appreciates that Riddle feels comfortable enough to invite you to Heartsabyul, whether it's for a casual tea or for an Unbirthday party since it saves him the trouble of having to do it himself and you're always so eager to help... but then Yutu arrives and suddenly your attentions are a bit split. You still come around for the parties, but casual teas are becoming less and less. He tries to tease you about it, asking where else you're going to get your cakes from and that's when you mention it. "Oh Yutu bakes a lot and he's really good at it. I always feel bad for bothering you so, it's nice to not have to do it so much anymore." Oh? Well isn't that just cute, Trey isn't bothered by this at all. He might not think there's a difference between something bought from a store or something "made with love" but he certainly thinks there's a difference between him and another guy. And he wants you to choose him.

Yutu is terrified of his father. He still has nightmares of what happened to Yutres, and he's afraid he's lost Yushi now too. No one had much to say about Trey in the future, most all of his friends were either dead or phantoms and while Grandpa Crewel was enthusiastic in describing his interest in science he didn't give them much backstory. Idia never spoke poorly of him, and tried to impress on him that what killed his sister was a monster using his dad's magic and not actually his dad but when that thing kills your sister...

He doesn't know what to make of him. Trey's extremely chill so long as no one is causing trouble, he convinces himself to keep an eye on the Phantom Hatter, but he doesn't see any signs of that. The guy is really weird about teeth, and definitely in denial about his feelings for his parent but he is, weirdly enough, closer to that word Yutu would have associated with him before he came to Twisted Wonderland than he is anything that would describe that monster. He's domestic, a guy who looks like he'd be more at home in socks and sandals than surrounded by corpses. He overworks himself and takes naps on the Guest Room couch, he confesses that he was hoping to join some sort of cooking club but settled for the science one, and the way he looks at Yuu when he thinks no one is looking is so soft Yutu wants to choke. Idia's original warning, that a phantom isn't a person anymore and that the monster will do anything to convince you otherwise. But what would his sisters think if he ever thought about forgiving him?

"Is there a specific reason you wanted to grow violets?" Trey tries to keep his voice down, but Yutu still starts when he hears him. He didn't jump 10 feet in the air this time, so he likes to think he's making progress, though towards what he doesn't know. Yutu looks at the flowers, Trey can't see his eyes, but his grip on the watering can is tense. "Not judging, just curious." He tries to soothe him in the same tone of voice he would one of his younger siblings, and it does seem to work somewhat. "I really like them myself."

"My sister..." Yutu chokes on what sounds like a half sob, and Trey immediately regrets trying to help. "My sister really liked them she... she always thought they were romantic." The past tense catches Trey's attention immediately and something in him aches, he couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose one of his own siblings and he does talk about them a lot... was he being insensitive? Did he hurt Yutu by reminding him of his sister?

"Are they?" He isolates a few particularly well tended blooms and snips them to add to his basket next to Riddle's strawberries. "I'm not really good with those sorts of things." Yutu snorts, and Trey can't help but feel slighted somehow. "To me they just taste good."

"They taste good?" Yutu squeaks. He sounds indignant and Trey just shrugs.

"Yeah, candied flowers are really popular in the Queendom of Roses. I really like candied violets, ha when I was a kid I didn't realize you needed to cook them first and my parents had to stop me from eating them off the ground." There's quiet for a moment, Trey wonders if he's pushed it too far but Yutu's mouth finally lets out a small noise before he breaks into loud peels of laughter that sound like a weight is lifting off of Yutu's shoulders.

The first thing Yutu thinks when he hears about his father eating flowers is how Yushi tried to do the same thing when she was little. The second is how funny Yutres had thought that was, how she had smiled and laughed and Yutu cannot keep himself from laughing as well. How did this man become that creature? Did the loss of his home hit him that hard? Yutu doesn't know, but he's not afraid anymore. Some of his tension lifts, Yuu tells Trey during one of their hang outs that he's started speaking about his sisters more and that they now know he's a triplet (trey: wow those poor parents yuu: i know right? i could never). He starts getting into lighthearted (from his perspective anyway) spats with Trey over who can bake better. Trey says he has no complaints because he doesn't have to make as much for Unbirthday Party's now but ooooooh he'll be so upset if you say you think Yutu is better than him. If that was the case why's the little shit so interested in listening to what he has to say huh? And how did he pick up on Trey's feelings enough to reassure him he's got nothing to worry about?

The truth about Yutu is revealed during another monster attack. It happens during a science club trip to Crane Port, the sky grows eerily dark, and Yutu tenses out of instinct. Everyone else is confused, is it going to rain? And why is Yutu sprinting away from the group like a bloodhound with a scent? Rook is the one to give chase, Trey tagging along begrudgingly determined to keep the two of them from causing more trouble. But a bunch of trouble is exactly what they find, a monster that resembles an undead, overblotted version of Yuu is thrashing about as a group of... mages they don't recognize attack them. Trey and Rook prepare to help when Yuu notices them and their eyes narrow onto Trey and two of the unfamiliar looking mages absolutely lose it.

Yutu's disguise is knocked off, and Yushi was never wearing one to begin with so it's difficult to deny the similarity between the two now that Trey has a look at them. It's the eyes that he notices first, yellow just like his but bereft of glasses. Yuu's story about Yutu being a triplet rings dully in his mind as the fake Yuu fades from view, banished back to wherever it came from and Trey closes his eyes to do some math.

"There's one of you missing." It's not the statement they're expecting clearly, all justifications for their existence die on their tongues as they exchange a painful glance. Yushi was able to use her magic to see some of what Yutu's life was like at NRC, and she warmed up to what she saw of her dad much faster than Yutu did. Yutu doesn't want to be the one to tell Trey he killed their sister, but he also doesn't want to push that burden onto Yushi so he steels himself, and explains his story. Trey listens and he thinks. He's silent, arms folded as Yutu stumbles through his story before he interrupts his grief by pulling both of his children into his arms. He's a big guy, but they're big kids and he can barely get his arms around them both but he still feels empty.

Trey hates doing work he isn't responsible for, but he loves his family and doesn't see them as constant work. Three children? That Yuu was forced to raise by themselves? Unacceptable, the closer he has been getting to Yuu the more plans he's made for the future he wants with them. He knows what he wanted for these kids, and none of it is what they're describing. Trey might not want to be the best of all time, but he still wants to be the best he can be. Changing the future sounds like a big ask, something that Trey Clover should see as none of his business and easy to ignore. But it's not, it's different when it's his own family. If Idia thinks he's scary now just wait until three Clovers show up on his doorstep demanding he get in their party and stop the apocalypse. Four technically if you count yourself, something they really hope you do.

[bonny-kookoo]

Jungkook

ℍ𝕠𝕨 𝕋𝕠: Notice [TEASER]

Jungkook knows the effect he has on people. So why won't you look at him the same?

Main Tags/Warnings: Model!Jungkook, Actor!Jungkook, Stylist!Reader, strangers/enemies to lovers, mentions of toxic beauty standards

Length: ???

There is no taglist for this fic.

-> Masterlist

⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅

You shrug. "He looks the same in every photo to me." You tell Haru, who looks at you a bit lost.

He sighs as he clicks through the photos himself, unsure. You know he knows you're right- but at the end of the day, people like those sultry eyes and that cocky expression that man makes in every picture. You're not sure what exactly makes it so appealing- but you're just here to make him look as good as possible. And his hair looks perfect in almost every shot- so that's good enough for you.

That's your job. Nothing more, nothing less.

"It's his signature look." Haru tries to justify, his soft voice unsure, however, as if he needs to tell it mostly to himself to be convinced of it. He's never been a fan of shootings like these- he's good at them, sure, but he doesn't enjoy shooting those pictures. He's too soft to say it, but you know he finds them boring and uninteresting. It's basics, nothing exciting, nothing new. But he's being paid for this- so he doesn't complain.

That's his job- nothing more, nothing less.

"Well, then his signature look is boring." You say, leaning back against the table behind you, sipping your can of sugary caffeinated soda- the energy drink by now the only thing keeping you somewhat concentrated. Hopefully Jungkook stops complaining so much so you can all go home soon- he's got the whole week anyways, so why is he so whiny?

Brat. It's only the first day and he's already getting on your nerves- acting like someone pissed in his breakfast, rolling his eyes and staring people down just for the fun of it. And women actually fuck that guy?

He probably does it in front of a mirror just to watch himself.

"Boring, huh." Jungkook's voice chimes up, and you spot him walking closer, now wearing a new set of clothes. The leather pants look awfully tight, especially in his private region- that can't be comfortable, can it?

You frown at him. He got his hair all chaotic again- but it's fine. It fits the theme. You won't retouch it for now.

"She didn't mean it like that-" Haru instantly tries to defend you, the young man intimidated by the model as always. You wonder how he can even operate the camera when he constantly shies away from him so much. Maybe when he looks at him through the lens he can detach the person from the picture? It would make sense. After all, you do the same.

You don't see Jungkook. You see Jeon Jungkook, brand ambassador and model- and it should stay that way.

"I did." You disagree with him, however, before you look back at Jungkook. You don't need to be protected- not for your own opinion. It doesn't have any weight anyway, you doubt that someone like you can hurt this man's ego either. It's at least as big as himself, if not taller, which is a lot, considering that he towers over you despite not even reaching the standard 1.80m height usually desired. Then again, there's quite a few things you could count as not being the standard of beauty. But he makes up for it in confidence- even if he seems to have a little too much of it for your taste. "I did mean it like that."

"What am I supposed to do instead then?" Jungkook challenges, crossing his arms next to you.

The hell were you supposed to tell him? You're neither a model, nor very fashionable. He should ask Lea about that, not you. He's trying to argue for no good reason, and that attitude is starting to piss you off.

"Nothing. It's good like that." You shrug, keeping your cool for now at least visually.

"You said it's boring." He bites back almost immediately. Your distaste grows.

"I did, because to me, it is." You respond calmly. Is he trying to pick a fight with you right now? He really is acting like a child beneath all that fake politeness and forced friendly tone he puts on. "But that's my personal opinion. I'm sure people will like those pictures despite that." You explain.

He's opening his mouth to say something, before he moves when the director claps, and tells everyone to get back to their respective spots-

He plays around with his piercings, and gives you that odd look that you can't distinguish from hatred or being offended.

Unbeknownst to you, he's been trying to figure you out for the entire shoot- wondering what you're really like. Do you like softer guys like Haru more? You seem to have some edge to you, if the glimpse of your bellybutton piercing and the few lines of a tattoo poking out the waistband of your pants would be anything to go by. Maybe you're just someone who likes to be in charge.

He can't offer that, at least not sexually.

Jungkook sitting in front of the camera once more, woth the same signature look, because that is his job.

Nothing more, nothing less.

[daz4i]

atsushi for the ask game? 👀

thank you!!! <3

First impression: "huh. that sure is a protagonist" (2016. this was in 2016. i had a bad taste back then and automatically disliked protags due to being an edgy teenager)

Impression now: son boy allowed. i have legally adopted him 👍

Favorite moment: any time he ever went sicko mode, best one is probably in dead apple where he has flashbacks and screams about how a tiger will use its claws when cornered. ALSO!!! goncahrov battle using rashomon for the first time, but that's more of a sskk moment than just atsushi 🖤

Idea for a story: atsushi has a good day where he gets to relax and hang out with his friends and no one tears his leg off 👍 amen

Unpopular opinion: i've seen people say he's boring/generic or whiny and i highly disagree. he's not boring he's like one of the most interesting and unique protags I've seen of his character trope (of like, the whole positive inspirational guy who has to save everyone that you mainly see in shonen), like he's bitter and petty and down to fight not to prove himself or w/e but bc someone pissed him off. at the start of the story his main motivator is money and he's not even ashamed to admit it. he roasts people around him and isn't naive or bright-eyed optimistic. AND he's not whiny he's just mentally ill 😭 i'd argue the anime's first season's oversaturation of his flashbacks scenes is what gave off that impression to a lot of people

Favorite relationship: would sskk being too easy of a pick. in that case i'll say 1 his friendship with kyouka, like his refusal to give up on her, his protectiveness over her, spoiling her even when he doesn't have to bc he wants to make sure she has a good time when he only knew her for one day??? and how their bond transcends time and space and they're still so close in beast 🥺🥺🥺 I Care Them 2 yeah i'm biased abt this one, his relationship with dazai. i love that he takes no shit from him but still clearly respects him and sees him as someone safe that he can trust. and i have so many other things to say i might have to make an entire post just about that tbh

Favorite headcanon: oh i have that whole theory about his name that afaik hasn't been debunked yet. you know how in beast the orphanage director refers to him by number? implying all the orphans have a number. i assume, since he was abandoned as a baby, he wasn't named by his parents. or at least if he was, it's not like he had any way to know what name they chose for him. ANYWAY you know how he quotes smth from one of irl nakajima's works. but claims he doesn't remember the name of the author. i think he just took it 👍 he wanted a name, he felt connected to this book. he might've not even realize this is where he saw that name before, and thought he chose a name at random, when the name on the book's cover was already worn out with time to the point of being unreadable yet it was still written in his subconscious!

[kagekitsuneoflight]

Genshin Twitter is genuinely insane they cannot stop picking fights with other gacha game fandoms.

Every week I see a tweet where genshin fans are quote tweeted into oblivion because they are terminally online. They are so stuck in their bubble of ‘Genshin is the best and any criticism or statement of someone enjoying one thing over genshin is a personal attack against me’.

This week some person, in response to someone calling Ayato’s design lifeless to their own opinion, and compares it to an Arknights character that they like.

Instead of ignoring the tweet -which was one of many in replies to a criticism to the reveal of a Sumeru enemy npc, which featured a much buffer body type than any that was available to a playable character, alongside a noticeably darker skin tone- they felt the need to defend Ayato, who, by looking at their profile, wasn’t even a favorite of theirs?

Specifically they called the character’s, who’s called Goldenglow, design quote “shit . Just a bunch of random design choices thrown together meanwhile ayato derives inspiration for the actual Meiji era of feudal Japan. But sure “lifeless” end quote. This in of itself is something that would be worth a couple dozen quote retweets, but meaningless in the end. It’s what they say next that sparks almost 2,800 quote retweets.

Quote “Like, the AK character design is just blatant hypersexualization for the sake of pandering to horny teenagers meanwhile Ayato has actual thought and inspiration put into it. You really thought this was a good comparison huh?” End quote.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Goldenglow, this is her design.

She’s just wearing a short skirt and thing highs. That’s the only thing that stands out that could be seen as sexual. And it’s not even close to the focus of the art here. And that tweet blows up.

People are are comparing Genshin and Arknights characters, pointing out that oftentimes it’s *Genshin* that sexualizes it’s characters, with Mona being the main example used.

I have never seen the Arknights fandom be so bloodthirsty. In my experience, the Arknights fandom doesn’t usually get involved with drama like this. They seem comfortably in the “if you aren’t a fan that’s okay, just don’t bash.” type mindset. They aren’t afraid to poke fun at themselves either, and usually have a decent sense of humor. Most of Arknight’s drama centers around the devs and specific content creators.

I realize that Genshin has many young fans, and is a young fandom in of itself, but they need to learn that you can’t escalate every little criticism or opinions that disagree with your own. If someone responds with “I think this character’s design is pretty lifeless, I like this character from this game instead.” You cannot escalate it to “how DARE you say that?! Because HER design is HYPERSEXUAL!” You can always, always ignore it. And if you want to make your opinion known, keep it civil. “I disagree with you. I think her design is way too busy, I like my character because even though it’s simple, there’s still plenty to enjoy.”

And if you do have a Bad Take and get ratio’d into oblivion, try not to double down. Just slink back and lick your wounds so to say.

To keep in example with the catalyst of this post, this same person keeps doubling down. They’ve even gotten into some mild slutshaming in their replies. There was some art someone drew of three Arknights characters beating up Ayato, I’m pretty sure like the last panel as the one jojo meme where a guy sips some wine before joining the beat down. Clearly more of a joke than any actual malice behind it. Someone comments, quote, “This is what you get for calling Goldenglow design hypersexualized. It’s like calling someone’s little sister a hoe.” End quote. I genuinely don’t know much about Goldenglow, I stopped playing Arknights a good while ago. But from what I glean, she just wants to be a fashion designer, and struggles to control the electric powers she has. A wholesome, if slightly sad character. And of course, their response is, quote, “if your little sister is out wearing stockings with lingerie straps and a shirt ass skirt, I’ma call her and YOU a hoe. The fuck you on about ? 🤨” end quote.

Just by scrolling through the replies they make, anytime someone seems to mention them, or respond to them in a way they deem unacceptable to leave alone, they need doubling down. Keeps saying they’re right. Attacks people. To one tweet they responded, quote, “I’m literally in y’alls head rent-free.” End quote.

But I think the most ironic part of this all, with how they came after one character for being “hypersexualized”, is the fact they retweet anime girls with the boobs very very visible, with oftentimes the focus being on the boobs, or attention drawn to the boobs. Even twiters automatic crop seems to favor the boobs with some of these retweets.

I also took the effort not to mention or add screenshots of the tweets, mainly so people are less likely to waste their time on this, and to also make this more accessible for those with screen readers. I’ll do my best with the image alt image description feature as well, but I don’t promise quality.

This post isn’t here to spread drama, mainly to point out how often Genshin Twitter starts stirring the pot, and maybe convince people that they should practice ignoring and blocking more when they disagree with someone online.

[randomperson351]

Bittersweet - DH. (Requested - Part 2.)

Summary: After their encounter Stella has begun trying to move on, Derek regrets what he said and Isaac is playing Pack matchmaker.

Notes: This was requested by one of my wattpad people _stellastyless, I hope you like it! If anyone has any requests, you can message me!

Do not repost or rewrite any of my work. Minors and ageless blogs get blocked.

Masterlist

Part 1

"You've literally just made that up."

"I have not, it's literally a fact." Derek mocked Stella at the weekly pack meeting.

To put it lightly, the feelings that had grown between them were bittersweet. What started as a tolerable encounter had turned into picking fights with each other and disagreeing over every little thing they could find.

Scott had merely suggested a different way of fighting the hunters in order to track down who was controlling them when Derek had shut him down immediately. It usually wasn't a big deal, but he was so adamant and angry about Scott even suggesting it that his own pack member, Isaac, had raised his eyebrows at his Alpha's behaviour.

"You didn't even try to hear what he was gonna say dude." Stiles jumped in to defend his best friend and cousin.

"I wasn't asking you for your opinion, Stiles; stay out of it. You're just a human, what would you know?" Derek snapped.

"Hey, that 'human' has actually saved your ass more times than you think and come up with all the plans for the missions you go on; and guess what, they've always worked! Can you say the same with the plans you've made?" Stella questioned him, getting more and more aggravated at Derek failing to acknowledge all the work other people put in for him and his pack, with little to no thanks in return. She especially hated when he thought he could go after Stiles as an easy target, they could easily let him do all the work on his own.

Derek stared harshly at Stella, fixing her with a stern look at her outburst. She stared back unflinching, she'd never been scared of Derek and she wouldn't start now.

"Uh Stella, why don't you come with me to get some more snacks?" Isaac asked, but left no room for disagreement when he grabbed her arm and pulled her through to Scott's kitchen.

"Isaac the hell are you doing, we don't need anymore snacks." Stella said harshly, but Isaac didn't take it to heart. He knew there was something going on, it was kind of hard to ignore the distressed chemo-signals rolling off of her.

"More like what the hell is going on with you? I mean seriously, you stink of pain." He told her, moving to sit down on one of the breakfast bar stools and pulling Stella's wrist so she would follow his lead and sit.

She was silent for a moment, composing herself from the lump that had formed in her throat. After a minute or two, she spoke.

"Something happened between me and Derek." She began, stopping to gauge the reaction from Isaac.

"Well finally, took you long enough." His attempt at humour was not lost, the laugh it elicited from her was a relief from the crushing pressure she felt to cry a few moments prior.

"I really really like him, but he made it perfectly clear that he does not feel the same." Derek's words rung in her ears like a constant reminder.

Isaac must've seen the change in expression on her face because he got up and hugged her tight without hesitation.

"Don't stress Stella, I'm sure he'll come around. He always does, in his own, Derek like way."

Stella breathed out a laugh and disconnected herself from the hug to rub the tears from her eyes. "Thanks Isaac."

Isaac smiled at her, but their moment was interrupted by a certain voice.

"Hey are you guys gonna take much longer, some of us are wasting away in here!" Stiles shouted through to them, making Isaac just turn around and grab some random food from the cupboards and Stella roll her eyes while laughing.

They traipsed back into the living room and took their original seats, Scott and Stiles in individual arm chairs, Stella on one side of the sofa, Isaac on the other and Derek stood up in front of them on the other side of the coffee table.

"Now that everyone has decided to show up again-" Derek pointed a glare and Stella and Isaac- "lets go over the plan. Scott, Isaac and myself will enter through the side gates while Stiles and Stella are on look out in the car, if there's any change in surveillance footage, they let us know from the car. Any questions?"

"Why not spread out and try to go through different entrances?" Stella asked. If they were all to go through one entrance that would be blindingly obvious, especially if the hunters were planning an attack; they'd have all of them right in one place. "There's a clear entrance through the roof, there's only one guard up there for 20 minutes each hour so you've got a 40 minute time gap to get in and get out." She suggested.

"Because that's based on one or two snapshots of the roof. We've been watching and studying how to get in through this entrance for weeks, it's too much to risk trying a different entrance now." Derek explained, looking harshly at Stella as Isaac watched them both carefully.

"But what if you spread out? You and Isaac through the side entrance and Scott through the roof. There's more of a chance of getting in unnoticed than trying to all go in through one way." Stella fought calmly but firmly, not understanding why Derek was being so unfair; this was a glaringly obvious solution that he was ignoring.

"I said no! We decided on the side entrance and that is what we are sticking with, and that is final." He shut down straight away making Stiles and Scott share a look of confusion while Isaac stealthily made his way across the sofa and put his arm around Stella's shoulders, pulling her close to him to comfort her.

Stella leant more into his side and tucked her head on his shoulder, Isaac bending down to kiss her forehead and rock their bodies a little, then sitting back up straight once her scent was back to normal.

Derek knew he was being a little harsh, but he wasn't expecting Stella to just move straight on to Isaac of all people, one of his own betas. He waited for Stella to tell him to get off but when she sunk into his neck and almost curled her body around Isaac's, he nearly lost it. It should've been him that she was snuggling up to, but he messed that up when he told her she didn't mean anything to him.

So you're no different then? Her words rung in his ears the minute Isaac crooked his head and left a soft kiss in her hair, the hair he should've been kissing and would've been if he hadn't been such an ass.

"Isaac! If you don't mind gracing us with your attention, it would be most appreciated." He semi snapped at his beta, stirring both Isaac and Stella out of their little bubble and causing Isaac to bow his head a little at the Alpha tone Derek used. "If you wouldn't mind not gracing us with yours, that would be most appreciated." Stella retorted sarcastically in Isaac's defence. Scott and Stiles stayed surprisingly quiet as they watched the whole affair unwind; since the other three members of the pack were otherwise engaged, they all missed the look of realisation on Scott's face.

"Pay attention, this is important." Derek demanded. His voice came out calm and collected but his thoughts said otherwise. His blood was boiling with anger (at himself) and jealousy at Stella having the guts to date one of his betas right after they slept together. There wasn't even a rebound period!

The rest of the night was mostly smooth sailing, although when Derek and Isaac left to go back home, Derek had to clench his fists to stop himself from killing Isaac who was coated in Stella's scent after being wrapped around her for the whole night.

~~~~Four days later, two days after the mission had gone successfully.~~~~

"You want me to do what?" Stella asked Isaac who had called her out of the blue on a Saturday morning.

"Come to the loft, I need to show you something." He answered, making Stella sigh.

"Isaac can't it wait? And why the loft, just bring it here." Stella whined, really not liking the thought of having to leave her comfortable bed and risk running into Derek.

"No it can't! And it's too big to carry anywhere so get your booty out of bed and shuffle on down here, now." He complained, disconnecting the phone call immediately after so that Stella couldn't argue with him.

She let out a groan and flopped down on her pillow again, just as Stiles entered her room.

"Hey! I'm going round Scott's so call me if you need me." He told her, completely oblivious to her newly woken state.

"Okay, Isaac just called and said he wanted to show me something so I'm going to the loft." She told Stiles, getting up and dressed.

"Alright, have fun." He said, turning around and leaving shortly after. When Stella was ready, she left and drove to the loft. She knocked a few times and waited for Isaac to open the door, but was instead met with a reluctant looking Derek, the one person she was trying to avoid.

He let her in nonetheless and she stood in the section between the sofa and his bed, praying that Isaac would walk in any moment now to disperse the awkward silence growing between herself and Derek.

"You can sit down, if you want to." He offered, gesturing to the couch.

"I'm fine, Isaac should be here soon." She said innocently, but turned to look at Derek weirdly when the breath he exhaled sounded oddly like a rather aggressive growl.

"What is going on with you and Isaac anyway?" He tried to play off coolly. It didn't work. "Excuse me?" Stella asked, raising her eyebrows at the sudden question. "Don't give me that shit Stella, what's going on with the two of you? He is my beta, I have a right to know." He argued.

"Derek, nothing is going on between me and Isaac; even if there was you have no right to stick your nose into his business or mine. He's just a good friend that I get along well with in a purely platonic way, he understands what I'm going through. Not to mention the fact that I'm older than him, that would be a little weird considering he's Scott's friend and still in school." Stella explained, standing her ground and getting closer to Derek the more they argued.

"Really? You seemed a little more than comfortable with him at the pack meeting a few weeks ago." Derek said, using his height and build to his advantage to tower over Stella.

"Oh please, I'm like that with everyone. Except you." Stella sneered.

"Seriously, what is your problem with me? You were perfectly fine a few weeks ago!" Derek said, reminding them both of the night they spent together.

"I like you, you furry asshole!" Stella shouted, not being able to keep it contained any longer. "I like the way you roll your eyes when Scott gets caught in training for hiding in the same place all the time, I like the way you sigh when Stiles' rambling is beginning to get on your nerves, I like the way you didn't even hesitate to give Isaac a home when he had nowhere else to go; I like the way you didn't take advantage of me when I was drunk, I like the way your lips quirk upwards when Scott gets tackled by Isaac. I just like you, a lot; and I haven't felt this way about anyone else in a long time. And I get that you don't feel the same, so stop pestering me about my own life when you don't care!" Stella backed away a little bit and was preparing to leave through the loft door.

"I do feel the same, Stella. I really do. But I just can't do the whole relationship thing again, not after what's happened in the past, I don't want to loose you as well."

"Derek stop pretending. I'm not taking your excuses anymore!" She yelled at him, angry at the fact he couldn't just admit what he's truly feeling. Tears brimmed her eyeline as she turned to leave, swearing off him for good as she hauled the loft door open.

Derek grabbed her wrist out of nowhere and pulled her close to him. "I love you." He whispered like he was scared of the words, eyes filled with genuine love as he searched her face hopefully.

Stella tried to shove him off, still caught up in her anger, but she was no match for werewolf speed and strength. Derek pulled her back down the stairs and kissed her passionately, leaving no room for anymore arguments as he wound his arms around her waist tightly, pulling their bodies flush. Slowly she began to melt into it, shoulders untensing and arms wrapping around his neck; Derek didn't let their lips part for more than a few seconds at a time for air.

Things started to get a little more heated, one of Derek's hands travelling south as Stella reached one hand up and pulled at his hair, forgetting how much he actually liked that from the pleased purr that came out of his chest. Just when things were about to progress even further, the tension was shattered by a certain few pack members.

"I did it! I am the official matchmaker of the pack! Everyone bow down to my genius." Isaac waltzed in (none too quietly) and began throwing something in the air.

Derek had finally disconnected their lips at the sudden intrusion and tugged Stella behind him thinking it was danger, in actuality it was just one of his (very evidently) teenage betas.

"Isaac what the fuck are you throwing around?" He asked, irritated that he couldn't even have a minutes peace with Stella.

"Rose petals, not real ones obviously. They're far too expensive." Isaac mumbled the last part under his breath.

"What is that noise?" Stella asked from where she was squirreled away behind Derek's back.

"Oh god." He groaned. "It's Careless Whisper."

Cue Erica and Boyd entering the loft now with both of their phones hooked up to speakers playing Careless Whisper while Peter walked in after them, looking as smug as he possibly could. Derek released his death grip on Stella and let her come next to him (still tucking her under his arm, for complete and total safety reasons, of course. It totally wasn't because she used the perfume he liked today, no way) so that they could share a wtf look with each other at the sight of the pack.

As if that wasn't enough embarrassment, Scott and Stiles walked in next and laughed at the sight in front of them.

"Now that all is right in the Hale pack, get a room and hook up!" Isaac exclaimed over the music.

Peter and Scott shared a look with each other. "I believe, dear Isaac, that was step one." Peter said, sounding just as smug as he looked.

Stiles looked up with an indescribable expression on his face, eyes flicking between Stella, Derek, Scott and Peter.

"You did what with who now?"

Part 3

[five-rivers]

Danger First

Chapter 5

@pocketramblr :3

The day started off well. Really, it did. Izuku got up on time, still filled with warm fuzziness from the time he spent with his friends (friends!) the afternoon before, had a good breakfast, left early enough to catch an earlier train, saw an interesting hero fight, and then...

He was hit with a wave of nausea as he caught sight of the crowd outside UA's gates. Was it a mob? An attack? Terrorists?

... Reporters?

Yeah, those were cameras and microphones. But why was a crowd of reporters making him feel this way?

Maybe they were terrorists disguised as reporters. Or, maybe Izuku had picked up some paranoia to go with his anxiety. How fun.

If they were real reporters, they were probably here about All Might. Him cutting back on active hero work to teach had been big news.

Ughhhh. What should he do? Whoever they were, they weren't likely to leave. He didn't want to walk through them, though. What if they were dangerous? (And even if they weren't, he didn't want reporters looking at him, asking him questions. What would he say to them?)

He bit his lip and watched the crowd from around his chosen corner. Why did he have to be so wimpy and timid? He was a hero student, now. He should be better. Braver.

Oh! There was Iida!

He scuttled over to his friend.

"Ah! Midoriya! You're early today! Few people arrive at school at the same time I do!"

"Y-yeah! I managed to catch the earlier train today, so..." He looked back at the crowd of reporters. Maybe reporters. Maybe terrorists. "I think, maybe we should wait to go in as a group, though. I mean, it'll be more efficient than trying to fight through those reporters one at a time, right?"

"An excellent idea, Midoriya!" exclaimed Iida, waving his hands enthusiastically. "It's very admirable of you, to always be thinking about how to help others."

"W-well," said Izuku, blushing. It wasn't untrue, but it also wasn't the whole story. "I mean, I don't... It's more that they kind of freak me out a bit? The reporters..."

Iida nodded sagely. "There are heroes like that, too. Are you planning on going underground, then?"

There was a certain amount of appeal to underground heroics, but he was supposed to be All Might's successor. Then again, if One for All never worked properly for him and Mr. Yagi asked for it back... Quirk or not, Izuku was here, now, in UA, in the hero course, and Mr. Yagi had said he could be a hero without a quirk.

"I haven't really decided yet. But UA teaches all hero course students the three main branches of heroics, so we don't really have to choose a specialty until later, and even then there are heroes like Sir Nighteye who blur the lines, right?"

"Yes, it's one of the things that make UA such a superior institution!" chortled Monoma.

"Ah, Monoma! I agree! It is important for all heroes to be aware of the work their colleagues do, and to be well-rounded individuals!"

Monoma!?

"Um," said Izuku. "When did you get here?"

"Just a minute ago," said Monoma. "I was looking for a way around these savages when I overheard your conversation. Really, it's a shame that UA allows such rabble to prevent students from entering. If only there was something they could do..."

"I'm afraid I must disagree," said Iida. "Freedom of the press is exceedingly important for the function of society!"

Monoma looked slightly alarmed. "I don't mean to say it isn't, it's just-" he gestured at the gates, "-we can't get in. The other entrances are like this, too. It's aggravating."

"There... might be another way in," said Iida, after a moment.

"Oh?"

"Yes, my brother told me about a hidden entrance that was here when he attended UA. I suppose... I suppose these would be the right circumstances to use it."

"Lead the way, then, Iida," said Monoma.

Iida nodded stiffly. "We should wait and see if any of our classmates would like to come with us."

Several of their classmates did want to come with them, including Uraraka, Asui (who was still a little under the weather), Tokoyami (Dark Shadow was not a fan of flashing lights), and Hagakure. They were also joined by a couple of 1-B students, a cadre of business course kids, and a pink haired support course girl who seemed very interested in Iida's legs, much to his flustered confusion.

Kacchan did not join them, much to Izuku's dismay, instead choosing to bulldoze his way through the ranks of reporters, nearly giving Izuku a heart attack when he body-checked a man with blue-white hair.

At this point, their group was becoming rather large and noticeable, and Iida was getting antsy about the time, so off they went.

Iida led them to what appeared to be an entirely unnoteworthy piece of wall and knocked. There was a pause just long enough to make Iida start to sweat, and then the wall opened, revealing Midnight- Ms. Kayama!

"Oh?" she said, clearly delighted. "Chibiida using the top secret teacher's entrance? Has high school done what we couldn't? Are you finally loosening up?"

Chibiida.

Chibiida.

CHIBIIDA.

First: how? Why? Iida was over ten centimeters taller than Izuku! Secondly: Iida was never going to recover from this.

"That- that's not it! At all! I am simply attempting to help my fellow students enter the school without being harassed by reporters, Ms. Kayama!"

"You can still call me big sis Nemuri, you know."

"I refuse! It would be inappropriate of me as a student!"

Ms. Kayama sighed. "Well, you aren't wrong about those reporters. They can be a pain. So, just this once, let me welcome you kids to the forbidden environs of the staff area!" She made a grandiose gesture with her arm. "And it's all thanks to Chibiida here."

Iida started muttering about propriety and rules.

Izuku had the feeling it would be a long day.

.

"All right, Hikage, in your professional opinion-"

"What does building inspecting have to do with anything?"

"What?" said Nana. "I didn't say anything about building inspecting."

"You asked for my professional opinion."

"Yes?" said Nana, already dreading where this would go.

"I was a vigilante. For the purposes of money, I was a professional, licensed building inspector."

"I thought you were a professional hermit," said En.

"I was an amateur hermit. You don't get paid for that."

En blinked. "I can't believe people let you into their buildings."

"There were a few times-"

Nana decided to table the question of how neither she nor En had known Hikage was a building inspector. "Okay, fine. Forget the professional part. In your opinion, what was going on with that one reporter guy?"

"Oh," said Hikage. "He's definitely planning a murder."

"A murder!" exclaimed Yoichi.

"Yes, and probably of someone close to Ninth."

"Why didn't you say something?" demanded Yoichi, attempting to lift the taller man up by the front of his shirt and failing.

"Because there's not much we can do about it?"

"Just because you're right doesn't mean I have to like it!" He spun on his heel and stalked up to the silent and incomplete ghost of Toshinori. "It had better not be you, do you hear me? Don't you dare pull an Obi-Wan on poor, sweet Izuku!"

"Does anyone know what he's talking about?" asked Nana.

"Not really," admitted Banjo.

.

"Today," said Mr. Aizawa, after he finished passing out feedback from the battle trial, "you'll pick a class president."

All around Izuku, his classmates threw their hands into the air, eager for the chance to show off their leadership skills.

Izuku kept his hand down. It wasn't that he didn't want to stand out or do the work! It was just... between training after school with Mr. Yagi and Aizawa and trying to get his anxiety under control, he didn't think he'd do a very good job.

.

Yoichi started disappearing his "Izuku for President" banners.

.

Iida, though... Iida would do well, Izuku thought. Look at him, organizing everyone into a vote.

"You're not running, Midori?" asked Hagakure.

"N-no, haha, I have too many other commitments to do a good job, I think."

"That's too bad! I would have voted for you."

There was a smattering of agreement, mostly from Iida and Uraraka. Izuku started blushing.

"R-really? Why?"

("Strawberry," someone whispered.)

"Well, you helped me out during the entrance exam, and you were pretty cool during training yesterday." More agreement. "But if you're not running, I guess I'll pick Monoma. He did get rid of the purple creep."

"Ahahaha, yes, I am clearly the superior candidate!" crowed Monoma, standing up and putting his foot on his chair to pose.

"But his personality's really weird, which is why you would have been my first choice, Midoriya."

"I think Iida would be a good choice!" said Uraraka, raising her hand. "He's super organized and he helped a bunch of us get past the reporters this morning."

More general agreement. Then Todoroki cleared his throat. Everyone looked at him.

"Yaoyorozu," he said.

That was it.

"Good point," agreed Jirou.

.

"A TIE?!"

.

As the only one who hadn't voted for one of the three in the tie, Aoyama was forced to be the tiebreaker. This was done as dramatically as humanly possible.

Yaoyorozu was now president of class 1-A.

This led to a ferocious battle between Monoma and Iida that Iida won by a single vote. Monoma was promptly chosen as class treasurer. Just in time for their other classes.

.

"Those who possess forbidden knowledge should stay together," said Tokoyami gravely as he sat down with Uraraka, Iida, and Izuku.

"Are you talking about the staff area?" asked Asui, who slid in after him.

"Indeed," intoned Tokoyami gravely. "The dark path we have all walked-"

"Fumi is just bad at asking people to be his friends!"

"Dark Shadow!"

Izuku almost started crying into his rice. Having friends was so great.

"I'll be your friend!" said Izuku.

"Me, too!" said Uraraka, pumping a fist.

"Ah," said Tokoyami, coughing into a fist. "I am sure we will be great companions in the darkness of the coming days."

Speaking of darkness... Izuku couldn't help but feel uneasy about... something. He had been ever since seeing those reporters.

"So, Midori, is your hair full of secrets?"

"Wh-what?"

"Don't listen to her! She's just being silly! Like a little sister."

"It's what you always say about that actor you like! His hair is fluffy because it's full of secrets!"

"So, you and Dark Shadow are like brother and sister?" asked Midoriya, changing the subject.

The conversation segued into discussion of their families, and just when Iida was extolling the virtues of his older brother, Izuku's unease spiked. He dropped his chopsticks.

"Is something wrong?" asked Uraraka.

"I... don't know? It just feels like something bad is going to-"

The school alarm promptly went off.

.

"Wow!" said Kirishima. "Iida can do entrances and exits! Manly!"

.

"Wow," said Banjo, "I guess they picked the right guy for the job, after all. He can find entrances and exits! More than my class vice president ever did..."

"Are you copying the small red child?" asked Hikage.

"What?"

"Never mind."

.

"Today's heroics class will be focused on how to fall safely and other basic combat techniques. Before we begin, although you may practice these techniques on your own, outside of class, if you want to spar with others, you need adult supervision until you reach a level where I'm satisfied you won't seriously injure yourself or others by mistake. Now, firstly..."

.

"Mr. Aizawa? Is- um. Was it really just the press breaking in earlier?"

It was time for his first special quirk training with Aizawa, and he should be asking what they were doing today (especially since Aizawa had him change out of his gym uniform and back to his regular uniform), but he couldn't stop thinking about the break-in.

"What makes you think otherwise?"

"I'm, well, I'm not sure? I just, this morning, when I saw them, I got a really bad feeling? Like something bad was going to happen. And it doesn't seem, um, logical, that normal reporters would be able to do that to UA's gate. I mean, anyone can have any quirk- no such thing as a villainous quirk. But someone with a quirk like that, they'd put a lot of effort into controlling it and stuff so stuff like this wouldn't happen by mistake. I guess a reporter could have done it on purpose, though, but then it'd be really easy for UA to find out it was them, wouldn't it? Or the police. Since heroes and police have access to the national quirk registry, so you just have to cross-reference reporters with the registry to find quirks that could fit. But would they know that? Anyway, it seems more logical for a third party to have used the press as cover to infiltrate the school. But why? If nothing is missing and no one is hurt, which would be grounds for school being canceled, the next conclusion would be information gathering. But that still leaves the question of the ultimate ends- Mr. Aizawa? Are you okay?"

His teacher had been glaring at a camera mounted in the corner of the classroom and mouthing things at it.

"I'm fine," said Aizawa. He sighed. "You are right that we haven't located the person who destroyed the gates, but please be assured that we are investigating the incident throughly. Especially Principal Nezu." He shot another glare at the camera, as if to say he'd better be.

"Regardless, it isn't something you need to worry about as a student. We're adding more safety protocols to make sure it doesn't happen again."

"Oh, okay. S-so, what are we doing today? Sensory deprivation? Electric shocks? Stress positions? Bean bag barrage for dodging? High stakes hell exam?" He was ready for anything and very excited.

Aizawa stared at him flatly. "We're... doing quirk counseling."

"Yes?"

"Kid... except for maybe the last one... what exactly gave you the idea that any of those things had anything to do with quirk counseling?"

Izuku started to get the feeling he'd seriously messed up. Except he didn't feel particularly anxious about it.

"Oh, uh, Mom used to get brochures like that in the mail, after I was diagnosed? She didn't ever answer any, but... Apparently, some people originally thought to be quirkless got quirks after being in a high stress situation."

"But no one actually did any of those things to you."

"Not really?"

"Midoriya..."

Izuku looked away. He shouldn't have said anything. He didn't like the quirk counselor at Eisley Elementary, but he didn't want to get her in trouble, either. After all, he was the only one she had to do that stuff with, since his quirk hadn't shown up...

Aizawa sighed with the air of someone exercising a lot of self-control. "Except for that last one," said Aizawa, "and that's debatable, all of those are torture techniques."

Ah. Well. That maybe explained a few things.

"They are not a normal part of quirk counseling. At some point, we may incorporate some combat into this, but that will be to help you become more familiar with your quirk. Not just for the sake of making you stressed."

"But if we aren't doing combat, what are we doing?"

"Well, first we're going to try to figure out what your quirk is. Why don't you sit down." He took out some papers as Izuku made his way to his desk. "Alright. I'm going to go through these questions and write down your answers... then we're going to go through them again while I'm canceling your quirk." He paused. "Actually, first. What did you mean when you said you had a bad feeling about the reporters?"

.

"If I were alive," said Yoichi, "I would be committing so much murder right now."

"I thought we left this behind when Ninth graduated," said Nana. "I thought you said you were going to forgive them because they were stupid kids and Ninth forgave them."

"Well, first off, I lied. Secondly, teachers aren't kids. If we ever get hit by a quirk that brings us back to life, the quirk counselor at his old school will be my first victim."

Nana sighed. "That isn't going to happen."

"Who's going to stop me?"

"Less a who, and more the fact that there has never been a quirk that could revive the dead."

"Meaningless!" exclaimed Yoichi. "Death cannot stop me!"

"Think he's finally lost it after all this time?" asked En, leaning towards Nana.

"No, I think he's just messing with us," hoped Nana.

.

"Alright, kid," said Aizawa exhaustion evident in his tone. "Between your answers, your exam results, the battle trial results, how you react when I use my quirk on you, and Monoma's assessment... Your quirk is at least partially sensory.",

Izuku tried not to feel disappointed, but that seemed rather incomplete as a conclusion. Even though he knew about Danger Sense and this probably was Danger Sense.

"Yeah, I know, it's underwhelming, but remember this is the first session. Whatever your quirk actually does, though, you seem to be using it to detect threats."

Okay, that was more in line with expectations.

"I mean... maybe? I think so. That feels right."

"We also need to figure out what it's stockpiling. Have you ever felt any particular draw to certain situations? More than your peers?"

"Um. I watch a lot of hero fights?"

"You're a fight chaser?"

"A little bit?" admitted Izuku, squirming a little.

Aizawa sighed heavily. "I seriously hope your quirk doesn't stockpile danger- don't test that."

He wasn't going to!

Probably.

Speaking of, though, what did One for All actually stockpile? Power was a very vague description... He'd just went along with it because a) quirk and b) All Might, but it would probably be good to know.

"Next time we meet, I'll be running you through the basic quirk assessment battery- that's a series of tests usually given to five-year-olds to help their pediatric quirk doctors and quirk counselors identify difficult or stubborn quirks. You should have gone through it when you were younger."

Izuku shook his head. "All I remember is the x-ray."

"Why would you get an x-ray?"

"For the toe joint? To tell whether or not I was quirkless?" Why was he saying this? He was going to blow his cover and his secret out of the water! This was so dumb.

But he did say it. Maybe it was his guilty conscience from lying to and misleading Mr. Aizawa so much.

"That's a myth," said Aizawa.

"What?"

"It isn't true." Aizawa began to slump down in his seat. "It's an old wives' tale. Everyone quirkless has the double joint, but not everyone with the double joint is quirkless. I have the double joint, as do about twenty-five percent of people with meta quirks." By the time he finished, only the top half of his face was visible.

"Oh," said Izuku. He wasn't sure what else to say. At least the secret of One for All was completely intact.

"I hate to say this, kid, but it sounds like everyone involved in your early quirk education was incredibly incompetent. You shouldn't have had to deal with that, even if you were truly quirkless. It takes just as much counseling to deal with that in today's day and age as something like, say, Ashido's quirk."

Izuku had never heard it put like that before. "Okay."

"Now, before I send you off for today, do you have any questions about anything we'll be doing? Any of the tests we'll be running, normal quirk counseling procedures, anything. It's important for you to feel comfortable about this."

Izuku's eyes teared up. This had already been a very emotional day, and he wasn't sure a teacher had ever asked him that and meant it. "Mr. Aizawa," he said, earnestly, "you're the best teacher I've ever had."

"Is that a joke?" asked Aizawa, flatly.

Izuku shook his head, centrifugal force flinging his teardrops away.

"That's messed up, kid. I'm terrible."

"You're the best," protested Izuku.

"I just need you to know how incredibly low that bar is. Your other teachers must have gotten shovels to dig tunnels under it. They must be dancing limbo in hell."

Izuku blinked. He had no idea what that meant. "I think they're all still alive..."

"Not for long," muttered Aizawa.

[lacheri]

ship your moots!

GLADLY I WILL! 💕 (this is just a list of mootz off the top of my head! if I didn’t include you it’s not personal I promise 🥰 I just have a squirrel brain) ((I might do some matchups in the future this was a lot of fun to write!! and I know I missed a bunch of moots ): maybe next milestone I’ll do it ahhh))

@onwiings — I honestly cannot decide between Eren or Levi, so, I ship Len in a poly relationship with the both of them. the depth of Len’s soul is vast and never ending and such a perfect match for Levi, but her Aries childlike curiosity and humor is so Eren it’d be a crime to ignore their chemistry. Levi is so well equipped to take on the brat taming, (as is Len OOOOOH) and Eren is the biggest brat of them all.

I’m visualizing the three of them walking down a farmer’s market placed in the street in their favorite city to visit on vacation. Levi with his usual sour stoic expression acting like he’s not beaming with happiness while Eren and Len can’t stop giggling at pointing at stalls they want to visit. Len is immediately drawn into some stand selling homemade soaps, and Eren is utterly confused by the names. “What the fuck does watermelon lavender even smell like? THIS MAKES NO SENSE!” and Levi is like, “You’re an idiot. If she wants to buy it, let her.” “BUT IT MAKES NO SENSE—“ “LEN WILL BUY IT IF SHE PLEASES.” and Len is like 🧍🏻‍♀️ I just wanted to smell wtf

@ryukatters — I know you want me to pick Eren. you don’t even know I’m writing this and I can feel you screaming at me to pick Eren.

HOWEVER, I’M NOT GOING TO SHIP YOU WITH ANY EREN JUST WALKING DOWN THE STREET, I CARE ABOUT YOU TOO MUCH. so, SIMP EREN!!! wholesome SWEET Eren!!

I already wrote this, but Eren playing guitar by a bonfire on a beach with Kat. just the two of them as they goof around, utterly and completely in love with each other. Aries and Aries energy is so silly, so pure. (the fights I won’t get into but they’re stubborn af but just refer to feral on this one) just complete GOOFBALLS! Eren also buys matching hand cuff bracelets that say “partners in crime” because you’re really his best friend. he just loves you with his whole heart. BEST FRIENDS TO LOVERS TROPE!!!

Eren is so sweet, but he’s especially sweet for you. he truly, utterly, and completely adores you. you’re his favorite girl, the only one in the world he sees. and he cannot wait to see you in that pretty white dress walking down the aisle one day. (he’s had the ring picked out from the second he met you)

@mochi-vulpine — my dear sweet Mochi. sweet, lovable, silly Mochi. evil laughter.

ONLY. and I mean ONLY, am I not shipping you with Erwin because I want to see you torture Levi. I want front row tickets to see you sabotage his tea stash, that toilet paper prank you told me about, EVERYTHING. enemies to lovers. I think you’d bring out the fun side of Levi, a playful innocence he was neglected of in his childhood. you’d make life fun, no matter how inconvenient your pranks would be. and he’ll never admit it, but he genuinely looks forward to see what you do next. if you skip a day, do absolutely no hi-jinx’s or shenanigans, Levi is so concerned and even disappointed. he’s checking everywhere — surely he had missed whatever you’d planned for him? when he discovers nothing, he’s high tailing it to come and find you. you’re just hanging out, in bed maybe drawing something.

“What’s wrong with you?” you’re so confused, “What are you talking about? I’m literally fine?” “Don’t lie to me.” “LEVI I’M LITERALLY JUST LAYING HERE WHAT’S YOUR DEAL?” and he gets all flustered, and he BLUSHES. “Nothing. Go back to what you were doing.”

“You missed me, didn’t you?” “Shut up.” “I hid your paperwork, you have 24 hours to find it, or else all the nails in your desk disappear.” “GOD FUCKING DAMMIT—“

@astridthevalkyrie — ngl, I’m really struggling to pick someone. just because you could fit so well with so many of the aot people. but, I just remembered you begging for a certain anon, and a few ideas popped into mind. so, I’m shipping you with Petra.

Astrid just genuinely cannot believe someone like Petra exists, you immediately fall in love with her courage, her innate glow of confidence. and the more you get to know her, you fall in love with her sweetness, she’s so nurturing and caring. her smile brightens her entire face, and you swoon. and she’s in the exact same state of mind.

because you are so SMART, so intelligent and have so many interests and hobbies. Petra will keep a list of them all, even if they don’t fancy her interest. she’ll ask questions, implore you to explain why exactly you love that color you do, why that’s your favorite animal. Petra will curl up in the couch with you, snuggle deep into the blankets, and watch whatever you have on the TV. even if it’s the 4th season of whatever, even if she’s never seen a single episode. she’ll gently poke your side, give you a confused look, and smile so big when you start explaining the backstory.

and while I think Petra is incredibly sweet and gentle, if someone ever dared to insinuate even a hint of disrespect towards you, they’d be laid out on the floor before they could even think about finishing their sentence.

@bagsyy — like there’s any other answer but Jean. perfect boyfriend Jean. he loves Cass, so much it scares him sometimes. he feels so safe, so secure with you. Cass is his HOME. the only person in the world he trusts enough to completely open up to, share his darkest thoughts and deepest feelings.

manifesting you and Jean laying side by side in bed together, connected by your intertwined hands as you just talk. as soon as he closes his mouth, you crack a joke to lighten to mood, and he just laughs. laughs harder than he ever has before, because you get him. you understand him, you see him. he never ever doubts your loyalty, your intentions. and you never doubt his.

true love. soul mates. twin flames. the kind of love your childlike self imagined when you were young and innocent. Jean is your Prince Charming.

@liashideout — Armin. Armin Armin Armin. he would find you so completely fascinating. asks to hear about every opinion you could possibly have. plans extravagant dates, maybe not in price but in sentimental value. you want to go out shopping? he’s taking you to the biggest shopping center he can find, even if it’s like a 2 hour drive. you want to go to the museum? good because he already bought tickets and planned the entire day down to your snack breaks. you just want to hang out at home and watch movies? he was already on his way over with your favorite ice cream, your favorite snacks, and has a takeout delivery in route to your house.

Armin the sweetest boy, Armin who wears his heart on his sleeve. he will support you 1000% in any single thing you do, and will go out of his way to make sure you accomplish your goals. and he’s so attentive. can figure out your mood in a split second, you almost think he can read your mind. YOU GUYS NEVER FIGHT BECAUSE OF THIS! argue or disagree, yes, but full on fighting? he’s too empathetic for that, and harsh words never go anywhere. he’s there to protect you, to guide you. to bask in your warmth and your smile. there are no bad days with him, and he makes it his mission to spend every moment with you like it’s his last.

[xoxo-ren-xoxo]

Unpopular Opinion /lh /rp

Talking about dSMP character’s heights and sort of their body types? Not in a weird way just in a ‘how I imagine them’ way. Loosely based off of their irl heights, but some of them I don’t know, so it’s mostly guesswork and vibes. Also if you disagree you’re wrong. (Just kidding leave your ideas in the tags/replies)

Obviously this is all roleplay/character stuff. None of it is intended to be weird or to reflect on the irl people! I’m just having fun with headcanons :)

Tommy is 6′3 and very very lanky. This child is not short. Stop drawing him short. He’s taller than Techno. He’s not as tall as Wilbur, but he’s tall. He towers over most people. Emphasis on most because everyone is so tall on this server what the hell? 

Anyway I think the mental image of this super tall kid actively trying to make himself look shorter/smaller is heartbreaking. Like imagine him curled up into a corner trying to make himself as unnoticable as possible in Logsted. Imagine him slouching when living with Techno to try to make himself seem like less of a ‘problem’. Imagine Dream telling him that he’s a ‘big strong man’ and that he shouldn’t need help, he can defend himself, so when he goes back to Tubbo, he tries to make himself look *tiny* as a cry for help. He wants comfort.

But he’s also incedibly skinny. Back in L’manburg and Pogtopia, he developed some muscle from all the fighting. His shoulders broadened out and he looked slightly intimidating. But like most teenage boys, he was still lanky as hell. This only got worse when he was exiled to Logstedshire, with little food (and no drive to eat the food, or get up, or exersise) he became more malnourished and he just looked *small* despite being 6′3. This probably isn’t helped by the constant use of golden apples when he moves in with Techno, which give him energy and strength but no real nutritional value. Techno was just trying to get the kid to eat normally. When he finally stands at his full height, Techno is shocked that he didn’t notice all the slouching.

Anyway Techno is 6′2. He’s taller than a lot of people but not as tall as his brothers. He makes up for this with muscle and strength and a healthy body. Wow, the only healthy person on the server. Amazing. You love to see it. Good for him. He could win in a battle of raw strength against anyone else on the server. He’s quite broad, which makes him look bigger generally.

Wilbur is 6′5 and also he is a stick. Just. Straight up and down stick. Nothing there! He is just a pale sickly stick. This gets worse the further into the timeline you go. When claiming L’manburg and fighting in the war he starts to get insomnia, causing him to look like a corpse half the time. When in Pogtopia, he’s too busy to take care of himself properly, so he only looks worse and worse. His hair is a mess, his skin is far too pale, and he only eats enough to be able to hold his own in a short fight. There’s a reason he doesn’t wear armour or really try to fight at all. He’s subconciously self-destructive, then actively so when he blows the place to the ground. He’s always been too busy for self-care.

Ghostbur is a much more healthy, younger version of Wilbur. I would say he’s ‘water rising’ era Wilbur. The life returned to his body, in a morbid kind of way. He’s still tall but he prefers to make himself seem shorter just to be less threatening.

Phil is 5′11. He has an average build, with slight muscle from the years of playing in hardcore. He’s older, now, but he can still kick your ass. Also, he taught Techno how to fight smart, not hard. He doesn’t need to be super strong because he’s intelligent enough to outwit most people on the server. He has a wordly knowledge that others don’t possess. He also has wings, large and grey, clipped so he could get onto the server (there is a no flying rule after all).

Fundy is... 5′10, just a little shorter than Phil. His fox genes make him smaller, despite his father being 6′5. He’s got a healthy, svelte build. He’s sneaky and light on his feet. In the wars he built up some muscle, but it was quickly lost since he prefers to take a backseat to any fighting outside of those times (especially now) and he’s built for spying.

Schlatt is an interesting one because a lot of people are gonna fight me on this, but he’s not actually old. Everyone calls him old but honestly I think he’s younger than Wilbur (in canon, I feel like Wilbur is in his late 30s, early 40s, simply because). I think Schlatt’s around 35-ish, but he looks older due to his shitty health. People call him an old man either to demean him or because they see his actions and appearance and go ‘yeah, this guy is old’. Which is fair enough, because irl Schlatt and c!Schlatt both act like they’re from the 1950s.

This guy looks like shit by the end, but he looks alright at the start. Slicked-back hair, sharp ram horns, golden animalistic eyes. He’s intimidating. And loud. Then everything shifts, right towards the end. He’s frail and deteriorating throughout his short presidency, and by the end of it he’s practically a corpse, just like Wilbur.

He’s 6′3, with broad shoulders and a silhouette that seems strong not only because he carries himself as if he can fight, but also because of the percieved power that comes along with it. In reality, Schlatt is a poor fighter, and the abuse he ends up putting his body through (working out excessively to try to fight his condition, and turning to alcoholism as an escape) completely destroys him, making him probably one of the least healthy and weakest people on the server. It doesn’t really show until his death scene, since he’s covered up the deterioration since day one. Basically, mans is dead. 

Glatt, or Ghost Schlatt, or whatever you want to call him, would be a healthier Schlatt. Again, from the ‘water rising’ era. I headcanon him to have longer hair in that era. Not sure why.

Ranboo is the same height as tommy, but is more naturally lithe than made that way by lack of food. His enderman DNA can be blamed for that. He’s healthy most of the time, but may have spirals where he doesn’t take good care of himself (perhaps he forgets) and he looks pretty bad. If he goes a few days without keeping up his self-care routine, he looks a lot worse than he actually is. Sleep tends to be his biggest issue, his mind keeping him awake all night and leaving him looking like shit in the morning. Really, he’s just a kid with a troubled soul, and it shows sometimes. Most days, though, he looks very well put together.

Tubbo. He’s 5′6. He’s more childlike than Tommy, which only makes it worse when he acts in the way he does in season 2. He has burn scars across one side of his body, from his execution, and he is partially blind in one eye because of it. He takes very good care of himself, since he has to look good while being president if he wants those sweet sweet approval ratings. But when he’s super stressed, he will pull all-nighters and forget to eat. He’s got a lot of issues, but his body is very normal and healthy, all things considered. 

Quackity is 5′8. Which is really funny because that’s his actual height. He’s less sharp (?) than a lot of people on the server, but he has some muscle because he’s constantly training to ‘take down Technoblade’ (in reality, it’s a habit he picked up in Schlatt’s era, and never had the heart to drop). He tries his best to stay healthy (again, to better kill Techno) and he’s careful with his life, knowing that it’s his last.

Niki is 5′5. She’s also able to kick so much ass. That is all.

Dream is a bitch and therefore I will not be discussing him. Also he’s a blob or whatever so I guess height is irrelevant. Or maybe he’s a mysterious figure with a mask. Who knows.

No one else is important enough to talk about /j (but really I’m tired so I will stop here). Put your own thoughts in the comments, tags, and rbs. This was all in good fun, so don’t get mad haha.

[shinyatiny]

Flower Crown - yungi

Chapter four: A new face

_____________________________

Three days passed by quicker than Mingi would have desired. For three days he's been covered up in woolly covers, gawking at the ceiling with wide eyes. Midway through his self-isolation, the fact that he has to attend the festival had settled into his mind. Just the thought of himself struggling against all those courageous fighters made him feel ill to the stomach. There's no way he could fight those guys and succeed. He wasn't a skilled fighter, he was a magic specialist. In the worst-case scenario, he'd get his ass whooped or get injured, and either of those scenarios doesn't sound good to Mingi, at all.

He had no idea how much time was left because he hadn't come out of his chambers for days. Maybe the guards would barge into his room at any minute and drag him out of bed. With a muffled grumble, Mingi freed himself out of the pile of blankets around his body and went to his wardrobe, opening the double doors and peeking inside. As one would guess, he hadn't changed his clothes for at least three days. He smelled, he smelled really bad and he was conscious of that.

Stretching for a towel that was situated on the highest shelf, he tossed it atop his shoulder and unbuckled the silver belt around his pants. Now would be a good time to take a warm, relaxing bath. Especially before the chaos that was about to unravel. Not caring to close the closet doors, Mingi made his way out of his room and wandered to the nearest bathroom. A few servants gave the elf prince several concerned glimpses regarding his condition, but Mingi overlooked them and fastened his pace.

Once he had arrived at the bathroom, he slid through the door and locked it behind him. Flicking the switch on, the azure fairy lanterns brightened the formerly gloomy bathroom. Mingi stared at the lights for a hot second with a smile on his lips before looking around the bathroom. The bathtub was in the corner, shampoo bottles and a petite, yellow rubber duck on the edge. There was also a small shelf next to the bathtub with some towels and other necessary stuff on top of it.

°❀°

After taking a fresh bath, Mingi covered his body in a warm towel and glanced at the mirror before stepping out of the bathroom. He shut the door behind him and began to walk back to his quarters to change into his attire for the day. The corridors were calmer now and he didn't have to rush back to his room. He presumably would have slipped and injured himself if he had run.

And when more servants began to speed through the corridors, he did.

He slipped and collapsed.

Roughly three servants halted in their tracks and turned to look at Mingi who just face-planted straight to the floor, a sharp groan leaving his lips at the collision. One of the observing servants offered their hand for Mingi to take, but the young elf decided to take a brave face and decline the offer. He stood up from his awkward position and scraped his nape in discomfort, a red tint appearing on his cheeks. "Hi." Mingi blurted out, glancing at his feet with pursed lips. Before the servant could respond, Mingi had vanished.

"Oh my god, that was extremely embarrassing," Mingi whined to himself as he jerked the door to his room open and hid inside. He slid down against the door and hid his head between his knees, chuckling to himself because of his awkwardness. The towel around his hips had nearly fallen, so he adjusted it as he stood up again. As he got an extra towel to dry his hair, the door to his room unlocked with a loud creak. Mingi turned around in panic, fists darting to the cloth around his hips to hold it in place. "Who-"

His heart stopped beating for a second when he recognized it was one of the guards, standing tall in the doorway with a spear in his hand. "Excuse me for barging in so abruptly, but I have come to get you, prince Mingi. Your father's orders." The guard spoke sternly, nearing the young elf. Mingi had never noticed this particular guard, and he was instantly intrigued by what kind of a person he was. He looked young, extremely young for a guard. His fiery red hair was vibrant and it made him look like a real soldier. "Prince Mingi?" The guard tilted his head to the side, curly strands of hair hanging down his forehead.

The named elf took a step back, glaring at the guard with narrowed eyes. "Can you at least let me change first?" Mingi answered smoothly, a sigh leaving his lips when the guard nodded in approval. "Thank you." He stated, relieved. But after ten minutes, the guard hadn't left the room. Mingi lifted an eyebrow, staring at the guard in confusion. "Are you just going to stand there and watch as I change? You're not here to enjoy the show, are you? So leave, I'll come when I'm ready." He rolled his eyes, an evident grin dancing on his lips. The guard squinted at Mingi, turning around without saying a word, and fled the room.

The young elf breathed in vexation, slopping back on his mattress. He had no ambition to attend the festivities anymore but his father kept neglecting him. Why does he have to prove himself? Why does he have to do it to prove his clan's capability to the other clans? Is it so challenging to find a more experienced warrior to fight in his place? There was no point for Mingi to join the fighting festival. He'd just embarrass himself, his father, and the rest of the clans. What would happen if he lost?

"Why do I have to do this?" Mingi whined, burying his face in his cushion, letting his body relax against the soft bedding. He knew he had to go, but his silky sheets were making him sleepy all over again. He was also aware of the fact that the guard was waiting for him behind the door and if Mingi took longer than ten minutes to change, the guard would barge in once again to check on him. With a groan, he heaved himself up and walked to his closet, eyeing all the piles of fabric on the shelves. "I know my father wants me to change into something traditional, but do I have to wear all those necklaces with bones hanging from them?" He whispered to himself, feeling one of his shirts with his fingers, humming.

A few years ago, Mingi wore his clothes to Lenaia and he got yelled at by his father because he was supposed to wear something more "traditional" like his father always said. But the bones and weird symbols weren't his styles, and they would certainly not pique any interest in anyone. Since then, Mingi has obeyed his father's orders and has worn different bone necklaces and weird armor at the festival.

But today was different, Mingi was the representative of the Iris clan and he had to look exemplary. The chief's opinion wasn't important right now, the only thing Mingi wanted was to look good in front of the other clans. So he decided to wear whatever pleased his eye today. Although his closet was quite full of clothes, he was able to pick an outfit for the festival.

Mingi chose to wear an oversized white shirt with golden buttons and elegantly laced sleeves. He tucked the silky shirt under some black leather pants and buckled his favorite silver belt on. For shoes, he decided to go with plain black ones. This was nothing like the traditional outfit, and it would unquestionably get people's attention, but that's what he was there for; for attention. His father used him for image, nothing else. The plan was to attack with everything he possessed and come out as the victor. Mingi was nearly convinced he would lose. On purpose or not.

After added five minutes of attempting to pick the most suitable necklace, he selected a basic golden chain. It was something he regularly had on and he fancied it quite a bit. Seonghwa had given the piece of jewelry on Mingi's birthday last year and he was delighted to accept such a present from his friend. As his outfit was coming together excellently, he reached for the earring on his desk only to find it gone. With a faint gasp, Mingi browsed frantically throughout the chamber but had no success in locating the earring.

He touched his ear in discomfort, perching down on his bed with a thud. "But I just received it from Seonghwa..." He muttered to himself, his delicate fingers moving towards his golden markings, exploring the swirls and twists beneath the silky shirt. The earring reminded him of his mother, it had already become one of Mingi's most cherished items. There was no way he'd lose the piece of jewelry just like that. "Did I forget it in the bathroom?!" He said, eyes wide with realization, instantly standing up and throwing the door open.

As he opened the door, a squeal echoed in the corridors. It was a servant who had dropped her basket of fresh, unworn clothes on the floor after the door had knocked her. She glanced at the prince and then at the basket, a panicked expression settling on her features. Just as she was about to apologize and bend, Mingi lifted his hand to stop her from executing her plan. "Please, don't. It was my mistake." He beamed, picking up the basket and returning it to her. "I opened the door without considering twice about the servants who rush through the corridors. So apologies for that, Miss."

The girl stared at Mingi in wonder, finding it difficult to accept how distinct Mingi happened to be from his father. He presented the girl with a nonchalant grin and gave her the remainder of the now-dirtied clothes. "I — It's fine, don't bug about it." She replied bashfully, taking the clothes from Mingi's hand. "I was in your way anyways..." She smiled shyly, taking a step back so Mingi could step out into the hallway.

He sighed, shaking his head with a smile on his lips. "Unfortunately I have to disagree, Miss. I was the one who opened the door in the first place, so allow me to at least take these now-dirty clothes to the bathroom." He quirked up an eyebrow, eyeing the basket in the girl's hands. "It's the least I can do."

For a moment, Mingi had completely overlooked the red-haired guard who was standing close to the doorway, eyeing him up and down. When Mingi finally noticed the young guard, his eyes opened wide in embarrassment. The guard narrowed his eyes and pointed at his wrist as if to show Mingi he didn't have much time. The young servant tightened her grip on the basket full of fresh clothes and glimpsed at Mingi and the guard with pursed lips. "Excuse me... but I can deliver this to the bathroom." She spoke quietly, gaining the prince's attention.

Mingi shook his head, declining her sweet offer. "I was on my way to the bathroom anyways. You can go back wherever you came from." He smiled, taking the basket from the girl's pale hand. "This fine young man can escort you back if you'd like." He smirked, pushing the red-haired guard towards the girl. The said guard, halted in his steps, turning to look at Mingi with a confused look which the prince straight-up ignored. "Alright, I'll be on my way then."

Before he could turn around, the guard had grabbed Mingi's forearm and tugged him towards himself with more strength than he originally wanted to use. Mingi's eyes went wide and he shoved the guard away from him with a muted hiss. "Let go of me." He muttered, already sensing the warm tingles scattering from his arm to the remainder of his body. "I know you're new and all, but you should understand it's not relevant to grab someone solely like that." He spat, caressing the markings on his arm.

The guard froze in place, letting go of Mingi's arm immediately. The anguishing silence went on for another minute, the only thing making noise being the hasty footsteps of other servants. Until Mingi's loud sigh broke that silence, it was painfully silent. He gave the servant girl an apologizing look before taking the basket from her and dragging the guard towards the bathroom with him. The burning sensation in his arm hadn't gone away yet and it clouded his mind, made him almost lose his balance as he walked. He glanced at the guard, rolling his eyes at the neutral expression he wore.

Mingi let go of the guard's hand when they reached the bathroom and opened the door, balancing the basket with his other hand. The wooden basket hung on his shoulder, making it hard for him to open the heavy door. "Could you help me with the door?" He huffed, giving up. The other nodded his head briefly before pushing the door open. "Thank you. Now, I have something to say to you...?" He trailed, looking at the guard with a questioning look. "What's your name?"

"Jongho." The guard answered without breaking a sweat, straightening his back whilst Mingi asked him some questions. "My name is Jongho, sir." He said. The way Jongho spoke formally made Mingi want to roll his eyes and sigh as loudly as he could. He hated the fact that servants had to "worship" their "masters". It wasn't fair to the servants and the names made Mingi feel like he was a king or something. Jongho noticed Mingi's crestfallen expression, cocking his head to the left. "Prince Mingi? Is there something wrong?"

"Drop the formalities, Jongho. Just call me Mingi." The blonde remarked, entering the bathroom with Jongho. "I never liked to be called the 'prince', it makes me feel sick to my stomach for some reason. Feels like I'm putting myself before everyone else, and it makes me feel worshiped, I don't like it." He explained, leaning against the counter. Jongho blinked twice before nodding slowly, scratching the back of his neck with a shy smile.

"But-"

"Come on, you can do it."

"P—Mingi," Jongho said awkwardly, stuttering with his words. "Are you sure I can call you that? Won't it be too awkward?" He added, anxiously looking for an answer in Mingi's eyes. The prince let out a breathy laugh, placing a hand on Jongho's shoulder like some old friends.

"Don't worry about it. We're basically best friends already, right?" Mingi laughed, nudging the other's shoulder. "Anyway, I have some questions." He said, taking the hand away from Jongho's shoulder. "Based on your reaction earlier, it seems as if you have no idea what markings are. That means you're either not an elf or you've lived under a rock your whole life. I think the first one is the case here, don't you think so too?"

As if getting hit by a frying pan, Jongho froze before Mingi, visible panic in his expression. The way he stopped functioning completely made even Mingi worried for a second. "I — what are you talking about?" Jongho laughed nervously, his grip around his spear tightening further. "Are you implying I'm not an elf?" He said, his other hand gripping the brown shirt he was wearing. "But I am."

Mingi raised his eyebrows, nodding while a sly smirk played on his lips. Jongho gulped under Mingi's judging gaze, eyes finding the floor. "Of course, I believe you. Oh, and out of curiosity, where's your Iris located? And what about your markings? Mine is on my forearm; in the same exact place you grabbed onto." He said, sitting on the marble counter, arms crossed. "Jongho, I can see through your hoax. I don't mind the fact that you aren't an elf, but lying like this isn't smart either, so spit it out."

"I'm am an elf."

"That's the best joke of this century."

"I-"

"Lying won't get you anywhere, Jongho."

Jongho raised his chin to look into Mingi's chocolate brown eyes, finding it a bit awkward that Mingi knew precisely what he was about to say. He didn't mind the idea of Mingi knowing about his true identity, but if he were to tell anyone else about it, it would certainly stir the pot a little bit. "Fine." Jongho sighed, putting more weight on the spear, almost leaning against the wooden object. "You guessed it, I'm not an elf." He raised his hand in the air as if he was surrendering. Biting his tongue, Jongho examined Mingi's neutral, almost disappointed expression for a few seconds before speaking again. "You seem disappointed,  Mingi ." This was the first time he had ever used the prince's name like this and it made things a little awkward, at least for Jongho.

The blonde let out a snort, shutting his eyes before speaking. "And you act like I hadn't figured that out already, Jongho." The way the red head's name slipped through his lips was almost cunning as if he was playing with the name on purpose. Jongho observed as Mingi hopped down the counter and made his way towards the bathtub, picking up a shampoo bottle, examining the label out of boredom. "Then what are you? You clearly aren't a fae because I don't see any shimmering wings on you. Plus you're more muscular than I am and faes are usually tiny and delicate, they're smaller than elves, maybe even smaller than humans."

Jongho sighed, massaging the bridge of his nose in utter frustration. The way Mingi talked made him somewhat annoyed, if not irritated even. "No, I'm obviously not a fae. You think a fae would be as big as me?" He snorted in unbelief, raising a questioning eyebrow at Mingi. "I'm a berserker, Mingi. You're familiar with berserkers, correct? You know, the fierce, powerful species of warriors? The species that are known for not using their brain?" He explained nonchalantly as if he were speaking to a five-year-old boy.

The said "five-year-old boy" blinked at Jongho, mouth open in disbelief as if he had just heard about someone's passing. His pointy ears perked up, proving he was attentively paying attention to every single word. A berserker in an elf village? That's something Mingi never imagined would occur, not now, not ever, nor has he seen a berserker before. He definitely thought berserkers would be larger than this, like the ones in his books. "You're a goddamn berserker?!" Mingi replied, eyes wide like huge plates. "I understood berserkers were this big," he said, raising his hand above his head. "and you definitely aren't. Damn, even I'm taller than you, Jongho." He continued with a low chuckle, disregarding the annoyed scowls he got from the younger. "How the hell were you able to get work from here?"

Jongho hummed with pursed lips, turning his head to the side as he considered for an answer. Mingi watched as the other's red curls fell down his forehead, formulating a definite picture of Jongho in Mingi's mind. Jongho was admittedly attractive, that Mingi couldn't dismiss, and the red, fiery hair made the entire masterpiece intact. Even in metal armor, Mingi was able to distinguish Jongho's sturdy build and his exquisite characteristics.

Jongho noticed Mingi gazing and coughed, attempting to gain the other's attention. Mingi blinked twice and panicked a tad bit before grinning widely, rubbing his nape. The guard rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall. "I got in through someone I know, but you don't have to worry about that, Mingi." He explained hastily, not granting Mingi an answer. "I know being a berserker inside an elf community might not be the safest of ideas, but no individual has discerned yet, besides you of course. I believed my facade was flawless, but I suppose it was not."

"First of all," Mingi said, pointing a finger at Jongho's chest plate, adding pressure to the finger. "No elf is built like this, mister berserker. You have more muscle than everyone in the village combined, and that's a lot of muscle. Look at me for instance, you could presumably break all my limbs just by grazing them with your pinkie." He snorted, tapping the other's shoulder. "I mean, how the hell wasn't my father capable of recognizing you from the other guards? Sort of questionable if you ask me, but you assured me I don't need to worry about it, so I'll drop the topic for now. I know my father doesn't prefer to wait and we've wasted plenty of time in this darned bathroom. I got what I craved for anyways." He said, hand finding its way to his pocket, pulling the shiny piece of jewelry out.

"What's that?" Jongho lifted an eyebrow, staring at the earring Mingi was holding in his grasp. The golden star was peeking through Mingi's fingers, the chain a little messy from remaining in his pocket for so long. "Is that a family heirloom of some kind? Looks important." He spoke, detaching his back from the wall, walking to the door. Mingi hummed, letting the earring dangle on his fingers. "You know, you don't need to fight if you don't fancy to, Mingi. You appeared stressed when I reached your chamber, it's like you disliked the fact you had to go."

"Oh please, I never desired this in the first place, Jongho. My father's been pulling my strings from the very beginning. It's not like I can do anything concerning it." Mingi breathed, reaching for his ear with the earring and placing it in its rightful place. "But you're right, I don't want to fight, in fact, I want to leave this village and live somewhere else. But I can't. I presume my father intends on wedding me off to a woman from another clan, but I don't want to live my life like that. I want to live freely for as long as I can without being tied down to someone."

"Mingi-"

"And I don't want to settle down with anyone yet."

"Listen-"

"Do you understand, Jongho? I wish to explore the enchanted woodlands without a care in the world." Mingi babbled, disregarding the guard nonchalantly. "I don't even know if I-"

"Goddamn it, Mingi. Let me speak will you?" Jongho exploded, hitting the floor with his wooden staff. Mingi froze like a deer caught in the headlights, eyes fixating on the younger. The said guard sighed and tightened the grip on his spear, lifting a brow at the blonde. "Why do you speak so much? Gosh." He rolled his eyes playfully. "I'm sorry, but I can't do anything regarding your problem. If you say you don't have a choice but to attend the festival, then I can't help you. And as you just stated, let's not keep your father waiting any longer, I don't want him to hit you or anything of the like. Also, sorry for talking to you so informally, it still feels a bit improper of me to call you merely by your first name."

"I-" Mingi struggled, mouth hanging open as he thought of an answer. "It's perfectly fine, I understand your concern, but it's fine, truly. I hope you're not uneasy about me calling you by your name. I simply don't like to shove my title into each conversation I have, so using first names is the most beneficial for me."

"And I appreciate you being so thoughtful of others, Mingi. I haven't seen someone similar to you in ages." Jongho nodded with a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Now, shall we go meet your father?"

"Please, I don't deserve such compliments from you." Mingi beamed back, throwing an arm around Jongho's shoulder. The younger gave him a troubled look but accepted it nevertheless. "Let's go meet my old man."

°❀°

The chief was impatiently waiting for the pair, tapping the floor with his foot. The atmosphere around him was cloudy and dark which caused some of the servants to grow fearful of him. When he finally acknowledged the two figures strolling towards him, a smile tugged at the corners of his lips. Only after he realized what Mingi was wearing did his smile fade into oblivion. "Son." He stated coldly, eyeing his son up and down. "I thought I was very clear about the dress code. You seem to have forgotten about my orders."

Jongho glanced at the blonde, examining Mingi's carefree expression in confusion. The said elf quirked up an eyebrow, lazily grinning at his father like he didn't worry at all. "Oh, your orders were quite clear, I just didn't feel like following them, that's all," Mingi stated, stopping in front of his father. He stood in front of the younger berserker, keeping him behind for good measure. "You see, I'm there for attention, nothing else. I'm aware of the fact that I won't succeed even if I tried my goddamn hardest out there, and so are you. I have no clue why you concluded it would be an excellent plan to put your son, who isn't able to fight at all by the way, out there to compete. It just doesn't make any sense to me."

A visible crease appeared between the elder's brows, a grim expression forming on his face. Mingi had definitely hit a line there. "I think you know exactly why I want you to fight at the festival, Mingi." He stated, stepping forwards. "I've thought about this for months and came to the conclusion that it would be a perfect opportunity to prove what our clan is capable of. I'm sure you understand-"

"And you'd put me out there even though you know I'll get hurt and injured? You'd risk your own son for fame?" Mingi cocked his head to the left, disappointment written all over his face, but when Jongho looked closer it was as if the blonde knew exactly how this would go. "Heavens, father. You're the parent of the year. I swear I'll leave this godforsaken village after the festival." He sighed, grabbing Jongho's arm so they could leave his father alone. The berserker gasped at the sudden skin contact but didn't say anything about it, trailing behind Mingi as they made their way somewhere else.

"Mingi!" His father yelled from behind, making the young berserker grimace at the raspy voice of his boss. "Come back here this instant! I wasn't ready with you!"

Mingi chuckled to himself, fastening his pace, tightening his grasp on Jongho's hand. "Ignore him, he knows I'm right." He said with a wide grin, glancing at Jongho over his broad shoulder. "Also, do you know where I have to go so I can prepare for the battles? No one ever informed me and I never bothered to investigate either," He laughed.

"Of course," The berserker smiled. "I can take you there."

[jasontoddiefor]

Title:  [VLOG] so you found an assassin droid Summary: More of that “Luke and Vader meet over space twitter” AU :D

Twin Suns @/skyseekerpilot Can anybody tell me if it's illegal to own an HK-77 droid? Thanks :D

Still here @/vicTORI-is-here What did you do????

Bigg Dreams @/darkestlight More like what did he make me carry home

Scrap Hunting @/scraphunting Scrap Hunting has uploaded a new video! Click HERE to watch it!

L31a @/ThePrincessHerself Omg new video???

X

The video started with two boys sitting on a workbench, slowly drinking tea from two mismatched cups. 

"So," Luke spoke up, interrupting the silence. "I want to start this off by saying that I am absolutely innocent and have not broken any galactic laws."

Next to him, Biggs just looked up at the ceiling and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is Hutt Space. What kriffing galactic laws?"

Then, quicker than he could stop it, Luke dug his extremely sharp elbow into Biggs' side, causing him to yelp. Unbothered by his friend rubbing his side all while hissing, Luke continued speaking.

"Anyway! Welcome to a new episode of Scrap Hunting! We sure gained a lot of following since our last video, so we thought we'd do a bit of a different thing this time around?"

Luke laughed nervously as white writing behind his dead proclaimed having gained thousands of followers and being just a little overwhelmed by it all.

"A lot of you were interested in seeing where we get our materials and what our set up to the actual repairs is, so we figured it was time for a vlog?"

A little helplessly, Luke looked at Biggs, but his friend only shrugged in turn. They weren't exactly sure whether it counted as a vlog, they had never really done it before.

"In any case! We brought you something special today, so feel free to follow the journey that led us to this. If you enjoy this format, be sure to tell us."

After these words, Luke leaned forward and picked something up that was out of the video frame. He sat up again and held something large and round and metal in his hands that, after taking a second look, revealed itself as a droid head.

"So here's the story of how we found an HK-77 droid, which we will now start repairing. Have fun!"

X

Biggs loved Luke; he really did. They had known each other their entire lives, but there was no doubting that his best friend was absolutely insane. From racing in Beggar's Canyon at a young age to breaking into a scrapyard in the middle of the night.

"We are so gonna get caught," Biggs hissed. Nervously, he looked around as Luke dug through the mountains of trash. He made sure to keep the recorder on Luke to catch it for their channel. If they were going to get arrested for this, it had to be worth it, at least.

"Nope, it'll be just fine," Luke replied and triumphantly pulled something that used to be part of a hyperdrive out of the mountain. Immediately, waves of junk rolled down, clattering on the ground and causing much more noise than Biggs was comfortable with.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, I can feel it," Luke replied absentmindedly as he inspected the hyperdrive.

X

The video switched back to the workshop where the duo was reassembling the droid. "Fun fact," Biggs said, leaning over the half-assembled droid. "Luke spent too much time out in the sun as a toddler. When he tells you that he has a feeling? It's true 90% of the time."

Then Biggs's eyes widened as if he had just had a realization, his head whipped into Luke's direction. "Do you think you could get me the lottery numbers?"

Luke pulled his arm out of the droid's torso to stare blankly at Biggs. "Do I look like I can?"

"I don't know, can you?"

Luke opened his mouth to reply, then he stopped and closed it again with a frown on his face. "I don't think so," he said slowly. "We should try it out."

The video froze momentarily as a text block appeared, reading: It doesn't work.

X

"He can feel it, he says," Biggs muttered, kicking a rusty pipe. "This sounds insane, you know that, right?"

"Absolutely- hey! Look at that!"

Biggs turned the camera up towards the part of the trash heap Luke was pointing at there. There, in the middle of old ship parts, was a hand.

Not that of a sentient, of course.

"Looks like a droid," Biggs said, studying it with interest. "Do you think you can get it?"

"Obviously."

X

The video cut back to the workshop where Luke was welding the head of the droid back to its body, goggles hiding away his face. "I want it on record that I did, in fact, get the droid. It's here. On the table. It went successfully."

Biggs just grinned and leaned back, arms crossed. "Do you guys want to know how many takes it took him? Twenty-"

"Don't you dare edit this in!" Luke protested, pointing tool threateningly at Biggs, but the other boy was entirely unbothered.

X

Take 1

"Right, I can just step in here-"

He could not.

Take 2

Luke was trying to climb up over what used to be the wings of a ship. He slipped.

Take 3

From a different point than before, Luke attempted to jump up to the next platform.

He failed again.

Take 10

"Just one more try. I swear I got it," Luke insisted.

"Uhu." Biggs only nodded and examined his nails. "Do you want me to grab it? I'm a bit taller than you."

"Eat a bantha, Biggs."

Take 16

"Okay, so if I climb on your shoulders-"

"And who is going to hold the camera?"

"… Good point. This is why we need an assistant."

Take 20

Luke was half up the scrap hill when his right foot suddenly lost grip and he slipped again, catching himself only in the last minute and permanently scaring Biggs, who was holding the camera with shaky hands, for life.

"Okay, this is fine, he can do this. No need to worry. He'll get it."

"Thanks for the encouragement," Luke hissed as he pulled himself up.

"You're not the one who will have to explain to Beru Whitesun-Lars why her nephew looks like he was in a fight."

Slowly, Luke turned around just so that he could give Biggs a look. "My aunt has seen me in worse states."

"Doesn't mean she isn't terrifying."

Luke couldn't disagree with that sentiment. "True."

X

Back in the workshop, Luke was setting aside schematics while miserably looking through his wire collection.

"I hate you so much," Luke sighed and started connecting the droid's artificial nerves to one another.

"Nope, you don't," Biggs said and set another cup of tea next to Luke. "Alright, what's the plan for this baby?"

Luke grinned. "I'm glad you asked! Time for a little summary, I guess."

X

The video changed so that Luke and Biggs were still standing in the workshop, but the background had been edited to be a whiteboard. While the two teenagers in the frame continued working on the droid, and a voiceover of Luke's voice could be heard.

"Alright, so what Biggs and I found here is an HK-777 Assassin droid. This droid was developed by the Separatists towards… The end of the Clone Wars?"

A little unsure, Luke looked over to Biggs.

"Yep," Biggs agreed as on the white background the words Clone Wars appeared, and beneath that an image of the symbol of the CIS as well as the droid. "However, they haven't seen any real combat or at least much of it? They're being used by the Empire now."

The image of the CIS was crossed out and got replaced by that of the Galactic Empire.

"Now, it's important to know that the HK-77 droids are generally considered to be the best of the HK-series ever developed by the Separatists," Luke said. "Obviously, I have opinions on that – but more on that later. Let's talk a bit more history first."

The image of the HK-77 droid shrunk as four more droid models showed up on the video. All of them looked similar to the HK-77 one, though by far not as elegant.

"So, the HK-77 model was preceded by the HK-47, HK-57, HK-58, and HK-67 models. As you can see by the size comparison here, it's a bit shorter than the other models, allowing for greater maneuverability and being less noticeable."

At this comment, Biggs snorted. "It's still built like a kriffing tank, and from what I'm seeing here on the memory banks?" Biggs held up the datapad he was working on. Cables connected it to the droid's memory bank. "Uh, yeah, not noticeable was not it's preferred method. Assassin droid is obviously a misnomer. They should have called it trigger-happy bastard."

"Don't be so mean to him," Luke said and gently pet the droid's detached arm. "Don't listen to him. He doesn't understand."

"He can't even hear me."

"Be silent, heathen."

X

"I got it!" Luke exclaimed and began to pull at the droid's body. Slowly, more and more of its body emerged until suddenly its whole frame fell out of the trash and Luke with it. Cursing, Biggs dropped the camera. After this, only a lot of clattering and shouting could be heard, no clear image being visible, only various dark splotches. The video only continued when Biggs went to pick up the camera. Some time must have passed as Luke was sitting on the ground, nursing his injuries while simultaneously examining the droid. "I think we found something good here."

"Yeah, can something good also walk on its own?"

"Doesn't look like it," Luke commented, poking the droid's joints, which promptly fell apart.

"Great," Biggs replied and ran his fingers through his hair. "Can you walk on your own?"

"Yeah, think so." Experimentally, Luke stood up, wincing only slightly. "Okay, yes, I can walk, but you'll have to carry the droid."

Biggs rolled his eyes exasperatedly, but you could tell that he was obviously relieved that Luke was well.

X

"He did, in fact, make me carry the droid back home," Biggs stated, still examining the droid's coding. "Carry it to the speeder, go back for the other parts and then drive him and all his stuff home and unload it, and then drive back to my place and explain to my parents what I was doing at three in the morning."

Now Luke actually looked a little guilty. "They didn't say anything-"

"No," Biggs shook his head. "I told them I was with you and they just sighed. Are the optical sensors working?"

Luke took the droids sensors and connected them with what would be the eye sockets in humans. "It should now. Test it."

Biggs typed something on his datapad, then nodded. "Yep, it's working. So, to continue our lesson: As you can see, the HK-77 has a narrow head and two optical sensors."

As he said that, Luke pointed at the relevant parts.

"First thing I'd improve if I were to build an assassin droid," Luke chimed in. "It's just impractical that it doesn't have 360° sight."

"Wouldn't that lead to sensory overload?" Biggs questioned. "All these protocols, and jeez, I want to meet who wrote this because this code sure is something."

"Maybe," Luke replied, deep in thought. "You'd have to make space for larger memory banks. I'm just saying, if I were to code a droid like this, it wouldn't be so bad."

"Not doubting that. But while we're already at it, Luke, you wanna handle the body parts?"

"Sure!"

Luke brushed his hands off on his pants, though that didn't make them any cleaner. "Alright, we already mentioned that the HK-77 was the Separatist's golden bantha. To continue, it came in two variants: assault droids and squad leaders. They look identical, but squad leaders are obviously more intelligent. What we have here-"

Putting emphasis on the last word, Luke opened his arms wide, then gestured at the droid lying on the bench. "-is a squad leader! Which is great because that means he can be useful in the future and help us out in the workshop. It has blaster riffles integrated into its arms."

Here Luke lifted one arm up, shaking it slightly. "Though these aren't functional anymore. We'll replace those with proper hands and fire extinguishers. Next up, we will change the plating to be more heat resistant so that he'll actually be capable of helping out on the farm and in the workshop. We should add a smoldering iron as well. The overall cost of such a droid in peak condition is- "Luke stopped talking to look down on something. After a second look, he lifted a datapad close to his nose, where he frowned at the numbers. "Huh. That's a lot of cash. Maybe we should sell it."

"I think that's mostly because of the state secrets such droids can keep. They also work as bodyguards. But this droid's memory is fried, so it's useless. And if somebody left it on Tatooine, it probably can't be that valuable," Biggs intersected.

Luke nodded slowly. "True. In any case, this concludes our discussion of how the assassin droid works. Tune in next time to see how we actually overhaul it."

X

"And done," Biggs breathed and dropped the droid in the back of the speeder. "Are you sure this will be worth it?"

"Absolutely," Luke replied.

"I'll be trusting you on this then, kid," Biggs replied.

The video turned black, then returned to the image of the empty workshop with white writing.

Like, subscribe, and comment!

If you want to support us, feel free to leave a donation @scraphuntingofficial.

X

Scrap Hunting @scraphunting Thanks for watching our newest video!

[siriannatan]

We weren't meant for demesticity

ao3

Tubbo was worried. Not about himself or Ranboo, or Michael. He was worried about his cousin Foolish. Why would he visit Philza? Was he planning on going with Tubbo's off-handed comment about Technoblade? Should he prepare Snowchester for an attack from a crazy anarchist piglin hybrid? Or maybe Phil for setting his friend up for a date? Or Foolish if his crazy plan doesn't work out? Or should he prepare for a wedding of the century? After all, it wasn't every day that gods were getting married to mortals

"You okay Tubbo?" Ranboo broke him out of his thoughts coming from their secret basement' kitchen entrance.

"I'm okay, I'm just worried about Foolish. I might have accidentally sent him on a quest to woo Technoblade " he sighed, "how much more stuff do you have to move?"

"You what? How? Huh? Are you insane?"

"Calm down Mr Beloved. He came here looking for dating advice and I was like 'why?' and he was like to ask out Sam to get revenge on Ponk," Tubbo  began explaining and waving his arms around "And then I was like 'You'd have better chances of getting out of it okay with Technoblade  than with Sam, he's crazy about this whole prison thing and I might have told him what happened to Ponk's  arm and then when he was leaving he said he's going to visit Phil for a second opinion and I told him where to find him but now it occurred to me that he might have been lying."

"Breathe Tubbo, breathe," Ranboo attempted to calm him down, "Phil was going to the main SMP  today to check around the L'Manhole for Wilbur, I warned him he's back so he doesn't freak out when he gets that visit, and Techno sleeps most of the time anyway so there is a chance he'll get nowhere with that," he reasoned.\par

"You might be right, but what if Techno is awake? Oh, f... We'll have to tell Techno about us" he said with wide eyes, with you moving in and all... Maybe it would be easier if he's close with Foolish..."

"You're cold Tubbo," Ranboo  shook his head in disbelief, "you'd use your cousin like this?" Tubbo just looked at him with an amused glint in his eye. He'd do that, his brother was Dream after all.

"There is another thing," Tubbo  said, "we've never gone out on a proper date, Ranboo."

"Do we need to?" he asked sitting next to Tubbo by the kitchen counter, "I mean, do we have time? With finishing the mansion and Michael, and Tommy and Wilbur attacking us with noise every night?"

"We do, we can have a little date here in the mansion. Like after Michael is in bed. Roast some marshmallows over a fire, make a blanket fort. Have some fun for a change?"

Fun was tempting. It was a while since they last just hung out together, with having to gather payment for the mansion, Tommy dragging them into his plans. "I guess a bit of fun wouldn't hurt us," he agreed carefully, "We can do that when I'm done moving my stuff..."

"Today," Tubbo disagreed instantly.

"Fine today, the stuff still left back there isn't that important anyway, all the valuables are already here away from Tommy's range and so are my pets. Honestly, I have no idea how they got here but I won't complain, I'm just glad they're okay and safe."

"Enderwalk Ranboo brought them here, he seems excited about the move," Tubboo mussed with a smile, "he always drops you off here after he's done with his stuff," he added as Ranboo loudly groaned in annoyance.

"I told you to be careful when I do that," he complained.

"You worry too much, big man," Tubbo shook his head, "sleepwalking or not you're still you, and you'd never hurt me or Michael," he explained in his 'I know everything and I'm always right' voice.

Ranboo was a bit annoyed for a second but he could not be mad at Tubbo for too long. "Where's Michael?" he changed the subject getting up to get himself some tea. He was still getting used to asking Tubbo's skeletons to do stuff like this for him.

"In his room, having his midday nap, there is a skeleton by his door to inform me if he wakes up," Tubbo explained giving his husband an annoyed look, "I got us help for a reason" he added pointing to a skeletal maid in the corner.

"It's just tea, Tubbo, I can surely make myself some tea without help"  Ranboo just shrugged, sometimes Tubbo scared him more than Dream. It had to be a family thing. Foolish could be a little weird too, after all. This whole romance for vengeance thing would be enough proof if Ranboo hadn't seen him after the chandelier in the entrance hall. Tubbo was particularly evil for that thing in his eyes.

"I know, I'm just a bit scared of this domesticity," Tubbo admitted, "Neither of us ever had much of peaceful family life or any family life. Most of my childhood was spent running and hiding and learning how to fight and hide who I was. Dream did his best to give me a normal childhood but there isn't much two children running from town to town, world to world can do in that regard. Until Dream founded the SMP, even with this he kept me hidden until Tommy found me in the woods after I snuck out from my hiding spot," he laughed shortly, "I've never seen Dream that angry, even after Wilbur established L'Manburg, maybe he thought it would be good for me to have some friends. And then along came Schlatt, our lovely father, and things went to shit. It wasn't bad at the start. He didn't recognise me, he didn't recognise Dream. When Technoblade  got involved and..."

"And some stuff got blown up," Ranboo finished for him.

"Yeah... We hadn't had much contact with Puffy over our great escape, she was busy being a pirate and Foolish wasn't a very well adjusted individual at that time. Centuries of almost non-stop fighting can do a lot to someone, even a god."

"When did you pick up interest in necromancy and alchemy?" Ranboo asked trying to change the subject.

"Necromancy came naturally. We have different mother's Dream and I. I have no idea how Schlatt did it, I guess he had more charisma than he usually showed. Dream's mother was some sort of minor goddess of nature, good harvest, hunting, healing and so on. Apparently, our father just found a baby on his doorstep one day." Tubbo stared, Ranboo gave him his cup of tea and started preparing a new cup. "My mother was her opposite, I have no idea how big and important she was, but she was supposed to have control of undead and a lot of long-forgotten knowledge. As for alchemy... I saw Dream brew potions once and decided to help, we found that huge book in one place and I kept myself busy in hiding reading it. It was in a language Dream didn't know, we later identified it as Ender ."

Ranboo knew what Ender was, after all his other half spoke that language exclusively.  "But you could understand it?"

"Yes. I taught Dream how to read and speak it. I have no idea where I know it from, it had to be from my mother... Look at me complain about my family to a guy who never had any family," Tubbo laughed an empty laugh.

"It's okay Tubbo, I have a family now, and if anyone asked me I'd say we're the best family on this SMP. We're doing our best to stay together, to keep Michael safe. Who else can say they're a happy family around here? As selfish as that sounds," Ranboo said pulling Tubbo into a hug.

"We deserve to be a little selfish from time to time, after all, we've been through," Tubbo said, not complaining about the hug "Michael's up."

"We should go and check up on him, spend the rest of the day playing with him so he sleeps at night so we can have our 'date'," Ranboo proposed, breaking the hug and offering Tubbo a hand.

"If I didn't know any better I'd say you're flirting with me," Tubbo joked jumping off the stool and grabbing Ranboo's hand as they walked towards their son's bedroom.

[ultimatetrashgoblin]

Blaire Reviews: Jessa Season 5

Disclaimer: This is all my opinion, you are allowed to disagree with me. I encourage you to read this route and form your own opinions.

First Impressions

MC is alive! (No shit Blaire they’re not gonna kill the main character off-) Now that both SP MCs have started a season waking up in a hospital bed, let’s get into the plot.

Because of a certain individual (with a very stupid cape) who does not deserve to be named, Jessa’s bar has been trashed. Fortunately, an old friend of Jessa’s shows up and offers to fund the bar’s repair!

Unfortunately, Hesper immediately set off many red flags for me. For one, MC couldn’t find any information on her for the past few years.

Then she wanted Jessa and MC to pick up an antique toy for her, and only after they got attacked by people who also wanted it did she admit that there was a microchip with classified information on it. When being called out on this, Hesper immediately gets defensive and threatens to withhold the funds she was giving to the bar.

And if that wasn’t suspicious enough, she has MC and Jessa gather information on a guy who is poisoned that same night. So it’s safe to safe Hesper might not be the most trustworthy business partner.

I’m glad Jessa was finally able to put her foot down and set boundaries with Hesper. I agree that while Hesper isn’t a bad person, she’s too immature to be dealing with issues like this.

Of course, Hesper has already gotten herself into even more trouble and there were people outside of the bar. For what reason? They never really say other than that they were hired by someone.

Jessa and MC fight the goons off and come back inside to get some answers from Hesper, only to realize she went into the tunnels. Both of them immediately suspect Hesper of having hired the goons (honestly same), which she denied.

This is when Hesper finally reveals that there was a secret compartment somewhere in the tunnels that even Jessa wasn’t aware of, and that she was trying to find it. I’m assuming that this will be a major plot point in season 6, but we really don’t have enough information about this situation to make any assumptions.

The reopening party was fun, it was nice to see Zhora and Wyst again, and they thankfully painted over Hesper’s generous redecorating.

And then this happens:

Looks like we have something to look forward to next season!

Final Thoughts:

I absolutely adore Jessa and her route, but if I’m being honest, this really wasn’t her best season. The plot seemed to drag a bit, and there were parts when I was genuinely bored.

There were probably some other moments that I forgot to mention simply because I forgot they happened. Hesper was alright as a sort of “antagonist” but I was annoyed with her more than anything.

I’m excited to see Jessa and MC get married and figure out this mystery surrounding Jessa’s family, but I’m really hoping the next season is better than this one (especially since it might be her last).

This season wasn’t bad by any means, but I feel that compared to Jessa’s other season, it was slightly disappointing.

Overall Rating: 6/10

Favorite CG:

There was no way I couldn’t choose this CG, this entire scene was just 🥺🥺🥺

[rachetmath]

Jaune’s Battle: Reclaiming Control

I just saw volume eight episodes one and two. My theory is now Jaune’s battle in the volume is taking back his position as leader to save Oscar. We have seen him in episode one, being what stops the team from fighting each other and not changing anything to both sides agreeing to a solution; divide and conquer. In episode two, we see unlike Yang and Ren, Jaune is not at all that phased by Fiona’s comment. He is just worried about Ren. And now with Oscar being taken by the new Grimm in the ring, might put Jaune’s metal to the test.

First let us discuss the motive to the challenge. Jaune, back in volume three, already had a partner taken from him to where he had to ask Ruby for help. Now in volume eight, his partner Oscar, (maybe his partner. Sorry, everyone but with a lot of Rose garden moments, it is still hard to see these two as partners.) is now being taken to Salem for questioning and to die. And with Ruby, now in Atlas, Jaune must now set a course to save him. (If episode three, the grimm gets beaten already.) However, there are obstacles in his way.

The problem Jaune must face is the people. The people of Mantle need help and so far without his semblance, Ren and Yang are useless in helping them. So, Jaune must stay until the remaining people are safe. This will test his patience and maybe make him stop the citizens from fighting each other. He may have to tell the people that they must fight soon if they wish to protect their homes, friends, and families.

The second task is being a partner to Ren and Yang. Let us be clear. Jaune is not Yang’s or Ren’s partners. He has no romantic interest in them at all. Heck, the guy is only with them because he cannot fight the Ace-op or soldiers and to even out the teams. Him and Oscar were on no one’s side. So, he is not going to have same tolerance as Blake and Nora do to put up with them. Jaune will have to stand his ground against them at some point especially because Ren and Yang are by far, the most emotional about the situation. (Plus, Jaune getting mad is good. It becomes proof of how serious the problem is. We also saw Yang get scared when he is furious.) To stop Yang, he must use facts and make Yang think about her decisions, so she does not rely on emotion alone. Ren however (I highly doubt it but please let this happen) well… they fight. In my opinion, Ren has been acting like a huge jerk. He sided with James very quickly, he yelled at Nora, and avoids expressing himself to the people who are close to him or trying to help him. I mean, if he still sides with James, why is he still in Mantle and on Yang’s side? Jaune might as well be the one who helps him to prove one; he is his friend, two; he is his leader and three; getting him to open up more for Nora’s sake.

Now for the hard part. The happy huntresses soon can handle the situation and Jaune with Yang and Ren can go get Oscar. The problem they will face is not in finding him but saving him. Tyrian as well as Salem’s other combatants will be there guarding the prize or awaiting further instructions. They cannot afford to be reckless since May is not with them and Jaune is useless in combat (So is Ren if he keeps spamming that same move.). One or two characters can help and that’s Neo or Cinder. Neo, because she does not care if Jaune gives her something in return for her help. Cinder, well, because Salem does not give her any credit or will not allow her to do what she wants. (Any other character will do, maybe Joanna, considering we don’t know her semblance.) Either way, the trail is for Jaune to trust Neo or somebody, even if Yang and Ren disagree. Basically, putting his grudges aside for something bigger.

The final task is facing Salem herself.  No, not to fight her. But to make her take him and his friends seriously. How? By saving Oscar and defeating the Grimm that took him in the first place. Think about it for a second. Jaune, the moment he saw that Grimm beating Oscar to the ground. Seeing it use him as a shield, beating both Ren and Yang. And hearing it speak for the first time. What happened? Jaune did nothing, he could not do anything to better the situation. Even if he had a gun. Once the Grimm flew off with Oscar, he was already paralyzed by fear. It is a whole new enemy he has never encountered before, considering the grimm he has defeated so far. Now, to save his friends, Jaune must act and come up with a plan to beat it. Facing fear itself. Giving him a definite role.

Now, does that mean Jaune will have to face and discover all this by himself. No, Jaune is not his teammates, he is more human than they are. Jaune will need help, and who better to help him than maybe Fiona. Fiona is Robyn’s second in command. She’s already leading the evacuation and guiding the people since Robyn’s absence. She can help Jaune understand that a good leader is not always strong or smart. Leaders possess the ability to not just to bring people together but make choices and for see the outcome of those choices. Jaune is not as smart as Ruby and Robyn. He is not as strong as Yang, Ren, Nora, or anybody. He does not possess special talents or abilities like Oscar or Weiss. And he is damn well not as cold and risk taking as James. He can only be himself and work with what he got. That is something I think Fiona had to realize when she was with Robyn or being in the Atlas military.  

Finally, you might say “why does Jaune have to go through all this? Other than rescuing Oscar.” Or “No, RatchetMath. Jaune is not the main character. Why you trying to improve him?”  Well for one he needs the improvement. But in addition, look at this:

https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_qjwezuLGEo1vipw08.mp4

For Jaune, right now, that is something that can bring back some dark memories. For instance, Beacon, where he saw people frightened, causing grimm to surround them and die. Arguing over who is at fault, and more importantly seeing James leave the nation he was supposed to protect to fend for itself. Leaving Ms. Goodwitch to pick up the pieces. People, Jaune is a simple man, who is in a world filled with people with incredible powers. Yet throughout the time he has fought monsters and criminals, dealt with grief over his partner’s death, and deals with complex situations that will stress him out at times. Now, history is repeating itself and the situation is getting worst. Salem is in Atlas. James has given up on Mantle. His teammates are becoming more divided. And Oscar is now in need of assistances, especially with Ozpin coming back into the picture.  

This is a war. And if Jaune wants to survive and keep the people and his friends alive, he must fight his damn hardest in order to succeed.

Cause if he does not step it up. He will not just lose Oscar.

 He will lose… everyone he cares about and wants to protect. By the hands of the cruel goddess.

[draco-kasai]

Hero Collaboration Program

Chapter 2 pt. 2 of 2: Welcome to The Program -->

Chapter 2 pt. 1 --> Chapter 1

Miss. Frizzle turned on her heel and walked over to a rack of dodgeballs that Mr. Jones hid from view behind him. Taking a few balls, she began placing them on the white chalked line on the grass. The field was marked out for them to play almost any sport. The ends were marked out as makeshift nets and the edge of the middle had poles protruding out the ground with the volleyball net tied snugly to one, in case they decided to play. The storage room contains the actual soccer nets and all the sports balls as well as chairs, and foldable tables. 

“The rules are pretty simple. You’ll be placed into two teams and are allowed to use your quirks in any way to help you. You are not allowed to step over the line to the other team's side. You can't leave the court unless you grab stray balls, at least until you have 'dead' players to retrieve them for you. If you attempt to catch a ball only to drop it, you are out. No headshots, you'll be eliminated if you do. If you are hit by a fly ball, you are out, even if it wasn't intended for you."

"The point of this activity is to get you all used to one another’s abilities right off the bat. You’ll have to remain as coordinated as possible and have faith that your teammates will work with you. As far as I know, just about none of you have a proper understanding of each other's abilities. Heroes fight alongside heroes they’ve never worked with, this is how you learn to adjust to that.” He bounced the ball in his hand a few times as he spoke, his eyes scanning the crowd of students before him. The moment he was done talking, he threw the ball at a girl with dark hair that shines blue in the sunlight. She squeaked at this sudden action, but caught the ball with no problem. 

“Marinette, come on up.” A little nervously, the girl walked around the crowd and made her way to stand next to Mr. Jones. Her free hand fiddled with the base of her loose over the shoulder pink top, dark pink sweatpants shifted as she moved to face the students. Her dark hair was tied back into a neat bun. Before she could ask Mr. Jones a question, a ball flew in between them. Turning her head, she spotted the moment a dark skinned male with braids caught the ball. 

“Very good Virgil! Please, make your way up.” Miss. Frizzle giggled, suddenly standing on Mr. Jones’s other side. The male shrugged his shoulders and made his way over. He wore a loose white tank top that showed off his toned arms and khaki sweatpants. “Ladies and Gentlemen, meet your team captains.” 

Mr. Jones pulled out a quarter, “Heads or tails?” he asked the two teens. 

“Heads/Tails” they responded in unison. Looking over to one another, they laughed softly. 

“Great! Virgil will be heads and Marinette, tails.” He flipped the coin in the air. In a fluid motion, he caught it and flipped it to rest on the back of his other hand, “And the person to choose their teammates first is…” He moved his hand to reveal the coin. “Tai-” Before he could even say the word, the coin flipped itself over. 

“Heads.” Virgil smirked smugly as he brought his hand back down into his pocket. Marinette’s eyes widened in realization at what had just occurred. “He said we could use our quirks to help us. He never said it had to be during the game, so I’m taking advantage to get the first pick.” The young girl’s eyes narrowed slightly. So he’s going to take the game seriously, fine, she will too. Virgil has just unlocked her competitive side, and from the fact that his smug smirk widened, that would mean he was hoping for that. 

Oh, game on.

“It’s good to know you know how to read between the lines and find loopholes.” Many of the students straightened up at his words, Mr Jones grinned widely, “Virgil gets first pick! Take turns, you two!”

“Cool, I pick,” He looked over at everyone. He spoke with some of the guys during foosball, they seemed pretty skilled, “Manny.” A boy with curly hair, wearing a loose gray T-shirt and cargo shorts, let go of his girlfriend's hand and walked over to his new team captain. 

Marinette’s eyes scanned the crowd, “Um…” Her eyes landed on a boy with messy black hair. His brown eyes were busy scanning each of the students. She recalls him speaking to her in French as she sat outside sketching, a rather pleasant surprise and conversation. When he had left she had noticed that he was making his rounds speaking to everyone, even during breakfast he bounced around. Maybe it’s just her competitive side hoping, but he just might know what everyone's skills are, he just might be useful. “Hiro.” She said, pointing to the boy with a red graphic T-shirt and knee-length shorts. He gave her a sly smirk and casually made his way over.

“Whatcha think man?” Virgil asked Manny as they both scanned the crowd.

“I don’t really know anybody’s quirks or skills… Frida is quirkless but has killer parkour experience.” Manny spoke with a pretty heavy accent. He crossed his arms over his chest,  “Um, Billy seemed pretty cool too. So did Gar.” Virgil nods to what his partner said.

“Then we’ll just have to get all three of them.” He spoke up louder, “Gar.”

“Glad I was a first choice.” Hiro spoke quite fluently in French as he walked over to her. Marinette smiled kindly. 

“I noticed that you were going around speaking to everyone this morning and during breakfast. Quite the social butterfly, aren’t you?” 

Hiro chuckled softly, “Ah, and here I thought you realized I was actually gathering information on everyone.” 

“No, but I was hoping you’d have some to help us. Good to know I wasn’t completely off."

“Right! Well, I suggest the Possible duo. Kim is quirkless but has cheerleading and acrobatics skills. That will definitely be useful for us. Her partner, Ron, has a quirk that turns any of his bad luck around into good luck. That would be useful to us, oh! And Damian would be useful too, I’m pretty sure he also noticed me gathering information. He seems smart and observant, don’t know what he can do though, I couldn't get anything out of him.”

“Still impressed, you gathered a lot of information.”

“Of course I did. Just ask people about themselves, and they’ll reveal information without realizing it.” Now that she thinks about it, Marinette does recall being the one to do most of the talking. Oh, this guy is cunning. She smirked.

“Oh, I like you. Glad to have you on board.” They exchanged a handshake and a mischievous smirk before the female turned to call out a name, “Kim.”

Virgil’s eyes narrowed slightly as his opponent’s gave one another a handshake. “Whatcha guys think? Frida, or Billy next?” 

“Oh! Actually, before we choose one of them, I suggest Damian. He’s quirkless, but he’s a force to be reckoned with!” Garfield eagerly put in his opinion, “He’s really smart and calculating. He’s skillful in fights, too.”

“Whatcha think?” Virgil looked to Manny.

“I don’t really got a problem with it.” Manny shrugged, “If he’s that good, he should not go to the other team.” 

“Gotcha. Damian.” 

Marinette almost cursed. There goes one of their choices. Oh well, they still have other players to choose from.

“Hey I think we should get Ron on our team, his quirk would probably come in handy for this, its-”

“Karmic Luck. Any of his bad luck is countered with a burst of good luck.”  Hiro cut Kim off, catching her off guard.

“Yeah, how did you…?”

“He’s quite the social butterfly.” Marinette smiled before calling for Ron. It took a moment before Kim realized what she meant by that. He had come up to them while they were playing 8ball and got Ron talking and talking. 

A smirk crossed her lips as she cocked her hip out and placed her hands on them, “Oh, you are sneaky. This will definitely make things interesting.” Hiro gave her a thanks in response.

Damian wanted to roll his eyes at the current conversation happening in front of him. The idiots seem to just be gathering people they have spoken too. He does not want to be on a team of incompetent players. Finally, having enough on rather or not Frida or Billy would be a good fit he butts in. “Why not select Lee. She seems fairly competent and skilled. She also seems to have quick reflexes, from the way she easily caught Parr’s tray when she slipped this morning.” Garfield, Manny and Virgil all stared at Damian in silence. 

“What?”

“I mean, like, I don’t disagree with what you said and all, they sound like a good fit but like…”

“Maldita sea, no sé ni la mitad de lo que dijo.” Manny mumbled under his breath as he ran a hand down his face. As if knowing his struggle, Garfield pats his back reassuringly.

“Dude, who’s Lee and Parr?” Garfield asked for them. Damian almost rolled his eyes.

“Juniper and Violet. It’s their last names.” he stated as if it were obvious.

“Dude… you call people by their last names? I mean, like no offense, but like… why?”

“It’s just a thing he does to people he doesn’t really know.” Garfield shrugs, “It's weird, but it’s his thing.”

“It’s simply polite to call an individual I am not close to by their last names,” Damian crossed his arms over his chest.

“Alright Mr. Fancy, but I would prefer it if you just went by our given names, you dig?” Virgil gave him a half smile  

“I do not, but very well. I shall compromise, when I mention someone to you, I’ll use given names, however I will not do so when I speak to people directly.”

“I mean… that works?” 

“On that note. We should be vigilant with the other team. Hama - Hiro has gone around to speak with everyone in the group. He has information on everyone. It will make it easier for them to choose worthy opponents.” 

“What!? Hiro? But he was so nice!” Garfield frowned, his pointed ears drooping.

“Yes, well do tell, what did you talk about with him?”

“Oh! I told him about my diet, my girlfriend, my quirk, and what hero training is like in my school!” 

Virgil clicked his tongue when he realized he just about spoke about the same things with the guy, “Oh man,… he knows our quirks and experience level.”

“And he went around speaking to everyone.” Manny added with a sigh

“If we wish to win, we have to take into consideration what we know of everyone and choose wisely.” 

“Gotcha. So, Juniper right?” Virgil calls out her name the moment Damian confirms it.  

“Zachary”

“Jenny.”

“Danny” 

“Frida”

“Violet”

“Miles”

“Betty”

“Rudy”

“Fiona”

“Billy” Marinette mentally fist pumped as Jake walked over to her team. Virgil took some of the people she wanted, but she got some of the players she was hoping for. Miss. Frizzle gave them all a ten-minute period where they could discuss. Going on their own side of the field, the teams began explaining their skill set to one another, as well as coming up with possible strategies.

______

Teams: 10 v. 10

Virgil(electromagnetism), Manny(Tigre), Garfield(shape shift), Damian(quirkless), Juniper(Detect), Jenny(Cyborg), Frida(quirkless), Miles(spider), Rudy(Chalk Art), Billy(Shazam)

Marinette(lucky Charm), Hiro(Prodigy), Kim(quirkless), Ron(Karmic Luck), Zachary(Magic), Danny(Ghost), Violet(Flyrogensis), Betty(Self Gravity), Fiona(Hair Manipulation), Jake(Dragon)

[whitelionspirit]

Pale Fire: Hard Days and Happy Birthdays 1/2

Paring: Ace x Reader

Series: Modern au of the life of Ace and the reader

Scenario: Even after a short few months there is still a lot you don’t know about your newly proclaimed best friend. Like why he doesn’t celebrate his birthday and why his friends and family are used to it.

wc: 1.7k

warning: angst, hurt/comfort, abusing alcohol, fluff

A/N: Hello! Sorry for the lack of updates but writer’s block hit sudden and hard. Anyway I wanted to get this out yesterday but here we are and now it’s in two parts because it became longer than I had intended. Hopefully by next week I’ll be all caught up and open the inbox again! I hope everyone had a good holiday and an even better start to the new year! I’m happy people have enjoyed my writing as well means a lot! Also this isn’t edit at the moment.

The end of the year was fast approaching with only days left it felt strange to you. The fact that your first semester of college was finally over. The past few months had been wild if you could pick a word to describe it. You never imagined you would have so many friends or just good memories in general. You had gotten lucky when being paired with Perona.

She was rather strange but you really would not have her any other way. It was because of her that you met Zoro which from there meant you would meet everyone else.  The collection of them were all vastly different and it made you feel included somehow into their strange little family. Though it was your friendship with Ace that you didn’t expect.

He was loud, angry, and shameless among other things you could rattle off. For some reason he had quickly taken a liking to you and it was all over after that. He had this way of coaxing you to come out of your shell and express yourself in ways you had never done before. He stunned everyone when he declared you were now his which didn’t settle well with any of the girls plus Sanji. Perhaps it was the five year age gap that threw most people off but it didn’t bother you that in the way most presumed it did.

The reason he had plagued your mind a lot recently was because his birthday was two days away. While you were excited about getting your new friend gifts and a supposed party to happen. You found out that their wouldn’t be a celebration, nothing at all. Ace hated his birthday which made you quite disappointed.

You didn’t push the subject when Sabo gave you the bad news. He had smiled sadly at you as he patted your head and moved on with his day. If no one wanted to speak of why then you wouldn’t push it. Ace would tell you if you asked you know he would but you didn’t want to pry it seemed to be a rather sore subject for everyone.

So you went about your week as you usually would which was more so spent at the three brothers apartment. You were currently splayed out on the couch with Luffy, Chopper, and Vivi laying on top of one another. It was a comfortable squeeze with Chopper’s head tucked into your lap and Vivi’s thigh bumping against your own as Luffy splayed out over her entire lap as she played with his hair. The only light coming from the flashing tv and that of the Christmas tree still up in the corner of the room.

It was a nice feeling to be surrounded by friends in a place you considered homey.  The sudden buzzing of your phone dragged you out of your thoughts. Pulling the device from your sweatpants pocket you saw the familiar name lighting up the Home Screen.

Firefly

As he had so happily put into your contacts months ago. You smiled as you slide your finger across the text opening the phone.

“Work is so boring today, tell me something interesting.”

You roll your eyes at his response Ace worked a rather fascinating job in your opinion at least. Though he says his previous job had been cooler before the accident. You texted him back before closing the phone.

“You should really pay attention to your job but if you really want something good. Luffy choked on a piece of food today and Vivi had to give him the hemilich maneuver. It was a real sight I have all on video.”  

You sent the text and closed your phone again only for it to vibrate. The message highlighted with a laughing emoji making you smile as you place the phone on your lap. Closing your eyes as you listen to the background noise of the tv.

You were awoken by the sensation of someone putting a blanket over you blinking your eyes open sleepily. The blurry image above you stopped before continuing and backing away as you drifted back off to sleep cuddling close down into the soft material. The sounds of chatting is what finally woke you up this time around.

They were soft almost trying not to wake up or anyone else who was still asleep. The room was dark when your eyes opened, the only light coming from that of the kitchen and even that was dimmed. You could barely make out the voices but there was definitely more than one. Pulling your arm upward you realize that it had actually been covered by a blanket. Your brows furrowed at how it got there, as your hand finally landed on your phone. The screen lit up showing the time it was half past 9 p.m. making you groan.

You had missed dinner, the sudden grumbling of your stomach reminding you of it’s emptiness. “Thanks, stomach.” You mumbled as you looked around you to still see everyone was still asleep. Chopper had moved over so he wasn’t on top of you, but Vivi and Luffy were now cuddling up one another in their sleep. The sight made you smile as Luffy’s soft snores were let out against Vivi’s neck. The voices broke through your train of thought again as a sharp “No” was admitted.

Curious but not wanting to be nosy you carefully untangled yourself from the pile. You walked towards the kitchen quietly as the voices became more distinct. The soft tremor of Ace’s voice was heard as he hissed at the slightly higher one of Sabo. Were they fighting? You thought which would be odd because they almost never fought unless it was over something serious. Over the few months you had known them you had only seen it twice. So whatever they were disagreeing on must be rather important or personal perhaps.

“You such an idiot you know that right?” Sabo said.

Peeking around the corner you could barely make out their appearances through the doorway which was blocked by the door being half way closed.

“It’s nothin’ I’m an dult I can do wha- I wannnt.” Ace said his words sounding muffled.

You frowned as Sabo sighed making you wonder if Ace was actually drunk and Sabo was trying to hide it.

A sound of shuffling could be heard as someone started walking. “Ace, come on you’ve had enough of tha-.” Sabo words were cut off as the shattering of glass echoed through the otherwise quiet house. The noise alone startled you momentarily before you decided to make your presence known.

You pushed the door open into the kitchen and the sight that greeted you was rather amusing. Sabo was hitting Ace upside the head while the freckled man pouted. He was gazing down at the red liquid splashed across the title flooring.

Sabo looked up at you and sighed. “(Name) could you hand me the mop and broom it’s in the closet across the hallway”. He pointed behind back the way you had come.

“Ugh, yeah sure are you guys alright?” You questioned.

Sabo just nodded not really akwoldging  you as he hauled Ace by the sleeve of his shirt and put him into a seat at the breakfast bar.

You walked to the closet and opened the door it was dark inside but you didn’t need to see where the objects were. Grabbing them you closed the door and headed back into the kitchen where Sabo was staring at Ace in frustration.

You looked over at him he was leaned over the counter his forehead laying against the wooden surface.

“Here.”

Sabo sighed and reached out for them as you placed them in his grasp.

“Is he alright?” You asked unsure.

“He will be but it really isn’t anything new he is like this every year.” He said as he began sweeping up the glass.

You bit your lip as you stood there wondering what you should do. You wanted to be helpful but it seemed like a private matter that Sabo could easily take care off.

“If you want you can put him in his bed,” Sabo spoke without looking at you as he dumped the glass into the trash bin.

You looked at him and blinked as if you weren’t expecting him to answer your worries. Walking forward you stood next to the man who was groaning softly into his chest. Gently placing your hand on his shoulder to not startle him you also opened you mouth to talk.

“Ace.”

He groaned again as if acknowledging you.

“Come on let’s get you to bed, alright?” You said as he got up without a fuss.

....

Once inside his room you guided him slowly to the bed as all his dead weight was laid on top of you. It was extremely uncomfortable but you bared it as you mostly threw him onto the twin size bed. He landed awkwardly on his face as the mattress squeaked under the pressure. You sighed at the sad sight as you picked up his feet and hauled him into the bed. You weren’t going to baby him or be gentle.

Ace mumbled from where his face was planted in the maroon sheets. You rolled your eyes and shoved at his shoulder hard enough to move him slightly to were yup could hear him speak.

“I’m fine (Name) you can just go.” He said with no heat behind it.

You huffed and crossed your arms in annoyance at his statement.

“I’m not going until you get into bed Ace.”

The man just sighed as heaved himself upward and began shimmering his way out of his work pants. His button down followed surely until he left in a a plain undershirt and his boxers. The sight alone made your cheeks redden as you quickly hid your face into your hands.

“Well, are you happy?” He asked as he pulled his comforter around his body.

“Y-yes! I’ll be going now, I'll see you tomorrow!” You said your voice went a pitch higher as you left the room shutting the door behind you.

As soon as you left the room you groaned as you leaned your head back against his door. Well that just happened even though nothing actually occurred just him taking off his clothes to sleep. Patting your flaming cheeks to come yourself you stepped away from the door. Only to hesitate as you looked at the door as concern took over.  As you ponder about what exactly could have him so uneasy and so unlike the man you knew.