#stuck with two parent figures who can't cook for shit

[lunarsilkscreen]

Food Wars! - Transforming Furikake Rice

Why did Erina fail Sohma outright, and Why did her Grandfather overturn that ruling?

The show portrays this as simply being "so unfathomably delicious, there was no choice.

...And Erina is just a stuck-up lying b*".

The characters in the show are being portrayed as being chefs with cooking experience equivalent to their character's age. So we must understand that each one has the ability to differentiate exactly how a dish was prepared, and what ingredients were used.

So why did Nakiri fail Yukihira on the spot?

First; we must remember that she went into the test as an agent to fail every potential transfer student with absolutely no way of changing her mind. Second; we must understand that she was so used to tasting some of the best dishes the world has to offer, that her standards may have been too high to proctor this test. That's not her fault; it's a product of her upbringing. And her parents didn't exactly work to help teach her that, just sort of figuring she would learn it herself. (Which she eventually does.)

Third, she literally spent the duration of the test before Yukihira showed up eating dishes that she described as Tasting "like being hit in the head with a jukebox." And "like bathing with a Westland Gorilla". Remember she had been doing this all day, and the students just now arriving also know that their entire career may be over if somebody with her clout cancels them.

And up comes this random a* chef with no clout, the first person to not recognize her in as long as she can remember. And what she feels is pity; she's worried for *him* because she's probably ruined many chef's careers and family owned diners and businesses.

She's probably seen it happen. What she doesn't want; is to keep doing that. But her she is; forced to protect her image and Tohtski Academy's image. And she has no choice but to ruin this man's whole career.

Poor guy.

And after all that, he prepared a rudimentary dish of Scrambled Eggs over Rice. He could've taken all the time in the world, and prepared *any* dish he wanted. *PLUS* IT'S NOT EVEN MORNING. WHO MAKES BREAKFAST THIS LATE IN THE DAY!?

To her; he wasn't even taking the entrance exam seriously. This demeanor told her what she needed to know; if he can't muster up enough enthusiasm to take *this* seriously, why would he take an education at Tohtski seriously?

And then she tasted his dish after being stuck in that negative mindset, and the dish Yukihira assaulted her senses exactly like the aforementioned dishes. But with that "Yukihira Signature Flair".

There wasn't even time for her to take in the smells of the food being prepared; he was so fast at preparing this dish, she didn't even see the amount of work he had put into it.

It takes gelatin 2-4 hours to set. This a*h* prepared a flavorful bone broth and turned it into jello in less than 30 minutes? As far as she knew; he pulled some random shit out of his back pocket.

In her mind; this was a defense mechanism. There's literally*NO WAY* that she knew of to prepare such a flavorful dish in such a short period of time. ESPECIALLY NOT A UMAMI SAVORY GELATO FROM SCRATCH.

He must've cheated. There's no other way. It was good, but this kid's demeanor, the time spent, everything didn't quite add up in a way that, even her experience could understand.

Remember; she literally knows thousands of dishes and preparation methods she had been training since she was born. AND THIS F* DID SOMETHING SO FAR OFF-META SHE COULDNT UNDERSTAND WHAT WAS HAPPENING.

He did cheat; by the way. But in a legal way. This is why Erina's Grandfather was watching the test take place. Just for something, anything that she could have overlooked.

Her grading and analysis were spot on by ANY STANDARD SHE OR THE ACADEMY KNEW OF.

But her Grandfather was watching Soma from behind, and watched exactly what he did and how he prepared everything. And seeing that, he tasted the dish and understood two things;

Why Erina failed him, AND why Soma deserved entry into Tohtski Academy.

The dish literally defied logic.

[natedogx15]

Kamen Rider Deku Mission 13: The Leaks

Previous Chapter / AO3 / Master List

Katsuki is sitting at his table, staring at the food his mother cooked with an irritated expression.

"Hey, brat, do you have a problem with my damn cooking?" Mitsuki asks her son in annoyance as she sees him staring at his food discontentedly.

"Shut up, Old Hag! It's fine. I'm thinking about something else!" Katsuki snaps at her before taking a bite of his food.

"What's troubling you, son?" Masaru asks from his position across from Katsuki, next to Mitsuki.

"Don't worry about it, Old Man." Katsuki snaps at him before taking another forceful bite of his food.

"Don't yell at your father like that!" Mitsuki snaps back at the boy while Masaru lets out a sigh.

"Shut up, Old Hag. I'm fine and can yell if I want!" Katsuki snaps at the older woman with a glare.

That gets a couple of chopsticks thrown at his head by Mitsuki, who gives her son a withering glare.

"Like hell, you can do what you want! This isn't your damn house. Now tell your father what's bothering you." She orders her son while pointing at Masaru.

Katsuki growls at his mother before turning to his father with an annoyed expression.

"I'm just thinking about something that happened during my damn Early Hero program!" Katsuki finally tells his father through gritted teeth.

"Is everything going okay?" Masaru asks in worry.

 Even Mitsuki's eyes soften as she stares at her son in worry when Masaru asks this.

"It's fine! Deku and Pompadour just keep getting in my damn way!" Katsuki shouts at his parents, not liking the looks of worry they're giving him.

Upon realizing where this conversation is going, Mitsuki lets out an annoyed sigh and rubs her temples while Masaru releases a nervous chuckle.

"Well, it can't be helped. You'll have to work with others as a hero. It's part of the job, after all." Masaru tells him as he tries to soothe his son's annoyance.

"I don't need any help! I'm the strongest! Those idiots will just keep getting in my way! The idiots lost to a Nomu because they didn't let me do anything!" Katsuki snaps at them.

"Well, why didn't you do shit then? If they're so incompetent, why didn't you do anything?! How did they stop you, huh!?" Mitsuki asks her son aggressively, having enough of this attitude.

"Because they fucking froze my armor! I was stuck lying on the ground like a damn statue while the bastards fought the Nomu. Then Deku couldn't fucking figure out how to fix me when I ordered him to!" Katsuki snaps at his mom.

"Alright, let's calm down, you two. There's no need to fight." Masaru tries to calm the growing tension between mother and son while nervously raising a hand.

However, Mitsuki lets out a laugh when she hears Katsuki's words.

"If you're so much better than them. How did you get into that situation in the first place? It sounds like they took your ass down a peg. How did that feel?" Mitsuki asks her son with a grin.

Katsuki growls at her son as Masaru tries to calm the two down. Finally, Katsuki slams his hands onto the table and walks out the front door.

"Hey! Get your ass back here and finish your breakfast, brat! You need to eat properly, especially in the mornings!" Mistuki shouts toward her son as he heads toward the door.

"I'll eat something later!" Katsuki snaps at his mom before shutting the door.

"Damn, brat. Where does he get his attitude from?" Mitsuki growls as she crosses her arms.

Masaru sweatdrops at this before sighing and putting a comforting hand on his wife's shoulder.

"Let's let him be this time, honey. It seems like something happened a couple of days ago. Maybe we should give him some space. Then we can try getting him to open up about what happened." Masaru tells Mitsuki in a light tone.

Mitsuki looks toward her husband with a glare before her eyes soften, and she leans into him.

"Alright. We'll let the brat do his own thing for a bit. But he better eat properly and tell us what's wrong with him soon." Mitsuki says this last bit with a slight growl.

Masaru gives his wife a nervous look before letting out a chuckle.

"Another day in the Bakugou household." He thinks with a smile.

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

Izuku is currently eating with his family at the table.

"Are you doing better, Izuku?" Inko asks with a worried expression, one mirrored by her husband.

Izuku smiles at them before saying.

"Yes, I'm feeling better. Mr. Toshinori gave Hikage and me a speech about what it means to be a hero. It's giving me a lot to think about." Izuku says as he looks at his food.

"Just remember that we're here if you need to talk," Hisashi tells him with a kind smile.

When Izuku hears this, he pauses before biting his lip.

"Actually, there is something," Izuku says while looking at his parents.

"What is it?" Inko asks.

"I've been noticing different things that I didn't before about heroes after I started being a Kamen Rider," Izuku says nervously.

 Hisashi's eyes flash in realization before silently letting Izuku continue.

"Things like how much the public view can change in an instant, how they can get in the way of the heroes when they crowd around, and other things," Izuku explains as tears build in his eyes.

As his parents hear this, Inko gives her son a worried look while Hisashi nods in understanding.

"Then Mr. Toshinori explained how even All Might can't save everyone sometimes." Izuku finishes listing everything before looking toward his parents.

"Oh, Izuku." Inko gives her son a sad look as tears build in her eyes, too.

Hisashi doesn't say anything for a fair minute before sighing and giving his son a sad look.

"Do you want to quit?" Hisashi asks his son.

Izuku looks at his father in surprise before looking toward his food.

"I don't know. I don't think I want to quit. It's just a lot different from what I imagined." Izuku explains to him.

"I understand what you're going through. It's something brand-new sidekicks, heroes, and even a few students go through. You're getting a look at what hero work is like behind all the glamour." Hisashi explains to his son.

Izuku looks toward his father curiously.

"You're seeing firsthand what it's like to be a hero and what they go through. That's giving you a new perspective on things. You start to notice how dangerous it is to have people watching despite popularity being a big part of being a hero now and how much pressure they can put on the heroes while they're fighting." Hisashi continues his explanation, with Izuku's eyes widening as he's talking.

Izuku looks toward the table while thinking deeply as he hears his father's words. Hisashi lets him and pauses his speech so Izuku can better digest this information.

"I never noticed before." Izuku finally says while looking back up toward his father.

"Naturally. In this day and age, being a hero is like being a performer putting on a show. It's so ingrained in today's society that nobody pays attention to details such as this. I'm sure the only reason you're noticing now is the guilt you feel for failing to protect someone." Hisashi states sadly.

Izuku winches at that reminder before realizing his father's right.

"Don't worry, people often don't notice contradictions like this until they're affected by it. Heroes are around to protect the people, but the people can make it harder by staying to watch them. Not to mention, heroes often compete to grab the crowd's attention to better their standings in the hero rankings. It's a flawed system for protecting people if you ask me. But that's today's society. Maybe you'll be able to change that one day." Hisashi says while giving his son a cheerful smile to try and lift Izuku's spirits.

"I don't know." Izuku awkwardly says as he rubs the back of his head.

"I know a few heroes are already advocating for civilians to evacuate from the area where there's a fight for their safety. Maybe you can join them." Hisashi tells him.

"It's not like anyone would listen to me, especially with what happened on Hero News." Izuku sighs as he slumps in his seat slightly.

"Don't be like that. You had a good idea of trying to capture the Nomu so we could get more information from them. You just picked the wrong time to execute it. You can try again on a Nomu less likely to escape." Hisashi tries to bring his son's mood up.

Inko watches this exchange with a look of uncertainty. She isn't sure how she feels about her son continuing to be a hero with how he's been acting lately.

"Do you think that would work? What if that Nomu who attacked us before shows up?" Izuku asks in worry.

Hisashi muses over his words before nodding.

"That's a good point. There's something suspicious about that one you described. I feel like he may be an important figure in this." Hisashi tells him.

"You think so?" Izuku asks.

"Yeah. They seemed stronger than the others and did clean-up work on that Nomu you defeated." Hisashi nods before putting a hand to his chin as he thinks.

"But they left Ichibangase and the other Nomu alone after their defeats. Why would they bother going after that one?" Izuku asks in confusion.

"I don't know. There's nothing out of place about the guy you saved. He was a construction worker at Deika City. That's about it." Hisashi shrugs.

"Deika City?" Izuku questions, feeling like he's heard that name before.

"It's where the tourist who died is from." Hisashi elaborates.

"Isn't that weird?" Izuku asks him as his face scrunches up in thought.

"Not really. Deika City is in the Aichi Prefecture. So, it's pretty close to us. Musutafu is also a pretty big city. So, we can get a lot of tourists. It's not as strange as you might think. Even that teen you found with him is from Deika City." Hisashi adds with a shrug.

"Do you know what he was doing there?" Izuku asks.

"Chairman Hikage sent a notice for the heroes and police in Deika City to investigate. Apparently, there were a few missing person reports from Deika City. Likely, they were kidnapped by the Nomu to use as bait so you and the other Kamen Riders would fall into his traps. At least, that's what the police and heroes are assuming." Hisashi explains.

"Does that mean they've moved to Deika City?" Izuku asks.

"Possibly. At least for finding customers. However, with a portal Quirk user on their side, it's hard to say where they are. Luckily, they still seem to be focusing on hunting you three down. So, we'll at least know where they'll be and what they want." Hisashi grins, not noticing the death glare Inko is giving him as he says that last part until she frostily asks.

"And how is it lucky that these people are hunting our son, Hisashi?"

Hearing his wife's tone, Hisashi clams up and sweats profusely while Izuku gives his mom a nervous look.

"I-I mean. Of course, that isn't good, honey. I'm just saying it could be a lot worse. We can at least somewhat predict what they'll do when it's like this." Hisashi quickly tries to backtrack and explain to avoid his wife's wrath as she stares at him with half-lidded eyes to go with her frosty tone.

Inko continues that stare for a few more seconds before smiling and returning to her food, but not before pointing toward Izuku's food and telling him to eat, causing the teen to nod rapidly and start eating quicker.

"I'm in trouble." Hisashi winches before sighing.

Their time together is interrupted by the ringing of the doorbell and something being slipped through their door's mail slot.

"It's not time for the mail yet," Inko says in surprise.

"Oh, that's for me. I had Hikage send me some documents relating to the Nomu. You know, who been one, their files, what power they got, the victims of them, etc." Hisashi shrugs as he gets out of his seat and goes to grab the documents.

"I should probably get going if I want to make it to school. Thank you for the food, Mom. Bye." Izuku says as he quickly grabs his bag and heads past his returning dad toward the door.

"See ya later, Izuku," Hisashi says absently as he opens one of the envelopes to look through its contents and see it's about Overdrive Nomu.

"Bye," Izuku says as he closes the door behind him.

When Hisashi sits back down to look at the files, Inko puts a hand over them, causing him to look toward her in confusion.

"Is something wrong, dear?" Hisashi asks as he sees the worried look on Inko's face.

"Can we talk about Izuku for a bit now that he's gone?" Inko asks.

"Sure. What's on your mind? Do you want to try and get him to stop?" Hisashi asks his wife, causing her to winch slightly at how easily he reads her.

"We've been married for twenty years, dear. I know I usually have gears on the brain, but I can think of other things. Besides, we've been married for over twenty years. If I couldn't figure out what you're thinking after all this time, I'd be a terrible husband." Hisashi tells her with a playful grin.

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

Sitting in his office is Re-Destro, holding the Proto Driver. Ever since he got the items from Giran, he'd inspected them over a dozen times each.

"Fascinating devices. If only we could figure out how they're made." He says while scanning it.

His window is suddenly broken open, causing him to turn around to see who did it, despite having a good idea already.

"Geten, must you always come in through my windows when I ask you to meet me?" Re-Destro asks while rubbing his temples.

The person who came in is short with light skin. However, that's the only identifiable feature relating to their body. The person is clad in a thick light blue button-up parka that falls below his knees with a fur-lined hood, black baggy sports pants, and tanned laced-up snow boots that reach the middle of their shins. The person wears their hood at an angle where their face is shadowed, making it hard for anyone to see their face.

"Sorry, Grand Commander. What is it you need from me?" The intruder asks in a low, flat, ominous tone that doesn't give anything about them away other than they may be male due to the deepness related to their voice.

"We were given a new set of devices from our mysterious benefactors. I wanted you to take a look at this specifically." Re-Destro says as he shows Geten the Proto Driver.

Geten takes the device and stares at it for a few seconds before looking at Re-Destro.

"What is it?" Geten asks in confusion.

"It's a device to help strengthen any Nomu our group creates. They gave it to us as an apology for failing to help a few of our warriors." Re-Destro explains to Geten.

"I better not let Geten get word about what's been happening with the Nomu. He's one of the Army's more extreme and zealous members. It could risk too much if he tries anything in retaliation right now. Especially since All Might is still around and going strong." Re-Destro thinks as he watches Geten re-examine the device after his words.

"Interesting," Geten says as he examines the Proto Driver.

"You know most of our stronger members. I'd like you to find a suitable wielder for us to test it on. But don't use it yourself until it's been properly tested. Is that clear, Geten? We don't know enough about it to risk you. You're the future of this organization." Re-Destro tells him with a smile.

"As you wish, Grand Commander. I'll find someone decent to have test this." Geten says with a slight bow.

"Good. Be sure you let me know who you gave it to and their Meta Ability so the executives and I can decide what else to give them." Re-Destro orders, causing Geten to nod again before silently exiting the office through the broken window.

"You know, I would have quelled his need to show off his abilities while I trained him if I knew it would end with him constantly coming in through my windows by flying with his Meta Ability," Re-Destro mutters as he rubs his temples in annoyance before hitting his desk's intercom.

"Hase, can you please send the usual people who fix my office window?" Re=Destro asks.

"Right away, sir. I'll get the Geten Squad up there soon." A male voice says in a joking manner.

Re-Destro rubs his temples but has a slightly amused smile under his annoyed movements.

"It's sad that I have a whole squad prepared for the after-effects of Geten's entrances," Re-Destro says before getting a call.

"What?" Re-Destro asks in a slightly tired tone.

"Just get out of a meeting with Geten?" An older male voice asks over the phone.

"Yes. I gave him the Proto Driver and asked him to find a suitable first wielder for us while you choose the next Nomu." Re-Destro explains.

"I think I've found someone who can work against the Kamen Riders. I'm giving them the Burrow Coin we have. Is that alright?" The man asks calmly.

"Of course. I have no plans for that one yet." Re-Destro

"This next one will be a tricky opponent for them. She'll be able to hit them while they won't be able to hit her." The man says confidently before ending the call.

"That should be interesting. Hopefully, they'll be able to handle the other Nomu as well." Re-Destro says as he puts the phone down.

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

On the other end of the phone call, a rather tall man with light skin, long, slicked-back black hair, a slight mustache, and dark blue eyes that look feminine behind purple-tinted golden-framed glasses puts his phone in his pocket. Like Curious and Re-Destro, the man is dressed formally with a white undershirt, black tie, and black blazer.

Currently, he's riding inside of a limo.

After putting his phone away, the man pulls out a Nomu Coin with a grey symbol of a drill burrowing into the ground.

"Glad to see the Grand Commander didn't plan to use this one yet. It should work wonderfully with you." The man says as he turns his attention to the other occupant of the limo other than the driver.

The person in question can only be described as a human Venus flytrap. Protruding from their shoulders are the mouth halves of a Venus flytrap. On the front side of each half is a brown eye. In contrast to their head, their skin is pale, and their body parts are thin, indicating they may be female. The person wears a yellow blouse, light blue jeans, and green ballerina flats.

"Are you sure I should be the one to use this, Commander Trumpet?" The person asks nervously, their Venus flytrap mouth head moving like a regular mouth in a feminine tone.

"Of course. You're one of our causes' most talented warriors, Kimura." The now-named Trumpet tells her with a kind smile.

After he says that, he could have sworn he saw Kimura's head blush under her eyes.

"Thank you, Commander Trumpet. I can't wait for our movement to go through. It'll likely improve the discrimination against people with Mutation Meta Abilities like me." Kimura says excitedly as she clasps her hands together.

Trumpet returns her enthusiasm with his welcoming smile before saying.

"I'm sure. And you may be one of the leading figures toward that if you can complete this mission." Trumpet tells her kindly.

Hearing this causes Kimura to move around in her seat, imagining herself on talk shows, at extravagant charity events, etc.

"Someone's thinking big." Trumpet laughs as he watches her fidget.

"S-sorry." She quickly apologizes when she realizes she's been caught dozing off.

"It's fine. Dream big, as they say. You think I or any of the other executives didn't dream big when we started our careers?" Trumpet asks her in amusement.

Kimura rubs the back of her head while Trumpet gives her the Burrow Nomu Coin.

"Use this to beat the Kamen Riders and claim their Drivers. If you do that, the chances of our cause succeeding grow." Trumpet tells her before handing one of the inhalers to her as well.

"Um..." Kimura says as she awkwardly holds the inhaler and looks toward Trumpet in what he can only assume is her version of a confused expression.

"Just try shooting it down your throat if you don't get a head more fitting to use that." Trumpet says while being very careful about his words to ensure he doesn't anger or sadden her.

Kimura nods before putting the two items in the purse next to her. As she does this, Trumpet signals the limo driver to park somewhere to let Kimura out. Which they quickly follow.

Once Kimura exits, Trumpet rolls down his window and smiles at her.

"Do be careful while you're out there." Trumpet says finally before rolling the window back up and having the limo drive off.

Kimura watches one of her bosses leave for a second before walking off herself. While walking, she notices the sideways glances and wide berth people give her. She doesn't react to it beyond a sigh and pretends she doesn't see it.

"It's okay, Kaho. Soon, things will change once everyone can use their Meta Abilities. When everyone can use their abilities as much as they want, we won't look out of place." Kimura thinks as she looks for a secluded spot where she can use the Nomu Coin.

She soon finds one in an alleyway and takes out the Nomu Coin.

"Here goes nothing." She thinks.

Taking a deep breath, Kimura places the Nomu Coin on her shoulder. She quickly feels whatever is in it entering her body and feels like she's not in her own body as she transforms.

When the transformation is complete, Kimura's Nomu form takes on a far different form.

Her Venus flytrap jaw is now metallic with drill-like ends on the teeth; she grows and becomes more muscular and gains a forest green tint and some metallic bits on the chest, arms, and legs. Over her legs are a pair of black pants. However, the most curious trait of her form is that the exposed brain the Nomus usually have is in the center of her chest.

"Woah. This is incredible. I feel like a completely different person. With this strength, I can definitely help lead us into a better future." Kimura says happily as she tightens her hands into fists a couple of times while trying to get used to her body.

After a few seconds, Kimura decides to test her new ability by having her Venus flytrap head spin like an actual drill. Then she has her limbs. Then, her whole body. After she finishes testing to see how her new power works, she jumps into the air and spins her body again before diving toward the ground. The momentum from her rapid spinning causes her to drill into the ground.

"This is amazing. I'm not feeling sick and can feel where I'm going. This will make using my Quirk much more effective." Kimura thinks in shock as she drills through the ground.

After thinking about this, holes start opening up on the skin of her back, and seeds pop out of her body.

"Now, to provide my babies a way out when they grow." Kimura thinks as she aims her spinning body back toward the surface and drills out of the tunnel she made.

Like a fish, she flies out of the ground before drilling back into it as though it were water. When she does, she goes through a car and causes the people around it to panic. Hearing the screams, two patroling heroes rush toward the scene.

"What's happening?" One of the two ninja-dressed heroes asks a panicking civilian.

"Some kind of villain just drilled through someone's car and went back into the ground!" The civilian shouts at them in fear.

"Leave it to us." The other ninja hero tells the civilian before the two rush past him and other civilians toward the hole in the ground that Kimura came out of and where she re-entered the Earth.

"Careful, brother. The villain could pop up from anywhere if they're tunneling underground." Ninja One warns his partner while pulling out some shuriken as he inspects one of the holes.

"Roger." Ninja Two nods as they pull out the katana on their back and prepare for anything while keeping an eye on the other hole.

Suddenly, Ninja Two hears sounds from the hole he's watching and slowly inches toward it to peek inside.

"Something's happening in this tunnel." Ninja Two warns his partner as he nears the tunnel.

Hearing this, Ninja One quickly rushes to Ninja Two's side and readies his weapon to back Ninja Two up.

The two heroes tense as the sounds in the tunnel get louder as the seconds pass. Soon, it seems like whatever's coming is right on top of them, and the two heroes jump back while preparing to attack.

Soon, a vine extends out of the tunnel toward the heroes.

"A vine?" Ninja Two questions as he watches it slowly crawl toward them.

Not wanting to take any chances, Ninja One throws a shuriken at the vine and cuts it in half. However, that might not have been the best idea. As soon as Ninja One cuts the vine, a terrifying screech can be heard in the tunnel, causing the heroes to jump away from the tunnel in a panic.

"What was that!?" Ninja Two asks as he tightly grips his blade while nervously sweating.

"I might have made a mistake attacking preemptively." Ninja One says nervously as he pulls out more shuriken until he has one between all his fingers on both hands while backing away from the tunnel.

However, he soon finds something brush against his leg and looks down to see another vine trying to wrap around his leg. When he sees that, he instinctively throws another shuriken at it and jumps in the air. The weapon cuts the vine and causes another scream, and the heroes to stand back-to-back while preparing for whatever happens.

Out of the first tunnel appears a green plant-like hand. Ninja Two watches as it pulls the owner's body out of the tunnel and comes face-to-face with a being that looks similar to Kimura before her transformation. It's a plant-like being with the head of a Venus flytrap. The only difference from Kimura is the completely green, muscular-looking body.

Soon, another being just like that crawls out of the other tunnel in front of Ninja One. Then, more begin to crawl out of both tunnel holes, causing the two heroes to become nervous.

"We need to keep moving if we want to have a chance of not getting overwhelmed." Ninja One tells his partner, causing Ninja Two to nod and for them to break away and run in separate directions while using their weapons to fight the plant creatures.

Ninja One uses his shuriken to take potshots at different plant creatures while trying to keep moving. At the same time, Ninja Two uses his sword to cut them while trying to keep at a distance where they can't hit him back. Their weapons seem to work on Plant Nomu's minions, but they're not actually defeating many of them, only injuring the minions. Those injuries seem to be healing, though. They keep at this for a little while until Ninja One notices something. Some of the plant monsters are heading toward any lingering civilians.

Moving quickly, Ninja One throws his shuriken at the creatures, trying to get between them and the civilians as he does so.

Luckily, the ninja duo have similar Quirks that enhance their physical capabilities, though aimed toward their speed and agility more than anything else. So, cutting between the creatures and the civilians is easier for them than for most heroes. With this, Ninja One can grab the civilians and put them at a safer distance from the battle.

"Please keep back. There are so many of these guys that we can't guarantee your safety if you're not careful." Ninja One warns the civilian as he sets him down.

"R-right. Thank you, hero." The civilian thanks him before running off.

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

In Izuku and Shiki's class, at the same time, they're currently trying to figure out an algebra question as a class. However, their time is cut short by a sudden alarm, followed by an intercom turning on.

"Attention students and staff. There is a possible city-wide villain attack happening right now involving one of the Nomu. Due to this, our school will be under lockdown until the heroes have handled the problem. Please remain in your classrooms unless told otherwise." The principal says over the intercom before cutting the call.

Hearing this, the students begin to chat amongst themselves anxiously as they wonder if everything will be okay. The teacher quickly takes the initiative when he sees this.

"Please remain calm, everyone. The principal said it was a possible villain attack. There's nothing concrete yet. I'm sure everything will be taken care of, and you'll all be able to go home at the end of the day, like normal." The teacher tells his students to try and ease their worries.

His words don't seem to resonate fully with the class, though. Students are still looking out the window curiously, annoyedly, fearfully, and chatting amongst themselves while trying to figure out what's happening. As the rest of the class does this, Izuku and Shiki are internally panicking because they realize they may not be able to get out of class to help due to the lockdown.

"What are we going to do? We can't leave during a lockdown! If we don't leave soon, something bad could happen?" Izuku internally panics as a chibi version of him runs in circles in his head.

"What kind of Nomu calls for a city-wide attack warning? We've got to get out of here and help before it's too late. Should I rush out of the room and hope they can't catch me? I might have to." Shiki thinks as he side-eyes the door while considering the idea.

Sero is looking toward the two Kamen Riders with equal nervousness.

"This could be bad." He thinks

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

Katsuki has no such trouble leaving his school. He was in the bathroom when a similar announcement happened. When he hears it, he quickly exits the bathroom and rushes toward the front door with a savage grin.

However, someone catches his sprint toward the door right as he exits the front.

"Hey, kid! Didn't you hear the announcement?! Get back to your class now!" The teacher demands Katsuki as he chases after the teen.

Katsuki doesn't listen to him and continues running off the school grounds to find Slidin' Go and get his Hero Driver. The staff member chases after him but can't keep up with the athletic teen. He soon doesn't have to worry about it, though, as a hero arrives at the school that'll solve both their problems.

"Sir, that student is trying to run off while we're under lockdown!" The staff member shouts toward the approaching hero.

"Not to worry, I can handle this." The hero says cheerily, revealing himself to be Slidin' Go.

Slidin' Go slides over to Katsuki and puts a hand on his shoulder while grinning at the staff member.

"Not to worry, sir. This one is my apprentice. He was probably leaving to try and help me. Don't worry; I can handle it from here. You go back and make sure none of your other students get out while I handle this one." Slidin' Go explains confidently while keeping a firm grip on Katsuki's shoulder.

The staff member seems hesitant before letting it happen since a hero tells him to. The staff member quickly runs back toward the school.

"That was dangerous, you know. You could have gotten in serious trouble if I wasn't here. You may have even gotten expelled depending on how strict your school is." Slidin' Go lightly chastises his pupil.

"Like hell, those fucking idiots will expel me. They want credit for me becoming a damn hero and won't get rid of me!" Katsuki snaps at Slidin' Go irritably.

Slidin' Go knows this to be the case, not just because of Katsuki's words but also from information that he knows that Katsuki doesn't. That is how Aldera High School is under the Meta Liberation Army's control, and they've been given specific orders to keep Katsuki under their care until further notice.

"I'm sure that's the case. But you still have to be careful with what you do. We'll worry about that later, though. This Nomu seems right up your alley. It's a plant-based one that's moving underground and creating plant monsters. We need to figure out where it is, and you need to take it down with your explosions." Slidin' Go states as he hands Katsuki his Hero Driver.

Hearing this, Katsuki grins and takes the Hero Driver while pulling out his Explosion Power Coin.

"Let's fucking do this! I'll show Deku and Pompadour that they can't look down on me!" Katsuki says this last part with seething rage, causing Slidin' Go to raise an eyebrow at him.

"I guess the events at the docks must have messed with him more than expected." Slidin' Go thinks as he watches Katsuki put the Explosion Power Coin in the Hero Driver and put it on.

"Explosion + Explosion, identical match!" The Hero Driver shouts as it analyses Katsuki's Quirk and the Quirk in the Power Coin.

Katsuki turns the key, and a chant starts up.

"BOOM, BANG, DESTROY WITH A BLAST, UNMATCHED EXPLOSION!" The Hero Driver screams with rock music playing in the background as Katsuki transforms.

Glowing orange particles surround Katsuki, and he transforms.

"KAMEN RIDER KING EXPLOSION MURDER!" The Hero Driver finishes.

With his transformation done, K.E.M. blasts into the sky to search for the villain or her minions.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Slidin' Go shouts after him before sliding off after his pupil.

In the air, K.E.M. desperately searches for anything related to the villain and continuously blasts. He soon sees one group of Plant Nomu's minions fighting against Kamui Woods.

Kamui Woods is having trouble dealing with these creatures since their bodies are made of small vines, and they can unravel their bodies to escape any of his capture attempts.

When K.E.M. sees these creatures, he immediately dive-bombs toward them and launches a powerful explosion when he gets close enough, blowing up a good chunk of the bunched-up monsters.

"W-woah!" Kamui Woods says in shock at the sudden appearance of the violent Kamen Rider and how he immediately destroyed a fair chunk of the plant creatures.

K.E.M. looks around for any stragglers and launches himself at the next set. As Slidin' Go said, his Quirk is highly effective against this Nomu. It's only taking one hit to take out these plant creatures. With this, he quickly takes care of the rest.

"Wow. I never thought I'd be happy to s-" Kamui Woods starts before K.E.M. flies off right as Slidin' Go arrives.

"Wait up!" Slidin' Go shouts before he prepares to chase after him again.

"He's not much of a team player, is he?" Kamui Woods says as he gives Slidin' Go a look of pity.

"True. But he's a great hero with a lot of potential. You'll see. He'll clean this mess up before the other Kamen Riders can do anything." Slidin' Go says before leaving to search for his student.

Kamui Woods watches him go for a second before deciding to follow along and search for any other plant creatures.

K.E.M. soon reaches another area full of plant monsters and quickly launches at them. He soon finishes them and lets the heroes fighting before him regroup before flying off again. He does this all while thinking.

"I'm not weak! I'm going to be the strongest and make those bastards pay for looking down on me! Deku, Pompadour, Psycho Squid, I'll show them why I'm destined to be the next number-one hero."

With these thoughts, his drive seems to increase, and it causes his power to rise. He moves faster with more strength behind his explosions as he charges toward the next group of plant creatures. He quickly starts destroying them while thinking.

"Those two will never surpass me! I don't need anyone's help. I have the best Quirk and am the best." K.E.M. thinks while sending a massive explosion into the ground that burns the surrounding creatures.

"I'll show them why I'm the best! I'll defeat any Nomu! I'll graduate at the top of my class! Then, I'll rapidly rise through the rankings until I'm the number one hero." K.E.M. thinks as he blasts off to find Plant Nomu or another group of plant monsters.

The longer and louder he thinks this, the more K.E.M. seems to improve like his words enhance his abilities through his natural talent.

However, this upward momentum can't last forever. What breaks his concentration is the sudden appearance of Plant Nomu as she launches out of the ground toward K.E.M. like a rocket while rapidly spinning. It's so sudden, and she comes at him so fast that K.E.M. doesn't have the chance to escape. He gets hit in the shoulder as he tries to dodge and crashes into the ground while Plant Nomu drills back into it to escape K.E.M.

K.E.M. quickly gets up and holds his injured shoulder while looking for Plant Nomu. When he notices that she's gone, he growls in frustration.

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

In their classroom, Izuku and Shiki still can't figure out how to leave before the intercom goes off.

"Can Midoriya Izuku and Hikage Shiki please come to my office?" The principal announces before ending the call without any form of explanation on why they're being called right now or if the lockdown is over.

The two look at each other for a second but aren't going to let this chance go. They quickly stand up and rush out of the room to see what's happening. They soon arrive in front of the principal's office to see Hisashi Midoriya standing outside with a slightly tense expression and a tapping foot. When he sees them rushing toward him, he grins and meets them halfway.

"Alright, I got you guys the okay to come with me back 'home' instead of staying here. This school's rather lax with security measures when it involves important figures." Hisashi says this last part proudly while pointing a thumb at himself.

"Thanks, Dad." Izuku grins while Shiki gives him a silent thumbs up, and they rush out of the school.

"So, how much time do you think has passed since the Nomu arrived, and we've been stuck in class?" Shiki asks.

"I don't know, but we have to hurry," Izuku replies as they pull out their Hero Drivers.

The two quickly use them to transform, and Izuku calls over the Plus Striker and pulls out its Unicorn Power Coin while Shiki pulls out his Fierce Wings Power Coin. The two put their respective Power Coins into the coin slots, and the Hero Drivers shout simultaneously.

"Fierce Wing Power Finish/Unicorn Mode!"

Deku gets on his transformed vehicle while Chamber takes to the sky for an aerial view similar to K.E.M. He soon notices something and flies toward the commotion, Deku trying to keep up with the Plus Striker.

Chamber arrives first and sees two tired-looking ninja heroes surrounded by plant creatures, with a few defeated ones on the ground already. Acting quickly, Chamber has his energy wings fire feathers of energy that cut through the plant creatures like a hot knife through butter, sending them to the ground in pain.

Chamber follows this by summoning the Ultra Magnum and firing at the plant creatures until he knows they're down. Afterward, he lands next to the injured heroes.

"Are you okay?" Chamber asks the two worriedly.

"Yes, thank you. We weren't sure how much longer we could hold them off. They just kept coming, and we were running low on equipment." Ninja Two explains, relief clear in his tone as he thanks Chamber.

As the three are talking, Deku finally arrives.

"Is everyone okay?" He asks worriedly when he sees the state of the ninja heroes.

The two quickly reconfirm this for Deku, and the group moves on.

"What's happening?" Deku asks urgently.

"Some villain has been creating plant creatures by burrowing into the ground. We don't know where they are. They could be anywhere if they're burrowing underground." Ninja One explains while pointing to the destroyed car where Plant Nomu had escaped.

"This could be a problem. It'll be hard to track them since my sonar ability will show everyone within its range, and I don't know if it'll work with them traveling underground unless the signal manages to go through the tunnel." Chamber mutters as he tries to think of a way to find the Nomu.

Deku becomes nervous when he hears this and starts brainstorming ways to find the Nomu. However, their thoughts are cut short by the sound of a distant explosion. The two turn their heads toward where the explosion came from, with a good idea of who's causing it but not why.

"Hopefully, that idiot is fighting the Nomu and not just being over-excessive against the plant monsters." Chamber sighs as he prepares to head toward wherever K.E.M. is to see what's happening.

"We should hurry," Deku says urgently before driving off to see what's happening.

Chamber quickly reactivates his Fierce Wings flight and chases after his partner from the sky.

The two rush toward the explosions and hear them getting louder as they get closer to K.E.M.'s location. Thanks to not having to follow the streets, Chamber is the first one to arrive and gets a view of what's happening from above.

Below him is K.E.M. trying to hit the Plant Nomu as she keeps diving back into the ground. As she re-enters the Earth, K.E.M. launches an explosive palm after her and creates a crater to match several others around him.

"Will you quit running, you damn coward!" K.E.M. explodes as he launches several more palm strikes to grow the crater.

He knows it's petty, but seeing K.E.M. struggle with this Nomu from above causes a slight smile from Shiki behind his helmet. He quickly shakes it off, though, and lands atop a roof to try and get a shot the next time Plant Nomu pops out. As he rests there, Deku rushes toward K.E.M.

"Are you okay, Kacchan?" Deku asks worriedly, angering K.E.M.

"Stay out of this Deku! I don't need you getting in the way!" K.E.M. snaps as he quickly hits the Plus Striker and causes Deku to crash onto the ground.

K.E.M. then stands above Deku and growls at him.

"Don't even think about using that power on me again, Deku." He warns the other Kamen Rider before refocusing on finding the Plant Nomu.

Deku nervously nods at his orders while staring up at him, and K.E.M. stalks off. He doesn't get very far, though, as Plant Nomu pops out of the ground and aims her fall directly toward the two.

Panicking, Deku rolls to the side while K.E.M. propels himself in the opposite direction to avoid Plant Nomu's attack. They manage to get out of the way in time, and Plant Nomu digs into the ground between them before K.E.M. can hit her with an explosive palm.

Seeing that he's failed to hit her again, Katsuki grinds his teeth behind his helmet and stomps his foot in frustration.

"Goddamnit! This worthless coward! She's looking down on me!" He shouts in frustration as he throws another explosive palm at the tunnel from Plant Nomu's escape.

Deku nervously watches him rage while trying to figure out what to do. As he is, he realizes Chamber is nowhere to be seen and looks around until he sees Chamber resting on the roof with the Ultra Magnum ready to fire the next time the Plant Nomu shows up.

"So, we have two people on the ground while Hikage is above, ready to shoot them." Deku analyzes in his head and tries to figure out how to use this setup.

"We need to figure out how to keep the Nomu from going underground after attacking us. Hikage might be able to do that by sniping them and causing them to lose momentum. Maybe I should wait to see if that works before doing anything." Deku thinks before hearing the sound of climbing.

He looks into the tunnel between him and K.E.M. and sees a new batch of plant creatures climbing out of it. He panics at the sight of them and is about to equip the Mighty Knuckle and Power Blade. However, he doesn't get the chance to because K.E.M. moves swiftly, delivering an explosion through the tunnel and burning any possible plant creatures inside.

"Damn pests." He growls after finishing off the plant creatures.

He then aims his head toward the sky and shouts.

"Quit sending these worthless insects out and fight me! You're wasting our time by trying to have these damn weeds take care of me! They can't do shit! Like their cowardly master!" K.E.M. screams into the air, hoping to goad a reaction out of the Nomu so they'll come out, and he may have a chance to hit them.

Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like Plant Nomu heard his words, or if she did, she's not reacting to them right away. This causes him to let out another frustrated growl, but he starts calming down and lowering his stance, raising his arms to his sides with his palms facing the direction where his arms are pointing.

"What's he doing?" Chamber questions as he watches K.E.M.'s movement.

Deku wonders the same thing while equipping the Mighty Knuckle and nervously looks around for Plant Nomu's next pop-out spot. As he's waiting, his helmet suddenly alerts him to the vibrations and sound of digging below them and coming closer.

"They're coming!" Deku shouts in panic as he looks toward the ground.

K.E.M. looks toward Deku in surprise before Plant Nomu jumps out and attacks K.E.M. again to try to get rid of him. As soon as she pops out, Chamber tries to shoot her while K.E.M. uses his explosions to propel himself to the side and completely evades her this time, thanks to Deku's warning. 

Despite his best efforts, none of Chamber's shots seem to hit Plant Nomu, and she manages to escape underground again. Luckily, the three Kamen Riders avoid getting hurt this time.

K.E.M. turns toward Deku with a growl as he realizes Deku helped him avoid that attack.

"Damn it, Deku! Stay out of this! I can handle this myself!" K.E.M. shouts at Deku as he walks toward the other Kamen Rider.

He doesn't get more than a couple of steps, though. Chamber fires warning shots close to K.E.M.'s feet before he can get too close to Deku.

K.E.M. glares up toward Chamber and is about to launch toward the other Kamen Rider before Slidin' Go appears.

"Finally. Do you know how hard it is to keep up with you?" Slidin' Go asks his protege with an exhausted expression.

He then notices the other Kamen Riders around and how K.E.M. seems like he's glaring toward Chamber.

"Woah, woah, woah. What's going on here?" Slidin' Go asks in confusion as he tries to calm the tension down.

"Deku and Pompadour are getting in my damn way," K.E.M. growls at his mentor.

"Even if they get in your way, you can't attack them in broad daylight while a villain is close. What's up with you? You've been acting weird ever since the docks." Slidin' Go asks his protege in worry.

"Nothing! Fuck off!" K.E.M. snaps at Slidin' Go as he glares at the hero.

Deku watches how K.E.M. asks and can't help but wonder.

"Did seeing people die affect him that much?" Deku wonders in his mind.

It's a concept foreign to Izuku. Bakugou Katsuki had been the pinnacle of self-confidence and talent when he was growing up. He still acted that way when Izuku first met him again after years. So, imagining that person shaken for any reason was a hard pill to swallow.

Slidin' Go closes the gap and gets into K.E.M.'s face while whispering, hoping no one can hear him. However, before he utters anything, Deku senses the Nomu coming again.

"They're coming again!" Deku shouts to alert the others.

Slidin' Go turns to him in confusion for a second before realizing he must be talking about the villain and quickly backs up while looking for them. While Slidin' Go is doing that, Deku's trying to figure out where specifically Plant Nomu will appear.

"They've kept going after Kacchan. So, they'll probably be going after him again this time." Deku thinks.

After thinking this, Deku waves to get Chamber's attention before quickly pointing toward K.E.M. Chamber is confused for a second before realizing what Deku might be trying to say and training his Ultra Magnum on K.E.M. As he does this, he pulls out the Dragonfly Power Coin and inserts it into the Ultra Magnum's coin slot.

"Dragonfly Power Finish!" The Hero Driver announces as dark blue energy builds in the Ultra Magnum's muzzle to signal the attack charging and ensuring Chamber's next shot will likely hit.

He couldn't have done it any sooner, too. Since Plant Nomu soon flies out of the ground toward K.E.M. When he sees Plant Nomu flying toward the other Kamen Rider, Chamber pulls the trigger and sends his finisher at her.

The bullet flies toward Plant Nomu and makes a zigzag motion to change its positioning to ensure it hits Plant Nomu this time. The shot soon lands dead-on and causes Plant Nomu to lose her momentum and crash onto the ground. Upon seeing the source of his recent irritation, other than the other Kamen Riders, down where he can finally hit her, K.E.M. propels himself toward her to attack.

He quickly slams his palms down, creating a massive explosion that engulfs Plant Nomu. The others around have to shield themselves from the force behind the attacks. When the smoke clears, it shows a struggling Plant Nomu trying to stand up despite her injuries while K.E.M. looms over her menacingly.

"Not so tough now that you can't run away, huh?" K.E.M. growls down at her as he prepares to attack again.

Plant Nomu panics as she sees the violent Kamen Rider above her.

"I need to get out of here. I need to escape and hide." She panics so much that she accidentally speaks her mind, angering K.E.M. more.

"You're not going anywhere, you damn salad." He growls as he throws another explosive palm at the Nomu.

The attack hits her side and causes Plant Nomu to fly backward near one of her tunnels.

"I-I have to get out of here. I-I h-have to succeed. If I don't; if I don't." She continues to mutter as she pulls her body toward the tunnel to try and escape. While doing this, she mentally begs any remaining children to help her, including the ones she just made for her most recent tunnel.

Those new plant creatures quickly climb out of the tunnel and rush toward K.E.M. to try and help Plant Nomu. They aren't getting far, though. Chamber is firing at them with the Ultra Magnum and trying to suppress them. He's doing a pretty good job as the bullets are spreading them, and they're coming out of a thin space. While Chamber is doing that, Deku tries to figure out whether stopping K.E.M. is a good idea this time.

"The Nomu's main ability is to tunnel through the ground. We might not be able to find her again if we're not careful. Maybe it would be best if we let this Nomu be defeated." Deku thinks as he watches K.E.M. charge toward Plant Nomu as she tries to escape.

However, while he thinks that, he still doesn't want to see K.E.M. go too far. With that in mind, Deku pulls out the Marsh Power Coin and inserts it into the Mighty Knuckle.

"Marsh Power Finish!" The Hero Driver announces as dark green energy builds around the Mighty Knuckle, and Deku slams it into the ground.

The ground around Plant Nomu suddenly bursts into a pillar of swampy water before trapping the Nomu in it so she can't escape. When K.E.M. sees this, he turns to Deku with a growl before Slidin' Go gets in his way.

"Isn't this great? Now you can defeat her, and we can end this." Slidin' Go tells him with a cheery grin while internally thinking.

"Please don't start a fight now because of your pride."

K.E.M. looks at Slidin' Go before growling, turning around, and delivering another powerful double explosion to finish Plant Nomu off. His attempt succeeds, and two of his Power Coins fly out to collect Kimura's Quirks. Katsuki glares at them and is about to blow them up like the others before he gets shot in the hand.

K.E.M. instinctively drops the Power Coins and grabs the hand shot. After shaking off the shock, K.E.M. glares toward Chamber.

Deku and Slidin' Go look shocked at this turn of events and constantly shift their gazes between Chamber and K.E.M., nervous at what might happen.

K.E.M. launches himself at Chamber angrily while the other Kamen Rider pulls out another Power Coin and inserts it into the Ultra Magnum's coin slot.

"Sonar Power Finish!" The Hero Driver announces as light blue energy builds in the Ultra Magnum's barrel before Chamber fires.

Instead of a bullet, the Ultra Magnum fires a soundwave toward the charging Kamen Rider. The attack slams into K.E.M. and sends him crashing into the ground. K.E.M. quickly recovers from the attack and is about to launch himself at Chamber again, but when he looks up, he sees the other Kamen Rider missing.

This annoys K.E.M. even more than usual since he's already sick of dealing with people who attack and then run. With a growl, he re-launches toward the rooftop and looks for where Chamber could have gone. However, Chamber isn't on the roof. K.E.M. instead sees Chamber in his chameleon form, picking up the two Power Coins he forced K.E.M. to drop.

Seeing where Chamber is, K.E.M. blasts toward the other Kamen Rider to try and dive-bomb him with a powerful explosion. However, Chamber vanishes before K.E.M. can hit him. Seeing that his attack missed Chamber, K.E.M. looks around for Chamber, but their fight is abruptly stopped by Deku and Slidin' Go getting in his way.

"Woah, woah, woah! Let's stop this here!" Slidin' Go tells K.E.M. in a panic while Deku looks for Chamber.

"Hi-Chamber, why did you attack Kacchan?" Deku asks in a panic as he looks for the other Kamen Rider.

Chamber quickly turns his camouflage off and walks toward the group, causing K.E.M. to get ready to launch at him again before being grabbed by Slidin' Go. Chamber holds up the Power Coins K.E.M. was about to destroy and says.

"I didn't want him to keep wasting resources. If he's only going to destroy them as soon as he gets them, then there's no point in him having them. The Hero Drivers are specifically designed to use different Quirks to handle various situations. Destroying them is stupid." Chamber bluntly explains as he looks toward K.E.M., who's growling at him.

"I don't need anyone else's useless Quirk! All I need to be the best is mine!" K.E.M. snaps at him angrily.

"Even if you don't use them, you shouldn't destroy them! It's better to have something and not need it over needing it and not having it!" Chamber snaps back.

K.E.M. growls, but Deku and Slidin' Go try to calm the situation before anything can get out of hand.

"Let's calm down for a second here. There's no need for anyone to fight here." Slidin' Go says nervously while trying to calm K.E.M. down. 

While he's doing this, Deku tries to get Chamber to calm down.

"Hi-Chamber. You have to calm down. We shouldn't be fighting each other. We're all on the same side." Deku tries to reason with the other Kamen Rider.

Chamber looks toward Deku, and Deku can feel the glare behind Chamber's helmet.

"Tell that to the one who acts like a mad dog off his chain. He's been antagonistic to us and put people at risk since he got his Driver. He literally went after you when he first got it." Chamber points out, annoyed that Deku might be taking K.E.M.'s side.

"I-I know. But we still have to work with him. We shouldn't fight with him if we don't have to." Deku nervously explains.

Chamber doesn't say anything to that. He only pulls out the Fierce Wings Power Coin and inserts it into his Hero Driver before activating his wings. Before he flies off, Chamber says one last thing to K.E.M.

"I'm not letting you have your way. You act like a spoiled brat trying to show off. Quit trying to play hero and realize you're putting a lot of innocent peoples' lives at risk with how you're acting." Chamber says before flying off.

"What the fuck did you say to me, Pompadour!? Come back here and say that again!" K.E.M. snaps in anger as he glares at the retreating Kamen Rider.

"Bakugou, calm down. Remember that you're on your last chance. You will get your Driver taken away if you do anything too reckless." Slidin' Go finally warns K.E.M. in an authoritative tone to get the explosive Kamen Rider to stop.

K.E.M. tightens his hands into fists and growls but doesn't try to chase after Chamber. Instead, he stomps off in the opposite direction, with Slidin' Go following him. Deku looks at the retreating forms of his allies and nervously thinks.

"What should I do?"

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

With Chamber, he lands in an alleyway and de-transforms. After changing back into Shiki, he looks at the Power Coins he all but stole from K.E.M. Before he can get a close look, though. He can hear flapping and something landing behind him. With a sigh, Shiki says.

"Hi, Hawks."

Turning around, Shiki sees the hero smiling at him.

"Yo, I saw what you did back there. A bit risky, don't you think?" He casually asks Shiki.

Shiki rolls his eyes at Hawks' tone and says.

"It's fine. I had everything under control. I didn't want him to keep wasting resources." Shiki explains while showing off the new Power Coins.

"Haha, you really don't like that guy, do you?" Hawks asks with a grin.

"Of course not." Shiki snaps at him slightly with a glare.

"Well, I told your grandfather about this, so you can probably expect a call in three, two, one." Hawks counts down, and when he hits one, Shiki's phone rings.

"Alright, I always wanted to do that." Hawks pumps his fist in happiness.

Shiki quickly answers his phone and hears his grandfather's voice.

"Shiki." His grandfather says calmly over the phone, not giving any of his feelings away.

His tone causes Shiki to become slightly nervous.

"Y-yes," Shiki asks with a slight stutter.

Fumihito sighs over the phone before saying.

"Please be careful when you antagonize people. That was dangerous." Fumihito tells him.

"I know, but I didn't want him to destroy any more Power Coins. Especially since these two seemed useful." Shiki explains anxiously.

"I understand that. However, you have to be careful not to make more enemies. You also have to maintain your image. That's part of being a hero." Fumihito calmly explains to his grandson in a scolding manner.

Shiki flinches at that, but before he can say anything, Fumihito goes on.

"That being said, good job securing the Power Coins. And nice job knocking his pride down a notch with that short battle." Fumihito compliments his grandson.

"Thanks." Shiki smiles.

"I'm happy to see you acting recklessly. It reminds me that you're still young. You tried to grow up quickly. Just be careful from now on, and don't make this a habit." Fumihito warns his grandson before ending the call.

"I'll try." Shiki sighs as he looks at his phone.

Power Coins

Deku Rabbit, Draco-Breath, Charge, Marsh, Solidification, Unicorn, Overdrive, Wheels, Division, Bull, Barrier

Chamber Rifle, Fierce Wings, Shadow Stalk, Gatling, Chameleon, Dragonfly, Sonar, Sprouting, Burrowing Drill

King Explosion Murder Explosion

[sehnsuchts-trunken]

Okay so those headcanons for the sibling dynamic between Arthur and Morgana were adorable and they made me think of something else.

Do you have some headcanons for what it was like when Morgana first came to live with Uther and Arthur? Like, not just sibling dynamic, but their family dynamic as a whole. That must’ve been a pretty big change right?

honestly yeah that could be interesting! would've definitely been a huge change but I'll only dive into the family dynamic here

First of all, Morgana was a little goddamn shit as a child. And the fact that her fucking parents just died did not make it better. She definitely neglected them all in the first few weeks, didn't drink and didn't eat for days, and the only one that she let in was Gaius. And you can't convince me otherwise. And Gaius was the one too who in the end managed to help her through her grief and her stubbornness, that made her eat and drink and get to know Arthur and then Uther. Slowly.

It took her half a year to actually stop being mean to the both of them like a child can be and start accepting reality for what it was. Gaius helped her through a lot of that, helped her adapt to her new environment, and I may just be repeating myself again, but like, they were definitely very close, because Morgana knew him from before and you can't not like Gaius.

Morgana starts tolerating them, but the moment that she actually starts liking Arthur is when he comes back from his first swordfighting practise and brings her his sword so she can hide it in her chambers just in case. (He tells his father that he "lost his sword because he was practising and it got stuck in a tree" and Uther lets it go because he's like "yeah happens to the best of us")

I genuinely don't know when she starts liking Uther. I think that's more of a,,, slow and steady process. Because you can bet that Uther is doing the best he can to bond with his daughter once he gets the chance to. But Morgana is a stubborn ass and even once she is playing with Arthur, she definitely isn't opening up her heart to a "new father figure".

So this process takes at least a year, if not two. And Uther tries everything and anything he can think of. He buys her books, he buys her dresses, he lets her do anything she wants (which she finds out a bit later on and abuses to the point where Uther almost tells her no), he orders his cooks to bake pies and pastries for her and he gives her a horse and a maid and anything he can think of.

What starts the process of her liking him is when after she was - pressured into - talking about her life before this one and at some point addressed how she loved dresses and combining them and stuff, a seamstress knocked on her door and said that Uther had sent her and she would love to design as many clothes as Morgana wanted.

okay this is everything but I didn't think I'd love this deep dive so much omg

[bangtancentricsblog]

》 Unbeknownst to Jungkook, there is a rise in popularity for a particular human holiday, one of which leaves him blindsided and scrambling to find the absolute perfect gift for his one and only. They say food is the quickest way to a man’s heart but no one ever said it didn't work on women.

❒ pairing: jeon jungkook x reader

❒ genre: fluff, established relationship, a dash of angst, and a pinch of smut

❒ alternative universe: fantasy, college/university, werewolf, witch,

❒ rating: 18+

❒ word count: 12.4 k+

warnings/disclosures: werewolf Jungkook, witch MC, kinda tsundere mc, cat shifters Yoongi and Yoonji, Fairy Jimin, Siren Taehyung, MC is on the bigger side!, Merman Seokjin, Elf Hoseok, Vampire Namjoon, friendly fondling from yoonji, heteroflexible/bicurious yoonji, boob talk, mc is not good at cooking, misunderstanding on jungkook’s part, baking mishaps, frazzled jungkook, not so helpful/helpful yoongi, half-hearted frenemies Jungkook and Yoonji, Jungkook cries a little, yoonji jumping to conclusion, sense8 references, harry potter references, killing eve reference, way too many allusions to sex, jungkook isn't a good at baking, always reliable Seokjinnie, chubby POC Bunny shifter OC, whiney JK and MC, ‘rich’ jungkook, not edited i tried to i really did, taste testers Jimin and Taehyung, SMUT is at the end, bad smut at the end, food play (mostly them getting turned on by feeding each other), fingering (ew why do we call it that? Finger blast sounds better lmao), cock warming-ish, tiny hints of a size kink, grinding, soft fuck, soft spanking, sappy endings

❀ this is part of the bangtan pastries valentine collab hosted by the lovely @suhdays, who also made my lovely banner 💖 make sure to check out the other fics as well, they’re amazing as are the other authors and please excuse any incoherent inconsistencies or misspelling as this fic was written over a many days and long hours ❀

main ml • AO3

His nose is cold, a weird thing to think about when a werewolf's body temperature literally runs higher than every other species. There’s a chill racing up his spine as he shivers reaching a lazy arm across the bed in search of your warmth only to come up empty. Jungkook finally cracks an eye open, pushing himself into a sitting position to see if you really are missing or you’ve only scooted to the very edge of the bed to escape his scalding body temperature. Though to his displeasure you are in fact missing, he’s running his hand through his hair and taking a deep breath before scrunching his feature. His nose is still cold, so he can't smell much, can only feel the slight sting of the frigid air as he breathes it in.

He hates the winter, all he can ever smell is the damp ground and the cold of the air. Funnily enough most werewolves loved winter since it gave them a break from their heightened senses, not Jungkook though, he couldn't stand not being able to smell you on his bed, in your house, on him. Your shared bedroom is extra chilly this morning raising goosebumps along his exposed skin, he’s tired, not having gotten enough sleep from the long night of studying he’d done the night before.

You’re a naturally early riser so he knows why you’re up, Jungkook however isn't exactly a morning person, never has been, especially on the weekend when neither of you have anywhere to be. He’s groggy as he pads down the hallway, a yawn stretching his mouth wide, another shiver wracking his body the closer he gets to the back of the house, it’s always been chillier there, it’s downright brutal in the winter time.

He isn't surprised when he finally comes to stand in the doorframe of the sunroom watching your figure drop what he’s pretty sure is mugwort in the bubbling cauldron. There’s this sense of domesticity watching you work, a luxury he couldn't afford as the two of you grew up. He can almost vividly remember the ugly way you’d scowl at him when he’d plop down in front of you brandishing scraped up hands or knees. A soft almost unkind reminder that he should be more careful and that next time he came in you wouldn't treat his wounds. He remembers thinking you didn't like him, maybe even hated him, so after a while (more like into his teenage years) he just stopped showing up. So you would imagine his surprise when you’d finally cornered him after his abrupt disappearance. His lips tug upward at the memory of you clumsily confessing your feelings to him before running off, never giving him a chance to properly convey his own feelings.

It’s weird for Jungkook to think that he’d almost let you slip through his fingers, his dumb teenage werewolf hormones had told him to just let you be. That you weren’t even one of his kind, so you wouldn't be worth it. He’d been so close to letting you get away, so close to letting you leave the pack when he’d taken his precious time working through his natural instincts (at least the ones he had then). How he’d almost brushed off your confession because there was no way cold, stoic you liked him. Impossible he’d thought, and then a week after he’d overheard your parents asking permission for you to attend a school away from pack lands. Away from the pack, away from your family, and away from him. The very thought twisted his stomach unpleasantly, making him nauseous as he thought of everyday life without you.

It was then that he knew he couldn’t let that happen, something about you leaving didn't sit well in his being. He couldn’t describe it then, after all a sixteen year old only understood the bare minimum of love and life and he knew even less than that. Somewhere in his mind rushing to your house at that moment had made sense, more sense than anything had in the short amount of time he’d had to process the information. He probably should’ve knocked before rushing into your house, maybe also knocked instead of flinging your room door open the way he had. The grin he wears grows wider as he recalls what he’d seen all those years ago. The rest is history, at least the embarrassing parts that he refuses to acknowledge. He doesn’t regret the way your relationship had started, especially not after almost seven years of dating. Hell, he considers himself lucky that you even stuck around this long because truth be told Jungkook could be a handful, like now for example.

“Is that my sweater?” he asks, watching amusedly as you jump nearly spilling an entire vial of pixie dust. Your hand has gone to your chest to calm your racing heart as it beats harshly against your ribs, scowling as you think of how you hated that he was so light on his feet.

“I couldn't find an apron, and it’s cold.” you say rubbing at your nose with sweater pawed hands before sprinkling some of the pixie dust into the cauldron.

“Y’know I don't like when you brew in my clothes, the smell sticks for too long.” he sniffs, still only feeling the cold sting of the air.

“I know.” you mutter not once glancing in his direction, only reaching out to take a jar of snake venom from the array of ingredients lining the counter space beside you.

“What are you making anyways and on a Saturday?”

“Vitality potion, for extra credit.” he hums to himself content with just watching you finish up your work which really doesn't take long. You add a few drops of mint sighing contentedly while you put out the fire with a simple incantation. Jungkook watches as you rub at your eyes and easily close the distance between you, your arms wrap around his waist as you nuzzle into his chest relishing in his warmth. A muffled ‘m’tired’ slipping past your lips and tickling his chest where they press to his skin. He hums his reply, hands slipping down your sides pulling soft sighs from you as he slips them under the hem of your hoodie to press chilled hands to your warm hips.

You squeal, trying in vain to wriggle away from him as he muffles his laugh in your neck. He’s quick to pull your body close, before lifting you over his shoulder, hands gripping the soft flesh of your thighs to keep you steady. Your giggles are almost manic as you laugh all the way to the bedroom where he proceeds to take full advantage of this early Saturday morning.

*

Monday morning comes way too soon, and you’re once again seated at a table of your favorite on campus cafe. Though much like always Jungkook is being clingy, scenting your neck while you kill some time before your first class. The frappe you ordered sits untouched, the slush goodness melting into a mess of almost coffee flavored water. It’s a waste of money if you don't drink it now, although you’re also sure Jungkook will polish it off should you leave it be.

“Please stop making people uncomfortable.” you sigh, pressing a palm to his face to push him away before he can bury it back in your neck.

“I’m not making people uncomfortable.” he says with a confused furrow of his brow as he casts a glance around the cafe to catch these so called uncomfortable people. He doesn't see anyone other than a couple of baristas who refuse to make eye contact even with the way his gaze is burning holes into the side of their heads. You don't look the slightest bit amused as you narrow your eyes at him, waiting a beat then two only to realize he really doesn't know. Your heart skips a beat, ‘stupid heart’ you think as it continues to do so the longer he remains oblivious. It’s moments like this that make you think that being with Jungkook is like having a big dumb dog, except you absolutely adore the shit out of him, amongst other things.

He quirks his head the slightest as your brows pinch further together the longer you stare at him, further reminding you of his canine counterpart. There’s this flutter in your tummy, the butterflies that have long since taken residence awaken fluttering about and fanning a flame that is slowly growing, traveling to your face and warming your cheeks. Stupid heart, stupid butterlies, stupid Jungkook and his big stupid beautiful eyes, you curse mentally finally ripping your gaze away from his. It’s all a little too much, so your best course of action is going to class early, you decide standing and making to leave only for his grip on your hand to tighten, one that you had forgotten about.

“Gimme a kiss.” he says around a smirk, it heats your cheeks further as you work to calm the rapid beat of your stupid heart as it bangs against your ribs. You’re almost expecting for your chest to burst open or your heart to spontaneously combust. Luckily neither of those happen as Jungkook leans in close pressing a soft peck to your lips before moving to deepen it. He’s gentle in coaxing your lips apart, much better than your first kiss, taking his time tasting you as he always does...at first. He’s squeezing one of your tight clad thighs in his big hands, a sigh almost slipping past your lips as the warmth of his palm sinks through the material. You pull away abruptly, eyelids fluttering before blinking a few times to clear the sudden haze that clouds your vision. Next to you Jungkook is whining trying his hardest to pull you back in for another kiss, that sly dog.

“I’ll see you later.” you say pressing one last barely there kiss to the corner of his mouth, almost tripping over the threshold on your way out. His gaze follows your figure until you turn the corner disappearing from his sight. He sighs heavily, it’s laced with undertones of fatigue as he reaches for your unfinished frappe.

“You guys are gross.” Yoongi breathes, taking a seat opposite Jungkook. Jimin takes your seat, as Taehyung and Hoseok follow. Hoseok takes the empty seat beside Yoongi while Taehyung pulls up a chair from a neighboring table.

“You’re just jealous my girlfriend is hotter than yours.”

“Sure kid, you go ahead and believe that.” he almost sneers.

“Why are you here so early?” Jimin asks steering the conversation away from girlfriends for now. He’s yawning suddenly, reminded of how little sleep he’s gotten today, school was the worst.

“I came with ____, can’t have her coming all alone y’know.”

“Isn't your first class at the same time as her last?” Yoongi chimes in before asking Taehyung to get him an Americano as the younger man walks over to the counter.

“Yeah, and what?” he sniffs a little defensively.

“It was just a question.” Yoongi deadpans.

“Don’t you and your satan spawn of a twin share all your classes with ____?”

“No, we have classes together Tuesdays through thursdays.” he supplies easily, leaning back in the chair.

“Why not all week?” Hoseok asks in a tone filled with genuine curiosity.

“Monday and Fridays are the hardest days to get out of bed, duh.” he says almost matter of factly and they have to agree with Yoongi on this one. Monday is truly the worst day of the week, though it's now that Jungkook notices the absence of the previously mentioned satan’s spawn. He almost bristles, thinking that Yoonji might be out there somewhere harassing his sweet little girlfriend.

*

You scream, startled by the sudden weight that presses itself to you, a giggle like purr filling your ears before you relax. Yoonji’s hair brushes your cheeks softly, her arms wrapping around your frame and you squeak at the feel of her hand cupping your chest through the hoodie you wear. It’s a usual occurrence, though no less embarrassing as she continues to snuggle closer to you.

“Did your boobs get bigger?” she asks nose nudging against the soft pudge of your cheek, you know she’s scenting you, her way of messing with Jungkook later when she can’t physically be there.

“No, please stop.” you sigh, feeling a gentle squeeze followed by a soft breathy moan, heat erupting across your cheeks in embarrassment. She snickers giving your ample chest one last squeeze before finally moving away. She falls in step with you, walking along the path, snow crunching underfoot before moving to speak again.

“I’ve been meaning to ask, what exactly do you like about Jungkook? I mean sure he’s great, not really, and all but really what is it? Is it his dick game because other than you I don't really think he’s ever been with anyone else.” She asks stuffing her hands in her coat pockets to stave off the slight chill that has zapped all the warmth from her fingers. There’s a brief pause in her thoughts as she wonders if Jungkook uses your impressive rack as the natural hand warmers they are, the lucky bastard she thinks with a scowl.

“I don't know, all of him.”

“That’s too vague an answer, like if I were to ask him what do you think he’d say he likes about you?”

“That I’m just so cute.” you answer almost immediately hands cupping your cheeks as if to further prove that you are in fact cute. The scrunch to her nose is adorable, squishing her already delicate features, as you smile softly at her and she shrugs her shoulders.

“Not that cute, but to each their own I guess. I’ll see you later yeah?” she asks, turning on her heel to walk in the direction you had just come from.

“I’ll be there.” You call after her watching as she raises a single hand to show you she’d heard you.

*

Yoonji is sliding onto Hoseok’s lap with all the grace of the satan spawn she is, easily wrapping a single arm around his neck and taking a sip from your abandoned frappe. She hums around the straw gaze trained on Jungkook’s bewildered expression, it brings her immense pleasure to see him so distressed.

“Why are you here and what do you think you’re doing?” Jungkook asks, snatching the drink back.

“It was only a sip you’re overacting, besides it’s mostly water now anyways.” She scoffs feeling Hoseok wrap his arms tighter around her waist pulling her closer to him.

“You don’t understand, now my poor ____ has indirectly kissed you. She’s been tainted by your nasty germs, Hobi do something!” Jungkook whines cheeks flushing an unhealthy shade of red, it’s almost endearing how childlike that is of him.

“I don’t think I can do anything, since it’s already happened.” He replies easily long since used to antics and strange rivalry between his girlfriend and Jungkook. Yoonji licks her lips mischievously snickering before shooting a somewhat sultry gaze at Jungkook.

“Hmm, can I ask you something Junglebook?” she says.

“No, in fact I would very much enjoy it if you never spoke again. Yoongi how did the two of you share a womb?”

“I don't know, it just happened, what were you saying Yoonji?”

“It’s not my fault you prefer the fossil over there over me. I’m literally amazing, anyways what do you like about ____?” she asks, ignoring Yoongi’s muttering and the somewhat awkward silence that has settled over the table. Jungkook to his credit doesn't blow this out of proportion as he usually does, so she watches as he sits quietly hands wrapped around the cup. This time there’s a slow flush of color flooding his cheeks, it’s kind of cute in a weird ugly kind of way. It’s not like she found Jungkook particularly attractive, but she guesses she could, maybe if the boy next door was her type.

“I don’t know, she’s just really cute, she looks tiny compared to me, and I don't know, all of her?” the flush has spread to his neck and ears, a look she has to say she’s never witnessed before. Again cute in a gag her romcom kind of way, she would be sick if you hadn't already prepared her for his answer. She still fakes a gag either way destroying the warm bubble he’d created with all his mushy sappy feelings.

“You’re so lame, no wonder you didn't have friends in high school.” she laughs before planting a kiss to Hoseok’s cheek.

“You guys were my friends in high school.” he says, brows pinched together an ugly glare directed at Yoonji who has begun ignoring everyone, so that she can whisper to Hoseok.

“Ignoring Satan and the literal walking ball of sun, what are you doing for Valentine’s day?” Yoongi asks, sounding mildly irritated at the topic he himself has brought up.

“That’s like two weeks away, what does it have to do with us singles?” Jimin laughs resting his chin in an open palm.

“That doesn’t mean you can’t have plans.”

“Valentine’s day is for girls, and again I’m single what would that do?”

“What are you doing for Valentines day Jungkook?” Yoongi asks, turning his gaze to Jungkook who has sat silently from the start. The expression he wears is of confusion, brows pinched as if he were sitting in on a pack meeting full of boomers that didn't understand the world of today.

“Jungkook?” Jimin says catching Jungkook’s attention.

“What is that?” he asks timidly, again silence settles over the group all of them wearing a different expression. It’s broken by Yoonji who literally looks like the cat who ate the canary, it’s truly disgusting and he wishes he never has to see it again.

“Are you serious, you don't know what Valentine’s day is.” she snickers, a little too happily for Jungkook who remains just as confused as he had been before.

"Your girlfriend is human." Jimin says just as unhelpful.

"She's a witch, not a human." he reminds them.

“Witch still lands on the human side of the spectrum.” The conversation is going in circles, he thinks feeling irritation creep into him at the way they all continue to discuss your race.

“Can we please keep this conversation moving? What is Valentines day?” he asks, letting just a tiny bit of irritation seep into his tone.

“It’s a human holiday, made for couples to celebrate love.” Taehyung says, adding to the conversation for the first time this morning and suddenly reminding everyone of his presence. He shrugs off their stare, instead gathering his things and leaving them just as easily as he had joined the conversation.

“Why is a human holiday so important all of a sudden? It isn’t anything like the summer solstice right?” Yoonji looks more and more amused the longer they stay on the topic, lips curling upward into a smile that is both haunting and sort of breathtaking in a sinister steal your soul kind of way. He shivers, deciding then that he’ll pray to the moon goddess for Hoseok’s sanity.

“God you really are out of the loop, poor doggy.” Yoonji laughs sliding into the vacant chair but making sure it’s pressed as close to Hoseok as possible.

“Hoseok, please.” Jungkook breathes, maybe it’s the fatigue that is allowing Yoonji to annoy him quicker than usual or maybe she’s just testing his patience more than usual. Either way he’s distracted by Jimin clearing his throat, always playing the peacekeeper.

“You’re right, it isn't like the summer solstice but for some reason the girls like it. I think humans traditionally give chocolate, small gifts, or do other romantic couple things. This is usually the day most people confess feelings to someone, it’s actually really popular nowadays. I think even my parents celebrate valentine's day.” Jimin says the last bit more to himself than to the others.

“Wait, so do you guys give girls chocolate?” he asks, genuinely interested.

“No, I’ve had people give me friendship chocolate before.” Jungkook can’t seem to wrap his head around the whole chocolate thing at least not right now. Still he wonders if you would like to receive a gift from him. He listens intently as Yoongi and Hoseok talk about a course they’re taking seemingly having forgotten the prior conversation with the departure of Yoonji and Jimin who share an astronomy class.

*

He’s not forgotten about the conversation later that week while he sits on Jin's couch killing time before he goes home after all you texted him earlier saying that you’d be studying in the library and not to wait up. Jin had been filling him in on the show that’s been playing for the last two hours, one based on eight individuals who all share a birthday and somehow a weird mental connection. Truth be told Jungkook has been staring listlessly at the screen the colors long since blurred as his eyes have lost focus, hazy blobs moving this way and that. The sound has been drowned out almost as if the volume has been turned down while he thinks.

“- Riley to me is the least useful of the cluster, don’t you think?” Jin asks, Jungkook hums along not really hearing what his friend has said.

“Whispers isn’t really a bad guy, and neither is Rajan’s dad, right?” he says this time watching intently as Jungkook hums again leaning further into the couch.

“Jungkook, seriously you aren’t even watching it.”

“I am, Sun is in prison and Joongki must die.” he mutters, blinking a few times before turning his gaze to meet Jin’s.

“What’s wrong, if you’re tired you should go home and get some sleep.” Jin huffs leaning back into the recliner.

“Not tired, just thinking.” he says unconvincingly around a yawn that stretches his mouth a little too wide, suddenly reminding Jin of a lion. They sit in the relative silence for a brief moment, the sounds of another fight scene playing in the background drags Jin’s gaze back to the TV.

“What are you doing for valentines day?” he finally asks, he feels his lips twitch at the way Jin is quick to pause the show.

“Why? Are you going to tell me how much you love me?”

“No, it’s just my first time hearing about it.” he mumbles pouting slightly. Jin wonders how this boy was going to lead a pack when he’s such a child, then again he doesn’t understand werewolf hierarchy all too well.

“Are you planning to celebrate it?” Jungkook stills, once again wondering if you would be happy to receive chocolate as the others had mentioned.

“I don't know maybe, do you think ____ would like it?” Jin can hear the uncertainty in Jungkook’s voice, and for some odd reason he wants to laugh. He shouldn't because it’s rare for Jungkook to really share his feelings with someone that isn't you. Instead he asks himself the same question, would you be happy if Jungkook gave you a gift. It’s hard to imagine with you being reserved and all, but he thinks that you might, if it was behind closed doors in the safety of your own home.

“Yeah, I think she would.” And his answer is worth it he thinks as he watches the way Jungkook’s eyes twinkle with determination at the prospect of surprising you. When Jungkook goes home that night he spends a little too much time doing what he calls ‘research’ completely ignoring the course work that sits beside his laptop on his desk.

*

The weekend has come again and Jungkook is more than tired between school, and trying to find the best kind of gift he’s stumped and a little miserable. It had snowed again, covering the roads that had already been cleared, what’s more is that you have virtually moved into the library the last week. He’s seen less of you in the past week than he has his whole life, which just makes him more irritable as he drags himself out of bed, hoping, no, praying that you are home today. It’s Saturday after all, and you should be here in bed cuddling him, but you aren’t so he thinks you might be in the sunroom again brewing more potions. He finds it empty, not a single sign that you had been there at all by now he’s beginning to worry.

Slowly he pads back down the hall stopping briefly when he catches a soft almost muted sigh. He recognizes it almost instantly, his gaze falling to the couch as he rounds it to find you curled up underneath a thin lap blanket. You look so comfortable he doesn’t have the heart to move you, so instead he opts for something a little different. Jungkook is quick to leave returning with a heavier blanket and a pillow before he’s slipping his body into the tiny crevice you’ve left between your body and the back of the couch. He’s almost sighing at the way you unconsciously snuggle closer to his warm, he pulls you in closer, tucking your body as close to him as possible but also keeping you both comfortable in the limited space. His eyelids begin to flutter, the past weeks exhausting catching up with him now that he’s found ultimate comfort with you.

When Jungkook wakes again he’s on his back, his pinky finger just barely skimming the sliver of skin exposed by the way your shirt has ridden up. You’ve yet to awaken, brows furrowed in your sleep, your face relaxes when he nuzzles the crown of your head. He cherishes these quiet moments, not that he didn't all the others but these were his favorite. Enjoyed the naturalness of it all, like this you weren’t hiding from others, you weren’t reserved, you were just yourself and he liked that. He briefly wonders what time it might be, when he feels you begin to stur, it always starts off slow. You sigh softly a single puff of air leaving your nose, then you nuzzle into what would usually be your pillow but today it’s Jungkook’s chest, next comes the twitch of your fingers followed by the stretch of your arm, hand seeking the warmth that is usually Jungkook beside you. Instead your hands tangle in the softness of the blanket pulling it closer softly knocking him on the chin as you snuggle into the comfort.

“____, baby it’s time to get up.” he murmurs voice husky from disuse.

“Don’t wanna.”

“Gotta make us some breakfast.” he sighs feeling you shift further before you sit up, your eyes are half lidded, hair mused. The long sleeve your wear is slipping off one of your shoulders, you’re blinking sluggishly, gaze still unfocused but at least you're awake now. His hands find purchase on your thighs, squeezing them slightly so that your gaze meets his.

“You awake yet baby? Need some help?” he asks watching the way you frown down at him before shaking your head, rubbing at your eyes tiredly. His heart squeezes in his chest, a slow heat swirling low in his belly the longer you straddle him. You shift your weight as you stretch, back arched in a way that pulls his gaze to your chest, through the thin material he can make out the stiff peaks of your nipples. There’s a twitch of his fingers as he restrains himself from feeling the soft weight of them in his palms, but there are other things troubling him at the moment. Mostly the way he can feel the heat of your pussy through the thin material of panties as you settle more of your weight on his crotch.

“Breakfast?” you ask, the single word is enough to drag his thoughts back to something fluffy, something softer, less deprived. He squeezes at your thighs again sitting up to press a kiss to your cheek before sliding you off his lap and intertwining your fingers as you follow him to the bathroom.

Jungkook is humming as he sways at the stove chuckling as you squeeze your arms tighter around his waist when he stops swaying. It’s odd for you to be this openly affectionate, even here in the safety of your home mostly because he likes to take advantage of the situations persuading you to do things he would rather keep to himself. Still he can’t say he isn't enjoying himself, at least he was until he hears the door fly open and the telltale muttering of one Min insufferable Yoonji. Your grip tightens further as you press yourself closer almost as if you’re trying to hide from her, but that doesn't make sense, as much as he hates to admit it you two are super close.

“What are you doing?” she asks, and just her tone makes him pause.

“Making breakfast.” he replies before he hears a scoff.

“I wasn't talking to you Junglebook, ____ what are you doing, you were supposed to meet me three hours ago.” she sighs as you whine pathetically against Jungkook’s back rubbing your face into the soft material of his shirt.

“I can’t hear you.”

“M’tired, don't wanna go.” you cry and Jungkook feels heat rush to his cheeks at the tone you use, it reminds him of the way you sound when he’s balls deep in you. He really shouldn't be thinking of that, especially not with that thing you call your best friend around.

“This was your decision, I’m just there for moral support. Now let's go before I catch whatever disease Jungkook carries.” she sniffs, narrowing her eyes when you don’t budge.

“Can’t you at least let her eat breakfast before you drag her away?” Jungkook asks, moving the grilled cheese to the cooling rack glaring at Yoonji over his shoulder. She sighs heavily but silently agrees as she takes a seat at the kitchen island. He can hear the clicks of her keyboard as she typed something into her phone followed by the swoosh of her message being sent. Briefly, and just briefly he wondered who the hell would want to talk to her so damn early. Though he can’t really call afternoon early now can he.

*

You look sleepy when you’re finally ready to leave after having eaten your weight in bread, cheese, and butter, a look he absolutely adores. Yoonji is standing in the open door typing on her phone again, ignoring the flowery atmosphere that blankets the two of you like some cliche shoujo manga. The way you smile up at him makes his heart flutter, a pleasant wave of warm slowly makes its way through his body as you hug him and he’s planting a kiss to the crown of your head not so subtly scent marking you. It’s only when Yoonji makes an exasperated sound do you two pull away.

“See you later, be safe.” he says smiling in a way that makes your tummy flutter.

“I will.” you almost sigh before Yoonji glares at him once more and pulls you along. With you gone, he has nothing else to do than to look through the possible gifts options he’d bookmarked. There’s so many things to chose from, gourmet chocolates, edible arrangements, teddy bears, flowers, jewelry, spa days, sex? It’s all so much, he’s saved so many links it’s a folder that he’s pinned to his bookmarks bar on his search engine. Maybe he should ask for help, Yoonji wouldn’t help him even if he asked nicely while on his knees, but perhaps Yoongi and Seokjin would. He has to take that chance, and pray to the moon goddess that they’ll offer their insight.

*

“I can’t help you.” Yoongi says after Jungkook has gathered the most reliable of his friends.

“Why not?”

“Prior engagements, and this if your girlfriend. You should know what she’d like, let me know what you go with.” he says, wrapping his scarf tighter around his neck and leaving the oldest and the youngest together.

“Jin please tell me you’ll be more helpful than Yoongi.” he whines, and Seokjin takes pity on him because as much as he hates to say it, he looks like a kicked puppy.

“I can try but it really depends on what you think ____ would like the best.” Jungkook beams at Jin’s willingness to help even if he doesn’t promise anything. He’s quick to pull open his laptop, opening one too many links that have both their heads spinning. Jungkook’s because he’s just so excited to surprise you and Jin is mostly amazed at Jungkook’s thoughtfulness. He switches through tabs, scanning over the things Jungkook has chosen, truth be told he’s not sure if any material items would be any good. He also doesn't like the ridiculous price listed beside the edible arrangements and gourmet chocolates, absolutely gawks at the price next to the jewelry. It’s not like Seokjin doesn’t know what kind of family Jungkook comes from, sure werewolves were a dime a dozen but not Jungkook, he was from one of the founding packs and in being so he was more than well off and that came from a literal prince of the sea such as himself. Still he wonders what kind of craftsmanship could be worth that much, or did Jungkook not care about price? He wants to laugh at the sheer absurdity that is the younger and his lack of care for things such as this, but he supposes that was where he came in.

“What did you have in mind?” Jin asks hesitantly, almost dreading the conversation.

“I don’t know a little of everything.” Jungkook answers sheepishly.

“A bit of everything.” Jin repeats already appalled at the idea. “Maybe you should stick to one, how about flowers?”

“____, do you think she’ll like them?”

“I don't know, i’m sure she’ll be able to use them in her potions.”

“Nevermind, not flowers. Then maybe jewelry?”

“Does ____ wear jewelry?”

“Not really, she doesn’t like being too flashy.” he mumbles.

“What about chocolate?” Jin finally asks, skipping over all the other options for fear of prolonging this dreadful conversation.

“That’s perfect, I should order it right now.” he beams, reaching for the laptop in Seokjin’s grapes but coming up empty when Jin scoots away from him.

“Or, and this is just a thought, but why don’t you make it yourself?” it’s posed as a question, though to Jungkook it sounds more like a statement, a suggestion if you will. One that he doesn’t think sounds too bad after all how hard can making chocolate be? He smiles at Jin, in a way that lets Jin know that it’s finally over. But boy was he in for a trip.

Jungkook had dragged Jin to the closest supermarket, throwing every bar of chocolate into the cart that he could find, even including other ingredients. After the supermarket they’d gone to a craft store for silicone molds, he’d even stopped at a small variety store for what he called cuter molds, because the ones from the craft store were too plain. Truth be told Jin wasn’t too sure what Jungkook would do with all that he had purchased but he knew he’d find some adequate guinea pigs for Jungkook. The younger thanks him with a meal followed by a brief goodbye before heading home to start the process of chocolate making.

As it turns out chocolate making isn’t too hard, but there’s something unsatisfying about melting premade chocolate and filling molds. It’s okay Jungkook supposes as he demolds yet another batch of half strawberry half milk chocolate rilakkuma molds. There are a few more trays of chocolates, some have pocky others have nuts but he’s still dissatisfied paying no mind to them as he dumps the finished chocolates into a tupperware instead of the box he’s intended to pack them in. This was supposed to be a test run, a successful one if they asked him but one that left him thinking that it wouldn't be enough. He heaves a heavy sigh as he finishes pulling the chocolate from the molds, moving to seal the tupperware that held them.

He’s decided then as he’s stacking the containers in a canvas bag that he’s going to Jin’s again he needs more help, but before that he needs to clean up so that you won't come home to this mess. He also doesn't want to risk you finding out what he’s planned as a surprise, he’s so focused on the task at hand he doesn't hear the door. Much less the way you and Yoonji speak animatedly as you make your way further into the house.

“Jungkook what’s this?” you ask giggling the slightest as he flinches at the gentle hand you place on his shoulder. His shock is quickly replaced by something gentle, something that has your brow furrowing. Maybe it’s the way he widens his eyes as he turns his body to face you properly, he used to do this a lot when he was trying to hide something from you back when you were kids. This faux innocent look got him in more trouble than you can remember and you don't like it, especially now.

“Hey baby, I didn't know you’d be home so soon.” he says wrapping you up in a hug. You squirm in his hold trying in vain to get him to loosen his hold on you, which makes you all the more suspicious of what he might be hiding.

“Jungkook, please.” you murmur a little confused as he continues to evade your question from earlier.

“I’m going to Jin’s for a bit. I'll be back with some take out is that okay?” he says instead grabbing the bag and heading for the door. You stare after he’s gone, a little more than confused at what has just transpired.

“Is he going to bring enough for three?” Yoonji asks from her place on the couch the tv playing a reality show you don’t particularly enjoy.

*

“Why is Hermione always out of breath? It’s like she’s always on the brink of hyperventilating in every scene.” Yoongi asks as he sits beside Jin, a half confused half annoyed expression sitting pretty on his face. To his credit at least he isn't hyper analyzing other aspects of the film, ones that he knows are a lot more pressing than Hermione’s inability to catch her breath. So you would imagine how relieved he is to get the door after a series of knocks, even more relieved to see Jungkook if only for a moment. Jungkook to his credit doesn't look any less different than he did earlier in the day, in fact he looks normal? Maybe he should be worried that Jungkook looks significantly less excited than he was mere hours ago. Jungkook thrusts the bag at Jin before throwing his weight down on the couch beside a very amused Yoongi.

“What is this?” Jin asks, a little too hesitant before recognizing his ‘como se llama’ eco friendly bag.

“Chocolate.” he answers quickly but a little too quietly while Yoongi perks up at the prospect of free candy.

“I thought you said you didn't have my bag,” Jin says pulling out one too many containers “are these my tupperware?” Jungkook remains silent, gaze settled on the tv as Yoongi pulls open one of the tupperware.

“What’s with all the chocolate, kinda cutesy don’t you think?” Yoongi comments offhandedly popping a few pieces into his mouth with a hum.

“They were for ____.” Yoongi pauses mid chew, turning his attention to the younger.

“Why would you give us candy meant for your girlfriend?” he asks around a mouthful of strawberry chocolate hearts.

“It was practice, I didn’t wanna give her homemade chocolates after all.” he sighs, turning his gaze to Jin who still stands beside Yoongi who continues to eat the chocolate.

“Do you have a backup plan?” Jin’s gaze falls to Yoongi who posed the question, he’s glad he wasn't the one who asked. He watches in a weird mix of concern and amusement as Jungkook’s eyes glaze over before he whines.

“No,” he all but sobs looking up at Jin with a tremble to his lip “what if ____ hates me because i didn't give her anything.” It’s so hard to hold in his laughter, Jungkook was being a little dramatic.

“There are other things you can make besides chocolate y’know.” Yoongi sighs, setting the bowl on the coffee table and finally pausing the movie after all he really likes the scene where Harry realizes the patronus he saw was his own.

“Why not bake her something, there are plenty of pastries that use chocolate.” he offers, ignoring the way both Jungkook and Jin gawk at him.

“Is hell freezing over, are you actually offering to help?” Jin gasps a little too dramatically, it makes Yoongi scowl.

“No, you ugly I won't be helping but I might know someone who can.” beside him Jungkook makes a choking noise, one that has both of them casting their gaze in his direction.

“Thank you so much Yoongi, I’ll give you my first born.”

“Keep it, I’ll have enough of my own.” he says, scrunching his nose at the thought of Jungkook’s kids. Jin on the other hand is grumbling at the level of disrespect from a solid 8 when he was in fact a 10, a 10!

“Go home, I’ll text you the information later.” he sighs trying to pacify Jin who continues to list all that makes him a 10 and Yoongi an 8. He does as he’s told, trying his best to slip out so as not to be lumped in with Yoongi even though he was feeling grateful for his hyung. He feels his phone vibrate in his pocket and he’s scowling down at the sole message that lights up his screen.

my moon ♡

➣ don’t forget the takeout, plus extra Yoonji is here :)

He supposes he can deal with Satan just this once, he’s got a good feeling about this.

*

Jungkook is feeling overwhelmed to say the least, it’s Wednesday and he’s suddenly swamped with course work. To add insult to injury he hasn’t heard a single word from Yoongi who has also somehow gone missing for the last three days following their conversation over the weekend. He’s so tired he’s thinking of skipping his only class for tomorrow, what’s worse is that valentine's day is a week and a half away now and he’s still very much at square one. Luckily he’s at home so he’s free to let out a tear or two of pure frustration, he curses Yoongi for lying to him. What's worse was that he played nice with the she-demon too! Maybe he’s overreacting, there are worse things than not having giving you a gift for some stupid human holiday. Still though, he wanted to make this one memorable, even if it ended up being the only one you celebrated together. Hell you aren’t even here, he’s sure you’re doing it on purpose now.

How much extra credit could one person need, especially when you were one of the top students in your field. If push came to shove he would drag you back if he had too, but right now he just wants to curl up and pretend he didn't care about this stupid holiday. It would seem though that the universe won’t let him throw a pity party because as soon as his eyes fall shut there’s a knock at the door. He ignores it at first hoping it’s just one of his friends and they’ll leave if he doesn’t make a sound. He shouldn't have bet on it, when the knocks continue. It’s funny how urgent they sound, but really he just wants to be left alone. Still he groans, dragging himself off the couch and shuffling to the door with a scowl. The door swings open as he readies to spit nasty words at whoever has interrupted him only to catch a faint whiff of apples. His gaze falls to someone just a head shorter than him, a woman, one he doesn’t recognize.

“Can I help you?” he asks, feeling the chill of the air nip at his nose as he takes a deep breath, catching the scent of a prey shifter species.

“I um, well, are you um, are you Jungkook?” she asks, her gaze easily meeting anything else except his own as he stares. He’s sizing her up, not in a scummy way of course, how could he when he had you, but he doesn't recognize her at all. Nor does her scent smell familiar so he really can't place how he would know her.

“Yes, and you are?” he finally says watching as her nerves seem to settle the slightest, though her heart is still beating a little too loudly for his liking.

“I’m Bunny, Yoongi said you would be expecting me?” she offers up easily though it’s almost a whisper. His features twist into something of confusion, Yoongi said what now? That damned cat had gone MIA, surely this was a prank or something.

“How do you know Yoongi?” He asks instead, watching a shade of rose color the light olive of her cheeks.

“We’re dating.” she mumbles bashfully clenching her hands at her side. Suddenly he recalls pestering Yoongi into letting them meet his girlfriend, and the former almost immediately putting his foot down in a firm no. So really is he at fault he didn't recognize Yoongi’s girlfriend, someone he has never met, until today that is.

“Oh, you’re that Bunny!” he almost howls watching as she flinches at the sheer volume of it. It’s cute really, he takes back what he said about her not being as hot as you, though you will always be number one in his book.

“Yeah, did Yoongi not tell you that I would be here today?”

“I don't think so.” he answers easily, watching the way she scowls more to herself than him, as she pulls her phone out and presses it to her ear.

“You didn't tell him I would be here?” Bunny says after a brief moment. He can slightly hear what he assumes is Yoongi’s voice though it's more muffled than anything.

“But Yoonie you said you would tell him. No, I was on time. Are you sure you texted him? Yoongi! Okay, you owe me big time. Promise? Okay, love you.” she finishes hanging up with a sigh, the rose on her cheeks is darker bordering more on red now.

“Sorry about that, Yoongi was supposed to send you my schedule. He said you needed help with baking a pastry?” she says with a smile sweetly at him.

“Wait, you're the someone he knows?” she tilts her head slightly brows furrowed at his words.

“I guess I am, can I come in or is this a bad time?” He’s quick to step aside, showing her to the living room and offering her something to drink. It’s odd to be alone with another woman, one who is very much not single but still weird since he’s never done it before. It’s almost off putting, so much so he feels a growl building in his chest. He really shouldn't be so guarded, especially when she is harmless and seems to have no ill intentions. He’s placing a cup of tea before her taking the seat adjacent to her as she smiles warmly at him.

“So what did you have in mind?” she asks, not unkindly pulling a notepad from her bag and resting it in her lap while she waits for his answer.

“I’m not entirely sure, I just know it has to be something with chocolate.”

“That narrows it down a bit, do you want something more elegant or simplistic?”

“Simplistic, my girlfriend doesn’t like things that are too flashy.” he sighs thinking of you and the easy smile you give him when you're eating sweets. It eases his nerves the slightest, as Bunny takes note of this.

“This almost seems like a therapy session, what with you sitting here taking notes and all.” he says to break the gentle scritch scratch sound of her pen on paper. She pauses, a small hesitant smile on her lips as she moves to meet his gaze.

“Truth be told I’m a little nervous, you’re aura is a little intimidating.” she chuckles, grip tightening on her pen. He can see the reasoning behind her words after all werewolves very rarely interacted out of their species even amongst the supernatural.

“You shouldn’t be, I’m house trained after all.” he’s amused as a flurry of giggles flee her being, and she tries in vain to stifle them. After that she seems to relax, easy narrowing down their options to a devil's food cake or a chocolate tart. He likes the idea of a tart so it’s with a little glee that he makes his decision.

“I’ll be here tomorrow at the same time and we can get started.” she says as she gathers her belongings while he shows her out. He’s excited to say the least a little more than he was when he was with the chocolate. So he guesses that in the end Yoongi was a least a little helpful.

*

True to her word Bunny is at his door at the same time as the previous day and Jungkook is more than happy to let her in, even taking some of the shopping bags out of her hand. He isn’t quite sure how he’ll do, but he is confident in his ability to try. After her departure and a stressful amount of time spent doing school work you had come home, sans Yoonji of course and you’d cuddled before he’d made the two of you a light dinner. Even after he’d spent too many hours reading over a single chocolate tart recipe, so much so he probably knew it by heart.

“I brought enough ingredients to make room for trial and error. You don’t have to be good at it from the get go, just follow the recipe okay?” she says in a voice that is oddly calming, he wonders briefly if she uses it on Yoongi. He nods his head in confirmation tying an apron around his waist as she does the same. She’s quick to take the reins, directing him in the tasks, and helping him when he asks for it. She says that they’ll be working in pieces, cutting the recipe in half for now as she whisks the ice water and egg yolk while Jungkook mixes the dry ingredients with butter.

“Making the dough is easy, the baking part is what usually takes a while to get right. I’m sure you’ll do fine, after all Yoongi has told me you’re a great cook.” she offers still whisking the egg and water.

“This is actually my first time baking in a while, I’ve found that I’m not that good at it.” he laughs.

“Really, your girlfriend must be very special. It’s actually kind of romantic.” He offers her a smile as they move to the next step. As it turns out Bunny is a very good teacher, helpful and patient when Jungkook thinks he might’ve messed up the dough. He learns that she’s studying to be a preschool teacher, and that one day she hopes to have a litter of her own. A soft rouge settles on her cheeks after she had divulged that tidbit of information before she asks him what his course of study is and his dreams for the future. The dough is now chilling in the refrigerator as they wait, so he supposes he can indulge her if only a bit.

“I’m doing pack management, an easy degree for someone like me.”

“Yoongi said you were loaded and I didn't believe him, but i guess it’s true.” she laughs.

“I guess that’s one way to look at it, I just want to be a good Alpha.”

“How about pups? Do you want any?”

“Of course, I want a whole pack full of my pups. I just have to marry my mate first.” She seems to perk up at this, a smile splitting her features.

“Marriage, have you asked her yet?” she asks a little too giddy for his liking but he feels a blush color his cheeks regardless.

“Not yet, I don’t think it’s the right time.” She nods her head in understanding, before pressing him for any dirt he has on Yoongi. All in all the first lesson goes smoothly, well except for the fact that he over cooks one of the tart shells and burns the other. She reminds him that there is still room for improvement, which somehow settles his nerves. He agrees with her after all there are still nine days left before the 14th.

*

He manages to get the tart shell perfect seven days before valentine’s day, which means he has a week to learn how to make the filing and how to put it all together. He’s feeling a little more stressed than usual with midterms coming up and your virtual lack of presence over the last few days. Really he’s starting to wonder just what is keeping you away from home all these days especially when you easily redirect his attention any time he asks. Maybe he’s overthinking it, it could really just be school work. He’s hissing, as the knife he’s using to chop the semi sweet chocolate slices through his middle finger. Luckily for him Bunny is quick to usher him away from the island and towards the sink. She wraps a bandage around his cut offering him a rubber glove to cover his bandaged hand before she wipes down the blood that had leaked onto the counter.

“Are you okay?” she asks a little too hesitantly for someone who he has become quick friends with.

“Yeah, I was just stuck in my thoughts.”

“We can always take a break, we have time.” She reminds him again, moving to clean up before leaving him alone and saying that he deserves a break from not only school but baking too. With Bunny gone he has some time to himself, time to think, to cool down and let his rational mind take control of the rampant nasty thoughts rearing their ugly little heads. To his credit he’s never once thought that you would cheat on him, it just wasn't in your personality to do so. He knew that you wouldn’t, but he really can't help letting his head tell him otherwise. Still he would know if you were, his wolf would feel it and he’s yet to cause a commotion. He decides then that he’s overthinking it, there’s a high chance that you’re just off doing god knows what with Yoonji. He doesn’t like that either but it’s still better than what the little voice in his head is saying.

*

Five days from Valentine's Day, he and Bunny are making the filing for the tart. He’s once again chopping semi-sweet chocolate listening to her as she tells him the next step. She’s made the tart shells beforehand so it would be easier on him so as to relieve some of the pressure for a perfect tart. He’d thanked her for the consideration when she’d arrived, which led to now as he combined heavy cream, milk heating to a low simmer before he mixed in the chopped semi sweet chocolate. He added sugar and watched as Bunny beat the eggs needed to finish the filing. The only thing left to do was stir the eggs into the chocolate mixture before pouring it into the tart shell and baking it again. With a timer they set out to clean up, before Bunny excuses herself telling him to try the tart with some friends and if he needed any further help she was only a phone call away. With her departure he’s quick to call up Jimin and Taehyung asking them rather cryptically if they wanted to come over. To his surprise they showed up rather quickly and they brought Namjoon along.

“Smells good in here.” Jimin comments.

“Really good, what are you making?” Taehyung adds.

“Are you baking?” Namjoon asks, catching the attention of the other two.

“I am, don’t tell ____. I need you to taste test it for me.” he says quickly, moving to run his fingers through his hair as his nerves kick in again.

“Cool.” Taehyung laughs, throwing his weight down on the couch before turning the TV on to show with a female assassin who’s in love with a woman from MI6. Jungkook gnaws on his lip as he watches from the kitchen, silence falls over the four of them as they watch the events unfold on screen. Jungkook is surprised at Taehyung's choice, mostly because he very rarely enjoys anything the former recommends. Since he prefers shows he can use as background noise that he doesn't have to pay much attention to. But this one is good, it’s interesting enough he barely hears the timer go off. None of the others move, gaze trained on the show as the blonde assassin plays a prank on her retainer. He likes the relationship between the retainer and the assassin, in fact he likes them a lot more than the lady from mi6. The tart is warm in his oven mitted hand, and smells amazing if he does say so himself. The shell is golden brown and the filing looks just as beautiful as he’d seen in the pictures. But he’s still not in the clear just yet, he still needs his taste testers to give him the green light.

The nervous flutter of butterflies has returned, swirling in the low of his belly as he leaves the tart to cool. He’s gone back to gnawing on his lip, thoughts running rampant that maybe it won’t be good enough, perhaps Bunny had been lying to him, maybe this would be a disaster. He tastes blood, the skin of his inner lip torn open by all the anxious gnawing, he swipes his tongue over the wound letting the coppery taste linger the longer he sits in his pool of self imposed anxiousness. The sounds of the TV are muffled, the images blurring as his gaze grows unfocused the longer he sits and waits, there’s something about the waiting that gets to him. His gaze slowly falls to the tart as it cools to the side, his brows furrowing as he looks at it.

“Oh are you cutting it?” Jimin asks, gaze focused on Jungkook and the knife he holds in hand. He can barely manage a nod, watching just as silently as his friends crowd him at the counter as he cuts them all a slice. He doesn't wait for them to take a bite, watching his fork easily cut through the chocolate and the shell hearing the soft clink of the metal on ceramic. He slowly brings the fork to his lips, and when he finally takes a bite he almost weeps.

*

He wakes up to you snuggled into him, an arm and leg slung over his body to keep him close. To his surprise you don’t have anything to do that day you offer up when he asks what your plans for the day are. He tries to hide the way he freezes at your revelation, after all you’d both been busy leading up to today. Finally the holiday is here and he was ready to prepare your gift while you’re out but this has thrown him for a loop. He counts himself lucky that it’s a weekend before he shoots a text to Jin asking to borrow his kitchen and that he would be more than happy to offer compensation for said favor. Jin easily agrees, reminding him that if he wanted to use it he had to be there before five since he had a date. The real pain is having to leave you when he finally has you to himself, he has to physically force himself to leave you alone with a kiss on the cheek and a promise to be back early.

Time seems to fly by, because when he finally reaches Jin’s after what he thought was a quick trip to the supermarket the sun hangs lower in the sky than when he’d left. Jin greets him at the door, as he comes through bags in hand, before he rushes to the kitchen. To his surprise Namjoon is here, and he offers a small smile.

“What are you doing here?” he asks, taking note of the way Namjoon is dressed up.

“Jin and I have dates in the human realm, thought it’d be easier to catch a ride with him.” Namjoon says with a shrug.

“Aren’t you afraid of biting them?”

“You’d be surprised how many humans are into that.” Namjoon laughs, catching the look Jin gives him.

“Anyways, we have some time before we head out. I can help you if you need it.” Jin offers, tying an apron around his waist. Jungkook beams at the older, grateful for the help even though he’s determined to do all the work himself he’s more than happy his friends offer the help. The motions come easily, the dough and the filing are easy enough to do now after he has practiced. He makes a mental note to send Bunny a thank you gift and he supposes Yoongi too. Namjoon offers idle chit chat to fill the silence as he compliments the tart Jungkook had made all those days ago, saying how he’d been thinking about it often, he even goes far enough to say he would pay to have Jungkook make him one. The three of them laugh, Jin taking slight offence refusing to be upstaged by the youngest. Some odd hours later the tarts are done, one for you, one for Jin as thank you and one for Namjoon who looks more excited over the pastry than the date.

“Thanks for the tart, I hope she likes it.” Jin says as he locks his door leading Namjoon to his car. The drive home is a calming, classical music filling his ears as he lets his frenzied mind unwind. He thinks that he shouldn't be worried, he knows you and that is enough to finally calm the nervous flutter of butterflies in his tummy.

It would seem the butterflies have returned as Jungkook stands awkwardly on the porch, canvas bag in hand. His heart beats against his ribs too violently he’s afraid there’ll be bruising, he doesn’t think he’s ever been this nervous in his whole life, perhaps it’s the holiday, truly he isn’t quite sure. He recalls Jimin saying that Valentine’s Day was made to celebrate love, while Yoongi said it was capitalism but he liked the thought of celebrating love better. Jungkook was a sap like that, and what better way to celebrate love than to give you something that he’d worked hard to make to show you, his one and only how much you meant to him? It’s this thought that finally frees the butterflies, setting them free from the confines of his belly taking his nervousness with them. Still he takes a deep breath before he finally enters his home.

“Hey you’re here!” you beam at him from down the hall. He takes in the dress you wear, something loose and flowery but still form fitting enough it hugs all his favorite parts. His gaze however remains on the apron you wear, something frilly and cutesy he’s never seen before.

“I am, are you cooking?” he asks, unable to help the way his tone fluctuates the slightest on the last word. There’s this bashful smile spreading your lips, tugging them upward ever so slightly it makes his heart skip a beat.

“I am, come and sit I’m almost done.” he does as he’s told, taking in the absolutely decadent scent of food. You fuss over him, taking the bag from him and setting it gently on the counter. He’s seated at the table chin resting on an open palm watching you work. It’s nice he thinks, especially seeing you dressed up for something as simple as dinner. Still it’s a welcomed change, a sudden furrow settling on his brow as he remembers you aren’t a particularly good cook and as such usually refrain from doing so.

“Hey, where’d you learn to cook?” he asks.

“It was supposed to be a surprise, but if you must know I had Yoonji and Yoonji teach me how to make you something special.” you say shooting him a smirk over your shoulder, it stirs something in his belly something that he struggles to tamp down.

“Oh yeah, special occasion?” he teases with an easy smile.

“Just wanna spoil my man.”

“Hmm, lucky him, wonder where he’s at.” you gasp dramatically. Turning off the stove while pointing tongs at him.

“I do too, he’s very charming, cute smile, big, y'know all the things a girl likes?” she sighs as his cheeks pinken at the unexpected praise.

“You think I’m big?”

“Of course baby.” you simper, plating the food before cutting up the steak. He smirks as you saunter over placing the plate before him leaning up as you lean down to plant a soft kiss to his lips. He hums as you nibble at the skin of his lips, one of his hands moving to squeeze your hip before you pull away. You take your seat opposite of his, careful to remove the apron and setting it aside.

“Go ahead, dig in.” you say watching with rapt attention as he takes a bit of the steak and some greens. His gaze never leaves yours even as he takes a bite, letting the taste wash over his tongue. You smile so wide eyes sparkling as he groans, the savory bite of meat melts on his tongue, and he finally looks away.

“Oh god, what did they teach you?” he asks around a mouthful, quick to dig in as you giggle softly.

“Enough, Yoonji said you should be grateful she taught me well and that this was her one good deed for the year.” you laugh chewing the bite of steak. He nods his head, it seems he’ll be indebted to her.

“So this was the prior engagement Yoongi had mentioned.” he says more to himself than you.

“Hmm?”

“Nothing, this is really good. My compliments to the chef.” He loves the way you smile at his compliments. The rest of dinner goes by much the same, the two of you exchanging teasing words in between bites and soon enough you're doing the dishes. You’re drying them as Jungkook rinses, resting comfortably close to one another when you spot the canvas bag that Jungkook had come home with.

“What’s in the bag?” you ask turning to look up at him taking the last dish from him to dry it.

“What bag?”

“The one you came home with, what’s in it?” you ask again as you dry your hands. He turns to see the bag, and suddenly he’s reminded of the tart.

“Oh, you go sit on the couch, it's a surprise.” he says spinning you in the direction of the couch smacking your ass playfully when you don’t budge. You flinch slightly as the mild sting, moving towards to take a seat on the couch as he says. It’s not long before he’s settling beside you as you look down at his hands to see a single slice of chocolate tart topped with whipped cream. Your brows furrow, lips twitching as you fight a smile.

“I made this for you, happy valentine’s day.” he says bashfully, chuckling softly when your gaze shoots up to meet his. 

“Jungkook, you didn’t have to.”

“But I wanted too, besides it’s mostly self indulgent.” he whispers leaning into you to slot his lips against yours. He breathes in your sigh, tilting his head the slightest to deepen the kiss relishing in the taste of you before he pulls away.

“You taste like steak.” you giggle while he simply rests his forehead against yours.

“Yeah, well then I’d say we taste the same.” He pecks you once, twice, three times sighing when he finally pulls away taking the fork and bringing up a small portion of the tart to your lips. 

“Open up baby.” he breaths eyes half lidded watching intently as your lips part ever so slightly wrapping around the pastry teeth scraping over the fork to catch every last bit. The rich taste of the chocolate washes over your tongue. You moan slightly blinking sluggishly as you savor the taste of the creamy filling parting your lips for more. Jungkook's pants feel tight as he feeds you more, each bite you take is more painful as he finally lets his mind wander. Let’s himself think of all those nasty little things he’d been holding back for a little too long. 

“Need you baby.” he breathes, moving to take your bottom lip between his teeth. You whimper softly pressing yourself closer to him as much as you can. He’s quick to set the plate aside pulling you onto his lap, pulling you down by the hips so you can feel him press against you right where you need him. He swallows you gasp as he gently thrusts his hips up into you, teeth nipping at your lip again because he just needs to feel you. 

“Want you Kook, please.” you murmur against his lips as he slowly trails them to your jaw and neck. He hums hands squeezing your thighs with a muffled groan as he slides them under the hem of your skirt, finger slipping into the waistband of your panties and giving a swift tug. 

“Want these off baby.” you nod eagerly shakily sliding off his lap to quickly pull them off as he rids himself of his pants and boxers. His hands find your thighs again, squeezing as he pulls you to straddle his lap once more. Your fingers knot themselves in his hair, tugging slightly to tilt his face up for another kiss, mewling as he slides his fingers through your folds spreading your slick and rubbing your clit in small tight circles. You buck your hips as heat swirls in your belly, sighing shakily as his fingers dip into your heat. 

“So wet for me, how bad d’you want it?” he breathes, nuzzling your cheek as your fingers tighten in his hair. 

“So bad, kook plea- oh!” you squeal as his sinks a finger further into you, pumping it slowly as he eases in a second finger in beside it basking in the way you clench around them whimpering as you drop your hips with every upward stroke of his fingers. 

“That’s it baby, just a little more, don’t wanna hurt you.” he sighs feeling his cock twitch as he thinks about being buried in your warmth.

“Need you, please.” Your hips grind into his palm crying out as he pulls his fingers from your heat, soothing you with soft bites to your shoulders. 

“Shh, I got you, s’okay, ready for me?” he asks, not really expecting an answer. He spreads your arousal as he gives his cock a few pumps before he lines himself up to your opening. 

“Deep breath okay, yeah just like that.” It’s a tight fit as he slowly pushes into your warmth, you groan into his ear at the stretch, twitching as he buries himself deeper. There are tears in your eyes as you clench around his girth, crying out as he grinds your hips into his. You can't take it, can almost taste your release as he continues to grind your hips into his as he whispers soft praise into your skin. His grip on your hips loosens, breath ragged as you continue to grind down on him feeling your walls flutter around his length. Your panting broken incomprehensible words, one’s he recognizes easily as your plea for help. His palm comes down on your ass, the sharp smack accompanied by your gasp when he thrusts into you. He only manages a few pumps of his hips before you wail, clenching around his cock so tightly it almost pains him to just sit and let you ride out the wave of your orgasm. Your body has grown slack against him, head buried in his neck as he rubs at your back.

“Are you tapping out on me?” he chuckles into your skin grunting as you twitch in his lap, squeezing your thighs closer. 

“Gimme a sec.” you murmur sleepily, lips ghosting over the mole on his neck. He’ll give you all the time you need because you won’t be sleeping tonight. 

“Happy valentines day, baby.” he growls when he feels you begin to rock your hips easily lifting you both off the couch and making his way to your bedroom. 

*

“I can't, it's too much.” You cry.

“It’s okay, just a little more.” Jungkook reassures you softly. 

“P-please s’too much.” The sob that you let out is whiny, bordering on distressed. Yoonji’s cheeks heat the longer she stands in the hallway, maybe she should’ve announced her entrance instead of barging in. Perhaps if she did she wouldn’t have walked in on you and Jungkook fucking in the kitched.

“That’s it, good girl, that’s perfect.” he sighs followed by your whine, and so Yoonji decided she should just leave. After all there was no use in interrupting if it meant being scarred by the image of her friends mid fuck. She definitely didn't need to see Jungkook’s tiny weiner, gross she thinks closing the door as gently as she can and leaving them blissfully unaware of her accidental presence. 

“I hate cutting onion.” you cry when Jungkook cups your face and plants a few kisses to your lips.

“I know baby, but you wanted to learn.” he laughs as you grumble to yourself and he sweeps you up into a hug. 

“So should we move on?” he asks, watching you nod excitedly, he’s equally excited to see what the future holds. It may have taken some time and more than ten ounces of semi sweet chocolate but eventually Jungkook learned that you would be the sweetest thing in his life.

[artisqueer]

RetroBangBoy AU - The Hangover (ao3)

Notes: 

hang·o·ver /ˈhaNGˌōvər/ noun 1. a thing that has survived from the past. Example: "a hangover from the fifties" 2. a severe headache or other after-effects caused by an excessive intake of alcohol or drugs

Characters: OT7

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: Brief mentions of alcohol.

Jungkook wakes up parched, hungry, and with a pounding in his head. He pushes the covers off his face and down his chest. His long fluffy hair standing from the static of the sheets. He stretches out his arms above his head, dragging out a groggy yawn. It feels like he’s just woken up from a century-long nap. He looks up past his hands outstretched in the air. The posters above his bed are the same. He looks down, past his bare feet at the bottom of the bed. His drum set, books, and gadgets are all in their place too.

Huh…what year is it?

A heavy thump on the other side of the wall startles him out of bed. The crash is immediately followed by a low moan. Jungkook dashes out to the hall where Yoongi is already standing at the entrance of the bedroom next door. His eldest roommate chuckles behind a mug of coffee, head tilted 90 degrees to the side. Jungkook peers inside the room to see the source of the ruckus, his round head naturally tilts to the side as well. They both stand in the doorway, observing their housemate, Namjoon.

On the floor, upside down, legs folded over his shoulders.

“Where are we?” he asks as he looks up at them from between his thighs.

Yoongi shuffles back to the kitchen, holding his head in pain. “It looks like we’re not in Jeju anymore…” His voice is raspy and deep.

***

Jungkook’s round eyes bounce back and forth across their house, looking for clues to explain their current predicament. His head is throbbing with pain too. He suddenly remembers his thirst and runs to the kitchen for water.

Once Namjoon has restored himself to a perpendicular position, he joins them in the kitchen too.

“Why does my head hurt? Did we get shit-faced last night?” Jungkook groans into the kitchen counter.

“I can’t remember,” Yoongi grimaces between gulps of coffee.

“Is it a week-day? We have never gone out on a school night… I would never go out on a school night!” Namjoon folds his thick arms across his chest and blinks. “I’m so hungry.”

Jungkook turns away from the sink and his eyes pop at the sight. A whole ass meal, complaining about the lack of a meal...in the kitchen of all places. pls.

“Me too. We better go out for food. There’s nothing to eat here.” Yoongi says with very little energy.

“How can that be? I always stock up on groceries!” Namjoon frantically checks the cabinets and cupboards, finding them all bare.

“What the hell did we do?” The two eldest housemates look at one another, dumbfounded. Jungkook leans into the kitchen wall, aggressively chewing on his thumb. He's nervous, eyes big and wide. He opens his mouth to speak when the phone rings.

Ring ring ring.

Namjoon answers it, rather desperately. “Hello?”

“Good, you’re home.” The voice on the other end breathes out a sigh of relief. “It’s me. Taehyung. Emergency meeting. Your place. Now!”

***

“So, we’re all blacked out from yesterday. We have the worst hangover of our lives. And Bighead and Jin are missing…” Jungkook repeats as he paces back and forth the living room.

Hoseok enters the breakfast nook and sets down an extra-large pan of sunny side eggs and sausage. He steps back before the starved men wipe it clean.

“What’s gotten into you? You’re all so hungry today,” Hoseok scorns them as a smile grows on his lips. He’s thrilled that he finally gets to cook for them. Jin normally does all the cooking.

“You’re not going to eat?” Jimin asks him from behind a mouth full of food.

“I just don’t feel hungry,” Hoseok shrugs. He wipes his hands on his apron. “I brought us enough groceries to last through the week, so eat well.” Oddly, Hoseok has more energy than everyone in the room put together.

Taehyung speaks from the head of the table. “Guys, we’re not all blacked out—which is why I called everyone here..."

They look up at him from their plates, still eating like the food will be taken away if they stop.

"I remember everything.”

Jungkook interrupts. “Wait. Has anyone checked the date?!” He wiggles out of his chair and nearly trips running to the front porch, where the Sunday paper should be.

Having just eaten to the brim, Yoongi yawns and casually turns on the TV set, out of habit. The display does something completely new. Huh, TVs don't have color? Jimin and Hoseok are most mesmerized by this, moving to sit at the foot of the screen as a Coca-Cola commercial plays:

It's more than taste,

Bigger than a name,

As big as your best times,

As good as your best friends,

As real as the way you feel…

Jungkook runs back with the newspaper all spread out into disarray like his long dark hair. “Um…guys?”

There’s a long pause in the room.

“We’re not in the fifties anymore…”

What—

Their wide eyes look from him to the television and back. There’s only one thing that could mean coming from Jungkook…and it’s not good.

“We, uh, must’ve jumped twenty-seven years into the future,” he scratches the back of his round head. “It’s...1985.”

Taehyung clears his throat. “You guys will need to sit down for this. I can explain.”

***

They gather in the living room. Namjoon and Yoongi take up the couch, Jungkook sits on the floor between them, and Hoseok and Jimin share the love seat.

Taehyung’s knack for taking pictures and love for journalism make him a natural storyteller. His fine hands sway in the air as he talks. “You all have varying degrees of memory loss. For some very strange reason, I can remember everything that’s happened to us in the last 48 hours.”

Tae recounts their field trip and the events leading up to the portal inside the Manjjanggul Lava tube. How Jin wanted to hide the portal from the lab, Heaven Inc., but Jungkook wanted to destroy it. How Namjoon, Hoseok, Jimin, and Yoongi stormed the cave clearing as Jungkook was opening the portal gate. How Namjoon and Jin fought each other as the cave collapsed. And most importantly, how they were all unexpectedly pulled into the warp after Jungkook. All, except Jin and their beloved Bighead.

Their memories start coming back to them, piece by piece. Oddly, it’s as though only Taehyung could trigger their recollections.

“I don’t understand.” Namjoon finds his glasses and puts them on. Suddenly, he looks more like a professor than a biker. Big-tiddied mathematician. “Why is Taehyung the only one who remembers what happened?”

Taehyung thinks for a moment before an unusual blush forms at his cheeks. “Probably ‘cause I appreciate art. So, I remembered.”

“Uhm, ok. And why doesn’t Hoseok have hangover symptoms like the rest of us?” Yoongi crosses his arms, which seemingly grew thicker in the micro-span of the jump.

Hoseok vibrates from his place next to Jimin. His bright smile radiating through the room. “Ooh, I know I know. ‘Cause I’m your hope! Everyone was totally beat, but I could give you my energy. Like sunshine to a dying plant or light at the end of a dark tunnel or a—”

“—mOtH tO a FlAmE,” the rest mock. Apparently, no one forgot Hoseok’s notorious house party pick-up lines. They all laugh.

Could this be? Do some of the jocks have certain abilities now? What about the bikers?

“We have another problem: where is Sweetcheeks, and Seokjin?” Taehyung seems frustrated.

“And another problem: why did we all get warped with Jungkook in the first place?” Jimin pouts. “What about our families, and my—”

“—Cat! Your cat! Cats have nine lives. For three they play, for three they stray and for the last three, they stay. Why...did I just say that? It feels so familiar, so stran—” Yoongi stops talking out loud, resorting to mumbling to himself instead. He quickly grabs the paper from Jungkook and begins searching it for something.

The others continue to talk over each other, flooded with their worries and bits of things they’re starting to remember. The upcoming homecoming game, the unattended house parties, mourning parents, exams, etc.

“Quiet!” Namjoon’s clear and booming voice silences the room.

“I don’t know,” Jungkook fiddles with his tattooed fingers. “I-I don’t know why I dragged you all here with me. That’s what I have to figure out. I will figure it out. I promise. I’m worried too. If Bighead and Jin didn’t get warped here with us, maybe they, they ended up in a different d—” they sit in silence, thinking the worst.

“No no, that can’t be,” Namjoon reassures. “Given everyone’s memory lapse and their expert recklessness, they may have just wandered off.”

“We have to go back,” Jungkook says. “We have to go back to 1958.”

“How? We’re stuck here,” Yoongi deadpans, his nose still in the paper.

“Actually,” Jimin recalls, “on my way over here I stopped by the coffee shop…and um…well my boss didn’t recognize me at all. He didn’t even know my name.” Jimin’s worries grow. It’s unlike Jimin to walk down the street without a single greeting. He is—was—very popular.

“It's starting to make sense...” Jungkook says under his breath.

“What does, Jungkook.” Namjoon’s jaw does the thing.

“People don’t recognize us in this place because,” he pauses, “because we’re not from here. I don’t mean this town, I mean, this dimension.”

Namjoon presses a finger to his lips, thinking.

“We should pick new names and find temporary jobs. To blend in. We can't go back to school, we don't have identification. We need the money anyway,” Yoongi advises, “to support ourselves while Jungkook figures out a way back.” Yoongi seems to have become incredibly wiser after the jump. He peels the paper apart, pen in hand, circling jobs from the employment section. He looks up from the paper again. “How did I know to say that?”

“Whoa, are you like, a genius now?” Jimin sasses, as much to tease him as to distract from the impending doom that is being stuck in the future.

“No.” Yoongi scoffs, withholding a severe blush. “It’s like I’ve read all the books at the library, and lived nine lives since we left 1958. I just, know things.”

Namjoon nods in agreement. “It’s the best plan we’ve got. If twenty-seven years have passed since our “disappearance”, then our sudden re-emergence could bring unwanted attention, or worse…”

“Could someone still be looking for us after all years?” Jimin asks Tae. Hoseok instantly understands and wraps him in a comforting embrace.

“We need to sort this out as quietly as possible. Let’s keep low profiles until we figure out a way to get back to 1958. I don’t want us to get tangled in loose ends.” Namjoon sighs somberly. Being the leader of the biker gang has made him a suitable leader for whatever mish-mosh-of-a-gang this is now. “We’re in a different dimension and we don’t entirely know what that means. It could be dangerous, but as long as we stick together we will be okay. My priority is to keep us all safe.”

At this declaration, all eyes sparkle. Especially, Jungkook’s.

“I got us here, Joon. You can trust me to find us a way home,” Jungkook gets up from the floor, making for the door.

“Stop!” Jimin interrupts. “We can’t go out dressed like this.”

They look down at their clothes. They are still in their 50s outfits.

“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” Yoongi puts down the paper and pouts.

Hoseok pounces off the sofa, “YES! New clothes…get up get up! We’re off to the mall!” He tosses his apron aside and leads them out the front door. Namjoon and Yoongi groan, dragging their feet toward the back of the group.

Jungkook smiles ear to ear. Maybe the world is not quite right, but everything he truly wants is right here with him.

[anxiousbean33]

The Black Sails - Chapter 1 - Oh Shit a Fire

Word count - 1673

@sitting-around-and-fantasizing thank you for helping me out with alot of this <3

Slight derealization warning - Just at the end though

Summary -

The Minecraft family has to move due to the recent attacks from the dark kingdom, 7 years after the conclusion of the first war. Unfortunately, the day they had planned to move, there is a raid on their town from the Dark Kingdom, causing chaos throughout not only the town, but also Smp.

ao3 link - https://archiveofourown.org/works/30826130/chapters/76099421#workskin

“Wait Mumza, what's going on?” Wilbur questions pulling his old guitar out of a box, “Mum! You can't get rid of this! This was my first guitar!”

“Wilbur,” Kristin says, grabbing the guitar back, “That's the box of stuff we are keeping. We're moving to Smp in a few days, and we need to pack up.”

“What.” He stares in disbelief, “Mum, does Tommy know? You know he won't want to move. I don't want to move!”

“Ayyy seems the Big Man hates the news! HaHA! Take that Wilbur, you are gonna be stuck with me and Tubbo,” Tommy says, throwing his stuff on the couch and dragging him to the other room. “Wilbur, a bunch of other magic users will be at Smp if we go there, then we will be able to fight better! We could be like Dream! Or GeorgeNotFound!”

“Let go of me,” he responds, shoving Tommy off of him, “I don't care about becoming a hero Toms, I want to stay here and play for the town, not move to a crowded kingdom where we only know the Sparklez family.” Walking back into the living room, while Tommy walks back to his room, “Mum, what's the real reason we are moving to Smp? I know it's not to improve our magic, as you taught us really well for people without gems, So What is the real reason?”

“Wilbur…” She sighs, replying solemnly, “I know your 23 and you can move out, so I’m warning you of what's going on, but if you truly want to stay here, you can. I don't want to leave, but if you are happier here, neither me nor Phil can stop you,”

“Wait? What's going on? Something bad has happened right?” he says shocked, as Phil walks in.

“Hey Wil- Oh Kris, did you decide to tell him? Has he decided if he's coming with?”

“No! She hasn't! What's going on Mum? Dad?”

“Will…” His father says, while fidgeting like someone would attack everyone if he said the wrong things, “You know the attacks on Smp and the Towns nearby - the ones that have been happening since the dark war? They recently found out that the Dark Kingdom has risen again, and are going now by Black Sails, they are the ones behind the raids and attacks. We are headed to Smp not only to help them if they need more fighters, but also to protect Tommy.”

“No... this can't… No- There is no way that- but... I thought Blade killed their leader? How are they back?”

“I don't know Wilbs, all that's been released to the public is that they finally found out who was behind the attack's nobody knows who's leading them though.”

“Ok dad, thanks for telling me, if you need me, I’ll be packing.”

Wilbur walks back to his room and starts packing his clothes. Looking out the window, he thinks back to the story his mom told him 7 years ago about the dark war. He continues packing until he hears them. The sirens. Wilbur has never heard them so loud before, it's almost as if… Suddenly there is a loud crash that shoves Wilbur back. He stands up and sees that his door frame has exploded into flames.

“TOMMY! OH, GOD TOMMY FIRE!” He rushes to his brother's room hoping to get him out, but unfortunately the door is stuck and catches fire, “TOMMY STAND BACK I'LL GET YOU OUT!” He shouts while bashing his shoulder against the burning door, once he opens the door, he finds an empty room, Tommy was already in the house. Recognizing that he is out, the adrenaline runs out, and he starts realizing the pain in his shoulder and falls to the floor coughing, a figure rushes over to him, “Dad…?”

“Hey it's okay, c'mon, just stay awake,” a soothing voice talks to him, “My name is BBH, we need to get you out of here. You'll be okay.” He slowly looks up at the hybrid that is saving him, and his necklace that is glowing like the color of fire. “My power is fire, c'mon quickly we need to get you out of here.”

“Bad! Was there anyone in that house?” another voice shouts as Wilbur's eyes start shutting.

“Yeah! Shoot, c'mon kid stay awake! Sap he needs help immediately, his shoulder is badly burned, and he was in the hou-” Bad starts to say as Wilbur out of strength falls unconscious.

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

“Oh boy... Everyone listen here! My name is H. If you don't know where your family is, head to the left. If you need to find a place to stay, head to the right. Someone should direct you to a place where you can stay for tonight, if you live here or already have a place to stay, just head straight and don't be afraid to ask for help,” says to the crowd of townsfolk flooding into the kingdom. “Oh right! If you need medical attention, head to the left and then take a right, we are trying to help as many people as possible!”

Tommy looks around trying to find any familiar face. He looks up and sees Dream talking to the announcer guy, H. Dream turns around and spots Tommy staring up at him, hops offstage and walks over to him. “Hey Tommy, sorry you were moving on a day like today, we weren't expecting there to be an attack today. Just head over to our house, it's the multi colored one you can't miss it I'll send the rest-”

“Dream, who attacked our town?”

“Wait that was you-”

“Yes Big D! It was our town!”

“Shit. Uhm okay... Fuck... that complicates things. Are you hurt? I'm still going to send you to Puffy but I’ll keep my eye out for Wilbur, Phil, and Kristin. Fuck… oh and to answer your question it was the Dark Kingdom, I’ll explain more to you and Tubbo later.” Dream starts running back to the gates to fight off the mobs that have started coming out due to the sun setting and the mass amounts of people flooding into the kingdom. H then starts to repeat his speech to the newcomers and Tommy starts walking towards the house Dream said was the Sparklez house afraid of what happened to his family.

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

When Phil finally arrives in the kingdom he is also greeted by H giving his speech for what seems to be the last time, “Is this all of you? Ok that's good… if ya have a place go straight, need a place go left, right if you were separated from your family the dream team should help you with that and right if you need medical” H then yawns, “Shit- sorry I meant right for if you need a place, and left for medical and finding your family… Man I’m really tired Imma go take a nap, g’night everyone”

Phil does a quick scan around and then walks straight with his luggage to the Sparklez household, anticipating that everyone would be there already, as he stayed behind to fight some of the dark soldiers, just like in the past. He slowly opens the door and is greeted by Puffy, who is watching some cooking show with Jordan and Tommy and Tubbo asleep on the couch. “Where is Will and Kristin? I was one of the last people to arrive at Smp, they should be here by now…” he whispers to the two awake.

“Dream told me Wilbur got caught in your house when it went aflame. Bad was able to get him out, but he was severely injured and is getting medical attention now. We haven't gotten any word on where Kristin is, but Dream will let us know if they find her.” Jordan replies, pausing the show. “We just have to wait for them to find her now, hopefully they find her before the raiders. You guys have had a long day, we can talk to Eret about it tomorrow”

“I’ll probably go check on Will tomorrow then. Uh thank you again for letting us stay here…” Phil sighs, terrified of what happened to his family. “I am going to head to bed now, wake me up when you two plan to head out.” Walking up to the guest bedroom

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

TW - Slight Derealization

“We need to do something… Her army is approaching, we know how to wield magic and fight without it, we can try to fight against them.” Wilbur hears when he starts waking up.

“Dad?” He says confused, he starts to open his eyes and looks around, noticing that his necklace was glowing a gold color, “My magic! Holy shit!” He stands up and starts to look around the house when he hears his parents start talking again.

“What about the kids though? If we do this, my angel, they could be put in danger.” his mothers states.

“We haven't shown anyone our magic, plus you can shift and I have my wings. We could keep our identities secret and leave to fight at night. If we don't do anything, they could get hurt more.” This shocks wilbur, didn't his parents say they never had magic? They weren't hybrids and weren't shifters and were never gifted a piece of magic jewelry, unless they were lying to both him and Tommy.

“What is going on!” Wilbur screams, trying to understand why his parents are talking like he isn't in the room, like he is invisible, like there wasn't just a fire. Irritated, he slams his hand against the table, shocking him awake.

Wilbur looks around again, and instead of being in his house perfectly fine he wakes up in a hospital. Looking down he realizes that his necklace isn't growing any more, and he has lots of bandages on him. “Will! You're awake! The doctors said you probably wouldn't wake up until tomorrow, you got badly burned Wil do you remember what happened?” a voice said, he couldn't tell who it was though before he passed out once again from the pain.

[maedaeme]

One, two, six, and twenty three for the writing meme, hiii .

hiiii - !

1. give short descriptions of all your current WIPs.

- local woman falls into existence out of the dirt under a bridge, sees ghosts, fights god, avoids paying rent

- supernatural monsters try to fend off the destruction of human society because humans are small and oblivious, mostly by crying 'why the fuck are WE the ones fixing this' while eating cheese fries at Denny's at 2 am

- squad of misfits goes on quest for immortality and the land of the dead on behalf of a kind of sucky king who thinks he's special and important because his palace was built in Giant Ribs

readmore on the rest because i talk a LOT lmfao

2. give short descriptions of all the main characters for [WIP].

I'm doin all 3, gang

- zeke: local woman in question. trans. likes grunge and pro wrestling and her motorcycle. doesn't like ghosts, but travels around exorcising ghosts anyway because she can't just, like, leave them there. what if they possess somebody or something. - luka: current neighbor. didn't believe in ghosts, but now he kinda has to, because one moved into his apartment. has no idea what is going on ever.

-----

- angie: local werewolf who has had enough of this shit - lyre: local wraith who has had enough of this shit - ksy: local wraith who has had enough of ALL of you people - morgead: local wraith in charge of wraiths but he doesn't want to be anymore. he just wants to be cute, please

-----

- molly: small lady accidentally summoned out of a pit by a very stuck-up king. no memory of who she is or what she's supposed to be doing. she's in charge, though, i guess - daybreak dies: assassin who barely talks and is clearly here for his Own Selfish Reasons. resting bitch face. good at cooking tho - oracle: guard captain who saw molly and went 'someone has to protect that girl and it might as well be me.' functions on instinct. can see 10 seconds into the future. - tj: self-declared Normal One. honorary heathen and group parent.

6. are your projects driven more by character or plot?

100% character--i'll have a vague plot concept most of the time, and then it fleshes itself out later as i figure people out

23. what do you do to engage with your projects which isn’t actually writing? ex: playlists, pinterest boards, etc. how much do they play a role in the development of your work?

most of the stuff i write has at least one Theme Song that fits the vibe i'm looking for, and if I have a REALLY strong visual theme i'll sometimes do a moodboard. it doesn't play a huge role but it does make me more consistent in tone/descriptors. I definitely have habits i default to when i'm getting comfortable and it helps me keep things from being same-y, lol

[embriaguezlirica]

Marriage Story, 2019

Dir. Noah Baumach

"[Charlie] What I love about Nicole. She makes people feel comfortable about even embarrassing things. She really listens when someone is talking. Sometimes she listens too much for too long. She's a good citizen. She always knows the right thing to do when it comes to difficult family shit. I get stuck in my ways and she knows when to push me and when to leave me alone. She cuts all our hair. She's always inexplicably brewing a cup of tea that she doesn't drink. And it's not easy for her to put away a sock or close a cabinet or do a dish, but she tries for me. Nicole grew up in LA around actors and directors and movies and TV, and is very close to her mother, Sandra, and Cassie, her sister. Nicole gives great presents. She is a mother who plays, really plays. She never steps off playing or says it's too much. And it must be too much some of the time. She's competitive. She's amazing at opening jars because of her strong arms, which I always found very sexy. She keeps the fridge over-full. No one is ever hungry in our house. She can drive a stick. After that movie, All Over the Girl, she could have stayed in LA and been a movie star, but she gave up to do theater with me in New York. She's brave. She's a great dancer. Infectious. She makes me wish I could dance. She always says when she doesn't know something or hasn't read a book or seen a film or a play, whereas I fake it or say something like "I haven't seen that in a while". My crazy ideas are her favorite things to figure out how to execute. She's my favorite actress.

[Nicole] What I love about Charlie. Charlie is undaunted. He never lets other people's opinions or any setbacks keep him from what he wants to do. Charlie eats like he's trying to get it over with and like there won't be enough food for everyone. A sandwich is to be strangled while devoured. But he is incredibly neat and I rely on him to keep things in order. He's energy-conscious. He doesn't look in the mirror too often. He cries easily in movies. He’s very self-sufficient : he can darn a sock and cook himself dinner and iron a shirt. He rarely gets defeated which I feel like I always do. Charlie takes all of my moods steadily. He doesn’t give into them or make me feel bad about them. He's a great dresser and never looks embarrassing, which is hard for a man. He's very competitive. He loves being a dad. He loves all the things you’re supposed to hate, like the tantrums, the waking up at night. It’s almost annoying how much he likes it, but then it's mostly nice. He disappeares into his own world. He and Henry are alike that way. He can tell people they have food in their teeth or on their face in a way that doesn't make them feel bad. Charlie is self-made. His parents, I only met them once, but he told me there was a lot of alcohol and some violence in his childhood. He moved to New York from Indiana with no safety net and now he's more New Yorker than any New Yorker. He's brilliant at creating family out of whoever is around. With the theater company he casts a spell that made everyone feel included. No one, not even an intern, was unimportant. He could remember all the inside jokes, he's extremely organized and thorough, he's very clear about what he wants, unlike me who can't always tell. (...) I fell in love with him two seconds after I saw him. And I'll never stop loving him, even though it doesn't make sense anymore."

(and Adam Driver singing being alive 💔)

[absinthc-blog]

(  kim  seokjin,  cismale,  he/him,  26.  )  —  CHOI  MINWOO,  better  known  to  the  authorities  as  PROMETHEUS,  has  been  working  for  the  kumiho  for  around  SEVEN  YEARS  as  a  COORDINATOR.  rumor  has  it,  they  can  be  ADAPTABLE  &  CONCILIATORY  but  also  HAUGHTY  &  MATERIALISTIC  which  is  why  crystal  champagne  flutes,  black  cards,  cigar  smoke,  and  tailored  suits  makes  me  think  of  them. 

okay  first  and  foremost  i  want  to  say  a  genuine  THANK  YOU  to  each  and  every  one  of you  for  showing  interest  in  this  group  !  truly,  it's  been my  baby  for  a  while  now  &  i'm  so  glad  i  was  able  to  (  with  help  from  ness,  obviously  )  bring  it  back  for  all  of  us  to  enjoy !  words  can't  express how  grateful  i  am  for  all  of  you  &  for  the  out  pour  of  love  and  support  we've  received  for  kumiho  !  now...  onto  the  usual  intro  stuff  !

hello,  i'm  gem,  i'm  21+,  i  go  by  she  /  her  pronouns  and  i  live  in  the  cst  timezone  !  i  absolutely  love  pain,  angst  &  ruining  my  characters  lives.  i  also  tend  to  use  memes  all  the  time  so  if  we're  talking..  just  prepare  for  memeage.  also  a  fun  fact  that  literally  know  one  asked  for  but  i'm  giving  it  to  you  anyways:  i  cried  the  first  time  i  ever  saw  a  corgi  in  real  life  &  proceeded  to  run  across  a  busy  street  to  be  able  to  pet  it  !  okay  now  for  real,  onto  the things  you're  really  here  for  !

this  dude  right  here  is  minwoo,  he's  a  tiny  bit  of  a  trashy  mess  but  honestly  i  can't  seem  to  play  characters  that  aren't  a  mess  ?  his  backstory  is  still  a  work  in  progress,  but  below  the  cut  is  basic  stats  /  bullet  proof  bio  /  personality  traits  /  basic  wanted  plots  &  a  few  more  random  things  !

if  you'd  like  to  plot,  feel  free  to  add  me  on  discord  (  𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒾 𝕆𝕆𝔽.#9330 ),  im  me  or  SMASH  that  little  heart  button  &  i'll  come  to  you  !

                                 GENERAL  INFORMATION.

full  name:  choi  minwoo. nickname(s): min,  woo,  minnie. date  of  birth:  tbd. age:  twenty-five. nationality:  korean. spoken  languages:  korean,  english,  chinese,  japanese,  thai,  french,  spanish,  german  &  russian. gender:  cismale. pronouns:  he / him / his. sexuality:  bisexual. faceclaim:  kim seokjin  (  jin  )  of  bts. BACKGROUND. hometown:  daegu,  south  korea. current  residence:  seoul,  south  korea. financial  status:  upper  class. occupation:  coordinator. family  connections:  tbd.

                                       EXTRA  INFORMATION.

myers  briggs:  entp-a. (  the  debater.  ) enneagram:  seven.  (  the  enthusiast.  ) temperament:  choleric. moral  aligment: neutral evil. hogwarts  house:  slytherin. sin:  gluttony. virtue:  pride. zodiac:  tbd. element:  fire.

                                                BIOGRAPHY.

born  and  raised  in  daegu,  south  korea.

parents  were  both  incredibly  well  known.  one  being  a  lawyer,  one  being  a  ceo  of  a  multi-million  dollar  corporation.

they  weren't  around  a  lot  due  to  how  busy  their  schedule  was,  so  minwoo  was  mostly  raised  by  the  nannies  /  maids  that  were  always  around.

there  was  a  tiny  bit  of  resentment  that  minwoo  held  towards  his  parents  for  never  being  around  that  he'd  take  that  out  on  the  nannies,  so  much  so  they  had  a  hard  time  keeping  a  full-time  nanny  hired.  they'd  constantly  quit  their  jobs  due  to  how  minwoo  treated  them.

after  a  while,  though,  the  choi's  were  able  to  find  one  nanny  in  particular  that  didn't  take  minwoo's  attitude  personally  &  didn't  allow  it  to  effect  their  job.  in  fact,  they  started  to  reprimand  min  for  the  way  he  was  acting  out.

at  first,  of  course,  minwoo  didn't  take  well  to  that  at  all.  he  got  more  angry,  started  getting  more  of  an  attitude.  but  after  a  while,  he  grew  tired  of  it..  finally  breaking  down  &  it  was  then  that  the  nanny  figured  out  why  he  was  lashing  out  at  every  person  that  happened  to  be  doing  the  job  his  parents  were  supposed  to  be.

minwoo  started  to  calm  down  after  that  day,  finally  starting  to  realize  that  it  wasn't  the  nannies  fault  that  his  parents  were  always  working  and  couldn't  be  around  to  raise  him  like  he  really  wanted  them  to  be.

it  was  then  that  his  grades  started  to  get  better,  attitude  improving  almost  completely.  sure,  there  were  days  where  it  still  got  to  him,  but  for  the  most  part  he  stopped  taking  it  out  on  everyone  but  the  people  actually responsible  for  the  way  he  felt.

his  school  days  after  that  went  really  well,  acing  all  of  his  classes  and  staying  at  the  top  of  his  grade  the  entire  time.  things  got  different  around  high  school,  though.  his  parents  started  breathing  down  his  neck  about  either  becoming  a  ceo  or  a  lawyer.

neither  of  those  things  is  actually  what  minwoo  wanted  to  do,  fully  unsure  of  what  he  wanted  to  do  with  his  life.  but  he  didn't  want  to  let  either  of  them  down,  so  in  his  free time  he  ended  up  studying  for  both  things.

completely  letting  his  'free'  time  go  in  order  to  please  both  of  his  parents  caused  him  to  start  building  up  his  aggression  &  resentment  once  more.

he  couldn't  take  it  for  much  longer,  his  parents  constantly  yelling  at  him  to  get  his  shit  together  caused  him  to  hate  school,  hate  studying  for  both  things  that  he  doesn't  want  to  do...

so  one  day,  he  snapped.  his  father  bursting  through  his  room  as  he  was  taking  a  break  only  to  start  yelling  &  instead  of  falling  back  into  line,  minwoo  got  up  &  got  in  his  father's  face  and  began  yelling  back.  telling  his  father  that  what  his  parents  wanted  him  to  do  wasn't  what  he  wanted  at  all.

his  father  didn't  take  too  kindly  to  that,  basically  telling  minwoo  that  if  he  didn't  want  to  do  either  of  the  things  his  parents  wanted  him  to  do,  he  could  move  out  and  deal  with  life  on  his  own.

to  prove  a  point,  that's  exactly  what  minwoo  did,  moving  into  his  aunt's  house  as  he  finished  high  school,  finding  multiple  part-time  job  that'd  pay  the  bills  he  needed  to  pay  as  well  giving  his  aunt  some  for  rent  just  because  she  willingly  let  him  in.

those  were  also  something  he  didn't  want  to  do,  but  he  did  them  anyways  just  to  be  able  to  have  some  sort  of  income.

after  he  graduated  high  school,  he  had  tons  of  colleges  that  wanted  him  to  join  them  just  because  of  how  good  his  grades  were,  but  that  also  didn't  seem  to  be  something  he  wanted  to  do.

he  declined  each  and  every  one  of  them  with  little  to  no  regret,  his  aunt  supporting  the  decision  even  though  she  wanted  to  see  him  do  something  better  with  his  life.

those  words  stuck  with  him  as  he  finally  moved  out  of  her  home  &  into  a  small apartment,  busting  his  ass  to  constantly  be  able  to  pay  bills.

it  wasn't  until  he  met  someone  at  the  bar  he  worked  at  that  his  life  started  to  take  a  turn  for  the  better.  the  mastermind  happened  to  frequent  the  place  he  worked,  always  giving  minwoo  a  hard  time  about  doing  better  things  with  his  life, only  for  minwoo  to  brush  it  off.

but  one  night,  min  finally  got  curious,  asking  the  mastermind  what  that  meant.  that's  when  the  offer  to  join  the  kumiho  was  set  in  place.  the  mastermind  had  seen  how  determined  minwoo was,  overheard  min  talking  about  the  four  shitty  jobs  he  had  to  work  in  order  'survive'  just  because  he  didn't  want  to  even  touch  the  money  his  parents  constantly  kept  sending  him  just  out  of  spite.

minwoo  actually  started  out  in  the  kumiho  as  a  runner,  getting  things  that  the  crew  needed  &  hiding  in  plain  sight.

however,  the  second  that  the  mastermind  found  out  about  minwoo's  studies,  they  were  quick  to  suggest  something  more,  explaining  the  difficulties  of  being  a  coordinator  &  explaining  why  they  thought  minwoo  would  be  perfect  for  the  job.

minwoo  was  skeptical  at  first,  though  it  only  took  a  few  days  of  debating  with  himself  before  he  agreed  &  ever  since  then,  he's  done  his  best.  he  wanted  to  make  sure  that  the  mastermind  was  proud  of  the  choice  they'd  made.

                                            PERSONALITY.

most  of  the  time,  minwoo  seems  pretty  cocky  &  sarcastic.

can  be  extremely  blunt  when  it  comes  to  certain  things,  even  if  his  words  might  happen  to  hurt  someone  else.

extremely  selfish  for  the  most  part,  always  looks  out  for  himself  before  he  looks  out  for  others...  but  he  does  still  care  about  others,  even  though  he  barely  shows  it.

also  loves  to  "one  up"  others,  it's  the  competitive  side  of  him  but  he  usually  does  so  in  a  playful  /  teasing  way.

he's  deep  down  really  goofy  &  loves  to  have  fun.  loves  to  explore  &  goof  off  whenever  possible.

has  the  tendency  to  hate  commitment,  so  whenever  feelings  start  getting  involved,  his  knee-jerk  reaction  is  to  run  &  avoid  it  at  all  cost.

is  one  of  those  people  who  pretends  to  hate  everything  &  be  really  serious  but  will  dance  around  his  room  in  his  boxers  when  he  thinks  no  one  can  see  him.

a  very  two-sided  person  but  not  in  a  way  that  could  be  seen  as  fake..  he's  just  got  a  very  serious  side  of  him  vs  the  goofy,  fun  loving  one  that  doesn't  get  to  be  seen  as  often.

extremely  serious  when  it  comes  to  his  job,  though.  will  call  people  out  on  the  smallest  of  mistakes  if  he  thinks  it'll  effect  any  of  the  heists.  he  really  has  no  issue  with  confrontation  &  will  do  so  if  he  thinks  it's  needed.

absolutely  loves  to  cook,  picked  that  up  when  he  was  living  with  his  aunt.  he  started  cooking  dinner  and  meals  so  that  his  aunt  didn't  have  to  whenever  she  got  home.

also  a  tiny  a  bit  neat  freak  so  he  gets  a  tiny  bit  stressed  out  whenever  headquarters  is  a little  bit  messy  and  will  either  just  clean  up  the  messes  or  get  snippy  with  everyone  until  he  figures  out  who  did  it.

loves  fashion,  constantly  is  seen  going  to  fashion  shows  to  try  and  keep  up  with  the  latest  trends  &  constantly  is  buying  clothes  &  accessories.

also  loves  cars,  will  buy  the  latest  and  greatest  models  of  each  and  every  sports  car  that  comes  out.

his  'socialite'  side  comes  out  the  most  during  events  where  he's  around  a  bunch of  people,  creating  new  ties  with  whoever  he  can  knowing  connections  like  those will  help  him  gain  new  followers  &  things  like  that.

known  for  modeling  &  his  instagram  /  social  media  posts,  gaining  a  following  just  because  of  his  'ootd'  posts  as  well  as  the  snapchat  videos  he  posts  about  his  daily  life.

                                                  PLOT  IDEAS.

bad  influence.  (  on  your  muse.  )

best  friends.

brotp.

confidant.

current  hook  up(s).

drinking  /  party  buddies.

drunken  hook  up.

enemies  that  used  to  be  friends.

exes  who  ended  on  bad  terms.

flirtationship.

will  they  /  won’t  they.

friends  with  benefits.

good  influence.  (  on  minwoo.  )

hate  sex.

one  night  stand(s).  (  past  &  present.  )

partner  in  crime.

past  hook  up(s).

ride  or  die.

trouble  makers.

unlikely  friends.

[matthillica]

Pandemic - Day 355

This week marks 1 year since Covid was declared a Pandemic in the US.

As things began to shut down and the world changed before our eyes last March, I picked up this blog again thinking it would be interesting to document. At the time, although we hadn't told anyone yet, my wife was three months pregnant with our second child. My daughter was about to turn two. What better way, I thought, to show my kids what Covid was like than to document the pandemic's course as we muddled our way through daily uncertainty.

What I hadn't counted on was the duration and depth of the pandemic. I figured we'd be locked down in quarantine for three months, tops… maybe six if things were handled poorly. 

As the novelty of Covid and prepping pantries and Covid memes began to wear off, we learned more about how Covid is actually transmitted. That meant aspects of our lives went back to normal while other abnormal aspects became second nature. Fear subsided, somewhat. I no longer stressed as much about grocery store trips. We still wear masks everywhere, but aren't afraid of Covid lurking behind every corner. For the most part, we understand that by taking a few simple steps, we can protect ourselves and our family from this disease.

Then in May came George Floyd, which took a world already turned on its head and lit a fire underneath it. A summer of protests against police brutality followed, then the politicization of masks, racial tension, and the most heated election cycle in my memory, all capped off by a coup attempt… the year we found ourselves living through became about so much more than just a pandemic.

The overwhelming was soon mired in disinformation and propaganda and the overwhelming-ness of it all became too overwhelming to even care about documenting, even for posterity.

I quit updating. Who gave a shit anyway? Certainly not me. I had bigger fish to fry than documenting the slow motion train wreck. I shared pics from my Instagram when I felt like it. I helped my Mom move from Kansas to Atlanta and then we packed up and moved to a new house ourselves. This was a welcome distraction from the horrible world, but Covid never really leaves your consciousness. It's always there, especially in weird, unexpected moments. This guy is trying to talk to me and he's getting too close but I don't want to offend him. I just filled up with gas and I'm all out of hand sanitizer, so I drive home reminding myself not to touch my face for the entire 15 minute ride. Mom wants to go to the salon, but I’m worried about exposure because my wife and her father are both high risk and I’m afraid to offend her by saying something. You're always thinking about it. How could you not? Covid is always there, always forcing you to adjust your life and habits around it.

With over 500,000 dead at this point in the US alone, the story of our little pandemic lives seemed so miniscule and, quite frankly, blessed. Sure, we'd lost income due to my unemployment, but our family managed to stay healthy (so far) and happy and together. We had it so much better than so many.

But then I have days like today where small things just rip me apart.

I got my car stuck in the mud in our backyard trying to unload a toolbox in our basement the other day and now I can't get it out of the goddamn grass. It's now sat there for three days while I waited for the ground to dry out so I could try again. I decided this morning to try and get it out by laying a cardboard path of old moving boxes. It was a massive failure that only succeeded in creating more muddy ruts, my car even more stuck now than it was this morning.

I sat in my driver's seat this morning… yelling at my stupid tires and two-wheel-drive, pounding on the steering wheel; the weight of all these little thoughts and worries crashing in around me. My daughter's entire second year was spent inside a fucking house. My son is already getting his first teeth and has only met six people. My hands have been cracked and bleeding for 12 months from constant hand washing. I haven't had a haircut in a year. I haven't seen some of my closest friends in over a year. I have a niece in Las Vegas who I was supposed to meet in March 2020 when she was four months old… now she's walking and talking. My friend lost her uncle and father to Covid in the same month. My other friend has been suffering with Covid for almost two months. My brother caught Covid in September shadowing home inspections to become a certified inspector because MGM’s shows were all closed. I haven't seen my father in a year and he’s 71 and lives by himself. The last time we were together (a year ago this week) he helped me buy a handgun for protection. Political division, social unrest, and America's tenuous grip on democracy. What kind of world did I just bring children into? Are we gonna make it?

I know there is light, but there are days when it still feels pretty damn dark.

And I guess that's where I'm at, mentally speaking. Exhausted. Sad. Grateful. So incredibly grateful. Even when the exhaustion takes over and guts me, I remind myself to be grateful. I'm grateful that the pandemic hasn't been worse for us as it has for so many others. I'm grateful that I've been able to cobble together an income off freelance work. I'm grateful that my kids are happy and healthy, not to mention too young to remember any of this shit once it's over. I’m grateful that I've learned to cook. I'm grateful that my wife and I still love each other. I'm grateful for family who have helped us navigate being working parents without daycare. I'm grateful that my parents and my wife's parents have been vaccinated. I'm grateful that now an end is in sight. When that end will be for us, I'm still not sure, but at least we know it's coming. And for that, I am grateful.

Now we brace for a return to "normalcy", whatever that means… and however long it takes. A regular topic of conversation in my house is what the first restaurant we eat inside will be. Or what vacation we'll take first. These all still feel very aspirational to me, but at least we're aspiring, I guess. In my mind, I'm ready to burst out of my unfinished basement office and folding table desk to tackle the world again. I'm ready to dive into another marketing department somewhere, go see a concert in the front row, take my kid to the aquarium so she can see the fish she only remembers from pictures. In my mind, I'm ready for all of these things and telling myself that attitude is everything.

But in my heart I know that it will probably be a long time before I can eat comfortably at a restaurant again, stand next to a stranger on a train, or sit in an airplane with other passengers without it doing a number on my head. In my heart I know that the first time I experience live music again, go to a museum, watch my child take in the majesty of a real shark, or feel the hug of a friend I've only seen over Zoom for 12+ months, I will be reduced to a puddle. And that's OK. I expect there are many, many others who feel exactly the same way and will be going through the same thing.

Still, if there's one thing the last year has taught me, it's that the abyss of the unknown is crossable and I'm ready to cross it, for better or for worse.