#this is the chapter that everyone (mostly me lmao) has been Impatiently Waiting for

[echoes-of-realities]

be my fire in the cold (and I'll be waiting by the mistletoe) - 24/25

* * *

[From the Start] // [Fanfiction] // [ao3]

[Previous Chapter]

Chapter Summary: The Nutcracker has its last show; Santana and Brittany spend Christmas Eve together. 

Notes: We’re Almost there fam! Also the actual George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker doesn’t stop after Christmas and goes up to December 30th at least, but just for simplicity’s sake I’m taking artistic liberties and in this universe the ballet’s last show is today.

Chapter 24: watching old movies while the fireplace fades

///

The last show of the production’s run is at two, but Brittany still gets up early to help Mercedes finish up the last of her packing. She’s leaving with Sam as soon as the show is over tonight to head back home until New Year’s, her and Sam heading to her parents’ place first and then his; usually the company and crew will have a wrap-up party as soon as the last show is done, but with it being Christmas Eve and all, this production of The Nutcracker usually skips that tradition so everyone has more time with their families and has it sometime between Christmas and New Year’s.

Mercedes is just zipping up her suitcase when Brittany wanders into her room, yawning and absently pulling her messy hair up into an even messier bun. “Nee’ ‘elp?” she mumbles.

Mercedes giggles and rolls her eyes. “You’re only wearing one sock,” she comments mildly.

Brittany looks down, too tired to feel surprised, and shrugs. “Lefty was too hot,” she says nonchalantly, and Mercedes bursts into giggles. “I’ll help you take your stuff out to the living room.”

Mercedes hefts her suitcase off of the bed and motions to the pile of wrapped gifts in the corner of her room, all neatly packed into couple of reusable grocery bags. “You can grab those.”

“What time is Sam picking us up?” Brittany asks as she trails after Mercedes.

“Like, nine thirty-ish?”

“Cool,” Brittany says, “I’ll have time to tidy up then.”

“Why?”

Brittany feels a blush creep into her cheeks before she can even think to try and hide it, which probably would have proved useless anyways, since Mercedes has, like, hawk eyes when it comes to Brittany’s embarrassment.

Mercedes, sure enough, looks back and instantly spots Brittany’s blush, her grin taking on a wicked edge. “Oooh, is your girlfriend coming over?”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Brittany mumbles automatically, but even as she says the words it kind of feels like she’s lying.

“In all but name maybe,” Mercedes says, and Brittany has to concede her point.

“The name part of that is kind of important,” Brittany argues as she drops the presents beside Mercedes’ suitcase.

“Maybe,” Mercedes concedes, “But the feelings part is pretty important too, and that’s definitely there.”

Brittany smiles a little, almost involuntarily, as the thought of being in love with Santana still fills her with bright warmth, and hums in acknowledgement. “I invited her to spend Christmas Eve here since neither of us had any plans.”

“I’m happy for you, Brittany,” Mercedes says softly, and Brittany grins bashfully down at her toes, too distracted by the warmth blooming in her chest realize that Mercedes has started smirking at her. “Just don’t christen any public places please.”

“Mercedes!” Brittany squeals, patting at her cheeks as the blush burning there flares up into an inferno.

“And make sure you kids stay hydrated and well-fed, you don’t want to run out of energy.”

“No no no!” Brittany shrieks, fleeing backwards towards the bathroom, her skin burning bright red from forehead to collarbone, “I take back anything I ever said when you and Sam got together!”

Mercedes smirks because, considering the teasing she got back then, there's no way she's going to give Brittany a break now that she's in love. "Make sure you're safe!" she calls.

“Oh shut up!” Brittany calls back before slamming the bathroom door shut.

///

Even though it’s Christmas Eve, the theatre is surprisingly—or not so surprisingly—packed, people already starting to filter into the lobby even as the company and crew take their last lunch break of the show’s run an hour before half hour. Brittany’s always antsy for last shows, both excited for it to be over so she can finally rest (and, this year, spend the evening with Santana) but dreading it because it means that there will never be another show like this, with this particular group of dancers and kids and crew, ever again.

Santana brings her lunch from that sandwich shop she loves, the same place she bought lunch for them that very first time, kickstarting their almost daily lunch and supper dates. Santana doesn’t bother with any pretences, just sinks down to the floor right beside Brittany, taking her left arm and draping it over her shoulder so they can cuddle and eat. Mercedes, Sam, Tina, and Mike all show up about halfway through their break with an assortment of food between all of them, sprawling on the floor to complete the circle in an impromptu picnic and fondly teasing Brittany and Santana as soon as they all realize their spending Christmas together.

Every single time Mercedes catches Brittany’s eye she feels heat crawl up into her cheeks at the knowing glint there. Santana seems to notice something tense—not bad tense, just the knowing and teasing tension when you know your friend is laughing at you across the room—and quickly takes Brittany’s free hand, as soon as they’re both done eating, and pulls it into her lap to play with her fingers, tracing the webbing between each finger and pressing down on her knuckles like piano keys. It eases the blush from Brittany’s cheeks and softens the teasing glint in Mercedes eyes, and Brittany soaks in the feeling of being surrounded by so much love, from her friends and from Santana, before the chaos of the last show overtakes them.

///

The audience is electric during Brittany’s last performance, knowing it’s their last chance to see this show until next year, and Brittany dances better than she ever has before, knowing that Santana is hidden in the curtains watching. She dances for the audience and she dances for herself but, mostly, she dances for Santana, for the woman who brought laughter and love into her life, who brought her family to her, who brought her love of Christmas back.

Her bow goes on longer than normal as the audience cheers for her, and she’s breathing quickly as pride fills her limbs in place of heavy exhaustion. She exits the stage to continuing applause, waiting in the wings for Jake to go on and do the opening of the Coda before she joins him. She feels someone watching her, and a smile tugs at her lips before she even turns to catch Santana’s eye, and the smile on Santana’s face makes her stomach flutter with about a bajillion butterflies, her chest blooming with warmth and love.

Santana shakes her head a little, still smiling softly, as if she can’t quite believe that Brittany’s real, and Brittany gives a small wave, feeling her heartbeat everywhere, before she turns back to the stage and prepares to join Jake for the Coda, Santana’s gaze heavy and warm on her back as she steps back into the lights.

///

Mercedes helps her out of her costume and unpins her hair quickly so she can rush off to meet Sam and they can try and beat the rush out of the city back to her parents’ house tonight; since it’s the twenty-fourth already, nobody has to pack the show back up into storage until after Christmas.

Mercedes gives Brittany a tight hug before she leaves, still continuing her teasing and making Brittany blush all the way to the tips of her ears as she chases her best friend out the door and runs straight into Santana, who quickly gives Mercedes a brief hug goodbye before turning to Brittany with a wide smile.

“Hi!” Brittany greets brightly, pretending her skin isn’t splotched with pink despite Santana’s adoring gaze on the blush in her cheeks.

“Hey,” Santana says softly. She’s already dressed in her jacket and has a small bag of overnight stuff in one hand, wearing the scarf and hat that Brittany had lent her last week and tying Brittany’s stomach into knots at seeing her own clothes on Santana. “You ready to go?” she asks.

Brittany nods and they just smile at each other for long moments—Brittany taking in this moment, this feeling, this girl—before Brittany turns to shrug on her jacket and collect her things. Santana stands patiently by the door, waiting until Brittany’s locked her dressing room before she reaches out to take her hand, their fingers tangling together easily as they head down the hallway, Brittany quickly easing Santana’s bag from her other hand so she can carry it for her, not missing the smile Santana gives her or the way her stomach ties itself into warm knots at how couple-y it feels.

They wave goodbye and wish Merry Christmases to their friends as the pass them on their way out of the theatre, deciding to walk back to Brittany’s apartment since it’s still pretty nice out despite the snow that falls in gentle swirls of white as they step out onto the street, dusting Santana’s borrowed hat in a thin layer of white and sparkling in her dark lashes. Santana glances up at Brittany and smiles, bright and unabashed and dimples-deep, before looking forward again with that breathless, flustered look she gets when she blushes. Her cheeks are a little pinked, from the cold or her blush Brittany’s not sure, but it makes liquid warmth pool in her stomach, so happy and so in love that she doesn’t know how anything in the world could ever feel better than this.

Her attention is drawn across the street where two men hold the hands of a little boy, helping him take a couple stumbling steps before swinging him into a high arc, his giggles bright with childlike innocence even across the lanes of slow moving traffic.

“He’s cute,” Santana says beside her, drawing Brittany’s eyes back to hers.

“You’re cute,” Brittany says automatically but sincerely. Santana rolls her eyes a little but doesn’t even bother to bite back her smile. “We should stop on the store on the way past. We can get something for supper and maybe, like, baking stuff or something?”

“Baking?” Santana teases, and Brittany shrugs a little.

“What? I may be a disaster in the kitchen when it comes to baking but I know you aren’t,” Brittany says with a smirk, “Tina told me.”

Santana gasps over-dramatically. “What a traitor!”

Brittany just giggles and tugs a little on Santana’s hand in hers, pulling them even closer together and soaking up this feeling of unbridled joy.

///

The grocery store is insane, but they’re in no rush so they just wander the aisles leisurely, dodging over-excited kids and frantic parents and slow old couples, giggling at everyone rushing around despite the fact that they both just feel comfortable and relaxed.

Santana carries their two bags of groceries and snacks since Brittany still has her bag, and they tangle their fingers together again as soon as they step back out into the weak winter sun. It’s already past five, but they’re still in no rush as they head back to Brittany’s apartment, discussing their plans on which Christmas movies they have to watch and which ones they’ll skip.

Brittany takes the groceries from Santana and drops them off in the kitchen, directing Santana to turn the tree on and set up the living room for their movie marathon, before heading down the hall to drop Santana’s bag off too. She stands in the hallway for a long moment, fighting an internal debate before she finally pushes her door open and drops Santana’s bag by the dresser; she’s honestly not being presumptuous, because Mercedes offered her room if needed, she’s just being hopeful.

By the time she gets the groceries put away and a couple hot chocolates made, Santana is already snugged up on the couch, one blanket over her lap and the other around her shoulders, the lights turned off except for the Christmas tree and the television screen; she’s already figured out the DVD player and the empty case to Home Alone sits on the shelf of her and Mercedes’ combined collection.

Santana brightens as soon as Brittany comes into her view, shifting around until she can lift both blankets up for Brittany. It takes a little bit of maneuvering, but eventually they get settled against each other, curled under the blankets, without spilling a drop of hot chocolate. Santana quickly hits play on the DVD remote before tossing it onto the coffee table and taking her mug from Brittany.

“I used to watch Home Alone every single year,” Santana says quietly, a nostalgic smile on her face, “And I kind of want to restart that tradition.”

“But you’re not home alone,” Brittany teases.

Santana tries to give her a smug smirk but her eyes are as soft as her voice, “Maybe I want to make some new traditions.”

And, really, what can she say to that without shouting her love from the rooftops? So instead she just cuddles further into Santana and sips her hot chocolate.

Even though they start out sitting under the blankets, as soon as they finish their hot chocolate they end up laying out on the couch, Brittany flat on her back with Santana sprawled on top of her, repurposing Brittany’s breasts into her own personal pillow, and the blankets wrapped around them. Brittany ends up spending more time watching Santana and playing with her hair than she does watching Santana’s favourite Christmas movie, but watching Santana is her favourite thing so it’s a pretty fair tradeoff.

Her mom calls about three-quarters of the way through Home Alone and Santana lifts herself off of Brittany just enough to reach the remote and pause the movie before cuddling back into her while Brittany talks to her mom and curls a strand of Santana’s hair around her finger, and it feels so domestic that she can’t imagine doing anything else for the rest of her life.

After Home Alone they take a break to make supper, giggling the entire time as they weave around each other in the kitchen and end up spending more time laughing than they do eating.

Brittany runs to the bathroom while Brittany sets up another movie, laying back on the couch and waiting for Santana to see her choice.

Santana’s gasp is as satisfying as Brittany thought it would be as she grins up at the ceiling, waiting until Santana rounds the couch to stand in front of her, blocking out the dim lights from the Christmas tree and the title screen for Gremlins on the television.

“Brittany!” Santana whines.

“Santana!” Brittany teases.

“I swear to god, Brittany, if I get nightmares from this,” Santana threatens toothlessly.

Brittany just giggles and tugs Santana down to the couch with ease. She falls onto Brittany and instantly softens and sighs in contentment as Brittany wraps both her arms tightly around Santana and draws her further into her embrace, nuzzling into Santana’s hair until she can kiss her forehead.  “I’ll chase the nightmares away,” she promises. Santana’s breath hitches and she presses a kiss to Brittany’s collarbone, making Brittany’s skin burst into burning goosebumps at the feel of Santana’s soft lips on her skin.

“You better,” Santana mumbles into Brittany’s neck, waiting until Brittany reaches for the remote to play the movie before she nuzzles herself as close to Brittany as she can and still see the television.

Brittany thinks her heart might just burst from loving Santana so much.

///

They fall asleep sometime in the middle of Gremlins, waking up hours later to the twinkling Christmas lights against the night sky Brittany can see through the window, the television having automatically turned itself off after so long.

Brittany trails her fingers along Santana’s back and sides, drawing swirling patterns into the warm body above her with just enough pressure to gently wake Santana, who just cuddles further into Brittany instead of waking fully.

“We’re real party animals,” Brittany teases.

Santana grunts and nuzzles her nose into Brittany’s neck. “Saving it for New Year’s,” she grumbles.

Brittany laughs and feels a smile curl against her neck in response. They lay there for a couple more minutes until Santana finally emerges from Brittany’s neck, propping herself up on one elbow, the blanket falling from her shoulders, and glancing across the living room before gazing down at Brittany with the softest look on her face.

“Hi,” Brittany murmurs.

Santana’s eyes are liquid and dark and basically hold the secrets to the entire universe. “Hi,” she whispers, nodding her jaw towards the television with a small smile but not dropping her gaze from Brittany’s, “It’s eleven-eleven. Make a wish.”

Brittany glances to the side and sees the bright red time glowing on the television box thing that she never remembers the name of. She smiles and closes her eyes, wishing for the one thing she wants more than anything, the only thing she’s wanted all month.

“Did you make your wish?” Brittany asks after long moments of silence, her eyes still closed and her body feeling Santana along it even better with her lack of sight. Santana hums in acknowledgement and Brittany smiles blindly. “Good,” she whispers, “I hope it comes true.”

“Oh, I have a feeling it definitely will,” Santana murmurs, and the feeling of her thumb brushing along her cheek finally draws Brittany’s eyes open, fluttering at the sensation.

“Mine too,” Brittany whispers.

“Oh yeah?”

Brittany nods slowly, one hand stilling against the small of Santana’s back and the other one sliding along her shoulders under waves of dark hair, her fingers almost brushing the nape of Santana’s neck as Santana sighs and tilts her head down a little.

Santana’s face hovers a scant few inches above her own, the lights from the Christmas tree painting her skin in splotches of faint blue and red and green. One of Santana’s hands curls against the fabric of Brittany’s t-shirt, plucking and worrying the fabric between her fingers, her eyes caught on the peak of Brittany’s cheek but not actually meeting blue eyes.

“You’re nervous to kiss me,” Brittany realizes.

“I mean— Kinda?” Santana says sheepishly, “Not like nervous nervous but like— I mean we’ve literally been trying for forever and every time we do we get interrupted and now I’m worried that we’ll keep getting interrupted or it won’t be—”

And then—

Then Brittany slides her hand a little further up and guides Santana’s lips to her own, her rambling cut off by the gentle pressure of Brittany’s mouth moving slowly against hers. Santana’s lips part under Brittany’s and she lets out this breathy sigh into Brittany’s mouth and Brittany’s soul trembles with the weight of Santana’s lips against hers. Santana tastes faintly of chocolate, but something sweeter and deeper, and she tastes of summer nights on the west coast, bright and warm.

She tastes like home.

Santana’s fingers trail across her face as she presses closer, and Brittany feels both steady and like she’s about to float away, like everything over the past week, over the past mouth—probably over her entire life—has built towards this moment, like this is exactly what she was made to do. Santana’s lips move against hers with all the time in the world, like they’re stuck in a traffic jam with nowhere else to go, her lips soft and pliant against Brittany’s, eyelashes fluttering against the peak of her cheek, noses nudging together, and Brittany smiles into the kiss because this—

This is everything that Brittany’s been looking for her entire life.

She pulls back just far enough to press their foreheads together so she can try and breathe properly, but with Santana’s nose still nuzzling against hers that proves impossible. “Are you still nervous?” she whispers.

Santana doesn’t answer, she just uses the hand on Brittany’s jaw to guide their lips back together, and then they’re both smiling into the kiss, too wide for it to be anything more than all teeth and no finesse. Brittany lets her hand drift from the small of Santana’s back and start to wander her body under the blanket, the other playing with the baby fine hairs at the back of Santana’s neck.

Santana lets out a fluttery little sigh into Brittany’s mouth and Brittany can’t help but press up to kiss her harder again, and again, and again, and again—

///

When Brittany wakes up hours later in her bed, it’s to Santana drawing hearts on her bare stomach. Her fingers are light and soft against her skin and Brittany’s breath hitches; there’s no intent behind Santana’s touch, she doesn’t skate her fingers suggestively lower or higher, she just trails her fingers across Brittany’s skin with quiet marvel, and it jolts something in Brittany. No one’s ever touched her just for the sake of touching her and mapping her body before, just to connect the freckles and moles sprinkled across her torso into constellations, just to map each scar and imperfection that puckers her skin.

No one’s ever touched her just to learn every inch of her skin against their fingertips.

Santana realizes that Brittany is awake when the hand Brittany has curled over her waist starts lazily scratching at the soft skin there. She turns her head up towards Brittany and, even in the dim of the middle of the night, she can see the softness to Santana’s smile, the shadow of a dimple in her cheek, the love shining in her eyes, and something buzzing and warm tugs low in Brittany’s stomach as she falls in love with Santana all over again.

“Hi,” she whispers.

Santana’s smile widens a little. “Hi.”

“Merry Christmas,” Brittany says, reaching a hand up to tuck a strand of dark hair back behind Santana’s ear. She’s not sure exactly what time it is, but by the time they managed to untangle and stop kissing long enough to pull themselves up off the couch and stumble down the hall, the bright red time glowing on the television box thing had read 12:34.

Santana smiles and nuzzles into the hand that cups her jaw. “Merry Christmas,” she returns quietly.

Brittany leans up to press a soft, probing kiss to Santana’s lips, chaste and intimate all at once. “So did your wish come true?” she asks as she falls back to the pillow.

Santana nods and her smile loses its softness and takes on that playfully teasing look Brittany so adores. “Well, I wished that we would finally actually get to kiss without being interrupted, and, well,” she drags her hand down the bare skin of Brittany’s ribs to make her point and they both burst into laughter, Santana’s head dropping down to Brittany’s shoulder as they giggle. She presses a lingering kiss to the soft skin there and Brittany’s breath hitches as Santana props herself back up on her elbow, her other hand trailing circles on Brittany’s hip, and smiles softly at her. “What about you?” Santana whispers, “Did your wish come true?”

Brittany softens until she feels like she might melt right through her bed at the sweetness to Santana’s expression. She takes a moment to trace a heart on Santana’s hip before she smiles up at Santana. “Yeah, it did.”

Santana trails her hand up Brittany’s torso, skating her fingers against her breastbone and dipping into the hollow of her collarbone before she reaches Brittany’s face and cups her jaw, leaving a trail of buzzing heat in her wake. She leans down to press the softest of kisses to the corner of Brittany’s mouth and Brittany’s pretty sure her soul trembles at the contact. Santana draws back just barely enough to speak, her half-lidded eyes softening and the very tips of her lips brushing against Brittany’s chin as she speaks. “What was it?” she whispers.

Brittany just tilts her head up to press their lips together, both of them sighing at the contact.

“You,” she breathes, “Just you.”

[makeste]

BnHA 323: “I Don’t Know How to Explain to You That You Should Care About Other People”

Previously on BnHA: Kacchan was all, “Izuku, I’m sorry.” Bakugou Stans were all, “[sobs for a week straight and tearfully awards him the Nobel Prize for character development].” Deku was all, “[faints in Kacchan’s arms].” Iida was all, “[trying to decide if Ochako genuinely tried to kill him a few minutes ago].” Horikoshi was all, “NO TIME FOR HUGS WE MUST GET BACK TO UA.” The civilians holed up at U.A. were all, “WE TOOK A VOTE AND DECIDED THAT WE’RE ALL GOING TO BE JERKS ABOUT THIS AND MAKE A BIG FUSS ABOUT YOU LETTING DEKU BACK INTO THE SCHOOL.” Deku was all “[stands there looking like he expected nothing less and breaking my heart more and more with each passing moment].” Ochako was all, “that does it, looks like I’m gonna have to do something about this... next chapter, that is.”

Today on BnHA: Flashback!Rat Principal is all “I just want you all to know that I spent nine million dollars turning U.A. into a giant Battleship-style grid that can burrow underground and zoom around in a giant subway maze because Horikoshi lacks a grounded understanding of both civil engineering and economics.” Back in the present day, Jeanist is all, “EVERYONE TAKE HEED, MY COMRADES AND I HAVE DEEMED IT EXPEDIENT TO CONVEY THIS AUSPICIOUS YOUTH BACK TO THIS STRONGHOLD. WE ANTICIPATE THAT WE MAY DEPEND UPON YOUR GOODWILL AND ACQUIESCENCE TO THESE TERMS.” The civilians were all, “NO.” Ochako was all, “EMPATHY, MOTHERFUCKERS, DO YOU SPEAK IT?!” The civilians were all, “oh shit.” Anyway so Ochako is a giant badass, but I’m a little worried that she’s going to get struck by lightning. Please come down from there.

so before we start this chapter, I would just like to apologize for having not posted the ch 321 recap yet, and would like to reassure everyone, and especially Iida who is staring at me with Sad Wobbly Guilt Trip Eyes, that I will get to that as soon as I can

OMG FLASHBACK??

yes please Horikoshi please show us more of class 1-A and their Deku intervention strategy jam sessions

oh dear

Iida you are too pure and good for this cruel world. [sprays the U.A. civilians with a water bottle] NO. BAD CIVILIANS! NO OSTRACIZING SCARED AND EXHAUSTED CHILDREN IN THE HOUSE

EXCUSE ME RAT PRINCIPAL WHAT’S WITH THESE MIXED MESSAGES

???

RAT PRINCIPAL: he’s free to return to us at any time!!

ALSO RAT PRINCIPAL: but it’s too risky for him to return to us

?? ??????? ?????????????????????

so now he’s going on about how strong the U.A. Barrier is, and how it’s comparable to the defensive capabilities of Tartarus. this would have sounded a lot more impressive before chapter 297 lol

OH!!!! HELLO, WHAT’S THIS!!!

A TIMELY CALLBACK TO A CERTAIN MYSTERIOUS EVENT WHICH HASN’T BEEN REFERENCED SINCE USJ? [U.A. TRAITOR MUSIC INTENSIFIES]

so now Rat Principal says he upgraded U.A.’s security systems with his own “modifications”, whatever the fuck that means. I mean look, I’ve been saying for a long time now that U.A. is the best place for everyone to hole up, don’t get me wrong. but that was mostly on account of there not being any other practical alternatives. but you’re making it sound like you figured out a way to actually make it Decay-proof or some wild shit like that

-- hold up, DID YOU ADD A FORCE FIELD. DID YOU TRICK THIS SCHOOL OUT WAKANDA-STYLE YOU CRAZY MARSUPIAL. HOLY SHIT. because that would actually be perfect

LMAO

WHAT KIND OF GALAXY BRAIN BULLSHIT. “NAH THERE’S NO NEED FOR A FORCE FIELD, LET’S JUST PUT WHEELS ON IT”

oh okay so the whole campus is basically capable of burrowing itself underground. that’s insane lol I wonder how they pulled that off. probably got poor Cementoss working overtime

blah blah blah so basically the entire campus is split into a grid and each section of the grid is capable of its own independent movement. lol this is just the Merone Base from KHR. you thought no one would notice this casual plagiarism ten years after the fact, but YOU UNDERESTIMATED YOUR AUDIENCE, HORIKOSHI

“joke’s on you imma just lampshade it” WELL ALL RIGHT THEN

“look at me I’m so fucking self-aware” fucking swear to god. I can’t believe this man is my favorite mangaka of all time smdh

“excuse me, I wasn’t finished describing all the rest of this bullshit yet,” Rat Principal breaks in impatiently. “we also added a steel wall all around the underground of the campus that’s 3000 steel plates thick. that’s fifteen fucking meters of solid fucking steel just fyi. and if anyone fucks around with any part of it the defense system will activate immediately! and also all of the plates are independently motorized, whatever the fuck that means!! in conclusion you’re gonna need a fucking tower crane to suspend all of your disbelief by the time I’m through with this paragraph”

“also Shiketsu is almost as reinforced as U.A. but not quite because we still had to make sure we were better.” but of course. and apparently the two schools are connected via a secret tunnel as Hagakure mentioned earlier

LSDKFJLSDKJFLK

“WAIT WHAT” LMAO YOU HEARD HIM, NOW INASA CAN VISIT YOU BOTH IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT AND TELL YOU ALL ABOUT THE WEIRD DREAM HE HAD. GOD BLESS YOU HORIKOSHI

(ETA: moment of appreciation for Shouto and Katsuki having the same thought at the same time and making Knowing Eye Contact and saying the exact same thing out loud in perfect unison like the best friends they are. what a blessed day.)

so Tokoyami is all “but wait if you engineered all this shit all the way back during the Band arc how did you even know that Tomura’s quirk awakening would become a thing, Horikoshi -- uh, I mean, Principal Nezu”

and Rat Principal is all “lol idk”

“basically I just woke up one morning and was all ‘say, you know what this school really needs? a fifteen-meter-thick underground steel wall, and the ability to break up into little pieces that individually zoom around wherever the fuck they want.’ jesus christ. lol if money and common sense were apparently no obstacle why didn’t you just teleport U.A. to the fucking moon or something. maybe I should shut up before I given him any ideas

dsfaelkjldkjgl

you heard it here first, folks, all of this cost a grand total of nine million U.S. dollars. well technically it cost “more than” nine million dollars. never has that distinction been more important lmao. are we sure this barrier was really made of steel and not cardboard? who the hell sold it to them, Ea-Nasir??

this is my favorite manga series of all time. yes I am ashamed

“in conclusion please do your best to reach Deku-kun” SO WHAT WAS ALL THAT NONSENSE ABOUT IT BEING TOO RISKY THEN. anyway thank you for this super informative and edifying flashback, Horikoshi. I will cherish it always. I don’t even want to read another translation of this absurdity lmao, there’s something special about it just the way it is. pretty sure Horikoshi just had a cracked out fever dream one night and transferred it to the pages of the manga verbatim

anyway so back to the unruly mob

not their finest moment. please excuse me while I cover poor Deku’s ears and give him a good shoosh pap

oh wow the parents are out here too

is Mitsuki trying to hold Inko back?? that’s the last thing this fandom needs right now is more Mitsuki discourse fffwlkjs. and even Jiroudad, scientifically proven to be the best dad in all of BnHA, is just standing there silently looking vaguely unhappy. way to rise to the moment you guys

MONOMA

so this settles it for me that Aizawa is not at UA. I know a lot of people have been wondering about his whereabouts, and if I had to wager a guess it would be that something happened with Shirakumo/Kurogiri. I can’t think of anything else -- even the loss of an eye and a limb -- that would keep him from his kids at a time like this

anyway but this is excellent Monoma content right here though. I love that he apparently adopted Eri after a single interaction with her. also WHERE IS SHINSOU DAMMIT. THE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW

and Kouta’s there too looking like he wants to run over to Deku but Ragdoll won’t let him :/

it’s gotta be pretty upsetting for him to see his hero like this and not having anyone stand up for him. [taps megaphone] IS THIS THING ON. OKAY YEAH IT SEEMS TO BE WORKING. AHEM. PAGING URARAKA OCHAKO. GONNA NEED YOU TO GET OVER HERE ALREADY AND MAKE THAT BIG DRAMATIC SPEECH WHICH YOU ARE CLEARLY DYING TO MAKE. IF YOU DON’T DO IT SOON I’M GONNA HAVE TO STEP IN, AND YOU REALLY DON’T WANT ME TO DO THAT SINCE MY SPEECH WILL NOT BE VERY GOOD OR INSPIRING, AND WILL PROBABLY JUST CONSIST OF “HELLO, YOU ARE ALL STUPID, PLEASE SHUT UP AND GO AWAY”

so now Mic is telling them to calm down. at least someone’s speaking up here, geez

OH MY GOD

MY MAN JEANIST OUT HERE DOING WHAT HE DOES BEST: MAKING EVERYONE FEEL GUILTY AND JUDGED

OH MY GOD HE IS GIVING SUCH A LONG AND BORING SPEECH LMAO IS YOUR STRATEGY TO PUT THEM ALL TO SLEEP OR WHAT

truly in awe of this man’s ability to take messages which could easily be conveyed in ELI5-speak, and stubbornly convert them into incomprehensible language the likes of which you need a graduate degree in order to understand

“hey guys, so originally our plan was to use Deku as bait for the villains, but that didn’t really work and also we realized it was kinda dumb and was probably gonna get him killed, so we brought him back here instead.” was that really so hard, Jeanist. also are we all really just gonna sit back here and watch Jeanist take full credit for Bakugou’s plan just like that lmao

(ETA:

WHERE DID ENDEAVOR GO AND WHO IS THIS DIABOLICAL MASTER OF DISGUISE. lol I genuinely didn’t notice this because I was too busy digging through thesauruses trying to rewrite Jeanist’s speech; many thanks to @class1akids​ for pointing it out and making my day immeasurably better. take it easy there Dick Tracy.)

“anyway so please stop being dicks and let him fucking rest so he can save all your ungrateful asses” what an impassioned and inspiring plea. time to see if the masses will listen to reason

narrator: they did not listen to reason

oh my god finally Ochako is doing something. YEAH OCHAKO WOOOO SHOW THEM HOW IT’S DONE

hmm

this entire chapter is truly and utterly nonsensical to me lol

(ETA: on my second readthrough I’m fucking dying at how she stole the megaphone right out of Mic’s hand lmao. and how Kacchan is all “fuck yeah nothing I appreciate more than some quality fucking larceny.”)

oh I see she was jumping on top of the main building so as to scream down at them all more impressively

“ANYWAY DEKU IS PRETTY COOL ACTUALLY, YOU GUYS ARE JUST MEAN” couldn’t have said it better myself Ochako

lol uh

gotta say I did not have “Ochako reveals the secret of OFA to the entire U.A. Citizen Clown Parade” on my bingo card for this week. it’s a bold strategy cotton let’s see if it pays off

SDLFKJSL

“NO, SERIOUSLY, HAVE YOU LOOKED AT HIM YOU GUYS. YOU THINK HE LIKES RUNNING AROUND DRESSED LIKE A RUSTED OIL DRUM?? HE DID THAT FOR YOU YOU UNGRATEFUL SLOBS”

so she is basically explaining the entire Deku Angst arc to them and explaining what a good and selfless protagonist Deku is, YES, PREACH

OMG IT’S THE GIGANTIC FOX LADY

not to insinuate anything, but what exactly were you doing standing out here with the hysterical mob, Gigantic Fox Lady? you’re better than that

-- KACCHAN SIGHTING!!

sdlkfjl. thanks for weighing in with that helpful and important observation. where have you been for the last five minutes. were you asleep. was it Jeanist’s speech

never mind, now he’s yelling at the civilians so I instantly forgive him

THE FUTURE NUMBER ONE HERO, EVERYONE. THANK YOU, THANK YOU. HE’LL BE HERE ALL WEEK

“anyway so I’m just going to end the chapter here” lmao seventeen pages truly do go by so fast. at least he didn’t try to force in a cliffhanger at the end this time. dare I say, growth

so I guess the civilians are either gonna have a Kamino and/or Fukuoka-esque moment where they remember how to be decent people and apologize to this poor young man, or else they’ll remain unpersuaded, and so Kacchan will have to knock a few of their heads around until they become more inclined to be reasonable. either option is fine by me lol

[ultraintrovertedgryffindor]

Sweet Pandemonium - Gally (The Maze Runner) Part 4 of 16

Oh god, I’m growing attached to this relationship...

In other news, computer still dead and I’m tired and idk how to feel about this chapter. I’m slowing down lmao. But here it is anyway

~~~~~~~~~~

To say Gally was pissed that you went into the maze would be an understatement, even if you just went down the main corridor to help the boys get Alby inside the Glade.

Thankfully Gally didn’t have time to scold you too much, because after making sure Alby was situated in the Med-jacks care, the Keepers called a meeting to discuss the whole situation.

This should be fun...

As always, it was a little tough corralling everyone into council hall. But after everyone settled into their seats, Gally stood up to speak first after glancing your way for a moment.

“Things are changing.” Gally started. “There’s no denying that. First, Ben gets stung in broad daylight, and then Alby. And now our Greenie here has taken it upon himself to go into the maze. Which is a clear violation of our rules here.”

“Yeah, but he saved Alby’s life.” Frypan voiced, some Gladers nodding into agreement.

“Did he?” He countered. “For three years, we have coexisted with these things, and now you’ve killed one of them.” He pointed at Thomas. “Who knows what that means for us?”

“Well, what do you suggest we do?” Newt asked calmly.

“He has to be punished.” Gally said like it was the obvious action, making the whole room speak up with their disagreements, including you.

You scoffed. “You think he should be punished because he tried to save his life?”

Gally glared at you. “He still broke the rules.”

“So I guess that means Y/N has to be punished too.” Minho voiced, gaining the attention of the other Gladers. “She went into the maze.”

Gally rolled his eyes. “Not like that Greenie did.”

“Rules are rules, right, Gally? Or are you suggesting Y/N should get special treatment cause she’s a girl, or cause she’s special to you?”

“Minho.” Newt interrupted, sighing in frustration. “You were there with him. What do you think?”

Minho threw Gally a glare before sighing softly. “I think...in all the time we’ve been here, no one’s ever killed a Griever before. When I turned tail and ran, this dumb shank stood behind to help Alby. Look, I don’t know if he’s brave or stupid...whatever it is, we need more of it. I say we make him a Runner.”

“A Runner? What? Minho, let’s not jump the gun here, alright?” Fry voiced, along with everyone else voicing their opinions, even Chuck trying to get a chant in Thomas’ favor going, but failing.

“If you want to throw the newbie a parade, that’s fine. Go ahead. But if there is one thing that I know about the maze, it is that you do not-”

A rumbling and sudden blaring horn interrupted Gally, echoing around the entire Glade and making your ears hurt. But you knew that noise, it was what you heard when you came up in the Box. But it’s not even close to a month yet. Nothing is supposed to be coming up yet. So, what the hell is happening?

Gally and Newt ran out, taking off toward the Box immediately, you and the rest of the Gladers following closely behind.

You quickly made it to the Box, standing beside Gally as he and Newt opened the doors.

“What the hell?” You whispered as everyone crowded around the Box, Thomas pushing his way to the front.

“It’s another girl.” Newt said, looking up to the group in confusion, and to you briefly. “I think she’s dead...”

The girl was fair, long dark hair slightly covering her face. She was unconscious, but thankfully she was still breathing from what you could see. You looked to her hand, seeing that there was something she was clutching onto. “What’s in her hand?”

Newt leaned over and gently grabbed what was in her hand, a piece of paper. “She’s the last one...ever.” Newt read, once again looking up in confusion.

The girl mumbled in her state, and you could’ve sworn you heard your name come from her mouth. “Did you hear-”

The girl gasped loudly, interrupting your question and causing everyone to jump in shock, her eyes opening wide. “Thomas.” She panted, her eyes rolling to the back of her head and falling back into unconsciousness.

Everyone looked to Thomas, who looked just as in shock as all the other Gladers.

“Y/N, help me bring her up, will ya?” Newt asked.

“Why me?”

“Well, you’re...ya know...” You rolled your eyes, reluctantly hopping down into the Box and helping Newt carry the girl out and handing her over to the Med-jacks care. Thankfully, your arm was mostly healed from Ben’s attack, well, the sprained part anyway. “We’ve got it from here, Y/N, thank you.”

You nodded, but you didn’t leave. You stared at the girl, feeling a familiar feeling, almost like with Thomas. It was different, but the same. You felt a headache coming on just by trying to make sense of this feeling that you don’t remember ever having, but you knew you had nonetheless.

“Y/N?” Newt snapped you out of your trance.

“Uh, sorry. I’ll leave now.”

You left the room in a hurry, almost running into Thomas and Minho in the process. “You good?” Minho asked.

“Yeah, yeah. Just feeling a little headache.” You smiled weakly.

Thomas gave you a look, and you knew he wasn’t buying it. But you had a feeling he didn’t have the time to call you out so you pushed past them and headed to the watering station.

You just needed water, that was probably it. You’ll be fine once you have some water.

You sighed in relief once you took some gulps of the water from the faucet. It wasn’t cold, but it still felt nice. Your headache didn’t go away unfortunately.

When you saw Gally walking over to you, part of you just wanted to leave. But knowing him, he probably wouldn’t let you leave so easily without talking to him. You turned around to lean against the makeshift sink, tapping your foot impatiently as you prepared yourself for a probable exhausting conversation.

“Hey.”

“Hey.” You huffed.

“Get the girl to the Med-jacks okay?”

“Yep.”

“What happened to your thumb?”

You lifted your hand up to your face, looking over your thumb. The peeled off skin had already scarred over. It didn’t hurt when you didn’t think about it, but now that Gally pointed it out, you felt the pulsing throbs of pain from the little wound.

“Irrelevant. What do you want?” You asked, briefly sucking on your thumb to try and ease the pain.

“What the hell is up with you, huh? I’m the one who’s supposed to be mad at you.” Gally huffed.

“You kept trying to make me believe that Thomas and Minho were already dead, Gally. You didn’t even try to think anything else.” You crossed your arms.

A tense pause before Gally spoke again.

“That was a really stupid thing you did today, you know. Going into the maze.”

You rolled your eyes. “I barely went five feet.”

“Minho was right.” Gally sighed. “I can’t give you special treatment. You’ll have to be punished along with the Greenie.”

“I wouldn’t need or want special treatment anyway, especially from you.”

Gally chuckled bitterly. “Just yesterday you told me you liked me, and now you’re acting like you hate me. God, if that girl acts anything like you-”

“What, huh?” You interrupted harshly.

One of the Builders came running up to you and Gally, panting in exhaustion when he finally reached you. “What is it?”

“That Greenie and a bunch of other Gladers ran into the maze.”

You quickly snapped your head towards your fellow Builder. “What?” You yelped. “When?”

“Just a few minutes ago.”

Gally’s face quickly contorted in anger, shaking his head before storming off. “Where are you going?” You asked, struggling to keep up with his long legs.

“Finding Newt. If that Greenie comes back alive, there’s no way he’s not gonna be punished now.”

It was hard to argue with Gally when he set his mind to something, especially when it’s about something that he was probably right about. There was no argument that you could’ve made that would help Thomas, the boy really just loved looking for trouble.

You stopped following after Gally, and went to find Chuck to see him already at the maze doors. “Gally’s on a warpath.”

“What do you mean?” Chuck stuttered, startled by your sudden presence beside him and looking around nervously.

“Thomas went into the maze again, but you already know that, don’t you.” You smirked, causing Chuck to blush. “Gally found out about it. Make sure he knows when he gets back, okay, bud?”

Chuck quickly nodded, nervously smiling as you ruffled his curly hair.

When they got back, you stood outside council hall. You weren’t allowed in the meeting, since it was Keepers only. But you paced back and forth, trying not to bite the same thumb that you did this morning.

You really had to work on your nervous tics.

You looked up expectantly when you heard the building’s doors open, an angry looking Gally storming out and walking past you. “Wait, what happened?” You asked, jogging to keep up with his pace.

“Newt made that shank a Runner.”

You were speechless. A Runner? You didn’t think Thomas would get appointed with such a job so early on. “That’s it?”

Gally suddenly stopped in his tracks, causing you to almost trip and fall when you tried to stop mid jog. “Why are you talking to me, huh? If you hate me, shouldn’t you be ignoring me?” He said, glaring at you as he spoke.

“I never said I hated you. Don’t be so dramatic.”

Gally scoffed. “I’m being dramatic? Yeah, right.” He started to walk again, but you got in his way.

“Gally, wait.” Gally stopped, even though he could’ve easily moved you out of the way. “Hey, I’m sorry, okay? I don’t hate you. I don’t. I was mad at you, is all.” You looked down nervously from his intense gaze.

Gally sighed softly, gently bringing you into a hug, tender much like the one he gave you yesterday. “I’m sorry too. I didn’t want to hurt your feelings or anything.”

“It’s okay.” You smiled weakly. “So, what was the verdict?”

Gally scratched the back of his neck and bit his lip nervously. “Uh, well, a night in the Pit with no food or water.”

“For him?”

“For both of you.” You closed your eyes and nodded, you weren’t really surprised. “I would’ve tried to lessen your punishment if we had made up earlier.”

You shook your head and smiled. “It’s alright, Gal. I can handle the Pit. It’s not like I haven’t spent a couple nights there anyway.”

Gally grinned and chuckled, starting to walk to the Builder’s area right beside you, making sure that you could keep up with him. “Right, right, I remember. You certainly taught Winston to never catcall you ever again. Poor shank couldn’t even walk right for days after you kicked him.”

“Shouldn’t have commented on my tits.” You shrugged, smirking slightly as you remembered Gally’s laugh when it happened.

“It was pretty badass, in my opinion.” Gally playfully knocked himself against you.

“Alby didn’t seem to think so.”

“You shouldn’t have been punished for that. Even I thought it was stupid.”

“Thanks, Captain.” You smiled softly, the smile itching to grow wider when Gally’s face flushed red.

“The girl’s awake!”

You and Gally both turned to see all the Gladers surrounding the watch tower, all ducking the various rocks that were being thrown off. “That’s probably not good...” You mumbled, taking off with Gally towards the commotion.

As soon as you both got to the base of the tower, it didn’t even take a minute before Gally got frustrated with the girl. But you were more frustrated even more by all the boys that seemed to be having fun. You understood how the girl was feeling after all.

“Guys, maybe we should give her some space!” You tried yelling over the ruckus, to no avail.

Not really a surprise there.

Seeing Newt in the crowd, you walked up to him while trying to dodge the rocks in the process. “I don’t think she likes us very much.” He chuckled when he noticed you next to him.

“Well no wonder, she’s probably terrified. You guys aren’t even giving her time to adjust here.”

“We just wanna know why she’s here, that’s all! I didn’t think being curious was a crime!” Fry voiced.

“It’s not! But we’ll have to ask her when she’s ready.” You insisted, then yelping in pain when a rock landed on top of your head. “Ow...”

“Throw one more of those things!” Gally yelled, quickly being interrupted by a rock landing on his head. You tried not to laugh at the comedic timing...

Thankfully, the Med-jacks brought Thomas back from wherever he was and you quickly ran to him. “Go on and talk to her, Greenie.”

“What? Why me?”

“She said your name, Thomas. Out of all the guys here, you’ll be the one she talks to...probably.”

“Not to butt in,” Jeff voiced from beside you, “but she was saying your name in her sleep too.”

“Uh, what?”

~~~~~~~~~~

[radbutsafe]

ALL FUCKIN 35 OF THEM SKLNWESDJFPXO

I SHOULDVE EXPECTED THIS FROM YOU

1. From one to five stars, how would you rate your writing? (No downplaying yourself!)

A three! I think I’m mid range cause I ain’t terrible but there is still shit I gotta improve and grow in my writing

2. Why do you write fanfiction?

to manifest what canon won’t give me and to write more! (though yes it is mainly about the smooching and the— I’ll stop there LOL)

3. What do you think makes your writing stand out from other works?

Hm! My weird research details? I’m that “fun fact, did you know...” in my fics sometimes LOL! I plan on giving a penthouse for erina in a fic and I went through penthouse listings in Japan for floor layouts and locations💀 my research gives me inspo and depth to stuff I think I lack in comparison to others sometimes.

4. Are there any writers that inspire you?

In terms of fellow fic writers, one of them I can’t name here but she’s an inspiration with her exceptional gift for prose period and her lovely skill at comedy! I want to be as funny as her when I write, I love her ironic situational humor. Other fic writers are @takoyakitenchou, @royaldragonsevgisi15 who I always love sharing ideas with and motivate me to create more! For non-fic writers it would be V.E. Schwab, Leigh Bardugo, Oda, and Horikoshi! The last two may be mangaka, however they are writers as well to create their stories! The depth these creators have given their worlds and interesting characters theyve given life to are all what I aspire to be like!

5. What’s the fic you’re most proud of?

so far uh?? hm everything I’m currently writing are wips lol!! im proud of my wip that has been nicknamed ‘soma panics’ that is a multi-chapter fic that spans like probs 20 plus chapters maybe

6. What element of writing do you find comes easily?

dialogue! it’s so much fun! and character thoughts. I’ve said to people I may be better suited for script writing

7. What element of writing do you struggle with most?

I think it’s description, of like setting and showing action. also an expansion of my vocabulary LOL

8. Which character(s) do you find easiest to write?

erina! I think it’s because canon has shown us many of her different faces and range of emotion.

9. Which character(s) do you find most difficult to write?

SOMA!! chill ass mofo whos more carefree compared to the common shonen protagonist! for other shokugeki characters I’m not sure just yet because I haven’t flexed my fingers enough for the rest of them.

10. What’s your favorite genre to write for?

I guess I should say romance cause that’s what I mostly write LOL!

11. Who or what do you find yourself writing about most?

sorina and I try to get them to smooch eventually KEK and yeah it’s..usually romantic fluff lmao

12. Tell us about a WIP you’re excited about.

HONESTLY ALL OF THEM but “soma panics” is my brain child

13. First fandom you ever wrote for?

pretty sure it’s digimon....

14. What’s your favorite fandom to write for?

currently shokugeki no soma!!!!

15. What’s the weirdest fandom you’ve ever written for?

uhhhh I guess SNS? LMAO fandoms...all have their quirks to them.

16. Any guilty pleasure trope(s)?

characters cuddling!!!! or getting the urge to smooch!!!!

17. A trope you’ll never, ever write for.

unrequited love GOOD FUCKIN BYEEEEEE

18. Wildest fic you’ve ever written?

I have plot ideas thst can be wild potentially but so far nothing fits this criteria so far that I actually have written.

19. Do you prefer canon-compliant, AUs, or something in-between?

depends on the fandom, but if written well, all of it!

20. Gen fic or shippy stuff?

shippy 100% like I said I like smoochin

21. Favorite pairing to write for? (platonic or romantic!)

romantic is...*drumroll* SORINA! platonic, soutaku and erina and alice!

22. Do you listen to anything while you write?

Sometimes! There are times songs will be on loop and times I just shuffle a playlist. and if I’m writing in random bursts it’ll be with no music but it really does depend lmao I think music is when I’m forcing myself to write?

23. Do you prefer prompts and challenges, or completely independent ideas?

completely independent ideas, I’ve realized in the past prompts shoot me in the foot often unless I luckily figure something out. but I’m often driven by my own sporadic self interest with shitty ping ponging attention

24. One-shots or multi-chaptered works?

multi-chap I guess cause I can post without being finished LOLLL but tbh can I really answer? I haven’t finished anything.....

25. Have you ever daydreamed about side adventures/spin-offs from your fic? Tell us about them!

I can’t answer this question imo because I haven’t finished a fic yet so technically stuff could all fit in the one fic?

26. Is there anything you’ve wanted to write, but you’ve been too scared to try?

MYSTERY AND CRIME! I love the genre and I have plot ideas once a blue moon but I can’t dive in because I want to make details that work and reduce plot holes where suspension of disbelief isn’t as needed. I need to study it more (I need to study all the details for any of my fics imo to be confident sometimes LOL)

27. What’s the nicest comment you’ve ever received?

I don’t think I can say one comment was the nicest because I’ve gotten comments that have given me quite the smiles to my face many times! I know this is a cop out but it’s true!

IS WHAT I WAS GONNA SAY UNTIL REINA SENT ME THE FOLLOWING ON DISCORD LIKE TWENTY MINS AGO:

and also rad. i am never this vocal about my emotions like EVER but this needs to be said your fics are obviously far from perfect, as are mine and everyone else's. but the thing about your works is that they're so well-sanded that it's impossible to find any rough edges or faults in them in terms of cohesion to a plot. your cast is never OOC and the amount of effort you devote to developing your takes on the characters as accurately as possible is unimaginably awe-inspiring.

BITCH I WANNA CRY 😭

28. How well do you handle criticism when it comes to your writing?

I’d like to believe I take it often well to try and improve because that’s always my goal. if someone is rude lol that’s not constructive snd is unhelpful. If I disagree with criticism I’ll explain why !

29. Have you ever gone outside of your comfort zone for a fic? How did it turn out?

Not yet, but I have some plot ideas I think will let me test this.

30. Tooth-rotting fluff or merciless angst?

F L U F F.

31. Do you have any OCs? Tell us about them!

elliott fuji, a japanese-american award winning photographer who is erina’s boyfriend in ‘soma panics’ which..causes soma’s panic LOL he’s 30 with slightly wavy black hair. I still haven’t pinpointed his personality just yet...he kind of humble brags for sure an artsy fucker and flirts maybe I’ll make him a lil shy though. he teaches sometimes, and becomes an adjunct photography professor in Tokyo so he can be with erina.

32. Summarize a random fic of yours in 10 words or less.

a cook is unfashionably late in realizing his feelings.

33. Is there anything you wish your audience knew about your writing or writing process?

I am a slow. so slow. motivation who is she? I also write out of order, unfortunately a bit too often.

34. Copy and paste an excerpt you’re particularly fond of.

this should be for the fic ‘soma panics’ it’s either megumi or satoshi talkin to him rn, I’m leaning towards satoshi

“You thought she would always wait for you, didn’t you Soma-kun? To always welcome you home.”

Soma drags his palms down his face and groans. He doesn’t like this at all. He doesn’t shy from confrontation but this is a whole different ballgame. Soma doesn’t play any ball.

“I guess..?” Is his reply, because he thinks he isn’t sure how to answer that.

“You guess?”

Just being questioned again is enough to crack Soma’s pathetic facade as if it was dropped chinaware and he lets out the longest sigh.

“No.”

Coming home means coming home to Nakiri Erina too.

Nakiri Erina is his forever.

this is @takoyakitenchou’s excerpt she’s most proud of that I’ve written, which is also from you guessed it, the long fic soma panics

SOMA: I am, I mean I will be, I swear I will always come home to you, not spend as much time abroad, once I’m done with work I’ll come right back. I’ll make sure to message you. Nakiri, I’m in love you with you. Maybe for a really long time. You know how I say I dedicate my food to you? My dad—my dad said that the key to become a good chef is to find someone to dedicate your cooking to. A special someone. For my dad it was my mom, you know? For me it’s...

(this is a good piece of dialogue tbh so I am also proud of this)

35. Ramble about any fic-related thing you want!

I’ve mentioned it throughout this but the WIP I’ve nicknamed ‘soma panics’ is something I’m super excited to write, but it’s going on slowly...and almost completely out of order. out of all of my writing it showed off that particular habit of mine, along with “what is this, a shoujo manga?!” though the latter is currently being written chronologically now that I’ve posted chapter one and is pretty solid in direction. it was originally supposed to be a one shot but I got impatient and wanted to post at least something for the sorina / soueri fandom.

however, because ‘soma panics’ (I won’t call it that LOL) is my baby I want to keep true to my rule of refusing to post it until I have a draft of the entire fic finished and I’m satisfied with the main points pretty much. due to my writing out of order, I’m worried I’ll change my mind about scenes or want to reflect things in earlier chapters for later ones etc etc

I joined the SnS fandom extremely late, as season five was airing. I was a fan of the manga five years ago and dropped it because I forgot to check for updates when I caught up 😔 I really want to bang out the different fics and aus for sorina that I have before the fandom fizzles out entirely but tbh I’m writing for myself, I’m manifesting what I want to see and I’ll just share it with all my friends to read if no one else will. cause I’m slow broski I dunno what writing fast even is like LMAO I do really want to write faster though, so I can contribute more and let the words free from the discord dms....

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 207: Close Encounters of the 4th Set

Previously on BnHA: Honenuki, Tetsutetsu, Todoroki and Iida were all put out of commission in one fell swoop. Seeing as Sen and Ojiro were already captured, this left the fate of teams A and B riding on Shouji and Pony’s respective shoulders. Although Pony succeeded in keeping her fallen teammates out of Shouji’s hands, she wasn’t able to get Shouto over to the Rat Principal Jail before time ran out. As a result the battle ended in a draw, which means that the classes are still tied with one win each. Over in Recovery Girl’s office, Iida and Todoroki took turns blaming themselves, but in the end the two of them renewed their determination to become heroes who put everyone at ease and rush to the rescue of anyone who needs it. Also they’re now best friends with Honenuki. Meanwhile back at Ground Gamma, the fourth set is finally about to begin, Tokage from class B is looking to kick some ass, and my son Kacchan is eager to start showing off for his excited green boyfriend. I am hyped.

Today on BnHA: Team BakuJirouSeroSatou takes on Team TokaBondoAwaKama as round 4 begins. We briefly check in with the audience, where Vlad King is being loudly biased toward 1-B and All Might is being quietly biased toward 1-A. We then cut to Team A who are obediently following Bakugou’s lead despite some obligatory grumbling on their behalf. Bakugou wants to go straight in for the kill, and the strategy is for him to take point while the others hold the rear and Jirou keeps her earjacks peeled for trouble. Trouble does indeed find them before long, as Tokage attacks with her self-amputation quirk, which allows her to split her body up into small pieces that can float around independently to do recon and harass people and so forth. Anyway, so while she’s out there pestering Bakugou, Bondo shows up and uses his “can spit out glue everywhere” quirk to trap the others. Bakugou blasts them free with an explosion, but it leaves them exposed, and Kamakiri from B Team leaps in to attack Jirou with his “can make swords from any part of his body” quirk. Or at least he tries. But before he can actually hit Jirou, Bakugou jumps in to save her. Because didn’t you know? The best heroes are the ones who both win and rescue, and we love character development here in BnHA.

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my mostly-unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’m caught up with the manga now at chapter 223, so any ETAs will reflect that.)

wow, Colander Man

and Bakugou is what. chopped liver? not to mention poor Satou. you do know he’s another physical powerhouse right?

ah, Awase is jumping in now to defend their honor

I knew I liked you for a reason Awase. aside from you saving Momo and Bakugou’s lives

oh hey, it’s this guy!

I’ve been wanting to know more about him for ages! it looks like he shares a personality with Bakugou, which means I instantly love him. that says a lot of things about me, doesn’t it. whatever guys, it’s a manga!

hey what the hell is Tokage’s deal anyway though

like, what is this little scale thing that she seems to be floating. goddammit. I’m so curious about her and I already love her and it’s confusing

oh hey, interesting

this is the first time we’ve seen a map of the field. I wonder if that means it’s gonna be important to this match. imagine if one of the class A teams actually tried a strategy!

...okay that’s mean, and not quite fair to the first group (even if they did get in on the strategizing game pretty late), and then to Momo specifically and only Momo. but everyone else kind of just flailed around. I’m starting to think they might actually have gotten too used to having to adapt and react to things instead of being more proactive

anyway, Vlad is going on to say that class A’s one and only win was mostly due to Shinsou, and I have to say, he’s not wrong. however, he forgot to say “only win up until now.” key point there, Vlad King

lmao now Kami, Kiri, Aoyama, and Tokoyami (though he’s mostly silent but you can feel his support) are booing him

and Aizawa’s telling them to cut it out lol

what are you, picketing him?

oh Aizawa you’re so sensible as always

you see guys this is what I said. you haven’t really brought your A-game so far. well except for you Kaminari

noooo now he’s all “looks like Vlad’s teaching skills were a cut above my own” and his kids look PHYSICALLY PAINED

how is he such a good teacher, though?? like, this is the most gentle scolding, and he’s even shouldering the blame himself, but he makes it so effective somehow. he knows exactly how to hit them where it hurts without being cruel or hurting their confidence

and just saying, unlike a certain other teacher, he knows how to rein his students in when they start to get petty

Vlad? you out there? hello?

by the way has Monoma’s tie always had that weird black spot pattern on it?? that’s weird

(ETA: yeah I’m clearly not very observant lol)

lol at least class A has one person unabashedly on their side

THAT’S BECAUSE THOSE ARE HIS CHILDREN

plus, look, Midnight. everyone loves class A. they are plucky and determined and a couple of them have broken wings but they are on the mend and ready to rise from those ashes and kick ass and save the world and okay but frankly the idea of anyone not loving them is just absurd. in fact I would argue that class B has been performing so well today precisely because they’re up against class A and they just naturally bring out the best in everyone

but yeah it’s also just because they’re his kids. and mine, as it just so happens! Katsuki where are you though

(ETA: okay but lmao at All Might being all “I love everyone equally” and then not one panel later thinking to himself “GO ON AND FUCK THEM UP, YOUNG BAKUGOU.”)

;____; oh, cool. it’s okay. I’m cool. it’s just All Might thinking to himself about how he’s expecting great things of Katsuki. even though he is not his successor and he has not invested anything into him. meaning I can take this as confirmation that he really has adopted him in spite of that. he didn’t think ‘I’m expecting great things of you, young heroes!’ or anything generic. he specifically thought about Bakugou. the kid he’s chosen to be Izuku’s partner. okay guys actually it’s not okay and I’m not cool but I’m gonna shut up and keep reading!!

my boy always here to bring me back to reality. oh how I love you

soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo slow! SLOWPOKES! !!!

lmao teamwork

in all honesty watching Bakugou’s leadership in action is always fascinating to me. because it works in defiance of all expectations. everyone’s always complaining about what an asshole he is, but they can also see that he pushes himself just as hard as anyone else. he’s tough, but he’s also fair. he won’t ask anything of someone that he wouldn’t also ask of himself. and because his classmates understand that, they’re willing to follow him

so here they are all grumbling about his attitude, and yet they’re going along with it all the same

lmao Bakugou you really have set the bar for cooperation quite low. good job on tempering those expectations kid

so now we’re flashing back to their planning session

that’s not much of a plan Katsuki. WHY ARE ALL OF MY SONS SO STUPID. hopefully his improved self-awareness will kick in and he’ll listen if the others make suggestions

(ETA: I’m sorry kiddo, I underestimated you. it was a simple plan, but effective. “go out and kick their asses and watch each other’s backs.” but what really made it work is the fact that he took point and they let him coordinate them. that’s something all of the other A Teams lacked aside from Momo’s team, and she unfortunately got cut off from the others. basically, the lesson to take away here is that good leadership can make all the difference in a situation like this.)

also interesting to see the hierarchy at work here lol. so these guys are “underlings” and “punks”, but meanwhile the enemy are “small fries.” not even deserving of more acknowledgement than that, huh

hmm, I’m not sure who’s right here tbh

I know Bakugou has never been the type to sit and wait, and he thrives on improvisation almost as much as Deku when it comes to strategy. but I do feel like if they had taken the time to make a plan to set up some sort of trap, it could have been really good

on the other hand, their team is powerful enough to make “attack head-on” a valid strategy as well. or so it would seem. but we all saw how that worked out in the previous match, though. so far pretty much every class A team has underestimated class B, and that’s proven to be a mistake

anyways I guess we’ll see!

and now it looks like he’s spotted someone up ahead, and he’s calling for the others to hold up

lol

yeah he knows you have a name, it’s Ears!

(ETA: and in fairness, the Japanese word for “ears” is “mimi” and I think it’s an adorable nickname tbh. I will be sad if he ever stops calling her this.)

at least he’s making effective use of her quirk though. maybe he does have a strategy

oh hell yesssssss look at Jirou being a total badass

the amount of mental processing that must be in play here with her having to identify all these sounds and distinguish them from one another and identify their sources and figure out where they are in relation to her is frankly incredible. it almost overwhelms me just thinking about it, so I can’t imagine what it’s like for her. much respect for Jirou, and Shouji too for that matter

but Bakugou is getting impatient and telling her to hurry it up

she’s saying “wait...”

oh shit

lol did you all fuck up somehow

oh damn

nothing to see here, just a floating disembodied mouth chilling out behind Bakugou

how come the others didn’t spot it if it was between him and the rest of them?

dude what the hell

TOKAGE YOUR QUIRK IS FREAKING ME OUT. WHERE ARE YOU. COME OUT HERE AND EXPLAIN THIS TO ME YOUNG LADY

how did the mouth know to dodge him. it’s only a mouth. how can it see or hear or have spatial awareness. why would you send a mouth out to spy on someone, out of all the body parts you could possible send

so apparently Tokage’s quirk is called “self-amputation.” clearly one of those quirks that’s actually much, much better than it sounds lmao

see, the eye makes sense though. I get that she can move her body parts independently, but how does it work when a mouth can somehow see stuff? or is the eye just floating high enough that it can see all the other parts so she knows where to move them?

(ETA: maybe this just works like Mighty Wings and Pony’s quirk and I should just stop questioning it sob.)

and now Bakugou is being pelted by a bunch of disembodied Pieces of Tokage

jury’s still out on whether I find this quirk cool or terrifying, but I will let you know when we come to a decision!

so Katsuki is thinking that they don’t pack much of a punch but they’re annoying because the targets are too small to hit

meanwhile Sero is setting up some sort of tape perimeter which doesn’t look like it would be even remotely effective, but they seem to have confidence in it lol

“there. now class B, you stay on your side of the stage, and we’ll stay on our side”

and now part of Tokage’s head is again shouting, “okay, all done!”

what is all done??

OH SNAP

CLASS B HAS A GLUE MAN?? COLANDER MAN, YOUR QUIRK WAS GLUE?! HOW DO THE CLASS B QUIRKS KEEP GETTING EVEN MORE AWESOME

so now the glue is dripping off of Sero’s tape barricade and they look pretty stuck. shit

Colander man says this was all due to Tokage’s plan

Bondo is such a great name. reminds me of Sero’s. straight up Engrish. I love it. and that is a damn convenient quirk

and here comes the Bakuclone now to enter the fray

isn’t this the same quirk as that lame doped-up mobster guy that Kiri beat in the Basement arc, before we got to the basement part of it? aww. I’m actually a little disappointed here; not that it isn’t a cool quirk, but when you’re competing with guys who can physically manifest onomatopoeia and shoot fucking glue at people and melt anything they touch, that sets the bar pretty high as far as creativity

wow, class A really managed to get themselves into quite the... sticky situation. ahaha. why are you looking at me like that

what even was the tape barrier supposed to do other than get in their way to begin with though

now Satou’s doing something inexplicable

protect them how, by miming that you’re in an invisible box??

oh thank fuck

this is one of the funniest Bakugou panels I’ve ever seen by the way

just. the way he’s still getting the shit beat out of him by Tokage’s flying amputated body parts. the fact that he’s completely facing the opposite way from where he’s aiming for no apparent reason. what are you even doing

having said that, that’s some damn good control. to be able to blast the glue away while not hurting his friends, once again without sparing a fucking glance in their direction, apparently? damn, son

I bet you Jirou could have blasted it apart with her quirk though if he hadn’t stepped in

fuck you, they didn’t need a shelter to begin with. and it’s better than being stuck in place and not being able to fight back at all

anyway so now he’s diving at them, and Tokage is shouting to take out Jirou first!

ooooooooooh

yes please omg!?!?!

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

BAKUGOUUUUUUU

holy shit. he practically teleported there. he’s so fucking fast holy shit. class B never actually stood a chance did they??

also, Deku’s face though?? the way his jaw just dropped and he doesn’t even appear to have registered it? thank you manga gods for this glorious bounty oh shit

and now there are two bonus pages of BnHA smash featuring the Bakugou family oh lord what a blessed dayyyy

(ETA: I still gotta go back and do the rest of these which I forgot about from the previous chapters. you can clearly see where my biases lie since these are the only ones I didn’t skip lol.

also, this seems like a good place to put up my Mitsuki Disclaimer, which is that I love her but I understand that not everyone does, but I’d like to steer clear of any discourse about it if it’s all the same to everyone! my more in-depth thoughts about it are here just fyi.)

so first there’s a strip basically establishing the hierarchy in the family

poor Masaru. I like to think he has a spine when it comes to the important things, though. but clearly he’s not very good at laying down the law

and next up is a strip about Katsuki and Mitsuki waging war and tearing the house apart

(ETA: okay but can we all stop for a moment to appreciate that Mitsuki, who has no hero training and whose quirk is “glycerin sweat” which does absolutely nothing other than give her healthy glowing skin, nonetheless smashed a fucking table (??) to bits here with her fucking fist just cuz. new headcanon that Mitsuki was Rosa Diaz in a past life. what kind of woman doesn’t have an axe.)

ngl I like that she’s not intimidated by him. but “poor Masaru” certainly seems to be a running theme here

and lastly we have Katsuki angrily asking why his dad married her, only to instantly regret it as his dad nostalgically begins to reminisce about their romance

the second panel with Katsuki’s “oh shit” attempts to abort once he realizes what he’s done is amazing omg

Masaru: [loudly] “AND THEN WE HAD SEX”

also their cute lil blushes in the third panel are adorable

I appreciate the text saying “treat him kindly” because seriously, Bakudad is a precious cinnamon roll and he deserves love and appreciation

anyways that’s all for today, tune in next time, kids. same Bakutime, same Bakuchannel