#virtus martial arts

[uppercut-athletics]

Training hard every day to fight like a warrior. Let strength, bravery, and virtue guide your path. 🥊

[alectothinker]

literally forgot that my body could do things for so long. now im (tentatively) singing again and trying 2 dance a bit in the bathroom mirror at 3am and learning how to kick the shit out of my brother's punching bag. we r so back babes.

[raffaellopalandri]

A Short Comparison: Shaolin Virtues vs. Confucian Principles

Both Shaolin virtues and Confucian principles are guiding lights for ethical conduct, but they stem from different philosophical backgrounds. Photo by Diana on Pexels.com Shaolin Temple, far from just a martial arts school, is steeped in the rich tapestry of Buddhist philosophy and is considered the cradle of Chan (Zen) Buddhism in China. This Buddhist foundation deeply influences and shapes…

[evilmidnightlurker]

Seven Deadly Virtues Style

SDV is a martial art designed by angels, for angels, for use primarily against demons. It is both incredibly physical and profoundly philosophical, each strike carrying immense force and undeniable moral lessons. True victory for the practitioner is measured not in simple defeats but in redemptions, rare though they may be.

It is difficult to describe most SDV techniques, as they are performed by beings who are less than a third physical and frequently not at all humanoid -- kicks and punches mean little to wheels within wheels or clouds of wings and eyes. Human observers report such shouted attack names as (translated from the Enochian) "wall of prudence," "compassionate stroke," and the ever popular "GREAT JUSTICE!" Whenever angels notice said human observers, the phrase "Fear not, for our kung fu is best" invariably precedes combat.

(Known techniques include rather more than seven virtues, which has caused some theological arguments. Angelic practitioners have been known to join in, on multiple sides.)

[poligraf]

Around 2 a.m., I suddenly forgot all the martial techniques I had ever learned. The techniques of my teachers appeared completely new. Now they were vehicles for the cultivation of life, knowledge, and virtue, not devices to throw people with.

Morihei Ueshiba (second of three life-changing spiritual experiences)

[graciebarracolumbus]

8 Reasons Why Learning Self-Defence Is Important for Children

1. DISCIPLINE

Children who learn self-defence techniques are more self-disciplined and aware of their surroundings than other kids who are not trained. Children are more aware of how to protect themselves against assailants, including adults and kids their age.

2. CONFIDENCE

In this regard, self-confidence means using your fear of being attacked to your advantage by constructively changing it. It will also enable them to effectively defend themselves and others when necessary if they develop the abilities to make them powerful opponents to aggressive threats.

 

3. PHYSICAL FITNESS

One approach to keep your child active and encourage them to use every part of their body to a healthy level of physical fitness is to enrol them in physical defence lessons. These courses could aid young people in developing stronger muscles and better body awareness.

 

4. SOCIAL SKILLS

Involve teaching kids to fight each other, with the main focus being keeping each other as safe as possible and having faith that the other person will do the same.

 

5. AWARENESS

Children benefit from these sessions because they are taught to be alert to everything around them, which helps them identify and avoid risky situations. This awareness is vital in circumstances that frequently arise in daily life, such as crossing busy streets, potential fire dangers, etc. It is not simply necessary to avoid trouble from strangers or to be aware of safe and dangerous touch.

6. VALUES AND PRINCIPLES

The virtues that martial arts teach are integrity, humility, honour, respect, courage, failure, and discipline. People will inevitably fail in life, but martial arts teaches kids to embrace failure and see it as a chance to grow.

 

7.  CONFRONTATION AND PROBLEM-SOLVING

Children are taught conflict-resolution skills and problem-solving techniques to help defuse tense situations. Children learn how to maintain composure while defending themselves and respond in a way that keeps them safe and avoids potential harm.

8. TAKE PRIDE IN ACHIEVEMENTS.

They can overcome their shortcomings and fears with regular practice in self-defence exercises, especially if they get commendation for their work from the instructor in the form of favourable feedback.

Conclusion

children learning self-defence in Columbus, ga, are lucky to have an organisation like ours.Young children require substantial guidance since their flexible bodies and minds are not yet as developed as those of adults. As parents, we should provide this advice in a well-considered and thoroughly-researched manner.

[tobiasdrake]

Fun Fact: As Saiyans go, Raditz isn't just weak; He's a talentless hack. Nappa is much more talented at martial arts, but his skills are undermined by him being a complete fucking moron.

Raditz is our introduction to the particularities of the Planet Trade Organization - or, well, the Saiyans since the PTO didn't quite exist as a concept yet when he showed up.

Toriyama only came up with the PTO later in the arc. It's honestly kind of funny; Vegeta's referred to as the "Strongest in the Universe" a couple times in this arc because the idea for Frieza doesn't exist yet. The original plan was that the Saiyan race are the ones doing planet gentrification on their own initiative, but they were almost all wiped out by a meteor so if we take out Strongest in the Universe Vegeta, we'll put an end to it.

So all this stuff like the spaceship pods and Scouters that was original Saiyan equipment and methodology got retooled into being PTO equipment and methodology.

But I digress. We meet Raditz and he's unlike anyone we've seen before. He immediately starts shit with Piccolo because they're both assholes, and we see how he operates.

He has a little doodad that reads off someone's "Battle Power" into a flat, easily digestible number that even a child could understand. This is the industrialization of martial arts, simplifying it into something that can be replicated and mass-produced.

It's the difference between teaching swordsmanship lessons in your dojo versus handing someone an AK-47 and telling them to go shoot the enemy.

This is the key distinction between the Saiyans and Earthlings, that made Goku - A Saiyan raised on Earth engulfed by their martial arts philosophy - so formidable. The Saiyans and by extension Planet Trade's culture is built on capitalist efficiency. Their warriors are carefully measured, analyzed, and matched with suitable challenges. They aren't trained. In fact, Vegeta scoffs at the idea of it.

They're battle-hardened.

They measure their fighters and quantify their abilities into a number, then select the right target that matches that number. Those warriors become stronger through fire and frenzy, rather than by studying principles of martial technique.

Consequently, upwards mobility doesn't seem to be a thing. Nobody in the PTO got to where they are by working hard and improving themselves. Every single one of them is naturally gifted, coasting by on whatever privileges their birth afforded them. Especially Frieza.

They aren't practitioners of an art. They're cogs in a machine.

Raditz believes these distinctions made Goku weaker.

He has no idea. The limitations of the PTO's methodology is a recurring theme in the Saiyan and Namek arcs.

Raditz is a low-class Saiyan. By virtue of being a Saiyan, he's still unbelievably powerful compared to the terrestrial races of the worlds he's sent to. But power is all he brings to the table; He's an unrefined juggernaut who coasts by entirely on Big Number Go Brrrrr. Philosophically, Goku is unimpressed.

Coming from Goku, that's a pretty sick burn. He's already lost to Raditz once; He knows how Big Number this guy is. But he can't bite his tongue at Raditz's oversimplification of his art.

As a fighter, Raditz delivers what he promised. All he has going for him is Big Number Go Brr... but it's a really big number.

Raditz is impossibly strong, impossibly fast, and his basic-ass ki blasts are impossibly powerful. The gulf between Goku and an adversary has never been so huge before.

And yet, for all his power, he is repeatedly startled and befuddled by Goku and Piccolo's training and technique. These weaklings are breaking out abilities he didn't even know were possible.

Raditz watching Goku power up the most basic ki concentration technique on Earth and exclaiming "WHAT IS THIS SORCERY!?" really tells you everything about the PTO's methodology, doesn't it?

Raditz falls for every trick and every shenanigan that these guys have spent their careers honing, forced to rely solely on tanking attacks with his tremendous Numbers.

This dipshit hasn't even trained the weakness out of his tail.

Goku was fifteen years old when he trained his tail and eliminated this vulnerability.

Raditz is less proficient than Goku was as a child. This isn't even the PTO's flaws manifesting through Raditz, either. Nappa and Vegeta trained their tails.

"LOL What kind of a useless clown doesn't train his tail?" ~Nappa, probably. Oh, wait. No. Actually.

~Vegeta literally.

Raditz is limited by the philosophy of the Planet Trade and he's also on the weaker side of Saiyans, but he also sucks even without taking power levels into account. He brings absolutely nothing to the table. He reads someone's number to tell him in advance if they'll fall down when he punches them, and then he punches them if the number tells him he's clear.

Raditz isn't a fighter. He's a bully with a gun.

For his part, Nappa is a more advanced version of Raditz. His Big Number Go Brr is even bigger than Raditz's and he's familiar with more advanced techniques beyond "Throw this ball of ki at your face".

As a front-line fighter, Nappa is unbelievably tough. Blow after blow and attack after attack, he never gives as much as it feels like he should. No matter what they do to him, he keeps getting back up and coming back, more bloodied and bruised than ever but ready for another round. He is unbelievably resilient.

Fighting Nappa feels like an exercise in futility. You're going to have to kill this man to put him down because he'll accept nothing less. Even when Goku takes the field, he finds himself at a loss with Nappa's absolute unwillingness to take the hint and lose consciousness already.

Nappa is a brick wall. Goku only finally manages to end this by breaking his spine so he can't keep getting up again.

That is what Nappa brings to his table. Though it's worth noting that his Sisyphean endurance is something Vegeta shares as well. It's not unique to Nappa. Fights with Vegeta are every bit as much of an ordeal as this bout with Nappa was.

Saiyans are hard to put down.

Nappa's biggest weakness, however, is simple: Like Raditz, he's coasting on his brute strength. He doesn't pay attention to what's happening around him, and is easily blindsided by sudden attacks from other fighters in this brawl.

Or baited into incredibly poor decision-making.

For all his Saiyan might, the Earthlings would have killed Nappa well in advance of Goku's arrival, if he didn't have Vegeta to watch his back. I'm half-convinced the only reason he trained his tail is because Vegeta told him to.

Nappa is very much a follower. He does what he's told. He's honestly a better Saiyan than Vegeta in the sense that he. Like. Cares about other Saiyans? His kneejerk reaction when Vegeta suggests taking Earth's Dragon Balls is that he wants his friend back.

And he's filled with eugenic fervor for the glory of the Saiyan race when he finds out what mixing Saiyan and Earthling physiology can do.

Fun little side note: "Super Saiyan" was originally the term used to describe Gohan's hybrid abilities before it was recontextualized to mean something else on Namek.

It's honestly interesting to look at their interactions and realize that Vegeta is a cruel, monstrous, selfish bastard even by Saiyan standards. Vegeta is uniquely wicked within this culture of for-profit colonizing murderers.

But Nappa defers to Vegeta every time. Vegeta tells him, "No, you're wrong," and Nappa pivots to supporting whatever Vegeta just said instead. Nappa obeys.

But he doesn't listen. Vegeta and Nappa were following the action while Raditz was fighting Goku and Piccolo. They saw all of the strange anomalies that occurred, that Raditz couldn't comprehend. Vegeta spends this time thinking about what this means for Earth and re-evaluating his assessment of the foes to come.

And he adjusts accordingly. From the moment they arrive at the fight, Vegeta pegs overreliance on the Scouter's readout for the vulnerability that it is.

Like. He says this. He acknowledges that he understands. And not five minutes later:

BUT THE NUMBERS, VEGETA

THE NUMBERS SAID NO

Even then, Nappa flat-out ignores The Numbers if he doesn't like what's printed on them.

Nappa and Vegeta both disregard the printout this time, but in different ways. Vegeta observes that Earthlings suppress their ki, presenting a smaller number than their true ability. So when the Scouter says 5000, that means Goku's true level is likely well beyond that.

Nappa observes that Goku is probably weak so that's stupid and you're wrong.

Nappa just does things. He doesn't think or pay attention to what they're doing. He destroys a city as soon as they arrive, and Vegeta immediately lays into him for what a fucking idiotic thing to do that was.

He's a beast on a chain, barely restrained by his deference to Vegeta. Powerful, seemingly unstoppable, but needing Vegeta to hold his hand and walk him through the higher concepts of combat and martial arts.

An absolute fool. But a Saiyan elite fool.

[theoutcastrogue]

"The knife is a weapon of the Other"

"The emerging martial art of Bartitsu, appearing in middle-class magazines during the Boer War, was the encapsulation of British civilian gallantry. Yet Bartitsu would have slid into obscurity had it not been for its curious appearance in the Sherlock Holmes canon. The final showdown of the ‘duel’ between Holmes and Moriarty is a wrestling match between two Victorian masterminds. When Holmes returns to London he tells Watson that he and Moriarty went to battle at the Reichenbach Falls unarmed. Holmes managed to ‘slip through’ Moriarty’s grip as he possessed ‘some knowledge’ of ‘baritsu, or the Japanese system of wrestling’, adding that the art had on occasion been useful to him.

Founded in the 1890s by an Anglo-Scottish engineer, Edward William Barton-Wright (1860–1951), Bartitsu was a synthesis of British boxing, French la savate (kickboxing) and Japanese jujitsu. Barton-Wright tapped into the need for a bourgeois form of self-defence, something which he could promote as being British and yet was also exotic and refined.

The principal aim of Bartitsu’s promoters was ‘to provide a means whereby the higher classes of society may protect themselves from the attacks of hooligans and their like all over the world’. These urban gangs were a new form of folk devil, descendants of the mid-Victorian-era garotter. While they were armed with clubs, knuckles, iron bars and leather belts, it is doubtful that they carried firearms. Nevertheless, the press did represent the hooligan as a threatening presence.

Perhaps the scares promoted the growth of a burgeoning culture of ‘British’ self-defence which avoided the aggressive and increasingly unmanly action of using a firearm against a ruffianly lower-class opponent equipped only with basic weapons.

Barton-Wright follows a literary tradition when he presents his martial art as a British form of self-defence. Pierce Egan’s well-known self-defence manual was supplemented with a word on the ‘Englishness’ of physical heroism, arguing that ‘Englishmen need no other weapons in personal contests than those which nature has so amply supplied them with’. In 1910 the former lightweight boxing champion Andrew J. Newton said in his manual Boxing that ‘the native of Southern Europe flies to his knife’, whereas the ‘Britisher […] is handy with his fists in an emergency’. Elsewhere it was maintained that the ‘Italian, Greek, Portuguese, or South American’ ‘give preference to the knife’ while the Englishman extols boxing. For Barton-Wright, British boxers ‘scorn taking advantages of another man when he is down’, while a foreigner might ‘use a chair, or a beer bottle, or a knife’ or, ‘when a weapon is available’, he might employ ‘underhanded means’. The views of these articles reappear in a later self-defence manual of 1914, where it is argued that Britons ‘live in a country where knife and revolver are not much in evidence’. This statement about the low number of firearms and edged weapons can be read as an attempt to extol British virtues and is not necessarily representative of reality. The knife is a weapon of the Other. Barton-Wright’s view that English practitioners of Bartitsu are principled men is reflected in the Sherlock Holmes canon, where Holmes never uses a knife, although his enemies, whether foreign or British, do so at times."

— Emelyne Godfrey, Masculinity, Crime and Self-Defence in Victorian Literature (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013) (very abridged)

[city-of-ladies]

Women warriors of China (2nd to 6th century CE)

"Warfare defined the age of disunion. Women sometimes had a role in war, and they even undertook certain forms of military service. People respected prowess in the martial arts—in women as well as men—and even empresses and noblewomen honed their skills in horseback riding and archery. For a time, it was fashionable for southern ladies to wear ornaments of gold, silver, ivory, and tortoiseshell in the shape of miniature weapons. People from earlier eras had regarded any female participation in warfare as a gross violation of the fundamental distinction between the sexes. But society had become so thoroughly militarized that it became acceptable for women to have a role in war.

During the Zhou dynasty, the military class of minor aristocrats called shi had been considered a moral elite, and strict ritual rules enforced high standards of conduct. Given the ancient connections between military service, high rank, and virtue, a female warrior could gain admiration for her moral superiority. Traditionally, women fought for the sake of Confucian virtues such as righteousness (yi) and filial piety. Han dynasty writings describe female role models noted for both bravery and virtue. Moral principles sometimes spurred women to violence, as they sought vengeance on behalf of a wronged kinsman or fended off unwanted sexual advances. Six Dynasties authors continued to celebrate virtuous female fighters. A woman who beat her husband’s murderer to death received an imperial amnesty due to her righteous behavior. And when one man wanted to force a woman to marry him, she fended him off with a sword, earning praise as a model of female integrity.

Other women took part in military operations. Emperor Wen of Jin and Empress Wenming conducted an important military campaign together, and she received equal credit for managing important military matters. Northern rulers sometimes employed women from the steppe as palace bodyguards. There was also the case of a woman who became a general, albeit under unusual circumstances. Her father, a noted military officer, had been ordered to lead an army while still in mourning for his deceased mother. He did not want to violate his mourning obligations, so he appointed one of his daughters to be general and another daughter as a high-ranking officer so that they could serve in his place. Historical records do not reveal whether these women prosecuted the war themselves or merely acted as figureheads on their father’s behalf. Either way, the soldiers consented to taking orders from a female general.

In wartime, large numbers of women found themselves pressed into military roles. During a siege, female inhabitants served alongside men on the city walls, fighting and also repairing the fortifications. And women born into military households lived a martial life. As these families tended to intermarry, their women spent their lives immersed in war. With conflict so frequent, they often accompanied their husbands on campaigns and lived in army camps. When war loomed, entire families would embark on a military campaign. 

Even though classical ritual forbade women from participating in war, some nevertheless took on military roles. As the Han dynasty disintegrated, women began to have a more visible presence in military camps. Both the warlord Cao Cao and his foes used female troops on the battlefield, where they brandished spears, halberds, and bows. In that era, soldiers became a distinct social caste. The daughter of a soldier could only marry another soldier, so a woman born into a military family had no choice but to spend her life in a military environment.

The law sentenced men convicted of certain crimes, and their wives, to military service. Under the Northern Qi, both convicts and their female family members became soldiers. Like their husbands, women pressed into military service lived under strict discipline. If a man committed an infraction or absconded, authorities punished his wife as well. As in armies elsewhere in the world, most of these women lacked special skills or fighting ability. Instead they provided support, constructing fortifications, handling provisions, mending weapons, defending their camp, and doing domestic chores. Only occasionally did they go out on the battlefield.

Although the north lacked an institutionalized system of military communities, the women of military households often followed their husbands off to war. The Xianbei traditionally expected their women to be strong and to fight when necessary. The militaristic values of nomadic conquerors gave rise to the famed ballad of Hua Mulan, composed by an anonymous northern poet. In this story, when Mulan’s father is drafted, she disguises herself as a man to serve in his place. She becomes an exemplary warrior and distinguishes herself with outstanding heroism. Mulan is even offered an official post in recognition of her courage, which she modestly declines. Instead she returns home, dons female attire, and resumes conventional female life.

The tale of Mulan has captured the imaginations of generations of readers, and it continues to be retold in new ways. Although audiences today appreciate this story as an engaging fantasy, it originally seemed much closer to quotidian reality at a time when many women belonged to military households and received martial arts training. Mulan’s respect for Confucian propriety helps account for her perennial appeal. She does not dress like a man or become a warrior out of desire or ambition. Instead she sees these unpleasant actions as a way to protect her father from harm. After succeeding on the battlefield, she refuses to continue dressing as a man and bearing arms. Instead she returns home and resumes a stereotypical female life. The original readers could accept Mulan challenging gender norms and taking on a masculine identity only because she undertook it as a temporary sacrifice for the sake of moral duty. By mixing conservative Confucian integrity with startling violations of feminine decorum, Mulan has captured the hearts of numerous readers and remains an object of fascination both in China and abroad."

Women in early medieval China, Bret Hinsch

[clowningaroundmars]

morales twins hcs

i'm absolutely in love with the idea of miles42 and miles1610 being twins, i'm so glad most of the fandom has basically adopted 42 lmao

some of my own twins headcanons, just random stuff to add onto other ppls hcs ive seen:

☆ 42 loves his mamí absolutely but def acts the most like his dad, and haaaates when anyone points it out. it's the most obvious when 42 gets mad, he sounds EXACTLY like his father then lol

☆ in fact, the twins polar opposite personalities is probs bc 1610 takes after his mom's temperament more, while 42 is as stoic, stubborn and slightly dorky as his dad is

☆ whenever the boys made each other cry (by accident or otherwise) they did the typical little kid thing and tried immediately comforting the other. now that they're older 1610 handles his emotions better and is mature when talking about them, but 42 is the one who comforts 1610 more often

more below ↓

☆ as well as staying on top of his academics, 42 also plays basketball and trains in a couple martial arts studios after school. 1610 is taller than 42 bc of the spider bite but 42 has always been slightly bigger and more muscular than 1610 since he's the athlete. whenever the family attends 42's boxing matches, jeff gets an overwhelming sense of deja vu from back when he attended his own brother's matches before

☆ they both got thru school p okay, not many incidents of bullying mostly bc if anyone did try, 42 would put a stop to that nonsense immediately. 42 loves his bro with his whole heart and was glad to pick a fight with anyone who gave him any trouble at all. the whole neighborhood knew it too bc the only person allowed to bully 1610 is 42 himself!

☆ in fact, 42 doesn't win the lottery to enter visions in the first place, which saddened both brothers when they found out. so because they're at separate schools now, 42 makes sure his twin knows that if any fuckery is afoot at visions that he'd be more than happy to roll up and dogwalk any fool who tries it. 1610 laughs him off but knows his bro has got his back for sure

☆ 42 likes to pretend 1610 is the nerdy one, but they are both very big anime and manga nerds. every time they hit up any bookstore, they both make a beeline for the manga section and argue over who's gonna read the newest one first (they have to share cuz those books cost some moneeyyyy, man)

☆ 1610 and 42 love their uncle to pieces, OFC. they both pick up separate traits from him, even. 42 was inspired to start martial arts and boxing from watching videos on old digital cameras that aaron hung onto thru the years. they were of a much younger aaron back in his boxing days, when his family went to his matches and recorded them from the seats. 1610 was inspired to pick up graffiti and then even started doodling in notebooks bc of aaron

☆ 1610 is def the social butterfly and easily the most popular kid on the block by virtue of how friendly and outgoing he is. 42 is more introverted and keeps a small circle of friends, but everyone is cool with him nonetheless since they fuck with his twin bro

☆ since 42 stays at home the most (lol he a homebody) he picks up cooking much better than 1610 thanks to him staying in the kitchen to help his mom make dinner while they watch telenovelas together. 42 also knows how to dance bachata and salsa much better than 1610 too

☆ both twins love physics and math but 42 is more hardware-inclined. 1610 is about software, data, and formulas. 42 is good at taking things apart, putting things together, building and engineering. he kinda takes after his uncle aaron that way, and drove his parents nuts as a lil kid when he got his hands on radios, computers, clocks, etc

☆ 1610 loves softer brighter music like JID, steve lacy, smino, frank ocean, kid cudi, post malone, and nujabes. 42 is always bumping harder shit like pop smoke, waka flocka, zillakami, three 6 mafia, benny the butcher and some oldies like paul wall, wu tang clan, biggie smalls, MF DOOM and big KRIT. they tease each other's music tastes a lot since they're polar opposites in almost every way

☆ they actually have a shared playlist where they add new music they like (probs on some e-1610 spotify or soundcloud equivalent since everything is slightly skewed on e-1610 tbh). both of them check it periodically, and 42 is the more frequent contributor

☆ they both make art but 1610 is the artsier kid for sure. 42 doodles occasionally but he's not as enthusiastic about it as his twin is. they both go around the city tagging walls whenever they have any free time, though. 1610 loves colors, expressive styles and is good at coming up with cool ways to draw text. 42's lines, accuracy and technical skill can never be beat

☆ 1610 has superpowers, sure, but his fighting skills are trash! 42 was always the scrappy one, not 1610, so he shows his twin how to properly throw punches and other useful fighting knowledge. it def comes in handy in the future

☆ jeff loves his sons to death but he often finds himself butting heads the most with 42 since they're so similar, it kinda drives them both nuts. it def gets worse once aaron starts gossiping abt what jeff used to be like when they were kids, giving 42 plenty of ammo. they love each other but their relationship is just as complicated as it is between jeff and 1610, and 42 would be lying if he said he wasn't affected by the rift between his dad and uncle himself

☆ the minute the twins turn 16, 42 goes out and gets his drivers license on the first try (computer quiz AND road test aced) and rubs it in 1610's face almost constantly. 1610 likes to throw back that there's no parking space for another car on their block, so he can't even get his own car even if he wanted to anyways

☆ whenever the boys really fight, the whole city seems to know. they squabble a lot obvi, they're brothers. but the very few times they've given each other the silent treatment like for real, everyone in the family tries to get them to make up since it's unsettling to see two peas in a pod be so hostile with each other

☆ and since they've always been attached at the hip, 1610 being enrolled into visions felt. weird. everyone thought 1610 was gonna take it the hardest but surprisingly 42 had a harder time adjusting since he always saw his bro in the hallways at school, and was so used to him knowing the latest gossip of anybody in their grade. without 1610 around as often, 42 becomes even more withdrawn than usual

rio looks up from the pot suddenly, glancing at the time. dinner was almost ready and she… hadn't seen not hide nor tail of her son this evening. he returned home from school a couple hours earlier, choosing to skip going to his boxing class to shut himself in his room.

fine. teenagers can be moody sometimes and rio would rather keep her moody son at home where she can keep an eye on him, rather than worry about what he's getting up to on the streets.

strange thing is, though... rio hadn't heard a single noise come out of that room all night. 42 usually liked to have at least some music playing, maybe video game noises out of his nintendo... oh, what was it called again? whatever, that nintendo thing he played on sometimes.

rio placed the lid on the pot and lowered the flame a bit before making her way over to her twin sons' bedroom door, hesitating a bit when she noticed no light was filtering out from the bottom either. okay... that was weird, too. neither of her sons ever went to bed before dinner. ever.

the one time rio dared to try and send her sons to bed without dinner years ago-- as punishment for fighting right there in the kitchen that time-- both twins hollered so loud they got concerned knocks on their front door from various different neighbors. never again, rio remembered thinking that time.

now, the bedroom door stands oddly quiet and completely hollow without any signs of life behind it. rio knocked anyways, hoping against hope itself that 42 didn't go ahead and sneak out of the house without her knowledge. if he did sneak out, he's grounded for 3 months, rio thinks to herself mostly as reassurance. she nervously picks at a nail and strains to hear anything behind the wood.

she thinks she hears a groan and decides to try her luck by slowly opening the door. hopefully he's not in there... y'know, doing teenage boy things, either. dios mío.

rio swings the door open to...

...a completely pitch-black room, save for the sliver of streetlight filtering in past a crack in the window curtains and casting an eerie yellow glow on anything it could touch. it is cold, and also deathly quiet.

rio is shocked.

she walks over to the right side of the room where 42's bed is pushed up against the corner, next to the windows. on that bed lies a big lump, buried under several layers of blankets. the lump stirs.

rio crosses her arms. "mijo, mi amor. are you sleeping? …pero qué te pasa, papí?"¹

42 rolls onto his back and glares sleepily at his concerned mother standing at his bedside. it's dark in the room, but rio's face is illuminated by the living room lights pouring in from the open door. she's wearing a tilted smile, but coupled with the worry lines on her forehead, it isn't fooling anyone.

42 slowly closes his eyes, chin still under the covers, and lets out the most world-weary sigh rio has ever heard coming out of someone as young as him. if it weren't coming from her own son, she might have even laughed.

she immediately sits down, lifting the cover off of 42's chin to check his temperature all over his face. he tries to wriggle away.

"maaaaaa, stop..." he grumbles, trying to pull the covers up higher over his head. "'m not sick, mamí, forreal… chill."

rio leans on a hand. "¿si no 'ta enfermó pues qué es?² what's wrong?"

42 doesn't answer for a bit and rio exhales through her nose. " 'moré, what are you doing in this pitch-black room all by yourself? no light, no music, no nothing. what's wrong? you look like you're on a death bed!"

42 finally opens his eyes again, and blinks a few times as he says, "nothing, ma. seriously, i'm just... tired. that's all. i'm fine."

"you don't look 'fine' 42, you look like 2 seconds away from flatlining."

another sigh from the boy. rio rolls her eyes and places her hand on his forehead again, then strokes his cheek.

"is it 1610? hmm?" rio asks 42. she asks so unbelievably gently, as if by only mentioning his brother's name she would shatter something in the room. a mirror or something.

42's heart clenches at the love and care his mother is showing around this particular topic. it was true, and he couldn't even deny it. having 1610 in the house less and less every week, not seeing him in the hallways at their local high school, receiving sparser and shorter replies to his texts... it was all building up in his chest and the dam was pretty close to bursting. especially now as his mom was lovingly stroking his cheek as she checked in with him. how embarassing. rio wouldn't see him cry, not right now. he closed his eyes and willed the tears away, for her sake.

miraculously, 42's voice didn't crack or waver when he said, "yeah. yeah, i miss 'im."

rio crooned something saccharine in spanish and placed a kiss on her son's forehead. she saw right through his cold tough guy act, as expected. with how much of a mama's boy 42 was, it would've been impossible not to. they spent way too much time together for her to miss how he dragged his feet getting ready for school in the mornings, how he's been skipping martial arts and basketball practice more often lately, and how unenthusiastic he's been in general.

rio chuckles as she lays her cheek on 42's forehead for a second before sitting back up. "ay, bendito. 42, you know your brother is just down a few blocks from here. why don't you go visit him soon?"

42 shuffles under the covers. he's unsure if he should even admit this, but he proceeds anyways. "uhm. he's not answering my texts lately, so." he feels strangely guilty about this, like he just snitched on his twin somehow even though he has no reason to suspect that at all.

rio sighs and looks off into the distance, bracing herself for what she's about to say. she looks back down. "yeah. i know. he doesn't answer mine, either. i was hoping he was talking to you, but... well. "

something in 42 stirs a bit. "i bet he thinks he's in some fancy private school, around rich kids, now he's too good for us," it's a weak attempt at a joke, but rio smiles down at him anyways.

"don't worry. the second he gets home this weekend, he's on house arrest. okay? he's gonna be chained to you the whoooole time. and i'm keepin' watch."

it's not much, but 42 still takes that little bit of hope and holds it gently in his mind.

"the second he walks through that door, i'm tackling him. i don't care." 42 smiles at the thought.

rio laughs, kisses his forehead again and stands up. "dinner is almost ready, by the way." she gives him a look. "you better eat with me tonight, because your brother is at school and your dad is doing overtime tonight. okay? okay."

42 sighs deeply to wake himself up a bit more as he sits up and scratches at his durag. "yeah, yeah. 'm comin', ma!"

¹ "but what is going on with you, papí?" (papí being a common term of affection for a boy in spanish, it doesn't always mean "dad" lol)

² "if you're not sick, then what is it?"

☆ until they get "too old" for halloween, the morales twins ALWAYS wear matching costumes. every year. every single year, no matter what. what they usually end up wearing changes every year and they aaaaaalways argue over it, of course. notable costumes so far: batman and superman (age 13), two ninja turtles (age 9) (im thinking mikey and donatello bc of personality but lbr rio most likely forbade either of them to be leonardo bc the twins would deadass get into a fist fight over it), tom and jerry (age 2), mario and luigi (age 7), woody and buzz (age 5), peter pan and captain hook (age 10), and-- rio's favorite-- thing 1 and thing 2 (age 4)

☆ 42 was surprisingly always very popular with the girls at school. in middle school, 1610 was the geeky one with braces and acne. 42 got off relatively easy in that regard and as a result was labeled "a heartbreaker" from the jump, which annoyed him. he has no interest in dating whatsoever and swore to never get into a relationship before graduating high school. he's got his mom and brother to take care of and he's going places after high school, damnit! 1610 on the other hand is a huge romantic and has a crush on a new person almost every year of school, easily

☆ the literal second 1610 set foot in the house after his spider bite, 42 was all over him asking a million questions since they both have that supernatural twintuition, and 42 sussed him out immediately. 1610 obviously had to come clean and tell his brother he was spiderman just like he told ganke, otherwise he was never gonna be able to change into his spider suit at home (plus they share a room, so. there's that)

1610 didn't even get to close their bedroom door all the way before his twin leaped up from his own bed and stalked over.

"óye, bro. what's up? what happened at visions?" 42 circled his brother, squinty-eyed in the exact same way their mom is when she's suspicious. 1610 dropped his bag next to his bed and plopped down on his sheets, trying to put some distance between them.

"uhhhh what're you talkin' about?" he tries casually, and immediately regrets it.

"uhhhhh what're you talkin' about?" 42 mocks. "don't play dumb with me. you KNOW what i'm talkin' about, stupid. first, you answer, like, none of my texts ever. then dad comes home sayin' you never let him talk face-to-face when he visited you a couple days ago. mamí has been texting and calling you nonstop, no answer either. you are a brand new person now, huh? qué te pasa, yo?"

1610 hunched his shoulders as he got up and slumped over to his desk. he was quietly weighing his options, nervously rearranging papers and sketches on the wooden table, wondering how he was going to break it to his brother that he was--

"lemme guess. you have superpowers now," 42 says easily. he crosses his arms triumphantly when big round amber eyes suddenly turn up to his face.

1610 searches his face for any hint of a joke. no... no way. did his brother just...?

"you're playin' with me. no way. how did you--?"

42's eyes widen. "wait, are you being deadass right now?" he threw his head back and crowed with laughter. "that was just a guess!"

1610 leaped forward and pushed his hand onto 42's mouth, shutting him up. "heeyyy hey hey hey hey shhhhh, man. damn, could you possibly be any louder? look," he took his twin by the shoulders and gave him a slight shake, lowering his voice to a near whisper. "mom and dad can never know anything about this. okay? anything. not a word, you understand?"

42 pushes his brother off. "ok-ay man, cool it. i promise. we can shake on it, even."

wordlessly, they did their super secret handshake they came up with and perfected in the 4th grade in lieu of hooking their pinkies together. it was the morales shake, a move that binds them to secrecy and keeping promises til death. this was serious business. 1610 relaxes a bit once they're done.

"... okay. and i mean it, pencil braids. if you even breathe a word about this, or even think about--!"

"if you don't just tell me already, goddamn."

with a meaningful look thrown at his brother's way, 1610 raises an arm silently. 42 looks back expectantly.

1610 shoots a web up. he jumps up, using the web as a bungee rope to help him flip and land feet-first onto the ceiling. once his sneakers touch their ceiling, he stands up... upside-down. he stares at his brother and his brother stares back, mouth agape.

"niiiiiiice," 42 leans back and grins up at his twin brother, spiderman.

☆ 1610 is glad he has someone besides ganke to talk to about spiderman stuff, though. his brother listens way more attentively than his roommate anyways, and even tries to help sometimes esp when 1610 needs a quick distraction so he can switch from spiderman back into his regular clothes before the parents notice

☆ 42 is surprisingly cool abt his twin bro being spiderman, actually. even when they're texting 42 is careful not to imply 1610 is spiderman, and often calls stuff in to the police station if 1610 webs anyone up and lets him know. he also gets very good at bandaging up wounds quickly

☆ 42 is a hardass on the outside and contains his emotions much better than his twin, but he's kinda different around his family, since he loves them a lot. he jokes around a lot with them, esp around 1610. they also love pranking their parents, and are p creative at coming up with ways to make everyone laugh

☆ i personally picture 42's personality being sort of like huey's from the boondocks, especially around other adults. he becomes withdrawn and speaks very clearly and directly, and is very shy around strangers. some ppl mistake that as him having an attitude problem but his friends and family know better. only difference between huey and 42 is that 42 isn't nearly as woke lmfao

☆ meanwhile, 1610 becomes a motormouth around strangers and is quick to hug and kiss random family members at family reunions. as a lil kid, he'd always be the one up at the counter ordering for the both of them and chatting with the cashiers, or bus drivers, or whoever. as he gets older and used to the spiderman thing, he chats and jokes with randoms a lil less. he has to save the good material for when the mask is on

☆ 42 is a better writer than he is an artist, actually. he has notebooks filled with poetry and lyrics he scribbles down on post-it notes just to stick them in there for safekeeping. he's also been working on a sci-fi story since he was in 6th grade in absolute secrecy; he doesn't want a single soul to see it. he'd be mortified if anyone saw the nerdy shit he comes up with

☆ even tho 1610 has never fought anyone or been scrappy with anyone else, he's very good at wrestling and dodging punches thanks to his brother.

☆ 42 is the more fashion-inclined twin, even tho they're both sneakerheads. 42 just pays more attention to accessories, the fit of his clothing, how to pair the right shoes with the right jacket. 1610 throws on anything comfortable and calls it a day, and it gets even worse after he becomes spiderman. 42 clowns his brother SO HARD after he finds him wearing yellow sweatpants with an oversized red adidas hoodie and a green puffer jacket once (it was when 1610 came home from fighting a shapeshifting lizard that tried to take over cypress hills. the sweatpants were on backwards)

☆ 1610's sense of humor is geeky and he always tries too hard with his quips and jokes. he usually gets "secondhand embarrassment" chuckles from ppl. 42's style of comedy is a mix of dry humor and unintentionally being funny. this dude will say something clever with the straightest face ever and have the ENTIRE room in stitches without even meaning to

☆ just to nail home how different they are, even tho they share a room, you can tell EXACTLY which half of their room begins and ends. 1610's half is cluttered, vibrant, covered in posters and action figures, collages and trinkets on every available surface. 42's is as clean as a hospital room, and he ALWAYS makes his bed every morning. 42 has a poster or 2 hung up but he's not much for decorating in general. he's more into alphabetizing his bookshelf and looking for more efficient storage to put under his bed

☆ when jeff looks at his sons, he sees aaron and himself and sometimes it scares him. when the boys were around 12 (the Evil Year) he made SURE to sign them up for camp trips that summer and keep them close together as much as possible. he hates to see his boys drift apart at all and is the 1st one to call it out if he sees it. he just doesn't want his boys to end up like he and his brother did…

☆ … and then other times? it genuinely makes him feel a combination of irritation and also fondness bc sometimes 1610 and 42 really really remind him of aaron and himself, esp when they were young. ESPECIALLY when they argue. in every playful slap on the shoulder, every arbitrary competition started out of nowhere, every sleepy brother slowly sliding onto the other's shoulder during nighttime car rides, he sees it. he sees them, and then he sees his past. and with every little difference between the boys slowly cracking open like a chasm with each passing day, sometimes he thinks he can even see his future.

☆ 42 is cool or whatever but i also hc he's kinda… weird sometimes. it gets worse when his twin bro goes off to visions, he keeps staring at walls while sitting in dark rooms and eating at weird hours of the day. rio caught him fast asleep practically hanging off the window sill one night, and another time jeff found him having an entire conversation with a brick wall once while on patrol. 42 refuses to answer any questions

☆ after 1610 gets into visions, becomes spiderman, tells his parents abt his plans to go to princeton, etc... 42 eventually starts feeling a type of way (a jealous way…) their parents also seem to pay attention to 1610 more whenever he's home just to add insult to injury. he knows he's not supposed to, but he often finds himself thinking about the prowler gloves and schematics aaron left behind. he managed to grab them and hide them in a gym bag one day while helping his parents clear out aaron's apartment. the tech currently lives under his bed…

[mademoiselle-red]

it occurred to me how Lianhua’s life reflects a certain religious / spiritual ideal:

Confucianism in one’s prime, Taoism in one’s old age, and Buddhism in death. One enters society as a Confucianist (with ambitions to govern with virtue), grows tired of society and escapes with Taoism (returning to nature), and finally letting go of the world with Buddhist enlightenment

In Lianhua’s case:

Confucianist in his prime: 儒者入世 bringing order and authority to the chaotic martial arts world, beating the strong into submission, extending compassion for the weak

Taoist in retirement: 道家避世养生 living harmoniously with nature, finding satisfaction in growing vegetables and flowers, no longer focused on worldly ambitions, committed to living well and enjoying the simple pleasures of life (cooking, looking after his lotus tower)

Buddhist in death: 看破红尘 letting go of societal bonds and obligations, making peace with one’s attachments, guilt, and unfulfilled desires

[audreyscribes]

PJO ROMAN DEMIGOD HEADCANONS: ⚔ BELLONA: GODDESS OF WAR, DESTRUCTION, DEVASTATION, CONTROLLER OF THE POLICY OF FOREIGN WARFARE 🛡

Author's Note: Alright, here's the first full Roman God and demigod! Bellona was a wild to read. There's a lot about her but also not? Like there wasn't much a lot of backstory weight behind her and Bellona was often conflated with a Greek god, Enyo, and there's a both wild and carnage side to Bellona, but also respect and honour. Hopefully I did it justice though. ROMAN DEMIGODS H/CS MASTERLIST LINKS: [TUMBLR] // [AO3]

Apart from Mars, Bellona is the next god to be worshipped at Camp Jupiter; so you’re equally respected alongside Bellona and are expected to embody the aspects of your mother and bring glory to Camp Jupiter with her skills and ferocity.

Just as much as you bring destruction and violence at the end, you bring peace when you end it; because at the end of war, there is peace; regardless of its outcome. Like Mars said, if there is only war, it's only mindlessly killing and there is no glory in that.

Like many other children of warfare, you are adept at fighting, the weapon in your hand an extension of yourself, and it only grows more fluidly and instinctually in your hands with time put into your skill. Your adeption at your weapon doesn’t necessarily have to be a blade, but can be your words and skill as well, because in war there are many methods and strategies in war.

Speaking of warfare, with Bellona being a patron of foreign warfare, you may have ties with other countries and adopt your birth country or home country’s style of warfare, battling, martial art style into your own. If not, you have a particular pull towards a country or style of warfare and become very knowledgeable in it. While in the Legion and Camp Jupiter tells you to conform with their Roman values and fighting style, at the soonest opportunity to being able to break formation and take on an individualistic maneuver, you are more deadly than before. Your limitation is being forced to move with your fellow Roman soldiers in order to maintain unity and harmony as you march towards the battlefield.

On the other hand, being a child of the patron of foreign warfare also extends to languages. You have a better grasp on languages that are outside of your birth language(s) so being multilingual is almost natural to you. The multilingualism is usually a good indication of foreign warfare tactics that I stated above, and vise-versa. 

Bellona was identified with the Greek Goddess Enyo, who is the goddess of and/or personified spirited of war. With Enyo, who followed the lead of Ares, she carried the turmoil of shameless hatred; bringing strife onto the battlefield. You too are like that once you are put on the battlefield. When you are no longer held back or behind the limits of strict values of Roman soldiers, you raze through your enemies, striking fear in your fellow soldiers but also courage to them as you are on their side. This is maybe why the children of Bellona are few and those who do exist, often take upon status of leadership and management. You are an expert in warfare and how to bring total destruction, thus you are in the right place to prevent such occurrences to your fellow Romans.

Bellona was also identified with the Sabine goddess of War, Nerio, who was the personification of Valor. This translates to you as well. Even if you are anxious and maybe shy, you honour Bellona by choosing to fight; whether it’s agony, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. While Valor is often conflated with courage or bravery in physical battle, being a child of Bellona doesn’t constrain you to this. It can be a mental battle, and Bellona is proud of you regardless. So even having mortal courage to act rightfully in the face of opposition, shame, scandal, discouragement, or personal loss, you still display the virtue of valour.

Being a child of Bellona also allows you to give a rousing and encouraging speech to others, as you can ignite the spark of encouragement in others, building their courage up like a fire.  This is very useful not only in battle, but in everyday life. You also make an excellent ambassador or spokesperson, speaking for profit or other interests. Guess that’s how Reyna became a great praetor.

I feel like when Reyna is made aware of your existence there’s a sense of scrutiny for Bellona’s favour and attention is rare outside of the field of war. Reyna also comes from a long line of those who were favoured by Bellona, so it is her responsibility to know you but also it is a relief she can find another sibling in you; however close or distant your relationship is. 

[dolliedarlin]

UPTOWN GIRL ⏤SHINICHIRO S. 

SUM. : when a rich girl meets a mechanic after her new motorbike breaks down, a match made in heaven commences 

LENGTH : 10.7K

G. : mechanic shinichiro x rich girl reader, ; uptown girl inspired fic ; princess and pauper type vibes ; fluff ; some angst ; nobody dies ; modern social status ; yn is rich af ; shinichiro is a humble bike mechanic ; it’s a match made in heaven ; fight me if you dare ; sano siblings want yn as an older sister ; the parents aren’t shit for once 

A/N : this has been in the works for quite a while and is the full version of my shinichiro x rich girl reader timestamp  04:40. it’s quite a long fic i’m sorry, if you need to take a break in between, feel free XD, i did go a little bit overboard here. it took me a while to find the perfect title for this fic and when i realised it resembled a scenario from a particular music video, i just had to title it similarly. for those who know, you know ;)  

You’re no stranger to the privilege you had being born into such an affluent family; you didn’t need to worry about anything because you had everything you could ever want and more. However, that didn’t mean that you grew up entirely content; the difference in your status compared to many of your school mates was apparent and you easily became ostracised. No one wanted to befriend you as they were too afraid of offending you and getting in trouble whereas those that did befriend you made their greedy intentions very clear. 

Understanding your struggle and supporting your decision to live a normal life, your family drew you away from the public eye but still kept you in the circle of luxury and comfort their high social status permitted. You tried to lead an ordinary life but no matter your efforts, because of the blood in your veins, you were naturally gifted and still stood out. 

Incredibly studious (your father’s influence), talented in sports and martial arts (your brother’s shared hobby with you) and ethereally beautiful with a heart of gold (your mother’s teachings). It wasn’t just the social divide that excluded you, it was also the positive influence of your family that nurtured your talents and demeanour, it’s by their virtues that you shone despite your desire for an ordinary life. 

Truly, if you were asked, you would swear that your only saving grace was your family; they cared for and wished only the best for you. You will be forever grateful to them but there was just one substantial problem…

”Mommy, Daddy,” you spoke softly but sternly, setting down your cutlery so as to emphasise your unwavering stare, “please don’t talk about that when I’m trying to eat,”

”Mommy, Daddy,” you spoke softly but sternly, setting down your cutlery so as to emphasise your unwavering stare, “please don’t talk about that when I’m trying to eat,”

”Darling, please try to understand, we’re only a little curious,” you mother excused, pulling an apologetic smile as your father concurred.

”Onii-san should be enough to satisfy your curiosity, he’s going to be proposing soon,” you huff with puffed out cheeks and your father has to resist the urge to reach over and pinch at them, remembering how soft and pudgy they were when you were still a baby.

”Yes but we want two sets of grandchildren,” your father whines, childishly as you try to contain yourself. This is a side to him only you, your family and the (L/N) estate maids, butlers and staff were able to witness; outside the estate, he was a stoic and cool figure that was level headed but charming.

”We want 12 grandchildren, after all,” your mother gushes, unable to contain her excitement, “six from you and six from your brother. If there’s no chance of you having any children then your poor brother and Yui-chan will have to shoulder that responsibility all by themselves,” you hear your brother choke on his calamari, it almost makes you giggle if it weren’t for your mother’s follow up statement, “why don’t we help try and find a good man to court you?”

“Mommy, please!” clear agitation shows in the furrowing of your brows.

You hate these confrontations the most as they bring to light one of the main reasons you’re so envious of your brother. He was able to meet such a lovely girl during his middle school years, someone who doesn’t care about his status or money, she purely loves him for him - it’s magical that they found each other so early on in their youth.

If only you were as lucky but alas, you possessed no good fortune. 

Every time you think you’ve found your forever in someone, they always end up secretly coveting your wealth and social status. Either you tell them who you really are and then they have to sign an NDA or they will gauge your un-calculated wealth simply from your expensive car, fashion and perfumes - to them that was enough to cling onto you. 

”Third time’s the charm?” your brother attempts to lighten the mood and, although you appreciate the sentiment, the air had already grown too claustrophobic for you to continue to bear.

”I’ve lost my appetite,” you slide out of your chair and stand. Sensing the rising panic in your family despite avoiding their eyes, you quickly reassure them, “don’t worry, I just want to go for a ride,” you take the time to give them each a kiss goodbye on the cheek before leaving with a tightlipped smile. Your family were hesitant but respectful and chose to stay and continue with lunch after watching you leave. They silently hope to make amends once you’ve had the time to cool your head.

At the garage, you see your sweet new ride, a black honda CBR1k Triple-R Fireblade SP. The latest superbike on the market, unbeatable for its cutting edge design and exceeding speeds of 186mph. Just looking at it has your heart racing for something else, already taking your mind off of the troubling confrontation you had over lunch.

A long ride around Tokyo is just what you need to help cool your head. Dressing up in your Louis Vuitton black leather pants and matching leather jacket, your vintage Chanel, rib knit crop top and Doc Martens combat boots, you were ready to ride.

Without a destination in mind and adrenaline in your veins, you’re unable to calculate how much time you’ve spent on the road. Had you not lost yourself in the rush, you would have been able to make better sense of your sudden stop at an unfamiliar road.

”Wh-what?” you exclaim, frustration and sudden panic clouding your judgment as you wheel your bike to the side of the road and begin to inspect it. It was a lost cause, however, as you knew nothing about motorbike anatomy. It’s brand new, how can it have problems already? Exasperated, you frantically look around and spot the perfect place for your bike.

S.S motors. If its name and display of bikes is any indication, then it must be a bike shop that can help you.

Feeling a little more optimistic, you carefully wheel your bike over, avoiding traffic and wishing that the problem isn’t too serious. You park your bike outside the garage doors at the side of the store and enter through the main entrance. Following the metallic noise of tweaking, screwing and banging, you soon find yourself at the doorway of the garage attached to the shop.

”Umm, excuse me,” you voice up to the only person working on the engine of a motorbike, “I need some help please,”

On cue, the black-haired man turns to you as he wipes his hands clean on an already stained towel. You didn’t notice it earlier but he had been smoking a cigarette and blew out a final puff before sending a lazy smile your way with his cigarette laced elegantly between his long, dexterous fingers. He’s nothing like the other guys you’ve been introduced to by your parents. Instead of being in a custom-tailored Armani suit and Gucci tie, he’s in a loose and stained white shirt, the evidence of laborious work seen in his muscular arms and dirtied fingers. His soft, black hair isn’t styled in any way and simply falls down to frame his face naturally. His beauty is only elevated by the slope of his sweet eyes. He looks kind and very handsome. Your heart is going crazy for him in your chest - is this what it feels like to be infatuated by someone? Or are you just going crazy? 

”Sure thing, what do you need?” he asks, oblivious to the heat rising in your cheeks. His voice is also very attractive, deep and baritone, smooth like silk but with an edge that tickles your ears with a timid heat. 

”M-my bike suddenly broke down, I’ve parked just outside your garage,”

He nods and steps up to some switches and buttons on the wall, with a quick press, the garage door pulls up, “I’ll happily take a look for you,” he gives you another reassuring smile, which you bashfully return before fixing your gaze onto the ground. How can he have such an effect on you? You barely know the guy! 

A whistle brings your head up and you watch as he awes at your motorbike, “Is that your ride?” you nod with an incandescent heat in your cheeks and almost squeak at the wide grin he pulls, “I never thought I’d see the new CBR1k Triple-R SP so quickly, didn’t it just release yesterday?”

“I had it pre-ordered…”

‘Is there such a thing?’ Shinichiro ponders thoughtfully. This is the first time he’s ever heard of someone pre-ordering such a highly anticipated superbike. He raises a brow at you but decides not to push for answers, it’s not his job to question customers, he just needs to fix up their bikes.

“Alright, well, while I take a look at your sweet ride, you can sit around in the waiting area back in the shop. I’ll try to be quick,”

“Can’t I stay here?” you blurt out without much thought, almost slapping yourself for being so straightforward. This is very unlike you. He must have you in some sort of spell and he probably thinks you’re some desperate teenage girl, who goes goo-goo, gaa-gaa over boys.

He blinks with surprise but quickly eases back into a soothing smile once more, “I don’t see why not, pull up that stool over there,” he points to a short, foldable stool as you happily go about taking a seat off to his side. No words are exchanged as you stare at him get on with his usual checks. You want to know his name. You want to know his favourite food, his favourite movie, what he does for fun, why he decided to set up a motorcycle shop. You want to ask him everything but know there’s a line you should never cross with a stranger you’ve just met, no matter how handsome he is. 

Are you smitten right now?…The simple answer is yes, yes you are. 

It’s very new to you but you could do nothing except continue staring at the eye-candy working hard away at your bike. Usually, most of the guys you’re around are sporting glasses of expensive wines, labouring over paperwork or surveying a conference. They bore you. Being able to see a man get his hands dirty and exhibit skills outside of talking with command or indulging in riches was so so…

“It looks like you just ran out of gas,” Shinichiro chuckled after stepping away from the vehicle, “Don’t worry, I did all the other checks just in case there was something else wrong but other than having no fuel, you’re good to go!”

“Oh…” your face immediately heats up, “I…I guess I just panicked,” the two of you share a laugh, yours more so a giggle from the embarrassment, whereas his was a chuckle of amusement. You’re pretty cute. 

”It’s alright, are you new to motorcycles?”

“Kinda…” you fiddle with your fingers nervously, it’s a childish habit you’ve sustained but the mechanic before you thinks otherwise, “I’ve always wanted one and now that I have one, I love it so much,”

“That’s good, keep taking care of it,” he finishes as he hands over your keys.

”U-umm! How much do I owe you?”

He shrugs, “It’s alright, there’s no need for payment, it was an easy fix and I’m just happy I got to serve such a pretty lady,” he gives you a flirtatious wink, following it up with a laugh at your flustered expression.

”What about the fuel?” you babble in disbelief. This handsome stranger can’t be kind too, that’s too much for your heart to take! “Pl-please let me pay you back, can I at least get you some lunch?”

“There’s really no need,” he smiles softly, his eyes warm and kind. You can’t look away.

“Oh, okay…”

He can see the hesitation in your face. From your attire, you look like a person who has better things to do than waste time in his humble motor repair shop but you aren’t wanting to leave, it appears.

”Is something wrong?”

“Umm…it’s just disagreements at home…” you confess, hugging yourself for comfort. Now that the adrenaline is gone, you realise that you can’t run away forever; you still need to face your parents again but you’re not ready for that yet. Knowing them, they’ll try to push for you to meet someone and you don’t want that - you’re not ready for that.

“Sometimes, it’s better to let it out than keep it all inside and if its to a stranger, chances are, you probably aren’t ever gonna see me again, so…”

He’s offering you his time and a listening ear, which you deeply appreciate and, although you start off hesitant, you ultimately take him up on his offer. The two of you sit down first before you unload everything. His expression doesn’t change, he just listens to you, nodding along to some of your statements and giving you the occasional pat on the back whenever you seem to get a little too emotional. When it’s finally over, you feel as though you can breathe again, leaning into his shoulder from how weightless and relaxed you finally feel. It’s amazing. 

“All better?”

“Yeah…” you smile up at him, “thank you so much,”

”No worries,” he smiles at you once again as the heat in your cheeks reappears from the proximity of your faces, “But I recommend you talk to your parents, it seems as though they really care for you,” you recoil from him, embodying your protest over his suggestion. 

“But-!”

“Trust me, I may not have known you for long but from what you’ve said, they love you more than you may think. And besides, you’ll have to face them again sooner or later; why not now?”

“Alright…I’m trusting you,” he nods and sends you on your way. Ironic how you put such trust in a stranger. 

Hopefully he won’t be a simple stranger for long…

“Drive safe!” he warns carefully as he waves you off, eyes remaining on you even when you’re finally out of view.

 ─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.  ───

 He was right…Who knew? 

But you were grateful.

Following his advice, you talked things out with your parents and like the understanding, compassionate people they were (especially for their children), they told you that “what matters most is your happiness,”.

A week passes and you can’t get that handsome, consoling bike mechanic out of your mind. You have to meet him again. And, this time, not forget to ask for his name!

So here you are, facing your beloved new black Honda CBR1k Triple-R Fireblade SP with one of your father’s old golf clubs gripped tightly in both hands but from the accumulation of sweat in your palms, the slender body of the club continually attempts to slip away from your hold. You’re nervous. 

Is this a good idea? 

You really want to meet him again but you can’t just show up with…nothing…that’ll be too awkward!

No! Sacrifices have to be made! 

Raising the club in your hands, you’re about to hammer down when you’re halted by the sound of the garage door opening and the heels of your mum walking in only to stop when she sees you. After a moment of tense silence, she makes her way over, lowers your raised arms, sets aside the golf club and brings you into a warm embrace.

“Dear, I hope you know that mommy loves you with all her heart and, whether you are going through something or not, you can always come to me, okay?”

Nodding with your lips trembling in humiliation, you see your hesitant and troubled mother off before facing your bike once more. You aren’t ‘going through’ anything! You just want to see him again! This is a necessary sacrifice! 

BANG! BANG! CLANK!

“Uhhh…Damn. Huh!…” Shinichiro laughs humourlessly at the state of your bike, “It looks like someone tried to beat the hell out of your bike but didn’t know where to properly aim the strikes so you’re pretty lucky that there aren’t any serious damages,”

“Y-yup! Lucky me…” you sweat nervously, avoiding his beguiling eyes.

He hit the nail on the head and he knows it, if the devious smirk he tried to hide when turning away from you was any indication. He thought you were interesting before but you’ve caught his full attention now.

You’ve got to be the cutest girl he’s ever met.

 ─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.  ───

 It doesn’t take more than a week to have your bike be sparkling new again but you keep visiting Shinichiro’s motor shop regardless, smiling happily and never shying away from opportunities to be close to him or be of help. 

You frequent his shop so often, you’ve gotten into bringing your uni work with you to pass the time productively. Shinichiro can’t always be around you, he had to tend to other buying customers and work on bike repairs as well so you needed to earn your keep of stay around him by not getting in his way.

Seeing him working away on bikes in his usual, casual attire is a double edged sword. Even though the sight motivated you to work hard on your assignments, it was also a cause for many of your distractions. Does he know how sexy his back looks? Through the thin fabric of his white shirt, you can see the muscles of his back flex and contract as he toils away at a screw or a particular part of any bike he was working on. And because he’s using his arms and upper body so much his shoulders are really broad while his waist remains relatively slender, it makes you want to wrap your arms around him and squeeze tightly. You’re so smitten that you think the curls of his hair brushing up against the back of his pale neck was cute too. 

He must know how besotted you are by now…right? 

“She’s staring at you again,” Wakasa alerts, helping his friend out with retrieving the appropriate tools for the right parts. 

“Is she now?” the former delinquent commander muses, unable to stop the smile from curling up the edges of his lips. He continues with his current repair work as if he didn’t have the reputation of the guy who was rejected 20 times and now finally has a chance with someone, who was way out of his league. 

“You aren’t going to say anything?” his friend raises a brow at his unusual behaviour. 

“Can you pass me the flat-head screw driver, please?”

Wakasa does so and sighs in sympathy, his eyes tracing over your lovestruck expression, “it’s a shame, really…she has the worst timing,” Shinichiro laughs at the truth of his friend’s statement. If it was a few months ago, he would have been over the moon to know that such a cute and sweet girl openly liked him but after introducing Izana to Mikey and Emma, he was more focused on helping his younger siblings get along and managing his bike shop than romance, “you really aren’t going to do anything?”

Shinichiro avoids the question, choosing instead to look closer at the engine of the bike he was working on. It’s not as if he dislikes you, in fact, he thinks you’re adorable and definitely someone he would mutually pin for but that was the problem. He swore to prioritise his family over anything else and so doesn’t know how to answer the question himself; silence, was his best response.

“Well…if you’re not going to step up, I’m not letting such a cute girl pass,” Wakasa barely rises from his perch before Shinichiro is already standing firmly before him with an unwavering stare. 

“I think I’m done with this bike, can you bring in the next bike scheduled for a repair? I’m gonna ask (Y/N) to leave and go for a smoke,” 

“Whatever you say, commander,” Wakasa chuckles and gets to work with a hidden smirk of triumph. Too easy. 

 “(Y/N),” Shinichiro calls as he approaches you, the hand in his pocket searching for something.

“Shin!” you perk up with a bright smile, the man raising a brow at the sudden nickname you address him with but doesn’t object; it’s a cute nickname that only you are allowed to call him from now on, “are you finished? Do you want to grab lunch together?”

“Actually,” Shinichiro rubs the back of his neck as he brings out his cigarettes and lighter, “why don’t you go and grab some lunch for yourself? I still have a lot of work to do and I don’t want to keep you cooped up and bored with no one to talk to here,” it’s the truth, he feels guilty seeing you sit so prettily through the open door of his back office into the garage - it’s the best location for wifi but the space is claustrophobic and in constant disarray, he’s ashamed you’re always in it but he can’t offer anything better, location wise, in his shop. He’s sure you have better places to be than his plebeian bike repair shop, he can’t even converse with you to the point where you bring work to do in between the short exchanges you two infrequently have. 

“Put those away, Shinichiro,” before the mechanic could realise what you were even referring to, your hand brushes up against his as you take away his cigarettes and lighter. 

“What the-” his brows begin to cross at your actions but you’re two steps ahead of him. 

“Don’t worry, I have a replacement for you,” you smile brightly dumping his cigarettes into your bag, ready to throw them away later, and pull out a lollipop with a crinkling of plastic, “I’ll even unwrap it for you, here,” Shinichiro stands bewildered as Wakasa tries to hide his laughter from behind him. He stares down at you unwrapping a lollipop before reaching up and feeding it to him, “there you go! Do you like it? It’s my favourite flavour,” you chirp with the most innocent smile. 

“Umm,” the taller male softly ponders aloud as you wait in anticipation for his opinion, “it’s not bad but I prefer my cigarettes,” he raises his hand to reach for your bag. 

“What do you mean? It’s my favourite flavour and that’s the best one!” you huff, reaching up to grab the stick of the lollipop, “I did give you my favourite flavour, right?” pulling the sweet from between his lips, not a second passes before you have a taste to check the flavour yourself, “it’s the right flavour, why don’t you like it?” you almost whine, holding back your nerves as you stare at the mechanic’s flustered expression and red-tipped ears. 

“U-uhhh…”

“Shin?”

“Sorry!” he shakes his head in a poor attempt to dissolve his surprise and suddenly feverish state, “I like it…yeah, thank you,” 

“You’re welcome!” with a giggle, you feed him back the same lollipop and gather up your things. A crawling heat resonates from your wildly hammering heart, defeating your ears and fogging up your mind as you try to walk off your seductress behaviour, “I’ll go and buy us some lunch, I’ll grab some for you too Wakasa! ‘Be back as soon! I hope you guys like Italian!” without another word, you rush out the door with your bag and are soon out of sight. 

“Woah! Usually you’re the one pulling the moves,” Wakasa laughs out loud as he throws his arm across his frozen friend’s shoulders, “looks like your girl got too impatient and started pulling the moves on you, instead!” the delinquent was about to laugh even more when he realised the absence of breath coming from his friend, “Shinichiro?…HEY! BREATHE!”

 ─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.  ───

 With how often you frequent Shinichiro’s shop, not only have you been able to meet his close friends but now his siblings too.

“Are you Shinichiro-niisan’s girlfriend?”

“She can’t be! She’s too pretty, Emma,” Mikey scoffs in a matter-of-fact tone with his arms crossed. The two youngest siblings begin to bicker as an older, silver-haired boy stands off to the side with observing eyes disguised behind a deep frown. This makes you giggle as the mechanic beside you flushes an adorable pink and snaps at his siblings. 

“Oi!”

“Do you always get brutally slandered like this, Shin?” you pull a mocking, sympathetic face. 

“Unfortunately…” laughing at his admittance, you step forward and make a formal introduction. 

“No, I’m not Shinichiro’s girlfriend but I am a friend. My name’s (Y/N), it’s so nice to finally meet you cuties,” you give them a close-eyed smile but tilt your head at their lack of response and don’t know how to comprehend their blushing cheeks or wide-eyed stare focused solely on you, “Ummm…is something wrong?” 

“Sibling Meeting!” Emma announces out of nowhere and the three practically stampede away to the back office with Shinichiro in their clutches, leaving you in the garage with a bewildered look. 

‘That was…strange’, you think to yourself but shrug it off with a chuckle and head out when you notice the time.

After confirming that the door to the office was firmly shut, the three younger siblings corner the eldest Sano. 

“What do the three of you want with me now?” Shinichiro chuckles nervously, his temple beginning to break out into a nervous sweat.

“She’s not your girlfriend, right?” Emma asks with an judgemental look in her eyes. 

“Well, no-”

“Try harder to make her your girlfriend then!” Mikey demands. 

'What?-‘ Shinichiro mentally stutters in shock. Do they like you that much after a simple ‘hello’? The older Sano doesn’t know whether or not he should be happy that they like you or concerned that they seem to like you more than him.  

Izana nods along, surprisingly agreeing with his younger siblings for once, “yeah, we need an older sister to take care of us!” 

“I’m sorry Shin-nii but you’re not enough,” Emma justifies. 

“So you need to promise to steal her away before anybody else can! You need to do it for us, not just for you! So don’t be selfish; make her your girlfriend and our onee-san quickly!” Mikey juts in. 

“Don’t screw this up! We need an older sister!” Izana finishes and without another word, the trio turn their backs to their mechanic older brother and move to the garage only to gasp in horror. 

“Look! She already left! Shin you stupid bum, it’s all your fault!” Emma wails, unexpected tears welling up in her eyes, which immediately had her two older brothers kneeling at her side, offering comfort while occasionally throwing Shinichiro a dirty look as if he committed the most heinous crime before them. 

“Why do I feel like I’m the one at fault here?” Shinichiro sobs pitifully in a poor attempt to gain their sympathy but is only met with two cold stares as his youngest sister continues to sniffle at your absence. ‘What did you do to my siblings, (Y/N)? They’ve gone insane…’

“Oh no! what happened?” your angelic voice cuts through the garage like a ray of sunlight illuminating a dismal forest’s opaque shadow. There, you appear with the sunlight behind you to create a halo of light around your beautiful silhouette, the pretty picture of an angelic being, “What’s wrong, sweetheart?” you ask softly, approaching the trio who stand frozen, once again, at your presence. They sounded so confident talking about you before but looking at their awestruck looks now, Shinichiro has to hold back an amused chuckle, “Did someone bully, Emma?” you continue with your soft voice, reaching out to caress her pudgy cheek as you kneel down to be at eye level with her. 

“N-no…”

“Then what’s making you cry, cutie?” in an attempt to hide her flustered cheeks, the youngest Sano moves forward to tuck her face into your neck as you instinctively move to hug her close, “Awww~ there, there, you’re okay,” 

The two boys beside her have the same immature thought. It’s silly but their eyes begin to water too. They haven’t been able to experience such a tender touch from from a motherly figure in so long and seeing Emma be coddled so lovingly by you makes them incredibly jealous. 

“Come here, boys,” you open your arms and the two boys immediately take the opportunity to cuddle close to you too. They breathe in your refreshingly floral and sweet scent before sighing in content. Having an older sister is entirely different to having an older brother, it’s like the difference between heaven and earth, the elite and sub-par. Indescribable happiness and comfort fill all of their chests as they nuzzle all the more closer to you, almost swamping your kneeling figure but you don’t mind; you’ve always wanted younger siblings and you adore the little ones being so cuddly despite only just meeting them briefly. “Don’t tell me Shinichiro bullied you,” you give said mechanic a teasing glare, “if he did, you tell me and I’ll beat him up for you,”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“Shush your mouth, I’m not gonna listen to you, the kids are more important,” you proceed to coddle and treat the three young Sanos with the utmost care and love, unknowing of the cheeky grins they throw their eldest brother behind your back. It’s as if they had won something over him…and Shinichiro can’t argue with the truth; seeing you be so loving to his siblings makes his heart swell unusually large, it’s so unlike any of the 20 girls he’s been infatuated with and tried to ask out before. None of them had ever met or interacted with his siblings like you, he wonders why he ever liked them in the first place. He can only guess that it was all shallow infatuation based on appearance because you have all that and more - they couldn’t even attempt to outshine your lustrous glow. 

 ─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.  ───

 “Am I running a kindergarten or?…” Shinichiro asks himself, smiling fondly at the chaos before him despite his disapproving statement.

“They’re a spritely bunch, aren’t they?” You muse from beside him, the two of you making eye contact and giggling. After meeting the younger Sanos, they insist on introducing you to their friends as well. There was Senju and Haruchiyo (Takeiomi’s younger siblings), Kakucho (Izana’s best friend) and Draken, Baji and Kazutora (Mikey’s friends). Not only that but you were also able to meet Inupi, a young boy who looks up to Shinichiro and acts like his apprentice. They make a raucous bunch but you couldn’t help but grow a fondness for them. 

“You think you can handle them while I work on that new bike with Inupi?” Shinichiro asks, pulling the blonde boy to his side, prompting you to reach out and comb your fingers through the young boy’s hair. 

Nodding, you smile and lean forward as your hand lovingly sweeps down to caress his supple cheek, “make sure he does a good job, okay, Inupi?” Inupi nods with a soft blush on his cheeks and drags Shinichiro away by the hand to escape your effect on him. He loves and looks up to Shinichiro and had been quick to adore you as well. 

“Baji, no fair!” a cry draws your attention away from the retreating mechanic duo to witness the friendly brawl between Baji and Kazutora, “I don’t know martial arts like you and Mikey, go easy on me!”

“You need to toughen up and I’m just trying to help you!” the golden-eyed boy grins with his arms crossed in triumph.

Hoping to distract from the situation and settle down the chaotic group, you speak up, “Kazutora, have you eaten yet today?” 

“Lunch?” the adorable boy asks with sweet, rounded eyes as you nod and open up your arms for him to nestle and cuddle into. It might have been just a simple embrace to you but for the boy in your arms, it’s the only time he can relish in the gentle touch of a loving mother. 

“Should we order something for everyone?” you suggest as Haruchiyo whines and sneaks his way into your arms with Kazutora too. You don’t know what these boys have been through but it’s clear that they need the love and guidance of a secure guardian figure. If you took anything away from your parents’ teachings, it was how to care for children, “Any ideas on food? Preferably something everyone would like?”

“Why do they get to cuddle (Y/N)-nee?” Mikey shouts as he tries to pull Haruchiyo away from you, who only holds onto you tighter. The topic of food didn’t even hold their attention anymore and it usually did the trick so you were kind of beginning to panic.

“When do we get cuddles too?” Kakucho adds timidly, unable to meet your eyes and acting adorable, it made your heart weak. If you could cuddle all of them at the same time, you would.    

“I’m sorry but how about we all grab lunch first and then we can sort out cuddles after?” it took some deliberation but everyone eventually agreed after some whining. 

Over time, the children really grew on you and you, them. You’re practically their older sister now and they’ve come to actively seek you out whenever they needed a more tender care that their current guardians couldn’t compare to. Naturally, you’ve spoiled them in your own way by gifting them toys and presents they could only dream of wishing for but what they appreciated you more for is your time, understanding and gentle nature. 

They care for you so much that they start plotting multiple scenarios for you and Shinichiro to get together. It’s all a plot that results in them having you forever tied to them and since everyone wanted that, they all were willing to participate. 

“What was that all about?” Shinichrio asks with his hands on his waist. 

“Don’t think we’re doing this for you because (Y/N) onee-san can do so much better than you Shin-nii,” Mikey scoffs as the eldest Sano raises a brow, he never asked for their help.

“That’s right! She’s capable of getting someone better than you so don’t get cocky,” Izana chimes in, which raises Shinichiro’s brows. Surprisingly, Mikey and Izana are teaming up together despite their usually clashing opinions and Shinichiro doesn’t know whether he should be happy or not. Are you the only one that can bring them together like this? You’re more special than he thought.

Emma steps up with her own determined look, “it’s only because we want her to become our actual onee-san so don’t screw this up for us!” 

“Yeah!” the rest of the kids shout around him, “Don’t screw this up Shinichiro!” the mechanic is surprised Inupi is going along with them as well; the young blonde usually sides with him so it was even more surprising to see him like this. He must really like you too. 

Admitting defeat, Shinichiro laughs it off as he raises his hands in surrender. He’s just happy to see them united and happier than ever. 

 ─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.  ───

 You’ve integrated yourself so seamlessly into the Sano family that you were practically at their house every day, helping with the chores, cooking yummy meals, serving snacks and just being great company to everyone. It was the children who urged you to spend more time with them and dragged you into the home, refusing to accept any protests that came from you or anyone else. It was for the best, really, everyone loved having you around, especially Shinichiro. The mechanic loved seeing his siblings get along so well, even if their primary connection was you, he also loved how you took care of his grandpa; he was a stubborn elderly man that refused help but all you had to do was pull out an adorable pout and he couldn’t refuse. It was laughable, really. 

It was mid-afternoon and Mikey had finished training in the dojo. To relax, he was now lounging around with you at the back of the house, his head laying on your lap and still dressed in his dojo uniform. 

“I don’t like having an onii-san,” Mikey voices past his lollipop, his statement coming from, seemingly, out of nowhere.

“What do you mean?” you gasp, your shock making you momentarily stop stroking the young boy’s hair, “Shin is such a good older brother to you, Emma and Izana,” 

“I mean…I like my onii-san but I want an onee-san more,”  Mikey finally meets your eyes although brief and quickly goes back to surveying the back garden. 

You laugh at his statement before slowly simmering down to a giggle, “what makes you think that having an onee-san is so much better?”

“Because you’re like an onee-san…” Mikey confesses, a light pink dusting his cheeks as you smile warmly down at him, “and you make a great one,” 

“Thank you, Mikey,” despite your kind tone and gentle smile, Mikey still doesn’t meet your eyes as the pink of his cheeks escalates into a deep red. To further express your thanks, you lean down and give him a soft kiss on the temple. If he wasn’t as red as a tomato before, he certainly was now. 

The conversation was so out of nowhere but still felt as though it held so much meaning that you wanted to press Mikey more on the topic but the atmosphere just didn’t feel right. That and he seems pretty unresponsive after your innocent kiss. 

For now, you’ll wait until a similar conversation is brought up again. 

“You know, Grandpa and I really like having you around the house (Y/N)-onee-chan!” Emma voices as the two of you cook together side-by-side. Tonight, you both wanted to cook curry for the family so, while you took care of peeping the potatoes, Emma prepped the carrots. 

It appears as though you didn’t have to wait too long. 

You have a sneaking suspicion about what they want from you but you keep your suspecting smile to yourself and play along, “Oh? Why is that?”

Emma smiles brightly up at you before continuing to peel carrots, she’s so happy you didn’t try to correct her for calling you her onee-chan, “it’s just nicer is all!”

“I’m glad, I like being here too, Emma-chan,”

“Really?!”

“Of course!” you both grin at each other, “If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be here every day,” the two of you giggle. 

“Then you want to be here all the time, right!” Emma tries to confirm from you, her eyes sparkling in the kitchen light as her cheeks become a cute pink - her and Mikey are undeniably siblings. 

“Without a doubt!”

“Then-” Emma begins, only to be cut off as her grandpa makes his entrance into the kitchen. He’s grinning from ear to ear and holding the tray you had served his tea and wagashi in. 

“Then you are always welcome here, child!” 

“Thank you grandpa!” you smile and help him bring the tray over to the kitchen counter as you begin to wash the used utensils. Behind you. Emma deflates at her failed plan but continues to prep the carrots. You’re sure of who will be the next one to approach you from there. 

“Be my girlfriend,” Izana announces out of nowhere as you gape in astonishment. 

“Ah-” the young Sano’s statement was so unbelievable, you wanted to laugh in disbelief but seeing the serious look in his eyes, you gulped. You shake the heat off your neck before it could reach your cheeks and calmed your heart before speaking, “I’m flattered Izana but I think you’re too young for me. And besides, I’m sure you don’t want to be with someone who is so much older than you-”

Izana shakes his head, his eyes still serious and unshaken, “no, you’re perfect!”

You finally allow yourself to laugh at the situation, “Thank you, but I still can’t accept your confession, I’m afraid,”

“…then be Shin’s girlfriend instead!” Izana finally answers you after pondering to himself momentarily. 

“Wha-?!!” an immense heat overcomes your cheeks and you’re at a loss for words. You had the intuition that this was soon coming but you were still left unprepared for how to react. Izana is simply too bold for you.

“You like him, don’t you?” 

“Well…- uhh!” as you were trying to find the words to answer Izana appropriately, you see the mischievous look on his face and realise the trap that had been set for you. Gasping aloud, you squint your eyes accusingly at the little boy, “Izana! Y-you!”

“I’ll take that as a yes!” he smirks and begins to walk away with a skip in his step before shouting, “SHIN-NII HAS A CHANCE!” 

It wasn’t long before you found yourself in Shinichiro’s motorcycle workshop, alone with the mechanic himself and explaining all the encounters you had with his younger siblings. As you go about retelling your experience, Shinichiro charmingly cycled through different shades of red from his seat crouched over a motorcycle. You don’t know what was more amusing to you, seeing Shinichiro so flustered or the entire situation.

“I’m really sorry about them-“ 

“You know, they do have a point,” you smile, staring off and avoiding Shinichiro’s curious, wide-eyed stare. 

“Wha-?”

“I quite like being an onee-san to Mikey, Emma and Izana,” Shinichiro gulps in anticipation at your statement. He can feel the 3 pairs of eyes watching you two and the muted impatient shuffling of small feet from behind the door to his office, looking into his workshop, “I also really like you,”

The silence that follows your confession is dense and your gradually climbing heart rate becomes the only thing you can hear. 

“…I like you too,” Shinichiro confesses and for the longest minute, you two sit in heart-fluttering silence before Shinichiro finally finds the words to ask you, “please be my girlfriend,”

Instead of verbally answering, you smile brightly and make your way over to him. Once you’re in front of the eldest sano, you take his hands and wrap them around your waist as you lean up to wrap your arms around his neck and lock his lips into a deep kiss. 

“YEESSSSSSSS!” a combined shout screams in the background as you and Shinichiro smile into the kiss, tightening your hold on one another and deepening your embrace. 

Following the news of your relationship, Shinichiro’s grandfather approved right away, so did all of the kids and Shinichiro’s friends too. 

“Took you guys long enough,” Wakasa grins as Takeomi steps up beside him with a smirk after putting out his cigarette. 

“We were losing our minds over you two taking your sweet-ass time,” Benki laughs and pulls Shinichiro into his side with an arm around the mechanic’s shoulders.

“So, have you taken her out yet?”

Shinichiro rubs the back of his neck with a look of worry, “I want to but…I can’t think of anything good enough for her,” his trio of friends give him a look of confusion and he elaborates, “I don’t know if you guys have seen her but (Y/N) clearly comes from a very wealthy family,” they nod, “and I’m not- I’m not-!…she’s way out of my league and I don’t want our first date to be a disappointment,” 

“Don’t be too hard on yourself man,” Wakasa consoles, patting him on the shoulder. 

“Remember that she’s dating you for you; not for your money,” Benki adds, “if she wanted a rich fancy guy, I’m sure she would have had that option ages ago,” despite the comforting words, Shinichiro still seemed down cast over the prospect. They don’t get it. How can he not understand that if you wanted him for his money, why did you willingly spend so much time with him at his humble bike shop? If you really cared about material things, you wouldn’t have pursued him in the first place, you wouldn’t have put up with getting to know his younger siblings or even wasted your time cooped up in his cramped office. They would have sensed that you had ill intentions with him and prevented him from pursuing you. They didn’t see that ill-intent in you, however, and happily encouraged him to notice you instead.  

“Besides, knowing how much of a hopeless romantic you are, I’m sure you’ll come up with something nice to do together,” Takeomi’s comment and lazy smile sets the mechanic’s mind turning right away. 

Maybe he could think of something…

 ─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.  ───

 “Shin? What are you doing here?” you were shocked. Admittedly, you weren’t having a good day but getting a surprise visit from your boyfriend was slowly washing all of that away, you would have been smiling by now if it weren’t for the get up he was in. 

In front of you, Shinichiro was parked on his motorbike, dressed in a suit and tie with fingerless biker gloves  on and his helmet off, showcasing his unruly hair. Looking down, his shoes were not the ones you saw him typically wearing, on his bike he was now wearing a pair of oxford dress shoes. You’ve seen many men dressed like that and had grown tired of the aesthetic long ago but seeing Shinichiro in that smart attire while on his motorbike is making your heart do unspeakable things in your chest. It’s hard to breathe and your face is lava-hot. He looks so sexy, elegant and handsome; he pulls it off so well. 

“Sorry, sorry, I was so excited to take you out, I forgot to ask you first,” your boyfriend bashfully admits, scratching the back of his head with a flustered look on his face, his other hand fiddling with his helmet perched on his bike. You smiled, you’re so happy to have met a sweetheart like him, “Can I take you out today?”

“I can never say no to you,” grinning at each other, he pulls out a helmet to help you put on before doing the same and waiting patiently for you to get on the bike behind him so he can finally race off. This is the first time you’ve ridden on a bike together so you squeeze him tightly around the torso in an attempt to secure the moment into your memory. 

The ride to your first destination didn’t take too long but you wish it did. You loved having your arms around him as he speeds past cars and buses. It was also a bonus being able to feel his toned abs under his white button up. You still can’t believe he’s your boyfriend and that you were his girlfriend. It felt like a dream. He doesn’t pry too much into your private life, he’s respectful, a family man and owns a business. Also, ever since you pointed out his bad smoking habit, he’s made the conscious decision to smoke less and less, there’s still a lingering scent of smoke surrounding him, however, but you’ll have to admit that it adds to his already musky cologne. He’s so perfect. You hope you measure up to him just as well. 

“Here we are,” Shinichiro announces, taking off his helmet and help you with yours. With one arm he pulls you close by the waist and with the other he gestures to a carefully laid out picnic. There was a large woven picnic basket in the middle of a large blanket, on the side there was a bouquet of flowers and an ice box with a 2L bottle of Coca-cola inside. 

“Wow! Shin, this looks so romantic,” you gush, taking in the scene and letting your heart race a million miles a minute, “did you prepare this all for me?” you ask sweetly, fluttering your lashes up at him as you turn to wrap your arms around his waist, your chin sitting on his tie.

“I had a little help preparing it all but it was my idea,” as he stares down at you, a soft smile lifts the corners of his lips, showcasing his dimples while a hand plays with a strand of your hair, “do you like it?”  

To answer him, you gently tug on his tie and lead his lips into a deep kiss, “I love it, thank you so much, Shin,” his smiles widens and he kisses you again before gently taking your hand and leading you to sit on the blanket. 

“This evening, my fine lady, I have prepared for you something you have never tried before,” Shinichiro announces as you awe from eagerness and anticipation. Rising to his knees, Shinichiro pulls out from the picnic basket several bags of McDonalds take away and you laugh loudly with your head thrown back. You’ve told him about not having ever tasted fast food before so this was a perfect chance to introduce you to some. 

“Awww~ Shin, you remembered~” you coo as he winks at you, grinning proudly. 

“Of course!” he begins to lay out your meal in front of you, ”I got you a cheeseburger, chips with the condiment sachets and chicken nuggets,”

“Oh wow! Thank you so much!”

“For dessert, I’m taking you out for ice cream,”

“That sounds perfect!” 

Shinichiro takes out his phone so as to play romantic piano music and the scene was officially set, your happy meal together could finally commence. He’s tried so hard and it makes you so happy. 

As you devoured the grease, processed meat and artificial flavouring, you have to admit that it was the best meal you had ever eaten. There wasn’t a claustrophobic, overly opulent atmosphere to surround you, no golden chandeliers dazzling overhead, no tiny portions of food or the need for any eating utensils. It was a perfect meal. 

“You’ve really outdone yourself, Shin,” you compliment after the two of you laughed over his yellow Gudetama-themed socks, a contrast to his tuxedo and smart dress. It was a charming disparity to his black and white suit. 

“Are you sure you liked it?” 

“Of course, I did! That was the best meal I’ve ever had,” you exclaim, your smile bright and your eyes sincere. 

“I just…you’re always so dressed up and it’s obvious you come from a good family so I didn’t want to disappoint you,” 

You smiled. He’s noticed your wealth but didn’t pursue anything else from you, whether it be information on your background or a share of your money, instead he just tries his best to please you in his own way. He’s such a dream come true. 

“I love you for you Shinichiro, not your money,”

He smiles, “That’s what Benki told me,”

“And he’s absolutely right,” you crawl over to sit in between his legs and lean against his chest, “this was a perfect first date…” you sigh. 

“Not yet,” Shinichiro chimes grinning down at you when you look up to him abruptly, wrapped up in his arms and looking oh-so sweet, “I promised ice cream for dessert remember?” 

Giggling, the two of you put your helmets on again before Shinichiro takes you to an ice cream parlour. He told you not to worry about leaving behind the picnic, he had already messaged his friends to help him clear up the setting so you two could happily enjoy your ice cream without worry. 

To end the perfect date, Shinichiro dropped you off in front of your apartment building in the better part of town and left after you made him take off his helmet so that you could give him one last kiss as he leans against his parked bike. His arm was swept around your waist and pulled you close as his other hand caressed your cheek. Your skin was so soft, he made the right choice in taking off his fingerless, leather gloves first. Your lips still had traces of the ice cream you had earlier, it was a good flavour but tasting it from your lips made it that much better. He couldn’t get enough. He could spend hours just kissing you as the world disappears.

“Shin-” you mutter, pulling away for a quick breath. 

“I’m not done,” he keeps kissing you, breathless as his hands begin to wonder. One hand reached up to grasp at your hair and trace your scalp with his fingers as the other drew the dips and curves of your silhouette. 

“But-” you gasp only to be cut off again by his lips. 

“Not yet…” he moans into your mouth, “I want more,” he pulls away to trail kisses down your neck as your hands claws helplessly at his shoulders. The entire time, your head is fuzzy and a weightless sensation sparks through you while a carnal weight develops in between your legs sending shocks of pleasure through you. Just from kissing him and having his lips on your neck, he makes you feel so weak. 

“Shin, I have to go…” you whine. 

“Please~” he begs beside your ear, pressing a gentle kiss against the shell. 

“I can’t…no matter how much I want to continue,” you whisper, stopping his incoming lips with a finger. He pulls a shocked face before it morphs into a pout and you giggle. 

Trailing your eyes down, you fix his tie slightly and assure him, “I’ll see you again tomorrow,” he still has his hands around your waist and you were about to ask him to let go when you notice his eyes had gone cold and were fixed on something behind you, “Shin?” you turn around and freeze up at a familiar face. 

“Oi! (Y/N), it’s been a while!…” the sharply dressed man shouts at you, a smug smirk on his lips as anger knits his brows, “You know, it’s impolite for you to just stand there and not greet me,” you knew exactly who he was but didn’t want to answer him so you curled up further into Shinichiro’s chest. He was a well-dressed man but that was a disguise hiding his greedy and despicable nature. You can’t believe you ever went out with him. It was only one date but it was still a huge waste of your time and sanity. You never thought you’d see Akihiko again but you’re glad Shinichiro is with you for it. 

“Don’t talk to my girl like that!” Shinichiro shouts, embracing you warmly and staring daggers at the unknown man before him. He doesn’t know the history you two have but he’s not gonna let him verbally abuse you in public. 

“What? Your girl? Are you two dating?” Akihiko laughs humourlessly at the silence that follows, “You can’t be serious, I’m the only one for you (Y/N). Your parents have me as a potential suitor, remem-?!”

Before he could finish, there was a bang and a flickering of the street lamp above you. Looking up, you realise that Shinichiro had punched the lamp post and caused an indentation in the body of the lamp post. The look on his face resembled that of a fierce beast ready to attack. 

You whisper his name softly, reaching up to touch his cheek but it doesn’t affect him, “Stay away from (Y/N) or else…” Akihiko didn’t say a word but like the coward he is, he walked away grumbling under his breath with his hands in his pocket. 

“I’m sorry, Shin,”  

“It’s alright,” your boyfriend smiles but there’s a sadness behind it. 

“What’s wrong?”

“Will your parents approve of me?” 

“They will,” he doesn’t look convinced, “they love me and only want me to live happily, you’re the first guy to ever make me feel this happy so you’re already more than qualified,” wordlessly, he kisses your cheek and goes to put on his helmet, “come and meet my parents with me tomorrow,” his hands freeze in place and he looks at you with a wide-eyed stare, “is noon good? We’ll treat you to lunch,” you smile as he nods, gives you another kiss before riding away. 

 ─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

 Your debut into high society had been fast approaching and your parents did their best to respect your want for patience when it came to the topic of your suitor, little did they know that you already had one in mind. Knowing your parents, they’ll be accepting of anyone as long as you’re happy and they take good care of you. 

You had originally wanted to savour your time getting to know Shinichiro as a boyfriend first before you introduce him to your parents but you had no choice ever since the unpleasant encounter you had the night of your first date. Your mom and dad had contacted you with an image sent to them of you and Shinichiro kissing outside your apartment building. It was most likely sent from that bitter man, Akihiko. Thankfully your parents weren’t angry and only wanted to meet Shinichiro in person. It made you grin at how horribly bad that insignificant guy’s actions backfired on him, he didn’t know your parents like you did. He probably thought they’d be disgusted with your new boyfriend and demand that you break up with him right away. 

“Don’t be nervous, Shin, they’ll love you, just be yourself,” you laugh to yourself softly at his distressed composure. It’s really cute how nervous he was, it shows just how much he cares about making a good first impression and it was heartwarming. Shinichiro knew that you were rich but he didn’t know that you were this rich. Upon arriving at the gates of your parents’ estate, he was dumbfounded. This type of wealth was unfathomable to him; he didn’t know what to think or how to act.

The front doors opened and you were both greeted by a butler who immediately took his coat, leaving him in his oversized white shirt, simple silver chain and usual cargo pants. He was clean and fresh but wished you’d let him dress up in a suit like he did for your first date. You reasoned that he was perfect as his normal self and continued to assure him that your parents would love him either way. 

Entering the dining room, you immediately run to your parents with your arms open wide and pull them both into a hug. The three of you exchange brief words of greeting before all attention finally turns to Shinichiro, who had been carefully observing the scene. He could tell that your parents loved you dearly, the love in their eyes upon seeing you and the wide smiles on their lips definitely belong to parents that were incredibly prideful and caring of their daughter. 

“So you’re my daughter’s boyfriend, huh?” your father greets, reaching out to shake Shinichiro’s hand and snapping the mechanic out of his brief trance. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you sir, I am Sano Shinichiro,” Shinichiro greets, bowing as he shakes your father’s hand. 

“What a handsome young man you are,” your mother chimes in, hugging your father’s arm, “I can tell you’ve made our (Y/N) very happy so there’s nothing to object to,” at that, you and Shinichiro lock eyes and share a smile, “let’s all take a seat, shall we?” your mother suggests, walking with her husband to the table. Your father pulls the chair out for your mother before taking his own seat at the head of the table, silent and stoic, “lets get to know our future son-in-law over some delicious lunch, shall we?”

Son-in-law?

Ignoring the comment, Shinichiro follows suit and pulls your chair out for you before taking his own seat at your side. Your mother is in good spirits but your father has yet to utter another word after having greeted him as your boyfriend. 

“Thank you for having me over for lunch today,” Shinichiro bows to your parents once more, your mother cooing as your father remains stoic. He’s a very tough and imposing character, his frame towering and bulky but also sharp and clean. Shinichiro was definitely intimidated but all he has to do is think about how you love him and how he loves you to gain back his strength. 

“It’s our pleasure having you seat at our table, Shinichiro-kun,” your mother lightly hits your fathers should, clicking her tongue playfully, “honey, stop being silly and greet the sweet boy,”

“Sorry love,” your father kisses the back of your mother’s hand before turning back to Shinichiro but with a bright smile rather than a straight face, leaving your boyfriend speechless. How could he have switched demeanours so quickly? “we’re happy to have you here, son,”

Son? 

“Shall I serve everyone’s drinks? I’m sure lunch will take a while,” you pipe up and stand from your chair. 

“Let me give you a hand,” Shinichiro kindly offers and you nod, your parents smiling happily at the two of you walking off together to serve the drinks. They were so happy that you finally seem to have found the one for you. It’s just what they had hoped for their loving daughter.

“Why are they calling me those things?” you dreaded his question but gulped down your nerves. 

“What do you mean?”

“Like ‘son-in-law’ and ‘son’, we’re not engaged…” ‘yet’, Shinichiro wanted to finish.

“The thing is, Shin, since I’m not from an ordinary family, us being together means…” your blood runs hot and cold at the same time, you’ve been so anxious about this confrontation and the idea of losing Shinichiro over this big step but it’s better to be straightforward then prolonging hiding this from him, “being together means engagement,”

“What?!” Shinichiro exclaims, his throat dry and his cheeks flaring up into a bright pink. He isn’t opposed to eventually asking for your hand but this is too soon, you’ve only been on one date, “This is too soon, (Y/N), it’s not that I’m opposed to being engaged to you but I just want to be dating you without the thought of that in the foreground,”

You smile. This is why you like him so much. He’s sweet and thoughtful and isn’t a push over when it mattered.

“I agree…don’t worry we’ll talk to my parents together about this,”

It’s clear that you’d be doing this backwards if you carried one as things stands now. Normal courting and boyfriend and girlfriend things will always be overshadowed by that looming future commitment. It’ll be too much pressure on the both of you. Thankfully, your mother and father abandoned tradition for your brother and his, now, fiancé so there isn’t a doubt in your mind that they would be lenient on you too. 

Drinks were quickly poured and lunch closely followed in being served. Throughout the meal, conversation was leisurely and comfortable, Shinichiro stayed truthful the entire time and was happy to see that your parents didn’t look down on his humble background and honest labour, in fact, they praised him for the success he’s been able to achieve on his own and with his own skills. To Shinichiro, it felt incredibly nice to be complimented by the parents of the woman he loves. 

However, one urgent topic needed addressing still and Shinichiro upon seeing the end of lunch, chimed up. He confessed that he has never had the courage to propose to you and has yet to ask for their express permission to officially date you. He then takes the time to stand and bow deeply to your parents. 

“Please allow me to date your daughter. I promise to treat her well and love her with my whole heart,” Shinichiro bows so deeply, his head hits the dinning room table but he doesn’t flinch, instead he stays in his deep bow until your father speaks up. 

“Thank you for formally asking us. Traditionally, we’d want you to get engaged right away but we approve of you courting our daughter first,” your parents love him instantly and can’t wait until you get properly engaged in the future and join families. 

NAVI. | TOKYO REV. MLIST

A/N: i want to write a part 2 to make up for the trashy and rushed ending of this fic but i don’t know how long it’ll take so i hope you dolls like the fic as it stands now 

TAGLIST : 

@anime-weeb-4-life ; @iheartamajiki ; @shotthemessenger ; @echothy ; @swtsuya ; @acuario2 ; @saccharisa ; @hangesidekick ;  @emotionalfangirl2002 ; @kookie02 ; @lordbugs ; @answer-the-sirens ; @toobsessedsstuff ; @moonbinnie0983 ; @kinba-ri ; @beaniebanby ;  @themoonandlover ; @ravensfeatheruniverse 

[sarah-yyy]

a few of y’all have asked me about new life begins, and i’m procrastinating over work so............

BASICALLY this story revolves around the royal family of xinchuan (head of the nine states). xinchuan has a tradition wherein the other eight states send eligible women over to marry the xinchuan princes. the show opens with all these women coming into xinchuan for this selection

this is our main character li wei

bbg does Not want to be selected as a bride for any of the princes. she comes from jichuan (one of the least wealthy states, most of them are farmers) wherein people marry for love and men aren’t allowed to have concubines, she is Not Into this xinchuan polygamy bs, and is doing all she can to be sent back home asap so she can live her chill life

this is the sixth prince yin zheng, unloved (for now!) and mostly unnoticed (also for now!!) son of an unfavoured concubine. he’s introduced as being sickly and of little note in the political field. he mostly gets along with his brothers by virtue of having little interaction with them and keeping a real low profile

this boy is way smarter than he presents to outsiders!! he knows that the least favourable political marriage will be assigned to him, so he figures he might as well get ahead of it and voluntarily ask for the nominee from jichuan to be his wife

li wei ends up yin zheng’s concubine!!! which is the worst!!! not only does she have to conform to this xinchuan polygamy bs, she’s not even his main wife!!! she’s depressed for a few days until she catches wind that yin zheng only has a few weeks left to live (fake news) and it just kickstarts a whole bunch of hilarious shenanigans in which she tries to be nice to him before he dies and she gets to go home to jichuan as a widow

cue yin zheng (who doesn’t know what li wei is thinking) going: she’s??? nice to me???? mayhaps..........she be.........in love with me??????

(uhhhh because she’s adorable???? i like her) 

ANYWAY y’all get the drift, it’s the whole arranged marriage, strangers to lovers, pining after my spouse vibe that i absolutely love!!! 

but it’s not just that!!! it’s also that the female characters are all well-written and the friendships between all of them are so cute!! 

first left is shangguan jing, fifth prince’s wife! she’s from danchuan which is a matriarchal society. she’s good at martial arts and very straightforward. does not really want to be married to xinchuan (much less to the fifth prince who starts off liking someone else), but is Doing Her Duty. i am SO INVESTED in her relationship with the fifth prince ahhhh, he’s a wimp (affectionate) who, this far in the show, has come to love his wife and is fretting constantly over how to make her happy/make her love him 

first right is hao jia! she’s the second prince’s concubine and li wei’s bff. she’s sweet and well-natured and essentially Good At Everything. the second prince is kind of a dick with obvious dv tendencies, but he’s the eldest son of the emperor’s wife and next in line for the throne. i am just HOPING we get to see hao jia go off on him one day soon 😭 (side note: i’m actually also curious about the second prince’s wife - i wonder if she and hao jia will team up to get rid of the second price ugh)

this is yuan ying junzhu, my li wei’s yin zheng���s wife. hoooo boy folks, when the emperor ordered yin zheng to marry her against his Very Strong Objection, i thought we were going to start in on the angst and the whole jealous wife arc, but!!! she’s got zero interest in him, and they decide that she’ll basically stay at the manor as his advisor/li wei’s tutor! she 100% likes li wei more than she likes yin zheng lbr

not pictured but also a+++ characters that i love: the third prince’s wife + his harem of concubines (he’s named them all after the 24 traditional solar terms); the seventh prince and his wife (both of whom are adorable and just try to stay low-key and out of trouble); song wu²; all the servants at the sixth prince’s manor

ANYWAY this show is light-hearted and fun and an absolute delight to watch!! it’s been awhile since we’ve had a romcom-ish cdrama that’s had actual budget to produce something to this quality 💖 11/10 would rec!!! 

where to watch: iqiyi // viki // youtube status:  this updates every sunday to wednesday (local chinese time), with 2 eps being released every day. 22/40 eps have aired so far, i think iqiyi subs are up to date with the current airing schedule but i can’t be sure? someone correct me if i’m wrong! 

[comicaurora]

I know you done content on hard versus soft magic systems but what is your opinion on crunchy versus smooth?

I will use atla to explain.

Season one The power system is well defined but basic Air Water Earth Fire. Simple to understand very straightforward (smooth)

By the end of the legend of Korra, you have several sub-categories and completely new categories as well (crunchy)

ah, a greebled magic system

I like complicated "crunchy" yet rigidly-defined magic systems, because they give the creator a lot of stuff to play with while also giving them constraints to operate in that dictate a lot of what can and can't happen with the plot. The danger, of course, is in introducing a form of magic that actually makes no sense, or something that devalues other elements of the system because its impact wasn't fully reasoned out, or carving off a part of an existing magic chunk and making it inaccessible for unjustified reasons.

I also feel like sometimes the extra crunch of a magic system can betray a lack of creativity on the part of the creator - having to invent entirely new magics instead of considering new applications for the old ones.

Bloodbending? Lightning-bending as an advanced firebending technique? Combustion Man as a unique one-off assassin? That armless waterbender lady with a completely new martial arts style? Zaheer using airbending to kill the Earth Queen? Dope new applications of existing concepts that make the magic system feel large, fluid and powerful. These are extensions of existing concepts that feel logical, or at least understandable.

Airbenders Who Abandon All Earthly Connections Can Levitate Now? Weird and kind of retroactively disruptive that it never came up before.

By The Way Lavabending Is Its Own Special Weird Thing Now Like Metalbending Was? Feels like we needed to invent a reason for this sidelined character to matter.

There's a risk to carving off too many chunks of a magic system, I think. Avatar started simple: everything the heroes could do or figure out was an extension of first principles. Lightning is kinda like weird pure fire, so lightning-bending made sense as an advanced firebending technique with a big risk of blowing up in your face. Bloodbending is literally something any waterbender can do once they realize it's possible - the horror of it is that it's a forbidden technique that becomes impossibly easy just by knowing about it. Toph figuring out metalbending by virtue of having a completely unique and incredibly granular sense for the earth around her ALSO worked, because (a) "metal can't be bent" has been firmly established several times and is clearly common knowledge, and (b) she was clearly the first person who'd ever had that combination of skill and disability and she was building her style from the ground up.

By the Korra timeline, however, we start running into things like lavabending, which should absolutely not be its own weird thing. It's just rock. We've already seen Kyoshi bend lava. If I recall correctly, the show doesn't sufficiently explain why lavabending is a weird separate thing from earthbending, making it feel like a logical component of the earthbending powerset is being arbitrarily gated just to make an otherwise disregarded character Slightly Important by being able to do it.

Stuff like that makes the magic system feel less internally solid. "Why CAN'T this magic do [thing]" is an extremely important question for a worldbuilder to be able to answer, and an overly greebled and partitioned magic system often can't explain why magic X and magic Y are totally separate. Skills and techniques and personal preferences among casters are fine to explain why something may or may not be possible for someone, but "what magic can and can't do and WHY" is something that I think should be as firmly, logically coherent as possible.

[sotwk]

Who of the children of Thranduil is:

The most noble.

most mischievous.

most wise.

most dangerous.

Why do you pick them for that trait?

What an AWESOME question--thank you! I'm not sure if you're new to my blog but if you are, Welcome to the SotWK AU! <3 I love how the qualities you asked about easily falls in perfect and honest assignment, one to each of my OC Princes! I guess it's cool that each Thranduilion is quite distinct from the other.

Superlatives with the Thranduilions

Most Noble: Crown Prince Mirion

SotWK Fancast: Henry Cavill as Mirion Thranduilion

Mirion was such a paragon of honor and virtue that his own father looked up to him. Thranduil would sometimes even tell people that the Crown Prince would make a better king than him one day. Despite the pressure of such high praise, Mirion worked hard to live up to those expectations, and he found joy in that life of service to his people and his family. His kindness and humility made him beloved by everyone... except for the Necromancer in Dol Guldur, who aimed to see him dead and out of the way. The Necromancer used Mirion's sense of duty against him and tricked the prince into sacrificing himself in an ill-fated attempt to bring down Dol Guldur.

Most Mischievous: Prince Gelir

SotWK Fancast: Sam Claflin as Gelir Thranduilion

Gelir exhibited the same rebellious, free-spirited personality that Thranduil possessed in his youth, but had to curb when he took on the responsibility of kingship. The fourth-born prince challenged and skirted protocol every chance he got, and often complained about feeling stifled by the rules attached to his royal station. He always enjoyed making jokes and pulling pranks and initiating spontaneous adventures, even when it caused (harmless) trouble and chaos. Fortunately, he was also charming and likeable enough to soothe the nerves of people who might otherwise have taken offense at his shenanigans.

Most Wise: Prince Arvellas

SotWK Fancast: Rupert Friend as Arvellas Thranduilion

Arvellas's superior intelligence was evident from infancy, and he was the only prince to devote himself almost entirely to academics in lieu of martial arts and other physical pursuits preferred by the Silvans. As a result, Arvellas caused the number of scholars in the realm to rise and rival that of the other great kingdoms in Middle-earth. He became the Woodland Realm's most skilled healer, most accomplished linguist, and best diplomat. He was responsible for the realm's alliances with the Longbeard dwarves who came to live in the Grey Mountains and Erebor, but those friendships were greatly damaged in the tragedy of his death. More than his innate intelligence, Arvellas's wisdom came from his sense of justice and goodness, and his ability to remain calm and act prudently under stress or in dire situations.

Most Dangerous: Prince Turhir

SotWK Fancast: Sam Heughan as Turhir Thranduilion

If Mirion was hated by the Dark Lord, Turhir was coveted by him. Only his younger age and lesser experience prevented Turhir from completely surpassing Thranduil as the greatest warrior of the realm. He excelled almost supernaturally in all physical challenges, and had flawless combat instincts. Like Thranduil, he never shied away from violence and killing when deemed necessary. Turhir's heart was just as golden as the rest of his family, but a lifetime as a soldier (not properly balanced with other pursuits) took its toll differently on his mind and spirit as the Darkness spread in Mirkwood. He also had the misfortune of being the only one to witness the deaths of his brothers Mirion and Arvellas, and that damaged him in ways that would never heal. From there his emotional state deteriorated so badly that his parents began to fear that he was prone to corruption by the Darkness--which may be what the Necromancer had intended.

But what about Prince Legolas?

As I have mentioned in past headcanon posts, what makes Legolas so impressively multi-faceted (especially as he appears in the movies) is his wide range of skills. He is the jack-of-all traits that carries pieces of his family's best qualities in him. The youngest Thranduilion is naturally gifted on his own right, but his greatest asset (in my HC at least) is his ability to adapt, mimic, and learn. And he had not only both parents, but also four older brothers to help raise him and pass their knowledge onto him. Having older siblings to look up to as role models, to train with and to motivate him to do better, helped Legolas to grow into an incredible warrior and excellent friend and companion to the Fellowship.

For more Thranduil/Mirkwood headcanons: SotWK HC Masterlist

Elves HC Tag List: @a-world-of-whimsy-5 @achromaticerebus @acornsandoaktrees @aduialel @asianbutnotjapanese @auttumnsayshi @blueberryrock @conversacomsmaug @elan-ho-detto-elan-15 @entishramblings @fizzyxcustard @friendofthefellowshipsnerdblog @glassgulls @heilith @heranintomyknife23times @ladyweaslette @laneynoir @lathalea @lemonivall @quickslvxrr @spacecluster @stormchaser819 @talkdifferently6 @tamryniel @tamurilofrivendell

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