#what to bake this weekend

[tempestmothstorm]

Ok but why is Natsuki the only character to get one pair of casual clothes. Like her Sayori and Yuri get their weekend outfits but those two also get another outfit in extra artwork (the overalls and the black dress) and while Monika gets nothing in game her twitter gives her both her white dress and sweater outfits. So everyone gets like an indoor and outdoor outfit but Natsuki apparently owns nothing else and just wears a shirt skirt combo forever. She is the universe’s least favourite child just give her something please

[arielthedaydreamer]

-I'll be productive today!

*does nothing*

-I'll REST today. I'll do absolutely nothing!

*Reads 2 books, starts a new drawing, studies, bakes a cake and writes an essay*

[jattendschaton]

Made a sponge cake with a lemon syrup soak, strawberry jam, and whipped cream! First time trying to “draw” with the batter, it didn’t turn out amazing, but I think it was fun for an early attempt

[pegglefan69]

boiled red onion skins for 3 hours without any mordants. gonna let it cool on the stove for a few hours before I strain it. I might actually start dyeing yarn tonite, we'll see! >:^)

[smimon]

So tired but happy tired 🧡

[tomatoluvr69]

What’s up tumblr hope you had a super fun leap day. sparkle on. big news my first seed start sprouted while I was at work ✨

[filet-o-feelings]

I'm leaning hard into the holiday spirit this year. Last year I was away for 2 weeks so I didn't even bother putting my tree up. There was one other year recently when I just couldn't muster the mental or physical energy to bother. So, I had the energy and time this weekend and my tree and decorations are already up, I've been burning cinnamon candles and drinking hot chocolate, and there's just a very cozy vibe in here. Who wants to come hang out and read holiday themed fics with me?

I love my little tree

[mcmorare]

gooood morning everyone i am making mocha protein bars to bring with me to classes this week who wants to try one

[reallunargift]

so uh.... vroom vroom Formula 1 AU?? Some notes on some of the latest team lineups! João left McLaren after 4 years, and Maarten will finally make his F1 debut alongside Arthur. Meanwhile Antonio left Renault after 2 years.

Francis has been at Renault for 5 years, and I need a name for Mona (Sophie? Suzanne? Michèle? Monica??) and Bel asap.

and because it's me.... you already know who I'll be focusing on more :')

This is a more introductory post, and I hope to draw actual interactions for the next one. But uhm well some more details under the cut for now, including previous and current team dynamics!

At the start of the story, João and Arthur are teammates at McLaren. Very calculating and strategic duo, they’ve been partners for 4 years. They’re polite with the press, with Arthur being more reserved. João is friendlier but more mellow and uses “no comment” often.

Their challenge videos on youtube show a different side, with Arthur being much more at ease and louder for it, and João being much more playful. They work great together, with João more often than not heeding team advice and driving defensively, which gets them plenty of 1-2 positions. But he eventually becomes disillusioned with McLaren’s favouritism and signs with Ferrari. His friendship with Arthur isn't affected by this move.

Toni and Francis are teammates at Renault (Alpine, but I'm not calling it that). Francis has a cleaner and more classic driving style, while Toni is more chaotic but just as ruthless. 

They love their screentime and journalists love them. Francis is more deliberate in his answers yet still quite theatrical, while Antonio is more of a blabbermouth (but only with stuff that doesn’t matter. Ask him about technical/important stuff and he’ll divert the conversation to how good his family’s olive oil is.) 

Their challenge videos are an extension of their interviews, with Francis being super dramatic for the camera when he loses, and Antonio being very extra to entertain the audience. They have a good racing partnership when they agree on strategy, but that doesn’t happen often and both are so set in their ways that it creates friction and issues for the team when neither will yield.

Ferrari hires João and Antonio because they’re both world class drivers, but also because they believe their styles and personalities will meld well. João has a reputation for strong teamwork and strategical driving, courtesy of his time at McLaren. Outwardly he seems less abrasive than Francis, so they expect that Toni will naturally be more willing to cooperate with him for the team’s benefit. Toni has always been very encouraging of his teammates throughout his career (especially at Red Bull when he was partners with Bel), and it’s hoped that this will also push João forward.

A great strategy...if these two get along. While driving for different teams they always take jabs at each other during interviews (João’s famous “no comment” goes right out the window anytime Toni’s done something stupid on the track). The usually sunny Toni gets huffy with reporters if they mention it, but always ends up taking the criticism into account and working on those aspects...

.

.

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

A Part of You

Hitsuhina Weekend - Day 2: Stars / Morning / Zanpakuto / Teamwork

Prompts: Zanpakuto, Acceptance

Rating: T for mild themes and mentions of violence.

Setting: between the end of the Arrancar arc and the beginning of the Fullbringer arc

Synopsis: Momo puts another piece of the past to rest.

AN: I’ve wanted to write this story for a while, but seeing the prompts for the Hitsuhina Weekend and for @yearoftheotpevent's challenge finally got me to do it.

If there’s one [of many] things I think needs to be expanded upon in BLEACH universe it’s zanpakuto etiquette. We've seen Shinigami characters treat their zanpakuto differently, from some seeing it as just a weapon to others having a close bond with the spirit tied to their sword. So what happens if another person touches it or shatters it? How deeply and personally do they feel when something like that happens?

I listened to music that reminded me of water for this one, including Dying Planet by Parallel Highway, A Letter by Clem Leek, The Latter Rain Patio by Will Lewis, and Belong by The Living Sleep, so I recommend any one of these songs while reading this fic if you’re interested.

Also, Momo names a few confectionery treats here:

 Siberia cake: a sponge cake with a sweet bean jelly filling.

Chinsuko: it’s like a shortbread biscuit, made form lard and flour with a mild and sweet flavor. A friend of mine brought these back from Japan as a gift once.

Kusa mochi: a sweet mixed with the leaves of the mugwort plant. 

Botamochi: a sweet mixed with red bean paste. It’s traditionally made during spring and autumn/fall.

Ichigo daifuku: a sweet with a redbean paste filling and a strawberry stuffed in the middle.

Anyhow, hope you all enjoy this one!

___________________________

Toshiro blinks down at the box full of sweets. “You…really went all out.”

Heat rushes up to Momo's face. Had she gone overboard? “Well, ever since I left the Fourth Division, I’ve wanted to get back into baking. With the Shinigami Women’s Association bake sale, I thought it’d be a good excuse to try out a few recipes I wanted to do quite some time now.”

“Don’t they make enough money off of calendars already?”

She only gives him a pointed stare in response to his snarky comment. After a beat, she names off each sweet in the box. “This is sibera, those are chinsuko, and those are some mochi. The green ones are kusa mochi, the maroon ones are botamochi, and the white ones are ichigo daifuku.”

He only reacts to the latter, and she suspects it’s due to Ichigo Kurosaki. At his otherwise lack of a response, she sighs. “Did I go overboard? Maybe I only should have made the mochi and got Rangiku-san and Nanao-san to try the other sweets.”

He quirks up a brow. “I don’t just like mochi and amanatto.”

She can’t help but smile. “Well, you do tend to gravitate towards those, so…”

He shakes his head. “It’s fine, I’ll try all of these.”

“Thank you, Shiro-chan!”

“Call me that again and I’ll give everything a bad review.”

“You can be so mean,” she half-teases.

He only grumbles, but takes up a slice of the siberia. He takes a decent bite out of it and chews. She can’t help but watch him to gauge his reaction, and he makes it a point to look away to the garden in front of them. Nothing gives away his judgement as he munches on the cake. Did it always take him this long to chew his food? Was he doing this on purpose? Or had she not cooked the cake well?

Then, he swallows and makes an approving grunt. “It’s good.”

Momo grins in relief and pushes the box towards him; it's about as high a compliment as she can typically get from Toshiro with her baking. “You like it? Feel free to have some more.”

 “You’re not going to have any?” he asks before biting into his slice again.

Momo shrugs. “I might have one of the mochi later, but I want to see what you make of everything first. I don’t think I can judge what I bake very well. Can you tell me what you like about it? Just so I know what I got right.”

Toshiro opens his mouth to speak, but he’s interrupted by a knock from the door behind them. Momo gives him a questioning tilt of her head, and his response is a deepening of his frown. He lowers the remains of sibera slice down to his lap and twisted around. “Yes?”

The door slides open to reveal Minagwa, Tenth Division’s third seat, kneeling. He bows his head. “I’m sorry to interrupt sir, but the group you sent to the seventh north district have returned. They have a debrief ready for you.”

Toshiro looks back to Momo. Seeing the glimmer of guilt in his gaze, Momo smiles. “Did you need to go speak with them?”

He nods stiffly. “It’s an investigation we’ve been waiting on for a while.”

He shoves the rest of his sibera slice into his mouth and chews quickly. She can’t help but list her head fondly to one side; it made him look oddly childish and it’s typical of him to not waste anything he’s started on.

Minagawa gives Momo an apologetic look, and is about to speak up, until Toshiro turns back to him “Where are they right now?” he asks while rising from the veranda.

The third seat follows suit and stands. “Out the front, sir.”

To Momo, Toshiro says, “I’ll be back soon.”

She waves her hand. “It’s all right, take your time. Captain Hirako ordered me to take a longer break.”

“What is it with his lax orders?” he says under his breath. However, unlike other times he criticized her captain, there's no annoyance in his tone.

Toshiro and Minagawa leave, closing the door behind them. Momo stares after them for a moment, sensing Toshiro’s reiatsu get further and further away.

Eventually, she turns back to the gardens. Tenth Division always kept such small but tidy gardens, suitable for jinzen or private conversations. This one happens to be her favourite, filled with colourful flowers and tall trees that shade most of the area. Had she ever told Toshiro this was her favourite? Is that why he often brought her here for their shared lunch breaks?

As the sun spills through the parting clouds, she munches on an ichigo daifuku, more out of boredom than hunger. Despite feeling like she can’t judge her own cooking, the daifuku turned out rather good in her opinion. Chewing on the last of the sweet, she goes for a kusa mochi.

As she does, it becomes hard to ignore the glint of Hyourinmaru’s hilt in her peripheral.

She risks swallowing with a tightened throat and winces as her food goes down. Haltingly, she lifts her gaze to the zanpakuto propped against the nearest wooden beam. Now focused on it, she senses the chill thrumming from it in slow waves, just barely brushing against the side of her leg.

She knows the blade’s cold all too well. How it burned through her chest and in her veins, as if freezing her from the inside out. She grimaces at the dull throb in her chest. A remembrance, still raw enough to make her lean away from the zanpakuto, hand clutches where it had cut through her. She closes her eyes and breathes, just like how Isane taught her to.

Unlike what she’d been instructed to do however, she keeps her eyes open, unable to look away from the zanpakuto. Toshiro sometimes went to training after their lunch breaks, it’s the only reason he brings his zanpakuto along. She never told him how unnerved seeing the blade made her at times, feeling it was something she and she alone had to deal with. Why worry him with something he can’t control?

The door slides open, startling her.

“Apologies, it was important that I…” Toshiro trails off when his eyes land on her. She isn’t sure what her expression shows, but it’s enough to make him stop mid-step.

Without meaning to, she glances at Hyourinmaru. It all comes together for her childhood friend, his eyes narrowing at his zanpakuto. Momo had a feeling he knew something was wrong this whole time. Since they started having the occasional lunch break together, he would look at her for a second in a certain way, as if assessing her to make sure she was all right. Other times he'd try to obscure Hyourinmaru from her sight somehow as they ate. Even today, he'd knelt in front of his weapon, with only the hilt visible behind his head and blocking her from the cold it emitted.

She's brought out of her thoughts when Toshiro curses under his breath. He steps out from the doorway towards Hyourinmaru. “I didn’t -”

“It’s okay,” she’s quick to reassure, throwing her hands up. “Really, it’s okay.”

He’s unconvinced, not once taking his eyes off her and he comes to stand between her and his zanpakuto. He’s putting her first, making sure she doesn’t feel unsafe.

Something that makes her chest tighten. The weapon is a manifestation of his soul, a part of him. If she’s always going to be apprehensive towards his zanpakuto, then it’s not different from being fearful of him. He shouldn’t have to shield her from a part of himself.

She wills herself to calm the faint tremors. “May I…see Hyourinmaru up close?”

Toshiro’s eyes widen with a confused grunt. “What?”

She has nothing for him, unable to believe she had spoken the request out loud.  At his continued stare and lack of response, she starts to lose her nerve. “Forget it.”

His frown returns, though now it's out of confusion. He lowers himself back to a kneel on the veranda. “Why do you want to look at Hyourinmaru?”

“It’s…It’s hard to explain. I think it’ll help somehow with coming to terms with what happened.”

“Are you sure?”

It’s rare to see him so uncertain, and she hates that this is his reaction. It’s all the more reason she needs to do this.

She lifts her legs off the edge of the veranda and folds them legs underneath to fully turn to him. Her heart races, but she schools her expression to one of calm and gives him a firm nod.

His gaze lingers for several heartbeats, searching for something within her. Whether he finds what he’s looking for or not, he still twists to Hyourinmaru and clasps his sheath with both hands. He’s slow to bring the weapon out and lay it before her, as if giving her time to back out. In response, she moves the box of sweets out of the way, a space now clear to lay the weapon down between them.

The ‘clink’ the blade makes once the sword on the floorboards is the only sound to break the tense silence. This has been the closet she’s been to zanpakuto since being in the Fake Karakura Town. She bites the inside of her mouth when the memories of that day threaten to come forward.

She focuses her attention on Hyourinmaru’s details, from the four-pointed hilt guard to the dark blue scabbard. It’s always had a certain elegance to it, though not in the traditional sense like Senbonzakura or even Sode no Shiraiyuki. It came from how ancient it felt, having been honed from one wielder down to the next. Perhaps it’s why it’s as long as it is.

There was a time where she found it a little funny the blade was too long for her childhood friend to carry on his hip. In time, she came to wonder if the sword was meant for someone older. Toshiro had unlocked his potential at such a young age, she couldn’t help but wonder once if maybe he should have waited until he was a little older.

A fresh wave of cold wafts over her. With the blade this close, the chill it emits reminds her of Toshiro’s reiatsu whenever she’s next to him. It swirls around him, as gentle as a winter breeze, settling coolly on her skin and uniform. It’s never been unpleasant to her.

So drawn in by that familiar reiatsu and as in a trance, Momo reaches for the blade. At Toshiro’s confused grunt, she stills, and then snaps her hand back to her lap. “I’m sorry! I don’t, um…”

He looks at her like she’s grown a third eye.

Before she can explain herself, he tilts his head downward. It’s imperceptible, a ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ moment, but she can tell he’s communicating with his zanpakuto. His eyes briefly take on a hazy quality, as if he’s fallen somewhere into the back of his mind deep in thought. Had her action disturbed Hyourinamru?

“I’m sorry,” she repeats. “I got ahead of myself without thinking.”

Toshiro seems to only half hear her, still stuck in his inner conversation with Hyourinmaru. She waits in nervous silence, fearful she may have offended the zanpakuto spirit or even Toshiro.

It differs from Shinigami to Shinigami, but zanpakuto wielders could get personal about another touching their weapon. Whether it was a fear that another would somehow damage it or because to touch it is to sense a part of the wielder’s soul, each Shinigami had their limitation for others touching their weapon.

Eventually, Toshiro lifts his head back to her. It’s as though he’s come to a heavy decision, one loaded with a lot of potential risk.

“Will it help you?” he asks. At her surprised blinking, he clarifies. “If it will help, you can touch Hyrouinmaru.”

Her shoulders drop in shock. He’d really allow this? Of all the Shinigami she knows, he is willing to let her touch his zanpakuto? She’s never had to touch Hyourinmaru or ever been tempted to, but she always imagined Toshiro would find it hurtful if someone tried to outside of combat or training.

She purses her lips, hating the uncertainty bubbling up within her. “I don’t know for certain. I just know that I can’t keep feeling this way towards Hyourinmaru.”

Toshiro's gaze softens. “You don’t have to push yourself.”

Momo had heard that so many times, from Shinigami in the Fourth Division and form all her friends. Shinji had told her a few times too, but it was only once he could see she was visibly upset by something that happened – usually to do with Aizen and remembering something from her past with him. She knows everyone means well when they tell her, but she doesn’t want to remain stagnant. She can handle more than she could before.

“If it’s truly all right with both of you…then please let me try. If not, then that’s okay too. Please don’t push yourself.”

He doesn’t react to his own words being said back him. “Hyourinmaru feels it’s only right that you do, after what happened.”

That shocks her even more. She’s left speechless for a moment, only able to look between Toshiro and Hyourinmaru. The zanpakuto spirit wants this too?

Trepidation jumps through her, making her heart race and her body want to freeze. She forces her hand forward.

The closer she reaches, the colder the chill becomes. Despite the quivering that comes more from anxiety than the cold, she isn’t deterred. With her heart racing and her eyes unblinking, she touches the scabbard.

She gasps at the freezing cold. It’s like her fingertips are dipped in the running water of a river just as the ice is starting to thaw. She can’t help but shiver, and she has to flash Toshiro a reassuring smile when he leans forward, ready to snatch the weapon away.

She stays with the cold, let’s her shaking calm with each breath she takes. It’s like the water has risen to surround her, but it doesn’t drown her. It doesn’t burn her either, like it had when the blade pierced through her chest. It’s like winter winds, the invisible waves of cold ice gives off, and the snowfall in the Junrinan. It’s harsh and soft at the same time. It’s only then she realises she’s closed her eyes.

Beyond the cold, there are swells of emotion. To her surprise, she senses she can go beneath the surface, tread further into the cold and discover how Toshiro feels in this moment and towards things happening his life. There are so few barriers in her way.

It strikes her again that Toshiro is allowing her to do this, to sense how he feels and what lies deep within his being. It’s more vulnerable than when one opens up with their words or actions, it’s truly getting to the heart of a person in its most raw form. To discover it may change how one sees the other, or it may break the person who allowed them to tread so far in.

And in understanding that vulnerability she doesn’t even entertain the idea of going further in; his feelings are his own, for him to express to her or not, and she will wait on the surface for whatever Hyourinmaru wants to convey her now.

Slowly, guilt floats up to her. It’s heavy, carrying the weight of two. So even after forgiving him when it wasn’t needed, Toshiro still feels responsible for what happened. On it’s tail is a wordless apology, as if a great force is bowing before her, asking for her forgiveness.

She shallows against the lump forming in her throat and blinks her eyes open.

It was nothing compared to what would’ve laid beneath he surface of Hyourinmaru’s connction to Toshiro, but she feels the need to make a confession of her own. “As I said before, it wasn’t your fault, you weren’t to know. It may take me a while to fully accept it, but I know I don’t have to be scared of you.” A small smile lifts the corners of her lips. “You’ve always been there for Hitsugaya-kun, since all the way back in the Junrinan. I knew he’d go to the Academy, one day, I could barely sense something within him, and that was you.”

In her peripheral, Toshiro straightens, but she doesn’t take her gaze from Hyourinmaru.

“I’ve seen the way you fight together,” she continues, “it’s inspiring to witness a connection like yours. It’s even inspired Tobiume and I to bond with each other when I was training to obtain my Shikai.” She bows her head to the sword. “Thank you for keeping Hitsugaya-kun safe.”

There’s a pulse, an like echo from a canyon. Gratitude, she realises with a widened smile. She only nods in response. Then, as slowly as she can, she curls her fingers away from the scabbard, and the connection fades. Her heart is at eases with the fading of the cold all around her.

She bows her head again, this time to Toshiro. “Thank you for letting me do that.”

He says nothing, doesn’t even shift. Perhaps it had been too much for him, for to even just graze a part of his inner self. She has an apology ready on her lips, but he speaks.

"Did it help?"

His voice is quiet, maybe even on the verge of quivering. It's like the day they reconciled, when he spoke in low tones and eventually lost the battle against the emotions raging through him. Unlike then, his gaze isn't tumultuous. There's worry, but also a calmness she hadn't seen in him for quite some time.

Following the same instinct that had led her to reaching out to Hyourinmaru in the first place, she takes on his hands and smiles. She can't give him a verbal answer, too overcome with what she'd experience, but she hopes this is enough to tell him.

She can’t forget the burning of the ice in her chest, just as she can’t forget that horrible day in its entirety. It will live on in her, but it’ll become an echo one day, of a time long gone and a pain long forgiven.

[whitehartlane]

you know that one popular brit vid of the guy going ‘that’s bloody lovely’ that’s me w my cheesecake rn

[yohankang]

i'm so anxious abt tomorrow i feel nauseous

[cuddlytogas]

just tonight I developed a tickle in the back of my throat, and this weekend is the big melbourne ofmd meetup, and I swear to fucking god, if I get sick just in time to miss a major social event I've been looking forward to for weeks FOR THE SECOND TIME THIS YEAR, I am going to LOSE MY FUCKING SHIT

[imwritesometimes]

I always tell my family after I bake something 'I wish I could just do this for living' and every time they're like 'you could!!' and like... I'm pretty good at baking! and I want to make more money so bad but I also think 'they're hyping me up cause they're my family of course they like my stuff' but at the same time like... I know I make stuff that's better than what some ppl in town are paying $60+ for

[the-kneesbees]

I'm almost done crocheting my sloth <33

when its done I'm gonna do a chicken for my baby cousin(ish) that's gonna be born in a few months :)