#also for context if u don’t know: the sweater curse is that if u knit a sweater for ur SO they’ll break up with u | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lazylazyhowl · 4 years

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prehension (of snakes and cherry blossoms)

prehension (noun) – gripping firmly, apprehension by the senses; understanding

["See me." In the dead of night, the line between far shore and near shore, blurs.

They meet, and it's 23 years too late; but they might as well.]

Written with SasuSakuTwitFest Day 2 (Connected) in mind.

AO3 Link

ko-fi

—

Have you heard about building B?

A peeling coat of faded yellow paint, partly overtaken by chalk graffiti and moss. The building is a little worn and faded, more obviously ill-maintained compared to the rest of the school.

Classes haven’t been held here for years now, ever since a newer building was founded right next to it.

The hallways are lined with locked doors. There are crisscrossing caution tapes blocking off stairways, and the dust-caked windows are bolted shut, leaving the air thick and musty.

A senior died there twenty years ago. They say the ghost of that student still walks those empty corridors even now.

It’s when she’s wandering through the east wing of the second floor that Sakura comes across him in one of the storage rooms.

Rows of stacked desks and chairs are pushed against the wall at the side, and miscellaneous items crowd the cobwebbed shelves. He’s sitting by the window on the opposite side of the entrance, chin in his palm as he stares out the dirty, moon-glazed glass.

He seems to be a senior, but she can’t be sure. The colored tie that’s supposed to set the grades apart is missing from his uniform ensemble.

Sakura’s heart has jumped from sheer surprise upon catching sight of him in the corner; now it begins to speed for an altogether different reason.

He has a sharp profile and endless dark eyes that’s framed by long thick lashes. His equally dark hair contrasts a pale skin, washed colorless by the moonlight, and millions of dust particles float lazily around him.

It’s an otherworldly sight that sends goosebumps up the sides of her arms, and her better instincts tell her to leave immediately and leave him be.

Still, her feet remain glued to the spot by the door as she smooths clammy palms against the knitted sweater she wears over her uniform.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to say it was love at first sight. Quite a loaded situation for lightning to be striking, too, and there’s no sense to it at all. She just knows he’s taken her heart without having to lift a finger.

“Annoying…”

She hears him mutter. His voice is deep, so quiet that she might have missed it if not for the silence.

“You there.”

Before Sakura can react, the boy turns his head and looks straight at her.

If you ever come across the ghost, no matter what you do, never look it in the eyes.

She gasps and takes a step back, her puny heart leaping to the hollow of her throat.

When he drops down from his perch, his height unfurls. He’s probably a good head taller than her. With the moon at his back, his eyes don’t glow in the dark or anything, not even the slightest glimmer, but she senses the weight of cold lead from them all the same.

You’ll meet a terrible end.

“Those eyes are quite something,” he says, and Sakura hastily lowers her gaze away, her stomach twisting into nauseous knots. Oh god, oh god, what has she done? She shouldn’t have looked, shouldn’t have dallied around.

“I-I’m sorry.”

She sees his shadow on the gritty tiled floor, looming closer, and considers fleeing. But then again, she has a feeling she wouldn’t get very far.

“I’m sorry,” she says again, wringing her shaky fingers together. “For staring. I’m so sorry.”

“Look at me.” He’s still approaching her, and she begins to make out the mud on his shoes, how his uniform is disheveled in that rolled-around-in-in-the-dirt way, opened at the neck to reveal the strong lines of his collarbones.

“I’m sorry…”

“It’s fine. Lift your face.”

Sakura shakes her head no and squeezes her eyes closed for good measure. She hears him sigh.

“Sasuke.”

Though it was out of nowhere, what startles Sakura more is that his voice has come from right in front of her. She can feel him, well inside her personal space and blocking the moonlight.

Her heart is in overdrive. She blindly takes a step back and almost trips over herself.

“Wh-what?”

“Name?”

She puts a hand to her chest to try and contain the beating there. Her thoughts are a jumbled mess. “I-I’m sorry?”

“Name. Yours.”

It takes her a moment more before she finally gathers her wits. “S-Sakura…”

“Sakura, huh.” He says her name in this slow, considering drawl, and Sakura flushes anew. Can he see her blush? Can he see the effect he has on her? What will he do, knowing this? She tugs at the long sleeves of her sweater and brings them up to hide her face. She never thought it to be the case, but she’s exactly the type to get tricked by men, isn’t she?

“U-um, Sasuke…san?”

“Drop the ‘san.’”

“I’m sorry…”

“Stop apologizing, annoying.”

“I’m so—okay…” Sakura cringes, her head sinking between her shoulders. She can still feel his gaze on her, feel self-conscious about her large, sweaty forehead, and every strand of hair that’s out of place. Having her eyes closed only makes it worse. “Sasuke…kun…then?”

He makes a noise in his throat, and it’s hard to tell if he’s displeased or not.

“You shouldn’t stay here, Sakura.”

She loves it, Sakura decides, when he uses her name, regardless of context. It sends this warm fluttering down to the pit of her belly.

“…Well, neither should you,” she says from behind her sleeves. “…Sasuke-kun.” She tests and can't help another rush of heat in her cheeks.

Sasuke’s silent for a length before saying, “Fair.”

“Let’s both leave then,” he says, and it takes her a moment to respond.

“Huh?”

“You and I. Let’s leave here together.”

She’s not sure what to say to that, not even sure if she quite understands, but she can’t deny she likes how he’s said it.

She likes it a lot.

“Sakura.” Her skin ripples again. When he says nothing else, she cracks her eyes open to take in the chest of his shirt, missing a few buttons; the hand that’s he’s holding out to her. (There’s dried blood on his knuckles, under his nails.)

“No?” He presses, and she wants to shake her head and tell him it’s not even close to no. It’s scary how much she wants to take that proffered hand, damn the consequences. And because of exactly that she holds back, tucks her hands closer to her chest to restrain herself.

“I…”

She watches with a held breath as his hand looms so near she can make out the callused spots on his palm and smell burnt smoke on top of the rust of blood. His fingers skirt near her chin, her windpipe, but not quite touching.

“Look at me,” he stresses, “when you speak.”

“No…I…”

“Our eyes already met. What are you still holding back for?”

Her breaths grow shallow as her pulses quicken into deafening booms. Sakura can’t find fault with his argument, though she’s not sure if it isn’t just because she’s also tempted for justification to look at him again.

(A part of her hopes, maybe the curse can be reversed by pretending their eyes never met.)

“It’ll be fine,” he says, and she’s so tempted to believe him.

Sakura swallows, her mouth dry. Her eyes dart tentatively up a few times before she finds it in her to look at him. (She has to crane her neck to even meet his gaze.) Her chest tightens as she stares into his eyes, transfixed by their depths. Most of all, his mouth quirks in this little pleased, knowing smirk, and it’s unfair.

“Come with me, Sakura.”

That’s unfair, too.

Sakura doesn’t think she’s afraid of him anymore. Never was, actually. But what he’s offering is unknown to her, and that’s scary. Leave with him to where? For what purpose other than just deserting this forsaken building?

“I don’t know how.” Sakura looks away. She’s aware that she’s not saying no, and the reality is that she no longer cares.

She just wants to be with someone so badly she might have followed anyone else, and Sasuke—Sasuke feels right. Perhaps this back and forth between them has only ever had one ending.

He holds out his hand to her, gesturing for her to just take it. She unclenches her fists.

“It’ll be okay?”

“Aa.”

“Promise me-” Her voice cracks. She screws her eyes shut and sucks in a breath as if all her unshed tears would disappear along with it. “Sasuke-kun. Promise me you’ll be okay, ‘cause I can’t-”

“Promise.”

His gaze is unwavering. Sakura chews at her lower lip. When her fingertips hover over his and hesitate, he only patiently waits, and it gives her that extra shred of confidence. With one last steadying breath, she slides her hand onto his and gasps audibly from the feel of his skin against hers.

His palm is rough like she’s imagined. Large.

So warm.

Human.

It’s been too long—twenty-three years in fact, since she last felt another’s touch, and the sudden swell of emotions is enough to choke her.

Sasuke’s strong fingers encase hers, interlace with hers and the firm grip brings such immense relief that she only knows to burst into tears.

“You’re with me from now on,” he tells her as he wipes at her cheek with his thumb, and she sobs harder. Through the blur of tears, Sakura can see him smile, see his eyes bleed a haunting, spinning red. They’re beautiful. Hypnotic. As if she isn’t already ensnared in his web.

“Okay.” She grips back at his hand just as firmly.

And she thinks, they will be okay after all.

Omake:

The school ground is quiet as they slip out through a broken window on the first floor, and Sakura can’t help but be nervous as she takes her first step past a point that up until just yesterday she wasn’t able to cross.

She’s tried to leave many, many times, only for her legs to freeze and her mind to be overcome with an irrational need to retreat to the very heart of the building. Where she belonged. Alone.

None of that tonight. Sakura passes building D and reaches the quad, drinking in her surrounding in quiet wonder as she trails behind Sasuke.

A lot has changed from the school in her memory, but the general layout is still the same, from where the statue of the town’s founder proudly stands, to the red eaves that hang over the guard office. They overlap with her hazy memories and fills her with a familiarity that eases her nerves.

Building A is still there as well, looking only a little less rundown compared to her building.

(Hers. No matter how lonely, it had been home.)

Sakura looks to the boy at her side; her new haunt, her tether. (Hers.) She still knows nothing about him beyond the name Sasuke. And those red eyes that have faded back to black soot is sure to be a loaded topic, too.

There are many things she wants to ask him, but she decides she’ll take her time learning. The truth is she has nothing but time.

“What?”

She's all giddy from that single glance he spares. Does he have to be so cool from every angle? Her gaze drops to his bloodied knuckles.

“Do your hands hurt?”

“Not really.”

“Did you hurt them breaking into the building?”

“No.”

Sakura tries to contain an amused grin. She can see him being quite a frustrating conversational partner in the future, but for now she’s quite enjoying it. “How did you hurt yourself then?”

He doesn’t say anything for a while, and she can see the cogwheels working rapidly behind his faraway gaze. “Trash disposal,” he tells her, a full ten seconds later that she has to wonder what exactly he’s filtered out before coming to that answer. He pats her head. “Don’t worry about it. I clean up pretty well.”

As they leave the school ground and continue walking in silence, Sakura thinks about the smoke she’s smelled on him. Has she gotten involved with a pretty dangerous person after all?

#sasusaku #haruno sakura #uchiha sasuke #love at first sight #human/non-human #ghost #supernatural #no it's not the TV show #snakes & cherry blossoms #fanfic #naruto

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nevertickleasleepingbadger · 5 years

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Re-sorting the Weasleys

Ok first installment of a re-sorting series! One of the biggest weaknesses of the HP universe is the very flat, one sided sorting. Brave=Gryffindor, Smart=Ravenclaw, Kind=Hufflepuff, Cunning (Evil??)=Slytherin I understand that for some of the plot devices to work, certain characters had to be in certain houses, but it always came off as lazy to me that all the Weasleys were in Gryffindor (for decades???). I honestly never really understood whole families going into one house in general- considering how different all these people are, did the Sorting Hat just give up and assign all gingers to the red house? ANYWAY. Here’s my defense of where I think they should go, based on the fandom’s collective interpretations of the houses. And many thanks to @flockdynamics, for your discussion and help!

Arthur Weasley- Ravenclaw

At first, Arthur comes off as this very goofy character. Which he is, no doubt, but this man is also a genius- his whole job is spent undoing charms and hexes on muggle objects which undoubtedly involves creativity and skill. He is constantly tinkering and coming up with really inventive adjustments and improvements on objects- objects that few wizards understand the workings of at all! I saw a Weasley appreciation post awhile back that mentioned Arthur’s obsession with batteries and how he could be looking into the possibility of storing magical energy and I 100% believe this to be true. He’s not just collecting these items because they look fun, he’s studying them and trying to figure out how they work and how he can incorporate magic into muggle inventions. And he goes through the effort to write loopholes into his own laws so that what he’s doing isn’t strictly illegal which just kills me. One of the true hallmarks of Ravenclaws, beyond just plain intelligence, is cleverness and ingenuity (and a constant desire to learn and push the boundaries of understanding). Ravenclaws aren’t just interested in things you can learn from books and they encourage out-of-the-box thinking. One of the first things he does when he meets anyone connected to muggles is to immediately start asking questions and learning. Also don’t forget that he wrote (co-wrote?) the Muggle Protection Act. His demeanor is jubilant and laid back and he certainly shows great bravery at times, but his baseline behavior is to be in the background, steady and confident and pushing the boundaries in his own way. He is a great source of comfort to his family and to Harry. He always takes Harry seriously and does his best to protect him in the ways he can. In the muggle world, he would totally be that spacey college professor whose office is a mess with random artifacts and weird comics pinned up everywhere, but when you talk to them you realize they are about 10x smarter than you. Molly Weasley- Hufflepuff Ah, Molly- the badger indeed. Loving and fiercely protective. We hardly ever get to see Molly outside of the context of motherhood, but I imagine we see the worst of her temper as she attempts to raise 7 children amidst two wars. I think the Molly underneath all the stress is strong, empathetic, and comforting. We see her unkindness towards Fleur do a 180 as soon as she realizes that Fleur isn’t someone she needs to protect Bill from. She might not get points for patience, but she is certainly stubborn! Overall, Molly is deeply emotional and she keeps her emotions close to the surface. She is soft (in a good way) and warm and just unbelievably capable. The intensity of her kindness towards Harry (knitting him a sweater his first year even though she had only once briefly met him because she guessed, presumably from Ron’s letters, that he needed a family). That’s the kind of person Molly is. Bill Weasley- Ravenclaw I struggled a bit with Bill because the age gap between Harry and Bill might skew our perception of him a bit. Bill is certainly the cool, calm, and collected older brother. The hair, the earring, the swagger- I absolutely adore Bill. Bill always comes off as a bit reserved- not shy but just someone who doesn’t say more than they have to. But this could just be his age and maturity compared to his younger siblings. His family’s obvious disdain for his fiance, Fleur, seems to roll off his back and we rarely see him raise his voice or lose his cool. He is just an incredibly competent man and wizard. Skills with curse breaking and wards really scream Ravenclaw to me- these are skills that take perseverance and creativity to master- something that might not mesh well with the brute force and brashness of a Gryffindor. He is obviously someone who can work with Goblins, which tells me he is tactful and careful and must have paid attention in History of Magic. And how could I forget, Head Boy and 12 Outstanding OWLs. Slowclap for Bill Weasley, everyone. Charlie Weasley- Hufflepuff?? Who knows because it’s a crime we have almost nothing to go on with this fabulous character. A well built, quidditch playing, dragon wrangler?? Cmon JK Rowling- we need more Charlie Weasley. His love for Care of Magical Creatures automatically makes me gravitate towards Hufflepuff (Hagrid is my next big installment post, don’t worry) and the little we see of him shows us a popular, warm, and dedicated guy. But that’s all I can really say! Percy Weasley- Slytherin I know this one is going to be controversial so let me start out by saying this is partially based on a rejection of JKR’s version of Slytherin. I’m not sure if we are just supposed to blame Harry’s unreliable POV, but Slytherin is a mess. So if we strip away some of the ugliest caricatures of the house, Slytherins are crafty, resourceful, driven, and deeply protective of tradition. Percy is seriousssss. He’s a snob, absolutely. He sees everything as an opportunity and he feels he is fighting an uphill battle to separate himself from his family, who don’t share his commitment to self-betterment. He bleeds ambition and unfortunately, because of the political climate that he grows up in, he has the perfect personality to get swept up in government corruption. He realizes his mistakes, but he is prideful and it takes him awhile to face his family and own up to them. We see him full of regret but not yet able to apologize at Christmas during HBP, and of course his arc comes full circle at the Battle of Hogwarts. Tradition and correctness are very important to Percy and he needs constant validation that he is in control. He is in a bit of an awkward age gap with his siblings and I think often ends up as the odd man out and as such, he overcompensates by trying to rise above the chaos of his family and he isolates himself in the process. Percy is also bullied relentlessly by Fred and George, and this really hardens him and pushes him further away. I think it is probably good that he wasn’t sorted into Slytherin in canon, because the divide between Percy and the other Weasleys is already wide and it would have really hurt Percy in the long run. But that being said, JKR wrote the perfect Slytherin with Percy, she just didn’t act on it. He could never have survived as the odd man out in his family in Slytherin, but in a different universe, he fits. Fred & George- Gryffindor I struggled with them because in a way, I wanted to split them up because I think they really can encompass more than one house but I think that F&G are a FORCE together and need to stay as such. I was originally leaning towards Ravenclaw for them just based on the extreme wit and creativity they possess, but as @flockdynamics pointed out to me, I think their intentions are very important. Life is a joke for these two and it’s full of color and noise. They are whip smart and very ambitious and honestly would have thrived in any house- I don’t see them letting house boundaries define them (especially if we cast aside the Gryffindor ancestry of the Weasleys). But their inventions and ingenuity don’t stem from a desire to research and push the boundaries of wizard invention. They just want to make stuff and blow shit up and have a good time. And sure, they want to build a business and make the money they never had growing up, but making people happy and bringing humor into the world are their #1 goals. They are brave in the most foolhardy, Gryffindor way (U-No-Poo anyone?) and never back down from a challenge. They act before thinking and can be bullies (their treatment of Percy, Ron, and sometimes Hermione definitely comes off this way). They often don’t stop to consider emotional tact because they really just live in their own world where everything is fun. Ron- Gryffindor In all her missteps with the houses, I think JKR spent a lot of time making the golden trio fit into her views of Gryffindor traits. Ron is often tactless and self-centered but he is also deeply empathetic (especially towards the end as he’s maturing). I think bravery is an oversimplification of Gryffindor- I think Gryffindor to me is more about being just. They definitely exhibit overt bravery by going off on adventures or putting themselves in danger for loved ones. But moreover, Gryffindors are motivated by an unerring sense of justice and sense of how things should be- they often can’t see the nuances or slow down to consider the best course of action before diving in. Ron’s relationship with Harry is one of the best teenage boy relationships I’ve seen. Ron is there for Harry and legit willing to fight by his side time and time again. He knows when to be supportive, when to give Harry space, when to argue, when to capitulate. His misgivings with Hermione are a different story of dumb teenage hormones and misunderstandings. Ron gives 100% and puts his life on the line for his friends. He really struggles with deep feelings of inadequacy compared to his brothers and struggles to find a place for himself being in Harry’s and their shadows. This really overshadows his underlying personality and makes him act out. I can actually see adult Ron acting much more like a Hufflepuff: stalwart, dependable, and caring but also fiercely protective of those he’s close to. But his personality growing up is definitely Gryffindor. Ginny- Slytherin?? But probably Gryffindor Ginny, Ginny, Ginny. man this one is hard. One look at my blog will probably tell you she is one of my favorite characters, but she is also one that suffers from Harry’s unreliable POV. She went through unimaginable trauma at the age of 11 and was saved by none other than her girlhood crush/brother’s best friend/famous quasi family member. It’s an odd position for her to be in. She is broken and deeply embarrassed and spends time rebuilding herself away from Harry. Which is completely understandable, but it means the audience suffers from not getting to know Ginny until much later and she keeps herself at arms length with Harry until their relationship begins. I think Ginny is largely misunderstood by the fandom and the complete obliteration of her character by the movies doesn’t help. BUT, damn if Ginny is not a BAMF. Sneaky, witty, sometimes harsh and sharp but also loving and bubbly and effervescent. She is the embodiment of “bitch, I won’t hesitate”. Growing up with 6 brothers really pushes Ginny to be rough, unapologetic, and outspoken and we see that side of her often- berating Fleur, hexing/crashing into Zacharias, tripping Ron, etc. Her friendship with Luna gives us glimpses into the softer sides of Ginny. As much as fans love Luna, it always strikes me as odd that they easily dismiss the person Luna seems closest to as boring and mean. Luna seems like an excellent judge of character and not one to seek out negative people (but I digress). I think Ginny is a complex character that the books barely scratch the surface of. By the end, Ginny really exudes confidence and she bravely takes on part of the role of running the DA during the darkest year at Hogwarts. In a world away from the blood purity nonsense, I would totally put her in Slytherin. Her tenacity, perseverance, and cunning really match up well with many of the things Slytherins claim to possess and she shows us time and time again she is willing to push social boundaries to make herself heard/seen. The prejudices associated with Slytherin muddy the waters so in canon, Gryffindor is a good place for her.

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