#anyway yeah heeeeere we go

[nolita-fairytale]

don't want to walk alone | carmen 'carmy' berzatto x fem!reader | part two: august

summary: you head down to savannah, georgia with syd, sugar, liz, and maya for a not-bachelorette weekend.

warnings: swearing, eventual smut, lots of tooth rotting fluff, marriage, no use of y/n, second person pov, she/her pronouns

wc: 5.5k

a/n: it's finally heeeeere!!! i know i've gotten quite side tracked with my luca fic, but chapter two of don't want to walk alone is finally here thank god. anyways, this is a carmy-lite chapter, but i think this is just as important. enjoy, besties. chapter three is thee wedding, so it may take a while for me to get that one out and honestly, i like taking my time with this one. i have some very fun ideas and yes we will be getting honeymoon smut don't worry. please let me know if you'd like to be added or removed from the taglist.

part one | masterlist | part three

Thursday

“Hey, did Syd go out already?” you hear Natalie ask, causing you to pause what you’re doing. 

You’re in the middle of laying out the gifts you’ve brought for your friends for the weekend, as a thank you for coming to Savannah to help you find a wedding dress. You’re not looking for anything extravagant – you are eloping at the courthouse after all – but it felt like a good excuse to get your best friends together for the weekend too. While you’ve spent most of your time planning this trip insisting that it’s not a bachelorette party, it’s certainly beginning to feel like one. 

“Just because we’re not doing a big wedding thing doesn’t mean we can’t do a pre-wedding girls’ trip,” you’d explained to Liz and Maya over your group FaceTime. 

“Hmmm, sounds a bit like a bachelorette party,” Maya had observed with every intent of provoking you.

“It’s not a bachelorette party!” you had vehemently insisted on the call. 

“Sounds a little like one to me,” Liz had added, earning an eye roll from you as you murmured something about the two of them always ganging up on you. 

So here you are, deciding that, maybe, you should just lean into it. 

While Sydney’s gone to the grocery to do the shopping (something she insisted on doing since you’re both making brunch for tomorrow morning) it’s just you and Nat in the house. You could’ve sworn Nat was on the phone earlier – Pete being the every-worrying, doting husband who hasn’t spent a night away from his wife since she got pregnant. 

“Hey, you!” you finally greet her, a broad smile spreading across your face as you turn to see your very pregnant almost-sister-in-law. “Uh… yeah she was going to the grocery store for some things. Need me to text her?”

Natalie shakes her head ‘no,’ before stepping into one of the many rooms that fill the airbnb that you have rented for the weekend. 

“Watcha got goin’ on over here?” Nat asks curiously, as she takes a few steps towards you. 

“Well,” you sigh, placing the neatly folded set of washable silk PJs down on one of the two twin beds that fill the bedroom that Maya and Liz will be sleeping in. “Just because you’re not technically my bridesmaids doesn’t mean that I can’t get you guys gifts, right?”

Sugar snorts, “Huh. That’s funny.”

“Hm?” you hum in response. 

“Soooo many things, especially since you won’t just admit this is your version of a bachelorette party but…” she teases you, pausing before she continues with: 

“I mostly came in here because I have a gift for you.

“What? You didn’t have to get me a gift,” you start, watching as Nat presents a gift bag stuffed to the brim with tissue paper. 

“I know. But just because you refuse to admit that this is a bachelorette party, doesn’t mean I can’t get you a bridal gift,” she answers, taking a seat on one of the beds as she repeats your own reasoning back to you. 

“Fair enough,” you chuckle sitting down on the bed as you accept her gift. 

Parting the mountain of tissue paper, you pull a neatly folded article of clothing wrapped in more tissue paper. Gently, you slide the fabric out of its sleeve, revealing a silk lace slip nightgown out of the gift bag. 

You gasp, examining the soft, delicate material in your hands. 

“Nat, this is-, holy shit. It’s stunning,” you marvel, running your fingers over the creme-colored material. 

“I saw it and couldn’t help myself,” she smiles proudly, happy to see that you love it. 

“It’s perfect,” you whisper, this time moving your fingers over the black lace trim at the hemline. 

“I wanted to give it to you before everyone got here,” she explains softly. “Wear it this weekend. Or for the honeymoon. I don’t know. I saw it and… it just felt like you.”

“Thank you,” you smile, your heart warming as you lean over to give her a hug. She squeezes you back, ecstatic that you love her gift. 

“Think Carmy’ll be jealous I didn’t get him anything?” she asks, jokingly, her eyes narrowing. 

“Oh, this is a gift for him too,” you’re quick to reply with a smirk. 

“Ew!” she glares at you, earning a laugh from you as you defend yourself. 

You shrug, “You set yourself up with that one, mama.”

You exchange a look, and a laugh, as Sugar playfully rolls her eyes at the thought of her brother doing anything more explicit than what could be in a PG-rated film. 

“How ya doin? How’s my soon-to-be-nephew?” you ask, shifting your body so that you’re facing here even more so now as you change the subject. 

“I’m alright,” she sighs, leaning back on her hands behind her. “Second trimester’s been a whole lot better than the first but… this whole pregnancy thing? Wow.”

“Yeah, we are in no hurry,” you empathize, adding a little humor to your sentiment. 

“Well, from what I hear, it hasn’t stopped either of you from-,” she begins to tease you and now it’s your turn to say:

“Oh my god, Natalie! Ew!” 

You roll your eyes this time, no stranger to the fact that you and Carmy’s sex life has started a rumor or two that’s gotten passed around the restaurant staff like wildfire.

She nudges you playfully, earning another laugh from you before the two of you settle into a comfortable silence, sitting side by side. 

Natalie takes a beat, carefully choosing what she wants to say to you, especially since heart to hearts weren’t exactly common for her growing up. 

“I also came in here to say…” she begins, her voice softening because she really means it. “I am so glad that he met you – Carmy – that you found each other. And I meant it when I said that I couldn’t wait for us to be sisters.”

The memory of the night you both got violently high together before Sugar got pregnant – the night she first called you her sister-in-law – brings the biggest smile to your face as you laugh. 

“You’ve changed his life,” she finishes, the deepest of gratitude coloring the words she says. 

You think someone should’ve warned you that getting married would bring up so many goddamn feelings, because you’ve been feeling pretty damn nostalgic and emotional lately too. 

With watery eyes, you grab Sugar’s hand, giving it a squeeze as you say, “Nat, he changed mine. He keeps… changing mine.” You pause for a moment wondering when, all of a sudden, you’ve gotten this sappy. “I love Carmen… so much. And… I’m so glad that in loving him… it brought us together too.”

She nods in agreement, as she whispers a tearful ‘yeah,’ giving your hand a squeeze in return before releasing it. 

“Jesus Christ. When did we become these people?” you chuckle, shaking your head. 

“I have no fucking clue but I’m blaming the pregnancy hormones,” Nat laughs with you. 

She pauses once more, and it’s as if she can’t help herself, diving into it again because there’s so much more she wants to say. 

“You know, I always wanted a sister…” Natalie starts with a disappointed nod of her head. “I always thought… like, maybe things would’ve been different or something. Mikey and Carmy could do no wrong, you know, but me?” 

She lets out another sigh, shifting her sitting position in pursuit of something more comfortable. 

“I don’t know… I always wondered what it would be like – to have an ally in it all, a partner in crime – because Mom was Mom… and-. Well, you know. But now with the baby coming, I just can’t picture putting a child through that.” 

She takes a beat this time, making sure she’s clear on what she’s trying to communicate to you. 

“I think what I’m trying to say is, selfishly, I’m so damn glad Carmy swallowed his pride and called you all those years ago.”

You’re grinning from ear to ear as you listen, agreeing with, “Me fucking too, buddy.”

The sound of the front door is an almost-welcomed interruption as you and Nat exchange a look, the both of you coming to the conclusion that it’s probably Sydney, back from the store. 

“Helloooooooo!” you both hear Sydney call out in the empty downstairs area of the airbnb. 

“We should probably go. See if Sydney needs our help?” Natalie suggests.

“Yeah,” you reply, standing up from where you’re seated on the bed. 

“Nat,” you say, offering a hand to help her up. 

She takes it, murmuring a thank you before groaning about her feet. You giggle, but this time, you have one last thing you want to say to her. 

“Thank you for the gift… and for what you just told me,” you say, before finishing your thought with, “I love you.”

“I love you too,” she replies, a soft smile on her face. 

You share a look, and one more moment, before heading downstairs. 

“Look who I found!” Sydney squeals, her voice resonating broadly throughout the house. 

It’s then that you hear the sounds of luggage being rolled, as Maya goes on about how cute this place is, while Liz, following closely behind exclaims something about how goddamn hot it is outside. 

“Oh my god!” you exclaim, leaping over the last few stairs as you crowd both of your New York friends. 

It’s an exchange of squeals, how are you’s, how were your trips, and enthusiastic hugs exchanged between old friends. 

“Liz, Maya, you remember Natalie, right?” you introduce, as Nat gives both of your friends a small wave. 

While Liz and Maya have met Sydney multiple times (including a few trips to New York Sydney’s taken by herself), you know your two best friends have only met Sugar once or twice when visiting you in Chicago. 

“Yes, Carmy’s sister!” Liz says, her eyes lighting up with recognition. 

“Yes,” Nat nods, confirming the statement. 

“Well, come on in! I’ll show you up to your room so you can put your stuff down and whatnot,” you encourage, ushering the both of them upstairs as Natalie asks if Syd needs help unloading the car. 

“I can’t believe we’re finally here!” Maya exclaims, excitedly. 

“In Savannah… That you two idiots somehow figured it out and are getting married,” Liz continues, adding clarity around the very layered statement. 

You laugh, “Listen, you and I both, sister.”

You show both Liz and Maya to their shared room as the three of you catch up about the flight here, shared exclamations about how stoked you are for the weekend, about how much you were all in need of a good vacation anyways. As you watch your best friends set their things down and begin to settle in, it feels surreal. 

Like you and Carmy’s last trip to New York, it feels as if your worlds are once again colliding – two sets of friends from two very different chapters of your life as you approach a new one. 

Friday 

Your not-bachelorette brunch menu goes as follows: 

Syd’s famous potato chip omelet, a vanilla bean yogurt with Liz’s favorite homemade granola recipe, made last night before bed, bacon you’re frying up in a cast iron pan that belongs to the stocked rental kitchen, and one of Liz’s favorite mocktails because, yes,

“You’re making us go for a hike?!” Maya exclaims. “In this heat? In this humidity?!”

“I thought you were… on your whole SoulCycle kick,” you’re quick to reply. 

“Yeah, because it’s indoors,” she emphasizes with a sigh of defeat. 

“Thank god you didn’t get your hair done for this, babe,” Liz teases her friend, earning a ‘seconded’ from Maya. 

“Oh my god! I forgot that we both love SouCycle!” Sugar chimes in, simultaneously. 

“Add it to the list,” Maya replies, because she and Nat have gotten quite chummy over the last 12 hours. 

After ordering pizza last night, Maya and Nat had promptly curled up in a corner of the couch with a glass of wine for Maya, and an non-alcoholic cocktail for Nat, and spent almost two uninterrupted hours of realizing that they had way too much in common to not become instant-besties.

“So let me get this straight. It’s your bachelorette party and-,” Maya begins, straightening up on the barstool that lines the other side of the breakfast bar. 

“It’s not a bachelorette party, it’s just a girls’ weekend,” you and Syd say in unison, you more insistent while Syd simply recites the words as that you’ve droned on about again and again. 

“And we’re not going out?” Maya asks, unamused by your lack of enthusiasm.

“I wasn’t planning on it,” you shrug, careless for the idea of going out this weekend. 

“What about the strippers?!” Maya exclaims, a little louder this time, sending all of you into a fit of giggles. 

“What strippers?!” Syd exclaims. 

“Listen, I’m not against strippers…” you laugh with a shake of your head. “...but I just wanted this weekend to be about getting my favorite people together and looking for a dress. YOU are the one who called it a bachelorette party.”

“You’ll have to excuse Maya. It’s been a while since she’s had a weekend away from full-time mom duty,” Liz teases her, as the two of you share a knowing look. 

“Not to mention full-time work! And full-time wife-ing,” Maya adds insistently. “I’m ready to shake my ass!” 

You and Sugar both snort with laughter and Syd snickers again, plating her final omelet. 

“And while she’s somehow the first one of us to settle down, she’s also always been the biggest party animal of the both of us,” you continue, picking up where Liz left off. 

“See, this is what you have to look forward to,” Syd jokes, directing her comment to Nat. “The both of you.”

“Oh shut up,” she quips back, playfully. 

You shrug, before offering to help Syd distribute her stunningly plated omelets to the kitchen table that Liz has already set. 

“Tell us what you made today,” you joke, doing your best Padma Lakshmi impression, as if Sydney were a contestant on Top Chef. 

Sydney laughs, while the rest of the girls take their seats, standing at the head of the table as she takes your invitation to roleplay a little too seriously:

“So this… is a potato chip omelet with boursin cheese inspired by our very own Natalie Berzatto.”

“You’re amazing,” Natalie coos, because she truly cannot get enough of this omelet. 

“This looks incredible,” Maya compliments, admiring the neatly shaped French omelet. 

“And the potato chips are fucking genius,” Liz marvels, simultaneously.

“Something I started making at the restaurant just for Nat since, you know, it kinda hits all the cravings. It’s salty. It’s filling. You know you got a little texture going on with the chips. Aaaaand I’m starving so let’s end this Top Chef cosplay right now and eat,” Syd says, earning a laugh and statements of agreement from the rest of you as she rushes to the last empty chair. 

You spend the morning enjoying breakfast before ushering everyone out to the car for your hike. Insistent on heading out there before it gets too hot, you decide it’s probably best to go before noon. As you head out to the Skidaway Island State Park trail, the fact that you friends are finally all together in one room begins to hit you. While Nat and Maya have hit it off over their love for SoulCycle, how strange pregnancy cravings are, and their mutual adoration for Maggie Rogers, you smile to yourself while you listen to Sydney and Liz dissect the most recent season of Love Island. 

And despite the few yet passionate protestations, the hiking trail really isn’t all that bad. The five of you spend about an hour out there, hanging out a little longer along the boardwalk, before heading back into town for lunch, and then home for showers and some downtime. Tonight’s game plan is to get all dressed up (sort of) then head to Mashama Bailey’s restaurant, The Grey. 

You take some time (and a nap) to yourself this afternoon, knowing that everyone else has taken some time to read, catch up a little, or just hang out. As you awaken from your nap, you flip through your phone for a bit, and, you think to yourself, it feels really damn good to slow down. 

You decide to call Carmy, Facetime-ing him as you remain snuggled up in the airbnb bed. It takes a few rings before Carmy answers, his hair wild, dressed in his chef whites. 

“Hey, babe,” Carmy smiles, as soon as your face appears on his phone screen. “It’s good to hear from you.”

“You too. I’m glad you picked up,” you reply, a lightness in your voice that only comes with vacation-you. 

“How’s my girl doing?” he asks you, adoration in his eyes. 

You hum happily in response, stretching a little in your bed. 

“She’s great. But she misses you,” you answer, soaking in how much you love when he calls you his girl. “The trip’s been great so far, baby. We went for a hike this morning and uh, well, everyone’s really hit it off. Pretty sure Nat and Maya have become best friends now.”

“Uh oh.”

“Oh come on,” you chuckle, snuggling deeper into the duvet. “You know Maya’s always been your biggest fan.”

“Yeah,” he nods softly, because he does know that, for whatever reason, she’s always been his biggest advocate. 

“But how are you? How’s Aioli? What am I missing?” you ask your future husband. 

“We’re good. And Aioli is still the most spoiled cat in the Greater Chicago area. Not much to report here. Just taking a smoke break before dinner service,” he answers with a shrug. 

“What’re you up to?”

“Just waking up from a nap,” you reply with a yawn, your disheveled bedhead more of a turnon then Carmy will admit. “And we’re going to The Grey later.”

“Mashama’s place?”

“Yeah.”

“You gonna get all dressed up?” he asks, his interest piquing. 

“Yeah, I think we are,” you reply, the conversation taking a slightly flirtier turn as you add, “Don’t worry. I’ll send pictures.” 

With a shy look on his face, Carmy returns with a:

“Oh shit. Well, let me know how it is. The restaurant.”

“I’ll report back,” you assure him. “You know… maybe we can come back here together. Another time.”

Carmy hums in response, barely able to wrap his head around the idea of a vacation. It’s not like you’d never been on one together, but no matter how many steps he takes back, how much he’s learned he’s allowed to (sometimes) slowdown, the unshakeable fear of falling behind hangs over his head. He’s learning, getting better at it, and you’ve helped, but it somehow always still feels a little unsettling at first. 

You can see that Carmy’s mind is running a mile a minute, so you decide to cut to the chase as you say: 

“I just… wanted to call and see what was up. Tell you I was thinking about you, babe.”

He smiles softly. 

“Yeah,” he exhales. “I’m thinking about you too.”

He waits a beat before following up with:

“I’m always thinking about you.”

“I love you, Bear,” you whisper, a smile on your lips. 

“I love you too,” he says back, and you swear Apple has installed a filter on FaceTime with how vibrant and blue his eyes are as he looks at you. 

The knock at your bedroom door grabs your attention, your eyes shifting immediately to where the door hangs slightly open.

“Hey, I heard you were up,” Sydney says, poking her head in. “Can I come in?”

“Oh my god! Yeah, of course. I’m just on the phone with Carmy. Wanna come say hi?” you encourage, waving her your way. 

“Sure!” she grins, quick to hop onto the bed, settling down right next to where you lay. 

“Great. It’s like you never left Chicago,” Carmy groans dryly, as Sydney snuggles in. 

“Whatever. You miss us,” Sydney shoots back with a playful eye roll.

Carmy’s become no stranger to getting kicked out of his own bed when Sydney comes over – you and her taking it over to watch a movie or giggle while watching TikTok videos for hours on end. Most days he’s so glad that you found a friend in each other, while other days, he’d very much like his bed back. 

“Well, babe. I won’t keep you. I’ll see you Sunday?” Carmy asks, more than happy to let you spend time with your friends. 

“See ya Sunday, honey,” you reply before ending the call. 

You toss your phone on your bed with a sigh as Sydney fake vomits at your sickeningly sweet goodbye. 

“Did you nap?” she asks you. 

“Dude I passed the fuck out,” you reply, enthusiastically. 

“I don’t know how you do it. Like, I think I’ve seen you sleep in…” she starts, trying to pull together a rough guesstimate in her head of how many times she’s seen you nap in a public place. “... more places than I can count.”

“OH! I have not forgotten about your little… photo album,” you remind her, in reference to the photo collection of you sleeping that she has of you. “I’m begging you to release this photo album AT our wedding brunch.” 

And you’re only half-joking about it. 

“Did you get a nap in?”

“Nah.” 

You take another breath as you and Sydney lay next to each other, settling into a comfortable quiet as you reflect on the moment you had with Sugar yesterday, suddenly consumed with an immense amount of gratitude for her and Sydney’s presence in your life. 

“Shit…” you exhale. 

“What’s up?” Sydney asks you, turning her head to look over at you this time. 

“Somebody should’ve warned me that getting married would like… bring up all these extra feelings about… literally everything,” you admit, your eyes fixed to the patterns on the popcorn ceiling above you. 

“Oh god,” she groans. “Don’t tell me you’re pregnant.”

“God no!” you snort, reassuring her that you just finished your period. 

You and Sydney exchange another laugh, and a look of mutual affection, before returning your gazes back to the ceiling. 

“You wanna… talk about it?” Sydney asks, carefully. 

It’s not that you and Sydney don’t do the heavy stuff together, but she’s become one of your best friend because she makes you laugh harder than anyone ever has, so it always feels different – foreign in a way – when you have these moments together. 

Your friendship with Syd is lighter. It’s laugh until your abs hurt kind of lighter. 

But you know she’s here for all the rest of it too. 

“Uh… sure,” you answer, as you share what’s on your mind. “I’ve just been so nostalgic lately. Just thinking about… you know… me and Carmy’s relationship. The life I’ve built with him. You guys….”

“Ew,” she jokes, her face twisting into an expression of repulsion. 

“I know,” you groan, unable to stifle the life that escapes your lips. 

“Not to get all, you know, emotional or anything,” Sydney starts, shrugging it off like it’s no big deal. 

“But like… I wanted to work with Carmy, you know? Which is why I came to The Beef. And… It was a lot.” She pauses, thinking about what she wants to say next as you nod along because you know it was a lot. “I wanted to learn from him and… I wanted to be somewhere that I could make an impact – where I could make something good.”

And in the spirit of being sappy and nostalgic Syd continues. 

“And… I never thought, like, in a million years… that on top of building a restaurant… I’d meet you. You’re like… one of my best friends.” 

“Woahhhh,” you tease her, pretending to be surprised. 

“You’re ridiculous.”

“I know.”

You both take a beat, knowing that you’re both using humor to deflect from the moment of vulnerability that you’re sharing. 

“Syd?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re one of my best friends too.”

Saturday

“This isn’t me. I mean… none of this… is me,” you say to yourself, examining your reflection in the mirror. “I mean. We’re getting married at the courthouse, you know?!” 

Maya had booked you an appointment at one of those high end bridal boutiques where they make a custom sign for you and serve champagne, and while it was more than a lovely gesture, even the least-fancy dresses here still don’t feel right.

“I figured as much but thought we’d give it a shot,” Maya sighs, disappointedly, as Syd and Nat exchange glances. 

“If it helps, your tits look great,” Liz suggests, earning a laugh from you because, she’s not wrong and it may be the highlight of this dress stop. 

A mischievous smile spreads across your lips as you say: 

“C’mon. I have an idea!”

It’s those five words that lead you to the most ridiculous bridal consignment shop with the floofiest gowns you’ve seen all day. Deciding that you should have a little more fun with today, you use the fact that you’re the bride and it’s your weekend to convince your friends that they have to try the most extravagant and silly dresses on with you.

“Oh my god! Well we’re going to make beautiful brides,” Maya gasps facetiously, as she steps out of the fitting room in what can only be looked at as a ball gown. 

“I’m pretty sure this thing has a built-in petticoat,” Liz adds, spinning around in the dress she’s tried on, something that looks like it should be what one milks cows in. 

“I’m SO sending this to Patrick,” you laugh, snapping photo after photo on your phone while Nat cackles along with you. “I think you guys are going to have to get married again just so you can wear this dress.”

Before you know it, Sydney is pushing you into a dressing room with another dress to try on, promising you that she’ll try something on this time too. It takes way too long to put on the ball of taffeta, and Sugar has to come in to help figure out what goes where, before you emerge once again, like a cotton ball of a bride. 

“Well, I think this is the one,” you joke, staring at your reflection in the mirror. 

“And we can’t forget thiiiiiis,” Maya says in a sing-song voice, adding a hand beaded veil to your head this time. 

“Wait, this is actually really pretty,” Nat says, in reference to the veil. 

You agree with her, as Maya slips away to grab a few more dresses from out front, before turning your attention to the still-closed dressing room that Syd is hiding in. 

“Sydney Adamu. Get your ass out here!” you holler, just as she makes her dramatic entrance, pulling back the curtain to the fitting room. 

“Oh my god!” you gasp, the minute you see her in the beaded, fitted white dress. Aside from the mermaid tail-like hem, the fitted bodice fits her like a glove. “Ummm… this is hot!” 

“Excuse me?!” Nat squeals as Liz simultaneously adds, “Okay, miss thing! Give us a walk! Give us a spin.” 

“You guys are out of control,” Sydney says, gesturing towards the three of you, even though she knows you’re right. 

She looks phenomenal. 

“Okay, okay. Go try these on. I think I finally found some good ones,” Maya encourages. And before you can even protest, she’s handing you a few hangers worth of white dresses and shoving you into a dressing room while Syd continues to strut around the fitting room area. 

You smile to yourself, listening to your friends giggle and squeal over the silly dresses, while you hang up the few that Maya’s picked out for you. One in particular catches your eye: a slip-like silhouette with a high halter-like neckline that cuts low in the back. You run your fingers over the smooth material and decide to try this one on first. 

The dress fits a little big, and the hemline is a little long, but it’s nothing you can’t take to a tailor. You pinch the fabric, picturing what it would look like fitting a little closer to your body as you shout:

“Guys!!” 

“What? Did we do the impossible? You find something you actually like?” Sydney teases you, as you pull the curtain back. 

“Um… well it needs to be taken in some. And hemmed. But… yeah,” you reply, the reactions immediate on your friend’s faces as soon as they see you. 

Maya gasps, while Liz’s jaw drops. Tears well in Nat’s eyes while Syd rubs a few soothing circles on Nat’s upper back. 

“Holy shit,” Liz says. 

“We did the impossible,” Maya adds, awestruck. “We actually found something that you, the anti-bride, actually like.”

“Oh sweetheart, you look so, so beautiful,” Nat whispers, so overwhelmed with emotion as she thinks of you and Carmy. And because this is so not any of you, Sugar can’t help herself, instantly deflecting with a dry, “God, I can’t believe you haven’t left his ass,” as the five of you burst into another fit of giggles. 

As the laughter subsides, and the reality that you’re going to marry the love of your life sets in, you stare back at yourself in the mirror once more, the words falling out of your mouth. 

“Yeah. I… think this is it.”

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

Crowded around the dinner table, the five of you work through what seems like a never-ending amount of Chinese takeout, as you wonder to yourself who let Liz over-order when you’re all leaving tomorrow morning. You sit next to Sydney, one of her knees tucked into her chest as she listens to all the drama from Liz’s last kitchen job. 

“Shit,” Sydney commiserates. “When do you just say ‘fuck it’ and start your own spot?”

“Uh… when I marry rich and don’t have to worry about the business of it all?” Liz replies, earning an ‘amen’ from Nat and a laugh from you. 

“I always knew,” Maya says, a sure smile on her face as she changes the subject. 

“What?” you ask her, quizzically. 

“I always knew that you and Carmy would end up together,” she replies with a certain amount of aplomb that baffles you. 

It’s a simultaneous “How could you know?” from Liz and “How could you know that?” from Sydney, and an “I didn’t even know!” from you, as Nat exclaims a skeptical, “My brother?!”

“I knew! Because…” she declares insistently. 

“I saw the way that Carmen looked at you. How he always looked at you. Even when you thought you were just friends. Even when you guys banged and thought you fucked it all up. And especially when he finally got over himself and invited you to Chicago.”

It’s a strange feeling, that one of your best friends in the whole wide world could see something that you, for a long time, could barely understand yourself, and it reminds you of the magnitude of you and Carmy’s love story. 

“That was really beautiful,” Sydney admits, so casually that you have to laugh. 

“You always were his biggest champion,” you say, earning a confident nod from Maya. 

“Hey, remember when he was so nervous to even talk to you that he spilled your drink all over you?” Liz brings up, almost jokingly as you all burst out into laughter. 

“You were soooooo mad.”

“So mad!” you agree passionately. 

“Poor guy didn’t know what he was doing,” Liz chuckles. 

“What an asshole,” Nat adds, as she and Sydney exchange a knowing look. 

“Well. I will cheers to that,” you announce, even though you know, for all the shit you give him, he is and always will be the love of your life. 

“To our last night here in Savannah. And you, our best friend, in all of her anti-bride glory who got us all here this weekend. And to Carmy, for loving our girl. Our king and queen of (not-so-much-anymore) denial,” Maya toasts, holding up her glass. 

You cheers with your friends, exchanging laughs and quips as your glasses clink. You look around the table, and it’s not just the wine you’re drinking that brings a warmth to your cheeks. There’s Liz and Maya, the friends that loved you through your life before Carmy, through hating him, and eventually, through falling in love with him. And then there’s Nat and Syd, the two women who, had you and Carmy not taken a chance on each other, you never would’ve met. Never would’ve gotten to know. Never would’ve gotten to love. 

You’re starting to understand this whole bachelorette party thing. You may not have bridesmaids, or all of the bells and whistles that come with having a big ceremony, but the love that you have in your life is bigger than just romantic love. 

It’s in this room right now, a living, breathing thing that fills the air and warms you from the inside out. 

It’s palpable, it’s real, and most importantly, it’s yours.

#carmen berzatto x you #carmy berzatto #carmy x oc #the bear hulu #the bear fx #jeremy allen white #carmen 'carmy' berzatto #carmy berzatto x reader #carmen berzatto x reader #carmen berzatto #carmy berzatto headcanon #the bear headcanon #carmy berzatto imagines #carmy berzatto fluff #comfort and chaos #still into you #make my heart surrender #dont want to walk alone

[silenzahra]

Heeeeeres the ask! Ahem…

🤗✨🎶 🤲

In reference to this ask game ✨

Yayyyy thank you for sending a second ask, sweetie!!! 😁😁😁 And with so many questions, oh WOW 🤩🤩🤩 Let's get to it!!! 💖💖💖

🤗 - Don't hold back. Whatever it is that you wanna throw on your fic: throw it. A fic should be written first and foremost for yourself alone, and if then it turns out there's people out there who also enjoy it, double win! But considering you're writing fanfiction, it should totally be self-indulgent. You should write want you want to write, whether it is the characters going on an adventure, maybe getting married, just being happy together, or even, as I did once, re-writing something that happened in the canon media that you would've liked to end differently. The point of fanfiction, as I see it, is to enjoy playing with your favorite characters from whatever franchise. See where you can lead them to with your ideas. Take pleasure in putting them in situations, whether good or bad. To sum it up: write what you wanna write and enjoy! 💖

✨ - Oh... Here we go again 😅 @pepperycar sent me this one a few days ago, so, to add to what I replied there, I'll say that I feel very proud of myself when I manage to get a scene done in the exact way that I had it in my mind. The feelings, the actions, the way I build everything up to lead to the climax... and also, the endings. Most times I usually come up with a sentence that closes everything and I'm just like, "Heck yeah, I did it 😎" I don't know if I'm sounding too self-satisfied, but that's usually how I feel 😅

🎶 - Oh yes, another one! 😁 This time I actually know very well what to answer, so I'll just throw this and... iykyk 🤭😎

(You can see my previous answers for this question here and here if you're curious! ✨)

🤲 - Aaaaand, to answer this one, related to the previous question... how about a bit more of my Luigi's Mansion 3 fic? 🤭😎

First snippet of this fic here ✨

In the middle of his race, Luigi stops suddenly, turns around and lifts the Poltergust.

A barrel is about to crash against him, but Luigi quickly presses the button to expel air and manages to repel it. He smiles, satisfied, when he sees the bewilderment in the face of the ghost that threw it at him, but when it begins to smile in return, Luigi shudders as he notices that he cannot see the other yellow specter.

Before he can turn around to try to locate it, a barrel collides with his head from above.

Luigi lets out a gasp as he falls to the ground, stunned, the Poltergust escaping from his hand. The laughter of the ghosts and the shark reaches him from far away, but even farther he hears Mario's voice, still calling out to him, now with desperation. Luigi wishes he could answer him, open his eyes, get up and run to him, make his way through the ghosts in any way he could and join his brother.

But his body feels useless. He sees only darkness all around him, dense, dizzying, encroaching, and Luigi plunges into it without even realizing he's doing so. His head hurts like hell and increasingly muffled moans emerge from his throat. For a few seconds, he loses all sense of who he is, where he is and what is happening.

For a few seconds, it's just him, the darkness and the pain.

An intense roar suddenly brings him back to reality.

Luigi opens his eyes with a shriek and sits up, all in one movement. He sees before him, in the distance, the board with the target, moving from left to right, and the prow behind it. Blinking, he realizes how much his head hurts and closes his eyes as he rubs his temple. As he slowly tries to turn around to position himself, he's overcome by a dizziness that causes him to groan.

As a result, it takes him a while to realize that, once again, the ship is tilting.

Yep! This is the exact reason why I chose that song on the previous question 🤭😌

As always, this may be worded differently whenever it's posted, as it's a WIP, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway @itsavee4117! I'll also tag @vulpixfairy1985 @keakruiser @bberetd @pepperycar

@peaches2217 @kelbreyworshipper @nuctoria in case you'd like to read this! 💖

This is the latest ask I've gotten for this game, and how I've enjoyed each and every single one of them!!! 🥹🥹🥹 Thank you again to those of you who sent me an ask for it, I really appreciate it!!! I've truly LOVED answering them and sharing snippets for my upcoming WIPs 😁 (wouldn't say no to doing something similar in the future 🤭💖)

In case you missed some of them and would like to get to them, you can check all my answers to this game here! Thank you again, and of course, I'm more than open to receiving more asks either for this game or for anything else! 🫂🫂🫂 (I may take some time to get to them though!)

💖💖💖

#asks #asks answered #ask game #writer ask game #ask away #ask me anything #ask me questions #send asks #fanfic writer emoji ask #writing #writer #writers on tumblr #writer asks #WIP #snippets #silenzahra

[katyahina]

Darkner species headcanons post (with pictures!)

Hello! Well, here I go and lay down my thoughts about Darkners here, because I really love them. This post is made at January 2021, so these might be deconfirmed by the full game, however I am using them for now and for our AU called Thus Spoke The Prophesy (TSTP)

I was quite conflicted about connection between Light World and Dark World, whether you could kill the darkner by destroying their object in the Light World, so I decided to go with as much liberty here as I could! Proto Fountain helps the darkness to have shape, whereas isolated, it is a substance that is ready to start properly existing but needs some sentence, some perception.

I like to imagine that Seam was ‘born’ with a sick/missing eye already, because the plushie was missing an eye at the moment of giving them shape. Don’t copy damaged objects, folks! However, what happens with the object AFTER Darkner exists concerns this Darkner very little, if at all...

I struggled on what to make out of Ralsei’s parents... I assume DW!Toriel doesn’t exist because it is not likely Asgore would ever let go of his ring, and objects that are actively wanted, used and loved elude darkness and can’t become a Darkner. Ralsei might just have one parent... 

I used to think that because there were many Rudinns, they were number cards, but ended up with a better solution. Since they resemble Kanotynes’ Jack of Diamond card - they all are Jacks! I like to think that Rudinns we met are all children of the current royal Diamonds couple! Applies to Hathys as well.

So to conclude, even if there is just one deck of playing cards in the entire Hometown - that is still enough to have dinasties and more than one royal family of the same suit - same for chess pieces! Because number cards have no real appearance - their best shot is to resemble face cards... unless this chunk of darkness becomes something else instead. Number Hearts might as well turn into inanimate metal objects and have shape just for the heck of it.

Heeeeere it is! Life in the Dark World goes on by it’s own strange logic, Darkners are not quite like us and I chose to not apply same biology rules as we have to them. Basically, if a kid asked you where do babies come from - what fairytale or evasive responce would you come up with? That is probably what ACTUALLY happens in the Dark World!

The most you can get is nonsexually happening pregnancy since it is an E-rated concept anyways... Think of how many kids know what is pregnancy if they’re expecting a younger sibling in the family. Or how there are pregnant Barbie dolls but no Ken dolls with dicks. With Spade suit, it is not important which parent gives a “birth”, since both will have belly mouth pocket dimension.

This bit is concidered my “official” headcanon, more ‘biological’ concepts and such go into AUs, speculations and what-if scenarios because I try to keep open to alternative ideas anyways.

Darkners don’t make a conscious choice what to be born as, they are born on what piece of darkness that turned into them aligned more with. And so, they can’t just decide to use another template entirely. Their liberty ends at altering their outfits as long as they are still recognizeable, because more often than not, Darkner’s clothes are also part of their body! Like Rouxls’ strange merged boots-pants and gloves-sleeves, like Diamond Queen’s hood-hair, like how many plushies have their clothes sew-in and irremoveable.

Like shown in this example, status change can cause them to change physically too. Something similar happens with K. Round, although it is mostly because you can actually power-boost a checker piece in the game of checkers.

I like to imagine that in Deltarune verse, playing cards also used to be drawn differently long time ago... So yeah, watch me draw young Spade King more greyish and froggish soon! Within change of appearance of the object of same concept in the Light World, a Darkner can look a bit more like it too - so Spade Queen can’t just start looking like Heart Queen card as she lives longer, but she can start looking like more modern Spade Queen card. However, it doesn’t work with individual objects like plushies, dolls, pieces of concrete puzzle, individual art and craft objects... Only with “concept” things.

Spade King’s life purpose was connected to Lightners that came before Kris and Susie... well, that gotta sting! Darkners that refuse to complete their purpose just to remain immortal are controlled by the closest current darkner to a Grim Reaper - such as tarot Death, Ace of Spades, etc... Similar to how Light Worlds cryptids such as Riverperson or Sans come from kind that controls boss monsters who refuse to ever have children for immortality and puts particularly disturbed Red SOULs and Ghosts to peace. Dark World aspires for balance too, save for people infected with Chaos.

#deltarune #deltarune headcanons #deltarune theory #darkners #spade queen #diamond queen #seam #seam deltarune #spade king #lancer #mochi #mochi tstp #heart queen #heart king #hathy #rudinn #two of clubs #two of clubs tstp #jevil #deltarune worm #rouxls kaard #ralsei #senator brakcole #jigsawry #deltarune tstp #tstp #dr #woah i actually tagged all these characters #my art #thus spoke the prophecy

[phantomnationdraws]

I Love You 3000

It’s here it’s here it’s heeeeere!!! The final product of the collab between myself and @thdorkmagnet​!! I strongly recommend listening to this version of the Blood Moon Waltz as you read, for maximum feels.

https://soundcloud.com/ubercelloczar/cleaved-together

Marco ran up the driveway of his house, panting from exertion as he jogged steadily on the uneven ground, clutching a large box tightly in his hands, making sure not to ruin the steaming hot pizza inside. He didn’t slow for a second, keeping his focus and attention entirely on the front door to his house, which he kicked open without hesitation, lacking the hands to turn the doorknob, already knowing it was left unlocked. After all, any burglar dumb enough to try and break in would find himself biting off way more than he could chew, since both he and Star were well trained in combat. 

The red-clad teen was breathing heavily as he stepped into the living room of his wonderful home, the lights all turned off and what had to be at least a dozen candles all lit and scattered about the room, creating an absolutely breathtaking and romantic atmosphere. The boy used the back of his foot to close the door behind him, before calling out loudly to his seemingly empty house, “Star, I’m home!” 

Normally, he would keep his voice down this late at night out of fear of waking his family up but both Mariposa and his parents were gone for the night, his sister to stay overnight with her best friend Meteora and his parents away on an overnight camping trip in the Forest of Certain Death with Star’s parents (the four adults becoming very close friends in the few years since the Great Cleaving), leaving the house to just him and Star. Just the way they wanted it. 

The boy took a few steps forward, looking around for his girlfriend somewhere in the darkness of the room, only to be practically toppled over as Star appeared out of nowhere and trapped him in a surprise hug. “Marco!” she shouted in delight, squeezing him as tightly as ever, while the hooded teen screamed, holding the box over his head to avoid dropping it as Star continued to cling to his midsection. “I’m so glad you’re back!” the blonde cheered, her voice as bubbly as ever and the boy couldn’t help but grin.

“Yep, I’m back,” Marco said with an enthusiastic smile down at his loving girlfriend. “Sorry it took me so long, Emilio’s was closed after a herd of Snippergriffs apparently got inside, so I had to improvise.”

Star rolled her eyes, finally releasing her grip on her Marco, putting her hands on her hips. “Ugh, dang, Snippergriffs, they ruin everything!” the blonde muttered angrily, cursing the very nature of the pesky critters of her homeland. 

Marco, seeing his girlfriend’s distraught behavior, quickly changed the subject as he looked around the room, which almost radiated with an otherworldly glow. “I see you were busy while I was gone.” 

Star’s bright enthusiasm returned full-force as she looked around the room with pride, saying with satisfaction, “Yeah, I thought this way it would all be much more romantic.” She arched her eyebrows knowingly on the last word, causing Marco to chuckle. “Do you like it?” the girl asked hopefully, her hands hovering near her mouth in anticipation for her boyfriend’s opinion.

The boy nodded happily. “I love it! It’s perfect, Star,” Marco said, setting the pizza down on a nearby coffee table. “Now then, do you know what today is?” the boy asked, doing little finger guns in the air for emphasis.

“Uhh,” Star began, thinking the question over. “Date night?”

Marco shook his head, “Well, yeah but you know what else it is?”

“Hmmm,” the blonde said, tapping a finger to her chin. “Friendship Thursday?”

The hooded teen frowned in disappointment, asking in a hinting tone, “Anything else?”

Star contemplated this for a few seconds, the boy growing more and more disappointed with each passing second before Star snapped her fingers and said confidently, “The last day for Stop N’ Slurp’s half-off sale.”

Marco shrank at that answer, looking sadly at the ground. He couldn’t believe Star had forgotten how special today was. The blonde seeing the depressed look on her boyfriend’s face, quickly added, “Marco, I’m just teasing of course I know what today is.”

The latino’s sad frown turned into a bright grin as he and Star shouted as one, “The anniversary of the Blood Moon Ball!” The two burst out into laughter at their shared sentence, Star clutching her stomach as she practically doubled-over from her giggle fit, Marco very lightly grabbing onto the girl’s shoulders to keep her upright as he tried to fight through his own laughter. Finally, the two recovered from their laughing fit, wiping tears from their eyes as Marco said, “Can’t believe we still do that.”

“I know, right,” Star said, opening the box of pizza and taking out a slice. She plopped down on the couch, before patting the seat next to her beckoning Marco over. The boy smiled, picking up his own slice, before sitting down beside her, the girl laying sideways on the couch and resting her legs on the boy’s lap as she practically inhaled the pizza slice, munching on it greedily. “It’s funny,” Star said, in between bites of food, not even bothering to swallow as she spoke in a muffled tone. “After the curse was broken, I thought we wouldn’t do that anymore” 

“Guess it had nothing to do with the curse,” Marco replied, before taking a bite of his own slice.

“Guess not,” Star said, before moaning in delight. “Oh man, Marco! This pizza is delicious!”  

Marco nodded his head in agreement, “Yeah, it is! Looks like we just found our new favorite pizza place, right Star?”

Star giggled, before saying in a teasing tone, “Don’t let Emilio hear you say that, considering what happened last time.”

Marco blushed, looking away from his pretty girlfriend. “Come on, Star. That was like three years ago,” he whined in embarrassment.

Star laughed at her Marco’s cuteness before sitting up and planting a kiss on his bright red cheek. “You’re adorable,” she cooed.

“Not as adorable as you,” Marco replied with a playful smirk, his cheeks just slightly painted pink.

“Aww, Marco,” the blonde gushed, putting a hand to her flushing cheeks. “You spoil me.”

“Oh, then just wait and see what I have planned for later,” the hooded teen said with a wink.

Star’s eyes widened in curiosity, before demanding, “Ooh, tell me, tell me, tell me!”

Marco shook his head stubbornly. “Nuh uh, it’s a surprise,” the boy declared. 

“Aww come on, Marco, just tell me,” the girl pouted, crawling into his lap as she gave him sad, puppy-dog eyes. 

“Nope, your famous pout isn’t working on me this time,” the boy said, raising his head up so he wouldn’t meet her hypnotic eyes. He knew from experience how easy it was to fall into that trap.

“Oh, Marco,” Star said in a sing-song voice, grabbing his chin and pulling his head down so their eyes met. “Just tell me, pwease.” She gave him the saddest, most heart wrenching look she had in her arsenal, even going so far as to whine and quiver her lip.

Marco felt his will crack, his pupils shrinking as he stared into the gorgeous eyes of his favorite person in the world. There were few things that could sway Marco’s judgement and make him lose all sense of anything, and he was staring into one of them right now, the crystal blue of her wide eyes making his heart do a dance. 

“Ok, fine,” the boy groaned in defeat, he knew when he had been bested by his bestie. 

The blonde clapped her hands, shouting in joy, “Yay!”

He quickly moved his girlfriend off his lap, before saying, “Be right back, I left it in my room.”

“Okay!” Star called after him, practically hopping on the couch as she watched him leave. In the span of about thirty seconds Marco returned, the blonde having time to engulf another slice of the delicious pizza before staring up at her boyfriend with curious blue eyes, her cheeks still stuffed with pizza.

Marco couldn’t help but grin down at the love of his life, her expression making his heart melt all over again. Could she seriously get any cuter? he thought to himself.

“Okay, so, I was gonna wait a little bit before showing you this,” Marco began, keeping his hands behind his back so as to not spoil his surprise. “But then, someone had to go and cheat.” He gave her a halfhearted glare.

The girl swallowed her food before smirking mischievously. “Come on, you know you love me,” she said flirtingly.

The boy nodded at that before declaring with zero hesitation, “Of course I do. But that still doesn’t make it alright.” He gave her a teasing look, which she returned with one of her own.

“Hey, all’s fair in love and war, Diaz,” Star said with a playful wink.

“Anyways,” the boy continued, getting back on subject before he found himself gushing over his cute girlfriend all over again. “I figured since this is a special occasion, I’d show you this.”

He held out a pair of earbuds to Star who eyed them questioningly. “Uh, Marco, I already know you have earbuds.”

“Put one in,” Marco told her cryptically.

Star hesitantly obeyed, confusion still obvious on her face as she inserted the small circular device into her left ear. But as the soft notes hit her tender eardrum Star’s mouth fell open, listening in disbelief as the smooth melody she knew by heart played, every note practically etched into her heart. A flood of memories came back to her at once, filling her with euphoric nostalgia, as the unmistakable notes of the Blood Moon Waltz played into her ear. 

She looked up at Marco with disbelief, who had been watching her closely for her reaction and he smiled brightly. “You- How did you- Where did-” the girl stuttered, unable to find words as a lump formed in her throat, tears filling at the edges of her eyes as she choked on a small sob.

Marco stared down at her with soft, loving eyes as he asked her simply, “Do you like it?”

Star nodded, wiping at her eyes to free them of happy tears. “I love it!” she squeaked out. “How did you even find this song?”

The boy shrugged. “I have my ways.”

“Tom,” the girl guessed.

“Tom,” the boy confirmed with a slight nod. “He had a version recorded just for us.”

“I missed this song so much,” the girl sighed, melting into the music as she lost herself to the irresistible tune. 

For a few seconds, the two just listened to the graceful melody, before Marco sucked in a breath and held out a hand to his girlfriend. “May I have this dance?”

Star giggled, taking his hand and allowing him to pull her to her feet, before dropping into a graceful curtsey. “You may, kind sir.”

The two shared a laugh as they moved closer to each other, their bodies pressed together as they locked hands. Marco rested a hand on the small of Star’s back, drawing her even closer to his warm presence as he drank in her smell. She always smelled of roses and vanilla and he felt his heart rate increase as she laid her head against this chest. 

The boy then began to lead them in a slow waltz around the dimly lit living room, their movements slow but purposeful, moving perfectly in time and sync with their chosen partner. The sound of the gentle waltz drowning out the world around them until it was just the two of them, captured in this moment in time. 

Star couldn’t think of when she had been happier, surrounded by warm feelings and sounds as she listened with one ear to the graceful ball music and, with the other, was soothed by the rhythmic pumping of her dear Marco’s heartbeat. The girl snuggled into Marco’s chest after a moment, just loving having him here with her. Nothing in all of Earthni able to make her happier. 

Marco clutched Star tightly against him, listening to her gentle breathing as he rested his cheek on the top of her head, her soft hair tickling his skin, and he smiled, feeling complete. He couldn’t believe how lucky he was to have Star in his life, and there wasn’t a day that went by that he didn’t thank all the forces in the universe for this chance to be loved by someone as wonderful as Star Butterfly.  

The two sighed in contentment as they let the music wash over them, taking them back to a simpler time when it was just the two of them trapped under the glow of a single red light. And just like that, it was as if they were back in that moment, time falling away from them as the music continued on an endless loop, sealing them inside its graceful notes. 

The two smiled in bliss, their cheeks beginning to burn as, without warning, a pair of hearts and crescent moons formed on their cheeks, remnants of the magical connection the two shared, one that defied logic and space itself. Nothing in the universe could separate the two again as they shared this dance. 

“Marco,” the girl whispered, her eyes still closed as she was led slowly around in a circle. 

“Hmm?” the boy muttered, incapable of words at the moment, a swirl of emotions causing his head to spin.

“I missed this,” Star said simply, her hand squeezing his tightly.

The boy paused for a moment, not entirely sure what she meant when she said ‘this’. Until he realized she meant dancing to this song and he almost choked on a sob. “Me too,” he replied softly.

“I’m glad we didn’t lose this moment,” Star continued, and Marco felt his heart swell to almost bursting. “Cause there’s no one I’d rather be here with than you. And I just have to tell you one more thing...” Then Star gently leaned her head in, gazing in wonder at Marco’s loving eyes. She took her chance to whisper something in his ear, something that caused the Latino’s cheeks to turn crimson. Marco smiled dorkily before kissing her forehead softly. “Same here, Star,” he said as their eyes met in another tender glow, pupils shining in the glow of their cheeks and candlelight, reflecting all the thoughts and feelings and emotions that had brought them to this moment. Time had lost on meaning on the two young souls as they continued their dance for what felt to them like eternity.

“Same here.”

#starco #star x marco #star butterfly #marco diaz #svtfoe #star vs the forces of evil #star vs fanart #avengers endgame #endgame #marvel #fanart #thdorkmagnet #collab

[tirednotflirting]

okay okay okay let's do it. 4, 24, 25, 26, 35, and 39 bc you deserve to be nice to yourself. yes i read the entire list of questions. give me your answers at your leisure love you the most xoxo bella

lol thnk you my love u are Right i just forget that sometimes <3

okie dokie here we go:

4. Link your three favorite fics right now.

heck yeah okay RIGHT NOW? okay.

i have been LOVING ! off the wall by @ilovegolden from the very beginning. warped tour au is a god tier au, alright? i love how the whole thing is so romanticized by everyone who was ever involved in it, especially as someone who never got to go it brings me a lot of joy. the characters in this are all so vibrant and bright and i wanna be their best friend and also just give them a hug (and probably a nap and shower lol). the detail in this is so special and carefully crafted like i feel the love in it. i read so little harry fic nowadays like keeping up with this has made me so nostalgic too. really looking forward to where this guy goes :)))

(i stg i’m not kissing ass here) i fucking love daydream jalex (aka right now could last forever (just as long as i'm with you) like quite literally babe it’s my emotional support fic i almost have a ritual of reading this probably once a week. the story telling in this is unreal like you’re sucked into their little world from the first line where they’re throwing fucking cheese at each other. there’s so much history woven into every line like it’s wild i don’t know how you do it. there’s so much love and joy between all the characters and it’s just FUN. this fic really highlights all of the best things about your writing like i could go on for days. <3

lastly, bc i was beginning to reread it the other day, i think i’m going with the one and only britpop malum (orrrr i took a walk with my fame down memory lane (i never did find my way back) by @calumcest) (god helen your url never fails to make me giggle at least a little bit). one of my favorite things about helen’s writing is how fly on the wall i immediately feel in every scene. she shows and tells it all and i can see the lights from the show and heat liam bitching about the band and football and it’s such a good time living inside of her writing for a little while. i’m always going to hold this fic close to my heart i think after spending the entire summer sitting in the doc. (side note - it still kills me that every once in a while after reading this fic i forget the gallaghers are real people ANYWAY.) excited to get caught up on this thing i miss this little world <3

(sorry idk how to provide short answers on Anything :    )

24. What’s a trope that you’d like to never hear about as long as you live, let alone write?

see this is hard for me because i know for a fact that there are LOADS of tropes i would never want to write but i’ve read a ridiculous number of them and i’m not necessarily opposed to much (something for everybody, ya know?). i guess like a True enemies to lovers is a little bit lame and hard to do well, imo (i say true bc i almost feel like something like sugar on the asphalt - fucking fantastic and a Classic from @justanchorandhope i must say - could fall into that category except not really though bc grace probably doesn’t have the word enemy in her vocabulary, bless her heart). so okay we’ll go with that bc you probably couldn’t pay me enough to write it and i’m bored of trying to read it (said w love)

25. Do you listen to music as you write? If possible, link your writing playlist.

only if i’m writing songfic tbh! otherwise it confuses my brain. so all too well is still in my on repeat and currently it’s cornelia street (lol i rlly need THAT to go somewhere sdkfsfdjkl). i do have this playlist from when i tried writing this ashton fic last spring that went literally Nowhere but ya know good tunes. (god i came up with the coolest OCs last spring, miss them)

26. What’s your biggest distraction when writing?

oh god basically everything sldkfjsdlk i guess like i kinda just said, i cannot listen to music 95% of the time when trying to write. i wish i could but it would making 3248290x more of a headache and it also usually just gives me other ideas and then i can’t focus on the doc in front of me lol.

35. How much has writing fic changed your life?

like more than i could ever even begin to describe, dude. so i’m a stem girl, right? but when i was younger, my creativity was a lot more present and living inside my head and reading and writing little stories was so much fun. there was some kinda switch as i got older and i think those around me started preaching practicality a lot more and like, i was good in science and it was an easy route to a career and heeeeere we are. but it also meant i didn’t get any practice at being creative and i think at some point the jokes about not being good at or being allowed to be creative really got to me? so i just gave up the idea of the ideas i had ever really becoming anything. idk exactly what it was (something mixed into my conversations w helen last spring, probably) that got me to open up a doc one day and give it a shot but jesus christ, i’m so happy i did. writing fic is quite literally the biggest thing that brought me joy and community and some of the kindest souls (like yourself, miss bella) during a year that was set to be potentially pretty shitty. i wasn’t sure how i would be able to make friends in ‘adulthood’ but a creative outlet like this appears to be the answer. it’s also provided me a confidence in myself and my ability to create things that i never knew possible. like you said, i can be pretty mean to myself but like. i’m good at this. and that’s fucking cool. happy to be here.

39. What’s something about your writing that you pride yourself on?

ya know that luke/lashton thing i wrote with a single line of dialogue? that. i pride myself on that. fkjsdlkf but really i think i’m pretty damn good at descriptive writing and i kinda dig how it’s become ~my thing~. i like showing rather than telling in my writing i think, it feels like a challenge. lemme talk about a sunset for dayyyyyys i swear i would. 

*

#thank u for these miss bella this was fun #i fucking love fic you guys it's such a blast #god tagging sota really made me realize how long ago i read that fic for the first time #i was around as that thing was being updated guys #i am Old #oh my god i just went back to the story page for that and it links to 1dff #rip our fallen hero #Anonymous

[ggukkiedae]

It Wasn’t Their Fault

notes: bitna’s heeeeere and bonding with chanwoo bc they hate the fact that they fought for real. so something is cleared up after four years in this little post, but it’s also just mostly bitna and chanwoo fluff

feel free to leave a reaction, suggestion, request, or literally anything! my askbox and pms are always open, and i’ll appreciate it a lot :3 enjoy!

-c

Bitna dropped herself down on her usual seat in the convenience store. It felt new to be there in the middle of the day and with someone other than Donghyuk. She just really wanted the strawberry bread rolls that were only sold in this specific convenience store. She laughed while Chanwoo hurriedly rushed over with his newly cooked ramen to place it on the table since it was burning his fingers.

“Grab the wrong parts of the bowl?” she asked him.

“My thumbs were in the soup, Bitna,” he grumbled while sitting down.

They both began to dig into their food. It was a comfortable silence, just like it always was when she’s with Chanwoo, but she could tell he wanted to ask something. She looked at him for a bit before speaking.

“Chanwoo, I can feel your curiosity.”

“Since when did you drop honorifics?” he raised an eyebrow at her.

“Since now because we grew closer after that fight,” Bitna smiled teasingly, “Seriously, though. Just ask.”

“Alright then,” Chanwoo put his chopsticks down for a while, “Who sent the bouquet yesterday?”

“Still think I have a secret boyfriend?” Bitna laughed.

“And this is why I didn’t want to ask,” Chanwoo rolled his eyes and continued eating. “Now, answer because I actually asked.”

“Actually,” Bitna picked at her strawberry bread, “those were from my parents.”

Chanwoo gasped, but he had noodles in his mouth. He started choking. Bitna laughed and opened his bottle of water and handed it to him. He repeatedly hit his chest before gulping down nearly half the bottle. He shook his head a little and closed the bottle.

“You’re meaning to tell me,” he looked at her, “that these same parents who stopped contacting you four years ago just sent you flowers?”

“Well, yeah,” Bitna shrugged, “The little note said that my number disappeared from their phones, and they only figured out where I’ve been staying recently.”

“I bet your sister did it,” Chanwoo scowled. Bitna’s eyes widened.

“Be quiet,” she looked around as if to check if anyone was listening, “only you and Jinhwan oppa know about my sister.”

“It’s not like the other guys are gonna be here,” Chanwoo waved off but lowered his tone anyway. “So? Did you try talking to them again?”

“I did,” Bitna smiled, “I called the number they put on the note last night. It was my dad’s number.”

Chanwoo nodded in a mix of pride and approval. He knew that she always used to say she’d never talk to her parents again, but she actually tried to clear things out with them.

“That’s great,” he opened a can of cola to give to her. “How did that go?”

“It’s not their fault,” Bitna told him. “They’re still really supportive of me. They said they’re waiting on my debut and that they’ve been watching me on Mix & Match and on Show Champion.”

“And your sister?”

“The same,” Bitna scowled, “She got on the phone at some point, told me she erased my number from our parents’ phones, then asked me to introduce her to you.”

“To me?” Chanwoo’s eyes widened. “No way! Why? What did you say?”

“Well, since you two are the same age,” Bitna pretended to think, “I told her I’d introduce you if she gave me 10,000 won.”

“Are you crazy?” Chanwoo yelled out loud, which made Bitna laugh. There was a small group of people passing by who started staring at Chanwoo because of his outburst. Bitna only continued to laugh while Chanwoo awkwardly apologized to them.

“Relax,” Bitna nudged his foot with hers, “She actually asked me to introduce her to Doyoung oppa, but I told her he'd never even look her way.”

“Good,” Chanwoo went back to his ramen, which was really just soup now. “Look at that. You and I had a somewhat deep talk in this convenience store. Does that mean I’m replacing Donghyuk hyung?”

“You wish,” Bitna picked up her trash and tossed it into the trash can. She cheered when it went straight in.

“Nice,” Chanwoo high fived her, “but really, what’s going to happen now with your family?”

“They’re coming up to Seoul next week,” she admitted.

“Not your sister, though,” he clarified.

“Wanna meet her, Chanwoo?” Bitna could only laugh at Chanwoo’s disgusted face. “No, it’s just mom and dad. I was hoping to bring one of you guys with me, but I don’t know who yet.”

“You can take me,” he suggested.

Bitna thought about it. Chanwoo was her best friend, and he’d be able to make her feel comfortable. He also didn’t hover over her like the older members did, so she wouldn’t feel like she had three parents at once. He was also close to her age, so he could help her elaborate on what it would be like as young idols just in case her parents would want to know more about her job.

“Sounds good,” she agreed, “I can tell them all about the member who bullies me.”

“Yah,” he chuckled, “I only bully you because you try to bully me. Now that you’re dropping honorifics, we are equals. That means I can mess around with you.”

“And I can mess around with you,” Bitna pointed out. “You’re practically giving me permission to do that.”

“I did not think that one through,” Chanwoo said to himself.

“What is this? Am I being replaced?”

The two turned to see a familiar figure standing of to the side with an amused smile. Bitna waved him over. Donghyuk sat with them and took a little pack of chips that Bitna had bought.

“I’m her new convenience store buddy,” Chanwoo told Donghyuk.

“In your dreams,” Bitna stuck her tongue out at him.

#ikon #ikon female addition #ikon female member #ikon 8th member #ikon 8th member au #jung chanwoo #chanwoo #chan #jung bitna #bitna #byul

[johannstutt413]

Originally, the only action during the sports events held at Rhodes Island’s event center was, well, the sports - Matoimaru’s soccer matches, Cuora’s baseball games, and the occasional competitions held by the Doctor for morale. However, since Durin brought her fellow Durin Myrtle home, she’d taken it upon herself to keep energy up with a few other high-spirited and mischievous Operators with a “pep squad” who went around doing mascot stunts, messing with audience members, and even doing cheer routines by splitting into two groups and each picking a side to root for, inevitably leading to sabotage between routines and “brawls” on the sidelines. It was amazing entertainment for those who didn’t enjoy sports, and it helped keep numbers up so the Doctor could justify to their sponsors keeping the game fields in good condition.

All that to explain why the Doctor was sitting with Durin watching a soccer game, cheering loudly as Myrtle’s group began their halftime shenanigans. “I really should thank you more often,” the Doctor beamed, handing Drowsy Dwarf herself a large container of popcorn.

“You’re welcome,” she smiled before downing the entire tub not too long after a few test scoops. “She’s so...peppy. It makes me tired looking at her.”

“Never change, Durin. Never change.” He gave her a couple pats on her shoulder and went back to watching the field in earnest.

-

The next day, Myrtle popped into the Doctor’s office. “Hey, Doctor. I’m here to hang out, if you don’t mind.”

“Mind? You? Never.” He gestured to the couch and empty desk in his office. “If you want to stick around, there’s plenty of space for you.”

“Great!” She bounced onto the couch, hands in her lap as if she was waiting for something to happen.

After a few minutes of watching her fidget and bounce on her couch, the Doctor clicked off his monitor and turned to face her. “You’ve got something on your mind, Myrtle. Lay it on me.”

“Oh! Yeah, I guess I do.” She gave him a serious look, the most serious he’d ever seen her. “Doctor, I need you to do me a favor.”

“Sure, whatever you need.”

Myrtle spun her golden apple by its string. “I need you to get people to stop thinking of me as a little kid. I’m a fully-grown adult - even tall by Durin standards! - and as much as I like the candy, it’s annoying that they’re always trying to pat my head and tell me to behave.”

“Wow...They really do that?” He smiled and shook his head. “I’ll put it on the bulletin, and if it keeps happening, tell me so I can do something more drastic.”

“Thanks!...You believed me really quickly. I appreciate that.”

The Doctor shrugged. “Why wouldn’t I? I know Durin aren’t as tall as some of the other races, but that doesn’t mean you’re any less of an adult.”

“I know, right?” She fell back onto the couch. “Finally, someone gets it!”

“Well, I spent a lot of time with Durin before you showed up. She was my assistant for awhile, actually.”

Myrtle chuckled. “That lazybones. She didn’t even come up with a cool name for herself, Doctor; what did she do as your assistant?”

“W-well...” He blushed. “I’ll admit, she didn’t do a lot of work. I just liked having her around.”

“Why isn’t she your assistant anymore?”

The Doctor sighed. “Too many interruptions. As we got more people, we had more interruptions, which meant she couldn’t sleep as much at the desk, so she quit. Been thinking about getting a replacement just so I’m less lonely in here.”

“Huh...I could do that.” Myrtle was now using her apple as a yo-yo. “I’m great at making people feel not-lonely!”

“That you are, that you are...You busy today?”

She shook her head. “Nope!”

“Well, then you start today.” He glanced at the clock. “We’ll eat lunch around noonish, so in the meantime...Just be you, I guess.”

“That’s it? You don’t have anything you want me to do? I mean, sure, Durin’s a napper, but I’d like to help you out, you know?”

The Doctor thought for a moment before shaking his head. “Maybe when we’ve gotten to know each other better.”

“Okey-dokey, Doctor.” Myrtle reclined on the couch. “...I think I’m gonna try taking a nap for once.”

“Huh. Well, have some good dreams for the both of us, kay?”

She laughed. “Will do!” And, not long thereafter, she was out like a light.

-

A few weeks later, and it was getting late. The work was practically non-existent; despite what he’d said about being busier, in reality, all he did was Human Resources and battlefield-level strategy, so it was only when other Operators had new complaints that he got to work proper...and so far, today was shaping up to be a rather unproductive one, if it weren’t for Myrtle being in the office to keep him company.

“-And then one of the Reunion guys with the crossbows popped a shot off at Hoshi, but the way her shield was spinning, it went flying off to the side, right into the goon Ch’en was fighting, and the guy just backed up and charged the guy he thought had shot him. We would’ve signed him on if he hadn’t gone back to dueling Ch’en after he was finished.”

“Wow.” She shook her head. “That’s crazy! And so was that guy, by the sound of it.”

The Doctor shrugged. “Well, not every Infected person has it as easy as me or, say, Schwarz. A lot of us end up with serious emotional, mental, or physical impediments. There’s a good chance that guy was driven to madness by his Infection.”

“Oh...I’m glad Durin and I aren’t infected, then.”

“Me, too,” he agreed. “Someone so cute shouldn’t- I mean-”

But it was too late. Myrtle looked at him from her perch on top of the couch, practicing her balance. “Did you just call me cute?”

“I did, but I didn’t mean, like, like a kid kind of cute, if that makes sense?”

“Uh-huh.” She shook her head. “Ah well, at least you said something now-”

He pounded his fist in the desk hard enough for her to jump. “I really didn’t! It’s just that I really like short girls.”

“...Eh?”

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have gotten mad like that.” The Doctor sighed. “It’s just so hard to explain that to some of the others, you know? They used to joke about me being Durin’s dad because we were together so often, and I cannot tell you how hard it got to keep myself under control. The teasing stopped when she got sick of waking up in the middle of her naps, so they didn’t see us together so often, but even at the baseball game yesterday, someone made a snarky comment. I just...anyway, it’s not your fault. All this started before you got here, anyway.”

Myrtle was quiet for a moment, watching him stare at his blank computer screen and absentmindedly twirl the mouse around, before smiling. “So you meant that like when people complain on TV shows about someone being ‘too young’ or ‘too beautiful to die,’ then?”

“I guess.”

“Huh.” She chuckled. “That’s kind of adorable, Doctor.”

He glanced back at her. “Thanks.”

“Aww, don’t be so grumpy. I mean it. It’s nice to hear that the Big Folk don’t all see us the same way.”

“Yeah...” The Doctor pushed back on his desk, launching himself backwards into the wall behind him. “It’s late enough to call it. I’m thinking of heading out early today.”

She frowned. “Are you sure? I thought this talk was going somewhere.”

“Going somewhere?...I don’t follow.”

“Well, you just said you think I’m cute,” Myrtle began explaining, swinging her legs on the couch, “and I wanna see what’s under that mask, so I was hoping you could come over here and show me.”

He shrugged. “If you wanna know, sure. It’s nothing special, I promise.” He walked over, pulled off his face protection, and approached the couch. “See?”

“No, hang on, get closer...I think you have something on your face.”

“I do? Where?” The Doctor got within arms’ reach of her, feeling around for anything that seemed out of the ordinary.

She giggled. “You’ve got to be messing with me, right? Come heeeeere.”

“Alright, but I don’t see what-” When he was finally in Myrtle’s strike zone, she made her move and kissed him on the cheek. “Wait, wait, what-”

“I told you there was something on your face, Doctor: my lip gloss.” She flashed him a dazzling, more than a little mischievous smile.

He stared at her. “I- You- What-”

“Are you serious?” Myrtle rolled her eyes with a laugh. “Do I just need to say it or what?”

“Please use words,” the Doctor replied, his hand tracing the faint trace of gloss on his cheek.

She sighed, shaking her head as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “Maybe Durin was right about carrying a megaphone so you Big People would hear me better. You have a thing for short girls, I’m a Durin who likes the idea of having a big strong man to bring home to Dad...are you following now?”

“I didn’t know the last part,” he mumbled, returning the embrace. “So you’re saying-”

“I’m saying that we can make it veeeery clear to the other Operators that I’m not your kid, is all.” She let go of his neck to hold his face with her hands, hoping that by looking him in the eyes he’d get the message fully.

Luckily for everyone involved, that was enough. “I wonder if anyone else here has thought about having their girlfriend work in their office.”

“If you weren’t the HR person, I’d just laugh at you.” Myrtle booped his nose with two fingers. “Right now, though? Let’s have some fun before we go home, huh?”

“On company time?”

She simply laughed as she tossed both of them off the couch. “No, Doctor, not RI time. Our time.”

#arknights #myrtle (arknights) #i've been thinking about halflings lately #like dnd halflings you know #and then i remembered the durin #so expect Durin to show up too #was gonna do a ship-post for them but decided on this instead #arknights fic

[thejollyroger-writer]

What Happens in Berkshire {{1/2}}

SUMMARY: When Emma’s boyfriend leaves her for the woman he’s been cheating with, she accepts an offer from her hospital to move to England. While she is out celebrating her thirtieth birthday with her friends before they head back to America, she drunkenly kisses the statue of Captain Hook in front of Eton College, and he comes to life. Together, he and Emma try to figure out what this curse means for them by searching for the witch that cursed him in the first place — are they really True Love, as he wants to believe they are, or did Emma’s magic go awry?

a/n: IT’S HEEEEERE! IT’S STATUE FIC TIME!  it all started with this post (via @write-it-motherfuckers and it’s grown into this beautiful, monstrous two-shot about magic and True Love and tight pants and magic. Thanks to the always-lovely @cssns mods AGAIN for hosting events like this one, that allow us to roll with all the weirdness that comes to us – without you, we certainly wouldn’t have this story, to @shireness-says for constantly talking me out of overthinking, and to @profdanglaisstuff and @thisonesatellite for helping me make this story into what is appears before you as. Seriously, it wouldn’t be the same without you.  Also, check out Meredith’s ( @captainsjedi ) amazing art for this story and many others! Somehow she is always able to capture the ideas floating around in my head and pin them down long enough to make aesthetics.

RATED G // CURRENTLY 12 K AND COUNTING // ALSO ON AO3

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Emma Swan does not get stupid drunk. 

Usually. 

Most of the time, she can down a few beers, a mixed drink or three, and even after adding a few shots in there, she can still have full memory in the morning. Besides, getting that drunk usually means losing control of her magic, and while the time she made it snow in August in their sweltering apartment or when she procured a mini fireworks display in the palm of her hand were both fun, it’s never been something she felt comfortable doing, always waking the next morning with a pounding headache and the harsh warnings of Ingrid, the woman that helped her hone her powers, howling at the forefront of her memory: only use your magic when necessary, and never for fun. She’s almost never lost her head, and even fewer times than that has she lost her memory. Sure, there was that one time in college with the jungle juice, and Ruby’s 25th birthday when all they did was shots, but both of those times, she was already in her apartment. 

But today was her thirtieth birthday, and her goal was to get drunk — especially after everything else that led her here. They are out not only to celebrate her birthday, but also her move to England after her decision to accept the position offered to her by the Princess Margaret Hospital, which just happens to be in the same town Belle’s university is in. The move that she decided to take because she wanted something new — and because Neal decided after four years that he wanted something new, as well. 

Only for him, it was breaking up with her and dating one of the women from his office, telling her that she “wasn’t good enough” for him anymore, even though she was at least a hundred times better than he was in the first place. 

Ruby’s pretty sure he was cheating on her anyway, but she was always too blind to see it. 

So she accepted the position from the hospital headhunters and packed up everything she owned, using Belle to do apartment walkthroughs, though she decided just to take the apartment next to the one Belle shares with her colleague. Two weeks later, she was on a plane all by herself, wishing she didn’t have to wait a month for Ruby and Mary Margaret to help her — but that month has passed, her apartment now filled with her things and fully furnished, and now they’re all out to celebrate before Ruby and Mary Margaret fly back home.

But it’s her birthday, god damn it, and she is going to celebrate. She’s already been here for a few weeks, but she’s already loving Windsor, loving England, how different it is from Boston, from New England, but still a little reminiscent of home. She’ll be just fine here on her own. 

Neal would have hated it here anyway, if he would have decided that he cared enough to come with her. If he actually loved her. Emma doesn’t need him, doesn’t need anyone, just needs to take some time and take care of herself. 

Neal can go fuck himself. Or fuck that woman from his office that he was already fucking. 

Alright, she might already be pretty drunk. But she wants more. She wants to forget, forget him enough to celebrate even more, and she’s maybe almost there. 

But it’s two in the morning, last call at the only bar Belle had ever been to in this part of town, and she’s run out of time. 

So Ruby buys them another round of shots, of whatever the strongest alcohol that would affect Emma the most — and, even wincing as much externally as she is on the inside, she knows the answer is tequila. One more, a double after Ruby insists, a small orange juice chaser, and they’re out, the smiling, greying bartender locking the door behind them. 

The weather in Berkshire is far from perfect, though perhaps better than it could have been at the end of October. Instead of the regular downpour that Belle told them to expect, it’s simply drizzling, the air around them wet instead of drenching. So, of course, they decide to go for a walk. 

Which just gives Ruby another reason to gripe. 

“You can’t even, just, make us a protective bubble? Or a big umbrella?” 

Emma rolls her eyes. 

“You already know that I can’t,” she says, though she feels the way her magic hums through her, just itching to be used. 

Ruby groans, loud enough to be heard by the whole group. “What good is it to be best friends with a witch, if she can’t even use her magic to keep us dry?” 

Emma rolls her eyes. Again. 

“I’m not going through this with you again,” she snaps. “I can’t just use my magic. It doesn’t work like that.” Of course, she always wished she could, but this is a thought that she chooses to keep to herself. 

What’s the purpose of having magic if she’s not allowed to use it? 

Thankfully, Belle changes the subject. “Did you know that Berkshire is where — where the original Captain Hook was from?” Belle asks, her words coming slowly and slurred. 

“Really?” Mary Margaret seems genuinely interested, the only one of them that has stayed fully away from alcohol on their trip, mainly because of the ever-growing baby bump, though she never was one to get anywhere beyond tipsy since that first margarita experience during her sophomore year of college, where Emma had to talk her out of streaking across campus. 

“Yeah, there’s a statue of him and everything.” 

“Let’s go see it!” Ruby suggests, arm wrapped around Emma’s shoulders, though she seems to miss the fact that Emma seems to currently be having trouble standing on her own as it is. 

The walk is only a few blocks, all of them thankfully sporting waterproof coats that Belle insisted they all bring with, even though Ruby had to sit on her suitcase to close it before the jacket was added. How that woman seemed to wear so little clothing but still have trouble fitting everything into a suitcase was beyond all of them. Their walk is quiet, all of them trying their hardest not to let the drizzle get to them any deeper than their coats. 

But then they see it, lit up by a light recessed into the sidewalk before him, and he’s… well, he’s perfect. The most incredible-looking man Emma has ever seen, and he’s made out of damned stone. Just her luck. 

Of course, it’s not the first time Emma has seen the statue – in fact, she’s gone the past month eating her lunch on a nearby bench without even knowing it was supposed to be Captain Hook. 

In hindsight, the hook that he has in place of his left hand probably would have been a good clue. 

She remembers the first time she walked past this statue, meeting Belle for lunch in her office in the library. She had been taken aback by its perfection from that very first moment, the world seeming to slow around her as she stared at him. Something about him seemed to comfort her, bring the chaos of her life to a pause, just long enough for her to catch her breath and focus on something else for a little while at a time.

So she kept coming back. Eating lunch on the bench beside him has been a regular occurrence for her, and she’s spent a few days a week just sitting there, looking up at his anguished face. Sometimes she even talks to him, as long as no one is around to hear — which isn’t very often, given it’s the middle of a college campus in the beginning of the fall. 

He’s become… a friend, of sorts. Someone she can talk to without using her international minutes to call Mary Margaret. A confidant, who she knows won’t go around spewing her secrets. 

Because, you know, he’s a statue. 

Belle is saying something in the background, explaining to them the history of the statue, of the story of Peter Pan and how the town believes that Barrie’s villain is based off of this statue that has been here for as long as anyone can remember. Emma is trying to listen to the story, she really is, but there is just something about the statue standing in front of her that steals her attention, just as it has every other time she’s found herself near it. Every time she tries to focus on his features, it’s as if the rest of the world around them goes silent. 

It’s just a weird side effect from the tequila, she tells herself, but even the voice in her head is muffled as she stares at him.

He’s gorgeous, even for a damned statue. 

“I thought he was an old, skinny guy with a handlebar mustache?” Emma asks, realizing halfway through her sentence that she cut Belle off in the middle of a thought. 

“Why, because of that animated movie?” Belle asks, turning her attention to Emma, but Emma’s eyes are still glued to the statue. 

“Well, yeah.” 

“The version of him in that movie is nothing like the Hook that Barrie described. People have given him a black perm and bushy eyebrows, but Barrie himself described our villain as ‘in a word, the handsomest man I have ever seen, and he was a magnificent pirate and not wholly unheroic.’ He had black hair, yes, but it didn’t have to be a perm, and there is nothing in Barrie’s description to say that he is a tall, thin old man.”

Ruby comes to stand beside Emma, her eyes trained on the statue in the same way. “This is a perfect specimen of a man, and he’s made from a slab of marble.”

“Do we know the artist who made it?” Mary Margaret asks from the back of the group, always interested in artists. 

Belle is silent for a moment, then turns to face the group, her eyebrows forming a low ‘v’ on her forehead. “Actually, I’m not sure about that. From what I know, the statue has been here for longer than the college has.”

“So no one knows where it came from?”

“Well, there’s an old wives’ tale that he used to be a sailor, a pirate, who watched the woman he loved die in his arms and was cursed for not doing anything to save her, cursed to stand here and wait for his True Love to save him.”

“But obviously that’s not true,” Mary Margaret comments, perhaps not sounding quite as convincing as she was hoping to. 

“No,” Emma replies, and Belle shakes her head. “No, of course not.”

A beat of silence passes between the four of them, each of them staring at the statue from a different angle, overcome by the spell he has them under. 

And then, suddenly, Ruby starts laughing. Cackling, almost, unable to stand up straight until she takes a wheezing deep breath, clapping her hand against Emma’s shoulder. 

“It’s your birthday, Swan!” she barely gets out, cackling again. “Go up and give him a kiss!” 

“Ruby!” Mary Margaret scolds from the other side of the statue, leaning to the side to stare at her around the man’s perfectly sculpted legs, so realistic that they can actually see the curves of muscles beneath the marble britches. 

But Belle and Emma are just drunk enough to join in with the laughter, also thinking it’s a good idea. 

“What the hell,” Emma says, shrugging. “I’m thirty years old and my boyfriend just broke up with me. It’s probably safer than a one-night stand.” 

Belle thinks this is particularly funny, and her laughter, echoing around the courtyard around them, drives Ruby into another fit of laughter herself. 

“Come on, guys, help me up!” Emma yells, hooking her arm around the leg of the statue, trying to use it to hoist herself up on the pedestal. Mary Margaret, the only one of them sober enough to give her any actual assistance, walks over to her, understanding that it would do more harm to try to talk her out of this than to just help her. 

One foot up on the pedestal, then the other, grasping her free hand around the curve of his arm, the hand of which is wrapped around the hilt of his sword. She almost loses her footing as she tries to move her grasp from his leg to his other arm, finding a hold on his hook. Finally, she has reached the platform, standing almost face to face with the statue, though it stands a few inches taller than she does. He really is a magnificent piece of art, from the individual strands of hair on his head to the stubble covering his chin to the embroidery work on his vest — amazing detail, she realizes even in her drunken haze, for a statue that has been standing for longer than the college around it, details surviving the wind and the rain that she has already discovered are regular for England. For a moment, Emma is overcome with compassion for the man standing before her, for the sadness visible not only in his eyes, but that’s written across his whole face. 

Christ, she thinks, I must have had more to drink than I thought. 

“Just kiss him, damn it!” Ruby yells, laughing at her some more, and Emma stares back at him for another moment before pulling her face to his, pressing her lips hard against the cold, wet stone. 

For a moment, nothing happens.

Then, suddenly, a flash of lightning strikes on the other side of the building beside them, startling Emma enough to almost lose her footing, so focused on keeping her balance that she does not notice the spark of magic that erupts from her fingertips at the same time another flash of lightning hits just a few feet from where they are, the thunder from both of them rolling almost simultaneously in the charged air around them. 

“Emma, get down from there!” Mary Margaret yells, just as Emma feels the stone beneath her fingers start to change, and when she looks up, the statue has turned into a man. A real-life, living, breathing man with twinkling eyes and a bright smile.

“Hello, love,” he says, his voice dark and deep. 

Taken aback, she moves to take a step back, forgetting for a moment where she is, and the edge of her boot slips off the edge of the pedestal. For the briefest moment, she believes this is how she dies — falling to her death after kissing a statue and hallucinating. But when she feels a warm, hard arm wrap around her waist, she automatically moves her arms around his neck. 

He smiles. 

Everyone is quiet for a moment, still trying to piece together what has happened in front of them. While the rest of the girls share glances, though, Emma finds herself only able to focus on the man in front of her, the very real man who has come to life under her fingertips. Or, to be more specific, she can only focus on his eyes. They are unlike any color she has ever seen, lit up only by the streetlights around them and the few recessed into the pavement, specifically there to light up the statue, a bright blue that reminds her of the brightest, clearest sky, but at the same time somehow also the dark blue of the depths of the ocean. 

“How did—” she starts, somehow more sober than moments before, but the words get lodged in her throat even further when he smiles at her. Swallowing her nerves, she takes a breath and tries again. “What happened? How are you… not a statue?” 

His smile grows, somehow, overtaking his eyes as the brightest feature on his face, since it seems to radiate its own light. 

“I have my suspicions, love, but I do know that I am forever grateful for it.” 

“I’m not your love,” she mumbles, the words coming out much less defiant than they sounded in her head. 

But what if… Belle’s comment from earlier suddenly comes rushing back to her:  ‘cursed to stand here and wait for his True Love to save him.’

That’s insane. 

This whole situation is insane. 

“Emma,” Ruby says from below them, and both Emma and the statue-man turn their heads towards her. “What in the hell just happened?” 

“He's…” Belle tries, then shakes her head. “That’s damn impossible, that is.” 

“You must have done it with your magic, Emma,” Mary Margaret says matter-of-factly, the obviousness of it all washing away any memory of what Belle may have said earlier. 

“Is it really…” Belle starts again, snapping her eyes to the man still standing against Emma, holding her against his hard, sculpted chest, the ridges of his muscles almost as prominent as when they were made of stone. 

Not that she really notices that. Of course not. 

“Are you really Captain Hook?” Belle asks, and Emma thinks it’s a joke at first, until she looks down at the seriousness painted across her friend’s face. 

“Captain Killian Jones, at your service,” he says, nodding down towards Belle, then quickly flitting his eyes from her to Mary Margaret, to Ruby, and back to Emma, a sparkle in his gaze that was not there before. “In every way imaginable,” he mutters, pressing his lips closer to her ear so only she can hear it before leaning back again and quickly winking at her. “Though, yes, you seem to have heard of me by my more colorful moniker, Hook.” Finally, he unwraps his hands from her waist and moves to step off the pedestal, which he accomplishes with the help of Mary Margaret before reaching his own hand up to assist Emma. When she reaches the ground beside him, he leans in towards her again, his breath warm against her cheek, and he whispers, “I was hoping it would be you,” before turning his attention back to the half-circle of women now gathered around him. 

“What are we going to do with him?” Mary Margaret asks. 

Ruby is the first to respond, failing to even attempt to hide the way her eyes take in his whole body. “I have a few ideas.” 

For some reason, Ruby’s comment makes Emma’s stomach sink, but she ignores the feeling, just as she chooses to ignore the quickening rain falling all around them. “We can’t just leave him here.”

“I appreciate that, love, truly,” the man says. Killian. The statue that has come to life has a name.  

“The couch in my apartment is still unclaimed,” Emma suggests quickly, before Ruby can add another of her comments. “As long as it’s okay with the rest of you, he can stay there for the night. And we can figure out what to do in the morning when we’re all in a better shape.” 

They all silently agree, and when Emma turns to face Killian, to see if he has anything to say about their plan, he simply smiles at her, his hook resting in the guard of his sword and his other hand propped on his hip.

“Can I at least have the name of my savior and her lovely acquaintances?” he asks, reaching his arm out in hopes of shaking their hands, starting with Mary Margaret. While Mary Margaret and Belle remain casual, Ruby sways into his body, pressing her free hand against his chest.  

Though she cannot figure out why, this causes heat to rise to Emma’s cheeks, but it is nothing compared to the rush of warmth that Emma feels over her body when, instead of simply shaking her hand, Killian raises it to his lips, pressing a soft kiss against her knuckles. His lips are soft, warm, welcoming — though she has no reason to notice that. 

What the actual fuck? 

“I thank you, again, Swan,” he says, choosing her last name for some reason, his eyes still shining bright, and she has to turn her gaze down to the sidewalk to stop herself from getting lost in them. 

“We should head back,” Belle says, and Emma has never been more thankful for the quickening rain before in her life. “The rain will probably just get worse.” 

“Can you tell us what happened to you, Killian?” Mary Margaret asks as they all begin to follow Belle back down the road and to Emma’s apartment.

“I would really rather not go into detail as of yet,” he says softly, his eyes turned down to the ground. “But the much-shortened version of it is that I fell in love with another man’s wife and she chose to run away with me, though her husband came after us and—” Emma hears his voice falter, can see the bobbing of his Adam’s apple as he struggles for a moment, the rise and fall of his shoulders as he takes a deep breath. “He killed her,” he says finally, though he has not completely pulled himself back together. “And then convinced a witch to cast a curse to turn me into a statue until my True Love came and broke it.”

“And, uh, how long ago was this?” Emma asks, filling the silence that settled at the end of his story. 

“What year is it now?” 

Emma’s eyes grow wide, and when she doesn’t respond right away, Ruby fills in with the answer: “2019.” 

She hears him take a sharp breath, rubbing his hand over his mouth and his scruff before pushing his fingers through his hair. “Bloody hell,” he mumbles, though Emma is fairly sure she is the only one that heard him. “It was just upwards of four hundred years ago.”

Silence settles around them again as they all think about this statement. Emma has so much more she wants to ask him, questions about his love and this witch and how the hell she broke the spell the witch cast on him. 

But half-drunk and surrounded by her friends, all three of whom will overthink her growing interest in him, is not the right time to bring up these questions. So, instead of voicing the concerns that cloud her already-clouded mind, she reaches out and finds his hand with her own, turning to him just in time to see the soft smile that spreads across his features, so different in contrast with the rest of the persona he has shown them over the past few minutes. 

By the time they make it back across the small town and to their apartment, the drizzle that was in the air when they left the bar has turned into a torrential downpour, which isn’t as much of a problem for the girls as it is for Killian, who has been wearing the same outfit for four hundred years — that very outfit which now is dripping puddles in the entryway as the girls dig through their suitcases for clothing for him to wear until they can go out the next morning and get him something more modern. 

“I have a pair of sweatpants?” Emma offers, running from her room with them and another towel to where he is waiting. “Though I do have to apologize, you’ll have to… uh…” She is useless against the blush that rises to her cheeks, even more so when she raises her eyes to find a knowing smirk on his face. “I have nothing for you to, uh, wear under them.” 

He leans in towards her, adding a smile to his smirk as his lips almost graze her ear. “No different than usual, love,” he murmurs, pulling away to watch Emma’s eyes widen in realization before he says, “Now, where should I go to change, unless you would like to offer your assistance?” 

“Take off your boots,” she responds, trying not to let the effect he has on her show on her face. “The bathroom is on the other side of the fridge.” 

His smirk disappears in a second. “The what now?”

“Oh, shit. Right, four hundred years,” she says, then points to the appliance in question, waiting for him to step out of his boots to follow her. “That large silver thing is the fridge. It’s where we keep cold food.” 

“Ah.” 

“I guess the world has changed a lot over the last four hundred years, huh?” she asks, trying to fill the silence again. 

“Aye, love, it seems it did,” he says softly, swaying into her space again. “Though I will say, I am thankful for the assistance you and your acquaintances have to offer. And incredibly indebted to you for breaking my curse. Even if you’re a tad wary of believing what that means about you and I.” 

Crossing her arms over her chest, she takes a step back from him, needing to put more space between them. “I’m not wary of anything, Jones.” 

“I beg to differ, love. You’re a bit of an open book.” 

I’m not your love, she moves to snap back at him, the words on the tip of her tongue, but they don’t come once she turns her gaze up to his, once she sees the sincerity in his sky blue gaze. Her next breath doesn’t come, either, lodged with the words halfway down her throat and unable to budge.

“I found a shirt that might fit him!” Mary Margaret yells, running into the hallway before Emma can step away from him again, her friend’s eyes widen for a moment before she takes hold of herself. 

“Good,” Emma says quickly, shoving the sweatpants into his arms as she backs away from him, her hands finding the hallway wall behind her. Her breath is still stuck in her lungs, though, and she’s not sure if she’ll ever be able to dislodge it if he keeps looking at her like that. Turning to Mary Margaret, she points to the bathroom as he reaches out to take the shirt from Mary Margaret. “Now he can go get changed, and we can all go to bed.” 

Not even waiting for a response, she turns and rushes down the hallway into her bedroom, practically slamming the door behind her. 

▫️▪️▫️▪️⭐▪️▫️▪️▫️

It takes her much longer to fall asleep than it should after all the alcohol she consumed. Usually, her body is ready to pass out, barely having the energy to scroll through social media before sleep overtakes her; but tonight, she does not even worry about trying to use her phone. Instead, she lays still, her eyes set on the ceiling but her mind set on anything but, small sparks of magic tingling between her fingers. 

What the fuck even happened today? ‘True Love’s kiss’ is absolutely insane, and there’s no way that was what happened with Killian. It must have been her magic, gone awry with her drunken stupor, mixed with the weird weather and that story Belle put in her head. 

Except… 

Except his story wasn’t that far off from the one Belle told them. Cursed by a witch. That’s impossible. Or, there was a point in her life where she would have believed it was impossible. But then she turned twenty and learned that she was a magic-wielder. And if she was a magic-wielder — a witch, by all senses of the word — then why was it so hard for her to believe Killian’s story? 

She already knows the answer to that. It’s because of what it would mean if it’s true. What it would mean about her. About them. 

Maybe if she hadn’t just gotten out of a relationship, especially the relationship she believed was never going to end, it would be a little easier to comprehend. Maybe. She seriously doubts it, she can’t even kid herself with that. But maybe if she hadn’t been so blind and put everything she had into her relationship with Neal, she would not have been as destroyed. And maybe — maybe — if her heart hadn’t been that destroyed just a few days before she moved across a damned ocean, she may have been more open to letting someone else in. Instead, she had decided to bar her heart from more hurt, had decided not to let anyone else in. 

And then Killian came back to life. 

It would be a completely different story if she didn’t feel so drawn to him, if she didn’t actually enjoy his company so much after so short a time. (And, who is she kidding, if he wasn’t so gorgeous.) 

There’s far too much to unpack there, so she tries to close her eyes —  only to see his shining blue ones staring right back at her, sparkling with mischief when he is not being terribly forward. 

What is happening to her? 

She tries to quiet her mind, and when sleep finally does overtake her, all of her dreams are filled with tight leather pants and shining ocean blue eyes. 

▫️▪️▫️▪️⭐▪️▫️▪️▫️

“This is the most terrible swill I have ever tasted,” he comments, setting the mug of coffee back on the saucer in front of him, his face contorted into an expression of pure disgust. He’s tasted a lot of things in his time, especially over all the years he’s spent on ships — hard bread, half-purified saltwater, more kinds of fish than a man should have to endure, but this — it’s all nothing compared to whatever the infernal black liquid in the mug before him is. 

“Alright then,” Mary Margaret says, and Emma rolls her eyes as she pulls the mug back in front of her. “Mark it down, Killian does not like coffee.” 

“For a man who hasn’t eaten for four hundred years, you sure are pretty picky, Jones,” Emma comments, and when she turns to jeer at him, he narrows his eyes, and points the end of his now-hookless brace in her direction. 

He’s still not quite sure why he had to leave his hook behind this morning. Belle tried to tell him that he wouldn’t need it, though he barely agreed with her; it had always proven useful to him in the past, and there was no way for him to know if he was going to need it in this new world. Emma had just told him that it would draw attention to him, which was probably slightly more valid, though it took him years to get past the insecurity of having a hook in the first place. 

And then Mary Margaret, apparently their voice of reason, pointed out just how much easier it would be to try on new clothing without the hook, and he saw the sense behind this and agreed. 

“A man knows what he likes.” 

“Or, more appropriately, what he doesn’t,” she jokes. 

He is already enthralled with her. She’s utterly brilliant in every way that entices him the most: her smarts, the way she is not afraid to speak her mind, how she does not hold back from putting him in his place, not to mention the way he is drawn towards her. Beyond the fact that she has broken his curse, he is thankful for her, to say the very least, though she does not yet seem ready to feel the same about him.  

The waitress drops a plate in front of him and a glass of orange liquid in front of Ruby. He does not miss the way the woman’s eyes scan him, or the half-smile that she offers before turning away — but he also does not miss the flash of anger that crosses Emma’s face at the woman’s attention. He has never had trouble winning affections of women, but the last thing he wants to do is lose what little affection the blonde goddess before him has for him. So, after she takes another sip from the mug, apparently liking the brown liquid — coffee — much more than he does, he smiles warmly at her, picking up the pastry on the plate before him, trying to work the cogs of thought rolling through his head into that one expression before he takes a bite. 

“Oh!” he exclaims, his momentarily-closed eyes missing the way Emma’s eyes go wide at the sound. “This, however, is a confectionery delight.” He takes another bite, closing his eyes again as he quickly chews the mouthful he has just taken. “What do you call this again?” 

“A muffin.” 

“Muffin,” he repeats, liking the way it feels on his tongue, though before he has a chance to say anything else, a loud rumble from his stomach takes the place of any words he may say. “I did order more food than this, aye?” 

Emma smiles at him. “I ordered you waffles. If you think your muffin is good, wait until you get to those.” 

“Thank you, love,” he says, then turns his attention back towards his muffin, though it takes everything in him not to focus on the bright smile that is still spread across Emma’s face. 

▫️▪️▫️▪️

“What is the next thing on our to-do list, Emma?” Mary Margaret asks, signing the bill from their breakfast as everyone gathers their things to leave. 

“Well, Killian needs some clothing that isn’t leather and sopping wet, or scraps from some suitcases.”

While Emma assumed this wasn’t going to be the easiest feat for a man who had never even heard of denim (and who admitted to her the night before he never wore any sort of undergarment), she didn’t expect it to be fun. 

It started when she was standing beside him surrounded by packages of boxers and briefs (after, of course, winning the argument against Ruby of who should help him make this decision), trying to keep her cool and not let the heat she feels rushing through her body show on her cheeks.  

“Why do we need to start with these again, love?” he asks, reading over the words on the back of the boxer-brief package as she does the same with the boxers, if only to avoid his eyes. 

She sighs, wondering how in the world she found herself in this situation. “Because you’re going to need to wear these when you try on pants, so we need to buy them first so you can take them out of the package.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she watches him nod as he turns his attention towards the package in her hands. 

“And, uh, what —” he tries, then takes a moment to cough before starting again, trying to hide his own embarrassment. “What seems to be the difference between these again?” 

Wetting her bottom lip, Emma shakes her head and closes her eyes, still not entirely sure this isn’t just a big, embarrassing dream. “The ones you’re holding are tighter, so they… hold you in place better.”

“Aha.” A beat passes, and he gestures the end of the brace towards her. “So those…?”

“They’re looser, yes.”

“What if, uh…” he starts, darting his eyes towards Emma, but the moment she meets them, he turns his gaze back down to the package in his hand. “What if I choose one of these and decide I do not like them?” 

Emma reaches over and pulls the package from his hand, holding them both at her side as she turns to look at him. “We’ll just buy both and I’ll keep the ones you don’t want, okay?” 

At this, his eyes go wide, his cheeks even redder than they were before, and he fails to hide the way his eyes snap down to her hips before returning to the package in his hand, seemingly needing to avert his gaze. “You wear these, as well?” 

“As pajamas, Killian. I wear them as pajamas,” she replies, rolling her eyes, but she can’t help but smile at him. “Let’s go buy these so we can move on to pants.” 

As they turn away from the aisle and head towards the cash registers, Killian bumps his arm into hers, and when she turns to him, he wags his eyebrows across his forehead. “Are you going to help me with those, too, love?” he asks, his voice deep, embarrassment completely melted away as if they hadn’t been discussing the benefits of boxers versus boxer-briefs just moments ago. 

“Uh, no,” she replies cooly, watching his face fall. “You can handle pants on your own, though I will help you with the fun part, if you need it.” His face lights up in an instant, an almost-inappropriate response on his lips, but when she adds, “The shirts,” it almost disappears again.

“Putting clothing back on is hardly the fun part, wouldn’t you say, love?”

“Jesus, Killian,” Emma breathes, rolling her eyes. “We’re here to buy you clothing.” 

He shrugs, swaying away from her again, and she immediately misses the warmth where his skin pressed against her own, though she tries her hardest to ignore it, even as a chill passes through her body. “Your loss.”

But watching him come out of the dressing room in the first pair of jeans he deems to fit him reasonably enough is definitely not her loss. 

Though the fact that Ruby is sitting beside her when he comes out wearing the first pair takes some of the excitement away. 

“What do you think, Swan?” he asks, coming back around the corner, and before he sees them sitting there, he catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror and gets distracted. “I could get used to this denim,” he comments, his eyes going wide as he admires his reflection from multiple angles. 

Ruby lets out a low whistle, and Killian’s eyes snap towards her, his face reddening a few shades when he realizes she’s there. “So could I,” she comments, and Emma elbows her hard.  

“They look great,” she comments, trying her hardest to not make it obvious that she is most definitely amazed with how the dark denim moulds to the curves of his ass. Emma is fairly sure that she’s never stared at a man’s ass with the severity she’s trying to avoid staring at his. “Do they fit you? Are they comfortable?” 

“Well, not as comfortable as my leathers, I will say, but I see why they’ve become more popular.” 

“Did you try the other sizes?”

“The first was definitely too small, since I struggled to even squeeze my thighs into them. But I’m so used to the tightness of my old breeches that I think any looser would make me uncomfortable.”

“Yeah, me, too,” Ruby mumbles, and though Emma tries to ignore her, she fears the anger she feels still shows on her face. Still, though, she tries to push it down. 

“Ready for the next part of the adventure?” she asks, needing to change the subject.

Killian’s face lights up, smiling at her as he slips his hand into his back pocket. “The fun part, aye,” he says, winking at her, and she avoids Ruby’s glare as she follows him back into the dressing room. 

▫️▪️▫️▪️

“Holy shit,” she breathes, the words slipping past her tongue without her permission, and once Killian has tossed the long-sleeved shirt Mary Margaret loaned him on the bench of the dressing room, he turns to her. His eyes have darkened to a stormy blue-grey, his brows low on his face. 

“What?” he asks, a hard bite to the word that Emma feels in her stomach.

“Your tattoos,” she says quickly, trying to alleviate the tension between them, at the same time Killian angrily asks, “My scars?”

“What?”

“What?”

“Your tattoos,” she says again, reaching out to gently run her finger along the one furthest down his forearm, a heart with a dagger through it, all behind a ribbon that reads “Milah” in elegant letters, though she finds herself unable to contain the sparks that shoot from her fingertips at the contact and pulls her hand away quickly, clutching it to her chest. 

When she turns her eyes up to his, they are slowly turning back to a less angry shade of blue. “You have… you have so many,” she whispers, moving just a touch closer to him so she can take a better look at the art that covers his body, for some reason feeling the need to touch them all, though the way her magic responded to his touch simultaneously makes her want to recoil and lean into him all at once.

“Aye, love,” he answers, and she takes the chance to reach her fingers out once more, only a few sparks this time as she begins tracing the circle of the compass on his right bicep that has Greek letters at the compass points and is surrounded with lettering in a different language beside flowers that turn into intricate, swirling linework leading to a skull and crossbones on the front of his right shoulder. “That’s what years spent on the seas will do to a man.” 

“What do they all mean?” she asks, her eyes falling to the very top edge of an anchor in a sea of swirling blue that peeks out over the top of his newly-acquired jeans. 

“They don’t all have to mean things, you know?” 

Her fingers ghost across his chest, both emitting and filling her with a warmth she has never felt before even though she is barely touching the dark chest hair that covers him as her fingers move towards his left shoulder, where the corner of the intricate piece that covers his back comes around with a kraken’s tentacle, tangled with the leather straps that hold his brace on his arm. 

“But some of them do?” 

“Aye,” he breathes, her fingers reaching over his shoulder. Here, he reaches up to hold her wrist, stopping her fingers from moving any further. Pulling her hand away from him, he moves it back to his right shoulder, to the compass. “This one is my first, for my brother. His initials are the north, and the most important lesson he taught me before he was taken is what it says around it.” 

“What language is it in?” 

“You can’t read Gaeilge?” he asks, a touch of humor to his voice, as if he’s joking; but when he looks down at her, at the confused expression on her face, she knows he’s serious. “It’s in Irish, since that’s where my brother and I were born. It says ‘a man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets.’ And the flowers are for my mother, Alyce, since lilies and daisies were her favorite.” 

“How old were you when she passed?” she asks, her voice barely a whisper as she traces the outline of the compass with her index finger. 

“Six. And Liam was ten. We only stayed in Ireland long enough to bury her before father found us passage to England on a ship.”

“Where you joined the Navy?” 

“Obviously not right away, but yes. England was…” his eyes fall to the ground, rubbing his hand against the side of his face. “Let’s just say Liam and I did not have the nicest childhoods, but we — we don’t have to get into that today.” When he looks back up at her, he tries to pull the corners of his lips up into a smile. “The skull and crossbones explains itself, though,” he continues, as if he weren’t talking about the death of his mother and his rough childhood. “Handsome British Naval Lieutenant turned pirate captain. The Jolly Roger became my life. The ship became the only home I ever had.” 

A beat of silence passes between them, Emma’s eyes still set on the intricate flowers around his compass, her fingers lightly tracing the lines and trying to ignore the soft warmth that continues to slowly fill her body, the soft hum of her magic more intense than it has ever been before. 

“Can I see the one on your back?” she says, her voice barely above a whisper, but when she raises her eyes to try to gauge his response, she realizes that he has been watching her intently. It is not until she meets his eyes, almost losing herself in the oceans she finds there, that he slowly nods. 

“Just, don’t… don’t touch it, please,” he mumbles, as if he is ashamed of it — and when he turns around, Emma sees why. 

The artwork is incredible, of course: a ship, bright yellow and brown, caught in the middle of a dark storm, with the tentacles of a kraken coming up out of the sea, some wrapped around the ship and others wrapping around his body. 

But that’s not what Emma’s focus is on. 

If Killian had said nothing, she probably would not have noticed them, but with his whispered words on her mind as she looks at the colors covering the muscles there, she can also see the mangled lines of scars running in every direction, casting small shadows over his back from the harsh fluorescent lights off the dressing room. 

She has nothing to say. There is nothing she can say that would do anything except thicken the tension that lies between them. She watches the rise and fall off his shoulders as he takes a deep breath, then meets his eyes in the mirror. His face is set, hardened, the muscles of his jaw ticking as he grinds them together. 

“Let’s try on one of these t-shirts, yeah?” she asks, smiling softly at him. Of course she wants to know what happened to him, was interested in the story behind his scars, but he is obviously ashamed of them. She has scars of her own, both physical and mental, so she understands the fear that he’s trying his best to hide. If he ever decides that he does want to tell her, then she will be thankful for that day. Maybe someday, she’ll do the same thing for him, let him in enough to learn of her past, her parents that left her on the side of the road, the foster families that never liked her enough to keep her. Getting the hell out of Maine as soon as she was able. 

Maybe someday. 

For now, she just reaches behind her and picks up one of the folded t-shirts that he picked out, a soft blue color that reminded her of his eyes as soon as she ran her hand against the soft fabric. 

“Thanks,” he mumbles, taking the shirt from her hand but avoiding her eyes. “This is the part you said you’d help me with, aye?“ The sadness in his eyes is completely gone, every trace of the past conversation replaced with a single wink.

Emma can’t help but let out the soft chuckle that rises through her chest as she reaches out to bunch up the material so she can help guide it over his head. He gets his right arm through on his own, but seems to be struggling with the left, not sure exactly how to guide the brace through the hole, so Emma reaches out to help. 

But when she wraps her fingers around the edge of the leather strap between his skin and the cool metal, he tears it out of her grasp, his eyes wide and angry when she snaps her eyes to meet his. 

“I can only help you if you let me, Killian,” she says softly, and the longest moment she has ever felt passes before the angry lines on his face smooth away, and he nods. She reaches out again, purposefully trying to avoid contact with the brace. 

“Sorry, love,” he mumbles as they work together to get the tip of his brace through the arm hole, but smiles at her as she helps him smooth down the front of the material. “What do you think?” 

She takes a step back to let him look in the mirror, joining him to look at his reflection. “I mean, it fits. And I like the color. But what I think doesn’t really matter as much as what you think.” 

He smooths the material over his stomach before reaching down to pick up the next t-shirt on the bench. “Is this one smaller?” 

“Yeah, we started with the bigger one.” 

“Can we try the smaller?” 

Emma nods, reaching out to help him take off the large, not even meaning to brush her fingers along his ribcage, but suddenly becoming very aware of the hitch of his breath when her fingers run along the rigid muscles of his chest. And then she makes the mistake of looking up at his face, meeting his eyes in time to watch them darken for just a flash, turning from the bright midday sky to the deep depths of the dark ocean.

“Sorry,” she whispers, her voice much weaker than she anticipated, and she finds herself wondering if his lips are as warm as his skin, as soft and gentle and welcoming as she originally thought they might be.

So she takes a step back, pulling away from him and letting his shirt fall back into place. 

“No, love,” he says gently, reaching down to pull the fabric up as far as he’s able, only needing her help to slide the brace out. “It is I who should be sorry. It’s not your fault I’ve been without a woman’s touch for four hundred years.” She helps him pull the fabric up over his head, taking it from him to refold it but continuing to avoid his eyes. 

Until he reaches out and places his index finger under her chin, pulling her gaze back up to meet his. “I’m truly thankful for all your assistance.  I missed four hundred years, I would be lost here without you.”

The faintest beginning of a smile passes across her face, but that seems to be enough for him, and he holds the next t-shirt out between them. He helps as much as he’s able with this one, though it proves itself to be much more difficult than removing it on his own. The medium is much tighter across his chest, clinging closer to the ridges of his muscles and the sleeves cropped short enough to reveal all but the very top of the compass on his bicep. 

This time when he looks at himself in the mirror, he smiles. “I like this much better, do you agree?” 

She rolls his eyes at him again, but when a smile begins to grow across her features this time, she lets it. She’s faced again with the absurdity of it all, the fact that he’s real, that he’s here beside her — that he’s so absolutely full of himself — but also because damn does she agree. She keeps her mouth shut as he tries on some other colors, keeps her jealousy to herself when every single color he puts on compliments him somehow — the black bringing out the brightness of his eyes, the red his light complexion, the white v-neck a stark contrast to the dark chest hair that peeks out from below the collar while barely doing anything to hide the muscles it is hiding. 

But when he slides a charcoal grey button-down shirt over the crisp white t-shirt, leaving the top three buttons undone as he turns to face the mirror, Emma loses her ability to keep her mouth shut any longer. 

“Is there anything you don’t look good in?” She tries to pull the words back, clamping her hand over her mouth, but it is too late — and when he turns to her, eyes wide with surprise as he runs his tongue over his smiling bottom lip, there is nothing she can do to hide the embarrassment that rises up her cheeks. 

“No, darling,” he replies, which just makes her redden more. “I would like to believe not.” 

They leave the store with three pairs of pants, a handful of t-shirts, a few long-sleeved Henleys (that are, in her opinion, the most unfair-looking on him, though she manages to keep it to herself this time), two button-downs, and a pair of black leather boots. 

As she swipes her debit card through the machine, Mary Margaret leans closer to her, mumbling in her ear, “I thought that money was for emergencies?” 

Sliding the card back into her wallet, she turns to Mary Margaret. “Are you saying that randomly bringing some man to life and being responsible for him isn’t what you would classify as an emergency?” 

Mary Margaret has no response to this. 

▫️▪️▫️▪️

Belle signs them into a study room in the library of Eton College before leading them to the section in one of the back corners where their special “Captain Hook” collection resides — because researching Killian is the next thing they need to do. There are books on J. M. Barrie, the author of Peter Pan ; carefully-bound original versions of Barrie’s play and of the original novel form. There are books on what has been learned about Hook, collections of papers written on him, on the fables about the statue, about what can be proven about these fables — which begins, and ends, at the existence of a British Naval Captain, Killian Jones, born in the 1580’s and whose love was killed in front of him and his left hand chopped off on the deck of his ship a few years prior to his disappearance in 1618, according to his discovered Captain’s Logs. 

But that’s it. They spend the next few hours mulling over a few shelves’ worth of materials to discover anything they can about Killian, and all they get is a speculation about his birth and death. 

Though, after Belle reads the last of these findings out loud, Emma rests her forehead against the table in front of her, Mary Margaret and Ruby turn to her, waiting for a response. 

Emma pushes herself to her feet, her breath heavy in her chest. “I’m sorry,” she tries, coming out barely a breath. “I need — I need some air.” 

Before anyone can respond, she is out of their study room and around the corner. 

Thankfully, no one follows her for a few minutes. She finds a bench, her eyes closed as she focuses on the slowly-slowing beat of her heart, on the measured draw of her breath. This is all so much, too much, far too much to handle on top of everything else happening to her recently, and she pushes herself away from the bench, beginning to pace back and forth in front of the shelf, her head flooding with too many thoughts. The break up, the move — all the way across a fucking ocean — and now stories of True Love, corroborated by academic papers and things from this… shelf. 

She turns on her heel, turns back towards the shelf, slowly running her finger along the spines, one shelf and then the next, top to bottom, until she is sitting on the floor beside the shelf. 

Except the bottom shelf is empty, so she can see behind it, where the shelf meets the wall — and there, she sees it: a small, leather-bound book behind the shelf, stuck between the metal and the wall. She reaches back, curling her fingers around the leather binding, and when she finally frees it, she feels the air leave her lungs, suddenly lightheaded and simultaneously weighed down in ways that she has never felt before. 

Jones

Etched into the cover, surrounded by the same intricate, swirling linework around Killian’s Jolly Roger tattoo, is his last name. She opens to the first page, covered in perfect calligraphic penmanship, and reading her slow translation of the old-fashioned spelling certainly doesn’t make it any easier to breathe. 

22 June 1604

Todaye, as the first day of my posytion as captain of His Majestie’s Jewel of the Realm , I, Liam Jones, do begyn here the Captain’s Logs for saide vessyl, where I will hence-forth keep reckord of alle pertinent informatyon. Here, I shal keep track of the dailie happenyngs withe and around the ship, begyning todaye with my taking over as Captain. 

There are more pages of the same, of Captain Jones recording the journeys and missions of the Jewel of the Realm. Until, one day, it changes to a less-perfect script, fewer loops and curls and more ink splattered across the pages. 

04 March 1607

Todaye, our greate captain was takyn from us, kylled on a mission comissyoned by our kinge. As per his last entrie, the kinge sent us to fynd a flower on a smal northern islande under the gyse as a medicinal herbe that would help overcome a great syckness that has spread through the lande. In hopes of provieng me wrong,  Liam  Captain Jones cut his own arme wyth this plante and was quicklie kiled by this herbe, which turns out to be not medicyn, but poisyn. In his deathe, I, Lieutenant Killian Jones, have taken up his posytione as captain of this vessle.

Because of the coruptyn of the kinge, the kynd of man that would send his naval officyr to collect this poisyn for him, I have decyded to sail this ship not in the name of the kinge, but insted now in the name of pyracy. This shyp is no longer the Jewel of the Realm , but wyll hence-forthe sayl under the name of the Jolly Roger , flying pirate colors. 

She continues to flip through the pages, reading clips here and there as Killian describes the workings of a pirate ship. 

Slowly paging through it, Emma can’t believe what she is seeing before her very eyes. “This is… impossible,” she whispers, running her index finger down one of the pages that catches her eye.

12 April 1610

Milah’s husband founde his waie to the JR todae. The whole crewe tryed to fight him offe, but were useles agynst whatever forms of Blacke magyk he has at his dysposal, and as I was dueling with him, I tooke a particularle bad blow to my left hande, cleaved clean offe, whych the Crocidyle tooke with him when he disapeard. We could not act in tyme to save Milah from his Evil, either, and there was nothyng I could do as he crushed her hearte before mye very eyes and she crumpld to the deck, pledging her love to me wyth her last breathe as the vyle man dysapearred into a cloud of ashe and smoke. I vowed to her that I would avenge the wrong that her wycked husband did againste her, and even as her bodie now lay on the bottom of the Sea, it is a vow that I feare wyll follow me to the grayve. 

“Impossible,” she breathes again, knowing that the words corroborate the story he recalled to her with more detail than she could have imagined. So she turns to the end, and though the last few pages are blank, there are a few covered in a script other than Killian’s, she assumes after he is cursed and his First Mate takes over. 

18 Jan. 1618. 

Captain Jones was todaie deceivd by a member of hys own crewe, believed now to be working undere the orders of Rumpelstiltskin, the Dark Magicyan marryd to the Captain’s love Milah. Folowyng the directione of this man, he and Jones, along with meself and Lt Humphrey, ventured into the foreyst northe of the English towne Berkshyre to fynd a wytch said to have a spelle to lead him to his enemie and help defeat hym once and for alle. Instead, folowing the wytch’s instruction, we watchd helples-ly as his bodie instead transformyd into stone before our eyes. Instead of transcrybing, I have included it in the backe of this booke in hopes that one daye we may fynd a way to sayv our goode Captain from the wytch’s kurse. 

Quickly finishing the end of the page, which turns out to be the last written page in the book, Emma turns through the remaining pages until she finds what the First Mate said he left in the book, though it seems to be by some sort of miracle that it is still attached. 

Stuck between two of the last few pages, Emma finds a small piece of paper, no more than two inches wide, which was probably rolled up at one point, though it has since then folded flat; when she unrolls it, she finds it to be around a foot long. The writing on it is more calligraphic than the script from the Captain’s Log, parts of it more difficult to read with age and part of the bottom corner torn off, but at she reads it, she feels the breath leave her lungs. 

Captain Killian Jones, cursed synce the d———s brother’s lyfe-less body into the Sea, now fynds himselfe cursed for alle eternity to watche the World move around hym, use-less agaynst the kurse of time that will ——— of the villainous blakness that filles hys heart after —————— untile the daie his One True Love saves hym with True Love’s Kyss. 

Using the shelf behind her to help her back to her feet, she rushes back around the corner to the study room, the leather-bound book clutched between her hands. She wants to just reveal what she has found, but she has another plan, one that would allow her to corroborate this story of Killian’s.

“Killian!” she yells, pulling open the door, and every eye in the room is wide as they turn towards her. 

“Yes, love?” 

“When — when was Milah killed? What day?” 

“Emma, you can’t really expect— “ Mary Margaret says, but Killian holds up his hand, silencing her as he speaks. 

“The twelfth of April, sixteen hundred and ten.” His answer comes immediately, not even needing a moment to pull the answer from the back of his mind. 

“And what about — what about the day Liam died?” 

“The fourth of March, four years prior. Swan, what is this about?” 

In response, Emma tosses the book down on the table, where it slides across the surface and lands in front of him. 

Killian’s eyes go wide, a smile spreading across his face as he runs his thumb over the embossed leather cover — but everyone else in the room is utterly confused. 

“What is this?” Ruby asks as Killian flips open the cover and begins to read over the pages in front of them. 

“This is the Captain’s Log from my ship, though how this library managed to get their hands on it is a bloody miracle. It has — it has everything in it. It starts during Liam’s time as a Captain, the mission the king sent us on that got him killed. The turn to piracy. Milah. It’s all there.”

Mary Margaret and Belle turn towards Emma at his words, Ruby’s eyes set on the script from across the table. 

Emma nods. “I read through it, and it’s all there. It has Milah’s death, Killian losing his hand, getting deceived and visiting the witch.”

“Where did you find this?” Belle asks, turning to look at the pages over Killian’s shoulder. 

“It must have fallen behind the shelf at some point, it was wedged between it and the wall all the way at the bottom.“ 

"Brilliant,” Belle whispers, and when Emma turns to Killian, he is brightly beaming at her, as if he can tell that this find brought her so much closer to actually believing all the madness that is happening around them. 

“And,” she says, holding up the slip of paper that she has kept between her fingers. “I think I know what to do next." 

They make a plan — and not one that the rest of the girls like. Killian still has the map in his satchel that he used to find the witch’s cabin the first time around, and even though the town has changed a lot over the past few hundred years, they can get a general idea from natural landmarks and as soon as they are out of the town, Emma will cast a locator spell on the witch’s parchment from the journal to take them the rest of the way there. 

"I just don’t understand why just the two of you are going,” Mary Margaret argues, and not for the first time. “You don’t have to go alone, so I don’t see why you’re insisting on doing just that." 

"Admit it, darling,” Killian says, leaning closer to bump his shoulder against hers. “You just want to get me alone." 

Emma rolls her eyes at him, hoping that it is enough to hide the blush that rises to her cheeks when she realizes that he’s actually right — he’s growing on her, damn it, and she is actually beginning to like spending time with him.

Though neither of these reasons are the ones behind her insistence that they go alone. "This is a journey that Killian and I should take together, just the two of us,” Emma says quickly, trying not to wince at how hopeful that sounds. “Besides, he’s an excellent swordsman and I’m a magic-wielder. I’m sure we’re more than capable of taking care of anything that we come across on this journey." 

Finally, Mary Margaret smiles in response to this, and again Emma tries not to wince at how hopeful she looks.

"We should get home and prepare for this adventure, though,” Belle says, always the voice of reason. “Plus then the two of you can get ready to fly back home tomorrow." 

“Can I ask you a favor first, ladies?” Killian asks, pushing away from the table, and Emma turns her attention towards him. “This is one of the places where one would go to procure new information, right?” 

Emma nods, and he nods in return. 

“What do I have to do to borrow a few books? To help me learn about the four hundred years of updated technological advancements that I have missed.”

Emma turns to Belle, who is already digging through her purse to find her employee ID. “Of course,” she says. “Whatever I can do to help.” 

“I’d like to spend some time to peruse what’s available,” he says, making his way out of the room. “I’ll be back before too long.”

In what Emma realizes immediately is an out-of-character goodbye for him, he leaves the room without another word. She watches as he walks away from their room, heading away from their corner of the library, and by the time he has turned the corner and exited her line of sight, she realizes Ruby is trying to talk to her, though she heard none of it. 

“What?” 

“I said, what do you think you’re going to do?” 

“What do you mean ‘what am I going to do’? I’m going to see what we can learn about him and this — this witch that cursed him to try to get him back where he needs to be.”

“What does that mean?” Mary Margaret asks, dropping the pen from her hand onto the notebook in front of her. 

“You know,” she tries, twirling the end of her ponytail around her pointer finger. “He has to have something…” She shakes her head, not even sure exactly what she is trying to say. Not even sure what the excuse she is trying to make is. “… Somewhere he can… somewhere…” It’s still too much to try to take in, too much to try to take as seriously as her friends want her to. 

When she looks up at Belle, she is also shaking her head. “If the stories are true, and if what he’s been telling us is true, he’s been a statue since the 1600s. That means he has nowhere, no one, no home. Nothing except us, the people that were there when the curse was broken.” 

Emma shrugs, trying to avoid anyone else’s gaze. She supposes it could be worse; she at least has friends that are willing to help her figure out whatever the hell her life has become. If she was alone, just her and Killian, it would be a completely different story. 

One where she never kissed a damned statue in the first place. Never broke a True Love curse on a drunken dare. Never brought an incredibly attractive man back to life to follow a prophecy, apparently. 

“I just…” she tries, holding her head in her hands, and then repositions herself to lean back in the uncomfortable wooden chair, focusing her eyes on the ceiling. “I have no idea what any of this means. What am I supposed to do with him? How do I explain to customs that he has no passport because he was born in 1580-whatever and has been a statue for four hundred years when I want to go back to America? I barely make enough money to sustain myself, nonetheless this new person, who has none of the skills or knowledge he needs to get a job. Is he going to live in the spare bedroom for the rest of my life?” 

Mary Margaret reaches over to gently run her hand across Emma’s back. “But he’s your True Love. That has to mean something.”

Emma grinds her jaw together, squeezing her eyes shut before snapping her head to the side to look at her friend. “Not at the moment it doesn’t. My relationship literally just fell apart. I wasn’t — I wasn’t even ready to find some gorgeous Berkshire guy to have a quick fling with and never speak to again, so I definitely wasn’t ready to break some bullshit one True Love curse on a drunk dare. You can’t just — love doesn’t just work like that.”

Ruby leans across the table towards Emma, worry painted across her face. “So what do you think you’re going to do?” she asks, her voice soft. 

Emma crosses her arms on the table in front of her, resting her forehead on top of them. “At least I don’t have to leave for America in the morning,” she reminds them, simultaneously changing the subject. She really doesn’t know what to say. Thankfully, none of her friends push her any further.

"Besides,” Belle adds. “We don’t want to keep you two from travelling back home any longer than we need to." 

Mary Margaret smiles, no doubt thinking of David and their two-year-old son back at home, but Ruby just waves her hand, dismissing the thought. 

"All I have to look forward to back at home is going back to work, and even saying that I'm looking forward to it is a stretch." 

"Ruby,” Emma groans, not wanting to have this argument again, but there’s no need once Mary Margaret speaks again. 

“Whether you like it or not, Ruby Lucas, you’re getting on that plane with me tomorrow and going back to Boston." 

Huffing, she crosses her arms over her chest, looking even more like a teenager when she adds a roll of her eyes. "Ugh, fine." 

▫️▪️▫️▪️⭐▪️▫️▪️▫️ ▫️▪️▫️▪️⭐▪️▫️▪️▫️

tagging the crew:  @let-it-raines @kmomof4 @welllpthisishappening @wellhellotragic @teamhook @gingerchangeling @ultraluckycatnd @resident-of-storybrooke @jonirobinson64 @nikkiemms @bmbbcs4evr @spartanguard @stahlop @jennjenn615 @xrandomdreamx @kday426 @courtorderedcake @kingofmyheart14 @aprilqueen84 @pirateherokillian @capswantrue @socmono @superchocovian @darkcolinodonorgasm 

(it you’re not here and want to be, let me know!! – there will be a part two!)

#CSSNS #ITS TIME #statue fic #what happens in berkshire #my writing #my fics #captain swan #cs fics #cs ff #sometimes I feel like the title could be better #but it's been the same the whole time I've been working on it #and its become close to my heart

[baenxietydad]

16th Anniversary Of The Best Day Ever || The Baes

Summary: Nemo’s 16th birthday!!!

Dated: October 9th, 2019

@justkeepdancing-nemo​

MARLIN

Best day of the year, best day of the year! October 9th was Mu-yeol’s favorite holiday. Not because of Ecuadorian Independence Day, or Leif Erikson Day, but because it was the 16th Anniversary of the Best Day of His Life. Or, if you want to be boring, Nam-min’s 16th birthday. 

He didn’t care for his own birthday, but his son’s was special. On October 9th, 2003, Nam-min came into the world a little over a month early, giving his parents a scare, but they both immediately adored him. He was the child they tried for three years just to conceive, and from his first breath was their entire world. Now with just himself, Mu-yeol had to love him enough for two people. 

And he did. He sometimes got all choked up just thinking about how much he loved his son and how wonderful and beautiful his baby boy had become. 

He loved him so damn much. That’s why he treated his birthday like a national holiday. 

Like every year he got up early to make seaweed soup and to place his presents on the table. Once that was ready, he crept into Nemo’s room and slipped under his covers for the yearly birthday waking up ritual. 

“Nam-min ah. Nam-miiiin, wake up,” he said gently as he pulled Nemo in for snuggles. He played with his hair as he kept coaxing him awake. “Wake up, you know what day it is. It’s the best day! It’s your birthday! My baby is sixteen already.”

“Wake up,” Mu-yeol said, kissing his forehead and snuggling him closer. “So I can annoy you with my love.”

NEMO: 

Nemo had always loved his birthday. A whole day dedicated to him? Who wouldn’t love that? But he loved it not so much because he got presents, or because of yummy seaweed soup, or the nut-cake, or the fact he got to decide everything that happened on his birthday--

He loved it cuz Appa loved it. He loved it cuz Appa was always in such a good mood. No nightmares, no grouchiness, no extra paranoia. Just him, just Appa. 

And this year, his birthday meant the end of Nemo’s grounding. So it was the best day ever.

Despite that, Nemo was solid as a rock in bed that morning, his covers pulled over his head. It’d started gettin’ chilly like it always did, and a little chill always made it harder to get up in the mornings, even for someone like Nemo who was gogogo. His toes curled under his blankets and he fisted the blanket too, holding it tighter at the creaking of his door. Oooo, there’s Appa, he thought to himself, barely stifling a smile, as he pretended to still be sleeping deeply.

Part of that was cuz….well-- no sixteen-year-old should want cuddles from his Appa.

But Nemo still did. 

So he pretended. And when Appa dragged him close, he played at a groan and wiggled half-heartedly. “Appaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa,” he groaned with sleepiness. “Wahhhhh, gerroff!” he wiggled more.

MARLIN

“Nope, not allowed. It’s the sixteenth anniversary of the best day of my life, so that’s forbidden.” Mu-yeol said to letting go of Nemo. 

He carded his fingers through Nemo’s hair and smiled down at him all gross and affectionate as Nemo refused to open his eyes. Rude— how are they going to celebrate his birthday if he’s asleep? Ah, kids. Occasionally he’d press another soft kiss to the top of his head. 

“Do you want to skip school for your birthday?” He asked quietly as he continued to play with Nemo’s hair. “Or do you want to be stuck hanging out with your dumb embarrassing dad one of your weekend days instead?”

Playfully, he poked Nemo’s side where he was ticklish. 

NEMO: 

Skip school? He could do that?!

Nemo’s eyes finally opened, blinking all the tired outta them as he looked up at his dad incredulously, like he was waitin’ for him to change his mind. Plus, didn’t his Appa have to work? It was Grow-day, not to mention still a couple of days before the Full Moon Dance, which meant the Hollow fluttered, flittered, twittered, and buzzed with all sorts of activity. Though Nemo didn’t have talent class this week cuz all the fast-flying talents were getting ready for the Windy Day Race on October 13. 

So… he didn’t have talent class. And he didn’t have dance on Wednesdays either…

Unless!

“Wh-- this isn’t a test, is it?” he squinted at his Appa suspiciously. “I can actually skip school if I want?”

MARLIN

“아니 (ani). I wouldn’t set a trap. Mm, not on your birthday anyway. 그냥 (keunyang)...I just wanted to hangout with you on your birthday like we always do. And since you’re in school now that would take up your entire day.” And anyway, Mu-yeol knew he wouldn’t be in this good of a mood come the weekend. It was Nemo’s birthday not his birthweek that always (almost) restores him to him old self. 

He smiled down at Nemo in his arms as he narrowed his eyes at him. “You can skip school. Only when I offer it though; if I get a call you’re absent without my permission you’re gonna die.”

Mu-yeol punctuated the death threat with his warmest smile. 

“Aigoo, my baby’s growing up. You won’t need me anymore pretty soon.”

 It was a bittersweet thought. Nam-min not needing him anymore meant he wouldn’t have anything left to silence the worst thoughts in the back of his brain; live to take care of Nam-min didn’t apply once his baby boy became an adult, and it was the only thing keeping him breathing most days. It was the only thing that was enough and that terrified him. 

Most days, anyway, it terrified him. But on October 9th, nothing ever mattered but the fact that X number of years ago, his son was born on that day, and it was the one truly good day of the year. 

“You were so small.” He sighed, patting the space between his shoulder blades. “You came earlier than we thought, you dramatic jerk.”

NEMO: 

Wow, he really was gonna get to miss school. 

Which meant-- his friends.

Nemo hadn’t expected the sharp, quick stab of yearning, nor what followed after: guilt. Cuz he obviously couldn’t tell Appa that maybe he did wanna go to school after all. First of all, that was stupid. What kid wanted to go to school on his birthday? Sure, he’d get to see his mates and they’d all tell him happy birthday, but he’d only get a couple of minutes before class, and then lunch, and then that was really all…and in between, he’d sit through awful French and confusing History and didn’t he have a quiz in English which he didn’t study for? 

And wasn’t his birthday kinda his and Appa’s...thing? 

Yeah.

Nemo swallowed down that feeling then, cuz goin’ to school just wasn’t a real option, and did what he did every year as Marlin started in on his tirade. He grooooooooaned and wiggled some more, finally pushing Marlin off and sitting up. “Heeeeere we go again, next you’ll tell me about Eomma counting all my fingers and toes and fighting the healing-talents to hold me just five more minutes--” and though he was acting annoyed at the Same Old Story, the one Marlin told Every Single Year, he was grinning. 

Cuz he liked it. He wanted to hear it. 

MARLIN

“And if I do?” Mu-yeol challenged, reaching up to poke Nemo’s forehead. 

He hummed and sat up next to Nemo, wincing as sunlight got him right in the eyeballs. “She punched one of them, you know. Your mother was scary and always ready to...throw hands? Is that what it is? Especially when it was about you.”

He didn’t tell him how she had to take an exam at university the day after giving birth— and yes, she did go and ace that exam, and when her professor found out he scolded Mu-yeol for ‘letting your wife do that.’ But So-yeon did whatever the hell So-yeon wanted to do, Always. There was no allowing, forbidding, or talking her out of anything. She was determined to finish her masters’ on time to shut up all of the men in the program who talked about how STEM was no place for a wife and mother and said she should drop out and raise her child. 

Not for the first time, he wanted to tell him. 

“She always said having you was the best decision we ever made.” He said instead. “So the verdict on skipping school? If you really want to go we can do your birthday on Sunday.”

He hopped out of Nemo’s bed. “There’s seaweed soup ready, with pickled shriiiimps.”

NEMO: 

He only really had a couple of birthdays left before he really would be too old to celebrate with Appa and let him baby Nemo like this. This could even be the last one. Nemo would be well into his apprenticeship when next October swung around, after all. Who knew what his life was gonna be like then? What he’d be training in, what kinda time he’d have? 

Maybe he was already too old for this stuff now but… 

He wanted at least one more. 

So Nemo grinned. “Skipping, definitely!” he rolled out of bed too and then scampered past Appa. “SEAWEED SOOOOOOUP!” He called, giggling. 

MARLIN 

He felt tension he didn’t even know he was holding in his shoulders ease. What a relief it was that his baby hadn’t outgrown him just yet! Even if Nam-min was away from him more this year, he still wanted to hangout with his dad. That was enough. 

“Eat as much as you want,” Mu-yeol said as a laddled out a bowl for Nemo. “You have to eat a lot if you hope to grow any taller.”

NEMO:  Nemo plopped down in his chair, drawing up both his legs so he was criss-cross, then reached for his spoon. Course before he even got a spoonful, he shot a look at Appa, sour as elderberries. Because yeah, Nemo was small-- even for a pixie he was small, and especially for a fast-flying talent. Fast-flyers were usually some of the taller talents around actually, cept for maybe scout talents. Nemo was small the way a pollen-talent fairy was normally small-- or a bee-herding-talent was small. 

“Aish,” he sucked his teeth at his Appa and shook his head. “I’m not that small! I mean, I got long legs y’know,” he added hotly. And that was true. Nemo was nearly all legs, which helped with his lines in dance. (It didn’t do much for fast-flying though.) 

He scooped some soup into his mouth, and then grabbed the bowl and lifted the whole thing to his lips. “Here, I’ll eat the whole thing, so you can’t have any!” 

And he slurped half his bowl down to prove it. 

MARLIN

Mu-yeol playfully stuck his tongue out at Nam-min as he slid him a cup of elderflower juice. “It's not your fault, your mother’s human-size height was only 162 cm. She was the tiniest fast-flying fairy in both Hollows we’d lived in. Blame her for those genes.”

He barely stifled a snort as Nemo slurped his soup up like it was room temperature water and not hot soup.

“알았어, 알았어 (arasseo, arasseo). Go ahead, eo? I’m full watching you eat anyway.” He said, though he quickly ate a few spoonfuls himself in case Nemo swiped his bowl. Because he would. 

“What’s on the birthday festivities agenda?” Mu-yeol asked, spooning some kimchi onto some rice. “We can do whatever you want except hard drugs. Cocaine might be negotiable-- no, wait. That’s the last thing you need.”

NEMO: 

First, Nemo just gargled through his soup, still slurping it down. It really was kinda too hot to do so, but Nemo had already started so it meant he had to commit to it. And commit he did, until it was all done and he let out an “Ahhhhh,” plopping his bowl down and smirking at Appa. He said he’d do it. And Nemo could never resist a challenge. 

He rolled his eyes next though. “Appa, you’re really not funny,” he told him, shaking his head. Appa and his dad jokes. “Mmmm can we…. Oooooh, Appa, can we go dragonfly racing? Please. Pleeeeeeeeeeease, it’s my birthday! I’m 16, that’s plenty old enough!”  

Dragonfly racing was, of course, when fairies skittered across the Kohaku River on the back of dragonflies. Appa always forbid Nemo because dragonflies could be a bit, er, moody-- prone to 360-degree spins, or dipping real close to the water. He’d always been terrified Nemo would fall off and drown. 

Why was Nemo even asking? Well! He asked at least once a year, and a 16th birthday felt like a good time when Appa might not be able to say no. 

“We can go toooogetheer,” Nemo sing-songed. 

MARLIN

“Watch your mouth before I glue it shut, you little brat,” Mu-yeol said in response to being told he wasn’t a comedic genius, of course while pinching Nemo’s cheek while calling him a little brat. “What’s the number one lesson of life? Always laugh when your dad, your employer, or father-in-law makes a joke.”

Another spoonful of soup had almost made it to his mouth when Nemo made his birthday proposal, and the spoon fell from his hand, landing in the bowl with a plonk! Dragonfly racing!? Let him repeat, DRAGONFLY RACING!?!?

Was he trying to make sure this was his last birthday?

Mu-yeol clasped his hands in his lap to keep from wildly gesturing. In the spirit of Nemo’s birthday, he wasn’t going to give an immediate hard no. Today, and today only, he would hear him out about dragonfly racing. Maybe even say yes, and deal with the panic in his chest the entire time.

He taught Nemo to swim in Atlantis Lake in human size, without wings that couldn’t get wet, of course. Logically he knew that Nemo could probably tread water with wet wings long enough to drift toward an aquatic plant to hold onto until he could be pulled out of the river by a fairy with dry wings. It was still risky.

And yet, at Nemo’s age, Mu-yeol had been dragonfly racing for years. His dongsaeng-dul* would compete with him and the other fairies their age for prizes of anything from found objects teenage fairies used for bartering, to ₩5,000 notes the kids whose parents had human jobs would throw in the prize pot.

*reader’s note: dongsaeng = younger sibling; -dul is a particle to add to make any noun plural 

His last two logical brain cells reminded him that he was much more stupid than Nemo at his age, and that he survived. His father wasn’t half as protective as he was, so of course Nemo would be fine.

The other hundred billion weren’t half as reasonable.

“Nam-min…” before he could say no though, he cleared his throat to stop himself. He was gonna give him a chance, remember? “Only if you can tell me the procedure for if you fall off. Repeat it to me three times, then we will seriously consider it.”

NEMO: 

Appa didn’t say no right away. Whoa.

This was already a win. It was also not completely expected, and so Nemo found himself wide-eyed and leaning forward. “Really?” he responded at first. He had to absorb that Appa hadn’t immediately laughed off the idea like he had done all of Nemo’s life, before patting Nemo on the head and saying something about how hilarious Nemo was with that persistent death wish of his! And did he want to give his dear old Appa a heart attack?!

Maybe sixteen really did make the difference.

Maybe sixteen was going to be his year, after all. 

Nemo swallowed and leaned back, adjusting in his seat and then crackling his knuckles as he prepared to answer Appa’s test. He was pretty sure he knew about the procedures...even if he’d never really gotten to try them out. All the other fast-flying-talents though talked about dragonfly racing all the time (it’s why he wanted to do it so badly.) 

“Number 1--” he held up a finger, “--don’t panic. Number 2, get your head above water and your feet under you, so your wings don’t drag you down. Number 3, tread water in direction of the current toward the shore! Don’t fight the current, cuz you’ll get too tired too fast.” 

That was right...right? Right! 

MARLIN

Mu-yeol watched Nemo carefully as he ran through the DON'T DROWN protocols. Careful to eye him for any signs of bullshitting or hesitation, and satisfied when he found none that his son actually understood how to not drown, he supposed he now had to actually consider dragonfly racing. 

Maybe if he let Nemo do this once, let him have this one thing, he won’t do things like sneaking out with that awful kid Louie. This is exactly why he didn’t want to send Nemo to school, he knew he’d be too preoccupied with looking cool and being popular to actually care about school. He knew he wouldn’t understand that what mattered was finding your group of friends and being cool to them. It was the same for fairies in school, and fairies like Mu-yeol who didn’t go to school. Why couldn’t Nemo be like his mother was and only care what her friends thought of her?

Nemo was like him. Insecure and soft. 

Maybe dragonfly racing and the panic attack he’d be pushing down the entire time would be worth it. Maybe Nemo would take the victory and be satisfied. 

“Good. So...dragonfly racing. Are you sure there’s...nothing else?”

#nemo #MY BABY BOOOOOY

[lynxgriffin]

The boys are back in town

KH3 commentary continues! We’re getting closer to the end now!! Under the cut for spoilers!

WHELP OKAY as we approach the ending sooner and sooner WE CONTINUE ONWARD

TO SAN FRANSOKYO

I’m excited for this world because I looove BH6 BUT I’M ALSO NERVOUS

HEEEEERE WE GO

Cosmopolitan??

Sora: EVERYTHING’S SO SHINY AND COOL :DDD

I love everything on this world so far

OH LAWD HE COMIN’

I love…Baymax…

Wasabi: Damn fake news!

Excuse U I think we beat them pretty good

Sora: Look Fred I’ve seen and been actual monsters I’d totally buy you were one

Sora YOU DORKUS

Never tell me the odds!

NO LET THE CUTE BOYS AND GALS HELP

Tadashi :((((

Sora: I dunno, that sounds suspiciously computers

MORE MINIGAMES

Probably didn’t do that obstacle course great, but oh well, managed it

Gogo all WHEN DO I LEARN TO RUN UP BUILDINGS

It’s magic, Gogo, it’s just magic

And then they all learned from Sora’s example of BE OP AND KICK ASS

STITCH SUMMON

Now we’re all 20% cooler

Man an actual news report treating a Heartless invasion like it actually would appear

Whole lotta fighting on the side of buildings here!

HEARTLESS KAIJU

Well that was a fun boss battle there

TIME TO LEARN TO FIST BUMP SORA

ba-lalalaa

Oh no now everything’s sweet and perfect HOW LONG CAN THIS LAST

OH NOOO

*clutches chest*

Oh well that ain’t good

Slooooow headtilt

Ummm I can’t target this scary moving block of pixels thing

THIS CITY IS TOO DANG BIG FOR MY TEENY TINY BRAIN

SHEESH OKAY finally got everyone for that, that took awhile

OH NO WHO’S THIS

Whooooo isssss iiiiit

DATAKU? OR REPLIKU?

Seems like it should be Dataku what with…the theming here

Sora come on that wasn’t Riku he didn’t have the right haircut

Man that’s the kinda boss battle that’s gonna hurt a person’s eyes

Sora: Are we seriously still on that kick again??

THIS IS GETTING CONFUSING

Okay seriously, is this Dataku, Repliku or Pastku?? I’M NOT QUITE FOLLOWING YET

Sora: Seriously guys this is total BS

OH NO WE’LL HAVE TO FIGHT BAYMAX 1.0 WON’T WE

OH HI Pete and Maleficent we haven’t seen you in awhile

Is Somebodykunort finally recognizing the fact that they’re maybe someone to follow

WELL SOMEBODY TELL ME FROM WHEN BECAUSE I’D LIKE TO KNOW

Fred is so genre-savvy

Okay those are definitely the blox things from Re:Coded

YUP I WAS RIGHT IT’S EVIL BAYMAX

DARKMAX

Oh I don’t like at all where this is going

I like his scary cube claw tho

Well that was appropriately epic

Just put another good chip in him??

Or not :( Sob poor Hiro

Uuuugh just that offscreen CRUNCH

OH WE DID FIX HIM

NOW THERE’S DOUBLE BAYMAX

WOW WE’RE DONE that was a heck of a deal

I’M KIND OF NERVOUS ABOUT WHATEVER’S NEXT

Oh that is bad news

Oh of course Sora’s gonna run off to realm of darkness THIS WON’T END BADLY AT ALL

LET’S JUST JUMP INTO THE GATE WHERE WE DON’T KNOW IT GOES IT’S FINE

HEY IT’S OUR HOME

*gasps* MASTER KEEPER

SORA WRONG TAKE DONALD AND GOOFY WITH YOU

EVERY TIME YOU DO THIS

TERRIBLE THINGS HAPPEN

YOU WILL NOT BE FINE YOU DUMB CHILD TAKE YOUR GUARDIANS WITH YOU

*tears out hair* jdsakldjal they NEVER LEARN

OH NO IT’S DARKQUA ISN’T IT

Well time to wreck Mickey’s shit absolutely I guess

“GREAT NOW I HAVE GUILT”

OH. OH HI REPLIKU

Oh damn here we go

Sora: HEY GUYS WHAT’S HAPPENI—ohhh

OMG IT’S THAT KEYBLADE

The power to explode everything

LMAO Aqua just zipping over the water like that

Oooof okay okay okay now it’s a proper versus Aqua battle, this is gonna be a toughie

Well that was indeed challenging but we managed it!

Aqua noooooooooo COME BACK TO US QUEEN

TAKE MY HAND I’M A STRANGER IN PARADISE

Yessss aaaaaaaaa

OH NO SOB

WE SAVED THE QUEEN

WE DID IT

SHE SO RELIEVED TO NOT BE IN HELL ANYMORE

Wow okay, back at Radiant Garden

Benched Nort Buddies

Demyx: Backstabbing sounds like a lot of work actually :/

REALLY, Vexen? You’re doing the actual backstabby for atonement??

Xehaort this is what you get for splitting your soul 13 ways, you never agree on anything ever again

DID YOU REALLY JUST SAY DEMYX TIME? DID YOU??

IDK about that in this universe you probably could grow bodies on a body tree

Ienzo: TF is happening here

IT’S SURROGATE DAD

OH NO IENZO. OH NO :(((

*clutches chest* They reconcile…

ARE WE REALLY GETTING TO WAKE UP VEN NOW??

Aqua please don’t blame yourself, you were in hell

Castle Oblivion lookin’ good anyway

THAT WAS REALLY FUKKIN COOL

OMG I’m so happy…I love Land of Departure…

THERE HE IS

THERE’S THE BOY

Ohhhhhh noooooooo

The OTHER The Boy

Venty-Wenty, seriously??

PLAY AS THE QUEEN, PLAY AS THE QUEEN

THE POWER OF THE QUEEN COMPELS YOU

Sora: Can we get to the helping part now??

C’MON VEN WAKEY WAKEY EGGS AND BAKEY

It was in you aaaaaaall along

Lie down / Try not to cry / Cry a lot

SUNSHINE BOY IS HERE

FUCK YEAH

HE’S HERE THE SUNSHINE BOY IS HERE

And Vanyeetas just nopes out of there

Yes they are realizing all the things!!

*flails* ThE GOOD BOYS!!! ARE FRIENDS

Man yeah this is seven now, isn’t it

Reunite all the families!

I love…everyone…

Aqua: It’s okay you don’t remember you were like four years old

Aqua all like I’M FINDING ALL THESE CHILDREN I HELPED OUT I’M SO PROUD OF YOU ALL

Please let them girl bond now

Lea: Will y’all start paying attention to me now

Lea: THIS IS AN INSANE AMOUNT TO GET MEMORIZED   —YEAH NO SHIT

I’m just 100% full of delight at this bullshit

WE’LL JUST HAVE TO FIND EVERYONE ELSE

YES COUNT DONALD AND GOOFY

HO BOY that sounds like an indication to run around and do what’s needed before we jump into the start of endgame stuff

VEN…YOU ARE SO GOOD…

M E A N W H I L E

Pete: Please…stop making me dig up everything…

What’s in the booooooox

Oh Lea…still needs his two friends back :(

OHAI SAIX

Hey you took Xion’s ice cream

Man that must’ve been a hell of a week

Lea: I don’t need dumb tattoos anyway I CAN CRY ALL I WANT

I’m kind of worried about some things mentioned here tho

Man this is just cutscene city ain’t it

Hi again Repliku!

Riku: Don’t talk to me or my edgy son ever again

Get it, time to himself, HURR HURR

PAOPU FRUIT TIME??

LET THE KAIRI FIGHT PLZ

OKAY SO. I suspect this is my chance to go around and do stuff before things totally go to shit!

So that’s what I’m gonna do next! Level up, find lucky emblems, cook rat food, all that goodness

MORE COMMENTARY WILL BE…AT SOME POINT

#kh3 spoilers #kingdom hearts spoilers #lynx plays kh3

[eng-hypnosismic]

[TL] Drama Track 「Know Your Enemy Side F.P VS M」

[Gate unlocks]

Gentaro: Pardon the intrusion...ugh. Ramuda, you’ve made even more of a mess. Can you really work in a place like this?

Dice: Uwa--! Colorful as usual...it hurts my eyes!

Ramuda: Hey! Coming into my office just to start complaining is a no-no! Nope, nope! ☆

Gentaro: I guess that makes sense. It would be unreasonable of me to come to your office just to complain about it.

Dice: Ahaha, you ain’t wrong!

Ramuda: All that aside, you two must be getting along well to show up here together!

Gentaro: I suppose.

Female Gentaro: In our past lives, Dice and I were a princess and a knight fated to be star-crossed lovers. Now that we’ve reunited in this life, isn’t it obvious that we don’t want to be apart from each other?

Ramuda: Is that so?! Dice was a knight! Suuuper cool! ❤️

[Dice hits Gentaro]

Gentaro: Ow!

Dice: Cut the crap. We just ran into each other on the way here.

Ramuda: Whaaaa…? So Gentaro wasn’t really a princess?

Gentaro: Ahaha...

Female Gentaro: It was a lie!

Dice: I’d never have a weirdo like him as my lover in a past life, anyway.

Gentaro: Indeed. I wouldn’t want that, either. ...well, that’s a lie, though.

Dice: If you’re lying about “not wanting that,” then…[jumps back] Uwah! Stay back!!!

Gentaro: Ahaha, that was also a lie, though.

Dice: I’m done. There ain’t no talking with this one without tiring myself out, running in circles.

Ramuda: Ahahaha! You guys are so funny! ☆ Hey, hey, what should we play today?

Gentaro: Ramuda, tell us the reason we came here today.

Ramuda: Eh? You guys came to my office to play, right?

Gentaro: He truly has the audacity to say that, huh...

Dice: “You guys came to my office to play, right?” As if! We’re here to go to Chuuoku.

Ramuda: Oh, right! Totes my bad, I’m sowwy~! ☆　

Dice: [scratches head] Aaahhh, this guy’s totally playin’ us for fools!!!

Ramuda: Ehh? That’s so mean! Why would I toy with my two favorite people of all time?

Gentaro: Dice, arguing with Ramuda is a waste of breath. So please calm down. 

Dice: *grumbles*

Gentaro: *sighs* So, tomorrow’s territory battle pits us against Shinjuku Division’s Matenrou, doesn’t it? Their leader Jinguji Jakurai is an old acquaintance of yours, isn’t he, Ramuda?

Ramuda: Ahaha… I guess so.

Gentaro: What kind of person is he?

Ramuda: He’s a good person.

Gentaro: Anything else?

Ramuda: He’s a good person.

Gentaro: Anything else?

Ramuda: He’s a good person.

Gentaro: Ramuda, is it possible that... you hate Jinguji Jakurai?

Ramuda: Don’t say that, Gentaro! Hate’s a strong word, do you really think I could hate anyone?

Gentaro: Yes, of course. I’m aware that Ramuda is a person whose true nature is more difficult to unearth than my own. After close and careful observation, I just can’t help but think so.

Ramuda: Hahaha…Can’t help but think so, you say? What do you mean?

Gentaro: In your life, there are no flaws. Usually people have very “human” moments, but you’ve nothing of the sort. It just feels like a lie, all of it. Consider it a liar’s intuition. There is something up with “Ramuda”.

[something snaps inside Ramuda]

“Ramuda”: Gentaro…get your nose out of my business. I(1) don’t want to talk about it.

[Gentaro gasps]

“Ramuda”: Listen well. I’m not asking you, I’m telling you. Don’t you ever make that mistake again. I won’t tell you twice.

Dice: H-Hey… What’s wrong, Ramuda?

Ramuda: Aha! Hey, hey, was I scary just now? Was I? An Onee-san I’m close to told me that she liked this type of character, so I practiced!

Dice: Aw, so that’s all it is! I freaked out for a sec, what with how suddenly your personality changed. Ramuda, ever thought of becoming an actor?

Ramuda: Yay! I got praised by Dice! I did it!

Gentaro: Well...that’s fine. To each their own story. As long as I can complete my mission, these things don’t matter. That said, this felt like the first time I’ve ever interacted with a “human” Ramuda.

[cuckoo clock rings]

Dice: Hm? Oh, it’s already this late? Hurry up, let’s go.

Ramuda: Oh, oh! It really is time. We gotta go! Let’s go, Gentaro.

Gentaro: Ah, yes. Let us go.

Ramuda: Now, onwards! To Chuuoku...let’s go!!!

—————

[knocks on door]

Hifumi: Hey, Doppo, I’m coming in. Uwa! Your room’s a dump again…!

[Hifumi starts cleaning up]

Hifumi: Even though I just cleaned it, it always ends up like this…

Doppo: Hmmmgg...

Hifumi: Come on! Hurry up and wake up, Doppo! We’ll be late meeting Sensei!

Doppo (sleeptalking): Ah, Manager, sorry, sorry. It’s…it’s my fault. It’s all my fault that our department's sales have been plummeting this month, and my fault that the department head had a meltdown, and my fault that you’re balding...I’m sorry...I’m sorry...sorry...

Hifumi: Yikes, he’s even apologizing in his dreams! Just how much of being a corporate slave is imprinted in him... Come on, it’s quitting time for the office in your dreams!

[Hifumi starts slapping Doppo awake]

Hifumi: Come on…come on…come home…!

Doppo: ...It hurts.

Hifumi: Ah, you’re up, Doppo.

Doppo: Hifumi, can you think about my feelings like a normal roommate when you wake me up?

Hifumi: It’s your fault for not waking up! You even kept apologizing in your sleep. You’re way too much of a corporate slave, you know?

Doppo: Eh…? L-leave me alone…ah, that’s right… I was even working within my dream…they better pay me overtime.

Hifumi: Get up, I made breakfast, so hurry up and eat so we can head over to the meeting place.

Doppo: Today’s breakfast is *sniff sniff* …Grilled salmon, huh?

—————

[Car races by]

Doppo: Sensei, I’m sorry for making you drive on top of providing a car.

Jakurai: Don’t worry about it, I don’t dislike driving.

Hifumi: For reals, sorry for always hitching a ride!

Doppo: Hm? Wait a second, “always?”

Hifumi: Yeah? What about it?

Doppo: Why are you “always” riding in Sensei’s car?!

Jakurai: Ah, when Hifumi and I go fishing, I always drive, Doppo-kun.

Hifumi: Yup, yup! Sensei and I are fishing buds!

Doppo: I-I never heard about it…

Jakurai: Huh, is that so? But I’ve always told Hifumi to invite you, too...

Hifumi: No way you “never heard about it!” I invite you every time, but you always say, “I’m going to sleep, talk to me tomorrow.” And then I couldn’t ever tell you ‘cause your body clock is in reverse!

Doppo: Hh...you might have said something like that on my days off...

Hifumi: See?

Doppo: This time it’s actually my fault for not listening to you but… I still feel kinda left out or something…

Hifumi: Haha! Why would I ever leave you out?!

Jakurai: That’s right. The next time our off days align, let’s all go fishing together.

Doppo: Hifumi, Sensei, thank you very much! Even if I have to use my hypnosis mic on the balding manager, I’ll get a day off!

Hifumi: Oh! It’s rare to see Doppo so fired up! [happy noises]

[Hifumi starts hugging Doppo]

Doppo: Stop it, Hifumi. Don’t cling to me…!

Jakurai: Even if it’s to get a day off, do not use your hypnosis mic, alright, Doppo-kun?  

—————

Ramuda: Aha, such a cool and tall wall! Every time I see Chuuoku’s outer wall, I’m totally wowed!

Gentaro: Ramuda, please circle around me more. It sets my heart all aflutter to see you have fun.

Dice: Hey, Gentaro! Don’t say necessary things! He’ll just get more annoying!

Ramuda: Ehehe! Then I’ll start running off more! Woooossshhhh!

[Ramuda starts running around]

Ramuda: How’s that, how’s that!

Gentaro: Well, that was a lie though.

Ramuda: Huh?! That was a lie?!

Gentaro: Yes. Quite frankly, you’re being a nuisance, so stop running around.

Ramuda: Ehehe! I won’t be fooled anymore~! That’s a lie, too, right?

Gentaro: No. This is not a lie.

Ramuda: Sure it’s not~! ❤️

Gentaro: Ramuda, you may not know this, but Dice loves to have people run around him, even more than food. Therefore, go run around Dice.

Dice: Hey, dude, stop messing around!

Ramuda: Really?? Then I’ll run a whole lot around Dice! Wheeeeeee!

[Ramuda starts running around Dice]

Dice: AHHHHHHHH! SHUT UP! Chill the hell out!  

[Ramuda runs around Dice]

Dice: AHHH!

Ramuda: Ahaha! Can’t catch me~!

Dice: Get your ass over here!

[Dice chases after Ramuda]

Gentaro: Ramuda’s acting as he usually does. No, it’s different. He hasn’t shown us his “true self” since then. Let’s test it.

Gentaro: Oh right, Dice.

[Dice stops running]

Dice: Huh? What do you want?

Gentaro: I left something in the car. Go fetch it for me.

Dice: Huh? Why I gotta do that? Do it yourself!

Gentaro: Is that so? I suppose that’s that, then. I was thinking we could all have a gambling session tonight, so I brought along a deck of cards, but I guess we can’t…

Dice: Yes, sir! I will go get them right now, so hand me the keys.

[Dice runs off to the car]

Gentaro: Now, Ramuda.

[Ramuda comes to a halt]

Ramuda: What is it, Gentaro?

Gentaro: There’s something I want to ask you.

Ramuda: Sure! Ask away! But are you gonna ask me about that boring thing from earlier? If so just know I hate that stuff~

Gentaro: Then it’s fine. I’ve no intention of waking the beast.

[Ramuda hugs Gentaro]

Ramuda: Eheh~! I loooove Gentaro~! ❤️

Gentaro: Yes, yes. The same goes for me.

[Dice returns]

Dice: Gentaro! There wasn’t a deck of cards!

Gentaro: Of course not, I was lying.

Dice: You bastard!

Ramuda: Oh! It’s Ichiro! Hey~! Ichiro~!

[Ramuda runs off to Ichiro]

Gentaro: Amemura Ramuda...quite the intriguing case, isn’t he?

—————

[Everyone gets out of the car]

Hifumi: Ah, we’re heeeeere! As always, Chuuoku’s wall is super tall.

Doppo: Yeah, I guess. This impenetrable wall and top-notch security were both provided for by taxes, collected from the money I’ve been killing myself just to earn...thinking about that makes me cry blood.

Jakurai: This wall is the manifestation of our world’s distortions.

Hifumi: Speaking of, Sensei, you know that one guy from Shibuya Division’s Fling Posse, don’t you?  Amemura… Shiguma, yeah? You used to be teammates, right?

Doppo: Hifumi, it’s not “Shiguma” it’s “Ramuda.”

Hifumi: Right, right, Ramuda! The person with a weird name, So what kind of “type” is he?

Jakurai: Amemura-kun, huh? Let’s see…

[Doppo flicks Hifumi]

Hifumi: What was that for, Doppo?

Doppo: You idiot! Everyone knows that Sensei and Amemura Ramuda don’t get along. What are you going to do if you upset him…?!

Jakurai: Haha, thank you, Doppo-kun. But it’s alright, you needn’t trouble yourself over it.

Doppo: Sensei…!

Hifumi: See! Sensei says it’s fine!

Jakurai: Let’s see… Honestly, I don’t have a particularly positive opinion of him.

Hifumi: What did he do for someone like Sensei to hate him?

Jakurai: While it’s true that I find odd people interesting and likeable...humanity...well, perhaps one could say that he has lost his humanity. Something of that sort.

Doppo: So Amemura Ramuda is the reason your previous team disbanded?

Jakurai: That is a part of it, but it’s not the whole reason.

Hifumi: How ‘bout the whole “lost his humanity” part?

Jakurai: That’s… No, let’s leave it at that. Unfortunately, this is unfavourable towards him, so it is against my principle to talk about the details publicly. I’ll have to decline answering your question.

Hifumi: Eeehh? It’s fine, isn’t it? Tell us--

[Doppo slaps his hand over Hifumi’s mouth]

Doppo: Hifumi! He said that he doesn’t want to answer! Don’t try to force him!

Hifumi: *grimaces*

[Doppo lets go]

Hifumi: Okaaaay...

—————

Samatoki: Well, if it ain’t Sensei...what a coincidence, enterin’ the same time.

Jakurai: Hm? Ah, Samatoki-kun, it has been a while. You haven’t changed at all.

Samatoki: Yeah. You two, introduce yourselves.

Juto: Glad to meet you. I am Mad Trigger Crew’s Iruma Juto. I have heard talk about Jinguji-sensei for quite some time. It’s an honor to meet you.

Riou: It is nice to meet you at last. I am Busujima Mason Riou. Treat me well.

Jakurai: How polite of you. I am Matenrou’s Jinguji Jakurai. Though we will be fighting in the future, the pleasure is mine.

Samatoki: Are the ones behind you your team members?

Jakurai: That’s correct. Please introduce yourselves.

Hifumi: Hey heeey! I am Matenrou’s MC Gigolo, Izanami Hifumi! Nice ta meet’cha!

Samatoki: Hah? Why ya runnin’ your mouth?!

Hifumi: Haha, whoopsie! I made the yakuza angry! Doppo-chin help me~!

[Hifumi hides behind Doppo]

Doppo: H-Hey! H-Hifumi…!  

Samatoki: Who’s the white collar?

Doppo: Hh! Y-Yakuza…!

Hifumi: Come on, Doppo! It’s rude to not properly introduce yourself!

[Hifumi pushes Doppo forward]

Doppo: Uh...

[Doppo pulls out his business card]

Doppo: This...is me...

[Samatoki grabs and crumbles the card]

Samatoki: A business card? Pain in the ass.

[Throws it on the ground]

Samatoki: You got a mouth, at least use it!!!

[Grabs Doppo by the collar]

Doppo: I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I’m Kannonzaka Doppo, your average salary man…!

Juto: Hm? I feel like I’ve met him somewhere.

Samatoki: Say that to begin with, dumbass!

[Releases Doppo]

Doppo: ...I have a fate of being yelled at no matter where I go… Tomorrow, I’ll probably say something unnecessary and it’s going to be my fault we lose… And tomorrow it’ll be my fault that it rains. I’ll appear a wet mess without an umbrella in front of women… Hah… It’s all my… My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my…

Riou: What’s wrong with you all of a sudden? If you don’t feel well, drink this homemade special drink made with lavender (2).

[pours Doppo a drink]

Riou: Here.

Doppo: Huh? Thank you for your kindness…

Samatoki: Hey, Juto. Didn’t we try to drink that before and get knocked out cold in seconds?

[Juto starts shivering]

Samatoki: Huh? Hey, Juto, what’s up?

[Samatoki tries shaking Juto]

Juto: ...Ah! S-Stop it…! I don’t want to remember it…! Don’t make me remember that cursed taste…

Samatoki: O-Okay… Well I don’t gotta tell him.

Doppo: Now, I’ll gladly drink it.

[Doppo gulps down the drink]

Doppo: Ooh! I think I feel somewhat better...! It’s a bit bitter, but it’s a good feeling. Um, please tell me how to make this next time!

Riou: That’s good. Of course, I’ll tell you. Next time, you should come to Yokohama Division.

Samatoki: You shittin’ me? He drank it, no problem.

Juto: That’s unreal…

Hifumi: Heehh? Doppo, let me drink some too!

Doppo: Geez, Hifumi. Busujima-san, is that okay?

Riou: I don’t mind.

Doppo: Thank you very much. Come on, you thank him too.

Hifumi: Thankiiiieee!

[Riou pours another cup]

Riou: Go ahead.

Hifumi: Down the hatch~!

[Hifumi throws it all up and collapses]

Doppo: Huh? H-Hey! Hifumi, what’s wrong?

[Doppo tries slapping Hifumi awake]

Doppo: This isn’t the time to fool around!

Hifumi: HHHHuUUUhHGGG!!

Samatoki: Well, that’s a normal response.

Juto: Yeah.

Samatoki: Huh? What’s up with you, Juto?

Juto: No, it’s nothing. In any case, Samatoki, you have the District permits with you, right?

Samatoki: Duh. I’m the one in charge of ‘em...

[Samatoki pats his pockets]

Samatoki: Huh? Agh! Dammit!

Juto: Huh? Could it be, you left it at the office?

Samatoki: No! They’re there, you know, on the dashboard of the car!

Juto: Well that’s great. Then let’s go get them. Riou, you too.

Riou: Roger.

[Juto & Riou begin walking back to the car]

Samatoki: See ya, Sensei.

Jakurai: Yes, see you tomorrow, Samatoki-kun. Now, Doppo-kun, Hifumi-kun, shall we go on ahead?

Doppo: Yes.

Hifumi: Kaaaay...

[Everyone walks off]

—————

Hifumi: Oh, the big gate over there is the entrance, huh?

Doppo: Huh? Are the people over there from other teams?

Jakurai: It seems so. It’s Ichiro and his team and… Amemura is there too.

Hifumi: Oh! The Amemura Ramuda that Sensei hates!

Doppo: I know Sensei said not to worry about it, but have some tact! Right, Sensei? …Sensei?

Hifumi: Sensei went ahead already.

Doppo: Sensei…

Jakurai: It has been a while, Ichiro-kun. And the same to you, Amemura-kun.

Ichiro: Hello, Jakurai-san.

Ramuda: Eeh, that geezer Jakurai’s here, too...ahaha! Long time no see, Jakurai!

Jakurai: I can hear you, Amemura-kun. As always, you show no courtesy towards your elders.

Ramuda: Ehhh? I don’t know what you’re talking about~! ✩ So the shitty old man’s ears work just fine.

Jakurai: Haa, how long are you going to continue with your childish act.  

Ramuda: Bleeeh! That’s none of your business! Hmph! Bleeeh! Why don’t you say something, huh?

Gentaro: Oh? So that’s Matenrou’s leader, Jinguji Jakurai. He’s not as temperate as I’ve heard.

Dice: Huh? What do you mean?

Gentaro: They say Jinguji Jakurai is so saintly he wouldn’t hurt a fly. But for him to suddenly lunge at Ramuda...

Dice: Oh…

Gentaro: Or on the other hand, Ramuda could have done something that angered even someone so divine.

Dice: Prob’ly. That’s something Ramuda would do, not that it’s any of my business.

Gentaro: Are you not curious about what happened, Dice?

Dice: Of course not. I came here for a gamble, not a history lesson.

Gentaro: Heh, that’s just like you to say something like that. However, knowing your enemy is essential for victory.

Dice: Then I’ll leave the complicated stuff to you. I’ll just have fun betting my life against the enemies in front of me.

Gentaro: My goodness. Well, obviously I couldn’t rely on someone as reckless as you. Let’s just play to our strengths and focus on our individual duties.

Dice: I kinda feel like you’re trash talking me, but since you’re taking care of that annoying stuff, I’ll let it slide and leave you to it.

Gentaro: That’s fine. Hm? The ones entering over there...

[lights cigarette]

Samatoki: The damn hypocrite, Yamada Ichiro-kun. I’ve missed you.

Juto: Well, well, it seems that everyone is here.

Riou: Hm. So these are the former Dirty Dawg members, Yamada Ichiro and Amemura Ramuda. I see. They do have a certain aura about them. I wonder just how good they are. I’m looking forward to it.

Doppo: H-Huh? It seems that the policeman from Mad Trigger Crew is walking towards me...

Hifumi: What’s wrong, Doppo? Someone you know? Just kidding, to meet someone you know in a place like this…

Juto: Hey, it’s been some time hasn’t it? You changed quite a bit, so I didn’t recognize you earlier.

Doppo: Huh? “Been some time”...?

Juto: I don’t blame you for forgetting. My appearance has changed quite a bit as well. I’m Iruma, we used to talk for quite a bit during questionings.

Doppo: Huh… Ah! The corrupt cop!

Juto: That’s a bit of an odd way be remembered as… But I’m glad that you recognize me.

Hifumi: Hey! It really was someone you knew!

Juto: You seem to have quite the unique friend there.

Doppo: S-Sorry…

Juto: Aha. It seems that you still have a habit of apologizing, Kannonzaka-san.

Doppo: A-Ah, sorry--

Juto: There is nothing for you to apologize for. Then, we shall part here.

Doppo: Ah, yes. I hope to see you again…

[Juto walks off]

Hifumi: Doppo, how’d you get to know him so well?

Doppo: It’s not like I know him well or anything...there were just a few complications back then...

—————

Ramuda: Wah! Sa-ma-toki! ♡ It’s been a while~!

[hugs Samatoki]

Samatoki: Aahh, pain in the ass! Don’t fucking touch me!

[tries to throw Ramuda off]

Ramuda: Hehe! It’s been so long, it’s fine, right?

[Samatoki continues to struggle]

Samatoki: Asshole, if you don’t cut the crap, I’ll kill you for real.

Ramuda: Samatoki scawy~! ♡

[Jakurai removes Ramuda]

Jakurai: It is rude to suddenly walk away when someone is speaking to you. Moreover, a proper adult would not do what others do not like.

Ramuda: Then, I’m fine being a kid -3-.

Jakurai: Haa, I am astonished beyond words.

Ramuda: In that case, keep your trap shut for eternity.

Jakurai: Amemura-kun, as I have said before, I can hear you.

Ramuda: Ahahaha! So annoying~!

Ichiro: Ramuda, enough already.

Ramuda: Wha?! Ichiro is picking on me too?! Boo hoo…!

Samatoki: Sensei, I’m sorry for the trouble.

Jakurai: No need; I had simply not finished my conversation with Amemura-kun.

Doppo: T-The Dirty Dawg members are all here!

Hifumi: Hyaaa! If I snap a pic and upload it to SNS, it’ll go viral!

Gentaro: The legendary group fallen from glory reunites out of pure coincidence...if this were a novel, it’d be an awesome scene, though I’d rather not encounter it in real life.

Dice: Don’t care, though. I just wanna hurry up and gamble.

Jakurai: Amemura-kun, to continue with the conversation from earlier--

Ramuda: I’m not being a real bother to you, so just leave me alone.

Jakurai: If you really think that, then I really question your sensitivity.

Ramuda: What are you talking about? I don’t understand.

Jakurai: Personally, I am deeply intrigued by the behaviors of the twisted, hence, I can’t hate them. People like that tend to be rather magnetic, pulling all those near them towards misfortune, but that’s just life. I don’t harbor any hatred or disapproval towards it.

Ramuda: Jeez! Your speech is so difficult and boring!

[Ramuda jumps and grabs Jakurai’s collar]

“Ramuda”: That’s enough, Jinguji Jakurai. If another word comes out of your mouth, you’ll regret it.

Jakurai: What?

Ramuda: Like I said~ Boring talks are a no-no!

Jakurai: *deep chuckle* Amemura-kun.

Ramuda: Whaa?

Jakurai: My sincerest apologies, but I truly don’t believe I can ever come to like you.

Ramuda: Ahaha~! I don’t mind because I de-de-de-de-de-de-deeeeespise you~!

Jakurai: *deep chuckle*

Ramuda: Hehe~

The faster, the better, since I’ve had enough of your face. No need to wait ‘til tomorrow.

[hypnosis mic on]

Jakurai: There is no helping it. This is self defense.

Ramuda rap:

None of your business, geezer

Cast away ghosts with this flow, the best!

Like a monster that keeps respawning, but

This rap is gonna end you, gramps!

[hypnosis mic attack wave]

Jakurai: Ghhaa...! Fufu… It’s been a while since I’ve felt this… He’s especially good with such dazzling style...this dizziness is unbearable.

Ramuda: Huuuuh? You’re down already? Jakurai, so lame~

Ramuda rap (cont):

Ha! Weak, weak, painful, painful

You look good in the grave, like a zombie

To respect you even though I hate you is impossible

Jakurai betrayed my expectations too much!

[hypnosis mic attack wave]

Jakurai: The same old amazing flow, I must say.

[hypnosis mic on]

Jakurai: This time, it is my turn.

Jakurai rap:

Indeed your rhyme, its style is superb however

I won’t show mercy to patients like you

Beneath the scalpel of words, can you win? No!

So let me give you some advice, if it’s your medical report, it’s pediatrics

[hypnosis mic self-recovery wave]

Ramuda: Woah! What a recovery!

Jakurai: I’ll be continuing.

Jakurai rap (cont):

There is no hope for you, a troubled soul’s child’s play

Respect raises a person to be strong

That is why I am strong (strong); respect fuels my strength

You will come to understand it in death, farewell (farewell)

[hypnosis mic defense wave]

Ramuda: Ghh--! Your raps are so dark as always. Your raps aren’t for attacking but are aimed at yourself. And then you elevated your mentality and upped your defense.  

Jakurai: Battle tactics differ based on the individual; only a third rate rapper would complain.

Ramuda: Tch! I’m gonna keep coming at you though!

Ramuda rap (cont):

Annoyed, irritated, on edge, out of patience

Who do you think you are? A god? I hate you!

Being a pain as you so please

Getting on my nerves everytime

Such an arrogant zombie!

[hypnosis mic attack wave cancelled]

???: You will cease now, you sickening men.

[several women run in]

Jakurai: That’s…

Ramuda: Tch!

Hifumi: H-Hhh! There’s… so… many…Hh--!

Gentaro: What a sight…

Dice: What a fancy way to greet us.

Doppo: S-Sensei… Could those scary women possibly be…

Jakurai: She is the advisor to the Prime Minister and Superintendent General of the Metropolitan Police Department, Administrative Supervision Director-General, Kadenokouji Ichijiku. She is the number two of the current government.

Doppo: S-So it really is…!

Kadenokouji Ichijiku: Next, Jinguji Jakurai.

Hifumi : Hh! S-She’s coming this way…!

[Ichijiku walks towards Jakurai]

Jakurai: Yes, what is it?

Ichijiku: I’m the one who should be asking that, you fool! Have you a defense for this siutation?

Jakurai: No, none.

Ichijiku: Hmph! So you too are no more than a man.

Doppo: A-Ah… Pardon me…!

Ichijiku: What is it?

Doppo: Um… Sensei had no choice since Amemura Ramuda activated his hypnosis mic-

Jakurai: Doppo-kun, I’m fine.

Doppo: But--!

Jakurai: It’s okay. Anyways, Hifumi seems to be terrified so go to him instead.

Hifumi: *crying sounds* Doppo… Don’t leave me...

Doppo: …I understand.

[Doppo runs back to Hifumi]

Jakurai: I apologize for the trouble.

Ichijiku: He has a good heart, but you know what happens when people tries to make excuses before me...

[Ichijiku walks towards Fling Posse]

Ichijiku: Alright, next. Amemura Ramuda.

Ramuda: Yes, yes~! What is it, what is it?

Ichijiku: Shut up! Your voice is grating to hear!

Ramuda: Waaaah! Onee-san got angry at me!

Ichijiku: It irritates me to talk to someone like you. Listen well, I’m only saying this once so pay attention.

Ramuda: Naah~! I don’t like difficult talks so I won’t listen! Bye bye!

[Ramuda runs aways]

Ichijiku: It’s not worth talking to an idiot. Alright, we’re departing.

[all the women leave]

Jakurai: Hifumi-kun, are you alright?

Hifumi: L-Lots of… women…

Doppo: Just take a look! They’re already gone.

[Hifumi looks in all directions]

Hifumi: That was suuuper scary!

Doppo: Amemura Ramuda is an odd one, as predicted.

Jakurai: Yes. He is an oddball, but he has first class skill.

Doppo: *grimace*

Doppo: With what we’ve seen of the other team members, they all look very skilled.

Jakurai: It may not be reassuring coming from me, however, I believe with you two, we can win.

Hifumi & Doppo: Sensei…!

Jakurai: Now then, shall we enter Chuuoku?

Hifumi & Doppo: Yes!

—————

Gentaro: It was my first time seeing someone as respectable as Kadenokouji Ichijiku.

Ramuda: That Onee-san doesn’t really have a reason in going out, so we were totes lucky to see her!

Dice: That important-seeming woman has such an exaggerated title.

Gentaro: Dice, she doesn’t just seem important, she is that important.

Dice: Oh, for real?

Gentaro: Dice, could it be that...you don’t know of her?

Dice: Not a clue. Not like her name will do me any good in gambling, anyway.

Ramuda: Ahaha, that’s so like you Dice!

Gentaro: Haa...all else aside, Ramuda, you dared to use your Hypnosis Mic under such a woman’s jurisdiction...this kind of situation—

[phone rings]

Ramuda: Sorry~ I need to take this, ‘kay?

Dice: Just pick it up here, who cares?

Ramuda: It’s a call from Onee-san so I don’t really want you to hear about it~ Unless you want to hear our flirting~? ☆

Dice: Never mind, take it outside.

Ramuda: See? Then, I’ll go out for a bit~!

[Ramuda runs off to take to call]

[exits the building]

Gentaro: Hmm…

[phone continues to ring]

[picks up call]

Ramuda: I thought you’d call, Onee-san!

Ramuda: Yup, of course no one is listening.

Ramuda: Yeah.

Ramuda: Like I said, sorry ‘bout that!

Ramuda: Yeah. I know, I know.

Ramuda: Yeah, uhuh.

Ramuda: Uhh yeah...

“Ramuda”: Yeah, that won’t be a problem. Without any delay. If there is anything suspicious about the other divisions, I’ll report it immediately. Yes, if you can.

Ramuda: Mhmm!

Ramuda: Okay~!

Ramuda: Aha~!

Ramuda: Of course, Ichijiku onee-san! ❤️

TL notes

1. “Ramuda” uses “ore” to refer to himself instead of Ramuda’s usual “boku”. Both mean “I” or “me” but “ore” is relatively less polite and more masculine.

2. Lavender has many health benefits including treating anxiety, stress, insomnia, and relaxation. But who knows what else Riou threw in there.

#hypnosis mic #hypnosis microphone #hypmic #fling posse #matenrou #amemura ramuda #yumeno gentaro #arisugawa dice #jinguji jakurai #izanami hifumi #kannonzaka doppo #t:drama #fling posse vs matenrou

[fivesoskingdom]

"She called the cops?!" gang!Ashton (Golden Star Fanfic)

A/N: Hey, yo guys! :) So, third part is heeeeere. You guys really did hit the likes last chapter and here's your reward. I don't know yet how I'm going to do this, but I'm trying to be away from the usual "he's a bad boy, but he's so sweet to me", like, hell no, he's a fucking criminal. I don't want to do this too heavy, but I don't want to be another soft story either. Let's see how it goes.

Remember: The next chapter only comes if this one gets, at least, 30 notes.

Summary: Ashton vanished from your life, apparently, but you know he always keep an eye on you. Well, not him, but always a partner and that day, Calum. But he's not the only company for the night.

You can find the previous parts here.

Hope you guys like it, don't forget to reblog, so I can know that there's someone out there liking my stuff. 💋

~

Another three months have passed without you hearing about Ashton or the Golden Star. You kept seeing his partners everywhere you got, but after too many useless fights with the blonde man you just gave up, knowing that talk to him was like talk to a door. Even though they were there to protect you, you couldn't not fear them, they were a gang, after all. Some days you wondered what would have happen if you haven't stopped to help Ashton, what the gang would do, what your life would be. Not that it had change this much, apart of always having an (probably) drug dealer on your feet, your life kept the same. Work, home, some bars with friends... Nothing too much. Most of times you forgot about the guys following you, specially if they were older, they usually did anything to keep hidden, this job too boring for them, the youngers were the problem, you lost count how many times your friends got worried and you had to text Ashton so he could say to the guy back off.

"Hey, Hood." you said when you got home. His motorcycle parked at your front yard was odd, he was hidden most of the time.

"Everything's good?" he asked passing his hands through his hair.

"Yeah, why?" you were trying to open your door, but with the amount of stuff on your arms it was hard.

"Let me help you." he got closer and took your stuff.

"Thank you." you said after getting in on the house. "What happened? I never see you."

"Luther said that a guy was following you." he said and your eyes got wide. "Here just to make sure that everything is OK. You saw anyone?"

"No." you deny. "You wanna come in, right?"

"Yeah, I was supposed to go in without you knowing, but I thought it was best to ask."

"Please. And is not like I have a choice either." you opened the door and saw Calum getting his gun from his jacket after lighting off his cigarette. You rolled your eyes, knowing that the Luther guy was probably overreacting and let Calum look around the house, waiting for him in the living room until he come back. "So?"

"All clear."

"You know, have you guys always on my back is more dangerous than live on my own."

"I highly doubt. Anyways, I will be at my spot if you need anything."

"That's OK. Do you wanna eat something?" you asked while walking to the kitchen, the last time you had eaten was in lunch, you were hungry as hell.

"You know you deal with this way too well?" he laughed and followed you sitting on the bench at the other side of the counter.

"Realized that I can't beat Irwin, you guys are staying until he gets tired of me, so... Just going with the dance." you hand him a jar full with chocolate cookies. "Secretly I'm always in the middle of getting an panic attack."

"Ashton is loyal to who matters. You saved his life, the only way he would let you go is if you die." he eats one cookie. "This is good." you give him a glass of milk as well, the six foot man in front of you almost looking like a child while eating. For a briefly moment you almost forgot who he was.

"My mom's recipe." you smiled going out of your gaze and taking a cookie and milk yourself. You two eat in silence, it's not like you two had a lot to talk about, actually that was probably the first time you two talked for so long. "Well, since you're not going anywhere, make yourself home, you don't need to freeze outside." you take your stuff again, going out of the kitchen while he's looking at you, surprised. "Going with the dance, Calum. Good night, please don't steal anything."

"You have my word." he said while sitting on the couch and rolling his eyes. "Which is nothing to you, I know."

"At least you understand better than your friend." you smiled going away.

It was about 3AM when you felt an hand on your mouth, you woke up in desparation only to see Calum keeping your mouth shut and making a sign for you to be in silence, showing you his gun.

"What the fuck?" you asked whispering, he nodded to your window, it was when you saw the blue and red lights. Someone called the police.

"You did this?" the usual nice expression of him was terrifying and you just shook your head, too afraid to say anything. "You sure?"

"Calum, I was sleeping!" you hissed in a whisper. "I don't know what's happening." suddenly both of you heard a noise coming from the guests room, your heart skipped a beat when Calum held you, getting you out of the bed and keeping his gun next to your stomach.

"Don't make a sound." he said after he chocked his gun, pointing again to your stomach. You can't really believe that he actually believes that you called the cops, but having a gun against your skin isn't the best incentive to talk anything. The look on his face makes you wanna cry in fear, but you just try your best not to. Your bedroom door opens slowly and you see a tall man coming.

"What the fuck?" you heard Luke's voice. "She called the cops? You called the cops? Are you fucking insane?"

"I didn't-" you started to talk, but got interrupted by a knock on your front door. You looked at the two men in your room, completely desperated.

"Come." Calum said pushing you. You two walked to your living room, Calum's gun against your back. "Find out what this is." he said in your ear without taking the gun from your back, talking so low that you almost don't hear him, then he hides behind the door, now pointing the gun to your head while you open it, you don't really know how you're not crying.

"Something wrong, miss?" the cop says, you just shook your head, denying. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm. I was sleeping, what is this about?" you fake your best sleepy voice and face, but you're almost sure that he isn't believing.

"A neighbor saw a man wandering around your living room and said that it was odd, called us to check." he said again, trying to see behind you, but you just straight up yourself to try to not let him.

"A man? I dont-" you were interrupt by the feeling of one hand holding your waist and a cold feeling back in your back.

"What's happening?" you hear Luke say, you looked at him only to see him on his boxers, his hair like a mess, looking like he just woke up. "What's wrong, babe?" he looks at you smiling, raising his eyebrows in a clear sign to you keep the act. You can see Calum rolling his eyes to Luke, the gun still pointing to your head while Luke's gun was on your back.

"The neighbor saw you sleeping on the couch, babe, and got worried, since no one knows you yet." you said without even trying to sound nice, sarcasm going through your tong. "New relationship." you smiled to the cop.

"Got it. If you need anything, call us. Sorry for bother." he says going away. You shut your door turning around to see the both guys looking at you, both taking a deep breath.

"What the fuck was that?" you asked, going to your couch feeling like you were about to get sick and fall on the floor since your legs feels like jelly.

"Your neighbors called the cops? Seriously?" Calum said putting his gun on the jacket.

"Yeah! I was sleeping, for God's sake. And you? What the fuck were you thinking?" you look at Luke. He shrugs, still handing his gun. "Where's your clothes?"

"At your room."

"I can't keep with this." you were passing your fingers through your hair. "You two were pointing guns to me!!!!! TWO. And how the hell did you even got here?"

"I called him when I saw the cops." Calum said. "We need to talk with Ashton. He need to know what happened." he was talking to Luke, who just nodded and got to your room to get dressed.

"You can't go." you say getting up and going to your room while followed by Calum.

"What, why? You just said-" Luke is almost dressed.

"Yeah, but now my neighbors think that we're together, it will be odd if you don't show up tomorrow morning." you pointed.

"She's right." Luke says. "Go to Ashton, I'll take the shift."

"If I were you two, I wouldn't try to sleep. Ashton will be here in the minute I get there." Calum says opening the door. "We should all go."

"What? No! For God's sake, I'll not go back there."

"You don't have a choice." Luke says throwing you something to wear.

~

A/N 2: I edited a lot of this, actually, and added a few details. I hope you guys like it, please send an ask, a comment or even go to my messages and say what you think, I'm really really happy when I hear your opinions and I love to make friends! Oh, and you can always give some suggestions as well, what do you think that should happen? I have at least 5 chapters already done, but I can always edit it with new stuff. See you next Sunday. 🖤

~

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[andrewmoocow]

Fooly Falls 2 chapter 4: Mechanica Melody (originally posted on April 19, 2019)

AN: We're getting close to the end everyone! Though unfortunately just like the previous three chapters, real life might get in the way of the story, but I still really hope I can get this out during spring break. Anyway, here comes Chapter 4 to really turn this summer on its head and send everything straight down to Hell from here on out. ZKHQ D OLWWOH JLUO QRUPDOOB GRZQKHDUWHG VXGGHQOB JHWV D FKHHUIXO DFW VWDUWHG, KHU IDPLOB DQG IULHQGV WUB WR VDYH WKH GDB EXW VRRQ HYHUBWKLQJ ZLOO ORVH WKHLU ZDB.

A suddenly more cheerful Gwen began skipping down the street to the shock of passerby's who were so used to seeing a frown on her face, which was now replaced with a big goofy smile. "If you ask us, I have a feeling it must be puberty kicking in early. It can do crazy thing with your emotions!" Juan theorized while he and Jorge were being interviewed, and his brother agreed with a nod. "When we came back from the island, I was kinda freaked out by how she was acting." Wendy explained worriedly. "Last time I saw her this perky was before she got that weirdo hat of hers. But hey, at least she looks positively adorable when she's happy!" "Whoa, it's a chopper! GET TO THE CHOPPAH!" Gwen peppily exclaimed spotting a helicopter hovering over her. "The whole world is turning upside down, I can just feel it!" "I'm so pissed off, I can't stand it!" Haruko snarled in frustration stomping her foot. "And it's all because of that shitty hat!" "It's an emergency measure installed by Medical Mechanica. The change in personality is most likely a side-effect." Jinyu remarked. "Or so Jinyu, Dipper and I have guessed. We cannot know for certain, unless we can head to the source." Ford added adjusting his glasses. "What do you think, does doing this with my glasses make me look cool?" "Oh, the iron!" Gwen chirped spying the abandoned Medical Mechanica plant towering over the town. "Also known as the WORLD SMOOTHER!" "I don't know which is more bizarre, this or the mutant raccoon that moved in with Ezra & Candy." Leia commented. "Last I heard from them, Ezra didn't want to show his face in public after Bawuu murdered a baby squirrel by chopping down a tree for literally no reason." With a loud cackle, the little girl kicked down the entrance to the Mystery Shack and loudly greeted her friends. "HOW DO YOU DO FELLOW KIDS?!" she hollered. "HEEEEERE'S GWENNIE, HERE TO START THE DAY!" "As much as I like Gwen not being so down in the dumps all the time, I'm supposed to be the fun & cute twin!" Tyrone exclaimed. "That is not Gwen, I can feel it." Arnold added. "Starting today, we're all getting to the bottom of this and saving my daughter." Dipper declared. "No matter the cost." Gwen giggled in a somewhat creepy fashion while the bobble of her hat glowed dimly, to the unease of her friends while Arnold & Tyrone gazed out the window to spy on Medical Mechanica.

Later that day in the living room while a group of hippies chanted "Furi kuri, furi kura! Furi kuri, furi KURA!", Dipper begged Haruko to assist them. "Please Haruko, you have to help us here!" he shouted but the Vespa Woman had her head turned away. "Oh please, this was all Arnie's fault he didn't remove the headphones like I asked him to." she stated. "Well you're at fault as well for even touching her!" "Enough arguing you two!" Stan exclaimed beating them both with his cane. "We gotta find Gwen quick. I do not wanna know what untold madness will come from her being too happy." "Stanley is right, you're both wasting precious time that we don't have." Jinyu responded stepping into the sitting room with the rest of the crew in tow. "You know what you need to do, so do it." she declared boldly despite still wearing her maid uniform. "I think she might have a maid fetish." Ian whispered. "Medical Mechanica." the maid continued. "That is where we'll remove it." Haruko responded with a thumbs up while Dipper got excited at the thought of the madness finally ending. "And then we can chase him together." The thumbs up immediately became a thumbs down. "We don't have any more options. Although they've tried to kill us and destroy the town in the past, they're our last hope." Ford announced just as someone knocked on the door. "Can someone answer that please?" "Allow me. But if it's PETA again, I'll just say the town is outta animals for them to kill." Stan answered wheeling up the the door and answering it, discovering a man in a suit and glasses on the other side. "You must be Stanford's brother. May I come in?" "What are you, a cop?" Stanley rudely asked before attempting to slam the door on the man, but oddly enough he managed to sneak his foot through mid-shutting. "Ow." "Is that you Kanda? What brings you here?" Ford asked shoving his brother out of the way to reopen the door. "So you plan on going up against the Big M, eh?" Kanda asked stepping into the house. "Well, I think this might be a good time for me to shine." "Hark, is that you I hear Kanda?!" Haruko chirped randomly appearing between the Stan brothers. "Wait, you know each other?" Dipper exclaimed. "I suppose it's time to let the cat out of the bag." Ford sighed. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Tsukata Kanda. He's a new friend of mine that I've met in Little Asia a while back. He claims that he does have history with Haruko and-" "How badly did she emasculate you?" Dipper bluntly asked. "Maliciously." Kanda replied just as matter of factly pulling out his squirt gun. "Now as I was saying, help me help you Pines family." "Pretty sure you're saying that wrong." Mabel remarked. "Want some coffee?" she asked handing him a mug of joe. "I'd very much appreciate that Mrs. Pines." Kanda replied taking the mug before he accidentally dropped it, spilling the caffeine all over his foot. "My word, I am terribly sorry! Just a bit of a klutz, I'll help you clean up!" "No need right now sir, we've got a friend to save." Ian interrupted Tsukata. "Speaking of which, where did Gwen run off to anyway?"

"A theme park? Perhaps this could be a chance to see what it's like being a child my age." Imelda muttered gazing at a help wanted poster in her hands for a new amusement park. She was so absorbed in the poster that she didn't pay attention when she nearly bumped into Gwen drawing all over the window of an abandoned furniture store. "My word Gwen, what are you doing?!" "It's all done!" Gwen chirped in response marveling at her marker-on-glass masterpiece. Imelda contemplated the meaning of the bright colors and the bizarre imagery. "Quite impressive my friend." the second Ramirez daughter applauded her older friend. "In a single word, it's a song!" Gwen cheered twirling around. "What kind of song?" Imelda wondered. "Carmen, Beethoven, Mozart, Skrillex?" "That'sa right-o!" Gwen stated beaming. "In space, no one can hear you sing! But the stars spin and spin and they spin around and around and they sing together!" The Pines daughter ran off merrily leaving the seven-year-old to contemplate what she just said. "Song of the stars, eh? My word, the park!"

A man in a goofy vulture mascot costume watched as a helicopter lowered a new attraction for his park before him while two children ran on by. "Check it out, they're putting in a new ride!" the first youth said excitedly. "That's awesome!" the second added just as amazed. When the clock struck three, Aiko interrupted her date with a third boy to get her pay. "Time's up, now pay up." The boy complied handing Aiko an envelope that she fished through. "Nice doing business with you." she said handing the boy a statue of a bear with a fish in its mouth. "Did I just buy this?" the boy wondered as Aiko began to walk off. "Maybe. Til the next time you need my services." The helicopter pulled the tarp off its cargo unveiling a viking ship ride, to the two boys' disappointment. "It's just a viking ride." the first stated. "That's lame, let's go home." the second replied and the two walked away as Imelda ran up to the vulture. "Excuse me, are you the individual running this establishment?" "Why yes little one, my name's Tonkichi!" the proprietor of the park answered politely pulling off his costume head to meet Imelda's gaze. "I see you're here about the job opening? And at such a young age too!" "Yes. I'd like to learn about what it's like to be a child my age." Imelda responded. "Well you're just in time young lady, cause a new ride just came!" Tonkichi announced presenting to her the viking ride. "This is going to be our new main attraction!" Across town at Masurao's house, he was being confronted by Eyepatch while the remains of a certain Medical Machine was crucified behind them. "You can't find it?!" Eyepatch shouted. "Well stop acting like a child and keep looking around!" "Well I've already checked everywhere but I still can't find it!" Masurao fired back. "What the hell kinda moron would lose something as a flower pot?" Eyepatch muttered in thought. "Can't you just make another one?" his subordinate suggested. "It's a one of a kind thing made from this guy's parts." Eyepatch stated gesturing to Canti. "There's no way we can make another one, not with our technology!" "Oh man. By the way, have you seen a carved bear anywhere?" Masurao inquired. "You're such a-that's not important!" his superior growled impatiently. "What's important is the flower pot!" "I'm home homies." Aiko muttered walking into her home while her father was speaking with Eyepatch. "We're supposed to use it to monitor-" the other man began. "Yeah, I know! We're supposed to reverse the N.O current!" Aiko's dad interrupted him. His daughter got suspicious of her father's activity and listened in on the conversation. "If we hypothesize that N.O is a power that can pull objects from elsewhere, then-" "I see." Eyepatch observed. "Then it stands to reason we should reverse the direction!" Aiko immediately got suspicious and opened the door to the living room and within mere seconds, it looked completely normal. She groaned as she turned her gaze to find her dad pretending to receive boxing lessons. "What are you guys doing?" "Oh hey Aiko, welcome home!" Masurao nervously greeted his daughter while Eyepatch's jaw dropped at the sight of her. "Oh my, you're just the type! Look at those fists!" he exclaimed marveling at her hands. "You let that champion inside again?" Aiko snarked about the older man. "What do you say squirt?!" Eyepatch cried. "We could take over the world together, you'll be eating lightning and crapping thunder before you know it!" In response, Aiko just kneed him in the stomach. "She's a lot like the other one, packing a punch like a shooting star!" Eyepatch declared falling to the ground. "The neighbors keep whispering about why you're always inviting a homeless man inside!" Aiko scolded her father, who simply replied with a demure "I'm so sorry." "Your dad didn't do nuttin' wrong sweetheart! Your dad's..." Eyepatch defended before Aiko's glare made him drop his guard as well. "A champ." He then handed her a few tickets to the amusement park. "Here. Would you forgive us if I hand you these puppies?" "You're always trying to give me these comp tickets as a way to get on my good side." Aiko scoffed. "Just where the hell are you getting these anyway?" Her question made the two men stutter nervously. "I'd rather have a day pass to the Gravity Falls spa or some resort in Portland." she continued. "I know that amusement park has a new ride, but it's just a stupid viking ship." Her comment about the viking ship made the duo groan in shock. "It was installed?!" Masurao cried. "It was the viking ship? You sure?!" Eyepatch added just as horrified. "Yeah. So?" Aiko answered beginning to get confused at what they were on about. "Hey, they finally did it." the capped man muttered. "Yep, and we're all screwed." the fake champion added and they both started panting & sweating in fear. "What are you talking about?" Aiko wondered just about to close the door on them. "Oh hey Aiko, have you seen that carved bear?" Masurao asked but she was already gone.

Back with Imelda, she had taken her seat on the viking ride. "I really appreciate you taking time out of your schedule to test this out." Tonkichi said gratefully. "Thank you very much Mr. Tonkichi. Riding on theme park rides are what children my age do, correct?" Imelda asked just as the old man plugged a wire into the helmet she was wearing. "That's right little lady, plus you get extra pay." Tonkichi replied. "What for?" "Oh, just a gift for the fam." Imelda continued.

Gwen continued merrily skipping about town with a big goofy grin on her face. "A dream, a dream!" she exclaimed. "What is the reason we dream? Is it because it is called a dream?" the girl contemplated. "There are dreams when we sleep, and dreams when we're awake! We dream whether we're sleeping or awake!" While Gwen frolicked about, Jinyu spied on her from her car with Haruko, Dipper, Mabel, Stan, Ford, Kanda, Tyrone, Arnold, Ian, Leia, Juan, Jorge, Wendy & Soos alongside her. The fifteen of them silently nodded to one another. "Let's go." Jinyu commanded kickstarting the Bel-Air.

"Look here!" Jinyu stated earlier that day discussing their plan in the living room while the hippies continued harmonizing. "That hat will be quite hard to remove as it's too deep inside Gwen's head." "The reason why she's behaving in this fashion is because of the bizarre radiowaves her cap is receiving straight from Medical Mechanica." Ford added. "Bizarre radiowaves!" Haruko wearing a goofy hat that showed a checkmark & Dipper repeated in unison. "To get her back to normal, we'll have to eliminate both the receptor and transmission source." Tsukata explained further. "Our plan is to split up into groups of three, two to go inside, two staying out and one to find Gwen." "Raharu, Ian & Soos will destroy the outer antenna." Julia stated to the aforementioned trio. "You can count on us Jinyu, as long as it'll get Gwen back." Ian approved of the plan while Haruko let out a half-hearted "Aye aye." while her hat put up an X sign. "Wendy, Juan & Jorge will provide cover for us in case of any outside interference." Ford added. "As for you Arnold, you're assigned along with Tyrone & Leia to find and capture your cousin before we leave for Medical Mechanica." Arnold blushed at the thought of such an important task while Tyrone slapped a hand on his back. "Don't sweat it! This'll be a great chance for Arnold to grow as a man!" "And lastly, Dipper, Mabel & Stan shall accompany Julia, Kanda and I in infiltrating the factory." Ford finished much to Raharu's ire. "Hey, that should be my job!" she exclaimed. "There is no way we're leaving you with Gwen at all!" Dipper rebuked. "Now keep quiet, cause we got a job to do!"

Gwen continued on her merry way with a big laugh until she found a statue of Petra the Pterodactyl singing her famous song with a crudely made "free hugs" sign next to her. "I appreciate you, you appreciate me." a poor recording of a woman's voice sang. "Let's appreciate everybody." "I appreciate you too Petra!" Gwen squealed with childlike delight offering the Petra statue a hug. What she didn't know was that she was now glued to the statue and it was chained to Jinyu's Bel-Air. Tyrone appeared with a big stupid grin on his face as he held up a sign saying "Oldest trick in the book!" followed by another sign saying "What a maroon!" With a hearty meep-meep, he cued the car to pull the statue off its support and fly toward the plant. Imelda on the other hand remained at the carnival testing out the viking ride while Tonkichi watched, and she was not having a good time. "Here we go!" Tonkichi declared pressing a red button that made the boat turn upside down to her shock and displeasure. "I just realized that I've made a huge mistake!" the little girl hollered as the ride made her head grind against the machinery. "That little girl is a great sport."

At last the Bel-Air made it to the roof of the giant iron and the party immediately alighted from it to gaze at the giant handle. "Everyone know your positions?" Kanda asked the rest and they nodded their heads. "Time to go." Jinyu declared. "Yeah, but from where?" Haruko asked. "You tell me." Dipper answered. "Uhhhh..." The Pines and guitar players remained dead silent before they began to argue amongst themselves. "You two don't have a plan and you're bossing us around?!" Haruko shouted hotly. "We have to figure this out together whether you like it or not!" Jinyu replied just as angrily. "Now be useful!" "Shut up! I don't take orders from you!" Raharu snarled. "Girls girls, please. Why don't we try the easy way in and just bomb it all?" Stan offered a solution. "And risk Medical Mechanica hunting us down? That's way too risky!" Ford repealed the idea. "It may have dire consequences, but the easiest way is usually the most successful!" Mabel supported her greedy great-uncle. "That's not helping at all Mabel!" Dipper fired back. "We need to think of something using what we have!" "Good grief, sometimes I wonder why I bothered taking that call." Kanda muttered leaning against the car to light a cigarette. "We're getting nowhere at this rate." Arnold moaned in defeat. "Who knows, change can be a good thing. Maybe we can accept this new Gwen and move on like the old one never went away." Tyrone stated optimistically when he noticed something familiar behind his feet. "Hey, isn't that Aiko's flower?" "Oh, what a pretty treasure!" Gwen chirped in delight picking up the pot. "No, don't touch that! Aiko paid a very high price for it and she'd kill me if anything happened!" Juan exclaimed frantically. "Really high? REALLY HIGH!" Gwen responded tossing the pot into the air. When it landed on Arnold's head, a purple force began glowing on his forehead. "Why can't you just get it?!" Julia yelled with Haruhara's back to her. "It doesn't...it doesn't want you!" Her other half's words prompted a glare from Haruko before Dipper spoke up. "Take it from me. I've had a crush on Wendy when I was a kid and over that summer, I learned you just can't force someone to love y-what is going on?" he began to relate his own experiences with love just as Arnold's forehead began acting up and sucked him in. "OH MOTHER-" "What did you do?! Arnold!" Jinyu shouted as the portal proceeded to swallow her, Haruko and the rest of the Pines. "You're an idiot cause you do idiotic things!" Haruko added as her final words before she was consumed by the forehead as well. "Mommy!" Arnold screamed for his mother. "Dad, no!" Tyrone added just as shocked.

Elsewhere back with Masurao, he had Canti tied up in cardboard and tape. "We have to do this because it's evidence. But I do feel a bit bad." Eyepatch stated solemnly. "Yeah. Because of this guy here, we were able to make tons of progress on the research." Masurao agreed. "Or rather, with what's left of him that is." "So true." the older man sighed in mourning. "The owner of this shell isn't a living creature, at least not in our sense of the word. It's almost like a larger being stuck between creature and planet." the redhead observed. "The planet is quite big of course." Eyepatch responded with a scratch of his head. "And that's why its cycle lasts years at a time." Masurao continued before his monitors started beeping. Rushing over to them, he made a shocking discovery. "What is it?" Eyepatch asked. "It's the flower pot!" Masurao exclaimed. "You mean the one you lost?" Eyepatch snarked. "It's moving!" his subordinate realized. "And that thing only reacts to N.O!" "That means it must've opened." Eyepatch deduced. "Hopefully Tsu knows what's up." "They actually got a hold of the flower pot!" Masurao continued panicking. "And it's in reverse flow!"

Arnold stood perfectly in place with the pot in his hands while the others watched in shock over what has happened. "W-what just happened?" "They all went inside your head!" Gwen cackled merrily creeping her relatives out even more. "What happened to you sis?" Tyrone asked begging for the big sister he knew to come back. "I'm the only one between us who's supposed to be that hyper." "Only one? But I've always been like this." Tyrone's sister revealed merrily. "Always?" Tyrone answered in shock. "Then again, her aunt is Mabel Pines." Wendy snarked. "To be honest, for as long as I can remember." Gwen explained just as the car engine went off and soared to the top of the Medical Mechanica plant.

"Can you all just shut up? You're turning into a bunch of broken records at this point." Haruko complained while she, Jinyu and the Pines ascended a seemingly unending flight of stairs within the factory. "Why can't you understand?" Julia groaned in irritation. "That is not what he wants, all right?" "Ha! Funny how you think you know him so well!" Haruko scoffed ignoring her words. "I barely know a thing about the big guy myself, but like I said; you can't force someone to love you!" Dipper reiterated hauling Stan's wheelchair on his back. "Now can someone give me some help? Stan is remarkably heavy for someone so old." "Well I do care." Jinyu continued in the midst of Dipper's struggling. "If you say that again, I'm gonna kill you." Haruko threatened her. "Please you two, why not just live and let live like I said before?" Mabel tried to ease the tension between the pair of women. "Don't bother getting involved Mabel, Jinyu is objectively right because she's a morally better person." Stan cut her off. "He needs to have his freedom." Jinyu continued. "Anyone who tries to keep him tied down is my enemy. Medical Mechanica, and even you." "If I may throw my few cents into the ring, Jinyu is trying to say he just-" Ford tried to interject, but was cut off by Haruko slamming the wall. "Shut up! I'm sick of hearing you talking about him Jinyu, and I'm sick of you guys trying to take her side! When I want something, I get it!" she hissed. "I'll do what I need to make sure he sees me!" "We aren't taking sides here, you're just acting like a spoiled child just because you want bird dick!" Ford argued, immediately regretting what disgusting thing he just said. "He's right. And you're going to fail." Jinyu agreed and Raharu just hissed again. "I understand everything. I understand him. And them, and you too." "How dare you say that." Haruko eerily stated. "I will keep on saying it!" Julia declared. "You need to join me Raharu! You're me after all!" Haruko just gritted her teeth with an angry glare and turned away to adjust her goggles. "Fine." "Raharu. You finally get it!" Jinyu beamed. "Together, I know we can-" "I am gonna devour you."

The Bel-Air roared to the very top of the Medical Mechanica factory with its passengers bracing for impact. When it finally skidded to a stop, Arnold was lying down on the floor with the flower pot by his side. "Gwen? Gwen, where are you?!" he called for his cousin. "GWEEN!" As fast as he could get up, he found Gwen dancing along the edge of the handle with a calm smile on her face. "Gwen?" "Dudes, you do realize she's dancing on the brim of a very high place, right?" Soos pointed out awkwardly. "No way!" Wendy exclaimed while her daughter observed the town below. "Young lady, please get away from there this instant!" "I can see everything!" Gwen chirped excitedly gazing into the distance. "Where is the-da-discuh-my father?!" she exclaimed. "Dude, he's in his head! Did you not get the memo?!" Ian screamed dramatically pointing to Arnold's scalp. "I don't have a mother either." the girl added to everyone's shock. "G-G-Gwennie?" Wendy muttered cupping her mouth in shock. "She doesn't understand how I feel. But then again, no one does!" Gwen continued. "I'm just a complete enigma!" "I-is this her true thoughts?" Kanda observed in wonder. "If everything's destroyed, we can just start all over!" Gwen contemplated. "For one, Mommy will no longer have to worry about me, Daddy will come home, Tyrone will still be his same old self and Arnold will grow a pair! If today was an ordinary day like yesterday, that would've been oh so nice!" With a loud sigh, Gwen fell down forward and in a panic, her family rushed to rescue her. Arnold managed to cling onto her arm at the last moment before fate had other plans for him. His cousin continued giggling and performed a pirouette that switched their places, her back on solid ground & Arnold clinging onto dear life. "Someone, save me!" "No, I think you can do it manliness grasshopper!" Juan exclaimed. "Yeah! We know you can make it back by yourself! Just try as hard as you can, and if you fall that's too bad!" Jorge added, which finally made Arnold lose it. "SO WHAT, YOU'RE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT MY MANLINESS THAN MY OWN MORTALITY?! I AM LITERALLY ON THE VERGE OF DEATH HERE AND ALL YOU'RE DOING IS HAZING ME!" "Don't worry little dude, I got your back!" Ian shouted grabbing the boy's arm and pulling him back up. "There you go Arnie. Now how do you feel?" he asked Arnold. "Exhilarated and testy." Arnold replied tepidly. "And like I said, there's more to manliness than endangering the lives of others." "I don't need anything special. But the anger, the sadness, the misery, the hatred. I just don't want to think about it anymore." Gwen announced holding onto her hat with a cute smile. "And so, that's why this hat looks great!"

Inside the factory, Haruha & Julia clashed once more while the Pines struggled to find cover from their fighting. "We have to find a way out, now!" Dipper screamed lighting four cigarettes in his mouth. "Not until we discuss your recent smoking habit! Aren't you the least bit concerned about your health?!" Ford hollered back. "It helps me de-stress, get your priorities straight Ford!" the great-nephew screamed again. "Now what can we do now?!" "Stop it! Raharu!" Jinyu cried landing on the metal brain-like structure before Haruko rocketed forward with bass in hand. Ford attempted to cover for his guitar-playing friend with a few shots from the magnet gun labeled "Carry at all times! Can't be too careful" he kept in his coat, but it was too late. The Vespa Woman slammed her bat down and made the brain explode in bright colors.

Back outside, the rest of the crew were just about ready to leave without the Pines, the Vespa Woman or her other half when the ground started shaking and Gwen collapsed in pain. "Sis, no!" Tyrone cried while his older sister screamed & cried in agony while her beanie began its most violent vibration thus far. "That's not good!" Tsukata gasped before the siren went off. "That's not good at all!" Imelda remained on the viking ride screaming as it spun in high speeds. "What's going on?" Tonkichi wondered looking around the operating booth before noticing a siren going off. The helmet on Imelda's head then began to crack. "Please sweetheart, answer us!" Wendy cried for her child before she let out one last scream and the hat just popped off her head. The girl fell unconscious in her mother's warm embrace while the hat drifted to Leia's feet. "Jackpot, we got 'em off!" she cheered pulling out a lighter from her pocket. "Now let's burn this thing and close this story for good!" "I don't think we're done yet. Look!" Soos exclaimed pointing at Gwen who was now on the verge of tears. "Someone help me! I think I'm going to overflow!" she sobbed. "I'm going to overflow! I'm going to-" "What in God's name is she talking about?!" Wendy shouted at Kanda finally having enough of things. "It means she's going to release N.O energy! Brace yourselves!" the agent cautioned shielding himself from potential danger, commanding everybody else to do the same. "I'm going to overflow! I'm going to overflow!" Gwen repeated shakily and let out an even louder scream than before, causing a single blue arm to burst through her head along with Dipper, Mabel and the Stans finally escaping. "Woo, that's the second craziest headcase I've seen in my life." Stanley commented rubbing his butt. "Now what did we miss?" "The-the world is turning inside out!" Gwen sobbed once more seeing images of a gloved hand breaking free from the chains holding some creature. She was lifted up into the air before the arm grabbed her face, pulling its owner out to reveal herself as Jinyu with a firecracker in her mouth. Suddenly another red arm, no doubt belonging to Haruko, grabbed Jinyu's own face and tried to push her back down. As the conflict continued, more visions appeared of Jinyu bursting from Haruko followed by scarlet wings emerging from her head. With that, the two broke free and clashed leaving Gwen to fall from the sky. "What is even happening right now?" Tyrone asked his younger great great-uncle. "This has to be N.O!" Ford analyzed. "When we managed to get inside the factory through the channel in your sister's forehead, Jinyu made some choice words that got Raharu mad and she smacked this giant brain thing that led to us breaking out!" "Well what're you waitin' for Sixer? Shoot her down!" Stan commanded his brother snatching the magnet gun and handing it to him. Behind their backs, Gwen landed back in the Bel-Air. Masurao and Eyepatch rushed outside to see what was up. "I can't believe it! Could it be the Pirate-" Eyepatch began before he was cut off once more. "It can't be, but that power definitely is!" Masurao answered frantically. "Oh my, it's begun!" Tonkichi declared peeping out the window. Imelda just kept on screaming and reminisced on running into Gwen while she was drawing on the window. "JANE, STOP THIS CRAZY THING!" she belted out a complete non-sequitur while a bamboo shoot spawned from her head and she was sent flying off the ride toward the factory. "What do we do now?!" Tyrone asked not knowing how they will survive this. "Why the smartest thing to do in a situation like this," Stan answered before his wheelchair turned and skidded away. "NIGURENDAYO!" Stan however was stopped in his tracks when he found Gwen in Jinyu's car about to drive over the edge of the giant iron as it was tilted backward by the bamboo shoot erupting from Imelda's forehead. The bulbs on her head burst and set free a small robot that raced up the stalk. "What is going on down there?!" Dipper cried before spotting his daughter in the car about to fall off the iron and panicked. Haruko let out a mighty scream as guitars clashed. "Cut it out Raharu!" Jinyu yelled trying to talk some sense into her other half. "Shut up! And your sunglasses are lame!" Haruko howled knocking the other woman back and chasing after her. The little bamboo shoot robot spotted the Vespa Woman and stuck out its little eyeball to put up a shield. When the girl tried to attack, the shield instead gave her a shock that blew her away. "How dare you?!" "GWEEEEEN!" the other Pines screamed together chasing after the Bel-Air while it rolled down the roof of the iron. They began to form a human chain that would try and stop the car from running away but unfortunately, they crashed into a support beam while the vehicle careened off the edge and towards the ground. "Gwen, no!" Dipper cried racing off the edge even though his face was badly injured. As for the little machine, it began firing at the two guitar players while they were still fighting. "Give up Raharu!" Jinyu screamed while Ford once again attempted to fire his magnet gun at Haruko. Dipper continued to dive after his daughter when she finally came to and spotted him. "Papa, no!" Gwen quickly took her dad's hand and dragged him into the backseat with her. "I am so glad you're okay pumpkin, now we gotta save the others!" Dipper shouted preparing to take the wheel until he realized they were already mere moments from crashing. Suddenly Jinyu came soaring in and picked the vehicle up before fetching the rest from the Medical Mechanica factory. "Thank you Jinyu! You're a real lifesaver!" Stan exclaimed spotting the Jazzmaster woman lifting her sedan in the air by just a hand. "You'd better not let your guard down!" Haruko exclaimed charging even faster at Jinyu, managing to dodge the little machine firing at her along the way, and attacked in a way that made the Bel-Air fall from her grasp. "Stop it, Raharu!" "No way Lame Glasses!" Raharu hissed beating Jinyu down to the ground. "Are you okay?!" Ford exclaimed in worry before Stanley grabbed the magnet gun. "Okay, that's it!" he shouted. "Everybody but me has gotten a chance to maim her this entire story, and I'm not about to waste my chance giving her the karma she deserves!" "Stanley you idiot, give that back!" Stanford shouted trying to wrestle his makeshift weapon out of the con-artist's hands. "I NEED MY GODDAMN NICOTINE!" Dipper shrieked about to light up another one in the heat of the moment when Haruko finally grabbed the convertible and tossed it toward the little robot, ultimately destroying it and making the bamboo crumble. Smoke began billowing from the tilting factory as Jinyu returned in the nick of time to save the two families from certain doom. "I know it's great that she saved us, but what about the factory?" Ian wondered pointing back to the falling iron. "It's tipping over!" Kanda exclaimed just as Haruko returned with a vengeance and with one fell swoop, it was all over. The iron now sat perfectly on its back following an explosion. The firecracker in Jinyu's mouth fell out. And there was a large hole in her chest where she was struck. "The plant..." Eyepatch gasped. "Stood up?!" Masurao added in shock. When the Bel-Air crashed and the Pines fell out, Haruko stood atop the wreckage of the robot with Jinyu in a chokehold while her white guitar was planted in the ground. "Jinyu. No." Ford muttered in utter speechlessness. "R-Raharu..." Jinyu croaked defeatedly. "I just wanted for him to have his freedom. I love him. That's why. I want him to be free from us." "You don't get it, no." Haruko remarked coldly. "Everything has always belonged to him, right from the very beginning. His shackles and his freedom. There isn't anything in this world that doesn't belong to him. Nothing." she monologued before pulling down her goggles with a smile. "That settles it. So we're not the same after all." "I guess so." Jinyu responded hoarsely in a dignified matter. "Perhaps, you're right." "Come with me Jinyu." Haruko serenely offered her. "We can finally be together." With that, Haruko morphed into a wasplike creature, fitting her moniker as the Vespa Woman, and swallowed Jinyu whole with only her glasses left behind while everybody watched in sheer terror. When the biker morphed into her now pink-haired humanoid self, she snatched the glasses from the air and put them on with a smirk followed by an evil chuckle. When Gwen looked down on the ground to find her hat partially buried in the dirt before the woman touched down on the crashed Bel-Air. "Now, why don't you come with me as well Gwen?" Haruko offered the younger girl. Imelda burst from the wreckage to spot her siblings, father and friends facing Haruko with Jinyu nowhere in sight. "Uh, what did I miss?" "I get it. I finally understand now." Gwen announced. "I know what you want to do. And that's why," she bravely put her beanie back on. "I can't go with you!" Haruko just gazed down at the Pines girl before Stan came to her defense with ten guns attached to his wheelchair. "She's right Raharu. Either leave my family & my planet alone or else I'll make sure that when you die, you'll be all alone with no one at your funeral except me, pointing and laughing." All was silent once more and nothing would be the same ever again.

At long last, chapter 4 is completed and boy this was a big one! Not just in terms of how long it took, but in how much this changes everything. About Haruko's relationship with the Pines, about Gwen, Tyrone & Arnold's arcs and the wider universe. Join us next time for the penultimate chapter of this saga and if you'll excuse me, I've got another Gravity Falls crossover I've been sitting on for too long.

#gravity falls #flcl progressive #crossover #fanfiction #fooly falls 2: ride on shooting star #gwen pines #tyrone pines #dipper pines #wendy corduroy #arnold pines #mabel pines #pacifica northwest #haruko haruhara #julia jinyu #stanley pines #stanford pines #ian ramirez #leia ramirez #juan ramirez #joseph jorge ramirez #imelda ramirez #abby ramirez #soos ramirez #melody #tsukata kanda #canti

[journeysintowebcomics]

Worm Liveblog #92

UPDATE 92: Daughters

Last time Taylor and Rachel started fixing their relationship somewhat, and Taylor proposed to the rest of the Undersiders the rather daunting task of fighting Coil. They have one week, maybe one week and half to succeed. Let’s continue!

And here it is, it has started: the interludes in the middle of the story, brought by the generous souls who donated to the author. This is one of them. To be honest, I’m not very sure about this...it feels kind of disjointed. I have liveblogged a few webcomics and since then something that’s starting to tick me off is intermissions happening in middle of the story. By now I can only sigh with annoyance every time they happen. More often than not it feels like it breaks the storyline. In this particular case it didn’t really do that because the arc was just starting, but in the future I hope these bonus interludes don’t happen in middle of the arc unless it’s like...another point of view or something like that.

It’s not clear right away who is the protagonist of this interlude. Seems to me it’s a young girl in...a cell, perhaps? A dungeon? It’s a dark place she can’t leave by their own will, seems to me. There’s also another young girl in here – a fellow prisoner? This is confirmed further when a man enters with a plate of food, giving it to them. The point-of-view girl thanks him, he hesitates but doesn’t let that stop him from closing the door and leave them still locked inside.

For a fleeting moment Dinah came to mind, but unless Coil recently kidnapped another girl for whatever reason and also stopped drugging her, it’s unlikely the girl this interlude is about is Dinah. Haven’t ruled out the other girl being Dinah, though. Very low chance but it’s there.

The other girl can’t believe POV girl thanked the man. Why’d she do such a thing to her captor? Hard to think it’d be just politeness.

She couldn’t justify it.  Her heart was pounding.  She stared at the plate.  Soup and bread: enough food for one person, barely enough for two.  She could have said she did it in the hopes that he would feed them more often, but she wasn’t sure she would be telling the truth.

“Let’s… let’s just eat,” she spoke.

It’s still too early to know for sure what to think about this girl, but she seems...I’m not sure what’s the word. Kindhearted? Naïve? I don’t know. She’s a nice girl, that’s what I’m trying to say.

There’s no time for that because the scenario changes to a different person. It’s Alan and Carol...it took me a moment, but I think they’re Panacea and Glory Girl’s parents? No, wait, it was Mark. I think Carol – Brandish – is the mom, but I’m not sure who Alan is.

Carol is dealing with the possibility of closing the office because of the city getting condemned. Right, she’s a lawyer. She’s gathering files and getting busy, but she’s not okay. She has stuff to be worried about, since this is clearly the present, unless Brandish had been in another condemned city before.

Yup, this is the present. I bet she’s worried about Glory Girl. She must be missing right now, after all. But nope! Looks like it’s not that. It’s less motherly and more frustrated reasons to be distracted.

Line by line, Brandish talks about how things led to her husband getting a brain injury that led to a very sad situation we readers are very aware about. We all know how it ended:

Carol smiled, but it wasn’t a happy expression.  “So imagine my surprise when, after weeks of taking care of my husband, wiping food from his face, giving him baths, supporting him as he walked from the bedroom to the bathroom, Amy decides she’ll heal him after all.”

I imagine how it was like for Carol, yeah. There’s this healer in her family who ironically isn’t able to heal him, because she can’t heal brains. Weeks later, you find out that was a lie, and the healer sat on her hands for all these weeks before finally deciding to help. Of course we all know it wasn’t like that! We know about Panacea’s plight. However, Carol doesn’t. To her it looks pretty awful, leaving aside her husband’s recovery, and now, she’s going to spread the word about this to other people, causing damage to Panacea’s reputation. Great, as if that girl didn’t have enough problems in her life. With some luck her stained reputation won’t reach wherever she’s going to go after Glory Girl is healed.

The Slaughterhouse Nine’s visit to Panacea also doesn’t help. Mark must have told her about how that visit went, right? So she must be aware he was healed at their behest. If so, then the impression she has of this is even worse, because it took a supervillain coercing her to finally heal Mark, meaning she didn’t do it willingly. Of course she’d be upset!

Victoria went looking for her after she ran away, returned home empty-handed.  I think she was even more upset than I was, with Amy taking so long to heal Mark.  She was almost inarticulate, she was so angry.”

“Your daughters are close.  The sense of betrayal would be that much stronger.”

So far from the truth. I don’t doubt Glory Girl maybe felt confused and all, but she was very willing to forgive her at first. If it wasn’t for Panacea losing control of her powers because of her emotions for a moment, things may have ended in a much more peaceful manner.

And now, like I said earlier, Glory Girl is missing. She was thinking about joining the Wards, so this mission alongside them may have been her way to prove herself. It...didn’t go like expected at all. Welp! While Glory Girl isn’t anywhere in my list of characters I like, I feel bad for her. I hope Panacea removes from Glory Girl the love she hastily had implanted in her and then goes away. Glory Girl will be majorly upset with that, but it’s for the better to do that anyway, I think.

They know the Undersiders took her for medical attention, but apparently Brandish doesn’t know where in the city the Undersiders are at. Huh. Battery knew where Skitter was, at least. I doubt she kept that to herself, so the Protectorate must know what territories the Undersiders have taken – at least some of them, right? Kind of surprising Carol hasn’t been able to get any leads. So now she’s distraught and came here to get herself busy and calm down. I can relate to that. Pretty normal reaction, yup.

Alan tries to offer help but it’s not that simple. There’s nothing they can do other than continuing the search...

“Welcome back to Brockton Bay, Mr. Barnes.”

Oh! I remember now! I think. Wasn’t Emma’s father a lawyer named Alan? I think it once was mentioned Barnes is her last name? I don’t really remember, but yeah, I think this is Emma’s father. Emma and family must be back in Brockton Bay.

Some time later, Carol seems to have fallen asleep, presumably not in her office. Back at home, most likely. She woke up because a stranger has arrived.

It took me like a dozen lines to realize this is the past, with the girls trapped. My bad. Anyway, these are Carol and Sarah. Now that I think about it, this may be how Photon Mom and Brandish met, right? Because New Wave is a group where two families decided to leave aside any ‘secret identities’ stuff and just admit what their real identities are. I don’t think a pair of random families without any sort of ties would agree to shake the status quo like that. The other possibility is that Carol and Sarah are family. I don’t remember if Carol and Sarah were related, honestly.

These girls have been trapped here for quite a while, it seems they were held as ransom or something, because now a man comes to kill them, saying time’s up. This is the moment Sarah has her awakening. Neat! And like anyone would do in her situation, she uses her newfound powers to fight back against the man threatening them, and it’s pretty bloody. Yikes.

She couldn’t bring herself to protest.  For the first time in long weeks or months, she felt a flicker of hope.

Weeks or months?! I did think it had been a couple weeks, at least, but I didn’t think it could potentially be months! That must have been quite a nightmare for them.

Speaking of nightmares, heeeeere is the other guy! The man who had been bringing them food. This time no amount of ‘thank you’ would make him hesitate, I suppose because his partner in crime’s battered corpse must still be around, so he raises a gun and shoots.

He’d tried to attack them?  Carol couldn’t understand it.  He was the one who’d taken care of them.  When he’d appeared, she’d been happy.  And now it felt like that had been ruined, spoiled.

She felt betrayed and she couldn’t understand why.

Okay, now I know the word I’m looking for is ‘naïve’. I guess it’s not out of the question a criminal can change their mind and all that, but it sounds like Carol took for granted he’d help them. True, he did show some hesitation that one time, but unless he showed hesitation every single time or other signs he was reconsidering this all he wasn’t going to switch sides just like that. Also, there’s a bloody battered body on the floor. Can’t have appealed to his good side.

The man shoots and heeeeere comes the trigger. This is the moment Carol gained her powers. I must say, I really like there has been parts where people other than Skitter have been shown gaining their powers. It has really driven home how traumatic it is to be in the kind of situations that’d get them their powers.

In this case, the vision Carol is having is of an egg opening and a lot of creatures bursting out of it, taking partners and flying away. Quite the vision! So far it had been visions of much older creatures, ones that were dying. I wonder if this is meaningful in some manner, if the vision depends on the person or something like that.

When the vision is over, Carol found herself on the floor. Sarah had tried to defend them, but I suppose the bullets were a lot to protect themselves from, and now that Carol had her trigger event, it’s her turn to fight back. She makes a weapon and attacks, it’s like a laser sword. The man’s limbs are cut and soon, well, he’s dead. That’s the end of this kidnapping and it’s pretty clear this is going to have some nasty psychological trauma on her.

You know, with all these traumatic situations required to have trigger events, it’d be great for new parahumans to consult a psychiatrist. It’s a shame so few have the chance to do so, I suppose.

Back in the present, Lady Photon is here to see her. She brings what could be interpreted as good news: they made contact with Tattletale and struck a deal. Good! If there’s someone who can deduce Glory Girl’s location it’s her. Maybe not with precision but she could perhaps say the general area? Where would Panacea take Glory Girl, anyway? Not a hospital, because she needed to work on her.

The information wasn’t free, of course.

“She wanted a two-week ceasefire.  The Undersiders won’t give any heroes or civilians any trouble, and we ignore them in exchange.”

“That gives them time to consolidate, get a firmer hold on the city.”

“Maybe. I talked to Miss Militia about it, and she doesn’t think they’ll accomplish anything meaningful in that span of time.  The Undersiders have their hands full with white supremacists and some leftover Merchants, the Protectorate and Wards aren’t part of the ceasefire and they’ll be putting pressure on the Undersiders as well.”

Ah, clever. She bought the Undersiders enough time to be able to focus on Coil without any other distractions. I have to wonder if, when Coil is defeated – because I think it’s a foregone conclusion they will! The enigma is how they’ll achieve it – the heroes will find out the Undersiders did it. That’ll make them even more dangerous in the eyes of the heroes.

Indeed, what Tattletale gave them in exchange was the location of both Glory Girl and Panacea. It’s time to go see them! I hope Glory Girl is almost healed by now, so Panacea can get on their good graces before she leaves. Some good reputation even in a place you’re not going to return to is always good, after all.

This interlude is jumping everywhere in the timeline. Back in the past, it’s Brandish in the Brockton Bay Brigade, confronting Marquis – Panacea’s father. They cornered him in his expensive house, Marquis isn’t worried at all. Hm! Is this going in the direction I think it’ll go! I hope it is! It would show how Panacea was adopted by Carol.

Looks like Marquis’ power is to manipulate bone. In a moment many bone spears erupt through his body in what must be a really weird thing to see, but it’ll be effective nonetheless. Bone is kind of a weird material, sometimes it’s depicted as brittle, other times as rather sturdy. I’m guessing Marquis would be able to control the density and hardness of the bone, right? In that case, he could make it as sturdy or as fragile as he wants.

The bone spears weren’t to impale anyone, instead they break off and are transformed into shapes that’d leave open wounds if the heroes get careless. It was to get bone exposed, I think. One of them’s bones in his foot break.

Alright! The heroes’ strategy is to attack constantly. Hit hard and hit often! It’d work better if Marquis couldn’t make a shield of bone, expanding it until it was larger than him, protecting him from Lady Photon’s blasts. I was already thinking ‘could they attack his back somehow?’ when Brandish thinks about how Marquis’ usual strategy is to get out of sight and then burrow to somewhere else.

Marquis emerged from the floor a short distance away, driving a spike of bone up through the ground and then deconstructing it to reveal himself.

I can imagine him encased in a drill made of bone, spinning through the floor and all, haha! But yeah, I must say, this power is pretty interesting, from what I have seen. It’s kind of quirky but also quite fearsome in the right hands.

Apparently he’s trying to protect something and he’s not being straightforward about it. Protecting his daughter, perhaps? It’s an anomaly in his behavior, one that puzzles Brandish.

His power let him manipulate bone.  If it was his own, he could make it grow or shrink, reshape it and multiply it.   It made him, in many respects, a competent shapeshifter.  His abilities with the bones of others were limited to a simple reshaping, and there was a nuance in that the longer his own bone was separated from his body, the less able he was to manipulate it.  Every second he was wasting talking was a second that the bone splinters he’d spread over the area would be less useful to him.  He was putting himself at a disadvantage.

I’m not certain, but I think Marquis has a finite amount of material to work with. Otherwise it wouldn’t be that much of a problem, he’d make more bone spears and replenish the bits of bone he’s not able to control so well. Also, now I see the purpose of the bone spears was for them to break and scatter around. Clever!

So yeah, Marquis is usually known for turning everything around to his advantage, and that isn’t happening here even though he put two of the heroes out of commission in like five seconds flat. Something is distracting him, Carol thinks. In the moments the narration takes to tell all this stuff, Brandish is blindfolded with bone and Lady Photon is imprisoned in a column. Only Manpower and Brandish are available right now, and they’ll try the plan the heroes had agreed all along.

The plan is charging straightforward and even lunging at the weapons Marquis makes. Luckily for them, Marquis is focused on making things as nonlethal as possible, instead trying to imprison them and even undoing a scythe of bone when there’s a chance it can kill Brandish.

Kind of a random thought right now, but I can kind of see how Panacea and Marquis are family, in terms of powers. Panacea has biological manipulation as well, just that instead of just bone like Marquis, she can handle pretty much the entirety of a living being’s biology. The similarity is faint, but it’s there. Must say, the topic of parents and children’s powers being related in some manner is pretty interesting to me.

Anyway, Marquis tries to get away, chance Brandish uses to slash the protection there’s over a closet, which she then tries to impale. Marquis emerges in middle of them and gets stabbed in the shoulder. Ouch!

“What were you so intent on protecting?” Manpower asked.  “This where you stash your illegitimate gains?”

Marquis chuckled.  “You could say that.  The most precious treasure in the world.”

It definitely is Amy. Pretty sweet of him to say such a thing of her. Seems like a sincere remark...it’s a shame things are like this and, well, Marquis had to be taken away. Leaving aside that he’s a villain and therefore does pretty awful stuff, seems to me he genuinely loved Amy. Amelia.

But Lady Photon was already reaching for the door, pulling it open.

A girl. A child, not much younger than Vicky. The girl was brown hair, freckle-faced, and clutched a silk pillow to her chest.  She wore a silk nightgown with lace at the collar and sleeves.  It looked expensive for something a child would wear.

“Daddy,” the girl’s eyes were wide with alarm.  She clutched the pillow tighter.

I wonder if the reason why Amy was hidden in the closet, if it was to protect her or if he also intended to hide her for some reason. Doesn’t seem like the heroes knew he had a daughter.

“I have enemies.  Would you like to see her fall into their hands?  It wouldn’t be pretty.”

I’m not surprised a parahuman would hide the existence of their family, especially if you’re a villain with lots of powerful enemies. Of course if the heroes found out, then the enemies could find out too. He really was trying to hide her, not just protect her. And now that he has been captured, it’s up to the heroes to decide what to do with her.

“The motherfucker has a kid?” Lightstar muttered the question, as if to himself. “And she’s, what,  five?”

“Six,” Marquis answered.

Six. Vicky’s age, then.  She looks younger.

Six years...I’m a bit surprised Amy didn’t remember her father. Six year-olds are self-aware and it’s possible to remember stuff from back then. Faintly, but it’s possible. It’s not out of the question Amy may have forgotten Marquis, but yeah...it’s surprising to me. Well, there are other factors that cause memory loss, such as intense trauma. That’d depend on if Marquis getting arrested was intensely traumatic for Amy, though.

While Marquis talks about what happened to Amy’s mother and about how he enjoyed a lot his life with Amy, Brandish hates everything. Something about Marquis makes her remember the moments back from when she got her power. I don’t...really see the similarities, honestly.

That cultured act, the civility that was real.  Marquis was fair, he played by the rules.  His rules, but he stuck to them without fail.  It didn’t match her vision of what a criminal should be.  It was jarring, creating a kind of dissonance.

This kind of character is interesting, but I feel he’d have more impact if this was explained in some more detail. True, we already know one of his rules, and we can kind of deduce others from the fight, I guess, but I think there’s a chance to go deeper into this. Although...there wouldn’t be much of a point, I guess. Marquis isn’t going to appear again after this – most likely.

Young Amy doesn’t want them to take her dad away, she wants him to stay and rejects any consolation. The heroes can’t do anything but call the PRT and just take Marquis away. Later, Lady Photon has Amy by the hand and seats her in a car. Hm! Amy was calmer than I thought she’d be, if she accepted to get on the car so easily.

Leaving the girl in foster care is not a good idea because if anyone finds out she’s Marquis’ daughter, she’ll be targeted, kidnapped, and exploited for her powers. Brandish gets a bad feeling and asks Lady Photon to adopt her, proposal that is rejected because they already have two children and no possibility of having another. Instead, Lady Photon suggests Brandish adopts her. So that’s how Amy got into this family! And Brandish didn’t want her at all. I think that had been said before, but it sure hits harder when you see it happen.

Brandish doesn’t want Amy, and her husband may have clinical depression. It’s not an ideal family for an adopted daughter, especially one who just saw this bunch of strangers take away her father. She had even shouted at them she hated them. It really is a tragic there were no better options for Amy, because this is far from ideal.

“It’s not just that,” she said.  “You know I have trouble trusting people.  You know why.”

The change on Lady Photon’s face was so subtle she almost missed it.

“I’m sorry to bring it up,” Brandish said. “But it’s relevant.  I decided I could have Vicky because I’d know her from day one. She’d grow inside me, I’d nurture her from childhood… she’d be safe.”

That perceived betrayal scarred her much more than I expected. Maybe it was Stockholm’s Syndrome? The term gets thrown pretty lightly in some stories, so I don’t really how grave it is in reality. From what I read here in a rather superficial research I just made, it’s pretty rare but it’s generally positive emotions and thoughts towards people who have wronged you, as illogical as it can be. Not sure if that fits, though. The cases I read about here indicate those feelings stayed for a very long time, unlike in this story, where Carol felt betrayed pretty quickly. I don’t dare to just call it naiveté, though.

Nothing else to be said here. Brandish will take Amy, even if she doesn’t want her. Nobody else can do it. And that’s the story behind this family. Goodness gracious!

Back in the present, Carol isn’t full of joy when she encounters the daughter she didn’t want. Yup, they found Panacea and therefore Glory Girl must be around too. Brandish immediately asks where’s Glory Girl; Amy’s response is that she’s sorry. Sorry for having kept her and made everyone worry the Undersiders had kidnapped her or something, I guess.

The location is a ruined neighborhood, possibly a random abandoned house. When Carol had arrived, Amy rushed outside to block the door – and yield at the first push once they try that, because compared to Brandish and Lady Photon, Panacea isn’t an obstacle at all. They ask for explanations, giving her the chance to say what’s going on.

“I didn’t want her to fight.  And I didn’t want her to follow, or to hate me because I used my power on her again.”

Again?

“So I thought I’d put her in a trance, and make it so she’d forget everything that happened. Everything that I did, and the things that the Slaughterhouse Nine said, and everything that I said to try to make them go away.  Empty promises and-“

So she did manipulate her memory again. She did break her own rules again and did what she thought was best. Erasing the memories of what Jack had said and everything Amy replied is more than I expected, but maybe it’s for the best. How will Brandish and Lady Photon react at these news? I doubt they’ll approve Panacea modified someone’s memory, but will they become angry?

They didn’t have much of a reaction to that. Alright.

Something in Amy’s voice alerted Brandish something was wrong, so she forced her way in and rejected Panacea’s hand when she tried to stop her. Amy was fearful, both staying against the wall and pleading her to stop going further into the house, while Brandish got upstairs and saw the only open door around, entering without hesitation. When Brandish stops, Panacea hurries to get there to explain.

You know, nothing good happens when someone has to say ‘please, let me explain’. I already dread what I’m going to read.

Amy kept talking, her voice strangely monotone after her earlier emotion, as if she were a recording.  Maybe she was, after a fashion, all of the excuses and arguments she’d planned spilling from her mouth.  “I wanted her to be happy.  I could adjust.  Tweak, expand, change things to serve more than one purpose.  I had the extra material from the cocoon.  When I was done, I started undoing everything, all the mental and physical changes.  I got so tired, and so scared, so lonely, so I thought we’d take another break, before I was completely finished.  I changed more things.  More stuff I had to fix.  And days passed.  I-“

Brandish clenched her fists.

“I lost track. I forgot how to change her back.”

...you know, the more I read this, the more I felt this...strange sensation inside me. It was the same weird sensation of nervousness, like intense dread, I even had goosebumps. I reread it all when I pasted it here and I still felt that. Guess that means it’s pretty effective writing, eh? I can say without exaggeration this is the most...nervous, I guess...I have felt reading Worm so far.

A caricature. A twisted reflection of how Amy saw Victoria, the swan curve of the nape of the neck, the delicate hands, and countless other features, repeated over and over again throughout.  It might even have been something objectively beautiful, had it not been warped by desperation and loneliness and panic.  As overwhelming as the image and the situation had been in Amy’s mind, Victoria was now equally imposing, in a sense.  No longer able to move under her own power, her flesh spilled over from the edge of the mattress and onto the floor.

...

...

...

...well then.

I’m glad I’m having a very hard time picturing this. Usually when I read something, I imagine it pretty vividly, but here I’m having some trouble picturing Victoria’s current state. Just from the description here it’s horrifying. I’m glad I can’t process just how awful it is.

...but dang, I’d have never thought something like this would have happened to Glory Girl. I didn’t like her, but that doesn’t mean I thought she’d have such a...I don’t even have words to describe it well. If Jack heard about what Panacea once she broke her own rules did...well, he’d be pleased he managed to push her towards doing something like this, even if it was pretty much an accident.

Last time these two had appeared in the story Glory Girl was recovering and Panacea was...not completely stable, but she seemed to be okay enough. What’ll Skitter think of this? Will the Undersiders find out?

Now what? What’s going to happen to them? No way anyone will let Panacea get anywhere close to Glory Girl again, and there’s not an abundance of parahumans with healing powers or the ability to manipulate someone else’s body. And Panacea...no way the heroes are going to just brush this aside. Is she going to be prosecuted for this? Sorry for the rambling, I guess I’m at a loss for words.

Obviously, Brandish isn’t taking this well. Her first thought is that this is a betrayal, and she was about to hit Panacea with her weapon when she finally took a good look at her.

The girl was so weak, so powerless, a victim.  A victim of herself, her own nature, but a victim nonetheless.  A person sundered.

Yeah, that’s...an apt description. Goodness, all this is pretty messed up. It takes all the fighting will out of Carol.

Some time later, Dragon and Carol are talking.

Carol stared as Amy shuffled forward.  The cuffs weren’t necessary, really.  A formality. Amy wasn’t about to run.

She’s going to the Birdcage, isn’t she. Geez, what an unfortunate end for her character arc. Unless there’s an arc happening in the Birdcage or something – a viable possibility, given how dangerous the Undersiders will be known as if their plans work! – Panacea isn’t going to appear again.

Just...just some recognition for how complicated Panacea is. I find that appealing and also very pitiable.

The armed escort would be waiting.  No court- Amy had volunteered, asked to go to the Birdcage.

No surprise there, she must be feeling a horrifying amount of guilt, so intense only going to the Birdcage will be a step towards getting rid of it. I don’t think she ever will. This isn’t the kind of thing you ever forgive yourself for.

Surprisingly, Carol gives Amy a rather tight hug. I don’t think there’s any love, but she’s sorry. Amy gets into the truck and off the transport goes towards the Birdcage, to never leave that place ever again.

Carol nodded. “Two daughters gone in the blink of an eye.”

“Your husband decided not to come?”

“He exchanged words with her in her cell this morning.  He decided it was more important to accompany Victoria to Pennsylvania.”

What I do find surprising is that Carol was the one to stay with Amy instead. She never wanted her, after all. I thought she’d want to avoid being anywhere close to Amy after...after what she did to her daughter. Guess the defenseless, hopeless and desperate Amy did strike a chord in her, enough to sympathize with her enough to stay and say goodbye to her. Too little, too late, though.

“You didn’t want to see Victoria off to the parahuman asylum?”

“Victoria is gone.  There’s nothing of her left but that mockery.  Mark and I fought over it and this was what we decided.”

Maybe it’s unkind of me to say such things, but with this it seems like she refused to say goodbye to Victoria because in Carol’s eyes she doesn’t exist anymore – all that’s left is whatever was the result of Amy’s mistakes. In contrast, Mark still thought of her as a daughter and wanted to see her off. Am I being too harsh with Carol by thinking like this? Maybe. But that’s what comes to mind.

Amy is gone, but Carol doesn’t leave yet. Instead she requests to watch Amy’s arrival to prison. Dragon has no problem allowing that, so after a few hours of waiting, Carol finally gets to watch it. Amy arrives, Dragon turns on the sound so Carol can hear what happens inside.

A second later, the sound cut in.  An announcement across the prison PA system: “-one-two, Amy Dallon, AKA Amelia Lavere, AKA Panacea.  Cell block E.“

You know, this must be quite a shock for anyone who knows who Panacea is. I bet many will be wondering how the hero who went around healing people in hospitals and stuff was sentenced to spend the rest of her life in the Birdcage. I imagine there’ll be lot of questions, and Amy will refuse to answer every single one of them, I bet.

Or maybe not, because Marquis enters the scene. With his protection, Amy will be left alone. Lung is behind him and is blocked so Marquis approaches Amy alone.

“I’ve been waiting,” he spoke.

Welcome home, Amy? I’m not sure if meeting Marquis again is good or bad for her. I just hope it’ll be good. At least she’ll have someone to trust in here – if she trusts him, that is.

This is the end of the chapter; Carol goes away after seeing Marquis meet his daughter again. Before I stop writing, though...

The day I cease seeing her as his daughter and see how she could be mine, he takes her back, she thought.

I understand how Carol feels – I think. I understand the traumatic reasons behind her complexes, I understand it’s very difficult for her to trust anyone, and I understand in her eyes Amy was a walking reminder of Marquis.

But, despite all that, I’m having a pretty hard time sympathizing with Carol. I just...can’t, for some reason. It’s tragic, pitiable, some would even say pathetic, but despite all that I just am unable to sympathize with her. Maybe because the thought of a small child being blamed for something out of her control rubs me the wrong way. It’s the kind of thing that’s very unfair, you know?

But even though I don’t sympathize with Carol I can’t despise her. Maybe precisely because of how pitiable she is. I’m not sure what kind of emotion Mr. Wildbow was aiming for, but I’m sure he managed to tug the right heartstrings in a lot of people, even if in me it may not have the right effect.

Also, I’ll miss Panacea. I warmed up to her throughout the story, maybe because she was a complicated character. Oh well. She had a good run.

Guess next update the arc will continue? We’ll see next time!

Next time: in six updates

#worm #worm liveblog #liveblog #webserial #webserial liveblog

[1358456]

Review Response, April 14 - 20, 2019

Another week!

Legacy Prologue - Sinnoh

1) Aaaaaah this chapter had so many great scenes! I'm a little sad Diamond and Pearl are taken out of the action for a bit here, but the scene with the Sinnoh Trio was adorable.

Blue growing berries reminds me of Destiny, only here the context is much happier here - kind of a reflection of how much better her life is with Red instead of Green, huh? I really like that. Also the line "... Got any for me?" in response to Platinum bringing gifts made me laugh.

Gold and Silver interactions are always a favourite of mine. Even if Silver didn't technically say anything, they play off each other so well and work great in comedic situations. Gold acting more mature was great as well. Him mentoring Platinum about the egg was so cute, and I love seeing the Dexholder's various talents explored in more detail than they are in series proper. I'm looking forward to this Platinum-like Eevee, lol.

Platinum being so excited over the Eevee egg... aww. I can just imagine her excitedly phoning Diamond and Pearl and flapping her arms like she does in the manga. Best female Dexholder is always the best.

And we end on Bobo the Bagon! ... I assume. Another great chapter!

I’m getting more accustomed to using the Sinnoh trio together. It can’t really happen when there are too many other Dex Holders present, but if they’re by themselves, they’re quite fun to use. Hehe.

Aha, yes. Blue growing berries is a direct reference to how Destiny started. Except unlike in Destiny, she’s really happy here, and is not using the berry plants to try to ignore her sorrows, but instead, grows them out of joy.

Gold acting all mature and... NOT an ass is a direct result of The Infinite Cycle! The Cycle is canon to Legacy. Hehe.

Oh, Platinum being super excited is going to be super cute, but... well, she’ll be hugging the egg canister, so won’t be flapping her arms like she usually does. ... Maybe if she sets the canister down on a table so her arms are free... hehehe...

And heeeeere’s BOBO!!

Legacy Prologue - Kalos

1) Third chapter! And last of the prologues. And it's really long, nice!

The scene with Solsol made me more sad than it probably should've, though its leaving served to lead Y towards getting a much better and more fitting team, so I suppose it's more bittersweet than anything. Her worrying about Bobo leaving her once it learns to fly made me feel really bad for her, and I hope it's not... foreshadowing. X being so willing to go after Solsol to make her happy was adorable, though.

Platinum and Y exploring the region together is great! I'm a sucker for senior/junior interactions, and they play off of each other really well (almost like a fire and ice thing going on). And even though I knew the Eevee would be fine after the egg broke, Platinum's reaction was heartbreaking. I wonder what would've gone on between her and Moon if it HAD broken too early...

Also the implication that White just hands out her business cards to every other dexholder is both adorable and hilarious.

Great chapter yet again!

Yeah, the chapter ended up being far too long than intended. Heh...

Solsol was such a bullsh*t addition that I mentally sacked it the moment it was revealed that Y got Absol as her only Mega. And now its abandonment has paved the way for Dragons that can FLY. So... a sacrifice that’s definitely worth it. Y worrying about Bobo leaving her... heh. IS it foreshadowing?! No one knows... except me... Hehehehe... And since I started to work on Legacy after XY arc has finished, X’s personality is not like in Destiny but more like what he’s like after his very sudden development. So... he’s less of an ass, and is sweeter overall.

I love the idea of a senior and junior traveling together in peace. A real shame that when I DO get to write them doing that, it’s rarely ever in peace. And yes, Platinum and Y, with their overhauled teams, will have a combination of Ice and Fire! Together, they’ll be able to use Ice Burn, basically. And maybe even face the true user of Ice Burn... Oh, I was sad when I wrote that scene with the egg almost smashing. Writing Platinum heartbroken is sad :( Hehe. Now if it HAD broken, Platinum would be a lot... colder, I guess, instead of being quite cheerful and happy. And Moon would feel such horrible guilt forever that she’ll never be able to even look at her properly.

And yep. White with her business cards. Heh. Advertising the BW Agency and Pokestar Studios to her seniors and juniors!

Legacy #001

1) I actually read this chapter before reviewing the last one because I was so invested in the story. Oops.

Is Blue making Gimbap (no idea if I spelt that right) in the opening scene? Cause it made me crave some. Could also be sushi I guess, but I think that's less of a travel food? Anyways,

"This action was way too intimate... she could not do it. She must not do it, either." Oof, that's a really good line. Blue pulling herself away from Red is so upsetting, but also completely understandable. I couldn't help but notice how much more comfortable and happy her and Red are together compared to her and Green in your earlier stories, and it's so much easier to root for a pairing between her and guy that makes her genuinely happy compared to a guy who's always putting her down and calling her names.

... Black really isn't good at making impressions, huh? No wonder he's ranked below a Glaceon. Guess you could say he's reached rock bottom. Also, I like this team of dexholders a lot, I hope they get a decent amount of focus going forwards.

And the grunts at the end signify that shit will start hitting the fan fairly soon. I fear for Platinum's safety. (But am also excited to see them get pummelled? hehe...)

Hehe. Certainly possible during a binge read!

Yes, Blue is making that. And the spelling is irrelevant since it’s not in English anyways. ... Of course it’s not sushi. I am Korean, you know. Not Japanese. Sushi doesn’t sit well with me, and as a Korean, when it comes to “travel food”, the very first thing that comes to mind is... 김밥. Yum!

Blue pulling herself away... ouch, eh? Hehe. Given her personality, it’s the most likely thing she’ll do with Red. And yes, Blue is SO incomparably happy and comfortable with Red compared to... the other guy. Given Blue’s background, she’d be quite longing for someone who provides her genuine care and warmth, instead of pushing her away. So... Red is perfect! ... He’s never going to call her annoying or noisy, and will always have time to care for her. Hehe... so cute!

At least Black is better than Sun at making impressions! Heh. Poor Black. Truly has reached rock bottom of the pecking order. And yeah, this team is good, but... there are still a bit too many Dex Holders in this group. Hmm...

LET THE SH*T COMMENCE!! Yes, poor Platinum. Always targeted :( ... But now she’s far stronger than ever!

Thank you so much for the reviews! I look forward to the rest of your Legacy reviews!

#qna

[missroseofficial]

Authors and Coffee ‘Two Scared Hearts’

*a/n: this was supposed to be longer so I’m sorry that it’s so short.. anyways, enjoy! x

masterpost for this series

Heeeeere we gooooo...

Normally opening a little box would be easy, but Y/N has been sat on her bed for twenty minutes staring at the black velvet box in her hand.  Twisting and turning it, everything but opening it.

“Y/N?”  The sound of Harry’s voice brought her back into the present.  She looked up and saw him pushing the halfway shut bedroom door open.  Her eyes immediately fell back down to the box in her hand and she gently rubbed her thumb across the top of it.    Harry sat next  to her on the bed, watching her hand clasp tighter around the velvet box. “Do you want me to give you a minute alone?”  He asked.

She didn’t say anything to him, just put her hand out for him to grab it.  He took it, knowing that it meant she wanted him to stay. The two stayed silent for a few minutes, both just staring at Y/N’s hand that was holding the small object.  “Should I open it, H?” Y/N broke the silence looking up at Harry wanting his opinion on the matter.  

He looked down thinking for a second before opening his mouth to respond. “It’s up to you. Are you ready?”

Y/N just nodded in response, “Actually can you open it?” She looked down and put her arm forward handing him to box.  He took it.

“Y/N.  You’ve gotta do this f’yourself, my love  .”  He said grabbing her hand and placing the box back in it. “But the question is, are you ready to do so?”

She nodded and opened the box, not wasting anymore time.  Inside there was a diamond ring, which she kind of expected yet she was still shocked when she saw it.  It was beautiful, one of the most gorgeous things she’d ever laid eyes on. One that Rick picked out special just for her.  Tears fell from her eyes, Harry watch as she leaned over and opened the drawer on the nightstand taking out a sonogram picture.  Y/N then took out a small black picture frame and placed the sonogram picture inside of it.  She set the frame on the nightstand and placed the opened black velvet box next to it.  “There.” Y/N said placing her hands in her lap and turning towards Harry, a small smile on her lips. 

*****

The two were sat on Y/N’s couch watching Titanic, Y/N’s head laid on Harry’s chest and his right arm held her tightly while lightly rubbing his hand up and down her arm.  It was silent other than the film playing on the television screen and she could hear Harry’s heart thumping against his chest.

“This is so ridiculous, I mean really, what are the odds that you meet the love of your life on a ship when you’re about to jump overboard? ‘S a bit much don’t ya think?”  Y/N broke the silence between the two.

Harry looked down and let out an airy laugh, “A bit cliche to fall in the love with the man at the coffee shop, is it not?”

“More likely than the other, is it not?” She retorted back.

“No, not really.  Kinda sounds like one of my books. All sappy and shit.” He said.

She shook her head and returned to watching the movie. Somewhere around ten minutes pass and Y/N sits up and the couch, tucking her hair behind her ears and hugging the pillow into her chest.  Harry gave her a confused look, “You alright?” He asked turning towards her.

“Yeah, just thinking.” She said.

“Bout’ what?”

Y/N shuffled a bit, “What are you afraid of?”

He gave her another puzzled look, “What do you mean?”

“Well, you know my biggest fear which is falling in love but what’s your’s?”

He crossed his legs on the couch and grabbed the pillow in front of him, doing the same thing she was doing. “Falling in love.”

Y/N gave him a funny look, “What?”

“I’m afraid of falling in love.” He repeated.

She started to talk, “But you…” Harry interrupted her.

“I know what I said, and I know what you’re going to say.  Something about the romance novels that I write.  I loved someone once, so much that I married her and I couldn’t give her the life she wanted. So, she left me for someone who could.”  

okay I hope you liked this little bit and I have some NEWS. I am now taking blurb requests for this series so if you have any pls do send them in! This series will start to skip around quite a bit so maybe the blurbs can help fill in some of the blanks. 

you can send your requests or feedback in here :) x

#aac fic #my writing #harry styles fic #harry styles au #harry styles x reader #harry styles x y/n #harry styles imagines #harry styles fluff