#dunno if its mystery kids exactly but | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

gillianthecat · 1 year

Text

He's so beautiful 🥰 And stays beautiful throughout, but don't watch it if you're just looking for pretty boys because a lot of other stuff happens too.

I just finished Alice in Borderland's season 2...

and I have a lot of thoughts, and some (though not as many) feelings about the series.

I think overall they kind of average out to meh? It didn't quite work for me the way that I wanted it to, or thought it should, although I'm not sure if that's because of the series or because of me.

I should be sleeping instead of writing, so I'm going to dump it all out onto the page without regard for order or coherence:

It was surprisingly coherent and logical in the details, which I find these sort of clever shows with central mysteries often fail at. It's very explicitly using the structure of video games. I can recognize it, just from being on the internet I guess, but I've basically never played video games other than the occasional five or ten minutes with my brothers when i was a kid. I don't know if I would have connected more with the show if I was more of a gamer; one of the stories it's telling is "what if you had to live in a video game," which isn't all that immediately interesting to me, although I can see how it's intellectually interesting.

That was kind of my overall response to AiB - at so many moments I could intellectually see what they're were maybe going for, but I rarely felt an emotional connection to any of it. Perhaps it was just my state of mind this week, and not the show's fault. It could also be the tremendous amount of violence and death in the show; I think my reaction to that is to disconnect, dis-invest in the characters because they could be gone at any time. Which, on the one hand is closely related to the themes of AiB, how do you value a life and all of that. On the other hand, since this is a piece of fiction, and not actual lives, it just kind of leaves me disconnected from the story. I kept pausing it and doing other things (even though I was also desperately procrastinating from real life) and in between mostly forgetting about the characters.

In the end it was intellectual curiosity that kept me coming back, both in the world of the story - what was this place they all were? - and also about what exactly the show was trying to say. Because it pretty clearly was trying to say something, not just sweep the audience along on an adventure story. The explicit questions, most clearly stated in Chishiya's arc but also I think present in everyone else's, are "what is the value of a life," or perhaps "what are you willing to do for other's lives?" But honestly those questions seemed kind of boring to me, which is perhaps another reason the show was falling flat. Perhaps if I was Japanese it would make more sense to me, the profundity of it lost in translation, linguistic and cultural. Or perhaps the show just isn't as deep as it wants to be/thinks it is. I dunno, somehow the extreme violence and the basic arbitrariness of everyone's deaths rendered the question as silly. It was trying to be about how people, specifically our various protagonists, take responsibility for the lives of other, balance their desire for survival against the rest of the world. But someone it never felt to me like the show or the characters grappled with the terrifying horror of the violence they endured and witnessed. And I get it, it's so extreme it can't really be processed in the format of the show, which is also at it's heart an adventure story and a coming of age story. But if the show is going to go there, killing off literally hundreds and possibly thousands of people on screen, it really needs to deal with if its going to deal with it.

And the characters did react - Arisu prostate on the floor despondent and blaming himself, obviously traumatized. So I'm trying to figure out why that wasn't enough for me, why it felt shallow. My first idea that it's a cultural disconnect, but I don't think that's it. I think it's because the story is so tightly focused on the protagonists, their losses and griefs and guilts and the life lessons they learn from it all, that it turns the lives and deaths of those thousands of unnamed characters into mere fodder for the protagonists' journeys. Which seems a very video game thing to do, and the opposite of the direction I thought they were trying for. But I'm still not entirely sure what they were trying for, despite the many explicitly stated life lessons in the piece. (Perhaps the many layers of the ending complicates these ideas; I'll get to that in a bit.)

Speaking of Arisu. I liked him, I really did. The actor has a beautiful face, sometimes I just stared at him instead of paying attention to the plot. And I empathize with him as a fellow underachiever. But somehow he didn't work for me as a protagonist. He somehow felt bland. And I don't think it was the actor's fault, he seemed to be doing a good job, and I'm guessing if I saw just a clip of any one scene I would think he worked. It just... maybe the story they were trying to tell simply wasn't the one I wanted to watch. It felt like he was supposed to be an every-man, young and lost and living only through video games, there for all the gamers (gaming men) in the audience to identify with. Much like how I imagine the main character in a video game to be, kind of generic, ready for the player to enter and see the world through it's eyes. But drama series are not video games, and they need a protagonist with more... oh I don't even know what was lacking. Maybe it's not a lack in the character itself, but in the way he was elevated by the narrative for no seeming reason, living out the fantasy of being the special one after all. And the script did explicitly acknowledge this, and I think in many ways it was intentional, but yet somehow that didn't work for me. idk. If there is anyone out there who has a) managed to make it this far into my ramblings, b) seen AiB, and c) has thoughts about Arisu as protagonist, I would love to hear them, because at this point I'm just talking myself in circles.

(And I noticed to that Arisu and bad guy Niragi were counterpoints, opposite paths for the same sort of basement dwelling underachiever, but I don't have many thoughts on it right now. Or maybe Samura, the guy with all the tattoos, was more obviously the counterpoint, but he died and was less narratively significant in Arisu's story.)

I also would have preferred Arisu and Usagi had a firmly platonic relationship instead of heading toward romance. I mean, it seemed inevitable it would head that way as soon as I knew there was a female lead, so I wasn't exactly upset by it, just resigned. And it's not that the actors couldn't do romance, I was quite taken with their chemistry in that final scene at the hospital vending machine. That was actually a romance story I would watch, whatever it turned out to be (again, thoughts on the ending(s) to come).

But it felt so... I don't know, generic somehow. I didn't really get why they each, specifically, were drawn to the other person, specifically, other than that they were the main characters so they had to fall in love. It just would have felt more interesting to me if it was all done out of a deep friendship. Even Usagi's sacrifices and pleas in the final game with the Queen of Hearts would have worked if they were friends instead of falling in love, I think for me the scene would have felt even stronger, their bond and love for each other somehow more intentional rather than just following the predetermined path of a video game, in which the guy gets the girl.

I have many thoughts on

all the secondary protagonists, most of whom I found more interesting than the two leads

the various games themselves (I was impressed at their internal logic)

the final bosses - a serial killer jack of spades and then a literal tea party with Mira queen of hearts. i don't actually know my thoughts on this yet, but i know i have them. And I thought Mira's actor was excellent.

the attempted rapes and other moments of sexual assault (which I don't think were necessarily supposed to read as sexual assault. But I'm still trying to understand Japanese media's attitudes toward and depiction of sex.) I survived watching them by wondering if Usagi's and Niragi's actors were friends, and hoping they were comfortable with each other, because all that licking looked quite awkward.

(that's generally how I survived the most uncomfortable scenes, rape and gore and anything I didn't want to immerse myself in: I thought about the behind the scenes process of filming it)

the cinematography and CGI (was was often quite beautiful)

All the secondary women I loved: An, Kuina, teenage archer Heiya, the two dealers from the game at the Beach, Momoko and her friend, gone but not forgotten, desperate Shibuki, more complex than expected. There were a lot of fascinating women in this show, and I think the story did interesting things with them. But, also their stories were secondary to Arisu's... I don't actually know what my thoughts on that are yet, separate from my generally issues with his protagonist-ness.

Usagi herself. Who started off so intriguing and then got flattened into "the love interest." Maybe that's why the romance bothered me.

Arisu's friends, and their role as sacrifices, both explicitly acknowledged by the script, but also... still somehow not turned into real characters for me, despite them have personalities and backstories.

But also, Machida Kieta! I did not at all recognize him at first. I remembered vaguely some BL actor was in the show but not who, and did a double take when I read that it was him. Also ironic that his opening moment is literally an extensive kiss with women, when there were zero kisses in [redacted to avoid spoilers for those who haven't seen it]. But he was good as completely different character than [redacted].

The mysteries of it all! Just who/what is behind these torture/murders sprees disguised as "games"? And why? There were various theories offered in the show, were any of them real? And could any answer actually be satisfying? They eternal question for shows like this (I remember Lost stumbling so badly I never even finished the last season.) I don't even have theories myself, and I expect I would be disappointed by any particulars. But I also really want to know.

I did wish the characters were more curious/determined to find out what was going on. Which... they were, or at least some of them were (that's probably why An was my favorite. As well as that 8mm film they found.) And that was supposedly Arisu's driving force through it all - to get answers and get home. So I don't know why it didn't feel like enough for me.

oh I almost forgot! the Alice in Wonderland metaphor going on. It works, although I'm not entirely sure what it adds to the story. But I've never actually read the book, and most of my encounters with the story are actually videos of The Royal Ballet rehearsing parts of Christopher Wheeldon's ballet version. Which I haven't even seen in entirety. All of which is to say, I caught I few basics, with the help of MDL (Arisu=Alice, Usagi is apparently the Rabbit, the Hatter, Chishiya=Chesire Cat, the playing cards, the croquet game and tea with the Queen of Hearts). And I think this question of justice and fairness in an absurd world is also a theme in Alice in Wonderland. But if there are other parallels, or any of the other characters have specific counterparts, I missed it all.

And then the ending. I actually deliberately partially spoiled myself for it, which generally I work hard to avoid. But I was struggling in the last few episodes, and I wanted to know if there would be any answers if I kept watching, or if I would just leave frustrated. So I knew about the Joker card, though not the context. And I have to say I was more glad to see it than not, even though I don't want to wait for another season that never appears.

Because I was frustrated by the "it was all a near-death dream explanation." of them back in the real world. One that even they didn't remember, despite all the hard won lessons the characters learned. It's rarely an ending I find satisfying, and it raises so many questions: whose dream was it? Just Arisu's or everyone's? And, as an audience member, I feel like it cheapens all the deaths I had to witness to get there. Yes, I know they were fictional, but, I don't know, it somehow removes all the weight from the story, and then I wonder why I suffered through all that pain if it meant nothing. So as much as I want the characters to get back into the real world I was revealed to see that Joker card emerge on the table, implying they were in one last more stage of the game, controlled by who the hell knows who.

Although all the (conscious) characters seemed happy enough at the hospital back in their real world of the hospital, it didn't feel real to me without their memories of what they had endured, how they had changed from it. Because they had all worked hard to earn those changes, paying the price in literal blood.

That said, in general I'm not a fan of reality slipping media, that keeps the audience guessing on what's the real world and what's the hallucination/simulation/whatever. Alice in Borderland handled it about as well as I think it could. But often reality slipping just pulls me out of the story entirely. Because none of it is real, it's all created in film studies and on locations, and in the graphics computer. So if the show is asking me to determine which of the fictional realities is the "real" fictional reality, I often just through in the towel and go it's all fake. Alice in Borderland didn't do too much of this, so I was able to stay at least somewhat grounded in the worlds they were creating, although this was probably another contributor to that feeling of disconnect I was talking about at the beginning of these musings.

Ok. I have written almost 2500 words and I could probably write thousands more. But I really do need to sleep, and if I save this as a draft it will just hang over me. So here it is, in all its rambling unedited glory. If you made it this far, feel free to ask me questions. I do have vague intentions about writing more, but there's a good chance it won't happen without prompting.

#alice in borderland #my ramblings #full of spoilers #no [editing] we die like men #final episodes #reaction by gillianthecat

2 notes · View notes

thetimelordbatgirl · 2 years

Note

I dunno if I asked or remember asking that question, but anyway, what is your overall thoughts of Wicked World, if you watch all the episodes?

I don't recall you asking either, really, so....

Overall thoughts: it was meh. I did manage to like, watch all of season one and it was really hard to do cause the plot clearly struggled to find what it wanted to do, let alone the fact that some of the characters just felt weirdly written, Evie being the one that comes to mind but Audrey also in some sense and could they make their mind up with Lonnie already?? Girly girl in first film, into ROAR in D2 and hip hop in wicked world???? Did no one know what they were doing with Lonnie at this point in Descendants or-

And the animation....look, its not as bad as Addison’s Moonlight Mystery, that one is meme material. But like, you can tell where the CGI struggled with the hair movements and such and even somehow lightwashed Audrey’s skin??? Apparently they fixed this in S2 but like???? How??? And the outfits....look, a large majority of them are fine...given they mostly wear outfits from the first Descendants, so...but BEN?! WHAT DID THEY DO TO HIM?! Maybe this is why we don’t get Ben wearing shit beyond his king outfits: because when Descendants tries, they somehow give him two different patterned outfits at the same time and different colors for some reason. And you can tell the CGI budget was small as shit...because characters like Chad and Doug are missing, hence why you don’t see Evie and Doug dance with each other in S1 finale and have a weird joke as a result with Evie dancing with the princess crown.

And for the characters we got introduced to....Freddie’s pretty cool, kinda funny with China Anne McClain voicing her in S1, but she’s a pretty cool daughter of Facilier at least, but damn, even if this Mal is more likeable then films Mal, Mal still a bitch about bringing Freddie off the Isle. And Ally and Jordon....they okay. Like, Jordon’s name is a little weird as we can’t tell where exactly the team got this name for a character whose dad was from Agrabah. But like, she’s okay at least I guess, but I’m mixed on Ally: one hand, design is cute and I do like how they TRIED to make her a lil wonderland like, but on other hand: god could her quick to accuse moments in S1 get annoying... And CJ is probably the biggest mood of S1: appearing for maybe one episode and then fucking off afterwards. A mood, I tell you. Tho outside of that, she’s a good character...even if they just didn’t use her very well in the end.

I didn’t really watch S2 per-say, maybe a couple of eps but I honestly lost interest after S1. But I will say from what I watch: meh on the season. At least it had a plot I guess this time...even if the jewels existence is confusing to me because....you telling me the heroes have all these powers given to them, even with the discouragement of using magic, and we NEVER got to see them use the jewels again after this??? Are you KIDDING ME- and they also took the villains away from them but are now giving them finally to the VKs??? What??? HOW DOES THAT WORK- how did only Maleficent hide hers but no one else??? AND WHY WOULD SOMEONE LIKE CRUELLA HAVE ONE- Though ngl, evil Mal was kinda cool to see and her song is a bop at least...even if her whole jewel thing is confusing as fuck still... And for the new guy who was made to be the villain...at least he had more to do this season then CJ did in S1??? But not saying much, and ngl, the crush on Mal feels like....a weird way to tie him to Mal and its never brought up again beyond that mention, not even when Mal tells Evie to distract Zevon like uh, Mal, he has a crush on YOU, not Evie, YOU do the distraction here- And CJ just...appears randomly again in finale and I guess auradon is chill with her suddenly despite all she’s done.

And....not surprised it didn’t get a S3, don’t even try after the mess that was D3. Though out of this, the wedding prep shorts and the zombies one....this is probably the most decent animated series’ Disney’s done so far, so...

#like this is jumbled but been ages since i watched wicked world so #best attempt here really

9 notes · View notes

anagnorvices · 2 years

Text

a writeblr (re)intro

about me:

nyx, aka anagnorvices

all pronouns (except it/its) but they/them is always a safe bet

previously @aurienyx but i decided to move to a sideblog for convenience's sake

favorite books: little fires everywhere by celeste ng, the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy by douglas adams, the weight of our sky by hanna alkaf, and many many more

big fan of found family, ComplicatedTM character dynamics, mythology, futuristic settings, and unnecessary amounts of worldbuilding (affectionate)

what i write:

mostly prose, but i dabble in poetry sometimes

unnecessary amounts of worldbuilding (derogatory)

a lot of fic. like a Lot. probably majority of the content i post will be from my fics but i write original stuff on occasion

loooove fantasy and scifi but i don't actually write a lot of hard scifi, more like fantasy with vaguely scientific magic systems—but i'm gonna change that :) scifi here i comeee

looking to experiment more with different styles (screenplay, transcript, epistolary, etc) and genres—i'm really excited to try my hand at horror/thriller, and currently attempting to forage into the world of mysteries

current wips:

curses and gifts: my firstborn child. first wip and still going strong...ish. the one thing i absolutely want to finish before i die. (kind of on the backburner for now, though.) ft. twins displaced from their home planet, a himbo who is unexpectedly competent in some aspects, and galactic conspiracies galore. excerpt:

"Wonder why Rizeol is out," Jasmin says as Daemis-kasin calls out instructions for the next strengthening exercise. She sucks in a breath before pushing up into the new position easily. "Dunno," I say. "Probably sick, a couple other kids have been out lately too. Didn't Audrie say something about it being the season for it?" Audrie grunts from Jasmin's other side, but I can't tell if it's because he's confirming what I said or if it's just because he fell. "Or," Jasmin says, "maybe that's not it. He lives on campus, Laeline, but I checked his room and everyone said they hadn't seen him in a while. Don't you think something's off here?"

atla murder mystery: what it says on the tin...because titles are a Struggle and they're usually the last step in my writing process, so that's what you get (for now). ft. detective sokka and dual timelines! there'll be a title someday... excerpt:

Ozai Kazuichi. Harsh angled contours, severely drawn eyebrows, piercing gold eyes that, even in death, seem to stare straight through Sokka’s soul. So this is the man that ruled an empire. Or, was.

dragon wip: also atla. a lot of Feelings, with a pinch of plot. dragon zuko is having a Time. probably going to be a lot shorter than i initially planned, but word counts have a habit of getting away from me, so who knows? excerpt:

Zuko stares at the long, scaly body now trailing down the hallway—his body, he realizes with horror—and tries not to scream. He’s a fucking dragon. What the hell? He clamors to his feet, slipping and thudding back to the floor several times as he tries to figure out where exactly his feet are now and how they’re supposed to move. What the hell. Stars and sands, he knew Peony was trouble.

tagging some friends hope u don't mind <3

@songbirdii, @mortallynuttyqueen, @novaliae, @gelatinous-jellyfish, @inkflight, @aalinaaaaaa

#writeblr #writeblr intro #wtwcommunity #writers on tumblr #curses and gifts #self.writing #couldnt think of what to tag the atla murder mystery as so i told a friend jokingly that im gonna call it keeping up with the kazuichis #but now i really want to soooo yeah #keeping up with the kazuichis #here there be dragons #tag names liable to change whenever i come up with Actual Titles #the c&g excerpt is also kinda old...names are definitely changing and i'm probably gonna change the title too adjfhwuieh #i have wayy more wips that ill probably post about but i capped it at three for this post before it became color of the sky-length

5 notes · View notes

wbwoqlqxoxxms · 1 year

Text

Yishun Revengers Episode 5 "OMAE WA SHINDERU"

"Roses are red, the sun gives off heat...if your legs are tired, you can use my face as a seat,"

-internet poetry rizz

"Whatever, can you use your card powers or something to heal us or something?" Mendax acted rather impatiently.

"I...mean...I can but...." Sano the card man stuttered and stammered, stumbling over his line of speech.

"Then just heal us quick, oh god we're half-dead here," August came in again with his other speech.

"Ok ok ok, jeez, no need to be so...well, whatever," Then Sano summoned another greenish looking card this time, clasped it in his hand tightly, closed his eyes, and then let it let out a bright light and blinded everyone temporarily-and when the light faded, all the injuries everyone had sustained...POOF! DISAPPEARED!

Like really sia. All the blood and the wounds and the stabby stabby disappeared and were healed instantly. Damn, this man is a one good healer!

"Eh, good enough healing," Sunda stands up on his legs and stretches his arms, feeling his hands like he's just gotten transfered to a new body.

"So...Sano, was it? Who are you exactly?" Fentanyl questioned passive-aggresively.

"Ah, you want to know more about...?" Sano just dodged the question...by posing another question.

"That Nacalevia you mentioned. What is it?" Pertama continued as the one who first started all the questioning.

"Ah, so you want to know more about Nacalevia. Well, long story short, Nacalevia is a murder mystery collection card game many kids like to play!" He finished with a bright smile to divert our attention to how 'immature' he acts.

Sunda also smiled back. "That still doesn't tell us why you can wield the powers of the cards,"

"Oh...uh...ehehe...uh...that...is a story for another day! Why don't we talk about...um...*darts eyes to the unconscious man in the cage* ah! That guy! Right there! In the cage!" Sano very not-so-subtly evaded and dodged the question.

But it was true though. That man in the cage...whoever managed to catch the attention of such a strong masked guy to make him take over an entire library just to study him is...not a simple person...

At this moment all 13 pairs of eyes were glanced towards his direction, staring at that mysterious man who just indirectly almost killed them all.

That unconscious man...who...doesn't exactly appear unconscious now...he's getting up...

Sunda and Fentanyl each stepped up and forward and readied their weapons, just in case he turns out to be another masked man who is hell-bent on killing them all.

"Guhguhguhguhguhguh...whoooshhh," The caged man said which suddenly made him feel like not so much of a threat now.

Wait no! It's just a trick to get them to lower their guard!

Sunda signaled then slowly lowered his weapon and carefully asked, "Sir, do you know where you are?"

"What...I dunno, where AM I..." He answered in a fuzzy-headed way as he slowly stretched his limbs and looked around to get a clear view.

"Sir, you are in Sengkang Public Library," Fentanyl answered for him as he too lowered his weapon, then helped him out of the cage with the man's stiff, not-stretched-enough limbs not being able to himself.

"Sengkang Public Library...where's that?" He asked which clearly gave away the fact that he's either a foreigner or hit his head too hard in that cage.

Well, he sure doesn't look like a foreigner though, he's shirtless, yes, but his shorts are those classic budget Uniqlo shorts, his eyes are brown, his hair is typically Asian...doesn't look like a foreginer at all. Well, he could be an Asian foreigner...but they would know where Sengkang Public Library is...usually...

"Uh...in Singapore..." August confirmed its specific location for him to verify his identity for the squad.

"Ah...Singapore...in China, right?" Yep. He's a foreigner.

And at that exact moment, Stefen, who had been watching from the back, burst out into laughter, knowing full well the damn trouble that man just got himself into.

"Ah...say that again," Mendax smiled for a while at him and then turned strict-teacher stare.

"Yeah, but...Singapore is in China, right?" The confused man, still clueless as to what is about to come, asked innocently.

"SAY. THAT. AGAIN. " Pertama was now the one to take over Mendax's earlier role and get involved in the interrogation personally, becoming much fiercer and putting on that creepy fake smile your mom gives you when she see you got B for Maths again before she whip out the cane again.

"OHHH! I know! Singapore is actually in Thailand, right? Ahhhhhh, that makes sense now!" He came to that sudden revelation that was just another nonsensical statement.

"Looks like someone failed geography class...and every other class..." Stefen remarked with Kiefer hysterically laughing, then almost on cue, the two Pillars Sicarius and Laju stepped forward and showed themselves, then proceeded to properly educate this young man on his manners by grabbing the nearest knife that masked man left behind and straight up angling it at his neck at the absolute perfect position.

"Bro what the hell? You getting so mad over some backwater poor third-world country?" He still like don't understand how dead he already is liao leh. Haiz...

"Wah wah wah, this one still want tok kok ah, wa lao eh," Laju told the rest of the crew about that man's current situation in a few words.

"Listen up, you uneducated ang moh, you dunno anything one issok, but at least you don't still run your mouth talking back about our territory in OUR TERRITORY. I'll have you know that we're not some backwater POOR THIRD-WORLD COUNTRY, WE ARE ONE OF THE FASTEST DEVELOPING COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD, WE ARE RICH, AND WE ARE A COUNTRY ON OUR OWN, WE ARE NOT PART OF CHINA OR THAILAND OR MALAYSIA, SO YOU BETTER NOT SAY ANYTHING MORE OR I'LL-" Sicarius then went absolute mad and delivered a whole speech on why he was wrong, then pressing the knife into his skin so hard he started bleeding.

And now finally at this point the ang moh was scared for his absolute life and shivering and cowering in fear, screaming, "AAOWOWKSKKZKSK NO NO NO NO NO I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE PLEASE LET ME GO!"

"Recite the pledge!" Sano butted in from the back while watching all the drama, shouting in a suggestion.

Sicarius looked up at Sano, then immediately looked back down at the ang moh. "Recite the pledge!" She shouted louder into his hrad in case he couldn't hear Sano from that far, pressing the knife even harder into his neck flesh.

"Uh...I dunno your Singaporean pledge...I am American..." The ang moh said in a rather nothing-I-can-do tone.

"Then sing the best NDP song!" Stefen now suggested from the back as well, copying what Sano did, arms folded and all.

"Yeah! Sing Stronger Together!" Sicarius repeated that but now in her own opinion.

"What no, I meant to say Tommorow's Here Today, THAT'S the best NDP song," Stefen quickly refuted Sicarius' statement and insisted on his own opinion.

"You must be kidding me, obviously the best NDP song is What Do You See, obviously!" Now Sunda had his arms folded and eyes downcast, saying his own piece of the...heated conversation.

"Hah! Was that sarcastic? The best NDP song is definitely Our Singapore lah!" Fentanyl purposely added his opinion to the mix after Sunda did.

"Oh, I'm sorry, was that the 2015 JJ Lin one or the 2019 crowd-sung one? Cos they remixed it so many times there are at least 4 versions of it which one are you talking about? Obviously the best one is We Are Singapore lah!" Codeine, who's stayed quiet most of the whole time just now, just spoke to remind people of his existence.

"Oh, you mean that song whose chorus is literally just filler lyrics? I mean, what the hell is "This is my country, this is my flag, this is my future, this is my WHATEVER! Believe in a better, more superior song, like Because It's Singapore!" August the technical birthday boy himself has spoken, but that sure hasn't shut people up.

"Aiya, no lah, Stronger Together is better!"

"Confirm What Do You See is best!"

"Tommorow's Here Today lah!"

*vicious and graphic fighting over which is the true superior NDP song*

Meanwhile while everyone else is fighting over NDP songs, Sano advanced to the befriending stage with the ang moh, bending down and kneeling in front of his still shocked from the shock and neck still bleeding body, in order to discuss the more important things.

"What the hell is an NDP song..."that ang moh muttered under his breath, as quietly as possible to avoid alerting the Pillars fighting there.

"Never heard of people who actually listen to NDP songs.. but they are the Pillars of Total Defence, so..." Sano mumbled under his breath all the same too.

"You. How should we address you?" He then raised a finger and pointed menacingly at the ang moh, demanding to know his name.

"Uh...I'm...Ming,"

0 notes

dumbfinntales · 2 years

Text

Alright, Bayonetta 3 is beaten! That was quite the journey and it offered just the right amount of PlatinumGames silliness that I almost started to miss. Although I enjoyed the ride, I couldn’t help but to feel that I’ve seen this before. My full thoughts are below and I warn you, there’ll be spoilers.

One of PlatinumGames’ best features is just how over the top and ridiculous their games can get. Bayonetta 3 has giant kaiju battles and you surfing in collapsing buildings with a giant demon. Hell the game begins with a tsunami that sweeps over a city and you battle monsters on top of a yacht all the while that is happening in the background. But the thing is. For Bayonetta at least, that’s nothing new. Nothing really felt super over the top because I could already expect it. It’s not a band thing per se, but it fails to impress like before. Maybe I just have gotten too used to their shenanigans.

The combat was as good as ever and I enjoyed the demon slave mechanic where you can summon demons in the middle of a fight and control them. It’s not a mind blowing change to the formula, but it’s fun and it works. I also really enjoyed the ability to include your demons at the end of your combos. That’s some real team work.

The level design is also a lot more open than before. I heard that this was supposed to be a open world game, so it makes sense. The remnants are there. I don’t really have anything bad to say about the openess of the levels, it’s nice. Although on future playthrough it’ll probably get annoying to have to hunt down all the verses in the big open spaces.

I quite liked the new threat of the Homonculi as they were distinct and mysterious. They all had names in Latin which was cool to see. Some of them had cool names like “Cumulonimbus” which roughly should mean “gathering storm clouds”. But for some they picked completely random names from a dictionary, names like “Stratus” meaning “pawed” or “spread across”. Oh and there’s Pannus which just means a type of cloth they used to wear in the ancient times. I did read somewhere that they were named after cloud formations, but I don’t know how true that is. If so those are some strange names for clouds.

The story was kinda ehhh, I really didn’t like the multiverse idea. I dunno, maybe Marvel is to blame, but I find the whole “infinite universes” thing just boring at this point. Singularity was also a very underwhelming villain. His final fight was cool as most PlatinumGames final bosses are, but that’s it. I don’t even remember why he wanted to destroy the multiverse. There were other confusing things like “is Bayonetta still alive or not” or “why did Luka turn into a werewolf” or “what was the even twinkier magic Luka”? The new character Viola turned out to be Bayonettas kid, and to be honest I saw that coming from miles away. They weren’t exactly subtle with this “big reveal”.

Talking about Viola, she’s the next big thing this game has to offer. When I first saw her I thought I’d dislike her. There was something about her design that I didn’t like. Then before I even played the game I read how people really disliked playing as her and I dreaded another V situation from DMC 5. But much to my surprise I really ended up liking her. She’s this goofy and clumsy character who tries really hard to be badass, but fails most of the time. She can still kick ass just like her mother, but she isn’t exactly as elegant as her. She was also used for some almost Looney Tunes level of gags which honestly made me love her. I guess she inherits that from her father? Makes sense. She wants to be so cool so bad, but you aren’t just there yet honey.

I also quite enjoyed how different her combat style was. But I do have some issues with it. She wields a big ass katana and can summon a big cat demon to fight with her. The cat demon works a bit different as it fights on its own and you can still move around and punch shit with your bare hands. She also relies on parrying to activate witch time. The parry was kinda hard to get used to as you tend to spam dodge as Bayonetta, but Viola is a lot less forgiving. You have to be precise and that’s honestly where my issues with her come from. She’s not equipped to deal with some of the enemies and bosses. You try to focus on parrying, but you fuck up once and you get stunlocked. Her dodge is nowhere near as good as Bayonettas either. It made some fights really frustrating. I do hope they adjust how she works for future titles.

Bayonetta 3 is a weird mixed bag. It has a lot of good things, but also weird decisions. There are honestly too many gimmicks in this game that take away from core combat. The special challenge rifts are also gimmicky with some really frustrating encounter design. Why couldn’t they just be normal fights and none of this “don’t touch the ground for two minutes” bollocks. I honestly don’t know what to fully think of it. I just might have to come back to this once I beat the new God of War. The game gets a AVAVAGO out of ten.

#bayonetta #a review type of deal

1 note · View note

heinzpilsnergonewild · 2 years

Text

My superego: I need you to draw something meaningful and relevant My ego: well, I consulted with our id, and according to it, we only have energy for a lazy self-indulgent sketch of Vegeta with his hair wet. Superego: …ok, just draw at least something, you depressed little shit.

yep, mysterious dark shadows from below to the rescue, no naked dudes in this blog

Actually, Vegeta with his hair down always gave me a strange feeling. It's like looking at him makes me recognize something, but I can never figure out what or who it is exactly I recognize @__@ perhaps some archetypical stuff again I dunno

---

(~ I remember the naive time when I first watched the shower scene in dbz and thought: "Why do they always show him of all the characters naked? Do they think I enjoy looking at that little monkey's bare ass or something? It's getting really weird." … And I still think it's a bit weird lol.

~ So, there are several different versions of Vegeta's physique in the canon. I kinda like the extreme one for its expressiveness (and alienness?). But his palms definitely should have been bigger here lol Still, I wonder - with such ridiculously broad shoulders and a narrow waist, could he ever sleep on his side lol? … I'm only half kidding here, actually. It looks pretty uncomfortable. Perhaps I'll try to draw a more elegant version of him later as well.

~ A funny observation: when I design his figure this way (compact torso + broad shoulders + thin waist), he looks ok to me right up to the moment I try to dress him in human clothes. Then he looks terrible in basically everything lol. Seriously, he reminds me of a chest of drawers on little legs with a potted plant on top. I guess it would be a real pain in the ass for Bulma to make her husband look presentable to a human audience lol. I can just imagine her hiring stylists in desperation, showing them Vegeta's photo and saying, "Ok guys, can you do something about this?" And they're like, "Weeeell…that terrible hairdo has to go?.." And Bulma: "It's out of the question." And stylists: "…Oh dear.")

Tbh I don't think I'll be posting on this blog often anytime soon. Really shitty time in my life, and I mean really. But hey - who knows.

1 note · View note

lucifer-is-a-bag-of-dicks · 2 years

Text

what's a weird piece of media you've consumed that nobody you know has ever heard of, bonus points if you don't know how it came to be in your possession

for me it was a book called The Halfmen of O, it was a classic 'chosen one' fantasy story with kid protagonists who get whisked off to another world but it was kinda weird and pretty dark, I read it twice

I mean its discovery in my house wasn't exactly a mystery, my mum is basically a living library and weird obscure books used to come and go on my shelves at random a lot as she was always collecting and loaning them out to people

but I dunno as a kid it always felt lowkey mystical like titles and authors I'd never heard of before or since would just show up and then disappear, I read a lot of random stuff

but The Halfmen of O was a strange one because it almost felt too short or incomplete, it seemed for all intents and purposes like a standalone book but it felt like there should have been more to it, it always stuck with me

I'm torn on whether or not to google the book and figure out if there was more or leave it an exciting mystery

#lula's life #the halfmen of o #what's your weird thing

187 notes · View notes

sofiaaaaaaaa03 · 3 years

Text

Goodbye

Pairing: Dan!Din Djarin x Teen GN reader

Request:

hello ily u and ur writings are so great

uhhh may i request dad!din with a teenage reader (like, 15 idk) after grogu leaves with luke? like maybe comforting each other, and the reader asking what happens next, etc etc

just some good ol' angst fluff :] 💞

Scenario: After Grogu leaves with Luke the Reader and Din comfort one another after having to say goodbye.

Rating: PG

Warnings: none

Word Count: 1,980

A/N: I love you!! Thank you so much for reading and I’m sooo happy you like my writings. And yes! I LOVED that Idea. I hope you don’t mind if I sort of went with my own thing for how the reader and Din argued a bit, it sort of just made sense in the situation??? Anyways, I hope you like what I came up with :))) I haven’t written anything in awhile so I’m a tad rusty.

Saying goodbye to each other was always something you’d always known would happen. You simply chose to not think about it and greedily hoped that Din would not be able to find another Jedi who would take Grogu under their wing. In your world, Clan Mudhorn would never break apart and you’d three live together for a very long time. However, life in its mysterious ways is ever changing and never promises one’s future. It certainly never promised yours.

You thought of this as you watched the Jedi in front of you. It was not just any Jedi, but a Jedi who was offering to take care of your little brother. You felt your face blanch at the thought of Grogu leaving you and Din. The thought of you leaving this ship with only Din and the memories you’d made with Grogu terrified you. It couldn’t be real. It can’t be real. You shut your eyes tight, turning your head toward the ground before anyone could see your expression.

“Y/N.”

Din’s hand rested on your shoulder, when you’d looked up you were surprised to meet flesh instead of metal. He took off his helmet. For a moment there was nothing that mattered but the expression your guardian made. It was… sad. Tears pricked his eyes, something you’d never expected to see from him. Din gave you the tiniest of smiles and told you it was time to say goodbye.

Goodbye?

Din held Grogu out for you to take. Slowly you accepted him close and relished one last time on what it was like to hug him tight.

“Ni kar'tayli gar darasuu, ner vod.” You whispered. During the time the two of you spent with Din he’d taken it upon himself to teach you Mando’a. It’d become a habit to show affection in his native tongue. Grogu cooed, leaning away to take in your face. You gave him a tight lipped smile, taking in his own. He’d grown so much. It was hard to believe that he was once a small little thing. “ I’ll always be your sibling. Don’t forget me.”

You sat Grogu back down on the floor and began to rummage through your bag before pulling out a small, plush frog, making Grogu’s ears perk up.

“Can Grogu take this with him?”

Luke nodded, but Grogu made it clear that he wanted you to keep the plush when he wouldn’t reach out for it like he always did. Instead, he stared at you with his big eyes before gently pushing the frog back to you. You bit back a frown. You wanted to ask him, beg him to take the frog you’d put so much love into just for him. Instead you stood up straight and held the plush close to your chest, glancing again at Din who was holding a stoic expression. You forced a smile onto your face.

The goodbye was harder than you’d imagined. So was the deafening silence when the Jedi, his droid, and Grogu disappeared into the elevator.

The moment the elevator door shut you snapped your head towards Din, but he turned his back to you and walked away. He wandered to the far end of the room and stayed there, quiet as he kept to himself. His hands fiddled with the darksaber that weighed more than you ever imagined it would before this mission began.

It was easy to forget that there were others in the room, though you were quickly reminded of their presence when they surrounded you to provide comforting words, some giving warm embraces and telling you about their own separations from loved ones. They reassured you that you would be fine in the end. You didn’t believe them. Fennec was talking to you, but your focus was on the far side of the room where Din was currently talking to Bo-Katan and Cara. You wondered what they talked about. You wondered what was going to happen now. Now, that the clan lost one member and had no ship to call home.

Din would barely look at you when Bo-Katan and the other women left the cockpit, looking for supplies and scrounging up any valuable information left. That was assuming that there was no emergency delete button someone pushed in a panic amid the raid. You didn’t bother thinking about it long, as you stared at the back of Din’s head. He’d kept his helmet off, making it the longest that you’ve seen him without it. You stared at the helmet from where it sat on top of the mainframe.

“Are you going to rule Mandalore now?” Your voice cut through the barrier between the two of you, making Din shuffle in his steps.

His back remained towards you and his tone was cold. “I don’t want to talk right now.”

You frowned, taken aback by this sudden attitude he’d taken on. “What do you mean by ‘I don’t want to talk right now’?”

“Exactly that.”

“But I want to.” You crossed your arms.

“It can wait.”

His response came off indifferent as though he wanted to move on. For a moment you felt like you’d shut down, sure there were times where Din would behave like this coming home after a long day, too exhausted to deal with two children. But he’d never done this before. No. This was new. You didn’t like new. Not now, not when things were so uncertain for you.

“You can’t just shut me out so quickly!” You walked up so that you spoke to his back. “You’re not the only one who just went through that. I never wanted to say goodbye to Grogu. I didn’t think it’d be this soon, either. I didn’t think that. And now I don’t know what you’re going to do after this, where you’re going to go, if you’re going to let me go with you, if-”

“If I let you go with me?” Din turned to face you, eyebrows furrowed. “Y/N, of course you’re coming with me. You’re my foundling.”

“So was Grogu!” You exclaimed, suddenly realizing that tears were streaming down your face. The stress and grief were suddenly catching up to you and it showed, causing Din to raise his hands up a little. He slowly lowered them, seemingly in thought. He sighed, and gently pulled you to sit down with him on some chairs by the mainframe. You felt ashamed of yourself for crying in front of him, but didn’t say anything. Instead you were wiping your tears with your shirt as you waited for him to finally speak.

“You know Grogu is too strong with his magic to be left without training.” Din scratched his ear, eyes downward so that you couldn’t see the tears pricking his eyes again. “You… you’re only a kid. You remember that, right? You need me to protect you before you’re strong enough to leave the clan.”

You stared at him with big eyes as though you were pretending to process what he was saying. But you understood what he meant. He had the best intentions for Grogu and he has the same intentions for you. You were lucky to have someone like Din. The cloth of your shirt suddenly caught your interest as you stared down at it, playing it in between your fingers.

You sniffed, rubbing your arm across your nose. “I’m sorry for yelling at you…”

“It’s okay, Y/N.” Din wrapped an arm across your shoulder and pulled you close. As you settled into him you rested your head against his shoulder, waiting for him to say something though he never did. Maybe he was thinking about Grogu. It wouldn’t be a surprise. Anyone could see how much he’d grown attached to the little thing, despite his initial response to having to care for him.

“You’re a great dad…” You whispered, playing with the frog in your hands. Din smiled warmly, something you missed as you continued to look down.

“Do you remember how happy Grogu was when you gave him that frog?” Din’s voice made the armor he’d dawned vibrate slightly. It ticked your cheek. You liked how it felt.

“Mhm.” You nodded as you made the frog dance in your hands. It’s chipped, mismatched buttons stared back at the two of you.

“When I was young I used to lose my toys all the time.”

You looked up at him, “But that was before the Mandalorians took you in, right? Weren’t they, I dunno, strict about toys?”

“No.” Din looked off, watching the stars that decorated the space they shared. “If they found a kid that still had their toy with them they didn’t take it away. In my clan, every child had a toy of their own, to help make their transition easier, though I kept losing mine.”

The two of you shared a small laugh. Din shook his head and looked at you fondly. “Grogo went everywhere with that frog. It meant so much to him. Guess it was because of you.”

You didn’t say anything. A warmth began to spread through your sternum at Din’s remarks. You hugged the frog close to your chest. It still smelled like Grogu. The same, earth-like geranium that followed him around. He knew that you needed the plush more than he did now that you had to say goodbye, and you were thankful for that.

“Are you going to miss him?”

“Of course I am.” Din nodded solemnly before he turned towards you and ruffled your hair. “But we’ll see him again.”

A moment of silence falls upon you two, one of the mainframes makes a sound and the security shows the women entering a room on the other side of the ship. They were covering good ground and carried several bags of what was assumed to be supplies for their next mission. Would Din be a part of that mission?

“So, what happens now?” You inquired, glancing up at him. “Are you going to rule Mandalore?”

Din looked up and inhaled deeply as though he was pondering the question. He must have made some sort of plan prior. But his possession of the dark saber meant that plans had now changed. “I never expected to become a… king. Though, there’s not much to be king of.”

Behind closed doors between Din and the adults you’d hear bits and pieces about what the Empire had done to the planet. Though you were heavily uninformed, you had a good grasp that the planet was practically not worth ruling.

“Are you going to go with Bo-Katan? She wants to take back Mandalore. With you as king it’d be fitting.”

You didn’t miss how Din grimaced slightly at her name. “What?”

Din pushed himself up and motioned for you to follow as he grabbed his helmet and began walking out. He draped an arm across your shoulder when you caught up to his pace. “Bo-Katan doesn’t seem to be all too happy with me having the darksaber. I should keep some distance and wait for her to cool off.”

You whispered a small ‘oh’ and looked ahead. Guess he wasn’t going to go with her then. “So we have no plans then, great.”

Din glanced at you, “ What do you think we should do?”

Your mind flashed back several days ago to when you’d barely escaped being destroyed along with the razor crest. “I miss the ship.”

“You and me both.”

“Do you think we can find a new one?”

“You can’t just find a ship, kid. It’s gonna need some credits.”

“Yeah but technically you’re a king now! Use that royalty of yours and get us one.”

“That’s not how it works kid.”

“You don’t know yet! You’ve been king for what, five minutes?”

“Maybe I will leave you here.”

“No you won’t. You love me too much to do that.”

376 notes · View notes

angryinternetduck · 3 years

Text

Lucky

hello hello and welcome to halloween !!!! in august!!!! i know it's weird haha but here's about 6.7k words of harry styles x reader during halloween. featuring a "haunted house" and a cute cat with two names. also caramel apples. enjoy!

masterlist | ask

The house was haunted.

You were sure of it.

And yeah, you thought, looking up at the ginormous mansion looming above you, you were incredibly grateful that the house had fallen to you, but the whole thing was starting to feel like the beginning of a bad horror movie.

Some old relative had died - you weren’t close with them at all, and you felt a bit bad that the only feelings associated with their death were happiness at getting their property - and left you their estates. You’d moved in a few weeks ago, and now you were hearing things.

Things like scratching in the vents, and howling in the wind, and glasses mysteriously crashing to the floor of their own accord in other rooms. The floors always creaked at night, and so did the doors, which randomly swung open and closed.

You hadn’t really wanted to tell anybody about all of this or your suspicions, fearing you’d come off as a bit crazy. Of course, the few people you had told had just laughed and given you the It’s an old house - it’s settling bullshit.

Which you didn’t believe. At all.

What did that even mean, “the house is settling”? Settling for what? Settling down, like it was some middle aged guy who was about to have kids with his wife in the fifties? Or maybe it was settling down like it was angry, and had had a tantrum, and was just settling down into a calmer state. Not that that was any more comforting.

Now, as you struggled to get your key to turn in the lock, you wondered if you could sell the house or something. Everybody you’d asked for advice had told you to wait and fix it up, that you’d regret giving it up when you had four kids and a husband and needed space.

They’d also said it looked like shit so you’d get a crappy deal unless you fixed it up.

Then again, those were the same it’s settling people, so what did they know?

You sighed, finally getting the key to turn, and shoved your shoulder into the door. Making a mental note to oil the door - again - as it creaked, you shut it behind you with your foot before stepping into the living room and collapsing onto the couch.

The couch matched the house: gray, run down, and creaky. There were patches sewn in every so often, and it smelled like old lady perfume. It did the job, though, which was very convenient in the moment but didn’t exactly motivate you to buy a new one very quickly.

You’d turn on the TV, but there wasn’t one. Instead, you stared at the empty, ashy fireplace while you gathered the gumption to get up and off the couch. After a few seconds, you heard something - a little skittering sound in the walls - and frowned, pulling yourself up and towards the stairs.

It was probably just mice, but accompanied with everything else, you weren’t about to take any chances. The stairs, like every other part of the house, creaked as you walked upstairs. You’d almost gotten used to the floorboards around the corner creaking before you got to them, but it still spooked you a bit. When you glanced around the wall and there wasn’t anyone there, as usual, you got changed into comfortable clothes as quickly as you could.

Then you collapsed into the bed. After washing the sheets a few (ten) times, you’d gotten rid of the musty smell, and the huge victorian frame and feathery mattress had become your safe haven. The whole room had become your safe place, really - you’d cleaned and swept until it had somewhat resembled a nice bedroom and not a dusty old crypt.

Once you were there, safe in your room with your headphones on, the house didn’t seem all that bad. A huge window covered the wall right next to your bed, looking out onto rolling grassy fields like something out of a Jane Austen novel.

So you listened to music, imagining a dashing stranger saving you from a twisted angle.

Soon, you were asleep.

***

“Nobody will deliver this far!” you exclaimed, talking into your cell phone as you rooted through the drawers in front of you. “I’ve tried, like, six different places, and they all said it’s too far!” Your friend on the line sighed, and you heard her slurp noodles from the Chinese take out she was eating.

“Well,” she said, “that sucks.”

“Oh, gee, helpful,” you deadpanned.

“Listen, there has got to be someplace you can go,” she told you matter of factly. You frowned, digging through a cabinet. “Yeah, well” - you gasped, jumping a foot into the air as something brushed against your leg - “shit!”

You whipped around, brandishing the pan you’d just grabbed as a weapon. “What the -”

A cat.

There was a black cat, with the brightest green eyes you’d ever seen, looking up at you innocently. It meowed loudly, looping through your legs, and you sighed. “It’s a cat,” you explained to your friend.

“You got a cat?”

You scoffed, looking at it as it jumped up onto the counter. “No!” you replied. “No, I - Jesus, of course I didn’t get a fucking cat, I just… I just moved in!” There was a beat of silence, and then your friend said, “So… there’s a strange cat… in your house.”

“Yeah,” you murmured, hesitantly reaching out. It leaned into you, purring loudly, and you couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah,” you said again, laughing a bit. “Listen, listen,” you added, and you put the phone up to the cat.

“That’s cute,” your friend said when you brought the phone back to your ear, sounding a bit worried, “but, uh… does it have a tag, or something?” You shook your head, even though she couldn’t see you, and felt around the cat’s neck. Just fur. “Nope,” you replied.

“Are you gonna… keep it?”

You grinned, scratching its ears, and shrugged. “I dunno.”

***

You wanted to name the cat Lucky.

That night, as the crisp October wind howled outside, you didn’t hear any creaks. The house was practically silent, and you slept like a baby with the little creature curled at your feet. Plus, she - as you’d determined earlier - was black, and with the whole Unlucky Black Cats thing, “Lucky” seemed like a nice little joke.

She was gone the next morning, but you figured she was just somewhere around the house, so you went around calling, “Lucky!” as if she’d respond. It was almost two hours before you gave up, and convinced yourself it was just a fluke and you’d never see her again.

“She’s gone,” you said mournfully by way of greeting your friend as you made breakfast.

“Who?”

“Lucky!”

“Who?”

“The cat,” you sighed. “She’s gone. Wasn’t here this morning.”

“Oh,” your friend replied. “Well, maybe she found her owner!”

You pouted, sliding butter around your pan. “I thought I was her owner…”

“You cannot possibly be so attached to that thing after one night.”

“She’s lucky, though! I swear, the ghosts are afraid of her or something - I didn’t hear a single sound all night!” You could practically hear your friend roll her eyes. “A fluke. Or maybe - yeah, maybe luck. I’m sure you’ll be alright without her.”

“Maybe I should get a cat,” you mused.

Your friend sighed. “Oh, boy.”

***

She was lucky.

Lucky was lucky.

One hundred percent.

There was no doubt about it.

The floors creaked like crazy that night. After hearing it for the first time, peering fearfully into the pitch black hallway, you shut the door tight and huddled underneath the blankets. A terrifying cry accompanied the wind, one that gave you nightmares of women in long white dresses stumbling over the moor, and you woke up in a panic in the middle of the night when you heard something shatter downstairs.

It wasn’t exactly your proudest moment, but you stayed in bed, watching the clock and keeping under the covers and deciding you’d deal with it in the morning. It took forever for you to fall asleep, but once you did, thankfully, you were out until the morning.

Half asleep, you stumbled down the stairs at almost noon.

And there, Lucky was waiting for you.

She meowed at you indignantly, as if you were late, and you gasped, crouching down and scrunching her face between your hands. “Lucky!” you exclaimed. She meowed, and wiggled out of your grasp, and walked in circles around you, keeping her tail against your leg.

You were so relieved that you only got partially annoyed when she made you trip over yourself every two seconds while you cleaned up the broken mug and made breakfast. She was very talented at getting in the way, sitting in the perfect position to be as inconvenient as possible.

She wandered around when you started work, getting bored after twenty minutes of jumping onto your laptop and being pushed off, only to do it again, and again, and again. You lost sight of her but somehow weren’t too worried - if she came back the first time, she’d probably come back again, you reasoned.

Which she did!

Sometimes.

She became your companion as the weeks went on, coming every so often to bother you as adorably as possible before disappearing for a few hours again. Sometimes she’d come during the day, but you were always relieved when she came at night because, for some inexplicable reason, she really made the house quiet and let you sleep.

Sometimes you’d give her a little bit of milk, or whatever you had on you (after properly researching what was okay for cats, of course), but she never seemed very hungry, so you’d never really thought about buying actual cat food for her.

You thought about getting her a collar every so often, but between working on the house, normal work, and just… life, you never really got around to it. Plus, she always seemed to come back, so you didn’t think it was super necessary.

So Lucky hung around, and you got some work done, and everything was good.

***

You’d heard creaking. Lots of creaking. And the occasional mysteriously shattered glass. And the howling in the wind, and skittering in the walls, and the weird drafts, and the unexplained cat - all sorts of weird things.

But this was the first time you heard a voice.

A real, live, human voice.

Well, maybe not live.

You’d been cooking when you first heard it, and, in a panic, you’d grabbed a frying pan. Maybe frying pans were lucky, too; after all, one had been your “weapon” when Lucky had sneaked up on you. She was notably absent, Lucky, by the way, and you wished you had your good luck charm with you as you made your way to the basement, feeling only slightly like an idiot.

Maybe a very scared idiot.

The voice was coming from the basement, which you hadn’t exactly ventured into yet. The whole house had a bit of a creepy-basement vibe, so you weren’t quite enthusiastic to go into the actual basement, where you’d imagine the creepiness would be increased exponentially.

The voice sounded male. And British.

You pictured a British ghost - something old and ancient, judging by the rasp of the voice, although it did sound on the younger side… Maybe it had some sort of paranormal ancient youth. Maybe a sailor, who lived in the house hundreds of years ago, and died at sea… And now, he was back, to haunt you, because you’d… offended him… with your… redecorating?

The stairs were actually pretty quiet, you realized, creeping down them as quietly as you could with your frying pan and marveling at the lack of creaks. You stepped onto the floor, peering around the corner, and realized the ghost - or whatever - must have been outside since the back door was slightly ajar, blowing cool air onto your legs.

If you were being honest, you hadn’t even known that that door existed. A mini lightbulb went off in your head as you realized that was probably where Lucky had been getting in, and you wondered absently if you should get a lock or something for it.

Then your brows furrowed as you got closer and the voice became coherent.

“... you been? ‘ve been looking all over for you… Think you’re so clever, don’t you? Disturbing our nice neighbor like this… Got them to talk to you, did you? Oh, I’m sure, you charmer…” You heaved a breath, kicking open the door -

You brandished the frying pan, yelling, “Who -?!”

“Bloody hell!”

So, you realized then, it was a guy.

And not a ghost.

Very decidedly a guy, actually, from the way the pan hadn’t gone right through him but had rather clanged against his forearm as he threw it up to defend himself. His other hand, it should be noted, was holding a cat.

Specifically, Lucky.

You gasped, lowering your pan. “Oh, my god,” you breathed. “Oh, my god, I am so sorry - I thought you were -” You stopped as Lucky slipped out of the guy’s arms and weaved around your legs, purring louder than a motorboat.

“Hello, there,” the guy said, incredibly pleasant for someone who’d just gotten attacked with a frying pan. “Um - hi,” you replied hesitantly, holding the pan behind your back as if he’d forget about the whole thing if he couldn’t see it. “Hi, I’m - um, I’m sorry.”

“Hi, Sorry,” the guy joked, holding out his non-injured hand, “I’m Harry Styles. Your neighbor.”

Heat crept up your cheeks, shaking his hand as you corrected him with your name.

He repeated your name, smiling as it rolled off his tongue, and despite yourself, you felt a shiver running down your spine. He was good looking, this Harry guy. His eyes rivaled Lucky’s, bright green as he grinned at you. His hair looked a bit grown out, chestnut brown and curling slightly at his temples.

And he had dimples.

Very cute dimples.

And muscles, and -

There was a beat of silence, and you realized you were not so subtly checking him out, and even though you kind of realized he was doing the same to you, you felt your cheeks heat again. Harry cleared his throat, crouching down to pet Lucky as he said, “So, erm - I haven’t seen you around a lot.”

“Yeah,” you replied, laughing a bit sheepishly. “I’ve been… busy.”

Harry nodded, his gaze drifting around you to the messy basement. “I’m sure,” he said. “This place seems like a lot of work.” You shrugged, following his eyes and inspecting the dust and various junk cluttered throughout the room.

“Well, I have time…”

“But not for neighbors, hm?” Harry asked, a teasing smile on his lips.

“I’m… sorry,” you said again, putting your head in your hands for a second before looking back up. “I hadn’t even thought… I can’t even see your… Do you live, uh - close?” Harry nodded, gesturing vaguely out the back door. “Relatively, I suppose, although - you’re right, you can’t quite… see it… from here.”

“You’ll have to show me sometime,” you said impulsively, and Harry glanced at you, dimpling again. “Yeah,” he agreed, “reckon I will.” You smiled, suddenly unable to keep eye contact, and then let your gaze dart away after a second.

“And the, erm - the market,” Harry went on. “Haven’t seen you around there. Have you been?”

You shook your head, murmuring, “No,” and Harry tsked, shaking his head back at you, oozing disappointment. “Right, well, that’s just not right,” he said. “That we’ll have to go to sometime. ‘specially now that it’s autumn.” You nodded, and he stood up, dusting off his hands as Lucky came over to you for cuddles.

You expected him to say he was going to go, that he had work to do, or something, but instead, he asked, “Doing anything now?” and grinned, glancing down at the pan, still in your hand. “Besides attacking perfect strangers, of course.”

“I am… so sorry about that,” you said, again, laughing sheepishly, again.

“I’d say it’s fine,” Harry replied, “but, erm… It’s not.”

You felt your eyes widen. “What?”

“I think you’ll have to make it up to me, love,” he told you. You just raised a brow, and he grinned. “Maybe I’ll forgive you if you give me a ride to the market,” he said, and then you smiled. “Easy enough,” you replied, grabbing your keys from your pocket.

Harry dimpled and looked down at Lucky. “Right, then, Dee, let’s go, shall we?”

You frowned. “Dee?”

“Oh, right!” Harry exclaimed, bending down to scoop Lucky into his arms. “I think you’ve met, but this here is Demon. Dee for short.” You scoffed a laugh, shaking your head. “Demon?” you echoed incredulously.

Harry nodded, grinning ear to ear. “Yeah, look at this menace! What else would we call her?”

“You’re her owner?”

“Yup. Found her a few months ago, and she just… stuck.”

“Good at that, isn’t she?” you murmured, reaching out to scratch behind her ear.

“Has she bothered you?” Harry asked, looking sympathetic, and you nodded. “Oh, yes, all the time. In the most pleasant way possible, though, so I’m not too mad.” Harry laughed, letting her slip out of his arms and onto the ground.

She ambled out of the basement and into the grass, and, after exchanging a glance with Harry, you both followed her. “I’ve been calling her Lucky,” you told him, closing the door behind you. Harry glanced at you, hands in his pockets, and smiled. “Lucky?”

“Yeah. See, the house is -” You stopped, and Harry raised an eyebrow. “The house is what?” You laughed, a bit embarrassed, and then mumbled, “I think it’s haunted.” Harry nodded, understanding on his face. “Oh, yeah, it definitely is,” he agreed.

You laughed again. “That sure of it, are you?”

Harry rolled his eyes, a smile tugging on his lips, and nodded at Lucky. “That’s your ghost.”

“Lucky? How -?”

“She’s the one howling, and walking everywhere to make the floors creak, and knocking glasses off the tables,” Harry explained, and your jaw dropped, just a bit. “Oh, my god,” you said, as it all clicked into place. “That’s why - Well, see, I called her Lucky because the” - you put up air quotes - “‘ghost’ never seemed to be around when she was with me. Which I guess makes sense, since if she was with me, she wasn’t… anywhere else…”

“Yup.”

You frowned, glancing over at him. “So, wait - how did you know?”

“Same thing happened to me,” he replied with a shrug. “Was right convinced the place was haunted when I first moved in - was about to sell and everything. Couldn’t take replacing half the cupboard every two weeks. Then I caught her shattering one of my mugs. Then, I got a night light, and saw her lurking around and making a ruckus with the floorboards.”

“A night light,” you repeated, lightly smacking your forehead. “Why didn’t I think of that?”

“Took me a few weeks, too,” Harry laughed. “You’d’ve gotten there eventually, don’t worry.”

“Sure hope so,” you murmured, smiling as Lucky jumped up onto your car and started to stretch out on the hood. You opened the driver’s side door and leaned against it as Harry gave Lucky a scratch behind her ears.

“Pesky little thing, she is,” Harry said. “Always does the same on my car, and I’m always tempted to just drive with her on top and see what happens.” You scoffed, shaking your head. “How could you?” Harry shrugged, grinning at you. “I’m sure she’d land on her feet.”

“Yeah, well, let’s not test that now,” you replied, gently scooping Lucky up and placing her on the grass, where she started to daintily lick a paw. Harry got into the passenger seat, and you asked him, “Where’s this market of yours?”

“Up the road,” Harry said vaguely.

You raised a brow, but he didn’t offer any more information.

So you just drove.

***

“Halloween,” Harry said, “is not fun.”

You gasped, scandalized, and exclaimed, “What?”

“It’s too stressful!” Harry groaned. “I never know what to wear! Especially to parties, bloody hell! Like, do you go for it? Full makeup, tons of tulle, a wig? Or don’t go for it? And if it’s really go for it, and you don’t go for it, it’s like, oh, well, too bad. Or if it’s a party, and you’re invited, like, the day of, and everybody’s going for it, and you’re like, oh, I can’t, can’t go, because I don’t have time to plan it, and -” He stopped, sighing, and shook his head. “It’s a whole ordeal.”

“Yeah, clearly,” you replied, biting back a grin.

You were pulling into a parking lot, and you could already see the hustle and bustle of the market. There were booths set up all along the street and around a little courtyard. People talked and chattered, exchanging money and trinkets and smiles and waves.

You both got out of the car and met at the front, taking a moment to admire the view.

“The caramel apples are the best,” Harry told you with a smile.

“Guess we’ll have to go there first.”

Harry nodded, and you started walking. You shoved your hands in your pockets, a bit cold in the autumn wind, as a comfortable silence fell over the two of you. It was only a few seconds before you were stopped, though, when an old man behind a table covered in small wooden carvings called, “Harry!”

“George!” Harry exclaimed, wrapping him in a hug.

“It’s good to see you,” George said cheerily, his gaze darting to you and back to Harry inquisitively. Harry smiled, introducing you as his neighbor. George grinned, shaking your hand. “Pleasure to meet you,” he said.

“Likewise,” you replied.

“You must be pretty special,” George said. “Don’t think I’ve ever met any other neighbors.”

“We share a cat,” Harry explained, and George’s brow raised.

Harry glanced at you, dimpling, and then said, “Nice talking with you, George. We should catch up later - we’re headed for Mara.” George nodded. “Good boy. You know what they say! The way to a woman’s heart is her stomach, eh?”

“Alrighty, then,” Harry said, gently leading you away. “Bye, George!”

“Bye, Harry! And nice to meet you, neighbor!”

You smiled, waving at him over your shoulder. “You too, George!”

“Swear he’s been running that booth since about 1804,” Harry murmured as you walked away. “‘ve known him all my life, and he’s always looked the same. Beginning to think he’s a vampire.” You grinned, nudging his shoulder. “He seems nice.”

“He is!” Harry agreed. “He is. Like a second father. Hey, here’s Mara.”

You came up to a cluster of booths that steamed and bubbled and swirled together to smell of a blend of spices, sugar, and caramel. One of the booths proudly proclaimed Mara’s Caramel Apples, and shiny golden apples dotted the table.

The woman behind the table - Mara, presumably - lit up when she caught sight of Harry. “Harry, darling!” she cooed, coming around her table to press kisses against each of Harry’s cheeks. “Hullo, Mara,” Harry replied.

“It’s so good to see you!” Mara exclaimed, pinching his cheeks. “You should come around more often, love, you need some meat on these bones of yours.” Harry nodded, gingerly pulling her hand off of him. “I’ll work on that,” he replied, glancing at you and looking amused, if not a bit embarrassed.

“You do that, Harry,” Mara said, stealing one more pinch and making Harry wince before she turned to you. “And who is this, then?” Mara tutted, shaking her head. “Haven’t forgotten your manners, have you?”

“Never, Mara,” Harry assured her, and introduced you.

“Lovely to meet you!” Mara said cheerfully, wrapping you in a hug.

“You too,” you responded.

“How long have you been together, then?” Mara asked, making your face heat as she walked back around the table and started stirring a pot of caramel. “Haven’t seen you around, dear.” Harry coughed, shaking his head, looking as embarrassed as you felt. “Nope, no, we’re not together,” he corrected her. “Just - erm, we’re neighbors.”

“Ah, neighbors,” Mara hummed.

Harry nodded. “Yeah, she moved in where the Carlsons were.”

“Oh, the Carlsons!” Mara said. “A tricky bunch, they were - I’m glad you’re there now.”

“Yeah, me too,” you replied, smiling slightly at Harry.

Mara wiped her hands off on a cloth and tucked it on a rack before carefully grabbing two pristine caramel apples. “Well,” she said, handing you both a stick, “here you are, dears. Enjoy, now! And come back soon, the both of you!”

Harry pulled out cash, but Mara waved him off. “Oh, nonsense, Harry, you know better than that,” Mara told him. “I’ll give you the family discount, as long as you both promise to come back on your next date.”

“Not a date, Mara,” Harry mumbled, flushing red, and Mara grinned. “Of course. My mistake. Your first date, then.” Your face felt about on fire, and Harry’s was red as a beet as he said, “Right, then, nice talking to you, Mara! Bye, now.” He walked away as she waved cheerily, and you followed him.

Harry looked at you apologetically. “She’s a bit, erm - concerned, as it were,” he said sheepishly. “Haven’t exactly…” He cleared his throat. “She thinks I’m a bit lacking in the romance department.” You raised a brow, and he somehow managed to get even redder.

“I mean! I mean, I’m - I’m not,” he added hurriedly, “I’m really not, ‘f course - but, erm - she thinks…” He sighed, stopping, and shrugged at you helplessly. “So you’re not?” you said, and Harry’s brows furrowed, confused.

“You’re not lacking in the romance department?” you clarified.

Harry frowned. “... No?”

“So… Girlfriend? Boyfriend?”

A bit of the red faded from his cheeks. “Oh,” he said. “Well, then, yes. I suppose I’m lacking in the romance department right now. ‘s unusual, though, I’ll have you know. But, erm - how about you?” You shook your head, glancing away from him and around the fair. “Single as a Pringle,” you told him, and you liked to imagine seeing the hint of a smile on his face out of the corner of your eye.

“Gotcha,” Harry hummed. “Right, well, how’s the apple, then?”

You took a bite, savoring it as you crunched on it, and then nodded your approval. “Superb,” you said, and Harry grinned brightly. “Wonderful,” he replied. “‘m glad you like it. Might’ve been a deal breaker if not.”

“That important, huh?”

“Oh, the most important,” Harry said seriously.

You grinned, and Harry dimpled back.

There was a beat of silence, and then he said, “Right, then. Tell me something about yourself.”

“Like what?”

He shrugged, licking caramel off his lips. “Anything. Hopes, dreams, fears, favorite color…”

You hummed as you thought, and then told him the first thing that came to mind. He listened as you talked, looking genuinely interested in what you were saying. Butterflies erupted in your stomach every time you made him laugh, and when you flipped the spotlight to him, you found yourself completely lost in his words.

Something about his voice, and his humor, and the way he giggled everytime he made a stupid joke, made the butterflies linger. It was pleasant, though. It wasn’t alarming, or nerve wracking, or even remotely uncomfortable. You weren’t self conscious, or scared to mess up, or worried you’d say the wrong thing.

You were just… happy.

The fair, you realized, wasn’t nearly big enough.

You’d walk the whole world just to keep talking with him.

***

“That was a date,” your friend declared as soon as you finished telling her what had happened. You balanced your phone between your ear and shoulder and blew softly on your hot tea. “No,” you replied, “it wasn’t.”

“Yes, it was!” she squealed. “I can’t believe he didn’t kiss you!” She huffed. “I can’t believe you didn’t kiss him!” You rolled your eyes, amused despite yourself, and insisted, “It really wasn’t a date. I was just… making up for slamming a metal pan into his arm.”

You heard her wince. “Yikes.”

You sighed, again, and took a sip of your tea. “He probably has a bruise.”

“Yeah, probably,” she snickered.

“Hey!”

She laughed, sounding way too amused at your misery. “Talk about a meet cute!”

“You are not helping,” you groaned, feeling yourself starting to laugh too anyway.

“Don’t worry,” she giggled, “he’ll think of you everytime he accidently puts pressure on it and screams in pain.” You scoffed indignantly and argued, “He will not scream in pain - it wasn’t that bad.” Your friend hummed skeptically. “I dunno about that… It was a pan, right?”

You took a sip of your tea, sighing heavily. “A tiny pan,” you mumbled into the lip of your mug, and then laughed when your friend started cracking up. “You gotta text me a picture of the bruise,” she gasped through her laughter.

“Okay, there’s no bruise.”

“Dude, it was a pan.”

“A tiny pan!”

That just set off another round of giggles, before finally, your friend relented. “Fine,” she said, “send me a picture of him, and the bruise will just be a bonus.” You agreed, and then said goodnight, and fell asleep with a smile on your face.

***

Your fingers did a dance over the screen of your phone, your lip between your teeth as you debated whether or not to send the text. Harry had given you his number the other day at the market, but you were getting a bit anxious about what to send.

The door really did need to be fixed, you told yourself, glancing down at your flirtatious-if-you-squinted text asking if he’d help you fix your basement door. Especially now, since it wouldn’t stay closed at all; you’d had to put a brick behind it to keep it shut, and even that kept sliding around. It was where Lucky had kept slipping in, you’d figured, and even though she was a pleasant enough intruder, you didn’t really want other less adorable trespassers coming through.

Finally, you took a breath, and sent it.

You stared at your screen for a few seconds as if he’d reply within the minute, and then threw your phone across your bed. Heaving a sigh, you pulled yourself away from your bed and towards the window, fidgeting with your fingers.

You lasted about ten seconds, and then grabbed your phone, and checked.

Nothing, of course, because you sent the text thirty seconds ago.

You groaned and belly flopped onto your bed.

***

Lucky came first.

She jumped up onto your bed and butted against you until you sat up and started petting her.

You pouted at her, smoothing your hand over her head. “Maybe I should’ve waited a few more days,” you murmured to her. “Maybe I made it obvious how desp- or, like, made it seem like I was too desperate.” You raised a brow, gazing down at her. “What about you, huh? Are you too desperate?”

Lucky purred and rolled over, stretching languidly.

“Oh, yeah, sure,” you laughed, sliding off your bed and heading for the kitchen.

You paused when you heard the doorbell ring, glancing at Lucky inquisitively like she’d tell you who it was. She gave you a slow blink, and then jumped up, and stretched, and meandered down the hallway. You followed her, almost tripping over her when she stopped suddenly in the middle of the staircase to lick a paw, and opened the door.

“So I sort of forgot any tools,” Harry greeted you. “Hope that’s not a problem.”

Your brows jumped. “I - of course it’s not a - I just thought -” You stopped, glancing down at your phone, which showed no new notifications, and no new texts. “Sorry,” you said, “I wasn’t expecting you so, um - soon.”

Harry laughed, a bit sheepishly, and ran a hand through his hair. “Right. Sorry. I was… on the way. I mean, not on the way here, but, like - driving past. Well, not driving past, but sort of - you know, in, erm - in the area. Sort of. Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” you assured him, feeling yourself smile. “I’m glad you’re here.” You stepped back to let him in. “I think it’s open right now, the door - there’s kind of a draft,” you lied. Harry nodded, glancing around the house. “Place looks nice,” he said, and you smiled again, following his gaze.

“Yeah,” you replied. “Yeah, I think so, too.”

“Was a bit dreary before,” Harry said softly, letting his hand lightly skim the bright throw blanket you’d put on the sofa as he passed. “Downright dull,” you agreed, and he glanced at you, a smile tugging up the corners of his lips. “Where’s this door, then?”

“Downstairs,” you answered, stepping forward to lead him around the corner and down the steps. “The basement’s a bit creepy,” you warned him, tugging on the light. “Haven’t quite gotten down here yet.”

“Noted,” Harry murmured.

“It’s back here,” you said, weaving around a few cardboard boxes to get to the door.

It was, in fact, open, which was purely coincidental but pretty convenient. “Cold,” you said simply, shrugging at him. “Yeah,” Harry replied, “cold.” You smiled, not sure why, and then stepped outside, inspecting it without a real purpose in mind.

He stepped out too, and you gently pushed the door shut.

The lock clicked, a beat of silence, and then it swung open with a creak.

“Might be the lock,” Harry said, bending down to look at the little bit of metal against the side.

Lucky appeared as he fiddled with the mechanism, weaving through his legs, and he gave her scritches as he pushed the lock in and out a few times. “Looks fine,” he started, and then stopped when Lucky plopped down on top of his foot.

“Don’t know how she expects us to do any work like this,” Harry said with a grin, and you laughed, crouching next to him to pet her too. “She’s moral support,” you replied, and Harry raised a brow. “The most bothersome moral support ever.”

You shrugged. “The cutest most bothersome moral support ever.”

“If you say so,” Harry said, gently sliding her off his foot. He slid his hand over the door to its other side, where the hinges were, and then his face lit up. “Right, I have an idea.” He turned to you, looking excited, and asked, “Have a hammer?”

“Uhhh… probably?” You looked around the basement, then pushed open a closet door where a tool box poked out, and handed him a hammer. He nodded, glancing at the hinge again. “Er - how about a screwdriver?”

You gave it to him, and then watched over his shoulder as he gently tapped the pin out of the hinge in the middle of the door. He put it on the floor, raising the hammer over it, and you raised a brow at him. He looked up at you, grinning, and you couldn’t find it in you to tell him to stop. “I have a plan,” he told you.

“Sure, Styles.”

He scoffed, sitting back on his heels. “You know, your lack of faith is a bit disheartening.”

“I think you’re just stalling because you have no idea what you’re doing.”

He smiled, a challenge in his eyes, and then sat forward and hammered the pin, right in the middle. It bent, just slightly, and then he held it up, looking satisfied. He slid it back into the hinge, tapped it down, and worked on getting the other one out.

Once he’d gotten a curve in that one, he put it back and got the next. You watched in skeptical silence as he put that one back… and then stood up and dusted off his hands. “There you have it,” he announced.

“There’s no way that’s gonna work,” you said.

Harry just stepped back and pushed the door shut.

The lock clicked, a beat of silence, and then -

It stuck.

“Oh!” you exclaimed, pulling it out to close it again. It stuck, again, and you looked up at him happily. “Oh, wow, I can’t believe that worked! How did you even know how to do that?” Harry shrugged, fiddling with the door. “These old houses are practically identical. My bedroom door had the same problem.”

“Well, lucky me.”

He glanced at you, and held your gaze, just for a second, with a smile on his lips, and then his cheeks dusted pink. You felt heat rise on your own cheeks, realizing in the back of your mind that the whole door endeavor took a lot less time than you’d expected and now he’d probably leave.

He walked inside, making a grand gesture of holding the door open for you. “C’mon, then,” he said as you walked through and wracked your brain for ideas on how to keep him with you, “I need a tour.” You grinned, wondering if he could read your mind, and then nodded. You paused at the edge of the basement door and turned around.

“So,” you said, “this is the basement.”

“Enlightening.”

“The land of boxes,” you told him, and he smiled before following you out and up the steps to the living room. This was where you’d done the most work, clearing out the old grey furniture and replacing it with bright new pieces.

You put your arm out, gesturing widely to the room and spinning around. “And here’s the living room.” Harry followed you, making a slow circle and inspecting it. “I like the art,” he said, his eyes on the paintings you’d put on the wall.

“Thanks,” you said. “Me too.”

“Have you seen the gallery in town?” Harry asked as he followed you towards the kitchen. You shook your head, leaning against the counter. “No, I haven’t,” you answered, giving him a smile. “You’ll have to take me.”

Then, ignoring the butterflies his returning smile gave you, you went on, “And here’s the kitchen.” Lucky jumped up onto the counter next to you, and you grinned, petting her. “It’s her favorite room in the house.”

“I’m sure,” Harry laughed. He scratched her behind her ears, then walked around the room, his fingers tracing lightly on the white wooden table you’d chosen for the center of the room. “I like this better,” he said. “The Carlsons’ made the room look a lot smaller than it was.”

You nodded. “Yeah, I agree… Was too big. Made it cramped.” Harry’s gaze went out the back windows, which were floor to ceiling and looked out on the small woods in the backyard. There was a beat of silence, and then you walked over to stand next to him. “Were you… in here a lot?”

Harry shook his head. “Not really. I think they invited me when I first moved in… but that’s sort of it.” You hummed in response, and then asked, “Were you close with, uh - with the Carlsons?” Harry shrugged. “Eh. Not really. Y’know. Neighbor stuff.”

You bit your lip, smiling slightly. “Didja take them to the fair?” Your smile widened as Harry glanced at you, dimpling, and shook his head. “Nah,” he said. “But we didn’t share a cat, so I think the rules are a bit different.”

“Oh, really?”

“Mhm,” Harry hummed, looking back outside. “Yeah, there’s a bit more…” He tilted his head back and forth, searching for the right word. “Intimacy,” he finally seemed to decide, giving you a smile that tugged his lips into an almost-smirk. “We’re co-parenting a little one, after all. There’s got to be some… dinners involved.”

“Ah, yes, dinners,” you echoed solemnly. “To discuss parenting techniques.”

Harry nodded. “You get it.”

“She’s a bit spoiled, you know,” you said, watching her jump from the counter onto the table and sprawl out on the wood. “So we should probably get on those dinners.” Harry grinned. “Oh, yeah?” he asked, and you nodded. “Yeah. Definitely. Like, as soon as possible.”

His face lit up. “As soon as possible? As in, tonight?”

“Yeah,” you replied, a slow smile growing on your face. “As in tonight.”

Harry grinned back at you. “It’s a date.”

***

okay i KNOW this is weird sldkfj but it'll all make sense soon <333 hope you enjoyed !!!!!

and if you're liking this whole wrong-season-for-the-holiday thing, have no fear because there's a christmas fic coming soon!!!

masterlist | ask

#lol. never too soon to start celebrating halloween am i right !!!!!#harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x reader #harry styles imagine #harry styles fic #harry styles one shot #harry styles oneshot #harry styles x you #halloween #halloween in august

58 notes · View notes

raven-at-the-writing-desk · 3 years

Text

Letter 10: 🐆 An Arm and a Leg 🐆

A letter arrives in the mail. Well... you assume it was meant to be a letter). Had it not come in an envelope (with several dubious stains) addressed to you, you might have mistaken it for scrap. It looks like someone tore out a sheet of notebook paper (there are Magic History notes scribbled all over it) and wrote in a different ink color in the unused portions: the margins.

A bracelet comes with the letter, but rather than beads, there’s a bunch of polished and sanded off bottle caps strung on a thread. They rattle together when you slide it onto your wrist to test out the size—and would you look at that. There’s a little knotted notch for you to adjust the width of the bracelet to the perfect size doe you.

***Spoilers for chapters 2, 3, 4, and 5!***

Hey, Prefect!

How’s it going? Having a hard time with stuff? Got anything you need done? Thinkin’ about taking someone out without getting your hands dirty? Well, look no further, cuz I’m the hyena for the job—any job! I’ll literally do any job for you as long as I’m paid well. You know Madol’s what makes the the world go round!

... Yeah, this letter’s exactly what it looks like: an advertisement of my services. Look, money’s kinda tight this week and I’m trying to survive to NRC’s founding day celebration so I can feast on whatever fancy catering the headmaster’s got planned, alright? You know where to find me if you need a helping hand.

Just being Leona-san’s errand boy isn’t enough to make ends meet, you know? I’ve got bills to pay and food to eat, and that costs Madol. Plus... there’s all those brats back home that I’m thinkin’ about. I gotta save whatever scraps I can up for them, too.

Maybe there wouldn’t even be a me to look after those kids if it weren’t for you and those first years. I seriously thought I was gonna get turned to sand and crumble when Leona-san unleased King’s Roar... I dunno how, but you guys actually managed to tame that rampaging beast. Good thing you didn’t charge for that, cuz I don’t think I could ever repay you in enough Madol for saving my tail!!

But hey, don’t come to me acting like I owe you one for rescuing me. I helped swipe Azul-kun’s key and contracts! If you think about it, I kinda gave you a freebie too, since I pitched in to build the VDC stage for you guys to perform on!! “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” That’s one of the creeds we live by in Savanaclaw. I’ve paid off my debt to you, so now we’re even!

I’m glad you managed to stop Leona-san before it was too late. I mean, if he went berserk and stayed like that, a lot of people would get hurt—and more importantly, I’d lose an important gig! Without Leona-san around... I’d be out of a major job. He might work me like a dog, but I can’t argue about the perks. Having “Prince’s Errand Boy” in my résumé oughta open up some sweet opportunities for me in the future, don’t ‘cha think?

... I’m just kidding~

As much crap as we give each other, I gotta admit. Leona-san’s kinda growing on me. Sure, he’s rude and lazy and demanding and whatever... but I dunno. There’s something about him that you just can’t help but admire. It makes you wanna smile and follow his lead.

I just know... He’s got a vision of the future, Prefect. A future where beastmen from all walks of life can live in the same savanna on equal grounds. Leona-san knows what he wants. It’s the same wish as me, really. A “just” world where everyone gets the same chances. Young or old, rich or poor, lion or hyena....

That’s why... Even at the cost of my own morals, or an arm and a leg, I’ll stand by Leona-san’s side. I trust in his vision—in our vision. And I’ll do whatever I can to help make that a reality. The world’s an unfair place, so why should we play by its rules? They’re written in the world’s favor, anyway. We’ve gotta rebel against them if we’re ever gonna make any progress~

I told ya before, didn’t I? “Anyone can be king at this school”, even a lowly hyena like me. Night Raven College is exactly the opportunity I needed to cut loose and let my laugh go. I want everyone to experience this rush of freedom, this feeling of flying free. That’s why Leona-san leads, and why I follow in his footsteps.

Anyway, remember to hit me up if you ever need anything—as long as you’re also willing to open your wallet in return. I think I’ve spent enough time writing this letter. I gotta go pick up Leona-san’s lunch, then I gotta help Sam-san restock at the Mystery Shop, and after that I have...

Oh, yeah! About lunch... Tell Grim-kun that I said thanks a lot for the menchi-katsu sandwich~ If he’s still salty about it, I can trade him a dandelion salad next time. It’s cheap, delicious, nutritious, and filling! I promise!

See ya around,

🐆 Ruggie Bucchi 🐆

#Ruggie Bucchi #twst anni #twisted wonderland anni #twst #twisted wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #twst anniversary #twisted wonderland anniversary #spoilers #magic mystery letters

183 notes · View notes

orangeoctopi7 · 3 years

Text

They’re Good Dogs, Stan

@forduary Week 2 is Fluff and Angsty, but this is ALL FLUFF! I’ve seen tons and tons of Gravity Falls AUs with Werewolf!Stan, but none with Ford as a werewolf. So I wanted to write one. I could’ve gone for Paranoid, pre-portal incident Ford and all the good angst that’d come with that, but I’m already a week behind, so pure fluff it is! * * *

Mid-September, 2013. Another summer has come and gone, the kids are back home in Piedmont, and the elder Pines twins are preparing for their next voyage. After a busy day of gathering supplies, Stan is ready to take the afternoon off. But Ford wouldn’t be Ford if he didn’t jump at every opportunity to study something strange. He’d gone off on his own, mentioning something about checking on a werewolf theory for Soos. Stan, after confirming that it was still a couple of days until the full moon, decided to stay home and catch a nap on the porch, enjoying the first cool evening in months.

It was now an hour later, and while the sun still hadn’t set, Stan was starting to get a little worried. If the supposed werewolf really wasn’t any trouble, surely his brother would’ve been back by now. Ford may have the tendency to get caught up in his work, but he wasn’t exactly the type to let a conversation or interview drag on and on.

In an effort to distract himself from worrying, Stan decided to help Soos wrap up the last tour of the day. He’d just seen the last bus off when he noticed a large, hump-backed animal moving through the forest.

"What is that, a moose?" He squinted through the trees, trying to get a better look at it to see if it was something dangerous. It definitely went on four legs, so not a Manotaur. The only other thing that big around here that went on four legs was that Bear-bear friend of Dipper's, and he was a dark brown color. Whatever this was, its fur glinted silvery grey in the late afternoon sun.

Whatever it was, it was moving fast, and making its way towards the clearing that housed the Mystery Shack. In just a few seconds, Stan thought he could make out what it was, but his cataracts had to be playing tricks on him.

It wasn’t a moose. It was a wolf the size of a moose.

The closer it got, the more weird details he noticed about it. He’d never heard of a wolf with curly fur, and was it wagging its tail?

Where the heck was Ford? He’d love to see this. This was probably some giant’s pet woofdle (Half wolf half poodle).

Wait...

Stan looked up at the almost full moon hanging just above the trees as the sun began to set.

He looked back at the running wolf just in time to see it burst out of the trees and tackle him to the ground, knocking the wind out of him.

The wolf licked his face enthusiastically as he tried to catch his breath again.

“Ford, you didn’t!”

The fact that the wolf looked guilty was all the answer he needed.

* * *

When Soos shared his theory that the mailman was a werewolf with Ford, the old researcher had jumped at the opportunity. Here was a man who, from the looks of it, would have been a child when Ford first came to Gravity Falls.

This meant one of two things: One, there had been child werewolves in Gravity Falls when he first started his research here, and he somehow completely missed it; or Two, this man had been turned to a werewolf in the last 30 years, which meant there had been an increase in werewolf activity while Ford was on the other side of the portal. Either way, Ford was very excited to ask him some questions.

He’d dashed off from the Mystery Shack, barely stopping to let Stanley know where he was going and confirming that the full moon wasn’t for a few more days.

Once he arrived at the mail-man’s house, Ford knocked enthusiastically. The seconds slowly ticked by as he waited, but no answer came. After counting to 100, Ford knocked again, a little more insistently. He heard something moving behind the door. He started pounding on the door, and didn’t let up.

Finally, he heard several bolts being undone.

“Hey, you need to leave in the next…” The stout red-haired man flipped open his phone and checked an app, “Two minutes.”

“Oh.” Ford answered with mild surprise. “Well, I’ll cut straight to the chase then! I wanted to know if there was any truth to the rumors that you might be a werewolf!”

The man gave Ford a confused look before answering. “Stick around for another minute and a half and you’ll find out.”

“Really!? But it won’t be a full moon for another three days! And sunset won’t be for another hour and a half!”

“No, but the moon’s rising in about a minute. Seriously, you need to leave.”

Ford’s eyes widened to the size of saucers. “Would you be willing to let me observe your transformation? It would be an unprecedented scientific opportunity!”

“Nope, too dangerous.”

With that, the man slammed the door in Ford’s face. He heard several bolts and locks being re-done. For a brief moment, Ford was reminded of a less pleasant time in his own life, when he himself had locked himself in his own house like that, both for his own protection and for the protection of the world outside.

The old researcher shook the thought out of his head. This was nothing like that.

Honestly, he just wanted to observe. It wasn’t like he was looking for trouble. He had survived for years in the multiverse, he could just peek through the window of a werewolf!

Luckily there were plenty of windows on the second floor that had the blinds and curtains wide open, presumably to let in plenty of sunlight. Or perhaps to let in plenty of moonlight? That was one of many theories he’d have to ask the man about once the moon had set again. Whatever the case, these windows would be perfect points of observation.

Ford climbed a nearby tree to get a better look into the werewolf’s home. He couldn’t see the transformation from here, but he could see what appeared to be the entire hind leg of an elk hanging by a couple of ropes in one room. Interesting… obviously this man prepared food for his wolf form, presumably to prevent any chance of the werewolf hunting local townsfolk or livestock, but why hang it in such a position? It wasn’t so high that the werewolf couldn’t reach it, but it would obviously take more work.

Well, he wasn’t going to see the transformation for himself from this window. The old researcher readied himself to jump to the tiny balcony in front of the next nearest window. Hopefully he’d find what he was looking for there.

The old man took a leap-- misjudged the springiness of the branch beneath his feet-- and crashed through the window.

Ford picked himself up off the floor with a groan. That window should not have broken so easily. Surely, the home of a werewolf should be better fortified! He would have to block the window with something if he didn’t want a werewolf loose on the town. He was looking for a bookshelf or cabinet he could push in front of the opening, when he heard a low snuffling sound, followed by an angry growl.

A reddish-brown wolf, twice the size of any Ford had ever seen, with an abnormally large cranium, was standing at the top of the stairs, glaring daggers at him. Ford was torn between reaching for his blaster to protect himself, or reaching for the new journal Mabel had made for him to start writing down observations.

Drat, I missed the transformation. He thought to himself. So it must be a rapid process. I wonder if that makes it more or less painful?

The wolf growled again, hackles raised, and Ford finally pulled out his blaster, being sure to set it to stun. After all, it wasn’t the wolf’s fault he’d stumbled into the wolf’s territory.

Unfortunately, pulling a gun, even a sci-fi looking one, was the wrong move. The wolf lunged at him before he could pull the trigger, fangs sinking into his forearm. Ford yelled with pain, punching and kicking the beast to get it to let go.

The pain of the bite was soon replaced with a strange twitching, rippling, itching sensation, that quickly radiated outward from the wound. He looked down and noticed the hair on his arm growing thicker.

Well, it looks like I’ll get to observe the transformation after all! He thought as he fell to his knees.

* * *

Stan was absolutely flabbergasted by the moose-sized wolf currently pawing at his fridge. It barely fit in the room, and he was pretty sure that wagging tail was going to knock the table over.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it, you’re hungry.” Stan muscled his way past the mountain of fur and pulled out an entire container of bologna that hadn’t even been opened yet. “Here.” he peeled the seal off the package and tossed a slice like a little frisbee. Wolf!Ford snapped it up in one bite. He looked expectantly at Stan and gave a pathetic little whine, hoping for another.

“Uh, I dunno if you should even be eatin’ this stuff when you’re like that.” Stan protested. “Pretty sure wolves aren’t supposed to eat people food.”

The wolf gave a little huff, but nodded in agreement. And wasn’t that wild, seeing a curly-haired wolf just make a human gesture like that?

The wolf headed back to the back porch door. He pawed the doorknob, like it was instinctual, but gave a little annoyed grunt when he apparently remembered he didn’t have thumbs. Next he tried to grasp the doorknob between his jaws.

“Oh no you don’t!” Stan shouted. “I don’t want teeth-marks all over my doorknobs! Or wolf drool, for that matter!”

Wolf!Ford shot him another guilty look and whined plaintively. Stan sighed and opened the door for him.

“I just let you in, what the heck do you want out again for?”

The wolf made a series of grunts and groans that were probably supposed to mean something, but Stan didn’t get any of what he was trying to say.

“Whatever, just don’t go too far.”

* * *

The wolf actually rolled its eyes. Stan didn’t even think wolves could do that. Of course, this was a werewolf, so maybe it could do things a normal wolf couldn’t. It dashed away into the forest.

“Hey! I said don’t go too far!” Stan shouted after him. The wolf was already out of sight. The old con man groaned. “Alright, fine, just be careful!” Stan yelled even louder, hoping his transformed brother could still hear him.

Ford was hungrier than he’d been since coming back to his home dimension, and while the slice of bologna had been tasty, it had been far from filling. Besides, Stan was right. Wolves probably shouldn’t eat processed meats. He was going to have to go hunting!

He took in a deep breath, enjoying all the diverse smells that had opened up to him with his transformation, trying to differentiate the smell of wild game from the smell of Farmer Sprott’s farm animals.

It’s probably a good thing Mabel took Waddles home with her before this happened. Ford thought.

He was able to pick out the scent of what he thought might be a mule deer. He snuck through the forest, finding that he could be surprisingly quiet for something so large. He got close enough to the mule deer that he could see the tiny twitching movements of its nose sniffing the air when it finally noticed him. When it finally caught his scent, it bounded away in an instant, and Ford gave chase.

As exhilarating as the case felt, there was also a sense of wrongness to it. He knew instinctively that he shouldn’t, couldn’t hunt on his own, and he found himself wishing desperately that Stanley was with him, even if he knew on some level that his brother wouldn’t want to hunt a deer and probably wouldn’t be much help even if he did.

The wind changed direction and a new scent, strange yet familiar, caught his attention. It was the synthetic, sterile smell of a human mixed with the pungent, musky smell of a wolf, not unlike his own. And he’d smelled it earlier, right after his transformation.

It was the mailman!

Another werewolf, stockier and more reddish brown than silver gray, was running through the forest, scaring the mule deer back in Ford’s direction with a loud howl. Now he wasn’t alone. Now the hunt felt right.

The deer zig-zagged between the two of them before the mailman finally came close enough to latch his jaws into its hind flank. It tried to kick the wolf off, but it had slowed enough that Ford was able to catch up himself, and then instinct completely took over. Before he knew it, the deer was dead on the ground, and the two werewolves were covered in blood, happily sharing the meal they’d taken down together. The one doe wasn’t enough to feed two enormous werewolves, but it definitely put more of a dent in Ford’s hunger than the slice of bologna had.

As they finished off the last of the deer carcase, the other wolf looked at Ford, and although no words were exchanged, a form of communication passed between them.

“You’re the idiot researcher who broke into my house.” The mailman didn’t seem angry, just bemused more than anything.

“It was an accident.” Ford’s tail and ears drooped.

“I told you to leave.” The mailman’s ears flattened and he gave a small annoyed growl. “But it is nice to go hunting with someone. I usually just hang up an elk flank for my own enrichment, so the local farmers and hunters don’t throw a tizzy, but this was much more fun!”

“I agree!” Ford wagged his tail, and his ears perked up again. “I’m still hungry, let’s find another deer!”

The two wolves continued to hunt together for another hour or so, taking down one more deer and finding a large nest of ground squirrels that finally filled them up. Eventually, dusk passed into full night, and the time that deer were the most active had passed.

“Well, we’d better do our best to cover our tracks and clean up after ourselves.” The mailman stretched and began burying the remains of the ground squirrels. “The local farmers and hunters will throw a tizzy fit if they realize there are a couple of wolves in town.”

“Is that why you usually lock yourself in your house?” Ford asked.

The other wolf nodded, and Ford was reminded that this was a man most of the time. “I’ve been chased by an angry mob a couple of times. Even shot at with silver bullets.”

“Really? Is there any truth to those old legends?”

“Well any bullet will kill you if it gets you in the heart or the brain.” the mailman replied with a growl. “Silver bullets will force you to transform back to normal, so as long as it’s not a serious injury, you’ll just heal while your body rearranges itself. I got shot in the hind leg, so the bullet just fell out as I transformed.”

“Faciniating! What is it about silver that causes the change? Is it just contact with silver in general, or does it have to be a bullet?”

Ford hadn’t realized that wolves could give blank stares like that. “No clue. I’m not rich enough to have access to pure silver.”

“Oh, it’s actually quite easy to precipitate out of Silver Nitrate, which you can purchase through most industrial chemical catalogs!”

* * *

It was getting late, and Stan was getting tired, but he was not going to bed until he knew Ford was safe. His brother had run off almost an hour and a half ago, and Stan had seen enough monster movies to worry what would happen to his brother if he ran into anyone else.

Unfortunately, following the wolf through the woods in the dark seemed more likely to get Stan into trouble than to get Ford out of it, so he decided to just keep vigil on the porch for now. He’d heard a few howls in the night, but nothing that sounded like a wolf in danger. He was just going to have to trust that his brother could take care of himself.

It was nearly midnight when Ford finally trotted out of the forest and into the light of the Mystery Shack’s back porch, dragging a mostly picked-clean deer carcase behind him.

“What the heck did you bring that back with you for!?” Stan exclaimed in disgust, looking at the trail of sineu, bones, and skin that now led up to the porch.

Ford looked expectantly between Stan and the carcase, nudging a bit of ribs that still had some meat on them closer to his brother.

“What are you thinkin’!? I’m not eatin’ that!”

The wolf actually did a double-take, as if he was just now remembering that his brother was a human who ate cooked meat that had already been butchered and prepared and sold in a supermarket, not the raw, still bloody remains of a deer that had been alive just three hours ago.

“I hope you realize, I’m not letting you in the house while you’re filthy like that.” Stan gestured to the dark brown dried blood that was flaking off Ford’s curly gray fur.

The wolf looked thoroughly shamed, and began licking the blood from his paws and muzzle, but there was a lot he couldn’t reach on his own. Stan rolled his eyes and grabbed the hose. It was way too late for this.

Ford gave a surprised yelp when Stan turned the hose on him, and he looked absolutely pathetic as he sat there and took it, the water making him look much skinnier and bedraggled. He whined pitifully as Stan placed his thumb over the end to increase the water pressure, and did his best to power-spray the remaining blood and dirt out of his brother’s fur. When he was finally satisfied that no deer guts would be tracked inside, he nodded with approval and turned the hose of.

The wolf’s tail hung low as he climbed up to the porch.

“Serves you right! You had me worried sick!” Stan reprimanded him. “And I should’ve been in bed two hours ago!”

The wolf gave another sad whine and tried to lick Stan’s face. He pushed his brother off, but also gave him an affectionate scritch behind his ear.

“Yeah yeah, it’s hard to stay mad at you when you’re a big fluffy dog.” He opened the door and let Ford back inside.

As soon as Stan closed the door behind him, Ford gave a tremendous shake, sending water flying everywhere, and absolutely soaking everything in the entryway, including Stan.

“Oh, I see how it is! You were just faking bein’ pathetic to take your revenge, huh?”

Ford wagged his tail and huffed, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Stan stomped up the stairs to take a shower, while Ford picked his way towards the laundry room. The wolf pulled a towel onto the floor and rolled around on it to finish drying himself off. He would help clean up the entryway, but he didn’t have any opposable thumbs, so there wasn’t much he could do.

* * *

Stan went to bed immediately after getting out of the shower. It had been an exhausting day. He’d deal with Ford’s stupid werewolf escapades in the morning. Hopefully, his brother would be back to normal by then.

He’d just been about to drift off to sleep when he felt something huge and hairy flop down on the mattress next to him. Apparently, werewolf!Ford didn’t want to sleep alone, and honestly, Stan was too tired to try and shove him off, so he just snuggled into the great mound of fur and drifted off to sleep.

A few hours later, a loud cracking sound, like someone popping all their joints at once, woke Stan with a start. It was still dark out, although the first few rays of light were appearing on the horizon. Stan realized he was suddenly colder too, as though someone had pulled a blanket off him. He suddenly realized that the giant furry mass that had been sleeping next to him all night had been replaced by plain old human skin and bones.

“Ford?” Stan asked, squinting in the twilight to try and see if his brother had indeed returned to normal.

“Ugh… ow… It’s like having all your joints dislocated and then relocated at once… Ah, so I’m fully capable of human speech again!” The old researcher stretched and felt himself over. “Oh dear… I seem to have left my clothes back where I first transformed!” He pulled Stan’s blanket over himself.

“S’not like I can see you anyway.” Stan yanked his blanket back. It was cold this morning, especially now that the living space heater werewolf form was gone! “Go back to your own room and grab your PJ’s.”

The bed creaked as Ford climbed out of it, and Stan saw the blurry silhouette of his brother pause in the doorway.

“Stanley, I… I’m sorry.”

“Didja get hurt?” Stan asked sleepily.

“No. In fact, it was an incredible experience!”

“Then I ain’t even mad. Just lemme go back to sleep, ok?”

“It’s just… I know I worried you. And I’m sorry for that.”

“Great. Apology accepted. Go to bed.”

* * *

After the craziness of last night, Stan didn’t wake until almost 10:30 the next morning. He stumbled into breakfast the next morning to find the kitchen table absolutely covered in Ford’s notes, and his brother in the middle of recounting his experience to Soos.

“... And I’m not sure if it was some sort of telepathy that all werewolves share, or if my inner human consciousness was just translating the wolves body language and pheromone communication, but we were able to communicate perfectly, even about complex concepts like chemistry and legends and angry mobs!”

“Oh, hey Stan!” Soos greeted him cheerfully. “Turns out I was totally right about that mailman bein’ a werewolf!”

“Yeah, I’m aware.” Stan rolled his eyes and grabbed a packet of oatmeal.

“I promise, I only went there to observe!” Ford assured him, “I had no intention of turning into a werewolf myself. But now that it’s happened, I’ll actually be able to observe and study werewolves first-hand! Which is perfect, because there’s still so much we don’t know! Obviously, it doesn’t have to be a completely full moon to trigger the transformation, so how full does it have to be? How is the transformation transmitted from one person to the next?”

“How are you gonna take notes while you’re a wolf?” Stan pointed out.

Ford opened his mouth to answer, but quickly realized he didn’t have one.

“Oh, dude we should get you one of those sound boards like that one dog on the internet has!” Soos suggested. He pulled out his phone and showed them a video illustrating his point.

“Hmm, I’m sure I could ask Fiddleford to rig up something like this, but a full keyboard!” Ford nodded as he watched the video. “I’m still myself as the wolf, so I should be able to spell out what I want to say. We could even connect it to a computer, so I can type!

“If you’re still yourself, then why the heck did you try and bring me back a deer last night?” Stan asked grumpily.

“Ah…” Ford blushed. “Well, I still retain my typical level of intelligence, it just seems there’s quite a lot of wolf instinct that gets superimposed on top of that.”

“Great.” Stan pinched the bridge of his nose. “So, I get that you’re excited to learn more about how werewolves work and all that, but what about after that? Are you just gonna stay a werewolf forever, or is there a cure?”

“Well, last night, the mailman mentioned that getting shot with a silver bullet in the leg will change you back without doing any lasting harm.”

“Yeah, I’m not shooting you every time your transformation is inconvenient.”

“But he wasn’t sure if just any contact with pure silver would do the trick. That’s just one of many things I’ll have to research in the future!”

Stan swallowed a mouthful of oatmeal. “We’d better call the kids. I can’t wait to see the look on Mabel’s face when she finds out you transform into a giant silver poodle under the full moon!”

#Gravity Falls #Fanfiction #Forduary 2021 #Stanford Pines #Stanley Pines

89 notes · View notes

kodzukenscorner · 4 years

Text

Osamu dating Sakusa’s twin sister

anon asked: hello 💕 can i ask a scene for sakusa's twin sister dating osamu? 👉👈 thank you.

a/n: asdghljl forgive me for not updating in a bit, I’ve hit a bit of a writer’s block

wc: 1,476

✶ ✶ ✶ ✶ ✶

You are nothing like Sakusa Kiyoomi, Osamu thought to himself nearly every time he saw you. He knew you were twins and foolishly assumed you would share in your brothers touch-averse and semi germaphobic ways. Although to be fair, Osamu had never formally met Sakusa before, he only heard of him from Atsumu when they became (somewhat) acquainted at their last training camp. It wasn’t until a practice match was set up did he get to meet the Sakusa Kiyoomi in the flesh, along with the rest of Itachiyama. That of course, included their manager, you.

Your hair was dark and curly like your brothers, but not nearly as unruly. It cascaded into raven ringlets down your shoulders and Osamu could not keep his eyes off the way it bounced every time you nodded your head. Suffice it to say he was entranced by you and Atsumu was quick to notice.

“Bet she’s as prickly as her brother”

Osamu scrunched up his nose, he couldn’t imagine someone as angelic looking as you being so cold. Little did he know, Sakusa was having a similar conversation with you. It didn’t take you long to take notice of the Miya twins, your brother had told you about Atsumu who was a talented setter no doubt but a bit of a pain in the ass. Osamu was a mystery and you couldn’t help but wonder if he was like his twin or maybe he was like you, someone who was nothing like their own twin.

“The Miya’s, probably equally irritating” Your brother informed you as he stretched his wrist out.

Throughout the warmups and the practice match, you couldn’t help but keep an eye on the Miya twins. Atsumu seemed just as your brother described, talented and cocky but Osamu was a quiet force. He was good and paired with his brother, they could be unstoppable one day. It was on more than one occasion that you two made eye contact throughout the match and by the time everyone was relaxing afterwards you knew it wasn’t just a coincidence. You looked over once more to the Inarizaki team to catch Osamu staring at you, but this time he didn’t look away and neither did you. He offered you a sweet genuine smile, nothing like the slightly sinister one his brother has. You couldn’t help but smile back at him, a blush creeping its way up your cheeks which was easily noticed by Osamu.

Before your team had left, Osamu managed to finally get you alone, the words were almost lost in his throat when he finally got to see you up close. But he was still able to get your number and properly introduce himself before you went your separate ways. You knees went weak just at speaking to him for such a short amount of time, you had no idea how you survived to be completely honest. And true to his word, Osamu texted you that night when he got home, you texted back and forth until the sun came up the next morning.

How did any of this happen? He was just a rival athlete from another school, but now you were texting and calling him every night. Your heart fluttered whenever you saw his name on your screen and your brother couldn’t help but notice how attached you were to your phone. And now here was Osamu, standing at your front door, ready to take you on your first official date. Your brother loomed behind you, still wary of the Miya twin but you bid him goodbye and dragged Osamu away. You held his hand tightly in yours as you led him to your favorite onigiri shop, you had tried asking him what his favorite food was but he just kept saying it was ‘food’.

Osamu was too caught up in the feeling of your hand in his to make any sort of conversation, and your heart was beating too loud to hear anything he might have said anyway. Once you made it to the shop, he had to reluctantly let go of your hand to properly order food for the both of you. Soon enough, you were seated across from each other with your food in front of you, neither of you had said much yet but when you looked up at the grey haired man in front of you the blush that had been permanently sitting on your cheeks threatened to take over your whole face now. Something about the way he had his chin propped up on his hand, and the dreamy far away look he had as he looked at you made you want to faint on the spot. He reached over and grasped your hand in his once more, eyes never leaving yours.

“I’m surprised yer letting me hold yer hand”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“Dunno, just thought you’d be like yer brother”

“I thought you’d be like yours”

You both chuckled and comfortably ate your food, conversation finally flowing normally. You stayed in the small restaurant much longer than either of you anticipated but you both lost track of time. Osamu walked you home, hand intertwined with yours, his thumb rubbing light circles into the back of your palm the whole way. He stopped at your door, knowing your brother wasn’t quite comfortable with letting him inside just yet. You looked up at Osamu in anticipation.

“Well, ummm, thank you for everything, I had fun” You smiled at him sweetly.

“I did too, but it’ll be some time before I can come visit again so don’t get upset when I do this okay?”

You didn’t have a chance to question what he meant because before you knew it, Osamu was leaning down cupping your cheek with his free hand, bringing his lips to meet yours. You clung to his shirt for support and immediately kissed him back. You had been daydreaming about kissing him since you first started texting but nowhere in any of your fantasies did you imagine his lips to be so soft. He was a slow kisser and he managed to make you completely melt under his gentle touch. You felt his tongue swipe across your bottom lip and just as you parted your lips to give him access your front door swung open.

Osamu pulled away slowly, making eye contact with your brother who was glaring at him. He offered a lazy smile while you still clung to his chest, he really managed to take your breath away with that kiss. Osamu moved his hand from your cheek and wrapped it lazily around your waist, bringing your body closer to his and planted a kiss on the top of your head.

“You should head inside before yer brother gets really mad, I’ll text you later sweetheart” Osamu said sweetly in your ear.

You finally stepped away, bidding Osamu a goodnight, entering your house where your brother promptly shut the door.

“Next time you’re wearing a facemask”

“How am I gonna kiss him then?”

“Exactly”

“Kiyoomi!”

You huffed and went to your room, listening to some music, remembering the feeling of Osamu’s lips on yours. Suddenly your phone buzzed and Osamu’s name popped up on your screen and you broke out into a wide grin reading his text.

“Hey, your brother interrupted us before I could ask but do you wanna be my girlfriend?”

You squealed into your pillow before replying.

“Of course 🥺 ”

You started cheering and kicking your legs up as you laid in the bed when your phone buzzed again. You quickly grabbed it, expecting it to be from Osamu but were confused when you saw your brother’s name.

“Did he finally ask you out?”

You scoffed and replied “He would’ve asked me out sooner if you hadn’t interrupted”

“Fine, guess you don’t want this picture then”

Sakusa sent you a picture of you and Osamu kissing outside your door and you almost died of embarrassment. But it was a very sweet picture and you were over the moon at this point.

“Love you Kiyoomi but next time I’m making out with my boyfriend please leave us alone or I’ll cough on you <3333″

“Gross” Was his only response.

You set the picture as your wallpaper and continued texting with your boyfriend for the rest of the night, you even sent him the picture Sakusa had taken.

“Babe why would you send this to me, now I’m gonna dream about you all night long”

“I don’t see how that’s a problem”

“So if I wake up with a “problem”, you’ll help me out?”

You choked on your own spit reading his text “SAMU!!”

“Kidding, kidding. Go to bed now sweetheart, I’ll talk to you tomorrow”

To no one’s surprise, you were the one to dream of Osamu that night, not that you were complaining.

#osamu #miya osamu #osamu x reader #haikyuu #haikyuu!!#hq #haikyuu writing #hq osamu #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu headcanons

376 notes · View notes

euphoricdumpsterfire · 3 years

Text

It Was Enchanting To Meet You (Edmund Pevensie x Mutant!FemReader)

Chapter V: The Lake

Summary: Edmund and Y/N are on the way to look for a mysterious cottage. They stopped by a lake where they meet some mermaids. Jealous of Y/N’s presence, they orchestrated a plan that brings one of Y/N’s nightmares to life.

Masterlist

Word count: 1397

Warnings: being underwater and nearly drowning, minor injuries, (let me know if there's anything else I missed!)

A/N: There’s going to be a scene that’s heavily inspired by Tangled and a surprise cameo from a certain marvel witch! (Also I know this was supposed to be uploaded yesterday but I had so many things to do I didn't have the time but here it is!)

"So where exactly are we going?" Y/N asked as she struggled to walk through tall shrubs in the forest,

"I dunno, Susan mentioned this cottage that magically showed up apparently. The Beavers were the ones who actually saw it, they were frolicking in the woods, saw the cottage and felt something was off because they've never seen it before. Mrs. Beaver said there was a sound of an explosion and purple smoke came out of the chimney." Edmund answered,

"Do you think it's..." Y/N said in a quiet voice, "Her?" implying that it may have been the white witch.

"We won't know until we find out." He answered and they continued to walk through the woods. They had been walking for hours and eventually felt tired. Y/N saw a lake not too far from where they stood and had suggested to take a break and get some water. Once they got to the lake, they sat on the ground to fill up their containers with water. The lake's water was the clearest of blue and it sparkled with the sun's reflection.

"This is actually good, I've never really gone to the great outdoors since forever." Y/N said as she looked up at the sky,

"You've never gone to a lake?" Edmund chuckled in disbelief,

"Only once and it was for a school field trip. After that, I've only just been in the city, and eventually stuck in my professor's mansion." she answered.

Edmund stood up and reached out his hand towards Y/N, "Get up." he said,

"Why?"

"Just get up and come with me." He said. Y/N grabbed his hand and got up, he led him to where the ground and water met. "Now, close your eyes." he said and Y/N shut her eyes closed, nervous with what's about to happen. Suddenly she felt a splash of water hit her face, making her jump in shock.

"Ed!" Y/N yelled and splashed water towards him for revenge. They continued to play in the water until they were soaking wet, they were laughing and having fun until they heard a voice.

"Hello there." A young woman with strawberry blonde hair and rose colored eyes emerged from the waters startling both Edmund and Y/N.

"Whoa... Are you a mermaid?!" Y/N exclaimed,

"As a matter of fact, I am." The mermaid answered as she lifted up her tail that matched the color of her eyes, and a bunch of other mermaids started to emerge as well. The mermaid took a look at Edmund and swam closer to the edge, "You must be King Edmund the just. What brings you here?" she said while batting her eyelashes,

"We're in search of this cottage that apparently showed up in the middle of the woods, perhaps you've seen someone who happens to be the owner of the cottage?" Edmund asked,

"I've never seen such a thing..." the mermaid answered, her eyes moved towards Y/N her expression turning cold, "And who are you?" she asked in a very rude manner which confused Y/N.

"I'm Y/N Y/LN." she answered

"I'm assuming that you're the king's servant?" the mermaid shot back,

"She's not a servant," Edmund answered, "She's actually an important guest that came from a far away land." Suddenly the mermaid's rude expression eerily changed into a charming smile and pointed to her right,

"You must come, your highness, my sister is about to play a very special song with her flute." She said and the music can be heard very clearly despite the source of the sound being very far from where they were. Without hesitation, Edmund followed the sound and when Y/N was about to follow him, other mermaids grabbed onto her leg. She screamed in agony as one of the mermaid's nails pierced through the skin of her leg, thus crimson red blood trailed down to her feet.

"Edmund! Ed!" Y/N yelled, Edmund turned around but the mermaids had already dragged her into the deepest part of the lake. She kept her eyes open, she kept resisting and tried to get back to the surface. It was then she realized she felt a sense of deja vu. This was exactly how one of her nightmares turned out and it immediately ensued more panic.

Edmund jumped into the lake chasing after Y/N who, by luck, got away from the hands of the mermaids. However, one of them aimed a trident towards Y/N. She saw the mermaid throw the trident and her hands glowed dark navy blue and she extended her arms out, directed toward where the mermaids were and a beam of light hit them, pushing them to the bottom of the lake.

With the trident still moving swiftly towards Y/N's direction, she quickly moved away. However, Edmund was in the midst of swimming to Y/N when the pointy ends of the trident cut his hand. Y/N saw this and swam to his direction, grabbed his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders while her arm encircled on his back as they swam to the surface.

They both sat on the ground, panting and still trying to process what had just happened. “Are you alright?” Y/N asked Edmund as she looked at his bleeding hand.

“I should be asking you that question.” Edmund replied,

“I’m all good. It’s just that, I didn’t expect that one of my nightmares are caused by jealous mermaids.” Y/N said making Edmund chuckle.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn't have followed the mermaids.” Edmund says solemnly,

“You really shouldn’t blame yourself, though I think it's a good idea to put a huge sign that says "Warning: Dangerous Mermaids" just for safety .” Y/N replied and Edmund laughed.

She looked over at his hand once again and said, “May I?” Edmund hesitantly moved his hand towards her to which she held. Deep blue light radiated from her hands as the wound healed itself.

“There, you're all healed up!” Y/N smiled while still holding his hand,

“Thank you.” Edmund said as he smiled.

Their faces were just inches away, both looked into each other's eyes and their stomachs filled with butterflies. But their attention gets pulled away as they hear a faint voice of a woman humming a lullaby. The lullaby that Y/N had been humming the other night. “Do you hear that?” Edmund asked,

“Yeah, and I’ve been hearing that voice since the other night.” Y/N stood up and tried to figure out which direction the voice was coming from. “I think it’s coming from the west, it might be from the cottage.”

Edmund got up and said “Let’s go.”

As they continued to head west with Y/N in the lead, the humming became louder and clearer. "I see it!" Y/N exclaimed and they both ran towards a small cottage with purple smoke coming out of its chimney, exactly how the Beavers described it. They stood outside the door, Edmund moving forward and instinctively stood in front of Y/N to shield her. He knocked on the door and it immediately swung open, startling the two. A woman with dark wavy hair, wearing the darkest blue dress with a purple shawl, and a small brooch placed on her chest stood right in front of them while cradling a rabbit in her arms.

"Hiya kids!" She said in the most comical way reminding Y/N of how the women in sitcoms would talk. Edmund and Y/N stood frozen, confused almost, and never said a word. "Well don't keep me waiting! Get in here!" The woman motioned with her arm to let the two inside but there was no movement. "Oh of course where are my manners!" The woman cackled and cleared her throat, "The name's Agatha Harkness, lovely to finally meet you guys." She smiled as she petted her rabbit, her eyes darted at Y/N making Edmund stretch out his arm to shield her.

"You finally found me." Agatha said directly to Y/N, "I've been trying to communicate with you for the past few days, my throat's been sore from all the humming!" She chuckled.

"How did you know that lullaby?" Y/N asked,

"Why dear, I was the one who sang it to you when you were little!" She said confidently.

37 notes · View notes