#found at the elementary school book fair

[jams-wc-designs]

38 - Sasha

#warrior cats #clanless #warrior cats design #sasha wc #sasha warrior cats #my beloved #fun fact sasha's manga was the first wc book i ever read #found at the elementary school book fair

[mirith]

Bet.

Apologies for the messy background, but here's my lovely knitting machine! It's a Silver Reed SK10.

While writing another post, I noticed I was writing a lot about my knitting machine. So I put the words here. And added a lot more.

This is going to be a long post. I talk a lot about things I like, and I will not apologize for it. I will add a cut here so you can scroll by this more easily if you want. But! It'll be more fun if you read on! And I put photos of stuff I made at the end!

I learned to knit by hand from a book in elementary school, and I learned wrong. I have been happily hand-knitting things ever since, and consider myself a fairly knowledgeable and experience hand-knitter. I haven't steeked anything, to be fair, but my interests tend to be geared toward lace.

Which is good, because that's my default handspinning weight. Here's an example of the stuff I like to spin and knit (4 months from start to end, oof oof):

After I graduated college, I found out about flatbed knitting machines! I found one that looked cool, and drove myself a few hours to buy it. The end. Just kidding. You're not even halfway through this post. Not sorry.

I did not know how to operate a knitting machine. I just liked how this one looked (still do) and it also had a ribber! And it was $50? Something like that? Probably paid more for gas.

Anyway. Flatbed knitting machines range from "I can only do stockinette hehe" to "I am fully electronic, I'll knit lace or colorwork for you all by myself, EZ".

Mine is firmly in the former camp. No punchcard capability at all, and the ribber carriage is not even sophisticated enough to link up with the main bed carriage. Each row of ribbing requires the main bed carriage to be moved first (laying yarn across the ribber needles), then the ribber carriage (hooking the previously laid yarn down to complete the row). So knitting in the round is, yes, one pass of the main, then the ribber, then the main again, then the ribber carriage... (I actually made a lil' youtube video about this).

I cannot tell you why I wanted it, other than "new yarn thing!". At this point in my life, I was a very comfortable hand-knitter. There was no reason to acquire a large metal object that would do what I did, but "less good" (considering this machine would only ever do stockinette and hand-manipulated stitches -- but I didn't know tuck stitches existed!).

Tuck stitches look like the honeycomb pattern in the middle here, and are kind of knitting machine exclusive:

I think I actually may have wanted a circular sock machine, but those are very, very expensive, and not really in my price range. Still aren't. Very much considering adding one to my wedding registry to see if someone bites. (Would have to plan a wedding, but it would be worth it).

I figured that a flatbed machine with a ribber could knit in circles, ie, what CSMs do; but would also knit large flat things (CSMs can do small flat things, I think). And since the price meant a CSM was unrealistic without some serious saving, it was clear I would have to find a flatbed with ribber.

But working knitting machines with working ribbers are difficult to find. And expensive! I think prices were $350-500 for the full package plus shipping (expensive shipping because these are bulky and heavy and delicate instruments), and I'm sure they've only gotten worse.

I kind of live in a domestic craft desert, so there was very little hope for finding something local anyway. So when I saw a working machine with a ribber "near" me for less than $100, I was stoked. I was aware of its non-ability to pattern, but I just wanted to knit in circles.

When I got this machine, it was functional, but dirty. Oh, so dirty.

First thing I did was remove all the needles (took forever) and soak them in isopropyl alcohol (smelled terrible), and take everything apart as much as possible to scrub every reachable surface.

It was then that I re-affirmed my love for all-metal, vintage hardware. My sewing machine is a 1950s Singer and oh boy is that thing an absolute unit. This knitting machine is also an absolute unit in the best way. It was dirty, but in excellent knitting condition.

It was then that I also found this machine does not have a sponge bar. Which is really weird for a knitting machine. But also why I'll never get rid of it, I think.

It's got a metal U-shaped thing instead, to tension the needles. Sponge bars serve the same purpose, but the foam decays terribly over time. I don't think this metal thing ever needs to be replaced. I've knit quite a lot (will get to that!) on this machine and it knits beautifully still.

I think this machine predates sponge bars (??? pure speculation), because everything I've seen online about buying used machines says that you must consider the sponge bar and how to measure the sponge to buy the correct size and must immediately buy a new one and maybe even have a spare for when yours starts to get old etc etc. Never seen anything that says there's a metal tension rod like mine.

Ravelry did not believe this was the sponge bar equivalent, and asked me to please look elsewhere on the machine for the real sponge bar. They also told me this machine was not worth $50, which I kind of disagree with. Yes, it's super limited, but I love it. It will also, like my sewing machine, probably outlive me.

It's a standard gauge machine, and not a very common one (?). I think it's an earlier machine (4th oldest on this list), in terms of domestic machines, and likely was passed up in later years for models that had punchcards. There is another internet presence who has an SK10! KinoKnits did a video on hers.

There is a manual for the machine and a manual for the ribber online, and the scans aren't great, but they are very readable. Not much else though.

Okay. Infodump mostly completed.

Once I got the machine home I immediately set it up and realized I didn't quite know what I was doing.

After much trial and tribulation, I created some... things...

I optimistically cast on with my newly-learned e-wrap cast on and the included cast on wire (I have still not figured out the cast on wires, I don't think they actually work, and are simply a cruel prank)

I switched yarn (to something thinner and less elastic), in case that was the issue, and also switched to trying just i-cord to see if I could get that to work. It worked!

Switched back to the original yarn. I-cord also worked!

And back to trying fabric. Progress! But a lot of dropped stitches. I think this was very similar to attempt 1, but I just persisted and more aggressively picked up droppped stitches. This took me a very long time.

No dropped stitches! I used a weird cast on, or maybe just a really loose e-wrap?

Fabrice! I was confident enough to mark that I was using tension 7 with those (intentional!) yarn-over holes near the top.

I believe that those six attempts took me a few hours, and a lot of it was me trying to gauge whether or not yanking the carriage across was the right thing to do. I wasn't sure how much force to apply, and was deathly afraid of breaking needles, because I don't think these are standard ones and I can't get replacements.

There wasn't much to learn after this.

Oh.

Except for, you know, using the ribber.

It looks pretty similar to the main needle bed. Long metal guy with lotta needles. It's flatter, and hangs off the main bed with some sturdy arms on either side (which you can't see, sorry).

Close up:

You kind of have to wiggle it so that the needles don't smash into each other.

It does function identically to the main bed otherwise. But it's so much trickier to fix dropped stitches (or even see them!) because, as you can see, the ribber kind of covers everything. And it doesn't come off till the ribbing is done.

I've found that I need lots of weight to get the ribbing to knit off properly, which sucks if I run either carriage across without yarn accidentally. The knitting will simply yeet itself onto the floor and I will have to start over.

The cast on is kind of weird, but not terrible if you understand what it's trying to do, which I do, but will not endeavour to explain on this already horrendously long post. The Singer SR10 manual explains the cast-on process if you're interested. Or just tell me and I'll make another infodump post! Love talking about my knitting machine.

Here are some first attempts at ribbing and tubular knitting:

Allllllrighty it's project time!

I made a hat! (I made it a free Ravelry pattern btw, because the decreases are optionally worked by hand).

I made some sock tubes and hand-knit the heels and toes!

I made a bunch of ribbed cowls with my handspun!

I made scarves with more handspun!

And most recently I made a bralette:

Which turned out smaller than I planned because I do not gauge swatch properly at all, but I can wear it semi-modestly anyway.

#knitting #machine knitting #knitting machine #yarnblr #knitblr #mirith #infodump #just yeeting this info into the void

[jackie-sugarskull]

Today marks 7 years since the reawakening of my Captain Underpants hyperfixation, which had been asleep for a very, very long time.

I had first discovered the books much like any kid in the late 90s/early 2000s; at the Scholastic Book Fair. If I remember correctly, the first one I had found was the second book, Attack of the Talking Toilets. I remember thinking how silly the cover looked, and it drew my little elementary school self in like a moth to flame.

I had quickly read it and absolutely loved it, and like discovering a new favorite treat for the first time, I immediately wanted more.

I was able to find the first book in my school’s library so I was able to get the full story on the two best friends who pulled the ultimate prank by hypnotizing their grouch of a school principal, and how it immediately became the worst decision they ever made. And I loved every second of it.

As the years went on, I eagerly anticipated the Book Fair’s arrival at my school and would beg my mom for a few dollars extra, just so I get my hands on the newest adventure.

I devoured every single story I could find and bought as soon as I could, and each one was more entertaining than the last. From alien lunch ladies and zombie nerds, to a megalomaniac professor with an incredibly silly name in a giant robot with charts that you could use to give yourself a silly name (mine is “Poopsie Bananachunks” BTW), to an insane hypnotized woman with Medusa hair that gave atomic wedgies.

The more I read and reread these stories, the more I couldn’t help but think that it would make a pretty fun movie, or at least a tv show.

These stories had been with me through a lot of ups and downs in my life, the biggest being my parents’ divorce. They were there to remind me that even when times could be tough, you can make it through and still be able to laugh at even the silliest of things, no matter how old you got.

By the time I was 10, I got my hands on the latest book in the series, The Big Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy Part 1. I loved it as always, but was shocked to see it ended on a cliffhanger. This had never happened before. I was anxious to see what would happen and how George and Harold would get out of this mess.

But… it would be some time before I got those answers.

Time went on, and my attention went to other things. I found new hyperfixations over the years, and while I didn’t have the 7th book at the time, I was eventually able to get answers thanks to the internet.

Eventually I entered middle school, and I found myself drawn to new book series that I grew to love, but Captain Underpants remained a big part of my childhood and some of its happiest memories. And for a while, I thought that was all it would be; memories to just fondly look back on.

But that all changed the winter of 2016.

It was the halfway point between Christmas and New Year’s, and I was gonna be 24 in less than a month. I was spending my downtime between holidays like any other bored 20-something year old; scrolling through Tumblr, of course. It was during that time that I stumbled across this post by @mondentertainment. It was photos of posters from a Licensing Expo, showcasing upcoming animated projects, be it films or series.

Among them were a few that sounded promising, others not so much.

But what caught my eye was this.

A poster from DreamWorks with a very familiar face on it.

I could barely believe what I was seeing, and from the comments and reblogs on the post, neither could a lot of other people.

It was like a door that had been long locked in the back of my brain finally burst open, and all those memories came flooding back, particularly of a reoccurring thought that ran through my young mind whenever I would look at those illustrations every time I turned the page.

Could it really be true? Was one of my favorite childhood books finally getting a chance to truly come to life on the big screen?

It had already happened once before after I read Coraline in middle school, so there might be a chance.

As you could probably imagine, I poured my thoughts of hope and excitement into the tags as I reblogged the post.

And when the trailer finally dropped three months later, it was like meeting that one childhood friend you never truly forgot all over again.

So much happened after seeing the movie on opening night, including meeting Dav Pilkey himself!

And all the great memories and friends I’ve made since rediscovering the fandom all lead back to that one moment on December 28th, 2016.

And I couldn’t be more grateful for that.

#captain underpants #captain underpants the first epic movie #captain underpants: the first epic movie #personal #personal ramblings

[mademoiselle-red]

So I had a thought today: Patroclus’ tragedy is that he isn’t Odysseus. Hear me out. This is gonna be a long and meandering story. So I was thinking about that battered old picture book adaptation of The Iliad I’d received as a child, and how at the time, I was very into “trickster” characters who achieve their goals through some kind of cleverness and get away with it. My favorite character through the first part of the book was Paris because he wins over Helen by getting Aphrodite to make her fall in love with him (yes, I know better now, but I was 9 years old at the time lol). But then I realized he was actually stupid, so I dropped him. No one really piqued my interest until Patroclus showed up and put on his friend’s armor and bluffed his way through the enemy lines. I was really rooting for him to win! It was brilliant. But then the gods intervened and gave the victory to Hector. Boo. I dropped him, Patroclus —he didn’t get away with his trick, and that made him immediately less interesting to 9 year old me. I did feel a vague sense of unfairness at the fact that he didn’t fail because his plan wasn’t clever enough, but because he didn’t have a god on his side. And, I didn’t care much for his friend Achilles since he was strong because he was strong, not because he was clever.

I was also at the time, very into track and field races, which were co-ed at my elementary school, and I always managed to do pretty well in the longer races against boys who normally ran faster than me because I knew how to manage my stamina and they didn’t. Anyhow, I ended up latching onto Agamemnon, because the ending of the picture-book focused on him, and he ended up killed by his wife, and thus not clever enough to get away with it, which made him a total loser in the eyes of my former self. But then, a few years later, I read The Odyssey in my 9th grade English class, and I finally found the character of my heart, Odysseus. He is the clever trickster who does “get away with it”, over and over again, and I loved it. Odysseus is not as strong as Achilles or politically powerful as Agamemnon, but he is clever, and he outlives them all. I could never get enough of this kind of story: the clever youngest brother wins the fortune, the clever hero defeats the stupid knights and marries the princess.

Real life didn’t quite work out that way. Like Patroclus’ bluff, my advantage in strategy and stamina was short-lasting. As we began to hit puberty, my body fat to muscle ratio caught up with me, the boys got even faster, and the school races were now segregated by sex. But by then, I was already losing interest in the sport.

And now as an adult, I’ve found new appreciation for the tragedy of Patroclus. It is the tragedy of the almost-good-enough, the almost-victory. He was more clever than Achilles, cleverer than Hector, and he could have won, had he been able to fight that battle on his own terms, bypass Hector and make it over the walls of Troy, had the gods not thrown him down from the walls and forced him to fight Hector face to face. But he isn’t Odysseus, and Hector isn’t the Cyclops. But he could have been Odysseus, who always won by not fighting fair, perhaps in another universe, where Lady Athena smiled upon him and chose him as her favorite.

Patroclus was among the best of the warriors, but not the best. He was clever, but not the cleverest. His tragedy is perhaps the tragedy of the average person, as strong and clever as an ordinary hardworking warrior would be, but not extraordinary, not blessed by the gods, forced to share the world with those few who are.

#greek mythology #the illiad #the odyssey #patroclus #thank you for reading my very bad take lol

[starlitmark]

Pairing: Newfie!Jaehyun x fem Basenji!reader Genre: fluff Rating: PG Warnings: pregnancy, Jaehyun’s a little sad in the beginning Summary: Jaehyun gets called into work on Valentine’s day, and you surprise him. Word Count: 1,245 words Note: this was supposed to be posted on Valentine’s Day, but here we are a week and a half later! Enjoy! And thank you to the loml @raibebe​ for beta reading this!!! 💕💕

Newfie!Jaehyun Masterlist || Neo Hybridverse Masterlist

Why did he have to work today of all days? It isn’t fair. It wouldn’t be such a big deal if there wasn’t a huge appointment he wanted to be at with you today. It doesn’t matter that it is his birthday. He is far more concerned that his co-worker had to call out because of a first date when he was supposed to go to your gynecologist with you to find out what sex your pup was going to be. Jaehyun sits back in the desk chair, tired of looking at his history assignment, his ears drooping so low they almost blended in with his hair. A few girls he was watching at this after-school care program are clearly gossiping, and it is likely about him. It almost always is; he isn’t blind to how these little 10-year-olds thought they could date him. He just found it entertaining at this point. Their made-up stories get more and more elaborate and ridiculous every time.

With a sigh, Jaehyun shakes his head. His floppy brown ears gently hit his cheeks with the movement. He pushes a lock of blonde hair out of his eye before looking back down at his textbook. He really doesn’t want to be doing this right now. He could actually think of about ten things he wants to do more right now off the top of his head. His mind is far too fixated on you and your pup. Nevertheless, he reluctantly starts reading the book’s pages to complete the assignment. A few parents arrive to pick up their kids, and Jaehyun just wishes them a happy Valentine’s day as they leave, his smile more forced than on an average day. Only a few kids are left by the time 4 o’clock rolls around. It’s rather surprising given that today is meant to be a national couples day. He just assumes that the parents hired proper babysitters to watch their kids.

His sensitive ears pick up more footsteps approaching his classroom. At first, he ignores it expecting it to be a parent coming to get one of the five children remaining here. Then, he processes the scents approaching with the footsteps. It’s you. He snaps his textbook shut almost immediately, and his tail starts wagging a mile a minute. He’s not allowed to leave the room; he’d get fired for leaving elementary schoolers alone in a classroom. All he can do is wait by the doorway like a helpless puppy (that he pretty much is) and wait for you.

“Hi, Jae,” you giggle, a hand resting against your small baby bump, “how’s work been going?”

“Boring, are you sure you’re allowed-”

“I talked to the secretary on the way in. She’s always liked you, so she let me slide,” you explain.

One of the little girls gasps and then grumbles under her breath when she sees you talking to Jaehyun. You heard Jaehyun’s stories about the kids who have naïve little crushes on him. Now you finally get to see it in fruition. The little girl, maybe around 9 or 10, but not much older than that. She still has to grow into her ears for a while; right now, the blonde floppy bunny ears look almost cartoonishly big on her head.

“How did your visit go? Is the pup okay? Are you okay?” Jaehyun spits questions at you a mile a minute, his tail still furiously wagging to show his excitement. It’s so cute to you that you can’t keep your smile at bay.

“We’re both okay. He’s okay; I’m okay.”

“I’m sorry I got called into work. I wanted to be there with you and- wait, he…” Jaehyun takes a moment to process, “We’re having a boy?!” he nearly yells, scaring one of the younger kids.

“I know you really wanted a girl-” “I’m so over the moon you have no idea! He’s a boy! I know we can’t really tell what type of pup yet, but-”

“His ears were pretty obviously floppy,” you giggle, your hand subconsciously rubbing your baby bump where the little pup is steadily growing.

“He’s a Newfie?” Jaehyun’s voice suddenly drops to a normal talking voice, though his smile remains as big as ever.

“He’s a Newfie just like his dad,” you beam.

Suddenly, Jaehyun grabs a chair and pulls it up to the teacher’s desk beside the chair he had previously been sitting in. He ushers you to sit in the desk chair since it’s slightly more comfortable than the hard plastic one he brought over.

“We’re researching names,” he says definitively.

“Now?”

“Yes,” he states, turning on the boxy computer in front of you, “I don’t want to go another day without him having a name.”

“Don’t you need to watch the students?” you smile at his eagerness.

“Look at them. They’re just fine playing with the toys,” he assures you, already pulling up Google.

Over the next few minutes, you scroll through different websites and forums looking at baby boy names. Jaehyun keeps a list of your favorites to choose from at the end, so by the end of your search, you have a paper full of potential names. In between hushed discussions about how you will not - over your dead body - name your child a ridiculous name, Jaehyun still does his job and helps a few kids get their things together when their parents come to get them. While he helps one of the small hamster hybrids get his bookbag repacked (the 6-year-old insisted that he took everything out to ensure it was all there), you look over the list and cross out a few that just don’t seem to fit your pup.

“What are we down to?” your boyfriend asks, a small puppy hybrid standing beside him, “She’s the only one left. She’s good, I promise.”

“It’s okay. She’s not bugging anyone,” you open your arms to her, and she happily climbs onto your lap, “We’re down to Subin, Daeseong, Baekhyun, and Hyunwoo.”

“I like Hyunwoo. It-” “This one,” the small pup pokes her finger into the paper.

You look down and see her finger harshly pushed against where Jaehyun wrote down the name Baekhyun. You know that she probably has no idea what the context is or what the word she’s touching says, but it’s still very endearing. She looks up at you with big puppy eyes, then over to Jaehyun with the same expression. You and Jaehyun share a look before you let your lips grow into a smile.

“I think we had the same idea, little one. I like that name too. You might have to convince Mr. Jaehyun, though,” you tease your boyfriend slightly.

“It’s pretty,” she pouts at him.

“Do you know what it says?” he asks the 5-year-old.

She looks down at the paper again and starts sounding out the word in front of her. It takes her a few moments to fully understand what it says. Then she gasps and looks at both of you.

“Baekhyun!” she exclaims, “It says Baekhyun! I read it!”

“You did, pup,” Jaehyun chuckles, “Come to think of it, I think Baekhyun will suit our pup best.”

Jaehyun watches her with a loving smile, and you know that at that moment, he’s going to be a great dad. There was never a doubt before, but now, it feels real. You’re nowhere near prepared. No one ever is. But you’re facing this together, and that’s all you could ask for.

COPYRIGHT STARLITMARK 2023© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED — reposting/modifying any fic, or piece of original writing posted on this blog is not allowed. Translations are not permitted.

Networks: @neowritingsnet @k-vanity @kwritersworld​ @nct-writers​ @kdiarynet​

Tag List strikethrough are unable to be tagged: @raibebe​ @its-taeil-time​ @jaehunnyy​ @brattybunfornct​ @notbeforelong​ @n0hyuck​ @spiderrenjunfics​ @umbralhelwolf​ @tarutarumilk @wuyinglin​

#neowritingsnet #kvanity #kwritersworldnet #nct-writers #kdiarynet #nct fanfic #nct x reader #nct fluff #jaehyun fanfic #jaehyun x reader #jaehyun fluff

[chelseeebe]

teenage dirtbag.

i couldn’t tell u when this is set, sometime in the 00’s i guess??? so modern!steve?? idk, there’s also bestfriend!eddie i love it <3 they’re in college bc i am too old to be writing high school characters all the time

also reader is like a skater? teenage dirtbag? dunno but she’s cool x steve is v bashful n shy i luv it

summary: your best friend’s roommate had never met anyone like you, he was captivated from the first time he laid eyes on you. but would his shyness mess everything up?

steve could smell the weed all the way down the hallway, he didn’t even need to open the door.

‘eddie i’ve told you not to smoke in-,’ he barrels into the room, interrupted at the sight of you sat cross legged on eddies bed, holding the spliff.

‘oh, hi y/n,’ he smiles meekly at you, dropping his backpack onto his bed.

‘sorry steve, it’s too cold to go outside,’ you smile back at him, passing the spliff back to eddie.

‘it’s okay.. you just aren’t supposed to smoke in here but it’s okay,’ he stumbles over his words, collapsing on his bed.

‘yeah, sorry bro,’ eddie smirks, leaning back against the wall.

‘i’m gonna go,’ you look at the imaginary watch on your wrist, ‘i am definitely already late,’ you get off the bed, slinging your bag over your shoulder and putting on your large headphones.

‘i’ll see you later?’ eddie says, nodding at you.

‘i’m all finished at six, just wait outside for me,’ you smile before leaving the room.

eddie looks over at steve, who has been completely enthralled in your movements the last few minutes.

‘dude, you are so obvious,’ eddie chuckles, putting the end of the joint in his makeshift ashtray.

‘wha- what? shut up,’ his cheeks are now red, suddenly interested in sorting out the books on his bedside table.

‘she won’t fuck you, bro, not really her type,’ eddie teases, smiling over at steve.

‘i don’t- you’re- ugh shut up, please,’ steve agonises, looking down at his lap.

eddie just laughs, collapsing into himself at his pathetic roommate.

-

thankfully eddie is waiting outside for you after class. the last time you’d told him to meet you after you’d finished, he took it upon himself to introduce himself to your entire class, as loud as possible, ending in an over performative bow.

unfortunately, you’d been best friends with the freak since elementary school, practically joined at the hip since he’d first walked into your second grade class.

you were both so similar, yet so different. he’d taken a liking to heavy metal and his fantasy games whereas you’d learned to skateboard and preferred pop-punk and bands. nevertheless, you were still thick as thieves, taking it in turns to be in charge of the music.

‘thank you for staying outside this time,’ you walk up to join him.

‘you’re so boring, they all loved it,’ he matches his pace to yours.

‘hmm, not sure about that.. what we doing tonight?’ you question.

‘well, that’s up to you darling, we could.. smoke orrr smoke?’

you nod, jutting out your bottom lip in contemplation, ‘okay, i’m liking the second option,’ you link your arm in his, leaning into his body, ‘just not in your room this time.’

‘stevie boy loves it, don’t worry,’ he clutches onto you, smirking as he leads the way back to your dorm.

‘nah, it’s not fair.. there’s that bonfire tonight? smoke up round the fire?’

‘sounds good to me,’ he nods, walking back arm in arm with you through the cold november air.

-

you’re sprawled out on his bed, legs over eddies, one of your cds blaring out of the player on his dresser. they were intended to be used for school work but eddie preferred to scribble his out on a scrap of paper on the way to class.

the pair of you had tried to go to the bonfire but quickly found that the attendees were not those typically interested in a smoke up, instead sipping on their warm cider and gushing about s’mores. so you ended up back in his dorm.

‘nah, i’m telling you now.. if aliens ever decided to come to this planet.. they would not wanna be friends with us,’ you state, giggling.

‘no, you’re wrong. you are so wrong, i’m definitely being friends with the aliens, are you kidding? they’d love me,’ he’s totally over confident in his statement, having given this situation much contemplation before.

the door opens and steve wobbles in, slightly intoxicated from the bonfire you’d both just attended.

steve hung around with his basketball team most of the time, desperately hoping to find an in with the frat boys that had joined basketball.

‘you good?’ you sit up slightly, watching him stumble around the room before collapsing on his bed.

‘i am.. great.. i love this song,’ he bangs his head to the guitar riff, brown hair flopping over his face.

you can’t stifle your laugh, your high not helping, ‘you know this song?’

‘no.. i just love it,’ he looks up at you, the smile disappearing from his face, ‘ohh shit, did i interrupt something?’ slightly taken aback at your bare legs tangled in with eddies.

‘no- god no, with him?’ you fake a gag, looking over at steve.

eddie slaps your calf, leaving a red mark where his hand had struck, ‘don’t be so fucking rude.. and for your information i would rather die than touch you,’ he jokes.

you open your mouth, feigning offence at his words.

‘well that’s slightly dramatic,’ you kick your leg at him, knocking the lit joint out of his hand. he curses under his breath, brushing the ash off of his bed.

steve is sat in awe at your dynamic, he’d never had a female friend like that, it was never strictly platonic with him.

‘you wanna smoke with us, stevie?’ you ask, raising your eyebrows at the boy sat opposite.

‘i don’t really- yeah, actually i will,’ he says, the low buzz from the alcohol only encouraging him.

you’re shocked, you’d taken him for such a square, the fact he was even tipsy was blowing your mind.

‘well, you better get rolling mr. munson.’

eddie’s in shock, his roommate barely even stayed awake past 10pm, let alone did narcotics.

but he obliges, rolling another joint and lighting it before offering it over to steve who takes the joint very awkwardly between his fingers.

you’re sat up on the bed now, watching him try to manoeuvre the spliff.

‘you have smoked before, haven’t you?’

‘yeah.. course,’ he’s struggling with the spliff as you go over to his bed, sitting next to him and taking it out of his hand.

‘look, like this,’ you hold it between your fingers, taking a drag and making a point to exaggerate how you inhale, blowing a cloud of smoke into his face.

‘right.. right, i have done it.. i just.. forgot,’ it’s unbeknownst to you, but he’s trying to impress you, not wanting to appear like such a loser. eddie definitely picks up on it, grinning at the demonstration.

steve copies you, coughing as the smoke hits his lungs.

‘there we go, now do it again and don’t cough,’ eddie snarks from the other bed. you shoot him a glare, honestly feeling bad for steve. he’d obviously lead a very clean-cut life and here you two were corrupting him.

he does it again, and again and again. you have to take the spliff out of his fingers before he does it anymore.

‘hey, hey.. might wanna slow down there big boy,’ you take the spliff back over to eddie, perching on the edge of his bed.

steve giggles at the nickname, leaning back and whacking his head against the wall.

you grimace as he clutches his head, still giggling at the nickname you’d given him.

‘ouch,’ he smiles, the multitude substances numbing his pain.

‘good god, you are a mess,’ eddie states, you lightly slap his leg in response, leaning back against his body.

steve jolts up, suddenly straight faced as he scrambles to get off the bed.

‘i’m just- i’ve gotta-,’ he gags, practically running out of the room.

‘oh fuck,’ your hand slaps over your mouth, attempting to hide your smile.

eddie just loses it, bursting out laughing as his roommate whiteys in the communal bathroom.

‘eddie.. it’s not..’ you snort, unable to control your laugh. it wasn’t really funny, it was just the fact he was so overconfident smoking it in the first place.

you spring up, ‘i’m gonna make sure he’s okay, don’t fucking laugh when he comes back.’

he can’t even respond, he’s laughing that hard.

you walk up to the shared bathroom, knocking lightly at the door, ‘steve? it’s me, you okay in there?’

the door swings open slowly, revealing steve hunched over the toilet gagging.

‘oh.. god,’ you enter, rubbing his back as he wretches over the bowl.

once he’s finished, he washes his mouth out with water, your hand still on his back.

‘i’m so sorry..’ you say quietly, rubbing a small circle with your thumb.

‘for what? that was great.. well before that,’ he smiles, still slightly intoxicated from the bonfire.

‘really?’

‘yeah,’ he nods, ‘you always look so cool.. smoking.. i wanted to try it,’ he towers over you in the small bathroom, the tips of his hair now damp as he’d splashed both you and his face with the cold water.

you smile up at him, ‘maybe we can smoke again some time, just take it easy.. and maybe don’t get drunk before,’ you laugh.

an unfamiliar feeling in your chest as his body is only inches from yours. only now just noticing how much his caramel eyes softened when looking at you.

there’s a moment of silence, you can feel his breath on your cheek as he gazes down at you, your eyes fall to his lips, before pulling them away.

‘you.. need to go to bed,’ you break the silence, moving away from him, opening the door to the bathroom.

‘uh.. yeah.. thank you for helping me out,’ he follows you back to his dorm.

‘no problem, hey.. if that asshole tries to say anything, i’ll punch him.. i’ve got plenty of stories about him getting too high.. plenty,’ you smile, walking back into his room.

eddie is lead back on the bed, still grinning at the situation, ‘christ, i thought you died or something, where were you?’

‘i was being a good friend, some of us are nice people, you know?’ you clamber onto eddies bed, laying back next to him.

steve smiles slightly at the name but it’s unseen as you’re too busy teasing eddie about the time he’d vomited everywhere at your prom.

you both ignore whatever the hell had happened in the bathroom. though, sleeping in their room tonight felt weird, the air heavy with tension between you and steve.

he wakes up at some point in the night to you two bickering, half-awake.

‘move you stupid slut, you’re hogging the blanket,’ eddie mumbles, tugging on the blanket.

‘i’m literally not,’ he finally pulls the blanket you’d collected from underneath you, ‘oh, sorry babes,’ you giggle as he curls up into the blanket.

you place your head on his chest, cuddling into his side as steve watches on. a twinge of jealousy in his chest watching eddie wrap his arm over you.

-

steve sighs unknowingly as eddie enters the room alone.

‘what’s wrong? expecting someone else?’ eddie smirks, dropping his bag onto the messy floor.

‘no.. just.. uhm,’ he can’t even find an excuse, he was expecting you to bundle in after eddie.

‘she’s in an exam, don’t worry she’ll be here straight after,’ he teases.

steve nods, another exasperated sigh falls from his mouth.

‘just get on with it, bro, i can’t deal with this moping and shit,’ eddie balances the joint between his lips, but then thinks better of it, deciding to wait for your arrival.

‘how.. what do i say? she’s not like other girls i’ve asked out.. it’s different,’ steve looks up at eddie. you were best friends, he had to know what would make you agree to go out with him.

‘hmm, well honestly i’d say offer to smoke with her but since you can’t do that.. i dunno, take her to a gig or something, there’s a bunch of her cds over there,’ he motions to his desk.

steve stands and starts flicking through the pile of cds, not a clue who any of the names were.

‘i don’t know any of these people..’ he sighs, falling back onto his bed, completely stuck on what to do.

‘oh my god,’ eddie rolls his eyes, steve had been sulking since your encounter in the bathroom, too scared to bite the bullet and ask you out. knowing you most definitely were not going to be impressed with a nice dinner and a makeout session in the backseat of his car.

‘just do something you think she’d enjoy because jesus h christ i am tired of hearing about it,’ eddie states, deciding to disregard waiting for you and lighting the spliff.

‘okay okay,’ he nods, standing from his bed, suddenly confident in his mission.

you practically storm through the door as steve barrels past you, mumbling a short ‘hi’ as he walks down the corridor. you spin around to watch him leave, furrowing your brows at eddie.

‘what the hell is wrong with him?’

he sighs, ‘you. you are what’s wrong with him, and i am so fucking tired of hearing about it.’

‘me? what the fuck have i done?’ you’d actually told eddie about the bathroom incident, but had strictly told him not to mention anything to steve, which he clearly had.

‘i don’t know, but you’ve made him crazy and it’s driving me fucking crazy,’ he offers the spliff out to you.

you take it, sitting on his feet as you take a drag.

‘i swear to god, if you’ve told him anything i said to you, i will stab you in your sleep,’ you glare at him.

‘i didn’t!’ he holds his hands up, ‘he wants to fuck, but he’s a good boy and has no idea how to ask.’

‘oh.. he just wants to fuck?’ you try not to let the disappointment show in your voice but it’s apparent and eddie is sure to notice.

‘no.. don’t fucking tell me you’re in love with him too,’ he bangs his head against the wall, groaning.

‘no! oh my god, just shut up about it,’ you pass the joint back to him, sitting back against the wall, attempting to hide your smile at his choice of words.

-

you’re searching for eddie’s familiar hair as you leave your class, getting frustrated as you’d explicitly told him to be there.

‘y/n!’ you hear a voice call out, eyes now scanning the crowd for whoever had called out.

that’s when steve bounds up to you, grinning as you’ve finally spotted him.

‘hello? where’s eddie?’ you question, confused at how he’d even know where to find you.

‘he was.. he told me to meet you, he had something..’ he mutters, now walking next to you.

‘oh? okay.. well hi,’ you smile slightly at him, clutching onto your large headphones.

‘hi..’ he breathes, fingers fumbling with his jacket.

it was the first time you two were properly speaking since eddie had not-so-accidentally admitted steve was aching to take you on a date.

‘are you okay?’ you ask. it was quite obvious that you made him even more timid than he normally was, his hands practically shaking as he racks up the nerve to finally ask you out.

‘yeah.. i- uh.. i lied, i told eddie i’d come to meet you.. i wanted to ask you something..’ he trails off, look over at you.

‘right.. and what was that?’ you stare straight ahead, trying to stifle your smile.

‘well.. would you- you don’t have to say yes at all.. do you wanna like.. go out sometime?’ he finally spits it out, fingers still playing with the buttons on his jacket.

you look over to him, ‘okay.. when?’

‘uhh.. friday?’ he shrugs, you can see the smile creep up onto his face, he’d honestly prepared for a hard no.

‘sure, it’s a date,’ you flash him a smile, only making him crumble further as he clings onto the straps of his bag.

‘o-okay, i’ll pick you up at eight.. and we’ll go.. out,’ he holds the door to his building open for you, your shoulder brushing against his chest which makes him shiver.

‘where are we going?’ you begin to walk up the stairs as he follows closely behind, still stuck on the extremely brief contact you’d just shared.

‘you’ll see..’ he speeds up to open the door to his room for you, smiling down at you.

he flashes eddie a thumbs up behind your back, sitting back on his bed as you join eddie on his. it had become a daily routine at this point, you were hardly ever in your own room.

‘he insisted he went to meet you, sorry darling,’ eddie says, shuffling to make room for you.

‘that’s okay, we had a great conversation, didn’t we?’ you look over at steve, who was already gazing over at you.

‘huh? oh, yeah.. definitely,’ he nods, looking at the clock on the wall and springing into action, ‘shit, i’m late.. i’ll see ya later,’ sprinting out of the room.

‘i’m going on a date,’ you smile over at eddie.

‘oh thank god, he might stop being such a whiny fucking baby,’ he responds, holding his hands up in a mock prayer.

you playfully punch him on the leg, laughing at his actions, ‘he’s sweet, leave him alone.’

‘hey man, as long as you’re happy i could not care less,’ he puts his leg over yours, leaning back against the wall.

you grin to yourself, imagining what steve could possibly have in store for friday.

-

you’re rushing around, trying to find your other shoe when there’s a short knock on the door.

‘shit,’ you whisper, hopping over to the door and swinging it open, revealing steve stood with a bunch of flowers.

‘hello.. give me five minutes, i can’t find my shoe..’ you widen the door to invite him in, before walking back into your room searching for your show.

he places the flowers on your dresser, watching you stumble around the room.

‘it’s here..’ he bends over, holding your shoe out to you.

‘oh my god, thank you,’ you grab the shoe, slipping it on. now finally looking at his outfit and how much effort he’d put into looking good for you, looking down at your own outfit which consisted of your usual jeans and a nicer top than normal.

‘ready?’ he smiles, offering his hand out for you. there was a new air of confidence to him, he wasn’t so bashful.

you take it as he leads you out of the room, ‘thank you, for the flowers.. i don’t think anyone’s ever bought me flowers before,’ you beam at him, slamming the door to your room.

‘really? never?’

‘never ever,’ you shake your head, following him out of the building.

‘wow, well.. i asked eddie what flowers you liked but he was.. unhelpful so i just guessed..’

you chuckle, ‘he’s useless.. but i love them, thank you.’

he smiles in response, opening the door to his bmw for you, sliding into the seat and admiring the interior. a welcome change to eddie’s dingy van.

he pulls off, ignoring all of your questions about where he was taking you, laughing at your garish guesses.

-

surprisingly, he’d decided to get tickets to a small punk band playing at one of the local bars.

there was only a slight issue when he got to the door and was subsequently id’d. he didn’t actually have a fake. unlike you (and eddie) who had had yours for years now.

this is steve that we’re talking about, the boy that has a bedtime of 11pm on the weekends and made sure the collars on his polo shirts were ironed.

‘i am so sorry, i didn’t even think.. i’m so stupid,’ he puts his head in his hands, now away from the queue to the bar.

in all honesty, the situation was hilarious and you couldn’t even attempt to hold in your laugh as steve looks over, genuinely almost crying.

‘it’s okay.. we can do something else, i just.. i can’t believe you don’t have a fake..’ you giggle, walking back over to him.

‘i’ve never needed one.. oh my god, it’s not funny,’ he pouts at you.

you take a deep breath out, trying to stop another laugh from coming out, ‘it’s pretty funny.. let’s go get something to eat.. it’s not the end of the world,’ you shrug, linking your arm through his.

‘are you sure? you can still go if you want.. i’ll just wait outside..’

‘well that wouldn’t be a good date, would it?’

he runs a hand through his perfectly styled hair, ‘no.. i’m just so stupid-,’

you cut him off, ‘steve, it doesn’t matter.. honestly if you keep talking about it, i’m never gonna stop laughing,’ you tug him down the sidewalk, trying to find somewhere to eat.

it’s only when you get back to campus, sat in his car after the whole fiasco, he starts to see the humour in the situation.

‘okay.. it’s kinda funny..’ he admits, leaning his head back against the head rest.

‘it’s so funny, and i’ve had a great time anyway,’ you smile over at him. he turns his head to look back at you, the corner of his mouth upturned in the slightest smile.

that funny feeling from the bathroom fizzles inside your stomach once again, you hoped he couldn’t see your heart pounding against your chest.

‘thank you.. steve,’ the sound of his name coming from your lips honestly could’ve made his knees buckle.

he inhales as his eyes lock onto your lips, daring himself to just move closer and do it.

before he can, you lean across the centre console, pausing just millimetres from his lips before pressing your lips onto his, placing your hand on his stubbly cheek.

his arm snakes around your waist, slightly unsure of himself on whether to pull you closer as your tongue runs along his bottom lip.

‘i’ve never.. been with an emo chick before..’ he breathes into the kiss.

you pull away, hands still on his cheeks as you stare at him, ‘..huh?’

‘oh.. no it’s great.. like the best.. i didn’t mean it in a bad way,’ he shuffles in his seat, leaning closer.

‘steve.. no, i’m not..’ you’re unable to even finish your sentence, bursting into laughter as clings onto you.

‘no.. i just thought like.. the music you like.. and you’re eyeliner.. is that not..? ah fuck,’ he closes his eyes, once again embarrassing himself in front of you.

‘no,’ you giggle, ‘i’m sorry to disappoint you,’ you sit back in your chair, still laughing at him.

‘i’ve ruined it, haven’t i? i���m useless,’ he breathes, now stone faced after he had just messed up the one thing he’d been longing for since eddie had moved in.

‘no, stop apologising all the time.. it’s funny! it’s okay to laugh at yourself sometimes,’ you assure him.

the date hadn’t really gone to plan, but who cares? the thought that he had put into the date alone was sweet enough.

he nods, ‘i know.. i spent so long trying to figure out where to take you.. like so long.. but it’s okay..’ he reassures himself, ‘maybe next time it won’t be such a disaster.’

‘next time?’ you tease, raising your eyebrows.

‘well.. if you wanted to.. go out again..’

‘i would love to,’ you place a hand on his knee, causing his breath to hitch in his throat. he didn’t know why he found you so intimidating, you were just worlds apart and he couldn’t believe you’d actually agreed to go out with him.

‘good, it’ll be better next time, that’s a promise,’ he grins sheepishly at you, ‘are you.. staying with us tonight?’

‘nah.. eddie had a show.. i doubt his bed is free tonight,’ you shrug.

you loved going along to his shows, granted the music wasn’t exactly to your taste, but nevertheless, you adored watching him play. though, it always meant you’d be going home alone because, believe it or not, women still loved a long haired rockstar.

‘you don’t have to stay in his bed..’ steve suggests, not wanting to outright offer up his.

‘and have to listen to that? i’m good,’ you giggle, a flash of disappointment hits his face.

‘you could always stay with me? saves you from being traumatised too,’ you offer, watching as the look on his transforms into a smile.

‘okay..’ he nods, failing miserably to conceal his grin.

you step out of the car, ‘my roommate is a bit of a weirdo, but then so is yours,’ joking as he follows you out of the car and toward the building.

‘i don’t have like.. pyjamas or anything,’ he worries.

‘do you usually wear pyjamas?’ you question, looking back at him, puzzled.

‘sometimes.. yeah,’ he looks bashful.

‘well, you don’t need pyjamas.. i might have a pair of eddie’s joggers if you want? or just sleep in your boxers?’

‘oh.. yeah, i didn’t think..’ he follows you into your room. your roommate looks up from her books, a frown on her face at the sight of steve. he flashes her a small, half-hearted wave, honestly pretty intimidated by her glare.

‘it’s one night, you’ll live,’ you return the stare, motioning to your bed. steve follows, sitting down on your unmade bed.

he eventually gets comfortable enough to speak, still on edge over her past looks.

you spend the whole night explaining the ludicrous stories behind your tattoos, after he points to the leaf-like scribble on your arm asking what it even was.

when he turned sixteen, eddie had a sudden realisation that his calling in life was to be a tattoo artist, so he made his own makeshift tattoo gun with pen ink and a needle he found in your moms kitchen drawer and decided to practice on you.

‘well, it was supposed to be like a weed leaf, but eddie is terrible at drawing.. so now it’s like..’ you hold your arm out, looking at it, ‘i don’t even know.’

he just laughs, in awe at how carefree you were. his mom would’ve probably disowned him if he’d turned up with any tattoos, let alone one given to him with a chewed up bic.

‘and that one?’ he points to the scruffy em on your wrist.

‘again, it’s supposed to be eddie’s initials.. he has mine on his wrist, much better than this one.. because i did it obviously,’ you smirk, ‘do you have any?’

‘no,’ he shakes his head.

‘well, we can get one.. a proper one,’ you reassure.

‘my mom would kill me..’

‘you’re nearly twenty years old, steve.. i think she’ll be okay,’ you smile up at him.

‘yeah.. okay, we’ll get one,’ he returns to smile, daring to wrap his arm around your back. in turn you place your head on his chest and much to your roommates approval, you both finally fall asleep in that exact position.

#steve harrington #steve harrington x you #steve stranger things #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington angst #steve harrington x y/n #stranger things x you #steve harrington fic #eddie munson #steve harrington fluff #steve harrington au #steve harrington fanfic

[naminethewriter]

One's Hometown, One's New Home

Chapter One: Quiet Meeting

Masterpost | Next | Ao3

@tss-anxceit-week

Summary: Janus’ hometown is a usually quiet place where everyone knows everyone. So when someone new moves in, they’re usually the hottest topic of local gossip. The newcomer then comes by the library Janus works at, he can’t help but chat with him a little. Doesn’t hurt that he’s good looking as well.

Content Warnings: None

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“Ah, hello Janus. I hope you are having a lovely day?”

Janus looked up from the book he was looking through for damages. He had already done the same for a few books that had been returned to the library within the past week and only found a few, not noteworthy wrinkles and tears.

“Judy, welcome,” he greeted the old woman standing in front of his station with a smile. “Yes, it’s nice and quiet today. No school class coming through.”

“Oh, those little rascals aren’t so bad. It’s nice to see the town so lively.”

“I could see your point if this wasn’t a library and people are supposed to stay quiet in here.”

Judy chuckled. “They’re just kids, cut them some slack.”

“I am,” Janus argued. “They’re respectful with handling our books, at least. But I can still appreciate the days where I don’t have to deal with them, right?”

“Yes, I suppose that’s only fair. Anyway, I’ve brought you something.” She reached down next to her and pulled up a basket that she set on his station. “I made lemon bars for my son’s visit last weekend and I might have gone a little overboard. Take these and share them with the others, won’t you?”

Janus peaked under the cloth covering the basket and a nice smell spread around him. Judy’s baking was legendary, so he wasn’t about to turn her down. Instead, he was considering simply not telling his coworkers about the treats at all.

Then again, he couldn’t eat all of those by himself.

“Will do, Judy. Thank you very much.”

“Oh, no need for that. Consider it a thank you for all the help you’ve given me.”

“Speaking of which, are you looking for something in particular today?”

“Well, I may have heard that you got a new shipment in last week,” she began with a glint in her eye and Janus knew what her question would be before she asked it.

“Yes, we now do carry that new mystery novel of your favorite author,” he chuckled and her face lit up with excitement.

“Wonderful! It’s in the usual isle then?”

“It is.” He held up his hand when she was about to hurry away. “But I have a second copy right here with your name on it.” He pulled out the book in question and handed it to her.

“Oh, you are a godsent, Janus!” Judy laughed and Janus had to raise his finger to his lips to remind her she was in a library. “Right, right, I apologize. Thank you for saving it for me.”

“You’re very welcome. I can only let you borrow it for two weeks though, we already have a small waiting list.”

“But you said it was on the shelf?”

“I did and it is, but that copy can’t be borrowed for now. At least not while it’s in such high demand. We have three copies. One which will stay here, and two that are available for checkout.”

“And you still saved one for me, how sweet. I’ll make sure to return it as soon as I am done with it then.”

“Please do.” Janus scanned Judy’s library card to make the checkout official before waving after her as she left the building in hurried steps, very eager to start the book as soon as she got home. Janus quietly chuckled as he watched her leave before he got back to work.

Wednesdays were usually his quiet days. They opened and closed and hour later than other weekdays and the local elementary school’s reading program had the teachers bring in their brats every other week on Mondays, Tuesdays or Thursdays. Janus hadn’t lied to Judy, he didn’t mind the kids all that much, at least not this far into the year when they finally learned to respect not only the librarians but the books themselves and he much more rarely found scribbles on brought back pages.

Still, he preferred the days when they didn’t come.

So, he enjoyed it, working quietly until the automatic doors slid open again to let in another visitor. Janus looked up fleetingly, thinking it would be just a regular coming through, but instead he saw someone he had never seen before.

Which happened rarely. This town wasn’t the smallest, but Janus knew pretty much everyone who lived here at least vaguely enough to recognize them.

Considering the latest rumors, he did have a good idea of who the stranger was.

The man – or male presenting, Janus supposed – stopped after crossing the threshold, taking a moment to look around and orient himself. He wore a hoodie that was too large for his frame with the hood pulled up, so Janus couldn’t make out much of his face, but he could tell that he was quite tall despite his slouch and rather slim built.

And pale in a way that almost seemed sickly.

(Not that Janus fared much better.)

The stranger spotted Janus after a few moments and hesitantly approached.

“Uhm, hey,” he greeted once he stood in front of Janus’ workstation. He kept his voice quiet, and Janus was intrigued by his low baritone.

“Welcome!” Janus greeted with a smile, doing his best to hide his staring. “You must be the new tenant of Mrs. Talbot. Are you adjusting well enough to our quaint town?”

“Why the fuck do you know where I live?” The stranger had taken a step back, glaring at Janus with eyes that he could now make out were a deep brown.

“We don’t get a lot of new people here, so if someone moves in, it’s usually the talk of the town for a bit. And I’m a central person in terms of gossip. It’s nothing personal, I assure you.”

“It’s creepy.”

Janus shrugged. “I can see why you’d think that. But that’s just how it is here. And you’re even the special kind of newbie, so everyone’s doubly interested.”

“What does that mean?!” the stranger hissed. “How am I special?”

“Well, there’s only a few reasons people come here. The first is that they’re moving back. I myself belonged to that category after I came back after going to college out of state. Has the rumor mill going about all the changes that happened in the time they were gone. I, for example, got a lot more into fashion. And grew my hair out. I got so many questions about how I took care of it, you wouldn’t believe it.”

Janus’ rambling seemed to have calmed the stranger down a bit, since he now came over to lean against the station instead of keeping his distance as if Janus was about to jump him.

“Then there’s the people that get dragged here by other locals. Partners, mostly. They often have to endure some scrutiny to see if they’re good enough for whoever brought them here. We have a lot of old ladies with strong opinions on what a good relationship is, so look out for them if you ever start dating while you’re here.

“Third,” Janus was counting down by his fingers now, “are the workers. Transferred to a backwater town like ours often leads to grumpiness, so you can usually tell who’s here because their contract demanded it. Sometimes they warm up to it, often times they don’t and transfer out again as soon as they can. Second to last there’s the nature people who just want to live somewhere with a bunch of trees. And we got plenty of those. And last but not least, there’s people like you. You just show up one day, with no roots, a past you don’t want to talk about and wanting as little attention as possible.”

“You sure make a lot of judgements without knowing anything about me,” the man murmured, but he didn’t look as put off as he did at the start of their conversation.

Janus shrugged. “Maybe. It comes from experience, however. I helped out here even before I finished school and it’s a gathering space for a lot of people. I developed a good sense of intuition that way. Plus, my father was like you, too.” The stranger simply raised an eyebrow. “It’s a long story, maybe I’ll tell you about it if you’d invite me out to a drink sometime.” Janus smirked as the other chuckled.

“Your quite forward, aren’t you.”

“I know what I like and I don’t like beating around the bush.”

“You don’t even know my name.”

“You could change that.”

That startled another chuckle out of the stranger. “It’s Virgil. Nice to meet you.”

“Janus.” He took the offered hand and shook it firmly. “I look forward to getting to know you, Virgil.”

#namiswriting #One's Hometown One's New Home #Chapter 1: Quiet Meeting #anxceit week 2023 #anxceit #ts janus #janus sanders #ts virgil #virgil sanders #original female background character #first meeting #human!au #librarian!janus #multichapter fic #sanders sides #fanfiction #reblogs are appreciated

[nilufleur]

KAZUTORA HANEMIYA headcanons / 02. 09. 2022

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contains mentions of abuse, mental disorders, miscarriage

( the shinichiro incident does not happen )

kazutora does not remember what most of his childhood was like, to be more precise he does not want to remember it since it isn't filled with happy memories unlike how most childhoods are or should be like

his mother has been a victim of abuse her whole life so she has never had a stable mentality, never stable enough to raise kazutora

she was pregnant to another boy before kazutora was born but due to her stressful marriage the pregnancy ended up with a miscarriage which increased her anxiety more

kazutora once had a crush on a girl which started in kindergarten and literally lasted until the end of elementary school

he has always been very distant from both of his parents. the only adult he truly felt a warm connection with throughout his childhood was their neighbour, an old lady who would reward him with sweets when he would help her with watering her flowers. she passed away when tora was around 11 years old

kazutoras father forced him to play the violin at a young age. he wasnt good with it which would make his father put more force onto him cause he was expecting excellence but at some point he stopped caring and kazutora never touched it again

i don't like making sexuality headcanons but i do think that if there were any queer characters kazutora would be one. since studies show that people who witness physical or sexual abuse at a young age are more likely to have same sex attraction, bisexual kazutora sort of makes sense to me

undiagnosed borderline personality disorder

kazutora ran away from home when he was around 17 and wanted to leave tokyo but keisuke held him back and convinced him to stay at his house

keisukes mother ryoko was okay with it since she knew about kazutoras situation with his family and how important he was to keisuke so it wasnt a problem for her

ryoko is a hard woman but she loves his son and his friends. she was the first woman to give kazutora healthy motherly love

in order to help him, the kawata twins offered him a job at their familys record & instrument shop. he was hesitant but still took it and eventually after years of staying apart from it he started building a connection with music all over again but this time it was healthy and he was enjoying it

one year after kazutora had moved in to the baji familys house ryoko moves back to her old town but keisuke stays in tokyo with kazutora and they live together ( i am most likely going to write something about this )

kazutora is an anxious nail biter

the only way he can sleep is with his knees pulled to his chest because it makes him feel safe

avid cigarette smoker, keisuke hates his mothers and best friends smoking habit

tora is very scared of cats which is the main reason that causes conflict between him and kei

doesn't like being around old adults because he feels uncomfortable around them

occasionally reads. some of his favourite books are norwegian wood, no longer human, kafka on the shore, the waiting years ,, but hes not an active reader

idk i feel like keisuke does not like the way he views wome ifykyk ...

is scared of thunderstorms & dark places

kazutora has caused a lot of fights between the toman founding members because of his impulsiveness and keisuke has always been on his side regardless of his actions

even though it seems like mikey is not always pleased with his presence he cares about kazutora deeply

kazutora loves fun fairs and even though keisuke does not like hanma very much all three of them go to a fun fair every summer ( none of them know how they formed this little tradition )

──────────────────────

© nilufleur

#tokyo revengers #kazutora hanemiya #kazutora headcanons #tokyo revengers headcanons #baji keisuke #hanma shuji #kawata twins #nahoya kawata #souya kawata #mikey

[novaliae]

so i just found my old paperback copy of nimona that i got at an elementary school book fair when i was maybe ten or eleven at the oldest. i didn't identify as queer or trans yet. nate didn't identify as trans yet. his bio has his deadname and she/her pronouns and doesn't reference molly because ofc.

anyway all this to say the dedication is "to all the monster girls" and i'm about to start sobbing

#nimona #nimona 2023 #my thoughts are y'all's problem now

[possiblyk9]

Nightmare Bonnie for AU

i'm working on the Nightmares for my AU and i'm starting off with bonnie! for my Nightmares i'm taking a more organic approach, when i was a child and i went to chuck e cheese's i thought the animatronics were real lmao, same with people in mascot suits, i would NOT go near the Clifford the big red dog mascot at my elementary school book fair. i thought he was REAL and WANTED TO EAT ME. so i'm looking at these through the eyes of a small child. in my AU this is Garrett's dream (the crying child) as he is dying in the hospital, Fnaf 4 is the only game that makes sense as a dream AND IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN. the day i found out this shit was Tests done by william and this shit was FEAR GAS. bro. nah i was livid. ANYWAYS i really like the original Nightmare designs especially FredBear and Nightmare but the others when you get a full look at em, they start lookin a lil goofy lol, in game they're fine. usually in shadows and you never get a good look at them, so i'm redoing em (:

#five nights at freddy's #fnaf movie #fnaf fanart #fivenightsatfreddysfanart #fnaf 4 #nightmare bonnie #fnaf bonnie

[limi-pie]

Like a butterfly part 1

A/N: Ello’ I’ve finally managed to pull through my laziness and correct part 1. I apologize for ghosting you guys and not updating regularly. ^^" Honestly the idea of Yuta being a tattoo artist and getting tattoos done by him is asdfghjkl, I can’t help but fangirl also let’s not forget his performance and his hot tattoos. (Lord have mercy.)

So I hope you guys enjoy this.

🦋 < Teaser – Next part >

Pairing: Nakamoto Yuta x Female! Specific Reader

Contains: Non-idol AU, Tattoo AU, Tattoo artist! Nakamoto Yuta, Librarian! Y/N, Multi idols from different groups, Comedy, Friends to lovers, Romance, Complicated relationships, Hints of jealous Yuta, Mentions of cussing, piercings, and tattoos.

Warnings: Alcohol, drinking, smoking, cigarettes, light smut, cunnilingus, unprotected sex, hickies, oral sex (female) receiving, lying.

Wordcount: 7,960

Disclaimer: The reader I’ve created in this fanfiction is a woman of East Asian descent (she’s half-Japanese and half-Korean) and she has certain features and looks a certain way. The reason for this is that I wanted some more East Asian representation in Kpop fanfics! Some of these relationships between said persons are only meant to be considered fictional, in no way do I ship them in real life. They’re just there to add dynamic to the plot. (Also, because my multi fan ass just wants to have fun.) Please keep in mind that the way I’ve described the idols in this story is in no way real or representative of how they behave in real life, this is just based on my imagination.

Also in this fanfiction, some said persons are involved in an abusive, unhealthy and manipulative relationship. Please keep in mind that this is all fanmade and fiction. I don’t encourage this kind of terrible relationship and if you are in one, please seek help. Never put yourself second to anyone; remember that you’re important and loved. 💚

You stepped down from the ladder, the dangling name tag attached to your white cardigan ‘Miyoshi Y/N’. You’re an intelligent and hardworking woman in your mid-twenties, 24 years. Finding huge happiness in reading tons of Shoujo Romance mangas, and loving the romantic and sweet themes. Innocent, feminine, a bit timid, quiet, and introverted are usually the words people associate you with. In a way you were like a tiny timid turtle; you wouldn’t come out of your shell unless you felt comfortable around them. People always misunderstand your silence, it’s not that you hate speaking or interacting with them. It’s not easy to engage in speaking so comfortably with new people, it’s always such a challenge to even start the conversation.

You pushed the cart with books, carefully scanning the shelves in search of the biology section.

You were an only child of a Korean father and a Japanese mother, and growing up you had a hard time making lots of friends. Being a mixed kid was a struggle, you often got bullied or picked on for not ‘looking’ or ‘behaving’ like a specific ethnicity. You went to elementary and middle school in Japan. But you spent most of your adolescence and high school years in Korea. That’s where your love for reading began to bloom. It was your way of escaping the troubles, pain, and loneliness of your life. You found comfort in the world of books, how your mind could take you to different places.

You smiled, scanning a few books and placing them on the ‘returned’ shelf.

But that makes perfect sense as to why you work as a librarian after all! That’s right, getting to work at The National Library of Korea in Seocho-Gu was like a dream come true.

You yawned as you climbed up to the ladder’s third step, sorting out some newly arrived manga volumes in the Romance/Shoujo section. When a young man with jet-black hair and fair skin approached you.

“Excuse me, Miss, sorry if I’m bothering you but could you help me find something?”

The man looked at you as he was wearing a brown leather jacket, a black tank top underneath and some pair of black ripped jeans. You noticed the many piercings in his ears, black nail polish, and several silver rings covering his fingers. He gave off the bad boy or a typical troublemaker.

“Of course, Sir. What do you need help with?” You answered politely with a small smile as you put the books back onto the shelf as your eyes finally met.

Although you have a boyfriend… You had to admit he was dangerously hot for a bad boy. Somehow couldn’t keep your eyes off him even if you wanted to.

“Well, I need help with finding this book about butterflies, apparently these beautiful creatures have been very popular recently. Sorry let me explain, I work at a Tattoo Studio and I need some references to sketch them out. Lots of clients have been requesting butterfly tattoos. Sorry if I spoke too much.” He bowed his head as you stepped down from the ladder.

You couldn’t help but admire how passionately and confidently he was about his work, “my, that’s wonderful. I mean butterflies are unique and beautiful. But sure thing! I’ll help you find that book. Please follow me.” You said, bowing back and walking to the large shelf stacked with books about animals.

“I believe it should be on the uppermost shelf. Let me just get that for you.” You moved the ladder from the middle of the shelf to the left and carefully climbed up to the last step of it.

His hands reached out to hold the metal ladder, “let me just make sure I hold this for you. In case it moves around. I’d feel terrible if you fell.” He stated and looked up with a sweet smile on his face. “Ah, thank you,” You nodded and grabbed the book, stepping down. “Here you go, let’s go to the register so I can lend you the book.” He took the book, bowing his head as he followed me to the self-issue machine, “alright may I ask if you have the Korean Library Card?” The man nodded before, tugging his hand into his pocket and he pulled out a small wallet. He took the card out in a swift movement holding it between his index and middle finger.

“Here you go, Miss Miyoshi…” He said, looking at your name tag as you bowed, accepting the card with both of your hands. “Thank you.” You scanned the book and his card as the beeping sound of approval went through. “You have a month to return this book if you see any bruises or damages beforehand. Please contact the library as soon as possible.”

He took the book as you returned his card, “ah, thank you. May I ask a stupid question?” He looked at me waiting for your response. “Um, sure what is it, Sir?” The man asked the question in a foreign language when his voice changed slightly.

“もしかして、日本人ですか?” (Are you by any chance, Japanese?)

“ええと? もちろんです.” (Ehh? Of course I am.)

You’re not fully Japanese. You’re actually half Japanese and Korean. But speaking with this stranger you felt like not getting into too many details, fearing you would be met with prejudices.

You both chuckled, smiling at each other as you spoke in Korean again. “It’s very rare to find Japanese people in Seoul, so I was quite happy to find someone else like me.”

“中本。中本悠太です。はじめまして.” (I’m Nakamoto. Nakamoto Yuta. Nice to meet you.)

“Nice to meet you too, Nakamoto-san,” You replied to him in Japanese as you tugged some hair behind your ear. “Anyway thanks for all the help, I’ll take good care of this book.”

“またね.” (See you.) Nakamoto said as he turned around walking down the stairs as you admired his figure watching him as he left through the exit.

It was an unusual and rare encounter to stumble upon a Japanese person in Seoul.

You had a few hours left so you were just cleaning some empty dusty shelves just to kill time. It was finally 5:00 PM and you were off, the sun began to set soon, and the sky was a perfect mix of cold and warm contrasts. “Irene Unnie, I’m off.” You said, wrapping the blue scarf around your neck.

“Mhm. Great work today, Ms. Miyoshi. See you tomorrow and have a great evening.” You bowed and took your leave as you left through the back exit. You texted your dear boyfriend Bryce and made your way to Seocho station, waiting for the usual Line 2 to arrive.

You: “Hey, Babe.”

You: “I finished work, want to eat dinner together?”

You: “I’ve discovered this new restaurant nearby.”

You walked inside Line 2, headed towards Sindorim. Luckily you didn’t live too far away from the library, it was approximately 5-6 stops away and the trip would be around 20-30 minutes. Even closer to your roomie’s University, she studies at (SNU) Seoul National University. To your surprise, he replied for once and did not leave you on ‘read’.

Bryce: “I can't, I'm too busy right now and later tonight.”

Bryce: “Could you lend me some money?”

Bryce: “I’m quite broke. And I need a ride home.”

Although you really love Bryce, you wish he’d change and mature a bit. He always asks you for money, even though he got a full-time job as a waiter at a restaurant.

You: “How much is it this time?”

You felt frustrated with how often you’ve asked that same question within a month.

Bryce: “6,000₩.”

With a bit of hesitation, you sighed heavily before sending the money to him. “Always the same, nevertheless,” You told yourself as you saw that the station was Sindaebang and it was time for you to get off. You decided to dial your roommate, and she picked up while her voice sounded relaxed.

“What’s up, Y/N-Unnie?” The woman said while music was playing in the background. “Nothing much, have you eaten dinner yet, or are you with Jungkook? I’m almost home, just getting off the subway.”

“Hmmm? Didn’t you and Mr. Asshole Bryce have a dinner date tonight? Did that jerk stand you up again?” You could already imagine her raised eyebrows and frowned expression even though you only heard her voice. You used the elevator as you walked away from the station and headed toward your apartment building.

“No look, Chaeng it’s not like that.” You excused.

Who are you kidding…? Why do you always keep defending him…?

“Miyoshi Y/N. This is within 2 weeks and all he’s been doing is canceling all his plans and dates with you! Are you really okay dealing with this kind of bullshit? How many times are you gonna let it slide? Sheesh. When you’re home, we're going to talk about this.”

You knew Chaeyoung hates Bryce’s guts. But her scolding you make you feel sadder. You sighed as she hung up. Usually, she ends a phone call with a ‘see you at home’ or bye. But you could tell she was furious this time…

You went inside and headed to the first floor, you typed in the password halfway through as Chaeyoung opened the door before even letting you type the rest. “Come inside, we need to talk.” She said walking inside the kitchen, her voice was stern and serious, usually, Chaeng’s tone was playful and bright. But you suppose you’ve angered her by telling her that he stood you up once again and asked you for money. You hung your beige fall coat along with the tote bag on the coat rack and tugged your shoes on the shoe rack. “Sit down.” You sat down on the chair at our dinner table, looking up to see her with crossed arms.

“You’re mad. Aren’t you?” You said sheepishly, looking at her. “Mad? I am extremely outraged! Y/N, for fuck’s sake! He can’t just keep doing this to you!” She lashed out with her arm, pointing at the door. “Bryce can’t keep canceling all his dates with you and beg for money! That’s not what a real boyfriend would do!” You stood there dumbfounded not knowing how to respond so you chose to be silent. “Listen, I don’t want to be the one to break it to you. But–” You knew she had something hurtful to say but she chose not to say it, knowing it would most likely upset you. The tears started forming around your eyes as you felt yourself shake.

You’re used to Bryce scolding you and yelling at you. But it’s a different case when it’s your best friend, roommate, and childhood friend since you knew each other for so long. This was your first time hearing that raised voice of hers.

“Y/N. Miyoshi Y/N. You better not cry… Don’t cry. Don’t you dare cry over a jerk like that!” Chaeyoung said desperately but you were already whimpering and weeping, “sorry. I’m sorry, Chaeyoung… I’m so stupid and such a big idiot…” You apologized, looking down at the floor, your voice shaking, “don’t apologize, please don’t say that to yourself.” She said, wrapping her arms around me and giving me a tight hug.

“Look I’m sorry for raising my voice at you and scolding you, Unnie. I just don’t want Bryce to keep disrespecting and mistreating you like that and making yourself feel small because of him.” You nodded, wiping the tears away as you hugged her with your free arm. “Next time he cancels on you like that, I won't let it slide so easily.” You sighed and nodded rather quickly, “anyways, no I didn’t eat. I actually finished class at 3:00 PM. But I just dropped by Jungkook’s place for some of his hoodies I’ve borrowed. He’s been getting a lot of night shifts in Daegu, so we’ve been face-timing a lot,” Chaeyoung chatted as you listened.

Unlike your hopeless relationship with Bryce, Jungkook seems to genuinely care about Chaeng. After all, they started dating 6 months ago.

“Wanna go and grab some delicious spicy blue crabs, Unnie?” Chaeyoung asked, holding her car keys up and rustling them. “I’d love to, Chaeng! Let me just change, these heels have been killing me all day!”

You wore a black knee-length skirt and some stockings underneath paired with a loose light blue sweater. “Are you ready, Chaeng?” You exclaimed, putting on your black Mary Jane shoes, “yeah I’m born ready, shall we go?” She said, wearing her black Converse sneakers, ripped denim jeans, and a white t-shirt.

Yuta went back to the tattoo studio as he showed the book to his co-workers. “Hey, you two. Check out these beautiful butterflies.”

“Thanks to the recent Korean Dramas, ‘NeverTheLess’ and ‘It’s Okay To Not Be Okay’ that have been so popular.” Ten voiced, cleaning the counter as Johnny swept the floor. “Hmm what should we eat for dinner?” He asked, looking at the two of them.

“On such a windy day how about some warm and cozy Soon-dubu Jji-gae?” Yuta suggested, flipping through the pages of his book.

“That doesn’t sound too bad, Johnny and I will get it while you keep an eye on the place.” Ten said, smiling as he got his leather jacket and helmet. “Right, we’ll be right back, Yuta,” Johnny said, walking out with him. When Yuta picked up his phone as a woman spoke.

“Ah Miya-chan, what’s up? You’re nearby?” He replied in Japanese, looking out the window.

“Well, I’m about to eat dinner. Wanna join us?”

“No, I'm alone at the studio right now, should we see each other tonight? Alright.” He hung up as he sketched some messy doodles of butterflies.

“Annyeonghaseyo, two spicy blue crabs, please.~” While Chaeyoung ordered as you waited for the waitress to find you a clean table. She seated you two at a table near the window as you bowed soon after Chaeyoung returned, sitting across from you. “It’ll be ready in less than 40 minutes or so,” she informed me when two guys walked by the window as she waved. They entered as Chaeyoung greeted them with a cool handshake, the one guy usually does when they greet each other.

“What’s up, Suh?” Chaeyoung said, leaning back a bit as she laughed, “sorry, you know I like joking around with your name, dude.” You got up and you bowed your head.

These two must be one of Chaeyoung’s many friends. You felt a bit overwhelmed since you aren’t used to being around people that you hardly know.

Chaeyoung wrapped an arm around me as she smiled, “this cutie pie right here is Y/N Miyoshi. Y/N, this tall giant is Johnny Suh and the sexy dude is Ten Lee.” The tall man bowed too as he smiled, “it’s nice to meet you Ms. Y/N.” Ten stepped forward, also greeting me, “yeah, it’s an honor meeting Chaeyoung’s cute roomie that she always talks so much about.”

“It’s a pleasure meeting you two as well,” You said and smiled as Chaeyoung hugged you, “anyways what are you getting? Wanna eat together?” Your eyes widened at her words. “Chaeng…” You gently hit her shoulder as a warning, “we’re just going to order the Soon-dubu Jji-gae to the studio,” Johnny said, chuckling at me. “What about Osaka Prince? Is he at the studio or with Miyawaki-chan?” She asked, rubbing her shoulder and giggling at me. “He’s at the studio, but I wouldn’t be too surprised if she actually decides to visit or even call him.” Ten answered as he went to order.

“Say, do Osaka Prince and Miyawaki-chan have a thing going on between them, or are they just messing around?” Chaeyoung questioned, resting her chin on the back of her hand.

“I think they’re close but not dating, you feel me? Lately these days he’s just been very focused on his artwork. And Miya on her modeling career.” You stared at your phone, trying to distract yourself from not engaging in this conversation.

“Here’s your spicy blue crabs and a large bowl of hot steamed rice,” the waitress placed the plates of food on the table. You expressed your thanks, “man this looks way better than the last time we ordered it!”

Chaeyoung said as she grabbed a piece of crab. “Well, bon appetit to the both of you, later, Chae,” Johnny said, leaving with Ten who got their order. You used a spoon to scoop out the delicious spicy crab meat as you placed it on a riceball topped with a piece of seaweed.

You hummed in response to the tasty dinner as Chaeyoung smiled, “wah, it sure is intense, want to get a drink?” She asked, fanning her mouth as you nodded, “excuse me could we order some drinks, please?” The waitress caught your attention as she asked, “Sure, what would you like to drink?” The waitress held her pencil and notepad. “One banana milk and a glass of water–”

“–Strawberry Soju, pleaseee~” Chaeyoung interrupted as she giggled, chewing her rice. “Ehh? Chaeng, don't you have classes tomorrow morning? Is it alright for you to get this drunk on a Tuesday evening like this–?” You asked when she wrapped an arm around you, “–don’t worry, after all, you’ll make the best hangover soup, hehe.~” You sighed in response after finishing your meal.

“Alright, banana milk and a bottle of strawberry Soju coming right up,” she said, noting it down as she excused herself. “What time do you get up for your morning class tomorrow?” You asked, ready to set alarms cause she usually blacks out after drinking just one bottle. “Mine starts at 8:00 AM, it’s just art history and repetition of important keywords.” Chaeyoung said, texting on her phone, “ah that’s nice, well you always loved art so much. So I know you’ll be just fine,” You laughed, pointing at the tattoo behind her ear.

“Oh yeah. That reminds me that I need a new tattoo! Can you tag along with me, this Thursday? Jungkook has an investigation to do in Busan so unfortunately, he can’t join me this time,” she said, eating some rice in a piece of seaweed. “Umm, I don’t know, I’ve never been to a Tattoo Studio before Chaeng–”

“–That’s okay, you just have to be my moral support while I get the cherries done on my right shoulder,” giggling as her cute dimples appeared.

“Here are your drinks, sorry for the long wait,” the waitress placed them down, “enjoy.”

Chaeyoung popped the bottle open and took a long sip. “Say, did you meet any cute guys at the library today?~” She asked you all of a sudden, “ehh Chaeng? What are you talking about? I’m too focused while at work and besides, I got a boyfriend!” Finishing your banana milk as her question made you super flustered. “Aw come on, you’re in a good mood today. I can tell you met someone special,” pressing both of her arms on the table as she winked at me.

Was it that obviously written on your face?

“Well, I met this Japanese man who wanted a book about butterflies… It was work-related to his Tattoo Studio.” You mumbled, your cheeks slowly burning up with shyness. “Ahh, that’s sorta sweet. What was he like? Cute? Attractive? Strong? Handsome?” Chaeyoung asked question after question, “he had black jet hair, umm lots of piercings, and sorta gave me bad boy vibes. He seemed passionate about his work, a very sweet smile” You added, thinking back at him.

“You seem to be sorta crushing on him, Miyoshi.~” She pointed out as you tried to deny it, “Chaeng it’s not like that… I have a boyfriend and so what if I find him handsome?–” You covered your lousy mouth immediately after admitting that. “Oh my~ Y/N seems too naughty and mischievous, hehe~” Chaeyoung giggled, she was clearly already tipsy after emptying half of that Soju bottle.

“Look Chaeng, I’m not cheating on Bryce. Besides he was just a kind stranger, I don’t think I’ll ever meet him again.” You said with a subtle sad tone in your voice as you fidgeted with your plastic straw. “Well it’s not like it’s impossible, you know it’s all about chance.~” She smirked teasingly as you finished your banana milk and got up, “come on, let’s get you home, drunk strawberry,” wrapping her arm around you as she stood up. “Yeah, yeah. Mom.” She said, the bottle in her hand as you chuckled.

“You got any cigs?” She asked, straddling his lap as he kissed her neck. “I do. In my leather jacket, Miya-chan,” Yuta said, kissing her collarbones as his hands ran up and down her back. “Mhm~ Nakamoto-kun, you’re so handsome~” Miyawaki giggled, kissing him deeply, “so what time should we meet later?”

Yuta hummed, looking at the clock “let’s say 10:30 PM?” He suggested, rubbing her thigh slightly as he had a sly smirk. “Deal. Don’t keep me waiting,” she said, giving him a slightly mean look as he chuckled. “I’ll try, I’ll try.”

“Ohh so we got a visitor.” The tall man joked as he placed the plastic bag of food on the table. Ten followed him as he chuckled, “so she came after all, what’s up, Miyawaki?” He waved, grabbing a pair of chopsticks, “nothing much, just stopped by to say hi to Nakamoto-kun,” Miyawaki said, eyeing Johnny as she got off Yuta’s lap.

“What, did you order this time? Tteokbokki and Ramyun?” She walked over, checking the plastic bag, “no. Yuta wanted some warm and cozy Soon-dubu Jji-gae on a windy day like this.” Ten said, getting some bottles of Yakult from the refrigerator.

“Ohh yeah, we had to tell you that Chae and her cute roomie said hi.” Johnny said, handing him a bowl and a wooden spoon, “are you eating too, Miyawaki?”

Ten asked, holding out a bottle of Yakult. “Mmm, no. I think I should get going, see you later, Nakamoto-kun~” she said, kissing Yuta’s cheek as she left. “Always leaving so quickly, does she not like us?” Johnny asked, slurping the delicious spicy sauce. “Yeah, it feels like Ms. Miyawaki always seems to be in a hurry whenever we show up.” Ten added, drinking his Yakult. “It’s not like that. I mean she got a boyfriend and that's why she’s always rushing off,” he said, taking a sip of his Yakult, “she’s not my girlfriend, but she always comes to me whenever Hisashi is troubling her.”

We were finally home as your roomie was busy throwing up in the bathroom, you knew you’d had to go and get her some medicine. You knocked on the door, “everything alright, Chaeng?”

“Yuh… could you get me some meds?” She panted as you nodded in response, “just one packet?”

“Make it two… also some headache pills.”

“Alright, I’ll be right back,” You said, walking to get your shoes.

Yup. That’s your roommate, short, black pixie cut-styled hair, dark brown eyes, and fair skin. Son Chaeyoung, 23 years old, is a wild and outgoing woman who always parties and goes nightclubbing. Super creative and artistic, her sense of fashion is quite trendy, chic, sorta tomboyish, and highly influenced by street style. You rarely see Chaeng in skirts or dresses as she prefers pants or shorts. She’s studying Fine Arts and Performing Arts at Seoul National University, also known as “SNU”. She gets along with pretty much anyone due to her naturally extroverted and funny personality. She has been your roommate for almost 2 years now.

“Hello, may I ask for two packets of hangover medicine and a pack of headache pills?” You asked, walking to the counter of the pharmacy. “Of course, Miss, do you need anything else?” The cashier asked, “ah, no thank you,” You responded and bowed, paying.

“So what are you and Miyawaki Sakura?” Johnny asked, standing outside with him.

“Friends with benefits, only using each other solely for a short moment of embrace and pleasure,” Yuta said with a cigarette in his mouth, “so that we’re happy with ourselves.” A small flame lit as he inhaled and then exhaled the smoke. “Right, I guess it does work for some people. There’s no need to be in love or committed in that type of relationship I suppose.” Johnny shrugged, walking inside.

“I suppose not,” Yuta scoffed, watching the night sky as he sighed heavily.

“When is it ready?” Chaeyoung groaned, lying in her bed as you sat by her side. “In around 2 hours, I’m still boiling the ox bones for the flavorful broth.” Moving her bangs away you put a damp piece of cloth on Chaeyoung’s forehead.

“Man this sucks balls!” She yelled out frustrated, “well, if I remember correctly you’re the one who wanted to drink strawberry Soju on a Tuesday evening?” You replied sassily as she pouted.

“Next time, if I ever drink again on such an evening. Please, hit me as hard as you can, Y/N!” You laughed, poking her cheek, “alright, just get some rest. I’ll wake you up once it’s ready.”

You went back to the kitchen checking on the ox bones as you poured them into a sieve. Using the liquid for the broth added the napa cabbages, green chilis, minced garlic, and some Korean fermented soybean paste.

You opened your manga, ‘Say I Love You’, and began reading from where you left off last time. You were into the plot, how Mei was bullied and how she grew cautious of people around her as a result. In a way you could relate to that, not trusting anyone and being so cold. You drowned in the chapter when the male lead suddenly kissed her.

Suddenly the timer went off as the soup was ready. “Here you go, Chaeng.” You placed the tray of porridge and a glass of hot water. “Thank you, Unnie… You’ve saved me!” Chaeyoung exclaimed as she chuckled.

“I’ll let you eat and rest, if you need something just call me. I’ll be in the living room watching anime, okay?” You walked out glimpsing at her as she signaled a thumbs up.

Listening to the cheerful opening, ‘My Sweet Heart’ as you were watching Tokyo Mew Mew. Then suddenly your mother called her on the phone.

Ehh? Facetime? You guess mom has some good news. “Ah good evening, mom. What’s going on?”

“Mmm, I thought I’d call you to let you know that your aunt, Asami, is visiting Seoul with your niece, Ayaka.”

“Ah, that’s great news. When will they arrive?”

“Wednesday or Thursday, they’ll visit your uncle in Jeju Islands first.”

“How is everything with sweet Bryce?”

You didn’t feel like talking about him. But mom has no idea how it is between the two of us right now. You should tell her the truth.

“お母さん…” (Mom…)

“Yes, my dear Y/N?”

“When are you and Appa visiting Seoul again?”

You knew it. After all, you couldn’t bring yourself to explain what had happened between you two.

“Mmm, changing the subject all of a sudden, Y/N-chan? Is Bryce nearby? I want to say hi to him.”

“Bryce is studying with his classmates. Sorry that you can’t see him this time, mom.”

I’m sorry, mom. But you don’t want her to see you hurt.

“Alright, how’s Chaeyoung and her boyfriend?”

“Good, Chaeng’s sleeping right now. She has classes early in the morning tomorrow.”

“What are you watching?”

“Tokyo Mew Mew, but I have to go. I have a lot of work tomorrow.”

“おやすみなさい、お母さん.” (Good night, mom.)

“はい、またね.” (Yes, see you.)

You sighed, turning off the TV. “You should have told her the truth, Y/N, you idiot.” You scolded yourself, hugging your knees.

“Hmm, Nakamoto.~” The woman mumbled, kissing his neck as he traced his fingertips on her back. “Miya-chan,” Yuta whispered, unclasping her bra as she kissed his lips.

“I really like you, Nakamoto-kun.”

These deceiving and empty words of yours. They always gave me hope for our relationship, but I know that in the morning you’ll go back to him.

“I like you too, Miya-chan,” Yuta mumbled before kissing Miyawaki’s neck and collarbones as they embraced each other.

“Should I go down on you first?” Yuta asked, looking at her as she nodded. “I need you, Nakamoto-kun.”

He chuckled, pulling her panties down to her feet as she spread her legs. “Mmh, you’re not as sweet as you were the last time. You taste a bit more salty this time.” Yuta said, licking Miyawaki’s clit as he locked eyes with her.

“That’s because Hisashi is stressing me out.”

“You should just break up with that loser already if he’s not pleasing you in bed.” Yuta scoffed, licking her folds as he stuck two fingers inside her pussy.

“Ahh… it’s not that easy, you know, mmh… Nakamoto-kun.” Miyawaki pouted, throwing her head back. Yuta licked her folds roughly and thoroughly, getting a good taste of her. “I guess not,” Yuta scoffed, sucking on her swollen clit as he moved his tongue up and down her lips. “Ahh…! Besides, we’ve been together for 2 years now, we can’t just break up.” Miyawaki moaned as she came inside his mouth and he licked it clean.

That’s enough. I’m tired of always hearing that excuse.

“Then if your relationship is so serious, why do you always run back to me whenever you have problems with him? Am I your replacement for Hisashi?” Yuta scoffed, getting up as their eyes met in a mean glare.

“Yuta-kun… You know that’s not it. I…” Miyawaki stammered as she sat up. Yuta sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“Sorry, I guess that was rude of me to say it like that,” Yuta said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Even if you were right, it gives you no right to speak like that to me, Nakamoto-kun.” Miyawaki belted as she began to put her panties and the rest of her clothes on.

“Where are you going?”

“Home. Don’t talk to me.”

The woman walked out, smacking the door. Yuta sighed, throwing himself on the bed as he stared at the ceiling.

“I’m such an asshole.” He had a sad smile plastered on his face, he closed his eyes.

“もしかして、日本人ですか?” (Are you by any chance Japanese?)

“ええと? もちろんです.” (Ehh? Of course I am.)

“It’s very rare to find Japanese people in Seoul, so I was quite happy to find someone else like me.”

“中本悠太です. はじめまして.” (I’m Nakamoto Yuta. Nice to meet you.)

“Nice to meet you too, Nakamoto-san.”

“Anyway thanks for all the help, I’ll take good care of this book.”

“またね.” (See you.)

Why am I thinking of that pretty woman? She’s like an angel.

Yuta woke up early as he brushed his teeth. “Hopefully Miya-chan isn’t too angry with what happened yesterday… Maybe I should call her later to make up.” He mumbled and started the shower.

The next morning you woke up early to make lunch for yourself and Chaeyoung.

Chaeng probably wants some tasty rice for lunch when she’s slightly hungover from yesterday. “Right, let me just add some fresh cherry tomatoes and lettuce too.”

“Morning’ Unnie,” Chaeyoung yawned as she rubbed her head, “feeling better, Chaeng?” She bopped her head.

“What do you want to eat? You asked, washing the pan under some hot water. “I’ll have some fried eggs and toast.” Chaeyoung hummed, putting the towel on her shoulder. “I’m gonna shower, do you want to use the bathroom before I do that?” You shook your head as she went to the bathroom.

“Um, what do you want to drink? Tea, coffee, or hot cocoa?” Knocking on the door as you waited for her response.

“I’ll have some iced coffee, Unnie.” You heard the sound of water boiling in the kettle as you went back to the kitchen to cook breakfast.

“Thanks for always looking out for me, Unnie.” Chaeyoung smiled, eating her toast topped with fried eggs.

“No need to thank me, you’re my best friend and roommate after all. So it’s only natural we look out and take care of each other.” You responded, eating your steamed rice and pickled cucumbers.

“We really need to find you a new boyfriend soon, you gorgeous girl.” She giggled, sipping on iced coffee.

“What time do you finish classes?”

“Uhh, around 1-2 PM, why wanna hang out?”

“Yeah, maybe we can go shopping or eat lunch together?”

Chaeyoung nodded as she put on her sneakers, “see you later, Unnie.” You hugged her, “have a nice day at school, bye-bye.”

You put on a chiffon blouse and some loose pants. You greeted Ms. Irene as you began sitting in front of the computer, ordering a couple of new arrivals books.

“So what piercing do you want to get?” Yuta asked, showing him pictures of piercings.

“Just my right eyebrow, dude. Like the silver piercing.”

“Got it, Mark.”

“Yeah, I’ve been thinking about getting one for so long.”

“Why haven’t you gotten it sooner?”

“Been too busy with work and training. To even think about it, heh.”

“Woah! I didn’t know that you had gotten a new tattoo, Yuta.”

“Oh, this one? I got it a few weeks ago.” Yuta replied, lifting his shirt a bit as it revealed his beautiful butterfly.

“I got it to showcase what a butterfly tattoo would look like. But somehow this small tattoo turned out to be more meaningful and special to me.” He added, smiling to himself.

When Yuta thought back to when he first encountered Miyawaki Sakura…

“Say, what does this butterfly tattoo mean?” Miyaki asked, looking at his abs.

“The ugliness and pain of happiness, and lack of freedom. That’s what butterfly tattoos symbolize.” Yuta scoffed, finishing his glass of beer as she giggled. “That’s so cool, I kinda like that,” she smiled, hugging his arm.

“Yah, what’s up friends?” Chaeyoung entered as she placed her tote bag on the table. “What brings you here, Chae?” Johnny asked, folding his arms. “Yeah, don’t you have classes right now?” Ten added, looking at her. Mark greeted her as she did the same.

“Yes. I do. But my other class was canceled because our professor had a meeting to attend.”

“Anyways, I’m going to eat my lunch here. Is that okay?”

“As long as you share. Cause that looks really good, Chae.” Mark said, looking at her bento box.

“Well, it looks different from your usual healthy salad and fruits. Are you the one who made it?” Yuta asked, glancing at the onigiris, egg rolls, octopus hotdogs, lettuce, and cherry tomatoes. “No, it’s my lovely roomie who made it!” She snickered, eating an onigiri. “No way, the woman we met yesterday made this bento lunch for you?” Ten exclaimed, eating an egg roll.

This Japanese style of boxed bento looks incredible. I wonder if it tastes as good as it looks.

Yuta took a bite of the riceball and then a bite of the egg roll. “Woah, this is really delicious.”

It’s almost as good as from home. Eating this sure brings me back… This is one of my favorite foods after all…

“Your roommate… What does she look like, Chaeyoung?”

“Mmm, are you curious, Osaka Prince?~” Chaeyoung teased as she held her phone up showing her lock screen. It was a picture of her and that woman, they were in tank tops doing silly faces.

It’s her… that woman. She lives with Chaeyoung. The librarian I met yesterday - that’s her. She looks even prettier than I remember.

“That’s Miyoshi Y/N, for you boys,” Chaeyoung said all proud as she ate her cherry tomatoes. Y/N… So that’s her name.

“So is she single?” Ten asked, poking his elbow at Mark. “Yo dude, why are you looking at me? You’re the one who needs a girlfriend, I’m way too busy with work.” Mark laughed, leaning back on the couch as he ate an egg roll wrapped in lettuce.

“Yo, back off boys, this pretty woman is sadly taken.”

It’s no surprise that a stunning woman like her is taken. Somehow it just hurts my heart a little. “By who?” Mark asked, “by some guy named Bryce, tch I hate him to guts.” Chaeyoung rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. Bryce and Y/N, huh?

“Yuta-Hyung, are you stalking Ms. Miyoshi?” Mark asked, watching him scroll through Chaeyoung’s Instagram feed. “I just want to know her a little better, actually she works at the library not too far from here.”

You were stacking some unopened manga books on top of the shelf as you sighed, “Ms. Irene, I think we need to dust off the shelves before stacking more books on top.”

“Ah yes, let me just get the dust brush.” She walked to the staff’s room as you moved a couple of books on the edge. Then you went down, moving the ladder to the left side as you leaned against the shelf, checking your phone for any notifications.

Why won’t he answer me? I really miss Bryce…

You: “I want to see you later…”

You: “I really miss you.”

You sighed as Irene handed you the brush, “thank you, Ms. Irene,” she folded her arms, “just be careful, Ms. Miyoshi, alright?” She walked back to the counter, helping a woman that had borrowed a bunch of books.

You got up again but this time at the uppermost step of the ladder. It was shaking slightly as you began to dust it off. You tried to reach for the corner but felt your feet lose balance when you suddenly fell. “W-Woah!”

A couple of romance and Shoujo manga books were scattered all over the floor, along with your left heel too. The fall didn’t feel like anything. That was because someone had caught you, with the same black nail polish-painted hands, pierced ears, and dark black hair.

“Nakamoto-san…”

“–Are you alright? You’re not hurt, are you?”

Somehow you landed on his lap, your right arm on his shoulder as your left hand was on his chest and his right hand was on your leg. In that instant, you were sorta taken aback by this kind of closure between you two.

In a way, it was too intimidating to meet his fine and flirtatious gaze. You looked down when and noticed the butterfly tattoo on his abs, “ah, sorry.” You mumbled, getting off his lap as his hand traced your leg, “wait,” Yuta said, reaching for your left heel as you got flustered. “It’s alright, I can do that myself, Nakamoto-san–” You answered.

“–You were the one who fell so let me at least help you a little.” He said, looking at you with his sexy eyes as he gently tugged your left foot into the heel.

Heh, we’re wearing the same color of nail polish. What’s this silver anklet on her left ankle? A tiny turtle shell… How cute.

“どうもありがとう…” (Thank you very much…)

“どういたしまして.” (You’re welcome.)

“I was dusting off the shelf when I reached for the corner, I lost balance and fell.” You explained briefly, standing up as you stroked your hair.

I didn’t think I’d meet him again… What’s Nakamoto-san doing here?

“It’s a good thing you’re alright, Miyoshi-san,” Yuta said, getting up as he flashed you a soft smile. He handed you a couple of “Kimi Ni Todoke” mangas that had fallen and you bowed. “Yes. Um, I should get back to work.” You mumbled, feeling your cheeks burn up as you turned to the shelf avoiding his gaze.

Nakamoto-san’s dangerous. He makes your heart skip a beat. It's best to not look him directly in the eyes. He’s probably just a player.

“Ah, actually I came here to borrow another book.” He said, chuckling as you turned around. “Ah, what book is it?”

How come, this beautiful and cute woman was taken by some guy? It’s no use but I can't help but fall for her.

“It’s actually a manga, it’s called ‘Perfect Crime’. It’s one of my favorites.” Yuta said, smirking slightly. “Alright. Then please follow me.” You said, tying your hair up in a ponytail.

“Here it is,” You said, handing him the manga. “Thank you. Mmh, your silver anklet is really pretty.” Yuta smirked, averting his eyes to your ankle. “Ehh? Oh, you mean on my ankle.” You turned your heel as the turtle shell jewelry was wiggling. “Yeah, it’s really cute.” Yuta pursed his lips, looking into your eyes.

What’s with this guy… Is he flirting with me…? “Thank you, turtles are actually my favorite animals.” You responded, scanning his book and ID card. “They’re interesting animals,” Yuta added, watching you.

“Here you go, Nakamoto-san.” You gave him the book as his hand touched yours, “thank you, Miyoshi-san.”

I don’t want it to be the last time I see Miyoshi Y/N. I’ll get another book again another day. If that means that I can keep seeing her then I don’t want it to end yet.

“You’re welcome, anyways I’ve got to go now. I’m off.”

“Ah hey Chaeng. Yeah, I’m just finished, let me just get my things.” You said, applying your brand new cherry lip balm as you pursed your lips. Yuta glanced over, eyes focused on your lips. He couldn’t help but admire your soft lips, wondering what it feels like to kiss them. He looked away as you looked back at him.

Those red lips are so pretty… makes me want to kiss them.

You walked towards the exit when Yuta poked your shoulder, naturally, you turned around.

How do I not lose you? I want to see you…

“Ano… will you be here tomorrow again?” Yuta asked, rubbing the back of his head. “Ehh?” You mumbled, not knowing how to respond to his question. “Sure I will. May I ask, why?” You put your phone in the purse as you looked at him. “I might need help with finding several manga and books. I’d figure you’d be able to find the original ones released in Japanese.”

“Ah well. Of course.” You replied, smiling softly at him as you headed down the stairs.

“またね、中本悠太さん.” (See you, Mr. Nakamoto Yuta.) You waved and looked back at him exiting the library.

“So you met him again? And getting a closeup of his butterfly tattoo, mmm?~” Chaeyoung teased, eating her spicy salad as you sighed. “I wasn’t looking at his abs intentionally, Chaeng… You know…” You mumbled as your cheeks were pink from blushing. “It’s not my fault he was wearing a white mesh shirt…”

“Sure, sure. It’s okay to look at other hot guys when your boyfriend is so shitty, Unnie.”

“Chaeng!” You exclaimed as she sighed, “really… Unnie, you should break up with him, besides there are much nicer guys than him. Like Johnny, Ten, and Osaka Prince, you know.” You sighed, eating your Vietnamese spring rolls.

Although she’s right you just can’t seem to admit it. Somehow you believe that Bryce could change for your sake. But if that was true then he wouldn't ignore you and actually answer your texts…

“But let’s not talk about him now. I’m doing my art project next month and the focus is on the female anatomy. I was wondering if you could be my muse for the project?” Chaeyoung asked, sliding a piece of paper on the table as you checked it out.

“That’s so interesting, what exactly would you want me to do?”

“I’m thinking of taking some pictures of you. Like this, would that be okay with you?” She asked, showing me a naked woman hiding her chest with a white blanket.

“You want me to be naked for your pictures and sketches…?” You mumbled, feeling very shy just the thought of that.

“I know it’s very out of your comfort zone but I’ll make sure to cover your breasts, nudity, and private parts. Also, I’m in a group with other girls and my professor is a woman too.”

“I’ll think about it, Chaeng. I mean it’s your art project so I won’t reject it. And besides, this means a lot to you, so I don’t mind doing it.” You added, drinking your mango basil seed drink as Chaeyoung’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“Yay! Omg, thank you Y/N! Unnie, you’re the best!” She exclaimed, putting her hands together and expressing her gratitude for you. “No problem, Chaeng girl. Let’s go shopping now.”

“I can show you a few of my sketches later,” she hummed as you nodded.

“By the way, thanks for the bento you made earlier, it was so delicious! Even the boys loved it!” Chaeyoung said, chuckling as she locked arms with you.

“Ehh? You didn’t eat lunch on campus?”

“Nope, I finished class early after I discussed my project with the professor.”

“Let me guess it was Mr. Suh and Mr. Lee?” You asked as she giggled, “what’s with you using honorifics, just call them by their names.” Chaeyoung said and smiled.

“But I don’t know them that well…” You muttered, looking at her. “Unnie, they consider you as their friend, the tall guy’s Johnny, and the slim guy’s Ten,” Chaeyoung explained as you looked at her. She was being honest and genuine. “But I don’t know how to talk to them… I’m not as cool as you are–”

“–Y/N, don’t doubt yourself so much! You’re amazing and so cool. I’m lucky to have you as my roomie.”

“What do you think?” You asked, wearing a black leather miniskirt for the first time. Chaeyoung whistled and smirked, “wow, Y/N-Unnie you look so fine! So pretty!”

“You think so? Isn’t the length a bit too short?” You said shyly, looking at the way the skirt was sitting on your butt while posing in front of the mirror.

“So what? You should definitely wear it for the party!”

You turned around looking at the mirror reflection and how the skirt looked on you. “I don’t know what to pair this skirt with… I mean I usually don’t wear anything above my knees…” You sighed as Chaeyoung massaged your shoulders, “don’t worry about it, Unnie. I’ll help you out, any outfit paired with your beauty is going to be perfect!”

“This sports bra or the other one?” Chaeyoung asked, holding a sports bra in each hand.

“Mhm, I really like the white one. It’ll look so nice on you.” You said, smiling.

“What should we eat for dinner tonight?” Chaeyoung asked, opening the refrigerator as she looked over at me.

“Mmh, I don’t know. What about Kimchi Jjigae?”

“Sure thing. Let’s do that, Unnie.”

“We can add small pieces of chicken breast,” You said, opening the refrigerator and pulling out a plastic bag with raw chicken.

“You seem to be in quite a good mood, Yuta.” Ten said, drinking some water. “Mhm. I do?” He asked, drawing some birds on a piece of paper. “Yeah, earlier you were sulking and frowning a lot, I’d figure you fought with Miyawaki?” Ten asked as he sighed, “we did, she ended up leaving earlier yesterday. I should call her and apologize.”

“Don’t you want to break off things with her for a change, Yuta?” Johnny asked, checking the cash register as they looked at each other. “I probably should, I mean Miya-chan is already in a relationship. I can’t be her second choice all the time she gets into a fight with him.”

“Apologize? For what exactly, Yuta?”

“I got mad at her for always calling me whenever she fought with Hisashi.” Yuta scoffed, drinking a sip from his water bottle.

“Hmm, you and Miyawaki only see each other once or twice a week right?”

“That’s right, I thought it was better to hook up with Miyawaki every night,” Yuta admitted, rubbing the back of his head. “I hate sleeping alone.”

🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢

A/N: Thanks for reading, all likes, reblogs and comments mean a lot to me, let me know if you want me to add extra tags or something. 💞

< Teaser – Next part >

🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢🦋✨🐢

#Yuta Fanfic: Like a butterfly #Nakamoto Yuta #Yuta #Yuta Nakamoto #Yuta x Reader #Yuta x Y/N #Reader x Yuta #Lee Min Hyung #Mark #Mark Lee #NCT 127 #Johnny #Johnny Suh #Seo Young Ho #NCT #Ten #Ten Lee #Li Yongqin #Boy Groups #Kpop #Girl Groups #Chaeyoung #Son Chaeyoung #Twice #NCT Fanfic #NCT 127 Fanfic #NCT 127 Fanfiction #Yuta Fanfic #Nakamoto Yuta Fanfic #Kpop Fanfic

[cherrybombfangirl]

What's In Idaho?

@ginevrastilinski !!! here's your girl Darcy getting retraumatized and me projecting a lot of my religious trauma onto her, as promised <3 also this was 6,000 words actually, the religious trauma was stronger than I thought, oh well 😅

Content Warnings: heavily implied/referenced child abuse (physical, mental, and religious), lots of evangelical/fundamentalist cult shit, death and murder, descriptions of blood, lots of very strong swearing, Darcy's religious trauma, Darcy's shitty foster care experience and even shittier foster 'parents', brief mention of sex, gun violence

fair warning, I barely edited this, and there's a lot of places where I just plucked down brackets of [such and such happens here], and I might fill them in much much later.

After escaping the Roman demigod camp on the Argo 2, the others realize that they need to get a certain artifact that will help them in Europe that I will decide the details on later. Unfortunately, Darcy knows exactly where it is, and they have to go dig it up in a small town in Idaho where her worst foster home was.

~

Darcy closed her eyes and pinched her nose.

There was no way.

There was no way that the object Piper was describing from her knife was the same little box.

Reluctantly, she spoke up. “Uh, Piper, It wouldn’t happen to be uh-” She held up her hands to approximate the small size. “-yeh big, blue, and with a magical enchantment etched on it in Greek… would it?”

“Uh, yeah,” Piper said, “That describes it exactly… actually. How did you-”

Darcy sighed, trying not to show too much discomfort. “I… know where it is.” She turned to Leo. “Do you have a detailed map of Idaho somewhere? We’re looking for a pinpoint on that map.”

“I’ll… find something,” Leo said, giving her a weird look similar to everyone else in the room. Percy looked the most suspicious and concerned out of all of them.

Leo came back one awkward minute later, and tapped on the screen in the main room, pulling up a map of the United States, and zooming in on Idaho. “Ok… where are we going?” He asked hesitantly.

Darcy zoomed in the map more, at the base of the Rocky Mountains where a small road, river, and forest met smack in the middle of the state. “Little Rock Falls. It’s about there, less than a thousand people in the population, last I checked. They had to combine the elementary, middle school, and high school into one school because there were so few students and teachers.”

She pointed a little farther north up the map. “You’ll have to park the ship farther away, the people are pretty… superstisious, and me and Percy can make it the rest of the way on foot anyways.” She pointed a little southwest of where the town was supposed to be. “Once we have it, we can lie low in the woods for the night, and you can pick us up about here in the morning.”

“Wait,” Percy said, “Why am I going with you?!”

“Are you sure you don’t want someone else, or you know, a whole group?”

“It’ll be faster with just two,” Darcy said, “Especially cuz we don’t want to be followed.”

“How do you know where it is?” Jason asked, a little scared of Darcy’s knowledge.

Darcy was silent for a second before she gave a short, “I buried it.”

“Do you… remember where it’s buried?” Annabeth asked.

“I remember pretty clearly.”

Before anyone could ask her anything else, she disappeared into one of the cabins where she’d dumped her duffel bag. She started checking that everything she would need was inside, including her essentials for surviving in the woods- flint and steel, a little pocket knife, two wool blankets, an extra jacket, a coil of rope, a flashlight, a book of old road maps of the US, a small compass, and her most recent addition- a camping shovel (it was pretty big, so she tied it to the outside of the bag). 

She also poked around Leo’s stuff, and thanked fuck that she found a pair of shears for cutting metal- definitely going to need that. She also made sure that she had five or six meat sandwiches on her, courtesy of the Argo’s well stocked kitchen.

Annabeth came in, arms folded (Darcy knew she should’ve closed the door). “What’s in Idaho?”

Darcy didn’t answer, trading her sneakers for the hiking boots she’d stowed in her bag, pulling on thick wool socks before she put on the boots. Even in the summer, it would get chilly in the mountains, especially at night.

“Darcy.”

With a huff, Darcy pulled on a bomber jacket over her thin gray jacket. “What?”

“What’s in Idaho? Why do you know exactly where the box is?”

Darcy zipped the duffel bag shut and threw it over her head so that the duffel rested against her back. “It’s no big deal, we’ll be in and out before they even see us.”

Annabeth studied Darcy’s face, and her expression softened. “Most of your foster homes were in Idaho, weren’t they?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Most of them were in Idaho, weren’t they?” Annabeth repeated, trying to gauge Darcy’s reaction.

Darcy huffed. “Why are you asking me all this?”

“Because I don’t know much about how you grew up, other than you were in foster care. That’s it. I don’t know anything beyond that.”

“Why would you want to know more?”

“It was just me and you looking for Percy a few weeks ago, Darcy. You never opened up during any of that time about your childhood. About Percy, yes, but not you.”

Darcy bit the inside of her cheek, trying not to react.

“You can’t shut everyone out, Darcy, I don’t know what shit you went through but you can’t bury it and stay closed off about it. It’s not healthy to supress everything.”

After a beat of silence, Annabeth continued, “Then just now, you reacted the way you did out there to Piper describing the box and showing us exactly where to go.”

“Are you accusing me of something?”

“No, I’m worried about you. I think that something happened to you in Idaho that you’re not sharing.”

“Not much to share, Idaho is a boring state. It’s the even more boring version of Utah. Only thing worth mentioning is that it’s the only state in the US that grows potatoes as a major part of its economy. That’s a boring ass fun fact.”

“I’m talking about you, not the state. What happened to you in Idaho?”

“Nothing I feel like sharing,” Darcy growled, leaving the cabin to go find Percy and make sure he had wool socks and a thick jacket for the journey ahead.

~~~

Birds twittered sweetly and insects buzzed, echoing through the woods. The leaves, sticks, and pine needles of the forest floor crunched under their feet. Darcy pulled out one of the old road maps and a small compass- checking that they were on course.

“Alright,” Percy said, stepping up next to her, “You have some explaining to do.”

Darcy sighed, adjusting her hold on the compass and map. “Not you too.”

“Why me?”

“There’s safety in numbers,” Darcy said with a shrug, not looking up from the map.

“Then why not take some of the others too?”

“Too many will draw attention and make us easier to track, and we don’t want that.”

Percy grabbed her shoulder and turned her to face him. “Why did you choose me to come with you? You hate me.”

“You’re not wrong.”

“We both know you’d sell me to the devil for a corn chip if you felt like it.”

 “That is also true. But you’re also the most qualified in this situation.”

Percy stared, open mouthed. He then gestured to the woods around them. “We’re in a landlocked state, I don’t know if you noticed. My powers will not be super helpful here. Powers wise, Jason would be more qualified here, cuz air. Or Hazel, because her turf is everywhere there’s solid ground.”

Darcy went back to the map and turned her back to him, staying silent.

“Why did you pick me for this little quest? Everyone including me knows that you think I’m stupid, plus we’ll just fight the whole time, which I don’t think is going to be very helpful. Why not someone smarter or that you get along with more, like Annabeth?”

Darcy still didn’t reply, she pretended to be busy with the map, even though it was a little too long to be checking a map.

“Darcy.”

She tapped her foot, hoping he’d just drop it.

“Why me?!”

She bit the inside of her cheek, mind screaming the answer, but refusing to speak.

“Why. Me?”

Darcy snapped the map shut and shouted, “Because I don’t want anyone else to know, ok?!”

Percy blinked, taking a step back. After a few minutes of thick silence, he said softly, “What do you mean?”

Darcy took a deep breath, trying to seem uncaring about it. “None of the others know about what my growing up was like. Annabeth knows that I was in foster care, but nothing beyond that. The only people who know much more than that are you and Mom,” she aggressively folded the map and shoved it in her duffel bag, “And I would prefer to keep it that way. That’s why I picked you and not anyone else. Now let’s go.”

She started down the slope towards the small cluster of buildings in the distance at the bottom of the mountains.

Darcy didn’t talk to him the rest of the way to Little Rock Falls.

Steeling her nerves for what was to come, she hoped she looked different enough to not be recognized.

There was one road in town, and a few houses scattered in the woods that surrounded it. At the end of the road, the school had gotten a little bigger than Darcy had last seen it, but not by much. There were some people walking up and down the only street, most going to the small grocery store or poor excuse for a drug store.

Darcy made her way to the road that would take them up to their destination, Percy trailing behind like a lost kitten. She grabbed his arm and pulled him next to her, “Act normal, you look suspicious.”

Percy was about to shoot back, but a deep voice interrupted them. “Excuse me.”

Darcy turned to find a police officer. The only difference since she’d last seen the cop being that he finally had more hair on his face. The fact that he was blonde didn’t help that his chin still looked bare from a distance.

“Can I help you?” Darcy asked with a fake smile on her face, kicking Percy’s shin behind her to shut him up.

“Several years ago we had a delinquent foster care runaway. She was about eleven or twelve and had dark red hair.” The cop lowered his sunglasses and examined her face. “She looked a lot like you actually, and would be about seventeen or eighteen by now.”

Keeping a straight face, Darcy shrugged. “What a coincidence. Good thing I was a good child that grew up with loving parents in a stable home.”

The officer chuckled, then said in a more serious tone, reaching behind his back for his handcuffs or gun. “I’m gonna have to take you in-”

Darcy grabbed the cop’s shoulder and drove her knee into his groin as hard as she could.

The cop wheezed, doubling over as Darcy grabbed Percy’s shoulder and pulled him behind her as she dashed behind the cover of a large building across the street. 

“Darcy-” Percy panted, but she shushed him, listening for the cop and anyone else.

She could hear the cop yelling for them to stop, and she and Percy plunged into the woods near the rugged dirt road that turned up towards the mountain.

Percy said, “Will you just explain-”

“Later,” Darcy hissed, “We’re running out of daylight. And we need to get in there and grab the box before they realize I’m here.”

“Before who realizes?” Percy asked as they walked along the dirt road, using the thick woods for cover.

Darcy fixed her eyes ahead, focusing on not twisting her ankle on a tree root as they quickly walked.

Percy grabbed her shoulder and stopped her. “Darcy. We’re going to one of your foster homes, aren’t we?”

“The one I was at the longest, yeah. I buried the box in the backyard. Can you stop interrupting? We don’t have time for you to be asking your questions.”

“I’m guessing this family is the ones we’re worried about finding out that we’re here.”

“I wouldn’t call it a family, but yeah, they can’t know we’re here. This will go a lot smoother if we get in and out without them knowing.”

Percy said softly, “Darcy…”

“What?”

“You said this was the family you stayed with longest.”

“Yeah, why?”

“What happened to you here, Darcy?”

“If I get asked that one more time-“ she growled under her breath. Then she snapped, “I’m fine, ok?! Nothing happened here, I’m fine!”

Then she stormed off, up the road and getting closer to the mountains.

The road got narrower and narrower, and less and less traveled on. Darcy kept going, until they saw the first house in miles, nestled in the trees, surrounded by a chain link fence.

They circled around to the back of the house, where two dogs lay sleeping, chained up to the base of the house.

Darcy cursed under her breath.

“What?” Percy hissed.

“I should’ve known they got another dog. That’s going to be a problem.” She opened her duffel bag, and pulled out the bundle of sandwiches. “I hope this is enough for two dogs.” She pulled out the metal clippers, and handed the sandwiches to Percy. “Get ready to throw these at the dogs. Once you do we won’t have a lot of time.”

“You remember where you buried it?” Percy asked.

“It’s right next to that rock in this corner of the yard.” She took a deep breath. “Hopefully the dirt hasn’t frozen yet.”

She slithered forward across the grass on her stomach, pulling herself forward as quickly as she dared. Percy followed suit right behind her.

[ about six years before]

The old house creaked as it settled, just like it did every night around the time the other seven kids were fast asleep. The basement was crowded, each child having their own pallet. There was one dusty window at ground level, and the door was locked every night- to keep the devil out, as the parents told them.

Darcy was only eleven (or ten, no one was really sure due to the lack of birth certificate), but she knew they were full of bullshit, and refused to call them her parents. No matter how many times they punished her, or told her that God revealed to them that she was their spirit daughter as had been set apart in the premortal life- she wouldn’t call them parents. 

Just like most of the other homes she’d been in, she was an outsider, an alien to the family, and wouldn’t be staying long.

She had no family, abandoned at a hospital in one of the nearest cities a few hours away. Kicked from foster home to foster home since she was young. She’d learned very quickly to live off of a small duffel bag and not need anything she couldn’t fit in it.

She listened to the house above them, for the tell tale signs of the parents having the sex they’d had every night for the past few months. They said that God told them it was time for them to have another child, even though the basement could barely hold eight kids as it was. Most of the kids were girls, all of them close in age. 

There was a set of scriptures at the foot of each bed, and each of them was expected to read the scriptures before bed each night and first thing each morning- until they had the holy books memorized from cover to cover to Samuel and Diana’s satisfaction. If it wasn’t to satisfaction, you got punished any number of ways- no food or water for a random amount of time, sleeping outside with the dogs, or the worst one if Samuel was in a bad mood.

Darcy had gotten quite a few lashes and welts across her back and arms just in her first few weeks there for speaking up that this wasn’t fair or just whenever Samuel felt that ‘the devil possessing her needed to learn a lesson’. She learned pretty quickly to keep her thoughts to herself and her head down, no matter how unfair it got.

She’d managed to escape punishment for a while, until the day before when Samuel was inspecting how well she’d memorized the scriptures. He didn’t seem to care that she couldn’t tell what the squigles and blobs meant, or that she never could in the first place. He said she was just stupid, and must not care that her family was going to hell because of her because she didn’t care enough to memorize the holy scripture. Darcy protested, and got the worst punishment all up her arms and back.

She’d never gotten both at the same time before.

On top of that, Diana decided that the devil inside her must be winning power over her, and gave Darcy “a good smacking” to get the devil to leave her.

Darcy didn’t know what was wrong with her, but she was very sure that she wasn’t possessed by anything, and it wasn’t her fault the bible couldn’t be deciphered.

Her arms and back stung every time she moved them, but as Samuel and Diana’s actions got more intense upstairs, she knew this was the only chance she was going to get.

Darcy grabbed the small screwdriver out from under her bed, tucked between the thin mattress and the wood planks.

Moving as quickly as she dared, Darcy started unscrewing the screws in the small dusty window.

Darcy started clipping the wire of the fence, creating a hole for them to crawl through. The dogs started to stir and Darcy looked at Percy, ready to throw the sandwiches. She cut a few more links in the fence, and the new dog woke up and started growling, waking the other one as well.

“Throw them, now!” Darcy hissed.

Percy chucked the sandwiches over the fence, and they landed right in front of the dogs.

The two dogs happily started to devour the sandwiches while Darcy and Percy crawled through the hole.

Darcy shoved her duffel bag in Percy’s hands, and started to untie the shovel, which was small enough to cart up here, but big enough for the job.

She went over to the corner of the yard where a large rock sat, and started digging. Just a few minutes in, someone inside the house shouted, “What’s going on out there? You kids aren’t supposed to be out!” It was a man’s voice, booming and harsh, with a hint of ‘God-given’ righteousness to it.

Darcy cursed under her breath and threw the shovel into Percy’s hands. “Keep digging, whatever happens don’t stop until you have it, I can handle this.”

The voice shouted again, “Diana, did you feed those dogs? You know they ain’t supposed to be fed yet! … Well I can hear them eating something!”

While Percy kept digging, Darcy crept over to the corner of the house where the shed was. She checked over her shoulder, noting that the dogs were about halfway through the sandwiches.

A large, rough hand grabbed Darcy’s hair and pulled her back.

Darcy yelled, trying to rip free.

The strong hand threw her to the ground, knocking the wind out of her as she smacked her skull on the hard dirt. Head spinning, she scrambled backwards and tried to get to her feet.

[flashback continuing from the first one I have yet to write]

“Darcy, has your heart become so laden with guilt and sorrow you came crawling back here to repent?”

Darcy had backed up into the fence and used it to pull herself up, the wires digging into her fingers, biting with cold. Her heart hammered in her chest as blood rushed to her ears, Darcy tried her hardest to only react with a cold glare. “Nope. And I don’t need to. Just here for one little thing and then you’ll never see me again.”

“You tore this family apart Darcy. We might not make it to the Celestial Kingdom as a family because of you. Don’t you want an eternal family?”

“Not if it’s yours,” Darcy snapped. He stepped closer to her, hands on his belt buckle. He was wearing a rusty brown jacket over a white button up shirt, the shirt was off white and hadn’t been clean in a long time.

Darcy backed away as he stepped closer. He’d grown out his beard, and it was much longer than the last time she saw him. His brown hair was also long, almost past his chin, and was in desperate need of a wash.

“Darcy, you are a daughter of God-”

“Correction, I’m a daughter of a god, one of many, and your god is kind of pathetic.”

“Pathetic? Darcy, is that how we talk about our father in heaven?”

“I could take him in a fight, easy.”

“God is all powerful, he can’t be defeated, we know this from the holy scrip-”

“Considering I fought an actual god of the Greek pantheon- oh, yeah they’re very much real, and kind of douchebags- and a greek titan, which is just a much older and more powerful version of a god-” The dogs only had a quarter of the sandwiches left and Percy had dug so deep he must be close to the box. “Considering I fought both of those and won, I think your God would be pretty easy to beat. At least for me.”

“Don’t interrupt me, Darcy. You know one of the commandments is to honor thy father and thy mother.”

“You’re the farthest fucking thing from my father.”

“You may not have been born to us, but it was in Heavenly Father’s plan that you are part of our family. Your biological family on earth sure didn’t want you.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Darcy said, “I found my family after I left, and they didn’t want to leave me. Unlike you, they actually love me.”

“We do love you Darcy, which is why sometimes you need correction.”

“My real family doesn’t think I need correction,” Darcy said, folding her arms, “You’re a sick fucking bastard that only sees children as punching bags. Fuck you, and fuck your fucking family.”

Samuel’s eyes darkened. “The language you are using isn’t righteous or clean, Darcy. They must be the words of Satan.”

Darcy backed away, only for her back to meet the other corner of the yard where shovels, rakes, and other yard tools had been leaned against the fence in a pile. She squared her feet and balled her hands into fists, blood roaring in her head and ears. “Stay the hell away from me.”

“Darcy, you need to be taught a lesson, and a righteous parent, I must obey God’s will and teach it to you.” Samuel’s hands were undoing his belt buckle.

Darcy swallowed, as her brain and body disconnected, and it felt like she was trying to move through neck deep mud.

Samuel pulled the belt through the loops of his pants, and Darcy felt like ten years old again, as everything slowed down and sped up at the same time. Her head started to spin as she tried to get her body to fight back, do something.

“Hands on the fence, Darcy.”

Darcy didn’t move, breath frozen in her throat.

There was a loud snap, making her flinch involuntarily. “Now, Darcy!”

Samuel was starting to get impatient, raising the thing over his head.

But before the belt could come down on her and inflict red hot pain, the sharp edge of a shovel made contact with Samuel’s temple, and he fell to the ground, blood pouring out of his head. He groaned, curling up and moaning in pain. So he probably wasn’t dead, at least not yet.

Darcy collapsed against the fence, leaning against it hard as the rusty old shovel slipped from her hands to the ground. She was breathing heavily as the world spun around her and her whole body started to tremble.

“I got it! Are you ok?” Percy said, rushing over as he brushed dirt off the small blue box. It was about the size of his fist, and the bright blue of the box had faded.

Darcy was pretty sure this was the second time in her life that her brother was very visibly concerned about her, actually scared for her. “He wasn’t about to-”

“Not right now, please,” Darcy said, grabbing the duffel bag and shovel from him.

A new voice shouted from in the house, this one female, also rough with a ‘God-given’ righteousness to it. “Sam! SAM! What’s going on out there?”

The dogs finished with the sandwiches, Moses laying down to sleep while the new, young dog started barking ferociously, tugging on his chain so hard it might rip the chain out from where it was securely attached to the stone foundation of the house.

“Samuel!” Cried the woman’s voice, now outside with them as Samuel groaned and writhed on the ground.

A woman wearing a pioneer style dress with blonde hair took in the scene before her. After a few seconds of looking at Darcy, her eyes narrowed. “You.”

She charged forward. “You sinful, disobiedent, possessed child of Satan! You tear our family apart by leaving, and now you’ve come back to kill your own father!”

Darcy growled. “He’s not my fucking father.”

“And am I not your mother?”

“My mom’s in New York, and she’s the nicest, sweetest, most badass lady to grace this planet. She doesn’t think I’m a problem that needs to be fixed. She would also beat the shit out of you if she knew about what you did.”

“Your biological family didn’t want you, you’re lucky God chose us to be your family and we took you in,” Diana said, looking disappointed.

Darcy took a step towards Diana, fear replaced by pure rage. “You were wrong about me. You’re not my fucking family. My biological family did want me. I found them, and they love me so much more than you ever could. And I couldn’t read your fucking bible because I’m dyslexic, not a sinner you bitch.”

Diana gasped at the language, but before she could launch into a lecture, Darcy kept going. “I wasn’t something that needed to be fixed. I wasn’t possessed by Satan or any demon, I have ADHD and was being followed by monsters that I didn’t choose. I met gods, yes gods plural, and none of them were like the god you think is real. I even fought one, and also a titan god. My real family wanted to keep me, but had to give me up to keep me safe. I can be happy by being a decent person, not following your bullshit commandments. You never loved me or cared for me.” 

She was close enough to touch Diana now. “And I don’t need you.”

Diana was so shocked she couldn’t even speak. She watched wordlessly as Darcy grabbed Percy’s shoulder and they turned to leave.

Diana’s hand wrapped in Darcy’s hair, yanking her back and throwing her to the ground.

“Darcy Mary Larsen in God’s name-”

“THAT’S NOT MY FUCKING NAME!” Darcy screamed, hands finding a rock the size of her fist. She rolled over and tackled Diana to the ground.

“MY NAME IS DARCY ASTREA JACKSON YOU PIECE OF SHIT!” Darcy screamed so loud her throat burned, and with each word she bashed Diana’s head in with the rock, until her skull was sunken in and she stared up at Darcy with dead eyes.

Darcy sat back, rock slipping from her hand as she panted and her bloodstream still roared with adrenaline. She almost collapsed to the ground, but Percy’s leg was there, and she leaned against it for a minute.

Samuel started to groan on the ground, and Darcy struggled to her feet, body trembling. “We need to go.”

Percy swallowed, looking at the two horrible people on the ground, and just nodded, handing her the duffel bag again.

They rushed over to the fence, and behind her, she could hear Samuel starting to get up, cursing Darcy and calling her a murderer and a sinner, and saying he was going to teach her a lesson for this disobedience. Meanwhile, the new dog barked violently, trashing against its chain.

As Percy was crawling through the hole in the fence, the hair on the back of Darcy’s neck stood up. She whipped around, and saw that Samuel had gathered enough strength to crawl to the shed and was pulling down his shotgun.

[flashback here that mirrors this scene]

“PERCY RUN!” Darcy screamed, throwing the duffel bag over the fence and climbing over it, letting the barbed wire at the top leave rips in her shirt and jeans as she scrambled over.

She landed on the other side, threw the duffel bag over her shoulder, and yanked Percy to his feet. They made it to the trees when she looked over her shoulder and saw Samuel taking aim with his gun.

“GET DOWN!” She screamed, yanking Percy down with her to the forest floor.

An ear splitting gunshot rang out, the crack echoing through the woods.

Samuel was yelling, cursing and screaming threats. Darcy scrambled to her feet, yanking Percy with her, and they plunged into the woods. She was dragging Percy behind her as her feet pounded the forest floor. He could barely keep up with her, stumbling over tree roots and rocks.

But Darcy didn’t dare slow down (let alone stop), and she wasn’t about to leave Percy behind with those monsters.

[shorter flashback that again mirrors this scene]

She lost track of how long they’d been running, but some time later, the sun was starting to set, and she figured that they were far enough away now. They tramped over a few creeks to make sure their scent would be lost, and found an area that was secluded enough, but near the area where they’d told Leo to fly the Argo to come pick them up in the morning.

Darcy set to work on a campfire, and directed Percy to gather some firewood- no green stuff and to get sticks ranging from twigs to small logs. According to her, he did ‘a good enough job’.

When he gathered enough, she had already lit some small twigs and leaves. She then used the firewood to build a small campfire.

They covered the ground in pine needles, leaves, and twigs with the wool blankets on top to keep the ground from sucking the heat out of them, and sat down in front of the fire.

They dried their feet, socks, and boots in front of the fire. The entire time, Darcy stared into the fire, trying not to think about the last time she was in these woods. Percy was also silent for once, and she appreciated him for that.

She looked up at the clear sky of stars, a strange feeling hitting her as this sky looked almost the same as the last time she’d seen it. She was able to find all the constellations she knew very quickly.

Percy said quietly, “Can I ask something? You don’t have to answer.”

“Sure,” Darcy said, going back to watching flames dance across the logs.

“How long were you with them?”

“It’s all pretty blurry, but about a year I think,” Darcy said, pulling the extra jacket tighter around her, “The other houses I never stayed more than a couple months. Monsters either showed up- but I thought they were just really fucked up dogs or terrible adults- or my anger issues got me kicked out.”

“How much does Mom know?”

“Just that I was in the system and got kicked from house to house, and that all the homes were pretty much in Idaho. She doesn’t know more than that,” She shrugged, “She might suspect more though.”

Percy nodded, staring into the fire as well. “That piece of shit… Sam?”

“Yeah?”

“He reminded me of Gabe a little too much, though this guy was much more religious. Gabe wouldn’t set foot in a church unless there was beer and a poker table.”

“The shitty guy Mom was married to at one point, right?”

Percy let out a dry snort. “Be glad you never had the displeasure of meeting him.”

“Didn’t need to, I had a Samuel. Sounds like he and Gabe would’ve gotten along pretty well.”

“Well, Samuel wouldn’t appreciate the gambling and drinking I don’t think, but they certainly would’ve agreed on beating up kids.”

Percy nodded back in the direction they ran from. “So Mom doesn’t know about any of that?”

“Hell no, and she’s not going to,” Darcy grabbed a stick and poked at the fire, pushing the coals closer together, “She’s got enough to worry about, with you and me being demigods and you disappearing and shit.”

It was silent again for a minute. “What happened to Gabe anyway, you never told me.” Darcy said.

Percy smirked and said casually, “Mom turned him to stone with Medusa’s head.”

“What?” Darcy said, almost laughing, “Mom did that?!”

Percy nodded.

“How did she get ahold of Medusa’s head?”

“Oh I cut off Medusa’s head for a quest, mailed it to Olympus, and then Dad had me bring it home in a box.”

“Damn, really!?”

“True story, though I think bashing the skull in with a rock is just as effective.” He added, “How are things back home? You never did give me a proper update.”

“Well, I moved into the apartment with Mom, and so did Paul,” Darcy said.

Percy said, “I swear if you stole my room-”

“Ew, no, your room is a biohazard!” Darcy said, “Mom and Paul made some renovations to the apartment, they took out the washer and dryer and my room is the old washroom. They figured washing clothes downstairs or at the laundromat across the street will be fine. It’s small, and I don’t have a proper door yet, but I’d take it over your cesspool of a room.”

“My room is not a cesspool.”

“Your socks have their own ecosystem and you can see the smell!” Darcy said, smacking his shoulder.

“Cannot!”

“Can to!”

Percy gave up, giving his usual drama queen pout.

Darcy grinned, and her smile fell as memories from these mountains crept into her thoughts. “Last time I was here it took me hours to manage a fire,” She said quietly, almost to herself, “I still couldn’t sleep because the ground was so cold, and I couldn’t figure out a bigger fire.”

“At least you’re not alone this time,” Percy said, scooting a little closer until their shoulders were touching, “Even if it is with an annoying idiot.”

Darcy shrugged. “Well, you did have my back in there so… I think that makes up for you being an annoying crackhead.” Her eyes started to droop, and she allowed her head to rest on his shoulder.

[they are picked up the next morning by the Argo, and continue making their way to Europe. A few weeks later while on their quest, Sally Iris messages them to ask why cops showed up to their house and the suspected murderer of two people looks like her and has the same face, hair, and first name as Darcy. Darcy is like “it’s fine, they deserved it.” Sally pieces together that they were one of Darcy’s foster families, and wants Darcy to open up about what happened exactly (absolutely not going to turn her over to the cops). Darcy’s like, “It’s fine, Percy was with me.” and their Paul turns to Percy like, “You let your sister murder two mortals?!” Percy shrugs and accidentlly lets it slip what Sam was about to do. Darcy smacks Percy’s shoulder and is like “Dude! You said you wouldn’t say what happened!”. Sally is livid and wants to know the nearest entrance to the underworld so she can beat the shit out of those two horrible people.]

#heed the content warnings! #if i missed any content warnings let me know please <3 #percy jackson #pjo #pjo hoo toa #pjo hoo #percy jackson oc #riordanverse #riordanverse oc #percy jacksonverse #annabeth chase #oc: darcy #percy jackon and the olympians #pjo fandom #pjo fanfic #percy jackson fanfic #argo 2 crew #cw religious abuse #cw child abuse #cw murder #cw gun violence #cw evangelical/fundamentalist cult #cw cult #cw physical abuse #(implied/referenced) #my ocs #my writing #my art

[anxious-little-faicye]

The FNAF Movie (no spoilers)

So, I just got back from watching the so awaited Five Nights at Freddy's movie, and boy oh boy... I can't even put into words how emotional I am. It was such a wild, crazy, amazing thing to actually be sitting down on a cinema and watch a movie I waited for- what, 8 years? I remember being a child and first learning about the game through ✨youtube✨ (as most of us did let's be honest), and I'm not exaggerating when I say that changed my life forever. I got into gaming and social media because of it, I made some of my best friends because of it (shout out to the gang I used to rp FNAF with on elementary school), I discovered my interests and passions that shaped who I was and who I am, and it all started out because of a silly horror game about haunted animatronics.

And today? Today it wasn't me that went to see that movie. It was the lonely, shy 9 year old girl that got bullied at school because she liked "weird boy stuff" and hanged out with boys because they understood her. It was the 10 year old girl that saw FNAF 3 and 4 come out and discovered she loved to uncover the lore of the franchise and watched about a million theory videos. It was the 11 year old girl that watched lived as two youtubers played Sister Location the day it came out. It was the 15 year old teenager that rediscovered her love for the franchise and found Matpat's channel and started to make her own theories. It was that 16 year old teen that read the first trilogy of FNAF books and from then on took it upon herself to know every single detail about the story, plus finding out about our beloved King Of Five Nights At Freddy's™ and watched his FNAF playlist top to bottom.

It was them.

So I went there- with my crappy Vanny mask I made in 3 days, with the Freddy pushy I've had since I was 11, with my dad' stolen purple shirt, and honestly? I had the time of my life. I was at the edge of my seat the whole movie, screaming and hitting (lovingly /j) my friends every time a very specific detail came out, giggling and kicking my feet once You Know Who appeared or when something that matched the lore perfectly happened. And once me and my friends came out, we were all still yelling and singing our lungs out to FNAF songs. It was more that I could've hoped for.

I won't go into much detail on this post, because I wanna keep it as much spoiler-free as I can, but I'm just gonna say this... This movie was a hug from Scott Cawthon to all fans of the franchise, especially those that have been here from the very beginning. It was his gift. His way of saying 'thank you'. Sure, some plot points were absolute bonkers, and to be fair it lacked a bit of the Spooky Factor and more gore. But overall... I FREAKING LOVED EVERY MOMENT OF IT. I felt the same excitement that when I first discovered the games and started to get into the lore. You can tell that a lot of heart and soul was put into this, and that it wasn't made for a quick cash grab.

Was it worth the wait? Well, that depends on how you wanna see it. Keep in mind that this is planned to be a trilogy, so it has to have some loose plot points in order to set the ground for a second movie- let alone leave stuff out from the games and books. Is wasn't groundbreaking, and no, it doesn't include every single detail about the story. But it was a perfect introduction to the universe, and I think that's all it's set up to be. But I personally thought it was SO worth it and, let's be real, we've waited 8 fucking years for this! Even if it turned out to be a piece of crap (which it isn't), I would still be excited.

Anyway, yeah, was the movie perfect? No. Was a bit weird and confusing at some points? Yes. But it was made for the fans, for those of us that FNAF played a huge role in our lives as kids, and for those of us who just discovered the franchise not so long ago. It was made with love- for the games, for the creator, and for all of us. The fans that have built an amazing community that still stands strong today, a community filled with incredibly talented people like artists, singers, animators, youtubers, theory crafters (you're doing God's Work jsdhsj), cosplayers, editors, writers, the list just goes on and on. It was made with all of us in mind. So as broken and confusing as it might be, is beautiful. What represents is beautiful. And hey, it wouldn't be FNAF if it weren't broken and confusing am I right fellas?

*cries in Theorist*

So I guess my final thoughts are just... Thank you.

Thank you Scott Cawthon for all those years of scares and joy you have given me, thank you for making the game that would shape my life forever, thank you for loving your fans as much as you do, and thank you for not giving up on this movie despite all the things that happened along the way. You might have fucked up big time on some things, but I would be lying to myself if I said I don't appreciate you. Thank you for the best moments of my life.

And thank YOU, Five Nights at Freddy's community for everything you have done these years. If the franchise is what it is today is because it always had an amazing and creative fanbase backing it up and making sure it never died, no matter what sticks and stones came our way. I am so proud to be a part of this, and I hope we'll still be together many years to come.

And thank me, for making it alive and in one piece to the FNAF movie. Damn it took a lot of pain to get here, but I did it... I survived this long. And I can survive even longer.

I hope you can stay alive 5 more nights for this :)

#five nights at freddy's #fnaf #fnaf movie #fnaf movie no spoilers #review #faicye speaks

[beyondthisdarkhouse]

I am TRYING to be fair to the "barefoot is best" people, because I know that emotionally I consider them as very similar to the "Go off your psych meds! Eat 16 oranges a day instead!" people. (Is that reference too dated now?)

I found a perfect demonstration of what I mean in my google searching. In a running forum, someone posted asking for help, since they have "significant hip and knee discomfort" and that "it seems that my foot has been the cause of the problem. The inner front of my left foot is raised, which causes me to roll in when I walk and run." This is the same issue I have! It's where the bare foot cannot rest fully on the ground without causing the ankle to collapse. The bare foot is intrinsically fucked up and cannot walk healthily without assistance.

The thread only has two replies:

*JAZZ HANDS* BAD ADVICE EXTRAVAGANZA!

Because even as a podiatrist hawking his own invention admits, people like the OP whose feet chronically and dramatically under- or over-pronate, even if their toes are given every chance to work normally, should probably have orthotic assistance:

He says this is about 3% of the clients he sees, which is very comforting if you're marketing towards 97% of people and less comforting if you're not among them.

Something that enrages me is seeing people point to things like this 1949 study, "Survey in China and India of Feet That Have Never Worn Shoes". Its conclusion is more of a soundbite than any other scientific paper I have ever seen.

Conclusion

People who have never worn shoes acquire very few foot defects, most of which are painless and non-debilitating. The range of their foot motions are remarkably great, allowing for full foot activity. Shoes are not necessary for healthy feet and are the cause of most foot troubles. Children should not be encouraged to walk prematurely and should not wear any footgear until absolutely necessary. Footgear is the greatest enemy of the human foot.

Which is great... until you go back to the section about their sampling methods, which says. "Persons with any obvious generalized disease or deformity, acquired or congenital, were not considered as falling within the scope of the survey and so were not included."

(It's little things like that that remind you that in 1949, the Western medical establishment generally thought that disabled people ought to be segregated from the rest of society in asylums. One of my elementary school teachers had the goodness to recommend I read books by disabled Canadian author Jean Little, to give me a sense that I was not alone. Her first published novel was 1962's Mine for Keeps, about a girl with cerebral palsy who comes home to her family after living for five years at the Allendale School for Handicapped Children. She barely knows her siblings, and is absolutely amazed that her family has outfitted the house with things like carpets that won't slip out from under her crutches as she walks. She's the first person with cerebral palsy to ever attend her neighbourhood school. She gets friends and adopts a dog, it's adorable. But my point is, it's really useful to remember that when people say, "Back in the olden days, people didn't have these disabilities!" they're mostly unaware of the reality that back the olden days, people with those disabilities didn't get to go out in public.)

Spiders Georg is an outlier adn should not be counted... up until you are the doctor tasked with treating Spiders Georg! At which point it is not very helpful to say "Well, the average person eats 0 spiders a year, so I don't think spider consumption is something you need to worry about."

And if something affects 1% of the population, that means that in a statistically average city of 1 million people, ten thousand people have it.

So I'm still very "Oh fuck OFF" when someone wants to tell me that barefoot running worked for them and therefore shoes are bad for everybody. I'm even chronically stressed with places where I'm asked to take my shoes off at the door, because walking barefoot hurts and therefore I'm always having to decide between prioritizing my own health, and appearing rude and standing out as That One Weird Person With Her Shoes On. Especially since sometimes going barefoot has strong spiritual/religious symbolism, and I'd like to not be a walking desecration, you know?

But that doesn't mean the barefoot lobby is completely useless. I've had a lot of success learning from the scientists and doctors who study foot movement and have questioned standard podiatric treatment. I spent a long time getting blisters from orthotics that propped my foot into the correct position but didn't care at all about how my foot moved throughout the gait cycle.

I've spent ten years mostly away from podiatrists, learning what I can from pedorthists, physiotherapists, and ballet dancers. I've moved from using my right foot as a peg leg whose joints didn't articulate to being able to tiptoe and even, very cautiously, dance. I made myself a special 2" tall rubber mat so I can exercise barefoot while still giving my short leg the height boost it needs to put my hips even.

But being Spiders Georg is tiring as all fuck sometimes. Sometimes I'd like to be counted.

#Youtube #it's shoetime baby

[thecatinthestacks]

I feel like I should get back to making content for this blog because I have funny stories to tell about working as an elementary school librarian and people should hear them.

So anyway, here's what I hope will be a recurring post- WHY ARE THE KIDS CRYING THIS TIME?

- Wanting Mommy (most popular option)

- It was the second day of school and she wanted it to be the first.

- He threw his shoe over the fence and an older boy got it back for him.

- I told him to quit hanging off the slide like that and he did it anyway and fell off.

- I kicked him out of the library after I told him to quit chasing the other kids and hitting them with his shelf marker and he did it again.

- She got her chips out when she wasn’t supposed to and I confiscated them.

- Also her twin sister fell off the climbing bars right after and they were scream-crying in delightful surround sound.

- The other boy won’t stop calling him a “chicken nugget”.

- Does NOT want a nap.

- He dropped his Fruit By The Foot on the cafeteria floor and I wouldn’t let him continue to eat it.

- She was ripping pages out of her library book and I took it away.

- I paperclipped her papers together when I said I was going to staple them.

- I accidentally gave her twin sister a second turn using the carpet sweeper when it was her turn.

- The book he wanted at the fair cost $5 and he “only had $10″.

- I told him he wasn’t allowed to shove people out of the way to be first in line.

- I told them bigfoot wasn’t real. (multiple instances)

- I made her put her Spaghetti-o’s in a microwave safe container instead of heating them up in her metal thermos.

- She found out she had to return her library books in order to check out new ones.

- I made him put on his coat before he went outside in 25F weather.

- He did NOT want to sit criss-cross-applesauce.

- We got to the part of the song where none of the five little ducks came back.

#library life #kids are weird #why are the kids crying this time?

[rudjedet]

so like. did your love for yugioh cause the persistent interest in all things Egypt, or did your interest in egyptology give you a special fondness for yugioh

The latter. I've loved egypt since i can remember, when they lost me during elementary school (happened a fair bit) most often i'd be found in the school library digging through egypt books. Yugioh just fell neatly into that love.

Though i didn't love yugioh straight off the bat; it was very popular here almost 20 years ago (jesus fuck) and my best friend at the time had badgered me for weeks to watch it because she thought i'd dig it, but i was like ehhhh idkkk, seems not my thing. I was living with my grandad back then which wasn't the best situation though, so one afternoon I'd proverbially locked myself in my room (i slept on the attic which had no door) and turned on the dodgy second-hand tv we had there, and yugioh just so happened to be on. It was the battle city arc, second ep of yami duelling the rare hunter that had taken joey's red eyes black dragon, which obviously had marik in it.

So anyway 15 y/o me took one look at marik, said "who is this absolute cunt and why is he egyptian", and never looked back.

#bakura showing up later just put the nail into that particular coffin #i will always have a thing for cunts #it's in my dna