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angelsunflowers-fanfics · 3 years

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[Borderlands] Rhys Strongfork x Female!Secretary!reader x Timothy Lawrence WIP

Genre: ?

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It had been 7 years since Handsome Jack’s death; the first time with the vault hunters and the second with Rhys having to rip out his cybernetics. It’s been hard for everyone, all the trauma and stress that they’ve been through.

Not to mention the nightmares that Rhys tended to get from time to time. But luckily for the new CEO of Atlas, he had (y/n), his secretary and best friend of multiple years.

He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to get through everything that he had from the last 6ish years without (y/n). That’s for certain. And it didn’t hurt that she knew a thing or two about fighting.

But currently, Rhys had a very important meeting.

He didn't want to scare (y/n) about who was currently on his way right now. Though, Rhys didn’t exactly know of (y/n)'s vault hunting past.

She did try to tell him on more than one occasion, but he always thought that she was joking.

Even after saving Rhys multiple times, he still had an urge to protect (y/n).

"Okay, that's it. What's going on? You've been looking nervous all morning… Well, more so than usual," (y/n) said with worry.

Rhys frowned at the comment but still kept the identity of his meeting a secret. Instead of answering (y/n)'s question, he idly sipped on the coffee she just brought to him and waited.

"Someone's coming, and I need you not to freak out." Rhys said, as he tried to be discreet with this information. (y/n) rested a hand on one of her hips and gave Rhys a playful glare.

"You mean like what you're doing?" She questioned as she leaned in close to him, too close. He could smell the vanilla scent on her skin and felt just how warm she was.

Just the thought of (y/n) being so close to his own body made Rhys rethink the entire meeting.

Of course, he always had an infatuation with her. How could he not?

(y/n)'s soft and sweet but at the same time knew how to kick some ass if needed.

But before he could either kiss her delicious lips or cancel the meeting altogether, the elevator stopped on the final floor.

Rhys glanced at his monitor and saw the person he's supposed to be meeting with. His hands shook with nervousness. Rhys never thought that he would have to deal with someone like him again.

Like Handsome Jack, but it wasn’t not Jack. He died, twice. Rhys made sure of that.

Seeing that Rhys was in his little world and that he wasn't going to answer them, (y/n) continued with small tasks around the office while Rhys anxiously waited for the person on his monitor to walk to his office.

As (y/n) started to hum a tune to calm down Rhys, she decided to make a cup of tea for him in hopes of relaxing his nerves before this big meeting.

But then (y/n) heard a voice she’d never thought she would ever hear again. A voice that is eerily similar to that of Handsome Jack’s but just a twinge of nervousness and anxiety: Timothy Lawrence, the man that (y/n) loved when they used to work together. Though, that kind of love never truly disappears.

(y/n) didn't want to say anything in the case that this doppelgänger could be someone other than Timothy, her Timothy.

Rhys tore his gaze from his ‘guest’ for a second and saw a look he could only describe as hope cross (y/n)’s features. His eyebrows narrowed in confusion. He can’t understand why (y/n) would express any emotion except fear for the man only ten feet away.

But before Rhys could casually tell (y/n) to leave, before anything happened, (y/n) dropped a packet of sugar on the ground thus alerting her presence to the doppelgänger.

Timothy felt his heart skip a few beats at the sight of his beloved from what felt like a lifetime ago. (y/n), his partner in more than just vault hunting.

“(y/n)?” Timothy almost whispered her name.

Without being able to help herself and fully well-knowing that the doppelgänger in front of her very eyes was the one and only Timothy Lawrence, (y/n) ran straight into him. She barely gave him any time to register the extra weight added onto him as she launched herself into his arms, happy to finally see the man she had presumed dead years ago right in front of her own eyes.

“I-I can’t believe you’re here. I thought you were dead,” (y/n) mumbled, her face nuzzled into the crook of Timothy’s neck as she tried to soak in everything new about him to compare what she knew of him 7 years ago.

While the two ex-vault hunters were busy embracing each other and catching up, Rhys slowly stood from his desk: shocked. He wasn't aware of how the two knew each other.

Timothy let his real hand caress the side of his old lovers’ face. He didn't know what their relationship was anymore, it had been too long to possibly know.

“… You thought I was dead? You don’t think I blame you, do you?” Timothy questioned her, eyes trained on her for any visible signs of emotion that he could pick up.

(y/n) bit on her bottom lip in guilt. Timothy always could read her like a book.

She did feel guilty of not looking too deeply for him. But it wasn't like Jack was going to tell her anything.

“I mean, I would. I wanted to look for you but… there weren’t any leads or a trace to where you were…” (y/n) explained.

Timothy slowly set (y/n) onto her own feet before he grabbed both of her hands in a gentle grasp, wanting his point to get across in the best way, “There wasn’t anything you could do. You of all people knew how Jack was.”

Timothy was true to his word, he couldn't blame her for Jack’s wrongdoings. It wouldn’t make any sense.

Now that (y/n) was in front of him instead of right in his arms, Timothy could get a good, long look at her. His eyes slowly raked over her circle skirt that rested around her waist and the cute professional long-sleeved she was currently wearing. Timothy had never seen (y/n) wearing something like this. But it would be a lie to himself if he said that he didn’t adore her in that outfit.

One of his hands released its grasp to trail the fabric, his fingers grazed against her waist which caused (y/n) to shudder lightly though this was not Timothy’s intention. He slowly rubbed his fingers around the fabric, trying to understand her new life in every aspect.

“You look amazing,” Timothy complimented.

(y/n) toyed with her skirt lightly, this was the outfit that she normally wore, but she never pictured herself in it if she were to ever meet Timothy again.

“I never thought that you’d be the secretary type, but it suits you,” Timothy elaborated from his previous comment.

Before overthinking and backing out, Timothy leaned forward to press a gentle kiss to her forehead. He didn't want to outright kiss her properly if she wasn't ready or in a romantic relationship with someone else.

(y/n) opened her mouth to continue talking, perhaps about their relationship, but Rhys finally decided to intervene as it seemed the two completely forgot about why they were all there. Rhys cleared his throat a bit obnoxiously, he had been standing there for the last few minutes watching them embrace each other.

(y/n) realized that she should probably formally introduce the two as that is kind of her job, "Timothy, this is the CEO of Atlas, Rhys Strongfork." (y/n) turned to Rhys for the first time in 5 minutes and caught the expression on his face before he was able to cover it with a mask: Confusion and perhaps jealousy. But she continued, "Rhys, this is Timothy. We were partners in vault hunting… and lovers." Rhys felt his heart drop. He knew that look in Timothy's eyes, it was the same way he looked at (y/n) every day.

He should've figured everything out the second (y/n) leapt into the doppelgänger's arms like that. And the way she was smiling like she didn't have any more worries anymore… Rhys had never seen her smile quite like that before.

“(y/n), can you go get breakfast for me and our guest, please?” Rhys politely ordered (y/n).

(y/n) quickly snapped out of her gaze with Timothy before she smiled at Rhys and left the office as soon as she’s able. Though she did shoot Timothy one last flustered glance on her way out. Timothy takes a few deep breaths to calm the flush on his face and the beating of his heart.

Everything happening was so unexpected. Moxxi did say that there was a surprise at Atlas, but he thought she was just talking about a new hand, not his lover from nearly a decade ago.

Though after 7 years of being trapped in what Timothy could only describe as hell, it seemed fitting that the universe would gift him something like this.

"I’ve never seen her that happy before…” Timothy shook himself out of his daydream at the sound of the CEO’s statement. Timothy wasn't sure of what to say, so he stayed silent for the time being. But luckily, Rhys continued, "Look, I know you were together, but I'm in love with her as well." There was a beat of silence as Timothy pondered over Rhys’ words.

He knew something was going on but not this. Timothy scrambled his head for something to say. Should he

#Rhys Strongfork #Rhys Strongfork x reader #timothy lawrence #timothy lawrence x reader #Borderlands #Borderlands x reader #wip #Wips

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azaffranist · 4 years

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Frozen 2 deleted/early content

On the road to F2 there were tons of leaks and I saved as many of them as I could in the fear that Disney would delete them (because they loved to shut down whole websites because of that back in the day). As a result I have a lot of pictures saved on my phone and looking back on them... some don’t sound quite right because it’s definitely not what I saw in the movie. So here’s everythinggg I have. I did my best to organize stuff a bit but there are so many things it was... hard. Feel free to add more stuff in reblogs, replies and such!

Something to note is that we won’t take into account the “officially” released deleted content, which would include everything that’s in the Blu-ray, because basically everyone already saw that (Home, I Seek the Truth, Get This Right, Unmeltable Me, the Secret Room scene, Hard Nokks, etc). Generally, we won’t be analyzing deleted scenes from the official trailers, either, because of this very reason. Something “official” that we will consider, though, are the deleted clips animators have been releasing on Instagram and other sites, because those aren’t that popular.

Before starting here’s the link to all the deleted F2 lines I could find as well as some other additions. The post itself has even more links to other posts containing deleted content so have fun clicking on links.

Last thing to mention, none of the merch photos here are taken by me. I got most of them from the leaks channel of the Arendelle Kingdom server during 2019. If any image in this post belongs to someone here and you want to be credited please let me know and I’ll edit the post.

This post is long. Like really, really, lagging-my-browser-as-I’m-writing-it long. So grab some popcorn and get comfortable or just take a look at what interests you.

So without further ado, let’s get started!

Deleted Artbook Content

One of the most exciting leaks we got were definitely these sample artbook excerpts. None of these pages made it into the final artbook, though.

This piece definitely belongs in Iduna and Agnarr’s backstory, in which the Northuldra leader wasn’t an ordinary man but a shapeshifter.

The biggest picture in this page points to yet another version of Iduna and Agnarr’s backstory. It’s possible to deduce Bruni hadn’t been fully developed yet or created at all since the fire isn’t pink.

The one on the bottom right seems to be an earlier version of the “forest freed” scene in the final movie, or maybe it happened in another moment altogether.

The most interesting of the three, though, is this one. Nothing in the movie points to the existence of a place like this. It’s interesting to note that this peculiar house looks very similar to Iceland’s “elf houses”, tied to the myth of the Huldufólk, “hidden people”, who were said to be small and live in a parallel world, being able to make themselves visible at will.

These are definitely the inhabitants of the Enchanted Lands, who look completely different than in the final movie with their long cloaks, hoods and staves. They look like mages. Were these the very first concepts of the Northuldra, or another group of characters altogether that ended up being scrapped? Only Ahtohallan knows...

Even though the tree and the vegetation illustration is in the book, there’s one missing and that one is the bottom left. One of the most popular theories in the fandom regarding that illustration is that it was an Arendellian military camp tied to the expedition to the Enchanted Lands. I think what we got in the movie is a watered down version of a much more violent and sinister endeavor to invade the Northuldra. The above mentioned deleted scene of the battle of Arendellians agains Northuldrans is proof of that.

This one shows the Arendellian gang and most likely Mattias looking at the walls of a cave with drawings on it depicting the Nokk among other things that I can’t quite make out. I’ve heard people say that an earlier version of F2 involved the gang encountering Mattias in a volcanic cave and that’s where this scene would go, but I don’t know if those are rumors or there’s an actual source. If someone happens to have knowledge on this topic in particular please let me know and I’ll update the post.

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Incomplete Frozen Fan Fest books and their alternate scenes

As I’ve mentioned in another post, Frozen Fan Fest happened on October 4th, 2019, and it was the official release of the movie’s first merchandise. We were all super excited to look at the storybooks and read the ending!

Except there was no ending and the books ended abruptly right before Olaf’s death, completely skipping over Show Yourself.

You hear that? “Elsa bravely dives into the Dark Sea”. We know the Dark Sea scene was shortened and that’s more proof.

This section of a Frozen 2 storybook explains how it went a bit better. After Elsa was defeated twice by the ferocious waves she climbed up some giant rocks and dove back in. Only Ahtohallan knows how that would be effective in this situation and not a waste of strength, but hey, I’m sure it looked super cool and I’d be down to see it.

”Elsa trudged through terrible winds and thick snow”... um... she didn’t? This might’ve been created when Show Yourself wasn’t a thing yet and her path through Ahtohallan was just that, trudging through terrible winds and snow, and not an inspiring song about self-love and finding yourself. I wonder how that scene would’ve looked.

Maybe we can find something relating to that “unused” section of Ahtohallan in a book called “Anna, Elsa and the Secret River”. Basically Iduna tells them that there’s a secret river out there and after the lullaby Elsa and Anna go nuts and try to look for the river outside. Seems like it was all a shared acid trip because next morning they seriously consider it was a dream.

Maybe here they didn’t realize they were in front of a river, because “Glaciers are rivers of ice” and this is what that Ahtohallan Elsa ventured into originally would’ve looked like? The white river doesn’t know...

This is by far one of my favorite ones. I wouldn’t exactly describe post-Show Yourself as a moment of calm and peace. Maybe peace but definitely not calm. Then it says that the signal meant that “she managed to cross the sea”. That’s a really weird way to describe “horrifying ice statue of colonialist grandpa killing an innocent native man”. I don’t know if they’re hiding the actual plot here of if they hadn’t yet worked out all the details of SY and the moment Elsa found the truth.

Anna has her cloak on as she finds the truth. Readers have no idea what this enlightening truth is because the ice statue is indistinguishable.

As it shows here, the original Iduna being Northuldra reveal was going to happen in a different way. I’m glad we got that final version... Because wow, Elsa and Anna are completely unable to connect the dots here. Anna was smart enough to figure out what to do after receiving Elsa’s message, c’mon! This should’ve been piece of cake...

Iduna called Elsa “Little Snow”. This points to an alternate All is Found scene and we’ll talk about that more in depth later.

Same scene. Translation is:

“While tucking the little princesses in, Queen Iduna sang them a lullaby about a far-away river called Ahtohallan, which holds all the answers about the past.

“Does Ahtohallan know why I have powers?” asked Elsa her mother.

“If it exists, it definitely knows that and much more,” answered the Queen.

So in this earlier version, Elsa has always asked herself if Ahtohallan had the answer to her powers... Doesn’t this make Show Yourself work even better? Here she always looked for that answer and she’d learn that she is the answer. I wonder why they took it out because it makes a lot of sense and would give buildup to Show Yourself.

Here what really matters are the squares with text. Olaf never ran through moss or became covered in it. Olaf never looks down a brook to be met by Nokk’s gaze from below. Maybe it’s an alternate When I’m Older?

And relating to that particular piece of merch:

Seems like in an earlier version, the Nokk was associated with waterfalls.

Everyone shut up there’s SWORD ANNA here. Found in a coloring book. I don’t speak Italian but Google Translate says:

“Anna is a brave one: she does not hesitate to draw her sword to defend her sister Elsa and her friends from any new threat.”

GOOD FOR HER! This is definitely from the version we were shown in the teaser, when Anna wielding an actual sword and slicing someone with it was still a thing. Man, how I wanted that to happen...

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Alternate fully animated scenes found in animators’ posts

After the release of Frozen 2, animators started to post scenes they had worked on and showing the process behind them. Some of them were deleted, are different in the final movie, or have a completely different score accompanying them.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Adam Green (@agreenster) on Apr 6, 2020 at 5:31pm PDT

A completely different dialogue during the boat scene. Pretty heartbreaking and it’s even more buildup for TNRT, when Anna was left by literally everyone she loved in the planet.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Trent Correy (@trentanimation) on Apr 14, 2020 at 8:50am PDT

Apparently, for whatever reason, Gale was going to appear in the castle first.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Trent Correy (@trentanimation) on Mar 29, 2020 at 10:51am PDT

Olaf’s revival was going to be way different, and this implies that his death might’ve been different, too. Maybe his snow just dissipated and didn’t go anywhere? Maybe instead of being neatly placed by a waterfall, it fell all over the Enchanted Lands? I have no idea.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mariusz Furmanczyk (@mariofurmanczyk) on Mar 21, 2020 at 7:11pm PDT

I absolutely LOVE this one, okay, and I have no idea why they’d leave it out. Turn your sound on and listen to the much more tragic alternate score. But more importantly, pay attention when she turns to solid ice: just like in F1 with Anna, her last breath is visible. Beautiful parallels, poetic cinema, and I’m hurt and confused and I want it in the movie. Excuse me while I call the police.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mariusz Furmanczyk (@mariofurmanczyk) on Feb 26, 2020 at 5:47pm PST

Here the only change is the different score as she unfreezes. I love it so much. It’s so tragic, heavy and powerful. You can basically hear the fragility of Elsa’s fate as the ice breaks and she falls. Help. Here, here, and here, you can see other glimpses of this beautiful alternate score. Once again I’m calling the police and telling them Disney hurt my feelings by leaving this out.

I’ve hit the 5 videos limit already, but here is a link to an animation by jdublish. The change isn’t the scene itself but the completely different siren call Elsa hears. Much more ominous and creepy and I also love it, even though I have to admit the final siren call sounds catchier and more iconic. Also, kids under five won’t start crying of fear when they hear it.

Then there were also plenty of changes in the Elsa vs Nokk scene and we got to see one. Thanks to @justlookatthosesausages for pointing this out and letting me use her gif! The original video was set to private for some reason so I can’t post a Youtube link, but this is @justlookatthosesausages‘ gif:

Elsa struggled way more in the original version. Go to her post to see a comparison with the final version.

And now the awaited All is Found alternate scene! Thanks a lot to @lovewillthaw-j who helped me collect all the scenes.

First two scenes from the trailers: the Official one, Elsa looks up and Iduna gazes at the northern lights.

The Japanese one, in which Iduna kisses Elsa’s hands. @catloafs pointed that out after F2′s release so thanks!

And the last two were found by @antoineharrakblog, so thanks for that! Here and here.

BUT there’s no need to click a bazillion links because @lovewillthaw-j‘s post reconstructs in a single video what the original scene would’ve been like. Go watch it!

UPDATE: Additions by @antoineharrakblog. Thanks a lot!

Here we can see that originally, as the elements fled and Kristoff held Olaf, he yelled, “Wow, you’re heavy!”. Don’t know why this would be removed. Maybe they wanted to keep the scene serious? Maybe they needed to shorten the movie so that it didn’t exceed 100 minutes and cut little jokes like that?

And here, showing Elsa seeing how Iduna saved her father, there’s some deleted dialogue: “Get the prince out of here!” “King Runeard, what did you decide?” in addition to a much more tense score in general.

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UPDATE: Screencaps of deleted/alternate scenes

Thanks a lot to @antoineharrakblog for bringing all of these pictures to my attention! Multiples screencaps have appeared in different magazines or books that clearly didn’t make it to the movie.

Anna never makes that movement in the final movie. There’s more proof of an alternate/extended “Elsa and Anna talk” scene.

This is another one. There exists a lower quality version of this picture which I can’t find right now, but it shows that Anna and Elsa are sharing kransekake in this particular scene (the particular food that we can see at the beginning of OFA).

These are all part of the All is Found scene we’ve been talking about. In the final movie we can see that All is Found serves as a sort of “bridge” between the past and the present, as it transitions from Iduna singing the song to Elsa to Elsa in the castle, reminiscing. But originally, Iduna finished singing All is Found in the past. There’s proof of this here.

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UPDATE: Novelization deleted content

This information was provided by @theupsidedownpyramid so thanks a lot! There are some really interesting deleted scenes in the novelization.

In this one, Elsa felt the urge to release her magic after hearing the voice at the end of All is Found.

In the novelization Mattias and Yelena’s (or Yelana? Disney will never decide) relationship was a lot deeper than what was shown in the movie.

For more information and a more thorough analysis, read @theupsidedownpyramid‘s reblog!

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Miscellaneous

So there’s only one image in this section but believe me, it’s so worth it.

An animator casually mentioned that there was going to be a head kiss scene. Process it. Can’t? I can’t either.

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Wow I’m TIRED. I must’ve missed something but that’s all my brain can handle as of now. Thank quarantine for giving me the opportunity to work on this post all day.

Disney committed war crimes when they deleted some of these scenes. I have only one question: Why in the world would they do that? And more information might see the light of day in the future. I’ll never get tired of trying to piece together the convoluted puzzle that is the original Frozen 2.

I will update this post if I remember something else or if someone else has more content to share. Let’s reconstruct F2 together to visualize that movie Disney deemed too cool for us!

UPDATE: Into the Unknown: the Making of Frozen 2 Documentary finally has a concrete release date, June 26th. Let’s hope we can see more stuff then!

#frozen 2 #frozen #elsa #anna #frozen analysis #frozen 2 analysis #kristoff #sven #olaf #frozen 2 deleted content #disney

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beneaththetangles · 4 years

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Otaku Reader’s Corner: Smile Down the Runway, Bibliophile Princess, and Oregairu

Tearmoon Empire (Vol. 1)

As Tearmoon Empire vol. 1 opens, protagonist Princess Mia (clearly inspired by Marie Antoinette) dies on the guillotine…only to wake up as a twelve-year-old! Now Mia strives to avert the coming revolution. The story challenges readers by offering divergent interpretations of Mia’s character. The people around Mia are often impressed by what they perceive as her kindness & insight, while the snarky narrator mocks them as delusional fools, insisting anything Mia does that appears good actually comes from entirely selfish, petty motives. I loved this book. I loved the history-inspired premise, Mia, supporting characters like Anne & Abel, & the thought-provoking unreliable narrator. This is a fantastic light novel and I strongly recommend it. – Jeskai Angel

Tearmoon Empire (Vol. 1) is available through Amazon.

My Youth Romantic Comedy is Wrong, as I Expected (Vol. 7.5)

I’ve read most of the Oregairu volumes already (admitedly fan translations before they were licensed), but it’s been some time, and with the final anime season to cover the remaining light novels and about to start airing, I thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to revisit my favorite series. Volume 7.5 was one I didn’t remember well. A collection of “side stories” and “special acts,” it’s a lovely addition to the franchise. The picture of Miura on the cover gives you insight to what it’s all about—a chance for supporting characters to shine and for Watari to take us down some routes not entirely fitting with the main storyline. But as always, the writing is excellent, and further you get some nice illustrative pieces, like Yui’s calendar and a beautiful full-color foldout with Yukinon and Hikki on one side and Hiratsuka in a wedding dress on the other. This is must-own for any fan of the franchise! – Twwk

My Youth Romantic Comedy is Wrong, as I Expected (Vol. 7.5) is variable through Amazon.

My Father is a Unicorn

This one volume manga is a concept that was just too ridiculous to not read. Our main character comes home from school one day to find out that his mother re-married…a unicorn. The unicorn Dad can go back and forth between human and unicorn form. I saw Morgana Santilli‘s review of it for Comic Beats and had to check it out. Ended up really enjoying it. If you enjoy silly stories about what defines us as family (which I do) and find yourself needing more horse jokes/puns in your life (which, of course I do), then this may be for you. – MDMRN

My Father is a Unicorn is available through Amazon.

Bibliophile Princess (Vol. 1)

There’s no such thing as too many light novels with bookworm protagonists. Bibliophile Princess is a more of a shoujo romance take on the story, with protagonist Elianna not only trying to get a hold of rare books, but also trying to figure out what to make of her relationship with the prince that she’s somehow betrothed to. The first volume consists of two major arcs, and each one feels like a full story in and of itself, albeit told in a somewhat strange fashion as events play out without explanation until the end. The highlight of this volume is definitely Elianna herself, who is the main narrator and provides plenty of amusing commentary on everything going on; plus, her bookworm tendencies gets put to good use as she helps the people of the kingdom out with the knowledge from those books. Fans of shoujo or of bookworm protagonists should definitely give it a shot. – stardf29

Bibliophile Princess (Vol. 1) is available through Amazon.

Smile Down the Runway (Vol. 6)

I’ll be real here, while I still think the anime was a good adaptation for the story, that doesn’t change the fact that it had to cram around 75 chapters’ worth of content into 12 episodes. Unfortunately, for that to be feasible, a lot of minor plot points and relationship details had to be either changed or omitted altogether so that the bigger ones took more focus. Right now, Kodansha’s released the midpoint of the Geika arc, so if you’re up for reliving the series again during this time, I’d strongly recommend reading the manga from the very beginning. – thathilomgirl

Smile Down the Runway (Vol. 6) is available through Amazon.

Your Lie in April (Vol. 3)

Our readers (and me) all seem to be huge fans of the Your Lie in April . I have watched it twice at this point and am working on a third watch-through now. Only recently did I discover that my library network has all of Your Lie in April. I started on volume 1 and it is gorgeous. The art is just breathtakingly well done and the story…well, I’ve seen the anime so I know what’s happening. Yet, the manga presents everything so incredibly well that I can’t put each new volume down. I’m 3 volumes in, but if you liked the anime a little bit—I would absolutely recommend the manga. I mean, it’s the manga series Eiichiro Oda (the creator of One Piece) wishes he could have created, so…that’s high praise. – MDMRN

Your Lie in April (Vol. 3) is available through Amazon.

I Refuse to Be Your Enemy! (Vol. 1)

I Refuse to Be Your Enemy! vol. 1, is a new entry in the reincarnated-into-a-video-game subgenre of isekai tales, this time using the premise for serious fantasy adventure, plus some shoujo elements. When protagonist Kiara realizes her strange dreams are memories of a past life, & she’s living in a tactical RPG where she’ll become a villain & die by hero’s hand, she immediately takes flight. Naturally, she gets entangled with the game’s protagonist & his associates. The integration of Kiara’s tragic background with her character is outstanding. The story quickly reveals that Kiara has had an abusive childhood, & at first I found it off-putting how well adjusted she seemed to be. But as I kept reading, I realized Kiara’s sad backstory isn’t just a pile of tropes used for cheap drama: the abuse she endured profoundly shapes her character is realistic, subtle ways. I heartily recommend this one. – Jeskai Angel

I Refuse to Be Your Enemy! (Vol. 1) is available through Amazon.

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taexual · 6 years

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EXO / Their S/O’s best friend is a BTS member

Request: umm what about exos reaction (as your bf) to one of the bts members being your best friend (as in the you go to for everything instead of them) btw I love both exo and bts very much. I just wanted to see how you would write it (: Thank you

Thank you for requesting this! Hope you enjoy 💕

Xiumin

You had just found out you got into the university of your choice and you were ecstatic. Quickly, you got your phone out of your pocket and after nearly dropping it twice, dialed your best friends number.

“Hello?” Seokjin’s voice picked up on the first ring.

“Jin, you’ll never believe it!” you exclaimed. “I got in! I got offered a place at the—”

“You got in?!” came your boyfriend’s voice from the other room. He didn’t hear you address the person on the phone as he walked into the kitchen with a big smile.

“I—yeah, babe,” you smiled at Minseok quickly and then moved the phone from your ear to show him that you were on the phone. “I’ll talk to you in a moment, okay?”

“Oh,” Minseok nodded, his stomach sinking at the realization that he wasn't the first one you told the exciting news to. “Sure, yeah.”

You turned away from him and got back to your conversation with Jin. Both of you squealed in joy for at least ten minutes, and once you finally hung up the phone, you went to find your boyfriend.

Minseok was lying on his bed, his phone in his hands. He didn’t even raise his head when you walked in.

“I got off the phone,” you said, extending the acceptance letter for him to see.

“Oh, good,” Minseok said simply. “Congratulations, by the way.”

“Thank you,” you said a little confused by his coldness. “Is everything okay?”

He sighed and locked his phone before finally looking up at you. “I’m never the first person you tell anything to.”

You blinked a few times, taken aback by the sudden confession.

“What?” you said, still trying to understand what he just said. “Minseok, I tell you everything.”

“Right. But first, you tell Seokjin everything,” he countered. “And then you come find me.”

“That’s not—” you started but quickly realized that his words might have really made sense. “Does that really upset you?”

“Well, of course,” Minseok said. “You’re my girlfriend, my best friend, and my go-to person. It just kind of sucks to know that I’m not the same for you.”

You bit your lip, feeling your own heart start to hurt at the sight of him being so upset.

“I’m sorry,” you said, then. “But you are the most important person to me, though.”

“Oh, am I now?”

“Yes,” you smiled, a teasing glint in your eyes. “Let me prove it to you.”

Before he could reply, you leaned in closer to him and placed a soft kiss on his lips, moving away before the kiss could go anywhere.

“Am I forgiven?” you asked with a small smirk.

“Oh, you wish,” he replied, “You’ll have to do better than that,” and he pulled your hand closer, forcing you to fall onto the bed next to him, so he could kiss you properly.

Suho

When he heard the door of the apartment open, he jumped up from where he was sitting on the couch in the living room and ran across the whole apartment to tackle you in a hug.

“Junmye—”

“Don’t ever leave me alone for this long again,” he told you, not releasing you from his arms. “I don’t even remember where you went but it’s been too long.”

“I’ve only been gone for two hours,” you said through laughter.

“Yeah, but you told me you’d be gone for twenty minutes,” he said, removing himself from you and finally letting you breathe.

“Yeah, I thought so, but then Hoseok pulled out his phone to show me some pictures from—”

“Hold on,” Junmyeon stopped you, his face no longer excited. “You’ve been out to see Hoseok? Again?”

His tone sounded accusing, so your face fell a little. “Well, yeah.”

“Y/n, you’ve spent more time with him this week than with me,” he said, crossing his arms.

“Junmyeon, we live together. I think I spend quite a lot of time with you.”

“You don’t sound too happy about that.”

You had to laugh at the absurdity of his accusations. “Don’t be ridiculous. I love living with you. And Hoseok is my friend, you know that.”

“Feels like he’s more than a friend.”

“You’re right,” you said, watching his face twist in shock. “He’s one of my closest friends.”

“Okay, nice way to give me a heart attack,” Junmyeon commented sarcastically and turned to walk away from you.

“Hey!” you called after him, concerned suddenly. “Are you actually mad at me?”

“Not sure yet,” he replied, walking towards his bedroom.

“Oh, come on! I’ll cook you dinner to make you feel better, how does that sound?”

“Meh.”

“Okay. I’ll cook you dinner and give you all of my undivided attention.”

Junmyeon suddenly stopped and turned around to look at you. “Now that sounds better.”

Lay

Yixing wasn’t very jealous of your friendship with BTS’ Namjoon but he wasn’t a big fan of it, either. He wasn’t a fan of any guy who was close to you, so it was no surprise.

He never caused a scene whenever you told him you’d be hanging out with Namjoon because he trusted you, but he was still slightly upset that he wasn’t the only guy in your life.

The only time Yixing actually saw you hang out with Namjoon, though, was during Junmyeon’s birthday party. At first, he was just standing next to you while you and Namjoon discussed something that caused Yixing unexplainable boredom. He excused himself to get a drink and found himself listening to one of Chen’s jokes for at least fifteen minutes. When he made his way back to you, you were still talking to Namjoon.

Overwhelmed by the sudden irrational jealousy, he made his way towards you and hugged you from behind, resting his head on your shoulder, and startling you in the process.

“Yixing, you scared me,” you said, trying to recover.

“Sorry,” he said, shamelessly kissing your shoulder. “I just missed you.”

Namjoon cleared his throat, causing Yixing to raise his head with a small smirk.

“I’m going to go mingle,” Namjoon said, awkwardly walking away.

You turned around to face your boyfriend with a surprised expression on your face.

“What’s gotten into you?” you asked, not used to his public displays of affection.

“Nothing,” Yixing shrugged innocently. “You’ve been talking to Namjoon the whole night. I thought you could use the distraction.”

“If by ‘whole night’ you mean twenty minutes, then I agree,” you told him. “And I’m going to assume you’re the distraction?”

“Twenty minutes feels like an eternity when you’re away from me,” he said. “And not just away, but also with some other guy.”

“He’s my best friend, Yixing.”

“And I’m your boyfriend.”

You sighed. “Sometimes I question why.”

He faked offense but quickly recovered and smirked instead. Then, he leaned in closer to you so he could whisper in your ear, “I’ll show you why when we’re home.”

Baekhyun

You and Baekhyun were having dinner in your kitchen. He had just finished telling you about practice today and asked you how your day went.

“I had a fairly decent day, actually,” you admitted. “Like, remember the book I told you about yesterday?”

Baekhyun frowned. “No, actually. You didn’t tell me about any books.”

“What? But I did! Like, the main character goes to—oh, wait. Maybe you’re right, I think I told Yoongi about it.”

Baekyun stopped chewing and raised his eyes from his plate to meet yours.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked.

“Sorry, I thought I did,” you said. “Anyway, I—”

“You used to tell me about the books that you read,” Baekhyun interrupted you, still hung up on the same thing.

“I still do that,” you replied.

“No, not anymore,” he shook his head. “Actually, you stopped telling me about the small things from your day altogether. Do you talk to Yoongi about it?”

“I don’t know,” you shrugged, not catching the jealous tone in his voice. “I talk to Yoongi about a lot of things.”

Baekhyun’s face transformed completely and the jealousy could not be missed anymore.

“So,” he said in a sarcastic tone. “What else do you do with Yoongi?”

“Oh my God, Baekhyun,” you covered your face with your hands. “Please don’t tell me you’re actually jealous of my best friend right now.”

“I’m your best friend. How many other best friends do you need?”

“Please tell me you’re not serious.”

“Why would I not be? You just told me you tell him more stuff than you tell me,” Baekhyun said bitterly.

You removed your hands from your face to look at him in astonishment. “Baekhyun, seriously. Would you still be saying the same thing if my best friend was a girl?”

He thought about it for a moment. “Actually, yeah. I think I would.”

“So, you don’t want me to have any friends, then?”

He sighed. “No. You can have as many friends as you want. I just want to know all about the little things that happened to you every day. I think as your boyfriend, I deserve to be the first person you tell them to.”

Chen

You were sitting on the couch with Jongdae, having a peaceful night in. A movie was playing in the background but both of you were on your phones. Jongdae was texting the other members about the song lyrics he had just come up with, and you were talking to Jimin.

Eventually, like true best friends do, you and Jimin got into an argument about who had more memes saved on their phone. So, consequently, you began sending each other memes and other funny stuff back and forth. Every time you laughed at something he sent you, Jongdae raised his head to look at you but he didn’t say anything.

And then finally, once you burst out laughing so loud that he almost dropped his phone, he dared to ask you what was going on.

“Oh, Jimin and I are sending each other funny pictures,” you told him once you managed to calm down.

“Huh. So, uh, is that him you’ve been texting this entire time?”

You nodded, trying not to start laughing at another picture Jimin sent you.

Biting his lip, Jongdae considered what the appropriate way to approach this situation would be. He knew getting jealous over this would be stupid and yet he couldn’t help but feel unhappy that someone else was making you laugh this much.

“Can you show them to me?” he asked after he finally came up with a way to transfer your attention from Jimin to him.

“Show you what?” you said, too occupied with your phone to pay attention to the conversation you were having in real life.

“The funny pictures you mentioned?” Jongdae said. “I want to laugh, too.”

You perked up instantly. “Of course! Hold on for just a moment, though. I have to save all of them to my phone.”

Jongdae nodded, secretly smirking to himself for finding a way to win you back although you never actually stopped being his.

Chanyeol

Chanyeol literally never minded your and Seokjin’s friendship. If the three of you happened to be in the same place at the same time, he didn’t go out of his way to mark his territory and let Seokjin know that you’re taken, because he knew he could trust you, and he knew Jin wouldn’t dare to make a move on you anyway.

The only times he got a little insecure was when tabloid magazines published articles about you two-timing him with a member of his “rival band”. He knew the article was stupid and childish but somehow he still cared about what the public thought about this.

One time, you caught him reading one of those articles and immediately confronted him.

“I can’t believe you’re actually reading that garbage,” you said.

Chanyeol hadn’t heard you walk in, so he flinched (which he seemed to do at least five times a day. You either walked very quietly or he was just off guard all of the time) but then turned around to look at you.

“I was just wondering what people were saying,” he explained.

“Why do you even care?” you asked, suddenly a little concerned.

“Well, they’re saying that you’re actually closer to Jin than you are to me. And I mean, since I’m on tour half of the time, it kind of makes sense…”

“What?” you frowned, walking closer to him so you could take a better look at the article he was reading. “You know that’s bullshit, right? Jin’s on tour pretty often, too, and you’re my boyfriend. And – might I remind you – you have been in this position for the past three years, so I don’t think there even exists a person that I’d be closer to than you.”

He smiled softly. “Okay. Thank you.”

“Why are you thanking me?”

“You have so many people you’re friends with that sometimes I just need to hear that you love me the most.”

You laughed. “I didn’t actually mention I loved you the most, though.”

His smile disappeared suddenly. “But you do, right?”

“Of course, Chanyeol,” you reassured him. “You have no competition.”

D.O.

You and Kyungsoo have been in a long distance relationship for almost two years now. Both of you often flew to see each other and it was definitely worth it, but still difficult nevertheless.

You were always interested in South Korea, though, and even expressed your wish to move here someday but you wanted to finish school first. The wait didn’t stop you from spending every holiday from school in Seoul, though. You made more friends there than you had back home – and that was another good reason to move there permanently.

Which is why, two months after your graduation, you found yourself on the phone with Jungkook, one of your best friends, announcing your decision to move to Seoul.

After an hour-long conversation, you headed to your bedroom to start looking for the plane tickets. You were really anxious about not having told the news to Kyungsoo, though. You wanted to surprise him by just showing up on his doorstep, which is why you haven’t called him yet.

However, your plan backfired, when ten minutes after booking the tickets, your phone started to ring, indicating that it was Kyungsoo calling you.

“Hey,” you answered the call, trying to hide your excitement.

“I have a question,” Kyungsoo said, not sounding very happy. “How long have we been together?”

You were surprised by this. “Uhh… almost two years? Why are you—”

“Right, so, almost two years of dating, and somehow I’m the last person you tell about the important decisions you make in your life,” he said angrily.

Your stomach sunk. “Wh-what are you talking about?”

“You’re moving to Seoul,” he said, forcing you to breathe in sharply. “And I found out from Jungkook. Jungkook! I’m not even that close to him!”

Have you forgotten to warn Jungkook that your plan of moving included you surprising Kyungsoo? Most likely, yes.

“I’m sorry,” you said softly. “I didn’t mean to keep you in the dark like that.”

“Is there anything else you told your best friend but not your boyfriend?” he asked, making the word ‘best friend’ sound somehow threatening.

“N-no,” you answered.”Look, Kyungsoo, I really am sorry you’re upset. But there’s a reason why I told Jungkook and not you.”

“Oh, there’s a reason?” he said, laughing humorlessly. “Do I want to hear it?”

“Yes,” you said calmly. “I wanted to surprise you. I wanted you to come home from practice and just find me there, ready to spend the rest of my life in a foreign city with the person I love most of all.”

Kyungsoo wasn’t expecting that, so he stayed quiet for a few moments.

“I-I love you, too,” he finally said, still taken aback by your confession.

“Good,” you told him. “Because for a moment there it seemed like you hated me.”

“I’m sorry, I just… I didn’t enjoy the fact that you told this important thing to Jungkook, instead of me,” Kyungsoo admitted. “Please don’t do that again, okay? I want to be the first person to know everything about you.”

Kai

You were backstage at an award show, waiting for your boyfriend to come offstage after his performance.

“Power is probably my favorite EXO song,” someone said suddenly, startling you.

When you turned around, you were greeted by your best friend’s face. Same best friend that you haven’t seen in forever due to him being on tour.

“Taehyung!” you exclaimed as he laughed before wrapping his arms around you. “I didn’t realize you’d be performing tonight, too!”

“I’m not. We’re presenting an award,” he explained. “Actually, I was just about to text you to see if you wanted to hang out after the ceremony.”

“Oh, Jongin’s taking me to the after-party at the dorm,” you said sadly. “But we could hang out some other time?”

“Okay. Text me when you’re free,” Taehyung said, not losing his smile. “It’s great running into you here. I missed you a lot!”

“I missed you too,” you answered.

Both of you laughed as he extended his hands to pull you in for another hug that was well-needed after having not seen each other in so long.

Someone cleared their throat, interrupting you, and you unattached yourself from Taehyung to see your boyfriend standing right behind you, having just walked off the stage.

“Hey!” you exclaimed. “Your performance was incredible as always, love.”

Jongin just nodded, but he wasn’t looking at you, and instead watched Taehyung, who stood next to you, still smiling.

“I ran into Taehyung backstage,” you started to explain. “Last time we saw each other was probably two or three months ago.”

“Ah. Fun,” Jongin replied dryly.

You frowned a little at this, but Taehyung – always the social butterfly – jumped into the conversation.

“Loved your performance. The concept for the MV was sick, too,” he said.

“Thank you,” Jongin replied quickly. “Y/n, are you ready to go?”

“Yeah,” you said, not even questioning where he wanted to go because his eyes were burning lasers into Taehyung’s forehead. You still turned to look at your best friend for a quick word. “I’ll see you, yeah?”

“Yes, of course!” Taehyung nodded enthusiastically and then turned to Jongin. “Great seeing you here!”

“You too,” Jongin nodded and placed a hand on your waist to lead you further away from the crowd, or perhaps more specifically, from Taehyung.

Once you two reached an empty hallway, he stopped suddenly. You stopped too, looking at him with a confused expression.

“Is everything okay?” you asked.

“Does he know I’m your boyfriend?” Jongin asked out of the blue.

“Does who know?” you frowned in confusion. “Taehyung? Of course, he knows. He’s basically my best friend, he knows everything.

“Oh,” Jongin looked down. “Well, it sure didn’t look like he knew you had a boyfriend.”

Realizing what he was getting at, you groaned. “Don’t do this. We hugged because we haven’t seen each other in a long time.”

“We don’t hug like that,” Jongin said. “And we’re dating.”

“That’s because we’re together 24/7, Jongin,” you told him. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way. In fact, I think I would handcuff myself to you if you dared to spend three full months without seeing me at least once.”

A small smile finally appeared on his lips and he nodded, letting you know that this was exactly what he wanted to hear to feel better.

Sehun

You and Sehun were at a party of one of your mutual friend’s. At first, you really didn’t want to go because you weren’t a big fan of drunk people but then you found out that Jungkook would be there, and you haven’t seen him in so long, that you felt like you had no choice but to go. Obviously, Sehun wasn’t happy that Jungkook managed to convince you to come to the party in basically seconds, while he’s been trying to get you to come with him for almost a week.

Once at the party, however, you managed to down a few drinks and spent the entire time sitting at the back of the room, reconnecting with Jungkook. He told you about the tour that he’s been on and you told him about everything he missed back in Seoul.

Hours later, when you and Sehun were in a car back home after the party, you realized that he barely said a word to you since you left the house together at the beginning of the night.

“Hey, are you okay?” you asked him.

He looked at you, and although it was dark, you could still see anger in his eyes.

“Not really,” he said.

“Why? What’s wrong?” you asked in a concerned voice.

“I’m feeling kind of neglected,” he admitted. “And hurt.”

You didn’t expect to hear that. “Why?”

“I think it’s obvious why.”

“Not to me, apparently,” you replied.

“Y/n, I arrived to the party with you but I lost you in the crowd of people almost as soon as we came in,” Sehun said. “I tried to find you and when I did, you were talking to Jungkook, so I didn’t want to interrupt anything. But two hours later, you were still talking to him.”

You swallowed, suddenly understanding why he felt neglected.

“I haven’t seen him in so long,” you tried to explain. “We had so much stuff to talk about.”

“I understand that,” he nodded. “But people kept asking me where you were, and I had to awkwardly point to you and say that there you were – talking to another guy.”

“H-he’s my best friend,” you said. “You know that.”

“I do,” Sehun said. “And if you think that makes it hurt less when you leave me all by myself at a party, then you’re wrong.”

Your chest was heavy with guilt. “I’m sorry, Sehun. I didn’t realize you felt this way. You should have come and joined us.”

“I didn’t want to interrupt. You looked like you were discussing something very passionately. For four hours.”

“Come on, Sehun,” you said, touching his arm in a comforting manner, “You know I never consider your appearance in my visual field as an interruption. Although I have to say, you are distracting, especially when you’re wearing a suit. But anyway,” you stopped for a moment when you saw that you managed to make him smile. “I don’t want you to feel hurt about this. And if you ever feel neglected, just come and tell me.”

“And whine in front of other people?” he raised his eyebrows.

“Well, you have no problem whining in private,” you teased.

He shook his head at this, smiling nevertheless.

“I love you,” you told him. “And I’m sorry I made you upset today.”

He leaned closer to you to softly kiss your cheek. “I love you more.”

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willandlyra · 7 years

Text

nothings gonna change my world

in which will meets nico’s sisters

word count: 1764

read on ao3

It goes better than Will had planned.

Will, despite being fully informed of Hazel Levesque's sweet demeanour, had still been expecting a shovel talk. Especially after talking to Leo.

("You should have seen her after my visit to New Rome," he'd said, letting out a whistle. "Girl hits hard."

"Leo," Nico had cut in, boredly. "You faked your death for six months."

"I didn't mean to!)

Especially after knowing that for all of being thirteen and whisked into the century from another world altogether, she was one of The Seven, she'd taken down Gaea. She'd probably saved Percy Jackson's ass at least twice, and she could make sweet of animals who'd injure any pleasant enough veterinarian.

However, Hazel does not start by pinning him up against the wall (hey, Nico doesn't look that strong either, and he could hand Will's ass to him on a platter any day that he liked) and looking him in the eye with an icy glare, threatening his future children in more than one way.

Will is not greeted with shovel talks or glowers, or even an intimidating comment made when Nico isn't looking.

When Hazel Levesque sees Will Solace for the first time, fiddling with his thumbs behind his back while awkwardly shadowing her older brother, she hugs him. Literally, she runs across the grass and open space, nearly knocks over two or three Demeter campers who are just trying to water some plants, and entangles him in a bone-crushing hug before she even looks at Nico.

All the breath is knocked out of her lungs.

"Hazel," Nico says, and he doesn't sound remotely surprised.

Eventually, Hazel untangles herself from Will, steps back a little. She looks right at him, catches his gaze (even though she is significantly shorter - she and Nico have that in common) and beams.

"I've heard so much about you!" she gushes, and Nico groans.

"Hazel."

"Shh, Nico," Hazel says. And then, seemingly remembering that she hasn't seen her brother face to face in weeks, she flings herself into his arms and hugs him in a way that not even Jason Grace could get away with. "I've missed you so much!"

Nico laughs. "Yeah, yeah," he says. He sounds a little uncomfortable, but mostly he sounds happy and Will thinks that happy is a great look on him.

Nico catches Will's eye behind his sister's mass of curls.

"At least she hasn't got any baby photos," he sighs.

Reyna, in fact, does give Will a shovel talk.

At least, he thinks she did - the whole experience was kind of strange and rushed and over in a flash. Her and Nico have a weird seeming relationship, he supposes, but only on the surface.

Minutes later, she's barely conscious of his existence, because she's so caught up in the smile she's got aimed at Nico and the stories he's telling her.

Reyna had not greeted Will with a hug. She had, thankfully, greeted him alone and not with an army behind her or two terrifying and giant and glaring silver and gold dogs. Will's pretty sure he might have actually melted into a puddle of fear at that point. Not that Will had expected anything of the sort.

("Reyna's great," Nico had said, one evening in the Hades cabin, starlight streaming through the window.

Will had asked Nico about his family, and Nico liked being able to answer.

"She's not like Hazel," he'd continued. "She's very... closed. She's like me. She's a warrior but she's a sister, and she makes things make more sense."

He's liked her since then.)

But Reyna hadn't gone on the other side of Will's imaginary expectations, either - pinning him up against some cabin and prodding him with flaming torches while Nico rolled his eyes in the background.

It seemed, in hindsight, Will wasn't very good at envisioning hypothetical situations. That said, he was still refusing to go to dinner with Lord Hades and Persephone for fear of death.

("My father is way too busy to actually kill people," Nico scoffed. "He has other people to do that for him.)

"Solace, right?" is what Reyna says when she actually sets two dark eyes on the two of them, having firstly drawn Nico against her and given him a tight but brief hug.

Will shrugs off the urge to salute.

"Yep," he nods. "Uh, Will. Reyna. Preator."

"Reyna's fine," Reyna says, coolly. She reaches out her hand, and Will oblingly takes it in his own and shakes it. "I've heard... a fair bit about you."

"Reyna," Nico says, warningly.

Reyna smirks.

"Not much," she continues. "Nico's as closed off as he's ever been, but he's getting there. The amount I've heard your name in casual conversation when he doesn't realise he's rambling is a good sign in itself..."

Will grins. "Yeah?"

And Reyna smiles, kindly. Softer, like she's seen something she likes on his face or in his eyes. It wouldn't surprise him. Will reads like an open book and most of the words are like gold when it comes to Nico.

Most of them, at least. Shadow travelling not included.

"Yeah," she confirms. "So it's nice to meet you, I'm glad that he has you. Really. You two... look good together."

Nico is blushing a little and Will's smile is stretching out to the far corners of the universe, far surpassing the moon and all the planets and the sun. He breathes out a sigh of relief and it feels like releasing all the winds in the world.

"That said," Reyna's tone changes, dips a little. Not scary or threatening so much as authorative. Kind of like how Apollo sounds when he's telling everyone to quieten down so he can talk about himself. Actually... probably not that, not so much.

Will gulps.

Reyna does not pull out a sword or a javeline or a lightsaber to threaten Will's life. But the intention is there.

"Make my little brother sad and I will have to come at you with the full force of the Roman army, Solace."

Nico rolls his eyes.

"Reyna, seriously."

Reyna smiles again.

This time, Will is unable to stop himself from saluting.

"Noted," he says, and Reyna pats him on the shoulder. And when Will looks back, despite himself and his words and his manner, Nico can't stop smiling.

There's one sister he can't meet, not really.

Bianca is out there somewhere: soul basking in the light of the sun and the warm blue skies, wind breezing against her skin.

Every day she is relearning something that she loved about the world: moonlight and rainfall on a roof top, archery, girl power, girls like Thalia Grace. She must be a little kid now, at the point of discovering little songs and colourful things.

When Nico talks about it he sounds sad but there's something in his voice that's as though he's thinking, yeah, she'd really love that. He once said that Bianca loved every new part of the world that she got to see, and Will supposes in that case it's fitting that she'll get to see it all through two pairs of eyes, both big and beaming, like Nico's.

But one day, months and months and a year or so, they're wandering through the Camp Half-Blood grounds, exploring their way through wilderness and overgrowth and bright colours submerged in uncut grass. The sun is out and the two of them are drowning underneath white light and gold hues that make this place feel like home.

Nico will never be warm. He's a child of the Underworld. But lately, his hands haven't felt quite so cold when he's holding Will's.

"Where are we going?" Will asks, but Nico's pulling him through wildflowers, barely dodging stinging nettles and the odd thorn, and he doesn't really care.

He'd go anywhere with Nico.

Even the Underworld - yes, he did do that, he's a stupid kid for love, okay. He went to dinner with Lord Hades of all people and ate special food that didn't trap his soul or whatever, and Persephone made small talk while everyone looked incredibly awkward. Will hadn't known what to say - he couldn't exactly say "hey, nice place you got here," and asking Nico's father about his job was the last thing he wanted to do.

Will gulps. He pushes that particular experience out of his mind.

"You'll see," Nico says. He pauses but doesn't stop moving, still pulling Will further and further out into the wild. Hell, Will likes being outside and even he's probably never come this far out into the greenery.

And after stumbling down another hill, they're lead down into a clearing, one which lets light fall beneath the roof of trees. It's empty but for the vague pulse of magic that Will swears he can feel, the thump-thump of life.

The glowing gold light.

And a marker. Something that stands out in the centre, where the beams of light really meet. Not a headstone, exactly, not - but it's something and it stands proud and made of stone.

An engraving of a girl, stood in position with a bow, poised to shoot an arrow into the sky ready to rip apart the constellations. A girl who could do anything and a name that Will doesn't need to read to know.

"I found this place a few months after the war," Nico says, after clearing his throat and looking awkwardly around, eyes sweeping the trees and the memorial and the ground. "I made this... place for her. She's not - here, like, physically. It isn't a grave so much. But it feels like her, it's somewhere she'd like. So it's like a little bit of her is here."

Will squeezes Nico's hand, and feels a gentle pulse in return.

"I'm sorry if it's weird," Nico says, hesitant now. "I know you can't know her, not really, but I wanted you to - meet her, I guess."

"It's not weird," Will murmurs. He squeezes Nico's hand again, clasps their fingers closer together. "It's not weird, not at all. And I'm - I'm glad you brought me here," he says.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Will says. He steps forwards, urges Nico to do so too, still not letting go of the gentle grip on his hand.

The light falls down on them and Will knows what he means now: the way that this place feels, the sleepy magic, warm light. They make their way closer and fall against the soft ground and Nico lays his head against Will and he feels safe.

And Will says, "tell me about her," so Nico does.

#solangelo #solangelo fic #solangelo fanfic #solangelo fanfiction #fic #ive been listening to across the universe all day hence the title #um enjoy i havent proofread lmao

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kdinthecity · 7 years

Text

Confessions of a Teenage Sugar Queen: Going Out

This piece can be found on Ao3 and ff.net or by following the links below.

This discovery inspires me to get up off my ass and find out more information about Noriko—no, Ursa. I’m still hesitant to read Crashing Blue Spirit for fear of what it might reveal that I’m not ready to accept, but according to the author’s bio in the back, Professor Noriko has written several publications. So I will be making that trip to the university library after all.

Someone else had the same idea.

Zuko is tucked away in a nook of the library’s research section with a stack of books, the same ones I’m looking for, no doubt. He doesn’t acknowledge me, so now what? I should apologize. No, I should leave him alone. He should uncover the truth on his own. He doesn’t need me. It’s not like I’m a real investigator anyway, who was I kidding?

I only make it to the end of the aisle in my attempt at retreat.

“Katara?”

I don’t turn around when I speak. “I wasn’t following you. I was just—“

“I’m sorry,” he says softly—because that’s his usual demeanor, not because we’re in a library.

He has nothing to be sorry for, but he’s probably used to taking the blame. I know I should set things straight, but the shelves are narrowing, and the room is too confining.

I don’t understand what I’m feeling because this building is huge, but I need to get out. Now.

But then, the sun is too bright, and the wind has a bite. I want to run as far and long as I can, but I am so tired. I am trapped—spinning in circles, falling, crashing…

Right into Zuko.

When he catches me, I bury my forehead in the cleft of his shoulder and pound my fists on his chest. I am furious at myself for crying again because I vowed to stop this nonsense and actually do something constructive. Why is Zuko the one comforting me? His father abused him, his mother abandoned him, and I’m altogether useless to him.

He doesn’t say anything. He just holds me and rubs gentle circles on my back like he did the first time he gave me a ride home. Because he knew even then what I needed before I would allow myself to receive it. I pull away, overcome by a sudden wave of alarming clarity.

“Zuko, what do you need?” I may not have his gift of intuition, but I also never thought to ask.

He flashes the smallest of smiles. “I need you.”

That’s not the answer I expected. “But I’m too… needy.”

“It feels good to be needed,” he says with a shrug. “It’s like… what I do matters to you. It sounds stupid, but I’m not used to that. Having someone who cares.”

“I do care, Zuko. I care a lot.” About you is implied here, but maybe I should say it out loud. Because during my personal pity party earlier, I promised to be more upfront with him, too.

“I’m sorry I took off,” he continues. “I just... I thought that my mom would have…” He clinches his jaw and sighs dejectedly. “I thought I mattered to her. I thought she cared. I guess I was wrong.”

“We don’t know for sure. Maybe she stayed away to keep you safe.”

He points at his scar. “Yeah right. Safe.”

Tears well up again, and I realize this is why I’ve been crying so much lately. I’ve been craving safe. It’s something you’re supposed to feel around family, but I haven’t since Mom died. When I’m with Zuko, he grants me that sense of security I’ve been missing, but when I look at his face, I hardly feel it’s fair. The same man who hurt him so badly is hunting us now. Zuko has never felt safe. He probably never will.

Zuko interrupts my reverie by stroking my dampened cheeks and lightly kissing my forehead. “Can we go somewhere to talk? Like a tea shop.”

Funny. I didn’t know Zuko liked tea.

He’s not satisfied by the Yelp ratings for the tea shop near the NPU campus, so we hop on the bus to find “the best tea in town.”

“Only five stars will do,” he says with a smirk.

“You do know that tea is just hot leaf juice,” I tease.

His expression turns solemn. “Whatever you do, don’t ever say that in front of my uncle.”

“Why?”

“Because he really likes tea,” Zuko replies. “And… he really likes you. Don’t give him a reason not to.”

I straighten up in my seat and give a fake salute. “I won’t let you down, sir.”

He rolls his eyes and ACK! He tickles me! Right there on the bus! Oh boy, is he gonna get it now!

We become that touchy teenage couple that everyone finds annoying. We’re even getting disapproving looks from a group of older women sitting toward the front. I’m sorta lovin’ it. I mean, let the kids whose lives are in mortal danger actually have some fun, OK?

What I love even more is Zuko’s smile. It is so pure.

Hot damn, I think I’m falling for this man.

I literally go weak in the knees when we arrive at the tea shop. Zuko leans toward me and shows me the Yelp reviews on his phone.

“Only four stars for tea, actually. But five for the view. What do you think?”

I swallow a few times to release my tied-up tongue. “I’ll have jasmine, please.”

He quirks his brow. “Uhh, I’m sure they have that blend.”

He scans the scenery, and something familiar passes across his features. At the tide pools, I read it as distance. But this time, I see it as loss. The ocean is tied to his mother’s disappearance somehow. I figure he brought me here because he knew I would love it. But I also wonder if he’s looking for some reconciliation, too.

Tea is served with a side of awkward silence. Is this back-and-forth normal for all couples early in their relationship or are we just special because of our circumstances?

Are we even a couple?

That would be a good place to start. “So, umm, Zuko? What are we? You know… like… to each other?”

I expect Zuko to avoid the question, but he doesn’t at all. He reaches across the table and places his hands over mine. “Katara, I really like you. And if things were normal, I would ask you out. I wouldn’t even think twice.”

“If things were normal, I would say yes. But… they’re not normal, are they?”

“No. Someone in my family killed someone in yours. We can’t just ignore that. And if something happened to you, Katara, because of me…”

“Zuko, you didn’t kill my mom, and I don’t blame you for it. Your dad is seriously fucked up, and I want to help you take him down! Not just for what he did to my family, but what he did to yours, too. We’re in this together no matter what… as friends or… as something else… but I don’t think friends usually kiss and stuff, so…”

I am flush and rambling and would rather be kissing than talking. Why is Zuko looking at me like I’m crazy?

“You’re crazy, Katara.”

Oh.

“Let’s go to the beach,” he says suddenly.

Now who’s the crazy one?

The beach is nice, but it’s getting late, and we should head back before Dad and Sokka arrive.

Zuko has something else in mind, though.

“Can I read you a little from the Blue Spirit book?”

I’m taken aback by this suggestion, but I oblige. He leans against a rock, and I tuck myself under his arm, relishing his warmth. Alaskan summers are nice, as I recall, but coastal winds always carry the chill of the Pacific current.

“Your mom was amazing,” Zuko starts.

I let out a sigh of relief. I didn’t think the book would convey anything otherwise, but uncovering so many secrets in such a short amount of time has taken a toll on me.

“When her son was born in Alaska, among family members from their native tribe, everyone congratulated her on the birth of a fearless warrior. In California two years later, when she shared her pink bundle with mostly strangers, everyone congratulated her on the birth of a beautiful princess. Kya made two promises to her daughter that day. One, she would teach her the ways of their people. And two, she would teach her to fight.

It was likely no coincidence that at age three, the young girl’s favorite game was to adorn herself in tribal paint and play ‘warrior princess.’ It amused Kya, but her greatest hope for her daughter’s fiery passion was finding a cause worth fighting for.”

I place my hand on Zuko’s forearm, signaling for him to stop. “So, this is a biography… about my mom?”

“Yeah, it starts from her early career, when she covered the Valdez oil spill. As best I can tell from the Painted Lady files, that’s how our mothers met. My mom reached out because she wanted to write a story about her.”

“Oh. I thought it was because your mom knew about what your dad was doing and wanted my mom to investigate?” I muse.

“I think it was the other way around—your mom knew first about my dad then told my mom. Maybe something my mom said in one of their interviews for the biography prompted the investigation. But the report your mom compiled was dated the same day my mom went missing.”

“Do you think she left because your dad found out somehow?”

“I don’t know. He knew, though, because he sent someone to… take care of it.”

“Right. Yon Rha.” My inner warrior princess flares at the mentioning of Ozai’s hired henchman who killed my mother.

“I turned everything in to the police. Your mom’s files were very thorough. I even gave my own statement.” Zuko’s breath hitches. “I spoke out against my father. If this goes to trial, I’ll probably have to testify, I don’t know if I—“

He stops abruptly and pulls his phone out of his pocket. Even though I am reading over his shoulder, he dictates the text messages out loud.

“Noren says your dad and brother are at his house. And so is Uncle.”

“Not Noren,” I correct. “Ikem.”

#zutara #zutara week #zutara week 2017 #zkweek #zkweek17 #hs au

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inexchangeforyoursoul · 6 years

Text

... I forgot to put the latest chepters of that thing here. Anyway, ch 14-15. This is about 6k words altogether. Seriously, you’re better off with any of the fanfic sites.

14. Law did not sign up for this

“You'll have to wait until the afternoon, though,” Robin informs her, which lowers Kat's excitement levels a bit. “We are planning to visit this winter fair opening in the city, we'll be out early.”

“... OOOH,” Kat says as the penny drops. She's kind of lost track of time while on her 'visit;' the streets must be littered with empty stands and decoration already. “Right... I forgot all about that...”

“You could join the fun, if you want to,” Robin continues. “The boys are also going out if you don't feel like getting up at an ungodly hour. You could show them around.”

“By which we mean it's better if someone keeps an eye on them,” she can hear Nami chime in.

“They are trouble magnets in the first place, and I see there's quite some of that to be found in this country,” she sighs, scanning a late page in her newspaper.

Kat's ears perk up upon hearing that. “There's local news?” She hops over to Nami to take a look herself.

The navigator hums, and tilts it a little so Kat can have a better look. “There's been an assassination attempt on an acclaimed author... and a bunch of people have disappeared in the past weeks from port towns across the country.”

“Someone wants a good asskicking,” she scoffs. “That Petrovits guy gets some shit for his topics, but is the best poet around. Hell, even I like the stuff I see from him, and I'm a fan of prose.”

“Well, he's fine, so there's that.”

Kat hums. “Have heard of the rumors of the missing people, though,” she notes, looking at the rest of the page. “The first ones are from over two weeks ago... at that time people said it was some gang war thing in the capitol.”

“And now it's unknown who's behind it, at least for the 32 remaining missed ones,” Nami adds, lowering the bundle of paper again. She sighs. “There are even children among them...”

“Hm.” Can't really add anything relevant here. Just then the door opens and shuts just as fast with Law arriving- and getting chills by the looks of it. No wonder, after spending a day or so inside the stuffy sub.

“How's it goin'?” Kat asks, turning towards him. She must be late... with all that gum flapping she's been doing it's not much of a surprise.

“Vaguely fake-hungry and probably bloody, hi,” he responds a second later while dropping an obligatory greeting for the girls who return the gesture. He also seems to be uncomfortable. Can't blame him. “Could I speak to you for a sec in private?”

… okay, that's unexpected.

Nami and Robin sit down on the bench where they will probably not bother them, although one can never be too sure with Robin around. Walking to the other side of the room, he scratches the top of his head. “These fucking cramps are not getting any better, goddammit...” he grumbles. There also might be a headache incoming.

She sighs. “Had to jinx it, didn't I... Is that what you wanted to talk about?”

He dismisses that with a flip of his hand. “No, I will survive. It's about something else, though related.” Something that's been bugging him out of the blue for the past fifteen minutes at least. Dragging her back can wait as much, too.

“Shoot away.”

“Is it common that your...” How is he going to put this without... well, saying anything that people may catch out of context and make fun of. “... reproductive system wants attention during this?”

She clicks her tongue a second later. Poor guy gets to experience the full program by the looks of it... “If you mean the non-pain related attention, then yes, it is. Really bad about twice a year, too.”

Great. Well... at least he knows what to expect if this gets more drawn out. “Alright... and what do you do when this happens?”

This is such an exceptionally dumb question. Or maybe just denial speaking. Kat sighs... he's not gonna like what she's about to say. “What would you do? Anyway, you can either leave it be and hope for a distraction... or take matters into your own hands, so to speak.”

He needs a second. Did he understand her right? “Pardon?”

“I'm telling you... to touch yourself, Law,” she states without a shred of doubt and nary a hint of shame. “Also helps with the cramps, for the record. And, uh, before you ask or lose sleep over it... don't worry, I've been restraining myself in our current situation.”

Okay.... okay. He's not sure where to start. First, he'll... do his best to ignore that last comment. Second, he's just taken aback at how she would just blurt out something like this. She's no prude, that's for sure. Or just trying to be helpful, which is... reassuring, if nothing else. Before long, he thinks into the biological aspect of her suggestion, too, and, well... a climax would release tension in the entire body, that is to say, there also would be no cramps. “I'll... have to refuse the advice, but still... why does your random commentary always make sense?”

She shrugs. Ouch; that's her shoulders being full-out sore again. “Anyway,” she speaks up, “your choices are do, don't, and a pill against suicidal organ tantrum to get rid of that at least.”

“Well put,” Law groans while dragging both hands down his face. He has no energy for this. The day is easily the worst he's had for a while. Will not miss it once over; though, if he thinks about the potential horrors of tomorrow... god help him now, if ever.

“Try slow and steady breathing, that also helps,” she says while stretching her shoulders, then sets out direction girls again.

“I'll try. Where are you going?”

“Making a request,” she groans. She's going to try and avoid swallowing too much poison, so...

Arriving at the other two, Kat takes a deep breath. “Um... Robin...? I'm sorry for troubling you with this, but... could I ask you to help with my neck, please?” she starts; “I've slept on it and the painkiller has as good as stopped working by now...”

“Sure thing, Nami has already mentioned you might ask.”

Her cushion neighbor makes a little reassuring gesture at Kat.

“Thanks a lot,” she breathes with a sheepish smile.

“What was the matter that needed a private chat?” Robin asks as she plops down next to her.

“Menstruation,” she points at Law who's just arrived, without thinking.

Nami is a little taken aback by the statement, saying nothing but a surprised little 'oh'. Robin doesn't miss a beat; “Get well soon,” she says looking over to Law.

Kat did indeed just out him like that... “Could you maybe not tell everyone? Thanks,” he says with a stare that's two shades away from murder. Realizing this will take a while, he also crashes next to them with crossed arms.

“Sorry,” she mumbles, then her breath hitches as she can feel hands being pressed against her shoulders.

“Where exactly does it hurt?” asks Robin as she receives the newspaper from Nami who's apparently done reading.

“Oh, it's... the upper part of the trapezius whe-eep!” Kat squeals as the ghastly fingers touch the front of her shoulders, but she realizes that was just a reflex; Law's body seems to be less sensitive. “Um, never mind. Apparently I'm not ticklish right now...”

Robin giggles and she can also hear Law laughing under his breath.

“Anyway, what I wanted to say...” Kat says addressing him again, “is that you have temporary membership in the all girls club. Told you that you could ask anyone else about this stuff, too.”

He just sighs. “If I wanted to discuss it with someone else, I would have done so.”

“Kat is right, though,” Nami says stretching a bit. “Being a cute girl is not easy, especially if you were not raised to be one. We'll help out, no problem.”

He shakes his head. “Whatever.”

After a couple of minutes of silence which is getting awkward (Nami's disappeared for a minute before coming back with a notice book she's now writing into, Robin's reading while kneading her back, Law's just... moping about, likely thinking about something), Kat is tempted to sing... which is a temptation she eventually gives into, but after the first few hummed tones she feels a finger in her side that's rewarded with another startled and unnecessary squeak.

“What are you getting jumpy for? I'm not ticklish,” she can hear from her left. Kat's being given a look that says 'stop that' with some annoyance and maybe, just maybe a smidgen of cocky delight mixed in.

Right, right, no singing... but: he's yet to complain about a lot of other things, with or without reason. “Yeah... you are not ticklish,” she smiles wide, turning towards him. Law is immediately alert and feels the room heat up around him; he's never understood the fight or flight instinct quite as well as in this very moment. He forgot all about the 'don't try to one-up her at being a little shit' rule. At least until he got his body back, because he can't possibly... run from himself... “But I am~” she states with the most malicious face he's seen her pull thus far. He's ready to jump this train... if it weren't for an out-of place arm to his left to block his way. Goddammit, Nico-ya.

“No, nO! Nhoho.. ahah... shit...!” That last word was akin to a mouse's squeak... This is so unbecoming. Conclusion is, being ticklish sucks. He'll have to keep his two odd spots top secret with her around... or use it against her if needed.

Before he knows it, she's already released him, though. “Don't worry, I'm done... I don't like being tickled, either,” Kat laughs, but his attention shifts to another wet and unpleasant issue which is reflected on his face.

“You... weren't lying when you said it would feel gross,” he groans, lowering his hands back to his abdomen. The 'fake-hunger' has long entered 'definitely pain' territory, too, which has become more apparent after (forcibly) laughing for a bit. At least he forgot about the whole issue of being horny, so that's off the table.

“... Oh... sorry,” she replies. He'd have to deal with it anyway, but still... that's no reason to be that down in itself. “Can't tell if it's because you're not used to it or it's being really severe, but this won't do,” she adds a few seconds later, sighing.

Law just groans. He's thinking about getting something from his room, but he has no intention to knock himself out cold; he has literally nothing ready that wouldn't do that to a body that likely sees any kind of pill every blue moon. And sitting down to work out a fix in this state? Not today. Not asking Ikkaku, he'd never hear the end of it. He's tempted to ask what exactly Kat got from this ship in the morning, it might help... or ask Chopper for whatever he has for Nami and Robin, because good lord, if they also deal with this on a daily basis without aid, he's beyond impressed. Wait, why is there ringing in his ears? Oh, to hell with all of this.

He can feel a warm hand on his back. “Hey... do you want to go down to your room?” The stimulus pats some awareness back into Law- it's not enough to get an answer out of him, though. It's too... hot in here.

She takes a deep sigh. “Alright, let's do this, then,” she groans standing up, then flips him over in one fell swoop.

Robin puts the back of her hand on his temples, to which he frowns; her hand's rather cool and gives him the chills. On the other hand, while he wasn't exactly about to faint, this position is working wonders.

“A little too warm, are you not?” she asks thoughtfully.

“Definitely not just PMS,” Kat states while crouching next to him. “Told you that the heat trap of yours would be trouble.”

“Don't lecture me,” he mumbles with a vague swat in her direction. He's not about to take her 'told-you-so', even if she's likely to be right. Dizziness, to his knowledge uncharacteristically strong cramps, and the rapid heartbeat that's getting back to normal by the minute... might as well be the signs of heat exhaustion. It's cooler than yesterday, but the aquarium kept this room cozy after all those sunny days. He'll need to be much more careful with her body.

“Should I call Chopper over?” asks Nami who's been eavesdropping since Kat avenged getting poked.

“Nah,” he sighs. “I'll just need something to drink... and antispasmodic.” Having said that he removes his hat that Robin knocked aside earlier. It also keeps him warm, after all. This comes with the unfortunate effect of glaring lights in his eyes, so he crosses his arms over his head.

“So you're saying that 'yes, we should get Chopper',” Kat remarks with a smug half-smile. From where he lies, it's almost as if her mouth was curved like a mink's.

This time he does hit her head with the rather aimless swat of the hat. She just snorts and takes it from him.

Nami's also laughing. “We won't need him, but I will go get the stuff for you. It will take a while until you actually feel better, though. Until then... hang in there.”

“Legends said... that the hand of a boyfriend also works.” Kat says spacing out, lifting one of hers. It's the closest thing they have right now.

“And, does it work?” asks Nami with a sly little smile.

“Dunno, never had one,” is her honest response to that as she shrugs and puts the hat on. Then puts her hand on Law's stomach, to which he flinches.

“Hey,” he groans. “no touching.”

“Sssh, rest,” she purrs, giving his-her tummy some light pats.

Law lets out a prolonged growl and thinks fuck it, he's just gonna wait these next few minutes out and then get back to the submarine. Also has his doubts regarding the effectiveness of the gesture, but he has to admit it doesn't feel terrible. He does wince every time Kat moves a finger, or thinks she moves a finger, anyway. All despite the fact that her expression tells of someone who's at least five layers deep in daydreams rather than potentially make the sudden decision to tickle him again.

Meanwhile Nami trotted outside, soon to return. Not alone, though.

“I followed the giggles of an angel and have been told it was in need of some refreshment~” Sanji sings as he flips inside with a glass of water after the navigator, who rolls her eyes with a lenient smile. In the very moment he sees Kat and Law (who might or might not have snorted at the development) next to the peacefully reading Robin, he remembers the small detail that seems to short circuit him whenever it surfaces. He seems to be almost over it after a few seconds, though. Slowly, but surely, he's getting there. Walking up to them, he coughs. “What's the matter?”

Kat looks over to Nami with a smile creeping onto her face. “Just some internal bleeding,” she states with the most Law-like voice she can pull under the circumstances, then reaches and takes the glass with a hand without further commentary. The redhead grins wide as the intent dawns on her.

Sanji's composure? It never existed. Must be keeping it in the shirt that he's clutching now, close enough to nibble at it if he really wanted to. “Internal bleeding?! Can it become deadly?!?”

Good lord, he's either slow or... or someone educate this man. Someone who's not her.

“... Eventually, yeah.” Kat doesn't even have to act deadpan here, she just is; she can feel Law shaking under her touch, too. Looking at him there's an unmistakable smile to be spied in the cover of his arms. There's a double sense of accomplishment. OK, enough dicking around.

“Sanji... every healthy person with a uterus bleeds sometimes,” she drawls in her own tone before the cook could spiral down into a panic attack. He seems to have ascended (or rather descended...) to another plane upon hearing that. Then she turns back to Law, giving one last pat; “You get up, princess.”

The only reason he does not swat her again is the glass of water in her hand that he kind of needs. He does give her a disgruntled look while taking it from her and downing half of it immediately, though. Then he murmurs a 'thanks' to Nami as he snatches the pill from her palm, finishing off the rest.

“Alright,” he starts with unexpected vigor, “I'm fine enough to fuck off. Let's just... go already,” he breathes then with fading enthusiasm as he stands up. As he's kind of tilting to the side, Kat stands up and grabs him by the shoulders, straightening him, though.

“Easy, there. Shitty circulation, remember?”

Oh, right. He kind of forgot about that, too. The colorful pulsating dots littering his vision are an ample reminder themselves, thank you very much. As they start fading a second or two later, he motions Kat to release him, to which she complies.

“Noted,” he breathes. “Let's go, then. We've lost a lot of time here.” With that, he's already near-running towards the door.

Robin sighs and shakes her head without looking up from her reading material; Nami reacts likewise.

“Welp,” Kat says, looking back at them for a moment, “I better make sure he doesn't fall into the sea or breaks his neck on the stairs.” With that, she also takes a hop direction door. “Bye, guys! And thanks a lot again, Robin! Life's already much more tolerable!”

“Gladly,” the woman answers, turning pages with a smile. Nami waves goodbye as well while Katslips out into the overcast outdoors, sitting back down to continue writing whatever. Sanji's... kind of standing there still. She might have broken him in an entirely different way this time.

She does have to stop thinking about the blonde cook for a bit, though- someone with unmistakably rugged skin is grabbing at her arm... oh bother.

“Oi, there you are!” she hears the ever so cheerful voice of Luffy behind her. “Torao, check out the robot Franky made! It's beyond amazing!! Chopper and Usopp helped make it! I'm sure you'll like it, too!”

Anything involving a combination of at least two of those names screams disaster. A beautiful, terrifying, horrifying, awe-inspiring disaster. Plus Luffy. She's almost curious to see what he'd deem as something Law would be interested in, honesty.

Catching the hard-to miss beaming of his partner-in-crime, her counterpart stops in his tracks. Kat can't see his face, but she can just feel the eye roll. Anyway, she should make this quick, for everyone's sake.

“Sorry, Luffy, but I've got work to do.”

… that pout, though. Positively adorable.

Law sighs, and takes a few steps back their direction. “Strawhat-ya... not now. She has to train.”

“Huh? Why train, and why now? He's not weak,” he states, squinting back at him as he crosses his arms.

If there's one thing Kat knows about Luffy apart from being vaguely obnoxious and generally nice, it's that logical tasks with abstract elements are sometimes just... a bit too much for him to handle.

“Luffy, this is Kat speaking. I gotta go back into Law's man cave so we can get back to normal and you can cling onto him like a koala again,” she sighs, still holding onto a faint semblance of a smile. She has not nearly enough social energy left to deal with someone of Luffy's caliber right now. Neither does Law, by the looks of it. Can she abort this mission quicker, please?

“Oh, okay...” He seems kind of bummed, especially once he remembers the exact situation they are in right now. Then he returns to normal, though. “Hurry up and get strong fast, then! There's a bunch of stuff I wanna show you both before I forget about most of it!”

Well, at least he's aware of his problem.

“See you around!!” With that, he's already gone, shooting off direction crow's nest.

Kat sighs with a less forced smile wondering for a moment whether the boys did their shenanigans up there of all places, then makes her way down; Law also shakes his head looking into the direction Luffy disappears in before following her. What a problem child.

Trotting down the metal staircase, and getting bored of the steps creaking, Law speaks up: “... can I ask you something?”

“Shoot away.”

“Even if it has to do with me having your body... I get the feeling that you tolerate me more than the other men around here,” he says. At least that seems to be the case. Penguin, Shachi, Sanji, Luffy... she's obviously tense and-or unresponsive around them, meanwhile she's been pretty damn friendly with the women from what he's seen. He actually feels kind of in the middle.

She takes a few seconds to respond. “Well... could be a factor, now that you mention it... but it's more about... how comfortable I'm around a person,” she explains. “I can get pretty rude if there's no way to shake off unwanted attention. Chopper, maybe Usopp and you are as good of a company I can wish for most of the time... Every other guy that has bothered with me or vica versa kinda pisses me off or is plain too high maintenance, like Luffy. He's also really loud, which is something I avoid. Then, anyone actively hitting on me makes me hells of uncomfortable, so Sanji's the stuff of nightmares to me... and I also keep distance from people who drink a lot. Can't stand the odor in the first place.” She sighs, scratching her head a bit, then turns to him. “Doesn't leave me with a lot of options here, does it?”

Easy enough to see her point; he nods to himself, satisfied with the answer. He's reminded of the other day when they were descending here together; “... I've actually been wondering why you even told me about Shachi... but it makes sense now.” He takes a deep breath. Now that he's done thinking about this and the attention steers back to himself, the cramps are letting themselves known again. Up to half an hour... just up to 30 minutes, and it will be fine.

“Oh, yeah... I hear he's blue about that. Hope he gets better soon...” she says, thinking back to the breakfast banters on the Sunny, then holds the door for him as they arrive.

“For someone who butchered him without a second thought, you sure feel bad about it,” he remarks as he plops down to his bureau. Indeed, he's heard quite a few rumors going around. They are hilarious.

“I actually do, Sir Snark.” Tapping her cheek, she's reminded of a prickly business. “By the way, I need to shave. Care to tell me where I find the stuff?”

“Not now, you've managed to waste about two hours of today's precious time already. Get back on task,” he states, counting down the pages in a bulky book.

Kat sighs. If she doesn't go shave right fucking now, when she remembers the task and is up to it, it may not get done until he actually has his body back three months down the road or something like that. Looking like a caveman has its perks, but it also sounds hells of uncomfortable. And scratch-inducing; she moved onto her neck and shoulders lately, but the irritation would be more than tempting. She'd rather not ruin his face, too. Time for some serious measurements.

Law feels a tap on his shoulder. He turns towards Kat; what the hell does she want now? Instead of a question, however, he's met with a sensation similar to someone rubbing sandpaper against his face. Except it is, in fact, his face.

“What the hell was that for?!” he asks, recoiling from the stubble that's both rough and vaguely... tickling, if that's a word. Which is, along with every derivation of it, one he doesn't want to hear again any time soon.

“The shaving kit, your prickliness,” Kat repeats her request unfazed, and perfectly content with today's accomplishments. Apart from other small victories, she's also managed to visibly spook, amuse, and embarrass the poker faced Law.

“... it's in the bathroom cabinet... top shelf,” he mumbles, rubbing his baby face. She's pretty darn headstrong when she wants to be. “Need help?”

“I remember how it goes.” She squints into the distance. “I think. Anyway, should be fine.” That foamy stuff followed by razors, maybe twice, then washing your face. Plus aftershave. At least that's what her grandfather did. As far as she can remember.

“Try not to cut your throat or something similarly stupid,” he moans then, returning to the book. “And make it quick.”

“Will do~ be right back,” with that, she skips out of the room.

Sliding the razor down with likely more care than it would be necessary halfway through the process, she stops for a second. If she wants to sneak out with the guys tomorrow, she might want to mix up her looks a bit, just to be on the safe side. After some consideration, she decides to get rid of the portion that's easiest to remove. Here goes nothing.

A few hours later, as she steps outside with a hoodie on her arm she just fished out of the chest of drawers (and which she hugs tight in the chilly evening), she's still pondering over Law not noticing the change. Then again, making rounds to the toilet or not, he was busy ignoring her after all the shenanigans she's pulled that day. So busy, in fact, that she could drop his earrings off into one of the many little boxes at her work station with ease. She has nearly everything she could think of. How long might it take for him tomorrow to notice she's not coming? Then finding her? He'll be so pissed...

Boarding the Thousand Sunny, she can hear familiar voices discussing some tech stuff nearby, which is just perfect. She jogs up to Franky and Usopp idling at the mast, then taps the back of the smaller man. “Hey, Usopp, do you guys have anything... to color hair?”

15. Chille tid

Before Kat knows it, it's already morning. Had some good sleep this time: no pain, no fiery nightmare, or any other dreams, really. She also did not wake before time and crawled out of her pile just as the bell tower announced 7 o'clock- the girls, as suspected, were nowhere to be seen. Concerning her neck, she also had little qualms; Robin's magic was indeed otherworldly. Like, it wasn't perfect, but the few odd stings were nothing to write home about. If she ever wanted to, that is.

It takes her quite some time to get ready this time; she can hear the boys running about by 8 when she finishes up. Gotta pick up pace.

Yesterday evening she agreed with Usopp to meet up on deck and go together with Luffy, Carrot and Chopper. Something tells her that the mink dumped them in favor of the girls, though. She takes one last look at her handiwork and makes sure she has her purse that she stuffed with some bills back when she dragged Law home, then steps outside. She sees that she was right: no bunnies to be seen- and neither are reindeer, for the record. She can see why the leftover two are a little miffed.

“Wow! So that's why you asked for the paint...” Usopp cracks a smile. “You are taking the camouflage business seriously.”

“Of course I do... all of you are famous, but this dumbass was basically the cover girl of the news for almost two years,” she says pointing at her winking self, then flips the sunglasses on her head onto her nose.

“Oh, that's cool!” Luffy shouts with enthusiasm, running a lap around her to take it in in all its glory.

Usopp checks her out from where he stands and nods approvingly. “Pretty good, I have to say... wouldn't have known it was you if it weren't for my glasses. And paint.”

It does take a more attentive eye to guess that she's strolling around in Trafalgar Law's body; all hair being carefully colored a dull whitish grey is the most prominent change. Could not get it actually white because it was too dark to begin with. Second obvious thing is that the earrings are missing. And... she also shaved the beard as-is. Oh, and there's that hoodie.

“Unfortunately his clothes are pretty much all the same... this one seemed a little off, that's why I took it,” Kat says musing, then stretches out the fabric. The really dark blue base material has a slightly cartoonish, big polar bear sewn into the middle. “It kind of matches the hair, too,” she smiles. The ensemble is as close to perfection as it can get with the current materials available to her. Minus the fake mole which she decided against, because of smudge danger.

“I still think he's going to kill you for the goatee,” Usopp sighs.

She takes a deep sniff of the cool-ish morning air. “He'll try, that's for sure... By the time he's in this body again, it will have grown back, though.”

“You are pretty pessimistic,” he remarks with a lifted brow and a half-smile.

“I prefer to call it 'realistic,' but yeah, I don't think he'll get it back any time soon.” Thinking about it, he should ask for it nicely, too. Anyway, that's worry for another day. “So, where do you guys want to begin?” she asks, stretching.

“I want to be where the party's at... and the meat!” Luffy states with confidence.

“We have no idea,” Usopp sighs, stepping direction port. “Half of the stuff on the flier we didn't even understand. Any recommendations?”

“Honestly? No...” she says, pondering. The whole thing is rather bare-bones apart from the seasonal food one can get when too lazy to cook and bake. Oh, and there's concerts and such, but she never cared about that. “Actual parties won't be a thing until Friday. Though we could check out a few places that didn't change place in the past year...s...” Thinking about it, this is her third fair, that is to say, almost third year here. Damn, time sure goes fast, her counter's been stuck on two all this time. Her birthday's also not that far away... she'll probably forget about that as-is, though. Her boss will be the one to remind her, like last time. Yep.

“And, are those worth a visit?” Usopp asks upon stepping down the ladder as his captain just hops off to the shore.

Kat shrugs. “Guess so. Let's just tackle the whole shebang and see where we end up,” she concludes, getting on the ladder herself.

As such, they just walk upwards the main street. Close to the ports is the cheap memorabilia stuff and tacky clothes. As she's looking around, a dark object catches her attention in the corner of a shop that sells oddly patterned shirts and sweaters. Oh. My god.

“You seeing what I'm seeing?” she pokes Usopp (who in turn grabs Luffy by the collar so he won't disappear from sight), pointing at the shop.

“Oooh, good eye,” he notes also noticing the piece. Luffy also mumbles a 'nice' under his breath and is already stepping into that direction.

The one with that wonderful, wonderful black turtleneck with the ribcage print.

“It better fucking fit him,” she sings, beelining for the object.

Five minutes later she's in an especially elated mood, and her clothes acquired an additional layer. Another ten minutes later, they finally move on from the shopkeeper girl who's quite obviously eyeing her all the time after peeling 7 new layers off of Luffy. (The garish hoodie with the bells was an absolute no. He could keep an especially hideous waistcoat with hedgehogs and red apples, though.) Normally, she would think thrice about buying anything, but having company makes it a hundred times easier to throw some money out of the window. She has more than enough by now anyway by saving on everything apart from food and the occasional art supplies. It's fun, too. It will be hella big on her once she has her own body, but A) she wants to see Law's reaction and B) owning a cheap piece of shit like this? Common sense.

She's especially happy about the extra insulation as the clear skies brought an especially cold morning. The first frost hangs onto some spots further away from the sea, though it quickly melts away as the shadows recede. Pondering about that, she bumps into Usopp.

“Welp, sorry.”

“Say, Kat, who, or what, are those?” he asks with fascination and mild worry, glaring at some costumed people with vaguely goat-like masks and shaggy fur coats. Seems like she also missed Luffy running off to check them out for himself. He's already done, apparently, as he jogs back towards them. Seems like he got a piece of candy.

“Oh, those are bushoo. You'll see a lot more of these guys near the weekend... Anyway, it's the last week before fasting season and they play some role in the tradition.”

Hearing that, he hums something that could be an 'aha'. “Fasting? No wonder people have a festival like this, then. What exactly are the scary costumes about, though?”

“The story is that they are here to spook winter away. Can't really say more, culture is not my department, so to say.”

Usopp (and Luffy who's been eavesdropping for a second) cock their heads to the side.

“Scare winter away?” The sniper asks with pessimism in his voice.

“Isn't it just about to begin?” Luffy continues the train of thought, then flings the candy, along with wrapping, into his mouth.

“Well, yeah... over here, it is. But this archipelago is basically a climate rainbow, and we are on the opposite side to where the custom originates from,” she explains to them, also tilting her head while trying to get the gears in her head responsible for school days going.

“Oh, so it's a mystery island! Cool!” With that, Luffy's attention is no more. Concerning the topic, that is; he immediately shoots off direction food and colorful stuff further ahead, wondering what those are about. His pocket money won't last for long.

Kat giggles. Usopp seems more interested in the deal, though.

“That sounds rather unique! At least this is the first island I've seen that has more seasons than usual...” Thinking along, Usopp seems to be taken aback by an idea. “Wait, this place doesn't have all 16 seasons of the Grand Line, right?!”

“Nnnope, only eight or nine, depending on who you ask. The middle parts are rather stable, so many count it as a unique one: it's never quite cold enough for it to be winter, or hot enough to be called summer... full of pensioners,” she adds in a whisper, which he awards with a snicker. Coughing, she continues; “Anyway, from what I remember, there are two islands, a spring one in the North-West and another fall one in the South, which were originally aligned and the only ones here for a long time. Then, some volcanic bullshit went down and the others emerged. Horka here is the latter of the two, actually. The people on the spring island Slaka up North are just about done with winter.”

He nods wisely. “I see, I see... Still, pretty impressive.”

“Have you guys seen Sibenburg? That's the biggest one today, still growing... it's surrounded by active volcanoes,” she continues, trailing off. The edge she grew up on had one semi-active volcano in the sea (plus another multimutant in the distance), but the Eastern mountains surrounded by a bunch of them is possibly the coolest place she's ever visited. Pretty hot and has awful air, though. At times one can smell the brimstone in the morning when there are Northern winds. Not missing her town aside, it's oddly comforting.

“Yeah, that's where we arrived first... I was almost disappointed when it turned out it's not some Hell's Gates type of deal, you know~ Either way, no wonder Nami has been taking her time as we sailed through here,” he laughs, dropping the rugged adventurer facade.

“Ah, right... the log pose should have been set by now... six days in the north, eight over here, wasn't it?” No matter how she's looking at it, the time has long passed. Oh man, she better not be reason for them not setting sail... didn't even think about that.

“Dunno, she just tells us whenever we are about to leave. Because of him, though,” he points at Luffy, who has ran over to a mask stand with pieces similar to the bushoo earlier, trying every piece on at a mirror, “I'm pretty sure we'll stay for the festivities. Nine times outta ten, he has the last say, unfortunately.”

“I see,” she mumbles with a lenient smile. That's quite a relief.

With that, she can also feel something else along with Usopp- and that's someone's hand swatting their bums. “Don't be so stiff, boys! Enjoy yourselves!” That's all the lady who's way above 50 and wearing half of a bushoo set shouts before disappearing into obscurity with a laugh. They can hear more slaps and some concerned shouts littering her way.

They look at each other.

“What. The hell.” With a dot. Two of them. That's all she can muster.

“Was kinda hoping you had an explanation for that, too...” he responds.

“Actually... I've heard of her? But only as... the stuff of legends, you know?” she squeaks, trying to shake off the stiffness, looking back direction Luffy who's at the next booth ordering some tea. “Never expected to experience it firsthand, though.”

“Joking is the best way to get over it, alright,” Usopp sighs.

“Actually... I didn't mean to make a joke, but thanks for pointing it out,” Kat laughs, stepping forward at last. “Let's also get some tea going, what do you say?”

#KMKY #Kate writes #well I found a typo so there's that

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architeuthid-blog · 7 years

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Books That Have Made an Impact On Me

The Pale King: It’s strange to read a book by a dead man, I mean a book that wasn’t finished because the author died but which was published anyway. In the literary world this is taken as a matter of course; one expects posthumous publications from renowned authors. It’s pathological, and it was hard to shake the feeling when reading one of these artifacts that you’re looking at something unintended for your eyes, like you’ve wandered into a dressing room and stumbled upon a clown who hasn’t finished putting on his makeup. Then again, the novel ends with the same abruptness and feeling of ruined orgasm as Infinite Jest, so maybe the difference is academic for Wallace.

That’s not what made this an impact though. It’s a certain scene, in the chapter from the point of view of the slacker-stoner character, who’s wandered into the wrong classroom and ends up listening to a lecture from an accounting professor. It’s the way he describes, in his airy confessional, the teacher’s attitude, a self-possessed man, without any of the corny jokes he’s used to from the humanities department, an assurance that everything he is saying is true and necessary, no filler, no need for emotional connection, just pure knowledge, a Kantian understanding of the world and its phenomena.

This semester I’m teaching a world literature course in the science & engineering building. Every day I arrive a few minutes early to set things up, and every day the previous professor is still occupying the classroom, either still lecturing about mathematics or staying after to answer students’ questions about the material. Every moment is filled. It’s pedagogy at its most efficient and essential. I bet she never feels the need to justify what she’s doing; the importance of differential equations is self-evident, even if one has (probably) never moved anyone to tears.

I’m sure it’s not always the case. Some of my students do seem to care about the Epic of Gilgamesh; I’m actually surprised how many, this semester around. And everything is more complicated than it first appears. I know nothing of this other professor’s life, her dreams, whether or not she’s happy, whether or not such a question actually matters. But every time I’m up at the lectern and have to fill an awkward silence, every time I’ve run out of things to say about some classical Indian epic and then realize there’s still 20 minutes of class time left, every time I ask a question about the text and am met with a sea of blank stares, I can’t help but think about The Pale King and the way that layabout was inspired by an accounting lecture.

Have I ever inspired anyone?

2666: Ah, and we’re hopping right back into morbidity. Another book that was never finished due to the author’s sudden non-existence. This might actually be, unintentionally, my favorite genre of literature. Few will argue against Bolaño’s genius, and 2666 holds up even incomplete, even incomplete and in translation (for Natasha Wimmer, though less celebrated, is also a genius). Beyond general prose mastery, this book is also remarkable for being telepathic: About halfway through The Part About the Crimes, I was sitting in a coffeeshop, thinking to myself, “Wow, all this violence is really starting to become a chore to get through, I wish something else would happen for a change,” and lo and behold, on the next page, the book suddenly lapsed into a bizarre, extended parody of One Hundred Years of Solitude. I have to respect that.

Bolaño has also been one of the largest influences on my writing style, mainly because I decided to write a story that imitated his prose, and, it turns out, imitation is not just the sincerest form of flattery, but also the best way to learn from someone. I swear less in my writing though. I’ve been uncomfortable with swearing, I don’t know why.

The Story of My Teeth: The first book on the list that isn’t a doorstopper and whose writer didn’t die before finishing it. Wow! Also the first book on the list written by a woman. Double wow!! Actually, I’m not quite sure what impact this book made on me, but it was a good one. It certainly made me fall in love with Luiselli’s writing. Her prose is just the kind of weird and humorous that I adore. (I was originally going to write “She’s just the kind of weird and humorous that I adore,” but I’ve never met her in real life, and so cannot make that kind of qualitative judgement. I was going to meet her, back in 2015, at a conference in Tucson, but I miscalculated when booking my flight and hotel, and so had to leave a day early. On top of that my flight was on Halloween, so I also missed out on one of my favorite holidays. I wouldn’t say that I was inconsolable, but I was certainly in an ill mood for a while.)

I’d talk about how Luiselli is like a reincarnation of Scheherazade, a master of the art of the story-within-a-story, but this isn’t LitHub, and the onanism I’m engaging in here is a different animal altogether.

(Even though I’ve written for LitHub before, I kind of despise them, for reasons that don’t quite add up. I think mainly they seem like yet another vanguard of the fake-woke brigade, and I can’t stand people who seem like nothing more than the masks they wear. Ooh, what to do, you’re being problematic again. And you just used “seem like” twice in quick succession. That’s shoddy craftsmanship.)

Not One Day: I actually just finished this book a few days ago. Actually, it hasn’t even been officially released yet (tee hee, I have an advance copy, well that’s less titillating that you might think). The conceit of the book is that the author, Anne Garréta (a member of the Oulipo, nonetheless!), has decided to spend five hours every day writing about different women she has desired over the course of her life. So it’s a confessional novel, but Garréta is very self-conscious about the fact that she’s writing a confessional novel, she knows how the sordid game is played. I, too, often feel self-conscious about the things I do, like I’m always late to the party. Fortunately, Garréta knows how to innovate. And not all her tales are erotic adventures; actually, very few are. One is about a little girl who develops a fascination with her. Another chapter centers around her learning that someone has a crush on her, but she never figures out who.

I don’t know what I’m trying to say here. I like the style. I’m narcissistic enough that I may steal it for something (just like I’m stealing this from someone--but I’m getting ahead of myself).

The Elephant Vanishes: This was gateway drug into the world of Murakami. Short stories are easier to digest than full novels; there are natural starting and stopping points, along with the sly exhortation that you can walk away at any time if you’re feeling unsatisfied. Of course, I was reading the book for an undergrad course, so that wasn’t really an option for The Elephant Vanishes, but then again I never felt the need to take advantage of that particular safety cord.

(The course was called “The Poet In Asia” and was a general survey of Asian literature, more or less. We also read Rumi, Li Bo, Du Fu, Matsuo Bashō, etc.)

Actually, there’s not much else to say about this one. I guess it also introduced me to post-modern literature, literature that maybe went beyond the mainstays of plot, characterization, and so on. Does that mean anything? Plenty of writers today would say no, that post-modernism is just privileged navel-gazing. But I do gaze at my navel a lot; it collects a worrying amount of lint over the course of the day.

Notes From Underground: Another required reading from my undergraduate years, twice: first in a mandatory “Narratives of the Self” class, then later in an elective course on Russian literature (Anna Karenina would have also made this list, but, I mean, c’mon). My major, incidentally, was philosophy. All of this is just tangentially related.

Notes From Underground taught me an important life lesson, one I didn’t even realize I needed until I had it. Oh wow, I hate myself a little bit more for writing that. I don’t even want to tell you what it is now.

Okay, I’ll give you a hint.

I saw some of myself in the Underground Man, and correctly understood that to be a bad thing.

Pale Fire: Did this book actually make an impact on me? Thinking about it, I’m not really sure. Formally it does something I think is cool. Moving on.

Minor Angels: The first Volodine novel I read. Of course that carries significance. It certainly delivered on its promise of its effect hiding not in the text itself but within the reader’s dreams. After finishing Minor Angels I woke up locked outside my apartment, around midnight, in January, barefoot in the snow, braving my way over slippery ice and pointy rock salt to reach the emergency phone. I need to stop talking about this event, or at least stop pretending that it somehow makes me interesting. This isn’t even the post-exotic novel that made the biggest impact on me. That honor would belong to. . .

We Monks & Soldiers: Everything comes around in great circles. Or small circles. Fuck, I don’t know. Everything is at least repeated here, and by here I mean in We Monks & Circles, er Soldiers. I like how we see the narrative twice, with slight variations the second time. It’s a genuine post-exotic form, the Shaggå, a series of seven sequences, repeated, and interspersed with commentary, impenetrable to the outside reader, any of which could be the enemy of post-exoticism.

Yes, this is hell of pretentious. No, I don’t care. Shut up. I hate you. I’m going to kill you. Oh noble son or daughter, you who are reading this, you shall die by my hands. Think on the Clear Light, though you will not reach it. You are doomed the wander the Bardo for forty-nine days until you are reborn into another miserable existence.

Also, the scene with the spider-girl in the burning hotel is pitch-perfect.

The Soul of an Octopus: This book made me jealous more than anything. Here Sy Montgomery is, going backstage to prestigious aquariums across America, getting to meet firsthand the octopuses in their care (not to mention a rather handsome-sounding marine biologist), and then she goes and writes a best-selling, award-winning book about the experience! Whenever I go to an aquarium, the octopus isn’t on display. Or they’re hiding. I can’t blame them for hiding, I’d be shy too if I were on display like that, but the former just seems like rotten luck. I was so looking forward to seeing the Enteroctopus dofleini at the New England Aquarium two Decembers ago, and her handlers had spirited her away that inauspicious winter day for some well-deserved r&r. At least I got a t-shirt.

I have gone to the following aquariums:

~Georgia Aquarium (Atlanta) ~Tennessee Aquarium (Chattanooga) ~New England Aquarium (Boston) ~Mystic Aquarium (Mystic) ~Tybee Island Marine Science Center (Tybee Island) ~South Carolina Aquarium (Charleston) ~Aquarium of the Bay (San Francisco) ~Shedd Aquarium (Chicago) ~National Museum of Play (Rochester) ~Aquarium (Endless Ocean: Blue World)

Our Lady of the Flowers, Echoic: It’s not the book itself that made an impact on me here, but rather its translation, by Chris Tysh. She takes Genet’s Notre dame des fleurs, a prose text, and transforms it, in her interpretation, into a poem. The effect is striking and opened the door to a vast array of translatory possibilities. Things were no longer one-for-one (nor had they ever been, but before this, it was merely an academic matter, shadows on a distant wall).

Granted, I’ve never translated a prose text into a poem, but then again, I’m not a poet. Poets have an easier time going crazy with translations, I think. The older generations didn’t even bother learning the source language. That’s probably taking things too far. But if Quine is right, then it doesn’t matter either way, I guess. Is Quine right? Who the hell would have a special word for “rabbitness instantiated”?

Autobiography of Red: Another book of poetry, another liberal interpretation of an earlier work. Turning and turning in the widening gyre, etc.

I’ll come out and say it: This book made me cry. I straight up teared up. I bet it made other people cry too. If you say you read Autobiography of Red and didn’t cry, I’m going to assume that you’re lying. Or that your literary sensibilities are far more refined than mine. Probably that second one. (Putting aside the fact that it’s hard to get more refined than Anne Carson, but rationality rarely enters my autoevaluative equations.)

Why did I cry? For all the normal reasons. Even when we identify with them, tragic characters will always be way cooler than we could ever dream of ourselves.

In the House upon the Dirt between the Lake and the Woods: I’m including this book here specifically because it did not impact me the way I thought it would. While reading it, I often felt tired, like I was running a surrealist marathon (especially once the narrator stopped transforming into a cephalopod). I can’t begrudge Matt Bell’s style; he does some interesting things with his prose. I get the feeling that he’s an ace when it comes to unreliable narrators. But things have to come to a close at some point, and so many times I thought I was finally reaching some sort of conclusion, only to discover that, nope!, we were just going a layer deeper, into the house, or the protagonist’s psyche, or the married couple’s past. So, even though this book was kind of a let-down, I still talk about it, because every condition contains the seeds of its opposite nature, and I’ve read Hegel too, Sam. Maybe Cataclysm Baby is better.

The Pillow Book: I would be remiss if I didn’t mention to book to which I am indebted for the form in which I wrote this whole shindig. I admire the way Sei Shōnagon writes about whatever seems to capture her fancy at any given moment. It’s incredibly intimate (and with reason: we’re essentially reading her diary. Why do people think it’s okay to publish others’ private writings? What would Anne Frank say if she knew her personal thoughts during a time of great trauma were now required reading for middle school students?). Her poetry is beautiful, yes, but it’s the lists that get me. They’re just lists of things, a show about nothing. But they convey so much about her, about her compatriots, about courtly life in Heian Japan. Last semester my students weren’t huge fans of this text; they preferred the Tale of Genji. They found the Pillow Book “too hard to follow.” I think maybe they just didn’t like how long the selection in the anthology was. But then again, judging by their research papers, many of them had no problem reading the New Testament Gospels (even if they had no idea how to write about said Gospels--it turns out, coming as a surprise to no one, that devout undergrounds have no fucking clue how to do Biblical exegesis). So here I am, taking up the one-woman literary tradition of a courtier who lived over a thousand years ago, for no reason in particular beyond a habitual shrug and a muttered “just because I felt like it.”

A Google search reveals that TV Tropes has an article on the Pillow Book. According to the anonymous author or authors of the page, Sei is an example of the “Alpha Bitch” trope. So, that’s enough of that web adventure.

Post-Scriptum: Reading over what I’ve written so far, it would be tempting to ask (like the rote commentator of any list on the internet), “Are these really the only books that have impacted you? What about The Dew Breaker? What about If on a winter’s night a traveler? What about Horror Recognition Guide?” That’s all well and good; plenty of other books have certainly stirred something inside me. The practical answer is one of laziness: I’ve written what I felt like writing about, and now I’m done. Or maybe, if I didn’t mention some book, then I didn’t inspire me as much as you might think it did. Or, I only wanted to include one book by any given author (with one obvious, but pre-eminent, exception).

Incidentally this entire exercise also borrows heavily from not just the Pillow Book but also Not One Day: Anne Garréta ends her confessional narrative with a P-S that’s essentially an apology and a shrug. Which is what I’m doing here, explicitly so.

Okay, I think I’m done.

#Books #David Foster Wallace #Roberto Bolaño #Valeria Luiselli #Anne Garréta #Haruki Murakami #Fyodor Dostoevsky #Vladimir Nabokov #Antoine Volodine #Lutz Bassmann #Sy Montgomery #Chris Tysh #Jean Genet #Anne Carson #Matt Bell #Sei Shōnagon #Squid life

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