#the ONLY reason we keep apes rather than apes keeping us is bc we made guns first imo

[missdawnandherdusk]

A Girl’s Choice

Draco X Reader (highschool!AU)

Summary: Everything was absolutely fine in his small town, until you stumbled in and began to defy the status quo.

A/n: So, guess who got Midnight Sun and has been reading it non-stop for the past few days? Me. It was me. So, please enjoy this Twilight Parody of our favorite characters. Also I get to move back to college in like a week and I am EXCITED--mainly because there’s a good chance that I get a room to myself bc of the virus. So yay me. I love you guys a lot and really thank you for your patience and enthusiasm. It makes me smile. 

“So, Gin asked me to the dance this morning,” Harry was chatting you up—a normal occurrence before class started.

Draco didn’t mean to eavesdrop on you. He really didn’t, but he was intrigued about how this would go down. Since moving to the small town, you had been a buzz among the boys in the grade level. Draco could all but assume that most of the fantasized about you asking them to the girl’s choice dance coming up.

“That’s great!” You genuinely smiled. “You’ll have a lot of fun!”

Harry fumbled, losing his casual composure. You noted on it, and your look became more skeptical and judgmental—something Pansy would approve of.

“Well, I told her I’d think about it,”

This surprised Draco as much as it seemed to surprise you. It was no secret that star lacrosse player Weasley and Potter were all but official and had been for almost all of high school.

“Why in the world would you tell her that?” Your words mimicked his thoughts.

“Well... I thought maybe you’d... want to ask me?” He ran a hand through his usually untidy mass of curls.

Draco could not make this up if he wanted to. He barely suppressed the laugh that threatened to escape his lips. How in hell had Harry figured that you’d want to go to the dance with him? You’d been here maybe a month. As far as Draco knew, you weren’t interested in anyone. Perhaps the small town didn’t have enough shine for your city lights.

“You should tell Ginny yes, Harry,” You scolded him like a child. “It’s rude to make a girl wait,”

“Yeah, I guess,” Harry sulked, his face falling as the bell rang, signaling the start of class.

Draco couldn’t wipe the amused smirk from his face. You huffed annoyed and opened your notes, already prepping a new page for today’s lesson. You didn’t pay him any mind during class—a normality between the pair of you. Draco ignored you and you returned the favor. It was almost easier this way for him. Your shiny new toy status had no effect on him. He had every shiny toy he ever wanted. You had no appeal to him.

Harry, however, Draco stole glances over from time to time. The green-eyed jock pouted throughout the entire lesson, stealing glances over to you. You hardly noticed. Instead you were doodling in your notebook, waiting for the teacher to move on.

Maybe the stars aligned, or maybe you did fascinate him, but Draco found himself in the lunch line next to you the following day as another tried to ask you to the girls choice ball.

“So, I heard you turned down Potter,” Cedric gave off-hand. “Waiting to ask someone else then?”

Draco snorted, and this time you did give him the slightest glare before turning back to Cedric.

“I’m not going,” You answered curtly, grabbing fruit from the stand. “And no, I don’t plan on asking anyone.”

“Why aren’t you going?” Cedric almost pouted.

“There doesn’t have to be a reason.” You snapped. “I’m not going,”

Draco could only imagine the glare that you gave Cedric for him to back off so quickly. Again, a smile quirked at his lips. You might be the shiny new toy, but you weren’t going to be used like a porcelain doll.

“So, has she asked anyone yet?” Pansy asked as he sat beside her at their usual lunch table.

“She’s not going, and you totally missed her going off on Diggory,” Draco grinned. “That girl has to have a glare that rivals yours,”

“She turns down Potter and Diggory... do you think maybe she’s into chicks?” Pansy asked almost hopeful.

“Wouldn’t know and don’t care,” Draco shrugged. “Besides, she’s not going to the dance so go ask Greengrass before it’s too late,”

Pansy sulked and stabbed her salad with a bit more vigor than before.

You stormed into the chemistry classroom a bit more irritated than he had seen you in the cafeteria. He wanted to guess that another guy had tried to ask you to the girl’s choice dance because honestly it amused him to see you so upset. It was cute how riled up you could get from some unwanted attention. He wondered how far you’d have to be pushed before you actually started swinging. Maybe he wanted to find out.

“So,” He asked pointedly. “Anyone else try to ask you to the dance?” 

“Oh, fuck off Malfoy,” You hissed making him grin wider.

“Well, I was wondering if—”

“If you even start to finish that, I won’t be so forgiving,” Your hand clenched into a fist and Draco thought that maybe you’d actually try to hit him, but Snape walked in as the bell rang, taking any chance away from you.

Draco sat back smugly in his chair—to your great annoyance—as class droned on. At the end of the hour Draco followed you out, calling your name. You froze in the hallway, before turning to face him.

“I’m really not in the mood right now Draco,” Your strained voice gave a hint of weariness. “What is even with you guys? Can’t you just leave a girl alone? I’m not going to the stupid dance and I’m not just saying that so I can ask someone else,”

Before Draco could get a word in you stalked away, disappearing in the crowd. And he stood there, dumbfounded. Was he not amused an hour ago about your annoyance? Did it not make him smile that you were tortured by your suitors? Why all of a sudden was he frowning and loathing Potter and Diggory—and whatever poor bloke had the unfortunate courage to ask you before class—even more for winding you up?

“It was Krum,” Pansy didn’t even say hello as she sat next to him in Spanish. “He was the one who tried to ask her,”

“She said no to Krum?” Draco’s eyebrows shot up. “You might be right, she really might swing the other way,”

“Aw, but I already asked Daphne,” Pansy pouted.

“Pans, darling, I think if anyone else breathes near her about the dance she’s gonna send someone to the nurse,” Draco chuckled. “So maybe you dodged a bullet there,”

She sighed wistfully. “Still, it’s nice to dream,”

____________________________________

“So, did you ask anyone to the dance yet?”

“Dad, I really don’t want to talk about this,” I huffed, kicking off my shoes. “I’m not going to that stupid dance,”

“Well, I know it’s probably not as glitzy as your uptown shindigs, but you should still go and have fun,” My dad set down his paper. “Make some friends while you’re here,” His tone was hopeful, as I knew it would be.

He wanted me to be happy here. He wanted me to fit in and enjoy my time in the middle of nowhere. It was a farfetched dream. But it was mine, I supposed.

“I have a few friends,” I insisted. “But I’m not one for dances... and the guys in town aren’t exactly... appealing,” I decided.

“Well, not that a father will complain about his daughter not wanting to date, but maybe you should go with a group of friends or something?”

“Everyone’s paired off, dad,” I sighed, looking in the fridge for something to make for dinner.

As I set off to do my chemistry homework, my mind meandered to my chem partner. It was out of character that he spoke to me today. Normally we disregarded another in comfortable silence. It had been that way since I showed up. And though it might have stung a bit in the beginning, I could tell quickly that Draco and his friends were the wrong sort of crowd that I didn’t want to be caught up in. The kind of crowds that I escaped by moving from my city life.

And I liked the crowd I had found; Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville were all very sweet and welcoming on my first day and had sort of adopted me into their group without looking back. Not that there was much depth in any of their lunchroom conversations, but at least I wasn’t alone. Hermione was the only one I could hold a conversation with—she had AP classes as I did and was a saint when I needed homework guidance.

Chemistry, however, was the one subject she couldn’t help me with. She had opted out for AP Environmental instead, claiming she had done her time with Snape and would rather dropout than be in his class another year.

So, it left me begrudgingly texting Draco about tonight’s homework. He was the only other one in class that seemed to keep up easily. Maybe it was because he was a shoe shiner class pet of Snape’s.

Malfoy: Oh, so you’re talking to me now. Don’t want yell at me again?

My cheeks flushed in anger and embarrassment at his response. He was never one to hold back what he was thinking—even if it was brutal.

Y/n: I’m sorry for snapping at you. It wasn’t fair to you. I’d give a reason, but I doubt you’d care

Malfoy: Pansy already told me that Krum tried to ask you to the dance. That’s what? Three guys now? If I hadn’t stopped her, Pansy wanted to ask you too.

Y/n: At least it would have been a girl asking me to a girl’s choice

Y/n: And you’re short one, Ron asked me too

Malfoy: Weasel? Wow. Never thought he’d have the guts to ask anyone 

Y/n: He’s actually going with Hermione

Y/n: Now will you please help me on 7?

And to my surprise, Draco was quite civil about walking me through the covalent bonding prompts. It made me feel a bit more guilty about snapping at him earlier today.

Seeing how I struggled on the homework, I wasn’t surprised that Harry came over during study hall and asked me for help on the same, if not more, questions. After the first couple, he griped that I was too similar to Hermione for knowing it all. And that it wasn’t fair that it came so easily to me.

“Actually, Draco helped me,” I smiled as I showed my notes to Harry for the next question. “He might help you if you ask,”

That was a long shot. Harry hated Draco and vice versa. It didn’t take me long to figure that one out.

“Malfoy helped you? Like actually helped you?” Harry scoffed. “The little prat,”

“Hey,” I warned snatching my notes away. “If you’re not gonna be nice about it I won’t let you use my notes,”

“Oh, come on, don’t be like that,” Harry pouted. “You know I was kidding,”

“Yahuh. Sure Harry,”

“Oh, come on,” Harry tried again. “He’s a prat. Always has been,”

I rolled my eyes, not wanting to hear anymore of Harry’s lamenting, and grabbed my bag. “I’ll be in the library,”

Wordlessly I left, fuming slightly. The music from my headphones thawed out my anger towards Harry a bit as I pushed the doors of the library open and sat at a table, pulling out my calculus homework to go over it one last time.

“This seat taken?”

I barely heard the question over my music. My eyes darted up to meet steady grey ones.

“It’s a free country,” I shrugged then remembered that I want particularly irate towards Draco at the moment. “Thank you, by the way,” I murmured, taking out one of my headphones. “For the chem help,”

“I might have had an ulterior motive,” Draco mumbled, pulling out a binder.

“If you think I’m gonna ask you to the dance because you helped me with my homework you have another thing coming Malfoy,” I warned.

“I think every guy in the school has got that by now,” a smile played at his lips. “No, I... I need help in McGonagall,” He was almost sheepish to admit it.

I raised an eyebrow at him skeptically, but he did seem genuine about needing help.

“I’m not sure I’ll be much help, but I can try. My old teacher, Jones had a different way of explaining it...” I trailed off, a pang of remorse about leaving my old school in my chest.

And maybe the way Jones taught me made more sense to Draco because he did eventually start to understand the calculus on the paper beneath us. I realized that Draco was very methodical. He enjoyed having rules that worked every time no matter the question. A failsafe that kept him ahead of the curve.

“Do you miss it?” He asked as we started to pack for the next hour. 

“Miss what?”

“Your old school? It has to be a lot different than this hell hole,” His words were nonchalant but still skeptical.

“It’s not so bad here,” I defended weakly. “But... I miss it, yeah. I feel like I have to prove myself all over again. Back home—back in New York no one questioned me. The teachers trusted me... the staff knew me...” I sighed. “I’m a stranger here.”

The warning bell rang and the same sense of dread that settled upon me reflected in Draco’s eyes: we were halfway across campus and there was little hope of getting to Snape’s class in the two minutes we had left.

Both scrambling, we headed for the doors and tore down the hall. I followed Draco’s path because if I was honest, I still didn’t quite know my way around the school nor the quickest ways to certain buildings.

“Miss Y/l/n,” Snap looked down disapprovingly at me. “I hope you have reason for being late or it’s Saturday detention for you,”

My anxiety spiked as I fumbled out an explanation. In the corner of my eye, I saw Harry stand, ready to come to my defense, but there was no need. Flawlessly Draco directed the attention of the irritated teacher to him with a sly smile and quick lie, that wasn’t really a lie at all.

“It was my fault,” Draco smoothed quickly. “I was having Y/n help me with McGonagall’s homework and I kept her late.”

Snape’s eyes darted between the two of us before he sighed, telling us to get to our seats before he gave out detentions for disrupting his class.

With a breath of relief, I sat beside Draco. 

“Thank you,” I murmured.

He shrugged and took out his notes and homework just as Snape began to go over it. And we went back to ignoring each other. Except, this time, it deemed impossible for me not to glance at him every so often, or for my eyes not to drift to his notes on the table, making sure that I hadn’t missed anything. The hour seemed to end quicker than normal. As usual, Harry walked to gym with me, chatting about the upcoming game before the dance this weekend.

“So, you and Malfoy?” The comment caught me off guard. “I don’t like it,”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s nothing Harry,” I shrugged. “No need to let your little feud make up wild stories. He just needed help with calc,”

“Sure, the golden boy needed help with his homework,” Harry said flatly. “That’s believable.” 

“And what about it is so farfetched?” I demanded.

“He’s doing it for some reason. He knows you turned me down, maybe he’s trying to get at me by being nice to you,” The offhand comment had my blood boiling.

“Are you serious right now!?” I snapped. “What is so wrong with you that you can’t see past your own ego!?”

Storming off, the only relief from my anger I was allowed happened when I ‘accidentally’ pelted Harry with a ball in the face, sending him to the nurse. When my anger faded, doubt remained. Was Draco only trying to be nice to me to get at Harry? From what I knew of Draco secondhand, I wouldn’t put it past him.

______________________________

Draco was shocked when Snape had called on you for a homework answer, and you admitted that you didn’t know. Didn’t you know that he didn’t mind you texting him about the homework? That helping you wasn’t the worst waste of his time in the world? You had done it before. Not days ago. And yet you allowed yourself to be ridiculed by Snape for your lack of habitual knowledge.

You didn’t notice the small frown that lingered on his face for the remainder of class as you kept your head down and doodled in your notebook. Deciding that he didn’t like your comatose, he did something that deemed childish: he passed you a note.

You ok?

You stared at the paper and looked over at him, biting your lip before scribbling: 

Fine. Pay attention.

Rolling his eyes, he took the paper back and wrote:

I can’t if you’re over here moping.

You took the small piece of paper and crumpled it in your hands, shoving it into your bag. Draco decided to leave you alone for the rest of the hour his curiosity still burning through him. A quick meeting of Harry’s livid stare, and Draco had a better idea of what was going on. He just hoped, for perhaps the first time ever, that he was wrong.

“Oi, what the hell did you say to Y/n?” Draco demanded, singling Potter out in the hall the next morning.

His curiosity and suspicions had festered over the night. Draco had made the conscious decision to text you, asking if you needed help with chem, and your lack of response had him worrying again.

“What are you going on about Malfoy?” Ron crossed his arms, coming to Harry’s defense.

“Stay out of this weasel,” Draco hissed, noticing the crowd that began to gather around the small confrontation. Most of his attention, however stayed focused on cold green eyes.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Malfoy,” Harry tipped his chin back. “What? Is she not bowing down at your feet like you’re used too?” A laugh barked out of him and Weasley and a few other onlookers.

“At least she’s got enough self-respect to not be on her knees for you,” Draco heard the familiar condescending voice of Pansy beside him. A grin curled onto his face at her words.

Harry didn’t know what to say to that it seemed, and it further proved Draco’s suspicions. 

“So, you did say something to her,” He accused. “She got her not a month ago and you’re already dragging her into our mutual hatred?” Draco wouldn’t stoop that low. It was pathetic. 

“Well if you hadn’t gone and pretended to need help with McGonagall’s work, there wouldn’t be a problem,” Harry gritted, as if he had the high ground.

“As opposed to you who pretends he doesn’t need help them blames others when he fails?” Draco snapped.

There was quite a large crowd gathering around now, and he and Harry were less than a foot apart. Both boys were on the verge of snapping.

“Draco?”

Your voice was enough to distract him that he didn’t see Harry throw the first punch. Pain blistered across his jaw as fury burned in his eyes. Now the kids around them were chanting and egging on the fight. But Draco never had the chance to swing back.

Because you had drove yourself into the cleared circle and delivered a few punches of your own.

“What the fuck is wrong with you!?” You shouted at him kneeing him in the groin leaving him keeled over, groaning. “I told you to back the fuck off!”

Draco wasn’t as surprised at the comment as he was about the knowledge that you knew how to beat the pulp out of a star football player without a whim. You never seemed like the athletic type but the blood pouring from Harry’s nose begged that you were slightly more dangerous than Draco had originally thought.

“Are you okay?” Your wild worried eyes were trained on him.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” He didn’t mean for the words to be so harsh, but the hurt that flickered across your face made him regret them.

He wished he had time to explain exactly why you shouldn’t have done that, but McGonagall and Snape were already upon the scene and threatening detentions. He and Harry, of course, were called out as the other students scattered.

“McGonagall, please,” You stood loyally beside him, despite his harsh words. “Draco didn’t have a hand in this, I did.”

Both teachers raised their eyebrows in surprise. Draco just gaped at you. Harry was glaring and still bleeding.

“I see. All three of you go to Dumbledore’s office.” She said, her careful eyes not leaving yours.

Harry strode off first, perhaps feeling smug in the fact that either way, you or Draco would be in trouble for this encounter. Draco wondered if you knew you had just bought yourself three days suspension for fighting.

You were silent beside him as you flexed your hand. He pondered if you had hurt it in your fervor. He almost asked you. Then he remembered the hurt on your face at his last words and decided against it. You wouldn’t want to talk to him.

“So,” Dumbledore said pointedly. “I heard there was a bit of a skirmish today in the hall,” An amused smile sat upon the principal’s face, no doubt taking in Harry’s state. Draco wondered if his skin was bruising yet.

“It was me,” Draco said not realizing what he was doing.

“Oh, don’t you even,” You were scathing at him, your hands clenched again, pain flitting across your face—you definitely hurt your hand then. You turned to Dumbledore. “Harry swung at Draco and I stepped in. I’m the one who did it.”

“Mr. Potter?” Dumbledore raised an ancient eyebrow.

Harry seemed like he was debating whether or not he wanted to admit getting beat up by a girl. The thought made Draco smile, causing his jaw to hurt. He tried to flex it but halted when pain blossomed again.

“That’s what happened,” Harry admitted under his breath.

“And why, Mr. Malfoy, did Potter swing at you?” Dumbledore turned to him, an amused smile lingering on his face.

“I thought that Harry had said something to her that hurt her. She... wasn’t keeping up on homework and it was unlike her. After she turned Harry’s proposal to the dance down, I thought...”

“You turned down Mr. Potter’s proposal to the girl’s choice dance?” The principal turned back to you.

“His, Weasley’s, Cedric’s, Viktor’s,” You muttered, much to Dumbledore’s delight as the older man began to chuckle.

“Had quite a welcome here, haven’t you?”

“You could say that again,” Folding your arms, your face became solemn. 

“And do you have a reason for your actions?”

“I don’t like bullies, no matter where they come from,” Confidence founded your voice as you squared your shoulder. Never once had Draco ever heard someone call Harry a bully. The words had always been reversed. Everyone in the school saw the reputation in Draco, never Harry.

“Well, under normal circumstances, I’d have to suspend you and Mr. Potter here, but instead, I’m suspending you from being allowed to the dance this weekend. All three of you,”

“But sir!” Harry argued.

“Not another word Mr. Potter.” Dumbledore rose from his office chair. “My decision is final.”

Three ‘yes sir’s were mumbled as the three of you filed out of the office. You began to walk away, towards your next class Draco assumed, but he caught your non-injured hand, Harry slinking away himself.

“Let me go,” You shrugged him off.

“Wait,” Draco caught up to you, blocking you in the narrow hall of the office. “Look, about what I said,”

“Forget it Draco,” You snapped, and he could see unshed tears in your eyes. “Just leave me alone,” You pressed past him with a bit more force than necessary that had him after you again.

“I didn’t mean it like that!” He called, and you actually paused, your head turning in interest.

“Then what did you mean?” Your voice with thick. “Cuz all I see is a rich little prat who can’t say thank you. Or a self-centered guy who thinks I need someone to fight my battles for me. A high and mighty guy who thinks he can tell me what to do,” Your words were sharp and snarled. “So please, tell me what you meant.” The challenge dripped dangerously from your scowl.

“I...” Draco fumbled for the right words. “I’m not worth getting suspended for,” Your anger turned to confusion, turned sympathy, turned neutral.

“But I’m worth fighting for,” It was a stubborn and bold declaration. “And I know that,” A pause as you turned to leave. “So yeah, I should have done that,”

___________________________

I couldn’t help the tears that streamed down my face as I nearly ran to the parking lot, yearning for the safety of my car. Slamming the door shut, I let out a frustrated yell and slumped in the seat.

The backroads under my tires held a calming solace as I drove the long way home. It was something that New York couldn’t replace: the backroads I had grown up on. With the windows down and the radio blaring, all of my thoughts were tuned out.

At a red light, I found the courage to call my father and explain what happened. He said I was grounded this weekend for fighting, but I didn’t mind much. It got me out of having to go to the dance, even if Dumbledore hadn’t already said I couldn’t. I smiled when my dad told me he was proud for standing up for myself and beating the hell out of Harry.

I found myself smiling as I pulled in at home. Icing my hand and popping some pain killers just in case, I scrolled through my notifications, only answering Hermione. I didn’t care what the school gossiped about or what rumors started because of the fight. Hermione just wanted to know if I was okay and if I’d want her to send the homework from the classes I missed. I told her yes to both and thanked her.

Another notification popped up.

Draco: are you okay? how’s your hand?

I stared at the notification, and instead of deleting the icon like I should have, I opened it and gazed at the words. His mood swings were giving me whiplash. I thought about ignoring it, but he had already seen that I had read it. Cursing modern technology, I responded.

Y/n: fine

Mulling it over, I sent another text.

Y/n: can you send me the chem homework? please

The messages that followed were unexpected. Steady and clear photos of his notes for the day— and week it looked like—as well as the worksheet Snape had given. I felt a pang if gratitude towards Draco in that moment and his words from earlier settled in.

Draco has confronted Harry because he was worried about me. Somehow, he had picked up on how Harry’s words had affected me and driven me into doubt and a few missing homework assignments. Tears sprung back up in my eyes without my consent. It left me regretting the words I had snapped at him earlier. I let him know as much with another text.

Draco: most of it was justified

Draco: I know I’m not the easiest person to know 

Y/n: I was still wrong to say it. I’m sorry

Y/n: and you’re not so bad :)

There wasn’t a response from him for half an hour, so I settled down and began to transcribe his notes into my own notebook, then began to untangle the questions that the worksheet gave me. The crumpled note from a few days ago spilled out of my bag. I took it, unfurling it, running my hand over his words. I tucked it in my chemistry binder, smiling softly at his kindness.

Anxiety fluttered in my chest the next day as I drove up to school and parked in my usual spot. I felt torn between two clicks—probably the only two clicks this school had, and I had managed to get caught in the middle of a turf war—the thing that I wanted to escape by moving back in with my dad and I still managed to find myself in the same situations. Maybe it was just me. Maybe I was the problem.

Shaking the thought, I headed to first hour just as the bell rang in my efforts to avoid confrontation. Other than a few approving comments from my sorta friends, no one seemed put out that I had fought their golden boy. It eased my anxiety as the day went on. I was quelled a bit more when I heard that Harry wasn’t in school today. And maybe I smiled at that a bit.

“The jackass deserved it,” Ginny shrugged, “If you hadn’t shown up, I wouldn’t have hesitated either,”

She calmed the majority of my fears with her words unknowingly. If there had been one person I didn’t want to cross it was Ginny—she was fierce and took no prisoners. If the school had a queen bee, it would have been Gin.

“Is your hand alright?” Luna asked during art class. “You seem a bit off your game today,” She noticed my failing live portrait.

Luna was always quiet but observant of others, and it drew me towards the peaceful girl. Her calm nature as well as my fierce need to protect her from bullies kept me as her partner despite the seat changes in Trelawney’s art class. The teacher didn’t seem to care as Luna and I were some of her best students although Luna’s whimsical style contrasted my realistic preference heavily.

“It hurts a bit,” I answered truthfully. “But not enough to cry about,” There were yellow and purplish tinges to my knuckles, but nothing was broken.

“Everyone’s talking about it,” Luna semi-whispered. “Are you and Draco together?”

“No,” I answered a bit more harshly than I meant and refined my answer. “I was tired of Harry being an egotistical ass and dragging me into it,”

“He’s probably just jealous,” Luna gave offhand, adding some shading to her sketch. “Boys are like that,”

“Jealous? Of what?” I scoffed. “He’s with Ginny, and it’s not like I fancy anyone at this school,”

“Yes, I heard about all the failed proposals to the dance.” A smile touched her lips, “Regardless, from the outside, the only person you’ve shown interest in is Draco, and Harry doesn’t like it,”

“Well, he needs to get over it,” I muttered. “I’m not some prize to be won,”

My annoyance didn’t fade as I slumped into my seat at lunch, grateful that Harry was absent today because I might have just gone off on him again. Stupid teenage boys thinking they have some claim over a girl.

Harry was back the next day, looking worse for wear. I went to apologize, but he didn’t allow me too, saying he deserved it and the he was the one who was sorry. I wondered if Ginny had a hand in his apology. Shrugging, I decided it didn’t matter. At least Harry, and maybe everyone else at the small school, knew that I could handle myself.

The weekend passed, and I didn’t notice much. Hermione sent me a few pictures of the dance. They held no interest to me, but at least they were having fun.

On Monday, it seemed that Draco had gone back to ignoring me. At least that’s how it appeared for about the first half of Snape’s lecture. Then every so often I’d catch him staring at me, or my notes. His eyes would quickly dart down when he realized that I had noticed his gazes. It left me frowning and struggling to focus.

It was Wednesday that Hermione and I talked about the calculus test coming up on Friday. I glanced over to Draco, wondering if he’d need help or a study partner for the exam. I wondered if he’d be too proud to ask. Or if I’d be too stubborn to offer.

“Go over there and ask,” Hermione nudged my arm, picking up on my train of thought.

“I shouldn’t,” I shook my head. “Besides, you’d be a better tutor than I am,”

“Yes, but Draco doesn’t like me. You on the other hand,” An amused smile lingered on her face.

“We’re friends,” I insisted. “That’s all,”

“More than it was last week,” She pointed out. “Draco’s always been a stuffy prat, but I see how he is with you. He’s almost... normal.”

My eyes shifted back over to his lunch table, where he was hunched over a book, tuning out the dark-haired girl beside him as she prattled about something adamantly. Something the girl said must have caught Draco’s attention, perhaps she warned him about my gaze, because his eyes met mine. I looked down quickly, my cheeks flushing.

“He’s coming over,” Hermione whispered.

“Stop staring,” I hissed under my breath, breaking my own rule by looking up.

“Can I talk to you?” His voice was quiet and guarded, his eyes sliding over my company. 

“What’s up?” I asked casually.

“Alone?”

I looked to Hermione who was saying if I didn’t go, she’d never forgive me with a single look.

“Sure,” I stood, gathering my things and followed him out of the cafeteria and down the halls, to the library. “Did you want help for the calc test Friday?” I asked softly as we sat at the same table as our previous encounter.

“Well, yes,” He chuckled softly. “I... also wanted to talk to you... about last week, and...” His eyes refused to meet mine. I waited in silence for him to continue. “This... this doesn’t have to be anything, and I know you’d probably rather it weren’t... but I’ve never actually...”

I raised my eyebrows, leaning closer to him, the butterflies in my chest growing more restless with each second that passed. They had begun to arrive on the day of the fight, and now it seemed like they were taking flight for the first time.

“You came here a month ago... and in that time have managed to capture every guys heart in this school and then proceeded to turn most of them down. You’ve gotten into fights and out of trouble and you’re really someone I should avoid, but... I don’t want to, not anymore.”

“You think you should avoid me?” The question was soft on my lips. His eyes flashed to mine in brief panic.

“Again, not what you think,” He sighed and scrubbed his face, then proceeded to wince at the pain that no doubt was triggered by his action. “I should avoid you because if I’m being honest, I’m not much better than Harry, and I wouldn’t be someone you’d want to be with. And it would make it easier for the both of us if I avoided you.”

“Cards on the table then?” I mused softly and he nodded, begging my candor. “I know what they say about you. And I have my own opinions, but...” I paused and smiled. “You are the first guy who hasn’t acted like an arrogant jackass to me,” Then mended, “At least in a way that hasn’t made me want to deck you,”

“That’s comforting,” A smile reached his eyes this time.

“And... if it had to be anyone... I’d probably want it to be you,” This surprised him, told by the expression on his face. “In terms of intelligence, I feel semi-confident to say that you wouldn’t drive me mad with your lack of knowledge, because most of the kids at this school are so dull,” I muttered then continued. “You’ve been kind to me, and never pushed me into doing anything I haven’t wanted to do,”

“So, you wanted to beat the shit out of Potter then?” The same smile turned to a grin.

“It was bound to happen eventually,” I chuckled softly. “You gave me a valid excuse, to which I thank you,”

“Shouldn’t I be thanking you? For ya know, being my knight in shining armor coming to my rescue?”

I laughed at his words and shook my head at his antics.

“Does that make you my damsel in distress?” It never occurred to me how easy it might be to talk to Draco, considering we’d barely said a word to each other since my arrival.

“If I must be,” He feigned distaste, the smile not leaving his face long enough to convince me of his façade.

A silence fell between us.

“Is this something then?” His words were riddled with uncertainty.

“It’s not nothing,” I offered. “But I don’t know what it is yet.”

“Would you be willing to see what it is?” Draco’s voice turned hopeful.

“If you’re willing to be patient,” My eyes met his grey ones, storms above the seas held in them. “I don’t really... date. Flings and a list of exes isn’t really on my bucket list ya know?”

“Understandable,” His smile returning. “Not that I prefer them either,”

I sighed softly. “People are gonna talk, if they’re not already,” It was a defeating thought.

“Let them talk,” Draco shrugged, lost in thought. “That’s all they do. No matter where you go,”

“It’s a bit worse in a small town,” I challenged.

“I’ll give you that,” He chuckled. “But things are a bit less scandalous in a small town,”

“Granted,” I thought of New York and how the smallest things morphed into rumors and gossip that took down empires. Here, in the middle of nowhere our problems seemed almost trivial.

“So,” He raised an eyebrow at me, awaiting my verdict.

“So,” I mimicked. “This... this can be something,”

 ______________________________

Draco had never once thought of dating. Ever. Whereas Pansy couldn’t wait to have her next summer love, Draco... he was reserved. Not that he ever held it against Pansy, and of course he was there to curse the name of her exes with her, but him dating? It was laughable.

He could claim that ‘you weren’t like other girls,’ but it’d be a lie. You were just the perfect mix of being like other girls that appealed to him so much. The girls he had passed in the halls for years and never once felt attraction to were now suddenly a bit more interesting. Granger had calculus with you and was very good at the subject, sharing your passion for it. Ginny had the same fire in her eyes as you did when you were angry. Even Lovegood seemed less like a spaz and a bit more down to earth in the few passing moments that he saw her when picking you up from art class.

“I might warn you,” he whispered gently the next day, hand in yours as you headed to the cafeteria. “Pansy has been dying to talk to you... so heads up,”

A laugh fell through your lips as he opened the door for you, the cafeteria, once buzzing solemnly was now almost hushed as eyes turned to the couple at the door.

“Oi! Malfoy!”

Draco tensed at the curt calling of his name but relaxed when you smiled and waved to Ginny.

“Come sit with us,” The redhead offered. “No need in you taking Y/n away from us,”

“Get Pansy,” You smiled, letting his hand go as you went to drop your stuff at the table before heading toward the lunch line.

“Can I talk to her now?” Pansy demanded.

“She’s all yours,” Draco chuckled, trailing behind his dark-haired friend, a smile resting on his face as you entertained all of Pansy’s question with unbelievable grace.

Tensions were high as Draco sat with you at your usual lunch table, Pansy on his other side, but it seemed that you, Ginny, and Hermione had the boys under control, so nothing more than loathsome glares were exchanged before the conversation settled into something pleasant.

It took a couple weeks, but the bruises on your hand and his jaw faded, then soon Harry’s broken nose was healed, and it was as if nothing had ever happened. As if it were preposterous that your group ever had animosity against another.

True to your word and his, it wasn’t exactly dating. He dedicated a lot of his effort to figuring out what you were comfortable with and what you weren’t. Something that appealed to both of you was holding hands in the hallways. The gawking faces of those around you seemed to keep a smile on your face. You had tamed the rich prat and he had tamed the spitfire in their eyes. And perhaps he was a bit kinder to those around him. And maybe you weren’t as volatile. Maybe you had finally settled into the small town.

Slowly it seemed, you sifted into the role of a girlfriend—well, whatever the equivalent was for you and him. It took some coaxing and a compromise, but you allowed him to pick you up and drive you to school—three out of five days of the week. He looked forward to those mornings and didn’t mind leaving earlier as long as you were at the end of the road under his tires. You were defiant about him paying for things, mundane things like lunch or random gifts, so he tried to keep it at a minimum, or at least didn’t let on how much he had spent on you.

Draco was never one for physical affection. His parents had been distant and reserved. Closed off. He wasn’t bitter about it, but he was worried that it might affect how he was around you. But it seems that you were a bit standoffish as well. The abrasion faded over time, but it was still never over abundant. You held his hand, that was easy and almost routine for the both of you, and though he hadn’t kissed you yet, displays of make outs in the halls never appealed to any part of him. Ever.

But he wouldn’t forget the first time you kissed him. It was a quiet night at your place after you two had studied for Snape’s final. You declared if you looked at another carbon bond you were going to scream, so you slammed your binder shut and led him to the old sofa and pulled him down, both of you nestled beside another as you flickered through TV stations, settling on something that held half your interest.

His arm draped around your shoulder, a gentle sign of affection that you returned by resting your head on his shoulder, your arm stretching across his stomach, holding him. His hand absentmindedly played in your hair, earning soft sounds of agreement from your lips as he continued. Your exhausted face in the TV light held all of his interest. The way your eyelashes fluttered eleven your eyes changed focus, or the way you worried your lip now and again almost thoughtlessly. Never knowing that it drove him mad.

Draco called your name softly, earning your attention. Your faces were inches apart and he could feel your soft breaths mix with his. Your eyes searched his for something—what exactly he wasn’t sure. But you must have decided that whatever you found was enough, because you leaned up and closed the distance between your lips and his.

He smiled at the moment and the ones that followed. The desire that built in his chest and the gentle pant of need that left your lips, flushing across his as you pulled away.

“Thank you,” You had murmured.

He smiled at you simple gratitude and wondered why you thought it necessary. Did you believe that he didn’t want to kiss you? That you weren’t constantly in his psyche? Imagining how soft and warm your skin must be? Wondering if the rest of you was worked and scarred like your hands from years of use?

Not knowing what you were thinking—or why he was for that matter—he pulled you into his lap as the two of you sat on the couch, cradling you close, letting you know that he craved your affection though he wasn’t the best at portraying the ideal.

You had fallen asleep in his lap that night. When your dad came in to check on the two of you, Draco thought your father would be furious but instead he smiled and suggested that Draco carry you to your room so that you could stretched out on your bed and sleep for the night. Those were the few moments that Draco had ever been in your room. It was one of your fathers rules—which he humbly agreed to. The sight made him smile. It was perfectly you. An organized chaos of all of your favorite things.

You barely noticed him setting you into your bed and pulling the covers over your shoulders after removing you shoes.

He preferred your home over his. It took about two months before you coaxed him into the idea of meeting his parents formally. Draco was terrified, knowing that his parents disapproved just about everyone in the town they lived in, save a few families. He wasn’t sure how they felt about the divorcee and his daughter living on the outskirts of town.

“You understand how much of a bad idea this is?” Draco hissed as he walked you up the front steps of the pristine farmhouse—it was the last attempt he made before it was too late to back out.

“They’re just your parents,” You took his hand, saying the words nonchalantly.

“That’s why I’m worried! They’re my parents!” He dismayed.

“Dray, love, it’s gonna be okay,” You reassured, and he couldn’t argue with the honesty in your eyes.

You’d never stop surprising him. He didn’t think ever. He knew his parents were hard people to entertain. There were thousands of unspoken rules that they forced him to follow and you picked up on them as easily as you knew calculus. Sit one way, speak another, you blended in flawlessly. Your persona differed from the one he knew, but it was still perfectly you.

“And you moved here? From New York?” His father eyed you skeptically.

 “Father—” A cold look silenced Draco.

“Yes sir,” Your smile was sweet and conniving.

“Was the city not satisfactory for you?”

“It had a certain charm,” You spoke softly. “But I didn’t want to give my teenage years to a concrete jungle when I could call here my home,”

“Well,” Draco’s mother cut in before his father had a change to reply. “You sure do have quite a spirit in you. I can see what our Draco likes about you,”

You smiled and looked over at him. The blush on your cheeks matched his.

“Thank you,”

Lunch came and passed. If it was out of the ordinary in any way to you, you gave no sign.

You did however, pause, gazing at his grand piano that sat in the drawing room, your face pensive.

“You play?” He mused, curious. You hadn’t let on if your hidden talent. 

“Not very well,” You muttered back. “It’s been years.”

“Y/n, do you play my dear?” His mother cut in. “You must play for us,”

“I...” Glancing at the piano, you caught your lip in worry.

“Mother, if she isn’t comfortable, she doesn’t have to,” Draco defended.

“No, it’s alright... you must forgive me, it’s been a few years since I’ve played properly.”

The shy smile on your face didn’t fade as you made your way to the instrument. He shadowed you all the while, asking one more time before you began to play.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Your smile turned warmer. “It’ll be alright.”

Draco watched as you placed your hands on the glossy white keys and fell into a pattern as they searched for the next note, the next chord, the next verse. And you kept forging ahead until your piece had come to an end. Draco should have known that you’d lie about having the talent tucked away.

“That was lovely,” His mother fawned from somewhere behind. “Draco you must play with her,”

The eyebrow you raised at him informed him that maybe he also hid the talent from you unintentionally. Who did you think the piano belonged to?

“Any ideas?” He muttered softly, placing his hands on the keys next to yours.

“Moonlight Sonata?” It was a simple request, and one that he knew decently enough to nod.

Draco began the repetitive harmony as you waited for the melody and joined him. Your fingers played in time and in tune as the song unfolded—your hands trailing along the treble clef and his adding in the deeper bass tones.

It wasn’t until one of his hands ran into yours that the dance faltered, and four hands banged on the keys in frustration. Draco laughed at the simple fact that you had the same response to making a mistake as he did while playing. Your soft laughter joined his.

Someone cleared their throat behind him, and you both turned, meeting the scrutinizing gaze of his father. Draco looked down anxious and respectful and you followed suit, your hand finding his in reassurance.

“Perhaps if you two had more time to practice together, you two wouldn’t be tripping over another.” His father mused.

“Father?” Draco looked up. “Does that mean?”

“Yes, she is welcomed here any time she wishes.” His father gave a small smile.

 Relief flooded through both of you. Draco might have even slouched momentarily. 

.

Masterlist

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[chibicalzones]

what the characters of haikyuu smell like pt. 3

featuring: 𝐧𝐞𝐤𝐨𝐦𝐚, 𝐟𝐮𝐤𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐢, and 𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐤𝐢  

read part one and two! 

DISCLAIMER: (just in case) this is my sister’s first impression on some of the boys so don’t take it too seriously! 

warnings: touches on gender and sexuality at some parts.

post made by: alex 🍒 - ALSO I FIXED OUR ASK BOX AND SUBMISSIONS! i didn’t even realize they were disabled i apologize :c but yes, feel free interact with us!! maybe we shall open requests? or at least on my end hehe 

— kuroo: nail polish

a strong aura

has a superiority complex but he knows bc he genuinely believes he’s better than everyone else

a cheater... in every way

wanted to be cool but then he created his own level of c00L B)

was popular - like the freshman that was friends with the seniors for nO reason

wears platform shoes

prefers vans over converse

drinks straight up expresso shots instead of coffee

uninterested in finding a relationship

(little does she know that this actually geeky science loving nerd is the loml so)

— kenma: wet fall leaves

tired of everyone’s bs

wanted peoples’ approval when he was younger but he’s grown out of that. already figured out it doesn’t matter 

“i dont care if my roots grow in”

trans

hangs with the boys

shy

has a mysterious vibes

his old friend group kicked him out and is now a lone ranger

started playing volleyball to find friends and get his emotions out

has his own superiority complex because he wants to feel that he’s better than everyone else but he knows it’s unhealthy 

acknowledges his own problems

likes edgar allan poe

— yaku: apple cocktail with vodka

mix of things: nice but also gets ticked off real easily

if he went to parties, he’d just be playing beer pong

has a girlfriend - one of the few things keeping him nice

doesn’t look he cares for people’s approval of him but he really does

B student

likes science but thinks astrology is stupid

jealous of vinnie hacker on tik tok

straight now but will become gay

— yamatoro: leather

grew up in a uhm... unfortunate place? 

originally dyed his hair to look cool but went with the mohawk 

people think he’s cool but just wants approval

single

dresses different than everyone else 

but now since it’s becoming a trend, he’s really annoyed that he used to get bullied for it

had a michael jackson phase

likes edm

really bad at showing his emotions

pansexual

— lev: pool / chlorine

the kid that pushes you into the pool when you didn’t wanna be there in the first place

makes fun of you for watching anime but recently started watching it

grew up watching pokemon as a kid but he only liked team rocket

ALSO has a superiority complex

capricorn energy, moon in aries

actually dresses up scary for halloween

parents are sweet but he can be a bit of a meanie 

had a toxic relationship with a woman... because he’s actually gay

— bokuto: gasoline

A CAR DUDE SKDJFSKDFJ 

infatuated with cars

specifically owns a tesla in which his dad probably bought for him

spoiled as a kid

the popular kid

every popular person has at least dated him twice

everyone thinks he’s attractive 

the class clown but may unintentionally make fun of people in the process

“iTs mEnTAL iLLnesS isN’T IT?”

has rich parents but at least he has morals!!!

but also might take your lunch money

taken, straight

changes girlfriends every two weeks

my sister basically thinks he’s your every day local fuckboi

— akaashi: burnt pasta

really trying his best 

has good intentions but his execution’s either subpar or just awkward

likes science, specifically physics

really likes making paper airplanes and that’s how he flirts: he writes love notes and sends them your way 

bad at showing emotions so he writes them

doodles and writes in class a lot

a transfer student

hasn’t had his first relationship yet

doesn’t like swimming but he likes pool floaties

knows how to play piano

straight... for now

— konoha: miso soup

a warn person

people who don’t know him are afraid to approach him but to people who are friends with him thinks he’s very comforting

hard on others because he’s hard on himself

has an arch nemesis that fights for his position

passive aggressive but means well

was bullied for the smallest reason... like he owned a spiderman lunch box in third grade

one guy stole his girl and his is SALTY

he’d be very startled if someone came up and hugged him

with that being said, his love language is acts of service

straight

— kita: ink

artistic

he does calligraphy

dabbles in spray paint

a bit conservative 

enjoys watching skateboard falls, parkour gone wrong, etc.

cheated in elementary school

a- a bully

doesn’t let people get close to him

people don’t know what to think of him

rather good at things that people may not realize, but he really doesn’t care if they realize or not

prefers iced tea over lemonade

takes health very seriously and doesn’t drink soda

uses they/them and states he doesn’t need a relationship

but he’s had one in the past and that’s how he figured out

— osamu: cotton

a reliable person

doesn’t necessarily have a lot of friends but cherishes to make sure they feel appreciated 

has a creative side

specifically sketches using pencil

likes movies and goes on movie dates

people like him for how forgiving he is

a hopeful person

has a realistic outlook on life 

very practical 

has several friends that are girls that think of him as an older brother

a lot of people like him but he he already has his eyes on set on someone 

a closeted bi

— atsumu: butter beer

GEEK

a popular kid with a quirk

a marvel geek, his favorite superhero is the th3 classic iron man

likes girls who don’t wear a lot of makeup, also goes for bruh girls

genuinely a nice person

tries his best to be a approachable person but his geeky-ness gets in the way

has strange intentions?

puts a lot of thought into what he does but does it in a not-so-logic way 

needs guidance

questioning life

is NOT like his brother

wants people to like him but he portrays himself weirdly

also questioning his sexuality

takes a gap year before college because he doesn’t know what he wants to do yet

— suna: battery acid

“there’s a potency to his presence”

takes all AP classes

does things for himself but he’s not that full of himself

wants to make it far in life

he doesn’t know what he wants to do but he knows he wants to make a difference in the world 

always chooses to pick up trash for volunteer work

likes math because it’s straightforward

his dream significant other is someone just like him: he needs someone to care for him and soften him up

people say he’s intimidating but his friends say otherwise

into alternative rock

he would dress the way he wanted if he didn’t get bullied :(

pan and single

𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬!

— sakusa: the inside of a missionary

overwhelmed by his own thoughts but whatever he thinks, stays there 

not much of a talker 

he tutors people in math and science

reads a lot of fanfic

has a famous tumblr account - swashbuckler26 and posts abstract and contemporary art

desperately wants to graduate

wanted to become a doctor until he actually started researching

now wants to be an artist

owns peacocks

he has one best friend because they share the same interests but that leads them to argue a lot 

goes by they/them and doesn’t care for a relationship 

asexual 

this is the last part but i’m sure i missed some :/ if you guys have any other characters that you would like her to react to, lmk! hopefully i’ll be able to write for them soon!!! - alex 🍒

#haikyuu!! #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu headcanons #kuroo x reader #bokuto x reader #kenma x reader #akaashi x reader #yaku x reader #yamatoro x reader #lev x reader #konoha x reader #kita x reader #osamu x reader #atsumu x reader #suna x reader #sasuke x reader #hq x reader #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu imagine #nekoma #fukurodani #inarizaki #alex 🍒

[zukkaoru]

shhh i’m not on my phone at work got a second wHAT

35:) ramble to me, babe

35. ramble about any fic-related thing you want

corey this is so vague i don't even know where to begin skjgdfhdj uhhhhh what do i want to ramble about,,

WAIT OKAY I GOT IT

okay so back in like. february i think i did another ask game like this and someone (jo?? maybe???) sent an ask about meta/foreshadowing/hidden references for this ultraviolet morning light and at the time, only the first two(?) chapters were out so i couldn't talk about the foreshadowing, bc it was all leading up to the end of chapter six. but i can talk about it now bc the whole fic is up!!

i'll put it under the cut bc i know it'll be long + spoilers for those who haven't yet read tuvml

fic writer ask game

okay so first. all of the foreshadowing for the drowning scene. maybe i did already have a list of these in my google docs in case anyone every asked, maybe not, i won't say

anyway. i added in water/drowning imagery with zuko specifically in this fic, because of the drowning scene, and especially bc in the atla world, water imagery would generally be used with characters from the water tribes rather than someone from the fire nation. so it wasn't just me liking water-related words and shoving them onto zuko for no reason; it was intentional

chapter one:

- He really can’t think of anything more beautiful than Zuko drenched in moonlight - This is what fire feels like when doused with water. - It burns like fire consuming Sokka’s entire body, like he’s been dunked underwater and the surface has frozen over and his lungs are about to give out, but he’s going to keep hitting the ice anyways like he’s strong enough to break it.

chapter two:

- It washes over his body all at once, like a wave pulling him under the surface of the ocean, until his limbs are numb and tingly and his head sways. He’s completely frozen in place, eyes staring straight ahead but not really seeing anything. - He would’ve rather stood across from Azula in the Agni Kai arena and let her shoot him full of lightning, rather been dropped in the middle of the ocean

chapter three:

- Zuko searches the tumultuous ocean that is his mind for the right words - Zuko was telling them about Azula never quite getting the knack for swimming despite their annual vacations to Ember Island when they were little, and Sokka was so happy.

chapter four:

So he lets the words sink, lets them drown in the knowledge that he no longer has the right to talk to Sokka in the same way he used to.

chapter five:

The moonlight pours over him, drowning him in a soft white glow.

chapter six:

But…my doctors have told me that spending the rest of your life letting yourself drown in guilt isn’t going to help anyone.

also, people picked up on vai being a double agent, but no one picked up on the fact that she was a waterbender, even though i did hint at that too:

- Her brown skin is almost as dark as Sokka’s and her face and arms are covered in freckles. - It reminds Sokka of himself a little; the bright blue eyes of a waterbender but no bending ability to speak of. - How can you get better than a play with dragons, a star-crossed love affair, sun and moon symbolism, and a villain who has a secret past that ties them to the protagonist?

beyond that, there are also a lot of parallels/call backs to previous chapters/foreshadowing to future scenes just in general. the funniest one (and also completely unintentional one) is probably sokka and katara calling each other their least favorite [sibling]

“You’re my least favorite sister,” // You are, and I say this from the bottom of my heart, my least favorite brother ever. chapter 1 // epilogue

but there are. several more. and i'm not sure how many of them people picked up on so i will add them all bc i love them <3

Zuko would get himself arrested, kidnapped, killed, whatever if it would keep Sokka safe. // “I would give my life for [Zuko] without a second thought.” … “But would he do the same for you?” chapter 4 // chapter 6

When Sokka’s hand began to retreat, Zuko had reached forward, grabbed it, and whispered, “Please stay.” // “Don’t leave me.” Sokka says it like a prayer … like he would repeat it until he couldn’t remember anything else if it meant Zuko would keep holding him. “Just… stay.” chapter 5 // chapter 7

So they sit - Sokka and Zuko - on the roof of some abandoned building in the outskirts of the city. // “But now I’m pretty sure we’re just destined to be Sokka and Zuko” chapter 5 // chapter 7

“I just don’t think he’s trustworthy enough for this. … when he proves that he isn’t as reliable as you think - when he proves that he’s only ever going to let you down - I’m going to say I told you so.” // “Zuko is kind, and he is trustworthy and reliable. He’d never purposefully let me down” chapter 3 // chapter 6

this ^ was one i was hoping people would pick up on bc it makes the drowning scene/sokka pleading for vai to not hurt zuko that much angstier, but i'm not sure anyone did so now i'm putting those lines right next to each other so you're all forced to confront the pain <3

Is he still in love with Zuko? Is being in love enough? // But what good is any of that? Love isn’t always enough. // “It doesn’t matter who or where feels like home, it doesn’t matter if we’re in love. When you’re next in line for the throne, love isn’t enough.” chapter 3 // chapter 4 // chapter 6

Zuko warms his other hand on instinct, and apparently it was a good call because Sokka squeezes it tighter and presses closer to Zuko. “I forgot my mittens at home,” // I love you doesn’t always take the shape of those three words. … Sometimes, it’s Have you eaten today? or Don’t forget your mittens again! chapter 1 // chapter 6

this ^ is also one i thought people might pick up on but idk if anyone did or not. but it made me🥺🥺 when i wrote it

[religion tw for the last part]

okay i could leave it there but corey gave me an excuse to ramble and i've made the post this long anyways so one more thing! i explained this to corey a while ago when we were having dinner together but i find it very funny so i'm sharing it with all of you i say like anyone has actually read this far

i accidentally made zuko a Christ Figure in tuvml

"but grace, surely that's not possible," you say. "surely there's no way zuko is a christ figure! there aren't any christian themes in tuvml. you didn't even have anyone try to convince vai to forgive zuko or have anyone convince zuko and sokka that they should forgive vai! how could you have a christ figure in your fic???"

let me set the scene. it's 2019, you're a senior in high school, and you decided to take ap literature for the possibility of college credit. your teacher has this book called how to read literature like a professor that he has his classes read chapters from, and one of those chapters talks about Christ Figures in literature. one of those chapters also talks about baptism symbolism, and mentions how oftentimes, characters who are christ figures will go through a baptism of some sort - being "born again" after a scene where they come out of the water

do you want to know what zuko does in this ultraviolet morning light?

he goes into the water. and then he comes back out.

and do you want to know what i had sokka say about zuko shortly before he took a dive into the baptistry water?

Zuko looks away from him, resigned, like he’s ready to die as atonement.

see. i grew up Christian, i went to church every sunday and i have spent the majority of my life memorizing Bible verses either for awana or bible quizzing and. sometimes i just drop biblical words into my writing sometimes bc they're words i've heard since i was a kid, and they're words i learned make you sound smarter at church. so of course i throw them around while writing. i use them in essays, i use them in poetry, and i use them in fan fiction.

so was i trying to make zuko a christ figure in my fic? absolutely not.

but i had sokka say he looked ready to die as atonement (for the sins of his people), and then i had him go into the water, nearly die, and have to be "brought back to life" by suki's cpr, being "born again" after a "baptism" and

well

accidental christ figure zuko i guess

anyway. this went on for a while and i'm not sure anyone bothered reading all of it which. valid.

thank you corey for letting me ramble skjdgfdjgh i'm not sure this is coherent, nor should it have all been in one post, but whatever

#i am off to eat dinner now but please feel free to send in more questions!! #this ultraviolet morning light #rising sun verse #ily corey <3 #this got very long but i'm not really surprised tbh #ask game #corey tag

[secondhoekage]

Ignore this long rant I’m high as shit but I... can’t take the hero commission oR HONESTLY THE HEROES THEMSELVES, seriously anymore

They’re BRAINLESS they all share one (1) brain cell and it belonged to Crust. THESE GUYS had MONTHS to strategize this attack and what did they do? They fucked it up. They want me to believe this was planned and not written on a chalk board the night before? Sent out to all heroes the next morning at 8am in a CHAIN EMAIL?

Unpopular opinion(?): they sent the worst possible, ill-suited heroes to each location for this PLF raid and I’m mad at them for it and I’m mad at Hori for making me be mad at it even tho he had to do it beCauSe oF pLot but I’m mad.

The MLA’s plans to take on The League of Villains? Spotless. Chef’s kiss. The detail. The one-on-one counters they planned out. Accounting for each enemy’s quirk. Yeah there were like 6 of them to account for but?? Heroes, yall had enough info and enough time to think of ways to go about this raid and I’m supposed to believe that you did, BUT DID YOU REALLY? MONTHS TO PLAN, and saw one electric Sir Crocodile rip-off and immediately threw Kaminari on his ass. Good move. Kinda. But the rest of the PLF? Heroes just gonna make shit up as they go I guess?? 

To make myself feel better here’s a long ass useless rant on what could’ve damn happened and which heroes should’ve gone where and to make this an epic ass rumble. ugh. Even just doing some of these things would’ve made this arc (imo) feel more... convincing and delicious

under the cut tho bc damn this is too long

In this essay I will—

Edgeshot??? EDGESHOT??    EDGESHOT?? i’M GOING TO GO OFF. 

I swear to shit Edgeshot could’ve soloed the hospital but they had him at the PLF mansion for Some Reason like... like they didn’t make him run up on the League’s bar instead of the Nomu factory bc they knew he would take care of shit immediately. Make it make sense. If he was at the hospital eye just—Nomu in the way?? Doctor running off? Say less. Electric slide all the way in there Shinya. DID NO ONE SEE HOW EASILY HE HANDLED KUROGIRI? Did everyone just forget this man can pull a K.O in .3 seconds flat? Heroes didn’t think it might be a good idea to have him there, ready to give Shigaraki the paper cut of his life the second he woke up (if he even did bc my mans likely could’ve prevented the ‘doctor getting away>high-end awaken>rush to get shiggy out of the tank>shiggy wakes up’ chain of events)? Didn’t think to send him instead of this guy X Less just sitting there with That Look on his face? 

I get they needed heroes like Edgeshot at the mansion to take out a handful of enemies in one go but COME ON NOW. There were more than enough long-range AOE heroes there. And even if you don’t wanna believe he could solo then STILL, EDGESHOT DUOING WITH MIRUKO, ANYBODY? If anyone was gonna keep up with her happy ass zooming into the lab it could’ve been him. We were robbed of an Edgeshot/Miruko teamup and I’m not okay. Could’ve had a sexy ass panel of the hospital-team hyping up Miruko and Edgeshot as they dashed to Ujiko’s lab, two fast as shit bad bitches, zooming through these Nomu, absolutely obliterating them at lightning speed, watching each other’s backs too, PROBABLY SAVING MIRUKO FROM BECOMING THE PRE-DEATH ORGAN DONOR THAT SHE IS NOW. I know it was hot watching Miruko take on these high-ends but I’d have rather Edgeshot share the spotlight if it meant Miruko was in one piece rn. Hori played her

Anyways the literal dumb bitch energy that went into not sending Edgeshot to the hospital is sending me. Could’ve at least let him just be on the team and on standby while Shigaraki was waking up. With those sharp as shit reflexes of his we’ve seen? Shigaraki would’ve been out like a fucking light the second Edgeshot saw him sit up. X-Less you had a nice thicc upper lip that lip was too shaded for you to die, but F in the chat bitch. Useless plot fodder I’m sorry X-Less. There isn’t a hero there right now (besides Aizawa but like... idk, plot is nerfing him) that could’ve incapacitated Shiggy so quickly and prevented the mess they’re in now like my guy Edgeshot could’ve. Feels like a cop out

In conclusion: Edgeshot sweety I’m sorry they did this. I’m sorry you were nerfed. I’m sorry they didn’t let you deliver Kamino Pizza to this hospital. I’m sorry they ignored you and now everyone’s gonna die bc they didn’t they respect your Ninpo rights

CEMENTOSS??? y’all sent him to fuck up the mansion FOR WHAT??? If I were the hero commission and thought :

“Dang we need to completely ass blast this huge PLF resort to make room for our heroes to run in... but it would also be good if we had someone to do that at the hospital too just in case things get tricky and we need to pave a quick way to Ujiko’s secret hideout... but I’m single-celled and can’t weigh my options logically so ok. Cementoss, to the mansion.”

...................... Ok but can I in interest you in PIXIE BOB? I get the mansion is huge but going by the shit we’ve seen her do?? I’m not about to underestimate ol’ girl. I know she could’ve fucked that place up if they let her, switched her out for Cementoss, who could’ve made THE EASIEST route for the hospital team to get into the secret lab, trapped Ujiko, also trapped a couple nomu/high-ends in cement while he was at it, rearranged some tunnels for optimal tactical movement, probably could’ve done a decent-fucking-job at slowing the onslaught of Decay too if it got to that point (AND IT MIGHT NOT HAVE BC THE WHOLE POINT OF THIS RANT IS TO INSIST THAT A BETTER SELECTION OF HEROES WOULDN’T HAVE RESULTED IN SHIGGY’S CURRENT THANOS SNAP ORdEAL)

I know Pixie’s mostly on rescue operations and that’s what she’s doing at the hospital/surrounding city but WHY?? EVEN IF THEY REALLY NEEDED CEMENTOSS AT THE MANSION—WHY NOT HAVE PIXIE BOB DOING SOMETHING IN THE ACTUAL HOSPITAL BATTLE? JUST A LITTLE? The hospital is built on uh.. oh yeah... EARTH? And considering in the Forest Training arc she was using her quirk from a remote location (to make that Earth golem, or whatever) she wouldn’t even HAVE to be IN Ujiko’s lab to be useful

Can y’all PLEASE put at least ONE of your terraforming heroes at the place where y’all REALLY need them?? And not after-the-fact like y’all just did with Pixie Bob? Because clearly she didn’t do shit this last chapter trying to stop Decay. I’m sorry girl. You may be dead. Terrible.

I would have legitimately sent Snipe to get Ujiko before I sent Miruko and that’s that on that. Where is he even? He was there during the briefing but he’s gone? MIA? Idk. No way Ujiko is getting away from those bullets. Target locked: Ujiko’s hand. Fire. High-end Nomu remote goes bye bye. Then another bullet in the leg. No need to worry about him escaping and waking up high-ends/Shiggy when he doesn’t have kneecaps. Problem solved. No way it would’ve taken that long to break Shiggy’s tank either with a few well-placed pew pews zigging around some Nomu (not that we really wanna break him outta his tank bc look what happened). Snipe’s 6/5 technique stat deserves better!!!!!

Gang Orca did not go off and give a bunch of kids brain damage during the License arc to be so thoroughly ignored here. He’s clearly about to get his shit rocked by some gauged-out ex-Hot Topic employee in the next few chapters and ugh you’re TOO GOOD FOR THAT ORCA. COULD’VE BEEN OF USE AT THE HOSPITAL. PARALYZING SONIC WAVES? WE’LL TAKE IT. Who knows if any of the high-end Nomu would’ve been affected by paralysis but the small fry? Probably. Shiggy’s little twink ass? I would bet on it. Not that it would really stop him from using Decay but still

At the risk of sounding like someone I know who endorses child labor (the hero commission) here me out: CAN I GET A UHHH JUZO HONENUKI??? AGAIN YEAH good that he was at the mansion to do some long-range AOE action but if y’all are gonna force kids to join in on this war anyways, put your strongest and most useful ones at the place you need them. Shit it would’ve been real nice if Honenuki was there to trap some Nomu—uncertain if it would work against the high-ends that show some pretty flexible quirks but who knows—and even at the risk of reaching, maybe in some universe where Shiggy and Honenuki face off, it would be interesting to see Decay against Softening, since Decay’s one big weakness is that it can only work on solid objects sooOooOo? Idk. Would’ve been a cool match up but I hate that the kids are fighting anyways so we’re gonna ignore this Juzo rant. Just know it would’ve been cool

And as for the mess that’s going to be this fucking mansion soon... .. We’re just gonna ignore a whole ass Geten, big destructive power, big fucking threat, and not gonna throw Endeavor’s ass in there? Makes sense. They’re leaving it to Shoto I guess. They said time for you to fucking shine kid. Get in there. I mean really trading Endeavor for Edgeshot would’ve been top tier strategy but...

I MEAN THEY?? Made up a whole ass plan to counter ONE greasy-looking PLF guy by throwing Kaminari in there, but they couldn’t make up a plan to counter Geten? Are they just?? Pulling names out of a hat to see who gets to fight who? Did they spin a bottle to see who it landed on? Did Mt. Lady pull the short stick? I swear on shit when Geten starts going feral soon I’m not gonna feel sorry about it. Unless heroes got a plan and someone’s gonna make a sexy ass top 10 anime entrances to counter his ice then I’m disappointed. We went ape shit over Kaminari countering one of the commanders but are we not gonna get anymore ‘I’m your perfect counter and I’m here to stop you’ moments? No? I’M PISSED. 

I would have also settled for my kween Nejire being there to blast away some ice because who tf else is gonna do it? But eh. 

Dabi will also be trouble depending on what he decides to do. He only has about 3 good ideas a month and he’s used them all up by now so he’s in dumb slut territory as we speak. But you’d think that a villain as widely recognized as Dabi with such a destructive quirk would urge the heroes to have some plan to take him on but?? So far I don’t really see anyone quick to take on the role. Not that it’d be that hard bc he’s dangerous but also dangerously dumb. Where is Inasa. Maybe he can just blast the flames back in Dabi’s face. I love him but at this point he deserves to have some of his rights taken away

Don’t even get me start on Gigantomachia. I get the heroes had little choice except to attack before Shiggy was full-power but just?? NOT having a plan in case by some little chance Gigantomachia DID wake up? You stupid bastards. You absolute fools. I guess there’s not much you CAN do but FUCK y’all just gonna let him SIT THERE? No counter measures? No ‘Let’s execute this incredibly thorough and thought-out plan we’ve spent months formulating to restrain Gigantomachia in case he does end up waking up, because better safe than sorry’? When he tramples like 50 students I bet that shit gonna hurt

I hate it all. I was really happy about seeing Shiggy go off 272 bc he’s a king but after rereading from like, 258 I feel... weird. Maybe this will be resolved with more chapters but. eh. Now that I’ve thought of this, I can’t go back. I miss the brain power that was behind the MLA fight

#bnha spoilers #bnha 272 #i'm mad #bnha #Why did I make this? It’s so dumb #i'm gonna wake up tomorrow and scream #they're 2d bro LMAOOOO #is htis a meta #meta #bnha meta

[dontgotothenetherworld]

ap psychology

anonymous asked:  Can I request readers putting all her studying off till the week before AP exams and she starts studying an unhealthy amount, like sometimes forgetting to eat all day because of it and even made herself sick from stress over it but reader refuses to complain because she did it to herself and Lydia's just there helping her review and making sure she takes time to care for herself ect? Bonus if Reader thinks she did bad and Lydia assuring her she did fine and has an 'i told you don't moment? 

anonymous asked: Totally didn't request that bc that's my situation-

for some reason when i tried to queue this w/ the original ask, tumblr wanted to put the cut in the ask and i couldn’t delete it

this is out of date now, but i was uninspired to write for a hella long time sorry. also! i’m going to draw from my experiences w/ ap this year, and the only ap exam i had to take was psych, so that’s also going to be the case for reader :)

also, i feel like my lydia is a bit out of character? idk it’ll probably take a while to get back to the way i used to write her.

1303 words

cw: femreader. food

you cursed under your breath. months ago, months! you told yourself you would start studying for your ap exam. you only had the one exam to study for, so you told yourself that if you just did a little bit everyday, you would be fine.

but here you were, about three days until your ap psychology exam, and you hadn’t studied any of it. you had hardly even watched the videos your teacher had posted as the digital learning content. but to be fair, the stuff he was talking about in them were the last unit or two of psych, and you wouldn’t have to worry about them, because you weren’t going to be tested on them.

you groaned and dragged your feet downstairs, to where you hid your backpack. the friday weeks ago, when your school told everyone that classes would go digital for a few weeks because of the coronavirus, your teacher had come prepared. he gave everyone that showed up to class, which, granted, wasn’t that many but still- a huge packet covering everything that you had studied this year. it was some forty pages long.

okay, it was, like, thirty five because you crossed out the pages about personality and disorders. which was a shame, because those are the units that everyone takes psychology to learn about. no one goes, “oh boy, i can’t wait to learn about how to test if a baby has depth perception!” or “i can’t wait to learn about all the different types of visual illusions!” but whatever.

you flipped to page thirty five, to see how many questions you were in for. just over 250, except that’s counting all the charts as individual questions. yeah, that makes sense. one and a half pages of listing what researchers discovered what is equivalent to answering which cortex of the brain processes visual stimuli.

wait a minute. lydia was also taking psych. studying sucks, but if you could do it with your girlfriend, that’d be so much less painful.

you texted her, “hey lyds, have u finished the psych packet yet?”

”yea i finished it yesterday, why?” she texted back almost immediately.

shit. looks like you’ll have to suffer through this alone. “nvm”

you looked at the time, 1:46. damn, already? it felt like you had only just woken up. you made yourself a coffee, and set up shop on the desk you have never used in your bedroom, with laptop open beside you. you planned on googling everything, rather than going through your notes, mostly because you forgot where you put them, but this would still take ages.

an hour passed, and you felt like you were dying on the inside. if you had to answer one more question about behavioral psych, you were going to scream. behavioral psych is by far the worst part of psychology! watson and skinner be damned! people are people not some computer code! people have feelings! you can’t just ignore them! and the feeling you were feeling right now was not a good one!

you wanted to stop, but you weren’t sure if you stopped now if you’d be able to finish the packet. so you kept on going.

you went another five hours, taking five minute tik tok breaks every hour to keep you sane. you looked at the clock, and realized you hadn’t eaten anything today. you grabbed a box of cheez-its and made your way back upstairs, and went back to work. this time, you ate a cheez-it every time you finished a question, or you filled out a row in a chart.

you didn’t know when you fell asleep, but you woke up in the morning with about half the packet filled out. considering the exam was in one day, and four-ish hours, you thought that was good.

as you made your morning coffee, you checked the messages lydia had sent you. “are you doing okay? normally we talk a lot but…” “wait, are you working on the study guide?” “y/n! please take breaks! remember! you need food!” “and water!”

you sent back, “if i eat my cheez-its, and i drink my coffee while i study, then i don’t have to take breaks.”

you went back to your desk, and plugged your phone in across the room so you wouldn’t be distracted. but also because you forgot to charge it before you passed out, so it was at three percent, because apparently you had kept it open to tik tok all night, and the video just kept looping. oops.

for a while, the studying seemed easier. you felt like you had less to do, and you didn’t need to worry about getting it done in time, because you had more than enough of it. but because you didn’t need to rush, you became more productive.

you finished the second half of the packet by six that evening. you do admit, you got a bit lazy in the last few pages, but it was done!

shit. studying isn’t just writing stuff down, you have to read it over, right? you don’t really study that much.

but you decided to take an hour or two’s break for… breakfast? dinner? maybe even lunch? whatever, leftover pizza, because you had just only now just realized the intense rumbling in your stomach.

you checked your phone for the first time in hours. you were actually kind of proud of yourself. you usually were on your phone every waking hour, which was probably a problem, but you had shown enormous restraint… by spending every waking hour staring at your laptop. it’s all about choosing your battles.

you quickly dismissed some twitter notifications before tapping on a new message from lydia. “babe, i’m getting really worried about you, please call me when you see this.” you furrowed your brows. worried? about you? why?

you called lydia, and she picked up nearly immediately.

”y/n!” she gasped with relief, “don’t do that to me again!”

you felt stupid for wondering what she was talking about, but you kind of needed to know, “what do you mean?”

”you’ve been offline for hours, and i couldn’t get to you! and then when i heard what you were eating, that got me worried. have you eaten today?”

”three slices of pizza right now.” you swallowed a bite.

”is that your first meal today?”

”unless you count coffee, yeah. i’ll do better tomorrow, i promise. speaking of tomorrow, we’ve got the psych exam, and i need to keep studying. i’ll call after the exam, so like three?”

”y/n.”

”yeah?”

”you do realize this exam is online, right? and at home?”

”uh, yeah.” you swallowed.

”and you have both a laptop and a phone?”

”lydia, what are you saying?” cheating. she was definitely talking about cheating.

”i’m saying, that you don’t really need to know the definitions, because our dear old pal google can be there to help you out with those. and you’re smart, so i assume you know the concepts.”

”you think very highly, of me, my dear.” you took another bite of pizza. “so, what you’re saying is, i wasted two days studying?”

”yes, that is exactly what i’m saying.”

”shit. wait, why were you studying?”

”ugh, because i am nowhere near as good as you at being able to understand things.”

”you know, definitions explain the concept too.”

”what are you saying?” asked lydia.

”i think we’ve both wasted a lot of time studying when we didn’t need to.”

”fuck.” lydia breathed.

”yeah, we’re both idiots. do you wanna watch something on netflix? you haven’t finished parks and rec yet, right?”

”no, i just finished an episode before you called me.”

”which one?”

”season four, episode seven.”

”wait, is the next episode smallest park? we need to watch that, like, now.”

@meangirlsx @meangirlmurphy @eliza-is-confused @boredomimi @book--butterfly

#beetlejuice #beetlejuice musical #beetlejuice braodway #beetlejuice fanfiction #lydia #lydia deetz #lydia x reader #lydia deetz x reader #fic

[thechildoflightning]

JKSF Jobs

I got asked awhile ago by the lovely @mewithanie if I could write about everyone’s jobs in jksf if it sparked my interest. It did spark my interest, but I couldn’t figure out how to make it into a one-shot or story, so take a tumblr post bullet-style explanation instead!

Read on to find out all about the jobs Patton, Roman, Logan, and Virgil hold in just keep stumbling forward (baby im waiting for you)

tw: suicide (oc), PTSD and trauma (mentioned only), mentions of drugs, alcohol, and school shootings.

Patton

Runs a non-profit

Non-Profit pairs up with schools

Non-Profit is an art therapy center focused on increasing connection within teenagers and allowing them an appropriate outlet for emotional turmoil

Patton’s group generally gets placed on ‘high-risk’ campuses or campuses that have incidents happen at them

‘High-risk’ in this case is defined by higher than normal suicide rates, low attendance rates, high-levels of illegal activity (generally drug and alcohol use), high rate of poor mental health, more than average amounts of cheating, etc

Instances involve things like excessive inappropriate school-wide behavior (ie. all the kids getting drunk and disorderly at a school event) as well as shocking incidents (student death from suicide, overdose, drunk driving, or things such as school shootings)

Some kids come by choice, others are referred through a suspension exchange program

Pretty much, a kid gets suspended but can choose to go to the group’s meetings instead of facing suspension

Kids get referred for suspensions that deal with violence, drug use, alcohol use, excessive absences, and so forth

The idea behind it is that suspended the kid will only negatively impact the kids record and give no reason to change behavior, while the group can help get to the root of the issue and work towards solving/improving that instead

Other kids go by choice bc they’re looking for extra support, a healthy outlet, advice, etc

They have weekly after school meetings (per each district, with one focal school in each one. The program is currently seven districts wide)

They also have lunch drop-ins were you can come make art, chill, get a snack, pet a therapy dog, and other stuff

One of Patton’s first schools was the same school Virgil works at

Patton generally leads the entire non-profit and has delegates to deal with the different districts

He handles the school/district that Virgil is at, though he attempts to go to as many things at the other districts as he can

Does a lot of outside work promoting the program to school and school boards, but is starting to delegate a lot of that work to others so he can focus on the kids instead of the bureaucratic shit

Has had to cut back on individual involvement and delegate more as the work and stress from running an entire non-profit has taken a large toll on his health related to chronic illness

He is Not Happy about this fact, but it’s for his health and he needs it. His spouses help support in any ways that they can.

Roman

Theater Boi

He is a director for a local theater company that is actually not half-bad

Enjoys the heck out of it

Went into college planning to become an actor

And boy does he love acting and the truth is? He was good enough. He could have become an actor. 

But somehow he finds it even more magical running everything behind the acting (and so so much more work, god he never realized how much Work This Was)

So he joins a theater company and he slowly works his way up

At first he comes in as assistant choreographer 

He’s young and they don’t think much of it, but the show genuinely improves by his individual suggestions and work and wait, who the fuck is this kid and how do we hang onto him?

He makes his way up quite quickly, sliding his way into assistant directly and then co-director and then suddenly the director’s leaving and now he’s the director

It happens fast and it’s very very exciting but he’s also honestly a little overwhelming and he’s never been good at managing large tasks without procrastinating bc executive dysfunction (see this post and this one about Roman and ADHD)

And now he is The Director and an entire production is depending on him. Everything. All of it. And it was what he was looking for but it’s a lot.

The first time he’s on his own, it goes okay

It’s by far not the best the company has done, but it’s also not the worst and the company is pretty supportive of his jump to director and the people who have been there longer help him learn to delegate tasks

And so he tries again, and he does better, and he just continues to get better from there

There’s just one hiccup: the scenographer

Basically the scenographer Does Not Like Roman and it creates Conflict

(In my head I sorta imagine the boss character Joan played when they were playing Thomas as Roman as Joan as the boss character in that one part of “Can LYING Be Good?”)

Luckily, Deceit later takes that position, and him and Roman work way better together and pull off some pretty bomb ass productions

Roman has been asked to join other companies before- specifically travelling companies and work on Specific Productions- which is very cool and very exciting but he decides he’d rather do what he’s doing now bc 

a) he enjoys the rhythm of his work. b) larger productions are more stress. c) he doesn’t want to be gone from his spouses. And d) he gets a lot of positivity and meaning out of what he does now and doesn’t see a reason to change that

Every summer he also runs the local chapter of Shakespeare in the park. 

He does act in these as well bc it’s completely volunteer based. Deceit also acts in these with him and these two theater dorks have way to much fun together

They may or may not of kidnapped Trixie for one of the productions (with Virgil’s consent of course)

Logan

Logan works for a company that considers themselves as a “research and problem-solving team for the improvement of marine environments”

Basically, Logan researches issues that negatively impact marine life and helps come up solutions to improve or solve these issues

Most of what he does is cycle through data that other researchers collect and figure out what that data means and how it connects

He looks at a lot of abstract numbers and pulls them together to state exactly what the numbers are reporting 

From there he brings that research to a board that forms a hypothesis and then comes up with potential solutions

These solutions are often considered very progressive and liberal and as such cause a lot of debate

Solutions range from legal changes (laws reducing companies waste, laws to prevent oil spills, protection laws around certain species/habitats, etc) to inventions (boats that clean the ocean, replication of habits to help support species that can’t live outside of a certain ecosystem, etc)

The company Logan works for has had numerous very successful projects and many of these projects were successful bc of Logan’s involvement

Logan’s spouses are very very proud of this fact

Logan is modest af and brushed it off

Logan’s had quite a few articles published in scientific journals and his findings/theories/work have also made it to national news in the past

Logan himself has actually been asked to present some of his stuff on the news multiple times. He refuses each time and someone else goes in his place.

Does this mean that person gets a lot of credit that should be assigned to Logan? Yes. Does that person feel bad? They do and try to give credit to Logan. Does Logan care? No, no he does not. 

Logan could care less about credit, he just cares about marine ecosystems and That’s Literally It

Seriously, people ask him things like “does he understand the ‘political implications’ of his job” or “Are you okay with your team constantly stealing your work” and he’s just like “Fish are cool. Leave me the fuck alone.”

Logan has also done more hands-on experience which has included cool adventures that included scuba diving trips to study coral reef damage, spending days in heavy wetlands, and swimming with sharks

His spouses think that this is the coolest thing and Logan agrees a 1000%

He usually works on research because that’s Where He’s Comfortable, but the occasional planned (it has to be planned) research trip is always exciting

Logan also has so much passion for his job. So much passion. It’s sort of an agreed upon deal in the house that when Logan comes home he will generally Need To Infodump because his job is The Coolest

Because of this, a time period between him getting off work and them eating dinner is designated Logan Infodumping Time

Generally this happens while they cook (because as mentioned a few times, Logan is the best cook)

Even if his spouse aren’t helping w/ dinner, they usually try to stick around and listen because a) Logan is Cute when talking about things he enjoys. b) he talks about interesting stuff. c) even if they don’t find it interesting, Logan’s enthusiasm is infectious and they just Have To Listen

Virgil

Virgil is a high school English teacher

He generally teaches sophomore regular English and junior AP English

Classes can shift slightly depending on the year

Virgil was at first a very distant teacher and didn’t connect with his students

Like his students thought he was a fine teacher bc he wasn’t too strict and didn’t assign a bunch of hw, but no one really liked him either

About his fourth year teaching, a kid at Virgil’s school got suicide baited and ended up taking their own life

It was a Big Deal (and is also how Patton found his way to Virgil’s campus)

After the event, there were lots of discussions and groups at the school, and each teacher talked to their classes

Virgil’s discussion was,, impactful to say the least

He talked to the students frankly about the issue and opened discussion to the topic while making sure to keep it respectful and calling students out on shit while at the same time helping support everyone who was struggling

He ended it with a small speech about self-worth, what it meant, and the struggle to achieve it, especially when everyone around you is pulling you down

It spreads like wildfire throughout the school and suddenly Virgil is a very well-liked teacher because He Gets It, y’know

(to clarify- his student’s do not know about his suicide attempts or personally history regarding his PTSD and experiences, that said, they all know there’s something different about this teacher. Something that makes him understand in a way others don’t)

He also has just this snark that students fall in love with

(One of his class’ learning targets for an entire week was just “We’re going to stick it to The Man. How you ask? Well we’ll find out!”

There was also a situation one year when one of Logan’s articles turned up in a multiple choice quiz and No One, including Virgil knew the answers (Virgil did have the answer key but it Did Not Make Sense)

He had to actually call Logan to figure it out

Turns out, most of them was the quiz maker’s mistake because he was asking questions about “author’s tone” and “author’s purpose” and Logan’s just like,, I didn’t meant to have any tone? I don’t understand tone? My purpose was I like fish? Why are they saying it’s to educate the average person??

(pretty much they analyze Logan’s article from a neurotypical standpoint, which Logan Is Not, so it doesn’t work. Virgil scraps the quiz.)

#ts virgil #ts logan #ts roman #ts patton #sanders sides #ts sides #jksf #just keep stumbling forward #colfanficextras #autistic logan #adhd roman #patton has chronic pain #patton is chronically ill #chronic illness #chronic pain #virgil has ptsd #virgil has trauma #service dogs

[bymyselfstudying]

How I Do School

Hey there friends! This year I’m a senior, and I’m homeschooling for the first time partially so I could explore my interests further and partially so I could do everything I can now so I can save money for college. For that reason, my curriculum looks a bit different than what it would look like if I was at a traditional high school. I figured maybe some people would be sorta interested in how I’m going about my classes, so here ya go!

College Classes

First off, I'm taking a couple of classes at my local university. The two classes I'm taking are College Writing and Music History and Appreciation, both of which satisfy general education requirements. This is great because in my state, high school students are allowed to take up to 6 credits at public universities tuition free, only having to pay for fees and textbooks (which came out to about 350 bucks for me this year). If I'm smart when I choose classes, I'm able to start college with 12 credits under my belt, from the university I plan on going to, which is a life saver for someone like me, who is going to be paying for college entirely by themself.

Mathematics

Math is one of my favorite subjects by far (for a long time I thought it was going to be my major). The resources I'm using are a textbook I downloaded off the world wide web as well as Khan Academy for AP Calculus BC. I'm also working through a book called Mathematics for the Nonmathematician,, which is a math curriculum that emphasized history as well, which I'm super into.

Environmental Science

Environmental Science is one of my intended majors when I enter college, so I intend on taking the AP exam in the spring. For this, I also downloaded a textbook off the internet, but more excitingly, I plan on reaching out to a scientist at my local university who I met over the summer who does water quality research to see if I can hangout sometime and possible help.

Journalism

This one is pretty easy for me to integrate into my life, because I sort've do it anyways as a producer at my local radio station, but I plan on working on more news stories and making them of high quality, specifically working on edited pieces rather than all live stuff.

Music

This is where I might be the most excited. I'm doing a lot of stuff. Actually, I think it would be easier if I just made it a list:

I'm taking voice lessons for the first time ever!

I'm going to choose one (or two) of the instruments I own and work on getting better at them (it's probably going to be my guitar and my harmonica).

I'm going to finish the songs I've started and hopely perform them at an open mic I frequent.

I'm going to keep going to a ton of shows, but I more diverse range of shows (I go to a lot of punk shows, but I want to visit my city's symphony more frequently now that I get a college student discount).

Art

In general I want to just make more art, but my focus is going to be in figure drawing. I've never been a drawer, but the urge to draw women has been real lately. I'm starting with drawabox.com, and I'm not sure where I'm going to go from there but we'll see!

Computer Science

I am SO hyped for compsci this year! Last year when I took compsci, we worked on some linguistic-y stuff, creating a program that could be given sentences that fit a certain structure, and be able to pull information out of, and be able to ask it questions. This year, I want to expand that enough so that it could "read" a novel and pull out information like the main characters and major themes. If I really get it off the ground, I might consider registering for my states science fair!

Those are all my major classes (the only one I left out is Religious Studies, but if you're really interested in that and I can fill you in/add it to the post). I hope that was relatively interesting. If you want to keep up with all the stuff I'm doing, make sure you follow me (I follow back from @mathpunsaresin).

#new studyblr #studyblr #high school #homeschool

[baljeet]

in which baz yeets to cairo to avoid simon

or, a snowbaz high school au featuring a kiss that wasn’t supposed to happen, fall out boy, and snowbaz as oblivious gays™

word count: 2328

First of all, my date with Samantha was a mistake. Of course, I didn’t think it was a mistake at the time. She’d caught me off-guard after class one day, and I didn’t realize that dinner on a Friday qualified as a date until we were staring awkwardly at each other across the table at a decidedly grimy Italian joint, and she nearly threw her water glass at me when I said, “So, shall we split the bill?”

Needless to say, Samantha and I don’t speak much anymore. I suppose that’s a good thing—but really, it was nice to have the distraction from some of the more difficult things in my life.

Namely, the fact that I see Simon Snow every day, and he still wraps me in an infuriatingly casual one-armed hug like we’re best bros on the football team. Not that Simon Snow would be caught dead playing football, but that’s beside the point. The point is that I’ve known him for years, since we were both in middle school and I somehow wound up at his lunch table with nowhere else to sit one day, blasting Fall Out Boy on my iPod shuffle and pretending like I wasn’t looking at him smile. I wish I could wax poetic about how I’ve come a long way from then, say some profound shit about how much I’ve grown, but really—

It’s four years later, we still eat lunch together, and I’m still blasting Fall Out Boy and trying to sort out this knot in my chest they like to call emotion (for what it’s worth, however, I’ve graduated to an iPhone). He knows everything about Samantha, though, which was definitely a gutsy move on my part. But something in me is waiting for that moment when I go too far and he calls me back. Scratch that, I realize two days after that disastrous date, staring at the wall because it’s better than looking in the mirror at the confusion in my eyes. He knows everything about Samantha except why I’m leaving her.

Because despite it all, despite the time and the relationships that have come and gone, despite everything that’s happened in these past four years—

I’m hopelessly in love with Simon Snow.

I’ve written about it a thousand times, everything from poems to stories to haikus, and one day I even made a playlist (featuring exactly zero Fall Out Boy songs) for him, but my finger always hovers just above the send button. When did something so small and hospital-blue become so intimidating?

Simon, of course, is completely oblivious. He has no problem hitting that button, sending me random thoughts he has throughout the day, something he thought was funny and wanted to share, the occasional meme—normal friend stuff.

I wonder what it’s like to text without over-analyzing every character.

But it’s something I’m going to have to keep wondering, because I’ve been staring at my phone for the past hour or so, trying to figure out the best way to tell Samantha that while I appreciate her asking me out, it’s not a relationship I’d like to pursue. A sentiment that sounds nice enough in my head, but every time I try and type it out, it reads: ur cool but i’m kind of in love with someone else. and that someone else is a guy so uh have a heart ig and don’t hate me bc i have to sit next to you in bio every day for the next 6 months. Sending a text like that, however, would be disastrous. So I don’t.

Instead, I find her after class on Monday, and say, far too quickly, “Friday was fun but I don’t like you.”

“What?” she replies, stopping in her tracks.

My first thought is that now we’re those irritating kids in the hallway who just stop for no reason, and we’re probably holding everyone up, and it’s only when she says, “Um, Baz?” that I realize she’s asked me a question.

“I don’t like you. Like that. I mean. We can still be friends. If you’re chill. We’re chill, right?” I’m speaking in fragments; it’s probably incoherent, but she seems to get it. Or at least, it looks like she does.

She nods. “Sure. Friends.”

“Perfect!” I reply. “I’m so glad we worked this out.”

Samantha doesn’t reply, but the hallway is too crowded for her to slip away, so we continue to walk side by side. The silence is palpable, and I debate whether or not it would be rude to put my earbuds in until it’s too late because I see my bus.

I practically barrel over to the kid I sit with—I forget if his name is Jack or John—and strike up a conversation. “Hey, man, what’s up?”

Jack/John just gives me a strange look, opting to sit somewhere else today. I slide into my empty two-seater, and my heart skips a beat when I see a text from Simon. did you talk to samantha?

I debate whether or not to reply, though honestly, what would I even say in reply? He thinks I’ve broken things off with her because of some carefully placed comments about “not being over my ex,” but lying to Simon is something I’d rather not do.

I don’t reply, and I’m grateful when a text comes a moment later from another classmate. you really dodged a bullet with samantha, i heard she’s a homophobe.

Without thinking, I forward the message to Simon.

His reply sends chills down my spine that really shouldn’t be there. only one way to find out.

Tuesday brings with it a torrential downpour. I think it’s rather fitting. Today’s music is Paramore, which I haven’t listened to since freshman year, but the rain plus the uncertainty is definitely a Paramore mood.

Despite the rather dreadful weather, Simon’s wearing his brilliant smile, as always, and finishing the last of his breakfast scone, as always. “So, I heard about Samantha—Baz, you went on a date with her. Did you know?”

“Simon, I didn’t even know it was a date until the end,” I reply, shaking my head.

He punches me in the arm. “You’re kidding, right?”

I arch an eyebrow at him. “How was I supposed to know?”

“My god, Baz. It was dinner. On a Friday night. What class do you even have with her? AP Bio.? How on earth are you managing an AP class when you can’t even understand that was a date?”

Now that it’s all spelled out, I suppose it makes sense. “I wish I hadn’t done it. And if Samantha really is a homophobe, then I really wish I hadn’t done it.”

Simon shrugs. “It’s alright. It’s like the time I almost kissed Victor during gym when he was just trying to reach past me to get the badminton racquets.”

I laugh as though the story is an old memory I haven’t thought about in ages, when really, that can’t be farther than the truth. Simon’s story about Victor had been his way of coming out, and it had been the day that I’d realized there was a real chance for us.

“Embarrassing love stories aside, we should probably head to class. You need all the extra education you can get, clearly,” he cuts off, swiftly changing direction and making a left towards the science hallway, where he has chemistry and I have physics.

We’re about halfway to where we usually part ways when I see her out of the corner of my eye. Samantha. She hasn’t seen me, though; she’s talking (rather loudly) to her friends about some encounter with a kid in her PE class. But then she says, “He’s such a f*g, you know? Like my god, I get that you’re gay but you don’t have to be so obnoxious about it.”

I don’t catch the name of who she’s talking about. It doesn’t matter—I’m seeing red, my hands are clenched in fists, and I’ve spun around on the spot to face her direction.

“Baz—” Simon says.

I’m so angry I barely register that he’s grabbed my hand.

Samantha’s seen me now; her eyes catch mine and widen in recognition. I’m only two steps away from her when Simon tugs me the other way. “Baz. Take a deep breath, getting into a fight won’t solve anything.”

“Can you believe her?” I snap back in reply. “Who the fuck does she think she is?”

I’m coming up with more terrible things to say to Samantha when Simon’s grip tightens on my wrist, moving further up my arm.

“What are you—”

“This will really piss her off, and I’m not even going to say anything,” Simon replies with a smile.

His eyes are so close and so bright.

It’s the last clear thought I have before he presses me against the lockers and kisses me.

I wish I could say I kiss him back.

I don’t. I freeze. Hands pinned to my sides, eyes squeezed shut, balance wavering, wondering if this is all a dream.

But then I dare to open one eye, just a crack, and there is Simon, clear as day.

He pulls away, but one of his hands remains on my arm. “Baz, I—”

His words are cut off by the bell.

“See you at lunch,” is all I manage to stammer out, before stumbling half-dazed into Calculus.

I do not see him at lunch; apparently, Simon has a club meeting. I don’t know if I am more relieved or upset when Penny reminds me that there’s band practice today and he won’t be joining us.

I don’t recall what I say to her in reply. My mind is far-off, on a constant replay of that moment, over and over and over as I wonder how I managed to fuck up so badly.

I’d literally frozen. Up against the lockers, not even moving, hadn’t even kissed him back . . .

It’s still replaying through my head when I get home, skipping the stairs on my way up to my room.

Simon Snow kissed me.

It doesn’t seem real.

But it is real, because Samantha’s un-added me on Snapchat, and there’s a text from Simon saying that he’s sorry, and everything is catching up with me and I’m not thinking.

I’m only typing as fast as my hands will let me.

hey simon. so there were a lot of opportunities for me to tell you this today, honestly i couldn’t find the words and i didn’t even know if i should tell you. but i feel awful and i think you should know the truth. so here goes. i didn’t want to break things off with samantha because i’m not over my ex. it was because i realized i might have feelings for you. i don’t expect you to feel the same way at all, but i’m so tired of keeping this secret. so yeah, now it’s out there, i guess. —baz.

I stare it it. Everything I’ve wanted to say for years, all condensed in the tiny message box, and the only thing stopping me is that damned blue button.

One . . . Two. . . Three.

Before I can talk myself out of it, I press send.

Then, I promptly throw my phone across the room. There’s a resounding crack as it hits the wooden headboard of my bed. I’ve probably fractured the screen, but I don’t really mind.

I start to walk downstairs, but after two steps I whirl back around, sprinting to my room and grabbing the phone.

No answer.

I start a movie. Some Michael Bay trash I can focus on without really thinking.

An hour passes.

No answer.

I finish the movie and debate whether or not to start another one, before deciding to play Solitaire.

Another hour passes.

No answer.

I actually do my Calculus homework for once, spending two hours trying to figure out what the fuck a derivative is.

Two hours pass before I check my phone again.

There’s a text from Simon.

I almost throw my phone down the stairs, but I restrain myself, turning off my speakers so Twenty-One Pilots isn’t blasting louder than my thoughts anymore and I can focus.

i really don’t know how i should reply to this. this is honestly a surprise to me but i’m glad to know the truth, even if it complicates things. i’m not quite sure how i feel, but this feels like a conversation we should have in person. talk to you soon?

I read it no less than twelve times before beginning to type my reply. ok, see you.

Then I pace back and forth across my room until I’m dizzy, wondering if I’m supposed to call him or he’s supposed to call me or if I should invite him over, or if it’s too late to, or if I should ask him when exactly we’re going to talk, considering tomorrow I’m leaving for a family reunion in Cairo and I won’t have my phone for ten days . . .

But I don’t say anything else.

I do not sleep that night. I stare at the ceiling and wonder at the possibilities. Wonder at the fact that Simon kissed me and even though I didn’t kiss him back he didn’t completely shut me down, that there’s something hopeful about that text, about the future.

About our future.

Maybe.

That maybe lingers for the rest of the night, and for that morning as I pack for Cairo.

It lingers as I leave for the airport, staring out the car window and trying not to look too much at my reflection, eyes brighter than they’ve been in a while.

It lingers as I get on a direct flight to Cairo, and though it’s reckless of me, I send Simon a text that says, i’ll miss you.

My phone loses service a few minutes before cruising altitude.

I think it’s oddly appropriate that my Simon playlist comes on my shuffle.

#snowbaz #simon snow #tyrannus basilton grimm pitch #highschool au #* #emsfam #vics parivaar #thezavengers #eloquencenet

[dracoandluna]

Prompt: Based off of Taylor Swift's song and music video, "You Belong With Me". Modern AU. (This takes place in America so don't hate me that they don't use British slang!)

Draco heaved a great sigh before collapsing onto his bed. He lay there for a few moments, just letting the stress of the day melt off of him and into the depths of his mattress.

He hadn’t heard back from Hogwarts yet, his dream school, he was pretty sure he had just bombed that AP Calc test (it made no difference to Lucius that Draco was in BC, not AB), his team had lost their last football game, nearly disqualifying them from the regional championship, and his girlfriend (emphasis on girl, vague connotation on friend) was being a complete bitch (though he supposed that was nothing new, he just wasn’t used to it being directed at him).

After lying down for a few moments did nothing to relax him, Draco grudgingly got up and ran a hand through his hair, thoroughly messing it up. On almost instinct, Draco glanced over to the left and saw that Luna was in her bedroom too, lying on her stomach on her bed, writing or drawing in a tattered journal.

Draco had lived in entire life in this house, and Luna, his neighbor, had also lived her entire life in the house right next to his. His childhood was filled with memories of playing outside with her in the summer, and being holed up together inside during the winter. As a boy, he had seen Luna something akin to a sister, though even at the age of seven Draco had easily concluded that she was far too barmy to share any blood with him.

He couldn’t help but smile as he recalled the time he and Luna had entered the local soap box derby at age nine and had won against a bunch of teenagers because Luna had brought along a fire extinguisher as an extra boost of speed. Luna was weird, but she was undeniably a genius.

He must have been staring at her the entire time while he was reminiscing, because she looked up at him and waved, before quickly scribbling something in her journal.

Holding the book up, Draco read the message she had written to him.

Congratulations on your game yesterday

Draco scowled at her, and she kept smiling her dreamy smile at him. Had it been anyone else who had said that it would have been a slight, but after knowing Luna for 18 years, he knew she somehow meant it.

Grabbing a notebook from his desk, he hastily wrote:

What are you going on about? We LOST

She had the decency to look surprised, at least.

How is that a bad thing? Failures always impart valuable lessons, wins don’t

Rolling his eyes, he simply waved her off before sliding his curtains close.

                                                             *

“I feel so bad for you, Draco,” Pansy laughed, staring at something over his shoulder.

Frowning, Draco looked behind him to see what she was talking about. There sat Luna, alone, wearing the ugliest pair of sunglasses he had ever seen, while calmly looking around the bustling cafeteria.

“I have no idea how you put up living right next to her,” Pansy continued. “You should have gotten your father to evict the Lovegood’s years ago.”

“Then who would he go to when you’re not around?” Blaise said smugly, looking at Draco challengingly.

“You’re disgusting,” Draco said to Blaise, unsure if he was mad that Pansy was making fun of Luna (didn’t he do that all the time?) or at what Blaise had insinuated. He didn’t know how he had found out about his friendship with Luna, since he went to great lengths to keep it hidden, but Blaise never passed up the opportunity to bring it up against him.

Pansy, who had gone red from chagrin, clutched at his forearm with what he guessed was supposed to be a romantic gesture, but was frankly kinda painful.

“That’s not true, right, Draco?” she asked, her voice starting to take on that shrill octave.

Vincent and Greg looked at him expectantly, as if waiting to see if they could make fun of Luna or not.

“Of course it’s not true,” Draco answered coolly.  

Draco lost his appetite, and listened on silently as Greg and Vincent began to harp on Luna. When Pansy rested her head on his shoulder, Draco stared at the table and wondered what lesson was to be learned from this failure.

                                                              *

This was the last party Draco would attend until the semester was over; he wanted to end the grading quarter strong, and reasoned that homecoming was just two weeks away, he could last two weekends without beer and sex.

Some shithead (he couldn’t even remember who’s house this was) decided to play French dubstep instead of regular fucking dubstep, and the beer was grossly warm.

Pansy and Daphne were passed out on each other on a couch, and Draco felt a flash of irritation since it looked as if he wasn’t getting a lay tonight- from either girl.

“Who spat in your cup?” Blaise shouted to him over the sound of the God-awful music.

“Your mom,” Draco replied, not sober enough to feel ashamed at how lame that comeback was, but too drunk to come up with a better one.

“My mom is dead!” Theodore yelled, his eyes glassy but a large smile on his face. Theo always became weirdly emotional drunk.

“Whatever, Greg got some weed, are you gonna spark up?” Blaise asked, swaying unevenly to the beat as Theo leaned heavily onto him.

Suddenly the entire atmosphere of the party seemed disgusting to Draco, and he wanted nothing more than to leave. The feeling of being alone while surrounded by people was disconcerting, to say the least.

So that’s what he did. Ignoring Blaise and Theo’s confused shouts, Draco stumbled out of the house, and realized too late that Vincent had been his ride (Lucius had taken away his car for bombing that calc test).

Too stubborn to go inside and find that undoubtedly drunk moron, Draco pulled up the collar of his jacket and began to make his slow trek home.

The weather was frighteningly cold, and Draco soon began to lose feeling in his fingers- his toes had long gone.

He glanced up at a street sign and realized with a sinking feeling that he didn’t even know where he was, much less how to get back to his home- or even the house he had just been at.

Pulling out his phone from the pocket of his jeans he cursed through chattering teeth when he found that it was dead.

Did all my karma have to accumulate into one night? Draco thought viciously as he nearly tripped over a section of uneven pavement.

Beep beep!

Startled, Draco looked over to the street to see a car had pulled up. A yellow Volkswagen Bug to be exact. Luna’s car to be even more exact.

Hesitantly making his way towards the car, Draco nearly cried in relief when the window rolled down to reveal Luna’s honey blonde head.

“Hello Draco!” she greeted cheerfully. “Are you also out looking for the shelia bird?”

“Luna,” he slurred. “Can you get me home?”

Her large eyes widened in understanding and she nodded her head yes.

The warmth of her car felt like a kiss from an angel on his nearly frostbitten skin, and he had never been more comfortable in his life, though her car was so small that his long legs were folded uncomfortably to fit them.

She seemed to sense his need for silence, because she said nothing to him, and only hummed quietly to herself.

Draco had nearly fallen asleep in his seat when suddenly he had to ask her a pressing question.

“Would you date Theodore Nott?” he asked, looking as carefully as he could into her face.

They were at a red light, and her face was bathed in the red color when she turned to look at him, the lighting making her look older than she actually was.

“If I loved him, why wouldn’t I?” Luna asked curiously, tilting her head to the side.

Draco suddenly felt very very foolish.

“Is just…his mom is dead too,” he said, trying and failing to show the reasoning behind his inquiry.

“I know,” was all she said. “We were once in group therapy together, he’s rather nice.”

Draco didn’t know this, and suddenly and irrationally, he was angry. Why didn’t she tell him she was in therapy? Why didn’t he ever even realize she needed therapy?

“I’m nice!” he exclaimed, waving his hands wildly.

“Are you?” she asked in a voice that didn’t imply that she didn’t agree, but in one that called for actual self-evaluation

He ducked his head like a reprimanded child.

“Sometimes I say things so I can keep looking cool,” he admitted.

“But I don’t think you’re a loon!” he said desperately, reaching over to grab her one hand that rested on top of the transmission. He wished he was more sober so he could appreciate how her hand felt under his. “I just want Pansy off my back! I want you to be my friend!”

He hadn’t even realized they had pulled into his driveway until she turned off her car.

She looked at him sadly.

“I am your friend, Draco,” Luna said softly. “But maybe you should question why you’re with someone who you don’t want to be with.”

Draco had no response.

                                                                 *

For the next two weeks, Draco ignored Luna almost religiously. He had wanted to die of mortification when he had woken up the next day after his emotional outburst. He also fought with Pansy nearly every day, and every time they made up and made out, Draco wondered if a pair of tits in his hands were worth the emotional baggage that came with them.

He spoke with Theo more, and learned that Theodore was a really good listener. He wondered if that was what made Luna think of him so highly.

Nah, Theo was a scrawny wimp who had nothing better to say, which was why he just shut upped and listened, Draco concluded, thus making him much nicer to be around.

It was a gray Wednesday afternoon when he and his team congregated in the locker room, with Coach Hooch outside waiting for them.

He was pulling on his jersey when Harry said, “Guess who I’m going to homecoming with?”

“Ginny?” Draco guessed, sending a haughty look at Ron.

“Uh, no,” Harry said awkwardly.

“Damn right…” Ron grumbled which made Draco grin even more.

“No, I’m going with Luna!” Harry said, earning an eye roll from Ron.

Draco stopped grinning.

                                                        *

It was Thursday night, the night before Homecoming, and Draco was in his room, trying and failing to finish his AP gov essay on congressional hearings. His curtains were drawn completely.

After staring at the same sentence he had been stuck on for half an hour, he ripped open his curtains to find Luna also at her desk, diligently working away. Tapping his window with a knuckle, the sound managed to grab Luna’s attention, who looked up and gave him a smile, as if he hadn’t been avoiding her for weeks.

Deciding not to waste any more time, he whipped open a notebook and scribbled:

Why are you going with Harry?

Luna on her part showed no reaction to his question, to which Draco was almost grateful for; the entire prospect was humiliating enough.

Because he’s my friend

Draco sank back into his chair at her reply, his chest suddenly feeling lighter. But it seemed that Luna was not done, because she held up another page.

Why are you going with Pansy?

Truthfully, he hadn’t even asked Pansy to homecoming, it had just been assumed. Suddenly, he didn’t even know if he wanted to go with her.

But Draco was stubborn and prideful, and he was done looking foolish in front of Luna, so he wrote back:

Because I love her.

He didn’t give any time for Luna to respond before he almost violently drew his curtains.

He stared at the piece of paper for an hour, before crossing out her, and adding you. This time, his actions were completely violent when he crumpled the paper and threw it across his room.

                                                         *

For the briefest of moments, Draco thought he had died.

He had been mercilessly tackled onto the ground, and the very air from his lungs had been completely expelled, leaving them unable to refill themselves.

As his body struggled to get his lungs inflated once more, he was dimly aware of a thundering roar of cheers: someone had scored a touchdown.

When he could finally breathe again, he weakly pushed himself up, only to see Longbottom and Pansy in the middle of the field, passionately kissing.

                                                           *

“Draco, I don’t see why you’re making such a big deal about this,” Pansy complained. “I’m cheer captain, it just makes sense that I congratulate the guy who scored the winning touchdown!”

“You’re right, I am making a big deal,” Draco said agreeably. “So let’s just break up.”

Pansy’s expression then shifted, and for a moment, under the glittering lights and colored shadows, she looked truly evil

“You can’t break up with me!” she seethed, nostrils flaring like a bull.

“I just did,” Draco said, rolling his eyes.

“You listen here-“

“I don’t care!” Draco shouted, finally reaching the end of patience. This seemed to silence Pansy; he had never raised his voice at her before, it wasn’t how he was raised to treat ladies. But Pansy wasn’t a lady, she was shallow and mean spirited. She made him shallow and mean spirited. He didn’t want to be like that anymore. He wanted to go back to when he was younger and he didn’t care what his friends and father thought, he just lived.

Turning away from her and briskly walking away, he passed Blaise who was grinding his date, Theo who seemed to have found a voice and was chatting up a redhead that holy shit  was Ron’s sister!  Not wanting to be in the same vicinity of an angry Ron, Draco went over to Neville and his date Hannah.

Neville looked apologetic immediately upon seeing him.

“Hey man, I’m really sorry about that thing with Pansy, I swear she wouldn’t get off of me!” Neville apologized profusely looking between him and a ticked off Hannah pleadingly.

“It’s fine,” Draco dismissed. “Do you know where Harry is?”

“Poor guy is by the drinks,” Neville told him sadly.

“Poor guy?” Draco repeated.

“Luna ditched him,” Hannah said, looking as if she didn’t quite believe what she said herself.

Not bothering to say goodbye, Draco quickly went over to where Harry was, needing to hear the confirmation of this rumor from the source.

“Hey,” Draco greeted his dark-haired friend, who looked quite lonely by the drinks.

“I messed up, Draco,” Harry wailed, clutching his forehead with his hand.

“What happened?” Draco demanded, his pulse quickening with dread.

“I love Ginny!” Harry exclaimed. “How could I have let her slip from my fingers?”

Draco stared at him incredulously.

Harry noticed this after a few moments. “What?” he asked self-consciously.

“Where the hell is your date, Luna?” Draco snarled, inches away from strangling him.

“Oh, Luna left to get something, said she’d be right back,” Harry answered distractedly, watching Theo and Ginny with mournful eyes, with a seething Ron in the background.

Something in his gut told him to look to his left, which he did. There standing at the entryway was Miss. Know it All Granger and Luna.

Draco’s mouth fell open at the sight of Luna. She looked…breathtakingly gorgeous. In her silver gown and necklace, she looked like a celestial deity. Granger said something to her and patted her arm encouragingly when Luna caught his eye and waved, before walking (though it looked more like floating) towards him.

Without telling them to, his legs carried him over to where she stood, the loud noises of the dance melting away, and the heat of multiple bodies in a small space turning into the heat of a rapidly beating heart.

“Hello Draco,” she greeted once he finally reached her.

“Luna,” he said, throat dry as he shamelessly drank in the sight of her, undoubtedly she was the prettiest girl in attendance, but truthfully, this was not the most beautiful he had ever seen her. No, that was when they had stargazed all night, or had a flour fight when baking, or building a snow fort: all these years, Luna had shown to him over and over again, that her beauty shone both inside and out, and he wanted to kick himself for only realizing that now.

“Why aren’t you with Pansy?” Luna asked, tilting her head.

Swallowing hard, Draco pulled out the incredibly crumpled and partially torn piece of paper from his jacket pocket.

Because I love her you

Luna smiled, and revealed that she held a folded piece of paper in her palm as well. Unfolding it, she held it up to him.

I love you

He was vaguely aware of Blaise cat calling in the background when he kissed her.

#druna #druna fic #modern au #hp fanfiction