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haru-luo · 3 years

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[CN Translation] Victor’s Capture (捕捉SR) <Record date>

!Spoiler warning! : The followings contain contents for dates of Mr. Love: Queen’s Choice/Love and Producer that are yet to be released in Global server. If you do not wish to be spoiled then please refrain from going undercut.

Karma Quote : “The time you're looking forward to, of course I'll make it special enough."

The translation is undercut. You have been warned about spoilers.

~~~

If you see any “---” sign then it simply indicates change of scenes in the place.

________

记录之约 {Record date}

Preview : "I proposed to "contract"/undertake half of the date with Victor alone to accomplish what I want to do with each other. I brought Victor to the Mr. Kitty exhibition hall and let him experience my childhood favorite cartoon exhibition. When the dusk came, what he most wanted to do was....."

Part 1 :

Today is a "special rest day" with Victor that we agreed early in the morning.

In order to make the rest time more meaningful, I suggest that both of parties "contract" one half of the dating time to accomplish the thing that they most want to do with each other.

Originally I just suggested it as a whim but Victor unexpectedly agreed. Right now, I have exactly six hours left on my part.

I stood in front of Victor breathlessly and he glanced at his watch.

Victor : "Five minutes late."

Victor : "You have five hours and fifty five minutes left."

MC : "Do you want to keep the time rule so strictly...."

I mumbled in protest, Victor said lightly,

Victor : "Six hours per person, this is certain someone's own rule."

Victor : "I'm just implementing it seriously."

After Victor finished speaking, he put a hand on his pocket diagonally, raised his eyebrows and asked.

Victor : "But is this street your chosen destination?"

MC : "Of course not, just follow me."

MC : "Mr. Victor, please."

I pretended to lean slightly then took Victor's arm and strode forward.

-----

After crossing a street, the center exhibition hall appeared in front of us, there was a big title "Mr. Kitty Theme Exhibition" that was eye-catching at the door.

In addition to the colorful balloons, there is also a giant "Mr. Kitty" doll squatting at the door. Many young girls are happily surrounding the doll.

Victor : "Is this what you wanted to do the most today?"

I pulled out the admission ticket and proudly raised it.

MC : "That's right!"

However, the expected frown did not appear. What greeted me was Victor's calm eyes. I realized something later.

MC : "Victor, you wouldn't have guessed it long ago, did you?"

Victor sighed lightly but the corner of his lips were pulled imperceptibly.

Victor : "There were billboards for themed exhibition all the way to here, so one doesn't even have to bother to guess."

Victor : "And as for this plush doll and it's arms crossed shaped."

Victor : "It indeed fits someone's usual preference."

Part 2

Although Victor guessed the answer in advance, it did not affect my interest in the least.

Entering the exhibition hall and looking at the familiar and various "Mr. Kitty" dolls in front of me, my mood also relaxes.

MC : "This was my favorite foreign cartoon when I was a kid. It tells the story of Mr. Kitty and his friends on the planet "Meow".

With that said, I walked to the waiting doll and made a greeting gesture to Victor, then deliberately said in a low voice similar to the tone of Mr. Kitty.

MC : "I'm the famous Mr. Kitty, welcome to my cozy little nest."

MC : "Here, take pictures of your friends to your heart's content!"

Victor looked at me, folded his arms across his chest.

Victor : "Let's talk about it then, just how "famous" is it?"

It's rare for Victor to cooperate so well so I quickly introduced this "childhood friend" while the iron was hot.

MC : "In the entire planet "Meow", Mr. Kitty is the most capable."

MC : "It not only knows a lot of knowledge but also often takes adventures with friends."

I squeezed my fist while talking.

MC : "Whenever an enemy strikes, its spacecraft will rush to the front to drive away the enemy and defend the planet "Meow".

MC : "Don't look at Mr. Kitty's always unsmiling side. In fact, it is very soft at heart."

Seeing me ramble, Victor raised his eyebrows.

Victor : "It seems that you really like it."

Victor : "But I haven't heard you mention it before."

MC : "After all, it was when I was young."

MC : "This is Mr. Kitty's first exhibition in LoveLand City. I will tour you here to get to know it for the first time~"

Victor looked around for a while, took my hand and walked in.

Victor : "Don't you want to take pictures "as much as you want"?"

Victor : "You can't come back at the doorstep to fulfill your wish again."

After passing through an arch, the exhibition hall inside is really bigger and the dolls on display are also richer in looks.

In addition to Mr. Kitty, there are Skull Mouse dolls wearing skirts, Fairy Elf dolls with wide eyed eyes and several cute models of spaceships.

MC : "And this is Mr. Kitty's most trusted friend, Mr. Elf and this is Miss farmer mouse who always loves and kills." [T/N : If I'm not wrong, "loves and kills"/"相爱相杀是" means a "love but full of quarrels relationship"]

At this time, a shape of Mr. Kitty wearing an apron and holding a dinner plate suddenly broke into my eyes.

Although it has no expression on its face, the movements in its hands reveal a sense of seriousness. I tilted my head and took another look then suddenly laughed.

MC : "Victor, doesn't this look like you when you make pudding in Souvenir?"

MC : "How about I take a photo of it with you?"

Victor : "I'm giving you one minute to reorganize your words."

I raised the camera and shook it with a smile.

MC : "Happy movements must be recorded in order to have a lasting double happiness, right~"

Victor : "Give it to me."

As soon as I finished speaking, Victor reached out and took my camera.

Victor : "Rather offering me to, it is better if you walk over and stand there yourself."

MC : "Then I'll trouble Mr. Victor."

I stood next to Mr. Kitty with two steps and grinned at Victor.

"CLICK!"

The picture freezes on the camera and Victor's eyes slide across the screen calmly but the slight smile in his eyes reveals his good mood at the moment.

Victor : "....Such a stupid smile."

-------

Part 3

After taking enough photos and playing a lot of small games, Victor and I went to the innermost part of exhibition hall. There were four striking characters on the wall.

MC : "Spaceship Pursuit?"

At the same time, the small screen on the wall sounded a melody of the promo.

Screen Broadcast : "Using high-tech projection technology, everyone can take Mr. Kitty's spacecraft, explore the universe with it and defeat the enemy!"

Screen Broadcast : "And in the process of PK with the enemy, there will be cameras to capture everyone's heroic moments!"

I subconsciously looked at Victor. He did not respond immediately but raised his wrist.

Victor : "As a reminder, you have one hour left."

MC : "......"

Victor : "Don't bother if you want to play."

Boarding the "spaceship", Victor and I sat down near the corner.

Soon, a clear picture of adventure lit up in the pitch-black spaceship at the same time as if the real universe was shrouded in the sky.

At the same, the ground under my feet suddenly began to jolting and shaking slightly---and the spacecraft set off!

I got back to my senses and I was about to raise the small "pistol" but when I turned my head, I saw Victor's slightly disgusted expression.

In his hand, the cat-shaped plastic gun seemed to be less than the size of his palm.

Under the cover of the dark light, I turned my face away and couldn't help but curl the corners of my mouth.

After a while, as the spacecraft sailed, the enemies who were also driving the spacecraft gradually appeared appeared in the field of vision and I quietly pointed them to Victor.

MC : "The mushroom head in the middle is our worst enemy and the one on the left is also a threat."

MC : "But if you are optimistic, we'll be able to successfully drive them away later!"

I pulled the trigger of the small pistol but several rounds in a row were quickly avoided by the mushroom head.

I adjusted my strategy and planned to shoot from another direction but at this moment I saw from the corner of my eye, a figure sitting upright next to me.

Although, Victor was very disgusted just now, but right now, he was holding the small pistol very seriously, as if he was not in front of the game screen but before the usual report materials.

MC : "Pff!"

Among the excited crowd, Victor looked different in a suit and a serious look alone.

I wanted to ask him to relax a little bit but then I gave up after thinking about it. Such a rare scene should be appreciated for a while.

Perceiving my peeking and secret joy, Victor gave me a constant look.

Victor : "Who was the one who just said to chase away the enemy and now gave up so quickly?"

MC : "No, I was just changing my posture."

Victor turned his head without comment.

The projected colored spots reflected light on his face. Looking at Victor, who was a little more vivid and childlike than usual, I suddenly became playful.

I turned my head and looked around and I saw a flashing red spot not far away, it should be the camera lens of the rocker arm.

My body is so close that I want to shoot from behind Victor, in fact I secretly stretched my hand to the top of his head and made a "V".

Victor : "If you want to make a face of me, just be fair."

Hearing the sound, I rolled my eyes.

MC : "It's not often that you play games so seriously."

MC : "If it happens to be captured, it will add a bit of fun to your photos."

Victor : "According to you, would I still say "thank you" for this?"

Hearing the helplessness and ridicule in his words, I stuck out my tongue.

Now that I was caught, I no longer concealed my intentions. I quickly squeezed Victor's face with my hands and squinted at the camera.

MC : "Victor, look at the camera quickly!"

The rocker lens quickly passed overhead. Victor turned his head and looked at me with a smile.

Victor : "Happy now?"

I said frankly.

MC : "It's okay I guess, you just said to be more honest."

Another red projection reflected on Victor's face and his lips slightly curled up.

Victor : "Childish."

Part 4

When coming out of the game hall, the brilliance of the setting sun had already fallen in front of him.

After playing for so long, I couldn't help but feel tired. I ordered an ice cream from the surrounding shops and Victor and I sat down in the rest area.

After all, it was the first ever exhibition of Mr. Kitty in LoveLand City. It was the first time I ate an ice cream shaped like Mr. Kitty. In a novel way, I had a "wipe" when I raised my camera.

Preparing to put the camera away, Victor's figure advertently moved up facing the camera suddenly appearing in the frame.

The adorable ice cream is right in front of him and while wearing a suit and leather shoes, he picks up a small spoon seemingly not knowing where to start.

I couldn't help but laugh softly.

Victor raised his head and glanced at me holding the camera.

Behind the camera, I sighed slyly.

MC : "It turned out that even Mr. Victor would make a fuss and it's rare."

MC : "Come to think of it, I have collected a lot of "The other side of Mr. Victor", It shouldn't be too bad to take another one."

After speaking, I quickly pressed the shutter. As expected, Victor hadn't had time to react so, I captured the slightly dazed expression in the photo.

Putting down the camera contentedly, I dug a scoop of Mr. Kitty's ice cream and tasted it. the refreshing and non-too sweet taste made my eyes bright.

MC : "This is delicious, try it!"

Victor : "Don't change the subject in a hurry."

Victor : "I think "surprise" is your focus for today, right?"

After taking another big mouthful ice cream, I rolled my eyes and squinted with a smile.

MC : "You can't say that. No matter what you are, it was originally a very important part of today's record."

Victor paused for a moment and a slight upward arc leaked from the corner of his mouth.

Victor : "Strong words are unreasonable."

We just ate Mr. Kitty's ice cream one by one. After a while, the waiter brought another ice cream cone.

Victor : "Why did you order two?"

Lifting the cone to Victor, I smiled and winked.

MC : "If you look closely, this is a unique "elf" cone."

MC : "Do you remember the fairy..."

Victor : "Is the Mr. Kitty's most trusted friend."

Victor took my words unhurriedly and then raised his eyebrows.

Victor : "Isn't that right?"

MC : "So, since we're here, it's worthwhile to try all the special things!"

The sun slanting westward fell on Victor's shoulders and hair, he gave a soft smile, his mouth seemed to have the aftertaste of summer.

Victor : "I can see it's just like someone's own taste."

At this moment, the staff of the game hall sent the photos captured by the camera. On the screen, I happened to pinch Victor's face and smile triumphantly.

Unexpectedly, that moment was actually captured. Seeing Victor's helpless look in the photo, I suppressed a chuckle.

Victor : "Seeing certain someone's silly look, she seems to be very satisfied for a long time."

I tried to narrow the corners of my mouth and pretended not to say so unequivocally.

MC : "It's almost thanks to Mr. Victor's cooperation."

A soft look flashed in Victor's eyes, he raised his writs and took a look then raised his eyebrows.

Victor : "That being said, the rest of the time is mine."

----

After all, it is the first time in a while such a "special day off" has been agreed and I can't wait to look forward to the next arrangement.

Stepping on the shadow of the setting sun, I curiously followed Victor. However, as I walked, the scenery in front of me became more and more familiar.

I hesitate for a second and then asked him my doubts.

MC : "Victor, are we on our way back to you home?"

Victor gave a low "Hm".

Victor : "What do you want to eat later?"

Victor : "Fried salmon?"

Although I always rely on Victor to "extravagant food and drinks", after I happily took him to the childhood cartoon exhibition, his arrangement was unexpected.

I pressed my lips together and the emotion of expecting bubbles fell.

MC : "...Is this what you want to do most today?"

Victor lowered his head, his eyes touched my somewhat stunned expression, he reached out his hand and tapped my forehead.

Victor : "What are you thinking about again?"

MC : "Oh...no..."

On the other side of the road where the lights were lit, Victor fixed his eyes firmly on me and the corners of his lips were slightly raised.

Victor : "About what you wanted to do, I had already expected ‘lively’."

Victor : "And the result is indeed the case."

Victor's voice was very low and so clear. He paused the smiled softly.

Victor : "But during the rare rest days, what I want to have is your and my private space."

Victor : "The idea of going home for dinner may not considered special in the general sense."

Victor : "But for me, if every three o'clock and three meals a day can have some dummy chirping by my side..."

Victor : "That is the time I'm most looking forward to."

When the voice fell, the low and doubts that had been quietly surging in my heart before were all filled with heat and warmth now.

Looking at the person in front of me who made me feel at ease, I subconsciously stretched out my arms around him.

The skin-to-skin heat surges up, as if converging into a special invisible camera in my heart.

Recording the moment that belongs only to us forever in my heart.

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

DATE CLEARED~

🍮Victor’s Moments 1 & 2 : Ice-Cream and Pretend

🍮Victor’s Texts : Escape from the heat

#mlqc #so cute T^T #Mr. Kitty is just Vic vic but in another dimension haha #mr love queen's choice #mlqc victor #mlqc dates #mlqc cn #mlqc translations #mldd #love and producer

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natrogersfics · 3 years

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PREVIEW - Game Plan: Chapter 4

Artwork by @faith2nyc Chapters 1-3 Read on AO3

The thing about many waterfront hotels is that the entrance is usually through the pool area – which is all well and good until you’re trying to avoid running into someone. So as Steve weaves his way through people in their swimwear holding various drinks with umbrellas, he can only pray that he can get straight to the lobby without incident. Only that hope is short-lived, because the second he rounds the corner, he spots Natasha lounging on one of the recliners as she chats with the statue of David dead ringer. He watches as the guy reaches over, placing a hand on Natasha’s knee, and immediately, his jaw clenches at how comfortable she looks with his touch.

He doesn’t even realize that his fists are balled up at his side until he sees Natasha wave at him, and he has to settle for nodding and mumbling a hey at her as he walks right past her and her friend en route to the lobby and into the awaiting elevator. As the doors close before him, he curses under his breath. The last time he had felt this way was when he saw Natasha talking to Thor in the Press Room of the facility. He’d been frustrated then. But this feeling inside him now, as if there’s a steel ball lodged in his chest, this isn’t just frustration. This is outright anger, and though he recognizes that he has no right to feel it, the emotion rushes through him regardless.

When he arrives at his floor, he practically marches up to his room, jamming the keycard into the slot at the door hard enough that he’s surprised the plastic doesn’t snap in half. Inside, he quickly strips before turning the shower to the highest setting. But as he stands under the scalding spray, hoping for the water to wash away his emotions, he finds that it’s futile. Because as he closes his eyes, all he can picture is that guy’s hands on Natasha, slowly peeling the material of her suit away from her body as his lips find that spot at the back of her ear that he knows makes her gasp.

Piping hot envy burns through him, eviscerating what’s left of his restraint and his reason, and all he can think of is his friend’s words at the speakeasy: Just go for it. And as he reaches for the knob of the shower to kill the water, that’s exactly what he’s determined to do as he dries off, pulls on a pair of shorts and a shirt, and stalks his way back to the pool.

But by the time he arrives, Natasha and her companion are no longer lounging on the recliners. Instead, the guy’s arms are wrapped around her in a tight embrace, and he squares his shoulders as he begins to walk towards them.

“My apologies for having to cut our evening short, darling,” he hears the guy say, and immediately, he hones in on his accent. “But there’s an emergency regarding the team’s activities here that I must solve.”

“Don’t even worry about it,” Natasha says. “Duty calls.”

“You know better than anyone,” the guy says. “I love you, Nat. We’re still on for dinner tomorrow night, yes?”

“You know it,” Natasha promises. “And I love you too, babe.”

The exchange causes his blood to go from simmering to boiling, and he takes a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself, which again is rendered useless as he watches the guy kiss Natasha goodbye on the cheek.

As the guy walks away, Natasha throws a cover up over her bathing suit, and her eyes widen when she turns to see him standing there. But she’s quick to blink the emotion away, nodding casually at him as he walks the remaining distance towards her. “Hey.”

“Hi,” he says, stopping just before her.

She tilts her chin up, looking directly at his face. “How was your night?”

“Good,” he says. Until I got back here. “Yours?”

“It’s always nice when I get to see old friends,” she says, smiling.

“Cool,” he says, tone clipped as if the word is burning a literal streak down his tongue.

Her fingers fidget with the strap of her tote bag, and she clears her throat as she nods in the direction of the lobby. “Anyway, I should get upstairs and into something warm.”

His eyes fall shut as she leaves without another glance at him, but before he can give it another thought, he’s turning on his heel. “Why do you do that?”

Natasha stops in her tracks, turning back to him. “Do what?”

“Act as if I’m a floating head,” he says. “Like there isn’t any other part of me to look at but my face.” He scoffs. “You were doing it at the photoshoot for the Body Issue and you’re doing it now.”

“I…” She jerks her head back, surprised. “I look you in the eyes because it’s the professional thing to do.” She sighs, pointing a thumb over her shoulder. “Look, we have a full day tomorrow, so I’m going to go upstairs to polish your talking points for your interview.” She gives him a small smile. “I’m glad you had a great evening with your friend, Steve.”

“I never said it was great,” he says softly.

“Oh, my apologies then,” she says, and something about the crisp tone she uses – the very same one he’s heard her use when speaking in an official capacity as his publicist – feels like a knife in his side. “Did you enjoy your night at least?”

He rolls his lips. “Partly.”

“Partly?” she inquires, brows knitting together.

“Natasha, I…” He swallows. The words are already at the tip of his tongue, begging to be let free. Once and for all, he wants to admit to her just how much of his mental real estate she’s occupied lately. How much he adores her. How worried he is about his sanity because there’s no possible way someone can go on craving someone else this way. But as he looks around them – at all the people that could witness this moment, capture it on tape, even – he knows that he can’t. Instead, he sighs. “I need to get some air.”

Her lips part as if to say something, but if she does, he does not hear it because he’s already turning to leave, his destination anywhere but here.

Read all of Chapter 4 here

#Romanogers #Game Plan #natrogers #Steve Rogers #Natasha Romanoff #One Night Stand AU

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destiny-smasher · 3 years

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Life is Strange: True Colors

Leading up to the release of Episode 1 of TellTale's The Walking Dead game, I was working freelance for GameRevolution at the time, lived in the area, and had the chance to play a build of the game to write a preview on it. I remember comparing it to Mass Effect because, at the time, there just...weren't games of that subgenre. Of course, by now we've seen an explosion of this type of game - the 'narrative/choice-driven game,' spearheaded and even oversaturated by Telltale to their own demise.

Out of all of the games that have come from that initial boom, Life is Strange by DontNod was and still is the most influential on my life, but I also have always harbored really conflicted feelings about it - especially with how it resolved its narrative. Hell, if you're reading this, you're probably aware that I spent a few years of my life creating a sequel fanstory which I even adapted a chunk of into visual novel format. Hundreds of thousands of words, days and days of life spent essentially trying to process and reconcile my conflicted feelings about this game's conclusion(s). Since then, I've been experimenting with interactive fiction and am currently developing my own original visual novel using everything I've learned from both creating and playing games in this genre. It's a subgenre of game I have a lot of interest and passion for because, when handled well, it can allow a player to sort of co-direct a guided narrative experience in a way that's unique compared to strictly linear cinematic experiences but still have a curated, focused sense of story.

Up until this point, I've regarded Night in the Woods as probably the singular best game of this style, with others like Oxenfree and The Wolf Among Us as other high marks. I've never actually put any Life is Strange game quite up there - none of them have reached that benchmark for me, personally. Until now, anyway.

But now, I can finally add a new game to that top tier, cream of the crop list. Life is Strange: True Colors is just damn good. I'm an incredibly critical person as it is - and that critique usually comes from a place of love - so you can imagine this series has been really hard to for me given that I love it, and yet have never truly loved any actual full entry in it. I have so many personal issues, quibbles, qualms, and frustration with Life is Strange: with every individual game, with how it has been handled by its publisher (my biggest issue at this point, actually), with how it has seemingly been taken away from its original development studio, with how it chooses to resolve its narratives...

But with True Colors, all of those issues get brushed aside long enough for me to appreciate just how fucking well designed it is for this style of game. I can appreciate how the development team, while still clearly being 'indie' compared to other dev teams working under Square-Enix, were able to make such smart decisions in how to design and execute this game. Taken on its own merits, apart from its branding, True Colors is absolutely worth playing if you enjoy these 'telltale' style games. Compared to the rest of the series, I would argue it's the best one so far, easily. I had a lot of misgivings and doubts going in, and in retrospect, those are mostly Square-Enix's fault. Deck Nine, when given the freedom to make their own original game in the same vein as the previous three, fucking nailed it as much as I feel like they could, given the kinds of limitations I presume they were working within.

I'm someone who agonizes every single time there is news for Life is Strange as a series - someone who essentially had to drop out of the fandom over infighting, then dropped out of even being exposed to the official social media channels for it later on (I specifically have the Square-Enix controlled channels muted). I adore Max and Chloe, and as a duo, as a couple, they are one of my top favorites not just in gaming, but in general. They elevated the original game to be something more than the sum of its parts for me. And while I have enjoyed seeing what DontNod has made since, it's always been their attention to detail in environmental craftsmanship, in tone and atmosphere, which has caught my interest. They're good at creating characters with layers, but imo they've never nailed a narrative arc. They've never really hit that sweet spot that makes a story truly resonate with me. Deck Nine's previous outing, Before the Storm, was all over the place, trying to mimic DontNod while trying to do its own things - trying to dig deeper into concepts DontNod deliberately left open for interpretation while also being limited in what it could do as a prequel.

But with True Colors, those awkward shackles are (mostly) off. They have told their own original story, keeping in tone and concept with previous Life is Strange games, and yet this also feels distinctly different in other ways.

Yes, protagonist Alex Chen is older than previous characters, and most of the characters in True Colors are young adults, as opposed to teenagers. Yes, she has a supernatural ability. And yes, the game is essentially a linear story with some freedom in how much to poke around at the environment and interact with objects/characters, with the primary mechanic being making choices which influence elements of how the story plays out. None of this is new to the genre, or even Life is Strange. But the execution was clearly planned out, focused, and designed with more caution and care than games like this typically get.

A smaller dev team working with a budget has to make calls on how to allocate that budget. With True Colors, you will experience much fewer locales and environments than you will in Life is Strange 2. Fewer locations than even Life is Strange 1, by my count. But this reinforces the game's theming. I suspect the biggest hit to the game's budget was investing in its voice acting (nothing new for this series) but specifically in the motion capture and facial animation.

You have a game about a protagonist trying to fit in to a small, tightly knit community. She can read the aura of people's emotions and even read their minds a little. And the game's budget and design take full advantage of this. You spend your time in a small main street/park area, a handful of indoor shops, your single room apartment. It fits within a tighter budget, but it reinforces the themes the game is going for. Your interactions with characters are heightened with subtle facial cues and microexpressions, which also reinforces the mechanic and theming regarding reading, accepting, and processing emotions. And you get to make some choices that influence elements of this - influenced by the town, influenced by the emotions of those around you, which reinforce the main plot of trying to navigate a new life in a small town community.

When I think about these types of games, the conclusion is always a big deal. In a way, it shouldn't be, because I usually feel it's about the journey, not the destination. And as an example, I actually really dislike the ending of the original Life is Strange. I think it's a lot of bullshit in many ways. The setpiece is amazing and epic, sure, but the actual storytelling going on is...really hollow for me. Yes, the game does subtly foreshadow in a number of ways that this is the big choice it's leading up to, but the game never actually makes sense of it. And the problem is, if your experience is going to end on a big ol' THIS or THAT kind of moment, it needs to make sense or the whole thing will fall apart as soon as the credits are rolling and the audience spends a moment to think about what just happened. When you look at the end of Season 1 of Telltale's The Walking Dead, it's not powerful just because of what choice you're given, but because through the entire final episode, we know the stakes - we know what is going to ultimately happen, and we know the end of the story is fast approaching. All of the cards are on the table by the time we get to that final scene, and it works so well because we know why it's happening, and it is an appropriate thematic climax that embodies the theming of the entire season. It works mechanically, narratively, and thematically, and 'just makes sense.'

The ending of Life is Strange 1 doesn't do that, if you ask me. The ending of most games in this genre don't really hit that mark. When I get to the end of most game 'seasons' like this, even ones I enjoy, I'm typically left frustrated, confused, and empty in a way.

The ending of True Colors, on the other hand, nails everything it needs to. Handily, when compared to its peers.

If you're somehow reading this and have not played this game but intend to, now is probably where you should duck out, as I will be

discussing SPOILERS from the entire game, specifically the finale.

Firstly, since I don't know where else to put this, some criticisms I found with the game. And honestly, they're all pretty damn minor compared to most games of this type.

Mainly, I just wish the whole Typhon thing was handled a bit more deliberately. It's a bit weird to do the 'big evil corporation' thing (especially when a big corporation like Square Enix occupies as much as or even more of the credits to this game than the people who actually MADE it?) without offering more explanation and subtlety. The game certainly makes some efforts but they're mostly small and mostly optional, like background chatter or a handful of one-off bits of documentation/etc. you can find in the environment. I feel like Diane in particular needed to be fleshed out just a little bit more to really sell us on how and why things like this happen, why corporations make decisions that cost people their happiness, security, and lives and they just get to keep on doing it. I think just a little bit that is unavoidable to the player that puts emphasis on maybe how much the town relies on the money/resources Typhon provides would've helped. Again, this is minor, but it stands out when I have so little else to critique.

I would've liked to get more insight on why Jed is the way he is. No, I don't think we really needed to learn more about his backstory, or even really his motivations. I think we get enough of that. I just think it would've been great to somehow highlight more deliberately how/why he's built up this identity overtop of what he's trying to suppress. Maybe even just having Alex internally realize, "Wait, what the hell, Jed has been hiding these emotions and my powers haven't picked up on it?" or something to that effect could have added an extra oomph to highlight how Jed seems to be coping with his emotions by masking/suppressing them. Also really minor complaint, but again...there's not much else here I can think to really improve on within the confines of what's in the game.

The game doesn't really call Alex's power into question morally. Like. Max has an entire meltdown by the end of her story, second-guessing if she's even helped anyone at all, if she has 'the right' to do so, how her powers might be affecting or expressing her own humanity and flaws...this story doesn't really get into that despite a very similar concept of manipulating others. There's like one bit in a document you can choose to read in Alex's 'nightmare' scene, but that's really it. I feel like this sentiment and how it's executed could have easily been expanded upon in just this one scene to capture what made that Max/Other Max scene do what it did in a way that would address the moral grayness of Alex's powers and how she uses them, and give players a way to express their interpretation of that. Also, very small deal, just another tidbit I would've liked to see.

When I first watched my wife play through Episode 5 (I watched her play through the game first, then I played it myself), I wasn't really feeling the surreal dreamscape stuff of Alex's flashbacks - which is weird, because if you're read my work from the past few years, you'll know I usually love that sort of shit. I think what was throwing me off was that it didn't really feel like it was tying together what the game was about up until that point, and felt almost like it was just copying what Life is Strange did with Max's nightmare sequence (minus the best part of that sequence, imo, where Max literally talks to herself).

But by the time I had seen the rest of the story, and re-experienced it myself, I think it clicked better. This is primarily a story about Alex Chen trying to build a new life for herself in a new community - a small town, a tightly knit place. Those flashbacks are specifically about Alex's past, something we only get teeny tiny tidbits of, and only really if we go looking for them. I realized after I gave myself a few days to process and play through the game myself that this was still a fantastic choice because it reinforces the plot reasons why Alex is even in the town she's in (because her father went there, and her brother in turn went there looking for him), and it reinforces the theme of Alex coming to accept her own emotions and confront them (as expressed through how the flashbacks are played out and the discussions she has with the image of Gabe in her mind, which is really just...another part of herself trying to get her to process things).

By the time Alex escapes the mines and returns to the Black Lantern, all of the cards are on the table. By that point, we as the audience know everything we need to. Everything makes sense - aside from arguably why Jed has done what he has done, but put a pin in that for a sec. We may not know why Alex has the powers she does, but we have at least been given context for how they manifested - as a coping mechanism of living a life inbetween the cracks of society, an unstable youth after her family fell apart around her (and oof, trust me, I can relate with this in some degree, though not in exactly the same ways). And unlike Max's Rewind power, the story and plot doesn't put this to Alex's throat, like it's all on her to make some big choice because she is the way she is, or like she's done something wrong by pursuing what she cares about (in this case, the truth, closure, and understanding).

When Alex confronts Jed in front of all of the primary supporting characters, it does everything it needs to.

Mechanically: it gives players choices for how to express their interpretation of events, and how Alex is processing them; it also, even more importantly, uses the 'council' as a way of expressing how the other characters have reacted to the choices the player has made throughout the game, and contributes to how this climax feels. We're given a 'big choice' at the end of the interaction that doesn't actually change the plot, or even the scene, really (it just affects like one line of dialogue Alex says right then) and yet BOTH choices work so well as a conclusion, it's literally up to your interpretation and it gives you an in-game way to express that.

Thematically: the use of the council reinforces the game's focus on community; and the way the presentation of the scene stays locked in on Alex and Jed's expressions reinforces its focus on emotion - not to mention that the entire scene also acts as a way to showcase how Alex has come to accept, understand, and process her own emotions while Jed, even THEN, right fucking at the moment of his demise, is trying to mask his emotions, to hide them and suppress them and forget them (something the game has already expressed subtly by way of his negative emotions which would give him away NOT being visible to Alex even despite her power).

Narratively: we are given a confrontation that makes sense and feels edifying to see play out after everything we've experienced and learned. We see Alex use her powers in a new and exciting way that further builds the empowering mood the climax is going for and adds a cinematic drama to it. No matter what decisions the player makes, Alex has agency in her own climax, we experience her making a decision, using her power, asserting herself now that she has gone through the growth this narrative has put her through. Alex gets to resolve her shit, gets to have her moment to really shine and experience the end of a character arc in this narrative.

Without taking extra time to design the game around these pillars, the finale wouldn't be so strong. If they didn't give us enough opportunities to interact with the townspeople, their presence in the end wouldn't matter, but everyone who has a say in the council is someone we get an entire scene (at least one) dedicated to interacting with them and their emotions. If they didn't implement choices in the scene itself, it would still be powerful but we wouldn't feel as involved, it'd be more passive. If they didn't showcase Alex's power, we might be left underwhelmed, but they do so in a way that actually works in the context through how they have chosen to present it, while also just tonally heightening the climax by having this drastic lighting going on. If they didn't have the council involved, we'd lose the theming of community. If they didn't have the foil of Alex/Jed and how they have each processed their emotions, we'd miss that key component. And if we didn't have such detailed facial animations, the presentation just wouldn't be as effective.

Ryan/Steph are a little bit like, in this awkward sideline spot during the climax? Steph always supports you, and Ryan supports you or doubts you conditionally, which is unsurprising but also ties into the themes of Ryan having grown up woven into this community, and Steph being once an outsider who has found a place within it. They're still there, either way, which is important. The only relevant characters who aren't present are more supporting characters like Riley, Ethan, and Mac. Ethan being the only one of those who gets an entire 'super emotions' scene, but that also marks the end of his arc and role in the story, so...it's fine. Mac and Riley are less important and younger, as well, and have their own side story stuff you have more direct influence on, too.

But damn, ya'll, this climax just works so well. It especially stands out to me given just how rarely I experience a conclusion/climax that feels this rewarding.

And then after that we get a wonderful montage of a theoretical life Alex might live on to experience. Her actions don't overthrow a conglomerate billionaire company. She doesn't even save a town, really. If the entire council thinks you're full of shit, Jed still confesses either way - because it's not up to the council whether he does this, it's because of Alex, regardless of player choice. Honestly, even after a playthrough where I made most choices differently from my wife, there weren't really many changes to that montage at the end. It'd have been great if it felt more meaningfully different, but maybe it can be. Even if not, the design intent is there and the execution still works. It's a really nice way to end the story, especially since it's not even a literal montage but one Alex imagines - again, her processing what she's gone through, what she desires, expressed externally for us to see it. And for once, the actual final 'big decision' in a game of this type manages to be organic, make sense, and feel good and appropriate either way. You choose to either have Alex stay in Haven Springs and continue building her life there, or you can choose to have her leave and try to be an indie musician, with the events of the game being yet another chunk of her life to deal with and move on from (I haven't really touched on it, but music, especially as a way to express and process emotions, is a recurring thing, much like photography was in the original game, or Sean's illustrations in LiS2). For once, a climactic 'pick your ending' decision that doesn't feel shitty. It's pretty rare for this genre, honestly.

I could - and already have, and likely will - have so much more to say about this game and its details, but I really wanted to focus on touching upon a main element that has left me impressed: the way the entire game feels designed. It feels intentionally constructed but in a way that reinforces what it is trying to express as a story. It's not just trying to make people cry for the sake of 'emotions.' It is a game literally about emotions and it comes to a conclusion in a way that is clearly saying something positive and empowering about empathy and self-acceptance.

Storytelling is a craft, like any other, and it entails deliberate choices and decisions that can objectively contribute to how effective a story is for its intended audience.

A good story isn't something you find, after all.

It's something you build.

#Life is Strange True Colors #Life is Strange #Haven Springs #alex chen #lis true colors

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prettywordsyouleft · 3 years

Text

The Cowboy - Part 9

Summary: Leaving the city for a rural area called Blayne seemed simple enough. Your task was to convince the people to agree with selling their land for a resort redevelopment. But once there, you soon realise that your city ways are entirely different to theirs. Winning their trust was going to take some effort, and when you start to fall for a local cowboy, you wonder if you really needed Blayne more than the city life after all.

Pairing: Jung Jaehyun x female reader

Genre: cowboy au / drama / romance / if you squint there’s some enemies to lovers up in here.

Warnings: Jung Jaehyun is a cowboy, need I say more? (a bit of angst and drama, and it sometimes might feel like you’re reading a Nicolas Sparks book, so I’m told lol)

Word count: 2332

This series will be updated every Thursday and Friday.

Preview | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

“Just one more,” you murmured, pressing your lips into Jaehyun’s before he could object.

He didn’t hesitate to kiss you back, chuckling softly when he separated. “You’ll have me late if you keep this up.”

“It’s not even light out yet,” you complained groggily, your hands blindly searching for a place to anchor onto.

“That’s the point. I need to get home, so I’m back in time to start the day when dawn arrives,” he reminded, reaching for those travelling hands and taking hold of them.

Your eyes had since adjusted to the dim lighting in the bedroom, and you noticed the embers from last night hadn’t yet been put out within Jaehyun’s gaze. You stoked the fire a little more, shifting your leg to nudge his.

Jaehyun groaned. “You’re tempting fate, Y/N.”

“I’m attempting something,” you mentioned demurely and shook your hands that Jaehyun still held.

“Not even my Mum has made me turn up on that yard late, I’ll have you know. I can’t be having you ruin my good reputation.”

You pouted, but nodded the further your slumber rolled away and your mind became alert. Unhooking your leg from his, you sighed. “Your career is important. Go be the best cowboy you can be.”

“You’re so cute, you know that?” he breathed, grinning from your supportive statement.

“I aim to be everything you need,” you announced and Jaehyun, who had pulled himself to the side of the bed and reached for his jeans, halted his movement, glancing over his shoulder in thought at you. You reached for your hair, assuming he was taking in your abominable morning state. “What? Do I look ugly?”

“No. You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever laid my eyes upon.”

“You better go before my heart starts ruling over this head of mine and I take back about being supportive of your needs and aim to satisfy mine,” you confessed, and Jaehyun shook his head, discarding his attempt to leave and kicked his pants off.

Crawling back to you, he gathered you up in his arms, a giggle leaving you when his hands brushed along your sensitive sides. Once fully captured within his arms, he kissed you passionately.

“Even if I’m late, you’re well worth putting in the extra effort this morning with.”

After Jaehyun had gone, with a final kiss exchanged at your front door and a warning about not answering the door looking like that to anyone but him, you headed back to your bed, nestling in under the warm covers in just one of Jaehyun’s t-shirts.

You were extremely happy right now.

And had been for the past month too. Everything was working well. You woke up most mornings feeling warm and appreciated, kissing Jaehyun off to work before eventually getting up and starting your own. You so far had acquired two signatures of landowners in Blayne over your proposal for redevelopment and was certain you’d have three more by mid next week.

You had chosen to go this path first before confronting Mr Jung with your proposition. Word travelled all too easily in these parts for you to rely on what was spoken was kept confidential. Part of you hoped for this to happen. If you got enough people talking about the redevelopment positively, you believed that would shape the head of the town’s opinion too.

It was a gamble, though, and the longer you spent racking up other names and parts of the land as opposed to the one Pierce instructed you to get meant you would be running out of time to convince Jaehyun’s father if he initially rejected your proposal.

You had confidence in your decision.

And that confidence clearly shone in other ways now too. “You know, I haven’t seen you this dressed down since you came to Blayne, Y/N.”

Glancing up at May as you stopped in for lunch with Reg, one of the landowners you were meeting with, you laughed lightly. “I’ll take it as a compliment.”

“You finally look like one of us, is what she means,” Dorothy, from the table over, chimed and you grinned at her.

“Do I? I wonder how I managed that, being a city-slicker and all.”

“I don’t think it’s about how, but rather whom,” May concluded, and you bit your bottom lip, trying not to smile with the image of Jaehyun surfacing in your mind.

“We had it pegged that it’d be Avery,” Reg chortled, and you spluttered on the water you had taken in, looking up and apologising profusely. The older man held out his hand to May. “Well, it’s not him. Pay up.”

“Not my boy? Surely it’s him that has you enjoying Blayne. Out of us all, he’s the most understanding to newcomers.”

“Are you making bets on my relationship status?” you asked, and the patrons of the diner all chuckled in one way or another. “Well, I’m sorry May, but I’m not dating Avery.”

“You didn’t deny dating someone else,” Josie, the only waitress, piped up and there was immediate silence as everyone stared at you.

“I’m dating Blayne,” you answered cheekily, and they all groaned with protest. “What? Call me a sucker for what I’m trying to do out here, but this place has changed me.”

You left out the part about a certain cowboy that had as well.

Word travelled too fast around this place.

“Avery is disappointed, you know,” Jaehyun mentioned when he stepped through the front door of your home later that evening. You glanced up at his arrival, dropping your laptop onto the couch and moved into Jaehyun’s waiting embrace.

After kissing Jaehyun in greeting, you smirked. “Word sure doesn’t struggle to get around here yet mobile data does.”

“You completely ruled my cousin off your it-list. The elders are scrambling about trying to figure who’s left to catch your fancy.”

“Have they suggested you at all?”

Jaehyun grinned and shook his head. “Not Jung’s boy.”

“Because you’re so exclusive.”

“I’m destined to marry a Blayne Belle, apparently.”

“So you’re either going to wait another six years until Melody is legal or pick up Josie? I mean, she looks great for forty.”

“Don’t!” Jaehyun exclaimed, encircling your waist with his palms. They felt hot against your barely covered skin. “Where are your clothes by the way?”

“I’m used to the summer weather being removed by air conditioning in my apartment,” you admitted, gesturing to your singlet and shorts with a sly smile. “And this is more than what I had on when you last saw me.”

“Wicked woman,” he stated and went over to a panel on the wall.

You followed Jaehyun and pointed at it. “I tried to turn it on, but it’s ancient and doesn’t have any instructions.”

“You’d be lost without your damn instructions, wouldn’t you?” he teased, and you rolled your eyes, peering around him to inspect his efforts.

“Do you know where the toolbox is in the truck?” he soon asked, and you nodded. “Can you get it for me?”

“Why, are you going to be Mr Handyman instead of Mr Cowboy to me now? Perhaps Avery might be a better option after all.”

“Har-har. If you want to learn how hellish this summer is going to get in the countryside when the heatwave hits next week then-”

“Toolbox. Onto it!” you cried, dashing outside into the humid evening and over to Jaehyun’s truck. After spotting it nestled just behind the passenger seat, you went to reach for it but stopped, your eyes travelling to the papers sitting on the chair you had just leaned over.

Picking them up, you read the contents and returned inside with the toolbox in a daze. “Thanks, Miss City. I’ll have you feeling cool in no time.”

“Were you going to tell me about the rodeo tour?” you queried in a small voice a moment later, and Jaehyun stopped looking through the box for what he needed and up at you.

He shot you one of his lopsided smiles, though his eyes were hesitant. “You’re concerned already? The rodeo season is basically over for this year, don’t worry.”

“I know. This is for next season, but the qualifiers are tomorrow.”

“I was planning on telling you tonight.” Standing back up and wiping his hands on his jeans, Jaehyun gauged your expression. “You know I do them from time to time. Old Joey from the county over popped by and offered me a horse to ride. It’s a real nice horse, gave him a test-”

“What about Blaze? What will he think?” you cut in and Jaehyun frowned. “He’s your riding horse.”

“He’s a work horse. And horses don’t really get offended if you ride another. You’re being weird about this.”

“I’m just confused. This morning I woke up thinking this weekend we’ll be going to the farmer’s market and maybe ride over to the lake and take a swim or something. Now I’m going to be on the sidelines of some rodeo? What do they call them? Rodeo Bunnies? Don’t expect me to become one.”

Jaehyun laughed heartily, scooping you up into his arms in a warm embrace. “You’re coming?”

“Of course. I have to.”

“Why?”

“Why are you asking why? I’m supportive of your endeavours,” you answered, puzzled by the smile spreading Jaehyun’s lips out further. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Like a girlfriend would support me?”

“Girlfriend?” you echoed and let out an awkward laugh.

“Is it more for you now, Miss City? A whole month of you and me having this secret rendezvous and you might be feeling something deeper than my skin for me, huh?”

“Do-don’t you have to fix the air-con? It’s hot in here.”

“Stifling.”

“And if you’re going to some rodeo thing, don’t we need to sleep early or something?”

“Are you flustered, Y/N? You’re awfully good at not answering my question.”

“What question was that now?” you diverted, slipping out from under his strong arms and over to the toolbox. “Which one do you need?”

“All of you. That’s all I need,” Jaehyun confirmed, coming back to your side, kissing the top of your head before taking the tool you held in your left hand and got to work.

You arrived on the Jung’s property around six the following morning, travelling in your car separately. Whilst June was aware of your ruse, and no doubt Avery had strong suspicions, Jaehyun had asked to keep your relationship on the low for now. At first, you had agreed. You had a job to complete and complicating that with personal affections could ruin your credibility.

Still, it was hard to keep your hands off of Jaehyun when he came out from his room above the stables. “Wow, you know I’ve been calling you a cowboy from day one because of the hat and boots but I didn’t realise just how much this shirt was missing from the picture until now.”

Jaehyun glanced at his rodeo shirt, tassels and all, before shooting you an embarrassed smile. “Get a real good look at it today, Miss City. I don’t dress up like this often.”

“Another reason why he’s single, I’m sure,” his father gruffly mentioned, patting his son on the shoulder. You realised the older man was proud for some reason. All this time, you assumed he only cared for Jaehyun by the level of work he did around the farm.

Perhaps that was because Jaehyun was adamant that was all he cared about. However, as you watched the interaction fondly, you realised the man had a lot of love for his son. Jaehyun mentioned he had been on the sure-fire track to going pro as a teen on the rodeo circuit last night. You wondered if Mr Jung wanted that for him and felt guilty for needing him to help on the farm.

Either way, it warmed your heart to see a nervous Jaehyun, and his father equally acting out of character for once.

“Don’t you go worrying about marriage for our son today,” June fussed, straightening out Jaehyun’s collar as you had been itching to do. She smiled up at him. “Come home in one piece.”

“Of course, he will. We can’t be having Y/N’s first rodeo dashed with any hospital visits,” Avery commented, arriving at your side and slinging an arm over your shoulder. “You and I need to do some talking about the earful I got from my mother last night.”

You giggled awkwardly. “I’m sorry about that.”

“You’ll be sorry when they start trying to hook you up with all the eligible men in Blayne. Dorothy is convinced you’d suit her boy, Jacob.”

Jaehyun snorted. “Y/N’s a little too high maintenance for Jacob.”

“Am I now?” you retorted, waving off Jaehyun’s parents who were staying behind to look after the farm. Hopping into the cab of Jaehyun’s truck and looking at Avery who got in after you, you scoffed loudly. “If I was too much high maintenance, I’d recommend we take my vehicle over this one. At least, I’d be convinced we’d get there on time, for one.”

Jaehyun glared at Avery’s somewhat stifled snort before patting the steering wheel of the truck. “Don’t you worry. This old beauty of mine will get us there with ease. It’s you we have to concern ourselves over.”

“Me?” you wondered, and Avery nodded. “Why me?”

“Rodeos are a whole other world, Y/N. I bet you won’t be ready for what’s about to happen.”

“It’s people riding horses and taking on cows or something with ropes. I’ve seen it on TV,” you assured the cousins, who looked at one another with loose grins forming.

“She’s not ready for this.”

“Nope. Not a chance.”

“Would you two just shut up, and Jaehyun, start driving. Watch me prove how-”

“Adaptable you are,” both boys chimed, and you rolled your eyes, trying not to smile as Jaehyun finally threw the truck into reverse and headed down the driveway towards your first rodeo.

_________________

Part 10

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rosiehunterwolf · 3 years

Text

For the Romping and the Roaring- Part 4

My submission for Day 4 of @serpentfever's Inhuman Event!

Link to read on ffn.net (Recommended if you are on mobile or haven't read the previous parts yet)

Preview:

“Cole, watch out!” Zane’s cry came too late as a Borg security officer lunged at him out of seemingly nowhere and grabbed his arm. Cole quickly yanked away, but it set him off balance, and with Zane on him, it was too much weight to stay on his feet, and the two of them fell to the ground with a thud.

Jay yelped in panic, racing back to them, but it was too late. They were already surrounded.

Passersby gawked at them, pointing and whispering. One woman even leaned forward and asked them, “Are you boys okay?”

“They’re after us,” Jay cried, pointing at one of the Borg workers. “They’re trying to kill us, we need help-”

A loud bang sounded, and screams broke out abruptly as citizens crouched to the floor, throwing their arms over their heads, but Cole’s gaze wasn’t on any of them.

(Full chapter under cut)

Prompts Used: Capture, Trust

Word Count: 8,051

Rating: T

Trigger Warnings: Blood, Dehumanization (do I really need to keep putting this lol? I think you get the trend), Imprisonment, Depression, Suicidal Thoughts, Mental Breakdown, Mentions of Racism (or... Species-ism?)

“Are you out of your mind?”

“Cole, at least consider-”

“I can’t believe you’re coming back to this again. Get over it, they’re not on our side!” “We don’t know that,” Zane insisted. “Look, I don’t want to trust the police any more than you do. It’s a huge risk, you’re right, one I would prefer not to take. But what other choice do we have? We don’t have any other ideas, this is the best we’ve got.”

“There’s got to be something else,” Cole groaned.

“Think about it,” Zane pleaded. “If we keep running, we’re just going to get caught by Borg. Guaranteed death, sooner or later. Or at the very least, a lifetime of imprisonment. With the police- while there is a decent chance of imprisonment, or even death, it’s not certain.”

“He’s got a good point, Cole.” Jay admitted.

“I thought you were afraid of the police!” “I am! But I’m even more scared of Borg. I think I’ll take my chances.”

Cole stared at him. “You’re gonna make me do this, aren’t you?”

“Do you see any other plans?” Jay cried. “This is all we’ve got, Cole. Are you going to actually try to get out of this, or just keep running forever?”

Cole sighed slowly. “Fine. Let’s go.”

“Over here! They went through here!” “Shit, they found it already,” Cole cursed. “Come on, we have to hurry!”

“Follow me,” Jay barked.

Cole was worried that he wouldn’t be able to find the strength to keep running, especially with Zane on his back, but the shouts from behind him spiked his adrenaline, and he closed some of the gap between him and Jay.

Jay glanced behind them every so often, and Cole tried to ignore it. He didn’t have time to be thinking about that, he just had to focus on running. He had to leave that up to Jay, who had the endless energy of a lab to keep him going. One time, though, his eyes widened to the size of saucers, and he pushed Cole to go faster. “They’ve got guns, Cole, hurry, hurry!”

“What?!” Cole nearly missed a step in his panic. “We can’t outrun guns!”

“We need to make it out of these alleys,” Jay ordered. “They won’t be able to shoot us out on the streets, or people will see. Aim for that exit right there, and don’t look back!”

A loud bang echoed through the air, and Jay yelped, jumping up. Cole looked over at him frantically, but he quickly waved his hands. “I’m not hit, it just scared me.”

Glancing back, his ears flattened. “Holy shit, they’re really getting ready to fire at us now, they’re going to shoot us, go faster!”

I’m trying, he wanted to wail, but he didn’t dare waste any breath on the utterance, and instead focused on running as fast as he could go. His legs were burning, and he wanted nothing more than to just collapse in a heap on the ground and never run again, but he knew he couldn’t do that. Especially not with Zane here. He was relying on him, and Cole wasn’t about to give up yet.

The three of them burst out of the alleys and onto a busy street, nearly right into the path of an oncoming car, and horns blared at them. They quickly darted off the streets and followed Jay towards the police station.

Cole risked a glance back. The Borg security officers were just exiting the alley, much more gracefully than they had done, and were dispersing into the crowd, disappearing before his eyes. It was good that they couldn’t be shot at, anymore, but… in a lot of ways, this was worse. They would never be able to see them coming.

“Jay, are we almost there,” Cole urged.

“Yes, just another block-”

Jay yelped in panic, racing back to them, but it was too late. They were already surrounded.

Passersby gawked at them, pointing and whispering. One woman even leaned forward and asked them, “Are you boys okay?”

“They’re after us,” Jay cried, pointing at one of the Borg workers. “They’re trying to kill us, we need help-”

A loud bang sounded, and screams broke out abruptly as citizens crouched to the floor, throwing their arms over their heads, but Cole’s gaze wasn’t on any of them.

It was on Jay, who was screaming, loud and guttural, as he crumpled to the ground.

Cole’s world slammed into a dizzying panic, and time seemed to move in slow motion as he lunged forward, grabbing his friend before he could hit the ground. Jay slumped against him, his breathing fast and ragged. Blood was quickly staining his sleeve, already dampening Cole’s hand as he held him.

“Jay, try to relax,” he murmured, trying to calm himself just as much as his friend. “You’re gonna be okay, just listen to the sound of my voice-”

To his horror, Jay’s eyelids were already beginning to droop. “No, no bud, stay with us, hang on a bit-”

Cole felt Zane’s hand on his shoulder, and saw that he had limped over to him and was staring at Jay with terror. “Someone, call an ambulance!” he begged.

“What’s going on over here?” A gruff voice broke through the chaos, and Cole and Zane looked to see a squadron of police pushing their way through the crowd.

“They’re trying to kidnap us,” Cole barked, pointing at the Borg security officers. “They shot Jay! They tried to kill us!”

“They’re liars,” a Borg security officer insisted. “They’re a gang of criminals who attacked us! We were only acting in self-defense!”

The head policeman shot a doubtful look at Cole, Zane, and Jay. “They’re children.”

“That doesn’t mean they can’t be criminals! It only helps them to get away with their offenses!”

“We didn’t attack anyone! They have no proof!”

“Neither do you!”

Shouts broke out among the group, and the policeman hollered over all the noise. “Enough! Break it up, break it up, everyone. Everyone here is a suspect of crime. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you. Do not resist.”

“You’re arresting us?” Cole cried. “They’re the bad guys, here!”

“Young man, we don’t have enough evidence to accuse or clear anyone, yet. All of you are going to be coming back with us to the station.”

“What about Jay,” Cole pleaded, hugging the boy closer to his chest. “He needs to get to a hospital, he’s hurt!” “We’ll call an ambulance for the boy. The rest of you will come with us.”

“We can’t go with him?” Zane exclaimed.

“A visit can be scheduled at a later time. For now, we need to figure out what’s going on.”

“We already told you what’s going on,” Cole wailed, but no one was listening to him anymore.

The rest of the evening seemed to pass in a blur, the Borg workers being rounded up and stripped of their weapons, flashing blue and red lights of the ambulance blurring his eyes as Jay was pried from his arms by the paramedics, and they were forced into a police car, confused and exhausted, the thick black bars across the window boxing them in.

Cole squeezed his eyes shut, tears slipping down his cheeks.

Zane had never been super adamant on physical affection, but he hugged him tightly throughout the whole car ride.

Was it too much to ask for, things going their way for once?

He supposed, if the rest of their lives were anything to go by, the answer was yes.

---

That day, when they had found out that Lloyd’s shot hadn’t worked, had not only saved Lloyd’s life, but likely Kai’s as well.

It had given him a reason to hope, a reason to live. It wasn’t over yet. They still had a chance.

But with time, hope quickly faded. Days blurred together, time lost its meaning. At first, he tried to use the timing of meals to count the days, but even that was unreliable- were they being fed daily, or less frequently? There was no way to know.

After so long, he stopped caring, anyway.

The only other consistency was Lloyd’s testing. The trainers came in regularly, hauled him away on that wretched leash, then brought him back half-unconscious, always with a fresh scar somewhere on his body. He would collapse on the floor as soon as he was secured back in his cell, oftentimes not even bothering to make it to the mattress. He spent a lot of the time sleeping, and it wasn’t unusual for him to miss meals. The caretakers had tried to wake him up at first, but they soon gave up. He was losing too much blood. Soon, he would reach the end of his rope. Kai didn’t know what to do except look away, the pitiful sight of the boy making him sick to his stomach and only reminding him of his failure.

They had been given another chance, but soon it would pass. Soon this one would be gone too, and then he would really be gone.

This was only prolonging the inevitable. There was no way to escape the room. They were never getting out.

He spent most of his days curled up on the mattress, not moving. Sometimes he slept, but a lot of the time it wouldn’t come, and he just stared at the ceiling.

It wasn’t like there was anything else for him to do.

He could tell Nya was worried about him. He could feel her gaze burning into him, and every once and a while she would try to get him to talk to her. Their conversations always fizzled out after a few sentences or so, though.

He hated worrying her. He knew he wasn’t the only one struggling- sometimes, he could hear Nya crying softly when she thought everyone else was asleep- and her usual alert aura had faded, leaving a weariness in her movements. Adding another thing for her to stress over wasn’t fair to either of them. But Kai couldn’t help it. His energy had been sapped, a heaviness blanketing him and confining him to the mattress. He had never felt anything like this before, and he was scared about what it meant.

It also really, really sucked.

The familiar sound of the food bowls clanking announced the caretakers were here to feed them. Kai groaned softly. Every meal had gotten increasingly harder to eat. His stomach felt hard and achey, just the thought of eating anything making him feel nauseous. What he had to eat, exactly, certainly wasn’t helping things, either.

He barely noticed as the collar was switched on, and the usual mealtime process took place. He closed his eyes, the beams of their flashlights and the rustle of their clothes as they shuffled around giving him a headache.

“Eat your food, creature,” a loud, harsh voice snapped. Kai reluctantly opened his eyes. The caretaker was already outside the cell, glaring at him. Across the room, Nya was already almost finished with her meal. Even Lloyd, who, for once, was awake, was crouched near the bowls, weakly lapping at the water in the bowl, looking as if his face was about to fall into it at any moment.

Kai groaned, slowly pushing himself off of the mattress, and crawling over to the bowls. He resisted the urge to gag as he stared down at them. Nothing had ever looked so unappetizing in his life.

“Kai, please eat,” Nya begged. “You need to eat.”

“I don’t want to.”

“I know, but you have to.”

“I can’t.”

“Do it for me. Please?”

Grimacing, Kai relented, leaning forward and taking a mouthful of food from the bowl. He bit down slowly, the grainy texture grinding against his teeth harshly. He tried to swallow, and broke into a fit of coughing, spitting half of the pellets back out, his breathing heavy as he tried to keep it all down.

“Kai?”

He sighed, and went back to the bowl, this time just taking a few of the pellets between his teeth. Bit by bit, he worked away at the food, until he had swallowed all he could bear, his stomach aching with heaviness.

“I’m done,” he panted, looking away from the still half-full bowl and rolling onto his side. “That’s all I can eat. I’m sorry.”

The collar turned on, the bowls were taken away. Once they were alone, Nya just stared at him for a moment, her gaze sad.

“Kai… I know this is hard. I’m on the verge of breaking myself. But I need you. You’re the only thing keeping me sane. If you… if something happens to you… just, I can’t let that happen. I need you in my life. I need you to be here.”

Kai looked at her, and their eyes locked for a moment. There was so much emotion in her gaze, and for a minute, Kai was plunged into the raging fear, depression, and anger there. Quickly blinking, he turned away.

“I wish I could help you, Nya. I really do. But I’m not as strong as you think I am. I can’t do this forever.”

“None of us can.” She sniffed, a wretched, defeated tone to her voice as she fell silent, consuming the room in a blanket of quiet once again.

---

Cole stared bleakly through the thick metal bars boxing them in.

Imprisoned again.

This time, though, it was the more traditional method of containment, locked in a cell with just some bare essentials, none of the luxuries they had back with Borg.

Not that it would’ve made a difference if they had- playing video games or reading a book was the absolute last thing on his mind right now.

“When do we get to see Jay?”

The police officer outside their cell sighed loudly. “I’ve told you, we still can’t let you out of here until we’ve figured out what’s going on.”

“Every time we try to tell you, you don’t listen!”

“A trial will likely be held once your friend is well enough to attend. Then you’ll be able to speak freely about your side of the story.”

“A trial?” Cole cried. “We don’t have time for that!”

The policeman raised an eyebrow at him. “Oh, my apologies, I didn’t realize you would have to clear your schedule.”

“Sir, that’s not what he means,” Zane pleaded. “Our friends are in danger. If nobody goes after them soon, they could be killed.”

The policeman’s expression faltered at that. “You never mentioned others.”

“Because you never gave us a chance to tell you!” Cole cried. “Please, sir, you have to listen to us. The other people you arrested- well, I don’t know how much they’ve told you, but they’re Borg Industries employees. They work for Issac Borg, and they’re trying to kidnap us. There were six of us, but the other three disappeared a few days ago, and we haven’t heard anything from them, we’re really worried-” Cole cut off as tears flowed out unbidden, and he felt Zane wrap his arms around him tightly as he tried to catch his breath.

“Please, officer,” Zane begged. “We’re only kids. We never wanted to get mixed up in all of this. At least hear what we have to say.”

The officer blinked at them sadly. “I never was comfortable locking a bunch of young people like you up in a cell, especially when the other group at hand openly lashed out and injured one of you.” He eyed Cole’s pointed fangs and Zane’s wings warily. “Even if you are… unusual. I’ll talk to the Commissioner, see what she says.”

As he turned and began to walk away, Zane spoke again, softly. “But will she listen?”

The officer stopped.

“Nobody ever listens to us,” Cole grunted. “We’re tired of not getting a say. Just because we’re different than… than humans, doesn’t mean we’re any less valued.”

The man turned back to them. “No one said that.”

Cole watched his eyes as he evaluated them more closely. Watched how they immediately darted to Cole’s teeth, the white stripe in his hair. Then to Zane, and the thick, tawny plumage unfurling from his back. His eyes, whether he wanted them to be or not, were judgemental, cautious. There was sadness there too, but mostly fear.

Cole felt a flare of anger in his chest. He wondered, as the policeman watched them so carefully, if he saw the way Zane’s feathers were rustled and unkempt, bent and dirty, the bald patch where the feathers had been ripped out by a caretaker, or the bandages that had been wrapped around his injured ankle the previous night. He wondered if he noticed the way Cole’s curls were droopy and flat, leaving his small, furry black ears exposed and vulnerable, or how the smudges on his glasses glinted as they caught the light.

He was a liar. He didn’t care about them. No one cared.

“You may not say it,” Zane said calmly before Cole’s anger could get the better of him. “But you think it.” The policeman opened his mouth to protest, but Zane shook his head. “You don’t need to feel offended. You are not the only one to think this way. In fact, I’m not sure if we’ve ever come across someone who knew our secret and didn’t view us as inferior.”

The man had the decency to look guilty, now. “And that’s supposed to make me feel better?”

“No.” Uncharacteristic resentment flashed in Zane’s eyes. “It’s supposed to tell you what we’ve been through.”

The man glanced behind him warily. Sighing, he grabbed a chair and pulled it up. “I’ll listen to what you have to tell me. Whether it’s about yesterday, or… everything else. But, just so you know,” his voice dropped to a whisper. “Everything you say is being recorded. If there’s anything you want to keep private, here isn’t the place to share it.”

Zane looked over at him, and Cole shrugged. “There’s not much we need to hide at this point, anyway. If they don’t help us, no one will.”

Zane turned to the officer, a slightly helpless look on his face. “I don’t even know where to start. The last few weeks have been… overwhelming, at best.”

“What about last night? Why was Borg Security chasing you?”

“They want to kidnap us again,” Cole growled. The policeman flinched back at the inhuman sound emitting from his throat. “The last three weeks or so, they’ve been hunting us down, and we had to hide out in an abandoned warehouse, living off pocket money we’ve collected over the last ten years.”

The officer blinked. “Again? How long ago did they first bring you in?”

Cole and Zane exchanged glances.

“I have no idea how we got there,” Zane murmured. “None of us do. We were much too young to remember anything when Borg first brought us in.”

The officer’s jaw fell slack. “You mean to tell me you’ve been there since you were infants?”

“I suppose so.” Cole looked down at his feet. “It’s the only life I can remember.”

“I don’t understand. There was never any randsome posted for you.”

“I don’t think this was any regular kidnapping,” Zane said. “I’m not sure what Borg wanted us for, but I’m sure the last thing he needed was money. He’s not exactly light-pocketed. And, according to him, he didn’t kidnap us, he ‘took us in’ when everyone else rejected us. Although, I would be surprised if he wasn’t lying about that.”

“Now that I think about it,” Cole added, “He did spend a lot of time teaching us to fight. I wonder if that had anything to do with why he wanted us.”

The officer frowned. “Why wouldn’t your parents report your absences?”

Cole blinked at him. “Well, we never knew our parents. Half of them are wild animals, anyway… and I guess the human ones just didn’t care about us. Probably thought we were freaks like everyone else.”

The officer swallowed a couple times, looking at a loss for words. When he spoke again, his voice was gruff. “While we’re on that… what exactly are you?”

“We’re hybrids,” Zane explained. “Half human, half beast. I’m part falcon,” gesturing to Cole, he added, “he’s part badger, and Jay, the one in the hospital, is part labrador. Each of us has inherited certain attributes from our animal counterparts that cause us to stand out from the human race.”

“So go ahead,” Cole barked. “Laugh at us, jeer at us, lock us up in some cage so you can study us.”

“Cole…”

“I’m not going to do any of that,” the officer insisted. “And as for the cell… I’m really sorry about that. It’s just station protocol, it has nothing to do with your… uh, species-”

“Sure it doesn’t. I’m sure you lock all your young charges who were literally being shot at by a group of criminals in cages, don’t you?”

The officer pulled back from the bars of the cage as Cole bared his teeth at him. Zane put a hand on his arm, but he shrugged him off. “It’s blatant, thinly veiled discrimination, and you think you can shamelessly get away with it just because you’re the police. This is no different from what Borg did to us our whole lives!”

“Stop,” Zane snapped. “I know you’re angry. You have every right to be. I’m upset too. But can’t you see that arguing isn’t going to solve anything right now? We need them to trust us, and showing aggression is only going to make them fear us more.”

Cole slumped against him, pulling back. “Fine.” Turning towards the officer, but refusing to meet his gaze, he halfheartedly muttered, “Sorry.”

“No,” the officer told him, a faint tremble in his voice. “I’m the one who should be sorry. You’re right, this isn’t fair. You shouldn’t be in here, and we’re just- well, no, I don’t have a good excuse, but unfortunately I’m not in a position where I can change that-”

“It’s okay,” Zane assured him. “You’ve done more than most by just giving us a chance, just listening to us.”

The officer eyed him sadly. “That just makes this worse. You shouldn’t have such low standards for yourselves.”

“Don’t you see, though? You can change that. You’re our only hope. If you’re willing to listen to us, maybe others will listen to you. You can try to advocate for us.”

The officer looked uncertain. “I can try.”

“What else do you need to know?”

“What was it like in there? With Borg, I mean. Did he do anything that might’ve tipped you off on what he’s planning?”

“We got all sorts of nice stuff,” Cole told him. “Flatscreen TV, nice gaming systems, an advanced kitchen and more ingredients than we could ever need, lots of books- we even had a little window, too. But the door connecting our living space to the rest of Borg Tower was always locked. We only went out for training- there was lots of that- and ‘doctor’s appointments,’ which we later figured out were DNA tests.”

“Didn’t you ever get to leave?”

“He let us go into town, every so often,” Zane explained. “Like one a month, maybe. But one of our friends figured out he was actually monitoring us in private during those trips.” Looking down at his feet, he added, “We always had our reservations about the kind of life we were living. Some more than others. But we had been sheltered for all of our lives, led to believe that the world was malicious and cruel towards our kind, that the tower was the only place we were safe. For a long time, we thought we were being protected. We thought that this was the best life for us. We were lulled into a false sense of security.”

The officer took a shaky breath. “What changed? What made you try to escape?”

Zane’s eyes darkened, and Cole felt his fists curl. He kept his voice grizzly and deep to try to disguise the shakiness of it. “Some of us were eavesdropping, and we found out he was planning on killing one of us. We knew then, that he had never cared about us, and we had to go before we lost Lloyd forever.”

“Lloyd,” The officer frowned, scooting his chair forward. “You mentioned others?”

“Yes,” Zane said. “There were six of us, originally. The other three, Kai, Nya, and Lloyd, went missing a few days ago and we haven’t seen or heard from them since. They… they were just going into town to get some supplies and stuff, and… they never came back.”

“We immediately feared the worst,” Cole whimpered. “We’re afraid Borg will punish them for escaping. And Lloyd was the one Borg wanted to kill, originally. We don’t even know if they’re still alive.”

“If you won’t do anything for us, at least save them,” Zane begged, clutching at the bars. “The six of us are the closest thing to family we’ve got, and if anything were to happen to them…” his voice broke, choking on a sob, and Cole hugged him close.

“As much as I want to help, I really don’t know what I’m going to be able to do for you boys.” The officer’s voice was softer than Cole had heard it yet. “But if what you say is true, Borg will be looking at some serious charges, and no matter what sentences may befall you, if any at all, it’s the police force’s civic duty to protect lives. I’ll get them to save your friends, I know I will. But I’m going to need any information I can get. Can you give me that?” “We can try,” Cole told him, pulling back from Zane and wiping at his eyes. “But we really don’t know much.” “Do you know where they’re being kept?” “Presumably Borg Tower,” Zane said. “Although we can’t be certain. That’s actually what we were doing when the Borg security officers started chasing us, trying to scope out the place. We overheard them talking, and we’re pretty sure they have our friends there, but… nothing more specific than that.”

“Well, physical descriptions are going to be very helpful too.” The officer paused, pulling a notepad and pen out of his pocket. “How old are they, for starters?”

“Kai’s eighteen, Nya’s sixteen, and Lloyd’s four.”

The officer looked up sharply at that. “Four?” “Yes, he’s so small,” Cole fretted. “Now can you see why we’re so afraid?”

“This is serious. Can you give me a physical description of all of them? The more details, the better.”

Zane rambled off to the officer about all of their missing friends, Cole pitching in occasionally, as he furiously scribbled the information down on his pad. When they were finished, he had several pages filled with notes. Cole hoped it would be enough.

“Thank you, both. And I’m so sorry we didn’t listen to you earlier.”

“You did it now, which is the important thing,” Zane murmured. “That’s the first time anyone’s done anything like that for us.”

“It’s the least I could do- oh, I never caught your names.”

“I’m Zane.”

“Cole.”

“Officer Grey. Thomas Grey. Thank you for your time, boys.”

Putting a hand on the bars, he looked them dead in the eyes, the reservation and fear they had held before nowhere in sight. “Zane, Cole- I promise, I’m going to do everything in my power to help you.”

---

Time passed, and life only got harder. There were some days where Kai didn’t even have the strength to get out of bed- or his sorry excuse for a bed, anyway.

He managed, mostly. He survived. He forced himself to keep going, however much he didn’t want to.

But one day, he woke up, and everything just felt wrong.

It didn’t help that the previous day had been rough. Last night, Lloyd had come back from wherever the trainers took him, again, and this time it had been really bad. He had been half-dragged to his cell, and he hadn’t woken up since. Nya had checked every so often for the rise and fall of his chest, and he seemed to be breathing pretty steadily, but- it had left something hard inside Kai when he had gone to bed that night.

Not to mention, the water for the last meal had tasted even worse than usual, a strong metallic taste making Kai feel sick to his stomach and putting him in an all-around bad mood.

This was going to be a hard day. Not that every day in this wretched place wasn’t awful, but… this was going to be one of those worst kinds of days, he could tell.

The ones he didn’t know if he would make it through.

Scared he wouldn’t ever be able to get up again if he didn’t move now, Kai scooched off the mattress and onto the floor. Already, he was horribly overwhelmed, and curled up, hugging his knees to his chest, his back against the mattress, trying to focus on just getting his breath in and out.

The cell was dark, so dark, the blackness pushing in on all sides-

“Kai? Hey, Kai, can you hear me?” Nya? He felt like that was Nya, speaking. Maybe. It was hard to place, for some reason.

Kai put his hands over his head. Why was everything so loud?

“Kai, look at me. Look at me now.”

“I can’t.”

“You can.”

“No, I can’t.”

“Just try.”

“I can’t,” he wailed. “I’m weak. Worthless. I can’t move.”

“Kai, listen to me, it’s all in your head. You’re stronger than this, you can overpower it.”

Kai willed himself to move, to look at her, feeling a slight twitch. Saliva bubbled in his throat and he coughed, before slowly turning his head to look at her.

“Good job, bud. You did it.”

“Barely.”

“We’ll take it one step at a time.”

“I’m falling apart, Nya. I’m cracking. There’s no hope left for me.”

“You’re not cracking.”

“I don’t know what’s happening to me, Nya.”

“You’re gonna be okay, Kai. As long as you listen to my voice, okay?”

Kai closed his eyes, letting her gentle tones wash over him. “I’m so tired, Nya.”

“I know.”

There was silence for a long time after that. Kai hated the silence. It scared him. Down here, silence meant loneliness and despair and left him alone with his pounding thoughts to slowly eat away at him. Down here, silence meant death.

“You think they’ll ever come back for us, Nya?” he asked, when he couldn’t let the quietness stretch on any longer.

He expected her to assure him in soothing tones, to tell her that their family would never give up on them, that they only had to be patient, and have faith. They would come, and it would take the whole of Ninjago City to stop them.

Kai smiled, for the first time in who-knew-how long, just at the thought of her words, the movement stinging his horribly cracked, dry, lips. But the real Nya didn’t speak.

“Nya?” Turning towards her cage, he was caught off guard to see her face buried in her hands, tears streaking her face as she gulped on the sobs.

He tightened his hands on the bars. “Nya?!”

“How could they come back,” she whispered. “No one knows where we are. We don’t know where we are. They don’t even stand a chance of getting close to us without Borg catching them, and then we’ll all be trapped down here and then we’re all gonna die-”

“Nya, I…” he wanted to comfort her, but he didn’t know how. He didn’t know if he could, because the same thoughts were cycling through his head. How was anyone going to rescue them?

“I wanna go home,” she choked. “I don’t even have a home anymore, but I just wanna get away from here, I wanna see Cole, and Zane, and Jay, I wanna see him so bad. I think I love him, Kai, I love him and I never got to tell him-”

“He knows,” Kai whispered. “You kissed him that one time, remember?”

“But I didn’t tell him. I need to tell him, I don’t wanna die down here, Kai, I don’t wanna die!”

For the first time since they had been down here, Kai felt like the helpless one. He had been so caught up in his own depression that he had been oblivious to how his sister was suffering just as much as he was.

And now, she was hurting so badly because he hadn’t given her any attention. In fact, he had probably only made things worse for her.

“Jay!” Nya screamed, loud and shrill, the noise echoing off of the walls, reverberating back to them, then going nowhere.

“Cole! Zane! Jay! Help me!”

Nya screamed. She screamed and screamed, but no matter how loud she cried out, the sound never left the room. Never reached the desired ears. Only Borg heard them, they quickly found out, as the shock collars were switched on, and both of them fell to the ground, Nya still sobbing as she rocked herself, and Kai splayed out, silently writhing from the pain as tears beaded in his eyes, even though he was sure he was too dehydrated to cry.

When the pain finally ended, Kai was barely gripping onto consciousness. He still hated the silence just as much as ever, but this time he didn’t try to break it. It was better than the pain.

A long time passed as they just laid there, on the ground, too scared even to move. When Nya finally dared to speak again, her voice was a hushed whisper.

“When will this end?”

“I don’t know. Not long, I think.”

“I know you’re not talking about the same way I am.”

“No. But it’ll be over, won’t it?”

Nya was quiet for such a long time after that, that Kai thought she had fallen asleep.

“Over, would be a very nice thing, indeed.”

---

The next few days passed with barely a sight of Officer Grey. Every moment in the cell was pure torture for Cole, because it was just another moment that they weren’t saving their friends, who were likely in a much worse cell than this one.

At least, while they were waiting, Zane’s ankle got a chance to heal. Cole had a feeling that this wasn’t going to go down without a fight, and they would need to be at full strength if they didn’t want to mess this up.

When Officer Grey finally showed up again, he came bearing mixed news.

“I’ve talked to my colleagues, told them about what you said and gave them the video footage. The good news, they agree that we should go look for your friends and investigate the case. The bad news, they’re still unwilling to trust you. They want you to stay here when we go, and charges may still be pressed when we return.”

Zane sighed. “The main thing is that you save them. That is all we will worry about for the time being.”

“But we could help,” Cole protested. “Our senses are stronger than humans. We might be able to scent or hear or see something you can’t. It could be the difference between life and death for our friends!”

“I know. I tried to talk them into it. It’s not that no one wants to believe you, but…”

Cole leaned back, crossing his arms. “Oh, so it’s about our genetics, again, is it?”

Grey flinched. “Look, they mean well, but people tend to be stubborn in their ways-”

“It doesn’t matter now,” Zane interrupted. “We can change their minds. Take us to them.”

“Wait, what? I can’t do that!” Cole glared at him. “I thought you were on our side.”

“I am! But I could get fired for letting you out without approval-”

“And our friends could die.”

Grey stared at him for a moment. Sighing deeply, he reached for his keyring. He paused at their cell door.

“They’re not going to bend easily, if at all. You’re probably not going to accomplish anything by this, and will only get in more trouble.”

“We’re not giving up,” Cole huffed. “We have to at least try. Our friends are worth any punishment they can dish out.”

“Fine.” A jangling of keys, then the door was swung open. “Just be careful about what you say, okay?”

Cole and Zane slipped out of the cell, and Cole took a deep breath, already feeling so much better with one less wall between him and the outdoors.

“Oh, um… one more thing.”

They both turned to Grey, who was looking at them sheepishly. Reaching into his belt, he extracted two pairs of handcuffs. “You should probably put these on. Not that I don’t trust you!” he added hurriedly at their expressions, “but it will show the other officers that we aren’t making a stand or trying to be aggressive. Trust me, things will blow over a little smoother if they see you restrained.”

“Fine,” Cole grumbled, “but you better not make us fight in these.” Him and Zane held out their hands as the cuffs were snapped on, and Cole shot them a sharp glare.

“Also-”

“What is it now,” Cole snapped. “You want us chained and muzzled, too?”

“No, of course not.” Grey said softly. “You’re not animals.”

Zane cleared his throat. “Technically, we are. Half, at least.”

“That’s not the point. I mean- like, that’s cruel and unjust punishment. We would never do that here. Even if you are a different… species.”

Cole snorted. “Borg should take a page out of your book.”

Grey gave him one of those sad looks that he had seemed to be giving a lot of since that first day they had talked, but didn’t press the matter. “What I was going to say, was that the others are speaking with the Borg security officers. If we’re going to go see them, the Borg workers will be there too.” He eyed him warily. “Is that okay?”

“I mean, if it’s our only choice,” Zane murmured.

“They’re locked up- behind bars- right? And weaponless?”

“Of course. They’re prisoners here too, y’know.”

“Fine. Then let’s go. Lead the way.”

As Grey led them through the different blocks of the prison to where the other officers were, Cole tried to ignore the dirty looks the other inmates were shooting them, and ignore as they gawked at his ears, or Zane’s wings. Forcing himself to look forward, he shuffled slightly closer to Grey’s side.

After what seemed like forever, he finally stopped at a door, chose a key from the ring, and unlocked the door. Zane and Cole cautiously slipped in after him.

The room smelled musty and dingy, and Cole wrinkled his nose as they slipped past rows and rows of bars. Some of the inmates looked to be petty criminals or street thieves, while some bore the familiar jackets of Borg Security. Many of those ones snapped to attention when they saw who was passing. Cole tried not to look at them, pushing down the bubbling anger in his chest.

A group of police officers turned away from the cell and towards them. “Grey!” one of them, a well-muscled female with a loud voice barked. “What are the prisoners doing out of their cell?”

“Commissioner Morgan, we talked about this. These are the kids who were kidnapped by Dr. Issac Borg.”

Morgan narrowed her eyes at them. “Or so they say.”

“What reason do we have to lie?” Zane asked.

“I already approved a squad to investigate Borg Tower,” she snapped. “What more do you want?”

“They want to accompany us, Commissioner. They have special skills that could help us if things… take a violent turn.”

“There is no need for violence,” Morgan grunted, shooting a glare at Cole and Zane. “Tell your animal friends that they need to control their savage instincts.”

“We can control plenty,” Cole argued. “We’re not some wild beasts that need to be tamed. But I don’t think you understand the severity of the situation. Borg has shown us, firsthand, that he is not afraid to kill others to get what he wants. We will only do what is necessary.”

“Don’ listen to ‘em. The little brats don’t know their place, and they will fight back.”

Cole whipped around to see one of the Borg security guards leaning up against the walls of his cell. Cole immediately recognized him as the one who had shot Jay, and, before he could stop himself, he was darting forward and awkwardly grabbing him by the collar of his shirt through his handcuffs.

“Where are they,” he hissed. “What has Borg done with them and where are you keeping them?”

“Cole!” Zane cried.

Immediately, strong hands grabbed him from the back and pulled him away from the prison bars. The security guard took the opportunity to bolt back from the bars, shaken by Cole’s aggression. He wasn’t done yet, though. He pulled back against the police officers, shouting.

“Where are they? What have you done?”

“Cole, stop,” Zane insisted, running up to him and trying to get a grip on him. “They already think we are aggressive. You’re only making that worse.”

“You don’t understand,” Cole cried to the police officers, clinging to Zane. “Those people are some of the only ones I have left, and they’re in mortal danger. I just need to stop it, I need to protect them, I promised to protect them-” he buried his face in Zane’s shoulder as the falcon hybrid held him tight.

“I just want them back,” he whispered.

“I know,” Zane murmured. “I know.”

When Cole raised his head again, he noticed that many of the police officers were now looking uncertain or uncomfortable. After a moment, the Commissioner turned towards the security officer Cole had yelled at.

“You heard the boy. Where are his friends being kept?”

The man stared at her incredulously. “You think I’m telling?”

The woman leaned forward, banging on the bars. “You really think you’re in a position to sass around the police Commissioner?”

Everyone in the cell cringed back. But no one spoke.

“If you’d rather have an extra three years added to your jail time for the withholding of information from a superior, I’m sure that could be arranged. Not to mention, you already are to be given a trial for accusations of attempted murder and kidnapping.”

The man looked down at his feet, grimacing. “Fine! They’re in Borg Tower. You happy?”

“Where in Borg Tower?”

The man met Cole’s gaze. “I don’t know. It’s not withholding information if I don’t know it!”

“You’re lying.”

“Prove it.”

Grey sighed. “Drop it, Cole, he’s not telling you.”

“Well, this has been useful.”

“At least we know for sure that’s where they are now. Now we know we’re not just going on some wild goose chase.”

“I suppose.”

“Now that we know where we are going, we’ll set out for your friends in the morning,” Commissioner Morgan announced. “We’ll decide what happens next once that has been dealt with.”

Cole nodded. “We’ll be ready.”

“Now, wait a minute. Who told you that you were coming with?”

“You said-”

“I’m against kidnapping and possible torture, especially against minors. It doesn’t mean I trust you.”

“Please, you have to let us come with,” Zane begged. “If Borg is hiding them, our heightened senses will be useful, possibly even necessary.”

“You expect us to take some strangers with an uncertain past along on an important police mission? Look, kid, we’re a perfectly capable team of officers. And there are some pretty heavy claims being made against you,” she gestured at the cells with the Borg workers, “and we just can’t take that chance right now.”

“But-”

“End of discussion. Grey, take them back to their cell. Woun, go with them, in case Grey gets any funny ideas.”

A female officer walked up beside him and gripped him by the arm.

“Stop! Please, you don’t understand, we need to help!”

Grey looked between him and Morgan with conflicted eyes. “Commissioner, if you would at least consider-” “Be quiet, Grey. They’re not going.”

“Wait! I can prove they’re innocent!”

Everyone whipped around towards the doorway. An officer was standing there, his gaze expressionless.

Beside him, was Jay.

“Jay!” Cole and Zane yelped simultaneously, Cole pulling away from the officer with ease as they both raced towards their friend. Cole reached him first, crying before he was even near him, leaning against him and burying his face in his shoulder. Zane was close behind him, leaning against Jay more carefully, as to avoid his right arm, which was bandaged and pulled into a sling.

“Dude, you’re okay,” Cole sniffed. “Don’t you ever scare me like that again.”

“Jay, Jay we were so worried, they wouldn’t let us see you… how’s your arm doing?” Zane fretted. “Does it hurt? Are they giving you antibiotics? Should you be out of bed?”

“Guys, I’m okay,” Jay laughed, pushing them off gently. “I got lucky. Apparently that guy’s aim was bullcrap, the bullet only grazed me. I’m gonna be fine. I’m sorry they didn’t tell you anything, though. It’s nice to know how much you care.”

“Of course we care,” Cole grunted. “We’re family.”

Jay’s smile faltered. “Speaking of which, we’re still a few members short. It’s long past due we go get the others.”

“We’re trying, but they won’t let us go-”

Jay waved his left hand, stopping him. “It’s fine, Bodden told me everything.”

Cole’s gaze shifted to the officer standing beside Jay. “Bodden?”

“I’m a good friend of Grey’s,” the officer explained. “After he told me about you a couple days ago, I felt similarly to him on the issue. He asked me to bring Jay down here today, and I agreed.”

Morgan scowled. “That’s all well and good, but why is he here, Grey? Patients aren’t supposed to leave the medical wing without permission from me.”

“Because I have something that could change your mind on us,” Jay said, waving a small, black phone in the air.

Cole raised an eyebrow at him. “Your burner? How’s that gonna help?”

“You know when we were eavesdropping on those caretakers, behind Borg Tower?” Jay asked, flipping open the phone. “Apparently, I accidentally was recording the whole thing.”

“What?” Zane choked, leaning over his shoulder to peer at the phone.

“I didn’t even know you could record on those hunks of junk!” Cole cried.

“On most, you can’t. But I got a slightly different model than the rest of you.” He elbowed Zane. “Aren’t you glad you let me get the more expensive one, now?”

Zane closed his eyes, breathing out. “I never thought I would say this, but good heavens, yes. That may have just saved our lives, Jay.”

“It saves everything! I can’t believe you just saved everything on accident, Jay.”

“The fact that it was an accident doesn’t give me less credit in the matter, just so we’re clear-”

Cole laughed, bumping his shoulder against Jay’s. “Once this whole thing is over, you can have all the credit you want.”

“The audio evidence will certainly help your case,” the Commissioner told them, after Jay had played it for her. “But it still doesn’t give us the entire picture.”

“I know,” Jay told her. “But right now, we don’t have time to gather concrete proof. You’re just going to have to trust us.” He held out his hand to the Commissioner, and she stared at it for a moment.

Her face steeling, she grabbed his hand and shook it firmly. “We leave first thing tomorrow.”

#ninjago #NinjagoInhumanAuWeek #For the Romping and the Roaring #R&R #Part 4 #oh no we're almost to the end #I don't want it to end 😭#although i will be relieved to have a little break #this was exhausting to write in such a short time y'all!#rosie writes #my fic

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wulfies-kpop-fanfics · 3 years

Text

One Photo → Mark Lee [4]

↳ Pairing: Mark Lee/Reader

↳ AU: Soulmate!AU - The first touch of two soulmates permanently scars their bodies.

↳ Warning: Suggestive

↳ Word count: 4,556

↳ Chapters: Prelude | 1 | 2 | 3 | You Are Here! | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

⁙ Summary: For an end of the year photography project, you’re tasked with taking a photograph for your favourite group, NCT127, and coincidentally, discover your soulmate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

THURSDAY - 4

The next day, you quickly went onto Blackboard and finished your online class final as soon as you woke up. Tired and a little grumpy, you were happy that Rhiannon had already left the house for her lab, leaving you with a full range of the tea kettle and whatever cereals you had left in the cabinet. You suppose you should go grocery shopping on the weekend.

You have some music playing through your phone as you go through the motions of your morning, brushing your teeth and hair, dusting on the tiniest bit of makeup and a swipe of lip balm to your lips. When it comes time to choose an outfit, you slip on a pair of shortalls and a white Star Wars shirt that Rhiannon had bought you for your birthday last year.

It almost felt like a dream to be where you are right now, to be going out and getting your first real taste of business, what it would be like to go out in the world and have people pay you for your work. All of it was happening because you met your soulmate.

You looked at your hands, scars still ever-present. They'd be there forever, and not long ago you had detested the idea of ever having them. Even to the point of making Mark afraid to speak to you about it, and a twinge in your chest came with a sudden feeling of guilt.

You had been in love with Mark for a long time, as much as any fan of his would say, maybe more. Finding out that he was truly meant for you was beginning to chip away at the bitterness you had acquired growing up. Maybe you still had some doubt for all of this, as things would actually still work out when he left to go back to Korea, but being around him felt like all of your aversions wouldn't matter one day.

Letting go of the nerves living inside of you was difficult, but you managed to clench your hands and smile. This was all a part of your dream. Perhaps one day you would be able to look on your body and not think back on your life before. Thinking positively from now on was your goal. With that, you grabbed your camera and your bag, heading out the door.

On the subway, you listened to your playlist, a shuffled mix of your favourite songs. You zoned out until you reached your stop, wandering about the station and grabbing a candy bar on your way out. The morning itself was still but the rush of subway trains and people in a hurry created wind currents that caused you to need to smooth out your hair constantly on the way to your destination.

As soon as you enter High Park, any grumpy fatigue you had been harbouring since waking up melted away. The sheer beauty of the park always managed to awaken the artist within you, whether it be filling up your camera with photos of trees and the cherry blossom petals in the spring; amber, red and brown leaves in the fall and the snow-capped branches in winter, or just doodling people in your sketchbook while sitting against a tree after class. It was one of your favourite places to be.

You sat against a cherry tree by the path you and Mark walked on together, letting small petals of cherry blossoms to float down and land on your hair. You gripped your camera tightly and aimed it without thinking, capturing the emptiness of the park that surely wouldn't last forever.

Sometimes you had thought about wandering so far out into the wilderness where you wouldn't see any other people or man-made objects as far as your eye could see. Then, you could take photos of the beauty the planet has to offer while breathing untainted air and feeling fresh wind on your face.

Just then as you closed your eyes to imagine it, a small breeze grazed your cheek. The warmth of the sun washed over you and it nearly made you want to take a nap right there on the grass. The day already feels so wonderful, and there was only one thing missing to make it perfect.

"(Y/N)!"

Your eyes flutter open as Mark runs up to you. He's accompanied by the small crowd that are his bandmates, all walking along the path all at their own pace. Mark reaches you and sits down on the grass next to you.

"Hi, Mark," you greet him with a blush, watching him as he plucks a cherry blossom petal from your hair.

"You look lovely," he comments with a shy smile. "You haven't been waiting long, right?"

You smile warmly at him. "No, don't worry."

Mark grinned back at you. "I'm happy the weather cooperated with us," he remarks, taking a moment to look up at the blue sky, dotted with two or three wispy white clouds. "It's a beautiful day."

"Yeah," this time, instead of looking back up at the sky, you're looking at Mark. It's fleeting, knowing he was so close to you that you could touch him. The way his profile is when he's looking up at the sky with a wondrous smile makes you want to take a million photos, but you hold back as you notice everyone else approaching.

Everyone in the group greets you, giving you a hug and smiling as you do your best to introduce yourself in Korean. Most of the boys assure you that they can understand basic English and not to worry about the language difference.

You're nervous, of course, to meet your favourite artists in person, especially all at once. In real life, they're all so tall and in some ways, it just feels so different than you imagined to interact with them.

There are little bits of conversation occurring as you all wait for Rhiannon, Donghyuck insisting that they all stay put to make sure she can find you. You're smiling brightly when you notice he's constantly on the watch for her, making you wonder if she would experience a similar situation to yours. He's speaking fondly of her to you as best he can, which makes your heart flip - knowing how happy she'd be if you told her about it.

There is maybe another ten minutes of discussing what all the boys want, background, poses, angles and composition when Donghyuck's small smile grows into a giant grin. He's waving at someone who is approaching from the distance, who stops in their tracks once they look up from the ground.

You take Mark's hand and squeeze it. "Come on,"

Everyone follows your lead, approaching your best friend. Rhiannon is clearly frazzled from a long lab, her hair in a messy ponytail, but she's dressed in a pretty, long black and white striped jumper and black heels accompanied by her large black purse that probably had her school uniform in it.

Once you get closer you wave at her, her returning wave much more subtle. She's covering her mouth with her other hand, and once you all reach her, you can tell she's crying.

All the boys are a little frazzled, but you know that they all mean well. She probably wasn't the only person to nearly faint when meeting them.

"안녕하세요," she manages to stutter through her hand. You're smiling at her, beckoning her to join the group, but she doesn't move.

The other boys are quietly complimenting her on her pronunciation and making comments to themselves, Johnny leaning toward you to ask if she's okay, but you're more focused on watching this all unfold. Mark nudges you with his elbow.

"Here, watch this." He steps up to Donghyuck and whispers in his ear, gripping the younger boys' shoulders and full on shoving him in Rhiannon's direction.

Donghyuck says a few startled words in Korean, none that you can really catch, holding out his hands and bracing for a fall. His grip lands on Rhiannon's shoulders and she is barely able to catch him by placing her hands on his chest.

Both of them yelp in surprise, the other boys watching and laughing warmly to themselves. Eventually, the two of them settle into a proper hug, Rhiannon shoving her tear-ridden face into Donghyuck's shoulder.

Mark wraps an arm around your waist and presses a kiss to your cheek, grinning mischievously. "I hope they're soulmates," he says, quiet enough that only you can hear it.

"I hope so too."

Rhiannon can barely keep herself composed as all the other members give her a greeting hug once they all manage to peel her and Donghyuck off of each other. She showers them in stuttered compliments and praises, all phrases you have heard her planning to say months ago while the two of you were discussing what you would say to your idols if you ever met them.

It's an emotional moment, and it makes you all the more motivated to spend the day making your task absolutely perfect. Just one photo.

You could have laughed at yourself. 'One photo', Johnny and Jaehyun had specified when you first met them. Like that was ever going to happen. In one take, Donghyuck had coughed and caused motion blur, another where Johnny's eyes were closed, Jaehyun's eyes were both somehow blocked at the same time by cherry blossom petals, and one more where Yuta stepped back and lost his balance on a large rock a child had kicked towards him while he was passing by.

Through Taeyong's insistence of a perfect photo and tiny bits of life getting in the way, you felt as if taking one photo for NCT127 was going to be the longest photo shoot of your career that hadn't even started yet. You all were laughing and smiling through it, which made the experience fun and enjoyable, even though there were so many things to consider.

Click.

Your smile was wide as you went back into your camera to look at the preview of the last photo you've taken. All the boys come out from their poses to gather around you and Rhiannon, each of them scrambling to get a good look at the tiny preview screen on your camera.

"I think this is the one," you confidently say.

Everyone is posed happily at the edge of the old cobblestone path, in between two cherry trees that were shedding cherry blossom petals, all of which were perfectly captured floating through the picture, none of them obscuring any faces. Everyone was smiling, had open eyes, and each part of the photo was clear and crisp. You even managed to think that you maybe didn't need to touch it up in photoshop at all. Even the lighting was nearly perfect.

"This is the one," Jungwoo agrees with you, after managing to push Taeil aside long enough to have a direct look at the camera.

"I think so too," Mark chimes in next to you. "You're amazing."

You're going red in the face as most of the boys begin to agree with you. Once you have your personal space back, you're able to turn off your camera and place it securely in your bag.

"Let's go for ice cream!" Doyoung suggests, and everyone else immediately agreed.

Spending time with all of the members of 127 and Rhiannon didn't really feel as crowded as you thought it would be. Of course, in reality, it was - especially at the small ice cream cafe you all ended up in - taking up two whole booths.

It all felt real and like a dream at the same time, genuinely spending time with them and talking, being friendly. The day wasted away as you all explored the city, wandering into random stores and picking out little trinkets as souvenirs. At times you would pull out your camera to take more photos, the day's progression adding to your different collections of lighting and atmosphere.

Eventually, you all had dinner together, splitting the cost of a giant order of homemade pasta at the St Lawrence market, piling onto the picnic tables on the lower floor and sharing a quiet few moments as the sun set on another day.

“So, (Y/N), what made you a fan?” Jaehyun is smiling at you, eyes switching between looking at you and Jungwoo who is sitting on your right, shovelling his pasta in his mouth. You don’t even think he’s chewing it.

“Rhiannon,” you say flatly. Rhiannon kicks your shin quickly after, she��s sitting in between Donghyuck and Jaehyun, smiling innocently. “Ow! Well, uhm, we were in high school at the time when she became a k-pop fan, and immediately tried to pull me down the rabbit hole as well. I was reluctant for a while, but eventually, I gave in. When I started exploring on my own, I saw your Firetruck music video and… well, the rest is history.”

Mark, who is sitting on your left, is grinning at you. “What’s your favourite song by us?” He asks and soon turns his attention to Rhiannon.

“Which subgroup?” She asks excitedly. “I can name one for each, so can (Y/N).”

You sheepishly nod. “All of them,” Johnny quickly chimes in, picking slowly at his own food.

“Well, it’s always been tough for me to decide but Boss is my favourite U song, Touch is my favourite 127 song, GO is my favourite Dream song and since WayV made a debut a little while ago with Regular, that’s my favourite by them so far.” You answer sheepishly, and Mark’s grinning at you. It’s probably because he’s involved with 99% of those songs.

“And yours?” Donghyuck is looking at Rhiannon expectantly. His accent is thick and you find it very endearing that he’s doing his best to speak English.

Rhiannon hummed, a grin spread over her face. “BOSS by NCTU, Whiplash by NCT127, We Young by NCTDREAM, and I really like the teaser video music for WayV’s debut.”

Donghyuck’s smile widens to a grin, “We hot,” “And we young!” Rhiannon, Mark and Donghyuck all sing in unison, which causes everyone else to start laughing.

Jungwoo finishes off most of his plate and hums as if he wants to ask a question. You give him your attention and he asks a question in Korean, but you can’t quite understand it. Before Mark can open his mouth to translate with a blush, Rhiannon does it first. “He wants to know who your favourite member was before Mark,” she says, grinning mischievously at you.

Your face goes beet red as you not so subtly look over at Johnny. He is looking between you and Mark, the latter immediately wraps an arm protectively around your shoulders. “Uhm… well, I really liked Johnny at first. I had a really big crush on him. Then Mark became my bias,” you’re looking at Johnny sheepishly, who is smiling sweetly at you.

Doyoung then chimes in, also speaking Korean, which Rhiannon translates to “now you’re making it awkward!”

The conversation continued in Korean, Johnny putting his hands up defensively and also turning beet red as Mark starts speaking, and everything is going so fast even Rhiannon can’t seem to translate it besides “Yeah, they’re arguing”. Meanwhile, you’re trying to eat your food and not react to the whole thing.

It takes a little while for everything to calm down, and at that point, you’re staring at Rhiannon who just shrugs at you. You’re awkwardly scraping sauce from the bottom of your dish as someone finally speaks up again, Mark tightening his grip protectively around you. “What made you so good at Korean, Rhiannon?” It’s Johnny, who is doing his best to not make eye contact with Mark, who you guess is still a little heated from that argument that ended not three minutes ago.

“Well,” Rhiannon starts shyly. “A lot of Korean TV shows and a couple of friends from live streams I watch.”

“It’s impressive, you should keep practising,” Mark praises with a smile.

"Thank you," Rhiannon is now also red in the face, grinning like an idiot.

"When are your birthdays?" Jungwoo is wiping his sauce-drenched face with a napkin, his accent thick. He's endearing, you think.

"Mine's July fifteenth, ninety-eight," you answer shyly, a little nervous to see their reactions, learning that you're older than Mark.

Donghyuck's eyes widen for a moment as he nearly shouts "Noona!" In your direction, making you fully hide your face in your hands.

"Your birthday is close to mine," Taeyong finally speaks up, and Mark rubs your shoulder gently to keep you from hiding your face. "Mine is July first."

"Mine's October twenty-fifth, ninety-eight," Rhiannon chimes in.

Donghyuck is almost equally surprised to learn this, but this time he's quieter. He still says "noona," while looking Rhiannon straight in the eye as she goes beet red and looks away from him.

"We are birthday buddies!" Yuta exclaims, grinning wildly and still holding a fork full of pasta that is slowly slipping off the utensil. "Mine is October twenty-sixth!"

This brings Rhiannon back from being shy. She brightens up, smiling over at Yuta who flashes her a big thumbs up - "we should celebrate together!" The conversation picks back up and once again begins to wildly veer from topic to topic.

Once everyone finished their food, you all walked around the lower levels, stopping at another shop full of Canada themed trinkets and souvenirs. Mark ended up buying a hilarious red and black plaid onesie, the butt of the pyjamas was removable and had a bear on it. Donghyuck bought a stuffed moose and the others bought a variety of shirts and maple flavoured treats. You ended up buying a stuffed animal yourself, a soft polar bear, an idea mind for it. However, you weren't sure you would be brave enough to ask Mark about it.

Not noticing the time seemed to be the growing trend these past few days, as when you all clamour out of the bottom floor of the market, it had gotten dark and the place was about to close for the night. All of you headed to the subway together, chatting and forgetting about life outside the day.

Mark held you close, an arm wrapped securely around your waist. "Can I walk you to your dorm?"

"Don't you think you should just go back with the guys?" You ask. "The subway is really expensive…"

Mark smiled and shook his head. "It's okay, we have special passes for when we're here. I just want to spend more time with you."

Your heart melted and you nearly teared up. "I want to spend more time with you too."

Mark grinned and held you a little closer as you walked. He was warm, and you wouldn't admit it out loud, but your entire body was screaming. You wanted to hold him forever.

You all separated at the subway station, the boys taking the opposite train. Rhiannon and Donghyuck had their own little moment before he left as their train arrived. They talked in Korean a few feet away from the crowd of boys and a little further away from where you and Mark were standing. It was sweet, watching them intentionally hug this time, holding hands until the last moment when the train was about to close its doors.

Donghyuck wanted to walk to the dorm as well, but Taeyong remarked that Mark had already been lectured enough the past few days he had decided to stay out late. Donghyuck protested but eventually had to give in.

Mark walked the two of you home, right to the door of your apartment.

"I'll leave you two alone for a bit," Rhiannon said softly, unlocking the door and slipping inside, leaving you and Mark alone in the hallway.

You looked up at Mark, who was returning your gaze and smiling at you warmly. "You are more beautiful every time I look at you," he says, a cheesy grin spreading across his face as he watches your reaction.

"Mark," you're nearly laughing as you say his name, "please, you make me blush!"

"Good," he speaks softly. "I just want to make you feel the best that I can in the time that I can."

That was when it hit you. Every time you had to think about having a soulmate, you had really only thought about yourself. You inwardly chastised yourself for being so selfish - and frowned.

"Mark, I'm sorry," you begin softly, and his expression turns to concern.

"For what? Are you okay?" He asks, hands gently cupping your cheeks.

You lean into his touch, "of course I am. I just feel terrible that all of this has happened to you so quickly. I only thought about myself when it hit me you would be leaving the day after the concert."

Mark nodded. "I'm going to miss you," he admitted. "But I feel amazing whenever I'm with you. I want to spend as much time here with you as I can, so I can remember it. Until the next time I can see you."

"Mark," he sighed as you said his name, "are we going to be okay?"

Mark nodded softly. "Of course we will be. No distance, land mass or body of water is going to get between us, ever."

"Okay," you whisper. "I trust you." You stare into Mark's eyes for a moment, his hands still gently resting on your face. He presses his forehead to yours, and your noses touch for a moment. That was when the moment both sped up and felt like it was slowing down at the same time.

Mark presses his lips to yours softly, his hands moving past your neck and your shoulders to your hips. He's soon moving to press you up against the wall of the hallway, trapping you between it and him. His mouth moves over yours, and you feel him hum and separate you for just long enough for him to kiss you from another angle, pressing his body closer to yours.

Your little shopping bag with your polar bear inside drops to the floor as you let go of it to place your hands on his chest. Mark groans into the kiss, backing up for a moment to look at you with hungry eyes before diving back in.

You don't know how long he kissed you for, hands running up and down your sides, tight enough that he could probably feel your bra underneath your t-shirt. You're suddenly whimpering when he presses his knee between your legs-

"(Y/N), get your ass in here before I punch your soulmate!"

Mark releases your lips with a sheepish laugh, licking away the saliva trail between your mouths, which almost makes you faint. His face is red, blush extended past his cheeks to travel to the bridge of his nose. "Sorry," he whispers shakily, "got carried away."

"Me too," you admit, trembling against the wall when Mark finally sets you free. "I, um-"

"Me too," he repeats, as if he read your mind. He takes a gentle hold of your hand. "Maybe another time?" You understand what he's implying, as if your entire body isn't on fire already, you quickly nod.

Mark lets your hand slip from his, and you can tell he is having a hard time peeling his eyes away from you so he can leave. "Mark, wait, before you go-"

"What is it?" He asks, tilting his head to the side. He's having trouble keeping eye contact, his eyes flicking constantly from yours to your lips.

"My polar bear," you start, picking up the bag you dropped earlier. "Could you please, um… cuddle him for a while? Until you leave?"

Mark's eyebrows furrow until he realizes what you meant, his eyes drifting from your face to look at the plastic bag you're holding out to him. "Will this help you when I'm gone?" He asks, gingerly taking the bag from you.

"I hope so," you say quietly, clinging to him in one last hug. "I'll give you something of mine in exchange."

Mark returns the hug, pressing a kiss to the top of your head. "Sounds like a plan."

You watch Mark leave, nearly breathless and a pit at the base of your throat. Thoughts ran through your head of what could have happened if you weren't interrupted, the pit running further and further down your body to rest with the butterflies in your stomach.

Once you're finally able to go back inside, you really wish you hadn't immediately met eyes with your best friend, perched on the armrest of the couch and holding a mug of tea. Both her eyebrows are raised and a smirk is dancing on her lips.

"Were you two trying to fuck in the hallway?" She asked, taking a sip of her tea, watching you struggle to take off your shoes.

"N-no," you stutter, trembling hands giving away that you were… most likely lying.

Rhiannon laughed and shook her head. "Jeez. Learn to get a room," she jokes. "I'm going to bed."

"N-night," you call as you watch her pad into her own room and shut the door, leaving you to your own thoughts. It was hard for you to keep your brain from going off the rails as you changed into your pyjamas. You considered making tea, but you figured it was probably a bad idea. Shortly after changing, showering and doing your bedtime routine you slipped under the covers of your bed.Your rampant thoughts were made all the worse when you got a text from Mark.

Mark: I'm back safe

You: good, I'm happy you're safe

You: I'm about to go to bed

Mark: I wish I was there in bed with you

You could have audibly gasped when you read his text. You thought for so long with your fingers hovering over the keys that you got another text from him.

Mark: I'm sorry I got so carried away in the hall. I just really wanted to touch you. I hope I didn't make you uncomfortable at all

You: no of course not, I actually really liked it

Mark: you did? Oh God… now itll never leave my head

You: I don't think it will leave mine either.. I really wish you could have stayed

Mark: me too but I would have gotten in a lot of trouble and the concert is already tomorrow

You: and you're leaving Saturday :(

Mark: yeah…

You: I want to kiss you again

Mark: I want to do a lot more than that

Your heart picks up speed and you grab your Death Star throw pillow to squeal into it. You're trembling even more as you type your reply.

You: I wish we had more time

Mark: we can make some if you come straight to the stadium after your class

You: ok

You: I'll run

Mark: looking forward to it

Mark: Rest well okay

You: I'll do my best considering

You: You too

Mark: yeah I promise I'll try

You locked your phone and placed it on your desk next to your bed and turned over, bringing the covers over your shoulders. It was hard to concentrate on sleeping, but you eventually dozed into a dream-filled sleep.

#mark lee #mark lee x reader #mark x reader #nct #nct127 #nctu #nct scenarios #nct imagines #reader insert #fanfiction #kpop fanfictions #kpop scenario #kpop imagines

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sailorspazz · 3 years

Text

Remote 10 Dance Ball

I know this is coming way late (as in, 3 months after it occurred!), but I’d always been planning to write up a report about the Real 10 Dance event that took place shortly after vol. 6’s release in Japan. Before I get into the explanation of what exactly this is under the cut, enjoy this promo image that ticket holders were able to print out at Japanese convenience stores (mine had to be printed by friends who live there and then scanned to me)

The Real 10 Dance is a series of events that have taken place over the past few years featuring real life pros performing routines inspired by the manga, meaning that most of the dances feature male-male couples (though they all have female partners in their regular careers, for these performances they dance together, and the women are given a group number to perform). The most recent live event took place in September 2019 shortly after vol. 5’s release, and there was another planned for 2020 in Osaka, but it was delayed and eventually completely canceled due to Covid restrictions. Wanting to still put on the event in some form, they later announced that it would take place virtually, and would be branded as the Remote 10 Dance Ball. For the cost of 1,000 yen, viewers could watch a stream of the event as many times as they pleased from the time it went live on March 20 until the viewing deadline 72 hours later. Unlike the in person events, there were no merchandise buying opportunities, but there was the option of paying additional 1,000 yen tips to either the performers, the production committee, or Inouesatoh herself. Choosing any of these options would give that ticket holder access to a code to print the postcard shown above, as well as a link to view a 17 minute making-of video of the event.

Before I get into the rundown, The Real 10 Dance Twitter account posted a preview video a couple weeks before the event, which you can watch if you’d like to see some of the action instead of just still images (and the only ones I’ll share here are those that were posted publicly, since they were pretty adamant about no screenshotting/recording of the event…not gonna lie, I did attempt to screenshot a couple parts, but due to the shaky streaming quality, the official photos are much better than what I was able to capture anyway :P) Also, I only made bare minimum notes while I was watching this (and was drinking hard cider), so I’ll give as much detail as I can remember, but there are definitely things I’ll have forgotten by now.

The show started off with one of the female pros giving a demonstration of how to apply makeup for competitions. After this came an introductory show with all of the participants dancing to the opening theme from La La Land.

Next up was some of the pros talking about the characteristics of their costumes, such as the Latin outfits having features like illusion netting to make their limbs look longer, and fringe to create movement.

After this, some of the pros gave tours of the dance schools that they run, which also served as advertisements for those who may be interested in signing up for lessons.

Then came some step demonstrations, showing specific panels from the manga and then describing how to perform the moves. This included Al and Suzuki’s rumba walk from chapter 18, and the throwaway oversway from the chapter 4 scene where Sugiki turns Suzuki into a princess. For the oversway, they performed the move a few different times, using prompts such as “do it like the world’s about to end” to show how the same move can feel very different depending on the emotion behind it.

This was followed by an interview with former standard world champion Christopher Hawkins. The interview was conducted in Japanese, as he is fluent in the language (Inouesatoh tweeted about him being the inspiration to have Norman speak some Japanese in the story, though she acknowledged that Chris’ abilities are far above Norman’s very basic phrases). It included two interviewers asking questions that were submitted by Inouesatoh and her editor. It started off with some basic talk about the process of training and getting prepared for competitions, then moved on to topics like whether he had any competition related superstitions/habits, such as how some dancers will have a pair of lucky underwear they always wear when competing. He said he had a specific order to how he would button his shirt and attach his cufflinks (as in, not just going straight up or down, but skipping over some and coming back to them), and if he didn’t do this specific routine it made him feel like the competition would go poorly. After telling this story, he laughed and said that he’s never told anyone about this before, so it was definitely an interesting question. Then came probably the most important question for fans of 10 Dance: since the series centers around men dancing together, what sort of experience does Chris have dancing with other men? (Funnily enough, for some reason, the male interviewer first asked this question in Japanese, then rather enthusiastically asked the question in English as well lol). Chris said that of course he’s danced with male students a lot in the course of teaching them, but outside of that also had times where he would train in the female role so he knew how it felt to be the following partner, and therefore could become a better lead. He mentioned some performance he did with another high level male dancer that was pretty amazing (forgive me, I didn’t catch the name at all, or even whether he was a standard or Latin specialist), which caused the female interviewer to joke about writing a love story about the two of them.

Then came the main draw of the event, the dance show! I’ll include the song, dance style, and an image from each performance below.

One Way or Another by Blondie, jive

Lady Marmalade (I believe it was the Moulin Rouge movie version), ladies group cha-cha

Half of Me by Ken Hirai, rumba (I don’t know if it’s just because it made me think of the melancholy rumba shown on vol. 6’s cover, but this made me both want to cry and watch it multiple times over, definitely my favorite because apparently I like to punish myself with sadness :P)

All of Me by Michael Bublé, foxtrot (this was filmed both in the performance space and out on the streets in one of the locations used in chapter 33, as shown in this video from one chilly looking morning. Also, this dance featured a leader switch partway through!)

If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes, cha-cha

Finale with all participants to It’s Time to Dance from “The Prom” musical

Last up was a virtual art exhibition featuring 17 sketches by Inouesatoh, including the most powerful sexual stimulant in the known universe, Bathrobe Sugiki.

Overall, I was very happy to get the chance to witness this event. Normally, the number of people would be limited to just those who were in Japan and able to purchase tickets before they sold out, but this remote version allowed a much larger number of people from all over the world to watch (I bought my ticket not even knowing if it would be region locked or not, but thankfully it wasn’t). I hope that the world situation improves and they can put on the event live and in-person again (even better if I could somehow find a way to attend when that happens!), but I think this was a great alternative, and probably a good way to make some revenue in a time when the ability to stage events is limited. The price of 1,000 yen was an incredibly good deal for all the content that was presented (and you better believe I slammed an extra 1,000 straight to Inouesatoh; the only merch I’ve been able to buy is secondhand, and while this satisfies my needs as a collector, it unfortunately doesn’t provide any support to the author). If real life performances are still a long way off and they decide to do a virtual one again, you bet your ass I’ll be right there in the (imaginary) front row!

#10 dance #10dance

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minijenn · 3 years

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Keys to the Kingdom Preview

Otherwise known as “Sora Gets Himself Into Some HUGE Fucking Trouble” because damn this boy just keeps making those Bad Decisions huh? Anyway enjoy Baby’s Moral Crisis:

A handful of the guards press forward upon their captain’s command, only to be knocked back by several more black spikes. By now, Sora’s ready to make a run for it with the scepter in tow, though as he turns back to the exit, he’s met with an alarming sight. Despite his best efforts to fight them off, Cassim is soon overwhelmed by the horde of guards surrounding him, ultimately leaving him with no choice but to surrender. At least until he happens to glance over Sora’s direction.

“A little help here, boy?” he asks, hoping that Sora’s peculiar powers can get him out of this tight spot.

And yet, as much as he’d like to help Cassim, Sora quickly realizes pulling him out of his plight won’t be so easy. One of the guards has already latched onto him, wrenching his arms tightly behind his back to restrain him while another begins tying them up tight. As he watches another guard grab Iago before he can escape, Sora finds even more soldiers are closing in on him as well, their arrows ready to fly in what will no doubt be a painful strike. A strike that could land him in far more trouble than he can even imagine if he’s caught. And that’s why he has to make the tough call to do whatever he can to keep that from happening, even if he can’t do much to save Cassim from the same fate.

“Sora?” Cassim presses once more, struggling to free himself from the guards’ tight hold.

“...I’m sorry,” Sora sighs, tightening his grip on the scepter. Just before any of the guards can reach him, he calls upon another burst of energy from below, using it as a boost to launch him high over everyone around him, ultimately landing him right next to the treasury doors. He pauses only for a brief moment, glancing back at Cassim and Iago only to see the sheer shocked looks of betrayal all over both of their faces. Betrayal that he knows he won’t be able to ease in the slightest with what he says next. “But I have to do this…”

And with that, Sora turns on his heel, bursts through the doors, and runs.

He only barely hears Cassim’s indiscernible angry shout, barely hears the guards’ rallying cry to capture him and reclaim the scepter. The most he can really hear is his own heartbeat pounding away in his ears, panic pouring through him as he races through the palace halls. He’s not sure where he’s going, or what he even intends on doing now that the entire plan has fallen to pieces. But what he does know is that he needs to escape, from the guards, from Cassim, from Aladdin or Roxas or Xion, and most of all, from his own horrible decisions. Decisions he’s only starting to regret now that there’s nothing he can do to take any of them back.

As he continues running through the winding corridors, he can’t help but wonder how it’s all come to this. How he ended up stealing from one of his longtime friends, stealing something that could, just as Roxas said, potentially save him, even if he still doesn’t think it can. How he ended up committing treason, not just against Aladdin or Jasmine, but against an entire world he’s grown so fond of across his many visits to it. Has his heart really fallen so far into darkness that he’s willing to stoop low enough to do something so treacherous? Has he really become no better than the very Organization he’s spent so long trying to keep himself out of?

And is there any way out of this disaster he’s brought solely upon himself? Out of the seemingly endless struggle he can’t seem to escape from, even by way of death itself?

Perhaps, Sora considers apprehensively as he looks down at the scepter secure in his arms, there just might be. All in the form of that question he still doesn’t want to ask… but knows he needs to regardless. Besides, at least now he can learn the truth in solitude. He can have the privilege of being alone when he finds out, once and for all, that he really is doomed no matter what he does.

Eventually, he manages to find a secluded room, one with a quiet, abandoned balcony. He rushes inside, and uses his Keyblade to seal the doors up tight to keep anyone from following him. And then, there alone on the balcony, he finally decides to ask that question, and face whatever that answer might be. Even if he already knows what that answer most certainly is.

“Hey!” he calls, raising the scepter. “Um… Oracle? I need to ask you something!”

The scepter responds in turn, hovering out of Sora’s hold as the Oracle herself appears in her usual ethereal splendor. “What knowledge do you seek, young hero of the Keyblade?” she asks expectantly.

Sora winces at this, wishing she wouldn’t call him a ‘hero’; because by all accounts, he feels nothing like a hero in light of what he’s just done. “I-I… I want to know-” he cuts himself off as a sudden burst of incredible pain floods through his heart, seemingly out of nowhere. It sweeps through him, silencing him to the point that he can’t speak. To the point that he can’t say the question he desperately wants to ask, the question he needs to ask above all else: “How do I save my heart from the darkness?”

Instead, much to his surprise, another question entirely comes out of his mouth, one that’s spoken in his voice, but isn’t his own in the slightest. It forces itself out rigidly as he tries to suppress it, as he tries his hardest to keep himself from wasting perhaps the last chance he might ever get to put an end to this, to free himself from the chains that are meant to keep him bound to the shadows for the rest of his life. Yet instead of asking for that freedom, this is what he’s forced to ask instead:

“H-how do I find this world’s Key?”

It’s a foolish question, a useless one. Each of the Keys he’s found have always shown themselves to him in good time to the point that he’s never really needed any external help in tracking them down. And yet, through some force far beyond his control, he’s made to ask for help with something he doesn’t need; all while being denied the help he certainly won’t be able to survive without.

For her part, the Oracle dutifully responds, imparting her wisdom seemingly without sensing the question posed to her wasn’t sincere. “The Key connected to this world can be forced only by a heart filled with the deepest of guilt.”

And that’s all she offers him before she disappears. Before her scepter falls back into his grip. And his tears fall onto its golden surface.

#bruh im so tilted rn #ahahah this chapter is fucked #i love it im speed writing it because im THRIVING #i wanna get to One Certain Part today ahahaha #this is how i spend my time while sick nice #jen writes #keys to the kingdom #keys preview

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amphtaminedreams · 4 years

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Paris Haute Couture Week S/S 2020 Plus a Little Jacquemus: Okay, Dior DID Suck (Part 1/2)

Hi to anyone reading,

Oh my god. I completely forgot there was also 2 haute couture weeks. I FEEL SO OVERWHELMED. Here I was getting all geared up for the F/W 2020 shows and suddenly it’s Jean Paul Gaultier’s last show and everybody’s (predictably) buzzing about the Jacquemus collection. I can’t keep up. But Haute Couture week is a lot less intense than the RTW shows so I suppose I should be enjoying this relative peace whilst I can.

I remember my last post about Haute Couture week opened with me defending Maria Grazia from the wrath of the internet; if Jacquemus is social media’s Lord and Saviour, this woman is the Antichrist. She’s Michael Langdon minus the dramatic flair. But the thing is, I genuinely really liked the Dior collection last time. Maybe because I was newer to the discipline of scouring Vogue Runway, but the lack of originality didn’t bother me; it was still something I’d die to wear, gothic yet delicate and relevant for 2019.

That being said, this time round, I have to open by doing the exact opposite and concurring: this time round, Dior was in fact, utter shit.

I feel mean saying it but...really? These were the slightly more salvageable outfits and my favourite of the bunch, and to be honest they don’t really capture the full extent of how outdated this collection was to me. I know that the concept behind the show was this idea of the divine feminine but Greek Goddess has been done SO many times. If you’re gonna go down that route, you have to bring something new, elevate it in some way. It can’t be THIS generic.

I can’t believe that in 2020 we’re really seeing plaited hairbands. The individual dresses are basic, but not so much the problem as the styling; they look like outfits I would’ve put together back in 2012. That’s not an exaggeration. I think even 2013 me would appreciate that you need to make things a little twisty.

The colour scheme is pretty, don’t get me wrong, and I like the cowl necks-the white dresses are the highlights. I think the concept of this collection was conceived with all the best intentions. But as a designer you need to take risks and I don’t see one single risk here; there isn’t anything that wouldn’t already be sold in your local H&M. Dior is such an established brand, Maria Grazia has room to do whatever she wants. And yet it just comes across like she’s out of ideas.

You’ve got to look at a designer like Ulyana Sergeenko:

When I say elevated (but still in the vein of wearable), I mean something like this. To be completely honest, I hadn’t heard of Ulyana Sergeenko until I saw shots of this show on Twitter. But what a perfect mix of kitsch and glamour. The influences are clear: Priscilla Presley, Barbie, Jackie O, Valley of the Dolls, the rich stay-at-home wife of the 60s, the Alessandra Rich/Scream Queens-esque sorority girl, Paris fucking Hilton. It’s exaggerated and it’s tongue in cheek with total grounds to call it trashy-there’s a corset resembling a Benjamin Franklin, ffs-but it’s all done with a wink and a nudge. And in all honesty, I just think it’s beautiful. Can you imagine Frances O’Sullivan (@Beautyspock on IG) in one of these looks? It would be worthy of the Rose McGowan cultural reset meme ten times over.

Everything is feline, from the very literal cat silhouettes and cat headed boa, to the makeup and the hair clips. It reminds me of the last RTW Ralph and Russo show but with even more attention to detail. And look at the STAGE. If this collection were a song, it’d be Disco Tits by Tove Lo. And no, I’m not just saying that because one of the dresses actually does feature a (cat shaped) disco tit. Like these are the clothes I dreamed of putting my Bratz dolls, and for null I’m sure, myself in. Absolute perfection. Plus, I’ve loved Coco Rocha since she was on The Face with Naomi Campbell; she is, after all, to thank for the iconic “check your lipstick before you come for me” line. Girl is really the martyr for all purple lipstick lovers, cut down in her prime by a pissed-off Naomi.

Onto Alexandre Vauthier, which I also really liked. An interesting yet effortless blend of the old and the new, the masculine and the feminine, if I could sum this collection up in one word, it would be cool. I know, it’s not the most descriptive, but it pretty much sums up how I feel; I’m not AS gassed about it as I am about Ulyana Sergeenko or this season’s Elie Saab (wait for it), but it’s a fresh offering, even if the styles aren’t the most groundbreaking. Stand outs for me are the almost petticoat like, debutante dresses which have Elle Fanning’s name written all over them.

I was hard pressed to find favourites in the Armani Privé collection if I’m honest. I’m not saying it was awful, all I know is that it just isn’t my style. It’s all a bit TOO tailored for my liking, and kinda reminds me of the Zara pantsuits my Spanish teacher used to wear. In other words, I find it to be a bit dowdy. On a positive note, the colours, fabrics, and beading are all stunning, so I see that a lot of craftsmanship clearly went into it; I think my biggest issue is the styling and the shapes (or lack of) on show. I’m very much getting a 20s, flapper vibe and whilst that’s an era that fascinates me and that I appreciate was cutting-edge at the time, I’ve yet to see it be bought into the 21st century in a way that doesn’t look stiff or costume-y.

Then there’s Azzaro. At the complete opposite end of the scale to Armani, it doesn’t look expensive, which I’m sure isn’t something any designer previewing their collection at haute couture week is striving for. BUT that being said, I’d be much more likely to wear something from this collection than I would from Armani Privé. I mean, I have no shot at ever wearing either but ya get me.

Whilst I’m sure it or something similar has been done before, the mesh diamanté dress is exquisite and I’m a huge fan of the stacked gem chokers and belts. The whole collection looks like something a London socialite who parties by night but (deep breath in) plays in a shitty band so fancies herself a bit of a rockstar by day would wear (exhale) and as much as that doesn’t sound like a compliment, I mean it as one. I’m talking about the kind of person you’d see smoking outside a bar and think “I wish I was them but I am potato lol”. I mean, as far as faux fur and fedoras are concerned, I’m gonna find it hard to completely slate a collection so this is pretty up my alley.

Chanel was a huge step up from their last RTW collection, imo, and probably on par with their last haute couture offering. It’s that same blend of preppy Chanel detailing (i.e the exaggerated collars, the checks and the lace) and practicality, only even more austere this time round.

It’s funny because when I looked back on original notes on this collection, before I’d even done any research into the context, I saw that one of the things I’d written was “giving me Victorian orphanage madame” as well as “something something Amish” and I wasn’t THAT far off base. The collection is, after all, supposed to be a tribute to the nuns who raised Coco Chanel at the beginning of the century in an Abbey-cum-orphanage. This makes me really happy; I know not everyone’s a fan of Virginie Viard’s nods back to the past and the brand’s origins but as a history nerd, I definitely am.

There’s also definitely a lot of things that can be translated into high street trends here: the combination of decorative white socks and black shoes is something I’ve seen making a comeback already, tulle is always a winner (I actually don’t mind it as an overlay, I think it’s pretty, sue me) and I have no doubt we’ll be seeing these dramatic collars creeping back onto tops and jumpers throughout the year. It’s been a while since they were a thing anyway and we all know how cyclical fashion is.

Another high note for Elie Saab this haute couture season; if I was an expressive person, I probably would’ve audibly gasped as I looked through this collection. It is SO FUCKING MAGNIFICENT. The colour scheme, the baroque prints, the floral sequinned embroidery, these are Cinderella style ballgowns taken to the next level. Elie Saab really is the definition of opulence and I’m not at all mad about it. Please, somebody put Lana Del Rey in one of these, PLEASE. Remind her how much of a princess she is and get her out of those “soccer mom” looks.

I’m so stuck between this collection and Ulyana Sergeenko as my favourite, and the latter might just pip the other to the post, purely because of the staging and extravagance of the presentation itself.

Georges Hobeika was predictably phenomenal. Like, I’m not going to lie, I am easily won over by some sequins and tulle, I’ve never claimed any different, and if you can expect that from anyone, it’s this guy (ignore that phrasing making me sound like his proud mother). The colour scheme is very spring appropriate and so is the 3D flower detailing, and if there’s anything good to take from Ascot and English royal weddings, Georges Hobeika knows it’s the hats.

It was another strong year for Givenchy too:

Though Claire Waight Keller is also fond of the extravagant details along the lines of feather and tulle, it’s always done in a more organic way; the details are always more reminiscent of nature, something created by accident, than they are suggestive of painstaking attention to detail, the image of someone hunched over a dress beading for hours on end à la Georges Hobeika or Elie Saab. That is not a bad thing at all; if anything, it makes Givenchy more interesting to study and gives you more to think about. Sometimes a dress takes you a bit longer to fully appreciate, but I’d say that only lends to its memorability. This year’s willowy, billowing, and at times coral-esque structures remind me of something I can see being worn down an Iris Van Herpen runway, set apart by that delicate Givenchy finesse. And side not: I know this post is to talk about the clothes, not the models, but I got super excited over seeing Sora Choi and Adut Akech walk too.

Guo Pei is always fun to look at. I mean, this collection is giving me half Matryoshka dolls, half It’s A Small World Christmas edition and I can’t hate on that.

And then there’s Iris Van Herpen, who knocked it out of the park once again. At this point, I wouldn’t expect anything less. Every outfit looks like something that could be exhibited in the Tate Modern (I know, it’s a basic opinion, but it’s true: TATE MODERN IS THE BEST MUSEUM IN LONDON), or honestly, the Design Museum, just for the genius that must go into the way these dresses move. Honestly, if I can see a goddess wearing anything, it’s more one of these looks than anything in the Dior collection. Like wife of Poseidon or something; I know it’s not very feminist of me to not know the Greek Goddess of the sea’s name but I only know who Poseidon is because I was a Percy Jackson fan back in the day so let me live.

It’s not like the whole under-the-sea theme is particularly new, Zimmerman did something similar last RTW (I think? Correct me if I’m wrong), but these constructions could’ve grown out of the sea bed themselves, which is more of an original take than “oo, blue and white and frothy hemlines!”. Additionally, we’ve got these dresses with the overlapping almost plaited fabric that are-we’re sticking with the goddess references here-fit for Persephone ruling over hell. As for the Grudge-looking dress (fourth down, far left), I could be reaching, but is anyone else seeing that as a nod to the oil spills polluting our oceans? Because that would just add yet another layer to this collection.

Regardless, it’s all impeccable and I’m in love. Iris Van Herpen as a MET Gala theme. Make it happen.

Anyway, to end on a high note, that’s it for this post!

Sorry it’s such a sudden cut-off but Jean Paul Gaultier was due to be my second to last to review and due to it being the final show, there’s an onslaught of photos that would not fit with what’s already in this post. Plus, I’d rather start a post with Jacquemus then end it as I feel like there’s a lot of hype around his collections online right now so 1). it’s clickbait (for what, I do not know, as I’m not exactly making any money off this blog, just losing my sanity as it transpires when Tumblr accidentally terminated it earlier today and I had a minor breakdown) and 2). this Steve Buscemi meme is the most accurate representation of only 21 year old me to grace the internet:

I will aim to post part 2/2 in the next week, including JPG, as I just mentioned, the Jacquemus co-ed show, Margiela, Valentino and more, and as always, thank you for anyone who read until the end! You are an angel:-)

Lauren x

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localkatshelter · 3 years

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Okame’s Underbelly - Explanation |5th|

(ShinsoxOC)

Katsumi’s POV (localvillageidiot#0870) and Shinso’s POV (hecker#8339)

Warning: Contains arguing, name-calling, smoking, swearing, slight misuse of quirk, and Denki and Mina supremacy

Preview (Katsumi’s POV):

| “Shinso,” I said, turning to him, “you like poetry too, right?” I said, giving him a small, inviting smile.

“No, not my thing.” he grumbled, not even turning to answer me directly.

I felt my eye twitch. I am trying. So hard. To be nice.

“Oh really? I got the feeling that you might since I think we met briefly at a poetry house once over the summer.” I said pleasantly, clenching my jaw in secret.

“Did we? Well, even if we did, I don’t think I’d remember you.” he said dismissively.

Okay, now you're just trying to piss me off. |

Unknown source for artwork. (Please let me know who’s it is if you know)

1st Chapter - Anticipation

(Katsumi's POV)

The smell of day old frying oil greeted me as I walked into Marley’s to meet up with Mina. She had asked me to grab a quick bite to eat with her before we went to a party that a friend of hers was having. She knew I would never turn down a good time nor would I ever turn down a Marley’s date. I scanned the room to find my favorite tuft of pink hair waving wildly at me. My smile morphed into shock when I saw an equally wild blonde waving at me as well. I hurried over to the table to greet them but when I arrived I saw Edgelord sitting with them as well. His head was stuck in a menu, apparently trying to seem indifferent about my arrival. I felt a strange mix of anger and anxiety rushing out of him, pushing me back towards the door. It irritated me but I decided to ignore it, focusing my attention on those who were happy to see me.

“Denki, hi! I didn’t think I’d see you so soon.”

“Fate must be bringing us together.” he avowed, comically suave.

I laughed. “It must be. Can’t say I mind though.”

I hugged Mina, who had gotten out of the booth when I walked over.

“Why didn’t you tell me you had friends coming too?” I asked.

“I thought you’d like the surprise!” she beamed.

“You know me, the more the merrier!” I said as we settled into our seats. I slid into the booth next to Edgelord, who still hadn’t said anything. I took off my leather jacket and tucked it into my backpack between my legs.

“Hey Shinso.” I said casually.

“Hey.” he replied gruffly.

Well this is going to be an awkward meal. He’s already on my nerves. I don’t get why he’s acting like this. I let him sleep on my couch and he can’t even muster up a decent hello? Is he trying to hurt my feelings? ... Just play nice Kat. He’s Mina’s old friend and Denki’s roommate. You can do this. Just pretend like he’s not being weird, or better yet, pretend like he’s not even there. Don’t let it get to you. I took a mental deep breath and smiled at the two across from me. The three of us chatted for a while about nothing in particular, just a little small talk about this and that. At some point, Mina mentioned something about a high school memory, which reminded me of how they all knew each other.

“Denki, you went to UA too, right? Your quirk must be really cool.” I said.

“Wanna see how it works?” He raised an eyebrow and smiled mischievously.

I looked over at Mina who smiled encouragingly at me, albeit a bit too eager for my liking.

“Uh, sure why not?”

“Give me your hand.”

I complied, placing my hand in his. He took it and flipped it so my palm was up. He dangled his fingers over my hand dramatically, like a magician about to say their magic words.

“Are you ready?”

I nodded, a bit intrigued. He placed a finger in the middle of my palm and activated his quirk, sending a small zap into my skin. A strange noise came out of my mouth when I felt the slight pain and surprise hit me. The noise sent Mina and Denki into a fit of laughter.

“What- what was that noise?” Mina choked out between giggles.

“Shut up, that hurt!”

“I- I’m sorry! It was just too tempting!” Denki wheezed.

I rubbed the slightly tender part of my palm and glared at them.

“Come on, I’ll make it up to you. Let me kiss it better.” He held out his hands to me.

I looked at him skeptically.

“I won't do it again, promise.”

I gave him my hand and he leaned down, placing an electrified kiss on the same spot as before.

“Ow!” I cried as I pulled my hand back.

Mina and Denki bursted out laughing once more, this time joined by a scoff from Shinso.

“How gullible can you be?” Shinso said under his breath.

I shot him a look but before I could say anything back, our food arrived.

We ate and the three of us continued to chat. Mina and Denki told me stories about their time at UA together. It was so cool to hear what the pro heroes that I was covering were like when they were students. I took some pretty good mental notes, not that I would ever use any of the personal information I gathered in any of my posts. That just felt like an invasion of privacy, but it did help me understand the dynamic I captured between certain heroes in my photographs. It always struck me odd how Dynamite and Deku looked when they fought together. Their relationship vexed me but pulled me in at the same time. The same applied to Dynamite and Red Riot. Hearing that one pair had been childhood friends and the other had become super close in their first year at UA shed some new light and perspective on the scenes that I had captured before.

Some of the stories were just outright hilarious too. Denki was an absolute riot and the way he and Mina played off of each other made my mission of ignoring Edgelord’s attitude super easy. He hadn’t said much of anything since our food had come to the table despite Mina and Denki trying to involve him in their storytelling. He just hummed or gave an unenthusiastic “yeah” whenever they asked him something. I didn’t need to use my quirk to feel the irritation and discomfort rolling off of him. If you don’t want to be here, then leave. I couldn’t help but feel like I was the reason he was so annoyed. I walked myself through my memories trying to figure out when exactly I ran over this kid’s cat. I really was nothing but nice. I practically saved his life, not that he knows that, but still! I bared those emotions for him! It took me forever to claw my way out of that depression hole. On top of that, I gave him a place to sleep it off and helped him move all of his shit up the stairs into his room. Why is he getting under my skin this much? Why do I even care? Everything about this is pissing me off.

“So Kat,” Denki said, interrupting my thoughts. “What do you like to do in your free time?”

“I like to take pictures and I write sometimes.” I said, covering my half full mouth.

“Well duh, you’re a photojournalism major. That doesn't count.”

“Umm,” I thought about my response as I swallowed. “Actually, I used to spend a lot of time at some hole-in-the-wall place near campus. I listened to people perform poetry and stuff like that. I went every Friday at one point to listen to a particular person. The stage name was Okame, but once they stopped performing I kind of lost interest” I checked my watch. “If Okame was still performing, I’d probably be getting ready to head over right about now.”

I felt Shinso tense up next to me. His anxiety was tugging at my quirk like toddlers aggressively tug on a parent’s sleeve. Wow, his anxiety just shot through the roof... You good kid? Maybe I should bring him into the conversation? Is that what this is about?

“Shinso,” I said, turning to him, “you like poetry too, right?” I said, giving him a small, inviting smile.

“No, not my thing.” he grumbled, not even turning to answer me directly.

I felt my eye twitch. I am trying. So hard. To be nice.

“Oh really? I got the feeling that you might since I think we met briefly at a poetry house once over the summer.” I said pleasantly, clenching my jaw in secret.

“Did we? Well, even if we did, I don’t think I’d remember you.” he said dismissively.

Okay, now you're just trying to piss me off.

“Oh yeah? Well I definitely remember you. You were outside. If memory serves, you were having a pretty rough go of it.” I turned to fully face him, shooting him a challenging glare.

I knew the irritation showed on my face, but I honestly didn’t care enough to hide my emotions anymore. He met my glare with his own. The message was clear, he wanted me to shut my mouth and drop it. But why should I? He just continued to stare me down, waiting for me to change the subject, but I had a few questions for him. Mina must have seen me ready to blow a gasket because she decided to jump in to defuse the situation.

“Well, what does it matter where you were or what you're into?” she chuckled nervously. “Kat, have you been writing anything interesting lately?”

“Or do you have any of your professional-grade photographs on your phone? I’d really love to see them! I’m sure they’re amazing!” Denki chimed in, following Mina’s lead.

“I’m gonna head out for a smoke.” Shinso said, looking at me to move.

I got up to let him out. I watched him walk out with his hands deep in his pockets. I was drilling holes into the back of his head and I knew he felt it because his frustration was overcoming his anxiety as he reached the door, but I wasn’t done with him yet.

“I’m actually going to take a step out too.”

Mina gave me a look that said Girl what? You don’t smoke. But I ignored it and followed after Shinso.

(Shinso's POV)

God must be playing some cruel joke on me, either that, or I was a shittier boyfriend than I originally thought and this was my sweet karma. I just can't seem to escape that night. I managed to stifle the buzz in my head for the most part but it keeps manifesting itself, or rather infesting, my present. Time for some more shitty coping. I pulled out the pack of cigarettes from my jacket and pulled one out. It was a bit mangled but it was my second to last one. (I imagine his last cigarettes always end up this way bc he always smokes when his mood is erratic so he just manhandles tf out these ciggies)

"It's in poor condition but it'll have to do." I muttered under my breath.

I swiftly placed it between my lips and raised the lighter to it, but the flame was quickly extinguished. Shit, why does it always have to be so windy today? I hovered my other hand over the flame to block the harsh gusts, as I furrowed my brows in concentration. I was failing miserably to light my damn cigarette. I groaned in frustration before two small hands appeared around mine. My hands jerked back, startled, extinguishing the flame immediately. I looked down and realized it was the little brunette. I composed myself with a sigh and went back to trying to light my cigarette, choosing not to pay her any attention.

"Do you want help lighting your cigarette or not?" she questioned, irritated.

I looked down at her, a stubborn expression on her face. Pick your battles, Shinso. I reluctantly leaned down towards her.

“So...” she said after the cigarette was lit. “I mean this in the nicest, most polite way possible, but what the fuck is your problem?” she interrogated.

Her sudden abrasiveness caught me off guard. "Uh...what do you mean?" When did this become an interrogation all of a sudden?

“I mean, why do you treat me like I ran over your cat on your birthday?

Her absurd question also took me aback but I was quicker to adjust this time. "I don't even know who you are?” Why am I lying? Fuck it I already said it, let's go with it.

“Oh really? So that's why you act so out of pocket any time I bring up the night we met when I found you drunk and ugly crying-”

"Okay okay, fine. Just please stop bringing it up." I interrupted hastily. "Jesus fuck." I muttered under my breath. Why does she insist on bringing it up?

“So you do remember?” she asked with mock surprise. I just looked ahead of me hoping that she would run out of steam and drop it.

“Say it.” She demanded, her volume raising this time.

"Yes." I confirmed begrudgingly. Why the fuck does she have to be so loud? She's a pro at being annoying. "But I can't say it, because I genuinely don't remember your name." This was intended to be a slight jab but I was being honest. I probably could remember it if I wasn’t actively trying to forget it.

“Not like Denki and Mina haven’t said it a million times today. It’s Katsumi.”

"Ooooh right. Kat." My voice was just short of being completely monotone.

“Kat...so you do remember. Asshole.” She rolled her eyes. She has no problem insulting me. It kind of amused me but my aggravation overshadowed it.

I shrugged at her. What does it matter anyway? It's not like we're gonna be best friends. We can barely tolerate each other as it is.

“Listen Edgelord, I think you still owe me an explanation. I’ve been nothing but nice to you. So what gives?” she insisted.

"I don't know what you're talking about. This is how I always am." I technically wasn't lying. I tended to rub strangers the wrong way, either that or I was easily forgettable.

“So you're always a total douche?” she challenged, staring me right in my face.

"Funny. Guess so." I said carelessly with a hint of a smirk at her additional loving nickname for me. Wonder what else she'll call me?

“I know you’re not though. You turn sour as soon as I come around and it bothers me. So fess up. What’s your damage?” Her expression twisted into a scowl at the end of her sentence.

That last question irked me a little more than it should've. My damage?

"Hm I don't know, maybe you being a constant reminder of one of the worst days of my life." I stated with a tinge of bitterness at the end of my words.

This seemed to catch her off guard. She took a moment to configure a response. She was either being very careful with her next words or didn't know what to say at all.

“Oh, okay, yeah. That tracks... Well I’m sorry, but I really couldn’t just leave you there.” Her tone was slightly softer than before.

"I know." I admitted reluctantly. "That's what's so frustrating." I muttered, barely audible. What made her care so much about a complete mess of a stranger? Now we're attached by that occurence and it's so embarrassing.

“Frustrating? What’s so frustrating?” She caught part of it.

"Nothing. I just- I hate that you saw me like that. It's fucking weird. I like to deal with shit on my own."

“It’s really okay, Shinso. I didn’t think about it when I saw you. I was just happy to catch up, because we got along really well that night. It wasn't until you started avoiding me like the plague that I started thinking back to remember where things went wrong.”

"Yeah, I get that. But you're always bringing it up so casually like it's the weather or some shit."

“It was the only thing that got any sort of response out of you. What else did you want me to do? Besides, It didn’t make me think of you in any type of way.” she assured me.

"I just don't get why you care." I said more to myself than to her.

She seemed to genuinely consider this for a second.

“Me either, if I’m being honest. You’re so grouchy. I almost never put up with your type. But here we are.” She shrugged and dropped her arms to her side, comically defeated.

That sentiment actually drew a chuckle out of me. It didn't seem like the most appropriate response for the situation so I tried to stifle it as best as I could.

"Yup. Here we are." I confirmed.

“So we’re friends now.” she asserted, sure of it.

"Uh...I didn't say all that." She really is bold. She keeps catching me off guard.

“But I did.” she doubled down on it.

There was a brief stare down, her amber eyes were unwavering on mine. I guess it doesn't mean much. We're just gonna have to play nice when we're around each other from now on.

I shrugged. "Okay cool." I put the cigarette to my lips again only to discover it is nothing but a dying butt now. All that annoying back and forth made me forget about one of my last cigs. "Fuck, really, Kat?" I complained with a hint of playfulness at the very edge of my tone. I'm due for a pack on Sunday so I'll just have to hold out for a day or so. I pulled out the last one and lit effortlessly. Of course now it lights with no problem.

“Blame your own stubbornness. If you had just given me an answer the first time I asked, you could have smoked until your lungs gave out.” she retorted.

There was a moment of silence as I took my first drag. I could see her eyeing my cigarette, with disgust, if I had to guess.

“Gimme one of those.” She pointed to my pocket where the now empty pack was.

I shot a look down at her, my eyebrows raised. I chuckled in surprise. I didn't take her for a smoker with the way she talks about it. I guess she's one of those self-loathing nic addicts. Kinda same. I'm just not as loud about it.

"A little too late, this is the last one." I took another drag, staring mindlessly at the horizon in front of me.

“And?” she insisted as if that was a dumb response.

I gave her another weird look before it registered. Oh...okay.

"Fine." I gave her the cigarette I was smoking.

She grabbed the cigarette, maneuvering it awkwardly in her hand before settling it between her pointer and middle finger, the typical form. She brought it to her mouth and inhaled with a pained expression. She was barely a second in before she began coughing. Yup, she doesn’t actually smoke. Her sad attempt was endearing in an odd way. It was actually kind of cute. What am I thinking? She was intolerable a second ago. Stop that, brain. You’re being weird. Scolding myself inwardly distracted me from the fact that I was laughing at her outwardly. She rolled her eyes in response, annoyed at my amusement.

“Listen, people seem to smoke when they’re stressed and well, you stress me the fuck out so I thought I’d give it a try. Show me how to do it then, since you wanna scoff at me.” She handed the cigarette back to me before crossing her arms. I followed up her request with another chuckle, shaking my head at her.

“Are you sure you wanna be my friend? I’m already teaching you bad habits.” I teased, a smirk pulling at the corner of my lips. But I obliged and raised the cigarette to my lips obnoxiously slow and inhaled. I blew the smoke in her general direction and she swatted it away with a grimace.

“Tada…” I concluded sarcastically.

“Gross...you know what? Nevermind.”

We laughed in unison. It was followed up with a moment of quiet.

“Well, Edgelord, I’ll see you at the party. Try to smile a little when you’re there. It suits you way more than your resting bitch face.”

“I’m starting to think that you don’t remember my name either. Keep it fresh and switch it up once in a while. Try...I don’t know...buzzkill next, or something.” I criticized, a smile in my voice.

She tilted her head to the side as if to say “good idea”, before I put out my cigarette and headed inside with her.

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