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selastheblue · 2 months

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Home is where the heart Is

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Dusk, red and golden crawled across the sky dragging behind her a blanket of deep and comforting navy. The chimneys and roofs of the more westerly buildings were too low to block Flicker's view as he lazed about on the shingles of one of the highest buildings of Slumberton. It was a smaller settlement he had overheard human 'beans' describe it, not quite a city but surely more than a hamlet. Flicker had never left Slumberton himself and only could go by how beans spoke of it. Those words meant little to him practically having never experienced anything different. To him the town was sprawling, loud, and towering. With more beans they he could really wrap his head around. The concept of a city having yet more beans, and being substantially busier and nosier was quite disquieting to the diminutive borrower.

Slumberton's streets were well cobbled and maintained, little in the way of litter or refuse even in its alleyways and potholes quickly tended to. Flicker was grateful for this as he had heard elders speak of less fortunate times when rats ran amok in the streets, making them significantly more dangerous at night. Beans were more careful and attentive to the little things then too, he had heard. More quickly patching holes Wayfinders would use for entry into bean buildings, or making the very act of obtaining food precarious with poisons left out to fight the vermin menace.

Most of Slumberton's streets were narrow and while carriages and wagons passed through often on their way north or south, these caravans were limited mostly to the wider through-ways with a stop in the central bean market square.

Flicker's face scrunched a bit thinking at that thought. The markets were one of the most dangerous placed he had ever gone, and yet some things could only be found there. Bustling beans walking about haphazardly without a single thought where their boots crashed down, loud shouting over the value of the things they wished to exchange like thunder over his head, and worst of all; cats. One of the most dangerous beasts a Wayfinder could encounter out in the streets. Smart, quiet, fast, and worst of all everywhere. Beans loved the vicious monsters! It was an unfortunate reality Flicker knew, but still silently lamented the beans for always making things harder for him.

Flicker's attention was on the fading of the light with an excited but apprehensive grin. Soon it would be time to depart for the night, but not quite yet. Beans would be sure to still be out and about for some time yet finishing their tasks for the day. As a Wayfinder Flicker understood the value of a moonless twinkling night. So he would wait a bit longer, at least until most beans were settling down for dinner.

It came to him as he rested on that vantage, that the roof of his destination for the night was just visible to him. A small and cozy bakery fairly new to the northern part of the town. It looked so small from here, deceptively so. He could almost see himself walking in and requesting bread, or cakes, or biscuits like any other bean. He chuckled lightly at the absurd thought.

Flicker moved his short auburn hair from his eyes as he stood up to his rather miniscule 5 inch height, and squinted down at it. A better spot than some of the other's he'd scouted as of late. Warm, fresh food, busy enough small things might not be missed, and loud enough borrower sounds were sure to go by unnoticed. The baker himself was even half blind, owning but rarely wearing a set of spectacles. Flicker mused lightly on perhaps borrowing their lenses to redirect sunlight into whatever colony he would found.

But it was far. Farther then he'd gone before alone. Under the more senior Wayfinder Buckle he had made it all the way to the gates, a week long journey there and back. Along the low road, across the southern bridge, around the markets, past the bean stables where they kept their immense mounts. As the memory crossed his mind he rested his hand on his rapier, once belonging to his mentor, the one who had founded Damperflue itself decades back. It had been the very first borrowing of the master Wayfinder.

Buckle... and Flicker's heart ached a moment for the surety he had under the guidance of his once mentor, .... wish you were here. Could see the founding for yourself...

Suddenly Flicker was once again going over his gear, as Buckle would often tell him to do. Harness buckled, backpack closed tight with his dried food, a blanket, a length of twine, a small sealed jar of catnip, another small jar of rat-poison. He checked too his large fishhook, attached to a string that tied onto his harness. The knots for each complex and tight so as not to slip at the moment of truth. And Flicker pulled out his blade from its tiny sheath and inspected it. About 3 inches long, with a complex and decorative hilt, curvy vine like guard with a black rat-skin leather handle, compliments of Ring-Ward, best tinker of Damperflue.

The little fellow sheathed his weapon once more as the sun fell below the horizon fully, a hue of pink splashing upon the sky in a final defiance of darkness. Damperflue was another name that made him feel a slight longing. It had always been home. When Buckle started Wayfinding and taking Flicker along with him it was terrifying to leave the colony and venture out into the realm of beans. Returning home to the community was always a relief. Soon one he would be without. At least until his own new colony was founded.

Something about that train of thought got his boots moving, over to the edge of the roof to peer down to the nearly abandoned streets below where lamps were being lit by younger beans with candles on long sticks. A sign it would be soon time to depart. Flicker turn away from the edge of the roof then and headed back from whence he had once come, to a small opening at the very top of the chimney. Long it had sat unused by the beans who owned this building, bricked up in favor of a newer one built more to the center of the three story inn. And that suited Flicker and his kin just fine! In it's hollow interior they built their home, Damperflue. Large by borrower standards, housing nearly 250 borrowers in its many levels Damperflue was a pillar known to most of the borrowers about Slumberton as a safe haven.

But Flicker merely passed through his home. Seeing the faces he wouldn't again see for some time. For he did not intend to return until he had found the place to found his own colony, and only then to seek the group he had spoken to about helping him. Spectacles, Specky for short, had been skeptical but Pint, Cuppa, and Wick were all on board for the idea.

Walking the passages and climbing down twine and toothpick ladders he passed through several work rooms, tiny forges and worktables a buzz with activity that would seem quite quaint to any human that laid eyes upon them. Flicker made sure to get the attention of Ring-Ward for a brief moment in the cacophony of the tinker-rooms, waving an arm. Across the busy room he caught the grey eyes he sought, and the older grey haired borrower smiled as he saw Flicker give him a firm salute. In return the muscled tinker raised his hammer. They'd talked about this for a while, and neither were much for words. But friends they were all the same. That done, Flicker continued his descent. Below that a storage space filled with useful borrowed materials. And below that the nursery and sleep chamber, where litters of young borrowers played with each other and their rearers. Flicker walked quicker through here. Without a rearing bone in his body he had next to no patience for the little ones. He didn't know how Buckle had done it when each and every time the older Wayfinder would return from his journeys Flicker would pester him for stories, and eventually beg the fellow to teach him.

Nearly out of the colony he descended to the lowest level, on par with the bottom of the attic's floor with a hidden entrance in the form of a brick that was on sliders to allow it to easily be pulled into the chimney's interior and permit passage. This level also happened to be the canteen, with the smell of food and sound merriment was perhaps the loudest place in Damperflue. Even music from the center of the space where there was a small stage with several borrowers sang, danced and played instruments while their fellows at tables nearby enjoyed the show as they ate their meals.

Spotting near the back the counter where fresh food is placed when ready, next to the kitchen door through which the delightful smells of cooking wafted Flicker changed trajectory slightly. He should have a bite to eat before going. But for him venturing near the kitchens at all was dangerous. Caramel was about, after all.

Through the crowd he wove towards the counter, making sure the door to the kitchen remained closed all the while. When he came up to it finally he glanced across what was on offer. Croissants stuffed with long-roasted rat and borrowed marbled cheese. A rat-flank roast, sliced into portions. Rat ribs, smothered in sauce. Baked beans cut down the center but not all the way through and stuffed with green onion.

And Flicker grinned at the last one, one of his favorites. Breaded rat belly sandwiches, topped with fresh lettuce, gravy, pickles, and a thin slice of cherry tomato. He took one and started to eat immediately, and another he began to wrap up in a dense paper from the corner of the food counter, closing his little package with a length of string.

Flicker tucked it away into his pack for the journey and turned only to come face to face with a tall borrower woman with light brown hair, strongly built and a very wide grin, Caramel.

"You didn't think you were going without a hug goodbye did you?" she asked him, and didn't hesitate to pick up the smaller fellow. Right off the floor and crushed in her strong arms.

Flicker's back cracked, and he groaned as the air was squeezed from him, "....ah.... no..... 'course not, 'Mel...!" Arms pinned to his sides he wriggled rather helplessly in her grasp.

Releasing him Caramel laughed merrily, and while he caught his breath she patted his head, "Ah you're being dramatic! I thought you were a Wayfinder, a hug hasn't winded you has it?"

Flicker recovered more as he crossed his arms over his chest defensively, choosing not to defend that accusation, "'Mel, you're nearly a bean with those arms!"

"Aw, you're gonna make me blush!" Caramel chuckled in response, "But.... you're seriously going? This is the night?" there was a pride, and concern to her tone.

He nodded once, "I am. I've.... put it off long enough. Buckle wouldn't want me to squander the spot we were talking about before..." Flicker cleared his throat, suddenly tighter, "...so yeah. I'm going tonight. I don't expect to be back for.... at least a week, maybe two."

Caramel's sympathy was clear to see for Flicker as she touched his arm gently, "I'm sorry Flick, I know you were close."

He could only nod in reply, throat to tight too really say anything. Flicker looked away, finding his voice after a moment, "Ah yeah, um, I still got a group interested in the new colony. Were you still interested?" Completely avoiding discussion of Buckle.

"Of course. You find us a spot and I'll be there in a heartbeat." she promised, "....you're sure you're ready?"

Flicker forced a laugh, "Of course 'Mel! Been waiting for this all my life! My own new colony to found! You couldn't hold me back if you tried!"

Caramel grinned, "Ha, sure Flick. Just be careful. And take this. Special rations, you're favorite stuff. Enough for about a week, and they wont keep much longer than that anyway." and from behind the counter she reached, and pulled out a second smaller pack he could lash to his main bag.

"Ah, 'Mel.... you're great. Really. Best friend I could ask for." he smiled as he took the bundle, and began tying it to his main pack, already filled to the brim.

"Least I could do for Damperflue's number one Wayfinder." She smiled, and while she clearly meant it as a compliment to encourage Flicker, it makes his expression sink slightly.

Hefting his bag onto his back, and clasping it to his harness, he smiled up at the taller borrower, "Right. See you 'Mel. Be safe, and see you in a couple weeks, probably. You know how Wayfinding can go, give or take a few days."

Caramel nodded, and then with one final crushing hug that lasted at least twice as long as the first Flicker headed for the sliding brick.

It moved easily on its simple greased rails, sliding in, and there was a little cheer from those around as he headed out. Just before the brick sealed behind him he could hear a song start up. A classic really, one Flicker knew well. Sang it all the time as a kid.

It was called Find Home Wayfinder. And as Flicker picked his path through the old attic crawlspace, he hummed it's jaunty tune ever so quietly. It gave him heart for what was surely to come.

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#g/t writing #g/t #borrowers #giant/tiny #giant tiny #micro #gt #herewegofirsttimeinalongtimeiveshownanyonemywriting #WayfinderTales #OCFlicker #chapter 1

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squishious · 2 years

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ok i finished my psych notes so now i'm going to tell you all a story

#this is not actually that big of a deal i just want to tell someone anyways #drove up north for the long weekend and heard there was some sort of art and music night happening downtown #and we're staying in a pretty small rural ish town #so we thought it would be nice to go check it out before grabbing dinner #as we're looking for a place to park i think i spotted at least 3 blue lives matter hoodies #and then we got out and i saw another 2nd amendment t shirt #and coupled with the fact that when my dad had been here w/ friends 20 something years ago he had had this wierd micro (tbh not that micro)#agression experience #i was feeling uncomfortable in a way i hadn't really before #it's genuinely such an odd feeling and i wish it on no one. anyways i was internally freaking out a bit as we walked down #AND THEN #2 things happened #1 we passed this storefront with some HUGE letterpresses in them #so i went in and was met by literally the most amazing store ever #i could have lived there no joke #it was a printshop and papiere and they had the most lovely cards and a little press you could use and the most GORGEOUS paper i've ever se #ever seen these lovely pens and i cannot stress how amazing the postcards/prints/cards were #and that night happened to be the opening of a local collage artists exhibition and her work was just breathtaking #anyways after getting some stuff i went to checkout and ended up chatting with the owner #who as it turns out does all the desiigning + carving of the stamps #and she offered to show me around the actual print shop w/ the presses and whatnot #she was so lovely #omg wait i've gotten sidetracked #in the shop where was just a lot of queer friendly stuff and pieces centered around poc #like they had cards of people hugging and there wasn't just one m/f white couple #and they had a few...coming out cards ig? idk but they were hilarious #okay and then #i finally leave the shop and walk out onto the main drag #and it looks like every queer person in the town is out tonight #literally drag queens with flags tied around them so many steampunk couples and a ton of people who's outfits reminded me of

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nikathingz · 2 years

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Witch's Dreams

Morpheus x Immortal!Witch!Reader

I couldn't wait to make a part 2! i hope you enjoy it! and don't forget to like and follow for more!

Part 1 here

Masterlist

( These people wanted to be tagged : @mona-has-friends @jesllianaquilesrolon @true-queen-of-mischief @deniixlovezelda @aurorarevenclaw1927 @thecrazytealady @22carolina08 )

Word Count: 1585

You took your peaceful dreams as a sign that Dream wasn’t mad at you for being hired to seal him in a basement for as long as the foundation of the house stood. While out and about doing work, you started to notice a raven just about every time you left your house. Every time you did you felt the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, it's not like you didn’t like ravens, you believed they brought good fortune. Yet, whenever you saw them recently you couldn’t help the way your gut twisted in nervousness when you noticed them perched around your apartment.

It was a few months after your debacle at the Burgess manor when you had sleeping trouble. You had awoken early that morning to start a long busy day of work and were up later than usual. But when you finally did try to enter the land of dreams, you could not.

You’d laid in bed in silence and darkness for about an hour and a half before you got up and decided to make a cup of tea, in hopes it would help you sleep. But even as you sat on your couch sipping at the warm drink, your eyelids did not droop, and your muscles did not tingle. You had felt more awake than ever actually.

After staring at the wall for several long and boring moments you looked out the window where rain had started to patter outside. Your body went ridged as a pair of yellow glowering eyes stared back at you from the fire escape. As you shifted off the couch and toward the window. The cat had stood and started trotting out of view of the window, toward where the fire escape reached your bedroom.

You rushed through your tiny apartment and crossed the threshold of your dark room, to be met with a pair of sparkling eyes in the blackness, except instead of being on the floor, at the head level of a cat. They stood taller than you, not by much, but certainly more than a feline.

Your breath hitched as thunder boomed through the city, your first instinct was to grab something to defend yourself with, but you stood frozen as the eyes approached you. You gawked as he stepped from the shadows into the beam of light coming in from your now cracked open window. It was him, Dream of the Endless.

Excitement and nerves bubbled in your throat, what did he want? Why was he here? Your eyes examined his form, he wore a black T-shirt and jeans, with the same colored pair of boots and had his hands stuffed deep into the pockets of a trench coat, also black. His hair was in the same disarray as when he was trapped, you figured it was the way he liked it.

His face was hard, brows furrowed and lips pursed like he had been sucking on a lemon. Yet a sparkle in his eyes carried curiosity.

“W-what do you want?” your voice was weary as you shrunk into yourself, you watched as his features softened and he gave you a smile of gratitude.

“Fear not mage, I have no resentment toward you” His voice was different than you had expected it to be. The type of voice that would make millions in the audiobook department, one that soothed the knots in your shoulders and made your head fuzzy with fatigue. “How could I?” He stepped closer to you, so close that if he stepped to you again he would be chest to chest with you. He lifted his hand out of his pocket but hesitated and dropped it to his side.

“Then why have you come?” You asked and shifted on the balls of your feet, looking up at him with childish awe. He was breathtaking like this, his glassy skin shone in the filtered moonlight, and you could pick up on every slight micro expression on his face.

The corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly as his eyelids fell shut and he dropped gracefully to kneel before you. Morpheus was a prideful being, but being imprisoned for over a century was truly humbling to him, he owed you eternally for what you did for him.

You could have left him there, worse, bound him there for creator knows how long. When he heard Alex’s demands, he damn near expected you too. And yet, you hadn’t hesitated to come to his aid once the house fell asleep, and you hadn’t asked anything in return.

You were truly remarkable, it had taken all of his willpower to not come and see you immediately after he had recovered his tools to properly thank you. Matthew was his next best option, and eventually, he couldn’t take it anymore, he had to see you in the waking world and pay his respects.

Now standing here before you in your moonlit bedroom, he was like a worshipper to the ancient gods.

Your face flushed as you watched him kneel before you and hang his head like a child caught in the cookie jar. “I- what are you d-doing?” your heart pounded in your ears as the godlike being in your home looked up at you with a face filled with gratitude.

“Thanking the witch who freed me from my prison, as I should have many months ago,” he said regretfully, and you watched as his lips pursed in shame. This caused you to hesitantly grip his shoulders and try and get him to stand with you again, but he stayed firm on the floor.

“No, lord Dream please don’t, you didn’t-” you said as you tugged on his coat, but he placed a chilly hand on his shoulder, over yours, and shook his head slightly.

“Morpheus, my name is Morpheus, I will not have you address me as superior when I owe you an eternities debt” He spoke firmly, but not in a manner to upset you.

“Okay okay! But please Morpheus stand up, you don’t owe me anything really” You said and watched as he looked up at you with novelty, but slowly rose to stand within a mere foot from you.

“You misunderstand mage, I do owe you-” He tried to reason but you didn’t let him, by gripping his sleeve and smiling up at him.

“No Morpheus you don’t, the lovely dreams the past few months have been payment enough, I was simply doing what any right minded person would do. There’s no need for any ‘eternal debt’ or whatever, just knowing you’re okay, and that humanity doesn’t have to suffer anymore sleepy sickness is enough for me” You spoke softly and watched as he gently gripped the wrist that had a hold on his sleeve, turning it over carefully in his calloused hands.

Morpheus examined every inch of your face, he wondered what kind of deal with the fates he made long ago that might have brought you through his path, but he didn’t care.

You infatuated him, you weren’t like humans, you didn’t use your powers as a witch against people, you didn’t exploit your immortality, and you freed an Endless being, simply out of the kindness of your heart.

“Even centuries of sweet dreams could not convey my gratitude to you” His voice was calm and peaceful, pulling a yawn from your throat, which caused Morpheus’s jaw to clench momentarily.

He felt a bit guilty for being the cause of your inability to sleep tonight, he had intended to speak with you much earlier in the evening, but he was caught up watching as you did mundane tasks around your house, and the small projects you’d put off, he just lost track of time.

He cleared his throat and released your hand, trying to compose himself, your eyes closed as you gave him a genuine smile. “As I said, you don’t need to give me anything because I don’t want anything” you tried to assure him, but his face was set in a state of immense concentration.

He tried to think of what Lucienne might advise him to do, he understood that he’s not very good at expressing himself the way he intends to. He simply looked over your face watching the tiredness overtake your features.

“How about this hm? I go to bed, and we can talk more tomorrow yeah?” You said drowsily and swayed in your spot, feeling the sounds of pattering rain and the presence of Morpheus finally lull your exhausted mind towards sleep.

This prompted Morpheus to place his steady hands onto your biceps and gently tug you toward your messy bed. He gently laid your finally tired form into the comforts of your bedding and watched as you snuggled into your plush pillow.

He hovered by your nightstand as you adjusted and got comfortable, before looking up at him and smiling softly “goodnight Morpheus” you mumbled as your eyes fell closed.

A soft smile graced his features as he stared at your stilled form. “Goodnight mage…” he uttered quietly and pulled a soft sheet over you.

“It’s Y/n…” you muttered so quietly that he almost didn’t hear, but his smile widened in acknowledgment. As he let out a breath of a laugh.

“Goodnight then… Y/n” he said and left you to your dreams, assuring that they were especially wonderful as you snoozed away that night, it’s safe to say he was properly infatuated with you.

•••

Part three?

#the dreaming #the dream king #dream of the endless #the sandman fanfic #morpheus #morpheus x reader #prideful morpheus #soft morpheus #greatful morpheus #immortal!reader #witch!reader #self indulgence at its finest

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not-a-space-alien · 5 days

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Tinytopia Chapter 9: Bloodthirst (Part 1)

Story Masterpost

On AO3

Thanks to my beta/sensitivity reader @appelsiinilight and my bonus beta reader for the next two chapters, @whumpsday!

In this chapter: Thistle indulges in getting cozy, but finds the house disturbed by yet another new arrival.

With respect to @whumpsday, the og of hungry vampire sadbois, and @entomolog-t, the og of tiny vampires.

***

There were now enough pixies for a pixie pile.

Thistle was ecstatic. He’d grown up sleeping in a pixie pile, and he’d missed it, longed for it, ached for it ever since his separation from his family.

Sleeping on top of Moon was nice enough, but he wasn’t a pixie. And with Marigold here, there were two pixies. Not enough for a pile.

But Jax had a pixie incarnation now. There were three pixies, which met the minimum number needed to be a proper pile.

Moon would be included, of course, even if he wasn’t a pixie. The pile would simply go on top of him.

Thistle made sure everyone had a nice, soft pair of pajamas. Enough thick, fuzzy socks. Enough blankets and soft pads to sleep on. Hot, sweet drinks to sip in the evening before falling asleep.

Oh, yeah. This was going to be perfect.

Thistle cleared enough space in his wooden castle–for once, he was worried he might not have enough room in there for something. He arranged everything just right, plumping pillows and layering blankets and smoothing out sheets. He wove small animals out of plant fiber–such toys weren’t out of place in pixie nests, quite similar to humans’ stuffed animals. They didn’t usually make them bears or cats or dogs, though–pixies had a completely different array of animals that were culturally important.

Thistle remembered his Mother’s Mother’s hive having a nest of ants in the bottom of the structure, tended to like a herd–he couldn’t remember if they’d done anything besides occasionally eating the larvae. It’d been such a long time ago that all he remembered was that they tasted quite good. Before Thistle had left, Mother had been in the process of trying to make space in their tree for clusters of honeydew-producing aphids. She’d also told Thistle that some hives knew how to rear moths or spiders for their silk, which Thistle had always longed to see, but she’d said moths were more complicated than aphids and spiders had a safety risk.

There had been that one time his older brother Oak had brought home a disfigured moth which would have died without help–its wing had gotten caught in its cocoon while trying to emerge, and now it was wrinkly, tiny, and useless for flying. Mother let Oak keep the moth as a pet, even though it had no practical use. It was fuzzy, nice to hold, and pretty to look at. Oak had named it Cattail.

He lovingly traced the memories as he wove, imagining himself making a toy for Dewdrop. Aunt Winter’s new baby, Dewdrop. He wanted to meet Dewdrop so badly. Thistle was really the only one in the hive good enough with his hands to make toys without using magic. He would have been making all the toys for Dewdrop. Had someone else been making them? Was Dewdrop wanting for toys?

He suddenly realized he’d begun crying when a tear dripped down onto the moth doll he’d been making. He slowly wiped his eyes on the back of his hand, then sniffled and straightened himself up.

There was no need to be sad. He was going to have a pixie pile again. Dewdrop was fine, and so was he.

He arranged a moth doll and an aphid doll so they were nicely on top of the covers, then stood back to examine his work. I should sell those on Etsy, too. Everyone would go wild for them. He started writing the listing title mentally. Miniature insect bug arthropod crochet doll lifelike fidget toy Micro realistic choose SET or INDIVIDUAL made to order. He could sell one for $20 or a set of three for $50. Yeah. That would be good.

He walked out and pushed Marigold’s wheelchair to the entrance of his wooden house. “Are you ready for bed, Marigold?”

He nodded.

Pixie-Jax flitted on the roof of the house, jumping down onto the ground. “I am too!”

“Shh,” Thistle said. “Speak quietly. We’re supposed to be calming down now.”

Jax nodded, looking very serious in his oversized pajamas that swallowed his hands.

Moon arrived five minutes after the agreed upon time, as always. He had an eye mask on his forehead and an extra pillow under his arm. “I stayed up late so that I could be tired precisely for this slumber gathering,” Moon declared. “Let us commence.”

“Okay,” Thistle said, trying not to get excited. He was supposed to be calming down. “Moon, you go in first, and then we’ll all get on top of you.”

Moon ducked to go into Thistle’s house. “Good Heavens! It’s a proper cornucopia of comfort in here.”

Thistle poked his head in and watched as Moon arranged himself, pulling the covers back. Moon held his arms up. “I’m ready for dogpiling, boys. Have at me.”

“Okay, Jax next.”

Jax dashed into the wooden structure and snuggled up under Moon’s arm. “Like this?”

“Yes, perfect. Okay, now Marigold.”

Thistle lent Marigold a hand to stand up out of the wheelchair. He supported him by the elbow to help him inside. Marigold’s face twinged with pain as he went down into a kneeling position.

“You all right?”

“Yes–just a moment.”

He shifted to a position that apparently lessened his pain, then gingerly lay down under Moon’s other arm, head on the crook of his elbow.

That just left Thistle. He crouched down and situated himself on top of Moon, so Moon’s chest fluff was his pillow. “Everybody comfy?”

There was a round of assenting sounds.

Thistle reached down and pulled the blanket up, swathing them all, and turned off the light. “Good night, everybody.”

“Thistle my boy, would you pull down my eye mask? My hands are quite full.”

Thistle reached up and pulled the mask over Moon’s eyes.

“Perfect, thank you.”

“Good night.”

“Good night, Thistle.”

“Good night, Jax.”

“Good night, Thistle.”

“Good night, Marigold.”

No response.

“Marigold?”

“Good night, Thistle.”

“Good night, Marigold.”

“Good night, Jax.”

“Good night, Moon.”

“Is this really quite necessary?”

“You’re supposed to say good night.”

“...Good night, Jax.”

“Marigold?”

No response.

“Marigold, you didn’t say good night to anyone.”

“Good night Thistle, Jax, and Moon. There.”

“Good night, Marigold.”

“Moon? You didn’t say good night back to Marigold.”

“Good night, Marigold. Are you quite satisfied now? Have we somehow missed a possible permutation here?”

Thistle snuggled closer to Moon, and Jax copied his motion. “No,” Thistle said contentedly. “I think that’s everyone. Thanks. Good night. I love you all.”

“I love you, Thistle.”

“I love you, Moon-”

“We are not doing all that again. I would like to go to sleep sometime in the next twenty-four hours.”

Thistle tugged on the sleeve of Moon's silken pajamas. “Just once? Just one, Moon? Please?”

Moon sighed. “I love you, Thistle.”

Thistle happily flicked his ears and settled in. It seemed like Marigold had already fallen asleep.

They dozed like that. Thistle could hardly get sleepy with how happy he was. It was so warm and fuzzy, and a soft glow of magic welled up inside him. He just lay there enjoying it.

It was a while later, after he’d finally managed to fall asleep, that he woke up. He wasn’t sure why. But-

Oh.

Oooh.

Marcy’s necklace.

It was sitting on the table–Marcy had left it there today. It was glowing. It’d been soft white all night–but now it was bright yellow.

Yellow. Yellow. What had yellow meant?

Thistle disentangled himself from the pile and snuck over to the door, peeking his head out. He didn’t see anybody.

“Hello?” he whispered. “Is somebody there?”

There came a sound, then–a sort of tittering, accompanied by light flapping. He turned his attention upwards and saw some small fuzzy creature way, way high up near the ceiling. It frantically dashed into the room and smacked into the wall, then tumbled down. When it finally stopped its erratic movements, Thistle saw it was a bat with tawny red fur.

No, not a bat–the real creature emerged from the form of the bat as soon as it touched the ground. It was a fuzzy humanoid with protruding fangs and triangular ears.

The fish tank flipped open. “Yo, Thistle!” Jewel shouted. “Are you gonna wake anyone else up and tell them there’s a fucking vampire in the house or do I need to do it?”

“A vampire?” Thistle squeaked.

“Gotta be. I mean, just look at him. Right?”

The new arrival flipped himself upright from where he’d fallen on the ground, still on all fours, ears pinned back against his head nervously.

“Thistle?” said Moon’s sleepy voice, and his head appeared out the door, eyes still half-closed. “What are you shouting about?” His eyes widened as he saw something was up. “Oh?”

“It’s a vampire,” Thistle said. He looked over. “Right?’

“Well yes but, I’m not–I don’t want to hurt you,” the creature said. His ears were still flat and his voice trembled, as though not entirely sure he would be believed.

Oh, he was speaking Pixish. The language a predator would typically speak if their primary prey was Pixies.

“I’ll go get Marcy,” Thistle said. He looked behind him and saw Marigold stirring in the bed, with Jax not far behind. “...I’ll stay here with Marigold. Moon, you go get Marcy?”

“Am I your messenger?”

“...Yes?”

“...All right.” Moon drew himself out of the house and spread his wings, then took off upstairs.

The new arrival watched him with wide eyes. Clearly he’d never seen one of Moon’s kind before.

“Thistle, who’s that?” Jax whispered.

“Just stay inside. I’ll handle this.” He gave a nervous wave to the creature. “Hi. I’m Thistle.”

“I’m Auburn,” he said. Pixish actually had more words to describe colors than English, with Pixie’s sensitive eyes able to see more with minute differences. He wasn't sure if vampires could see the same way, but the word he gave as his name, Kasabrua, the closest translation of which was Auburn, actually referred to the very specific shade of red in the coat of a fox’s fur. That was exactly the color his fur was, so it was fitting–it was basically the equivalent of calling him “Foxy” or “Vixen,” although Thistle knew those two words had…. connotations in English that they wouldn’t have in Pixish.

“Hi, Auburn. It’s nice to meet you. My friend Marcy is coming downstairs. She’s a human. Is that okay?”

Auburn hugged the wall, like he was afraid Thistle was going to attack him. “Yes. Yes, please, I’d like to meet her.”

Thistle and Auburn kept tense eye contact with each other as Moon came back down, followed by Marcy, still in her pajamas. “Oh my gosh, hi!” she said with restrained enthusiasm. She knelt down beside Thistle, who fluttered onto her lap.

Auburn kept his eyes on Marcy, body tense. He was clearly terrified, but he made no motion to leave.

“He speaks Pixish,” Thistle said.

“Hi,” Marcy said gently. “I’m Marcy.”

“I’m Auburn. You’re really big.” He swallowed. “Sorry, um… I'm not supposed to be seen, and I’ve never met a human before. So, so it’s a little scary.”

“She is pretty big,” Thistle said. “But she’s nice. Do you want to tell us a little bit about yourself?

“Well, um… I heard that all kinds of creatures live here together in peace, even predators. So, so I’m interested in. That.” He flattened himself against the ground, as though to disappear. “If that’s okay.”

“Of course that’s okay,” Marcy said. “Where did you hear it? Who?”

“A, um. A tree creature told me. A dryad.”

Marcy and Thistle looked at each other.

“Could it be the same dryad that told Jax?” Thistle poked his head into the house. “Jax?”

Jax crawled forward, just peeking out. “The dryad that told me was a big tree.”

Auburn shook his head. “The dryad that told me was a holly bush.”

Okay, they were definitely going to have to coerce Trilloras to come out and answer questions. They’d already tried every combination of begging, coaxing, and threatening they could think of to get her to come out, yet her sapling remained totally inert. They were starting to think that maybe she was asleep or unconscious and couldn’t hear them.

“It sounds like they’re different dryads,” Marcy said. “But that’s okay. We don’t have to talk about them. Let’s talk about you.”

Auburn nodded nervously. “Right, right. Um. I just want to live in peace. So, so if this is a place where I can do that. Then I want to stay here. If that’s okay.”

“Sure!” Thistle said brightly, absolutely delighted. “Sure, we’ll figure out a way you can live here.”

Auburn drew forward slightly. “Real, really? Um, mostly I was worried about…where I would hunt. Um, since–if–it seems like everyone here–”

“We can figure that out,” Thistle said. “We have a trick.”

“Can we talk about it in the morning?” Moon said. “I’m not ready to be awake yet.”

“Right!” Auburn squeaked. “Sorry, sorry for interrupting. Um, you can, you can go back to sleep.”

Marcy looked from Auburn to Thistle, then sat on the couch. “I’ll stay down here.”

“Okay,” Auburn said bashfully. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. It’s just to watch things. You’re probably not tired because it’s night, huh?”

“I’m… tired. I could sleep.” He sounded dejected.

“Okay. Um. How do you sleep?”

“On the ceiling.” He looked morosely up at the ceiling. “But there aren’t any footholds.”

Marcy tapped her chin. “Oh! Hold on, I know.” She went into the next room and retrieved Colin’s pullup bar, mounting it in the doorway. “There, like that?”

Auburn clung to the wall with his creepy little hands, shimmying up it until he was far enough to push off and jump into the air. His arms transformed into wings as he flapped them, and he propelled himself up to take hold of the bar.

He hooked his feet around it and hung upside-down, ensconcing himself in his wings like a blanket. “This, this is wonderful. Thank you. I can stay up here?”

“Yeah,” Thistle said. “That’s okay.”

“Thank you.”

Auburn seemed peaceful enough, but Thistle was still glad that Marcy was nearby.

Despite being too tired to function, he wasn’t sure if he would sleep much with a vampire hanging over the room.

***

The pixie pile did manage to get a decent amount of rest in the end. Thistle woke up feeling recharged and energetic–ready for a day full of art. Because that would be step one to welcome a new resident: it was his responsibility to befriend Auburn so he wouldn’t have to hunt. Now that he’d already done it with Severa and knew it was possible, it didn’t seem so daunting. If anything, it was exciting.

True, Auburn was scary. He was almost as tall as Moon. His fangs poked out of his mouth. He clearly was a lot stronger than Thistle. He slept overhead, hanging menacingly. And he drank blood–probably, they hadn’t seen that yet. He’d probably attacked and maybe even killed people. But he was already here peacefully and seemed willing to do what they asked. This couldn’t be harder than Severa, surely.

Auburn was still in the same place hanging from the pullup bar in the morning–true to his word, he was fast asleep and looked exhausted when everyone else was stirring. Teddy and Colin came down, and more introductions were had. Teddy very valiantly hid her disquiet at seeing Auburn, while Colin was concerned about rabies. Marcy reassured them it was safe and that she would handle it, although privately she was also a little bit worried about rabies.

Thistle made the rounds to gather a group for a painting session. Marigold, Jax, and Severa were on board without needing any cajoling. Moon declared he was going to try it, since he was warming up to Thistle’s silly projects. Jewel said he didn’t want to do anything involving paint, since it got all over his skin and felt bad in the water, even if it was nontoxic. Violet couldn’t be coerced to come out even though Petunia definitely would have enjoyed it, but whatever.

“Art is a great way to bond,” Thistle said, laying out his paints. He had Marcy lay out some canvases for them to paint. “It’s a great activity to do together, and you can talk while you do it. This will be a great way to get to know each other.”

“I admit I thought it quite useless at first,” Severa admitted. “But I am starting to enjoy it more.”

“It’s growing on me, too,” Moon said.

Auburn knelt next to the paints, touching one of the tubes. “Great! Um, so, what, what do I do?”

“You, um…” At this point Thistle noticed that Auburn’s hand was shaking. “Hey, are you okay?”

Auburn drew his hand back, then gave a pained smile. “Oh, sorry. Um, I haven’t, um, I’m pretty hungry, that’s all.”

Thistle felt like he’d been smacked in the face. That was why Auburn was tired enough to go to sleep last night? He simply hadn’t eaten and therefore had no energy? He’d been sitting there hungry enough to start trembling and didn’t say anything?

“Hey, we can’t have fun and bond on an empty stomach,” Thistle said gently. “Come on, let’s take care of that first.”

“I don’t want to be a burden,” Auburn said quickly. “I’m sorry. You don’t have to worry about me.”

“We want to, though. We wouldn’t tell you to stay here and then make you starve.” Oh whoops, Thistle had said that and then remembered that Auburn would presumably have to drink someone’s blood. Thistle certainly wasn’t eager to volunteer himself for that.

Fortunately, Severa spoke first. “I will help you. You drink blood, yes? I have plenty of blood, and my magic is strong.”

Auburn practically wilted with relief. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

Severa reached down and pried one of the scales on her abdomen back, exposing vulnerable, soft flesh. Auburn crept near. “It’s really okay?”

“Yes.”

Auburn leaned over, shaking, and gently made a soft cut with his fangs, then clamped his mouth over the wound, taking small sips.

Severa put her hand on his head. A tear leaked from his eye.

After a moment, he drew back, wiping his face. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Severa pushed the scale back down, wincing but not complaining.

“There,” Thistle said. “Everyone is okay and feels good. Right?”

Severa and Auburn both nodded.

“Good. Now let’s get painting.”

Thistle guided Auburn, Severa, Moon, Marigold, and Jax through laying out their canvas and starting to apply the paint to it. Marcy participated too, sitting on the floor with a proportional paper.

“So,” Thistle said conversationally as they worked. “Auburn, can you tell us a bit more about yourself? What made you decide to seek us out? Why did the dryad tell you to come here? If you know.”

“Oh, um.” Auburn had red paint all over his hands and was putting paw prints all over his canvas. “Well, my family kicked me out of my colony. So, so I didn’t really have anywhere else to go.”

“That’s horrible!” Jax cried. “I can’t imagine if Thistle kicked me out! Why would they?”

Auburn’s ears drooped, and the motions of his hands became slow and unenthusiastic.

“Jax, he might be sensitive about it,” Thistle chided. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, Auburn.”

“No, it’s okay.” He dipped his hands in yellow and started making yellow pawprints. “Well, I’m, um, I’m a Worthless, so when things got tight, I was the first to go.”

The exact word he used was Struntajo, which meant roughly worthless, but he said it like it was supposed to mean something more. Thistle had never heard anyone use it that way.

“What’s that mean?” Jax said, once again failing to understand what a sensitive topic is.

“We can talk about it later if you want,” Thistle offered, wincing.

“No, it’s okay. I didn’t realize you’d have no way to know what that is, I guess.” He clasped his paint-laden hands together. “Um, when prey is plentiful, vampires will sometimes have an extra pup in their litters that’s small and weak. If there’s enough to go around, the runt gets enough food to grow up strong. But, but if there isn’t, then the runt is there to take the hit when they have to make sacrifices if things get worse.”

“Sacrifices?” Severa said.

Auburn shuffled his feet. “Leave it to die, usually.”

“That’s horrible,” Severa said, utterly horrified. “They have an extra baby on purpose for the sake of having something to sacrifice if their gamble doesn’t pay off?”

“I mean, it makes sense if you think about it. At least, I mean. My siblings all contributed more to the colony than I did. So, so when resources started getting scarce, it’s better that they could cut me off rather than someone who actually helped. You know? As soon as I became an adult they made it clear I had to leave if I didn’t contribute more. It wasn't a surprise or anything.”

Severa clenched the paintbrush she was using so hard that it snapped in half. “That is a horrible way to think about it. I could never dream of even considering sending someone I’d raised from a little baby out to die just because they weren’t useful enough.”

Auburn shrunk away from the anger in her voice. “Er, well, if there isn’t enough to go around…”

“Then you get more, or you yourself go hungry. That’s what being a mother means, not this- this perversion where children are seen as an investment you expect returns on in the future.”

Auburn rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, well I’m not a parent, so I guess I wouldn’t know.”

“You’re right,” Severa snipped. “You wouldn’t know.”

“I’m sorry,” Thistle said, trying to rein the conversation back in. “That sounds very difficult. So that’s why you were looking for somewhere else to go?”

Auburn nodded. “I’m bad at hunting. I’m small, weak, not a strong flier, and not good at magic. My family got tired of helping me, so I haven’t been back to the colony.… I’ve been.” Tears welled up in his eyes again. “I’ve been just barely hanging on. You’re the first ones who have been nice to me.”

“I’m sorry,” Marigold said. “I’m surprised to find myself sympathizing with a predator at all, but I truly can’t imagine what I would do if my family were like that.”

Thistle was intimidated to think about Auburn being a runt, considering how very large he still was. Thistle very bravely stood near him. “Do you want a hug?”

Auburn nodded miserably.

Thistle wrapped his arms around Auburn’s midsection, and Auburn’s arms came around him gently.

“Ooh, you’re soft,” Thistle said into his fur.

Auburn chuckled. “Glad there’s something good about me, at least.”

“I am not jealous,” Moon announced mechanically. “I am also soft, and it’s fine that there are multiple soft people in the house that Thistle likes to touch. It does not reflect on my worth as an individual.”

Thistle sighed and looked over his shoulder. “Good job, Moon.”

Moon gave him a thumbs up.

***

@static-stars

@cloudwatchingtoday @theepiccreatorofmagic-blog-blog @waitisthatgt @itssmoltime

@ratcatcher0325 @crazytinygirl @bittykimmy13 @whumpsday @theroyaleemily

@kitn-underfoot

@tinyguy42069

@jewel-fan-wys

@cheeseybeans8

@whumpshaped

@lucentbliss

@alilbitlesbian

@aceouttatime

@alarcomet

@becca-but-bitty

@tiny--pineapple

@bittykimmy13

@whumpsday

@kitn-underfoot

@gt-brainrot

@silent-orchid-lady

@starfields08000

@predacon-skydrift

@vidawhump

@whumpdreamz

@honeycollectswhump

@imber-rose

#g/t #gt #gianttiny #fairy #giant/tiny #size difference

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enhashoutout · 4 months

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Cobra and Fujio are basically the same person

A rant post on why I personally think these two characters are basically the same person in different bodies

Random background on me as a person: I’ve always been a strong believer that the media we consume can affect/leave an impact on us and how we act, go about life, perceive the world, etc. I’ve done this my whole life, on top of being a fangirl I OVERTHINK about the plot, the characters, the ships, everything. Adding to that, when I hyper fixate on a piece of media I get so invested I pay attention to all the tiny details and micro-analyze characters and their backstories and tie it back to how they act in the story.

Last semester I got to do this in class because I enrolled in a storytelling course and basically the whole time my professor gave us stories to read or movies to watch and then we had to relate it back to real life and analyze the characters behaviors, how they interacted with others, the story themes, etc. Hopefully my professor is proud I continue to use what I learned in their class to apply to my hyper fixation on other fictional characters outside of the course😂

If you look at Cobra and Fujio’s characters on the surface, they might not seem similar. Fujio has a very golden retriever like energy to himself. He’s very extroverted, loud, friendly, bright, and overall very playful and doesn’t take anything too seriously unless the situation calls for it. In contrast, Cobra is more somber and serious. Cobra is more quiet, reserved, very serious, and had a relatively calm demeanor. Well, S.W.O.R.D. Era Cobra is super serious, whereas Mugen Era Cobra isn’t.

Personality wise, Mugen Era Cobra and Fujio are the same. They’re a little bit closer in age, and Cobra is definitely more upbeat during this time period. Maybe even a little less mature in a sense.

Obviously when we meet Cobra we see that he’s gone through a lot to become the person we know him as. Noboru got arrested and couldn’t continue school, Tatsuya was killed, Kohaku disappeared. Eventually Cobra has to take charge and be Sannoh’s leader, deal with Kuryu’s stinky asses, hits a rough patch with some Sannoh members leaving, losing Smoky, you get the point. All this loss and grief causes him to lose his playful demeanor and it’s understandable. Honestly if H&L The Worst X was as serious as any of the first three movies where characters died and Tsukasa died instead of only ending up in the hospital after Amagai dropped his ass from the gym balcony, that shit would’ve sent Fujio into his depresso espresso era also 100%

But yeah, it might not seem like Fujio and Cobra are alike at first until you dive in a little deeper. Let’s start with something small first.

1) Cobra and Fujio’s styling

Something small I noticed was that both characters are styled with a black bandanna in their right pocket. We see this when Cobra interrupts Ranmaru and Rocky’s fight in the second movie and hands Rocky the bandanna after telling him he looked a mess😂 This might also just be Cobra’s way of remembering or holding onto his memories of Mugen because I’m pretty sure all the Mugen members had bandannas on their person but once we enter S.W.O.R.D. Era no one else not even Yamato have a bandanna on them anymore so I think my point stands.

Fujio is the only character I see during The Worst era who has a bandanna tucked into the right pocket of his pants.

2) Both are leaders/have leader mentality

This one is kind of obvious also but let me explain.

Cobra goes on to establish Sannoh and is the leader as well. I admire the way Cobra leads his members. He’s very understanding even if the opinions are different. We see this showcased with Noboru during Road to High&Low when Cobra acknowledges that he knows Noboru is trying to act in the best interest of his friends he’s just going about it in the wrong way. We also see this when Dan, Tettsu, Chiharu, and a few other members walk out of the fight with Doubt. Cobra acknowledges that friends sometimes are not on the same side and that it’s okay when that happens.

Fujio right off the bat has a goal in mind to unite all of Oya, this plays into his leadership style we see throughout both Worst movies. Fujio is a very charismatic person. Right as he enters Oya, he’s able to get many followers without asserting strength or dominance over all of Oya (something Todoroki has been trying to do but can’t achieve. Fight me if you want on this but I don’t think Todoroki would be a good leader lol. That’s a post for another time). We see this when Nakagoshi and Nakaoka agree to follow Fujio in the gym. Yes, Fujio fought with YasuKiyo faction but other than that he doesn’t get into another fight with the other factions. When Yasushi is hospitalized, Fujio at this point isn’t officially Oya’s leader yet but everyone looks to him to see what happens from here. With the mentality of bringing everyone together, Fujio makes it clear that what happened to Yasushi isn’t just a YasuKiyo problem but an Oya problem which prompts the Oya boys to work together to fight with Housen.

So how does this tie the two together?

Both characters have strong leadership skills. Granted they differ slightly but the overall style and tone they take on is that no one gets left behind and that even when the crisis doesn’t directly impact them in anyway, both characters are still willing to jump in to help others.

3) Both see the importance of friendship and the strength of a true alliance

I really do think that friendship kept Cobra going in life. Sometimes it felt like that man was one more crisis away from completely swirling into self destructive behavior but his friendships pulled him out of that. An example of this is how he holds onto Kohaku’s words and teachings to help in certain situations such as the one involving Noboru and Kohaku himself when they are begging him to leave Kuryu and come back to himself.

Fujio being a school aged character we’re obviously gonna see more of his friendships because at that age that’s one of the bigger focuses in life. We see how friendship kept him from being sad and lonely as a kid because his mother was working a lot that’s why he spent time with Seiji, Madoka, and all of them. As a teenager now, his friendship with them is still strong considering this boy literally jumps into a crack farm to pull Arata out of the shit he got himself into. During The Worst X this boy literally becomes friends with the strongest person canonically in the series and then spends the second half of the movie fighting to get his best friend back from being captured.

Both characters directly state the alliance part in their movies.

While Cobra fights Jesse, he tells him something along the lines of “you guys are just a bunch of strays, are you prepared as he is?” Referring to how he knows Rocky has been prepared for this fight from the get go. On top of that, Cobra was the S.W.O.R.D. Leader who suggested the alliance in the first place knowing that they would be stronger together against Kuryu. End of Sky doesn’t focus as much on Kuryu as it does Doubt but it leads into Kuryu so I think this is fitting. Cobra knows that the Prison Gang, Mighty, and Doubt working together would never actually work because they don’t have a bond to fight together they’re just getting a job done. Hyuga even points out that he can’t trust Ranmaru because he throws his men away like they’re trash.

I think this applies to the first movie as well. Cobra knows that Kuryu, Jansung, Mighty Warriors, and Kohaku would not work because it wasn’t a true alliance it was simply made to get a job done. This leads him to suggesting the alliance in the second film.

When H&L The Worst X comes around, we know that Fujio is seen as the leader of Oya and he values his friends a lot. He doesn’t usually refer to the Oya students as troops or comrades unless the situation warrants it, he refers to everyone as friends and also mentions how everyone became friends through fighting. On the rooftop when Todoroki asks if Fujio going against what he thinks is best means that Fujio no longer needs him, but Fujio is quick to tell him that’s not what is going on at all; rather that he has a solution and is willing to set his pride aside for his friends. He then proceeds to tell the remaining Oya guys that the other schools created an alliance but “let’s show them what a real alliance looks like”. This is because Fujio’s thoughts are the same as Cobra’s. Senomon, Kamasaka, and Ebara may have created an alliance but there is no friendship or bond in it, therefore this alliance wouldn’t work or last long. We even see this when Ebara drop out of the alliance. Had Shoji, Fujin, or Raijin been friends with any of the guys from the other schools they probably wouldn’t agree to the rules Todoroki set for their fight. But it’s the fact that they are friends and care for each other that Shoji agrees to Todoroki’s terms. Shoji knows that the other schools are shady so he’s gonna take the opportunity to get the people he actually cares about out of that alliance.

Fujio’s monologue at the end of his fight with Suzaki even highlights the importance of friendship. We see in the first Worst movie that Fujio wants to become the best and be at the top. In The Worst X cross after he reads Sachio’s letter, Jamuo catches him staring at the clouds and tells him he won’t be able to do much with his head in the clouds. To which Fujio proceeds to tell him “being born a man I always felt I needed to be the greatest, but maybe being at the top doesn’t make me a great man.” When Suzaki loses the fight and says that from now on Senomon would be tools for Oya to use, Fujio is quick to shut that mentality down; telling Suzaki that it’s just one fight he lost, and that it doesn’t mean anything. His monologue goes into how it doesn’t matter who’s at the top and who isn’t because look at all the friends around you who are willing to fight for and with you (granted Suzaki and Amagai have no real friends besides each other but I digress pop off inspirational Fujio).

You’ve made it to the end! I know this is just a long rant post and the thoughts aren’t super organized and might not be well explained but it made sense to me so here we are😂

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments or on a reblog as well! If you want to disagree with me that’s cool but please do it nicely I’m scared of people on the internet 😂

I have a 3 part H&L series based off the song Hate You by Jungkook in the works, it’s just taking a while to write because there are so many characters to write for.

I also have a story for Hiroto and one for Ice in the works. I genuinely didn’t think I would be writing anything for Mighty because I have a love hate relationship with those characters but I have a plot I consistently think about and think that Ice works best with it so that story will be out eventually also.

#high&low #high&low x reader #oya high #hanaoka fujio #high and low #high&low the worst x #high&low cobra #sannoh hoodlum squad #sannoh rengokai #high&low the worst #oya kou #the rampage from exile tribe #kawamura kazuma #iwata takanori #jsb3

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wearingaberetinparis · 10 months

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Complete - Love Is A Lie - A Jily Micro-Oops

My @jilymicro-oops Love Is A Lie (And Other Sh*t My Friends Say To Help Me Get By) is now complete!

Start at Chapter 43 HERE.

Start at Chapter 1 HERE.

I would like to thank all of those at AO3 who worked tirelessly (and voluntarily) to make sure we could all read and enjoy works of fanfiction again. You guys are actual heroes!

Finally, I would like to thank anyone who joined me on this journey as well as those who will read this in the future. You guys inspire me every day and make me feel so grateful for having such amazing people read my work.

All my love, as always!

#love is a lie #jily #jple #james potter #lily evans #jily fic #jily fanfiction #jily modern au #taylor swift inspired #hits different

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charmsandtealeaves · 3 months

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I had a big reading week this week trying to clear some of my email inbox because the sheer volume was stressing me the fuck out every time I opened it 😅 Posting this a day early as I'm honestly a little worried Tumblr is gonna be funny about all the links.

Read this week:

Reset by @ncoincidences

WIP, Jily micro-oops, Temporary amnesia, Rated G

A mishap with a drunken dark wizard leaves Lily an amnesiac. The last ten months of her life has been completely wiped, which includes her breakup with James eight months before. To aid in her speedy recovery, James has to keep Lily under the pretence that her life has been the same as it was.

When It Counted by @cascader

Complete (6.9k), Order!jily, Rated T

She didn’t tell him when it counted. She’s daydreaming of a redo.

Something Foolish by @merlinsbudgiesmugglers

Complete (1.9k), Tedromeda, canon compliant, Rated E

Struggling against the expectations of her family, and her forced separation from Ted. Andromeda is pleased to discover a note left in her room.

Sunrise, Sunset by @practicecourts

Complete (2.9k) Blackevans BFF Week, Rated G

One time Sirius Black finds Lily Evans, just as she’s about to do something she might regret. One time Lily Potter finds Sirius Black after he’s received some upsetting news.

A Different Kind of Love Story by @mppmaraudergirl

Complete (5.8k), Blackevans BFF Week, Rated G

The best of friendships sometimes grow in the most unlikely of places.

The Vow by @missgryffin

Complete (9.6k), Hogwarts! Jily , Rated E

When he was thirteen-going-on-fourteen, James Potter did something truly, unbelievably stupid. Now that he’s seventeen-going-on-eighteen, he has to deal with the consequences.

Quest for Camelot by @petalsinwoodvale (Ch. 1-2)

WIP, jily Quest For Camelot AU, Rated T

All Lily has ever wanted is to be a knight, like her father, Sir Lionel. After Camelot is attacked and the magical sword Excalibur is stolen, she finds herself teaming up with James, a young blind hermit, as they embark on a quest to find the lost sword. Together, they face the threat of the evil Ruber, navigate challenges with a two-headed dragon and an ogre, and discover that they're more alike than they initially thought. Will they manage to return the sword to Arthur in time, or will they lose not only each other but also their dreams and the precious Excalibur?

Grounded by @frustratedpoetwrites

WIP, Jily Modern (Magic) AU, Winter Olympics, Not Rated

When James Potter's successful Quidditch career comes to an abrupt end he struggles to find a new direction. Coaching seems to be an answer and a pair of green eyes.

Vindicated by missgryffin

Complete (20k), Order!Jily AU, Rated E

Five years ago, Lily Evans did the hardest thing she’d ever done, and broke up with James Potter so she could stay alive by secretly going undercover in America. Now, she’s been tasked with something even harder: doing a transatlantic mission with him.

Captivated by missgryffin

Complete (6.7k), Hogwarts!Jily, Rated E

"I think we should sweep the library. Make sure it's empty." "And why's that?" "Because I need to be alone with you."

Silent Night by practicecourts (ch.1-4)

WIP, Hope Lupin, Remus Lupin, Rated T

Moments in the life of Hope Lupin.

10 Things I Hate About You by @wearingaberetinparis (Ch1.)

WIP, Jily Romcom, Rated M

Petunia Evans cannot start dating the man she considers to have true love potential – a certain Vernon Dursley – until her anti-social younger sister, Lily, finds herself a partner too, which leads Petunia to take drastic measures. For surely, Head Boy James Potter – suffering from a knee injury he does not want anyone but himself and his physiotherapist to know about – should be able to charm her younger sibling, shouldn’t he? If the only thing standing between her perfect love match is blackmail, who is she not to resort to it? Are not, after all, all means justified when the end she has in mind is so very sweet?

Would you run away with me? By @ncoincidences

Complete (1.3k), jily, Rated G

In which Lily barges in on a white veil occasion.

Happy Place by Wearingaberetinparis (Ch.1-6)

WIP, jily modern AU, Rated M

James and Lily have always been the perfect couple that everyone aspires to be: from Head Boy and Girl at Hogwarts School to university students in a loving long distance relationship to – eventually – a happily engaged duo, destined to go the distance. They go together like cream and tea, pride and prejudice, fish and chips. That is, until – for reasons they refuse to discuss for fear of making everything so much worse – they really, truly don’t. For one week, however, they have to act as if all is well for they have yet to tell their friends that what had always seemed perfect, is now very much broken.

You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to do that by @jamesunderwater

Complete (1k), prongsfoot in a nightclub, Rated E

prongsfoot + a locked door public bathroom on my knees trying to make you scream vibe

Truth is I’m so damn in love with you I don’t know what to do with myself by jamesunderwater

Complete (800), Prongsfoot, Rated T

prongsfoot + near death experiences + trapped with only one bed + gay pining

Over Spilt Coffee by @annabtg

Complete (1k), Tonks first person POV, Rated T

Tonks's musings on the night she picked up smoking... the night Remus Lupin broke her heart.

Breaking by annabtg

Complete (1.4k), Remus Lupin, Missing Moments, Rated T

Remus has his reasons for staying away from Tonks. Even if it breaks his heart as much as it breaks hers.

From the very first day by @kay-elle-cee

Complete (500), Muggle AU Jily, Rated T

An unexpected night leaves two coworkers trying to sort out their feelings.

Loved you three summers by Kay-Elle-Cee

Complete (600), Pregnant Jily, Rated G

A pregnant Lily has a not-so-sudden realization.

Don’t say yes by Kay-Elle-Cee

Complete (800), no Voldemort AU Jily, Rated G

Two old flames reconnect, wondering if the other is happy.

This is me swallowing my pride by Kay-Elle-Cece

Complete (466), Harry’s God parents, Rated G

The appointment of Harry's Godfather was never up for discussion, but his Godmother? That took some convincing.

Keeping secrets just to keep you by Kay-Elle-Cee

Complete (453), Secret Relationship Jily, Rated T

James and Lily's friends have a bet, and the two of them are determined to win.

Silence and patience, pining in anticipation by Kay-Elle-Cee

Complete (1.2k), Post-Hogwarts Jily, Rated T

Lily’s been hung up on James for years; a tipsy conversation might be the push she needs to do something about it.

You kiss me in a way that’s gonna screw me up forever by Kay-Elle-Cee

Complete (1k), Pregnant Order!Jily, Rated T

When Lily and James got pregnant, they made a plan for how they'd participate in the Order going forward. Plans change.

Back to the Pavilion by @abihastastybeans

Complete (1.3k), Minerva McGonagall, Rated G

A day in the life of Minerva McGonagall. Written for the Ladies of HP Fest's Monthly Minis: 1st December 2023 - Minerva McGonagall!

The Naughty List by abihastastybeans

Complete (690), jily secret Santa, Rated T

Written for the December Jily Advent Calendar 2023!Prompt: A & B are colleagues and for the secret santa one of them gives the other something inappropriate as a gag gift

Added to the ever expanding TBR:

The Next Step by merlinsbudgiesmugglers

Complete (1.5k), post-canon Andromeda Tonks, Rated G

After the war Andromeda has been wholly focused on raising her grandson. But when he goes to Hogwarts, she finds she might need something more. Kingsley and Harry have an idea for what that could be.

Speak Now by @firefeufuego Complete (1.4k), Jily love declarations, Rated T

The fuse has been lit. Lily can almost hear the crackling hiss of it, feel the building burn of it in the air as Sirius takes the reins of the conversation, as drinks are bought and poured down newly dry throats, and eventually as last orders are called and the four of them are standing outside and saying farewell with kisses on cheeks. Sam and Sirius apparate away. Lily and James do not. They stand, eyes fixed firmly on each other, ready to ignite. ‘Not forever, you said?’ James asks, his voice deep and quiet in a way that’s never been hers to hear before now. Follow-up to the lovely kay-elle-cee's 'silence and patience, pining in anticipation'.

#charms read round up #week 4 #fic rec

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xieyaohuan · 7 months

Text

The Dollhouse (part 1)

Cozy corner kinktober prompt: macro/micro, cage

Warnings: abuse of tiny supes, multichapter

~~~~~~~

“Too big.”

Frenchie stares at the cage he picked up at the pet store and that he’s cradling in his arms now. He looks like he wants to argue, but Butcher won’t have it.

“Too fucking big,” he repeats. “Cunt’ll squeeze through.” He pushes his index finger through the bars, wiggling it around just to make a point. “I told you. If my fucking pinky so much as fits, the cunt can get out.” He’s not sure that’s actually true, but better safe than sorry.

“It was the best they had,” Frenchie says, a little defensive now. “I can make it work. I can add some mesh wire, maybe some electricity? I’ll make sure he won’t escape.” Man takes pride in his work, can’t fault him for that.

Butcher takes a last look at the cage, hamster wheel and all, and shakes his head. “Don’t wanna risk it. Sorry, Frenchie.”

“Fine.”

Off he runs to figure out some other solution, and Butcher is alone again. Well: alone except for the supe in his care. He looks down to where he’s taped Homelander to the kitchen counter with a single piece of duct tape across both arms. Tiny cunt is kicking his legs and trying to turn over to break free, but it’s a fine quality tape, and whatever super strength Homelander had at regular size is clearly gone, Butcher notes with satisfaction. He can struggle and kick all he wants; there’s no escape.

The first thing he thought after they shrunk the cunt was that Homelander had somehow evolved and pulled a Hughie on them, teleporting himself out of their reach, leaving only his clothes behind. It was MM who found him hiding naked inside a fold in his sleeve, frozen in place and wide-eyed, probably terrified of the giants staring down at him.

Homelander hasn’t said a word since - not when Butcher tossed him in the air and watched him peel himself back off the ground. Not when he tried to squash him with his boot only to realize it felt like stepping on a fucking lego even through the thick rubber sole. No, not even when Butcher tried to smash him with a hammer. All that did was generate a few sparks, though Homelander did seem a bit dazed from the impact, at least.

Bloody supe still isn’t talking, but he looks less in shock now and more determined to escape than just an hour ago, fighting the tape with quiet determination, almost managing to free one arm.

“Oi, cunt! Stop struggling.” Butcher takes a second piece of duct tape to tape his legs to the table, just to be safe.

He’s trying to be optimistic: They managed to shrink Homelander to the size of a finger. The Shrink (what is it with those fucking supe names in the porn industry, Butcher thinks) has promised them it’s a permanent condition — even if he wanted to return Homelander to his original size, he couldn’t do it. He’s got the cunt taped down and helpless. By any standard, today is a good day. Still, Butcher would be in a better mood if he’d already figured out a way to actually kill the tiny supe.

“How about this?” Frenchie is back sooner than expected, holding up a pickle jar. “This should work, no?”

Butcher weighs it in his hands only to notice someone’s drilled holes in the lid. “The fuck are those for?”

Frenchie starts mumbling about the snails he caught and kept in a jar as a kid, about how they ended up dead by accident, his moral opposition to any kind of animal cruelty, etc. etc.

“Bloody hell, Frenchie.” Butcher is laughing. “We want him to suffocate in there.” Truth is, if a hammer couldn’t kill him, Homelander is unlikely to die of air deprivation, but he still covers the holes with a piece of duct tape — no harm in trying. It’s a decent enough prison, at least for now. The glass should be heavy enough that Homelander can’t tip it over and roll off the kitchen counter with it.

Butcher unscrews the lid, peels the tape off of Homeland’s legs and arms and drops him into the jar. Homelander looks dazed, but before he can protest or try to climb up to the rim, Butcher quickly fills the glass with water, adds a few drops of dish soap and screws the lid back on before giving it a good shake.

He sets the jar on the counter, smiling. “Well, ain’t this perfect. A prison, and a bath tub. Cunt really needed a bath, don’t you think?”

Frenchie is nodding along, but Butcher can tell the way Homelander is struggling —eyes wide open, banging his tiny fists against the glass— is making him uncomfortable. Butcher gives the jar a final good shake before pouring the contents into the kitchen sink. He’s grateful for his reflexes when he just about manages to grab the cunt and stuff him back in the jar before he can escape — for all they know, Homelander might still be capable of flight or be stupid enough to try crawling down the drain.

They're going to have to supe proof the place. For once, Butcher is grateful that they got kicked out of the Flatiron Building. Their new office may be smaller and lack the shabby aesthetics, but it also has far fewer holes in the walls that Homelander could hide in, or worse, escape through.

At least they won’t have to worry about that right now: The supe is safely behind the glass, doubled over in a heap of bubbles, coughing his tiny lungs out. When he’s finally recovered enough, he starts yelling at Butcher, but between his size and the glass barrier, it’s impossible to make out what he’s saying.

“Eu, Butcher?” Frenchie taps his shoulder and hands him an envelope. “This was in the mail.”

Butcher rips it open. The Shrink: Couple’s Therapy, it says at the top. He takes one look and starts laughing. “Cunt sent us a bill? Guy’s lucky we didn’t report his little illegal shop.”

He tears up the paper and throws it in the rubbish bin before turning his attention back to the jar on the counter top.

“Alright. Back to work.”

#cozy corner kinktober #prompt: macro/micro #prompt: cage #butchlander #billy butcher #homelander #the boys #my fic

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csuitebitches · 2 years

Text

On Being Resilient

It’s very important that you know and understand the importance of being resilient. It’s easy to say you’re strong when you’re obviously not.

I feel that sometimes the whole “fake it till you make it” culture has some clear problems with it.

The problem with culture like that is that your external doesn’t match the internal. So even if you look confident, you won’t feel it, and you won’t exude real confidence. While such a tactic is a great short term method, it’s not healthy for the long term - you are going to have to address those issues.

When you look up online on how to build resilience, you’ll see a flux of similar things. Positive thinking. Positive friends. Relax. Breathe.

I’m sorry if I disrespect any of those authors - but quite frankly, I find it a little bullshit-y.

So let me share with you things I’ve actually learned, tried and tested on my path to being resilient. That doesn’t mean that I’m 100% resilient.

But bear in mind that I was an overly sensitive child, very emotional teenager - and now in my 20s, I don’t get affected by situations to that extent. And I’ve stopped victimising myself, another plus.

As usual. If this doesn’t work for you, I’m sorry. This is not a cookie-cut template. It’s better for you to be inspired by this and recreate your own rather than follow it exactly so. But do what you feel is best.

•••

1. I started by creating a SWOT analysis of myself.

- S- Strengths: skills, values you have, good habits, what you can offer to people in terms of skills (both corporate life and personal life). Examples: honesty, problem solver, marketing, drawing, Excel, etc.

- W- weaknesses: things you know you’re not good at, both private life and corporate life. Examples: impatient, temper issues, programming (I hate it lol), paying attention for a long time, bad relationships etc.

- O- opportunities: what are incoming opportunities? Club memberships, conferences, job offers, career changes, online courses, etc. if you don’t have any, CREATE them. Go online and look for networking events. Go on coursera/ EdX and find a course you want to actually do.

- T- Threats: What obstacles are coming your way? For instance, your plate may be full. Or you have to compete for a job. Examples : being obtrusive, having competition, being a perfectionist, etc.

•••

2. Next, I took a couple of days to really go over the SWOT. You have to be honest with yourself. Fully. No one else will see it but you. You could even go around and ask your closest friends and family what they think are your best and worst qualities.

•••

3. Next, I took a mental resilience test online, because I realised that I wanted to quantify my data. It’s easier to improve when there’s a number visible to you. I used this: click here.

They score you on four factors:

* Motivation

* Concentration

* Coping With Pressure

* Confidence

•••

4. After seeing my score and analysing it properly, I decided to etch out a game plan for each factor. Here’s a sample:

- Motivation:

* setting smaller goals in order to succeed

* Accepting failure and moving on fast

* Asking for feedback on performance (work, school, organisations)

* Working on things that give me satisfaction

- concentration:

* using brain games such as Elevate and Mental Math to improve focus

* Reading more

* Trying different things at work/ school to remain focused (some people work best around other people. Some people work best alone. Some prefer noise, white noise or silence. Figuring this out really helps).

- Coping with pressure

* making quicker decisions (I used to take forever to make decisions because my emotions would come in the way. Now I stick to a simple pros and cons list and it helps me a lot).

* Being able to deal with adversity. Two things come in play here - a) learning from other people’s mistakes (ted talks, videos, your boss, parents, friends etc) b) learning from your own mistakes. Put yourself in micro situations - such as choosing where to eat with your friends or partner (not always, mind you - but stop being indecisive when they are too!), take on responsibility at work, etc.

- Confidence

* You need to believe that you will succeed.

* For me, setting mini goals a week is the most effective. Areas: Home (laundry, cleaning, etc), Self (homework, exercise, meditation, habits, learning new things), Environment (social life, work life, friends, family).

* I use a free habit tracker “Habit” (pink icon in the App Store) to track my 6 daily habits.

•••

4. Resilience comes with progress. It comes slowly. There will be setbacks. There will be issues. There are often times when, in a fit of emotion, we forget about resilience and get carried away in our situation. You need to realise this. You need to remind yourself to be resilient every single day. Say it out loud or write it down or set a reminder, I don’t care. But you need it at the back of your brain.

You’ll face all sorts of situations to show your resilience. Maybe a team member isn’t doing their part in a project. Maybe a friend of yours is adamant in you doing a certain thing with them. Maybe your family has some expectation of you that you’re not interested in achieving.

Resilience doesn’t mean aggression. It doesn’t mean anger. It means being tactful, calm, level headed but firm. It means that you don’t fake-compliment to make someone feel nice (occasionally it’s necessary if a friend or something is really down). It means you convey your genuine opinions about something and not necessarily agree with the majority.

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officialrailscales · 1 month

Text

MK16 Monday

RSBM-P | FDE

HTP XOS-H 3.5-Slot MLOK Scale | Matrix Texture | FDE

- RS

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twistedtummies2 · 9 days

Text

Super Beanfest, or Harps & Monsters - Part 1 (Commission)

My last, long-delayed commission from the February round. This is an interesting one, because of how it's going to work: once again, myself and the commissioner are going to attempt to do a multi-part comm, spread out over the course of several months/rounds of writing. The commissioner is @clouddreamer101, for a very long time, they and I have had an idea for a multi-part story for Twisted Wonderland. The story has two basic purposes: introducing their OC, Harmonia (based on the Golden Harp from "Mickey and the Beanstalk") in a proper piece of writing, and also shipping them with my big lad, Billy (based on Willie the Giant from the same cartoon). The two have been shipped together by us for a VERY long time, so it's nice to finally write a full and proper story getting that ship sailing.

Oh, there's also some stuff going on with the canon cast, for the record, with the main focus being Epel Felmier. Because why not? XD

This is the first part of the story, and I will write the other parts with the other commission rounds to come. On that note, if anyone from that next round is reading this, I will be contacting you all sometime within the coming week. In the meantime...some boring stuff...

Rating: T (for safety's sake, above all else)

Disclaimer: All characters and settings from Twisted Wonderland belong to Disney & Aniplex. Billy belongs to me, Harmonia belongs to the commissioner, and the other OCs who cameo in this section belong to either one of us or to another user from Tumblr who, for the time, shall remain anonymous.

WARNING: This section does not contain any DIRECT kinks, aside from some macro/micro elements (if you even count those), but it DOES contain implied vore and other kinky implications. Later chapters shall be more overt, for the record; the rating may go up depending on how those future chapters work out, just for consistency's sake. In any case, DON'T LIKE? DON'T READ.

When will chapter two be done? Probably next month. Till then, keep your eyes peeled, boys and girls...and don't worry! More stories are on the way. ;)

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“Well! It looks like success at last!” “Shhh! Not so loud!” Deuce Spade clamped his mouth shut firmly and nodded at the hiss from Jack Howl. The pair were dressed in their Gym Uniforms for Night Raven College. In Jack’s arms, he carried an unfamiliar third party member: a small young man, with shiny blonde hair, and eyes the color of golden coins. He was dressed in a rather fancy-looking suit, as golden as his eyes and hair, with buttons that resembled musical notes. Jack adjusted his grip as he held the blonde youth bridal style; the wolfman blushed at the intimate position as he began to carefully walk off, carrying the golden boy with him. Deuce took up the rear; he was holding a pair of bean blasters in his hands. “Thank you,” whispered the young man with yellow hair, in a timid little voice. Jack just grunted noncommittally. “You’re welcome,” he grumbled, then smirked. “I guess even Royal Sword students can be helpful sometimes.” The RSA member in question smiled shyly. “Come on!” Deuce called out…then, remembering he wasn’t supposed to be so loud, dropped his voice to a whisper. “Come on, Epel! What are you waiting for?” Epel Felmier had paused at the rear. He was dressed much more extravagantly than his two fellow NRC classmates: garbed in a black beret and the red-white-and-orange getup of a Farmer uniform for Beanfest. The effeminate fellow looked upwards, biting his lip thoughtfully, large aqua blue eyes narrowed. Overhead, a towering figure loomed, snoring so loudly, the entire colosseum around the four shook to its foundations. The giant leaned back against the bleachers, hands folded over the upper curve of his big, fat belly, which rose and fell like a living hill over their heads. Epel’s focus, however, wasn’t on the titan’s face, nor on his gut: it was on the (extra extra extra extra) large leather boots the colossus wore. He saw that the looped ends of the laces were dangling low and long…and the feet were close together. A sly smirk crossed Epel’s face, and he crept closer to the giant, taking hold of the laces as he moved between the ogre’s feet. “What are you doing?!” the RSA student hissed in alarm, as Deuce and Jack watched with perplexed expressions. “Making doubly sure he won’t follow us,” Epel replied, and began to try and tangle the laces together into a knot. “I’m taking no chances. Just in case the big guy-” The snoring suddenly came to a short stop. Epel froze at the sound’s stoppage. He saw Jack, Deuce, and the RSA student all turn pale as a trio of sheets. “...M-Might wake up-EEK!” Epel cried out as the feet jerked to either side, and the laces he still held pulled him clear off the ground as he held them tightly in his hand, stretching him out. The tiny Pomefiore Poison Apple looked up… …And gulped nervously as he saw a pair of cold blue eyes glaring down angrily. The giant growled, snarling, revealing his rather sharp-looking, bone-crushing teeth…and a fat hand began to reach for Epel. Felmier gulped nervously, as the shadow of those greedy fingers overcame him. “...Oh, crab-apples…”

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

Three Months Earlier…

“Pick up the pace, potatoes. Unlike that mangy cat in Savanaclaw, I like to be on time.” “Oh, oui-oui, Roi du Poison! We follow in your footsteps like carefree lambs!”

Epel Felmier rolled his eyes and repressed the urge to groan, as walked behind Rook Hunt and Vil Schoenheit. They, along with the rest of Pomefiore - and, in fact, the rest of the school - had been called into the Assembly Hall at Night Raven College. The auditorium was already packed, and more and more students were still pouring in, ushered by their Housewardens and Vices into the seats. Carefully but quickly, Epel found a seat of his own. It wasn’t too long till all of his dorm members were seated; Rook and Vil took the last two seats remaining, with the former immediately to his right, and the latter just beyond, each sitting straight and tall. Vil’s expression was one of cool, detached, business-like calm, while Rook wore his usual not-so-blithe smile. Epel looked around. He frowned in confusion as he scanned the faces - and, more importantly, the heights - of all the assembled students from Pomefiore. Someone, he quickly realized, was missing. “Pssst! Hey! Hey, Vil!” he whispered. Vil’s eyes slid towards Epel ominously, his expression showing a hint of stern disdain. Epel flinched and took a breath, realizing his mistake. “Um…e-excuse me, Housewarden.” “That’s better,” smirked Vil, and turned to look at Epel fully. “What is it, Epel?” “I don’t see Billy here with us. He’s pretty hard to miss,” the lavender haired young fellow explained. “So where’d he go?” Vil shrugged. “I’m not sure,” he admitted. “The Headmage called him to his office earlier today, and I have not seen him since. This was before he announced the Assembly.” “Not to worry, Monsieur Pommette!” Rook chuckled cheerily. “I’m sure Monsieur Geant will be quite alright!” Epel frowned, turning away from the pair thoughtfully. He wasn’t necessarily WORRIED about Billy: the shapeshifting ogre could easily take care of himself in many ways. If anything, Epel envied the big lug: he was somehow able to be both extra super manly and strangely adorable at the same time, a struggle the young Felmier was still going through. A small smirk crossed Epel’s face and he chuckled. He and the giant actually had quite a bit in common…but sheer size could not be one of those similarities. He wondered how Billy would have done in Savanaclaw… Shaking his head to clear it, Epel, straightened his posture (he’d caught Vil side-eyeing him again at his hunched seating arrangement), and tried to dismiss the matter. If Billy had gone to see Crowley, then he would probably arrive when the Headmage arrived. No need to be concerned, as Rook had said. It wasn’t too much longer till all were assembled. Finally, Dire Crowley - adjusting his gloves, top hat, and Venetian mask as he entered - stepped into the center of the auditorium stage. Using a simple voice-amplifying spell in place of a microphone, he walked up to the podium and gained the attention of the student body. All idle chatter ceased as the Headmage addressed them.

“Quiet! Quiet all! Listen, everyone! Can you all see me? Can you all hear me? Good,” nodded Crowley, when he was certain all eyes were on him. “Ahem…I’m sorry to have stopped classes so abruptly, but I have some major news, and given the…rather sudden nature of this news, I felt an immediate assembly was best called for. I’m sure all of you are aware of our annual Beanfest competition here on Sage’s Island, correct?” Mumbles and murmurs of recognition came from the students. Epel cocked his head curiously, wondering where this was going. Beanfest, of course, was an important occasion at Night Raven College: every year, the student body would be split into two teams - Farmers and Monsters - in remembrance of the legend of Happy Valley. The legend told the story of a daring farmer who rescued a magical Golden Harp from the clutches of a monstrous giant. Billy’s absence was now almost comical: he was a descendant of the ogre that had matched wits with the farmer those centuries long past. The size-shifting giant was very proud of his heritage, and got VERY excited over Beanfest. Epel shivered a bit, remembering how Billy had swallowed some farmers the last Beanfest, as a means of capturing them…watching the giant belch entire people out of his gut was not exactly a pleasant sight… In any case, however, Beanfest was still a few months away. Why was the Headmage bringing it up now? “Well! You’re all in for a special treat this year!” Crowley’s voice barked, as he clapped his hands together, a rather eager smirk on his dark lips as he spoke. “For this year’s Beanfest, we’ll be collaborating with our…esteemed rivals at Royal Sword Academy, for what their headmaster and I have decided to call… Crowley paused impressively, as if to build up suspense…then threw out his arms and cheered to the high heavens. “SUPER BEANFEST!” The chirp of a lonely cricket was the only sound that answered his booming cry. Crowley’s exuberant expression quickly cooled. He lowered his arms, looking rather embarrassed. Then a single hand shot up. “Um…Headmage?” “Yes, Mr. Spade?” Epel looked towards the hand as it lowered, to see a rather befuddled Deuce tilt his own head in confusion equal to Felmier’s own. “How is ‘Super Beanfest’ different from…well…normal Beanfest, I guess?” “Ah! I’m glad you asked!” answered Crowley, who sounded rather relieved that SOMEBODY cared enough to wonder. “That’s where the collaboration comes into play: instead of a contest between our own students, against each other, Super Beanfest will be a battle between the two schools. Now, things may be a bit confusing, so do pay attention: one student from Night Raven College has been pre-selected to act as a ‘Head Monster.’ Another student at RSA has also been pre-picked to play the role of the Golden Harp.” “Wait…the harp is actually going to be a person?” an anonymous student called.

“Correct!” Crowley crowed. “The goal of the Farmers will be to rescue the Golden Harp, as is usually the case, but this Harp will be another student instead of a simple prop. The Harp and the Head Monster will be stationed in a yet-to-be-disclosed location. Further rules about this matter will be explained in the future, but the important point to note is that the Head Monster must guard the Golden Harp, and the Harp must remain stationary inside the Head Monster’s ‘lair,’ unless accompanied by the Farmers.” “Interesting,” murmured a thoughtful voice. Epel wasn’t sure, but it sounded like the voice of Riddle Rosehearts. “So, our students will be taking the role of the Monsters to try and blockade Royal Sword’s students?” “Ah, this is where things get interesting,” said Crowley, waggling a finger and with a twinkle in his eye. “You see, my dear students…you WON’T be playing the Monsters, aside from the one Head Monster chosen. Instead, our school has been selected to play the Farmers.” “What?!” exclaimed several students at once. “We get to play the heroes saving the day?!” gasped Cater Diamond’s voice. “That’s totes cool! Ha, I’m gonna have to come up with some fun hashtags right away…!” “Please don’t,” groaned the irritated voice of Sebek Zigvolt. “When was this decided?” Vil demanded to know, his sudden call causing Epel to jump slightly in his seat. “When I lost the straw-pulling lottery to decide,” drawled Crowley, in a dry voice, with a drab look. He quickly brightened up again and went on, holding up his hands to placate the stirring students as he continued… “ANYWAY! On the date of the Event, a group of students will be selected at random to act as possible candidates for Team Captains, and the Head Monster and Golden Harp will select their respective Captains from the chosen pool. The Captains will create a general strategy at the start of the game, and lead whatever students they choose in the event: simple as that. The choice will be totally based on their decisions, and with our schools so separate, there should be no inherent bias on either side. Also, since this is the first Event of its kind - and as it has yet to be determined if there will be another like it in the future - the Headmaster of Royal Sword and I have agreed that all students will be permitted to participate. PERMITTED, but not required: if you wish to back out for any reason, you may.” “YES! THANK YOU, ZEUS!” came a voice that could only belong to Idia Shroud. Several people rolled their eyes, including Dire Crowly. “Anyway, All of Sage’s Island will be the battleground, and the teams will meet at specific ‘camps’ off the campuses on the island,” the Headmage went on, then shrugged nonchalantly. “Beyond all that, the rules are essentially the same. Farmers will take out Monsters using bean shooters, Monsters have to try and trap Farmers to keep them from getting the Golden Harp, and bits of gear and special uniforms will be scattered around the woods on the island for both teams to try and find. You all know the drill from there. So, are there any questions?” Epel immediately raised his hand. “Yes, Mr. Felmier?” Crowley pointed him out. “Excuse me, but you said you’d already picked who the Head Monster and the Golden Harp will be,” Epel commented. “So…who are they? Or is that confidential information at all?” “Not in the least,” chuckled Crowley. He seemed greatly amused as he grinned at Epel and the other students. “In fact, the Head Monster is someone you should know very well, Mr. Felmier. Someone everybody here should know! After all, even among our esteemed student body…” Crowley stepped aside from the podium, doffing his hat, as if introducing some grand circus act.

“...You could say he’s larger than life.” The instant those words left Crowley’s lips, Epel suddenly knew exactly who he meant. It all made sense. Why one certain person was missing from the Pomefiore group. Why they’d been called out of class earlier. And perhaps even why this Event had been arranged in the weird way it was. THUMP-A-THUMP-A-THUMP. Pounding footsteps seemed to rock the entire hall. Whispers and murmurs echoed through the assembly area. At the podium, a black and white tie was straightened somewhat nervously, and an indigo vest was adjusted as it clung desperately the sizeable, heaving mass of lard and muscle buried beneath the clean, constricting school uniform. Gapteeth were briefly visible as the absolutely gigantic figure at the podium - standing somewhere between seven and eight feet in height - took a breath and ran one huge, fat hand through their carrot-colored, crew-cut hair. Then, baby blue eyes sparkled as their expression became first a proud and challenging smirk…and then a beaming smile. “Hi there, Little Friends!” cheered Billy Geant, saluting everyone playfully. “I just wanna say one thing: don’t worry about when the big day comes. I promise…I won’t go easy on you.” Epel gulped. Beside him, Rook chuckled, cupping his chin as his eyes narrowed almost deviously. “Sacre bleu,” Hunt murmured. “This just got a bit more interesting…”

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Meanwhile, across the island, in the gilded halls of Royal Sword Academy, a lonely figure was walking through a seemingly empty corridor. The figure was a young man, just slightly below average height, though he seemed much smaller with the way he walked as he trudged through the palatial hallway. His slender, slim physique didn’t help much either; his thin framework bordered on the unhealthy in its leanness, making him seem even tinier than he really was. Ironically, the blue-and-white standard issue uniform of RSA he wore made him seem a little bulkier, in contrast. The young man sighed, brushing some stray strands of his blonde bangs away from his golden-hued eyes. In the corner of his left eye was a tiny birthmark; a similar beauty mark dotted his chin. He adjusted a small white hearing aid he wore in one ear, pausing in his dreary march to look upwards. As sunlight spilled through a stained glass window, it illuminated his soft, almost effete features, which gave him a somewhat androgynous appearance. “Why?” he groaned to the ceiling beyond, voice echoing slightly in the extravagant passage. “Just…just why?” “Why, you ask?” The young man let out a mousey squeak of alarm and looked around, rather startled, as a new voice seemed to croon into his ears. The voice seemed to come from nowhere, and yet everywhere. “Why is one of my favorite questions,” the voice continued to coo. “I’m also partial to ‘Who?’ and ‘Where?’ But ‘Why?’ It’s such a silly thing to ask…and that’s why I love it!” The blonde-haired boy sighed again, this time with some mild irritation. “I’m not in the mood for games right now, Che’Nya,” he grumbled, crossing his arms impatiently. “You-” PFBBBT! The young man eeped and spluttered as a tongue suddenly appeared out of thin air, blowing a raspberry into his face. He glared, huffishly, wiping the speckles of spittle from his cheeks one one sleeve as a disembodied grin, filled with sharp, pointed, pearly teeth, sliced its way inches from his face. “Spoilsport,” came a voice from the mouth, as a second pair of golden eyes popped into view a little over the grin’s crescent curve. “Come on, Harmonia! What’s biting your tail, huh?” Harmonia frowned and turned away. “Why should I tell you?” he mumbled. “You’re just going to tease me.” Che’Nya’s whole face - feline ears, purple hair, and all - appeared in thin air as he gasped with horror. “Me?! Tease someone when they’re on the brink of des-purr?” he punned, the disembodied catboy’s head circling around him. “What makes you think I’d do something like that?”

Harmonia just eyed the neko skeptically…then sighed and sat down on a nearby bench. “Just leave me alone,” he mumbled. Che’Nya’s expression faltered. He looked concerned…but only for a few seconds. The look gave way to a knowing sort of smirk, and the Cheshire Cat swirled into full view. He was dressed as he always was: in an oversized white uniform coat that hung loosely about his frame like an undone straitjacket, along with blue jeans dotted with badges and buttons. He sauntered over and sat beside Harmonia on the bench with a sort of brotherly smile. “Let me guess,” he purred. “You’re upset about Headmage Ambrose’s arrangement with NRC, aren’t you?” “I’m upset about being chosen to play the Golden Harp,” Harmonia replied, glumly. “Why?” Che’Nya asked, tilting his head curiously. “I thought you just said that was a silly question,” Harmonia retorted. “Oh, it is, but it’s also a fun one to answer,” grinned Che’Nya, and nudged him with his head, like a cat nuzzling and pawing at its master. “Come ooooon! Tell me! Tell me!” Harmonia half-heartedly pushed the Cheshire Cat back, and just grumbled, “Forget it. Go away.” “Awww, now that’s not very nice at all,” pouted Che’Nya. “Come on, lighten up! After all, you can’t very well protect Happy Valley if you aren’t happy, can ya?” “I’M NOT PROTECTING THAT PLACE!” Harmonia suddenly shouted, snapping angrily at the cat and leaping from the bench. Che’Nya jumped back, rather startled as the golden boy began to march away. “Just…I don’t want to hear anything else about Happy Valley, or Golden Harps, or…!” “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Turn down the juice!” Che’Nya exclaimed, and hurriedly moved to block Harmonia’s way. His own yellow eyes had become soulful and serious, a rare expression on the feline’s face. “Listen, I can tell when a person needs a listening ear. I’m the Cheshire Cat. I have all the answers…” He playfully tapped Harmonia’s nose, smiling anew. Harmonia squeaked and covered his snout, which made the cat grin wider. “...You just have to keep from getting confused. So go ahead. Lay it on me. If you don’t bite, I won’t.” Che’Nya’s grin made sure to show all his teeth on that last sentence. Harmonia bit his lip, squirming a bit…then sighed. “How much do you know about me?” he asked, timidly. Che’Nya shrugged and slung his arms behind his head lazily. “Nyaaa…I know a little,” he yawned. “Your family line is descended from the magic of the Golden Harp itself, and your Unique Magic comes from her power, passed down through generations, blah blah blah…guess your problem is you’re tired of being typecast?” “Something like that,” admitted Harmonia with a nod. He hugged himself and turned away. “It’s more than that, though. I’m…well…I’m scared.” “Scared?” meowed Che’Nya, raising an eyebrow. “Of what?” Harmonia looked up at him with anxiety in his eyes. “The whole reason they’re doing this Event is because of me. Well…me and one other student.” “Who?” Che’Nya asked, and then giggled. “I really do love that question. ‘Who.’ So many answers you can come up with, and most of them won’t be correct!”

Harmonia decided to ignore that random bit of weirdness, and simply went on. “Some other student at Night Raven,” he said, gravely. “And just as I’m descended from the Golden Harp…” “...They’re descended from the Giant.” Harmonia’s eyes widened. “You…you already know?” Che’Nya smiled oh-so-innocently. “I might have overheard the two Headmages talking to each other. Just a little bit,” he winked. “Then you should know why I’m scared already!” Harmonia said, exasperatedly, and began to tremble as he hugged himself tighter, rubbing at his own shoulders, as if he were experiencing a chill. “I’m descended from the harp, THE harp! And…and he’s descended from THE giant! It’s…it’s like putting a cat and a mouse in the same room, you know it’s not gonna end well!” “Well. That depends on if you’re the cat or the mouse,” smirked Che’Nya, licking his lips in emphasis. “What if he eats me?” whimpered Harmonia, ignoring the cat completely. “Or…or wh-what if he crushes me flat? What if I get stolen a-and taken away, l-like a trophy?” Che’Nya clucked his tongue. “What if, what if, what if?” he chanted in a nasally, mocking way. “Listen, Little Harmony, that’s one question I DON’T like. What’s gonna be is gonna be! There’s no need to get so worked up about it. It’s better to just decide to stop fighting it and go with the flow!” Harmonia scoffed. “Easy for you to say, you’re not the one at risk here. If there’s one thing my family drilled into me that I actually gave any care about, it’s that you can’t trust giants,” Harmonia replied. “They’re greedy monsters. They smell bad. Th-they eat people and smash them just for fun…” “Oh, so you’ve met them all, then?” Che’Nya grinned, almost tauntingly. Harmonia went silent. “Maybe this giant will be a monster, but maybe he won’t be,” Che’Nya went on. “You say you’re tired of people judging you just for being the Harp’s descendant? Well, how do you think he’d feel?” Che’Nya smiled with surprising kindness as he leaned down to Harmonia’s level. “Besides, it’s just a GAME, Little Harmony,” he mewed. “When it’s all over, you can come back home to school.” “Yeah, if I survive,” droned Harmonia sadly. “Gods, I feel like I’m a pawn on a chessboard. No, worse: I’m a chess king.”

“Nya? How is that worse than a pawn?” “Because the King doesn’t DO anything. That piece literally just exists to be captured so somebody else can win the game. The King can’t move very far in any direction and really SHOULDN’T move. It sounds important, but it’s…useless. That’s exactly how the rules have made me out to be.” “Hmmmm…purr-haps,” conceded the cat. “But there ARE still moves the King can make to help protect itself and win the game. As for pawns, they can become queens if they reach the end of the board.” Harmonia was silent, mulling that fact over. Che’Nya chuckled. “You know…in the legend of Happy Valley, the Golden Harp wasn’t completely helpless,” the kitty-boy recalled. “If I re-mew-mber correctly, she actually HELPED the farmers defeat the giant. They couldn’t have won without her. Maybe you should stop seeing your past as a curse, and use that legacy inside of you to your advantage.” The feline giggled. “Or maybe you can just sit nice and pretty and golden-goosey, and you’ll get by without aaaany problems! That works too, don’tcha think?” Harmonia looked Che’Nya up and down, as if he was trying to decide how serious the Cheshire Cat was. “I guess that’s fair,” he said at last, then gave a small sort of smile. “Maybe you have a point. And…well…it’s all decided already, and I’m the only one who CAN’T back out. It would defeat the whole purpose if I did. Might as well just…work with what I’ve got, right?” “That’s the spirit!” cheered Che’Nya, chucking Harmonia lightly in the shoulder with one fist, then smirked wickedly. “And besides, getting eaten by a giant wouldn’t be THAT bad for you, would it now?” Harmonia turned a little paler, and a slightly hysterical, nervous little laughed left him. “HA HA HA HA, you’re funny. No. Just…just no. Please, disappear now,” he groused. Che’Nya laughed loudly.

“You got it! I’m good at that!” he sang out. “After all, it’s what Cheshire Cats do best…” As he began to swirl away, bit by bit, Che’Nya arched an eyebrow sneakily and added: “What do you think Golden Harps do best, hm?” Before Harmonia could answer, Che’Nya had vanished into the ether. He looked around, as if to make sure the cat wasn’t still watching him…then sighed softly. “I guess I’ll need to find out,” he mumbled, and walked away. He held himself a little taller, trying to boost his own self-confidence. All the same, he still felt dreadfully nervous inside.

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The day of the Super Beanfest competition came. Epel Felmier was dressed in his gym uniform, as was standard. The schools had arranged a rendezvous point, midway between the two campuses in the woods. This was where the Captains Pools would meet, and the Head Monster and Golden Harp would make their selections. Epel was the first of the Farmer Captains Pool to arrive. Not necessarily by choice, admittedly: the young farmboy (wasn’t THAT a coincidental background) had found sleep difficult, and had woken early partially as a result. He was seated upon a boulder, looking up at the early morning sky through the gaps in the trees above. The Pomefiore student breathed deeply, allowing his eyes to slide closed. The smell of the trees, and all the rustic odors of nature around him - particularly of the sweet berries and other fruits he could detect somewhere in the green woods - reminded him so much of home…but the faint scent of the sea breeze, wafting through the bushes and brambles from the beach beyond, gave it a sort of ethereal quality one could not find in Harveston. Epel had come to enjoy it here, in the forest…which gave him some confidence he sorely needed. Epel breathed out heavily; not quite a sigh, but very close. He wished he could say the Captains Pool for his school had been chosen with strategic brilliance, and that he’d been elected as an option due to practical reasons of belief in his abilities…but that wasn’t the case at all. The same method that had been used to decide which school would be the Farmers and which school would be the Monsters (minus Billy and the Golden Harp) had been used to determine the Captains. Epel had just been lucky to be chosen. This, Felmier reflected, shouldn’t have bothered him too much: if there was one thing a certain sledding match had taught him, it was that he had the makings of a leader, and he’d always been one to challenge other authorities to begin with. But truth be told…he was worried. This was different, in his mind. There was a lot more riding on something like this. If he got picked, he’d have the pressure of not just a small team of people, but an entire school, heaped upon his shoulders. And if he didn’t get picked, then it would honestly be a bit saddening; he couldn’t help but feel such a choice would mean he wasn’t perceived as fit for the role, and he was very tired of being judged so simply. Either way, he couldn’t win. “Excuse me!” came a voice. “Are you from Night Raven College?”

Epel opened his eyes, and looked to see who had spoken. His eyes widened in surprise at the rather peculiar figure he saw striding towards him: it was a young man, about the same age as himself, but standing a little bit taller. The young man had blonde hair and curious golden eyes, which looked like the yolks of two expertly-cooked eggs in a sea of milky white. The fellow youth wore a hearing aid, but this wasn’t what made him seem odd: it was the very bizarre costume he wore, which was a rather fancy, somewhat old-fashioned-looking suit colored almost entirely in sparkling, glittering gold. The buttons on the coat and vest were made to resemble musical notes, and the cuffs and the trousers remind Epel of the bars on a sheet of music. Topped off with high-heeled (but still fairly masculine-designed) shoes, the newcomer cut was certainly a spectacle to behold. Epel blinked a few times, feeling he might go blind…then awkwardly nodded. “Uh…yeah,” he greeted, slowly. “Howdy-I mean, hello. My name’s Epel. Lemme guess: you’re the Golden Harp?” The newcomer smiled shyly. His timid demeanor didn’t quite match his over-glitzy costume. “Yeah, pretty obvious, isn’t it?” he chuckled, indicating his outfit. “Can’t deny that,” Epel said, with a smile that was slightly forced. He couldn’t help but admit he felt a little surge of bitter apprehension surge inside of his heart: to say that Royal Sword Academy and Night Raven College were rivals was often putting it mildly. The two schools were arch-enemies, and many NRC students would have leapt at the chance to quite literally pounce on the newcomer just for a lark. Epel had faced a few defeats against the rival school in the past, and wasn’t particularly happy to see the leading figure of the opposing team - the one who’d be choosing a Captain from his pool - so suddenly and alone. The newcomer didn’t seem to notice. He smiled in a friendly way and held out a hand. “I’m Harmonia,” he greeted. “Harmonia A’Cappella. It’s nice to meet you.” “Mutual,” Epel lied, as he shook Harmonia’s hand. The descendant of the harp smiled a bit wider, then tilted his head. “Hold on…I think I’ve seen you somewhere before,” he murmured…then his eyes widened. “Wait a bit! Were you in the VDC Championship? The one where Neige competed?” Epel narrowed his eyes and nodded. “Yes,” he replied. “I was one of the lead performers.” He braced himself for what Harmonia would say next; he expected some show of pithy pity or perhaps even a bit of boasting…something about how he shouldn’t feel bad, because he did good, too, even though Neige and his posse were SO good… “Wow!” Harmonia laughed. “It’s such an honor to meet you! I’m so sorry, by the way, you guys were ROBBED that year. Seriously.” Epel gaped. “...Wh-what?”

“Don’t get me wrong: Neige is a cool guy. I’m in his dorm at RSA,” said Harmonia, and rubbed the back of his head with a light laugh. “But, uh…I’m sorry, that children’s song over what YOU guys did? That’s just INSANE. You guys had so much STYLE! So much POWER in your voices! There was so much skill and so much emotion, and the song itself? That just…wow, that honestly really hit me in a good place. Right here.” Harmonia patted his chest in emphasis, giving a sympathetic smile. “You guys should have won. Not us. I’m seriously sorry the judges didn’t take your side.” Epel blinked a few times…then his smile started to become more genuine as a hint of pink colored his cheeks. “I mean…well…thank you! It honestly means a lot to hear you say that,” chuckled Epel, then smirked. “I’d expect the Golden Harp to know a thing or two about music.” Harmonia shrugged. “Well, I do, but it’s not necessarily just for those reasons. Honestly, I’m more experienced with classical stuff,” he sighed, sounding a bit disappointed as he sat down in the grass nearby. “I’d like to change that sometime. You’re so lucky, by the way.” “I am?” “Dude. You got to work with VIL. FRICKIN’. SCHOENHEIT. Do you know what I’d give to even meet him for two seconds?” gushed Harmonia, and smiled in a sentimental way, looking askance. “He and Neige…they both helped me in a time when I really needed it…” “Funny. The Housewarden never mentioned helping someone like you,” Epel remarked. “Oh, not personally. I mean…listening to their music, watching their movies. They inspired me. They made me want to-wait. Did you say HOUSEWARDEN?!” “Yes!” giggled Epel, enjoying the look of utter spellbound awe on Harmonia’s face. “He’s the leader of my dorm. That’s one of the reasons I took part in that contest.” Harmonia just stared. He was filled with admiration, his expression one of purest wonder. “Wow,” he whispered again, and laughed softly. “I’m a little jealous. You were so great onstage, too! It must have been fun.” “That’s, uh…one word for it,” Epel chuckled nervously, remembering the horrors of Vil’s Overblot behind the scenes. “I have to admit, one nice thing was that it was public: meant no one could make the mistake of thinking I’m a girl ever again, if they saw it live or on TV.” “Psh. Yeah, I can sympathize with that,” snorted Harmonia, and gestured to his own face. “I don’t get misgendered TOO often, but it’s annoying when it happens.” Epel’s smiled had become a real grin. He was quickly starting to feel he liked this RSA student. “Are you excited for the competition?” he asked. Harmonia’s smile faded, and he looked away. “Honestly, I’m…really, REALLY scared of meeting the Head Monster,” he answered, nervously, fingers fiddling around each other.

“I guess I would be, too, if I were you,” nodded Epel, then scooted closer with an assuring smile. “Billy is actually in my dorm, too, you know.” “Billy?” blinked Harmonia. “The Giant’s name is…Billy?” “Yeah, why?” “I dunno, just…I expected a giant to have a name like ‘Rothbart the Terrible’ or ‘Redjac the Ravenous,’ not just…um…Billy.” Epel snickered. “His name’s not the only thing that will surprise you,” he said with a merry twinkle in his blue eyes. “Trust me, you’ll be fine. But, uh…can I give you some advice?” “Huh? Oh, um…s-sure, what’s that?” “Whatever you do, do NOT piss him off,” Epel warned. “Keep on good terms with him, and you have nothing to fear.” Harmonia let out a very, VERY nervous laugh. “R-right, uh…ha ha ha…n-no pressure…” In his mind, the mantra of I am so dead, I am so dead, I am so dead kept repeating itself. “Well now!” a voice called out. “This is a surprise! And here we thought you were running late!” The voice was addressing Epel, who turned about, recognizing it. It was Dire Crowley, who was leading a group of NRC students - the rest of the Captains Pool - into the woodlands. The other options for potential Captains, courtesy of the random raffle, were Vil, Deuce, Jack, Riddle, Sebek, and Cater, who approached in that same order. Vil seemed mildly impressed (which, with him, could be taken as the highest form of praise), while the rest mostly seemed astonished to see Epel so far ahead of them. “Well, I wanted to be bright and early,” chuckled Epel in greeting, and helped Harmonia stand up as he went to greet his fellow classmates. “Hmph. And who is this human?” Sebek huffed, haughtily, crossing his arms and sticking his nose up, while the rest eyed the golden-garbed figure with curiosity. “This is Harmonia A’Cappella,” Epel introduced his new acquaintance. “He’s the Descendant of the Golden Harp, and he’ll be choosing one of us as the Farmer Captain. Right, Harmonia?” “R-Right,” stuttered Harmonia, and approached the group somewhat nervously. “It’s, ah…it’s nice to meet you all.” Jack and Sebek grunted, noncommittally. Each eyed the RSA student with a sort of dubious interest. It was clear that each of them was focusing on him as an opponent rather than as an ally, at the moment. The others, however, were thankfully more openly welcoming. “A pleasure, I’m sure,” Riddle greeted, politely, and held out a hand, which Harmonia shook firmly. Riddle smiled. “A decent grip there. I approve.” “Don’t think we’ll go easy on you, no matter which of us you choose,” Deuce piped up with a bold smirk. “We’re gonna save you no matter what!” Harmonia and Epel shared a look; the way Deuce said that made it sound like he was planning to punch the Harp in the face rather than rescue him. “Uh…well…thank you, I think?” Harmonia replied. “That’s such a cool costume!” Cater suddenly exclaimed. “Oh, you have GOT to let me get a picture of it! It’s so totally cammable! Can I? Please?” Harmonia, a bit overwhelmed, stammered out an agreement…and a few moments later was blinking camera flash out of his eyes as Cater snapped a hurried selfie.

“Awesome!” squealed Cater, eagerly tapping at his phone. “HashtagGonnaSaveThisLittleDude! HashtagGoingForTheGold! HashtagSuperBeanfest! Aaaand…send!” The other NRC members all rolled their eyes at Cater Diamond’s antics. By now, Harmonia had recovered, and was standing before Vil. For a moment, he just stood there, clearly unsure of what to say. Vil arched an eyebrow impatiently. “Well?” was all he said. “Speak up, golden potato. I can tell you’re busting at the seams, with the way you’re shaking.” Harmonia needed all his willpower not to immediately burst into an explosive squeal of joy. He knew that would never do. “I, um…I just wanted to say, I…I’m a REALLY big fan of yours, Mr. Schoenheit,” he said, timidly, and held out his hand. “You have absolutely no idea what an honor it is to meet you in person. Um…I-I hope you win. F-For my sake, I mean! Heh heh…yeah…” Vil blinked twice…then smiled, slightly superciliously, and returned the handshake. “It’s always a pleasure to meet a fan,” he said, honestly. “If things go well for our team, when the competition is over, perhaps you’d like an autograph?” Harmonia was astonished and delighted. His eyes sparkled like the Sun. “Oh! Oh, y-yes, sir! That…that would be AMAZING, thank you, sir!” “We’ll see then,” nodded Schoenheit, then gripped Harmonia’s hand more tightly and leaned forward, his smile somewhat sinister. “However, right now we ARE in a competition. I think it would be wise for both of us to keep our heads in the game. Don’t you?” “Ah! Oh, y-yes! Yes, that’s true! Um…thank you again, Mr. Schoenheit. Sir.” Vil chuckled softly, and released Harmonia’s hand. “You’re welcome,” he said, serenely but sincerely. Harmonia was still beaming with joy as he stepped back. While these introductions had been going on, Dire Crowley had been busy checking his pocket watch. “Well,” the Headmage of Night Raven spoke up. “The other team should be arriving shortly, as well as our Head Monster.” “Correction, Headmage Crowley!” called a somewhat creaky sort of voice. “The other team has arrived!” Harmonia and the Night Raven crew looked to see a group of students approaching from the opposite side of the woodland clearing. The expressions on all of the Night Raven students’ faces turned a bit cold as they saw the blue robes of Ambrose LXIII - headmaster of Royal Sword - and the similarly-hued gym uniforms that were worn by the students following close behind him. A few of the newcomers were familiar to the NRC students already: one was a young fellow in a green beret, who hovered over the rest of the RSA Captains Pool with a cocksure smile on his face. Sebek quickly recognized him as Matthew Satyr, who had bedeviled the NRC crew during the Scavenger’s Hunt competition. Another familiar figure was Neige LeBlanche, who waved cheerfully at Vil as he all but skipped forward. Vil responded with a cold sort of smile and a curt nod.

Others, however, were less well-known. One was a strapping youth with dark-toned skin, and long, somewhat shaggy, curly hair. A pin that resembled a sunflower was stuck into said hair, and from beneath the moppish top sprouted two curled horns and a pair of pointed animal ears. His mouth was filled with sharp teeth. His hands ended in long white gloves, which tapered at the fingertips, as if to conceal claws. These were barely visible as he crossed his arms and snorted like a buffalo; his demeanor was a perfect match to that of Howl and Zigvolt. Another had curious, pinkish skin, and brick-colored hair that was tied back into a long ponytail. He, too, had horns: they were colored sky blue, and resembled those of a Long. He had pointed ears, and carried a long, golden-tipped staff in one hand. His smile was boyish and slightly mischievous, a sort of sneaky gleam in his deep brown eyes. The other two appeared to be good friends, given how they stood very close to one another. One had a somewhat dopey, blithe sort of smile on his face, contrasted by blue-gray eyes the color of steel. His hair was a sort of honey-blonde shade, and his body was plump and soft in form. The RSA member who stood a little behind him, as if hiding shyly from the rest of the assembled people, had black hair that matched his dark eyes. His expression was somewhat dour, and a small bandage stretched across the bridge of his nose; another was visible curled around one of his fingers. Along with his gym uniform, he wore a sort of fanciful hood, which resembled the ears of a donkey. “I count six possible Captains here, Ambrose,” sniffed Crowley, somewhat snootily. “Where is your seventh? Or do you intend to volunteer yourself?” “Hardly,” chortled Ambrose, with a jolly smile. “I assure you, my seventh option IS present.” “Oh?” piped up Riddle Rosehearts. “Then where has he gone, sir?” Riddle stiffened as a familiar giggle entered his ear, and he felt a long, fluffy tail suddenly sweep across his front, curling about from somewhere behind him. “Gone?” purred a voice. “I’m not gone. Or then again, purr-haps I AM gone. Yet I’m still here! Curiouser and curiouser, wouldn’t you say?” The tail swept up, tickling Riddle’s nose and making him sneeze. As Riddle staggered in surprise, the tail vanished…then reappeared on a tree branch above everyone’s head. The body of Che’Nya soon apparated into view. Unlike all the other RSA members, he was dressed in his usual clothes, rather than a gym uniform. He was licking the back of one hand, like a cat grooming their paw…but stopped, twitching one pink-furred ear when he saw the looks everyone flashed his way. “Sorryyyyy!” he sang out, teasingly, sticking out his tongue and winking at Riddle, who gave him a flustered glare. “I could NOT resist!”

Some of the RSA members sniggered, while Riddle just grumbled under his breath. Cater shook his head wearily while Deuce rolled his eyes. “You all know him, clearly,” chuckled Ambrose, then gestured to the rest of the students with him. “Not to mention Mr. Satyr and Mr. LeBlanche. As for the rest, allow me to introduce Qiao Zhou, Paisley Burr, and Ivo DePrece. All that’s missing is our Head Monster,” Ambrose observed. “Then we can begin the selection. He IS on his way, isn’t he, Headmage Crowley?” “Of course!” harrumphed the Headmaster of Night Raven, and looked towards Vil. “You did tell him the time to meet us, didn’t you?” “I did,” Vil confirmed. “And Billy rarely disappoints me. Anymore.” “I g-guess that’s good to hear,” Harmonia spoke up. “So, um…in that case, how soon till he-?” He was cut off with a yelp when, suddenly, the earth beneath all their feet seemed to shake. Then it happened again…and again…and again. A sound accompanied each quake: THUMP-A-THUMP-A-THUMP! All of the NRC students smirked. They knew that sound. The RSA students, meanwhile, began to mill about in alarm: Qiao Zhou dropped into a battle-ready pose, holding his staff with a determined glare. Matthew Satyr, similarly, grabbed hold of his dueling rod, which he had brought with him. Paisley blinked and stumbled back a bit, eyes rather wide, while Neige yelped and held onto his hat, letting a startled squeak of “Jiminy Christmas…!” Only Ivo and Che’Nya seemed thoroughly unfazed: the Cheshire Cat was grooming himself and didn’t even appear to notice. Ivo, meanwhile, just gave a dull, almost bored, slow blink as he remained standing behind Paisley. Harmonia seemed the most frightened of all. He knew these were the footsteps of the giant he’d been warned of all his life: the descendant of the nightmare his family had once faced many decades ago. Already, his mind began to conjure up hideous images of what kind of horrendous beast could be approaching. He trembled, and even began to pray silently, as his heart beat quickened with every step…until, finally… CRASH! Two trees were pushed aside, and a mountainous figure stepped into view, looming over all as his shadow fell across them. Gasps of amazement came from the RSA students. Harmonia felt his heart catch in his throat, as he saw a giant pair of boots, covering feet the size of a couple of boats. His eyes trailed upwards, and he saw a truly tremendous body, covered up by the purple-and-green camouflage of a Monster uniform. Wide hips and thighs thicker than any tree trunk transitioned to a belly bigger than anything the Golden Harp had imagined. Muscles could be detected beneath the burly arms’ sheaths of blubber, and a barrel chest rested at the top of the diaphragm. Harmonia felt himself start to whimper, as he continued to look up, up, up…and into the giant’s face… …And at that point, his expression shifted, as he saw round, soft cheeks, a pair of bright, baby-blue eyes, carrot colored hair…and a happy-go-lucky gap-toothed smile. “Hello down there!” the giant called happily. “Sorry I’m late, little friends! Had trouble getting my pants on, heh…anyway, I can’t wait to play with you all! This is gonna be so much fun!” Harmonia gulped nervously. As those sweet, happy words and a surprisingly childish giggle filled the air, all he could think of was one thing. Oh, sweet Gods…he’s adorable.

“Mr. A’Cappella,” Crowley piped up, waving one hand between Harmonia and Billy respectively. “Allow me to introduce Billy Geant: Night Raven’s resident giant, and descendant of the Monster of Happy Valley. Mr. Geant? Meet Mr. A’Cappella.” Billy nodded, and smiled down at A’Cappella brightly. “Hi, Mr. A’Cappella!” he bellowed, and knelt down, holding out a single finger towards him. “Nice to meetcha! You can just call me Billy!” Harmonia froze up as that hand swept down towards him. He paused, looking Billy up and down carefully. The ogre was even larger than he had imagined, and he could practically feel gravity’s draw on his body. He glanced towards the giant’s belly, which sagged low and heavy, spilling over and across the titan’s thigh from its obesity. He shivered a bit, and then held out one comparatively puny hand, and shook the tip of Billy’s fat finger. The skin was warm. Soft. Clean. For some reason, that surprised Harmonia: with the way his family described giants, he’d imagined the the skin to be hard as stone, callused, horribly sweaty, or unpleasantly leathery in texture. He hadn’t expected it to be so…nice. “Th-the feeling’s…mutual,” he said, and smiled a tiny bit. “And, uh…just call me Harmonia, okay?” “Okay, Ammonia!” Snickers suddenly erupted from several people. Vil facepalmed. Harmonia blushed. “N-No, uh…it’s Harmonia.” “...Harmonica?” “Close! Close, um…say it with me slowly, okay? Har-mo-ni-a.” Billy nodded slowly, knitting his brow, focusing REALLY hard as he repeated: “Har-mo-ni-a…Harmonia!” “That’s it!” grinned the harp boy with a giggle. “See? You can do it if you try.” Billy blushed and giggled a bit. “Thanks, uh…H-Harmonia,” he said gratefully. Harmonia smiled wider, as he saw the big behemoth scratch the back of his huge head in embarrassment. He would have been lying if he said that he didn’t feel some trepidation, still, but…the giant didn’t SEEM ill-natured. If anything, he seemed…sweet, and even all that hugeness was starting to seem more cuddly than intensely intimidating. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad.

“Good morning, Housewarden!” Billy cheered, giving a respectful nod to Vil, and then a mock salute to Epel. “And hello, Epel!” “You seem excited this morning,” Epel smiled, somewhat teasingly. “Why wouldn’t I be?” Billy laughed in response. “Don’t expect us to be any less competitive, just because we’re part of the same dorm,” Vil said, warningly, crossing his arms with a smirk. “I expect you to do your best today, Billy. I shall be doing the same.” Billy smirked back. “Oh, trust me,” he said, and licked his lips none-too-subtly. “I’m not going easy on anyone. I promised you all that from the start.” “If the niceties are out of the way,” chuckled the voice of Headmage Ambrose, “I think it’s time we get this game underway. Don’t you, Headmage Crowley?” “Indeed!” boomed Dire Crowley. “So! Mr. Geant, you shall be first: who from this pool…” He tipped his hat in the direction of the RSA team. “...Will you pick for the Monster Captain?” Billy’s giant head swung around on his shoulders. It tilted slightly as he blinked his very large, baby blue eyes at the seven students from Royal Sword. Matthew and Qiao puffed out their chests with pride…then noticed each other, frowned, and tried to nudge one another aside, like a couple of schoolboys vying for attention. Paisley smiled in a dopey, dumb way and gave a little cheery wave (Billy waved back), while Ivo just blinked in a slow, drab way. As for Adam, he gave a smirk and flexed one arm, showing off the firm biceps beneath his gym suit, while Neige gave a friendly smile and a bow. Che’Nya just swirled into view on top of a nearby log. He smirked, rolled his eyes, and yawned, nonchalantly watching a butterfly go by. Billy immediately pointed a finger towards Che’Nya. “This one,” he smiled. “I want him!” Riddle blanched and sucked in air in a sound of shock, startling everyone else. Only Che’Nya and Billy seemed not to notice. The giant was beaming, and the Cheshire Cat looked astonished. “Me-ow?” he responded, pointing to himself, wide-eyed and surprised. “Yuh-huh!” Billy nodded enthusiastically, and looked toward the two headmages. “I want the pink kitty!” “Interesting choice,” murmured Ambrose, sounding intrigued. “Why would you choose Mr. Alchemivich, eh?” questioned Crowley. Billy blinked. He looked between Che’Nya and the Headmages, as if he seriously couldn’t get why they would even ask that question. His response was slow and measured, as if he were explaining to children… “Pink. Kitty. Do I need another reason?”

Harmonia had to bite his knuckle to keep from squealing with laughter. Qiao, Matthew, and Adam all huffed in disappointment, while Paisley, Ivo, and Neige offered congratulations to the Cheshire Cat. Every single student at Night Raven flushed with embarrassment. Several of them seemed to become very interested in their shoes, all of a sudden. Riddle’s expression still bordered on the mortified. “Yes…well…ahem!” coughed Crowley, who seemed equally flummoxed. “A very…unorthodox method, Mr. Geant. We’ll see how it serves your fellow students in the competition.” “Thank you, Headmage…I think,” chuckled Billy, scratching his pink cheek. “Now, Mr. A’Cappella,” Ambrose LXIII spoke up, stroking his white beard. “Would you be so kind as to choose your team captain from the Night Raven side?” Harmonia’s smile faded, and he turned serious. Tossing some of his golden bangs out of his similarly golden eyes, he looked towards the seven NRC members. He had to admit…this wasn’t an easy choice to make. Naturally, he had a bias towards Vil Schoenheit: a celebrity, an entrepreneur, a Housewarden…he had ample credentials. Then again, he knew that Riddle Rosehearts was a Housewarden as well; he’d seen him on television in the Magift competition. Deuce Spade, Jack Howl, and Sebek Zigvolt all seemed strong and hardy; Harmonia got the feeling none of them would be brilliant strategists, but they certainly had physical fitness on their side. And then there was Cater Diamond…who was snapping selfies of himself, winking and sticking out his tongue… …Yeah, Harmonia dismissed him immediately. But that still left six other candidates who could work out well… The golden boy’s eyes finally fell towards Epel. Small. Effeminate. Almost doe-like in appearance, with somewhat untidy lavender hair, and a light sort of voice. A smile painted Harmonia’s face, and he pointed to his choice. “I elect Epel Felmier for the Farmer Team Captain.” The other Night Raven students seemed utterly floored…except for Cater, who laughed and clapped Epel on the back with a cheer of, “WOO-HOO! HashtagCongratulations!” “M-Me?” Epel gasped, seemingly just as surprised. “Why me?” Harmonia shrugged in response, with a gentle sort of smile. “I’ve only known you for a couple of minutes, but I somehow feel the two of us are kindred spirits. Not only that, but you have strength and experiences that I’ve never gotten to enjoy. If I were to be in charge of a team, I’d hope to have a leader like you.” He extended a hand to Felmier. “I have faith that you and your friends will save me.” Epel blushed…but then a confident smile crossed his face. He shook Harmonia’s hand firmly and nodded. “You can count on me.” “I hope so,” chuckled Harmonia. “And so the choices are made!” Ambrose declared, clapping his hands together with a smile. “The game can finally commence!”

“Indeed,” nodded Crowley, and addressed both teams. “Both sides will be led to their respective main camps, where the participating students are gathered. The Head Monster will bring the Golden Harp to the Colosseum. The Captains shall be given fifteen minutes to select their aids and devise a strategy. In exactly a half hour, the hunt for the Golden Harp will begin. Myself and Headmage Ambrose will now lead our students to their headquarters.”

The two Headmages, having announced this, shook hands with each other (Crowley’s smile was extremely forced, Ambrose’s less so), and then marched off, leading their teams away. Epel cast a brief glance back at Harmonia and Billy before hastening off. Harmonia and Billy watched as the rest soon disappeared into the woods. The former gave a nod to Che’Nya, who smiled back and winked, giving a salute before swishing his tail as he swaggered off with the other RSA members. “Bye-bye, little friends!” Billy sang, waving farewell to all of the students…then looked down at Harmonia. Harmonia, in turn, looked up at the giant. They were now completely alone. Just the two of them. The Monster and the Harp. Nervous, anxious, fluttering feelings flitted about in Harmonia’s chest as he suddenly realized his vulnerable state. There were no Headmages, nor even other students, here to try and help. From this point on, his life was quite literally in the hands of the ogre. For a moment, he worried that now would be when the proverbial shoe would drop: when the titan would suddenly go from seemingly sweet and tender to showing his fangs (either literally, figuratively, or both). But instead, Billy just smiled down at him with a happy “little” look on his face, blinking his big blue eyes curiously. “So,” the giant said at last. “Are you ready to go?” “G-Go?” peeped Harmonia, backing up a step. Billy giggled and tossed his head indicatively. “To the Colosseum! That’s where you and I have to stay while I’m guarding you! Part of the game, right?” “Oh! Oh, r-right, um…s-sure, I…I’m ready to go when…when you are-EEP!” Harmonia flinched as a huge hand - larger than his whole body - suddenly swept down again, and stretched palm open before him. He looked between the fat hand and Billy’s face, as Geant smiled in a playful, exuberant way that showed the gap between his teeth. “Come on then!” Billy cheered. “It’s okay, little friend. I won’t hurt you! I’ll be super-duper careful, mega promise!” He crossed his heart with his free hand and added, “Giant’s Honor!” Harmonia nearly retorted that he didn’t know giants HAD honor…but already, he felt that would be a cruel and unjust response. He could tell saying such a thing would have hurt Billy’s feelings, and…well…somehow, he already knew that hurting Billy’s feelings wasn’t something he wanted to do. So - with the caution one might use when trying to defuse a bomb - Harmonia stepped up onto the soft, slightly springy-feeling surface of the giant’s plump palm. He sat down and braced himself as, a moment later, Billy rose back to his full height, carrying Harmonia up, up, up off the ground. The Golden Harp willed himself not to look down, as he could already feel his stomach flip from the change in air pressure and the feeling of gravity shifting beneath him. Billy smiled and cocked his head as he looked at the little one in the palm of his hand. He had to bite his lip to keep from squeeing. “Awww…you’re ADORABLE!” he cooed, unable to hold in his excitement, a blush painting his face, as he lifted his other hand, pointing one finger at Harmonia. “You’re so little, and you have such a cute little outfit…I wish I had a cool golden outfit like that! You look awesome!” Harmonia felt a little breathless as he nudged the finger away, not wanting to be poked, and barely managed to eep out a sincere but somewhat scared, “Th-thank you.” “You’re welcome!” grinned Billy, and cocked his head the other way. The action reminded Harmonia so much of a curious puppy, it was kind of hilarious. “Comfy there, little friend?” “M-More or less…” “Then let’s get moving,” Billy nodded. “Hold on tight, and don’t worry: I won’t let you go.” Under the circumstances, Harmonia felt there was a certain irony to those words…but he decided not to comment on it. Instead, he just sat quietly, as Billy began to march through the woods, his giant footsteps shaking the forest around them as he tromped in the direction of the Colosseum. The games had begun.

To Be Continued in Part Two…

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