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bard-llama · 9 months

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WiP Whatever-Day: Spontaneous Combustion

I was busy all day Weds and spent Thurs recovering from Weds, so whatever, I don't care what day it is, have a snip.

This fic is the story of Zuko investigating cases of spontaneous combustion in Ba Sing Se.

Zuko was on his way home after closing Pao’s Teashop when it happened. He wouldn’t have paid attention to it, honestly, if it hadn’t been for the fire. He had to cross through a busy part of the Lower Ring, where there were a bunch of bars and restaurants and theatres, and he always tried to keep his head down to just avoid everyone, his threshold for dealing with customers long since surpassed.

So Zuko would have continued on his way… were it not for the tugging behind his breastbone that meant fire.

He couldn’t figure out what he was sensing at first, confused as he looked in that general direction. But, as though his attention had been the missing piece, there was, quite abruptly, fire in the middle of the street.

People screamed and ran and Zuko instinctively tried to put out the fire – but it fought him, which fire had never done before. Shifting out of the way of the panicking crowd, Zuko moved closer – and as he did, he realized that the things on fire were people. An adult and a child, it looked like, and both of them were burning, screaming the way Zuko remembered screaming when–

He had to put the fire out. He couldn’t afford to get distracted, not when people’s lives were on the line.

He could smell burning flesh and it made him gag, his mind wanting to return to that moment – but he couldn’t. He needed to be present, needed to put the fires out.

Focusing all of his being on that one goal, Zuko reached out for the largest flare and told it to extinguish.

It did, abruptly going out, and Zuko hoped no one was paying enough attention to notice, because he wasn’t being the most subtle here, but he had to put out the final flame–

You’re killing me! the flame seemed to cry, and Zuko felt it in his soul.

You’re hurting them, he thought in response. You have to go out.

No! the fire spit sparks at him for daring to try to harm it. You’ll kill me!

Sometimes fires have to go out, Zuko remembered from one of his very first firebending lessons, with his mother and his uncle. Fire is Life, Uncle had said, but death is part of the cycle of life.

Balance, another voice seemed to speak in Zuko’s head, freaking him out. Temper the fire. Don’t try to tame it.

Zuko followed the instructions instinctively, changing his approach. Instead of telling the fire to go out, he offered metaphorical sandbags to help contain the flames. The fire was reluctant to accept the help – but when Zuko insisted that it was hurting them, it allowed it.

Zuko brought his hand down and the fire in front of him went out. But the fire he could sense, the fire that he’d helped bank – that fire was still present, and it was coming from the child, who appeared… remarkably unburned, actually.

There were no flames in existence, but Zuko could still feel the fire. This child’s fire.

That could only mean one thing.

There was shouting of a different type suddenly, shouting that sounded sharp and commanding, and then the Dai Li were sweeping in, clearing out the panicking crowds.

Zuko looked at the child. He should – if he were smart, he would duck his head and blend in with the crowd. He couldn’t be discovered in this city, which meant he had to keep his head down and–

The child – a young girl wearing the remains of a reddish brown dress – groaned and her eyes fluttered open… and locked on Zuko’s.

The next thing Zuko knew, the Dai Li were surrounding them and his opportunity to hide amongst the crowd was gone. Shit.

“Mom,” the girl murmured, struggling upright. Zuko hurried to help her, because it seemed wrong not to. And then she spotted the body next to her and wailed. “Mom!”

Zuko held her back, knowing from experience that touching burns was a bad idea. From the smell of things, if the mother was still alive, then she likely wouldn’t be for much longer.

He wished he could do something, but–

A bystander was explaining to the Dai Li what they’d seen. “It was just this woman and this kid, walking down the street like everyone else,” they said. “They was dressed up all nice. Like, nicer than the Lower Ring nice. The kinda nice that’d get them into trouble. But before no one had a chance for trouble, they just caught fire! Just like that! I’ve never seen anything like it!”

“I have,” grumbled one of the Dai Li quietly. Zuko stiffened, making a mental note of that agent. He foresaw a need for the Blue Spirit to investigate things later on.

How could they have just randomly caught on fire!? Even firebenders couldn’t do that! Not easily, anyway – self immolation without injuring oneself was difficult. Few would bother to try it. Zuko had maybe figured out how to set his swords on fire without them burning, but he still wouldn’t want to try setting himself on fire and attempt to restrain the flames.

“All right,” the agent in charge said, coming to a stop next to Zuko. Zuko ducked his head, trying to hide his scar in his hair. If anyone in this city knew about the Banished Fire Prince’s scar, it would be the Dai Li. He didn’t need them getting curious about him. “Who are you and what’s your connection to this?”

Zuko shook his head, “I was just walking home from work. I don’t know what happened, but – but they need medical attention! The girl was on fire!”

The Dai Li agent shared a dubious glance with another one. “Medical is already on the way, but she looks fine. The other one…”

The child sobbed in Zuko’s arms, sagging until he was holding all of her weight. “Mom,” she whimpered.

“What–” Zuko asked hesitantly, “what happens to her, if her mother’s…”

The agent’s face was mildly sympathetic, but for the most part, he and all his agents seemed unmoved. At the scene of someone burning to death.

What the fuck was wrong with these people?

“There’s plenty of orphanages in the Lower Ring,” the agent said. “She’ll forget the worst of it eventually.”

The girl’s sobbing turned to choking turned to gagging and Zuko held her hair back as she threw up next to her mother’s body.

“She’s coming with me,” he said before he knew he was going to.

“Excuse me?”

“She has no one else,” Zuko said. “I’ll take care of her.”

“Are you even of age?” the agent asked with a frown.

…shit, Zuko didn’t actually know. What was the age of majority in the Earth Kingdom?

“I’m sixteen,” he said honestly.

“Yeah, she needs a legal guardian. Sorry, kid.”

“My – my Uncle,” Zuko stammered, heart pounding with the knowledge that he could not let this child get lost in the cracks of a broken city, “he’s my guardian. He could be hers, too.”

The agent sighed heavily. “Look–”

“Please,” Zuko begged. “She has no one else.”

There was another sigh, and then, “Qiang,” the agent summoned, and another Dai Li stepped forward, dressed just the same as all the rest of them. How did they tell each other apart? “Go with this young man to find his Uncle. If he will truly take guardianship of the girl, you have the right papers.”

“Yes, sir,” the new Dai Li agent bowed. Then he turned to Zuko. “Lead the way.”

Oh Agni, what had he gotten himself into? What had he gotten Uncle into?

But as he picked up the girl and she curled into him, hiding her face in his shoulder, he knew that he could not have done anything else.

They reached the apartment shortly and Zuko took a deep breath and pasted on his Li persona. “Uncle Mushi!” he called loudly to warn Uncle that they needed to keep their cover, “there’s someone here to see you.”

Uncle burst out of the apartment moments later, looking frazzled. “Nephew! Are you all right!? I heard–”

Aware of every single one of their eavesdropping neighbors, Zuko explained, “yeah, um, so… I was walking home and then two people caught on fire and we managed to put one of the fires out, and, um…” he held up the girl demonstratively.

“What?”

The Dai Li agent – Qiang? – cleared his throat. “Perhaps we could continue this inside?”

Uncle did a double take at the sight of the distinctive Dai Li look, paling slightly. “Yes, of course,” he said, hands clutching at Zuko’s arms.

“Please explain,” Uncle said once they’d all moved into the sitting room, the girl still clinging to Zuko – and Uncle gripping him nearly as tightly as well. He was going to have so many bruises later.

“This girl is a witness in an incident we are investigating,” Qiang said, voice monotone. “Her legal guardian was deceased in that incident – but this boy claimed you would wish to take guardianship of her.”

Uncle sent him a wide-eyed look and Zuko swallowed. “She has no one, Uncle.”

Uncle sighed. “Yes, of course,” he said. “I assume there’s some paperwork that needs filling out?”

“Just so,” Qiang smiled the slightest bit, pulling out a stack of papers. “And I will need to see your papers. Yours and the girl’s.”

“Wouldn’t hers have burned?” Zuko frowned, gesturing to the charred spots on her dress.

“Vellum doesn’t burn,” Qiang explained. “It’s why the Earth Kingdom requires it for all personal identification papers.”

Because our soldiers are fighting people wielding fire, he didn’t say, but Zuko could hear it in the silence anyway. But no one would dare speak of the war, not in front of the Dai Li. Certainly not the Dai Li themselves.

To reach his papers, Zuko had to detangle himself from the girl, who went very reluctantly, still sniffling. She retrieved her papers, though, and while there was some soot on them, they were otherwise pretty well intact.

Zuko made note of that. Never knew when it would be important to have a material you could write on that wouldn’t burn.

He passed his forged ID over to the agent with no small amount of anxiety, but he did manage to catch a glimpse of the girl’s ID. Enough to catch her name, anyway – Mari.

She was pale, clearly still in shock, and Zuko chewed on his lip, pulling one of the blankets that Uncle had attempted to knit out and wrapping it around her.

“Are you hungry?” he asked softly. “Thirsty?”

She shook her head mutely, but Zuko didn’t know what else to do, so he rose to fetch glasses of water for their guests. It gave him an excuse to duck behind the kitchen bar and lean back against the cabinets for a moment, just breathing.

Two people had caught fire. Zuko had put those fires out, but they had fought him. One of those fires turned out to be Mari’s inner fire.

Had – had Zuko put Mari’s mother’s inner fire out!? Had he killed her!?

Zuko’s breathing echoed in his ear, too fast, and he knew he needed to calm down.

Maybe… maybe he had, as awful as that was to think. But he’d been trying to help her. That mattered… right?

How had she even caught on fire!? It clearly hadn’t been intentional, but Zuko had never heard of someone’s inner fire just catching.

Maybe Uncle would know what was going on. The thought soothed Zuko’s panic and he focused on it. Uncle would help. It would all be okay, because Uncle would know what to do.

With a final deep breath, Zuko rose and poured the water for the guests, bringing the glasses back into the sitting room/dining room/same-room-as-the-kitchen-but-divided-by-the-bar – seriously, how did people live in such small spaces? He felt trapped and cramped and–

He set one glass by the Dai Li agent, who mumbled an absent thank you, focused on examining their documents and instructing Uncle on how to fill out the papers. Then Zuko returned to Mari, kneeling in front of her.

“I know you said you weren’t thirsty,” he murmured, “but can you try to drink something?”

She looked dazed, but she accepted the glass and sipped at the water, so Zuko considered it a victory. He sat back next to her, and she leaned into his side – but he was pretty sure her mind was far away.

It worried him.

Finally, the paperwork was filled out to Qiang’s satisfaction and he returned their identity papers to them before leaving, with a promise that the appropriate authorities would be by to review the guardianship application.

“Of course,” Uncle bowed graciously. “Thank you for all your help, good sir. Have a wonderful evening.”

Qiang snorted, bowing back shallowly and then turning down the street.

Uncle shut the door, and total silence reigned over the apartment.

Standing behind him in the hallway, Zuko swallowed nervously.

Eventually, Uncle turned to face him. “Nephew,” Uncle began, but he didn’t seem to know what to say.

“Something weird happened, Uncle,” Zuko blurted out. “The – the fires – I think – I don’t know how inner became outer, but–”

“Nephew, breathe,” Uncle instructed, reaching out. Zuko couldn’t help his flinch, but all Uncle did was rest his warm hand over Zuko’s shoulder. “Remember, your breath is your most important asset, so you must always remain in control of it.”

It was an old lesson and Zuko fell into his breathing exercises easily. After a while, the anxiety crawling under his skin lessened – slightly.

“Now,” Uncle said, taking his other shoulder in hand and guiding him back to the sitting room, “sit down and tell me what happened.”

Uncle settled him next to Mari, who had curled up into a little ball, wrapped up in the blanket Zuko had given her.

She was the one who needed Uncle’s concern and care right now, not him.

But Uncle’s grasp slid down his arms to cup his hands and Uncle met his gaze seriously. “What happened, Nephew?”

Zuko swallowed hard. “Mari – Mari and her mother were walking down the street. I heard someone say that they were dressed up too nicely for the Lower Ring, but no one tried anything. I can’t figure out what caused the fires – but suddenly, they were on fire! I was walking home from work and felt the fires and–” he gasped for air and very intentionally fell back into his breathing exercises. “I tried to put out the fires,” he whispered. “But they fought me. I – I managed to put her mother out… too late. But Mari – it. I – I think it was her inner flame?”

Uncle inhaled sharply in surprise, glancing at the unmoving girl.

“I – I helped bank the fire,” Zuko explained, “and Mari emerged relatively unscathed. I don’t know how. Then – then the Dai Li showed up and… they would’ve sent her to an orphanage.”

“I understand,” Uncle said softly, squeezing Zuko’s hands. “We will figure out what happened,” Uncle promised, and something in Zuko relaxed. He didn’t have to deal with this alone. Uncle was here.

Uncle was always here.

“Has Mari spoken to you?” Uncle asked gently.

Zuko shook his head. “She called for her mom and then got sick when…” he bit his lip. “But – but it was… it sounds ridiculous, but it was almost like her inner flame talked to me?”

“Oh?”

END OF SNIP -- apparently tumblr won't let me indent text and keep spacing anymore so that's cool

Anyway, through conversation, it comes out that Mari not only doesn't know she's a firebender - but she thinks she's not a bender at all. She also can't remember much of anything. She doesn't know why she's in Ba Sing Se or where she came from or really much about her mother (which is heartbreaking for her).

Somehow, they make the connection to the Dai Li re: memory wiping, and as they investigate, it's revealed that Mari and her mother were not an isolated incident. These spontaneous combustion cases have been happening all over the Lower Ring. Not often, but enough to show a pattern. And that pattern is that they were all firebenders who were brainwashed by the Dai Li to forget their bending and be productive members of Ba Sing Se's society. Unfortunately, bending needs to be used - which is why these people's firebending literally burned through them. The Dai Li have not yet really put that together/they dgaf, so it's left to Zuko to figure out how all these Fire Nation refugees ended up in Ba Sing Se, how the Dai Li got ahold of them, and how to stop it from happening again.

Zuko investigates as the Blue Spirit - and has a little girl who really wants to help him, which leads to this convo:

“C’mon, please? I could be the Batman to your Robin!” Zuko blinked. “Okay, first off, it’s the other way around. I am definitely Batman in this scenario. Secondly, how do you even know who Batman and Robin are!?” That made her pause. “I… don’t know, actually.” She frowned, the disconcerted look on her face that was there any time she thought about her missing memories.

(Batman and Robin is a Fire Nation comic strip very popular in the Caldera)

Anyway, yeah. Casefic about spontaneous combustion. 'cause why not?

#atla #wip wednesday

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bakugoukatsuki-rising · 4 years

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I've seen bkdk called a lot of things - soulmates, rivals, wonder duo, twin star... They're obviously connected very deeply and honestly will prob be next to each other the rest of their lives. I was hoping you could give some examples (as many as you'd like) on how they're similar, different, and how they complete each other/balance each other out. Example, bakugou does x where izu would do y. Baku sees x as y while izu sees x as z. Idk, I just like talking about them being 2 sides of 1 coin.

Alright anon so this ask made me have to recruit friends to get manga caps for you, and I still won't be able to fit them all in here thanks to tumblrs pic limit. I'll do my best to give you what you're asking for.

In terms of being the same, there is quite a few. I think many people tend to see Bakugou and Deku as like...polar opposites, and it's not really true. They're much more similar than people give them credit for.

Look at this I already used 3 image spaces lmao.

Look at their facial expressions. Identical. They're fucking twins. It's honestly the cutest thing I've ever seen, and then, THEN WE HAVE THEIR FUCKING TELEPATHY. If they weren't on same wavelength, there is no way they would be able to do this. Now, obviously this scene is meant more to be them whispering to each other but then there is THIS

Same brain. Same panic response. I just...sometimes they're too similar and it's fucking hilarious. I love them so much. And obviously Hori made it a point to have them BOTH included in these scenes. He could have just had Deku, since he was more aware of Todoroki's situation, but he included Bakugou because they share the same brain.

Then we have Deku, and some little things about his views relating to Kacchan.

It's Kacchan first. Always.

If Bakugou is involved, he comes first in Deku's head. KACCHAN.....and everyone else!! I know there are people out there that want to dismiss this as shippers being wishful in their thinking but I mean...just look at the panels above. That seems pretty obvious to me. We even have one in the newer chapter when Deku is in the Dreamscape. His first thought is immediately Kacchan! And the rest!

Also, we get that last panel where, without skipping a beat, Deku completely agrees that Bakugou would have mastered OfA by now if he had it. He is OPENLY FAWNING OVER THAT IDEA. It's unbelievably cute how much he admires Bakugou's strength.

This is what trips me up about people who think Deku hates Bakugou because uh...hello!!?!?!? Do you see this? Do you see how his mind is completely and totally filled with Kacchan almost constantly????? It isn't a shipping lense and it isn't wishful thinking, it's 100% completely canon and if people read with their eyes open, they would see that.

Now for Bakugou, and I'll have to finish with this because I only have two image slots left. After that it'll be me talking a bunch because I have so many feelings about these two assholes.

So of course I had to include the infamous "Keep your eyes on me, Deku!" because no post about their relationship would be complete without it.

Just as Deku's eyes have only been on Bakugou, the same is said for the other. The intensity of that line alone is so telling to me when it comes to Bakugou, and how he views Deku. He wants Deku to watch him, he wants him to see the progress he's made and he wants it to fuel Deku's own drive to do better and get stronger. Shortly after this we have their confrontation where Bakugou points out he's moving faster than Deku can catch up, and Deku's immediate response is,

"No, I'll surpass you!" And his eyes are shining so fucking bright I think I'll go blind every time I read it. That kind of power to influence someone else is unbelievable. And while they both influence everyone in 1A, the influence they have on each other in undoubtedly stronger than for anyone else.

Then we come to that last panel, which ultimately leads us to Bakugou's big sacrifice in 285.

Deku wasn't necessarily near Bakugou when notice of Shigaraki hunting for OfA came through the radio, but Bakugou was obviously watching, because the moment he saw Deku turn to go off on his own, he was by his side. Now, Bakugou attempts to push off his joining Deku as just wanting to get revenge on Shigaraki himself, but 284 and 285 completely disprove that.

Bakugou followed Deku. Bakugou went after Deku because he knew better than anyone what Deku would end up doing, which was attempting to sacrifice himself for the people he was trying to save. Bakugou understood that before and better than anyone else ever could, so he chased after him to fight with him and protect him.

Then we get 285, where we see Bakugou jump in to save Deku, this kid who he swore he hated his entire life. But why would he let Deku continue to call him Kacchan if he hated him so much?(a name I might add, that is actually a form of endearment by Japanese language standards) Why would he continue to butt heads with Deku and force his way into Deku's line of sight time and time again if he hated him? Why would he stubbornly insist on needing to surpass someone he always saw as less than if he still felt that way?

Their relationship is so complex on so many levels and I could go on for hours about different things I've noticed and continue to notice, but I don't wanna drag on too long.

Just know that these panels aren't even a quarter of the extent their relationship goes, and I wish I could have stretched this on and on with panel after panel of their canon dynamic and how obvious it is that they care, inspire, encourage, and fuel the other.

This relationship is one for the books, and I hope more people come to appreciate it.

#bnha spoilers #bnha #mha #bkdk #bakudeku #my hero academia #boku no hero academia #kacchan #deku #midoriya izuku #bakugou katsuki #bnha manga #mha manga #anon #asks #basketball idiot replies #basketball idiot

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hp-generation-now-unhappy-boutit · 3 years

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Harry Potter FRED AU (It could not be named anyhow else and you’ll soon know why)

Please bear with me I swear I’ll make the lenght worth it

I also promise this one AIN’T SAD

Few days ago I was taking a nap and when I woke up my half-conscious brain thought about the name Albus Severus again because it’s a terrible name whether he is named after anyone or not. And I thought ‘did Ginny even get any say in it or what the hell’.

I really think that Harry should name their first child (he did) James Sirius, which is fine, Ginny would name their second son and together they would name their little girl (which I think they did).

But then I thought ‘what would she name him?’ Obviously my first thought was Fred, but I was like ‘nah, that one is for George’s kid... unless’

Here comes my AU, imagine it with me:

It is the first 1st of April after the battle, it isn’t very happy for someone’s birthday, then Percy gets an idea. He cannot forget how the last thing he said to Fred made him smile and he refuses to do anything on his birthday that would not achieve the same goal. So he looks at George and proposes this... what if every one of the siblings named at least one of their child Fred or any equivalent of that, if for nothing else than at least for the chaos it will create at Hogwarts. Everyone is silent for so long Percy just wants to take it back and obliviate everyone, but then Fleur stands up to it and gets really passionate about it and then it slowly dawns on everyone and they love it. It is the first time in all those months that George gives them a non-forced smile. Everyone is super into it. Mrs. Weasley is crying because a) she is happy because her boy is smiling again b) she knows she will be super embarrassed if she ever has to talk to McGonagall after she finds out about this and c) she thought Percy was better than this. Nevertheless if it makes George smile again, she won’t be too harsh about it.

It goes something like this (I’m kind of ignoring the cannon children, but whatever):

- Bill and Fleur name their firstborn daughter Frédérique. She had some mean kids try to laugh at her for it because they thought it’s stupid. She shut their mouths pretty quickly.

- Charlie doesn’t have kids. But he did discover a new breed of dragon, which main trait is that it isn’t violent at all, it’s just really mischievious and will mess up with everyone and everything. Charlie names the breed Island Trickster, for both the experts and amateurs the nickname Fred catches on pretty quickly even though majority of people doesn’t know why.

- Percy’s first child is also a girl but he refuses to let anything stop him from naming his child Fred, because a) it was his idea and b) he’ll be damned if anything keeps him from making this prank, that he created in honour of his brother, work. She gets the name Frederica. She hates it and demands her family calling her by her second name. They do and none of them mind, but before she departs for Hogwarts her parents take her aside and explain why they named her this way. Her prankster blood kicks in and from the moment she steps on the train she introduces herself as Frederica, Fred for short.

- George’s first kids are twins, boy and girl. There is no hesitation - their names are immediately Fred and Freda. When they have the second child, there is a mild discussion, but eventually his name is Fredrick. Proud of their legacy, at school neither will respond to anything but Fred. They become Fred & Fred and Fred.

- Ron, who through Hermione discovered Queen, decides to name their son Freddie. Hermione doesn’t see a reason to protest, she loves it.

- Ginny lets Harry name their first son. First, she likes the name James Sirius. Second, whatever happens that child will have prank as their blood type, so there is really no need to add onto that. Third, she is naming their second child and it will be a version of Fred. Harry does not protest at all, because a) he already has his son named after his father and godfather and b) he refuses to stand in the way of this prank. Also Ginny, being the undercover little shit she is, names their son Fred George... everyone keeps calling him Fred and George. They both also talk about naming their daughter Lily Luna Freda or something and they do, it’s just not that public so she can do with that potential whatever she wants.

It also happens that the whole former gryffindor quidditch team joins in on this (including Lee Jordan, who is considered part of the team) as well as bunch of other friends.

Mrs. Weasley is still a little sceptical but she can’t deny that her boy would be proud. Her job also gets a little easier, because now she just automatically makes her grandchildren sweaters with F. Sometimes she makes more of those that she should but the kids love it (cue later).

Meanwhile in heaven James, Sirius and Remus are both really excited and really jealous. Fred is waiting for the chaos to take reign.

As for Hogwarts, most of the professors are losing it sometimes with entertainment (they mostly enjoy it when someone else is in pain because of this and they love to watch it), sometimes with annoyance, sometimes with both and sometimes actually losing it about to break down and cry (especially when some of their colleagues would just watch and smile). Alltogether in all the houses there is about twenty Fred Weasleys (boys, girls, first names, second names) and the Potters (James Sirius, Fred George and Lily Luna) plus the other Freds - all of them there for two or three years, which basically translates into destruction of the highest level.

There are family gatherings frequently at the Burrow, where they all just sit around the table writing letters to their kids and all of them writing one howler.

The howler arrives to a random person, usually a friend of one of the Weasley/Potter kids and the whole Great hall hears, “FRED! WHAT DID YOU DO THIS TIME?!”

All the Fred’s look at each other, because they all did something they shouldn’t (which their parents don’t know, but the kids don’t know they don’t know). No one also knows which Fred it is meant for. No one knows if they are being scolded or messed with.

Very rarely the howler would yell, “FRED WEASLEY”, and in the fat pause after that, every single person in the room can hear, Fred George Potter say “oh, thank Merlin’s nightgown.”

Sometimes the howler would shout, “FRED. I AM SO DISSAPPOINTED IN YOU. YOU WERE NOT GIVEN THIS NAME TO KEEP PEACE AND TRANQUILITY AT THE SCHOOL!” Molly Weasley may or may not scold her children and children-in-law for this one. (Obviously if the kids weren’t into pranking their parents would never force them or out them like this, but since they are all openly on board this happens way too often for the professors’ liking.

Then there is christmas time. Most of the kids leave for home... most of them except for the Weasley/Potters and some of the other Freds, whose parents are friends with the Weasleys. The sweaters come and... every signle one has a F on it. None of the kids protest. They wear it proudly. There are attempts at making fun of them. It doesn’t work.

James walks around announcing to everyone repeatedly and very loudly that his name is Fames Firius Fotter. In the meantime, as long as Lily is wearing her sweater, she refuses to react to anything but Fily or Funa and that includes the teachers.

Everyone tries to resist, everyone breaks down eventually.

McGonagall wants to look stern, but she is loving it.

There is a relatively new professor trying to complain to the colleague sitting next to him. Neville Longbottom, who names his children Frank Fred, Alice Fredricka and Augusta Freda, nods sympathetically while sipping his tea. “I know,” he says. “Imagine if one of them named their kid something like Prank. We would call them a normal name now.”

That is the moment Minerva McGonagall loses it and actually chuckles. Every single one of the kids writes a letter to their parents about that one.

All hell loses all the breaks on April Fools. McGonagall wanted to go easy on punishing the pranks for several reasons and one of them is that it is the twins birthday. It takes one April Fools when the kids take it relatively easy for them to figure out the punichments are quite mild. The next year they go Wild and McGonagall understands that her nostalgia is a dangerous thing. She stops it then and there, because she knows it won’t stop them, it might just stop some people from getting hurt.

Sometimes Peeves won’t have the mood to come up with something himself so he just goes with calling everyone Fred. Some teachers take from it, figuring that if they don’t remember someone’s name it must be because they decided they will deduce it later, which translates to “the name is Fred”.

Years later when the children leave Hogwarts there is formed a new quidditch team. The name is “Flying Freds”. They are all married and stuff, so their last names are all different, but all of them share the name Fred, which only increases the children named Fred, because who wouldn’t name their child after their favourite quidditch team, amiright?

People in both the wizarding and muggle world are astonished as to Why is there suddenly such a popularity to the name, while in the afterlife Fred won’t stop saying shit like “The students have surpassed the teachers.” and the Marauders are both upset they didn’t manage something like that, but also impressed and really loving it.

McGonagall once talks about it with George and he says it was Percy’s idea. Percy, always perfect prefect Percy, blushes as McGonagall looks at him and says: “All those years I was worried you aren’t an actually Weasley and you’ve just been hiding all that potential, hm.”

It is that moment they understand she might have always been strict, but she loved those little and big pranks simply because they were creative and smart and she was always so proud of the Marauders and the twins for it.

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lunarsaga · 3 years

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EPISODE 5: The Band of Seven, Resurrected

WELCOME TO EPISODE 5! So far, episode 6 is up on my Patreon already, and episode 7 is in progress. Support me on Patreon to see stuff first!

IMPORTANT: I am starting to integrate the art into the story a little differently! Instead of just visualizing a moment in the scene, the image will replace the lines it's depicting. It'll work more like a hybrid graphic novel, that way it'll flow better. (So don't skip over the art, read it like you would a western comic!)

Reminder: [Dialogue like this is English!]

EPISODE 5, LESSGO! ☆*:.｡.o(≧▽≦)o.｡.:*☆

It was a bit of a long flight between the bone-eater’s well and the spot where Luna last left her sister and her friends.

They were still headed northeast, still trying to find Naraku. But Luna’s supply of ammunition only lasted so long, and she decided she probably needed more medical supplies if they were all gonna make it past this war with Naraku. So she’d gone back to the modern era for a few days, and called Alice to get her connections with other Hunters in Japan—so Luna could make more Sacred Salt rounds without having to explain to international customs why she was getting a bunch of empty shotgun shells, non-native herbs, and a few other assorted (weird) things she needed.

So she’d gone home for a few days. Thankfully, she didn’t have to walk; Airisu (who still objected to Luna calling her ‘Alice’, but agreed to the simple nickname ‘Ai’) in full demon form could fly pretty fast, but she ran out of steam after about an hour. It took them a full day (including rest time) to get back to the village, and the same on the way back.

But before they joined back up with their friends, Luna had a stop to make.

It ain’t hard to miss, she thought snarkily, he’s like a damn homing beacon.

Finally, among all the green of the forests, she spotted a speck of white. Easy. “There they are!”

Ai set them down just behind the little group of travelers—Rin, the little imp Jaken, the big horse-dragon (Ah-Un, Luna believed?), and heading the line was, of course, Lord Fussy Britches himself. Rin spotted them before they touched down, and greeted delightfully:

“Miss Luna!”

The Hunter’s arrival brought the others to a halt, and for some reason, Luna found a very smug satisfaction in the incredibly irritated, over-the-shoulder side eye she got from Sesshomaru. But she paid him no mind; she was here for Rin.

Luna held out her hand, unfolding her fingers to reveal three beautiful pearls, strung on a little leather cord. Each of them glinted with an odd pink sheen and were warm to the touch; anyone with any sort of spiritual senses might’ve picked up on the soft energy radiating from them.

Luna tied the cord tightly at the ends and moved to slip it over the little girl’s head.

“As if she would ever need such a ridiculous thing!”

Luna swore one of these days, she was gonna drop kick that little frog. “Look, dude—”

“It’s Jaken, insolent human!”

“—I’m just looking out for her. No need to burst a blood vessel.”

“What is she to you?”

Luna was actually shocked to be addressed by Sesshomaru himself. He was still giving her the side eye, but there was less irritation and more of… something Luna couldn’t place. Maybe she was flirting with death, but she couldn’t resist.

She stood tall, chin high, and responded: “What is she to you?”

There was the anger: contained, but frigid and harsh as the Arctic behind those amber eyes. Sesshomaru did not answer her, but Jaken sure did.

“How dare you, human! Your nerve is surpassed only by your stupidity to speak to Lord Sesshomaru that way! Surely you wish for death!”

Only sometimes. “Can it, Kermit!” She snapped at him, “I ask because he’s always leaving her alone, with nothing but you to protect her! You, who are half her size and don’t have much in the way of defense!” She moved her challenging gaze to Sesshomaru again, steadfast. “So I ask again, what is she to you, if you leave her with barely any protection so often? Because to me, she’s a friend and I care about her, so I brought her these as a last resort option, in case you’re not around and she needs help.”

There it was, that unreadable expression again. Sesshomaru was definitely incomparable at hiding his true emotions—something Luna could absolutely not stand. Tense silence hung in the air for a moment, before Luna shrugged, holding her hands up.

“Hey, think of it this way,” She said, trying a sly little smile, “You’re a busy guy. It’s one less thing you have to worry about. And if she never needs them, at least it’s a pretty necklace.”

Man, this guy was good at keeping quiet. But now, the icy glare was gone. Luna swore she could see just the tiniest arc of a silver eyebrow before the demon turned back around on the path they’d all been heading.

“Jaken, let’s go.”

Flabbergasted, Jaken tripped over himself trying to follow. “Y-yes milord!”

Grinning, Luna got back down to Rin’s level. “You take care, okay kid?”

“I will! And thank you so much for these— I don’t think I’ll need them because Lord Sesshomaru always comes to save me, but I’ll wear them anyway!”

“That’s all I ask,” This little angel was definitely gonna need it at some point. “But if you do need me, I’ll always be there for you, okay? I promise.”

The smile on Rin’s face could’ve melted the ice caps. “Thank you.”

Luna stopped her as she started to leave. “Hold on, one more thing. Each one only works once before it shatters, so you gotta save them for when you’re really in trouble, okay?”

“Okay, I will! Bye, Miss Luna!” Rin grinned, waving at her friend before hurrying after the demons.

Luna chuckled, turning back to Ai for a second before something occurred to her. “Hey, Sesshomaru!”

He didn’t turn to look at her this time, but he did pause in his walking.

Good enough. “I heard there was something going down in the Northeast—direction of the Ox and Tiger. Something to do with Naraku. Thought you might like to know.” She didn’t wait to see if he heard or registered what she said; she just hopped back on Ai’s back, and the two of them took off.

“I hope you know conflating bravery with stupid pride is more than likely to get you killed one of these days.” Ai said as she lifted into the sky.

“Oh most definitely,” Luna laughed. “But as much of a pompous man-child as he is, you can tell he cares for that girl more than he’s willing to admit.”

“That may be, but he’ll definitely kill you if you keep disrespecting him.”

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take, for Rin’s sake.” Luna’s voice was soft, carried off by the wind. “That little angel’s been through enough, she deserves someone in her corner.”

~ ~ ~

Finally catching sight of their friends again was a bit of a relief for both Luna and Ai. It had been a long couple of days, going all the way home and coming back. Part of Luna hoped they’d get just a little bit of rest before whatever shit hit the fan next, but another part knew the odds on that were pretty low. Still, it was nice to be back.

Kagome was the first to spot them as they flew in. “It’s Luna!”

“Luna’s back!” Shippo proclaimed joyfully.

“Hey, y’all,” Luna greeted as Ai touched down. She hopped off the demon’s back as her friends offered their greetings. “What’d I miss?” She asked.

Miroku was the one to answer. “Quite a lot. It seems that we may encounter a new enemy: the local villagers recently informed us of a group of mercenaries called the Band of Seven. The villagers believe these ruthless killers may have been brought back from the dead.”

With a grin on her face, Luna shrugged at the idea. “Undead mercs, huh? Nothin’ we can’t handle.” She held up her fist for her sister to bump it, and as Ai changed back to her human form, Luna noticed their little group was smaller than it should’ve been. “Where’s Sango?”

Kagome bumped fists with her sister, smiling at Luna’s nonchalant comment. “She went off with Kilala. I sensed a Jewel Shard nearby earlier… so I think she may have gone to look for Kohaku.”

Luna didn’t have time to respond. Off in the distance, she heard the distinctive echo of a sound she was all too familiar with.

Inuyasha hopped up onto a tree limb, hoping to get a look at what was happening. He couldn’t see it, but he sure as hell could smell it. “And it ain’t from just a handful of people, either.”

So much for a second to rest, Luna chuckled to herself as she tightened the straps on her backpack and immediately kicked into gear. “What’re we waiting for, then?”

And off they were, charging headlong into danger as always. Luna could sense something was up; more so than usual. The stench of blood was never a good sign in the first place, but there was something else setting off warning bells. Something she couldn’t put a finger on.

The smell got stronger and stronger, until… they reached its source. Despite the amount of nasty shit she’d seen in her ten years of hunting supernatural monsters, there were some things that still turned her stomach, and seeing a single human being standing in a veritable ring of blood and gore was definitely one of them. His black hair was pulled into a twist; his lips were painted red, he had blue tattoos like tear tracks under each eye, and one side of his kimono was tucked up under his belt. The dude was just squatting in the middle of the carnage, eyeballing the barrel of a matchlock gun like it was his first time seeing one (which, hell, it might be, she thought to herself; in this time, they would’ve only recently been invented). He seemed completely unbothered by the dozen and a half bodies of freshly murdered warriors and their horses surrounding him.

Inuyasha was the one to get to the scene just ahead of the others, calling back over his shoulder: “Stay back! Don’t come over here!”

Instinctively, Luna remained in front of her sister, her arm out to try and block her view. Her stomach was churning, and her hand was poised to pull her gun if needed. No way this guy could be human… right?

“Did… that one person do all this?” Kagome’s voice was a shocked whisper.

It was then that the guy in the middle noticed them. He stood, his sword over his shoulder and his head cocked slightly to the side.

“Are you the one I’ve been looking for?” He asked, a grin on his face as he shielded his eyes from the sun. “Are you Inuyasha?!”

“Got a bad feeling about this.” Luna mumbled, “That guy isn't a demon, is he?”

“I don’t think so,” Kagome uttered back to her, “I don’t sense a demonic aura….”

“How’d you know my name?!” Inuyasha demanded.

He got no answer out of the guy with the sword. Instead, the guy squealed: “You’re adorable!”

A dumbfounded silence fell over the group. Luna glanced around at the others to make sure she didn’t just lose her mind—but no, the general consensus among her friends was along the lines of ‘what the actual fuck?’

“I especially love those fuzzy ears of yours!” The guy continued, licking his lips. “I want them~”

Alright, so this guy was nuts. Luna had had enough of ignoring the bad vibe she was picking up from him. She dropped her bag next to Kagome’s bike and readied herself for a fight: detached the ammo bag and shotgun holster from her pack and slung them over her shoulder, slipped her short sword through one of the belt loops on her jeans, and pulled her shotgun to make sure it was in hand and loaded. She kept her eyes moving back and forth between Inuyasha and the dude with the sword during the next exchange:

“Who are you?” Inuyasha demanded, “What are you after? You don’t smell like a living person, you reek like corpses and graveyard soil!”

No answer.

“Inuyasha,” Miroku said in realization: “Could he be—?”

“Yep,” Inuyasha confirmed, before calling out to the guy with the sword again: “Some villagers were talking! They said some disgusting specter rose up from the grave. That’d be you, I presume!”

Right, zombies, Luna thought to herself; if he really is undead, the Sacred Salt won’t do as much as it would a demon… It’d sting, but what I really need is-… She smirked and holstered her gun again, grabbing a different weapon from the bottom of her bag.

“Are you one of the Band of Seven?!” Miroku asked of the specter as Luna was tuning back in. “Answer me!”

After a long pause as the specter seemed to size the monk up, his response was even worse than before. “Inuyasha really is good looking, but you’re pretty sexy yourself~”

Luna snorted so hard she thought she was gonna eject her brain through her nose. Ai whacked her in the arm as a warning.

“No one minds if I suck him up, do they?” Miroku grumbled.

“No.” Inuyasha said, flatly.

“Hold on!” Kagome said, “He’s got a Sacred Jewel Shard! He must’ve been revived with the power of the Shard!”

“So that was what I was sensing,” Luna mumbled, “but why does it feel off...?”

“Where’d you get the Jewel Shard?!” Inuyasha once again attempted to pose a question to their opponent, only to once again receive a weird, adoring response:

“You know, you’re cute when you’re angry~!”

“Shut up!” Inuyasha shouted, jumping forward and drawing his sword. “Alright, dead man, you’d better start talking to me, and I want real answers!”

The expression on the specter’s face shifted from one of reverence to one more sadistic as he regarded Tetsusaiga. “That’s an interesting sword you have there… let’s see whose is stronger.” He lifted his own sword, making an odd motion around his head and shoulders with it as if he were gearing up for something. “Yours or mine?!”

When he brought his arm down, something that looked almost like a bolt of silver lightning shot from his blade. Inuyasha barely had the chance to block it as it cut an arc through the air toward him.

“Inuyasha!” Kagome called out in surprise.

“Stay back!” Miroku threw his arm out in an attempt to shield the others. “It’s some kind of trick sword!”

“That’s my cue!” Ai shifted into full demon form, jerking her head at the sisters and the little fox. “All aboard!”

Kagome climbed on no issue, but Luna glanced at Miroku, who made no move to follow them. “You coming?”

“I’ll be alright, you keep them safe.” Miroku said, resolute. Not about to argue, Luna climbed on the demon’s back and Ai leapt into the air above the fight.

“You gonna be okay holding all of us after that long flight?” Luna asked her friend.

“I’m fine, it’s the same weight as you with your pack on.” Ai sassed back.

“Yeah well, fuck me for being prepared,” Luna laughed, starting to prep the other weapon she’d brought.

Kagome managed to tear her eyes from the confrontation below to try and see what her sister was doing. “What did you bring, Luna?”

Luna grinned as she clicked the last accessory into place, then turned back to show her sister. “This? This is my baby.” She held up her favorite weapon: it was a fully-customized folding compound crossbow as long as Luna’s arm. She pressed a release on the side, and the arms shot into place, making both Shippo and Kagome jump.

“Whoa!” The fox demon exclaimed, “What kind of a weapon is that?!”

“It’s a crossbow, Shippo,” Kagome explained, “It’s kind of like my bow, but the arrows are smaller and it’s easier to fire.”

“Self-loading, too,” Luna smirked as she strung it up, “The ‘arrows’ are called bolts or darts. This thing can shoot way faster than a longbow, and since we’re dealing with Zombie Harley Quinn down there—” She grabbed a bolt from her ammo bag to show it to them, “—we’re gonna need these. They’re tipped with pure silver. Great for dealing with Vampires, Werewolves, The Undead, and The Unholy.”

Shippo reached out to touch it, but Kagome stopped him, shaking her head rapidly. “It’s safe to assume you shouldn’t touch anything Luna has in her bag, Shippo.”

The kid swallowed nervously. “G-got it...”

Below them, the fight continued. Inuyasha could barely avoid each strike of the snakelike sword, and his opponent only seemed to be having more and more fun.

“What do you think of Jakotsu of the Band of Seven, huh?!” He shouted as he swung the sword once more.

“Not too much!” Inuyasha came back at him with Tetsusaiga, but to no avail.

Kagome gasped. “He needs help!”

“That’s what this baby’s for,” Luna grinned, patting her crossbow. “Ai, can you stay out of reach of the sword but get me close enough to shoot?!”

“It’ll take a miracle!”

“Better start praying, then,” Luna lined up the shot, finger still as stone on the trigger. There was a familiar voice in the back of her head; she could hear her father saying: “Aim for where they’re gonna be, not where they are.”

I know, dad. She tried not to sigh audibly as she managed to get Jakotsu’s head in her crosshairs and pulled the trigger, quick as a viper.

And… almost missed him.

The consecrated silver bolt seemed to burn through the air as it shot just centimeters shy of the specter’s nose and grazed his arm, burning a hole in his kimono. He whipped his attention to the woman who shot it.

“How dare you interfere?!” He snarled, rearing his arm back and whipping his blade toward them.

Luna felt her stomach drop.

“You idiot!” Ai snapped at her, trying to fly out of range of the sword as Kagome and Shippo both clung, screaming, to Luna’s back. Just as the sword arched toward them, there was a familiar cry of:

“HIRAIKOTSU!”

And Jakotsu’s blade was then tangled around the aforementioned boomerang. All three riding on Ai’s back sighed in relief when they saw Sango swoop in on Kilala. Ai touched down just as Kilala did, transforming into her human form and unceremoniously dumping the sisters on their asses.

“Are you all okay?” Sango called over to them.

“We’re fine!” Shippo answered.

“Perfect timing, Sango!” Kagome said.

“Some weapon, Luna!” Ai huffed in the Hunter’s direction. Luna just stuck her tongue at her.

Jakotsu was practically red in the face, shrieking in frustration: “What is with all you vile women?! Can’t you see I’m trying to battle Inuyasha?!” In the same breath, he whipped his sword again, toward Sango this time. The movement freed Hiraikotsu, and ended up leaving a small slice on Sango’s arm as Jakotsu pulled it back.

“Stay out of this!” He continued, “None of you will interfere!”

But their “interference” had served Inuyasha well enough: it gave him just the opportunity he needed to rear back and punch the specter in the face.

“Shut up! I’m tired of listening to your pointless babble!” Inuyasha growled.

Jakotsu grunted as he tumbled back, then rubbed his cheek and pouted like a kicked puppy. “That was cruel…”

“Oh, get over it!” Inuyasha snapped, “Now tell me who gave you the Sacred Jewel Shard before I have to seriously hurt you!”

Kagome and Miroku rushed to see if Sango was okay, but she assured them that it was just a graze; she was fine. Her attention was more on the subject at hand.

“I have a feeling that the shard came from Naraku,” She said, somberly. She looked at Kagome. “When you sensed a Jewel Shard earlier… it was Kohaku. I saw the Saimiyosho around him as well.”

“That means that your brother is still under Naraku’s control…” Miroku said. Sango nodded.

Luna had set her weapon down next to her backpack, and came back with a bandage for Sango’s arm. Her mind was going at a million miles an hour, trying to figure out how the hell they were gonna handle this—first an undead band of Ronin, now they have something to do with Naraku. What was Naraku playing at...?

“Gotta wonder what the hell is next…” Luna mumbled sarcastically.

Seconds later, she would regret asking. A cloud of black smoke poured over the cliffside, drifting right toward them.

Like he knew what was happening, Jakotsu got up and collected his sword. “Inuyasha! You should get out of here while you can! Bye!” And with that, he was just… gone.

“What the hell—” Inuyasha broke off with a startled yell when the cloud reached him. “Its poison!”

“But where’s it coming from?!” Miroku wondered.

“We need to move.” Luna reassembled her bag in less than thirty seconds—side effect of doing it so often. “We can figure out what the hell is going on when we’re safely away from here!”

Why do I feel like we stepped into something huge here? Luna thought to herself as the group of friends moved away from the cloud of gas.

#fanfic #inuyasha oc #inuyasha au #the lunar saga #kagome higurashi #inuyasha fanart #inuyasha #sesshomaru #sango #miroku #shippo

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oh-my-may · 4 years

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Tsukishima, Sakusa and Osamu having a childhood crush on older! reader

requested: If you're not bussy ☺️ please write Headcanon for, Tsukishima, sakusa, and Osamu who has a Crush on childhood friend Older!s/o (like 5 years apart) ☺️🥺 They propose the her once when they were little and she replay "I'll marry you, if you grow taller then me" It just so cute in my head.. ☺️😊 How are they will reapproach them years later when they surpassing their s/o height 🥰 Love your work btw 💕💕

This?? Is such a cute idea ckdksks MY HEART <<<<333 I hope I did it justice :D

Also Osamu’s one is waaayy longer than the other two I’m sorry I got lost halfway through :D

warnings: underage(??) drinking in Osamus part, though it’s not underage in my country lol

Tsukishima Kei:

As children you guys were inseperable, your houses literally being on the other side of the street. The age difference between you never mattered when you guys were playing around.

You were as old as his brother and therefore you often came over to meet with hum, but Tsukki would always end up joining, especially after his brother started playing volleyball, you would always join in with Tsukishima.

Everything was great for a while, you would come over practically every day or they would visit you and then you would spend the rest of the day chilling and playing, until you and Akiteru got into Middle School and puberty hit you. Due to your age you were always a bit taller than Kei, but you grew even more.

Kei always had a crush on you, you being the only girl he only ever hung out with. You always talked to him about Dinosaurs or volleyball or music and he thought - since you shared most of his interests - why not propose? It made sense to 8 year old Kei. “Y/N... Would you marry me?”

You started to laugh and poor Kei got very confused. He was being serious about this. You saw his kinda shattered expression and froze, looking at him with a grin. You pet his head and said: “If you ever grow taller than me, then yes.”

And so the years passed, and gradually you spent less time with the Tsukishimas. You found a bunch of new friends in school that you regularly hung out with, and even though you still saw Akiteru in school and talked to him, walked home with him... You barely ever saw Kei. He seemed to grow a little more distant, he didn’t come to family gatherings anymore and rather just hung around in his room, listening to music. But frankly, you actually didn’t notice.

So eventually you graduate High School and live your life, though sometimes you still meet up with Akiteru to chat. And one day, he tells you about his younger brother. “Kei joined the volleyball club I was part of, remember? Little giant and all? Yeah, of course you do. And guess what - they actually made it to nationals! The first time since then!”

You are very surprised to hear this, though you’re glad and happy for Kei. What Akiteru suggests next though comes as a surprise to you. “I have plans for watching them as least once in Tokyo, wanna join?” And even though you haven’t seen Kei or spoken to him in quite some time, you say yes. And that’s how you end up in the Tokyo gym, swarmed by tall teenage boys and hundreds of guests. Akiteru drags you along with him through the crowd of people, determined to greet his younger brother before the game. And honestly? You feel a little excited to see Kei again, to see how he’s grown since his childhood.

You finally find the boys standing in front of a huge door that clearly leads to the inside of the gym. At first you don’t even notice, but when Akiteru calls his name a very tall, blonde boy turns around, looking startled. You’re a bit shocked to look into the face of the now 16 year old boy. He’s clearly grown since then.

Kei looks at his brother for a minute before his glance wanders over to the person he’s brought along - you. Suddenly his eyes widen a bit and his heart stops for a minute. He swears his entire life was flashing in front of his eyes - well, at least the part of his life he shared with you. All the moments you guys played as kids, runned around the backyard, talked, laughed... And now you were here? So many years after this?

“Y/N what are... what are you doing here?” The words tumble out of his mouth uncontrollably and theres a slight tint of pink appearing on his cheeks. “Ya, what’s that? Is Tsukishima flustered?” One of his team members come up beside him. He has a shaved head and tries to casually rest his elbow on Kei’s shoulder, but he fails. You notice how tall he has gotten - clearly taller than you. You have to laugh but also feel you skin heat up when you remember his question and your promise from 8 years ago.

“Why are you laughing now?” Kei seems a little helpless and confused, just like back then. It almost makes you laugh even harder. Does he even remember it? You softly place your hand on his arm, looking up into his face. His eyebrows are raised, they surpassed the lines of his glasses. “Kei...” you begin, but when you see how curious his brother and his members look at you, you lower your voice. “Remember when we were children... One day you asked me a very peculiar question and I answered with a promise.”

His head shoots up immediately and you see blood flushing his cheeks and ears in a violent red. His expression seems more than shocked and for a second he even chokes on his own breath. You grin, leaving him like that. “Rock the game, yeah? I don’t want to have travelled this far just to see you fail in the first round.” Kei is still frozen in the spot, though in the game hsi brother tells you how he seems even more focused and determined than before.

You may have teased Kei right there, but from then on you began hanging out with the Tsukishimas more, visiting them as often as you could when your career didn’t take over your life. And maybe, eventually, Kei asks you out after his graduation and this time you take it seriously and don’t make another promise.

Sakusa Kiyoomi:

As children your grew up in the same neighbourhood and your parents would always take you to the same playground.

You noticed the young boy immediately - every now and then between playing in the sand he would go to his mother and she would clean his hands thoroughly with wipes and sanitizer. That got you interested very quickly. So you just walked over and sat down next to him and his mom, watching as they would repeat the same procedure over and over again, until you eventually ask: “Why are you doing this?”

And this little boy just looks up at you and starts explaining how he doesn’t like dirt and why you, too, should clean your hands like this. So you try and after you do, the boy drags you along across the yard saying how other kids don’t like playing with him because of his habits. You’re a bit taken aback by this - even though you’re older, you’re still gonna be friends with this younger boy. He’s like 6 or 7 at that time and from then on you met him on the playground almost every day. And every day, you’d go to his mom to clean your hands properly and then go play with “Omi-chan”, as you called him.

And Sakusa would honestly admire you, treasuring you as his closest friend. Even though he was younger and smaller than you, you accepted him and his habits and you still liked being around him. “Y/N... Will you marry me someday?” he bursts out one day, his big dark eyes looking up at you. And you take a second to look at his cute face - his round eyes, the curly hair, the snub nose, his soft cheeks. You grin and your hand moves from the top of his head to yours. “Maybe when you’ll grow taller than me.”

And so time went on, until you got to Middle School and then High School. You grew closer and when you were older you stopped hanging out at the playground and rather met at your houses, the only safe and clean places he trusts. You even adopt some of his habits, like cleaning your hands etc. You make it a whole ceremony to clean your rooms together before hanging out.

And even after you got into college you’d still find time for him. Calling him every now and then, watching some of his games and meeting up with him whenever you were home. And of course you notice him growing up, too. The way his hair grows a bit longer and hangs into his face, his sharper jawline, the shape of his eyes. And - his height. When he was 15 he finally surpassed your height, but you both had forgotten about your little conversation at this point.

Until your mom hosts a garden party and his family is invited, too. They make you both take a photo together and when Sakusas mom looks at it, she suddenly remembers and hands her son an older camera, a video waiting to be played on the screen. You both exchange a confused look before you press play and you see the two of you as children, thoroughly cleaning your hands, the playground in the background. Sakusa looks up at you and says “Will you marry me some day?” and that’s when Sakusa stops the video, his eyes a little widened and the tips of his ears painted in vibrant red. At first you’re a little confused, as you wanted to see what you responded to his question back then, but when you look at your friend you suddenly realize and giggle.

Sakusa thinks he’s about to sink into the ground because of embarrassement. He never thought about his feelings for you as a crush since he didn’t know better. He always thought all friends act and feel like this and over the years, as he realized he was actually in love with you, he couldn’t picture himself with someone else. You were so considerate, so accepting. Never once in your life did you think of him as weird, you never disrespected him or made fun of him. And after all, you were always the one accompanying him to events and he did the same for you. And when he looked at you now - all grown up, confident, pretty, your curious eyes scanning his face - he thought about how he was never brave enough to admit his feelings for you. Not like this. And certainly not in front of you.

“Y/N... I know this might come across as weird now, because we’ve known each other for so long, and I know you’re and adult now and I barely just graduated High School but... I want to show you that I’m not that little boy from the video anymore.” He gulps when he looks at your face, your eyes still looking at his, a slight smile on your lips.

You sigh and place your hands flatly on his jacket, over his chest. “But Omi-chan... I already now that. Although if that was your way of asking me out on a date, then take this as a yes.”

Miya Osamu:

Your mom worked as freetime volleyball coach/trainer for children and sometimes you would accompany her, wanting to see what she was doing and also seeing a chance in getting to know new friends

So you’re casually in the small gym, watching as all the younger children throw around balls, laughing and chasing each other. You’re distracted, so you don’t see the ball flying straight into your face, causing you to stumble and fall. When you look back up, there’s a boy about 5 or 6 looking into your face, a curious expression on his face rather than a worried one. “Did that hurt?” He looks back up, his face turned to someone you can’t see. “Tsumu, I told you not to punch the ball like that!” What follows is a sequence of words you don’t understand, coming from the other end of the gym. You stand up on your own and follow his gaze. You rub your eyes as you see another boy standing there, looking just like the one next to you. A little irritated you look in between them a few times, before the one next to you dryly says: “That’s my twin brother, Atsumu. I’m Osamu by the way... And I’m sorry about the ball.” He points at your face, that frankly hurt a bit, it felt hot and will probably get red in the next minutes. Osamu turns to his brother again. “It was simply because my brother can’t handle the ball well!”, he shouts and his brother sticks out his tongue for it.

And so it began and you would join your mom more often from then on, watching the twins play volleyball and develop over time. They would always come up to you and ask who did better, who improved more etc... You were older than them after all, they trusted your judgement.

You would grow particularly fond of Osamu, since he was the one who seemed to care more for you, he was nicer to you and always come up to you in between practice sessions. At first he only asked about volleyball, if you play too or why not and so on, but when you came often he’d get more interested in you. And he was barely in Primary School, you were the only girl he knew closer and you were so... mature to him. He developed a cute little childhood crush on you. “Y/N, we should marry.”, he states one day. For a moment you’re a little surprised, but you laugh and squish his cheeks. “Maybe when you grow taller than me, Samu-chan~” you tease him.

And so it would go on for a while, years even. Throughout his Primary School years he’d always come to your moms little practice sessions together with his brother and at least one time a month you would hear the same question. “Will you marry me, Y/N?” and you would always answer the same. “If you ever grow taller than me, yes.” His brother very quickly notice his brothers behaviour and tease him. Sometime later, they were already in Middle School then, it’s Atsumu who approaches you. Of course you don’t notice, since they had the same hair back then. He even styled it like his brother, so there was no difference. Atsumu thought maybe, since he was a bit flirtier, he could settle something for his beloved twin. But he gets caught mid act and Osamu is furious. Let’s say this might or might not be the final reason why they color their hair different colors.

Over the years however, even though Osamus crush on you stays, he doesn’t ask you the question anymore. During puberty he gets way too embarrassed over all his past actions towards you, especially since you were older. You literally had a boyfriend, and yet his 11 year old self still asked. His toe nails were starting to curl just when he thought about it.

He never forgets, though. But even when he does eventually grow taller than you in his first year in High School, he still doesn’t say a thing. Of course he doesn’t, you’re in college at that point and probably already made out with so many guys... His blood was boiling just thinking of it, even though he knew he was being unreasonable and childish.

On the twins 18th birthday, they throw a big party. And of course you’re invited, you’re basically their oldest friend and have followed their “career” since the beginning. Both the twins are stupid drunk in no time and you sit down with Osamu after a wild round of beer pong. He’s completely out of it, his words almost incoherent but they still make sense. You literally heave him onto the couch and sit down next to him, still laughing. For a moment it’s just the two of you, him a lot more drunk than you, the music blaring in the background, lost in your thoughts. Until Osamu speaks up, the alcohol getting the best of him.

“You know how... When we were children... Well no, when I was a child... I’d always ask you stupid questions??” he goes, one index finger raised as he explains. The alcohol in your blood and getting to your brain makes you laugh at it. He still looks at you expectantly though, like he’s waiting for your answer. So you nod. “You always asked me if we would marry one day. Like... A lot. 10 times a year or so.” He nods exaggerated. “Yessss, and you’d always, ALWAYS, say, that you’d do it when... When I get taller than you.” That’s when he pushes himself up from the couch with big effort and looks at you, a dark expression on his face. He stays like that for a while, his face neutral but his eyes determined. Until he literally falls on top of you, the alcohol making him stumble around. You giggle, and Osamu apologizes a hundred times, though he likes the feeling of your arms magically wrapping around him. It’s like a reflex of yours, you couldn’t stop yourself. “You alright?”, you ask quietly. Your faces are barely inches away from each other and he still has this certain look in his eyes, that almost makes you shiver. You always thought of Osamu as a younger brother, but ever since he got into High School and he grew taller and muscular, but also his demeanor maturing, you sometimes caught your mind wandering off... Like now. He makes a vague face before he just leans in and presses his lips to yours, capturing them in a really sloppy drunk kiss. But it’s fine, you both enjoy it. When he leans back, a smug smile traces lips. “Now I’m alright. More than that, even.”

You drunkenly make out for quite some time that night, Atsumu filming some of that in the same state as you, just so he can show his brother what he accomplished. Eventually you both pass out on the couch and when you wake up it’s a little awkward at first, until you nudge him and say that you’ll give him a chance, now that he was an adult and taller than you.

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thekrawratalksbnha · 3 years

Text

alright let’s talk: what is up with the todoroki family (bnha 291 analysis and theories aka 2k+ words of word vomit as i try to process this chapter)

so. we have new information and it’s not really what a lot of us were expecting. i know that i at least was expecting a story that aligned pretty closely to the story we got from shouto — just with a more, uh, tragic ending.

but well…that was wrong. so lets talk about it. what we know about the todoroki family, what we assume and try to figure out what their deal is.

so grab your beverage of choice, a snack, get comfortable, because this is probably going to be a long ride.

where it started:

ah yes. the sports festival. what an arc. and of course, it’s the arc that kicks of the “keeping up with the todorokis” arc we all know and love. here, todoroki spills his tragicTM backstory with midoriya and we are off to the races.

it’s the conversation and subsequent thoughts from shouto that shaped our understanding of the todoroki family.

so quick rundown of what was revealed:

endeavour bought rei. it was a quirk marriage and endeavour was only after rei’s ice quirk.

shouto was raised to be a hero who surpasses all might, to fulfill endeavour’s own ambition

shouto only remembers his mom always crying

endeavour created shouto to surpass all might

generally implies that at this point in time, he doesn’t view shouto as much more than a means to an end (his perfect little doll, anyone?)

he’s not impressed with shouto’s rebellion

he views shouto as his greatest creation, his masterpiece

he was already in training at 5 years old, trained to the point in which he threw up (revealed in shouto’s memory)

shouto was kept separated from his siblings (revealed through memory)

rei states that the children are becoming more like endeavour and that she sees endeavour in his left side (revealed through memory)

endeavour sent rei to the hospital after that for injuring shouto (revealed through memory)

shouto had suppressed memories of rei and her encouraging him to still be a hero and that his power is his own

so wow a lot of information provided in this arc. and it’s really important to recognize that it’s this information that most assumptions were built off of. any new information provided up until now could reasonably fit into the narrative shouto laid out in his conversations and his memories, and so they were.

but was that wrong to do? in re-examining this arc, and in light of new information there are a few key factors that should be addressed:

it’s almost entirely from shouto’s perspective. all the information we get is through shouto’s eyes. (with a little bit from endeavour — but not much)

shouto is a kid, the youngest and in this arc has already proven he is capable and did forget and misremember incidents and events. his perspective is in no way 100% reliable.

shouto only blames two people for the negative events in his life. himself, and mainly — endeavour. in this arc (though it has since seemed to change), he was willing to and did see endeavour in the worst light possible (for valid reason but nonetheless, he wasn’t inclined to give endeavour the benefit of the doubt)

the point of going over this? in moving forward breaking down the rest: it’s really important to consider that there is valid reason to believe that shouto could be wrong. or maybe not wrong, but not fully right either. like us, he’s probably made assumptions about his own family based on his own experience. and while most of it is probably founded and he has good reason to believe it that doesn’t mean it’s true.

so how can we figure out what is true?

other perspectives:

good thing we’ve got a few other perspectives to look at. so what do we know from the other members of the todoroki family.

rei has been pretty far removed from the family since her hospitalization. she’s been improving and now has a good relationship with most of her children. she actually vouches for endeavour to natsuo despite everything.

fuyumi lives with shouto and endeavour. she is the most vocal about wanting to give him another chance, and has hopes for them to be a family again.

natsuo was close with touya before he “died”. perhaps the most against endeavour out of the bunch. endeavour was a stranger to him but natsuo holds the neglect and treatment of shouto, rei and touya against him.

notice so far there is a pretty definitive through line here.

rei and fuyumi both seem more inclined to give endeavour another chance. both reference positive attributes and fuyumi has admitted to wanting to be a family again.

natsuo and shouto (to different extents) both never reference anything good endeavour might have done. the closest we get seems to be shouto admitting endeavour is a good hero. both never reflect on their relation to endeavour with anything resembling fondness. and while shouto seems open to idea that endeavour could try to be better, both have made it clear that they are unfamiliar with what a “better” endeavour would look like.

the most important note here considering the new information: natsuo and shouto are the youngest in the family. natsuo is four years old than shouto, meaning most of his memories are probably from after shouto’s birth (ie after endeavour got his “perfect” child), with a few from a few years before. and obviously shouto has no memories of a time before he was born.

fuyumi and rei on the other hand, both probably have a fair amount of memories from before shouto. fuyumi would have been around 7 at the time of shouto’s birth and rei of course has been around since the beginning.

so why does this matter?

well because it makes it a lot easier to understand some of the information we received in 291. speaking of which, now that we’ve established all this — let’s dig into that.

the pre-shouto family

291 gives us the first time we see the todoroki family before shouto’s birth. and again, while making no arguments on whether or not todoroki enji was a good father or not, it’s clear that it was very different.

some major points:

endeavour speaks about touya in a way that is very different from the way endeavour spoke about shouto back in the sports festival. and in general. it’s unclear if this difference is related to how endeavour feels about touya and shouto or if it’s a pre-atonement v seeking-atonement endeavour. nonetheless - it’s interesting to note.

endeavour comments about being fine (happy?) with the fact that neither touya or fuyumi had his dream quirk. while he hadn’t forget about it, at the time he believed touya could fulfill his ambitions and wasn’t necessarily pushing for a child with the half-hot/half-cold quirk.

touya wanted to train. the scene in the training room with touya was very different from the scenes with shouto. despite the harm his quirk caused him, touya seemed to be enthusiastic about training.

rei agreed to having more kids thinking that it would be good for the siblings to be able to encourage each other. the siblings weren’t separated before shouto to our knowledge.

endeavour reveals that he kept searching for touya.

an important note: all the perspectives—literally all of them—contradict each other to some extent. i talk about how all the todorokis are unreliable to some extent here, but for the purposes of this chapter: i’m assuming endeavour’s to be the most correct. largely because at the time of the events in question age-wise, endeavour was the most capable of remembering accurately. he could very well be downplaying things, or have misread situations — however, since his atonement arc begun, he’s been able to recognize some his wrongdoings and the pain he cause his family. i’m not saying his perspective is entirely true, just that it’s probably more accurate than dabi. regardless…

so once again i pose the question: what the fuck does all this mean?

well…

endeavour was probably kind of…okay, until ~around~ shouto’s birth.

the implications of what that means for shouto sucks. but given the information we have, that seems like the most likely situation. but let me be clear:

i’m not saying he was good. i’m just saying he wasn’t awful yet.

and when you think about it, it makes a lot more sense them him being awful the entire time. it’s clear that no matter what, endeavour was after someone to succeed him and be better than him — but it’s the most overpowering when he talks about shouto.

yes. he did marry rei at least partially because of her quirk. but keep in mind that we don’t have any reference for how they met/got married beyond shouto, who as previously established isn’t the most reliable in regards to his family’s dynamics.

BUT while he did train touya, it didn’t seem to be as forceful as it was with shouto. if they were more of a family unit prior to shouto’s birth, a lot of rei and fuyumi’s accounts, feelings and beliefs have a lot more foundation. fuyumi’s aspirations for the todoroki’s to be a family isn’t unfounded because she has memories of a time that they were, unlike natsuo and shouto. rei’s belief in endeavour having the potential to be a good man makes a lot more sense if there was a time that he was.

keep in mind that while the endeavour we know was very focused on the rankings, he did ultimately choose to be a hero. and that has connotations about his character.

so at long last what is up with the todorokis.

well let me give you my best guess:

what if enji and rei married — not necessarily out of love, but not a straight up arranged marriage either. i think maybe enji initially noticed rei because of her quirk, and they went through some weird strange version of courting. obviously, they had conversations because at some point he learned that about rei’s favourite flower. so maybe it wasn’t love. but with the information we have from all sources, i think there is a lot more we don’t know yet about this story.

they had their first kid, touya. when touya’s quirk developed, enji probably started teaching touya how to use it. the two of them probably spent a lot of time together and enji’s approach to training touya was probably much gentler than his approach with shouto. he also was well aware of touya’s weakness since it was a more extreme version of his overheating. nonetheless, touya wanted to be trained and endeavour could see the potential touya had, putting his ambitions on his first son.

rei and enji agreed to have another kid. rei wanted touya to have a sibling and enji was still hoping for someone with a balance of both quirks. when fuyumi didn’t have both, he thought it was fine and continued forward working with touya.

now we have next to no information about the time around natsuo’s birth. my guess is that things were pretty status quo. the scene with touya and enji in the training room, touya looks to be somewhere between 5-7 maybe. so i’d guess that it took place somewhere around natsuo’s birth (probably shortly after)

i think that scene, is when enji probably started to realize the hard limit touya was facing with his quirk. which could have been the start of a downward descent. maybe endeavour started trying to train the weakness out of touya. maybe he got more intense. maybe he started neglecting touya at this point. it was probably the first big step onto the major slippery slope endeavour was about to go down. what he wants is no longer necessarily achievable and his ambition begins to get the better of him.

he probably was slowly starting to guess that maybe touya wouldn’t necessarily live up to his aspirations — but he still didn’t have a better option.

and then shouto came into the picture.

i’m not saying shouto’s birth was a complete 180 for endeavour. nor was it in any way shouto’s fault. but i do think it was the figurative final straw in enji’s descent. the catalyst.

by best estimate touya would have been around 9 when shouto was born (running off of the theory that dabi currently around 24). so sometime between dabi being 9 and 14, enji put all his attention onto shouto.

and think about that moment: shouto is born and at some point it becomes apparent that he has the quirk endeavour has dreamed of. and the reactions start to make sense here.

endeavour who has long since dreamed of this, forgets everything else. it’s a point of obsession for him. up until now, half-hot/half-cold was theoretical. and he fucks up big time. cuts off the other kids, is brutal to shouto, because he has a clear path to victory now. shouto just has to be perfect. and this cause not only for him not to really view shouto as a kid. but also to destroy his relationship with touya.

touya still a young kid at the time goes from probably training and spending time with his dad everyday to never seeing him. after having the entirety of his life up till this point being told that he is endeavour’s successor, he’ll be able to do what endeavour couldn’t and then getting replaced, it’s a jarring shift. and it makes dabi’s grievances make sense.

everything touya has known has changed going from being the favoured child to being completely ignored and neglected. and cue his rapid descent. his crying to natsuo about why he existed because he doesn’t know anymore. the fact that ultimately the belief up until this point was that he pushed his quirk too hard alone and that lead to his death. his taunting of shouto as a puppet for endeavour.

meanwhile shouto is suffering through what we know he’s been suffering through.

and yeah from here on out, endeavour is an awful dad. but as of right now, most of the evidence in my best interpretation of it leads to the idea that maybe he wasn’t as awful at the start.

but also, it gives reason for endeavour’s “redemption” arc. when he got what he wanted in becoming number 1, his whole reason for creating and hyper focusing on shouto was reduced to nothing. so he starts to realize the affect his ambitions have had on his family. the idea that endeavour could be capable of any sort of true atonement feels a lot more likely if you consider that he has and has demonstrated the ability to not be a flaming piece of trash person in the past.

the want for atonement, todoroki enji’s current characterization just makes a lot more sense if you view it as something that didn’t come out of nothing. as something that was always there, just pushed aside in favour of relentlessly pursuing his goals. and it makes sense that the real bad stuff would have kicked in once it seemed like his idea failed with touya and then receiving exactly what he wanted in shouto.

so yeah: that’s what i personally think is up with the todoroki family history. there’s so much to talk about and i definitely missed somethings so full apologies if i forgot about any glaring facts.

there’s a lot more that could be said. and there’s some smaller topics related to somethings mentioned here that i want to dig into a bit more.

until then, this has gotten way too long so anyone who actually made it to the bottom here—thanks! feel free to come yell at me about endeavour or dabi or shouto or anything else really. this is a super interesting arc and it’s great to see so many elements coming back into play.

also i do want to mention: my whole stance on the “is dabi right? is endeavour right? who is good?” is pretty generally neither. i think endeavour and dabi are both very strong characters that operate in that morally grey area. while i’m not necessarily a fan of the endeavour redemption—knowing what we know now it makes a bit more sense to me. at the end of the day, right now, both have done awful things and neither should really be excused for what they’ve done. but no one has to be right or good. they are both deeply flawed characters and that’s what makes them very interesting to follow. so props to hori for executing them really really really well. love them or hate them, the parallel’s and arcs between endeavour and dabi are very interesting to explore, and i’m living for it.

my opinion is in general to stop fighting over who’s right or good or at fault or justified and just like idk, enjoy the story.

any way, i’m done. until next time!

#bnha 291 #bnha 291 is killing me #bnha spoilers #bnha manga #bnha manga spoilers #todoroki shouto #keeping up with the todorokis #todoroki enji #todoroki touya #todoroki fuyumi #todoroki rei #todoroki natsuo

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hamiltonimagines · 4 years

Text

It’s Been a While

Pairing: Daveed x Reader

Request: “Hey girl! Can you do a Daveed imagine where you and Daveed used to be best friends in high school and y’all kept in touch a little after but once he joined Hamilton he stopped talking to you. You posted something about being excited to go see the show and Daveed sees it and he like brings you backstage to talk, but y’all get into a fight about who stopped talking to who and eventually you give up and leave and he shows up to your apartment and does something really cute! Thanks 🥰🥰🥰” - @roxanne2020

Word Count: 1.8k

I had never been more excited, I was going to see Hamilton tonight. I had gotten a text the other day from the one and only Lin-Manuel Miranda. He had told me that he was friends with Daveed and that Daveed had mentioned me and our past. Lin said that Daveed had brought up how he regretted that we lost contact. Lin gave me a ticket for the show tonight so that I could finally see Daveed after all these years.

Daveed had been my best friend in high school. We were the friends who told each other everything and we valued our friendship more than anything. We both went to different colleges and we started talking a lot less. Then he got cast in Hamilton and moved off to New York. We hadn’t spoken since besides a few texts on birthdays or holidays.

I wondered if Daveed would even want to talk to me. It had been so long and I was unsure if we could be friends again or if too much time had passed.

I had gotten ready for the show and took a picture in my outfit. I posted it to Instagram with the caption: Seeing Hamilton tonight, let’s see if it’s as amazing as everyone says it is.

I checked my hair in the mirror one last time and then left my apartment. Ironically, I had moved to New York after college. I always wondered if I would randomly run into Daveed in the street, it never happened though.

I got on the subway and checked my phone. I saw a new comment on my Instagram post. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was from Daveed. It said “Looking forward to seeing a familiar face in the audience”.

I felt my cheeks heat up a little and I felt a familiar warm feeling in my chest. With all this time apart, I may have developed the slightest crush on Daveed. I knew it was weird, especially since at one point he was my ride or die.

I eventually got to the theatre and I went in and found my seat. I got chills when the show started. Then Daveed walked on stage and it was like the world froze. It was then in that moment that I realized how much I had missed him.

The show ended and I was beyond blown away. My expectations had been high, but this surpassed any expectation I had. I didn’t think this show could truly be as good as everyone said it was, but they were all right. This show was phenomenal.

I was standing, along with the rest of the theatre, and applauding as the cast took their final bows. Daveed made eye contact with me as he walked off the stage and he froze for a second, as if it was too good to be true. His eyes lit up and he gave me a soft smile, before leaving the stage.

Then, a few minutes later, my phone started to ring. I saw Daveed’s name on my screen. I answered the phone with a smile on my face. “Hello there stranger” I said, giggling. “So you’re really here?” He asked. “Yeah, I am” I said. “Can you come backstage? I need to see you” he told me. “Anything for you” I told him, smiling.

He told me who to talk to and then he hung up. I found the person who worked for the theatre and told them what Daveed told me to say. The employee let me backstage.

I was in a hallway with a bunch of the cast and ensemble running up and down the halls. I was overwhelmed to say the least. How would I find Daveed? Then I saw a familiar face. I recognized Lin.

“Hey Y/N, you made it” he said, running over and giving me a hug. “Yeah, I wouldn’t miss it. The show was fantastic. If you don’t mind, can you tell me where I can find Daveed?” I asked him.

“Come on, I’ll bring you to his dressing room” he said, as he started walking down the hallway. I followed him, “I don’t know how you don’t get lost down here” I told him, honestly. “You have no idea how many times I got lost during the first few weeks of rehearsals” Lin said, laughing. Then we walked up to a door that said Daveed’s name on it.

Lin knocked on the door and I heard Daveeed say “come in”. Lin opened the door and stuck his head in. “Someone's here to see you Diggs” Lin told him. “Send her in please” Daveed said, knowing it was me.

“Have fun” Lin said to me, before he walked away. I carefully walked into his room and his eyes lit up when he saw me. He ran over and picked me up into his arms and spun me around.

He carefully placed me back on the ground. We both had the biggest smiles on our faces. It felt like no time had passed at all.

“It’s been a while, you look good Y/N” he told me, still smiling. “You too, so is the success treating you? You were amazing tonight by the way” I told him. “Oh thank you, I had to put on a great performance, I had someone important in the audience” he said.

He grabbed one of my hands and pulled me over to the couch. He sat down and I sat next to him. He grabbed my legs and put them across his lap. Daveed and I had spent many nights as teenagers in this position, talking for hours and watching movies.

“It’s been so long” I said, staring into his eyes. “I’ve really missed you” he said, grabbing my hand. “I’ve missed you too” I said, leaning my head on his shoulder.

“Y/N, why’d you ever stop talking to me?” He asked, seriously. “Are you kidding? You were the one who stopped talking to me. You moved to New York City and fame happened and you never reached back out to me. I was giving you time to adjust to the move and I figured you would call me when you settled in” I told him, so confused as to how he thought I ended our friendship.

I pulled my legs off his lap and stood up and walked to the other side of the room. “Yeah right Y/N. You never reached out to me either. And when you moved to New York a year later and you still didn’t reach out. Don’t try and pin this on me” Daveed argued.

“I can’t even listen to you anymore, you used to be my best friend and I told you everything. And one day you just started treating me like I didn’t exist and it broke my heart. Now, you’re sitting here and you can’t even take responsibility for what you did” I yelled. I walked out of the door and slammed it behind me.

I quickly started to walk down the hallway, I had tears welling up in my eyes. I ran into Lin and he looked confused. “Hey what’s wrong? What happened?” He asked me. “Thank you for being concerned, I just really have to get out of here” I told him. He nodded, understandingly. I rushed past him and eventually ended up out on the cold New York street.

I called a cab, not wanting to risk the subway at night time. I got in and told the driver my address. After a few minutes, we pulled up out my apartment complex. I thanked the driver and gave them a tip. I quickly rushed inside my apartment.

I changed into some sweatpants and a hoodie. I couldn’t believe that I actually thought Daveed and I could be friends again. I had been looking forward to things just feeling natural again. I made myself a cup of tea and curled up on my couch and looked out my window.

Then I heard a knock at the door. I put down my mug and walked to the door. I looked through the peephole and saw that it was Daveed.

I unlocked the door and opened it. Only then, did I realize what he was holding. He had a huge bouquet of flowers, a teddy bear, and my favorite candy bar. “Uh...hi” I said, shyly. “I brought you some stuff” he said, smiling.

“Isn’t this the same stuff you brought me when I got dumped by Harley Simmons?” I asked, only then remembering it. In high school, I dated our school’s star football player and he dumped me in front of the whole school and I was devastated. “It cheered you up then, so I hoped it could cheer you up now” he said, hopefully.

“Do you want to come in?” I asked him. He smiled at me and followed me inside. He set down the gifts on my coffee table. I sat down next to him on the couch.

“I am so sorry for how our conversation ended. I was being selfish and I didn’t look at things from your perspective. I never should of ignored you. I don’t want argue over who should of reached out first, I just want to tell you that it was mistake of me to not reach out. I never wanted to make you upset, I was only caring about myself and it was wrong. I really hope you can forgive me, I want us to move on and be friends again” Daveed confessed.

“I could’ve reached out just as easy as you could of, but I didn’t. This falls on both of us. Of course I want to be friends again. Not being friends with you felt so lonely, I felt like you had forgotten all about me” I told him. Then I saw Daveed smirk.

He held his hand out in front of me. I saw a bracelet on his wrist that I had given him when we were saying goodbye before we both left for college. “You never forgot me?” I asked in shock. “How could I forget the first girl I ever loved?” He asked me, interlacing our fingers.

I was so shocked, did he reciprocate my feelings? “You loved me?” I asked him. I was praying he wouldn’t say that he used to love me and didn’t anymore. “I always have” he said, smiling. I smiled back at him and he leaned in and kissed me. He cupped my face and I held onto his forearms.

We both pulled away and I started to blush. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that” he said. “You want to know something?” I asked him, excitedly. “Tell me” he said, chuckling at how excited I was. “I never forgot about you either” I told him, rolling up my sleeve and revealing the matching bracelet.

taglist: @someinsanefangirl @laurens-interlude @geekycatlover @fanfic-addict-98 @romanoffs-heart @multifandomwriterx @andreasworlsboring101 @criminallyhamilton @imatyoursurrvicesurr @irlydontknoanymore @sayweird99 @nyxie75 @rileygene11 @daveeds-whore @trost-town @notebookgirl30 @teenag1jealousy @royalstans @elizasfaith @kmsmedine @brunadesuu @lilangeldevil006

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shihalyfie · 3 years

Text

Daisuke and Tagiru

Ever since Tagiru’s concept was announced, people have been comparing him to Daisuke, and, honestly, it’s hard not to -- in fact, considering that Xros Wars did certainly have some degree of trying to invoke stuff from older series, it’s very likely this is intentional! You have someone introduced as a junior to a prior protagonist, who wears goggles like him (and eventually inherits the senior’s pair), wears blue, has a blue dragon-like partner, is more hot-headed than said senior...

...and that is about where the similarities stop!

Still, I think such prominent base profile details practically beg one to make a comparison, so let’s dig in!

(Translations linked below are PositronCannon’s for 02, The Wild Bunch for Hunters, and L Subs for a Kizuna screenshot, unless otherwise stated.)

The junior-senior relationship

Both Daisuke and Tagiru look up to their seniors, and that’s probably the most well-known part about both of them, but I think the first major difference between the two is how they approach that admiration towards said seniors.

While Daisuke’s way of approaching Taichi can generally be observed through his tone and actions overall, the most clear representation is in 02 episode 8, where you get to see their relationship as soccer team junior and senior. The most consistent thing about this is that Daisuke is completely and utterly deferential to Taichi.

What does this mean? It means that, even when Daisuke is jokingly bragging about his skills, it only takes one criticism from Taichi to entirely shut him down. The degree to which Daisuke respects Taichi’s opinion and holds him in regard is in such high esteem that he completely defers to his judgment. He really, really thinks Taichi is that much cooler of an experienced person whose judgment takes priority over his own. Even in episode 39, when he makes his first major disagreement against Taichi -- that he wants to go help Ken in Tamachi instead of accompanying the others -- the way he phrases it is firm, but politely and respectfully, to the point it almost comes off like he’s asking for permission to go.

Tagiru, on the other hand...

...well, his first appearance in the series involves disregarding Taiki’s advice. And when it comes to his approach to Taiki...

...his goal is to outdo Taiki. He understands that Taiki is amazing, but he’s fixated on beating and surpassing him, seeing Taiki’s amazingness as more of a goal to reach.

In contrast, Daisuke’s approach to Taichi is completely on the other extreme. While no part of 02-related canonical material ever explicitly covers whether Daisuke thinks he’d ever be able to be as good as Taichi, the implication is that Daisuke thinks Taichi is so amazing that the idea of surpassing him doesn’t even occur to him, or that he may not even think it’s possible at all. See Spring 2003:

All right! I’m finally a regular! A center-forward. Haah, I’m getting all pumped up! I’ll show ’em all my power! But… Taichi-san was already a regular in his fifth year. I heard he was big. Ahh, he was awesome!!

The one time he’s known to explicitly compare Taichi to himself...he just gushes about how Taichi was a regular earlier than he was. And then gushes about Taichi in general. So in other words, he treats the fact that he’s not as “good” as Taichi as...just a fact of life, because Taichi being that amazing is a fact of life to him.

Even all the way in 2010, Daisuke’s default reaction to Taichi is to gush about how amazing he is. He doesn’t even think of himself in the equation.

The goggles

Both of them are also known for having wearing goggles specifically because their seniors do, but the circumstances behind them are somewhat different.

Tagiru’s reasons for imitating Taiki are explicitly laid out in Hunters episode 1:

Tagiru basically sees Taiki as a “role model” -- he thinks Taiki is the model of the “superstar” level he wants to attain, and, eventually, surpass.

On the other hand, Daisuke’s circumstances and motive behind wearing the goggles were only implied in the series itself, but fully fleshed out in Spring 2003. In what’s implied to be a metaphorical conversation with his younger self, it’s said that the reason Daisuke started wearing goggles was because of “a person wearing goggles and riding something that looked like a huge dinosaur" -- Yagami Taichi, whom it seems Daisuke did not properly recognize as Taichi at the time -- during the 1999 Odaiba fog incident, when Vamdemon kidnapped everyone. Wanting “the strength to protect everyone”, Daisuke went home and picked up a pair of goggles, and has this to say about them:

...when I wear them, I guess it’s like, my feelings become stronger... ...Because I have these goggles. Even I didn’t know a lot from the start — well, I probably still don’t even now — but when I wear these, I kinda feel motivated… to do anything!

In other words, it’s likely Daisuke didn’t even realize “Taichi-senpai” was the person he was modeling himself after at the beginning -- it’s a bit unclear due to the circumstances of Spring 2003 being somewhat metaphorical, but either way it seems it had more to do with Taichi as “the hero who protected everyone” rather than simply his amazing soccer senior. Supporting this is Daisuke’s cameo appearance in the Adventure novels, which also has him express frustration at being powerless to protect his family.

(But of course, at whatever point Daisuke realized they were the same person, Taichi’s amazing soccer skills and leadership abilities must have certainly helped how much Daisuke adores him.)

Their general demeanor

Both Daisuke and Tagiru, on the surface, seem to track with the sort of “brash shounen hero” stereotype, but even their way of going about things differs greatly!

Despite Daisuke having a very “abrasive” surface demeanor -- he tends to get easily irritated at other people, and can sometimes come off as being pretty aggressive -- the truth is that he actually defers to others quite easily. This is especially in the case of the seniors or Hikari, but it extends to pretty much anyone -- the moment someone else puts their foot down, criticizes him, or takes a sufficiently large stand, he has a very strong tendency to back down. The fact that he’s so wishy-washy at the beginning of the series is a huge part of his character development, especially since the end of the Kaiser arc and the second half of the series are when he starts to make a serious stand about major things he cares about -- such as stopping more casualties at Chimeramon’s hands, or reaching out to Ken -- but he does still have some degree of deference to his friends’ opinions, and of course especially his seniors. At the very least, even if he gets argumentative, he’ll actually debate it out with them and try to make his case. In other words, Daisuke spends the course of 02 learning to be assertive, but he’s actually not as aggressive as his initial demeanor suggests.

In fact, Daisuke has often been described as being a lot like a puppy, which is something I find to be rather incredibly accurate -- he gets easily riled up or defensive, but in actuality is eager to please others and is otherwise not very threatening (especially if you give him attention).

For what it’s worth, as much as Daisuke seems to often have a lot of confidence (he does the usual shounen hero schtick of gloating about taking enemies down and all that), it’s very rare he actually talks about himself or shows any moments of pride or self-esteem. Even his joking that he might make the national soccer team was that -- a joke -- that he snapped out of the moment Taichi criticized him, and the same episode has him not even entertaining the illusion that they might win against the Tamachi team -- he’s just happy to play them at all. By the time of Kizuna, he’s rather grounded and realistic about his position and abilities in terms of how to approach his career aspirations -- overall he doesn’t actually seem to have a lot of self-awareness, positive or negative, and can be quite humble when it really comes down to it.

Considering that, it makes sense that Daisuke was able to settle for such a simple career aspiration (ramen making) -- he’s not that ambitious, and he doesn’t shoot very high. He’s happy with what he’s able to do, and while he of course wants to succeed in that and do his best, he's still satisfied with not aiming all that high.

Moreover, while he of course tends to be the one who wants to charge forward, it’s quite easy to hold him back if the others advise him that it’s a bad idea (see: 02 episode 7). During times he does put his foot down because he really, really believes it’s the only thing that can be done, Daisuke is actually forgiving of those who don’t want to charge in forward as easily as he does; in both episodes where he chooses to push on forward when the others are hesitant (02 episodes 20 and 48), he holds no ill will towards the others staying behind and simply informs everyone that he’ll go in alone if he has to.

Tagiru, on the other hand, is actually as aggressive as his demeanor suggests -- he’s not nearly as deferential as Daisuke and doesn’t “deflate” as easily, is much more willing to argue with others (or disregard them and go off on his own if he sufficiently dislikes what they’re doing), and is rather generally brimming with pride and a lot of self-assuredness in being great and awesome. Unlike Daisuke, he is absolutely ambitious and wants to shoot for the highest thing he can possibly be -- hence why he wants to not just be like Taiki but surpass him, because he has the drive to push himself as far as possible.

Tagiru also has a tendency to try and “claim credit” for things (the basketball match in episode 1, the above scene in episode 14); most likely Daisuke wouldn’t even bother (except, perhaps, in the occasional moment of weakness when he’s trying to impress Hikari-chan). Moreover, Tagiru doesn’t need any permission to charge in whatsoever; he’ll do it if he wants to, regardless of what others tell him.

This also contributes to Tagiru being much less of a team player than Daisuke is -- making him excel much better in Hunters’ battle royale format in which his aggressiveness helped him compete in a game where everyone was playing for themselves. It’s likely he would have done very poorly in Daisuke’s situation, where team coordination and bonding was important to their adventure, and, conversely, Daisuke, who’s reliant on others and constantly deferential, would probably have performed very poorly in the Hunt.

V-mon and Gumdramon

Personality-wise, I think it’s generally understood that Daisuke and Tagiru’s actual partners have rather little similarity, and everything is mainly aesthetic (being blue dragon-like Digimon) -- V-mon is rather easygoing and friendly, whereas Gumdramon’s competitiveness and mischievousness matches Tagiru’s own. In general, though, I would also point out that this is reflective of the different ways Adventure/02 and Xros Wars approached Digimon partnership as well. In Adventure/02, Digimon partners were effectively part of the inner self, so V-mon was reflective of Daisuke actually being of a quite friendly and agreeable nature when it really came down to it and you got past his abrasive surface demeanor. As a result, Daisuke and V-mon were like-minded almost unconsciously, to the point of being in sync without even trying. (Not that they’d never got into an argument ever -- see The Door to Summer -- but their relationship was definitely more of a “natural clicking” sense.)

In contrast, Xros Wars very much treats Digimon and humans as individual entities in every respect, with “partners” really just being the Digimon each General/Hunter bonded the most with and has as their core battle partner, so there is much more of a significant level of choice between partners choosing each other in terms of whether their personalities click. (The fact that Taiki and Shoutmon were very disparate in temperament and motive was a big part of the first series of Xros Wars.) Nevertheless, Gumdramon and Tagiru are extremely like-minded -- both a little mischievous, and both very ambitious. Of course, both of them being rather aggressive did lead to some friction in episodes such as 7 and 17, but this led to them ultimately bonding more deeply by working through it.

Unlike V-mon, who had no real affiliation with Agumon, and unlike Tagiru, who can hardly be said to be all that deferential to Taiki, Gumdramon does seem to be significantly deferential to Shoutmon...although mainly out of intimidation more than anything.

Round-up

So, a tl;dr in closing:

Daisuke's relationship to Taichi is almost entirely deferential, and Daisuke holds him in such high esteem that he concentrates more on Taichi being amazing more than he ever factors himself into the equation; Tagiru sees Taiki more as a role model and someone to aspire to and eventually surpass

Daisuke’s reason for taking after Taichi with the goggles is out of a desire to protect others the way Taichi did; Tagiru wears the goggles explicitly to imitate Taiki as part of his goal to be a “superstar” and eventually surpass him

Daisuke is generally deferential to others, is somewhat lacking in ambition, and only really puts a firm foot down when it’s something he cares about; Tagiru is actually capable of being aggressive, does not necessarily defer to others, and has significant ambitions of pushing himself as high as possible

Daisuke’s relationship with V-mon is that of V-mon being reflective of Daisuke’s inner friendliness, and the two simply get along naturally in a friendly manner; Tagiru and Gumdramon had to more consciously form their partnership on being more like-minded, which meant that they had to overcome some obstacles in their relationship due to both of them being more on the aggressive side.

#digimon #digimon adventure 02 #digimon xros wars #digimon hunters #digimon adventure last evolution kizuna #motomiya daisuke #akashi tagiru #daisuke motomiya #tagiru akashi #shihameta

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twstarchives · 4 years

Text

Epel Felmier・Voice Lines

Additional Voice Lines

Dress-Up Groom event card

Scary Dress event card

School Uniform - R

Unlock Card “What’s wrong? ...Is there something on my face?”

Groovy “I’ll peel an apple for you too. I can promise you they taste delicious.”

Home Setting “I wonder what kind of magic we’re going to learn today.”

Home Transitions “I only wear this frilly blouse because the dorm leader told me to. It’s not because I like it... or anything.”

“I like magic... I think. I mean, the strength of your magic doesn’t have anything to do with your stature, so...”

“It’s really nippy where I live, so—oh, huh? You don’t know what nippy means? It means ‘very cold’... kind of.”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “You’re staring at me really hard; do you need something... maybe?”

Home Taps “If I got taller, I’d look like an even more powerful mage... I think.”

“Meemaw—ah, I mean, my grandmother sent a bunch of apples from home. Do you want one too... maybe?”

“Apples can grow in harsh winter conditions. They’re a very strong, durable fruit. Did you know that?”

“Living in a dorm isn’t really that inconvenient... I think. There were always a lot of people in my house back home anyway.”

“Look here, the hell were you——....Ahh, I mean, are you teasing me like I’m weak...?”

PE Uniform - R

Unlock Card “I like these clothes. And I’m not just saying that ‘cause I have to or anything...”

Groovy “Are you tired? Hehe, being a mage is a real test of strength.”

Home Setting “Clothes that are easy to move in are nice, huh?”

Home Transitions “I decided when I first came to this school to try out some sports. 'Cause I wasn’t really able to do them back home...”

“The magical shift club leader Leona told me that winning depends on strategy, not your physique.”

“I’m good at flying... I think. A lot of the sweet, delicious apples grow in high places, right where the sun hits, so I have to ride a broom when I pick them.”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “A lot of people say I don’t look like I’d be good at sports, but I kind of like them...”

Home Taps “I don’t really have any muscles, even though I work out. I wish I had muscles like Coach Vargas...”

“Apples are good to eat after exercising. I heard the acids in them help you cool off.”

“I’m not really good at dancing... I think. I’ve only danced a little at the festivals in my village...”

“My muscles are sore after working out with the dorm leader... He told me I wasn’t flexible and tried to stretch me out like pie dough.”

“Y’know, I’m real tired of you jabbin’ at me like tha—ah! Um, could you maybe not poke me like that?”

Lab Coat - SR

Unlock Card “We have a lab...? If I mess it up, the dorm leader’ll get mad at me... probably.”

Groovy “I want to be a master at making potions someday too.”

Home Setting “I want to learn about potions that grow plants...”

Home Transitions “The work at Night Raven College is hard... kind of. I can never remember those long plant names...”

“Whenever Professor Crewel teaches, you can tell he knows a lot about color-changing potions and flowers that can dye things really pretty colors.”

“The library at this school is full of books from all around the world. The dorm leader told me I need to read one every week.”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “There’s a lot of fruits I’ve never seen before in the Botanical Garden; it’s fun looking at them all... kind of.”

Home Transition (Groovy) “It’s frustrating when I can’t solve a hard problem... kind of. I was going to go try researching in the library. Want to come too?”

Home Taps “There’s a lot of people in Pomefiore who are good at magic potions. But I’m not really there yet... I think.”

“One bite of the poisoned apple and you fall into an eternal slumber... I need to be careful when making strong potions.”

“If I made a potion that could strengthen weak apple trees, it’d make Pawpaw really happy.”

“Rook’s an amazing person; he’s so good at sports and his studies too... I think. It’s just, he’s really, really weird...”

“Are you blind or somethin’? I’m busy brewing here so leave me alone for now—...ah! I mean, it’s dangerous if you’re not careful, so please don’t touch, okay?”

Home Tap (Groovy) “Have you grown any plants before? ...Oh, I see. Want me to split seedlings that are easy to grow for you?”

Ceremony Robes - SR

Unlock Card “Don’t worry about me. ...He does this for the both of us.”

Groovy “I’m going to surpass the dorm leaders in no time. I swear it...!”

Home Setting “It feels like my robes are dragging on the floor... kind of.”

Home Transitions “They say the hoods of these robes are supposed to give off the impression of the Beautiful Queen when she turned into an old woman... Did you know that?”

“The Queen was even willing to make herself ugly in order to be the fairest in the land... She’s real marvy.”

“The Mirror of Darkness is supposed to pick your dorm based on the qualities of your soul, but does my soul really match Pomefiore...?”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “Students with all kinds of natural power go to this school... I want to get stronger here too!”

Home Transition (Groovy) “When I sent my grandma pictures of me from the entrance ceremony, she said ‘You look real smart ‘n spruce’! Meemaw’s just exaggerating...”

Home Taps “I feel like there’s a whole lotta ballsy guys at this school. It’s a little different from what I’d pictured before coming here.”

“When the black carriage came to pick me up, all my relatives and the villagers came to wish me off... Hehe.”

“Neither of my parents can use magic, but Big Maw and Meemaw⁠—ah, I mean, my great-grandma and my grandma are both witches.”

“I didn’t grow up around a lot of mages, so life at this school feels very new... kind of.”

“Ah? The hell do you want? Stop actin’ like we’re so close.”

Home Tap (Groovy) “This makeup Vil put on me won’t smudge at all... How is it now? Did it come off?”

Dorm Uniform - SSR

Unlock Card “Want a bite of an apple so sweet you’ll think you’re dreaming?”

“I’m just obeying what the dorm leader asks of me. ...For now.”

Groovy “I may be in Pomefiore, but... I’m still me!”

Home Setting “Welcome to Pomefiore! ...Hah.”

Home Transitions “I’ve got a lot of weird seniors in Pomefiore. It still feels kind of hard to fit in here...”

“I’ve never really cared that much about how I dress, but I love apples that are shaped nicely... I think.”

“I always thought Pomefiore was all about enforcing beautiful looks, but not everyone’s like that. The dorm leader is just a special case.”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “Wearing the Pomefiore dorm uniforms isn’t just about being beautiful. The dorm leader told me ‘You must get strong,’ too.”

Home Transition (Groovy) “I wish people would tell me I’m cool instead of saying things like ‘pretty’ or ‘cute.’”

Home Taps “The deep indigo used for our dorm uniforms is said to be the same color as the Beautiful Queen’s dress.”

“I once got lost in the dorm and ended up at this creepy basement. I wonder what that room is used for...”

“Did you see the huge apple trees in our dorm’s courtyard? Back home, we’ve got apple trees too. ...But I’m not homesick or anything.”

“Keep this a secret from the dorm leader, but... I actually wanted to get into Savanaclaw. They seem kinda bad and tough. I like it.”

“Quit pokin’ at me so casually! ...I’m kidding. I just don’t really like being touched, I think.”

Home Tap (Groovy) “Ramshackle must be so nice. I’d love to be alone and free.”

Duo Magic Epel: “Let’s go, Rook!” Rook: “How daring you are, Monsieur Cherry Apple.”

Birthday Celebration Outfit - SSR

This card was only obtainable during Epel’s birthday event (May 5 - May 12, 2021).

Unlock Card “I can’t believe you guys are throwing such a huge celebration for me... Thank you, everyone!”

“I want this year to be fruitful, like the way fresh apples grow every year.”

Groovy “I hope that next year I can have a blast with you and everyone else again!”

Home Setting “How do I look? Cool, right? ...Huh?! I’m ‘cute’?”

Home Transitions “Deuce gave me a cap with really cool patches on it. I’m gonna wear it next time I go see him.”

“Ruggie told me ‘I’m expecting a little something back from ya!’ when he handed me a present... I have no idea what I’d get for a senior.”

“Everyone looked so shocked when I blew out my birthday candles in one breath... Do I really seem that weak?”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “It’s my birthday party today, so maybe I can act like myself a little bit, and have fun...”

Home Transition (Groovy) “I’ve still gotta do homework after this... Ah! Maybe it’d fun if I worked with you. It’d be like we’re keeping the party going!”

Home Taps “Jack gave me a cactus. I hear it’s hard to get them to bloom flowers, but I’ll try my best to grow one!”

“I used to mark my height on a pillar to see how tall I’d gotten. But I stopped because I wasn’t really growing...”

“Huh?! There’s cream near my mouth? That could’ve been bad... Vil was about t’get real hacked off at me!”

“It makes me happy to get presents, but I don’t really have a use for makeup and fluttery clothes and stuff like that...”

“You want to see me carve an apple? Then I’ll give a go at carving a portrait. Will you be my model?”

Home Tap (Groovy) “I like how the party really picks up when you and Grim are here. I don’t do so great when the mood’s all stiff.”

Duo Magic Epel: “Vil! There’s something a bit different about me today.” Vil: “Happy birthday, Epel. Let’s see it.”

Tutorial “Let’s go! I’ll leave you behind if you don’t keep up.”

Lv Up “Ehehe, I made some progress... I think.”

“If I do my best, someday I’ll definitely make it...!”

“Let’s try our hardest from now on. Okay?”

Max Lv Up “I feel a strong power rising in me, like an ice-cold poison. It feels like I could put anyone to sleep... maybe?”

Episode Lv Up “Why’re you even botherin’ with me? If it’s ‘cause you think I’m strong ‘n reliable, then... that’d make me happy.”

Magic Lv Up “With this power, I’ll even take on the dorm leader!”

Limit Break “I’m getting stronger. Do you believe in me too...? Maybe?”

Groovy “I wish I could grow slowly and steadily, like an apple.”

Select Lesson “What subject are you going to take? ...I like flying, I think.”

“Do you want to take a class with me? It doesn’t really matter to me, though... hehe.”

“Seriously, how long are you just gonna stand there? Pick already.”

Lesson Start “Mm, hello everyone.”

Lesson End “I’m drained from all that studying!”

Battle Start “You’ve got some nerve biting at me...!”

Battle Win “Guess I’m not as soft as I look! Maybe.”

Other

Profile Quote “Apples are awkward and hard to handle... just like...”

January 2020 Trailer “Are you by chance waiting for your prince on a white horse to come?”

Countdown Poster “Would you like a bite of this red apple?”

Login Bonus “It’s important to keep up at something everyday. Apples won’t ripen either if you don’t take care of them everyday... you know?”

Player Birthday Wish “It’s your birthday, ain’t it! I made some jam outta the apples my family sent me... Here! Ah... Um... What’s wrong? You’re making a funny face... Did I say something weird... maybe?”

Epel sometimes slips into speaking in Tsugaru dialect, which is so different than standard Japanese that sometimes it’s impossible to understand unless you’re familiar with it. I’d describe it as a “heavy country dialect.” There’s no perfect way to translate it, and I don’t really have a good grasp on different English dialects anyway, but I tried 🙆‍♀️ If anything was worded strangely, it was probably intentional!

#epel felmier #voice lines

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ft-dads-au · 4 years

Text

Kiss Me

Fanart by @oryu404, do not repost without their permission. A collaboration by @mdelpin and @oryu404

Stingue Fall Equinox 2020 Prompt: Warmth Pairing: Sting x Rogue, Sting & Orga

AO3 | FF.Net

Summary: Sting has one thing on his mind when Rogue shows up at his dorm room unexpectedly: the kiss they'd shared at the end of a week spent studying together for midterms. He's dying to get Rogue alone again, but first he has to get past the embarrassment of his messy room, and his nosy roommate.

October 27, 2012

“Check this out,” Orga laughed as he showed Sting yet another silly TikTok on his phone. He had to raise his voice a little to surpass the sound of the music he’d put on- some kind of rock band Sting knew most songs from by now. “I’ve already seen that one, blockhead. You bombard me with so many of these that you can’t even remember which ones you’ve already sent me?” Sting groaned when his roommate shrugged at his comment and started singing along to the music, “Turn it down, people are still asleep! It’s barely past 10!” He had just finished speaking when they heard a loud banging against the wall. “See?” he flashed him a look that said I told you so, feeling rather victorious when Orga turned the volume down a little. Sadly enough, he didn’t stop singing. “Whoa-oa-oah, so hun-gry~” “The-eh-eh-en get fucking dre-essed~ We’re all out of...everything.” Sting checked the minifridge and the small cabinet they used for snacks, pouting in disappointment when all he found were empty wrappers and some leftovers from a salad that looked like it was ready to crawl out of its container. He pulled a face as he dumped it into the trash, “Nasty…”

“Or-” Orga swiped across the screen of his phone, “we could get some lunch delivered! What’re you up for? Pizza? Burgers? Ooh! You should try 8-Island!” The idea of getting delivery was very tempting, but they’d done that so many times already over the midterm week that Sting was almost looking forward to the crappy dorm food. He could hear his mother’s voice inside his head, giving him a lecture about the importance of healthy meals. Oh well, what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her. “But-” he was cut off when Orga raised the volume again. “This is the best part!” “Normally, yes! Your caterwauling kind of ruins it for me, though!” Sting noticed Orga was busy singing into the TV-remote for an invisible audience, so he took his chance and dashed for the computer. He was able to lower the volume to a more acceptable level again, despite Orga’s sung protest, but a loud knock at the door told him the damage was probably already done. “Great, now we have pissed off people at the door, which I have to answer because you’re still not dressed.”

Plastering a smile on his face, he opened the door, ready to charm his way out of yet another noise complaint. His smile widened as he recognized the person standing on the other side. That was until Orga opened his mouth.

“Is that Dobengal whining again? Cause if it is, tell him he can suck my big fat -”

Sting waved at Rogue cheerfully and put his hand up in a wait-one-sec gesture, quickly closing the door before Orga had a chance to finish that statement.

“It’s not Dobengal,” Sting hissed, “and can you put some clothes on?”

“Fine, fine. What’s got your panties in a bunch?” Orga muttered, searching through the pile of clothes that lay at the foot of his bed for a pair of pants. “There, happy?”

While Orga got dressed, Sting grabbed all of his clothes and threw them into his wardrobe in a last-ditch effort to make the room look somewhat habitable.

“Are, like, your parents here for a surprise visit or something?” Orga asked.

“No, worse. Rogue,” Sting explained, continuing to throw the contents of his floor into his wardrobe. He pushed all his weight against the doors to force them to shut, and when that didn’t work, he hooked his desk chair with his leg and dragged it towards him in an attempt to lodge it under the handles.

“You mean the guy you’re always talking about?”

Sting didn’t like the gleam in Orga’s eyes at the news or the way he made kissy faces at him. “Oh, come on, don’t be an asshole for once. Please?”

“We have a guest, and you shouldn’t leave him waiting outside. You wouldn’t want Dobengal to have a go at him, would you?” Orga smiled sweetly, and with that, Sting hurried to the door. He could only hope the wardrobe would hold.

Giving himself a quick once over in the mirror that hung behind the door and deeming himself presentable, he opened the door again and leaned against it. “Hey there! Sorry about that, loud roommate, and all that.”

“Hey,” Rogue replied, looking slightly uncomfortable but happy to see him.

“Uhm, do you wanna come in?” Sting almost wished he’d say no so that they could get out of there, but he knew it would be rude not to ask, especially after nearly slamming the door in his face. “Actually, I was just wondering if-”

Sting was ungraciously shoved aside, nearly faceplanting on the floor when Orga joined, “Are you Rogue? Nice to meet you. I’m Orga!” He gave Rogue a handshake that had his whole arm moving up and down and flung the door wide open. “Come in, come in!” Sting watched with growing dread as his roommate pulled his crush inside their room and showed it off. He didn’t see why. There was nothing worth showing off. His efforts to get his clothes out of sight barely made a difference. “Take a seat!” Orga gestured from Sting’s bed to the chair that was cranked underneath the wardrobe door handles, offering both as viable options even though he could see Sting waving his arms and shaking his head. “So, Sting told me you were in a band. Are you guys still looking for members?” “Don’t-” Sting quickly blocked the chair before Rogue would sit on it, “uhm...invite him to your band! He’s basically tone-deaf!” He regretted his words the second he saw Orga’s challenging smirk. The gloves were off. He needed to get them out of there quickly before Orga had a chance to humiliate him further.

“We’re all set, actually,” Rogue replied, eyes drifting across the room and taking in the mess with obvious distaste.

“Too bad, you guys are really good.”

“Oh, have you seen us play?” Rogue asked curiously.

“Not seen exactly, as much as heard,” Orga grinned cheerfully, “Sting plays your music all the time.”

That bastard!

Rogue was gazing at him, a surprised expression on his face, but at least it didn’t look like he thought he was a weirdo. There was still a chance to get out of this without suffering too much ego damage. He just had to get them out of there before Orga could say anything else.

“Guilty,” he smiled, “I like to listen to it sometimes, helps me get in the groove to study.”

“Sometimes?” Orga chortled. “Anyway,” Sting coughed into his hand, “What are you up to?”

“Oh,” Rogue focused on him once again, “I was running some errands nearby and thought you might like to get some coffee.”

“That sounds great!” Sting agreed readily, “Just let me grab my stuff.”

He scrambled to grab his phone, keys, coat, and wallet from their various locations around the room, having no trouble finding them despite the mess.

“Oh, can I come too?” Orga asked in a tone that Sting immediately did not trust.

“No!” Sting answered, grabbing Rogue by the arm and pulling him towards the door.

“Oh, you’re right. You probably want some private time to suck face again, my bad.”

Sting stopped mid-step, not sure what to do with himself after his roommate blurted out that little tidbit, and not wanting to look at Rogue’s face either. It proved to be a mistake as the chair holding the wardrobe closed slid out of place and fell over, hitting the floor with a loud smack. The doors flew open, and an avalanche of dirty laundry cascaded out onto the floor.

Orga’s laughs echoed in the room, and Sting could feel his cheeks burning from mortification, but to his great relief, he could hear Rogue laughing along.

“Let’s-uh... go,” Sting managed to get out, still feeling like he’d like to find a hole to crawl into. He flipped Orga off and closed the door behind them, muffling the loud love song blasting from the computer speakers to accompany their departure.

“God, I’m so sorry for him, he’s-,” Sting gestured with his hands in frustration, not able to come up with a word to adequately describe his roommate and still flustered by what the idiot had said.

“That’s nothing, trust me, my older brother can be worse,” Rogue chuckled. “How did your midterms go?” “I’m not sure, but I think I did okay?” Sting threaded his fingers through his hair. In truth, there were a few he wasn’t so confident about, and he’d been somewhat on edge waiting for the professors to post the results, but he didn’t really want to talk about that.

There was only one thing that had been on his mind since they’d last parted ways, and it was the kiss they’d shared. He’d worried about it, relived it, and pretty much obsessed over it since it had happened, but there had been no time to talk about it during midterm week.

Now he had all the time in the world, but no idea how to bring it up casually. God, he wanted to do it again, and he had a feeling Rogue did as well. The fact that he'd shown up on his doorstep the day after midterms were over at least betrayed that he'd wanted to spend time together, didn't it? But of course, Sting had no way to be sure, so he decided he’d let Rogue lead the conversation. ”What about you?”

“I’m only worried about Bio. The rest were pretty easy.”

As they discussed the Biology test, they reached the dorm’s exit, and Sting hurried to hold the door open for Rogue, smiling slightly when he saw the other’s eye roll at the gesture. His smile disappeared completely when a gust of cold air blew past him, making him grab onto his open coat and fold it tightly closed over his chest. “C-c-cold!”

“I have no idea how you’re going to survive the winter, if you think this is cold,” Rogue teased.

“You mean it gets worse?!” Sting replied in mock horror.

“Maybe we can find you a wool crop top,” Rogue snorted, “Come on, let’s go get that coffee before you freeze to death.” After weeks of being cooped inside studying for midterms, many students were out enjoying what was a rather beautiful day for this time of year. The sun was out, and despite Sting’s complaints, it was relatively warm.

A short walk brought them to the campus coffee shop, a busy place called Heavenly Brews, which sadly did not live up to its name. It was convenient though, not to mention cheap, and as expected, it was full of other students who’d had the same idea. But the service was fast, and in less than ten minutes, they each had a large cup of piping hot coffee.

Sting insisted on paying, still wanting to make up for Orga’s...well, everything, and Rogue let him. Once back outside, they began walking in a random direction, moving away from the hustle and bustle around campus to more quiet places.

“Every damn time,” Rogue shook his head as he showed Sting his coffee cup, turning it around so it showed the name written on it. Rouge.

Sting giggled, receiving an elbow to his side for his response. “What? It’s funny! Besides, that’s nothing. Try growing up with a name like Sting.”

He wrapped both hands around his drink, feeling its warmth seeping through the double cup as they walked. He recognized the area they were in from his morning runs. There was a small park further down the street that he’d often visited with Orga to throw a frisbee around when they were getting stressed.

Sting took in their surroundings, swiftly realizing he’d been so busy studying the last few weeks that he’d barely noticed the telltale signs of fall. Even though the leaves were not as brightly colored as those he was used to seeing in Edolas, they were still quite beautiful, covering the ground in a blanket of browns, yellows, crimsons, and oranges.

They reached the park entrance, and Sting decided it would be a nice place to talk. They walked past a game of touch football, making their way towards the small duck pond. The sound of the leaves crunching under their feet was satisfying, and he was pleased to find that with the ducks having already left to migrate south, the benches facing the pond were unoccupied. He immediately claimed one that was slightly hidden behind the thick trunk of a large oak tree, and Rogue sat beside him.

The air might be cold and crisp, but the sun’s rays warming his skin through the barren branches made it still pleasant enough to be outside. Or maybe, he guessed as he looked to his side, eyes drawn to Rogue’s lips as they blew small white clouds into his coffee cup, it had nothing to do with the sun at all.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Rogue asked when he caught him staring, lowering his coffee until his hands were resting in his lap. Fuck it. Sting put his coffee down next to him on the bench, freeing his hands so he could cup Rogue's rosy cold cheeks. He leaned in and kissed him, all sense of cold disappearing when Rogue deepened the kiss.

"I was just thinking about how much I've wanted to do that again," he confessed, still close enough for their lips to brush against each other with every word he spoke.

Rogue smiled sheepishly and asked, "And you really thought I'd get up before noon on a Saturday just to get sub-par coffee?"

"Hmm… true, you’re not a morning person at all,” Sting chuckled, “so I guess I should make it worth your while, then.” He pressed his lips against Rogue’s again, soon forgetting the rest of the world around them. He had no idea how long they stayed lost in each other, but by the time they broke apart, their coffees had gone from scalding hot to barely warmer than the heat that was burning under his skin.

Sting was about to risk spoiling the moment by saying something possibly sappy or cliche when his stomach spoke up in his stead, unleashing a loud roar that made Rogue hack up a laugh. “Wanna go out for lunch with me?” he asked when he was done laughing, finding it hard not to start all over again when he saw Sting’s pouty face. "I think you already know the answer to that.” Sting got off the bench, pulling Rogue along with him, and despite feeling a bit nervous about it, he kept holding his hand as they passed other people enjoying the outdoors on their free Saturdays. As they walked back towards the park’s entrance, Sting noticed kids playing around in the leaves, gathering them into big piles and throwing them around, reminding him of afternoons spent with Yukino when they were younger.

“I used to do that with my best friend when we were about that age,” The corner of his mouth curved up at the memory. “Did you do stuff like that?”

Rogue laughed heartily, “Every year. My dad and his best friend were the biggest kids in my family. So his daughter, my brother, and I would help them make these huge leaf piles. We’d come up with some rather creative jumps. My poor mom would totally lose it when she saw what we were up to.”

Sting snorted, thinking of how childish his own dad could be at times. It was something he’d always loved about him. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” His eyes twinkled with mischief as he pointed at a large leaf pile that sat a ways from where the kids played.

He was pleased to feel Rogue squeeze his hand briefly before issuing him a challenge, “Last one in pays for lunch!”

Rogue had already started his approach as Sting watched mesmerized until the words sunk in, “Hey! That’s cheating!”

He chased after him, overtaking him easily and laughing at Rogue’s protests. In the end, Sting slowed down and grabbed Rogue’s hand, counting down to one so they could both jump in at the same time.

Leaves flew all around them in a swirl of colors before blowing away. Sting stretched his body, much like a cat searching for a sunny spot, while still holding on to Rogue’s hand. When he was satisfied, he rested his head on Rogue’s shoulder, content to just lay there snuggled together for the time being.

When he’d first gotten to Magnolia for his exchange year, Sting hadn’t been sure if he’d made the right decision. He hadn’t made many friends, the weather was uncomfortable, and everything had been more difficult than he was used to.

Meeting Rogue had made him feel a little bit more at home in a foreign place, and although he knew he'd be moving back to Edolas at the end of the school year, he refused to deny the feeling that was bursting inside of him whenever they were together. So even though falling in love had never been part of the plan, it was far too late for him to resist. Not that he really wanted to.

Sting turned over on his stomach, captivated by the warm fall tones reflected in Rogue’s eyes. “I missed you this week,” he admitted, nudging their faces closer together and running his fingers through Rogue’s hair, gently picking out some leaves.

They stared at each other until Rogue grabbed hold of Sting’s jacket, pulling him in for another kiss.

“Me too,” Rogue’s contented hum at their closeness warmed Sting’s heart, chasing away any lingering chill he’d felt.

#fairy tail #ftdadsau #stingue #fyeahstingue #ftlgbtales #Stingue Fall Equinox 2020 #fics #prompt: warmth #media

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joe-mazzello-archive · 4 years

Text

Wait For It

Rating: PG-13

Word Count: 7.1k (lol this was supposed to be a quick one)

Warnings: a bunch of people being super insecure, angst again (sorry gang), some sexy thoughts but no actual smut, cheating

A/N: sooooo i’ve been up in my hamilton feels as of late so this fic is the result of that. shoutout to my favorite bridge troll @brianmays-hair for the original prompt that inspired this plus letting me bounce ideas off of her when my brain can only form partial thoughts, ily babe. also, shoutout to my first gwil-centric fic! of course joe makes an appearance because i’m the worst. eventually i’ll write a fic that joe is not in lol. also, y’all may not like yourself in this one. sorry :(

(also i know everyone uses this gif, so sue me)

I look into your eyes and the sky’s the limit.

Joe had just…always been there. He was the friend who never strayed no matter how far apart you were. When your lives seemed determined to pull you in different directions, you didn’t let it. The two of you could go an entire year on separate sides of the country, but once reunited it was like you were never apart. You understood each other in a way that was hard to define. Your connection ran deep, deeper than any other connection you’d ever had with another person.

Falling in love with Joe Mazzello was hard.

It was hard because you didn’t want to. You didn’t want to complicate things or ruin the connection you had. Every urge to kiss him or hold his hand or pull him into your bed just frustrated you. How could your heart betray you like that? It set you up for failure. Every romantic prospect was subconsciously compared to Joe. They weren’t as funny as him, weren’t as charming as him, didn’t understand you as well as he did. It wasn’t fair to you or to Joe or to all of the people who tried to win you over.

Every fantasy you had of Joe waking up one day and realizing you were the one for him was met with anger and frustration at yourself. His golden eyes, those eyes that held so much happiness and adoration inside of them, haunted you, slipping into your dreams at night, your thoughts during the day. You mentally punished yourself for feeling jealous of the girls that came and went from his life. He was your friend, but he wasn’t yours. And he never would be. You knew that. But your heart had other ideas.

And then came Gwilym.

You’d heard all about him from Joe, his excited texts about his newfound friendships with his castmates regaling story after story about the tall man. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t intrigued by Joe’s new friends, it had been awhile since you’d witnessed Joe have such deep connections with people that he had only known for a few months.

You were Joe’s “date” to a Bohemian Rhapsody screening in LA; his way of trying to make up for the months he spent away from you. You had been dragged to a hotel suite before the event, an apparent pre-party that the cast and production team would all be in attendance for. Ben was polite and reserved in his introduction, revealing he had looked forward to finally meeting his competition for the title of Joe’s Best Friend. You were unfazed, however; you knew that title would always belong to you.

Rami wrapped you up a big hug, insisting there would be less time between your next reunion. He promised a catch-up lunch date in the future, once things slowed down for him. You knew things would never slow down for such a powerhouse talent like Rami, but you appreciated the gesture. Lucy was a delight, greeting you like an old friend and grilling you for embarrassing stories about Joe she could hold over his head. You could see yourself finding a lifelong friend in the bubbly blonde.

And then Joe’s hand was on your shoulder, leading you to a familiar gentleman who towered above you, who’s piercing blue eyes gazed at you with a warmth that you hadn’t felt in ages.

Falling in love with Gwilym Lee was easy.

It was almost scary how easy it was. Everything about him brought you joy. His laugh, the way he’d stroke his own beard in thought, his ability to be a serious gentleman one second and a huge goofball the next. He let you ramble about whatever and listened intently with a huge smile on his face. He made you feel safe and completely seen; with one look, he communicated that yes, he saw you and he liked what he saw. Maybe even loved it.

There were times where you’d be in his arms and held you like you were going to disappear. Those were the nights you spent showering in him in affection. You wanted him to feel safe, feel seen, just like he always made you feel. You would touch him, caress him, take care of him, make him feel good, all while making sure he knew without a doubt that you weren’t going anywhere.

Gwil made you the happiest you’d been in a long time. You were able to love someone freely; no more punishing yourself. No more overthinking or doubting or hating. Because you realized one day that yes, you loved Joe Mazzello and you always would. But you were in love with Gwilym Lee.

It had been six months since your first meeting when the two of you sat on your couch in your apartment, him holding your hand in both of his, timidly stroking the soft skin with his thumb. His nervous demeanor had you worried for what felt like the first time since he came into your life. Had he seen through your confident facade? Had he realized that you were too much for him? Too loud, too intense? Loved him too hard, too fast?

“I know it’s only been half a year,” he admitted timidly. “But, I just...I feel like this is...this is real.” Your worried frown faded to a soft smile as he finally looked up from the floor, meeting your gaze. You could see everything he was feeling in his eyes. Anxiety, worry, yes. But also so much love. And all of a sudden, you knew exactly what he wanted to ask you.

“And I want to nurture that,” he continued. “I want this to grow. And I understand if you think it’s too soon or even a ridiculous request--”

“Gwil, just ask me already.”

He took a big breath and squeezed your hand before speaking again.

“What do you think about coming to London? As in, moving to London. With me.”

You didn’t hesitate for a second. You didn’t have to. You knew the answer as soon as you figured out what the question was.

“Yes.”

His furrowed brow and distressed gaze melted away in relief and were replaced with watery eyes and that bright smile you knew and loved. He kissed you like he had just won the lottery, gripping you tight against him and pouring every emotion into the kiss. You kissed him back just as fiercely, the two of you communicating entirely by tasting each other.

When you pulled back for a moment to breathe, you didn’t go far, keeping your forehead pressed against his. His ocean blue eyes, those eyes that held so much promise and love inside of them, comforted you, ensuring you that you had found him, you’d found your person.

I’m down for the count and I’m drownin’ in ‘em.

◈◈◈

Love doesn't discriminate between the sinners and the saints, it takes and it takes and it takes.

It wasn’t love at first sight for Gwil. No, he was in love with you long before he met you. The stories Joe had told him about his best friend back home painted a picture of this extraordinary person with a big heart and a love to laugh. Gwil didn’t understand how he could be so attached to a person he hadn’t even laid eyes on yet.

He was embarrassed at how often he combed through your Instagram, scrolling through every picture of your bright smile, wanting nothing more than to be the one to cause it. He was so tempted to hit the follow button but worried it would be weird. Did you even know who he was? Had Joe told you about him? Or did you live in blissful ignorance of the man who pined after you from afar?

Gwil had come to terms with the fact that he’d probably never meet you. You lived back in LA, working as an interior designer. Your paths would never cross and Gwil accepted that. He assumed his oddly strong feelings towards you would fade over time. Once the shoot was done and Joe wasn’t around as much, the stories would stop. Gwil would move on.

And then suddenly you were standing right next to Joe, smack in front of Gwil, beaming up at him with that familiar smile, your hand outstretched.

“You must be Gwilym!”

You did know who he was. He wasn’t sure if that was worse.

You didn’t know how unfair he’d been to you. He had crafted this vision of you in his head comprised of anecdotes from Joe and the little bit of information he could discern from your social media. You were this perfect person in his mind that no one could ever live up to.

And then you surpassed that person in every way.

You were so beautiful. Gwil didn’t understand how you could be even more otherworldly in person. Your smile lit up his entire world, your eyes were an abyss he loved to get lost in. You floated through the world with an elegance Gwil thought only possible in dreams. And when he finally had you under him, your smooth skin beneath his fingertips, he was convinced you were an angel, an ethereal being sent from beyond. Gwilym Lee was in love with your body.

You were so smart. The ideas you had, the questions you asked, the challenges you threw at him always had Gwil so impressed with your intellect. You had the ability to think of things long before Gwil thought of them. You would spout out words of wisdom as though you had centuries of experience and knowledge. You could derive phrases that pulled at his heartstrings or sent the blood in his head down south. Gwil would watch you as you burrowed into the corner chair you’d claimed as your own during your first visit to his flat in London, clad in his own sweater, either reading from your stack of books or scribbling away in your own. Gwilym Lee was in love with your mind.

You were so loving. You cared deeply about your friends and family, going out of your way to make sure everyone in your life was taken care of. Your heart was so vast and had room for so many people that at first Gwil was worried he was misunderstanding the situation. Was the affection he received from you the same you gave to everyone else? Was he the only one to hold you like this or was he not alone? You had so much love to give, Gwil almost thought himself selfish for wanting you to himself. But you and your infinite wisdom and your big heart saw right through Gwil’s insecurities. You whispered words of tenderness into his ear, things he didn’t even know he needed to hear, and his doubts were sated once again. Gwil didn’t understand how he got so lucky, to be in your orbit, and to have your love shone upon him like the brightest star in the sky. You made Gwil love more freely, helped him tear down walls he had put up in his younger years when he had been used and abused and treated like nothing. How one person could come into his life and make it better in every single possible way, he would never comprehend. Gwilym Lee was in love with your heart.

Gwil realized these things only a few months after meeting you face to face. He was almost...ashamed at how hard and fast he fell for you. To him, his intense infatuation seemed almost childish, immature. It was too soon. There were too many things standing in the way, too much distance between you two. He was foolish, setting himself up for heartache. You had made it seem so easy, loving freely and fiercely, and Gwil had followed suit. But he knew from experience that it wasn’t realistic long-term. That intense love would burn out, becoming a black hole that would suck away the light from his entire world. You were too beautiful, too smart, too loving. It was too good to be true that Gwil would get to keep you. There were so many people out in the world that you deserved more, that deserved you more, and one day you would wake up and realize that. It wouldn’t be your fault, he would never hold it against you.

And he knew how it would happen. He knew who it would happen with. Gwil was doomed from the start, really. He would never be able to compete with what you had with Joe. The bonds you two shared ran deep, built upon years and years of being each other’s person to run back to, shoulder to cry on, friend to share a laugh with.

Gwil hated that he felt like he had to compete with Joe. He loved Joe and he loved you and he loved that the two of you loved each other. But he felt like he was running out of time. Especially being so far away from you most of the time. When a majority of your interactions took place over Facetime and text, and Gwil had to watch as you went out to lunch with Joe or went hiking with Joe or explored new bookstores with Joe, Gwil’s gut instinct was that his time with you was almost up.

So in a desperate attempt to save what he assumed was a doomed relationship, Gwil held your hands and asked you to move to London with him.

And you said yes. Without even blinking. And with a huge smile on your face.

The relief Gwil felt was unbelievable. He wasn’t crazy. He wasn’t in too deep. He was on equal ground. With that one word and your unwavering gaze, every insecurity Gwil had ever felt about you and your relationship vanished into thin air. You -- beautiful, smart, and loving you -- wanted to uproot your life and move to a different country to be with him.

How did he get so lucky?

It’s the thought that rang through his head every single day after that conversation. He thought it while he helped you with job and visa logistics. He thought it while he helped you set up listings for selling your apartment furniture. He thought it while you fell asleep with your head on his shoulder on the flight back to London. And he thought it while you whined out his name in bed the first night in your now shared flat.

That thought morphed and molded itself in Gwil’s head. He was lucky. He had somehow won the lottery on significant others and had gotten you. He couldn’t wrap his mind around it some days. Thoughts about what he had done to deserve you slowly turned into thoughts about whether or not he even deserved you in the first place. Had he accidentally tricked you? Plucked you out of a world you should have been in and forced you into one he selfishly wanted?

Suddenly it had been another six months. If you were miserable you seemed to hide it well, which Gwil could appreciate. He found himself wanting to ask you if you were happy, but he was afraid of the answer. He knew you would never lie to him. You never had before.

On days where he was home and you were working, he would sit in his office and mull it all over. He felt guilty that he constantly played mental gymnastics with himself, especially when you were always there for him to listen and love. Every other time he had an issue and he had gone to you about it, you listened with an open heart and a soft smile on your face. You didn’t even have to say much to fix the problem, you were magic in that way.

One late afternoon he found himself in his office once again, fidgeting with a small velvet box, passing it back and forth between his trembling hands. He had impulse-bought the ring months ago, when a walk downtown to buy your birthday present had inadvertently led him to a jeweler. He had told himself that the second he was one hundred percent certain everything between you two wasn’t an elaborate joke or fantasy, he’d pull out the box and get down on one knee. But Gwil’s constant plaguing thoughts made him feel like that day would never come. Who was he to ask you to be with him forever?

So when you appeared in the doorway with a bag from his favorite takeaway place, intent on surprising him with being home from work early, Gwil could feel nothing but sheer panic. And that panic increased tenfold when your eyes fell to the velvet box in his lap.

He watched, paralyzed with fear as your own eyes grew large, your jaw dropping open slightly when your words trailed off. It was not the reaction he would have ever wanted. Clearly you were scared, thrown off by even the concept of marrying him.

“I’m sorry,” you whispered, and Gwil could feel his heart shatter into thousands of pieces.

But then you threw your hand over your eyes, and Gwil thought he was going insane because were you smiling?

“I promise I didn’t see anything!”

Absolutely bewildered, Gwil stood to his full height and crossed the room, gently pulling your hand away from your face.

“Let’s say you did see something,” he said, his voice small. “Is that something...something that would make you happy?” Gwil wasn’t sure if his heart could take another drop on the emotional roller coaster, but it was better he found out now than let that question slowly pick him apart.

And then you brought his hand to your lips, placing the softest of kisses to his knuckles. Your eyes began to water as you looked at him like no one had before.

“It would make me the happiest person on the entire planet.”

Your magic cured him once again. One sentence and the relief flooded Gwil’s veins. He then slowly got to his knee, never letting go of your hand the entire time. With a shaky voice, he spoke your name.

“Will you marry me?”

Time seemed to stop for Gwil, but you didn’t hesitate for a second. You didn’t have to. You knew the answer as soon as you had laid eyes on that little box.

“Yes.”

The two of you shared a watery laugh as he slid the ring on your finger. You held each other as you cried and kissed and kissed and cried. Gwil had never been happier in his entire life. You wanted him. Forever.

And when the tears stopped and the two of you finally sat down to eat the nearly forgotten takeaway, you pulled out your phone and announced that you had to call Joe. Because he had to be the first to know.

An hour before, that would have given Gwil a twinge of worry. Worry that even though you had a ring on your finger, Joe was still more important than him.

But that worry didn’t come. And that worry never came again. You had chosen him, and for the first time, Gwil knew, without a doubt, that that would never change.

If there's a reason I'm by her side when so many have tried, then I'm willing to wait for it.

◈◈◈

I don't know how to say no to this, but this situation is helpless.

You hadn’t thought twice when Joe invited you out to LA for a weekend to hang out. You hadn’t seen him in person since before moving to London, and you were both itching for a reunion that wasn’t held via Facetime or Zoom.

Gwil had almost insisted on it. He’d be away on a shoot for a few weeks and he hated the idea of you being by yourself the entire time. He could also tell you were a bit overwhelmed with wedding planning. You needed a break. And you both knew that even though Joe would be in the wedding as a groomsman, you probably wouldn’t get to spend too much time with him at the event itself considering you’d have to try and make time for the over two hundred guests that would be in attendance.

As you settled into your plane seat, a thought occurred to you that had you concerned about your trip for the first time. It was true that as your relationship with Gwil had blossomed, your friendship with Joe had faded a bit. You weren’t sure if it was subconscious or completely by accident. Throwing yourself head first into your budding romance with Gwil had offered a break from the constant pain of having fallen for Joe. So had you unintentionally pulled away from Joe, channeling all of your energy into what was a new and exciting distraction? Possibly.

But truly, it was the distance. You’d been in London for almost a full year, and between your schedule and his, you hadn’t seen each other since before the move. Time between text conversations and Facetime calls grew and grew.

You’d been separated for long periods of time before and yet things had never changed. And even now, you still considered him your best friend. But there was that little bit of fear that things would be different this time. You wouldn’t be able to just pick right up where you left off.

But your fears were put to rest as soon as he wrapped his arms around you again. It was like the past year hadn’t even happened. Your Joe was in front of you, in the flesh, and everything felt right again. You joked and laughed and sang the entire drive from the airport to his house. You spent the evening catching each other up on everything the other had missed. You told him about work and new friends and places you’d seen and English slang you’d picked up. He filled you in on his latest projects, told you stories about mutual friends you hadn’t seen in ages, and as always, had you laughing until your sides hurt.

It wasn’t until you were settled in his guest room bed later that night that you realized he hadn’t once asked about Gwil or the wedding.

You spent the next day being paraded around LA by Joe, the two of you hitting all of the cheesy tourist spots that you hadn’t been to in years before eventually heading to the beach. As the pair of you stretched out on towels in the sand while soaking up the sun, you remembered the thought you had the night before.

So you took it upon yourself to introduce the topic.

“Oh, Gwil sends his love, by the way,” you casually said, as if you had just thought of it. Joe offered a small smile and nodded, his only acknowledgement of your statement before jumping to his feet.

“Let’s go in the water!”

You were temporarily distracted by an intense water war with Joe once the two of you made it chest-deep into the ocean. Joe then launched into an elaborate tale about going to the beaches on the east coast growing up, making you laugh with an imitation of his brother, whom you hadn’t seen in ages but had recently RSVPed yes to your nuptials.

“I’m excited to see him again at the wedding,” you revealed, testing your developing theory about Joe once again. “I can’t even remember the last time I saw him.”

“Yeah,” was all Joe said before diving under the water and grabbing at your ankle, earning a squeal from you.

Another attempt foiled. You were pretty sure he was avoiding the topic outright.

You didn’t understand why. Gwil was one of his closest friends. You knew the two chatted frequently, probably more frequently than you and him. For a brief moment you entertained the idea that Joe was actually more upset by you living so far away than he had let on previously. You remembered being surprised at Joe’s reaction to you moving to London. You had invited him out for lunch one day to break the news, and while he claimed he was going to miss you something fierce, he was happy for you. At least that was what you had left that lunch feeling.

Maybe Joe was an even better actor than you realized.

You had to get some answers out of him. It started to get bizarre, the lengths he would go to in order to avoid talking about Gwil or the wedding. And although you had had an incredibly fun and relaxing weekend with your old friend, one that you had desperately needed, by Sunday night a weird tension had set in. Joe definitely knew you were on to him; you could tell by how little effort he started putting into trying to change the subject.

So you decided you had had enough. If he wasn’t going to be outright with you, you needed to confront him. You had disappeared into the guest room after Joe had cooked the two of you dinner with the excuse that you wanted to make sure your bag was packed for your early flight home the next morning. Sure, there was some truth to that, but you also needed the time to compose your thoughts before challenging Joe.

You walked warily back into the living room where Joe had pulled up some Netflix movie and had it paused while he tapped away at his phone, clearly waiting for you.

“Can I ask you something?” you hesitantly questioned as you took a seat next to Joe.

“Anything,” he replied as his attention left his phone and turned to you, a confident smile on his face.

“Why haven’t you asked about Gwil or the wedding?”

You could practically see the blood drain from Joe’s face. His smile was exchanged for a look of what seemed almost like...fear. After a few seconds of silence indicating that he wasn’t going to answer you right away, you continued.

“Every time I mention Gwil or the wedding, you find some excuse to change the subject or use something to distract me. Don’t think I haven’t noticed. I know you too well,” you explained with a soft smile, attempting to lighten the mood, an endeavour you quickly realized was fruitless. Joe was staring intently at his lap, and you could hear the gears turning in his head. Joe always had a tendency to think really loudly.

“Joe?”

“I thought I was over it,” he suddenly spit out. You furrowed your brows. When he didn’t continue, you spoke up again.

“Over what? Me moving away?”

“I thought I was over you,” he admitted, finally looking up at you with those golden eyes you’ve always known. Those eyes that had once haunted you, slipping into your dreams at night, your thoughts during the day. Those eyes that you hadn’t worried about in over a year.

You were stunned to silence.

“I...lost my chance with you,” he continued. “It sounds so fucking cliche but I didn’t realize what I had until it was gone. It took you moving to London for me to realize that I’ve been in love with you for a long, long time.”

It was like every emotion you could possibly feel overtook your body in one fell swoop. How were you supposed to process something like that? You were shocked, confused, and a little bit sad, but most of all, you were fucking livid.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” you practically shouted as you jumped to your feet, earning a startled wince from Joe. “I pined after you for years. I had it so bad for you for so long. And now? When I’ve finally gotten over you....and I’m happy with someone else...you have the fucking nerve to drop that on me?” You were frantic, thoughts running wild, your heart pounding. You marched into the kitchen, needing some space to collect yourself. You could feel tears pricking your eyes as you sat at Joe’s kitchen island.

“You pined after me?” Joe’s quiet voice sounded from the doorway. You frustratedly swiped at the drops running down your cheeks before turning to look at Joe.

“I always loved you, you asshole,” you revealed before burying your face in your hands. How could he do this to you? You were months away from getting married, to one of his closest friends no less, and he chose now to confess that he was in love with you.

At least you had gotten the answer to your original question.

“I’m such an idiot,” you heard Joe whisper. “I could have had you all this time.”

After a few moments, you felt two tentative arms wrap around you from behind. Joe laid his head against your back.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured against the fabric of your t-shirt. “Please don’t cry.”

You were so angry with him. So angry at the situation. But he was still Joe. And part of you still loved him, even though that love had changed over the past year or so. So you turned into his embrace, wrapping your arms around him. You lost track of how long the two of you stayed there, holding each other while time ticked away.

Eventually Joe pulled back for a moment before cradling your face in his hands. His thumbs wiped away the last of your tears as the two of you gazed at each other.

And then Joe was kissing you.

It was brief, almost as if he had done it accidentally. A flash of fear shone in his eyes and you knew you probably mirrored him. But then he was kissing you again.

And you were kissing him back.

For years you had wondered what it would be like to kiss Joe Mazzello. And now, there you were, his lips as soft as you thought they’d be. He tasted like wine and pasta sauce and something else that was uniquely Joe. His hands on your face kept you close to him as his mouth moved against yours.

He pulled back to take a breath, his hands sliding down to your hips, his forehead pressed against yours. You needed to push him away. You needed to stop this.

“You can say no to this. Just tell me to stop.”

You didn’t.

That night you lived out a fantasy that you had used to have for years but hadn’t thought about in ages. That night you explored Joe’s body as he explored yours, touching, tasting, feeling. No words were exchanged, the only sounds that rang out through Joe’s bedroom were soft whimpers and grunts of pleasure.

When you left the bed to use the restroom, the tears came back. You had been stupid, acting on selfish impulses. Acting on a lingering curiosity. Taking advantage of a situation you had been presented with.

Joe let you cry in his bathroom, and you mentally thanked him for knowing not to bother you.

When you finally emerged, Joe appeared to be asleep. You didn’t stop to find out for sure. Instead you moved across the hall into the guest room. You held a pillow to your chest and tearfully wished you had never come to LA.

You didn’t get much sleep. You were up at least an hour before you had to be, getting dressed and cooking the two of you a quick breakfast. When Joe finally appeared in the kitchen, he silently picked at his plate of eggs and bacon. No words were spoken. Nothing needed to be said. That was the thing about knowing someone so well.

The drive to the airport was soundtracked by a playlist of rock medleys that normally both you and Joe would sing along to. But no songs were sung on that trip.

After helping you pull your suitcase out of the back of your car, Joe stood there awkwardly wringing his hands together. You didn’t blame him for not knowing what was appropriate. You didn’t know where the boundaries laid anymore either.

So you threw him a bone, pulling him into a tight embrace, one that he immediately reciprocated. For some reason, even though you’d be seeing him again in a few months, it felt like a forever goodbye. Like it was the last time you would ever hold each other.

“I will always love you,” you whispered as you buried your face in his shoulder. “But I’m in love with Gwil.” It was true. And you hated that you needed to say it out loud.

You felt him nod into your hair. He understood.

You left him with a peck on the cheek, and got on your plane. And you spent the ten hour flight mentally preparing to banish the entire weekend from your memory. Gwil could never find out.

And he never did.

Nobody needs to know.

◈◈◈

I remember that night, I just might regret that night for the rest of my days.

Joe stood between Ben and Gwil’s brother, clad in a gray suit with a colorful pocket square. He watched as you floated down the aisle looking the most beautiful he’d ever seen you, a stunning vision accoutred in white.

But the most gorgeous thing about you wasn’t your dress or your hair or your makeup, as perfect as it all was. No, the thing that stood out to Joe was the look of pure elation that you wore as you made your way between the rows of chairs. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen you so sublimely happy.

And it pained him. Because it was a subtle reminder that he’d never be the one to make you that happy.

Joe stole a glance at Gwil, and he had the exact same gaze upon his face. Joe felt a twinge of guilt in his gut. He should be happy. He should be satisfied. Two of the most important people in his life had found love with each other. That was something to celebrate. So Joe hated that he felt nothing but sadness. It was selfish and unfair to the both of you.

But the thing Joe hated the most was that this whole thing was all his fault.

He remembered the day he introduced you to Gwil like it was yesterday. What was supposed to be a night out with you after being separated for so long turned into Joe playing third wheel as he watched you and Gwil bond. The connection was instantaneous.

It didn’t bother Joe at all at first. In fact, he was ecstatic. He patted himself on the back whenever he could, taking complete credit for your budding romance. You seemed lighter, as if Gwil had taken the weight of the world off your shoulders. And Joe trusted the both of you not to break each others’ hearts; he knew you were amazing people, and he believed you deserved each other.

It was only a month before Joe started to notice the drift. You texted him less, you didn’t have as much free time to hang out. Things you used to do with him you now did with Gwil. Joe tried not to let it get to him. He had never been bothered by relationships you had been in previously. But there was something about this time around that irked him.

At first he assumed it was because it was Gwil. Two of his friends had essentially ganged up on him, opting to spend more time with each other than with him. But that wasn’t it.

Then he thought it was because you went to London a lot. It seemed like every time Joe tried to make plans with you he was met with a “I’ll actually be in London that week.” But that wasn’t it.

For a fleeting moment he thought it was a worry that the two of you were moving too quickly. A fear that the pair of you would have an ugly break up and Joe would be caught in the middle of it. But that wasn’t it.

It took almost six months of you and Gwil together for him to realize that he was head over heels in love with you.

How could he have been so stupid? You had been right there in front of him for years and years and it took you getting into a serious relationship for him to wake up. He had wasted so much time.

Gwil was one of his best friends in the entire world. But you had been his best friend longer. He needed to tell you. He couldn’t lie to you.

As soon as Joe had made the decision, you were asking him to grab lunch with you. He spent the hours leading up to it pacing in his apartment, working through a speech in his head.

His plan was foiled when you sat across from him in the ramen shop and announced you were moving to London. You were elated as you told him the story of Gwil nervously asking you. Joe put his acting skills to the test as he sat in that booth for an hour and pretended to be happy for you. Pretended that he was okay when truly he was dying inside.

The last shred of hope Joe could hold on to was that he’d be able to get over you easier. The distance would ease his pain. Maybe he’d meet someone, someone who would somehow be even more beautiful and smarter and more loving than you. He didn’t think that person existed, but he had to hold out hope.

He threw himself into work, trying to distract himself with jobs, filling the time between those jobs by writing, something you always helped him with. You had been his muse, a revelation that frustrated Joe as he struggled with the worst case of writer’s block he’d ever had.

He understood that your lives had been pulled in different directions, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt when the periods between conversations and phone calls got longer and longer as time went on. He missed you. Setting all of his romantic feelings aside, he simply missed his best friend.

He was curled up in front of the TV watching some dumb video Ben had sent him when your name flashed across his phone screen. He couldn’t have been more relieved to see your face. You greeted him with a huge grin and an excited air about you.

And then you revealed the true intention of your call with a flash of a diamond ring on your finger.

Gwil’s face appeared a few moments later, asking Joe to be one of his groomsmen. Of course Joe agreed, he’d do anything for Gwil. Even be a groomsman in his wedding to the woman he loved.

He told himself that he’d be over you by the time the wedding came. He had to be. He just had to.

He didn’t know what came over him when he asked you to come visit him for a weekend. He just missed you. He missed you like crazy and he needed you. He needed his best friend, his person.

The days leading up to your arrival were spent stress-cleaning his entire apartment. He was terrified things would be weird. Why couldn’t everything just be like it was before? Before he ever introduced you to Gwilym. If he hadn’t brought you to the screening that night would you and him ever met? Would Joe have at some point realized his feelings while you were still available? Was there an alternate universe where you and him Facetimed Gwil to show off the ring on your finger?

Then Joe blinked and you were in his arms once more. He held you tight, never wanting to let you go. He focused on making sure that the weekend was chock-full of activities, wanting to enjoy the little time he had left with you. Joe was no idiot, he was never going to get a chance to spend a weekend just the two of you ever again.

But why did you have to keep bringing up Gwil and the wedding? He was getting worse and worse at avoiding the subject. He knew you were on to him. There were only so many times he could change conversation topics abruptly before you would notice. You were no idiot either.

And then you sat on his couch on that last night and asked him point blank. He knew he couldn’t lie to you anymore. He wasn’t strong enough.

He hadn’t seen you that angry in years. The last time you’d yelled at him like that was when he spilled coffee on a brand new rug you’d splurged on for your apartment. But this problem couldn’t be fixed with an apology cake and a surprise trip to Restoration Hardware on Joe’s dime.

And then Joe blinked once more and you were in his bed, bare and writhing underneath him. He knew as it was happening that you hadn’t suddenly changed your mind. He didn’t get to call you his. There was still a ring on your finger when your hand gripped Joe’s bicep. He simply enjoyed the moment as much as he could. His heart was breaking as you both rode out waves of pleasure, a desperate exchange of affection that shouldn’t have ever happened. Once again, it was all his fault. He shouldn’t have kissed you. And he shouldn’t have made it your responsibility to put an end to it.

That fateful weekend didn’t happen. Not as far as you and Joe were concerned. You wordlessly agreed to never speak about it ever again. He knew you never told Gwil. If you had, none of you would have been standing in a beautiful field somewhere in Wales, all dressed up and celebrating the union of two of Joe’s favorite people in the world.

While Joe watched the pair of you share your first dance, he sipped at his flute of champagne and remembered what you whispered to him at the airport, words that would forever haunt him.

I will always love you, but I’m in love with Gwil.

He wondered if anyone would ever notice that the two of you didn’t talk to each other anymore, outside of group settings. If anyone did, they didn’t ask. Maybe they all knew. Maybe all of them had figured out Joe’s feelings for you before he ever had. And maybe Joe wasn’t as good of an actor as he realized.

And I know she’ll be happy as his bride. And I know I will never be satisfied.

◈◈◈

Perm Taglist: @queenlover05 @mrhoemazzello @johndeaconshands @madamsledge @sadhwstudent @stardust-galaxies (let me know if i missed you)

#gwilym lee #joe mazzello #gwilym lee x reader #gwilym lee x you #joe mazzello x reader #joe mazzello x you #joemazzmatazz

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unbelievableholland · 4 years

Text

Love, Me: Part 3

(Moodboard/cover made by me. Pics from Pinterest.)

Pairings: Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Warnings: Anxiety attacks

Words: 3,737

Summary: After the events of Endgame, and the death of the three people you cared most about, will you be able to move on?

A/N: Sorry this took so long! Our exams start tomorrow, so by next week I’ll try to be as consistent as possible with uploading fics because school would be over for me by then. As for the people who requested, they might take a while to make but don’t worry! I promise I’ll get them all done.

~Series Masterlist ~ Main Masterlist~

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When you woke up, you found yourself attached to multiple wires. You felt cold, hard metal on your back and a helmet-like thing on your head. There were thick cuffs attaching your hands, feet, and torso to the metal bed.

It was highly uncomfortable. Especially because the “bed” was slanted. You felt the wires digging into your skin and the metal structure of the “helmet” was pressed against your skull.

The scenario felt very familiar to you. It was always how Bucky had described them except, he had the luxury to sit on a chair instead of lying awkwardly on a slanted metal platform.

You’re not really sure on what they’re planning to do to you, but you had a slight idea on what it was. The obvious one would be mind control. Although, you’re not really sure because if they had kidnapped you for your tech, they wouldn’t be able to know how it worked without you.

And it wasn’t like they could turn you into some Winter Soldier, right? You were a really great fighter but your skills leaned more towards mechanical engineering. If they could somehow make you ten times better at fighting, mind control would make more sense.

But they wanted your tech. If they controlled you or if they erased your memory, they wouldn’t have the advantage of knowing how to operate what they worked incredibly hard on to steal.

Your train of thoughts were interrupted though when you heard a series of footsteps getting closer to the room you were in. They sounded like heavy boots accompanied by several weapons of some sorts. By the way they sounded, they were most likely guns.

Whoever these people were, they had been notified of your consciousness. And as much as you wanted to try and escape, you couldn't.

Not only are you tied to the metal bed, but you’re also paralyzed. It wouldn’t help if you spent a lot of your energy trying to break free when it was clear that you couldn’t.

And for some reason, everything felt different. You couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was, but there was a slight difference in the way the air felt. It was like the atmosphere was suffocating you. Like you didn’t belong there.

The only logical reason you could think of was that you were still trying to adjust to being connected to a bunch of machines; and because you didn’t actually belong there. Maybe it was your brain going insane because of the situation.

When you heard the door open, you couldn’t see who the people were. Your head was staring straight forward and the door was out of your line of sight. They had entered the room and closed the door, then stopped walking.

They were most likely trying to hide their identities or mocking your paralyzed state.

From the right side of the room, you heard a man speak. It was commanding and emotionless, a voice you didn’t recognize.

The words he spoke sent chills up your spine and dread to take over you as the first bead of sweat drips down your forehead.

“Miss Stark. I think it’s time we get acquainted, don’t you think?”

---

“What do you mean you can’t track her?!”

Saying that Bucky was angry would be the understatement of the century. They couldn’t track you. Not even with the satellite you and Tony had created to scan the world for anyone who had the tracker implanted in them.

The satellite was to be used for emergencies only and the tracker was only activated when the satellite was. And now that they were using it, they couldn’t find you. You weren’t anywhere.

Bucky couldn’t bear the thought of you being in the hands of Hydra. Especially when they didn’t even have any clue on where to start looking.

“The satellite says that she isn’t anywhere, Bucky. This isn’t my area of expertise so excuse me for not knowing how to find her.”

Bruce was rarely ever this stressed. He always tried to stay calm in these situations because he believed that panicking or fighting wouldn’t help and would only slow down whatever progress they had.

But at that moment, he was at the brink of having a breakdown. If it wasn’t obvious enough, the young Stark meant the world to them. They had loved her ever since the first time Tony introduced you to the team and they had all made a silent vow to protect you.

The guilt coursing through them now was indescribable. They couldn’t protect you from your own self-destructive behaviours and they couldn’t protect you from Hydra. They failed to be there for you when you needed them the most.

Instead, you were the one to put on a brave face to prioritize their health and safety after the blip and the war.

All of them were scared, but no one was as terrified as Bruce, Rhodey and Happy. Tony had trusted them with Y/N and they had promised to take good care of her.

They loved her to death. Being as clueless as they are now only made them think about how there’s a chance of losing the kid they practically thought of as their own.

After a few minutes of pacing, Happy had had enough. He was breathing heavily and he was trying his best not to pull his hair out. But he knew that freaking out wouldn’t be a good way of handling the situation. The priority was to find you as fast as they could.

But they weren’t really succeeding in that. All they had was a hologram, a letter for Peter and a broken fucking satellite.

“Ok, let’s think about this. Hydra could have stolen her tech. Why kidnap her? And where would they take her? They should obviously know better than to think that Y/N’s going to tell them how this dimension shit works, right?” Sam spoke. He was, by far, the calmest out of all of them. That didn’t mean he actually was though.

“If they have someone like me, it would make sense why they’d kidnap her.”

Everyone turned to look at Wanda as she responded. Her head was hung low and her eyes were glazed over with tears as she tapped her foot against the floor endlessly.

As the realization dawned on them, they all released a shaky breath of worry. If someone were to read your mind, they would know how to take control of your tech and would possibly see the future plans you have for it.

But that’s not what they were afraid of. Once Hydra’s got what they wanted, what would they do to you? After all, you’d be useless to them if that’s the case.

They needed to get to you. Fast. As long as you were an asset to them, you would surely stay alive. God knows what they’d do to you, but at least you wouldn’t be dead.

“Don’t worry too much though. I taught her how to detect and resist mind reading. I don’t know how good she is, but I hope she can at least fight them off for a while.” Wanda continued, nervously fiddling with her fingers. You were like a sister to her, and she was internally freaking out about your possible whereabouts.

Rhodey and Strange, on the other hand, were both quiet. Although Stephen hasn’t known you for a while, he has to admit that he’s grown quite fond of you. Taking care of you was his own way of thanking your father for his sacrifice, and that’s exactly why he’s around the compound a lot.

“Maybe we can trace her suit?” Rhodey suggested. “Earlier in the lab, I didn’t notice her suit, so maybe she brought it with her and—”

“And the wall was closed.” Bruce interjected in realization. None of them knew about the new suit you were building or that you had built a new dimension behind your wall up until they saw the hologram you recorded. “The suit she built— it wasn’t there when we looked for Y/N. Her lab was clean and the wall where she hid the dimension she built was closed. They must have stolen it.”

“We already established that they stole her tech. Why is this important?” Bucky sassed. He wouldn’t usually be like this. Most of the time he was quiet so they were all trying to adjust to this version of Bucky they were seeing. The team understood him though. Bucky has always been very protective of you.

“They figured out how to surpass Y/N’s coding and they figured out how to break into her system. They managed to close the wall and they even broke into Friday.” Bruce takes a deep breath, knowing that the rest of the people there might not like what he’s going to say next. “Who else do we know who’s as familiar with Y/N’s tech as much as Y/N herself?”

“No!” Wanda yelled. “It’s not a good idea if we get Peter involved. Come on Bruce, give the kid a break.”

“I agree with Wanda. I don’t think Peter’s in the right state of mind to handle something like this.” For the first time since they got in the jet, Stephen finally spoke.

“We could try Wakanda? I’m sure Shuri wouldn’t mind helping us. Especially since it’s Y/N.” Happy said as everyone stared at him in surprise. A silent agreement being between everyone being made, determination clear on their faces.

---

Peter felt tears running down his face as he knocked on their apartment. He usually didn’t like it when aunt May saw him cry, but all he could think about now was how much he wanted May to hug him.

He knew that May would be upset by the break-up. May thought of you as family and held you close to her heart so Peter didn’t know how to break the news to her.

May opened the door, the smile on her face disappearing in a matter of seconds when she saw Peter’s tear-stained face. It reminded her of when he had lost the “Stark Internship”.

Peter hadn’t even entered the apartment when he felt Mays motherly arms wrap around him. He instantly embraces May as well, his head on her shoulder as a new set of tears went down his face.

Pulling away, May held her nephew’s hand, leading him onto the couch and hugging him once more as Peter struggled to contain his sobs.

“She’s gone, May. I broke up with her.”

She hugs Peter tighter after a slight gasp, burying her head more into Peter’s neck as she shed some tears herself. If she was feeling heartbroken by the news, she could only imagine how Peter felt.

They stayed like that for a while until she had heard Peter soft snores indicating that he had fallen asleep. A part of her wanted to wake him up to tell him to go rest in his room, but as she looked at his unconscious state, she thought that she’d let him sleep.

Because she knew that when Peter was asleep, he wouldn’t feel the heartbreak. So she’d let him be, and she'd wait until he was comfortable telling her the reason for the break up.

---

Peter woke up panting. His chest was rapidly going up and down and sweat was covering his body. And despite his sweating, the hairs on his arm and on the back of his neck stood upwards.

His head frantically looked around the room, his eyes tearing up and rapidly looking at his surroundings. He didn’t know why, but his senses were heightened and his brain was going a thousand miles per hour.

Everything felt very overwhelming and he didn’t know how to handle it. It’s never been this bad for him before. He felt like he was having a panic attack and sensory overload at the same time.

It was about 5 o’clock when he woke up on the couch with a blanket covering his body. The jolt of what felt like electricity spread all over his body and he was shaking and thrashing around on the couch.

At this point he tears were streaming down his face and his clothes were soaked in sweat. He was crying, and he was sure that he would wake up May.

His theory was proven to be correct when his aunt came rushing out of her bedroom shouting his name and repeatedly asking him if he was ok.

Peter barely felt May gently cupping his face so she could see him better because to him, everything was a blur. His whole body was on fire.

Even when May started slightly shaking him to get his attention, it didn’t work and he was still in pain. He couldn’t see May’s face properly through the tears in his eyes and May was starting to panic.

She didn’t know what was happening to her nephew and she was starting to tear up at the thought of Peter in this much pain.

So, she did the only thing she could think of. She sat down next to him and held his hand, gripping it slightly to try and ground Peter.

She couldn’t do much because whenever she touched Peter’s arm or wipe his tears away, he would flinch back because of how overwhelming it was to feel a tiny bit of friction on his skin.

As May held his hand, she whispered reassuring words to Peter to try and calm him down. It was no ordinary panic attack. Peter had had anxiety attacks before but it was never like this. Whenever his senses would act up, it wasn’t ever this bad.

“Pete, everything’s okay. I’m here and you’re safe,ok? Nothing to worry about.” The tone is her voice was laced with fear as she whimpered those words and her eyes started to blur with unshed tears.

Slowly but surely though, Peter’s breathing was starting to become normal, and his loud cries were starting to diminish. Seeing him calm down put a smile on May’s face. She bit her lower lip to try and stop a sob from escaping her mouth. She had to be strong for Peter.

“Hey, Peter.” she whispered shakily as she squeezed his hand a little tighter to let him know of her presence. Warily, she inched closer to Peter to try and see if it was ok for him. When he didn’t flinch, she moved to pull him into a hug and smiling when she felt Peter’s arms around her as well.

“What happened, Pete?”

“I-I, I don’t know May. Everything just felt too much.”

“Is it your Peter-Tingle?”

He giggled at that, finally feeling his senses return to normal. “I honestly don’t know May. It felt...different.”

When he let go, May reached out to ruffle his hair, smiling at him sweetly before standing up.

“Come on. Back to bed. Looks like you need more rest than I originally thought, Peter.” She put her hand out for Peter to hold on to, and pulled him up to stand.

“I’m not sure I can get back to bed, May.”

“Well, you should. If you can’t, I won’t force you to. Just...call me if you need anything, okay? Let’s talk about what that was some other time. You need to get some sleep.” she smiled lovingly.

“Sure, May. Goodnight”

“Good night. You sure you don’t want me to stay with you?”

“I’m pretty sure I can handle myself.”

“Whatever you say, big guy.” May said before she walked over to her room, giving him one last grin and shutting the door.

Looking at the time, Peter noticed that he had a few more hours until he had to go to school. He didn’t know whether he had it in him to go back to sleep, so he decided to use his phone and mindlessly scroll through his social media until he eventually fell asleep.

It hurt to see pictures of him and Y/N together because for a moment, he had forgotten about the break up. He had forgotten about what had happened less than 24 hours ago. It hurt more to be suddenly reminded of it.

When he saw your pictures together, it brought back good memories that only made him feel pain. He didn’t like how the happy moments of your past relationship brought him heartache. It all felt too much and tears once again filled his vision.

He had ended up crying himself to sleep, hoping that he wakes up to a much better day.

---

School turned out better than Peter thought. Yes, he was still heartbroken but Ned and MJ distracted him enough to get through it. Flash didn’t seem to pay much attention to him anyway as well, which is something Peter found weird but also something he highly appreciated.

He decided to take a break from his Patrols in order to cope a little better, but if he was being honest, he missed going to the compound. He even talked about it with May and she happily agreed, thinking that her nephew should take a well-deserved break.

After about a week, he was feeling good and he found himself getting over you way quicker than he originally thought. Of course, he didn’t ignore the fact that Queens seemed to have missed their friendly neighborhood Spider-Man but he’d be back to his duties after a few more days.

For the first time in a while he was actually having a really great time at school because he didn’t need to think about any of his superhero responsibilities. He guesses that he just forgot that this was life before the spider bite.

But it was also his life before Y/N.

It was weird for him that he seemed to have gotten over you in a matter of 2 weeks and it was especially strange for Ned and May. They knew how much Peter loved you, and his recent behaviors were something they didn’t expect.

They could obviously see his sudden interest in MJ and it was driving them up the wall. They supported him, but they didn’t support how he seemed to act like he was never in a relationship with you.

For Peter though, it’s been a quiet 2 weeks. Save for Flash’s annoying remarks towards him and the… attacks?

On and off for straight two weeks he would have some sort of anxiety attack or sensory overload of some sorts. After the first one happened at their apartment, it occurred almost every day.

He had noticed a pattern to it.

He always woke up in a cold sweat every 4 or 5 in the morning, then everything would get overwhelming at 7 or 8 at night.

But those weren’t the worst parts.

What he hated the most was the pain that he would feel at any time of the day. He once thought he burned his arm during History class and at times he would feel like he got punched. Whether it be on his stomach, his face, his side it would happen randomly.

He hadn’t told May in fear of making her worry, but he had to tell someone. So naturally, he told Ned.

It was something he had been trying to figure out for the past weeks. Something was messing with his senses early in the morning and at night.

It was something he made up to be withdrawal from almost every night patrol to none at all.

But he didn’t know what to think about the body pains.

“Maybe it’s your spider powers evolving?” Ned asked.

He had invited Ned over at his apartment to originally talk about MJ but he couldn’t hide anything from Ned. It was killing him to keep it to himself.

The random aches were getting worse so it might as well actually kill him if he doesn’t figure out what’s happening.

After a few minutes of contemplation, he exploded and told Ned everything. And if Ned was being honest, he couldn’t take the MJ talk. He supported his best friend, but he didn’t think that moving on to someone else when his break up with you was still fresh was a good way to move on so he didn’t really mind the subject change.

“I thought about that, but I’m not even sure if that can happen. And if my powers are evolving, why would it make me have random body pains?” Peter argued.

“Maybe it’s part of the process.” Ned shrugged.

“No, Ned.” Peter slowly stood up from his place on his desk chair and began pacing, his hands gesturing wildly as he spoke. “It feels like… I don’t know! It doesn’t feel like my body’s changing. It feels like it’s coming from external forces. Like that time I felt like I was being electrocuted, or that time where my stomach felt like it was being punched. The worst was when… was when I would feel needles on my skin then my whole body would feel like it was on fire.”

Neds stands up and places his hands on Peter's shoulders, making Peter look up at him with tears in his eyes

“Peter, calm down.” Ned began as he slowly let go of Peter’s shoulders. “Can’t you call Bruce Banner or something? Or— what about Doctor Strange? Maybe they’ll know what to do.”

“It’s not that easy Ned. I’d have to go to the compound and—”

“And see YN?” Ned interjected.

Peter could only look away in guilt. He’d take all of the pain as long as he didn’t have to see you. He opens his mouth to say something, but quickly gets interrupted by his phone ringing.

He grabbed his phone from his desk and looked at the caller I.D and upon realizing that it was Bruce, he answered.

“Hey Mr. Banner! I actually have to tell you something—”

“You can tell me when you get here, Pete” Bruce’s voice was stern. It was demanding.

“Where? At the compound?” He answers, his voice slightly wavering at the thought of possibly seeing you again.

“No. Wakanda. We’ll send Strange and—”

“Wait, wait, wait. Wakanda?! Why??”

There was a moment of silence between the two. A worried sigh was heard through the phone after a few moments followed by two words that made Peter’s heart stop.

“Y/N's missing.”

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

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pl-panda · 4 years

Text

Damienette arranged marriage: part 9

If someone wants to know how I can write three chapters in the span of 24 hours... I have no idea, but this is around 5k words, so ten times the length of essay I was supposed to write today. But it is more interesting.

Credits: Miraculous Ladybug team for the elements I take from MLB show. DC for their characters, @ozmav for the AU, @maribat-archive for giving me access to so many different stories to have take inspirations from, @thyladyanput for idea for Chat Damian and me for the plot.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Part 5 Part 6 Part 7

Part 8

Damienette arranged marriage: part 9

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They got into her room and Chloe locked the doors.

“Okay. Now you explain to me Dupain-Cheng how did you manage to get a mysterious Damian Wayne, the damned ‘Ice Prince’ of Gotham, to act like a lost puppy toward you.”

-------

Marinette almost fainted. She had an urge to mentally facepalm. Of course Chloe would recognize a celebrity. It was stupid to bring her so close to Damian on the first meeting. Maybe from the distance she would shrug it off or ignore this, but now that she saw them interact and could get a better look at him there was almost no denying it. But Marinette would still try.

“Wayne? I have no idea who are you talking about. This is Damian Grayson. He can’t be Wayne if his name is Grayson. Besides aren’t Wayne’s this rich and powerful family running an international company? Damian is not rich. He is just an exchange student…” Marinette tried to talk her way out of it, but the expecting face Chloe was making told her it was not working. “Yes, this is Damian Wayne…” The bluenette relented

“Nice try Dupain-Cheng. Maybe I would even believe you if I didn’t know better.” She stated before walking to her wardrobe. Chloe then started to toss out multiple clothes onto her giant bed.

“Wait! That’s it?” Marinette questioned. She expected… something.

“Well, while you tell me how did you melt his heart I can at least start looking for something utterly fabulous for you to wear. I can’t stand this ridiculous outfit you wear right now. So spill!”

Marinette looked at Damian and he shrugged. “tt. I am not getting involved. You brew this and you solve this.”

“I will get you back for that.” the bluenette threatened with a smile. They both knew this was mostly a tease. Marinette turned to see Chloe with three dresses. One was lemony yellow, one was smooth pink and one was deep red. “Uh… Red one?” Blonde shoved the cloth piece at the girl and pushed her into the bathroom.

“I’m waiting for a tale Dupain-Cheng.”

“Okay. Okay.” This girl has probably the best interrogation tactics I’ve ever seen… “So yesterday Damian joined our class as part of some exchange program. He decided to sit next to me and we exchanged few words. After classes his pen slipped under the desk and he had to get down to pick it up. Lila thought I was alone and decided to threaten me to stay away from him and the next thing either of us know is he held the sword to her throat. After that he asked me out and that’s the story.”

Marinette walked from the bathroom and Damian felt air leave his lungs. She wore a modest red dress that reached a bit beyond her knees. It had long sleeves that ended about one and a half inch before her wrist. The upper part was a bit darker than the lower part, but otherwise there was no decorations. It hugged her small figure perfectly, but at the same time was not restaining and allowed much space to breathe. Marinette looked beyond stunning, at least to him. Pull it together Wayne. You are not some emotional schoolgirl. You are cool and collected. You are the Prince of Assassins. Damian tried not to blush. But then there was another voice inside him. And she is your princess and your wife. Get your game together. Somehow, it sounded pretty close to Beast Boy’s voice.

“Close your mouth hunny or you will catch flies.” Chloe laughed. “It looks perfect, but I think you need one more thing.” She walked to the bluenette who was feeling a bit insecure about this look. Chloe pulled her hair bands off and let the hair flow freely. “Now you look perfect.”

“I… I don’t know.” Marinette spinned around to see herself in the mirror. “Are you sure?”

“Check the lover-boy over there and you will believe me.” Without turning Chloe pointed to Damian who was still glaring at the girl in red. An idea came to Marinette’s head. She would get her revenge faster than she expected. She slightly nodded toward Chloe’s phone that was laying nearby. Luckily, they had an understanding. Marinette turned so she was now facind Damian and looked deep into his eyes. She stood there smiling the most prominent smile she could muster. Suddenly, a flash illuminated the room. “And done. Already sent it to your phone Dupain-Cheng.”

The light finally got Damian’s brain to start up. He looked at Chloe holding a phone with camera aimed at him and Marinette giggled. “Told you I would get back at you for that.”

If it was anyone else, he would curse them, threaten them or just punch them, but strangely he couldn’t get angry at the bluenette. “Worth it.” He stated with a smug grin. “If having an embarrassing picture taken is the price to see you look so beautiful, then I am willing to pay it.” He complimented her and Marinette felt like her face turned more or less the color of her dress.

“Smooth mr. Ice Prince Charming.” Chloe commented. She then took a picture of blushing Marinette. “Now you are even. Close your mouth Dupain-Cheng. You are the one to start catching flies now.” The blonde then turned back to Damian and her face took the standard expecting look. “Now back to you. Care to explain why exactly did you decide to ask her out of all people out? You have tons of girls throwing themselves at you and yet you chose her.”

Damian didn’t answer immediately. He had to think this through. The big factor was that she was technically his wife, but through the last twenty-four hours he came to conclusion that if they weren’t married, he would still ask her out. She was… her. He had no other word for this. But his mother was in details. “She saw me as just Damian. I felt that I could be myself with her.”

“Sweet. Want some tea to this sugar?” Chloe deadpanned. “No seriously, want something to drink? I… I only ever had Sabrina in here and she drank just the tap water.”

Damian was honestly not surprised. Chloe had the Queen Bee personality and they usually only had followers, not friends. But he actually liked the no-nonsense personality. “Green Tea with half spoon of honey.” He stated and walked to the couches.

“And for you Dupain-Cheng?”

“Uh… water?” Marinette was still not entirely sure what to do with this situation. Chloe was not herself while at the same time being herself. It was… strange. Blonde just shrugged and made a quick call downstairs.

“It will come soon.” She walked to the couch and sat, motioning them to do the same.

The bluenette remembered that she still had some macaroons with her so she pulled the box and placed it on the table. “Maman and papa made them for me and Damian, but you can have some too.” She nudged the box slightly toward Chloe, who reluctantly took one.

“... Thank you Dupain-Cheng.” She said after a moment of hesitation. Another tear formed in her eye. “I am truly sorry how I treated you. You did not deserve this.”

“tt. On that we can agree.” Damian almost growled. “After today don’t be surprised to see a change in teachers.”

“What?” Marinette almost jumped. “No. Madame Bustier is a good teacher.”

“She is unfit to even be in the same space as anyone below her age. This woman will be lucky if she doesn’t face criminal charges.” Damian held the urge to spit, but he didn’t want to damage anything in this room. It looked more expensive than his room at Wayne’s manor and this was saying something.

“But… But…” Marinette tried to find right words. “Madame Bustier is so lovely. She has her… original methods of teaching, but everyone would defend her in a blink of an eye.”

“tt. That doesn’t excuse her. Sadly this type of procedure usually takes years if school is not willing to cooperate. And yours definitely won’t. Bunch of idiots.” The last part was added in arabic so neither girls understood. There was an uncomfortable silence between them for a moment until Marinette decided to stop beating around the bat.

“Chloe… It’s not that I don’t appreciate the change, in fact I am proud of you, but… why? what made you change so suddenly?”

The blonde shifted in her place. It was clearly an uncomfortable topic. Finally, she decided to play an open hand. Deep inside, Chloe wanted to have real friends. She saw how Damian looked at Marinette and how he spoke about her acting normal toward him. When Adrien spoked about things like this she could never understand what he meant. But now she finally got it. It was this feeling of being just herself. “I was lonely. Sabrina left me and became a loyal Lila worshipper, surpassed only by Alya. And Adrien… He cut himself off completely about a month ago. Now he plays along whatever Lila plans for him.” She had a small tear forming in her eye, but she quickly wiped it out before it ruined her makeup (not that there was much of it left). “I… I went to talk with my father, demanding he do something about the liar. But my mother was there and… and… and she laughed at me. She said that it’s utterly ridiculous and if my friends left me it’s because of me and not someone else. But the most painful part was that she was right. My friends left me and others hated me. I was completely alone. It was utterly… awful.” Marinette handed her the box so she could cheer herself with another treat. It worked. “I am so sorry Dupain-Cheng. For the first time I was on the receiving end of harsh words and painful comments. I never imagined how much it hurt.”

“Well, I am happy you realize your mistakes.” Marinette smiled and Damian clicked his tongue again.

“But,” the Wayne heir started, “it is not that easy to earn forgiveness. Just because Marinette is too good for this world does not mean I will let you exploit her good heart.”

“Damian!” The girl in question shouted at him. “I am a grown-up girl who can make her own decisions.”

“You are fifteen and have heart made of pure gold” He deadpanned.

“You are fifteen too. And we are married, so we are as adult as a person can be.” She stated in mandarin grinning at him.

“This doesn’t prove anything. And I am still your husband.” He argued.

Chloe sat there, not sure what to make of the discussion. She was about to say something when something crashed through the window. The three teens starred at the form of Chat Noir. He was looking different. His ears and tail were real instead of accesories and instead of bell on his neck he had only a choker with word ‘Marinette’ written on it.

“My Purrincess! I come to save you!”

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