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#i literally almost forgot shadow play because i was having fun with the affects
liliseestheworld · 4 years
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Stay home with me-Hwang Hyunjin Part 1
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bad boy!Hyunjin, corona virus au
No smut yet, though it’s pretty long.
Fresh air. Oh, how you missed it. Of course, you haven’t been totally deprived of it, but it was a big difference between opening a window and feeling a slight breeze once in a while and actually being outside, without any wall to protect you from the strong wind. Too bad it was pitch black outside. You longed to see the city from up close in its full glory, see the sun through the trees’ leaves, not reflected from the neighbour’s window; you wanted to pass by different stores and see a faded version of your reflection caused by the shop’s lights. Instead, when you passed by a closed down clothes shop, you were able to fully see yourself thanks to the dimly lit streetlight. You missed the busy but still full of life streets; now empty, dark and for you right now, dangerous.
Of course, when the quarantines and self-isolations first started, you and your family respected the strict laws and refrained from stepping outside again. Your father was in charge of the shopping so he was the only one who has been going out in the last 2 months since your city has been on lockdown. Except for your social butterfly of a brother, the rest of the family adjusted easily to this new lifestyle. Your parents spent their time making plans for the future, redecorating the apartment and face calling your relatives for a small -not really- chat. Your brother, Chan, has been sulking in his bedroom most of the time and other than that, he was playing video games with his friends. What a life…
As for you, you used this time for yourself. Read all the untouched books from your shelves, wrote some short stories, discovered new music, learnt a new language, basically did everything that could be done. And you got bored. For the last few days you’ve been moping around, not even getting out of bed, eating 6 to 7 meals in a day-excluding the snacks- and being a total bitch to your family. It’s a given that you were not an extrovert, but you still enjoyed your daily walks alone. Going to a park to stare at the lake, listening to music as you wander around, spending 50 minutes in the bus on the ride back home just thinking about life. You couldn’t take it anymore, you had to get out. But where could you go? The police were all over town making sure that people weren’t breaking the rules. You had to think of a place that was close enough to make it there safely, but not so near your house to make you feel like you haven’t been out at all. Walking around was definitely not a secure option, so you had to think of a building of some sorts. You’ll still be indoors, but a change of scenery would be most welcomed.
So here you are now: sneaking out and quietly walking towards your favorite ice rink. Your skates were in your backpack in between a lot of  your shirts to prevent them from making noises while you were moving. You had an easy plan: watch out for cops, get to the rink a few blocks away, enter through the broken back door, skate for a few hours and then return before morning. Easier said then done. Every step that you took made you more nervous. You were scared of walking alone in the dark but it was more terrifying every time you passed by a streetlight; you were afraid of being seen. At some point you started running, but you don’t remember when. Just that suddenly the wind was stronger, the shops were behind you in seconds and the back entrance to the ice rink was just in front of you. You made it.
As silently as you could, you opened the door that was never closed, city lockdown or whatever, and made your way inside. As the rink was shut down, you expected that there was no one else around. You made your way to the benches and sat down, getting out your skates and taking out your sneakers. It was pretty difficult to tie your laces with the sanitary gloves still on so you took them off, doing the same with your mask. There hasn’t been anyone here in weeks, so you had deemed it safe enough to give up your safety ‘equipment’.
After you were done you waddled over to the rink. Taking a big breath, you stepped forward on the ice. Ok, it has been a while. You immediately fell. You would have never called yourself a pro at ice skating, but you were decent; your ass hasn’t touched the cold surface since you were 8. 12 years ago. You blame it all on the fact that you haven’t been here lately and quietly get up. You just have to get used to it again, even if that means that you’ll be here longer than you intended to. At least you’ll exercise and get tired; maybe now you will get to actually sleep at night, because laying around in your bed 24/7 certainly doesn’t help your new developed insomnia.
Starting with baby steps, you skated around the fence, working on your balance and slowly familiarizing yourself again with the smooth surface. After 2-3 laps you started speeding up and even go deeper into the rink, towards the center. You finally dared to look away from your feet and your look wandered around the wide room. There was nothing interesting to see per se; some blue colored seats for when professionals have shows, the changing area, the tall handsome boy staring at you, a booth for the occasional DJs, in the corner some- Wait. Who was that?
The stranger’s appearance totally ruined your concentration and you lost balance, falling for the second time since you got there.
‘That’s your second fall in 15 minutes. You chose a pretty bad time to learn how to ice skate.’
Great, now he’s even speaking.Didn’t he realize that it was his fault? If it weren’t for his creepy staring you’d still be on your feet now. He could at least apologize instead of being a smart-ass.
‘I’ve been skating since I was little, not that it’s any of business. And I’d be just fine right now if I wouldn’t have been startled by you, weirdo. What normal human watches people from the shadows anyway?’
‘ I wasn’t watching you from the shadows. You turned on all the lights when you came here, so I’m kinda easy to spot. Not my fault you had to watch your clumsy feet until now.’
He was wearing a smug look the whole time he spent talking to you and it made you want to tie him to a chair and eat his favorite dessert in front of him. You weren’t a violent person so this was your ultimate form of torture. Your brother knows best how painful it is…
What made the situation even worse was the fact that he was mostly right. If only you paid more attention to your surroundings, let’s just say that your life would be a lot easier.
‘Can I join you?’
Could he? You didn’t know. You didn’t know this guy, you found him weird, but on the other hand you wouldn’t mind the company. You missed this type of hanging out.
‘Sure. But only if you skate too. You could seriously damage your eyes if you stare that much. What’s your name? I’m y/n.’
‘Hyunjin’
He said nothing more and started walking towards the benches. You skated closer to that area and let your upper body rest on the fence as you quietly watched him change his shoes.
To say Hyunjin was surprised to see you here was an understatement. This place was supposed to be empty. He wanted to be alone here. Or in other words, he wanted to pass by undetected.
He lived alone. Had a one-room flat just two blocks away from the rink. He wasn’t known for respecting the law; he was far from it. After being cut off by his parents at 17 and literally thrown out, he had it really bad. Lived on the street for a few months, had to steal money and food to survive. Learned how to fight after being attacked by other people who were homeless. And all that just because he wanted to pursue dancing and not follow in his father’s footsteps; he was born to do art, not deals and business shit.
When he was 19, his younger brother, Jeongin found him. He said he’s been ‘’searching for him all over town ever since he left.’’ But he was just impossible to find. Until now. Jeongin never agreed with their parents’ methods or ways of living. But he had to suck it up as he had no other passion to follow, like his brother. The younger brother used his savings and bought Hyunjin a decent one-room in a quiet district of the city. The only pay-back that he wanted was to see his older brother doing well.
Shortly after that, Hyunjin got a job at a retail store and got a scholarship for a dance academy. He started living a normal life. Well, almost normal. As old habits die hard, he still found himself in trouble pretty often. Nothing that bad that could affect his spot at the academy though. He was careful.
Now, as the city was on lockdown, the shop that he was working at was closed and his only source of income was again his little bro. An Angel, really. Hyunjin owed his life to him and he made sure that Jeongin knew how grateful he was.
In the beginning, it was fun. No work, no worries. He would order take-out, eat, sleep, dance, watch dog videos on youtube and that’s that. But this lifestyle wasn’t for him. He wanted to go out, do stuff. It didn’t take him too long to decide. World epidemic or not, he was going out.
He found his skates while he was doing a mental breakdown cleaning around the house and now they were staring at him expectantly. Skating. That’s it. There was an ice rink just a few blocks away from him. If he was careful he could make it there in no time, feel the thrill of doing something he shouldn’t be doing and be back without anyone noticing it. It was already getting dark.
Reaching the rink was easy. Too easy. A small part of him wanted to be caught so he could run from the authorities again. It was always fun, doing that. But he’ll have to settle for breaking in. He found the old broken lock by the back door and easily entered the building. Except, it wasn’t the empty building he expected. The lights were on. Weird. Maybe those idiots who worked here forgot to turn them off when they shut down the place. But no, that wasn’t it. Someone else was there; he could hear them.
After he reached the main entrance, he was able to spot her. It was a girl, around his age or younger. She had ice skates on and was trying to get from the changing benches to the ice. It was a funny sight. It got even better though, when she fell as soon as her skate touched the ice. Hyunjin had to physically stop himself from laughing out loud. But not even his hand was able to stop his giggles.
The girl got up and tried again, sticking to the edge of the rink, where it was safer. To Hyunjin’s surprise, she got better in no time and was perfectly skating towards the center.
That’s when they made eye contact and two things happened at once. Hyunjin’s instincts kicked in and he got ready to dash out of there. But at the same time, the girl fell again and he couldn’t help but laugh loud this time. Nothing bad could happen if he stays, right?
‘’It sure does take you a lot of time to put some skates on, doesn’t it?’
‘Shut up, I’m almost done.’ and he was done; with the first skate.
‘Are you always this annoying or does it only happen at midnight?’
‘It’s barely 11 pm, what’s your point?’
To say you were completely annoyed was an understatement. You were fuming. Not only was this Hyunjin guy a total jerk for laughing at your falls, but he was also a complete pain in the ass in a conversation. Now you were thinking that you would’ve been better off at home watching netflix.
But you couldn’t leave now, you came here to skate and that’s what you’ll do. Annoying hot stranger or not.
‘I’m done. Now let me show you how to skate properly, darling.’
Hyunjin got up and made his way to the rink. He was such a sight to see: light blue skates, decorated with numerous cute stickers. He was walking confidently, almost as if he was a bad boy entering his first scene in a 90’s movie. You could only stare at his back but you wondered what his expression was like right now. You guessed it was one you’d be overjoyed to wipe off.
When he reached the ice, he stepped on in like he was a world champion or something. Everything about his body language indicated showed that he wasn’t hesitating at all and he was 100% sure of himself.
That made it a lot funnier when, after 10 seconds, he slipped and had to catch the fence to prevent his fall. Take that from karma, Mr. Hyunjin.
‘Ok, I swear there was something on the ice. I didn’t just slip.’
You wanted to reply with something petty but you couldn’t stop laughing. His face was priceless, though you would pay 1000 fines for leaving the quarantine to see it again. You were struggling to breathe when he joined you and started laughing too. He couldn’t help it, your laugh was adorable and contagious. And he had to admit that despite his hurt ego, the situation was pretty funny.
Your laugh turned into giggles when your tummy started literally hurting. Instead, you watched Hyunjin laugh. Where did that bad boy go? Because laughing in front of you now was a 5 year old. His eyes were closed, and mouth wide open, his face radiating pure joy. He was clutching his abdomen while leaning a bit forward and taking short breaths in between giggles. And the sound, you swore his voice got higher. Were you allowed to hear this? You were listening to an Angel laugh.
When he calmed down, he squinted his Toothless-like eyes at you.
‘What are you laughing at? I didn’t even fall.’
‘You were still pretty funny though.’
You skated towards him and right in his face. You stared at him for a few seconds, admiring him. He was good-looking. He had dark brown eyes, sharp but still gentle. His face had great proportions. He could definitely be a model or the main lead in a drama. His raven locks were held back by his snapback, letting his eyebrows show off. Even these were perfectly even and cleanly trimmed. It would be a crime to cover that face up with a mask. Which brings you to the next question:
‘Where’s your mask? If you were going to sneak out during a world pandemic, shouldn’t you at least try to protect yourself? Or is that completely against your bad boy principles?’
‘I don’t have any bad boy principles, that’s not how it works. And besides, I’ve just ran out of masks and gloves and stuff like that. I didn’t panic bought an entire supply.’
You wanted to laugh at his misery, but he was right. People were panic buying everything that they could get their hands on and they didn’t think about the others. Human race could totally go extinct during a time like this and it wouldn’t even be the apocalypse’s fault. People would end themselves just by being selfish and cruel.
‘And besides,’ he continued ‘ I didn’t expect any company. Not that I mind it’, he added, sending you a flirtatious wink. Yikes.
You said nothing more, just made a disgusted face and skated forward. Hyunjin giggled and followed your lead.
You two skated in silence, only breaking it to bicker once in a while when one of you made fun of the other for slipping. It was… strangely comforting, having Hyunjin here with you. He was a pain in the ass, but even as he made fun of you, he helped you get back up after you’ve fallen for the third time; and he also checked up on you to see if you were okay. After he was done laughing, that is. You were almost glad that he turned out to have the same idea as you had.
You were in the middle of a single legged jump- which you were doing because you wanted to and by no means just to prove a point to Hyunjin- when you heard it. You, of course, fell again. But that didn’t matter right now and none of you laughed. Instead, you shared worried looks. Police sirens. And they sounded pretty close. Hyunjin was the one who spoke first.
‘They couldn’t be after us, right? I mean, no one knows that we’re here. We have nothing to worry about.’
‘Yeah, you’re right. They probably found someone breaking into a shop or something.’
But even as these words were leaving your lips, your minds knew that there was a slight possibility that you could be in trouble. Big trouble. You quickly got up and on your feet again and skated towards the exit. Hyunjin once again followed you and now you were both changing into your normal shoes again. This time, Hyunjin was fast as heck. He was already done and picking up both your backpacks while you were trying to put on your second converse. Fucking double knotted laces. You had to untie them, then put your foot in and still lace them. You barely had time to put the converse on when you heard the front door of the ink opening and numerous footsteps. You realized you could no longer hear the sirens.
‘Leave it like that, we have to go now.’
Hyunjin helped you up and urged you to run with him. If you could make it back to the back door you’d be safe. You just had to run fast enough and as soundlessly as you could manage.
‘Hello? Is anyone here? Officer Kim Namjoon from local police. Please come out now.’
You froze in your steps making Hyunjin stop too. You were scared. You were never a ‘good girl’, you’ve had your fair of mischief in your life, but this was something else. You couldn’t keep your hands from shaking and your breathing was erratic. Suddenly, Hyunjin was just in front of you.
‘We need to keep moving, we have to hide. Come on.’
‘Hide? No, what do you mean hide? Are you crazy? We have to get out, have to get to the back entrance.’
‘y/n, listen to me. I’ve been in this situation before. There is someone waiting at the back for sure. We’ll run straight into them if we do that.’ although he was not practically whispering, he still kept his voice on a low and soothing tone; he wanted you to calm down and follow his lead. ‘We are going to run towards one of the other rinks and hide under them. The rinks here have a tiny space underneath, for storing the ice equipment. If we can get there and hide until they leave, we’ll be safe. Just trust me on this one, okay? I won’t let anything happen to you.’
Your mind cleared up a little while hearing Hyunjin talk. You didn’t have the time to talk back or come up with something better so you just agreed with him.
Hyunin took your hand in his, tightened his grip on your bags and started running again. You took a few corners and reached a dark part of the rink, which wasn’t illuminated by the main lights. As you kept running in the dark you held his hand tighter. Your heart was beating so fast you were sure the adrenaline would kill you. All you could do now was run blindly behind Hyunjin. Still somehow, you trusted him. You felt safe right now, despite your body telling you you shouldn’t. Your mind was calm.
Hyunjin pulled you into an even darker room, using his phone’s flashlight to see the way. Once you two reached the rink, he guided you towards the space underneath it. You weren’t sure two people could fit here. It was so narrow. Hyunjin motioned for you to go under first and you did.
‘y/n, sweetie, listen to me now. I’ll have to be on you to hide, since there’s no space left. If something happens, I’ll go out and give myself up. But if I do that, I want you to stay here and not make a sound until the coast is clear and you can go home.’
You couldn’t see his face, but you felt that he was dead serious.
‘You can’t do that, I can just-’
‘I can and I will. Jeez, you have a big mouth. There’s no point in both of us going down. Listen, we don’t have time for this. I’ll just hide too now and I’ll use the backpacks to cover up.’
You were forever grateful to whatever force made both of you choose black bags tonight. Or was it that he only owned this color? He didn’t really seem like a Frozen-bag type of guy. But then again, you knew nothing about him.
While you were busy overthinking backpack colors, Hyunjin made his way over. He was standing in a push-up position, basically making a plank above you.
You remembered when Jisung, Chan’s nerdy best friend came over to work out at home with your brother. You had nothing better to do, so you sat on the couch to watch them with a pringles can in your hands.
Jisung was 3 years younger than Chan. They met through video gaming and had been best friends for over 5 years. He was a little bit taller than Chan, but slimmer. You felt like you fell into an alternate universe when you saw Jisung taking off his glasses and using your hair tie to make a man bun out of his fluffy orange hair. Was he always this hot? When he took his hoodie off, you almost chocked on the chips. Boy had guns. Jisungie, who would usually rock large hoodies and big t-shirts was now standing in your living room in a sleeveless shirt. Looking fine as hell. You were still imagining things he’d do to you with those arms while the boys were warming up.
If Chan knew what was going on in your head now, he’d kill you. And Jisung too. Protective instincts of an older brother or something like that. But the show was only beginning. The boys did a few lifts with Chan’s weights, playfully spared with each other and were now doing planks. Just watching Jisung stand in that position had your mind filling with dangerous thoughts. You imagine how his neck veins would look like from up close. Moreover, from under him. You imagined yourself slowly tracing them with your finger before lifting your head and kissing the invisible path you just drew. You’d stop just beneath his Adam’s apple and suck hard, marking him up. You wondered if he was a moaner or if he’d just gasp, tightening his grip on your hips. And then he’d lean forward and-
‘I’m not even touching you and you’re blushing like hell. What? First time being this close to a hot guy?’
Oh, right. Hyunjin was still above you, and the light from his phone was still on. He quickly turned it off though, when footsteps started getting too close.
‘Believe me, I’ve definitely been closer to a guy than this. I-’
‘I didn’t say to any guy. I said closer to a hot guy. Like me.’
‘Idiot, I was going to say that I can’t really breathe, I feel suffocated.’
That wasn’t the reason, but Hyunjin didn’t have to know that. What were you supposed to say? That you tried to get your mind off of him by thinking about another hot guy? Yeah, right. That’ll just feed his ego. And it was well fed already. But you didn’t exactly lie. You had some trouble with getting enough oxygen in your lungs. You took deep breaths, but you still felt like there was no air that you could breathe in.
‘It’s okay. It’s normal to feel like this.’ you felt him shift his weight, lifting himself higher to give you space; his arms were starting to shake. ‘But just know this: I’m here with you. And we’ll both be out in no time. Can you do something for me?’
You nodded slowly, already feeling better.
‘Close your eyes-’
‘Hyunjin, I can’t see anyway.’
‘Just close them. It’ll help, I promise. Now, imagine you’re outside. You’re somewhere far, in the countryside. There’s green everywhere and no other human. You only see trees, flowers and bees flying around. You breathe. The breeze is a little cold, but you embrace it. You are calm and everything is at peace. Now, breathe again.’
It was working. You were not completely relaxed yet, but it was easier to breathe now. When you opened your eyes, everything was pitch black; the oposite of your surroundings in the world that Hyunjin created in your mind.
The officers’ steps were getting louder and lounder; they were here. First you saw the light from their flashlights and then their boots stopping just outside the room. This was it. You were either gonna get away for good or you were going to get caught.
In the tiniest voice, so low that Hyunjin would’ve missed it if he wasn’t so close to you, you asked him to hold your hand.
‘Are you crazy? How am I going to hold myself up with just one hand?’
‘Just lean on me, you can’t be that heavy. Please, just hold my fucking hand or I’ll start panic crying right now and we’ll get caught.’
‘Fine. But don’t complain to me if you get crushed. And please just shut up, I think they’re gonna enter here soon.’
Hyunjin slowly put his elbow down on the floor right next to your head. His other hand slowly reached yours and pulled them both up to rest between your chests. His hand was slightly sweaty, just like yours. His face was so much closer now; you could feel his warm breath against you, and if you squinted a little bit, you could see his eyes. They were staring right into yours and you felt intimidated. If you could see his eyes, he could also see yours, couldn’t he?
Hyunjin had a boner. He didn’t mean to pop one right now and he wanted to die. But the rush of running away and your warm body just under him; your eyes, so scared but so full of trust. You trusted him. You were hiding quietly underneath him, so pliant and vulnerable. He tried his best to hide it and was praying every two seconds that you wouldn’t feel it. Thank god he was not wearing sweatpants today.
‘ Let’s check in here too. I’ll take the right, you search the left, Seok.’
Their voices were more than murmurs now. As they walked around the ice rink, you held your breath and tightened your hold around Hyunjin’s hand.He gently squeezed it back, his eyes softening as he looked at you.
One of the police guys got close to you. He stopped right next to your hideout. When you felt him crouching down you let out a small gasp, Hyunjin’s hand immediately letting go of yours and covering your mouth. His eyes were still fixated on you, with a stricter but still gentle look; he was silently telling you to keep your eyes on his. Don’t look away.
The one sitting on one knee right by your heads called his partner over. Once he arrived, he spoke.
‘Is that a backpack? What’s it doing here? Should I check it out?’
The other one seemed to be thinking hard as nothing else could be heard for a few seconds. You were fully panicking now, that was it. They were going to pick up the bags and find you. Then, they’ll be throwing you in jail and your mom would flip out and never allow you outside ever again.
‘Don’t touch it. We don’t know who left it here; I’m the only one with gloves and they ripped when I tried to open the front door. I’m not gonna risk it just for a bag, Hoseok.’
‘Got it, Joon. Found anything here?’
‘No. I think they already ran away, whoever they were. They did nothing too bad, if you look at the main rink, looks like they were only here to skate. No harm done. We’ll tell the rink’s security guard that we couldn’t find them. Let’s just leave.’
‘Whatever you say. I just wish I could gather all those who run out of isolation and give them a piece of my mind.’
‘You know you’re too much of a sweetheart to say something mean.’
‘Yeah, yeah, I could always throw rocks at them though.’
The deep-voiced one, Namjoon chuckled. There was a sound like he was patting Hoseok on the back and then they left.
Hyunjin was mesmerized. You were still staring helplessly at him, still muted by his large hand. You looked so good, he only wanted to ruin you. That cute sound you made right before he silenced you, he wanted to hear it again. Louder and caused by him this time.
He hesitantly removed his hand, now bringing it down to rest on both of his elbows above you without breaking eye contact. Were you too thinking about the same thing? He wanted to kiss you so bad. He slowly leaned in, giving you time to stop him.
That’s exactly what you did though, pushing on his chest to keep him away from you.
‘Eww, don’t kiss me, that’s so unhygienic. What if you’re sick but don’t know it yet?’
‘Don’t you think it’s a little bit late to think about that now? I just had my hand on your mouth. You prefer it like that? Cause I don’t mind, you do seem like the noisy type’
‘Just get off of me, you self-centered weirdo.’
‘If you didn’t want to kiss me you should’ve just said so.’
If you didn’t know any better, you’d say that Hyunjin was…embarrassed? No, there’s no way. But on a closer look, his cheeks were pretty pink and his lip was being chewd off by his teeth; plus, he was avoiding your eyes like the plague. Ironic.
‘I never said I don’t want to. It was just not the moment. We should really go home now, that was a close call.’
‘Yeah, you’re right. I’m sorry for trying to kiss you without asking. Don’t know what came over me. I just- I really wanted to kiss you. But I’ll ask for consent next time.’
Next time. Will there be a next time? You wanted to see him again, that’s for sure. You suddenly began thinking… did you really want to go home? You were pretty sure you could use a bigger change of scenery. Hyunjin turned on his phone light again and pointed it at you. You grinned while handing him his backpack.
‘Say, do you have any roommates?’
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ariel-dreemurr · 4 years
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The Closet Under The Stairs - What Akko Kagari Means to Me
Here's something you might not know about me: I absolutely hate Harry Potter. I find the characters uninteresting, the world borderline fascistic but also underdeveloped, the themes repulsive (lots of really shady politics, elitism, racism, and queerphobia), and the author absolutely reprehensible.
So when I got recommended an anime called "Little Witch Academia" that was advertised to me as "an all-girls Hogwarts", I was very apprehensive. Harry Potter but with all girls? It's going to be an exclusionary, even more elitist, more homophobic, more transphobic shitshow. I thought.
Anyway, so it turns out that Little Witch Academia is one of the best anime I've ever seen and spoke to me on a deep personal level that I didn't think possible. It is the opposite to Harry Potter in nearly every way, more evocative of "The Worst Witch" and uses the aesthetics of better magic media. It is the antithesis. Something I wish I had growing up instead of the TERF manifesto.
And the heart and soul of the entire narrative is it's protagonist: Akko Kagari.
She is nothing like Harry. She comes from no special lineage, she isn't a "chosen one", she's not privileged or wealthy, and she's not great with magic.
Akko's story starts ten years prior to the bulk of the narrative, in which she, a seemingly normal child, visits a magic show - and becomes utterly captivated. Her life begins at this point, and she is so taken aback by the witch, Shiny Chariot, that she knows exactly what she wants and who she wants to be.
Just one problem. She's not that thing currently, and is severely disadvantaged for... reasons.
Time having passed, at 16 she enrolls at Luna Nova, an academy for witches. She barely gets there on time, unable to fly a broom and having to receive the help of Lotte and Sucy, two much more competent, already magical witches, the latter of which takes them on a "detour" through dangerous magical woods. Here, Akko, whilst almost being killed (which is recurring for comedic effect), uncovers the "Shiny Rod", previously held by her idol, Chariot. This infuses her with even more determination to be just like Chariot, her main drive throughout most of the show.
Long story short, though - she's terrible at most things. She can't do magic particularly well, and seems to have an innate disadvantage, becoming something of a laughingstock. She makes friends, but catches the scorn of some of the teachers, and most notably, Diana Cavendish, the top student. Diana is a British noblewoman, set in traditionalism, unbreakably tough, and highly talented, doing everything perfectly. At least, until she's exposed as more fragile than first thought. And Diana doesn't take too kindly to Akko's "frivolous" ambitions and inspiration from Chariot, who had since disappeared and is heavily looked down upon in the magic community.
Akko seems to be autistic, and seems to have some degree of ADHD, but that only serves to emphasise her greatest qualities: her unbreakable determination, hyper enthusiasm and pure goodness. In other words, she's an exaggeration of the Shounen Protagonist. Nothing can stop her. For example, she cannot fly a broom, and so pushes forward using other magic and technology. She cannot transform well, and so uses her goofy creations for bizzare yet genius utilities. She never ever gives up, despite those who look down on her, and the odds that are so stacked against her. As an outsider, she actively fights and challenges the rigid, nonsensical traditions that were imposed on the magic world. Of course, she has some help from her friends, and most notably, Ursula, her personal tutor who is dedicated to Akko and getting her through the trials that it becomes clear were faced by her by some degree. Because Ursula, secretly, is Chariot - under a new identity due to a great shame. She fiercely defends Akko from those who disparage her.
The first cour of the show focuses on Akko's antics with her friends, Ursula's mentorship, and trying not to get expelled from Luna Nova due to her ineptitude. And every time it is unconventional solutions and sheer force of will that saves her. Early on, she saves Diana, and an uneasy rapport is built up. But she maintains her idolisation of Chariot, which is made more and more obvious to be unhelpful to her, since she is her own person. A subplot involves Akko building a friendship with Andrew, a cynical aristocratic boy who slowly becomes fascinated by Akko's antics, and grows to regain a lost faith in magic. She keeps a hold on Shiny Rod, and it occasionally helps her when she utters certain words, transforming it and saving her from situations. This first cour culminates in a revelation that, to put it simply, the Rod requires seven sacred words to be uttered in order to access world altering magic - which Akko, her friends, Ursula, and Diana begin to search for. Akko is even given a choice by a magical entity to rewrite her life and live her dream as the next Chariot. But she refuses. She grows during this scene because she refuses to rewrite her life, for as much as she wishes things were different, because she cannot relinquish her experiences with her friends. Her ambition is beaten by her goodness.
The second cour brings the search for the words to front and centre; but first, in a direct middle finger to the bourgeoisie politics of Harry Potter, Akko joins a union to help the magical workers at Luna Nova, and it's hilarious. And inspiring. It's another example of how she maintains her integrity and doesn't back down.
The discovery of each word comes with some sort of moral lession - such as to be grateful, forgiving, compassionate, etc. A particular stand out episode comes with Akko learning the value of empathy and patience, and finding a cure to a magical disease. But things become much more complicated with the introduction of Croix Meridies, Ursula's bitter ex-girlfriend who uses her teaching position to pursue her own ends in world altering magic.
In the meantime, Akko continues to search for the words, and develops more bonds with her friends - even Diana, who she helps through a family emergency that almost causes her to drop out of Luna Nova. Akko, however, still lives in the shadow of Chariot.
This all comes to a head upon finding out Croix's plan: she intends to save the waning magical world by siphoning the magical potential of every person on earth. And she finds out this was used on her many years ago, accidently, at Chariot's show, which explains her ineptitude with magic, Chariot's disappearence and shame, and Ursula's actions, being one in the same. She has to confront that her hero is responsible for her pain. But she does get over it through the power of Diana comforting her, revealed to have also been a fan of Chariot and at that same show.
Croix is defeated, and Chariot forgiven, with Akko eventually learning in following her idol, she forgot to be her own person, and is finally able to mature to a degree. But first, the final word must be spoken, and self-actualisation is achieved. Croix and Chariot then have a last mission for the girls, which is to save the world from essentially an Evangelion that Croix lost control of. The main characters then propel Akko and Diana into the atmosphere, where they share a moment of breathtaking intimacy, defeat the creature, and together use the world changing magic to restore magic to the world for everyone. And then, some time later, everyone is there to watch Akko finally start to fly for the first time - under the mentorship of Chariot and help from her friends, she was finally able to see herself as a witch.
What a great ending. Apologies for the speed recap, but I had to build the context for what I'm about to say. Little Witch Academia is a show that's about a lot of things, explicitly, subtextually, and metatextually. There have been many deep dives by many people as to what the show is really about for them - and unlike JK Rowling who prevents death of the author by being so intwined and such an authority on the canon and meaning of her work, Little Witch Academia uses magic in a much more friendly ans inclusive sense. The work means what it means to each viewer, and the creators don't attempt to take that away. Some of the things the show has been read to be about include the nature of idols, growing up, the insecurities of the creator (read: Evangelion), and art school. Magic isn't just magic. Not literally. It's something that binds us all and helps us to find meaning.
Harry Potter lived in a cupboard under the stairs. The work resonated with many LGBT+ kids back in the day due to the narrative of a young person leaving the cupboard and embracing their true self. Of course, this means NOTHING anymore. Rowling is didactic about her own text, and as trans people have been warning for years until she literally had to spell it out in her current meltdown, her opinion of LGBT+ people isn't particularly high. Unfortunately, sometimes a cupboard under the stairs is just a cupboard under the stairs.
But let's return to the closet under the stairs.
Most viewers pick up fairly early on just how incredibly gay the show is. Lots of this is played for comedy and ship teasing (as anime is wont to do), of course; but there's an eventual sincerity to the implications of discovering who you can be and who you can love. Chariot and Croix are lesbians, and their rivalry yet affection for each-other is heavily paralleled in the relationship between Akko and Diana. Watch the second opening for the most blatant imagery here. Diana is implied to be gay, and Akko shows attraction to men and women, and presumably those elsewhere if some of the other fun characters are anything to go by. Of course, censorship in Japan makes these things difficult to discuss, but the creators are friendly enough with their audience to allow for their own readings, and despite initial intent, none of the characters were forced into straight pairings. I know I'll probably get some hostile comments, so I must re-iterate that this is my aggressive reading that the inclusivity of the text allows. Let's go back to the beginning.
Akko is restless. Seeing the beautiful woman that is Chariot that fateful night instilled in her the unbreakable drive to pursue who she wanted to be, and never ever stop. That night is interesting because it makes her dream inextribly tied to why that dream was so much harder for her to achieve than the average witch. Her dream, her identity that she strives for, is looked down upon, mocked, derided, and pitied by the other witches at this all girl's school due to Akko's arbitrarily assigned affliction that meant that even the most basic things about being a witch came with difficulty for her. She didn't grow up as a witch. That part of her was suppressed. And it's not fair. It's not her fault that the life she was given and who she was were at odds. It just isn't fair, she fights and fights and fights to be taken seriously, her infectious enthusiasm hiding a deep sadness that bubbles below the surface, knowing that she was prevented from being like the others.
Oh. Oh shit. Akko is trans.
Magic isn't "just" magic. Magic is who you are. Becoming a witch is often used as metaphor for growing into womanhood, and with this reading, a lot of the bizzare things that happen to Akko make much more sense contextually. There HAD to have been a trans person in the writer's room who had a similar idea, because some of the events of the show are SO intertwined with the trans experience that it's very unlikely to be a coincidence; and even if it was, that's what an open text and aggressive reading is for.
Diana's antagonism towards Akko is also given new layers. Like Akko, she's trans too. She was at the show. Her ambition was fuelled by that same event, WITH the unfairness of the magic drain. It was unnoticed because Diana and Akko were the only witches there that night, but Diana had the benefit of coming from a magic family, and so was able to reclaim her magic (identity...) through sheer force of will from the earliest age imaginable; isolating herself, suffering, fighting and fighting to study and suffer and take back who she was from the unfairness of it all, and eventually integrate into magic society. She was always an overachiever, and was so good at it all. She was able to hide - closet - what had happened to her through staying aloof and traditional, resenting Akko as a challenge, especially due to her initial hopelessness. Surely this PRETENDER can't just come in and be like HER, who had to SUFFER for who she was, especially if they couldn't ASSIMILATE into PROPER TRADITION. It's an antagonism within the trans community between types who prioritise assimilation and resent how "they make us REAL trans people look bad". Transphobes hate us either way. Stop fighting. And Diana eventually opens up, and recognises that she and Akko are the same. There's suddenly a lot more weight to the interpretation that they fell in love whilst restoring magic - read as self belief, truth, pride, new possibilities, and freedom - to the world.
I'm going to end this with something from a conversation I had with another trans girl over what the show means to us:
And when it got billed to me as "magic school with all girls" I avoided it because I was expecting some gender essentialist bullshit that would make me dysphoric and sad. But everything changes when the content of the show positions not just one, but at least two of the protagonists to be transgender women, their stories telling us that we can be whoever we want to be and that the world can be cruel and deal you a bad hand by assigning you something you're not. The world is a cruel place. The world will do all that it can to deny you your true self and tell you that you're wrong for feeling the way you do; because the world is WRONG. A believing heart is your magic. Forever and ever. Trans rights.
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ineffably-good · 4 years
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I Will Follow You Into The Dark (10/10) (GO Fics)
Go read the whole thing on AO3
Summary: In which Crowley and Aziraphale throw an awesome party, a few members of Hell's secretarial pool make an appearance, and gifts are given.
Spring turned into summer, and although Aziraphale continued to research and plot, manipulate energies and dig through arcane sources, they made no real progress in restoring Crowley’s lost powers. Crowley, for the most part, handled it well – he occasionally found himself instinctively snapping in response to an immediate problem before remembering that he no longer could, but one look at Aziraphale would remind him what he had done it for and why.
The whiled the summer away traveling a little, spending long weeks out of town with Frederick (who’s house arrest was apparently over) in tow, and enjoying as many long, leisurely dinners and late morning brunches as they could.
Crowley slowly came to the full awareness that he now had a husband. Despite being the one to initiate the almost shotgun-style wedding, it took a while to settle in that the angel – the same angel who curled up next to him to read all night every night, who kept trying to sneak small tartan accents into his wardrobe and claiming complete innocence when called upon it, who kept showering him in almost more love, warmth, and affection than he could handle (almost) – was now bonded to him for life.
He liked to say the word, to himself, roll it around on his tongue. Husband, he’d whisper. Husband, husband, husband. He found he loved the sound of it. He took to calling to make reservations for them at dinner (now that he could no longer miracle the best table) and asking for a table for “my husband and I.” He occasionally interrupted a store clerk who wasn’t being attentive enough to point out that “my husband needs assistance.” He definitely took to stepping between Aziraphale and any young lovestruck fool who was eyeing him and finding a way to throw the word “husband” into the next sentence that came out of his mouth.
Aziraphale, for his part, continued to watch and worry over Crowley during the transition from powers to no powers. He could tell sometimes that Crowley missed them, and he suspected this would become a larger issue in the winter when he couldn’t conserve body warmth by relegating himself to snake form, but he had to admit that for the most part, Crowley seemed to be doing than he had expected with the change. He slowly found himself relaxing, fraction by fraction, as he realized that the demon was not going to change his mind about the bargain he’d made.
“I forgot to tell you something, angel,” Crowley said one morning. “I can’t believe I forgot this, it was really important!”
Aziraphale frowned and put down his coffee cup. “What? What happened?”
“Nothing happened,” Crowley said. “It’s just something from the conversation with God.” 
“Oh?” Aziraphale said.
“She said something about you,” Crowley said, “when I said you were the best thing she’d ever created. I can’t believe I never told you this!”
Aziraphale dimpled up ridiculously and blushed a bright pink. “Oh, my dear,” he murmured. “You said that to her about me?”
Crowley grinned. “Don’t give yourself the vapors, angel,” he said, “and anyways, it’s the truth. But my POINT is, what she said next. I asked if I could tell you because I knew you would want to hear it.”
Aziraphale found he was holding his breath.
“She said that you had never disappointed her,” Crowley said. “Not once. Never.”
He watched as the angel took that in, first frowning a little as he considered it, then his face cleared as Crowley watched the most phenomenal look of peace pass over him. He raised his chin and squared his shoulders, giving Crowley a pleased smile.
“Well then,” he said. “That’s just lovely to hear.” He thought for a minute. “I don’t suppose she provided it in written form so we could send a copy to that bastard Gabriel, did she?”
Crowley laughed.
 ++
Soon it was August, and the date of their wedding reception rolled around. It was a perfect night for it; the champagne sparkled, the appetizers were scrumptious, and their friends gathered to share in their happiness. It appeared to be a wonderful success.
“Dudes!” came a familiar voice, as Crowley and Aziraphale were considering where and how to begin cutting the massive, four layered chocolate cake. They turned and found Rat, who had dressed up for the occasion in a slightly less dingy-looking suit and had clearly combed his ear-like points of hair until they were smooth and shiny. “Thank you so much for the invitation,” he said. “That was really decent of you.”
Aziraphale smiled. “Well, we are very grateful to you for the help,” he said. “Seemed like the least we could do was invite you to the party.”
Crowley nodded agreeably. “We are,” he said. “Enjoy yourself!”
“I brought a couple of my friends from the secretarial pool,” Rat said, pointing off to the side behind him. “Don’t worry,” he hurried to assure them as he saw Crowley’s eyebrows go up. “They won’t do anything to cause any problems. They’re HUGE fans of the yours, man.”
Crowley and Aziraphale followed his pointing arm to a cluster of three small, intimidated looking demons who were clustered around a single white plate and nervously poking at various appetizers as if they might be alive. When they saw Crowley looking at them, they each raised a hand and waved shyly, with smiles ranging from starstruck to terrified.
Crowley groaned and waved back, trying to ignore the way Aziraphale was grinning at him. He bid goodbye to Rat with a pat on the arm and literally pulled the angel away from the secretarial demons’ line of sight.
“I don’t want to hear a single word about that,” he warned him. “I mean it.”
Aziraphale giggled – he actually giggled, the bastard – but he made a locking gesture over his lips and tucked the imaginary key in his pocket. He knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that the existence of Crowley’s fan club was something he was going to get mileage out of for years to come. He could wait.
Crowley, knowing exactly what his spouse was thinking, pulled him out onto the dance floor to distract him. He pulled the angel close and laid a hand on the small of his back. Distraction accomplished, he thought, as the angel became soft and cuddly as they shared a couple of dances to the slower pieces that were being played.
Soon enough Anathema came up to cut in, dancing with each of them in turn, as did other guests, and after a while Crowley found he had lost sight of the angel all together. He scanned the crowd for him and was surprised to see a very familiar shock of blond hair jumping up and down to the beat of what Aziraphale would refer to as “bebop”, near the front of the dance floor. He grinned and made his way over to wrap an arm around the angel’s waist and kiss him from behind.
“Having fun, love?” he asked.
“Oh yes,” Aziraphale said, leaning up to plant a kiss on his cheek. “It’s almost as much fun as the gavotte!” He had ditched his suit coat somewhere, rolled up his sleeves, and loosened his bow tie. He was glowing with happiness and exertion and it was all Crowley could do not to eat him like a snack.
Second best, he decided, was to get his angel another glass of champagne. Which he did. Hydration was important, after all.  
Then Crowley found himself pulled back into the fray by Adam and his friends, and he lost sight of him again.  
 ++
Crowley found him a little bit later.
“Come with me,” he said, extending his hand. “It’s time.”
Aziraphale tossed back the rest of the champagne he was holding and allowed himself to be pulled out the side door and across the lawn. They moved away from the buildings and their light, and Aziraphale hand-waved a small miracle to dampen the light pollution from both the city and the full moon, so they could more easily see the sky.
Crowley had previous laid out a large, light blanket over the soft grass, and he plopped down on it and reclined onto his elbows, patting the space between his legs. “Come here, you,” he said. Aziraphale smiled and settled in, leaning back with his head resting against Crowley’s chest. They both looked up at the sky – and waited.
It wasn’t long before they saw the first one.
“Oooooh!” Aziraphale exclaimed, pointing as the first meteor appeared. “Did you see it? It was right there.”
It was the last day of the peak of the Perseid meteor shower.
“Oh, they’re always so lovely,” Aziraphale said fondly.
“I made them, you know,” Crowley said, quietly. “Well, I made the comet they came from.”
“You did?” Aziraphale said. “I don’t think I knew that.”
“One of my first creations, before the fall,” he said. “It was just for practice, making a comet. Baby steps. But I always loved it the most, because it was my first.”
“And every August, its trail of debris delights the humans,” Aziraphale said with a fond smile.
“Or frightens them,” Crowley said. “But most of us know meteors are good luck, not bad. It seemed like a good omen for starting a new phase of our lives.”
They sat silently for another twenty minutes, heartbeat to heartbeat, just watching each glimmering spark streak across the sky and feeling ineffably connected.
 ++
“Shall we go back to our guests?” Aziraphale asked eventually.
“If we must,” Crowley said, standing up and helping Aziraphale rise. Aziraphale gave him that soft, contented smile that he loved so much, and then they turned to cross the open field back toward the lights and music.
They’d only gone a few steps when a buzzing beam of light appeared behind them, infinitely bright.
They spun around, and Aziraphale instinctively stepped in front of Crowley in a defensive stance. Crowley might be the creator of the two, but he was the former soldier, and he knew better to let his powerless husband get in harm’s way.
To his shock and dismay, Aziraphale was met with the large, disembodied head of the Metatron.
"Greetings, Principality Aziraphale and Demon Crowley," he said, his voice pleasant but clinical.  "I bring you tidings from the Almighty on this the celebration of your nuptials."
Aziraphale and Crowley exchanged a shocked look.
“May – may we speak with her?” Aziraphale asked.
"To speak with me is to speak with the Almighty," he replied, unflappable in his composure and certitude.
I bet this asshole just LOVES Gabriel, Crowley thought as he stepped forward to stand directly beside Aziraphale, shoulder to shoulder. He reached out and grabbed the angel’s hand. “What’s the message?” he asked.
"The Almighty wishes you to know that she bids you joy in your union,” the Metatron said. “Furthermore, she wishes you to know that she is moved by the selflessness with which you’ve both cared for each other in the light of the Demon Crowley’s altered circumstances. Your sacrifices and sincere, unselfish love have not gone unnoticed.”
Aziraphale cleared his throat. “Uh… thank you?” he said.
 "Finally, in honor of your wedding, she wishes to offer you a nuptial gift."
The Metatron gestured vaguely with his eyes, leading them both to look up at a small, golden object that drifted slowly down from a point unseen. It appeared to be a box, Crowley thought, as it came to rest on the grass at their feet.
Crowley looked back at the Metatron. “What is it?” he asked suspiciously.
“It is a gift for you both from the Almighty,” the Metatron restated. “Do not dawdle in opening it, children. That is all.”
He faded away from sight.
 ++
They stood, staring wide-eyed at each other, then down at the golden box below them. Aziraphale, the first to recover his wits, bent down and picked it up, holding it away from his body as if he feared it might bite him.
“Should we go open it inside?” Crowley said.
“No,” Aziraphale said, shaking his head. “I think we should do this alone.” He pulled Crowley back to the blanket and they sat down, side-by-side, staring at the box still held in Aziraphale’s hands.
With unspoken agreement, they both reached for the lid and pulled it open.
A soft, golden glow filled the air, and a delicious aroma of roses became apparent. It took a moment to make out the contents against the glow, but soon Aziraphale lifted out a piece of parchment and a pair of small, golden cupcakes.
“Cupcakes??” Aziraphale said, puzzled.
“Cupcakes are for children!” Crowley said. “Didn’t we specifically say no cupcakes?”
“I believe we did,” Aziraphale hummed, unrolling the parchment. “’To a long and magical marriage’, it says.”
“A what?” Crowley said distractedly, still annoyed by the cupcakes. God and her ineffable sense of humor was getting on his last nerve.
“Crowley,” Aziraphale said, grabbing him by the forearm with urgency. “It says to a long and magical marriage.”
Crowley blinked. “You don’t think…”
“I do.”
“No.”
“What else could it possibly mean?”
“Knowing the almighty,” Crowley muttered, trying to beat down a surge of something like hope and hating himself for feeling it, “nearly anything.”
“I think,” Aziraphale said quietly, “that we had better eat them.”
Crowley’s heart began to bound. “Should we, though?” he asked, peevishly. “I mean, should we really? Isn’t this just a bit too Alice in Wonderland for you? We’re going to take a bite and find ourselves too big for the Earth or too small to exist or fall down some kind of interdimensional rabbit hole and then —”
Aziraphale took Crowley’s face in his hands. “My dear,” he said softly, stilling him with his most loving look, “trust me. I have a feeling about this.”
Aziraphale had a feeling. Oh joy.
Crowley looked into Aziraphale’s eyes, his favorite sight in all the world, and noted the intensity of his trusting gaze. Every detail of the scene seemed to ingrain itself into his senses – the blue-black night sky still streaked by the quick milky spill of comets, the branches of the oak behind them susurrating in the warm breeze, the scent of crushed, warm grass beneath them, the gentle spill of music and laughter from the party on the other side of the field. The moment seemed to stretch and bend around them, infinitely, like they were poised together over a great chasm, deciding whether to fall.
Crowley shrugged, unable to resist both his love and whatever the hell this was, and picked up one of the confections. He crossed the fingers of his other hand.
“Ready, then?” he asked as Aziraphale did the same.
“Ready.”
And without further delay, they each took a bite.
Nothing happened for a moment, then Crowley felt a warmth bloom in his chest and spread through him. He felt its golden tendrils wrap around his physical being, then extend to his ethereal one. It should have burned, he thought, but instead it just felt like the most delightful touch of sunshine. It swirled through all of him and then it drifted away.
He opened his eyes to find Aziraphale watching him, an unreadable expression on his face. He almost looked, he thought, like he was praying.
“Did you feel that too?” Crowley asked.
“I did,” Aziraphale said, “but I think it was stronger for you.”
“Should I –” Crowley swallowed, unable to complete the thought.
“Try it,” Aziraphale said gently. “Try a miracle. The worst outcome is nothing’s changed, and we’ve already gotten used to that.”    
Crowley stood and raised the hand furthest away from Aziraphale to snapping position and pulled up from the ground in his usual fashion. Something did happen, but his hand emitted only a small spark rather than the flare of fire he’d been trying to raise.
“Wait,” he said. “That doesn’t feel quite right. I’m doing something wrong.”
“Crowley,” Aziraphale said carefully. “I think you need to try the other direction.”
Crowley froze. “I’m a demon,” he said. “I don’t pull my powers from Above.”
Aziraphale reached over and pulled Crowley’s now-clenched hand to his lips. “What if,” he said, “you’re something all together new?”
He placed Crowley’s hand in ready position at shoulder height and stepped back.
Crowley took a deep breath, snapped down, and then tossed a small, sparkling firework up into the sky over them. It broke into a golden chrysanthemum shape, and tiny gold petals drifted slowly to the ground around them.
Aziraphale gasped.
“I’m a DEMON,” Crowley repeated, desperately, feeling afraid and a little overwhelmed. “She didn’t just unfall me, did she? Because I don’t WANT that.”
Aziraphale frowned and scanned him with his more hidden senses. “I don’t think so,” he said. “You still smell like a demon. Pull out your wings.”
Crowley yanked his wings into their plane and Aziraphale caught his breath. They were still black and glossy, but sprinkled throughout them were tips of dove gray, just here and there, giving him a subtle, speckled appearance.
“What is it?” Crowley asked, craning his neck. “Oh, please tell me I’m not about to start really enjoying the Sound of Music for the love of –”
He caught sight of his wings and fell silent.
“Still a demon,” Aziraphale said, “or mostly so.”
“A demon who draws his powers from Heaven?” Crowley asked. “Who’s ever heard of such a thing?”
“You’re the very first,” Aziraphale said, beaming at him.
“What about you?” Crowley said. “What did you get?”
Aziraphale’s chin quivered with happiness. “I got you, fully restored, my love – what more could I possibly want?”
Crowley rolled his eyes, but gently. “Wings, angel,” he said. “Let me see ‘em.”
Aziraphale obediently pulled out his wings and Crowley circled him, observing. “Yours have changed too,” he said. “There’s some dove gray here and there that wasn’t there before.”
The angel looked thoughtful. “I wonder what it all means.”
Crowley took a deep breath and wrapped his arms around his husband. “We have, by my count, approximately forever to figure it all out, love.”
“As long as we figure it out together,” Aziraphale said. “Always.”
“Damn straight,” Crowley replied.
 ++
“I think it’s time to go bid our guests good night,” Aziraphale said. “You can miracle them up an endless supply of alcohol and we shall let the youngsters keep the party going until dawn. We’ve already paid for the cleaning crew in the morning.”
Crowley smiled. “And what will we do?”
He could hear Aziraphale’s answering smile even in the dark. “I would like to go home,” he said decisively, “and lie under the skylight in the bedroom with you and watch the rest of the meteors go by.”
“Home,” Crowley said, his heart as full as he had ever known it. “Home it is, then.”
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👀
Here's an unfinished fic I was writing earlier this year for a Stan Frederick/EMH Crossover AU. I posted some parts of it when I was originally working on it but I never actually finished writing it (and I probably won't since the new season of SF is coming out) so it never got posted. It literally ends midsentence and I'm not gonna go back and reread the whole thing before I post it but I remember it being good so here you go.
_____
"If we are ever that desperate... " He had trailed off, not even wanting to finish the thought, perhaps not realizing that he may not have been the desperate one after all.
*****
It had been almost a year since the events of 'Amendments'. Almost a year of freedom. Well, kinda. Stan didn't quite know if he would call it freedom. Sure, he was free of Connor, of the monsters that had haunted his past life, but he was on the run, knowing that his monster would be back for the rest of him once it realized it had missed a piece. Sure he was free, but what was freedom if you weren't even really alive to enjoy it, if you were constantly on the run, and if you couldn't go back to the ones you loved for fear of dragging them back down the rabbit hole with you. In this sense, Stan didn't consider himself anymore free than he had been in those years where the monster had lost it's effect on him and he was actually able to help people.
Help people. That wasn't something he quite did anymore either. Obviously he couldn't go back to his position as a 'signal disruptor', that would just pull him back into the fray, and that certainly wasn't an option. Plus, being what he was now, dead but not really, in a way he was just the type of monster he would've been called to investigate in the first place.
A Corruptelum. That's the name he had given to beings like himself back in the old days of investing monsters. Alive, but not quite, a shadow of his former self. He didn't quite like the name anymore, and he wasn't able to rationalize between whether that was because he actually felt the title didn't fit or if he just couldn't quite recognize himself as one of them under that name. Either way it made him uncomfortable applying the term to himself and often he did his best not to think about it, though it was rather hard not to think about, considering his situation.
He had been traveling from place to place, exploring the country as a way to distract himself and stay safe while avoiding places like Maine, New Jersey, Alabama, and Florida, where he knew the monsters often lurked or had victims they were already hunting. Sometimes he fell into the routine of travel so easily that it was almost like he was back on the road investigating again and he almost forgot everything that had led him to this point. Almost.
The only place he could truely cease thought was sleep. Sure, being what he was, he didn't need sleep, but it was a small comfort from his past that he wasn't easily able to abandon in his new form. Most nights were dreamless, an upside considering that almost any dream he did occasionally have seemed to be a nightmare about his monster coming back to collect the pieces it had missed. Even the rare times he had a normal dream he found himself saddened knowing that the dream scenarios he came up with were never going to be real.
Tonight, Stan was almost sure he was having a nightmare when he awoke to unfamiliar surroundings. Well, not quite unfamiliar, the place had a strong hold on his subconscious, he was sure he knew where he was, but he couldn't remember exactly why the place did feel so familiar to him. Either way, it wasn't where he had fallen asleep, and that was never a good sign.
Stan pushed himself to his feet, the air around him crackling with static energy, as if it knew he didn't belong and was trying to push him out. He could sense supernatural power in the house, something that almost felt like a protective force surged through the walls of the home, but more importantly, there was definitely someone, or something, in the house with him, and close too. Alarms were immediately going off in his head. He was starting to realize that this may not have been a nightmare.
He heard the opening and closing of a door somewhere nearby and suddenly the lights flicked on. He blinked to adjust his vision out of instinct, though he didn't actually need to since light levels didn't affect his vision the way it would have if he were truely alive. He was in some sort of livingroom type area, and judging by the small window near the ceiling he thought he may have been in a basement.
Heavy footsteps echoed through the large room. Stan whirled around to face whoever it was walking up on him and was met by a face he had never wanted to see in person. His eyes went wide and he was sure he looked horrified at the realization of where he was. The creature facing him grinned wildly at his terrified expression, a low chuckle escaping his lips as he leaned against the wall casually, looking Stan up an down like a predator would it's prey.
"Stan Frederick, you are a hard man to find." He announced, his voice was rough and low, edged with an echoey static that hinted at his not so human origins. "Or should I call you Evan? That is your real name, right?"
Stan narrowed his eyes, causing his opponents grin to widen further. "Why did you bring me here Habit?" He jumped straight to the point, feigning confidence. He wasn't going to allow Habit to play with him the way he had seen the creature do to others before him.
"Oh, come on, ease up Stan, I'm not gonna hurt you." He paused, chuckling, "... Yet."
Stan took a step back to distance himself, "What do you want?" He questioned bluntly, refusing to give in to Habit's teasing.
"Man, you are seriously no fun." Habit whined sarcastically, standing up straight and stretching his back, the popping of his joints echoing through the room, putting Stan on edge. Well, more than he had been before that is. "And so rude too. You see, I'm trying to be nice to ya' pal, which isn't a pleasure I allow all my guests," His eyes narrowed to a sharp glare as he snarled like the feral monster he was, "So I don't exactly take nicely to your standoffish attitude." His voice was low and threatening, sharp like the edge of a freshly sharpened knife, that demonic undertone that hinted at his true form becoming more prominent.
Stan grimaced, knowing this encounter wouldn't end well if he were to be too stubborn with the creature before him. Habit's rabid smile returned as he realized that Stan understood his thinly veiled threats and would almost certainly be more willing to cooperate.
"So, Stan, buddy, how have things been for you lately?" He questioned, mischievous and arrogant as ever, his lazy, threatening grin gracing his lips once more and his voice sounding almost normal once more. To the point where if an unwitting friend of Evan's were to hear him speak they might just mistake the creature inhabiting their friend's body for their actual friend.
Stan had to hold himself back from rolling his eyes at the question, "Well, you know, not great honestly, considering everything that happened." He answered honestly, annoyance and contempt edging his words.
Habit's grin widened. It was exactly the answer he had wanted and though the words that left his mouth were relaxed and calm, almost lazy, it was obvious he had prepared for this before hand.
"Oh yeah, that's right, you had an... incident, about a year ago, right?" He didn't wait for Stan to respond, continuing with an ever widening smile, "That was a pretty interesting trick you pulled on the old stick-in-the-mud, kind of impressive if I'm being honest." He paused for a second, looking as if he was thinking, "What is it that you called creatures like yourself again?"
He walked across the room theatrically as he continued, his gaze intense, "Alive but not really, a shadow of your former self, a broken puzzle missing its pieces!" He looked to Stan with an excitement in his eyes. Stan was sure at this point that Habit had been preparing for this exact moment for a while.
"A corruptelam." His voice was low and calm, corrupt as ever, "That's what you called them, right?"
If it wasn't for the fact that Stan could quite literally feel the supernatural power flowing off of this creature in waves he may have lashed out. Hearing someone else call him by that title, it hit him hard in a way he hadn't realized it would. He very suddenly regretted coining the term in the first place, as accurate as it was. It was just so dehumanizing. He realized all at once that that was the reason why he had felt uncomfortable applying the title to himself for all this time, the implied lack of humanity that came along with it. For so long, in a world surrounded by monsters, the one thing he had been certain about was his own humanity, the thing that separated him from the creatures before him and joined him with the rest of the world, as fucked up as that world might've been at times. A pit grew in his stomach as the entity before him smiled wickedly at his crestfallen expression.
"Oh, you don't like that, do you?" Habit questioned, amusement clear in his voice.
"Shut up... " Stan's voice was quiet, but commanding.
"But you were the one that coined the term Evan, it's what you are, why is it that you seem so upset then?"
"Stop. Whatever you want, I want no part of it." Stan told him, his voice a bit stronger as he grew angrier at the homicidal entity's mind games. Hearing the creature mutter his real name wasn't helping either. He knew he was being manipulated, but all the same he knew it was effective manipulation, and that scared him more than any title he could be given.
"You say that now, but I have a feeling you'll want to hear me out." Habit smugly suggested.
"And I'm telling you that I don't deal with murderous, baby eating gods with anger issues and a want for war." Stan held his ground, but he honestly wasn't as confident as he sounded.
Habit's face fell, it wasn't hard to tell he was getting tired of Stan's defiance and he didn't try to hide it either.
"Stan, I swear to god, if you don't shut up and hear me out I will feed what's left of you to the old stick-in-the-mud as if I was Micheal goddamn Andersen."
Stan froze. The threat, despite everything, still scared him. The possibility of that monster winning after all the effort he had gone through to make few sure it didn't, it was, in a way, the perfect threat.
"Fine." Stan begrudgingly gave in, arms crossed "Make your offer."
"Perfect." Habit's grin returned as if nothing had happened, "Now Stan, I don't know if you've ever stopped to consider this, but I think it's quite obvious that we share a common enemy."
Stan raised an eyebrow.
Habit sighed in exasperation, "Oh, don't play dumb!" He exclaimed, his patience obviously wearing thin, "I know for a fact that you're not on the stick-in-the-mud's good side, and if you're even half as aware or intelligent as I think you are, then you know that we don't exactly get along well either."
"And?" Stan questioned, just as exasperated as Habit was, if not more.
"If you would just let me finish I'd get to it!" Habit growled, his hand slamming down on the small table next to him.
If Stan didn't know as much as he did about the dangerous entity before him he probably would've been a bit entertained by the dramatic being's frustration. Instead he stood facing a seemingly immortal, openly homicidal, self-proclaimed god, with anger issues currently focus entirely on him, and despite being mostly dead, Stan found fear creeping into his subconscious once more.
Habit took a deep breath and composed himself, his now narrowed gaze focusing back on Stan, "Anyways," He hissed, "You probably know this, but I've been working with
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dorkyungsoowrites · 6 years
Text
Spontaneous Attraction Ch. 16
Pairings: Kyungsoo x You, Past Chanyeol x You
Genre: Fluff/Angst/Smut | Ambiguous AU
Warnings: None
Word Count: 5.4k
Description: You should have known things were too calm. You could see a storm cresting your way.
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The rest of the morning went by in a blur. You finished showering faster than you would have liked. What was satisfying was seeing the brightly colored petal on Kyungsoo's collarbone as he dried his hair with a towel. You liked the way it contrasted with his tan skin, and knowing you were the only two who would know it was there. Once he saw the time reality clicked in and the lazy morning was no more. Both of you got dressed and he ate a quick breakfast while you finished getting ready. When you came out he gave you a piece of toast you would have to eat on your way out the door.
After your morning lessons you went back to the apartment to eat and get your practice in before afternoon lessons. You were amused to find Kyungsoo had forgotten his glasses on your nightstand. They had to be important to have considering they helped him see better. You knew he could get along without them, but it would be more of a hassle, and you weren't sure the next time you would see him was. So you came up with a plan. A sort of half-formed, not totally thought out, shadow of a shell of a plan. Really it was deciding to deliver his glasses, but you didn't want that to be your only reason, thus the sort of plan. You were used to winging it. You literally made a living off of it sometimes playing improv at music gigs. Driving the path you remember taking a few weeks ago after taking a last minute stop, you found your way to where Kyungsoo worked. As far as you knew he was there most of the time. Unfortunately you forgot you needed a code to get in the building, and not wanting to spoil the surprise, called the first member to show up in your contact list.
"Hello?" You spoke tentatively when the call connected. "It's Y/N. I don't know if you remem--"
"Of course!" the chipper voice cut in. "What's up?"
"I wanted to surprise Kyungsoo, but I forgot I couldn't get in the building alone. Is it okay if you let me in? Or at least come get what I brought? I don't want you to get in trouble."
"Hey guys, I'll be right back!" he yelled away from the receiver to someone in the background. He replaced the phone next to his ear to talk to you. A door shut on his end. "What kind of surprise?"
"Mostly food, but I didn't forget about you guys either." There was an audible gasp.
"You brought us food? You are seriously the best." An elevator dinged. "Like actually the coolest. I didn't ask by the way you're in the parking deck right?"
"Yes."
"Okay. Awesome. It's like you have psychic powers. We just finished dance practice and I'm starving."
"They're more like snacks, but I'm glad I'm not interrupting your work."
"Free food is free food," he declared. "I'm almost there. Are you at the door?"
"Yup."
"See you in a second." He hung up the call. You waited with two flimsy plastic bags and not a minute later the door swung open. The boy beamed over at you, dark hair sticking to his forehead in damp clumps, sweat still dripping down his temple. A towel was around his neck, but he had yet to change out of his practice clothes because the baggy shirt was practically drenched, finishing off with basketball shorts and sneakers.
"Hey Baekhyun," you smiled back, stepping inside the building. His lanky arms came around you and hugged you tightly.
"I'm so happy to see you again."
"Me or the food?" He chuckled next to your ear.
"Both." Baekhyun pulled away and started leading you back the way he came. "How have you been?"
"Good, thanks. You?"
"Same as ever. Sehun showed us all that video of your concert. That was amazing. I haven't seen a performance like that since I was a kid. I wish I had gone with them." You both climbed on the elevator. He wiped his face with the towel after pressing the correct button.
"Sehun filmed the concert?"
"You didn't know?"
"First I'm hearing of it. Did he film the whole thing?" He nodded. "I should ask him if he can make a copy for me."
"I'm sure he will." You caught his hand trying to open one of the bags you held and yanked them out of his reach. "Aw come on," he whined. "You're about to give them to us soon."
"Then one more minute won't kill you."
"Pretty please?" He stuck out his lower lip and widened his eyes, hands clasped together in front of him. You rolled your eyes.
"That is so not the type of begging that works on me, but you have squishy cheeks," you replied. "It's cute." You poked one side of his face. His pout disappeared, swatting your hand away.
"I'll rub my squishy, sweaty cheeks all over your face," he threatened lamely. You laughed. The sweat didn't bother you to be honest. He had just been dancing for who knows how long; probably the whole morning. That was going to happen. The elevator opened. Like a switch had been flipped Baekhyun straightened and led you down several hallways silently. A few stray employees breezed past you. As long as you kept a respectable distance they acted like you were invisible. Finally you reached the right door and he let you in, closing it after following you.
Eight pairs of eyes flew to look at you. They were all dressed about the same as Baekhyun with minor alterations. A few wore sweats instead of shorts, and some had tank tops or had already cooled enough to put on a hoodie. Jongin and a guy you hadn't met yet wore beanies. Chanyeol startled a little just from not expecting you. One person jumped ten feet in the air because he was in the middle of changing. Jongin fumbled with his shirt, holding it to his chest while his face gradually got redder. You waved and greeted them while walking closer.
"Hey guys, it's good to see you again." Jongdae pushed Jongin's spare shirt in his face and he quickly pulled it over his head.
"Surprise!" Baekhyun cheered, running up behind you. Chanyeol sighed tiredly.
"What did you do this time, Baek?"
"Actually," you cut in. The group gathered around you. Minseok polished off a water bottle. "This was my idea. I thought I would surprise you." You extended one bag out in their general direction.
"Oh," Junmyeon replied and took it from you. "Thank you." A grin stretched his lips when he opened it, voice conveying more excitement. "Wow, this is perfect right now. Thank you." Baekhyun went to him and peeked in the bag.
"What is it? What is it? Whoo!" He pulled out a strawberry popsicle then leapt at you, almost tackling you in a hug. "Thanks babe!" He jokingly pecked your cheek before taking a few steps away and tearing open the packaging. You wiped your face of the spit and/or sweat he left behind. You didn't care to think about it too much. You decided to address the room while more people crowded around Junmyeon.
"I didn't know what you all liked so I just bought a bunch of different kinds of ice cream. Although there's a fudge one in there somewhere for Chanyeol."
"Got it!" Minseok announced and tossed it to the tall boy across the way. Kyungsoo made his way to you.
"Hey," you said in a softer voice, hoping the mild ruckus beside you while eight people argued over which frozen treat they wanted most drowned out your conversation. Producing your original purpose from your pocket, he chuckled. Kyungsoo slid them on his face. "You forgot your glasses this morning. I figured they were important, but I didn't want to come without a better excuse so." You gestured with your head. "Plus they deserve it. You work all the time. I also brought you this." He took the second bag from your hands and looked inside. "Don't lie," you teased and nudged his arm. "You were a little jealous that I cooked my roommate her work lunch." He smiled affectionately after seeing the plastic containers filled with sauteed vegetables, mushrooms, chicken and rice. "It's one of the few things I can cook so it's simple, but--" You were silenced by him pressing his lips to your cheek. He was gone as soon as he came, but the effect was still the same; you shut up. Glancing around, no one seemed to notice, or didn't care. The exchange was so quick you could have fooled yourself into thinking it didn't happen.
"Thank you. I love it." Kyungsoo flashed you another brilliant smile. "I'll enjoy it as soon as I can." He reached a hand out and hooked two fingers in the collar of your shirt, pulling it aside so he could see the fresh mark of color he left on you. His thumb ghosted over the abused skin, smile simmering to a smirk. He stepped closer, mouth inches from yours. "First I think I'll have something sweeter. You know how weak I am to the taste of sugar." You bit your lip. He knew. He knew how it would affect you and he loved that he could frustrate you so easily. He enjoyed knowing you were left wanting him. Kyungsoo glanced at your lips, tongue peeking out to wet his own, then turned and walked over to pick from the last dregs of slowly melting treats Junmyeon dangled from his fingertips like nothing happened. You took a steadying breath before scanning the room. Some of them had collapsed leaning against the mirrored wall with the rest hovering behind Junmyeon in the middle. Sehun caught your gaze and waved you over. Standing in a circle was Sehun, you, Minseok, Jongdae and the person you hadn't recognized. All with their chosen desserts.
"Hey you're not blonde anymore," you observed. Sehun pushed his hair back. You weren't sure if it was close to his natural color, but it had been dyed a dark brown.
"Yeah, but I think I'm gonna go back to a more fun color soon."
"Like what?"
"Maybe pink?"
"That does sound fun. Maybe I'll dye mine too."
"Oh, right. You didn't get to meet Yixing the last time we hung out," he spoke like he almost forgot. The ninth member waved shyly and bowed his head in greeting. The jet black hair falling over his forehead from under his beanie, thick lips and sharp jawline made him look more like a model than a singer. Then again the same argument could be made for all of them.
"It's very nice to meet you," he spoke in a gentle, wispy voice.
"It's a pleasure meeting you too finally," you replied with a kind smile. "I'm Y/N. He said your name was Yixing?" He nodded once. "That's a nice name. So are you a singer or a rapper?"
"Singer."
"And a dope ass dancer," Sehun added.
"I'm sorry I couldn't make it to dinner last time. They told me what happened. It sounded fun."
"Don't worry about it. You're here now. If I remember correctly I was told you would really love my party story." That made a grin crack his shy mask open, chuckling lowly.
"They told me that, too. I can't believe you set a lawn on fire."
"Not on purpose," you countered. "Do you also play the piano then?"
"Yes, and guitar."
"Nice. You're very talented." He averted his eyes and thanked you. You looked up at Sehun. "Before I forget, Baekhyun said you recorded my concert. Do you mind making me a copy so I can hear it?"
"Sure. Give me some time though. We're really busy this next week."
"No rush. I really appreciate it." He leaned his arm on your shoulder, really rubbing in how tall he was. "You guys didn't get in too much trouble for coming did you?"
"Just a lecture this time. How was your girls night out?"
"Wonderful," you scoffed and rolled your eyes. "We hardly danced before my roommate decided she was done for the night. I think we would've been better off going to dinner with you."
"Well that's obvious. I'm the best company there is. Have you met me? I'm more charming than a prince."
"Maybe we can try again sometime Mr. Humble?" you teased.
"Your boyfriend won't get jealous?" he smiled brightly.
"He can come, too. Kind of like a double date." You watched carefully for his reaction to the suggestion. He blinked rapidly, stammering slightly.
"O-oh? A date? Are you sure she would l-like that?" Just as you thought; Sehun was all bark and no bite. It was perfect. You could already picture the endless banter between the two of them, but since his shyness ultimately would kick in he would go at her pace.
"If that makes you uncomfortable it can just be us."
"Uh no. No of course not. Why would I have a problem with that?"
"How hot is your roommate to get Sehun nervous like this?" Minseok chuckled.
"I'm not nervous," the tall boy snapped. "I just didn't think she was interested in knowing us, that's all. She dragged you out of there pretty quickly."
"That had nothing to do with you," you told him. "She thought you were polite, and she really liked your laugh."
"Sehun? Polite? Did you not talk?" Minseok jabbed again. You ignored him and spoke up before Sehun could say anything back.
"Think about it. Invite others if you want. It was only a suggestion." The oldest member went to your other side and put a hand on your shoulder. He opened his mouth to speak, but you only half heard over the stinging where his fingers held you. They were directly over the bruises and his hands were shockingly strong.
"So when are we going to be invited back to your place? You did promise you would cook next time."
"I'll look into it," you answered. You relaxed after his fingers let up, hand resting limp instead. "If you guys can tell me a time that would be best my schedule is flexible."
"I'm really looking forward to it." Taking a step back, both boys let you go.
"I should probably get going."
"Why?" Jongdae piped up, whining. He looked genuinely upset. His lips were stained bright red from the popsicle he was almost finished with. It gave you pause.
"I practice everyday too, you know," you replied.
"Why can't you do it later? We like when you visit us." You cocked your head.
"I...could I guess, but you're at work technically. I shouldn't be here."
"What's going on?" Baekhyun jumped in.
"Y/N wants to leave us," Minseok pouted, much like the younger had before in the elevator. His eyes were even bigger and he batted his eyelashes.
"But you just got here! Stay? Please?"
"I really wanted to invite you to lunch," Jongdae added. Still in that petulant tone. You broke down easily, giggling at the way his voice slid up and down in pitch dramatically when talking. Seeing him so disappointed made you want to get him to smile again. You had to resist the sudden strong urge to comfort him. You failed.
"I'm sorry, Jongdae," you cooed. "I'll stay and eat with you."
"So acting cute doesn't work, but whining like a child does?" Baekhyun asked, slightly annoyed.
"He's not a child," you defended, taking the few steps to stand by Jongdae. You looped your arm through his, hugging to his side. "And he didn't have to act cute. He is cute. Like a cat that needs attention."
"You don't find that extremely annoying?"
"It makes me want to take care of him. Why? Does Baekkie need extra love too?" At your teasing he closed off. It would seem you struck a chord too close to the chest with that one. Turning your attention to Jongdae, his cheeks were dusted pink. "You still want to go to lunch?" He glanced between you and Baekhyun before nodding.
"We can just bring back something from the cafeteria though since you can't stay long."
"Sounds great. Ready to go?" He bit off the last of his frozen treat and hummed his agreement. "Anyone else is free to join us." Kyungsoo strolled over, and you released Jongdae's arm.
"Why not," Sehun shrugged. "Let me get something." He bolted to the wall where a mixed pile of their things were strewn.
"Are you coming?" Kyungsoo didn't answer right away. In one hand was the lunch you made. In the other was a half eaten cone. His tongue dipped inside, using it to scoop ice cream up and into his mouth. You watched as some of the cream got on the corner of his mouth, adams apple bobbing when he swallowed. He wiped away the excess with the pad of his thumb, pushing his lower lip out. He put the digit between his lips and sucked it clean. A person should not look that erotic eating ice cream. It was incredible how a simple look or action from Kyungsoo would have your heart hammering in your chest.
"Y/N?" You whipped around to see Jongin. He had actually come over with Kyungsoo. You shook your head clear so you could focus. Kyungsoo smirked beside you and bit off a big chunk of cone to chew on casually.
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry about earlier," he said nervously, wringing his hands together. You tilted your head.
"What happened earlier?"
"Uh, y-you walked in and I...I'm sorry. I didn't expect you."
"Oh, you being shirtless?" You scoffed. "Don't apologize for that. It's just your body. Everyone has one. You shouldn't be embarrassed about that."
"Oh...okay," he replied slightly stunned. "I guess I'm used to a different reaction."
"Different how?" He rubbed the back of his neck, not meeting your eyes and mumbled,
"Fans screaming, I guess. I just wanted to make sure I didn't make you uncomfortable."
"Oh," you exhaled. "Well now I feel dumb. I'm sorry for even asking. I forget sometimes. I guess I don't think about it as being a big deal, but not everyone is that way. My roommate always had her anatomy and physiology books around in college, and she still shows me people she's worked on sometimes so it's just...it doesn't matter to me. I mean, good for you that you're fit and all. I'm glad you're healthy, but it's just a torso, you know? I don't understand people who get worked up over it."
"Wait," Sehun cut in. He had returned with a dress shirt over his normal one, but didn't button it. "You forget sometimes? Have you still never looked up any of our songs?"
"Of course I have," you answered. Then added sheepishly, "a few of them."
"Which ones? Did you see the music video?"
"No. Definitely not the music video. I made sure to only see lyric videos."
"So? What did you think?" Most of them were looking at you by then, eager for your opinion. You assumed they only cared because you had been professionally trained in music. They had tons of fans, you were sure, so they knew they were good. You tucked hair behind your ear.
"I only listened to the ones that people said you either composed or wrote yourself. It wasn't a huge spread, but I enjoyed them. Actually, I did listen to two songs not written by you. "What if" and "My Answer". The first one I really only liked for the lyrics. The backtrack was pretty generic synth which is fine since you're a pop group. The other I liked the piano. It was very empty orchestration, but it pulled the focus to your voices and the sentiment behind it which I think made it more emotional. Your voices are all really nice." You smiled bashfully at the various grins that earned. "They all blend together very well, and I'll admit to getting a little emotional while hearing some of the cluster chords you used. I know logically you all told me you're singers, but it still amazed me how beautiful all of you sounded."
"So which was your favorite?" Baekhyun questioned you. You didn't hesitate to answer,
"Oh, 'Promise', by far. The lyrics and the composition were heartwrenching. I actually got chills with Jongdae's high note at the end of the bridge. I'm not even sure if it was falsetto, but you could hear the back space in your voice really clearly which was impressive. I guess your the groups go-to descant guy. If I had to critique something it would be that that run would've been the perfect spot to modulate up a half step." Somewhere in the room you heard someone whisper,
"Told you so."
"You could really feel the love that was put into that song. It had a lot of soul to it, and the way it ended? Amazing. No resolution, strings and piano, that effect that made it sound like the music was being closed off suddenly? I really love that song."
"But you didn't listen to more?"
"I don't..." You started over. "I'd rather stay away from that stuff."
"That stuff?"
"Idol stuff," you elaborated. "I don't want to see your stage personas. It feels wrong somehow. I'm very proud of all of you; you're extremely talented and hard working, and I admire that. It's just, I know you as you and it's weird to see otherwise. If that makes sense."
"I guess," Sehun agreed. The others nodded and mumbled similar things.
"Chanyeol," you called to divert topics. The tall boy looked over at you. "You haven't said much. You're coming to eat with us right?"
"Uh yeah. Sure." You made a sweeping gesture with your arm.
"Lead the way." His returning smile was awkward and forced.
A group of you went down to get food and returned to eat away from the hordes of other employees. Everyone except Minseok formed a circle on the floor. He had disappeared at some point. You were sandwiched between Kyungsoo and Jongdae. You had only gotten a piece of fruit and some instant noodles while the other members got more substantial meals. Spotty conversations picked up to fill the silences between eating. You sifted through your mind for a decent conversation starter while slurping up some over-salted noodles. The main goal being to have a relaxed conversation with Chanyeol at the least. He hardly spoke to you still, and when he did it was awkward and clipped. It was like he was afraid of talking to you. Afraid of saying the wrong thing you would understand, but avoiding you all together was starting to take its toll. Until the night with the misguided kiss he had been fun and bright and joyful. You missed your friend. You missed having that relationship where outsiders could mistake you for siblings because you were so close. Not only in the sense of friendship, but also demeanor. You liked the same things, laughed at the same lame jokes. When you were still kids you even had some of the same mannerisms. You were nostalgic for his company. You wished he still barged in to your apartment to watch a movie like he lived there with you. It was an odd feeling of homesickness. It was difficult to pinpoint why you still craved his attention, but there he was sitting a few feet away and you couldn't help wanting him to close the distance. Even if it was a simple joke or inquiring about your work. You just wanted your friend back. He was one of the only ones you had. One of the few strings that tied you to a world outside of your work. Cut them all and you would be back where you were at the beginning of college, every thought consumed with music in one way or another, isolated and overwhelmed. It wasn't until your first roommate dropped out and you found your current one that you were forced out of your loneliness to experience the world. She pushed you like Chanyeol used to and prevented you from burning out. Those experiences reflected in how you played because you were feeling a wider spectrum of what it was to live, and could convey that to audiences no matter what music it was. It molded you into the person you became. Your friends made you into a better person. Without Chanyeol, even though you were only reunited for a few months before things went south, it felt like something vital had gone missing.
You were pulled out of your thoughts by a hand on the small of your back. The light touch made you shiver and look up from your food. Kyungsoo held up a piece of chicken pinched in his chopsticks. You opened your mouth without thinking about it, and he fed you the morsel of meat. He smiled gently as you chewed. It was delicious, but considering it was one of three dishes you knew how to cook--therefore had cooked hundreds of times--it had better be decent. Kyungsoo's hand left to pick up the container holding the stir-fry you made and continued eating. The small gesture had your cheeks feeling warmer. Every time you thought you were understanding him better he did something like that. Always without explanation. It was infuriating and wonderful never knowing what he was thinking. Granted that morning he had confirmed thinking something similar about you so after he went back to eating you brushed it off as best you could. Ever since you entered the practice room he had been trying to fluster you. You were certain he was doing it on purpose, and you wouldn't give yourself away too much. If he knew how easily he could wrap you around his finger you didn't want to imagine how much he would tease you. It was bad enough knowing yourself if he wanted to pull you aside and fuck you at work you would probably give in embarrassingly easily. Letting him know that? He would probably pull you aside just to get you to beg then leave. He had a crazy amount of self control. When he did something it was thought out and performed with intent. Pretty much your opposite in that regard. You went with spontaneous gut feelings and took things as they came afterward in a way that made others think you were more assured than you were. Together you were a good balance, challenging eachother to be more.
"Ah shit," Junmyeon exclaimed across the circle, staring at his phone. He glanced your way while typing. "Sorry, Minseok just texted saying the manager wants some of us to see him before going back to practice. Something about the photos tomorrow." He got to his feet and shoved his phone in his pocket. "Baekhyun, Jongin, Jongdae, come on. When we come back the rest of you should go check in just in case so there's no confusion."
"We're never gonna get time to spend with Y/N," Jongdae complained. "It's not fair Kyungsoo can see her whenever he wants."
"I'm sure he sees plenty of her too," Chanyeol grumbled under his breath. You still heard it though, and you swallowed down your irritation. No one else had picked up on his words. The four members who were summoned shoveled in big mouthfuls of food before standing to follow Junmyeon.
"Hey," you called. You caught Jongdae's wrist. Once he looked down at you you let go. "You guys know I'm only a text away right? Unless I have rehearsals or a concert I'm free at night. I'm always more than happy to have you over for movies or something."
"That's very generous," he replied. He was much more serious. "But I was just complaining about now. We couldn't steal you from Kyungsoo like that."
"Steal me?"
"Your time," Baekhyun explained. "We hardly get time alone to date. We don't want to keep you from being together. Why did you think we were so happy to see you today?"
"That's really sweet and thoughtful of you guys."
"Says the woman who just surprised us with ice cream and cooked Kyungsoo lunch," Yixing threw over with a smirk.
"Come on, guys," Junmyeon insisted. Baekhyun gave you a quick, slightly awkward hug, then sprinted across the room, the four boys saying their thanks and farewells. When they were gone the room was much quieter. You looked between Chanyeol and Sehun.
"So that's why I haven't seen much of you guys?"
"And we stay busy," the youngest provided. "Why do you think I dragged Chanyeol to your concert with us? You should just come eat lunch with us every day."
"I don't know about that," you laughed nervously. Chanyeol was sulking, eyebrows furrowed, refusing to look at you. "I'm usually working and I'm obviously just getting in the way now."
"How?" Yixing questioned, mouth half full.
"Well, because..."
"It would really lift our spirits," Sehun told you.
"Your schedules are almost always erratic," you refused. "And I'm sure you don't need me to distract you."
"Baekhyun feels the same way, I know it. I think he actually listens to you. And Jongin's finally talking to your face."
"Leave her alone, Sehun," Chanyeol cut in dryly. Your gaze darted to the tall rapper. He was annoyed. Well, he had been the entire time you ate, but now he was speaking up. He picked at his last crumbs of food, glaring at his plate. "If she said no then the answer is no. She has a life outside of us."
"Not much of one," you joked. "But thanks for understanding." His response was a short hum. Only enough to acknowledge he heard you. "Chanyeol, are you...are you okay? You've been acting weird since I got here." His hand curled into a fist then opened again, words clipped when answering,
"Fine. Don't worry about me."
"But you are worrying me. Did something happen?"
"Like you actually care," he spat. You felt his words like a slap across the face. He shoved his empty plate to the side where they decided to make a trash pile to pick up later, the bag that had ice cream in it their receptacle.
"Of course I care, Chanyeol. I hate seeing people upset. Especially when those people are my friends. I'm just trying to find a way to help--"
"Well stop it," he seethed. Chanyeol sounded huskier. His voice trembled in his throat. You knew that tone. He was either about to explode in anger or break down in tears. Funny how often those two emotions went together. He got to his feet, and you noticed his hands were shaking as well. His eyes met yours only for a second, but it was long enough to see the pain lying there; the flaring embers. You prepared yourself for his outlash, knowing when he got worked up his ferocity brought forward a darker side to the typically gentle giant. You would let him yell at you until he had drawn all the poison from inside him out. He normally bottled his anger, and when he was clearing his system he would spew venomous words until he burned himself out. Usually there's a grain of truth, but when he snaps he can't seem to control his tongue and small annoyances pile into monumental wrongs. Hiding his expression beneath his bangs, he gestured violently to add emphasis to his raised voice. "And for fucks sake you're not even trying to be subtle, Soo. Get a room if you can't keep your hands off her for one goddamn minute. I'm sick of watching you drool over her every fucking time you see her. We get it. Go fuck her in your own time."
"Whoa there," Sehun tried to calm. It didn't work. Chanyeol got louder, preventing Sehun from speaking anymore.
"No! I'm done with it! I'm done with this! I'm going back to work!" He turned on his heels. You panicked. You couldn't just let him go stew in his anger alone. There was more bothering him, but you felt helpless to do more than call after him. He yanked the door to the room open and threw a hateful, "stay the fuck away from me," over his shoulder.
Then he was gone.
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theonceoverthinker · 5 years
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OUAT 3X03 - Quite a Common Fairy
Well, I’m FAIRY certain we’re in for a good time today, and I hope you’ll agree!
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(That pun works in two ways. I’m proud.)
And if you want to hear my non-pun thoughts, meet me below the cut! (Though who would ever want to read thoughts that don’t come in pun form? Those who do are not to be trusted!)
Press Release
In their continuing quest to find Peter Pan’s hideout and save Henry, Hook suggests tracking down Tinker Bell in the hope that she will lead them straight to his camp. Pan reveals to Henry why he has brought him to Neverland and in the Enchanted Forest, Neal has a plan that could transport him to Emma, but it would involve using one of Robin Hood’s most precious possessions. Meanwhile, in the Fairy Tale Land that was, Tinker Bell offers to help Regina improve her life.
General Thoughts - Characters/Stories/Themes and Their Effectiveness
Past
So I like how Regina’s air has really changed in the opening of the flashback. The flashback before this, from what I gather, is “The Doctor” and you can see how the murder she committed there has affected her after the fact. It’s clearly darkened her, as depicted by the way Lana plays it (Her voice and posture, specifically), but what I like is how that affected her. She doesn’t want to be evil and takes a step back to see what she wants.
”He’s dead and I suffered. What you sent me towards wasn’t going to change that.” This line is fantastic because Regina’s right in a way. Meeting something new won’t change the hurt she’s already felt and is likely still feeling over Daniel’s death. That said, it’s appropriately framed as something she absolutely needed to do for her own sake. While the past can’t be changed, there can be a good future if you allow for it to come to pass.
“I no longer believe in you.” I still hold onto my headcanon about Blue not necessarily being evil, BUT by being such a bureaucrat, she sort of became a villain in her own right. Tink, Nova, Dreamy, and countless others all have their hearts in the right place and Blue just can’t (Or won’t) bend the rules to help them. While not completely devoid of redeemability, I can’t fault anyone for hating her. Her character is incredibly annoying, not at all a paragon or even an inspiration of goodness. She’s a Rubix Cube and finding out what circumstances will allow her to give one magic and advice is a puzzle (And not even a fun one). She’s also not especially engaging on other levels, making her importance in the series something of a dead weight.
Neverland
You really see how dark Neverland has turned Tinker Bell. From the costume design to her more flight-or-fight mannerisms portrayed in Rose’s performance, Tink’s character in Neverland is almost unrecognizable here to what we see in the flashback. It’s incredibly effective in showing the consequences of Regina’s decision. I love her wild eyes.
What an amazing episode for Regina! Her characterization here was simply fantastic. The episode doesn’t playing around with the fact that Regina...well, she’s not the greatest person in the world just yet. She eggs Tinker Bell on and makes snippy comments. But her choices are improving and that happens in a natural way. Her test to Tinker Bell is harsh, but Regina does it in a way only Regina would do. The way she challenges Tink’s potential to do bad is effective in showing how she still believes in her, making the tepid resolution they settle on work.
Enchanted Forest
“So because I know what it’s like to lose family, I should risk mine?” This sentiment honestly holds true in this segment so strongly. I get Neal’s frustration, but he is risking a four year old’s safety. The good thing is that it’s framed to give exactly the feelings that it solicits and Neal’s speeches do help a lot with the balance of sympathy. While I didn’t like Neal basically guilting Robin into using Roland to summon the shadow, it does make sense as a desperate move needed for him as a father. I do wish for that reason though that the speeches were more about Henry specifically. It would make the main conflict more of a relation to a father and his son, strengthening his bond with Robin. That said, the discussion of romance was nice and it did give way to Mulan’s storyline.
Insights - Stream of Consciousness
-David, get over your fucking machismo! You literally JUST got poisoned because of it!
-Fuck! A moving map! Pan is dastardly as all hell!
-Who doesn’t like apples?” “It’s a family thing.” Oh come on, Henry! I’m sure they’d be the APPLE of your eye if you just APPLE-y yourself and eat one! XD
-I like how Neal demonstrates the cleverness that helped him survive in Neverland and eventually escape through his deductions with Mulan. It’s a very logical process.
-ROLAND!!! BABY ROLAND! FIRST APPEARANCE! BEST EPISODE EVER!!! AWWWWW!
-Seriously, the casting department found the single most adorable kid in the world to be Roland!
-Neal...are you sure this is a good idea? He’s a baby, Neal.
-Not gonna lie, I’d try roast swan.
-”I’m the queen, but I’m practically a prisoner with a husband whose heart is still with his dead wife, and his insipid daughter.” Regina’s dynamic with Leopold, while undeniably abusive to her, fascinates me. This line makes me wonder if she has tried falling for Leopold and to a degree, succeeded. She’s bothered by Leopold still only holding feelings for his dead wife and being stuck in that position and I’m not sure if the next scene either strengthens this mindset or diminishes it.
-Rumple analogy of the diner and the feast is very interesting to me. It plays the darkness off as something predatory, more of a hunter than something to be sought. It makes sense because Rumple kind of did get stolen by the darkness in that he was unprepared to have to take it on and the consequences of that choice.
-I really appreciate that at least one of the fairies is actively acting as a suicide hotline!
-”But, if I had, here’s to good reasons.” That’s...really fucking dark!
-”It is possible to find love again.” I love this sentiment. Once can never rule out the possibility of new love! <3
-*Henry attempts to shoot Pan in the fucking chest* What a badass!!!
-*Goes to the fairies’ den* Show, you cannot throw that many colors at me AND spin! Talk about sensory overload!
-”My name isn’t green. It’s Tinker Bell.” So fairies have names. What’s Blue’s?
-Blue! Who died and put you in control of the fairies?! Because they were kind of an idiot!
-”Are you out of your mind? He’s four years old!” My sentiments exactly, Robin!
-”What did you do to her?” That line was delivered flawlessly! It’s so chill and it cracks me the fuck up.
-”Operation Henry.” Awwwwww!!!!!
-”Does anyone really own pixie dust?” “The fairies are quite proprietary about it.” Fairies are dicks. Or really, just Blue.
-”The beginning of your happiness.” I really applaud the carefulness of the show with lines like these. Robin isn’t the sole component of her Regina’s happy ending, but he is still part of it.
-I honestly forgot there was a standoff here between Tink and Regina and was thusly as shocked as the audience probably originally was!
-”A complicated history. That’s quite a diplomatic way of describing it.” Well, she is a queen and a bit more refined!
-How was there never an episode called “The Man with the Lion Tattoo?”
-You can see how well Lana plays Regina’s goodbye to Tinker Bell in the flashback. She starts out scared (As Tinker Bell suspected) and hesitant, but you see her Evil Queen persona come in, pulling off a wicked goodbye to ensure that she leaves.
-Blue, you are just the worst.
- “It’s too late for me.” ”Only if you kill me.” I wouldn’t even say that’s the point of no return. Half the people who came to Neverland have killed tons.
-Part of why I love season 3 is I love seeing groups strategize and work together and the payoff that comes with it. It’s such a satisfying sensation.
-So I love how Tink was so clearly gamed for tracking down for Regina but had NO idea about her companions! XD
-Felix says “Baelfire” so freakin’ creepily.
-You didn’t just ruin your life. You ruined his.” I actually hate this line. Robin’s life wasn’t ruined. Derailed, perhaps, but he was genuinely in love with Marian and Roland is the most precious child in the world!
Arcs - How Are These Storylines Progressing?
The Mission to Save Henry - This arc is moving so smoothly along! So far, every episode has progressed this in a natural way that still feels like a lot of progress was made and here is no exception. There’s a real momentum to this season and it’s chugging along well. I feel like we’re taking a big step forward and it’s making for quite the nice walk.
Regina’s Redemption - Regina’s redemption this season is progressing also quite smoothly! Here, she’s a mix of herself -- kind of an asshole at times, but focused and genuinely trying to do better. I feel like Regina’s redemption is starting to come into its own here. It makes sense that there was some turbulence in late Season 2, and now, it’s more settled, making the growth more gradual and at the same time, quick.
Emma Accepting Her Parents - We only get a brief bit of this while exploring Tink’s pad, but it’s incredibly effective to help further bridge the gap between Emma and Snow. Lack, whether it be family or material possessions, is such a big component of Emma’s pre-Storybrooke life and to see how Snow dealt with that in the past was a clever move!
Favorite Dynamic
Emma and Regina. “So what did you do to her?” First and foremost, this line just cracks me in the casual way it’s brought up. Emma’s casual shrug and drinking-buddy tone is honestly funny. But continuing on, Emma and Regina share an amazing scene together. Both ladies have this genuine moment of kindness, all the while completely staying in character. It’s not overly friendly, but it’s friendly enough and focused enough to be believable and powerful at the same time. It also says so much about Regina. Regina’s throwing herself in danger and risking never seeing her son again and so quickly defaults to Emma taking care of him and saving him. It’s really meaningful!
Writer
Jane Espenson is up for her first episode of Season 3, and she does an incredible job here. The writing is smooth. Any episode that has three plots across three different realms has the challenge of balancing and weighing screen time and Jane makes the whole episode feel as smooth as peanut butter. It’s also smooth in the respect that this episode requires the characters to make bold choices and take hard chances (Ex. Regina letting Tink take her, Robin letting Neal use Roland to summon the shadow) and she makes the dialogue work for her so that these decisions don’t feel too harsh on the audience. That’s an admirable trait.
Rating
10/10. This was a really enjoyable episode. Tinker Bell’s introduction and Regina’s character development is great! It’s enjoyable seeing more of the characters working together and getting closer to finding Henry. I used the word “smooth” a lot in this review, and that’s because it’s honestly true. This whole episode feels smooth, from its development to its storytelling, it feels like driving on a freshly paved road, and given the broad strokes of what happened here that wasn’t an easy thing to do.
Flip My Ship - The Home of All Things “Shippy Goodness”
Captain Swan - Regina’s definitely getting those CS feels!!! And why wouldn’t she when there’s a COCONUT sharing between these two?!
Outlaw Queen - It’s interesting that the music playing in the background as Regina sees Robin’s tattoo is something akin to the wedding march. A lot of the same notes are hit, though it’s not a 1:1.
Swan Fire - Neal’s regret in his speech is really heartwarming! He wants so badly to get back together and make things right.
Sleeping Warrior - *Starts crying from the unrequited feels like a baby who just had their candy stolen*
Swan Queen - As said before, I really like Emma and Regina’s scene together! There’s a growing sense of trust between them now and it adds a heartwarming undertone to the scene to the melancholy overtone of Regina splitting off from the group.
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Thank you for reading and to the fine folks at @watchingfairytales!!! <3
Next time, uggh, sorry for the tangent, but I can’t scratch my lotto ticket because I chewed my nails too much. Man, I really need to take care of this...nasty habit. ;)
See you guys then!
Season 3 Total (29/220)
Writer’s Scores: Adam and Eddy (9/60) Kalinda Vazquez (10/40) Andrew Chambliss (10/50) Jane Espenson (10/30)
Operation Rewatch Archives
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leviachaan · 4 years
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Match-up
**Hi! Could I pls have a match-up? Could you pls also make this anonymous? I’m 5’1, female, long dark hair, Taurus and ISFJ. Introverted with extroverted qualities. Can be shy in crowds/meeting new people, generally good one to one and in general I can probably fake being social and carry out conversations well and seem confident even when my heart is racing. Can be awks and says a lot of random things. Tend to be very talkative and social with people I’m close to. I can get anxious and overwhelmed easily but wouldn’t ever give up and will persevere no matter the challenge. But because of that I do have trouble letting things go and can be a pretty big perfectionist. I try to be optimistic especially for others. The friend that people usually go to for advice and to give direction. I speak my mind but am careful of other peoples feeling. Empathetic and will stand up for others and support them. As a SO I’m very affectionate and romantic. I say I love you often (even to friends), saying when I feel it and will hug and kiss lots. I’m a very supportive SO and will do my best to make my SO happy and want the same in my SO. I’m silly and like to laugh and make others laugh so I want a SO I can have fun with and enjoy being around. I want a SO that is my best friend. I just want a loving supportive relationship where it truly feels like a partnership. I don’t date casually and would only date someone if I see it as a potentially for something serious. I like to start a relationship as friends first. I have a teasing personality and can be sassy so I might roast my SO teasingly but wouldn’t ever take it too far. I can be emotional and do cry easily but it’s because I care so much. Hobbies: singing, reading, fashion and playing video games. Thanks so much in advance and pls take ur time!
// you sound so much like me! I'm shook that we have so much in common. I'm sorry for the delay, studying has been taking over all of my time ;-;
I ship you with... Leviathan!
As an introvert, you would be able to understand his feelings and tendency to self-isolate himself and not judge him.
At first, he would be the casual Levi we know and love. Your extroverted qualities would overwhelm him and make him believe you are just a loud normie.
However, once he caught up on your shyness and discomfort when dealing with big crouds, he couldn't help but see himself in you.
Eventually, the otaku boi would find himself strangely curious about you. He would put on his big boi pants and slowly start to text you more and more.
If you are into memes, you would get spammed with them all day (with occasional wholesome memes that he definitely sent *accidentally*)
You being able to socialise and carry out conversations would encourage him to slowly break out of his shell and break the awkardness that could appear between you two. Once the ice is broken, he will like act like an excited puppy.
Your determination and perseverance would fascinate him. Every time you talked about an achievement of yours or your mindset about a certain topic, his heart would beat like a drum against his chest.
He would brag about you to literally any living thing possible. Online friends, brothers, Henry, Lotan, his Ruri-chan pillow, anyone. He feels like he doesn't deserve you, but he so so happy you chose him.
Be prepared for a l o t of occasional bursts of him rambling about his favourite games or anime. He wouldn't realise it at first, but he feels so safe and comfortable around you, he can't help it.
Especially if you encourage him to keep talking, he will never stop. The brothers won't be happy about that.
Once you told him that you are interested in videogames, o h b o y, you will be practically dragged to his room or being raised like a sack of potatoes on his shoulder while he kidnaps you or as he calls "Needing his player two for a co-op mission".
But the truth is, he just wants to spend as much time with you as he can.
Levi often has some emotional breakdowns where his own horrible self-esteem crushes down on him.
He was so hesitant in opening up to you at first. You are the only person to genuinely care about him and try to forge a friendship/relationship with him, he couldn't lose you.
However, once you managed to make him sit his stubborn bum down and talk to you, the words came flowing out like a river. Prepare yourself for some frustrated tears as well.
He would despise himself for looking so weak and pathetic in front of you, but once he looked up to see your caring eyes staring back at him affectionately, whispering out soft words of comfort to him, he forgot about all of his problems in 0.2 seconds.
Plus, he gets hugs from you so that's a win-win, even if he looks like a burnt tomato.
You are optimistic and he r e a l l y needs someone like you to remind him the good side of things. Soft kisses as a reward really help.
He's incredibly shy at first and will blush really hard if you as much as stay in the same room as him. *Insert why are you running meme every time you come near him*
The first time you hug him, his heart will literally combust. Someone as precious as you, hugging a yucky otaku like him????
He will try to deny your affection at first like "This is one of your normie tactics, isn't it??" "U g h that's such a normie move" while he is profusely blushing and wishing for you to never let him go. He knows he just told you to get off him, but please keep holding him.
Eventually, he will start being more accepting of your physical love and crave it more and more.
You want your SO to be your best friend?? He's your demon! This man has loyalty written all over him.
You were his best friend from the single moment you actually made a reference to TSL with him as the Lord of Shadow and you as Henry. Low-key wanted to marry you right there and then, but he controlled himself.
He's also great meme material and will try to make you laugh all the time. Your laugh will make his heart flutter and can't help the pride swelling in him by making someone like you happy.
He might not be the best in comforting people, because of his lack of social skills, but he will do his absolute best to cheer you up by offering to play games with you, watch a movie or let you take it all out while he lovingly rubs your back. He's a great listener, especially for you.
If you sing for him, he will be s w o o n e d.
He will literally stare at you wide eyed while screaming internally. His heart wasn't ready for this. Leviachan.exe has stopped working.
He would be too shy to admit it, but he would secretly record you one day as you were singing to him and listen to it every time he missed you or he was feeling down.
He would definitely record you saying "I love you" to him and keep it on his phone with 923792 passwords to gain access to it.
Your voice would be so soothing to him, almost like a lullaby.
Definitely put a cover of yours as his ringtone and ends up not answering his phone just to hear the melody.
I hope you like it! Thank you for the request 💖
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Worm Liveblog #45
UPDATE 45: Temporary Replacement
Last time this had turned into a momentary point of view change! That’s right, Taylor’s story has been interrupted for this long intermission in the form of an arc from the point of view of a character that has arrived to Brockton Bay to lead the Wards: it’s Weld. Apparently he’s rather popular, and I like he seems to be a rather decent guy, so let’s continue!
Aaaaaand Weld isn’t here anymore. I suppose this interlude isn’t just about him, it’s for everyone in the Wards. There’s a second newcomer, and it’s Flechette. Now that I think about it, it was mentioned in the last chapter that she’d be in the team too. Without the burden of the leadership role, she should have less of a hard time fitting with the rest of the team – when she’s not sneaking to the back of someone who works with crossbows and isn’t known for thinking twice before shooting.
“You nearly killed me!”
“It’s a tranquilizer shot, and you have the fire escape behind you.”
Yeah…no. It’s just my personal opinion, but getting shot with tranquilizer doesn’t sound fun at all. Not that…Flechette would have a reason to blame Shadow Stalker, sneaking behind someone like that was a stupid move.
At least Shadow Stalker isn’t berating her or anything like that. She seems rather courteous. It’d almost be hard to know Sophia Hess is the person behind the mask.
Flechette confirms she is just a temporary replacement, and the reason why Shadow Stalker is bothering to be civil is revealed.
“I don’t do backup, and I don’t do the team thing unless someone makes me, but I’m willing to hang with another crossbow aficionado.  Is that the right word?  Aficionado?”
It’s because Flechette uses a crossbow too. Okay, I…suppose that’s a reason as valid as any to accept someone’s presence. Besides, it’s not like Flechette is going to be a burden, she is a capable hero on her own right – although inexperienced, from what I remember happened during the Leviathan fight. They should be okay.
I have no idea how one’s supposed to use a grappling hook, but if it helps her keep up the pace, then great. Besides, Shadow Stalker’s patrol route isn’t complicated, Flechette will be fine as long as she goes in a straight line. I wonder what’ll happen during this chapter? I can guess there’ll be trouble, that this won’t be a calm and boring patrolling. What I don’t know yet is if trouble will be caused by a civilian or by a parahuman, maybe affiliated to one of the villain groups. The city, broken down as it is, really is the perfect place for riots and discord.
I think I had ever noticed how Shadow Stalker moved. Taylor never noted it, she never described it in her usual speeches about capes’ powers. Looks like Shadow Stalker has strength in her limbs, allowing her be propelled upwards or forwards. Maybe that cloak of hers aids her in gliding? It’s faster than what Flechette does, at least. It seems Flechette needs chains and crossbow bolts to use a grappling hook, and she relies mods on equipment than Shadow Stalker, leaving behind the bolts she uses after severing the chains that helped propel her.
Since Taylor isn’t here, the exposition duty falls on Mr. Wildbow.
Capes with the ‘breaker’ classification were generally those who had some ability to ‘break’ the natural laws of the universe as far as those laws applied to them.
Ah! That’s a good explanation! Breakers can bypass the laws of nature and all that with ease, it’s inherent to their powers. Sometimes such effect can be applied to themselves, other times to objects, and…I suppose it can never be applied to other people. Or almost never. The Manton effect would get in the way. Still, that’s quite the dangerous classification, isn’t it? When you’re fighting, you can’t rely on the laws of nature to keep you safe or help you. It’s a tad funny, though, almost all capes are Breakers in some way…but I suppose those who break the laws of nature more blatantly are the ones given this classification.
Flechette’s power gave her a low Breaker classification. Her power can give her crossbow bolts certain qualities that allow them to be more or less affected by laws like gravity, the air friction, and other similar elements. It’s not that she modifies the crossbow bolts physically, her power is nothing visible. I wonder how she trains and how she found out the extent of her power, back when she triggered? It sounds like it’d be complicated to find out. Then again, powers have a certain measure of instinct in them. Miss Militia’s awakening kind of made it clear.
She could do other things, but the primary benefit, the easiest thing to do, was making her ammunition punch through anything.  
Ah, right! She was the one who managed to fire a very large bolt through Leviathan’s head, wasn’t she? Given what we know about Leviathan’s mass and tissues, that’s no mean feat. That was the perfect way to demonstrate this. Compared to that, she shooting a bolt through the corner of a rooftop is child’s play.
It was tiring, constantly running, but she didn’t want to look bad in front of Shadow Stalker.  She was going to spend weeks with this team, and Shadow Stalker was the only other girl present that was close to her own age.  
Oh dear. Literally everyone else in the Wards would be a better person to spend time with. Buuuut yeah, of course someone would look for a peer, and Shadow Stalker is the only option that’d fit, so beggars can’t be choosers. At least Shadow Stalker is tolerating her presence.
Running on rooftops sucks, but she reaches Shadow Stalker, who is waiting for her.
“Don’t you run out of chain?”
Flechette turned, reached over her shoulder to tap her back. “Tinker teammate back home specializes in replication and cloning.  Small pack back here consumes energy from a small fusion battery to create a steady supply.  I’ve also got a kit back at the base that makes me a fresh stock of bolts.”
Ah! That answer that, I admit I was wondering just how much chain she had. If it’s constantly being created and replicated, then she won’t ever run out of supply, and not many would know to attack that backpack. She’s safe.
Shadow Stalker didn’t stop for kicks and giggles, looks like this chapter’s suspense and conflict has arrived. What is it?
Shadow Stalker led Flechette to the edge of the roof.  Looking down, they could see a group of men in a loose half-circle around a middle-aged woman.  The woman was backing away from the men, who were gradually closing in.
Looks like these are civilians, there’s no mention of costumes and the such. Should be no problem for a pair of heroes. Flechette demands to know why Shadow Stalker hasn’t gone ahead and saved that woman, the answer is that first they must do some type of violent and clearly bad action before she intervenes – so she has an excuse to open the can of whoop ass. Okay, I don’t like that, but...yeah, that’s usually how it goes, first you do the illegal action and then you receive punishment. Sometimes it’s rather unfortunate that’s necessary.
And Shadow Stalker had neglected to inform command.  Flechette reached for her ear, where an earbud was nestled in the canal. She squeezed it twice.  “Console, woman under attack by twelve or so ordinaries.  Shadow Stalker and Flechette stepping in.”
I’m pretty sure she, hm, “forgot” on purpose. If command doesn’t know, then it never really happened, yeah? She can use excessive force – without killing or maiming too hard because yeah, she’s still in probation, but I’m convinced she didn’t mention this so she could go and hit as hard as possible.
When Flechette gets to the fight, Shadow Stalker is already fighting and winning. The tranquilizer darts she has are for disabling the opponent, not to stop violence before it happens. Kind of a dirty tactic, when you look at it objectively, but I guess effectivity is what matters here.
Flechette does seem to still be inexperienced, she lets her guard down for a moment to make sure someone she defeated wasn’t going to drown in a puddle, giving enough time for another one of these men to take out a gun and try to shoot her. All he gets for his trouble is a crossbow bolt through the crotch of his ridiculously sagging jeans. Shadow Stalker deals with like three at the same time, they were already retreating, but she wasn’t going to let them go so easily.
Okay, despite everything bad and ugly Sophia is as a person, it can’t be denied she has some rather good fighting skills. As a fighter hero she’s competent, that definitely can’t be denied. All Flechette can do is watch her, enraptured, and I don’t blame her, that must have been quite the spectacle.
Soon all the attackers are either unconscious or trapped. Flechette made sure to restrain them with a minimum amount of harm, while Shadow Stalker, well, you can imagine she played rough.
Flechette palmed one of her throwing darts, glanced at it.  She’d been with the Wards a year before she had been given the arbalest and the chain reel.  Her darts had been her weapon of choice for a long time, alongside a rapier she’d eventually retired after too many fights using it had turned out badly.  She hadn’t had the heart to change her codename, even if it didn’t quite apply anymore.  Maybe when she graduated to the Protectorate.
It’s still kind of fitting, isn’t it? Crossbow bolts are close enough to darts, when you think about it. Maybe I’m just biased because in Spanish her codename is rather fitting, if a bit ridiculous.
Since their job is done, Shadow Stalker tosses Flechette a round device Flechette claims to not have seen since her training days. I’m not sure what it is.
“Times like this call for ’em.  City wants us on patrol, not sitting around with our thumbs up our asses, waiting for the cops to cart these fuckers off,”
Ah, alright, it must be some way to keep all of them restrained, you know, leaving all these guys behind and imprisoned so the police can come at their leisure while the heroes continue patrolling. I’m not sure yet of what this device will turn into, but at least I can guess its function.
Okay, what the device does is that it traps the criminals by keeping them hanging in the air, the device attaches to a wall. She goes to get the one she had made crash against a bolt, but before she can restrain him, the woman they just helped started bludgeoning the man with a trashcan lid. Well alright! Things are still violent around here! And Shadow Stalker doesn’t make a move, intending to let the woman achieve catharsis by beating the crap out of this guy. Flechette won’t have fun partnering with Shadow Stalker, that’s for sure.
“Told you, I don’t do the backup thing,” Shadow Stalker bent over the unconscious man, turning his head to investigate his injuries.  “He’ll live.  Him and his buddies deserve what they got.”
“That’s not your call to make.”
“Sure it is,” Shadow Stalker retrieved another restraint device and quickly strung the man up beneath a metal frame meant for an air conditioning unit.  “Times like this, we’re cop, judge, jury and if it really comes down to it, executioner.  We’re the ones with the power.”
Yes to the first three, no to the last one. Executioner? I fail to see the times when that’d be part of the job. I mean, the only ones that’d need such treatment are those like Leviathan, beings so powerful and dangerous it wouldn’t be farfetched to think that’s the only solution – and it’s not something most capes do, judging by what I was told about the capes’ intentions towards Leviathan during the fight.
This is a deal breaker, as far as Flechette is concerned. She decides to ditch Shadow Stalker, and Shadow Stalker isn’t exactly begging to keep someone with her. She’s a vigilante, after all. She’s in the team because she has to be. You know, I may hate Shadow Stalker so much keeping a meter for her would lead to negative numbers in like two updates – which is why I don’t bother giving her a meter, even though her importance as a character skyrocketed when it was revealed she is Sophia Hess – but I admit I’d be interested in an interlude with her as the central character. It may be fun to read.
Since she’s unfamiliar with the territory and any capes that may appear, Flechette requests information from console. Kid Win is manning it. First action! To give information about the rogue who had the stuffed animals moving during the Leviathan fight. Good question! I’d also like to know more about her.
“Parian,” Kid Win replied.  “A parian doll was a kind of doll about a hundred and fifty years ago.  Though Parian’s costume is actually closer to a more classical Victorian style porcelain doll, from the same era.”
“Oh.” That was random.  What kind of guy knew that much about dolls?
Let the guy have his interests, Flechette. Maybe he’s into toys and their history. It’s healthy to have a hobby.
Apparently Parian’s performance during the Leviathan fight was impressive enough for Flechette to want to meet Parian in person. She’s a rogue who is actually a fashion student, using her stuffed animals as her distinguishing quality. I think being a parahuman would be quite the enticing quality to have in terms of marketing, surely it’ll attract clients. Too bad the college she was attending is gone and these times aren’t good for studying of any kind.
It seems the lake downtown will be a permanent fixture of the city. Sure, there are barriers, chain link fences and fallen buildings in the center of the lake, but it’s not like the lake will be going away anytime soon. With some luck it could be incorporated to Brockton Bay. Adaptation, that’s a human trait. But for now...well, Brockton Bay isn’t adapting to anything. So much rubble, so much lack of control, it’s actually scary. Just imagining yourself passing by a place like this...it’s enough to make me feel goosebumps, honestly.
Flechette steps over one of the colorful debris lines.
She stepped over the line, and immediately felt a resistance.  It took her a second to figure out what it was – a thread caught the moonlight.
There was a muffled splashing sound, and a twelve-foot tall gorilla leaped from the nearest rooftop to land directly in front of her.  It swung its arms wildly in front of it, missing her, then slammed both knuckles down in the water, crushing one side of the orange striped barrier.  Flechette raised her arbalest to shoot, then stopped.
Okay, it’s pretty clear this is Parian’s creation! Not many people would have access to a twelve-foot tall gorilla, parahuman or not. Seems to me like this is a sentry, watching out for any threats trying to cross the border. It’s...not the best sentry ever? Because it’s mindless and its moves missed, but yeah, there’s intimidation factor and a punch from that thing would hurt. It can work.
I was wrong, it’s more like a puppet. Parian’s costume looks like an antique doll; it does fit her codename. Although she recognizes Flechette, she isn’t going to let anyone in – partly because she can’t trust Flechette because she could be lying about who she is, and because she promised not to let anyone in, anyway.
“Doesn’t matter.  I made a deal.  Me, my friends and my family get a place to stay here, a fair share of the food and water. In exchange, I keep people from entering.”
It’s fair. Sorry, Flechette, but I’m on Parian’s side here. A deal is a deal, duty is duty. There’s no reason for Flechette to enter this area, anyway. If she wants to talk, she can do it from the other side of the boundary.
The frocked rogue climbed up to stand on top of the gorilla’s shoulders.  She added, “I made a deal.  I’m keeping to it.  One hundred percent neutrality.  You trespass, I fight you.”
And I’d almost definitely win, Flechette thought. You may even know that, but you’d fight me anyways.
Just with that, Parian gained my full approval. Add this character to the list of characters I hope keep appearing. I doubt she’ll appear much since she, you know, is more akin to a civilian than to a hero or a villain and therefore won’t be taking sides unless there’s big trouble, but it’d be nice to see more about her.
“Good, good,” Flechette sheathed her arbalest, hoping the rogue would feel safer. “Look, I’m here if you need anything. If people make trouble and you’re not strong enough to protect that neighborhood there, or if you need resources that you couldn’t get otherwise, like names or medical services, call me. Can I give you my card?”
Flechette is such a nice and honorable person...why do all these good heroes have to be from places far away? Brockton Bay got saddled with douchebags, how unfortunate! Haha! But yeah, Flechette is another one that seems to be quite the decent person. I doubt she’ll want to stay, though. Once her temporal stay is over, I’m pretty sure she’ll return to the team she came from, and won’t even look back.
To show she does mean to be helpful, Flechette asks if there’s anything she can get them. Fresh water, that’s what’s needed.
“Seriously, are you okay?  You holding up?”
Parian turned, looked behind her, as if checking anyone was listening.
“I hate fighting.  Hate confrontation.  Even this, being here, having just thought I might have to fight you, fight anyone, it makes me feel edgy.  My teeth are chattering and I’m not even cold.”
I feel bad for Parian; she didn’t ask for any of this. Still, despite not liking to fight, she dared to join everyone else in the fight versus Leviathan, even though she knew that could have ended in her death. Parian is rather brave. With some luck she won’t have to get into more fights, but given how desperate people are...well, I’m sure she’ll have to deal with a few fights before things get better. She has Flechette’s support, so that has to count for something.
“Deal. I’m Flechette, by the way, in case you didn’t know.”
“Oh. Um.  I didn’t.  My name’s Sab-” Parian stopped, made a barely audible groan.
Looks like she’s still not used to having a secret identity! No idea how she plans to use her power as a way to promote her work if she can’t give her real name – after everything that’s happening there’s a chance word about her power gets out, people could link it to her real identity – but I suppose she’ll cross that bridge later.
Flechette is truly desperate for a friendly connection of some sort, going so far as to remove her visor and show her face. But it does work! A connection is made, because faces and names are mentioned. Parian’s real name is Sabah. Sabah...that is Malaysian...maybe Turkish? She does seem to come from the Middle East.
Parian dropped her legs down to either side of the gorilla’s neck as it moved forward. To stay decent, the girl pressed her hands down on the lap of her dress, leaning forward a little.  It was a little thing, that bashful modesty, but Flechette felt as much of a rush watching that as she did running across her chain/tightrope with a five-story drop below her.
...oh! Oh, my! Looks like Flechette isn’t straight as an arrow, in what concerns to her tastes. Still, this isn’t the time for ogling anyone, it’s time for patrolling and making the friendly connection she couldn’t make with Shadow Stalker. Parian may not be a member of the Wards, but she is an admirable person and I think it’ll do Flechette good to have a friend in this city. Maybe her stay in Brockton Bay won’t be so bad now.
That’s the second chapter of this interlude arc. I can’t imagine what comes next! Another change in point of view, I guess, but there are many available options. Bring it on! But, uh, next time.
Next update: in two updates
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lethesomething · 7 years
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Todoroki vs Bakugou and Midoriya
Not a shipping post.
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Let's talk about Todoroki and the way he relates to people. Specifically, to Midoriya and Bakugou. I think it's safe to say that the three of them are, at this point in the story, the Main Three. They're arguably the strongest boy in class 1-A. They're also, as I mentioned briefly before foils for each other. So how do they relate?
Where Midoriya strikes up an easy friendship with Iida and Ururaka from the start, and Bakugou seems to become bro's with Kirishima fairly early on, Todoroki is… slow to warm up to people. The kid has spent his childhood isolated, so that's easy to understand. If you want to go symbolic, you could also say that his fire side, and how he uses it, quite literally makes him warm up to people. Getting to grips with that side of himself is a major part of his character development, and as he becomes more attuned to his own personality, it makes sense that he'd become more comfortable with other people as well.
 Sports Festival
Let's start at de sports festival, because we get some very nice development for all three of them.
 Todoroki vs Midoriya
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Todoroki singles Midoriya out fairly early on, when he does that whole 'declaration of war' thing. At this point, I don't think he does this purely based on merit? The kid he's 'going to beat' barely made it into UA, he's nowhere near the top of the class but Todoroki can recognize a quality seedling when he sees one. He watched Midoriya's fight with Bakugou in the Heroes & Villains exercise, he watched Midoriya jump in during the villain invasion. And what he recognized there was that out of all of his classmates, Midoriya is the one most like All Might. He even says this, at some point.
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And while it's played off as a joke, with him assuming he's All Might's illegitimate son, he's not… that far off, really? Either way, it's this link that draws him to Midoriya. Todoroki, you see, is an All Might fanboy. (they literally all are) He may have been 'created' as an Endeavour 2.0, to BEAT All Might, but in those moments with his mom, what he truly wanted was to be LIKE All Might. He wants to be that kind of hero. All Might himself mentions that the both of them had the same sort of vibe. Among his peers, Midoriya is the closest to All Might 2.0, in type of power, in general disposition and in the sense that they're literally pretty close. It makes sense that Todoroki would see him as 'the one to beat'.
(why is everything so long)
Incidentally, this insight also makes Todoroki more likely to actually listen to Midoriya. At this point, the kid is very dismissive of others. It could be Kirishima telling him not to start fights, Bakugou coming to yell at him or even villains trying to murder All Might.
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Todoroki kind of just swipes them aside as a 'nuisance'. However, when Midoriya talks, he listens.
Maybe it's the All Might thing, maybe it's because the kid has a power that Todoroki is instinctively afraid of. Or maybe, it's because he knows that Midoriya is completely insane. This is a student who is willing to injure himself to negate attacks. He's willing to literally break his body to save people or win at things. He will literally do anything to come out on top. To Todoroki this must look even weirder than to us, viewers. Self-discipline, control, stoicism is his whole deal. He acts logically, and Midoriya is like the opposite of that, in a fight. When the kid that just broke all his fingers starts yelling at him, he will damn well pay attention. And when Midoriya, in his duel with Todoroki, says 'Where are you looking', he wants Todoroki to stop thinking of his dad and actually keep his head in the fight.
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It works, too. For once, Todoroki goes full out, and he later admits to his father that the reason he did so, was because he completely forgot about him. He let his instinct take over. Like he did in the cavalry battle. He's so impressed with Midoriya's innate strength that he can't help but go all out.
 Todoroki vs Bakugou
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If Midoriya is the classmate most resembling All Might, then in Todoroki's eyes Bakugou must be the one most resembling Endeavour. Certainly during the sports festival. He's brash. He's so very full of himself, even his destructive power is similar to Endeavour's flames. At this point Bakugou is also way more about being 'number one' and winning than about saving people. As such, Todoroki has a very different rivalry with Bakugou than he has with Midoriya. Bakugou isn't 'special' in the eyes of Todoroki.Not like Midoriya is.
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Look at that kid. Todoroki just told Midoriya he wanted to beat him. He told Midoriya, not Bakugou, first place student in the entry exam, that he sees him as his main rival. And that Pisses Bakugou Off. Because in Bakugou's world, he's the best. Certainly at this point in the story. And Todoroki just.…refuses to acknowledge him. You see this again and again.
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The kid, admittedly, has an awful lot to deal with at this point. He's very much trying to find himself, preferably in the ten minutes before the next fight. So he's back to dismissing anyone. Including Bakugou. Fun fact: it's really hard to dismiss of Bakugou.
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When Bakugou says 'Where are you looking', he wants the kid to pay attention to him. But of course, that just reminds Todoroki of Deku, and that is incidentally the worst thing you could say to Bakugou.
I think it's safe to say that these two just really don't click. Bakugou is a blip on Todoroki's radar, and that really, really frustrates him, because all he wants is to beat Todoroki in a fair fight. The way Midoriya received a fair fight.
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It's interesting to note that even in this fight, Todoroki only uses his flame side when Midoriya yells at him from the stands. Midoriya is literally the fan to his flame. But this time it doesn't work.
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So what made him extinguish those flames near the end? It could be a lot of things. Todoroki is still in turmoil. He told his father he needed to think about things, and he hasn't exactly had a lot of time to process in between the two fights. It would be highly unrealistic if one shouting session miraculously healed all Todoroki's ingrained trauma. You see him get a little flashback to his mom and dad right before his flames go out, which very much indicates that he's just really struggling. There's also the very nature of Bakugou. When he fights him, all Todoroki sees is flames and smoke. All he hears is boasting.  It feels very different. The link to his father is much stronger. Though both Bakugou and Midoriya want the same thing, to fight him at full power, Todoroki can only feel the need to do so when fighting Midoriya.
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It's not really Bakugou's fault, but it just servers to frustrate him more.
  Delving into manga territory now
  Todoroki vs Midoriya, round 2
So how does it evolve from here on out? The training camp arc is one of those first times we see Todoroki in his newer, softer form, though change is still slow.
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Lookit my child creating fire to cook for his friends.
This is also about the time  Midoriya and Todoroki seem to have reached some kind of understanding. He even gives him some of the most symbolic advise I've read in this series.
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Considering their background, this is really beautiful. Todoroki is telling him how to deal with Kouta, but it harkens back to their fight, and also to Todoroki's past. If anyone can understand how Kouta feels, it's Todoroki, after all. Endeavour may have told him what to do and how to behave all his life, that didn't make him want to do it. He simply didn't believe it, because Endeavour didn't really act like a hero (or even a decent human being) to his family. All Might is Todoroki's only real idol. He's the reason he wants to be a hero, because he's always saving people. In a way, he’s telling Midoriya that the only reason he understood him during their duel, was because Midoriya was willing to get brutally murdered (ok almost) in order to save him.
But I digress. Basically, over the course of the next few arcs, Todoroki sort of softens towards several of his classmates, including Midoriya. It's pretty funny that once he stops isolating himself and actually notices the people around him, he's a pretty sensitive guy. He is the first to notice that Midoriya's affected by the stuff happening in his internship, for instance.
He's also the one to offer comfort here.
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  Todoroki vs Bakugou, round 2
His relationship with Bakugou, meanwhile, hasn't changed much, given the kid's reaction to drawing him as a partner in the test of courage.
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Also please note how awesome Todoroki's 'are you kidding me' face is in this panel.
I actually really like these two in this arc, because what they do half the time is squabble and it's funny.
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I would almost call it a friendly rivalry? Sort of thing? It's obvious they don't particularly like each other personally. But they also don't hate each other. Not really. They may have gained a certain level of respect for each other, even. They're perfectly capable of working together, if need be.
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A scene like that, where they work together to take down Tokoyami’s berserk shadow, requires a level of understanding and communication that I don't see happening between Midoriya and Bakugou, for instance. Not any time soon, at least. We also learn in the provisional license exam that if Todoroki really hates a guy, he has trouble cooperating with him. We see none of that here. They are willing to acknowledge each other. Todoroki cares enough to be one of the first to decide on rescuing Bakugou. This doesn't mean they stop squabbling though.
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All this time together for the provisional license course, and the only one that has grown a little is Todoroki. Please note the use of 'we' here. But his banter with Bakugou isn’t that different from his talks with others in his class. He's slowly opening up to his classmates and, true, Bakugou is one of them. He's not dismissing him anymore. In a way, Bakugou is just one of his classmates now, just like all the others. Which probably just pisses him off, tbh.
PS: I have a bunch of these.
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lerah-mae-blog · 5 years
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Residency: TEXTure Weekend, Day 1 (2016)
with John Berkavitch, Si Rawlinson, Shruti Chauhan and Paula Varjack
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291016 - 301016 TEXTure Weekend University of Derby, Markeaton Street Campus
UK Young Artists @ Facebook:
"Our workshops with Writing East Midlands, delivered by John Berkavitch began today at the University of Derby. See the results during the Festival at Deda as a part of Art/Talk/Think/Do on Sunday 6th Nov." 
In my account of the first day’s… shenanigans, a friend neatly summarized it: ‘sounds like a perfect blend of creativity, fun and madness.’
Having impulsively applied for this workshop out of sheer curiosity, and promptly forgetting I even applied to it in the first place until I received an email of acceptance (cue frantic scrolling through my email’s ‘sent’ folder, rereading the answers I’ve written to the questions in the application and physically cringing) – I did not know what to expect. And there was a little moment of mutual curiosity and confusion as the other artists introduced themselves, what they did (are you a writer? Illustrator? Performing artist? Dancer? Oh you’re from Leicester too!), whether they were students or at university or recent graduates, and a shared sense of being lost in Derby’s streets and maze of obscure campuses.
So here is a two-part account of the two-day residency workshop. This is as much a record of the two days as my attempt to process the whirlwind that is this weekend. I met a lot of people, produced improvised work and moved more than I possibly have in my entire life. I was completely out of my comfort zone.Thrown into the deep end, if you will. And I was (to my surprise) okay with that.
TEXTure Day 1/2: Saturday, October 29th
We all came in not knowing what was going on, not knowing what to expect. I had a vague image of collaborating with other artists in other disciplines, not just writers. And it was that, but oh so much more.
Maybe it was that mutual feeling of being lost that made everyone accept everything as it came. To just go along with whatever was going on, whether out of sheer curiosity or just for the hell of it.
What’s in a metaphor?
The weekend’s product will go towards a ‘sharing’ event on Sunday, November 6th at Derby’s DEDA, and Saturday started with a metaphor. What were our expectations for Sunday’s sharing event, expressed as a metaphor? I wrote something about tapestries stitched together with threads of words, sounds and movements. Another said “On Sunday, we will be libraries.” It sounds beautiful. Shruti wrote “burning bodies.” Sounds morbid, but it could work? (Metaphorically, hopefully, and not literal burning bodies…)
Moving connections
Using the whole room (lecture hall, seats pulled aside, wide open space), any position or movement, as loud or as quiet as we wanted and with music in the background, we then had to make a six-sequence… choreography? Individually. Always a different position, and a different transition between each position. As we repeated our sequence – running across the room or gracefully gliding to get to the next position, walking as silently as a thief or making a right ruckus and stumbling across chairs (I’m looking at you Si), or even crawling across the floor and hiding behind curtains – Berkavitch would give instructions. “Make connections. See how your movements fit in with another’s, how your transitions cross with someone else’s.”
Even writing this produces a very strange image. A room full of strangers moving across the room in a memorized sequence – something about movement and observation, connections, improvisation…
What a bunch of folley
Inspired by the musical term folley or folia, we had to write sentences in the pattern ABA CDC AB. It reminded me of poetic meter (which I am terrible at identifying in poems and always left out when I’m analyzing poetry.) This time we had to write a few sentences, some would be repeated but different words would be stressed at different times – in turn, changing the overall meaning. For example, in the sentence "/she/ didn't steal that pen", the meaning would change when the stress is on a different word like "she didn't /steal/ that pen.”
After writing it we had to go into pairs and while a writer read their set of sentences, another would act it out.  The catch: the actor performed their sequence of actions in the same pattern (ABA CDC AB), but without knowing the writer’s set of sentences.
Two seemingly disjointed elements came together and somehow created a coherent narrative, but it was up to the audience to interpret said narrative. It was also interesting to see how, by changing certain actions – by moving around the speaker as they recited their sequence, for example, or by turning your eyes away from each other – it was interesting to see how those simple changes altered the whole narrative.
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Photo by Michael Markham @ Facebook.
“Burning bodies”: movement improvisation (in the dark)
This was surreal. After a break, the group entered the now dark room. The only light was from a set of green and red lights at corners of the room – like club lights. Breaking the silence, Berkavitch says: "There are two states: movement and stillness. At least one person must always be walking, but stillness is important." In a silent agreement, we all start walking or standing still in the dark room. “There are three states.” Berkavitch continues after a while. “No more than two people must be walking, but any number can move across the floor. And stillness is important.” So we start crawling, at least one person walking, while others stayed still.
There's some instrumental playing in the background, while we kept an eye on each other and made sure someone was always walking. The music changed from slow pianos to harsh beats, and to eerie, morbid, haunting music. “Make connections.” And suddenly people started interacting with each other. Some danced together, mirrored another’s movements, sat in circles. Some stayed still only for others to incite movement in them. Some flitting (rolling, tumbling, bending across the floor – still looking at you Si) about, only to stop and join in with the stillness.
Maybe it was the element of darkness, or the mutual ‘I’ve no idea what’s going on, let’s just go with it’. Maybe it was the trance-like state we entered. I’m not sure, but everything felt… unreal. The dancing in the dark in a sort of trance reminded me of Paulo Coelho’s The Witch of Portobello:
“If theatre is ritual, then dance is too... It's as if the threads connecting us to the rest of the world were washed clean of preconceptions and fears. When you dance, you can enjoy the luxury of being you.”
Maybe it was that. Uninhibited in the darkness, losing yourself to the lights and sounds, dancing, existing. Maybe it had something to do with our constant need to move, and the protagonist, Athena’s, musings in The Witch of Portobello regarding what she called “blank spaces”:
“Music only exists because pauses exist, and sentences only exist because the blank spaces exist.”
We need movement in our life just as much as stillness – because in the stillness are “blank spaces” that help us understand. Without the pauses, silence, stillness, everything would be disorienting; incomprehensible shadows on a wall.
Honestly, at some point I just sat down in a trance, and stared at the wall. The red and green lights illuminated moving bodies, and formed shadows. In the stillness, you can observe. And I saw a few things:
The shadows told as many stories as the people who formed them – and they could be very different from each other.
Movement incite movement, but stillness is contagious too. Stillness allowed you to observe. But it can feel alienating, urging you to join in.
Whether consciously or unconsciously, music affected how people moved. Erratic music made movements more frantic, shadows almost writhing on the walls. When softer pianos played, everything slowed down – an unspoken agreement to glide rather than run.
With the red and green lights hitting contours and shapes of people as they moved, maybe Shruti’s prediction of “burning bodies” wasn’t so far off after all.
“You did that for 45 minutes.” There was a collective gasp. Time was lost to me in that moment. “How does everyone feel as humans?” It felt like I was detached from myself. It felt like I was outside of my Self. I was simultaneously an observer and a part of the dizzying dance. “It felt like we were part of a cult even,” someone points out. I forgot that self-consciousness existed. When people held out their hands to you, you respond, you went with it. When someone made eye-contact mid-movement, you stare back. You dance along.
It was bizarre. It was enchanting. And it was oddly calming.
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Photo by Michael Markham @ Facebook.
Auto-theatre: a dialogue between three people
It was back to writing exercises after recovering from the dancing. A dialogue between three people. Three members of the group then had to record their voices as one of the three characters. Separately. In the end, in front of the whole group, and with earphones in to listen to the recording, we said the lines out loud and acted it out. But it was disjointed at some points, we could only hear our own lines and not the others. With two others next to you, you produce a strange narrative. You’ll be responding to them without knowing. It was here too that small changes in movement, the use of the room’s space, created different stories. It was fascinating.
After that we were given the task of coming up with an idea and pitching said idea the next day. Something to perform on the day of the sharing.
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Day 1 was hectic, but it was a lot of fun. I felt like I detached from myself. There was a disconnect. I stepped out of myself, an observer amidst this chaos of lights and movement and darkness and shadows. Yet at the same time I was in the middle of this. I was both outside and a part of this... spectacle.
Eye-contact can be jarring. But this time it was a connection. Physical contact can be suffocating. But this time it was part of a dance. You lose inhibitions in darkness. There's freedom in utter blackness. The shadows told stories. People are fascinating. Their stories are fascinating too. And the kindness of strangers always leaves me in awe.
In fact, I felt like a different person for the two days. The usually anxious and jittery English student took a step back, performed in front of strangers, produced work she doesn’t usually do, she interacted with others in a way she never did before. And she was surprisingly fine with that. She was comfortable even.
Maybe stepping out of your comfort zone isn't too bad after all.
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melyaliz · 7 years
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Gigi and Bart relationship headcanons A-Z
tagging: @royslittleharper and @the-shadow-of-atlantis because they did these and I’m obsessed now. Also I need to write more GigixBart
Affection - Both of them are physical touch. They crave each other like people who have been locked up alone forever. It could be something as simple as a gentle touch to make sure the person next to them is really there (really real) to kisses at the most awkward times. Some villain giving his big speech while Bart just turns and kisses Gigi.
Breakfast - Gigi can’t keep up with Bart’s eating habits. She tries to cook enough for him but that kid will eat the pancakes out of the pan.
Cuddles -  Always. Gigi is the best cuddler there ever was and will more often than not fall asleep next to Bart while he is trying to beat some super hard game. Because of her power, she can get her body into the most awkward positions.
Dates - More often than not it’s video games and ice cream. But Bart will also take her paintballing and many other activities. They like to go do things vs seeing things or just hanging out. Some of the few things they have done so far include Sky diving, snorkeling with fish, and super baseball with the X-men. While Gigi isn’t as active as Bart she is used to keeping up with Faith (who almost has as much energy as Bart) so she’s always up for anything the speedster wants to do.
Entertainment - Since Bart was basically raised by Video games that is what they mostly do. Gigi isn’t as good as he is but he likes to show off his skills. She’s always impressed with him, even if he is totally sucking. “Wow the way you fell off that building was so cool” “I just died” “Well it still looked cool”
Family -  The Flash Family was a little wary of Gigi at first because of her Mutant/X-Men background but they quickly fell in love with the sweet hyper girl. Gigi’s family loves Bart. While Gigi’s two younger brothers are basically Bart’s #1 fan it Gigi’s twin sister Hope was the first to tell Gigi that Bart even liked her and that she approved
Gifts - Neither of them is very good at gift giving. But they don’t really mind because they are too busy just talking or playing games. For Birthdays and Christmas Bart normally will get Gigi treats or something fluffy and pink. Gigi will get him something Video game or Superhero related. She once got him a hat with the Green Lantern symbol like his short-lived tattoo. Bart wears it all the time.
Home - They live separately but they are around each other so much they basically live together.
Intimacy - Both Bart and Gigi are very physical people so it was very easy for them to get intimate. After their first time, Bart couldn’t keep his hands off her for a week and everyone was so annoyed they banned them from the headquarters until they calmed down. (Faith may have gotten a spray bottle that she used while Maia threw condoms at them)
Jealousy - Bart is kind of protective of Gigi when it comes to others, mostly because she is very unaware of the world around her and how people think of her. Gigi almost never gets jealous because she just thinks everyone is being friendly.
Kisses - All the time and everywhere. Gigi once had gone undercover while wearing red lipstick which may have gotten all over Bart’s face and neck halfway through. It blew their cover.
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Lazy days - Lot’s of snuggling and Video games. Maybe an order in Pizza too. Most often than not you will find them laying in bed with Gigi playing with Bart’s hair while he tried to beat that level that was giving him trouble.
Nicknames - Bart will sometimes use Gigi’s pet name from her first team, Gee. And Gigi will sometimes call him Bartholomew.
Other fun - They are always talking and laughing together. Kaluder once yelled at them during a briefing asking if they were even listening. Gigi shook her head while Bart repeated verbatim what their team leader had just said. Bart also loves showing off in front of Gigi because she is so easily impressed. She thinks he is the coolest most talented guy ever.
Patrols - Before they were dating they were great at patrolling because Gigi had so much to prove to the team so she was trying to best to stay focused. After they got together they couldn’t focus on anything but themselves so they were banned from any missions together alone. But after the first year, they learned how to focus and they are a really good team together.
Quarrels-  Gigi’s twin sister can read minds so sometimes Gigi will think she is talking to Bart but she is just thinking it. Normally this happens when she is upset which doesn’t help when Bart doesn’t know why she’s upset and has to tell her she needs to say it not think it.
Resolution - The one time something was bothering Bart and he kept shutting Gigi out and she didn’t know how to get him to talk. It was a two-day silent awkward fight until Faith told her to just tell him to stop. Gigi finally just started crying her eyes out. Seeing the normally happy girl crying made Bart so upset he forgot what was bothering him before.  
Schedule - For the most time they make things work but sometimes Gigi has to go and help her X-Men friends or Bart has to work with the Flash peeps. But having a speedster as a boyfriend works well when it comes to scheduling.
Teasing - Gigi isn’t the quickest when it comes to jokes. So Teasing normally goes over her head. However, if Bart wants to prank the team she is always the first to help him.
Unforgettable moments -  The first time Bart told Gigi he didn’t understand why she wanted to be normal when she was the most special person in the world he said it so matter-a-factly that Gigi took it as a compliment and thanked him. He just nodded and told her she better hurry up and finish the mission so they could get home. They were so calm about the exchange that the whole team wasn’t even sure if they were flirting or just talking about the weather.
Valentine’s - Their first Valentine's date Gigi wore the pinkest sparkliest dress ever and made Bart take her to dinner and a movie (in that order because that’s how it’s said so that’s how it’s done). Half way through the dinner a robot crashed into the restaurant and they had to save the other people while fighting it off. After Gigi started to cry because she said it wasn’t a normal date but Bart told her he wouldn’t want it any other way.
Work - I don’t really know honestly. I kind of like the idea of them developing a video game. Bart teaches himself overnight how to make it and Gigi writes the story for it.
X- exes -  Gigi’s Ex tried to kill her so they aren't on very good terms. Bart had never liked the guy even before he snapped.
Yearning - Before they started dating Gigi was dating someone else so even though Bart had a crush on her he knew he couldn't’ make a move. So instead he would distract himself with ANYTHING when he thought something Gigi did something cute. He once ran all the way to New York for Pizza in the middle of a story she was telling him.
Z - Because Gigi’s body can stretch they normally get (literally) tangled up in each other. While it doesn’t look comfortable to the outsider they both love sleeping like that.
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