#mother of plants (kairi)

[as-above-is-moving]

“This is the third meal you’ve missed this week, are you okay?” From Rach to Kairi. [Slot A]

@splinter-sister

"Huh?"

Kairi looked back up from her notes at Rachael. She had to think for a second to recall what she had said before that...oh, right--she'd worked through her lunch again. Kairi blinked shaking her head and turning back to her noyes.

"Oh, uh...yeah, I guess. I'm fine." Kairi dismissed Rachael's concerns flippantly. She wasn't really paying much attention, engrossed in her notes and the computer screen in front of her showing recent observations from her latest project. Hyperfocus had a death grip on her.

#mother of plants (kairi) #tyger tyger (rachael) #kairi no your gf is concerned for you #answered ask

[saixs-wife]

Hi! Once again the Riku brain rot has consumed my entire being, so here's some headcanons I've created (not in any particular order).

BASIC HCS 💕

He's Handy! He can fix almost anything. He loves tinkering with his Gummi Ship!

His favorite food is grilled fish! White fish specifically, like flounder, sea bass, tilapia, etc. And he has a taste for savory treats, which combats Sora's sweet tooth.

He comes from a loving home. He loves his parents, a lot and they love him. However, his biological mother passed away when he was 7ish (after BBS, but before Kairi arrived). His father became emotionally unavailable for a while, until he met Riku's stepmom. She filled her motherly role over Riku and he thanks her for it. He loves his step mom!!!

His dad taught him a variety of things like: self defense, how to fix common things, fishing, basic survival skills, and the basics of building

He moved out after KH2, and got his own place. The reason why is because after everything he's been through he needs his own space to brood about how small everything is. Albeit sad, his father approved and has the land lady check up on him every so often 🥺 Riku helps outs his elderly land lady and pays rent on TIME! He's a responsible boy 😊

Riku isn't all into fashion but he can DRESS. He loves a good "urban/street wear" look, and fucks heavy with grunge. He appreciates the chains and skull designs that come with "punk" fashion but doesn't think he can pull it off

Riku doesn't spend a needless amount of time on his looks. He has gel for his hair, a skin care routine, and a nighttime ritual to keep his hygiene up. He's very much a pretty boy in our eyes, but that's just his genes. He does the bare minimum to keep himself looking presentable

Speaking of his looks, he surprisingly gets his good genes from his dad. The muscles, the hair, the jaw line, all from his old man. His father was most definitely a looker back in the day! That being said, Riku has his mother's smile and her eyes. He also carries her temperament with him.

Along with tinkering being a hobby of his, he likes video games too! But he's not a complete shut in video game nerd. Riku LOVES the outdoors. The wilderness calls him like he's a feral animal !!! He likes camping, and fishing! He's the main guy on the islands you'd go to for some handy survival tips. He knows a good amount of edible plants, fungi, berries, leaves, and etcetera to eat if he ever got stranded. He has one or two books on that kind of stuff but he doesn't read it anymore.

After the events of KH2, Riku didn't go back to highschool. Instead he got a GED (or KH equivalent) online and started taking community college courses. He's doing it to make his dearly departed mother proud.

To add on to that, Riku is a fast learner. He's quite intellectual when it comes to mathematics, some history, and biology but please don't ask him why the author made the curtains blue 😭 the boy is emotionally stunted. He is NOT using critical thinking when it comes down to poetry or thick prose. He has some emotional intelligence but compared to Sora, he might as well have the emotional capacity of a brick wall 😭

Alright! That's all I have for now (it's 5am, I should be sleeping) if I have any more I'll post em lol

XOXO Mx. Jade 💕

#kingdom hearts #kh #riku #riku kingdom hearts #kingdom hearts riku #headcanon #riku headcanons #riku fic #kh headcanons #kh hcs #i needed to get this out of my system #riku brain rot #riku brain rot is real #🩷 #💕 #Jade speaks

[darkheartedprince]

RIKU'S MOM

Her name is Akira Umiko Yami , and while we never see her in the games , she stands to be Riku's mom throughout the series . She has long , silver hair that comes down to her mid-back and aquamarine eyes that very much are the same blue as her son's . She smiles leaps and bounds more than Riku , her smile bright as the sun when every time she shows . She's very sweet and outgoing , and loves getting to meet new people , including those few that Riku mentions beyond just Sora and Kairi . She's not very tall , in that she's only five-foot-three . She calls Riku her Little Minnow or her Little Pup in reference to Riku's special interest with the ocean and marine life .

Ever since Riku was four years old , Akira raised him by herself . Her husband left just before Riku's fourth birthday for the Keyblade War and never returned . By the time Riku was five , Akira accepted that her husband had been lost to the Darkness forever . Still , she continued to raise Riku the best that she could and love him with enough love for both her and her lost husband . When Riku vanished one day without a trace , she was devastated . She looked everywhere for him , only to learn that Sora had gone through a similar fate . Since that day , she waited at home for her son until the day she would see him walk through the front door again .

In the verse : two halves of the same universe . ( With @lightcrowned / @erthshaker )

Akira is the mother of two twin boys . She has Kaito and Riku . Both are taller than her , with two vastly different personalities . Riku is her youngest of the two , being three minutes after Kaito . Despite this , though one may insist the opposite , Akira will always swear that she loves her boys equally . While Riku is her Little Pup or Little Minnow , Kaito is her Little Sprout or Little Shell to follow in his interests with sea shells and plants . She has one son that talks too much and the other who doesn't say enough . One who swears and dresses like he is perpetually a teenager going through a scene phase , and another who dresses twice his age . One child who bit people in school instead of talking while playing shark , and another who asked so many questions it drove their teacher crazy . Both , resulted in interesting parent - teacher phone calls , but at least they did well in school . At the end of the day , Akira's son's are hers and she wouldn't trade either of them for anything .

#x. w h e r e t h e r e i s l i g h t t h e r e i s d a r k n e s s | h e a d c a n o n s

[kingdomkeykitsune]

KHOC WEEK 2023 DAY 2: NEW WORLD

No applicable art for @khoc-week today, please enjoy this Destiny Islands Gif instead lol. Kimbri's story sees her headed to many a new world in her search for her brother, but today I thought I'd take a look at one arrival that didn't carry so much weight and urgency.

Also a shout out and BIG thanks to @luxmoogle bc your posts about the Destiny Islands mainland were absolutely invaluable for helping me develope a clear mental image while I was writing this.

Edit: I fixed an egregious case of autocorrect failure, Sora and Echo's mother's name is Orihime, not Origine. What the hell.

As New and Constant As the Tide

The tang of salt in the air was the first thing Kimbri noticed as she hopped out of the Gummi Ship and into the gleaming sun. Birds soared high above on the cool breeze and she could see the glint of water in the distance past creamy colored brick and stucco cottages and dense green foliage. Sand and gravel crunched under her boots as she hit the ground, still feeling odd beneath her feet despite all her travels after spending most of her life on grass and cobblestone.

Destiny Islands was just as beautiful as Sora had always promised it would be. Grinning, Kimbri took off her glove and reached back to help Vega out of the ship.

"You've got to see this." She said. Normally that would be an incredibly insensitive thing to say to a blind person, but her brother just chuckled and took her hand, activating the ability that would allow him to see what she could see.

"Oh... It's charming." He said, a warm smile spreading across his face.

"I'm glad you guys like it." A voice spoke and they both turned towards it.

"Kairi! Hey sweetie, how are things?" Kimbri smiled and reached to hug the redhead. As they embraced her nose was filled with the familiar scent of the sun cream Sora used. Coconut he'd told her it was. Familiar and comforting.

"Mmmm... Everything is good. We're just waiting for everybody to finish arriving before we head out to the Play Island for the party."

"We're not the last ones are we?" Squall asked, stepping out and carefully lifting Ombra to the ground as she followed behind him.

"Nah, not by a longshot, you're actually pretty early comparatively. We're still waiting on the Twilight gang and for Riku to get back." Kairi chuckled, shaking her head. "Which works out perfectly, Sora's mom was saying she wanted to meet the new members of the family."

"Wait, what?" Kimbri asked, brows furrowing.

"Oh c'mon, don't tell me you've been going around calling Sora your brother thinking it didn't go both ways or something." The redhead put her hand on her hip and grinned teasingly. "You guys have been adopted. Don't even think of protesting, Sora comes by his stubbornness honestly.

"Wha- I- Oh, honestly..." Kimbri sighed, shaking her head. "Well, in that case I suppose we shouldn't keep her waiting... Lead on." 

Kairi smiled and gestured for them all to follow her.

There seemed to be only one main road on this part of the Island, a long sandy strip bordered by lush plant life and charming lamp posts that almost appeared to have been cobbled together from spare bits. Kimbri smiled to herself as they walked, she recognized the plants from books she'd poured over in her uncle's library growing up.  Petunias, foxgloves, trumpet flowers, hyssop... All things that thrived in warm climates, which made sense given the climate.

There was also a mix of various varieties of palms and hardwood trees scattered here and there along the way, providing patches of shade in which to escape the intense sunlight, which she wasn't complaining about. Years spent living in a night world had a lasting effect and bright sun was still hard to take some days. Though her aversion to the brightness was nowhere near as strong as Ombra's, she was navigating the road exclusively by darting from one shade patch directly to the next. It might have been amusing if she hadn't seemed so uncomfortable. Thankfully Kairi promised there would be plenty of places to hide in the shade at the party, and they'd be hanging out at Sora's until time to head over so this would only be a problem while traveling.

Eventually voices started to carry towards them, the sounds of indignant yelping and laughter riding on the wind.

"I told Tidus to leave Echo alone before I left, but he never listens." Kairi sighed, shaking her head.

"Troublemaker?" Squall asked and Kairi shrugged.

"He just likes to think he's the strongest around. He's really not." She laughed. They rounded a corner onto a side path and the source of all the commotion came into view. Echo had a blond boy, presumably Tidus, pinned to the ground in a headlock as he struggled to get loose while another boy and girl stood nearby pointing and laughing.

"Stop laughing and help me!" Tidus grunted, but the others shook their heads.

"No way!"

"You brought this on yourself bro."

"Hey Echo, where's your mom?" Kairi called, and the younger girl looked up.

"Oh, hey Kairi! She's at home cooking, Sora's helping." She said, smiling like she wasn't actively wrestling one of her peers.

"Ah, that makes sense." Kairi nodded and walked past them without even a glance at the grappled boy.

"Kairi! Not you too! C'mon!"

Kimbri suppressed a chuckle and quickly stepped around the pair to follow Kairi. She led them a bit further, past houses and what appeared to be a couple small shops with striped awnings over their doors. Across a tiny creaking plank bridge fording a twinkling stream that babbled to them as they passed, then down another side path. Suddenly the smell of jasmine filled the air, the source easily identified as an overburdened shrub, leaning over a dilapidated blue fence surrounding yet another one of the cottages. Kairi unlatched the gate and headed into the yard without seeming to think about it, leading them towards the house. Stepping stones bearing the imprints of children's hands led the way to the door, which was flanked by vibrant, overflowing window boxes stuffed with more flowers than should have feasibly fit. And Kimbri had seen some very full window boxes in Radiant Gardens.

Kairi continued inside, calling out cheerfully.

"Mama, Sora, we're here!"

"Mama?" Ombra echoed questioningly and Kairi shrugged.

"We all call her that, it's just a thing friends sometimes do with each other's parents. If they're okay with it that is."

"I see… Noted." Her serious tone drew a few fond chuckles from the group as they headed into the kitchen. 

The smell of spices and seafood filled the air, eliciting a growl from Kimbri's stomach and reminding her of Rosa's restaurant briefly, but she was distracted almost immediately by the sight of a familiar blond man slouching at the green painted kitchen table, helping Sora wrap bundles of food in large, vibrant leaves.

"Cloud!" She cried out, beaming and rushing to hug him tightly.

"Hey, careful, my hands are messy." The swordsman chided gently.

"Sorry, I just didn't know you were coming!" She pulled back, beaming. He chuckled softly.

"I happened to be in the neighborhood." 

A melodic laugh filled the air, drawing all of their attention to a brunette woman tending the stove. She had long, thick brunette hair bound messily with a clip near her nape and she wore a turquoise tank with a white wrap skirt embellished with imagery of palm leaves.

"You must be Kimbri, Sora's told me a lot about you." She said, glancing over her shoulder.

"Oh, um, yes ma'am. And this is Squa- Er, Leon, Vega, and Ombra." She said, correcting herself at her fiancé's glance and gesturing to each in turn.

"It's lovely to meet you all, I'm Orihime, but you can call me Mama too if you want to. Please, have a seat, I'll have this batch done momentarily and then you all can eat while you're waiting, you must be starving."

"Ah, thank you very much!" She bowed slightly before taking a seat.

A little while later they were all sitting around, eating and laughing, and Kimbri couldn't help feeling that this place already felt like a second home.

#khocweek2023 #khoc week 2023 #khocweek #khoc week #khoc #kh oc #my oc #my writing #kimbri nocturne #kimbri #vega nocturne #vega #ombra Celestine #ombra #kairi #tidus #waka #selphie #echo #sora #orihime #rosa #ansem #those last two are only mentioned #destiny islands #a whole new world~ #this is almost 1300 words #i never write stuff that long #Riku #the twilight gang

[crypt-tids]

i would love to know more about Kairi!

Aww!! Love spilling the beans on my kids lol.

He's in his early 20s and he works on his family's kelp farm. He also has a green thumb with basically all plants so he spends a lot of time gardening. His father died about a year before his story actually starts, so he lives with his abusive step mother and asshole half brothers and sister. He's expected to do basically all the work for none of the money and he's always the last to eat meals so he either grabs snacks out on the farm or relies on Breia for some extra food. He has a massive appetite, but very slow metabolism, so he's prone to gaining weight unintentionally, but he can also go a day or 2 without eating and be fine depending on how much he ate before. I dont want to give tooo much away yet. But he ends up getting out of his abusive home and moving to a much better place where he meets his future husband 🙏

#ask #kairi #i absolutely love talking about kairi so thank you haha

[blitz-heart-archived]

before the Islands fell, and her and Sora and Riku's lives took a turn towards.... -gestures at the series as a whole-

because of the way Aika taught her how to plant and tend to the flower bed in their backyard, thirteen year old Kairi had a dream of one day opening up and running a flower shop of her own on the Islands when she grew up. she hasn't so far ever been able to come up with a potential name for it, but it was definitely a dream of hers at one point as her step-mother taught her a passion for floral care.

it would obviously be nowhere near the same, now, but a part of her is currently tempted, albeit anxious, to ask the Wayfinder trio if they'd be okay with her starting up a small garden in the Land of Departure.

#✾ — headcanons .

[summonerluna]

Some years, the date sneaks up on me.

This year, it has been like a train barreling down the track, whistle screaming in the distance while I wait, unable to move until it has passed, and still I am surprised by how much the impact hurts when it arrives.

I read an article right after she died, or maybe right before. About a man who, five years after his father died, would still have times at work when he instinctively reached for the phone to call his dad. About that moment where you forget, even though it’s been awhile, and you wonder how you can forget something so monumental.

Because she was here for 34 years of my life and has only been gone for 5, and when you put it like that, 5 years doesn’t seem very long.

But when I look at my son who was only two back then, 5 years is most of his lifetime. She doesn’t know how much he loves dinosaurs, and can tell you the difference in a triceratops and sinoceratops, or that our chickens are the closest direct descendants to the T-Rex. She has never watched him jumping on a small exercise trampoline while playing a video game, because his brain processes best when his body is in motion, although I am certain she has given me grief about letting them play games and also been amazed at how fast he is at solving the puzzles. She hasn’t seen how gentle he can be with small animals, even when gentle is not typically a word anyone would use to describe him.

And then, it is absurd that she has never seen our house in Maine. How can that be, when I have memories of walking with her from the creek to the garden? Of sitting on the front porch in early spring and drinking coffee and talking about how different the seasons are up here. When she has joined me on walks in the woods and helped me identify plants I wasn’t sure about. She doesn’t know that Kairi has continued to love dance and takes 5 classes a week, but she has watched her in this year’s Nutcracker and was so proud of her for it.

Or she has, until I remember that she hasn’t.

And then I realize, when wanting to make something symbolic for dinner, that I can't remember her favorite meal.

I remember things I know she loved. I remember her talking about dishes she wished she could have all the time. But all I can come up with is going out for Mexican, because that's what we did so often. My sister, the only other one who knows this loss and how painful and complicated it is, gifts us money to go out, and it is good, and I think of the place near Boston we discovered that has chile rellenos like she used to make. How the first time we went there before I had even taken a bite the smell took me to those rare afternoons when the kitchen would be covered in every bowl we owned, because she could never find anywhere on the east coast that made chile rellenos like she used to get out west but it was an all day labour to make them herself. I know she has had them there, even though I don't remember if she ever even made it to Boston, much less one of its northeast suburbs.

I say a few times, "it's the anniversary of my mother's death." Sometimes I cry, even though it's the in-between moments that usually make me cry, not the the ones you can mark on the calendar.

And then later, I get mad, because I can hear her voice lamenting that nobody would miss her anyway, because she felt so small and unimportant, and five years later I want to scream, how could you imagine your children would ever not need you? And I don't know if I am mad at her, or a world that made her feel small, or myself for feeling the same way some days.

Tomorrow I will wake up, and check my email to see if casting is up for the spring ballet production. And I will work on Sebastian's Link costume, and shovel snow, and snuggle the cats and pet the dog and let out the chickens and ducks, and I will live a life that has been built entirely in a world post-her-death, that is further and further from our last conversation.

The dead stay just on the edges, there until we glance their way and are reminded that, no matter how strongly we may feel their presence or how certain we are of times they have been with us, they are gone

#personal #will maybe do an update eventually #since apparently i use this site again now #or at least am using it until zelink leaves me alone #luna's personal stuff

[as-above-rp]

Kairi M. Scott (Save Slot-A Verse)

Full Name: Kairi Morgan Scott

Age: 27yrs

DOB: July 27th

Height: 5'7" (170cm)

Weight: Approx. 200lbs

Blood Type: O- (Universal Donor)

Occupation: Biomedical Engineer & Plant Specialist 

Gender: Cis Female (She/Her)

Orientation: Bisexual, no preference 

Personality: Maternal, sweet, loyal, work oriented, foodie, open minded, soft spoken.

Conditions and Disorders: Chronic Depression, C-PTSD, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, BPD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD

Special Abilities/Powers: Go here >> Slot A OC Mutations and stuff

Bio:

A bio-engineer and botanist, Kairi specializes in breeding new species of plants and making medicines from them, although in villain circles she is most well known for her potent poisons. Growing up with an abusive and materialistic mother, Kairi grew up incredibly dependent on her scientist father until his passing.

Presently, she works for Mack and Rachael’s villain empire as a scientist and farmhand by day, and polycule datemate off hours.

She and Kaien are half-siblings, through their mother.

Past:

Kairi grew up in a fairly well off, privileged family. Her father was a well known and well respected Bio-Engineer and Chemist, while her mother handled Real Estate for many years.

Her mother was mostly absent in her life, unless she had the day off, or she was forcing Kairi to go shopping with her and participate in beauty pageants/modeling. Kairi didn’t enjoy them, but it was the only time her mother interacted with her, so she tried to make the best of it.

Even at a young age, Kairi preferred reading, science and mathematics. Her father was insistent on facilitating this love of learning, and put a lot of time and effort into making sure she had good tutors and a conducive learning environment. Kairi spent a lot of time with her father in the family green house, learning about plants and plant sciences.

When her father fell ill with a rare heart disease which he had been trying to manufacture a treatment for over the years, Kairi picked up his work where he left off. She insisted that she do her schooling at home until he recovered, and since Kairi’s mother was out of the house more often than ever, her father agreed as long as her grades didn’t suffer.

Kairi took care of him for most of that time, while in secret, her mother had lost her job and was having an affair with another rich man. As his physical health declined, her mother’s mental health suffered at the same rate.

On one particularly late night return, Kairi’s mother walked in on Kairi administering the treatment that she and her father had been working on.

Accusing her daughter of trying to kill him so she alone could reap all his financial and material benefit, she attacked her to put a stop to it. That was the night Kairi got the large scar on the back of her head from it being busted open and needing stitching, and the night tat her mother set their family greenhouse aflame; all of their plants and important research towards curing the hereditary heart disease were lost, and Kairi’s father passed away while she was recovering in the hospital.

TRIGGER WARNING: CHILD ABUSE, DOMESTIC ABUSE, TRAUMA

Unbeknownst to Kairi, her father had found out about her mother’s affair before his passing. Since it was too late to file for a divorce, he instead contacted a lawyer to change his will so that most of the financial benefits went to Kairi, while her mother got the deed to the house and ownership of the material benefits.

In addition to always “competing” for her husband’s attention with her own daughter and her own insecurities, Kairi’s mother held a deep grudge against her. She became increasingly emotionally abusive, eventually escalating to physical abuse as well. It was Kairi’s mother who set her hands ablaze with her oni fire magic, resulting in the burn scars on both of her hands. Her mother is also responsible for the stab wound scar on her right side, under her ribcage.

With the help of her high-school friend and their mother, Kairi was able to temporarily move out of her home away from her mother, and become legally emancipated without losing any of the benefits left to her by her father. However around this same time, she too was diagnosed with the same heart disease that took her father’s life. After graduating and turning 18, most of the money left to her by her father was put towards her higher education and medical expenses. She lived out of her truck to save on expenses. 

Kairi was able to get a job working for a reputable and famous lab in the kingdom after earning her masters in Bio-Engineering. Using the technology and resources available thanks to her new position, she was able to fill in the missing gaps in her and her father’s hypothetical cure to reverse their heart disease. It was too late for her father, but Kairi had successfully cured herself of the disease.

However, when higher ups and authorities discovered she had been using company equipment and resources to experiment on herself and alter herself on a cellular level, she was subsequently fired. She avoided a criminal trial to keep the incident out of the press and the news, and after agreeing that her research would be seized and she would lose credit for her work. However, a kind soul in charge of the credits did leave her father’s name as one of those who found the cure and treatment.

Kairi continued living out of her truck, traveling around nearby cities doing odd-jobs to get by. Occasionally, she’d have commissions from villains/organizations for her bio-engineering skills to draft and create new plants, poisons, and weapons. 

While working as a clerk/cashier at a gas station, a patron came in and struck up a conversation with her. Learning about her extensive talents, he offered her a job working for him instead. It was soon after, that Kairi began working for Mackentire and Rachael Donahue-Mulder, the two most notorious villains in Macro Kingdom.

Additional References:

#oc page #oc ref #the scarecrow (save slot a kairi) #kairi #kairi scott #kairi m scott

[freshlymoms-1]

Is taking ashwagandha while breastfeeding safe?

The foods and drinks you can enjoy while breastfeeding are less limited than they were when Ashwagandha was used during pregnancy. Some foods, such as deli turkey sandwiches, fresh sushi, and even a glass of wine, are generally avoided by pregnant women but are readily consumed by breastfeeding mothers. Things can seem a little murkier, though, when it comes to the safety of supplements while breastfeeding. Not all herbal supplements that are offered over the counter are suitable for use while nursing. You might be wondering if taking ashwagandha while breastfeeding is safe during the challenging and even anxious postpartum period if this Ayurvedic herb has previously helped you reduce tension.

It can be frustrating when the advice on things like vitamins and supplements while breastfeeding isn't always very obvious. Without contacting your OB-GYN, you might feel confused. We also talked to some experts about the general safety of ashwagandha while nursing, though it's always best to contact your doctor to be sure.

is ashwagandha safe for breastfeeding

Ashwagandha during breastfeeding

Describe ashwagandha.

You've probably heard of ashwagandha, particularly if you're involved in the health culture on social media sites like Instagram. This popular Ayurvedic herb is thought to have a wide range of advantages, but in reality, specialists know very little about it.

A plant, ashwagandha is indigenous to the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and India. It yields berries that are red and yellow flowers. As an adaptogen, this plant's base, leaves, and berries can be used medicinally, according to naturopathic physician and delivery doula Kendra Clifford. "Herbal remedies that help your body cope with stress are known as adaptogens."

Is ashwagandha healthy to take while breastfeeding? Or can you take ashwagandha while nursing

It is challenging for health care professionals to state with certainty whether or not ashwagandha is safe when breastfeeding due in large part to a lack of study and hard data. In terms of breastfeeding, ashwagandha is presently classified as "unsafe due to lack of evidence," according to Clifford. However, this is at least in part because using pregnant or nursing women as study subjects has ethical and moral ramifications.

It's virtually impossible to determine how much of the active ingredients in this herb cross into breast milk without any reliable studies that definitively demonstrate ashwaganda's efficacy or safety for a breastfeeding individual, says Kairis Chiaji, a doula working with Blue Shield. "There would be a risk because it would be impossible to foresee or control the side effects in adults or newborns. They are uncommon, but they can be very serious. There are some medical conditions, such as diabetes, that make it completely contraindicated. Parents should also consider other ingredients in supplements that can differ depending on the brand or supplier, according to her. It's important to note that the Federal Drug Administration does not control ashwagandha supplements. (FDA).

Clifford points out that Ashwagandha is widely used in Ayurvedic treatment despite all of these limitations. She claims that pregnant and nursing women have used it for millennia.”

Ashwagandha advantages

In Ayurvedic therapy, ashwagandha has been utilised for thousands of years. The treatment of schizophrenia, chronic stress, insomnia, anxiety, memory/cognitive enhancement, obsessive-compulsive disorder, rheumatoid arthritis, type-2 diabetes, and male infertility may all benefit from the use of ashwagandha, according to a 2020 analysis of 69 studies. The same review states that "properly designed, randomised-controlled, large-size, prospective trials with standardised preparations are needed" to learn more about the safety and advantages of ashwagandha.

Other advantages of ashwagandha could be:

Reduced anxiety and stress: A small 2019 study that included 58 participants found that those who took ashwagandha for eight weeks experienced substantially lower levels of stress than those who took a placebo. In a separate, smaller research from 2019 involving 60 participants, it was discovered that those who took ashwagandha for 60 days experienced significantly less anxiety than those who took a placebo.

Enhance physical performance Ashwagandha use on a regular basis may improve physical performance when exercising, according to a review of 12 studies.

Relieve the symptoms of mental health issues like depression and schizophrenia: A 2018 research examined the effects of ashwagandha in 66 individuals with schizophrenia who also had depression and anxiety, and discovered that those who took the herb daily for 12 weeks had lower depression scores.

Reduce inflammation: According to research, the plant contains substances that may aid in reducing inflammation in the body.

Sleep better: In a 2020 study, 50 people aged 65 to 80 took ashwagandha for 12 weeks, and the results showed that they slept better and woke up more alert than those who took a placebo.

Dose of ashwagandha while breastfeeding

Both Clifford and Chiaji refused to offer suggestions regarding the recommended dosage of ashwagandha because it is difficult to determine whether it is safe to take while nursing. Both of them advised obtaining advice from your OB-GYN or another physician before taking the herb.

Less stress and more sleep sound like excellent ashwagandha benefits. Because not enough study has been done to prove that taking ashwagandha while breastfeeding is completely safe for both mother and child, there are risks associated with doing so. Before consuming ashwagandha while nursing, make sure to consult your doctor.

#ashwagandha #ashwagandha powder #ashwagandha for women #benefits of ashwagandha for pregnancy

[strelitziareginaee]

MOM sent him here on an errand, saying to pick out a plant that would brighten up the apartment. Maybe Kairi or Qistina bothered MOM for lively decor, whatever that meant. Though Sasaki was given specific instructions to wear his hoodie up, not that Sasaki complained. Though MOM gave him a face mask (as it was courtesy in this world's culture) and some shades, understandable as Sasaki knew his eyes were… different.

"Uhh… flowers, flowers. I think this is the right address?"

Entering the building, Sasaki peaks around; sweet, fresh is the aroma of the flower shop, brimming with life and beauty of all sorts of shapes, sizes, and colors. A twisted nostalgic sadness churns in his heart; there are plants here that remind him of home… of his mother… He's quick to snap out of his thoughts when a petite, gentle voice rings in his ears. Perking his head towards the source, Sasaki stares behind his "disguise."

"…Uhhhh…. What kind of plants do girls like? You're a girl, right? So like... you'd know, right?"

He blurts out awkwardly.

{; ✿*ﾟ‘ﾟ･ -- ; "Hello, welcome!"

Her voice was light and airy, welcoming and warm like the sunlight that beamed through the glass windows of her shop. The ringing of a bell tied to the front door signaled a customer, and it was seconds later that Strelitzia appeared from the back, a smudge of soil smeared on the apple of her cheek where she'd attempted to wipe away an itch.

Patting her hands upon her dirtied apron, she approached the counter and smiled. It was a common question, one that once threw her off guard when she first established her flower shop, but now expected whenever a single man walked through her door.

"Is this for your girlfriend?" She asked with a harmless tilt of her head. A lot of men came to her shop looking for flowers, most of them attempting to rectify a mistake they had done, and were seeking forgiveness. From this boy's discomfort and awkward demeanor, she had a feeling that was the reason.

"If that is the case, might I suggest white tulips? They're known to brighten up any room, and the white color is a symbol of peace. Uhm, but if you..." She paused, deliberating whether or not she should say this before assuming, but decided to continue nonetheless. It was apparent that the boy was here for a reason. "... Are getting these for a girl you've upset, they're a good way to say you're sorry...."

#dichotomouskey #{;this ask was in my box for an embarrassing amount of time lmao;} #{;askreplied;}

[stonesparrow]

My dcst next gen fankids

Yeah it’s what it says on the tin, spoilers for the end of the series. I’ll post story bits if people are interested!

BACKGROUND: According to my (possibly terrible) math, Why-Man was defeated in 5755, and then for the purposes of this story Taiju and Yuzuriha were married in 5760, “several years” after the moon mission.

Oki Taichi (b. 5761)

The eldest of Taiju and Yuzuriha’s children. Much like his father, Taichi is strong and enduring, with a responsible and somewhat cautious personality. He enjoys poetry and writing and is considering becoming an elementary schoolteacher. Senku used to call him Taiju 2 because of how much he looks like his father.

Oki Mei (b. 5763)

Second eldest of Taiju and Yuzuriha’s children. She has a creative and patient personality but is not afraid to put her foot down if she needs to. She enjoys gardening and putting plants in aesthetically pleasing patterns, and is the physically strongest of her siblings, though doesn’t look it.

Oki Yurika (b. 5765)

The third child of Taiju and Yuzuriha, who was named by Senku. He chose to name her after the phrase Eureka! to symbolize blessing the girl with an exciting life of discovery (though he won’t admit to thinking that deeply on it). A stocky young lady with messy brown hair in a short ponytail and thick eyebrows, she possesses a dry wit that matches even that of Senku’s and an interest in science, particularly chemistry.

Oki Kenzo (b. 5766)

Possibly the sweetest child in the kingdom of science, he takes the most after his mother and has her knack for textile work, and has a quiet personality. That said he’s still fairly perceptive and knows more than he lets on. Looks more like his mom in the face but has his dad’s hair texture.

Oki Hana (b. 5770)

A mischievous little trickster who delights in jokes and physical activity, often running around in the dirt and bringing home insects and frogs. Has a habit of being very loud. Looks similar to her father but with her mother’s hair texture and cute little hair buns.

Emerald/Emi (b. 5762)

The elder child of Chrome and Ruri and best friend of Mei, named after Ruri’s late mother. She is inquisitive and energetic. Has long brown hair.

Jiodo/Jio (b. 5765)

Emi’s brother and Chrome and Ruri’s younger child. He has a cool and somewhat sardonic personality. He and Yurika frequently butt heads but in a friendly way. Chrome notes that they remind him of himself and Kohaku at their age, though Jio isn’t romantically involved with Mei. Has spiky blonde hair.

Saionji Hitomi (b. 2015, revived in 5756) 

An old world girl who was taken in by Ukyo as a child when her parents were discovered to be far too eroded to revive (they had been shielding her as they broke apart). Also Yurika and her siblings’ childhood babysitter and one of Yuzuriha’s apprentice seamstresses. She is soft spoken and gentle, and enjoys singing and archery. 

Nanami Akio (b. 2010, revived in 5760) 

Ryusui’s adopted son (parents were eroded) and heir to Nanami Corp. Thinks his dad is kind of weird but cares for him anyway. Akio is stiff and a bit too sarcastic for his own good. He has a crush on Hitomi but is terrible at expressing it. He also has a good relationship with his Uncle Sai.

Shishio Kairi (b.5765)

Mirai’s daughter, and Yurika’s best friend. Mirai and her partner at the time agreed to split because their relationship wasn’t working out, but he’s still in Kairi’s life. She has a sporty personality and loves swimming. Is quite tall for a teenaged girl at 5’10” to Yurika’s 5’2” - Tsukasa muses that it likely came from his and Mirai’s father. 

Princess Platinum (b. 5757)

Soyuz and Amaryllis’ (their relationship isn’t exactly romantic, but they’re good friends and Amaryllis is Soyuz’ most trusted advisor) daughter and heir to the throne of the Treasure Island Kingdom, named after the precious metal that Team Science fought so hard to get. 

Lady Lily (b. 5760)

Platinum’s adopted younger sister.

#dr stone #dr. stone #dcst #ocs #next gen #future fic #my writing #dcst next gen

[as-above-is-moving]

Doodles and sketches from the week 👉👈

#mun art #my art #muse art #oc #oc art #second chance savior (yue) #mother of plants (kairi) #might of the valkyries (gale) #sketch #sketches #doodle #doodles

[manygalaxiesinone]

A deadly lullaby Pt 4. (Finale)

Sora, Pit, Akira, Morgana, Simon, and Richter continue to follow Link around as he practices Mar’s lullaby, growing more and more plants as time goes on. Overtime, Link notices something was...off. At first, he dismissed it thinking it was nothing, but the more time goes on, the more it worsened.

Link: *?!*

Simon: “Are you unwell, Link? You’ve been acting strange for a while now.”

Link: *shakes his head letting them know he’s fine*

Sora: “Link, we’re your friends. If you’re not feeling well, just let us know, okay?”

Pit: “Yeah! If you want, I can get you some water or a towel if it’ll help.”

Link: *takes a breath to clear his mind, reassuring the others that he’s fine*

Richter: “If you say so. Just don’t push yourself too hard.”

Morgana: “Hey! We found the next spot!”

*The guys meet up with Akira and Morgana further down. Soon, in a distance, Orphen, Flumpty and Kairi finally made it to the zone*

Flumpty: “Here we are! Green Hill Zone! Grass and loops as far as the eye can see.”

Orphen: “I don’t see Sora or Link around here.”

Kairi: “They can’t be too far away, right?”

Flumpty: “Should we try asking around?”

Orphen: “Well that depends, are there any animals nearby that can talk?”

Flumpty: “Of course they can! Just not in whatever language we’re speaking in right now.”

Orphen: “You know, poaching something is starting to sound like a nice idea after all.”

Flumpty: “I’m pretty sure that’s highly illegal in this area.”

Orphen: “I’m not talking about the woodland critters...”

Kairi: “Wait a second, do you guys hear something?”

*Orphen and Flumpty start hearing music*

Orphen: “That song. It’s Mar’s lullaby alright.”

Flumpty: “More than that, it sounds like it’s being played on Link’s ocarina.”

Orphen: “Come on. Let’s follow the sound.”

*Back with the group, Link is playing the song causing another plant to grow*

Akira: “This song is really working wonders. It doesn’t make sense why Orphen won’t teach it to us.”

Morgana: “Yeah! Now that Link has pretty much mastered it, I think it’s time we start giving it a go ourselves.”

Simon: “Verily! We can obtain instruments of our own from the shop and then we-”

Orphen: “Stop playing that song!”

*Everyone notice Orphen, Kairi, and Flumpty running up to the group, prompting Link to stop playing*

Sora: “Orphen? Kairi? What are you-”

Kairi: “Sora! You haven’t been practicing that lullaby, have you? That song is dangerous!”

Morgana: “What are you talking about? Link’s been playing all day and he’s-”

Link: *suddenly collapses down to his knees, struggling to keep himself together*

Morgana: “L-Link?!”

Akira: “Link?! Are you alright?!”

Flumpty: “Ooh, it looks like you guys messed up big time.”

Simon: “Link! We told you to inform us if this plan went south!”

Orphen: “We don’t have much time. Flumpty, take Link to Mario so he can get looked at. Kairi, contact Zelda. Let her know what’s going on as soon as you can!”

Flumpty: “Right-o!”

Kairi: “We’re on it.”

*Flumpty grabs Link and Kairi and leaves*

Pit: “Is Link going to be okay?”

Orphen: “So, it really was you spying on me earlier, wasn’t it Morgana?”

Morgana: “You’re not going to kill us over this, are you?”

Orphen: “Kill you? No. I should blow you guys for pulling this stunt, but I guess I should’ve up front with what the spell is all about, right? After all, a guy holding an all female class seems suspicious, doesn’t it?”

Richter: “We didn’t think you were the sort to have any hidden motives in mind, but...”

Akira: “We had to make sure. I already know too many people who are victims of those kind of guys. Letting more get added on the list just wouldn’t be right to me.”

Orphen; “Alright, you guys want an explanation? Here it is. The guy who I learned this song from was a little kid who was using it to try to find his mother. He used to play it all the time as that song was the only clue he had to finding her. Eventually during a run in with a powerful demon, we discovered something about that song. You see, women can play the song as long as they want without any issue. That’s why it’s usually taught to them each generation. As for men, there’s a price. The longer you play it, the more the song saps away your health. That kid nearly died because of it.”

Sora: “That song drains the life of men?!”

Simon: “Tis no wonder you only allow maidens to attend. You tried to shield us and our curiosity prevented it from being successful.”

Pit: “But, it’s not like we meant for this to happen!”

Orphen: “I know. That’s why I’m wiling to accept some of the blame this time. If I told you from the beginning, none of you would have tried it and Link would be okay.”

Richter: “Speaking of which, we should check on him. Knowing Flumpty’s abilities, he’s likely already under Mario’s care.”

*Later at Dr. Mario’s, Link is laying down completely passed out. Not too far from him is Sephiroth, who’s still trying to relink his memories in his mind after his heart collapsed.*

Akira: “How’s Link doing?”

Zelda: “Mario said he’ll be fine. He’s just suffering from exhaustion. He just needs to rest for the remainder of the day.”

Sora: “That’s a relief.”

Orphen: “Zelda-”

Zelda: “Relax Orphen, it’s okay. I’m aware that accidents happen. As long as Link is fine, I can rest easy.”

Orphen: “..Right.”

Zelda: “I’ll stay by his side for a little while longer. Do me a favor and thank Kairi and Flumpty for me, okay?”

*Everyone leaves Zelda to be alone with Link*

#super smash bros #super smash bros ultimate #sorcerous stabber orphen #kingdom hearts #persona 5 #castlevania #one night at flumpty's #dr. mario #legend of zelda

[spacebeyonce]

this wip wednesday post is for @ride-the-bifrost specifically. because they asked for a sorikai body art au ages ago, and I’m finally working on it but it’s since went and morphed into a mash up of florist/tattoo parlor au meets urban fantasy. I mentioned it uhhh last week? I think?

but anyway - a snippet! I’m still building it up - duh, obviously, but here’s what I have rn.

Riku never paid much mind to the tattoo parlor across from his grandmother’s shop.

That isn’t to say he’s never seen it before, or anything – he still remembers the day it popped up a few years ago, across the street and two buildings over. Synthesize, with its striking midnight blue bricks and bright red door. A lot of people were skeptical of the business, doubtful that it would be there long – himself included - but despite all their doubts, it’s stuck around so far, highly recommended through word of mouth for the high quality of their work. If you wanted a tattoo or piercing as a magic focus, or for protection, or hell, just for a good night’s sleep – Synthesis would always provide.

It has been a while since the Destiny Islands had any kind of person around who’s spell work was primarily through body art; on the cities inland yeah, sure, there’s plenty – but that’s a two-day trip that many don’t feel like taking, at minimum. Here in their little beach town, folks like the ones at Synthesize were a rarity. It’s not like Riku knows the people that worked there, though; he’s rarely seen them, even after moving back home from the mainland – and that wasn’t planned, either. But life never turns out the way you want, even if you plan every possible turn on your path to the letter.

See, Riku was a witch – a witch like his mother and father, and their foremothers and fathers, on and on and on. He was a witch, and when he was seventeen, he had left home - like all good witches are supposed to do - and traveled inland to try and find a place to settle down and call his own. His plan had been to open his own shop to sell his own magical wares and make a name for himself – though what he wanted to sell, he wasn’t really sure. But he would figure it out on his own time. He had been well on his way to it, too – a few apprenticeships under his belt, a growing number of clients – he was doing it. It had been so close.

But then he got a call from his mother. And he had to come back home in August at twenty-two, to help around the house and care for his father, who had fallen ill. And eight months later he had to hold his mother’s hand as they stared out into the sea, draped in mourning white as his father’s ashes were swept away by the tide.

He hasn’t left home since. He hasn’t felt the urge to. Before, he had been so eager to leave home, so ready to just – grow up. But now, he’s not much of anything – not anymore.

Riku wasn’t resentful about staying in the Destiny Islands, not now; in the earlier years, when grief blinded everything, he was – he snapped and lashed out and quickly gave into the dark, bitter ugliness of his heart. But it was fine in the end; he had family to support him and pull him back when he got too into his head – and a grandmother that put him to work so he could get his head out of his ass, forcing him to try his hand at selling green things and potions – a tincture for better health, a bouquet with flowers placed just so to sharpen the mind or brighten a room, ethers to restore a person’s magic when exhausted. He wasn’t as good as his grandmother at first but now – he was decent enough. It was something that would keep him focused, keep him busy, and deal with the stormy turbulence in his heart in other ways.

And then his grandmother up and left the shop in his name a year and a half later when she finally decided to retire – a little apothecary all his own.

He didn’t think he could handle it by himself – a whole shop, belonging to him and him alone? It was too soon. He still felt so unbalanced – so young. He was only twenty-three. He hadn’t been sure. But his grandmother had put her foot down.

“You need this.” She insisted. “You need this, and it will be good for you. Besides – you think I’d let you run this place by yourself? No, no, I’ll be there to help when needed – but that doesn’t mean you get to slack off!”

Time passed, and he slowly settled. Slowly made the apothecary feel more like his, made a name for himself outside of his family. And then – Synthesize.

All he knows about the people that work there is that the artists are around his age, and the owner was a blue haired woman that he’d seen coming and going now and then. That, and the high compliments of their work, he supposed. But other than those things, he knows nothing about them – and he didn’t really mind all that much. Never really noticed, anyway, too caught up in his own work, his own life, filling in the ragged space his father left behind bit by bit. He didn’t really think his path would ever cross with his mysterious neighbors.

But that all changed one cold winter day – that day, he thinks, was the one that set him onto that long, winding path.

He didn’t really mind it that much, in the end.

-o-

It had been a pretty normal start to the day.

Riku arrives to his shop at eight in the morning, as he has done for the past three years, and then he makes his rounds around the shop to check on the plants that filled buckets to bursting and the state of the potions that lined the shelves, taking note on what needed to be restocked for the day. His grandmother wouldn’t be in until noon, and that was alright – the morning hours were slow, with customers few in number - which meant he could take his time.

After taking care of what needed to be restocked, Riku returned to the back rooms of the store to prepare himself for the day. He pulled his apron on and tied it snugly around his waist, adjusting the straps and making sure they weren’t twisted around his neck. He combed his fingers through his long, platinum hair, pulling his hair tie off his wrist and holding it between his teeth as he braided his hair back, ensuring it wouldn’t get in the way. His movements were slow, meditative, and with the added scent of flowers and dried herbs, Riku felt himself slipping into a calm space, muscles relaxing. As he tied the end off, the soft jingle of the bells over the door rang through the air, and Riku raised an eyebrow.

A customer? At this hour?

“Hello?” A man’s voice called out – bright, chipper, but still relatively deep. “Anyone there?”

“Be with you in a moment!” Riku called back, making a face at his reflection and the way his bangs hung in front of his eyes, futilely blowing the hair out the way. He quickly put it aside and left the back room behind, adjusting his apron one last time as he returned to the front area, wondering who could possibly be coming by this early.

A man around his age was waiting at the counter, hands tucked into the pockets of his coat as he looked around the shop. He had spiky brown hair, warm brown skin, and strikingly blue eyes, and when Riku stepped up behind the counter, the man gave him a quick once over before giving him a smile so bright it made him squint a little. It felt fine if he only admitted it to himself, but the man was…cute.  “Can I help you?”

“Yes! I was wondering if you had any celebration flowers?”

Riku tilted his head, surveying the buckets of flowers around the room. “Probably, yes.” He mused. “What’s the occasion?”

“Ah, my girlfriend – it’s her birthday today, and I wanted to give her some flowers before work.”

Ah. A girlfriend. Well, no big deal.

He shrugged off the slight sting of disappointment with a smile. “That’s nice of you. Do you know what flowers you wanted to give her?”

“Uhh…”

Sheepish, the man shrugged, his grin turning shy as he reached up to scratch at the back of his head. The sleeve of his coat slips down, just enough so that Riku could see a small paopu fruit tattooed on his wrist. “I didn’t – sorry! I just thought, um, that there would be bouquets that were pre-made?”

Riku breathed out a little laugh. “That’s not how it works here, no. It – alright then. Can you tell me about her?”

“Huh?”

“Your girlfriend.” Riku says, beginning to roll up the sleeves of his sweater. “Can you tell me about her? What’s she like?”

He’s still a little new to this, but he’s worked here long enough that he feels like he’s got a good grip on this now.

“Oh! Um. Well –”

The man scratched at his hair again, and his eyes went soft as he thought over his words. “Kairi, well, she’s – she’s really smart, and nice – but don’t let that fool you! Even though she’s sweet, she’s got a real temper, too. And she’s so – she’s so funny, and competitive, and really hard working! And she always tries to make everyone feel good, and is just – she’s really warm, and welcoming, and – um.”

He smiled dopily. “I, uh. I like her a lot.”

Riku couldn’t help but smile. “I can tell. Alright, then. Give me just a second.”

He marinated over what he’d been told, humming in thought as he wandered around the space, staring at the buckets of flowers. It didn’t have to be a huge bouquet, he thinks – nothing too outlandish. He started off with a few pink carnations as the base, thinking for a second before grabbing a few amaryllis flowers. What else…? Jasmines, Riku decides. And larkspur. Maybe forget-me-nots? Riku wasn’t sure yet, but he felt pretty good about the idea.

So far it was looking good – whites and pinks with a little hint of purple. It felt…fitting. He didn’t know this Kairi person, but this looked like it would suit her well enough.

“So…”

“Hm?” Riku hummed absently, looking around the room.

“How long have you worked here?”

“Oh – um.” He tucked some of his wayward bangs behind his ear, even though he knew the act was futile. “About three years. This shop was – it’s family owned.”

“Really? That’s so cool!”

“You think so? It was my grandmother’s and, well. Now it’s mine.”

“Whaaaat?” The man gaped at him, astounded, and Riku felt prickly heat spread down his neck. “You own this place? But you look like – my age!!”

Riku sharply turned away, pressing the back of his hand against his cheek as he looked over the plants. The bouquet still needed a little – something. He decided to go with the forget-me-nots, after all. “That’s because I probably am your age. Really, it - it’s not that impressive.” Riku mumbles quietly, back turned to the man. “I mean – this place isn’t really mine. It’s not something I made on my own. But – that’s nothing you have to worry about. Sorry.”

How unprofessional of him; what is he thinking, starting to unload his problems on a stranger? Get a grip.

He decided to grab a few leaves of a fern plant, thinking that a touch of green would be good. As he started to head back to the counter he felt – something. A light brush against his senses – a magical aura rubbing against his. It made him shiver a little, hair rising at the nape of his neck, and he cut a glance over at the man, only to notice him staring, blue eyes piercing. It felt like – like he was trying to figure him out.

“I still think it’s great.” He said softly, and he sounded so…sincere. Riku tore his eyes away, letting out a soft laugh of disbelief. “If you say so.”

“Can you do magic, too?” The man asked as Riku returned behind the counter, grabbing some lavender tissue paper to wrap the flowers in.

“I can.” Riku’s hands moved fluidly, tucking the flowers together and wrapping them up, turning some of the blooms just so, so the arrangement looks perfect. “I come from a very long line of witches.”

“Really?? That’s amazing!”

The man looked so amazed, eyes sparkling, and Riku actively had to fight back the heat creeping up his neck. “Thanks.” He mumbled bashfully. “Anyway –”

He wrapped the flowers with a nice white ribbon and held out the bouquet. “You’re all set.”

“Oh! Thank you!” The man carefully takes the flowers, a little awed smile on his face. “They look amazing – and they smell so good! And they feel really – bright! Wow, you’re really good at this!”

“I should hope so.” Riku says dryly, and the man makes a face.

“Sorry, sorry. How much do I owe you? Oh, can I also get a couple ethers, as well?”

He grabbed the bottles of ether before munny exchanged hands, and Riku gave the man his change and receipt with a smile. “Have a good one. I hope Kairi likes the birthday flowers.”

“Thanks! I hope so, too!”

The man grinned brightly at him and took a couple steps back, arms laden with his purchases. He’d started to turn to the door but – stopped. Turned back to face him. “Hey…what’s your name?”

Riku tilted his head a little, bemused. “I’m Riku.”

“Riku.” He repeated slowly, like he was testing the sound of his name, and then he gave him a smile. “I’m Sora! It’s nice to meet you – and thanks for all your help! I’ll probably come around more often.”

Sora gave him one more wave before stepping outside, the door quietly swinging shut behind him. The shop felt – much quieter, with Sora’s presence gone; everything about him was very…bright. Loud. But not in a bad way.

He did say he would come around more often, and Riku, well – he guessed that he wouldn’t mind the noise too much.

Riku stepped around the counter and moved towards the large windows, discreetly staring after Sora as he walked down the street and headed –

To Synthesize.

“Oh.” He said aloud, mouth falling open a little as Sora entered the shop, letting that bright red door close behind him.

He guessed – the little glimpse of a tattoo should’ve made it obvious. But that doesn’t mean Sora works there. Maybe his girlfriend works there? That’s probably it.

It slowly started to sink in how Riku must have looked to others, pressed up against the window and staring after someone he only talked to for five minutes.

Why was he thinking so hard about this? What was there to wonder about? He needs to get it together.

“I have work to do.” He muttered to himself, pushing away from the windows and retreating into the store’s depths.

#wip wednesday #sorikai

[your-1up-girl]

This Freedom Doesn’t Scare Me at All

A bit of an AU where the stories of FF7r and KH are combined to create this fanfic. There are going to be somethings that don't match the FF universe but just roll with it for this fic. Aerith talks about freedom with Naminé who is experiencing everything herself. For @aerith-week day 5. 

Word Count: 1788

Warnings: Slight Clerith and Namiku. Also descriptions of someone getting badly injured and character death but I hope it’s not too bad.

Read on Ao3

“Cid, just give me a list! You don’t have to explain what each part does!”

“Last time I gave you a list, you came back with things that were never even on there!”

“But did you use them?”

“I’ll just wait outside…” Aerith quickly got herself out of the argument that was about to explode between Cid and Cloud. It was just going to be a simple errand run but when Cid wanted parts for his computer, it became an all day endeavor. He would get mad if you got the wrong one. Even if you followed the list to a T, he would still find something wrong with it.

“THEN WHY NOT JUST BUY THEM YOURSELF CID?!?” Ah, Aerith heard that Yuffie caught wind of the debate. It’s a good thing Merlin wasn’t home, he would have had all of their heads...Maybe she should give him a call? Her thought was interrupted when she saw Naminé sitting in the flowers. Her head was tilted up at the sky and a sketchbook in her lap.

"Hello Naminé, may I join you?"

Naminé was startled for just a moment before responding, "Oh yes, sorry I just got distracted." Aerith fixed her dress and sat next to her. She noticed that there was some art supplies near her and on the page of the book was the sky above them and some of the buildings in the square. "Do you ever just look up at the sky?" The question came out of nowhere and sounded more rhetorical so Aerith remained silent so the young girl could continue. "The sky looks so different every place you go. The sunrise on Destiny Island is different than the sunset in Twilight Town. And the evening sky in the Land of Departure is vastly different that the daytime here in Radiant Garden." As Naminé talked to Aerith, she flipped through her sketch book. She had different skies of each location she named. "I try to draw the sky where ever I go but, it just doesn't give the real thing justice. It was one thing to see everything through Sora's memories, but to experience everything for myself." Naminé took a deep breath in and slowly let it out. "This is like nothing I have ever experienced before." Aerith just listened to Naminé. It was nice to see the girl experience this new life she got to have. Her smile was still there but Aerith could see her eyes had a somber look to them, "Riku says he's going to ask the King if we can take the Gummi ship and go to all the different worlds they went to but, I just feel all that open world it I just..."

"You get scared?"

"Yeah. Do you know that feeling?"

"I think I know that feeling all too well." Aerith fixed her dress. Naminé was waiting for her to continue and Aerith sighed. "Cloud, Leon, Tifa, we aren't actually from Radiant Garden. We're actually from a place called Midgar."

"What was Midgar like?"

"I have no idea. You see, I was born in a lab. What I mean is that my mom had me in a lab. For the first few years of my life, I was trapped. It was just me, my mom, and the scientists who would run tests on us. It was awful. The only resemblance of outside I got to experience were from the stories that my Mother would read to me."

"I had no idea."

"It's okay, no one really knew. Plus, it's not something that I really talk about."

"You don't have to tell me if this is too much for you."

"No, sometimes it's good to talk about these things. I lived in the lab for the first few years of my life. Then, when I was maybe about eight? Nine? My mom decided she would take me and we would escape. How she was able to come up with a plan to get us out of there was beyond me. But she did it. Unfortunately for us, that was the same day that the Heartless attack our world and we lost it to darkness. Up until that moment, I thought that the world was just as beautiful as the way I imagined it in the book." Aerith hugged her knees close to her as she remembered. "I was so terrified as she carried me outside. Everything was falling, the sky was an awful mix of black, yellow, and purple. People were being turned into Heartless. I was traumatized."

"Your Mother, did she turn into..."

Aerith shook her head, "No. As she ran, a part of a building fell in front of us. It caused us to fall into the slums below. My Mother took most of the fall to keep me safe. Even when I told her I would walk, she wouldn't let me go. At this point she could barely move and she fell. The fall was too much for her. And of course, because luck was on our side that day, more debris fell on her. It pinned her to the ground. It was the first time I looked at her since we escaped. Her face was bloodied and her left arm had a gash that ran down her forearm. Her lip was cut and so was the top of her head. She wouldn't move and I could see that the Darkness was coming closer. I called out for help and tied to move her, but of course I couldn't do anything. Cid found us as he was taking everyone to his Gummi ship. He ran to us and my Mother just said, Take care of Aerith." Aerith wiped a tear from her cheek and continued. "I must have passed out because we made it to Radiant Garden and I was in a bed at Merlin's house."

Naminé leaned in close to Aerith doing anything she could to comfort her, "What happened once you made it here?"

"I didn't leave my room. I was young and in my mind I connected the idea of escaping to the world ending again. I thought that if I even looked outside everything would collapse. So, I kept my door closed at all times and the curtains drawn. Everyone would try to get me to go outside but I was so afraid of the unknown that was out there. I thought that going outside would ruin everything all over again. I did that until I was about thirteen." Aerith looked down at Naminé who remained at her side. "But, I wasn't a complete hermit. I would talk to Yuffie and Tifa when they went out to the market place. Cid would talk to me about dinner recommendations or just how my day was. And Merlin brought me books. He saw that I brought the one my Mother would read to me so her would give me some of his old ones. My favorite was the one about flora and fauna. It was very large, each page was full of descriptions of how to take care of plants and animals. The plants fascinated me the most."

"How did Cloud help you?"

"Well Could, he was an introvert and would only see me if other people were in the room. But then one day he came to my room with a potted plant in his arms. He placed it on my dresser and said, 'It's one thing to look at them in pictures but I thought you might like the real deal.' That's what started it all." Aerith went into greater detail of how Cloud would bring her a new plant for her room until it eventually looked like a green house. "On my thirteenth birthday he brought me beautiful yellow lilies, but of course at that point there was no room for them." Aerith sighed as she recalled this memory and Naminé patiently waiting for her to continue, "I knew what he was going to say next, he said if I wanted more I would have to plant some outside." Aerith shook her head and laughed, "I wanted to throw him out of my room at that moment, flowers or not."

Naminé laughed with her, "So what did you do?"

"Well I didn't throw him out, but he could tell I was apprehensive about leaving my room. So he just told me, 'Aerith, you can't be afraid of living your life just because something bad may happen. Bad things happen to people all the time, but that doesn't stop everyone from experiencing the good.' He held out his hand for me to take. And even though I was screaming internally, I knew he was right. So I took his hand and we walked outside. Cloud didn't care that I held on to him. If anything he held me tighter when he felt that I was shaking. Finally, I walked out the door to this same beautiful sky that you see." They both looked up again. "When I stayed inside my room, it felt as thought the air was also suffocating me. I was trapped by my own fear. But when I walked outside, I could finally breathe again. I cried at how fresh the air, the breeze, everything felt so freeing."

"Sorry, that little anecdote I had, I guess I needed to talk about it after all." Aerith gave a nervous laugh but Naminé shook her head with a smile.

"No, don't worry, I understand what you were trying to tell me. I can't be afraid of all this freedom I now have. I was so used to being trapped that it became the only thing I knew. But know that I have a heart. The only thing that's stopping me is me." Naminé stood up with a new resolve. "I'm going with Riku! Nothing I going to stop me. Maybe we can invite Sora and Kairi too."

"That's the spirit, but something tells me that Riku would like to go with just you." Naminé didn't have too much time to think about what she meant because Cloud came up behind them.

"Hey, you ready? Cid finally gave me a list."

"Mhm. Naminé would you like to come with us? We could get you some art supplies or a new dress for when you go with Riku?"

Naminé had packed her things and was ready to head home but stopped, "Oh, you wouldn't mind?"

"No, not at all." Cloud smiled at her and took the small messenger bag that held her sketch book and color pencils. Standing in between them Naminé held Cloud's hand in her left and Aerith's in her right as they walked to the market place.

#Sam! this was the fic I asked for help with! #It's different from what we talked about but this is what my brain told me to write #I just went with it but I hope you like it :3 #Aerith Gainsborough #Aerith Week 2021 #Day 5: Boundless Freedom #Cloud Strife #kingdom hearts namine #FFVII #Final Fantasy 7 #final fantasy 7 remake #ffviir #my writing #enjoy

[is0gild]

Ice Cream and Fire Oven Pizza - Bonus Chapter 1

Pairing: Elsa x Lea/Axel || Side Pairing: Riku x OC

Summary: Modern AU. She's an introvert ball of nerves who works at Ice Palace, a mall food court ice cream shop. He's the outgoing, sassy goofball who works at the Pizza Planet across the way. Hilarity, snark, and fluffy romcom hijinks ensue.

Word Count: 12,577

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER  | | NEXT CHAPTER

Credit for super friggin’ cute and super friggin’ amazing cover art goes to the super friggin’ talented ky-jane here on tumblr!

"Do you think Kristoff is cute?" Anna asked, elbows propped on the table and chin in both hands as she watched the man in question from across the food court.

"You kiddin'? The dude's a hunkasaurus. Total dreamboat," Lea replied distractedly, not looking up from his current task. He was seated atop a different table, this one behind me, his feet perched to either side of me on the armrests of my chair as he played with my hair, slowly braiding and unbraiding it only to rebraid it again. "Better snap him up quick. If you don't slice yourself off a piece of that beefcake, I might beatcha to it."

My sister blew out an amused pft through her teeth as she looked over at him. "Sure, like he'd even give you the time of day."

"Oh-ho, trust me. If I wanted that boy, I'd have him."

"Anna," I sighed, interjecting myself back into the conversation. "Focus, please."

She blinked owlishly back at me, clearly having already forgotten my question. Or quite possibly not even having heard it in the first place. "...on…?" she asked at last, dragging the word out uncertainly.

I exhaled softly. "About Mother and Father?"

Her eyes darted to the left as she squinted and tried, "As in… do they think Kristoff is cute?"

My eyelids drooped and I gave a flat, "No."

Today found me with not one visitor on my lunch break, but two. Lea came as little shock. Even though he had the day off, he'd lately taken to doing his homework here in the food court whenever I was on the clock. That way, he could spend my lunches with me, not to mention score free ice cream throughout the day. Anna, on the other hand, had been an unexpected surprise, but always a welcome one of course. However, it was quickly becoming apparent that it probably wasn't really me she'd come to see.

Not if the way she kept eyeing my coworker as he ran the ice cream counter was any indication.

It'd been a few weeks now since her rather explosive breakup with Hans. Given that she normally got over past boyfriends in under a day, maybe two tops, the fact that it'd taken her this long to quit moping over him said something. But it seemed at long last she was back to her old, perky self again and all but wearing a "cute, single and ready to mingle" sandwich board sign. And apparently it was Kristoff's lucky day, for it seemed my sister had set her mingle-crosshairs on him as her latest conquest.

I didn't know whether to congratulate the guy or tell him to run. My sister would eat him alive.

Anna was now staring at me expectantly, waiting for me to elaborate. I bit my bottom lip, looking down as my fingers absently began to trace the snowflake pattern of my stockings. "I just… I was wondering… how Mother and Father were doing, that's all."

I'd still yet to speak to them since the little blowout at their house the weekend of Grandfather's birthday. If they weren't going to contact me, I certainly wasn't going to make any effort to reach out to them either. Still, I couldn't deny that it weighed on me a bit. I'd mostly been trying to keep my mind off it, trying to distract myself by throwing all my attention and energy into rehearsals.

She frowned then puffed out a heavy breath, causing her lips to flap. "Ya know, I'm not sure really… Fine, I guess? The same? They're not really on speaking terms with me since they found out about me and Butthead."

If you couldn't guess, that was her oh so charming nickname for Hans now.

Not to mention the only name anyone was allowed to refer to him as in Anna's presence these days.

"Ah," I breathed, fingers fidgeting with the hem of my work skirt. "...I see."

Her lips pursed to one side. "Now that I think about it though… them and Grandpa haven't really been on speaking terms either lately. But no clue if that's so much as his choice or theirs."

"Oh? Huh…" my brow furrowed and my head tipped to one side.

What could it mean?

"You should talk to 'em, ya know," came Lea's low voice suddenly as he hunched down next to my ear.

A tiny scowl twisted my face as I glanced over at him. He quirked an eyebrow back at me from beneath my Ice Palace cap, which he was currently wearing backwards. I huffed and crossed my arms, "If they want to talk to me, they know where to find me."

He snorted and sat up straight once more, his fingers returning to gently combing through my hair, eliciting a tingle in my scalp that made me shiver. "Someone has to be the first one."

"Yeah. Them," I harrumphed.

Now he pressed his lips to the back of my head before his hand ruffled my bangs. "You can be so stubborn sometimes, ya know that?"

No comment.

"Right!" Anna was abruptly hopping up to her feet and pumping a fist as she set her determined eyes on Kristoff once more. "I'm gonna march up to that boy and work my magic! Prepare to have your socks knocked off, you big sexy manbeast!" She then smoothed a hand over her hair, tugged on the neckline of her dress to flash a little more cleavage, and took one confident step towards the Ice Palace.

That was as far as she got before, "Hold it!" A hand shot out to snag her elbow, stopping her in her tracks. "We need to talk to you."

Anna blinked down at the offending hand, then at its owner, Rayne. She'd just shown up with a grinning and waving Kairi at her side.

Where'd they come from? I hadn't even seen either of them approaching.

"...me?" Anna asked, pointing at herself as both eyebrows flew up her forehead.

My roomie nodded then turned her eyes towards me to clarify, "Both of you."

Huh. This now brought the count up to four people dropping by to see me on my lunch break today. Never before had I been in such high demand.

Had I become, dare I say it… popular?

Dear god, I hope not!

Rayne's gaze narrowed on Lea. "Beat it, Red. This doesn't concern you."

"You beat it!" Lea shot back as his arms hugged me from behind, pulling me back against his chest. He made a small hmph that I more felt than heard as he rested his chin atop my head, "This is my El Time. You're not allowed to cut in on it, you live with her."

She rolled her eyes. "You two have plans together tonight once her shift is over, right?"

"So?"

"So you can give up five minutes of your precious El Time for me and Kai here to have a quick chat with her. Now go on, shoo," she dismissed him with a bored flick of her wrist.

He grumbled, "Ugh, fine. Looks like the kiddos just punched in over at Pizza Planet, so guess I could go grace their sad existences with my glorious presence." Releasing me, he pulled my elastic band off his wrist so he could tie my hair back into its ponytail. Then he was nuzzling his face into my neck, planting a quick peck there before whispering in my ear, "Be back in a sec. You'll miss me, I know, but try to keep the tears in check, hm?"

In response, I turned my head to kiss him on the nose… followed by smothering his face with my hand and shoving him away. He sniggered, pushing himself off the table.

"Hope you're ready to have your ass curb stomped tomorrow, Organization scum," Kairi slyly smirked at him.

"Big talk coming from someone's who lost the last two years runnin' now, Princess twerp," he tugged down his left lower eyelid with his middle finger and razzed his tongue at her before turning and jogging off, still wearing my cap.

Eyes flicking back and forth between him and Kairi, Anna asked, "What was that about?"

"Laser tag," I grinned softly as my gaze followed Lea for a second before I reached back to tighten my ponytail and glanced at the rest of ladies once more. "It's practically all he's been talking about for the last week."

"Mm-hm," Kairi nodded as she and Rayne pulled up chairs to sit with us. "It's also what we want to talk to you about. We're here to recruit you two!"

My head rocked back slightly. Then my brows knit together as my eyes darted about. Uh, heh… no thanks! Checking my phone, I stood up quickly, "Er… would you look at the time? I'm due back from lunch! I should go cloc-"

"Sit!" Anna snagged my wrist and jerked me back down into my seat with a firm thud. "You still got at least another ten minutes, liar!"

"Snitch," I grumbled back.

Lifting her chin with a smug little smirk, she looked back at the other two. "Please, continue."

"You know Space Paranoids, right? The laser tag place here in the mall?" Rayne began, addressing Anna more so than me, seeing as how I already had some clue as to what was going on, thanks to Lea. "Well some years back, a buncha us rented the entire place out for like a whole day and it was a total blast. We all had so much fun that we decided to make it an annual thing. More and more kept joining every year and as people kept getting more and more competitive, it wasn't long before two official teams were formed. Lea's group calls themselves the Organization."

"Such a buncha dorks," Kairi shook her head with a snerk. Then she was pointing back and forth between her and Rayne, "Our team is way cooler. We're the Princesses."

Anna bit back a grin and cocked one eyebrow at my roommate. "The Princesses? Really?"

She closed her eyes and heaved a sigh, "Kai's idea. It stuck."

"Hey now. Princesses are cute and kick serious butt," Kairi cockily flipped her hair back over her shoulder.

"Anyway," Rayne chimed back in, "we thought this year those Organization losers were gonna have to forfeit because they were down two teammates that moved away recently. However, not only did those jerks manage to snag the mall security guards as replacements, but now we're down two people ourselves."

"Really? Who?" Anna eagerly leaned forward in her seat, thoroughly invested now.

"Me," she muttered, face twisting sourly as she gestured down to her belly. At five months along now, she was starting to look very much pregnant. She huffed indignantly, "Some people think it might not be safe for the baby."

By the tone of her voice, I was guessing "some people" included her husband.

"You are getting pretty big now, Ray-Ray," Anna snickered. "Maybe it's a good idea-"

"Shush!" she glared, striking up a finger in warning. "I get enough of that from Riku!"

Kairi spoke up once more, "Our other person who's out this time round is Ariel. She's got bronchitis."

I blinked. "Again?!"

"Again," she and Rayne groaned in unison. Kairi then beamed, clapping her hands together once, "That's where you two come in! Could ya please, please, pretty please help us outta this major jam here and top off our team? Whaddya say?"

"Sweet! Count us in!" Anna declared, excitedly balling her hands into fists in front of her chest.

"Correction. You can count her in," I touched Anna's shoulder, then placed a hand over my chest, "and me out."

Kairi's face fell, "But we need you!"

I snorted, "No you don't, I'm the last person you need. I've never played laser tag before. I've never even held a, uh… um…" I grimaced, floundering for the right word before saying lamely, "...laser… beam… shooter… thingie ever in my life!"

"You can just call it a gun, sweetie," Rayne cooed, reaching over to pat my hands.

"But that's the beauty of it! That doesn't matter! We don't need you to be good," Kairi argued before a tiny, wicked smile broke out across her face. "We just need you to take care of Lea."

My head tilted to the right as I frowned. "...Lea?"

Rayne nodded, "Yup! He's one of their best players, along with Xigbar and Saïx."

"Saïx?" I echoed, squinting at her. "You mean to tell me he's awake during the daytime for this?"

"There's three days a year that dude'll brave the sun, and our yearly laser tag game is one of those days. He takes it surprisingly seriously," Rayne explained solemnly.

Wrinkling my nose up at the ceiling, I inhaled and exhaled loudly. "I still don't understand how I'm supposed to help you with Lea, especially if he's as good as you say he is."

"Simple!" Kairi chirped. "You just need to keep him distracted! Mess with his head a lil. Throw him off his game just long enough for the rest of us to knock him outta the match early."

I furrowed my brow at her. "...and how exactly am I supposed to do that?"

"Isn't it obvious?" She gave me an impish wink. "Use your feminine wiles."

"My…?" A crease formed between my eyebrows now as I stared down at my lap. "...do I even have those?"

Kairi laughed, "Course you do! All girls have them."

"Yeah, even you, Sis!" Anna pinched my cheek. I shut one eye against it, swatting her hand away.

"Trust me, all Elsa has to do is exist around that boy and he's a total goner. He'll be eliminated so fast, he won't even know what hit him," Rayne muttered to Kairi, who nodded in agreement. Then my roomie was locking eyes with me once more, "So how 'bout it, sweetpea? Will you help us out?"

I shifted in my seat uncomfortably. "I… uh…"

Anna nudged her shoulder with mine, "C'mon, Sis, pleeeeeeeease? I'm super friggin' pumped, this sounds like so much fun!"

Clasping my hands between hers, Kairi pleaded, "Help us, Elsa-Wan Kenobi! You're our only hope!"

"Well, I… er…"

Then they did it.

I was the victim of a triple-decker puppy-dog-eyes pout.

Perhaps I could have withstood one, even if it was Anna's. And maybe, just maybe I could've even resisted the combined force of two. But three?

I defy anyone to say no to that.

Shoulders slumping, I gave a long drawn out sigh. "...what time tomorrow?"

All three of them threw up their hands and cheered. After they took a few seconds to settle back down, Kairi said, "Don't worry, we'll get all the deets to you soon! And remember, you're our ace in the hole. Our secret weapon!"

A tiny gulp. "I am?"

"Yup! So don't breathe a single word of this to Lea!"

And breathe a word I did not. Thus, the next day…

"What the…? Oh, hell no!"

At Lea's outburst, I glanced towards him as Kairi, Anna and I walked out into the Space Paranoids lobby. We'd just been freshly geared up with blasters, half-helmets and vests - and by vests, I meant small, impossible-to-hit (at least I thought so anyway) targets over our hearts held in place by glow-in-the-dark, suspender-like straps that latched back behind our shoulders where a second target was located. The helmets also had targets on them, as well as see-through plastic visors that covered our eyes.

The lobby seemed to be split by an invisible line, with what looked to be the Princesses grouped up together on one side and what I could only assume was the Organization on the other, given that Lea was standing with them as he glared daggers at Kairi from across the room. She merely shot him a cheeky smirk and called, "Problem, beanstalk?"

He marched over, crossing enemy lines to glare down his nose at the considerably shorter redhead. "Uh-uh. Nope. Not allowed. I call foul. Objection!"

She snorted, unconcerned as she checked her nails and shrugged. "Dunno what has your panties in such a twist, big guy. Care to enlighten me?"

He jabbed a finger in my direction while still directing his snarl at her, "Get her outta here. She's not part of this, find someone else."

Kairi scoffed, "There's nothing in the rules declaring girlfriends off limits. In fact, there are no rules."

"Well there should be! In fact, I'll draw some up right this damn second!" he huffed, tucking his blaster into the back of his pants before storming over to a counter, behind which a pasty-complexioned employee currently stood. Lea snatched a pen off the countertop before stomping back over to us, angrily jamming his hand into one of his pockets and fishing out something crumpled. Then he slammed it to the wall and attempted to smooth it (without much success), uncapped the pen with his teeth and began scrawling across it.

"Rule 1…" he enunciated as his pen furiously scribbled, "...no… girlfriends…" He paused, then amended, "or boyfriends…" Another pause, then he scribbled it all out and started over. "Rule 1… no… smooch-buddies…" he underlined those first two words three times before continuing," ...on opposite… teams. Period. That's it. That's all… the rules." His pen stabbed down hard with finality before he shoved the crinkled thing with his handwriting all over it in front of Kairi's face. "There. Rules. Happy?"

Kairi dully stared at what he was holding, unfazed. Then her eyelids drooped. "...that's a napkin."

Lea rolled his eyes, "So what? Doesn't make 'em any less ironclad!"

She gingerly took "the rules" from him, eyeing them with a thoughtful nod for a second. Then she looked him dead in the eye as she ripped them in two, forcing a horrified gasp out of him as the shredded halfs fluttered to the ground. "Sorry, I don't recognize your napkin rules. She's playing, so suck it up."

He narrowed his eyes down at her. "I'm onto you. I know what you're doing."

"Oh? What, pray tell, is it that I'm doing?" she asked all sugar-sweet like.

His face pinched and there was a low, annoyed growl in his throat. Then he pointed two fingers at his eyes, then at her, then back and forth a few more times. "I see you, villain!" he hissed before turning away from her to address me now, his face and tone softening. "...can I talk to you real quick? Please?"

I fidgeted with my gun, struggling to keep a straight face after the sheer ridiculousness of the tiny spat I'd just witnessed, especially with them both wearing their little cheap, plastic helmets the whole time and looking absolutely absurd. At my nod, he slipped his hand into mine and led me over to an empty corner of the lobby where we could chat with some small amount of privacy.

"If those girls pressured you into doing this, you can ignore 'em, ya know," he told me quietly, shooting the Princesses one final scowl out of the corner of his eye. "You don't hafta do this if you don't want to."

I bit back a grin. He actually kind of looked adorable right now, sulking like an overgrown child behind that silly eye-visor he was wearing. It was hard to take him seriously. "It's okay. Really. I'll admit, I was a bit nervous and hesitant at first, but this also sounds like it might be kind of fun. It's fine. I want to play."

"But I don't want you to," he frowned, his fingers reaching out to idly fiddle with the tip of my braid. I don't think he even realized he was doing it. "...some of the guys don't hold back, El. Once that starting buzzer blasts, all bets are off and it can get pretty rough in there. You could get seriously hurt."

I slowly shook my head, "But the other girls-"

"-have played this before and know what they're getting into. You don't," he insisted.

I made a small hmph in my throat as my stubbornness began to spark. "How bad could it be? Really?" Glancing back towards the Princesses, I pointed out one of them in particular. "What about her, right there? She's, what… ten? Eleven years old? If you got grade schoolers playing, I think I'll be fine."

"She's one of their scariest players. Seriously, they hop that kid up on a mega shit ton of sugar from the Wonderland candy store until she's stark raving mad, then set her loose to wreak unholy hell in the laser tag grounds."

Huh. On second glance, the little girl did look twitchy. Almost freakishly so.

Sighing, I looked back up at Lea once more. "Look, I told Kairi and the others I would play, and that's what I'm going to do. I'd feel bad backing out now as I doubt they'd be able to replace me at the last second like this. I can take care of myself, you know. I promise I'll be careful, but I am doing this," I brought a comforting hand up to stroke his cheek, my eyes crinkling slightly. "So suck it up."

He snorted, dragging a hand along the nape of his neck and puffing out a heavy breath. "Fine, I guess I can't stop ya. But know this," he hunched down to my eye-level, tapping me lightly on the nose, "if we cross paths in there, don't think I'll go easy on ya."

"Good," I grinned back. "Neither will I."

"Oh-ho, pretty sure of ourselves, are we?" he smiled, rubbing a finger over his chin now. "In that case, care to put a lil wager on this?"

I turned my head to one side, shooting him some side-eye. "...I'm listening."

"How 'bout… whoever is the last one standing between the two of us, wins. And if I win…" his eyes hooded as he ducked down next to my ear, his voice silky and low as he continued, "...you ravage me senseless tonight. Maybe while wearing that lil mini skirt I like ya in so much."

My face warmed. Flirting was a part of relationships that I still wasn't fully accustomed to just yet. Hans had never really done it and it's not like I could simply brush it off as Lea's empty teasing anymore. Clearing my throat, I just asked, "And if I win?"

He gave a soft chuckle, nipping at my earlobe. "Then I'm the one who ravages you senseless."

A tiny smirk tugged at my lips. "...maybe while you're the one wearing the mini skirt?"

Lea shot up straight, eyes wide. Then he laughed, "Deal!"

I stared at him blankly. "I was joking."

"I wasn't. Be careful whatcha wish for," he singsonged, wagging a finger in my face. I merely drooped my eyelids at him and he snerked. Then his hand was cupping the back of my head, pulling me in for a sound kiss to the lips and murmuring, "Good luck."

"You too," my arms hugged his neck as I gave him a light peck in return. "You're going to need it."

"You have way too much confidence for someone who's never played before," he snorted and I just shrugged. Then we reluctantly parted and started making our way back to our respective teams.

I glanced around as I walked, getting a better look at the lobby. It had a very retro futuristic feel to it, what with all its hard angular lines that glowed neon blue and red decorating the walls, ceiling and floor. Even that pale employee behind the counter was dressed head-to-toe to match the room. His nametag read TRON - I had to wonder if that was an actual real name or (more likely) just the name he was assigned while on the job. On the wall beyond the two teams were a pair of doors, one that was dark grey and blue like the colors of the Princesses' helmets, while the other was white and red like the Organization's. I could only assume each group would enter through their matching door once the game was about to start.

Opposite the room from there was a wall made entirely of thick glass, through which could be seen the front desk where customers came in to sign up and pay for laser tag rounds. That area had several flatscreens hanging on the walls showing live feeds of various sections of the laser tag arena for onlookers to observe the match in realtime, so the place was currently packed with a small mob of people who'd come to watch our little face-off. It seemed this annual event drew quite the crowd.

While I didn't recognize most of the faces, there were a few familiar ones here and there. Aqua, Ventus, and Terra grouped together on one side… Yuffie and Leon on another… and over next to Sora, I could even spot Naminé there with a sketchpad in hand. I think she was drawing us players all decked out in our gear. And was that… Vanitas, of all people, trying to cozy up next to her? She seemed oblivious to him. Rayne, on the other hand, most definitely was not. She shoved her baby bump in between the two of them, forcing Vanitas to stumble back a step as she plucked Naminé's art pad from her hands and smacked the goth lord across the face with it. She then handed it back to Naminé, who just went back to sketching as if nothing had happened. Then Rayne was smiling and waving at me through the glass as Riku stepped up behind her to slip his arms around her waist and rest his chin on her shoulder.

As I waved back and took my spot next to Anna with the rest of the girls, I heard a wry voice coming from the enemy team, "Trouble with the lil missus, Flamesilocks?"

"Bite me, Cyclops," Lea snapped as he rejoined his team, his sour mood apparently resurging.

"Heh. As if," that same smug voice shot back. It belonged to a tall man with a jagged scar on one cheek and an eyepatch that looked rather odd to say the least when paired with his helmet's visor. His long black and grey-streaked ponytail swished as he then bent low into a dramatic, mocking bow directed towards another guy with long silver hair who I recognized as the supervisor over at Cinema XIII. "If I may do the honors, oh illustrious leader?"

The man - presumably their team captain - said nothing, just gave an uninterested flick of his hand.

That was all the go-ahead Eyepatch needed. Raising his voice so both teams could hear, he called, "Alright, listen up, scrubs! For most of you, this ain't your first rodeo, but I'll give a quick rundown anyhow seeing as we have a few first-timers in the ranks today. Here's the short and skinny of it: This first round - as in the only round that really matters - is one shot, one kill. Meaning all it takes is one hit and," he smirked, dragging his thumb across his throat, "you're out. Luckily for you gals, friendly fire has been disabled. This is where we separate the real men from the thumb-suckers. And there are zero points this first match, so when all you pretty, pretty Princesses are KO'd-"

"When?" Kairi sneered, narrowing her eyes at him from across the room.

He flashed her a toothy grin. "You hard of hearing, Strawberry Shortcake? Must be all that glitter and unicorns jamming up your earholes. Yes, when all you ladies are down for the count," he jerked his thumb to his chest, "we win. And for any boohooers out there who wanna play by points and multiple lives, don't worry. All the matches after this one are wimp-friendly. But might I suggest instead of relying on those lame handicaps, you all just get good like me?" he puffed up his chest, planting one hand on his hip while twirling his blaster in the other.

Suddenly the target on his vest lit up red and started beeping loudly, indicating he'd been hit. His assailant - a chick on our team with long, wild, curly red hair - lowered her gun with a snort before roaring with laughter while several of the other girls joined in.

Eyepatch chuckled, "Nice potshot, Hotshot. Save it for the game."

I had to wonder if this guy was Xigbar - one of the Organization's three best players besides Lea and Saïx, or so I'd been told. He certainly seemed cocky enough, that was for sure. Then again, cocky didn't necessarily mean he was any good.

As I eyed the other Organization members, I spotted a few I recognized from around the mall. The team leader wasn't the only one from the movie theater - that kid with the emo haircut was there too. So was Larxene, the blonde chick sporting the funky hairdo. I'd finally had a chance to learn her name, seeing as how she was assistant director in the musical I'd joined. The director himself, Marluxia, was there too, as well as Demyx who was helping provide our play's music and who also worked at The Blue Sitar, if I was recalling correctly. Then there was Roxas and Xion, who were doing their best to perk up a still slightly pouty Lea. Saïx was near at hand to those three, although he seemed to be keeping to himself and concentrating… or more like… meditating? Maybe... honing for the upcoming match? Wow, he certainly did take this seriously!

Next in the lineup were the two mall security guards who I'd met that night I'd accidentally pushed The Anger Button on the soft serve/milkshake machine - their names were escaping me at the moment. And lastly, there were two blondes. The first one had a goatee and piercings and I believe I remembered seeing him working at the magic shop here at the mall. The other one wore his hair long and had a chilly expression. I don't think I'd noticed him around the mall ever. In any case, I suppose there was a chance one of them could be Xigbar too.

A siren blast suddenly blared out through the overheard speakers, making me jump as the team doors slid open. Whoops and hollers from the players filled the room as they all started shuffling into their corresponding doorways. Anna hooked her arm through mine, flashed me a grin and dragged me along to follow the others.

"Don't worry, big guy, we'll try to return her to you in one piece," Kairi gave Lea one last parting shot. In response, he merely flipped her the bird as he disappeared through his door and all the Princesses erupted into cackles.

Beyond the doorway was a long winding hallway that got darker and darker the deeper we went, the only light source now coming from those neon glowing lines above, below and all around us. The further in we got, the more it began to look like we had somehow found our way inside a ginormous computer from the 80s. Eventually it brought us to another big room that was decorated in nothing but blue lines - our team's HQ, if I had to take a guess. There were three more sealed doors that would probably lead out to the rest of the map once they opened up, with huge, light-up timers over each one counting down until the start of the match. We had less than five minutes.

Quick introductions were made - I actually knew a handful of the Princesses already. There was Snow White and Tiana, who were in the musical with me. Aurora, who I remembered from auditions. Belle from Friday night drinks at the 7th Heaven. Then some girls I recalled seeing around the mall and was just now getting to know their names: Cindy from The Glass Slipper, Jasmine from Cave of Wonders, and Rapunzel from Hair, Here, Everywhere - gosh, how was she not going to trip over all that hair of hers while she ran around playing laser tag?!

"And this," Kairi went on, gesturing towards the redhead who'd landed a hit on Xigbar earlier during his little speech, "is Merida from over at DunBroch Goods, the camping and sporting goods store. She's our best shot."

"You're damn right I am!" she declared proudly in a thick Scottish accent. "And I've been putting extra time in over at the archery range! All those scaffy dolts aren't gonna know what hit 'em!"

Next Kairi was nodding towards the little twitchy girl. "This here is Alice. She's Luxord's baby sister from over on the other team." I smiled and Anna began to wave, but Kairi grabbed her wrist and lowered it with a subtle shake of her head, whispering, "Try not to make eye contact."

Apparently lost in the sugar-rush sauce, Alice just gave another twitch.

"And last but most certainly not least, this is Kida from Atlantis Electronics," Kairi pointed to a girl with long white hair and a blue face tattoo who grinned big, "annnnnnd Moana from Heart of Te Fiti, the lil surf outlet we have here." The chick with a mane of frizzy black hair next to Kida wiggled her fingers in greeting.

"Right, that's everyone! Now, onto the plan of attack!" Kairi clapped her hands and rubbed them together with an evil gleam in her eyes. "Everyone knows their positions except for the newbies. Anna, stick close to Alice and Punzie."

"Got it!" my sister nodded before giving a tiny squeal and bouncing on the balls of her feet. "Ahhh! I'm so excited!"

Kairi then looked to me, "As for you, you're with Merida and me. We'll keep you safe until we can track down your boy toy. Then it's all up to you to do your stuff!"

My forehead wrinkled. "My… stuff?"

"Ya know," she waggled her eyebrows at me. "Work that groove thang, girlfriend!"

...first it was feminine wiles. Now apparently I also had a "groove thang?"

I was learning so much about myself within the past twenty-four hours.

"Once you got him good and distracted and all puddy in your sweet lil hands, Merida and I will be sure to put him six feet under," Kairi smirked, squeezing one eye shut as she aimed her blaster and mimed firing it, shouting, "Blam!" before blowing the imaginary smoke away from the barrel and beaming.

"Blue combatants prepare to enter the Grid in sixty seconds," a synthesized female voice announced over the sound system.

Kairi glanced up at it, then added, "Now! Real fast before the game starts, let's show you ladies how these bad boys work!"

In the scant time we had remaining, Anna and I were given a quick rundown on how to aim and reload our guns. Then we broke into smaller groups that stood ready at each of the three doors that would soon open. As my teammates started giggling and counting down the final seconds in a loud chant, I swallowed hard.

All that confidence I'd been flaunting to Lea earlier? Yeah, nothing but talk. Now that the time was finally upon us, icy anxiety began to flood my veins and my free hand came up to twist at my braid. On its own, playing laser tag for the first time was scary enough since I really had no idea what I was doing. But all this talk tossed around about feminine wiles and, er… groove thangs? Wasn't helping. I wasn't sure if I could pull off what the Princesses were asking me to do.

...Rayne had said me just existing around Lea would trip him up. Maybe that would be enough? Maybe-

Another siren blast startled me once again and those big metallic doors slid open. Alice let loose a blood curdling war cry that was surprisingly loud for one so small before charging off out of her door. Anna mimicked her with a bellow of her own as she and Rapunzel raced after her. "Come on!" Kairi snagged my elbow and I staggered into a run between her and Merida as we exited through our own doorway with Moana and Kida bringing up the rear.

The place was an absolute maze inside. We took so many turns that it wasn't long before I was utterly lost and couldn't have found my way back to HQ if I'd even tried. Each new section we entered looked exactly the same as the last. It was all just dim lighting and those glowing blue, red, and now orange lines. Part of me was beginning to wonder if we were just running around in circles.

I could hear muffled shouts and digital blasts echoing from beyond the walls surrounding us, coming from somewhere that sounded far away and making me wonder just how big this map really was. Regardless, each zip and every zap that reached my ears had me flinching and almost stumbling over my own two feet as I ran. I was getting more and more on edge with every passing second.

Alright, Elsa, deep breath. In and out. Nothing to worry about. This is easy. This is fun, in fact… or so I'm told, anyway... Just relax and have a good time. It's a new experience. We like new experiences, right? New experiences are great. New experiences can be liberating. New experiences-

"Watch our backs!" Moana suddenly yelled.

I jolted and started to spin around to look back at her, "Wha-?"

She shoved me out of the way, getting us both around a corner to use for cover just as the sound of laser fire reverberated down the hallway we'd just come from. Breathing heavily, Moana gave me a firm nod and a fierce grin. "You're welcome!"

I just stared wide-eyed back at her, panting to catch my breath after all the running. Then she was ducking low and darting across to the other side of the hall, laying down cover fire as she went.

"Damn," Kairi hissed as she and the other two girls pressed their backs against the wall next to me. "How'd they get around behind us so fast?!"

"Embrace the nothingness!" someone roared from the other end of the hall before several blasts went off.

Returning fire, Moana called over to us, "Sounds like its Xemnas! He has someone else with him, but I can't quite make out-"

More rapid laser zaps cut her words off, followed by someone else snarling, "Grovel before me!"

Wait… I knew that voice… but no, there was just no possible way it could actually be-

"Crap," Kairi hissed, face turning stark white. "Saïx."

I stand corrected. Apparently, it could be and in fact was him.

Talk about being a completely different person! It seemed laser tag turned Saïx from Dr Jekyll into Mr Hyde.

As the gun fight grew louder around me, my heart began to pound in my ears, my knees shook, and my mouth went dry. I felt totally paralyzed and had to keep reminding myself that this was fun. Just... oodles and oodles of fun!

Oh dear, I was hyperventilating a bit…

...hyperventilating from all the fun, of course!

Kida was suddenly in front of me. I think she'd sensed my anxiety, because she was gripping my shoulder tightly and giving me a warm reassuring smile. "All will be well, Elsa," she told me calmly, soothingly… right before her face twisted ferociously as she leaned around the corner and shot off her blaster several times while letting loose a banshee shriek, making me flinch. Then she pulled back to reload and look me in the eye again, face serene once more. "Be not afraid."

...right. Okay. I came, I saw, I experienced… I'm done. Where's the exit to this ride? I want off.

To Kairi and Merida, Kida said, "The three of you keep going, find the target! Merida and I will keep them busy here and get them off your backs. Go!"

"Roger! Let's get outta here!" Kairi snatched my wrist, pulling me along with her. Merida shot off a few final blasts down the hallway behind us to help the other Princesses before dashing after us. I took one last look back to see Kida and Moana locked in a heated laser battle with our opponents before I lost sight of them as we took a sharp turn down a new corridor.

We hadn't been running for long when a tiny, red vertical slash lit up in the upper right corner of my visor. Huh… so these things had some kind of display built into them? But what did it-

The overhead speakers let out a long, resounding beep followed by that female announcer voice again, "Red combatant derezzed."

"Yes! We drew first blood! Take that, Organization trash!" Kairi crowed happily.

Ah, so the display was showing me a sort of… death count? I guess? I don't even know. There was a lot going on and I was just struggling to stay sane and-

"Freeze!" a new voice abruptly shouted.

So I did.

I froze.

Because, I mean, that's what you're supposed to do when someone yells that at you, right?

Apparently not. At least, not when you're playing laser tag.

"What are you- ugh, get down here!" Kairi was suddenly yanking me to the ground where she and Merida had dove for cover behind a low barrier just as I heard more blaster shots going off, presumably aimed right where I had just been standing like a deer caught in the headlights. Shaking her head at me, Kairi sighed, "Never fall for that. It's the oldest trick in the laser tag book. Vexen tries it every. Damn. Year."

As enemy fire abruptly died down, presumably so they could reload, Merida sprung up to her feet and released a torrent of zaps from her gun, roaring, "Choke on my laser, ye gutless, lily-livered bawbags!"

"Yeah! What she said!" Kairi popped up from our hiding spot as well to blast off a barrage herself.

Not wanting to feel left out and just now remembering I was in fact holding a gun that I'd all but forgotten about since the match started, I squeezed my eyes shut, lifted said gun up above the barricade and pulled the trigger, blindly firing several shots into the fray and hoping for the best.

Woo, look at me. I'm helping.

As my two teammates ducked back down to reload, Merida shouted, "Don't think I didn't see ye skulking behind that pylon, ye namby-pamby, scone-guzzling twat! Best get running with your tail tucked between those toothpicks ye call legs cuz we got ye outnumbered three to two!"

"My my, that does sound pretty grim for us, doesn't it?" a male, distinctly British voice called back. "But maybe the odds are more in our favor than you realize. By my count, we're the ones who have you outmanned four to three."

Merida and Kairi exchanged a look. Then Kairi scoffed, "You're bluffing!"

"Maybe… then again, maybe not… do you really want to roll the dice and risk it?"

Now Kairi lowered her voice so only we could hear her, "Definitely bluffing. Merida, let's go see if we can sneak around and get the drop on 'em." She then glanced towards me. "Stay here. I'll call out when it's safe for you to follow."

I blanched. "But-"

"You'll be fine, trust me. Just stay down, keep your back to this barricade, point your gun that way," she nodded towards the corridor we'd come from, "and pull the trigger if anything so much as moves. The advantage is yours from this position. We'll make it quick, so just keep your head down and wait for my signal." And with that, the two of them slipped off into the shadows and I quickly lost sight of them.

So I did as I was told. I stayed on the ground, knees hugged to my chest as I aimed my blaster and waited. There was a slight tremor to my fingers. The sound of blood rushing in my ears made it hard to hear much else.

Gosh, this was really just… so much fun.

It felt like an absolute eternity, but it was probably only seconds before I heard the fighting break out from beyond the barrier I was using for cover. Sounded like the girls had found them, as their maniacal laughter mingled with the digital blasts filling the air. Then Kairi was yelling, "We got 'em on the run! C'mon, Elsa!"

Jerking at the sound of my name, I scrambled to stand only to catch my foot on something and crash back down to the floor hard.

Ow.

Elsa, Queen of Grace and Dexterity.

Picking myself back up and dusting off the knees of my leggings, I ran towards where I'd heard her voice coming from…

...only to find no one there.

The area was completely empty except for me.

Fudge, they'd probably gone chasing after Vexen and that British guy, thinking I was right behind them. Which I would have been if I hadn't tripped over my own two friggin' feet. Worst still, I had no clue where they'd gone and three different archways to choose from.

Now what, oh Nimble One?

...should I just wait here and hope they come back for me? That'd probably be the smartest call. Better than blindly picking a direction to run off in and getting myself even more lost.

Several far-off blasts from behind me made me wince.

...then again, I was standing out in the open and an easy target. Maybe it would be better to just select a path, start running, and hope the next person I came across would be one of my teammates. But now, how to choose which way to go?

Eeny… meeny… miny…

More laser fire went off from behind, this time closer and making my heart leap up into my throat.

Screw it, that one, just go!

I didn't even know which hallway I'd picked, I just took off and didn't look back. My feet propelled me forward, not hesitating whenever new forks in the road appeared. I'd just take a turn on impulse and keep going. A left here, a right there, and another right. Far too soon however, I was puffing for breath. I couldn't keep this pace up, I needed a break.

As I slowed to a walk, sweating and chest heaving, I held my gun up at the ready. I was jumpy as I crept along now, twitching at every distant hollar, laugh, or laser burst. Something rattled behind me and I gasped, spinning on my heel and jerking my blaster around to point at… nothing. I narrowed my eyes and kept my weapon aimed behind me as I started inching backwards, heart jackhammering and breathing shallow.

If anyone was back there, they certainly weren't going to get the jump on me! No sir! I was vigilant. My eyes were keen, like that of a hawk! No one was going to be sneaking up on me, nuh-uh, not today, not-

"Pssssst."

The sudden low noise in my ear sent a chill running up my spine, making me yelp and nearly drop my gun. My hands desperately fumbled it for a second before catching it at last and I whipped around to target-

"Lea?!" I squeaked out.

Quite valiantly, I might add.

He'd already leapt back to put some space between us with his own weapon trained on the target over my heart.

So there we were. Locked in a mortal standoff. Our fated clash to the death would soon be upon us. You could all but hear the-

"You're holding your gun backwards, ya know," he said flatly, eyelids drooping.

...so I was. Heh… oopsie. I hastily corrected it, almost dropping it again before managing to direct the barrel at Lea instead of myself.

Now where was I...? Ah, that's right!

So there we were. Locked in a mortal standoff. Our fated clash to the death would soon be upon us. You could all but hear that whistling tune that plays in cowboy movies right before a pair of desperados have a shootout. Only one of us would be walking away the victor here.

...was it wrong that I was starting to relax and feel comforted by Lea's presence?

Yes. Yes it was. He was the enemy! And I had a job to do! To be fair, that job had only just been to play decoy while somebody else took him out. But seeing as how I was the only one here, looks like I'd just been promoted to executioner.

But now, how to get that killing blow? It wasn't just as simple as shooting. I could see the way he was warily watching me. I knew the second I started to squeeze my trigger finger, Lea'd be dodging out of the line of fire and then it'd be curtains for me. I had to catch him off guard first, distract him somehow or-

Ah-ha! This was it! The moment we'd all been waiting for! It was my time to shine!

Alright, feminine wiles… go!

...aaaaaany time now.

Hmmm… nothing.

Alright, you're up, groove thang. Care to take a crack at it?

...I'll take your silence as a no.

Well, fudge. Now what?

...wait! Hold on… something was possibly stirring…

Yes, I think I might be feeling a feminine wile coming on!

Oh yeah. This was definitely it. Get ready, here it comes…

I clicked my tongue and winked at him.

Nailed it.

Lea blinked at me. Then he snerked and choked back a laugh, shaking his head, "What was that?"

I hesitated, shifting my feet awkwardly. "...my, uh... my feminine wiles?"

Now he spluttered, struggling to keep his gun pointed at me. "El. Sugar-darlin'. Honey-boo. I adore you, you know I do. I worship the very ground you walk on and think you're smart, gorgeous, perfect and God's gift to all mankind. But babe… you wouldn't know a feminine wile if one came right up to you and bit you on the nose."

My spine snapped straight and I blushed. "I would too! I… I have feminine wiles!"

"Uh-huh, sure ya do. By the way," he pointed at a spot behind me, "what's that?"

I rolled my eyes at him, "You really expect me to fall for-"

In the blink of an eye, he'd kicked my blaster out of my hands and sent it clattering to the ground.

Huh. Guess he didn't even need me to fall for it. Apparently it was enough for me to just be irked at him for thinking me so easily tricked.

Crud, he was way better at this whole distraction thing than I was.

"Say goodnight, babydoll," he smirked, aiming his weapon at the target on my chest once again. I held my breath, screwed my eyes shut, twisted my face into a grimace, balled my hands at my sides and waited. Any second now, my target would vibrate and beep, announcing I'd been hit and taken out.

...only nothing was happening.

Why was nothing happening?

Slowly, I creaked one eye open. Lea was still standing there, still with his gun pointed at me… but for some reason, he hadn't pulled the trigger yet. Gone was the smug look on his face, now replaced with a tiny, sour frown. He grit his teeth angrily, his blaster wavering slightly before he lowered it and growled, "Goddamnit!" Then he ducked down and snatched my gun up off the floor, holstering it into the waistband of his pants at his hip.

I cocked my head at him. "Lea? What are you-"

That's as far as I got before he was then picking me up by the waist and flopping me over his shoulder like a rag doll. With one hand maintaining a grip on my legs to keep me secure while still holding his weapon in the other, he took off running.

I grabbed at the back of his shirt to prop myself up and turned my head so I could yell at him, "Just what exactly do you think you're doing?!"

He didn't break stride, just kept speeding straight ahead. "What's it look like I'm doing? I'm taking you hostage!"

"But that's not how the game is played!" I snapped back, making a grab for a metal bar sticking out of one of the walls as we rushed past, my fingers latching on.

He stumbled and nearly toppled over backwards, but caught himself. "Shit! Leggo, you lil..." he pried my fingers free before taking off again. "And I can play the game however I damn well like! Deal with it!"

Huffing out a grumbling breath, I just hung my head and let myself be carried off to wherever it was that he was taking me.

Turned out to be the Organization's HQ. I mean, that was my best guess anyway by the look of it, considering how similar it was to the Princess's HQ. The only difference was there were nothing but glowing red lines decorating every surface in here instead of blue.

"Now what?" I heard a voice unhappily mutter. Sounded like Larxene but I couldn't see her to verify, not with ninety percent of my vision being filled up by Lea's upside down backside and the other ten percent taken up by a lovely view of the floor.

"Whaddya mean, now what? What are you guys still doing in here?" Lea asked as he slid me off his shoulder and unceremoniously plopped me down onto one of the benches that lined the inside of the HQ's walls. I started to stand back up, but Lea narrowed his eyes at me and held a finger up in front of my face, "Ah-Ah!"

I sighed through my nose but stayed put, crossing my arms and slouching down into my seat.

Now that I could see the rest of the room better, I was able to confirm that it was indeed Larxene who'd spoken, with Marluxia in here as well. Larxene quirked an eyebrow at me but apparently decided not to comment just yet, instead opting to answer Lea's question. "We're trying to drag this dumb loser off his lazy ass and get him out into the fight," she ground out through her teeth, pointing at-

Oh! Apparently Demyx was in here too! Almost didn't spot him cowering behind that column over there.

Lea groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Crap, this again? He does this every damn year! We seriously need to stop recruiting him!"

"That's what I keep saying!" Demyx piped up. Or rather, his voice did. The guy himself remained in hiding.

"Dude. Why do you bother signing up every year if you don't even wanna play?" Lea shook his head.

"Because Larxene always threatens to taze me until my nose lights up brighter than Rudolph's if I don't," he whimpered, just barely poking his head out now. Then he seemed to spot me for the first time. "Oh! Hey Elsa!" he waved cheerily.

"Hi Demyx," I mumbled, returning a halfhearted wave myself.

Larxene slammed the sole of her boot against the column, making him squeak and hide again. She snarled, "This fuckwit's actually a halfway decent player whenever we finally manage to chase the damn baby out of his hidey-hole and-"

"Lea! There you are!" Roxas suddenly came barreling in through one of the doors, his sneakers skidding to a stop as he doubled over, wheezing for breath. "We've been looking everywhere for you!"

Xion was hot on his heels, stumbling to a halt beside him and huffing, "You shouldn't have run off on your own like that! Why'd you come back- oh, hey there, Elsa!" she blinked at me in surprise, tilting her head slightly. "What are you doing here?"

Marluxia settled his cool gaze on me, "Yes… why indeed?"

Larxene pulled a face and spat, "Ugh, Firecracker! Please tell me you didn't sneak back here so you could make out with your little girlfriend! You seriously need to stop thinking below the belt all the time!"

"Agreed," Marluxia nodded with a frown. "You should learn to show some decorum. Xemnas will be most displeased when he finds out you were squandering precious game time to nurture your budding romance."

Shaking his head and rapidly waving his hands back and forth in front of him, Lea said, "Guys, guys, it's not- Ah!" he exclaimed the last syllable in warning to me as I tried to get up again to tiptoe off. Placing a hand on my shoulder and pushing me back down firmly into my seat, he addressed the others again, "It's not like that! I just-"

"We don't have time for this!" Xion cut in. "Why is half our team just chilling back here at the base? Get all your butts out there before everyone else gets slaughtered!"

Lea batted his hand through the air, "It's fine, Xigbar's out there! That psycho could take out the whole other team solo with one hand tied behind his back!"

As if on cue, two blue slashes suddenly lit up in the upper left corner of my visor opposite of the red one from earlier. Overhead, that synthesized female voice announced, "Blue combatant derezzed," twice, one for each mark.

"See?" Lea pointed up towards the speakers triumphantly.

"Wait…" Roxas's brow furrowed. "...those were the first two kills our team's gotten… meaning…" he was eyeing me now.

"Son of a… she's not dead yet?! Firecracker, you dumbass!" Larxene hissed, whipping her blaster up and aiming it at me.

Lea was quick to jump between her and me, his hands shooting up in a placating gesture, "Woah now, easy there!"

Not lowering her weapon, she yelled, "The hell do you think you're doing, bringing her back here alive?! Just shoot her already!"

"C'mon, give her a break, it's her first time playing!" Lea argued back. "I just wanna make sure she has a good time! She can't do that if she gets eliminated right out the damn gate."

Larxene made a noise of disgust in her throat. "You are seriously whipped, numbnuts. What'd she do to get you to fold like a wet paper towel, just bat her lashes and pout and go," she poked a finger into her cheek and mockingly cooed, "pwease don't shoot me, I'm just a poor, defenseless widdle girl!"

My shoulders tensed and I snapped, "I most certainly did not-"

"Butt out, Princess! This is Organization business," Larxene growled.

Roxas sniggered as he flumped down beside me on the bench, "Ignore her, she's just cranky."

"Yeah, we lurve you," Xion sat down on my other side, beaming and making a heart with her hands.

Lea was rubbing the back of his head with his gun. "Look, I just wanted her to have fun, is that so wrong?"

A scoff erupted from Larxene. "Yeah, sure, cuz getting taken hostage is so much fun!"

"More fun than being dead in the first five minutes!"

She was glaring down at his hip now, something having caught her eye there apparently. "Wait a minute, is that…? For fuck's sake, you brought her gun too, bonehead?! The hell is the matter with you, are you trying to get us all shot?!"

Rolling his eyes, Lea brushed it off, "Relax, I won't let her get her hands back on it. I just didn't want it to get lost or totally busted and for them to charge her with some bullshit replacement fee for the thing. And trust me: me taking her hostage is a good thing."

Larxene fixed him with a dull stare. "...I think your brain is what's lost or totally busted."

"No, hear me out!" He tossed a hand in my direction, "El is valuable to the Princesses and they know she hasn't been eliminated yet. Once they realize we got her prisoner, they're gonna make stupid moves trying to get her back. They'll be easy pickings!"

"It would seem to me that you're the one making stupid moves," Marluxia deadpanned.

Lea snapped his fingers and tapped his nose, "Exactly! That's why the Princesses'll want her back! To make sure she stays in the game and messing with my head! But if we keep her here and alive, then I'm less likely to screw up while the Princesses keep tripping all over themselves trynta to rescue her! It's a win-win!"

The silence stretched for a bit. Then Larxene sidestepped so she could point her blaster at me again, "I'm just gonna shoot her."

As Lea moved to block her again, Marluxia placed a hand on her weapon and gently pushed it down. "No, let's hold off. His plan, ridiculous as it may be, holds some merit. Let's see how it plays out."

Larxene wrinkled her nose and gaped. "You have got to be shitting me." However, Marluxia's stern look brooked no argument. Curling her lip with a tch, she grumbled, "Fine, whatever. But you!" She marched up to Lea, stabbing her finger into his chest several times, "This is your dumb idea, so your stupid ass gets to be the one to watch her!"

"Lea has so just earned himself a date with Larxene's taser after the match," Xion whispered with a giggle.

Roxas snerked under his breath as he looked to me, "Hope you like your boyfriends with enough electricity coursing through 'em to power a small toaster oven."

"What are you two twerps snickering about?!" Larxene turned her wrath on the pair of them now and they both yelped. "Get off your asses, get out there and bring me those Princesses' heads on pikes or don't come back all!" They leapt up to their feet and bolted out of there as if their lives depended on it. Which, let's face it… they very well might've.

Now Larxene's dark scowl zeroed in on the column that Demyx was using for cover as she snarled, "And you!" A terrified squeak could be heard from beyond the pillar. Muttering a long string of curse words, Larxene stomped over and disappeared behind it as well. Then there was a high-pitched scream before Demyx tore out of the base like a bat out of hell. Re-emerging and dusting her hands together, Larxene smirked with a satisfied sigh, "I do so love being part of a team. The feeling of encouraging and uplifting my fellow players can be so rewarding."

Retrieving her blaster from where she'd tucked it into the top of her pants, she glanced to Marluxia and jerked her chin towards one of the doorways. "Now let's go snuff out some Princesses!" However, as she was moving past Lea, she stopped to narrow her eyes at him. "...swear to god, Firecracker, if we lose because of your bullshit here, I'll-"

"Yeah, yeah, my head will be the one on a pike, I get it! Will ya just beat it already?" Lea lazily shooed her away with his gun.

She glowered but said nothing more, simply stepped outside the door and waited for Marluxia. As for Marluxia himself, he walked over to Lea and fixed him with a hard stare. "I trust when the proper time comes, you won't hesitate to pull the trigger," he told him, shooting a meaningful look my way out of the corner of his eye.

"Not for a heartbeat," Lea waved a dismissive hand. Marluxia squinted at him. "What, I won't! I hate losing just as much as you do, Mr Bubble Yum!"

If Marluxia felt reassured, he didn't show it. Regardless, he faced me now. "No hard feelings, of course. See you at rehearsal tomorrow."

"...looking forward to it," I muttered back as he slipped out the doorway to join Larxene, the two of them stealthily sprinting off.

Now that it was just down to the two of us, Lea glanced towards me with a tiny frown. Then he looked away and readied his weapon, poising it in front of him. He began patrolling from one HQ door to the next, keeping an eye out for any foolhardy, would-be rescuers.

The minutes slowly ticked by. Save for the occasional announcement whenever another player had been derezzed, the silence was absolute. Were this any other time, Lea would probably be cuddling up close to me and delightedly chatting my ear off. But not now. Not while there was a laser tag game to be won. Apparently, laser tag was very serious business. At least, if his expression and posture as he stood guard right now were any indicators, that is.

After a time, I released a low sigh. If anyone was trying to come save me, they were certainly taking their sweet time about it. I felt restless. My muscles were stiff from sitting still for so long. So, I gave a small stretch and began to rise to my feet.

In a flash, Lea had his gun's crosshairs centered on me. "Hey, hey, hey! Plop that cute lil butt of yours back down, Missy!" he ordered, gesturing the barrel of his blaster down towards where I'd been seated.

I hitched my chin. "The bench is hard and uncomfortable. Just let me stand and stretch my legs for a min-" I took a step forward and I winced, a soft hiss escaping me. "Ah, my ankle!"

He blinked, then his eyelids drooped. "Please, that lame ol' trick? Nice try, but I wasn't born yesterday."

"It's not a trick, I think I'm really hurt!" I huffed. Then setting my lips into a grim line, I gingerly tested putting some weight on it. "...you must have smacked it against something while you were manhandling me earlier and- ow!" My ankle gave out and I stumbled forward.

Lea instinctively moved to catch me, his arms wrapping around my waist while mine latched around his neck for support. But then his eyes were immediately suspicious and his empty hand clasped protectively over where he had my weapon holstered.

I rolled my eyes at him with a scoff. "You actually think I would go to this much trouble if I were only faking it? All just to get my stupid gun back? Seriously?"

He continued watching me skeptically, his hand remaining steadfast over my blaster. "...maybe, maybe not. Jury's still out."

"Damn it, Lea, this really hurts!" I snapped at him.

I felt his muscles relax somewhat as he puffed out a breath, bringing his free hand up to ruffle at his hair now. "Then why ya standing on it, dummy? Go on, sit back down."

"No," I turned my head to one side with a tiny hmph. "I told you already, that bench is uncomfortable."

"Whaddya expect, it's a bench. You'll live," he laughed incredulously. Then he was carefully shifting me around, mindful of my ankle as he took a seat himself to demonstrate. "See? Perfectly fine. Now c'mon El, please, if you would just-"

I finally sat back down.

Right on his lap.

I felt him tense beneath me. Then he was shaking his head with a chuckle as he brought up his hand to tweak my nose, "Cheeky."

Slipping my arms back around his neck once more, I drew in a deep breath before giving a pleased little exhale. "Ah, much more comfy."

"I would hope so," one corner of his lips twitched up. Then he was setting his gun down on the bench beside him and readjusting me in his lap a bit so he could more easily reach down, gently feeling my ankle. I flinched, sucking in a little breath. His eyebrows knit together, "Sorry… hm, doesn't seem to be any swelling, so probably isn't sprained or fractured. Guessing it just got banged pretty good. Probably only gonna leave a nasty bruise."

My eyes crinkled as I watched him. "...it's sweet."

"What's that?" he asked absently, still cautiously inspecting my ankle.

"The way you always take care of me." I leaned in closer to murmur into his ear, "It's sweet."

Lea stiffened, then cleared his throat as he straightened back up in his seat and laughed sheepishly. "What can I say? Gotta make sure my lady's taken care of!"

I gave him a warm smile before resting my head on his shoulder, my arms hugging more tightly around him as I sighed against his neck with a soft, "Hmmm."

He shivered and echoed a low, "Hm?"

"Nothing really." My fingers began to lightly toy with the hairs at the nape of his neck as my lips brushed along the side of his throat. "Just trying to think of how I might show you my gratitude later."

"...well, I might have a… few suggestions…" There was a gruffness to his voice now as I felt his thumb idly stroking along the curve of my hip.

"Mm, I'd love to hear them," I hummed a quiet laugh as I trailed my hand down his chest, avoiding the target strapped to it as I went. Then I lifted my head once more to meet his gaze while using my other hand to press a fingertip to his lips, silencing him before he could answer me. "But first… told ya."

His eyes hooded as he playfully nipped at my finger before ducking his head down to press kisses to my jawline as he whispered, "Told me what?"

"That I have feminine wiles."

His whole body went rigid. "Motherfu-"

Too late. I already had my gun back, barrel directly up against the target over his heart. I pulled the trigger and-

"Red combatant derezzed."

"Ha!" I dropped the blaster and shot up to my feet, hopping up and down in triumph on my fine, healthy, and one hundred percent pain-free ankles. Lea groaned and slumped down in his seat, thumping the back of his head against the wall a few times. His moping only made victory taste all the more sweet. Giggling, I lightly clapped my hands a few times before holding my palms together, pressing my fingertips to my huge grin.

My tiny victory party of one was interrupted however as someone else suddenly came charging inside the base. I turned and gasped as their feet came to a screeching stop, revealing the person to be none other than that weirdo with the eyepatch.

He took one look at me, both eyebrows shooting up his forehead. "What the…?" Then with a bemused smirk, he aimed his weapon at me, "Oh-ho no, not on my watch. As if!" He fired and, well… as you could probably guess…

"Blue combatant derezzed."

With a self-satisfied snerk, Eyepatch twirled his gun and took off running once more, disappearing out the door opposite the one he'd come in through.

...well then.

My stint as a legendary, professional laser tag assassin supreme may have been brief, but it had been undeniably glorious.

"That was a cheap, dirty underhanded trick ya pulled," Lea said, pulling my attention back to him as he stood up and removed his helmet, shaking out his crimson spikes. Then his lips stretched into a crooked smile, "One I completely saw through, by the way."

I arched an eyebrow at him, biting back a small grin. "Oh really?"

Tucking his helmet under his arm, he then reached out to undo mine as well. "Mm-hm! You were as transparent as a soap bubble."

"If I was being so obvious, why'd you play along then?" I challenged, crossing my arms.

"Rather, the question you should be asking is... why wouldn't I play along?" He ruffled my bangs before offering me my helmet with a wink. "Never have I more thoroughly enjoyed being proven so totally wrong."

I felt heat creeping up the back of my neck as I took it from him, averting my gaze with a dignified sniff. "I don't believe you. I don't think you saw through it at all."

He snorted, scratching a finger behind his ear. "Alright, ya got me. Can't blame a guy for trynta salvage what lil dignity he has left! But damn, El, you've been holding out on me. Where've you been hiding those lil moves of yours this whole time?"

Rocking on my heels a bit, I mulled over it for a second. Honestly, I'd even surprised myself a bit there. Only reason I hadn't been blushing furiously the whole time was because I wasn't really here to fraternize - it'd just been a means to an end. I'd had a job to do. Finally, I gave a tiny shrug, "Suppose I just needed the right incentive."

"That incentive being making me eat crow on this most holy of battlefields that is laser tag."

I smiled brightly. "Bingo."

He crinkled his eyes at me, then sighed and dragged a hand across the nape of his neck. "Shit, the rest of the team is gonna be out for my blood when they find out 'bout this. We're talking torches, pitchforks, the whole nine damn yards." However, he was next flashing me that dimple of his as he retrieved both our weapons, holding them together in one hand. "Still, was definitely worth it for this lil revelation. I'm telling ya, never woulda thought you had it in you, especially not while we were entertaining an audience no less."

"An audience?" I repeated, frowning. Then I slowly shook my head, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Did you forget?" A half grin tugged at his lips as he pointed up at a corner of the ceiling where one of the arena's cameras could be spotted. "Big Brother's watching."

Just about every last drop of blood drained out of my face.

Fudge, the cameras! All over this damn arena! Feeding a live stream of events as they unfolded here back to anyone watching in the store front! And there had been a lot of people there, meaning…

...every single one of them had just had a front row seat for watching me seduce my boyfriend.

Bolting behind Lea to hide from the camera, my arms clutched around his waist as I buried my now roasting face into his back.

Oh, what I wouldn't give for the cold, sweet embrace of death right about now.

Laughing softly, Lea patted his hand over mine, weaving our fingers together but not removing it from where I still had it clasped against his stomach. "C'mon, we're not s'posed to linger this long after getting KO'd. Let's find a way out. Your adoring fans await."

Remaining firmly latched onto him from behind, I staggered as he began to lead us towards the nearest exit. "I don't think I can face any of them ever again," I muffled into his back. "I am never going to live this down."

"Well, we can hole up in one of the equipment rooms between matches, but that'll only buy you a lil time. Sooner or later they'll hafta kick us out when this place closes up for the night." As he pushed open a door beneath a glowing green EXIT sign, he glanced back at me over his shoulder with a smirk. "But you got bigger problems to worry 'bout now, boo."

I glanced back up at him, gnawing on my bottom lip. "...what do you mean?"

"Now that I know you've got feminine wiles, I'm gonna expect you to start using 'em more."

Author's Notes: It's the face-off of the century, the battle you've all been waiting for… Organization XIII vs The Princesses of Hearts! Gosh, now I want fanart of all of them decked out in laser tag gear and glaring each other down! Could look hella badass! Anyhoo, I think this chapter might have been even more jam-packed with references than that 7th Heaven chapter xD I went with OG Org as you can tell cuz, one, they're my fave incarnation of the Org, and two, let's face it… old man Xehanort would probably break a hip playing laser tag xD And of course, all the official Princesses of Hearts made an appearance, plus a few extras, any of which would get my vote for being one of the mystery New 7 Hearts that were never revealed in KH3! Minor fun fact: If you didn't recognize them, Xemnas's and Saïx's lines were direct battle quotes from the video games. I would've liked to have done the same for Vexen, but I couldn't figure out how to make any of his battle quotes fit, so I took the lame, cheesy way out by just having him shout "Freeze!" xD As for which team won this first match… Princesses finally managed to break the Organization's winning streak, woo! Yeah, Lea barely survived the wrath of his fellow teammates after their crushing defeat xD  I was originally trying to figure out a way to fit this laser tag chapter into the main story, but decided in the end it would be more fun if Lea and Elsa were already a couple for it - certainly had more fun with the chapter's ending that way at least ;D

Thanks for reading, I super duper appreciate it! And an extra BIG thank you to those of you who’ve liked, reblogged, and followed so far, seeing those lil notifications always brings the biggest, goofiest smile to my face!

See ya next week for the next bonus chapter, which will have a lil more substance than this one xD Your clue phrase this time is... hair dye. What could that possibly have to do with next chapter?! Stay tuned and find out!

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER  | | NEXT CHAPTER

#kingdom hearts #frozen #elsa #axel #fanfiction #lea #fanfic #kingdom hearts fanfiction #frozen fanfiction #kh fanfiction #kh fanfic #frozen fanfic #kingdom hearts fanfic #axelsa #fluff #romcom #slow burn #kh3 #my writing #ice cream and fire oven pizza #rare pair #crossover pairing #humor #snark #fake dating au