NaNoWriMo 2016: Day 4
Nov. 4th, 2016 07:44 pmHana Kaze AU
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Hakyeon is about to close up shop when he hears the door to the florist open. It gives him a sense of deja vu, after Taekwoon's last-minute appearance the day before.
His deja vu becomes even more intense when he turns around and sees the very same face as he had the day before. Hakyeon feels his chest flutter as he recalls the way Taekwoon's soft voice had gone a little husky with his parting words. He isn't the type to make the first move, but if his second move wasn't made to kill.
Hakyeon hasn't been able to think of anything else but that all day long. He takes a deep, fortifying breath and breaks into his usual smile.
"Taekwoon-shi, you're back again," Hakyeon clasps his hands together. "I take it you're not here to see Yuri again today?"
Taekwoon's almost-smile coupled with a flat, unimpressed look. Hakyeon finds he really likes being able to provoke what is basically an eyeroll out of him. He likes that Taekwoon isn't afraid to show that side of himself to Hakyeon and not worry about appearances.
Taekwoon's eyes just about bore a hole through him. Hakyeon can tell he's going to have to get used to these silences filled with tension; exciting, prickling tension. It's not a bad thing. If Taekwoon will show through action rather than tell, that's fine. Hakyeon's always been a physical sort of person.
"If you don't mind," Hakyeon says, stepping entirely too close to Taekwoon when all he wants to do is bypass him to get to the door, "I should lock the entrance so that no other customers try to come in. Opening hours are up."
Taekwoon nods his assent, and as Hakyeon is turning the key in the lock Taekwoon pipes up, "I know. I didn't want to interrupt."
Hakyeon glances round. His smile drops from the bright one to something warm and fond. Taekwoon is so thoughtful.
"Well, now it's just you and me," he says, stepping towards Taekwoon fluidly. "What did you need my sole attention for?"
Hakyeon really isn't sure that Taekwoon is going to actually say it. But already he's forgotten that a direct question to Taekwoon gets a direct answer.
"To ask you... On a date," Taekwoon says eventually. Hakyeon is hanging so hard on every word that by the time the final, most important word comes out he's not sure how he's still breathing.
"I accept," Hakyeon says. He manages to hide every single trace of breathlessness; his reply comes out smooth and easy. "Where are we going?"
"Ah," Taekwoon looks like he's been shoved hard. "Hakyeon." Suddenly the atmosphere feels heavy. Hakyeon isn't sure what's wrong, but he offers out a seat for Taekwoon, next to the desk he takes bouquet orders at, pulling his own chair around so that they can be sat together and not across from one another.
"What's the matter?" Hakyeon offers out his hand. Taekwoon takes it after a moment's consideration. His grip is barely there. "Is there something you need to tell me?"
Taekwoon nods. Okay, that's a start. He looks a little pale, maybe shock?
"Would you like a hot drink?" Taekwoon nods again. Hakyeon is worried the silence will be uncomfortable while he's brewing tea, but then he feels body heat behind him. Taekwoon is there, nearby. He needs comfort.
Hakyeon turns around and pats Taekwoon's arm gently.
"Taekwoon, whatever it is, you can tell me." It still takes until Taekwoon has a hot mug in his hands to get his mouth to open again.
"I've never-" he says, and Hakyeon looks at Taekwoon intently, hoping how willing he is to listen is visible on his face. "Never dated anyone before."
"Oh?" Hakyeon asks, and though it's meant to come out as a, 'no big deal' sort of oh, it becomes more of, a 'how?' Has Taekwoon been saving himself or what? There's no way there haven't been interested parties! "I mean, continue!"
"People don't know I'm-" Taekwoon doesn't seem put off by Hakyeon's words. "Interested in men. If we date, I can't take you out places. I can't risk my job." Taekwoon looks down at his feet. "I had to tell you right away, in case you don't want to deal with that."
"You were really worried about this, huh," Hakyeon muses. He needs to reassure Taekwoon as soon as possible! "Taekwoon, it's okay. You're really serious about this thing between us, and that's great! This was important stuff for me to know. But for now we can just date quietly and see where it goes. If it takes us anywhere. I'd like it to! But no pressure, okay?"
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Wordcount: 783
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Hakyeon is about to close up shop when he hears the door to the florist open. It gives him a sense of deja vu, after Taekwoon's last-minute appearance the day before.
His deja vu becomes even more intense when he turns around and sees the very same face as he had the day before. Hakyeon feels his chest flutter as he recalls the way Taekwoon's soft voice had gone a little husky with his parting words. He isn't the type to make the first move, but if his second move wasn't made to kill.
Hakyeon hasn't been able to think of anything else but that all day long. He takes a deep, fortifying breath and breaks into his usual smile.
"Taekwoon-shi, you're back again," Hakyeon clasps his hands together. "I take it you're not here to see Yuri again today?"
Taekwoon's almost-smile coupled with a flat, unimpressed look. Hakyeon finds he really likes being able to provoke what is basically an eyeroll out of him. He likes that Taekwoon isn't afraid to show that side of himself to Hakyeon and not worry about appearances.
Taekwoon's eyes just about bore a hole through him. Hakyeon can tell he's going to have to get used to these silences filled with tension; exciting, prickling tension. It's not a bad thing. If Taekwoon will show through action rather than tell, that's fine. Hakyeon's always been a physical sort of person.
"If you don't mind," Hakyeon says, stepping entirely too close to Taekwoon when all he wants to do is bypass him to get to the door, "I should lock the entrance so that no other customers try to come in. Opening hours are up."
Taekwoon nods his assent, and as Hakyeon is turning the key in the lock Taekwoon pipes up, "I know. I didn't want to interrupt."
Hakyeon glances round. His smile drops from the bright one to something warm and fond. Taekwoon is so thoughtful.
"Well, now it's just you and me," he says, stepping towards Taekwoon fluidly. "What did you need my sole attention for?"
Hakyeon really isn't sure that Taekwoon is going to actually say it. But already he's forgotten that a direct question to Taekwoon gets a direct answer.
"To ask you... On a date," Taekwoon says eventually. Hakyeon is hanging so hard on every word that by the time the final, most important word comes out he's not sure how he's still breathing.
"I accept," Hakyeon says. He manages to hide every single trace of breathlessness; his reply comes out smooth and easy. "Where are we going?"
"Ah," Taekwoon looks like he's been shoved hard. "Hakyeon." Suddenly the atmosphere feels heavy. Hakyeon isn't sure what's wrong, but he offers out a seat for Taekwoon, next to the desk he takes bouquet orders at, pulling his own chair around so that they can be sat together and not across from one another.
"What's the matter?" Hakyeon offers out his hand. Taekwoon takes it after a moment's consideration. His grip is barely there. "Is there something you need to tell me?"
Taekwoon nods. Okay, that's a start. He looks a little pale, maybe shock?
"Would you like a hot drink?" Taekwoon nods again. Hakyeon is worried the silence will be uncomfortable while he's brewing tea, but then he feels body heat behind him. Taekwoon is there, nearby. He needs comfort.
Hakyeon turns around and pats Taekwoon's arm gently.
"Taekwoon, whatever it is, you can tell me." It still takes until Taekwoon has a hot mug in his hands to get his mouth to open again.
"I've never-" he says, and Hakyeon looks at Taekwoon intently, hoping how willing he is to listen is visible on his face. "Never dated anyone before."
"Oh?" Hakyeon asks, and though it's meant to come out as a, 'no big deal' sort of oh, it becomes more of, a 'how?' Has Taekwoon been saving himself or what? There's no way there haven't been interested parties! "I mean, continue!"
"People don't know I'm-" Taekwoon doesn't seem put off by Hakyeon's words. "Interested in men. If we date, I can't take you out places. I can't risk my job." Taekwoon looks down at his feet. "I had to tell you right away, in case you don't want to deal with that."
"You were really worried about this, huh," Hakyeon muses. He needs to reassure Taekwoon as soon as possible! "Taekwoon, it's okay. You're really serious about this thing between us, and that's great! This was important stuff for me to know. But for now we can just date quietly and see where it goes. If it takes us anywhere. I'd like it to! But no pressure, okay?"
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Wordcount: 783
NaNoWriMo 2016: Day 3
Nov. 3rd, 2016 07:24 pmHana Kaze AU (Scenes in order of writing, not in order of AU timeline).
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"Come over," Jaehwan says in an annoyingly angelic voice, beckoning up the stairs. He must have been practicing copying Taekwoon's soft tones for weeks to pull that off. Hyuk finds his hand is already on the handrail, he's already putting his foot to the bottom stair, not even tempted to ask if it'll be a problem-
-until Jaehwan has him splayed out on the couch, wriggling right over his crotch and nuzzling, no wait kissing, no wait, more nuzzling into Hyuk's neck again. Hyuk's hands are descending to Jaehwan's pants, lips trailing down the side of his face, the only part he can reach from their positions right now when he realises where he is.
"Wait!" He yelps quietly, pushing Jaehwan off, but not too much because he doesn't really want to stop, or for Jaehwan to think he does. He just wants Jaehwan to assume the responsibility for this recklessness. "Are you sure this is alright? Out in the open like this? You share this place with Wonshik-hyung, and you two used to-"
"Shikkie and I are good friends," Jaehwan assures Hyuk. He's already trying to lean down again with his lush mouth, tempting Hyuk into distraction. "Best of friends. We did the do, the nasty, the beast with two backs. But he's always gonna be in love with Hongbin. I knew it was just fooling around, wouldn't last."
Hyuk is thrown by this new information; he'd certainly never felt second best in comparison to Wonshik when he and Hongbin were... Well, that had largely been fooling around too, he supposes. It had felt like his first grown-up relationship. And being with Jaehwan somehow feels mature too. That could be because his mental age is in fact higher than Jaehwan's even though he's a few years younger.
"Wonshik-hyung is in love with Hongbin?"
"It's not obvious," Jaehwan admits, running a hand through his fluffy, lopsided hair. "Actually I don't even think he knows he is. I think I figured it out and he still thinks he just loves Hongbin like a best friend and nothing else."
"Hyung," Hyuk begins nervously, "I don't know if Hongbin feels the same way. I've never had any reason to suspect it."
"It's not up to us to fix it," Jaehwan shrugs. "Even though I know someone who would think it was-"
Hakyeon, of course. Always trying to make sure they're all happy and healthy. And, now that's he so grossly in love, make sure everyone else has someone too.
-
Hyuk gives in to Jaehwan's puppy dog eyes, of course. And they make out on the couch for a while, and Hyuk lets Jaehwan below the belt but only over the boxers, and Jaehwan agrees without a murmur of protest, because of that weird energy between the two of them where they're both so completely ready to throw themselves into having fun and sex together, but know there's more to it than that and they don't want to wreck it.
Hyuk's just thankful that Wonshik doesn't come up to the apartment after work and catch them in the middle, entwined and breathing heavily, foreheads beaded with sweat. Wonshik comes back to find them both belly down on the floor, each with a controller in hand and battling it out in a video game. The legs they have next to each other are entwined, because Jaehwan started nudging Hyuk's to distract him and then they just ended up getting comfortable, but Wonshik knows they're dating (or whatever) now, and at least that's not obscene!
Being in a room with someone who has had sex with your new sort-of boyfriend, that's new for Hyuk. It makes him feel awkward, self-conscious in front of Wonshik, even though Wonshik isn't the one who will be able to compare the two of them in bed once he and Hyuk do it!
"This is how you bond?" Wonshik asks, nose wrinkling as he smiles affectionately. "Video games?"
"Could be worse, 'Shikkie!" Jaehwan calls out as Wonshik heads to the kitchen for a drink. "You could've caught us making out earlier!"
Hyuk shoots Jaehwan a face, puffing out his cheeks in displeasure. Yes, he'd been worried about that exact thing, no need to bring it up in front of Wonshik!
Jaehwan shrugs, grinning. "It'll be fine," he mouths to Hyuk.
"I'm sure I could have," Wonshik says amiably, settling himself oh so naively in the middle of the sofa where said making-out had been happening only an hour, hour and a half ago before. Hyuk doesn't know whether to cringe or laugh. He feels like his face is doing both.
Might as well bite the bullet and ask.
"It's not weird for you, hyung?" He says tentatively. Jaehwan, out of the corner of Hyuk's eye, is just making a wide eyed face that says, 'told you so', but not in a nasty way. He's trying to be reassuring, but achieving annoyingly adorable. He's such a pain in the ass.
"What?" Wonshik asks. Does he honestly not know from the topic of conversation? Hyuk looks at him dubiously. He's not afraid to say it! If he can't say it he shouldn't be doing it, right?
"Seeing the person you used to... Have sex with-" Well done, Hyuk thinks to himself proudly, "-going out with someone new? Even if you've always been friends?"
"Mmm," Wonshik does actually give it some thought and not just dismiss Hyuk's concerns. "Jaehwan and I spend so much time together, we've been chasing the same sort of dreams for so many years, it was bound to happen eventually. We're both too curious not to want to see what would happen."
At that point Jaehwan explodes, trying to stifle his giggles behind his hands. The video game is completely forgotten.
"You weren't curious; you're terrified of everything!" He splutters. It sounds like a tease, though, and Hyuk can see the dynamic between them is still completely relaxed. Jaehwan nudges Hyuk heavily in the arm. "He was striking out for so long he finally got bold enough to try something with me!"
"Hyung." Hyuk shakes his head. "You don't come off well in that scenario. Like Wonshik-hyung would only go for you when he was desperate."
"Maybe that's true," Wonshik says mildly, mouth twitching. Jaehwan leaps up, grabbing a sofa cushion to attack Wonshik with. Wonshik brings his hands to his face to protect it as Jaehwan grabs another cushion for his other hand and tries to flail them both at Wonshik in quick succession.
Hyuk bursts out laughing, stuffing down the urge to ask, so, having sex doesn't really change anything?
He's not sure if that should be reassuring to him or not.
He wants it to mean something, after all. That's why he's been waiting.
-
"Oh my god, he's just so oblivious!" Hongbin groans. His head makes a light thunk with the back of the couch and Taekwoon cringes, but Hongbin doesn't seem to have been injured, or care at all about it. "I don't want to flirt too overtly in case it scares him off! We've been best friends for so long and he's going to completely freak out, because that's what Wonshik does." Hakyeon opens his mouth to advise but Hongbin is already waving a finger in his face. "So don't tell me to just tell him, because it won't work!"
"I know, I know," Hakyeon says soothingly, patting Hongbin's thigh. Taekwoon reminds himself that Hakyeon is very physically affectionate, and that the hand was at a very platonic spot on the thigh, nowhere near crotch at all. It's not that he doesn't trust Hakyeon! He just can't stop the twinges of his brain insisting that Hakyeon should only be touched by him.
At least he's keeping the thoughts to himself and not verbalising them. That's an improvement.
"You have to do something to allow him to start thinking about you in a sexual way though!" Hakyeon insists. "We need to open his eyes to that avenue."
"He's so annoyingly sexy, hyung," Hongbin says irritably. "He gets changed in front of me like it's nothing, because we've always been like that, but then I feel like a fucking teenager again, getting the butterflies and having to feign total disinterest, or worse, say something cutting because I'm mad at myself for being so juvenile! I just want to jump him, you know?"
The sparkle in Hakyeon's eyes says he knows, but all he says is, "I'm not going to talk about other people like that when I'm with Taekwoon~"
"Just say you know how it feels in regards to Taekwoon-hyung then, jeeze," Hongbin huffs but it turns into a laugh. "I'm not going to be grossed out, hyung."
"The baggier the sweaters that Taekwoon wears, the more I want to rip them right off him," Hakyeon says, making direct eye contact with Taekwoon as he speaks. Taekwoon looks down at the sweater he's wearing, the way it covers his hands almost to the ends of his fingers. Okay, so maybe he'd figured out just a little that the more he hid his shape the more Hakyeon tended to want to reveal it.
"When Wonshik walks around my place shirtless I want to get down on my knees and kiss those abs," Hongbin sighs. "And I am not the type to get on my knees for anyone usually, Hakyeon."
"I'm going," Taekwoon says, standing up abruptly. "I don't want to hear this."
"As long as you don't mind us talking about it," Hakyeon chuckles. "Oh, and Tae?" Taekwoon glances back, eyelids half obscuring his gaze. "Don't change clothes, okay?"
-
"What is this?" Hakyeon asks, looking down into his coffee cup and laughing.
"Latte art!" Jaehwan announces, handing out the rest of the drinks around the table. Taekwoon peers down into his mug, seeing the same thing as in Hakyeon's and raises an eyebrow, but bothers neither to praise or criticise. Jaehwan is pretty sure that if Taekwoon really disliked it he would say something, so he's counting it as a win!
"What's wrong with mine?" Hyuk demands pitifully. Jaehwan looks down to see that the rabbit he'd drawn had been jolted at some point and turned into-
"-it's an angry, mutant bunny!" He declares. Hyuk just looks at him, eyebrows raised. He's clearly not won over. Yet. Jaehwan tucks in all his fingers but the forefinger and middle finger and crooks them a little, bouncing them like bunny ears. "I'll make it up to you! Boing-boing!" He lifts the faux bunny ears behind his head and offers out his hand like a paw asking for forgiveness. Hyuk barks out a laugh all of a sudden. "Ahhh, Ken-bunny saves the day!"
Jaehwan turns around and literally hops back off to the counter, sticking out his imaginary bunny tail on the way. Hyuk just glances around at Hakyeon and Taekwoon and asks, "did that seriously just happen?"
"That's Jaehwan-ah," Hakyeon says almost mysteriously, lifting his latte to his mouth to take a comforting sip.
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Wordcount: 1852
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"Come over," Jaehwan says in an annoyingly angelic voice, beckoning up the stairs. He must have been practicing copying Taekwoon's soft tones for weeks to pull that off. Hyuk finds his hand is already on the handrail, he's already putting his foot to the bottom stair, not even tempted to ask if it'll be a problem-
-until Jaehwan has him splayed out on the couch, wriggling right over his crotch and nuzzling, no wait kissing, no wait, more nuzzling into Hyuk's neck again. Hyuk's hands are descending to Jaehwan's pants, lips trailing down the side of his face, the only part he can reach from their positions right now when he realises where he is.
"Wait!" He yelps quietly, pushing Jaehwan off, but not too much because he doesn't really want to stop, or for Jaehwan to think he does. He just wants Jaehwan to assume the responsibility for this recklessness. "Are you sure this is alright? Out in the open like this? You share this place with Wonshik-hyung, and you two used to-"
"Shikkie and I are good friends," Jaehwan assures Hyuk. He's already trying to lean down again with his lush mouth, tempting Hyuk into distraction. "Best of friends. We did the do, the nasty, the beast with two backs. But he's always gonna be in love with Hongbin. I knew it was just fooling around, wouldn't last."
Hyuk is thrown by this new information; he'd certainly never felt second best in comparison to Wonshik when he and Hongbin were... Well, that had largely been fooling around too, he supposes. It had felt like his first grown-up relationship. And being with Jaehwan somehow feels mature too. That could be because his mental age is in fact higher than Jaehwan's even though he's a few years younger.
"Wonshik-hyung is in love with Hongbin?"
"It's not obvious," Jaehwan admits, running a hand through his fluffy, lopsided hair. "Actually I don't even think he knows he is. I think I figured it out and he still thinks he just loves Hongbin like a best friend and nothing else."
"Hyung," Hyuk begins nervously, "I don't know if Hongbin feels the same way. I've never had any reason to suspect it."
"It's not up to us to fix it," Jaehwan shrugs. "Even though I know someone who would think it was-"
Hakyeon, of course. Always trying to make sure they're all happy and healthy. And, now that's he so grossly in love, make sure everyone else has someone too.
-
Hyuk gives in to Jaehwan's puppy dog eyes, of course. And they make out on the couch for a while, and Hyuk lets Jaehwan below the belt but only over the boxers, and Jaehwan agrees without a murmur of protest, because of that weird energy between the two of them where they're both so completely ready to throw themselves into having fun and sex together, but know there's more to it than that and they don't want to wreck it.
Hyuk's just thankful that Wonshik doesn't come up to the apartment after work and catch them in the middle, entwined and breathing heavily, foreheads beaded with sweat. Wonshik comes back to find them both belly down on the floor, each with a controller in hand and battling it out in a video game. The legs they have next to each other are entwined, because Jaehwan started nudging Hyuk's to distract him and then they just ended up getting comfortable, but Wonshik knows they're dating (or whatever) now, and at least that's not obscene!
Being in a room with someone who has had sex with your new sort-of boyfriend, that's new for Hyuk. It makes him feel awkward, self-conscious in front of Wonshik, even though Wonshik isn't the one who will be able to compare the two of them in bed once he and Hyuk do it!
"This is how you bond?" Wonshik asks, nose wrinkling as he smiles affectionately. "Video games?"
"Could be worse, 'Shikkie!" Jaehwan calls out as Wonshik heads to the kitchen for a drink. "You could've caught us making out earlier!"
Hyuk shoots Jaehwan a face, puffing out his cheeks in displeasure. Yes, he'd been worried about that exact thing, no need to bring it up in front of Wonshik!
Jaehwan shrugs, grinning. "It'll be fine," he mouths to Hyuk.
"I'm sure I could have," Wonshik says amiably, settling himself oh so naively in the middle of the sofa where said making-out had been happening only an hour, hour and a half ago before. Hyuk doesn't know whether to cringe or laugh. He feels like his face is doing both.
Might as well bite the bullet and ask.
"It's not weird for you, hyung?" He says tentatively. Jaehwan, out of the corner of Hyuk's eye, is just making a wide eyed face that says, 'told you so', but not in a nasty way. He's trying to be reassuring, but achieving annoyingly adorable. He's such a pain in the ass.
"What?" Wonshik asks. Does he honestly not know from the topic of conversation? Hyuk looks at him dubiously. He's not afraid to say it! If he can't say it he shouldn't be doing it, right?
"Seeing the person you used to... Have sex with-" Well done, Hyuk thinks to himself proudly, "-going out with someone new? Even if you've always been friends?"
"Mmm," Wonshik does actually give it some thought and not just dismiss Hyuk's concerns. "Jaehwan and I spend so much time together, we've been chasing the same sort of dreams for so many years, it was bound to happen eventually. We're both too curious not to want to see what would happen."
At that point Jaehwan explodes, trying to stifle his giggles behind his hands. The video game is completely forgotten.
"You weren't curious; you're terrified of everything!" He splutters. It sounds like a tease, though, and Hyuk can see the dynamic between them is still completely relaxed. Jaehwan nudges Hyuk heavily in the arm. "He was striking out for so long he finally got bold enough to try something with me!"
"Hyung." Hyuk shakes his head. "You don't come off well in that scenario. Like Wonshik-hyung would only go for you when he was desperate."
"Maybe that's true," Wonshik says mildly, mouth twitching. Jaehwan leaps up, grabbing a sofa cushion to attack Wonshik with. Wonshik brings his hands to his face to protect it as Jaehwan grabs another cushion for his other hand and tries to flail them both at Wonshik in quick succession.
Hyuk bursts out laughing, stuffing down the urge to ask, so, having sex doesn't really change anything?
He's not sure if that should be reassuring to him or not.
He wants it to mean something, after all. That's why he's been waiting.
-
"Oh my god, he's just so oblivious!" Hongbin groans. His head makes a light thunk with the back of the couch and Taekwoon cringes, but Hongbin doesn't seem to have been injured, or care at all about it. "I don't want to flirt too overtly in case it scares him off! We've been best friends for so long and he's going to completely freak out, because that's what Wonshik does." Hakyeon opens his mouth to advise but Hongbin is already waving a finger in his face. "So don't tell me to just tell him, because it won't work!"
"I know, I know," Hakyeon says soothingly, patting Hongbin's thigh. Taekwoon reminds himself that Hakyeon is very physically affectionate, and that the hand was at a very platonic spot on the thigh, nowhere near crotch at all. It's not that he doesn't trust Hakyeon! He just can't stop the twinges of his brain insisting that Hakyeon should only be touched by him.
At least he's keeping the thoughts to himself and not verbalising them. That's an improvement.
"You have to do something to allow him to start thinking about you in a sexual way though!" Hakyeon insists. "We need to open his eyes to that avenue."
"He's so annoyingly sexy, hyung," Hongbin says irritably. "He gets changed in front of me like it's nothing, because we've always been like that, but then I feel like a fucking teenager again, getting the butterflies and having to feign total disinterest, or worse, say something cutting because I'm mad at myself for being so juvenile! I just want to jump him, you know?"
The sparkle in Hakyeon's eyes says he knows, but all he says is, "I'm not going to talk about other people like that when I'm with Taekwoon~"
"Just say you know how it feels in regards to Taekwoon-hyung then, jeeze," Hongbin huffs but it turns into a laugh. "I'm not going to be grossed out, hyung."
"The baggier the sweaters that Taekwoon wears, the more I want to rip them right off him," Hakyeon says, making direct eye contact with Taekwoon as he speaks. Taekwoon looks down at the sweater he's wearing, the way it covers his hands almost to the ends of his fingers. Okay, so maybe he'd figured out just a little that the more he hid his shape the more Hakyeon tended to want to reveal it.
"When Wonshik walks around my place shirtless I want to get down on my knees and kiss those abs," Hongbin sighs. "And I am not the type to get on my knees for anyone usually, Hakyeon."
"I'm going," Taekwoon says, standing up abruptly. "I don't want to hear this."
"As long as you don't mind us talking about it," Hakyeon chuckles. "Oh, and Tae?" Taekwoon glances back, eyelids half obscuring his gaze. "Don't change clothes, okay?"
-
"What is this?" Hakyeon asks, looking down into his coffee cup and laughing.
"Latte art!" Jaehwan announces, handing out the rest of the drinks around the table. Taekwoon peers down into his mug, seeing the same thing as in Hakyeon's and raises an eyebrow, but bothers neither to praise or criticise. Jaehwan is pretty sure that if Taekwoon really disliked it he would say something, so he's counting it as a win!
"What's wrong with mine?" Hyuk demands pitifully. Jaehwan looks down to see that the rabbit he'd drawn had been jolted at some point and turned into-
"-it's an angry, mutant bunny!" He declares. Hyuk just looks at him, eyebrows raised. He's clearly not won over. Yet. Jaehwan tucks in all his fingers but the forefinger and middle finger and crooks them a little, bouncing them like bunny ears. "I'll make it up to you! Boing-boing!" He lifts the faux bunny ears behind his head and offers out his hand like a paw asking for forgiveness. Hyuk barks out a laugh all of a sudden. "Ahhh, Ken-bunny saves the day!"
Jaehwan turns around and literally hops back off to the counter, sticking out his imaginary bunny tail on the way. Hyuk just glances around at Hakyeon and Taekwoon and asks, "did that seriously just happen?"
"That's Jaehwan-ah," Hakyeon says almost mysteriously, lifting his latte to his mouth to take a comforting sip.
-
Wordcount: 1852
NaNoWriMo 2016: Day 1
Nov. 1st, 2016 03:57 pmsupernatural trash AU: what about Justin, and specifically what he's trying to figure out while Jin's recovering/stabilizing?
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"Why isn't everything simple?" Justin asks, sitting down heavily in one of the kitchen chairs. Young-chul is humming to himself as he heats soup on the stove top, but doesn't ignore Justin outright.
"You'll have to be more specific."
"Why isn't everything simple, like with you and me?"
Young-chul can hear the change in voice before he turns around; he isn't at all surprised to see Justine sitting there instead, frowning at her perfectly manicured nails. She can have them however she likes after all, why not perfect?
"I suspect because I got used to you changing forms for shock effect decades ago," Young-chul says, cupping a warm mug of tea as he sits down to wait for the soup to heat thoroughly. "Keeping another human around as a permanent fixture hasn't worked out as well as you'd assumed it would, has it?"
"I was trying to take the heat off of you sometimes," Justine huffs. She refuses to look in his direction. Young-chul bites back a smile.
"If I believed that of you I'd be flattered," he says. "Unfortunately I'm not convinced that even hundreds of decades can melt a demon's heart."
"Most demons don't even have anything resembling a heart."
"Precisely."
Justine sits frowning at Young-chul as he sips at his tea.
"Why do you think I did it, then?" She asks. "What's your theory on why I decided to take on another human toy?"
"Ah," Young-chul smiles, rising to attend to his soup again. "Toy. You're so flattering."
"Pet, then," Justine shrugs. "Whatever."
"Feeder?" Young-chul asks mildly. He can sense the snarl that has taken over Justine's face. She doesn't like being compared to vampires. "I'm sorry, but for humans blood is akin to life-force. You do much the same thing as they do; you simply seduce to get yours."
"I'm nothing like those parasites, Young-chul." She's at his back in that instant, breath hot on his neck. Young-chul feels the hairs at his nape stand on end but refuses to show any other visible response to her intimidations. She won't kill him. There's been ample time to do so before now. She could get another human to replace him, if only she could find one who can regenerate his or her own life force. "I don't spread violence and fear. My prey dies in ecstasy. They know nothing but pleasure from me."
"You're so kind," Young-chul says, mouth tightening. There's no point getting angry anymore. Nothing will change his fate, except Justine's death. And Young-chul has two things against him when it comes to Justine's death: one, he's human and he formed an attachment a long time ago, ill-advised as it is. And two, his magic thrives on life, not death. If he were to kill it might destroy him too. Some days that seems like a wise end to their co-existence. "You're still a killer. The means don't justify the end, in this case."
"Can we get back to my question?" Justine asks impatiently. "I kill, you don't like it. It won't change. I'm a demon! So tell me, why do I give a shit about you humans?"
"You mean Jin. If you give a damn about me you've never let it affect you. This is first time I've seen you like this."
"They took what was mine! They turned him into what I hate. My routine is ruined. I like routine, Young-chul. I like knowing where my meals are coming from. I don't live my life on the edge. I'm smart, I want to go on forever."
Young-chul finally breathes again as Justine starts to pace across the kitchen instead of looming over him. He serves up his soup and pretends none of it has shaken him. These are all things they know but haven't spoken about. It's been decades in the making.
"Why you chose me..." Young-chul says slowly. "You knew of my talent. You knew I could extend my life indefinitely. You... Wanted someone who would be with you forever?"
Justine doesn't look at him, doesn't answer.
"You don't love me, I don't love you. You made a calculated decision when you chose me. We've cobbled together an existence. But that's not enough, is it? It's not real companionship. We're both desperately lonely souls, we just hide it in our own ways. You could have picked anyone to be your second permanent companion. In fact," Young-chul blinks as the realisation hits him, "hasn't every victim of yours been an attempt to see if you'd like to have it last longer? You never finish them the first time, though you could."
"Taking one huge hit of life force wouldn't do me any good, it would still drain from me just as fast. Just make me more powerful temporarily."
When she sits back down she shifts back to the masculine form. Justin again. A reflection of the boredom he's had with most of his victims in the end? Or discomfort?
"You never asked me to aid in restoring life force to anyone until Jin came along. And now he's been turned into the kind of creature you detest. I'm sure that's confusing for you."
"Don't condescend to me," Justin says, but his voice is sulky rather than venomous.
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Wordcount: 877
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"Why isn't everything simple?" Justin asks, sitting down heavily in one of the kitchen chairs. Young-chul is humming to himself as he heats soup on the stove top, but doesn't ignore Justin outright.
"You'll have to be more specific."
"Why isn't everything simple, like with you and me?"
Young-chul can hear the change in voice before he turns around; he isn't at all surprised to see Justine sitting there instead, frowning at her perfectly manicured nails. She can have them however she likes after all, why not perfect?
"I suspect because I got used to you changing forms for shock effect decades ago," Young-chul says, cupping a warm mug of tea as he sits down to wait for the soup to heat thoroughly. "Keeping another human around as a permanent fixture hasn't worked out as well as you'd assumed it would, has it?"
"I was trying to take the heat off of you sometimes," Justine huffs. She refuses to look in his direction. Young-chul bites back a smile.
"If I believed that of you I'd be flattered," he says. "Unfortunately I'm not convinced that even hundreds of decades can melt a demon's heart."
"Most demons don't even have anything resembling a heart."
"Precisely."
Justine sits frowning at Young-chul as he sips at his tea.
"Why do you think I did it, then?" She asks. "What's your theory on why I decided to take on another human toy?"
"Ah," Young-chul smiles, rising to attend to his soup again. "Toy. You're so flattering."
"Pet, then," Justine shrugs. "Whatever."
"Feeder?" Young-chul asks mildly. He can sense the snarl that has taken over Justine's face. She doesn't like being compared to vampires. "I'm sorry, but for humans blood is akin to life-force. You do much the same thing as they do; you simply seduce to get yours."
"I'm nothing like those parasites, Young-chul." She's at his back in that instant, breath hot on his neck. Young-chul feels the hairs at his nape stand on end but refuses to show any other visible response to her intimidations. She won't kill him. There's been ample time to do so before now. She could get another human to replace him, if only she could find one who can regenerate his or her own life force. "I don't spread violence and fear. My prey dies in ecstasy. They know nothing but pleasure from me."
"You're so kind," Young-chul says, mouth tightening. There's no point getting angry anymore. Nothing will change his fate, except Justine's death. And Young-chul has two things against him when it comes to Justine's death: one, he's human and he formed an attachment a long time ago, ill-advised as it is. And two, his magic thrives on life, not death. If he were to kill it might destroy him too. Some days that seems like a wise end to their co-existence. "You're still a killer. The means don't justify the end, in this case."
"Can we get back to my question?" Justine asks impatiently. "I kill, you don't like it. It won't change. I'm a demon! So tell me, why do I give a shit about you humans?"
"You mean Jin. If you give a damn about me you've never let it affect you. This is first time I've seen you like this."
"They took what was mine! They turned him into what I hate. My routine is ruined. I like routine, Young-chul. I like knowing where my meals are coming from. I don't live my life on the edge. I'm smart, I want to go on forever."
Young-chul finally breathes again as Justine starts to pace across the kitchen instead of looming over him. He serves up his soup and pretends none of it has shaken him. These are all things they know but haven't spoken about. It's been decades in the making.
"Why you chose me..." Young-chul says slowly. "You knew of my talent. You knew I could extend my life indefinitely. You... Wanted someone who would be with you forever?"
Justine doesn't look at him, doesn't answer.
"You don't love me, I don't love you. You made a calculated decision when you chose me. We've cobbled together an existence. But that's not enough, is it? It's not real companionship. We're both desperately lonely souls, we just hide it in our own ways. You could have picked anyone to be your second permanent companion. In fact," Young-chul blinks as the realisation hits him, "hasn't every victim of yours been an attempt to see if you'd like to have it last longer? You never finish them the first time, though you could."
"Taking one huge hit of life force wouldn't do me any good, it would still drain from me just as fast. Just make me more powerful temporarily."
When she sits back down she shifts back to the masculine form. Justin again. A reflection of the boredom he's had with most of his victims in the end? Or discomfort?
"You never asked me to aid in restoring life force to anyone until Jin came along. And now he's been turned into the kind of creature you detest. I'm sure that's confusing for you."
"Don't condescend to me," Justin says, but his voice is sulky rather than venomous.
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Wordcount: 877
title: (Technically Not) Technical Difficulties
fandom Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
character(s)/pairing(s): Captain Marvelous/Don Dogoier, Don Dogoier/Gokai Galleon
wordcount: 610
summary: Sure, he gets that the Galleon has a thing for Hakase.
( Read more... )
fandom Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
character(s)/pairing(s): Captain Marvelous/Don Dogoier, Don Dogoier/Gokai Galleon
wordcount: 610
summary: Sure, he gets that the Galleon has a thing for Hakase.
( Read more... )
title: Fever
fandom Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
character(s)/pairing(s): Don Dogoier/Gokai Galleon
wordcount: 835
summary: The Galleon has been really unwell lately, or as Marvelous would say, "really playing up, you piece of junk!", but Don knows something has been bothering it.
( Read more... )
fandom Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
character(s)/pairing(s): Don Dogoier/Gokai Galleon
wordcount: 835
summary: The Galleon has been really unwell lately, or as Marvelous would say, "really playing up, you piece of junk!", but Don knows something has been bothering it.
( Read more... )
Kamen Rider OOO, Date/Gotou, for Cyn. Rated barely R for a NAUGHTY WORD. Gasp. 187 Words.
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Silver-tongued
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He's surprisingly enthusiastic about this, Gotou-chan. ( +++++ )
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He's surprisingly enthusiastic about this, Gotou-chan. ( +++++ )
Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger fic, for Noey: Doppelgangland!AU, Basco/Ahim. 436 Words. (I'm sorry the end sucks but I hope the rest makes up for it <3)
(Is it even an R rating or do I suck that much? 8D)
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in waking dreams
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Basco isn't ashamed to admit (but only to himself) that he indulges in fantasy.
( He likes the idea of walking out of the kitchen one time, trapping hime-chan against a wall and leaning in- )
(Is it even an R rating or do I suck that much? 8D)
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Basco isn't ashamed to admit (but only to himself) that he indulges in fantasy.
( He likes the idea of walking out of the kitchen one time, trapping hime-chan against a wall and leaning in- )
Aftertaste [Kamen Rider OOO, Ankh(/)Hina]
Nov. 18th, 2011 02:38 pm(I was watching ep46 again and having all the feelings. So out came the fic!) Ankh, Hina, spoilers for episode 46 (duhhhh). 193 words.
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( +++++ )
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( +++++ )
Title: Time-Out
Characters: Izumi Shingo, Ankh.
Wordcount: 1220
Notes: We don't have a hell of a lot of characterization for Shingo, so I improvised a hell of a lot. But he's a cop so I figure that he can read people well, knows the right questions to ask (interrogate XD) ...Not to mention that I think having shared headspace with Ankh for roughly a year there would be little they couldn't say to each other at this point - there were no secrets back then! So hopefully I am justifying this enough <3
Previous: cure for the itch: on LJ / on DW
( +++++ )
Characters: Izumi Shingo, Ankh.
Wordcount: 1220
Notes: We don't have a hell of a lot of characterization for Shingo, so I improvised a hell of a lot. But he's a cop so I figure that he can read people well, knows the right questions to ask (interrogate XD) ...Not to mention that I think having shared headspace with Ankh for roughly a year there would be little they couldn't say to each other at this point - there were no secrets back then! So hopefully I am justifying this enough <3
Previous: cure for the itch: on LJ / on DW
( +++++ )
Noey wrote THIS, and I just couldn't resist my own stab at a scene post-canon, bringing Ankh back. Ankh, Hina, Eiji. 710 words.
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cure for the itch
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The shard of the medal - Ankh's last medal - comes out of Eiji's pocket, wrapped in tomorrow's pants alongside a handful of coin.
"You kept that," Ankh says flatly. It's difficult to tell exactly what he means by that - is it approval? Amusement? ...Is he touched by the sentiment? The moment stretches further and further until the silence becomes positively deafening. Hina can actually hear the blood pumping through her veins, the sound thundering in her ears.
And then Ankh smirks. That same derisive smirk he always used to lay on, and Hina feels her heart sink.
"Why would you keep that?" He snorts. And then his entire body shakes with his silent laughter.
Hina feels a hard lump rise in her throat, but she won't cry about this. If anyone is used to Ankh and his thoughtless actions by now, it's her. Tied with Eiji of course.
"If you didn't want me to keep it, why would you have left it with me?" Eiji counters. Hina is a little glad of the way he pushes protectively in front of her to challenge Ankh. It gives her the moment to take a breath, compose herself, and add from behind him, "besides, it would have been dangerous to just throw them away!"
She herself, after all, has been clutching her own half tightly in her palm since the moment Ankh reappeared out of nowhere. Reaching into the pocket of her dress to find it, always there. It always has been. Something solid to cling to if needed.
"That's right!" Eiji says, gaping in realisation. He turns. "That's right, Hina-chan! Imagine if someone had gotten their hands on both halves and found a way to reforge the medal?"
"-I'd have revived," Ankh points out. "Did you not want that?"
"You're here now," Hina says quietly, releasing the words on a breath and hoping they won't fall apart upon impact. They're still so disbelieving. They come out so quietly nobody else hears.
"We tried!" Eiji says. His mouth screws up, his eyes pleading with Ankh to believe them. "There was no possible way!"
"There wouldn't have been anything to worry about then," Ankh says. He helps himself to a seat and slouches back in it. The way he crosses both his legs and his arms speaks for itself about the barrier he is trying to set. But he can't help peering up at them both, one after the other, face accusing and wary all at once.
Suddenly Hina realises what Eiji must already have sensed; Ankh is lashing out because he is afraid that since he's been gone things will have changed. It took so long to make him truly believe they cared, it is just like him to think that it could be lost again easily just because he was no longer there.
"Stop trying to turn this around and make it an attack against you!" Eiji bursts out. This time it's his turn to take a calming breath. "We missed you, you know? Just accept it."
"That's why I kept it," Hina says, opening her palm and thrusting her hand right into Ankh's face. He jerks back, grabbing the sides of the chair to steady himself, but if he looks down his nose he can see it, the broken core medal.
"Sentimental fools, the both of you," he sneers. But his face quickly settles into a far more pensive shape, and he doesn't attempt to take back what must truly be useless to him now. He is already revived without the medal.
"Everything has changed now," he says, bolting up suddenly. Hina jumps back, clutching the half-medal to herself instinctively. "Unless I'm mistaken, none of the other Greeeds have accomplished this resurrection. And there are no longer any core medals in this world to persue. I need to discover my place all over again... I need to evolve."
He is already halfway out the window as he speaks, and there is nothing Eiji or Hina can do to stop him.
"Ankh!" Eiji cries, running to the window and dangling most of the way out of it, looking around futilely.
Hina brings her tightened fist to her chest.
"With us," she says firmly to herself. "You belong with us."
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The shard of the medal - Ankh's last medal - comes out of Eiji's pocket, wrapped in tomorrow's pants alongside a handful of coin.
"You kept that," Ankh says flatly. It's difficult to tell exactly what he means by that - is it approval? Amusement? ...Is he touched by the sentiment? The moment stretches further and further until the silence becomes positively deafening. Hina can actually hear the blood pumping through her veins, the sound thundering in her ears.
And then Ankh smirks. That same derisive smirk he always used to lay on, and Hina feels her heart sink.
"Why would you keep that?" He snorts. And then his entire body shakes with his silent laughter.
Hina feels a hard lump rise in her throat, but she won't cry about this. If anyone is used to Ankh and his thoughtless actions by now, it's her. Tied with Eiji of course.
"If you didn't want me to keep it, why would you have left it with me?" Eiji counters. Hina is a little glad of the way he pushes protectively in front of her to challenge Ankh. It gives her the moment to take a breath, compose herself, and add from behind him, "besides, it would have been dangerous to just throw them away!"
She herself, after all, has been clutching her own half tightly in her palm since the moment Ankh reappeared out of nowhere. Reaching into the pocket of her dress to find it, always there. It always has been. Something solid to cling to if needed.
"That's right!" Eiji says, gaping in realisation. He turns. "That's right, Hina-chan! Imagine if someone had gotten their hands on both halves and found a way to reforge the medal?"
"-I'd have revived," Ankh points out. "Did you not want that?"
"You're here now," Hina says quietly, releasing the words on a breath and hoping they won't fall apart upon impact. They're still so disbelieving. They come out so quietly nobody else hears.
"We tried!" Eiji says. His mouth screws up, his eyes pleading with Ankh to believe them. "There was no possible way!"
"There wouldn't have been anything to worry about then," Ankh says. He helps himself to a seat and slouches back in it. The way he crosses both his legs and his arms speaks for itself about the barrier he is trying to set. But he can't help peering up at them both, one after the other, face accusing and wary all at once.
Suddenly Hina realises what Eiji must already have sensed; Ankh is lashing out because he is afraid that since he's been gone things will have changed. It took so long to make him truly believe they cared, it is just like him to think that it could be lost again easily just because he was no longer there.
"Stop trying to turn this around and make it an attack against you!" Eiji bursts out. This time it's his turn to take a calming breath. "We missed you, you know? Just accept it."
"That's why I kept it," Hina says, opening her palm and thrusting her hand right into Ankh's face. He jerks back, grabbing the sides of the chair to steady himself, but if he looks down his nose he can see it, the broken core medal.
"Sentimental fools, the both of you," he sneers. But his face quickly settles into a far more pensive shape, and he doesn't attempt to take back what must truly be useless to him now. He is already revived without the medal.
"Everything has changed now," he says, bolting up suddenly. Hina jumps back, clutching the half-medal to herself instinctively. "Unless I'm mistaken, none of the other Greeeds have accomplished this resurrection. And there are no longer any core medals in this world to persue. I need to discover my place all over again... I need to evolve."
He is already halfway out the window as he speaks, and there is nothing Eiji or Hina can do to stop him.
"Ankh!" Eiji cries, running to the window and dangling most of the way out of it, looking around futilely.
Hina brings her tightened fist to her chest.
"With us," she says firmly to herself. "You belong with us."
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Ankh, Shingo, Hina, Eiji. Part of my, "Shingo talks to Ankh inside his mind" alternative-canon (as if we have any proof to definitely say otherwise XD). Set towards the end of episode 6; some dialogue lifted directly from the episode subtitles. 362 words.
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a taste of power
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"You know who she is," Shingo says as Ankh's eyes lock with Hina's. He is wearing a motorbike helmet but the tint of the light means she can see straight through it and into his eyes properly as he passes.
Of course I do, Ankh sneers, Eiji won't stop going on about it.
"No," Shingo says as they bypass her completely and carry on down the road, "I mean who she is to me."
The intense warm feeling that infuses Ankh at his words leaves no room for misunderstanding. Fierce but gentle, profound but freeing.
"You're spilling over onto me," Ankh says out loud. Nobody can hear it; they're alone on the road, and the sound of the engine would cover it anyway. "And I don't have time for this."
To be honest, it's unsettling: human emotion. Overwhelming; and this coming from Ankh who once, eight hundred years ago, devoured human greed like ice candy. It's nothing in comparison to this direct link.
Even Eiji doesn't provide sufficient distraction when Ankh reaches him. Already transformed for battle, and not doing a stellar job of it on his own.
"Hey Ankh," he says as he shakes himself free of Mezool's nest-grubs. "Three Core Medals in a set; that Combo thing... What does it do?"
"It's an incredible amount of power," Ankh says. "You probably wouldn't be able to use it without getting hurt."
"I could say the same for you," Shingo insists inside his mind. Ankh can visualize the accompanying wry smile. The image must be getting pressed upon him by his host-body's owner.
Perhaps Shingo has already wormed his way so quickly inside Ankh's mind that he knows just which buttons to press. Perhaps it is one of those parts of being human that means he can read Ankh so well.
All Ankh knows is that he wants very badly to prove the voice inside his head wrong. Perhaps that's why when Eiji voices the same sort of sentiment when it comes to the medals, he hands them over with no argument.
It's always fun to prove Eiji wrong, after all. Ankh doesn't even have to do anything in order to accomplish that.
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"You know who she is," Shingo says as Ankh's eyes lock with Hina's. He is wearing a motorbike helmet but the tint of the light means she can see straight through it and into his eyes properly as he passes.
Of course I do, Ankh sneers, Eiji won't stop going on about it.
"No," Shingo says as they bypass her completely and carry on down the road, "I mean who she is to me."
The intense warm feeling that infuses Ankh at his words leaves no room for misunderstanding. Fierce but gentle, profound but freeing.
"You're spilling over onto me," Ankh says out loud. Nobody can hear it; they're alone on the road, and the sound of the engine would cover it anyway. "And I don't have time for this."
To be honest, it's unsettling: human emotion. Overwhelming; and this coming from Ankh who once, eight hundred years ago, devoured human greed like ice candy. It's nothing in comparison to this direct link.
Even Eiji doesn't provide sufficient distraction when Ankh reaches him. Already transformed for battle, and not doing a stellar job of it on his own.
"Hey Ankh," he says as he shakes himself free of Mezool's nest-grubs. "Three Core Medals in a set; that Combo thing... What does it do?"
"It's an incredible amount of power," Ankh says. "You probably wouldn't be able to use it without getting hurt."
"I could say the same for you," Shingo insists inside his mind. Ankh can visualize the accompanying wry smile. The image must be getting pressed upon him by his host-body's owner.
Perhaps Shingo has already wormed his way so quickly inside Ankh's mind that he knows just which buttons to press. Perhaps it is one of those parts of being human that means he can read Ankh so well.
All Ankh knows is that he wants very badly to prove the voice inside his head wrong. Perhaps that's why when Eiji voices the same sort of sentiment when it comes to the medals, he hands them over with no argument.
It's always fun to prove Eiji wrong, after all. Ankh doesn't even have to do anything in order to accomplish that.
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Ankh, Shingo, Hina. Mindshare universe. prompt: 14 October 2008. the girl in question
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They have conversations inside his head sometimes. It's easy for Ankh to get away with; if he ignores the discussions going on around him nobody will think twice about it. If someone tries to draw him in and he chooses not to answer, they'll shrug and carry on.
It's quite a comfort to have a voice that nobody else can hear reassuring him. But also incredibly pathetic.
His host body's awareness is supposed to be buried, after all. Ankh still isn't strong enough to do a thorough job of that. It pisses him off, but it can be a little helpful, because sometimes accessing his memories just isn't good enough for a proper understanding of situations.
"She's a good girl," Shingo says, and Ankh flinches, realising he's been glaring at Hina the entire time she and Chiyoko have been talking. That infuriating woman. Both of them, actually.
She's a monster, Ankh thinks back at him sharply. He almost regrets it when he feels how much that hurts Shingo, and him in turn, faintly, thanks to their unusual bond. It wasn't even an insult directed at Shingo. It makes no sense.
"Hina would never hurt anyone on purpose," Shingo insists. There are memories attached to his words, of times he has had to say this exact same thing to people before. Many times. Many accidents, all the way since Hina was a child.
Ankh refuses to feel remorse for the comment. He is only telling the truth. Her strength is monstrous. But, to be fair, that's the only thing about her that is.
"Exactly," Shingo agrees, and Ankh realises sourly that Shingo heard that even though it wasn't a thought directed at him.
Useful as it can be, the fact is that Shingo is still a human; ridiculous, irritating, irrational as the rest of them. A mystery to Ankh, even though he has access to thoughts and feelings and... whatever else it is humans are.
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They have conversations inside his head sometimes. It's easy for Ankh to get away with; if he ignores the discussions going on around him nobody will think twice about it. If someone tries to draw him in and he chooses not to answer, they'll shrug and carry on.
It's quite a comfort to have a voice that nobody else can hear reassuring him. But also incredibly pathetic.
His host body's awareness is supposed to be buried, after all. Ankh still isn't strong enough to do a thorough job of that. It pisses him off, but it can be a little helpful, because sometimes accessing his memories just isn't good enough for a proper understanding of situations.
"She's a good girl," Shingo says, and Ankh flinches, realising he's been glaring at Hina the entire time she and Chiyoko have been talking. That infuriating woman. Both of them, actually.
She's a monster, Ankh thinks back at him sharply. He almost regrets it when he feels how much that hurts Shingo, and him in turn, faintly, thanks to their unusual bond. It wasn't even an insult directed at Shingo. It makes no sense.
"Hina would never hurt anyone on purpose," Shingo insists. There are memories attached to his words, of times he has had to say this exact same thing to people before. Many times. Many accidents, all the way since Hina was a child.
Ankh refuses to feel remorse for the comment. He is only telling the truth. Her strength is monstrous. But, to be fair, that's the only thing about her that is.
"Exactly," Shingo agrees, and Ankh realises sourly that Shingo heard that even though it wasn't a thought directed at him.
Useful as it can be, the fact is that Shingo is still a human; ridiculous, irritating, irrational as the rest of them. A mystery to Ankh, even though he has access to thoughts and feelings and... whatever else it is humans are.
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Kamen Rider OOO. Eiji, Ankh, camping shenanigans set early on in the series. Inspired by the ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
31_days prompt for October 2nd 2011. 344 words.
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Stars are the pearls of the poor
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"I suspect that most humans don't live like this," Ankh says, poking the campfire with a stick, narrowing his eyes at it suspiciously. The fire is supposed to leap at his touch but the cold night air is dampening it down. Useless. "In fact," he continues, "I know they don't."
He has access, after all. To the memories of his host body, to the little instrument they call a phone and all the data he could ever need right at his fingertips. He knows far more than anyone would ever suspect he could discover within only a few days of being revived. Ankh is smart, Ankh understands the need to adapt to this new world.
There's no immediate reply from Eiji, something that makes Ankh's entire body tense. He dislikes being ignored and Eiji seems to have worked that out so quickly. Someone who seemed like such an easy fool to use; actually much sharper than anyone would assume.
Instead Eiji sighs and stretches out on the grass.
"Ankh," he says, "aren't the stars pretty?"
"What?"
"The stars," Eiji repeats, turning his head to meet Ankh's look. His face is screwed up like Eiji is purposely trying to anger him by talking nonsense. "Who needs jewels - or any of those things - when the stars are right there for free?"
"Fool," Ankh sneers, turning away again. "Even eight hundred years ago humans coveted jewels. That hasn't changed."
"Just because humans have always done something, doesn't mean it's the only option," Eiji replies. He almost sounds hurt.
"Yeah," Ankh agrees. "That much is true. You need to evolve in this world to survive."
"Have you ever met someone whose desire was to touch the stars?" Eiji asks, extending out his hand to the sky. He drags his fingers across it as though brushing the lights scattered amongst the darkness.
"Don't be ridiculous," Ankh retorts. "That's a childish desire. It's so small it wouldn't register to any Greeed."
"I don't think it's small," Eiji says. "I don't think it's a small desire at all."
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31_days prompt for October 2nd 2011. 344 words.-
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"I suspect that most humans don't live like this," Ankh says, poking the campfire with a stick, narrowing his eyes at it suspiciously. The fire is supposed to leap at his touch but the cold night air is dampening it down. Useless. "In fact," he continues, "I know they don't."
He has access, after all. To the memories of his host body, to the little instrument they call a phone and all the data he could ever need right at his fingertips. He knows far more than anyone would ever suspect he could discover within only a few days of being revived. Ankh is smart, Ankh understands the need to adapt to this new world.
There's no immediate reply from Eiji, something that makes Ankh's entire body tense. He dislikes being ignored and Eiji seems to have worked that out so quickly. Someone who seemed like such an easy fool to use; actually much sharper than anyone would assume.
Instead Eiji sighs and stretches out on the grass.
"Ankh," he says, "aren't the stars pretty?"
"What?"
"The stars," Eiji repeats, turning his head to meet Ankh's look. His face is screwed up like Eiji is purposely trying to anger him by talking nonsense. "Who needs jewels - or any of those things - when the stars are right there for free?"
"Fool," Ankh sneers, turning away again. "Even eight hundred years ago humans coveted jewels. That hasn't changed."
"Just because humans have always done something, doesn't mean it's the only option," Eiji replies. He almost sounds hurt.
"Yeah," Ankh agrees. "That much is true. You need to evolve in this world to survive."
"Have you ever met someone whose desire was to touch the stars?" Eiji asks, extending out his hand to the sky. He drags his fingers across it as though brushing the lights scattered amongst the darkness.
"Don't be ridiculous," Ankh retorts. "That's a childish desire. It's so small it wouldn't register to any Greeed."
"I don't think it's small," Eiji says. "I don't think it's a small desire at all."
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Untitled (Ankh, Hina) [Kamen Rider OOO]
Sep. 16th, 2011 07:03 pm[Ankh, Hina. 258 words]
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"Ankh..." Hina says, approaching carefully. He's eating, which is always a good sign, even if it's never usually anything with nutritional content. "When you eat those popsicles, you can taste them, right?"
"Yeah," he replies shortly. He doesn't bother to turn to look at her as he speaks.
"And that's because you're... in a human body?" she presses. There are words she doesn't always say, for fear of setting him off - 'Oniichan's body'. "You are using the taste buds, but experiencing the taste yourself?"
"It's because I'm the dominant presence in this body at the moment," Ankh says simply. "My consciousness is the one that feels it."
"So... Oniichan doesn't at all?"
"I don't know," Ankh shrugs. "Maybe there's a kind of recollection, like the memory of doing it without actually having tasted the food. I'm not the one to ask."
"I can't ask oniichan!" Hina bursts out. Treading carefully around Ankh never lasts more than two minutes because he's so frustrating. It becomes something of a need to goad him - anything but those blase responses every time.
"No," he agrees, finally turning to glance at her. His eyes unsettle her; the same shape and colour as oniichan's, but there's an oblivion of despair in them that oniichan has never had. It always rattles her.
"Ankh," she says, taking a deep breath, "you can experience human emotions now too, using my brother's body. But what you feel isn't what he feels."
"Yeah, I don't love you like a sister," Ankh half-snorts, "but I should've thought that was obvious."
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"Ankh..." Hina says, approaching carefully. He's eating, which is always a good sign, even if it's never usually anything with nutritional content. "When you eat those popsicles, you can taste them, right?"
"Yeah," he replies shortly. He doesn't bother to turn to look at her as he speaks.
"And that's because you're... in a human body?" she presses. There are words she doesn't always say, for fear of setting him off - 'Oniichan's body'. "You are using the taste buds, but experiencing the taste yourself?"
"It's because I'm the dominant presence in this body at the moment," Ankh says simply. "My consciousness is the one that feels it."
"So... Oniichan doesn't at all?"
"I don't know," Ankh shrugs. "Maybe there's a kind of recollection, like the memory of doing it without actually having tasted the food. I'm not the one to ask."
"I can't ask oniichan!" Hina bursts out. Treading carefully around Ankh never lasts more than two minutes because he's so frustrating. It becomes something of a need to goad him - anything but those blase responses every time.
"No," he agrees, finally turning to glance at her. His eyes unsettle her; the same shape and colour as oniichan's, but there's an oblivion of despair in them that oniichan has never had. It always rattles her.
"Ankh," she says, taking a deep breath, "you can experience human emotions now too, using my brother's body. But what you feel isn't what he feels."
"Yeah, I don't love you like a sister," Ankh half-snorts, "but I should've thought that was obvious."
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Written as a response to the 12 Character Meme. The prompt was: "Captain Marvelous tries to kiss Joe Gibken. What happens?", from ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fairytales. Set pre-series. 747 words.
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a kiss to build a dream on
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Marvelous knows things are much more complicated than either of them have let on. It's been three days since Joe promised to be with him, "to your dream, and beyond", and yet he still hasn't come out of the quarters Marvelous offered him, except to eat and exercise.
Marvelous had no way of knowing beforehand just how silent and solitary Joe was going to turn out to be, but he is sharp enough to realise there is more to it than just that. It's not just Joe's personality, it isn't just Joe recovering from the constant fear of being on the run, almost certain of being caught thanks to the tracking device on the collar and running like hell anyway. Sometimes Marvelous sees Joe sneaking around with red eyes that are not from a lack of sleep.
Marvelous knows what it is to mourn someone you cared about. And not in the way of family, perhaps not even in the way of close friends - AkaRed had been a little of everything to him; father-figure, mentor, friend. Basco had been his friend, partner in crime, some-time lover. Marvelous knows relationships can be complicated, far moreso than can be put into words. Joe's grief could be some of these things, all of them, or none of them at all.
Somehow it's the same.
He leaves Joe to it, not bothering to worry. Anyone who has the balls to stand up to the Zangyack like that right in their own backyard can handle their own problems. Marvelous decides he will wait for Joe to come to him.
That's before Joe wakes him up the next night with a blood-curdling scream, followed by the choked cry of a name; "Sid-sempai!"
The next thing Marvelous knows, he's outside Joe's bedroom door and a clatter sounds as something flies across the room. He even hears Joe's indrawn breath, sharp as he realises that must have woken Marvelous up, and that there is no explanation for it. None that he is prepared to give, anyway. Little does he know Marvelous is already awake, and right there.
Marvelous leans against the wall, arms folded, one leg propped. After what seems like an eternity, in which he suspects Joe is waiting himself - waiting for the sounds that suggest Marvelous is up and about, woken by the noise - he hears the shuffle as Joe gets up out of bed tentatively and heads for the door.
He sticks his head out first, glancing around for signs of life, and because Joe is half-prepared for it, he only flinches slightly to see Marvelous lazing there against the wall.
Joe is still wearing bandages from his various injuries - sword slashes and electric shocks alike. Between that and the obvious tears that have been wiped away from his face, Marvelous can't hold back.
He had known from the first instant that Joe was strong. But that doesn't make him unbreakable.
Marvelous pushes off the wall and stands in front of Joe. He reaches out and places a hand under Joe's chin, tilting it up to look him in the eyes. Joe's face has the exact same look on it from only days ago when Marvelous had placed his hands on the shock collar.
A mixture of disbelief, awe, gratitude... and something else. Joe's eyes seem almost too far away, remembering other times and places. Marvelous narrows his eyes and wonders whose stance he is mimicking. Has someone done this with Joe before? Has someone stood taller than him, hand on his chin, and tilted it up until their lips met?
He only takes a split second to care about it. Then he leans down.
Joe kisses back. Joe kisses back with an eagerness that completely convinces Marvelous someone has done this to him before. His lips are full and his mouth clings, desperately seeking more. All of a sudden Marvelous does not want to be the replacement for this other person. He pulls back.
"I'll help you through it," he says roughly. Joe's kiss has affected him more than he realised. But his offer is real.
Joe snaps back to reality pretty quickly, but to his credit he recovers well enough to merely nod. He goes back into his room and shuts the door carefully behind him. Marvelous lets him go.
When he is ready to accept what Marvelous has to offer - and he will be eventually, Marvelous is almost certain of that - Joe will come to him.
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fairytales. Set pre-series. 747 words.-
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Marvelous knows things are much more complicated than either of them have let on. It's been three days since Joe promised to be with him, "to your dream, and beyond", and yet he still hasn't come out of the quarters Marvelous offered him, except to eat and exercise.
Marvelous had no way of knowing beforehand just how silent and solitary Joe was going to turn out to be, but he is sharp enough to realise there is more to it than just that. It's not just Joe's personality, it isn't just Joe recovering from the constant fear of being on the run, almost certain of being caught thanks to the tracking device on the collar and running like hell anyway. Sometimes Marvelous sees Joe sneaking around with red eyes that are not from a lack of sleep.
Marvelous knows what it is to mourn someone you cared about. And not in the way of family, perhaps not even in the way of close friends - AkaRed had been a little of everything to him; father-figure, mentor, friend. Basco had been his friend, partner in crime, some-time lover. Marvelous knows relationships can be complicated, far moreso than can be put into words. Joe's grief could be some of these things, all of them, or none of them at all.
Somehow it's the same.
He leaves Joe to it, not bothering to worry. Anyone who has the balls to stand up to the Zangyack like that right in their own backyard can handle their own problems. Marvelous decides he will wait for Joe to come to him.
That's before Joe wakes him up the next night with a blood-curdling scream, followed by the choked cry of a name; "Sid-sempai!"
The next thing Marvelous knows, he's outside Joe's bedroom door and a clatter sounds as something flies across the room. He even hears Joe's indrawn breath, sharp as he realises that must have woken Marvelous up, and that there is no explanation for it. None that he is prepared to give, anyway. Little does he know Marvelous is already awake, and right there.
Marvelous leans against the wall, arms folded, one leg propped. After what seems like an eternity, in which he suspects Joe is waiting himself - waiting for the sounds that suggest Marvelous is up and about, woken by the noise - he hears the shuffle as Joe gets up out of bed tentatively and heads for the door.
He sticks his head out first, glancing around for signs of life, and because Joe is half-prepared for it, he only flinches slightly to see Marvelous lazing there against the wall.
Joe is still wearing bandages from his various injuries - sword slashes and electric shocks alike. Between that and the obvious tears that have been wiped away from his face, Marvelous can't hold back.
He had known from the first instant that Joe was strong. But that doesn't make him unbreakable.
Marvelous pushes off the wall and stands in front of Joe. He reaches out and places a hand under Joe's chin, tilting it up to look him in the eyes. Joe's face has the exact same look on it from only days ago when Marvelous had placed his hands on the shock collar.
A mixture of disbelief, awe, gratitude... and something else. Joe's eyes seem almost too far away, remembering other times and places. Marvelous narrows his eyes and wonders whose stance he is mimicking. Has someone done this with Joe before? Has someone stood taller than him, hand on his chin, and tilted it up until their lips met?
He only takes a split second to care about it. Then he leans down.
Joe kisses back. Joe kisses back with an eagerness that completely convinces Marvelous someone has done this to him before. His lips are full and his mouth clings, desperately seeking more. All of a sudden Marvelous does not want to be the replacement for this other person. He pulls back.
"I'll help you through it," he says roughly. Joe's kiss has affected him more than he realised. But his offer is real.
Joe snaps back to reality pretty quickly, but to his credit he recovers well enough to merely nod. He goes back into his room and shuts the door carefully behind him. Marvelous lets him go.
When he is ready to accept what Marvelous has to offer - and he will be eventually, Marvelous is almost certain of that - Joe will come to him.
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Rikkai first-year fic. Sanada and Yanagi meet. Incomplete! Written... a week or two ago(?) at work, I just typed it up and tweaked a bit XD 292 Words. Set before everything else written so far.
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Day One
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Yanagi hears the sound of a pencil snapping at the desk behind him and reaches for his spare automatically - Sadaharu used to sit at that desk back in elementary.
He realises what he has done when a pair of dark eyes stare blankly back at him.
"Are you nervous about this exam?" Yanagi asks to cover his misstep. "Putting enough pressure on your upright pencil to snap the graphite is an indicator of anxiety." The boy doesn't reply. "These exams are only preliminary - the teachers will use our performance in class as the true indicator of our mental acuity."
"Are you mocking me?"
Yanagi blinks for the second time in under a minute.
"I thought I was being reassuring."
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They discover soon enough that sharing a few words during class leads everyone to assume they are friends. At lunch time Sanada and Yanagi find themselves left alone together. When someone pushes into the dinner-queue in front of Yanagi, Sanada feels himself puff up automatically in response - he is both taller and broader than Yanagi, he can handle it.
Except Yanagi places a hand on his shoulder - it isn't an attempt to restrain him, it's stupidly gentle - and it surprises Sanada so much he just looks down at it and stares, forgetting the queue-jumper entirely. People don't generally touch him, ever.
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"Yanagi-kun," Sanada says across the table. "Yanagi-kun?"
"Hmm?" Yanagi replies eventually, and, "Oh, I'm sorry. You had better call me Renji. It's what I'm used to, I may not reply otherwise."
Sanada stammers over it, but it's worth it for the look on his face when Yanagi adds, "if it will make you feel less uncomfortable, I will coordinate and start referring to you as Genichirou, also."
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Yanagi hears the sound of a pencil snapping at the desk behind him and reaches for his spare automatically - Sadaharu used to sit at that desk back in elementary.
He realises what he has done when a pair of dark eyes stare blankly back at him.
"Are you nervous about this exam?" Yanagi asks to cover his misstep. "Putting enough pressure on your upright pencil to snap the graphite is an indicator of anxiety." The boy doesn't reply. "These exams are only preliminary - the teachers will use our performance in class as the true indicator of our mental acuity."
"Are you mocking me?"
Yanagi blinks for the second time in under a minute.
"I thought I was being reassuring."
-
They discover soon enough that sharing a few words during class leads everyone to assume they are friends. At lunch time Sanada and Yanagi find themselves left alone together. When someone pushes into the dinner-queue in front of Yanagi, Sanada feels himself puff up automatically in response - he is both taller and broader than Yanagi, he can handle it.
Except Yanagi places a hand on his shoulder - it isn't an attempt to restrain him, it's stupidly gentle - and it surprises Sanada so much he just looks down at it and stares, forgetting the queue-jumper entirely. People don't generally touch him, ever.
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"Yanagi-kun," Sanada says across the table. "Yanagi-kun?"
"Hmm?" Yanagi replies eventually, and, "Oh, I'm sorry. You had better call me Renji. It's what I'm used to, I may not reply otherwise."
Sanada stammers over it, but it's worth it for the look on his face when Yanagi adds, "if it will make you feel less uncomfortable, I will coordinate and start referring to you as Genichirou, also."
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