➸ “This is a sentence with a dialogue tag at the end,” she said.
➸ “This,” he said, “is a sentence split by a dialogue tag.”
➸ “This is a sentence,” she said. “This is a new sentence. New sentences are capitalized.”
➸ “This is a sentence followed by an action.” He stood. “They are separate sentences because he did not speak by standing.”
➸ She said, “Use a comma to introduce dialogue. The quote is capitalized when the dialogue tag is at the beginning.”
➸ “Use a comma when a dialogue tag follows a quote,” he said.
“Unless there is a question mark?” she asked.
“Or an exclamation point!” he answered. “The dialogue tag still remains uncapitalized because it’s not truly the end of the sentence.”
➸ “Periods and commas should be inside closing quotations.”
➸ “Hey!” she shouted, “Sometimes exclamation points are inside quotations.”
However, if it’s not dialogue exclamation points can also be “outside”!
➸ “Does this apply to question marks too?” he asked.
If it’s not dialogue, can question marks be “outside”? (Yes, they can.)
➸ “This applies to dashes too. Inside quotations dashes typically express—“
“Interruption” — but there are situations dashes may be outside.
➸ “You’ll notice that exclamation marks, question marks, and dashes do not have a comma after them. Ellipses don’t have a comma after them either…” she said.
➸ “My teacher said, ‘Use single quotation marks when quoting within dialogue.’”
➸ “Use paragraph breaks to indicate a new speaker,” he said.
“The readers will know it’s someone else speaking.”
➸ “If it’s the same speaker but different paragraph, keep the closing quotation off.
“This shows it’s the same character continuing to speak.”
So, let me guess– you just started a new book, right? And you’re stumped. You have no idea how much an AK47 goes for nowadays. I get ya, cousin. Tough world we live in. A writer’s gotta know, but them NSA hounds are after ya 24/7. I know, cousin, I know. If there was only a way to find out all of this rather edgy information without getting yourself in trouble…
You’re in luck, cousin. I have just the thing for ya.
It’s called Havocscope. It’s got information and prices for all sorts of edgy information. Ever wondered how much cocaine costs by the gram, or how much a kidney sells for, or (worst of all) how much it costs to hire an assassin?
I got your back, cousin. Just head over to Havocscope.
((PS: In case you’re wondering, Havocscope is a database full of information regarding the criminal underworld. The information you will find there has been taken from newspapers and police reports. It’s perfectly legal, no need to worry about the NSA hounds, cousin ;p))
Want more writerly content? Follow maxkirin.tumblr.com!
“Below are selected prices that are paid to professional assassins by criminal organizations and drug cartels for a contract hit.
In Australia, the median price to hire a hit man is $13,610 (9,800 Euros), with the price going up to $83,000 (60,000 Euros) based on the task.
In Mexico, the cost for a low level assassin is $208 (150 Euros), and up to $20,832 (15,000 Euros) for a higher profile target like a police chief.
The prices paid in Argentina are between $3,749 (2,700 Euros) to $5,555 (4,000 Euros) per hit.
Government statistics in Spain state that 40 assassinations take place each year, with prices for the hit ranging between $27 (20 Euros) to $69,000 (50,000 Euros).”
So cheap! I always thought things like this would cost more than $1 million…
(NEW! pt.2) Lavender Roses ~ Kyoya Ootori x Reader
pairing ~ Kyoya Ootori x Reader
In which a rational head hides a generous heart, but you have always known how to see past his walls and help him bloom into the gorgeous rose he is. Enjoy a slow burn between an honor student and our beloved glasses character!
The collar of your white button down carved into the skin of your neck, only cutting deeper each time you swallowed. The (s/c) of your suit set seemed like a good idea this morning, but now it blared at you from your peripheral, a warning of possible danger ahead.
Room A326 was a bland one, only consisting of a podium, a projector, and your teacher perched neatly on a chair in the back. In the middle of the room, a long table sits three of your high school's most influential people, one of them being Chairman Suoh. The man’s blonde lashes flickered over you and Kyoya as each of you ran through your practiced dialogue, the presentation not suffering at all from your time apart.
It was almost eerie, in fact, how easily the both of you fell into the groove of working together again, as if it was second nature.
But the thing that made your nerves stand on end wasn’t the investors watching your every single move. It wasn’t the fact that you and Kyoya had barely gotten together maybe an hour or so before one of the biggest presentations of your life. And it wasn’t that that hadn’t gone very well.
It was the fact that if you were shaken by just how natural this whole thing felt, working so fluidly together without so much as a word to each other in days, Kyoya was knocked off his feet.
People who hadn’t known him for years wouldn’t have caught the tick in his jaw, or the long looks behind his frames when it was your turn to present a slide. He gripped his index cards a little too tightly, and his tie rose too high up on his neck, the material crinkling the fabric of his shirt.
It appeared that you weren’t the only one about to burst at the seams because of how unfair it was. That the both of you had finally found someone that understood you both inside and out, made you feel comfortable in your own skin, supported you, brought you back to earth, and shared your ambitions and secrets. All for one petty, rotten, evil argument to bring it down like a gust of wind on a tower of cards.
As you fixed the lapel on your blazer, you caught eyes with him again while he spoke. His gray irises quickly flitted to look somewhere else as he swallowed thickly, and you huffed through your nose.
Rolling your eyes internally, you turn back to the projector, smiling for the investors while a million thoughts ran through your head.
Why was he acting like this? He was the one that broke your heart, and he was too stubborn to apologize for it. He had only spoken to you when absolutely necessary, and ignored you after one of the most traumatic events of your life. You knew that that day on the cliff had been a shock to everyone, but everyone else had gotten over themselves.
You knew he had an ego bigger than Mount Fuji, but you had hoped you meant more to him than his reputation.
Such a stupid thing, hope.
“And that’s why this product should be dispersed globally.” You hear yourself saying, walking in a synchronized motion to the front of the podium alongside Kyoya. “It could change the lives of millions globally, and redefine what we label technology today.”
“Thank you for your time.” Kyoya’s voice resonates in the beige room, and as you both bow deeply, your presentation ends with a period written in black ink.
Applause scatters throughout the room, but you swallow. The presentation was easy, planned. The hard part is what follows, answering questions.
“Nicely done.” One of the investors says, a woman with streaks of gray in her black hair. “Your charts were extremely easy to digest, and very well organized.”
“Agreed.” The investor to Chairman Suoh’s left nods, fixing the glasses on top of his nose. “And your idea to use rising social media as a way to advertise your product is smart. Effective.” His voice is grumbling, barely audible behind his dangling jowls.
You hitch your breath as Suoh hums, fixing his hands into a pyramid on the table, like a god about to give judgment. “The two of you have created something that could truly sell itself, and maybe become a staple in a household’s everyday life. It really could change the market for products like this.”
Kyoya’s lips stretch into his business smile. No dimples, no teeth, just kind, practiced eyes. “Thank you, Sensei, that means a great deal coming from –”
“...in theory.”
The smile drops.
“Sir?” You ask, trying to drag your heart out of your stomach.
Both of you turn to look at the Chairman as he reaches for his reading glasses, perching them on his face before glancing back down to his notes. “Isn’t that what this all is? Theory?”
“Absolutely not, Sensei.” Kyoya says, briskly walking back to his computer and bringing up the slides of the detailed plan he made to put this idea into production. “As stated previously, it would all start with the investments from–”
“Oh, please.” The Chairman dismisses Kyoya with a wave of his hand, almost laughing. “I admire the to-do list you have here, son, but it takes more than a checklist to get things off the ground. It takes research. It takes money.”
“The research is in production as we speak, sir.” You say, joining Kyoya at the computer to access your resources that you cited at the end of your slides. “While it is in the newer stages, the results have been consistent, even leading to brand new–”
“How many patented technologies have been made with this research?”
You swallow, the blue light from your screen being projected into your irises as you look up your friend’s father. “None, sir. This would be the first.”
“So it’s a risk.”
“It is.” Kyoya confirmed next to you, his lengthy form crossing to the side of the podium. “But what is reward without the risk?”
“A guaranteed one, Ootori.” Suoh clips, and he rests his reading glasses on the table.
“It might take some trials, Chairman Suoh, but you said it yourself.” You say, taking center stage. This could help millions, possibly even billions of people across the globe.”
“And how expensive is one of those trials?” He asks, his ego spilling from his chair.
You swallow, and Kyoya meets your gaze before answering in a cold tone. “Seventy-five billion yen, Sensei. As stated.”
“I know. I just wanted to hear you say it again.” The billionaire chuckles, along with the two other investors as they shake their heads, as if that amount of money could even put a dent in their personal checking accounts, let alone their savings.
Then, his face falls gently, and Suoh’s violet eyes pierce into yours, but they don’t hold the same warmth that Tamaki’s do. Just the judgment. Just the cold.
“(L/n)-san. Would you spend seventy-five billion yen on a risk?”
The collar of your shirt suddenly isn’t a smooth blade. It’s a jagged knife, tearing your skin and cutting through your windpipe as you force yourself to think. How could you be so smart and not be able to defend this project that you had poured your blood sweat and tears into?
Can you even recover from this? From the doubt that is clearly in the scowls of the investors in front of you, the disappointed frown from your teacher in the back. How could you show your face to Tamaki again, after his father had humiliated you so thoroughly? And Kyoya, god knows Kyoya is raging inside his ice-cold demeanor.
If there was ever a chance that your relationship would go back to the way it was, it was drowning in whatever vengeful emotion the Shadow King was feeling. You’re sure you’d make it back to the club room tonight and see your uniform folded neatly on a table, a note written in perfect cursive telling you, curtly, to get the hell out of his sight.
“Respectfully, Sensei. If I may.” Kyoya’s voice rings amongst your spiraling, and you’re pulled back into reality as he places a hand on your shoulder. You even feel him give you a gentle squeeze, causing you to let out the breath you have been holding.
“We can agree that seventy-five billion yen does sound like a large sum. And, yes, it is risky to bet on a product that is based on theory and predictions, therefore leaving the end result undetermined.”
Kyoya paused, and you watched as Suoh’s smirk just grew larger, nearly showing his canines in the process.
“But hasn’t that been the start of all revolutionary businesses around the world? We all know that Apple Inc. started in a garage, but did you know the same was true for Amazon? Google?”
Kyoya’s back was turned to you as he began to speak to these investors like equals, his potential lighting up the room like an upcoming star.
“The same can be said for Blockbuster.” The woman said, tucking a piece of stray hair behind her ear. “Or MySpace. Blackberry.”
“All startups that ultimately failed in the long run.” The man added on, a permanent frown on his face as he analyzed the straight-A student in front of him.
“Because they couldn’t adapt.” Kyoya emphasized. “Our product is not only revolutionary, it’s evolutionary, and will change with the ages.”
“It may be a large investment, but it’s a worthy one.” You speak up, feeling supported under the confidence of the Ootori son’s words.
“I believe in this product. I believe in us as spearheads for this technology. This project will not fail with the two of us overseeing the development.” You say, gesturing between yourself and the suited host next to you.
“You two do work well together…” Suoh surmised, his cocky grin twisted into a slight frown.
You swallow the emotion you feel, playing the angle that you know will get the best response. “In the years I have come to know Kyoya, he has never once gave up on something he believes in. He is always going after what he wants with the finesse and ambition that anyone would want to have on their team.”
Kyoya brings his fist up to his throat, clearing it before fixing his lenses. “And I could say the same for (Y/n). Her creative intelligence and determination in her work is unmatched, making her not only an asset to this product, but also to Ouran as a whole.”
You look at him then, catching the way the veins in his jaw pulsed under the stress. His posture was straight, hands clasped in front of him maybe a little too tightly as he finished his praise.
He’s practically shaking, breaking his own pride to admit that he needs you. Believes in you, just as he always had. And that breaks something in you as well.
“Fine then, you two can talk to the investor panel at the end of this year.” Suoh grunts, earning the slow nods of the other two judges.
You whip your head around and smile brightly, taking a deep breath to thank him before he holds up a finger.
“However, there will be conditions. Find solid research that dilutes the risk of getting it produced.” He stands, the rest of them following suit as they begin to pack their things.
“Yes sir.” You say, vowing to do whatever you can to get your idea off the ground.
“And find a way to lessen the price. No matter how much you believe in something, it doesn’t change the price tag.”
“Of course.” Kyoya acquiesces.
Sighing with his briefcase in hand, Suoh is the last one out the door, on his way back to his office for the rest of the school day. He looks back at the two of you with his mouth in a straight line, but you can see a little bit of pride in his violet eyes.
“Congratulations, you two. We will be in touch.”
With that, he closed the door behind him, leaving both you and Kyoya with bewildered stares as his disappearing form.
“So…” You start, creasing your brows. “That went well. Right?”
The megane’s eyes shot to yours, before shaking his head once. “Not even close.”
“I mean, maybe it started out rocky, but we got the deal!”
“Barely.” Kyoya cuts your excitement in half. “We barely were able to pass through to the investor panel because our project was flawed.”
“It couldn’t have been perfect the first try.”
“It would’ve been better if you had answered the question decently, instead of standing there frozen.”
You stand there, shocked. “If I had answered honestly, the panel would’ve been discouraged against production. I was trying to find a way to-”
“Saying anything at all would’ve been better than letting the Chairman’s question hang in the air.”
Scoffing, you turn your back to him, shoving your laptop back into its case. “Well, everything turned out okay. You saved it with the connections to some of the biggest companies in the world, you should be proud.” Distaste leaked from your tone.
You hear the click of his briefcase echo as he packs his things, the lifeless room surrounding you. “I can’t save you everytime.”
Your hands pause, hovering over the zipper of your purse. The room is silent then, only the ruffling of clothes and the pounding of your heart making any noise. Your mouth is dry as you close your eyes, willing the rage and sadness that you feel to go away, just go away as a dark voice plays in your mind.
Stop it. Stop it, (Y/n). Don’t do this to me.
A briefcase clicks shut right as your zipper closes your purse, and you curse whoever made you and Kyoya forever in sync.
“Is that what this is about?” The tension strains your vocal chords as you ask, but you don’t turn to face him.
He isn’t looking at you either when he swallows. “It’s complicated.”
Nodding, you pull your purse onto your shoulder, and Kyoya barely has time to react before you’re furiously brushing past him.
“Let me make it less complicated for you, then. Since everything else is.” Your voice is cold as you push open the exit, still avoiding eye-contact. “You won’t have to save me anymore.”
Your shoes clack as you fly out the door.
Kyoya heaved off his glasses slowly, rubbing his eyes and the indentions that his frames had made on his nose.
“Christ, Ootori.” He mumbled to himself, running his hand down his face.
Why couldn’t he let you go?
Multiple people had made him angry to the point that he had cut off all contact with him, but it had never left him feeling so empty, so desperate for what was lost.
The director justified that it was because you were everywhere. He couldn’t get over your relationship because he saw you everytime he stepped into school, into the club he built. You were in his classes, his extracurriculars, your contact was pinned to the top of his messaging app (purely for easier access, of course). Your name was even signed on the same documents he had to fill out for his father because of the damned partnership between your two families.
He just couldn’t get rid of you. Physically or mentally.
Not only were you an active presence on campus grounds, but in the late hours of the night he saw your face smiling down at him in the sunlight, your laugh rang in his ears when he made a sarcastic comment.
He saw you disappear over a cliff’s edge.
His heart spiked and he threw on his glasses once more, sharply exiting the presentation room. He willed himself not to dwell on how things used to be, just what they were now. You had been reckless, so reckless that you could’ve been seriously injured. The pain he would’ve felt if somehow you hadn’t come back from that, or if your injuries were greater…it scared him.
All that feeling, the attachment, the wanting. It terrified him.
“No, Mom, I just–I don’t know what to do anymore.”
Your voice trailed along the empty hallways of the business building. School was still in session, but it was between periods. Everyone was in their classes.
Kyoya froze and expected you to be around the corner, fully prepared to turn the other way. But when you weren’t there, he listened again.
“I don’t think I want to stay here.” Dark eyebrows furrowed as he followed the echo to the women’s bathroom. Hearing you stutter and interrupt your mother made him lean against the wall outside the door.
“No, I know Ouran's the best, I know. And I really like it here. It’s just…” He heard you take in a breath while he held his own. “It’s getting too difficult. Were you able to send over the blank transfer application? To Lobelia?”
Kyoya’s head dropped against the wall as he suppressed a groan. Immediately, his body pushed off the wall, and soon he was walking quickly down the hallway. The afternoon sun traced his body through the exposed windows as he took tight turns, his long legs putting in their work as he jogged up the carpeted steps.
His head and his heart were at war as they both pounded on his way to Music Room #3. Just let her go, his mind yelled, then you can be free from whatever feeling she is holding over you.
But what would your life be, his heart cried, without her?
Kyoya busted through the pink doors, alight and tie slightly askew.
He clears his throat as he adjusts the tie, storming up to a surprised Tamaki.
“Kyo, hey. Is your presentation over? How did it g-”
“Will it work?”
“Will what work?” The blonde stands at his full height.
“Your plan to keep Haruhi and (Y/n) here at Ouran. Will it work?”
“Of course it will.” Tamaki gets a knightly gleam in his eye, pounding his fist into his palm. “We just need to do a few more things.”
“Leave it to me.” Kyoya states, his lenses flashing. “How can I be of service?”
The crowd around you cheers as you hug your middle. The Zuka Club performs gloriously on the stage in front of you, your front seat perspective making them seem larger than they actually are. And, you have to admit, their pompous, look-at-me attitudes are really helping their cause here. They are great actors.
Benio, Chizuru, and Hinako all move fluidly to their final positions, getting ready to set off the performance's grand finale.
“Lo~”
“Bel~”
“Li~”
“A~!”
The cheers get even louder, and you wince at the noise. Sighing, you look around at the crazed fans with hearts for eyes, wondering if this will really be the kind of people you will go to school with.
Not like they are any different from the fan girls at Ouran.
As the Zuka Club descends from the stage, a fan bumps into you as they try to get closer to the stage, knocking the enclosed letter out of your hand. You scurry to pick it up, praying that nobody steps on it as the crowd disperses. Your fingers are just about to wrap around the cream-colored paper before a lithe, manicured palm picks it up.
“What’s this?” Benibara’s smooth voice rings in your ears as you watch her read the front.
“Hey, wait, that’s not for you-” You scramble, but the squeal of Hinako’s excitement stops you from speaking.
“Oh my god! You’re transferring to Lobelia?!” She jumps, hands over her mouth.
“No!” Your voice cracks at the volume, and you bring it down as you clear your throat. “I was just…thinking about it. The forms are blank.”
“Well, thinking is over, maiden.” Chizuru smiles, wrapping an arm around your shoulders, giving you a squeeze. “You are wanting to become one of us! Isn’t that great, girls?”
“Don’t get too excited,” A warning laces your tone as you pull away from the blonde. “I was just thinking about it. I’m not sure I’ll even get in.”
“Please, beauty.” Beni says, spinning you as she and her gang begin to walk back into the halls of Ouran. “If you were intelligent enough to be accepted into Ouran High School, then you will be just as openly invited to join Lobelia Academy.”
“Are you saying that Ouran has better academics?” You say, raising an eyebrow at the hand on the small of your back.
“Absolutely not!” Hinako scoffs. “Lobelia is the best in every wa-”
“Admittedly, yes.” The leader’s voice dips, and you can tell it pains her to have Ouran be the best at something. “But our grades have always placed second.”
And isn’t that where you should be?, you think as you pace back to the Music Room, somewhere that accepts second place?
“Oh, hello there, young maiden.” Snapping yourself out of your thoughts, Benio calls to a figure that rounded a corner, unfortunately crossing the path of you and the Zuka Club.
You see Haruhi whip her short hair around, eyes widening as she makes eye contact with the three girls in maroon skirts, before meeting yours.
“Oh, hi ladies. Hey, (Y/n).” She waves, waiting for you to catch up to her. She eyes the way Benio’s hand guides your back.
“You shouldn’t call her a maiden in public.” You hiss at the girls, pulling away from them for a second time. “It could raise the wrong idea.”
“Not for long.” Beni smiles, a song of victory in her inflection. “Are you prepared to leave, Haruhi?”
A confused look crosses over her visage. “Leave?”
Chizuru nods. “Yes! With (Y/n) on our side, we are prepared to confront those boys and set things straight once and for all.”
“What do you mean ‘set things straight’? (Y/n)? What are they talking about?”
“This, beauty.” Benio says, and to your horror, hands her the transfer forms she had stolen from you. Haruhi’s brown eyes go wide, her intelligence making it so she connects the dots at a lightning speed.
“No, no Haruhi, I promise, it’s not what you think.”
That makes her even more perplexed. “So, you’re not transferring to Lobelia?”
“She sure is.” Hinako nods, a smirk coming onto her face.
“All she has to do is sign, and we will-”
“Stop. Just, stop for a second and listen to me.” You’re begging at this point, already seeing the hurt sink into Haruhi’s eyes.
“You three, shut up.” Pointing at the Zuka Club, you drag them to the otherside of the hallway. “Stay here while I talk to Haruhi.”
You begin to move before you hear shuffling behind you, so you whip around, glaring. “In private.”
The Zuka Club just roll their eyes, but they turn anyway.
Turning back, you swallow when you see Haruhi has her mouth in a thin line, but you’re so grateful that she is reasonable enough to let you explain.
“Haruhi, I’m not transferring.” You pause, taking a breath. “Yet.”
“Yet?”
Taking the letter out of her hands, you straighten out the crinkled paper. “I was going to bring this to the meeting today to let everyone know that I was going to apply. I didn’t want you all to be blindsided.”
“Yeah, well. I feel pretty blindsided right now.” Haruhi scoffs, crossing her arms. “(Y/n), what are you thinking?”
“I don’t know! I just, I’m trying to fix things. And I keep making it worse. I thought that if I just left, things would get better on their own.”
“With us?”
You almost whine at the hurt look she gives you, like a hesitant deer coming out into the sun. “No, no, that’s not it. I love you, I love being your friend.”
And you realized you did. You had missed the silent support she gives you through your times of anxiety and stress, but you had been pushing her away because you were sad and angry.
“I-I know I haven’t been around recently, and I really don’t want to talk about why.” You bite the inside of your lip again. “But I know that I want to be better, so I thought…”
“You thought leaving would help you be around more?” Haruhi asks, an exasperated smile highlighting her cheekbones.
“...Yes? When you put it like that, it sounds stupid.” You chuckle.
Haruhi shakes her head, punching you lightly in the shoulder. “That’s because it is.”
You stare at the ground for a minute before see her shift her weight. “Look, I don’t know what’s bothering you. But I won’t press.” The honor student holds her hands in a mock-surrender. “But I do want to be here for you. Just like you are for me.”
Your eyes meet hers again, brown crashing with (e/c), and it’s warm and sisterly. “Let me do that for you.”
A stuttering breath keeps your tears of joy at bay. “Yeah, yeah. I will.” You smile wetly. “I’m sorry.”
Haruhi just hums, taking the envelope in her hands and ripping it in half. “Yeah, you should be.” She finishes with a smile.
A disappointed Zuka Club meets you back at the clubroom’s entrance.
You quirk an eyebrow at them. “You eavesdropped, didn’t you?”
“Yes, but we still haven’t heard Haruhi’s answer!” Chizuru exclaims.
Haruhi rolls her eyes. “Actually-”
“Nope! No time!” Benio rushes, pushing Haruhi through the doors as you follow behind. “Let’s show them that you, maiden, should come to school with us and be with your own kind!”
But all of them freeze.
Stepping around them, you see their pale faces. Confused brows scrunching, you follow their eyeline to see colors and makeup, wigs and dresses and then-
Holy shit.
Kyoya’s wearing a corset.
“Ouran~!”
“Ouran~!”
“Ouran~!”
Off-key harmonization rings throughout the room, making sure to dampen the name Music Room #3. A bright light suddenly comes up on Tamaki, draped in a red gown with blonde extensions wrapped into a high ponytail. Red lipstick floods his mouth as he sings, posing in his very own spotlight.
“Host Club welcomes you~!”
There’s silence as you scan each and every one of your hosts. The twins look elegant, Honey is just darling, and Mori is dashing in his blue suit. Kyoya is perched on the couch, a fan in one hand as his purple dress cascades over his long legs.
Their makeup is terrible, their hair is hanging by a bobby pin on their heads, and once you and Haruhi meet eyes, it’s all over. The two of you double over laughing, clutching your sides as you collapse to the ground.
Benio is raging, smoke practically coming out of her ears. “What is the meaning of this? Are you trying to make fun of womenkind?!”
Tamaki gasps dramatically. “Absolutely not.” He begins to make his way over to you, his ankles bending as he fails to walk in heels, making you laugh even harder. “My dears, you all have lived sheltered lives, and may not know that Haruhi and (Y/n) like free things.”
In the midst of your tears, Tamaki gathers his voice, raising his voice a few octaves which makes you wheeze. “You ladies may be distracted by the Zuka Club, but choose us! And you will not only gain a club of brothers, but sisters as well! See?”
He bats his false eyelashes, the glue coming off the edge of his eyelid. “Aren’t I pretty?”
The Hitachiin Twins pop out, and you and Haruhi can finally stand. “We’re the Hitachiian sisters! We’re just teasing you.” They giggle like girls, a hand over their lips.
Honey-senpai prances about. “Listen, (N/n)-chan, Haru-chan, call me big sis, okay?” He asks, big eyes staring up at you as Mori taps his tambourine.
You looked expectantly at Kyoya to pose, flounce, do something, but you smirk when he just rolls his purple-shadowed eyes, his fan covering his face.
“Do you idiots really think you can win them over like this? I mean–”
But Tamaki’s head piece tilted off his head, floating to the ground, and it made both the honor students crack up again.
“Oh my god, I can’t breathe. I’m dying!” You cry, trying to catch your breath.
“This is too much! I don’t even know what you are trying to do?” Haruhi adds, and your laughter sings across the pink walls.
“You really think we’re that funny?” The twins come up to the both of you, purposefully swaying their hips. It breaks you down, and your cheeks hurt from smiling. The twins lunge at you and start chasing you, only for them to stumble as they run in heels. They try to catch you around your middle, your tears of joy flying back behind you.
“Maiden, what is your decision?” Benio gets Haruhi’s attention as they watch you three run around, and Haruhi just shakes her head.
“I’m sorry, but your club’s not for me. I think your school is great, but I came to Ouran with a goal and a plan for my future. I don’t think I was ever going to really leave Ouran.”
“Haruhi~!” Tamaki practically melts, violet eyes glistening as he twirls over to her. But then, he stops suddenly, pointing at her with an accusatory grimace. It was hard to take seriously.
“Wait, if you knew you weren’t going to leave, then why did you act all angry yesterday?”
Haruhi put her hands on her hips. “How would you feel if I took something of yours without asking? I really liked that pencil!”
“But I asked if you wanted my teddy bear pencil in return and you refused!” The prince whined, bringing the pencil back out from the confines of his skirt.
“That’s right, and I still don’t want it.” She says blandly, causing Tamaki to whimper.
Throughout the chaos, the Zuka Club stands.
“Um, Benio…” Chizuru starts. “Maybe we should-”
“Yes, I know.” The leader of the Zuka Club sighs, a frown creasing her handsome features. “We are not going to give up on you maidens! I swear, someday, we will come and rescue you from this place!”
No one is paying attention. Benio growls, spinning around and mumbling to herself as they walk out of the clubroom.
“And when we do, we will abolish the host club.”
The afternoon’s session ends with a bang. The guests loved the get-ups and the dresses, absolutely swooning over every host in the room. But now, as the chaos dies down and things are being cleaned up, you square your shoulders.
I deserve to be here. You think over and over, and it lightens the weight on your chest. I deserve to be here, to be happy and to get answers. I deserve to try.
Taking a sharp breath, you find a tall form, black hair a little messy from the absence of a wig as Kyoya reaches behind his back, struggling with the strings on his corset.
“Need help?” You ask gently, but he still jumps, his head turning ever-so-slightly to look over his shoulder.
A deep sigh rumbles through his chest, and you see the tips of red that color his ears. “Unfortunately.” He admits.
A small chuckle breaks through your lips, and your fingers begin to work the strings of the corset off of him, brushing against the button-up shirt he kept underneath.
Looking up, you realize that he is impossibly taller than usual. “You’re still wearing the heels?” He is standing straight, perfectly balanced as if he immediately mastered the art of wearing them.
“I couldn’t bend over to take them off with this corset suffocating me. I don’t know how women ever wore these monstrosities.”
“It’s an acquired taste.” You laugh, and the tension eases slightly, both in the air and on the straps of his corset as the piece comes undone, and you step away.
He steps out of it and sighs into a chair, pulling his ankle onto his knee to work on the strap on the shoe. You bite the inside of your lip, shifting your weight on your feet a little-
“You need to stop doing that at some point. It’s a bad habit. ” Kyoya’s voice interrupts your awkward shuffling and you stand straighter, looking up at him.
“Doing what?”
“The lip-biting.” He says, not even looking at you as he ties his own dress shoes into place. “If you have something to say, then say it. Don’t sacrifice the integrity of your lips just because your anxious.”
“Right.” You release your lip from between your teeth, a small smile being placed on them instead. “I just wanted to say thank you.”
“For what?”
“For trying to keep me here at Ouran.”
His gray eyes flick up at you as he works his laces for a brief moment before he nods. “I think everyone would agree that you are an asset to this organization.”
“And for speaking to me again.”
This time his foot drops off his knee, and he is looking up at you from his seat. It’s as if he’s realizing he has subtly lifted his cold shoulder.
“Yes, well, I thought that maybe, if you weren’t going to apologize, it was time.”
“Uh huh.” You tease, crossing your arms. “Because my pestering did nothing to push that along?”
He simply pushes up his glasses. “Your presence is quite grating.”
A smile pushes it way to your mouth before you can stop it, and soon you are pulling it back, remembering why you came over here.
“Look, I know you’re mad at me.”
“Because you were unsafe, reck–”
“Reckless, stupid, yes I know.” You finish for him before he can repeat what he berated you for on the beach. “But, I’m mad at you, too.”
His shoulder straighten at that. “Wh–”
“I,” You sigh, holding up a finger. “I can’t tell you why. Not yet. But I just wanted to say, if we are going to be mad at each other without trying to fix it, then we need to set some ground rules.”
His sharp features deadpanned. “And what, (Y/n), would those be?”
“You can’t call me stupid. We both know that I’m not” Assertiveness races through your voice, and you see him wince at the memory of him doing just that.
“We have to talk to each other. It doesn’t have to be as…constant, as it was.” You swallow, and the atmosphere depresses just a little. “But we have to be communicative.”
“Except when you don’t want to talk about something? How is that fair?” The businessman pushes, leaning his elbows onto his bent knees.
“I told you I will. When I’m ready. I know you might not think so, but I deserve that.” You can tell that Kyoya wants to retort, but one look from you, and it dies in his throat.
“And lastly,” Your voice loses that harsh, dictatorial tone, growing softer as you watch him intently. “I want you to know that I’m thankful you took that dive for me.”
Kyoya stops blinking, those calm gray clouds switching between each of your pupils.
“I don’t know what it ruined, but I’m sad that what I did broke whatever was, or what I thought was possibly…growing between us. But I will forever be grateful that I had a friend like you who would jump off a cliff for me.” You take a beat, grasping at your hands.
“That’s it.” Looking back up, you see Kyoya looking at you with the warmth that you thought you had lost, but then it’s gone as he shakes his head. “I’ll see you around.”
Spinning on your heel, your shoes clack across the tile before you hear Kyoya’s voice call out behind you. “(Y/n).”
Turning, you look at him, standing with a loosely buttoned shirt, his voice floating through the air.
“You’re welcome.”
Next Time on Lavender Roses
“Is Haruhi really suffering in poverty? I have to see for myself!”
“She is probably fine, we don’t need to go over.”
“Wait, (Y/n), how did you know about that?”
Day in the Life of the Fujioka Family!
thank you again for being patient! let me know what you think in the comments!
if you would like to be in the taglist, please go to the taglist link and comment underneath it!
This has the same energy as a writer desperately trying to make their insanely cool but devastatingly off the wall plot point work with the rest of the story
Amazon Unveils a [Horrifying] Fanfic Publishing Platform
Today, Amazon announced the imminent launch of its newest endeavor, Kindle Worlds, a publishing platform for fanfiction. When I read the announcement, I was horrified, then angry, then sad. I want to take a moment to explain why this is such a tragedy.
“HI. Uh, I’m your new God, humans of Earth. The other guy was fired for sucking at his job. There’s going to be a meeting in an hour to discuss my plans going forward. Attendance is mandatory. Also, don’t be afraid; my resume is available upon request.”
Okay, so I just finished watching AOT (Yes, I watch the anime, I don’t read the manga, sue me. I just like it more)
The last episode that I saw was the 11 episode of season 3 part 1 and that was about a year ago. This week, I found out there was a new season coming, so I decided to finish it.
I must say, It was kind of disappointing.
Now, I will be saying spoilers and a lot of my personal opinions on the story so keep that in mind if you decide to keep reading.
So, once again, SPOILERS AHEAD
At first, I was intrigued by how dark things were getting. And up until the basement episode, I liked it.
But then, it suddenly started going off about how there is a whole other civilization out there, that they are the ones sending the titans their way and such.
(Now, I’m not saying any of this is a fact, just my thoughts on the matter)
It seemed to me like they were going along without actually plotting what was the actual logic behind the titans. Like they were going with the idea that the titans somehow got there, seemed to like feeding on humans so that the humans had to defend themselves inside the walls.
I honestly was looking forward to the reasoning to it all. How were the titans created? Why are Bert, Reiner, Ymir, and so on so set on getting Eren’s powers. Who is the Beast Titan?
I expected somebody to be controlling them, obviously. I actually thought the beast titan was going to be the one behind it all, and that we would get the final closure once they go down the basement, where they would possibly find a way to defeat titans for good.
As it turned out, though, I was wrong.
Suddenly, it seemed as if the real world’s history got mixed into the script of the series and the world war and the jews were thrown in, along with rituals and magic.
That kind of ruined it for me.
Up until then, I kept crying and being emotional. But after that, I just kept staring at it, not believing my eyes.
I get that they probably had that kind of story planned from the beginning, the whole new race thing and all. But it was as if the show suddenly turned from being a badass anime where the characters fought to rid the world of the creatures terrorizing the surviving people, to a damn historical anime with a bit of magic thrown in.
And don’t even get me started on season 4. I’ve only seen the trailer but damn.
I was so excited for the new season before I watched the rest of season 3 and the trailer. Sadly, I’m not looking forward to it at all now.
I already know I’m going to get a lot of hate for this, either people screaming at me how wrong I am and how it was actually brilliant, or to read the manga before having any right of speaking my opinions.
But that is just it, my opinions.
A rant, if you would.
And by this, I’m not saying I hate the show or whatever. Don’t get me wrong. I just don’t like what it turned out to be.
But I also wanted to see, does anybody else feel the same or at least similarly?
Well, not that she was glad that the world was on lockdown. The pandemic and the overall situation that was happening all over the world, it was terrible.
Her parents‘ life hasn’t changed much. The only difference in their business was that they were no longer open to the public. As a bakery, a food-producing company, they distributed their baked goods to various shops every day.
For Marinette, she no longer had to go to school. Some took that as a negative thing, but not Marinette.
By being thankful for the quarantine, she meant only the part that her school moved to online classes. She no longer had to get up so soon and there was a smaller chance of her oversleeping, since she had her school precisely three feet away from her bed.
She was sad to not be able to go see her friends in her free time, but at least she still had her family. Her nona even came back from her travels and stayed in Paris, occasionally meeting up with them to pick up groceries. Her parents did not want to risk anything, so they insisted that they would buy her groceries along with their own. The same applied to Rolland, of course.
And also, she didn’t have to endure her classmates and Lila.
There was practically no chance for them to harass her, since the only time they would actually be able to talk to her would be during a lesson, when the teacher was giving a lecture. But interrupting the lesson would probably earn them another lecture from the various teachers about not interrupting the class and muting themselves. So, the only actual contact with them would be when they texted her. Which wasn’t that often, only when Lila said a slightly bigger lie about her or such.
The only thing she would have to endure, would be seeing Lila’s face throughout the whole lesson out of the corner of her eye, since the temporary school rules made for online classes stated that they had to have their webcams on at all times. No student could protest and say they didn’t have one, since the school provided tablets with built-in cameras. That was probably why Lila was actually present in each lesson. If she was allowed not to have her camera on, Marinette could bet the girl wouldn’t be paying attention unless the topic really got her interest.
She was content with the online lessons. To her, it seemed almost perfect, not having to deal with drama that always happened in her class. There was nothing that could possibly happen during her online school.
She didn’t take into account her boyfriend and his family.
The day started peacefully, Marinette woke up to her second alarm clock as usual, made herself look presentable and started up her computer for the long six hours of lessons that were about to come. Joining the zoom call, she muted her mic after greeting the teacher and turned her camera on. She never bothered to blur or change her background, because; why would she?
She should’ve blurred or changed her background.
She heard a commotion down down in the bakery, but she paid no mind to it, disregarding it as her parents playfully arguing about who was going to cook lunch or which flavor to add. Instead, she plugged in her headphones and listened to her teacher while she made notes.
She should’ve paid mind to it.
While the class was in session, she usually had the teacher on her speakers or had hear earphones with only one bud in her ear so that she could hear her parents if they came into her room.
She shouldn’t have plugged in the second earbud.
Among the many faces she saw in the zoom call, she only paid mind to her teacher. She didn’t bother to watch her own, since she saw no reason to do so.
She should’ve at least checked once in a while.
She might’ve noticed the group of people enter her room if she did.
While she was busy learning stuff in school, her parents were busy downstairs talking to the very special guests that just arrived.
“Not that we aren’t glad to see you, but what are you doing here?” Sabine asked with a smile the taller man in front of her.
“We are very sorry, Ms. Cheng. I would’ve stopped them from going but somebody-” Dick glared at his brothers, each baring a different emotion on their faces. “-insisted we deliver the message in person.”
“Hey! Don’t look at us like we are the only ones who are glad to be here! It didn’t take as much as two sentences to get you on board!” Jason retorted playfully, playfully pushing his brother’s side. Dick looked at him in disbelief, putting a hand on his chest.
“You dare accuse me? I am the responsible one out of all of you!” Drama queen “In times like this, it was totally inappropriate for you to insist on person-to-person contact!”
“Speaking of which, how did you all manage to get here? The borders are closed.” It brought a little bit of panic to the boys’ faces at Tom’s question. They couldn’t just tell them they used a zeta tube.
“As a company having multiple headquarters around the planet, we were able to travel via our private jet for work purposes. There were small problems, but we managed to get permission to cross the border and take care of the business.” The youngest of them spoke, much to their surprise, but they quickly recovered from their shocked states and nodded along to the story, confirming it with further information and assure that of course Bruce knows about this, Ms. Cheng.
“Alright boys, but at least call us next time before you suddenly show up in the middle of a pandemic.” At which she received sheepish smiles. “Marinette is in her room and probably in the middle of her online lesson right now, so please wait a while if you can.” With quick ‘thank you’s and ‘will do’s, the group of brothers disappeared from the bakery.
Sabine sighed and returned into the kitchen with her husband.
“Marinette is in for a big surprise.” Tom nodded in agreement before pausing slightly, furrowing his eyebrows in thought.
“Wait, what did they mean by ‘deliver a message’?” The pair stared at each other for a second, before both shrugged and returned to their work.
“That was some quick thinking there, Demon.” Jason nudged his youngest adoptive brother teasingly. “Or did you plan ahead so that nothing was going to interrupt your chance of meeting your girlfriend in these times?” He got a glare in return, but not the cold one Damian usually gave off.
Probably because he was right, nothing was going to prevent him from seeing his girlfriend after all those months. They already had to be apart from each other before because of school and they were excited to finally spend some time together through spring and summer holidays. Sadly, those plans got cancelled because of the pandemic.
Sure, it might’ve been slightly irresponsible for them to travel to see his girlfriend in the time of quarantine, but they all got tested and they came out negative, so they figured it wouldn’t be that much of a risk.
“Alright, let’s go see our future sister-in-law.” Jason made a move to go up the stairs and into Marinette’s room, but was stopped by Dick’s hand reaching out and grabbing him by his hoodie.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, did you not hear her mom? She might be in an online class right now.” Thankfully for Damian, they all missed the blush on his cheeks after the words sister-in-law left his brother's mouth. Jason raised an eyebrow at Dick.
“Yea? So we’re just going to wait here for- what, like five to six hours, maybe?” He pulled the hand that was holding his hoodie away and straightened his cloths. “I’d say just surprise her. Or if you really want to just sit here and wait for Damian to glare us into oblivion out of anticipation, then by all means let’s go sit on the couch.”
Dick pondered over his words for a second, both Tim and Damian just watching everything from the sidelines. He noticed their presence and both of them sweat-dropped.
“What about you guys? You wanna surprise Mari like Jason said?”
The immediate “Sure” they simultaneously let out made Jason grin triumphally at him. Dick sighed and shrugged.
“Alright,” He smirked suddenly and made a beeline for the stairs, “But you bet I’m going to be the first one to greet her!” The rest of the brothers all started running after Dick and into Marinette’s bedroom.
“I will put the presentation into the study materials folder so you can go over the lesson before the test on Friday. Now, the assignment-”
“MARINETTE!”
Shrieking, Marinette fell off her chair with a thud as the hatch door swung open and collided with her floor so strongly it might’ve made a hole in it. The chair rolled away as the four familiar figures stepped further into her room. Damian was by her side as soon as he fully stepped inside, asking her if she was alright.
It took a while for Marinette to register what just happened. Her eyes widened and she jumped at Damian, knocking him down in a hug.
“Oh my god, you’re here!” Damian chuckled (which made his brothers stare at him, they still weren’t used to hearing such foreign sound coming from Damian), and hugged his girlfriend back even tighter. After a second or two, Marinette paused “Wait,” She pushed herself away from Damian and looked at the rest of the brothers “why are you here?” pausing again, her eyebrows furrowed in the same way her father’s did not a long time ago “and how?”
The boys laughed at the girl while Damian helped her stand up.
“Hey, and where are our hugs?” Dick chimed in, putting on the best puppy eyes he could manage and opened his arms. Marinette rolled her eyes and came over to the oldest of the brothers, hugging him tightly. Jason scoffed from beside them.
“Look at him acting all sappy. And he didn’t even want to surprise her at first.”
After hugging everybody, Marinette stood in front of the boys and repeated her questions from before. The boys looked at each other sheepishly.
“We used the zeta tubes. The borders are closed so we obviously wouldn’t be able to get here otherwise. We made sure nobody saw us here, though, so it’s fine. Nobody’s gonna ask questions.”
“Isn’t that dangerous right now, though?” Jason waved his hand in a dismissing manner.
“Don’t worry, Pixie, we all got tested and we’re all negative. The air around us is completely safe.” Marinette’s eyebrow furrowed again, displaying worry across her features.
“Does Bruce know you’re here?” Pausing for a bit, Marinette rubbed her eyes “Of course he doesn’t, why did I even ask that in the first place.”
“Hey! We sent him a text that we were coming here.” Jason defended.
“Besides, we had to ask you something.” Tim added, his brothers nodding along. At that, Marinette perked up.
“Which is?” Jason nudged Damian closer to Mari.
“Go ahead, you ask her. It was your idea, after all.” Marinette’s curiosity was peaked by then, contemplating what her boyfriend could have in mind. After glaring at his brother for the push, he switched his attention to the beauty in front of him, his features immediately softening.
“Our family decided to switch our residence to our private island for a while so that we could move freely outside without the risk of getting sick… We haven’t seen each other for a long time, and the quarantine completely ruined our plans for the holidays, so I figured… Would you like to come with us?” Marinette processed the information for a while, before her eyes widened.
“You guys… Are seriously inviting me to your private island… In a time like this… To stay there with you?”
“Exactly.” They all simultaneously responded. Marinette took a while to calm down, that was a lot to take in – she wasn’t prepared to be suddenly offered to stay with her boyfriend’s family on their private island. And in a time like that, no less.
On one hand, she wanted to scream out that yes, she would love to stay with them. But on the other, was she really going to leave her family in Paris? In such time? What if something happened to them? What if they got sick? Would they even let her? Should she even be considering accepting the offer? It was certainly tempting, but…
“I… But what about my family? I can’t possibly leave them… ” The boys smiled at her.
“They could come with us if they want. Bruce is also going to be staying with us for the majority of the time, only leaving if something important in work comes up.”
“But… I don’t want to intrude into your family like that.” Damian looked at the girl lovingly as his brothers all looked at each other and smiled.
“I don’t know what you mean, Angel. You’re a part of the family, too, after all. Which means we all are a family.” Marinette’s eyes widened before they filled with tears as she embraced Damian in a hug once more. She planted a kiss to his cheek as his brothers cooed at the two of them.
“Who would’ve guessed that Demon Spawn could be so sappy if he wanted to.” Jason laughed, earning him a glare from the mentioned brother. “But as he said. You are a part of our family, Pixie. Even if not by law yet.” He winked, causing the two of them to blush.
Marinette laughed and then pulled the other brothers into the hug, loudly thanking all of them. They stayed in the group hug for a while (Damian tried to get out of his brothers’ hold, but their combined strength was too strong), before Marinette released them all and took a step back from them, smiling widely the whole time.
“I would really love to go with you. I will have to ask my parents first, though.”
“Well, what are we waiting for? Shall we go ask them now?” Damian asked, his expression as happy as ever. Marinette shook her head.
“Not right now, I have-“ She froze, only now realizing that she was actually in an online class right now, a class that she completely forgot about. “-A LESSON!” She ran over to her computer and left the call as quickly as she could. After she did, she hovered over the call in progress, only to see that the whole class, apart from the teacher, was present.
Also, I should probably mention I’ve never been to a wedding before
——————————–
Marinette crossed paths with the groom on her way to the bride’s room. She noticed his nervousness and silently prayed that Nadja was doing better that him. But as much as she hoped, she knew that was in no way the case.
And truly, the first thing her eyes fell upon was Nadja pacing around the room, fully clothed in her wedding gown. Her makeup had been done amazingly, the lipstick matching perfectly with the undertone of the dress. Her eyeshadow just barely visible but still having the effect of making her eyes pop out. She was surprised at how much her new hairstyle changed her complexion. Even though there were not many options on hairstyles since her hair were simply too short for them, the hairstylist managed to make the best out of it.
Instead of the usual gelled-back hair, they were let down to frame her face. They have been curled and brushed, creating a wavy effect to them. Her fringe had also been let down and curled and was now slightly covering her left eye. She had yet to put her veil on.
Her mother’s eyes fell to hers the moment she closed the door and she saw plead coming from them.
Of course, her mother knew that Marinette had been practicing ways to calm oneself down. It was a must for her, seeing as the toxic behavior from many people that were in her life would take it’s toll on her in the form of an akuma. Even one time of being almost akumatized was unacceptable for the young heroine. And, seeing as it happened more than three times, she knew she had to find a way to steady her emotions.
“Nadja? I need you to breathe with me for a while, okay?” Stopping the pacing woman by her arm, she grabbed her by her forearms and faced her.
“Now, in…. And out…. In…. And out…” The woman did as instructed, and although the nerves were still present on her face, she did have a slightly clearer mind. “Close your eyes and imagine…” She said the words she remembered from her very first meditation. It led the person through a wave of calmness that was their mind. It made Marinette forget for a while about everything around her and just breathe with a clear mind. And she hoped it would be the same case for Nadja.
She wasn’t able to proceed with the full version of the meditation, seeing as they had about 5 to 10 minutes to get Nadja and the other bridesmaids in front of the door. She led her through the most important parts she remembered from the video.
It did help a little, and they were able to put the veil on Nadja and lead her to the door without her shaking and worrying out loud.
As they went to their places, Marinette saw who she guessed was Nadja’s father carrying Manon, who was wearing a white dress and carrying a basket with flower petals – fitting the role of a flower girl, over to her mother. She saw them talk for a while and she guessed that he was trying to relieve her stress. She switched her gaze and saw her mom giving her thumbs up from behind the other bridesmaids.
She smiled at her mom and her eyes scanned the Best man the groom chose, before looking over that the groomsman escorting her. She was glad that the boy at least seemed to be of her age. She could tell the boy was nice, at least deep inside. Otherwise, he seemed to be cold and brash. He had been forced into this by his father, he told her. But that’s not saying that he wasn’t a gentleman, no. It was apparent he knew proper etiquette and acted politely to her.
She decided not to push the black-haired boy out of his comfort zone, seeing as he was not the most socializing person out there and was only forced into this by his father. She ended the conversation and focused on the path ahead.
The usual wedding themed song “Here comes the bride” echoed through the walls and the doors began to open. She subconsciously tightened her hold on the groomsman’s arm and put on a smile. Her nerves began to rise as she walked through the doors, seeing all the eyes in the room scanning them.
She took a few deep breaths to calm herself until they reached the altar and stood on their rightful places. A while later, Nadja walked down and she watched the groom’s eyes widen as his mouth slightly opened in awe. Marinette’s heart warmed at seeing the love in his eyes as Nadja and her father made their way to the altar.
She sighed and wondered, would there ever be somebody looking at her that way?
--
“You may now kiss the bride.” As soon as the newlywed couple kissed, cheers erupted from the crowd. The ceremony reached it’s end and it was time for the cocktail hour. While the bride and groom had their pictures taken by the photographer, the guests were free to roam the castle and chat once more with others. The only restriction being the area where the groom and the bride were being photographed. Unless the photographer allowed their presence, nobody was to interfere with the photos.
Nobody wanted to fuck with the photographer and face their wrath.
Thankfully, there was more than just one photographer at the wedding, for the guests to be able to request photos of their own from the wedding. A few of them did so and headed over to the small portable studio right after the newlyweds disappeared around the corner.
One of those guests, was Marinette with her family.
It wasn’t everyday that they were invited to a wedding. That the whole family was invited, that is, and could actually enjoy the fun of it all. Orders and working there was one thing, family and memories another.
The parents stood behind the young girl, posing as they were instructed by the photographer. They already took their photos with the bride and the groom before they were taken away for private photos, so they were only going to take family photos now.
Marinette decided to go take a look at the kitty while her parents took the photos into their room to put them away before the annual wedding entertainment started. She arrived and found the kitty sleeping in between the bushes. She would’ve worried if it was alive, had it not been for the rising of it’s chest indicating peaceful sleep. She headed back to finally start finding somebody who might be up for taking care of it.
As she walked back, she spotted Felix standing by the photographer, probably waiting for his turn for the photos. He stood alone, though, which seemed weird to Marinette. She shrugged it off and approached him. He noticed her approaching figure right away and turned around to face her.
“Sorry for intruding, but have you found somebody willing to take care of the kitten?” He shook his head. He probably didn’t have time, since the ceremony ended just a few minutes ago, but it was better to ask.
“Alright, I’m going to ask some people I know around here. If you find anybody, let me know so we don’t accidentally promise it to two people at the same time.”
He nodded and the conversation seemed to stop there. Marinette turned around and walked away, asking a few people standing by about the little guy.
Marinette did not find anybody by the time the first wedding game started, which kind of saddened her, but she would continue with her search later. It was game time.
Only a small group of people participated, mainly those slightly closer to the couple. Quite a few people has left the wedding due to personal reasons, so the overall number of guests was also decreased drastically. Those who remained seemed to be the ones closer to the family, not just acquaintances.
The first was a game for the newlyweds, the shoe game. The Bride and the Groom sit back to back and exchange a shoe. One of the bridesmaids then begins asking various questions like “Who would let the other turn them into a zombie if they got infected?” and the couple raises a hand with the shoe of the one who would be more likely to do so.
It was a fun game, seeing the two couples playfully banter when both of them had different answers.
A couple more games occurred, and Marinette was thankful that she only had to participate in three of them. They were then invited for dinner while the couple takes some photos outside illuminated by the various lights in the night.
Her family ended up sitting at the table next to the newlyweds and their families. They played one last game before dinner was served; but it was more of a quick entertainment before food. A mere sheet of paper hid underneath every plate, each having different trivia questions about the couple. The table that had the most answers right would be given a gift of sorts; a wine, a trip, who knows.
Her family didn’t participate, instead choosing to talk about how the night went so far and overall about any topic that came to mind. They didn’t chat long before the close guests of the bride and groom stood up to bid their toasts for the couple.
Marinette had a few tears in her eyes when all was said, especially once her mother stood to congratulate and do her speech. All the things the people said were so touching. The bride and the groom were obviously touched the most. Marinette saw Nadja wipe her tears many times, while her husband tried to fight them off (He nearly lost).
Cake was cut, dinner was served and everybody was happy.
The dinner was over by the time 19 o’clock rolled around, and it was time for the newlyweds’ first dance. Marinette awed at how cute the pair looked, with Manon joining them a little after. The three dancing together as a family, that was truly beautiful. She was happy for them. She saw her father and who she guessed was Nadja’s mother nod at each other, courtesy and join the couple on the dance floor. The song ended and the pair switched and danced with their parents. Marinette saw that both parties were conversing and it seemed to be an extension of their speeches, if their touched looks were anything to go by.
After another song change, the pairs were back together. Nadja with her husband, and their parents with their own significant others. Soon, more people began to fill the dance floor, including her own parents. She watched the lovely pairs dance and her heart swelled with warmth.
Places like these, filled with love, were the very things that made Marinette think about her own life. Her thoughts wandered off towards her own future again. She couldn’t help but imagine herself with her own significant other one day, dancing together while their families and friends are watching. The face of her significant other might’ve been blank in her fantasy, but so what. Hopefully, one day, she would have a face to fill in.
Her thought wandered all the way back into her mind. So far back, that she thought about Adrien. She once imagined him to be the one to fill the blank face. But she knew now that that was never going to happen.
Even if he somehow decided that he liked her or something.
Although, she thought, would I be standing here, thinking the same, if Lila hadn’t come around and played with their minds? Thinking about it, it was because of Lila that she figured out her friends didn’t actually trust her. It was because of Lila that she realized how she was being used for having connections and making free things. It was because of Lila that she saw them all in a completely new light.
It was because of her she had to toughen up and face the real world.
No, she shook her head, getting rid of the emotions that were starting to rise up, enough of that. You’re not going to think about them today. Taking a deep breath, she cleared her mind of the previous inner monologue and headed over to her table with the intend to do the trivia questions and drink some champagne (non-alcoholic, of course) since she had nothing else to do. Halfway through the room, though, she noticed a flock of blond hair. Switching her direction, she made her way over to one of the pillars that held the second floor and, coincidentally, also held the body of the blonde that was leaning against it.
“Any luck finding an adopter?” His gaze switched over to her before going back to scanning the dance floor and the people around.
“Sadly, none of the people my mother and I associate with wish to be caretakers. Any luck on your side?” The girl only shook her head and joined the boy in scanning the crowd.
“Sooo…” Felix raised an eyebrow at her. “Enjoying the wedding so far?” He stared at her questioningly for while before deciding to speak.
“It’s not terrible. I’ve been to a few before and just like this one, they were merely out of business purposes.” Marinette was the one to raise an eyebrow now.
“I though you said your mother was a coworker of hers.”
“Indeed. But I do not know Madame Chamack personally. My mother has been taking me to various formal events to get me acquainted with the proper etiquette and to socialize.” Marinette nodded. She had to agree with his mother, etiquette was better learnt through experience rather than just taught out of the book.
“I must ask, though. Why did you choose to spend your time talking to me rather than spending it with your friends and family?” She didn’t like the way he was looking at her. He seemed somehow on edge, suspicious even. Why, she did not know.
“My parents are dancing right now and other than them and the bride, I don’t really know anybody here.” He stared at her for a while before his shoulders slightly relaxed and his glare changed to a look of indifference.
“Very well, then.”
The two stood in silence once again, silence that felt uncomfortable for Marinette.
“Do you like going to social events like these?” It was a desperate attempt at a conversation, but Marinette would take what her mind could come up with. He seemed to not want to talk about his private life, so she didn’t want to intrude his privacy. He would probably not answer her anyway.
“Not particularly. But they do occasionally provide me with useful connections. If I could choose, though, I would rather stay home.”
“Yeah, these kinds of things aren’t fun when you don’t know anybody.”
“Rather, I could be doing much more productive things at home than here.”
“Right.”
The conversation paused there, much to Marinette’s dismay. She could either try to continue the conversation that so far seemed to be one-wayed, or just continue with her previous plans and sit at her table filling out the trivia questions.
She was about to head out, when she heard him sigh. Glancing his way, she saw him rubbing his temples.
“Something wrong?”
“…No, not at all… “ She raised an eyebrow, silently telling him to continue “You should leave.” Marinette’s eyes widened, before saddening. Although a stranger, his words hurt. Was she this bad at making friends? If so, how the hell was she supposed to make friends at her new school? She certainly didn’t want it to be the same as in Dupont, where she was a loner until… No. No more thinking like that.
“Oh… Alright.” She shot him a small smile, at which he sighed again.
“Look, I didn’t mean to sound harsh. But if you don’t leave now, you’re gonna have to deal with my mother. And trust me, you don’t want the headache from her interrogation.” The slight ping in her chest from before vanished with her understanding.
“Oh.” So, he didn’t actually want her to leave because she was bothering him.
…Hopefully.
Well, might as well take the risk now.
“Well, wanna spare yourself the headache?” He raised an eyebrow, while glancing in the direction he was looking before. His mother was probably really close. She gestured to the dance floor with her eyes, hoping to get the message across.
“That would only bring me an even bigger headache afterwards.”
“Probably, but you will be prepared, at least. And you might even come up with an excuse”
He smirked.
“Well, you do present a convincing case.” Pushing himself from the pillar, he came to stand face to face with Marinette. She watched him reach his arm out to her.
Oh my god I'm rewatching Attack on titans and Im at episode 12 of the first season.
I'm at the part where they are cleaning up the town and identificating the bodies and there is a scene that, if I didn't know what was going to happen I wouldnt question it.
Annie was apologizing.
To the dead people.
At first I thought it was because, well, they died and she couldn't protect them.
