#fenceposting

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I think as a fandom we do not give Nicholas Cox enough financial literacy. He is poor, yes. He is unused to luxury, yes. But when you’re so focused on the cost of things and having to budget, you develop: financial literacy. Nicholas knows taxes. Nicholas has worked jobs. Nicholas has formulas for budgeting. Nicholas pays rent on time. Nicholas knows how much milk costs at any moment. Nicholas knows the difference between good bread and bad bread. Nicholas knows how to fix pipes with a wrench, some scrap metal, some screws, and a rusty screwdriver he found on the side of the road. It was the only way he could help keep his mother afloat. He would be financially literate.

[oonanoodle]

OKAY so a nichoji time skip anyone????

I tried to take away as much teen-specific awkwardness they have and replace it with dad dorkiness.

My hcs for timeskip nichoji are under the cut!

Old men in love are simply better I don’t make the rules! Anyways Nicholas and Seiji have started their own non-profit youth fencing education program and make it easier for people to access fencing as a sport. They’re in their late 30s.

Seiji

He still is the same introverted dramatic nerd we all know and love but he’s a whole lot more relaxed. He knows that he’s loved and cared for not only by his husband but with those close to him.

He decided to grow out his hair. Reason one- he loves it when Nicholas plays with his hair so the obvious solution was to have longer hair. Reason two- the long hair makes him look more badass when he gets professional pictures taken of him for fencing tournaments.

He smiles more since he’s content and no longer strives to be perfect like he used to be. His new passion is focused on teaching his students.

Nicholas

The dad ever!!!!! He loves his students more than anything! And also, he and Seiji probably adopted a silly little girl they love a whole lot.

Other than maturity, not much changed with Nicholas. He and Seiji are simultaneously honeymooning and old couple bickering somehow and they make it work.

Nicholas’s hair is just as wild as ever. Due to aging, he can’t grow it as large as he used to. He makes it work.

I might come up with more later, but you can come up with more hcs and whatever!! It’s just a concept rn

[electriceyespots]

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i have so many more of these to make im obsessed

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the urge to read the fence novelizations just so i can take pictures of parts and send them to my friends and go “THEY MISCHARACTERIZED MY BOY!!!! MY BOY!!! I COULD WRITE THIS BETTER!!!”

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god bless people letting me use their craft stuff I only use it for evil

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content warning for OCD spiral + general anxiety attack

Seiji paced the floor. He’d withdrawn the curtain between his and Nicholas’ side of the room, which his brain had screamed at him for, but it was for the greater good.

Something bad was going to happen.

He hadn’t figured out what yet. But he needed to postpone it until he figured it out, so he paced in ovals from the head of his bed, to the door, to the bathroom door, then to the head of Nicholas’ bed. He had an hour to figure out what was going to happen.

The door opened, and Nicholas entered. Scratch that, he had to figure out what was going to happen now. Nicholas wasn’t supposed to be back in the dorm for another hour- a clear sign that Seiji was right and something bad was approaching.

“Uh… Seiji?” Nicholas asked, pensive. “Are you ok?”

Seiji’s head snapped towards the boy. “I’m alright, thank you for your concern.” A terrible thought struck him. “Are you alright??”

Nicholas thought about it for a moment. “Yeah? I’m pretty sure.”

“Why are you back early?” Seiji demanded. He hadn’t stopped pacing, arms stiff by his side.

“Eugene had something to do so I just came back- dude are you seriously alright??”

Seiji paused. Immediately a terrible, oppressive sense of foreboding sank into him. He continued to walk. “Something bad is going to happen, Nicholas,” he imparted.

“Ok. What’s going to happen?” Nicholas asked. Seiji shook his head.

“I’m unsure.”

This entire situation was unsettling. Occasionally, he could tell a bad thing was going to happen. He had a ritual to help prevent it. He’d call Jesse Coste, Jesse would tell him it wasn’t going to happen and he was being crazy, he would run a mile, he would shower for 10 minutes, and if the bad thing was still going to happen, he would warn his parents.

He could not call Jesse Coste. His ritual was messed up.

Nicholas made a face that indicated he was thinking, which was unusual outside of the salle. “Alright, ok. What can I do so the bad thing doesn’t happen?”

What.

“What?”

“Sometimes my friend back home would get like this. She thought fires would burn down the school or that everyone they love would die,” Nicholas expanded.

Seiji stiffened and stopped pacing, wringing his fingers in his hands instead. “Alright. Alright then. What did she do to prevent this?”

Nicholas thought about it more, which was a bit unsettling. “Usually she’d remind herself that a lot of her scenarios were unrealistic and take a nap.”

“I can’t do that,” Seiji immediately blurted. Fear welled up in his chest, limbs heavy. His brain felt foggy, a lighthouse of panic being all he could detect.

“Ok,” Nicholas nodded. “You don’t have to. What do you usually do?”

Seiji recited his ritual. “I call Jesse, Jesse would tell me I’m crazy and that nothing was going to happen, I’d run a mile, shower for 15 minutes, then tell my parents to be aware.”

“Ok, well I’m not calling you crazy,” Nicholas immediately said. “You can still run and shower. Or we can start a new plan.”

Seiji’s muscles seized. “How will we know it’ll work, though?”

“It’s a trial run. We’ll try something new, if something bad doesn’t happen, we’ll know it works,” Nicholas explained. He’d been standing by the door the whole time, but only just closed it.

“And if something bad does happen?” Seiji felt his voice shake.

“We’ll get there when we get there.” Nicholas’ face was a rare serious determination, but also something Seiji couldn’t identify. Something kinder.

“Fine. What do you suggest?”

They ended up drawing together. Both sitting on Seiji’s bed, with sheets of lined paper on textbook covers. Nicholas was drawing Seiji. Seiji was failing at drawing a cat, so he instead began to draw Nicholas.

He looked down at his demented Nick. “I think I’m not very good at drawing.”

Nicholas shrugged. “Eh, it’s alright. It took me years to finally be happy with my art.”

Years? How did Nicholas learn to fence if he was busy drawing?

“I suppose,” is what came out instead.

Seiji was beginning to doubt drawing would prevent the bad event. He still felt that foreboding ache in his stomach.

“Are you sure this will help?” He asked, voice quieter than intended.

Nicholas nodded. “I’m sure. Uh- quick question, if a bad thing does happen, will it be your fault?”

That was closer to his normal ridiculous questions. “Of course it would be. That’s why I can not let it happen, or I would be a terrible person and the victim would…” he trailed off. He’d never even tell Jesse his motivations for preventing terrible events. Why was he telling Nicholas?

The boy waited nonetheless.

“They’d hate me,” he finished. Succinct, final.

Nicholas nodded. “I don’t think anyone could actually hate you.”

What an odd sentiment. Wrong, but odd.

“Ok.”

They continued to draw. Eventually the anxiety lessened, and no bad thing happened.

Seiji realized he was over complicating things before. The terrible events didn’t happen because he stayed out of it- so if he just stayed out of things and warned people, it wouldn’t happen. It would be much better than his old badgering and constant precautions. He’d have to thank Nicholas for helping him see that at some point.

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Thoughts on side Fence pairings? Any ships you like aside from Seiji and Nicholas?

YES I have so many I love ok.

Big fan of Bobby and Dante believe it or not! Like yes hyperactive glittery chihuahua and That Guy(tm)! I love them sm I would burn down the world for them

HARVARD AND AIDEN I know it’s low hanging fruit but COME ONNNNN. You can’t give me CANON FAKE DATING and expect me to NOT love them?? The one thing the novels did right was haiden fake dating I WILL SAY THIS UNTIL I DIE!!! I LOVE THEMMMMMMM

I love anything with Eugene bc I think he just deserves to be loved but EUJESSE SCRATCHES MY BRAIN IN A WAY. SUCH A WAY. Like yes the best guy you’ve ever met and the worst prick on earth YES!!!! YES!!!! It lwk reminds me of when I was shipped with this guy who I rlly didn’t like all of middle school but that’s unrelated anyways I LOVE THEM

Kally and Tanner I also really like… like idk THEYRE SO RABID BEAR AND HIS “hey maybe let’s not- actually nvm im becoming a rabid bear too ur so right abt this”

Past Jesse and Seiji, I do enjoy I am not gonna lie!! Like they have to be written a certain way but it AUGHHHH idk I love it!! Like yes that is the guy who ruined your life a bit and you can’t handle it and you’re inexplicably drawn to him and to him you are just a way to the top and he guesses he cares abt you but like he has priorities!!!!!! AHHHHHHHH

Anything with the girls team. So few of those but like hey I’m always open to yuri! I actually have a fic with the girls team planned for fence summer nationals inspired by tiltawhirl by boys go to jupiter

I’m honestly pretty open to anything that doesn’t interfere with nichoji 😭😭😭 they are my number ones rn I can’t stop thinking abt them BUT I DO LOVE EVERYONE ELSE I just post abt them a lot,,, I love drawing Aiden and Bobby tho they’re so fun to draw