hoshina soshiro | loan
PG, 1.7k
Summary: hoshina takes care of sick reader, dubious kaiju medical knowledge, they're in love your honor
Note: I've never shared my hoshina writing on here? It's all in DMs lol. Oops.
"So…shi…" the arm that lifts sways as a white flag pleads for it's enemies to stop. And you are pleading, for affection, for comfort, for this lava to remove itself from under you skin and let your blood cool from it's roaring boil.
Soshiro is working from home today too, he'd pushed all in person events to next week—as much as possible. The Defense Force is obligated to allow him to nurse the only solider to return with living bacterium from the disgusting plant-like Kaiju that sprawled up.
You and your science…. A means of pride for Soshiro usually, but as he lifts his eyes from the screen to follow the wave of your arm, he resents it.
He resents you being in the office, on the long leather couch because you're too important to remove from his sight, especially like this. He resents your muscles ache with fever and joints gnaw into spaces that were home otherwise. He hates he wasn't close enough; your fortitude had the suit reserves spent and luck, what he was told, got you back to him.
It's the danger he wears readily and yet, resents that you face it too.
"'m here." Kneeling beside you, eyes tracking the timer on your phone placed above your head. He has three going. One for the next round of medication, the other to get you hydration, the third to change out the towels and cooling packs on your skin.
You're not out of danger but thank fuck the ice baths have stopped. The "hardest" job is done — now it's recovery. If he could punch your commanding officer he would. What about this is easy?
Seeing you writhe in pain, the monumental effort to get your limbs to move, mouth opening, "I…lo…ne…". He hums, clearing your forehead, still too warm to touch. He can't even hold you through this, offering you comfort would mean supplying additional body heat which, yesterday, is finally on the downward trend.
You should be in the hospital, with IVs and nurses but instead you pushed everyone into analysis of the specimen you retrieved. They're stuck working around the clock to figure how to break the infection that you— and countless civilians—are currently facing. You didn't want to tie up hospital resources, so Hoshina Soshiro has tied himself to you.
Fuck it.
He'll change out the cooling pads, the towel on your brow, shift your position now and reset the timers, "Gonna move ya love—wanna change this shirt out?"
He gets it, words are hard, and he still wants to hear you. "No, loan…Soshiro, I…" He kisses the back of your hand, melds it into his own chest, he's stealing affection, he knows this.
"'ve paid all the bills, nothin' to worry your pretty head about…" it is pretty, it'd be prettier with your eyes rolling and a lifted eyebrow, a quip at the ready, Hoshina Soshiro—do you think I paid bills on the fly before you? He smiles to himself, you'll be like that soon.
He places your hand back to your chest, off to get the next cooling supplies and another cotton shirt; something you'll sweat through but that's not a detail he cares about. Laundry is his favorite chore.
+
"Sosh…." this is better, you're in a bed now, able to turn and roam and grab at him, your finger tips are still warm and he may admit he misses your usual cold feet scratching up his shins. "I…lo….an."
Ah this!
He's forgotten to ask you the last few times you've been conscious, what loan? His car is paid off, the Defense Force has generously helped you two afford this home, it's not as if you've secretly signed up for an advanced educational degree—which the Defense Force would also cover.
He hums, turns a second too late and your eyes are closed again. Lost to the world and taking all your whims with you— his sweet gal. He remembered to use your moisturizer today, helped your hair into a soft silk something to keep it from getting to frizzy and dry—you don't trust him to wash it yet—that's okay, he'll earn that soon.
His thumb traces your lips, luckily not chapped. Luckily returning to their natural shade. A round of immunization already in your system, you silly, beautiful, brave solider.
Tch.
And science. Your love of science and the discovery of Kaiju species. It wasn't enough working in the labs or being escorted to Kaiju sights, you wanted to see them living, breathing, moving— in the flesh. He can't blame you, truly. Your mind works in wondrous ways, a messy constellation that connects dots no one else can draw a line too—you've grown that encyclopedia of kaiju tenfold. All under a years time.
He sighs, pulling you close.
Two minutes.
He's allowed to be loaned two minutes of holding time!
+
"Soshi?" It's dark, your limbs feel they've been dipped in molasses and asked to walk through swamp water. You don't trust the ground to be there when you take the one, two, steps towards the closet. The shirt sticks to you in a not sexy way, your scalp is starting to itch and a shower, suddenly, feels like the best thing since sliced bread.
It was too dark to tell if Soshiro was home or not, he's been home so many days as it is, you're betting on him not being around. He's been rummaging through the closet, as a rouge legging snares itself around your ankle, you land with a thud, fall braced on forearms and knees. There's a sharp call to your name, his accent thick in the air, "Naiyain—" huffs his fear down in an instant.
Lifted up up up so easily, doesn't he feel the impact of think syrupy sugar-caned limbs? You're fully dead body weight now, the energy to find something soft and dry lost —gosh how has evolution selected you to survive?
But he seats you down in a cool white tube, plugs the drain, adjusts the water temperature with the fancy remote that you haven't gotten the hang of. So much of this apartment is fancy and mechanical—you tug at his pajama bottoms, "Be righ' back, love."
A kiss of promise and you watch the water fill up.
He talks to you, through the haze you find yourself in, you're with him and not. You hear him and not, muffled in the way one wades through water without clear vision—he's speaking Soshiro. He has nice lips.
You'd like to feel his teeth on your skin, can he confirm you haven't been turned into honey? "Runny honey, all through my muscles…"
He noses along your neck, "My favorite."
"Hushhh…." You sway and he wraps you up, dries your skin, prays for forgiveness that has you realize your scalp is wet, but he kisses quick, once, twice, thrice before you gasp — "Contagious—"
"'s not. Only potent 24 hours after spores containment the air."
"It's been long…er than…" that. He completes in his head, grabs your lotion and seats you between the double sink. "What's today?"
You've asked him before, "Still Thursday."
"But it's dark."
"Curtains."
Ah, black out curtains. The abyss creators, you nod. "Soshiro, I lo…an?" Your tongue feels heavy but it's pertinent he understand your words, why do the v's fall heavy.
"There's no loan, you hungry?"
What loan? You didn't say loan, brows furrow, where is he moving? Why won't he listen?
+
You sleep soundly, he finally lets himself crash into the mattress, your breathing is even, your fever nearly gone, the last immunization injected. There's enough food in your belly and he's had the left overs. It's all he can handle when his entire world is confirmed to a mattress, in a dark room.
Your hair is going to dry funny. He can't wait to be reprimanded because it'll mean you have the energy to engage with him. Not that you haven't been trying but the fever and induced brain fog have made you feel…away.
"Soshiro…" a whisper and the leg being kicked out, an ankle to his shin and slowly your body drips over his, his arms move on memory, eyes barely opening, as the rise and fall of your chest docks at his side body. "Shoshiro…" a cheek now, pushed into the port of his neck, the exhale heavy at his collarbone, but you need to get this out, he has to hear what you've been trying to say since picking up the stupid kaiju-spore, "love you."
Ah, the v's are easy to say now.
But he only exhales. Hmph!
You've been battling mini Kaiju inside your blood all weak and that's all he rewards you with? Eyes shoot open and lock to his jaw, "Soshiro."
Firm, unwavering, his brows crease, slow lazy opening of his lids, those cat like blinks, "Love?"
In an instant, melted away, "Nothin, go back to sleep."
A hand to part his hair, expose the most sought after real estate of his forehead and two kisses dropped to claim the space as your own, placing his hair back, as if secret that he belongs to you, "Sleep."
"'m slept, enough." He's moving his body, your fighting to keep his toned muscles in line, under you, "What's the time?"
"Time for sleep." It's late, 3am or so. "Oh yeah?"
"Yeah." You burrow into him, legs fully vines around his own, "this is nice—missed ya." Even if you've been here all along? Oh, you're gonna tease him about this in the morning, "What was the sample?"
"Hmm?"
"The spores, what was it made of?"
"Macrophage scien…cey things." He wasn't paying attention, he heard the immunization was safe enough and that it'd be sent to you; that's all he needed. An end to whatever temporary illness this was, you've had it rough already, he doesn't wish for a world where less ease finds you.
"Soshiro." He rubs your back, "What loan were you talking about?"
That—that gets his attention, "The loan you were talking about."
"I wasn't…" now you really need to get his attention, reaching up to angle his chin down, "I was saying I love you. Not loan." and the following words, "I would never loan you."
Confess themselves, he smiles soft, what an honor he wants to tease but no, not with your eyes looking at him so adoringly, "I would never loan you either."
(y/n’s transmigration is sorta briefly mentioned in the beginning but it’s not necessarily the most important thing)
— wc :: 1.8k
free falling, everyone assumes it’s scary. they say you feel the adrenaline rushing through your body and your heart beats faster and faster until it feels like you can no longer breathe.
gasping for air as if she had a bad dream, y/n clutches her chest as she sits up right. it takes her a moment but she realises she’s in a hospital room. the beeping noises of the machines and the sterile smell makes her uneasy.
“y/n! thank god you’re awake, i’ll get the doctor”
an unfamiliar voice catches her off guard. doctor? and who was that woman that just rushed out the room. what exactly happened to her?
y/n lies back down and stares up at the ceiling. she tries to put the pieces of the last few hours together but she can’t remember anything. she just remembers reading kaiju no. 8 after she had just finished up her last assignment for the night.
she remembers having a really bad headache but not enough to end up in hospital and how would anyone know? she lives alone.
“tsk” she groans and runs her hands down her face in confusion and frustration. she needed to submit her assignment in before midnight or it was a failing grade.
“you’re awake?”
she looks at the doctor who enters her room. he smiles softly and checks her temperature but she feels completely fine.
“where am i?” y/n asks
“yokohama minami general” the woman from earlier explains and when she comes into view, y/n’s jaw drops in utter disbelief.
mina… ashiro… from kaiju no. 8?!
“don’t look so surprised, anyone can faint even you” mina continues with a frown, “you really had me worried back there”
“???”
“she’s still recovering” the doctor explains, “she’s fine though and can be cleared to go home if you want-”
“yes!” y/n cuts in before awkwardly clearing her throat, “i feel fine”
she knows this is a dream or at least it has to be so even if she feels the needle from the dripped being pulled out and she feels the pressure of the cotton wool against the tiny spot where a little blood trickles out, she doesn’t believe any of this is real.
mina sat at the edge of your hospital bed, her usually composed expression softened by concern. “you gave us all quite a scare,” she said quietly, her eyes meeting y/n's with an intensity that made it hard to look away.
y/n could feel her beat beating faster the more mina spoke. what exactly was this dream?
“during the mission, you pushed yourself too hard. when you collapsed, harumi was close enough to catch you before you hit the ground.” she paused, the faintest curve of a smile tugging at her lips. “you don’t always have to carry the weight alone. next time… let us share it with you.”
she blinked at mina, trying to process her words. wait, what mission? fainted? her brain scrambled like eggs on a hot pan. yesterday, no, like an hour ago, she was scrolling through manga panels, not sprinting alongside people with rocket launchers.
okay, calm down, y/n ... don’t freak out. this is totally normal. happens all the time. in fanfics. NOT real life!
she forced a weak smile, nodding like she totally understood. “right… sorry for worrying you, mina.”
“harumi.. was by your side most of the night but don’t tell him i said that because you know he will deny it” mina grins
…. GEN HARUMI?!
later that day, y/n stared blankly around her “apartment”
nothing about this place screamed familiarity to her but it had already been a good 2 hours and she still had not woken up.
was this a case of transmigration? but that usually happens when … you die
did she die? was that headache more than just a slight discomfort? she had never been so confused in her life.
the loud knocking on her door startled her. what now!
as she opens her door, she tries her best not to scream. now was the time to practice her nonchalance despite her knees almost giving out on her.
“not going to let me in?” narumi grins, leaning against the door frame.
“whatever you have to say, you can say it out there” she shrugs and she doesn’t know where the fuck that came from but judging by his demeanor, this must’ve been their dynamic? her brain was melting.
and did he always smell this good?
“wow and here i thought you’d be nicer since i saved your pretty face from being all scratched up” he huffs and pushes past her into her place.
“pretty face?” she raises a brow after closing her door.
“whatever, you know what i mean” he rolls his eyes, “i just wanted to make sure you’re not completely banged up”
“i can work just fine if that’s what you’re asking” she deadpans. she doesn’t know where this confidence even comes from.
“good because we have to go in about an hour” he opens her fridge, grabbing a bottle of water, “let me check your shoulder”
“my shoulder?” her eyebrows furrow, she honestly felt fine aside from well .. you know .. dying in her own world apparently.
she didn’t have time to process any of these things and now she was expected to actually go on a mission? maybe her body would act on its own because she was at a loss right now.
“yes” he gently grabs her wrist, “i caught you but it’s better to be safe than sorry and i don’t need your ass slacking off”
she rolls her eyes but before she could protest, he was already behind her, tugging at her shirt collar with the nonchalance of someone flipping through a magazine.
“relax, idiot. i just wanna make sure you’re not gonna collapse on the field again.” he huffs
y/n’s breath hitched as his fingers brushed over her skin, gentle despite his rough tone. his touch lingered longer than it should have and when she twisted to glare at him, she caught the faintest crease of worry in his brow before he masked it with a lopsided grin.
“see? all patched up. guess you won’t slow me down after all.” she rolled your eyes, tugging her shirt back into place but her heart betrayed her with a restless rhythm.
was .. this how he always acted? she was so busy in her head over her even being here but she had never felt this type of tension is all her life and she was starting to wonder just what the fuck was going on with her.
back in her room, y/n stood in front of the mirror, fastening the defense force uniform with hands that wouldn’t stop trembling.
okay, deep breath. you’re not just some reader anymore, you’re in kaiju no. 8. which means…
she glanced at the gleaming gear strapped to her body...
i’m supposed to fight giant monsters. no big deal. totally fine.. except i’ve never even thrown a punch outside of a schoolyard fight and now i’m about to battle skyscraper-sized lizards like it’s normal for me.
the strangest part was her body… it moved like it had muscle memory that wasn’t her own. every buckle, every strap, every adjustment, felt practiced. like whoever she had become knew exactly what to do. her reflection stared back at her and for a second she swore it wasn’t even her anymore but the person this world expected her to already be.
and then there was narumi. his stupid smirk, his too-casual concern, the way his hands had brushed her shoulders earlier... her mind was a mess of panic and something dangerously close to longing. “focus, y/n,” she muttered, shaking your head as you slipped the last piece of armor into place. “kaiju first. existential crisis later.”
to say she was overwhelmed would be an understatement. she was in way over her head but it’s like she knew exactly where to run, how high to jump and she took orders like it was an everyday occurrence in her life.
she knew she was high on adrenaline and fear right now but she was determined to survive because she still had so many unanswered questions and she didn’t even know who could help her.
“NARUMI WATCH OUT!” she heard someone yelling from behind her and when she turned around, she froze.
the battlefield roared with chaos but all she saw was narumi crumpling to the ground after the kaiju’s tail slammed into him. her lungs seized up and before she knew it, she was sprinting towards him, shouting his name like it was the only word she knew.
when she reached him, he was slumped against the rubble, battered and bloody but still very much alive. relief hit her so hard it hurt. she dropped to her knees beside him, hands trembling as she pressed against his shoulder.
“don’t you dare fucking scare me like that again,” she whispered, voice cracking despite herself.
her heart was beating like crazy and she didn’t even know why she reacted this way. she had literally met the guy less an 3 hours ago after waking up in that hospital room.
she was still so deep in denial that she thought that at any moment now she’d wake up and it would just be a crazy dream she’d tell her friends but she had gotten injured just before narumi did and it stung. everything felt way too real to be a dream.
narumi tilted his head toward her, smirk tugging at his bruised mouth.
“tch .. look at you, panicking over me. you're so cute.” his words made y/n flush but she refused to back down, shoving at his chest lightly.
“shut up. i was worried about the mission, not you.” the lie hung between them, very transparent and obvious but his eyes, sharp even in the pain, softened as they lingered on hers.
“liar,” he murmured and the world around them seemed to fade. for a moment they weren’t comrades screaming over kaiju or rivals constantly butting heads. they were just two people on the edge of something dangerous and neither of them wanted to be the first to admit it.
“.. you really did scare me” she admits softer now and he huffs, his hand that wasn’t pressed against his stomach reached out to cup her face.
“i know” he says, just as soft and neither of them would admit it but the distance between them closed and suddenly they were kissing.
y/n has never been kissed that hard and that good in her entire life and she was starting to be okay with dealing with kaiju if it meant she could continue kissing narumi like this.
when the no.6 suit starts messing with reno's ability to regulate his body temperature, iharu steps up with a suggestion. it's no big deal! he's just doing it to be nice, right?
I'm cooking up an ihareno medieval fantasy fic :3 here's a snippet from the current wip!
There's a beautiful boy standing at the entrance of Iharu's stable, peering meekly inside as though he's afraid something might jump out at him from the shadows.
"Y' alright there?" Iharu calls, and the boy jerks with fright.
"Um," he squeaks when he finally spots Iharu, who's half-hidden behind an open stall door. "Hello. I– I am very sorry to interrupt, but might I ask for your help?"
Iharu straightens with a groan, brushing clumps of dirt from his thighs. The mare whose hooves he'd been picking arches her long neck to snuffle at his hair, eager for the treat he'd promised her if she behaved.
The boy, who'd braved moving closer to get a better look at who he was speaking to, takes a step back when Iharu straightens to his full height. "Um," he says again, more quietly this time.
Iharu regards him carefully. His expensive clothing is streaked with muck and his fine silver hair is matted with twigs. Alarm bells ring in Iharu's mind when he notices the stranger isn't carrying any bags or weapons, and he hadn't heard the telltale signs of an approaching horse– nobody comes this far without supplies. Especially in times like this.
"You must've travelled a long way," Iharu observes, pulling off his thick farrier's gloves and tucking them under his arm.
"Yes," the boy swallows nervously, "I have been walking for months."
"Alone?"
"No," the boy rushes to answer, shaking his head rapidly, "no, I would never dream of it, my… I have companions staying in the town down the road. I came here because I had heard of a man who might be able to help me."
"And didya roll through the woods or somethin'?" Iharu scoffs, crossing his arms in a way that he knows shows off the breadth of his chest, the muscle in his shoulders. "It's not like you noble folk to appear anywhere without cleanin' up a little."
"With respect," the boy deadpans, totally nonplussed by the display, "you are not all that clean yourself, mister."
Iharu shares a look with the mare behind him, who huffs as if to say get a load of this guy.
[Head's Up!] So this is going to hopefully be a part of a series. The plan is that I'm going to make several "Short" stories {length to be determined} That are all about this pervasive idea I have centered around the idea that Kafka went on a soul-searching journey through Germany after a series of unfortunate events. Some of this (down the road) will not line up with established canon (mainly parts pertaining to his family) and I'd just thought I would let ya'll know. I have more personal details after the fic.
♩♪♩♬ ♬♩♪♩
It's safe to say that having the ability to turn into a Kaiju is enough to make anyone interesting. But when that's the only thing you know about a guy, suddenly discovering anything unrelated seems to make him a lot more fascinating than before. Even more so when you've only known him for three weeks and you're starting a new job together. The first and most subtle discovery Reno and Iharu found about Kafka was during their third day as Defense Force officers. They had just finished a long day of training and had hit the bathhouse showers before bed
Reno had undressed the fastest and booked it for the shower counters so he could wash the spilled energy drink out of his hair. Between that and the sweaty sheen he had developed, he just felt all around uncomfortable. Kafka and Iharu had wrapped towels around their waists and casually trailed in some time shortly, engaged in quiet conversation. The two of them tossed their shower supplies onto the counter and pulled up their own squat plastic chair with Kafka sitting in between the two juniors. Kafka had to took twice as he saw just how hard Reno was scrubbing away at his hair.
"Hey, are you alright?" He asked.
"He's fine. Someone dropped their energy drink out of a second floor window and it hit him in the head." Iharu answered for Reno as he dug out a bottle of shampoo.
"Damn, sounds like that sucked." Kafka offered some simple platitude and he dug out an old plastic gum container filled with q-tips instead.
"I... have smelled nothing... but grape powder... all day!" Reno growled in between bouts of vigorous scrubbing.
"What, you gotta problem with grape flavor?" Kafka chuffed as he wet the tips of the q-tip.
"Have you seen my hair? I don't know if it's ever..." Reno wanted to continue his tirade about what the cursed drink did to his snow blond locks, but was cut short by the sight of Kafka bringing the q-tip to his nose.
"What are you...?" Reno began to question, only to suddenly choke down a sickening retch as he watched Kafka practically thread the q-tip through the septum in his nose.
"What was tha-AAH! WITCH DOCTOR!" Iharu shouted as he turned and was confronted with the same sight.
"What has gotten into the two of you?" Kafka interrogated as he swiveled to look at them, leaving the q-tip suspended in his nose.
"Y-y-y-your n-nose!" Reno stuttered, pointed finger quaking at the sight.
"Oh, this?" Kafka pointed to the unusual sight, "Old nose ring piercing." He didn't expand upon as he went back to sliding the cotton tipped instrument back and forth through the hole.
"YOU HAVE A NOSE RING?" Iharu shouted once he recovered from the shock.
"Had being the better term here. I had to drop the look if I was to land my job with the Monster Sweepers. They considered it a possible safety hazard." Kafka explained as he pulled the stick out and fiercely rubbed at his nose.
"Do you still have the ring?" Reno asked, morbid curiosity getting the better of him.
"Unfortunately, no." Kafka said with a heartbroken sigh, "Lost it down a mall bathroom sink."
"Then how do you still have the hole?" Iharu questioned, joining in on the perverse inquiries.
"From what I've heard, once it's fully healed you don't tend to lose 'em. Still gotta make sure there isn't anything stuck in there though." Kafka continued to answer as he started to look through the rest of his shower supplies.
"Do you have any others?" Reno quickly fired back.
"God, ya'll are just full of questions tonight." Kafka used to answer, hoping it would encourage them to find something else to talk about.
A short period of time passed before Iharu spoke back up as he noticed Kafka didn't answer the question, "Well... do you?"
Kafka sighed heavily before he answered, "I had almost twenty by the time I had to give them all up. Outside of my nose ring, I'm pretty sure most of the holes are completely closed up."
"TWENTY?" Now it was Reno's turn to shout incredulously.
"Wow, I hadn't pegged you as the metal head type." Iharu voiced openly.
"Are you kidding? I was more than a Metal Head." Kafka chuckled cryptically, "I was a Heavy Metal Head." He giggled eerily as he turned to Iharu and wiggled his fingers creepily, making him laugh.
"I'm sure you had a Heavy Head at least with all those piercings, Sir." Reno teased under his breath.
He wasn't nearly as quiet as he should have been with it since Kafka very clearly still heard him. Before Kafka could return fire, Iharu popped another question.
"So what type of piercings did you have?"
"Uhh, let's see..." Kafka said as he scratched his chin, " I had three rings in the right ear, three studs in the left, the nose ring, nose bridge cuff, a snake bite set, an eyebrow stud, dimple studs- got rid of those pretty quickly, a belly button..." Kafka trailed off, almost lost in thought before his eyes snapped open in shock.
"Uhh, yeah, I think that's the list. The whole list, nothing else." Kafka finished as a miniscule bead of sweat trailed down his temple.
Iharu's eyes flickered around in thought before they landed back on Kafka with confusion, "That's fourteen piercings."
"So? Fourteen is close to twenty." Kafka countered, still looking somewhat nervous.
"Then why not say fifteen? That's a lot more reasonable than saying close to twenty" Reno argued as he shrugged.
"Yeah. Saying Twenty to mean fourteen is a little misleading. There's a lot more numbers between fourteen and twenty than fifteen." Iharu supported his friend's argument as he drew out the problem on the mirror in front of them with a bar of soap.
"Are you sure you're not forgetting some?" Reno questioned as he squinted at his older friend suspiciously.
"So I miscalculated! You don't have to drag me over a bed of coals about it.'" Kafka threw his hands up on either side of his head as he got up from his seat to make it clear that was the end of it. The two of them watched as he walked out toward the hot bath in the other room and turned the corner.
"He doesn't miscalculate. I've seen that man do accurate inventory reports without even stepping into the storage room." Reno murmured as his eyes flickered back to Iharu.
"You don't think he had some... embarrassing ones, do you?" Iharu sneered scandalously right back.
"What piercing could be embarrassing?" Reno asked as he rinsed the shampoo from his hair.
"Nipple rings for starters." Iharu quietly chuckled out.
Hearing this, Reno visibly shivered, "You know, that's a good point. I feel better not knowing now."
"I don't." Iharu replied, "He's definitely got more than he's letting on and I wanna know the full extent." He rushed to catch up with Reno in scrubbing himself down before they could join the others in the on-site onsen. Finishing and getting up from their spots, they walked over to the other room to join the others in the massive bath.
"I'm serious, you can tell a lot about a person by what they would willingly get pierced. Like, who knows what Kafka was like in his twenties? What do you think would be the line he wouldn't draw back then?" Iharu continued to comment on the idea as he followed Reno out of the room.
"I get your point, but knowing him as he is now, I sincerely think he wouldn't have gotten anything below the belt." Reno challenged as his attention was focused on his friend.
"You'd be surprised-" Iharu replied before his head snapped forward to see the awkward spectacle before them.
On the way to the bath, it appeared that Kafka had been sidelined with an interaction with their Vice Captain. It wouldn't have been an unusual sight had it not been for the fact that for One) It had looked like Kafka's towel had fallen off of his waist and was now desperately clutching it in front of his privates, and Two) Soshiro Hoshina was caught in the compromising position that was kneeling right in front of where Kafka was death-gripping the towel. Aoi and Haruichi were standing off to the side witnessing the event. Aoi was as stone faced as ever, but Haruichi was clearly holding back the urge to burst into laughter.
"Whoa, whOA, WHOA! WHAT THE HELL?" Iharu shouted as he intruded onto the situation.
"This isn't what it looks like!" A very red-faced Kafka called out from his place against a side wall.
He had braced a hand against the painted brick wall to support himself from falling over. If anyone other than Reno had any previous knowledge as to what Kafka was hiding inside himself, they would have noticed the spidery cracks spreading out from his hand-print on the wall. A distracted Hoshina whipped his head around to view the intruders behind him.
"Oi! Reno, Iharu, did you know Comedy Relief here has a tattoo?" Hoshina declared as he jabbed his thumb at it, pivoting to the side a little to show it off better.
"I wasn't ready to talk about it just yet!" Kafka squeakily snarled through gritted teeth, not trusting himself to move.
"I don't see why not? It's a beautiful piece." Hoshina countered as he turned back to look at it some more.
"He's not going to get kicked out for that, is he?" Reno asked as he quickly moved over to where everyone was standing.
Getting closer, the two of them got a better look at what their Vice Captain was looking at. What initially looked to be an ornately decorated Oni Mask tattoo became more and more interesting the longer they looked at it. The first notable thing was the horns. Instead of being curved, they pointed straight out and had stair-stepped protruding lines running from their points all the way down. The eyes looked like complicated stained glass windows and its mouth had a wooden door and crumbling pillars acting as its tusks and teeth. Its ears had church bells for earrings and arch-buttresses protruding out over its rounded cheeks, decorated with tiny gargoyles.
"Oh, please. A large portion of the JAKDF is powered by rebels. We would be alienating over half of our strongest members if we didn't allow a little self expression." Hoshina assured as he tiled his head side to side, still staring at the art on Kafka's upper thigh, "Did you ever say where you got this done? I'd love to meet the artist."
"I, uh, got it while on a backpacking trip through Germany. I chatted up this girl I met at a rock concert and managed to sweet talk myself into a discounted piece." Kafka answered as he pursed his lips.
"Huh." Hoshina mused, "Out of the question to ask you to remember her name, I take it?"
"Definitely. She made me delete her number after she caught me flirting with her brother." Kafka answered as his eyes flickered briefly of shame from the memory.
While they talked, Iharu had saddled up to Aoi and Haruichi to inquire what was going on.
"What the hell happened?" Iharu started as he crossed his arms casually.
"So I saw Kafka walk out from the showers, yeah?" Haruichi whispered as he fought back a bout of giggles, "And I thought, "Hey, lets haze the Creepy Shinomiya Fanboy a little." I just wanted to steal his towel and snap it at him! I genuinely didn't know that the Vice Captain would walk in at the same time!" He shoulders continued to shake as the look in his eyes went a little crazed.
"And I don't think anyone would have expected the old guy to have a tattoo, nor the fact that Hoshina seems very interested in body art." Aoi noted in an even tone.
"Such a shame. I've felt inspired lately and I like the work done here." Hoshina smirked as a hand came up to the cheeks of the oni mask design and pinched them together a few times, "It's quite the expressive work."
Kafka's body immediately tensed at the sensation and caused more subtle cracks to appear on the wall. His entire face and chest flushed to an even deeper shade of red. Reno felt his heart sunk into his stomach out of surprise at the sight. Iharu's jaw dropped and Haruichi had to turn away before he completely lost control of his face.
"Well, make sure to be safe out there then." Hoshina sighed as he rose up from his knees, "I'd hate to see such a wonderful work of art get ruined." He turned on his heels and walked back out of the bathhouse automated doors.
"Take care." He concluded as he walked away, lazily waving goodbye.
Kafka had to take several deep breaths before the atmosphere returned to the room. Haruichi finally let out the roaring laughter he had been holding in the entire time, falling to his knees and flopping onto his side while holding his ribs. Aoi just shook his head.
"She caught you flirting with her brother?" Haruchi practically screeched as he tried to suck in some air into his abused lungs.
"Cut me some slack! He worked at a completely different tattoo shop!" Kafka shouted back as he tried to regain some semblance of control over himself.
"Why were you at another tattoo shop?" Aoi questioned with a cynical look.
"Probably getting another piercing." Iharu answered for him, "So, which one was it? The nose ring, the half dozen ear piercings, or the nipple studs?" He sarcastically prodded which added on another year to Haruichi's laughing fit.
"It... was actually... the tongue piercing." Kafka gritted out as he pulled the towel back around his waist.
Iharu and Reno immediately looked each other in the eye, pointed at the other and shouted "Fifteen!"
"Excuse me?" Aoi inquired bewilderedly.
"We'll explain later." Reno offered to tide him over.
"And with that ordeal over with, I'm just going to skip the bath and just take a very long, very cold shower." Kafka groaned as he walked away from everyone.
As Iharu and Reno moved over to help Haruichi regain the concept of a regular breathing cycle, the two of them wondered if that was going to be the last they were ever going to hear about this trip through Germany. Nothing could have prepared the Third Division for how much another man's adventure through loss, heartbreak, and consequences would envelop their lives.
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OH! Before I forget: I drew this a long time ago for this particular fic actually. Just pretend that it has hyper-realistic shading like what you would find on grayscale tattoos and a shit-ton more details. (German churches are fucking insane looking) And yeah, Surprise! It's based on German Church Architecture.
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Okay, not to ruin the fun vibes I tried to set up here, but I've gotta talk about a few things. Mainly my future as a writer. (God, I'm already making this sound worse than it is) Less important stuff out of the way first.
Anything involving this Story Line will not be posted to Ao3, yet. I am going to wait until I feel like I have written enough about this and come up with a satisfying conclusion before I shove all this into a multi-chaptered one-off fic over on xXMechanicalDuchessXx at Ao3. That way, it can all be read at one time. I get its part of the culture on Ao3 that you're supposed to be patient and wait for your faves to upload their newest chapter when they feel like it, but that ain't me. So much so, that it'a become a problem for something else.
The other problem is that I've had a few things on my mind. Recently, I posted a smut fic here and onto Ao3 that... well, I wouldn't say it didn't do well, but I'm used to a much warmer reception to when I post my writing. To be fair, it was a smut fic and I recognize that to some it isn't their cup of tea, not to mention that it was about a less recognized pairing. (Which makes no fucking sense to me, it was fucking IhaReno, their shit should be treated way more popular.) But for a few days, it didn't gain any traction on either platform... like, at all. And for a moment I was kind of upset. Like, considered never posting smut here ever again upset. Which, looking back now, might have been an overreaction.
That being said...
YA'LL NEED TO FUCKIN' THANK MY BESTIE @iceclew FOR THE SHIT SHE DOES FOR ME. IF IT WASN'T FOR THE FACT THAT I SPECIFICALLY WAITED FOR HER REVIEW TO COME OUT BEFORE I TALKED ABOUT THIS SHIT, WE WOULD BE HAVING AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT DISCUSSION RIGHT NOW.
(it also helped that I just now saw Ao3 Offical's post here talking about some sort of updating error that was posted around Valentine's day, which was the day I posted... that healed me a little as well.)
Needless to say, I feel like I should update everyone on the status of some WIP's that I've been wanting to work on, and thanks to some soul searching during those days I was patiently awaiting the review, I can now fully explain.
To start with, There were three fics on my mind. This one, another IhaReno fic with a twist, and a KafHoshi fic that has been in an indefinite working hiatus since probably last year. With the somewhat lackluster reception of my latest fic, I had briefly considered that I might have lost my touch with how I write characters. I have been complimented on it and have continued to pride myself with accurate retelling of their characterizations.
My Achille's heel when it comes to doing this, is Reno. Every time I put pen to paper about this man, (Or, I guess I should say fingers-to-keyboard) I can never tell if I'm doing him justice. I find it incredibly hard to strike a good balance of being a cool, collected, and calm-natured soldier with the occasional outbursts of explosive emotions he's prone too when he's in situations he's not sure of himself in. This current fic you have undoubtedly read will be exploring a take I have on Kafka I'm not sure many people would agree with. Not only that, most of it will be featuring this take through the third person perspective of either Iharu, Reno, or both. Needless to say, my faith in myself was briefly shaken. Thank you again Ice for restoring that.
TL:DR, I will be continuing this fic, I shall just give no fucks about it.
The IhaReno fic follows a similar problem. It's A fic written entirely from Reno's point of view, meaning I have to write that story from the standpoint of his internal monologue. Which, as I have just stated, I still don't have the best grasp of the man. The First Person POV I have no problem with, I've worked with it before. Still, that particular fic is probably not going to see daylight for a while yet, but thats where you lot come into play. I would greatly appreciate any helpful commentary on THIS line of fics specifically surrounding how I could write Reno better. This isn't a ploy for compliments, I GENUINELY feel like I can't write him well enough.
This fic will also be doing double duty as well when it comes to the final and biggest matter at hand, the KafHoshi fic. I had gone into that fic thinking it would just take me a couple months, not suddenly devolving into requiring almost Eight full chapters, which is something I had no previous experience with. I have since learned that I do have the capacity to write that much, I just haven't gotten there yet. That is something I have to work for, an entirely alien feeling for me. ( Not in the sense that I've never had to work for something, but that this is the first time I've ever had the desire to.)
It didn't help that I've been wanting to post all "Eight" (HOPEFULLY it stays to eight) chapters all at once, so as to avoid the possible emotional guilt that would haunt all my days should I have became burnt out on the story and not update it for years at a time. However, to accomplish this task, I was restraining myself from posting every other paragraph because I was desperate for the energy I could gain from all the possible praise and comments I could get from doing so. As an alternative, I hope that from working on this fic and posting the chapters piecemeal, I could built the mental fortitude necessary to bring myself to continue what I'm is sure to be My Personal Odyssey.
I'm sure most of you are going to skip this part, but screw you I feel better now.
