Bonus Round 3: FSTs

[referees]

SASO 2017 is over, but this round is perpetually open to new fills (no new prompts).

Profess your love for your favorite ships with the power of song! In this round, we ask you to create fan soundtracks and use them as inspiration for new fanwork.

Please read this whole post before commenting to ensure that your team gets the most points possible.

RULES

• Submit prompts in the form of a short playlist (1-6 songs) and a ship from any of our nominated fandoms. Submit only the track listing and a link to where they can be listened to; the idea is for others to interpret what you present. You may also link to lyrics if you would like.
• Your prompt MUST include some kind of relationship. Platonic relationships are indicated by an "&" between the names (e.g., Lilia & Sara). Non-platonic relationships use "/" (e.g., Lilia/Sara). Please don't say "Any pairing," either.
• Create content based on the playlists of others! Fill prompts by leaving a responding comment to the prompt with your newly-created work.
• Fills may be in any form you choose (except for another FST of course) as long as they are inspired by/fit the mood of the soundtrack they are filling for.
• Remember to follow the general bonus round rules, outlined here.
• Here is a prompt/fill index for your convenience.

FORMAT

Bonus round shenanigans all happen in the comments below. Brand-new works only, please.

Required Work Minimums:

• 400 words (prose)
• 400px by 400px (art)
• 14 lines (poetry)

There is no max work cap.

Format your comment in one of the following ways:

If PROMPTING:	If FILLING:	If FILLING as a TEAM GRANDSTAND participant:
PROMPT: TEAM [YOUR SHIP] Replace [YOUR SHIP] with the name of the team you belong to. Any way you format it is fine. Copy/paste/fill out the following form into your comment box. Delete the guidance text that's in parentheses. (Please delete all text in parentheses as you go. LEAVE THE HTML ALONE or the bonus round scoring program can't parse your comment. Don't forget a comment subject!) <strong>Ship:</strong> (the ship your prompt is focused on. "&" indicates a platonic relationship, "/" is non-platonic. Format the ship name any way you want, but clarity is more likely to get you fills.) <strong>Fandom:</strong> (what fandom the ship is from) <strong>Major Tags:</strong> (https://sportsanime.dreamwidth.org/1609.html, when applicable; these apply to content *in the prompt itself* and is NOT an implication of what you're looking for in a fill. If your prompt doesn't require tags, write "None" here.) <strong>Other Tags:</strong> (anything else that you feel requires tagging; can include jokey tumblr-style tags here; may also pull from the "Additional Tags" list from the URL above, if applicable; otherwise, write "None" here.) <strong>Prompt:</strong> <a href="">song title here</a>	FILL: TEAM [YOUR SHIP], [RATING] Replace [YOUR SHIP] with the name of the team you belong to. Any way you format it is fine. Replace RATING with the rating of your fill (G - E) Copy/paste/fill out the following form into your comment box. Delete the guidance text that's in parentheses. Make sure you use tags. Here is a BR Template Creator for your convenience if the textarea is confusing. (Please delete all text in parentheses as you go. LEAVE THE HEADER HTML ALONE or the bonus round scoring program can't parse your comment. Don't forget a comment subject!) <strong>Ship:</strong> <strong>Fandom:</strong> <strong>Major Tags:</strong> (https://sportsanime.dreamwidth.org/1609.html, when applicable; otherwise write "None".) <strong>Other Tags:</strong> (anything else that you feel requires tagging; can include jokey tumblr-style tags here; may also pull from the "Additional Tags" list from the URL above, if applicable; otherwise, write "None" here.) <strong>Word Count:</strong> (if applicable; otherwise write "None") (Place any author/artist's notes BEFORE the asterisks. Leave the asterisks alone or you may not get points!) *** (Place your fill here. You can use HTML. FOR NSFW FILLS, please cross-link these fills and use clear tags. Refer to the body of the post above for more information. To place an image in your comment, use this code: <img src="LINK TO YOUR IMAGE" alt="DESCRIPTION OF YOUR IMAGE"/>. Thumbnails only, please; more info @ http://referees.dreamwidth.org/5647.html#images ) NSFW FILLS: Please cross-link these fills and tag them clearly. saso_afterhours is open to all NSFW fills. Written/text fills can be hosted on AO3 or saso_afterhours ONLY. Art/visual fills can be hosted anywhere; you may include a small safe-for-work thumbnail of the fill in your comment.	FILL: TEAM GRANDSTAND, [RATING] Replace RATING with the rating of your fill (G - E) Copy/paste/fill out the following form into your comment box. Delete the guidance text that's in parentheses. Make sure you use tags. Here is a BR Template Creator for your convenience if the textarea is confusing. (Please delete all text in parentheses as you go. LEAVE THE HEADER HTML ALONE or the bonus round scoring program can't parse your comment. Don't forget a comment subject!) <strong>Ship:</strong> <strong>Fandom:</strong> <strong>Major Tags:</strong> (https://sportsanime.dreamwidth.org/1609.html, when applicable; otherwise write "None".) <strong>Other Tags:</strong> (anything else that you feel requires tagging; can include jokey tumblr-style tags here; may also pull from the "Additional Tags" list from the URL above, if applicable; otherwise, write "None" here.) <strong>Word Count:</strong> (if applicable; otherwise write "None") (Place any author/artist's notes BEFORE the asterisks. Leave the asterisks alone or you may not get points!) *** (Place your fill here. You can use HTML. FOR NSFW FILLS, please cross-link these fills and use clear tags. Refer to the body of the post above for more information. To place an image in your comment, use this code: <img src="LINK TO YOUR IMAGE" alt="DESCRIPTION OF YOUR IMAGE"/>. Thumbnails only, please; more info @ http://referees.dreamwidth.org/5647.html#images ) NSFW FILLS: Please cross-link these fills and tag them clearly. saso_afterhours is open to all NSFW fills. Written/text fills can be hosted on AO3 or saso_afterhours ONLY. Art/visual fills can be hosted anywhere; you may include a small safe-for-work thumbnail of the fill in your comment.

Posts not using this format will be understood to be unofficial discussion posts, regardless of what they contain. They, like all comments in this community, are subject to the code of conduct.

If you see anyone breaking the code of conduct (e.g., causing drama, being rude) anywhere (not just DW), please contact the mods immediately.

SCORING

These numbers apply to your team as a whole, not each individual teammate. Make as many prompts/fills as you want!

For prompts: 5 points each (maximum of 50 prompt points per team per round)

For fills:
First 4 fills by any member of your team: 20 points each
Fills 5-10: 15 points each
Fills 11-20: 5 points each
Fills 21-50: 2 points each
Fills 51+: 1 point each

All scored content must be created new for this round.

Etc.

If you're hunting through the prompts looking for what to fill, a good trick is to view top-level comments only (see the line of links below this post).

Have a question? Check The FAQ first. If you still need help, feel free to contact the mods. Happy fanworking!

Comments

PROMPT: Team Grandstand

[umaibo]

Ship: Murasakibara Atsuhi/Himuro Tatsuya
Fandom: Kuroko no Basket
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: This is completely self-indulgent

Prompt:
Knocking On The Mind - Suzumura Kenichi [translation]

Whenever I catch a sight of you
The shimmering air from my past gently disappears into the sky
Warm as a glow, knocking on your mind

FILL: TEAM HIMURO TATSUYA/NIJIMURA SHUUZOU, T

[hatchbacks]

Ship: Murasakibara/Himuro
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Other Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Word Count: 403

***

Spring in Akita isn’t really spring, late winter bleeding forward until all of a sudden summer comes, a point Tatsuya’s not going to get to before he leaves. They’ll be lucky if the trees are budding by the first week in April, if the temperature’s consistently above freezing and they can sit outside and eat their lunch on the benches (rolled up sleeves are probably a little bit much to hope for on top of that, but even so). It kind of sucks, to be honest; those are the best parts of the year here and Tatsuya will be back home, which for him is across the world, moving on to something different (not better, nothing could be better than here).

It sucks a lot, actually, because last year he’d still been moody, messy and less self-assured; he and Atsushi had been skirting the edges of being together, still not comfortable eating food out of each other’s bentos, hooking pinkies together under the bible spread across their laps in chapel, kissing quick in the locker rooms and ducking behind an artificial excuse, fucking in Atsushi’s single dorm room when Tatsuya’s supposed to be working on student council stuff.

They won’t get that tiny slice of coupledom, something that’s probably reserved for the pages of fiction, slender heroes of a shoujo manga with a few inches between them in height or sophisticated novel characters who pretend to be a little bit different but are really just a bucket of clichés. Maybe that’s a bad thing to be, but Atsushi hasn’t gotten much of a chance to find out.

Tatsuya’s leaving soon, and that’s really what sucks, because now he’s calmer and more assured, more fitting of the role of captain now that he’s passed it down to Atsushi (who, to be frank, doesn’t know what to do with it, but Tatsuya and Liu had told him to lead by example and that’s something he can do).

“I like you better now,” Atsushi says, which isn’t all of it, is maybe something Tatsuya could misconstrue (like he’s so good at doing, like he loves to do).

Tatsuya laughs, light and not a gentle fake to pass the ball out of his own court, pulls Atsushi down by his tie (one of the few clichés they’ve been allowed, Atsushi supposes).

“I’m glad,” he says, just before their lips meet, just loud enough for Atsushi to hear.

PROMPT: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[hibari1_chan]

Ship: Aomine Daiki/Kuroko Tetsuya
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: ANGST Teikô times, Kuroko calling up on the Miracles bullshit (maybe Kise as Fernando and Akashi as Roberto ?) and breaking up with Aomine

Prompt:

Alejandro Lady Gaga
I know that we are young and I know that you may love me
but I just can't be with you like this anymore, Aomine Alejandro

Re: PROMPT: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[kazuyas]

im dying

PROMPT: Team Aoyagi Hajime/Teshima Junta

[hapaxlegomenon]

Ship: Arakita/Fukutomi or Teshima/Koga or Izumida/Yuuto
Fandom: Yowamushi Pedal
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: Breakups?

Prompt:
The Story of Us, Taylor Swift

PROMPT: TEAM AKAASHI KEIJI/BOKUTO KOUTAROU

[earlgrey_milktea]

Ship: matsukawa issei/hanamaki takahiro
Fandom: haikyuu
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: AUs or future fics welcome!!

Prompt:
heartbreakers - matt webb

PROMPT: Team Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov

[moetushie]

Ship: Kuroko &/ the Generation of Miracles and/or uroko &/Ogiwara
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: None

Prompt:
Dance Yrself Clean - LCD Soundtrack
Talking like a jerk
Except you are an actual jerk
And living proof that sometimes friends are mean

FILL: TEAM HIMURO TATSUYA/NIJIMURA SHUUZOU, T

[hatchbacks]

Ship: Kuroko&Ogiwara (+Ogiwara&Mochida a bit)
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Other Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Word Count: 449

***

They are monsters; Ogiwara’s heard it all before. He’d heard it when they’d clobbered teams who’d edged out a victory over Meikou, when he’d seen the despair in their eyes. He’d thought they had to be weak, too pessimistic, that if someone took a crack at it, if they had kept going—it had been so stupid; it had been so fucking stupid but he’d lasted the whole game on vain hope, turned at the last second to blind hope. It would have been less cruel to believe it less of a lie, that those five ones weren’t the goal the whole time, that every possession hadn’t been playing into that point guard’s mismatched eyes, glowing like something eerie, a ghost in the machine.

They are worse than ghosts; they are worse than demons; they are a group of complete monsters, not enough humanity to let anyone else get an honest crack. Should they, though? If they’re that much better should they let anyone do anything? But why step on the court at all if none of this shit matters? Why do they do anything? How could Kuroko pretend it was something normal, that this was basketball, the basketball the two of them had shared, honest and straightforward and free?

Maybe it was Kuroko the whole time. If those guys are his friends, the way he’s talked about them over the phone, the way he’s expressed his confidence in them, the fondness in his voice, the same fondness with which Ogiwara’s talked about Kuroko to Mochida. Was it all a lie? Maybe Kuroko’s the biggest monster of all; maybe he’s guilty enough to excuse himself from this game (he was hurt; was he hurt? Was that a lie too?) not to face Ogiwara. Maybe he’d known all alone. Maybe Ogiwara’s a monster, too; maybe it’s by transitivity, association. If he can be blind to such a monster’s faults, if he’s a sucker, isn’t it his fault?

Mochida’s arm curls around him; the bus is still moving and Ogiwara doesn’t get motion sickness but he feels like puking anyway, like the metal walls are closing in around him. He squeezes his eyes shut tighter; how can Mochida stand the sight of him? Strong captain, friend (does he knows he’s friends with a monster, good, kind Mocchi?) and teammate and player, the only one among them who’d kept some semblance of sanity, tight-lipped, his arm glued to Ogiwara’s shoulder, holding him up. Ogiwara sobs, louder, loud enough to drown out his thoughts; it’s the most he can do. It’s the only thing he can do, he himself. No miracle monster is manipulating this part; no miracle monster would care enough.

PROMPT: TEAM AKAASHI KEIJI/BOKUTO KOUTAROU

[earlgrey_milktea]

Ship: viktor nikiforov/katsuki yuuri
Fandom: yuri on ice
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: that sweet sappy love

Prompt:
never change - kimberley chen

PROMPT: Team Himuro Tatsuya/Nijimura Shuuzou

[cherrysalmon]

Ship: Aomine Daiki/Kise Ryouta
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: insects mention

Prompt:
もらい泣き sympathy tears - hitoto yo (translation)

PROMPT: Team Himuro Tatsuya/Nijimura Shuuzou

[cherrysalmon]

Ship: Aomine Daiki/Kuroko Tetsuya OR Aomine Daiki/Kagami Taiga
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: child abuse (please don't fill with this), implied mutilation, implied self harm, violence to teeth/mouth
Other Tags: supernatural elements (?)

Prompt:
六兆年と一夜物語 a tale of six trillion years and a night - wagakki band (translation)

PROMPT: Team Himuro Tatsuya/Nijimura Shuuzou

[cherrysalmon]

Ship: Bokuto/Kuroo
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: angst lol, bait

Prompt:
garden - dir en grey (translation)

Re: PROMPT: Team Himuro Tatsuya/Nijimura Shuuzou

[greenowl]

I love you I mean I know u know this but I do

PROMPT: TEAM BOKUTO KOUTAROU/AKAASHI KEIJI

[gogoshiki]

Ship: Shirabu Kenjirou/Ushijima Wakatoshi OR Semi Eita/Tendou Satori
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: not with the *intention* to be a drive au but do whatever ur heart desires, stz babes

Prompt:
Nightcall - Kavinsky

Re: PROMPT: TEAM BOKUTO KOUTAROU/AKAASHI KEIJI

[helwolves]

duuuuuuude, this song.

PROMPT: TEAM HIKARU NO GO

[princesssid]

Ship: makishima yuusuke & toudou jinpachi & onoda sakamichi & manami sangaku & teshima junta & any other climber
Fandom: yowamushi pedal
Major Tags: mentions of death, implied sexual content (with a mountain)
Other Tags: mountains, climber, a good song, autoplay youtube link

Prompt:
Shatner of the Mount

as long as it's about at least two yowapeda climbers, feel free to mix and match and drop whoever you want

FILL: TEAM PRINCE OF TENNIS, M

[fickle]

Ship: makishima yuusuke & toudou jinpachi & onoda sakamichi & manami sangaku
Fandom: Yowamushi Pedal
Major Tags: tags omitted
Other Tags: tags omitted
Word Count: 449 words

Discussion of sexual content, crack.

***

"This is," Toudou said grandly as he swept his arm through the air, "An ancient climber tradition. It's been passed down from climber to climber, since the very first time that someone took a bike and went up the slopes. It guarantees that you'll never ride off a cliffside or have your breaks give way on an incline."

"Get on it with it before we all freeze to death." Makishima rolled his eyes and took another sip from his flask. Onoda was too innocent to suspect that there might be anything other than water in it but Manami was just a little suspicious of why nobody was being allowed to drink from it except Makishima.

Toudou cut a sideways look at Makishim, eyes narrowing, then laughed and told Manami and Onoda, "He's just eager to get to the good part. You see, this bonding ritual has special significance for him because when it was his turn, he--"

"You have to fuck the mountain," Makishima said bluntly, interrupting Toudou with just a faint flush on his cheeks.

"What?!" Both Onoda and Manami stared at him. The word had come in near-perfect unison, two setes of large blue eyes now goggling at him.

"That's a very crude way to put it, Maki-chan," Toudou pouted as he wrapped an arm around Makishima's waist in apparent total indifference to how Makishima tried to push him off. "It's not at all like that, Mananmi. It's about bonding wih the mountain, experiencing intimacy and --"

"You dig a hole in the dirt, you jack off into it, and then you cover up the hole." Yet again, Makishima cut through all of Toudou's flowery language. Toudou's pout grew even more pronounced.

"Yes, that's the basics of it, but Maki-chan, you have to tell them about the closeness and putting your seed in the same earth that takes the seed of the trees and the flowers and--" Realizing that Manami was already getting back on his bike while Onoda appeared to be frozen with shock, Toudou let go of Makishima so he could make a hasty grab for Manami's arm.

"You're not leaving this mountain until you've bonded with it, Manami. How can you be the King of the Mountain if you don't accept the mountain as your queen? This is your wedding night."

Makishima laughed derisively. "If this is his wedding night, then he's lucky you didn't wait for winter when the mountain would be all white with snow."

Toudou's eyes lit up. "What an excellent idea, Maki-chan! We should do that."

Onoda's already pale face turned even paler, possibly at the thought of getting a frostbitten dick.

Sympathetically, Makishima offered Onoda a sip from his flask.

PROMPT: Team Imaizumi Shunsuke/Sugimoto Terufumi

[grannypix]

Ship: Urakubo Yuusaku/Niwazuma Shigenori
Fandom: Yowamushi Pedal
Major Tags: drug/alcohol mention
Other Tags: this joke might be a long shot but well. i made myself laugh at least

Prompt:
Fins - Jimmy Buffett
Pencil Thin Mustache - Jimmy Buffett
Son of a Son of a Sailor - Jimmy Buffett

FILL: TEAM GRANDSTAND, [G]

[jaegervega]

Ship: Urakubo Yuusaku/Niwazuma Shigenori
Fandom: Yowamushi Pedal
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: i gotcha fam, the joke is real


***

Prompt: Team Prince of Tennis

[nobetterpicture]

Ship: Fuji Shuusuke/Niou Masaharu
Fandom: Prince of Tennis
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: None

Prompt:
Furukawa Yuuta & Nakagauchi Masataka - Nice To Walk On My Way


finger guns

FILL: Team Imaizumi Shunsuke/Kinjou Shingo, G

[yrindor]

Ship: Fuji Shuusuke/Niou Masaharu
Fandom: Prince of Tennis
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: none
Word Count: 515

Should the ship be Furukawa Shuusuke/Niou Masataka? Even I'm not even sure anymore.

***

The first time Fuji saw the other dancer, he wasn't sure what to make of him. He was dancing on a street corner, seemingly oblivious to the stares he was drawing. He had a unmistakable degree of talent, sure, but Fuji had no idea what to make of his style. It was...ecclectic...to say the least. Fuji wasn't even sure where to start picking it apart; from what he saw, it had a little bit of everything it, but without refinement in any of it. But the one thing it definitely did have, and something that Fuji had often been told he was lacking, was passion. Fuji was fairly certain that the dancer could fall flat on his face and still make it look intentional, and still smile as he did so. Meanwhile, Fuji was more likely to beat himself up over every little mistake.

It had only been a passing meeting, but Fuji caught himself thinking more than once about the other dancer. But he never expected that when he arrived at his next audition, the stranger would already be warming up in the hallway. He set down his bag and tried not to be too distracted, but it was difficult as the dancer himself around in an acrobatic warmup Fuji knew he could never manage. He worked through his basics, but as he went through his splits, he noticed he had company. He didn't want to be the first to say something, not trusting his nerves not to come to false assumptions, but he was fairly certain that the other dancer was copying him. But maybe it was just nerves getting the best of him. Maybe this strangers warmups were just as much of a strange hybrid as his dancing.

Watching him in the studio, Fuji still wasn't sure what to think. The other dancer drew attention to himself in ways Fuji didn't necessarily admire, but it was also hard to ignore the talent, and what was clearly good training, even if Fuji had no idea what to make of his style. After Fuji nearly lost his place in a combination as a result of watching, he shoved all of those thoughts to the back of his mind, determined not to think about them until later. Much later, if he had his way.

The much later ended up coming far sooner than he was prepared for. He received his acceptance letter in the mail with his casting a few weeks after the audition, and rehearsals began not long after that. He nearly ran into another dancer walking into the studio, and even from the back, he recognized the dancer who had caught his attention before.

The dancer turned to him.

"Niou Masaharu," he said. "It's probably about time we were introduced properly if we're going to be dancing together and all."

"Fuji Shuusuke," Fuji said, hoping his sudden case of nerves didn't show too badly. He'd never been good with people, preferring to express himself with dance rather than words. He still didn't know how to understand the language of Niou's dance.

PROMPT: TEAM SAWAMURA DAICHI/SUGAWARA KOUSHI

[dokuhan]

Ship: Sawamura Eijun/Miyuki Kazuya
Fandom: Daiya no A
Major Tags: Death mention in one of the songs
Other Tags: None

Prompt:
Remember (To Forget You) - We Are the In Crowd
Beck and Call - Sundressed
The Deepest Well - Yellowcard
Go to Hell - Go Radio

PROMPT: Team Imaizumi Shunsuke/Kinjou Shingo

[yrindor]

Ship: Haru/Kazu OR Daiki/Reo
Fandom: Cheer Danshi, Dansui
Major Tags: flashing images
Other Tags: link autoplays

Prompt:
"Knock Knock", TWICE

FILL: TEAM PRINCE OF TENNIS, G

[nobetterpicture]

Ship: Fujikawa Reo/Shinozuka Daiki, side Sakaki Shuuhei/Taira Mitsuki
Fandom: Dansui!
Major tags: none
Other tags: excessive pining, Taira Mitsuki
Word count: 2184

(waves hand) SWIM BOYS....

***

Three years after the fact, they’re back at the same school.

When Mitsuki passes on the information that there’s another swimmer besides them that received a scholarship, Reo half expects it to be Shuuhei. His friend has improved his backstroke so much, as Mitsuki often likes to inform him about, that he wouldn’t be surprised if he got scouted when he took first in the 100 meter backstroke at their last Interhigh.

“No, silly. Sakaki is going somewhere else. It sucks.” There’s a pout on Mitsuki’s face and it brings a slight smile to Reo’s face.

“When are you finally going to ask him out on a date, huh? And I don’t mean another race to see who’s the fastest because I think that you both are old enough to realize it’s not just the tension of rivalry between the two of you.” Reo opens another textbook, trying to prepare for end of the year exams.

“Ah, but that would suck out all the fun, Reo!! And Sakaki blushes so cutely…” Mitsuki giggles to himself and it makes Reo wonder about his friend. Sure, all swimmers tend to be a little odd, swimming thousands of laps back and forth every day in the same pool did that to you, but Taira Mitsuki was special in his own right.

“Oh, back to my point! Since you guessed wrong about our new mystery teammate, I guess I’ll just tell you.”

Reo looks up from his book just in time to see the curling smirk on Mitsuki’s face.

“It’s Shinozuka Daiki.”

--

Reo has been through a lot in his life. Swimming blocks, heartbreak, school stress, he’s been through it all and survived mostly unscathed. He’s made his peace with Shuuhei and Daiki about what happened in middle school and while it’s not the close friendship that they had before, it’s something. They meet up every now and then and practice together. He looks forward to the emails he gets from Shuuhei once or twice a week. And Daiki...well.

The door stands in front of him, Shinozuka Daiki mocking him on the side name plate.

They are friends. He’s hung out with Shuuhei and Daiki a few times over the past year or so, more often than not together with their teams after a joint practice, but still together. He’s had multiple conversations with Daiki about the current drama they are obsessed with or the newest breakthrough in tech suit technology or whatever popped to mind when they were together.

But they are also rivals. Since that first time that Reo touched Daiki out, they’ve traded wins like a flip of a coin. Reo wins, then Daiki wins. Daiki wins again and then Reo wins three in a row. There’s something electric in the water every time they race that pushes Reo to his limits and beyond. He feels the need to go faster, to push more, just a few more meters, just one more stroke.

Swimming against Daiki always leaves Reo’s heart racing faster afterwards than any other event he swims and he knows it’s not from the physical aspects of racing. Sometimes, it hurts. Sometimes, when Daiki wins, he feels so full, like Daiki is finally where he should be, at the level he should have always been, in the lane next to Reo and now, being at the same school, on the same team

The door stays there, solid and unmoving. Sighing, Reo turns away and decides to try again later.

--

This goes on for a week straight. Reo stands in front of Daiki’s dorm room every night, hand raised, but eventually giving up. They don’t live on the same floor, but Mitsuki does and Reo ends up in his room more often than not and dozes off to the drone of his friend’s voice talking about backstroke techniques over the phone with Shuuhei. It’s only first year orientation, so they haven’t had any swim practices yet, meaning there was no reason that they had to see each other just yet.

He’s seen glimpses of him in the hallway and there’s no way that with Mitsuki sticking to Daiki like glue that Daiki doesn’t know he’s here. But Daiki doesn’t contact him and Reo still can’t knock on his door.

It’s stupid, they’re friends, but Reo can’t process the fact that they are finally back on the same side, that they can cheer for their teammate, for Mitsuki, together and maybe even swim in a relay together and simply the word together makes his throat close up and his mouth go dry.

The pool’s open, so just like high school, Reo goes back to his old habit of swimming out his problems. The university pool is so much nicer than Ryuuhou. The water is clear and cool, easily sliding over his body with each stroke. He’s never had a problem with the water, never had to fight against it. His battles always were with others. With himself.

By the time he stops and actually looks up at the clock, it’s two hours later and the pool is empty besides him for once. The lifeguard yawns on the stand and feeling guilty, he hops out, muttering a quick “thanks” before collecting his equipment and water bottle.

When he stands up again, tugging his bag shut while also stretching his neck, there’s Daiki. He’s staring out at the pool, arm crossed above his head in a stretch. He’s gained more muscle, Reo realizes, not having seen him in his suit for a while and he grips his water bottle. Daiki’s always been strong, always been taller, but Reo has less to pull, less to drag, and that’s where they balance each other out.

“Hey.” Daiki says, dropping the stretch to wave.

“Hey.”

“You finished?”

“Yeah.”

Daiki nods and turns back to the pool. His dive, even from the deck, is as nice as ever and his freestyle has gotten a lot better. He swims straight down the center, head down, arms stretching and pulling him forward and Reo feels a bit of jealousy. The Kawasaki effect is clear and he’s tempted to call up Ichitora senpai or even Nishina senpai and asks for some tips of his own.

Reo stops that thought and cringes because here he is, already measuring himself up next to Daiki, already looking for ways to beat him, to be better, when he should be stopping Daiki and talking to him about swimming...and other things. Instead, he turns away from where Daiki is in the pool and uses his tuition money well by standing under the hot shower for longer than he should. He debates waiting in the locker room, but the silence is too much and considering that Daiki only said all of three words to him before getting in the pool, Reo doesn’t even know if he wants to talk.

He leaves for his dorm room and completely misses the questioning “Reo?” echoing through the locker rooms just after the door shuts behind him.

-

A few days go by and Reo avoids the pool. He ends up haunting Mitsuki’s room more often than not until he’s kicked out for interrupting his call time with Shuuhei again.
“Go make friends.” Mitsuki says, throwing Reo’s bag at him. “Or talk to Daiki. You are friends, right? Maybe you should take your own advice and ask him on a date because there’s obviously more than just rival-based tension between you”

With that, Mitsuki shuts the door in his friend’s face. Reo sighs, not even having a and heads back to his own room. There’s an email from Shuuhei waiting for him to reply to but since he asked about Reo and Daiki were doing, he’s been putting it off.

He debates the odds of asking Shuuhei about Daiki, admitting to the awkwardness and if he would have any tips for Reo about approaching Daiki. Or if he could possibly share anything and everything about Daiki. He wishes, for a moment as he walks up the steps, that there still wasn’t a gap between them. They might have gotten over everything, apologized and talked things out, but there are still so many things that have changed between them and Reo isn’t sure how to act. Mitsuki often tells him he stresses out too much and needs to stop living in his head and act on things, but that is so much easier to say than do.

The sight of Daiki knocking on his door, hair wet and dressed like he just came from practicing, is pretty much the last thing he’s expecting to see.

“Reo?” Two knocks. “Reo, please open up.” Three more knocks.

“Um.” Reo takes a few steps closer. “Daiki. I’m right here.”

Daiki pauses mid-knock. He looks at Reo, then at the door, then back at Reo and it’s hard not the laugh at the slight confusion on Daiki’s face despite everything. It brings Reo back to the days that Shuuhei and Reo would tease Daiki sometimes with riddles, just to see the wrinkle in his forehead. Shuuhei called it cute and Reo never disagreed.

When he finishes laughing, Daiki’s now leaning against his door, arms crossed and smiling at him. “It’s nice to see you laughing so freely again. And at me, for that matter.”

“Sorry, sorry.” Reo takes a deep breath, fully calming down. “I didn’t mean it. You just surprised me.”

“I’m sure.”

Daiki’s looking at him a little expectantly and Reo knows that it’s now or never. So he acts.

“Did you want to come in? You were knocking on my door, so-”

“I wanted to talk with you, if that’s okay.” Daiki says, moving away from the door. “You didn’t wait the other night at the pool and Taira said that you’ve been standing outside my door for over a week, I figured that I would just come to you when you wouldn’t meet me halfway.”
Oh. He might have to kill Taira. And maybe set him up with Shuuhei officially. “Oh, well. Yeah, come on in.”

-



They talk for a while and then order food and then talk some more. But it’s good.

Reo feels so much lighter just to get out his feelings about how happy he is that they’ve finally reached this point together. They’re sitting on the floor, leaning against each other, and now that they’ve gotten so much out, Reo can’t seem to stop talking.

“It’s not a knock on Shuu, but the dream I had for Ryuuhou was to always be swimming with you. We’re both butterfliers and used to push each other in practice and until I was crushed by a different senpai, it was hard chasing your ghost. I didn’t know how fast you were anymore and then we never crossed paths our first year and that-” He stops and picks at a napkin. “At some point, it wasn’t about swimming but more about you. I was hurt. And I wanted you to know that.”

“I’m sorry.” Daiki’s hand is warm on his knee and Reo avoids eye contact because this is how Daiki has always been.

He’s always been supportive, even more so than Shuuhei, and he remembers that night that Daiki had dragged Shuuhei to track him down. He remembers Daiki approaching after that first race, to shake hands and congratulate, or the time that he invited Reo after a joint practice and introduced him to the rest of the Higashi team or even that training weekend they did last Christmas with Mitsuki and Shuuhei. Daiki has done nothing but reach out for him after apologizing and Reo has still been the one stepping back.

“No, I’m sorry for still being stuck on this. After everything you’ve done to reach out to me, I’m...really happy that we’re going to be on a team again. I think that this is a great chance for both of us as swimmers.” And while that’s all true, it’s not quite right.

He’d said it before, this isn’t about swimming. The pool has no room for awkwardness when it’s just you, the water, and the clock. This is about them. This is about Reo and Daiki.

“Also.” Reo finally looks over at him. “A good chance for us, Daiki. Outside of the pool.”

Daiki’s hand gently squeezes his knee. “You know, I didn’t realize that I still had a chance until I was cornered by a certain someone about my relationship with Shuu. I’ve been waiting for you because I broke your heart once and I don’t ever want to do it again.”

“Don’t leave.” Reo covers Daiki’s hand with his own. “Just...don’t leave.”
Daiki laces their fingers together. “Okay.”

“Okay.”

It’s nice. Daiki’s hand is warm and it’s easy to let his head drop on on Daiki’s shoulder. Reo could easily fall asleep like this, but Daiki speaks up again.

“So, about Taira and Shuu…”

Reo laughs, pressing his smile into Daiki’s neck. “I know right. Pass me my phone? We have our own meddling to do.”

PROMPT: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[mondegreened]

Ship: Midousuji Akira/Imaizumi Shunsuke OR Midousuji Akira/Naruko Shoukichi
Fandom: Yowamushi Pedal
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: [softly] did someone say cyberpunk

Prompt:
Professional Griefers - Deadmau5 feat. Gerard Way

PROMPT: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[antler_action]

Ship: Kongou Agon &/ Kongou Unsui
Fandom: Eyeshield 21
Major Tags: Incest
Other Tags: incest warning only applies if you want to take it there, / or & are both fine
Prompt:
Hoop + Wire - Boy Eats Drum Machine (lyrics)

Fill: team kuramochi youichi/miyuki kazuya, G

[starrwinter]

Ship: Kominato Ryousuke/Kuramochi Youichi
Fandom: Daiya no Ace
Major tags: None
Other tags: None
Word count: 533

I can never escape from Kuramochi always chasing, and Ryousuke (eventually) giving in.

***

It bothered Youichi far more than he would like to admit when Ryousuke was ignoring him at the bar, the pink-haired bartender setting down his usual with a wink before moving around the rest of the bar with ease.

A wink aimed at a pretty brunette in the corner before she smiled back flirtatiously, her gin and tonic appearing in the blink of an eye before she handed him far too much money and told him to keep the rest as a tip.

His attention next grabbed by a gorgeous blond man, obviously flirting to try and get himself an extra shot in his drink. Ryousuke doing his best to hide a grimace before filling the drink with far too much ice and soda in vengeance before handing it over with a smack on the bar top – fingers lingering on top of Ryousuke’s unwillingly.

It made Youichi’s heart twist more than a little in his chest. Memories of endless rainy nights spent staring out his front window, watching as neighbours dashed from their doors to cars and back again trying desperately to avoid the rain – all except for one pink-haired fool who would only walk slowly, face upturned into the spray with a keen smile on his face.

Made him think of the endless attempts to make conversation in passing on the street, once he actually found out the man worked only down the street from their apartments. Youichi spending far too much time at his own job distracted before facing numerous consequences.

“Kuramochi! If you burn a side dish one more time tonight, you're going to spend the rest of it cleaning instead of cooking – understood?” His head chef threatening before turning back towards the stove top in a huff.

I can't continue on like this… need to put up or shut up before I end up doing something far worse, like burning up the kitchen perhaps…

This was the main reason why he was here, one pink-haired, overly appearing to be flirty, yet seemingly one of the hardest individuals Youichi had ever tried to talk to in his life. He had no issues talking to everyone from his friends, to co-workers, to cute girls who sometimes hit on him at the bar… but nothing hit him so brutally hard as Ryousuke’s steely gaze.

A gaze he missed following him outside as he escaped the crowd of people, Youichi pulling out a smoke from the pack in his pocket before lighting up in the chilly air.

“Better watch out – that will be the death you.” That whispered voice chilling Youichi straight to the bone, causing him to momentarily pause his inhale – lungs burning with the effort of holding still instead of exhaling the poison coiling in his lungs.

“Maybe that's exactly what I'm looking for-“

Shocked to silence by his own admission, by the way Ryousuke only leaned closer to breathe the same air. Slim fingers grabbing away the cigarette in Youichi’s fingers, a set of pouted lips taking a slow breath on the rapidly dying cigarette – the way the burn only spread deeper as Youichi felt just how plush those lips were against his own.

PROMPT: TEAM BOKUTO KOUTAROU/AKAASHI KEIJI

[gogoshiki]

Ship: Bokuto Koutarou /& Kuroo Tetsurou
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: The yt comments are depressing actually this is a mistake, but my bokuroo tenacious d agenda, the word 'dude' x100

Prompt:
Dude (I Totally Miss You) - Tenacious D

PROMPT: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[antler_action]

Ship: Kongou Agon/Kongou Unsui
Fandom: Eyeshield 21
Major Tags: Incest, Sexual content (lyrics)
Other Tags: violent imagery in lyrics (mentions of addiction, cancer, drug use, hanging); it's 90s-00s alt rock/grunge angst time, my es21 icon is too pure to use for this prompt

Prompt:
Ugly - The Exies
Inside Out - Eve 6
Bad Sun (Moon version) - The Bravery

Prompt: Team Daiya no Ace

[greenowl]

Ship: Alexandra Garcia/Momoi Satsuki
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: none

Prompt:
brilliant disguise - Bruce Springsteen

FILL: TEAM HIMURO TATSUYA/NIJIMURA SHUUZOU, T

[hatchbacks]

Ship: Alex/Momoi
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Other Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Word Count: 409

***

What’s someone young and vibrant as Satsuki doing with someone like Alex? It’s not a question she likes to ask herself, maybe because of the way it reflects on her but mostly because of the way even asking reflects on Satsuki, like she doesn’t know what she’s doing. Satsuki’s young and vibrant; she’s got the world in her hands (Alex remembers feeling that way, well enough to recognize it in Satsuki’s eyes even without glasses, to feel it in her touch and hear it in her voice). Everything is within her reach, and instead of staring out at possibilities she’s pulling them all in; Satsuki knows exactly what she’s doing (and Alex, back then, really hadn’t; maybe that’s why the half-mess she is now, gathering what she can, appeals to Satsuki, not as a lesson but as someone who knows).

Maybe Alex should stop thinking about why, stop overanalyzing. She’s never been one for that kind of thing; she’s never needed to dwell so much on reasons, something underlying something good. If it falls away, she can live in the moment, suspended in the air before gravity gets the better of her and pulls her back down and away. If she worries too much this will dissipate in her hands as she grabs at it, dry ice melting into air under her fingertips. And this won’t fall away if they focus on it, sustain it. And Alex wants to; she can build on her failures, Satsuki on her own (fail early, fail often, so they don’t know you fail at all by the time you rise up; it’s easier said than done).

Her hair glows on the pillow, bright pink against bright white; it always feels redundant to say she’s gorgeous but Satsuki deserves to be told every second (almost as much as she deserves to be told her accomplishments, the things she knows about herself better than Alex does, the things she’s already proud of). Alex wants to steal some of that glow for herself, wrap herself in all of Satsuki’s glow when she pulls Satsuki in for a kiss, steal it when she steals her breath. But that’s impossible; Satsuki glows too much; Satsuki’s too smart to let Alex take it. She’s too much but enough all at once, the way she looks at Alex sometimes like Alex is the one who amazes her (and, well, Alex would like to think she’s pretty cool—but still).

Prompt: Team Daiya no Ace

[greenowl]

Ship: Aomine Daiki/Himuro Tatsuya or Nijimura Shuuzou/Himuro Tatsuya or ot3 :3,
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: none

Prompt:
倩女幽魂—张国荣 - Chinese ghost story soundtrack

FILL: TEAM HIMURO TATSUYA/NIJIMURA SHUUZOU, T

[hatchbacks]

Ship: Nijimura/Aomine/Himuro, Nijimura/Aomine
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Other Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Word Count: 601

***

Daiki doesn’t see him at first, as if he’d come in all of a sudden, a striking person in the hotel lobby, dark hair and curled lip and sparks in his eyes.

“Hey,” says Daiki.

“Hey,” says the other person; his voice is rough and captivating, like a sharp wind through the forest.

Maybe Daiki’s supposed to be there for business purposes only, but that doesn’t mean he can’t invite a gorgeous stranger back to his room for some fun. The thought crosses his mind that the man—Shuuzou, he says—might have no room of his own, anywhere to stay; he might just be a cheap leech. But if Shuuzou’s using him for that, it’s a worthy price to pay for how good he feels, the sweet sound of his voice as he groans, the taste of his tongue, something earthy in Daiki’s mouth. He wants already; he wants more.

“Stay,” he whispers, after they’ve cleaned up and Shuuzou seems to be preparing to leave.

“I can’t,” says Shuuzou. “But thank you for this.”

If it’s not for the room, if he’s not in this hotel, then what is it for? Daiki falls asleep before he reaches anything like a conclusion.

In the morning he’s drinking coffee in the hotel restaurant, thinking about Shuuzou still. At the next table, they’re talking about local ghosts, spirits, forest creatures. That’s silly; Daiki’s spent so much time outdoors already and he’s never seen one; they’re just legends, myths, things that don’t exist no matter how fun it is to believe in them.

Shuuzou smells like fresh flowers when he comes by that night, and Daiki has to ask.

“Are you a spirit?”

Shuuzou grins that cute crooked grin of his. “You could say that. I prefer the term ‘ghost’, though.”

“Ghost," says Daiki. “But you’re solid.”

“I belong to a tree spirit. It’s part of my contract.”

“Oh,” says Daiki. “Is not staying in the contract, too?”

Shuuzou nods. “It’s okay. He’s good to me. I protect him; he gives me a body; that kind of thing.”

Daiki looks at Shuuzou in the light, dim this far from the open bathroom door. He looks so solid; he is so solid; his body’s too flawed in the right ways to be unreal.

“Take me to him,” says Daiki.

(It’s an impulse; what’s he going to do if he buys Shuuzou’s contract? He can’t own a person, ghost or no; he can’t give Shuuzou a body. He barely knows him, even if he likes what he’s seen so far; that’s just two nights and barely a scratch on the surface. But if he can trade something—don’t make deals with spirits, a voice in his head that sounds like Satsuki’s says—to get Shuuzou for a whole night, then. Maybe it’ll be worth it.)

The tree spirit is beautiful, wooden lips shapely, boughs and leaves covering half his face, one knot-eye peering through, piercing Daiki all the way to the other side.

“You want him.”

Yeah, Daiki does, but he wants the tree spirit, too, those long branches, the honey-sweet smell of bark, the rough skin of his roots, that face, as if carved from the trunk.

“I see,” says the tree spirit, voice almost laughing.

He reaches out a branch, twigs touching at Daiki’s face, brushing over his skin, a light scratching. Daiki looks over to Shuuzou, and Shuuzou looks like he’s starting to smile. Maybe they can all share; maybe they can all be like this.

“Please,” says the tree. “Stay with us tonight.”

It’s an invitation Daiki wouldn’t ever refuse.

PROMPT: TEAM KANZAKI MIKI/MIYAHARA

[qingtian]

Ship: Bokuto Koutarou /& Kuroo Tetsurou || Tanaka Ryuunosuke /& Nishinoya Yuu || Azumane Asahi /& Nishinoya Yuu || Nishinoya Yuu /& Tanaka Ryuunosuke /& Azumane Asahi || Nishinoya Yuu /& Tanaka Ryuunosuke /& Azumane Asahi /& Sugawara Koushi || (mix all them up however you like tbh)
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: surreal imagery, this one's for all the ones who turn into fucking pineapples out there

Prompt:

1. PIKO-TARO - PPAP


2. Glass Animals - Pork Soda


3. Spongebob Squarepants - Theme Song

FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu, G

[flippinflakes]

Ship: Nishinoya Yuu & Tanaka Ryuunosuke & Azumane Asahi & Sugawara Koushi
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: Pen Pineapple Apple Pen, Probably the memeist thing ive ever done
Word Count: None

Since both Asahi's and Suga's stageplay actors have performed this

***



Full size here

PROMPT: TEAM THE PRINCE OF TENNIS

[fickle]

Ship: Aomine/Kuroko, Akashi/Kuroko
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: TAGS OMITTED
Other Tags: nittle grasper!!!
Prompt:

Sleepless Beauty by Nittle Grasperlyrics
Even now, wherever the light can't shine through
We shall paint a brilliant dancing dream
So that the words that guide you do not fail
don't fear the time of change

Re: PROMPT: TEAM THE PRINCE OF TENNIS

[umaibo]

oh mY GOD it's been 84 years since I've heard this song

PROMPT: Team Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu

[flippinflakes]

Ship: Aone Takonobu/Sugawara Koushi OR Aone Takonobu/Azumane Asahi OR Yukihira Souma/Aldini Takumi
Fandom: Haikyuu!! OR Shokugeki no Souma
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: when will marsh stop prompting fun. songs, when i die thats when

Prompt:
Light a Roman Candle with Me by FUN.

"At least we would know that the sparks didn't glow,
We owe it to ourselves to aim and ignite"