Bonus Round 4: Quotes

[referees]

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

An oldie but a goodie—in this round, we draw inspiration from famous words said by other people.

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

RULES

• Submit prompts by commenting to this post with a quote attributed to a specific person or character, along with any ship/ot3/etc. from one of our nominated fandoms.
  • Example: "That which does not kill us makes us stronger." -Friedrich Nietzsche
  • The quote can come from almost anything—famous people, poetry, songs, books, movies, etc.— but please don't quote personal conversations you've had or overheard.
  • Your prompt MUST include some kind of relationship. Platonic relationships are indicated by an "&" between the names (e.g., Natsuo & Yuzuko). Non-platonic relationships use "/" (e.g., Natsuo/Yuzuko). Please don't say "Any pairing," either!
• Fill prompts by replying to the prompt with your quote-inspired fanwork.
• 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>	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 Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu

[tehngo]

Ship: Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: please let me have supportive nishinoya (cries)

Prompt:

"And now that you don't have to be perfect, you can be good."

—John Steinbeck, East of Eden

Re: FILL: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[mousapelli]

oh man this is SO CUTE. I love poor non-party Daichi and actually studying Oikawa, and yeah, the two of them together in university times is pretty excellent. I'm pretty glad you picked this pairing.

Thanks for filling!

PROMPT: Team Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu

[tehngo]

Ship: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru or Kageyama Tobio/&Hinata Shoyo
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: none

Prompt:

"It frightened him to think what must have gone to the making of her eyes."

—Edith Wharton, The Age of Innocence

PROMPT: Team Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu

[tehngo]

Ship: Kuroo Tetsurou/Tsukishima Kei or Kuroo Tetsurou/Kozume Kenma
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: none

Prompt:

I would like to be the air / that inhabits you for a moment / only. I would like to be that unnoticed / & that necessary

'Variation on the Word Sleep', Margaret Atwood

PROMPT: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[ellipsometry]

Ship: kyoutani kentarou/yahaba shigeru
Fandom: haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: the context of this quote is ~political~ but also it's just good

Prompt:
"how do i feel? i feel like a dog in an alley. i need love but i will bite you."
- jon lovett

PROMPT: Team Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu

[tehngo]

Ship: Kuroo Tetsurou/&Bokuto Koutaro or Ryuunosuke Tanaka/&Nishinoya Yuu
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: implied sexual context?

Prompt:

they speak whatever’s on their mind / they do whatever’s in their pants / the boys i mean are not refined / they shake the mountains when they dance

'the boys i mean are not refined', E. E. Cummings

FILL: team akaashi keiji/bokuto koutarou, [G]

[earlgrey_milktea]

Ship: kise ryouta/kuroko tetsuya
Fandom: kuroko no basket
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: poetry fill, storm imagery
Word Count: 39 lines

kuroko is my favourite contemporary painting

***

you find him sitting on the window-seat
one morning, mug of tea (still steaming), forgotten
beside his sock-clad feet as he stares
out at the misty grey.
he looks so quiet
that you find yourself frozen, caught
in the way his pale hair looks almost silver
in the way his sweater (one of yours) hangs off his thin shoulders
in the way his eyes seem so far away from here
he looks so quiet
that you find yourself quiet, too.
“looks like rain,” you say.
he hums, and for a moment you’re afraid
that he might be too far away
for you to tug back, this time.
“a storm is coming,” kuroko says, voice muted slow.
he turns his head towards you, finally, and
even after all these extra years you’ve had
to finally learn, to really learn, what each slight shift
of kuroko’s expression means, you still find yourself startled
by those endless blue eyes
and how much they can speak to you
without uttering a single sound
and how easily they sink into you
until you’re certain you will drown—
“are you scared?” you say, just to break the quiet.
kuroko shakes his head no.
but i am, you don’t say.
i’m scared because you’re so quiet
i forget there’s a storm inside of you
and i’m so scared i might lose you
before the rain stops.
“ryouta,” he says, and you find early morning skies
in the blue of his eyes, as he reaches out
and slips his fingers through your own.
“ryouta,” he says, voice soft, “it’s okay.
let’s weather this storm
together.”
(and just as quietly, you agree.)

FILL: TEAM PRINCE OF TENNIS, E

[multilinear]

Ship: silver pair
Fandom: prince of tennis
Major Tags: underage, sexual content, brief description of violence
Other Tags: lapslock
Word Count: 2510w give or take


***

linked here

Re: PROMPT: Team Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi

[soveryaverageme]

Ahhh!! I love this quote, someone used in a presentation I was at and I scribbled it down so I could prompt it!!

FILL: TEAM GRANDSTAND, T

[ellipsometry]

Ship: kuroo tetsurou/daishou suguru
Fandom: haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: quick alcohol mention, me name-dropping my username in my own fic
Word Count: ~1.4k


***

Kuroo Tetsurou should be the most sought-after lab partner in Tokai University’s “Introduction to Organic Chemistry” class, Daishou thinks. Should being the operative word.

In class, Kuroo is an outstanding student – he always knows the right answer, to the point where he can’t help but blurt it out before the other students can even think. His lab etiquette is impeccable; his grades are so good he consistently throws of the curve; he annotates and color-codes his lab reports for maximum readability; he owns a collection of sweater vests that would be impressive if it weren’t so goddamn sad.

That last point doesn’t really have much to do with Kuroo’s intelligence, but it is one of the many quirks that Daishou’s taken notice of, penned down in his mental notepad under the title Annoying Yet Somehow Endearing Things About Kuroo Tetsurou.

Someone as obviously knowledgeable as Kuroo should have other students clamoring to partner with him on labs and research projects. And yet, no one wants to take the bait. Maybe they’re worried about looking incompetent, maybe they know something that Daishou doesn’t. He gets it; Daishou has never been one to trust anyone who comes across so squeaky-clean. There must be something Kuroo is hiding.

Whatever it is, Daishou is about to find out.

“Hey partner,” Kuroo leers, approaching Daishou after class, “We haven’t actually worked together yet, have we?”

“No,” Daishou says, tone clipped, “But I’m in your care.”

They make plans to meet up on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the library for the three weeks leading up to their presentation. And it doesn’t take long at all for Daishou to discover just what it is about Kuroo Tetsurou that makes him so unappealing as a lab partner. Instead of taking on the bulk of the work, like Daishou expected a star student like Kuroo to do, he ends up elevating the original premise of the project to a ridiculous level, leaving Daishou with double the work he had anticipated.

“Ah, this stuff is a bit over my head,” Daishou says, all fake flattery, “Why don’t you handle that, and I’ll compile all the stats and graphs?”

It’s a strategy he’s used time and again with other nerds in other classes, but Kuroo doesn’t look like he’s going to bite. Far from it: instead, Kuroo smiles, slow and wide, and slides a piece of graph paper across the table toward Daishou.

“Let’s do this instead, alright?” he says, before slinging his messenger bag across his shoulder and taking his leave.

Daishou looks down at the paper and feels his blood boil.

NICE FUCKING TRY

+

You: Hey
You: Do you know anything about a guy named Kuroo Tetsurou?
Mika-chan: kuroo? i kinda know him
Mika-chan: he's handsome
You: Yeah I have eyes, thanks
Mika-chan: lol
Mika-chan: why, are u interested??
You: -_-
You: Just curious, I guess. He’s annoying
Mika-chan: ahaha well so are u :p
Mika-chan: but i'll let u know if i dig anything up
You: Rude and also thank you

+

It’s still strange, texting Mika, even though it’s been nearly a year since they broke up. But Daishou is desperate for some semblance of sanity as his meetups with Kuroo become more frequent and increasingly exasperating.

Kuroo, despite looking for the most part like he’s preparing for the part of Delinquent #4 on some J-Drama, is a complete nerd through and through, rattling off facts and figures as easily as he breathes. He talks so much that Daishou can hardly keep up, even if he’s no slouch when it comes to the subject matter. They exchange numbers for project planning purposes, and Kuroo immediately takes to messaging Daishou weird, niche chemistry memes. Daishou isn’t sure what’s he angrier about: the corny memes or the fact that he can hardly understand them.

The only bit of information Mika manages to find out about Kuroo – apparently he has a MEGA scholarship. might be why he’s so hardcord abt everything – only makes Daishou feel bad for complaining about Kuroo’s constant tangents. Maybe he should humor him, if only just a little bit.

“Honestly, it’s a pretty simple concept but people get a bit hung up on reflection versus refraction, which is kind of silly when you think about it, right?”

“Uh huh,” Daishou deadpans. He’s started just letting Kuroo talk, words washing over him like waves. It might be calming, if Kuroo’s voice wasn’t so god damn grating.

On the day of their final meeting, they put the finishing touches on their project, and Daishou silently thanks the gods that his ordeal is finally over.

Well, he thanks them verbally as well, “Thank the gods I don’t have to fucking listen to you anymore.”

“Aw, you’ll miss me, Daishou-kun!” Kuroo says, pinching Daishou’s cheek hard, “You wanna get some food to celebrate?”

No fucking way, is what Daishou wants to say. Why, when he’s so close to finally getting rid of this guy, would he voluntarily go out to eat with Kuroo? He would have to be absolutely insane to subject himself to more of this torture.

Nevertheless, what Daishou finds himself saying is, “Whatever. You’re paying.”

They get some takeout at a Chinese place a block from campus, then lug it back to Kuroo’s dorm room. I don’t have a roommate, Kuroo had said, and Daishou had just nodded, mentally trying to unravel what kind of implications that statement came with. Was this a date? Were they about to fuck? Would Kuroo shout chemical structure names when he came? What is the scientific name for jizz?

“You look like you’re about to pass out, your face is all red,” Kuroo notes, as they unpack the food, dumping it onto some paper plates Kuroo’s managed to unearth from somewhere in his room.

Daishou doesn’t respond; he doesn’t have to. Kuroo just shrugs and continues talking, something about his favorite kind of alkane. I’m really partial to undecane, he says, without a hint of irony. Daishou takes the time to steal bits of meat from Kuroo’s plate.

It’s in the middle of a rant about spectroscopic ellipsometry that Daishou finally cuts Kuroo off.

“Don’t you have… you know, friends you can talk to?”

“Sure,” Kuroo shrugs, “But I don’t wanna bore them with this stuff, they don’t give a shit about ellipsometry or what the fuck ever.”

“So, you’re just gonna bore me with this shit instead.”

“Sure,” Kuroo grins, a slice of white across his face, “I actually care about keeping them around. You, not so much.”

“Clearly, which is why you’ve bought me food and invited me back to your dorm room.” Daishou says, and Kuroo flushes. Daishou feels a rush of satisfaction at finally – finally – having the upper hand.

“You sure think a lot of yourself,” Kuroo says, finally, “Maybe I just like talking.”

“I don’t doubt that,” Daishou says, rolling his eyes, “I wish you’d shut up, honestly.”

“Well good fucking luck with that,” Kuroo says, punctuating his statement with a hyena-like laugh.

Everything about him is so obnoxious, Daishou thinks. The hair, the incessant talking, the fact that he’s actually as smart as he purports to be. The most annoying part of all might just be how Daishou isn’t actually annoyed at all; he’s captivated. He wants to peel back all the layers Kuroo puts up, and see just what’s underneath.

Kuroo lapses into a rare bit of silence while they eat for a bit, grabbing a beer from his mini-fridge and taking a long sip, “You ever try this brand? It’s not bad.”

Daishou swallows, watching Kuroo take another sip. He summons the small bit of courage he’s managed, and leans over toward Kuroo, eyes trained on the other boy’s lips, parted and slightly chapped. He leans down, ignoring the small squeak Kuroo makes, and presses their lips together. It’s a small motion, chaste if anything, save for the way Daishou drags his tongue along the inside of Kuroo’s cheek before his pulls away.

Daishou settles back down on his side of the table, smacking his lips, “Not bad.”

Kuroo is, for once in his life, completely speechless.

(“Wow, that was actually pretty damn smooth,” Kuroo says, after barely two seconds of silence. Daishou starts to wonder if he might need some luck after all.)

Re: FILL: TEAM HIMURO TATSUYA/NIJIMURA SHUUZOU, T

[tsunderekita]

WAH, these two. <3 Thank you for a lovely fill!

Prompt: Team Grandstand

[serpheat]

Ship: Takao Kazunari/Midorima Shintarou OR Imaizumi Shunsuke/Naruko Shoukichi
Fandom: Kurobas or Yowapeda
Major tags: violence, tiger&bunny spoilers
Other tags: none

Prompt:
"Wow, your eyelashes are really long."

-Kotetsu T. Kaburagi, Tiger and Bunny

PROMPT: TEAM KAGEYAMA TOBIO/OIKAWA TOORU

[intricacies]

Ship: iwaizumi &/ himuro
Fandom: hq & knb
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: uh, lots of thirst i guess

Prompt:

"I don't know — I guess I just have a weakness for guys with tight abs and big arms."

— Mikaela Banes, Transformers

PROMPT: TEAM GRANDSTAND

[gionkenji]

Ship: oikawa tooru/ushijima wakatoshi OR kuroo tetsurou/tsukishima kei OR sawamura daichi/sugawara koushi
Fandom: haikyuu!!
Major Tags: none
Other Tags: none

Prompt:
"you know how you have a terrible personality?"
"how am i supposed to take that?"
"it's a compliment."

— oumae kumiko & kousaka reina, hibike! euphonium

FILL: Team The Prince of Tennis, T

[fickle]

Ship: Imayoshi/Hanamiya
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: tags omitted
Other Tags: tags omitted
Word Count: 413 words

The rumor mill works fast! Mentions of underage, pedophilia & emotional/mental manipulation. Not that the first two actually happen here.

***

“I think there’s something strange about Imayoshi-senpai’s and Hanamiya-kun’s friendship. Haruna said he saw Hanamiya-kun coming out of Imayoshi-senpai’s room early morning.”

“...So? Maybe Hanamiya-kun wanted to wake Imayoshi-senpai up for some early basketball practice or something.”

“At four in the morning?!”

“Hanamiya-kun works hard. Why not? You can’t really think anything’s going on there, Hanamiya-kun’s only twelve.”

“Yeah, but he’s a smart twelve. Remember how he had everyone fooled at the start?”

“That’s not the same as what you’re suggesting! Besides, you really think Imayoshi-senpai would fool around with a kid?”

“...Maybe you’re right. Forget I said anything.”

*

“Imayoshi’s such a do-gooder. He’s spending all his time with that Hanamiya kid, trying to reform him.”

“I don’t get what went wrong. Hanamiya was perfect. You think there was trouble at home?”

“Maybe. Kid like that doesn’t turn rotten for no reason.”

“Good thing he’s got Imayoshi looking out for him. He can play big brother and straighten the kid out.”

*

The school is split into three distinct groups:

1) the people who think there’s something creepy about Imayoshi’s relationship with Hanamiya
2) the people who think that Imayoshi is just trying to redeem Imayoshi
3) the people who don’t give a fuck and would like the others to shut up

For the most part, Hanamiya ignores the last two groups. He’s not going to tell anyone that Imayoshi was the one who convinced him to drop the good guy act, not when there’s a possibility of resuming the act in the future and claiming his conversation back was all due to Imayoshi’s influence.

The first group is another matter. Hanamiya’s twelve but he knows what they’re talking about.

Hanamiya’s twelve but he knows what Imayoshi wants from him and he knows it’s not that.

At least, not yet. He thinks it will be in the future, he thinks that he and Imayoshi will together as naturally as two streams converging into a crashing river, but not yet. Not while he’s still so small, not before he’s hit puberty.

Imayoshi has his faults but pedophilia isn’t one of them.

Still, Imayoshi must’ve surely heard the same rumors that Hanamiya has. Teasing him a little will be fun.

*

“Senpai,” Hanamiya says mock-sweetly, slamming a pass right into Imayoshi’s chest. “Will you marry me when I grow up?”

Imayoshi’s eyes widen with shock and Hanamiya laughs so hard that when Imayoshi passes the ball back, he doesn’t even bother trying to catch it.

Re: Fill: Team Grandstand, T

[mondegreened]

oh my god somehow i completely missed this?? i loooooove, i love atsushi's "i don't care" -> IMMEDIATELY SPILLS HIS FEELINGS ALL OVER THE PLACE, i love himuro's different smiles for different people, i love ice cream kisses, I LOVE. thank you so much for this fill!!!

FILL: Team The Prince of Tennis, T

[fickle]

Ship: Imayoshi/Hanamiya
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: tags omitted
Other Tags: tags omitted
Word Count: 504 words

I don’t think I need to warn for this? Hanamiya, Imayoshi and the rules through the years.

***



"Makoto, don't throw your food!"

"Makoto, don't hit people with your toys!"

"Makoto, don't draw on the walls!"

Every time Hanamiya comes up with a new way to amuse himself, one of the servants insist that he stops. Hanamiya learns very quickly that he can disobey the servants without consequences but that if his mother says anything, he has to listen to her. She rarely speaks to him, though. She has better things to do than bother with the consequence of her brief and unhappy marriage.

*

Rules, Imayoshi learns, are the cheatsheets to social interaction. If you follows the rules too exactly, you're called no fun and ostracized. If you disobey the rules too often or too blatantly, authority figures in the form of teachers will punish you. The balance between following rules and breaking rules must be carefully maintained.

*

Hanamiya makes the coach's son fall and crack his skull open. He gets away with it.

*

Imayoshi has a new coach installed and pulls the strings secretly. He gets away with it.

*

"Just think, senpai, how everyone would be scandalized if they knew," Hanamiya pants against Imayoshi's mouth, letting the older boy hold his body up against the wall. His legs wrap against Imayoshi's waist easily, his wrists pinned in place by Imayoshi's hands. Imayoshi won't be able to do this for much longer, Hanamiya's sure. He can feel the growth spurt just waiting to ambush him.

"Are you planning on telling them?" Imayoshi asks, leaving a sloppy, spit-wet bite on Hanamiya's throat and rocking against him. The strangled, fierce sound that Hanamiya makes is almost murderous, closer to a snarl than a sigh.

"Not - ah- as long as you keep doing this."

*

They go to different high schools and it doesn't make a difference. Distance doesn't break their bond but refines it, a trial by fire that leaves it gleaming like tempered steel.

They get used to talking on the phone every day, to texting frequently, to vidchatting infrequently but intensely.

Like a forest gone dry from a rainless summer, they burn all the more fiercely when they meet.

*

They move in together for college. Hanamiya's family has enough money to let him get an apartment that he shares with Imayoshi. Imayoshi studies law and Hanamiya hauls him out for fun every weekend as he never studies.

They joke about Imayoshi being a kept man, a sugar baby, and Hanamiya asks far too often why is Imayoshi bothering to study anyway, he'd never lack for anything with Hanamiya as his boyfriend.

Sometimes Imayoshi questions it himself. He pours more laws into his head (more rules into his brain) and feels the common sense leaking out of his ears.

Hanamiya just makes it all seem so easy but Imayoshi knows better than to be fooled by him.

*

"I have to get serious," Imayoshi says and Hanamiya laughs.

"No," Hanamiya says, mouth against Imayoshi's, eyes gleaming sword-edge bright. "You don't."

FILL: Team Miyuki Kazuya/Oikawa Tooru, T

[nautilics]

Ship: Miya Atsumu & Miya Osamu
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major tags: Death (animal death, character (OC) death), mentions of violence to animals (non-graphic)
Other tags: drowning (mentions and non-graphic discussion of, in relation to a child OC), some sort of gods AU, second person POV, OC POV character, cameos by inarizaki + other characters
Word count: 2049

hello, this...spun wildly, wildly out of control. i took the quote and kind of just ran with it :”) i hope you enjoy!!

***


It takes several days to make the trek up the mountain to where the rumours converge. As the sun is setting on the fourth day, you set up camp just below the summit, and huddle over a weakly crackling fire, shivering as you wait for darkness to fall.

Here, at the edge of the sky, the wind feels especially cold.

When your fire is nothing but spluttering embers, and the light of the moon shades your skin a ghostly tint, you gather your offerings, draw your cloak tighter around your shoulders, and trudge up to the summit.

Just as the rumours say, a figure is perched on the highest point, his back turned towards you. The lines of his body cut an unnatural silhouette against the moon-drenched rocks; a human-shaped space devoid completely of light.

You hesitate, steel your nerves, and step forward. Before you can speak, the figure turns and, in a voice that brushes ice against your skin, says: "Please be quiet, or you might wake him."

You blink, and see what you didn't before; he is sitting before a smoothened shelf of rock, watching over another figure, strikingly similar in physique, whose chest moves in deep, rhythmic motions. You can't see the other's face from where you are standing, but you know, without a doubt, that it would be a mirror of the one watching you with unwavering eyes.

You duck your head, a bow or a blush. "My lord, please forgive my intrusion. I come with offerings from the villages at the foot of this humble mountain." You dare a few steps, and when he doesn't move, you place the offerings before him, quick to scurry back once you are done.

His eyes flicker towards the gifts before resettling on you. The moonlight lands on him properly now, and you see heavy-set eyes, and a fringe that whispers across his forehead.

The rumours never mentioned that the god of death would look so much like a tired human boy.

"What do you want?" he says, and you shiver.

"My lord, death has left us." You clench your fingers so they stop shaking. "Chickens taken in for slaughter continue to flap and shriek, even after their heads have been removed. A farmer put down an ailing horse seven days ago, and it still thrashes in the stables.” You pause to wet your drying lips.

"My little brother drowned during the last full moon, yet he plays with the other children, even though his skin is blue and he coughs water with every breath." A lump forms in your throat, and you push past it. “I beg of you to let him rest.”

Cool eyes regard you, and you fight not to look away. "Don't humans wish for immortality?"

You don't know how to respond to that, and can only offer the truth: "My lord, we do not know how long we can continue like this."

He watches you for a long moment, and it feels like the shadows draw in closer around you. Finally, he turns aside, looking back towards the figure on the stone bed. "I'm sorry, but I can't help you yet."

The shock of a god - the god of death, no less - apologising to you almost distracts you from the second part of his sentence. "Yet?"

He shakes his head. "He's still sleeping. Come back tomorrow night, and he might be awake then."

His back is towards you again, a cold wall of dismissal. You swallow your questions and bow again, before retreating to your camp.

Sleep evades you that night, and you curl tightly under your furs and watch as the sky fades into light.

-

On the second night, you bring a pouch of wild berries as offering, plucked from the bushes around your campsite. He inclines his head at the sight of you, and you set the berries onto the pile of yesterday's offerings. It looks untouched.

You wonder if he's moved at all since you saw him last night. You peer past him at the figure on the bed; disappointment sits in your throat when you see the steady up-and-down of his chest. The sleeping figure’s face is still shrouded, difficult to make out, but you think his hair looks lighter (or it might just be the moonlight, draining the colour from the strands framing his face).

As if he can read your mind (and perhaps he can; you don't claim to know the ways of the gods), the god catches your eye and shakes his head: not tonight.

He offers you no words, and after silence hangs in the air for longer than you are comfortable with, you hasten back to your shelter.

-

When you approach the summit on the third night, he is not alone. Your heart leaps, but the new silhouette cuts a different shape, taller and leaner, and the bed remains occupied. The two of them are conversing, so you duck your head and slip forward to leave a posy of flowers on the pile.

The newcomer turns as you approach, and his stare pins you where you stand. You shiver and bow, not daring to breathe until you feel his intense gaze leave you.

"You've picked up a stray, Osamu." You bite back the surprise at the name; you suppose even gods take on human monikers.

"They're harmless, Suna. Leave them alone."

"Hm. They're not the ones I'm worried about." There's a shuffle of robes as Suna stands. "I hid you as best as I could, but it's been too long. Tell your brother to hurry and wake up already. The world can't wait forever."

“He needs his rest,” Osamu replies, and you sense that it’s not the first time he’s said this. Suna huffs. You look up in time to see the air fold around him as he disappears, and can't help the gasp that escapes.

Osamu spares you a glance. "You heard him. He's not awake yet."

He looks tired. Perhaps this is what gives you courage to speak. "Your brother?"

He nods. "My brother." Despite his exhaustion, his voice is fond, and he says no more.

-

As if Suna's visit unleashed a flood, you find a different visitor each night as you make your visit. Each one exudes a terrifying aura that belies their true nature, and you often find yourself cowering behind a rock until they leave so that you can add your offering to the ever-growing pile.

One night, there was a god who loomed over Osamu, the two beauty marks on his forehead scrunching up as he glared at both brothers. His impatience radiated off him in waves, though Osamu gave no indication he cared, or even noticed. Another night, a god with dark skin and kind eyes had clapped a hand onto Osamu's back and almost unseated him with his energy, and asked after the health of his sleeping brother.

All of them had the same request, when it came down to it: for Death to leave this empty mountain, and return to the world.

To each of them, Osamu gave the same response, never once leaving his vigil: "My brother is still resting. Come back tomorrow."

-

On the sixth night, you wake from a restless sleep to the sight of an unfamiliar figure tending to your fire.

He straightens when he sees you, his robes flawless despite crouching in the dirt. "You're awake, I see. Here, eat."

You eye the food he hands you, uncertain. You don't think these are from your rapidly dwindling rations, and you have heard stories about accepting food from gods - for he is undoubtedly a god, despite his slight stature.

"Don't worry, eating it won't harm you." His eyes crinkle slightly when he smiles. "I visited your home. Your family misses you very much, and are grateful to hear you are safe."

It’s a struggle to hold back tears at the mention of your family. "Thank you, my lord," you manage.

"You may call me Kita." Kita inclines his head, the darkened tips of his hair swaying with the motion. "I should be the one thanking you for looking out for Osamu and Atsumu."

You don't know what to say - you're here for your village, for your brother to know peace - but you don't dare to challenge his words. Instead, you busy yourself with eating the food, savouring the taste of home.

Kita stands up after you've finished eating, shaking his head when you move to join him. "I'll make the visit for you, tonight. It would be better for you to rest."

You sink back into your furs, grateful despite yourself; the wind tonight is especially biting, and your sleep has not been restful since the last full moon. The warmth of the fire and your full belly are already lulling you back to sleep, and you wonder if it’s a god’s touch that makes the fire roar strong despite the wind.

Kita looks up towards the summit, cocking his head to the side, as if listening. “You should save your strength. I daresay you’ll be needing it for the trip home, very soon.”

-

On the seventh night, the summit is empty.

You creep forward, daring to hope, but sink back when you see that the bed is still occupied with a now-familiar silhouette. You leave today’s offering - a portion of food you’d saved from Kita’s visit - on the pile, which is when you realise that it has shrunk.

“So, you’re the one leaving ‘Samu all these nice gifts.”

You yelp, and turn to see a shadow unfolding itself from the darkness pooled at the base of the bed. Osamu materialises, perched on the side of the bed with your pouch of berries. He smiles at you, oddly amiable, and gives you a considering look as he drops a handful of berries into his mouth. “Thanks for the food,” he says, grinning around the berries.

Juice stains his lips and pale fingers red, and you tremble.

A thought: the brothers are, as you thought, the very image of each other.

A second thought, immediately: they are nothing alike, and you’re not sure how you mistook one for the other.

You look at the bed again. Osamu lies there, the exhaustion you’d grown used to seeing absent while he sleeps. His prone figure strikes you, somehow, and for a moment, you wonder if you’d ever seen him as anything other than asleep.

Your view is blocked when Atsumu moves in front of you, settling into the perch where Osamu had kept vigil. “You can run along home now, human. Your family is waiting for you, aren’t they?”

It’s a gentle dismissal, but you are tired, and desperate. This is why you try to protest, to insist that your village needs him, but Atsumu looks at you with eyes devoid of humour, and your throat freezes up.

Another thought, quiet and cowed: you are nothing but an ant, in the eyes of the immortals.

Atsumu yawns, breaking the spell. “I said, go home. You wanted Death back? You’ll get me back.” He casts you another look over his shoulder. “But first, I’m making sure my brother catches up on his sleep properly. I have to return the favour, after all.” He turns away from you, his back a familiar silhouette against the night sky, and it feels like your first night on this mountain all over again.

“You have seven nights to make your goodbyes,” Death says, words hanging in the still air. “Use them well.”

-

It takes you four nights to return home. You find no comfort in your sleep, what little of it you manage to snatch; you dream often of two figures on a lonely mountain peak, one brother asleep and one brother watching, though you are never sure which is which.

Your family greets you with tears on your return, and you grip your little brother tight despite his clammy skin. For three days, you spend every waking moment with him, engraving every smile and laugh into your heart.

On the seventh night after you left the mountain, your little brother sleeps and his breaths slow to a stop.

The village is quiet, and you exhale, and let your tears fall.

FILL: Team Himuro Tatsuya/Nijimura Shuuzou, T

[cherrysalmon]

Ship: Himuro Tatsuya/Nijimura Shuuzou
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: character death, graphic depictions of violence/gore (implied cannibalism), bodily fluids (blood)
Other Tags: drowning, hydrophobia, supernatural elements, mind control, poetry fill
Word Count: 66 lines, 546 words

_(:'3/

***

so listen, boy, you may take to the sea,
and freely chase to faraway lands,
but beware, beware how the sea could take thee.

you remembers well the lessons you’ve been taught,
pulling in the waves, each callous on your hands
a warning: this is how you will go in the end
like your father and his father before him
beneath the waves on some stormy night
hands to the mast until you slip out of sight.

in the spring you leave home for the first time,
a rambunctious laughter echoing through the wooden beams,
your eyes never leaving the starboard through ale and dance.
neither pirate nor storm would take you
under the sun-flare or calm of a star-dotted sky,
the clouds hazy and fast in passing you by.

(there are old sailors,
and bold sailors,
but never old bold sailors.
the lanterns sway in the night, under the stars,
calling you home again
to the cliffside—)

a fortnight passes before you see a distant shoreline,
jagged rock reaching up to heaven from the depths.
its cavernous guise a place for treasure
or so say your crew and he—oh—
so say the voice soft in the breeze.
so say the voice rising up from the sea.

they go one by one as you watch, transfixed:
each jumping towards the sea’s embrace, far from anchor
the ship drifting slow. you do not move from your post
in defiance, or in fear—
and when you finally see him in the shallow pools
you remember what it is the sailors rue:

your body in the deep waters, far from home
your head in the clouds,
laughter in your ears as you’re devoured to the bone.

perhaps it is not true, you think, lowering yourself into the sea,
reaching for his salt-streaked hair, long and dark,
hiding something, glistening still in the waning sun.
he laughs and shies away, hand brushing yours as he swims further into the rocks.
you do not take notice of at all, as you follow,
of the skulls beneath your feet brittle and hollow.

he smiles at you with a loving gaze,
so loving; you ignore the blood in the water, the sharks circling in,
here in the summer sea. his hands are warm when he takes you in, and
you, drinking in his beauty and the shimmering tail,
leans towards a whisper thrumming across the air:
“won’t you stay for a little while, here?”

it would not take more than a single note to take away from you
of the lessons you’ve been taught; all of them multitudinous and
fading as soon as you push your body against his,
laughter fading into the echoes of the sea,
it does not feel so bad now, does it?
you smile as he brings you down.

he kisses you as the song lulls you to sleep.
you do not feel anything when he
presses his lips against your collarbone,
bites down, once,
twice,
the water turns to ice.

so listen, boy, the story goes:
don’t sail so close to shore.
keep your eyes on the vast wide sea,
keep your eyes on the mast,
keep your eyes on the stars and skies,
or you’ll be drowned by lies.

FILL: Team Grandstand, G

[rielity]

Ship: Oikawa Tooru & Iwaizumi Hajime & Hanamaki Takahiro & Matsukawa Issei (+ Seijou 3rd years)
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: Canon spoilers... I guess?
Other Tags: Angst, post-Season 2 Ep 24
Word Count: 539

Inspired by the Seijou extra chapter: The Battle Doesn't End. Set after this page in particular.

"have good boys having funpain together~" I took the liberty of amending this for you...

***

“So this is it, huh.”

Hanamaki’s voice is quiet, but in the silence engulfing the room his words hang loud, less a question and more a statement. Oikawa shuts his locker; there is a note of finality in the click it makes as he turns the lock and stares at the key clutched in his hand for a moment.

Hajime doesn’t miss the way his shoulders stiffen, like they always do when he’s about to say something serious, or bracing himself for a killer serve. “I –”

“If you’re going to say you’re sorry, spare it,” Hajime says, and Oikawa looks up, startled at his gruff tone. “You don’t owe any of us an apology.” And you don’t owe yourself one either, he decides against adding.

“Iwa-chan,” Oikawa protests, though his shoulders visibly relax. “I wasn’t about to apologise.”

Hajime raises an unimpressed eyebrow, not entirely persuaded, but refrains from saying anything else. Oikawa huffs, before turning to meet their eyes, his gaze flickering from Hanamaki leaning against a locker to Hajime and Matsukawa on the changing bench to Yuda and Sawauchi and Shido near the door.

“It’s been an honour being your captain,” he says, and everyone can hear the way his voice tightens at the end of his sentence, and there, laid bare before them in all its vulnerable glory for the second time in less than an hour is Oikawa’s honesty, stripped of any pretence of charming smiles and easy laughter. Hajime has not seen this look in Oikawa’s eyes for a very long time.

“You’re going to make us all cry again,” Matsukawa says wryly. “Crying is contagious, you know?”

That drags a watery laugh out of Oikawa. “Excuse me, I have an infectious personality.”

There’s an unrefined harrumph from Yuda that chokes off prematurely into a half-sob, and the sound seems to set off a flurry of movement in the room.

Hajime stands up, pulling Oikawa into a hug, letting Oikawa lean against his shoulders and feeling the way Oikawa’s tears burn through his shirt, just like they had when they were children and Oikawa had fallen down a slope while trying to get to the riverbanks and scraped his arms and knees; around them there is sudden warmth as a tangle of arms and bodies surround them – he can feel someone’s chest heaving with soundless cries, and Hajime feels himself give in to the frustration and disappointment that has been welling deep inside him all day.

That their best wasn’t enough, and that the team he’d fought so badly with to carve a path to victory should fall short of their goal when they were just within reach of it. That their time on the court had come to its end like this, even before they ever made it to the Tokyo gymnasium.

That this was life, and it sucked, and they damn well knew it, but it didn’t mean it hurt any less.

Then someone pulls away, and someone else is rubbing comforting circles on his back, and Matsukawa’s saying, “Now we all need to get pork buns to make ourselves happy again.”

“Our treat,” Hanamaki adds. “Because our captain and vice-captain deserve to be treated once in a while too.”

FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu, T

[flippinflakes]

Ship: Nishinoya Yuu & Tanaka Ryuunosuke
Fandom: Haikyuu!!
Major Tags: None
Other Tags: Nipple pasties, pom pom nipple pasties...., i dont think this counts as nsfw but i put a small thumbnail
Word Count: none

hi

***

Daichi: "Shiratorizawa may have their own cheerleaders, but we have...



...yeah, nevermind"

Full size here

Re: FILL: Team The Prince of Tennis, T

[fickle]

Thank you so much for prompting it and leaving such gorgeous feedback! Hanamiya and Imayoshi are fucked up but I do believe they genuinely love each other - it's just in such a twisted and warped way that it's not always recognizable as love.

Protectiveness though, that's something that Hanamiya can't deny and that Imayoshi hasn't experienced. He's never needed protecting, he's the smart one who can look out for himself and then Hanamiya just FLIPS. Twelve years old and his only actual friend/equal got hurt and Hanamiya's plotting murder.

I honestly love how these two pull together and writing them is so much fun. I'm super appreciative of the chance to keep writing them. <3

Re: FILL: TEAM miyuki kazuya/sawamura eijun, G

[hilaryfun]

Funny you should mention that - Miyuki did whipe out in the bang collab I did this year. Here's the link if you are interested. P.s. Miyuki is wearing the ugliest swim trunks known to man😉 http://daiyanerd.tumblr.com/post/162178285680/daiyanerd-im-so-excited-to-be-able-to-release

FILL: Team The Prince of Tennis, T

[fickle]

Ship: Imayoshi/Hanamiya
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Major Tags: tags omitted
Other Tags: tags omitted
Word Count: 414 words


Nothing bad, just them having a roadtrip! No crossover because I don't know the other anime, sorry.

***

“What are you doing for break?” Hanamiya asked, sauntering into Imayoshi’s room with his usual careless aplomb.

“Studying,” Imayoshi said, not looking up from his book.

“I’ve got a better idea. You pack some clothes and we’ll take off on a trip.” Hanamiya flipped a keyring with brand new keys onto Imayoshi’s desk.

“...You bought a car?” Imayoshi asked, recognizing the Mitsubishi brand key.

“Better. A motorcycle.”

Imayoshi flicked a sideways look at Hanamiya. “You know that EMTs refer to motorcycles as ‘donorcycles’, right?”

Hanamiya shrugged, rolling his shoulders back with a smirk. “Yeah, so? I’m not planning to crash.”

“Nobody ever plans to crash,” Imayoshi said as he turned his attention back to the textbook. “I’m not riding on the back of a motorcycle, Makoto-chan.”

“Fine. I’ll rent a car instead, just for you.” Hanamiya dropped a kiss on top of Imayoshi’s head and Imayoshi let himself smile.

“What are you so sure that I’m even coming?”

“Because if you don’t come willingly, I’ll kidnap you. So one way or another, you are coming,” Hanamiya said with a smile that matched Imayoshi’s perfectly.

*

The motorcycle helmet covered Imayoshi’s entire face. Behind it, his glasses were safe. Hanamiya had bought motorcycle leathers for the both of them, thick protective gear that would at least save them from getting road rash if they were thrown off the bike.

Privately, Imayoshi was convinced that if they took a tumble from the bike, road rash would be the least of their worries. Just in case, he’d made up a will before leaving.

He sat on the bike behind Hanamiya, arms tight around the other’s boy waist and only relaxed after ten miles of driving proved that Hanamiya could actually handle the bike properly. Imayoshi leaned into the curves with Hanamiya, falling into the same easy rhythm they shared on the court, and started to gradually enjoy himself.

This was foolhardy and reckless but those two words defined his entire relationship with Hanamiya.

He might as well enjoy himself.

*

They ate the picnic lunch that Hanamiya had packed under a clear blue sky, so high in the mountain that a playful breeze swept over them and blocked the worst of the heat. Hanamiya lay back on the grass, helmet discarded, and his hair fanned around his face like he belonged in a shojo anime.

Perhaps this trip hadn’t been such a bad idea after all. It was the first time Imayoshi had seen Hanamiya look peaceful.

Re: FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu, T

[babster]

oh my god. this is amazing. i love noya's smile and tanaka's sort of half-pout.