DARE TO FLY ⁽ᵃᵖ⁾

      -- SHORP. mega quick update on what’s up with me & a mini announcement that i’d LOVE if y’all could spare a couple minutes to look through ( & maybe consider joining or sharing with a friend y’all feel would be interested ! ). 

        -- EVEN if y’all don’t care about me as a mun / blog, at least skim the announcement section bc it’s important to me & where i am rn ! 

→ “ I... have doubts about this ‘ plan ‘… “ They were only three left with one of their kind on the chair, currently guarded by the hunter they went against. By no means did he doubt the ability of the other to go for an almost perfect rescue but rather was he afraid that the plan might go wrong and it ends up with all of them on the ground, bleeding, again. Only one cipher machine was left for them to decode until they could get to the gate but the issue with that one was that it was too far away to decode it in time. 

→ “ We likely won’t make it out all three of us anyway… “ He didn’t wish to encourage the idea of leaving their teammates behind, however, he was trying to see it in a more realistic view and if he was being honest, he doubted that even two of them could make it out of here without any injuries at the very least. “ But… if you are certain it will work… we can give it a try… “ 

       a GRUNT leaves him as they finish patching up his injury, dulling the pain enough for him to be able to move around. two injured, one on chair, & the last cipher machine sitting on the other side of the map. boy oh boy, this was a TOUGH one wasn’t it ? mind races with possibilities; he still had one more pocket watch, it was the other’s second time on the chair, & aesop still had a coffin with him... it would be tight, but they could do this— or at the very least, he hoped they could ( they HAD to ). 

@kyousei​​ said: Shino has never been one to worry about giving or receiving gifts on Valentine's Day, save from Hinata as a gift between teammates. Now, though, as thoughts of the puppeteer plague him more that he'd like he was forced to do the unthinkable. He clears his throat to get Kankurou's attention and wordlessly offers him some chocolate covered honeycomb. (First Valentine's???? Babies...)

       there was no denying the ATTRACTION he felt for the fellow genin. he might be a romantic, but valentines were beyond him-- he was more than happy to receive, but it was the first time he genuinely considered giving. or at least, it was the first time he was so anxious & worried about GIVING something ( or not receiving anything ) this year. especially now that his heart skipped a beat every time a certain bug user was mentioned. especially now that he grew much TOO self conscious about how he dressed or how he acted around a certain member of team 8. especially now that days seemed much longer when he was at home, while they seemed so SHORT when he was walking around konoha hoping to catch a glance of the other.

       so tense & hesitant he was of coming up with something completely amazing to say while giving away the hand carved chocolate he had wrapped up in a bag in his backpack ( while making sure it wasn’t TOO embarrassing-- he didn’t want to seem as if he actually had any feelings for the other. it was just a friendship thing-- yeah that’s ALL it was. an apology for everything & whatever ), that when he was suddenly stopped by said object of his affections, he was thrown COMPLETELY off guard.

       though his heart rate SPEEDS up at the sight of the shino, the puppeteer does nothing but stare at the extremely sweet looking candy for a couple moments, visibly confused about what this was for & why he was being handed it-- by shino no less. ❝ i-- are you giving this to ME ? ❞ a blink, & another, before gloved hands raise to take the gift, still puzzled by current events, but offering a smile nonetheless. lines he’d practiced before hand ( in the very off chance shino actually gave him something ) refused to surface, mind BLANK as it raced to come up with something to say that wouldn’t make him seem like an absolute fool, ❝ uh, thanks i guess. ❞ there was no way, right ? there’s no way the other meant it in that way. it was just friendship chocolates-- it HAD to be.

        silence falls, whatever strategical plan he had for today to spend valentines together with the other had completely been thrown off course. nervous fingers CLUTCH at the chocolate covered honeycomb, taking a quick deep breath as he grasps for something to say before shino went away. ❝ DO-- ! !  ❞ he starts abruptly before stopping himself when realising how eager & desperate he sounded, taking a moment to clear his throat & gather himself before continuing, ❝ i mean-- do you, i don’t know, have any PLANS for today ? ❞

     Tail flicks behind the king at the mention of his name. Meruem notes the shovel in the man’s possession first, although the obvious flight response is duly taken into account. He supposes having knocked this one out in the blink of an eye during their last encounter would warrant such a harsh reaction. Regardless, the feeling of warmth is what the King remembers most about this man’s nen. Even now, there was no malice… With an enemy only yards away one would expect he wasn’t prepared in the least to fight back.

     ❝Youpi and Pouf are this way,❞ he starts, turning his head toward the trees that once lined the pathway into the palace. One had fallen, its empty branches no longer filled with cocoons. Pointed ignorance is offered in way of an explanation, partly because the man was correct in some way. Meruem was sure that he had been dead, at some point. Waking had been just as much of a surprise to him. ❝They are buried by those trees. I was unable to find Pitou to pay my respects to them as well…❞

       it had to be a lie, it had to be a TRICK of some sort— a way to lure him into a trap of some kind; these are the thoughts that plagued his mind as soon as the king spoke once more, the hunter & warrior in him SCREAMING to not trust a single word he said. but the softie in him was what allowed him to look to where meruem was pointing, to actually listen to his words & TRY to trust. after all, the king had no need to trick him in order to hurt him— the had grown painfully clear to him during their last encounter. if he wanted to kill him, he could do so with EASE, the act probably needing less than a second to be done.

       but it struck him how different the king had been since the last time he’d seen him ( granted, he never really had a CHANCE to take a good look ). he’d heard bits & pieces of the change that had happened in the king from killua & palm, about how more humane the king had become near the end of that fateful battle. was this what they’d meant ? how did he survive to begin with ? what was his goal now ? if the king wanted to destroy all humans again, there was probably NOTHING the hunters could do to stop him now— not with all the losses they’d suffered & still haven’t completely recovered from. 

Rosy eyes watched his back as he stood up to search for more little creatures elsewhere and she is mindful of his words as he does so, nodding to him as a means to say ‘ yes, of course ‘ while she silently listened to the idle stream bubbling along its natural course. He was always so careful with her, but never made her feel less than or like a burden because of it. Koyuki felt warm as she watched him go, and when she caught herself thinking how cool he looked when he was serious she whipped her head in another direction. 

Koyuki is quick to recover when she spots a small patch of clovers among the taller dry grass. It was only a few paces away, so she shuffles over to get a closer look. While Hakuji is looking for bugs, she could certainly do something with these, make him something fun to show her gratitude, even if a bit silly. She sat on her knees and carefully picked out tall blade of heather-colored grass, twisting the strands, braiding them and adding more until a circle was formed. When she was satisfied with the crown of grass, Koyuki picked out a few clovers to thread through the spaces. It wasn’t fancy or intricate by any means, the early springtime leaving few options of usable materials, but it would smell pleasant. She wondered if he will like the little creation.

The girl stays seated by the rest of the grass, idly moving on to make herself a crown of grass and clover to match the one she would give to Hakuji when he came back. She is just weaving the last clover into the crown as she sees his face in the sunlight, and she excited waves to him. ❝ Hey, hey! Come look at this! ❞

       to say that he came out victorious would be to EXAGGERATE. he’d wandered off in hopes to come back to her side with more than a simple handful of creatures for her to admire, if only JUST to hear a sweet laugh escape her lips or see the lively shine in her eyes once more. more is better than just one or two, is the mindset that DROVE him as he searched every nook & cranny— only to huff in slight displeasure when he comes out with a couple worms, an ant and a ladybug. he makes a little pouch with the hems of his uniform shirt, where he places all critters he’s found ( he really should’ve brought a box or something, that’s something he’ll have to remember to grab for NEXT time ).

       it’s only when he finally, finally finds a tiny frog that he feels somewhat better about his findings, doing his best to approach it without startling it & having it hop away. it takes him a couple attempts— for despite his best attempts, the tiny thing was WAY too aware of its surroundings— but he finally manages to catch it with a free hand, stuffing it in the makeshift pouch with a huff & instantly making his way back.

anonymous said: Just starts playing some music for Jose " cheer up old man "

@virusvirtue​ said: "that move was so cool!! high five!!" (gingerbrave @ dino-sour)

@slf-sxcrfe​​ said: ‟I don't want to close my eyes. I just want to keep them open.” He mutters, sitting atop the wooden deck just outside the estates house. Despite the dark circles drawn underneath his eyes and a yawn stifling its way pass his lips. ‟It's impossible to get good sleep, even though I'm safe now... I still dream about what is out there– things I've had to bare witness to before your brother took me in.” (for Senjurou !)

       the young rengoku sits & listens in silence as the other speaks, arms wrapped TIGHTLY around the comforter he’d been folding moments prior to their conversation. he’d reached out in concern, motivated to do so by both, the noticeable eye-bags under ray’s eyes that seemed to be growing by the day, & the almost SLUGGISH way he carried himself compared to the days prior. ❝ ... it’s not nice to have bad dreams, but sleep is important. ❞

       worry creeps on senjurou the more he observes more of ray’s worn down state, gaze falling to his lap as he processes what the other’s said, & what he could POSSIBLY say in return. at least, something he could say that wasn’t as dumb as he’s what just said. sleep is important, cheeks redden slightly in embarrassment at his own response. of course it is ! & it’s exactly BECAUSE it’s important, that ray was telling him the reasons why he couldn’t sleep ( truly, how useless was his response ? ).