Tino could feel himself unraveling.
He choked back quiet sobs through lectures, and occasionally a tear escaped his eyes and stained a note book page or two. Classmates that hardly ever spoke to him asked if he was okay- I am not fucking okay, he wanted to say as he held his tongue and bit his lip until it bled and got sent to the nurse twice through the course of the day. He never really went, he just wandered the grounds, trying to see if maybe Berwald was wandering too so that they could fix this god damn mess- no such luck. By the end of classes he was still without the Swedish teen.
He had looked everywhere. Hell, he even checked the classes that they didn't have together and he wasn't even in those. It was like Berwald had simply vanished- and that fucking scared him. So he kept looking. Through empty or positively flooded hallways he kept looking.
That was why currently he was standing in the doorway of the woodshop, getting bumped by other students rushing through the hallways to gather their things and get on with their day, dejectedly staring at the empty room. God damn it why couldn't he do anything right? He thought for sure that Berwald would be here, or would have been here, or would have left some, any indication that he had been here because this was what he liked doing right he would know that they were lovers-
That run-away train of thought was cut by a tap to the shoulder. The Finn turned slowly to face whoever had interrupted him, and his tired violet eyes met with Ivan's. Raivis, the poor unlucky bastard, was to his side, eyes on the floor.
"Priviet, komerade. You know you have been quite the topic today, da?" Ivan greeted, giggling slightly at the last bit.
"Have you seen Berwald?" Tino asked, voice hoarse and raw.
"Wouldn't you think, little Tino, that if you were the one tearing the school apart you surely would have seen him before me?" Ivan countered.
Tino's expression did not waver. He showed not the slightest indication that he had even heard the other. He stared, straight ahead and catatonic at the other man, eyes still just as tired and gaze just as intense, and repeated his question.
"Have you seen Berwald?"
"Nyet, I have not-" The Russian teen started, but was cut off abruptly by Tino.
"Then fuck off." The Finn clipped, and everyone in the vicinity froze.
Ivan was stunned. No one talked to him like that. Nobody had ever spoken to him like that. He took a moment, staring at the other, temporarily stalled, but finally after the dead silence he smiled. Oh god Ivan was fucking smiling, and Raivis flinched noticeably because Tino was not backing down or apologizing and the sound of bones breaking seemed almost inevitable now-
"I do not think I heard you, comrade. Repeat again, da?" He smiled, voice low and dangerous. If Tino was concerned he did not show it.
"I said fuck off." Tino spat, frustrated with the useless conversation. "Don't fucking waste my time if you can't help me find him."
"My my, touchy aren't we?" The Russian giggled. Some students moved away from the scene, and others moved closer because of a morbid curiosity to see what would happen next. Tino furrowed his brow and started furiously up at the other, eyes flashing.
"Listen you god damn bastard, I am not putting up with your bullshit right now. I am looking for Berwald. I will find Berwald. I will not be doing anything else along the way. You can take whatever shit you were planning on starting and shove it up your ass." He snapped.
Ivan laughed gleefully, a dangerous glint in his eyes, and his smile widened.
"Ah, aren't you just a charmer,"The Russian drawled, "I wonder what Berwald would think if he knew how not-pretty you could be."
That was where any self-restraint that Tino might have had completely left him. He yanked back his arm and about threw his fist at the Russian teen, an almost primal scream escaping his throat. The blow landed hard on Ivan's nose, and a sickening crack could be heard though out the entire corridor. Ivan, though caught off guard, quickly reacted and grabbed Tino's wrist, pulling the other down with him to the floor and twisting his arm as he did. The Finn turned his face as he landed, cheek and jaw smacking against the hard floor and spotted bruises forming upon impact. The Russian teen landed on top of the arm he was twisting, weight crushing down on it.
"You little shit." Ivan hissed, blood pouring from his nose. His grip on the Finn's arm was hard enough to make it pink and red and black and blue, where it wasn't discoloured from the fall already.
"Same to you." Tino winced, biting his lip and managing not to cry out. He had been through worse, he had been through worse, oh fucking god he had been through worse there was no reason to scream now he could handle this, this didn't even come close to the pain of missing Berwald-
Feral now, Ivan pulled the Finnish male up before slamming him back onto the floor hard enough that there would definitely be bruising on his shoulder blades, and Tino threw his free arm up and scratched at the other's eyes to try and get loose. Just as he struck the Russian male he felt himself being pulled back, and he saw Ivan being pulled as well.
"Tino, calm down!" The voice- Alfred, he recognized after a moment- tried to ease. Tino yanked out of his grip and spun around quickly, staring at him angrily.
"Don't touch me." He said quietly, calmly, and Alfred put his hands up in surrender.
Ivan was still kicking and screaming and thrashing, and it took a few more people to hold him down. Raivis was at his side, a gentle hand on a safely restrained arm.
"I-Ivan it's over, it's okay, you were good, it's okay…" Raivis tried to soothe. What he was saying was non-sense for sure, but it seemed to have proved effective in the past.
"That little bitch." Ivan snarled, and Raivis hushed him.
"It's over. You're good, you're strong. It's over." The Latvian teen continued. As he did Tino coldly scanned over everyone involved before turning back to Alfred.
"I'm going back to looking, now." He said, simply.
"Okay." Alfred agreed, voice low, trying to keep the other calm.
"Have you seen Berwald?" The Finn asked. Slowly Alfred shook his head.
"No- but I'll tell you if I do." He offered, trying to placate him.
"Do." Tino agreed, before turning and starting down the hallway, leaving the mess behind. No time to worry about that now- there were more important things to do.
Déjà vu wasn't quite the right word for the moment that Berwald found himself in, sitting propped up against a wall with his two ex-and-now-again best friends.
Besides the fact that there was a sharp pain in his chest that never could have equaled what he possibly could have felt before, this dynamic was different. Yes they still sat facing the same wall, same ways of sitting as always (cross-legged like Nikolai did or sprawled over the bed like Mathias would) but they were not speaking, and this silence was not familiar. It was thin and waiting to crack, like sheets of glass perched on a ledge. Mathias stared at a corner, trying to avoid having to be dragged out of the stillness. Nikolai was particularly cutting when he wanted to be, and he did not want to be on the other end of that right now.
"Did you think of anything today?" The Norwegian finally asked, and Berwald knew that he was caught now.
"Yes." He responded, quietly, hoping the other wouldn't press him but knowing that he would. He was proven right a few seconds later.
"Well?"
"Ah still love him."
A sigh. Nikolai was disappointed and Berwald knew it, but he couldn't change the fact and he couldn't bring himself to lie.
"What do you suppose you're going to do, then?" Nikolai asked.
Really, the Swedish teen hadn't gotten to that part yet. He had been thinking, or he believed he had been anyway, and yet he seemed to have nothing to show for it.
"Ah haven' gotten tha' far, yet." Berwald murmured.
"Oh?"
"Ja. Ah… ah wanna stay with him. Ah dunno if I can stay 'way, but… ah dunno if ah can give him what he wants." The Swedish teen said, sadness and uncertainty in his voice.
A roll of round blue eyes was given as a response from Nikolai.
"Oh my god- Berwald, will you stop thinking about the little bitch for one fucking minute and think of yourself instead?" He snapped slightly, obviously annoyed.
"Ah did think a' mah self. Ah love him, an' ah want him. Need to have him. Jus' wonderin' if ah can."
"Berwald, do you even listen to yourself talk? Are you confused about what happened? Let me sum it up for you: you two were having sex. He forced you into a really hard-core fetish. You were not ready for it, and then you ended up here. Honestly, what changed between the time you were afraid enough to leave the room and now?"
"Jus the shock. Ahm not shocked 'nymore." Berwald said slowly, firm in his conviction.
"Oh my g- are you serious right now?" Nikolai asked, holding his face in his hands.
"Ja. Ah em."
"Doesn't it scare you at all?" The Norwegian asked, moving his hands and looking sidelong at the other.
"Ah'd only be scared 'f he got hurt. 'F he was okay so em ah." He replied, standing his ground. Not even Nikolai's disgusted expression made him say otherwise.
"He forced you to do something you didn't want. Doesn't that hurt you?"
"No. Not forced. He jus' caught me off guard." The Swede insisted.
"You're in denial."
"No ahm not."
"Then what the hell do you call this?"
"Rationality."
At that Nikolai threw up his hands, groaning in frustration.
"You are a complete lunatic. I cannot believe you. I just- I can't. What in hell makes you think that this is, on any level, the least bit okay?"
"Ya' give an' take when ya' love someone." Berwald said, voice light but still just as sure as before. The Norwegian teen sighed.
"Okay, I'll humour you. He took your control in sex. What did you take?"
"His control over his role in the relationship."
"What?" Nikolai asked, tilting his head.
"Ah told him ah…" Berwald looked to the side, cheeks pink. "Ah have a thing, with house wives. Ah kinda told him, an' he… indulged me."
"That's consensual roleplaying."
"Na' just sexual. He ne'er drops it. Least ah could do is let him ha' the sex part… we can figure it out." He said, the last part directed more towards himself than anyone else.
"But he consented." Nikolai pushed again. "He consented. You didn't."
"Ah will, then."
"But you don't want it! That's the problem!" The Norwegian was almost yelling now.
"Ah wan' him. Ah'll deal." Berwald said, eyes glazed slightly. He was starting to become harder to reach, Nikolai feared. He'd really have to jolt him to get him to react.
"Alright, Berwald. Do me a favour and imagine something for me." He started. Berwald shrugged and gave a slight hum, meeting Nikolai's gaze.
"You're with him. You're kissing him, holding him; his mouth has been all over you. He says he loves you."
"Ah love him, too."
"He's smiling one second, and you think it's all fine. But then he asks you to do something for him- he takes your hands and puts them to his throat, and tells you that he needs it."
The Swedish teen froze.
"He squeezes, hard. And then harder. And harder. He's gasping for air, his lips are tinting blue, and his face is absolutely pallid. You think he's going to die, and you try and move, but he won't let go."
Now he was sick to his stomach.
"You finally manage to pull your hands away because his grip loosened, but he's not conscious. Luckily, he is breathing again. You're cradling him, and when he finally opens his eyes he smiles and tells you that was great. He kisses you again, and his lips are cold. His fingertips are on your face, and they're cold too. He says he's so glad you do this for him, and he's still smiling but he looks and feels and sounds dead. Are you okay with this? Can you deal with this?"
Berwald couldn't respond. His limbs were frozen, and he could feel himself getting sicker. His jaw was clenched tight, and he could see his glasses fog.
"Answer the question." Nikolai prompted.
"Nikki," Mathias finally cut in, "this is getting a little-"
"A little what, Mathias? A little too real? This isn't my fault; Tino's the one who's fucked up enough to put him into this situation. Berwald, do you understand now? If you think I'm being a fucking bitch for telling you these things, and you're freezing up now, I can't even imagine what would happen the first time he tried it again. This is the reality of what he's asking you to do. He may never actually die from it, sure, but he's sure as hell going to look like he did every time it happens. And if this really is a fetish, it will happen often. So answer me: are you okay with that?" The Norwegian challenged.
The question was in pieces in Berwald's mind. Of course he wanted to make Tino happy. He always wanted Tino to be happy. He was more than okay with making Tino happy. But Nikolai did have a point- the act was definitely very serious, very dangerous, and if he was being honest with himself yes, it scared him. It terrified him to think of his lover as near dying, and having to be exposed to it on a regular basis… god, they psychological agony he would have to cope with. But really, what was worse: living with him, half-dead from time to time, or living without him all together?
"Nikolai, please, stop. You can't put him on the spot like this, it's a lot to think about-" Mathias tried to rationalize, but was suddenly cut off by Berwald.
"If yer goal was to try an' get me to remember what it looks like, then ya' succeeded. If yer goal was to try an' make me need him any less, ya' didn'." The Swede said.
Frustrated, dark blue eyes stared him down, but Berwald didn't change his response.
"You are completely hopeless." Nikolai said, huffing.
"Ya' can't change mah feelings, even if ya' dun like 'em." Berwald replied.
"I just want you to understand what you're getting into." The Norwegian said, frustrated tears pooling in the corners of his pretty eyes, "And you won't fucking listen to me because you're so love-sick over him."
"Ah am listenin' to yoo," Berwald assured, gently, "But ah'm also makin' mah own judgments. Ah hear what yer sayin', but yer not the one who'll have to live with the decisions ah make."
"But you will, and I care about you."
"Ah care about y'too, ya 'ere one a mah best friends. An' ah'm sorry tha' this all gets to ya' so much. But yoo have yer own life, an' ah have mine, an' we have different priorities. An' as much as ah know yoo'll hate me fer sayin' this, mah life is connected ta' his, an he is mah priority."
"But do you know if you're his?" Nikolai pressed.
"Ah'm not sure. But ah' know he's mine, an' even if ah'm not his priority I can't change that he's mine."
"You deserve better. You deserve someone who lets you know how much you mean to them."
"But ah dun wan anyone tha's not him."
"If you found someone who did treat you better you wouldn't be like this."
"Tha's irrelevant. Ah found him. Fell in love with him, an' tha's where ah am."
"And you don't think that you could do that again?"
"Ah know ah can't. Ya only feel yer heart really, really break once."
"What about before?" The Norwegian challenged. Their own smothered possibilities, the fight, the nights and nights of wondering what could have possibly happened if maybe-
"Tha' wasn' like this."
"Oh?"
"Ja. Ya' never gave me the 'mpression that yoo loved me. Ah didn' need you."
For the first time in god knows how long, Nikolai was caught without a reply. His lips parted and his mouth hung open, and yet he couldn't think of anything to say. Berwald seized the opportunity to continue speaking.
"Ah can't deny ah cared about yoo. Bu' ah wanted someone to take care 'f, an' feel needed, an' yoo can't deny that yoo were always self-sufficient- ya' didn' need me, an' ah never felt needed. You'd rather feel important yerself than let anyone else- an' ah respect yoo fer it, ah do. But yoo were na' made fer me, an' there was no way ah coulda' convinced myself otherwise. But Tino was made fer me. When ah first saw him, ah wanted ta' take care'f him. Ah jus' felt it. An' when he finally wan'ed ta' be together, ah jus' couldn' say no. He made me feel important, like he wan'ed me there. An' he let me take care'f him. Tha'…"
He paused, thinking back to that wonderful way he felt, before he continued. "Tha' was everythin' ah ever wan'ed, an' he gave it to me. Everythin' about him, it was all ah wanted. Loved. Needed. An yer heart only breaks when ya' really, really need someone- when you can'r be without 'em. Ah moved on from yoo the second ya' told me to leave. But ah can't go forward without him, not even after everythin'. An' tha's tha'." He said, with absolute conviction. There was no room for argument.
After a moment of processing the words, Nikolai closed his mouth and sat, silent. This was the Norwegian facing defeat for the night, eyes hollow and lips taut. He stared up at his old friend and shook his head, exhaling.
"I'm tired, Berwald. I don't know what to do for you. If this is the decision that you're going to make, then fine." He said, an edge to his voice, "I can't stop you. But let's face it, if you're staying with him you'll have to cope with the fact that your precious little 'wife' will more likely than not have red lines and purple bruises around his neck every morning."
There was a pause, and it felt like an eternity to everyone in the room as Berwald imagined the scene and Mathias cringed at the harshness, but really it was only second before the Norwegian teen spoke again.
"I think you should take one more day to think about that. Good night, Berwald- I do hope you take the offer."
And at that, Mathias let out the breath he had been holding as his lover curled against him and offered Berwald an apologetic look, but Berwald was already lost in his own thoughts, gone to them for the rest of the night.
Why the fuck was Tino so impossible to get a hold of?
Raivis had bought it to his attention that his long-time friend just picked a fight with Ivan, and at that Eduard realized letting him out of his sight was not a wise idea. He had been looking for him about since he had gotten the information at three, and by eleven at night he still hadn't found him. Hell, even Toris and Feliks hadn't been able to catch him. Their text correspondence remained pretty hopeless, and the Polish teen had already essentially given up and took a break. Toris was still trying to help, but even he sounded pretty damn tired at this point.
Other people seemed to have seen the Finn around, sure, but none of them knew where he went after he left them. Eduard had tried to call him quite a few times throughout the course of the day, given up, and then called again, and currently he was debating whether or not he should try yet again or continue to search on foot. He checked the time- eleven twenty three. This was getting pretty fucking hopeless. His feet ached, and he leaned against the wall. Calling again couldn't hurt. What the hell did he have to lose at this rate, at least waiting through the dial tone would give him a good thirty seconds or so to rest his feet. Just when he thought that he would be greeted yet again by voicemail, Tino finally, finally, picked up.
"Yes?" Tino's hoarse voice greeted him.
"Tino, where are you?" The Estonian teen asked, "I've been looking everywhere."
"Ah, in the east wing right now. Hey Eduard, have you seen Berwald?" He asked.
Figured.
"Tino, no, I haven't- but it's late. We still have classes tomorrow. You really need to get some sleep-"
"I can sleep later." Tino insisted. "Look, tell me if you find anything, okay? I really have to-"
"Tino!" Eduard scolded, "Do not hang up on me. Look, we need to talk, I heard you got in a fight with fucking Ivan-"
"Relax, it was just a scuffle. Really, it's fine-"
"Tino, that's dangerous, and I don't think that you're thinking clearly-"
"I'm perfectly fine." Tino insisted. "You're over-reacting."
"I am not over-reacting you are acting completely irrational-"
"Do not fucking tell me I'm acting irrational!" Tino yelled, and the sound made Eduard pull the phone away from his ear.
"I'm being perfectly rational." The Finnish teen started again, quietly. "My love is missing, and I am looking for him. I fail to see how that is so irrational."
Eduard wasn't even sure how to reply. "It's late." He tried.
"I know. That's why I should keep looking."
"But it's late-"
"And what if my man needs me this late?" He half-cooed, sounding far off. "He'd want me at night. All the better reason to keep looking at night. "
"You don't sound okay right now."
"Of course I'm not okay Eduard. Berwald is somewhere without me tonight. I'm supposed to be with him right now and it's all my god-damn fault I'm not-" He sobbed, hiccupping.
"Shh. You'll find him. But it might just help if you sleep-"
"I can't sleep Eduard." He mumbled, shakily. "I'm not able to. I'm going to keep looking for him, okay? Goodnight."
"Tino, wai-"
But at that point it was too late. The Finn had already hung up and try as he might have, Eduard couldn't get him to pick up again that night.
In total, Tino got about four hours of sleep that night- they weren't all consecutive.
He'd started falling asleep in the hallway as he searched, and he reluctantly staggered back to the room only when he was sure he couldn't find any one else moving about, and when he could barely hold himself up any longer. He would have kept moving if he could have, really, but the second he got back to his room and his body hit the mattress his limbs screamed for a break that he didn't have enough strength to deny them. He started drifting in and out of sleep almost immediately after.
He'd wake up to half-gasped sobs and tears on his face, phone pressed against his cheek in case Berwald decided to call for him so that he could answer. He didn't call, though. The whole night he never called. He even checked his missed calls long after he had already been informed that he had no new missed calls, because what if he was just being stupid and missing something crucial? He couldn't afford to miss anything.
It was hard to read the phone screen; the saline in his tears had glazed the surface. It didn't help that he was only running on four hours of sleep, and his eyesight was hazy and unfocused- or was that from the crying again? Fucking hell it didn't matter. All he knew was that he couldn't see, not well anyway. He was sure his current texts were packed full of typos. He wondered if maybe getting up to start the day again would help, but sitting up only made him dizzy.
After a minute of adjusting to being up again Tino dragged himself to his feet and forced himself to move, going through his living-alone morning routine almost mechanically. The only time he so much as flinched was when he brushed his yesterday's bruises a couple of times- but they didn't matter. They weren't that bad. Even as people stared at the side of his face blotched with bruises, they didn't matter. The ones on his neck were surely darker and uglier, anyway.
He sent another text to Berwald as he made his way to the cafeteria. He didn't plan on eating, really- he kind of just made the walk out of habit. Besides, what if he was there today? He couldn't miss him just because he was being sloppy in his steps.
When he finally got to the cafeteria he scanned the area, the smell of food making him sick. He could hear the whispers around the room, and he could probably even guess what they were about, but they weren't important at the moment. He was searching.
"What does he think he's going to find?" A voice fairly close by asked. "He was probably the last one who saw the guy, anyway…"
Wearily the Finn turned around to see who was talking, catching a few startled classmates and causing them to go silent.
"I don't know if I was the last one to see him- how am I supposed to know if I don't look?" He laughed, bitterly.
"Well, well, well, for once you're actually thinking logically." A cold voice cut in, and Tino tilted his head to see Nikolai. Nikolai- fuck why hadn't he thought of him earlier?
"Nikolai," He started, choosing to ignore the other's condescending nature, "do you know where Berwald is?"
Just as everyone in the room expected the Norwegian to say no, he turned the situation on its head.
"Maybe I do." He said, simply, calmly. "What's it to you?"
Tino froze, entire body rigid. Oh god oh god oh god he was finally getting somewhere. He stepped forward, voice not all the way steady.
"Nikolai," his voice shook, "please, tell me where he is. I need to talk to him."
He was on the verge of tears, but his companion showed little sympathy. He yawned, shifting on his feet, deciding how to respond.
"Nikolai please-" He tried again, begging, and the other cut him off.
"I know what you did." He settled on, and Tino froze up all over again. He smiled slightly, chuckling at the Finn's obvious discomfort.
"I do." He continued. "And I don't appreciate it. Tell me, why should I help you after that?"
"That's why I need to talk to him, I didn't mean to I just want to try to apologize and explain-" Tino started again, once again cut off.
"You didn't mean to? Really? How are we to trust that?" Nikolai asked, eyes moving to the choker on his neck. "Something tells me that you don't mind what happened one bit."
"I didn't want to hurt him!" The Finn almost sobbed. "I- I didn't mean to hurt him. I don't want to. I want to make things right."
The Norwegian stared him down icily, his mind at work. He really wanted to see Tino squirm more, pay for what he did to his friend, but realistically he didn't have much time for that. As much as he didn't want it to be true, he knew in the back of his mind that Berwald would be going back to the Finn soon, and so he needed to make it clear very quickly that he would not stand for any more bullshit.
"Look, Tino. I'm on a busy schedule. You want to talk you do it on my time, because I actually have classes I care about getting to. If you care, meet me here at two, and I will not wait for you if you are not here."
"I'll be here." Tino promised, eyes glassy.
"Well then, I must be off." Nikolai declared. "Tata- see you this afternoon."
As he walked away he hoped that Tino would be on time- he had quite a few things to say to the miserable little bastard. When he turned back the Finnish teen was already gone, probably off to look some more. Idiot- he wouldn't get any closer until two.
The morning seemed to be slower than ever as Berwald lay in place, pretending to sleep.
Maybe it was something about not knowing how much time had passed, or maybe it was the way that the blackness that came with closed eyes seemed endless and easy to get lost in. He probably would have if no one woke him.
"Waldy." Mathias called, slicing through the ringing silence. "Waldy, Nikki's already gone to class, there's no reason to keep faking."
At that Berwald opened his eyes and slowly sat up, almost relieved. He met his friend's eyes, just as tired and as worn as his own. The Danish teen smiled his usual, charming smile, but the Swede could feel the heaviness behind it.
"You've already made up your mind, haven't you Waldy?" He asked, voice low and hoarse. Berwald gave a rare, slight smile of his own
"Ja." He said, simply. There was nothing else to really say.
Mathias broke the stare and looked downwards and to the side, grinning and rubbing the back of his head. He wasn't entirely sure what to say, and he almost felt guilty for not being able to talk with the ease that he usually did.
"When are you going?" He finally asked, meeting Berwald's eyes again.
"Tonigh'." He responded.
"Giving Nikolai his one more day?"
"Ja- figure it's only fair. Ya' both did 'lot fer me, ya' know."
"What are friends for?" Mathias smiled. "We're gonna miss having you around again, though."
"Ah'll visit." Berwald promised. "N try'n be better 'bout tha' keeping in touch thing."
"Ditto." Mathias laughed, breaking the tenseness for a split second before it came right back, suffocating them all over again. Berwald was the one to break it this time.
"Nikki'll throw a fit." The Swede said, a guilty smile on his features.
"He will." Mathias agreed. "But he knows- he always knew. He knew that you were going to go back to that boy, Waldy. He knew since the second you two were apart, and he can't kid himself. He just likes to pretend."
It was painfully sad, what Mathias was telling him, but there was nothing more true about the Norwegian's role in the situation. Nikolai was kind of like that, intuitive but so damn stubborn that sometimes, the two collided and threw him into a silent rage.
And that was exactly what Berwald was expecting when it came time to say their goodbyes.
Author's note: Hey guys- not even sure how long it has been, but hopefully not as long as some of my other breaks between updates. Anyway, not sure if this seems short or not but it seemed kind of meaty to me, so I'm just going to leave this here for now and hope it's strong enough to stand on it's own. Anyway, I hope you guys can enjoy it~
And now, for some shameless advertising: Hey guys, I am now doing a collaborative fic with my lovely Rargamonster and the awesome BehindTheSky. It's the one called Synchronicity, and if you guys would give it a go that would be really really awesome and I would give you virtual cookies for it~ Or cake. Or pastries. Or a free internet- take your pick. Also, sending some love their way in general would make me happy, too, because they are awesome~
Reviews may possibly be a nice treat for the hungry author :P