April Writing Prompts 2020

[labrathor]

April is here! We've had a lot of new and returning players lately, so a very special welcome to you all. As many of us are either stuck at home or busy working in essential industries, many of you may be seeking a way to shed the stress for a while, so this month's prompts are a little fluffier than usual. Stay safe everyone, and wash your hands! And As always--

Disclaimer: I never close old writing prompts from previous months. People can and should be encouraged to post on old month's prompts and I highly encourage players to track these posts to catch stragglers or new people writing on old prompts.

Now. With that out of the way, onto this month's prompts.

April's Writing Prompts

1. "Thanks for looking out for me."

2. The perfect ending to a stressful day: does your character prefer to go out with friends, relax at home, or do something else?

3. What's your character's favorite comfort food?

4. "I'm sorry, you said you did what?"

5. "Okay, that was a little funny."

Bonus image prompt:

Comments

[hellomajortom]

5. "Okay, that was a little funny."

3 - Favorite Comfort Food

[itmeanstruth]

As children of first generation immigrants, the Uchiwa twins grew up with a lot of traditional dishes. Isamu relished the taste of pickled plums, just like Grandma Mikoto used to make. Minoru, meanwhile, inherited the sweet tooth that his mother claimed not to have, and remembered sneaking a wide variety of her homemade wagashi over the years.

But all the twins had to do was glance at each other and smile, and they both knew exactly what the other was thinking.

Osechi.

The traditional Japanese New Years Day meal wasn’t one food, per se. But it was certainly a comfort. As far back as they could remember, their mother would cook throughout the days leading up to the New Year celebration. However, it was breakfast on New Year’s morning, the Osechi ryori, that they remembered most fondly - from sitting around the jubako and sharing the meal with each other to using the special iwai-bashi to pick out their favorite morsels. And yes, both boys certainly had their favorites - options that the Uchiwa family matriarch prepared every year without fail.

Even to this day.

Isamu’s first bite was always the datemaki, an omelette mixed with mashed shrimp and fish paste. It was rolled to resemble a scroll, and was traditionally viewed as bringing scholarly success in the year to come. Ask Isamu about any other superstition and he would undoubtedly debunk them with at least four contrary statistics. But this was almost sacred.

Minoru’s first bite was always the kobu-maki. When he was younger, the kelp was filled with the traditional salmon. After becoming a vegetarian, they started substituting burdock root. There was also little irony in the fact that Minoru’s favorite represented happiness. The change of filling didn’t make it any less joyful, since the wordplay was based on the kobu. Yorokobu, roughly translated, meant joyful.

From there, it was a mixture of kuromame for health and hard work, renkon for the overcoming of obstacles and kurikinton dumplings for prosperity. Isamu would take the kōhaku kamaboko for good luck. Minoru swore off the fish cake, in favor of the Kōhaku namasu - since the carrot and daikon salad had roughly the same colors, it was also seen as a symbol of good luck.

1 - "Thanks for looking out for me."

[itmeanstruth]

Minoru was busy packing his suitcase for a much-anticipated trip back to Japan. While Isamu had been back a couple of times, this was the first trip that they'd been able to take together since arriving at the Nexus. The whole family was looking forward to everyone being in one place for the cherry blossom viewing.

"Ah, Minoru! I have returned from the store!" he announced, knocking on his brother's bedroom door. "It was quite unfortunate that you sprained your wrist diving out the window last night."

Minoru looked up, completely confused. "What?"

"Diving out the window. I am certain our downstairs neighbor appreciates how you sacrificed your landing for the sake of the petunias she just planted."

"Isamu, what are you talking about? I didn't..."

"It was quite a nasty sprain." he interrupted, dangling a set of flesh-colored wrist wraps in front of his brother's face. "The doctor recommended you keep it wrapped for the next week at least, remember?"

"Uh... Did you hit your head? Or drink anything given to you by an angel?" Minoru raised both wrists, flapping them up and down in an over-exaggerated 'come here' gesture. Clearly, they were just fine.

"It is quite a pity that it coincides exactly with the dates of our trip."

"Isamu..."

"Fortunately, with it being your left wrist, I see no reason why it should lessen the enjoyment of the trip. I know you display a great amount of ambidexterity, but you are predominantly right handed, after all."

"Isamu, seriously..."

"I have already taken the liberty of informing Mama so she will not be worried."

"Earth to Isamu! Come in Isamu! What are you even talking about?!"

Isamu bopped his brother lightly on the head with the package, before dropping it into his lap. He then took Minoru's hand and pulled said wrist right into his brother's eye-level. Was it sprained? No. However, it was now sporting a simple, yet fashionable tribal snake tattoo that he'd obtained at some point during Ziggy Stardust's American tour.

"I am simply making sure that Grandma Mikoto does not, if I may speak colloquially, tear you a new one. And that you do not get unceremoniously kicked out of any of the establishments our extended family likes to frequent due to misconceptions about your deviant nature or undesirable status."

Minoru's lips puckered as he nodded. "... ohhhhhh."

Isamu consequently let go of his brother's hand. "As I was saying, it was quite unfortunate that you sprained your wrist diving out the window last night."

"Yeah... Can you believe it?!"

"Much better." Isamu nodded, satisfied. Minoru, in turn, let out a relieved sigh.

"Thanks for looking out for me, bro."

"Any time." Isamu returned the smile. "That is what brothers are for."

4 I'm sorry, you said what happened?! (Ziggyverse AU)

[willoftheblackbird]

Aarne tried to be quiet when he carried Dee back into the bus. The singer thought he might even be able to sneak into bed without disturbing his partner, but as soon as he made it back to their space, he heard Jay roll over.

"How's your headache?" He whispered, collapsing awkwardly onto the bed.

"Feeling a lot better after a nap, actually." Jay replied. "How was the afterparty?"

"...well, I don't want to bring your headache back, but..."

Hearing an introduction like that was enough to make Jay sit up. "What happened?"

"Well, for starters... I went to the wrong bar." He admitted sheepishly. "And I got recognized... by some girls who saw our show on Thursday night."

"Oh boy. How long were you stuck by yourself signing autographs?"

"Forget autographs, they were fucking vultures. They wanted any piece of me they could their hands on and they were literally fighting over who called dibs... Aarne came and rescued me."

"Shit, I'm sorry..." Jay immediately slid closer, wrapping his arms around Dee in a protective embrace. If something really bad happened, headache be damned, Dee would have called him. Or Aarne would have. Still, he asked, "Are you okay?"

"We lost the chair."

"Wait. What?" That was the last thing he expected Dee to say.

"It's probably in at least a dozen pieces by now. I told you they were vultures. Aarne had to throw some spare drumsticks in the fray just to distract them enough to get ME out."

Both of them had heard horror stories about fans making off with Vars' cane. But they didn't actually think anyone would make off with a literal wheelchair. Or destroy it while fighting over it...

"Wow... Shit. Okay..." Jay blinked, still trying to wrap his head around what happened. One thing was for sure, though. "I'm just glad you're all right. The chair can be replaced. I can get with Gloria and Tom in the morning. There's got to be a medical supply store somewhere in the city. I'll pay for a new one."

"Tom already knows... Aarne texted him pretty much right after we got to the right place. He said he'll take care of it. Something about getting a customized chair through World Enterprises."

Jay's eyes widened. He completely forgot for a second that the CEO of World Enterprises was Ziggy Stardust's uncle.

"Well, that's fantastic." Jay exclaimed. "Did he say how long that might take? Do we need to find something in the meantime?"

"...Is it?" Dee looked up, his voice timid.

"Isn't it?" Jay was a bit surprised by Dee's hesitation. "World Enterprises is cutting edge technology! Light years beyond anything I can purchase as a nurse. Plus, you wouldn't need someone to push you around all the time. Not that I mind. I don't mind at all, and never will. But..."

"I don't need it, though!" Dee interrupted. "I... I mean... I can still walk..."

Dee wasn't lying. He got around their townhome, the bus and even a bit at some of the venues on his own strength. But it was only short distances and for a limited time. He'd obviously made it out to the bar across the street on his own, though Jay didn't ask whether he had to stop and rest his legs on the way and Dee didn't willfully elaborate.

"Dee, sweetheart, you said the same thing when I brought home your chair in the first place, remember? You don't have to need something all the time in order to need it some of the time."

It had taken him a while to warm up to using a wheelchair at all. At least a manual chair gave the false sense that his condition was temporary. Even if it wasn't. And maybe Jay was partially at fault for letting Dee have that illusion. But the harsh reality of actually needing it - even if only some of the time - played a role in Dee's decision to explore treatment options. Jay knew that for sure now. Perhaps, in the back of his mind, Dee dared to hope that he would get to a point where he wouldn't need it anymore at all. Maybe...

Jay let out a soft sigh, running his hand through Dee's hair.

"It feels like a big step, getting a motorized one, doesn't it." He paused suddenly. "No pun intended."

A small snicker escaped his lips before adding, "More like a giant cliff. And once I jump, there's no going back..."

"Well, that's true. But if all of your past big steps have told me anything, it's not because you can't go back. It's because you don't want to." He added soothingly. "Using a wheelchair, starting on the new treatment, getting the port put in. Even stopping treatment and weaning yourself off everything when you were 18. You sure as hell didn't want to go back then."

"No. No, I'm never going back to that." Dee shuddered in Jay's arms. Jay held him until the memory passed.

"The only side effect of a mobility aid is freedom." He whispered. "And you're right... you can walk. Which means you can get up out of a chair, even a motorized one, whenever you want to. Just like you do now. In fact, you'll have more control, not less... When you do need your chair, you won't have to wait for anyone else to help."

Jay felt Dee release a very tense breath. He leaned in, and kissed him gently.

"Does that sound like something you'd like to try?"

"Mmhm." He nodded, a little hesitant still. But Jay expected as much.

"So what do you say, do you want to chat with Tom in the morning about what we can get?"

"...Okay."

"Maybe they come with built-in vulture deterrent."

Dee burst out laughing. "Jay..."

"I'm serious! It never hurts to check!"