gav-san

[gav-san]

Pay the Piper Verse 2

mdni

Chapter summary: First "Leitmotif" - child!reader finds adventures are challenging with or without adult supervision.

Master list

Chapter warnings: blood, violence, bullets, implied threat of massacre, language (as always)

A/N: I alternate "verses" (main story arc chapters) with "leitmotifs" (critical flashback chapters with contextual adventures). It's a play on One Piece's own style and a way to keep things fresh.

I do not curate tag lists, but I do reply to comments when the next chapter goes live!

“What are they doing?”

The captain grunted. “Thought you were the clever little genius.”

You glared from the corner of your eye, refusing to lift your chin from its rest on your folded arms. “Clever doesn’t mean psychic.”

“Obviously.”

Together, you watched the problem trailing in your wake.

Although they hadn’t done as you’d requested, your hunters hadn’t closed on the Marines’ tub. Not when they refused your kindly plea to fuck off. Not in the hours after. You sat on the aft railing, puzzling over the situation.

Every time you lifted your spyglass, you caught sight of Red Hair himself, relaxing in the same place. Watching you just as you watched him. The fucker waved when he caught you peeping.

You nearly swallowed your damn tongue.

The world really had gone mad.

A spar shrieked with strain, and you patted the ship, apologizing for the chip you’d dug out of her paint the day before. It wasn’t her fault she’d survived so many years at sea without appropriate reward for her good service. The poor thing was just doing her best. If she survived, the Marines might finally retire her, and she’d be sold off to a civilian fishing venture. Her final days would be full of quiet sailing in shallow waters with a home port to shelter in every night. Fish guts were better than men’s, you imagined, even if you were a boat.

You eased back, freeing a hand to tap the folded spyglass against your forehead. Eyes closed, you begged the thing for vision. Some insight. Perspective, maybe.

This mission had enough obstacles without bloodthirsty pirates.

They were clearly playing with you. But you didn’t know what they’d take as a prize if they came aboard. If they even wanted to come aboard.

Fuck it all.

Grunting you dropped to your feet and turned your back to the enemy. This close, anyone with observation haki – or a particularly good pair of binoculars – could read lips.

“What do you plan to do?”

The captain snorted, dropping his arm across his face. He wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer, but even he knew the absolute basics of strategy. Don’t tell the enemy your plans. Hopefully, he didn’t consider you one.

“Taking orders now?” he asked.

“Of course not.” You secured your telescope, shoulders loose and feet spread, hoping you looked calm from the pirates’ point of view. You were trying to run on ice, and if the captain decided to act of his own volition, you’d all sink to hell together. “I just like to be informed.”

His grip flexed around the binoculars, eyes darkening. Jaw ticking, he glared across the water.

“When they make their move, we’ll be ready to fight.”

You threw your head back and laughed.

Exactly what you’d expect from a marine with more brass than brains. Grinning with all your teeth, you rounded on him.  

“Adorable how you assume they’d cross blades instead of just broadsiding us.” Stepping closer, making sure you couldn’t be overheard, you took aim at his confidence. Hesitation on his part could stall the inevitable long enough for a new avenue to appear. Ego be damned. You wouldn’t die for a man’s pride.

“There won’t be a fight. Even if they don’t blow us to splinters with their superior range, Red Hair is one of the most fearsome men in the world. He blinks. We die. Don’t be thick. He fells vice admirals with his haki alone. You either got a hell of a promotion before we left, or you’re batting out of your league.”

Your shot landed, and the man snapped like a wounded animal. He snarled, shoving you out of his path, and you obliged, spinning away to his blow barely grazed your shoulder. You wanted to make a point, not pick a fight. Let him lick his wounds in peace. You’d be an adult and keep watch.

He stomped down to the main deck, the wood groaning under his assault. If the pirates didn’t destroy the ship, a few temper tantrums might just do it.

Without the captain of your ship eating space and sanity at your side, you felt the eyes of the other captain stabbing into the back of your head. Why did it feel so personal? So targeted? His determined fixation would get people killed. Not that a pirate would care, but – fuck’s sake – why couldn’t he just take the loot and leave?

Elbows on the rail, you dropped your head into your hands, fingers sinking through your hair and pulling until it hurt.

You refused to get your spyglass out again. You could still see his figure, even if his expression remained a mystery. From afar, you saw him raise an arm, holding something you deduced to be a cup when he brought it to his face.

A toast.

This bitch.

You wondered what to send him to express your regard. A barrel of shit. Rotten fish. Live rats. A pair of crushed walnuts.

He hadn’t played these games with the captain, at least not that you’d witnessed. You could imagine what stunning shade of red the man would turn if a pirate dared carry on with him in this manner.

So, that left the question: why you? The sea was a lonely place, but you doubted an emperor would be so desperately horny he’d chase down any ship with a woman aboard. And he’d been too far away to make out any figures at the hunt’s inception.

What did that mean?

Once he’d taken your necklace, the pirates kept up their pursuit, but they’d maintained that distance – close enough to see each other, but far enough to let everyone breathe.

It was like he wanted a conversation, like he was just waiting for the opportunity to pull alongside without escalating tensions to the breaking point.

Food for thought.

Honestly, you’d let him. If not for the marines. Red Hair would get what he wanted, one way or another, and appeasement might work if you were willing to give it another shot. A very, very risky shot. That the captain would not agree to.

This was why you traveled alone. It was impossible to make decisions with so many variables, so many others to consider…

An electric prickle ran up the back of your neck, jerking you out of your head.

Your intangible third eye snapped awake, staring wide into a scene of blood above deck and below. Casualties and regret and irreparable loss.

It sprang from the ship’s forecastle, from a sniper rifle’s barrel. The marine’s shot never fired. A bullet found his skull, scattering his thoughts into the thirsty deck. Men shouted. Weapons came to bear. Bullets picked them off. A canon shot cleared half the deck. Warped, aged wood couldn’t hold back the onslaught, and aborted screams rose with wailing cries from the hold before a crackling wave of haki left everything still.

You moved, and you felt the future alter with your steps. It flexed with your plans, two wills working over a chess board.

If you deflected the first shot – other marines fired. The end result was the same.

If you threw all your cards on the table and commanded the marines – you couldn’t see that future. It spun too far, but you knew what that gamble would cost. You didn’t need any special talent to see bounty posters and shackles creeping out to chain you. An end to your life, in one way or another. If you fell off the tightrope, the world would swallow you whole.

One option might work. The idea sprang from the waving figure of the pirate captain, his laughing refusal to simply fuck off, and the toast he raised to your frustration. He didn’t want treasure. He was after some sort of connection, chasing some link that tied back to you. If he just wanted to teach the marines a lesson for trespassing, you’d be dead already.

The plan would give you a few more minutes for a miracle, and a few minutes were always better than none at all. Besides, there was much less blood this way, and the old ship deserved a respite from violence.

You raced across the deck, ignoring the captain’s shouting as you rushed to end his little scheme. You’d definitely miscalculated there. His ego was too fragile to even look in a mirror. At the first pressure from reality, it shattered, and the shards would cut you all to ribbons.

Three steps from where the sniper lurked, peeking out from behind a mast on his knees, you felt your options narrow.

You were out of time.

“The fuck are you doing!”

You jumped in his way, shoving the barrel up so he fired into the clouds. There wasn’t time to brace the way you’d planned, and a bullet punched straight through you. It sent a shower of splinters from the prow, and a spray of your blood blinded the sniper. Rattled, the man didn’t even try to reload.

You fell against the mast, barely catching yourself as pain pounded through the shock. How bad was it? Not good. But not immediately fatal. You would’ve seen your death if it was that close.

You had your minutes.

Blinding rage flooded the ship, reaching over the waves to seize control. Conqueror’s haki. The sniper wilted at your feet, and the force of Red Hair’s oppressive aura knocked the wind out of you. You kept your feet, though, stumbling around to see a deck full of prone, useless men.

No canon shots, though. And only one bullet. Better than the alternative.

Still. The pirates were coming, and you had a job to do.

Usually, you had impeccable sea legs. Rough water and high winds meant nothing. But you couldn’t walk a straight line at the moment. Your vision swam, your brain struggling with a purely physical reaction to a serious wound, and cold dread curled around your heart as you pressed a hand to the hole. It was very warm. Very wet. You must be bleeding quite a bit.

You made it down to the main deck, swaying down to grab a pistol from a fallen marine as you headed below. Before you closed the door separating the crew quarters from the open air, you saw the Red Force’s dragon figurehead rise over the sails.

The sheer scale of the thing underlined the stupidity of it all.

It underscored the scale of the miracle you’d need to pull through this, too.

Well. The marines were down, anyway. No one around to see you break the rules.

Red Hair’s haki dropped off quickly. In tandem with the marines. Taking a deep breath that hitched on torn muscles, you pulled your focus together and flung it back. You had no hope of taking out the commanders, but every sword mattered in a fight, and you’d settle for clearing minions.

The dragon snarled closer, and you shut the door. Barricaded it. Limped your way deeper into the ship as you heard feet clatter aboard. You reached the door to the hold just as the first shoulder slammed into your little roadblock. Drums of war.

You knocked on the hold, hoping against hope Red Hair’s haki hadn’t reached below deck.

There was no response.

Winded, exhausted, you slid down the wall, aiming your pistol at the corner the pirates would have to turn to reach you. You didn’t have the energy to keep standing and hold the gun steady.

Hiding was out of the question. And you were the last line of defense.

Maybe if you lasted long enough, everyone would wake up and follow the emergency plan you’d drilled since leaving port. That meant facing a Yonko and his entire crew. Alone, just like you’d wanted.

The hall was better than the open deck. At least this way, you’d only have to face a few at a time. Though, depending on who came first, you might not get through any of them. You would not win against a Yonko. You would not win against his lieutenants, either, especially bleeding out with your back to the wall and something to protect.

Something snagged in your chest and you coughed. Iron and salt tinged the back of your throat with your next breath, and you wondered how much time you’d really won for yourself.

The door you’d blocked shattered, and running footsteps took on a new timbre in the ship’s hollow belly.

Your defenses hadn’t lasted a whole minute.

How, exactly, had this been the best outcome?

You were going to haunt Garp.

“Oi, oi!”

Far too friendly for the situation, the voice bounced down the passage. A sandaled foot slipped halfway out of cover, showing the speaker stood at the end of your little death tunnel. It wasn’t hard to guess who it belonged to.

Fucking fuck.

“That pistol won’t do either of us any favors. Put it down and let’s talk.”

You felt his haki pushing – far more gently than before but strong enough to turn the air thick in your mouth. You barely even thought of reacting. Instinctively, your haki slashed against his, feral and out of control. You took such pride in your precision. Shame you were going to die hissing and spitting like a cornered cat.

You cocked the hammer. “Can’t do that.”

“I’m standing in your blood.” Though still friendly, the voice grew heavier, less playful. An adult speaking to an adult, not a miscreant flirting his way out of trouble. “How long do you think you’ll last like this? Put down the gun. We have a doctor. He can help you.”

“Would’ve helped if you left when I asked.”

“You told me to fuck off.” He sounded delighted. You could hear his smile.

Your head thumped against the wood, a jarring little strike to keep you focused.

“I said please.”

Laughter you’d seen but never heard echoed through the space.

“That you did.” The man around the corner sighed, and you wondered how long you could spin out this standoff before he got bored. “You’re just the way I remembered you.”

What.

What?

“I don’t believe I’ve ever had the pleasure of a yonko’s acquaintance.” Staring even harder through the shadows, you waited for a trap, for a rush to take advantage of your distraction.

He must be lying. You’d never met Red-Haired Shanks.

But if he’d mistaken you for someone else…

“We never did have a proper introduction,” he agreed. “But I’m sure you remember.”

“I don’t know what you’re -”

A wobbly little voice said your name. Asked it, really. A frightened child looking for an adult. In the quiet belly of the ship, it was much too loud.

“Shit.” You glanced away from the end of the hall, shouting, “Don’t open the door!”

The child, a purple-haired squirt named Tevon, if you remembered right, sniffled, a wail haunting his words. “I fell down. All the mommies and aunties are asleep, and they won’t wake up.”

The yonko’s heavy sandal scraped over the boards as he adjusted his stance, and your gaze flicked back to the threat. Even if enough of the civilians behind the door woke before the pirates made a move, hiding was pointless. They’d been exposed.

You lifted a knee, snarling against the pain, and propped up your wrist to steady your sights.

“Ah.” The jubilant pirate captain turned serious. The warmth in his voice faded. “I think I understand.”

When in doubt – “You don’t know shit.”

He chuckled. It was dry. Almost derogatory.

“A bunch of women and children with a civilian escort on a Marine ship that barely deserves the name.”

In the quiet, you heard an infant start fussing. Because things couldn’t get any worse.

“Refugees?” Red-Hair asked. “And pirates are a particular threat. Enough for you to sacrifice something precious.”

A light chain rattled, rasping over callouses, and you had no doubt he was looking at your sacrifice as he spoke.

And he knew how much it mattered to you.

But you’d never met. Surely you’d remember…

“Families of the fallen from Marineford,” he concluded. “Am I right?”

The pistol wouldn’t stop him. You weren’t stupid, but you clung to it anyway. It made you feel like you could still do something.

“If they are?”

“Then you can put down the gun. We don’t hurt civilians.”

It sounded too good to be true, so you suspected it was. There would be a catch. A cost. Even merciful pirates were no angels.

“Then what do you want?”

“For you to stop bleeding!” After a moment’s rustling and vague cursing, an open hand appeared around the corner. “I’m unarmed, see? I’m gonna come to you, alright?”

You didn’t lower the gun, even as he slipped entirely out of cover.

“And I won’t shoot you because…?”

“You don’t want to.”

He took the journey one cautious step at a time, giving you plenty of time to study the great pirate effortlessly disregarding your last stand. Even in the gloom, you could make out his red hair and the long scars over his left eye. His black cloak whispered around him as he moved, strangely ominous in contrast with his colorful trousers. His attention stayed on you, just as yours fixed on him.

It felt eerily familiar.

Once he was close enough, he crouched in front of you, face even with the pistol. With two fingers, he casually pushed the barrel aside, and the weapon fell from your weakened grip.

He smiled wide. “See? Told you so.”

You glowered.

You should’ve shot him.

Rising, Red-Hair rapped his knuckles against the door to the hold, waiting until the growing sounds of shifting and groaning stilled. He only spoke when he had a rapt audience.

“You’re welcome to settle in my territory if any of you wish, and this ship has safe passage for as long as you’re aboard.”

He glanced down at you, and you found it increasingly difficult to look at all menacing from the floor, all labored breathing and numb hands.

“Unfortunately, your friend here was hurt in a misunderstanding, so she’ll be coming with us so our doctor can treat her.”

“Oh, hells no, I won’t.” Maybe it wasn’t too late to put a bullet in his smug face.

He ignored you.

“Tell the marines whatever you like. It’s a friendly kidnapping, but it is what it is.” He paused, considering. “Since we’re taking part of your defenses, I’ll have a crew flying our colors escort you. Apologies for the interruption. I hope you find your new homes soon and you have smooth sailing the rest of the way.”

Turning on his heel, he looked down the hall and called, “Beck! Have Hongo prepare the surgery, and tell Bonk Punch to come down here.”

You followed his line of sight just in time to see a tall, grey-haired man smoking a cigarette nod and head back towards the deck. “Got it, boss.”

Red-Hair knelt beside you, and you lashed out, planting your foot in the middle of his chest so he couldn’t get any closer.

“Hey, you’ll just bleed out faster if you fight like that.” He swept around the offending limb, getting his arm under your shoulders and hoisting you to your feet.

The pain was dazzling. For a moment, everything went white, and your ears rang. You felt the pirate captain all but dragging you along like a rag doll, and staying conscious took too much effort to even try resisting again.

“Here.” He handed you off to someone with two arms. You felt them curl around you, and suddenly your feet weren’t on the floor.

Yelping in agony and indignation, you threw your fading haki out in a wave.

It did nothing.

“Be careful,” the captain said, smile and mirth returned. “She’s a fighter.”

“I got her, Captain.”

Red-Hair’s voice faded as he walked away, and you blinked after his retreating figure. “I’m going to find our guest’s quarters and make sure we don’t leave anything important behind.”

The pirate carrying you climbed the steps to the main deck, angling your combined bulk through the shattered door, and the sun blinded you all over again.

You panted, fingers twitching in a vain effort to reclaim control as you were taken. A few marines had woken, and they sat at gunpoint as the pirates completed their business. They were hardly friends, but you still tried to plead with your eyes as the man carried you off.

Each one looked away.

Fucking cowards.

Over the deck, across the boarding ramp, and onto the pirate’s vessel – you were officially stolen goods.

[gav-san]

Title: Puzzled

Pairing: Sanji x Reader

Summary: Due to your insecurities, you thought Sanji was making fun of you whenever he complimented you until you realized he wasn’t. | Genre: Fluff, some angst, hints of a troubled past| Warning: none | Words: 4.5K

Can be a standalone or series: Dazzled, Muffled, Bewitched, Unraveled, Fulfilled

You already felt nervous while sitting next to your new crew.

It wasn’t them. Well, maybe to some extent it was them as you had a hunch a secondhanded embarrassment would occur very soon in such a nice-looking place like the Baratie.

Your new crew were good people. If you didn’t believe it, you wouldn’t have left the security of your little merchant shop just because Luffy decided he liked your skills of calculations and the odd ability to seemingly fit everything that was needed into any small place imaginable.

Even if he didn’t take your no for an answer, you never really felt forced. At least not like how you did with your old crew, but you rarely liked to think about those times.

Then, before you knew it, you were checking the inventory on his ship —your new home.

Still, as good as Luffy, Zoro, Nami, and Usopp were, you did not believe for a second they wouldn’t cause some distress in the fancy establishment. Trouble always seemed to follow the bunch, and unfortunately or not, you were dragged along the ride.

Despite the fear of embarrassment, there was another reason why you were sweating bullets under your clothing and once again easily surrendering into your specific nervous habit, no doubt looking crazy or at least unstable.

In the open like this, surrounded by all these pirates and sailors, you dreaded seeing anyone from your old crew. The chances were high. Ever since you managed to leave, you had no idea what they were up to.

You would have gladly stayed under the deck just as you used to rather than stay in the security of the shop. Still, everyone told you to come with them, and if you didn’t want to burden them with the real reason why you didn’t want to join another pirate crew in the first place, you didn’t really have much of a choice.

I have to come up with a believable lie for next time, you told yourself, deciding a small lie would be better than enduring this as you not for the first time nervously looked around.

After another few tense moments, for you at least, you decided to use the restrooms and try to wash up a bit.

Your eyes scanned the place a dozen times before you found the courage to do so, somewhat confident no one who knew you from before was around.

You stood up from the table, mumbling about the restroom to the crew just as you noticed someone approach it and, in passing, heard a rather annoyed voice with a thick accent say something like, ‘Hi, welcome to our shitty restaurant…’

Weird, you thought without looking back and hurried into the restroom.

The cold water helped at least a little bit, but you still took your time trying to calm yourself down.

No one was here. None of them would find you, and why would they? You reasoned with yourself. Whatever happened before was history, but deep inside, you always feared they would hold a grudge.

You returned in the midst of chaos as a small fight broke out between some of the customers.

Great, you thought to yourself grimly and waited it out, surprised when it seemed a waiter had defused the situation by beating both customers up without dropping any food in the process.

You weren’t much of a fighter unless you had something you could use to hit them over the head with, but even you were impressed by how skilled he seemed. Something about him caught your eye for a second before you carried on your journey back to your crew.

As the passage cleared, you tried to finally return to your table, only to slip on some spilled water and almost crash into the ground.

Before you did, however, you felt someone snatch your arm and tug you away from the hard floor and toward something solid and dark.

‘Careful now, madam,’ you heard a smooth accented voice above you while your face was pressed against the solid black fabric at an odd angle, ‘Wouldn’t want someone as precious as you to injure yourself.’

Your eyes blinked and leaned away from your salvation, trying to assess what was going on.

Once you did, you found yourself looking at someone with a fine black suit. Someone who was quick and strong enough to save you from falling, it seemed.

You managed to raise your eyes from his suit toward his face and immediately felt heat rush into your cheeks.

Something cracked in the air around you, and for a moment, you forgot where you were and everything else along with it while looking at the stranger.

Huh? You thought desperately as your breath caught inside your throat.

A very nonchalant smirk played across his lips, and the grey-blue eye that wasn’t covered by his blond hair seemed to hint amusement. Whether it was because of some form of endearment, simple amusement, or mockery, you didn’t know.

What you did know was that, based on everything you felt apart from the embarrassment and shock, you were sure your body reactions could only mean one thing.

This man was far too handsome for you to handle.

‘Oh Gods,’ you mumbled, feeling mortified that you almost fell like that. Feeling mortified that someone like him caught you. Feeling mortified that he was now looking at you.

You were never good with attention — much less attention from someone like this man in front of you.

Your heart speeded up, and you averted your gaze. You were also never good with direct eye contact, and despite how it might look, at the moment, you just couldn’t stand to be in the man’s presence any longer.

‘Thank you,’ you mumbled and tried to rush away quickly.

Only when you felt his hand slipping from your arm you realized he had been holding onto you all this time.

Why?

‘You’re very welcome, madam, but the apology is unnecessary,’ he said, causing you to stop before realizing what you were doing. You immediately realized he must have been the waiter who came to your table as you were leaving.

Hesitant, hoping your face didn’t reveal your blush, you looked back at him. You found him still looking at you with that playful smirk, ‘After all, who wouldn’t want to assist a beautiful woman such as yourself.’

Just like that, you snickered before you could stop yourself and felt whatever warm, if slightly embarrassing feeling this man sparked inside you to sour into annoyance and humiliation, ‘Right.’

You turned around and, feeling like an idiot, returned to your crew, debating if you shouldn’t just excuse yourself and leave.

‘I ordered for you,’ said Nami, and you nodded grateful, ‘That’s fine.’

You were right, and the waiter, Sanji, as you learned from Luffy, showed up at your table a couple of times.

You tried to be polite and purposely busied yourself with the menu or gave out short answers without meeting his eyes.

You didn’t like being rude, but you couldn’t really force yourself to look at him or be your usual nice self. Not when it was obvious the man was mocking you.

You weren’t naïve and had a good pair of eyes. You knew how you looked compared to others. You made your peace with that and, in certain ways, even found comfort in not having to fight off the attention of gross old men the way Nami and other striking, pretty women had to all the time. So, to have someone as handsome as Sanji show up and call you beautiful and stunning and like a dream every once in a while, when he showed up at the table, left you feeling completely miserable.

Why was he so cruel?

Why did he need to mock your appearance?

You just met and barely spoke to him. So did he really have to be that much of an asshole? You would still blush and feel embarrassed if he complimented your skills or work on the ship. Still, at least a part of you would accept that he was being sincere and that you truly did a good job, but your appearance was a tricky subject.

You felt humiliated every time Sanji showed up and commented at you, to the point you couldn’t look at anyone, not even your crew, or swallow another bite. That was the real tragedy because before your mood dropped so low, you thought the food was delicious. Luckily, your new captain had no problem finishing your plate so the food wouldn’t go to waste.

‘Was the food not to your liking, madam?’ asked the accented voice close by at one point while you desperately tried not to look anywhere else but at your hands, ‘It was good. Thank you.’

‘I understand,’ he said, and even if you made a point of not meeting his gaze, you knew he was smirking, ‘Perhaps you would enjoy something specific to please your unique palate.’

You winced at his words.

Was he insulting your body or calling you high maintenance or something? Your old crew would do that. They would wrap something up in a compliment or concern, trying to seem like they meant well, only to strike you down or make you look back in your captain’s eyes, and your captain…well, he never bothered with words when he could use his hands.

You got up from the table, mumbling you weren’t feeling too good, which wasn’t much of a lie since you now really did feel bad.

It was unclear to you what took over, but for a moment, you dared yourself to glance at the blond waiter, who was still present. Once you did, you wished you hadn’t because you found him looking directly at you with that smirk still playing across his handsome face and amusement radiating from his eyes.

Not only did he make you feel shitty about yourself, but he was smiling about it now?

It would have been kinder if he kicked you into the gut.

Needless to say, your first impression of the handsome man was not good, and you mentally hoped you would leave as soon as possible so you wouldn’t have to deal with him any more than this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unfortunately, you discovered it wouldn’t be that simple when you and your crew brought Zoro’s unconscious and wounded body into Nami’s bed after his fight with Mihawk.  

It was the first time you properly looked at him, feeling your stomach sinking.

The bleeding was excessive, and a single look at his wounds was all you needed to be triggered back to the times with your old captain and crew. Deadly injuries were common when the captain’s temper got out of hand. It was why many resorted to snitching on others or making up rumors and such, if only to be labeled as valuable and loyal and avoid his wrath themselves. At times, you wondered if things would have been more bearable if your crew showed more solidarity with each other.

You blinked several times, trying to chase away the fog of vicious memories and return to the present time to your badly injured friend.

‘Baratie,’ your voice was weak when you spoke, and you watched Nami nod.

‘Luffy, we need to go,’ you said to your captain whose gaze never felt Zoro’s wound, ‘I’m not really in the mood for food, you guys,’ said Luffy, uncharacteristically quiet next to you.

‘To get a doctor!’ yelled Nami, and you merely shook your head and pulled at his wrist to drag him back toward the restaurant with you.

You weren’t thinking clearly when you found the head chef and the waiter in the kitchen. You weren’t certain what was said as you were still too shaken from the reality of Zoro being injured and the trauma from your past.

You vaguely recalled Luffy begging for their help while you rambled over what happened all too fast; you didn’t really make sense to yourself, let alone an outsider.

You didn’t notice Sanji approaching you. At least not until you felt a warm, solid palm against your shoulder blades and another against your cheek.

Your eyes got trapped by a pair of grey-blue ones while that accented voice you found all too soothing in that moment spoke, ‘It’s alright, sweetheart.’

His expression was oddly severe for once, but still not completely, ‘Breath with me.’

In a heartbeat, you obeyed, feeling grounded by the instruction that took your mind away from the distress, ‘Our friend is injured. Can you help us, please?’

‘At once, madam,’ said Sanji, and you were certain never in your entire life had anyone looked at you so gently as this man had at that moment while promising his help.

Swallowing, you nodded and allowed the man to lead you back to your ship and your injured crewmate.

It wasn’t until you noticed Usopp’s raised eyebrows and gaze at your side that you realized that somewhere along everything that happened, you or Sanji took hold of the other’s hand and remained that way until now.

With a rapidly beating heart, you gently shook your hand free from his hold, immediately mourning the absence of his touch and warmth, and pushed it into your pocket for comfort. It didn’t seem to help, though. Still, you forced yourself to be grateful and optimistic since, after all, right now, you brought someone who could help Zoro, and that was what mattered.

Your injured crewmate was your main focus, of course, but every once in a while, whenever your gaze met the blond’s, you found him looking at you with fondness and a smirk that seemed just soft enough to be a kind smile.

Sighing you offered him a small nod unsure if it meant there was some peace between you two or something else entirely.

For now, you let it rest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After the head chef Zeff did all he could for Zoro, you took turns talking to your unconscious friend and maintaining the ship, but apart from that, there wasn’t much to do. The waiting was the worst of it. You left Nami to read to Zoro and went to find something to do. You often felt like morose by nature, but with everything going on, it all seemed even more depressing.

Even if there was no reason for him to stick around, you found Sanji in the ship’s kitchen when you went there to check the inventory. Something you only did to fill the time, as you had already done so just yesterday, ‘Oh, I’m sorry.’

‘For what?’ he chuckled, stealing a glance at you with that typical smirk of his, ‘If anything, a little bit of company would be nice.’

You felt the familiar uneasiness inside your stomach, wondering if he would make fun of you again. Still, simultaneously, you recalled how he calmed you down when you came to ask for help and how sincere he seemed since.

There was also the story he told you all about how Zeff sacrificed his leg to save him, which forced you to excuse yourself and cry a little bit on your own, only for the man to call after you, mocking you again by acting all sweet and lovable.

Overall, you didn’t think you ever met a man who puzzled you as much as Sanji.

‘Please,’ he said, ‘I find it abnormal to have a kitchen all to myself.’

Biting your lower lip momentarily, you decided to enter, telling yourself you could pretend to be busy while checking the supplies.

Yet, you darted your eyes to his hands. They work for a moment before you move to gaze at his face. You were puzzled by this man. He seemed so focused, and in his element, you almost didn’t want to speak in fear to ruin his concertation and work.

Your gazes met, and once again, he offered you a little smirk. You couldn’t decide if he was secretly making fun of you, trying to trick you, or being genuine? But if so, why the games?

You rushed to the opposite side and turned your back to him while taking quick notes and counting.

You could clearly hear him cutting vegetables and stirring something occasionally, and yet, you felt his grey-blue eyes on you at all the time, too.

‘I have to say, I’m impressed,’ he said after a moment of tense silence.

You blinked, turning to find him with his back to you. Were you just imagining his gaze after all?

‘I find the number of supplies you manage to fit almost surreal,’ he chuckled and glanced at you.

You averted your eyes, feeling the familiar heat return to your face, ‘I’m just good at filling every little crack with something.’ At your old ship, if you didn’t find a way to fit all the supplies and things the captain wanted on the ship, you wouldn’t eat dinner or, worse, face his wrath.

He glanced at you again, and when you looked at him, you found him smiling, ‘Now you’re just selling yourself unfairly short, sweetheart.’

He turned his back to you and said, ‘If I’m not mistaken, you have to consider the number of people on board. How much will they eat or need for however many days you have until your next stop? Not to mention, consider the weight of everything on the ship.’

Your heart swelled with pride just as it had when Luffy pointed out how cool it was that you could do all that, like it was one of the best tricks he ever saw. Even if it was hard to accept the praise, it was nice to be appreciated. You never got such a treatment when you were with your old crew.

As you felt too self-aware to look at him and see his eyes after he made you feel so good about yourself, you chose to turn away, ‘Thank you. You’re… that’s nice of you to say.’

It was a nice thing to say, and you felt a bit guilty that you always thought of him so harshly.

When you suddenly felt him by your side, your eyes widened, and you swiftly turned to glance at him.

Too close, you thought as you felt his body heat against your skin, even through clothing.

He offered you another smirk. Oddly, no matter how many times he smirked at you, you never felt genuinely threatened or put off by it. They just left your heart beating too fast and your palms sweaty.

Sanji reached for one of the boxes in the cabin above your head, ‘Just being honest, madam. Cross my heart.’

Your heart might as well have been trying to jump out of your chest with how fast it was beating when he said that.

Cruel, you thought to yourself. No matter how he wrapped it, he was a really cruel man for doing all of this to you.

He offered you a single wink and returned back to his cooking while you decided to finish this later and ran out. You just felt too overwhelmed by this man at the moment to stick around longer, even if perhaps a tiny part of you wouldn’t have minded.

You still weren’t sure what to think about the blond, but when he praised your skills rather than your looks, you felt he might be sincere.

The fact remained that the man puzzled you. At times, he sounded like a genuinely nice enough man, even funny and pleasant to be around, but then he would start to compliment you and make you feel nervous. It wasn’t good when it was just the two. As much as you would prefer to avoid him, it seemed impossible. But by the gods of the sea, it got worse when others were around, and they could hear it all.

You just found yourself feeling too exposed and embarrassed. You didn’t like to be made fun of. And the only reason why you never tried to tell him it bothered you or stop talking to him was that, despite all of this, you didn’t wish to start anything. You wanted to keep the peace, and as long as his comments remained just comments, you would endure. You endured far worse, after all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It honestly took you a while to realize he wasn’t mocking you, or at least not doing so on purpose. Maybe you would have realized it sooner had you all not been dealing with Nami’s absence and the whole Arlong mess.

It wasn’t until you met with Nami’s sister, Nojiko, that it really hit you.

He was a flirt.

That was all to it.

He wasn’t mocking or singling you out; he just acted like this with every woman he met.

You felt a mixture of things. You were relieved that he wasn’t making fun of you, just being himself. Another part of you was even grateful that despite your apparent lacking in the traditional beauty department, he still treated you the same way as any of the number of the really beautiful women he encountered. You couldn’t recall the last time you were treated nicely in such a way. But of course, because of your insecurities, you couldn’t completely shake the feeling of embarrassment whenever he would call you beautiful or give you attention, mainly because even if he wasn’t making fun of you, you knew some might or worse people would think you actually thought all those things were true. You just didn’t like the attention. It made your flaws feel far too exposed.

‘Here, let me do that, so you can eat,’ you offered to fill the plates in his place. You already finished eating anyway, and you didn’t really like to sit around pointlessly.

‘Nonsense,’ he said, but it seemed he brightened up even more than he was before when you approached him, ‘It wouldn’t feel right to let a woman of your beauty to do all the work.’

You almost sighed, but now that you knew it wasn’t in bad taste, you forced yourself to grimace, ‘Then at least let me help you with the dishes?’

The blond chuckled and shook his head at you. He seemed genuinely amused with a hind of fondness when he spoke, ‘You certainly are hard working. Don’t you ever rest?’

You shrugged your shoulders before you quickly started to work on the pile of dishes the villager brought for cleaning during the celebration of the Straw Hat Crew’s victory.

‘Here,’ you heard Sanji behind you.

Before you could properly turn around, you watched a pair of hands put an apron around you, ‘Wouldn’t want you to ruin your clothes.’

You forced yourself to stay calm and offered the man a smile and a quiet thanks before you resumed your work on the dishes.

It was nice. Due to your personality, you never particularly liked crowds or a lot of people. But whenever you were forced to be around them or had a need for it, you always tried to gain an option to still find your personal solitude for a few moments or hours. Sometimes, when it happened, you felt lonely, but tonight, you couldn’t help but smile at how happy and festive everyone was around you. Their good mood affected your own.

Especially Nami’s. Watching her from time to time, you smile to yourself, knowing she was genuinely happy for her to have her freedom and name cleaned at last.

‘Our captain sure is something else,’ said the blond behind you, still serving out food.

You turned to see what he meant and smiled at Luffy goofing around with Usopp and some villagers.

You nodded, ‘He is. But given how pirate captains usually are, it’s a good thing.’

You resumed your work, and based on the number of times someone said thanks or Sanji chatted up some random woman, you assumed he did, too.

After a while, you heard him speak again, ‘Usopp said he’s not your first captain, though.’

‘Usopp talks a lot,’ you commented, feeling your stomach sinking and your nervous habit awakening just as it always had whenever you thought about your old life. Even on such a nice night like this one, with everyone so happy and carefree, your traumatizing past snuck up on you.

‘Ah, don’t do that, sweetheart. You’re hurting yourself, and such a pretty woman should never do so to herself,’ said the blond effortlessly, yet with a hint of concern.

You quickly stopped and tried to busy yourself with work again, ‘Sorry.’ You still felt nervous and knew if you weren’t busy and trying to actively fight it, you would easily succumb to the habit again.

You finished the last plate so far, and without anything else to do but anxiously wait.

Debating with yourself for a moment, you turned to watch the blond. Seeing the way he worked so focused, pleased with his work, himself, and skilled, you felt your heartbeat slow down. It seemed you found comfort in watching him.

He wasn’t looking at you, but you could tell he was aware you could see him.

It must have been the sense of peace he seemed to have brought you that you found your lips moving apart, ‘My first captain was not a good guy. Neither was anyone in my old crew.’

You regretted your words immediately. You didn’t speak about your old crew for a reason, and you honestly didn’t want to ruin everyone’s mood at the moment.

For a second, you noticed Sanji pause and look very much lost in his thoughts before he turned toward you. 

You were confused, especially when he reached for your hand, but nevertheless, you allowed him to take it.

Even if he must have been going for serious, he looked nothing but properly soft when he said, ‘I can assure you at least this cook plans to be nothing but good to you.’

It was just a bunch of words in a sentence, but when he said it and pressed a soft kiss against your palm, you couldn’t help but wonder if it was a personal vow to you. It sure sounded like one. Oddly enough, despite everything you’ve been through, even if just a tiny bit, you believed it. You believed him.

His eyes remained kind and face soft, and for one wildest moment, you almost found yourself wondering if he would do something else. Something more.

Then, however, out of the blue, someone loudly cleared their throat, and you jumped away, pulling your hand out of his.

‘If you two plan to slack off, you should let someone else handle this,’ you heard Zoro say and mentally cursed yourself while feeling your face heating up with embarrassment.

‘Don’t be jealous,’ you heard Sanji reply, ‘If you smiled every once in a while, and wasn’t such a pain in the ass, I’m positive we could find you someone to adore too.’

You didn’t dare to turn around and tried to appear busy with the new dishes someone brought you making sure not to look at the blond again no matter how often you felt his gaze on you-

Wait-

Someone to adore too?!

Koniec

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A.N: Hello, thank you for reading. English is not my first language, so I apologize for grammar and other mistakes. Have a lovely day. Stay safe. 

[gav-san]

Argument-Ending Prompts

"So this is who you really are?"

"I can't believe I ever trusted you."

"You were never there when it mattered."

"This is the last time you let me down."

"I guess we were never meant to be."

"Just go, I can't even look at you right now."

"I've given you so many chances, no more."

"Everything you said was just a lie, wasn't it?"

"You think you're right, but you're just alone."

"I'm done trying to make this work."

"You've shown me enough; it's over."

"Keep your excuses to yourself, I'm done listening."

"You chose this, remember that."

"I'm not wasting another minute on you."

"Forget my number, we're through."

[gav-san]

the suffering never ends

[gav-san]

Oh no. MAGA is mad that the NYT shared the names of DOGE staffers. Don’t share this! Would be a shame

[gav-san]

The opposite of “manic pixie dream girl” is “depressed goblin nightmare man,” and, judging by this site, it’s just as attractive to some.

[gav-san]

sometimes you need dialogue tags and don't want to use the same four

[gav-san]

you hook up with izuku drunkenly at someone’s birthday party and it’s not even that you regret it in the morning it’s just that your post nut clarity hits that you slept with the boy you’ve known since pre-k all because of a couple of drinks and when he wakes up you’re still freaking out and you make him pinky promise that this won’t mess with your friendship, “izuku do you hear me? we are NOT going to be that pair of sad best friends that fucks everything up just because of sex. sex is nothing. we’re never gonna do it again, so we’ll be fine right?” and the whole time he’s nodding along with wide, glassy eyes not listening to a goddamn thing you’re saying because he’s been in love with you since middle school, and last night you said you loved him, too. granted he was inside of you, and he said it first, but you said it back, and by that point it was well after one in the morning so the only thing you two were drunk on were each other. it’s probably why the very next day he is at your doorstep with a notebook in hand and a grin on his face that’s something right in between cocky and sweet when he says “i think we should sleep together again. and before you say no, i made a list about why 😁 number one: we’re really good at it. number two—”

[gav-san]

#Mood

[gav-san]

I know it’s not hard to point out reactionaries hypocrisy when it comes to like safe spaces or hug boxes or whatever but genuinely how much of an echo chamber do you have to exist in for you to think this is a reasonable thing to say

[gav-san]

Ok so! I completely mismanaged my time and spent a bit too long on what was supposed to be just a Micah sketch.

I literally went "ok I might as well clean the sketch > ok I might as well add some colors > ok I might as well shade it a little > ok I might as well add dialogue-"

Here's an alternative expression

I promise I'll answer more asks tomorrow but it's almost 2 am now and I should go sleep😭

[gav-san]

words to use when writing

Appetite:

craving, demand, gluttony, greed, hunger, inclination, insatiable, longing, lust, passion, ravenousness, relish, taste, thirst, urge, voracity, weakness, willingness, yearning, ardor, dedication, desire, devotion, enthusiasm, excitement, fervor, horny, intensity, keenness, wholeheartedness, zeal

Arouse:

agitate, awaken, electrify, enliven, excite, entice, foment, goad, incite, inflame, instigate, kindle, provoke, rally, rouse, spark, stimulate, stir, thrill, waken, warm, whet, attract, charm, coax, fire up, fuel, heat up, lure, produce, stir up, tantalize, tease, tempt, thrum, torment, wind up, work up

Assault:

attack, advancing, aggressive, assailing, charging, incursion, inundated, invasion, offensive, onset, onslaught, overwhelmed, ruinous, tempestuous, strike, violation, ambush, assail, barrage, bombard, bombardment, crackdown, wound

Beautiful: 

admirable, alluring, angelic, appealing, bewitching, charming, dazzling, delicate, delightful, divine, elegant, enticing, exquisite, fascinating, gorgeous, graceful, grand, magnificent, marvelous, pleasing, radiant, ravishing, resplendent, splendid, stunning, sublime, attractive, beguiling, captivating, enchanting, engaging, enthralling, eye-catching, fetching, fine, fine-looking, good-looking, handsome, inviting, lovely, mesmeric, mesmerizing, pretty, rakish, refined, striking, tantalizing, tempting

Brutal:

atrocious, barbarous, bloodthirsty, callous, cruel, feral, ferocious, hard, harsh, heartless, inhuman, merciless, murderous, pitiless, remorseless, rough, rude, ruthless, savage, severe, terrible, unmerciful, vicious, bestial, brute, brutish, cold-blooded, fierce, gory, nasty, rancorous, sadistic, uncompromising, unfeeling, unforgiving, unpitying, violent, wild

Burly:

able-bodied, athletic, beefy, big, brawny, broad-shouldered, bulky, dense, enormous, great, hard, hardy, hearty, heavily built, heavy, hefty, huge, husky, immense, large, massive, muscular, mighty, outsized, oversized, powerful, powerfully built, prodigious, robust, solid, stalwart, stocky, stout, strapping, strong, strongly built, sturdy, thick, thickset, tough, well-built, well-developed

Carnal:

animalistic, bodily, impure, lascivious, lecherous, lewd, libidinous, licentious, lustful, physical, prurient, salacious, sensuous, voluptuous, vulgar, wanton, , coarse, crude, dirty, raunchy, rough, unclean

Dangerous:

alarming, critical, fatal, formidable, impending, malignant, menacing, mortal, nasty, perilous, precarious, pressing, serious, terrible, threatening, treacherous, urgent, vulnerable, wicked, acute, damaging, deadly, death-defying, deathly, destructive, detrimental, explosive, grave, harmful, hazardous, injurious, lethal, life-threatening, noxious, poisonous, risky, severe, terrifying, toxic, unsafe, unstable, venomous

Dark:

atrocious, corrupt, forbidding, foul, infernal, midnight, morbid, ominous, sinful, sinister, somber, threatening, twilight, vile, wicked, abject, alarming, appalling, baleful, bizarre, bleak, bloodcurdling, boding evil, chilling, cold, condemned, creepy, damned, daunting, demented, desolate, dire, dismal, disturbing, doomed, dour, dread, dreary, dusk, eerie, fear, fearsome, frightening, ghastly, ghostly, ghoulish, gloom, gloomy, grave, grim, grisly, gruesome, hair-raising, haunted, hideous, hopeless, horrendous, horrible, horrid, horrific, horrifying, horror, ill-fated, ill-omened, ill-starred, inauspicious, inhospitable, looming, lost, macabre, malice, malignant, menacing, murky, mysterious, night, panic, pessimistic, petrifying, scary, shadows, shadowy, shade, shady, shocking, soul-destroying, sour, spine-chilling, spine-tingling, strange, terrifying, uncanny, unearthly, unlucky, unnatural, unnerving, weird, wretched

Delicious:

enticing, exquisite, luscious, lush, rich, savory, sweet, tasty, tempting, appetizing, delectable, flavorsome, full of flavor, juicy, lip-smacking, mouth-watering, piquant, relish, ripe, salty, spicy, scrummy, scrumptious, succulent, tangy, tart, tasty, yummy, zesty

Ecstasy:

delectation, delirium, elation, euphoria, fervor, frenzy, joy, rapture, transport, bliss, excitement, happiness, heaven, high, paradise, rhapsody, thrill, blissful, delighted, elated, extremely happy, in raptures (of delight), in seventh heaven, jubilant, on cloud nine, overexcited, overjoyed, rapturous, thrilled

Ecstatic:

delirious, enraptured, euphoric, fervent, frenzied, joyous, transported, wild

Erotic:

amatory, amorous, aphrodisiac, carnal, earthy, erogenous, fervid, filthy, hot, impassioned, lascivious, lecherous, lewd, raw, romantic, rousing, salacious, seductive, sensual, sexual, spicy, steamy, stimulating, suggestive, titillating, voluptuous, tantalizing

Gasp:

catch of breath, choke, gulp, heave, inhale, pant, puff, snort, wheeze, huff, rasp, sharp intake of air, short of breath, struggle for breath, swallow, winded 

Heated:

ardent, avid, excited, fervent, fervid, fierce, fiery, frenzied, furious, impassioned, intense, passionate, raging, scalding, scorched, stormy, tempestuous, vehement, violent, ablaze, aflame, all-consuming, blazing, blistering, burning, crazed, explosive, febrile, feverish, fired up, flaming, flushed, frantic, hot, hot-blooded, impatient, incensed, maddening, obsessed, possessed, randy, searing, sizzling, smoldering, sweltering, torrid, turbulent, volatile, worked up, zealous

Hunger:

appetite, ache, craving, gluttony, greed, longing, lust, mania, mouth-watering, ravenous, voracious, want, yearning, thirst

Hungry:

avid, carnivorous, covetous, craving, eager, greedy, hungered, rapacious, ravenous, starved, unsatisfied, voracious, avaricious, desirous, famished, grasping, insatiable, keen, longing, predatory, ravening, starving, thirsty, wanting

Intense:

forceful, severe, passionate, acute, agonizing, ardent, anxious, biting, bitter, burning, close, consuming, cutting, deep, eager, earnest, excessive, exquisite, extreme, fervent, fervid, fierce, forcible, great, harsh, impassioned, keen, marked, piercing, powerful, profound, severe, sharp, strong, vehement, violent, vivid, vigorous

Liquid:

damp, cream, creamy, dripping, ichorous, juicy, moist, luscious, melted, moist, pulpy, sappy, soaking, solvent, sopping, succulent, viscous, wet / aqueous, broth, elixir, extract, flux, juice, liquor, nectar, sap, sauce, secretion, solution, vitae, awash, moisture, boggy, dewy, drenched, drip, drop, droplet, drowning, flood, flooded, flowing, fountain, jewel, leaky, milky, overflowing, saturated, slick, slippery, soaked, sodden, soggy, stream, swamp, tear, teardrop, torrent, waterlogged, watery, weeping

Lithe:

agile, lean, pliant, slight, spare, sinewy, slender, supple, deft, fit, flexible, lanky, leggy, limber, lissom, lissome, nimble, sinuous, skinny, sleek, slender, slim, svelte, trim, thin, willowy, wiry

Moan:

beef, cry, gripe, grouse, grumble, lament, lamentation, plaint, sob, wail, whine, bemoan, bewail, carp, deplore, grieve, gripe, grouse, grumble, keen, lament, sigh, sob, wail, whine, mewl

Moving:

(exciting,) affecting, effective  arousing, awakening, breathless, dynamic, eloquent, emotional, emotive, expressive, fecund, far-out, felt in gut, grabbed by, gripping, heartbreaking, heartrending, impelling, impressive, inspirational, meaningful, mind-bending, mind-blowing, motivating, persuasive, poignant, propelling, provoking, quickening, rallying, rousing, significant, stimulating, simulative, stirring, stunning, touching, awe-inspiring, energizing, exhilarating, fascinating, heart pounding, heart stopping, inspiring, riveting, thrilling

Need:

compulsion, demand, desperate, devoir, extremity, impatient longing, must, urge, urgency / desire, appetite, avid, burn, craving, eagerness, fascination, greed, hunger, insatiable, longing, lust, taste, thirst, voracious, want, yearning, ache, addiction, aspiration, desire, fever, fixation, hankering, hope, impulse, inclination, infatuation, itch, obsession, passion, pining, wish, yen

Pain: 

ache, afflict, affliction, agony, agonize, anguish, bite, burn, chafe, distress, fever, grief, hurt, inflame, laceration, misery, pang, punish, sting, suffering, tenderness, throb, throe, torment, torture, smart

Painful:

aching, agonizing, arduous, awful, biting, burning, caustic, dire, distressing, dreadful, excruciating, extreme, grievous, inflamed, piercing, raw, sensitive, severe, sharp, tender, terrible, throbbing, tormenting, angry, bleeding, bloody, bruised, cutting, hurting, injured, irritated, prickly, skinned, smarting, sore, stinging, unbearable, uncomfortable, upsetting, wounded

Perverted: 

aberrant, abnormal, corrupt, debased, debauched, defiling, depraved, deviant, monstrous, tainted, twisted, vicious, warped, wicked, abhorrent, base, decadent, degenerate, degrading, dirty, disgusting, dissipated, dissolute, distasteful, hedonistic, immodest, immoral, indecent, indulgent, licentious, nasty, profligate, repellent, repugnant, repulsive, revolting, shameful, shameless, sickening, sinful, smutty, sordid, unscrupulous, vile 

Pleasurable:

charming, gratifying, luscious, satisfying, savory, agreeable, delicious, delightful, enjoyable, nice, pleasant, pleasing, soothing, succulent

Pleasure:

bliss, delight, gluttony, gratification, relish, satisfaction, thrill, adventure, amusement, buzz, contentment, delight, desire, ecstasy, enjoyment, excitement, fun, happiness, harmony, heaven, joy, kick, liking, paradise, seventh heaven 

Rapacious:

avaricious, ferocious, furious, greedy, predatory, ravening, ravenous, savage, voracious, aggressive, gluttonous, grasping, insatiable, marauding, plundering

Rapture:

bliss, ecstasy, elation, exaltation, glory, gratification, passion, pleasure, floating, unbridled joy

Rigid:

adamant, austere, definite, determined, exact, firm, hard, rigorous, solid, stern, uncompromising, unrelenting, unyielding, concrete, fixed, harsh, immovable, inflexible, obstinate, resolute, resolved, severe, steadfast, steady, stiff, strong, strict, stubborn, taut, tense, tight, tough, unbending, unchangeable, unwavering

Sudden:

abrupt, accelerated, acute, fast, flashing, fleeting, hasty, headlong, hurried, immediate, impetuous, impulsive, quick, quickening, rapid, rash, rushing, swift, brash, brisk, brusque, instant, instantaneous, out of the blue, reckless, rushed, sharp, spontaneous, urgent, without warning

Thrust:

(forward) advance, drive, forge, impetus, impulsion, lunge, momentum, onslaught, poke, pressure, prod, propulsion, punch, push, shove, power, proceed, progress, propel

(push hard) assail, assault, attack, bear down, buck, drive, force, heave, impale, impel, jab, lunge, plunge, press, pound, prod, ram, shove, stab, transfix, urge, bang, burrow, cram, gouge, jam, pierce, punch, slam, spear, spike, stick

Thunder-struck:

amazed, astonished, aghast, astounded, awestruck, confounded, dazed, dazed, dismayed, overwhelmed, shocked, staggered, startled, stunned, gob-smacked, bewildered, dumbfounded, flabbergasted, horrified, incredulous, surprised, taken aback 

Torment:

agony, anguish, hurt, misery, pain, punishment, suffering, afflict, angst, conflict, distress, grief, heartache, misfortune, nightmare, persecute, plague, sorrow, strife, tease, test, trial, tribulation, torture, turmoil, vex, woe

Touch:

(physical) - blow, brush, caress, collide, come together, contact, converge, crash, cuddle, embrace, feel, feel up, finger, fondle, frisk, glance, glide, graze, grope, handle, hit, hug, impact, join, junction, kiss, lick, line, manipulate, march, massage, meet, nudge, palm, partake, pat, paw, peck, pet, pinch, probe, push, reach, rub, scratch, skim, slide, smooth, strike, stroke, suck, sweep, tag, tap, taste, thumb, tickle, tip, touching, toy, bite, bump, burrow, buss, bury, circle, claw, clean, clutch, cover, creep, crush, cup, curl, delve, dig, drag, draw, ease, edge, fiddle with, flick, flit, fumble, grind, grip, grub, hold, huddle, knead, lap, lave, lay a hand on, maneuver, manhandle, mash, mold, muzzle, neck, nestle, nibble, nip, nuzzle, outline, play, polish, press, pull, rasp, ravish, ream, rim, run, scoop, scrabble, scrape, scrub, shave, shift, shunt, skate, slip, slither, smack, snake, snuggle, soothe, spank, splay, spread, squeeze, stretch, swipe, tangle, tease, thump, tongue, trace, trail, tunnel twiddle, twirl, twist, tug, work, wrap 

(mental) - communicate, examine, inspect, perception, scrutinize

Wet:

bathe, bleed, burst, cascade, course, cover, cream, damp, dampen, deluge, dip, douse, drench, dribble, drip, drizzle, drool, drop, drown, dunk, erupt, flood, flow, gush, immerse, issue, jet, leach, leak, moisten, ooze, overflow, permeate, plunge, pour, rain, rinse, run, salivate, saturate, secrete, seep, shower, shoot, slaver, slobber, slop, slosh, sluice, spill, soak, souse, spew, spit, splash, splatter, spout, spray, sprinkle, spurt, squirt, steep, stream, submerge, surge, swab, swamp, swill, swim, trickle, wash, water

Wicked:

abominable, amoral, atrocious, awful, base, barbarous, dangerous, debased, depraved, distressing, dreadful, evil, fearful, fiendish, fierce, foul, heartless, hazardous, heinous, immoral, indecent, intense, mean, nasty, naughty, nefarious, offensive, profane, scandalous, severe, shameful, shameless, sinful, terrible, unholy, vicious, vile, villainous, wayward, bad, criminal, cruel, deplorable, despicable, devious, ill-intentioned, impious, impish, iniquitous, irreverent, loathsome, Machiavellian, mad, malevolent, malicious, merciless, mischievous, monstrous, perverse, ruthless, spiteful, uncaring, unkind, unscrupulous, vindictive, virulent, wretched

Writhe: 

agonize, bend, jerk, recoil, lurch, plunge, slither, squirm, struggle, suffer, thrash, thresh, twist, wiggle, wriggle, angle, arc, bow, buck, coil, contort, convulse, curl, curve, fidget, fight, flex, go into spasm, grind, heave, jiggle, jolt, kick, rear, reel, ripple, resist, roll, lash, lash out, screw up, shake, shift, slide, spasm, stir, strain, stretch, surge, swell, swivel, thrust, turn violently, tussle, twitch, undulate, warp, worm, wrench, wrestle, yank 

[gav-san]

Do not let them erase this. Do not let them tell you he meant "my heart goes out for you."

This man is the grandson of a Canadian Nazi sympathizer who moved to South Africa BECAUSE he thought the apartheid was just the coolest.

He has a gaggle of kids specifically because he believes his genes are superior and need to be spread to improve humanity.

He has thrown his support behind the neonazi party in Germany and the far right party in the UK, not to mention how far he's wormed up the ass of the Republican party.

He threw two sieg heil salutes back to back at the inauguration of the president of the United States and is trying to scrub the evidence off the internet.

Elon Reeve Musk is a fucking Nazi.

[gav-san]

Happy New Year! 🎊✨ I finally finished reading tome 1 of ACOTAR and I loved it! 😍 As promised, here’s a sketch of Lucien 😌🦊🍁

On my way to reading tome 2! (No spoilers pls! 🤫)

.

« A Court of Thorns And Roses » and its characters belong to Sarah J. Maas.

[gav-san]

Technically true.

[gav-san]

Someone asked me (sorry your ask slipped away under a dogpile of others) for a list of things I use as resources. Outside of a seventy one (!!) page document that has a list of words, ideas for stories, examples of syntax, etc... I also use or have used these. These are not organized and range from thesauruses, resource lists, lectures, inspiration, interviews, etc. It's not exhaustive, I have more if anyone has interest.

The tried and true classic Jstor Writing with color lithub Eyes luminarium Brandon Sanderson / and again / and again / and again (basically all his byu lectures) r/writing em dash press the Paris review poetry archive Teeth licker (smut thesaurus) a conversation with Stephen King Myth bank the millions dear writers pantheon resource dump thewritersarchive resource masterlist Diversity style guide maxkirin Amy Tan Unsplash - (There is no need to request permission before using images that have the standard Unsplash license) writing Qs answered

Smithsonian

[gav-san]

Someone asked me (sorry your ask slipped away under a dogpile of others) for a list of things I use as resources. Outside of a seventy one (!!) page document that has a list of words, ideas for stories, examples of syntax, etc... I also use or have used these. These are not organized and range from thesauruses, resource lists, lectures, inspiration, interviews, etc. It's not exhaustive, I have more if anyone has interest.

The tried and true classic Jstor Writing with color lithub Eyes luminarium Brandon Sanderson / and again / and again / and again (basically all his byu lectures) r/writing em dash press the Paris review poetry archive Teeth licker (smut thesaurus) a conversation with Stephen King Myth bank the millions dear writers pantheon resource dump thewritersarchive resource masterlist Diversity style guide maxkirin Amy Tan Unsplash - (There is no need to request permission before using images that have the standard Unsplash license) writing Qs answered

Smithsonian