#// Open starters are in progress! Still setting things up!

[ash-muses]

(OOC - Update #19)

Hiii everyone! :D Just a quick update on some of the changes I've made to my blog, pending replies, etc. Also, an activity check in and my to-do list under the cut for anyone who is curious~

Firstly, a huge thank you to everyone who has been with me through 2024 to now! My blog will be turning a year old this May (': I'm so happy and thankful to be here with you all, and all of the friendships that I've made along the way. You're all wonderful and I never thought I would be here with such vibrant, friendly, and sweet people.

If you've been around for a bit or you're new and you've been shy about sending something in (whether it's an ask, a message, or starter), please feel free! ^-^ I do my best to get back to everyone, although it might take me a bit of time. I get over 20+ messages between Tumblr and Discord (not including the threads I have), so don't panic if I don't reply right away, I probably got a little busy or haven't seen it yet. 💜

I hope that you all had amazing holidays (both Christmas and New Years, to those who celebrate)! Let's start 2025 off right with laughter, fun, and good vibes. If you're feeling up to it, drop a few things you're grateful for from 2024 in the comments below or feel free to send in an ask~.

Replies

I think most of you already know (or at least will after this post), but I got sick after Christmas. (': So, I'm gradually catching up on my threads and getting new starters out for those who have been waiting. I appreciate you guys for being so patient! It's been one thing after another lately, so I'm hoping things will start to settle down now.

There are 20+ asks in my inbox right now (most of them are starters), so I'm hoping to start working through these in pieces over time. I also have a few open starters that I'm going to post for my muses and OCs, so those are going to take some time to write up as well. With that being said, I'm going to be busy jumping between my current threads and creating new starters for a good minute.

Activity Check

Thank you so, so much to everyone who has been a part of this! Whether you're new or you've been here for a while, I deeply appreciate you all. 💜 I can't thank you all enough for interacting with my muses or stopping in to say 'hi' to the mun. I've really enjoyed the interactions I've had with you all so far and I can't wait to see what the future holds. :D Thanks for starting off your 2025 with me (and/or finishing off 2024 with me)!

To-Do List

* = main priority

* Catching up on old threads + creating new threads (because I got sick right after the holidays and I'm starting to feel better (': love that for me lmao)

* Set up reminders for replies (still in progress; looking for a good system that works for me, so if anyone has any suggestions, I'm open to them!)

* Set up Thread Tracker again

* Redo tag directory, including new tags & hopefully reducing some of the tags I use (semi-started)

* Add muse info to Carrd (in progress, but slow — already mostly completed Tony Stark, but needs a few more adjustments, although he's ready to play; Thor is my next focus and I've already started to use him, too, and then next will be Steve Harrington and Billy Hargrove)

Add FAQ to Carrd (not started; hopefully easy to do)

Create graphics for muses, including icon borders for replies, starter calls, etc. (in progress, but slow)

Create separate header promo (not started)

Create rebloggable promo (not started)

Work on GIFs project (in progress, but slow; need to rework some of the GIFs I posted using my previous watermark)

Already Done:

Checked in on threads with partners, including new plots, story direction, etc. (continuous)

New reply icon borders for Tony Stark, Thor, Steve Harrington, Billy Hargrove, and Valerie Moore (OC)

Tony Stark's muse info was added to Carrd (mostly; will have a few adjustments to relationships + backstory areas, but main info is there)

New OCs were added (Valerie + Elijah)

New blog theme (still trying to find a custom one I like that works with what I need, so this might change again in the future)

[cardsknight]

I'm more nervous than a fly dodging spiders on Halloween.

✡ Dossier ✡ Guidelines ✡ Backstory ✡ Powers ✡ Verses ✡ Starter Calls ✡

✡ Open Starters ✡ Thread Tracker ✡ Memes ✡ Full Navigation ✡

[captainleviswifee]

Treat you better...

Tags: Modern AU Levi, established relationship, fem reader, reigniting the spark, low key anxious Levi, argument, overthinking, jealousy, OOC or IC Levi? 😭idk Please reblog and follow if you like this content!

Edit: you can use extensions, or apps to replace y/n with the name of your choice. I personally use interactivefics extensions, but let me know if you know others!

The darkness blankets the sky, the neighborhood quiet with muffled noises of a party some walks away. Having just parked his car in the garage he get's out taking a bag of take outs for dinner.

Walking up to the porch of his and your door, he unlocks the door with ease. Keys clanking as he fiddles with them with a tired sigh. Work is well work as usual. It's not the mundane challenges of work he's sighing for. Likely it's the increasing monotonous routine he goes with it at the office everyday. It doesn't help that his relationship with you is reflecting how gray and dull his everyday work is.

Opening the door, the living space welcomes him. Not you, you're not at home yet. You're at the office, either working overtime or being asked out by your friends for a night out. He drops his briefcase on the sofa, as he takes off his coat. Hanging it on the coat rack beside the now locked door.

Now loosening up his tie, he picks up his phone to check the time, it's nearly 10 pm. "It's Friday...then it must be her hanging out with co-workers tonight." He says to particularly no one but himself. His gaze frowning at the screen of his phone. "Or her damn boss," He grumbles.

And that's the problem. Your relationship with him either progressively turns to dull and gray because of his increasing workload, or if it's dull and gray because of your increasing workload and constant late night parties.

But Levi understands you better.

The parties were to distract you from this monotonous routine of your evenings with him. Can be a bad or good habit depending on the act you entertain yourself with. And Levi knew better than to push you to ask when you're in this phase of taking a sort of break.

Or it could also be he's afraid that he'd make things worse and drive a deeper wedge between you two. It's likely the latter.

And that's precisely why he discreetly asked two of his female coworkers for advice. Hange and Petra. Hange had advised to open a table with you for discussion. Basically sit and talk. Meanwhile Petra, advised you to go an extra mile to know what a woman wants. For starters, read a book.

A romance book for example. And she had just the perfect recommendation in hand.

Levi sets the reheated take outs, then preparing a plate of rice—his favorite, on the table. He then walks to the sofa, picking up his briefcase to find a certain book from Petra this morning.

"Huh," Levi could not even read the title, his eyes scanning the book. "Damn, sappy shit." He flips the cover to read a random chapter and sees a specific sentence that nearly killed him from cringe.

But if it would help him get tips on how to reignite this spark between you two, he'd grit his teeth through the cringe. Pick out the good ones, and yeet out the overly cringe ones.

With the book in his hand, he walks back to the dinner table, sitting down to a meal while he takes a spoonful of a bite or two.

After eating, he continued to wait for you at the living room, sitting with his arm resting on the armrest, his other hand propping up the book he's reading close to his steel blue gaze.

The hours tick and you're not home still. It's already 1 am, and you're still not at home. It was then that he finally decides to check his phone. And oh, he finds a message from you in his notifications.

Clicking it, it reads,

"I'm sorry love, I'll be home in a few. Just a 'lil late."

Sent at 11:45 pm. He sighs, texting back,

"Do you need me to fetch you?"

He sends it and returned to reading the book.

He'd hate to admit it, but it became a bit more tolerable for his eyes to read the book after a few chapters. He's mind whirrs at the kind of man most women would want.

Crossing out the unrealistic standards, there are things he might find worthy of taking note. Like getting a little more creative with giving you flowers, or how he should better care for you for when you have period cramps. Basically just be there for you more. Levi had thought he was doing just fine, doing everything to be there for you. But now basing some things he may have missed in comparison to a 'what would most women want,' is that he may have appeared a little too distant or cold. Especially when he's at work.

He sighs, deciding to find a way to strike a proper balance between work and his personal life.

You're an amazing woman, flawed may be, but you're the woman he loves to see everyday.

Sighing, he flips open the book again to continue reading, "Hoh, what do we have here?" He smirks, immersed in his reading although he'd deny that he is.

The pacing of the story just got to a sensual, lightly steamy part. And he couldn't help but think, 'Is this too what most women want?' He ponders, 'I guess not too different to what most men wants, except this has more steps in this. More foreplay it seems,'

His eyes scan the forbidden text, his mind wandering if it could be him and you. Or what could be your reaction had you be reading this instead? Levi imagined you reading this with a flustered expression made him think of other forbidden things he'd do to you.

Flipping the page, he continues, still sure he's reading to get insights on how he should treat you than for the story of the text he's reading.

Then as if he was stricken with lightning, he hears a warm breathy whisper right behind his ear, "Oh? What you reading?" Your playful tone snaps him from his deep thoughts.

"Oh, you're here," His face momentarily stiffens, lips opening slightly, before returning to his nonchalant expression. He then adds, "And you're late," His gaze now frowning. "Sorry," You scratch the back of your head, "We just finished overtime and my boss thought to bring all of us to a short late snack at a cafe." You explain, studying his narrowed blue-gray gaze, before your eyes landing on a specific book. "Didn't know you'd be reading this genre though, Levi." You reply in a teasing manner. His hands swiftly, and casually moving the book away from your view as a response, "Your boss?" One of his eyebrow arches, his expression remaining nonchalant yet the undercurrent of his threatening tone betrays the calm exterior he maintains. "That stupid blond bastard again?" He grumbles, now standing up to meet your eyes, the book still in his hand.

'Stupid, and bastard. Well that's rare,' You smile, Levi adding two insults in a single sentence for the same person speaks just how much this is pissing him off.

"Listen, we need to talk," He then takes your bag placing it on the table before holding your shoulders down to have you sit.

"Levi," You say with a flat and tired expression, "There's nothing to talk about—" Before he cuts you off, "Oh yea we do. Don't think I didn't noticed how you're avoiding me the whole month, and how I see you're spending more time with your work friends and that stupid boss of yours. Again."

Then it's your turn to cut him off, "Levi, you're not jealous are you?" "Fucking no." He says flatly, he then combs his hair back before talking again, "Look, it's just. We're both busy recently and I'm sorry I couldn't be there to listen how your day went or that I couldn't pay attention to you more. But that doesn't mean you should entertain yourself with people outside the problem of our relationship." He then mutters the last bit, "Especially not with your boss." And that's where you stop him, "What are you talking about? Are you saying I'm upset at you because you're busy?" You scoff.

"Yes?" His expression, suddenly forming a puzzled look. His face became even more puzzled after hears you laugh, "And that's why you're reading that book hm?" You tease him, "What-fuck, no." He then places the book behind him. You already know that it's a romance book, and with the few pages you saw of it earlier, it has some smut scenes.

"C'mon, let's see what's it about." You quip, your hands reaching for it, but he's faster and was able to keep it off your grasp.

"Forget it, so you're saying that you're not upset at all?" He asks you, his narrow, blue-gray irises gazing deep into yours. "No, I'm not," You reply with a smile, "Why would you think that?" He then looks down on the table, his gaze falling to your bag on the coffee table as he searches his own mind. "I don't know...maybe it's just because I miss you." He sighs, "Yeah, maybe it's that. You think it's because of that?" He replies more like a sentence of him just rambling and asking the truth he already knows.

You gave a light chuckle before pulling him to a hug. "Gosh you're so adorable," You mumble to his neck, appreciative of his efforts and his feelings. He momentarily stiffens, before accepting the embrace. "Shut it," He rejects the compliment, but you feel his heart beating warm and fast against yours, his hands wrapping around you in return. Embracing you back.

"I miss you too," You whisper to him and you just feel him nudge his face to your own neck. As if hiding his face from view by deepening the embrace.

You pull away, and you give him a light kiss on his lips, his lips lingering for a moment before reluctantly pulling away. Maybe it's because his heart was beating too fast, that you also feel it pump blood to the lower half of his body. A something else entirely beating against your warm body as he tells you in a low gruff voice. His breath hot against your lips, his arms pulling you closer in place. "More,"

[chronological-knight]

HI HI YOUR TURN 48 for the Spotify drabble :)))

Girl Hell 1999

fandom: Rottmnt

word count: 996

content warning: i THINK none but tell me if i missed any

AO3: here!

misc: EUGH BOY this took way longer then i thought it would. for some reason this fic fought me from start to finish. song i got was rly good tho! girl hell 1999 by femtanyl is one of my favourites and i already associate it with Cassandra so. its done im free!

][][][][

The first time Casey was hugged since she betrayed the Foot, it was in passing.

It was a few weeks after the Battle Nexus New York, everyone in the newly-found and newly-cleaned abandoned subway station, helping renovate the place. It was still clearly dilapidated, damp and slightly stuffy, but Casey was shocked at how fast a sense of home seeped into it's edges. There were recovered posters hanging on the walls, various boxes filled with knick-knacks awaited shelves on the floor, and Donatello had just finished setting up fairy lights throughout the lair the day before.

It was nothing like the Foot.

Which should be obvious. The Foot were the Hamato’s sworn enemies! Of course they’d be nothing alike. But she kept comparing the two anyway, for some reason. 

Casey herself was building something, a skate ramp, she thinks. Mostly, Donatello had pointed her in the direction of a pile of wood and a hammer, and told her to start building. But she knew that making herself as helpful as possible was how she impressed the Foot, and if she had wanted to impress the Foot, she definitely wanted to impress the Hamatos

So she kept hammering, with all her furious need to be liked by these people fueling her.

Honestly, she still didn’t understand the Hamatos. They called themselves a ninja clan, but they were so different to all the clans she’d applied to. For starters, there were only seven of them, eight including her (she's not sure if she’s included). And their structure is basically nonexistent! There’s no separation between basic soldiers and commanders, or commanders and leaders, there’s no management! There’s no ranks for her to progress in, and no higher-ups for her to impress. Sure the Foot were evil, but they were easy to understand.

When she’d asked about getting a clan uniform, she'd gotten weird looks. She didn't ask again.

Back in the present, the echoing sound of many things falling over in rapid succession startled Casey so bad, she nearly hit her thumb again.

Her eyes snapped to the source of the noise, hammer hefted over her shoulder as she half expected to see a hoard of Foot soldiers invading the subway station. Instead, she was greeted by the sight of Michelangelo, cradling his head and sprawling at the foot of the broken escalator, along with several boxes and piles of disorganized stuff.

"That's what you get for carrying boxes three at a time." Donatello said, elbow-deep in what Casey thinks is a fridge. His words are careless, but the way his arms still and drawn-on eyebrows scrunch belies genuine concern. Getting to know Donatello, Casey was learning, meant getting to know a lot of these small body-language cues.

"Gee, thanks Donald," Michelangelo grumbled, undignified and still very much on the floor.

Seeing her moment, Casey dropped the hammer entirely and very consciously did not salute Michelangelo, because this was not the Foot and they didn't do that here! Instead, she marched to where he had fallen, and stretched a hand in his direction.

"I CAN CARRY SOME OF THE BOXES," she said, at a normal volume, tacking on a quieter "If you want!" on the end.

"Really? Thanks Casey!" He said, taking her offered hand and only stumbling a little bit with the force of being yanked to his feet. Casey, faced with another way to prove herself as the new (maybe?) part of the Hamato clan, was ready to let go and start picking up boxes, but for some reason Michelangelo didn't just let go of her , instead opening his arms wide and throwing her into—

—a hug?

A hug.

Her mind crashed to a halt, thoughts both utterly blank and claustrophobically packed. It was… warm? He was short enough that his head slotted comfortably under her chin. If she wanted to, she could rest her hands on the back of his shell. She was being hugged?

She was being hugged.

She didn’t know what to do with her hands.

It had been… a while, since anyone hugged her. She was stiff and frozen, and all too soon Michelangelo pulled away, mild frown tugging at his features. Casey was just looking at her hands. Her emotions were going haywire, and she couldn't tell why. After all, it's not like she needed hugs, or friends, or…

Oh god, she has friends.

That's what this is, isn't it? that's why comparing the Hamatos to the Foot didn't make sense. It was a fundamental mismatch; apples to oranges.

Comparing the Hamatos to the Foot felt wrong, because the Hamatos were her friends.

Mikey jumped backwards, keeping his arms extended as if trying to create a physical barrier between them. "Sorry! Sorry, you don't have to like hugs, I should have asked before- EEP!"

Without warning — half without thinking — Casey rushed forward and hugged Mikey, and this time she did wrap her arms around his shell, squeezing like she was doing her best impression of an orange juicer. He caught on fast, hugging her in return with just as much enthusiasm.

She would have been glad to stay there until nightfall. It was the most comfortable she felt in days, like she actually understood herself a little bit more, a little less like she was floundering. That was, until Mikey tapped her on the back and wheezed "Casey, this is great an' all but I can't breathe."

She released him, and he beamed a smile at her she could feel reflected in her own features. Later, they would order pizza, and all the eight members of clan Hamato would watch Lou Jitsu movies until the sky changed colours, and then changed colours again. Later, when she's thinking about proposing to April, Mikey would help her pick out a ring, and Donnie would help her pick out a wedding outfit. She'd change their lives and they'd change hers.

But for now, for the first time in a long time, she just felt safe.

[nakanotamu]

I decided to try out Star Citizen with the current IAE free fly event rather than just watching youtube videos and never playing it.

I spent idk how long, too long, trying to do the tutorial. (Part of why it took so long was I kept stopping to look around my starting city.) Eventually I got far enough I learned how to fly, but it wouldn't register that I'd landed in the station you have to fly to to progress the tutorial, so I couldn't go any further. I logged out and just chose to skip the tutorial at that point. I logged back in, back in my starting city, and this time just went and picked up my (free, wimpy, bc of the current free event) starter ship.

I opened up my map and checked the navigation to New Babbage, the city where the current event - letting you fly a changing selection of the game's many ships for free each day - is actually taking place. "Oh good," I thought. "It set the route, I guess that means my ship can make the trip." The fuel calculation seemed to be bugged, I couldn't figure out how to actually read it to double check if the amounts worked out, but I figured if there's a problem I'll just self destruct and start over.

I arrive at Microtech, the planet on which New Babbage is located. "Weird," I think, "Why is New Babbage all the way on the other side of the planet. Okay I'll just set up another little hop and -" it turns out my ship did Not have enough quantum fuel to make it all the way there. I briefly consider self destructing but it's fine, I am at the right planet at least, I'll just fly down manually to whatever I'm closest to where I can refuel and then hop from there. I check my map, which is frustrating to use if you aren't searching for a specific location, because as soon as you zoom in close enough to make out any locations it wants to jump to just showing the map of your ship. After fighting it for a while I find that I'm basically directly above an emergency shelter, which seems fitting. And it has ship services, perfect.

I fly down to the emergency shelter, which is just a little solitary building in a clearing in the woods. I hop out of my ship, it's absolutely gorgeous. I'm floored by how it really feels like I just hopped out of my dinky little ship into an actual forest clearing. I go looking around the shelter. I can't figure out how to refuel, but it also doesn't even have real landing pads, so I assume the map info was wrong and I can't actually do that here. More importantly, the shelter has the space version of Monster and Slim Jims, which I need bc this has taken so long I'm actually getting hungry and thirsty in game. I decide her diet is enough evidence for me to say the game has agreed with me that my character is trans. Anyway the fuel thing is fine, there's a mining outpost nearby, I'll try there.

I fly over to the mining outpost, which actually has landing pads, one of which is even occupied. I hail them to get landing permission, which it says I have, but it doesn't direct me to a pad how I expect. I just go and land on the smallest one anyway, it's fine, maybe that's how this works idk. I go and look in one of the buildings here, it seems like it's been looted by someone else, but I do find a free multi-tool, which will be useful for doing cargo, which I plan on being my main focus. I mean, even though accounts are gonna get wiped in a few weeks with 4.0, but whatever it's fine.

I still can't figure out how to refuel. At this point I realize I just don't know how to refuel and it's probably not a matter of not being able to find a terminal to do it at. I look it up and you just do it from your personal menu like accepting missions or using your map. Duh. I go to get back in my ship but I'm clipping through it. Thankfully if I walk up to the cockpit I can clip close enough to the pilot's chair I can still hop in, and that works fine. I finally refuel, I fly back out of atmosphere, I hop to New Babbage.

My computer lags hard as fuck. Between the shaders compiling bc it's my first time there and the number of people there bc it's the current Main City bc of the event I just sit back and wait a moment until I can do anything. It's night time and the city all sprawling out beneath me with lights on legitimately looks like a real city and I'm floored. I figure out where the hangars are and fly over, requesting access. I'm still very bad at flying so I take too long entering and they close the doors right as I get there. I get into a bit of a back and forth with flight control loading slowly before I get the doors to open and I still scrape something going through. I make a mental note to take off and land in the 3rd person camera from now on.

I store my loaner ship and head out into the city's transit station. I check which way the expo hall is and deliberately go the other way, I want to explore and also see if I can sell any of the stuff I looted on my impromptu stopovers. When I'm on the transit and I come out of the underground part and see the city all lit up at night I actually gasp. It got to me, okay. The actual to scale science fiction city with working (in a sense of the word) transit got to me.

I look around the shops. I can't sell any of my shit so I just drop it on the floor bc the game doesn't have interactable garbage cans. It's 4:30am at this point so I just log out rather than go the rest of the way to the expo hall.

It was - incredible. One of the most engrossing experiences I've ever had in a game. I'm absolutely buying an actual starter ship tonight after work. It is definitely in an alpha state. Playing the game makes it extremely obvious that they have spent the past 12 years of dev time doing early work and then throwing it out over and over again bc they had so much money there was no one to say just get it done about anything. I don't think I could tell anyone they should check it out unless I know they value basically the exact same things in a game I do.

But I want to believe, you know? I think just the idea of Star Citizen has already changed space games, and I think if they do actually manage to ever get close to a released product it's going to be so special. I think it's already something so special. It's just also extremely broken and unfinished. But oh my god, you know. I don't know how else to explain it.

I've talked before about how highly I value a sense of "realness" in a game, that feeling that a game takes place in a real, living space. Even broken and incredibly unfinished I don't know if I've ever played a game that felt as real as Star Citizen.

[dragonjesterwrites]

Hey, y'all! I keep saying I'm writing, and I've got my list of projects showing progress on them, but I haven't actually posted any actual writing in like, an eon.

So I wrote up a quick little drabble for y'all! A little hurt/comfort piece that's nonetheless quite sweet, I think. Hope y'all enjoy 😌

~~~~~

“...Dewdrop?”

You opened your eyes to blink sleepily up at Sun, and he removed his fingers from where he'd been carding them through your hair to push the tips of his forefingers together in nervous question.

“Do you… really think I'm pretty, a-and all those other things you say about my appearance?”

“Absolutely.” You said without hesitating, reaching up to take one hand and bring it to your lips. You gently unfolded his fingers where he'd curled them together, and pressed a chaste kiss to the center of his palm, breathing in the scent of silicone and crayons. “Pretty.” Another kiss. “Cute as hell.” Another. “Breathtaking.”

Flustered static hissed out from his voicebox, but it was quieter than usual, and you set his hand on your jaw so that you could look up at him. “You disagree?”

Sun squirmed a little, not quite meeting your gaze, fingers tapping your jaw. “It's just that… I'm objectively not.”

“Says who?”

“Most everyone, except you and Moon.” He mumbled.

You let out a quiet hum. “Do you think Moon's ugly?”

“N-no!” Sun stammered, before sighing and dropping his other hand to the floor with a clickety-clunk. “But that's– still subjective. Not that I think he's objectively ugly–! But… other people…”

You thought for a moment, nibbling at your lip. You could go with the obvious advice; don't listen to them, they're jackasses, what do they know anyway?

But you didn't think any of that would make him feel better, somehow.

Then an idea seized you. You didn't know if it would erase the hurt, but it would at least make him laugh, and what better medicine than laughter?

Slowly, you spoke. “What… exactly… do they think is so objectively ugly?”

“On me, you mean?” Sun asked in a small voice, and you gave a single nod. “Well…”

He raised his free hand to his face, fingers touching down on his grin. “For starters, I've been told I have a creepy grin… yellow teeth, too many teeth, uneven, too wide…”

As he continued, moving onto his nose and how big it was, you began to lift yourself out of his lap– he turned his gaze to focus you, but kept on, albeit with a note of uncertainty in his voice.

Promptly, before he could figure out your plan, you clambered into his lap, and ignored the way he did then come to a stuttering stop, as you wrapped your legs criss-cross around his hips and took a hold of his faceplate by the rays. 

“S-Sunshine–? What are you doing?” he asked, bewilderment somewhat obscured by flustered static.

“Oh, nothing.” You said innocently, thumbing over his rays and making him shiver. “Keep going.”

“Wh– I– okay.” He brought his hand back up, and brushed lightly over his cheek. “They said… my colors are faded– mm!”

You couldn't hold back your smile at the little squeak that escaped him as you kissed his big beautiful grin, savoring the scent of markers and lemon wipes. 

But you didn't linger too long, breaking away only to press a dozen more kisses in quick succession over his carved teeth and lips. A proper burst of garbled, flustered static escaped his voicebox, his faceplate vibrating under your lips, and you grinned yourself as you pulled away, examining his faceplate for your next target. What had he said? Nose.

“T-they said– ahh– ehehehe, Sunshiiine!” He giggled, voicebox buzzing as you began to plaster kisses all over his nose, focusing especially on the cute little craters. “What are you doing–?”

“Nothing!” You insisted, before going right back to it.

His giggling rang pleasantly in your ears, and two large, warm hands settled on your hips and squeezed. “I am trying to lay out my insecurities–”

“So go ahead.” You replied, slightly breathless by now but still beaming at him.

He squinted at you, rays fluttering in amusement,  and there was a brief pause before his voicebox buzzed again with the beginning of speech. “As I was saying– agh!”

You tackled him to the ground, pinning him there and kissing his faceplate all over in a flurry of smooches while he squealed and laughed and kicked his legs in mock protest.

“Sss-suh-sun-shiiine!”

“So, so pretty, and beautiful, and gorgeous–” You continued between kisses and giggles of your own. “The most perfect, radiant ray of sunshine that ever lived–”

You continued on until he became incoherent with garbled static giggling, the happy, flustered noises punctuated occasionally by squeaks and squeals when your kisses ventured over to his sensitive rays.

With a grin that wrinkled your nose, you finished up by nuzzling against him in one last burst of energy, then collapsed onto his chest and squeezed him tight.

He returned the tight hug, body still twitching with little static giggles that burst out from his voicebox.

You continued to rub up against him as the pair of you laid there, tangled comfortably together on the living room rug, washed in dappled gold by the warm light of the afternoon sun as it set behind the trees in your yard, and purring took the place of laughter. His hand returned to your hair, and he brushed through it with his fingers, gentle and soft and sweet.

[hollownekomata]

//various updates:

finally set up a thread tracker with Notion, so I can keep everything in check a little better;

the starters from this post and the prompts (still open in case you're interested!) will probably be released during the weekend, I plan to use tomorrow afternoon to make progress with the art event + maybe another small comic thing because I'm absolutely obsessed with Miele and zombie!Rose right now I don't make the rules I'm sorry-

the other two cooperative arrancars are ready story-wise, but finding the time for a full-blown illustration is... difficult, so I might just throw them here with only a portrait to their name;

will revise my yōkai arc knowledge;

I guess I will start looking into how to make a decent promo/master post with appropriate graphics...

[cheeriecherrymain]

Okay,okay,our lovely writer,what do you think about Viktor and an artist s/o who adores him and shows it through sneakily creating a life-size scuplture of him for the Undercity to remind them they have someone looking out for them,even if in Piltover?

I kind of meshed painting and sculpting because I....don't really know how sculpting works. I might doodle a shitty picture of this at some point though.

Requests are open my loves (both SFW/MSFW)

---

Viktor x Reader

-Viktor doesn’t realize at first where you’ve been sneaking off to. He knows you’re going somewhere, and every time he catches you, you say it’s ‘to work on art’. He’s a bit confused as to why you won’t just show him what you’re working on - you’ve shown him all your other works in progress.

-What’s so different about this one?

-Many things, apparently. For starters, you’re not working in your usual studio, surrounded by bright natural light and with access to every imaginable medium. He comes by to visit on one of his rare free afternoons, only to run into one of your artist friends, who informs him that she hasn’t seen you in a couple of days.

-Informs him that you packed up a bunch of paints into a backpack, and took off in the direction of the undercity.

-He starts worrying the moment he realizes where you are. He knows that not everything about his home is bad - knows that there are a lot of good people, who are smart and thoughtful and kind. People who wouldn’t bat an eyelash at you, and would leave you be to do whatever it is you’re doing.

-It’s the less than savory characters he’s stressed about. The select few who would take advantage of you, if the opportunity arose. The few who were beyond desperate, looking for an easy way to put a couple cents in their pocket.

-He doesn’t even know what part of the undercity you’re in, and he knows there’s no sense in looking. If he were to ask around, it would only draw more attention to you, and that’s the last thing he wants.

-All he hopes for is that you’ll go undetected long enough to come home to him, where he can hopefully talk some sense into you.

—

-You do end up coming home, late into the evening, smelling of pollution and paint fumes, covered in smacks of colour from head to toe. 

-You’re obviously startled when you stumble across him on the way to the bathroom, seated comfortable in your little shared lounge, reading one of the books you’d suggested to him. You freeze in the doorway, like a deer in headlights, as he glances up at you.

-You know you’ve been caught.

-You know he’s displeased.

- “I know what this looks like-” you begin, but he’s quick to hold a hand up to shush you. You bite the inside of your cheek, indignantly setting your hands on your hips.

- “You’ve been going to the undercity,” he states, bluntly. “You’ve been going to the undercity, unaccompanied, and without telling anyone. Despite the warnings I’ve given you about how unsafe it is there - especially for someone like you!”

-You want to argue with him, to push back against his nagging, even though you know he’s got a point. You know that you’re an easy target. Even with your old, paint-covered clothes on, you’re too pristine, too done up, to have come from anywhere other than Piltover.

- “I had a good reason,” you grumble, tactfully avoiding his gaze. “It was supposed to be a surprise, a whole thing, but…”

-You sigh, your posture suddenly relaxing and all the fight in you dissipating. Frustrated as he may be, you know that Viktor only wants you to be safe, no matter where you go. You know that if something were to happen to you - something you could have prevented, no less…it would ruin him.

-Tentatively, you hold your hand out to him, still covered in dried pigments. He eyes you warily, his gaze flicking up to your face.

- “I’ll show you what I’ve been working on,” you clarify, wiggling your fingers. “It’s mostly done, anyways. And better viewed at night. Now come on.”

-He takes your hand.

—

-An hour later, the two of you are carefully skulking through various alleyways, avoiding pipes and puddles and a multitude of leaks, glowing liquids of questionable origin and little heaps of junk. Even one or two people, most of whom pay you no mind.

-You practically vibrating with excitement, the closer you seem to get to…wherever it is you’re bringing him. Your fingers knit through his, carefully tugging him along in the dark, making sure neither of you trip and fall face first into the walkway.

-He’s just about to ask you if you’re nearing your destination, when suddenly, you stop. So abruptly that he nearly collides with your back, despite his casual pace. He frowns down at you for a second, before his eyes adjust a little more to the lack of light, and he’s able to follow your gaze.

-Able to see what you’re looking at.

-The walls, mostly, are what catches his attention first. Barely glowing where they start, almost seeming to appear out of thin air. They sweep and ooze forward on the flat surface, brightening as they grow thicker and thicker as they twist closer to their destination.

-He recognizes the painting style, of course - it’s yours. Your distinct line techniques, combined with the rough texture of your brush style. He’s able to pick out a couple of different mediums you’ve used, to bend and burst and haze the colours in such a way that makes it look like the tendrils you’ve created are alive.

-Curling around each other like wires, yet pulsing with light almost like they’re breathing.

-You tug on his hand again, pulling him further down the alleyway, moving slower than before as to allow him to watch your art twist and curve around the architecture it’s painted on.

-Until finally, you come to a clearing. Just as unkempt as the area you’d been, it’s an intersection of six different walkways, a jagged circle, about twenty feet in diameter. He glances around, his eyes following the tendrils down the walls and across the ground - all heading inwards from each different path.

-Until they convene in the center.

-Where stands a metal statue, abstract in nature yet welded and twisted so perfectly. Painted with love and attention, in much the same style as the glow that led you both here, only this time it’s so bright it’s nearly blinding.

-You’ve left out his features, leaving the shape up to interpretation and curiosity, but he knows. He can tell in the way you’ve shaped it, and in the way the metal man so carefully holds his creation.

-It’s him, and the hexcore.

-It’s vague, but he knows.

- “You…made this?” he asks, so softly that you can barely hear him. He takes a few steps closer, trailing his eyes over every curve and detail of the sculpture.

- “I did,” you say, quite pleased with yourself. “I thought the undercity would do well to remember someone who’s out there, working his ass off to make things better: searching for answers and looking for ways to find peace.”

-You move towards him, linking your arms together as you come to stand by his side.

- “I know it’s not much,” you sigh. “I know that…my art probably won’t change anything. I know that a lot of people won’t know the significance of the piece, and won’t see the detail and the love that’s gone into it. But…it can offer them a little slice of light in this dark place, if nothing else. It can be a place where they don’t have to worry about the shadows that follow them. I hope.”

-He carefully hooks his cane into the crook of his elbow, and reaches up to cup your jaw, his thumb slowly tracing over the curve of your cheek, regarding you with the utmost admiration and fondness.

- “Thank you,” he murmurs, quiet enough that only you can hear. “You say your art won’t change anything, but it has. You have. You’ve made the world a little bit brighter, because of this.”

-His lips meet yours in tender expression, warm and gentle and familiar.

-You’ve made his world brighter.

[aching-tummies]

RP-Starter: Hooked

Inspiration: Crochet hooks

This one's for all the navel fans out there. I've been dreaming of this scenario for weeks and finally managed to type it up after indulging in the real thing alone for a while. I have the hooks, I just need another set of hands to do what I want with all these hooks.

Closed-mouth groans greet your ears as you come home. Following the noises brings you to the living room. I'm reclined on the couch, lap covered in a tangled mess of yarn and a project in-progress. My hook-caddy rests on the seat to my left, armrest to my right. My hands aren't working on the project, as they should be. Instead, both of my hands are resting on my belly--unusually domed outward. My shirt has been bunched up, framing the distended swell and accentuating it even more.

"Ooohh…nnngh….mmmmph…" I moan as I press my fingers all over my belly. With each pressing, you can tell that my stomach is packed tight as my fingers don't sink in as much as they should. The unhappy, constant grumbling from my insides is also a give-away that there's something filling it all up and making things really uncomfortable.

My eyes find yours.

"Nnngh…w-welcome home, babe." I mutter. "Phew…nnngh…stomach is taking a long time to process today. Whatever's in here has been in here for the last four hours and only now decides it's going to kick up a fuss." I mutter, patting my distended belly for emphasis and mewling in discomfort at the achey reverberations from the slapping.

A devious smirk stretches on your face as you approach the couch. A silver glint catches your eye and you reach for the conveniently-placed tools. My crochet hook case included space for lace-hooks--needle-like, milimetre or less in diameter, rounded at the end just enough to not pierce when it jabs into flesh--not easily, at least. You pick up two, a stray lace hook that I likely used to get at a stray strand of something, haphazardly left on top of the caddy rather than inserted back into the holder. The other is the 3.5mm that I've been working with. Gripping one hook in each hand, you get to work.

Using the 3.5 as something like forceps, you dig it into my navel. I flinch, squealing as the cool metal prods at my overly-sensitive navel. You advance, knee coming up to straddle my legs as you reach in with the lace-hook and begin to poke around, swirling it in the deep cavern that is my sensitive innie, using the 3.5 to push and pull flesh out of the way as you try to find a good view of the deepest part of my core.

My stomach gurgles angrily, intestines indignant at being poked so harshly with the hooks.

You snarl, still unable to see the bottom of my navel. A new hook joins yours in the search, me having grabbed a 3.0mm. I take over with the 3.5 and use them to pry my navel open for your scrutiny. You poke around with the lace needle, reaching over to free another from the holder.

"Oooh…nnng…" Open-mouthed groans and mewls reach your ears as you piston the lace hooks one right after the other, scratching and poking at the deepest parts of my navel. "Nnngh…b-babe…c-carefull. I'm s-so full…i-it's r-really sensitive right now." I murmur.

You continue to poke around, stretching the sensitive flesh of my navel to uncover the hiiden folds in the flesh, poking and prodding with the hooks as you do. My intestines grumble angrily after particularly sharp jabs, clearly disturbed by your actions.

Send me your best responses--where do we go from here?

[ro-nikk]

Movie

Film industry: ' Bounce Marley: One Love' Gets Together $7.4 Million on Friday, 'Madame Web' Falls Behind With $4.3 Million kingsley ben adir sway marley one love Central Pictures/Everett Assortment

Central's "Sway Marley: One Love" proceeded with its run as film industry pioneer through the particular six-day occasion outline, including $7.4 million Friday from 3,539 areas to knock its homegrown count to $25.3 million. The reggae legend's biopic could even surpass Sony's superhero film "Madame Web," which brought in $4.3 million from 4,013 theaters on Friday, after six days. North American take for the Wonder Comics variation presently remains at $12.5 million.

Both films opened on Valentine's Day and hope to continue their momentum through President's Day. On Wednesday, "One Love" established itself with an impressive $14 million, helped along by a few high-end large-format theaters (Madame Web has the majority, though). However the Reinaldo Marcus Green-coordinated show landed unremarkable surveys, it reverberated with early crowds, capturing an "A" grade from assessor Film Score. Principal caused a stir when it drop-kicked the film from an additional honors accommodating January date to the February occasion, yet the film appears to have tracked down an energetic crowd in its new right on the money the schedule. "One Love" conveys a $70 million creation spending plan and extra circulation and promoting costs. The projected six-day homegrown introduction north of $40 million, in addition to a significant worldwide total, is certainly not a terrible spot to "One Love." Given Marley's global appeal, the film is a play for international audiences. It should continue attracting crowds the next few weeks to not stress over a thing.

"One Love" stars Kingsley Ben-Adir as Bob Marley and Lashana Lynch as Rita Marley. The component tracks the performer's European and African visit, as well as the creation of his milestone collection "Mass migration."

"Madame Web" scored far more detestable surveys and some horrendous crowd scores (a "C+" through Film Score). Half a month prior, the independent comic book transformation had been projecting a six-day complete north of $30 million; presently, it'll probably complete nearer to $20 million. It's an unpropitious start up for an undertaking that was logical imagined and created as an establishment starter.

However Sony is a piece less shower with its superhuman financial plans than contenders at Disney and Warner Brothers., a $80 million creation financial plan and extra showcasing costs aren't precisely an unassuming speculation set-up for a secure return. Furthermore, memes that refer to Sony's less-than-stellar track record among superhero fans reinforce the rejection of "Madame Web," making it practically a separate online culture (see: Morbius, a vampire action film starring Jared Leto "Madame Web" might not be able to overcome the negative publicity.

Dakota Johnson stars in "Madame Web" as a that paramedic she has visionary capacities and starts to safeguard a threesome of young people from the wall-creeping executioner that killed her mom. Sydney Sweeney, Tahar Rahim, Isabela Merced, Celeste O'Connor, Emma Roberts, Adam Scott and Zosia Mamet ("Young ladies") likewise star. S.J. Clarkson coordinates.

"Argylle" will probably tumble to third place, extending a 32% fall in its third end of the week. The production produced by Apple Studios has proven to be the year's first well-known failure. The film, which has a big cast and cost the tech company more than $200 million, won't even make $40 million in the US in its first 17 days of release.

Even after its holiday debut, Universal's "Migration" is still challenging for third place. The Brightening creation ought to push to $116 million homegrown as the day progressed. Theaters will at last get another high-profile energized film for family crowds with "Kung Fu Panda 4" on Walk 8.

Understand Occasion's arrival of the religious television series "The Picked" could push "Wonka" out of the best five in its tenth few days of delivery. The Timothée Chalamet melodic keeps on being a reasonable attract an extremely peaceful commercial center, logical adding another $4 million or so through the four-day occasion outline. Homegrown count ought to before long hit $210 million, somewhat away from outperforming "Insect Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" ($214 million) to turn into the seventh-most noteworthy netting North American arrival of 2023.

[owlzer]

An important thing to keep in mind when you are doing digital prototyping is to consider your reasons for each prototype that you make. - Fullerton (ch8, pg241)

Although there is an obvious main reason of why I am making this prototype being IGB120. However, I actually have very little experience with game design. So this rapid digital prototyping has served as a great learning experience. I have learned how to use GDevelop 5, make assets, use visual coding, and playtest. I have been able to develop a wide range of skills in a short amount of time. Although I still have a lot to learn, I can still feel my improvement with each prototype as I continue to grow as a developer.

Week 8 - Racer Development Progress 3

Playtesting

During the playtest I got some very eye opening feedback on how I can greatly improve this game. Although the playtester enjoyed the assets and theme, there were some major concerns that they wanted me to address. First of all, was that there was no gameplay loop. There is no way for the player to restart the game without reopening it which quickly became a problem when a playtester died very early on and the game played on without the player's ship. They enjoyed the cola powerup however, it didn't feel that impactful and wanted it to feel faster and not be so easy to get. Coins also seemed less impactful as they appeared in one straight line and there was no way for the player to miss collecting them. The game also broke some of the player' immersion as the background didn't move. This was a new problem that was created by changing a highway to an ocean as this is normally not required as the background looked like it was moving due to the moving trees on the sides. However, as I have moving clouds and birds, this no longer works and the Player ship feels static. Additionally, they also mentioned that the speed of certain objects felt wrong which also broke their immersion (e.g. the clouds moving too fast). Although there were a lot of things for my game to improve on, the playtester still had a fun experience with my game which let me know that I was still heading in the right direction.

Development update

Wow there is a lot to go through here. So for starters, I really needed to fix my loop code that I talked about in my first development post. Although it did work, it was very messy and as I wanted to create set patterns that would spawn, I needed to make it more optimised. Once that was done, I created a new spawning system that would either randomly spawn one random object in a random lane or a random set pattern. This created way more diversity and challenge, which my game was clearly lacking. Speeds of everything got adjusted to feel more immersive and the cola powerup now makes every go at 3 times the speed which feels way more impactful. The game also felt awkward at the start as there is a delay before anything spawns so I made my own workaround (as I couldn't find a way to set a timer to 2 seconds at the start of the game) to get rid of that initial delay. Creating the moving background wasn't easy but I managed to do it using duplicates of the background that move down and teleported back up to create the effect. This was one of my biggest challenges of making the game so far as I really had to think outside of the box to make it work. Finally, to finish the game off I made a title and game over screen. The game over screen displays the player's points for them to see.

References:

Fullerton, T. (2018). Game Design Workshop: A Playcentric Approach to Creating

Innovative Games. ProQuest Ebook. Retrieved

from:  https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/qut/reader.action?docID=5477698

[thranduilland]

for the sentence starters: 'why does it feel like this is goodbye?'

Well. Things to note: this is Sandman and Avengers Crossover Infinity War (but it's been moved to 2023, rather than... 2018, I think was the canon setting?). And this ends on No Happy Ending, because the assumed Happy Ending occurs in the Avengers side of canon (the Blip)

It started out like any other day, and it had been progressing like any other day. Dream had arrived early that morning to greet Hob with a kiss as he rose from his bed. Hob’d talked Dream into showering with him, as if it ever took much convincing, really. They’d gone down to the New Inn where Hob’d had his coffee and his breakfast like he always did, and they’d talked about their plans for the coming weekend; they were going to watch a movie, then spend the rest of the day at the beach, any beach, anywhere in the world so long as it had sun.

That had been the plan.

Afterwards, they’d gone back upstairs, sat down on the couch to continue Dream’s ‘reintegration into society’, as Hob called filling his head with all the movies and TV shows that he’d missed in the cage. They’d already watched the Lord of the Rings, Star Wards, various Disney and Pixar films. Today’s movie of choice was Peter Pan, which Hob thought Dream would like and so far he has been.

“I do believe in fairies! I do! I do!”

Dream jolts, reaching up too press his hands against his head as something shifts. It’s not pain, it doesn’t ache, but there is… an absence, a change. A lack where their should not be. A hole where once there was something. He doesn’t understand what is happening.

“I do believe in fairies! I do! I do!”

“Dream?” he struggles to raise his head at the sound of Hob’s voice, feels immeasurably less than he had just moments ago, and he doesn’t understand what is happening. “Dream? I-I don’t-“ Hob stutters, his words distorting to Dream’s own ears but finally he raises his head, finds Hob swaying on the couch beside him. There is screaming outside, the sound sneaking in through the open windows, terrified screams, horrified screams, grieving screams. “Dream!” Hob calls, urgent now. Dream lets his gaze flick back to him and his widen as Hob’s skin seems to have paled so dramatically as to match Dream’s own.

“Hob?” he asks, as they both look down at Hob’s hand, staring in confusion and terror as the tips of his fingers start to turn to dust. “Hob!”

“I do believe in fairies! I do! I do!”

Suddenly, Hob throws himself forward, clutching at Dream, tears falling like rain from his eyes. Dream clings to him, his hands twisting in the fabric of Hob’s shirt as he feels Hob’s fingers scrambling across his chest, unable to find purchase as they crumble to dust.  

“Dream! Dream, I don’t want to go! I don’t want to go! I don’t want to go!” Hob sobs, desperate and terrified and Dream can do nothing. With every second that passes he feels further diminished, like pieces of him are chipping themselves away never to return, and even as he tries to cling to Hob, tries to will him to stay, he can feel Hob slipping away too. “I don’t want to go! I don’t want to go!”

“I do believe in fairies! I do! I do!”

In 1689, in the moments before Hob had said that Death was a mug’s game and that he still had so much to live for, Dream had thought to himself ‘why does it feel like this is goodbye?’ So, so certain had he been that Hob would not wish to go on living, but he’d been proven wrong, and Hob had carried right on anyway, despite his pain, despite his losses.

“I do believe in fairies! I do! I do!”

“I don’t want to go! I don’t want to go!”

“Stay with me, Hob, please? Don’t-don’t go where I cannot follow. Please?” he begs, crushing Hob to him as tightly as he can but it doesn’t seem to matter as he can feel Hob fading away right in front of his eyes, beneath his hands. “Hob, please-!”

“I do believe in fairies! I do! I do!”

“I’m sorry,” Hob whispers as he turns to dust. Dream clutches at it, fingers scrabbling through the dust that was once Hob Gadling, but the dust is all that is left of his love.

--

The humans call it ‘the Snap’, some parts of the Universe call it the Devastation.

Dream clutches the vial of dust around his neck and acknowledges it for what it really is.

The Last Goodbye.  

[nullbutler]

Christlois lore - only read if you’re okay w spoilers!! I might delete this later

And thank you SO MUCH @hateweasel for helping me come up w the lore and Demon-Angel mechanics

to start from the beginning, the reason Alois is even in this situation is because he had to take an uncover mission as the queen's spider. it was set in a church, obviously, where he was supposedly inspecting some unsavory pastors. just the typical murder stuff. an open and shut case where the 'clean up' is indistinguishable from the detective work. Ciel was contacted about this too, but he was busy w something else.

anyway the reason Alois even decides to ENTER this church where NONE OF HIS DEMONS PHSYICALLY can follow (strong godly energy, me changing the rules of the universe, whatever) is because he was mad at Claude

Claude pulled a Sebastian-at-the-end-of-season-1 and basically vanished for a little while to hunt down more souls. he was PLANNING on coming back, but he was hungry and tired and yknow needed a day out on the town devouring people. he was also growing a bit more irate and just, generally, alois and him were on bad terms.

Also, in this canon, Alois and Ciel HAD previously met, but it was on a job. None of the season 2 bullshit happened. However, Claude was still 👀ciel’s soul

Anyways, Alois goes into the church in disguise as a Nun. this is because yknow he loves crossdressing and ALSO he didnt want any external help. boy wanted to prove himself. but he gets a little too into character and actually listens to a few sermons. this idea of unconditional love and salvation from sin appeals to him...but he tries to push through it. and then, of course, the sisterhood has their joint-bathing ritual and he has to sneak out because they can't know hes a guy yada yada,...only he gets caught by ANGELA, an older nun and the feminine 'form' of Ash.

Should be noted that this scene takes place outside, and Angela is never seen actually within the church

Anyway she basically says "trans rights baby' and 'as long as you wear that uniform, it doesn't matter who you are, you are a nun like the rest of us ^^' and is just generally weirdly sweet and understanding. However, at the last moment, once his guard is dropped, she grabs him by the face and tells him if he ever needs some.. divine interference. .. he just has to forgo that contract, and he'll have a ticket into heaven (as long as he does what she says)

SO things progress. Angela/Ash show him the memory of Luka's death. he realizes the demons have been lying to him. he decides FUCK IT - and goes and kills claude (in the animatic), strikes his contract with a blade, and forms his alliance with Ash. Only...only he doesn't want the ticket for himself. Oh no. He doesn't care if he goes to hell. He wants to hunt down and kill HANNAH ANNAFELLOWS so he can liberate Luka's soul and send Luka to heaven...

here's the issue. Luka is tiny, but he's racked up a fuck ton of sin. he was born out of wedlock for starters. he was a thief, not to mention contracted a demon and by proxy killed an entire village. so, grinning, Ash tells Alois that if he TRULY wants to save Luka, he's going to need to work overtime and basically be Ash's puppet. To which Alois desperately agrees, and they go on their merry way

With Alois Ash’s puppet, Ciel and Sebastian are havin their own issues. Namely, they find Hannah and Claude’s corpses and realize “aw fuck someone is killing demons!! Also that Trancy kid disappeared - he’s probably dead too!”

Ciel senses some sort of eldritch power within that Church - one Sebastian can’t enter - and so he investigates, but gets caught by Alois. Alois ties him up and says Ash ordered him to break his contract with Sebastian - by carving out his eye. He also calls Ciel a “lamb” as in lamb of the lord, and it’s just kind of creepy. Ciel tries to cut himslef out of the ropes via a blade hidden in his shoe. At the last minute, he escapes and runs and Alois chases him. The glass mosaic paintings shift and Ciel sees ash’s face watching him through them — so creepy!! Anyway, Ciel escapes to the top of the roof, where he throws himself over the edge and is caught by Sebastian, who can’t enter the church but CAN orbit it. The two escape and leave Alois standing there

Here’s the other thing. Alois is weirdly powerful. He’s oddly strong and heals quickly. But he looks a little odd. His hands are the wrong size. This is because ASH has been USING HIM AS A VESSEL and has been STITCHING THE DISEMBODIED SKIN AND FLESH of SAINTS to him, giving him this sort of Christian God Power. So one arm is simply Saint Jude’s. There are patches of transfused skin on his back and on his other arm — Latin tattoos that he cannot fully understand.

These pieces are sewn to his flesh by “harp string.” A thread made by Ash. It is later revealed to be, in actuality, spider silk from Claude’s corpse, harvested by Ash.

Ash wants to make Alois his vessel. He doesn’t care about the boy. He, also, is not an Angel, but a FALLEN Angel, a thing more disgraced than a traditional devil. Ash CANNOT enter the church any more than Sebastian can. Ash wants to reclaim his Angelhood.

Another issue - the threads being used as actually KEEPING the saintly body parts from properly transfusing to Alois. Because if they DID, that would make ash INCAPABLE of touching Alois, and thus incapable of using his vessel. The tattoos are a method of ash possessing alois’s body and, through a loophole in the system, using these artifacts

So anyway the ending is a little vague at the moment, BUT. Ciel ends up siding with Alois. He - HIMSELF, not Sebastian becayse Sebastian can’t touch something so holy - has to cut the saintly artifacts stitches off and save Alois (around the later half of the fic he goes from being really powerful to really sick due to the corruption). This happens inside the church, where neither demon can reach them.

Anywya, outside Sebastian kills Ash. The end. That was really long HDHDH

[alldaddy]

@redhead-reporter gets a small starter !

𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆  𝐇𝐄𝐑  𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐃  𝐎𝐔𝐓  𝐎𝐍  𝐓𝐇𝐄  𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐂𝐇  𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇  𝐇𝐄𝐑  𝐋𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐎𝐏  𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐅  𝐈𝐍  𝐇𝐄𝐑  𝐋𝐀𝐏  𝐖𝐀𝐒𝐍'𝐓  𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐌𝐎𝐍.  they  both  lived  hectic,  busy  lives;  they  traded  off  who  was  busier  but  it  was  never  a  competition.  regardless  of  each  others  schedules,  they  were  both  their  for  one  another;  so,  when  odin  walked  through  the  door  to  their  home  and  found  her  there,  he  didn't  need  to  say  anything.  instead,  a  small,  warm  smile  formed  on  his  lips.  he  didn't  know  how  long  she'd  been  there,  but  judging  just  by  how  far  she'd  sunk  into  the  cushions,  it  had  been  a  while.

leaning  down,  he  gently  plucked  her  laptop  from  her  lap,  mindful  of  her  work  and  setting  it  still  half  open  on  the  coffee  table.  he  didn't  know  when  she'd  last  saved  and  the  last  thing  he  wanted  was  to  be  the  cause  of  her  losing  progress.  with  that  out  of  the  way,  he  scooped  one  arm  under  her  back,  the  other  under  her  knees  before  lifting  her  up  and  off  the  couch  effortlessly.  holding  her  close  against  his  chest,  he  could  feel  her  stir  some,  lips  pressing  to  her  forehead  affectionately,  ❛  keep  sleepin'  baby.  i  gotcha.  ❜

[doubleddenden]

Sometimes I see Poketubers talking about wanting yet ANOTHER Kanto remake- I guess Let's Go was just that forgettable/bad

Idk, there's only a handful of acceptable instances for Kanto to come back any time soon imo

RBY and FRLG ports. Self explanatory

GSC or HGSS port. Also self explanatory.

Johto reremake

And now for the two HUGE game changers

Legends

Ideally it connects both Kanto and Johto. Set at any point in history, but I think the past would just be more interesting to explore. One instance could go over the Burned Tower in Johto and overall another 200 or more years ago past setting, or another could even be helping Oak in his youth explore the regions.

Complete overhaul

Now this one is the one that basically just makes it barely recognizeable, and we'd STILL want Johto at some point.

The idea can be boiled down to fleshing it out to match closer to its real life counterparts. Saffron, for instance, barely resembles a city, let alone Tokyo- here, it'd need a major overhaul with trains, parks, busy streets, huge buildings with lots of lights- you'd probably connect it to Celadon as well. A Shinjuku area, too, would need to be made. And that's just the tip of the ice berg.

Basically cities, towns, routes, and dungeons would need to be brought to the actual 21st century. Rather than everything being modeled after a barely functional game from 96 and never updated, now everything would feel lived in and alive. No more 3 building towns with every building facing the same way, no more towns basically being indistinguishable from another, no more bland routes- they don't need hyper realistic graphics, but they should try to look like how people envisioned the games as kids or how the anime depicted it, maybe with a bit more mysticism and explorable areas.

Routes would merely be a suggestion and progression way more open- so you could probably get from Viridian to Celadon if you went through the trees eastward. Flat maps now have hills- HGSS kinda does this, so you could probably see Cerulean from up high after busting out of Mt Moon. Mountains no longer look like Legos and can be climbed, tall grass would ACTUALLY be tall grass, some creeks here and there to get access to more water types sooner, etc.

And this one would make Kanto purists angry: include later gen Pokemon.

This is extensive to the following:

Baby pokemon introduced later

Evolutions introduced later

Pokemon found in Kanto in GSC and HGSS, such as Houndour or Shinx

Pokemon found in Johto, because it's literally right next door

Regional variants- because why not? Do like Let's Go and have them be trades if you must. However, I think making Kantonian variants would also be a must to truly refresh things.

Convergent species- we only have 3 so far, but Kanto could have more.

Megas

New evolutions or forms for Kantonian or Johtonian pokemon, or for variants and convergents from other regions. This would ideally include something new for the STARTERS.

And of course, just more Pokemon from other regions. I'm just saying, Unova lost it's purity in BW2, let's do the same to this Kanto.

Overall, your pokedex is getting a MAJOR overhaul, because those 151 just aren't enough anymore and most of the og 151 were fixed or made better later. That and they're boring now. You also need it to balance the dex better and a break from poison types and psychic supremacy.

I would especially suggest adding beta Pokemon that were scrapped from gen 1 and 2 and not clearly reworked into something else into the games as a booster shot to the pokedex as well.

Now lastly, the big doozy: it cannot rehash the same barely existing story. Treat this as the Threequel after GSC or later. Do not rewrite it or replace rivals like in Let's Go, this is now a brand new game. As such, a shake up to gym leaders and Elite 4 is expected.

So for instance, the elite 4 can mix Johto's final product with a bit of Space World's demo elite 4. So, we could bring in Misty as an Elite 4 member and kick out Bruno, and maybe even replace Misty with her sisters from the anime, or replace LT Surge with that lady that replaced him in the anime.

Hell, embrace the changes of the franchise instead of plugging your ears and screaming as you pretend it doesn't happen. Add a fairy and dark gym, finally finish that area in Vermillion, add a couple of towns north of Cerulean and Pewter, add in travel to Sevii Islands, bring in some characters from other regions to visit, and now you have a very fresh experience that isn't just a plain rehash with a fresh coat of paint.

Of course, keep riding and following pokemon, bring back the Safari Zone, add in a camera akin to LA or SV, add in and expand on character customization, and you're looking at an amazing, new, and *technically* still Kanto experience. This doesn't even touch what I'd do with Johto.

In other words, a barely Kanto game even I can stomach.

But I will say, at this point, this does sound like a fun idea to basically make a new region out of old inspiration- a true Kanto and especially Tokyo inspired region.

Or we could just take the easy route and not request the 4th fucking Kanto games.

[pdriesta]

CHAPTER TWO

“i want something that i know is real”

pairings — judexblack!girl

genres — fluff, slow burn, workplace romance (she’s a pt)

warnings — sexual themes (minors dni)

word count — 6k

summary — y/n, a rising physiotherapist, has just been promoted to work with real madrid's men's team. after a difficult breakup, she's determined to keep things professional. but when jude bellingham, the club's charming new star, sets his sights on her, maintaining boundaries becomes harder than ever. can she resist the pull, or will she risk everything for a love she swore she’d never fall for again?

an — slowly but surely we are getting there. thank you for all the support <3

masterlist

as the season progressed, the days seemed to blend together in a harmonious rhythm of training sessions, matches, and quiet moments between. the physio room had become a familiar haven, its atmosphere punctuated by the soft hum of conversation and the occasional burst of laughter. 

y/n and jude had gradually found their own rhythm, their interactions growing more relaxed and natural as they navigated their professional boundaries. the early days of the season had been a whirlwind of activity and adjustment, but now, there was a comforting routine in their interactions. 

mornings began with the sound of cleats on the pitch and the soft murmur of players discussing their strategies. by the time y/n entered the physio room, the hustle of the training ground had already started to settle into a quieter pace. jude, ever enthusiastic, would often linger nearby, his presence a constant, cheerful distraction.

their conversations had evolved from brief exchanges about player injuries to more personal topics, shared over quick lunches or fleeting moments in between sessions. the more time they spent together, the more y/n began to notice the little things about jude—his easy smile, the way he would run a hand through his hair when he was deep in thought, and the genuine curiosity he had about her life outside of work.

one crisp morning, as y/n was reviewing her schedule, jude appeared with his usual bright grin, holding a fresh cup of coffee. “good morning, y/n! did you know that today’s practice is supposed to be the hardest of the week?”

y/n looked up, her smile tinged with amusement. “i’m aware. i’m just trying to mentally prepare myself for the onslaught of injuries that might follow.”

jude chuckled, his eyes twinkling with mischief. “well, if you need any help, you know where to find me. just don’t make me run extra laps for it.”

their playful banter continued, weaving through the daily routines and moments of downtime. jude’s persistent charm and y/n’s gradual opening up created a dynamic that was both comfortable and exciting. their conversations, once tentative, had grown into a dance of mutual curiosity and warmth.

one evening, after a particularly grueling day of training, they found themselves alone in the physio room. the soft light from the setting sun cast a golden hue over the space, creating a serene backdrop for their quiet exchange.

jude leaned against the counter, watching y/n as she meticulously prepared her supplies for the next session. “you know,” he began casually, “i’ve been thinking. we’ve spent quite a bit of time together, but there’s still so much i don’t know about you.”

y/n paused, glancing up with a curious smile. “oh? like what?”

jude’s eyes sparkled with genuine interest. “well, for starters, what’s your favorite way to unwind after a long day?”

y/n’s eyes softened as she considered the question. “i usually like to read or listen to music. It’s a good way to relax and forget about the day’s stresses.”

jude nodded thoughtfully. “that sounds nice. i’d probably just end up watching highlights from the day’s matches or trying to beat my own high scores on my video games.”

their laughter filled the room, the sound light and easy. as the season continued, their moments of connection grew deeper. they discovered shared interests, swapped stories about their lives, and found solace in each other’s company. 

by the time the evening approached, the warmth of their growing friendship was a comforting presence in their lives. their interactions were now filled with a sense of ease, a mutual appreciation that spoke volumes about the connection they were building.

in the quiet moments between sessions and the shared laughter over coffee breaks, the foundation of their bond continued to strengthen. what had started as a professional relationship was slowly transforming into something more personal, each interaction bringing them closer together.

the late afternoon sun filtered through the blinds, casting a warm, golden glow across the physio room. the gentle light created a serene atmosphere, a stark contrast to the whirlwind of emotions brewing within y/n. as she meticulously worked on eduardo camavinga’s knee, her thoughts drifted away from the task at hand, her mind consumed by recent interactions with jude.

y/n’s fingers moved with practiced precision, yet her focus was elsewhere. jude’s smile, which had become a frequent visitor in her thoughts, lingered vividly in her mind. she recalled the warmth of his embrace after the game, an unexpected gesture that had left her heart fluttering long after. each day spent with him felt like an intricate dance, a delicate balance between maintaining professionalism and navigating the deepening connection that was growing between them.

eduardo, ever perceptive to her moods, noticed the distraction in her eyes. with a playful glint in his gaze, he decided to tease her. “you’re awfully quiet today,” he remarked, his tone light and teasing, meant to draw her out of her reverie.

y/n glanced up momentarily, her lips curving into a small, almost guilty smile. she quickly turned her attention back to her work, trying to maintain a façade of composure. “just concentrating,” she replied, her voice steady but betraying a hint of the internal turmoil she was feeling.

eduardo’s grin widened, sensing an opportunity. “sure you’re not thinking about someone special?”

the question caught y/n off guard, and her hands faltered for a brief moment. she resumed her work, her movements slightly more hesitant. “what makes you think that?” she asked, attempting to sound casual, though the flush creeping up her neck was a clear giveaway.

eduardo leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “oh, come on. you and jude have been spending a lot of time together. it’s pretty obvious.”

the mention of jude’s name sent a jolt through y/n, her heart skipping a beat. she tried to mask her reaction, but her voice came out quicker, more high-pitched than she intended. “we’re just friends,” she said, her attempt at nonchalance failing miserably.

eduardo raised an eyebrow, clearly not convinced. “friends, huh? because the way he looks at you doesn’t seem very... friendly.”

y/n’s attempt to maintain her professional demeanor faltered as heat surged to her cheeks. she could feel the warmth of her blush intensify, a stark contrast to the cool, clinical environment of the physio room. “eduardo, we’re professionals. nothing more,” she insisted, though the tremor in her voice betrayed her uncertainty.

eduardo chuckled, clearly enjoying the playful exchange. “ah, but that’s what makes it interesting. you can’t fool me, y/n. i see the way you blush whenever he’s around.”

y/n bit her lip, trying to suppress a smile. “eduardo, you’re imagining things,” she said, though the twinkle in her eyes suggested otherwise.

eduardo’s grin only grew wider. “if you say so. but, it’s fun to watch you squirm a bit.”

as if on cue, the door to the physio room creaked open, and jude stepped inside. his gaze immediately zeroed in on the scene before him. y/n and eduardo were laughing, clearly enjoying their conversation. jude’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he took in the sight of them, his expression clouded with a mix of confusion and a tinge of irritation.

eduardo, sensing jude’s arrival, decided to turn the playful teasing up a notch. he addressed y/n in spanish, his tone light and mischievous.

“¿ves cómo le brillan los ojos cuando estás cerca de él?” eduardo leaned in and whispered,"do you see how his eyes light up when you're around?"

jude’s brow furrowed, frustration evident on his face. he wasn’t yet fluent in spanish, and the rapid exchange between y/n and eduardo left him feeling slightly out of the loop. he could sense the playful energy between them but struggled to understand the specifics, his feelings of jealousy and confusion becoming more palpable as he watched their interaction.

eduardo’s playful demeanor was in full swing as he switched to spanish, his tone light and teasing. “parece que jude no entiende lo que está pasando, ¿verdad?” he said with a grin. “looks like jude doesn’t get what’s happening, does he?”

y/n, focused on her work but with her cheeks slightly flushed, shot a nervous glance at jude before responding. “no sé de qué hablas,” she said softly, her voice carrying a hint of defensiveness. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

eduardo’s grin widened, clearly enjoying the playful exchange. “ah, vamos, y/n. no te hagas la tonta. ¿no ves cómo te mira?” he said, leaning in closer. “come on, y/n. don’t play dumb. can’t you see how he looks at you?”

y/n’s heart skipped a beat, her hands momentarily faltering. she bit her lip, trying to maintain her composure. “eduardo, no es nada,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “it’s nothing.”

eduardo’s eyes sparkled with amusement as he continued, still in spanish. “¿de verdad? porque parece que hay algo más que sólo amistad.” “really? because it looks like there’s something more than just friendship.”

y/n avoided eye contact, focusing on the task at hand with renewed intensity. “estás exagerando,” she said, her tone a mix of shyness and denial. “you’re exaggerating.”

jude’s brow furrowed as he tried to follow the conversation, though his limited spanish left him grasping at the edges of their exchange. he noticed the way y/n’s cheeks turned pink and how she seemed flustered by eduardo’s words. the playful banter felt charged, and jude couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something more to their conversation.

“¿no te parece un poco celoso?” eduardo asked, still addressing y/n. “don’t you think he’s a bit jealous?”

y/n’s eyes widened, her blush deepening. “eduardo, basta,” she said softly, her voice tinged with embarrassment. “eduardo, stop.”

as y/n tried to deflect the conversation, jude’s sense of discomfort grew. he shifted his weight, feeling a pang of jealousy as he saw the easy camaraderie between y/n and eduardo. he wasn’t sure what was being said, but the playful tone and y/n’s reaction made him feel like an outsider.

“everything okay here?” jude interjected, his voice carrying a forced cheerfulness as he approached them.

y/n looked up at him, her eyes wide and a little guilty. “oh, jude, we were just... talking.”

jude’s gaze lingered on y/n, trying to gauge the situation. despite the lighthearted atmosphere, he felt a twinge of possessiveness. “right. well, it sounds like you two look cozy.”

eduardo chuckled, clearly enjoying the scene he had helped create. “sí, sólo estábamos bromeando,” he said with a wink. “yes, we were just joking around.”

jude’s expression softened as he took his place beside y/n, his presence a subtle reminder of his own interest. "well, i think that’s enough. y/n is mine,” he said with a playful nudge.

y/n’s heart raced at jude’s words, her shyness only adding to the warmth of the moment. she looked at him, a mixture of relief and nervous anticipation in her eyes. the playful banter between her and eduardo had made jude’s feelings more palpable, and she could sense the underlying tension as they settled into their conversation.

the room went silent, the air thick with surprise. y/n’s eyes widened, her cheeks flushing a deep red. she was caught off guard by jude’s sudden declaration, her heart racing. she stammered, struggling to respond. “j-jude, i—”

eduardo’s laughter erupted, clearly delighted by the scene he had helped create. “well, that’s one way to make things clear,” he said, still chuckling as he gathered his things. “i think my session is over. thanks for everything, y/n.”

as eduardo left the room, his laughter fading into the corridor, jude’s expression softened slightly. he turned back to y/n, who was still flushed and visibly flustered. he took a step closer, his tone shifting to one of sincere concern. “i didn’t mean to make things awkward, you know. i just... i don’t know what it is, but seeing you and eduardo together, it made me realize how much i enjoy our time together.”

y/n looked up at him, her eyes meeting his with a mix of surprise and curiosity. “jude, you didn’t have to...”

jude held up his hands in a placating gesture. “i know, i know. but i guess i just wanted to let you know that, well, you’re special to me. even if it’s just as friends.”

y/n’s expression softened, her initial shock giving way to a more relaxed smile. “thanks, jude. i appreciate it. and for the record, you don’t have to worry about eduardo. he’s just... being eduardo.”

jude chuckled, his earlier tension easing as he saw her smile. “good to know. and hey, if you ever need a distraction from all the work, just let me know.”

y/n laughed softly, shaking her head. “i’ll keep that in mind.”

as jude settled into the treatment chair, the room’s atmosphere shifted back to its usual rhythm. y/n continued her work, the playful exchange leaving a lingering warmth between them. despite the earlier awkwardness, there was an undercurrent of camaraderie that hinted at the deeper connection they both felt.

jude watched her with a thoughtful expression, appreciating the calm and the easy rhythm of their interaction. “so, what’s next for us? another session, or maybe we should just... chat more?”

y/n looked up, a small, appreciative smile on her lips. “let’s just keep it simple for now. we have plenty of time to talk.”

jude nodded, his eyes reflecting a mix of warmth and contentment. “sounds good to me.”

as y/n finished up, she glanced at him with a mix of warmth and anticipation. the earlier tension had dissipated, replaced by a sense of ease that spoke to the growing comfort between them. she felt a renewed sense of connection with jude, and as he prepared to leave, she couldn’t help but look forward to their next meeting. the warmth between them lingered, a promising sign of the evolving friendship they were both discovering.

the early morning light spilled into the physio room, casting long shadows that danced across the floor as y/n prepared for the day ahead. she moved with a quiet efficiency, her thoughts focused on the tasks that awaited her. the gentle hum of the equipment and the soft shuffle of her footsteps were the only sounds breaking the silence of the room.

the door swung open with an unexpected burst of energy, and jude strolled in, his usual confident grin plastered on his face. the room seemed to brighten with his presence, an infectious vitality that instantly altered the atmosphere.

“good morning, y/n!” jude’s voice was upbeat, his tone laced with a mixture of charm and enthusiasm. he took a few steps further into the room, his eyes scanning the space with a look of genuine interest.

y/n looked up from her work, a small smile forming on her lips at his exuberance. “morning, jude. what brings you here so early?”

jude leaned against the counter, his posture relaxed but his eyes twinkling with mischief. “well, i was just thinking… it’s a beautiful day outside, and it feels like the perfect opportunity to make it even better.”

y/n raised an eyebrow, curiosity piqued. “and how exactly do you plan to do that?”

jude’s grin widened, and he took a few steps closer to her, his gaze locked on hers. “i was thinking maybe we could go grab a coffee after your shift. you know, just to catch up and enjoy the day a little.”

y/n’s cheeks flushed slightly, a reaction she tried to hide as she busied herself with arranging her tools. “jude, you know we have a lot of work to do. I’m sure you have training and other commitments.”

jude waved off her concern with a dismissive flick of his hand. “oh, come on. training’s not going anywhere, and neither are we. besides, it’s not every day that i get to spend time with my favorite physiotherapist.”

y/n’s eyes met his, and she could see the genuine warmth in his expression. still, she tried to maintain her professional demeanor. “i appreciate the offer, but I don’t think it’s a good idea. We should keep things professional.”

jude’s face fell slightly, but he quickly recovered, a determined spark igniting in his eyes. “come on, y/n. i promise it’ll be fun. and who knows, maybe we’ll even get to share a few laughs.”

y/n bit her lip, her resolve wavering as she saw the earnest look on jude’s face. she was caught between her desire to stay professional and the undeniable pull of his charm. “jude, I really—”

“i insist,” jude interrupted, his voice playful but firm. “consider it a challenge. if you say no, then you’re just making it more interesting.”

y/n sighed, trying to maintain her composure. “you’re relentless, you know that?”

jude’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “i like to think of it as… persistent. there’s a difference.”

before y/n could respond, the door creaked open again, and jude’s best friend, aurélien tchouaméni, walked in. he took one look at the scene before him and raised an eyebrow. “what’s all this about?”

jude straightened up, a mischievous smile spreading across his face. “just trying to convince y/n to join me for coffee. she’s being stubborn.”

aurélien chuckled, glancing between jude and y/n with an amused expression. “sounds like jude’s up to his usual tricks. good luck with that, y/n.”

y/n couldn’t help but smile at aurélien’s comment. “thanks, aurélien. I might need it.”

as aurélien made his way over to the treatment table, jude leaned in a little closer to y/n, his tone dropping to a more earnest pitch. “look, y/n, i really just want to get to know you better. you’re amazing at what you do, and i’d like to spend more time with you, outside of work.”

y/n’s heart fluttered at his sincerity, but she still tried to hold her ground. “jude, it’s not just about what you want. there are boundaries we need to respect.”

jude’s expression softened, his gaze unwavering. “i get it. but just think about it, okay? i promise i’m not trying to make things complicated. i just want to see where this could go.”

y/n looked down, her thoughts a whirlwind of confusion and attraction. she appreciated his persistence, but the line between professional and personal was a delicate one. “i’ll think about it,” she said finally, her voice soft.

jude’s face lit up with a hopeful smile. “that’s all i ask. and who knows, maybe by the end of the day, you’ll decide that a coffee sounds like a good idea after all.”

as jude turned to leave, he cast one last, lingering glance back at y/n. the warmth in his eyes spoke volumes, and y/n couldn’t help but feel a flutter of excitement at the thought of what might come next.

the late afternoon sun was beginning its slow descent, casting a warm, golden hue across the physio room. the light filtered through the blinds, creating a mosaic of soft shadows that danced across the floor. jude’s persistence was palpable, his enthusiasm infectious as he hovered near y/n, who was focused on her work.

jude’s eyes were bright, a mixture of playfulness and determination shining through. he clasped his hands together in a gesture of exaggerated pleading. “come on, y/n, just one coffee. please? i’ll even do a little dance if that helps.”

y/n couldn’t help but smile at his antics. her lips quirked up despite her attempt to stay stern. she was torn between laughing at his charm and sticking to her resolve. “jude, you’re acting like a child.”

jude’s face lit up with mock hopefulness, his brows raised in an almost comical display of eagerness. “exactly! i’m a big kid who wants a small favor. and besides, it’s just coffee. what’s the harm?”

y/n shook her head, trying to suppress a laugh. “fine. you win. we can go for coffee. but only because there are no official rules against us grabbing a cup around the corner.”

jude’s eyes sparkled with uncontainable joy, his smile widening into a grin that lit up his entire face. “yes! thank you, y/n! you won’t regret this, I promise!”

without another word, jude practically bounded from the room, his excitement almost tangible. his energy was so infectious that it made y/n chuckle softly as she watched him go. aurélien, who had been observing the exchange with amusement, leaned against the wall with a knowing grin.

“well, he’s certainly not shy about his intentions,” aurélien commented, shaking his head with a chuckle.

y/n laughed, the sound light and genuine. “I think he’s made his point quite clear.”

“he’s like a kid on a sugar high,” aurélien said, still grinning. “good luck with that.”

jude returned a few minutes later, now dressed in casual clothes—jeans and a hoodie—looking every bit as enthusiastic as before. his eagerness was almost palpable as he reappeared, his eyes dancing with anticipation. he barely registered the teasing laughter from aurélien and y/n, his focus solely on y/n.

“ready?” jude asked, his voice bubbling with excitement. his heart raced at the thought of spending time alone with her, away from the confines of the physio room.

y/n nodded, her smile a mixture of amusement and shyness. she was dressed in a cozy turtleneck and a trench coat, her braids elegantly tied up in a loose, sophisticated style. jude took a moment to appreciate how beautiful she looked. the way her braids framed her face, and the simple elegance of her outfit made her look effortlessly stunning. his heart fluttered as he took in the sight of her, feeling a rush of affection.

“let’s go then,” y/n said, her voice soft but tinged with a nervous excitement. she pulled her coat tighter around her as they stepped out into the cool evening air, their breath forming little clouds in the crisp temperature.

they walked side by side to the nearby coffee shop, the lively streets bustling with evening activity. jude’s eyes often darted toward y/n, savoring each moment of their one-on-one time. his thoughts were a whirlwind of excitement and nervousness, as he tried to imagine what this evening might hold.

once they reached the coffee shop, they entered into the warm, inviting space. the shop was lit with soft, ambient light, casting a cozy glow over the room. the gentle hum of conversation and the rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the air, creating a welcoming atmosphere that made it feel like a perfect retreat from the bustling street outside.

they found a corner table, the perfect spot for a quiet, intimate conversation. jude was eager to impress, his playful charm on full display. “so,” he began, his tone light and casual, “what’s something you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t gotten around to yet?”

y/n laughed softly, her cheeks still tinged with a faint blush from earlier. “well, I’ve always wanted to travel more. There are so many places I’d love to see.”

jude leaned in closer, genuinely interested. “where would you go first?”

“probably japan,” y/n replied, her eyes lighting up with enthusiasm. “the culture, the food—it all sounds incredible.”

jude nodded, clearly enjoying the conversation. “that sounds amazing. I’ve heard the cherry blossoms are beautiful there.”

y/n smiled, her eyes meeting his. “they are. It’s one of the things on my bucket list.”

as their conversation continued, y/n couldn’t help but notice that jude hadn’t touched his coffee. she raised an eyebrow, her curiosity getting the better of her. “jude, you haven’t touched your coffee. do you not like it?”

jude’s cheeks flushed a deep red as he stammered, caught off guard. “uh, well, the truth is... i don’t really like coffee. i just wanted to spend time with you outside of work.”

y/n’s eyes widened in surprise, her heart fluttering at his confession. “you don’t like coffee? you came here just to be with me?”

jude looked down, his shyness breaking through his usual bravado. “yeah. I figured it was worth it if it meant I got to hang out with you.”

the simple yet profound honesty of his words made y/n’s cheeks warm. she felt a rush of affection and admiration for jude, touched by his genuine effort to spend time with her. “that’s really sweet, jude.”

they continued to talk, the warmth between them growing more palpable with each passing minute. y/n’s earlier reservations melted away, replaced by a growing sense of connection and comfort. as she looked at jude, she found herself increasingly drawn to his sincerity and the way he made her feel special.

jude, in turn, felt a deep sense of contentment and excitement. every shared smile and laugh seemed to draw them closer, making the evening feel like a perfect escape from the demands of their everyday lives. he cherished these moments of closeness, feeling more hopeful and excited about the future possibilities.

the evening ended with a promise of more moments like this, both of them eager to explore the growing bond between them. as they left the coffee shop, their smiles were filled with a mixture of anticipation and happiness, each feeling a renewed sense of connection that seemed to make the world around them glow a little brighter.

the season had settled into a rhythm, the days blending into a steady cadence of practice, matches, and fleeting moments of respite. jude and y/n had continued their lunchroom chats and brief exchanges in the corridors, their bond growing stronger with each passing week. the playful banter had evolved into deeper conversations, and their connection had become something more than just friendly.

one evening, after a particularly intense training session, jude found himself at a crossroads. he had spent weeks building up the courage, the playful exchanges, and the lingering looks now laced with something more earnest. as he waited for y/n to finish her shift, he paced restlessly, rehearsing his words in his mind. the weight of the moment felt heavy, the room around him seeming to close in as he steeled himself for what he was about to do.

when y/n finally emerged from the treatment room, her face lighting up as she saw him, jude’s heart pounded louder. he took a deep breath, pushing through the anxiety that coiled in his chest.

“hey, y/n,” he started, his voice slightly wavering. “i was wondering... if you’d like to go out with me sometime. maybe grab dinner or something?”

y/n froze, her eyes widening in surprise. the casual, effortless atmosphere of their usual interactions seemed to dissipate, replaced by a charged silence. her heart sank as she processed jude’s words. she had always been guarded, but the thought of another relationship felt overwhelming, especially with the shadows of her past still lingering.

“jude, i... i’m sorry,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “i can’t. i’m not ready for... this.”

jude’s face fell, the warmth in his eyes dimming as if the light had been abruptly snuffed out. the rejection struck him like a physical blow, the sting of it sharp and unrelenting. he struggled to mask his hurt with a strained smile, but the effort felt painfully hollow. every fiber of his being seemed to crumble under the weight of her words.

“oh, okay,” jude said, his voice thick with disappointment. “no worries.”

“i’m really sorry,” y/n repeated, her own guilt and regret surfacing. she wanted to explain, to share the inner turmoil that kept her from opening up, but the words felt trapped in her throat. “it’s not about you, really. i just… have some things i need to work through.”

jude nodded, though his eyes were distant, clouded with the ache of rejection. “right. well, maybe another time.”

as he turned to leave, the familiar weight of his steps seemed heavier than ever. each step felt like an echo of his unfulfilled hope, his heart weighed down by the crushing disappointment. the excitement he had felt moments before was now replaced by a deep, resonant ache, the hope he had clung to feeling painfully out of reach.

y/n reached out, her voice trembling as she called after him. “jude, wait—”

but it was too late. he had already started walking away, his figure retreating down the corridor, leaving y/n standing alone in the dim light of the hallway. her heart ached with a mix of regret and helplessness. she wanted to bridge the gap between them, to explain the walls she had built to protect herself from further hurt, but the words wouldn’t come. the corridor seemed to close in around her, echoing the void left by jude’s departure.

as jude’s figure disappeared from view, the weight of her decision pressed heavily on y/n’s shoulders. the silence of the corridor seemed to amplify her sense of loss, each breath feeling like an effort as she grappled with the emptiness left in the wake of his rejection

next

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