# Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[with-vorpal-sword]

professor brought up Neil Gaiman in class. asked if anyone knew who he was. i, an intellectual, raised my hand. she called on me, as it was the ONLY OPTION. NO ONE ELSE RAISED THEIR HANDS. i had been abandoned. despite this, i pressed on.

confidently, i began, "oh, i see him on tumblr a lot??1!" what had i been thinking? raising my hand in class? for what, a grade? confidence had all but left me.

"uh, he wrote..." mention good omens=be The Gay Kid forever and imply there might other opinions on religion then the ones held by this glorious christian institution!?

"... books."

Incredible work. one hundred participation grade coming my way i can smell it.

[reasonsforhope]

"For years, California was slated to undertake the world’s largest dam removal project in order to free the Klamath River to flow as it had done for thousands of years.

Now, as the project nears completion, imagery is percolating out of Klamath showing the waterway’s dramatic transformation, and they are breathtaking to behold.

Pictured: Klamath River flows freely, after Copco-2 dam was removed in California.

Incredibly, the project has been nearly completed on schedule and under budget, and recently concluded with the removal of two dams, Iron Gate and Copco 1. Small “cofferdams” which helped divert water for the main dams’ construction, still need to be removed.

The river, along which salmon and trout had migrated and bred for centuries, can flow freely between Lake Ewauna in Klamath Falls, Oregon, to the Pacific Ocean for the first time since the dams were constructed between 1903 and 1962.

“This is a monumental achievement—not just for the Klamath River but for our entire state, nation, and planet,” Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement. “By taking down these outdated dams, we are giving salmon and other species a chance to thrive once again, while also restoring an essential lifeline for tribal communities who have long depended on the health of the river.”

“We had a really incredible moment to share with tribes as we watched the final cofferdams be broken,” Ren Brownell, Klamath River Renewal Corp. public information officer, told SFGATE. “So we’ve officially returned the river to its historic channel at all the dam sites. But the work continues.”

Pictured: Iron Gate Dam, before and after.

“The dams that have divided the basin are now gone and the river is free,” Frankie Myers, vice chairman of the Yurok Tribe, said in a tribal news release from late August. “Our sacred duty to our children, our ancestors, and for ourselves, is to take care of the river, and today’s events represent a fulfillment of that obligation.”

The Yurok Tribe has lived along the Klamath River forever, and it was they who led the decades-long campaign to dismantle the dams.

At first the water was turbid, brown, murky, and filled with dead algae—discharges from riverside sediment deposits and reservoir drainage. However, Brownell said the water quality will improve over a short time span as the river normalizes.

“I think in September, we may have some Chinook salmon and steelhead moseying upstream and checking things out for the first time in over 60 years,” said Bob Pagliuco, a marine habitat resource specialist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in July.

Pictured: JC Boyle Dam, before and after.

“Based on what I’ve seen and what I know these fish can do, I think they will start occupying these habitats immediately. There won’t be any great numbers at first, but within several generations—10 to 15 years—new populations will be established.”

Ironically, a news release from the NOAA states that the simplification of the Klamath River by way of the dams actually made it harder for salmon and steelhead to survive and adapt to climate change.

“When you simplify the habitat as we did with the dams, salmon can’t express the full range of their life-history diversity,” said NOAA Research Fisheries Biologist Tommy Williams.

“The Klamath watershed is very prone to disturbance. The environment throughout the historical range of Pacific salmon and steelhead is very dynamic. We have fires, floods, earthquakes, you name it. These fish not only deal with it well, it’s required for their survival by allowing the expression of the full range of their diversity. It challenges them. Through this, they develop this capacity to deal with environmental changes.”

-via Good News Network, October 9, 2024

[astonmartinii]

hi!! i really love your blog: i usually stay silent and only like the posts but i thought today should be the day i request something!

would you be open to write a social media au with lando Norris x y/n where the reader is a marine biologist? or a surfer? or something ocean-related lmao

feel free to disregard this request if you don’t like it or don’t have time!! xx

just add water | lando norris social media au

pairing: lando norris x fem reader

first fish ruined his appetite, now they steal his girlfriend?

yourusername

liked by oscarpiastri, landonorris and 103,451 others

tagged: landonorris

yourusername: perks of the job but back on shore i clock in to my full time job of missing lando

view all comments

user1: can we have the hair routine cause miss ma'am is in the sea every damn day and her hair is still healthier than mine

user2: REAL

landonorris: f1 is just my day job, talking about you is my passion and career

yourusername: babe even the whales in monterey bay know about you

landonorris: they better be mclaren fans

yourusername: eh i think i heard super max (whale edition) the other day

maxverstappen1: conquered all of f1 and the seven seas so real of me

landonorris: THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'RE SAYING THE RISING OCEAN TEMPERATURES ARE FRYING THEIR BRAINS

yourusername: babe don't joke about that :(

landonorris: sorry :(

oscarpiastri: can you please come to the next race i may put my head through a wall if i have to watch this man go through his camera roll again RETELLING me all of the stories

yourusername: didn't realise we were so annoying 🧐

oscarpiastri: don't get me wrong you guys are cute but sometimes i wanna nap after practice in peace and not hear about whale shit

landonorris: i SEE HOW IT IS

alexalbon: no oscar is right i've heard about when had a baby seal on her surfboard about seven billion times

yourusername: HEY that was cute

user3: okay but lando could talk to ME about y/n's adventures

user4: i want to hear ALL of it for real

user5: lando and y/n podcast when?

alexalbon: do not give them ideas they’re already number one and two yappers in the international waffling championship

yourusername: yapper and proud 😤

landonorris: healthy relationship communications and boundaries? no. yappers? yes!

alexalbon: has anyone ever told you guys you’re annoying?

yourusername: yes 😃

user6: they’re so annoying i love them

landonorris

liked by maxverstappen1, yourusername and 1,209,451 others

tagged: yourusername

landonorris: does this girl own a pair of trousers? real question.

view all comments

user8: i actually don't think i've ever seen a man this down bad

user9: ALL men should aspire to be this whipped

yourusername: i wish you would join the no trouser revolution, give the girlies something to look at

user10: i agree

yourusername: okay back up babe that ass is all mine

landonorris: it's okay babe you can admire your (my) ass all the time if you come home PLS

yourusername: sorry babe the ocean doesn't sleep and the whales need me

landonorris: but i need you too :(

maxverstappen1: WAH WAH I'M SICK OF YOUR FUCKING WHINING

alexalbon: THANK YOU FINALLY

landonorris: erm why am i being victimised in my own comment section

maxverstappen1: you are doing my fucking nut in mate yeha i get you miss her but kinda your fault for having a cool gf with a cool job

yourusername: omg thanks 😊

landonorris: Y/N???

yourusername: babe no offence but he's a three time world champ i'm gonna take the compliment

landonorris: i guess so :(

user10: just one normal comment section, please that is all i ask for

oscarpiastri: maybe i should get on this whole j.peg business cause my photography is doing some heavy lifting here

yourusername: i didn't take you for a stunt queen miss rookie

landonorris: where is the peace, love and positivity ?? you guys are such haters

oscarpiastri: proudly

yourusername: no cool shells for you mr piastri

oscarpiastri: I TAKE IT BACK

landonorris: you people are such flip flops

yourusername

liked by georgerussell63, landonorris and 112,872 others

yourusername: i promise we do actually do work

view all comments

user14: why am i now considering a marine biology degree for a sick ass instagram feed

user15: and protecting the sanctity of ocean life?

user14: yeah sure throw that in there too?

landonorris: i hope you slapped the FUCK out of that stingray for steve irwin

yourusername: babe we all know violence is not the answer

landonorris: you said you'd break the knee caps of any driver that took me out?

yourusername: i do not recall this

landonorris: steve irwin is a national treasure, you should've done it for oscar

oscarpiastri: i'm sure it wasn't that exact stingray mate

landonorris: you don't know that

danielricciardo: i see you've forgotten about the other aussie you were teammates with ???

yourusername: i wouldn't have that if i were you daniel

landonorris: y/n??? you're meant to be on my side

yourusername: say sorry to larry and maybe i'll gang up on daniel with you

danielricciardo: Y/N???

landonorris: i'm sorry larry ... and daniel i guess ?

danielricciardo: if my hand weren't broken right now...

user16: okay i think lando is having y/n withdrawals

yourusername: his bitchiness is a symptom of separation anxiety

landonorris: sorry not sorry

user17: mclaren pr praying for y/n to come to a race soon

maxverstappen1: p says pretty please can she bagsy the pink shells?

yourusername: most definitely she can !! i'll even be on the look out for more

maxverstappen1: thank you y/n you're my favourite - p

yourusername: that's it i'm coming home rn

landonorris: am i a joke to you?

landonorris

liked by oscarpiastri, yourusername and 1,322,099 others

tagged: yourusername

landonorris: reunited and it feels so good oh and a double podium, pretty sweet

view all comments

user21: obsessed with how lando said that y/n is clearly his lucky charm and the "dumbass" ocean won't be getting his girlfriend back

user22: there's levels to hating and lando's level of hating on the ocean??

user23: his hatred of fish makes so much more sense right now

user24: either he hates anything to do with the ocean or y/n convinced him they deserve to live 😭

landonorris: i'll say it's number one but realistically it's two greatly helped by the fact that it tastes gross anyway

yourusername: I'M SO FUCKING PROUD OF YOU

landonorris: i know hhehehehehehehe

yourusername: i love you stupid

landonorris: i love you too dummy

yourusername: as much as i enjoyed this race i am ready for home time (after karaoke, you promised me karaoke with yuki)

landonorris: AHAHAHAAH TAKE THAT OCEAN Y/N COMING HOME

alexalbon: bro has beef with the ocean 😭

georgerussell63: bro had to share his gf with WATER 😭

maxverstappen1: bro is being ... torn apart here KEEP GOING LOL

oscarpiastri: no keep going cause i just want a nap before debrief and some people are being WAY TOO LOUD

carlossainz55: i think that's probably why you guys are getting away with bullying the little goblin

user25: oscar out here just confirming that lando and y/n are ... for lack of a better word up to no good?

user26: y/n didn't lie when she called him a stunt queen

landonorris: i can't hear y'all LALALALALALA

yourusername: they hate us because they ain't us

landonorris: period 💅

user27: i hate (love) them your honour

yourusername

liked by danielricciardo, landonorris and 419,034 others

tagged: landonorris

yourusername: so he had the whole proposal planned out but got a bit too excited at suzuka ... if anyone asks we got engaged on a boat in the mediterranean not in his driver's room. aside from that, HOLY FUCK I AM ENGAGED TO THE LOVE OF MY LIFE I LOVE YOU LANDO I CAN'T WAIT FOR FOREVER

view all comments

user30: HOLY 😭 FUCKING 😭 SHIT 😭

landonorris: can we agree on no more like three month placements pretty please?

yourusername: baby the whales need me

landonorris: i need you more FIANCE :(

yourusername: gosh you are convincing, no more retreats for more than a month

landonorris: yay !!

yourusername: you need to put up more shelves for our shells though

landonorris: on it, i love you (i'm calling my dad to do it)

yourusername: i love you too baby

danielricciardo: enchante tease on the engagement post and for free ??? love you two

yourusername: at least you have the prettiest model ever for it

landonorris: I'M BLUSHING

danielricciardo: i'll deal with this because i'm happy for you two

mclarenf1: double podium and an engagement, suzuka really delivered this year

oscarpiastri: i guess i take back my comments about being loud in the drivers room... i'm so happy for you guys you deserve it

landonorris: ahaha i knew you were a softy really pastry boy

yourusername: i always knew you loved us really oscar, you're just sassy and we respect that

landonorris: .... sure

maxverstappen1: did he propose at sea in one final power move over his arch nemesis the ocean?

yourusername: have you considered he did it at sea because i'm a marine biologist and i love it out there and he loves me?

maxverstappen1: well now i look like an asshole

landonorris: the sea 0 - 1 lando

yourusername: lando 😭

user31: well this has all been a rollercoaster

fin.

note: i've been kinda mia on here and i'm super sorry this request has taken so long lol. wanted to get this out now though cause lando had a horrid day today but i'm glad he's okay !! enjoy, i'm in my second week of a job so might get less busy xx

[billy-cockblock]

SWTD Theory

Still Wakes the Deep has been a huge brainworm for me the past few weeks, so I wanted to make a post with one of my takes. Someone’s probably thought of this already, but I can’t find anything about it, so here I go. 

I’m gonna take this time to shout out a little sub theory of mine that plays a bit of a part in my main point. 

For a little background, in populations of organisms, there are limiting factors on their growth and spread. Think of it as a series of funnels of different sizes: the rate of liquid that can flow through is going to be determined by the narrowest funnel. For example. if there’s a population that has ample food, space, and whatever else it needs, but has a restricted access to water, that water is going to limit how large that population could grow.

Before the Shape was dug up by the drill, it was probably dormant in the sea bed, doing its best to survive, the same as any other organism. Down where it was dark, wet, and cold, I think it had one main limiting factor: oxygen.

I don’t think the Shape can efficiently exchange gas underwater. Most of the untouched bodies Caz sees are only underwater, where an organism that thrives in air would struggle to access. Once it gets dug up and brought to air with plenty of organic matter to consume and grow with, its population explodes. When a limiting factor is removed, there’s nothing holding the population back any more until they hit a new limit. The Shape’s old limiting factor was removed, and it would only stop reproducing by running out of space to grow on the rig, running out of organic matter to use, or being killed (like, say, in a giant fiery explosion).

(I could go on and on about how the Shape potentially works, please feel free to ask me about it)

Now, I’ll get to my main theory:

I think Caz was dead the whole time.

Now, I don’t mean that in a “the whole game is in his head, none of it was real” way; I mean it in a “this man got Ethan Winters’ed” way. 

So, I started to do a little research into how tall oil rigs are to know how far Caz would have fallen off the helipad. I quickly learned there are many types of oil rigs and not every oil rig of the same type is the same size. I’m studying marine biology, not petroleum engineering like my brother, so I got tired of trying to guesstimate how tall the Bierra D’s helipad would be and attacked the problem with some simple math. 

Watching a video, I saw he fell for between 4-5 seconds; the acceleration due to gravity is 9.8m/s^2. Plugging that in a calculator while not accounting for air resistance to solve for distance gets me ~80-120m, depending on if I used the 4 or 5 second count, so I’ll guess around 100m. I’ve found many conflicting sources on what the tallest heights you can safely fall into water are, but I can safely tell you that 100m is much higher than any of them. 

Now, maybe the devs weren’t going with the mathematical exact timing it would take for a guy to fall off an oil rig, and didn’t mean for it to be implied that he fell from THAT high. Still, we can agree he fell from very high up, high enough to have likely ended in injury. Maybe he’d just fall on and break a leg? Maybe an arm or some ribs?

After falling off the rig, the last frame before Caz blacks out shows the water at the top of the screen, meaning he hits the water head-first. He may be wearing a hard hat (that somehow stays on his head through the whole ordeal since he clips his flashlight to it), but he still should have cracked his skull open or broken his neck. 

When they pull him out of the water, he’s cold and not breathing, which wouldn’t be unusual for a drowning victim in the North Sea in the dead of winter, but it would usually be a death sentence. They never explain how they dragged Caz out of the water, but it would presumably have taken a long time to get him out, and time is key when dealing with someone who isn’t breathing. The fact that he’s able to cough up water and start breathing on his own is a miracle, since it doesn’t sound like Brodie or Douglas do CPR when they bring him inside.

So, fall damage, head and/or spine injury, drowning, and hypothermia. By several different factors, Caz should be a very, very dead man. So why isn’t he?

My theory is that, somehow, somewhy, the infection from The Shape healed and brought him back to life. We know for a fact it has amazing generative properties, basically able to double, triple, quadruple the amount of tissue and organic matter in the crew’s bodies with no regard for conservation of mass, so what’s just a little regeneration of damaged tissues in a single body? Once Caz’s body gets someplace with better conditions suited to life (inside where it’s warm and there’s air), it just jumpstarts his body functions. The Shape’s presumably been dormant in the seafloor for a long time, so it could be able to go dormant and kinda “come back to life” as conditions change, similar to a tardigrade, and potentially pass this ability onto its hosts.

And Caz mentions how his head hurts a lot, especially when he gets close to the Shape. 

Now, this might seem like baseless conjecture, and y’all might say “That’s a good headcanon, but there’s no evidence that The Shape could bring people back to life!” to which I would say “Oh, but there might be!"

After the helicopter on the starboard side, we get a call from Bruce, who is actively drowning. Through his gasps, he tells us that O’Connor hurt his leg and couldn’t swim, presumably drowning. And guess who we see still kicking as we’re passing through the pontoon? My thought is that O’Connor couldn’t swim, drowned, and drifted to the bottom, landing on a part of the shape. Once Caz and Brodie start working in the legs and they drain, it exposes him to air and allows the shape to start growing again, assimilating him and bringing him back to life. 

Obviously, he’s not doing as well as Caz is. My thought was that, if Caz died as he was infected, the infection would’ve had to put a lot of its energy into bringing him back, not leaving much for itself to begin assimilating him into the Shape. Since O’Connor was in direct contact with the Shape, it could hook him up to its network to help supplement that loss. Caz, meanwhile, stays as far away from the stuff as he can and doesn’t even get anything to eat all day; guy's running on empty. He has small things where the Shape affects him, like the colors at the edge of his vision, but most of his hallucinations only happen after the Shape attacks him through O’Connor. Before, I’m pretty sure the largest incident (other than when he’s blacked out) is when we can barely hear Suze’s voice over the speakers when moving through the pontoon. It’s really only after getting attacked that he starts to hear her when he’s awake, near the Shape, or over phone calls. He only hears her clearly over the speakers in administration after he runs into the shape many times when he gets swept away in the flooding.

With my main evidence out of the way, I’ll also mention that Caz sees the “light at the end of the tunnel” from the end of the game in the oil flashes when he blacks out.

But hey, that’s just a theory. 

A GAME TH- I have received a cease and desist.

Man, this became a long read. Thanks for getting this far, and I hope you enjoyed!

[jellysimbean-blog]

So I came up with this new sims legacy challenge, i call it Wild apple tree. It consists of 10 generation and each gen has specifics to complete before moving forward. I haven't come up with the storyline between each generation just yet but other then that I think it's done. I feel i might have gotten a bit carried away and if i add more to each generation it might be a little to much but at the same time I feel it has room for improvement and new ideas so if anyone have any input please feel free to comment and let me know what you think.

(I'm hoping all the ideas I came up with are feasible and can be done I am still playing thru it)

*

*

*

*

*

Wild apple tree sims legacy challenge

Basic Rules

- Each generation must have an apple tree. It may be the founders tree and gets carried thru each generation or it can be a new tree but the new tree must grow from an apple off the last generations tree.

- Heir for each generation can be either gender unless stated other wise

- No money Cheats (optional)

- Color for each generation is optional

- May live where ever you choose unless location is specified.

- Each generation needs to complete their aspiration(all aspirations are whatever you choose)

- Must have the Career that is listed for each generation

- If you play this challenge and want to share please use #Wildappletree so it can be seen

- HAVE FUN SIMMING!

** This legacy challenge is ofc for your entertainment, the number one goal is to have fun. If you choose not to follow any of the rules or you dont have the packs use then that is perfectly A ok and feel free to change things up however you prefer **

1.Blended family - Golden Orange

*Founder can be any gender

*Your founder must be a single parent

*He/she must marry another single parent

*Both single parents must have one or more kids from their previous relationships prior to meeting.

* After Marriage have at least one more child using science

*Next heir must be Science baby

*Next heir must have ambitious trait and do well in school

Career- Career of your choice to start

2. Science baby - Jonagold yellow

*Attend a university(which ever path you choose)

*Have only one child while In university

*Don't have another baby till you are an adult and ,half way through the Science Branch

*Master Logic Skill

*Master Robotics Skill (Optional)

*Master Rocket science

*Visit Sixam At least once

*Always join Next heir to high-school(Must meet future spouse)

Career- Scientist but of course

3.High school sweethearts - Pink Lady

*Heir must marry their High school sweetheart of course

*Try for baby every time you woohoo(optional)

*Have relationship fail but never divorce

*Heir alway attend the romantic festival

*Have a child from someone other then spouse after marriage(preferably a co-star)

*Try for baby with more then one sim in the same day/week

*One Sim must have a bad relationship with their children.

Career- Acting for both Heir and spouse (Must Join when ever they get a gig)

4.We're Adopting- Empire Purple

*First child must be from adoption (preferably as an infant)

* Must have at least one boy and one girl

* Next heir must be male ( can be the adopted sim)

*Live/ Move to sulani

*Master fishing

*Own at least 2 fish tanks

*Have your teens work as lifeguards

*Only leave the island to dig for bottles in Tartosa

*Best friend a mermaid

*Go diving at least once a week(Bonus finding mermaid kelp)

Career- Conservationist, the Marine Biologist Branch

5.Single dad - Cosmic Blue

*Live in an apartment

* Meet your girlfriend at a party or bar

*Must have a baby girl

*Have your girlfriend leave you after you have a girl.

*Must never marry or date again but Can woo-hoo around

*Must live with and have close relationship to adopted sibling. ( preferably both heir and next heir)

* Must Leave your daughter to be raised by your sibling before she becomes a teen.(you can choose to do this however you like.)

* you may have more then one child but your daughter must be next heir*

Career- Military Man (Either branch)

6.Raised by my aunt/uncle - Multi-colored Ambrosia

*Have a great relationship with your aunt/uncle

*Heir must be Female

*Heir starts this generation as a child

*Have a Bake sale as a child

*Have only one child by a one night stand(Can not take pregnancy test or keep trying with the same sim)

*Master Baking

*Sell your baked goods(You can do this with a yard sale table)

*Build your own bakery and work it part time(Optional)

*Cook Ambrosia(Optional)

Career- Critic career, Art Critic

7.Happy little accident - Fuji green

*Master painting skill

*Only paint landscape and photos you take(optional)

*Start an art club

*Have more then one baby

*Have loves outdoors trait

*Own at least one cat or dog

*Own at least 2 small pets (one must be a hedgehog)

*Own some chickens

*Have a drone to record and stream you when ever you are painting

*Upload your painting videos (Optional)

Career- Freelancer (Artist)

8.Soccer Mom/Dad - Arkansas Black and White

*Marry someone successful ( go dig for gold with this one)

*Must have at least 5 kids

*Travel at least once a week with all the kids for a fun day out ( just has to be somewhere outside of the house)

*Heir Can only make money from trendi (Other sims in the home can work however you choose including the children )

*Must help with any school project brought home and try to help with homework often

*Aspiration Super parent

*Celebrate all Holidays and birthdays

*Build a tree house

Career- Stay at home parent

9.Raised in a nursing home - Granny smith Grey

* Heir Must have more then one child

*Heir Must become Elder before last child becomes a teen

*All kids must be moved out once they hit young adults except the last child ( The Next Heir )

*When Heir is an elder they must rent rooms to at least 4 other Elders

*Have a game night ever Wednesday with the elders ( this includes bowling)

*Have dance night every Thursday with elders

*Master dancing

*Have Movie night every Friday (can be at home)

*Never have a real career( May make money any other way)

*Next heir can't move till they have at least 3 kids

Career- Job hop part time jobs. Call out of work at least once for each job. Quit/retire once you are an elder

10.Fullhouse - Red Delicious

*Must have at least 6 or more sims living together during the entire generation( 2 sims preferably Aunts/Uncles)

*Take a family vacation every season

*Throw a party every other weekend( Include at least one slumber party)

*Build a tree house

*Have Grandparents visit often(Include stay overs)

*2 Sims must master guitar

*All Sims must master comedy

*3 Sims must master singing

*1 Sim must master dj

Career- Entertainer(Both branches split between entire house)

[luna0713hunter]

Please more writing for shanks! It's so good

Author's note : I've come back from the death!!!i just had one of my final terms today and saying im exhausted to bone is a misunderstanding. Anyways!!!i hope u enjoy this!!

A safe place to rest

Shanks x reader

Summary : being a pirate,may seem like an easy job. But after fighting marines and looking after your crewmates,you cant help but to feel exhausted.

Warnings : none,hurt/comfort,overworked reader,pet names such as "princess,darling and etc", gender neutral ,metion of blood

*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘

Peeling the bloody shirt off of your body and throwing it on the wooden floor of the ship,you sit heavily on your bed and heave a heavy sigh; today was exhausting.

It started out like any other day;with you waking up to your crewmates loud banter and getting dressed as you made your way over to the kitchen to have a simple breakfast. Soon,a small land was found,and it was time for reloading the stuff you needed to sail off again.

Helping everyone was as always,a challenge. As you tried to stop your crewmates from making any mess,and at the same time remembering every single item on the list. And simply putting them in the storage had took all your afternoon rest. And if that wasnt enough,everyone on the ship had agreed to go out and drink because it's been a while since you had hit the land.

And if your day wasnt exhausting enough,all hell broke loose as you stepped inside the bar.

Everything was good for the first thirty minutes. That is,until a group of young marines had barged in; seemingly have heard from the locals about the pirates luring around.

The fight was ugly.

You take your head in your hands as the images of the fight flashes across your eyes;the sickly smell of blood still lingering in your nose.

Gods above,you were beyond tired. You were ready to crawl under your blanket and never get out,when a gentle knock broke you out of your trace.

You hastily throw a clean shirt on,and slowly open the door only to be greeted by a flash of red.

Shanks,your captain, gives you a small smirk as he takes in your appearance and leans against the door frame.

"comfortable there, princess?"

You give him a confused look before taking a good look at what you're wearing and then your cheeks are burning bright red. You swallow down your embarrassment and fold your arms against your chest with a slight pout.

"your fault for leaving it in my room,Cap."

Shanks lets out a free laugh and raises his single arm up in mock surrounder.

"dont get me wrong. I love to see you in my clothes more than anything."

You hum,a slight comfort taking place in your weary bones as you lean against the door as well.

"more than wine?"

Shanks leans slightly closer,and tucks a strand of hair behind your ear,and you try to look away when he gives you the softest smile.

"more than air itself,my dear."

You lean in his touch shyly and look up at him from under your lashes.

"would you like to come in then, captain?"

Shanks nods and closes the door behind himself.

Its not his first time in your room;after all,its been a while since the two of you started dating. But it still made you slightly awkward having him in your messy room.

A slight tug at your hand and warm fingers interwining with yours,makes you look at the red haired man standing in front of you.

"what're you thinking about,doll?"

And just seeing him there;in the comfort of your own room and under the soft glow of the candles;in his cloths,has you letting out a soft sigh and leaning your forehead against his shoulder.

"I'm just... exhausted,Shanks. Today was alot. Everything is alot."

A strong arm wraps itself around your shoulders and pulls you flush against his chest. You feel Shanks' lips press firmly against the crown of your hair and you close your eyes upon the feeling.

"Take the day off tomorrow. No,take a week off;a month if you need,my dear. It kills me to see you wear yourself thin,and I've been meaning to ask you to take a break. Lets just,rest until you feel better yeah?" You raise you head up and look at him,only to see him smiling softly;his hand caressing your hair, "no need to push yourself. My princess deserves the best."

You blink rapidly;only to get rid of the stray tears stinging your eyes. A small smile tugs at the corner of your lips before you're pulling yourself up on your tiptoes,and pressing your lips to his stubbled cheek.

"i appreciate it,Cap."

A horse chuckle escapes his lips,and before you know it, you're being lead to your bed.

"then how about we start from sleeping this awful night off. What do you say?"

And when you pull him down along with you and let out a relaxed sigh as you lay your head on his chest,a genuine smile finally blooms on your lips.

"sounds just wonderful,my love."

And you let the sound of Shanks' soft breathing and waves,lull you to sleep.

[simplyluunaa]

˙⊹ ੈ✰[Stopping them from killing]✰ ੈ⊹˙

-ˏˋ. rules + masterlist ˊˎ-

Fandom: Danganronpa 

Characters: Gundham Tanaka, Nagito Komaeda, Teruteru Hanamura

Warnings: !!NOT SPOILER FREE!! This one especially has many many spoilers from SDR2. This one refers to Nagito’s plan in the first chapter, not the fifth

Tags: Mentions of death, plotting murders, kinda ambiguous ending?

A/N: This one has been marinating in my brain for a while, so I finally put it into words. Also, I apologize if posting has been a little slow or the posts haven’t been quality, I had some personal stuff going on but it’s all getting resolved, so I may start posting more frequently!!

˚₊·—̳͟͞͞♡⟢Gundham Tanaka

It had been two days in the funhouse when Gundham hatched his plan. He’d go to the final dead room, figure out the secret of the funhouse, and use his knowledge and perhaps a few weapons to fight Nekomaru, and one of them would be the sacrifice needed to free all the others

The two of you had been spending a lot of time together, both from him wanting to protect you and him wanting to spend his final days with you

He would be sad to leave you, but he would never forgive himself if he let everyone else idle around and die from starvation

You had been sleeping in your own room most nights, but for some reason, this night you had a feeling of dread you couldn’t shake

So, you head over to Gundham’s room, asking to spend the night with him

He knows his plan is ruined if he lets you, but he doesn’t have the heart to refuse you

So, he lets you stay with him

Cuddling in his bed, he starts to hatch a new plan

One that doesn’t involve him leaving you alone

⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☽ ◯ ☾₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆

˚₊·—̳͟͞͞♡⟢Nagito Komaeda

Nagito had everything planned out perfectly

The knife was under the table, the AC and irons were set up, and the lamp

All he had to do was wait

Unfortunately, he didn’t plan on one thing

That was you

When the lights went out before he could lean down and follow the lamp cord, he grabbed onto him, spooked by the sudden blackout

He knew he couldn’t push you off, that would be suspicious, and that would make the trail far too easy

So, he stayed still

Obviously, this was a result of his luck, but he couldn’t tell if it was good or bad

On one hand, it could be seen as good, saving a life

On the other, it meant that hope wouldn’t be able to blossom

He had a lot to think about the next day

⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☽ ◯ ☾₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆

˚₊·—̳͟͞͞♡⟢Teruteru Hanamura

He didn’t want to kill anyone

But he also didn’t want Nagito to kill anyone, and with Nagito having revealed his plan to kill someone during the party…Teruteru knew he had to do something

He felt as if he didn’t have a choice

He had to protect them from Nagito’s twisted plan

He had it all planned out, during the blackout he could go under the building, and stab Nagito when he tried to grab the knife

He was the only one in the kitchen, so it would be easy for him to slip away

At least, it would've been

Instead, halfway through the party, you came to the kitchen, deciding to keep him company

The plan slipped his mind at that moment, and he allowed you to sit and watch him do his thing

When the blackout hit, he realized

He couldn’t just leave, and if you did leave you would probably ask where he was going, or maybe ask to come with him…

He had to stay with you

When the lights came back on, an announcement played on the monitors, stating a body had been discovered

Rushing to the dining room, Teruteru’s worst fear was now a reality

Hajime Hinata, dead on the ground, a knife plunged into his chest

[general-cyno]

I'm caught up with manga rn so I wanted to share a few thoughts (ramblings) on egghead arc zolu too. first, this convo after the crew leave wano and find out abt what's gone down in the reverie, and wrt to vivi specifically,

I do agree with some stuff I've seen about how using ace here as an example was not exactly the best one since we know how that ended up. that said, I think it's lowkey sweet that zoro still remembers so clearly what luffy said back then and well, he's not entirely wrong.

as I've mentioned in other posts before, zoro takes the crew and his own role in it very seriously. these are his companions, his friends and family I daresay, and part of his duty as both crewmate and friend includes keeping them all check and safe whenever it's needed. especially luffy, as we've seen in different occasions (water 7, thriller bark, punk hazard, wano, just to name some arcs with relevant moments related to this). storming into marijoa, THE world government/navy stronghold, without any information and/or plan whatsoever is a bad idea all around.

luffy may be impulsive and stubborn at times, but he isn't really an idiot and he knows zoro's right even if he doesn't like it. hence this:

ngl I love how grumpy luffy is at zoro here. these two are usually on a similar wavelength but there are key moments where their approach to things differ, and it ultimately works bc it's kind of... a complementary thing. making up for what the other lacks or needs to hear in those moments. I believe they bicker relatively less than other straw hats do in comparison (precisely bc of how similar they are imo) but it's funny when it actually happens. I can so easily picture luffy here fuming and stomping like a brat also being seconds away from asking for a divorce

this one's perhaps on a more delulu note on my part, but I like that zoro brought up ace in specific bc he was there both times when ace and sabo asked the crew to take care of luffy. it was curious to me that in the former case, zoro was kinda shown with this "!" reaction sign and later when it came to sabo in dressrosa, he was the one to fondly point out he sounded just like ace did in alabasta (and the "!" is back).

(the fact that sabo handed zoro luffy's vivre card there also lives in my mind rent free btw)

so yeah. zoro's definitely not one to mess around when it comes to the crew and luffy's safety, though he may get a handful of grumpy straw hats (captain included!) for it.

another thing, and do bear with me bc I might be reaching once again is... the break up flashback between shanks and buggy. I pretty much forgot to make a post about water 7/enies lobby zolu bits (too busy crying over robin, I admit) but this actually reminded me of it.

the context and personalities involved differ from each other, yeah, but I believe this shows exactly how easily it could've been for luffy and zoro to have a bad ending of sorts under different circumstances.

I can't say for sure how much of whiskey peak was intended to affect zoro and luffy's relationship later in the manga (I personally find some parts of it kinda goofy), but it at least served as an early example that they're not immune to suffering from misunderstandings and miscommunication issues. though unlike shanks/buggy, the fact that they're more similar than they're different and their differences tend to complement each other's likely works more in zoro and luffy's favor. still,

if luffy hadn't listened to zoro here - if he'd failed to stay true to what's expected of him as the captain (and being the captain is related to his journey to become the pirate king), to stay true to the kind of man zoro believes him to be and that he chose to join in that marine base, we could've had a similar scenario to shanks and buggy's imo. more so when you consider that zoro's as headstrong as luffy is, that he's been mistaken for the captain and now has turned out to have the color of the supreme king too. hell, zoro used to be a bounty hunter, is still called the pirate hunter. I don't believe it'd be easy for zoro to leave despite what he says, or that they'd become enemies per se, but it isn't (or wasn't) out of the realm of possibilities. zoro has admitted that he sees no point in being a pirate unless he's part of luffy's crew as well.

as it is, the fact that luffy values zoro's imput and listens to him whenever the need arises is such an important part of their relationship. as loyal as zoro may be, as great as his displays of that loyalty are, they only exist bc luffy cares for him just as much and has earned them through his actions. I love it!

last thing before this gets too long is this:

the mobile app's pic upload limit is my enemy so I can't share it but I also liked the page before this one, where luffy asks zoro if he needs some help, to which zoro tells him to focus on kizaru instead.

this is such a great showcase of how much they've grown in terms of strength - that zoro can take on one of pre-timeskip luffy's strongest foes now, and that luffy himself is no longer unable to do anything against enemies like kizaru. and yknow, I find it special that luffy can go against him now considering kizaru was the one who almost killed zoro in sabaody - one of those instances in which luffy was genuinely worried, upset and feared for zoro's safety to the point he was actually all teary when rayleigh managed to save him.

I would've liked to see zoro's reaction to nika!luffy since he was knocked out in wano when it first happened, but I suppose he's already seen the wanted poster and his lack of reaction now isn't that out of character probably. godly power up or not, that's still his silly gremlin captain ig. can't wait to see what else is in store for these guys in this arc and onwards!

[viperwhispered]

I just wanna take a moment to say thank you for always being around to chat since I don't have many to talk to about TWST. I also suck at characterization so I don't write many fics. But I was very happy when you used one of our discussions for Revel in You. I don't mind if you use our convos to write, just be sure to credit the source.

On that note: saw your smut posts. Here's an idea: Jamil celebrating his promotion to being a Housewarden.

It's Friday, there's an enormous party going on to celebrate Jamil and Kalim's new roles and the successes of the first month with this new dynamic. While Jamil is more accustomed to the spotlight, he still gets "tired out" and leaves it to Kalim to keep the party going and organize the clean up crew. After all, he's due for a more private celebration of his own.

Fun fact: for a good chunk of snake species, the male will bite the females neck to hold them down while mating.

Imagine Jamil relentlessly taking his beloved from behind, deciding they're wriggling a bit too much. Delighting in the sounds they make as he pulls them towards him by the hair, he just bites the back of their neck as his body pins them to the bed. They'll probably be annoyed by morning, but Jamil's already got some concealers beforehand.

Did I forget to mention it's a Friday, Jamil no longer has roomates, and pretty much the entire dorm is still partying to loud music several hallways away?

Also worth mentioning that, as a healthy mature couple, all of Jamil's jealousy and possessiveness is addressed in a healthy manner so the relationship never turns toxic. This statement does not apply to the bedroom.

Aww thank you, always happy to talk with you too 😊 Plus like, if you’d rather talk over messages sometime in addition to the asks, feel free. (And this applies to anyone else reading this post too.)

Yeah iirc I was thinking a bit if I should ask you about using that ask as a jumping off point for To Revel in You, but I figured I was using it more as inspiration rather than rewriting anything you wrote or anything like that. And that since you sent that ask in the first place, I did kinda assume it would be okay to build off it. But good to hear I wasn’t wrong in thinking so, and glad you liked it.

As for characterization & writing: it really is a matter of practice, I’d say. Plus, like, everyone is bound to interpret the characters in a different way, or focus on different aspects of them. Which can be freeing, in a way, knowing that you can bring to the table something that no one else can, certainly not in the same exact way you would.

Also I was actually thinking of asking for some writing prompts since the current wip seems to need a bit more time to marinate, and here you are with perfect timing.

So let’s see what I can do with this concept.

If it wasn’t obvious: smut ahead. Written with fem / afab reader in mind but I think this could be read gender neutral as well since the only specific body detail mentioned is that reader has hair long enough for Jamil to grab.

The day - and the week, and the month - had been such a whirlwind that even Jamil had had trouble keeping up with it all.

Tonight, Jamil had basked in the praises from his dormmates, their congratulations and glowing words - and noted the cautious looks of those who still had not forgotten the events of his overblot.

He had enjoyed food that was not made by him, watched others fuss over the preparations and the serving - well, as much as he had been able to keep himself from giving direction. Still, even he had not been able to oversee every single detail, as much as he wanted to.

After all, both you and Kalim had been quite insistent, in your own ways, that this celebration should be for him, not by him.

So Jamil had danced, eaten, drank, listened, talked, so much so that now when the night was beginning to turn towards morning, he had more than had his fill.

Besides, tired as he may be of the crowd, there was still something on his agenda that he was more than happy to indulge in.

You had been teasing him with promises of a more private celebration - starting from when the party was decided on all the way to when you had been dancing together earlier - and Jamil intended to finally collect his reward.

You were outside for a moment of fresh air and quiet when Jamil found you, wrapping his arms around you from behind and nipping your ear.

“I remember someone promising to be mine tonight,” he murmured, voice low and husky.

You shivered, feeling Jamil’s lips on your neck. You’d half expected him to be too tired to turn your teasing into action. Yet, you certainly welcomed this turn of events, your own tiredness washed away by Jamil’s eager touch and his tempting whispers.

“You know me. Always love - ahhh - spoiling you,” you said - your words turning into a gasp when Jamil licked the side of your neck.

In no time at all you found yourself in Jamil’s room - as easy as it was to be distracted by each other, you both still preferred the privacy over lingering in the common areas of the dorm.

Jamil’s mouth was hungry on yours, his hands working quickly to rid you of your clothes.

Sometimes you wondered just how much Jamil was holding back in the presence of others, for him to get so ravenous as soon as you two were alone.

Not that you were any different, pulling away that long belt from Jamil’s hips so that you could slip your hands under his shirt, your lips covering every available bit of his skin with kisses.

It was always delicious, your naked bodies tangled together. That heady feeling of each other, both of you grasping and kissing wherever you could, like you could never quite feel enough of the other.

“So what would mister housewarden ask of me tonight?” you asked with a playful grin, nuzzling your nose against Jamil’s.

There was undeniable hunger in the way Jamil looked at you, yet also the warmth and softness of your lover that always filled your heart to the brim.

“Just all of you, albi,” Jamil murmured, pushing you down onto the mattress.

You’d entertained ideas of a celebratory blowjob, of taking care of Jamil tonight. But if he’d rather help himself to you, you were certainly not going to say no.

A few orgasms later and Jamil was pounding into you, firmly holding onto your hips while your face was pressed onto the sheets. His cock was invading your insides so hard, so deep, leaving you nearly senseless. You jolted helplessly every time Jamil slammed his way all the way in, the pleasure bordering on pain as it shot through your nerves.

“Ahhh, Jamil…” you whimpered, barely aware of the spot of drool you’d left on the bed.

“Too much?” Jamil muttered, one of his hands leaving your side to instead trail a soothing path along your spine.

“...No.”

It was a lot, your senses nearly overtaken by the intensity of it all - yet you didn’t want anything less.

Still, you couldn’t help squirming, your body twitching with every thrust, yelps and moans pushed from your throat no matter how much you tried to hold them in.

“Hold still,” Jamil grunted. 

He gathered your hair in his hand, making you gasp when he tugged. You could feel the pull on your scalp, almost like Jamil wanted to rein you in - or pull your face away from the sheets so that he could hear your cries more clearly.

“You’re all mine tonight, aren’t you? Mine to have, mine to enjoy,” Jamil breathed to your ear.

“Yes, yes, yes…” you whined, aroused beyond belief.

Always his, just as he is yours - but you had no time to vocalize that thought before Jamil’s weight pushed you prone on the bed.

Your gasp was cut short, turned into a sharp cry when you felt moist pressure at the back of your neck - a bite, you realized, some instinct telling you to keep still.

Not that you had much of a choice in the matter. Jamil’s hand, still gripping your hair. His mouth, latched onto your skin. His body, holding you down.

The weight of him against your back was almost suffocating, yet in a delicious way. Like you could be closer to him like this, more connected than just skin to skin contact - or penetration - could provide.

You could feel the rolling of Jamil’s hips against your backside, the way his cock was dragging along your insides. Not as harshly as before, yet intense enough to keep you trembling and whining with the little breath you could take.

And Jamil’s mouth, his teeth, never letting go. His muffled groans such a delicious sound, making you clench around him.

Such sweet torture, and you never wanted it to end.

Taglist since this turned into fic: @colliope @crystallizsch @diodellet @jamilsimpno69 @jamilvapologist @perilous-pasta @twstgo @cannedpickledpeaches

[melkyt]

No wait okay ideeeeaaa

CW: age-gaps, doffylaw, lawlu

Law who stayed with Doflamingo, raised (groomed) in the family to be his Corazon, his lover and confidant in theory, but Doflamingo never trusted Law, and Law would never trust him. Their relationship is an emotionally abusive mess, where they hurt each other with the pretense of love while Law's hatred simmers underneath.

Law who is looking for a way out but forgetting what he was foghting for in the first place. Does he actually like being with Doflamingo? Is he punishing themselves for past mistakes? Should he try more, if this is the only love he will ever have, should he not try? Things get better between them but Law sinks deeper into depression, where he starts to lose that will to live he so clung to. There is only so much even his willpower can stand against. Law thinking this is all he will ever deserve. Law trying to survive in his sotuation by doing small acts of kindness for those hurt. Doing everything to skirt around Doffy's orders. He may have lost most of his will to live. That doesnt mean he is ever going to lose that innate sense to help people, even if he would deny it.

Then Luffy arrives on the island led by Kinemon as Law is not there to set things in motion against Doflamingo. Luffy who sees the people suffering and decides to defeat the family.

Luffy who meets Law in the streets of Dressrosa. Law who was sent to deal with the intruders. His gaze empty, going through the motions, taunting as he doesn't really focus on Luffy. Their first meeting ends in chaos that is interrupted by marines.

Their next is much the same, but when the fighting breaks out in the streets. Luffy notices that unlike Doflamingo until this point, Law 'wastes' his power on getting children and civilians out of harms way when he can. Luffy notices how Law is chided by the others of the family for being a bleeding heart, that he is just fucking up their efforts and that he should remember their orders. (This is mostly said by Trebol who is set on keeping everyone following Doffy, and never trusted Law either.)

Luffy doing Luffy things when he confronts Law.

Law lets it slip that he doesnt want to be here but this is all he deserves, this is what he chose, what he wanted. He is the one who sought out Doflamingo as a child all those years ago. He chose to stay, even if it was for revenge at first, now he has forgotten why he was here but he can't leave.

Luffy calls Law dumb for sticking around if he doesn't want to be here. That if he doesnt like something he should change it. They are interupted again, by Trebol befor Law can truly start doubting. They cant lose his power.

It is a little to late. Law has doubts, and he talks to Doflamingo about it. Doffy who is stressing out about his entire operation getting destroyed, having to stop to smooth amy doubts. He maybe at the end of his rope with Luffy causing chaos, but he knows how to push Law's buttons to get him to stay, honeyed words and compliments about how they need him, how they care for him and what they have done for him. How Law is his Corazon, and he will do anything to not lose his heart. The soft kiss that tastes bitter on Law's lips.

Law who is on the roof with Doflamingo as Luffy arrives alone. He pointd at Law and is just "What are you still doing with him, Traffy?" Luffy crossing his arms with his signature pout. "Though yah said he was a bastard"

Doflamingo launching into a speech about how Law is his, how they have been together for decades and nothing the strawhat brat can say will change that.

Luffy firing back that Law is not his, that Doffy doesnt own Law, that people you love have to be free.

Doffy snorts, telling Law to attack but he doesnt move.

That struck a chord, a memory from his past, words echoing that to be loved means to be free. Law breaking down, he cant attack Doflamingo just yet, but he wont attack Luffy either. He is paralized.

Doflamingo swears sending his strings to take control of Law, and that is the last straw. (Lol) Law activating room, snapping the strings and trying to fight back against the man he's been in a relationship for way too many years. It fails, he hesitates, he closes his eyes to wait for the blow as he is knocked to the ground.

It does not come.

Luffy blocks Doflamingo's fist. Law chose to fight for his freedom, and that is enough for Luffy to know he can now take over in this battle and protect Law.

Dressrosa goes much the same from that point, Law paying the price by losing his arm. Atleast that is how he puts it.

Luffy reminds him that thinking like that is dumb, you shouldnt have to pay just to be free. In not so many words, but thats what he means.

Law tries to say goodbye to them, that he doesnt have anywhere to got as the people of Dressrosa do not want to see his face, but maybe he will just wander once he finds a ship. Luffy cuts him off and just says "Get on, youre one of us now"

And that is how Law in this au joins the strawhats and discovers what it means to be loved with no strings attached.

[kydrogendragon]

Call of the Night - Day 2 of Sandmanniversary

Words: 3k

Pairing: None (but implied future Dreamling)

Rating: Gen

Ao3 Link Here

When Hob signed up to help man the White Horse, he hadn't really cared about what it was they were doing. All he knew is it was a three month expedition, it paid decently, and they needed an engineer on board in case anything happened to the old girl. Honestly, he'd expected a fishing vessel or maybe some government contract type deal. Once he was aboard and introduced to the crew, however, it became apparent this was a little different.

Loads and loads of gear and boxes were set up in the hull. Constantine, their lead researcher and childhood friend, filled Hob in on the details of their mission. Apparently, they were a team of marine biologists (there were definitely more titles and fields, but they went over Hob's head, so marine biologists it was) studying some rare sightings out in the North Atlantic a good five hundred miles from port.

The journey so far was fine. He'd gotten to reconnect with Jo—who he hadn't thought he'd see again since she'd left for uni in the states. He'd also gotten to get to know the rest of the crew. And The White Horse was quite the beaut. She ran fine and ran smoothly. They probably didn't even need Hob around, which left him with more free time on his hands than he was used to. He's pretty sure he's just a few more "visits" away from Jo wringing his neck.

When he'd returned to his bunk later that week to a small stack of books and pad and paper, he just laughed. To Jo's credit, she at least found him some books that actually sounded like something he'd read.

It was a month into their journey when it happened. The sun had set long ago. Most of the crew was either having their "breakfast" for the late-night shift or fast asleep in their bunks. Hob strolled the deck, walking its length and enjoying the fresh sea air.

It was quiet save the roll of waves and splash of the ship against them. It was this, this peace and silence of the ocean at night that Hob had needed. He also probably needed something more to keep his hands busy as well, but at least Jo was trying with the drawing supplies, as shit as he was with them. The most exciting thing that's happened so far was one of the rigs kept catching when reeling up. He at least got to whip out the tools for a few hours.

He was about to head back when he heard...something. If they were closer inland, he'd guess it was a bird—still could be, he supposes. It was quiet, just barely heard over the crash of water against the steel of the ship. It droned on, long and drawn out. It was deep, pained almost. And each minute it sounded closer.

Then he saw it. There, way on the horizon, a pale red dot among the darkness. It looked like a buoy or beacon as it moved with the waves. Hob frowned, lifting his binoculars that hung around his neck up to his eyes. It was hard to pinpoint in the night, but when he finally landed on the light, he gasped.

It was still far out from their ship, the details hazy, but it wasn't a buoy and it definitely wasn't some sort of beacon or the like. It seemed to come from some sort of...creature? Fuck, it was hard to see at this distance.

The noise grew louder, sharper, as the light drew closer. Hob's heart raced in his chest as the eerie sound soon filled the air. Tales the crew had told flash through his mind, stories of leviathans, of creatures belonging to the deep. Of mermaids and sirens, of life unknown and undiscovered. Of the rare sighting they were here to locate in the first place.

Hob reaches down, pulling the walkie-talkie off his belt. He clicks the button and raises it to his lips.

"Alex, you're gonna want to see this. Starboard side, up closer to the bow. And hurry. Think we may just have your mystery monster."

Seconds pass before his walkie talkie crackles to life. "Hob? What?"

"I'd get up here quick, mate. Whatever it is, it's not man-made. And it's glowing."

"Glowing? Paul, can you—...Okay, okay! We're headed up. Keep your eyes on that thing."

Hob clips his device back onto his belt and keeps his eyes trained on the rapidly growing bright spot amongst the dark seas.

The thing looks only a mile from the ship at this point when the strange sound coming from it quiets. And then there are footsteps on the hull.

Paul and Alex race up with Jo and some of the less science-more muscle crew follow close behind. Paul steps up, putting a hand on Hob's shoulders to steady himself against the rocking of the boat.

“Where is it? What did you see?” he asks.

“Paul…look.”

Hob and Paul turn towards Alex who stands against the ledge. He points out into the water where the red glow is beginning to dim. Paul gasps, waving to the others.

“Go! Go, hurry! We need to get that thing, toss out the netting now!”

The ship comes to life. People race about, orders are shouted, lights flicked on. Ropes are tossed around as the rigs are set up and ready. Hob watches that fading dot all the while. Its hard to tell from here if the thing is sinking into the sea or if whatever part of it that glows is simply…fading. Fuck. Is the thing dying?

“Sending!” One of the riggers calls out as the net is lauched out into sea. The lines of rope are illuminated in the bright ship lighting until they fade from view as they fall over their target. Then, that noise from earlier sounds off. It howls, calling out into the darkness as—Hob guesses—the net falls over it.

“The hell is that noise?” Jo shouts over the sound of machinery and waves.

“Dunno!” Hob calls back. “The thing was making a different sound earlier.”

“What kind of sound?”

“More…pained. I guess.”

Jo looks grim as she turns back towards the ocean. The crew call out to one another and the rig groans as the net is recalled. The chains and gears slowly clank. Rope and netting is hauled aboard, swirled in piles to the side.

“What the hell are you putting the thing in when we get it on board?”

Jo pales. She races towards Alex, talking into his ear. Its too loud as the winds start to pick up and the waves grow stronger. Hob watches as the two dart below ground.

The click-click-clicking of the gears rolls on. Hob backs up, giving the open area of the boat wide berth for whatever it is they end up hauling in. Paul's leaning over, calling out to the other biologists and scientists when Hob catches the words “I see it!” leave the man's mouth. Alex reappears, sans Jo, and races over towards Paul, shaking the man in excitement as the last few dredges of netting are hauled up.

And then Hob sees it. He sees the mass of wriggling black and red and white. He sees a mess of fins and scales. And he hears the deep, almost growling call that comes from the things mouth. Its…its human mouth.

The creature, whatever it is, struggles against the thick ropes as its lowered onto the deck. Salt water splashes over the boards, clinging to Hob's skin. He hears the wet slap of flaining limps and fins as the last of the net grows slack.

And then he sees hands.

Or something close to hands. The fingers are longer, sharper. Like claws dipped black. As the creature reaches out, trying to get traction on the slippery surface, Hob can just barely make out webbing between the digits. Alex and Paul step closer along with some of the others. He steps forwards and then freezes. Eyes, as blue as the ocean herself, pin him in place. The red glow fills his vision and then all Hob sees is darkness. He drifts off to the sound of shouting and a final, deep melodic groan from the creature.

He wakes up in his bunk. Or a bunk at least. His is normally the upper one but Jo sits to his left so unless she gained the ability to float, he's on one of the lower ones. Probably Matt's.

“You're alive,” Jo greets, setting her notebook down on her lap. He can just barely make out what looks to be field notes as he turns towards her.

“I am. What…what happened exactly?”

She sighs, pushing her bangs out of her face. “Matt carried you down here all freaked out. Said you'd passed out on the deck as the damn freak storm rolled in. Hell of a time to play damsel in distress there, Gadling.”

He chuckles, stretching his limbs as he does so. His body is sore, but not in any way that's out of the ordinary. His head aches a bit but not too terribly. “Any ideas what happened to me?”

Jo shrugs. “Dunno. Weird pressure drop from the storm fucking with you in combination with who knows what else. Rach took a look over you though. Gave you a clean bill of health from what she can do with you being passed out as you were. Said you should probably go see her for another once over when you woke up though.”

He sits up, nodding as he does. “Sounds good.” Flashes of the night before run through his mind. He remembers the black and red and white. He remembers fins and scales and claws and hands. And then he remembers those eyes.

“The, uh. The creature. Did you—”

“Get it? Yeah. You missed out on all the fun of figuring out how the hell to get it in the observation tank. Could have used your strength though. Thing weighed a shit ton. Had to use a hell of a lot of tranquilizer to get it to even stay calm and not flair about. We'll have to run more tests and cross-reference the sighting reports but I think this just might be ghe creature people were talking about.”

“What is it?”

Jo huffs. “That's the thing Hobsie. It shouldn’t exist at all.” She turns with a mischievous smile on her lips. “Things a bloody mermaid.”

The creature—and Jo was right. Things a bloody mermaid. Well…merman, he supposes—glares at them from its tank that is definitely too small for a thing its size. The part of it that looks human is about the same size to a normal person, though it’s significantly skinnier and bonier than most men. If it had legs, it looks like it could have been a high-fashion runway model with that narrow waist and sharp cheekbones. But, it doesn’t have legs. Instead, its got a giant fucking tail with fins and scales and everything.

Hob is definitely processing this world perception altering finding completely fine.

If merpeople are real, are unicorns? Bigfoot? Nessie? Fucking dragons?

Hob needs to sit down.

He falls into the folding chair by the wall, hands in his lap, as he watches the group of scientists flitting between their equipment, the tank, and back to their equipment again. They’re checking the water for lord knows what and currently seem to be trying to find a way to get a blood sample without the creature—man—merman thing attacking them with either its claws or tail or teeth. Christ, it has sharp teeth. Nearly took off poor Paul’s fingers when he tried to grab a water sample. Looked more like a monster from the deep than anything from the Little Mermaid.

Its skin was pale and it stared them all down with eyes black as the night sky. It’s hair—was it even considered hair?—floats off its head in the tank like the smallest, most dainty strands of kelp you’ve ever seen. Well, if kelp was pitch black, anyway. Gills protruded from its neck near the leathery looking fins and fans on its face. Its hands faded from normal-ish looking skin to inky black nails that could pierce as well as a knife.

Then there was this thing’s tail. If the upper half of it was something that should be played by Bill Skarsgard, the lower half was a thing of beauty. A dream and a nightmare mixed. Most of the scales were black, but caught the light with an iridescent shine. It reminded him of the tail feathers of the roosters they’d kept when he was young. Mixed in were sections of deep ruby reds, painted on the merman in patterns similar to koi fish. There were large fins on either side and down towards the tip, not unlike a betta or goldfish, but were currently tucked close to its body. It was quite a sight to behold.

And then there were the eyes. The one Hob kept trying to make a conscious effort not to look at but keeps finding himself drawn to. They're dark. Black like the night sky. And yet, he remembers the brilliant blue of them on that first night….

“Hob?”

He startles, whipping his head up to see Johanna standing off to his side with an amused expression. He sighs, placing a hand over his heart.

“Christ, Jo. Make more noise before you sneak up on a man like that.”

She rolls her eyes before nodding her head towards the stairs. “Walk with me?”

Hob stands, following behind her as they make their way up and out of the room with the impossible but here creature. Jo pushes the door open and they step out onto the main deck. The salty sea air hits Hob’s lungs. He takes a deep, shuddering breath and he realizes just how shaky he’d been down there.

“So.”

Hob huffs. “So? This the part where you tell me I’ve seen too much and have me killed?”

Jo just turns her head slowly to him, looking at him with her classic ‘you’re an imbecile’ face. “Nope, wasn’t planning on any murder today. But I did have a favor to ask of you.”

“Oh?”

Jo sighs, pushing her bangs up out of her face. “Obviously, we’ve a bit of a major discovery on our boat here. And, of course, I’m thrilled about it and I’m certain the rest of our crew here is too, but I also know that this whole things gettin’ funded by the Burgess family and, no hate to Alex, but I trust his father about as far as I can throw him.

“So, if that thing we’ve got down there’s got a brain like ours, I want you to try and befriend it cause there’s no way in Hell I’m letting Roderick Burgess get his hands on something like this. And if you can befriend it, then maybe we can get it to trust us enough to release it without having to use all the equipment and having people figure out what we’re doing.”

Hob blinks. This was...not where he thought this conversation was going. “What do you think the old man’s going to do?”

“Keep it trapped like some exotic pet? Try and eat it? Fuck if I know what those rich bastards like to get up to in their free time, but I’ve never heard a good story come from them when it came to keeping rare creatures in their possession. How many horror stories have you heard about those rich old fucks keeping tigers or crocodiles or other shit in their house?”

Hob huffs a laugh. “Not many, honestly.”

“Right, forgot. You like to live like it’s medieval England and newspapers and Twitter haven’t been invented yet.”

“Hey! I do use the internet, you know!”

Jo elbows him lightly as she laughs. “So, will you help me?”

He sighs, leaning back against the wall by the door. Jo watches him, hands in her pockets. Hob can say, with certainty, he’s never been asked to befriend a literal sea creature before. And he’s pretty sure that keeping one in a tiny tank isn’t doing them any favors either. But it’s Jo that’s asking. And she doesn’t ask for much, not for serious stuff like this. And he owes her a lot already, like this job, for one.

“Fuck,” he groans. “Alright, yeah. I’ll see what I can do. I make zero promises I’ll be successful, but I’ll try my best.”

“Good. And if that doesn’t work, come two months, I’ll just need your brawn instead to help haul the thing back to the ocean instead.”

“That thing weighs like a hundred and fifty kilos! I’m not that strong!” Hob cries.

“Better work on your fish charm then, eh?” she says with a wink.

Hob shakes his head. The shit he does for this woman.

“Right. Well, I’ll let you lot do your poking and prodding. I’m going to stay up here for a bit and just...process my future months for a moment, yeah?”

Jo laughs as he heads back down the stairs, leaving Hob alone among the sound of waves and the spray of the sea. He walks over to the ledge of the ship wall. He folds his arms and rests them and his chin on them, sighing as he watches the boat rise and fall on the ocean waves. The stars shine above him, land long gone from view. It's just him, this boat, this crew, and the fucking fantastical creature in the tank just under his feet. What the hell has happened to his life?

He stays there until the chill seeps through his jacket and into his bones and only then does he retreat to the safe warmth of the interior. He pads his way down the stairs and hallways until he's crawling into his bunk. As Hob closes his eyes, he drifts off to the thoughts of pale skin and blue eyes and a lingering fear of what it all means.

[i-am-vita]

Someone Looking for You (pt. 1)

👉 Previously: Someone Who Loves You

Bogard x Ghost Rose Oc (afabReader)

+2,000 words

👉 My Masterlist, Oc Ghost Rose Masterlist, Scruffy Bogard Inspiration, Bogard's Sexy Spy Wife Headcanons

Sorry I haven't been as active as before in the fandom. Got a new job and a flu barely two weeks in, started some character design classes, went to a Dia de Muertos weekend to Michoacan (to foreigners, the place where Pixar went to look at for Coco) and came back with a stomach infection... I swear I've been back a officing for a month and a half and already went to the doctor three times.

But more importantly, I reached 100 followers in October and didn't realized!!!

I noticed I had some new followers here and there but never thought to look up the numbers. Thank you so much, people, for choosing me, even with my inconsistency. Have the first part of Some Who Loves You next chapter as a little treat. I've had it started for a while but unsure of how to proceed. Maybe some peer presure helps.

Moots and interested people I remember: @fanaticsnail @jintaka-hane @cinnbar-bun @gingernut1314 (look how swiftly I play around that new Tumblr rule of not letting you tag more than five people in a row) @writingmysanity @feral-artistry @indydonuts @since-im-already-here

Summary: After your night together weeks ago, Bogard is set to find you and uncover the mystery of your identity. Could you really be the love he thought lost all those years ago? Warnings: Scruffy Bogard. Swearing. Hidden identity. Regular canon violence. Expect: They Have History. Lovers to Strangers to Lovers. Use of You, not Y/N. Change of pov. FemOcReader, fem pronouns. Probably better English, but don't hold your breath. I've been subjected to testing crappy Visual Novels for a month and a half. My time tenses may be worst than ever.

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His footsteps were hardly the only noise in the lively nightlife of this island.

Cantinas and dance clubs filled the main street with music and laughter. Their patrons too busy to pay attention to the solitary scruffy man in the brown overcoat wandering the night, aiming his time.

Any other time, Bogard would be eager to be back in his room for the night, get rid of these street clothes, shave the scruff off of his face and report back to his superiors after a good night of sleep.

It hadn’t been like any other time since that night.

The night he was ailed by that damn cheap interrogation serum. When you stayed to nurse him and, eventually, helped him bear the side effects with your body. Only to wake up the next day alone with a small note of yours. The calligraphy style too similar to that of the notes from his lost love he still kept. Read and reread so many times over the years he could recognize the lines and letters like the palm of his hand.

Hope flooded his heart.

That dreadful emotion had been crushed years ago when he accepted his one and only love was lost to him forever. Bogard had buried himself in work, focused only in his career at the marine and serving along Garp. His leisure time was occupied in activities to engage in logic rather than indulge his feelings.

If a need arose, he took care of it with promptness and no attachment. And if his eye catched a likeness to the one he had lost… then maybe he could indulge himself after all.

Until he had entered that bar one night and you were there.

The alluring new guard of The Contact.

How had he wished for you to turn around and let him see your face. To be just a regular man getting in a bar, free to revel in the company of a beautiful stranger, instead of an undercover marine agent meeting with one of the most notorious intel dealers in the Grand Line.

By some chance, his wish was granted and his properly ordered life was shattered.

He had gone to a graphologist to analyze the written notes and see if it was possible to be from the same person. The expert told him that, despite the similarities in the calligraphy style, there were details that suggested they still could have been written by different people. The inclination of letters, some twirls here and there.

That specific style was popular years ago among the young women of society. It only proved that both women had similar upbringing and were taught by private tutors during the same period of time.

To the expert it wasn’t much, but to Bogard it was everything. Because to him it couldn’t be a coincidence. Not after that night and how you were with him.

Oh, he had come to question his sanity over the last weeks.

Wondering if he was just so desperate for sincere affection and connection that he was projecting his longing for his lost love in an unsuspecting woman who happened to show him more kindness than he was used to from a one time lover.

Both you and her memory deserved better than that.

He thought he would see you again soon and confirm or deny his suspicions. Bogard didn’t know which he preferred.

The next reunion with The Contact came and he couldn’t find a trace of you after the meeting.

While he and your boss discussed and exchanged intel about the group trafficking with those serums that were after them the last time and how to take them out, his eyes kept returning to your figure standing guard at the bar. Long hair falling down your back, a dark dress encasing your seductive figure, your face turned away from his insisting gaze…

After the meeting, he stood from his seat and looked over for the last time, but you weren’t there anymore.

He didn’t know what he was expecting. For you to leave your spot and run into his arms?

Another meeting came next week.

Bogard arrived some minutes earlier and he could swear he saw a feminine figure slipping away into the darkest shadows of the bar, where he didn’t have a good sight.

You were avoiding him.

Damn it.

That night, Bogard had been reluctant for you to stay to aid him with the side effects of the serum, but you had and offered the comfort of your body. He knew he had lost control at some point, too gone in the aphrodisiac’s effects.

Had he done something to hurt you or offend you after all?

Were you mad at him? Did you regret that night?

What was he supposed to do now? Ask the Phantom Captain for an introduction like he was a suitor looking to court you?

If he had actually known his interlocutor, Bogard may have realized that’s what your boss was half expecting for you two to do since the first moment he caught the longing gazes. Your reluctance to speak of your feelings was getting on everybody's nerves.

Something had to be done about you two before the careful plan the Phantom Captain and Garp had been brewing for months was ruined.

Bogard was so deep in thought walking back to his safe room after that second meeting it took him several minutes to realize he was being followed until his assailants were almost on him.

Just regular thugs with no training or special abilities.

The five men ambushed him, two of them aiming to immobilize him. Bogard had those unconscious on the floor in a few seconds.The other three were tricky, but he had one’s arm in a lock with a hand before the other two could react.

All of a sudden, both assailants fell to the floor, holding their knees and screaming in pain. Sharp blades pierced their joints and then flew back towards a dark alley.

Bogard threw the man he was holding to the floor and ran to the alley finding nothing, but a sweet flowery and fruity fragrance in the air.

Were you following him on your own volition or your boss’ orders?

Did you care for the intel he had to deliver or himself?

He needed to get to you and third was the charm.

Tonight, all his enhanced senses were keen on the presence following him in the street. It took all his will to not turn around to try to find you among the crowd of night goers.

He had to time it just right.

Tonight, you will be in his arms again.

.

You just wanted to make sure he was safe.

Those smugglers were still on the run and some had seen him. Even if they didn’t know Bogard’s real identity, he may have become a target. They may still have some of that interrogation serum. Even after you and your crew managed to track them that night and take down their lair with most of their supply.

You had asked your crewmate Meg, an expert perfumer and chemistry, more about those cheap serums and it had left you livid. If you hadn't been there to… treat Bogard’s ailment, it would have been much worse to him. He could have hurt himself; wander outside, lost in the pain and frenzy, and hurt someone else.

It was a matter of the common good.

Vice Admiral Garp had the means and connections to guide Marine resources to take down those smugglers. Bogard was their main contact with Garp. He needed to be protected.

That was all.

The fact he was the man you had loved and almost married in your youth was minor. You had burned that bridge when you decided to put his well being over yours and ran away from your engagement.

He was about to reject a most excellent promotion to stay with you, not knowing that his promising career was the only reason your family had allowed your relationship. Your brown-noser of a stepfather would lose his opportunity of having a well connected son in law.

You were ready to postpone your engagement with Bogard until he was better established in his career, and you still wanted to go to university. There was no need to rush and lose opportunities when you had the rest of your lives to be together. Until you discovered your stepfather scheming to get rid of your beloved and marry you off to some marine Captain that best suited his ambitions.

Accidents happened and even the most promising young officers could fall in the line of duty and nobody would be the wiser.

At 18 years old, with a mother that would agree it was better for you to just call off your engagement and go with your stepfather’s plan of finding you a better suitor, and no other adult close or well-off enough to ask for help, you couldn’t find a better solution than to run from home.

You broke his heart.

You knew you had to.

You were cruel in your break up, publicly enough so your family were sure you hadn’t run away together when he accepted his commission overseas. You also had to be sure Bogard wouldn’t look for you when he came back and you weren’t there anymore.

The heartbreak had been agonizing, but it had to be done. No matter how misguided your actions were, you wouldn’t tolerate being a puppet of your family and any harm coming to the young man you loved.

No matter the pain, both of you would be fine and thrive on your own.

It had to be enough.

Or it had been until Bogard had walked in that bar and you discovered it was him and Vice Admiral Garp whom your captain had been intel dealing with this whole time.

And now all the operation could be at stage because you couldn’t stop thinking about that night.

Been able to be near him again.

Talk to him, touch him, nurse him. And then more…

You had hidden from his sight every meeting since then. Fearing to be unable to hide your real feelings. To run into his arms and uncover yourself.

But your feelings were not important.

His safety was.

That’s why you had followed him every night after, assisted him when he was attacked, and ensured he arrived safely to his destination before you went back to your crew’s safehouse.

That’s why you were here this night, following him through the night crowd…

Bogard stopped abruptly in his walk, looking intently at some point ahead of him and then walked to an adjacent street.

Well, fuck.

Who had he spotted that had made him change his route like that?

You ran to the crosswalk while surveying the street, but nobody else seemed to be on his chase. The sight of his brown overcoat turning a corner ahead indicated you of his path. Your own black long coat fluttered in the air as you ran to keep up with your pursuit of him.

As you turned the corner you found yourself running right into a tight embrace. Momentum spun you in half a circle while strong arms surrounded your smaller form and brought you against a firm torso. A swift hand halted yours from reaching to your knives’ pouch tied to your thigh.

“Forgive me. I know I deserve it, but I would rather not be stabbed tonight,” Bogard murmured in your ear, sending shivers down your back.

“Rick…” you sigh his name unconsciously, completely taken by surprise.

“You’re very hard to catch.” His grip on you relaxed, but his arm remained around your waist, anchoring you to him and warmth of his body.

His hand raised yours to deposit a soft kiss on your palm.

“To catch… Did you set me up?!”

"I needed to see you."

"You had seen me."

"You know what I mean." A gasp escaped your lips at the intensity of his gaze.

It took you several seconds to realize you weren’t wearing your lace mask and Bogard was able to see your full face. Even with the illusion over your real facial features and skin tone, you felt almost naked under the scrutiny of his eyes.

Oh, no, what had you let yourself fall into?

.

.

.

[heartfeltcierra]

Ephemeral- Rosinante Donquixote (Corazon) X Female reader (Soulmate AU)

Word count 4.3K

3rd person POV

Masterlist

AN-I love this man so much :') But I won't lie, I broke my own heart writing this.

Contents- Soulmate AU (First words tattoo), reader is a marine, reader had a DF

!!!Spoiler warning!!! Major character death and spoilers for Law's backstory.

Warnings- Heavy angst, bittersweet ending, smoking, mentions of fire, cussing, character death, hints at starving and lack of self care, violence.

 The cold crimson snow below Cora was nothing compared to the fierce warmth he felt in his heart. His mission to stop his brother may have failed, but at least one of his goals was achieved. Gotta live a little bit longer. His breaths were becoming shorter and shorter as he clung onto his last strand of life. I can’t let my power wear off, not yet. 

 His eyes flutter in a battle to stay  conscious. Not yet, not until Law is free… Despite his best efforts his eyes closed, but before he could slip into the afterlife a sharp pain blossomed in his right forearm. The pain was enough for him to reopen his eyes. Y/N.. With his remaining life force he used his left hand to pull up his sleeve revealing the sentence on his right arm. “Hey blondie, what time is it and why are you on fire?” A weak smile forms on his  lips, remembering the first time he heard those words. 

(Flashback)

 “Do you think I have enough time to get one last smoke in before this starts?” Rosinante dug through his pockets, looking for his trusty fix.

 “You do, Commander, just be quick about it.” A sense of pride swelled in Rosi’s chest, hearing his soon to be new title come from the very man he looked up to. He nodded and started walking out but was stopped when a large hand rested on his shoulder.. “Rosinante..” The dark haired man smiled. “ I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you, son.”

 “I’m honored. Thank you Fleet Admiral Sengoku.” The blonde had to suppress a huge smile as his father figure praised him.

 “You're welcome, and you better get going if you want that smoke.” Sengoku motioned to the large stage where high ranking Navy officers were gathering. 

 “Right, I’ll be quick.”

 Rosinante walked outside of the Navy’s banquet hall with a cigarette hanging loosely between his lips as he tried to find a secluded place to smoke. Eventually he found an empty balcony that had a perfect view of the city below. Flames erupted from the lighter as he took a deep inhale of smoke. The nicotine instantly soothed his built up nerves.

 He knew being promoted to a commander meant more work and even more responsibility. But it also gave him more power and more control, two things he was going to need if he wanted to reach his end goal. Taking his older brother, Doflamingo, down. 

 He took a deep inhale of smoke as his fathers last moments and words echo his mind. He was only 8 years old when Doflamingo shot and killed their father. It was in that moment bloodshed he realized just how far gone his brother was. And judging from the recent reports surrounding his evil doings  and his bounty that increases almost daily, Doflamingo was completely irredeemable at this point. 

 The cigarette in between his lips had reached its end and considering the stress thinking about his brother caused, a second one was well deserved. “I still have a few years to plan, until then stay cool.” He brought the lighter up to the fresh cigarette. “I better hurry or Sengoku will kill m-” 

 Rosi tensed up as he noticed a flash of violet in the distance.What the hell was that? He had never seen anything like it before. Maybe in a different situation he would find it mesmerizing or even cool. But it was heading straight for the navy banquet hall, more specifically it looked like it was coming straight at him and fast. Too fast for him to react.

 The sparking ball of violet was closing in and he couldn’t make his body move a muscle. It was so close he could hear the strange almost electrical noise it emitted. Are we under attack? The anomaly was now floating in the air a few feet away from the balcony's edge. The breath in his throat hitched as the ball shot up ever so slightly into the air, the electrical noise it made was much louder and it appeared to be getting bigger. 

 Rosi snapped out of his trance and took a defensive position, only to find himself back in a trace as the ball of violet sparks turned into the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her (H/C) hair fluttered behind her as she gracefully descended from the air and onto the balcony’s railing. All the worry in him disappeared seeing the familiar outfit she wore..

 “Hey blondie, what time is it and why are you on fire?” His forearm began to tingle. She’s..

 “You're an angel…” The words left Rosi’s mouth before he could process  what she said. A small gasp left the girl as she looked down at her left wrist. 

 “Your..” Her (E/C) eyes met his red ones. She held up her wrist to show the words he had just spoken, tattooed into her skin. “You're my soulmate….. And you're still on fire.” The girl jumped from the railing, taking her navy coat off in the process. She gave him a sweet, innocent smile before wacking the fire out with her coat, doing so with such a brute force it sent Rosi to the ground. “There we go, crisis averted.” She bent down slightly and offered her hand to him.

 “I appreciate the gesture, but I’m tall and hea- '' His words were lost in his throat as the girl took the hand he was waving in the air and pulled him up almost effortlessly. 

 “Tall yes.” She took a moment to look up at him. “Heavy no, or at least not for a woman as strong as me.” For a few moments they just stared at each other smiling without a care in the world. That is until Rosi remembered he had somewhere to be.

 “Can we meet up and talk later? I’m about to get promoted at the ceremony.” 

 “You are?” His soulmate jumped a little in excitement causing a blush to form on Rosi’s face. She is so cute. “That makes two of us! We better hurry!” She grabbed his hand and started to run towards the banquet hall.

 Once the pair reached the venue, they had to go their separate way thanks to the seating arrangement. But that didn’t stop Rosi from keeping an eye on her in admiration. She was a couple seats away sitting next to vice admiral Garp. Rosinante leaned back in his chair a little more to see she had the same idea as him. She smiled at him and was about to mouth something to him, that was until Vice Admiral Garp leaned back, stretching his bulking body. Damn that old man.

 “The ceremony will be starting now.” Vice Admiral Tsuru stood at the stage's podium. “First we will be naming the new Commanders.” One by one she called the men and women up to the stage until.. “Donquixote Rosinante.” Rosi nervously walked onto the stage (Cautiously so he didn't trip and embarrass himself in front of his new found soul mate.) “On behalf of the Navy, we congratulate you and thank you for your continued service.” He bent down so Tsuru could place a pin onto his navy uniform, making him officially a commander. He looked to the crowd to see his soulmate standing up and clapping with a smile that made his heart swell. He gave her a sheepish wave before finding his seat.

 “Up next we will be naming the new vice admiral who will be taking over our G-7 unit.” Tsuru announced. “L/N F/N, please come to the stage.” Rosi watched in Awe as his soulmate, who he now knows as Y/N, walked up to the stage with power in each of her steps. “All of navy HQ would like to congratulate you on your promotion and continued service.”  Rosi had stars in his eyes as she was given the white overcoat reserved only for the vice admirals..

 “THAT’S MY GIRL.” A gruff voice yelled out. Rosi turned to see Garp hysterically crying. “If only my son would have been smart like her.” He mumbled out the last part.

 “That concludes today's ceremony. Good luck to you all in your new positions.” Tsuru walked away from the stage and people began to file out of the room. He looked up to see Y/N walking towards him with a smile on her face. 

 “Are you okay?” Y/N looked down at her soulmate who had fallen back in his chair thanks to the shock.

 “I am.” He smiled up at her. “I am more than okay.I just can’t believe my soulmate is someone so cool.” 

 “Thanks.” A blush formed on her cheeks at Rosi’s complement.

 “So.. Umm.. We have a lot to talk about huh?” Rosinante stood up and ran a hand through his blonde locks in an attempt to calm down.

 “That we do.” She shook her head in agreement. “I know just the place we can go!” She grabbed his hand  and led him out of the banquet hall. 

 ~~~~

 “This is it!” Y/N fell back onto the field of flowers that overlooked the sea. “What do you think, Rosinante?” 

 “It’s beautiful.” Rosi sat down beside her. But It doesn't compare to you. “ And you can just call me Rosi.” 

 “Rosi it is.” She smiled before moving her head to rest in his lap. “So question. Just how tall are you?” 

 “Nine foot seven..” Her eyes widened hearing how tall her soulmate was. “And a half.”

 “And a half!” Rosi laughed at her shocked face. “You have me beat, I’m (Height).”

 “I do. But I think you may have me beat in strength, little Miss Vice Admiral.” His hands dug through his jacket until he pulled out his cigarettes. “Do you mind?” 

 “Not at all, actually here.” Y/N brought her hand up to the end of his cigarette. A familiar violet colored spark came from her fingertip, lighting his cigarette. “You’ll never have to buy a lighter again as long as I’m around.” She said proudly.

 “Thank you.” He took a deep drag and exhaled the smoke away from her. “I’ve been meaning to ask what that power was. Is it a devil fruit?”

 “It sure is.” She stood up from the flower field. “I ate the Plasma-Plasma fruit, making me a plasma woman.” She jumped into the air before turning into the same ball of sparks that had him freaking out hours earlier. He watched as Y/N displayed her powers to him. Seeing her pop up out of nowhere only to turn into a ball of plasma a second later had him in awe. After a few minutes of zipping through the sky she landed right into his lap. Fierce heat traveled to both of their cheeks. “I’m sorry, sometimes I don’t stick the landing.” She gave him a sheepish grin before attempting to crawl away from him.

 “It’s okay..” Rosi brought his arm around her body, urging Y/N closer. “Having you close feels nice.”

 “I couldn't agree with you more.” She brought her head down to rest on his abs. “So question…why were you on fire earlier?”

 “I’m a smoker who Is also really clumsy.” The moment the words left his mouth Y/N jumped  away from his lap. “Y/N are you okay?” She raised an eyebrow at him before motioning to the lit cigarette in his mouth. “OH.” He took the cigarette out of his mouth and waited for it to go out. “You can come back now.” He laughed nervously with an outreached hand, which Y/N gladly took. “But I’m clumsy in other ways too, less dangerous ways.” 

 “Like falling over in your chair?” Y/N looked up at him with a smirk on her face.

 “Bingo.” Rosi wrapped both arms around her before pulling the both of them back to lay on the flower field. “So you know my fun little fact. So tell me one about you?” 

 “Have you ever heard the rumor about the marine who killed a sea king while they were sleepwalking?” 

 “Yes I have.” Rosi had heard plenty of rumors in his rookie years, but this one stood out. It was unforgettable. “Apparently it was a rookie who was on Garp’s fleet. They had a really bad sleep walking habit and from what I heard they sometimes tried to challenge Garp to a duel in that state.” Rosi recalls all of the lore surrounding the mysterious Marine. “But the story goes something like this I think. It was the middle of the night when a huge sea king came out of nowhere and started to attack the ship. Two rookies were on the night watch that night, so they panicked. They went to wake up the crew and met the sleepwalking Marine while doing so. The marine proceeded to walk right towards the towering sea king and looked at it with foggy eyes before knocking it across the ocean with a single kick.” Rosi laughed. “I wish I knew if it was real or not. If it was, I wonder who the guy was?”

 “It wasn’t a guy..” 

 “Huh?”

 “It was a girl..”

 “Really? How do you know?”

 “I know because it was me!” Y/N’s cheery voice mixed with Rosi’s mental image of her taking down a sea king with a single kick. “Ever since that day I tie my foot to my bedpost with a shoe string. Just in case.”..... “Rosi?”...... “Rosi?”

 “Y/N.” Rosi lifted up from the flower field and rummaged around in his pockets. “Here it is!” He pulled out a marker. “Please sign my jacket!” 

 “HUH?” Y/N gave him a confused look. “Sign your jacket? Why?”

 “Because you are the woman, the myth, no… the legend. My soulmate is..” Rosi grabbed her shoulder before lifting her up like she weighed nothing. “The sleepwalking sea king slayer!” He spun her around before they both toppled over laughing.

 “Am I really that popular?” She grabbed the marker that had fallen with them and pulled his coat open to the side. “To my biggest fan~” Y/N signed her name and drew a small doodle of a sea king getting kicked by her. “Here, it’s your turn.” She handed the confused Rosi a marker before laying down with her vice admiral jacket open. “You can draw something on mine too!”

 “Before I do this.” He smoothed the fabric down where he wanted to draw. “I’m not good at drawing. With that being said, any requests?” Y/N Shook her head.

 “Just draw what comes to heart.”

~Flashback end~

 “Y/N. I’m sorry.” Her name left his mouth like a guilty prayer. “Just know I love you so much and I ...” Blood spilled from his lips as he muttered his final words. “I did it. Law is finally free.” 

 And with that, Donquixote Rosinante, the man known as Corazon, took his last breath.

~~~Somewhere out at sea on the G-7’s main ship.~~~

  Y/N sat at her desk filing paperwork and thinking about a certain blonde. She pulled the white coat off and looked at the fading doodle Rosi drew on it all those years ago. It was a simple heart with their initials in it. I miss him

 Y/N sighed playing with the silver chain around her neck. With a gentle tug on the chain she revealed the heart shaped locket he gifted her. She smiled seeing the engraving “You’re an angel.” Y/N clicked the locket open, her smile only grew wider seeing her and Rosinante’s wedding photos. On one side he was holding her up in his arms, and on the other side it was her holding him. A knock at her door pulled her from her romantic reminiscing. 

 “Come in!” She tucked the locket back under her shirt before one of her men walked in.

 “Can you sign off on these documents for me? They are urgent.” The man walked up to the desk and held the stack of  papers out.

 “Can do!” Y/N reached out with her right arm and stopped when a searing pain formed in her forearm. “What the, FUCK.” She yelped while bringing her arm down on the table. 

 “Vice admiral are you okay?!” The man watched as she was unable to form words, instead she slammed her head against the desk and pointed at her right arm. “I understand.” He slowly brought her sleeve up to reveal the cause of the tremendous pain she was in. What she didn’t know, it was only the start. “Vice admiral L/N, I. I think..”

 “What’s wrong?” She brought her head up from the desk and felt her body turn cold. At that moment she recalled something Tsuru had said to her many years ago. “There had been reports in the past of soulmates dying and their last words would show up on their partner in the spot where their first words were”  That explains why she is seeing the words on her right forearm.

 “Y/N, I’m sorry…… Just know I love you so much and I….I did it. Law is finally free.” 

 “Leave.” The man nodded before shuffling out of the room. Y/N looked at the fresh words on her arm. “Rosi.” He can’t be. Her lips trembled as tears began to pour down her face. The pain she felt was beyond what words could describe. She had lost her soulmate, her home, her safety, her comfort, her Rosi. He was gone.

 Her cries could be heard all across the G-7 ship. The men and women aboard the ship held their heads low as their admiral mourned her lost lover. After a week  the cries had turned into sniffles, after a month it was silent. She never came out of the office, none of the food they sent her was ever eaten, and she never spoke more than a few words. She had become an empty shell. 

~~~~

 “Wake up Y/N.” Her eyes opened to a bright blue sky. She slowly lifted off of the ground and looked around. It took her no time to know where she was. The flower field. “You know I fell in love with you that day you brought me here.”

 “Rosi?” She turned and saw nothing. “Rosi, where are you?” She got up and froze when two arms wrapped around her midsection from behind.

 “Y/N.” His grip tightened. “I am so sorry.” She felt something wet at the nape of her neck. “I’ve watched you go through all this torment and I could not take it any longer. .” Her body froze. “I don’t have much time.” 

 “Rosi.” She tried to turn around to see him, but his arms kept her caged in.

 “Not yet love.” His voice was soft and comforting, just the way she remembered. “Y/N I love you and I will always watch over you.” Lips ghosted the crook of her neck. “But you can’t keep going on like this. You're alive but if you keep this up..” His voice cracked.. “Live Y/N, please. Promise me you will.”

 “How can I?” Tears started to stream down her face. 

 “You can because that’s what I want… More than anything..” Y/N’s eyes widened. “There is a time and place for all of us to die, but your time is not now or anytime soon. So angel, would you do me the honors of letting me watch you live, even though I can’t be with you?”

 “It’s funny.” Y/N sniffled. “You're calling me an angel.”

 “I guess we are both angels now… Wait no.” The familiar clumsy panic in his tone brought a bittersweet smile to her face. “You are an angel metaphorically, I am a real angel.” 

 “That you are.” A final tear rolled down her face. “But to answer your question I will.”

 “Good.” A large hand covered her right forearm. “I know this is selfish of me, but I want to kiss you one last time Y/N.”

 “If you're selfish, I’m selfish.” She turned around and jumped into her lover's arms to give him a final kiss. When she pulled back a bright light appeared behind him.

 “I have to go now.” He watched as the smile left Y/N lips. “I need another favor from you.”

 “Anything.”

 “When you think of me.” He grabbed her right arm and planted a kiss right next to his final words. “I want you to always have a smile on your face. Just like this.” Seeing the same goofy smile on his lips , the one  she fell in love caused one of her own to form.

 “I love you forever and always Rosi.”

 “I love you too.” He turned around and started to walk away from her. “I’ll be waiting for you, and you know I’m patient , so there is no need to rush okay?”

 “Okay.”

 “Goodbye for now, my angel.” 

 ~~~~

 She woke up in a daze wondering if what happened was a dream or real. Her fingers hooked around her sleeve, gently pulling it up  to reveal Rosi’s final words to her. But that wasn’t the only thing. Out from the words was a smiley face, one that looked just like his, in the spot he had kissed.

 ~Bonus~

 “Captain Law.” Bepo came running up to his captain who sat on a cargo box. “A vice admiral's ship has been spotted on the other side of the island.” 

 “Go find the others and let them know we are leaving immediately.” Law ordered.

 “Yes sir!” The white bear ran off as Law placed his chin in his hands. Just what I needed.

 “A vice admiral?” Law’s body tensed up. “That sounds serious.” Law slowly turned to his side to see a (H/C) woman sitting on the cargo box right next to one he was on. She was eating a bag of candy and didn’t seem to have a care in the world. “Want some?” She held the bag out to Law.

 “No.” Law raised his eyebrow. “Thanks?” Law got a better look at her and saw what she had on Dammit it all. His tattooed hand reached for his sword.

 “Don’t even think about it.” The woman smirked at Law. “Don’t you have any clue as to who I am?”

 “I don’t..” Law was sweating bullets at this point. “Want to give me a hint?”

 “Have you ever heard of the Marine who killed a sea king while sleep walking?”

 “I have. They called her the Sleepwalking Sea King Slayer.” 

 “How did you know it was a ‘her’?” 

 “What are you getting at?” Something shiny was thrown into Law’s lap. A locket? He clicked it opened. “Wait.” Law stood up and looked at the woman shocked.

 “To answer some of the questions I’m sure you have.” She stood up on the cargo box. “The woman you see before you is indeed the Sleepwalking sea king slayer.” Law looked up at her in shock. “And I’m also Rosi’s wife. Or should I say Cora’s wife.” Law was glad the rest of the crew was gone. A guilt he carried for well over 11 years had bubbled to the surface.

 “I’m sorry, it’s my fault he di-” The woman pulled the boy into a tight hug.

 “Don’t finish that sentence.” She gave him a few pats on the back before pulling away. “Just so I’m clear, I don’t in the slightest, blame you for what happened. And as you can see.” She pulled up her sleeve showing Law the Last words Cora said. “He died happy knowing you were free.” Law sniffled into the sleeve of his hoodie. “I see that you honor his legacy well.” She motioned to jolly Roger on the side of his submarine.

 “He meant everything to me.”

 “You meant just as much to him.” She smiled thinking of all the times he called her in secret to talk about how Law was doing. “I apologize for not coming to see you sooner. I say that like I’m supposed to see you at all.” She laughed. “Here take this. It’s the number to my personal transponder snail. Call me if you ever need to hear a funny story, because when it comes to Cora… Let’s just say I have a bunch.” Law took the paper from her hands and put it in his pocket.

 “Will do.” He smiled. “What’s your name?”

 “The sleepwalking sea king slayer, didn’t I tell you already?” Law rolled his eyes. “It’s Y/N.”

 “Will I ever see you again Y/N?”

 “Well..” She turned around to show the black letter on the jacket. “You better hope and pray you don’t.”

 “Fair enough.”

 “Well it’s been fun talking with you.” She threw Law the now empty candy bag in his hands before walking away. “One more thing.”

 “What’s that?”

“You need to smile more.” The woman gave him a toothy grin and then in the blink of a eye, disappeared.

“I’ll try.”

[gotta-pet-em-all]

Are you a seeker of the truth?

If you're receiving this message we believe you are.

Have you ever truly considered the convinces of this world, or are you still asleep

What if you had a change to escape it all, to live a real life, instead of the one you have taken.

You could reach fulfilment. Happiness. Many have.

With us you will know the truth.

To continue living in the dark is a common choice, but you may be one of the few who deviate.

We await your response with anticipation

Team Fauna

Cracks knuckles. Aight lads, let's do this, shall we?

I could use a little fun.

Are you a seeker of the truth? If you're receiving this message we believe you are.

First of all, you need a comma after "message". Second of all, trying to make people feel special is how cults get you. Like girlypop I am not buying your "chosen for a special purpose" bullshit. This ain't my first rodeo. Asking people if they're a seeker of truth primes them for the rest of the message, where you convince them that what they're missing in life is you, that you can fill the gaps.

Have you ever truly considered the convinces of this world, or are you still asleep

Okay. What the fuck does this mean. The... convinces of this world? That doesn't even make any fucking sense. Also, you're missing the punctuation.

Ughhhhh you need to get some originality for real. Do you know how many cults out there are using the same "the world is asleep, wake up!" bullshit?????

What if you had a change to escape it all, to live a real life, instead of the one you have taken. You could reach fulfilment. Happiness. Many have.

A chance to escape it all? Are. Are you trying to recruit people who would drink the kool-aid. Because someone at rock-bottom depression.... yeah, those are the best soldiers. Disposable. Tbh I'd rather be depressed.

Also? Speaking from experience, the happiness only lasts as long as the love-bombing does. After that is the dehumanization and brainwashing.

With us you will know the truth.

Again, you need a comma after us.

To continue living in the dark is a common choice, but you may be one of the few who deviate.

Ooooooo, portraying those who join you as something truly special, giving them a pat on the back for being a "free thinker" who joins a cult. Gosh, I've neeeever heard of that before. Fucking freaks.

We await your response with anticipation Team Fauna

Horrible recruitment flyer! Fuck you! Go swallow a pincushion </3

Where the fuck is your blog, by the way. Is this just your teaser? To pique the interest of the masses, get them thinking and marinating, before you show up for real?

If you're not a fucking coward, give me your damn url.

[mrsportgas]

Ghost Ridders Cap.3

#Summary: Eight years ago, you were taken against your Will to Mary Goise to become the new slave of Saint Roswald, or rather, to living a hell on earth. One day, while you go with  him on a visit to a New World´s  island in the New World, but a familiar face appears. This creates the perfect opportunity for you to escape, join the Whitebeard Pirates, and discover more about your past, your abilities, and who you really are. All  while you try to endure your new crewmate, Portgas D. Ace, who is incredibly annoying... or perhaps incredibly irresistible? You haven't decided yet.

This story is based in the world of One Piece, with the same characters and timeline. Of course, this story is fiction created by me. Some of the timelines, names, and characters might be the same, also some names, characters, stories, or even personalities may be altered. The story is happening pre-time skip, while strawhats are in sabondy for the first time.

The first chapter is an introduction to the current story, which begins with Ace as your central romance. (This romance may shift to other characters as the story progresses, but don't worry, there's still plenty of Ace to come.) The story is written in first person. Female gender, Y/N, but feel free to change the gender, name, or anything else that makes you more comfortable.♡

Feel free to interact, likes and comments are very welcome!!!!!!! this hepl me keep writing!!! Suggestions and constructive criticism are also appreciated.

Images are for more inspiration!!!!!

Previous Chapter.

"I don't need to hide behind Marco, trust me. Or do you need me to kick your ass again?” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Well, well, well, what a little brat we have here. You haven’t kicked anything, rookie. I know you like being close to me and the idea of touching me". - He surrounds my shoulders with his arms as he continued, “But it’s still too early for that, besides I don’t think Marco would like seeing his cute little sister all over me.” That cocky smile hanging around his lips all day was starting to become annoyingly familiar.

“Nobody’s going to be all over anybody. Besides, I prefer men, not little boys.” I said, brushing his arm off.

Ace started laughing, and before we realized we had finally reached the deck. Several crew members began calling out to Ace, asking him to tell them about his most recent mission and how he had single-handedly defeated an entire crew of marines.

In the distance, Marco raised an arm, signaling me to come over. At the table, Izou, Jozu, Thatch, and Fossa were talking with serious, calm expressions about crews next moves and pop´s directives. Marco moved to the side, leaving a spot next to him open, indicating for me to sit there.

“He told me you were dead, you know?” Our eyes met, intrigued by each other’s presence. “That’s why I didn’t look for you.” Marco’s words automatically brought images from the past to my mind. But it was too much, too painful.

“I also thought I was dead. Dead inside.” The images in my mind were becoming more terrifying, replaying everything I had lived through in Mary Geoise. “There are many things I want to tell you, but… right now, I can’t. It’s… too painful.”

“It’s okay, take your time. I just want to know if you’re okay, if you’ve been okay… Eight years ago, I lost track of you, and a few days ago, not only do I see you alive, but also a prisoner of a Celestial Dragon.”

“Our mother died so I could live,” I murmured.

“That was her choice, not your fault.” Marco continued “You should talk to Pops… one of these days, when you feel ready.”

“I suppose.”

Our conversation was quickly interrupted by a burst of fire, which all of us at the table, though caught off guard, surprisingly dodged with ease.

“Why the long faces, geezers? Come on, rookie, I’ll introduce you to the rest of the crew. You’ve sat down at the most boring table on the entire Moby Dick,” Ace said, putting his arm around my shoulders under Marco’s watchful eye.

“I know you like the idea of being close to me,” I said sarcastically, referencing our conversation from a few moments ago, “But I can go by myself, thank you very much.” Marco’s gaze intensified as he fixed it on Ace’s arms.

Marco wasn’t new to this, and he knew exactly how Ace was with girls—his modus operandi, his womanizing ways, and of course, how much he enjoyed annoying Marco. But above all, he was afraid of you falling into his charm, or you suffering disappointment since Ace had never been with the same girl for more than one night. As soon as you landed on the next island, he would seek new entertainment, and by the next morning, on the next island, he would take another girl to the Moby Dick until he got tired, and so on and on.

“You know? I love driving Marco crazy,” Ace whispered in my ear. Driving Marco crazy? That’s it—all those words and approaches were just to tease Marco. My stomach turned, but it doesn’t matter because I don’t like him, I don’t like him at all, he might even annoy me.

Yes! That’s it!! Plus I´ve know him just for a few days.

I got up from the table, trying to escape from Marco and Ace gazes for a while, not really knowing where to go since there weren’t many girls or people my age, except for a few of Whitebeard’s nurses and, well… Ace.

Soon, I spotted Vista, and although so far he had been one of the few who had said a few words to me, a huge smile hid behind his peculiar mustache—a smile that gave me enough confidence to approach. He was sitting around a bonfire while another man played a guitar and the others sang with enthusiasm. Next to him, a huge lynx lay resting. It must have sensed my presence as I approached because, with an uncertain look, it quickly sat up, and the closer I got, the more it let out small growls.

“He likes you, doesn’t he, Kotatsu?” Vista said with an even bigger smile

Responding with a smile of my own, I sat down next to the huge feline. “I get along well with animals; sometimes I prefer them over people.”

Vista let out a laugh, and the lynx lay back down, placing one of its paws on my lap.

As the night wore on and after a long chat with Vista and some of the other members who joined our conversation from time to time, my gaze occasionally crossed with Ace’s in the distance, who was dancing and drinking with the crew merrily.

Suddenly, he jumped onto a table, dancing and doing somersaults, though due to the alcohol, he looked more like a clumsy clown, and as his gaze met mine, he stepped on one of the plates, and unable to catch himself, his face slammed into the table. The burst of laughter from the crew was the biggest I had witnessed so far. Ace lifted his face and laughed, blushing like crazy, a hand ran through his hair in search of his hat to cover his face.

I had to admit it—he was handsome, very handsome.

On his cheek, blood oozed red from a cut he had gotten from the impact. Marco, sighing and with all the calm in the world, walked over to where Ace was, “Come on, time to sleep.” Ace, still a bit affected by the alcohol and not quite understanding why his friend wanted to spoil his fun by taking him to bed, turned around, “It’s still early, Marco, don’t be a party pooper.”

“It’s almost dawn; it’d be better if I treat that wound, and you go to sleep. You can barely stand,” Marco said as he and Thatch took Ace, putting his arms over their shoulders and dragging him toward the infirmary. It was then that Ace, as he passed by my side, quickly straightened up and approached my spot.

“Well, looks like you can walk by yourself now…” Thatch said sarcastically.

“Look, rookie, now we match” Ace said, pointing to the wound on his cheek. Without giving me time to respond, he continued, “If you want, I can take you to my room… I mean, to your room… This ship is very big; it’s easy to get lost” he said, babbling.

Behind him, Marco, furious and clearly tired of babysitting, quickly grabbed Ace’s arm. “Nobody’s taking anyone anywhere, except me taking you to the infirmary,” Marco exclaimed. “And you, go to bed right now,” he continued, this time in a calm voice, clearly addressing me.

I woke up the next day—well, more like the afternoon. Marco wasn’t in his bed anymore, so I assumed he was in the infirmary. I quickly washed up and dressed. On the floor in front of the door, there was a note:

“Come to the kitchen when you read this.” – Thatch.

I headed to the kitchen to find Thatch and a few othermembers washing dishes and cleaning up the mess from the previous night’s party. So, I started helping with gathering plates and glasses to take them to the sink.

“Ah, there you are” Thatch said from afar. “Come, take this food to the boxes. We need to make sure we have enough food for the night; I don’t want to hear Ace complaining about being hungry.” My look of surprise made him continue, “Haven’t you talked to Marco?”

“No, I haven’t seen him yet.”

“Good, you’re coming with the First and Fourth Divisions to the island. We’ll arrive in an hour. You should change your clothes; I think there are some black suits in the storage room. Since it’s nighttime, that’ll be the best option for you to blend in.” And as he walked away, he remembered he haven´t mention the most important thing, he stops and continued. “The Second Division has its own mission too; if something goes wrong, we’ll have to support them. Don’t worry, from what I saw a few days ago, you have no problem defending yourself,” he said with a kind smile.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

I found the storage room easily, thanks to Thatch’s directions. Inside the boxes, all sorts of gadgets were hidden behind the lids. In one of them, there were military-style clothing and gear. I grabbed one of the black jumpsuits, the smallest one I could find, and returned to my room to change and tie up my hair.

Not wasting much more time, I went back up to the deck. Thatch greeted me again with a smile. “This island is part of our territory, Whitebeard’s Pirates’ territory. We believe another crew has taken it, so the Second Division will go to defeat them, while we’ll gather supplies in the forest.”

No sooner said than done, I headed down to the port along with Tatch and Kotatsu, who now wouldn’t leave my side. Before us, a vast island with a tropical landscape lay, filled with towering and endless palm trees.

As we walked down a long dirt road, Kotatsu suddenly dashed ahead, heading straight towards the front lines where the first division was located, leaping and licking a boy with blue hair and a mask.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Just as we were almost done, a tremendous explosion caught our attention. As we approached the source of the noise, I noticed that one of the crew members’ eyes changed color, and his ears grew on top of his head; he had caught a scent and was already racing towards the sound without hesitation. Shouts and echoes of gunfire filled the forest, and the urgency of the situation became clear.

“It looks like the Second Division had company,” one of them noted as we began to move faster.

‘Go ahead with Kotatsu, grab a cart, and he’ll pull it. I’ll see if Marco is finished as well.’ Tatch speak up.

‘Let’s go, Kotatsu,’ I said to the large lynx with a smile. He responded with a lick on my face and eagerly set off to pull the cart.

After a while on the long road, suddenly, unfamiliar laughter and shadows emerged from the darkness of the forest. ‘Well, look at what we have here,’ said one of the men. ‘A little girl with her pet.’

Pirates. Probably the ones who were besieging the town.

‘Hasn’t anyone ever told you not to go out alone at night?’ said another, as more men emerged from the shadows.

About ten pirates positioned themselves around us, blocking any escape routes. Kotatsu began to get nervous, whimpering and looking around frantically. ‘Easy,’ I said, placing one of my hands on his fur. ‘Take these supplies to the ship; I’ll handle them.’

The animal immediately calmed down and, now composed, resumed his path towards the ship.

‘Where do you think you’re going with that little kitty?’ one of the pirates rushed at us.

My arms turned black as coal, and with quick, almost invisible movements, I delivered a powerful punch to the pirate. He fell to the ground, knocked out and unconscious. I looked at Kotatsu, nodding for him to continue on his way.

‘I guess no one told you that stalking around at night is wrong.’ I said.

The remaining nine pirates tensed up, taking positions to fight. Two quickly lunged at me, but I swiftly dodged them, striking them with my arms. A third hit me with his sword, and I fell to the ground. Dazed from the blow, I knew I had to do something—something more. The pirates began to crowd around me, preparing to attack all at once to capture me more easily.

I looked at the sky: a crescent moon. Perfect. No danger.

It was the perfect time to use my devil fruit. It had been too long since I last fought, and even longer since I fought in this form, but it was better to try.

A massive snow white dragon appeared before the incredulous eyes of the pirates. With great ease, I struck down several with my claws, and a loud roar sent the rest fleeing towards the city, terrified and panic-stricken. Easy.

I took to the sky, spotting Kotatsu running towards the port, where the rest of the divisions were patiently waiting for us to return.

In the city square, the second division was fiercely battling the rival crew, completely surrounded by flames. In one corner, the boy with blue hair was lying on the ground, struggling to fend off two men attacking him mercilessly.

I continued my flight towards the square. Since I had taken the form of a dragon, I might as well put it to use. The sensation of flying again filled my body with happiness, the wind rushing against my face and the night breeze give me strength and hope.

To the cries and surprise of those in the square, I descended. With great force and ease, I struck down the men harassing the blue-haired boy, who was now petrified by the enormous creature before him, fainting completely. Some of the opposing pirates threw arrows, knives, and hurled any object they could find at me. Meanwhile, I tried to strike anyone who stood in our way with my long limbs.

There were hardly any pirates left from the rival crew when a large blaze formed a path, illuminating the square. ‘Your captain is unconscious. You better leave now if you don’t want to meet the same fate,’ said Ace as he emerged from the flames.

The few remaining ruffians ran towards the port where the flames subsided, searching for their ship and an escape.

I turned my head towards the blue-haired boy, who was still unconscious on the ground. I approached him, picked him up with one of my claws, and headed towards the Moby Dick.

‘¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡Deuce!!!!!!’ Ace shouted, sounding desperate. He quickly ignited his fist, launching a fireball towards my body.

‘¡Wait Ace!’ Marco grabbed his arm, lowering it, causing the fire to dissipate. ‘She’s got Deuce,’ Ace yelled, pointing at me. Marco stood still as the dragon’s body, now engulfed in flames, began to absorb all the fire.

FIRE. A deep, resonant voice grew stronger within me.

Damn. My vision started to blur, more and more until everything turned black.

--------------------------------------------------------------

‘Come back... Y/N... you have to come back now, or the boy will die’—my mother appeared before me, her sweet voice repeating the same thing over and over as she stroked my hair.

‘Come back where, Mom? What boy…?’

A black shadow once again took over my vision.

In the distance, I heard the waves crashing and a silence; nothing could be heard, just the calm of the high seas at night. That’s it, the sea….

The black color started to change to a dark blue, and the moonlight illuminated the deck of an enormous ship far away. Everything returned to its place. What have you done…? How long have I been gone…? Without thinking, I looked at my claw, and behind my talons, the young boy still lay unconscious. I looked around, realizing I had flown so high that I was above the few clouds that remained in that vast sky. In the distance, the Moby Dick. I was about to head there when my entire body was overwhelmed by the deep wounds now covering me. Damn it. What have you been doing….?

Despite the intense pain my body felt, I took flight and quickly reached the deck of the Moby Dick. A few crew members were still storing and organizing supplies while Whitebeard and several other commanders were in the center, deep in discussion.

Barely in control of my movements, I released the boy onto the deck, opening my claw, and landed as best I could, all under the watchful eye of Whitebeard and the horrified cries of some crew members, terrified by such a beast.

‘Y/N, where were you?!??’ Marco was running, shouting in my direction. ‘Are you out of your mind? You know you can’t do that at night; you knew, and you didn’t care,’ he continued as I slowly changed back to my human form. ‘And what happened to you? Where were you? You’ve been missing for two hours; look at you, covered in wounds! What have you done?!’

The entire crew, commanders, and even Whitebeard himself turned their heads, astonished at the incredible scene. A girl, now naked, standing with a serious expression, lay before them.

‘I’m fine,’ I said, which would be the last thing I said that night as I collapsed from the intense pain I felt. Now, safe among my comrades, I could finally pass out.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up with a start and a muffled scream, waking Kotatsu, who was sleeping on the floor next to my bed. On the other side, in a second bed, the blue-haired boy looked at me, intrigued.

‘I think he likes you,’ he said with no emotion in his voice, pointing at the lynx. ‘You can call me Deuce.’

‘I’m Y/N. I’ve never seen you before. But to be honest, I haven’t been here long either,’ I said, laughing.

‘I don’t come out much… from the library I mean… unless there’s a mission.’

Marco burst through the door, looking frantic. ‘Does anything hurt?’ Marco asked, breathless. ‘When you didn’t return to the ship… I… God, you scared me to death.’ Marco hugged me tightly. ‘Thank Deuce; he healed you this morning, so there’s hardly any trace of the wounds left.’

‘Bah, something I read in a book,’ Deuce replied, still with a serious, albeit faintly trembling, expression.

‘We’re staying on the island for another week in case those idiots decide to come back… Now, go, both of you. You have the afternoon and night off. And Y/N… Don’t transform into anything else...please.’

---------------------------------------------------------------

The mirror in the room I shared with Marco was smaller than I’d like, but it was enough to see how all the wounds on my body were now barely shadows.

‘Y/N?’ Izou called from the door.

“Izou!” I responded with a big smile and quickly opened the door.

“The crew is heading to the town's bar tonight... Do you want to come? I’m not sure how you’re feeling after last night…”

“I’ll be there,” I replied quickly. Izou gave a small smile and disappeared down the hallway.

I figured I should go to town, maybe find a salon and buy some clothes. The tips of my hair, now a honey color, were already starting to return to their natural shade. It wouldn’t hurt to change my look a bit and be less recognizable… But first, I needed to find some money.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

I bought several skirts, pants, tops, and dresses, and then headed to the salon.

“I want it honey-colored and with bangs, please” I told the hairdresser. She proceeded just as I asked, and after a few hours, the work was done.

“It looks great. Are you going to the bar later?”

“Maybe,” I said, laughing.

“You should go; everyone’s going tonight. The Whitebeard Pirates defeated those thugs yesterday and all the young people in town will be there to celebrate. Oh, and the Whitebeard Pirates will be there too, or so I’ve heard! You should go; all the girls are talking about Fire Fist Ace being there.”

“Well, I don’t think it’s that big of a deal,” I said, rolling my eyes.

“They say he’s handsome, and he always leaves with some girl. It could be you!”

Ugh. No, please.

“Well, don’t tell me you’re not interested… Although, you might need to be careful—he's a pirate." she said, laughing cheerfully as she saw the disgust on my face.

Disgust? Did he really disgust you that much?

“If you’re going, it’s best if I do your makeup. Want some? Something natural! Don’t worry, it’s on the house! I’m sure you’ll catch the attention of the guys, maybe even Fire Fist Ace attention!”

“Thank you so much, I’d love that. Although I’m not trying to get anyone’s attention tonight,” I laughed.

I left the salon just as the sun was setting, so I headed straight to the bar.

The hairdresser had let me use her private bathroom to change clothes, so I put on a dress and some not-too-high heels that she insisted a bit too much on me wearing. It was hard to walk since I’d never worn heels before, but I was slowly getting the hang of it.

The bar was down the street, and a large crowd was already gathering in front of the place.

I entered the bar, trying to spot any members of the crew. At the first table, a group of countless girls was trying to get closer and closer to the center, where, of course, Ace was. With a big smile and laughing, he was relating how he had bravely fought the captain of those ruffians. The girls were squealing, touching him, and even moving around him, trying to get his attention.

I walked past them and towards the back, where Vista, Izou, Marco, and several other commanders were sharing large barrels of beer.

“Wow, Y/N, you look… stunning,” Izou said, eyes wide.

“We almost didn’t recognize you, kid,” Vista chuckled.

“I’m not a kid, I’m 25, you know,” I replied, rolling my eyes.

“You’ll always be a kid,” Marco whispered as he hugged me.

“Here, Y/N, have some beer,” Jozu said kindly, though handing me the mug a bit roughly.

The truth is, I didn’t like beer at all. So I got up to the bar in search of another drink. “I’ll be right back.”

At the bar, Deuce, with the longest face I’d ever seen on him, was staring at the table, lost in thought.

“What are you doing here alone?” I asked, standing next to him.

“Ace made me come.”

The bartender interrupted our conversation. A tall guy with brown hair and honey-colored eyes spoke with a big smile on his face. “So, what would you like?”

“The same as him,” I replied, pointing at Deuce.

The guy turned around, ready to prepare my drink.

“You know, maybe you shouldn’t stare at people… so intensely…” Deuce smiled slightly. I’d say this wasn’t very characteristic of him.

“Oh my god, was I staring that much?” We both laughed, but another voice interrupted our chat.

“Sweetheart, I don’t know what you’ve done to Deuce, but it’s been years since I’ve seen him laugh.” Ace approached from behind, grabbing Deuce by the shoulders. “Although I’m not surprised; I’d be happy too if I were with such a pretty girl.”

He looked at me, and his eyes widened. He hadn’t recognized me.

“Y/N… I didn’t recognize you,” he said, laughing.

“Here you go, on the house,” the young bartender interrupted, winking at me.

“Well, well, looks like someone’s getting lucky,” Ace crossed his arms, now with a faint smile.

“Ace!!! Come over here tell us again how you defeated those pirates!” some girls shouted from a table in the distance.

“Duty calls,” Ace said, turning around and running towards the table where the girls were sighing at his stories, dancing, and trying to get him to take them out dancing.

After watching him for a second, Deuce returned to his drink. “Ace is always the center of attention,” he said with an indifferent tone.

“Yeah, he seems to be good at it,” I responded, watching how Ace moved easily through the crowd, enjoying the affection he received.

“I guess that’s what happens when you’re that charismatic,” Deuce continued, taking another sip.

“And handsome,” I added without thinking, which made Deuce raise an eyebrow and look at me curiously.

“So, you think he’s handsome?”

I felt myself blush and quickly tried to correct my comment.

“Well, it’s a fact, isn’t it? I mean, all those girls aren’t after him for nothing.”

I stayed at the bar for a moment, watching how Ace moved among the girls with his typical confidence. I smiled to myself; it was amusing how his presence could light up a place in seconds. But I wasn’t there to watch Ace; I had come to enjoy the night and, if possible, relax a bit after everything that had happened.

I turned to Deuce, who was still somewhat pensive, though with a slight smile on his lips. "So Ace dragged you here, huh? Doesn’t seem like your kind of place," I said, trying to keep the conversation light.

Deuce sighed, taking a sip of his drink. "Yeah, well, Ace has always been the life of the party. Sometimes it’s just easier to go along with it than to resist.Ace had that strange ability to pull everyone along at his pace, almost as if it were impossible to say no to him". He proceed.

"So, what about you? What do you do when you’re not going along with Ace’s plans?"

Deuce looked at me, and for a moment, I thought he was going to close up again. But instead, he seemed to relax a bit more. "Usually, I’m busy writing. Sometimes I like to get lost in words, write stories, reflect on what we’ve experienced at sea… It’s kind of an escape, I suppose."

I was a bit surprised by the revelation. Deuce seemed more thoughtful than most of the other pirates, but I hadn’t imagined he was a writer.

"That sounds interesting. Have you ever thought about sharing what you write?"

Deuce smiled, this time with a bit more warmth. "Maybe someday. For now, I do it for myself. It’s a way to process everything that happens around us."

I nodded, understanding. Sometimes, in a world as chaotic as ours, it was necessary to find a way to vent, to channel all the emotions and experiences we accumulated.

The conversation flowed naturally, and for a while, I forgot about the bustling crowd around us. It was nice to have a calm conversation, without the usual distractions. However, eventually, the noise in the bar began to intensify, and I noticed more members of the crew joining in the festivities.

"Looks like things are picking up," I said, looking around.

Deuce nodded. "Yeah, and it’ll probably get crazier as the night goes on."

At that moment, I felt a hand on my shoulder, and when I turned around, I found Marco, smiling at me with his usual calmness. "Come to the table. We’ve ordered some food, and we don’t want you guys to miss out."

I nodded, grateful for the invitation. "Sure, let’s go."

The night was filled with laughter, music, camaraderie ( and of cause Ace´s eyes meeting yours all night long), and I realized that despite all the complications, I had found a place where I could be myself, surrounded by people who, even though they were pirates, were like family. And that, amidst all the chaos, was what truly mattered.

The atmosphere in the bar was at its peak, with the music booming and laughter echoing throughout the place. However, Ace wasn’t the only one drawing attention.

The bartender, that tall guy with brown hair and honey-colored eyes who had winked at me earlier, seemed to be watching me from behind the bar. Every time I approached to order something or just passed by, he found some excuse to talk to me or give me a compliment. At first, I ignored it, thinking he was just being friendly, but when he insisted on giving me another drink on the house, I couldn’t help but notice the uncomfortable look on Deuce’s face next to me.

"Wow, you’ve become the star of the night," Deuce commented quietly, half-jokingly.

"What?" I asked, confused by his remark.

"The bartender hasn’t stopped looking at you since you walked in," Deuce clarified with a slight smile.

I turned towards the bar, and sure enough, the bartender was preparing another drink for me without me even asking. He approached with the glass in hand and a smile that seemed overly enthusiastic.

"This one’s on the house, for the most beautiful girl of the night," he said, handing me the glass. His words were flattering, but there was something in his tone that made me feel a bit uncomfortable.

"Thanks, but it really wasn’t necessary," I responded.

"It’s just a small gesture. I can’t help it; when I see someone so special, I like to make sure they’re enjoying the night."

Before I could respond, I felt a presence beside me, and when I turned my head, I found Ace standing there. His expression no longer showed the carefree smile from before. There was a seriousness in his eyes that I rarely saw, and his posture was tense, as if he was about to confront an enemy.

"Thanks for the gesture," Ace said, taking the drink from my hands before I could even taste it and downing the whole thing in one gulp. "But I don’t think she needs anything else tonight."

-----------TO BE CONTINUED-----------------------

Things are about to get spicyyyy whittt ACEEEEE

Shittttttt.

Now what Y/N should do?!?!!?

NEXT CHAPTER

[mdzs-owns-my-ass-i-guess]

Dancing through the night

@incorrectly-quoting-mxtx here is the ficlet that resulted from your prompt marinating in my brain for the past two days. Thank you for the wait and the sweet words, I hope you like this!

If any of you have any ideas you'd like me to write, feel free to mention me in a post and I may write it if the inspiration gods bless me!

---

"Is there anything you can't do to perfection?" Wei Wuxian begins, a fond look in his eyes and a teasing smile on his lips as he and his husband walk into their inn suite. "I don't think there's anything you don't excel at!"

Lan Wangji's eyes color a light pink at that as he sits at the table, a pot of wine awaiting, courtesy of the innkeeper.

Though he is used to hearing such words left and right, praise an appanage of his reputation, his heart always stutters whenever Wei Wuxian sets on a tirade about how great his Hanguang-Jun is. The words flow so easily out of him, like he's laying out obvious facts that anybody would see, poorly pretending to be unaware of the effect he has on Lan Wangji. It hasn't been a rare occurence for the man to have to shut Wei Wuxian up with kisses - otherwise he would have gone on for hours, waxing poetic about his husband's everything.

However, tonight is going to go different.

"There is something." Lan Wangji responds, pouring a cup of wine for Wei Wuxian, who gratefully downs it before taking his seat on Lan Wangji's lap, arms coming to circle his neck loosely. The closeness is both comforting and electric, eyes locked lovingly.

"What could there be that the great, unparalleled Hanguang-Jun hasn't mastered yet?" Wei Wuxian asks, letting one of his hands cup Lan Wangji's face, thumb stroking his cheek.

"Dancing."

"Oh?" Wei Wuxian feigns shock, "We cannot let such a simple skill evade someone as amazing as you, can we?"

Lan Wangji lets his hands caress over Wei Ying's thighs, parting robes. "Hm? What do you suggest?"

"Fortunately for you, I am an amazing dancer, and I can teach you!"

Before Lan Wangji can protest, Wei Wuxian pulls him up to his feet, and he has to catch himself out of the saccharine sweetness of having been held and holding his beloved before he falls flat on his face.

"We need music." Lan Wangji attempts a protest, though his hands come to rest around Wei Wuxian's slim waist nevertheless.

Wei Wuxian smiles, winding his arms around Lan Wangji again and begins humming a familiar tune, his voice melodious around the unspoken lyrics. He urges Lan Wangji to move, steps slow and close together, a simple sequence of moving together into an imaginary circle.

Lan Wangji's brows furrow in concentration, and Wei Wuxian finds the sight adorable enough to let a small giggle escape him before he leans to leave a butterfly kiss on the tip of his husband's nose. He stops humming to do it, and Lan Wangji stills, embarrassed.

"Wei Ying. The music."

"You know it too."

Lan Wangji wraps an arm around Wei Wuxian's waist, firmer, and fills up the tiny space between them. He picks up the song where Wei Ying left off, and tries to mirror the movements Wei Wuxian just showed him.

He thinks of the way he composed that song, how easily it had come to him and how difficult it had been for him to understand what he was feeling for this annoying, rule-breaking, intelligent, beautiful man that's now his companion for life.

He thinks of how he hummed this song thinking of him, when he was missing, when he wasn't himself, when he died.

He thinks of how he'd sang it as lullaby for A-Yuan.

He thinks of how it had been the first song Wei Ying played when he returned.

They move in tandem to their song, little circles around the wide room, and some time between gazing at his beloved like he hung the moon and the stars in the sky, and delighting in how easily he picked up those simple movements, Wei Wuxian joins in the duet.

They hum and dance like that for a while, unhurried, enjoying one another and the memories they had with their song, adding yet another one to cherish with Wangxian as a background melody.

One day, perhaps, they'd write a sequel.