#[ looked back at the opening of the second season and comparing all the differences between

[wxtchpilot]

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[lamentationsofalonelypotato]

Chapter 9: Wedding Bells or Gong of Destruction?

Pairing: Soldier Boy x f!reader, Reader POV

Summary: When the reader left Payback 40 years ago after a falling out with her childhood best friend she never looked back, but when two men show up to her apartment and start asking her questions about the past, the reader begins to think those things can’t stay hidden and starts to question what’s real and what’s fantasy.  This is a re-telling of The Boys Season 3, where the reader is a supe who's known Soldier Boy since 1927. The chapters will fluctuate between past and present. This is chapter nine of my "You Call It Madness But I Call It Love" series. (I'm so bad at summaries please forgive me!)

Word Count: 3.3K

Warnings: References to sex, Cursing (a few times), Soldier Boy might be, is, really, absolutely, a little OOC, pining, fluff, some angst.

Note: This is told from Reader's perspective. Any references to the reader is made using you or your. There is minimal use of y/n. I tried my best to proofread, but nobody's perfect. Reader is described as "curvy" occasionally. If you don’t like, don’t read, but if you do like, you’re my favorite!

Internal Monologue is in first person and is in italics

Series Masterlist

Main Masterlist

Philadelphia 1941

You paced at the foot of your bed, wringing your hands together, heartbeat frantic against your ribcage as your world seemed to spin to a stop. You didn't know whether you wanted to laugh or cry, scream or sob, throw up or have a stroke. Your entire body was electrified with your nerves, popping and crackling loud in your ears as the impulses jumped from synapse to synapse with ease.

And it was Howard's fault.

After three years of courting, of you trying to make up excuses to lengthen the distance between you two, of trying to find a way out, of trying to find a way to tell Ben that you loved him, it had finally happened, Howard had proposed. It wasn't out of the blue, you had been courting long enough and you were well past the age of usual engagement, something your mother continued to point out, but that didn't make any of this any easier.

Your eyes drop to the offensive chunk of jewelry on your left hand. Not only was it the ugliest ring you’d ever seen, but it was from the wrong man. You knew that deep down in your bones, knew it the second Howard came to Sunday night dinner and dropped to one knee in front of you. Hell, you knew it the second you met Howard for the first time. He was nothing compared to Ben, no one was.

You had looked Howard in the eye stunned, unable to speak, then raised your eyes to your father and mother hoping to find your voice and a plausible excuse, but before you could give him the honest answer you knew in your heart to be true, your mother had shouted "Of course she will!"

Because she's controlled everything else about my life, of course she'd do this as well.

Your tried again not to think about how ugly the ring and how it was utterly wrong for you in every way. When Howard dropped to one knee and opened the velvet box, all you could think of was Ben. You wondered what ring Ben would have chosen for you and wondered if the ring from him would have been right.  He knew you better than anyone else.

Which begged the question: shouldn't your fiancé?

You tried not to compare your best friend to Howard, because you knew who would win. Every time you began to compare them, Ben had more pros than Howard did. But you couldn't keep waiting for Ben, didn't want to. Howard was promising you a future, a family, marriage-

A loveless one. The thought is immediate and makes your heart seize in your chest.

You knew that a marriage with Ben would be different, filled with passion, romance, love-

But he doesn't love you. So basically if Ben married you it would be the same for him as you marrying Howard. A one-sided love.

Despite dating Howard, you still allowed Ben in your life. Ben stayed over whenever he wished, walked with you to the park, stole you away for drinks in the bar down the street where Howard wouldn't be caught dead in, and took you to the occasional baseball game. Howard didn't drink and he didn't like being outside. Those moments with Ben made you feel more alive than you'd ever felt and then you'd meet Howard later and try to summon the enthusiasm to sit with him at dinner, all the while you were still buzzing with happiness from seeing Ben.

It made you feel like a traitor, feeling that good and thinking about another person while Howard tried to be everything you wanted.

Whenever Howard would kiss you goodnight, it made you feel like you were kissing a statue, cold, unfeeling, and despite his attempts to slide his tongue in your mouth it was passionless. And it made you think about what Ben said about Howard's name and what he would be like in bed, as improper as it was. You think back to all the moments you and Ben had been pressed against one another when you woke up in the morning, how perfectly you fit against him. Whenever Howard tried to hug you or hold you close it was all wrong. He wasn't tall enough or broad enough, not to mention sometimes you thought if he'd even be able to pick you up. Howard was more lanky than muscular, certainly not as strong as Ben, who picked you up one time on a dare from Adam when you were all really drunk.

Howard didn’t make you feel warm when he touched you accidently, he didn’t make you feel brave whenever your mother was around, and he certainly didn’t make you feel as happy as you did when you were with Ben. Not to mention he never let you draw him, said that there were more important things that he could be doing rather than siting there posing for you.

Howard wasn’t spontaneous. He’d show up exactly on time, call when he said he would, time every single minute of your dates and he certainly never tried to surprise you the way Ben did. The only time Howard ever seemed excited about anything was when he was talking about the fiscal progress of the United States in comparison to Europe, which he weaseled into every conversation you had together.

Even when he asked you to marry him it sounded more like a business proposal than a happy moment. You always thought that when you got engaged the other person would make at least some confession of love. He hadn’t done that. Howard successfully sucked the life out of a moment you thought you would remember forever. You couldn’t even remember what he said before he got on one knee, just the awkward silence and the feeling of dread that clamped tight around your heart when he asked you the question that ruined your life.

Legally am I bound to this, because technically my mother said yes for me?

You wondered if Howard proposed because the U.S was finally joining in the war or if he genuinely loved you. He brought by flowers often, roses even though you liked lavender more, brought by caramels even though you liked chocolates, and sent you books on the financial history of the United States that were helpful when you couldn't sleep at night, they sent you right off, not to mention you'd started sketching street scenes in the pages making them much more interesting, but you weren't going to show Howard that. His head would probably explode.

You sigh again, pacing faster at the end of your bed.

Howard wanted a quick wedding within the week before he shipped out to military training on Friday, and maybe you should be scared about your fiancé going to war, but the only person you were worried about was Ben. He'd probably also join the military to prove something to his father and take your heart with him when he left. You knew that Ben was the only one you wanted to hold your heart in his hands.

You look back down at the ring on your finger, filled with dread and thoughts about a passionless future.

How am I going to tell Ben?

The tap on your window is familiar, but frightens you, because you didn't know how to tell him or how he'd react. Each time you brought up Howard around him, Ben would make a sarcastic comment and change the subject. You think about the night you danced together, when Ben said that you couldn't be Howard's and also his friend.

Does that mean he'll never want to be apart of my life when we get married?

The thought makes your heart break. You couldn't imagine a life without Ben and you didn't want to, but you could image a life without Howard.

Ben is crouched in the window, a wide smile on his face,  but this time he doesn't wait for you to let him in, he rolls up the window himself and he crosses the room to hug you.

The hug surprises you. You were usually the one that initiated them, but the hug breaks something in your chest and you hug him back tighter than you ever had to stop the tears from falling, pressing your face into his rumpled suit.

"Hey Sweetheart." Ben pulls back, but frowns when he looks at your face. "What's wrong?" Ben's hand gently cups your cheek, trailing warmth where his fingertips touch. You're surprised at the boldness of his touch, but you ascribe it to the alcohol, given the sharp tang of whiskey that floats through the air between you.

"Nothing." You clear your throat, stepping back so his hand falls and covering your ring finger on your left hand with your right nonchalantly. "How are you?"

Ben frowns for a minute at your reaction, but then shakes it off. "I've got great news." He smiles so wide that it makes the urge to cry rise in the back of your throat again.

You knew that as soon as you married Howard he would forbid you from seeing Ben. He already had after the night at the dance hall, but you didn't pay attention to him. Unfortunately, you knew that once you were married you wouldn’t be able to defy his wishes. You respected what marriage represented far too much to cross that line.

"Um me too." You smile tightly, your heartbeat so loud you wonder if Ben can hear it.

"Oh. Well-" Ben begins to say, wanting to let you talk.

"No. Please, you go first."

He won't tell me what news he has if I say my piece about Howard.

"Well, I've been thinking about what you said to me the other day about trying to figure out what I want-"

You remembered the conversation clearly. It was another day at Fairmount Park and it was an attempt to get Ben to start thinking about his future, though when you had told him to figure out what he wanted you hoped that it meant he would consider you, consider turning your friendship into something more. Your heart surges, hoping that this is it, this is Ben finally saying that loves you, that he wants to be with you.

"And I'm finally going to make something of myself." Ben's green eyes shine brightly with his excitement.

"Huh?" Your heart sinks.

"I talked to my dad." You don't miss the way Ben's jaw tightens when he says it. "And I've decided to enlist-"

"Enlist! Ben-" It takes all you have to beg him not to go, not to leave you here. Because you knew that you couldn't live without him and the thought that he would die overseas in a war destroyed you.

"Wait, listen." Ben smiles wider, confusing you. "My dad has friends in the war department, friends that are looking for volunteers for a military project."

"A military project?"

"It's a serum or an injection that's supposed to make us stronger, better-"

"What do you mean?" You ask mildly confused. You hadn't heard of the government announcing any kind of experiments or projects in the newspapers. Surely Howard would have told you about it, he was always boring you with things like that.

"I'm a not a scientist" Ben shakes his head. "But all I know is that they're looking for volunteers and they want men and women."

Surprise flits through your mind. It was odd that they were also asking for women. Although you knew that the military was beginning to accept women in their ranks, it was still surprising that they wanted female volunteers for a government project. Especially if they were experimenting on them.

Like lab rats?

"What are you saying?" You're still confused as to what he's trying to tell you, unusual given the fact that you were usually very good at reading him.

"I want you come with me." Ben can hardly contain his excitement, his smile is so wide it nearly splits his face.

It was the last thing you expected him to ask. "What?" You blink.

"I don't want to do this without you." He says in a tone that makes your heartbeat stop. "And I want you to come with me." He repeats.

Your immediate reaction is to scream yes, let him take you away from all of this, but then you remember Howard, and your mother and feel the weight begin to settle on your shoulders again.

"Ben I can't." It breaks your heart to say it to him, to watch how his face falls.

“Why not?”

"Howard is-"

"Come on, you really think things are going to work out with that son of a bitch?" Ben shouts so loud you're afraid that he'll wake up your parents.

"He loves me-" You begin to say, the urge to cry coming back strong, burning against your eyes. Because now it was that you were choosing Howard over him, even though you didn't want to, it was what your mother wanted. The future she laid out for you.

"You don't know that." Ben snaps, rolling his eyes.

"Ben, he-" You struggle to find your words, taking in a deep breath to strengthen your voice. "He- he proposed. I mean it's been three years, we're both of age-"

Ben's eyes drop to your left hand and this time you uncover your hand so he can see the engagement ring. His shoulders tense and the muscle in his jaw clenches and unclenches.

"When did he ask you?" Ben says in almost a growl.

"Tonight. He came to dinner, my mother is so excited-" You successfully keep the tremor from your voice, but it quickly feels like you're running out of air.

"But you're not." Ben mutters

"Of course I am-" Your voice cracks with emotion.

"No you're not." Ben raises his gaze to look at you.  "I know you." The look in his eyes is unfamiliar, almost afraid.

But Ben isn't scared of anything. You try to remember a moment that he acted afraid, the only time is the memory of when you first met, when his father was looking for him and you lied to help him hide. Ben was fearless, it was something that you admired about him. You could always rely on him to have your back, be strong when you knew that you couldn’t be. To see him afraid was different.

"Ben-" You try again.

"Please." His jaw clenches together. "Don't marry him. Come with me."

"What?" You blink a few times to comprehend what he's asking.

Is he saying that he wants me to marry him? To run away with him?

"You're worth a hundred of him and I don't want to do this without you."

"Ben you're asking me to give up my future, my life-" You say trying to strengthen your resolve.

As unwelcome as Howard's proposal was, it was a future of sorts, what Ben was asking you was to dive into the unknown and you weren't sure if you were strong enough to do that. To leave everything you knew behind you and go with him. But apart of you was thrilled. Maybe it meant that Ben cared for you, needed you and this was the only way that he knew how to tell you. The three little words jump to the tip of your tongue again, the words you wanted to say when you danced together under the twinkling lights all those nights ago.

"You mean the future your mother wants for you." Ben sighs.

"Ben-"

"You’ve been trying to please her your whole life. Please don’t do this for her. Don’t marry him for her." Ben says, trying to catch your gaze, but you look down at his chest for a minute.

"But-"

"You are worth more y/n. And even if she can’t see your worth I can."

"Ben-"  You look back up at him, trying to find the courage to tell him that you love him.

He stares back at you, green eyes wide and honest before he takes your hands. They're warm and rough, familiar in the best way. "Tell me that you want him. You’ve never lied to me before and I don’t think you’ll start now."

Your words die on your tongue, because you know that you can't lie to him, you never could.

"Is that really what you want? To spend the rest of your life with him? If it is I'll leave, but I want to hear you say it." His eyes are filled with promises that make your voice catch in your throat, like two blazing green fires that see through you. Ben might have acted aloof with other people, but he always paid attention to you and knew what you were thinking.  No one knew you as well as he did, well except for the most obvious thing.

No it's not what I want. All I want is to be with you. The thought is immediate.

"But what about my mother-" You say, squeezing his hands.

"If you come with me, you'll never have to worry about her ever again." He says. By now tears are trickling down your cheeks, frustration and confusion building in your chest. Ben was promising you a future with him, but you couldn't understand if he was doing it because he wanted to be more or if he wanted you with him because you were his friend.

He drops your hands and instead brushes away your tears from your eyes. "I know you don't want to marry him."

"I don't." You whisper. "But I don’t know if I'm strong enough for this-"

“Do you trust me?”

Your hands come up to the front of his chest before you can stop yourself, feeling the warmth that surges underneath your palms. “Of course I do.”

His eyes are inviting, pleading, filled with emotion. "I swear that I will be strong enough for the both of us." His hands cup your cheeks. "I swear that I will look out for you like I always have.  I swear that I will never leave you. And I don't want to leave you behind. Please y/n. Come with me." The earnest look in Ben's eyes makes you cry harder, but you know that all you want is to go with him.

You don't want him to go and leave you here, where no one understands and the future that you see is cold, emotionless, and the path dark. You see the coming years with Howard, living together, having children, lunching with other women you hardly know and talking about nothing that mattered.

When you were with Ben everything you talked about seemed important, every moment with him was fused with wonder and expectation, you were never disappointed and were always excited about what you would do together even if it was something as mundane as sitting on a bench with Ben talking while you painted. You could imagine spending the rest of your life with him.

But could he imagine the same thing with you?

The future you see with Ben is warm, inviting, filled with promises you know that he’ll keep because he’s never broken a promise to you no matter what.

But you wonder if it's the promise that you want.

You stand there in the silence of his plea, hearing the ticking of the clock on your bedside table, the sound of cars outside your window, and the sounds of the night vibrate through you bones.

He wasn’t saying that he loved you. He wasn’t confessing his love. He wasn’t making a promise to marry you.

But maybe this was his way. Ben had never been the best at expressing what he was feeling, but the look in his eyes, the way his fingers hold your face to his-

It spoke volumes.

“Yes.” You whisper. “I’ll come with you.”

Ben’s smile breaks your heart as he pulls you tightly against him, laying his head on top of yours as he hugs you and sets every nerve ending on fire. Because the hug is different. It’s filled with the unspoken words between you, the memories you’ve shared, and the great unknown that stretches beyond both of you.

And you cling tight to him, the only part of your future that’s certain.

Or so you thought.

a/n: I know, I know there's a lot of unresolved tension.😂 I promise it will all make sense and that it is going somewhere. But I will say the next few chapters are kinda... rough and are painful to write, but I can't wait for y'all to read them.

Thank you so much for reading! If you'd like to be added to the taglist for this series let me know :)

Taglist: @roseblue373 @anundyingfidelity @cheynovak @cassiecasluciluce @muhahaha303

@deans-spinster-witch @kayleighmeister @demodemo909 @fruitfacess @bobbobbobinogs

@bughill126, @simplyfixated @sleepjam, @tiredstrangerr @freefallthoughts

@onlyangel-444

[attapullman]

since fall is basically already here this is my official request for more cowboy!Bob

fall makes me think of cowboys, and cowboy!Bob is a dream boat i need.

I fear he may not be the exact cowboy!Bob you were thinking, but cowboy stats!Bob is here to give you all the cozy autumnal vibes with a little study date on the quad.

Drabble Day

There’s a soft rumble as students play touch football on the quad, and a leaf blower is blaring in the distance, but your attention is squarely in front of you, on the guy wearing Vans and a ripped felt cowboy hat.

Senior year is treating Bob well. There’s a suredness that surrounds him as a seasoned veteran on campus; long gone those lanky pledgling arms and the meek eagerness he brought his first days here. He’s more at ease with himself, the quiet confidence of a man.

It’s sexy.

The back of his crewneck is tucked into his too tight Wranglers as he flops over to compare your answers. It was his idea to take Introduction to Classical Mythology together this semester, but turns out you were much more inclined to the material than him. Not that you were complaining, as the added study dates and the frustrated vein in his forehead were big bonuses. 

He tips his hat back, big glossy blue eyes staring up at you in the early autumn afternoon. “It’s not fair you’re smarter than me.”

You give him a pitying frown while tracing the edge of his jaw with your thumb. He’s been running rush events all week on top of his classes with barely a moment to himself, the slightest hint of stubble forming. It’ll be gone by the time bids are out, but you’re enjoying the scratch of it while it lasts.

“You smoked me on all our Stats exams. Had to even the playing field, cowboy,” you tease. You sit back on the blanket he laid out for your quick study date, the big PKP letters peeking through the loose notebook pages and textbooks. 

He gives you an unimpressed look. “Yes, but I had to be good at Stats to make you notice me. How am I supposed to keep you if I can’t remember the difference between The Iliad and Beowulf? You’ll think me a fool!” He theatrically clutches a hand to his face.

You can’t help but laugh at that, the crisp wind blowing between you two as he lifts himself from the blanket. A laugh that abruptly fades as Bob rises up on his haunches, strong thighs straining against thick denim as he towers over you. His mouth set in an unreadable grin as he looks at you over that damn ripped brim.

“Wha-”

He launches on top of you in a split second, tackling you onto the combination of soft blanket and crackling leaves. Big hand cradling your head as he wrestles you into place. You pretend to resist, but there’s nowhere else you’d rather be than under your favorite frat cowboy on a sunny fall afternoon. 

Holding your hands up in surrender, your thighs fall open and Bob settles himself into place. His hat is tipped too far back, his glasses are slightly crooked, and his smile is sunshine. He won’t tell you, but he’s really glad he skipped his fluid mechanics class to study out on the quad with you.

His head dips down and he presses a kiss to both your cheeks before taking a moment too long to kiss your lips. Someone whistles in the distance and you can feel his eye roll. When he’s finally satisfied with the amount of kisses, he props himself back on his elbow. 

“Any chance I can convince you to skip the rest of your classes and head back to your dorm, cowgirl? I think I’d understand structural myth theory better with more hands on learning.” 

[bingiessm]

ANOTHER LONG POST for the Bridgerton over-analysis corner! SEASON 3 TRAILER & PROMO ANALYSIS

I JUST NOTICED SOMETHING!!

THAT IS VIOLET BRIDGERTON! IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIRST "NON-INTRO" SHOT WITH FRANCESCA!

The first shot of any main character in the entire trailer is this one. Francesca is dancing with a suitor, the camera pushes forward and directs the eye right to Violet who is standing right in the middle, but with an unknown man in front of her.

Oh, I think there are going to be so many parallels between these two this season--especially in terms of romance. They have mostly been seen together or with "suitors" during all these promos and/or in direct comparison/association with one another.

MORE EVIDENCE:

SECOND SHOT of either of them: they are together--and are shown to be equals here, as compared to how Violet was when she presented Daphne or Eloise to the Queen:

Violet, with her other two daughters, was standing BEHIND them! (Also on their right side.) Now she's on the left, standing at Francesca's side--presenting them as equals.

Also, she isn't matching with Francesca like she was Eloise and Daphne--her outfit for this event changed slightly between the first two seasons (take note of the collar and crown), but has now changed dramatically. She at first presented herself as a fellow debutante (take note of the white dress and the gloves), but now is sporting a silver dress with long sleeves with clear grecian influence.

Violet has CHANGED, she isn't a background to or support for her daughter, she is her own person in front of the whole ton. She is also being "presented" in a way, but as this new self.

There is a new Viscountess, more of her children are married and leaving, and (as of Queen Charlotte we know that) she has had a lot of realizations about her marriage and sexuality. The world she knew as Viscountess and wife to Edmund is slowly changing, fading away to something new that she is beginning to embrace.

I think we will see her come more into her own, and not just as a mother or widow--this will be reflected in Francesca, who is going to struggle with finding a relationship that lives up to her mother & father's (and those of her siblings), especially watching her mother finally start to move on.

Right after this sequence is a sequence of Violet and her presumed new love interest, directly associating the two--they are also linked with the narration "what is the primary force that guides us along our paths?" A question I feel will be explored by the both of them.

It seems as if Violet is accepting this new love this season. Francesca, on the other hand, will struggle with romance this season. Every time we have seen her on her own, or with or having just spoken to suitors she seems unsure, worried.

Violet watches her sit at this ball (the Four Seasons one) and takes a breath and sighs in an interesting way--sort of knowingly but resigned(?).

It is also interesting to note within this dynamic that this is Francesca's first season, but not Violet's--as a mother or debutante.

TRAILER ANNOUNCEMENT:

Also, when looking at their appearances in the trailer announcement, it is interesting to see the difference in how they both were portrayed.

Violet is looking, then pulls back to look on in question, as if realizing something, but is curious for more. Francesca opens it and looks unsure again, twisting her mouth. I feel like this is reflective of how their seasons will be.

I just find the clear connection between their stories that the trailer in particular wants us to take note of to be very interesting. It is exciting to see how they will both grow/change. Especially being mother and daughter, which is a dynamic that has been explored to an extent in this show (thinking of Daphne and Violet in season 1, but even that didn't feel fleshed out), but not much. _______________

BUT ANYWAY to others who have read my other Bridgerton posts, omg thanks for chatting and indulging me in this.

I just finished a big film shoot for a project so this has been a nice reprieve from the stress of that.

Hope you are doing well!

[whxre-bxby]

“Cursed By Blue”

Recom Y/N x Recom Lyle x Recom Quaritch x Recom Mansk

Masterlist

Summary: The recom team is out on another mission, exploring the woods in search of Sully. However, the ladies become inconvenienced by a certain seasonal feeling they didn’t expect. It hits Y/n the hardest and it’s not long before the others understand what’s happening. While everyone fights their instincts, the only option Y/N sees available is to run. 

WARNING: SMUT, non-con, forced smut (to a certain extent), predator/prey, heat fucking, heat cycles, penetration, unprotected sex, breeding kink, quickie, hurt/comfort

Word Count: 4139

We were nearing the weekend. Not that that affected us. Lyle told me it was Friday today and I was surprised because I had completely lost track of time. But it didn’t really matter what day it was because we didn’t get time off anyway. Finding Jake was our number one priority and no breaks other than sleep were allowed. 

So here we were again, walking deeper into the forest of Pandora. It had just passed lunch time and we were here since early morning. 

No one was tired though, not yet. We weren’t allowed to be either. 

Today also happened to be warmer than usual so I wasn't wearing my usual long-sleeved attire and pants. I dressed like Walker usually did, in a sports bra and shorts. She and Z-Dog decided to wear tank tops like most of the others. 

The forest grew quieter the more we distanced ourselves from the RDA base and the city. Soon, we could only hear the wind blowing between the leaves and the distant calls of animals. That and our heavy footsteps. 

The Colonel and Lyle started the day off by leading us into the woods. As the hours passed by, the line mixed since everyone had a different walking pace and now it was Z-Dog and me leading at the front. Walker was close behind. 

I had been excessively drinking for the last 30-45 minutes and I wasn’t sure why. Z-Dog glanced over at me when she saw me reach for another water bottle. 

“That’s your third one already. Are you okay”? She asks, watching me gulp it down. I swallow most of the water and inhale sharply, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. 

“I don’t know.” I say, gasping for air. “Maybe I’m dehydrated?” 

“Don’t think so, we always drink the same amount and I’m fine.” Z-Dog says. We continue walking for a while longer in silence, thinking. Then Z reaches for her water and starts drinking it like she’s been running. 

I laugh a little but seeing her drink made me feel thirsty again. 

I reach for my water only to notice I have a few drops left. I down the remaining liquid and hold the bottle to my head. It seemed to be getting really warm. 

Turning around, I open my mouth and want to say something to Walker only to see her finishing her own bottle of water. I look behind me fully and no one else is drinking. 

“What. The. Fuck.” I say, feeling genuinely confused. Walker looks up at me with water drizzling down her chin and Z turns around. 

I wheeze and Z laughs and we wait for Walker to catch up so we can walk together. 

“Do you have any water left?” I ask her, knowing we at the front drank ours. 

“No, that was my last bottle.” she says and I notice how heavy my breathing is becoming. 

“Wait, you ran out too?” she asks and Z-Dog scoffs. 

“Yeah, been drinkin’ like we ran a marathon.” she says and I nod.

“I’ll ask the others.” I say before turning around and seeing Mansk behind me.

“Can I have some of your water?” I ask, wiping a bead of sweat from my forehead. Compared to us, Mansk is not sweating at all. He’s wearing his usual long-sleeved jacket over his tank top. 

The man glances up at me and his eyebrows furrow for a split second before he nods and hands one of his bottles over. 

“You ran out already?” he asks while I open it and drink about half. 

I wipe my mouth again, closing my eyes for a second and nodding. “Yeah.” I breathe out. “Thanks.” I say, handing it back to him. 

“Y’ alright?” he asks again taking the bottle back and I nod, not thinking much of it. Mansk doesn’t seem convinced. 

Ja overheard our conversation and sped up his walk to catch up to us. When Mansk noticed his presence he seemed a little relieved. 

“Is she okay?” he asks his colleague. Ja was the medic of the group so he would know. He took a glance at me and also thought of what I suggested. 

“Did you drink enough?” he asks me and I nod. 

“Yeah, I drank all my water and some of Mansk’s.” I scoff, wiping sweat from my forehead again. 

Ja presses the back of his hand against my cheek and then my forehead. 

“Shit, you’re burning up.” he said, scanning over me. 

I was feeling extremely warm. My skin felt like it was burning and my clothes suddenly felt tight and restrictive.

In front of us, Z-Dog and Walker are discussing something. 

Ja felt up my arm and checked my pulse while we were walking and Mansk stayed on my other side in case I was in fact not okay.

“Yeah, somethin’s definitely not right.” Ja announces to us, not quite sure how to help me. Mansk has his eyebrows furrowed, examining my behaviour. 

“They have it too.” I say, pointing at Z-Dog and Walker who now turn around. Walker is grimacing a little and Z looks worried. 

Mansk’s and Ja’s heads look up at them and they notice that they are breathing heavily and sweating just like me. Ja also takes note of the empty bottles in their hands. 

“Everthin’ okay up there?” the Colonel calls. It seems as though the others have noticed the small commotion and the medical check-up. 

Ja turns around, rubbing the back of his head. 

“Uh- no sir not really.” he calls back, stopping in his tracks to wait for Quaritch so that he can explain. Mansk and I keep walking and he watches me intently as I break out into a type of pant. My ears are pinned back and my tail is wildly flicking around behind me. My eyelids also happen to suddenly grow heavy and I keep them half-lidded. 

What snaps me out of my haze is Z calling my name. 

“Hey, Y/N come over here for a sec.” she says, turning around. Walker is running her hand down her face in what looks like frustration. 

I nod, jogging over and leaving Mansk behind. He’s still watching me, trying to make sense of what’s happening.

Neither Z nor Walker looks like they feel like joking around anymore. 

“Have you read the manual?” she asks and it takes me a few seconds to realise she means the Na’vi Body data. 

“Yeah, of course, we had to.” I say, trying to play it cool. She raises an eyebrow and I sigh. 

“I stopped once I reached the shit about plants. It got boring.” I say and she nods, knowing damn well she didn’t read further than that either. 

“Walker read it, and it said somethin’ ‘bout a heat cycle.” Z says and I glance at Walker. 

“Yeah… we’re not dehydrated. I remember the symptoms. It’s happening right now.” Walker says, scanning my reddened face. 

“Does it burn?” Z asks and my ears perk forward for once, being relieved from the tense strain I kept them in the past half hour. 

“Everything burns.” I say. 

“You know what I mean.” she adds and I groan in frustration too. 

“Yeah.” I mumble. I can’t deny the heat that’s been forming between my legs. I tried ignoring it but it grew worse. 

“Do you feel, like-” Z says, gasping for air herself. “...uncontrollably horny?” she asks with a light laugh and Walker smirks. 

I have no shame admitting anything in front of them so I chuckle and answer. “More like painfully horny.” 

They laugh a little, struggling to even out their breathing. 

“We need to distance ourselves from them.” Walker says, glancing over her shoulder. “Especially you Y/N you seem to have it bad.” she chuckles, motioning to my panting self. “Otherwise we’re done for and this squad will no longer be as professional.” 

My eyes widen. “Wait- you’re joking right? It’ll go away like tomorrow. How would they know about this if we don’t tell them?” I ask and Walker opens her mouth to answer but before she can, my answer is handed to me differently. 

“You smell that?” someone says behind us. My heart stops pounding for a second. Right our new senses have us picking up more. 

“These cursed blue bitches.” I swear and Z breathily laughs, seeming to know how screwed we are. She’s passed the stage of denial and is now accepting our fate. 

We turn around and notice that Lyle was talking to Prager. Prager nodded and they stopped walking. Mansk had also stopped in his tracks, turning to them. Behind them, Ja, Quaritch, Brown, Lopez and the remaining team catch up and everyone comes to a halt. 

Quaritch walks between them and deeply inhales. He looks around, noticing how his soldiers are smelling what he is too. 

I feel my heart slowly drop and I hold on to Z-Dog for some comfort. All three of us are watching them, dreading their reaction. 

“What is it?” Lopez asks. 

“No idea, but it’s fuckin’ great.” Lyle chuckles and my breath catches in my throat. It seems to affect them too. As Lyle inhales, his own tail is swishing around behind him and his muscles flex. He’s growing restless and the recom’s are looking at their Colonel for an answer or instructions. 

Quaritch’s tail does the same, his own ears pinning back and then his gaze meets mine. He intensely stares me down and I feel like my entire body stops functioning for a second. 

“Oh fuck.” I whisper while barely moving my lips. I feel a little hazy again and start leaning against Z-Dog. She sighs looking more pissed than worried and catches me, trying to keep me upright. 

The soldiers follow the Colonel’s eyes and notice us standing a bit further away. 

“It ain’t dehydration, I can tell ya that.” Quaritch says, referring to Ja’s hypothesis of what might be happening. Seems like he read the manual too. 

The stupid excitement in my stomach has grown so big it’s making me feel sick. And all their eyes on us have me more nervous. 

“Can we leave?” I whisper and she nods, staring down the others as if they would move when she looks away. 

“Yeah, come on.” she says, guiding me forwards. I take a wobbly step, almost stumbling. 

Walking won’t do it. I have so much adrenaline coursing through my veins I want to run away. 

I glance back, noticing everyone’s tense poses. Their eyes follow our every move, making them seem almost predatory. My only instinct now is to run. 

Z gives me a push and my legs take off. I start running and hear Walker and Z-Dog do the same behind me. There’s a commotion happening behind them and the next time I glance behind me, everyone is chasing after us. 

It was a miserable escape attempt, to be honest. We were already so out of breath compared to them, we really didn’t make it far. 

Z caught up to me because she was not affected by the heat as much as me. 

Within the next few seconds, I was tackled to the ground, luckily hitting the soft grass. I fall with a shriek and when I look up I see Z-Dog made it a little further but she’s down now too. 

I felt bodyweight on my back and a hand wrapped around the back of my neck. I couldn’t move. Z-Dog could and the man that pushed her was getting a beating right now. 

I cry out, feeling uncomfortable in this position. My chest was pressed into the ground and I was struggling to breathe. 

“Don’t fight it, Buttercup.” the voice above me grumbled and I instantly knew it was Lyle who had his knee pressing down into my back. 

The feeling and the effects of the scent the recom’s picked up had everyone acting on their primal instincts. Most common sense was gone as their new bodies seemed to be overpowered by the will of nature. 

The scent had the soldiers feel just as worked up as the heat cycle did. Instinctively, they ran after the ‘potential mate’ they felt most attracted to because that was Eywa’s will. 

I couldn’t say anything, I felt completely overwhelmed and somehow, submitting to him felt like the right thing to do. My right mind would never let this happen but I couldn’t think of anything else but finding some relief in this agonising feeling. My body longed for this. 

I notice from the corner of my eye that Lyle is quite literally throwing his equipment to the side, ridding himself of any unnecessary accessories. 

Suddenly, boots appear in front of my face but I don’t have the strength to look up. 

“Hurry it up Corporal or else I’ll do it myself.” the voice growls and my eyes widen when I notice it’s Quaritch. 

With swift movements, my bag is removed from my body and my belt is ripped off. I gasp and suddenly, Lyle pushes my shorts down, hastily pulling them down my legs and chucking them to the side. 

His own skin feels like it’s burning so he starts to remove his shirt. However, the Colonel is impatient so he pushes Lyle out of the way and takes matters into his own hands. 

Lyle huffs in annoyance, wanting to rid himself of his own feeling of being painfully hard. 

“Let me help you out, sweetheart.” Quaritch growls, tearing my panties off. They just need access to my hole, there’s no time to take my bra off. 

I whine out when he scratches my skin while tearing the fabric off but it goes unheard. It doesn’t matter. Now Quaritch can see how needy I’m feeling and there is no questioning anything anymore. 

“Fuckin’ hell, you could’ve just told me, princess.” he teased, quickly undoing his belt. I push myself off the ground, getting on all fours but my chest is almost immediately pushed back down against the forest floor so that my back is arching and my ass and pussy are on full display to the Colonel. 

“Please-” I whimper, needing to feel some type of relief. Quaritch’s ears perk forward and an evil grin spreads across his face before he pushes his pants down to his mid-thigh. 

His throbbing cock springs out and he presses the tip against my heat. I can feel his pulse through it and he can feel mine. Before I can comprehend anything else, he harshly thrusts his hips forward, filling me up all the way.

I cry out, stretching my arms out in front of me and gripping a strand of grass.

Miles hisses, pinning his ears back before setting a rough pace. I push myself further against him so that he fully bottoms me out with every thrust, his abdomen hitting my ass. He curses under his breath. 

“Fuck, just like that, baby.” he snarled, holding my hips in place. One of his hands roughly groped my ass, delivering a spank to it which made me jolt forward. 

It’s a lot to take. Even though we’re both Na’vi, he seems to still be hitting my cervix with his tip whenever he thrusts in. 

I spread my legs a little further to give him better access and he speeds up his pace a little. He grips my tail, tugging me back to meet his thrusts and I’m clawing at the ground to try and contain myself. 

“Miles-” I moan and it makes him growl. 

“Just a little- more.” he grunts, feeling his high approach. 

This wasn’t about lovemaking or pleasuring the other person. We were so needy we just needed to fuck the feeling away and that’s exactly what Quaritch was doing. Relentlessly pounding into me from behind to finally relieve and save himself from the lust spell your sweet scent cast upon him.

He was so close, Miles leaned over and pulled my upper body up so he could press his chest against my back. He snaked an arm around my waist and continued to fuck himself into my pussy like a hound. 

I was so close. My mouth was hanging open and my eyes were slowly rolling to the back of my head. 

Miles groaned into my ear and his hips stuttered before I felt his hot cum shoot inside me. He continued to thrust into me, riding out his orgasm in a desperate attempt to keep this feeling around for as long as possible. 

Feeling him fill me up with his cum had my walls clenching around him and I came moaning his name. He held me in place to make sure I got all of it inside me before letting go of me and just regaining his breath. 

I was panting even harder now, struggling to keep myself upright. 

Quaritch pats my back, gliding his hand down my waist and hips,  steadying himself for a few more seconds before slowly pulling out. His cum was dripping out of my pulsing cunt and he sighed. 

“Well, ain’t that a beautiful sight.” he sighed, fingering some of it back inside me before getting up and redressing his pants. 

I wasn’t on the ground alone for long. In fact, only a few seconds before another pair of hands were on me. I saw Lyle take Quaritch’s spot with his pants already gone. He held my hips up and I loosely draped my tail over his shoulder. 

“God damn, you look so hot.” Lyle groaned, tracing my hips and ass with his hand. I heard a small chuckle and suddenly someone kneeled in front of me. 

It was Mansk and he was undoing his fly. His pants were strained and I watched with wide eyes. 

“Can you do it?” he asked before going any further. I nod, feeling how my mouth is salivating in anticipation. He smirks before pulling his pants down his thighs too. 

“Don’t worry, baby. I’ll go slow.” Mansk says, rubbing his thumb over my flushed cheek 

Behind me, Lyle is grinding himself into me, making me press up against him. As I do, his tip enters me and we both moan in unison. 

Mansk grins before entangling his hand in my hair. 

I hear distant moans and grunts but I can’t focus on anything else but then two men around me. 

Lyle pulls back, breaking the contact our warm skin had before he thrusts himself forward and fully pushes into me. My mouth drops open and I whimper, feeling a little sore from Quaritch. 

Mansk uses this opportunity and places the tip of his length on my bottom lip. I comply, sticking my saliva-covered tongue out and licking it. 

He shakily exhales, tightly pressing both his lips together as he watches me get to work.

I move forward and lick a long stripe from the base of his dick to the tip and it sends a shiver through him. 

Lyle starts to slowly thrust in and out of me. His eyes are closed as he focuses on how I feel around him. He’s trying his hardest not to cum straight away but knowing it’s you he’s fucking is making that very difficult for him. 

I wrap my lips around the tip of Mansk’s cock and suck on it. He shudders, letting his lips part and mouth fall open a little. 

“Shit…” he curses, pinning his ears all the way back. His entire body is being restrained because he’s fighting the need to just thrust forward into your mouth. 

He doesn’t however. Mansk lets you go at your own speed without pushing you further down, he just tightens his grip on your hair, balling his hand into a fist. 

I move my head off of him before repeating my previous action and taking more of him into my mouth. 

Lyle starts to leave his gentle pace behind and speeds up his hips movements. His hands are groping the flesh of my ass before harshly gripping my hips and rocking me back and forth. 

I relax my throat and open my mouth wider, taking more of Mansk. He’s watching me with blown pupils which I can’t see because he kept his shades on. 

He gulps, completely hypnotised by how you’re almost worshipping his shaft. 

Mansk hits the back of my throat and I change the angle a little so that I can fit more inside. I know I won’t be able to take all of him in but I want to please him with more than just half his dick. 

It seems like my gag reflex disappeared and Mansk hissed when he felt how I deepthroated him. 

“Fuck, that’s good.” he groans, throwing his head back. 

Lyle moans behind me and then his fingers find my clit, rubbing it. My eyes shoot open and I just arch myself further into him. 

A moan is drawn from my lips, sending vibrations to Mansk’s dick. He curses as I pull back and start bobbing my head up and down his length. 

“Come on, Buttercup. Cum f’ere me.” Lyle says in a husky deep voice. My ears twitch and my tail curls up into a C. 

He wanted me to release before him and I felt it approaching quickly because his fingers were working wonders while he continued to plunge himself deep into me. My walls started to tighten around him and he applied more pressure on my clit. 

I was cumming again and this time my legs were shaking. I was moaning but it was all muffled because of Mansk’s fat cock stuffing my mouth. 

Lyle was desperately humping me, his thrusts becoming more sloppy as he chased after his own high. 

I focused on Mansk while letting Lyle use me. My eyes were glossy and I swirled my tongue around him making him groan. 

With each bob of my head, I would now hollow my cheeks around him to create more suction. 

Mansk inhaled sharply because it felt like I was already trying to milk him of his cum and the way I refused to let his dick leave my mouth had him fall into euphoria. 

His hips desperately jolted forwards a few times as he came, throwing his head back while thick ropes of cum were shot down my throat. 

Coincidentally, Lyle was cumming at the same time and he pushed his hips as deep into me as possible. 

I swallowed everything Mansk gave me, licking his dick clean and he held my cheek in appreciation, breathlessly trying to gather himself. 

“God damn, Y/N. Never needed anythin’ as much as that.”  Lyle chuckled through heavy breaths. 

I opened my mouth and pulled back from Mansk a little while he leaned back on his knees and tried to regain control over his heaving chest. 

“I don’t think I can walk.” I say, coughing a little. 

Lyle lets go of my hips and I fall to the side, laying on the ground and covering my eyes with my hands. The reality was coming back and it only hit me now that I hooked up with my colleagues. 

The Colonel was still there, standing close to us. He reached for my shorts, taking my ripped underwear and stuffing it in his pocket. 

He crouched down to me, getting on one knee. I open my eyes and sit up by leaning on my elbows. My ears are drooped to the sides and my tail is motionlessly laying next to me. 

“You alright?” Quaritch asks, seeming a little worried. 

“Better now.” I grin and he chuckles, helping me put my shorts on. Lyle and Mansk dress themselves before Quaritch heaves me to my feet. 

He wraps an arm around me to keep me stable and on my feet, while we walk. 

The others had gotten up now too and everyone was dressed. I didn’t have the strength to observe anymore than that. 

Z-Dog grabbed a bottle from the ground and then spotted me. A grin spread on her face while I shot her a glare. 

“Damn, you can’t walk?” she joked, snorting. 

“Shut up, I can see you limping.” I say and she raises her hands in the air. Quaritch chuckles before turning to Mansk and Lyle. 

“Watch your surroundings and pay closer attention.” he orders, knowing not everyone is capable of defending themselves right now. They nod. 

After a few minutes, we reach a grass plain and Quaritch lets us all take a break because there’s no point in walking any further today. 

I sit down, leaning against Z-Dog who is teasing Walker about something. The others stand around, keeping watch for danger until the helicopter returns to pick us up. 

This is definitely not how I expected any mission to turn out. Who knew these blue bodies were so intense?

Tag List: @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed @number1gal @ikranwings

[theside-b]

What more can I say about this show? I’d previously compared the rhythm of First Note of Love with the likes of Unknown and The On1y One, but the more appropriate and direct comparison is with the underrated About Youth. From the music-driven plot, soft approach and wholly interesting characters, both shows have in common this trait of not dwelling into complex or difficult subjects, often choosing the lighter path guided by the romance.

The main difference between them comes in the cast. From all shows of the season, First Note of Love was the biggest target on my radar, the reason: Charles and Michael. Absolute fan-favorite and scene stealer from HIStory: Close to You, and the adorable prodigal son in My Tooth Your Love teaming up with now the focus square on them and joined by two other seasoned actors in Tim Liu and Jame Kasama. Taiwanese actors don’t sit in the same table with their neighbors, and while Charles and Michael are not bringing a bed to their fan meetings or sparking rumors of real-life dating, they really embraced the image of an adorable lovingly couple, going on cute dates and being cheesy (and overly romantic) with each other off-screen, meanwhile Tim and Jame have this very unique international connection with the two even scoring a side episode dedicated to them, and unlike other projects that feature international pairings this show explored and addressed head-on the linguistic barriers.

On the show, one of the biggest pitfalls was deftly avoided: Neil and Sea are on equal footing. Which was quite impressive of them to pull off, because not only they had the age gap between them but we start the series with Xiao Hai being Neil’s biggest fan, so from the get-go they were on uneven ground, but as the show progressed, we had two things happening at once: Xiao Hai realizing that Neil is much more than what and who he idolized and Neil himself becoming a fan (and falling head over heels for Sea). When we reach the midpoint is pretty clear that Xiao Hai has Neil’s heart, and not only that but Neil is also a fan of him, from Sea’s own music to his personality, they adore each other completely, flaws and all. And is actually a nice change of pace seeing a couple who is free to just fall in love without any unnecessary drama happening.

There isn’t a “bride”, or an ex-looking for a second chance, battle of classes, gangsters trying to ruin their lives, an overly dramatic break-up, circumstances that pull them apart, nothing like that at all happens here. Their biggest obstacle is actually themselves, they are so into each other that it becomes a problem, until it isn’t and the romance takes off beautifully. It’s like seeing one of the healthiest relationships unfold right in front of your eyes, a novelty really.

Next to them there is Reese and Orca in one of the most interesting dynamics seen in recent BL dramas. There is history here, but we are not allowed to witness, something did happen, something important and special to both of them. Orca left; Reese let him go. And then he is back, with no intention of leaving again empty-handed, if his going back to Thailand he is going to make sure he has Reese’s heart with him.

Orca joins a very fun trend of the class of’24: the “I have feelings and I going to make them your problem too!” archetype. Invading Reese’s house (which is debatable since he knew the door code), cooking him delicious meals, serenating his paramour, making Reese a hostage at his own home by taking long and luxurious showers and prowling the apartment naked, Orca didn’t let that man breathe for one second. It didn’t hurt them that their first interaction was Orca literally throwing himself at Reese and we along with him finding out that the Taiwanese learned thai just so they could talk — they confessing their love in each other’s mother language was such a sweet touch.

Much like the main couple there was plenty of openings for some juicy drama here (their first kiss happens at a funeral for crying out loud) but the show again choses the lighter route, from Orca hijinks, to Reese’s obvious crush and the cute MosBank cameos (we need a spin-off showing what kind of beef they have with Orca), the only thing stopping them is themselves, Reese actually says that.

That all might seem silly or uneventful, but is refreshing seeing grown-ups acting like grow-ups. Is not a show with wild storylines or bombastic turning points and sudden revelations. They are telling the stories of two couples that simply like each other and want to be together. It’s about them working around their own issues to be good for one another. It’s the reason why, unlike other Taiwanese shows, I firmly believe they are perfect for a stress-free binge watch.

The one major downside is the run-time, from episode one to the finale, it always feels like something good was left off the table due time constraint. The lack of Reese and Orca in the final episode felt criminal (they have a special episode focused on them in Thailand by the way, but is mostly a cute little thing starring Tim and Jame). The episodes clock around the 22/24-minute mark, and that leads me to believe that First Note of Love might have been conceived as a movie that got turned into a series later on, it’s probably the one series that I can clearly see how they would adapt into a feature film with ease.

As I said, there are subtle hints of very dark subjects lurking within the characters. Xiao Hai for example, we see that he grew up all alone, abandoned really, and there is a tense moment his mother reaches out to him, and he avoids her wanting nothing to with her or his family, later he states to Neil that thanks to his love he doesn’t feel alone anymore — the implications are there, but you have to be able to catch them and read as you see fit, the show never makes them all that clear, they could’ve explored more but they chose not to, maybe if they had more time they could have.

I also need to point it out: it’s the best (no question or room for debate) musical BL. All the songs were very good, and you can see they went all out to get them right, the lyrics always reflecting what we were dealing with in the episodes. Charles already had two tracks from HIStory under his belt, and Michael and Jame got training from professional musicians and instructors in how to perform in front of the cameras. This dedication led to some amazing moments and the most believable on-screen musicians in the genre. It also never felt like a full-on musical, but as if we were indeed watching professional stage performances. (Warner Music Taiwan was responsible for the soundtrack and having actual artists like Taiyo [who plays Matt] and Ben Wu providing them songs was a great call).

Another strong asset in the show was the location. The first major TW-BL drama not situated in Taipei, the port city of Kaohsiung served as this near-futuristic backdrop with stylish architecture and romantic scenery — the city is actually Taiwan’s new capital of music with labels HQs and musical festivals, that’s why the show takes place there, and it was refreshing seeing them in a location not all-that explored.

I cannot advocate for this show enough, so is a must-see recommendation from me.

[wordsofhoneydew]

🌟 fic rec friday 🌟

9:42, nyu apartment by @cricketnationrise

If you’d told Alex ten years ago that he’d love being pinned to his own couch and kissed to within an inch of his life by Henry fucking Fox, he’d have laughed in your face.

on my knees (i’m aphrodite) by luisasfalsegod

“Baby, we gotta start getting ready for dinner. Ma’ is gonna kill me if I‘m not on time.” June murmurs.

“Tell me to stop and I will” Nora rasps.

June shivers, goosebumps rising on her skin. “Something tells me you don’t want me to” Nora smiles as she cocks her head.

“Oh my god” June whines.

Nora unhooks her bra, pulling it off June‘s body impatiently. She ghosts a hot breath across June‘s skin, delighting in the fact that her nipples are turning harder by the second.

“Are you gonna be a good girl for me?” Nora asks, looking up at June with serious eyes.

Or the one where June and Nora are forced to attend a state dinner at the White House when all they wanna do is fuck

You’re Gonna Go Far by @inexplicablymine

He would let the rich pavement and wide open highways take him home. Texas bluebonnet wild, cicada strong, sideways pampas grass floating freeways situated between wildfire season and the inevitable downpour of hail that tramples Mother Nature's roadside finger paintings.

But he fucking can’t.

Because New York City doesn’t have cicadas; it has cockroaches.

He can’t take the key around his neck and let it be a homing device—protective shield across his heart when he’s run out of air and the gas tank goes low.

Or, After the dust settles and the Brownstone becomes home, it should all be okay. So why does it all still feel so hard?

Is it casual now? by ncfariouvs

There are a couple things in this world that are absolutely unbearable for Alex.

The sound of her parents fighting, for one. She still remembers it, the yelling, that is. It was always so loud that even headphones couldn’t cancel out the noise.

Another thing she cannot fucking stand is when people don’t know how to make good coffee. It’s not that fucking hard.

Thirdly, people not letting her explain herself. She fucking hates being blamed for things that she didn’t do without having the chance to defend herself.

There are a couple more extreme ones, such as racists, bigots, and outright assholes…

But one thing she can’t fucking stand at this particular moment is the snobby, blonde, British girl in her English class who always has her nose stuck in a fucking book.

Henri fucking Fox.

no control (all yours) by @comethedaylight

Alex feels the first twinge in his bladder as he’s moving to the fridge to grab the water pitcher, an ache that’s sharp at first, but settles into something manageable, something almost… exciting. Like a buzz under his skin that he wants to ride out, like a high.

He’s been at this point before, after one too many coffees during late night study sessions in undergrad, too distracted by his readings to take a break, but the difference between then and now is he would just cut his losses. He’d feel that first ache and get up, bookmark his spot and nip it in the bud, but that’s not the plan tonight.

Tonight, he refills his bottle, lays back on the couch, and turns to his phone.

or alex learns something about himself while trying to learn more about his husband

no bunny compares to you by winterpine

Henry is a lot of things as a person and while much of his personality transfers over to his bunny form, his physical attributes do not. Most notably, his size.

Where Alex’s boyfriend stands tall and regal, his furry counterpart is small and fluffy, unable to summit even the most minor of obstacles.

Take their sofa, for one. Alex is watching TV and minding his own business, when he hears a steady thump from just below him. Peering over the edge of the dark cushion, he spots his boyfriend angrily pounding his back foot against the carpet.

“Ha! Is my little bun too tiny to get up here on his own?” Alex teases. He’s promptly rewarded with a whisker twitch followed by a nose scrunch. Henry is pouting and it’s the most adorable thing he’s ever witnessed.

or, five times Henry shapeshifts for himself and one time he does it for Alex

never wanna stop (‘cause your taste is so divine) by strawbgrl

Henry grins in contentment and rakes his fingernails along the backs of Alex’s thighs. “There’s my good boy,” he praises. Alex muffles a whine into the bend of his elbow and Henry watches in astonishment as he relaxes against the mattress. The verbal approval settles deep in Alex’s bones. “I knew you hadn’t forgotten your manners. You just needed a bit of a reminder. Isn’t that right, darling?”

Henry gives, and Alex takes.

l’échappatoire by @anincompletelist

A sea of dark curls. Warm, kind eyes. A slanted, smiling mouth, a dimple carved into the side. One hand holding a tall, steaming coffee, the other a mug full of Henry’s favorite tea. A whisper, a brush of fingertips in the trade off. The more important details.

“Hey, sweetheart.”

It’d be something out of Henry’s most treasured fantasies if he didn’t already know they’d be the last words this man ever says.

Henry fixes anomalies in other people's timelines. It's quite predictable and impersonal work for the most part. (Save for when it seems intent on unraveling his own, of course.)

Don’t Let Them Eat Cake by Magentarivers

Something shifted in the breath between them.

"Are you going to say something sappy?”

“Maybe.” Henry grinned tightly, as though caught red handed.

“Okay good, because me too. You go first.”

It's the night after their anniversary party, and the boys just want to do what any husbands want to do. Unfortunately they are parents first.

I’ll Wait for your Love (1 day before the Reddit Post) by Swoonoveryou

Alex sends Henry flowers for their friendship anniversary. What does this mean? After all these signs, does this mean Alex could actually like him?

He thinks maybe asking the internet might help.

Vegas, Baby by @porcelainmortal

“Hold on, Nora. I need some luck.” Alex holds out his hand, a pair of dice cradled in his palm. “Blow for luck?” He winks and throws Henry a devastatingly gorgeous smile.

Henry’s breath catches in his throat but he manages to inhale sharply before blowing on the dice in Alex’s hand. Alex’s pupils dilate as his eyes are drawn to Henry’s lips. Henry feels as if time has stopped, but he can hear the people at the table still talking and the bells of the machines going off around them. Nora nudges Alex with her elbow, seeming to break the spell Henry and Alex have been under. Alex’s attention is ripped away and he turns, throwing the dice down the middle of the table.

OR, Alex & Henry meet in Vegas, get drunk, and get married. Woops.

[thistransient]

More musings on Naha:

- My Japan-visiting history includes Naha in 2018 and Tokyo in 2023 (each for 3 nights). I loved Naha the first time, but did not really have the same feeling about Tokyo (which I chalked up to insufficient planning, sprained ribs, and having gotten over the first-time-in-Japan thrill). But I also loved my second time in Naha! The factors I think are at play:

1. Public transport: there's a singular monorail, no need to navigate Tokyo's convoluted two-company labyrinth of an MRT system. It was also a brisk 12 minute ride from the station nearest my hotel to Naha International, unlike the commute from the city center to the airports servicing Tokyo. It's also only a 1 hr 30 minute flight from Taipei, can't really beat that.

2. Walkability: to get anywhere else in Okinawa one must rent a car, but it's perfectly possible to stroll around Naha center on foot. I spent quite a bit of time on the train in Tokyo (and all that that entailed) trying to explore different neighborhoods, which was tiring. I didn't feel threatened by motorised traffic in either city but I found myself jumping out of the way of bicycles in Tokyo a few times.

3. Shīsā (シーサー, 風獅爺, 獅子): "a traditional Ryukyuan cultural artifact and decoration derived from Chinese guardian lions, often seen in similar pairs, resembling a cross between a lion and a dog, from Okinawan mythology. Shisa are wards, believed to protect from some evils. People place pairs of shisa on their rooftops or flanking the gates to their houses, with the left shisa traditionally having a closed mouth, the right one an open mouth. The open mouth shisa traditionally wards off evil spirits, and the closed mouth shisa keeps good spirits in." I love these things so much, they are so fun to spot while walking around, people even dress them up in little outfits depending on the season!

(At this point I should optimally visit a third city to triangulate my experiences a bit.)

- I find if I only go somewhere for a few days, it can be really nice to not buy a SIM card, just download an offline map, save some restaurant locations, and wander around looking at stuff almost like the pre-smartphone days.

- At some point I was also thinking to myself "wow, sometimes it's nice being in a country with minimal hawkers, hustlers, and touts! No one is trying to sell me stuff unsolicited!" Then I accidentally wandered into the red light district while taking a roundabout stroll to a shrine on the edge of town. The deserted back streets of Naha sprang to life and suddenly I was very popular (I suppose it must get boring for them at noon on a Sunday, but I felt like a lone gazelle on the savanna and made a hasty escape with a lot of head shaking and staring intently at the pavement). Perhaps they intentionally put the brothels near the temple to ensnare wayward tourists, who knows.

- The silence of Naha streets compared to the incessant scooter-revving in Taipei made me wonder how much psychic damage the noise pollution is really dealing me on a daily basis. I was also operating with a Taiwanese mindset when jaywalking across a median to get to a supermarket (only because I'd seen some locals doing it), and stepped back cautiously to wait for an oncoming bus which I was sure would otherwise punch me a one-way ticket to the afterlife. Instead, it STOPPED. There wasn't even a cross-walk! I waved somewhat guiltily and scampered away full of wonderment. Frankly I did not really want to come back from pedestrian heaven where there are zero scooters on the unobstructed sidewalks and crossing the street is not a hair-raising experience.

- By sheer, strange coincidence I ran into a friend on the street (as she was getting off a bus), who definitely should not have been in Japan (she told me she was moving back, probably to Tokyo, only after Christmas)- she was in Okinawa for approximately 24 hours to look at real estate and didn't have time to hang out but it was very surreal to catch up for a couple minutes.

- I was a bit surprised when the airline queue employee in International Departures started talking to me in Japanese off the bat (something that has never happened in TPE with Mandarin, they see a westerner and have real low linguistic expectations), so I eyed her a bit blankly til she was done and then tested out my Duolingo skills with 日本語が話せませ¹ to which she responded 英語?², I said "yeah" and she told me I needed to use the kiosk first, to which I protested that I'm always prompted to go to the counter for document verification, but then for once the thing actually didn't (take note if you're doing visa runs, Peach Aviation evidently gives no shits about exit flights). ¹ I don't speak Japanese ² English?

To be honest I had had some ambitions for trying out more Duolingo-learnt phrases, but in the moment chickened out and ended up just pointing at stuff lest I give the impression I was capable of more in-depth conversation beyond これをください³. I've had vague thoughts about language school (for the purpose of being able to communicate about print-making and/or shibari, but also to test the waters beyond the tourist experience), and I feel in theory knowing Mandarin first should help with learning kanji, but on the other hand I look at this

and in my mind it says "Jiùmìng dòngyī wa zuòxí no xià ni aimasu". I think I will stay in Taiwan for now. (Also apparently immigration is not super keen on people over 30 with dubious employment history rocking up for language school in Japan, but that's a bridge to cross when one comes to it). ³ Please give me this

- Last but not least, I flew back south only to find Taipei 5 degrees Celsius colder than Naha, the bidet frostier than ever. 再見琉球，等我回來 T_T

[omies-odd-writing-spot]

Lifeboat 14 Cinnamon, oh my!

Also on Ao3. sorry I forgot to finish posting it here <_< have some more cozy GT?

.

Chapter 14:

Lana wondered if ice cream was in this world as she pressed against the warm hand that came behind her. She was still very leery of the sheer size differences between her and Sesa, but the giant woman’s hand was very warm compared to the ‘basement’ like room. It made the chill tolerable but this was not a place Lana would want to stay long without some proper clothes. 

“Are you okay Lana?” Sesa asked, setting a few jars down on the same table as the Bitta. 

“Yeah, I wasn't expecting it to be… snowing indoors.” Lana noted as some of the disturbed frost from the self above was drifting down to the counter she was standing on.

“It won't be long,” Sesa assured as she carefully pulled her hand back. Looking through the items on that shelf, setting a few things down. “Even though I have to clean up down here, it's a good sign the cold stones are still working fine with no stress. I might have to get another before the hot season.”

“That bad?” Lana worried as she walked around the things in the counter with her. Glad the ‘ground’ under her seemed to be just well sanded wood. Though cold and nippy her feet were not freezing through her shoes. 

“Some days are worse than others.” Sesa explained, “In those ones I take chunks of the weakest stone to try and cool down the cabin. When they recharge in winter, I can use them to make a food cabinet cold for most of the next year.”

“Like a fridge!” Lana laughed, walking around and looking inside a clear jar about twice as tall as her, but with frozen flowers inside. They looked vaguely familiar, about a foot to two feet long, and a muted red-orange color. They seemed mostly dried before being frozen.

There was something about the smell though that lingered around the jar.

“Sesa? What's this?” Lana asked looking up as the giant woman was inspecting some solid frozen disks that were about the size of her hand with what looked like a waxy paper covering. 

Sesa paused, taking a second to track where the tiny human had gotten to in such a short amount of time. “Oh, those are a kind of fever flower. Or…no fever? They help you if you're sick. Smells pretty strong… not sure why I put them down here.”

“Can I…this sounds strange, can I smell it?” Lana asked, sheepishly stepping back from the jar. She startled at the sudden laughter from Sesa. “What?!”

“I’m sorry, I didn't mean to scare you Lana.” Sesa set the frozen disks down and motioned gently for the tiny one to back away so she could pick up the jar in question. “The other name for this is a tree Bitta flower. There's a few flowers called Bitta flowers really, this one just comes from trees.”

The giant opened the jar, twisted the lid to break some frost. The lid was made to fit over the outside and inside of the ring of glass. Sesa carefully picked out one of the frozen flowers on top, offering it too Lana with a smile still. Not quite sure what would happen as smaller hands took it. It looked almost like the frame of a basket in Lana's hands with the wiry pebbles as she inspected it, turning the frozen flower over before sniffing it.

“It is strong, but it smells like… it smells like a mix of ginger and nutmeg.” Lana said looking up, delighted, paused and pinch off a miniscule bit to the giant to hesitantly taste. Not eating but tasted, like she had a few times to test if something would be good or not for her.

“Bleh, oh yeah tastes like it too.”

“Good thing?” Sesa asked as a chuckle rumbled through her watching the reaction. Noticing that that flower was now Lana's by the tiny body language. 

“Very good thing! It means we have two spices equivalent for pumpkin pie.” Lana laughed, flicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth. Making sure there was no odd sensation, that she was breathing right still. She was struggling a bit with remembering what all had to be done to make sure she did not have a bad reaction. 

“Really?” Sesa looked at the jar in surprise, clearly trying to imagine what this pie would taste like. “Medicinal plants are like some of your spices?”

“...I think a lot of herbs are like that.” Lana considered, “Lots of cooking herbs and stuff is good for you, even if just for a better way of absorbing vitamins.” 

“What else do we need?” Sesa mused, then held one of the wrapped disks up, “Is this enough cream?” 

“Oh plenty,” Lana assured, looking up from the flower she held, so far she was feeling alright. It reminded her of the mace off of nutmeg. Lana hoped she could see this flower blooming soon.

Sesa made an interesting sound as she was looking at things on the counter, other herbs as far as Lana could tell. 

The giant woman brightened up, “Ooh, I remember why I froze a lot of these. I was trying to beat the first big winter storm gathering things. It was easier to freeze them and deal with it later.”

Lana eyed the big…. massive basement space that was both incredibly deep and wide. It was as large as the cabin above but… a basement. There was a lot of storage space, and not all being used at all, let alone efficiently. As a lot of the middle of the room was just open. “At least you have the room to do that?”

“I probably should dry them out.” 

“Then we should do it.” Lana said, getting herself into an open spot, the lacey like flower still held. “There's going to be time to start that jar at least while the pie bakes.”

It was interesting to see the giant take a deep breath. Cheeks puffed for a moment before Sesa sighed even deeper and then started to gather a few jars to tuck in her left arm. Holding them against her body, with the frozen disk in that hand. Offering her now free right to Lana. The giant grinned as the Bitta grasped the side of her hand. 

Even though Lana hesitated, she was not flinching as much. It was an improvement from the first meeting, though Sesa was realizing she likely did not give the best first impression. Lana had been, still was painfully cute looking though.

It was such an odd thrill when the Bitta pulled herself up to sit on Sesa's hand willingly. The woman was being as gentle as she could be, holding Lana closer to her chest. Trying to make sure she would be stable.

The trip back upstairs to the cabin proper was not that long. Sesa moved into the kitchen to let Lana hop off on the same counter they used in the morning. The Bitta moved towards the wall where the improvised older stove was for her. Not yet moved to Lana's new home.

Sesa was setting things down on the counter now that Lana was safely out of the way. Then moved to set more little jars, about as tall as Lana, of cooking spices on the counter as well. The ones she found and harvested, a few traded from locals that had that same Smokey look to them. A few jars that looked like they came from the store, and possibly from farther away as one looked like dried cactus to the Bitta.

“Should I get the other medicine plants?” Sesa asked, finding a nice big bowl to put the frozen cream in. Then a few pans, one for roasting the squash and the others for drying out the frozen herbs. 

“If they're safe to eat, why not?” Lana was sitting down to wait for things to stop moving around again. She held up the thawed, lacy flower, “We might find something like this. Likely not looking like what I know, but smells and tastes like something.”

Lana was tapping the flower, it was thawing pretty quick and needed drying time. “You have a stove top, Sesa, is there an oven?”

“Not a big oven but yes I have one.” Sesa paused and considered, “I have a bigger wooden oven, smoker outside. But I think you mean for the herbs? The inside oven will do that.”

Lana nodded, then saw the giant woman was kneeling to look in a cabinet under the counter. “Yes, and the pie. Can we thaw the cream without cooking it? It needs to stay cool.”

“Oh I can do that, yes.” Sesa smiled, coming up with a pot and a large bowl. “Is that going to be too big for the… whipped cream?”

“Perfect!” The tiny woman chirped. “It'll expand a lot, even if we don't use the whole thing.”

“Having some extra cream would be nice to have with tea tonight.” Sesa thought aloud as she got up and stretched her back. Having a few free days was... nice. Some maintenance choirs aside.

Sesa wondered if she should bring Lana to the garden before evening. Or just show around some of the outside today or tomorrow. Maybe the porch? Lana did not seem like she was needing to go outside of the cabin urgently, and was currently interested in the sugar left over from the morning and finding out how to crush it even finer. It would be a really fine powder at this rate. Sesa opened the oven to her right, lifting the metal grate out and used a tool hanging to the side of the door, tapping around on top of the wide, deep stone so it would activate. Fitting the grate back on, she reached for a big spoon.

The giant got some more of the heat stone fragments around the main stone, something she normally would not bother with. It would not be hard to carve a soft stone to make Lana an oven. Sesa realized she did not make one of those yet. Able to get some of the chips for that and a new one for the little cooking station left on the counter. As the cooking hot rock from that morning was moved to the crate. 

Thinking about it, Sesa looked around, getting up to grab a small cup, oven closed up to get nice and warm. The chips and some sand put in the mug, Sesa moved to get a chair as well, grabbing some carving tools and a nice chunk of black granite. Sesa had found some nice pieces on a beach, the last fishing trip before yesterday. 

Lana was looking up and had walked to the big knife block, looking thoughtful. Sesa saw her pull a folding knife that positively looked like the ittiest bitty knife the woman had ever seen.

“I miss my kitchen knives.” Lana noted. 

“I’m sorry, I'm not sure if I have anything useful for your size.” Sesa winced, there were so many things that made life easier that… was about as big as the bitta. Not fit to her scale. 

“I at least have this, it was my foraging knife so… would you have a wet stone?” Lana turned, and seeing the puzzled look she remembered the concept of hot and cold…magic stone things. Lana tried again. “Sharpening stone?”

“Yes to that... Ooooh, wait I get it, wet stone. Need to use water on sharpening rocks for metal.”

“Exactly.” Lana nodded, thankful many things seem similar between their people. Names and size scale aside. “At least knives can be made of a lot of things for my size. Metal chips or shavings for you, if not rust. Copper? Glass, obsidian… hell even bone, antler or flint. I miss my ulu knife.” 

“What is that?” Sesa asked, setting her carving things aside until later. Not sitting just yet either as the giant started to open the jar with the fever plants. Picking the easiest out first to spread out evenly. The whole jar’s worth should fit on the flat pan. Sesa smiled as Lana brought her flowers over to neatly put in the row. 

“I think most of this will have to thaw in the jar to get out.” Sesa noted, using a fork to gently prod the mess of jammed pedals. “I packed it too tight.”

“This should be enough.” Lana was eyeing the flowers on the pan. “Let's look at the other herbs and spices and plant stuff!”

Sesa chuckled, setting the jar well away, putting the lid back on. “All right Lana. Let's see if anything is like what you know?”

“Yeees!” Lana laughed, delighted with this task. Her excitement and curiosity seemed infectious despite her small size. 

Sesa had to open the lids, some of the spices she could put in the pods. Same with the medicinal herbs could do the same, even things for tea. Like the hips of a cliff side tea bush that Sesa got to grow in her garden. Lana had grabbed a dried hip as big as her arm, and thicker than her leg. Yet the bitta sat down to give the hip a thorough inspection. Then cut it open, Sesa a little jealous how easy it was for Lana to pick out the delicate seeds.

“Can you… save those?” Sesa asked, awed at the little stack of seeds. “I've never been able to save those seeds or get them to sprout. I keep crushing them… had to transplant young plants and only one has survived since then.”

Lana blinked up, picking up one of the brown, palm sized seeds. She turned it over in her hands, the hip in her lap. It seemed sturdy to Lana, but the issue made sense. “I can try?” 

“What does it remind you of?” Sesa asked, moving to sit after checking the pot she had started to thaw out the cream. The gourd in the oven and the seeds and guts from, set aside. Lana wanted to look at the seeds later.

“...cinnamon,” Lana said thoughtfully, cutting some of the dried hip, it was like leathery fruit that had been dehydrated, just had some stiff fibers around the seeds in the center. It smelled just like cinnamon, but nothing sour or moldy. “How did you dry it?”

“Most hips dry on the bush in late summer, other’s I’ve just set in the oven when it's not hot. Just warm.” Sesa explained, leaning back in her chair, mostly putting her close to the counter height. She glanced at the oven, judging how long the gourds should stay inside to stay soft. Using butter inside the hallowed spot instead of oil or water was an interesting idea. It was starting to smell good already.

“Warm and dry air, that’s good.” Lana examined the hip, turning one half in her lap, the other to her right with seeds to the left. She sliced some of the dried fruit off, sniffed and hesitantly put it in her mouth. Lana did not bite, still trying to think of how to check if things were toxic to you. Annoyed at herself for this big brain fart as Lana set the piece down, going back to check the rest of the hip, cutting through it sideways this time. Finding no more seeds and then went quiet. Lana looked baffled.

“Pulp… not just fruiting… fibers.” Lana said, half to herself as she picked up the other half that was emptied. Like a melon or pumpkin that had been hollowed. But still had a few fibers.

“What was that?” Sesa looked up, looking carefully at the tiny human, bitta. Recognizing the absorbed in a task look that Lana had, not just from others but Sesa had seen Lana get like that last night on the way home when allowed to investigate the… cor-en. Ground cover grass.

The giant woman waited on a hunch, and it was not that long before Lana jumped to herself. 

“It’s a rose hip!” Lana turned to look at the baffled Sesa, scrambling up to her feet, “Do you have any of the flower petals? Or can I see the bush?”

A tree sized rose bush! That seemed impossible and amazing!

“This jar of tea has some petals.” Sesa said, reaching slowly over the counter, touching one of the jars. Watching in a bemused way as the bitta scrambled up to go see the flower petals that had been in the mix of something she did not get to yet. “I should have dried-press leaves in grandpa's book of foraging, unless you want to stop to see the plant?”

“Can I see both?” Lana bounced in place, trying to peer in the jar, then back to examining the broken petals and other tea leaves. “A rose that smells and tastes like cinnamon! This is amazing!”

Sesa looked at the oven, there should be enough time. The giant got up, putting the pan with the flowers inside, and then took the pot of cream off the oven. Turning, Sesa tried not to move too fast to put her hands on the counter. And just about had Lana flopping over the back of one hand. The Bitta popped up and flustered as she backed up, trying to not show that she had tripped and fell anymore then she could. It was not that good, and the massive hand turned to open palm up.

“It's okay Bitta, Lana. I might have bumped the counter.” Sesa said, smiling and waited until small hands grasped the side of her own fingers. 

Lana pulled herself up into the hand, not really sure if it had been the vibration in the counter or her own blinding excitement. She was oddly thankful that Sesa’s other hand came up to act like a shield. An added barrier against a very, very long fall down to the ground. The young woman watched Sesa walking to the front door, avoiding the boxes set to the side now.

Outside was just a little cooler than inside, mostly from the mountain breeze and being up high. Lana grasped what she could of Sesa’s hand, reflexively hunkering a little lower with the movement. As steady as Sesa was, there was a slow sway from her walking pace after the steps down. Then Lana got a better look at this giant’s yard.

Like what she saw out the window, but could see from up here the walking paths. The big barn and vast wide leaves in a garden. A big squash plant took up a whole fence that made it through winter, there was some damage from winter. The rest of the garden was half cleared and ready for planting. The other half not yet cleaned of debris that were blown in. Then Lana saw the tree sized ‘bush’ that was on the far side of the squash plants.

Even from a great distance and so high up, it looked like a rose plant. Only semi groomed, but thriving really well in that spot. It had been tied to the post by it at one point, but the ties, old rope by the looks of it from this angle, were disintegrating. The leaves were definitely the shape, texture and pattern like a rose. When Sesa slowed and stopped but the bush, holding both hands cupped firmly together, Lana dared to move. 

She felt safer to half lay on the larger digits of the giant to free her hands. Able to grab a broad leaf closer to her once in range, something that was as big as what she knew from really happy squash or melon plants. It smelled like a rose plant, that slight floral spicy, and faintly of cinnamon. No active blooms could be seen at the moment, though there was new growth starting already in the apparent spring season. 

“How far into spring are we here?” Lana asked, looking back at Sesa for a moment before peering under the leaf and then following the line of stem to the branch proper. Spotting thorns there, nettle like. Some small as Lana’s fingers that were new, to older thorns that were the size of her forearm and looked sharper on one edge. 

“We’re just getting into it. We might get one or two more big rain storms.” Sesa admitted, watching Lana turn to lay on her side on the giant woman’s fingers to look inside the bush. Sesa shifted slowly to move Lana in a better spot to see inside, and not get herself pricked. All the while making sure Lana would not hurt herself as the Bitta reached in and up, coming back with a handful of the miniscule, splitter-like green thorns that grew on the new growth. 

About as big as her knife from earlier.

“Sesa?”

“Yes?”

“Um…can you break off one of the larger, trunk thorns?” Lana pointed down and towards the trunk of the rose tree, careful not to prick her host. “Not even a bit one, if it's safe?”

Sesa pulled Lana back, making sure the tiny bitta was safe in her right hand. Held closer to Sesa’s core, while moving to kneel and look under the side of the bush. She reached under to gingerly grasp a thorn between finger and thumb, bending and breaking a few off. They were offered to Lana as the giant stood back up to her feet. “They are sharp, be careful.”

Lana was at least mindful of taking the four thorns. She had very carefully used a part of her shirt’s helm to hold the green thorn needles. The Bitta looked up as Sesa was standing beside the old fence that framed the garden. And likely sheltered the squash plant, or plants, in the winter. Or most likely to have. Lana sat up on her knees, grasping Sesa’s thumb with her free hand. 

“Is this all you want as growing space?” Lana asked looking up and back. Then just gave up and turned around to face Sesa to look at her face. The giant seemed confused at the question before remembering the morning and the talk about Lana designing a garden for Sesa.

“...I would like to have more space, to grow things that is.” Sesa admitted slowly looking at the mostly empty plot. “Maybe get some cooking herbs or medicinal growing too.”

“The jars you showed me earlier, are they baked or just dried out you think?” Lana asked, settled in the broad palm. 

Sesa frowned, thinking about it, “I think they are just hung to dry, or left in an oven like mine to dry a little faster… oh I should check on the ones we’re cooking to dry out.”

The giant woman glanced down, feeling the movement and found that Lana had scooted down into her palm more. Pulling her legs up to lean back and look up at the clouds before turning to peer sideways. Sesa brought her left hand back up to shield, as it seemed to make Lana feel better when she was walking. She smiled at the Bitta, “Come on, back inside we go. We can plan for the garden tomorrow. I still got a lot of cleaning to do.”

“You can do it!” Lana unexpectedly chirped, tossing her arms up, holding two thorns in each hand. “I can make a checklist! While you clean, I can pick out the seeds from the seasoning jars! We can tag-team… kinda. Little taste for me at least?”

Sesa grinned as she climbed the few porch stairs, “The company would be nice… I have to make the pie crust.”

“That would be a good idea, and make sure another egg doesn’t hatch on us.”

“Yes. I already have one sleeping on my table.”

“Pffft. At least it's a different box from mine.”

[theerurishipper]

I hate how im not even angry at how Kwamis choice ruined the Ladynoir ending from Hack-San. That little conversation was already bothering me in s4 bc Hack-San was brutally open with how little Marinette ever conciders Cat Noir in anything.

Beats me why she thought he wouldn't have the logical reaction of fcking RED ALERT when he suddenly sees Ladybug's earrings in possession of somebody else, but hey, Marinette told Alya to play with her pet so that makes up for it I guess? And "pet" I find extremely fitting in that episode's context. She literally send in another Ladybug miraculous holder who's lead Cat also had to follow with no saying in the matter. Marinette literally send him a new owner since the Ladybug can do with the Cat whatever she wants as Marinette herself perfectly demonstrates in her leadership and Adrien therefore had to learn in season 4. I don't know what kind of dignity Marinette was supposedly treating Cat Noir with because it definitely wasn't on screen.

Marinette not thinking a single second about Cat was so bad in Hack-San that in the end she was genuinely surprised that she had to talk to him. There had been no intention on her part to have a conversation, she truly thought she had taken care of everything that matters. And from her perspective that meant telling Alya to laugh at his jokes being the only thing she conciders of any importance (something Marinette herself barely does). Honestly, there is not more personhood to him than "Pet".

So no, her words in the Ladynoir end scene have always meant as little as it turned out in Kwamis choice where she immediately left after he rejected her one time in "Elation" and the she didn't even care if it was at least Scarabella again who Cat Noir would met next to find out the awful news.

I always felt so unbelievably bad for Adrien in the Hack-San ending because the episode went out of its way to show that it isn't Marinette who gets the "Their crush barely realizes they exist" treatment, it has always been Cat Noir.

It had to be ALYA to make Marinette even talk to Cat when she comes back and then the only thing Marinette acknowledges as a mistake is that he must have been (negatively) surprised by having met a different Ladybug holder and that she's sorry, if she were to have found out that way that he had revealed himself to someone else she would have been upset too.

Which... man, Ladybug's dialog in that scene is so surface level. Comparing the emotional depth of how Cat talks about what all this meant to him, with how much care he talks and that it was so bad that the thought of her not being there anymore one day hurt the most and that he doesn't think he could bare that...

And Ladybug is besides him and says "she would have sulked too".

The difference between what she means to him and what little he seemingly means to her is so bad that when Marinette says "I will never abandon you, Kitty" and Adrien immediately forgives her for everything as per usual, I look at Marinette and honestly want to ask if she even knows what the words she just said mean. Because the entire rest of the episode characterized her in a way where her line feels almost shallow.

What is Ladybug apologizing for not having warned him and saying "I will never abandon you Kitty" even worth when she was shocked that she had to talk to him at all?

Already back in season 4 I looked at Adrien's heart eyes after that and felt so bad for him bc very clearly this IS a bond be should be able to live without because she's spearing him barely any thoughts of actual significance in season 4.

So yeah, I can't say I'm angry about season 5 then having made that reality and destroyed the Hack-San ending with Kwamis choice. Marinette in part 1 once again proofs why it's even IMPORTANT that Ladybug isn't someone Cat should hold onto in his life and definitely needs to be able to bare possibly not seeing again. He rejected her ONE TIME and next morning she already tells Tikki to give her earrings to literally ANYONE before Plagg goes about his plan.

Already at that point the line "I will never abandon you Kitty" became worthless and she also would have caused yet ANOTHER Ladybug miraculous holder to met Cat Noir instead of Scarabella, when this time around the new Ladybug would have no information or connection to Marinette and was meant to stay for good.

I almost feel bad for saying it but also honestly not, Kwamis choice really reinforced how little Marinette actually learned in season 4. What little Ladybug "learned" in Hack-San was ripped to shreds in the same intensity as it already felt shallow in s4.

It's only thanks to Tikki that the same "new Ladybug" fiasko wouldnt have repeated itself for Cat just this time he would have been faced with every fear he had coming true, right after Elation where Cat admits that he isn't in love with her anymore and asks if she's okay with him only loving her as a friend.

She said yes. And then she left.

As much as I want to be harsh on Adrien's side of Kwamis choice too, I cannot hold it against him that he left to just finally be able to find happiness (and that being Plagg's motivation too for starting all this), especially not when him having stayed would have only resulted in him having to go through Hack-San 2.0 only in WORSE because once again Marinette barely spared Cat any thoughts besides this time him not wanting to date her anymore making her sad.

Hack-san is one of those other episodes in Season 4 in which I was rather defensive of Marinette in the beginning. Like yeah, she is in the wrong and she should apologize, but I understand that it's an honest mistake, you know? She isn't the best at considering how others might feel about situations, and it's understandable that it didn't cross her mind to talk to Chat Noir. She did do it after Alya mentioned it and she took responsibility for her screw-up, and I was fine with it. That scene from Hack-san on its own is still one of my personal favorite Ladynoir scenes.

But that's just it. The scene itself when seen individually is so soft and sweet, but putting it into the context of the whole season, it's not a good look. Marinette says she'll never abandon Chat Noir, and spends the rest of the season pretty much replacing him with Rena Furtive and overall just pushing him away. It just makes her come off as hypocritical and dishonest. She continues to never consider him and his feelings and things just continue to get worse. The way the Ladynoir conflict was handled retroactively makes the scene in Hack-san worse.

And honestly, I don't feel like defending Marinette for what she did anymore, because she didn't really fix her mistake. She just doubled down and continued to do the same thing, and her assurances that she never really backed up really seem shallow in hindsight. She never learns anything, he takes all the blame for it in the end, and they just carry on without her having to fix her mistake. It's just so bad.

Thank you for your ask!

[teenagemutantninjatrauma]

So recently I was rewatching a few random Fast Forward episodes again (as one does when one is writing a massive AU about something) and BOY DO I NEED TO SHARE A THEORY

So like... Torbin Zixx, right.

This guy:

He gets introduced to us in the FF Bishop episode, of all times, as a mysterious vigilante who has avoided not only being captured but also getting caught clearly on any security footage anywhere! How strange! Anyways, Bishop introduces themselves to the turtles, Raph tries to attack his hologram, and the gang agrees to help Bishop catch this guy. Banger!

And then! We get to this shot.

Now, I don't know if this is a noticeable detail to anybody who like, has a life and isn't obsessed with this cartoon, BUT - boy does this face look familiar. The nose specifically is preeetty prominent.

YEAH I bet none of you were thinking THIS when watching that season (probably a good sign that you have better things to do), BUT I THINK.

ZIXX IS A BISHOP CLONE.

Consider the evidence - because there IS evidence, actually!

First of all, they get to stand back to back in the opening even though they both show up like twice? Three times? For mostly unrelated adventures? Why do they get to stand back to back instead of like, Zyxx getting a spot in the villain lineup that is also in the opening? He is ostensibly occasionally doing good but he’s mostly a trickster able to outsmart the turtles and get away - a trait Bishop has exhibited even when he almost fuckin died in Bishop's Gambit, by the way - so it feels meaningful to set him up here, back to back with Bishop of all people.

Second, they get introduced in the same episode, Bishop to Knight. I know we all rag on this season and the following season for not reaching the previous five seasons' standard, but I believe while Back To The Sewer was genuinely badly written, Fast Forward's issue was only that it wasn't given enough time to elaborate on all the things it set up - it is still written well. Things happen with intentions behind them, we are given as much closure as the show could manage, and so it feels like introducing two characters in the same episode has meaning. Combined with the shot from the opening, it really does feel to me like a point is being made here to compare the two.

Third, there is the parallel of both of them tricking Raph with their holograms - unintentionally and intentionally. It makes sense for Bishop, or someone made to think just like Bishop, to use new modern technology like this, because he's a resourceful bastard!

Look at him flinging himself at people he doesn't like. Me too, man.

"He and Bishop don't look alike!" - Well, not anymore they don't. But look at how Bishop used to look during the first five seasons, during his EPF era, and compare that to Zixx, and then compare Zixx to PGA era Bishop:

The nose, the face shape, the dual communicators? PGA era Bishop does look different and this could be attributed to either change of artstyle or the implication that his clone bodies have evolved and changed over the last century, but Zixx is a piece of who he used to be and has had to evolve differently, and thus looks the part.

(Additionally, we have already seen Bishop make clones of himself that didn't look exactly like his then-current body, when he made the Slayer army in Bishop's Gambit.)

This, by the way, would explain why there is no digital track of Zixx's face anywhere. Because hey, let's be real here - the opening of the episode is dedicated to how much information Bishop personally looks through.

If Zixx was indeed running around wearing Bishop's face, he'd want him gone, but Zixx, being a Bishop clone, would be smart enough not to get caught! Thus, the next best thing would be to get rid of any proof of similarity between them, hence these being the only picture Donnie, a de facto civillian, could find.

(Ironically, this could very well have lead to Zixx becoming the infamous enigma he is said to be in this world.)

They also fight alike, relying on acrobatics and on being able to push and pull their opponents around as needed. I am unfortunately too tired to get good screenshots/clips of this.

"But Zixx doesn't look human!"/"But Zixx has a different voice than Bishop!"/"But Zixx has green eyes!" - He's a vigilante in a scifi space show and has the face and voice of the most well known guy in all of space, is it truly a stretch to assume he might've gotten body modifications? We've already got one guy grafting alien DNA onto himself to survive and it's none other than Dr Baxter Stockman, notably another piece of Bishop's past that's come back to haunt him. Why not two?

You know this would also be in line with what I am now calling the Seeing Double Theme - Dark Turtles and a new Turtle Titan are in this story, confrontations of the future and the past self in some way, shape or form are a running theme of Fast Forward, so why wouldn’t there be a Bishop clone running around

No clue how or why Zixx would ditch the whole "protect all of Earth" mentality, but when Bishop reforms himself and swings into the extreme of establishing intergalactic peace to a point where he can't even be partial towards Earth anymore, does it not make sense narratively for his foil to swing the other way, become a typical "only looking out for myself" type of guy?

"It could also be said that maybe Zixx shows off traits that Bishop usually obfiscates, with the self-serving nature being a good example. We know all of Bishop's grand goals are really just covering for the fact that he's scared and wants to protect himself, right? If you look at the core of everything he does, it's to benefit himself. Zixx forgoes making up any justifications and says it like it is: he only cares about himself and what others can do for him." - additional comment, courtesy of THE Bishop Guy™, @violetvulpini, who's the reason I'm going this insane rn in the first place.

In conclusion, I strongly believe that Torbin Zixx is a Bishop clone gone rogue, similar in origin to the Slayer aka Rat King. He is Bishop shaped, he gets to stand next to Bishop in the opening like they're anime foils to each other, and it is SO interesting to explore.

This has been Trauma, and you've been Zixxed ✌��💜

BONUS: Headcanon territory!

Zixx's purpose was to be a "back-up" clone. Bishop has been recording his findings and work since at least the EPF era when we meet him, so maybe these recordings are then uploaded somewhere so that in case he dies and can't make the body transfer, a new clone is awoken and informed of his purpose. For some reason this system has at some point malfunctioned and awoken Zixx despite Bishop surviving - possibly during the collapse of the lab he and Stockman used to work in, or during the space war that gets vaguely mentioned at one point.

"clone six" or "version six" somehow becomes "Torbin Zixx"?

How did Zixx become a vigilante? Well, we know Bishop doesn't have human blood. Presumably the blue goop that we see him bleed at the end of Bishop's Gambit is something synthesized specifically for his body, so I imagine it would be VERY hard to come by. This, I think, would very easily lead to a life of crime he has more than the ideal set of skills for.

Bishop probably wants him obliterated but can't reasonably dedicate resources to catching or killing who he KNOWS is gonna be the ultimate most hard-to-kill guy in the known universe.

He steals Bishop's fancy car specifically just to piss him off <3

[thoughts-with-hailey]

My Life in Prythian - Chapter Twenty-Four

Drinking Games - Eris POV

Summary: there are games and we are drinking

Eris

Her hand was in mine. 

She was willingly touching me. 

Her scent was surrounding me. 

Gods, she was so fucking perfect. 

Her delicate fingers gripped mine with surprising strength, weaving in between the spaces of my fingers that I had never considered empty until hers filled them. Her other hand had come up to grip my bicep, holding me close to her as we leisurely walked the well lit paths around the party, and I swore it was the most intimate way I had ever been touched in my life. 

Oh, I had been touched and had touched in return. Many nights I spent between the thighs of a willing partner, or them between mine, and not a single encounter could compare to the simple way her innocent touch ignited everything in me. It took only seconds for her to hold me like I was her dearest friend and when I had waved my free hand to light the rest of the torches lining an unused path she had turned her radiant smile up to me like I had not just insulted her multiple times over. 

“It’s truly wonderful here! I love seeing all of you do your little tricks,” she beamed up at me, clearly pleased with my small display of magic. A content sigh escaped her lips and she leaned in closer as if she was trying to draw heat from me as a cool breeze whisked past us. Behind us I could feel the lingering gaze of Azriel, Azzie, and tried to block him out so I could enjoy these few precious moments with her. 

“It’s very different from the Night Court.”

“It is,” she agreed softly, turning her head to look around once more. “I like the Night Court, or that I have seen of it, is beautiful. Velaris is one of the most stunning cities I have ever seen, and yet it does not compare to this.”

“This?” I asked, not sure I was hearing her properly. 

Looking around I tried to see it through her eyes, taking in the array of perpetually color changing trees and the crunchy leaves beneath them, the crisp scent of autumn that clung to everything all year round, and the chilled air. It was the same views I had spent my life with aside the rare times Beron sent me on missions elsewhere and though I loved my court, it was nothing compared to the wondrous starlit sky of the Night Court. At least there they had different seasons that would change the monotony of day to day life. Living in forever autumn made every day, week, month, year, every fucking decade feel the same with nothing to break up time passing. Each day was as boring and tortuous as the last. 

“All of this!” she exclaimed, releasing her grip on my arm to gesture around and I instantly felt the loss of her touch. I opened my mouth ready to beg her to give me back that small pleasure but she did so before I could, her grip even tighter before as her face lit with excitement. “Fall has always been my favorite, Eris. The colors are richer and the air is earthier, everything just feeling cozy and perfect. Sweaters by the fire, crunchy leaves underfoot, apple flavored treats and savory squash dishes! There is nothing like fall, and it’s always too short in the human world. I get maybe two weeks of it, if that, between the end of summer heat and the snow coming in. I’ve always wished I could live somewhere that’s like this all year round.”

I blinked, unsure I was hearing her properly. She truly loved this? I mean…I suppose if you’re human and only get weeks of this a year for the meager amount of time a human exists I can understand why it would be wonderful to see, still… Her loving it, her wishing she could have this year round? The cauldron must have known when it chose her as my mate, giving me someone who wouldn’t mind the constant state of the weather. As much as I adore my mother, she hates the forever autumn even more than I do, constantly complaining that she wants the warmth of summer. Having a Lady Autumn who loves her land would be a nice change for our people. 

Of course, I was getting ahead of myself. She could not be Lady Autumn if she was tied to someone else and by the possessive way Azzie was hovering behind us I had little doubt in my mind that he had laid full claim to this female. 

I tried to hold back my sigh at that. My mate and Azriel? Fucking ironic really considering the years of tension between the shadow singer and I that I had avoided acting on specifically because of how complicated it would make my life, and now there I was walking arm in arm with my mate who was claimed by that same male. 

I had the worst luck. 

Truly. 

“I think we should play a game,” Hailey suggested absently, tugging me slightly to the right so she could step her slippered foot on a particularly crunchy leaf, then grinning to herself when the sounds of it under her foot filled the air. 

Fuck she was cute. 

“A game?” I asked, tugging her towards the left to do the same and my heart warming when her grin spread wider. 

“Mhm. It’ll be fun. We go back and forth asking questions, and we have to answer honestly. If you don’t want to answer a question then you have to drink and you forfeit your right to ask a question.”

“How will we know if the other person is answering honestly?”

She shrugged. “You have to trust each other.”

Interesting. Obviously I did not trust she would give honest answers and I did not like that I would not know what she would ask, however this might be a perfect way to get information out of her, get to know her. “We will need wine.”

“Azzie!” she chirped, turning to him with big eyes and a bigger smile. “My sweet, sweet Azzie, can you fetch some wine and three glasses?”

His eyes narrowed on her. “Three?”

“You’re playing too, aren’t you?” she batted her eye lashes. 

Those eyes narrowed even further and he looked between the two of us for a moment before he sighed. “You stay right here where I can see you. I’ll be back in a moment.” The warning in his voice was clear, evident that he didn’t trust me alone with her, and I gave him an eye roll. There was little I could do to harm her considering were were a dozen yards from the rest of the gathering. Not to mention that I would never lay a hand on who was going to be my savior. He didn’t need to know that last part though. 

The nearest servants were within eyesight so he would be back soon even if he was out of earshot for a moment. Though, with those shadows of his I wasn’t sure if he was ever truly out of earshot. I glanced down and eyed my pretty mate. “I am shocked he let’s you call him Azzie.”

“I have a feeling I’ll pay for it later,” she laughed, looking all too pleased about that prospect. 

I tried not to imagine what that meant. 

Moments later Azriel returned with two bottles and three glasses, his expression as somber as ever. Wordlessly he turned towards a well lit gazebo that was in view of the party yet secluded enough that we wouldn’t be bothered by the main event unless someone truly wanted to speak with us. There were cushions on the ground and a small warming lamp in the middle making it the perfect place to have whatever game this was. We all took our seats and Azriel poured three generous glasses of wine before turning his ever watchful gaze to Hailey. 

“Since you know this game you start first.”

“Great!” she clapped her hands together, looking between us with a calculating expression. “Okay, I’ll start with you Eris; what’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever put your cock in?”

I stared at her. 

Next to her Azriel closed his eyes for a brief moment before he lifted his glass and took a long drink, only for her hand to lash out and grab him by the throat, heedless of his shadows. “No! Don’t you dare fucking swallow that! You can only drink when it’s your turn, and I asked Eris not you, so that’s against the rules!”

 Azriel looked down at her, eyebrow raised in a silent question of what to do with his mouthful of wine. I watched in rapt amusement as they glared at each other, both seemingly irritated and amused at the same time. I had never seen Azriel look so playful, so relaxed, and was pleased to see there was an actual person under his cool demeanor. 

Wordlessly Hailey leaned closer to him, her hand still locked around his throat, and opened her lips in invitation. Azriel gave a huff of amusement before leaning forward and sealing his lips to hers, the wine he was apparently not allowed to drink pouring from his lips to hers. 

My body heated a few degrees as I watched her throat work, swallowing down the wine as a small trickle escaped the corner of her mouth to slide down her cheek. Fuck if that wasn’t hot as my own fire and I desperately wished it was me pouring that wine into her mouth, or drinking it from his. Either would do. 

Once she was satisfied she got all the wine from him she released his throat and turned back to me with an expectant look. “Well?”

I cleared my throat, trying to push down the arousal filling me before Azriel could smell it, and tried to think. The answer wasn’t exactly pleasant, but I did agree to this game and I did want to ask her questions so I sighed and answered honestly. “Uhm, I suppose the weirdest thing I ever did that to was a pumpkin. My brother, Lucien, carved one to look like his girlfriend for our annual pumpkin carving contest and when he turned around to fetch a different knife I carved a hole in the mouth area and…well…”

Her eyes widened comically large as she stared at me for a moment and I was certain she was about to stand up to leave, disgusted by this. Instead a peal of laughter erupted from her mouth and she reached out to pat my knee. “That’s fucking amazing. I’m definitely bringing that up next time I see him. Okay, your turn then.”

Relieved by her reaction I relaxed slightly, trying to think of something I wanted to know about her. Well, I wanted to know everything. There wasn’t anything about her I didn’t want to know, only I had to pick one question to start. “Okay, Hailey. If you had to eat one food every day for the rest of your life what would it be?”

“Chocolate croissants,” her and Azriel both answered at the same time, which caused her to roll her eyes at him obviously sharing some inside joke. 

Making a mental note of this answer for the future I nod, waiting for her next question. She turned to Azriel, who immediately tensed at her too sweet smile, and she asked, “Are your shadows individually sentient, or are they just an extension of you?”

Ah, clever. Certain that many people wondered this as a shadow slinger was so incredibly rare and not much recorded about them in any texts, that answer was one only a shadow slinger themself could answer. Of course Azriel looked from her to me, then reached for his wine glass. Hailey scowled but did not stop him from drinking, only looking back towards me. “My turn again,” she declared. “Eris, who do you think the most handsome high lord is?”

“Helion,” I responded without thought. 

“Like mother like son,” she laughed. 

I frowned. “What do you mean by that?”

“Is that your question?” she raised a brow. 

I paused, debating that. While I did want to know what that meant I was sure I could just ask mother about it later, and I didn’t want to waste my chances to ask them both questions. It was rare to see Azriel so unguarded, let alone playful, and I needed to take advantage of that while I could. So I shook my head and looked over at him. “Azzie, what does Hailey taste like?”

Hailey’s jaw dropped open as Azriel’s nostrils flared, shadows swirling angrily around him. By the glint in his eye I knew I had overstepped and yet he didn’t reach for his glass. Instead he asked, “Which part of her?”

“Her lips.”

“Which ones?”

Hailey clapped a hand over her mouth as a snort echoed from her, and even I grinned a little. As angry as he looked Azriel was amused. If he wasn’t he would already be drinking. Swirling my own glass I shrugged. “Her mouth I suppose.”

“Like sunshine and a hint of chocolate.”

I looked over at her to see her eyes bouncing back and fourth between us, clearly surprised and yet there was a hint of interest in her look. Azriel, seeming now very interested in this game, leaned forward to ask, “Hailey, who do you think has the better hair between me and Eris?”

“Eris, obviously,” she shrugged, turning towards me to grab a strand in her hand. “I’m a sucker for a male with long hair. Eris, do you prefer giving or receiving?”

“I think there is merit in both. Hailey, if you had to pick one high lord to fuck who would it be?”

“Helion for sure. Azzie, have you ever kissed Rhys?”

“No. Eris, have you ever kissed a high lord?”

And so the questions went on, back and forth in rapid fire each of us asking silly questions about each other, Hailey throwing in casual questions about Azriel’s shadows every once in while making him taking drinks of wine as he refused to answer any about them. I watched as his eyes grew slightly glazed, clearly enjoying the very strong Autumn Berry Wine that was a specialty of our court, until Hailey finally turned to Azriel and asked, “Azriel what does Eris taste like?”

“Cinnamon and apples,” Azriel replied, his words slightly slurred. 

Then his eyes widened. 

Fuck. 

A gleeful grin spread over Hailey’s face. “I knew it!” she shouted, bouncing up and down on her cushion. “You two kissed! Did you do more? Were you guys together? For how long? Why aren’t you together now? How are-”

Her excited tones, growing louder and louder with each question, were suddenly cut off as Azriel’s shadows stuffed her mouth full. “Enough, little liar,” he hissed, true anger in his slightly drunken gaze. “You’re fucking clever, asking me questions you knew I didn’t want to answer so I would answer that one without thinking. I should’ve known you were up to something.”

Despite her mouth being full of shadows she still tried to talk around them, something I was almost certain sounded like “I’m always up to something.”

Another one of his shadows stroked down her face, causing her cheeks to heat, as he murmured, “You are very, very lucky we did not have time before we came here to discuss punishments for acting like a brat. Otherwise when we got home I’d be using this pretty little mouth of yours until I was satisfied and then sending you to bed all hot and needy.”

Fuck. Those words followed by her soft whimper and the air suddenly saturated with the sweet scent of her arousal was enough to make me instantly hard. Before I could even contemplate how to process all of this Azriel stood, pulling her to her feet with him, and said, “It’s time we returned to the party. I am sure Rhys is wondering where we have gone.”

I didn’t even have time to rise to my feet before Azriel was practically hauling her across the lawn towards the main party, taking a part of my heart along with them. 

[scotianostra]

On July 30th 2003 Multi race winning Motorcyclist, Robert Steven ‘Hizzy’ Hislop died.

Hizzy, as he was affectionately known once said “If I���d never thrown my leg over a bike, I’d never have lived.”

Robert Steven Hislop grew up in the village of Chesters, near Hawick in the borders. His father started the interest of both he and his brother Garry in motorcycle racing. This was short lived at the time as he lost his father and a few years later his brother was killed at Silloth circuit. He ended up with a serious alcohol problem which led into depression.

Hizzy thankfully recovered and began his Isle of Man road racing career in 1983 by finishing second in the newcomers’ race at the Manx Grand Prix.

On short circuits, his first championship success came when he won the 250cc British Championship in 1990. Superbike victory followed with the British Superbike Championship in 1995. Some attributed his success to James Whitham leaving the series mid-season to deal with cancer.

Although he did not take a BSB victory in 1996 or 1997, Hislop was hired by Rob McElnea’s dominant Cadbury’s Boost Yamaha team for 1998. The nature of the fight for the championship between Hislop & team mate, fellow Scot. Niall Mackenzie, was illustrated by a near-collision on the last lap at Snetterton which cost the team a 1-2 finish. Hislop generally matched his countryman before a serious crash took him out of title contention.

His last championship success came in 2002 when he won the British Superbike Championship riding a Ducati. A notable feature of his season resulted from Hislop lapping Donington Park circuit more quickly on a superbike than the fastest Moto GP machine: Hislop’s modified production Ducati was heavier and less powerful than the bespoke Grand Prix bikes.

The 1992 Senior TT was described as an absolute classic. It is often described as one of the best races in TT history.

After their successful 1991 TT on all conquering Honda RVF machines, Hislop and Carl Fogarty had not planned to return in 1992. However, they both lined up on the Glencrutchery Road that year on unfancied machinery: Hislop was ona Norton with Fogarty on a Yamaha. The Norton Hizzy rode had been developed on a shoe string budget when compared with the Japanese competition. John Player had no intention of backing Steve’s TT campaign but after scratching around for some support and with minimal testing time, the team headed for the Isle of Man.

Hislop’s Norton took to the circuit in the unconventional white livery of Steve’s long term sponsor Abus. Hislop and the team defied the bike’s detractors by taking a fine 2nd place in the opening TT F1 race. The bike proved it could complete 6 laps of the gruelling Snaefell Mountain Course in hot weather so the team looked forward to Friday’s Senior TT.

Hislop’s main rival was Foggarty, who started at number 4. Steve started at 19. Not only did this give Hizzy more traffic to contend with but it also gave the crowd an anxious wait as the officials calculated the time difference between them. As the race progressed, the two riders smashed records they set the previous year with Hislop taking a narrow advantage into the final lap. In a last-ditch attempt to catch Hislop, Fogarty recorded a record lap time of more than 123 mph on his Yamaha. It was all in vain however as Hislop guided the fly splattered Norton home to an historic win. This was one of Hislop’s greatest achievements and one of the most popular TT wins. Carl Fogarty’s lap record stood for 7 years.

Hislop and Fogarty went on to become two of Britain’s most successful motorcycle racers, winning many races and championships. It was the 1992 Senior TT that saw them battle together for the last time.

Described by some as a flawed sporting genius, success in the world championships never materialised for Hislop. This was possibly because of a self-destructive aspect to his character. The flaw may have led to a number of well-publicised clashes with other riders and teams in the British championships which hindered progress into international series.

Having lost his brother and many friends in motorcycle accidents, he made a point of never going to the funerals of fellow racers, saying:

“Some people might find that a bit callous. I only ever attend family ones and people find it a bit strange that I won’t go to a friend’s funeral, but it’s just my little way of shutting off.”

Steve Hislop died in a helicopter accident in July 2003, near Teviothead, Roxburghshire and was interred in the village of Chesters near his birthplace of Hawick, Scotland. He had two children.

There is a bronze statue in memory of Hizzy in the grounds of Hawick Museum. at Wilton park and another at Onchan Head, Isle of Man, as seen in order in the pics. The last pic is a cairn near Teviothead, the scene of the helicopter crash, it reads……

‘Hizzy’ This cairn was built by a few friends of Steve Hislop, British Superbike Champion, who was tragically killed in a helicopter accident near this site, on July 30th 2003.

Kind permission was granted by His Grace The Duke of Buccleuch.

[batsplat]

badly articulated thought that will be eventually expanded on when i properly post about that race but to ME there's something really unique about laguna 2008 in that it like... wakes you up. i do actually think the 2008 season is pretty decent in terms of watchability, the races aren't as awful as in some 800cc seasons and you do have some fun drama early on (thanks jorge), but it's still kinda... by the time you get to laguna, you've sort of been lulled into a false sense of security. the title fight has had some pretty sizeable momentum shifts but all of them feel pretty logical progressions. the rookie's campaign fell off the cliff, valentino got used to the new tyres, if ducati could fix the bike then everyone suspected casey would do his thing again... and given what 2007 looked like, by this point obviously the expectation is that casey might well run away with the title. or maybe not! maybe there'll be a gentle shift back in valentino's direction, who knows! but crucially it's all like... quite chill... the title protagonists get on Fine, valentino and casey sometimes peek out above the parapet and fire shots vaguely in each other's direction but it's all still pretty civil and restrained and you toss in a little valentino throwing an arm around casey's shoulder at donington to quiet the boos here and there and... it's just a different vibe. valentino saying he has a more normal relationship with dani and casey than past rivals and it's obviously true... and the thing is. usually when these valentino feuds have a big moment, you do kinda get some warning. often it's late in seasons where everyone is stressing out about the title fight and it sort of makes sense for things to get tense. often there's been a big flashpoint or two earlier that year. or you kinda know going into the race something might happen... jerez 2005 obviously, where him and sete already hated each other and it's the opening round and it's in spain. compare it even to something like catalunya 2009, which didn't necessarily cause a feud per se though it was obviously still a Big Moment in that season and also that rivalry... but there you kinda knew jorge and valentino might be fighting for the victory going off practise pace and also it's jorge's home race and also it's right after valentino lost his home race for the first time since the last ice age... like there's something in the air!! whereas what makes laguna 2008 so unique and so brutal is that there's NOTHING. nobody thought the race would be a contest! there's no real build up of tensions in the valentino/casey dynamic! watching the races before that is actually quite nice and comfortable and remarkably decent vibes between all the title contenders!! casey's doing the thing again! valentino's joking about needing a thirty second head start and that feels like a reasonable thing to say! and the thing is, it's a feud that is set up first and foremost through this single race performance which like... it is actually unique in that sense... valentino keeping the charm more or less still flowing in casey's direction while he's figuring out how to turn this title fight around again... so when valentino's big moment arrives, he actually manages to catch everyone unawares. including, most importantly, casey. obviously always important to note that the feud didn't start overnight after laguna and casey plays the traditional valentino role in that rivalry in terms of biding his time - but in the grand scheme of things... it's still all about that one race. and it just wouldn't have been anywhere near as significant if it had been a little less of a surprise

[whxre-bxby]

I just finished reading your fic "Cursed By Blue" (AND IM SO IN LOVE, fr marry me 💍) and i was hoping you could make a different version but with Ja and Prager?

I KNEW this was coming LMAO (let's go on a honeymoon) here you go <3

"Cursed By Blue" 2.0

f. Recom Y/N x Recom Prager x Recom Ja

(I can't find a gif of Ja) heartbreak hotel

"Cursed By Blue"1. Masterlist

Summary: The recom team is out on another mission, exploring the woods in search of Sully. However, the ladies become inconvenienced by a certain seasonal feeling they didn’t expect. It hits Y/n the hardest and it’s not long before the others understand what’s happening. While everyone fights their instincts, the only option Y/N sees available is to run. 

WARNINGS: SMUT, force with consent, predator/prey, heat fucking, heat cycles, penetration, unprotected sex, breeding kink, quickie, Z-Dog absolutely destroying everyone

Word Count: 4555

We were nearing the weekend. Not that that affected us. Lyle told me it was Friday today and I was surprised because I had completely lost track of time. But it didn’t really matter what day it was because we didn’t get time off anyway. Finding Jake was our number one priority and no breaks other than sleep were allowed. 

So here we were again, walking deeper into the forest of Pandora. It had just passed lunch time and we were here since early morning. 

No one was tired though, not yet. We weren’t allowed to be either. 

Today also happened to be warmer than usual so I wasn't wearing my usual long-sleeved attire and pants. I dressed like Walker usually did, in a sports bra and shorts. She and Z-Dog decided to wear tank tops like most of the others. 

The forest grew quieter the more we distanced ourselves from the RDA base and the city. Soon, we could only hear the wind blowing between the leaves and the distant calls of animals. That and our heavy footsteps. 

The Colonel and Lyle started the day off by leading us into the woods. As the hours passed by, the line mixed since everyone had a different walking pace and now it was Z-Dog and me leading at the front. Walker was close behind. 

I had been excessively drinking for the last 30-45 minutes and I wasn’t sure why. Z-Dog glanced over at me when she saw me reach for another water bottle. 

“That’s your third one already. Are you okay”? She asks, watching me gulp it down. I swallow most of the water and inhale sharply, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. 

“I don’t know.” I say, gasping for air. “Maybe I’m dehydrated?” 

“Don’t think so, we always drink the same amount and I’m fine.” Z-Dog says. We continue walking for a while longer in silence, thinking. Then Z reaches for her water and starts drinking it like she’s been running. 

I laugh a little but seeing her drink made me feel thirsty again. 

I reach for my water only to notice I have a few drops left. I down the remaining liquid and hold the bottle to my head. It seemed to be getting really warm. 

Turning around, I open my mouth and want to say something to Walker only to see her finishing her own bottle of water. I look behind me fully and no one else is drinking. 

“What. The. Fuck.” I say, feeling genuinely confused. Walker looks up at me with water drizzling down her chin and Z turns around. 

I wheeze and Z laughs and we wait for Walker to catch up so we can walk together. 

“Do you have any water left?” I ask her, knowing we at the front drank ours. 

“No, that was my last bottle.” she says and I notice how heavy my breathing is becoming. 

“Wait, you ran out too?” she asks and Z-Dog scoffs. 

“Yeah, been drinkin’ like we ran a marathon.” she says and I nod.

“I’ll ask the others.” I say before turning around and seeing Mansk behind me.

“Can I have some of your water?” I ask, wiping a bead of sweat from my forehead. Compared to us, Mansk is not sweating at all. He’s wearing his usual long-sleeved jacket over his tank top. 

The man glances up at me and his eyebrows furrow for a split second before he nods and hands one of his bottles over. 

“You ran out already?” he asks while I open it and drink about half. 

I wipe my mouth again, closing my eyes for a second and nodding. “Yeah.” I breathe out. “Thanks.” I say, handing it back to him. 

“Y’ alright?” he asks again taking the bottle back and I nod, not thinking much of it. Mansk doesn’t seem convinced. 

Ja overheard our conversation and sped up his walk to catch up to us. When Mansk noticed his presence he seemed a little relieved. 

“Is she okay?” he asks his colleague. Ja was the medic of the group so he would know. He took a glance at me and also thought of what I suggested. 

“Did you drink enough?” he asks me and I nod. 

“Yeah, I drank all my water and some of Mansk’s.” I scoff, wiping sweat from my forehead again. 

Ja presses the back of his hand against my cheek and then my forehead. 

“Shit, you’re burning up.” he said, scanning over me. 

I was feeling extremely warm. My skin felt like it was burning and my clothes suddenly felt tight and restrictive.

In front of us, Z-Dog and Walker are discussing something. 

Ja felt up my arm and checked my pulse while we were walking and Mansk stayed on my other side in case I was in fact not okay.

“Yeah, somethin’s definitely not right.” Ja announces to us, not quite sure how to help me. Mansk has his eyebrows furrowed, examining my behaviour. 

“They have it too.” I say, pointing at Z-Dog and Walker who now turn around. Walker is grimacing a little and Z looks worried. 

Mansk’s and Ja’s heads look up at them and they notice that they are breathing heavily and sweating just like me. Ja also takes note of the empty bottles in their hands. 

“Everthin’ okay up there?” the Colonel calls. It seems as though the others have noticed the small commotion and the medical check-up. 

Ja turns around, rubbing the back of his head. 

“Uh- no sir not really.” he calls back, stopping in his tracks to wait for Quaritch so that he can explain. Mansk and I keep walking and he watches me intently as I break out into a type of pant. My ears are pinned back and my tail is wildly flicking around behind me. My eyelids also happen to suddenly grow heavy and I keep them half-lidded. 

What snaps me out of my haze is Z calling my name. 

“Hey, Y/N come over here for a sec.” she says, turning around. Walker is running her hand down her face in what looks like frustration. 

I nod, jogging over and leaving Mansk behind. He’s still watching me, trying to make sense of what’s happening.

Neither Z nor Walker looks like they feel like joking around anymore.

“Have you read the manual?” she asks and it takes me a few seconds to realise she means the Na’vi Body data. 

“Yeah, of course, we had to.” I say, trying to play it cool. She raises an eyebrow and I sigh. 

“I stopped once I reached the shit about plants. It got boring.” I say and she nods, knowing damn well she didn’t read further than that either. 

“Walker read it, and it said somethin’ ‘bout a heat cycle.” Z says and I glance at Walker. 

“Yeah… we’re not dehydrated. I remember the symptoms. It’s happening right now.” Walker says, scanning my reddened face. 

“Does it burn?” Z asks and my ears perk forward for once, being relieved from the tense strain I kept them in the past half hour. 

“Everything burns.” I say. 

“You know what I mean.” she adds and I groan in frustration too. 

“Yeah.” I mumble. I can’t deny the heat that’s been forming between my legs. I tried ignoring it but it grew worse. 

“Do you feel, like-” Z says, gasping for air herself. “...uncontrollably horny?” she asks with a light laugh and Walker smirks. 

I have no shame admitting anything in front of them so I chuckle and answer. “More like painfully horny.” 

They laugh a little, struggling to even out their breathing. 

“We need to distance ourselves from them.” Walker says, glancing over her shoulder. “Especially you Y/N you seem to have it bad.” she chuckles, motioning to my panting self. “Otherwise we’re done for and this squad will no longer be as professional.” 

My eyes widen. “Wait- you’re joking right? It’ll go away like tomorrow. How would they know about this if we don’t tell them?” I ask and Walker opens her mouth to answer but before she can, my answer is handed to me differently. 

“You smell that?” someone says behind us. My heart stops pounding for a second. Right our new senses have us picking up more. 

“These cursed blue bitches.” I swear and Z breathily laughs, seeming to know how screwed we are. She’s passed the stage of denial and is now accepting our fate. 

We turn around and notice that Lyle was talking to Prager. Prager nodded and they stopped walking. Mansk had also stopped in his tracks, turning to them. Behind them, Ja, Quaritch, Brown, Lopez and the remaining team catch up and everyone comes to a halt. 

Quaritch walks between them and deeply inhales. He looks around, noticing how his soldiers are smelling what he is too. 

I feel my heart slowly drop and I hold on to Z-Dog for some comfort. All three of us are watching them, dreading their reaction. 

“What is it?” Lopez asks. 

“No idea, but it’s fuckin’ great.” Lyle chuckles and my breath catches in my throat.

 It seems to affect them too. As Lyle inhales, his own tail is swishing around behind him and his muscles flex. He’s growing restless and the recom’s are looking at their Colonel for an answer or instructions. 

My heart seems to stop beating when I see Ja turn to me. Prager’s gaze meets mine as well and it’s so intimidating which is unlike both of them. They’re watching my every movement and I take a step back, my grip on Z’s arm tightening.

“Oh fuck.” I whisper while barely moving my lips. I feel a little hazy again and start leaning against Z-Dog. She sighs looking more pissed than worried and catches me, trying to keep me upright. 

The soldiers follow Ja’s, Prager’s and the Colonel’s eyes and notice us standing a bit further away. 

“It ain’t dehydration, I can tell ya that.” Quaritch says, referring to Ja’s hypothesis of what might be happening. Seems like he read the manual too. 

The stupid excitement in my stomach has grown so big it’s making me feel sick. And all their eyes on us have me more nervous. 

"Do we kill them or ourselves?" Walker asks, not liking any of this.

“Can we leave?” I whisper to Z and she nods, staring down the others as if they would move when she looks away. 

“Yeah, come on.” she says, guiding me forwards. I take a wobbly step, almost stumbling. 

Walking won’t do it. I have so much adrenaline coursing through my veins I want to run away. 

I glance back, noticing everyone’s tense poses. Their eyes follow our every move, making them seem almost predatory. My only instinct now is to run. 

Z gives me a push and my legs take off. I start running and hear Walker and Z-Dog do the same behind me. There’s a commotion happening behind them and the next time I glance behind me, everyone is chasing after us. 

It was a miserable escape attempt, to be honest. We were already so out of breath compared to them, we really didn’t make it far. 

Z caught up to me because she was not affected by the heat as much as me. 

Within the next few seconds, I was tackled to the ground, luckily hitting the soft grass. I fall with a shriek and when I look up I see Z-Dog made it a little further but she’s down now too. 

I felt bodyweight on my back and a hand wrapped around the back of my neck. I couldn’t move. Z-Dog could and the man that pushed her was getting a beating right now. She wasn’t having any of it.

I cry out, feeling uncomfortable in this position. My chest was pressed into the ground and I was struggling to breathe. 

The feeling and the effects of the scent the recom’s picked up had everyone acting on their primal instincts. Most common sense was gone as their new bodies seemed to be overpowered by the will of nature. 

The scent had the soldiers feel just as worked up as the heat cycle did. Instinctively, they ran after the ‘potential mate’ they felt most attracted to because that was Eywa’s will. 

I couldn’t say anything, I felt completely overwhelmed and somehow, submitting to him felt like the right thing to do. My right mind would never let this happen but I couldn’t think of anything else but finding some relief in this agonising feeling. My body longed for this. 

“Shh- it’s alright.” A voice from above me cooed. “Just stop movin’.” 

My eyes shoot wide open and I recognise that it’s Ja. His hands found mine, and he held them together behind my back while leaning forward and speaking close to my ear. 

Another pair of heavy footsteps come to a halt close to me and I see how a weapon is thrown to the ground on my left. 

Ja is straddling me, keeping a knee on my lower back to pin me down while he removes the heavy medical equipment from his back. 

I whine and struggle beneath him again but this time his hand catches my jaw, holding my face still and making me look forwards. He leans down, pressing his face against the side of my head. 

“I know how to help you, princess. Quit the movin’.” he told me, almost snarling his words. 

Next to us I hear a shout of pain and see how Z-Dog has fought a man to the ground. At least she was going to be fine. Ja turns my head away from her, not wanting me to get any ideas from her. 

“Fuck- we really doin’ this?” Another person says and I realise Prager is here too. 

“Shut up and help me out here.” Ja replies, growing restless and impatient. 

The shouting in the distance is increasing and I hear Walker and Z-Dog just demolishing things while the Colonel is yelling and getting angry that equipment is being destroyed. 

Both Prager and Ja’s head’s shoot over to the commotion and they exchange looks. 

A gunshot suddenly makes me flinch and I want to turn my head to see what the actual fuck is happening but Ja doesn’t let me. 

Without hesitating another second, Ja moves off of me and both men hurl me to my feet, quickly dragging me behind a tree. I’m being pulled backwards so I finally get a small glimpse of the action and I notice that something has been set on fire. Looking at what I think are Z-Dog and Walker, I notice how they’ve put the fire between themselves and the others. There was too much going on. 

Suddenly I was being pushed down again and I landed on my knees. Prager and Ja had pulled me away from the others just enough to get some type of privacy. 

The last thing either of the men wanted was one of the others interfering with you. 

I move forwards, staying on my knees but leaning against one of my arms that I now placed on the ground. My free one wrapped around my middle section and I continued to pant. The sensations I felt were so odd. My body seemed to be buzzing and I was overwhelmed. 

Prager and Ja were hastily removing their vests and other equipment, knowing they didn’t have all day and they were not going to waste this opportunity. 

Footsteps jog over to me and Ja lands on his knees in front of me. I look up and see that his torso is bare. With the current state I’m in I can’t help but stare. 

He smirks, cupping my flushed cheek and making me look up at his face. 

“That’s right baby, you’ll get what you want.” he said. Since he was a medic, he had to know everything about the Na’vi body and he knew very well what I needed now. 

My eyes widen at his words as I can only imagine what he means. He chuckles and looks at his friend. 

“Ain’t that right, Prager?”

“Fuckin’ right.” Prager answers and moments later I hear a thud on the ground behind me. He too dropped to his knees and I heard him unbuckling his belt. Ja swiped a strand of hair from my face, brushing it back before smiling. We locked eyes again and he mirrored Prager’s actions, opening and removing his belt with one hand, making me swallow nervously. 

“You want this, don’t you baby?” Ja asked, making sure he and Prager were good to go. I nod, letting out another impatient whine while my fingers tug at the waistband of his pants.��

Ja chuckles, nodding at Prager before opening his pants. I watch with parted lips, not even noticing the drool leaking down the side of my mouth. 

Hands are around my waist and my own pants are being tugged down my legs. Prager pulls them off, throwing them to the side and rubbing over all of the newly exposed skin. He rested his hand on my ass, squeezing the flesh before pulling my panties to the side. His hand wrapped around my tail, lifting it into the air so that my wet cunt was exposed to him.

I shiver when the cool breeze hits my hot skin. Prager hums approvingly, tracing his fingers around my core before sliding his thumb through my folds. 

“Y/N?” Prager says from behind me and I look over my shoulder, seeing he discarded his pants. “Ready?” he asks, wanting to make sure I was still okay. 

I nod my head, breathily saying ‘yes’ because I was out of breath. To make it clear to him I push my hips back, pressing them right up against him. I feel his bare thighs press up against the back of mine and his now free dick is resting between my ass cheeks. 

“Fuckin’ hell…” he curses under his breath and Ja scoffs, wanting some attention too. 

I face forwards again, looking up at Ja who pulled his pants halfway down his thighs, revealing his own length to me. My eyes grow wide and I look at him to make sure I can touch him. 

He tangles his fingers into the hair on the back of my head, edging me closer to him until my hot breath is hitting his skin.

My tail wraps around Prager’s slim waist, pulling him further into me to encourage him to finally do something. He doesn’t need to be told twice. 

Ja’s eyebrows are furrowed and his lips are slightly parted as he watches me and I take the hint. I open my mouth and stick out my saliva-covered tongue, licking around the base of his throbbing erection. His body shudders in excitement while he inhales sharply, tucking in his bottom lip between his teeth. 

I smile at him before moving my tongue further up his dick until I reached his tip. It’s where he’s the most sensitive. It’s also the area I will devote most of my attention to. 

Prager pulled his hips back a bit, his right hand tightly gripping my waist while his left lined up his pulsing cock with my hole. 

Slowly, he pushed his hips forward, watching with lust-darkened eyes how the head of his dick was being engulfed by me.

I close my eyes and moan while keeping my lips attached to Ja’s length. His breathing stuttered unevenly as he felt the vibrations soar through him and then he let his head fall back once my lips wrapped around his tip. 

I sucked on it, keeping my ears perked forward to catch every noise he made. He cursed while looking up at the sky, before watching me work my way down him.

I swirled my tongue around his tip and then pushed myself further down. He already hit the back of my mouth but I decided to not stop there because I only had half of him in my mouth. 

His fingers tightened in my hair but he didn’t push me down further. Ja let me go at my own pace, he just needed to grab onto something to keep him grounded. 

Prager had now pushed all the way in and it immediately felt good. I was finally full. My eyes fluttered closed as I spread my legs further apart for him, arching my back to see if he could go deeper. 

He was hypnotised by my inviting movements and realised how my desperate attempts for more made him even harder. 

Luckily, Prager didn’t keep me waiting and soon found a steady pace. 

I was being nudged forwards with each thrust of Prager’s hips and thereby moved my head up and down Ja’s dick. I inhaled deeply through my nose, closing my eyes to concentrate as I pushed my head down further down him. 

Ja’s eyes turned from watching me half-closed to being unable to look away. He was surprised by how much of him you were able to take and it made his dick twitch in your mouth. Fuck, how did he only realise now how perfect you were?

Prager’s hips snap forward more suddenly this time, rocking me further forward so that my nose hits Ja’s abdomen while his dick is down my throat. Ja’s mouth is hanging open and he moans once he bottoms out. 

“Holy shit-” he curses through clenched teeth as he fights his body and tries his absolute best not to spill just yet. “Didn’t know you could take it all.” he breathes out, trying to calm his panting. I hum in response, pulling back before pushing down all the way again. Ja’s muscles flex as his body floods with waves of pleasure. 

Prager is pulling my hips back against his now, every time he thrusts into me and with my further spread legs, he hits my sweet spot at a new angle, managing to plunge himself deeper into me. 

I moan around Ja, going weak in the arms for a second and he curses. 

“Shit. Whatever you’re doin’ Prager-” he groans, clenching his eyes closed. “Don’t stop.” 

Prager nods with a grin, relishing in the feeling of your warm walls tightly hugging him. He also takes note of the slick slowly running down your thighs. The sight turned him on so much he couldn’t wait to cum deep inside you. The way you started rocking into him indicated you were close so he was glad he wouldn’t have to restrain himself for too long.

Ja was so close to losing it, shivering and groaning every time your face pressed against his lower stomach. 

I decided to take it up a notch and hollowed my cheeks around him each time I pushed forward. This way I was creating a strong suction, not letting his dick escape my mouth when I pulled back. His tip always stayed in my mouth. 

Suddenly Ja whimpered, making my ears shoot forward.

He threw his head back moaning “Fuck, fuck fuck-” and couldn’t stop his hand from pushing your head down him as far as possible. His hips bucked forwards and he stilled while his entire body tensed and he released his load deep down your throat. 

The way you hollowed your cheeks made him cum instantly, loving the feeling of how you sucked him dry. 

Prager’s huffing turned into groans and growls as he dug his fingertips into my hips, rutting into me like there was no tomorrow. 

I swallow all of Ja’s cum and he releases my hair, sitting back on his knees and breathing heavily. I gently pull back from him, letting out a small cough before licking away any remaining cum on his dick. He watched me with soft eyes, almost falling in love at the sight. 

Prager moans, letting his head hang down for a second as he leans over my back and wraps both arms around my waist. His head is resting in the crook of my neck while his chest is pressed up against my back and his hips continue their brutal pace. Our skin slaps against each other and I know my ass is going to be red or at least a shade of purple by the time we are done.

I’m finally so close to my own high that I curl my fingers in the grass, pushing my ass further into the air so that he can access my cunt better. 

Prager doesn’t stop ploughing into me and continues the bruising pace while the sweat on our bodies mixes. 

“Prager-” I moan, closing my eyes. “I’m so- close.” 

His deep voice growls into my ear when he hears the words, making him speed up his thrusts even more. 

“Cum for us. C’mon.” he breathes, encouraging me as he feels his own high near him. 

I cry out and suddenly I’m pushed over the edge. My pussy clenches around Prager’s dick as he rides out my orgasm which leaves my arms and legs shaking. 

His hips stutter and once I’ve come down from my high, he bites down into my shoulder and buries himself as deep into me as possible. His cum shoots into me, filling me up while my now sensitive pussy throbs around him. 

His hot breath coming from his nose is fanning against my shoulder which he gently releases from his bite. Prager looks down at it, not quite sure why he felt the need to do that.

“You okay?” he whispers, nuzzling his face into my neck and awaiting a response. 

I nod, inhaling deeply. “Yeah. Much better.” 

Ja chuckles and Prager smiles before pushing himself off of me and gently pulling out. 

He leans back, examining how his semen is drizzling out of my cum stuffed cunt. 

“That’s stayin’ there.” He said, fingering it back in with his fingers. I gasp, biting down on my teeth. Ja rubs my attacked shoulder, wiping some blood away with his thumb in an attempt to soothe me a little while Prager puts my panties on, making sure most of his cum was still inside me. 

They dressed me first which I appreciated, helping me back into my pants before they clothed themselves. While they were getting dressed I just lay on the forest floor, going over what just happened. 

At least I was no longer burning up. I was sure it would come back but it was solved for now. 

They walk over to me, gently but effortlessly heaving me to my feet and both of them chuckle when my legs tremble. 

“Don’t worry, we got you.” Prager said, wrapping an arm around my waist and helping me walk again. 

When we returned to the others, the ground was a mess. The fire had been put out but a soldier which Z had probably hit was sitting on the ground with a cooling blue pack over their eye. Seems like Fike got the worst beating. 

They were all sitting on the ground and the Colonel was walking by them, making them fix all the equipment that had been broken. 

We were glad not to be a part of that and managed to rejoin them without raising suspicion. Everyone was distracted so they didn’t notice me struggling to stand and Ja and Prager refusing to leave my side. 

Tag List: @ikranwings @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed @number1gal

[aurik-kal-durin]

My final Hilda episode ranking for all seasons, plus the movie.

S Tier: Most of these should be self-explanatory. The standouts I feel I must explain are The Nightmare Spirit, The Windmill, and The Yule Lads.

The Nightmare Spirit is one of my favorite episodes in the entire series because it introduces the Marra, and has some absolutely spellbinding folklore behind it, as well as some great character development for Hilda and David. I couldn't NOT put it in S tier.

The Windmill and The Yule Lads I feel are two of the more underrated episodes; the former is a superb David centric episode where he ends up being the unlikely hero, and the latter just has some really good folklore behind, and is a unique take on the Christmas special. It also has a very sweet moment between Hilda and David at the end, which makes it even better in my book.

A Tier: These episodes are not as good as S tier, but are still brimming with charm, and thus are a joy to watch. Whether they have some fascinating folklore behind them, some good character development, or some just some funny or otherwise iconic moments (like David standing up to the Marra, or telling off Frida) these episodes are just as infinitely rewatchable as S tier most of the time.

These episodes formed the backbone of the series and kept me watching from beginning to end. They form a key element that is missing from most other cartoons, and made the difference between keeping me entertained... and feeling like the series was being padded out with unnecessary filler, as has been the case with the majority of shows I've watched in the last 15 years.

B Tier: This is more of a matter of personal preference, but episodes in this tier I just found were a bit of a chore to get through.

The Black Hound, I felt, was a lackluster ending to an otherwise amazing first season.

The Draugen wasn't bad, but I always found it to be pretty "meh" compared to the episodes I have in higher tiers.

C Tier: The House in the Woods was just kind of a boring episode, and I have mixed feelings about The Mountain King. My biggest issue with the movie is with Trylla, the mother troll, her warped justification for kidnapping Hilda, and the fact that she almost got Johanna KILLED while hiding the truth from Hilda. Sorry, but I cannot overlook that.

D Tier: Episodes in this tier all had something that held them back, but weren't so bad that I had a hard time watching them from start to finish.

The Troll Circle was a bland and meandering opening to the second season, and it introduced us to Ahlberg, who was at his most annoying in that episode.

The Beast of Cauldron Island had a lot of things I didn't like, such as the continuation of Frida's awful character arc for Season 2, and David being reduced to a useless coward yet again.

Strange Frequencies made all of the characters unlikeable and OOC while focusing too much on the nisse, when it should've focused on Hilda's dad.

F Tier: These are the few episodes in all of Hilda that I consider to be genuinely bad to the point where they're unwatchable.

The Witch kickstarts Frida's awful character arc for Season 2, dumbs down Hilda to make Frida look smarter, strips the Librarian of her mystique from Season 1, and introduces some unlikable and annoying new characters in the form of the Committee of Three.

The Eternal Warriors uses all of it's runtime to make fun of David, reducing him to a useless coward, and giving us some really cringe-inducing scenes when he becomes fearless.

The Jorts Incident is the single worst episode of the entire series, wasting the potential of the tide mice on a forgettable side character and a lazy Ghostbusters homage... while also reducing David to a useless coward yet again!

The Giantslayer is a pointless time travel side quest that portrays the giants as victims even as they're carelessly stepping on people's houses and ruining their entire lives.