#{ I'm glad it's done though~ and I hope this is alright despite being late as hell q vq }

[eebydeebyderby]

Are You Ready?

A one-shot in which Reader tends to a badly-injured Egon Spengler in the firehouse during a blizzard lockdown.

General info:

Female reader insert, Hurt/comfort, Egon Spengler whump, friends to lovers, angst with a happy ending

~4.0k word count

Content Warnings:

Blood, description of injuries (he'll be fine, I swear)

The world is frozen over. 

The city is in complete lockdown as the blizzard rages outside, the worst storm since the ten-day ice freeze of 1931. It was quite sudden, with the city only getting three hours of notice as the eye of the storm approached from the Atlantic. There was quite a frantic scramble outside as people scurried around to secure spots, with sirens and car horns and chatter echoing through the city. But, the only noises coming from outside now are the deafening howls of the blizzard. Emergency services will be completely unavailable for the next twelve hours until the worst of the storm passes, and rolling blackouts are expected throughout the city’s power grid. 

Egon sits cozy in his lab, where the sounds of the storm are only a faint whisper. He has the entirety of the firehouse to himself, a rare luxury that he’s eagerly enjoying. It isn’t that he dislikes his coworkers—far from it, he’s quite fond of everyone—but, for the most part, solitude is his preferred state. He doesn’t have to worry about entertaining anyone, doesn’t have to worry about carefully treading around delicate social customs that he so-often blunders through. 

He hears footsteps descending towards the lab and he's immediately annoyed. He was looking forward to his night of solitude and now that was ruined.

“Egon?” a voice calls out. “Are you down here?” 

Oh. It's you. 

Immediately his annoyance fades, replaced by a nervous excitement that bubbles in his chest. “Yes. I'm down here.” 

You trot down into the lab, fresh-eyed and brightly awake, despite the late hour. He can't help but smile a bit at the sight of you, so charming and lovely with a blanket tossed around your shoulders, your arms full of old, tattered textbooks and notebooks. “I didn't know there was a lockdown,” you say sheepishly. “I was napping upstairs with my walkman and I guess I missed all the storm alerts. Is it alright if I work down here for a bit? I hate the idea of being alone upstairs during the storm. It's spooky, you know? All that wind rattling the windows. I know you were probably wanting to be alone, and that you don't really like people just barging in here, and you probably stayed so you'd be alone, but…” 

You trail off, and he sees the nervousness on your face, the fear that he'll reject your presence like he’s done countless times with other people. But, he's never kicked you out. Never you. Still though, you're hesitant. “You're always a guest I look forward to having. I want you to make yourself comfortable and stay as long as you'd like.” 

You smile, and he sees your nervousness relax. “You know, I'm glad it's you I'm here with. I really like spending time with you.” 

His heart flutters in his chest and he can't help but preen. “Likewise,” he says simply, hoping the heat burning in his face isn't too noticeable.

You settle in nicely at one of his spare desks and get to work. He returns to his own tasks, but can’t help but occasionally glance at you. You're sitting at the edge of your seat, lightly bouncing your knee and deeply concentrating on your work, silently mouthing words under your breath as you pore over the ancient texts. Brittle pages and old books are scattered around, with one heavy textbook even open in your lap as you scribble in a notebook, jotting down the spiritual intonations of civilizations long dead. He loves you. You’re radiant and splendid and wonderful and delightful and he loves you. He's loved you for quite some time. 

You catch his eye and for a split moment he's absolutely mortified that you caught him staring. But you just smile warmly at him, melting the icy pit formed in his chest, and he can't help but give you a half smile in return. You put your pen down and turn to face him. "What are you working on?" 

"I'm resetting the trap I set next to the sweets drawer and changing out the bait." 

"Did you finally catch that rat?"

"No. I caught Venkman." 

You scoff and shake your head a bit in disbelief. 

"I blame myself a bit. In hindsight, I should not use one of his favorite treats as bait. I apologized and offered to buy him lunch tomorrow. Overall, however, he was a very good sport about it.”

You cock an eyebrow, and there's a glint of mischief in your eyes that is so endearing to him. "Peter reached his grubby Peter fingers into a trap and expected not to be…trapped?"

He nods. 

“What happened next?” 

"Ray took him to get it stitched up," he says, raising his coffee mug to his lips. 

"Really? The veterinarian was open that late?"

He snorts into his coffee, spilling it down his chin, and you laugh. He catches your eye and can't help but smile as he wipes his mouth on the back of his lab coat sleeve. Your laughter is in no way derisive and adds a lovely glow to your face, and it's a delightful sight for him to take in. Then, he notices it again, like he's done countless times before: there’s a melancholy about you.

Beneath the sweetness of your smile, the brightness that flashes in your eyes when you laugh, he always catches a fleeting glimpse of something. Something he can never quite place, something he can never string into coherent words. He’s barely able to notice it before it fades away from sight, disappears beneath the depths in your eyes. He can’t see it anymore, but he knows it’s there. It's always been there, since the day he met you. He often imagines himself wrestling it to the surface, grappling it until he's able to free you from its grip entirely. 

             He shakes his head a bit. A stupid thought. He's almost embarrassed at the absurdity of it. 

The lab falls back into silence. He returns to his tasks, and you return to yours. 

“Egon?” 

The sound of his name in your voice is so lovely and sweet, it almost sends shivers down his spine. “Yes?”

“If it's not too much of an inconvenience, could I borrow your copy of Tobin’s Spiritual Guide?”

“Of course. It's no inconvenience at all.” He makes his way over to the huge bookcase that lines the entirety of the walls on both sides of the old fireplace and slides the ladder over to the proper section. He climbs a few feet up to the shelf labeled “Spiritual Entities, Cryptids, and Other Beasts” and starts scanning through the titles of the books when the rung of the ladder he’s standing on snaps beneath him. 

A jolt of panic shoots down his spine as he tries and fails to find footing; the sharp metal of the broken rung tears deeply through the side of his thigh as he falls and he hits the ground with a harsh “Oomph!” The broken ladder clatters next to him on the ground, dripping and spattering blood off its broken rung. He gasps. “Shit!” he hisses under his breath. His hands grasp his thigh and hot blood spills between his fingers, soaking through his pants and pooling onto the floor. The pain hits him all at once, tearing the breath from his lungs—a stabbing, searing, sickening pain that splinters viscerally through his entire leg. He cries out a bit at the fresh waves of pain that course through him like venom with each heartbeat that sends blood gushing between his fingers. The back of his head bumps the ground and he squeezes his eyes shut, his breathing grows rapid and shallow as the room spins around him. He's light-headed. He's dizzy. He's nauseous. He's going to pass out—

“Egon, move your hands.” 

Your voice is surprisingly smooth and calm next to him, and it tethers him back from complete panic. You’re kneeling next to him, the large first-aid kit open on the ground next to you. He complies and you slip a tourniquet under his leg. He groans and grits his teeth, unable to suppress the whine that escapes his lips as you tighten the tourniquet around his thigh as much as you can. 

“Sorry, sorry,” you sputter. He sees the split moment of panic on your face when you feel his blood on your hands, hot and viscous, wrong and horrifying, but you quickly reel it back. The bleeding almost instantly slows down to an ooze, but it aches terribly. 

“Don't cover it up yet,” he says quickly, seeing the pads of gauze in your hand. He props himself up on his elbows, trying to will his heart to stop beating so rapidly. “I need to see how bad it is.” You wordlessly hand him the scissors from the first-aid kit and he deftly cuts off his bloodied pant leg just below the tourniquet. He hears you gasp and he needs to suppress his own as he sees the extent of it. The deep wound flays him nearly to the bone on the outside of his thigh, extending more than a foot long. “Shit.” He lays his head back on the ground, nervousness coiling around his throat. It's bad. It's undoubtedly very, very bad. And it fucking hurts. 

Your voice is quiet when you're able to finally summon it. “What do you say we do?”  

“It needs to be cauterized.” 

“Isn't cautery outdated? Shouldn't we just keep the tourniquet and wrap it up?”

“Emergency services will be unavailable for at least ten hours, and the tourniquet will have me septic in less than six hours, but I'll bleed to death without it. Dressing alone won't adequately stop the bleeding, stitches are too shallow.”

“Alright. I trust your judgment. What am I supposed to use for the cautery tool? 

“I have a battery-operated welding blade in the drawer at the welding table.”

You wince and swallow, hard, looking down at your hands covered in his blood, already beginning to dry and crack on your palms. “Okay, okay. I'm gonna wash my hands real quick and come back. Then just tell me what to do from there.” 

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

“ ‘Sterile non-stick gauze. Lidocaine 5% mucoadhesive wet dressing. Sterile sodium chloride saline 0.9% solution. Isopropyl alcohol 99%,’ ” you mutter under your breath, reading the labels of the various tools you pull out of the first-aid kit. “My reluctance kind of comes from the fact that I…really, really like you,” you say as you scrub your hands down with rubbing alcohol. “If you were Venkman then I’d be delighted at the chance to stick a blade in your leg.” You set the bottle of alcohol on the floor. “Okay, just running this through real quick one last time: first I rinse with saline, then I do the cautery, then I put the wet dressing, then the dry dressing.”

He nods. 

You close your eyes and take a deep breath. “Okay.” You slowly exhale. “Okay. Step one: saline rinse.” You crack open the bottle and hold it over his leg. “Are you ready?”

He nods, a knot forming in his stomach.

“Okay.” 

He involuntarily sucks in a sharp breath and squeezes his eyes shut as an icy chill washes over his leg, immediately followed by a fiery sting that courses through his leg like venom. It's bitingly cold and freezes him to the bone, but it also burns so, so badly. He grits his teeth but a slight groan still escapes his lips, followed by a strangled whine. He's immediately ashamed and clenches his jaw so much that it aches, focusing all of his energy on staying quiet. His heart pounds rapidly in his chest, sweat forming on his brow. 

“Sorry, sorry. Okay, that's done.”

He sharply exhales the breath he didn't know he was holding in and he struggles to pull enough air into his burning lungs with shallow, rapid panting.

“Hey, Egon?” Your hand slips into his and his heart flutters in his chest. “Hey, you're doing good. You're going to be alright.” Your voice is so soothing that he wants to believe you. His eyes are still shut, but he nods. 

“Next is this.” You pour rubbing alcohol all over the welding blade in an attempt to disinfect it. The harsh, acrid fumes sting the inside of his nose and burn the back of his throat as it splashes on the ground next to him. “This is insane. This is absolutely insane,” you mutter rapidly under your breath. “I feel like I’m torturing you.” 

“You’re not.” He tries to sound confident, but his voice is strained and shaking. “Don’t feel guilty.”

“I’ll do my best. How long should I keep this thing on your leg?” 

“A minimum of ten seconds, no matter how badly I react. Anything less would not adequately stop the bleeding.” 

“No matter how badly you react,” you repeat under your breath. “Fuck, dude…” You shut your eyes and for a moment you look like you're about to cry, but you manage to force it back down and open your eyes to reveal a frightened, brittle resolve. You switch on the welder and the little old machine sputters to life. He hears the crackling of the heating element and a sickening shiver runs through him, settling heavily in his stomach as a nauseating dread. The dark gray blade glows a faint red and yellow with the heat burning through it. “It’ll be over soon. Just ten seconds.” You sigh, and he sees your brow furrow as you steel your nerves, forcing yourself into a state of strained calmness. “Are you ready?”

No. He's terrified. He's in pain. His composure is failing and he doesn't want you to see him completely fall apart. “Yes.”

“Okay.” You hold up the makeshift cautery blade and take aim, putting your other hand and knee on his upper thigh to keep him still. “Now.” You plunge the blade into his leg. 

He screams. 

His entire body convulses but you keep his leg pinned firmly beneath your knee. The pain is blinding and searing and overwhelming and he screams until his throat seizes and he's desperately choking for air. His vision blanks and he's nearly on the verge of passing out when—

It's over. 

You pull the blade away and his entire body goes limp. His head is spinning and his chest burns. Tears run down the sides of his face and he’s gasping and panting between sobs, unable to catch his breath. He cries out again with the icy jolt that shoots up his leg when your shaking hands press the wet compress to the freshly cauterized wound. He tries and fails to steady his breathing, fails to stop openly sobbing as you wrap the dry dressing around his thigh and remove the tourniquet. 

He's ashamed that you're seeing him cry. Egon Spengler, a man who prides himself on prioritizing rationality over emotions, is reduced to a sobbing, quivering mess in front of the woman he's in love with, his clothing and the floor beneath him soiled by a sickening mixture of saline and his own blood. His face burns with embarrassment. How pathetic he must look to you, the facade of the level headed scientist shattered. Frustration boils within him and tightens within his chest. 

Oh. Your hand grazes the side of his face, and his attention snaps to you. Your touch is warm, gentle, and so, so soothing. You're talking to him. You've been talking to him this whole time, but it's only now that his scrambled mind is able to actually notice it. 

“Hey, it's okay. It's okay,” you whisper to him, stroking his sweating, clammy face. “It's over. You're gonna be okay.” Your other hand slips into his and he weakly grasps your hand in return. You continue talking to him for several minutes, gently stroking his face and occasionally squeezing his hand as tears flow down his face. There's sincerity in your gestures of comfort, a deep genuineness that can only be made through love. Still, though, he can't stop crying, but he's no longer self-conscious about doing so in front of you. 

Eventually, his breathing begins steadying a bit and his heart stops beating so wildly in his chest. The lidocaine dressing starts taking the edge off the pain, leaving behind a dull, painful ache that throbs through his entire leg. It still hurts terribly, but it is far from overwhelming. 

A headache starts to settle heavily behind his eyes. His entire body shivers violently despite the heat burning through him. Nausea curdles in his stomach. He squeezes his eyes shut but it isn't enough; the lights still ache deeply and seem to tunnel through his head.

You gently lift his head and put a damp rag on the back of his neck. He gasps at the chill that shoots down his spine, but the relief it brings is almost instant. His nausea wanes; the painful throbbing of his head begins to dull as you delicately lift his glasses off his face and set them safely aside. You place another damp rag on his forehead and he's grateful that you cover his eyes, completely blocking out the light. 

You're tossing the blanket you brought down earlier over him when the lights go out, leaving the two of you in complete darkness. The coffee maker stops gurgling, the heater stops rumbling, and the lab is left in near complete silence, the only noises coming from the raging storm howling faintly outside. “Crap…” You rummage through the first-aid kit for a flashlight. “Egon, I’ll be right back. Try to get some rest.” 

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

“Egon. Egon.” You gently nudge his shoulder, rousing him from his heavy doze.

He groans and grits his teeth with the dull agony that settled in his leg as he slept, heavy and stiff; his hands instinctively grasp his thigh in a futile attempt to try and relieve some of the pain.

“I know, I'm sorry, but your temperature’s spiking a bit and I need you to take some ibuprofen to try and get it down. I also found a couple Vicodin in Peter's things that I think you'll appreciate.”

He takes the small handful of pills and voraciously downs both water bottles you offer him. 

He's bundled up under several blankets, warm and cozy, despite the discomfort of the hard floor beneath him. The fireplace crackles and spits as the only light source in the lab, animating the shadows of the objects it illuminates in its soft, hot glow. “Power's still out. Pipes are frozen,” you say, rising to your feet. His eyes follow you as you toss another hunk of wood into the fireplace, sending a pleasant wave of heat over him. “But we're doing alright.” You glance at him. “You’re starting to look a bit better.”

“Where did you find wood for the fireplace?” he asks.

“I can't tell you. Also, Peter's nightstand is now missing.” 

He snickers. The pain in his leg has already started lifting, replaced by a faint, floaty feeling. “Of all the places to grievously injure myself, next to the fireplace is a lucky break.” 

You look at him intently, and there isn't a hint of humor on your face. 

“Sorry,” he says just a bit too quickly, his face practically steaming with embarrassment. He clears his throat and scrambles a bit for a change of topic. “I really admire you—especially in the way you handle yourself in an emergency. I admire a lot of things about you.” 

You scoff. “I see the Vicodin is kicking in.”

“If anything, I think my mental faculties are more perspicuous with the hydrocodone. The distraction of the pain is much less pronounced.” He slowly pulls himself into a sitting position, wincing a bit, but the pain is just a fraction of what it was, throbbing dully deep in his leg. “Though, I must say that our recent experiences together have also given me a greater sentiment of closeness to you. I feel safe with you. I’m sure part of this mentality is just the narcotic inhibiting my usual reticence, but for the most part, I believe it’s authentic.”

“Egon.” 

You kneel next to him, and he has trouble seeing your face in the harsh shadows cast by the crackling fireplace. One of his old coats is draped around your shoulders and it’s far too large on you, which he finds so, so endearing. A burst of affection washes over him, bubbles in his chest and brings warmth to his face. The urge to kiss you is overwhelming, almost primal. He catches your eye and leans forward. 

You read his intentions and pull back. You gently place your hand on his chest, nudging him back a bit. “Look, I'm not sur--” 

“Please, I want to kiss you.”

“Egon.”

“I love you. I’m in love with you,” he blurts. “I've been in love with you f—”

“Stop! Stop it! Stop talking!” That melancholy about you suddenly rushes to the surface and bursts forth as tears in your eyes and you clench your jaw, bite the inside of your cheek, but the tears flow freely down your face. You sigh, annoyed, and avert your gaze, impatiently wiping your eyes on your sleeve. “Look, Egon, this is not a conversation I'm ready to have right now. I am so fucking overwhelmed as it is, okay? I just…Fuck, don’t do this to me now.” 

His heart sinks to the bottom of his stomach and he lies back on the ground. It’s not an outright rejection, far from it. But, it still aches deeply in his chest as you weep next to him, your head bent and your palm on your forehead.

“I'm sorry,” you say quietly, your voice thick with tears. “It’s just, it’s been a really bad night. If I hadn't asked you to grab me that stupid fucking book then none of this would have happened. And I have my own goddamn copy upstairs! I just didn't want to go grab it! And I almost killed you because of that!” You lift your head. “Seeing all that blood, hearing you scream like that…Oh my God, that was so awful. Oh, Egon, I'm so sorry…” You sigh, summoning all your courage for your next words. “I love you. I really do. I love you so much that it sometimes keeps me up at night.” He’s positively euphoric at hearing these words. His heart soars, but your next words send it plummeting back to the bottom of his stomach. “But, Egon, I feel so terrible about it.” A sob hitches in your throat and you struggle to keep your next words steady. “Look at this fucking mess we're in…”

He reaches for your hand. You see him, but don't protest as his fingers intertwine with yours. His other hand slowly reaches up and gently cups the side of your face. You lock eyes with him, and he sees the sorrow aching so deeply within you, your vision blurred by the tears flowing freely down your face. 

“I love you,” he says simply, delicately wiping a calloused thumb beneath your eye.

You shake your head. “How could you?” 

“How could I not?” he answers earnestly.

You crack a small smile. You press a kiss to the palm of his hand and hold it against your face, delighting in the warmth of his touch. He's absolutely exhilarated at this, and he smiles so brightly at you that you can't help but smile back, despite the fresh tears spilling from your eyes. He sees it now, the reason behind the melancholy about you:

You love him. 

You love him so deeply that it burns through the core of your very being. That love for him that would flash in your eyes every time you smiled at him, everytime the brightness of your laugh lit up your face, has now rushed to the surface and painfully burst forth as tears running down your face.

You bend down and plant a soft kiss on his forehead, still holding his hand in yours as you lie down next to him in front of the fireplace. 

[exoticalmonde]

So Long, Adele... Was Only Pain and NO Whimsy

Once again, Dr. Eve is a little late to the party, but you must understand that even 11 days into the year, I am already a month and a half behind on everything I wish I could have been doing.

So instead of lamenting my unfinished fanfics and the cross-stitch that's been in box jail since the end of November, we're going on an adventure with Eyjafjalla.

Fair to say, that I didn't finish anything during the rerun last time. It was right after New Year's and let me tell you... I was not in the mood for that at all.

Naturally, we start off with an update on how RI-8 is doing right now.

This means we have the opportunity to look back into it from the POV of someone very opinionated about men and entirely blind to the women on the field.

A...

Ah--- W...Welcome maam. I've been waiting for

A while.

Welcome to the team of my light-hair-coloured women, ignore the Sarkaz sisters, and I hope you have a pleasant stay.

My fields were barren... Still are.

I'm pretty sure whatever I had was already wasted, but that's alright so far. Surely, there's nothing that could possibly mess up your future career as my favourite Instructor...

But why do I hear Kazimierz's music?

Right, it's because Flametail has also joined the team, in an attempt to rally that E1Max Texas that I've been trying to ignore for the last hm 3 years.

Also, HAPPY NEW YEAR from RI-8 and all of Yan, who are here to celebrate with me in a wild mix between 'enjoy this while you can before we all die' and 'RI has never seen such bliss, glad you're here' type of way.

Okay, updates are done. It was a slow descent into madness this time, nothing too fancy-schmancy.

Here's how So Long, Adele went for me.

---

EyjaBerry is THE best medic so far in my experience. She's not just a single target Wandering Medic like the rest of the Berries, her skills just make healing trivial the way W'Alter manages to make dealing damage feel trivial.

Her S1M3? Unlimited and covers 2 people at the same time.

S2M3? Become an AOE Shining, but better for all I know, because I don't have her. Would I have pulled for her now? Absolutely, she is doing a much better job protecting my allies from the enemy than anybody else could.

I'm sorry Lumen, despite Dr. Pinkie's constant confusion between the words, being a Wanderer and a Therapist are two different things and you specialize in the things you do.

S3M3? Don'tDieInator3000, global.

---

Last time I saw Sw'Alter actually being used was during the Icebreaker Event and it was because Dr. Pinkie had the ingenious idea to use her bottles to charge the machines. For any players out there, you know what I am talking about.

After ages of playing this game, I finally realized that some peaceable objects like that charge the SP machines just like that.

She looks good though. Merchant. With Lee and Mr. Nothing, I don't need another DP-leech for the job. I'm comparing her to Lee, so Sw'Alter seems to have less health, but better damage in the base stages. Her abilities have a funky range.

S1M3 - Medic defenders all over the place with 1 block.

S2M3 - A typical Trapmaster ability

S3M3 - An unlimited duration skill, with a knockback that

---

If there were characters who were thrown in a black hole never to be seen again, it's Conviction and Poncirus. From what I know about the story, she only shows up at the end too.

We've been talking with the other Doctors about how recently the characters who are featured on the banner alongside the 6 star are completely irrelevant story-wise.

None of the new Babel characters were ever shown up. They weren't even FROM Babel.

These gripes aside,

Compared to Texas, exact same S1 with the same 12 DP, wait time and everything on M3. However, what I just found out was that her second skill actually looks pretty good. She's with better health, less attack and better defence on the Max levels. Defensive Pioneer Vanguards have served me better than offensive ones.

---

Bryophyta is in a weird spot because he's an Instructor in a world where only 5 in total exist. Which isn't a few, but it's not a lot either.

Pallas is the best by a margin because of Bryo's 5-star debuff (and he's a shop-erator), but since he's Dr. Lundi claimed, I have to say something nice about him or the sniper on the roof next door is going to get me.

I feel like all of them would benefit from the INS-Y Module, being able to be deployed on a ranged tile extends their versatility better since their whole gimmick is 'Don't Block for Damage'.

His S1M3 is a delight to see. The second the words 'Next attack' show up on screen I feel power. Nothing to write home about though.

But what about his S2M3----

Oh. Stuns self. Okay. I didn't need him anyway.

---

That was all for the operators. Now to the event itself.

Did I read anything out of this event's story? I did not. Would I let Pinkie explain everything to me? They did. Did I love the trailer and the music? You bet. Did I hate the event? Entirely.

You see, while I do like this 'being forced to think' situation during events, especially for EX or S stages because I understand that the enjoyment of the game is as much gimmick and working with what you have, as it is... a strategy game.

However, Dr. Eve being Eve, I end up thinking myself into a corner. The operators I level up aren't always the ones that I need.

Very rarely in fact.

Look at my wife's list. Look at my husband's list! Not a single person can handle 3 enemies at once unless they are a defender. Nobody does enough damage the way I needed them to.

I guided Dr. Kryo through SL-S-5 and some of the earlier challenges and he was adamant that he didn't want a W'Alter guide. I respect that, we're all quirky and he didn't get a W'Alter during her run. It worked out well for him.

I knew he struggled for the CM on SL-S-4 because we were in call during the time and I was crying about SL-S-3 CM, thinking 4 and 5 would be worse.

Mind you, this man thinks when he levels up (most of) his characters though. Mudrock Max, Ines, Kal'tsit, Blaze, Hoshi. He got Mlynar, he has Logos, EyjaBerry.

The last time we struggled so much was during Stultifera. A LONG time ago, because back then - me nor Dr. Kryo had Lappland.

I didn't even try to think too hard about the levels at first. EX-1 to 8 were absolutely fine, S-1 and 2, even 3 were great. I managed S-5 in three tries or something with Kryo guiding me since it was late and I didn't feel like thinking.

I spent an entire afternoon on SL-S-4 CM.

Watched every single video guide. Nothing worked.

I couldn't manage to put down bottles for Lundi's Ex'Alter in the top blue exit.

DP not enough at any point.

Why are these bottles taking so long???

My Mudrock wasn't strong enough when I needed W'Alter. She was also not lvl90 or S3M3.

Instead of Mudrock, why not use Penance, she's mean to handle more enemies, right? Wrong. Gets eaten alive by the sheep. You're starting to understand who was being problematic.

My Kal'tsit isn't lvl90 and only S3M1, which was not enough.

Also don't have the modules for Mudrock, nor for Kal.

My allies kept dying on the bottom side. Hoshiguma was useless, using Nian for her innate skill was perfect.

They kept leaking past the 15/20 enemy count. Bam, put Shu behind Nian.

I figured out that the leakage mainly happened topside. I need someone who could do a lot of damage to a lot of people in a line since the magician goats are being a bother.

Hoederer S2M3 but his second phase for the +1 block count. He's too slow, that's not S3, what was I even thinking???

I don't have Ines and Silverash/Puzzle doesn't work the way she does.

I don't have Ascalon. I don't have Reed Alter. I don't have Mlynar.

Logos instead of Eyjafjalla does wonders for my mental health though.

Freaking Kazdelian Bubbling Hotpot, why are my Ling's dragons so easily perishable, she's lvl60 with the module.

Fiddled with this video for a little bit, but my ability to look with one eye in one direction and use the other for the other direction really made things unfortunate when I had to manage Pinecone's skill and also block the oncoming enemies.

If that doesn't work out, fine.

This one should work. I'm just going to borrow a Sk'Alter.

Blaze dies.

Ah, I don't have Nightingale, so I thought putting perfumer there would work. Let's switch it up, Perfumer goes in Ptilopsis' place.

Blaze doesn't die. She leaks instead.

Alright, then I will add someone to help with the enemies. Uh.

Tries again. Mission Failed.

Tries again. Mission Failed.

Tries again. Mission Failed.

Tries again. Mission Failed.

Sanity is still 133 from how much I've been wasting my time

Tries again. Perfects the bottom side strat, so I need to pay attention to my Blaze.

Mission Failed.

Oh, come on.

I'm starting to get angry, because the problem isn't anything else, BUT Blaze.

Civilight Eterna S2, borrow a Nightingale from Dr. Kryo.

Tries again. Mission Failed.

Tries again. Mission Failed.

Alright. I give up. I can't do this anymore. I'm gone. I'm done. I just won't get the complete medal set.

Goes to bed.

Wakes up.

...

...

...

New day, New me. Let's get Arknightsing.

Okay, that previous run should've worked fine. Let's go back and see what I was doing to figure out what to tweak.

Wanqing in front of bottom blue box.

Nian is in the corner. Soda box in front of her.

Myrtle below her to optimize DP.

Exusiai when I have 30 DP, so I can immediately plop Perfumer.

Box blows up a bit late because of the DP drawback with Exusiai and Perfumer, drop Bagpipe to break the box on the top blue exit because the skateboard sheep will be coming soon.

Earn back that 13 DP.

Logos under Perfumer, remove Myrtle after skill.

Blaze > Sk'Alter > Ptilopsis.

Remove Wanqing, put down Shu.

Discrepancy happens for Blaze again.

Wait a minute...

I don't want to look at this event ever again in my LIFE.

SO LONG, Adele.

[luveline]

hi jade i hope life is treating you well <33 would you please write something for the asf universe maybe where fred invites ghost to come with him to something that he has to go to, and ghost doesn’t know how to say no so she tries to drag herself there despite how exhausted and sad she is, thank you for everything, take care of yourself <33

thank you for your request lovely! fem!reader, 2k

cw for mental health issues

Eyes dry as sand, you lean down in the hallway of Lee's flat to retie your shoelace. You'd done them haphazard, late to get ready. Fred doesn't notice you've stopped, swinging around the corner, each part of him beside his fingers on the doorway disappearing from view. 

"Hey, guys. Alicia, what have you done to your hair?"

"I've dyed it."

"I can see that. Feeling morose, were you?" He pauses. You look up in anticipation of his confused gaze. "Love?" he asks. 

You spring up with your shoelace half tied again to meet him in the doorway. Easy, Fred wraps his arm around your shoulders. He is, unquestionably, showing you off to his friends. "Hi guys," you say. 

You don't mind talking to them —they're not the problem, his merry band of twenty-somethings, reminiscent of their school selves but with enough piercings, tattoos, and bold haircuts to tell the difference. You're different enough that half of them didn't recognise you the first time they saw you again after leaving school, Lee Jordan's ill-fated birthday party, Freddie and a handful of bruised knuckles. You're the girl Fred defended unshakingly. It bought you a lot of street cred. 

What's so special about her that Fred would bother making such a mess? they must think. You honestly don't have a clue. It has more to do with Fred's big heart than your deserving, probably. 

"Hey," Angelina says, knees up at the table, a coke sweating down her arm. "Thank god you're here, George hasn't shut about you both since you cancelled on him." 

"I had salmonella," Fred says, arm steadfast behind you as he guides you into the kitchen. He encourages you into an empty chair by Angelina, likely George's considering the familiar worn wallet laid out by an empty coke. "Couldn't really de-salmonella myself." 

"Freddie!" Lee says, bottles clinking together in his hand. 

"Alright?" Fred asks. 

"Man, I'm glad you got here early. I wanted to talk to you about Melena before her lot come over at seven. Her gran just died so now she has a lot of money and nothing to do with it." 

"I don't like being responsible for other people's money," Fred says, his hand toying with the back of your shirt as he talks. Totally distracted, doting on you anyhow. 

"I thought you'd say that." 

You pick George's wallet up, unthinking. Neither of the twins has ever felt much possession of their possessions, nor have they ever withheld anything from you, and so you've a lack of manners all their blame. You run your thumb over the plastic window where a photo of Molly holding a smaller, younger Ginny on her knee takes centre stage. 

"Hello," George says, his reappearance surprising you enough to lose your grip on the wallet. His arms cleave you from Fred's grasp, all guy smells and squeezes as he hugs you roughly. "Things aren't so dire as to pickpocket me, surely." 

Fred is your very best friend on the whole planet. George is an extremely close second. You smile at the fierce pressure of his arms and pat him on the wrist. 

"Sorry, I was being nosey." 

"Wait, I've forgotten I was mad at you." 

"For what?" you ask, though you know.

"You didn't come to game night! What the fuck, ghost? Fred had salmonella, whatever, but you weren't sick. I missed you." 

I didn't feel well enough to come without Fred, you almost say, but it's still not fair. George really is a best friend. "I should've come. I'm sorry," you say. 

"That's okay. Come to the next one, yeah?" He stands up, giving your back a whack and a half. "You okay?" 

Honestly? No. You're tired. You don't feel like a very good person, and being with your friends makes it worse. You would've said no to coming tonight, but it's not as easy as it is with George to say no to Fred. Fred asks you for things, hand on your hand or your elbow or your knee, and you can't entertain letting him down.

"We've been invited to Lee Jordan's for drinks next Friday," he'd said. At that moment your shins were over his lap, his new phone precariously held in his long fingers, "you'll come, won't you? It was rubbish without you last time." 

"Yeah," you'd said immediately. "Course." 

Why? you think now, a sharp knife of dread sliding beneath your ribs. What a stupid idea. Your hands are clammy where you wipe them in the knees of your jeans, your mouth uncooperative as you answer George's inquiry. "I'm okay. How are you? Did you get your new sofa yet?" 

The night pulls on in dribs and drabs. You're better at hiding how you feel now you've reason to hide it, someone who loves you enough to pay attention, but it always shines through. Like grease on silk held up to the light, the pervasive oiliness of how you feel seeping, seeping. You jump from room to room, bump shoulders with people you know and strangers alike, swap a coke for a vodka and, at Fred's proud production, an ice cold mimosa with a fresh orange slice hooked on the rim. 

"A mimosa? At 9PM?" you ask, taking it anyway. 

"Vitamin D, doll. It's good for you." Kiss to the top of your head. Fred is stolen away again by an old friend. You sit in the pit of a deep chair, the comfiest, softest seat in the house, a fresh drink in hand, music you like playing to the left and a shouted promise of pizza and potato wedges called from the kitchen. 

Everybody cheers. You take a sip of your drink and decide to go home. You can sidle up to George and tell him you're not feeling well, he can tell Fred when your boyfriend notices you're gone. No one will panic, and there will be no need for him to go home. 

But Fred doesn't work that way. Doesn't trust you to tell the truth about how you're feeling; you're a liar, and he knows you'll undersell the weight of whatever it is that's wrong. 

When George pops by to steal your drink, you don't spin a lie about headaches or cramps. 

You're loved into telling the truth. 

Fred wanders back your way eventually. He sees it on your face (he must), the disconnect between your eyes and your surroundings. It isn't everything about you —you see him approaching and you smile, opening an eager hand to his arm— but he's well read in your feelings. He hips you along the big chair and sits back, pulling you with him, his arm again protectively held over your shoulders as he tucks you into his neck.

"You look tired, lovely girl," he says, his voice weak in the quiet.

"I'm trying not to be." 

"I don't think it's something you can try your way out of." Stronger, fonder, he's reassured by your smile, but he knows you better than anyone. "You've drunk your mimosa!" 

"George," you correct.

"Ah. Did you like it at all?" he asks. 

Things don't always taste right to you. "The fizzing was making my nose hurt." 

Fred turns your face to his. "Not your gorgeous nose," he laments, lips barely parted. He strokes you cheek with the soft pad of his thumb like he's trying to smooth away a line, eyes pinching into a squint. Handsome squint on a handsome boy. 

"I'm okay." You answer before he can ask.

"I know. Wish you'd said something earlier, is all." 

"I can't… ruin your fun. Every night." 

"Every night," he repeats. He tips your chin up to kiss you. "That's ridiculous," he says when he leans back. "You don't ruin any fun, ghost. You make it fun." 

"Make what fun?" you ask, sounding more and more tired with each word. You mumble into his shirt. "This should be fun… don't know what's wrong with me."

Fred goes soft like butter in the sun, though what's warming about your limp disposition is anyone's guess. "You're sick of hearing me say this," he begins, words slow, "but you have no reason to… feel so disgusted with yourself. I can hear it, sometimes… in your voice. You don't have to know what's wrong with you, you don't have to force yourself to have fun, you don't have to be so angry. Not with my girl, she doesn't deserve it." He kisses your cheek, a sudden cheerful punctuation to his serious moments. "You feel rubbish, you don't know why. It doesn't matter, so long as you can feel better in the end." 

"I'm just tired," you say, as you've said a hundred times before. 

"You're always tired." 

It makes your throat ache, that simple acknowledgement. 

"You can kip on me if you want to," he says. 

"Here?" you ask. 

He shrugs, jostling your shoulder. "Don't see why not. Unless you want to go home. We can go home, sweetheart."

It's unsaid. Staying here, even when you don't feel good, will mitigate the guilt you'd feel if you dragged him home. He doesn't care, he'd never hold it against you, but you're paranoid anyways, and self-hating to a fault. There's no need to add fuel to that fire, so you can stay. But if you really can't manage it, Fred will take you home. 

"Maybe I'll just lean on you, for a bit." You meet his eyes fully, brown and big and looking down at you with a shiny kind of love. "If that's okay." 

Fred drops his arm to the small of your back and wraps it around, his thumb searching for your Jean pocket. He hooks it there, his chin rubbing a short line into your temple. "Oh no, my beautiful girlfriend wants to snuggle. Whatever will I do." 

"You don't have to, Freddie. You can enjoy your party. I could just go home." 

"I don't want you to go home," he whispers, a secret. "I want to be where you are. I like parties, but I like you more." 

"Are you sure?" you ask. 

Fred lays back with the affect of a gluttonous Prince, as though he has everything he wants right there at his disposal. You can't imagine being the pretty girl under his arm, and yet you are. No matter how awful your head hurts, he makes you feel like you've nothing to be ashamed of. It's the kindest thing he can do. 

"Take a breather," he says. "Let's have fifteen minutes. If you feel worse, we'll go home. 'Kay?" 

You look at his lap, curling your fingers into the hem of his pressed button down. "Okay. Thanks, baby." 

He sounds pleased at the pet name. "Melena's coming over here. Quick, pretend to be sleeping. I'll stroke the back of your neck if you promise not to laugh." 

[pbandjesse]

I felt a lot better today. Which was really positive because I threw up twice last night and was really upset and in pain. But I started my new medication today and I am really hoping it helps.

I slept alright though. After I threw up I cried a little but James comforted me and I was able to sleep for most of the night. And when I woke up I felt very tired but nothing like I had been. I felt like today was going to be a good day.

I would get washed up and dressed. Felt cute. I like this dress but the skinny straps sometimes dig into my neck which is really annoying. But it's fine. It's a nice dress.

Lane and James were downstairs and they were both really excited when I came down. They had fixed most of the Lego flowers that had fallen down a few weeks ago. And that was exciting. And James had made breakfast to send us off with.

We said goodbye to Lane. I got an extra hug from James. And we all left around the same time.

It was a fine drive. I listened to music and enjoyed my sandwich. And got to camp at 8.

It was a beautiful day. It never got hot and that helped me not feel nauseous I'm sure. I was very careful with myself. But I did make myself go for a walk once I was done setting up. Thankfully the building wasn't to messy so it didn't take long. I would sit in a hammock until 830. And then went for a walk.

I would say good morning to a bunch of people as I walked around. And would walk down to homestead and woodlands and back to my building. I was hoping to see more mushrooms but I only found two, and only the one I photographed was whole. It's been dry the last couple of days so I'm not shocked. But still. Always like finding mushrooms.

I would spend the rest of my little prep hour chilling. And then waiting for my group. Who were running late but would come and would be absolutely lovely. Just such good kids. And they did a great job making their felt collages.

Kieran would come up to deal with the drum that PJ had started soaking last week. It stunk so bad and I just couldn't deal. So I appreciated him handling that. And Geoff and Grady would come up to to bring me some of the materials Geoff has packed from the chickee. I had asked him and Aaron to start bringing materials up to the art building so it's not a crazy clean up on Friday and Saturday. Aaron would never bring anything which makes me worried but I'll ask him again tomorrow.

I had a two hour break. So I went to talk to Elizabeth about this weekend (we have UB law on Saturday) and next week. She isn't sure what's going to happen this weekend because it's going to storm. But for next week I asked if I could lead nature hikes. I think if my nausea settles that it would be both good for me and be fun to walk around.

I rested in my hammock and had my cereal lunch. I got ready for the afternoon. And soon my groups were coming through.

And they were all great. There were a few small issues with counselors being a little. Off? Sending their group to me without any adult and no warning about it. But it's fine. I had fun with the kids and we made good things.

My last group was stockade. They did clay and beads. A few slept in the hammocks. I knit and did some cleaning up. I am not to rushed about cleaning because I'm here next week. But still, I don't want it to be all on one day.

I was glad to be done for the day. I was hungry. I had forgotten my wallet at home so I borrowed from my market cash box. And went to Wawa for a little sandwich.

Traffic wasn't amazing. But I got there in one piece, despite others best efforts. And my sandwich was very quick. I ate in the parking lot.

I wanted to go home. But I also wanted to go to goodwill. So I went to goodwill for a little bit.

And it was a good time. I found a big beanie of the birthday bears I collect! That was pretty cool. I also got some lands end hiking shoes (I have the in 3 other colors) that have sock high tops? I think they will be great in the cold. I also got a door chime and a white shelf with heart cut outs. Just some fun finds.

I paid. The cashier seemed really sad. I wished her a better day. And went home.

Traffic was bad. I would get home by 5. James biked past me and that was exciting. Love seeing my husband in the wild. And they were sitting on our stairs waiting for me once I was parked.

They would jump right into tasks. Making crepes (for me) and pizza (for them) for dinner. We let Crabcake explore his new outside space. The blue tarp is for sure going to have to be cut down because he tried to climb it. But we all enjoyed some outside time.

I started feeling sick again though. I took my new medicine and laid on the couch willing it to work faster.

Eventually food was ready. I was able to eat half before I had to tap out because my stomach hurt. I laid down for a bit. Eventually I went and took a shower and washed my hair and scrubbed everywhere. And started to feel a little better.

James would bring me the other half of my crepes. And I have been hanging out in bed with sweetp since. I am real tired. And I don't feel amazing but it's not as bad. I'm going to go brush my teeth and hopefully that doesn't trigger anything.

I hope tomorrow is a good day. I hope you all have a great day and feel good. I love you all. Sleep good.

[lythea-creation]

Brighten My World - Tasneem x fem reader (Chapter 7)

Chapter 1

Previous Chapter

warnings: eating disorder

word count: 1.018

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

“How did your conversation with Hiba go?”, I wondered while Tasneem and I were out eating ice cream.

Her mom had actually suggested that and given us some money. She was really worried about Tasneem's eating disorder and wanted to show her that she was supportive of her, no matter what.

I was just hoping that this was not going to end in another setback, but Tasneem had wanted to try.

“Surprisingly well. At first we were fighting again, but at some point we started really talking. She actually felt rejected by me because I kinda neglected her. It's somehow similar to you. She's afraid of losing the people close to her after losing her mom, you know”, she enlightened me.

“I'm glad it went well”, I proclaimed. “What about us though? Did you talk about it?”

“I didn't tell her everything, but I promised her that I'm not replacing her with you. She said that she'd at least try to come along with you and we agreed on hanging out more often on our own again.”

“That's great”, I rejoiced.

“Oh, watch out! Your ice cream is dripping”, she warned me.

But it was too late. There was already a stain on my shirt. “Why does something like this always have to happen to me”, I whined playfully, tickling a laugh out of her.

“How about buying something new?”, Tasneem suggested.

I quickly did some damage control around my ice cream cone before answering: “I'd love to, but I don't really have any money on me. Got into a fight with my mom.”

“I'll buy something for you”, she offered. “It's about time I get my girlfriend a present.”

She lowered her voice at the girlfriend part. After all we could never know how the people around us would react.

“I dunno ...”, I shot back, hesitating to accept her generosity.

“Come on! Don't turn me down! Just see it as a gift for myself. After all I'll be the one admiring you in your new outfit”, she persuaded me.

“You're too witty sometimes”, I pointed out with a grin. “Alright. I guess I can't decline then.”

“Yes!” She was absolutely beaming now, way too excited to finish the last bit of her ice cream. So the last bit of her cone landed inside the trash can, quickly followed by mine as her joy was contagious.

It all ended up with her passing me clothes into the cabin to try it on. I had completely lost any overview over everything I had already put on before, but she knew exactly what she was doing.

I was actually surprised when she chose the shirt in my favorite color in the end. Her expression was telling me that she had done it on purpose, that she had remembered.

“Thank you, Tasneem”, I proposed as soon as we left the store. “Not just for the new shirt. Also for being with me and supporting me. For going to the memorial with me. You've no idea how much it means to me.”

“It's nothing really”, she assured me. “You're doing so much for me. I'm happy when I can give you something in return.”

We spent the rest of the day shopping together, fooling around. Was this freedom? Because it definitely felt like it. I was absolutely happy with my life right now, despite the grief I was still facing. It would take a long time to work through that after all.

But after this awesome day it was hitting me even harder when I heard Tasneem throwing up at school the next day. By pure accident. My initial plan to simply use the bathroom was quickly forgotten as I was standing there frozen in place.

It took Tasneem a while to notice me as she was busy cleaning herself up. She just realized my presence when she was turning to leave, jumping as she recognized me.

“(f/n), I ...” Her voice broke slightly as no more words were leaving her lips.

“Is it getting worse again?”, I wondered, concern burning me up like acid.

“It's nothing. Don't worry about it”, she brushed it off.

“How could I not worry, Tasneem?”, I shot back softly. “Did anything happen? Why didn't you come to me?”

“Not everything is about you, okay?”, she snapped. “Stop trying to play the hero and just let me deal with it!”

“You don't know what you're saying”, I resonated, gulping down my hurt feelings.

“I don't know what I'm saying?”, she repeated upset. “What do you know? You have no idea what it's like! So stop pretending to be considerate! You can't help me anyway. You never could. It's just what you wanted to believe.”

“Tasneem ...”, I called out quietly, taking a step toward her.

“Just stop!”, she continued, backing away from me. “You got what you wanted, didn't you? My mom knows. Isn't that enough? Or how long do you expect me to keep this up, just so you won't tell anyone?”

“What … what are you talking about?”

“Just leave me alone!”, she yelled at me.

My mind was buzzing with countless thoughts and emotions. It was a whole turmoil I could not nearly control.

I had no idea what had suddenly happened to lead to her breakdown. But she was in a devastation mode. Despite the pain she had just inflicted on me, I loved her too much to let her hurt herself even more.

It was obvious that she was torn, that she was not being herself, was not thinking clearly. The eating disorder was talking, her self-destructive part trying to isolate herself from me. I could not let that happen.

So instead of backing away from her, I enveloped her in a tight hug. After a while of resistance she gave in, sobs resounding from the bathroom walls.

“I got you”, I whispered, not reacting to the school bell signaling the end of the break.

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

Last Chapter

Pretty much inspired from the scene with Nadeen. That scene rlly was a killer. Watching Nadeen break word by word was heartbreaking. But at the same time I just wanted her to give Tasneem a hug because it felt like she truly needed it. So that's how we got here.

Tag List: @sunwoniie

[starknife-starmimi]

Howdy, it's New years Anon again!

Firstly, I wanted to congratulate you on making StarKnife week again. Secondly, I have another scenario I wanted to share, but surprisingly I had things to do in this mortal vessel we call a human body.

Alright so:

Kinda using your point of Starline having touch starvation, I would like to imagine that despite his cold demeanor towards everyone and everything, Mimic is pretty understanding about this concept even though he never really experienced it.

This is under the assumption that they've been somewhat domestic partners for a while before (I'm guessing Starline) confessed to him, that there were certain tells like Starline slightly hovering near Mimic and talking to him for way longer then what he's used to or he just looks uneasy while he's working.

A little bonus I thought of while typing this is that Mimic would ask and Starline would act in denial, but since Mimic can kinda see through his lies just decides to stay by him until he's ready to say that he needs a hug or some sort of affirmation.

Anyway, go crazy with this one and good luck with the week later down the line

Greetings once again, New Years Anon!

Thank you! I'm so glad I (eventually) got the week prompts organized. I couldn't have done it without the help of @/your-compadre-infinity!

Thankfully, I got the prompts out ahead of time instead of a late Wednesday night 😅

Hopefully, we'll get more participants this time!

(Starline is likely the one to confess.)

(It's just so hard to craft a scenario where it's Mimic unless it's extremely angsty and both their lives are on the line. /lh /hj)

(No matter who confesses, I'm pretty sure it's a slow burn /lh)

Bdhfhghghhjvh, thank you for the gay concepts as usual 🥺 (gently holds)

I've always imagined Starline just staying really close to Mimic when they walk alongside each other. Just barely any distance. Starline never realized he was being that close, but Mimic did. It had Mimic on edge at first, but he would eventually get around to understanding there was no negative intent.

Starline is definitely in denial of his touch starvation. It doesn't help how much he isolates himself as a way to beat it down with a broom. Mimic obviously takes time to allow Starline to find affirmation in him, but once he does, Mimic is just hanging around waiting for Starline to crack and ask for cuddles.

Thanks for the asks as always!

And also for sending luck, let's hope to make more progress this year ! 🗡💫

[misschifuyu]

Temporary

characters: sano manjiro (mikey) + gn! reader

genre: angst

warnings: swearing

It didn’t take a genius to notice.

At first, you figured it was simply because of work; busy work amongst the members that he had to deal with, taking up all his free time. You understood what it meant to be the leader of such a prestigious gang - if one could call it as such - so you didn’t think much of it.

“Did everything go okay today?”

“Yeah”

It was strange, to say the least, seeing him so quiet as you greeted him into your home. Having not seen him in a few days, you figured this would be a perfect opportunity to get together, one Wednesday afternoon you thought he would be free.

Of course, he had answered your text with an ‘okay’ to your suggestion; as a result, you were surprised to see him in such a glum mood.

That afternoon he had sat with you, but it felt as though the two of you were miles apart. Only a few words were exchanged, and you knew, without a doubt, that something wasn’t right.

Days passed on, and you tried to leave him some space. You knew well how much Mikey could get overwhelmed with life’s troubles, so you figured it was best to leave him sort them out before trying to intervene. The last thing you wanted was to make matters worse, after all, so you trusted it was the right decision.

Unfortunately, this ended up spanning into a week without knowing anything about him.

As it got to the 7th day, you couldn’t stop yourself from calling him. Grabbing your own, you clicked on his profile, a picture of the two of you showing up as you did.

What if something had happened to him?

Listening to the ringing tone by your ear, your mind drifted off into all the possibilities; despite knowing how your boyfriend was, you still worried for him. More than he could ever even imagine, frankly.

After a few seconds, you reckoned he wasn’t going to pick up. You couldn’t even begin to think of why, your legs taking you out into the streets of Tokyo as you hurried to the place you could only think he would be.

Near the riverbed.

Luckily, your house wasn't located too far from the spot where you had spent countless evenings throughout your relationship. It always seemed to bring Mikey a sense of serenity, watching the water flow by as he would rest on the grassy hill. Truthfully, you weren't entirely sure you'd find him there, but it was a place to start searching for him, at least.

Rounding the corner of the final block, you spotted a sitting figure. By the flowing, black jacket that was hung on the person's back, you recognised them immediately - unless another Toman member had decided to get a very similar haircut to your boyfriend, that is.

You were relieved, glad to know that you weren't going to have to search for him or even ask around for his whereabouts. And as far as you could tell, he didn't seem to be injured or in any bad state. Letting your chest heave out a deep breath from running just seconds earlier, you slowed down your pace to approach him.

He was silent. No surprise, seeing as he was alone, but as you got closer you could tell that he was far from being in a happy mood. The way his eyes were locked onto the distant view of the city made it clear that he was deep in though, and seeing as he wasn't accompanied by anyone, it would seem that he had come here to be alone with his thoughts.

A sense of pity filled your senses, and all you wanted to do was console him. But you knew that would be of no way to come up to him, so you stopped a few metres away from him, hoping he had already sensed your presence, so as to not startle him.

"...Manjiro?"

Addressing him by his first name, you remained still in your position. By his slow reaction, you assumed he had known you were there, but had chosen to ignore your presence until you spoke up.

He looked up at you with what could only be described as an empty stare. It worried you, seeing him look at you with such dull eyes, but you stood silent, waiting for him to speak up on his behalf.

"Why are you here?"

Far from what you had expected as the first words he aimed at you after a week's worth of disappearance, you sucked in a breath. Was this really his reaction upon seeing you after such a time period? And if you hadn't come, would he have continued to act as if you held no place in his life?

"I wanted to make sure you were doing okay...You haven't come over for a week, so I was starting to worry and-"

"It was for your own good"

Upon his interruption, you knitted your eyebrows together, a prominently confused look on your face.

"What?"

Mikey blinked away from you, looking instead towards whatever was behind you. He was avoiding eye contact with you, and that was the last thing you needed when you were trying to understand him. His distance had been a clear sign that something was wrong, and now he couldn't even bare to look straight at you.

"Things have been getting complicated as of late, and I didn't want to bother you with all of that"

Now that you had a closer look at him, you could see that he wasn't in the same shape he was always in. His right arm, which had been out of your sight until you stopped before him, showed a series of dark bruises, and a nasty cut was split by his top lip, clearly caused recently by the bright, red tones that made up the injury.

That wasn't to mention his ripped attire. Strewn across the sleeves and even the front piece, they looked to be a consequence from a knife, tearing the fabric in an attempt to reach him instead.

"Mikey, you know you would never bother me with any of this, you should've come to my house, I would've helped you"

With a shake of his head, the blond strands that you so loved to run your fingers through moved in sync with his movements.

"No, Y/N. Shit gets ugly after a fight, and the last thing I want is for you to see me like that. Can't you just be patient for a little longer?"

His tone was starting to sound aggravated, and you hadn't the faintest ideas as to why. All you had done was come up to him to ask about his wellbeing, and yet he was adamant in pushing you away.

"Patient? Mikey, I've been worried sick this past week, not knowing where you've been or what you've been doing. All I've gotten are ignored calls and messages, do you really expect me to just be alright with that?"

He had turned to look back at the river by now, listening to you but with what seemed to be very little interest. It was as if you were speaking to a wall, and you were starting to get worried that this wasn't going to end well.

The fact he didn't trust you enough to continue to be at his side when at his lowest point was giving you clear signs that something wasn't going right in the relationship. He had helped you countless times when you needed him, so how come he didn't allow himself to seek out your help in such times?

The silence between the two of you was heart wrenching.

"Manjiro? Are you even listening to me?"

Shoulders lifting, he closed his eyes momentarily before turning fully towards you.

"Y/N, I'm just fucking afraid you'll end up seeing me the way I see myself. It's not all sunshine and smiles, but I don't want you to see that because I know damn well you'll leave me if I show up to your house looking like this"

So he didn't.

He didn't believe he could count on you when he was going through tough moments. He truly thought you were so empty-hearted that you would leave him for something you knew right from the start could happen. Hell, you knew before even dating that he could show up busted and bloodied out of the blue.

And yet he had convinced himself that, somehow, you would ditch him because of it.

He had created a distance between the two of you, one that you had never thought even existed. On your behalf, such a gap had never even come to mind, but it seemed his just continued to grow.

"I would never leave you for something like that, Mikey...why would you even think of that? I love you for everything that you are, no matter the state you come home in"

"Don't lie to yourself, Y/N. I know what kind of person I can be, and it's far from something one would want to be with. I'm a worthless idiot who spends his days fighting endlessly without a clear objective...what if I end up doing the same to you?"

"Mikey, don't say that, you know-"

"No, I fucking don't, okay? Every damn day I'm scared that I could turn on everything that I know and love, and I don't want you to go through that"

You could feel a knot in your stomach as you took in his words, each one hurting more that the last. Why would he speak about himself like that? You knew he didn't have an easy life but, turn on everyone? That was far from the reality.

"But-"

"Look, I'm not dealing with this, now or ever. If it bothers you that much, you can leave. I'm not going to put you in any sort of danger, so if you see that as negligence, I don't see us getting any further than this"

That's how he felt.

That's how he felt about the relationship; something to be brushed off so easily in a matter of a few words.

Just a temporary circumstance.

[pigeonp0st]

Since I loved your one shot about Lena, I'm requesting another one! Reader is a single mom and is afraid to tell Lena about her child cause she thinks Lena isn't going to take it well, but in the end Lena loves her child.

Lena Luthor x Reader #2

Words: 1,590

Warnings: none?

Notes:

Thank you for requesting! If you’d like me to change the name of the kid (or the gender) feel free to say so. Also...sorry if you were expecting more of Lena. I realized at the end that there might not have been enough (Sorry for spelling mistakes too).

———

Miles, your eight year old son, has started to pretend he’s a psychologist. He’ll sit you down, with your head in his small lap (which isn’t very ethical), and ask you about your life problems.

Usually, you’ll make up funny nonsense that he’ll struggle to find the solution to...but today a very real problem has arrived, and you know you shouldn’t be trying to confide in your little boy about this, yet you decide to anyway.

He knows about you and Lena, though Lena doesn’t know about him. He saw her on TV once, was awestruck by her “smartness”, and you let slip that she’s the woman you’ve been dating.

Dating used as a loose term, because you and Lena haven’t actually become anything official. It’s...weird. Made even more so by the fact that she doesn’t know about the most important person in your life.

You tell Miles as much in today’s session. He beams down at you, happy that you’re finally starting to take his sessions seriously, and then taps his finger against his lip, thinking. “You should just tell her,” he finally concludes after a long pause.

You narrow your eyes up at him suspiciously, and wonder if you should just pretend to take his advice and move on. You don’t. “People usually don’t want to get involved with single moms.”

His eyes furrow at that, clearly upset, so you rush on. “If someone doesn’t want to be involved with you, none of me longs to be involved with them,” then, you pause, “I just want to want to be involved with Lena.”

“So this stems from past trauma?” Miles asks, and you gape at him, shocked.

“Where the f—when did you learn any of those words, honey?”

He grins at you again, clearly proud of himself, and then schools his face into an attempt of looking professional. It’s humorous. “Psy- Psych—”

“Psychology.”

“Yes, that. It says that our fears usually come for childhood trauma.”

“I’m not scared,” but even as you say that you know it’s not true. You make a mental note to watch over whatever the hell Miles is listening to, to make sure it’s age appropriate. “Even if I am, it’s definitely not from childhood trauma.”

“From relationship trauma then?”

You let out a shocked laugh, completely stumped. “Baby, your eight. If you keep saying smart things you’re going to start scaring me.”

“Let's talk about your fears,” He suggests. Clearly wanting to move on he gestures for you to sit up. Once you do, he hops up from the couch, grabs his clipboard from the coffee table, and starts scribbling down things you aren’t able to see.

“Okay,” you hesitantly agree. “I’m scared Lena will want nothing to do with me.”

“Why is that something you're scared of?”

You give him a confused look that he pays no attention to. “Obviously I like her...I also fear that you won’t.”

He nods, finally looking up from his clipboard. “And what happens if I hate her, and she hates me, so she leaves and you never speak to her again?”

You choke on absolutely nothing.

“What will you do then?” Miles asks, and you have no response for him. He doesn’t seem to want one. “You’ll deal with it, like you always have. So stop worrying until it comes. If it comes.”

You’re equal parts extremely proud of him, and extremely concerned as you think over what he’s said.

Then, as if he’s tired of being the smartest eight year old alive, he hands you the paper he was working on for half of your ‘session’. The paper is full of sharp lines that get more curvy and tangled the closer they get to what appears to be the middle.

“This,” he says, “is how you’re feeling.”

And you believe him.

———

It takes you a week to build up the courage to tell Lena about Miles. He surprisingly helped you come to the realization that holding off on telling Lena the truth won’t change the outcome.

In fact...it would probably make things more complicated. Even now, she deserved to know sooner than this.

It’s too late, of course. There’s no point in wishing you had done differently.

“Are you okay?” Lena asks through the phone, sounding so beautifully concerned over the fact that you haven’t spoken for awhile. God, you're whipped for this world-saving genius.

“Yeah,” you say, “just...you know how I said I had something to talk to you about?” You don’t wait for her to confirm, because of course she remembers, she’s looked scared because of it all day. “I sort of have to show you...so would you mind coming over?”

Yes, you’re a coward that’s hoping Lena seeing Miles for herself, instead of you telling her about him, will make her more accepting. Miles has a very convincing charm.

“You want me to go to your place?” Lena sputters, clearly shocked.

In an instant you regret the decision you were so sure about before. Maybe Lena isn’t ready. You should tell her before she comes, so she isn’t shocked out of her mind when she sees him.

You should—

“Okay,” Lena says, determined. You hadn’t even responded to her before. “I’ll be there soon.” And then she hangs up the phone before you manage to say anything, leaving you wondering what the fuck you’re doing.

You could call her back.

...you’re not going to. You’re too scared.

——

Miles waits by the door, dressed in his best suit. He knows how anxious you are about this, despite how hard you’ve been trying to hide it since your weird ‘session’, so he says he’s going to try and be the best him he can be.

You tell him that all he needs to be is his normal self and everything will be alright, but he admits to being nervous to meet Lena too, because she’s super smart. (He’s been watching anything he can find of her on the internet)

Thus, the two of you wait together impatiently, trying not to descend into madness.

——

At some point Miles starts making and handing you scribbles of how you feel, and you start making and handing them back.

It’s while you’re handing Miles your next piece that the doorbell rings.

He doesn’t look to be that nervous anymore, just excited, so he follows you on your track to answer the door, and with each step you contemplate your entire existence beyond Miles.

Then…Then you open the door.

Miles is hiding behind your leg, looking up at Lena with hesitant hopefulness and uncertainty, it’s the exact match of the way you’re looking at her, and Lena is looking at him with wide eyes.

Because you’re sure you’re about to die from the silence, you croak out a wobbly and quiet; “hi,” at the same time Mile’s sticks out his hands and says his own charming greeting.

“Hello, doctor Y/L/N here. Nice to meet you.”

“Lena Luthor.” As if on autopilot Lena shakes his hand. “You’re a doctor?” She asks, smiling the smallest of smiles at him.

He nods his head eagerly, glad she’s smiling. “Yeah! Of—of psy- psych...”

“Psychology,” You finish. Lena’s gaze switches to you. It’s the moment you think you’re gonna die, but her gaze is concerned instead of disappointed.

“He’s older than the photo on your wallpaper suggested,” Lena says.

Oh.

Oh…

You’re an idiot.

Then, Lena smiles—wider this time because of your dumbstruck expression—and looks at Miles. “To be a doctor you have to be pretty smart.”

He nods, his eyes practically full of stars.

“That’s how I know you and I are going to get along great.”

Miles grins madly, pushes you a bit to the side so Lena can come in, and says, eager, “can I show you my work, please?”

And Lena looks from you, to him, laughs a laugh full of amusement and endearment, and agrees gracefully. “I’d love it if you would.”

———

Lena adores Miles.

Around him she almost seems, impossibly, like a child herself. She so obviously and beautifully wants him to like her, and all the while Miles is almost exactly the same around her.

They’re both complete dorks trying to subtly get each other's attention and all you want to do is watch the two of them interact for ages.

They both were two separate parts of your life, and now they’re merged better than you ever expected them to.

It’s great. Absolutely great. But whenever they turn their twin gazes on you you’re sure you’re going to melt into a puddle of adoration.

Wow.

“What is it?” You ask them, after they’ve both looked at you for too long without saying anything.

Lena tilts her head, her smile concerned again, “you look like you’re about to cry.”

Miles nods his agreement. “What’s wrong mom? Does whatever bothering you stem from childhood trauma?” He asks, and at Lena’s ‘the fuck’ face you burst out into a fit of laughter, that quickly turns into tears of absolute love.

Both Miles and Lena looked at you with alarm because they don’t realize this is the happiest you’ve been in a while. It is though. It is.

“Not childhood trauma,” you assure them both, and before Miles can suggest it you add; “not past relationship trauma either, it’s happy tears.”

“Oh,” Lena stutters, “good.”

“Oh,” Miles repeats, sounding relieved and a tad bit disappointed. “I haven’t learned how to deal with those tears yet.”

[sirthisisa-wendys]

Wendy!!!! I'm so sorry for seeing the request fic so late, I thought my ask didn't go through because Tumblr ate it up, but thank you so much for the Geto semi-angst fic, it got me in the feels😭😭😭 I love your work, you feed us so many amazing contents on the daily, it's just a God-given gift (no cap). This is a PSA: Tumblr fic writers are amazing, a gift to the Universe. Thank you for existing 🥺.

Also, also, also, my friend and I have been making up all these scenarios in our heads where Geto is a Sociology professor at a prestigious university, an epitome of conformity, but, he is also an underground tatoo artist who fights for the greater cause and sticks up for the underdog.

So, can I request a Geto x fem reader, where reader is a student at his Uni, and then comes across him at the tatoo place, and after all the wildin', he ends up giving her a tatoo? Only if you are free though. P.S. the Lemonade Toji fic was so sweet😭

P.P.S: Congratulations on your 900 follower milestone!!!

I am gonna stop now, this looked like a word vomit, I hope this is not too much.

- (Your pace anon)🥀

🥀 anon, this is too sweet! I'm so glad you enjoyed Your Pace - it was actually a lot of fun to write!

I'm so glad you're enjoying the other works as well. I'm happy that you're happy with my work. (I've never gotten a tattoo done for myself [yet] but I have been with friends who got them done. And I did extra research. Now I want to get my tatt done so bad lol)

NOW, ON WITH THE SHOW!

Inked: Geto Suguru x Fem!Reader

wc: 1.2k

tw: none

masterlist

"Yo! What can I do you for?

The tattoo parlor is really... "underground". That's what Eileen had said. And you can't help but be discomfited by the sight of a bunch of men around the parlor and not a single woman, except you.

"Um..." You clutch your handbag a little closer as you walk up to the man behind the counter, his long, black nails and tattooed face making you even more nervous. "I... I was wondering if you could give me my first tattoo." He's outfitted in a black sleeveless muscle shirt, and he crosses his tatted arms, tilting his head at you.

"Got something in mind?" The man raises a brow as you shuffle around in your bag for what you had thought up: the outline of a letter with your grandfather's signature on it. When you present it to the man, he snatches it up, eyes roving over the design and then back to you. "This it?"

"Yeah," you mumble. "Eileen told me to mention her when I came in. She couldn't be here, but she said you guys would take good care of me." The sounds of uproarious laughter behind you make you flinch, and the man looks you over once, then hands you back your design.

"Listen, I don't do first-timers. Eileen knows I prefer the more... experienced clients. But let me ask around and see if someone will be willing to take on the challenge. You squeamish?" You shake your head no. "Ticklish?" You pause, thinking about all of the places on your body that tend to be susceptible to touch, then shake your head no. "Okay, I'll be back."

The pink-haired man walks around the shop, peering at some of the men who are working and asking the others who aren't busy if they're willing to work on you. A few say no, and when he disappears into a small room in the back, you fear the worst. You hoped by mentioning Eileen that they would be more than willing to tattoo you - she's a favorite for more reasons than one around this shop - but it appears that no one is willing until the man comes back up to the front desk and sighs.

"Right, so," he exhales as he spreads his hands on the desk. "I have our most experienced man in the back willing to work on you. Since it's your first time, he's going to make sure you're taken care of." You walk back to the small room with the man and past a bead curtain, facing the chair you'll be sitting in and a man with long black hair facing a computer for a second before he turns around.

When his black eyes meet yours, you gasp, and he smiles even wider, eyes lighting up with recognition. You can barely contain your surprise as you sputter out,

"Professor Geto?"

"Y/n!" The pink-haired man frowns, stepping back a little.

"You two know each other?"

"Yeah, y/n is one of my former sociology students. She sat in the second row, right next to Eileen." Your eyes are too busy taking in the vast array of tattoos your professor has, his grey shirt sleeves rolled up to his shoulders. You spot a compass, a snake, a Leviathan, a skull, a jaguar... You lose count at sixteen tattoos as the men go back and forth about his daytime career, discussing the ethics of tattooing former students, and why the pink-haired man was so concerned when he tattooed Eileen all the time, despite being her brother's best friend.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah..." The pink-haired man gripes, walking off.

"So, can I see what you've got there?" You instantly stretch out your hand and offer him the design to scrutinize. His eyes drift over the page before he turns back to the computer, beginning to sketch it over again. "Where do you want it?"

"Right below my ribcage." Geto hums, nodding.

"I got it. Give me a few minutes to finish this and then you can take a look at the design." You look around the small room as he works on the design, taking stock of the "Yellow Peril" posters and socialist rhetoric posted everywhere.

"You're a sociology professor at this conservative university... but you've got Karl Marx framed on your wall." You laugh, a little baffled at the absurdity of it all. Here is Professor Geto, handsome as hell, normally all dressed up in his black mock turtleneck and tan suit, wearing simple glasses and discussing the human condition during the day, but by night... still handsome as help but an underground, socialist tattoo artist.

"Where else should I go? The echo chamber that would be a liberal university? Or should I go out and try to expose other ideologies to people who may be open to them and sharing them with their friends?" You hum at the thought, nodding.

"That makes a lot of sense."

"Take a look at it," The man offers, turning around in his chair and handing you the sketch. You look at it - and it's virtually the same, so you nod and Geto smiles. "Alright, show me where exactly you want it."

You roll up your shirt and point to the spot, and Geto applies the stencil transfer, then peels it off, leaving the outline behind. You watch as he begins to prepare his equipment, moving methodically to avoid mistakes or mishaps. A thin layer of ointment is applied to the transfer and when he's ready, he looks up at you and you inhale deeply.

"You ready?" You nod quickly.

"Let's get this over with." The machine begins to whir, and you brace yourself for impact.

"Don't hold your breath," the black-eyed man warns. "Just breathe in and out." When the needle hits your skin, you feel a hot scratch, making you hiss in a little. Geto tuts a little, then reminds you to take a breath. "It gets easier."

While he works, he makes small talk, like what you're doing with your degree and how long you have until you graduate. You ask him about his political leanings, and why you never knew he was a socialist before now.

"It's not my job to force my political leanings onto you all. I'm just here to expose you to all of the ideas out there."

And you agreed.

The tattoo didn't take long, and once you're finished, he lets you stand and take a look at it in the mirror.

"You like it?"

You examine the artistry and turn back to him, smiling widely.

"I love it." Geto begins his speech on aftercare as he places the bandage on your tattoo, and even hands you a piece of paper detailing the exact speech he just gave. You walk up to the counter after he's done, and swift fingers ring you up for the total, which you happily pay.

"When you can, you should come to our meetings," Geto offers, sliding you a flyer and winking. "I'd love to see you there." You take the flyer and look it over, trying not to let your eagerness show.

"This looks like fun," you answer. "I'll see you when I can."

And this time - you think as you exit the shop - I'll be in the front row.

[multifandom-girlie]

𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐂𝐨𝐧 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟓

Imagine: “Could I request a Daniel Gillies smut like they are both at the comic con(they are both in the originals) and he is teasing her while he answers a question ? Or makes fun with Joseph and he says some dirty things.” Requested by @elijahspersonalwifeyyy .

Pairing: Daniel Gillies x Reader

Warnings: Smut

Words:

Edited: Yes

A/N: I apologise @elijahspersonalwifeyyy for the incredibly long wait. I’ve had this lined up to post but with coursework and writing so much at the same time, it’s made it difficult but I refuse to quit. I’m not a quitter. I’m also not a person to announce a hiatus. Either way, hope you enjoyed ! There is a lot to read I know but we needed a build up and this is one of my favourite comic cons ever, I wanted to do the before hand scenes either way so. Don’t forget to check out my new story “On The Way” !

All of us at the current moment in time were stood backstage waiting to be called on. I couldn't tell you how irritated I was when I went on after Joseph and then Daniel followed. They were both irritating enough to me together anyway but they were in a particularly annoying mood today and I was not prepared for it.

“The man who will break your heart and then rip it out and then probably eat it. Joseph Morgan.”

The whole audience cheered as he walked on and he waved quite casually as he did. 

“The women who brings all men to there knees but still can't find anything better to do than drink wine. Y/N Y/L/N”

I giggled as I walked out and I saw the audience screaming and Joseph giving me a mischievous look.

“The brother with a suit for every occasion. Daniel Gillies as Elijah.”

He walked out, threw me a quick smirk and blew a kiss to the audience as they screamed. He pulled his chair out and smiled at everyone.

“Nice jacket.”

“Yeah. Give it up for this jacket ! Huh ? Out of a suit and into a smoking hot jacket.”

“I know right, the one time he's not wearing a suit.”

“Thank you. It was actually a gift from Y/N.”

“Aw that’s super sweet Y/N.”

“Thank you. It was actually a gift for our anniversary.”

“Really ? How many years ?”

“Seven.”

“and very sweet.”

He called the rest of our costars out and we continued on with the panel.

After the host had started the panel with a question for Julie and Michael, it was now a group question for me, Joseph and Phoebe.

“Uh now going to the show, we've seen Klaus and Lily and Klaus and Hayley kind of trying the uh co-parenting thing and it did not really go so well as we all saw. How is Klaus going to be as a parent now that Hayley isn't around and Lily and Elijah have reconciled ?”

As soon as the question was asked, we all turned to Joseph.

“Uh you know, before he alienated his whole family by toasting Elijah's girlfriend, sleeping with his wife and and and cursing the women he thought he was in love with um Klaus survived under this sort of umbrella of Elijah's protection and forgiveness I suppose and so Elijah was always a voice of reason and Hayley was always there to battle it out with him. So, I would say badly. He's gonna do badly as a single parent you know and I think he knows he's kinda messing it up but he's trying. At least he's trying. You gotta give him that. Even if he's warping the minds of his two daughters, one before she's even uttered a syllable and the other before she get's old enough to realise that Klaus and Lily aren't actually together you know like she’s thought for years.”

“Geez. So uh how are are Lily, Elijah and Klaus going to tell her ? Who's going to be the one that does it or will they all do it together ?”

I decided to answer this questions, being more involved with the story line of my children.

“I think that Lily will have to be the one to tell her and whilst doing so will definitely have to be quite cautious when telling Sofia, you know not only because she's only 7 years old but also because she’s thought of Elijah as her Uncle her whole life- and although that hasn't changed it's still going to be difficult since this latest revelation is that, her Uncle Elijah that she adores oh so much is now also 'mommy's boyfriend' or in more formal terms her step-dad. So I think she's going to be confused and it might be quite difficult for her at first but I think she’s mature for her age and that she will understand quite quickly that, Mommy and Daddy aren't together and that despite realizing that her mom was married to her uncle I think she will quickly appreciate the fact we told her because of her understanding personality. “

Daniel quickly leaned forward and spoke before the host could ask another question.

“The moral of the story is, don't sleep with your husband's brother. Especially when not using protection and then deciding to get back together with your husband before trying to force him to sign the divorce papers.”

The whole room suddenly echoed with loud laughter and I couldn't stop giggling myself despite being offended for my character. I hit his arm playfully. He grinned at me and rested his hand on my leg as the room calmed down and he slouched back in his chair a little.

“Very true. So, I mean he can always just compel a few dozen nannies but he does have Elijah there to help him co-parent you know not just with Sofia but with Hope. I'm thinking like shared schedules, late night feedings...Whose doing what ?”

“It’s like we both wake up and the baby is crying and it's like, are you going to get her or am I ? Alright, I'll get her.”

“Yeah no it's gonna be me. I'm gonna do the graveyard shift, I know that all to well. But we gotta remember too, Lily and Freya are going to be doing a large share of the work.”

“Oh yeah, they can do it. There you go.”

I giggled and hit Joseph in the shoulder for the comment.

“Sexist.”

“No, come on. Lily's already been through this twice she knows’ what she's doing and Freya's Switzerland at this moment in time, I think for both of us to be in there...I’m gonna stop talking.”

We all chuckled at Daniel's comment.

                                               *

“Now we're going to go to audience questions in just a little bit but first I wanted to do something fun. I know it's not the holiday's and I know we don't have a big ass bonfire in front of us but I thought it would be quite fun if everybody kinda thinks about a wish for their character for the future, just throw it in the imaginary bonfire.”

“Well, I'm a human....so I just want to stay alive.”

“Good answer.”

“Oh I forgot you weren't a character.”

“I have wishes for everybody but I don't have a character.”

“I do wish for Julie that Supernatural Judge Judy becomes her next spin off and Exploding Ovaries is the title of Daniel Gillies' next memoir. 

“A wish for Hayley would be that Hope can live a normal, happy existence. I think would be what she would want the most.”

“That’s very sweet.”

“Thank you. That's it, I'm done.”

“Uh, I think for Elijah...I mean other than wishing that his girlfriend's wouldn't be incinerated or his wife doesn't sleep with his brother again...”

I giggled at Daniel's comment, despite his comment towards my character and spoke with Joseph, simultaneously. 

“Oh, come on.”

“I'm not letting that one go easily. So, uh...I would wish for him. Oh man. I wish for him, I’m actually wishing for something dark, like I sort of would wish for...a great division between the brothers before reconciliation.”

“So that's how it's going to be.”

“So, my wish for Lily is um...to finally find that bloody fertility spell that she's been looking for, for centuries. So that her and Elijah can have children of their own which they want more than anything and move somewhere outside of New Orleans in a nice family home, away from the drama.”

“That’s very sweet.”

“Uh, I wish everyone would just do what Klaus says because he's always right. He knows what he's doing. It's for the greater good. Come on. Get on board with his plans. Everything will be alright in the end. Not everyone will be alright in the end but everything will be alright in the end. Right ?”

“Um, I wish Marcel would cross over. No.”

“I wish for more of your cleavage.”

I couldn't help but laugh a little when he says comments like that. Even though it wasn't directed at me, I knew the double meaning behind it. Daniel has not taken his eyes away from my chest today. That's what breast feeding does to you, I suppose. When Daniel picked my outfit this morning, I was glad. I was going to wear some leather pants and a red blouse with some heels but he somehow convinced me to wear a dress. God was I glad, I actually listened to him. It was hot in San Diego summer heat and I underestimated a little when I decided on leather pants. 

“Yeah. We gonna get some dollar bills. Let's see some ones. Tryna make some money out here. Somebody, put on some Usher. Slow jam. Uh yeah...”

“I have a twenty. What can we get for a twenty ?”

“Break it up. Break it up.”

“Make it into ones and let's make it rain.”

“If I throw loose change at you, can I make it hail ?”

“Alright, moving on. Next subject.”

“Um, Davina is a witch and I think it would be really cool if she could fly. So, whether it's a broomstick or something else...I still think it would be really cool.”

“That’s a good one. Um, mines pretty selfish. I hate shaving, so I wish we could work something in so Vincent could have like a huge beard.”

“I changed my mind, I want superpowers as well. Three one foot long, retractable adamantine claws from each hand please.”

”Why is the camera on me ? I wanna fly. I wanna see these guys fly. I want them charging up walls and...we don’t have the budget for that. I wanna see more vampirey stuff. Why am I wishing again ? I exhausted my wish.”

“You guys can make as many wishes as you want. This is your made up tradition.”

“It’s raining wishes on you.”

“Raining for your wishes.”

“God this is embarrassing.”

“T it up.”

“T what up ?”

“What do your need for a rain of wishes ?”

“What happens when it rains ?”

“An umbrella.”

“What ?”

“An umbrella, sweetheart.”

He closed his eye in frustration and dropped his upper half into my lap, whilst we all laughed at his slow mind.

“Oh shit. Umbrella. So sorry, so sorry.”

“The rain, the umbrella...”

“Dropping hints. Awesome, alright well let’s turn it over to some audience questions.”

                                               *

“Hi, my name is Julia and first I'd like to say, I love you all. Especially Joseph Morgan and Danielle Campbell.”

“Thanks. Thanks a lot.”

“Don’t worry, I love you Daniel.”

He squeezes my thigh and leans in to kiss my head. Before deciding to move his arm around my shoulders and hugging me into his side. I rested my hand on his thigh as I hugged him back.

“I love you too, beautiful.”

I blushed and smiled, whilst the audience all awed. Which prompted the red in my cheeks to darken. I sat back up straight and he returned his hand back my thigh, yet this time a little higher up and whilst stroking the fabric of my dress up my thigh.

“My question is for the whole cast and it is, if you were able to play another role...who would you wanna play ?”

“On our show ? Or just in general ?”

“Yeah. On The Originals.”

“I..I think I would choose Hayley. The Hyrbid female. She's a pretty cool character. Your welcome.”

“Um, I would play...Klaus. Mind you probably better but...”

“I don't wanna play anybody else, I wanna play Elijah.”

“I would play, Elijah....purely because it would be an absolute blessing to wake up that hot everyday and he's a pretty awesome character.”

He smirked at me and moved his hand further up my leg, his fingers now resting at the hem of my white lace thong. I gulped a little but held my composure. It seemed hat every time I complimented him, he got further up my leg and closer to my core. Like a game...and I was more than happy to play.

“If...If I had to absolutely play someone else uh, I would play Oliver because I just think he needs to be brought back to the show...and uh #saveollie. Bring him back !”

“Uh, I would play Elijah because I think I look damn good in a suit.”

“Yeah, you do.”

“Buttoned up to the naval.”

“There we go. I know it's distracting for you, my body.”

“I cannot concentrate. I refuse to continue.”

“Um, I would play Genevieve. I thought she was a really cool character. She was a lot of fun to work with.”

“I see some Genevieve fans in the house, awesome.”

“Um, yeah I think I might choose Elijah too. I think uh, it's a really cool character that Daniel has created.”

“They both quietly believe they can bring more to the role, is what they’re saying. Not quietly, they're saying it to an audience of like three thousand.”

“Only because of what you've done with it Daniel.”

                                            *

“Hi Guys, wow that's loud. I'm so sorry, my name's Marissa. First, I want to say Daniel I watched saving hope and your death killed me. I'm so sorry that you died.”

“Yeah, tell me about it ! I was gutted.”

He squeezed my thigh a little more and started making circles with his finger on the spot closed to my core.

“Oh my goodness.”

Yeah, oh my goodness indeed. He really knew how to make a woman feel good, without hardly doing anything...quite literally.

“Um, so my question is for Julie and Michael. Um, I was wondering...there’s so much violence on the show and so much adult stuff and I was wondering if the network or the studio has ever told you, 'No you can't do that’ ?”

We all started laughing in reply to the questions.

“Oh, we have a story about that don't we...Leah.”

“I don't wanna tell the story again.”

“There's things that we did that couldn't be shown.”

“So here's the thing about broadcast television is that, apparently you can decapitate someone, you can drive a knife into a vampires skull, you can rip out their heart, you can shove a pencil up their nose, you can stab them a million times with glass but when stimulating a sex scene...if there's any movement at all that one would define as thrusting...”

“No thrusting. Pull back on the thrusting.”

“A motion that originates from the hip.”

Charles decided to get up and share a demonstration of thrusting and everyone on stage started laughing and the audience started to scream. Daniel gripped my thigh a little harder, due to jealously. I didn't have to ask him what the reason was, I already knew. At the best of times, he was not a jealous person. He loves and trusts me and Charles a lot and he knows nothing would happen but when he's horny and in need of some attention...he does get jealous. Understandably so, I know because we both do. His pinky finger then started to stroke me, through the lace of my pants.   

“It’s difficult because I don't actually remember thrusting being in the script. That was something the actors chose.”

“It was a creative choice. I mean, look at Charles...you would do the same thing. Also, let's not forget the originators of this little problem.”

The audience stayed silent, indicating that they weren't sure how to react to her last sentence. I leaned into Daniel and rested my forehead against his bicep in retaliation to Leah's comment. I couldn't stop giggling, despite the finger rubbing against my wet thong and the blush rising on my cheeks. Daniel was using his other hand to pinch his forehead, whilst chuckling.

“Come on guys, explain it.”

“So, what happened was we were doing the flashback sex scene of Elijah and Lily's wedding night. Daniel got a bit too excited and started to thrust a little and I tried hiding it by opening my legs a bit more.As I did, my underwear snapped because it wasn't as flexible as I thought. So, I had to pay a fine for showing too much skin because the sheets had come off of me a little and we hadn't realised. Not that it was much it was just a little side boob, still.”

“So, it wasn't the thrusting ?”

“No, ironically it wasn't.”

“Let me tell you. There was some excellent, simulated thrusting in those scenes. That was cut, per broadcast standards. While, I think in the same episode seventeen people got brutally massacred. It is what it is.”

“Some of the best thrusting. I hope it makes the special features.”

“Charles called Leah, for some extra rehearsal before hand.”

                                           *

“Hi I'm uh Skylar. Um, I know that between you there has been a myriad of different supernatural creatures. Uh, Phoebe...I think you've been a werewolf, a witch and a mermaid. Uh, in really life...What would you wanna be ?”

“Well, I would say witches because witches don't have to turn on a full moon and they don't have to be like plagued by vampire...the demon’s of vampires. They can just have all the power and really cute outfits...and if I can look more like Danielle Campbell. I'll take it.”

“H20 rocks!”

“Thank you ! Well actually I-Im gonna say a mermaid then. Like, life is better under the sea and I think I would be a mermaid.”

“I don't know-"

“Merman ?”

“Merman. No, I...um. I'm pretty pervy...so I'd say like invisibility.”

“Um, so I'm not pervy at all unlike Daniel. I do think that Heretics are soooo cool though. Like, they can do magic and they are vampires but still have all those human capabilities...like procreation. So, yeah a heretic.”

His hand stopped stroking me through the lace of my panties suddenly and I instantaneously felt a cold gush of air race up my well-shaved legs and punching me in my core. I felt the frayed edges of my lace tickling my upper thigh, where they shouldn't be. Hinting that my favourite pair of thongs had been snapped. I turned to Daniel and narrowed my eyes at him whilst he just continued the panel, like nothing happened. His hand when back to it’s original position resting on my thigh, clearly in punishment for making a comment about his pervy answer. 

“Nah, I'm happy where I am. You know, Hyrbid. Definitely not, invisibility. When I joined the show, I thought I was only gonna be a vampire so I was thrilled when I was a werewolf-vampire. I'm sticking to my guns.”

“I like being the token human. I'm just gonna like stay there. Create more mermen.”

“Season three, season of the mermen.”

“The next spin-off.”

“That would be so cool, let me be a mermaid. I would kill it .”

Joseph put his arm on the back of my chair, looking at me after I made my wish known to be a mermaid.

“You better not cum in the water.”

The entirety of the room ruptured into fits of laughter. Even Daniel, who had now moved his hand closer to my core again. Letting his fingers stroke my entrance. Meanwhile, I continued laughing...ignoring the feeling of my husband’s gentle and sensual touch. 

“I’m blushing.”

                                            *

“Hi, I'm Katie. If you were to go to Comic Con, on the floor. Is there anyone you would dress up as ?”

The first thought that came to mind was pleasing Daniel. If I said him there was no doubt he'd give in. The problem was, was it a risk I was willing to take...at a comic Con in front of three thousand fans and some of my closest friends.

“Daniel Gillies.”

Every one repeated my answer and whilst doing so I was discovering that I was unequivocally correct with my thought process. Sure enough, Daniel plunged his fingers straight into my entrance leaving me to deal with the resounding squeal that ripped from my throat. Causing Daniel to laugh at me, influencing Joseph to join in.

                                            *

The final question had just been answered by Daniel and I was leaning my head into Daniel's shoulder to help with controlling the moans erupting inside me. The warmth in my stomach has just appeared as quickly as it vanished again, Daniel had stopped and chuckled at my irritated expression. Nevertheless, I got up and shoved my now broken thongs in Daniel's jacket pocket and waved at the fans with a bright smile on my face as we all walked off. We had just got out of the fan's eyesight when a hand delivered a hard slap to my barely covered assume cheek as this dress was so short. I span around and grabbed his wrist before dragging him further backstage, behind a screen next to the dressing rooms.

“What do you think your doing ? Playing around like that during a panel and then not even letting me finish ?!”

I didn't even let him reply as I dragged his face down towards mine and kissed him lustfully. His hands wandered down to my waist and clutched the already tight fabric tighter around me. The other unoccupied hand drove down to my ass and clutched it, allowing the skirt to rise up. Exposing the bare skin of my cheek. I used one of my hands to undo his zipper before pulling his dick out and stroking it. Clearly, he was eager because before I knew it. I was pressed up against the wall, sticking my tongue down his throat and moving myself up and down on his already hard cock. What we hadn't realised that the screen had moved, as Daniel had knocked it with his foot when walking to the wall. He pulled away and smirked at me.

“You told me we wouldn't have public sex after last time.”

“This is the last time Mr Gillies, I'm promising you.”

We smiled at eachother and kept going against the wall. His tip caused some tension when arriving to a depth he hadn’t before but it was a pleasurable one most definitely. The lips of my pussy enveloped his tip and he ran it through my drenched folds before deciding to plunge into me once again. I was about to scream and he knew I wasn’t good at being quiet when he fucks me so good. I clung onto him hoping it would relieve tha ache he’d created by filling me so good. He sat down on a chair that was sat in a chair of the little area backstage. Sitting down, allowed his thrusts to speed up rapidly and his face to rest in between my smooth and nearly covered beasts. He bit my hardened buds through my dress and caused a shive of please to shoot down to my core and promoting me to burst.

I then decided to let go and couldn’t help but let out a gratifying scream for him. I was coming down from my high and the screen pulled back. A man that looked about 40, eyed us disgusted and told us to move it.

“Well atleast I won the deal ?”

“Remember the deal we had ? If I was right about is having sex in public again no matter how much you denied that we wouldn’t. Your were very adamant.#

*

MASTERLIST

[mashiraostail]

Hi Den! I just saw your depressive reader request and I really appreciated it, of course and your other contents, they were amazing. I wasn't really feeling myself lately and seeing the characters comfort the reader, believe me it really helps me, especially I'm going through a big test right now. I was wondering if I can request a Vlad King version, or any other characters you have in mind? I really wanted to be in his big arms, if no then it's ok too💗please stay hydrated at these times and be safe, I'm looking foward to your great work💗

 Hi! I'm really glad you liked them! I have another ask looking to get Mic and Yagi so I’ll add them here too, i hope your test goes well! 

Sekijiro Kan / Vlad King Hindsight is always much clearer. You wished you'd started the assignment when you got it rather than continually putting it off, but no, so everything had piled. You somehow managed to churn it all out the night before but it left you thoroughly exhausted. So much so that you end up flaking on your plans with Sekijiro, he doesn’t seem too perturbed on the phone though, he knew you had a lot of work right now, he’s been guilty of the same thing on occasion.  Though that was a week ago. Nothing particularly devastating had happened, nothing out of the ordinary, and yet you just felt so exhausted. Everything was a chore to you. Which made staying in bed with the lights out for days on end incredibly easy. But it made doing laundry, changing your sheets, doing the dishes, and even just finishing a glass of water basically impossible. All you had the energy to do was get up, go to your job, and come straight home and get back into bed. If your coworkers noticed your rapidly declining state no one said anything.  It was rare for Sekijiro to go more than a few hours without at least a text from you. You sent him literally whatever crossed your mind, pictures, random ideas or thoughts, questions about what you should eat for lunch or dinner, should you get mocha in your coffee or vanilla? You also usually called him when you were doing some sort of mindless task, cooking or cleaning and other things of the like. Not to mention how often you saw each other, practically everyday you usually stopped in on him while he was paroling, or asked him to come to your place when he was done. Now he was going full days without hearing from you at all. Since you’d given him a raincheck on your plans earlier last week he’d hardly heard from you. He texted you first of course, he’d asked how you were feeling numerous times now, but you always just said ‘I’m alright’ or ‘a bit exhausted’ at the worst before turning the conversation around to him again.  “You look nervous.” Aizawa doesn’t look up when he speaks, but it was an elephant in the room. Sekijiro was sure everyone had noticed how often he was checking his phone, or the nervous jitter in his leg every time it went off. “Yeah big guy what’s got you so rattled?” Mic agrees from his spot beside Aizawa in the teachers lounge.  “Nothing really.” Vlad cracks his knuckles, a nervous habit. “I bet you told Ryo. You shouldn’t play favorites it’s-”  “I didn’t tell him and I don’t play favorites.” He cuts Nemuri off.  “Is it romance troubles?”  “Why do you always take it there, Midnight?”  “So it is.” She looks proud, “I don’t always take it there, I just have a keen eye.”  Sekijiro lets out an empty huff of a laugh, “sure.”  “Maybe we can help.” If anyone but Aizawa said that Sekijiro would have written it off. It’s not that Aizawa wasn’t a nice guy, he was a hero after all, but for the most part he liked to keep to himself. Him offering help must have meant that Sekijiro was jumpier than he’d previously thought. “I have this...friend..and they’ve just been sort of MIA lately is all.  I don’t wanna barge in on them but they’re just not acting like themselves. I’m worried I did something to offend them, or that they’re hurt or sick and not telling me, when I ask they just write it off. I don’t want to seem like I don’t trust them but something just feels wrong.” Now that he said it out loud this did sound like the type of thing Ryo would have been really useful for, though that in mind Ryo knew you better than the others, the chance of him just barging in on you was much higher. The trio ponders this new information before Mic seems to have a lightbulb. “Why don’t you go there with a gift? That way it’s less like barging in and more like surprising!” Mic jumps, holding up an inquisitive finger, “or bring some take out or something like that!”  “That’s..not a bad idea..” Sekijiro murmurs to himself, it wasn’t out of character for him to surprise you at random times either...  “Great. Why don’t you head out now?” Aizawa offers and Sekijiro turns to him.  “No I mean, I would but I agreed to stay back for my class so they could use the-”  “We’ll be here for a while.” He’s curt but his kindness isn’t lost on the taller hero.  “Thank you Eraser. I really appreciate this, I’ll repay you.”  “Don’t mention it. If this’ll get you to stop shaking like a wet dog all the time.” He mutters to himself turning the paper before him over, “let us know if we can do anything else.”  You were starving. Yet you didn’t have a single morsel of food in your whole apartment, not even a jar of peanut butter. The hunger pains in your stomach weren’t enough to motivate you to venture out into the world, the terrible gloomy weather wasn’t helping either. You rolled onto your chest with a groan, wondering how much longer you could go on like this. Maybe after work tomorrow you could stop some place and pick up some groceries, for now though sleep was a great distraction.  Despite having a key Sekijiro still knocked, though after receiving no reply he elected to let himself in.  It seems like you’re in, your shoes are by the door, and your key is on the hook above them, but the coffee table is covered in plates, utensils and half empty cups of water or juice, your favorite blanket was strewn haphazardly over the couch, dangling onto the floor, you normally folded it neatly and draped it over the back. Your work papers and other things were cluttering the arm chair on the far end of the room and there were various wrappers around the floor and couch.  “Hello?” Sekijrio calls out for you but gets no reply. He clears a spot on your coffee table for the take out he brought and sets the other bag of various odds and ends on the couch before setting to straightening up. If you were asleep, which is what he figured, then you probably had a cold or something. He doesn’t wanna clean everything, incase you..liked it like this? He’s not sure himself but maybe you were trying something out. He empties the glasses into the sink and cleans them and the utensils off before discovering you had literally no food in your whole apartment. This was becoming concerning.  “Hey..” He knocks on the slightly ajar door of your bedroom, there’s no light coming from inside.  “I’m gonna come in alright?” He nudges the door open with his shoulder and the light from the hallway illuminates you, asleep. You didn’t look sick, though somehow you still looked worse for wear.  He shuffles over to you, “hey you?” He crouches down but keeps his voice low, “wake up.” He doesn’t want to startle you or anything. His efforts are fruitless. He straightens up and looks around a bit, pondering his next move.  He elects to climb into bed with you, he isn’t sure why he does this, but it feels like the right move. He carefully maneuvers your limp and sleepy form to rest against him. You start to mumble sleepily, still deadweight stacked against him, “Sek?” You’re wrapping an arm around his ribcage.  “Hey’re you up?” He looks down to you, only to find you are in fact not up. So he stays like that for a while, holding you by the back of your head to his chest, his other hand running long strokes over your spine, he could reheat the take out for you when you woke up.  When you do wake up you’re fully prepared for the terrible pang of hunger to be the first thing that you feel. But instead you just feel warm, you didn’t remember bringing a heavier blanket in here with you, but the warm weight on your back was comforting and...moving? Why was your blanket rubbing your back? The next thing to hit you was the scent, warm and piney to mask a slight metallic twinge, it was Sekijiro’s.  “Hey you’re awake.” His hand halts, “sorry to barge in like this.”  “it’s...okay.” You wipe your eyes and sit up, his hand slides off your back and wraps around to hold your waist.  “You feeling alright?”  The hunger hits you then.  “Honestly? No..” You’re straddling his leg, hands resting on his stomach.  “Yeah, I had a feeling. What’s up? It didn’t feel like you had a fever.”  “I’ve just been exhausted lately, Everything’s a chore. It’s all piling up and I have no motivation, and then I isolate myself and that doesn’t help.” You scrub your face. It clicks for Sekijiro then.  “Oh.” He sits up, “oh.” He holds either of your arms in his hands, “why didn’t you say something sooner? I would have come to help.”  “I didn’t wanna be a burden or seem childish, normally I can be pretty high functioning when I get like this. I’m still going to work and all so I figured I’d just pull out of this slump and then..apologize to you for being so aloof. I just-” Your stomach growls.  “And another thing! You don’t even have a crumb of food in here!” Sekijiro scolds you, “seriously I was worried sick when I got in. And you’re starving! You could have asked me to bring you something!”  “I didn’t wanna bother you, especially when I was being so cold I-”  “Okay. Don’t work yourself up.” Sekijiro uses the hand not being held by you to pull your bedhair back from your face, “well I brought food anyways. We can heat it up. So why don’t we talk after you eat?” “I’d... rather talk now..” You murmur, holding one of his hands in both of yours, “I’m really sorry Sekijiro. I shouldn’t have acted like that. I should have called you and explained and-”  “That’s a lot easier said than done babe.” Sekijiro stops you, “I won’t say I wasn’t worried, I was. Aizawa even said something to me.” He laughs a little, “but...this isn’t always something you can help. I didn’t wanna seem like I didn’t trust you by just barging in so I let it go on too long. I’m sorry for not coming sooner even though I was worried.”  “It’s not your responsibility to-”  “Shush. Anyways, now I know this kind of thing can happen from time to time, are you okay with me coming to check on you if I’m worried?”   “Of course I am..” You lean forward and drop your head onto his shoulder,  “I’m sorry too, for shutting you out and being cold..I didn’t make you think I was mad at you did I?”  He laughs, “It had..briefly crossed my mind.”  “I’m sorry Sek..” You wrap your arms around his back, you feel it shake with quiet laughter.  “It’s alright. Everything is fine now. You must be starving though, do you feel better? Enough to eat at least? Let’s go out to the couch, a change of scenery may do you good?”  You agree blindly, affectionately leaning into him as he rubs your back, truthfully you weren’t even sure what you agreed to until you were rounding the corner to the living room.  “Oh no it’s-” Not half as bad as you thought?  “I just picked up some stuff while you were asleep.” He waves, “I left your work stuff and the blanket, I know you can be particular about them. Get comfy and I’ll go heat this up.”  You sit on another bag by accident, curious you peek inside to find a niche collection of aspirin, a heating pad, and some socks among other things. You can feel your eyes getting wet.  “Hey why don’t you pick a movie too?” He’s coming back with two plates, “I can even give you a pass this time I won’t mind if you fall asleep because I-”  “Did you get all this for me?” You scrub at your eyes and he rushes over, quickly setting the plates down.  “W-well yeah I though you were sick!” He pulls you forward again, into his chest, he wraps his arms around you, “what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”  “It’s just really nice of you-” You sniffle, carding your hand through the back of his hair, “thank you for coming Sek.”  “Well..yeah of course I came babe. I’ll always...geeze, don’t cry..I didn’t wanna make you cry. Come on buck up.” His hands are sort of aggressively rubbing your back, but it’s actually kind of comforting..  “You could never bother me with something like this. I wanna help.”  “I’m sorry.” You pull away and wipe your face after he squeezes you one last time, “sorry I’m..I don’t know why I’m so emotional right now-” You sniffle and look up at him, “I'm such a baby aren’t I?”  “No..I don't think so.” He reaches out and nudges a tear with his knuckle, “I think it’s sweet. Babies are cute anyways.” His palms cup your face and his thumbs rub comforting strokes over your puffy cheeks, “let’s eat, okay? Put on a movie and you can fall asleep again if you want, I’ll even carry you to bed after. Tomorrow we’ll both go to work and then come back here and start getting you back on track alright? You’d help if it were me so don’t worry about troubling me. It’s really not any trouble at all. I feel better knowing you’re taken care of so really you’re doing me a favor.” 

Hizashi Yamada/Present Mic The pair of you were quite literally inseparable. You called each other during every commute, texted and chatted throughout the entire day. So when he started lamenting to Aizawa that you’d pulled away a bit Aizawa told him to buck up, you probably just needed time to recharge. He’d been friends with the voice hero for over a decade now and even he needed to take time to himself on occasion, and he didn’t see Hizashi half as often as you did sometimes. He always reassures Hizashi that loudness can be exhausting but that doesn’t mean he’s disliked, sometimes people just can’t match his energy. That was probably the case now. While that put him slightly at ease he was still a bit disgruntled. You’d never had an issue talking to him about this sort of thing before, you were always the first person to ask him to quiet down, or to lower his energy level, and usually you were the one of the few who could do it in a way that was somehow sweet rather than hurtful. The fact that you were plain ignoring him now sort of...actually hurt his feelings. You answered his texts, though usually with much less gusto than before, and you always cut your talks on the phone short with some random excuse, ‘i think someone is at the door’ or, ‘sorry someone else is calling me’ or ‘my phones about to die’ and so on. When he asked to see you you deflected, you had a migraine, you were backed up at work, you wouldn’t be home till later, you had to get up early the next day, any excuse under the sun to take a raincheck on him. He spent about 2 days brooding over it, genuinely hurt by your actions and wholly unsure of your intentions.  To be honest, his high energy, loudness, and general excitability was exactly what you needed right now. You never had trouble asking him for help with things before; Help me open this jar? Could you pick up dinner on your way back? Do you mind moving my couch please, I’m trying to redecorate.. Will you straighten my hair I always miss pieces in the back. So you didn’t know why you couldn’t ask him to just be here. You didn’t need anything else, just his company would have been nice. You’d had an awful week, there was so much to do and you could feel your interest waining as the seconds ticked by, it was normal for you to get dragged down this time of year. Your coworkers and teammates were understanding of it, everyone had their ticks and this was yours, they were happy to help pick up what overwhelmed you and you were grateful for that but at the same time guilt gnawed at you, you felt useless and burdensome, the last thing you wanted to do was ask yet another person for yet another favor. Begging for help when you should be able to do it yourself. You didn’t want to suck the energy out of Hizashi, you already felt guilty enough for leaning so heavily on your colleagues. In hindsight your reasoning would make no sense, but all you wanted to do now was isolate yourself. It was as if your growth wouldn’t mean anything if you didn’t achieve it all on your own. You’re never really sure how you reach these conclusions but in the end they always feel logical.  That being said, it didn’t feel like you were achieving much of anything right now. All of these tears were over nothing, it wasn’t anything that couldn’t be fixed but still. You’d written it all in pen, and now the error..it’s not that you couldn’t white it out, you surely could, but the white out would look sloppy now and it would be clear you made an error but you were so close to being done you didn’t want to start the whole page over. It felt like a silly thing to cry over, but you did anyways. Eventually it tired you out enough to get you to just resign to bed. Hardly past 10 pm, but bed. You needed bed. You were so wrapped up in work that you didn’t even notice him texting and calling, you hadn’t even spoken to him once today, and then when you decided to call it a night you just left your phone at your work space.  He was antsy, jumpy and even a bit irritable. Worry didn’t really begin to describe it. Eventually, late into dinner Nemuri tells him to just go to you. “Check up on them, if they really are exhausted they’ll tell you that to your face, it’s better to be safe than sorry.”  Everyone seemed to echo her sentiments, which was largely unsurprising considering his change in demeanor was probably the least refreshing thing to befall the group of teachers the semester. Dorming wasn’t entirely unpleasant, they liked each other enough, but when things like this happened everyone’s patience was tested.  He calls when he’s outside your complex, he’s mostly sure you won’t answer but he at least wanted to try before knocking, and then eventually deciding to just use his key. Not answering wasn’t going to be enough to get rid of him, he decided he was going to get to the bottom of this tonight. Even if the issues was simply that you just needed the time to recharge from him you could say that instead of just dropping off the face of the Earth, it wasn’t like you to be such a terrible communicator. Which is why he had trouble believing that as the truth, but even if it was there needed to be some sort of conversation about how this was not effective for either party because now he was mad at you and even if you had recharged sufficiently he wouldn't’ want to see you until he cooled down.  Hizashi isn’t surprised when you neglect to answer the door. He is surprised by the terrible state of your apartment though. Papers and pencils are scattered around the living room, the kitchen is practically turned upside down despite the only food on the stove being a pot of plain rice that looks hardly touched. The further he ventured into the apartment the less he worried about you being tired of him and the more he worried that something awful had happened, and he’d neglected to notice you when you were in harms way.  Your bathroom wasn’t much better than your kitchen, once neat medicine cabinet shelves were disheveled, cabinet doors were left open things were far from their usual place, not to mention the pile of laundry in the corner. He hand’t announced himself yet, normally it was the first thing he did, loud and boisterous and probably incredibly annoying to anyone but you, “I’m here, where are you?? come say hello!!” But something unsettling was constricting in him, his chest, his stomach, his throat it made his shoulders tense. Had something terrible happened to you while he was trying to give you space? Had he ignored an obvious cry for help? Was he too late? Would his neglect cause him to lose someone else? The last place to look was your bedroom, but the light was off, and it was hardly past 10, he brain wrote off any possibility of you being there, you were a historic night owl why would you be in bed at 10?  He wasn’t relieved by the lump under your covers, in-fact he’d go as far as to say his panic only rose, bubbling up to the point he could feel it behind his eyes, like some awful pounding headache, the kind you get after driving home from a loud concert and having to look at all the city lights at night, though this was much less euphoric.  “Hey?!” He can’t help tearing the covers back, flicking the lamp on, he hates to startle you, but right now startling you would be one of the best case scenarios.  You jump, it presses you back into your pillows, into your mattress, the sheets crumple beneath you, it’s just instinct, you don’t know what else to do, you throw a pillow at him.  “Get out!”  “Hey it’s just me!”  You were flinching, bracing for some sort of retaliation, though when nothing comes you open your eyes.  “Hizashi?”  “Babe, thank god,” he exhales like he hadn’t taken a breath in 10 minutes, not before pulling you up into a rib crushing hug.  “What are you doing here?” Your hands hover over his back, confused.  “What am I doing here??” He scoffs holding the back of your head, huddling you into the crook of his neck. “Looking for you! That’s what I’m doing here!” You feel a twinge of guilt at that, especially since he’s holding you so tightly, “are you alright?”  “I’m fine..Zash..I’m okay.” One of your hands fall limp into his lap.  “I was so worried.” He pulls you back, “seriously I was going insane, I thought something happened to you, you got abducted or hurt or worse I thought-” He stops himself, “please don’t ever disappear like that again.” He presses his forehead into yours, “you don’t need tot ell me where you’re going, I’m not trying to keep tabs on you, just please at least tell me you’re safe. Promise me you would tell me if you weren’t, that you’d be honest with me if you were in trouble or scared-”  “Of course I’d...Zash is something wrong?”  “I should be asking you that! Where have you been?” He’s pulling away again, squeezing your arms, “did you just get sick of me? Is this your way of-”  “No!” You jump, “no, Hizashi I’d never do that to you-”  “So then why? Why isolate yourself like this? Why would you do this? Did you just need a break from me? Was I being too loud, too much to-” “Zashi please stop you’ll make me cry-” You shake your head, “this didn’t have anything to do with you. Please stop thinking that, I’m sorry I made you feel that way I-”  “You’ve already been crying!” He’s inspecting your face, “why didn’t you call me, how long have you been upset for? Is that...” You can see the gears turning until the dots are connected.  “I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner I-”  “It’s not your fault don’t be sorry! I should be sorry I- and you-” You hiccup.  “Me? What about me?” He Looks down at you, “this is about you babe I’m fine-”  “No! You thought I was upset with you! Or tired of you! Or worse that I didn’t want to be with you and that’s not true! I worried you for no good reason and I’m sorry!”  “Oh babe...no..” He shakes his head before pulling you into another hug, “no..no way it’s not like that-”  “But it is! Isn’t it? You even asked me if you were too much lately! You aren’t you never are Zashi, there’s no such thing as you being to loud or annoying or..anything. I just want you to be yourself, I’m okay when you’re like that, getting to see you like that I.... I don’t want you to change anything, please don’t change anything-”  “Babe that’s sweet.” He squeezes you, you feel his lips on your temple, "but I’m worried about you. What happened to make you so emotional?”  “I just got overwhelmed. I hate this time of year.” You fist his shirt in your hands, “work was too much. Everyone is nice, they understand, but somehow I feel even worse taking help from them. It feels like if I can’t pull myself up on my own it makes me weak, it doesn’t count if I don’t do it by myself. Which is why I didn’t call you. Or text you, or try to see you at all. I was already leaning on so many people I didn’t want to take from you too. I didn’t wanna suck up your extra time, you energy I...you’re my boyfriend not my caretaker I just-”  “Stop me if I’m butting in unfairly.” He rests his chin on your head, “and I mean this respectfully. But that’s stupid.”  “Asshole! I just poured my heart out to you don’t call it stupid!” You shove him.  “Hey let me finish!” He catches your hands before you can get up, “it’s stupid because I lean on you all the time.” He pulls you forward again, “are my accomplishments null because you help me out all the time?”  “Zash When do I ever-”  “Don’t even finish that sentence. And don’t answer a question with a question.” He scoffs, “you help me out all the time. Even if it’s not always big emotional stuff...babe this past week’s been hell without you around. Even things that feel small, like making a bed, or doing laundry or running a bath for someone make a huge difference, they mean a lot to me and knowing I’ll get to see you has always helped my mood. I lean on you for stuff like that constantly. But I don’t feel guilty because I know you like doing it. So don’t feel guilty when it’s the other way around, I wanna give too, I want you to lean on me, to take from me. Seriously, nothing would make me happier than knowing I helped you.”  “I’m sorry I pushed you-”  “Don’t cry over that!” He laughs, “god you’re sweet. It’s okay. I was being mean. I shouldn't have said it like that. Anyways you never answered my question.”  “What question?” You look up at him.  “Are all my accomplishments null? Because I lean on you? because I need you?”  “...well it’s not-”  “It’s a yes or no question. It is the same. It’s okay to need help, more than just opening a jar. It’s okay to need support, that’s normal. No one is meant to do it all on their own. So yes or no?”  “...no you’re right. No.” You turn into his chest and he plaits his fingers through  the crown of your hair.  “And you’ll always be there for me right? Because you love me, don’t you?”  “Of course I’ll always be here for you. And don’t ask a question like that you know I love you.” You mutter, ducking closer towards him and wrapping your arms around his ribs, “i’m sorry I didn’t call. You really didn’t think I got sick of you right?”  “No.” He swings his legs onto the mattress and lays back with you, “Shota and the others said you probably just needed a break but it didn’t really sit right with me, you’re the only person who never seems to need a break from me. ‘s why I showed up. To be honest I wasn’t really that worried about your wellbeing, I just figured you were swamped with work and didn’t want me worrying, but then when I saw..you know the mess..I panicked. I thought something happened to you, and you hadn’t answered my calls all day, or even yesterday.”  “I’m so sorry-” You warble, “god I’m so selfish I shouldn’t have-”  “It’s okay. You were overwhelmed. But if this happens again just..try to let me know you’re safe okay? If you aren’t ready to ask for help...and on the topic of help, how can I help now that I’m here?”  “I just wanna go to bed.” You murmur, latching onto his arm.  “Hm..nonsense. How about I run you a bath? And hey what were you crying about before?”  You flush, this was embarrassing.  “I messed up the page I was writing. But I did it in pen so I didn’t know what do to and I didn’t wanna start over because I was almost done but white out will look messy and so I got upset and then I got overwhelmed and then I started crying and then I went to bed.” You press your forehead into his arm petulantly, “and if you laugh at me I’ll make you leave.”  “I’m not gonna laugh.” He promises, “I’ll run you that bath, while you’re in there I’ll rewrite the page for you so you can stop worrying about it. But you should use pencil from now on.” He squeezes the nape of your neck, “sound like a square deal?” You silence says otherwise.  “What’s wrong?” He looks down to you.  “I want you to take the bath with me.” You mutter it, it hardly registers, “please.”  “Huh? Did you just say what I think you just said?” He looks delighted, despite his tone being almost devilish, “why would you want me to do a thing like that?”  “because..I missed you...and I still feel bad and I know you like taking baths with me and..” You look down at your hands where they’re interlocked, “and...I want you to wash my hair. I can figure out that page tomorrow or something.”  He sighs, “I can’t be mean to you when you’re being so sweet.” You get pulled along as he sits up, “of course I’ll come, and I’ll wash your hair for you.” He cups your cheek, “what else do you want? You can have anything just ask.”  “After that I...I think I just want to go to bed, and deal with the other stuff tomorrow. I want you to stay though.”  “I’m gonna have a heart attack.”  “Hey! Don’t say things like that! It’s bad luck!”  “Don’t be so sweet then!” He argues, pulling you to stand.  “Of course I’ll stay. I’ll stay tomorrow, and help then too, if you want. You don’t have to decide right now I know asking for help can be hard. In the meantime let’s just take that bath okay?” 

Yagi Toshinori/ All Might Retirement had left Yagi with some rather pleasant spare time. He’d never gotten to have many hobbies before but now he was enjoying freedoms life as All Might had never permitted. Chief among them being a continuous close proximity to you. Even though you didn’t technically live together it didn’t really feel as though either of you had a designated space either. It felt right for Yagi to be in your space, using your things, like he belonged there. It felt equally right for you to be in his space, existing and using his things as you pleased. You didn’t need permission and neither did he, it just felt right to exist around each other. Especially now that he had the extra time to spend with you and you both realized how easy and comfortable being together was. Though right now nothing felt easy or comfortable or right, your entire existence felt like a pair of jeans that was way too tight. Just taking a breath that was too deep felt uncomfortable.  Your closeness to Yagi made the shift in your mood apparent to him from the very beginning.  It was silly in hindsight. The proposal had a 50/50 chance anyways and it’s not like you had anything directly to do with it’s failure, it was just the last straw, the tiny thing that made all the other things seem huge, and as quickly as you’d realized that your mood had already plummeted. You’d run out of motivation, any drive to do anything but sleep and drag yourself to work had dissipated, at work you did what you needed to to get by and afterwards you went back to your place, even though Yagi’s was closer. Just being with someone else privately seemed like it would be overwhelming. Despite the fact that Yagi was the least overwhelming person on the planet, if anything you’d say he had the opposite effect, he was amazing at pulling your attention away from the little overwhelming details. However you couldn’t shake the gnawing nervousness that popped up at the thought of seeing him or anyone really. So when you crossed paths it was short, you poked into the school with lunch, into his place with dinner, you never stuck around to eat though. A conference call pulled you away, an important meeting you couldn’t be late for, you were catsitting and it needed your attention, you promised to call a relative and they’re just soo chatty, a late assignment needed tending to, all overused excuses that you normally practiced on everyone but Yagi, usually to get the pair of you out of an unwanted dinner or social event. You tried to avoid letting him into your apartment, you knew it was getting cluttered, you avoided the dishes and your laundry like the plague, putting another plate in the sink atop the pile only fanned your anxiety but the thought of actually cleaning it up makes you sicker than the sight of it. You tried to keep the front living room neat, luckily the overflowing sink was out of sight around a small corner, and the laundry cluttered a small closet out of sight as well. The only things out of place at first glance were the shoes, the coat rack and the copious amount of cups, cans and bottles littered around the apartment, some empty, some full, others in between.  Of course he noticed these things, to a passerby it wasn’t extreme, but Yagi sensed the shift in you like it was a shift in himself. Though you insisted it was fine, you were just exhausted, it was the busy season after all, come February things would plateau. You promised him. So he resigned, he trusted you after all if you said it was okay that must mean you were dealing with it on your own.  To be fair you were trying to. You honestly were. You just didn’t know how to ask for help in a way that didn’t make your stomach want to grow legs and run away from you. You said you were okay though, even if he didn’t totally buy it he’d wait patiently for you to tell him the problem, to seek him out. He knows how overwhelming it is for people to pry when you aren’t ready to divulge information. He doesn’t want to contribute to anymore bad feelings. However he could tell you were hiding something, still he plays dumb for your sake. He doesn’t try to poke further into your apartment, to your bedroom, or kitchen, places he’d normally allow himself without double checking with you, he doesn’t prod at you when you seem unusually emotional, when your excuse doesn’t hold up. He know’s you’ll come to him when you’re ready, at least that's the hope.  When you were like this a mediocre day is a terrible one, and a genuinely bad day is world ending. Today had been genuinely bad. You woke up early to prepare for a meeting, you put extra time into getting ready, you even stopped for a coffee at your favorite spot, all things you hadn’t had the energy to do even just a day ago, you really felt like today may be when things start looking up. But then the first coffee the barista made you was burnt, the machine was acting up, you assured her it was fine, it wasn’t her fault after all, you woke up early so you had time to wait for another one. Even that wasn’t really sullying your mood, it was nice to chat with the young girl while she remade your drink, there were no expectations of you, she didn’t care about pile of energy drink cans in your apartment, or the mountain of dishes in your sink, she didn’t even know the existed and she’d probably never consider that they did as a possibility. She was friendly and she always looked happy to see you. But then your bus was early and you missed it waiting for your coffee. You could see it receding down the street. It’s okay though, you woke up early. You had time. Then it was raining. Then the next bus arrived but skipped your stop so you had to walk. And suddenly all the time you put into your hair meant nothing.  Nothing terrible happened in the meeting, it was as lifeless and uneventful as ever, you weren’t sure what you were hoping for. And somehow your bus skips you stop again on the way home. Why hadn’t it stopped raining?  You’re about to climb into bed, drenched clothes and all when you hear someone knocking on your door. It was Yagi, you could recognize it anywhere.  “Hey Yagi I’m really-” You want to send him away, you do, you don’t want him seeing you so upset you felt like a child, but he just looked so concerned.  “I just got back.” You change your phrase last minute, “wanna come in?”  He sits on your couch, you appreciate how he doesn’t try to peek into the kitchen. You know you haven’t been subtle.  “I’ll wait here. You can go change into something warm. Please.” Yagi takes your hands, “and we can order dinner.” He wants to offer to make you tea, but something stops him from it. “You’re shaking. You must be freezing. I’m cold just looking at you. Go on, I’ll sit on the couch.” So you do what he says, sort of grateful for the demand since you would have fallen asleep like this, freezing and miserable and wet, and woken up sick the next morning.  “Much better! Good you even got a towel! Comfy?” He’s grinning at you as you round the corner, now in dryer, warmer apparel.  “Sit in front of me, I’ll dry your hair for you a little, it’s still dripping.” You nod as you follow his directions, any excuse to not have to look at his concerned face, getting out of his earnest blue gaze was top priority.  “The rain was totally out of left field huh? It even lasted all day.” His hands are big and warm, even through the towel how gentle his touch was is obvious.  “Yeah..” You draw your knees up to your chest, “I couldn’t seem to avoid it.”  “Well at least we can warm you up now.” You can tell his grinning again, trying to brighten up your mood. You felt like an ugly gloomy cloud, and he was a big bright cartoonish sun.  “Go ahead, you can lean your head on my leg, close your eyes. I can see your head drooping.”  You do that too. You sit there for a quiet 5 or so minutes, it does wonders to quell the nervousness in your stomach. You feel him pull the towel away and card big familiar hands through your only slightly damp hair. His palms are soft and comfortable against you, it feels right.  “You’re exhausted.” He observes, combing your hair off your forehead and pulling your head back a bit, closer to him.  “Mhm.” You don't open your eyes to give your minimal reply, instead thoughtlessly coiling an arm around his leg.  “Why don’t you come sit up here with me? It’ll be more comfortable. Your hair’s much dryer now.”  “You don’t have to baby me.” You stand up then, “I’m alright.”  “Ok I won’t baby you.” Yagi’s smile is soft and he casts it upwards to where you stand before him, “how about some tea? Are you up for making it? I’m still a little cold from the rain. Then after that you can some back and sit with me. Not because I want to baby you, but because I want to sit with you okay?” “okay..” You relent, “I can do that.”  “Perfect. I’ll wait here.”  You don’t know why you bit at him like that. You watch the kettle warm up as the guilt gnaws at you. It’s not like you were mean. All you did was tell him not to baby you. That wasn’t mean. You didn’t bite at him. But you kind of did. He was just trying to help. You aren’t mad at him so why are you mad? You open the cabinet. Of course there’s not a single mug to be found. You venture to the sink in search of two.  You’ve found the last one by the time the kettle starts to whistle which startles you enough to get you to drop the stupid glassware. The ceramic shattering on the floor is sort of akin to a dam breaking. Tears are stinging your eyes.  Things were looking up, Yagi was here, he was gonna take care of you, you were gonna feel better and now this stupid mug. You crouch down to pick it up.  “Are you alright? I heard a crash?” Yagi’s there, of course he is.  “Hey be careful, you’ll cut yourself.” He’s turning heat below the kettle off, "sweetheart here l-" and then rushing toward you. "I've got it." You were collecting the bigger shards in your hand. "Let me. I’ll get a broom, before you cut yourself. Please let me." He insists and you snap, ever so slightly, "Yagi. I said I have it."  “Hey, okay, it’s okay," he takes a step back, "do you wanna be alone for a minute?" He offers and you sigh, "Tosh I just-" then you slice your palm open, "oh fuck everything," you hiss and drop the bits you were holding and Yagi kneels beside you, "hey." "I'm sorry." You could feel yourself starting to cry, the stinging tears pouring out, "i'm sorry I got so short with you." "Hey it's fine, I understand." Yagi murmurs, a large hand rubbing your back, "it's alright, leave this for now so we can clean your hand up." He takes your wrist in his hand, but you don’t say anything. “Do you hear me?" "Yes." You nod, and take in a deep breath, "yes I hear you...yeah let me just get the-" "It's okay, the shards aren’t going anywhere." You just sort of stare at the muddled mess of ceramic and now a bit of blood mixed up on the floor. "Hey." Yagi takes your face in his hands, "look at me." "I'm looking at you." Your lips barely move. "No, look at me, not through me. Ignore the mug, look at me." He presses and so you do, you focus on him, his face, his eyes, his nose, his hands on your cheeks, the warmth that radiated from him. "Let's clean you up." You nod, "yeah. Sorry." "Don't be sor-" Yagi stops himself, "it's alright, not a big deal. No permanent damage. Go sit on the couch, I’ll get the first aid kit.” “My bathroom’s really-”  “It’s alright.” He promises, “it’s okay. I’m here to help you. That doesn’t bother me. None of this,” he gestures around, “bothers me. I’m here for you, whatever you need that to mean. Go sit down okay?” He wipes a stream of tears away. It’s quickly replaced but it’s a nice gesture.  You do manage to get the loudest tears out before Yagi comes in. "Alright let's see the damage." He opens the first aid kit on the arm of the couch beside him, "does it hurt?" "No-" Your voice gives your current state away. "Sweetheart.." Yagi kisses your temple, "come on.." "I'm sorry-" "I don't mean like that." "I know-" You wipe your eyes, "I know..I’m sorry I just-" He shushes you and extends a hand, you hold out your palm to him, you had pressed an old face cloth to it which did help ebb the bleeding a bit. "It's not that bad." You murmur as he wipes the blood away, "just a lotta blood.." “That’s how it always is.” He murmurs as he presses the wet cloth to the cut and pulls your hands up to his lips, kissing the damp fabric over the wound. You tilt your head at the sight of it, "I love you Tosh..I’m sorry." "It’s okay sweetheart, it’s alright. I love you too." He murmurs back, squeezing the cloth for a little longer before pulling it away. He goes through the routine you'd so regularly followed on him, before, when he was All Might all the time, cuts and bumps and head injuries that you always tended to for him, you cleaned up all his wounds before wrapping some bandage around it and kissing it, he mimics the routine on you "good?" "Good." You nod back voice soft and wet with tears. "I'm no expert but..did pick up a few things from one." He grins and you snort a little which makes him coo, "hey there's that smile 've been missing." He kisses the high of your cheek, "how do you feel?" "A little better..." You nod, "sorry you had to see that..." "I know that you feel like you have to apologize for everything but trust me okay? Stuff like this? I'll always rather help with. It's never a chore, but even if it were that’s okay. I want to be there for you." He kisses your forehead, "I wanna make you happy." "Then.. thank you I guess.." You look up at him and he wraps you in a hug. You spend a comfortable few moments there until he pulls away. "Don’t mention it...now," He stands and takes you with him, "let's go clean up the mug? Together. Then we’ll sort out the other stuff tomorrow, together too.” 

[rogue-durin-16]

SO-CALLED MATCHMAKER

Request: I'd like to request Kili x reader, when Fili tries to be a matchmaker, but doesn't notice the courting braids Kili and reader already have? Thanks for answer! 😄

Pairing: Kíli x Reader

Genre: fluff

Tags:

Requested by: @elles-kingdom-of-fanfictions

Permanent taglist: @queenofmankind @randomparanoid @karlthecat15722

Warnings: none

A/N: after oneshot I will probably make a masterlist, so send an ask if you'd like to be tagged <3.

Rogue-durin-16 masterlist

"Hold on, Y/n" Kíli's words preceeded his jog to reach the place where I was. "let me help you." He requested with a smile on his face, offering me support to hop on my pony.

"Thank you." I spoke with the same smile he had, my hand lingering on his for a moment. "Now go get your pony or we'll leave without you."

He let out a laugh, running back to his pony and hopping onto him just when we started moving. "You wouldn't be able to stay away from me, not even for a day."

His pony reached mine, but I didn't spare him a look before replying "I would, and it would be a much tranquil day." with the ghost of the smirk I was trying to hold back dancing on my lips.

"Say whatever you may to yourself," he said in a confident yet playful tone. "but I know the truth."

"What truth is that?"

"You cannot live without me." I scoffed at his words and spun my head to see him already staring at me. "As I said," he continued, averting his eyes from mine and redirecting them to the path. "say what you may, but you can't fool me."

FÍLI'S P. O. V.

The bickering those two shared had been going on for too long already, and since it seemed like they would not move a finger, I decided to take the matter into my own hands.

As soon as Oin called my brother's name and he had to move to the front, I spurred on my pony to ride by Y/n's side.

"Your brother is a little shit." She comment, her head tilted slightly to my side, though her eyes didn't left Kíli, not even for a second.

"He loves to tease you, huh?" I rhetorically questioned, attempting to make my intentions clear. "I've never seen him tease someone as much as he does with you."

"It must be because I'm the only one who knows how to tease him back."

"It must be." I shrugged, with my gaze fixed ahead of us. "Though there may be other reasons, don't you think?"

Y/n was about to say something when Thorin shouted, "We will make a stop here!" and made us lose the train of our conversation.

Now I would have to start again.

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

"Y/n looks really pretty tonight," I, reclined against a rock, commented seemingly distracted whilst playing with my knife. "doesn't she?" I felt Kíli's eyes on me and I knew I had done my job.

"Yeah, she does indeed." he looked back at me with a frown. "What are you doing?"

"I? Nothing." he raided his brows at me and I just gave him a noctant shrug. "You should be doing something, though."

"What do you mean?"

"You seem fond of her." Kíli's eyes widened slightly and I let out a chuckle. "It is alright brother, just make your intentions clear."

"What intentions?"

I looked up at him with a shocked glare. Was he being serious right now? "Must I spoon-feed you all the time?" he turned his torso to me with that confused face. "Mahal, Kí—" I took a peek at Y/n to make sure she wasn't paying us attention. "The lass fancies you."

"Fí, listen, I feel like you might be getting things wrong."

"No, you are."

"Fíli, Kíli," We both directed our attention to Balin. "go scout now before it's late night. Otherwise you will not have time to rest." my brother instantly got up, but I myself had other plans.

READER'S P. O. V.

"Y/n why don't you go with Kíli?" I looked up from my stew, quite startled since Fíli's words were not only loud but also unexpected. "She's equally stealthy as I am, even more." his eyebrows rose knowingly at me as he lay down. "Also, I am tired."

"Am I not?" Kíli retorted.

"You are younger. Now go" I picked up my sword and made a sign with my head for Kíli to join me. "You will have time speak about some matters." his older brother spoke intently.

"What's the matter with him?" I questioned, letting my fingers intertwin with the dark-haired prince's ones.

"I'm not completely sure," he started, guiding me up a hill without letting go of my hand. "but I suspect our braids might have gone unnoticed for him."

"How is that even possible- hold on." I tugged his hand in order to make him stop, which he did. "let me..." I took my hand to his tangled long hair and ran my fingers through it in order to find the braid.

"It still feels strange." he confessed, a timid smile on his face as my hand caressed his hair.

"I know." I agreed, leaning on him to plant a chaste kiss on his lips. "No wonder why your brother didn't notice," I spoke, finally finding the bead at the end of the braid. "sit down, I have to braid it again."

"Yes ma'am." he obeyed, our task to scout long forgotten. "how is yours not messed up?" he inquired in confusion, staring at the thin braid on the side of my hair.

"That would be because I am not a mess."

"Fair enough."

"So" Kíli leaned on my touch while I fixed his braid. "will you tell him?" I asked, knowing damn well the answer.

"No." a mischievous laugh followed his negative and I denied my my head. "He thinks he is being a matchmaker, let him notice all by himself." I put the bead back at the end of the braid and sat besides him. "how long do you think it will take him?" he wondered, his head resting against my shoulder.

"I hope not too long, or I will have to tell him myself."

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

If Fíli hadn't acknowledged our courting braids yet, I knew he would need a little help so I tried to make as obvious as possible that Kíli was my One without the younger prince noticing so.

To my dismay, they both were equally oblivious to my acts. A total of three days passed, and Fíli was still attempting to help us get together.

I have to say that, despite his blindness, if Kíli and I had not been together, the blond dwarf would be doing a great job as a matchmaker.

"Kí, may I have a word with you?" Fíli requested after seeing us both reclined against a tree in the place we where we would be spending the night, my head resting over the dark-haired dwarf's shoulder and my hands tracing patterns on his.

"Sure, what is it?" Kíli questioned, poorly masking his amusement with naivety.

"In private."

"Why?"

I sighed.

It was getting tiring, so before they could go further in their bickering, I got up, briefly held back by Kíli's hand, though he soon let go.

"Come with me." I tugged on Fíli's hand and leaded him away from his brother. "I know your intentions are good, but you're missing-"

"My intentions are great." he stated, almost offended. "I am not missing anything, I've been seeing you both being ridiculously oblivious for a month, and I cannot believe you didn't notice each other's intentions yet."

He was definitely throwing a fit and it was kind of hilarious how obfuscated he was, so I stayed shut, trying to hold back my laugh.

"It's not only the teasing, you are all over each other and my brother is an idiot— that is not what friends do!" I looked over my shoulder to share a glance with Kíli, who was already laughing. "You fancy each other, it's frustrating seeing you act like you— just braid his hair for Mahal's sake!"

"Are you done?" Kíli asked, walking to us when he noticed I was no longer able to hold back the laughter.

"I don't know, are you done being stupid?"

"Fíli, look," Kíli took his hand to the side of my hair and separated the braid from it, lifting it for his brother to see.

"What— how- when?"

"A few days before you started your matchmaking thing." I replied leaning back on Kíli.

"But—" his eyes went to his brother, throwing daggers at him. "You are a jerk."

"I didn't do anything!" he defended himself with a smile.

"You didn't tell me anything!"

"I was going to," Kíli lied, intertwining his fingers with mine. "But it was funny to see you trying to get us together, so I thought I'd wait."

"I will kill you."

"After all the effort you've put on this?" I questioned, raising my eyebrows. "It would be a waste."

"I will kill you both." he replied to me with a warning finger.

"Oh you will not." I stated with a smile on my face. "You're too happy to do that, aren't you?" he paced briefly in front of us. "Would it make it better if I told you you're a great matchmaker." he stopped, opening his mouth but not saying a word.

"Yeah, you did all the work." Kíli agreed. "You're a great matchmaker."

"Damn sure I am." he replied with his hands on his hips. "I would have gotten your dumb asses together a month ago."

There was a moment of silence, in which Fíli's eyes went from Kíli to me and vice versa.

"You're glad we are together, aren't you?" Kíli teased. "C'mon you cannot be mad."

"You're a little shit." the blond prince stated, which was shortly followed by, "and I am so happy for you." I squealed in joy, making Fíli chuckle. "come here" I took a couple of steps to hug him, and after me came his younger brother. "I'm still mad." he informed us, still hugging.

"You're a terrible liar." I stated.

"Oh, shut it."

[hanamakkiss]

One Dumb Deed Deserves Another

Iwaizumi Hajime x f!reader

Summary: Five times Iwaizumi and you meet.

Word count: 4k+

A/n: this took so long... but I quite like it! Pretty much just fluff and shenanigans. As u can tell I’m in love with him.

Your first meeting was nothing short of disastrous, Iwaizumi fondly recalls.

His peaceful morning walk through the park to campus was shattered by one very loud, very directed at him shouting.

“HEY! HEY YOU!!! THE GUY IN THE DENIM JACKET!!!! HOLD ON A SEC!” a high-pitched yet commanding voice echoes through the practically empty park, clueing him in that it was probably him you were referring to.

He pauses to look skyward, making a silent prayer for the strength to make it through the day, before turning around. He’s met with a red-faced young woman who was currently struggling to catch up to him.

You stopped a few feet in front of him, hands on your knees, panting, and he waits for you to catch your breath.

“Hi,” you look up, unabashedly grinning, and he finds you have a surprisingly sweet voice when not shouting. He quirks a brow, inquiring.

“Yea so, uh, I'm a photographer," you hold up the camera around your neck, "student, actually, and uh, I just took a photo of you? I mean, I did, cause your back looked really nice with the surrounding trees and sky, especially when you were staring at something, a bird maybe? And with a little colour editing the image would really pop, so the photo turned out really nice," you smiled shyly, looking at the photo in question (presumably).

“O...kay?” he’s not sure how to respond.

“Do you want to see it?” your smile is infectious.

His lips quirk up as he steps closer to you, peering over your arm (it really was a cool photo), “But you’re telling me all this why...?”

“Oh! Right. So, uh, I wanted to know if you would be okay with me using your photo in an assignment? I understand if you want to say no, but that would be such a pity, cause you look so cool here, and if no one else got to see it it would be a tragedy. But it’s up to you really! I could just keep it in my files maybe? If you would allow me!” your face has steadily gotten redder with every word that tumbled out of your mouth, and at the end of your spiel you were looking absolutely mortified, using your camera to hide your face.

“Hey, calm down, it’s fine, you can use it,” he latches on to your shoulders hoping to keep you grounded as you looked on the verge of hyperventilating, “Are you alright?”

“Yea! Yea, I’m fine, I just didn’t expect you to be so,” he tilts his head slightly, brows furrowing, “hot,” you squeaked out.

At your response Iwaizumi's face burns up. He knew people generally found him attractive, but to have it so bluntly said to his face, was not exactly something he was used to. Especially when said with such sincerity.

His hands immediately retract.

“Oh. Thanks, I guess? Uh, I’ll be seeing you then, good luck with your assignment.” He scratches the back of his neck.

“Thank you so much! I’ll be sure to let you know how it goes!” you gave him a low bow, nearly slamming into his chest in the process. Standing back up equally as suddenly, you rushed to introduce yourself, face still the shade of ruby.

He can’t help but chuckle, “Iwaizumi Hajime,” he offers.

Opening your mouth, you’re cut off by an alarm that blares from your bag. As you scramble to shut it off, your eyes bulge. “Shit! I’m gonna be late! Sorry! I need to go now!” You shoot him an apologetic smile before sprinting.

“Thank you again! I’ll treat you someday!” he sees you wave from afar.

Iwaizumi is just left in your dust, amused and wondering how would you, considering he never even gave you his number.

Your second meeting was pure coincidence.

He was in line at the campus cafe, when the short person in front sneezed so hard they fell backwards into him.

Oof. His hands reached out instinctively to catch them.

“Hey, you alright?” he peers down into their face-

“I’m so sorry!” they tilt up-

and the two heads collide.

He grunts, rubbing his chin where it hurt. The hood falls off their head.

“It’s you.” he could almost laugh at the comedic timing, of course it’s you.

You look up, hands still covering your forehead, and exclaim excitedly, “Iwaizumi! Fancy seeing you here! How are you?”

He chuckles at your enthusiasm, ruffling your (already mussed up) hair, “I’m good, how did your assignment go?”

“It went great! My tutor only had constructive criticism for it. Speaking about that, let me buy you a drink,” you attempt to tame the mess he created, “as thanks,” you grin.

Any refusal on his part was washed away by your insistence, leaving the two of you on the side waiting for your morning brews.

“By the way, is it okay if I ask you something else?”

“Shoot.”

“Ever since that day, I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” you tuck your hair behind your ear, shyly, (he tenses, vaguely aware of where this might go) “and I was wondering if you would maybe, you know, if you’re free, would you be willing to” you took a deep breath, “be my model?” your eyes were practically sparkling.

Iwaizumi feels light-headed. It's amazing how every other sentence from you gives me whiplash, he thinks, it must be a skill. He mentally heaves a relieved sigh, happy that he didn’t need to reject another date offer.

His silence causes you to fidget, looking away, “Uh, it’s really okay if you don’t want to, I just thought you would be a good fit for my next project, and you seemed like a nice guy, so I thought it would be worth a shot, and I could always-”

"No, no, I’d be glad to help you out," he finds he prefers you when your eyes have a shine to them, and it’s not like he had too much on his plate at the moment.

The smile you show him is infectious, and he really can’t stop his features from mirroring your own.

You actually remember to exchange numbers this time, promising to text him about the specifics of the photoshoot soon before (once again) rushing off for class.

As he’s walking, iced coffee in hand, he mulls over the fact that he’s entirely comfortable around you, despite barely even knowing you.

Your third meeting was certainly a colourful experience.

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

On the mentioned day, Iwaizumi finds himself sighing when Hanamaki ushers a mousy looking you into the gymnasium.

“Found this one outside muttering “Iwaizumi” in a panic,” he gives a good natured laugh, “figured she could use some help.”

“Thank you so much! There’s way too many people here, I thought this was just a practice match…” you trailed off.

Iwaizumi’s nostrils flare, “It is, and it’s all because of a specific bastard,” he jabs a finger in the direction of Oikawa, who was currently surrounded by girls.

You take a quick photo, “And who is he? Seems popular,” you inspect the photo.

“Oh? You’ve never heard of Oikawa Tooru? College superstar?” Hanamaki leans in towards you, smirk in place.

Seeing you shrink back, Iwaizumi instinctively moves closer. Makkis eyebrows lift.

“Oh! I’ve heard that name before! My friends talk about him sometimes! This is my first time seeing him though,” you happily snap another shot, “they’ll like these.”

He watches you review the photos when Matsukawa appears next to Makki, “Who’s this?”

“Oh right, let me introduce you guys,” and he calls over the rest of the team for a round of introductions, ending with Oikawa, who waves at you from across the court before calling everyone to start warm-up.

Throughout the game you stay near the sideline, careful to keep away from the ball’s trajectory (you can’t afford another camera), snapping as many impactful shots as you could. You managed to get a few good shots of everyone, and some satisfactory shots of Iwaizumi.

It comes to a close with him scoring the winning spike and you rush to get every possible second of it. As you watch the team celebrate the point through the lens he suddenly looks straight at you, and flashes you the biggest grin you’ve ever seen him sport.

And it’s like the world goes silent and you’ve forgotten how to breathe. The only saving grace you have is your fingers instinctively pressing the trigger, cementing this moment in time.

You’re shocked out of your reverie by the shutter clicking and you hurriedly smile and flash him a thumbs up, hoping the warmth of your cheeks was unnoticeable from the distance.

As soon as he’s done with the after match meeting he rushes over to you, followed by a couple of teammates who were interested in the photos.

“You alright?”

“More than alright! This was my first time watching volleyball and so close to boot! You were amazing! Spectacular! Especially that last point! I got some good shots of it! Wanna see?”

In your excited rambling you failed to notice the faint pinkness of his face, thrusting your camera towards him.

Soon a little group had gathered around you, jostling to get a better view of the shots you took. Scrolling through one by one each shot was met by rambunctious comments as they marvel at how they match looked through a camera. Nearing the end of your roll, Matsukawa makes a comment.

“Why are so many of these photos of Iwaizumi though?” his eyes hold a teasing glint that looks out of place with his mouth still in a fine line. (You choose to ignore the concealed assumption for the sake of your heart.)

Your mouth forms an O, looking straight at the person in question, “Did you not tell them?”

He avoids your gaze, “I didn’t, only said that you were our photographer for this match,” he scratches his neck.

You let out a mirthful laugh at his embarrassment, eyes twinkling, “To answer, the only reason I’m being your photographer is cause Iwaizumi agreed to be my model for school, and I’m doing it as thanks,”

"If you need a model, wouldn't someone like me be better?" Oikawa flashes you a cheeky smile.

You cock your head, appraising Oikawa. He preens under your stare.

"It wouldn't work for this project,” shaking your head slightly, “you know your own attractiveness, and have made it a part of your identity. On the other hand, Iwaizumi has confidence that solely stems from other aspects of his life, this causes him to radiate a kind of rugged charm that just pulls people to him. Like some kind of reliable pillar, it makes you want to depend on him. That kind of energy was exactly what I was looking for!" you beam.

The boys blink, clearly surprised at your answer. Oikawa is the first to break the silence, laughing.

"Wow, Iwa! I didn't know you had such amazing energy! Wonder if you would share any of that with me someday!" he pats him on the back harder than necessary. Iwaizumis’ face burns as he glares at his best friend, daring him to say another word.

At Iwaizumi's less than stellar response, you start to worry you’ve said something wrong, "Oh, uh, I didn't mean to imply you weren't attractive! In fact I think you're probably one of the most attractive people I know, uh and I didn't mean to call you a pillar! It's just a phrase!" you slap a hand across your mouth, eyes going wide. A pillar? Seriously? God, could this get any worse?

“Let me walk you out,” Iwaizumi grits out as his friends laugh.

Newsflash, it can.

You withdrew into yourself, resigned to just let him push you out. The walk to the gym entrance is silent.

Just as you were about to split, he speaks.

“Sorry...about them,”

You look back, surprised. “Uh…?”

Eloquence.

He gives you an embarrassed smile, “They can be a bit much, but they mean no harm.”

Oh. It still takes you a second to realise that his earlier irritation was not directed at you, and you mentally sigh in relief. “It’s cool, they were nice,” you smile.

“You looked really uncomfortable in there,”

“Ah,” you rub your neck. “I’m just... not the best around big groups,”

“Ah.”

The two of you shift awkwardly.

“I’ll be going now,” you make to leave, “Thanks again,”

“No problem.” He laughs, ”Think you gave me too much praise back there,”

“Nah, just cause you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there,”

The huge smile that accompanied your words causes his heart to skip a beat.

“See you around,” you give a little wave.

“Uh-yea, see ya.”

He watches you walk away, heart threatening to jump right out his chest. Before he can even begin to contemplate what just happened, an all too annoying voice interrupts him.

“You’re into her.”

“Am not.” He huffs toward the brunet.

Oikawa just laughs, “She doesn’t know it yet, but she’s into you too.”

“Keep talking and I’ll kick your ass.”

The taller boy skirts away, giggling. He doesn’t miss the way Iwaizumi’s cheeks pink.

Your fourth meeting was Iwaizumi’s’ prayers answered.

After the match, the two of you don’t cross paths much, opting instead for online communication.

Due to both of you being terrible texters, the text conversation never goes too in-depth. Mostly keeping to studies, interests and random topics. It’s only when one of you calls the other, that the conversation intensifies, lasting several hours.

After one such call, Oikawa groans from the doorway. Iwaizumi instantly springs up from his bed.

“Why don’t the two of you get together already,” he drags out the last word.

“Why are you in my room.”

“It’s 1am, you’re messing up my beauty sleep.”

“You were eavesdropping,” he squints, tone accusing.

“The walls are thin! It’s hard not to,” Oikawa defends himself, “besides, you laugh like a goddamn horse.”

At Iwaizumi’s glare, he backtracks, hands raised defensively, “I’m kidding! Kidding! Goodnight Iwa,”

“Close the damn door!”

He sighs, finally alone and wonders how is he going to ask you out for a meal. (Just to hang out, definitely not a date)

When you text him again.

Damn, this is as close as he’ll come to believing in higher power.

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

The next week, he rushes down to the gallery after his evening class. He makes it with half an hour to spare.

Looking around, he quickly spots some familiar portraits and makes his way over. He sees you engaged in conversation, and he likes to think that the way your face lit up upon eye contact has something to do with him.

You cut the conversation and step towards him.

“You made it!”

He lets out a chuckle, “Course I would, sorry I’m late, class got dragged,”

“No, no, glad you’re even here,” you wave your hand flippantly, drawing his eyes to the rest of your body, where you had worn a simple cocktail dress that fit you well.

He takes in a sharp breath, “You look great,” slips out.

“Oh, um, thank you, you don’t look too shabby yourself,” your smile takes on a bashful shade and he looks around at the other patrons, grimacing.

“Bullshit, I didn’t know it was such a formal event, otherwise I would have dressed better,”

Your eyes quickly scanned his outfit, dark wash jeans paired with a white tee and bomber jacket, “You look fine,” leaning in, you stage-whisper, “If you ask me, you look a lot more put together than most of the people I’ve seen today.”

“Earlier on someone even came in piss-drunk,” you laugh.

“No way, midday?”

“Yes! Security had to escort them out, total mess. It was entertaining though,” you gently guide him towards your portion of the exhibition.

5 portraits titled Magnetism hung neatly on a wall. Two of them of him, he notes.

“It’s just a student exhibition, so it’s not much,” you explain, chuckling.

He frowns, “Don’t downplay your skills, you worked hard and got selected right? That counts for something,”

Your face goes slack for a moment before morphing into a soft smile, “Thank you, I do have a bad habit of that.”

He feels a warmth creep up his neck, shitshitshit, that’s not good for my heart, quick-

“So what’s the inspiration behind your portraits?” He shifts his attention towards the exhibition (ie. away from your warm eyes)

This easily distracts you and you go into an excited monologue about your motivations and what you were trying to convey through the atmosphere, lighting and editing. He only manages to keep up with half of it (it has nothing to do with how cute you looked animatedly waving your hands around).

You move on to explain each photo and how they embodied a different aspect of Magnetism that you wanted to convey to the viewer, ending with the photo you took of him the day you met.

“Fun fact: this is my second favourite photo of you,” you grin cheekily.

He plays along, “Why so?”

“Caaaaause it led to us meeting!” Your playful demeanour shoots an arrow straight to his heart.

Now grinning, he continues the banter, “And is the other photo your favourite?”

“Nope! That’s the third, because it shows everyone’s trust in you,”

He’s a little intrigued now, “Then which is the first?”

“Thaaaat’s a secret!” You wink, cheeks flushed.

Andddddd there goes his heart.

He’s forced to come to terms with the fact that his infatuation with you has turned into a full blown, rock to the face, crush. And all in the span of a second.

He flushes, “Well, maybe another day then,” and turns back to the photos.

“None of these people are facing the camera. Why is that,”

“I’ve been waiting for someone to ask me that all day!” And you go into another spiel. He realises just how much he enjoys listening to you speak about your passions.

Soon the curator announces the closing of the gallery and the two of you make your way out. You make an offhand remark about still needing to cook. He immediately suggests grabbing a bite together and you are just as quick to agree.

After enjoying a wonderful dinner at a local restaurant, you stop him just as he tries to get away with paying the bill.

“Hey! I’ll pay half, let me see the receipt,” you reach for the check, only to have it pulled out of your grasp.

“Nah, my treat,” he continues to wave the check out of your reach. This goes on for a little while before you cry out in annoyance.

“Oh come on, you don’t have to, this isn’t a date or anything,” and he freezes at your words.

He’s caught off guard by how much he wishes it was, if only the little words would dislodge themselves from his throat and let him ask you out.

With him distracted you lunge for the check and succeed, happily scanning through and making calculations. Once done you hand it back to him and promptly transfer the money.

You leave the restaurant in high spirits while Iwaizumi feels kind of feels defeated. He still offers to walk you back to your dorm, which you agree to after minimal convincing.

The walk back is filled with conversation that flows naturally between the two of you, making up for your horrendous texting game. It’s something he finds he doesn’t mind, as long as he knows you actually like talking to him, he’s fine with waiting hours for a reply.

“So, this is me,” you come to a stop in front of an old building. It’s not far from his apartment, he makes a mental note.

“This is you,” he cringes inwardly.

Thankfully, you just laugh, “Thanks for coming to the exhibition and spending time with me, I really enjoyed that…uh...”

His lips turn up, teasing, “Not-date?”

You flush, “Yea, that not-date,”

Both of you stand in comfortable silence, unwilling to part. He knows how stupid this is, two idiots just skirting around a relationship, but he doesn’t know what he should do. Sometimes he wishes he was a teensy bit more like Oikawa, but the thought is vanquished before it could even begin to take root.

“So,” you break the silence, “see you around?”

He lets out a breath and nods, “Yea, definitely,” and you wave.

He waits until you’re safely in the building before making his way back, sighing way too much for someone in college.

He spends the walk thinking about how much he enjoyed that “not-date”, and hopes soon he could enjoy an actual date with you.

Your fifth meeting was the end of Iwaizumi’s patience.

It’s been weeks since he’d realised his feelings for you. And he knows you feel the same way towards him too. You’re not subtle.

You are, however, extremely oblivious and respectful. Ever since he had mentioned early on in the friendship that he wasn’t looking for anything relationship-wise, you had dutifully dodged every single one of his advances. At this rate, your non-existent relationship was on the road to nowhere.

He’s sick of it, and at his wits end.

He finds Makki and Mattsun lounging in the living room.

“Hey, uh,” both heads turn his way. “I need some advice.”

“Well, my friend,” Makki moves, patting the newly vacated seat next to him, “you’ve come to the right place,”

As the couch dips under him, he takes a moment to register that Yes, he is really doing this, before he launches into detail about his feelings, frustration with the state of things and asks for help.

"Simply put,” Makki interjects, “you want to do the do, want to pound that duck, want to woohoo her-"

"What the fuck is a woohoo," Iwaizumi cuts him off sharply.

Mattsun's jaw drops. Makki gasps in delight, clapping his hands together, "A woohoo is when two sims who love each other very much-"

"Oh my god," he sinks his head into his hands, "you're referencing the sims, to talk about sex."

Oikawa sticks his head through the door, "Who's trying to woohoo who?"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP." Iwaizumi screams.

Oikawa dramatically places a hand on his heart and almost looks hurt before realisation dawns. “This is about little miss photographer, isn’t it?” He smirks when Mattsun wiggles his brows suggestively as a response.

Iwaizumi lets out a heavy sigh, resigned, "Yes, it's about her. Also, no," he looks to the strawberry blond, "I don't just want to have sex with her."

"So you do want to bang her," he could feel the smugness emanating from all three of them. The vein on his forehead threatens to pop. He passes a hand over his face, wondering if an aspirin could save him now.

"Just... just help me think of a way to ask her out,"

"Why don't you just ask her straight out? Always works," Oikawa supplied.

Iwa groans, “If I ask her out normally she’ll think its just as friends,”

A pause.

"Also I want it to be special, like a cute story for the future, you know?" he admits. Makki coos.

Silence falls as they brainstorm.

After some time Matsukawa pipes up, "I... might have an idea,"

All heads swivel towards him.

"She's a photographer, right?"

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

"Iwaizumi! Over here!" you excitedly wave him over.

"Thanks for willingly being my model again," you grinned, "somehow that physique of yours seems to get me better critiques. ...Wait a minute, does my tutor have a crush on you?" he sighed when you seriously pondered that thought for a moment.

You give him a brief rundown of your assignment and what you needed him to do. It was rather simple this time as the focus was more on lighting, you just needed him to walk casually and look at the camera every once in a while.

After the first couple of shots you see him reach into his pocket and pull out some sort of... banner? Your brows furrow as you continue snapping shots. Only when he fully unfurls it do you cease movement, letting your camera slip out of your hands entirely.

Thankfully, your camera strap works perfectly and the weight of it dropping against your neck brings you back to life, snapping your mouth shut.

Iwaizumi Hajime stands five feet away from you, holding up a small banner that reads “Please go on an actual date with me.”

“I- You- what….?” Is the best you come up with.

He grins, “It reads, I really like you, please go out with me,”

“You like…?” Seems like you’re full on malfunctioning now, and about to overheat too.

“I like you, have been liking you for a while now,” he rubs his neck nervously, “so, what’s your answer?”

You nod frantically, no longer trusting your mouth. His grin stretches impossibly wide.

You’ve always known you were a bumbling idiot and a mess. But now looking at his laughing face backlit by the setting sun, you can’t help thinking that maybe being an idiot wasn’t all that bad.

The shutter clicks.

This might just be your favourite photo yet.

(Matsukawa is later asked how he knew you would like such a gesture. ���Judging from the way you spoke of her, I figured she was into sappy shit, and that you probably was into it too.” He gets headlocked for a full five minutes.)

[darkestdesired]

The Gladiators Prize

@bugmanor

Warning:Smut,Water sex,swearing,Felix being a sexy and clingy Beast,Poor little reader never stood a chance.

Request: NSFW Felix x Innocent/Shy S/o.

An:I am so so so sorry this is so late,I hope this is ok! It's been a while since I've written smut but i am kind of happy with how this came out.

Gladiators had always been my favorite thing to study in history class,they were usually more beast than man.The stories always ended two ways but always with death,Either the lion or the man were leaving that arena alive.

Most of the time it was the lion.

But i never thought I'd actually get the chance to meet one in real life,That was until i found out that my entire college history class was going to the city of Volterra to visit some of the many wonders it had to offer. I was absolutely stoked,i was living by myself and had been wanting to move there my whole life,I was even saving up and nearly had enough.Might as well see what it had in store for me.

The plane ride over was exhausting but i was so glad when our bus finally arrived,Mrs.Gillard whistled to get everyones attention."Alright everyone,our hotel rooms aren't ready yet so why don't you all check out the shops while we wait." There was a wave of relief filled sighs throughout the group causing her to roll her eyes.She was always such a mean woman. I wondered around next to a few shops before deciding to lean against the wall of an alley,pulling out my favorite book about gladiators and blocking out the ouside world.

"Hello there gorgeous,what is someone as stunning as you doing here all alone?" I heard a deep voice ask,Looking up my face heated up immediately as i saw the devilishly handsome man infront of me.He was like a giant compared to me,but he seemed a bit starstruck as well as our eyes met.

"I-I uh.." It was as if my brain had completely shut down,he didn't seem to mind though since he chuckled."Didn't mean to surprise you cara mia,I simply saw a living goddess and wished to introduce myself." He reached over and gently took my hand in his before bending down and making a show of keeping eyecontact as he kissed my knuckles."You smell absolutely heavenly my dear,and what might your name be?" He said in a gruff sultry voice causing my knees to grow weak. "My n-Name is (Y/n)" i said like the utter mess that i was. He smirked down at me and stepped closer,i dropped my book and tried to move back but i was already against the wall.He listed his arms and successfully trapped me between his hulking body and the brick,The cape he wore blocked me from view from the wondering people that walked around outside.

"Such a lovely name..(Y/n).." My name rolled off his tongue like it was his lifes mission to make me faint from bliss. "My name is Felix Volturi Cara Mia,I suggest you remember it." I gulped,"And why is that..?" His eyes chuckled as what sounded like the mix between a growl and purring erupted from his throat."Because you will be screaming it soon enough."

This is it..This is how i die,i thought as he leaned his face closer,his eyes dark with lust."You are mine.." He purred.Something in me urged me to let go and live in the moment,But the sound of one of my classmates yelling my name broke me out of my trance. With a flustered face i quickly moved his cape and dove under his arm,not even attempting to look at him in fear that i might fully lose control.

He watched as i ran out of the valley and out of sight,bending down he picked up my book.He sniffed the book and purred at my scent,He chuckled when he saw the title of the book."Mmm we are destined my little flower,You can not hide from me."

Tossing and turning in bed i huffed before sitting up,I had been lucky enough to not have a roomate,but even that joy couldn't suppress the events of the day.I couldn't get felix out of my head,I had never had someone so attractive talk to me before,and especially not like that.Thinking back on it he looked a lot like the gladiators in my book,if i didn't know any better i would have assumed he was one.

Realizing i wasn't going to be falling asleep anytime soon i decided a nice bath in the tub that seemed more like a pool compared to mine back home would get rid of the heated fantasies that brought a blush to my (S/c) cheeks,Tredding my way into the gorgeous bathroom i undressed on my way there,not even bothering to pick them up on the way, before hopping into the nice steamy water.

I guess that's why i didn't hear the sound of the window opening.

Felix sniffed the air,causing him to lick his lips when he could still smell the traces of my lust,he thanked the gods when he saw my cute but sexy black panties laying onthe floor.Not even hesitating he picking them up and breathed in my scent,barely stopping the growl that threatened to escape.He stuffed them into his pocket before getting undressed,setting his clothes on a chair.There he leaned against the doorframe and watched as i played with myself,i forgot to shut the bathroom door.Since the tub was round i sat with my back to him,Not even realizing the danger i was in.

Sighing in pleasure i added another finger to my tight pussy,"Ah..Mm...Felix..." I moaned. Biting my lip i leaned my head back against the edge of the bath."That's right,say my name again Cara mia." My eyes shot open and i saw Felix standing over me with a sly smirk. Gasping i quickly turned and sat on the other side ,Blushing furiously when i saw the state he was in. "Do not be frightened my love,I told you you are mine." He stepped into the tub until he was knelt between my thighs.

"H-How..How did you get in here..?" I asked,Shaking despite the warm water that engulfed me. He chuckled,"I have my ways,Now let us continue where we left off,Shall we?" Leaning in he captured my lips,he started off gently and waited as i froze with wide eyes.It only took a a few seconds before i melted in and began kissing him back.

From there the kiss got more and more heated,His strangely cold hands grazed at my fragile skin from my shoulders to my breasts,He swallowed my moans as he kneaded my breasts and piched my now perky nipples.My hands held on his braud shoulders for support,Knowing if i let go i would likely sink into the water. Pulling away he licked his lips hungrily as he saw my blazed out expression,"Look at you,So needy for your gladiator hm? Does the idea of such a strong man claiming you turn you on? You are my prize for all of my victories my dear,it is time to claim what is rightfully mine." He pushed his knee forward and smirked,obviously pleased as i began to rut against his thigh involuntarily."That's it,Give into the pleasure." He grinned when he pulled away his knee,eliciting a whine."Do not worry my dear,I will give you what you desire." Grabbing my thighs and wrapping them around his waste he wasted no time in guiding his large member into my aching core.

He hissed and clenched his eyes tight in ecstasy when he was fully sheathed in my warmth,"Fuck..You are so tight my goddess..Tell me..Am i the first man to taint your sacred flesh? Tell me! For i shall hunt down any who has dared to take what is mine." He growled while mercilessly pounding into me once i had gotten used to his size. "N-No..I..I was.." He grinned widely,his dark red eyes glowing as he drowned in the beautiful sound of my moans."You are mine! Do you hear me? No one will dare to even think about taking you from me once i am done with you! Tell me you are mine!I will treat you like a queen." He reached down and grabbed my chin,not to hurt me in the slightest but to force me to look deep into his eyes."I-I am yours! Please Felix..Ahn..hah.." Tears poured down my cheeks,wrapping my arms around his neck he nipped at my neck,causing me to wriggle.

Now that i had accepted him he was going to ensure that i would not be able to walk for the next month.Leaning back he pulled me with him so that i was now riding him,He opted to watch as i bounced on top,enjoying the sight of my breasts bouncing.

"Forget all about the life you have lived before my innocent little mate,i am never letting you go again." I was so blissed out that all i could do was nod,running my hands down his stunning abs.

"Fe-Felix..I'm so close..Please..!"He licked a a stripe up my throat,relishing in the shiver the visibly rolled up my skin."As am i cara mia,Come for me!" With a few more harsh thrusts i felt my body spasm in the most amazing pleasure i had ever felt before.I could hear his grunts as his hands tightened on my thighs,"Fuck...(Y/n)!" He hissed.

I kissed his forehead before burying my head in his shoulder,letting exhaustion take over."All mine." Was the last thing i heard before darkness consumed me.

When i finally awoke i was dressed in an unfamiliar bedroom with my back pressed against a cold chest,arms secured protectively around my waist."Go back to sleep my love,You are home now." Felix's deep comforting voice said against my shoulder causing me to smile."Hmm.." Was my only response as i buried myself deeper into him and drifted back to sleep.

My gladiator kept his word,He never let me go.

[bluexiao]

- About Amber: "Once, I was helping a crying child look for his lost coin of Mora. Miss Amber came and was able to sooth him with comforting words. She gets along fairly well with people and is passionate about her work. It's nice to have someone of her attitude around to help."

- About Barbara: "I heard that the Deaconess is very popular for her songs. I tend to be easily lulled by the melody of songs but I have yet to see her perform myself."

- About Kaeya: "Ah yes, Sir Kaeya. I do not wish to pry into his history. But the way he carries himself makes it seem as if he burdens one too many secrets... Such a mysterious man."

- About Albedo: "I am glad to see that the Chief Alchemist able to put the intelligence he holds to use for the future of Mondstadt. But at the same time... I'm afraid. If one dwells too deep, they may find it too late to turn back."

- About Jean: "Master Jean is an impressive individual. After the incident with Dvalin, my respect for her has strengthened. She risked her life for the safety of Mondstadt. With her currently being in charge of the Knights of Favonius, I feel at peace."

- About Bennett: "I encountered this boy at the outskirts of Mondstadt and he had a cut on his cheek. He had a very wide grin on his face and suddenly, it started to rain... So, I gave him some bandages that I had in my pocket. I hope he is alright."

- About Razor: "Andrius informed me of the fact that a human boy lived amongst the wolves in Wolvendom. It is in my knowledge that the Knights of Favonius are trying their best to help Razor. Although he keeps pronouncing my name as Ariel instead Aria, I wish no more than to see him grow."

- About Diona: "I remembered meeting a particular Katzlëin girl as the bartender. Diona, was it? She seemed to be relieved when she saw me have a glass of Apple Cider instead of wine like the rest of the patrons."

- About Venti: "If one ever hesitated whether this drunkard bard could truly be the one and only Anemo Archon or not, I would definitely agree with them. *sigh* Although he can seem unreliable and he makes me worried countless of times, Venti has always treated me as a comrade, even when he knows he's the owner of my life. That's why... whether to fight for Mondstadt or to clap after he performs a song, I promised I will be there with him. If it weren't for him, I would be a mere frail soul lost amidst the winds."

- About Diluc: "I heard Master Diluc also does not prefer wine? At first, I thought I was the peculiar one for not favoring wine... but it's nice to see there's also someone like me in that area."

- About Rosaria: "Yes, I have noticed Sister Rosaria lingering in the shadows several times now. It is my position to look out for threats inside Mondstadt, after all. She may look like suspicious, but I do not think she has done anything particular to pose a threat. I wonder, what is the purpose she's fighting for?"

- About Zhongli: "Rex Lapis was a meritorious Archon, he was the one who led Liyue to its current reputation as the most prosperous nation in Teyvat. I had a chance to work with him in the past... Yes, he is as wise as you know him to be. Though now, he roams amongst his people as Zhongli. Same as Venti and I."

- About Xiao: "Alatus-- I mean, Xiao, the Conqueror of Demons, bears too many great burdens for his own good. Through the limited amount of times I have spent working with him, it is in my acknowledgement that he has been through so much. I hope you do not view him in a dim light. Despite his coldness, he has a heart of gold and also... a fond liking for a dish called Almond Tofu."

hello! aw aria is so sweet i:( but omg i feel like when aria is like in angel’s share there are times she talks to diluc, who’s the only sober person there. idk just a thought. and thank youuu aaa what do you think? Who’d you ship with dani if ever?

[primroseprime2019]

Masters and Students

"Such a shame." Starscream said as he watched the Space bridge explosion, "But I applaud you, Megatron. You certainly made a grand exit."

Echo clenched her fists tightly as she left the control bridge and Soundwave walked over to Starscream.

"Ah, Soundwave, cue the audio/visual. I wish to address the troops." Soundwave only nodded.

All over the screens and throughout the halls, the troops had heard Starscream give out his message.

"The loss of Megatron, leader of the great Decepticon uprising, is certainly a blow to our cause. Yet we mustn't despair of his tragic demise. But instead embrace his ultimate sacrifice and build upon the foundation he laid with an even mightier hand."

A Vehicon had spoken up, "With all due respect Commander-I mean Lord Starscream."

"Yes, yes, what is it?" Starscream said.

"If we failed to conquer Earth under Lord Megatron's command, what hope do we have now while the Autobots still defend it?" The Vehicon asked.

Starscream sighed and replied, "Allow me to be crystal clear... I studied for millennia under our former Master. Thus I am equipped to lead you. I, Megatron's true heir, Lord Starscream, Emperor of Destruction!" The crowd of Vehicons looked to each other and talked to one another. Starscream let out a scoff and had Soundwave cut the feed and audio.

"What use are troops who can't rise to the task of inflicting unspeakable destruction in my name?" The Seeker huffed.

"Maybe it's because they actually have loyalty towards someone who's led them for years," Echo spoke up as she stalked towards Starscream, her optics blazing with fury, "you're too cowardly and hardheaded to be a leader!"

"I suggest you watch your tone, Echo," Starscream growled. "Make me, you sorry excuse for a Decepticon!" Echo snapped, her digits turning into claws.

Soundwave stood between his sister and Starscream and Echo stared up at him, her wings shaking with bitterness towards Starscream. Soundwave shook his helm at his sister, silently telling her not to start a fight that she did not want to finish.

Echo clenched her fists tightly before she turned and walked out of the room. Starscream huffed and turned away from Soundwave, "now with that out of the way... Legend tells of one capable warrior, one who exists here upon this very planet, one who can be student to my master."

◊◊◊◊

Optimus sighed as he stood, overlooking the rock formations that surrounded him. It's been a week since they disabled the Decepticon Space Bridge, which resulted in Megatron's demise.

"Optimus, why so glum? This planet – all planets – are finally free from Megatron's tyranny!" Ratchet cheered.

"I do not disagree, Ratchet," Optimus admitted, a very large part of him content in knowing that his family would be safer than they were when Megatron lived, "It's just...a small part of me hoped to change Megatron's mind. Not extinguish his spark."

"Optimus, his vileness was not slain by your hand! But by his own twisted arrogance!" Ratchet protested, earning a hum of displeasure from the Prime, "I'm sorry. I know the two of you have quite a history."

"But the Megatron whom I once fought aside perished eons ago; the day he chose to become a Decepticon," Optimus rumbled before quickly changing the topic, "The Decepticons may be in disarray. But they aren't without leadership. And while Starscream is no Megatron, he is far from predictable." Suddenly an explosion shook the base.

"Decepticons! We're under attack!" Ratchet exclaimed and he and Optimus ran to the source of the explosion. Only it wasn't an attack. It was Rafael's volcano science project.

"It's not an attack Ratchet. It's my volcano," Raf said as he waved his hand against the smoke that started to fade away and his volcano deflated, "or was."

"Hold still, Bulkhead," Miko said as Bulkhead held a small model of the Solar System, "Jupiter needs its red spot. Whoopsie!"

"What... in the Allspark is going on around here?" Ratchet demanded. "Our projects are due tomorrow," Jack said.

Arcee picked up a part of the motorcycle she and Jack were working on. "Maybe it needs one of these doohickeys," she said.

"You're a motorcycle Arcee," Jack said with a smirk, "shouldn't you know how to build a motorcycle engine?" "You're a human, Jack," Arcee shot back, "can you build me a small intestine?"

"Burn!" Miko and Paige said and Firestorm snickered. Jack huffed.

"Well you can't make these projects in here," Ratchet said, "you're making a mess!" "But the science fair's a big part of our grade," Raf said.

"Yeah," Miko agreed, "if Bulkhead doesn't help me finish this model of our Solar System-" "Oh?" Ratchet interrupted, "and what does Bulkhead know of your solar system? Or Bumblebee of your volcanoes? Or...?"

"Arcee of our motorcycles?" Jack asked, earning a look from his guardian.

"Precisely," Ratchet said, "we're not Earthlings and they're not scientists." "But the Autobots are their guardians, Ratchet," Optimus said, "would it hurt to learn more of Earth by helping our young friends with their schoolwork?"

"Well maybe our young friends should learn more of Cybertron," Ratchet huffed. Raf looked over at Paige, "what are you and Primrose working on, Paigey?"

"I'm just holding the flashlight," Primrose said. "I'm painting the galaxies and the constellations," Paige said as she sat on the far side of the main hangar, painting a rather large canvas. Primrose held a Cybertronian-sized flashlight and shined it down on the painting.

"Plus I’m making another project, but you can’t see it yet. Also, Ratchet," Paige said, making the Autobot medic look at her, "if you want- and if it's not too much trouble, can you teach me about Cybertron?"

"Really? You actually want to learn?" Ratchet asked, surprised. Paige smiled and nodded, "what's wrong with teaching a Galatrian about Cybertronian history and culture? Nothing, I'm sure. Plus, I've been meaning to learn about your planet."

Ratchet stared at Paige, completely shocked. "Someone's actually made Ratchet speechless," Firestorm chuckled, "I'm impressed. Ow!" He held his helm when a wrench suddenly decked him in the helm and he glared at Ratchet.

"Alright. I'll teach you," Ratchet said with a soft smile. "Yay!" Paige said happily. Primrose squeaked in surprise when some paint was flung her way and it landed on her faceplate.

"Whoops! Sorry Prim," Paige said with an apologetic smile.

"It's alright. The messier, the better," Primrose chuckled.

◊◊◊◊

Starscream, Soundwave and Echo were currently in the canyon looking for the warrior that Starscream had spoke of earlier in the warship. Though it had struck Echo as odd that they would look in a place such as Earth. And as much as she would've loved to beat Starscream into a bloody mess, she was also glad that Soundwave was here to stop her- most likely electrocute her in a way.

"Starscream." Echo said calmly, getting his attention, "This warrior that you talked about earlier, why in the name of the Allspark would they be here on Earth?"

Starscream said, "During the Great War, so much energon was hidden on this forsaken rock, that our departed master sent some of Cybertron's greatest to guard it-True warriors now lying in stasis, waiting to be reawakened."

"When you put it like that, it actually makes the most sense," Echo said.

"Yes," Starscream replied, "Though it was such a folly that late in life Megatron searched for distant space for warriors, rather than here beneath his feet." Soundwave was still trying to figure out where the warrior was; despite him not saying anything Starscream had said, "What do you mean you can't pinpoint his signal? I know we're close! Boost the power to your sensors!"

Soundwave did this and they found what they were looking for.

"Is that it?" Echo asked. "Yes," he said, "there." With that, he, Soundwave and Echo transformed into their aerial forms and flew up into the air.

◊◊◊◊

Raf was rebuilding his volcano. But he wasn't really paying attention. He was paying more attention to Bumblebee's stories from the war, particularly when Bumblebee mentioned that he hasn't made warrior class.

"Really, Bumblebee? Then how do you make warrior class?" Raf wanted to know, causing Bumblebee to bleep some stuff about experience getting in the way, "But I've seen you in action! You're awesome!"

That was when Optimus decided to intervene, placing his servo on his adoptive son's shoulder whilst saying to Raf, "I second your opinion, Raf. But Autobot lifecycles are much longer than those of humans. And though it may be hard to believe, our young scout still has much to experience."

"Well experience is the best thing to have," Paige said as she walked over to Optimus, Bumblebee and Raf. She was wearing a white shirt, along with some overalls and she was wearing her sketchers shoes.

"You done with your painting already?" Bumblebee asked.

"Yeah. I took it outside on the roof to dry," Paige said, rubbing her hands on the pants of her overalls, 'I think Cliff would've loved it.' She jumped when the monitors started going off.

"Exposed Energon! And it's on the move!" Ratchet proclaimed.

"And since we're not moving it, guess who must be!" Bulkhad challenged.

"Decepticons," Arcee answered as she stood next to Optimus.

"Without Megatron?" Miko asked in disbelief.

"Unfortunately, Megatron's legacy will live on as others rise to take his place," Optimus sighed gravely. "Why am I suddenly being reminded of wolves?" Paige asked aloud, making Optimus look at her curiously.

Optimus turned to his team, "Autobots, you have projects to complete. Ratchet, I may acquire first aid."

Ratchet was a bit hesitant at this, and turned to the three kids currently working on their projects.

"Science fair is a big part of their grade." Ratchet said to his leader, "Perhaps I'm best suited to remain and advise."

Optimus agreed to this, "Very well." He said, before turning to his scouts, "Bumblebee, Primrose, let us see about this energon in transit."

"Can I come?" Paige asked. "No," Optimus, Bumblebee and Primrose said in unison, making the fourteen year old girl squeak.

"You know it is too dangerous," Optimus said firmly. Paige frowned, "well I'm Dauntless enough to face danger!"

"This isn't Divergent," Jack called out. "Watch it, Jackson!" Paige said, glaring at the sixteen year old boy who put his hands up in surrender.

"What would your mother say?" Primrose asked in a playful tone. Paige opened her mouth but closed it and she crossed her arms over her chest and pouted.

Bumblebee buzzed with laughter as the ground bridge opened. Paige let out a meow of protest and she kicked invisible dirt with her foot. Optimus gently rubbed her head before he, Bumblebee and Primrose went through the ground bridge.

◊◊◊◊

Echo watched as Starscream and Soundwave pulled out what was a stasis chamber as she stood back. After they pulled the the stasis chamber out from where it was, they took a step back. "Soundwave, the cube." Starscream said.

Soundwave took out a container containing a single energon cube. He handed it over to Starscream; he placed it in the slot that was provided. The capsule had started to activate.

"The energon infusion!" Starscream said, "It's working!" They were soon blinded by a blue light.

In the distance, Optimus, Bumblebee and Primrose walked out of the ground bridge. They heard sounds just nearby. "Do you guys hear that?" Primrose asked.

"This doesn't feel right," Bumblebee said. "No Bumblebee, it does not," Optimus said, "hold your position and await my command."

Primrose and Bumblebee both nodded.

The stasis chamber opened and reveal the warrior inside; Starscream had stepped forward.

"Awaken warrior!" He said, "Rise and serve your new master!" Echo could tell that he was as large and giant as Megatron was; his color scheme was of green, white and red, and his optics glowed red. And a part of her was glad that he was another Seeker.

He spoke with a booming voice, "Skyquake only serves one master." "Excellent." Starscream said, "Your loyalty and devotion will set a fine example for the troops," he sent Echo a glare, "among other things. No need to be timid, Skyquake. You may bow."

Echo felt her right optic twitch and she ground her denta together to hold herself back. Soundwave placed his servo on his sister's shoulder and gave a light squeeze.

"You fail to grasp my meaning." Skyquake said, "I am here on a mission assigned to me by my one true master- Megatron." "Yes. Him." Starscream said, "Sadly Megatron is no longer with us."

"Impossible." Skyquake said.

"Why is this so difficult for everyone to accept? Skyquake, I located you. I awakened you. Thus I, Lord Starscream, am your one true master!" Starscream snapped.

Skyquake growled, stepping towards Starscream who quickly stepped back. "It has been quite awhile Skyquake." Optimus spoke up, getting his attention.

Skyquake turned to him. "Optimus Prime." He said, "I haven't seen you since the Battle of Technar. Megatron ordered me to annihilate you."

"That was a long time ago." Optimus said.

"That may be, Prime, but my orders still stand," Skyquake said.

"Is this ancient war still worth fighting when so many comrades have been lost and worlds destroyed? If you want to be a true leader, Starscream, then stray from Megatron's path and lead the Decepticons towards peace," Optimus said firmly.

"I would be willing to consider a truce..." Starscream said, "If you are willing to bow before me... Optimus Prime."

"Again?" Skyquake said angrily, "Bow to this!"

Skyquake swung his arm and with one hit, Starscream was sent flying right into the wall. Echo widened her optics in surprise before she transformed into her aerial form and flew up into the air with Soundwave and Starscream following.

"Skyquake, this is a new era. On another world. Side with the Autobots and help me end this conflict forever," Optimus once again pleaded the newly-awakened Decepticon.

"I will NEVER side with a Prime!" Skyquake proclaimed as he ran towards Optimus.

Optimus never saw the next hit coming. So when Skyquake threw a punch at him, he didn't block it. Instead, he let it knock him into a nearby archway. Skyquake picked Optimus up by his shoulders and threw the other around.

Above the ensuing battle, Starscream, Soundwave and Echo watched everything unfold. "What need have we for peace when we have Skyquake?" Starscream asked rhetorically to Echo and Soundwave.

"With some disapline, he will learn to respect his new master," the Seeker continued, "And once it becomes known that Skyquake destroyed the great Optimus Prime under our command, all Decepticons will greatfully bow to us."

Bumblebee and Primrose watched the fight between Optimus and Skyquake become intense. A little too intense for Primrose's liking. Optimus unlocked his blaster and shot at Skyquake twice.

The large Decepticon Seeker pulled out his own blaster and fired at Optimus. Each rapid shot hit the Prime, knocking him back but he still stood on his pedes. Having seen enough, Primrose and Bumblebee ran forward.

"Bumblebee, Primrose, no!" Optimus shouted. Bumblebee fired at Skyquake's back, catching the large Seeker by surprise. He whirled around, his blaster reloaded and ready. With each fire he made, Bumblebee avoided being hit. He jumped from wall to wall within the canyon, avoiding fire. Eventually, one hit Bumblebee, sending him crashing to the ground.

Primrose jumped forward and she grabbed Skyquake's blaster. Skyquake grabbed Primrose and threw her aside.

"Do not miss a single moment, Soundwave!" Starscream instructed, "We shall need visual documentation of Optimus Prime's demise for the historical record!"

Optimus and Skyquake punched at each other, both bots often missing and hitting again and again. When Skyquake knocked Optimus back, Bumblebee and Primrose got up beside their leader.

"He can't transform yet?" Bumblebee asked, confused. "Skyquake has not yet acquired a vehicle mode," Optimus said.

Skyquake charged at the three bots. "Fall back!" Optimus exclaimed. Before Skyquake could swing at the three Autobots, they quickly transformed into their vehicle forms and drove away.

“So time has made you a coward, Prime?" Skyquake called after him as he fired a few more shots from his blaster.

◊◊◊◊

"Let's see. Where is it?" Ratchet muttered as he used his blowtorch to assemble Raf's volcano.

"Um...what is it?" Raf wanted to know.

"You'll find out," Ratchet answered.

"But Ratchet, shouldn't I be doing the work?" Raf protested.

"Zep-yip-yip-yip! Don't touch! Just watch and learn!" Ratchet said sternly as he shooed the twelve year old boy away.

"So we're just gonna help Jack and Miko finish theirs..." Bulkhead trailed off as he referred to himself and Arcee.

"Without my supervision?! You want them to be right, don't you?" Ratchet asked, causing Arcee and Bulkhead to look at each other and give small shrugs. "Then watch a master at work!" Ratchet said eagerly.

"Control freak," Miko murmured. "That's the understatement of the century," Jack huffed as he walked over to Paige who was messing with some wires. She had some scissors in her hand.

"Paige?" Jack called out. Paige jumped and she hit her head, making her yelp and she shouted in pain when the scissors cut her arm.

"Fudge nuggets it all! Jack, don't sneak up on me like that- especially when I'm lost in thought!" Paige snapped. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Jack exclaimed.

Ratchet, Bulkhead, Arcee, Raf and Miko hurried over to them. "What happened?" Ratchet asked.

"I accidentally scared Paige and she cut her arm," Jack said.

"Not to mention, I hit my head," Paige said. "What were you trying to do?" Bulkhead asked.

"Well I was trying to untangle some wires in the main wall because I figured that might give you some trouble," Paige said, "I had a toolbox stashed away."

"Let me see," Ratchet said as he activated his human form and he gently held Paige's arm, "it's a small cut, nothing major. I suggest you let me handle those wires from now on." He started to wrap her arm in some bandages.

"Sorry," Paige said, "thought I could help." "I appreciate that," Ratchet said with a soft smile and he looked at Paige.

She stared at him, her light brown eyes connecting with his light blue eyes. He stared at her, his face meters away from hers. He felt his human heart pounding against his chest and he felt his cheeks warm up.

Miko looked between the two and a sly smile appeared on her face. Paige's phone started buzzing and she picked it up out of her pocket.

She gave it to Ratchet who looked at the text message and his eyes slightly widened. The text was from Marcus and it said: 'make a move on my daughter and your spark is mine.' A shiver ran up the medic's spine and he sighed softly.

"Protective Dad?" Jack asked. "Yep," Paige giggled, "my parents have protective daddy and mommy senses- and they tingle."

"Remind me again as to why and how your parents know about us yet Ratchet and Optimus know them?" Bulkhead asked curiously. "They thought it'd be a good idea to tell me about my home planet," Paige said, "although it sounds weird, coming from me. Plus, Mom said that Ratchet and Dad met when Cybertron still had it's Golden Age. I don't know how to explain it myself."

◊◊◊◊

"We've lost sight of them! Soundwave, why aren't you tracking them?" Starscream screeched, "What? What is it?"

Soundwave was showing Starscream something else. A different map. It wasn't of the area they are currently watching Skyquake's battle with Optimus and Bumblebee. But a map of Earth and the space that surrounds it.

"A second Decepticon life signal? But Skyquake is the only sleeper buried in this area!" Starscream scoffed in disbelief as he studied Soundwave's map closer.

But Echo noticed something perculiar about the life signal. She knew that area well. After all, they were there just days ago.

"The sight of our destroyed Space Bridge! You're not telling us that life signal belongs to Megatron?" Starscream gasped as the realization dawned on them both, "but he was microns from the detination point! Nothing could have survived that blast! Your sensors must be faulty! Ignore the contact! Delete the coordinates!" Echo gave Starscream an icy glare which was quickly unnoticed.

"What am I saying? Of course it must be investigated! If Lord Megatron is up there, I shall bring him home. Soundwave, Echo, remain here and monitor the outcome. When Skyquake snuffs Prime's spark, I must bare witness," Starscream instructed.

With those words said, Starscream jumped into the canyon below. Once he was close to the ground, he transformed into his alternative jet mode and flew away from the canyon. Soundwave and Echo just stood by and watched him leave.

"Must bare witness," Soundwave repeated before he deployed Laserbeak and she flew up into the air.

◊◊◊◊

"Tango 6 Alpha to Station Command. We're picking up transmissions from unidentified technology. Possibly hostile. We are moving to investigate."

"Negative, Tango Six Alpha," Agent Fowler interrupted the communications between the two respective personnel, "This is Special Agent William Fowler intercepting. Strike your report from the record and abide origin coordinates. I'll take it from here."

◊◊◊◊

Down in the canyon below, the chase appeared to be working out in the favor of the Autobots. Primrose continued to drive around the canyon with Skyquake hot on her trail. However, Primrose eventually reached a dead end. Once she did, she transformed into her bipedal form.

"It will be a shame to crush you, young Prime. But it is my duty," Skyquake remarked.

Suddenly, he heard the familiar sound of a truck horn behind him. He turned around and saw Optimus approaching him in his truck mode. Immediately, he started firing shots from his blaster. Whilst taking hits, Optimus transformed into his bipedal form and punched Skyquake in the face.

"Excellent strategy, Primrose," Optimus complimented his scout as Bumblebee drove up beside them.

Skyquake began to get up. "Skyquake, stay down," Optimus instructed as he retaliated with his own punch.

Bits of shrapnel broke off from Skyquake's face due to Optimus' punch. Skyquake fell to the ground weakened. Optimus, Primrose and Bumblebee stood above him. He appeared to be defeated.

"Fowler?" Optimus gasped as he looked up and saw a familiar fighter jet.

While Optimus, Primrose and Bumblebee were distracted, Skyquake looked up at the jet with a sinister grin. His eyes glowed green as he took in the appearance of the jet.

"Agent Fowler, fall back!" Optimus pleaded Fowler through their radio connection.

In his eyes were the designs of the fighter jet he had just scanned. Skyquake jumped above Optimus. Before either Optimus, Primrose, Bumblebee or Fowler could do anything about it, Skyquake was no longer in his bipedal form. But instead, he was in his recently-acquired alternative mode. His alternative mode was the jet Fowler was flying and Skyquake had scanned. He flew towards the skies at high speeds, intent on finishing his enemies once and for all.

"Well, I'll be a bald eagle!" Fowler remarked as he noticed Skyquake flying next to him.

"Air superiority achieved," Skyquake proclaimed as he fired shots at Optimus, Primrose and Bumblebee below him.

Immediately, Optimus, Primrose and Bumblebee started running for cover from Skyquake's shots. Needing more speed to do so, they transformed into their vehicle forms and sped away.

"Stealing plans for classified military aircraft will NOT be tolerated on my watch!" Fowler proclaimed as he fired shots at the phoney classified military aircraft.

To Skyquake, Fowler was now his new target of destruction. He fired a group of missles at the government agent. And they are no ordinary missles.

"HEAT SEAKERS!" Fowler gasped.

Fowler was now thankful of his intense compulsory pilot training. With his special maneovers, he managed to avoid the missles. When he reached a dead end, he pulled up immediately. Below him, the missles flew into the rocky cliff face and exploded upon impact.

"I still got it," Fowler boasted rather proudly.

◊◊◊◊

Bits of shrapnel from the Space Bridge explosion remained in space, floating around Earth's orbit.

"No one could have survived this." Starscream said as he looked through the rubble. "As I suspected faulty sensors, the last thing I need now is rumors that Megatron is still..." A painful moan interrupted him and Starscream hesitantly found the source. Megatron's burnt body was present and still in one piece. Every bit of him was charred and black and he had scratches everywhere from his body. There was a large whole in the center of his chest, right where his spark should be. "Megatron.." Starscream said amazed. At the slightest touch Megatron reacted.

"AAARRGGHH!" He roared as he grabbed at Starscream, who's optics went wide with fright. He wasn't sure if Megatron recognized him or not, but just as quickly as the attack started it ended with Megatron going limp again.

"But how?" The seeker said puzzled, until he saw a familiar purple glow. "Dark energon." Starscream leaned into Megatron's unconscious form. "Everyone believes you are deceased, who am I to disappoint them...master." He slowly pulled out the shard and Megatron groaned in pain before collapsing again. "And this time stay dead." Starscream snapped before pushing off his body. Suddenly he heard the chittering sound of Laserbeak nearby as the minicon flew over to Starscream and Megatron.

"Soundwave!" Starscream gasped as he hid the Dark Energon shard, "If you are listening, I have found Lord Megatron. And he is...unwell. We must transport him to sick bay...immediately!"

◊◊◊◊

Down in the canyon, the chase continued involving Optimus, Primrose and Bumblebee on the ground and Skyquake and Fowler in the air. Optimus, Primrose and Bumblebee narrowly avoided every shot Skyquake fired. One missle came too close for Optimus' liking. It sent him flying through the air. Optimus transformed into his bipedal mode to prevent potential self-harm.

But Skyquake ignored the Prime. He continued going after Bumblebee and Primrose. They continued to drive through the canyon with Skyquake flying close behind them firing shots from his blasters. Eventually, Primrose drove around a corner and Bumblebee drove up a hill at high speeds, causing him to fly over the top of the hill. Midair, Bumblebee transformed into his bipedal mode and ran across the hot, sandy ground underneath his feet. Skyquake flew above the gap of the canyon.

Bumblebee jumped from the edge of the canyon and landed on top of Skyquake. Immediately, the jet began flying out of control, randomly knocking Bumblebee into cliff faces in the process. From the ground, Optimus witnessed the events between the two. And he immediately knew that Bumblebee would need further support.

"Agent Fowler, we acquire immediate assistance!" The Prime said.

Bumblebee was punching Skyquake and ripping out bits of wiring vital to his bodily functions. Bumblebee's actions sent Skyquake into a crash dive, rapidly approaching the ground below. Immediately, Fowler was hot on their tail.

Bumblebee looked to Fowler and buzzed and beeped his thanks.

"Anytime, fella. Ground floor's coming up fast!" Fowler remarked.

Bumblebee jumped from Skyquake and landed on top of Fowler's jet. Immediately, Fowler pulled up to avoid crash-landing alongside Skyquake. The smoking Decepticon jet continued his crash dive towards the ground.

From the ground, Optimus watched as Skyquake landed nearby with an exploding bang. The burning jet skidded along the desert ground before coming to a stop a few feet away.

"Happy landings, 'Con," Fowler wished cockily.

Fowler flew his jet near the edge of the canyon so Bumblebee could jump off. Once Bumblebee was off of the jet, Fowler flew away. Bumblebee stood by the edge and observed the still-smoking remains of Skyquake. Eventually, he climbed down to meet up with Optimus and Primrose. Together, the three watched as the red optics of Skyquake went dark and his spark gave out.

"Had Skyquake chosen to stray from his master's path, we might not be burying him today," Optimus remarked.

Primrose stared at Skyquake's body and she clenched her fists tightly. Bumblebee glanced at her.

Soundwave and Echo watched the three Autobots from their spot on the canyons. Echo looked to Soundwave, a familiar look in her optics.

Soundwave only transformed into his aerial form and flew up into the air. Echo watched her brother for a moment and she looked back at the Autobots and Skyquake. She shut her optics tightly, holding back tears that threatened to form before she transformed into her aerial form and flew after Soundwave.

◊◊◊◊

"Bumblebee, putting yourself at risk was perhaps not the wisest of strategies. But you performed admirably," Optimus complimented Bumblebee after Ratchet finished checking him over for injuries.

Bumblebee bleeped to Optimus his thanks for the compliment as he stepped out of the chamber. Ratchet laughed gleefully as he heard the sounds of car horns from the hallway. Bulkhead and Arcee had returned with the kids. Jack and Paige hopped off of Arcee while Miko and Raf climbed out of Bulkhead and the two transformed into their bipedal forms.

"There you are! Well, how were my – I mean, our – projects received?" Ratchet asked eagerly.

"Well...," Raf trailed off.

◊◊◊◊

"Miss Nakadai, what planet would that be?" Mr Capizzi asked, referring to the model Miko displayed.

"Um...Cybertron?" Miko answered nervously.

Just as she answered the question, the metallic planet fell off the wire holding it up and rolled around the classroom, causing many kids to jump up in fear.

◊◊◊◊

"It's large, Mr Darby. But is it operational?" Mr Capizzi questioned nervously.

Jack hit the button and the machine went wild. It even left the classroom to terrorize the kids who were unfortunate enough to have free period at this time.

◊◊◊◊

"I hesitate to ask, Mr Esquivel. But is it active?" Mr Capizzi whimpered.

To answer his question, Raf pressed the button that activated the electrical volcano. It almost destroyed the entire school.

◊◊◊◊

"Well, on our planet, you would have been awarded the highest honor!" Ratchet snapped before walking away grumbling, "Absolutely no credit whatsoever."

"Speaking of highest honors," Arcee smirked as she glanced at Paige.

"Why are you guys looking at me?" Paige asked nervously.

"I don't believe it. My best friend has forgotten that she was awarded the highest grade in the entire school!" Jack exclaimed.

"WHAT?!" Ratchet screeched before promptly fainting.

"I only introduced and showed my painting and constellations and galaxies to the teachers," Paige said, blushing and smiling shyly, "especially my favorite constellation: Orion and Cassiopeia."

"So what are you guys going to do next year?" Primrose asked them with a smirk.

"They should've strayed from Ratchet's path," Bumblebee bleeped.

"Indeed, Bumblebee. Our human friends would have been wise to stray from Ratchet's path like Paige did," Optimus agreed.

"Hey. You made Ratchet faint! I LIKE THIS GIRL!" Bulkhead proclaimed, causing everyone except Optimus and Ratchet to laugh.

"What happened to your arm, Paige?" Optimus suddenly asked, noticing the white material covering Paige's arm.

"She was surprised by something and cut her arm with a pair of scissors," Jack said, "Aunt Tasha had to put some alcohol on it and wrap it up even more."

"What?!" Optimus exclaimed. "I'm okay," Paige quickly reassured him, placing her hand on his digit, "you're starting to act like my Mom."

Optimus only vented, blowing gentle and warm air against the girl, making her laugh and she hugged his digit.

After the events, Optimus gave Paige a lecture about safety and she half listened and half smiled at the Prime. She was thinking of the last night memory of her parents talking to her about her second planet and how it had become desolated when Cybertron became dark.

"So you met Orion Pax and Megatronus when you were at least my age?" Paige asked her dad curiously. Marcus chuckled and gave a small nod.

"I was at least twenty-one when the War started," Marcus said, "Orion Pax became Optimus Prime. And Megatronus became Megatron."

"So... what are we?" Paige asked, looking to her mom. Tasha smiled softly, "we're Galatrians. And we're very special Magic users. We got along with Cybertronians very well. At least... up until the War began. Galatrians, along with many other Magic users, were either captured or killed by Decepticons and many went into hiding or just disappeared."

"There were many Magic Users we had met just like your parents," Ratchet said, "there was one named Kaitlin Elisabeth Prime."

Paige blinked in surprise and she looked to Optimus who gave a solemn smile. "What was... what was she like? Did you meet her?" Paige asked.

Tasha and Marcus nodded. "We did. She was an amazing and brave Irilian. Even Megatron loved her and she loved him," Tasha said, hugging her daughter close, "and I bet she would've loved to meet you."

Paige smiled softly and she looked at her markings. "What magic can I do?" She asked curiously. "You can do what many Galatrians can do," Marcus chuckled, "your eyes may be light brown but when you use your powers, they change to ruby red. Those are your Galatrian eyes."

"Show us some magic Paigey!" Miko said excitedly. Paige smiled nervously before she closed her eyes in concentration. The markings glowed sapphire blue and apparitions of Sky Children appeared around the base.

Tasha chuckled and shook her head with amusement. Paige smiled softly as a Sky Child walked up to her and gave a happy musical sound.

Paige giggled happily and clapped her hands together with delight. Optimus smiled softly.

After Arcee, Bumblebee and Bulkhead took their charges home, Paige had fallen asleep on the couch and Tasha drove into the base, silently parking her truck on the side.

"Optimus?" Tasha called out, making the Prime and Ratchet look at her.

"Paige insisted on sleeping over tonight," Ratchet said. Tasha chuckled softly, "I see. I actually wanted to talk to you both."

"Of course," Optimus said as he knelt down in front of her.

"If Megatron was found by his... followers, is it possible that he knows about my family?" Tasha asked. "That will not happen," Ratchet said firmly.

Tasha looked over at the still sleeping Paige, "my daughter is no Kaitlin. She's no bright blue dragoness. She's no Valentine."

"Megatron may or may not know that," Optimus said, "he knows the history between you and him. He knows the history between him and your mother." Tasha gripped her arm tightly at the mention of her mother.

"I am not losing anyone else," Tasha said darkly, "I don't care what it takes. I will fight Megatron till my last breath."

"Let us not focus on that now," Optimus said firmly, "focus on your daughter. The only child you have ever brought into this Earth- she needs you."

"And she needs you," Tasha said firmly, placing her hand on Optimus' digit, "just as you will grow to need her." Marcus picked Paige up into his arms and walked over to the truck.

Tasha turned and walked after Marcus but she paused. "Optimus," she said, "no matter what happens... do not let Paige's darkness take a hold of her."

Optimus stared at her for a moment before he gave a small nod. With that, Tasha got into the truck and she drove out of the base.

◊◊◊◊

"The troops will be pleased to hear of our success in rushing Lord Megatron into stasis. Let us hope that our master pulls through," Starscream said. Echo stood in the medlab, staring at Megatron coldly.

Her leader was hooked up to life support cords. No matter what, she was going to guard her leader. Especially from Starscream.

◊◊◊◊

Starscream and Soundwave walked into the control bridge. Starscream paused when he saw a cloaked figure.

"Reveal yourself!" Starscream snapped, "Decepticons, attack!" The Vehicons didn't move an inch.

A dark chuckle came from the cloaked figure. "I'm surprised you think that they would follow your orders, Starscream," the voice said, "you truly have forgotten who I am."

The figure removed her cloak and Starscream widened his optics. A bright orange and white femme with yellow highlights turned to them, her fiery orange optics glowing.

"I have heard of Lord Megatron's... steady recovery," she said calmly, "and while he is in recovery, I shall lead the Decepticons... unless anyone has a problem with that."

Soundwave didn't say anything but the femme somehow knew his answer. The Vehicons in the control bridge stayed silent. Starscream's wings twitched and he lowered his helm.

The femme smirked and turned back to the large screens, clasping her servos behind her back.