#“Oh—...Uh. I mean. Everyone... I regret to inform you that...’

[theminecraftbee]

Grian sits on the edge of a desert cliff, watching the sunrise. His knuckles are bloody. He's had this dream before, and he's lived this moment before. He's awfully tired of it, honestly. He's not even particularly sad anymore. It's hard to be particularly sad, this long after, this much more between them.

But his knuckles are bloody again. There's someone sitting next to him.

"Joel?" he says, baffled.

"Yeah, hi, really weird bloody dreamscape you've got. Literally and figuratively: bloody hell. Like, Scott, he's got this pretty cottage and all these flowers and the single most terrifying version of Jimmy that I've seen in my life. Which serves him right, since he's a bastard, and I told him that. Or, uh, Pearl. She's normal. She's got dogs and... shit, I don't know--"

"Why are you here?" Grian asks.

"Oh, right, I was tasked with asking you if you regret it," Joel says.

There's a long moment of silence. The wind blows.

"I mean. No?" Grian says.

"Right? That's what I said! Blumin' stupid question, that!" Joel says.

"Wait, you mentioned--are you asking everyone that?" Grian asks.

"Yeah! It was all, oh, you've got a car, you can travel, it'll be all poetic like. You've had a 'character arc'--like I'm some, some fake guy--and grown as a person, everyone else has to, would they do things differently now? And I said, man, that's stupid. That's really stupid. But the glowing purple eyes guys--"

"Wait wait wait wait, the who?" Grian interrupts.

"Sorry, do you not know the glowing purple eyes guys? Martyn was acting like you're all buddies or something. Then I punched him. Because it was funny," Joel says.

"No, I know the--they asked you to do this?" Grian says. He takes a moment to try to imagine it. He has some trouble. Joel and the Watchers don't really belong in the same place at the same time for so many reasons that Grian doesn't know where to begin.

"Apparently, I'm not being serious enough," Joel informs Grian. "I kinda get it, actually. Like, everyone but Cleo has been somewhere like..."

Joel looks out over the cliff. It is tall, and Grian knows he cannot see the ground from the top. He had been able to during the actual games, of course, but these aren't the actual games; these are the memories of what brought him to victory, made manifest.

"So I guess I kinda wondered, since you lot always seem so blumin' sad about it," Joel finishes.

"I'm not really," Grian says.

Joel raises an eyebrow.

"I mean, maybe once, but--nah. Not really."

"Cool. That's the last one then," Joel says. "Hear that, weird glowing eyes guys? You act like I'm all weird or whatever but none of them regret it either. Not a single one of them."

Grian looks over the cliff again himself.

"None of us?" he asks, very quietly indeed.

Joel sighs. "All of you asked that too. I'm getting back in the bloody car."

Grian doesn't watch Joel leave. He rubs the blood off his knuckles and watches the sky instead. When he's tired thinking in circles about how he didn't really expect that he would be telling the truth, just then, he starts trying to imagine the trouble Joel might be giving everyone else instead. It's much more fun to think about than the sand that's getting in his socks. He's never able to get sand out of anything, these days, and it leaves him always just a little bit uncomfortable. Oh well; the price of being in a desert. He wouldn't be anywhere else if he had the choice, though, grit in his socks or not.

[hevvxx2]

Title: Loud Thoughts, Hot Coffee Part 4: "The Control Group Is a Disaster"

Characters: Joaquin Torres x Reader

(Sam and Bucky mentioned)

Warnings: fluff and dirty thoughts

Blue words: Inner Thoughts

Summary: After that dinner Joaquin knew something was up.. so he decided to start testing his theory about reader being a mind reader

Joaquin Torres was not an idiot. Ok maybe.. that was up for debate

He was attractive, sometimes a little too nice, and occasionally tripped over flat ground, but he wasn’t stupid.

Something was up with her.

She knew things.

Too many things.

So Joaquin did what any normal person with a crush the size of a planet and zero chill would do:

He started testing her.

Test #1: The Lemon Thought

The next time they were in the same room — briefing room, 9:42 a.m., Sam talking about surveillance grid positions — Joaquin stared directly at her and thought:

"Lemons. Lemons. Lemons. Big juicy lemons. Look at me, think about lemons."

She didn’t look up. Not once.

"Okay. Nothing. She didn’t even blink. Maybe she’s not listening. Or maybe she’s TOO good. Shit. Double shit."

Sam glanced over. "Torres, you good?"

"Yeah! Just thinking about citrus."

Everyone blinked.

Test #2: The Decoy Compliment

Next day, on the jet.

He sat across from her and stared hard at the wall behind her while thinking:

"Bucky has incredible eyebrows. Like, wow. Ten out of ten. Best brows on the team."

She snorted into her protein bar.

"Wait. WAIT. SHE LAUGHED. Did she hear that? Did she actually—"

Bucky glanced between them. "What the hell’s funny?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. Just… Torres thinks highly of you."

Bucky squinted. "Since when?"

Torres stammered. "What? No! I mean yes! I mean—"

"Abort. Abort the eyebrow mission."

Test #3: The Loud Brain

At one point, he just straight-up screamed internally.

"IF YOU CAN HEAR THIS, TOUCH YOUR NOSE."

She didn’t.

Instead, she waited ten seconds, very calmly scratched the side of her nose, and raised an eyebrow just slightly.

He almost screamed out loud.

Test #4: The Completely Inappropriate Thought He Knew He’d Regret

They were walking back from a stakeout. Dark out. Quiet.

She was wearing a hoodie and joggers and still looked like a movie scene. She said something casual, probably about the mission.

And Joaquin thought, against his better judgment:

“You could wear a trash bag and I’d still be thinking about fucking you in twelve different ways.”

She stumbled.

Not much. Just a little hiccup in her step. But he saw it.

In her mind she was screaming

"WHAT THE FUCK.. WHAT THE FUCK.. YOUVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME THERES NO WAY"

He said nothing. She said nothing. But for the next two blocks, she refused to make eye contact with him.

“Gotcha.”

Back at HQ, he flopped onto the couch, triumphant and emotionally exhausted.

Sam wandered in, raising a brow. "You look like you just ran ten miles."

"I’m conducting an investigation."

"Oh no."

"She’s a telepath." Joaquin whispered like it was a conspiracy theory. "I swear to God."

Sam choked on his coffee.

"A what?"

"I’m testing it. I have evidence. Empirical. Solid."

"Solid." Sam repeated, grinning.

"She laughed when I thought about Bucky’s eyebrows. She tripped when I—" He cut himself off. "—when I tested a theory."

"Uh huh. And what are you gonna do with this information?"

Joaquin narrowed his eyes. "Find the truth. Crack the case."

Sam patted his shoulder. "You do that, man. Real groundbreaking stuff."

Meanwhile, she passed by the hallway, sipping tea, and did not look at him once.

"Crap." Joaquin thought. "She knows. I think she knows I know. This is a mind war. And I’m losing."

He stared after her in defeat.

And just before she turned the corner, without missing a beat, she said out loud:

"Nice try, Torres."

And vanished.

Joaquin clutched the armrest of the couch like he’d seen a ghost.

"OH MY GOD."

Like my work? Here's my Masterlist!

A/N: This had be absolutely cackling while I was writing it

taglist: @mochminnie

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Eddie decided to pull out all the stops to ask Steve out. He borrowed heavily from the Labyrinth, including making himself an outfit and affectionately 'kidnapping' Dustin with a scavenger hunt for Steve to follow. . .

"I'm not doing it, Robin," Steve said, slouching back against his couch and crossing his arms. "I'm not playing his games. If he wants to ask me out, he can come to me."

"Yeah, sure, but what about Dustin?" Robin asked.

"Eddie's not going to hurt him," Steve rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, but he might pump him full of sugar," Robin pointed out.

"Goddamnit. . .okay, show me the first clue," Steve said, and Robin handed it to him.

"Green, green envelopes the man and hugs him tight as much as I wish I can. Given to him by the pox ridden sloth who despises him unjustly, this is the place with the boxes full of visions and where the man made of stars is wrongfully imprisoned. . .a prison I fight every day to free him from. . .my next note lies where the sloth never looks. . .," Robin read. "He's certainly theatrical."

"I know," Steve said, smiling and biting his lip. "Family Video!"

"I'm sure that Keith would appreciate being called a pox ridden sloth," Robin said. "Alright, let's go."

"You're coming with?" He asked.

"Vickie's out of town. There's nothing on TV. . .entertain me, peasant!" Robin exclaimed.

"You and Eddie. . .both theatrical," Steve said.

"Says the drama queen himself," Robin replied. "After you, your bitchiness."

Steve and Robin went to Family Video. They went in, brushing by a disgruntled looking Keith arguing with a customer, and went straight for their hidden candy stash in the storage closet. Tucked under the box was another clue. They took the clue and walked out, quickly moving past Keith getting put in a headlock by a small elderly woman. They opened the clue in the car.

"This is the spot where I turned you away. Regretfully, I did, not knowing of the magic you buried deep inside. Sent by the enemy, I thought you were. . .oh, if I could turn back the hands of time and awaken the fool that I was, trapped in the grave of my own making. . .if I had said yes, then. . .awaiting in the stacks is my eternal regret and the very next clue. . .," Robin read. "Okay, what the hell is he talking about?"

"Hawkins' Public Library," Steve muttered, blushing.

"I feel like I'm missing some critical information here, Steven," Robin said.

"Uh, freshman year, I wanted to do something different. . .you know, in addition to basketball and the swim team. I thought Hellfire sounded like fun, but when I approached Eddie in the library. . .," he trailed off.

"He thought you were fucking with him," she realized.

"Yeah, he said that me and my stupid hair have better things to do than to fuck with him, like beg Daddy for money," Steve said.

"Jesus," Robin said and paused. "I'm starting to think that maybe it's not just asshole jocks who are judgemental. I mean, now that I'm thinking about it. . .how could you possibly know everyone in the school. . .how can I call you asshole for that, especially when I made myself unapproachable? I made a snap judgment."

"Everyone does, Robin," Steve said. "You decided not to stick to it. Some people aren't smart enough to do that."

Robin beamed at him and squished his cheeks before placing a kiss on his nose.

"My dingus," she whispered.

"My Robin," he smiled.

"Let's go get your fool of a man," Robin said.

Steve and Robin went to the library and walked in, awkwardly waving at the librarian who had a one night stand with Hopper. They quickly scurried past.

"We don't know for sure that actually happened, Robin," Steve whispered.

"According to Erica, Hopper was a bit of. . .," Robin whispered.

"Making snap judgments again, Robin," Steve teased.

"So, I don't suppose you remember which aisle he rejected you in, do you?" Robin asked.

"I actually do," he blushed. "It's right over here. . ."

"Oh my god! The romance section?!" Robin giggled. "Oh, it was definitely meant to be."

"Look, here it is," Steve said and grabbed it before handing it to Robin.

They quickly moved out of the library and back into Steve’s car.

"Beauty within and beauty without, he makes this games appealing to me. A warrior, glistening and shining like the stars he's made of. . .the cloth he wears hides almost nothing. . .this place he fights and plays to win but also for the love of the people. . .my heart, it's him, the gladiator that he is, and this is his arena, where the next clue awaits. . . Does my dear sweet gladiator fight his fate?" Robin read.

"The basketball court," Steve said, snapping his fingers.

When they showed up to the entrance to the gym, it was blocked by Jeff and Doug. They were sitting in chairs, reading. When they caught sight of Steve, they tossed their books aside and quickly stood up.

"Finally!" Doug exclaimed.

"Well, I wasn't going to play along, but I got curious," Steve said.

"I told you," Doug said to Jeff, who rolled his eyes. "Why isn't Gareth doing this?"

"Because he's hanging out with Will again," Jeff said and nudged him in the side. "Come on, man, play along."

"Fine."

"Oh, sweet Steve, you have arrived, and now you have a choice to make, this door of mine or this door of his?" Jeff asked.

"One door leads to your utter doom," Doug said.

"And the other leads to your destiny," Jeff said.

"Trick question," Steve said before they could finish, his hands on his hips. "Both doors. He's both my destiny and my doom."

Jeff and Doug bowed low before stepping aside. As Steve and Robin went inside, they heard them whisper.

"Dustin wasn't kidding. Steve really is a genius at figuring out Eddie's next move," Doug said.

"Yeah," Jeff said. "It just means it's true love. . .that's also why Steve doesn't play D&D. He tends to call Eddie out on it."

Steve and Robin moved further into the gym. In the middle, there was a long plastic table. On it was a pink dress, much like Sarah's dress from Labyrinth except that it wasn't quite so big. It looked handmade, so whoever made it worked with what they had, and Steve thought they did a wonderful job. Anyone else would look down on it, but Steve could see the love and the care that went into it. To Steve, it was perfect. Pink, Steve thought, one of his favorite colors.

"Ooh, there's a note. . .oh, thank God, I don't have to put it on," Robin said and pressed it into Steve’s hand.

"My dear sweet gladiator, in order to prepare for battle, one must wear armor. You are in your arena. . .meet me in mine," Steve said, and he smiled. "Oh my god, what a fucking dork."

"There's a bag under the table," Robin said.

Steve pulled it out and unzipped it. Inside was a pair of heals, makeup. . . And his bat!

"Hey! I was wondering where that went," Steve said.

"You know you don't have to wear any of this," she said in amusement.

"Please, Robin," Steve scoffed. "You know I'm going to."

He stripped down in the middle of the gym, replacing his clothes with the other garments. He eagerly put on the makeup Eddie provided and then slid on the heals. He didn't need any help walking in them.

"This isn't your first time wearing a dress or heals is it?" Robin asked.

"Of course not," Steve said.

"Like I should automatically know this about you when you haven't told me?" Robin asked.

"I have a couple in my closet," he said.

"I thought those were trophies," she said.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Steve asked. "I just like dressing up sometimes. . .my dad never let me join theater."

"Do you feel like a woman sometimes?" She asked.

"Sometimes. . .but other times, I feel like a man like even when I'm wearing pants or dresses," Steve said, and then his eyes widened. "Hold on. . .are you saying like I'm bisexual. . .I could be bi. . .gender?"

"Yeah, I guess, if that's what feels right to you," Robin grinned.

"Awesome," Steve beamed, and she grabbed the bat from Robin.

"Nothing like a pretty girl who could also kill you. . .and I still mean that platonically," Robin said. "By the way, that's faster than when you realized you're bisexual."

"I'm learning," she replied.

"So, not only was this a road to love, it was also a road to self-discovery while I, Robin Buckley, also continue to learn more about my platonic soulmate - ,"

"Robin, stop narrating, and let's get to the drama room!" Steve yelled.

As they moved down the hallway, they ran into Jonathan and Nancy.

"What are you doing here?" Nancy, Jonathan, Steve, and Robin asked at the same time.

"I asked you first," they said again.

"They found my favorite sweater in the journalism classroom," Nancy said.

"And then we can say we're done with this school for good," Jonathan said. "More importantly, what are you doing?"

"Oh, Eddie kidnapped Dustin. I'm rescuing him," Steve replied.

"I have more questions," Jonathan said. "Why are you wearing a dress?"

"You've never seen him in a dress?" Nancy asked.

"No, have you?" Jonathan asked.

"Yeah, tons of times," Nancy said and then turned to Steve. "Your boobs look fantastic in that dress."

"Don't they?" Steve agreed, scrunching up her nose. "Eddie made the dress. . .Robin!"

Steve gasped as her hands disappeared into the dress.

"What?" Robin asked.

"They have pockets!" Steve squealed and twirled around.

"We'll let you get back to it, I guess. Good luck rescuing Dustin," Jonathan said.

"Thanks," Steve beamed.

Steve ran past them, pulling up the dress of her skirt so she could run better.

"Jesus, you can run in those heels?!" Robin shrieked. "How?!"

Steve ignored her and continued on to the drama room. She burst into the room, her heart pounding with adrenaline. It was completely dark. Steve jumped when music started playing, and a spotlight flickered on. The light was over Eddie's old throne, the throne that now belonged to Dustin. Eddie was sprawled out on it, one leg over the arm of the chair. He was wearing skin-tight leather black pants and a gray vest. His hair was even wilder than usual, and he wore eyeliner that made his eyes pop. Steve bit her lip. God, she wanted to fuck him right there in the chair. If only Robin and Dustin weren't there. Oh, right, Dustin. He was sitting in a plastic chair, reading, and drinking Yoo-hoo. He was also wearing stripped pajamas, almost similar to the ones the baby wore in the movie. Boy, Eddie really was going all out with this.

"My dear sweet gladiator, you made it to the final act," Eddie said, standing. "Are you ready to face your final test?"

"Depends on what the test is, my little hairy butt," Steve said, her hands on her hip.

"It's supposed to be a cute nickname!" Eddie shrieked.

"Wait, does Eddie really have a hairy - "

"You're supposed to be kidnapped, Henderson!"

"Right."

Eddie grinned and moved closer to Steve. He held out his hand.

"A fight. . .to the death," Eddie said.

Steve grinned and took his hand. Eddie pulled him into his arms, his other arm wrapping around her waist. Steve heard the music stop and then someone changing the tapes. As the World Falls Down by David Bowie started playing.

"This feels a lot like dancing," Steve teased, and Eddie shushed her.

"There's such a sad love. . .Deep in your eyes a kind of pale jewel. . .Open and closed. . .Within your eyes. . .I'll place the sky. . .Within your eyes. . .There's such a fooled heart. . .Beatin' so fast. . .In search of new dreams. . .A love that will last. . .Within your heart. . .I'll place the moon. . .Within your heart," Eddie sang.

"This is nice," Steve whispered and pressed her cheek to his as they slow danced.

"Do you feel properly seduced?" Eddie asked.

"Absolutely taken," Steve giggled. "So why Labyrinth. . .I know how much you love it, but. . .I feel like there's more to it."

"When we went to go see it together, it was just us. . .no kids, no Robin, no exes. . .," Eddie said and paused. "I realized that it felt like a date, and I wanted it to be, I wished so badly that it was."

"So. . .you want things to change?" Steve asked.

"Yeah," he said.

"No more casual sex?"

"No more casual sex. . .I just wanted to prove to you how much you mean to me," Eddie said. ". . .how much I want you."

"Proven," Steve said and paused. "How much would it mean to you if I told you that sometimes I'm a woman?"

"What?" Eddie asked.

"I like wearing dresses and make up, I feel like a woman, but even when I'm wearing what's considered man clothes, I feel like a woman, just like sometimes when I wear skirts or dresses, I feel like a man who likes go wear dresses. . .so it's not the clothes that make me feel this way but it's an added bonus," Steve said. "With Robin's help and yours with the dress, I realized that I might be, I don't know if that's the word, but. . bigender?"

"I never knew you liked dresses," he said softly.

"Skirts, too, I never told Robin either," Steve said.

"Just when I thought you couldn't make me more in awe of you. . .you did it, babe. So fucking metal," Eddie whispered and she laughed.

"So, would you gladly call me your girlfriend right now?" Steve asked.

"Fuck yeah," Eddie sighed.

Eddie spun Steve around in and dipped her before kissing her deeply. Steve sighed against his lips, her fingers curling into his hair. They broke apart when Robin cleared her throat, and they turned around. She was flipping through Dustin's book as she sat next to him while Dustin snoozed on her shoulder.

"The baby's finished his bottle, and now he's down for a nap. . .if you want any more of my services, I charge by the minute," Robin said. "I add on extra if you want me to get him out of here so he doesn't have to hear mummy and daddy fornicate."

"How much sugar did you give him, Eddie?" Steve asked, frowning.

"Not much," Eddie shrugged.

"He's in a sugar coma, Edward," Robin said.

"You love me, right?" Eddie asked Steve as he smiled innocently.

"Yeah. . .as long as you explain this to Claudia," Steve scoffed, and her face softened. "This was amazing, Eddie. I loved it. I love you. . .I fucking love the dress. . .God, I want to blow you so hard for adding the pockets."

"Gah! Take me home!" Robin yelled and then smiled softly at them. "Happy for you two dinguses but I don't want to witness anything."

"We should get the kid to Claudia, anyway," Eddie grinned.

Steve smiled as she walked out of the school with her best friend, the boy she thought of like a brother, and her new boyfriend. This was the best day ever, and she was glad that she had decided to do this. . .she also loved how many people were willing to help out. . .hold on, were Jonathan and Nancy here for her sweater?

"Oh, hey, look! It's Hop!" Dustin exclaimed.

Sure enough, Hopper's police car was in the parking lot. . .curious, they met him halfway.

"Well, we got reports that Dustin was kidnapped," Hopper said, squinting his eyes at them. "I'm guessing that's not the case."

"Nope!" Dustin exclaimed.

"Goddamnit. . ."

Steve shared a grin with Eddie. They were definitely having a better do than he was. Steve gripped the bat in her hand, ready to face whatever came their way.

"Shit," Eddie muttered. "I knew I forgot to tell someone about the plan. . ."

[sillygoofyqueer]

OKAY OKAY OKAY I HAD A DAY OFF FROM EDUCATION BECAUSE THE ILLNESS HAS STRUCK ME DOWN. HOWEVER, LADS, WE'VE GOT MORE MAD SCIENTIST AU TO YAP ABOUT. Right, so, shenanigans may be going on during the war camp of the Sunshot Campaign, but there is still a war going on. Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen decide that it's the best time to start advancing to take back the land that was taken by the Wen and, while the battles are still gruelling as all hell, Wei Wuxian is a literal demon on the battlefield. The rumours say that he clambered up from the depths of the most uninhabitable place in the world and bloodshed followed every step he took. The Wen and Jin both cower at the mere mention of the Yiling Patriarch appearing to take back control over those that left him to a fate worse than death, and when the low, howling melody of a flute rings out across the battlefield, you can see them begin to falter, looking around in panic to try and catch a sight of the monster before the dead rise to follow his commands. He doesn't even deign to draw his sword once against them.

It's not just Wei Wuxian gaining popularity through these battles. Alongside the aggressive stance of Sandu Shengshou and the elegant but unyielding blows of Hanguang-Jun, there is a more surprising legend joining the ranks. An archer whose arrows always strike true, often burning with spiritual flame to cause even more damage to the unfortunate soul the man's eyes have landed upon in the fleeting moment. Fèng bǐ zhǔ (鳳匕主- Phoenix Dagger Master) is possibly one of the most skilled archers in the Sunshot Campaign, dark eyes sharp and observant to pick out the biggest potential dangers that have dodged the fierce blades of the battling warriors. Rumours say he has killed many men with a single arrow (yes it was being used as a dagger but that's still cool as hell), and his blade tipped bow has felled many souls without the requirement of arrows. The wind seems to follow his command with how he guides his arrows into the bodies of his enemies. Wen Ning thinks it's all a bit over the top, but how could his family ever just brush off such a thing?!

With all these legends in the making, the Wen and Jin are obviously getting more concerned about their chances of winning the war. They thought they had this literally in the bag because they weren't aware of the single teenager that had been thrown away, weren't aware of how easily he could change the tides of the battle. Even then, there's other teenagers gaining names for themselves that they didn't think would ever reach so far in life. Viewed as little brats who were just bits of dirt to be brushed aside for the main goal of power and control of the entire Jianghu. They're learning all of this information, Jin Guangshan is realising that he threw his lots in with the wrong guy and is severely regretting his decision. Wen Ruohan is getting very frustrated because FENGBI-ZHU?? You mean, his NEPHEW?? The one who was being held hostage?! So it's safe to say that he's pissed off. You know who he has within his possession? UH OH!! THE DAFAN WEN!!!

There is a suspicious lull in battle that nobody expected, one that has everyone braced for a sudden, violent attack of sorts. Wen Qing, who has been using Wei Ying's crows to get messages to the Dafan Wen for updates, suddenly loses all contact with them. These are warning signs for a very very bad thing happening. Wen Qing brings this information to Lan Wangji, not wanting to worry her didis about it, and he takes it straight to his gege at her request because his gege can help with this. They forget that there is a certain twelve year old who eavesdrops for fun around the camp, and one who will immediately tell his gege everything he hears, especially if it's explicitly linked to their family. Wei Ying tells Wen Ning, and they do what two teenagers who are extremely worried about their family would do. They sneak OUT of the war camp and INTO WEN TERRITORY.

Lan Wangji is the first to notice Wei Ying missing, of course he is, looking around and finding a strangely worried looking Xue Yang peering around the camp himself. He asks his new didi where Wei Ying is, and Xue Yang is actually sheepish and panicked because he's TWELVE and his gege is missing right after he told him about a potentially awful situation. He immediately spills everything to Lan Wangji because he honestly didn't expect both Wei-gege AND Wen-gege to go MIA the moment he turned his back! Lan Wangji is obviously like "oh shit fuck no" and goes to his gege because this is bad. Wen Qing goes fucking insane the moment that she hears the news that two of her moronic didis have seemingly gone into enemy territory without even letting her know, without even seemingly strategising. This is fucking awful, and she can't go running after them because she can't just leave Xue Yang without anyone - he is just as important as her other didis now, even with his stupidity sometimes.

Meanwhile, Wei Ying and Wen Ning are rushing to Dafan on their swords, obviously. The only reason they aren't immediately shot down by patrolling Wen guards is because the clouds are good cover and the crows are far too happy to assist in distracting the guards so they can get past denser populations. They didn't really think much before they went off, grabbing a few days' food and medical supplies in case of danger. Wen Ning's bow is heavy on his back, and Chenqing is practically buzzing in response to the resentful energy thrashing around in its master's chest with every breath that he takes. The boys don't talk much, brains flashing wildly between "this was such a stupid idea" and "our family is in danger and we have to help them." This urgency is what propels them faster, forgoing sleep as much as possible without losing their instincts - they don't have time to stop, they can't even think about considering stopping until they finally land in Dafan Village.

It is deadly silent. There is usually always something or other going on in the village, but there is nothing. There is familiar char upon the wood making up the usually lively homes, a scent of smoke filling the senses the moment they step into this ghost village. It's a silent, cautious walk through the streets, the damage only getting worse the further in they get. Wei Ying catches a much, much more familiar scent beginning to rise to the forefront of the smoke, and he shares a very panicked look with Wen Ning, who can't smell it, but can definitely see the blood splattering the stone stairs and soaking into the dirt beneath their feet. Wen Ning is the first to start sprinting, yelling out the names of his beloved family with every corner turned, and Wei Ying is close behind, all thoughts of secrecy gone as they hurtle towards the centre of the village, desperate to find them just roughed up as a warning or something. A threat, maybe.

Instead, they find a pile of corpses. Discarded like rubbish, left to rot away in the centre of their precious village, the one place they were supposed to be truly safe. Blood permeates the air, covering the scene like an almost morbid decoration, and there's a distinct smell of burnt flesh with every breath. Wen Ning can't look for even a second longer than necessary before he's stumbling away, emptying the contents of his stomach - he has seen shit from the war, but nothing hits like seeing his family like this - and a sort-of-scream, sort-of-anguished-groan escapes him. Wei Ying, however, cannot look away. He stares emptily at the sight in front of him, everything else fading to a distant, muffled mess. This is all his fault, he knows it. This physically cannot be happening. He stumbles forwards, hands reaching to - what? He doesn't know, but he's gently scooping up the first corpse he can get a proper grip on, going to get them out of an undignified pile.

Wen Ning is having a mental breakdown but starts trying to help out, not wanting to leave his family in such a state. Wei Ying is basically disassociating as he starts laying out these bodies on the floor, murmuring apologies for the indignity the whole time. He's worked with corpses before, he's very methodical with it, and he tries not to look too much at their faces as he gently rests them upon the blood soaked ground. He's so focused on being careful with everything he does that it's hard to realise that there's something shifting around in the pile of corpses. He actually thinks it's a possible walking corpse trapped within its confines at first, but then he scoops up yet another body one of his aunties and realises that its holding something in its arms, clutched to its chest. He goes about laying out the body, familiar red smeared upon his robes as he finally removed its arms from its chest and finds these big, blinking eyes staring out at him from within a dirty, mudded blanket.

[greynatomy]

the one that got away

alessia russo x reader

second part to regret. had a lot of fun writing this and might do more polls if i can’t choose for myself again. also, ignore how many times rory’s age is asked. didn’t realize how many times i wrote it in.

part 1

———

“Gather ‘round girls!” Jonas’ voice brings Leah back to the present.

Everyone comes together at the middle of the gym, waiting for what Jonas is gonna say.

“Just wanna welcome everyone who was in Australia back and also our ACL squad. We’re all glad to see you all up and running.” Everyone cheers and claps. “Now, I wanna welcome our new signing, Alessia Russo.” Alessia walks towards the group awkwardly, not wanting to trip.

“Hi.” She gives a small wave.

“Don’t be shy Lessi. We’re all friendly.”

“Yeah! We don’t bite!”

Over the course of the week, Alessia gets situated with the team and the dynamics, learning how to play with her new team.

“Mrs. Russo, someone’s been calling your phone. It’s says there’s ten missed calls.”

“From who?”

“Amore Mio.”

Everyone’s attention is now on Alessia, all curios about the girl’s significant other, judging from the name that the trainer said that was shown on her phone.

“Hi, love. What happened? So, she’s fine. Yeah. Okay. Thanks for letting me know. I love you. See you later.”

She gives her phone back to one of the trainers, telling them to inform her if you were to call again.

“What was that all about?” Katie asks in her usual loud voice.

“Oh, sorry. My daughter got hurt at preschool.”

“Wait. Hold up! Daughter? You have a daughter?” She didn’t know who asked, but saw the rest of the team walking closer to her.

“Uh, yeah.”

“How old is she?”

“She’s three now.”

“And I’m guessing you didn’t carry cause you’ve not really took a break from football.”

“Nope. Won’t be carrying any babies in me. Freaks me out a bit, but my wife happily did it.”

“So you have a kid and a wife and none of us knew about it?”

“No one really knows. We wanted to keep it to ourselves. I didn’t want the public knowing and plastering their face in the media yet, and we like our little bubble.”

“Not even Tooney knew?”

“Oh, Tooney knew. She had to give the best friend talk and all that. Wanted to know her opinion before anything turned serious and now we’re four years strong, three of them married.”

“So, when do you think we’ll meet ‘em?”

———

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

“Not really, but have to be. I’ll be seeing a lot of her more since you’ve transferred.”

“It’s been five years too, she’d probably moved on, yeah?”

“Don’t know Lessi. I hope so. Now let’s get little princess dressed.”

“I’ve already dressed her, babe. Just waiting on you.”

You looked at her skeptically.

“You? Dressed Rory?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Alessia asked, offense written on her face.

“Nothing bad, Less. Just, you turn her into a mini me every time.”

“And she loves it every time. I love when the two of you match. My favorite girls.

“And when this baby pops out of me, no doubt he’ll be a mini you.”

“I won’t be outnumbered this time.”

———

“Sorry, I’m late. Kid ran away while I tried getting her in the car.” Alessia explained, walking to where everyone was gathered in the backyard.

“You’re fine. Now, who is this little one?”

“Wanna say your name bubs?”

“I Rory. I dis many.” She says holding up three fingers.

“Woah. That’s a lot of fingers.” Your daughter giggles.

“Did that wife of yours come?”

“Yeah, she probably went to the—”

“—Sorry. I had to go to the washroom. It’s nice to meet you all. Name’s—”

“—Y/n.” Leah finishes, shocked, voice shaking.

“…Hi, Leah.”

“You two know each other.” Katie asks, intrigued how the skipper knew you.

“Uh, yeah. We used to be close friends.”

“No. She was my wife.” You could’ve heard a pin drop from how silent everyone was.

“Okay. Woah. There is a lot to unpack here.”

“And they can do it privately.” Alessia intervened.

“You know about our history.” Leah turns to Alessia, hurt all over her face. She was close to the girl, being on the national team together and the whole time she was in a relationship with her ex-wife.

“Of course I do. She’s my wife.”

The dinner was pretty awkward for a bit after the interaction. Rory have been playing with some of the other girls, you staying by your wife’s side getting to know her teammates.

Eventually, Leah got the courage to go up to you.

“Hey, uh, do you think we could talk?”

You look up at her, seeing the nervous look on her face.

“Sure. Honey, help me up.” Alessia grabs ahold of your hand and the other on your arm to stabilize you. “Let’s go inside.”

You go to little sitting area in the corner of the living room, away from everyone, but not out of sight. There was a couple seconds of silence, very awkward silence.

“Are you just not gonna say anything?”

Leah apologizes. “Uh, how’ve you been?”

“Doing pretty good.”

Another awkward silence.

“I’m sorry. I don’t really know what to say. I’ve had five years to practice what I was gonna say to you if I ever would run into you, but it just slipped my mind. But I guess I wanted to apologize and say that I took you for granted. I don’t deserve your forgiveness at all for being distant, lying to you about where I’ve been doing or going… for, uh, cheating on you. I’ve hated myself the second it happened.”

“Why’d you do it?”

“What?”

“Why’d you do it? Was it something I did that made you go to another that you should’ve gone to me for or—”

“—No! God, no! You did nothing wrong, it was all on me. I don’t really have an explanation as shitty as it sounds.”

“It’s been five years and I do forgive you. I think I forgave you the moment I met my wife. I needed to close the door on our relationship to be able to truly love her how she should be loved, so I forgive you. Doesn’t mean that I’ll ever forget. But you are forgiven.”

“Thank you.”

Before anyone can say anything else, your daughter runs to you, climbing into your lap.

“Hi, Mommy.”

“Hi, baby. You having fun?”

“Yeah! Stephy and Kya (Kyra) pway with me.”

“That’s so sweet of them.”

Leah watches your interaction with your daughter, a sad smile on her face.

“How old is she?”

“Hey, Rory. This is Mama’s teammate Leah. Can you tell her how old you are?”

“I free!” She holds up three fingers towards Leah.

“Woah! You’re so big! And you have a little sibling on the way. Can I ask how far along you are?” The question directed towards you.

“I’m five months along. It’s a boy.”

“Congratulations.”

“Thank you! Well, it’s been great catching up with you Leah. I’m glad you’re doing well.”

Leah watches you walk away, your daughter on your hip, towards your wife who was chatting up with a few teammates. She watches Alessia grab Aurora from you, giving you a smile and a kiss, seeing the love you two have.

Maybe in another life, one she hadn’t screwed up on , that could’ve been you and her, but she was just glad that you have someone who lived you the way you deserve to be loved.

Now, that she got everything out of her chest, she would be able to move on, but you’ll always be the one that got away.

[howlingday]

Dolts In Love

Penny: I will wait in the car while you commit acts of terrorism.

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

Yang: I'm the Yang. I'm just Yangin'. Walkin' down the street, swingin' my arms side-to-side like they're big, heavy rucksacks... Now that's what I like to call Yangin'.

Yang: Hop in the Yang Wangin'.

Yang: Uh oh... You've made me angry. Now you've woken the DRANGIN'.

Ruby: ...

Ruby: You do realize you have OTHER huntresses you can use, right?

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

Penny: Okay. This guy's a criminal. Okay, that's fine. There's no reason not to beat up a criminal. We could try calling a huntsman, but there's no huntsmen in this town. BECAUSE WHY WOULD THERE BE?!

Penny: (Shakily holding mug of coffee, Terrified)

Ruby: Penny is my best friend. I don't go anywhere without her.

Penny: Idea! Maybe we shouldn't kill people at all?

Ruby: You're right. TORTURE IS A BETTER WAY TO GET MORE INFORMATION.

Penny: S-Stop! That's not what I said!

Ruby: Thanks for the idea, Penny. You're always full of them. I'll be sure to credit you on terrorism.com.

Ruby: (Always has Crescent Rose at back, Bites people) Penny, we've found another reliable member of Terrorism Company!

Penny: Are... Are we married to that name? Because I recall when we set out, and picked out an LLC and got a lawyer, I really thought we were going to open up a B&B chain. Something relaxing, you know?

Ruby: Yes. B&B. Bullets and bombs; my favorite things~! (Blushing) You always know what I like!

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

Little: ...I dunno why everyone got so excited all of a sudden, but alright. Let's rumble!

Little: Wait, are you guys the terrorists?! I follow you guys on Schneeter~!

Penny: We are not the terrorists-

Ruby: WE ARE THE TERRORISTS!

Little: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES~! Can I glomp you~?!

Ruby: (Bites them)

Penny: RUBY, DON'T KILL THEM!

Ruby: I'm just testing their resiliency... You pass...

Little: (Gasps) You just bit me~! I am never washing this fur again~!

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

Ruby: Funeral is one of my favorite words, because it has both FUN and FERAL in it kinda!

Little: Oh my gosh~! That is, like, so smart~!

Penny: I wish to protect you, but... Keep you hands off my girlfriend!

Little: Oh, I don't have hands. They're just tiny claws. Not even good for holding things. I AM STARVING.

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

Penny: Hello, Ren, I... I haven't made your acquaintance yet. What are you interested in?

Ren: I'm girl crazy~.

Penny: Oh...

Penny: (Blushing) Me too~.

Ren: I just can't get enough of those terrorist girls. Number one woman on the Atlas Most Wanted list? I'll say~.

Penny: ...Is this a terrorism harem anime?

Ruby: I think you mean "Harrorism" anime.

Penny: Ruby and I go out on dance nights sometimes.

Yang: Whoa, you guys go on dance nights? Choo choo~! Here comes the third wheel~!

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

Ruby: We have so many years together, Penny. No regrets, you and me! We'll blow up whatever we want~!

Penny: I would like to blow up the housing market with a low-priced air B&B.

Ruby: Blow up a house. Got it.

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

Maria: (In danger)

Penny: It's nice to be fighting to save an old woman. On the side of justice!

Ruby: Hm? You say something? Sorry, I was loading my gun.

Penny: No, no, it's fine. We can shoot this one.

Ruby: (Points at Maria) The old lady? Done and done~!

Penny: NO-

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

Yang: My name is Yin...

Yang: Oh, wait, I'm a girl...

Yang: My name is Yan. I went backpacking in Eastern Mistral and, man, it changed my whole outlook. So I changed my name to Yan. In Mistral, it means "Yang".

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

Little: Oh no, Penny. You should probably sit this one out. You're looking kind of tired. But who else could possibly back me up, I wonder~?

Penny: (Rips opponent's ribcage out easily, Not even responding)

Little: Ruby, did you see that?!

Ruby: ...Oh! Sorry. I was, uh... I was busy writing a, uh, card I was putting on this bouquet that I'm gonna give to my girlfriend, because I love her so much.

Little: ...Cool.

Little: Why don't you hand that over to me and I'll hand it to her for you.

Ruby: ...I don't really see reason why since we're equidistant from each other... (Hands) BUT I TRUST YOU.

Ruby: (Turns away) Your first mission...

Little: (Eating the flowers and card)

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

Ruby: If Penny asked me to, I would burn down the whole world and then myself!

Penny: I wouldn't do that. Thank you, but I would never.

Ruby: You guys are so lucky that Penny is a merciful queen!

Penny: Wh-What...?

Ruby: (Kisses Penny)

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

Way back when

Penny: (Tiny, neurotic little toaster)

Ruby: (Glaring into your soul) I'M READY TO KILL EVERYTHING.

Ruby: Tape the knife to my back!

Penny: We already tried this.

Ruby: Do it again!

Ruby: (Accidentally touches her hand)

Penny: (Blushing)

'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling~.

Ruby: (Blushing)

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

Penny: (Enjoys crime dramas)

Ruby: Oh, she's so gonna love this~!

Ruby: Penny, you're gonna love this TV show I found~!

Penny: Ruby, this is just the evening news...

Lisa Lavender: (On TV) Breaking news! A girl in a red hood has blown up Atlas Academy!.

Penny: WHAT DID YOU DO?!

Ruby: SURPRISE~!

Ruby: (Singing) Let me give you a criminal kiss~! MWAH~!.

Penny: I'm charmed, but also terrified!

Ruby: YAAAY~! I'm putting the harm in charm~!

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

Little: They don't need to get married! Maybe they could be available for a little longer? You know. In case one of them DIES.

Penny: Are you THREATENING me?!

Little: No, I'm PROMISING you.

Penny: You are literally not even an inch tall. SQUISHING YOU WOULDN'T BE DIFFICULT. (Eyes glowing) BODY DISPOSAL IS A NON-ISSUE.

Little: You could WHAT?!

Ruby: A wedding would be pretty cute.

Penny: Why do you think I keep pitching this upstate air B&B?! We need a venue!

Ruby: Huh?

Penny: Why are you never listening? What are you so distracted by?

Penny: (Looks over shoulder)

Ruby: (Crayon drawing their wedding, "PINNY+RUBY 4EVER" at top)

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

Ruby: No bodily relations before marriage! THAT IS THE RULE!

Ruby: Do you see these red borders on my outfit? Each of them is a chastity belt I've merged with my soul!

Ruby: (Sees Personal Digital Assistant, Triggered) THAT'S ILLEGAL!

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

Yang: I'm the Yan, which mean Yang, which has four letters because I have four limbs~.

Ciel: Everyone has four limbs.

Yang: Wha...

Yang: Y'all ever smoked a ponytail?

Yang: Y'all ever done some coolant?

Penny: (Shaking)

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

Ruby: Penny, I got us matching cups. Yours says, "#1 Terrorist".

Penny: Wh... What does yours say?

Ruby: ..."I love you". (Blushing)

Penny: (Blushing, Smiles)

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

Ciel: (Has no personality) I just work here.

Ciel: I'm not friend with any of these people. They're just my coworkers.

Yang: You don't even like Penny?

Ciel: No. She's annoying.

Penny: ...

Ciel: She freaks out over everything. ...What? She's annoying.

Penny: (Runs away, Crying)

Ciel: See? This is what I mean. She's annoying. This is why I don't talk.

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

Ruby: So, uh... We got some complaints. From HR. That, uh... You may have made... one of our employees cry.

Ciel: You can just say it's Penny. I know it's Penny.

Ruby: NOYOUDON'TIT'SANONYMOUS.

Ruby: We take these complaints very seriously at Terrorism Incorporated... T-Terrorism LLC, actually.

Ciel: My boss doesn't even know the legal name of her own company.

Ruby: Alright, mister... Mister? I don't know. Is Ciel a boy?

Ren: Uh... No.

Ciel: Wow. Wow.

Ruby: Okay, alright, you know what? We'll call it a even here and forget this meeting ever happened. Good-bye.

Ciel: ...Yeah.

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

Ciel: (Did livestream with 1,000,000 viewers)

Little: You never mentioned this.

Ciel: Yeah. On purpose. I don't want you guys watching me. I complain about you on my stream a lot.

Penny: Do you tell people we're terrorists?!

Ciel: Is it supposed to be a secret? We're pretty brazen about it. Also, everyone in this kingdom is a criminal. This place is a cesspool.

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

Yang: (Falls to the ground) Ugh... It's up to you... Pyrrha...

Ren: I can't believe we got THE Pyrrha Nikos in our terrorism squad. This is going to be great for our PR.

Ilia: (Wearing plastic diadem) Y-Yeah, guys! It's me! PYRRHA!

Ilia: (Never at any time said they were Pyrrha, Everyone assumes and is a comedy of errors, Forced to live the lie now)

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

Ilia: (Standing in the middle of a hideout)

Ren: (Sharpening his knives)

Ruby: (Loading her gun)

Ilia: OH, I'M IN DANGER.

Ruby: Oh, don't worry, Pyrrha! We'll take care of you because you're a celebrity!

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

Little: I'm so sorry, Pyrrha! I had no idea the Pyrrha Nikos was a Faunus!

Ilia: YEAH, ME NEITHER!

Little: Ciel, you're the celebrity-knower girl! Why didn't you tell us Pyrrha was a Faunus?!

Ciel: Because she's not?

Little: ...WHAT?!

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

Ruby: I'm so glad Pyrrha isn't carrying this team because she's famous. She gives everyone a time in the spotlight~!

Penny: I... Her hair is brown! Right?!

Somewhat: It's a DARK red~!

Penny: I don't think that's Pyrr- Her tax returns say she's Ilia Amitola!

Ruby: DON'T DETONATE PEOPLE!

Penny: ...What?

Ren: Doxxing.

Yang: Doxxing.

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

Somewhat: (Stabbed) RUBY, I LOVE- URGKH!

Ruby: I'll never know what he said...

Ruby: Because my ears don't have any holes in them. They don't work.

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

Ruby: (Battered, Beaten, Bloodied) Penny... If- If we get through this, we can get through anything! (Holds out hand) Will you join me in the terrorist cel of life?

Penny: (Takes hand, Crying) I WILL~! OH, BROTHERS, I WILL~!

Ruby/Penny: (Epic finisher on final boss)

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

Penny: So... About the location of the wedding...

Ruby: What about that diner?

Penny: We could rent out the whole diner! All four booths~!

Ruby: I- I think that's how many friends we have. (Holds up low-polygon hand) One.

Ruby: (Holds up other low-polygon hand) One.

Penny: And we have this famous celebrity here. Why not have Pyrrha Nikos officiate? That'd be a nice feather in our cap~!

Ilia: O-Oh, uh, m-me? Really? I- (Sighs) Listen, guys-

Penny: You probably get asked all the time, since you're such a huge celebrity, but could you please?

Ilia: (Sighs)

Penny: It would mean the world to Rubita and me~.

Ilia: ...Rubita?

Ruby: Rubita sounds like a GUN!

Penny: I thought it sounded like lolita~! (Giggles) My favorite dress style~!

Ruby: Yeah, that's the one with the tiaras, right?

Penny: (Wheezing) That's right!

Ruby: Oh, that's where I remember you from!

Yang: Yo... You wear lolita outfits?

Ilia: Y-Yeah! Sure! If that keeps me alive! Yeah~!

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

There's a sequel coming. Is Jaune going to be their son? HE SUPER IS~!

[thehollowwriter]

I've been thinking about Nkulu and what he would sound like and how he would talk. He's got a heavy Xhosa accent when he speaks English or Japanese, and he uses a lot South African slang because though one parent was originally from (twst) Brazil, he was born and raised in (twst) South Africa which I think is at least in the Afterglow Savanah.

I thought I'd share some examples of slang and expressions, cause I think it would be fun to share with everyone and I don't really use South African slang online (I also think it's funny how confusing some of them can be. It feels like opposite day)

☆"Just now/now now"

The second one especially makes it sound like you mean right now at this second, but here it could be anytime between right now and tomorrow. "Go wash the dishes" "Yeah I'll do it now now" and "now now" could be in half an hour. Who knows.

☆"Shame"

Though it is used when expressing pity a lot ("Ag, shame that's terrible") it's also used in a positive way, mostly when referring to cute things. "Look at that kitten!" "Aww shame man." So uh dw we're not insulting your kitten/j

☆"Ja, nee:"

"Ja nee" is just "yes, no" in Afrikaans, and it's generally used similarly to "okay"/ to confirm or agree with something or to disagree with something. "Where you there yesterday?" Yeah, no, I was there." "The movie was good, right?" "Ja, nee I was a bit disappointed." Or just "Ja nee, I don't know."

☆"Jislaaik"

Pronounced "Yislike." Jislaaik is an Afrikaans expression of amazement, shock, or surpise. "Jislaaik that looks cool"

☆"Haibo"

(Hi-boh) This is a Zulu term that has a ton of meanings, but can basically be boiled down to an exclamation of surpise, shock, or disbelief. "Haibo, what happened?!"

☆"Yebo"

(Yeah-boh) Another Zulu term, this one means yes. However it's usually used as a very energetic and excited way of saying yes. "Hey, wanna hang out?" "Yebo!" "Hey, hey!" "Yebo?"

☆"Ag, nee man"

"Ag" is basically "Oh" (pronounced like how Germans pronounce "ach", according to Google, bc I literally have no idea how to describe the sound for G in Afrikaans sbsbdndn) "Nee, man" means "No, man." in Afrikaans. The man is pronounced "mun" kinda. The phrase is essentially a way of expressing frustration, pity, or disgust. "Ag nee man, did he really do that?"

☆"Eish"

Eish (E-sh) It's an expression of surpise for a lot of things line frustration, surpise, regret, or sympathy. (you can see we have a lot of those lol) "Eish man, that sucks."

☆"Lekker!"

(Leck-ir) There's no English equivalent for this word, but basically it's an informal Afrikaans word that has a lot of meanings depending on the context. It can mean something's great, cool, yummy, etc. "Oh, that food looks lekker." "Lekker braai, neh?" (A braai is basically a barbeque but we only cook with charcoal and it makes everything taste amazing. "Neh" is basically just our "Eh")

-

So yeah that's my little list of slang words! I hope you guys found it interesting!

Tagging: @distant-velleity @br3adtoasty @rainesol @theleechyskrunkly @jovieinramshackle

@galaxies-and-gore @cyanide-latte @cynthinesia @officialdaydreamer00 @krenenbaker

@offorestsongs @kitwasnothere @elenauaurs @boopshoops @inotonline

@1dont-really-know @kazumify @minteasketches @elysia-nsimp @skrimpyskimpy

@casp1an-sea @offorestsongs @tixdixl @poisoned-pearls @the-trinket-witch

@ramshacklerumble @ghostiidasponk @thegoldencontracts @sillyslipperybananapeel @cloudcountry

@skriblee-ksk @twstinginthewind @lumdays @theolivetree123 @natsukishinomiyaswife

@authoruio @jewelulu @raguiras @moonyasnow @skibidibabygirl

@quartztwst @yuizenihaswriten @devosin @oya-oya-okay @b0njourbeach

@kirans-wonderland @coffinkissez @idikeis @s-t-y-x @tixdixl

[ok-pop-1]

a piñata for your troubles

a goofy ficlet, you can either read it below or on ao3 :)

To say that this is a normal dungeon would be an... understatement.

It's not that there's anything particularly wrong about it, Twi thinks as he squints at the wall. The bricks are uniform(ish), there isn't (that) much wear and tear, it's all as grey and drab as some dungeons tend to be. Objectively, he's just standing in a random dungeon room with the other heroes. It could be from anywhere, anywhen, whatever.

But, it's just...

"Why the hell is there a piñata here?!" Legend shouts, pointing wildly at the bright and goofy horse-thing hanging in the center of the room.

Twi sighs. They'd only just learned what piñatas are last week from Wild, who was extremely distressed to know that the others didn't know about them. And now, in a random dungeon, that should be normal and not weird and which definitely isn't in Wild's era, there's a piñata. Just hanging there. Waiting.

"It be thinkin' ye be needin' an aneurysm." Wind marches forward, ignoring Legend's splutters to pick at the pile of fabric strips hanging below the piñata. "Should we be... fightin' it?"

All eyes turn to Time, who just shrugs. "Maybe?"

"Yes," Wars says immediately after. "We have no idea whether it is safe or not, or what could be stored within it. Better to take care of it before we move on."

'Usually it's just got candy!' Wild signs to the room, though most miss the words.

"We're so fucked," Hyrule mutters next to Twi. "Well, ready for this?"

'No,' Twi laughs, accepting a blindfold from the pile that's being passed around. 'But I'm thinkin' it'll be fun!'

"Uh-huh."

Once blindfolded, Twi is left with the realization that he can't actually see Wild, which means he can't see what Wild would presumably want to say about the best way to fight piñatas. And he's left with the second realization that nobody else can see him, so he can't exactly express that information to the group. Although, now that he thinks about it, Hyrule isn't bad at understanding sign by touch alone...

Waving awkwardly in the air, Twi eventually makes contact with Hyrule. And immediately regrets his decision when an extremely pointed punch slams into his gut.

"Monsters!" Hyrule shouts. "One must've infiltrated just now-- it grabbed me!"

"Attack, aim for the piñata first!" Wars shouts. "But be careful of each other!"

"Should we be takin' off--"

A whack! cuts Wind off, the sound of metal on paper, before immediately being followed by an "oof!" from Legend.

"One of-- those monsters-- got me!" he wheezes from the vague direction of the other side of the room.

Chaos erupts. Twi abandons the thought of using his sword, due to the far-too-close proximity of literally everyone else, and just takes to swinging with his fists. He's pretty sure that there aren't actually any monsters infiltrating their ranks, but it's hard enough to tell amongst the repeated callouts of monster locations.

Eventually, though, one of his fists connects with paper. The piñata.

Gritting his teeth, Twi cocks his arm back and gears up. Sets his feet just-so, prepares to fling himself behind the hit and take care of this possibly-or-possibly-not-cursed piñata in one go. Swings, mentally shouting, imagining the piñata before him, quaking in its papery boots at the sight of his fist barreling down on it.

His hand collides with what can only be described as a metal wall, the clang! of it ringing through the entire room.

"What was that?!" "Time, are you--" "More monsters??" "I found the piñata!"

A tearing sound-- and then the sound of someone (Legend) cackling-- ensues. And then, nothing but utter silence.

Well, not entirely nothing. Twi holds his hand to his chest, because he's pretty sure he just broke every single finger on Time's armor, and his ego admittedly feels defeated by that fact. Oh, and it hurts like a bitch.

"Hey!" Wind shouts. "There only be the piñata! No monsters!"

Huh? Twi (and everyone else, apparently) tug off their blindfolds to stare at...

Seven bedraggled heroes, one piñata lying torn to shreds on the ground, and Wild, sitting with a smug grin at the edge of the room.

'You know,' he says, 'you're not all supposed to put on the blindfolds.'

Shouting sounds from several heroes. Twi drops his head in his one working hand. Lesson learned: next time, ask Wild to elaborate before charging in.

...And ask questions before Wind cheerfully hands you a blindfold. Twi makes sure to note that one, too.

[frostycatblr-fandom-files]

(hi thank you for being understanding about my question and being cool with doing this!) can I ask for headcanons for somethin like movie night with the 501st? Gender neutral reader is fine

Of course babes. 🩷 We can do movie night any night with the 501st!

Warnings and Information: There’s nothing to do in the barracks tonight, and it’s been a long time since anyone’s seen a good movie. So, throw in like fifteen packets of popcorn in the microwave (one at a time, Hardcase) to get this popcorn poppin’, because the 501st + one good friend is having a movie night! (Once mostly everyone agrees on what to watch, of course…) Blankets, pillows, snacks, and cozy Clone cuddle-piles galore~ Who’s falling asleep first? 😴 2nd person POV with an undescribed reader who has a gender neutral nickname. Bullet point format. We’ll use a little Mando’a, as a treat. Fluff and good feelings all around. Everyone’s happy. Everyone’s safe. 💙

Word count: 1,652

The previews

There’s no paperwork to do, there’s no assignment they need to ship out for in the morning, and they’ve gone ahead and tidied up the bed racks for good measure. They could play some Sabbac to kill the time, but they’ve either lost or misplaced more than half the deck, and they don’t feel like the lights and thumping bass of the local drinking hole tonight. (It’s just not quite the same as 79’s…) Nobody really has the energy to do much of anything, but given their purpose and training as soldiers, they don’t often have nights like this where they simply do… nothing. Being idle leaves a gnawing feeling of discomfort for many in the 501st, so they’re trying to come up with a plan.

“Uh-oh. Hardcase has his thinking face on.” someone mumbles, growing slightly uneasy. 

“I got it. I’m gonna call someone.” Hardcase declares, punching in one of his favorite contacts on the comlink. This makes the ARC troopers slightly nervous. “Not the Captain, I hope-” Fives chimes in warningly. “With any luck he’s just gone to the mess.”

Hardcase shakes his head, grinning broadly before he punches ENTER on the device. “Nah, I’m not calling the Captain right now, I’m callin’ Ember!”

You’re a favorite of the 501st. At least, that’s your theory. 

And through one series of events after the other, you've become well acquainted with them and their antics.

Why else would you possibly need to be commed in the middle of a meal? “Don’t answer that.” Captain Rex advises you. You both barely started eating. It’s not an emergency tone. It can wait. But… maybe you should see who it is, first? “Umm… Hardcase is calling me.” you reply. That means one of two likely scenarios.

Boredom, or trouble.

Specifically future trouble.

(Or he’s in trouble.)

You’re at least going to see how urgently you need to scarf down your meal so the Captain has time to enjoy his for once in three blue moons. “Hello? What's going on Hardcase?” 

“Hey little flame, you wanna do something tonight? We’re bored!”

“Define bored…” You’re gonna regret asking that, you’re sure. “And who’s “we” exactly, Hardcase? How many others are listening?” The jumbled cacophony of names and voices tells you it’s mostly Torrent Company, which you pretty much expected. “... hi Echo and Fives… hello Dogma … hey there Tup, I’m doing okay, thanks… yup, just trying to eat a little dinner, Kix…” 

So why exactly did he call you, you ask Hardcase, exchanging wary glances with the cobalt captain. What's going on? "Do you know where we can find a lot of popcorn for a movie night? You and the Captain are invited too of course, little flame!"

Grab your snacks…

The bunkroom has been torn apart by the time you and Captain Rex make your way in from the mess hall, and it smells better than you imagined for military sleeping quarters. Lots of beds are missing mattresses, bedding, and pillows. Except for Dogma's. His is untouched, saved for a slight rumple in the sheets. "Boys, we're here! … Where'd all the stuff go?" You step further into the room, and find all the missing mattresses laid side-by-side on the floor near one end of the room, where everyone's either currently wrangling with the holo-projector, or taking down a few posters from the wall to clear the space that will serve as your "screen". Tup spots the pair of you first. "Oh, good. Captain and Ember are here!" 

Hardcase is grateful that you found some popcorn for movie night, and that you could come join in for the fun. "There ya are, burc'ya! Just in time to start deciding on a movie!" He offers to get a jump on getting all the popcorn bags popped too, with the promise it's not going to be like last time. Trying to pop more than one bag resulted in a small fire, last time, evidently. 

Jesse and Kix are scouring over the descent film selection together, sorting them by type or genre. Action. Horror. Family-oriented. There's- how'd this kids movie end up in here? Eh, no thanks on the war films, we see enough of that. "What about a comedy?" you suggest, rifling through the stack to see what your pickings are there. There's a couple you do and don't recognize, and some that are tied to fond memories from before the war. "This is a good one, I think most of you guys will like it. I used to watch this a lot whenever I needed a good laugh, or some cheering up." 

Everyone agrees to give it a shot at least if that's what you recommend. In any case, it'll be difficult to get everyone to agree on one holo, and more than half of men squeezed around you on this giant raft of mattresses, blankets and pillows will probably fall asleep partway through it anyhow. 

… and enjoy the show!

"C'mon Dogma, come join us!" you urge with a friendly smile, seeing him return to his neatly-made bunk. "There's plenty of room, I'm sure." Tup and Hardcase, slightly sprawled next to you on your left, would need to move a bit to make it happen. Echo and Fives are sitting nearest the projector, their shoulders brushing against one another with every little movement. Jesse has positioned himself nearest the Captain, who is also beside you on your right. "It's okay if you don't, either. Nobody's gonna force you." you add pointedly, just as you feel someone start to pull his legs under him to go drag his brother into the tangle of limbs and bedding. Maybe he's more comfortable on his bunk. Or perhaps he's not interested in a film right now.

The lights are dimmed, the snacks are passed around, and the film begins. 

You only make it fifteen minutes into the film before there's a casualty: Kix, diligent man that he is to make sure all his brothers are taken care of, falls asleep behind you. "Psst! Kix, can you pass me the- oh nevermind. Ember, could you grab the candy under his arm before it melts?" You carefully wiggle it free and pass it up to Jesse before tucking a loose blanket kicking around over Kix. Generally, once Kix is out, he's out, so the group doesn't have to worry about waking him for a while. 

Hardcase stays surprisingly still through most of the movie so long as he keeps his hands mostly occupied in some capacity, or has one of his brothers leaning on him in some way. He's a very tactile person, so it's no surprise that he's slowly migrating around the raft of mattresses as each of his brothers either allow Hardcase to fiddle around with stuff he finds in their pockets, or just hold him close in a brotherly embrace for a bit if he's getting too disruptive. (He eventually settles down around the midpoint of the movie, and is one of the few who stays awake through the whole thing.)

Tup pays attention to most of the comedy film, occasionally conversing in whispers with Fives and Echo about their opinions on the jokes until Echo nods off for a bit, and the hushed conversation continues back up again when he wakes up before movie's end. It's Jesse who's not paying much attention to the film, but he's not too disruptive. Jesse almost makes it to the end of the movie before he falls asleep in the middle of scrolling through something on a datapad that's made its way into the nest of pillows and blankets and limbs, his head resting on Captain Rex's knee. 

Dogma does eventually join everyone on the floor. You suspect he was starting to feel a little left out, or maybe he changed his mind about the offer you made earlier, growing bored of whatever he'd been reading on his datapad, or deciding he'd give the movie a try. He tentatively makes his way over, and asks if he can still sit by you. "Of course, Dogma. Here, I saved some popcorn for you!" You give him the rest of the bowl you'd set aside for him, unable to get up and give it to him yourself since you've got multiple people surrounding you. (You didn't want Dogma to miss out on the snacks just because he wasn't initially watching the movie with everyone.) "Thanks for saving me some, Ember." Captain Rex reaches behind you and gives Dogma a warm pat on the shoulder. "Glad you joined us, brother." There's an unspoken finally in his words, but he's just glad to see that Dogma didn't end up isolating himself for long. 

You and Captain Rex, being firmly in the middle of the mattress pile, end up being the ones who become the human pillows of the group. It's nice to see all your friends having fun tonight, and be a part of enjoying a movie together. No stiff, uncomfortable armor; everyone's either in their fatigues or their blacks, and draped over and across their friends and brothers. Everyone is content and full of maybe a little too much popcorn and other snacks. You'll have a heck of a mess on your hands to clean up, either in the morning, or when everyone returns their respective mattresses to their bunks tonight, too.

Nights like this are how it should be. Everyone's happy and there are signs of trust everywhere you look. Brothers let their sleeping siblings rest on their shoulders, against their backs, their legs, or under their arms without complaint. There are sleepy smiles and shared blankets. Those who stayed awake until the end are now joking happily with one another and their Captain, and you too. 

And for a moment, in this night that will become a cherished memory no matter which way this war winds up, everyone you care about is safe. 

And what could be better than that?

Don't have a fic taglist for the time being, but I'll likely start one soon if I can figure out how to make those forms some people have since I write a variety of stuff. For now, though, if you'd like to join a taglist for specific types of fics (for example: just TBB-centric or just TCW-centric (or both)) don't hesitate to ask. 🩷

[Masterlist] [TCW Masterlist] [Requests: OPEN]

[orphiczaney]

uh oh i’ve done it again.

they’re back, bitches.

yknow what that means? i’m gonna yap about them more.

y’all know that meme that goes “HER pronouns are THEY/THEM!!!” yeah that’s the dynamic between inez and alastor. he hasn’t quite figured out how pronouns work, and inez is very patient with him :]

one day after a long shoot they immediately go to the bar and this conservation ensues:

inez: HUSK. YOU’RE A CAT.

husk: bad start.

inez: DO YOU PURR???

husk: …why

inez: BECAUSE *exasperated sigh* I HAD A CAT WHEN I WAS ALIVE AND ANYTIME I WAS SAD HE’D COME LAY ON MY CHEST AND PURR UP A STORM AND IT ALWAYS MADE ME FEEL BETTER AND RIGHT NOW I AM IN EMOTIONAL DISTRESS.

husk: no-

inez: HUSK CAN I PRETTY PLEASE WITH A CHERRY ON TOP LAY ON YOU WHILE YOU PURR?? STRICTLY PLATONICALLY. I WILL NEVER SPEAK ABOUT IT TO A SOUL. PINKY PROMISE. PLEASE. I WILL GIVE YOU $50.

husk: …UGH fucking fine

speaking of cuddling, inez has in fact done so with angel. they love the chest fluff. honestly, inez has probably cuddled with EVERYONE in the hotel, except for alastor, because other than husk, inez is who most people go to vent to. they are just a very good listener.

they have been hit by approximately 13 different cars. the fact that they are not dead dead is a fucking miracle.

in their life inez was an editor for a big name author, as an attempt to boost their own writing career. unfortunately, their tendency to trip on benadryl to come up with their ideas was their achilles heel, being the thing that killed them.

inez is fascinated by nifty. they just think she is such a silly little creature that they are dedicated to trying to become besties with her.

like real deer, they are incredibly jumpy, and are easily shaken by loud noises. they freeze up when they get startled. because of this they wear sound proof headphones around the hotel, so that the antics of everyone else don’t keep them consistently frozen up. it also means that they are very soft spoken, as even their own voice startles them occasionally. (one time they accidentally dropped something while helping angel clean his room and of course that made them freeze in place. it was the first time angel had seen this happen, and he genuinely thought that they had died again) now this does have very sad implications when you take their relationship with val into consideration, but i’m choosing to keep this post lighthearted, so i won’t get into that

i regret to inform you form you that inez does in fact have four nipples, like real deer.

they have weekly meetings with vaggie to try and improve on their ability to stand up for themself. it is pretty much just a big roleplay session where vaggie pretends to be a Big Mean Guy, and inez tries to speak their mind. it’s kind of working! one time angel was admittedly being a bit of an asshole, sort of undermining inez’s struggles with val, and they WENT OFF ON HIM. they did profusely apologize afterwards for ‘being mean’ and angel had to be like “no, you’re right, stop that, i was being a cunt, always tell me when i’m being a cunt.”

they build legos with sir pentious. he’s like being creative and making his own shit, and inez is just following the instructions to make a big flower :]

[hannahbarberra162]

Hiiii! Just appearing here to vent after spending the whole day being treated like an animal (it's not hypothetical, not a force of expression, I mean literally), and to point after that experience that your Readers didn't suffer enough AT ALL - I'm not dramatic - and that I understand them (within the acceptable, right?!). Sometimes you're in a really shitty situation, and you realize that, but you start to fluctuate between fear of getting out and regretting it and the curiosity about what's going to happen next.

P.S: To be clear, I'm doing great, this was just the result of a very strange and dubious freshman college culture!

P.S.S: And I wasn't so literally treated like an animal, but closer than far! Kinda crazy

Uhhhh @luarsunnynny, are you OK? What kind of college are you going to??? Blink twice if you need Luffy to save you. I’m a while from college but I’m here if you need to chat. In your honor, a college Marco / birding blorbo. Marco is whatever age you want him to be lol, doesn’t have to be a lot older.

Brief - AU College, Marco x F!Reader

You’d signed up for the ornithology outpost course as an effort to get the last four science credits you needed. It was perfect - you loved being outdoors and it was in the mountains. You’d always wanted to go but hadn’t had the time while you were studying for your degree. You’d be able to pay for it like it was school but it would function more like an extended camping trip. None of your friends were going - they all had jobs or internships over the summer. There wasn’t any reception where you were going, you’d all agreed to write letters to one another.

You’d tried signing up for the geology course but it had filled too quickly. Your second choice was marine biology, but you’d missed that one too. So you signed up for ornithology, which had quite a few available spots. You’d heard a lot about the course from others in the department - the course was rigorous and challenging but not impossible. You’d also heard that the instructor was old but fair. In his prime, he’d been the holder of the Big Year title for multiple years in a row. 

You packed up your things, making sure you had everything on the list. The day arrived when you were to meet the class at the bus taking you to the camp site. You stood at the designated area, twiddling awkwardly with the straps to your bag. A very handsome guy about your age with no shirt came up to you, cowboy hat on his head. 

“Is this the spot for the bird class?” He had a much lighter pack than you - did he remember to bring anything?

“Oh, uh, yeah. This is it. Are you in the class?” You inwardly cringed. Of course he was in the class, that’s why he was asking.

“Yeah, yeah. Couldn’t get into the entomology class, so I picked birds. Kinda similar.” He smiled at you. They were not at all similar, but you nodded anyway. He continued talking to you. “Did you hear that the instructor semi retired over the summer? Apparently his son is teaching the class this summer when we’re in the field and he’s teaching the classroom lessons. Hope he’s easier than the Pops.” You hadn’t heard anything but you hoped he was good too. The guy extended his hand. “I’m Ace,” he said. You saw a tattoo on his arm bearing the same information. 

“Nice to meet you, Ace. I think we’ll be spending a lot of time together this summer,” you said, cringing again. A few more students showed up, the group nearly completed. The door to the bus opened and a very tall and very good looking man got off holding a coffee mug. He looked quite chilled, like he was a counselor for a summer camp instead of a professor. He smiled at the group, and adjusted his glasses. 

“I’m Marco Newgate, the field instructor for the ornithology course. Hope everyone’s in the right place yoi. We’ll be leaving in a few moments, put your bags on the luggage racks please.” He turned and went back on the bus, sitting and drinking his coffee with his legs crossed.

Newgate? Like the shipping magnate Newgate? You’d signed up for the summer course, but you’d end up with a summer crush if you spent enough time with Marco. He was exactly your type, but obviously these were just silly thoughts. He was your professor. Your hot, knowledgeable, ornithology professor. And nothing more.

[rinsilverstar223]

Chapter 18

My head aches as I wake up. Everything hurts, but the bed I am lying in is so comfy and warm. I want to stay just like this for as long as possible until the pain goes away.

Voices are talking nearby. The closest one sounds like Hong Hai’er as he asks, “are you sure he’s going to be alright, Mother?”

“Don’t worry, Hai’er. He’ll be fine with some rest, I’m sure.” That’s Princess Iron Fan’s voice. What’s going on? Why is she here?

I force my eyes open and instantly regret it. The light makes my head hurt even worse, so I quickly close my eyes again and groan. Ow.

“I think he’s waking up, Mother. How much do you think he remembers from what happened? Do you think we should tell him about-?” my fiery friend says.

His mother cuts him off, “let me handle explaining things, Hai’er. It’s…it’s not an ideal situation at all.”

“Mother?”

I hear PIF sigh and reply, “let mommy handle it, okay? This isn’t something you should worry about.”

“How can I not worry about it? The sworn brother of yours that you cared so much about and thought was dead for centuries just showed up out of the blue and hurt my best friend!”

What? What are they talking about? The last thing I remember…is being with Macaque, I think? I was delivering noodles and then weird stuff started happening…right? My head hurts too much to really think about what happened and how I got here.

Eventually, my consciousness fades out again.

--

When I come to once more, the pain in my head and body has lessened significantly. I open my eyes slowly, relieved that the light in the room doesn’t hurt as much as before. Looking around, I recognize that I’m in that guest room of the Demon Bull Family Fortress. The same one that I was in before when I was kidnapped. I wasn’t kidnapped again, was I?

Further examination leads to the discovery of Hong Hai’er seemingly asleep in the chair next to the bed. It’s strange to see him look so relaxed that I almost want to giggle at the oddity of the situation. I refrain from doing so and instead sit up, wincing slightly at the still present ache in my chest.

My movement unfortunately wakes my friend up. He jumps up from his seat and looks right at me. “Xiaotian! You’re awake!”

I flinch. “Not so loud, please.”

He sits back down. “My apologies. How are you feeling? Are you still in pain?”

“Uh, I’m still a little achy, but not as bad as I was earlier, I guess,” I respond, taking a deep breath that sends prickles of pain through my ribs. “Um, so…what happened? My memory is kind of a mess right now. I know I was out on a delivery, and then I had a day off? And everyone was acting really weird? It’s all really fuzzy and jumbled up.”

“I’m not sure of all the details either, but I know that you were captured by some Demons at one point. They trapped you in a calabash. And then when you got out of the calabash, you went somewhere else with…with someone else.” The Fire Demon looks really uncertain as he tries to explain. Then, he stands up. “My mother will be able to explain things better. Please wait here while I go inform her that you are awake.”

“Oh, uh, okay,” I reply. Something about all this has me feeling really uneasy. I was trapped in a calabash? I got out and went somewhere with someone else? Was it Macaque?

I watch Hong Hai’er leave. I know the two of us are friends now, but I’m still not super comfortable with the idea of talking to either of his parents. They kind of scare me. But maybe I should give them the same second chance as I gave him? It’s only fair, right?

After a while, my friend returns with his mother. Princess Iron Fan looks just as beautiful and terrifying as she did before. The sight of her kind of makes my anxiety increase, but I try to stay calm. I can do this. I can have one conversation with her if it means figuring out what happened, right?

The former Celestial Maiden sits down in the chair that Hong Hai’er previously occupied. To my increased discomfort with the situation, my friend leaves the room so that it’s just the two of us in here. Come on, Xiaotian, you got this. She’s not that scary right now. She’s just your friend’s mom, right?

“You must have many questions about what happened,” PIF starts off in such a stiff manner. “I will explain to you what I know of what happened. I was informed by Hai’er that you had gone missing, so together we set out to try and find you. By following the traces of your aura through the city, I came across a rundown building in the lower city where Demons had resided. They left behind plans that detailed trapping you in a calabash. I can assume they somehow succeeded, but you were able to break out. However, there was another presence that came in and took you away to an abandoned warehouse that had been transformed into some kind of dojo.”

I nod. So Macaque rescued me from the Demons and brought me back to his dojo.

“Qi Xiaotian, I must ask you, what do you know about the Six-Eared Macaque King, Liu’er Mihou?”

My mind struggles to process the question. “Liu’er Mihou? That name does sound familiar, but I’m not exactly sure, uh, Your Highness.”

“The one who brought you away from that Demon’s hideout was Liu’er Mihou.”

“Ah, wait, Macaque doesn’t-” I stop myself. Macaque does have six ears. I remember that I briefly saw them. Is he actually this Liu’er Mihou? The Six-Eared Macaque King?

“He told you to call him Macaque? How long have you known him?”

I bite my lip. “He told me not to tell anyone. He didn’t want anyone to know.”

PIF sighs heavily, looking rather sad. “I know that I am not someone you trust. Sun WuKong may have you believe that I am your enemy, Qi Xiaotian, but I promise that I only have your best interest in mind.”

“Monkie King doesn’t think of you as an enemy and neither do I,” I say quickly. “Hai’er is my friend, so I want to be able to get along with you and Demon Bull King as well! It’s just…being around such incredible and powerful people is kind of scary.”

Her expression softens. “Thank you, Qi Xiaotian.”

I smile, some of my unease fades away. She’s a good person. She can be scary, but she isn’t evil like some people like to say. I really want to give her and DBK both a chance. I want everyone to be able to get along.

So, I’m going to make the first decision to trust her. “About Macaque, I mean, Liu’er Mihou…I met him a few weeks ago, I think. He kind of just showed up and offered to help me through the basics of my training since I’ve been struggling with it a lot. He’s been a great teacher!”

Princess Iron Fan frowns, a pain in her eyes. “I see. Liu’er…he’s my sworn brother. He is my husband’s as well. And he was once Sun WuKong’s. Many things happened five centuries ago. I fully believed that he was dead. I…I was the one who found and buried his body…so believe me when I say that I still struggle to believe that he’s back.”

This new information is a lot to process. I had suspicions that Macaque had connections to Monkie King somehow, but I didn’t think they were actually sworn brothers like DBK was. How could I not know this? I thought I knew so much about Monkie King and his past, but there’s still so much that I don’t know. How am I supposed to be his successor if I don’t know these things?

“You said he was Monkie King’s sworn brother. Did something happen between them?” I ask hesitantly. I need to know the truth. I don’t want to be left in the dark about these things.

The former Celestial Maiden clasps her hands together and takes a deep breath. She meets my gaze with such an intimidating level of seriousness. “I understand that you hold Sun WuKong in high regard, Qi Xiaotian, but he is not the Great Hero everyone likes to make him out to be. He has done a lot of awful things. You may think that I am speaking out of my own bias, but many who really knew him back then will tell you the same thing as I am now. My husband was not the only sworn brother that Sun WuKong betrayed. But he didn’t stop at just sealing Liu’er away. He killed him. He murdered Liu’er and left his body to rot in the mud. That is the truth of it.”

Monkie King…really killed his own sworn brother? No! That can’t be! I want to deny it. I want to shout at her that she must be lying. But the look on her face says that she is telling the truth. She’s not lying to me.

My head spins and the ache in my chest seems to tighten. My beliefs are starting to crumble around me. This can’t be happening. How am I supposed to handle this? How can I go back and continue training with Monkie King knowing all this now? I really want to believe that he’s a Hero, that everything I’ve ever known about him is still true, but it’s so hard.

“I don’t know how Liu’er is back now, but I do know why. He is after revenge. His thirst for it is immensely stronger than that of my husband. He will do anything to gain the power he needs to take on, Sun WuKong. I believe that is the reason he approached you and offered to train you. He intended to help you awaken your powers so that he could take them for himself. I wish I was wrong. I hate to think badly of Liu’er, but I’m afraid that he is no longer in his right mind. You cannot trust him.”

I bury my face in my hands, completely overwhelmed by all of this. I can’t process all of this. It’s way too much. “I want to go home. Please.”

“I…of course. This must be a lot for you to think through. I’ll ask Hai’er to bring you home.” PIF gets up and leaves the room.

After a moment, someone else comes in, and I guess it must be Hong Hai’er. I don’t look up as he approaches and says, “Xiaotian? Are you okay?”

I shake my head. “Please just take me home now, Hai’er.”

“Right. Okay.”

*

*

Finally got around to writing the next part!

Masterpost

[momonica05]

Jack Jack - my tav for the "jack of all trades" achievement!

My urge to info dump about an oc won so now please, meet my son: Jack Jack (I don't know how to make a good blog post on tumblr, so I apologize if the images are a little too big)

JJ wasn't born a tiefling. He actually came from a family of humans, but he has no recollection of it outside of his father and grandparents, whom he hates with all his heart

At the age of 6, his father disobeyed his patron (for a good reason, but he doesn't know that, hehe). But instead of punishing his father directly, JJ was the target. He was turned into a Mephistopheles tiefling that day, and his family was horrified. He remembers the look of pure hatred and fear from his grandparents, shouting at him, saying he was now a devil. He doesn't remember his father's face, but he remembers his fingers, pointing at the door, and his husky voice "get out"

Since then, he had to live at the city of Baldur's Gate all by himself. He had some friends, partners, and even a mentor (which the dream visitor had taken form of)... but he never got back what he lost that day: love and identity

He spent a good portion of his life, mainly his adolescence, trying to "fit in". He even cut his horns off, which he regretted later down the road as he's now more confident in who he is. Beeing cursed by a devil at the age of 6, as one might imagine, was no easy feat. And aside from gaining an appearance that everyone deemed as "hellspawn", he also gained powers. Powers in which he can not control very well, but powers nonetheless (sorcerer wild magic)

After a whole life of stealing, performing, trying out magic and needing to run because uh oh you accidentally sumoned a troll in a bar! He... well, his life continued shit, but he never gave up. He had some not so trustworthy friends, but hey, as long as they're not a devil or a warlock, he's a very social guy!

Before he was captured by the mindflayers, he was actually planning on traveling around! He wanted to get all his skills worked on. Maybe study a bit more of his magic, as a wizard.... maybe becoming a bard with his musical talent... hell, maybe he'd finally accept his calling for the rogue life! The opportunities were endless!

That is until, of course, he got a tadpole in his mind... but eh, he was planning on traveling one day anyways, so why not use this as an excuse? (definitely not frightened at all haha what do you mean?)

So far, he's really enjoying his adventure! Here's what he thinks about each companion:

Lae'zel: heh, she wants to kill me! (nervously sweating and trying to do what she says because he's terrified, but also really likes her interrogation methods!)

Shadowheart: she's hiding something. She ain't fooling me...

Astarion: he's also hiding something, never EVER trust the snobs from the upper city.... unless, of course, you want their money/sleep with them. (thinks Astarion is a less hot version of him, with how similar they act. Except JJ actually has a soft spot for children and little rascals, so he'll always help them. He's more chaotic good)

Gale: i really liked him and wanted him to teach me how to do magic safely, but never mind! He just ate my magic spear, which doesn't seem very safe...

Wyll: he makes me angry with how he challenges my morals, okay? you shouldn't be nice! You're a warlock! (has a mental breakdown watching Wyll get transformed like he did and wonders if his father was a good man like Wyll all along)

Karlach: I was deadset on killing her... turns out she's not a devil! just a person like me! i really like her (wants to kill Zariel and enter rage like Karlach one day)

BONUS:

He knew damn well what he was getting into but opened the door anyways and said he was gonna write a smut about it (he's batshit insane)

Anyways... I guess that's it. That's all I have for now, I haven't progressed much into the game... sorry if his information is a little scattered around, I don't have it organized and probably didn't mention somethings (he chose his name, for example)

[mygloviesme]

cool about it. || myg

no. 10: no regrets

predebut/debut!yoongi x female idol

summary: kanako is an established idol with a growing career and a secret relationship with a producer from her label, haneul. when she’s asked to work with yoongi and rm to create a track for her, she gains unexpected feelings for a certain upcoming rapper. with her increasing fame, her controlling boyfriend, a set of six boys who seem to have grown an attachment to her, and a new boy who’d give her the world, how will she figure out a way to balance it all?

(definitely inspired by boygenius)

word count: 3.6k

genre: ANGST, friends(?) to lovers, slow burn, lots of pining, fluff

chapter warnings: toxic relationship (not w/myg), mentions of mental health, mention of a box cutter, SLIGHT SMUT

inspo song: billie bossa nova by billie eilish

"it's hard to stop it once it starts."

MARCH 7TH, 2012, 8:02AM

Bang-PD enters the room with an obvious rush. He was never the type to be late, so being two minutes late was almost inexcusable for himself. He sits down with only his usual meeting binder, stocked to the fullest on what we are to talk about. He adjusts the frames of his glasses before taking them off to rub his eyes of sleep. 

“Uh- sorry, everyone. Had a long night.” He mumbles. I know why, because of the scandal. It seems obvious at this point that this man has been losing sleep because of it. Answering media questions, doing stand alone press conferences, no thanks to me. I try not to feel bad, but just like many times before, it’s impossible not to. Although the staff members here always give me a genuine smile and ‘hello’, they’re always somewhat in a hurry. It’s been quiet chaos in the BigHit building, and I have been told minimal information. To keep me safe, sane? Probably. 

“Okay everyone, thank you for coming. A couple things,” He says, looking at me and the seven boys who sit in front of him. 

“First, as some have you may have heard, we’ve lost some important sponsors. It’s lost us a lot of money and time, but that’s beside the point.” Nice. 

“While we’ve lost sponsors, we’ve gained some better ones thankfully. They’ve been very helpful during this time in support of you, Kanako. Saying, and I quote, we join this company as we are in full support of women. Our deepest condolences for you during this time.”

“What? Did someone die?” Jungkook snortles. No one else reacts. He’s quick to shut back down.

“I didn’t know anyone was in support of me.” I whisper. 

Bang gives me an empathetic smile, “There’s lots of people on your side, Kanako. Moving on,”

I guess I really have been out of the loop since losing all contact with the outside world. But lots of people on my side also means lots of people who are not on my side, and that’s what flutters outside this very building. On the TV screens that have quieted down in the midst of this scandal for a tiny bit, but there’s still crumbs. 

“They’ve given us a generous sum which resulted in us making this team decision.”

Oh no. What’s he going to say? They’re finally set to kick me off? They don’t need the income I bring in anymore, or actually, lack thereof now. This silence is deafening. 

“Kanako, we’ve decided to send you to Jeju for a few days. Four days to be exact. If you’re willing to, or wanting to. Now, we have enough for the seven boys to come along as well, but if you’d like to have this time for yourself that’s completely understandable as well. The decision is yours.” He says. My mouth is in a shameless ‘o’ shape from my tiny gasp. This is far from what I expected. If anything, I would’ve never guessed this in a million years. 

“Why send me off?” I phrase it like they’re trying to give me, which causes Bang’s face to give an unimpressed expression. “We’re not sending you off, we want you to have some time away from this building. It’s too dangerous to let you go to restaurants still and we’ve managed to find a secluded spot for you to enjoy, if you’d like.” All this for me? Something else good has come, surprisingly. My unlucky streak has finally ended, with a triumph of celebration in my brain. Serotonin that I haven’t unlocked, you could say.  It’s no doubt in my mind that I want the boys to come, looking at Jungkook and seeing his begging eyes like a dog about to go for a walk. He’s almost shaking with how much excitement he has. 

But I keep myself calm and collected, nodding slowly. “Yes, I’d like to go. W-With the group. Will it be all shared?” 

“There’s enough room for the boys to share and for you to have your own. But yes, you’ll be in the house together.” Yet another recipe for disaster? Or maybe, on the positive side, an adventure with seven boys I love deeply. And lots of fun. 

And just in time for Yoongi’s birthday.

Bang-PD turns his head to the boys, “Would you all like to-”

“Y-Yes.” Jungkook stutters, being on the brink of imploding. His eagerness only makes me smile. 

The boys nod along happily, “Alright, it’s settled. The plane leaves in four hours, giving you all three hours to pack. There’ll be staff members coming to stay near your villa and check in every once in a while. But Kanako,” His sudden serious tone making me gain a burst of anxiety, 

“We’ve made sure this whole trip will be as private as it could possibly be. We wanted to do this while the boys are still trainees so there’s a level of anonymity. And now that fans and reporters have stopped harassing us, we can leave peacefully. From the back of the building, that is.”

I nod, “I-I trust you.” I think. 

MARCH 7TH, 2012, 9:15AM

The boys and I have all scattered to our dorms to begin packing, Jungkook frantically barging in my dorm with a worried look plastered on his face. “You have my red jacket!” He cries. 

I tilt my head with innocence, “No I don’t.” I reply simply. This is a lie. But I just love the way it looks on me. “Liar!” He exclaims before running to my closet, rummaging through my belongings. I try grabbing him but he’s too driven to find what he’s looking for. After destroying my closet and drawers, he turns around in defeat. “Where is it?”

“I don’t kno-”

“Kanako please! We don’t have much time!” He pleads.

I sigh, standing there for a second more before reaching into my suitcase, grabbing the thin red piece of clothing he was dying for. He takes a breath of relief before kissing my cheek and running back to his dorm. I place my hand on my hip to assess the damage that my room is in. I’ll clean it up when I get back from the trip, I think to myself. I’ve always been one for procrastination, delaying, flaking. It’s a horrible habit I’m trying to cut back, but one thing at a time, right? 

I finish packing my toiletries, makeup, and other small accessories I might want to bring. I’ve been living in sweatpants and hoodies from different members of the group so I try bringing clothes that might look..cute? Since the flight is a little over an hour I decide to bend down on the floor to find something decent to wear. You’d think from being an idol for two years I’d know how to properly dress myself, but I don’t. 

As I sort through the pile of clothing, I hear someone come in. It’s Jihyo, a staff member who works here. She closes the door behind her quickly, holding a big rectangular box in her arms. 

“Oh you got it, thank you!” I gasp happily as she hands me the box. It’s heavier than I thought, my body plummeting down from the weight of it. She laughs and helps me place it on my bed. 

I can see her face cringe, “I really hope it’s the one you asked for.” She says. 

My eyes lighten up as I graze my hand over it. It’s Yoongi’s birthday gift, a new keyboard. It definitely left a hole in my pocket, but for him, I wanted to get him something that would last forever. 

I nod eagerly, glancing at her then back to the keyboard. “It’s perfect. It’s exactly what I wanted, thank you.” 

She says a quick no problem before I give her a hug, letting her escape back to her job. I hunt through my things, looking for anything I could to make the keyboard look less naked. I look at my shoes, the ones I wore for my debut. They’re ballerina-inspired with ribbon lacing to tie up your calf. I suck in my teeth and grab a pair of scissors, cutting them. It doesn’t hurt that much to damage them, but it was a vital memory walking around in them. The memories I made performing with them, the pain-staking wounds I’d get on the back of my ankle after the shows ended. But it’s for a good cause.

I grab a box-cutter to open the packaging first, the heaviness of the object making it much harder to do this as fast as I could. I place it back on my bed and the stand it comes with. 

I wrap the ribbon along the height of the keyboard, tying it in a nice bow. I pat it down to make sure it looks nice and pretty before snaking my way to Yoongi’s dorm. The hyung line is all packing, Hoseok still deciding on the clothes to bring. He’s very picky with his style, and since it’s a vacation, he seems to be overthinking. “You know we’re not gonna be around anyone else.” I laugh at him playfully, which he responds with a serious expression. 

“I don’t wanna hear any of that. Look, this tank top or this one?”

He told up two black tank tops. But one does have thicker material and looks like it would fit him better, “The right one.”

“My right or yours?”

He takes my unamusement as an answer. I search through the dorm and end up in the bathroom where Namjoon is, packing all his toiletries. “Where’s Yoongi?” I ask, he shrugs. Very helpful, thank you. I give up eventually with this dorm, speed-walking to the other where the young ones are. It’s the same scene, giving me deja vu. Except Jimin is the one on the floor, indecisive. 

I sigh, “Where’s Yoongi?”

“Bathroom. Said Namjoon was taking too long.”

“What, is he peeing or something?”

“Dunno.”

Sometimes they aggravate me. Just like brothers. I walk to the bathroom where it’s open and see Yoongi fixing his hair. “What’re you doing?” He jumps from the sound of my voice. 

“J-Just-”

“Checking yourself out? You couldn’t wait for Namjoon to be done so you could fix your hair?” I giggle. 

He huffs and stops from moving, coming closer to me. He doesn’t hesitate to kiss me, placing his hands on my shoulders. He’s confident with this one, much like the others. I move my head towards his, filling the empty space between our bodies. 

“Can you guys please stop making out? We’re gonna be late.” Jungkook whines from behind us, making Yoongi and I part. I nod and nod, knowing we were in a time crunch then and now. 

“I know people! Give me some time. Yoongi, get over here.” I say, gesturing for him to follow me. I place my hands to my side, causing Yoongi to scoop up one with his own. We walk to my dorm and before I open the door I turn to him. “Close your eyes.” I say. He widens his eyes, “What’re you gonna do to me?” He smirks. I puff my lips, “Shut up.”

“Okay, okay.” He says and finally closes his eyes. I open my door and lead him by his hand to my bed. I wait a moment to look at him as his eyes are closed, wanting to savor this moment. I take a deep breath,

“You can look now.” I whisper. 

He’s quick to look at me first, which makes me dart me eyes to my bed, giving him a hint. He looks down slowly, seeing the keyboard laying on my bed. He doesn’t say anything at first, only staring. He’s great at making it hard for me to read him. He places his hand on the keys, almost unbelieving that it’s real. 

“Kanako…” he breathes. 

My lips curl into a delicate smile, “Yes?”

“This is…” He trails off.

I place my hands behind my back and lean on my tip-toes to kiss his cheek. “This is for you.”

He shakes his head softly, “I don’t know what to say. This must’ve cost a fortune.” 

“You’re worth a fortune. I wanted you to be able to have this for a long time. Whenever you need it. Whenever inspiration strikes you next. When you go on tour and you just need to play.” I reply. He moves his hand to the bow, furrowing his brows. 

“I recognize this.” He says.

“It’s just some ribbon I had lying around.” I lie. 

He hums and unties it. I stare at his airy fingers as they move, pulling on the bottom to unravel it. He picks up the bow and looks at me. “What?” I ask with bright eyes, hoping he doesn’t notice the frayed edges. “Put it on.” He asks. 

“W-What? Like, where?”

“In your hair.” He speaks like I should know what he’s talking about. 

O-Oh, I mutter. Dirty mind Kanako. I place it on my head, adjusting my hair so the knot doesn’t get tangled. It’s very hard to do this without a mirror. I tighten it around my hair and pull out some strands in the front of my face, running my hands through my hair and looking at Yoongi with curiosity. 

“Does it look okay?”

Instead of responding he leans in for a melting kiss, placing his hands around my neck. He moves his body so I can follow him, eventually both sitting on our knees on the floor. We stay like this for a good second before he moves me once again, now being on top of me. Both of his legs lay beside each of my thighs.  

The position is intimate and close, and I have a feeling in my stomach that’s burning down to my underwear. I notice his hips moving slightly, causing more friction between us. The bulge of his sweatpants grows onto my stomach, causing a sharp groan from him. It’s like he’s needy, the way he’s riding on me. There’s no control from his side. No pulling on me or tugging me where he’d like me to be. He lets me enjoy his deprivation, and I do. A lot. I touch his stomach from underneath, rubbing up and down his chest. 

Our heads bob as the kissing becomes more messy and heated. There’s this sensual fighting between the both of our bodies, like it’s been ages since we’ve loved one another like this. The ringing in my ears becomes stagnant as Yoongi speaks, exhausted but determined. 

“I don’t think I can handle not feeling you.” He says. His cheeks are flushed and red. I spot his forehead glistening ever so slightly. 

I take off my shirt in one swift move, revealing my lack of undergarments. The way he looks down to my breasts is one I keep in my back pocket. His hands start on my stomach, pressing down gently so I feel every crease and bump of his fingers. I lean my head back and moan quietly, the purlices of both his hands lining perfectly with my chest. His pointer finger swipes over my nipple, making me flinch with pleasure. He drifts his hand to my mouth, dipping his index fingers in my mouth before sliding them down to smear my own saliva on my breasts.

It’s slick and slow, but it’s not teasing. It’s perfect and intimate. He lowers his body to become face to face with my chest, looking up to me as his mouth hovers over my nipple. 

“This okay?” He whispers. I bite my lip and nod. He flicks his tongue on the sensitive, hard skin. I whimper in response as he proceeds to take me in his mouth. He sucks gently, his warm tongue doing this thing that I’m not sure I can explain with words. All I know is that my eyes are focused on him, watching him practically eat me alive. He laps up my nipple faster and I notice the saliva from his mouth is endless, dripping down his chin. He’s not afraid to make this so erotic and utterly filthy. I can’t stop my hands from grazing down to his opened legs, caressing his bulge. He sucks in his teeth, which I love that he does that, and places his forehead down on my chest. It seems I’ve broken him down with that small motion which gets me excited to continue more. I bring my other hand to fiddle with his zipper, teasing him.

“Are we really doing this?” He whispers while his head lays in between my breasts.

“What exactly do you think this is?” I tease. 

“Only what you want.” He responds. 

I take that as a go to unbutton his pants and pull the zipper down. Everything is so fast and progressing quickly, but I choose to follow it. Don't overthink it. It’s good right now. 

He takes his head from my chest and goes back to sitting up, setting his hands down on the floor to balance himself. I prop my body up as I play with the waistband of his boxers that peek from the opening of his pants. He shakes his head with a modest smile, “Baby, baby, baby.” He mumbles. 

As I proceed to travel my hand below his boxers, there’s a storming pile of men that barge in through the door. And I’m topless, with my hands down Yoongi’s boxers. 

It’s Jungkook, Namjoon, and Hoseok. Everyone is frozen in place. I look at Yoongi who looks at them, then at me and my current situation. Uh..uh-uh, he says as he hurries as he grabs my shirt to drape it over my chest quickly. “Kanako…” He mumbles and looks at his underwear, my hand still remaining at the crime scene. I remove it and we detach ourselves from each other, awkwardly. All I can do is wrap the shirt around my body and completely flush. Yoongi’s pants are still unbuttoned, which he doesn’t seem to notice.

“O-Oh. We- um. We just need to-” Jungkook stutters.

“We need to get going.” Namjoon states. 

I gulp and nod, “Yes, right.” They stand there for a little while longer. I wait for them to leave so I can put on my shirt, but they don’t seem to be moving. “C-Can you guys-” I mutter.

Oh yeah, of course, right. They all say and shuffle out the door. I’ve never heard such a deafening silence as they leave, shutting the door behind them. I drop my shirt and tuck my head between my legs, sighing heavily. 

“Oh my god.” 

“I know.”

“Oh my god.”

Yoongi crawls over to me and tilts my head up, giving me an empathetic pout. “I know.” He says again. 

“They saw my boobs, Yoongi!” I whine. 

“I know! It was awful, I’m sorry.” 

I puff my lips with a bit of attitude, “You should be! It’s not like they saw anything of yours that they haven’t already seen.” He caresses my face, comforting me. 

“They’ll get over it soon, I promise.”

MARCH 7TH, 2012, 2:57PM

The car ride to the airport was awkward. The plane ride was awkward. The car ride to our villa was even more awkward. It seems the boys can’t even look at me, and when they do, it’s not at my face. The outfit I decided on was just a simple mid-thigh dress with black tights! It’s not like my cleavage is even out, but it feels like they almost have x-ray vision. I assume the ones who saw me topless told the others because like I said, none of them can look at me. 

It isn’t until we’re sitting inside this amazing villa and I still see them being so painfully quiet that I get frustrated. 

I sit up aggressively from the couch we’re all resting at, “Okay everyone, they’re just boobs. Don’t act like you’ve never seen any before. That is unless I’m sitting with a bunch of virgins.” I speak, my frustration very obvious with my choice of words. It’s unlike me to speak this way, but how they’re acting is stupid and unfair. Jungkook shuffles uncomfortably, “It wasn’t just that.”

I roll my eyes, “Me and Yoongi, we’re…we’re just doing stuff! Like normal people do.”

“Like couples do?” Namjoon says, raising his head from his phone. I freeze up. I didn’t want that label yet, but it gets my point across so to hell with it. 

“Y-Yeah, it’s normal. So can everyone get over it?” I sit back down, only to get up once again. 

“And start knocking before you enter a room, please!” I exclaim, plopping down on the couch finally. The boys all mumble to themselves before coming to agreement. “You’re right Kanako, we’re sorry. That was a private moment and we shouldn’t have treated you differently…because of it.” Namjoon puts down his phone as he speaks, giving me his full attention. 

I nod, satisfied. “Thank you.” Yoongi, who sits next to me, gives me a reassuring squeeze on my thigh. 

The door bursts open, contradicting what I just asked, but sure. Incomes Jihyo, the staff member who assisted me with Yoongi’s present, with two bags in her hands. She pulls down her mask, breathing heavily. Might I add she’s always very eager to please. You didn’t hear it from me, but I see her ogling Seokjin often. 

 “I-Is this what you all wanted?” She asks, pulling out a bottle of alcohol. 

click here to read more of this story!

[rainmustfallts4]

Challenge ◇ Tiger’s Guide to Losing your Mind Part 44

⊶⊰Information & Index⊱⊷⊶⊰Part 1⊱⊷⊶⊰Chronological⊱⊷

───────────────────────────────────────

Hilda invited over the twins over because she wanted to spend time with them. They’re toddlers now! Now, I’m no parent but sending two toddlers off on their own to see their skeleton mother doesn’t seem like the smartest idea. How did they even get a phone?

So, uh… this happened lmao I can’t remember if I was using a spell or drinking a potion but it kinda backfired and turned me into a ghostie. Don’t worry, it’s not permanent. It is cool, though.

“Vlad, I command you to come back to life! Hear my call, follow my voice! If you don’t, I will haunt you with garlic in the afterlife!”

Hehe, got ’em.

We did overload from this but… we’re kinda already a ghost so I think it’s fine lol

“You know, I hated you at first, Tiger.”

“…”

“You may have lured me to my death surrounded by week old pizza and broken furniture, but you have righted your wrong and unleashed me back upon this world. You did well, my child.”

“…I already regret this decision.”

Oh come on. I know it was on the wheel but damn, I already have a bunch of kids. Go away.

Hopefully I can find someone cool. It took a while for anyone to appear, though. I mean, come on, we live near the beach. Where is everyone?

Oh, I see someone! Who is it –

Oh hell nah.

I don’t want to have a child with this guy ;_;) *sigh Fine. I won’t cheat and pretend I saw someone else first.

IT WAS TWINS WTF

That’s 6 kids we have now ;_;) And two sets of twins! Is this the 100 baby challenge??

[lizardperson]

can you feel my bass

[on ao3]

fandom: original work rating: g wc: 695 prompt: #fff270 lights and sirens for @flashfictionfridayofficial

---

"I hate it," Valerie yelled.

"What?" Eli yelled back and moved closer to her.

"I said I hate it!"

He gave her the typical Eli-look. "Oh, come on! You said you'd give it a chance!"

"Well, I did. And I hate it."

He rolled his eyes. "We've been here for a full three minutes! You promised me an hour."

"I hate you," she sighed. He wasn't wrong. And he knew her too well, that's why he had talked her into staying in this stupid club for another fifty-seven minutes before she was allowed to officially label it as a 'once and never again' experience. And she already had regrets.

"No, you don't," he countered - and again, he wasn't wrong. "Anyway, I'm going to dance now. Feel free to join me." Eli turned on his heel and dove into the crowd without waiting for an answer.

Valerie rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, looking after him. "I don't dance," she grumbled to herself.

Instead, she made her way to the bar. Might as well get a drink if she had to kill an hour without losing her mind. Finally holding a beer in hand, she leaned against a wall and let her eyes wander across the room. What a ridiculous idea this had been, going 'to the club'. While the crowd was mostly her age - at least Eli hadn't dragged her to some college club or something - she still felt completely out of place and awkward as hell. And she did hate it. The music overall wasn't bad, but way too loud, the lights were too flashy, and there were too many people.

Valerie had promised Eli an hour, but nobody said she actually had to spend that time on the dancefloor, or anywhere near it for that matter, so she eventually fled outside for some fresh air, and peace and quiet. A few small groups of people stood around, chatting and smoking, and she bummed a cigarette off someone, then found a lonely corner and enjoyed the cool night air.

A voice pulled her out of her thoughts. "Hi!"

That tiny word was enough to set off blaring sirens in her head. Valerie looked up and sighed. "Oh. It's you." Great. Probably one of the last people she wanted to see tonight.

Annabelle beamed at her. "Wouldn't have taken you for the club-going type." Everyone else would have said that in a mocking tone - but not her. Why did she always have to be so damn earnest. And what was she grinning about anyway - no, not grinning. Smiling. Like she was actually happy that they had run into each other here. Valerie hated her.

"I'm not. That's why I'm standing around outside, instead of in the actual club," she informed her.

"Yeah, took me a bit to get into it, too," Annabelle chuckled. "But once you manage to let go and just forget the people around you and let the music carry you, it's actually really fun. Almost a bit of a transcendental experience sometimes."

Valerie wanted to respond with a mean comment, to make fun of her in some way, but for inexplicable reasons her usually so sharp tongue failed her. Instead, she just gave a vague "uh-huh".

"You wanna dance with me?" Annabelle's smile grew even wider, making her dimples more prominent. If it were lighter here, her many freckles and the slight wrinkles around her eyes would be more visible too. Why was she smiling so much all the time anyway…

"Doesn't your husband mind or something?" Valerie scoffed, getting a loud laugh in return.

"No, he really doesn't."

"Anyway, no."

Annabelle looked at her for a few moments, still smiling, then she nodded. "Okay. Then I will leave you to your beer. Hope you still have fun tonight."

"Sure. Whatever," Valerie grimaced.

"I'll see you around." Annabelle winked at her and finally left.

"Unfortunately," Valerie murmured to herself, looking after her. What was it with this woman and her ridiculous bouncy walk. Like she was skipping wherever she went. And did she seriously just wink at her? Valerie hated her so much. At least that's what she kept telling herself…