#▸ written in lightning. / ic

[disturbnot]

 " I would get a BBL just to fart louder. "

[starsmuserainbow]

“NaNext Extra-Express Delivery!” Lightning chimed after knocking on the door of the place of the right address. She didn’t need to guess if anyone was home - they ordered like a minute ago, and the whole idea of this “Extra-Express Delivery” was that the order was arriving within 5 minutes. It wasn’t that often anymore that Lightning did this service, but today she just had felt like some casual running again, and why not combine that with deliveries. She was wearing a white-green cap with the logo of NaNext on it, dark green pants and a lighter green top - not exactly colors she liked the most, but hey, it was needed for giving a proper deliverygirl-impression. The red sash tied on top of the shirt was her own touch, and since her “boss” hadn’t complained yet, it was nothing she was going to remove from this outfit at any point. “Look, even if you won’t open to take it, I did deliver in time. There’s no going back on the x-express fee.”

[[A little bit of info about Lightning delivering for NaNext in my headcanon here]]

[an-optimist-prime]

Buck surviving the lightning strike and going back to work means that Hen has to go to that bakery (she goes to the same one every time) to get him a 'welcome-back' cake (one which will have a terrible pun written on it in icing, something like "we're not shocked you're back"), and you just know that every time she walks into that bakery the staff drop what they're doing because they just know that it's going to be something absolutely wild

[uyai1101-lads]

Sylus discovers…Daddy Kink secret. 🔞

MDNI/18+ content ahead

(Sylus x OC MC) + nsfw-ish “tame” art

Tags: Daddy kink, spying, masturbation, named female MC, kinda yandere.

Writer note: It’s been a while since I’ve written. So please bear with my rusty writing skills. Hopefully I’ll improve in the future.

When Mephisto flew into his office and settled on its perch. Sylus didn’t imagine the video the mechanical crow would project out of its eyes to the office wall would be that of his Kitten undressing with a vibrator in her hand before she crawled into bed. Luke and Kieran had stopped mid sentence in delivering their reports to stare at the projection on the office wall in shock. Though who could really tell with their faces covered in their masks.

Sylus slowly turned from the wall to narrow his eyes at his lackeys standing stock still captivated by the video still rolling.

“Enjoying the view?” Sylus’s deceptively calm voice shot through their ears. Luke and Kieran suddenly stiffened in terror as they realized the grave danger they were actually in.

“S-sorry b-b-boss” Luke and Kieran stammered out fearfully, dropping their heads to their chest and eyes to the floor with lightning speed.

“Get. The. Fuck. OUT” Sylus growled, jaw tight and blood red eyes cold as ice. Evol shooting through the air to grab them and hurl them out of his cold dark office to the hallway, the heavy wooden door behind them slamming shut.

Mephisto cawed out what sounded like a crow version of laughter. Fluttering its mechanical wings.

“you’re next, after this video finishes” he coolly threatened the mechanical bird, before leaning back on his chair, running a large calloused hand through his white silvery hair and shrugging of his black business suit. He hadn’t had enough time to change out of his clothes from his trip before being pulled into a sudden FaceTime meeting call with one of his secret contacts in the N109 Zone.

He had been gone for about 2 weeks handling some protocore selling and trading as well as getting rid of the moles trying to infiltrate some of his secret bases and weasel out information they didn’t need to know.

Sylus had deeply missed bugging his “Kitten” and watching her cute feisty little expressions each time he teased her relentlessly, so he had Mephisto keep an eye on her and help out if she came into danger. His poor baby had been quite busy chasing wanderers, saving civilians and attending grueling Hunters Association work trainings. It seems Uyai was quite pent up and needy. After stepping out of her bathrobe, soft rich deep skin gleaming from the rich fragrant body butters she seemed to like stockpiling underneath her bathroom sink. Uyai wrapped her now coily hair up and slipped into bed, expression determined. She held the pathetic sized sex toy in her slender hands up to her face and glared at it fiercely.

Sylus let out an amused chuckle as he lazily rubbed his chin, now darkened vermillion eyes hooded as he watched his Kitten trying to satisfy herself with what was supposed to be his replacement. They hadn’t had sex yet, despite their increasingly heavy flirting, his kitten kept hesitating, held back by something. Sylus had slowly backed off, wanting to allow her to come to him when she was ready for…more.

Uyai threw an arm over her face, body shuddering as she ran a hand over her soft breasts. Was she imagining his hands cupping them, his large firm fingers tugging at the sensitive tits and rolling them between his thumb and index finger?

As if answering his mental questions, she moaned his name into the crook of her arm. Voice breathy and whimpering.

Sylus’ body immediately grew rigid as his name was whimpered out again in the video, sudden goosebumps prickling his skin. His dick impossibly hard and tenting his slacks, damn near wanting to burst out of its confines.

Fuck…

His kitten was calling for him.

She turned on the vibrating dildo, sinking it further below her comforter, which unfortunately blocked out anything else from view, Mephisto hadn’t been equipped with bionic eyes that saw through fabric.

Sighing inwardly in disappointment, Sylus could only helplessly watch as his poor little kitten, gasped out desperately, eyes screwed shut as she tried to fill herself with the pathetic silicone.

“Please D-Daddy” she moaned out into her arm. “Please make your K-kitten cum” she whined, panting, as her hand under the covers jerked erratically.

Another shock ran through Sylus from the top of his silvery head to the bottom of his feet. He sat up straighter, tapping at his temple with a slow indulgent smile.

Oh?

Daddy?

Did he just learn his woman had a… daddy kink? While he had never expected that might be something they would introduce to their eventual bedroom time, he found himself… suddenlyVERY interested in hearing her call him that. Though he had a feeling she would be too shy and mortified to ever voice it. He would have to coax that out of her or bring it up first.

Intrigued, Sylus couldn’t help wondering what else his kitten was into and hiding behind that sweet innocent face of hers, he wouldn’t mind exploring and coaxing out whatever else she deeply desired. In fact he was looking forward to it.

With a frustrated sound, Uyai ripped her arm out of her covers and threw the slick vibrating toy out of her bed to the hardwood floor below.

A weak frustrated sob escaped her plush mouth before she let out a quiet muffled scream into her pillows. The video cut off there as Mephisto took flight away from Uyai’s apartment window unnoticed.

His poor little Kitten couldn’t achieve an orgasm without him. A satisfied cruel smirk stretched his thin lips and he let out a short mocking laugh into the cool air of his dark office, rubbing at his lips in thought.

Did she really think that pathetic plastic thing could take HIS place? Could fulfill all her dark secret fantasies? “Oh Sweetie” he murmured out still smiling coldly, vermillion eyes glowing in the dark. Guess she’d have to keep being pent up, he wouldn’t mind seeing Uyai finally submit her Everything to him and take her rightful place next to him…under him…over him…on him.

Video over and his threat kept of tossing the bird out of his office as well, Sylus stood naked under the warm shower spray, rock hard dick in hand as he stroked himself to the mental image of Uyai. Naked, needy and begging him to take her properly, he imagined her splayed out on his silk sheets, lithe body trembling as his Evol pinned her legs and hands to the bed. Face buried in her warm wet pussy.

Thick long fingers knuckles deep in her wet tight channel as he stroked over her g-spot and prepped her to take his thick cock. Tongue and lips working her sensitive clit and stealing orgasms out of her, he knew his poor kitten would have to suffer a little before she could take his size. Uyai would no doubt whimper and squirm under him with a brave face on, she was stubborn and feisty like that.

Sylus’ flushed dick throbbed and kicked in his large tight fist at the thought of talking her through taking his considerable length and girth, slowly sinking deep into that tight little pussy and filling her thoroughly. Showing her that nothing could replace him. “It’s ok sweetie, Daddy will make you feel good very soon. You’re taking it very well kitten. I’ll make sure to reward you later”

Fuck…

He wanted her creaming on his dick, cute sweet face dazed and drunk off of him, Sylus wanted her begging him to let her cum or begging to stop cumming. He also wanted to hear her whimpering “Daddy” again, this time underneath him as he fully claimed her, pumping his thick cum deep into her womb and watching her face go slack with pleasure as he fucked her brainless.

The imagery sent him rutting harder into his tight milking fist, silvery head thrown back and deep blood red eyes closed shut, a deep growling moan ripped out of him as his dick shot thick creamy ropes of cum down the shower floor and into the drain.

What a waste of cum that belonged on and in his sweet little kitten.

Hmmm… it wouldn’t be long now.

Don’t worry Kitten. Daddy knows just how to make you less pent up.

Also visit my Patreon for the uncensored explicit art of Sylus “finishing” lol

https://www.patreon.com/posts/sylus-nsfw-art-113106348?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

[disturbnot]

SO THE SNAKE GAZES SKYWARD, SO THE SERPENT GAZES BACK. Weird vibes are par for the course in this foisty, unwashed neck of the back-country; even the deadened eyes of the ornamental buck on the wood-paneled wall gaze upon you with a judgment beyond this world; beyond even these wizened old fools, regarding each other with playground surprise. Ash gives a half smile, wrinkling; you can smell sour fruit on the air a mile away.

" What— me? " he remarks mutely, over the lip-smeared rim of a shot glass, meeting the stranger's gaze with weary but wild eyes, vivid and piercing. " I'm just minding my business, " he pauses, taking a drink, swallowing lightly. " But if you've got a problem, I'll solve it, brother. "

" You're giving me kinda weird vibes, buddy. "

@disturbnot

[starlight-incarnate]

House of Feänor as Aesthetics:

Fëanor  —  loud voice, commanding presence, analytical, natural leader, piercing eyes, foggy hillsides, black boots, tipping their head back to breathe the air, mirrored lakes and everything below the surface, tearing leaves from trees, blunt sarcasm, long dark hair, deep sleeper, rotting tree stumps, black leather jacket, songs that makes you want to create a storm, rebellious, ambition, unstoppable passion, fast trains, polaroids, empty castles.

Maedhros — walking silently, stronger due to all the stuff meant to kill them, ignoring their mental health issues, fiery red hair, crumbling marble, oversized hoodies, raw voice, lingering touches, faint music in the distance, calming down from a panic attack, long heavy cloaks, cold hands, disillusioned with the world, insomnia, unhealthy habits, sighs made visible by cold night air, strong hugs, never sleeps, loud music, freckles, dark under-eyes.

Maglor — hypnotising smiles, a broken mind, melancholy, driving through mountains and the woods, iced coffee, the faint feeling of raindrops on your cheeks, ripped jeans, tight hugs, whispered compliments, deep conversations, late night texts, nimble hands, thin blades, white lilies, vertigo, unkept journals, lightning and thunder, rhythms so raw the heartbreak is showing, shattered glass, walking alone on a cold night, silver necklaces, regret.

Celegorm — bright eyes, climbing rock formations, cold-hearted, hard breathing after running, wood cabins, gladiator arenas, wicked smiles, twisted branches, wild hair, growing more and more dangerous, night drives, adrenaline rushes, bruises, bloody cloaks, running from society, breathless laughing, that animalistic unpredictability, silver and leather bracelets, strong coffee after a sleepless night, city lights from a high rise, addiction, barking dogs, hurricanes.

Caranthir — ironic smirks, bitten nails painted black, lightning in summer, empty threats, sunglasses hiding dead eyes, thick chain jewellery, temperamental, goes to car races just to watch the crashes, deep glares, tongue/lip piercings, midnight walks, lightbulbs burning out, diamonds, crushed ice, a glint of cat eyes in the dark, gold coins in storm drains, cold hands, storm clouds rolling in, theatres, suppressed emotions, wrought iron gates, motorcycles. 

Curufin — cherries and Diet Coke, white marble, a studio apartment on the 67th floor, tattoos, neon lights, sweetened coffee, smudged makeup, too-loud music, cursive notes written in red ink, veiny forearms, sharp canines, fresh snowfall, high rise buildings, white light, sheer robes with nothing underneath, fog, stained glass windows, colourful hair, slow heartbeats, long-forgotten love, cold mountaintops, eternal silence.

Amrod — burnished copper, feverish eyes, hues of orange and gold, stars and spades, brewing tea, freckles, hardwood floors, poisonous flowers, listens to Hozier, messy hair, fake circle glasses, bullet point notes on a restaurant napkin, comfortable silence, broken wings on insects, old hungers, the whispering of trees, kicking stones on deserted paths, forgotten places, origami stars, old overgrown stone castles, morning mist, horse riding.

Amras  —  misplaced keys, wandering aimlessly, selectively mute, deep lakes hiding secrets, pine trees, restless nights, misunderstood, reliving the same day over and over again, graphic tees, dead moths, visual mind, muffled screams into a pillow, listens to asmr, doc martens, profanity, burned cigarettes, zoning out often, heart fluttering nervously, confusing satellites for stars, comic filled bookshelves, radios, old jeeps, glowing keyboards.

Celebrimbor — ravens, white-hot metal, the darkest shade of black, glittering skin, low waist pants, stars falling, the heat lingering in the evening, petals falling off dead flowers, trusting the wrong people, blue veins, cobblestone paths, linoleum tiles, bruises/scars easily, the heat lingering in the evening, cities awake late, card games, overanalysing everything, shiny fabrics, the slamming of a shot glass, the sting of betrayal.

[mystery-twin-mystery-bags]

🎨 Artists File #4: @aeli-tan-art!

The Mystery Twin Mystery Bags project is a Gravity Falls-themed fundraiser for Gaza aid. If you’d like to learn more about us, please check our pinned FAQ!

Image Description: A graphic made to look like Stanford Pine's journal entries with aged paper, coffee stains, symbols, and ink splatters on it. Written in the top left corner in bold letters is "Eli" Below in cursive reads: "(they/them) Tumblr & Reddit: aeli_tan_art Twitter, Instagram, TikTok: aeli-tan-art" Below is Eli's art. It's of an orange creature with green horns sticking out of its head, and green and yellow fur around its neck. It has a green and yellow nose between its bright green eyes. An arrow points to that image saying: "Their diet of creamsicle ice cream and dollar store chocolate fuels them for daily activities of making comics and storyboard animatics" Next to that photo is Eli's art of Bill with his back to the camera and holding an electric guitar. He is wearing a leather vest with a skull and lightning on the back of it.

Check us out on our other social medias: Twitter Instagram

[disturbnot]

     " Red? Who the hell is Red? "

[disturbnot]

AND FAR BE IT FROM HIM TO ADMONISH THE CORN, for it feeds him come the eve, and cloaks ironclad motherfuckers when the sky is darkest. Ash regularly loses himself in the thought of it, tongue rolling from cheek to cheek in languishing impotence, especially on such unremarkable days as this. Peace comes double-edged to him, blessing his fields with a cloying quiet that only serves to make him itch from time to time, make him wonder when those slowly swaying stalks would eventually part to birth intruders upon his fine spit of land. There have been more and more wanted posters materialising on the town boards lately, and the bubbling anticipation isn't lost on him.

It's just a pity that keeping an eye on the rest of the fucking house is.

When Ash hears the clattering crash upstairs, he jolts and lets out a bizarre little yelp, completely wrenched from his wayward daydreams as he is from his seat on the veranda. He reaches for the big iron hanging by his thigh, the thumping of his heart keenly masked by the thumping of his feet across the wooden landing and up the stairs; the telltale clicking of his gun loading; the squawking of his hunting falcon in another room, prised from a lazy slumber. Somehow, the sickly sweetness of the prior calm doesn't seem so unappetising anymore.

Ash swings the door open upon the source of the crash, his aim ever sloppy in kind. And lo, the precious inflection of a first impression is underscored by his pistol sights ... and this ragged old clown is of little threat, he can tell. Then again, as Ash stomps and limply barks, it goes to show it takes a ragged old clown to know one.

" God damn it—we have a front door, dumbass! "

─── ⋆ PETER HAD TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE CORN . . . His draw was slower. His mount, sloppier. His leather jacket barely billowed in the wind the same way it used to. Old, faded leather on some worn out bones riding a tired steed. He felt like old cattle at the water trough being pointed at and laughed at by the other less tired, less divorced cattle.

Speaking of cattle—

Dust from the path swirled up as Peter pulled the reins to a full stop. He caught his glove between his teeth to pull it off. It flew ahead into a patch of dry shrubs with a quick toss. He'd be happy with however many bandits missing a few tools in the shed he could fool. It was worth a shot. The drumming of horseshoes against the ground started up again after he took hard turn towards the ranch in the other direction.

Now. Sneaking your own horse into someone's stables and crawling through their windows was dishonest work. However, the owner of this ranch won't even notice him. He only needed a place to hide for a few hours and be a fly on the wall— CRASH. Shit. He cursed as he found the desk fan he bumped into on the ground with approaching footsteps following within earshot.

( @disturbnot )

[pendingnomdeplume]

pairing: hozier x gn!reader rated: T (language)

PROMPT: Tucking their hands beneath the other person’s shirt, just to watch them break the kiss and gasp in surprise at the sensation of cold/warm hands on their skin.

author's note: This was pre-written and is part of a backlog of items I still have from the previous blog. xoxo.

Rain pounds against the windows as thunder rumbles in the distance. A flash of lightning illuminates the bedroom for a brief moment, and Andrew watches you jump as you catch his reflection. His arms are around you before you can react, leaning in to press a chaste kiss to your cheek. 

“Thought you were writing,” you mumble. His grip loosens, and you spin to face him before pressing your body back against his. You sigh contentedly when he begins to stroke your hair and hum quietly–a tune you’ve heard, but you can’t remember if it’s his or one of the many songs that inspire him. 

“I haven’t seen you all day.” He presses a kiss to the top of your head, a punctuation of his response. 

You pull away just enough to see his face–tired but bright, excited. It’s been a long time since you’ve seen this energy from him, and it stirs something tender in your heart. Andrew leans in, and you sigh softly into a kiss as another crack of thunder and lightning hits in the distance. 

It’s his hands that startle you as they slip beneath your shirt to touch bare skin. You gasp and break the kiss, your hands flying back to push him away. 

“Holy shit, your hands are like fucking ice,” you cry as he giggles and attempts to shove his hands under your shirt again while you fend him off. “Andrew, this isn’t funny, I’m being serious–” 

But you’re not, really, laughing as you slip from his grasp and rush towards the hallway–towards his bedroom–with him hot on your heels. 

[vennilavee]

diet pepsi

written for @ficsforgaza!! the prompts were squirting + nagi seishiro from blue lock. wc is ~3k (sorry)

warnings: oc is kind of a stalker

A familiar username pops up in Nagi Seishiro’s periphery, showering him with bits once again. As far as he remembers, fairygrl777 has shown up in every single livestream he’s done since he started. He usually streams when he plays video games, or if he has a quick twenty minutes before practice. 

But fairygrl777 always shows up, without fail. When he’s playing video games, he tries to answer as many questions as he can even if he’s on a timed side quest. All these strangers seem to be enthralled by watching him quietly play Overwatch or Final Fantasy, for some strange reason. 

Fairygrl777 doesn’t just send bits, chats and cute emojis to him, but when Nagi is feeling particularly exasperated by the gameplay and complains about how annoying this particular mission is, they always talk him down. Or tell him what the next step in the game is. He supposes they’ve already beaten it. 

Little does he know that fairygrl777 didn’t sleep for thirty-six hours in an attempt to finish this game for that exact reason.

Fairygrl777’s little fairy wings pop up on MapleStory as a mage, too, one of Nagi’s secret guilty pleasures. Sometimes he likes to do missions with her, his illium mage running alongside her ice and lightning arch mage.

It’s just footyboi7 and fairygrl777 spending time in the Secret Garden before standing in the Kerning Tower together. 

Fairygrl777: <3 how romantic… it’s almost like we’re holding hands isnt it

Footyboi7: if u say so

Fairygrl777: :) 

Fairygrl777’s icy blue hair and sword has become a comforting presence to him. It’s quite often that he finds himself trotting after you in the game, his bow tight in his character’s hand. The hours seem to fade away with her excited chatter in the chat as they both collect mesos and finish jobs together.

Sometimes he leaves abruptly, but fairygrl777 never says anything. Out of the two of them, she talks more than he does in the chat.

Nagi is curious what her voice sounds like- he bets she sounds ethereal, like the translucent wings on her back.

It must be a coincidence, how fairygrl777 is almost always online when he is. Or how she never seems to miss one of his rare livestreams.

Nagi shrugs. It’s just a sheer coincidence.

Nerves seize you the moment you exit the train and head for the platform, though you’d classify them more as excited butterflies than true nerves. It’s like you’ve been here before, even though you’ve never set foot on English soil in your life. 

All you’re relying on is Nagi Seishiro’s vague retelling of the area.

It doesn’t take long for you to make your new apartment in Manchester your own. The apartment was already somewhat furnished, so all that’s left is to decorate it. Trinkets sit on top of your desk, matching the rugs adorning your floors.

You absently wonder if you asked Nagi in the chat to help you move furniture in, would he have helped you? 

You sit on your bed after you unpack all your things and inhale deeply. This is your life now. 

Before the anxiety of being alone in a brand new country can wash over you, you take in a deep, deep inhale of the crisp, autumn air from the open window. Leaves have already begun falling, shades of burgundy and marigold settling tenderly along the roadside.

It’s overcast in Manchester today, but you are in high, bright spirits.

The apartment you’re renting for an indefinite period of time isn’t too far from the Manshine City stadium- only a fifteen minute ride on the rail. You’ve nearly the path to the surrounding parks and already researched what restaurants and grocery stores you may frequent during your time in Manchester.

It’s meant to be a fresh start for you, after all. A new country, a new city. A new you, with new friends, new lovers. A fresh start from your old, doldrum routine you had been desperate to escape.

If you only had five minutes, you could show Nagi Seishiro how well you’d be together. You could mold yourself into the perfect partner for him. Who knows better than you what he needs?

You could be anything he wants, like a blank canvas waiting to be filled in. You want him to fill you in with broad brushstrokes and streaks of color.

The timing has to be perfect. You trust that it will happen, that he will notice you. You just have to be patient. You can’t be too much or too little. You have to be just right to pique his interest and keep him curious for more.

Perfect. You will be perfect when the universe opens the door for you.

“Don’t you recognize me, Seishiro-chan?” your voice is sickly sweet.

“No, am I supposed to?” Nagi tilts his head to the side and you giggle, the sound reminding him of a windchime.

“I’ve been to all of your games since I moved here and watched all of your streams,” you reply, nudging his shoulder with your own. Nagi’s eyebrows raise as he traces your face, trying to place where he knows you from.

“You’re not the first or the last girl to do all that,” he mutters, “What is it? Do you want a drink or something?”

“If you’re offering,” you shrug, “Just a diet pepsi for me.” He turns his back to you and leans against the bartop, waiting to get the bartender’s attention.

The bar is packed with Manshine City players, security and the lucky few fans who were able to get through the crowd and into the bar. Purple and blue lights bounce off of Nagi’s perfectly tousled locks  in waves, making his eyes look softer than they actually are.

If you pretend hard enough, Nagi Seishiro could be your boyfriend. You could easily lean against him, feel him relax against your touch as the warmth of his hands wraps around your waist like gentle vines.

But instead, he stands a few inches away from you, his handsome face drawn forward and looking away from you. He taps on the bartop impatiently with his credit card, long fingers curled around the piece of plastic tightly.

Nagi huffs, turning to you with ire in his eyes.

“This is taking forever,” he complains.

“Maybe you should be a little more patient,” you reply, gesturing for him to give his order to the bartender. The bartender rolls his eyes at Nagi. He definitely heard his complaint. You get lost watching the planes of Nagi’s face, the curve of his nose and the depth of his eyes. 

Your fingers brush against his accidentally. You hardly notice his fingers linger.

“Patience pays off, I guess,” you joke when he hands you a drink.

“I guess,” he echoes.

“Everything has its sacrifice,” you reply, looking him dead in the eyes. Recognition flashes across his face momentarily but it goes as quickly as it comes. Where has he heard that before? It sounds so familiar, but he can’t quite place it.

The intensity in your eyes lessens before you offer him another sugary, sweet smile. It’s mismatched on your face, like a piece of a puzzle that doesn’t quite fit. It would be unnerving if he didn’t think you were cute.

“Thanks for the drink, Seishiro-chan,” you chirp, “Cheers to new friends!”

“Friends? I’d hardly call us friends,” Nagi says sincerely.

“Maybe something more?” you tease.

“More? Like best friends?” 

Nagi thinks of Reo briefly, catching a glimpse of the man’s violet locks. The back of his head indicates that he seems agitated by something.

You don’t reply, instead peering at him from the top of your glass while you take a large sip. Nagi decides not to shake you away for the time being, basking in your attention and allowing you to cling to every word he says.

His eyes catch onto your forearm when you adjust your purse. He lingers at the patch of newly exposed skin, peering curiously at the not so hidden tattoo inked. 

It’s a pair of icy blue fairy wings, so small that if he wasn’t paying attention, he’d miss it. His dewy lips part curiously, a question bubbling on the tip of his tongue. But Nagi cannot find the words to ask it.

“Wanna see? You can touch, you know,” you say easily, “You just have to ask.”

“Can I?”

You nod and Nagi allows his thumb to glaze over your smooth, warm skin and over your tattoo. What you don’t say is that it’s a relatively new tattoo, only about six weeks old. To commemorate your move to a new country.

His touch his gentle but you shiver at the concentration captured in his baby brown eyes. The buzz of the bar fade away with each second he holds your gaze and you refuse to be the first one to break.

Nagi can hear Reo now, chiding him for what he’s about to do next-

“Wanna get out of here and go back to my place?” he says, taking your empty glass and placing it on the bartop.

“How romantic,” the familiarity of your words rings a bell in his head, “Thought you’d never ask.”

Nagi ignores Reo’s calls and texts, the buzzing on his phone incessant in his pocket in favor of pressing you against his closed bedroom door. He refuses to let you get too far, his lips chasing yours the moment he entered his apartment. You taste sweet, like his favorite cherries and vanilla, and he forgets to breathe for a minute when you bite his bottom lip.

He pulls away for a minute, devouring your smudged lip gloss and gilded eyes reverently. The depth of his gaze makes you excited, as if he’s devouring you slowly. 

You’ve sprayed on his favorite perfume. You hope he unwraps you with his teeth.

“Can I take this off?” he says hoarsely, tugging at your blouse.

“Duh, but,” you look at his pants, “Are you sure you don’t want to get that?”

His phone is still vibrating. 

“Sorry, babe, let me just get this,” he kisses your cheek in apology and you nod, getting comfortable on his bed. 

“What the fuck do you want, I’m busy,” Nagi nearly snarls into the phone.

“Did you go home with-”

Nagi turns his head, only to see you unbuttoning your blouse with a shy smirk. His throat goes dry and he gulps as you lean back once you’re completely bare. Your warm skin glows with the dim lights of the bedroom. He’s itching to touch you.

“No, I gotta go,” he says quickly and hangs up, ignoring Reo’s protests as his phone falls ot the floor carelessly. 

“Come here, Seishiro-chan,” you murmur, spreading your legs for him to rest in between them. He’s impatient, eager to touch you and run his hands all over your heated skin. 

Nagi’s breaths are bruising as he licks his reverence against your skin. You pretend that this is not the first time he scales your body with his hands, that his touch is that of something more than a lover. It’s easy to pretend when his fingers shake as he fumbles with the button of your jeans. It’s easy when he licks into your mouth and presses his clothed hips to yours.

He doesn’t know where to look first, so he lifts your hips easily and tugs your jeans off. His breath hitches when he catches the expanse of your thighs in his tight, strong grip. The sigh that leaves your parted lips washes over Nagi like a wave.

He wants to hear more of you. More.

Something sits on the tip of your tongue and it escapes your throat in the form of a breathy gasp of his name. Your belly curls at the heat in his dark, grey eyes. 

His body is taut, lean from hours and hours of training and practice. Your fingers ghost over his chest. Goosebumps rise on his skin. You reach for the belt buckle of his pants, but he stops you with a warm hand on your wrist.

You shiver at the strength concealed in those fingers.

“Are you sure about this?” Nagi rasps, his tongue feeling dry in your throat. He feels a bit depraved, for how much he wants to touch you, to claw at your heated skin and close the space between you both. He is hungry, the desire to consume you nearly overwhelming him.

You see it in his glassy eyes. The desperation for a release.

He won’t move, won’t give in to the friction that your skin grants to him. You place your foot on his chest, toes freshly done in a pretty dark blue, and nod at him with a soft smile.

It looks misplaced on the planes of your pretty face. Nagi can’t shake the odd sense of familiarity in you, can’t help but lean into it. Lean into you.

“Yeah,” your voice is choked by your own desire, “I’m sure. Are you sure?”

“God, yes-”

“You don’t need to bring god into this-”

Nagi kisses your ankle gently, a stark difference from the blazing look in his usually resolute eyes. Butterflies flutter around in your belly and he keeps eye contact with you as he kisses up your calf. It’s sweet, for someone that you just met.

You fall into the fantasy even more, unseen fairy wings taking you higher and higher.

He cradles you, his arms bracketing your head and your legs wrapping lazily around his waist as he presses a deep, bruising kiss to your lips. You chase his kiss, refusing to let him go too far and rolling your clothed hips into his. 

“Ugh, you’re pretty…”

You preen at his praise, unable to stop a smile from forming on your lips as you kiss him again. You bite on his bottom lip before slipping your tongue into his mouth obscenely, swallowing his groan and locking it deep in your chest.

You could pretend that he just confessed his love for you. You throb with longing.

He traces the shape of you with his hands, chasing with his lips before slipping you out of your panties. He holds you as if you’d disappear into the night, like you’d fly away on the wings of the tattoo burned onto your arm.

You’d stay here forever to convince him that he loves you.

The reverie is jostled when you hear his phone buzzing on the floor again, calling out to Nagi. But he ignores it and doesn’t allow you to question it, instead licking and soothing his way down your navel and your hips. 

He knows you, you think happily, he really knows you. How else would he know how to kiss you, how to mouth at you in a way that has you seeing stars and curling your toes. He stares at you as his tongue nudges your wetness, swallowing every sweet drop of you that he can. He laps at you with a ferocity that you’ve only seen when he’s on the field.

Maybe Nagi sees you as a prize. The thought sends a bolt of heat straight down your spine.

Nagi looks at your pussy in wonder before spitting directly on it and rubbing your clit languidly, searching your pretty face for the tell-tale gasp of his name that tells him where to go by following the sounds of your breaths.

You don’t know where to look, and instead grip his blonde hair with enough bite to make him hiss. You writhe in his hold, feeling balmy coils burn in your belly as he slithers his hand within yours.

“You’re so wet,” Nagi mutters to himself. Or to you, maybe. He doesn’t let go, always touching and pressing some part of you as you bloom in his hold. Like a lotus. He wraps his lips around your clit eagerly, like a trained puppy.

Your eyes meet his eyes as he pushes a long finger inside of you while he drinks from you. Nagi is reminded of sweet nectar, unable to get enough. He is starving for you, for you to whimper his name again. Pushing down on your hips as you writhe in his hold, he allows himself to feast on you.

“Make me cum, Seishiro,” you gasp feverishly, “Oh, I’m so close…”

It’s agonizing, how hard he is. Nagi wants to sink into you, fill you to the brim with his cock. Split you open, see your eyes roll back to your head. But before he can do that, before he can bring you to sweet rapture, he needs you to unravel all around him.

He brings you to the precipice, bringing you so, so close. He’s never heard the sounds your pretty pussy makes with anyone else, the way his fingers curl tightly in you makes you jolt. But you don’t beg him to stop.

An aching begins to burn in your belly. You don’t recognize the feeling, but you let him continue to devour you with hungry lips. The sounds that he pulls from you- from your throat, from your pussy- are filthy. Enough for your face to burn, if you weren’t so fixated on how swollen his lips were and how he belongs in between your legs.

You gush all around him with no warning, coating his lower face with your cum and your wetness. Nagi pulls away with wide eyes, as if he can’t believe it. The blanket below your body is soaked, but he doesn’t care.

“Woah,” he says, “Did you just…”

“Yeah. I’ve never… done that before,” you reply. Your legs feel like jelly and you’re seeing stars at behind your eyes as you try to catch your breath. Nagi looks at you like you’re a meal and he’s ravenous.

“Let’s see if you can do that again,” Nagi says, looming over you with a tenacious look in his eye.

“Whatever you want, Seishiro,” you say easily with a disarming smile, tugging him closer to you, “I’m yours to use however you want.”

“Hey, call me sometime?” you say, pressing a post-it with your phone number on it to his chest, “Or, you know. Maybe I’ll just see you on Maple Story?”

Nagi’s lips part in surprise, his breath catching in his throat. There’s no way that you’re fairygrl777. That would be an insane coincidence… But the tattoo, the way you know what bars he frequents, when he’s online…

Maybe Reo was right to try to interrupt him all night. Something somber washes over him, keeping him rooted to the floor.

“Wait- you’re-?”

“Yup,” you pop the ‘p’ as you gather your things and head out of his apartment with a wicked smile, “See ya around, footyboi7.”

[yourheartonfire]

Secret Santa 2024!

This one is for @wren-l-winter for the secretsanta2024 exchange! Prompt: Explore the dynamic between two rivals. One, an ancient vampire, and the other, a new vampire hunter eager to have her name written into legends.

It was a properly dramatic confrontation. Sheeting rain, lightning flashes, a marble floored pavilion in the middle of the city's oldest cemetery. The hunter skidded across the water-slicked surface on one knee, ending in a half-spin and a perfect three point landing, sword out and eyes narrowed.

The ancient vampire, the dreaded apex predator herself, rolled her eyes. "For fuck's sake," she said in a perfectly modern accent, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "It's going to be a clear night tomorrow, and this rain is going to wreak hell on all that fancy leather you're wearing. Can't we do this then?"

The hunter sprang. The sword flickered out. The vampire flung herself down into a shoulder roll. Sparks exploded against the pillar, inches from where her neck had been moments ago.

"Ow," said the vampire, brushing water off the shoulder of her wool coat. Somehow, none of the rain seemed to stick to her pale skin or dark hair. "How fun to see someone with a sense of the dramatic. Do you talk?"

"No," the hunter said and lunged again.

The vampire hissed, dodging and retreating from the flurry of blows, leaping with superhuman grace up onto the banister. "C'mon, kid. I'm giving you a chance here to walk away. I don't know which mothball-ridden cult trained you in sword-fu or whatever this is, but I can tell you this won't end well. It never ends well for your type."

"Don't try to get in my head, you monster!" the hunter snarled. "I grew up on social media, and believe me, your psychological warfare has nothing on unsupervised teenage girls."

The vampire arched a flawless eyebrow. "Oh honey. If that's your idea of evil, you are not at all prepared for this."

"If that's so," the hunter said with just the tiniest sneer, "why are you retreating?"

The vampire shrugged, and thunder boomed behind her as she spun around a pillar. "Maybe I'm sick of killing. Maybe the long centuries have infected me with a sense of empathy. Maybe I just don't want to deal with vampire hunter secret society bullshit again. The last time that was in fashion was the nineties. You don't want to go back there, kid. The economy was great but those cargo pants were a nightmare."

The hunter flicked water off her sword. "I think you're afraid," she said, letting the tip of her sword ring against the marble as she stalked closer. "I think you've gotten too comfortable, too lazy. Too used to picking off the easy targets. You don't remember what it's like to face a real threat-"

"I think you're dulling your blade," the vampire said with a half smile.

For a brief moment, the hunter glanced down. The vampire moved.

The world turned upside down with a painful crack, and suddenly the hunter was on her back, head dangling over the edge of the loggia. Hands empty, wrists pinned.

The hunter froze, adrenaline turning to ice in her veins. Oh god, her veins. Oh, no no no. It wasn't supposed to end like this.

"So," the vampire said with a fanged smile, shifting her weight over the hunter's hips. "Now what, honey?"

The hunter swallowed, and then flinched as the vampire's eyes flicked down to her throat. "You said something about a rain delay?" she said hoarsely.

The vampire chuckled, a noise like glass shattering. Her eyes seemed to widen, turning a honey-golden color as slow and sticky and sweet as molasses. "You've got guts, I'll give you that. Who are you, sweetheart? More importantly - who sent you?"

The hunter gasped and slammed her eyes shut, before the hypnosis could take her.

"Now, now," the vampire purred. "No need for loyalty. You have potential, I'll grant you that, but whoever it was that sent you after me as your first target is either cruel or insane. Or," she said thoughtfully, almost to herself, "they wanted to send a message. Run a pawn out to take a swing at the queen, while they get the board in order. What an opening move. Where did that sword go?"

Abruptly the vampire's weight and grip were gone. The hunter flailed up to her feet with all the grace of an overturned hedgehog. The vampire was across the pavilion, examining the blade, her back to the hunter as if she'd dismissed her from her thoughts. As if the hunter was nothing.

"I am not a pawn!" the hunter screamed, water running down her face and empty hands. "They sent me to end you and I will!"

"Sweet girl," the vampire said, tucking the sword smoothly into her belt as she stood. "You're a Christmas gift to me from an old enemy. A little holiday treat before the real fight begins." She tilted her head. The hunter took a step back. "But. You do have potential. I'm rather curious to see what happens if you do make it across the board, if you'll be a rook, a bishop, a knight. Yes. A little catch and release might be fun. You go on back to your masters, tell them I reject their trap. Look them in the face and ask them what game they are playing. But-" The vampire's eyes lit up from within. "-that's after you pay the penalty."

The hunter turned and fled. She made it down before a clawed hand caught in her hair, yanking her back into an iron embrace.

"J'adoube, little pawn," the vampire whispered into her ear. Hot breath and sharp points sank into the hunter's throat and everything went white and cold.

[itsabouttimex2]

not sure if anyone asked about the Monkie Glaive AU yet, but how does it work, exactly? I'm really curious to know about the group and character dynamics considering it's a Monster Hunter crossover! (I was listening to some MH + MHS themes today and it reminded me of this au ! :D)

Monkie Glaive

(I’m really glad you asked this! I was hoping to expand on this AU!)

So, to start- it basically transports the beasts and ecosystem of Monster Hunter into the world of Monkie Kid, which maintains a very high-tech and futuristic world.

It also turns demons and Celestials into monster-hybrids! Here’s five of the characters who are monsters in the AU:

For example, Sun Wukong is a Rajang, which means he can potentially tap into lightning abilities- after consuming a Kirin horn. He can also transform into a full-sized form, and is capable of entering a “Furious” state.

Also, instead of beetles or moths- glaive wielders partner with little FFM monkeys! These monkeys also take the place of Palicos! So, Wukong’s legacy spreads beyond his defeat of the Black Dragon- people to this day emulate his fighting style and actively live with his subjects in day to day life.

No single weapon- he cycles through old glaives and hunting horns as he pleases- after all, he gave the Ruyi Jingu Bang to MK!

Macaque is actually a Nargacuga! Instead of commanding shadows, he can turn invisible and fling spikes from his tail. And, like any Nargacuga, he’s sensitive to sound- especially to Sonic Bombs, and he’ll immediately enter a rage state once he recovers. Macaque wields Leumundslist, and has his own little melanistic monkey partner- she’s the only thing he really cares about. Although, meeting Y/N might just change that…

The Brotherhood is active even to the present day, having never been sealed in the Ink Scroll. They still command Camel Ridge and keep their “subjects” locked up nice and tight, refusing to allow any mortals amongst them to become Hunters or Riders. Instead, they themselves do the defending and fighting, and all their cherished mortals stay perfectly safe inside their walled kingdom- no one leaves.

But, with a little convincing and begging, a stranger may be allowed to come inside for safety and supplies- but only if they’re willing to stay. Expect to sign lots of contracts and papers written by Yellowtusk (who is a Gammoth, giving him the ability to create snow and ice. He wields the Iceshaker.) that were created for the sole purpose of keeping innocent and kind souls trapped inside their smothering protective city. These papers will be cited and show any time you try to leave.

Peng is a Gold Rathian, giving them the ability to both spit fireballs and secrete poison- instead of a tail, though, Peng’s poison is spread by their quills. Those quills also contains a mild paralytic, useful for quieting dissenters or subduing runaways to ferry back “home”. They wield the Gold Chordmaker and maintain a more supportive combat role than their Sworn Brothers. They’re usually first in line to track down any “wayward souls” that leave the loving protection of Camel Ridge.

Azure Lion is obviously a Lunastra, which gives him both a big pair of wings and ability to breath fire- as well as spread flammable dust to ignite later. With the Roilcloud Sword in hand, Azure has sworn to protect all his cherished prisoners subjects from the violent woes of a monster-ridden world- whether they like it or not. There’s not a single resident of Camel Ridge that he doesn’t adore with all his heart, nor even one that he’s forgotten the name of.

And not one is allowed to leave his care.

[loregoddess]

A continuation of my observations of the Octo2 traveler's weaknesses from here, now with fun visual diagrams! The above diagram shows each character's "base kit" (the weapons and elements they have access to w/out a secondary job) on the top row, and their weaknesses from the Dolcinaea fight on the bottom row.

Note that Agnea can't be charmed in this fight, so we don't actually know what her weaknesses are, but given that she has wind as her main element and how the elemental weaknesses tend to work (fire and ice are strong against each other, wind and lightning are strong against each other, and light and dark are strong against each other--based on the other Octo2 cast's weaknesses, and on how CotC usually handles elemental weaknesses, and using Tressa's weaknesses for reference), we can assume Agnea has at least a weakness to lightning. (CotC specifically seems to support this, since one of Agnea's passive skills gives her a buff to her lightning defense, and most characters in CotC who have access to only one element tend to get passive skills that buff their defense against their element's weakness, so I feel confident in saying Agnea should have a weakness to lightning).

As I observed in my first post, all the characters' weapon weaknesses tend to be the "opposite" of whatever their base kit weapon is (in type, i.e. long-range weapon users tend to be weak to close-range weapons and vice versa). The sort of exception to this is daggers, which get treated as both a long- and close-range weapon (the dagger attack animation has a character throwing a dagger--ranged--but it can also be used to stab someone, which we see multiple times in various cutscenes across Octo1, Octo2, and CotC). This means it's hard to figure out what sort of weapon weakness Agnea might have because she only uses a dagger as her base kit weapon.

Now I already discussed patterns in weaknesses and other observations in my first post, so I won't reiterate anything here (although I will quickly add some very astute people noted in their tags that Hikari being the only one we know for sure is weak to lightning is probably a reference to the thing with Rai Mei, which I missed initially but makes so much sense). But I wanted to take a look at who could break who in the party to see if the battle mechanics tied in with characterization, and set up the following diagrams for each character, so I could really dig into weird details.

(Under the cut bc this entire post is so very long, and there are more diagrams; ALSO SPOILERS, I do talk about a few endgame spoilers)

We'll start with Ochette who's actually capable of breaking the most other travelers at six. The only person she can't seem to hit (by herself) is Partitio, which is an interesting detail.

It makes a lot of sense that Ochette is the best at breaking other characters, given that she's a hunter (needs to be able to find critical weak points as part of her job). I've also written in the past how I think Ochette is actually one of the most emotionally intelligent characters in the group, and that she's probably way more aware of what's going on with the other travelers than she lets on--and way more in-tune with them than even they realize--but her ability to break most of them actually seems to support that as well.

I feel this gets reflected in her interactions with the other travelers, since Ochette is one of the few characters Throne and Osvald are pretty open with from the get-go, despite both being a bit closed off to the other travelers at first; the same goes for Temenos, although he tends to mask the fact that he's closed off, so it isn't as obvious at first glance.

Ochette is also the only traveler who ever comes close to finding out about Hikari's Shadow, since she can smell it "in" him. Likewise for Castti, in their second crossed paths the Shadow is able to capture and almost kill Castti, but not Ochette--Castii has a connection to the Shadow due to her exposure to Trousseau's rain (and a mental weak spot from the trauma of loosing patients in the past), and therefore is weak to the Shadow, so it seems fitting that Ochette is the one to "break" Castti free from the Shadow's trap.

As for Agnea, there is the sense that the two are opposites in their athletic abilities, given that Ochette is a very athletic and sure-footed hunter, whereas Agnea, while certainly athletic, still stumbles on occasion despite her years of work.

It also makes sense that Partitio is the only one Ochette can't break, since Partitio's name is also the only name Ochette struggles with, and she doesn't ever use his full name. Despite having a nickname for every traveler except Temenos, in battle Ochette uses their full names after they break an enemy, with the exception of Partitio. After Partitio breaks an enemy, Ochette uses the nickname she gives him ("Good hunting Pardy!") which is, if I recall correctly, unique to Paritio. His job and the entire concept of money is also baffling to Ochette, despite Partitio's best efforts to explain it to her.

It's interesting to note as well that even Ochette's two starting partners, Akala and Mahina, can each break 6 of the other travelers on their own (Akala can break everyone--assuming Agnea does have a weapon weakness we don't know about yet--but Akala can't break Hikari, who's a master of combat; Mahina can break everyone except Osvald, who's a master of magic). By the end of Ochette's story when she has the creatures of legend, she can actually break everyone (Akala + Tera and Glacis who each have elemental attacks that Hikari's weak to), and while Mahina + Tera and Glacis can't break Osvald still, if Ochette were fighting alongside them rather than just provoking with them, she herself would be able to break Osvald.

Given that Ochette is one of the best characters for breaking enemies just from a game mechanics standpoint, it's neat that this is reflected in her ability to apparently break nearly all the other travelers.

Castti can only break four of the other travelers, which is on the lower end (although not the lowest), but this seems to fit since story-wise she's a healer first, a fighter second (despite making an excellent damage-dealer).

The characters she can't break are people she treats like kids (Ochette and Agnea), and Osvald, who's one of the characters to tell Castti to take care of herself. Osvald's also arguably her peer, in that he's the oldest of the group and occasionally a parental figure to the others in some sense, the same way Castti takes on a pseudo-parental role on occasion, so she can't really "parent" him because Osvald is both literally a parent and, to some degree, figuratively the group's parent.

Likewise, all the characters she can break are characters who either get into lots of fights (Paritio and Hikari), or characters who would probably pretend they're not as hurt as they actually are when they do get hurt, or otherwise mask their pain a lot (Throne and Temenos). We see this in some of Castti's banters where she chides Partitio for getting into fights (she also tends to tease him relentlessly, and he's one of the only characters she teases), or how she worries after Throne, giving her check-ups out of the blue in one of their banters. Castti also has a banter with Temenos after the events of his Stormhail chapter where she checks in on his wellbeing, and while he sort of manages to redirect her attention away from him by complementing how well she looks after people, the fact remains that she did know he needed to be checked in on.

Castti really said none of you are getting away with not getting treated for your hurts or so help her.

Throne, surprisingly, only can only break four of the other travelers. Despite being raised and trained as a deadly assassin, the low number of travelers she can break might reflect her narrative "aversion to blood and killing". Throne is, after all, able to non-lethally knock people out as her nighttime path action, so her unwillingness, and inability, to hurt her allies does make sense for her characterization.

The people she can't break make a lot of sense--Throne's unable to sneak up on Ochette in their banters, and is always open and kind with Ochette. She and Hikari share shadowy ancestry, and he's a skilled warrior, so it might be harder for her to find and opening and get the drop on him (esp. considering how his Shadow might react to their shared blood ties to D'arqest).

Agnea's entire character arc is more or less centered around trying to inspire hope in everyone she meets, and Throne herself hopes to be free, so it'd make sense for Throne to follow after Agnea's hope rather than trying to fight against her.

The people Throne can break are interesting as well, especially since she is the most effective against Temenos, covering 3/4 of his weaknesses with her base kit. Temenos really isn't able to hide any of his weaknesses against Throne, which makes sense given their interactions and teamwork in their crossed path story arc.

She's also one of the only characters to throw Castti off a few times (i.e. the banter where Throne almost talks Castti into letter her steal stuff from Timberain's royal family bc Throne thinks Castti would look pretty in the jewelry).

Throne also has a banter with Partitio where she gets him to realize how over-trusting he can be by talking him into letting her take the check from Alrond--which she doesn't do, but she definitely exploited a few of his social weaknesses and could have stolen the check from him easily, in front of his face no less. (Although if I recall correctly, Partitio then has her hold onto the check for safekeeping anyhow, just because he trusts her that much).

Osvald is a bit of a surprise, given how few weaknesses he has and how vigilant he seems to be, but Throne is a professional and given that Osvald was unable to escape prison without Emerald's help (who also seems to be a thief, given that he uses a dagger when playable), it makes sense that Throne could potentially get the better of him. There's also the fact that she's the granddaughter of D'arqest, and Osvald has spent his life investigating the source of D'arqest's magic, the answer to which eludes him till the very end of his story.

Osvald can break five of the other travelers, which is the second-most after Ochette. This matches well with his ability to scrutinize people, and his general observant nature.

He can't break Throne, which as noted previously, may be due to how close her blood-ties are to D'arqest. Studying the Pit of D'arqest and trying to figure out what the source of his magic was is Osvald's life study, the answer to which eludes him most of the story, so it does make sense that Throne, the granddaughter of D'arqest, would also elude him (esp. considering that while Osvald does learn about the Shadow, the answer he finds to the One True Magic is entirely separate and opposite to the Shadow). Hikari has the same blood-ties, but it's strongly implied he is a much further descendant of D'arqest than Throne is, so even though Hikari literally has the Shadow living in him, he's not tied to D'arqest the same way Throne is (as she's the daughter of Vide's "perfect vessel" and was raised in hopes that she could succeed as a vessel instead, even if this ultimately fails).

Osvald also can't break Temenos, which actually does reflect their general relationship well. In one of their banters, Osvald makes a note of how much Temenos talks without ever saying what his point is, and generally seems to find Temenos's whimsical façade to be a hassle to deal with on occasion. It's funny, in a way, that Temenos is one of the few people Osvald can't seem to figure out, but also speaks to each of their personalities--Osvald is honest bordering on rudeness, and always straightforward with how he speaks, whereas Temenos keeps a great deal of his inner thoughts and feelings to himself while speaking in a roundabout way, hiding what he actually wants to say behind stories from the scriptures or lighthearted jabs.

That Osvald can break everyone else reflects his observant nature, for sure, but it's also interesting that he can break characters like Agnea and Ochette, both of whom he treats as surrogate daughters to some level or another...though perhaps the fact that he can break them reflects his parenting style, wherein he wouldn't want to hold back any important lessons, even if they were somewhat unpleasant.

As noted before, Osvald's one of the few characters who points out how reckless Castti can be with her own health, so it makes sense he'd be able to break her. Hikari makes sense, given that he's trained in martial arts rather than magical arts, so Osvald and Hikari are strong in what the other is weak in. And, Partitio is open and honest, almost to a fault, which, like how Throne can get a good read on Partitio, probably makes Partitio fairly easy for Osvald to get a read on as well.

Like Osvald, Partitio can break five of the other travelers. This, paired with his distinct lack of weaknesses, does seem to reflect the fact that, despite being sincere and a starting off untraveled, Partitio is wicked smart and very aware of what's going on around him, skills he needs to be a successful merchant.

Partitio can't break Agnea as far as we know, which seems to reflect their banter where Partitio nearly gives her his money after she explains how she raised enough money to start traveling (Angea notably has enough money for her travels, it's Paritio who needs to come up with more money, but here he is trying to give her more money anyhow).

Partitio being unable to break Temenos may have to do with Partitio truly not being able to get a good read on Temenos because of how Temenos is (re: puts up a façade, keeps his feelings to himself, etc.), but there's also the shared banter between Castti, Partitio, Temenos, and Agnea where, a bit drunk and therefore letting his guard slip a bit, we see that Temenos can be rather cynical, as he shoots down the idea of new paper plays about their travels rather quickly. This puts his personality at odds with both Partitio and Agnea, who are unfailingly optimistic (and optimistic enough they eventually convince Temenos their idea isn't that naïve).

The fact that Partitio can break the rest of the party is just testament to his astuteness and flexibility as a merchant, since he can break more stoic characters like Osvald and Throne (Partitio hits it off pretty quickly with both, not even giving Throne a hard time for her thieving habits and instead bonding over their shared love of fashion, as any merchant good at networking might do), while also finding a way past Hikari's defenses (although Hikari's usually pretty straightforward on matters not related to his Shadow, so Partitio's able to connect with him pretty easily as well). As noted earlier, Partitio is the only character Ochette cannot break without one of her partners, and his name is the only one that really trips her up.

Partitio being able to break Castti comes as a bit of a surprise, given that the majority of their banters have Castti teasing Partitio or chiding him for his reckless behavior. There is the sense that Partitio respects Castti a great deal and is still paying attention to what she does, as seen in their banter during her Timberain chapter, where Paritio reminds Castti that her ability to convince the soldiers to get the people indoors to safety was due to her hard work, and that while it's true there's more for her to do, she shouldn't undersell the worth of all that she has already managed to achieve. From this, we get the sense that teasing and chiding aside, Partitio is still keeping tabs on Castti and is clearly able to get a read on her, even if he doesn't intervene as often in her personal affairs.

Despite being the only one whose weaknesses we don't know for certain, Agnea can break five other travelers as well. This makes sense from a game mechanics standpoint, since Dolcinaea is Agnea's boss fight and Agnea can't be charmed during the fight, so she ideally has to have a chance to break whoever Dolcinaea does charm. But this also reflects well how Agnea is able to win over so many people throughout her travels, as her pursuit of hope and desire to bring joy to people never wavers and inspires others.

The only two she can't break are Partitio and Throne. Given the infamous peaches banter, it makes sense Agnea can't break Partitio, since she didn't realize he was talking about the basket of peaches she was literally holding until the very end of the banter, and by then was too flustered to stick around (Partitio is, notably, clueless to the fact that Agnea thought he was talking about some entirely different peaches).

Throne makes sense as well because she's a slightly older, and definitely more experienced, woman than Agnea. As a country girl coming to the city, Agnea is ignorant to all of the dark things a city could hold, while Throne is a city girl who grew up literally in the shadows of all the wicked things in a city. Agnea's general ignorance puts her at a slight disadvantage to Throne's knowledge, although it should be noted that Throne is also inspired by Agnea's kindness and hope, and supports Agnea rather than looking down on her ignorance and naivety.

While we can assume that Agnea can break most of the other travelers for battle mechanics purposes, and to make sure the player has a chance to retrieve the charmed character even if Agnea is the only character they have to do that, it is interesting that she can break most of the characters from a narrative standpoint.

Characters like Osvald and Castti treat Agnea like a kid (Agnea seems to be a surrogate daughter to Osvald specifically), so it could be she's able to get to both of them because they want to dote on her a bit like a parent might (although for Castti, the resident healer, the fact that Agnea can break her might be due to Agnea's habit of occassionally rushing into things that causes some vexation to Castti).

Temenos notably has a difficult time communicating with Agnea, so Agnea's ability to break him could have something to do with the fact that Temenos is never able to get his point across to Agnea in a few of their banters (i.e. when Agnea forgets that he's the inquisitor and thinks his job is that of a detective or a paper play artist, and all of Temenos's attempts to correct her fail; likewise his attempt to get Agnea to take care of herself--before helping Laila get new shoes--via a story of Aelfric goes right over Agnea's head). It's not so much that Agnea is that naïve, but rather Temenos's roundabout way of doing things seems to make it more difficult for him to communicate clearly with her.

Agnea being able to break Hikari could be explained as well by her unwavering optimism and journey for hope. Compared to Hikari's childhood, Agnea hasn't experienced the same hardships, so her belief in bringing joy and happiness to people may seem naïve at first. But Hikari's entire end-goal for Ku isn't that different, as he wishes for peace and prosperity and an end to the bloodshed and war that's plagued his country and torn asunder his family and the families of his people. So despite the fact that Agnea's coming from an entirely different set of life experiences, her desire to bring about a more hopeful, brighter future aligns with Hikari's own desire for a better future, so it makes sense then that Agnea could break through to Hikari because he believes deeply in her vision even before he meets her. (This is also somewhat reflected in Mikka and Pala's side story in the postgame, as it's Pala who's able to break through to Mikka).

Ochette's the most surprising, although Agnea is one of the first travelers to share cooked food with Ochette in one of their early banters, so in the realm of food at least Agnea knows ways to prepare it that Ochette loves (even though Castti also later cooks for Ochette but can't break her). There's also the banter in Agnea's final chapter where Ochette talks about how much she loves Gil's piano playing, and she mentions several times how much she enjoys Agnea's dances and singing, so it could be that Ochette is weak to the performing arts.

Temenos has the fewest number of travelers that he can break, making him the opposite of Ochette. Now, technically he could break every traveler with his latent ability, but without putting in the extra effort he's not able to break most of the others. This is interesting considering his entire thing is being able to get information by talking with people (the coerce nighttime path action, despite being a battle, is probably supposed to be a metaphor for the "mental battle" waged when trying to get information from someone). Despite his acuity with detective work and unravelling mysteries, he has quite the difficult time unravelling his traveling companions. It's possible that, like Castti, this actually reflects the fact that he is a healer technically (even if, in Temenos's shared banter with Castti and Partitio, Partitio suggests that Temenos's "healing" style focuses more on the spirit, rather than physical wounds the way Castti's healing does).

Who he can break are interesting choices. Throne is the least surprising, since the two are opposites while being quite alike, although Temenos notably can only hit one of Throne's weaknesses while she can hit most of his.

Meanwhile, Ochette is probably one of the least deceptive travelers, never hiding much of anything, so it could be Temenos has an easier time reading her because she's straightforward with her thoughts and feelings pretty much all the time. This might explain why Temenos can break Partitio as well, since while Partitio is capable of using his merchant's gift of rhetoric to inspire people to his cause, he is incredibly honest, straightforward, and open about himself as well, and very trusting of other people (the opposite of Temenos's innate doubt).

If we work off the idea that Temenos has an easier time reading Ochette and Partitio because of their openness, then most of the characters Temenos can't break make sense. Hikari, while not outright deceptive, never tells any of the other party members about his struggles with his Shadow (although he comes close and talks about it indirectly with Temenos and Castti in one of their banters), and therefore we can say that Hikari is somewhat secretive and very good at keeping his secrets.

Castti likewise, while she's not trying to keep secrets intentionally and also isn't deceptive, suffers amnesia and can't remember much of anything of her past at the start of her story (Temenos can't inquire about something someone doesn't know). Even after she regains her memories, it's hard to say how openly Castti would discuss her experiences or not, since we don't see them brought up in detail during her travel banters often.

Osvald doesn't keep anything secret, on purpose or accident, and is very straightforward when he speaks, but he's also taciturn and prefers not to chat, so it makes sense Temenos would have a hard time breaking him since Temenos can't learn something from someone who won't talk to him, and there's the general impression that even Osvald's body language is a bit withdrawn (I say "general impression" bc despite the limits of sprite art, Osvald doesn't move around as expressively or actively as other characters like Ochette or Angea, and even his unique Bewildering Grace dance is the most restrained of the eight).

As noted earlier Temenos also has a difficult time communicating his point to Agnea in several of their shared banters. It should be noted as well that Agnea is the youngest character in the group, and Temenos tends to be "weak" to children, with how he lets Ochette talk him into reading Acta a story because Acta is a baby, or with the children of his church teasing him for his mistakes in his paper plays (although I think his mistakes are intentional, as I explained in this post here, but Temenos does seem to have something of a soft spot for children, possibly because they tend to be more honest or possibly because he takes his duties teaching/guiding them more seriously than he lets on).

Surprisingly, despite his martial prowess, Hikari can only break four other travelers. Like we see with Throne, this could speak to his nature, as Hikari is very kindhearted and values his friends dearly, and his desire not to hurt anyone but especially the people he cares about is what allows Hikari to stave off, and eventually defeat, his Shadow. Indeed, like how Castti is a healer first, fighter second, there's the impression that Hikari--despite being a warrior--is a protector first, and a warrior second.

Hikari can't break Castti, which is interesting, because Castti was "infected" by Trousseau's poison rain and carried a bit of the Shadow around with her, it's possible Hikari couldn't break her even if he wanted due to his blood curse. Likewise Hikari can't break Throne, just as she can't break him, and with their shared blood ties to D'arqest and Vide, and I wonder how much of the Shadow being something of an offshoot, or "servant", to Vide, alongside Throne being the daughter of Vide's intended perfect vessel, potentially has to do with this.

Hikari's Shadow, and Castti and Throne's connections to it, don't explain why he can't break Agnea, but it could be that Agnea's earnest journey for hope and continual optimism even in the face of darkness is something he respects enough that he would never and could never bring himself to harm her, since he believes deeply in her vision of hope.

It's interesting then that he can break Ochette, who is canonically the character who seems to be closest to the Flame, but at the same time both are warriors of a sort, so it could be more of a friendly sparring thing. Osvald makes some sense, in that Hikari is a master of physical combat and Osvald is not, so naturally they're both weak to what the other is skilled in.

Partitio is a bit surprising, but if we take into considering that it's implied Partitio gets into fights on impulse due to being a bit hot-blooded, it does make sense that Hikari, who's always cool and calm under a fight (when he isn't staving off the Shadow) could get the upper hand on Paritio if they sparred.

Hikari being able to break Temenos makes sense in regards to his shared banter with Temenos and Throne, where the three play poker and try to needle each other into giving up, with Throne and Temenos failing to throw each other off, before Hikari ultimately gets them both to give up the game, potentially getting Temenos to cry in the process (which is an incredible feat on Hikari's part, given that Temenos is never shown or implied to cry during the events of his story despite two people he cared deeply about being murdered, and just how careful Temenos is in general with keeping up a certain façade around others).

One last thing I'd like to talk about is the number of other travelers each traveler is weak to, which I think has more to do with game mechanics than with characterization. Every character is weak to five other characters, with the exception of Throne and Partitio who are only weak to four. This is really excellent in terms of mechanics balancing, since the only reason these weaknesses exist is because characters can be charmed during the Dolcinaea fight, so it makes sense that the player should be given a fair shot to break the charmed character with whichever team setup they went into the battle with, especially so for players who go in blind.

Agnea obviously is the major exception to this, being unable to be charmed means we can at best guess at her weaknesses. Which is fitting because the player wouldn't have to worry about losing Agnea in the battle (and generally speaking, in my experience Agnea's usually able to output enough damage by this point in the game that she can retrieve the charmed character with a fully boosted attack without even needing to break them, meaning I, as the player, didn't even have to really worry about who Dolcinaea charmed in terms of strategy). In theory if she could have been charmed, I imagine she would have had 4-5 characters who could break her with their base kit, just for gameplay balancing purposes.

Aaand, that's...all I think I wanted to jot down for my continued observations. With the bonus battle updates to Octo2, I plan to put together a similar post (or two) for the Octo1 travelers, since we now have access to their weaknesses as well. I'm still not trying to make any point per se, just rambling on things I observed and how the game mechanics seem to tie in with story characterization, which I always think is a neat thing when it occurs in games. Thanks for reading if you made it this far, bc this got way longer than I was expecting!

[bey0nd-1he-stars]

Magic on a canvas - Kaz Brekker

Masterlist

Pairing: Kaz Brekker x artist!reader

Word count: 978

Warnings: none

Summary: You're an artist and one day you want to paint Kaz.

Winter had arrived to Ketterdam and snow was falling upon the dirty streets, covering them in a powder of white snowflakes, making them look crazy and welcoming. It kind of destroyed the whole “barrel vibe” and the criminals all looked like Santa’s workers after being outside. That included your little gang too.

The dregs were still running the businesses as usual, although the ships got a bit delayed and the delivery from the docks to the Slat and to the Crow club were a bit slower than usual because of the cold and the snow and ice on the cobblestones.

You had settled in Kaz office. A canvas propped up and a cup of hot chocolate on the small table beside you. You'd faced the canvas towards the window to take advantage of the natural lightning so Kaz never saw what you were working on until you turned it around to show him. He was currently sitting in his office, working away at some papers he had lying around that needed to be taken care of. He had a glass of liquor on the desktop among the papers, as well as a few rolled up maps from the last heist you'd done. Occasionally, you’d look up from what you were doing to take a sip of your chocolate, or sometimes just to look at him and what he was doing. In truth you were taking in his features to get them down on the canvas as true to reality as possible. 

“You need something?” He mumbled, eyes glued on the written lines. He picked up a pencil, scribbled something down and then placed it aside. He looked up to meet your eyes and a teasing smirk made its way to his lips. You returned his smirk and returned to your canvas with a shake of your head. He rolled his eyes at your nonverbal reply but went back to his work nonetheless. But it was hard to try and paint him when he had his head bent forwards, his dark hair falling into his eyes and his brown eyes stuck on papers. So you carefully reached out with the back of your long brush to make him look up from his work. You let the brush end rest under his chin, holding him there, taking in the way the light from the window caught onto his features. Even in the raw light, he looked good. It was a bit unfair, to be honest. 

“Thank you,” you mumbled and drew back the brush and returned to your painting. Your actions left Kaz a bit dumbfounded but he quickly shook it off and returned to his work. He’d learned since long to not question you, just go with whatever you were doing and just let it slide, however weird it was. But a small smile still made its way to his lips when he looked down at his work. It was so purely you, what you’d just done. And all while still respecting his boundaries and not touching him with skin to skin contact. His heart stopped for just a moment at the thought. 

These actions continued on for a few hours. You’d reach out for him to look up from what he was doing and then he returned to his work. One time he left to go fetch some more drinks for the two of you, one time you left to get some paint. He contemplated if he should look at what you were painting but just when he were to go for it you pushed the door to his office open again and he lost his chance. When the light from the window started to dim down you let out a content sight and put down the brush you’d been holding for hours. You put it in the cup of water where you’d put the others and Kaz looked up to see what you’d been painting. You always showed him when you were finished, but not before that. 

The painting on the canvas took him aback a bit. You’d painted him. A scene where he was walking on a snow covered road with white, pearly trees on each side. It wasn’t in a city, it was somewhere else, he didn’t know where. And he looked far better in your painting than he did in real life. You somehow always managed to paint some sort of magic into your paintings, making them breathtaking and beautiful. Your pictures were nowhere near what reality looked like and it always made him gasp a bit for breath. But you’d never painted him before. Or maybe you had and just hadn’t shown him, only Ghezen knew. You tilted your head to the side a bit, taking in his reaction. He didn’t say anything for a while, just letting his gaze take in the masterpiece. Then he spoke up after a few solid minutes.

“You make me look so much more beautiful than I do, than I deserve,” his voice was just a whisper. You smiled gently at the words and his gaze flickered from the painting and met yours for a few seconds before returning to the painting. 

“You look like that for real, you know. It isn’t just the painting. You look like that right now. At least in my eyes you look like that,” you words were gentle but Kaz heard the honesty behind them. And he believed you. Maybe you did see him that way. His heart swelled at the thought and his breathing got stuck in his throat. He could only nod as he reached out a gloved hand to rest over yours, giving it a soft squeeze before retracting again. 

“You look like that too, you know,” he told you, not looking at you but resting his gaze on the painting, “In my eyes, you look that beautiful.”

[disturbnot]

IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE, OVER AND OUT ENTIRELY. Suffice it to say, the anticlimactic end to their battle shocked even Ash. He blinks through the thinning dust; he mirrors the puzzled look his Raichu is giving him, the guilt as he realises the fun is already over.

" Well ... shit, " Ash's brow furrows—he even pouts slightly. " Guess my buddy doesn't know his own strength? " A paltry excuse. Young trainer meets unstoppable steamroller, what else was going to happen? Ash sighs, rubbing at the back of his neck. " Our bad, kid—ah... maybe we can have a do-over? "

@disturbnot

"All right, no. Wait.

What was that."

A Raichu who single-handedly wiped out his whole Team? Yeah nah that's bullshit.