#｡° by the way i miss you too : 「 robotic apples 」

[fxirytxlcfxtc]

descended-from-fairytales​:

She appreciates the help, eagerly melting into the cuddles once she gets to the floor. She curls into Daniel, holding onto him tightly, laying more on top of him.

Waylon follows shortly after, cumming with a groan, his eyes rolling back, his hips stuttering and stilling. He pants and pulls away slightly to sit back on the couch. Looking over at his three on the floor, there’s a hint of a soft smile and a chuckle.

Hemlock melts into his touch, smiling softly against his lips. She reaches out to pull him the rest of the way onto the floor with her.

she pulls Sadie in more, holding onto both of them. Tired, so very tired. Needs to rest, but just wants to be held more than anything.

the slut curls into him, melting into his touch, humming lightly at his hand in her hair.

the doll shudders, happily laying there, eyes crossed, tongue hanging out of her mouth, thoroughly fucked and pleased. snuggles, please? she thinks it's done, they're done now, right? if they're done, the doll wants her snuggles. she was so good. right?

Fitz stumbles slightly and comes down with her, smiling and pulling her in close.

cuddles. warm. missing one? whine. pout. reaching blindly. cuddles. time for cuddles.

Navin kisses the side of her head, holding her close to him.

[bluesidez]

GymRat!Miguel Part 10

content warning: “vague” descriptions of American colleges (iykyk), Winston [Earth-928/ Earth-TRN590] is here with a cool prosthetic arm (he originally has three! so I thought it would be cool to incorporate his robot arm back somehow), suggestive at parts so MINORS BEWARE (although you shouldn’t be looking at this series at all 😒), Miguel is the baby of his friend group, if the Spanish here is wrong please lmk!

word count: 3.8k, proofread so there should be no mistakes (something short and sweet!)

In case you missed it, you can find GR!Miguel’s full SFW + NSFW Alphabet here!

Prev | Next ✩°｡ ⋆⸜ 🎧✮ Masterlist

GymRat!Miguel who has become one with his room. The bed is comfortable, the AC is just right, and more importantly, he can hide here in solitude.

His parents decided to host Gabriel’s graduation party, Gabriel’s college acceptance party, and a Fourth of July party all at once. It was nonstop trips to Sam’s, Party City, and the grocery store.

Gabriel got a full ride to a prestigious art school up north and his parents were using every second of the summer to make time for him.

They didn’t do nearly as much for him when he graduated and got a full ride. Although, Miguel guesses the shiny Range Rover from Tyler parked outside was enough to soothe the old wounds trying to reopen. Plus, Gabriel really deserved it. The chances of getting in were low, but Miguel helped every step of the way and now a bright future in the Big Apple was calling his name.

Still, if his dad called him to cut the grass or season another pack of meat, he might lose it.

GymRat!Miguel who was glad to see you were still enjoying your summer. He was probably the first to watch your stories, like your pictures, and even comment on your little notes.

He hoped it came off as endearing and dedicated because sometimes he worried it was annoying and clingy. He couldn’t help it, though. You’re always on his mind nowadays.

Today you had posted clips of you and your friends at a Boba shop. He could hear your laughter as you zoomed in one of your friends fighting for their life after sucking up a boba ball.

He smiled to himself as he played the video a few more times just to hear you.

GymRat!Miguel who decides to play a Gacha game on his phone to distract his wandering mind.

There was a character he wanted and he wasn’t stopping until he got her.

GymRat!Miguel who three domains, a farming session, several 10-pulls, and a lucky spot later did not get the character he wanted. He was heartbroken, shattered, and inconsolable.

He groaned and flipped over to the wall, choosing a few colorful words to complain.

GymRat!Miguel who’s half-asleep state is interrupted by Gabriel doing their special knock and poking his head inside.

“Whatdoyouwant,” Miguel pushed his face further in his pillow in hopes that it would make him disappear.

“Broski, your friends are here,” Gabriel sang as if he were a white suburban mom with too much time on her hands. “And they bombarded my TikTok stream so if you could please retrieve them, that would be nice.”

Miguel poked his head up, “Are you rating people’s talents again?”

“Even better. I’m being an NPC and making bank!”

“Why don’t you ever play the saxophone or something?”

“Because that’s not what the people want me to do, Miguel. The people want to see me go ‘Lick a lil sum!’ over and over again. They eat it up.”

Miguel squinted at the bright light coming from the hallway, “In a pickle suit?”

Gabriel looked down as much as he could with his constricted movement, only his appendages sticking out of the holes, and looked back to Miguel with gritted teeth.

“If you would have put your Nightwing costume back on, I could have been Robin and we could have made money together. But it seems that you hate me.”

GymRat!Miguel who watches Tempest push the door open further and shuffle around a seething Gabriel.

“I still don’t know why you’re dressed like a Spongebob character,” she laughs at his green tights.

“I’m not Kevin! Stop saying that. There’s no glasses. There’s no crown. There’s no pants!”

Lyla poked her head around him.

“‘Lewser.’”

Gabriel yelled and turned around, waddling back to his room, “I’m not letting the Geek Squad bully me!”

“You say that like you’re not one of us!” Winston shouted after him, shells and beads in his hair clanking together.

“One of us, one of us, ONE OF US!” the trio started to chant at Miguel’s door.

Gabriel just let out incoherent noses until he was able to shut his door.

GymRat!Miguel who feels like hissing when Tempest opens his blinds.

“Please, no more!” he whined into the pillow.

“What’s with you two today? So snappy,” she mumbles.

Winston stood by the door with his hands on his hips, “Have you been in here all day?”

Miguel sits up, “No.”

“You look like it,” Lyla snickers, kicking a bag out of the way.

“We haven’t seen you in like, forever, and you’re acting like you don’t really care,” Tempest pulls up her long, ruffled skirt to plop on the bed next to Miguel. “Are you sick?”

“No.”

“Did someone die?” Winston pulls out Miguel’s gaming chair to take a seat.

“No.”

“Wait!” Lyla’s voice makes everyone jump. “You failed your class for the first time and now your life is ruined.”

“What? No, never.”

GymRat!Miguel who perks up at the sound of the text tone he picked just for you.

“Look!”

“I just found this picture of us”

“We’re working hard 🫡”

“I’m putting in overtime”

“There’s no PTO”

“Only work”

“We get paid in kisses”

“Only kisses?”

“Everything else is a bonus check for being the perfect employee”

"Aka my girlfriend"

“And what does that bonus check look like?”

“Hmmm”

“She looks divine”

“She tastes really sweet too”

“Inside and out”

“What does your bonus check look like?”

“He’s big and hot 😌”

“He looks really nice when I love on him”

“He feels really good”

“Be very lucky you’re not near me rn”

“What?”

“I’m just describing my elite employee!”

“Aka my bf”

“I feel really good?”

“Yeah!”

“You’re my teddy bear”

“….and you also feel good in other places that I won’t be spelling out”

GymRat!Miguel who doesn’t feel Tempest leaning over his shoulder until her voice snaps him back to reality.

“No fucking way you got a girlfriend and didn’t tell anybody.”

She snatches the phone from his hands.

“Temp, give it back!”

“And you’re getting freaky with her while we’re right here!”

“No, I’m not-”

“It says right here ‘she tastes really sweet, inside and out.’ It’s in 4K!” Tempest shoved the phone in Winston’s face who gets the derpiest smile.

“My man!” he reaches his hand out to Miguel to dap him up, ending it in the handshake that only the two of them know. “You finally got a girl and you putting in that work. Let’s. Fucking. Go.”

“At least someone is on my side.”

“I never said I wasn’t on your side. I’m just stuck on the fact that you didn’t tell anyone. No texts, no socials. Just tumbleweed in that big ass head of yours,” Tempest pushed a duck nail against Miguel’s temple. “Like you could have died, and we would have never known.”

“I’m sorry, Temp, it’s been a hectic year.”

“And now it’s summer. We’ve got nothing but time,” she grabbed a pillow to place in her lap. “So get to talking Migster.”

“Yeah, while I can understand waiting to tell us about your girl, this is like, what, the second strike for you? First, no yacht and now this? Aggy,” Winston shook his head.

“All three of you had plans! I checked!”

“And it’s looking like you’ve been with her for almost a year. Wow,” Lyla said from a bean bag on the floor.

Miguel reaches to snatch it from her, teeth gritted in a way that mimicked his brother.

“I never knew you could get so romantic! Maybe scratch the arcade idea off, though. You get way too competitive.”

Tempest hit Miguel with her pillow, “An entire year?”

“Cold-blooded. I should smack you next,” Winston struck his metal arm back like he was getting ready to swing.

Miguel held his hands up, “I’ll finally let you teach me how to play Halo!”

Winston sat back, “2k too, and all is forgiven.”

“Halo and one round of 2k.”

“Deal,” Winston shook Miguel’s hand. “You’ll be hooked once you get the hang of it.”

“God, I hope not,” Lyla mumbled.

“Says the one who yells at children on Roblox,” Winston bit back.

“You don’t hear what those heathens say, I do!”

GymRat!Miguel who is forced to make a short PowerPoint about his past year while his friends help Miguel’s parents set up even more.

“I want a Final-worthy presentation by the time we get back! I even showed you where to get the cute templates,” Tempest fusses from the door before she closes it.

GymRat!Miguel who calls you while they’re gone.

“I mean, if it were me who just found out that my closest friend told me essentially nothing about their partner for that long, I’d be pretty upset too.”

Miguel groans as he leans back in his chair, “That is pretty fucked, isn’t it?”

“But, because I was with you most of the school year, I know that you were just preoccupied with other things. Figuring out college, checking off a lot of adult firsts, making new friends, dealing with family, totally scrambling your way through getting your first girlfriend.”

“Hey…”

You laugh at his annoyed expression and snap a picture, “I’m sure if you just explain things to them, they’ll understand.”

“I hope so. I already promised Winston a game of 2k.”

You scrunched your nose in the cute way that Miguel adored, “I’ll take a gamer, nerdy boyfriend any day. Might draw the line at 2k, I fear.”

“My face doesn’t cancel out the bad connotation?”

“Depends. Will you cancel on me in place of playing with your friends?”

Miguel’s eyes looked to you on his laptop with a frown on his face, “Never. I don’t think I’d do that for anything that can be rescheduled. Did he do that?”

Miguel didn’t want to say his name because it left a bad taste in his mouth.

“More than I’d like to admit, yes.”

“If I ever see him, I might punch him.”

“Miguel.”

“I’m so serious. There hasn’t been one good quality about him yet.”

Only the fact that he was a good stepping stone to get to Miguel, not that he would ever say that out loud.

“He was…nice when I met him.”

“Just nice?”

“He had a cute face!”

Miguel’s frown deepened, “I don’t want to talk about him anymore, actually.”

GymRat!Miguel who finished his PowerPoint with the help of you.

Honestly, you just had to sit pretty in the corner of his monitor.

GymRat!Miguel who was ready to present once his friends got back, each of them sporting a Fanta in their hands.

“Nobody brought me one?”

Tempest made a noise of satisfaction when she took a sip, “A cold one is waiting for you when you finish, buddy.”

Miguel rolled his eyes and set up the PowerPoint.

GymRat!Miguel whose presentation is dragged even further because everyone keeps asking questions.

Section 1: New Experiences

“Only you would attract sorority girls despite the clear baby boy energy radiating off of you,” Tempest said.

“I mean, look at him,” Lyla gestured to Miguel’s body. “We still see our big baby, but that body? That’s what people notice first. We should have prepared him more.”

Miguel’s face fumed as he went to the next slide.

“And only you would make friends with the cafeteria lady. She saw the baby aura,” Tempest quipped.

“L-let’s just move on,” Miguel mumbled.

“You’re on the robotics team!! There’s our Miggy,” Lyla rounds her words like she was talking to a child.

“Guys, Miguel is going to be a tomato if you don’t stop,” Winston chides.

Section 2: Family

“I’ve been waiting on somebody to get that gremlin Kron and you finally got him,” Lyla shook her head with a chuckle.

“I’m sorry about your mom, though. She didn’t really like us too much either when we first started to hang out,” Tempest pulled her knees up to her chin.

“Mind you, I had a mean set of braces, suspenders, and high water pants when we first met,” Winston said.

“Oh my god. Remember when she thought Tempest was tricking Mig into doing her homework?”

“When all I was doing was comparing answers because Miguel was the only one who could keep up with me in that class,” Tempest snickered. “Glad me and Mrs. O’Hara moved past that because I was definitely looking out for you more than she was.”

“Remember when she thought you two were dating?” Winston asked.

Miguel groaned, “That was so fucking embarrassing.”

“You think now I read as a raging lesbian or what?”

Section 3: My Gorgeous Girlfriend Whom Which I Love

“The same guy who lectured me for 10 minutes over not jumping out of a car to hold the door for my girlfriend left his girl at a party?” Winston snickered.

Lyla played with the end of a braid in her hair, “Chivalry is dead.”

“Get all your jokes out now, because we’re going strong,” Miguel waved everyone off as he flipped to the next slide.

“Is that her?” Lyla sat up as much as she could in her sinking seat.

“Yeah,” Miguel’s smile grew at the picture of you from a coffee date on the screen.

“Look at him,” Winston pointed a finger. “He can’t even speak. He’s gone.”

“She’s hot! Nice job Miguel,” Tempest clapped with a giddy smile on her face. “You’re like, lovestruck over there.”

Miguel continued to flip through the several slides he had of you, face sinking further into his palm as he stared at you like he’s never seen you before.

“Does Xina know you have a girlfriend?”

“Woof,” Tempest and Winston said in a low voice simultaneously.

Miguel tilted his head with a confused expression, “What’s with the ‘woof’? Why are you all looking like that? And where is Xina, anyway?”

“She said her parents wanted her to go visit family, so she’s far, far away right now.”

“Did you know she’s transferring to your school?” Lyla asks.

“Why? I thought she was going to an Ivy League somewhere. It was all she talked about.”

Tempest’s eyebrows raised, “Can’t stay at an Ivy League if you fuck up your scholarship.”

"She told me that she didn't like it there," Winston looked confused.

Lyla and Tempest just stared at each other in disbelief.

“If you worked your ass off from starting a non-profit to being the school valedictorian, just to get into one school, would you just up and leave after one school year without finding better options?” Lyla deadpanned.

“Hey, we don’t know what happened. Maybe she really didn’t like it there, guys,” Miguel said.

Lyla and Tempest both gave Miguel twin looks as if telling him to get serious.

“Well, if she’s going to your school, I’m sure you’ll see her at some point. Maybe she’ll tell you,” Winston suggested.

“Yeah, Miguel. She’ll tell you anything if you ask,” Lyla folded her arms with a smile.

“What does that mean?”

“It just means,” Tempest waved her hands around. “She’s enamored by you.”

“Guys. Stop.”

“She’s not lying. Every time we hang out together, she’s always clinging to you,” Winston said.

“It’s been years and she’s never told me anything,” Miguel reached to exit the PowerPoint. What was about to be a 10 minute yap session about you was now turning into something else. “I doubt that if she felt that way, she still feels that way now.”

“Maybe you’re right,” Lyla shrugged.

Tempest nodded her head, “Good on you for being so optimistic.”

Miguel squinted his eyes, “You two are freaking me out.”

GymRat!Miguel who sat with his friend’s words once they dropped him off back home after an impromptu day of fun.

He really needed to get out of the house to reset, but he couldn’t help but to worry about Xina.

He was there when she worked herself to the bone just to even be considered for the top schools. When she got in, she was over the moon.

What could have possibly made her stop now?

GymRat!Miguel who wakes up to sound of his dad laughing and yelling outside of his window.

He dragged himself to the window to see him running around with his brothers with a nerf gun.

It would be a pretty funny sight if it wasn’t 7 in the morning.

GymRat!Miguel who goes through his morning routine of booting Gabriel up, taking his morning run, and eating a hefty breakfast.

He sends you a picture of himself right after he finished the run, sweat dripping down his neck and his skin glowing from the hot sun.

Knowing you were probably still asleep, he doesn’t expect a response until later. So when you call him immediately, he’s filled with surprise.

“Sending thirst traps at ass o’clock is crazy,” you say as soon as the call connects.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“So you just happened to take the perfect picture in the sun with your skin all wet?”

“Are you saying that I’m photogenic?”

You roll your eyes and Miguel laughs, happy to see you.

“Where are you going?” Miguel asks, noticing the fluffy headband you’re wearing that’s holding your hair back.

“We’re going to my aunts house and she lives about two hours away so I got up early to get ready.”

“Bebe, qué hermosa eres.” (Baby, how beautiful you are.)

You pause what you’re doing to turn and stuff your head into a plushie to scream.

“You can’t tell me that,” you say when look back to the camera, fanning your face. “I won’t stay focused.”

“But it’s true. You’re stunning.”

You groan and slide down your chair, “Miguel, please. I need to focus.”

“Ok, ok. You still look amazing.”

“Thank you,” you say, patting the back of your hands against your heated cheeks.

“I wanna kiss you.”

“I’m hanging up.”

Miguel laughs as you bring the phone to your face.

“I wanna kiss you, too,” you say before ending the call.

GymRat!Miguel who blows your phone up with teases after that.

It all shuts up once he sees your outfit of the day.

“You can’t do this to me”

“Baby????”

“This is agony”

GymRat!Miguel who is the loudest when Gabriel makes his grand entrance to the party, graduation cap snug on top of his curls. His family is popping mini confetti and string cannons while his little cousins blow bubbles.

GymRat!Miguel who catches Gabriel at any chance he was idle, snapping picture after picture like a proud parent.

GymRat!Miguel who stacks his plate high full of food to the shock of no one.

GymRat!Miguel who almost gets knocked down by Gabriel when he opens his gift of specialized sheet music. After years of hearing the songs Gabriel would blast through the house, he compiled together a music book with covers done by different artists.

"I'm going to play every single one of these for you," Gabriel says with a geeked-out smile.

"Oh boy."

GymRat!Miguel who watches Gabriel scream as their neighbor's dog runs towards the fireworks that he set on the ground.

Miguel always thought there was nothing going on behind those little eyes.

GymRat!Miguel who feels Gabriel slide next to him in the corner of their backyard. A place where the two of them used to do everything from hide-and-seek to sharing secrets to pretending to be superheroes.

Gabriel leans his on Miguel’s shoulder, eyes watching the small fireworks their cousins bought.

“Mig?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you ever get scared when you left home?”

Miguel was quiet for a second, “At first, I was. I was leaving what I knew, but once I got used to it, it was like a weight off my chest.”

The two sat for a minute, listening to their family sing and laugh.

“I’m really fucking nervous.”

“About leaving?”

“About everything,” Gabriel took a shaky breath. “I’ll be so far away. I won’t know anyone. And you…”

Miguel’s sleeve was wet.

“You won’t be there if I need you.”

Miguel turned and pull Gabriel into a hug, arms tight as he felt Gabriel cry into his shoulder.

“No tengas miedo, Gabri,” Miguel’s voice cracked as he rubbed his brother’s back. “I’ll be a call away, ok? Right there if you need me. I promise.” (Don’t be scared, Gabri.)

"Te voy a extrañar." (I'm going to miss you.)

"Yo también te voy a extrañar." (I'm going to miss you, too.)

After a while of the two calming down and making promises to continue their weekly calls, Gabriel leans up and covers his eyes with his arm.

“I told myself I’d save my tears for the move-in day, but it’s just now hitting me how much I’m going to miss seeing your stupid face.”

Miguel laughed and thumped him across the head, “And I’m going to miss hearing your stupid laugh across the hall. But what did you do when I left?”

Gabriel turned to avoid Miguel’s face, “Ma thought I was dying or something. She kept bringing random shit that I liked to my room for three weeks because ‘Te pareces a Ígor, mijo!’” (You look like Eeyore, mijo!)

Miguel bit his cheek as he ruffled Gabriel’s hair. He still saw the little baby who followed his every move. The baby that laughed hard when he read books with a funny voice. The baby that stood up for him front of their mom when he couldn’t even stand up for himself on the playground.

The kid who stayed up with him to beat some game because their dad wouldn't buy them memory cards for the PlayStation. The kid who tried food once he saw it on Miguel’s plate. The kid who refused to go to summer camps without him.

Here he was, sitting in front of Miguel, getting ready to start a new chapter.

“Oh god, Miguel don’t start crying again. It’s gonna ruin the tour,” Gabriel groaned and dug his head into his arms.

“I’m not, I’m not, I’m sorry,” Miguel hurriedly wiped his cheeks, hot tears filled with his thoughts escaping. “You’re going to kill it in New York. By the time I get there, you’ll be so used to it that it’ll be like breathing air.”

“I hope so,” he sniffles and looks back up. “I need to impress Dana.”

“And there he is,” Miguel shook his head. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to visit.”

“Yeah. I already have some places planned for dates.”

“Smooth. That’s the Miguel in you.”

“Shaddup.”

GymRat!Miguel who calls you closer to midnight.

"How was the party?"

"It was pretty good," Miguel moved to settle further into his bed. "Gabriel was happy."

Hearing the tone in his voice, you pouted, "Are you ok, though?"

"Yeah, I'm just. I'm feeling a lot."

He felt he might cry again, thinking about his little brother in a place all by himself, thinking of his parents being empty nesters, thinking of his feelings from yesterday.

"You want to talk about it?"

Miguel shook his head, "Tomorrow."

"Whenever you're ready, I'll be there."

"Thank you," Miguel smiled. "That means a lot."

GymRat!Miguel who feels better listening to you chatter until you fall asleep. His head isn't filled with so much noise and your voice is like a calm breeze.

He can't wait to see you again.

divider by: @thecutestgrotto 🩵

a/n: I was thinking of this video when I was writing Lyla talking about Kron + that smoking duck gif. I also doubt there are many nerds alive that play 2k, I just wanted Winston to play it lol. Anywho, I was going for a boho-chic vibe when I imagined Tempest (with red locs), a maximalist + art deco vibe with Lyla, and an elevated streetwear style with Winston. Winston also upgraded his prosthetic arm to mimic Link's from Tears of the Kingdom. As for Xina...we'll see! 😗

As always, like, comment, and reblog. Let me know how you feel! 🩵

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[theemporium]

Oh, please write for Mat! What about something fluffy with surprising the partner at home?

thank you for requesting!🫶🏽

.

You were dragging your feet by the time you reached your apartment after work.

The exhaustion you felt went beyond lack of sleep and long days, it was set deep in your bones and made every part of your body feel ten times heavier than usual. Everything felt harder than usual. From falling asleep at night to getting up in the morning, from focusing in classes to paying attention during your shifts, from just pushing your body to work on some twisted sense of routine that made you feel like you were a robot completing tasks to the fact you hadn’t felt like yourself in a while.

It was tiring, it was exhausting and you didn’t know what to do about it. And coming home to a completely empty apartment didn’t help settle the unease in your chest, the one that had been bubbling since Mat left for a roadie over a week ago. 

However, being on the other side of the country only put a damper on your already shitty mood. By the time you could manage a conversation over message or call, it was late for you and you were fighting to keep your eyes open, even if you knew you would inevitably be tossing in your bed for a few hours trying to fall asleep. Though, you never did sleep well when Mat was gone.

Despite every cell in your body screaming for you to forget dinner and curl up in bed with the hopes that you could manage more than a few hours of sleep for your first day off in almost two weeks, you knew there was still so much buzzing in your mind for you to do and you didn’t even think the comfort of being home would help. 

You were so lost in your thoughts that it took three attempts before you managed to slot the key into the lock, turn the handle and shuffle inside. You hadn’t even acknowledged the extra pair of shoes by the door or noted the bag dumped a few feet away. 

You didn’t even catch on to any of it until you lifted your head and found Mat standing there, dressed in a pair of sweatpants and hoodie, with his arms spread open and a massive grin on his face as he stared right back at you. 

“Surprise!”

You blinked, your brain unable to even process the sight in front of you.

“We decided to take a late night flight because the early morning one got cancelled so we came home early,” Mat explained as he closed the distance between you, grinning at your silence thinking you were just shocked. “Couldn’t wait to get home to my girl.”

The second he was close enough, Mat wasted no time in winding his arms around your waist and tugging you close until you practically fell into his chest. He grinned down at you, so giddy and happy to just be back home with you that it took a few seconds before he noticed your silence, before he noticed the dark circles under your eyes and the glaze over your eyes like you weren’t fully focused, like you were disassociating. 

“Oh baby,” he murmured, his voice softer and quieter as he raised his hand to gently cup your face, to let his thumb brush over the apple of your cheek as your body instinctively sagged against his touch. 

“M’just a little tired,” you tried to wave him off, but this was Mat. This was Mat who wasn’t just your boyfriend but your best friend, the one who saw right through your bullshit and bad excuses. “I’m glad you’re home. I’ve missed you.”

“I missed you too,” he murmured, his lips twitching upwards before he leaned down to place a soft, lingering kiss on your lips. “And I’m glad I’m home too, can take care of my girl like she deserves.”

You sighed. “Mat—”

“Let me take care of you, baby,” he whispered, a glint in his eyes that made your heart race in your chest. “Please.”

“Just hold me.” You hated the way your voice cracked as you spoke. “I just really missed being in your arms.”

His grip on you instantly tightened as he brought you closer, as he wrapped his arms around you and hugged you close until your cheek was pressed against his chest, the smell of his hoodie so comforting and so him. It was overwhelming in the best way possible.

“Always,” he answered as he pressed another kiss along your hairline. “How about ordering from that Thai place you like?”

“I thought you hated it,” you mumbled into his shirt.

“I like some of it,” he argued weakly but you could hear the smile in his voice. “Tonight is your choice. Tomorrow we can order something obscene I like that will make the trainers cry.”

You laughed lightly, and the sound made his grin widened. “Deal.”

“Good, now go get changed into something comfy,” Mat murmured as he pulled you away from his chest, lightly pushing you in the direction of your shared bedroom. “M’gonna put on that show you like.”

“And you won’t get offended when I ogle Damon Salvatore?” You questioned, mostly teasing as you took a few steps backwards.

Mat rolled his eyes, but still smiled as he placed his hand over his heart. “Scout’s promise, baby.” He paused for a moment. “Even if I’m much hotter than him.”

“No doubt about it, baby.”

.

[bittenbyyou]

Stolen Moments

High School!AU | MCU!Peter Parker x Best Friend!Reader

genre: fluff

description: You and Peter’s first kiss didn’t go the way you planned.

word count: 2.6k

warnings: references to Spider-Man: Far From Home, Peter not knowing any fairytales/Disney princesses and being a lovable dork

a/n: Another snippet based on real life events of how my bf and i got together lol. Enjoy the fluff and please feel free to let me know if you liked it!

One thing you loved most about your best friend was his inability to remember classic fairy tales. No matter how many times you summarized them, Peter would find a way to botch it every single time. Even going so far as to invent alternative story lines, which never failed to crack you up. You would tease him endlessly for it, but then he’d grill you for having never watched Star Wars or any of the Harry Potter movies. That’s what we’d call balance in your friendship.

“Fairy tale pop quiz!” Peter groaned dramatically as he plopped down on his couch, phone in hand with your big grinning face on FaceTime. 

“Not fairy tales… anything but those. They’re my weakness,” he whined. You laid on your side in bed, giggling.

“The great Peter Parker who’s in band, robotics, and the decathlon can’t recall a few simple fairy tales?”

“Well, I actually quit those,” he shared, ruffling the back of his hair with a sheepish grin. Your face fell, eyes wide and concerned. 

“Wait, when? Why?”

It’s not like Peter could tell you he was Spider-Man even though he really, really wanted to. The less you knew, the better. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if anything happened to you.

“I’m really busy.”

“Stark Internship?”

His eyes lit up when you gave him a reason. “Right, yes!” 

Thank god for your incredible memory. “Makes sense. It’s been a while since we’ve even FaceTimed each other. You’re usually so busy at night.”

He saw the way your lips pouted as your crestfallen eyes looked away from the camera, making his chest feel tight. “I miss you too.”

Your gaze flickered back up to meet his own. Peter gulped, wondering if he sounded too emotional. Too affectionate. Too… obvious.

“Touché, Parker,” you said, rolling onto your back. “Okay, no more stalling. Tell me… which fairy tale princess ate the poison apple?”

Peter shut his eyes tight, thinking carefully. You both went to LegoLand one time and there was a display case that had the poison apple. You had asked him the same question then, pointing at the apple excitedly.

“Before we’re old would be nice,” you teased. Peter lifted up his index finger and shushed you. 

“Hold on, I got it,” His eyes fluttered open after remembering there was a small sign next to the poison apple display. “Little Mermaid.”

“Why would The Little Mermaid eat a poisonous apple?!” You bursted out into laughter at his confidence. “Dude, you said the same thing back when we went to LegoLand. The sign was in the wrong spot.”

“Darn it,” he muttered with a snap of his fingers. 

“I’ll give you a hint. Weather.”

“... Tornadoes?”

“What princess has “tornado” in her name?!” you exclaimed, trying your best not to wheeze. Peter couldn’t help but join in the laughter, knowing he was making a fool of himself. 

“You snorted,” he said in a taunting voice. “Gross.”

“Shut up, you love it.”

It’s true. He loved your laugh. Mostly because you always laughed with your whole body and sometimes would keel over. Even in public. In fact, you were probably about to fall off your bed right this second because your face suddenly became blurry and shaky. 

“Did you almost fall?” 

You successfully caught yourself and your phone before it fell on your face. “No,” you readjusted your position and cleared your throat, “Try again. It’s cold weather.”

“It can’t be Frozen… I think I’d remember that. You’ve never said anything about an apple in Mulan the many times you’ve told me her story…” You nodded many times, appreciating the fact he remembered your love for Mulan. You saw how his brows furrowed in concentration, loving how serious he was taking this. “Snow White.”

“Good j—”

“Oh!” he shouted all of a sudden, almost giving you a heart attack. “She’s the one with the seven smurfs, right?!”

Oh Peter Parker….  You’re the cutest human alive, you thought. 

Another wave of laughter overcame you, which intensified tenfold once you saw the big dumb smile on Peter’s face. The boy really thought he got it right.

“No… honey, they’re dwarfs,” you said once the laughter subsided.

“... Same thing,” he said, followed by a shrug. “I knew that.”

“Oh, we’re in for a long night. How about Jack and the Beanstalk?” That one should be easy.

“Ooh! Um… wait, I got it, quit laughing, I haven't even started,” he said, chuckling at how you placed a hand on your mouth to refrain from laughing more. “A guy sells a dog or cow or sheep for beans that grow into a big bean stalk and climbs up there and I think there’s a giant in the clouds? I don’t know.”

“I like how you completely disregarded the part where he was persuaded to sell his animal for magical beans, but okay. Pretty good.” You gave him a wink, which he returned. 

“Told you I’m good at this.”

“Uh huh. Last one.”

Peter gave you a nod. “Go for it.”

“Cinderella.”

“Easy. She’s the one with long hair, with the glass shoes that’s supposed to be a perfect fit but somehow falls off and I think the guy uses her hair to find her and climb the castle before midnight when some magic wears off…”

You didn’t have enough energy to laugh and risk your abs becoming a liability, so you opted for parting your lips open slightly, shocked at how someone could be so, so wrong. 

“I think there’s some sisters or step sisters in it too!” he added, giving himself a pat on the back. “Nailed it.”

“Quite the opposite,” you said, shaking your head. “I love your dumbass sometimes.”

He knew you were using the word as a term of endearment, so it made him smile. He loved you too. So much. 

“What’s occupying all that headspace of yours these days that you can never remember the stories?” you teased. 

You are… and Spider-Man, Peter thought to himself. 

"Oh you know, there's an ongoing battle between my inner monologue and my stomach's incessant cravings for Aunt May's chocolate chip cookies. Spoiler alert: the cookies usually win."

“Oh my gosh, her cookies are the best.”

“Right?”

You both laid on your sides, a comforting silence blanketing the two of you for a few seconds. 

“So um…” you started to say, a twinge of nervousness in your voice. “Because your knowledge on Cinderella is so—”

“Awesome?”

“Awful,” you corrected, smiling at his lame joke. “I was wondering if you wanted to go see the school play this Friday. They’re performing Cinderella.”

Peter sat up from his couch. “You mean, you and me, g-going together?”

“Yeah. MJ didn’t want to go because seeing a damsel in distress who solely relies on a man saving her kills her vibe.” Peter chuckled at that. “Are you and Ned doing anything?”

“No.”

“Oh good,” You paused. “You can invite him to come too!”

Oh. 

Peter hid his disappointment by placing his phone down on the couch for a split second, gathering his thoughts. Why was he assuming that this was a date? Of course you’d ask Ned to come too. He was so silly.

“Peter?” you said. “Peter~, are you still there?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m here.” He picked up the phone and gave you a thumbs up. “I’ll go. And I’ll ask Ned about it.”

“Cool. See ya then. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

Peter was so nervous. Which he knew was ridiculous because this was not a date, yet he spent hours picking out an outfit. What does one even wear to a school play anyway? In the end, he slipped on a white button-up with some jeans and headed to the school. 

He saw you standing by the front doors, wearing a pretty blouse and shorts. Simple but cute nonetheless. You always looked pretty to him. 

“Hey! Sorry I’m late,” Peter said while running up the steps to get to you. “Were you waiting long?”

You shook your head. “Not at all. The play starts in five minutes, so you made it on time.”

“Good. Good…” Now that he was up close, Peter noticed how you styled your hair differently from what you usually did. “Did you do something to your hair?”

“Yeah… is it weird?”

Peter shook his head rapidly. “No, you look good.”

“Just good?”

“Great. Spectacular. Fantastic,” he said with exploding hand motions.

You giggled. “Okay Mr. Thesaurus. Where’s Ned?”

“Ned told me he didn’t want to go.” Which Peter was secretly thankful for, but he’d never let you know that.

“Okay. Then it’ll just be us two. Let’s go.”

The two of you walked to the front doors and you didn’t miss how Peter practically ran in front of you just to open it first. You thanked him and then made your way to the school’s auditorium. Peter always suggested sitting in the back, claiming it had the best view but in reality, it’d be the easiest for him to slip away if duty called.

You did notice his backpack, finding it slightly odd he brought it to school after hours. However, you didn’t think too much of it because Peter always carried a backpack. It was handy when the two of you hung out at the mall and snuck in snacks into the movie theater or when you accidentally bought too much stuff at Target after claiming you only needed one thing.

“I bet Betty is going to look so beautiful. She’s Cinderella,” you said as you sat down on Peter’s left side. 

You’re beautiful. 

“Really? And Ned’s not the prince? I wonder how he feels about that.”

“Oh, they broke up,” you informed him. “I found out yesterday.”

“What? Dang, we could’ve had a double date,” he joked, testing the waters with you. You playfully smacked his arm. 

“In your dreams.”

The lights soon dimmed, letting you and Peter know the play was about to begin. Honestly, the play was far more entertaining than expected because it turned out to be a parody of Cinderella, much to your horror. Peter was relishing at how upset you were, whispering to him every few minutes on how the story “wasn’t accurate.” Honestly, it was super adorable seeing you so worked up.

You leaned close to Peter’s ear, causing his breath to hitch. “This is so ridiculous. It’s supposed to be a pumpkin carriage, not pumpkin pie.”

“... There’s supposed to be a carriage?” he whispered back. 

“See, this play is tainting your mind.”

“But you can’t tell me you’re not enjoying it.”

“It is pretty funny,” you admitted, noticing his arm on your shared armrest. You were about to place your hand on top of his when Nick Fury’s stern voice echoed loudly in his ear.

“Parker. Are you in position?”

“No,” Peter said loud enough for you to hear. You immediately retracted your hand and Peter realized what you were about to do. 

“No…?” you said softly. The look of hurt in your eyes made Peter panic.

“And why the hell not?” Nick Fury interrogated. Peter slapped his ear/earpiece to shut it up. 

“I-I didn’t mean that. Um… I need to go to the restroom.”

“You okay?”

“I’m…” His mind raced for an excuse. “I’m feeling sick, um, I ate dairy and you know I’m lactose intolerant and all that.” He got out of his seat awkwardly, your eyes never leaving him. It pained him to see you so worried. “Oof, I’m feeling it now. Gonna be a while.”

He held onto his stomach to make for a convincing act. 

“Okay. Feel better.”

He apologized to you and then ran out of the auditorium.

“Parker, you better be on your way,” Fury’s voice warned.

“I’m coming,” Peter huffed, looking at the backside of your head one last time before disappearing. 

Peter finished his mission by the time the play had already ended. He saw you were sitting at the front of the school on the steps, so he had to go through the back and exit as if he had come from the restrooms. 

“Whoo~! That was painful,” Peter said as he approached you, hand on his stomach and backpack on his back. He let out a sharp exhale and watched your expressions to see if you were buying it. “I really shouldn’t have eaten that ice cream… I’m sorry. I left you all alone.”

“It’s okay. Betty says hi by the way.”

“Oh. Hi.” He held his hand up and waved at you as if you were Betty. That earned a chuckle from you. “I really am sorry. What did I miss?”

He took the seat next to you on the steps. “Well, it’s safe to say you’ll never learn the real story of Cinderella. Or at least the Disney version.”

“Was it that bad?”

“The worst.” 

He nudged his shoulder against yours, flashing you a warm smile. “Are you mad at me?”

“A little. I waited outside the restrooms for you, but you took so long.”

“... It really hurt my bowels. The battle was rough.”

You rolled your eyes. “Uh huh. You know what, I’ll forgive you if you can answer one thing. What’s something pretty much all the Disney princesses have in common?”

Peter pouted his lips in confusion, searching his brain for a possible answer. “They’re… girls?”

“No… they all get kissed by the end of the movie.”

“O-Oh… Oh. Oh~,” he shot you a perplexed look. “Have you… ever been kissed?”

You nodded. “Yeah. By my ex-boyfriend.” Ah, right. Peter was not fond of him at all. “What about you?”

“Me? No…” he looked down at the cement. “Not yet.”

“Didn’t you and Liz date? You guys didn’t kiss?”

He shook his head. “No. And I’d probably messed it up anyway.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Well in the movies and stuff it’s always perfectly well executed.”

You scooted a bit closer to him so that your knees would touch. “That’s only in movies. Most people’s first kiss is awkward.”

“Was yours?”

“Yeah. But I’d like to think I’m way better at it now.”

That made Peter’s eyes widen, but he still kept his gaze glued to the ground. “I-Is that so?”

“I mean… Do you want to find out?”

He finally lifted his head up to look at you. You reached your hand over, caressing the side of his face and he leaned into your touch right away. Was this a dream? Because his heart felt like it was about to burst out of his chest. Having his first kiss was one thing but having it with you? That’s all he ever wanted. 

“There’s no such thing as a perfectly executed first kiss. But I’d like to try to give you one if you want,” you said softly. 

“Y-Yeah… that’d be nice.” 

You smiled and leaned in closer, but Peter got too eager and pecked you on the lips first. He couldn’t help it. He’s been wanting to kiss you since forever. So yeah, it was sloppy and unplanned with zero technique. He honestly almost missed. You stared at him, too stunned to speak for a moment before your face twisted into frustration. 

“Peter!”

“What?”

“That's not how it was supposed to be! I was going to kiss you soft and sweet and slow and it was supposed to be romantic. You ruined it!”

“I’m pretty happy with it,” he said nervously. The look you gave him screamed murder. 

“Ugh. Well, that’s all you get. Your first kiss. Rushed and terrible.”

“I can live with that.”

You blushed for the first time that night and Peter had to stop himself from doing a backflip out of joy. 

[nxttheendxfthestxry]

storystartsanew​:

Hemlock can’t speak, knowing that if she tries, she’ll be nothing but a blubbering mess. She just lets herself be held in this moment, still crying silently.

“I’m so– sorry. I’m sorry.” It’s barely a whisper, but it’s all she can say. She’s not even sure who she’s apologizing to. Herself, the other Sophie, her Sophie. Part of her wishes Aneela were still alive, so she could hang onto the rage she feels, instead of this deep, crippling sadness.

The other Hemlock holds onto her Sophie tightly, doing her best to keep her from collapsing on her own. She rubs her back and kisses the side of her head. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s okay.”

Waltz sniffles, gasping shakily as she tries her hardest not to break down sobbing, clinging to her girlfriend and trying to just breathe, shaking her head when she just barely hears the apology.

Sophie wraps her arms around Hemlock and clings to her. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”

Keefe growls again, but Fitz glances up and holds up a hand to him slightly. Keefe huffs, but nods, wrapping his arms gently around Hemlock as well.

Hemlock sees her Sophie first, and she rushes towards her, pulling her into a tight hug the moment she reaches her.

- ( @storystartsanew )

Sophie squeaks, alarmed, looking up and lighting up, hugging the other back tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay! Have you found Fitz?"

Over her shoulder, however, the other Sophie lights up. Gods, she's glad to see who's behind the... very wrong Hemlock, pushing past the pair and pulling her Hemlock in. "It is you! I thought the picture looked right, but..."

[gummishiki]

It's what's inside that counts 🍎 [ part 2 ]

part two friends :D, possibly some grammatical errors because I wrote this whilst half asleep :,)

tw : hallucinations, dissociation, blood, slight gore, obsession, overall dark themes,.vomit, self inflicted injuries

🍎 youre unsure of how many days had passed of you motionlessly sitting in front of the TV that remained only displaying static and white noise. your routine of wally visiting ever morning, afternoon and night had shifted slightly.

🍎 you took notice of how hesitant he would be to step near you, perhaps to fearful of what would happen if he did. you couldn't blame him honestly, after the apple incident he settled for just laying out an apple infront of you and letting you eat it willingly, at your own pace.

🍎 there reached a point in which you began to wonder to yourself, did anyone notice you were missing ?, was anyone looking for you ?, do they ever notice a lack their usual deliveries of fresh fruit and vegetables ?, surely they would notice by now right ?.

🍎 your hold on your arms tightened as you repeated these questions to yourself. wally and undid the ropes a while ago, you don't know when exactly or why but despite your sudden freedom you made no movement or attempt to escape the basement you were being trapped in for an endless amount of days.

🍎 you stared at the static, your eyes sore from the lack of blinking. you shift slightly into a more comfortable sitting position, not once taking your eyes away from the screen. you recalled something wally had told you following the day of the 'apple incident'. he stood at a distance away from you whilst he stared between you and the static. you took notice of how his pupils would dilate almost instantly the second he looked back and fourth between your frail weakened form and the busted up TV that displayed nothing but static.

🍎 you could never decipher what that look in his eyes meant, but whatever it was it never failed to unsettle you. and yet after a while, you grew used to it. you remember his tone as he spoke, it was soft yet that constant desperation could always easily be found in it. "you know neighbour" he smiled, he had moved slightly towards your form at a distance in which you wouldn't be able to grab him should you lash out again. "this TV, it can show you anything you want to see about our dear viewers, it could answer all your question just like it answered mkne". he spoke slow and gently with patience in his tone, perhaps he had done this to avoid having you yell at him or attempt to attack him again.

🍎 you turned your head in a robotic way and stared at him unblinking. wallys smile faltered. by now he came to understand that whenever you acknowledged his presence, it was because you wanted him gone. he sighed and attempted a smile ," that's alright neighbour, I'll leave you be".

🍎 you turned you gaze back to the TV not taking any notice of wallys departure. you felt yourself go into another daze as you thought over what he had said.

🍎 that brings you to now, a pile of mushy molded apples in front of you, you don't recall the last time you ate but I was certainly taking a toll on you. unlike your fellow neighbours, both you and wally had to eat. you remain unsure why yet you were staring to believe this was simply the viewers or the creators decision. having this in common is what had originally brought you both closer.

🍎 you played with the loose stitching on your stomach when a sudden idea entered your mind. did the viewers have stitches too ? were they filled with nothing but stuffing and cotton ? how did they breath or function ?.

🍎 your curiosity peaked as the static began to shift. you were able to make out a bright white room, the view pointing down on someone laid out on a table. they were unconscious you noted as you began to take in everything you saw. a table next to them held plenty of unrecognisable utensils, all in which you could acknowledge would give poppy a heart attack if she were to see them. you wondered how she was doing.

🍎 a slight movement in the corner of the screen caught your attention. a hand you noted, wearing gloves alike to the ones frank worn whenever he examined his butterflies. ah, perhaps that's what they were doing. they were examining the viewer. you shifted forwards in anticipation as another gloved hand came into view wielding one of the many utensils from the table.

🍎 morbid curiosity filled you as the hands lowered and they gently brought the sharp object down to the viewers stomach. not once did you blink as you watched and immediate rush of what looked to be similar to red paint escaped the open wound on the viewer stomach.

🍎 you leaned closer to the screen as the hand carefully pried open the wound even further, their blue gloves now coated in the red liquid. you felt quesy as you watched the hand reach into the viewers stomach as the other hand went off screen, returning with a glass case as they held it up besides the other gloved hands that were still desperately searching for something inside of the viewer.

🍎 you were confused, what was that red liquid and why was it coming out of the viewer so much ? why did the hands cut them ? what did they cut them with ? what are they even doing ?. you sat, impatient to see what would happen next. you could hear it, a soft beating noise coming from the screen. moving even closer to the tv, you fixated your gaze onto the open wound on the viewers stomach. a weird liquid was pooling out of it as that soft beating noise grew louder.

🍎 you could see it, you could see the insides of a dear viewer. everything was coated in red, the only thing you were able to recognise was their ribcage and the soft beating noise that you could now link to their heart. you had accidentally came across a book when visiting Frank's explaining the anatomy if certain living things, all in which had bones and a heart.

🍎 you felt sick yet curious as you witness the hand begin to pull something long and pink, with an oddly bumpy texture from the wound. it made you feel quizy watching them use both hands to remove what it was and gently place it into the glass case. what even was that ? you began to question yourself. you had always been curious as to what their insides looked like and you had your question answered. you didn't like it. you didn't like the amount of red and clear liquids oozing from the wound as the other hand placed down the glass case.

🍎 you jolted suddenly when a voice come from the screen "I'm placing the intestine over here, I'll get another case for the lungs" their voice held no emotion, tiredness evidential as the spoke each word. you grew more confused, what was an intestine ? is that what the placed into the glass case ? what's a lung ?.

🍎 you hated how excited you felt watching the red coated hand reach in once again to pull out what you assumed was the lung. you felt sweat build up on the side of you face as you stared in anticipation watching both hands reach in to grab what the needed. the 'lungs' you found were two separated identical dark pink things attached together to something you couldn't identify. the texture reminded you of meat. you felt queasy as your stomach growled.

🍎 like they had previously done with what you could now identify as an intestine, they carefully placed the lungs down into a new glass case.

🍎 you sat unmoving as you watched them stitch back up the gaping wound they had caused. bile found it way into your mouth as realisation hit you. it felt familiar. why did what they were doing feel familiar ? why did that voice sound familiar ?.

🍎 what little contents you had consumed that day were now spewed out onto the cold damp floor. this whole situation was making your head hurt. you felt yourself slip into another daze as you began to think to yourself.

🍎 you had never been injured enough to see what was inside of you other than fluff. what if you weren't just full of stuffing and fluff. what if, you had something in common with your dear viewers.

🍎 your mind went blank as you stared at a glass shard on the floor. it had been there for a while, since before you had been forced down here. your curiosity grew as you stretched out a shaking hand towards the shard of glass. it was cold as you gently held it in your hands.

🍎 your questions as to what the inside of the viewers look like inside were answered and yet you still had one question. what did you look like in the Inside ?. you were going to answer your own question.

🍎 you let out a shuddered breath as you felt the sharp object come into contact with your felt. you shakily pressed down further onto your stomach. you felt tears swell up into your eyed as you dragged the shard down and deeper.

🍎 you didn't realise how hysterically you were crying as you watched bead of the red liquid drip down from your wound. you felt as if you were in a daze as your hand began to shake further as you held both sides of the cut open.

🍎 you began to hyperventilate at the sight below you. your insides had began to leak out onto the floor, the red liquid painted on both your felt hands on the floor.

🍎 "no no no no !" you cried out in desperation as you attempt to stuff everything that was leaking out back inside of you. you felt numb and yet immense pain at the same time.

🍎 your sobs echoed across the walls as you began to shake. what had you done ? why had you done this to yourself ?.

🍎 the sound of the basement door slamming open went unnoticed by you. you didn't take notice of the soft yellow felt hands take hold of your hands the were desperately attempting to pick up your insides. you didn't notice wallys voice shaking as he told you that you were alright. you were okay, you just needed to calm down.

🍎 he began to shake you causing you to turn and latch yourself onto him. "make it stop ! please, please make it stop !" you screamed at him, pain evident in your voice. wally stared down at you in sympathy but all you were focused on was the loud wet sloshing noises coming from the open wound you inflicted onto yourself.

🍎 "copy my breathing, alright neighbour" he said with such patience as he held your hyperventilating form in his arms. "everything will be alright neighbour, I'm here" you felt his hand gently hold the back of your head. with your ear now against his chest, you could hear his heartbeat clearly. listening to his pleas, you mimicked his breathing.

🍎 a deep breath in followed by a wavering breath out. you don't know how long you were there but you felt lighter as your breathing steadied. you felt the hand on the back of your head attempt to brush through the knots on the top of your head as you continued to copy wallys breathing pattern.

🍎 you felt your vision darken, but you didn't feel scared. something in the back of your mind told you that you were going to be okay. you felt no pain, no numbness. you no longer felt as though your insides were gushing out of you at every breath you took.

🍎 you don't know when exactly you had slipped into unconsciousness but you were aware you must have as you felt overwhelmed at the sudden brightness of the room you woke up in.

🍎 a sudden movement next to you cause your head to snap in the direction it came from. wally sat, both hands held in his lap as he stared down at you. it didn't take you long before panic settled into you.

🍎 you jolted up suddenly, yet you felt no pain. "my stomach, my stomach what happened ?!" you felt dread fill you as you hesitated to look down at the scene you had left.

🍎 all you felt was confusion as you looked down. there was nothing there ?. no red liquid staining the floor, no stuffing stuck between the floorboards, none of your weirdly textured and wet inside. nothing.

🍎 you looked up at wally in a panic, "what happened, what happened to me ?!" your voice was raised as you noticed wallys smile wave. there were no stitches were you had cut yourself open, no evidence of you even injuring yourself. "I'm sorry neighbour..." wallys voice shook as he took hold of both your hands. "I'm sorry I never noticed how troubled you are, I never thought it would impact you this gravely" he stared at you, not with pity but you could still see sympathy evidential in his wide unblinking eyes. "you were hallucinating neighbour, I don't know what happened but I heard you screaming so I rushed down here as fast a I could and, and" he stated to choke up as he brought you closer to him.

🍎 " you were sobbing, grasping at the air and your stomach" he began to shake as he continued. " I didn't know what was wrong but I could tell that you were panicking, so I did my best to help". you stared at him blankly, attempting to process all the information you had been told.

🍎 "oh neighbour I'm so sorry, please forgive me" you could hear his voice crack and his hands began to shake in your grasps.

🍎 it, it was all a hallucination ?, all that pain and anguish you felt, the feeling and sound of your insides hitting the floor. it wasn't even real ?.

🍎 you choked out a sob as wallys grasp on your hands tightened. what was happening to you ? why were you hallucinating such things ? why why why why ?.

🍎 "it's alright neighbour" wally brought you hand closer to his face. desperation in his eyes as he smiled at you. "ill make sure nothing like that ever happens again, I'll protect you I promise" his voice was slightly raised as he stared at you.

🍎 his smile widened "I failed you as a friend, as a dear neighbour, but I promise you I won't fail again".

🍎 "I'll keep you safe, I won't let you out of my sight ever again my dear (y/n)".

I DONT KNOW IF I WILL BE ABLE TO MAKE A PART 3 TO THIS BECAUSE IM RUNNING OUT OF IDEAS BUT THIS IS POTENTIALLY THE FINAL PART AS I DONT KNOW HOW TO CONTINUE THIS IM SORRY FRIENDS !!!

[jmflowers]

Still taking prompts? Carina feeling emotional over Maya learning/knowing Italian.

You got it, dude. Canon-compliant for your reading pleasure.

~~~

Ding!

Carina smiles as she steps through the front door, the smell of dinner on the stove wafting down the hallway to greet her.

They’ve been in their new home all of three weeks and already they’ve fallen into a symbiotic routine – one she finds herself endlessly enamoured by. A warm meal waiting for whoever’s last to arrive home, a load of laundry in the dryer before bed each night, swapping shifts to rise when Liam cries out at 2am to be fed.

There’s balance forming, now that they’re here. Balance and love and support that seemed so far away, so farfetched, just a year ago.

“I’m back!” she calls out as she wanders into the kitchen, heavy grocery bags dangling from her hands. She can’t wait until they renovate this space; can’t wait until there’s more room on the counters and in the pantry for all the things she has to keep slipping out to buy.

Mela, a slightly robotic voice says.

Carina frowns, turning towards the sound, groceries piled half on the counter and half in the sink. She lets them tumble from her grasp, traipsing down the hallway after yet another Ding! echoes from the nursery.

Arancia, the robotic voice says.

“Arancia,” Maya repeats, her voice so whisper soft Carina barely hears it. “That’s an orange.”

Ding!

She’s leaned back in the plush rocking chair they’d settled on for the nursery, Liam curled in her lap with his eyelids fluttering as he tries desperately to pay attention to the phone she holds in front of them.

Elefante, the robotic voice inside the screen says next.

“Elefante,” Maya replicates, lips pressed to the side of Liam’s cap-covered head. “You know elephant.”

Ding! the phone chirps.

“Oh, you know this one, too,” Maya whispers, smiling softly. “Mamma says buona notte every night before we go to sleep.”

“Sì,” Carina murmurs, stumbling into the gravity that’s dragging her across the room towards them. “Buona notte means good night.”

Maya nods, turning just enough for Liam and his heavy eyelids to catch a glimpse of Carina as she leans over the arm of the chair to kiss his cheeks. “And ciao is hello.”

His little face splits into a grin, reaching for his mamma even as he fights a losing battle with sleep. “Ah,” he chirps.

“I got a few lessons ahead of him,” Maya explains, setting her phone aside on the dresser. She tips Liam backwards in her arms, laying his head in the crook of her elbow with a practiced ease. He gazes up at her with a toothless smile, nearly giving in to the weight of his eyelids. “So, we had to go back and review what he missed.”

“Ah,” Liam repeats.

“Sì,” Maya nods, looking down at their baby boy with a ferocity of love that causes a clench of something deep and primal and unquantifiable in Carina’s chest. “Apple is mela. That’s your favourite, I know.”

One of those tiny, perfect fists finds its way into Liam’s mouth and then, finally, he loses the fight. Finally, his eyes close and he tumbles into sleep.

And that feeling in Carina’s chest seems to explode.

She leans forward, reaching for Maya with a desperation she can’t quite explain. Tugging, needy, until their lips connect. Until she can try to convey with her body what she doesn’t have English words for.

Ti amo. Ho bisogno di te. Sono così perdutamente innamorato di te.

Maya won’t understand them all – not yet.

But she will. One day, she will.

[sweet7simple]

Dratchrod where they live on a planet after everything happens.

Its a nice cabin that fits them and then some.

Roddy plants a nice large garden away from the cabin not sure if the two like them but they’re so into it and they are so surprised that Rodimus loves flowers and knows how to plant and tend to them.

They get to see a side of Rodimus he doesn’t really like showing and they love it!

I’m thinking of him planting cyber fruits and vegetables that he makes fuel with and they come back home every cycle starving for his food. He’s a really good cook and they can’t get enough. He’ll do dishes from his culture and theres and its always good.

Idk i was supposed to make it so they gift him plants because they want to show they love him but then i got lost in the rambles and building the scenario lol

I hope this is okay if not i won’t leave an ask like this again.

@cozzzynook, you can ask me almost anything. Just so you know, though, I also got lost in the rambles really bad while writing this. As in, I wrote most of this response, then came all the way back to reread your prompt, and realized that I missed some of your main points. I hope you can forgive me and that this still pleases you.

This raises interesting questions because it implies that the Cybertronians have their own version of fruit and that they derive some nutritional value from them, or that they fulfill some dietary need. Or, like how humans enjoy high-fat, high-sugar foods, maybe cyber fruit is actually unhealthy for them in large quantities, but it just tastes so damn good that the fruit is addictive.

If energon was the life blood of Cybertron, then it's possible that what we are going to call "fruit" for simplicity's sake were actually these units of cells that filled up with energon, or an energon derivative, or maybe the cells filled up with some other fluid as a chemical reaction with acid rain, or so on. No matter what, when we say "fruit", I am imagining a variety of capsules that, if cracked open, have a network of cells that are filled with some sort of fuel that Cybertronians can eat. When I say "cells", it might be easier to just imagine a bee's honeycomb. A honeycomb is actually just a collection of hexagonal cells that are used to store eggs and honey. For the outer shell of these fruits, we're not talking about banana peels and coconut husks and apple skins - we're talking about thin, bendable sheets of metal that unfurl as the fruit fills with whatever fluid the fruit is designed to let in. Or we're talking about different kinds of elastic or hard plastics. The thinner the outer shell, the more likely you are to determine the readiness of the fruit by the change in color. The harder (less transparent) the outer shell, the more likely you are to determine the readiness of the fruit by how heavy it is.

I am making this all up as I go and there is every possibility that there already exist Cybertronian fruit and I just don't know about it. In which case, I am a fool, but I am a fool having fun.

Let's keep in mind that, when the energon stops flowing through Cybertron, most of this fruit dies. The circuit trees rust and the web groves rot. The fruit that might survive this hellscape are the fruits that depend on either rust or acid rain to grow - and that's if there are places where acid rain is still falling. Chances are, though, even these fruits don't last much longer.

These fruits also wouldn't replace the importance of energon in a bot's diet - they would just work alongside that staple fuel, or be considered unnecessary, but highly desirable snacks. Humans enjoy eating bananas and apples and oranges and peaches, but fruits don't replace our other dietary needs and too much fruit can actually have too much sugar for you.

This is all background for the ask, but the first question I had when I saw your prompt was, "how do I make a Cybertronian eat fruit if they're giant robots?" The answer is to make is to define what a fruit would be on Cybertron.

Before I get to the prompt, I want to talk about our mangosteen.

I have never tasted this fruit, I have no idea what special tricks there are to eating this fruit, but this is more or less what I think some Cybertronian fruit would look like based off the thick shell and the seeds - except I imagine that the shell is a type of plastic that starts out as a very dense marble and then is pushed outward as the cells become engorged. The seeds of this mangosteen would be fully engorged cells. Maybe the walls of the cells are only permeable to energon, or maybe they're made of up some chemical that reacts to acid rain and what filters through is some kind of coolant that is beneficial to bots, or maybe these fruits are solar powered and there's some self-replicating circuitry inside that expands as it builds and they're affectionately called "bytes" (like "bites", hah, see?) and they're crunchy.

Sorry, I got too involved in the pseudo-science of it.

So the thing is, on the Lost Light, there's a vertical farm, which just means that there's this indoor space where food is being grown on shelves. This vertical farm lets the Lost Light develop dietary supplements and additives that go through what we might think of as a "growth phase" and require care to reach their final phase. The care for any two fruits might be different. The frigus have their own artificial environment that lets them filter through acid rain and engorge their cells with coolant (I'm calling this "frigus" as that's the Latin word for "cold"). The circuit trees with their bytes don't require much more than a slow and steady trickle of energon to fuel their self-replicating nanotechnology. The supposed easiest fruit to grow, the fusa has a plastic outer shell with soft plastic needles extending out of it. It stores energon in a plate at its base and that energon is drawn up into the cells through filters when the fusa is dry. When the cells are full, they actually pop through a pore in the fusa and stick out like dark pink orbs. The energon is so concentrated and sweet from the filtration system that they're considered delicacies. The problme is, the fusa is very slow to fill their cells. If you try to drown them in energon, the cells swell up too fast and rip. If you're not trying to grow them for fruit, though, they're very easy. They can go long periods of time without fuel and can get solar power to work their filtration system from almost any source of light.

Rodimus receives a fusa and lets it die because, what the frag is he supposed to do with it? Teach it tricks? "Now, fusa, sit! Good production plant!" He's not interested.

Not until Ratchet sees the dried out husk of the fusa, shakes his helm, and says, "I bet you couldn't keep a plant alive even if you wanted to."

And Rodimus is contrary, so he goes, "Oh, yeah? What are you willing to bet?"

And Ratchet says, "It's a bet you'll lose, you sure you want to take it?"

"Bring it!"

So Ratchet bets that if Rodimus can't keep his next fusa alive until it fruits that Rodimus has to take an emergency first aid class with him ("What does First Aid have to do with any of this?" "Hah hah, and that's why I want you to come to a class.")

Rodimus says that he can and, when he does, Ratchet has to do that thing he likes with his mouth and the spray paint and the interface aids (plural). Ratchet likes doing that anyway, but he pretends to grumble his way through the deal so that Rodimus feels like it's actually a fair bet and he doesn't win either way.

So Rodimus picks up another fusa! And it dies. The cells rip because he tries to fuel it too fast. So Rodimus goes to an emergency first aid class where Ratchet is his teacher and he makes the class unbearable for everyone (there are maybe six or seven other crew members there) by flirting outrageously with Ratchet.

"Hey, teacher, I think I needs a servos-on demonstration."

"For frag's sake, Rodimus."

Ratchet thinks that's the end of it, but now Rodimus is determined, okay? He doesn't like being wrong. He doesn't like being bad at something he actually wants to be good at. He doesn't like that he failed at something that he thought was going to be easy.

So he gets another fusa (he has to sign an agreement with dietary techs saying that he will reimburse them for the loss if it also dies and if he returns for any other production plants). The dietary techs are helpful enough to give him a datapad loaded with instructions on how to develop production plants and the instructions for the fusa are fairly short and easy to follow (Step one: Do not overfuel). Rodimus doesn't read it because that's a waste of his time, he'll just feel his way through the process, do what feels right.

He has to reimburse the dietary techs. It's a heft trade. He plops down with the datapad and groans and moans his way through the pages for the fusa and it takes him hours because he keeps letting himself get distracted. He hates reading, is the problem. Once he actually finishes reading about the fusa, he realizes he doesn't remember anything he read (a brain module is very good at saving memories, but he's so used to dumping his short-term memory whenever he's listening to lectures or reading that he did it again without even realizing it). He's furious and finds an instructional video instead. That helps.

He gets another fusa and tries again. It lives. It takes a long time, okay? It takes the Cybertronian equivalent of years, but it lives. And the day comes when he walks into the hab suite he shares with his mates and there's this tiny, dark pink bud shooting out of his fusa and he doesn't hesitate. He carries his fusa throughout the whole ship, showing off his accomplishment. He did it. He produced a fruit! He's practically giddy every cycle he watches the fruit grow rounder and rounder until it sags off the side of the production plant under its own weight. He plucks it off and punctures the thin, plastic capsule and the cells inside are so swollen and slippery in his servos. He shared the cells with his mates and it's. It's a moment for him.

It's a moment to watch Drift and Ratchet enjoy, even savor, something he nurtured for so long. They're overflowing with praise for him and what he's developed. Drift shutters his optics as he chews slowly, rocking back and forth on his pedes as he lets the thick, concentrated energon drain down his fuel intake.

"It's incredible, Roddy."

Ratchet tries to bite his in half and accidentally squirts it across his face and down his chest. He makes a sound of mourning at his own loss and hastily shoves the rest in his mouth as he tries to scrap up the sticky fuel and lick it off his digits.

Rodimus proceeds to help him clean up with his glossa.

It's great. It's incredible. Rodimus doesn't have to develop his fusa anymore - he's proven that he can do it. But he does because watching Drift and Ratchet enjoy his fruits is probably one of the most erotic and fulfilling things he's seen in a long time.

So while he's growing a fusa, he hustles back over to the vertical farms to see what else he can develop.

(He tries to argue that he's grown a fusa now! He can handle the hardest production plant they have. He wants the production plant with the tastiest, juiciest, messiest fruit! They have to be the messiest so he can lick them off his mates again. The dietary techs are all, you didn't have to say all that out loud and, no. Here's the next easiest production plant to develop after a fusa.)

It goes on like that for a long time where he picks up a plant from the vertical farms to grow fruit for his mates, suffers a setback because he doesn't actually know how to develop this particular production plant, and then he deigns to watch an instruction video before going back to the vertical farms to get another one. The vertical farms rack up a lot of favors from him due to his failures, but that's not the point. The point is that, sooner or later, Rodimus ends up with a forest in his hab suite and most energon meals are supplemented with fruit he developed himself. Drift and Ratchet sometimes try to help, but his production plants are his and if they help, then it feels like it takes away from the gift of fueling them himself, so, no, they're not allowed to touch. Besides, he's the plant tech now (unofficially), they might destroy his production plants! Trust him, he knows what he's doing. No, Drift, don't fuel my fusa, you'll rip the cells. No, Ratchet, don't change the microplastic medium for my mini fragrance tree, you might upset the root network and then the fragrance fruits will fall off before they're full and they'll taste bad.

Drift and Ratchet are, at first, surprised. Then they learn to live in a jungle of which they're not allowed to touch anything until Rodimus hands them a fruit and tells them to enjoy it. If they don't praise Rodimus enough, Rodimus donates the production plant back to the vertical farms. If they're not groaning like they're in a pornovid, Rodimus considers a fruit a failure.

Problem is, once they're groaning like they're in a pornovid to let Rodimus know that they like this fruit so please keep developing it, don't send it away, Rodimus gets revved up. So then they're distracted doing other things.

So sometimes Ratchet looks at the fruit they offer in the mess hall alongside their energon rations and has this uncontrollable response where he starts getting hot and he curses Rodimus quietly as he quickly looks in a different direction. It's not every time, but it's often enough.

Drift doesn't even bother going to the mess hall anymore. There's nothing the dietary techs can offer him that he can't get from their hab suite.

Rodimus is a very proficient plant tech by the time Drift brings him a mini circuit tree to develop.

"You want bytes?" Rodimus asks, grimacing.

"Oh," Drift goes, suddenly a little uncertain. "You don't enjoy bytes?"

"I mean, they're just crunchy. They don't taste like much and they scratch up my dentae." Then he sees the disappointment on Drift's face. "But, hey, if you like bytes, sure. Gimme it, I'm going to produce the best bytes you've ever tasted. Drift Jr. can go right here." He sets the tree down with one servo as he looks up instruction videos on a datapad in his other.

"Drift Jr.?" Drift asks, amused.

"Yep! Since it's going to be all yours, it might as well be named after you."

"Thank you, Roddy. Is there anything I can do to thank you for this?" He's being flirty.

"Yeah, if you can get the techs to give you an abstergo for me, that'd be great. They keep telling me they don't have enough to hand out to a production plant killer like me, which is just not true, I haven't killed a production plant in - wait, wait, you were flirting with me, no, come back, I want to change my answer -"

Drift does pick up an abstergo (think a production plant with vegetables full of washer fluid) for him and playfully denies his other less innocent requests.

Ratchet thinks this is a great idea and also brings Rodimus a production plant. Rodimus is quick to ask for a scandalous favor, all saucy grin and glowing optics.

Ratchet leans in real close and says against his mouth, "I'll do that as soon as I've had my first gold bar."

Note: This production plant doesn't actually develop gold in any form, but the vegetables, when fully developed taste and look a lot like soft bars of gold. It comes down to chemical reactions and pressure gradients within the outer shell of the fruit.

Rodimus is very determined to develop his production plants well, but especially the production plants that Ratchet and Drift give him.

At some point during the adventures of the Lost Light, they end up in a universe where Cybertron exists, but it's uninhabited. Either Cybertronians left a long time ago or there was some mass extinction event. His scientists are working diligently - and, in Brainstorm's case, with great excitement - to figure it out.

Before Rodimus even realizes it, his crew is settling down. It's not a surprise. The Lost Light has been travelling for an incredible amount of time through dimensions both boring and terribly exciting. No one's talking about decommissioning the Lost Light, but Rodimus and Megatron do eventually make an announcement that they're staying indefinitely to rest and refuel.

They're not planning on staying forever - they're all wanderers at their sparks, adventurers and discoverers and thrill seekers - but it's nice to get to spread out and build their temporary hab units and do their own thing and not live in fear of the hull of their home blowing out and stranding them in the middle of cold, dark space. The Lost Light gets to go through extensive repairs instead of just patchwork repairs and there's flowing energon on the planet for them to stock the ship up with and synthesize energon derivatives with and plenty of land for the dietary techs to farm. Being in a new dimension, they even discover new production plants they've never seen before.

Rodimus, Ratchet, and Drift build their own hab unit by one of the farms (to the horror of those dietary techs who live in fear of Rodimus and his propensity to develop production plants only after he kills one or two first).

Rodimus is thrilled. He has so much land now to spread his garden across. A stressed-out dietary tech even gives him another datapad on thermal-fluid science.

It basically says that some fruits and vegetables taste better when subjected to a high heat environment and other fruits and vegetables become toxic or explode. And then these fruits and vegetables explode, but they taste better after they explode, so just be careful how you expose them to high heat. There's even notes on certain production plants suggesting adding certain minerals or metal flakes to improve their taste or dietary value, or mixing them with the cells of other fruits and vegetables.

Rodimus flips through a few pages, looking at the pictures, and then says with disgust in his voice, "It's a cookbook."

"Well, I'm a doctor, but there's not much difference in repairing a combustor versus cobbling together a combustion appliance," Ratchet says thoughtfully. "And we have the room for one."

"And I can cook," Drift decides, having never actually cooked.

"Absolutely not," Rodimus says. "If anyone's cooking, it's going to be me." They're his production plants, after all. If anyone's playing around with the taste and texture of his fruits and vegetables, it's going to be him.

Ratchet and Drift agree with him (rather amusedly). Ratchet builds in a combustion appliance.

Ratchet builds him another combustion appliance after the first one explodes.

Ratchet builds him another combustion appliance in a completely separate building after the second one catches half the hab unit on fire.

Rodimus watches a lot of instruction videos and roasts some bytes in his free servo for Drift to snack on.

"I don't know why I even need a combustion appliance," he growls to himself. "I combust."

"Of course, Roddy," Drift agrees serenely, helm in Rodimus's lap. He opens his mouth and accepts the smoking hot bytes his mate feeds him with a happy little hum, crunching them loudly as he chews. "And you're very good at combusting."

"I am! This is useless."

"But it would be more convenient if you could use a combustion appliance," Drift continues, almost thoughtfully. "It would be difficult to roast fuel on your own servo and stir with your other. And some of these recipes call for a controlled explosion, which would be dangerous if you're heating it up on your own frame."

"Okay, yeah, I get your point. I have to use a combustion appliance."

"Ratty made this one particularly safe, just for you," Drift assures him. He chews another byte.

"I hate the sound of that," Rodimus tells him. "I can hear it scratching up your dentae."

"But you develop them for me?"

"Well, they make you happy. And they're not hard to develop."

Drift smiles up at him, thin lines of metal silver showing through the white coats of his dentae.

"You're lucky you're cute," Rodimus says down to him.

"Funny, that's what Ratty says about you."

Rodimus eventually figures out how to use the combustion appliance and suddenly, he's not only feeding Ratch and Drift. Now he's got Swerve sneaking in and making off with his leftovers. Megatron invites himself over and brings Minimus with him because Minimus would never deign to ask himself. Whirl pops in with Cyclonus and Tailgate, all, "I've gotta keep Team Whirl fueled, y'know."

Brainstorm says he's coming over to talk about what he and Perceptor are up to in their labs, but he just says big and confusing words while he and Perceptor eat Rodimus's cooking. Rodimus nods along because it sounds very science-y and mumbo jumbo-y and that's how it usually sounds when Brainstorm and Perceptor talk to him.

After they leave, having eaten far more than they actually needed to, Ratchet explains to him that Brainstorm didn't actually say anything they didn't already know.

Rodimus throws up his servos. "Then why were they here?"

Ratchet pointedly sucks down his smoked motor oil and give him an even more pointed look.

"Those fraggers," Rodimus says more to himself than anyone else, servos on his faulds. "Am I just feeding everyone on Cybertron right now?"

"I mean," Drift says, "more or less."

Rodimus imitates outrage, but he's actually quite pleased.

He loves his mates and he loves his crew and doing this for them, developing these production plants and giving them tasty fuel and snacks, feels like a really good way to let them know they're loved.

He saves the best for his mates, though.

[just-some-castaways]

Little Ghost

I think there's a little ghost in the library. Sometimes, I go in search of my favorite book and it's missing from the shelf, the books to either side toppled to fill its place. Sometimes, I forget to see to my tea and scone, and when I do, the scone is missing pieces and the tea cup is nearly empty.

I heard a little ghost in the library. It was right before sundown, when I settled down with a mug of tea and C.S. Lewis's "Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe." I heard a little whisper, just behind my ear around page three, 'Go slower,' it pleaded, 'You read too fast.'

I shared some tea with a little ghost in the library. She likes apple-spice, lemon, and raspberry, but never orange or Earl Grey. Though I found she prefers hot cocoa when I set out several options, and returned later to see the results. Her favorite snacks seem to be sliced apples with peanut-butter, jellybeans, and most kinds of crackers, except for multi grain.

I met a little ghost in the library. She never let me see her, I'm quite sure it was intentional. Such a shy little thing, always flitting about, just out of sight. But tonight, part way through "The Silver Chair," I caught a glimpse of ruddy brown hair and a set of inquisitive blue eyes peeking over the coffee table at me as I read aloud. In a moment she was gone, but I knew she meant for me to see her, I'd tried so many times before.

I spoke with a little ghost in the library. When we'd reached the end of The Chronicles of Narnia, I pondered aloud what novel to begin next. A timid voice piped up, "The Wild Robot." I smiled, nodding approvingly, "The Wild Robot it is."

I saw a little ghost in the library. We'd shared many stories together, countless cups of tea and cocoa, and several grocery trips of the snacking variety. But last night, she scampered out from the shadows, shuffling along on her knees, eyes locked on mine. "I like your stories." She whispered, petite form huddled in a bundle of purple just out of reach, "Your voice is nice." I smiled, warmth blooming in my chest at the approval of this whisper of a girl. "Thank you," I replied, nodding politely, "Yours is quite lovely as well." She hid her face behind her hands, messy brown hair falling forward like a curtain and she tucked in her skirt covered knees. "And you are always welcome, in my little treasure trove of tales, Little Ghost." -

(Authors: Nate, Maddie, and a Little "Ghost") 10/2/2024

[scruffyplayssonic]

Are the ArchieSonic comics actually an 80's/90's syndicated cartoon? Episode 34: Idiot comic relief character becomes a genius 

Welcome back to my look at the ArchieSonic comic series, and how it shared a lot of the same story tropes as a typical ‘80s or ‘90s syndicated cartoon! I’ve got another classic cartoon trope here for you today, so shall we take a look?

Episode 34: Idiot comic relief character becomes a genius 

I remember them actually doing this one in Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog with Grounder.

That was fun. :) But in ArchieSonic? It was Tails who got this one, although admittedly he was never portrayed as an idiot comic relief character. He was mostly just portrayed as a little kid, well-meaning but often clumsy or not entirely understanding what was going on around him.

Sonic #14’s story, “Tails’ Taste of Power,” featured Tails desperately wanting to find a way to assist his hero Sonic, and so he reluctantly agreed to take over the plant-sitting job Sonic had agreed to do in Rotor’s greenhouse. While watering Rotor’s plants Tails got hungry, and so he helped himself to an apple from a nearby tree. That tree just so happened to be the Mobius Tree of Wisdom, and that apple had been the only one that Rotor had managed to grow from it.

Sonic and Rotor returned to the greenhouse to find that Tails had instantly become a genius, and created a new fertiliser that had caused Rotor’s plants to grow at an incredible rate. Before the three of them could really absorb the news of Tails’ new big brain, Antoine ran in screaming that Sally and Bunnie were under attack by a giant robot. Sonic ran to save the day, but Tails got there first and tricked the robot into destroying itself with its own saw blades.

Tails’ new and improved brain seemed to come with a massive ego boost though, and he announced that he was now the natural choice to be the new leader of the Freedom Fighters. Tails tried to prove his worth by inventing a new metal that would be unreadable by Robotnik’s sensors, and using it to build a housekeeping robot and a medallion for himself.

But when the Freedom Fighters tried to convince him that he was too inexperienced to lead the team, Tails decided that the only way for him to prove he was the best man for the job was to race off to Robotropolis and confront Robotnik single-handedly.

Unfortunately his super-intelligence wore off just as had successfully evaded every single security measure and entered Robotnik’s lab, and Tails was immediately captured. But Sonic showed up to save the day, tricking Robotnik into thinking Tails’ unreadable metal medallion was a bomb and threatening to use it if Robotnik didn’t let Tails go.

While Tails’ intelligence seemed to go back to normal afterwards, many years later it was retroactively explained in the Mobius Encyclopedia that the fruit had actually had a lasting effect on Tails and was the reason for his genius-level intellect that rivals Eggman’s. I think that’s a neat little bit of continuity, finding a reason to connect the intelligence that we know modern Tails for with this old comic story. 

That’s it from me for today. Are there any other sudden genius stories I missed? Remind me in the comments! Next time I’ll be discussing the final frontier, or as King Acorn would call it: 

[fxirytxlcfxtc]

descended-from-fairytales​:

Hemlock moans, doing her best to keep herself from rocking against his hand. Being a good girl. She looks down at Sophie, caressing her hair before her hand tightens in it. Looking back up at Fitz, she whimpers. “My turn? Please?” 

Fitz pauses, reaching up from her breast and tilting her head to him more. Then, grinning, he nods. "Yes. On your knees. Your turn to apologize for what you did."

[roadtodeltarune]

Earthbound Week 2 Update

Hello!

Anyone who's keeping up with this is sure to assume that this week must have been lots of work done. Sadly, it wasn't. Due to things like work, distractions, and trying to do one thing in the game that took forever, I didn't get much done. Enough stalling though, what did I finish?

I left off at Dungeon Man. As promised, I tried to leave to get some items I missed in Scaraba, but I wanted to try getting back inside first. Turns out, I can't. I think this is because you can only go into him at certain moments and if I leave him before I complete the dungeon, then I've soft-locked myself. There might be a way around this, but I reloaded my save.

Of course, I had to read all the signs.

I'm happy for his transition, but I'm also terrified. I'm getting elements of body horror.

After completing his dungeon, he walked with us around the desert. Nowhere else to go, we went South.

I had to go through him again, but it was easier the second time. I didn't expect I needed a submarine to get to The Deep Darkness, though, I thought it was just in the forest on the left.

After arriving, I teleported back to Scaraba to get a broken item and the Piggy Nose. Getting back on track in Deep Darkness, I stalked up on items, organized my inventory, and got the new Multi-Bottle Rocket. Feeling ready, I went into the swamp.

Imma be honest, I don't like the swamp. The slow movement combined with drowning in the deeper parts makes the whole thing annoying. I think if they removed the drowning aspect, that'd make this area a lot better.

Oh, and I found a few Magic Truffles. They were a bit hard to find; I wish the nose gave better directions.

Deeper in the swamp, I found the reincarnated Belch, Puke. I'm happy for his transition, but I don't like him so he's gonna die now. At first, I was worried because a Spy didn't reveal any weaknesses, but on my second or third turn, I used the Multi-Bottle Rocket. After that, Grape came back and finished him off with his new move!

It was a cool scene, but I feel like it'd be cooler if I didn't defeat him so easily with the rocket.

We won the Casey Bat, the strongest in the game, but with horrible accuracy. I did some research into other weapons so I can see what's worth keeping. I didn't equip this, I already miss enough. Instead, my endgame weapon for Straw is the Gutsy Bat, so I'll be looking out for that.

I healed up at the shy village, but they were too shy to help progress the plot, so I had to leave. I figured I'd just backtrack to Summers or something, but that's when Red Apple Kid called me. Mid conversation, he was kidnapped! He was last seen at Dr. Andonut's Lab, so I ran there!

Winters had new enemies, but it wasn't too bad. What was bad was that Tony was kidnapped too! With Bubble Monkey's help, we went across the lake. I had to take the long way because I forgot the Pencil Eraser. But once we got to the lab, we found that the doctor was kidnapped too! With the new Eraser Eraser, the only thing to do was go to Stonehedge.

Lots of dangerous and annoying enemies were in my way! It took me a bit to find my way to the Exit Mice, immediately leaving because I was Homesick, low on PP, and wanted to get better items.

After doing some research, I got a map to use as a reference so I could more easily get through the first maze. I also found out the Starmen Super had a rare chance of dropping Grape's only weapon, the Sword of the Kings. Since his attack had been lacking and it's literally his ONLY weapon, it seemed worth it to me.

This search is what took me so long.

The sword has a 1/128 (0.78%) chance of dropping. Bad, but I've had worse. I've even gotten a few of these rare drops from other enemies in the game already!

What made it harder were the Atomic Power Robots and Starmen. They both spawned in the same area as the Starman Super. The Atomic Power Robots explode upon defeat, making them annoying at best and terrifying at worst. To avoid them, I went up and down the long ladder or hid in the corner to reload the room's enemies.

The Starmen weren't as bad, but their overworld sprite looked the exact same as the Starmen Super, meaning I had to fight both before deciding if it was worth it.

Combined with the fact this was in the middle of a dungeon, it was very draining. I'd leave occasionally to heal up or reorganize my items. When I wanted a break, I'd go a bit deeper into the dungeon to get all the items. I couldn't defeat the boss though, as a walkthrough told me that when the boss is defeated, all the enemies disappear. This was my ONLY chance.

Yes, I used a walkthrough, only for the map and for tips on how to get the sword.

An extra punch in the face that happened during this was that I found a DIFFERENT 1/128 item! The Starmen have a chance of dropping the Brain Food Lunch. It's a great item, but it felt like the game was laughing at me.

In the end, I started using the switch's save state feature to RNG manipulate and save scum. I pinned a Starman Super into the corner and battled him over and over. This was much faster than the previous option of reloading the room to get a good enemy group, defeating them all, and then doing it all again. However, it still took me around 30 minutes of just this.

The walkthrough tells you you should have a team average of 55 before trying this dungeon. When I started, my team average was 52. By the time I finished this grind, our average was 75. Straw, my highest leveled member, was at 79.

After a break to eat some food and drink some water, I felt good enough to fight the boss. First, I had to walk through this room. It reminded me of Mt. Itoi from Mother 1, giving me the same disturbed feeling. Red Apple Kid, Tony, Dr. Andonuts, and Dr. Saturn...

The boss was easy, not just because of the sword and our high levels, but mainly due to the Multi-Bottle Rocket. It's a great item, but maybe they should have introduced it AFTER this boss.

With everyone saved, I talked to the crowd and got the Saturn Ribbon. I was just wanting to read some flavor text, but this was great! Due to its luck boost, I wanted this as Bana's endgame armor.

Red Apple Kid said he returned the book to the library in Onett. While I was in town, I visited Mom and bought the old house. I have so much money now!

The book was annoying to find. I got confused because of the guy who ran into the bathroom. I thought he was hoarding it or something. The masked guy told me it was on the bookshelves, but I checked before and couldn't find it. I even talked to the Hint Guy. I almost gave up but decided to do a comb-over of the bookshelves. At the very end, I finally found it!

The last thing I did was go back to Tenda Village and cure their shyness, getting some weird conversations, food, and a bag of Dragonite as a reward. Next up, I plan on getting some horns to trade.

I'm surprised how little I finished this week, but I'm glad I was able to find the Sword of the Kings. That was a pain and I hope I never have to do something like that again. Honestly, it's my most hated part of this game so far.

Aside from that, I'm loving this game! I can't wait to see what happens next week. See y'all down the road!

[nxttheendxfthestxry]

Luna sipped from her straw even more loudly and obnoxiously from her perch in the corner, waiting for Fitz to notice her.

Fitz's head snaps around and he groans, sighing, shaking his head. "You're terrifying, you know that?" He sighs, still relaxing. "Wicked to see you, too."

Sophie looks up from where she's reading at a table, curled up into herself a bit. This was hard. She was scared and she wanted Fitz to hold her and reassure her that things were fine, but...

He couldn't do that now. Not with his former gang in the room.

Also, the icy glares between Dex and Sabrine might be deadly if you walked through them, in her opinion.

[nxttheendxfthestxryarch2]

Double Open Starter: Festival Trouble (Sophie/Fitz)

Sophie looks around enthusiastically, taking a bite of her cotton candy and wrinkling her nose. Holy crap, that’s sweet. She loves it. But whoa, she wasn’t ready for i--

She lets out a choked yelp when a hand suddenly catches her arm and drags her to a side of the building not easily seen by the festival. She’s about to yell when a hand comes to her mouth and she looks up--

She lets out a shaky breath, pushing his hand away. “Fitz! You scared me half to death!”

“Sorry, Callaghan, I just... wanted to see you. Since I can’t...” He motions out to the festival. “Take you around.”

Sophie sighs, laughing softly. “You’re ridiculous, you know that?”

“Yeah,” he shrugs with a smile. “Ridculously crazy for you, Soph,” and he leans in--

But practically pushes her away as someone rounds the corner with them, and she squeaks, trying to look anywhere but at her boyfriend, who leans back against the wall and looks back towards the festival casually.

[ofragesaesthetics]

Tag Dump 7

[buckys-little-belle]

Little Terror/Fairy/Hellfire Babysitting Club is my FAVORITE series and I wish I had some ideas for you but I have none! 😭 maybe the club could watch a movie that scares them? And then they change it to a cartoon?

Or maybe they could all have a tea party or play robots or something something out of the oordinary and Steve is there and he is like, plays too?

I love your stuff sm okay. Bye for now.

Hellfire Babysitting Club (Part Eight)

Tea Party

Eddie Munson x Little!Reader (They/Them Pronouns Used) / Hellfire Club x Little!Reader (They/Them Pronouns Used)

Warnings - Mentions of Brad, Eddie half swears the word He11, everyone eats chicken nuggets and cookies, as well as drinks some juice.

Notes - I added Steve in a bit, I do love him in this series, but I just couldn’t really fit him in my plan if that makes any sense!

SFW - Please keep all interactions with this blog SFW

- - - - - -

“Did you bring the crumpets?” Eddie stressed, staring at Gareth as he started setting the table, placing a mug at each seat along with a paper plate.

“You mean the chicken nuggets?” Gareth questioned, his face contorted in a confused expression.

“Yes the chicken nuggets!” Eddie threw his hands up in frustration. “But don’t call them that in front of Terror.” He mumbled, wanting the ‘tea’ … juice … party to be perfect. “Sinclare.” Eddie said disappointed. “Where the h e double hockey sticks are my COOKIES.”

“Calm down dude.” Lucas called out, walking into the room with a paper plate of messily stacked cookies. “They’re right here.” He lifted the plate for Eddie to see, placing it down on the table and standing back.

“Thank you.” Eddie took a step back too, looking at the table set up, sure, it wasn’t perfect, but Y/n would love it and that’s all that mattered.

“Why are we doing this again?” Mike asked, confused as to why the Hellfire club meeting had turned into a tea party.

“Because Fairy deserves a little appreciation after what Brad said.” Eddie explained. The room fell silent as the boys stared upon their masterpiece.

“You haven’t finished editing our new quest have you?” Dustin questioned.

“Brad messed up more than just Fairy’s confidence okay, I worked hard and he ruined it.” Eddie pouted, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Ed’s?” A quiet voice questioned from the hallway, Y/n walking into the room, Steve behind them holding both Orange and Blue.

“Hi my Little Terror.” He cooed, Y/n running into his arms for a hug, spying the cookies and chicken nuggets on the table. “We’re you good for Steve?”

“Mhm. Said I can gets a movie.” They shrugged, their eyes still on the table as Eddie looked at them with admiration.

“Thank you again, Steve.” Eddie called out, smiling at him as Y/n squirmed in his arms. “What do you say Fairy?”

“”hanks Stevie.” Y/n smiled, sitting in their seat at the table.

“No hug?” Eddie asked, Y/n looking towards the door.

“I already hugged him.”

“Yah, it’s all good.” Steve chuckled. “See you soon right Nugget?” Steve called out, Y/n sending him a nod and a smile.

The group all sat down, everyone smiling at Y/n as they looked over the table.

“Wa’s goin’ on?” They questioned, pointing to all of the things laid out.

“It’s a tea party, with crumpets and cookies.” Eddie pointed to all of the things.

“Dose are chickies?” Y/n pointed to the chicken nuggets, things that definitely weren’t crumpets.

Gareth laughed, Eddie kicking his shin. “Very smart Terror.” Eddie sighed, the fantasy lost on their mind. “Do you want fruit punch tea? Or apple?” He asked, pointing to the jugs of juice.

“Fruit punch!!” They cheered, clapping their hands, Gareth passing them the chicken nuggets and a cookie for their plate.

- - - - - -

“Wha’ do people do at tea parties?” Y/n asked, the group finished their drinks and their snacks, sitting around with empty plates and mugs. “Sing?”

“NO!” The boys called out, Y/n had been on a kick of sining christmas songs, missing words, and way off season. “No, I think all they do is drink tea and eat Fairy.” Gareth smiled.

“Tha’s boring.” They huffed, crossing their arms.

“It’s your party.” Dustin added. “What do you want to do.”

“I wan’ ‘o sing.” They pouted, the boys all looking at Y/n with pity.

“Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree…” Eddie began, the rest joining in.

“How silly are your branchies!” Y/n sang with all their chest.

The group ended up eating a few more cookies, and doing Y/n’s rendition of Christmas songs for the rest of the meeting, though they would say it was awful, they all knew that deep down they loved it. They loved what Little Terror brought to the group, and knew they would always make time to let them know it.