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icallhimjoey · 4 months ago

Note

no no no no no NO no NO! NO! joe can NOT get away with this! he's gonna deny us our *fun* isn't he? this absolute bastard can NOT think that this is an acceptable way to keep us around! NO!

you know what? you're right. you're so very, very right. Wordcount: 3.3K

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All The Aces

part one - part two - part three - part four - part five

Joe was wrong.

Joe was wrong, but... he wasn’t stupid, as it turned out.

So that first time, you hadn’t really fully realised what was happening, which – fine. Who could blame you? And you would argue that, the next two times after, it also wasn’t really your fault that you hadn’t caught on...

The fourth time; obvious. You would’ve been an absolute idiot had you not put the pieces together... which, you had, so, you also weren’t stupid.

And also, if it wasn’t for Izzy, maybe it would’ve all clicked into place on the third time.

It was just that... Joe went about it a little too calculated at first, the sneaky fucker. Likely because he was also testing the waters, trying to figure out what he could get away with.

And.

Well.

The answer was: A Lot, Apparently. But again; who could blame you? Joe wasn’t stupid.

Joe wasn’t stupid at all.

When he’d buzzed you up into his flat whilst he was making dinner, you’d barged in with a million things on your mind. All of them extremely negative and ultimately: unimportant.

“I know you’ve not invited me over to just rant at you for ages, but, can I just rant at you for ages?” You dropped your bags right where you were standing.

Joe, spatula and pan in hand, eyes on the food, went, “Ages?”

“Okay, fine. A minute. Can I rant at your for a minute?”

You hadn’t even said hello to each other, priorities elsewhere right now. This shit was on your mind and you needed it off your mind.

Joe’s eyes quickly found his oven timer and he reached for it to set it. To a minute. Because he was a comical genius, you see.

“All right, one minute…. And, go!”

You ignored the stupid joke and just, unleashed. There was some work shit, some small annoying things that had frustrated you throughout the day, but when you got your phone out to read a text thread between you and a childhood friend, you really got into it.

The oven timer went ignored. It beeped, but Joe just silently turned it off and put it to the side. You were in the middle of a sentence and whatever the problem was, this seemed important to you.

He knew it was all petty shit you likely already had all the answers to, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t listen.

Joe tried his best to follow along. Really, he did. But he was also finishing your dinner, peeling potatoes and cutting vegetables, and you were going a hundred miles an hour, straying off the main story every ten seconds to explain whatever was going on better. Which, it didn’t. It only confused Joe more, but he nodded along. Said things like, Oh my god, no way and what the fuck at all the right moments like a good friend would do. Like a good boyfriend would do.

“It’s not my fault we’re not as close as we used to be, she went off and had four children- four, Joe. Four.”

You’d started pacing.

“And then she went, “oh you still living with that girl?” That girl – Izzy, we’re talking my best friend since uni, Izzy. That girl. What the fuck does she think she’s even saying?”

Arms were flying, and Joe silently covered a pan with a lid for fear of your phone landing in it.

“And remember when, like, four years ago, I went to celebrate new year’s with her instead of with our group, just because she’d asked a million times, and she didn’t want to come down to join our party? And then she mixed drinks and got me so drunk, I didn’t even make it until midnight? She’s still holding that over my head, look,” you just kept going, read a text message aloud about maybe trying that again and just doing mocktails so she would actually be able to see the fireworks this time.

You sighed aggressively and turned its back end into a frustrated cry.

“Am I insane? Don’t actually answer that, but… am I insane?”

You stopped pacing to look at Joe, and... you had to take a second to take in what you were seeing.

Joe was stood leaning against the countertop where, behind him, potatoes were sizzling loudly in a frying pan. He had his arms crossed over his stomach, head cocked to the side and he was just… staring at you. Slightly biting into his lip. Smiling, a little. It was a way of looking at you that you could feel within your chest. That made you whole face heat up as you felt how the tops of your cheeks blushed.

Rude.

Had he even been listening at all?

“Be helpful, please. Am I insane?” you asked again, arms flying once more, outraged and in need of a very specific answer.

Joe let his smile grow a little wider and kindly assured you, “You’re not insane.”

He got it right.

“Thank you.” You let your shoulders visibly drop, glad to have heard Joe say what you needed him to say. But then you looked behind him.

“You’re burning the potatoes.”

Joe just kept his eyes on you and said, “I know.”

Didn’t unfold his arms. Just kept his warm eyes on you, that fondly stared a little dreamily.

“Joe,” you scolded, half laughing as you stepped closer to take the pan off the fire, but Joe was faster and turned the hob off just before you could intervene. Then he immediately took advantage of you being closer and used both of his hands to cup your cheeks. To hold you by your jaw, and to tip your head back for him.

Then he gave you that same look again.

Half-lidded, soft, adoring eyes that just stared down at you as he smiled a little.

“What?” you asked, expecting him to lean down for a kiss that didn’t come.

“Not insane.” Joe cooed.

You sensed a but coming.

“But?”

“But…” Joe leant down a little, got a little closer. “But you’re very pretty.”

“But I’m very… Joe, that has nothing to do with–”

Joe cut you off with the kiss you’d been waiting for. Soft lips brushed to yours in a funny position because he caught you in the middle of a word, strong hands holding you in place. You let your fingers wrap around his forearms and attempted to pull away, but Joe wasn’t having it. He used the very brief moment your lips parted to whisper, “So pretty.” into your mouth before he was back on you, arm now curling around the back of you to keep you from leaning back any further.

The kitchen smelled of delicious food, and you’d just spent at least ten minutes pacing around the room whilst tirading about something ultimately so very insignificant, especially to Joe, but the boy was kissing you.

Told you that you weren’t insane.

Said that you were so pretty.

Had cooked you dinner and had let you spew about an old friend trying her best to reconnect without telling you that you were being silly.

You probably were being silly.

Today just hadn’t been the best day.

And written communication had the tendency to change in meaning depending on your mood.

You could read everything again the next day and interpret all of it differently.

You were being silly.

But the boy was kissing you now, and it was just the perfect remedy to a shitty day.

Joe held you in place and kissed you until he felt you sigh into him. Until you gave in, and decided that, yea, sure, Joe could just make out with you in his kitchen for a while if he wanted to.

Joe swallowed the soft sounds you made and softly groaned in return. He loved how he could feel you grow more relaxed under his hands. Loved the way you were pulling him down to you to get more of him. Loved how you started to deny him pulling back, now more desperate for him than he was for you.

When you felt Joe’s hands start to wander down your back and round out over your bum for a squeeze, you managed to break free from Joe just long enough to say, “Should we have dinner first?”

As an answer, Joe bent through his knees a little and you felt how his grip grew stronger as he was about to lift you up. You got your arms around his neck just in time.

“Nah,” Joe murmured into your mouth, hands firmly under your thighs as he encouraged you to wrap your legs around his waist. “Dinner can wait.”

You got walked over to the bed where Joe laid you down and then just lazily kissed you for a bit longer.

Where you sunk into his mattress and tangled up into his sheets whilst dinner out in the kitchen grew cold.

Where roaming hands were heavy and wandering, pulling at the hems of shirts as palms searched for smooth, bare skin to touch.

Where you eventually grew a bit impatient and tried undoing Joe’s trousers with fumbly fingers, not breaking your kissing.

Where you slipped a hand inside and felt how hard he was.

Where Joe pretended to suddenly care about dinner until you got your mouth on him and he let himself fall back into his pillows, eyes fluttering shut.

Where the sun was setting outside, casting the room in soft warm oranges as Joe used careful, gentle hands to get you out of your clothes.

Where Joe wanted to see all of you.

Where Joe wanted to feel all of you.

Where Joe made you laugh when you bit into his shoulder, and panted, “I take it back, what I said earlier. You are insane.”

Where, after a while, when Joe burrowed his face into your neck and didn’t remove it, you knew he was in the homestretch. Mind blank. Just feeling.

And you were right.

It didn’t take long for pants to turn into groans, for rhythmic thrusting to turn into sloppy hip-clashes, and for Joe to tense up all over with a held breath before turning into a boneless collapsed man who felt like all the strength within him had just left through his dick.

It took a while for Joe to return back to earth. He just laid on top of you, face pressed into the crook of your neck, breathing so close to your ear it almost sounded like he was inside of your skull.

When Joe finally did remove his face from being pressed into your neck, there was a spit-string connecting you together still.

“Oh, ew,” you laughed, moving your face away slightly, “That’s disgusting.”

Hovering over you, cheeks flushed and hair messy, you saw how Joe looked at the spot where he’d been drooling all over you, and he grimaced.

“Oh, no, maybe,” he leant onto one elbow to get a hand into the crook there, already laughing. “Maybe don’t,” he started wiping, tried to get a bit of duvet in there which only made you feel how wet it actually was. When you moved a little more to get a look, Joe tried to stop you from seeing the wet patch of saliva he’d left behind.

“No, don’t look! Stop!” he was laughing now, and against his advice, you got a hand in there to feel.

“What the fuck, Joe, you drooled all over– Joe! There’s a fucking puddle!”

For a short moment, Joe acted like a child caught sneaking a snack he wasn’t supposed to have taken from the pantry, very cute yet very guilty. That quickly changed into a more indignant attitude, where he gave you a face for giving him a hard time about enjoying himself.

It was only a bit of spit.

“I’ve cooked you dinner!” Joe exclaimed as he climbed off of you, and he said it like the argument was meant to make your neck less wet somehow.

“Which has absolutely gone cold.”

“Come on,” Joe held out a hand. “I’ll heat it up and we’ll have it outside.”

“How about,” you started, grabbing the hand and letting him pull you up. “You go heat up dinner, I’ll wash your sheets, and, um, shower.”

Joe didn’t let go of the hand he was holding, and pulled at it until you were up on your feet where he was quick to lock his arms behind your back to keep you close.

“How about,” Joe copied your tone to make you laugh, and got his face back into the same crook of your neck where he blew a raspberry to make you squirm. “We both take a shower, and then we get the rest sorted after?”

You’d never taken a shower as long together before. No funny business - just actual washing. Except, Joe would keep kissing you places he would then wash straight after, because you clearly thought his spit was dirty now, so every press of lips got chased by a soapy shower sponge and it took for fucking ever for Joe to stop thinking the bit was hilarious.

To be fair, you hadn’t quite figured out how to not laugh every time he did it, so... partially your fault, you guessed.

But what wasn’t your fault, was how not orgasming hadn’t been weird at all. How that hadn’t consciously crossed your mind once. You’d been distracted with wet sheets and soapy kisses and then after all that, a lovely home cooked meal outside on the balcony where you had it with your hair still wet, dressed in just T-shirts and underwear.

It wasn’t your fault the first time, it wasn’t your fault the second time, and it definitely wasn’t your fault the third time, when Izzy barged in right in the middle of it.

It also wasn’t exactly her fault, though.

All Izzy had done was get home from work.

You were right in the middle of the hallway of your shared flat, pressed up against a wall, half naked, in Joe’s arms.

And then Izzy walked in.

Now… you’d seen Izzy freak out before. But to see two of your friends mid stand-up-fuck in your own hallway after a long day at the office triggered a new form of anger within your flatmate. It didn’t help that, as you were trying to get out of Joe’s grip to rush into your bedroom, that Joe’s hold on you only strengthened.

Izzy was the first to start shouting, and a fraction of a second after her first, “Oh my God!” you and Joe started shouting too.

Izzy was stood in the doorway where she was shielding her eyes, workbag sliding from her shoulder into her elbow, and she was screeching on the top of her lungs, “Oh my God, Oh my GOD, no! No! What the fuck! No!”

Joe shouted, “Leave! Leave!” right into your ear with an unmistakable urgency in his voice whilst the cutting edge left no room for argument.

And then there were panicked screams coming from you, high-pitched words tumbling over each other, all sentences unfinished, half telling Izzy to close the door behind her, half telling Joe to let you go.

Which, he didn’t do.

Joe just held on stronger and used his legs to press you against the wall like he was trying to make the two of you disappear into the brick there, and it hurt.

The chaos lasted maybe four seconds. Five tops. It was all overlapped loud voices, all frantic movements and then… to make an already awful situation even worse… Joe orgasmed.

You shrieked, “Wh– Are you coming? Are you coming right now?” as your eyes nearly bulged out of your head with shocked outrage, hands trying to push at his shoulders whilst your legs tried to find the floor.

It was the worst evening you’d had in a good while.

After everything, you sat on the foot of your bed, hugging your knees and Izzy stood on the threshold of your bedroom, asking what she’d ever done to you for you to decide that having sex in the shared hallway at twenty minutes past six in the evening was a totally normal thing to do be doing.

Joe’d quickly left after. Was out the door in a flash after the world’s most awkward apology ever.

“Sorry Izzy, for, um... yea, for making you see… and, um, hear that.”

“Fuck off Joe.”

“Yea, I’m… sorry, I’ll leave. I’ll see you Friday, yea?”

“I said, fuck off, Joe.”

“So sorry. Sorry.” Joe had paused, and then a single look of Izzy had made him go, “Yea, yea. I’m going.”

He hadn’t even dared to turn around to find you in your bedroom first. He’d just walked straight out and texted you, “Got sent home. Call me in a bit?”

Promises were made of removing clothes behind closed doors from now on – preferably locked doors, please. And if you couldn’t take four more steps to get yourselves into your bedroom first, for the love of God, please, just go over to Joe’s. He’s got a whole place to himself and you could fuck on the doormat for all Izzy cared.

You apologized too.

Said it would never happen again.

And then Izzy said she had to not look at your face for the rest of the night because she kept reliving the visuals, and – fair. That made sense.

You kind of didn’t want to see your own face for a second either.

And there was no way that Joe had planned to deny you an orgasm like this, but... it was real fucking convenient that Izzy always came home from work around the same time each day. It was real fucking convenient that he’d gotten you incredibly worked up with cute little text messages all throughout the day. Real fucking convenient that he walked in with his shirt tucked tightly into his jeans and far too many of the buttons undone for you to be normal about it.

There was no way he’d planned it.

But he’d definitely given the situation a little nudge into the direction it had eventually headed into, and no one could blame you for not having seen it then.

Not yet.

But then the fourth time happened, and Joe’d just edged you all night. Was very open about his teasing. Made you tell him if you were getting close, and then when you did, he’d just… ease off. Pull back. Let you whine and cry for it until he thought you’d pleaded enough for him to be nice again.

He’d gotten you so close.

So, so close.

But not close enough.

And then, when he came and just rolled over after, you knew.

This guy was having sex with you without letting you orgasm.

“You’re sick, you know that? Like an actual sociopath.”

“I’m just following instructions.”

Yea, all right.

Yea.

Fine.

He’d gotten away with it up until now, which, well done, Joey. This idiot really thought he held all the aces, didn’t he? Smug little bastard.

But you know what?

Good.

He could feel that way.

You were going to let him feel that way.

There were loopholes.

Easy ones too.

Joe was wrong, and clueless, and maybe, actually… he was a little stupid, after all.

And you were stubborn. Determined. Persistent.

Dead set on proving yourself right.

Which you were.

You held all the aces.

Not Joe.

Joe was wrong.

You were going to outplay the player at his own thought-up little game, and he would see. Oh, absolutely, he would see.

He’d fucking see.

---

The Taglisted

@alwayslindie, @babybluebex, @capricornrisingsstuff, @chaoticgood-munson, @demonsanddemogorgons

@djoseph-quinn, @dolcevit4, @eddies-puppet, @emma-munson, @emotionaldreamer

@everythinghasafacee, @figmentofquinn, @ghost-proofbaby, @gri959, @hanahkatexo

@hazelenys, @imjustjen14, @jewellethief, @joesquinns, @keikoraven

@kennedy-brooke, @lovelyblueness, @mandyjo8719, @mexicanfolklore, @munsonluvrr

@munson-mjstan, @munsonssweets, @nadixq, @niallersfreckles, @notverywise

@pepperstories, @phyllosilicate-s, @prettiestboyreid, @readergf, @royale1803

@skulliecadaver-blog, @sherrylyn0628, @shizlac, @solzi1420, @songforeddiemunson

@sweetberry47, @take-everything-you-can, @thebellenouvelle, @tlclick73, @werepartnersnow

@witchwolflea, @yunirgo

add yourself

#joe quinn #joseph quinn #joe quinn x reader #joseph quinn x reader #joseph quinn fanfic #joe quinn fanfic #joe quinn x you #joseph quinn x you #joe quinn fanfiction #joseph quinn fanfiction #joe quinn x Y/N #joseph quinn x Y/N #icallhimjoey #bet!joe #double or nothing #all the aces

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justanotherflemethstan · 8 days ago

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this is not a drill, this is a thread on the creation of Flemeth from David Gaider!! as kind of the self professed Flemeth stan blog around here, I had to reshare

(alt text and full text transcript of the images included)

Link to the original post

Full text from the images below the cut:

CHARACTERS - DAY THREE: Flemeth

I have a type. I admit it. There are certain wells I can return to repeatedly and always find something new to explore.

One of them is older female characters. Mike used to rib me about it. Consider Wynne. Meredith. Genevieve. And, of course, the biggie: Flemeth.

Why are they a type? I... don't know, honestly.

I guess I have a feeling that older men fade, they strive to regain their youth or establish a legacy and we've seen that story a thousand times, but older women? They become free to become something new. I guess I see so many possibilities in that.

I had a conception of who Flemeth was, and why, right from the very start. Her creation went hand in hand with Morrigan, as a being whose thirst for retribution hundreds of years ago attracted an entity (slight confession: I didn't know Mythal specifically, at the time, "an elven god" was enough).

I also knew where Morrigan was right and very wrong about her. Misconceptions of the truth are built into DA's foundation, and they were fundamental to this mother-daughter relationship I was building.

Like many seeds I'd put in the world, however, I had no idea whether I'd ever get to explore it.

Knowing that she was a character of possible future importance, if not a major player in DAO, I wasn't much surprised when she was one of the first cuts the art team made in terms of getting a unique appearance. Thus the "batty old woman" players met in DAO. Not as hard a cut as the Qunari, though.

Going into DA2, I wanted both Morrigan and Flemeth, but we could only have one. So I picked Flemeth. This was the game where she really got to come into her own.

I remember the art team coming and asking if it was OK if she got a new model, as it'd be a retcon of sorts. I didn't care. I wanted it.

I honestly don't remember whether Kate Mulgrew was cast before or after Claudia. After, I think? All I recall is that Cab came into my office one day and asked if Kate might be a good fit

The squeal I made was un-manly. Cab took that as a "yes". 😅

I didn't get to talk to Kate until DA2, however. Schedules being what they were, we had a tight window to record Flemeth... so I had to write all her scenes before almost anything else in DA2 was written, before I even had a team! Ack!

It was OK, though, for the most part. I knew where I wanted to take her, and a big part of it was going to explain her transition - to set her up for the future. So I whipped up a script in, like, two days and off we went. Kate was a marvel in the booth. She adored Flemeth and you could really tell.

I didn't get to meet Kate in person, however, until DAI. This came pretty late in its development, compared to when we recorded her for DA2, and we flew down to Virginia (to accommodate her schedule - she was writing her memoir at the time, I think) for a single session. It was going to be *tight*.

I was a mess. I was finally going to meet Captain Janeway... and yes yes, I know she's also more than that. But come ON.

When we sat down, I figured I'd have to talk her through the character all over again. It'd been years since that one session at the start of DA2, right? And even more since DAO.

But, no. Kate remembered Flemeth perfectly.

I remember sitting there as she told me how much she loved the character, how rare it was to get one with so much texture and possibility. She called out my writing - my writing! - and waxed poetic about how she viewed Flemeth's arc. I... I was floored. 🫠

Then we began recording. One issue that quickly reared its head was how Caroline had to speed through the lines if we hoped to finish. Kate was a trooper, and most takes she'd get it in one (which is rare), but I was alarmed because we weren't giving Kate time to read the VO comments on each line.

I brought it up, as there were some lines (so much sarcasm) that required nuance - Kate was getting them, oddly, but I was worried.

"Oh, it's fine," Kate said. "I read the comments as we go."

"How could you? We're going so fast!"

"I'm a speed reader."

Oh. OK, then. That certainly explained it. 😁

We got to the confrontation scene with Morrigan and she nailed it. Over and over. More than once, Caroline would make a call and, before I could even interject and say "no, Kate had it right, actually" Kate would explain exactly why she did it that way and why it worked for Flemeth. I was in love.

She did the "I will see her avenged!" section all in one go. I got chills. Then we got to the final scene.

You know the one. With Solas.

It was this beautiful moment. She took it somewhere quiet and sad... and when she got to that last line, we all felt it: Flemeth was dead. Everyone was in tears.

I suppose I could talk more about the process. How she started off aligned with Morrigan's original Delirium inspiration, but I didn't pull back her loopy way of talking as much (bet you wondered).

I still don't know why it was so easy to slip into her voice, but I'm grateful I got the chance. ❤️

#flemeth #flemeth dragon age #dragon age #dragon age origins #dragon age 2 #dragon age inqusition #dao #da2 #dai #morrigan dragon age #david gaider

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mxltifxnd0m · 1 year ago

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𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗗𝗔𝗟𝗔 𝗩𝗦 𝗦𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦

»——•——«»——•——«

Summary: You and Stiles can’t choose a couples costume

Pairings: Stiles Stilinski x fem! Reader, Scott McCall x platonic fem! Reader

Words: 1.6K

»——•——«»——•——«

Warnings: no use of y/n, fluff, language, suggestive, spicy, implied smut, BUT NO SMUT, kinda a college au!

A/N: This was intended to be released in October, but I could not figure out how to finish it for my life. But hey, better late than never, am I right? Anyway I had no clue that Han and Leia’s ship name was Scoundress, but the more you know. Also, it is my first time writing for Stiles!

not beta read but YOLO

𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘬𝘪 𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵

»——•——«»——•——«

"I don't know why you insist we should be Anakin and Padme! We would fit Leia and Han more for Halloween." Stiles whispered harshly, not looking up from the notebook that he was scribbling in.

You roll your eyes at him, "What are you talking about? I said we could do either, but I'd prefer if we were Anakin and Padme." You whisper to him. His head snaps up to protest, but a chair scrapes along the carpeted floor and interrupts Stiles.

"There you guys are! I was wondering where you were." Scott says a little too loud, and the people at the other tables surrounding you and Stiles give Scott a dirty look.

"Scott, I know you don't visit the library often, but we typically use our inside voices." You whisper as he sits down next to Stiles. Scott shoots you a glare.

"Anyways, I disagree. We should be Leia and Han, and that's final." You can see that Stiles is done with the conversation.

You squint suspiciously at your boyfriend, "You just want to see me in Leia's slave outfit from ROTJ, don't you?" You can see a red flush creep up Stiles's face and the tips of his ear as he stammers, trying to defend himself before giving up and returning to his notes. You chuckled under your breath to avoid disturbing the other students.

Scott looks between the two of you, confused, "What are you guys even talking about?"

"We are trying to figure out what costume we will wear to the party your frat is hosting." You explain, your voice low, "But we are split between two costumes. I want us to be Anakin and Padme, but Stiles-" He snaps up at the call of his name, focusing on the conversation, "-wants us to be Leia and Han." You glare at Stiles.

"I thought Luke and Leia were together?" Scott says cluelessly. Both you and Stiles groan loudly at Scott's words. A girl from a nearby table glares at you and shushes you. You apologize quietly and turn your gaze to Scott.

"We've gone over this before Scott. Luke and Leia are siblings, and Han and Leia are together. Do you just forget the movies as soon as we watch them?" Stiles asked exasperatedly.

"No, I tend to fall asleep halfway through the marathons," Scott says guiltily as he scratches the back of his neck. Stiles closes his eyes and uses his hand to rub his face frustratedly. Stiles murmured something under his breath, and Scott's face screwed up into an offended expression.

"I heard that."

"Yeah, no shit, you did. I'm the one who said it for your little werewolf ears to hear." Stiles scoffed quietly at Scott.

Scott goes to retort, but you snap your fingers twice to get their attention. "As much as I would love to see the two of you bicker, we all know how loud you guys get when you do, and I don't fancy getting kicked out of the library." You smile sardonically at them. They roll their eyes at you but yelp in pain as you lean over the table and tug their ears.

"Could you guys be quiet? Some people are studying." The girl from earlier whispered firmly to you guys.

You wince at her tone, "Sorry, we're leaving now." You whispered. You glared at Scott and Stiles and started to pack up your things to leave the library. Stiles scrambled to pack his things, and the two boys followed you outside the library.

Stiles wraps an arm around your shoulder as you walk through the quad. You thread your fingers through his hand, and he squeezes your hand three times. The annoyed expression melted off your face, and a smile replaced it. You take a quick glance at your phone, checking the time.

Your eyes widen, "Shit! I have to go! My class starts in 10 minutes." You untangle yourself, "Our discussion isn't over." You tell Stiles before separating yourself from him, pecking his cheek, and waving goodbye at the both of them as you speed walk to your class.

»——•——«»——•——«

The sound of a keyboard clacking echoes through your silent bedroom. You're hunched over your laptop on your bed as you work on one of your papers for your English class. Lofi beats play quietly in your headphones as you read through your paper for the final time before returning to it tomorrow to edit it. A knock at your bedroom door catches your attention.

"Yeah, what's up?" You say to your roommate as she peaks her head into your room.

"You have a visitor." She says with a knowing smirk on her face.

You roll your eyes at her, smiling, "Tell him he's actually banned from the apartment, then let him in." You instruct as you remove your headphones and stretch your back from your hunched position.

She nods and closes your door before leaving. You can hear the voice of your roommate and Stiles's voice talking lowly in the apartment's entryway. You hear a scoff from Stiles and footsteps quickly entering the apartment and heading toward your room. He burst through your door, pointing at you.

"You are so mean, you know that?" Stiles says with a slight pout on his face. He removed his backpack and toed off his shoes to leave near your door. He stands in the doorframe for a moment before you see a mischievous glint passes through his eye, and you catch it.

"Stiles." You say his name warningly.

He sends you an innocent smile before quickly running towards you and jumping onto your bed. You yelp loudly, closing your laptop and moving it out of the way of Stiles's landing. He lands on top of you, effectively pinning you to the bed. You can feel Stiles's chest move from his giggling fit as you try to squirm from underneath him. You give up after trying to push him off of you and thread your hand through his hair, scratching his scalp. He relaxes on top of you, settling his total weight on you. After a few minutes, he eventually rolls off you and sits on your bed.

"Any reason as to why you're at my apartment?" You ask him as you sit up and shift until your back rests against your headboard. You go to grab your laptop, but it's quickly moved from out of your reach, and you turn to glare at your boyfriend.

"Oh, don't give me that look, you know what that does to me babe." Stiles sarcastically as he moves your laptop to your desk.

"Besides, I'm here to present my argument as to why we should be Han and Leia for Halloween and not Anakin and Padme." Stiles moves closer to you and boops your nose after he finishes his sentence. You scrunch your nose at his actions and shake your head at him.

"Nope, not going to hear it."

He groans loudly, "I knew I shouldn't have asked you out, you prefer the prequels over the originals." He flops down on your bed, his head landing on your lap as his legs dangle over the side of the bed.

"Is that your way of saying that we should break up?" You raise an eyebrow at him.

He shot up from your lap, "NO! Absolutely not. You're like the woman of my dreams. I'd be an idiot if I broke up with you. Especially with the amount of shit we went through together in high school. I actually had dreams about marrying you, so-" His hands wave wildly as he begins to ramble. You roll your eyes at him and grab his chin to kiss his mouth to shut him up. He immediately shuts up and melts into the kiss. You peck his lips before pulling away.

"You're such a dork." You smile at Stiles.

"You're dating this dork."

"Yeah, maybe Lydia was right. I am out of your league." You joke, and a noise of offense comes from Stiles. You chuckle at his pouty expression and peck his lips.

"I'm kidding babe." You say as you pull away. You move around the bed to straddle him, your thighs on either of his hips, his hands coming to rest on your waist, and you rest your arms on his shoulders.

"How about we make a compromise? We go as Anakin and Padme this year, and then we can go as Han and Leia next Halloween." Stiles opens his mouth to respond, but you quickly put a finger in front of his lips.

"I wasn't done, and to sweeten the deal, I'll wear Leia's slave outfit underneath both costumes." You lean closer to Stiles, "How does that sound." You whisper seductively in his ear and plant a kiss underneath it before pulling back to see his whiskey-colored eyes darkening slightly with desire. His hands tighten around your waist before flipping the two of you around, you landing on your back. At the same time, Stiles settles in between your open legs and hovering above you.

"It doesn't sound fair, but if you wear the outfit often then I'll let it slide." He says lowly, lowering his face closer to yours.

"Deal." You say breathily, your lips brushing his as you speak.

"Deal." He says before smashing his lips against yours passionately. Your hands begin to wander and tug at each other's clothes. The room slowly grows hot and fills with low groans and whines coming from both of you. After you finished, you guys showered, went out to get the costumes, and tried them on when you returned to the apartment.

Let's just say the slave outfit came off as soon as you put it on.

#daisy writes #stiles stilinski #stiles stilinski x reader #stiles stilinski x female reader #stiles stilinski x fem reader #stiles stilinski fanfiction #stiles stilinski imagine #stiles stilinski fluff #teen wolf fanfiction #stiles stilinski x you #stiles stilinski x y/n #halloween fluff #teen wolf x reader

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mysterious-moonstruck-musings · 11 months ago

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Destiny & Deliverance: Chapter 28

Destiny & Deliverance Masterlist ||| Main Masterlist Dieter Bravo X OFC

Series Summary: Natalia Cohen is experiencing major life changes, beginning with leaving an emotionally abusive husband. She is learning how to navigate life on her own while dealing with high functioning anxiety, depression, and mild PTSD. Everything is looking up for her. She is a highly respected consultant for a major LA firm, has her best friend, Lauren, by her side, and is on her path to healing. Everything changes when she meets a handsome and broken stranger on a work trip. He turns out to be a well-known actor, with a heart-breaking past. They quickly develop a connection that will forever alter their lives.

Warnings: Themes dealing with mental health, emotional trauma, alcohol use, and discussions about suicide. There will be fluff, tears, spicy language, and smut. This will be a slow burn type of story. Read at your own risk.

Chapter Warnings: Smutty stuff.

Chapter Quote: “Oh, you know me…I’m really good at operations management. Just working through things to figure out the most efficient process for peak outcomes.”

As I sat in the lobby waiting for Dieter to change into the clothes I had brought for him and complete the discharge process, I could feel my anxiety flaring. He and I hadn’t spent any length of time alone together since he was filming in Canada, and everything felt different now. We had made it clear to each other that we wanted to be together and make this work, but we knew there was going to be some initial awkwardness to get through. We had briefly discussed it with Dr. Rosenberg, but talking about it and experiencing it were two different things. I could already feel the hum of anticipation vibrating throughout my body, but I also still had a deep seeded fear that he was going to change his mind and realize he didn’t have feelings for me any longer.

Dieter soon emerged from the double security doors that led to the back. He was in a dark gray t-shirt, medium wash jeans that were slung low over his slightly trimmer waist, and sneakers. His shirt was working double time as it stretched across his much broader shoulders and chest. He had spent a lot of his down time exercising and it showed. His hair was still a curly mess, but it looked like he had tried to tame it back some. He had his tote bag stuffed with the small number of personal items slung over his shoulder.

Several staff members followed to give their goodbyes and see him off, Dr. Rosenberg and Sharon included. Sharon gave him a teary smile and hug as Dr. Rosenberg walked over to check in with me. I stood from my seat as she approached. I knew as soon as she grabbed my hand and squeezed it, that she could sense my nervousness.

“You doing ok?” She asked quietly with a concerned look on her face. I nodded, giving her a tight-lipped smile.

“Yeah, I’m good. Just a little anxious.” She squeezed my hand again.

“He is too. Just remember to talk through it and you’ll both be fine.”

I inhaled deeply, letting it out slowly before I nodded.

Once Dieter was finished with his goodbyes, he timidly made his way over to me with his hands clenching and unclenching into fists. He leaned in to give me a tight hug, reluctantly pulling away with a small smile. I reached down and grabbed his hand, threading our fingers together as I met his eyes.

“You ready?”

His eyebrows shot up as his eyes widened, “Yeah…I think so.”

We held each other’s gaze for a moment, the reality of the situation finally setting in. I could see several emotions playing across his face and could feel mine bubbling to the surface, threatening to spill out. I was suddenly aware of all of the eyes on us. Somehow, I managed to push my feelings aside as we waved to everyone and headed toward the exit.

Once we were outside, away from curious onlookers, I couldn’t hold it back anymore. By the time we reached the car, the flood gates opened, and my legs suddenly felt weak. I leaned against the hood of the rental to catch myself. Dieter quickly pulled me into a tight hug, cupping the back of my head and burying his face into the top of my hair. Both of us stood there, sobbing into our embrace and saying nothing as we allowed the waves of emotion overtake us. It was too much all at once. I felt thankful that he was still with us, relieved that he was healthy, happy he was finally coming home, nervous about how things were going to go, and excited about the possibilities. I somewhat composed myself and tried to verbalize my feelings to him, wanting him to know it was happy tears. He started to shake his head against mine as I mumbled into his neck, “It’s ok. I understand. I’m right there with you. It’s…a lot.”

He pulled back, looking at me with his tear-streaked face, reaching to wipe away the dampness from my cheeks with his thumbs, “If it makes you feel better, I got emotional about putting on a pair of jeans for the first time in three months. So, I get the overwhelmed feeling.”

We both chuckled, lightening the mood somewhat. I leaned my forehead against his chest as I grasped onto his biceps, squeezing to make sure he was really there, “It just felt like this day was never gonna come. It almost seems surreal.”

His rough hands slid up my arms as he kissed the top of my head, “Let’s get outta here before they change their mind about letting me leave.”

I raised my head, meeting his gaze. He seemed like he was holding back as he pushed my hair behind my ear, giving a small smile before turning to open the driver side door for me. After I got inside, he shut the door and hurried around to get into the passenger seat. As he was getting settled, I reached into the back and grabbed his tablet and handed it to him.

“Entertainment for the ride, if you need it. I also have your hat and sunglasses.”

He smiled, sliding the tablet between the seats, “I figured I’d just hang my head out the window the whole way and enjoy my freedom.”

I snorted, “I’m not sure you’ll wanna deal with the skin problems that would result from that.”

He laughed. I noticed he started to reach his hand toward mine but diverted to rub at his thigh instead. He suddenly seemed unsure of himself as he looked ahead out the window, a deep crease forming between his brows.

I figured he was most likely feeling overwhelmed and tried not to think too much about it as I started the car and made my way toward the interstate exit.

We drove in silence for a while. Every time I glanced in Dieter's direction, he was attentively watching the sights pass by, seeing them for the first time. I could tell the wheels in his head were spinning. I imagined this was a lot to take in after being in a facility for three months and hoped it wasn’t too much for him.

“You were good with driving back, right? I just assumed…”

He turned to look at me, pausing briefly to process my words. He had clearly been deep in thought, “Definitely. I’m not ready to deal with an onslaught of people at the airport. Or paparazzi. They’re always hanging out there…and I’m not sure if I can handle the questions. I need to talk to Elaine. I’m not sure how to answer…things. I know there are rumors about me being in rehab.”

I gave him a tight smile. I wasn’t sure how much he knew about the rumor mill. I knew he had talked to Ty some, but we hadn’t discussed anything related to his work much since it wasn’t the focus of our sessions.

“Are you worried about work stuff?”

He sighed, “Yes…and no. It’s gonna be a lot to deal with and catch up on. A lot of rearranging…maybe even dropping some projects. I’m not trying to rush back into things full steam either, so whatever happens, happens.”

He started rubbing at the top of his thighs with both hands.

“I don’t think I’ve even told you…Rylee quit after filming ended.”

I looked over at him, confused, but also not surprised. I reached over to grab his hand and gave it a squeeze. The topic seemed to cause him some distress, so I didn’t let go. Instead, I laced our fingers together. He stared at our entwined hands for a moment before he spoke again.

“I was such a dick to her even though she was just trying to keep me outta trouble. I don’t blame her for quitting. I would’ve too.”

He sighed heavily as he turned to peer out the window. Eventually speaking up again without looking in my direction.

“Do you think she’ll forgive me and come back to work?” He asked quietly as he rubbed at his scruffy chin with his free hand.

“I think if you’re honest with her and tell her what was going on…she might.”

He pinched his brows together, “Yeah, maybe…and apologize…or grovel at her feet…”

He briefly laughed to himself. After a few minutes of contemplative silence, he spoke up again, “I’m also thinking about letting Ty go. I’m not sure how much I trust him anymore…I don’t feel like he has my best interest in mind...and I need people on my team that are gonna be supportive…and not…whatever he is.”

“You know…you don’t have to get all of this stuff figured out immediately, right? There’s no rush.”

He finally turned to look at me, his brows drawn together as he pursed his lips in thought.

“I know. That’s just two things that’ve been on my mind. The rest of it…I’m just gonna go with the flow and not stress about it. There are people that will figure that shit out for me. I was just curious about your thoughts.”

“Well, you know I like Rylee. Hopefully she’ll come back…and if you want me to talk with her, I can. As far as Ty goes, I’ve really only had one interaction with him. So, I’m not sure I can have an opinion on that, but I’ll support whatever decision you come to.”

I glanced in his direction with a smirk, “He was a dick though…”

Dieter snorted, nodding in agreement.

Once we reached the halfway mark of our trip, we stopped for food. Dieter really wanted a greasy burger from a fast food place just to make up for the last three months of eating “healthy shit”. He felt like he deserved a cheat day. So, we went to the first drive-thru we saw and ate in the parking lot. From the way he ate, you would think they had starved him to death.

I smiled at him, “Ya know, you’re probably gonna regret that later.”

He took a quick drink, shaking his head, “I don’t even fucking care. Worth it. Get me some tums and I’ll survive.”

He shoved a few more fries in his mouth before he looked at me with a lopsided grin. I finished my meal and wiped my face with a napkin as I turned toward him.

“So…we really haven’t talked about it…but where do you wanna stay?”

He knitted his brows together as a look of confusion and panic crossed his face. He visibly tensed, “I thought I was staying with you?”

My eyes widened as I realized how my question sounded, “You are. I just mean…would you rather for us to stay at your place or mine? Together.”

He immediately relaxed, “Geez, don’t give me a heart attack like that. I’m too nervous about being alone as it is.”

I reached over and rubbed his arm, giving him a tight lipped smile, “Sorry. I should have worded that better.”

He stared at the half-eaten burger in his hand, picking at it as spoke, “Honestly, I’m not sure how I’m gonna feel being back at my place. It makes me anxious to think about it after what happened.”

I nodded, “That’s understandable. We can stay at my place then. We do need to stop by and get some of your things though. I’ve not been back there long enough to do that.”

He chuckled, “Yeah, I guess I do need clothes, huh.”

After he finished eating, we got back on the road. By the time we were turning onto his street, it was late in the evening, and we were both stiff and tired from the drive. We had planned to grab what he would need for a couple of days and return for the rest later.

As we walked toward the front door, I noticed he was wringing his hands together and his face looked tense. After keying in, he walked in behind me, stopping in the middle of the living room to look around.

He had a mix of confusion and anxiety on his face, “Who cleaned?”

I walked over to him, placing my hand on his shoulder for comfort, “I did.”

His eyes turned glassy as he surveyed the area, “Everything?”

I cleared my throat as I felt a lump form, “Yeah…I ugh…fixed the drywall damage in the bedroom too and had the broken furniture hauled off. Technically, all you have for a bed right now is mattresses on the floor.”

I laughed dismissively as he turned to look at me, “You know, you didn’t have to do any of that.”

I met his eyes, fighting back my own tears, “I know. I just didn’t want you coming home to that. It was the last thing you needed to worry about.”

He pulled me into a tight embrace, “Thank you. For everything. I know I’ve said it a lot already, but I don’t deserve you.”

I sighed, leaning back to meet his gaze, “Stop saying that. You do too.”

He nodded, turning away from me as he wiped at his face. He took another moment to look around, shaking his head slightly.

“Alright, let’s…umm…get this done. Being here is making my chest hurt.”

“You sure it's not from that greasy ass burger you ate?”

He squeezed his eyes shut and snorted out a laugh. When he looked back at me, I could tell that helped him relax some, “You might be right.”

We worked in silence as we gathered his things. He was entirely focused on the task at hand, obviously trying not to think of other things. It took no time at all between the two of us and soon we were loading his duffle and backpack into the car to head over to my place.

We grabbed our bags from the trunk before heading inside. As I moved toward the bedroom, I noticed he had stopped just inside the living room, seeming unsure of himself.

I quirked an eyebrow in his direction, “Something wrong?”

He laughed nervously, “Umm, where do you want me to put my stuff?”

I tilted my head, confused by his question, “In the bedroom…”

He shifted the bags on his shoulders awkwardly, “Sorry…I just didn’t wanna assume and make you uncomfortable…”

I couldn’t help smiling at him. He was always thinking about my feelings, and I appreciated that more than he would ever know.

“I’ll work on making some space in the closet for you. I don’t want you living out of a bag anymore while you’re home.”

The cheesiest smile slid across his face as he took in my words. When I turned to continue toward the bedroom, he followed.

He stood digging through his bag that was perched on the edge of the bed as I approached him from behind, snaking my hands under his arms to rest on his chest and leaning my forehead between his shoulder blades. He tensed slightly before relaxing into the embrace and grabbing hold of one of my hands, rubbing it gently with his thumb.

“I can’t believe you’re here. I’m almost afraid I’m gonna wake up and realize it’s a dream.”

He pulled my hand up to his mouth and kissed my fingertips, “I’m not going anywhere, mi estrella.”

I took a minute to inhale his scent before kissing the back of his neck.

“I think I’m gonna go shower.”

He paused his movements, looking down toward his bag, “I’m probably gonna journal for a while. I’ve been doing that in the evenings before I go to sleep…to wind down.”

I reached up to rub the hair at the nape of his neck as I moved to his side, looking up at him. He gave me a tight-lipped smile before he started to dig through his bag again, not meeting my eyes. I felt like he was suddenly putting up a wall. He had a long day, so I tried to not let it bother me too much as I headed toward the bathroom.

After showering and towel drying my hair, I made my way back to the bedroom. To my surprise, Dieter was on his side of the bed and appeared to be asleep. This was certainly not how I saw the evening ending. I sighed, making my way over to my side to get settled in, moving carefully so as not to disturb him. I laid there staring at the ceiling, trying to ignore my intrusive thoughts as I listened to his steady breathing. I was concerned that he was already regretting his decision. However, the rational side of my brain kept reminding me that he would need time to adjust. I eventually managed to fall into a restless sleep.

When I awoke the next morning, Dieter was already up. I wasn’t surprised given his previous schedule the last three months at Sanctuary Hills, but I had to admit that I was a little disappointed. I really wanted to wake up with him. I took a moment to stretch before sitting up to reach for my phone on the nightstand. I immediately noticed the open journal beside my phone. It was ours, the one we had both been writing in. I grabbed for it instead, closing it slightly with my finger still marking the page. I had a sinking feeling, suddenly worried it was a goodbye letter or something else equally distressing. I took a steadying breath as I leaned back against the headboard and opened it. My breath caught in my throat once I saw what was on the pages.

On the left side, was a rough pencil sketch of me sleeping. On the right, a journal entry from today.

This is the picture I’ve had in my mind since you left Canada…beautiful and at peace. While you were there, I stayed awake and watched you sleep for hours, trying to memorize everything I could. It’s what kept me going all this time even though I felt like I could never get the details right. Seeing you sleeping this morning made me realize my memory could never do you justice. I was naive for thinking otherwise and for trying. Today I woke up feeling whole. I can’t remember the last time I felt that. Thank you for making it possible. For the first time in my life, I’m actually excited about the future, and I can’t wait to spend it with you. D.

I could feel my heart clench in my chest. Any doubts I was having were now shattered by his words. We just needed to find our rhythm and he needed time to decompress.

After reading his journal entry a couple more times, I finally crawled out of bed. It was a little chilly, so I threw on my robe and tied it shut as I made my way toward the kitchen. As soon as I walked out of the bedroom, I could smell food cooking. I couldn’t help smiling to myself as I rounded the corner and found Dieter standing in front of the stove in nothing but gym shorts, cursing and jerking his hand back as the bacon grease popped at him. I took a minute to admire the lean muscles of his back, and how they flexed as he moved. He looked so fucking good.

I padded over and hugged him from behind, laying my cheek against his bare back. He rubbed one hand up my arm as he turned his head toward me to say good morning. I nuzzled my nose into the back of his neck and inhaled his scent before responding.

“Thank you for the note this morning. I needed that.”

Sensing the sullen undertone to my words, he turned to face me, letting one hand settle on my hip while the other reached to stroke my hair away from my face as he held my gaze.

His brows pinched together, “Is something wrong?”

I gave him a weak smile, “No, nothing now. I was just feeling a little insecure yesterday. I thought maybe you were shutting me out or holding back a little…But I realize you need time to adjust. It’s not a big deal. It’s just me being in my head.”

He sighed, pulling me against his chest, “I’m sorry. You’re not wrong. We probably should have talked about this in a little more detail…”

I felt my heart rate spike as the anxiety kicked in. That was not the response I expected. I pulled back, trying to keep my face neutral as I looked up at him. However, based on his panicked expression, I clearly wasn’t doing a good job of it. He rubbed at his face with one hand, shaking his head.

“Fuck. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded…I was…holding back some…but only because I didn’t want you to feel pressured to immediately pick up where we left off. In case you needed some time or…wanted to take things slow. I was just gonna try to follow your lead, ya know what I mean?”

I could feel the tension leave my body as he spoke. I smiled up at him, nodding in understanding, “I appreciate that you took that under consideration, but I can assure you that it’s not necessary. I said I was all in for this and that means everything that comes with it. If you wanna hold my hand, kiss me, or anything else, just fucking do it. You can trust that I’ll tell you if you’re doing something that makes me uncomfortable.”

He visibly relaxed some, smiling as he placed both hands on my hips and pulled me against his body. He nuzzled his nose against my ear, speaking quietly, “I’m sorry. I should’ve just brought it up yesterday. I didn’t mean to make you feel that way.”

I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, fingertips twisting in the soft curls at the nap of his neck, “It’s ok. We’ve just gotta make sure we’re communicating about everything so there aren’t any misunderstandings. Ok?”

He nodded as he leaned his head against mine. I closed the space between us, gently taking his plump bottom lip between mine. I could feel his grip on my hips tighten slightly as the kiss deepened. I pulled away, breathlessly glancing over his shoulder, “Your bacon is burning.”

His eyes widened as he quickly turned toward the stove, “Fuuuck.”

Just as I started to laugh at him, the doorbell rang.

“You expecting anyone?” I asked, surprised that someone would be here this early. He shook his head as he moved to get the bacon out of the pan.

“Huh…me neither. I’ll get it.”

As I passed into the living room, the doorbell started to ring again. Clearly someone was impatient this morning. When I opened the door, I found one of the absolute last people that I expected standing there with her arms crossed and a scowl on her face.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I asked in disbelief.

She rolled her eyes, “Ty told me that Dieter is back and that he’s staying with you.”

“Did Ty give you my address too?” That guy was starting to get on my nerves now.

“Yes, because I want to see him.”

I scoffed, “You’ve got a lot of nerve showing up like this. I’m pretty sure Gabby told you that he didn’t wanna see you.”

She sneered, “Like I’m going to believe anything she says. If he doesn’t want to see me anymore, I want to hear it from his mouth.”

I felt the door push open further as Dieter came to stand behind me. I could sense how tense he was from his close proximity to my backside and his sudden and firm grip around my waist. His voice was low and full of frustration when he spoke up.

“What're you doing here, Anna?”

She seemed taken aback by his tone and appearance, staring at him wide-eyed for a moment before responding.

“Ty said you were back from treatment. I wanted to see how you’re doing.”

Dieter scoffed, “Of course he did. Did he tell you what kind of treatment too?”

Anna shook her head, “No. I didn’t ask. I just assumed it was rehab given what happened.”

Dieter moved forward to stand beside me in the doorway. One arm stayed around my waist while the other rested on his hip.

“Rehab…of course. That is the rumor, right?”

Anna's eyes widened in surprise to his response, like she didn’t know what he was talking about.

Dieter continued, “I wasn’t in rehab. I was in a mental health facility.”

She had the nerve to look concerned, “What? Why? Are you ok? Did SHE con you into doing that?”

I was the one with the scowl on my face now. I glanced up at Dieter, I could see the muscles in his jaw tightening.

“She had nothing to do with it. In fact, the hospital was gonna make me go if I didn’t do it myself. It actually wasn’t a bad thing…I learned a lot about myself and I’m a lot better now. Happy even. It might do you some good to give it a try.”

Anna’s eyes flashed with anger, “Excuse me?”

Dieter chewed on the inside of his cheek, fighting back a smile before he continued, “Given my diagnosis, it’s important that I manage my stress levels, which means cutting the problem people out of my life. That includes you. I don’t need your drama…negative influence…or lack of support. So…this is me telling you that we’re done. For good this time.”

Anna’s nostrils flared as she took in his words, “So what, she comes crawling back and suddenly I’m the problem again?

Dieter shook his head, “You know that’s not how it went down. I told you to fuck off before all this other stuff happened because you wouldn’t stop running your mouth and pushing me to do things…and I’m not stupid. I know you’ve been leaking shit to the tabloids.”

This was new information to me. I couldn’t say I was surprised by it. I was actually proud of him for having the sense to cut her off before now. I gave Anna a smug look. She knew she shouldn’t be here.

“You know I would never do that to you. How do you know she’s not the one leaking stuff? You really think this is gonna work out between you two this time? You already got rid of her once. You know she’s fucking with your head. Why are you allowing it to happen? You deserve better.”

Dieter inhaled deeply, pursing his lips as he eyed her. He shook his head slightly, stepping toward her, “Not that I need to explain any of this to you, but I think you need to hear it…I’m in love with her. She’s an amazing person with a good heart. I’m never leaving her again. It should have never happened the first time.”

He paused briefly, watching the fight leave her as her shoulders slumped at his words. He continued in a calm voice, “Ya know, this is exactly what I’m talking about…I’m not dealing with your toxic, mind fuck shit anymore. You need to leave. Don’t come back. Don’t call me. Don’t text me. We’re done. You understand? Is that clear enough for you?”

Anna was staring at the ground now, unable to look at him as she nodded in understanding. She gave me one last look of contempt as she slowly turned to leave.

Dieter moved to close the door, immediately turning to pull me into a hug, “I’m sorry you had to deal with that. Don’t let what she said bother you. She’s just trying to manipulate me like she always does.”

I leaned back to look up at him, “I don’t care about anything she says to me. It’s fine, I can take it. Are you ok though?”

He let out a measured breath as he rubbed up and down my arms, “Surprisingly…yes. Nothing she says matters to me anymore. She’s not worth the energy to be upset about it.”

My eyebrows arched upward, “I didn’t realize you two had a falling out…”

“Yeah…she kept saying she was tired of me being down and not partying with them, so she was pushing drugs and women at me constantly. When I said I wasn’t interested she would get mad and start running her mouth. I just got tired of it.”

I narrowed my eyes at him playfully, “Women? Hmm...”

His eyes widened as he vehemently started shaking his head, “Oh no, no, I didn’t…not with anyone.”

I chuckled, “I’m just messing with you. Even if you did…we weren’t together.”

His face relaxed, “Don’t worry, you were the only woman on my mind.” I cupped his cheeks, taking in the calm expression on his face before leaning in for a soft kiss. He smiled, nuzzling his nose against mine, “Let’s go eat breakfast and forget this happened.” I nodded as he took my hand and pulled me toward the kitchen.

It didn’t go unnoticed by me that he handled this confrontation with Anna completely different than the one at the restaurant. He remained calm and present the entire time. It was obvious that he was in a different place now. I actually felt proud of him and hoped it hadn’t caused him any undue stress.

The next couple of days kept us pretty busy. Ty had lined up several meetings to start getting Dieter’s contract obligations figured out before lawyers started getting involved due to delays. Since I had taken time off work, Dieter asked me to come with him to ensure he didn’t get talked into anything crazy.

As I sat listening to the conversations around me, it was obvious that Ty had a complete disregard for Dieter’s recovery as he pushed him to take on too much, too soon and couldn’t be bothered with the finer details of what would be needed for Dieter’s routine and self-care measures. I could see why Dieter wanted someone else there with him that knew his boundaries. Dieter did push back though. He got what he wanted and if concessions couldn’t be made for him, then he backed out of the projects. Ty was furious, but we ignored his outbursts. By the end of the week, Dieter had decided that he was ready to let Ty go. After discussing the change with Elaine, she happily put Dieter in touch with some new prospects that she felt would be a better fit.

After Ty got the news, it didn’t take long for new rumors to start making their rounds in the media about where Dieter had really been and the state of his mental health. We all knew Ty and maybe even Anna were behind it but had no proof. Elaine had recommended that we not address any of the rumors and deflect if questioned. However, after some thought, Dieter decided that he wanted to release a statement with the truth and maybe even eventually do an interview. He felt like it was his opportunity to address an important topic that didn’t get enough attention and was rather taboo to discuss, especially amongst actors out of fear that it would ruin their reputation. Given his own history and what had happened with his mom, he felt like it was a cause worthy of his support and he felt pretty strongly about it.

Elaine eventually acquiesced and drafted the statement. She ended it with a request “to respect the privacy of Mr. Bravo, his siblings, and Ms. Cohen as they continue to work through his recovery as a family.” Dieter had insisted I be included. He was making another statement without really saying it. I didn’t mind. We were back in LA after all, so we were bound to be seen together. Elaine agreed and thought it might cut back on some of the frenzy and speculation if we were open about being together, rather than trying to hide it. Dieter was anxious, but he didn’t second guess it as he told Elaine to hit send. The news was everywhere within the hour and the response to it was overwhelmingly positive.

Surprisingly, Dr. Rosenberg gave us a call later that afternoon to check in after seeing the press release. She was very supportive and actually thanked Dieter for being willing to share his story and raise awareness on the topic. We were still having regular calls with her until she found someone in LA that she was comfortable referring us to, but she wanted to continue to check in with us no matter what. We of course were thankful for her continued involvement and care for our wellbeing.

Later that evening, we had dinner at Gabby’s house. Everyone had called Dieter to check in since he had been home, but it was the first time they were getting to see him. Gabby wanted to give him some time to settle in before overwhelming him with a family get together. On the ride over, he admitted that he was nervous and worried that it would be awkward. However, his fears were quickly put to rest as he was welcomed with excitement and hugs from everyone. Lauren even shed a few tears. There was no awkwardness, only happiness to have both of us home.

Dieter stayed glued to my side the entire evening, constantly touching me in some way. He seemed happy and was having a good time. He didn’t appear to be anxious at all, so I was hopeful that meant he had other things on his mind. The glances that he kept sending my way seemed to confirm my thoughts.

We still hadn’t been intimate since coming home. He had relaxed significantly and had been extremely affectionate toward me after our conversation, but somehow, it hadn’t come to that. There were even a couple of instances where I felt like he was avoiding it. I had to tell my brain to stop thinking that way. However, when we got home that evening and a somewhat heated make out session started in the bathroom as we were getting ready for bed, he quickly pivoted by saying he was tired and still needed to do his journal entry before he fell asleep. I struggled to ignore it that time. My gut told me that something was up.

Several days later, we were sitting on the couch watching tv. I had thrown my legs over the top of his as I laid back onto a pile of pillows. His right hand was resting just above my bare knee, thumb occasionally rubbing in small circles. His other hand was gently massaging my feet. I absentmindedly stuck my hand up my tank to scratch at my stomach. From the corner of my eye, I noticed he was watching my hand, but trying not to be obvious about it. I did a small stretch, causing the hem to ride up further as I slid my fingers into the waistband of my shorts, looping my thumb over the top to rest there as I stayed focused on the tv. I felt the fingers on his right-hand twitch slightly before his whole hand started to rub and massage at my thigh.

He continued to stare blankly at the tv for several minutes, but I could feel the hardness forming under my legs. I moved slightly, grazing against him. His eyes shifted over to mine, and I smirked, moving my legs again. He grabbed hold of both my feet with his large hand, stalling my movements.

I bit my bottom lip, narrowing my eyes as I looked at him, “What’s going on in that head of yours today?”

He cleared his throat, “I’m watching tv. The show is on my mind.”

I slid my hand downward slightly, tugging the waistband of the shorts with my thumb. I slowly brought my other hand upward across my stomach, raising the hem of my tank further, letting it rest just under my breast. Then, I loosely clenched my thighs together. I knew he could feel it because his eyes darted down in that direction before going back to the tv. I could tell he was fighting a smile as his right hand continued its movements. The heat of his touch radiating directly to my core, now causing my thighs to involuntarily clench together, tighter this time. He closed his eyes and tucked his bottom lip between his teeth as his fingers dug into the soft meaty area above my knee.

“Sorry, I’ve got a little bit of an ache…maybe that’s something you can help me with?”

He opened his eyes and gave me a tight-lipped smile, “Alright, fine. You win.”

He laughed quietly as he shifted to move up my body, placing open mouthed kisses on bare skin as he went. When he made it to my chest, I felt his hand tentatively sliding toward the waistband of my shorts. I covered it with mine and guided it underneath to where I wanted it. Once he realized I wasn’t wearing any panties, he groaned into my neck. As his hand sunk lower, he groaned again, “Fucking hell, your soaking wet.”

My breath hitched as he slid his fingers between my folds and got to work. My hands found their way to the back of his head, tightly gripping his curls to pull him upward so I could kiss him even though I was already breathless. It had been too long, and I already felt like I was floating. It wasn’t going to take long for me to finish at this rate.

Our tongues tangled together as my hips moved in rhythm with his motions. I moaned into his mouth, pulling away to catch my breath. My eyes involuntarily squeezed shut as I could feel the familiar tingle building in my core. Dieter placed his forehead against mine, “Look at me…I want you looking at me when you come undone.”

My eyes met his as my thighs started to tremble. I mumbled something unintelligible against his lips as my release ripped through me. He nudged his nose against mine, watching as I lost it underneath the weight of his body.

Before I had a chance to completely recover, he was kissing me again. It was almost frenzied as he bucked his hips against my center, nearly making me come for a second time with minimal effort. My hand slowly moved down toward the front of his gym shorts. He broke away, leaning his forehead against mine, squeezing his eyes shut as he shook his head slightly. He sighed and moved to sit up, rubbing at his face with both hands.

My brows knitted together in concern as I set up at his side, “Hey, what's wrong?”

He laughed in disbelief through his hands before dropping them to his lap and looking at me with an odd expression that I couldn’t read.

“I can’t fucking believe this is happening…I’m sorry, I should have said something the other day, but I was hoping it wasn’t actually an issue.”

I was completely lost, “What’s going on?”

He looked at me wide-eyed, his mouth hanging open slightly for a moment before any words came out, “I think I’m having…performance anxiety or something.” He laughed again. “Talk about being ironic.”

My eyebrows arched upward, “Ooooh...Are you sure that’s what it is? Maybe it’s your medication? I mean, the doctor did say that could be a side effect.”

He shook his head as a deep crease formed between his brows, “I don’t think it’s that…I mean, I still get aroused and can…you know…”

His lips formed into a line, “Fuck. I can’t believe I’m having this conversation.”

He put his hand back over his face out of embarrassment. I reached over and squeezed his knee.

“So, you can take care of things yourself then? Is that what you’re saying?” I wasn’t sure how I wanted him to answer that question. It was going to sting either way.

“Yeah, I mean after the other night…When I woke up the next morning…in the shower. I felt like an asshole afterwards though.”

I bit the inside of my cheek, looking away from him. I wasn’t sure how to respond to that. I couldn’t help feeling insecure over it and he could sense it.

“It’s got nothing to do with you. You’re not doing anything wrong. You’re…fucking perfect.” He reached over to grab my hand, lacing our fingers together, “If it makes you feel better, I was thinking about you when I did it…”

I gave him a look that fell somewhere between a grimace and a smile, before I let a small laugh escape. Meanwhile, he was slowly descending into panic.

“I promise, it’s me. I’m just getting all in my head about everything and it kind of ruins the moment.” He gestured toward his crotch with his free hand and had an annoyed look on his face.

I somehow managed a neutral expression, “Do you wanna talk about what’s bothering you then? Maybe it’ll help.” I shrugged, giving him a sympathetic look.

He sighed heavily, “I just…I dunno…I think I’m worried it’s gonna be different somehow…that I’m gonna be different. What if I can’t connect emotionally or feel things like before? I mean that’s always been kind of an important part of it for us…the emotional connection. You know what I mean? That makes me worry it’s gonna be bad for you if I can no longer give you that part of myself because something’s different in my brain.”

I could feel my chest tightening as I realized this was really getting to him, “I mean, Dr. Rosenberg said how you feel about things wouldn’t change. It’s not like your emotions are turned off. You still feel things.”

“Yeah, but it's not always as intense as before.” His dark eyes were giving me a pleading look. Like he was expecting me to up and leave over this.

“Well, that’s not necessarily a bad thing in some instances…and who knows, maybe it’ll be even better now since you’re more present and in control of everything.”

He chuckled, “God, if it gets any better than it was, I may not be able to handle it.”

I smiled at him. At least his sense of humor was still intact.

“It’s kind of a compounding thing too, because now I’m just like…fuck, I have to be able do this or she’s gonna be unsatisfied and unhappy you know? I don’t want to mess shit up again. Then it’s just…like…these negative pressuring thoughts on repeat, and I can’t make it stop.”

I gave him a smirk as I moved to wrap my arms around his neck, “You’re more than qualified to satisfy me in a couple other ways…as you just demonstrated. So, don’t even think about that anymore. I’m not going anywhere. We will figure it out together, ok?”

He nodded, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me onto his lap for a comforting embrace.

I kissed the top of his head, “Thank you for telling me.”

“So, what do you think we should do?” He asked against my neck.

“Well, I say we just try again when the mood strikes and see what happens. Maybe now that you’ve told me what’s going on…it’ll get better.”

He nodded before turning to give me a quick kiss. (More after the gif)

Over the next week, we had a few more failed attempts. It only seemed to be discouraging him further. I could sense it happening each time and there was no way of stopping it. I could tell it was starting to weigh on him, so I decided to give Dr. Rosenberg a call. Apparently, this was a pretty common issue, and she offered a few suggestions. Starting with giving him tasks to focus on while I was in charge of things. I felt like I could work with that. He did like my bossy side after all. So, I started to formulate a plan of action to solve the problem at hand.

The following morning, I was awakened to the feeling of Dieter’s rough hand slowly sliding up my bare hip to the middle of my waist, then back down again. Once he realized I had nothing on underneath the t-shirt I had worn to bed, it seemed to have the desired effect. His grip tightened, fingers digging into soft flesh as he pulled my ass backwards against the hardness that he had woken up with. I couldn’t help the sly smile that slid across my face, hoping that this might actually get somewhere if I could keep him focused on what he was feeling rather than what he was thinking.

I did a full body stretch, humming from the feel of it as I leaned my back against his chest. He nuzzled his face into the crook of my neck as he groaned, tightening his grip on my hip further and grinding into my backside. I reached up with my right hand and gently tugged the soft curls at the crown of his head as he ran his nose up the length of my stretched-out neck, then around the edge of my ear. The feel of his hot breath against the sensitive area caused me to break out in goosebumps, putting every nerve ending in my body on alert.

I turned my head to meet his lips, pulling him down into a slow and sensual kiss. I removed my hand from his hair then lightly slid it down his arm to sit atop his hand on my hip. I laced my fingers through the top of his and guided his hand up under my shirt to rest on my breast, encouraging him to knead it in the palm of his hand. We both moaned quietly through locked lips from the contact as I scooted to lay flat on my back. He settled between my thighs as I hooked my leg around his hip, rubbing my bare center against the hardness in his shorts. He pressed his forehead to mine and closed his eyes momentarily as I continued moving against him. When he opened them, I could tell he was starting to get lost in his head again, hesitating before he leaned down to kiss me.

I broke away from the kiss, snaking my left hand up into his hair, gripping it firmly between my fingers and pulling his ear down to meet my lips. I gently sucked on the lobe before whispering, “Lay down on your back and close your eyes.” The distraction of my words brought him back to the moment as he pulled away, looking down at me with a playful but questioning grin on his face. He was clearly intrigued by my instructions as he did what was asked.

Once he was situated, I moved to slide his shorts down. He raised his hips off the bed to assist in removing them. Once they were discarded on the floor, I slowly crawled up his body, making light grazes across his skin along the way. Placing open mouthed kisses on his muscular thighs before nipping and sucking on them playfully. Eventually, I moved to straddle his hips. I pulled my t-shirt over my head and tossed it on the floor before leaning down to suck on his bottom lip. After grabbing both of his hands in mine, I pulled away from the kiss with a pop. I moved to whisper in his ear again, “Don’t open your eyes. If you do, I'll stop. Just focus on my voice and what you’re feeling. Nothing else.”

Dieter’s breath stuttered as he slowly shook his head in agreement. The anticipation and not knowing what to expect causing his skin to flush. The idea of giving him a task to focus on was clearly keeping his intrusive thoughts at bay for the time being as he continued to harden beneath me. I sat upright, pulling his hands with me, and placing them on my breast. Encouraging him to let them roam and caress my body. I guided them down to feel up my thighs and around to grip my ass. As his fingers dug into the meaty flesh, I rolled my hips, rubbing my aching wet center against him.

“You feel that? You did that to me.”

He groaned at my words and bucked his hips up against me, seeking more friction. I grabbed his right hand and brought it down to rub the slick at my center.

“This is all for you,” I added before bringing his hand to my mouth and sucking his fingers clean. I watched as his eyes snapped open in shock to meet mine. I stopped and pulled his hands away from my body.

“Eyes closed or it stops.”

He huffed loudly, “You’re gonna make me have a fucking heart attack,” as he closed his eyes again.

I couldn’t help the mischievous smile that slid across my face as I took in the sight of him, already panting and his skin beading with sweat. My plan appeared to be working.

I took his hands and guided them to lay above his head, momentarily pinning them there to give further instruction.

“No baby, I’m gonna make you feel good. Then you’re gonna make love to me. Don’t open your eyes again or move your hands. I mean it, I’ll stop.”

He whimpered quietly as he let out a measured breath, nodding in agreement. I went to work, worshiping every inch of him. Starting at his neck, licking and sucking his flushed skin as I worked my way down his torso. Alternating between light touches in the sensitive areas and deep massaging over his taut muscles. With every movement my wet center rubbed against his hardness as he continued to grind his hips against me, causing that electric tingling sensation to build. However, this time was about his pleasure, not mine. So, I started to move backward to straddle his legs as I continued to work my way down his body with my mouth. He groaned at the loss of contact until I took his dick in my hand and started stroking it, spreading my wetness up and down his shaft as I nipped and sucked on his hip.

He was beginning to squirm beneath me. It was clearly becoming harder for him to keep his hands in place as he knotted the sheets in his fingers above his head and tightly squeezed his eyes shut. A sweat covered crease formed between his brows as he fought to control himself. I let my hot breath blow against him as I spoke up to remind him not to move or open his eyes before taking him into my mouth.

His elbows jerked up off the bed and I immediately pulled back, ceasing my movements. He mumbled something in Spanish that I couldn’t quite make out as he put his arms back in place. This was driving him crazy, but it was also keeping all of the negative thoughts out of his head, and I was loving every second of it.

I took as much of his length into my mouth as I could and used one hand to stroke the remainder of the shaft while the other moved to massage his balls in a wave motion with my fingertips. I could tell it was taking everything in him not to look down at me or reach for my hair. He tried to move his legs, but they were pinned under me, further limiting his response to my actions. He was quickly melting into a sweaty, groaning, writhing mess underneath me as I licked and sucked on his sensitive head.

Once his thighs started to shake and his balls began to tighten, I removed him from my mouth and stopped my motions. He growled and pulled a pillow over his face, yelling expletives into it. I couldn’t help the laughter that escaped me. I was enjoying this too much. Once he had calmed down some, I worked to bring him back to the edge, again ceasing my motions once he was there.

After allowing him to come back down a second time, I moved to straddle his hips. I placed him at my entrance and slowly sank down onto his length, allowing him to stretch me in the most delightful way. Once I was able to fully take him in, I leaned forward to grab his arms, pulling him to sit upright and placing his hands on my ass to help guide my movement. Realizing he still had his eyes closed as I placed my forehead against his, a smile spread across my face before whispering against his lips, “You can open your eyes now.”

Dieter’s eyes slowly opened, revealing that his pupils were fully dilated with arousal. There was no stopping him now. He was focused and determined as he crashed his lips against mine in a passionate kiss before tangling his hand in my hair, gently pulling my head backwards and burying his face into the crook of my neck. I continued to rock against him as he nipped and sucked at the sensitive area just above my collarbone, sending electrical shocks directly to my core with his touch and the scrap of his scruffy beard. My fingers moved to knot into his sweaty curls, pulling him tightly against me as we moved in unison.

We knew how to do this, how to read each other’s bodies and connect in the most intimate and emotional ways. Though he had been worried about it being different, about him being different, it wasn’t something we would ever lose. It was engraved into our very souls. He just needed to be shown the way back to me, to us. There was no hesitation from him now as he angled my face toward his, releasing his hold on my hair to bring his thumb to rest on my chin and stroke it gently. Our eyes locked into an intense gaze for a time while we continued to move together. My forehead eventually fell forward to rest against his as beads of sweat rolled down both of our faces from the exertion. Both of us taking turns stealing kisses from the other between the soft moans and heavy breathing. Our connection felt just as strong as it had been previously.

As Dieter got closer to his climax, he reached for my right hand, disentangling it from his hair and brought it to his mouth. After gently sucking and swirling his tongue around the tips of my fingers, he moved them to the bundle of nerves at my center, encouraging me to find my release with him while he worked to speed up our rhythm. With both of his hands placed firmly on my ass, fingers digging into the soft flesh there, he continued guiding my rocking movements against him. His eyes never left my face as he watched me come undone on top of him, quietly whispering praises against my lips as I got closer to the edge. Once my muscles started to clench down around him, he fell over the edge with me. Both of us letting out loud groans with our releases. His face fell forward into the crook of my neck, his hot breath blowing against me as I hugged him tightly, both of us trembling and sweaty from our activities.

We sat like that for several minutes, giving each other a chance to come down from our mutual high. He eventually lulled his head back to look up at me with a lazy smile on his face, which caused his eyes to crinkle in that way I loved. I leaned down to capture his pillowy bottom lip into a sensual kiss, knitting his hair in one hand while the other slid across the rough scruff on his cheek. He groaned into my mouth before breaking the kiss, then nuzzled his nose against mine.

Dieter let out a breathy laugh as he started twisting my hair around his fingers against the middle of my back with one hand, allowing the other to wander freely across my body as he studied my face, “I certainly wasn’t expecting to wake up to that. What has gotten into you this morning? Not that I’m complaining…”

“Well…it looks like you did.”

He snorted, “Seriously, where did that come from?”

I ran my hand down the side of his face to cup his cheek, “Oh, you know me…I’m really good at operations management. Just working through things to figure out the most efficient process for peak outcomes,” I said with a smirk.

He chuckled, “You know I think it’s hot when you’re all bossy. Give me fifteen minutes and we can test out that process again, ya know, and make sure it’s efficient…Actually, if you wanna take it up a few notches, I may only need ten.”

“Is that right?” I mumbled against his lips with a smile, he nodded in response before kissing me. We melted into each other, bodies pressed together as our tongues and hands explored every area of skin they could reach. It wasn’t long before I could feel him getting hard again.

Hours later, we laid in bed facing each other, with lazy smiles and blissfully spent. I had missed him like this, completely relaxed and carefree. Whatever block he had been experiencing seemed to now be non-existent as he lightly drug his fingers up and down the length of my bare side and randomly kissed me as we talked. The weight had lifted, allowing the spark of happiness to return to his eyes. His playfulness was on full display as he laughed at my words and threw in the occasional innuendo.

He grew quiet after a time, studying my face. His brows creased slightly as he took hold of my hand and brought it to his cheek for a moment, before closing his eyes and turning to kiss it gently. When he met my gaze again, I could see a range of emotions playing out across his expression.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?”

He smiled as he nuzzled his face into my hand, “You’ve always been able to read me so well. No one else knows how to do that.”

I scratched at his scruffy face and gave him an encouraging smile. He sighed, wrapping his arm around me to pull me snuggly against his chest before burying his face in the top of my hair.

“I was just thinking how lucky I am to have you…just kinda taking a minute to appreciate what I have and be hopeful for the future…Our future together.”

I could sense that wasn’t everything, “Is that all?”

He huffed out a small laugh into my hair, “No.”

Of course, I could tell it wasn’t. I pulled away some to meet his eyes, waiting for him to continue. He avoided my stare as he thought through his words. His brows knitted together, eyes turning glassy. I could tell he was fighting back emotions.

“I just…it’s hard not to be angry about the time we lost. It’s always gonna be one of my biggest regrets.”

I sat up on my elbow, cradling his face in my other hand, forcing him to look at me.

“You can’t move forward if you're dwelling on the past. You’re gonna have to let that go. I’m guilty of it too. I did it first, remember?”

His lips twitched upward at the memory.

“It was months. Why focus on a handful of shitty months when we have years ahead of us to look forward to?”

He smiled, leaning into my hand before pulling me down to meet his lips. It finally felt like we had gotten over our last major hurdle and could now focus on our future together.

A/N: And there we have it! Our two lovebirds are finally back together! How excited are you for that? And that journal entry - Swoon! 😍 How amazing did it feel for Dieter to tell Anna off for good and get rid of Ty? Do you think Rylee will come back to work with him? And how about him releasing a statement...Good or bad idea? Also, how adorable is he with all his worries? Poor thing with his performance anxiety...you all had to know his love of Talia's boss lady side was going to come into play at some point, right? So, it looks like I'm still on schedule to have one more chapter and an epilogue to finish this out. I almost split this one since it came in at over 10k words but decided against it. I threw in a few gifs to break it up a bit though. Can you feel that happy ending on the horizon now? Please feel free to show your enthusiasm with messages and reblogs. 😘 👉 In case you missed it, The Knight & His Queen was posted over the holidays. This is a four-part series I completed for the PedroStories Secret Santa event, and it has been posted in its entirety. It's another Dieter Bravo fic where our beloved trash panda takes a dive into the world of mystics, tarot readings, and love. Give it a read. It's fun, fluffy, and fairly angst free.

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#dieter bravo #dieter bravo fic #pedro pascal #pedro pascal characters #pedro pascal character fanfic #Destiny & Deliverance Series #friends of juice collective

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big-cheesy-productions · 30 days ago

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SXSG SPOILERS

Okay, I finished Shadow's story. And I have thoughts. Mainly:

More thoughts below:

Overall, I enjoyed it. I think as a way to catch everyone up on Shadow's story and who he is as a character, it did great. It was heavy on exposition, but it's assuming most people haven't played SAB-Heroes-STH '05. Fair enough.

It just felt short. I just wish the cutscenes were longer, and I wish there was more Maria and Gerald and Shadow. The interactions we got with Maria were very similar to what we got in Dark Beginnings. It felt more like a refresher rather than a much awaited closure, but I'll take the closure we got and the reestablishment of Shadow's character.

I think I just would have liked if the story had a few more cutscenes dealing with Shadow, Maria, and Gerald's relationships rather than them trying to figure out what was going on and Maria repeating things said in Dark Beginnings. But that's just me.

I think Dark Beginnings was so amazing and it set my expectations very high, set a specific tone, and had threads that Gens wasn't planning on continuing. I think Gens also set up threads that it dropped too though, like, you know, the whole "maybe I can save them from their fate" thing that got mentioned, forgotten, and mentioned again that was only otherwise minimally discussed in the little snippets of conversation in the over world.

Why was Big there and those two robots? There weren't any other characters relevant to Shadow that could be there? Like Abraham? Or, hell, toss Silver in since he wasn't in the original.

Gameplay wise, it was super fun. It felt very clean. I like the direction Frontiers has set for future gameplay. I think it was a little easy, but maybe that's just because I'm an adult and just played a bunch of old games that have old game jank lol.

Would have loved to see more Rouge and Omega, but I'm glad they're setting up for Team Dark to return in future installments. I'll fucking take that.

I've said it already, but the use of Radical Highway and the symbolism of it was probably my favorite part. I don't know why they had Frontiers level though??? Like, why not one from HIS GAME? Instead of one from a game he's not even in??? Odd choice. Maybe they could have done one of the flashback ARK levels? That could have given us some juicy cutscenes.

Also just want to appreciate the fact that the first time Shadow defeated Black Doom it was as Super Shadow. This time is was all Shadow, no emeralds required.

I also like the confirmation that Shadow was not meant to be a weapon originally. I don't think that's always been super clear. Doom wanted a warrior of course, but Gerald going insane was the nail in the coffin. I would have liked to see more of Shadow's feelings towards Gerald on that, though I did like when Shadow first sees Gerald up close he backs away, and almost looks a bit frightened, until he realizes this is Gerald from before the ARK incident.

I think they could have added a bit more. I think that's my overall opinion. Hopefully DLC will add a smidge more? Maybe?

I really did enjoy it. I just wanted to jot down all of my thoughts!

Edit: I don't want this to read as super critical! I think I had very specific expectations for it and I'd like to replay it without those expectations now. I really think it's great overall!

Anyway, SEGA, remaster SAB2, Heroes, STH '05, and Sonic '06 and my life is yours.

#Sxsg #sxsg spoilers #shadow generations #shadow the hedgehog #dark beginnings #maria robotnik #sonic x shadow generations #gerald robotnik #Abraham towers #Omega #e 123 omega #Rouge the Bat #Ark siblings #black doom #sonic x shadow dark beginnings #shadow dark beginnings #Cheesy rambles

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maythedreadwolftakeyou · 4 months ago

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Do you sell versions of your embroidery designs? I'm obsessed with your Solas patterns and would love to try them!

Hello!

So, short answer is yes, while the first digital mockups I made were designed just for my own reference and as color guides for transferring the designs painstakingly by hand, I ended up going back to them and turning them all into digital vectors. This means they can be printed onto transfer paper or directly onto stabilized fabric for stitching, which is MUCH easier than drawing by hand. Lots of people asked me if I could sell the designs so I figured this part out and was able to test it myself--the tower embroidery was an example of printing the vector directly onto the fabric and worked out great!

(above: tedious hand-drawing process for the Hierophant design, vs my failed attempt at transfer pencils that did not work at all for the Tower, vs printing directly onto fabric which did work in the end)

Long answer is after I did that, I uh, never figured out how or where to list them for sale online. Or what all to include with them--like what level of written instruction to include, should i also make notes on the thread colors I picked, should I include my colored-in-versions as color guides or just let everyone free-for-all it, in the case of the Tower embroidery i also hand-dyed a lot of grey thread that was crucial for it coming out how i wanted it to look--is it deceptive to sell a pattern when other people can't necessarily recreate it the same way because of that? Should I list in general the dye instructions if they wanna recreate it, or for people who want some of my extra thread or for people who don't have an inkjet printer so can't print the design onto the fabric themselves, should i think about selling full "embroidery kits" that include the printed pattern sized for a display hoop and the thread needed? etc etc etc

(above: photo of the color guide I made myself with tentative thread color selections (warning NOT the ones I actually ended up using), photo of my pile of threads I picked from, and photo of some of the threads I ended up dying myself to get closer to the design I wanted)

Anyway that was all a lot of thinking and work to do, so i put it off!!! and uh here we are 2 years later and I have still not posted them anywhere. I really gotta get around to all that still...

But in the meanwhile, if anyone reading would like a pattern, just let me know directly what you're looking for and I can save the versions of the files as needed for your plans and send them over. like for a digital only version (so no threads or me printing for you) i would probably make a zip file with a transparent png of the design (so you can put it in a word doc to print at whatever size you desire), as well as a pdf with a few copies of it already pre-sized for a display hoop for ease of printing or transfer, the colored-in version i used based on the tarot cards, photos of my finished versions, etc (note to self i must remember to include the design both normal for direct printing and horizontally flipped for anyone who plans to use transfer paper for it since those are mirrored...). Oh and a quick explanation of how i managed to get my fabric through a standard printer if you wanna try that.

But yeah i'm happy to work out something with kofi or paypal or venmo and sell the digital ones for like $20 each or something for now, if you don't mind not having written step-by-step instructions accompanying the patterns and example photos. Or if anyone has suggestions on where to host them for sale, for someone not interested in maintaining a dedicated storefront like etsy or storenvy long term. Maybe Gumroad? If i stuck to digital-only sales something like that might work. I'm open to input for sure. If you want something more than digital like a pre-printed fabric (since it's kind of weird to do yourself), I'm still open to trying, it just would be a little more $ to account for the fabric/stabilizer and cost of shipping, and probably take me a few more days to do.

(above: example of finished DA themed embroideries)

But regardless, thank you for your interest at all!! I'm so glad people have enjoyed my embroidery series :) While I'd love to make lots of copies to sell to whoever wants one, I simply don't have the time, and they are SO labor intensive to make it really is like 80-90% of the cost is manhours. I spend anywhere from 5-15 hours making the patterns and vectors, but the stitching and rest of it itself is easily the bulk at 40-100 hours depending on complexity and number of threads used. So WAY more feasible to sell the patterns than make more to sell myself, and then anyone willing to put in the time can have one too :)

#ramblings #my stuff #my embroidery #dragon age embroidery #dragon age #replies #sparrowposting #dear tumblr PLEASE do not eat this one as i post it 🙏

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pendarling · 4 months ago

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Soulmates For Life 3

<< Start < Part 2 • End >

The restaurant was hidden behind a jewellery shop. Near the Beach Mall but far enough to keep it just within arm's reach for Skylar. They entered briskly and searched around the room for the head of blond hair on Skylar's head.

Positioned in both, shielded from the main entrance, was Skylar, drinking from a tall cup alone. As if anticipating Villain's appearance, they stared back.

Villain sat across from them, keeping their voice low as they spoke. "Wish Seeker?"

"That's me."

"Is it true you can grant any wish?"

"Let me guess, this is about the red string of love isn't?"

Villain nodded, their eyes set on Skylar's hands. The red thread on their right hand's pinky connected to their left. "What the fuck is wrong with yours?" They pointed.

Skylar lifted their hands, "Is it so wrong to love yourself?"

They didn't know the red string could do that. It was weird; they looked at Skylar strangely. A waiter turned to their table. "Are you two ready?"

Skylar pointed at their menu, speaking freely about the items and making their demands. Villain didn't think someone could finish that much food, let alone have that much money; the restaurant was no joke; it looked expensive. Sitting behind a jewellery store was not a coincidence. It was planned.

"And you?" The waiter turned to them.

"Uhhh... This one." They pointed at a random item on the menu, not bothering to see it.

"Excellent. I'll take these." After the waiter collected their menus, Skylar focused back on Villain.

"You only get one wish. So be careful. Also you owe me for it."

"What do you want in return?"

They shrugged, "Nothing much. Just pay for my food and you'll be on your way."

Fuck this. Villain ran their hand through their hair, "Fine, fine, but nothing more." Skylar was starting to become more of a nuisance than a help. "So, for example, if I say I wish..." They twirled their hand in the air. Skylar took another sip of their drink, nodding slowly.

"Yeah, so you just tell me what you want, in exact wording, and then I go abracadabra," they twiddled their fingers, "and boom." They clapped their hands. "Wish granted."

"You have to do that?"

"Yeah, it won't work otherwise."

"Wait. Deadass?"

"Deadass."

"Okay, and then what happens?"

"Well, it disappears."

Something didn't sit right with Villain. What if people became suspicious if their string disappeared overnight while everyone else still had theirs? "And what if I asked you to make this whole thing go away?"

"Oh no, no, no. Make the wish directly relevant to only you as much as possible; trust me, this is your safest option."

The waiter returned and handed out the collection of plates over to Skylar. They pushed the main entree and delved into the crepe. In front of Villain, the waiter set down a plate of fish. They hated fish. "Thank you..." They said with a scrunched nose and pushed it away.

Villain felt their pinky grow warm. Hero was nearby. Their eyes scanned the room, and from the front entrance was a tall figure they couldn't recognize, but that iconic smile persisted through their disguise. What was Hero doing here?

"It's my next customer!" Skylar called Hero down to their table, Villain moved over in the booth as Hero looked at them with those gentle eyes.

"Good afternoon, dear. What a pleasant surprise." They sat down next to Villain.

"I didn't expect to see you here." They looked to Skylar as if expecting Skylar to admit they had brought them here. However, they had been occupied by their desserts. "You know about the wish?" Villain looked Hero up and down, memorizing their every move.

"I do, and so do you. I guess great minds do think alike after all." They poked their forehead.

Villain frustratedly grumbled under their breath. They had hoped they could do this for once. Naturally, Hero had to take this from them, too.

"So," Skylar began. "Once you two wish to no longer be tied, the string will go away."

"Perfect." Hero smiled, "When can we start?"

"As soon as I'm done eating."

Hero looked at the table filled with a variation of dishes. This would take some time. Villain grabbed their plate of fish and set it up in front of them, "You can have mine. I don't eat fish."

Hero hummed delightfully at the gesture of kindness. "What about you?"

"What about me?" They said, their tone coming off harsher than they expected. This was supposed to be their job, Hero had intervened yet again.

"You look so thin, you should eat more." Hero off-handedly said as they took a bite of the salmon.

~~~

Behind the restaurant, Villain and Hero stood side by side.

Skylar eyed them for a minute, "Okay," they raised both hands, "Don't laugh at me."

"Hurry the fuck up." Villain shouted.

Hero held their hand, squeezing it lightly. "No need to be so demanding, dear. They're working on it."

They snapped their hand back from Hero, "And you're always so obnoxiously persistent."

"What? And you're not?"

"I had this under contol and certainly didn't need you to come in trampling all over my plans again--"

"I didn't trample over anything, you're acting insane!"

Skylar stood awkwardly. They fixated on the red string between Hero and Villain slowly fading; its bright crimson turned dull as it thinned out. The small twists unravelled as Skylar curiously watched it fall apart.

Villain stumbled back as Hero pushed them away, then took two steps forward to shove them back. Their voices grew louder, and Skylar wondered if they should get in between them or run before they started to attract attention.

"You know what?" Skylar raised their voice, "My job here is done. So I'm leaving now."

Villain stopped them, grabbing Skylar's arm, "Where do you think you're going!?"

Hero stood by silently, playing with the edges of their coat.

Skylar pointed to Villain's pinky, "Look, it's gone. You two didn't need my help at all."

It hadn't struck them, but as they saw the remnants of crimson leave the edges of their finger, Villain recalled the conversation they had shared with Hero at the start of their dilemma. It would be a psychological and emotional impact that would remove any ties to each other. They bit their lips tightly and looked to Hero, who stood frozen with their gaze downcast.

"Anyway," Skylar turned, and Villain pulled them back.

"Fix this!" They pointed at them and Hero.

"I can't."

"I have one wish!"

"It doesn't matter!" Skylar moved back, their own frustration growing. "I have three rules when it comes to using my powers." they raised their first finger, "I shall not bring someone back from the dead," their second finger lifted, "I will not grant more than one wish, and I won't force anyone to fall in love. It is morally wrong."

Hero sighed, "Well, there you have it." They spoke toward Villain.

"Oh, and obviously Hero chooses to give up now."

"What's gotten into you? Because I tried to help?"

"This would've never happened if you weren't here!"

"Maybe I don't wanna be here!"

"Then go!"

With an irritated huff, Hero spun on their heel and left, their heart pounding frantically in their chest as the words muddled in their mind.

The red thread is for people who are soulmates. Was this a mistake? Was there an error in their feelings?

Hero hurriedly clamoured back into their car, their shoulders heavy with the weight of Villain's words and their eyes glassy as they struggled to turn on the vehicle with a foggy vision. "This is so stupid." They sniffled as the engine roared to life. Hero's shaky hands settled onto the steering wheel as they pulled out from the restaurant's parking. "Stupid wish, stupid Villain." They wiped the remaining tears with their sleeve, and Hero turned down the corner.

<< Start

< Part 2

•

End >

~~~

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#enemies to lovers #villain x hero

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differentpostrebel · 3 months ago

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Lost and Found: A Pirate's Promise

This gif! cause Sanji was ready for war!

Chapter 27: Falling into Doflamingo's Web

A/N: And we are back at it again with another chapter!! Also even though I did say like in 5 chapters we hitting a whole new arc… yeahhhh we aint done just yet… (heheh). Thank you guys so much for liking, following, commenting, and interacting!. We got lots of POVs, From Law, Our favorite lovesick cook Sanji, Zoro, and more!. Imma start making a masterlist and have it pinned on my profile so that way, every chapter will be on it!. But without further ado, let the adventure begin!

WordCount: 5.6K

Sanji x Reader, Sanji x Y/N, One piece X Reader.

Law POV…

I dodged Doflamingo’s attacks, weaving through the barrage of deadly strings that cut through the air with terrifying precision. “Just a little more!” I thought, my breath ragged as I narrowly avoided another sharp strike. But in an instant, the strings closed in on me, wrapping around my limbs and slamming me against a tree with brutal force. My sword clattered to the ground, and my body strained against the pressure, the sharp wires biting into my skin.

Doflamingo loomed closer, a twisted grin on his face. “Why don’t you just hand over Caesar’s heart?” he sneered.

I smirked, despite the pain. “Is it really Caesar you want?” I asked, my voice dripping with mockery. “Or are you just scared Kaido’s going to kill you when you can’t produce SMILEs anymore?”

Doflamingo’s grin faltered, replaced by a flash of anger. The strings tightened around me, squeezing the breath from my lungs. He unleashed another wave of razor-sharp threads, aimed right at me.

“Room! Shambles!” I called out, swapping places just in time to evade the attack. My heart pounded as I landed a few feet away. “2.5 seconds… and I would’ve been sliced to bits,” I thought, my body aching from the narrow escape.

I tried to retreat, to get some distance between us, but Doflamingo’s strings lashed out once more, catching my leg and yanking me back. In a flash, he was on top of me, his knee pressing into my chest, pinning me to the ground. My vision blurred, the weight of his strength crushing me.

“You’re mine now,” Doflamingo hissed, his voice low and menacing. His fingers curled, ready to finish me off.

But then, the weight shifted, and I felt the sudden presence of another force. A sword—heavy and deliberate—pressed down, not from Doflamingo, but from above.

“Fujitora… why did you save him!?” Doflamingo snarled, his voice filled with fury.

The gravity around me intensified, pushing me deeper into the ground, every bone in my body screaming under the strain. “Ahhh!” I groaned, unable to move.

“I have my orders,” Fujitora said calmly, standing above me, his sword still raised. “I didn’t come here to kill him. My objective is to apprehend him.”

The crushing force kept me immobilized, my breaths shallow and labored. I felt my heart pound in my chest, but even that felt distant, muffled under the pressure.

Doflamingo’s cold laughter filled the air. “Now, about Caesar’s heart…” he said with a sinister smile, reaching down and snatching the small, fragile organ from my side.

Sanji POV…

I stood with Kinemon, watching the commotion at the Coliseum unfold. My mind raced, trying to figure out how we could sneak in and warn Luffy before things spiraled even further out of control. I gritted my teeth, frustration building. There’s no easy way in with all these Marines crawling around.

Just then, I heard a familiar voice that grated on my nerves instantly.

“Hey! What the hell are you guys doing here?” came the all-too-recognizable tone of Mosshead.

“What… that’s—” Kinemon shouted in surprise. “It’s Sir Zoro! Hey, over here!”

“Subtlety, Kinemon!” I groaned, delivering a swift kick to his side to shut him up. "Do you want the Marines to find us?"

Zoro approached us from the shadows of the alley, his usual look of nonchalance plastered on his face. As much as I hated to admit it, I was relieved to see him. But there was something more pressing. Desperation clawed at my insides as I stepped closer to him.

“Zoro, have you seen Y/N by any chance?!” I asked, my voice laced with urgency. Every second without word from her was twisting my gut into tighter knots.

Zoro furrowed his brow and scratched his head. “No, actually I haven’t. But I did hear someone telling me to wait a couple minutes ago.”

I froze for a second, the words hanging in the air. Then, without thinking, I lunged toward him. “YOU IDIOT! That was her!” I yelled, grabbing him by the collar. “She’s in even more danger now, and you couldn’t even stop for two seconds to check?!”

Zoro glared, shoving me back. “How was I supposed to know it was her, dart-brow? I’m not some psychic who can read minds. Besides, I was busy trying to figure out where you wandered off to!”

“Oh yeah? Well maybe if you actually had a sense of direction for once in your life, we wouldn’t be having this conversation!” I shot back, my irritation with him rising as it always did.

Zoro’s eye twitched. “You wanna go, love-cook? 'Cause I’ve got time to deal with you!”

“Deal with me? You can’t even deal with finding your way down a straight road!” I snapped, our bickering escalating by the second.

Kinemon sighed in the background, shaking his head at our usual back-and-forth. “Perhaps now is not the time for this—”

Zoro cut him off. “Look, I’m not here to fight you. I’m heading back to the Sunny. It’s under attack by one of Doflamingo’s executives.”

My heart dropped, and my annoyance with Zoro quickly shifted to concern. “What? Damn it! I knew something wasn’t right! Nami and the others are in trouble!” I clenched my fists, turning towards Zoro. “Alright, I’m coming with you!”

Just as I was about to take off, Kinemon stepped in front of me. “Wait, Sir Sanji! We have vital information that we must bestow upon Sir Luffy! We cannot abandon our mission.”

Before I could respond, a familiar voice echoed from the shadows. “There you are.”

I whirled around, and my heart skipped a beat. “Violet, my sweet!” I exclaimed, practically floating over to her. I swooped in and grabbed her hands, swooning as I gazed into her eyes.

“Sanji, this isn’t—” Violet began, but I was too far gone.

“This is fate, destiny bringing us together again in this moment of chaos!” I declared, still holding her hands like we were in some romantic drama.

Zoro groaned, glaring at me. “That kind of crap is going to get you killed, idiot. Snap out of it!” he growled, but I waved him off, completely ignoring his rant.

“Zoro, you wouldn’t understand the complexities of love,” I said, still fixated on Violet’s eyes. “In a world as chaotic as ours, love is a shining beacon of hope and—”

“Shut up, dart-brow!” Zoro barked, his patience wearing thin. “We don’t have time for your romantic delusions! The Sunny’s under attack!”

But I paid him no mind, too engrossed in Violet’s presence. Just as I was about to pull her into a dramatic embrace, Zoro muttered something that snapped me out of it.

“Well, I guess that favor Y/N owes me is finally getting cashed in tonight,” Zoro said with a smirk. “Since you’re not lovesick for her anymore, that’s one less competition I have to deal with.”

I froze mid-swoon, releasing Violet’s hands and spinning on my heel to face Zoro, my eyes blazing with fury. “What did you just say?!”

Zoro’s smirk widened. “You heard me. Now that you’re all wrapped up in your latest fling, maybe I’ll finally have some peace without you hovering over Y/N like some lost puppy.”

My temper flared. “As if Y/N would ever fall for someone like you, you brainless swordsman! She has taste and refinement, something you severely lack!”

Zoro’s smirk turned into a full grin. “Oh yeah? Then why is she always hanging around me, huh? Maybe she prefers a real man who doesn’t get distracted by every pretty face that walks by.”

I clenched my fists, my face turning red with anger. “She does not! Y/N deserves someone with class and elegance, not some brute who can’t even find his way to the nearest tavern!”

Zoro crossed his arms, clearly enjoying how riled up I was getting. “Keep telling yourself that, love-cook. But when she realizes you’re too busy swooning over every girl in Dressrosa, don’t come crying to me.”

“Why you—” I lunged at him, ready to knock that stupid grin off his face.

Before I could get any closer, Violet’s voice cut through the tension like a blade. “Listen, Black Leg!” she said sharply, stepping between us. “Your ship has been hijacked by my colleague Giolla, and they’re making their way to Greenbit right now.” She looked at me with a mix of urgency and empathy. “If you don’t act fast, you might lose everything you’ve been fighting for.”

Laws POV…

Doflamingo’s laughter echoed through the forest as Fujitora’s gravity technique kept me pinned to the ground, each second more suffocating than the last. I could barely move, my breathing labored and strained.

Doflamingo’s mocking voice cut through the haze of pain. “You know, Law, all this time you’ve been fighting against something far greater than you realize.”

I forced myself to focus despite the crushing weight. “What are you talking about?” I managed to croak out.

Doflamingo’s grin widened. “The World Government, Law. The 20 kingdoms that formed the foundation of this world, the Celestial Dragons—those who hold absolute power. The agreements made to keep this twisted system in place. It’s all part of the grand design.”

I struggled to piece together his words through the pain. “All this time you were a...” I began, my voice labored.

Doflamingo’s laughter grew louder as he continued to toy with Caesar’s heart, dropping it and catching it with cruel precision

Sanji POV…

I stood at the crossroads of my decisions, torn between rescuing Nami and continuing my search for Y/N. The weight of my choices was heavy, but the thought of Y/N still missing gnawed at me. "Y/N, where are you, my sweet?" I muttered under my breath.

Flashback to 10 minutes earlier…

“Listen, mosshead, butt out of this decision!” I snapped at Zoro. “I’m looking for Y/N and also saving Nami and the others, got it?”

Zoro crossed his arms, glaring at me. “Idiot! How the hell are you going to be in two places at once? You can’t just split yourself in half!”

“Listen, I’ll head to the Colosseum, tell Luffy what’s going on, and then I’ll be the one in search of Y/N, got it?” Zoro shot back, his frustration evident.

“Alright, alright!” I relented, rubbing my temples in frustration. “I’ll go rescue Nami, and you find Y/N. Deal?”

Zoro nodded, a hint of relief on his face. “Deal. Just make sure you don’t get yourself killed while you’re at it.”

“Same to you,” I shot back, a smirk on my face despite the tension. “Don’t mess up and make me come rescue you too.”

End of flashback..

Here I was, riding the toy stallion with Violet. It still pained me to make the decision to split up, but if Y/N was anywhere close by, Zoro and Kinemon would be the first to find you. I tried to focus on the task at hand, though my heart ached with worry.

“Now, Violet, I told you to wait at the harbor, you naughty girl,” I said, fawning.

“I would, but the place is covered with Marines,” Violet replied, as we sped through the streets. “You and your friends may want to rethink your rendezvous point. I counted four battleships total, which means there are about 3,000 Marines scattered around.”

“And you managed to find that out in such a short amount of time?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s one of my abilities,” Violet said with a laugh. “Clairvoyance.”

“Clairvoyance, huh? That’s impressive,” I said, trying to keep the worry out of my voice. Violet assured me not to worry about her safety, but then she suddenly tensed, her gaze distant.

“I should be able to see your ship, but it’s simply not there,” Violet said, her tone turning serious.

“Wait, like it disappeared?” I asked, my heart sinking.

“It’s bad. It seems your ship emerged by now… where? And your ship was struck by lightning!” Violet said, her concern evident.

“Struck by lightning? Then Nami must be safe!” I said, relief washing over me as I made my way toward where the ship should be.

Law POV…

Doflamingo continued to taunt as Fujitora’s gravity powers kept me pinned to the ground. Each breath was labored, and the crushing weight felt like it was suffocating me.

“Damn that power,” I thought. “I’m completely immobilized.”

“There’s no way you’re a Celestial Dragon!” I managed to heave out, my voice strained.

“That’s me, well, that was me at least,” Doflamingo sneered. “But not anymore. Not many can say they’ve lived a checkered life as I have.” His taunts were infuriating, each word dripping with arrogance.

“Who cares, stop rambling, bastard!” I gasped, trying to push through the crushing weight.

“Sorry, Law,” Doflamingo said with a mocking tone. “Believe me, I would like nothing more than to knock back a few drinks and tell you all about my life story. But I don’t have time for all that. The Straw Hats are in Dressrosa, and I need to address that. And while I’m at it, I need to get my hands on that princess. It makes me most excited thinking about it.”

His words stung, and I could barely keep my eyes open as the pain intensified. The thought of you and the others in danger fueled my resolve. I had to find a way out of this, no matter what.

Fujitora’s head tilted slightly, his attention shifting. “I heard a thunderclap. I may be blind, but I’ve always had a keen sense for weather,” he remarked, his voice calm but focused.

From the bushes, Caesar emerged, desperate and frantic. “Joker! What are you doing?! Give me my heart back! I want it back now!” he whined, his usual panic setting in.

Doflamingo glanced at the heart in his hand, an amused grin spreading across his face. I struggled under the weight of Fujitora’s gravity power, each breath coming harder than the last.

“No good… I never said whose heart it was,” I managed to say between gasps of air. The words caught Doflamingo’s attention, and his grin widened.

Without a second thought, he crushed the heart, testing my claim. Caesar let out a dramatic wail, collapsing to the ground as if the very life had been squeezed out of him. But when nothing serious happened, and the realization struck that the heart didn’t belong to Caesar after all, Doflamingo’s amusement vanished. It was a marine soldier’s heart.

Taking the moment of confusion, I made my move. “Room!” I summoned my ability, the familiar blue dome surrounding us. “Shambles!” In an instant, I swapped myself out with a log, grabbing Caesar by the scruff and making a run for it.

“Joker, help me!!” Caesar shrieked, flailing in my grasp as we made our escape.

“You’ve got a lot of energy left, Law,” Doflamingo called out, already chasing us down with terrifying speed. Each time he attacked, I would switch the trajectory with an object, barely staying ahead of him.

We were heading toward the bridge, the path narrowing with every step. In the distance, I heard the panicked cries of the Straw Hat crew.

“Idiots! Keep your mouths shut!” I barked at them, knowing their noise would only draw more attention.

“So that’s your plan,” Doflamingo cackled, his eyes locked on the Thousand Sunny. “You think you can escape me by hiding behind your little pirate friends?”

“Doflamingo, wait! This doesn’t involve them!” I shouted, desperation creeping into my voice.

“Too late, Law!” Doflamingo’s laughter echoed through the air as he closed in. “Besides, I’m here to collect what’s mine.” His gaze fixed on the Sunny, and I could feel the threat looming over them.

I gritted my teeth. I had to stop him, no matter the cost.

Sanji POV…

"Hey! You made my crewmates cry! You're going down!" I yelled as I launched myself into the sky with my Skywalk, my leg igniting with Diable Jambe. I aimed straight for Doflamingo, landing a burning kick right to his side.

"Sanji's here!" I heard Nami, Chopper, Brook, and Momo shout in relief. But Doflamingo simply laughed.

"This should be fun," he said with a wicked grin, his eyes gleaming with malice. "So, you're with the Straw Hats… Black Leg Sanji."

He moved so fast, I barely saw it coming. "Penta-Chromatic Strings!" Doflamingo shouted, and I felt the sharp pain as his strings sliced into me, knocking me out of the air.

"Sanji's hit!" Brook cried. "How? I didn’t even see him move!" Chopper added, panic in his voice.

I grunted in pain as I was falling from the sky clutching my side. "You don't have the strength to protect anyone," Doflamingo mocked, his laughter cutting through the pain. "Sanji!" Nami yelled, her voice filled with worry.

Gritting my teeth, I pushed myself up, forcing the pain away. "Don't you dare turn your back on me… or my Diable Jambe!" I snarled, my left leg igniting in flames once again. "Poele a Friere: Spectre!" I unleashed a barrage of fiery kicks at Doflamingo.

"Let's go, Sanji!" Nami cheered. "Kick his butt!" Chopper added.

But then, I felt it—the sudden stop, my body freezing mid-attack. "What… I can't move! What the hell is wrong with me?!" My limbs wouldn't respond, as if they were bound by invisible chains.

Doflamingo laughed again, his voice filled with sadistic pleasure. "You’re no match for me, Black Leg."

I could see the crew in the distance, watching, their faces filled with fear. "What the hell are you guys waiting around for?! Use the Coup de Burst and get out of here!" I yelled, desperate for them to escape.

"We're not leaving you!" Nami shouted back, defiant.

But Doflamingo wasn't done. A flaming whip formed in his hand. "Overheat!" he called, launching the attack at me. I braced myself, but my body wouldn't respond.

"Shambles!" A voice from my left—Law. In an instant, I was teleported away from the strike, landing safely back on the ship with everyone else.

"There's been a slight change of plans. To the ship!" Law ordered, already assessing the situation. My left arm throbbed with pain, but I clutched it, trying to hide it from Chopper’s worried gaze.

"Sanji!" Nami shouted, running toward me.

"Oh… hey, Nami," I said, forcing a grin, but the pain and exhaustion were starting to catch up.

"Doflamingo is heading back!" Chopper cried out, his panic rising again.

"Great," I muttered under my breath, trying to regain my focus. Then Law turned to me, his voice low and urgent. "Sanji… what about the factory?"

"We found out where it is, but Franky says it's going to be tougher to infiltrate than we thought," I replied, my tone serious.

"And… Y/N?" Law's voice was barely above a whisper, but the weight of his words hit hard.

I looked down at the deck, my chest tightening. "No, I couldn’t find her… Zoro's looking for her now." My voice cracked, and I hated myself for it.

"Wait, Sanji… what do you mean find Y/N?" Chopper asked, his concern growing. I could see the worry in their eyes.

"I lost her," I confessed, my voice strained. "I’ve searched everywhere, but she’s nowhere in Dressrosa. I don’t know where she is…"

"Hmph, the young princess is missing, huh?" Caesar chimed in, a smug grin on his face. "Maybe Doflamingo’s men already captured her."

I clenched my fist, anger boiling in my veins. "If they’ve touched her…" But I didn’t finish the sentence. There was no time for that now. I had to believe Zoro would find her. I had to believe she was still safe.

"We still need more time!" Law said, clutching something in his hand—a heart.

"Is that… my heart?!" Caesar wailed in panic.

"I'm afraid this is mine," Law responded coldly. "Yours? I've had that hidden this whole time." He held Caesar's heart firmly, showing no signs of letting it go.

"Listen, you guys need to head to Zou," Law continued, his tone sharp. "There are only two tasks left—destroy the factory and find out where Y/N is."

"Wait a minute!" Nami interrupted, her voice full of fire. "Hold on! We’re not going anywhere yet! If you think we’re going to set sail without our captain, you're nuts! We take orders from Luffy, NOT you!" she declared, standing her ground.

Just then, a massive explosion rocked the ship as we were hit with a cannonball from a nearby Navy ship. "Not good," I muttered, glancing at the damage. Things were escalating fast.

"Hold up, Law," I said, turning to him. "I realize we need to get out of here now and keep Caesar safe, but the operation with Caesar was just a waypoint. Our shared goal was to take down Kaido, wasn’t it? Why are you getting so hung up on Doflamingo?"

Law’s face darkened, but before he could answer, Nami shouted, "Time to go! Everyone ready?"

"Listen, Nami, you need to get to a clear sky!" Law called out. "Doflamingo possesses the String-String Fruit. He uses the clouds to get around."

"That explains it!" I said, realizing how Doflamingo had been moving so quickly.

Law then placed his blade against Giolla’s throat, using her as leverage. "One wrong move from Doflamingo, and she’s done," he warned, eyes cold.

With no other option, and knowing the clock was ticking, we initiated the Coup de Burst. The Sunny rocketed away from Greenbit, leaving the chaos behind us for now.

Zoro POV…

We made it to the Coliseum, but there was still no sign of Y/N. Frustration bubbled up as I muttered, "Damn it, Y/N, where the hell did you go?"

"Do you have any ideas on how to get in? It’s all locked up," Kinemon asked, his voice low but urgent.

"No, but I could slash the bars down," I replied without thinking.

"We're trying to avoid exposure!" Kinemon snapped, clearly annoyed.

"Okay, so I can slash it quietly?" I offered with a smirk.

"That’s no help at all!" Kinemon shot back, his patience wearing thin.

Just then, we spotted someone passing by the bars of the Coliseum. "Hey! You!" I yelled, trying to get his attention. The guy froze, looking like a deer in headlights, then started freaking out.

"Hey, don’t leave yet! There’s something important I need to ask you!" I called out, but he just continued freaking out and cheering wildly.

"You sure this is a Coliseum and not a mental institution?" Kinemon muttered.

I rolled my eyes. "Hey! I’m talking to you! Second floor, over here!" I kept shouting.

"Tears of joy shall flow to the end of time!" the guy screamed, completely ignoring me.

"Look, I don’t know who you are, but is there a way into the Coliseum? All the entrances I’ve found are closed up!" I shouted again, growing more irritated.

"I’m so glad I became a pirate! I can die happy!" the guy yelled, tears streaming down his face.

"What the..." I muttered, trying to process the madness.

Kinemon sighed. "Wait a moment, he said he knows Sir Luffy?" he asked, clearly confused. "How could he tell with our brilliant disguises?"

"Yeah, I know..." I muttered, wondering the same thing.

Just then, my transponder snail rang. I grabbed it quickly. "Hello?!" I barked.

"Now, Roronoa, there's no need to yell," came the familiar voice, making my heart stop.

"Where the hell are you, Y/N?! We've been looking for you!" I yelled into the transponder.

"Me?! I was yelling for you to wait!" she snapped back, clearly annoyed.

"Listen, that’s not the point," Y/N continued. "Doflamingo's men have been chasing me block after block. I had to change out of my disguise. Doflamingo has something planned for me, along with all of us and the rest of Dressrosa. That’s why I can't be anywhere near you guys yet."

"Where are you?!" I demanded, clenching my fists.

"Don't worry, I'm safe for now. I'll call again in a few minutes, Zoro. Please stay safe," she said, her tone softening at the end.

"Wait, don’t—!" I started, but the call ended.

I stared at the transponder snail, frustration building. "At least we know she's safe, Sir Zoro," Kinemon said, trying to ease the tension.

"Yeah, but we still need to find her. She could say she's safe, but that doesn't mean she's out of danger," I replied, my mind racing. "We need to talk to Luffy, tell him everything, and figure out where Y/N is before it's too late."

Y/N POV…

"You got in contact with your crew?" Sabo asked as I handed back the transponder snail.

"Yeah, I reached Zoro," I replied, wiping my brow. "Told him I'd call back in a few minutes to explain the plan I have. Too bad that thug passed out from fear though... but we've still got two more left to make the call to Doflamingo." I smirked, glancing at the remaining thugs.

"And what's your plan?" Sabo asked, stepping closer with a curious yet cautious look in his eyes.

"Simple," I said, crossing my arms confidently. "We get one of these fools to call Doflamingo and tell him they’ve caught me. Lure him to the front of the Coliseum, kick his ass, make him chase me, let him think he's cornered me—only to have me lead him straight to the palace where we shut the whole operation down." I grinned, like I'd just outlined the most brilliant plan in the world.

Sabo stared at me, clearly skeptical. "Listen, Y/N, I'm all for kicking ass and taking down Doflamingo... but I don’t want anything to happen to you," he said, his voice growing serious as he placed his hands gently on my hips. "I just got you back, and I'm not about to risk losing you again."

His voice cracked, and I felt the weight of his words as tears began to fall from his eyes onto my chest. He was trembling, and I could feel the grief beneath his tough exterior.

"I already lost one brother... I can’t..." he said, choking on his tears.

The depth of his pain hit me hard. I stared at him in shock.

"You were Ace's brother?" I asked, the shock of the revelation settling in.

Sabo nodded, his hands still holding me tightly. "And since you're Luffy's brother... that means you lost Ace too," I whispered, the weight of it all hitting me.

Sabo’s expression darkened, his eyes filled with guilt and sorrow. "When I found out... I lost it," he admitted, his voice thick with emotion. "I crashed. I... should have been there for him. I should have been there for Luffy."

"When did you find out?" I asked gently, placing a hand on his cheek and wiping away his tears.

"The day you were knocked out by King, and he caught us," Sabo replied, his body trembling. "When John and I went to treat your injuries, I went to an office and… saw the newspaper."

"Sabo..." I whispered, my heart aching for him.

"I should have been there... I should have been by his side. Luffy needed me, Ace needed me, and I wasn’t there for either of them." His voice cracked again, the pain of regret clear in every word.

I pulled him closer, feeling his pain radiating through me. "You can't blame yourself... you didn’t know," I whispered softly. "And now, you're here. You’re fighting for Luffy, and for everything Ace stood for."

Tears continued to stream down his face as he rested his forehead against mine. "I can’t lose anyone else, Y/N. Not you, not Luffy," he said, his voice barely a whisper.

I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him close, letting him feel the safety of the embrace. "You’ve been through so much, Sabo. And even with all that, you were there for me."

He pulled back slightly, his eyes full of emotion. “But that's the thing, Y/N," he said, his voice rough with raw emotion. "You’re not just another person I’m protecting. You’re a part of my world. I’ve lost so much, I can’t... I won’t lose you too."

He exhaled deeply, his grip on my shoulders tightening as if grounding himself. “That’s why I have to go to that Colosseum," he said, determination flaring in his eyes. "To win the Flame-Flame Fruit. So I can carry Ace’s legacy and protect those who are important to me. If I have that power... I can make sure no one I care about gets hurt again."

I was about to respond when I heard groaning from one of the thugs. Giving Sabo a knowing look, I released the hug and made my way toward him. "Good morning there," I smirked. "Now, are you going to pass out like your buddy here, or are you going to follow directions?"

The man nodded frantically. "Good," I smirked, grabbing his transponder snail. "Now make the call."

We waited until Doflamingo picked up. His voice oozed malice. "Hello. This better be important, as I am dealing with an important matter."

"Sir, we got her... We got the girl, young master!" the thug said.

Doflamingo laughed. "I knew she couldn’t run forever. Now tell me, is she tied up nice and snug?"

It took everything in me not to snap back. "Yeah, she is. She’s tied up. Meet us at the Colosseum at the front, so you can take her."

"Splendid work you did. I’ll see you soon," Doflamingo said before ending the call.

I clenched my right hand, crouching in front of the thug. "Good job!" I said, landing a punch to his cheek and sending him flying into the wall. "Now what?" Sabo asked.

"Now, I call Zoro again." I grabbed Sabo's transponder snail and dialed Zoro. "Hello?! Y/N?!" Zoro's voice came through urgently.

"Y/N?! Where have you been?!" Luffy's voice followed, almost grinning through the call.

"Hey, captain. How’s it going? I was checking on your fight. I wish I was there to kick some ass too!" I said.

"Same here, Y/N," Zoro said.

"Anyway, that’s not the point. The point is I’m safe, but Doflamingo has had me tracked since I got here. He’s even got three men chasing me block after block," I explained.

"Where are you?!" Luffy demanded.

"Don’t worry, Luffy. I’m safe. I’m with... someone very special," I whispered that last part, hoping he wouldn’t pry. "I have a plan, but I want to ask your permission first."

"What is it?" Luffy asked.

"I’m going to have to get Doflamingo to take me to his palace," I said.

"WAIT, AS IN KIDNAPPED?!" Zoro’s voice cracked with disbelief.

"Yes, as in kidnapped. I need to get him away from the Colosseum and into the palace where I can hopefully shut things down. There’s more to the plan, but I can’t say much right now. I’ll see you guys in the palace."

Zoro's frustration was palpable. "This is a terrible idea! We can't just let you get captured!"

"I know it sounds risky, Zoro, but it's the only way to draw Doflamingo out and get him where we need him. If I stay hidden, he’ll just keep searching for me. This way, I can use the opportunity to get to the palace and stop him from causing more chaos," I tried to reason.

“This is insane!” Zoro snapped. “You’re not just walking into a trap—you’re running into it! How many things can go wrong here, Y/N? Do we need to pull out the list? You’re going up against a warlord who is psychotic, you could get thrown in a dungeon, or worse! And we won’t even know where you are!”

“I know the risks, Zoro. But it’s the only way to distract him long enough for us to make our move.” I said

Luffy, who had been quiet up until now, suddenly chimed in. “Y/N, this is risky, even for you...”

“I know,” she answered, her voice steady. “But I can do this. If I can get him off the streets and into the palace, it’ll give us the upper hand. You just need to trust me.”

“Trust you?” I scoffed, rubbing the back of my neck in frustration. “I trust you, but this plan is reckless even by your standards! Do you even know what you're up against?”

“Zoro, I’ll be fine. Just make sure you guys get to the palace. I’ll be waiting.” I laughed as I continued speaking to Zoro over the transponder snail.

"Trust me, Zoro. I wouldn’t do this if I didn’t think it was the best option. I need to be where I can make the most impact, and right now, that’s in the palace. The plan is risky, but it's our best shot at stopping Doflamingo and getting back to safety."

Luffy cut in before Zoro could respond further. "Okay, Y/N, but I need you to be careful. We’ll be there just as soon as I figure out a way out of this Colosseum!"

“I’ll be fine,” I said, my voice lighter now, trying to ease the tension. “I trust you guys to back me up.”

Zoro is not fully convinced. “This is still a terrible idea... If anything happens to you, I’m coming to drag your reckless ass out of there myself.”

I laughed trying to ease the tension. “I know you will, Zoro. But you won’t have to. Just be ready when it’s time.”

I ended the call and turned back to Sabo. “Okay, that’s phase one of the plan. Phase two will be when Luffy gets to the palace. You need to get to the Colosseum,” I said, giving his arm a playful shove.

Sabo’s eyes lit up with a roguish smile. “You know, a bit of encouragement would go a long way. How about a good luck kiss?”

I raised an eyebrow, trying to suppress a smile. “Focus on the plan, Sabo. We got things to do.”

He leaned in closer, his smile widening. “Oh, come on. Just one kiss for luck?”

I laughed softly, shaking my head. “You’re incorrigible. Just make sure you don’t get yourself into trouble. I’ll be waiting for you.”

Sabo gave me a lingering look before nodding. “You’ve got it. I’ll be careful. But don’t think I’m letting you off the hook for that kiss.”

I watched him go, a mixture of worry and affection in my heart.

I continued to run, my feet pounding against the cobblestones as the towering walls of the Colosseum loomed in the distance. The sound of distant battles and the chaotic energy of Dressrosa filled the air, but I focused only on reaching my destination.

Finally, I arrived, stopping just outside the Colosseum. I caught my breath, glancing around to make sure I wasn’t being followed. "Alright," I muttered to myself, scanning the area. "Now, I wait."

From my vantage point, I could see Zoro and Kin’emon standing near the entrance, talking to Luffy, who was behind the bars. Their conversation seemed tense, as Luffy’s impatience was written all over his face. I narrowed my eyes, watching carefully, making sure no one else had eyes on them.

This was it—the moment before everything would change. I just hoped I could intervene at the right time

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spicybeefnoodles · 10 months ago

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acts of devotion

summary: liu kang brings shang tsung a gift

warnings: none :)

Liu Kang knocked upon Shang Tsung’s bedroom door and waited patiently for the sorcerer to open the door. Behind his back, Liu Kang held a delicate bouquet of flowers and a small box holding a simple but beautiful comb. The god had noticed that the hairpiece that Shang Tsung often used to hold his hair back had grown old and worn, the design fading off with the constant use, and Liu Kang wanted to get a gift for his partner.

Creaking the door open, Liu Kang spotted Shang Tsung peeking through the door carefully. The sorcerer sighed and beckoned in the Fire God, and Liu Kang did so happily, shutting the door behind him as the sorcerer walked back to his dresser and finished applying the last of the product to his face. Liu Kang came up behind Shang Tsung and kissed the top of Shang Tsung’s head, breathing in the scent of rain and herbs. His lover always smelled fresh, no matter the occasion, but Liu Kang figured that made sense since Shang Tsung loved to take great care of his appearance.

“My love.” Liu Kang brought the flowers from behind his back and presented the bouquet to Shang Tsung. The sorcerer quirked up an eyebrow and breathed in the scent of the fresh flowers and smiled at the Fire God.

“Thank you, Liu Kang.” Shang Tsung smiled and turned around to press a gentle kiss to Liu Kang’s lips. The sorcerer sighed into the kiss, enjoying the feeling of being so close with his partner and having a brief moment of peace among the heavy weight of responsibility. Liu Kang pulled back and tucked a strand of hair that had fallen loose from Shang Tsung’s simple bun.

“I also got you something else.” Liu Kang presented the small gift box and opened up the lid, showing the new comb in the box. Shang Tsung smiled and picked up the comb gingerly, admiring the carvings and the designs of the metal. It was surprisingly lightweight and relatively simple looking, but Shang Tsung could tell this was expensive.

“Let me.” Liu Kang hummed. Shang Tsung nodded and turned in his seat. He watched the Fire God release Shang Tsng’s hair from its bun and took a comb to gently card it through the strands. Soon enough, Liu Kang started pulling back Shang Tsung’s hair into the signature half ponytail that he usually sported and inserted the new comb into the hair to complete the look. It made Shang Tsung look regal. The sorcerer slicked back a few strands that had escaped from Liu Kang’s nimble fingers but was satisfied with the overall result.

Liu Kang smiled and held his hand out for Shang Tsung to take. He stood up from his seat, and Liu Kang suddenly pulled the sorcerer into his arms and rested his forehead against Shang Tsung’s. Shang Tsung rolled his eyes but let it happen. The Fire God tended to be clingy when work on the hourglass got especially tough.

Liu Kang lightly swayed side to side, simply enjoying the peacefulness of the birds singing outside and the smell of a rich incense that Shang Tsung liked to burn. He enjoyed these rare moments with Shang Tsung, but they both had duties they had to attend to. And so, Liu Kang reluctantly peeled himself away from his partner, not before pressing a gentle kiss to the sorcerer’s forehead.

“What’s got you so needy, hm?” Shang Tsung smirked at the god, but Liu Kang didn’t respond, rather just smiling and threading their fingers together and leading him out of the sorcerer’s bedroom.

“Have I ever told you that if I could, I would spend the entire day worshiping you?” Liu Kang said it so bluntly that Shang Tsung blushed. Typically, the Fire God had a bit more tact, but he didn’t mind the more direct communication from the god.

“We’ll have to plan for that sometime soon. I think it’ll be a good look for you.”

“Yes, we should do that soon.” Liu Kang hummed as he walked the sorcerer to his laboratory. “It will be a good day.”

Shang Tsung rolled his eyes one more time but pressed a soft kiss to Liu Kang’s lips before disappearing into his lab. He was much too prideful to admit it, but Shang Tsung enjoyed these soft and rare days very much, where Liu Kang showered him with love and attention. Never would he have thought that he would devote himself to a god, but life has a funny way of bringing people together.

#fluffuary 2024 #fluff #noodle’s writings #mortal kombat #mk #mortal kombat 1 #mk1 #mk1 2023 #liu kang #mk1 liu kang #shang tsung #mk1 shangtsung #liutsung #liu kang x shang tsung #liushang

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mykingdomforapen · 11 months ago

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spinning silk | writer's commentary

Hello! It has been a long journey but my Link Click fic, spinning silk, has come to a finish. It has been a joy to write and to share with you, and I really hope that you enjoyed the journey. I am so excited for you to read it now in its completion!

I thought it would be fun/interesting to include a writer's commentary about the story, as I've included elements that I'm excited about and would love to talk about the thoughts behind them, the history, foreshadowing, et cetera.

I will try to shy away from explaining too much in case we wanna preserve some level of the Author is Dead skskks . Happy to answer questions on a separate post or DMs though if there is interest! If you are interested in this commentary, please join me! If not, no worries and merrily we roll along.

Spoilers ahead!

The Epigraph

It's easy to miss the epigraph in this story, which is at the beginning of chapter 1 and is very brief. I don't know if anyone here is Chinese-literate, or if you popped it into a Translation app. If you have, you would have realised that the epigraph actually spoils the ending of the story!

A reminder of the epigraph:

君埋泉下泥销骨我寄人间雪满头。 -Bai Juyi For his friend, Yuan Zhen

Bai Juyi and Yuan Zhen were famous Chinese poets from the Tang Dynasty, and good friends. Bai Juyi would have written this after Yuan Zhen died. The poem's translation is thus:

Your bones are buried under the spring mud; I remain in the mortal world with my hair white as snow.

In the context of this poem, white as snow can indicate someone growing old as they sit at the grave of their friend, therefore their hair turning all white. It can, depending on the translation, indicate someone who sat through the winter until snow layered upon their head , by the time spring comes. Or, in the context of Link Click, Lu Guang's white white hair. Which interpretation should it be? 🙂

Also fun fact I accidentally miscredited the poem for the longest time to Li Bai, another famous Tang Dynasty poet. Oops!

Silk

Ah, this story is built on silk. I think it is fairly famous, the 'red thread of fate' from East Asian/Chinese culture, the concept that you are somehow tied to your soulmate by a long, connecting red thread. I wanted to use the concept of thread as fate, but expand it beyond just about soulmates and relationships. That was the motivation behind depending on silk imagery for Liu Xiao's plan, to play on a well-established concept in Chinese mythology and add my own twist to it. Especially since Liu Xiao was the one in S2 to make the comparison, of people having a thousand parallel fates/threads.

As I was musing on an idea for this fic, that was when I happened to visit an exhibit that included the life cycle of a silk worm. My mother then told me how when she was little, she used to raise silk worms as pets. That got me to muse on the process of making silk--how you have to boil the cocoon and then unravel it slowly until it is a single, long thread. You have to be so careful with it because if it breaks it's kind of pointless, and how magnificent it is that such a cocoon could be so uninterrupted, singular, continuous.

Which brings me to the climax with Lu Guang, when he is trapped in a literal and figurative cocoon of silk. So as Liu Xiao had said (or at least, I think he said it...I forget lol)--when you make silk by boiling the cocoons, you kill the silkworm inside. Silkworms leave the cocoons by chewing a hole through it, which essentially renders the silk unusable because it's all chewed and broken, but now the silkworm is a moth and flies free. The thread of silk, the cocoon, must be ripped and ruined, only then can a silkworm emerge with wings, transformed. Only then can it live.

(Fun fact: one of the first things I knew I wanted from this story was the scene of Cheng Xiaoshi using his threads of fate to sew up all the ripped seams of time. That was, in many ways, the impetus of this story's idea--the image of him so selflessly giving up his own future and life to the act of something as gentle as mending)

Wen Xi

I loved writing chapter 2, honestly. Not only because I get to write about a dive, which is the charm and heart of Link Click, and not only because I get to write about my culture and province (Cantonese represent!) but also because in my eyes, the Wen Xi dive functions similarly to how I interpret the earthquake arc functions for canon.

There was a moment where I almost had a scene where CXS actually interacted with Wen Xi in person. He would have run into her at one point, and of course he can't act like he knows her because she doesn't realize he was the one who did the job for him, but he would have had a moment with her. She was sitting on the curb, struggling with some of the mangosteens she bought. He remembers how she doesn't like getting her hands sticky and wet and how Song Liming used to open them for her when they were kids, so he would have asked her if she needed help and gave her that little bit of kindness. This was ultimately scarpered so that he and Qiao Ling could have that more plot-driven moment of worrying over Lu Guang.

Other Deleted Scenes/changed scenes

Not so much a scene as it is a theme that I wish I could have expounded on more but ultimately couldn't figure it out. Which is to say, I wish I could have played around with Liu Xiao more. Liu Xiao, Lu Guang, and Li Tianchen are the trio who are manipulating fate and the future. They are also three characters who are, in their own way and for their own reasons, trying to use the control of time to answer for a painful trauma that they cannot bear to face full-on. For Liu Xiao, that flashback scene of Liu Min would have played a bigger role in the story. I wish I could have completed this, but at the same time, in my head in order for him to confront it is to own up to it, and find healing from it. He did not want to do that in the playground of my imagination. So I left him be.

Actually, Liu Xiao was supposed to be a little more villainous in this story! He would have been a bit more purposeful about Cheng Xiaoshi, knowing that CXS' abilities are causing the 'knot' in the silk and then intending for CXS to die alone/far from Lu Guang so that Lu Guang would not repeat the cycle. Ultimately I preferred Liu Xiao to be a bit more morally gray. He struck me as someone who didn't have a personal grudge against CXS at the end of the day. All he wants is his own peace of mind.

There was also going to be a moment, although I ended up scrapping it early on, where the photograph of Cheng Xiaoshi and his mother would have played a bit more of a role in the story. There would have been a moment where, upon discovering what Lu Guang was doing with the silks and realizing how much damage it was causing not only to him but to the world, Cheng Xiaoshi would have felt like he was the cause of all of Lu Guang's misery and now also the misery of the concept of time and space, since Lu Guang was essentially destroying the world because of him. In a moment of being in a pretty terrible head space, Cheng Xiaoshi would have half considered diving back into that photo as his mom and straight up Terminator his childhood self to save everyone the trouble. Qiao Ling would have strongly talked him out of it. Ultimately I felt that was, well, a bit dark, and not really fitting to the rest of the story.

Speaking of the photograph's purpose, the opening scene used to be a wee bit different, where Cheng Xiaoshi would actually give Qiao Ling the photo of his mother and ask her to hide it from him. He would never explain why, but Qiao Ling would have a guess as to what the reason was. I changed it because I wanted the story to have a bookend. It begins with Qiao Ling holding Cheng Xiaoshi as he slept to keep him warm. As does it ends.

Culture(???)

I'll be honest, I'm borne of expats, so I'm not the one to break down the traditions and culture of the characters. At the same time, I definitely was raised in Chinese culture and spent formative periods of my life in China, so there are a lot of things I take for granted and not think to explain when in fact it is not actually a universal experience.

But anyway! This is a section to explain my caveat. I am Cantonese. Link Click very likely takes place in a northern city. China's food culture is EXTREMELY diverse, so the food that I have eaten in China, because I spend all my time in a specific province, is probably food that Cheng Xiaoshi, Lu Guang, and Qiao Ling seldomly eat! But I couldn't help myself, so I wrote about my favorite foods. Because I write fic for ME.

That also goes for the daily living aspect as well. For all I know, Cantonese doctor visits, city walking, food delivery, groceries, etc. are the same as Northerners. For all I know, it could be wildly different! I have no idea. I do reckon though that our trio live in a quieter, smaller city than what I'm used to. I mean, look at their neighborhood.

Not regarding shanghuo, though. Shanghuo is everywhere in China.

Anyway, a quick rundown of things:

black sesame porridge: A very Cantonese sweet porridge. Technically considered dessert, but also lauded to be full of nutrition. Technically considered 'soup' but I write fic for me.

Also, black sesame soymilk. Soymilk is great.

Sun Wukong- LG compares himself, or wished to compare himself, to Sun Wukong escorting Tang Sanzang to the west. This is in reference to our beloved Monkey King in The Journey to the West! He is an iconic literary figure dating back to idk I think the 1400s or something and his story is quite long and mythical but long story short his mission was to escort a monk westward, towards South Asia, to collect some important scripts. He had to protect Tan Sanzang from all sorts of demons and devils along the way.

Pixiu- Lu Guang makes a passing comment in his point of view about putting a Pixiu at his doorstep and hoping it pays off Cheng Xiaoshi's debt. Pixiu is a little guy (arguably dragon, probably not) that likes to gobble up gold. If you put a little Pixiu statue in your area, the idea is that he will bring wealth to you. He's got a whole story about him where he ate up all the gold of the heavenly palace and the Jade Empress was so mad she sewed up his butthole so he would have eternal constipation, or something like that. Don't correct me if that's wrong because that's how the story was told to me and I delight in it LOL. I love him. He's my favorite idiot.

Clay pot rice -Also a very Cantonese dish. Frankly, the rest of China is missing out if it is only contained in the Canton province. Rice that is cooked with meats in a clay pot which makes the rice v ery aromatic and deliciously crispy around the sides. Qiao Ling was NOT going to take that out for takeout, that girl was 100% just gonna treat herself in a restaurant and CXS was gonna have to deal with scraps and leftovers.

Zhinü- I'm realizing that Lu Guang makes a lot of references in his internal monologue LOL. This is in reference to the Weaver Girl and Cowherd folktale, one of China's Four Great Folktales (which include Lady Meng Jiang, Legend of White Snake which is my personal favorite, and the Butterfly Lovers). It's a very classic Chinese story about a celestial weaver girl, Zhinü, who is the daughter of I think the Jade Emperor who is like the heavenly king of gods, and her lover the mortal cowherd. Long story short, her father was unhappy that she fell in love with a mortal and so separated her from her husband and children with the Milky Way. One day a year, the birds take pity on the lovers and form a bridge across the galaxy so that they can reunite. Between her and Lu Guang's weaving--or rather, spinning silk--I couldn't pass up the opportunity to make a reference.

yangmei wine - Liu Xiao is drinking some Yangmei wine. Yangmei is a type of fruit in China and I am pretty sure I actually made him drink a different wine than what I'm imagining. What I intended for him to drink is a wine that is made of a particular fruit that isn't strictly speaking edible, or at least not eaten for enjoyment. It's usually always only used for making wine, and you let the little plums (so t ospeak) soak in the alcohol until it is a bright red. Very sweet. Very strong.

Sanmao- At one point Lu Guang compares Cheng Xiaoshi to Sanmao because Cheng Xiaoshi had a small sliver of hope for his parents snatched right from underneath his nose. Sanmao is an iconic Chinese character from a long-running comic that began in the 1930s. He is a poor orphan boy during the era before and during WWII, who is just trying to survive extreme poverty. He is often mistreated by passerbys and is very lonely, often looking longingly at other kids who have food to eat and have parents. Every time someone treats him with kindness and he has just a little bit of hope that he can have a family or some good fortune, some awful circumstance happens, usually tied to tense socioeconomic injustice or war.

One of the less traumatic panels of the comic lol:

Jiuzhaigou- Cheng Xiaoshi mentions wishing that he could go there one day, and then at the end Qiao Ling and Lu Guang say that they will go together. Jiuzhaigou is in the Sichuan province, it is a nature realm that is very beautiful. There are natural deposits that make the lakes ultramarine blue and crystal clear. It's so beautiful! A photographer's dream.

Tangyuan- sweet and sticky rice dumplings that can be filled with sweet filling such as peanuts, black sesame paste, sweet egg, or more! They are often eaten during holidays, both during Winter Solstice and the 15th day after Lunar New Year. Indeed they are symbolizing family togetherness, although less because of stickiness and more because of a pun in their name. But maybe stickiness has something to do with it? Winter Solstice foods in different regions of China are also somewhat sticky, even if they don't typically eat tangyuan. I just know what I'm told lol.

Doraemon-A popular Japanese manga/anime from the 50s or 60s that is immensely beloved by the Chinese to this day. He is a robotic cat from the future with a fourth dimensional pocket full of futuristic gadgets that he uses to help Nobita, a fourth grader in the 50s, with his every day problems. He's wonderful. Also, he has a time machine which is tucked in Nobita's homework desk. Fitting....

Yixiu- Another popular Japanese anime, I believe from the 80s, that was also quite popular in China. It's about Ikkyu-san, a little monk/prince whose profound wisdom solved all sorts of grown-up's shenanigans.

Jiejie- A reader had asked the significance of Cheng Xiaoshi calling Qiao Ling this in the penultimate so I figured I'd bring it up here as well. 'Jie' is an indicator of older sister, or a bit of a respectful but also affectionate term for a young woman. Just like how Lu Guang calls Qiao Ling 'Qiao Ling jie' in the show. When he does it, it's friendly but also not actually meaning that he sees her as a sister sister because it's attached to her whole name. Cheng Xiaoshi in this story, not necessarily canon, refers to her as Ling jie every now and then. To me, this is him hearkening to childhood terms, as that is what his parents would refer to her as when he was growing up.

Take this with a grain of salt because I am a diaspora and not originally from the culture. Qiao Ling referring to Cheng Xiaoshi as 'didi' (little brother) in the show, and in the end Cheng Xiaoshi calling Qiao Ling 'jiejie' (big sister) in this fic are not rare, so to speak, or inappropriate, but you don't typically refer to someone who isn't related to you as your 'didi' or 'jiejie' unless they are blood related to you. You can call your sibling this, or your cousins this, but uuuuusually not someone who is like a sibling to you--singularly, yes, like Ling jie, but not typically Jiejie. Them calling each other this means that they truly see each other as their sibling. Also, those terms are a little bit childlike, so to speak. There are more 'grown-up' ways to refer to your little brother or big sister. In Cheng Xiaoshi's case, someone his age will probably refer to a sister as 'a jie' or 'jia jie'--at least, in Cantonese this is the case. 'Jiejie' is a little kid's way of calling their sibling. Like, up until I was about 7 years old I would have referred to my sister this way. To call someone 'jiejie' now, particularly to their face, I feel is a very vulnerable address. It's like if you as an adult who usually calls their mother 'Mom', in a time of deep distress or sadness and in need of comfort, revert to calling her 'mama' or 'mommy'. Like, you're both probably in tears to get to this point. At least, that is my experience with addresses, and therefore Cheng Xiaoshi's lol. Any fellow sinos out there can correct me but that was my intention for that part of the story. Cheng Xiaoshi is vulnerable, and he is seeking comfort from his big sister.

Mama's nursery rhyme- The story of the little rabbits and their Mama Rabbit is a very well known children's story in China. The story wasrecounted as close to memory as I can, so the only other thing I can say about it is that this is how the song goes.

Well, that's all I can think of right now! If there are any questions or you're curious about something, feel free to send me a message! Otherwise, I hope I didn't resuscitate the author too much.

#LC writes #link click #shiguang dailiren #shiguang daili ren #cheng xiaoshi #qiao ling #lu guang

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