#( necessary lessons from the bats )

[worldblight]

Ngl I don't think I need to reblog your internet positivity post to respect all these minorities you're mentioning

[eddiethebrave]

steddie empath soulmate au

When Steve was younger, he had trouble separating what he was feeling from what he wasn’t. A lot of people do at that age. When you can tap into another person’s emotions, it’s hard to know the difference between theirs and your own. 

In school, they give a very quick, very unhelpful lesson on soulmates - only really saying what kids have heard on their own anyway. It’s unspoken that you’re supposed to learn about that kind of thing from your parents - and most of his peers did. 

In his house though, mentioning your soulmate was discouraged. Steve was expected to have a hold over his emotions and just know what it took other kids years and the help of their parents to learn. He was supposed to have a wall. He was supposed to be able to shut the door on his own. He was to know the difference between what he was feeling and what he wasn’t. And for all his parents knew, he did all of that from a young age. 

What Steve had done from a young age was learn how to hide what he was and wasn’t feeling. Like right now. Right now he’s giving his date a ride home from Lucas’ championship game while simultaneously feeling the most scared he both has and hasn’t ever felt. 

He thinks now he understands better what people mean when they say you can just tell when your feelings aren’t your own. For the first time in his life, Steve knows immediately that this emotion doesn’t belong to him. For one, there’s no reason he should be scared to death while driving Brenda home, and he hasn’t felt this scared since July. For two, there is absolutely no way there’s alternate dimension shit happening right now. That shit is supposed to be over with. Then again, that’s what they’ve thought since that first time with the Demogorgon, too. That time also happens to be the first time he felt fear like this. 

It’s such a crash from the high he’s been riding all evening. Everything was exciting and good for a few hours there. 

With shaky hands, he pulls up in front of Brenda’s parent’s house. He can tell that she’s trying to make conversation, maybe expecting more from the end of their night - but he can hardly focus enough to make himself seem at least a little bit like he’s not about to cry. He stumbles his way through a goodbye, not knowing what’s happening and before he knows it he’s alone. 

Usually, Steve would walk her to the door and probably make a move on her. At the very least he’d watch to make sure she got in safe, but right now he drives away the second the passenger door closes. 

He feels an overwhelming urgency to go go go. And he does. Steve drives faster than he ever has - barring the time he saw Billy’s Camaro speeding towards Nancy’s station wagon and t-boned the boy without a second thought. 

He gets home, and for the first time in months, he opens his trunk and takes out his nail-bat. He makes quick work of getting inside his house and locking the door, looking over his shoulder the entire time. He goes around the whole house making sure all the doors and windows are locked. When he’s checking the back door - the one that leads out to the pool, he hesitates, eyes lingering on the woods that line his yard. 

Before ‘83 - before Barb - Steve wasn’t afraid of much. He felt like he was on top of the world and like nothing could bring him down. Now, though, he only goes to the backyard to complete the yard maintenance expected from him by his parents. 

Steve knows that locking the place up won’t fend off a Demogorgan - that thing came right out of the Byers’ wall, no door necessary - but it makes him feel the tiniest bit better, more secure. 

He makes his way upstairs and stumbles through getting ready for bed - as if he’ll be getting any sleep tonight. 

He knows, okay? He knows that these probably aren’t his feelings and that there’s no need to be this revved up, but he can feel it. His heart is pounding and he knows deep in his bones that he isn’t safe. 

It’s not until he lies in bed that an immense sense of grief and guilt flows over him. Steve curls up, pulling his knees to his chest, and tries not to cry.

[brucewaynehater101]

Warning: Dark, Suicidal Tim, etc. Also small spoilers for the Injustice movie

Had a random thought, slightly inspired by the Injustice movie: what if Tim, in a mental health slump, decided to teach the bats a final lesson? Every time he defends himself against Damian’s attacks, he’s criticized for it. So one day, he just doesn’t.

Damian gets angry and decides to take it out on the person he won’t be criticized for attacking. After Tim doesn’t respond to his taunts, he gets physical, and throws a knife or slashes his sword, expecting Tim to get out of the out of the way or block the blow, and Tim doesn’t. The sound of a blade parting flesh and a body falling to the ground gets the other bats attention, and they turn to see Damian standing there with blood on his blade and Tim’s body on the ground.

(Inspired by the scene in the Injustice movie where Damian kills Dick by throwing a baton (escrima stick? IDK) at him, expecting him to catch it (which, earlier in the movie, he did), and Dick, being distracted, doesn’t, and it hits him directly on the temple. Accident, sure, but caused by recklessness)

Basically Damian needs to learn that attacking other people because you are angry is NOT OKAY. Seriously, if you’re pissed, go beat up a training dummy or scream into a pillow.

Does Damian learn the lesson? Or not? What about B and Dick and the others? How do they react?

[Thank you for the TWs! WARNING: This is bad batfam. I love them, but we're chucking them under the angst crack bus for this]

Tw: Dark/Suicidal Tim, domestic abuse, psychological warfare, manipulation, mentions of suicide attempt

Tim is tired of constantly fighting back and defending himself. He's tired of Damian and Jason attacking him. He's tired of Dick and Bruce pushing his boundaries.

If Tim just allows Damian to stab him, *he'll* be the one to get lectured for not dodging. It will become Tim's fault, as a trained vigilante, for not preventing himself from being injured.

What does he decide to do?

Resist with extreme psychological warfare no matter the damage to himself.

He starts small.

He curates cases/stories of sibling abuse and starts to leave them in places Dick will find (hacking/messing with Dick's fyp, newspapers around the Manor, files on the batcomputer, a case Babs is informed about, etc). They aren't reflective of Tim's experiences, not yet, but they show common patterns: adult figures not stepping in, siblings being pushed to compete, escalation, negative behaviors transferring to people/things outside of the siblings, etc.

For Bruce, Tim tricks the man into reading an intimate relationships psychology textbook by stating it was necessary for a case. He then keeps tricking the man into reading gentle parenting, boundaries, and other such information.

Jason is much easier. Tim just leaves books of various siblings relationships within the man's safehouses (healthy ones, distant, cruel, enemies, abusive, recent siblings [like adoption], etc). Jason doesn't know Tim is the one leaving those books, but he is intrigued by the "recommendations." A lot of them have other lessons Tim has prepared mixed in as well [which, if Jason finds out Tim is the one who recommended the books after he starts getting along with him, then they can have book clubs ^^].

Tim sends a ton of empathy animal related movies/shows Dick's way so that the older one ropes Damian into watching them.

This takes months, but at no point does Tim relate the lessons to Tim himself yet.

He then starts pouring in warnings. When Damian tries to hurt him again, Tim asks Dick, "What if I was too tired to dodge it?" This is the only time he asks. Dick waves it off cause Damian "knows better" now. I

Tim almost gave up the game right there and then to prove a point. He held back, though.

For Jason, Tim throws in shock-value trauma dump phrases when they meet up to prevent the older one from attacking.

Jason: *pulls out a gun*

Tim: "Damn. You'd think after threatening to kill myself to prevent my future from occurring that I'd be okay with guns. For some reason, they still make me nauseous."

Jason: *holsters gun* "What the fuck?"

Tim: *nods and then disappears*

It kind of trains Jason from attacking Tim unless he wants to hear really fucked up shit that will have his mind spiraling for days.

For Bruce, Tim just points out how and when the man crosses other people's boundaries (but doesn't point out Tim's). He doesn't put any expectation or remedy out. He just indicates it to start Bruce's thought process of "Did I just cross someone's boundary?"

Then Tim feels that it's ready. He won't get blamed for not dodging Damian's attack.

So, he lets himself be seriously stabbed.

This cues Damian into having a mental breakdown. Dick and Bruce oscillate between blaming everyone else and then themselves. Jason, after seeing the shitshow of these reactions, assigns himself (without telling the others) to suicide watch Tim [those trauma dump phrases are working against Tim here].

Once Tim awakens and realizes the mess he's created, he fucking regrets it all. He doesn't want to have to clean it all up and manipulate them into being better. He's also kind of pissed at Damian for not aiming for his heart or something. Damn.

[blackthunder137]

Enamored by Envy (Rafe Cameron x reader)

Pairing- Rafe Cameron x fem!reader

Summary- when all you wanted was your boyfriend’s attention and while he had other plans, you decided to take matters into your own hands. 

Warnings- smut, unprotected sex, oral sex (f receiving), nickname-princess (but in a derogatory sense), fingering, jealous!rafe, brat!reader.

Author’s note- i am back and i promise i will provide you with fics as much as possible. enjoy reading <3. also, this fic ends in a cliffhanger.

navigation rafe cameron masterlist

He wasn’t looking at you, and that pissed you off. You wore your favourite red satin silk midi dress which hugged every inch of your body just so Rafe could ogle at you and later fuck your brains out but now, that seemed impossible because here you were sitting on those bar stools with a Martini in your hand and Rafe was sitting across from you making a business deal. You understood that he had work to do and you let him but it was already past an hour and he did not so much as even look in your direction, this only made you grow impatient and annoyed. 

You looked at him, in hopes that at least now he would look back at you but you found no such luck. God, you were growing annoyed and agitated, so you did what you always do best. Make him learn his lesson. You scanned the dance floor which was filled with people who were either too drunk or they were on top of each other, quite literally and dancing like there was no tomorrow. 

So you walked your way to the dance floor and started dancing. For the first few minutes that you were dancing, you kept looking at Rafe to see if he was looking at you. Nada. He didn’t even bat an eye in your direction and as the music grew louder and touched every atom in your body, you forgot about him. Your hip swayed sensually and your hands touched your entire body as you felt every bass and the melody of the music. 

You didn’t even notice the guy behind you who had his hands on your waist and swaying with you. He moved his hands with you, his breath hitting your neck as he lowered his head down to inhale your scent.

Your music-induced haze snapped and you looked over at the counter to see him, jaw clenched and his eyes shooting daggers at the guy you were dancing with.His gaze not leaving yours even for a second as he strode towards you like a panther ready to hunt its prey.

Rafe lowered his head down and whispered in your ear, “Go back to the car, princess.” his breath hit your neck which elicited goosebumps. It happened every damn time. His voice, his touch and his words always made you feel something, like your whole skin was on fire. You hated him for doing these things to you, you hated that he ignored you and he dared to come here and tell you what to do. It was all so messed up. You looked up at him and spat, “Fuck.You.” and left.

You knew he would probably punch the guy that was dancing with you but you couldn’t stay there any longer than necessary and honestly, you couldn’t care less about the guy. You made your way towards the parking lot. If Rafe wanted to come home he can use a fucking cab for himself. 

When you were about to get into the car, a hand caught your wrist and turned you around. Your back slammed into the car as a looming Rafe stood in front of you with his entire body leaning on you. You tried to break free from his hold but that asshole had a steady grip on you. He lowered his face, only inches away from yours and spoke, “And where do you think you’re going?” 

His face was so close that if you moved even a little bit you’d probably kiss him. Your eyes trailed from his face to his lips and back to his eyes. His eyes were already undressing you and it took all your willpower not to give in to his games. “Away from you,” you said through gritted teeth. You somehow broke free from his grasp and managed to open the car door, got inside and drove away. 

All you could see was red, maybe you were overreacting but he needed to be reminded that you are not just anyone and that you are your own person and if anybody wanted you, they had to work for it. 

As you pulled over in your parking lot you saw a silhouette of a person, no, Rafe. How the hell did he reach faster than you? Ignoring that you made your way towards the door, he stood tall and strong and opened the door for you and said, “After you, princess.” 

What was up with him? Why was he saying stuff like this? You had no fucking idea. You entered your hall after which Rafe closed the door behind him. You made your way towards the dining table when his hand gripped your waist and slammed you against the dining table, the wood dug into your hips as you let out a harsh breath. 

“Now what was all the attitude about, princess?” he whispered as his hand held your waist in an almost bruising hold. 

“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” you spat out as you tried pushing him away but he didn’t budge. “You didn’t even look at me! I tried calling your name but you wouldn’t respond. It was as if you were fucking ignoring my whole existence!” 

He brought his head down to your ears, hot breath hitting your ears and spoke through gritted teeth, “If I so much as looked at you, I would’ve lost all my senses and control and fucked you right then and there. You see I had a deal which needed to be looked into but you had other plans of going out there and dancing with that worthless fucker-” he moved your hair from your neck slowly and torturously that you had to close your eyes and bit your lips to tamp down the unwanted thoughts that were building up. He bit your neck hard causing you to cry out as you held his arms on either side. “You know what happens to a bad girl don’t you princess?” he whispered, making you clench your thighs together.

You had gotten to him alright and now you had to face consequences for it which you happily will. He got back up from your neck and looked straight into your eyes when his hand covered your neck pressing it firmly yet surely. “Now, you know what happens to girls like you don’t you, princess.” and with that, he kissed you hard causing you to sink deeper into the dining table wood. His tongue entered your mouth without permission, assaulting you in ways that sent a wave of pleasure right to your core. His hold on your neck tightened as he sunk deeper into your mouth, pressing his hard length right against your already wet cunt. 

A moan escaped from your mouth as he continued to kiss you, messily and eagerly. He broke apart the kiss as your chest heaved from the impact. In one swift movement, he lifts your dress, throwing your panties away and laying you down on the dining table. “Spread your legs, princess,” he croaked, licking his lips as his eyes practically devoured your entire being. 

“No,” you replied, challenging him and pressing your thighs together to avoid him from doing anything to you . He turned his head to the side, the corner of his lips lifting into a half-smile and with one shift of his strong hands your legs were pulled apart. He lowered his head and licked your bare pussy. That single action made you close your eyes and throw your head back. 

He made a grunting sound before he put his thumb on your clit massaging and palming it. Your breaths became quicker and your eyelids started to get heavy. “Eyes on me,” Rafe’s firm voice floated through your haze and made you quickly snap your eyes open and look at him. You would usually put up more of a fight but you were too into the sensation that even if you tried  saying anything it would come out as gibberish. 

His mouth mapped every bit of your inner thigh, marking and branding you his. His mouth then moved onto your clit, sucking and biting it. While he was busy assaulting your clit, two of his fingers thrust, hard, inside your cunt. His fingers worked professionally as if you were a canvas and he were the artist, painting a masterpiece for the world to see. 

He was continually hitting the right spot, again and again. Your hips jerked from the force building in your core just one more stroke, lick and bite and you would come undone. As soon as you were close to the edge, so close, he withdrew his fingers and mouth. You made the most guttural noise known to mankind and glared at him for denying you an orgasm. 

He simply smirked and removed his pants and boxers, freeing his big cock. His pre-cum dripped from his tip and he was hard. You looked at him to find him already looking at you, his dick positioned right in front of your pussy. One hard thrust got you screaming his name. He held you by the throat and brought you closer to him so now your face was closer to his chest. He leaned down, his voice breathless, “Look at us princess, our bodies were made for each other. You are mine to fuck, mine to see and mine to taste. No one gets to touch what’s mine.” As he said the last words, his grip on your throat tightened. His words made your skin heat with lust. You grabbed his hair in your hands and crashed your lips to his. This encouraged him to pick his pace up and he fucked you raw. The only sound that echoed the room was your skin slapping against his. His thumb massaged your clit and his cock hit the right spot that made your eyes roll to the back of your head. 

“Ra-rafe…ah!” you screamed out as you came apart. Your eyes shut taking in the feeling of total bliss. He came right after you with a grunt and you could practically feel his warm cum leaking out and dripping down your thigh. You let out a sigh and laid back down the dining table. You were exhausted from the night's activities and as soon as you were coming down your high Rafe lifted you up and hauled you over his shoulder. You yelped in surprise. 

“Rafe put me the fuck down!” you exclaimed. He took up the stairs and set you down on the bed. His eyes roaming all around your body, from your hair to your legs. You were sure you were a mess with your hair strands falling all over the place and your cheeks flushed. 

His eyes came back to yours and he replied, “I’m not done yet.” His hoarse and commanding voice set a jolt of electricity straight to your core

[isoobie]

nerdy ✶ psh

what you looking at, huh? wc 394 & fluff

‘honestly, what is his problem?’ the voice in your head echoed for the third time today.

park sunghoon, you were curious about him, very. he was timid, hidden away by textbooks and only talked when necessary. he wore these thick, black rimmed glasses which sat perfectly above his nose bridge, and every time he used his delicate fingers to make them upright, you couldn’t help but look.

you hate to admit it, but sometimes you catch yourself getting lost into his dark pupils while admiring his annoyingly pretty face. if sunghoon stared at you the most, you stared at him even more.

he came to school on time, never had a crease on his uniform and was a cliché, top student. ever since you had moved from your old school it looked like you caught his attention. you would catch him stealing glances at you while nervously pretending he didn't. it was cute .. you thought.

vice versa, sunghoon caught your eye as well. it's basically impossible to look away when he looks so angelic under the sunlight not batting an eye at anything but his work.

"are you staring at me?"

it was probably the first time he had ever directly talked to you, hence the tensed tone in his voice.

"what if i am, it's not like you haven't,"

you could see his blush creeping up on his cheeks and his ears turning red, you wish you could photoengrave this moment and use it to tease him for the rest of his life.

"by the way, do you need help on that problem?"

his voice was high pitched and apprehensive, anyone could have easily told that park sunghoon was nervous, because of you.

however, his question was valid, you were struggling on this problem for a long time and unconsciously, you had probably observed him so that he would help you.

"hmm why don't we go to a cafe after school to solve it, we should focus on the lesson right now, don't you think so?"

the textbook that was on the desk concealed his face as you try to hide your smile, when was he ever this adorable? but as you reach it, you see his flushed cheeks and a smile mirroring yours.

he fixes his glasses again before saying,

"my answer is always a yes when it comes to you."

© isoobie hoon with glasses has me weak

[kraviolis]

WHY does no one think camila would be super active in her kids' lives!!!!! that she would just immediately dip from the demon realm and not go back unless necessary!!!!! she's not gonna pull a greg universe and step away from one of the most important parts of her kids' lives just because she's uncomfortable with magic!!!! shes a Noceda!!!!!

she would become good friends with all the adults in luz & vee & hunter's lives. she visits the boiling isles several times a week and hosts big family dinners at her house where she invites all of her kids' friends and parents and teachers. her home is always open to any of her kids' friends or parents, whether they need a shoulder or a friend or a break or a hot meal or even just homework help. she babysits king whenever she can find the time to and he starts calling her "mamila" and no, it doesnt make her choke up every time.

she makes a penstagram account with a cosmic frontier reference for her username to keep in close contact with her new friends and she actually knows how to use it better than hunter does. she's the first person alador goes to when he needs advice about being a parent. she has a permanent offer to stay at the owl house or at alador's home whenever she needs. she meets with gilbert, harvey, perry, steve, and raine for brunch every sunday morning.

she and principal bump meet and he is absolutely honored to meet her and he gives her the opportunity to give extracurricular after school lessons at hexside about the human version of beast-healing. she does a single lesson once a month, but does open up the chance for one or two older kids at a time to shadow her at her vet clinic for a day as a little field trip (viney always gets herself at the top of the list and becomes well known around the clinic) and she is lovingly teased by her co-workers for always picking up "strays".

she is one of the people on scene during the gathering of the guards who had all been murdered by their own creator and left to rot in the dark for decades. she doesn't have the strength in her to be one of the ones collecting the remains of all these men and boys who once had her son's face, but she stands by hunter's side and keeps him from falling to pieces and they help make sure all the golden guards all finally given a chance for peaceful rest.

she helps gus with preparing the curriculum for his classes on the human realm in eda's new school. she is there at all of the emerald entrails' flyer derby matches and wears green face paint to every single one and cheers the loudest. she's the one who takes amity to her meeting with the dean of the university of abominations when alador gets fireflu and is stuck in bed. she is the one who figures out hunter's never had a proper birthday party and quickly remedies that.

she meets the elder clawthornes and absorbs every piece of wisdom they give her as if they were her own grandparents. she learns palisman care from dell clawthorne so she can better take care of stringbean whenever luz leaves her palisman with her mom. she gets roped into learning how to carve wood by hunter during the start of his apprenticeship under dell & the bat queen.

her name ends up in the history books of the boiling isles, and not just for being known as the mother of luz the human. she becomes known for being the reason of the sudden boom in witches who focus in beast-healing and the reinvention of the entire industry on the boiling isles. she is known as one of the first people to rediscover and establish contact and fight for the protection of all the basilisks scattered across the boiling isles, who were previously thought to be extinct.

she would NOT just stand by and watch her children come and go between realms with her house serving as the port but not the embassy. she was once that very child, caught between what felt like different worlds, feeling as if she might be forced to choose one or the other because her parents were too uncomfortable with what felt like half of her soul. she would refuse to let luz, vee, or hunter feel as if they have to angle those halves away from her so they dont have to watch her wince at them.

camila noceda would make an effort to make the demon realm a part of herself, too, so that no matter where her kids settled themselves down in the future, they would still always feel at home with her.

[aemondluvbot]

𝖑𝖆𝖙𝖊 𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙 𝖑𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖔𝖓𝖘

✧ ⸺ aemond x reader︱a “the dragon and the sparrow” blurb

𝔞. 𝔫𝔬𝔱𝔢: i have always genuinely adored the scenes in acotar where rhys teaches feyre how to read so this is very much inspired by that

𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔰: allusions to smut but nothing on page for this one, innuendo, nudity, fluff apart from that

“aeg…aegon the con…conc…” you groan in frustration, the words dancing in front of you eyes—elusive and more difficult than they have any right to be. 

“conqueror,” aemond corrects gently, brushing his knuckles up and down your bare shoulders as you sit between his legs, the giant tome in your hands. it’s much past your bedtime, the hour of the bat, and yet you’re determined… determined to show him that you can make progress, you can learn. 

it’s been a challenging few weeks, but you want to show him you’re worth teaching, a good student. 

“aegon the conqueror,” you repeat, a little more confident, “was the f-feerst…?”

“first,” the prince corrects you again, laughing softly when you huff and slam the book shut. “come on little sparrow, you can’t give up just yet.”

“i’ve been trying!” you whine. and it’s true, every spare minute you have between washing linens and mopping floors and boiling water for baths, you sneak in quick peeks at the loose pages aemond has been giving you. more often than not, it’s history lessons—targaryen history and stories from all seven kingdoms, histories of dragons and lands beyond the narrow sea. 

anything and everything that’s challenging for you. anything and everything for you to learn how to read. 

“i know you have been, my sweet,” the prince placates you a little, placing a kiss on your bare shoulder. 

just hours ago you were tossing between the sheets, lost in the throes of ecstasy, and now here you are… frustrated beyond belief and still on the first page of this newest lesson. 

“open the book,” he says. it’s an order, more like, one you shouldn’t refuse. still you grumble a little, making him chuckle again. “go on…”

you clear your throat, a little dramatic. “aegon the con…queror… the conqueror was the… first l-lord of the sev…en kingdoam…kingdoms,” you pause, breaking apart several times and repeating words until they feel familiar on your tongue. until the letters make a little more sense than before. “and king on… the irun—”

“iron.”

“iron th…throne.” 

“very good,” aemond praises, turning your face to him so he can give you a kiss as reward. 

this has been the routine for a few weeks now—he fucks you to within an inch of your life and then makes you sit between his legs, a book in your hands, making you read the words out loud to him. the kisses are your favourite reward, as much a treat for you as it is for him. 

“this is so dull,” you whine again, in a difficult mood tonight. 

aemond hums. “you think my ancestor, aegon the conqueror, is dull?” 

you gasp, realising what just came out of your mouth in front of the prince when you feel a pinch on your hip, making you half-yelp half-giggle. his mouth hovers just above your ear, kissing the shell and the lobe and then your jaw. 

“i think i agree with you,” he whispers, making you giggle a little more. “should we get a new book then?”

“mm-hmm,” you nod, “you told me once you had a book on vhagar for me. i’d like that one, my prince.” 

wordlessly, aemond leaves the bed, taking the book in your hands away with him. you instantly miss the warmth of his body, of the feel of his skin against yours. but you can’t complain too much about it, not when he's right there in front of you, gloriously naked and searching for the book you requested. 

“a lot of big words in this one,” aemond warns while you salivate over his backside. you have a sneaking suspicion he’s taking longer than necessary, standing right there for a few more moments just for your viewing pleasure. 

“i’m quite good with big things, my prince,” you answer, rather coy. 

“are you now?” aemond turns sideways, his little smirk now half-visible. “that mouth of yours will get you in trouble some day, little sparrow.”

it’s not a threat, not even close. and yet it sends a tendril of thrill down your spine and straight to your core. “i look forward to that day, my prince.” 

his smirk turns into a smile, but the prince chooses not to answer, pulling the book down from a high shelf instead. once he’s back in bed you slot yourself back between his legs, comfortable and snug. 

the book looks just as old as the others, leather-bound and its pages yellowing, but the illustration on the front page is all too familiar. for a moment you close your eyes and think of the wind rushing through your hair, think of the prince’s arms around you much like they are now. 

“shall we begin?” he nudges and you nod, turning to the first page. 

you begin much like before—struggling with the words and repeating them until they come a little more easily. aemond corrects much like before too, gently guiding you over the more difficult ones, praising with kisses and soft touches when you get them right. it’s only after the first page that you turn to him in curiosity. 

“can i ask something, my prince?”

he hums, busy stroking his fingers through your hair, and you take that as a yes. 

“how did you get her? vhagar… she’s centuries older than you and so much bigger. you can’t have had her as an egg in your cradle.”

“i didn’t,” he answers, closing his eyes perhaps to reminisce the day you’d asked about, stroking your head still. “i was just a boy, ten years of age… and she was riderless.”

“you were ten?” your voice drips with incredulity, not doubting him, never doubting him. when you close your eyes you can picture it so clearly—a small boy of ten, silver hair down to his shoulders, approaching a dragon hundreds of times his size.

“do you not believe me, little sparrow?” aemond teases. 

“i’d never doubt you,” you respond. “what did you say to her?”

“i said, ‘dohaerās, vhagar! lykirī,’ and she let me climb her,” the prince explains, dramatising the familiar words you’d heard him speak in high valyrian just a few weeks ago. 

“you told her to… to… serve, and… be calm?”

“look at you, little sparrow,” aemond swoops down, capturing your lips in his for a deep lingering kiss that has heat coiling in your belly again. rather possessively, you grab his face in your hands, deepening the kiss, relishing the feel of his mouth on yours until he’s the one to break it. 

“you can learn high valyrian—” another small peck on your lips “—once you’ve mastered the common tongue. until then…” his arms loop around you again, putting the book back in your lap to the page it was on before, and tapping the page with his finger. 

you intertwine your fingers with his, kissing the back of his hand. “if that’s what my prince commands…” 

and then you begin all over again. 

𝔱𝔞𝔤𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔱: @uhnanix

[skywriter97]

Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic

A ShadowxAurora One Shot

Shadow never meant to keep it. With the limited space in his apartment, a piano wasn't exactly practical. But he'd seen it sitting on the street while on a run, a pathetic little spinet that apparently wasn't worth the effort for repair according to the owner, so it sat in wait for the dump truck.

Omega thought he was nuts when Shadow had used Chaos Control to transport the piano into the apartment, and perhaps he was. The instrument had definitely seen better days, and it would take more than a simple tune up to get it in pristine condition again.

That didn't stop Shadow from shoving the spinet against the wall between his mattress and the front door and then going out to purchase the necessary items for piano repairs.

The spinet became Shadow's passion project over the next several weeks. Any spare moment between his mercenary work with Omega and dates with Aurora, Shadow could be found with the spinet piano, painstakingly doting over the instrument to set it to rights again.

"You never told me you can fix instruments." Aurora had noted once, sitting on the little bench with her legs swinging while half of Shadow's body was inside the back of the spinet.

"Never came up." Shadow had grunted.

"Where'd you learn?" She'd pressed.

Shadow had shrugged. "I did a lot of things while off world, Light. Sometimes I was asked to fix things, and music is universal." Aurora had accepted that answer, and Shadow minutely relaxed.

No way he was EVER going to tell her that some aristocrat across the galaxy had taken fancy to him and tried to get his attention by breaking her piano, just so he'd come and fix it. It was the fastest he'd ever fled a planet. Omega still hadn't let him live it down.

The plan for the spinet once he'd finished repairs was simple enough: take it to the resale shop and get a decent sum of cash for it. He'd contacted the shop, gotten a good offer, and was set to deliver and receive his rings, but when he arrived and saw the buyer...a mother and son duo, the latter whom was whining about how much he HATED piano lessons and was currently and carelessly swinging a baseball bat around in his fit....Shadow took his piano and left.

No way was Shadow going to let all his hard work repairing his baby go to waste on some ungrateful brat that lacked basic appreciation. So, the little spinet piano became a permanent fixture in his apartment.

Shadow had never considered himself a musician of any sort. He was a warrior, a mercenary, the Ultimate Lifeform, a guardian. Music...required a certain softness that Shadow, with all his broken pieces and jagged edges, simply did not possess. But, somehow, that didn't matter. Sitting at his little spinet, gingerly filling his apartment with the soft tones of the classics centered him with a kind of peace he rarely ever achieved...with one exception. When he played, Shadow could pretend that was all there was. Just him and his spinet, creating something beautiful together. It was almost magical, if he believed in such a thing.

Shadow huffed a quiet chuckle, gently resting his hand atop the keys but not pressing down, his thoughts drifting towards the other almost-magical thing in his life. Honestly, if it magic was a thing, Shadow could believe it, because of her. The way she pranced through life, with such light and arms wide open, eager and excited for whatever came her way...could anything else but magical describe his precious Light?

Almost without his command, his fingers gently drifted across the spinet's keys, a delicate melody that swirled and danced through the air. Shadow sighed.

"Though I tried before to tell her

Of the feelings I have for her

In my heart.

Every time that I come near her

I just lose my nerve as I've done

From the start."

How many times has Shadow looked into those emerald eyes, seen that smile, and choked? It was three simple words, why was it so difficult? He's made peace with the past, hasn't he?

"Every little thing she does is magic

Everything she does just turns me on.

Even though my life before was tragic

Now I know my love for her goes on."

A sniffle behind him had Shadow whirling around, Chaos Spear halfway formed in his hand and a snarl on his muzzle, when those same piercing emerald eyes damp with tears stopped him dead. Shadow gulped, his ears flattening against his head. Damn. How long had she- Shadow made get up, averting his eyes as embarrassment colored his cheeks rosy red.

And then she's right there, pushing him back down on the bench with pleas of "Please don't stop, don't mind me-," and she's still looking at him with those eyes, pleading and wet, her body pressed tight against his side, lips protruding in the most pitiful pout...

Chaos, he was screwed, wasn't he?

Shadow sighed and tapped her nose with his finger. "You will say nothing to anyone about this." He commanded, and tried to ignore how distracting that beaming smile was in order to return to the piano. He gulped, frozen with his fingers in position. He knew his voice was not what anyone would call gifted, hers was so much better, and he chanced a glance down to his shoulder where she'd laid her head. She smiled at him again, eager and encouraging, and Shadow gulped and resumed playing.

"Do I have to tell the story

Of a thousand rainy days

SInce we first met?

It's a big enough umbrella

But it's always me

That ends up getting wet.

Every little thing she does is magic

Everything she does just turns me on.

Even though my life before was tragic

Now I know my love for her goes on."

Shadow rested his cheek against the top of her head, mindful of the short grouping of quills that acted as bangs, closing his eyes momentarily and just breathing.

"I resolve to call her up

A thousand times a day

And ask her if she'll marry me

In some old fashioned way.

But my silent fears have gripped me

Long before I reach the phone.

Long before my tongue has tripped me

Must I always be alone?"

Her arms squeezed him gently, reassuringly, around his middle, and he pressed a kiss to her head in response, smiling at the growing damp spot on his shoulder.

"Every little thing she does is magic,

Everything she does just turns me on.

Even though my life before was tragic

Now I know my love for her goes on,"

Shadow dropped one hand from the piano and cupped Aurora's cheek, tilting her chin up to look into her eyes, shining with light and joy, and he knew his words wouldn't fail him this time. He smiled at her and leaned his forehead on hers.

"Every little thing you do is magic

Everything you do just turns me on.

Even though my life before was tragic

Know that my love for you goes on."

Shadow ended the song with a soft kiss to her lips, sealing his declaration of devotion with all the love and passion and dedication he had in his heart in the best way he knew how. Words always failed him, but somehow, in this moment, it didn't matter. Aurora wept through his kiss, and he smiled as they parted, a quirk of his mouth so gentle and loving that only she would ever get to see it.

Aurora pounced on him a single moment later, using her own gift of speed to press kiss after kiss on his lips, face, head, everywhere she could reach, glowing so brightly and joyfully exclaiming "I love you"s between kisses. Shadow briefly wondered how she wasn't suffocating before dismissing the thought and basking in their shared love, trading her kisses and words with ones of his own. It didn't matter anyway.

Every little thing she did was magic, after all.

[elizabethemerald]

Summon the Cat: Part 6

Master Post

Danny crouched, looking down at the McMansion from a neighboring roof. The house was ostentatious to a fault. He wasn’t much of an expert on architecture in general but he had studied this building’s design extensively. It had been built to one up its next door neighbor that Danny was currently waiting upon. Due to trying to get the most of the available acreage the mansion pressed up against its neighbors, rather than the extensive topiary gardens the rest of the rich mansions had. 

The house Danny was on had a pool house that once had a beautiful view, except the garage of the McMansion now overshadowed it. He couldn’t help but roll his eyes. All rich people were fruit loops. The continued drama with Bruce just proved him right. 

According to Selina (his new mom!!) Bruce had thrown seven kinds of fits about the Kyle family moving in next door. He had tried to bench Red Robin for selling Drake Manor, but Tim just moved out to his penthouse in Gotham proper and had the occasional sleep over at the Kyle House when he was feeling lonely. 

The kids all seemed happy to have the Kyles and the Sirens so close. Jason and Dick were over every other week, Jason to experiment with his cooking, Dick to train Danny and Jazz in gymnastics. Danny loved Jason’s skill in the kitchen and was paying avid attention so he could learn how to cook, because he certainly didn’t want the Fenton’s terror in the kitchen to infect him. Jazz was content to know that they were both eating nutritious food that they didn’t have to fight. Also, she had apparently always wanted to be in gymnastics but the Fentons considered it less important than ghost hunting and she couldn’t afford the lessons on her own. Danny of course used the lessons during his training with his mom to be a cat burglar. 

Jazz spent a lot of time with Stephanie and Cassandra. Bruce had tried to bench them as well, except Steph had laughed in his face while Cass had stolen any equipment they needed and the pair moved into the Kyle House, more specifically into Jazz’s bedroom. He wasn’t stupid, he knew exactly what the three girls were up to in there, the love bites on Jazz’s shoulders made it obvious, but he didn’t want to think about his sister’s love life, though he was happy that the two girls made her so happy. 

He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the reminder of the one time he had a nightmare and almost walked in on the triad, then groaned quietly as he had licked the inside of his mask. Danny, Selina and the rest of the Sirens worked together to design his new costume. His nose and mouth were covered by a rigid mask and respirator shaped into the rictus grin of the Cheshire Cat. Selina had bemoaned not thinking about covering her face more with her costume. Harley had recommended leaning into his creepy factor, with the grin and slit eyes on his goggles. He could make both glow when he wanted to up the creep factor even more. 

Danny had enjoyed crafting the character he wanted to portray with his mom and his two aunts. He would allow his giggles to get caught on cameras, or the glow of his eyes to be seen. It was fun to be spooky without also getting chased by either his parents or the GIW. He had chosen the name Chesire as his thief name as an homage to his mom’s name of Catwoman. He had heard that there was apparently a villain named Chesire already, but he hoped that considering they were interested in such different crimes she wouldn’t be mad. 

His outfit was equipped with top of the line tools. Some he had made himself, some he had pickpocketed from the bats, including his own father. He made certain that he kept a clear division between when he was out as Chesire and when he was hanging out with the Waynes as Danny Kyle. He didn’t want them to worry about his intentions when he was with them. Harley had sewn his costume and the reinforcements necessary to tangle with the Justice League and the Bats. Ivy had given Danny some toys as well, his respirator could filter out any plant based toxin, and he had some pollens, spores and toxins of his own to knock out guards. 

On top of the mask and goggles he had a loose cowl with cat ears on top that completed his look. The cowl hid his identity without hampering his movement like the stiff ears Batman had would. He loved the spookiness of allowing his eyes to glow through his goggles from the depths of the hood. 

Danny tilted his head as a click sounded in his ear piece. He grinned and jumped across the high fence to their target. Selina was used to working by herself so she kept any conversation to a minimum, relying on small signals to show him when it was time to move. 

He landed lightly on an air conditioning unit, using just a touch of flight to slow his landing and eliminate the sound. He stood on his tiptoes and pulled a screwdriver from his kit. He had rebuilt the small tool himself, making it whisper quiet. Even the small sound of the tool was covered by the whir of the AC unit as he unscrewed the vent above his head. He gently pried the vent cover off, then hooked a cord through the vent itself so it dangled from the opening. 

Danny levered himself up and into the small opening. He couldn’t imagine his mom squeezing through the small gap, even though she had to do that herself when she was younger. Fortunately, he was skinny as a twig and had his ghost strength to lift himself up. Aunt Harley called him wiry. Jason called him a shrimp, though he changed his tune when Danny dead lifted him. 

He crept across the ductwork above the garage, looking down on the cars after he pulled the vent cover back into place with the cord and secured it with a bit of plain Blu tack. Mom insisted that you could have the best tech in the world, but sometimes simple solutions were the best. They had considered stealing the fancy showpiece cars, but cars were much easier to track and they already had Bruce breathing down their necks so they weren’t worth it. That didn’t mean they couldn’t cause some chaos, just for fun. 

Danny hooked his ankle around one of the duct supports and leaned down until he was upside down and took careful aim with a grapple he pickpocketed from Nightwing only this past week. He had been practicing this shot for hours every day for weeks. He took a deep breath, then triggered the grapple. The hook bounced off the concrete under a fake Model T at the perfect angle to hook the top of a storage rack against the wall. The rack was filled with tools and parts so the rich prick who owned the McMansion could pretend he actually worked on the cars himself. 

He reeled in the grapple until the shelf was on the verge of tipping forward, the cable straining against the bottom of the Model T, and he couldn’t help his namesake Cheshire grin. He hooked the grapple gun onto the duct support and playfully tapped the taut line like a piano string. This would make a delightful mess to cover his exit. 

Another click in his ear reminded him that they were on a time clock. Selina had bought them a couple of hours free of the Bat and that time was closing steadily. He finished making his way into the house proper. He found the central control for the house’s security system easily enough. He broke the cover off the panel and quickly bypassed the security. 

Selina had been surprised by his ease with bypassing electronic systems. Danny had learned a lot from Tucker and repeated encounters with Technus, but he had been dealing with the security systems of the Fentons for as long as he could remember. He could rewire and bypass most security systems in his sleep, and they wouldn’t even shoot him if he failed. 

He tapped his ear piece sending a single click and after a few moments he was joined by his mom as she walked in the front door, bold as brass. She smiled at him and rubbed his head, causing Danny to preen and his core to thrum in his chest. 

“Well done, kitten.” She said, practically purring in pride, before she glanced around the ground floor of the McMansion. “Now, Cheshire. You picked this mark, let’s get away with everything we can.” 

The mother-son duo made quick work of the mansion’s valuables. Art pieces and statues were slipped into a bag that Danny had connected to the Infinite Realms. The ectoplasm would short out any electronics or trackers and they wouldn’t have to worry about fleeing while loaded down. He would be able to recover the larger goods later when the heat had all but disappeared. He didn’t have perfect control over his portal abilities, but it was enough to get back and forth from the Realms. Training his powers with Selina and his aunts had really improved his skills. 

The two of them worked in tandem, flawlessly stripping valuables, cracking a safe in the bedroom, and taking everything they could get their claws on. Danny felt flushed with happiness. He was working alongside his mom, stealing from a rich prick who stole from his workers, he felt amazing. 

A click sounded in both of their ears, causing them to pause. Their window of Bat free time just closed. They slung their collection of valuables over their shoulders and began to race back through the house. Selina split off, her whip cracking as she swung off to another building. Danny made his way back into the garage as Robin and Red Robin landed behind him. Danny smiled, and allowed his eyes and mouth to glow for the full Cheshire effect. 

He activated the grapple gun as he passed and with a whir and an almighty crash the storage rack collapsed down onto the vintage vehicles. Red Robin yelped as he tried to follow but was forced to dodge a bouncing tire. Robin was far more nimble making his way through the mess, but he was still delayed enough by the wreckage for Danny to dive through the vent and jump to get back to the roof of the pool house next door. As soon as he was out of range of the cameras he vanished and lifted up into the air, flying silently and invisibly. He carefully moderated his body temperature so he was exactly the same temp as the surrounding night air. He didn’t want to risk showing up on heat sensors used by the Bats. 

Danny followed another crack of his mom’s whip to where she was running just ahead of the Bat himself. He scowled as Bruce threw a pair of Batarangs at her, though he was relieved as she nimbly dodged them. Danny may have had numerous problems with the Fentons, but at least he never had to be afraid of one of them hurting each other. Seeing his mom in danger from the man who should be his dad filled him with a cold anger. He tapped his ear piece to let her know he was free of the mansion and that he was close. 

Selina stopped running and turned, to saucily sashay towards the heavily armored Batman. He had considered making his costume super flirty and evocative like his mom’s but it made him uncomfortable, like ants were on his skin to have people stare at him like that. Jazz had reminded him that he didn’t have to do everything exactly like Selina did, and that it was important for him to carve his own path forward. 

“Catwoman. Enough is enough. I need you to submit to testing. You are being controlled.” Batman growled, and Danny struggled not to growl right back. He wasn’t controlling her! And how dare this jerk growl at his mom!

“Submit? To you? That’s not how our arrangements usually work.” Selina said with a coy smile as she swished her whip across the rooftop, not even acknowledging the rest of his words. Apparently after the past couple of months she had grown bored with trying to argue with him, and she was refusing to be tested for mind control just to antagonize him. 

Also, gross. 

That was another reason he was glad he didn’t copy her flirty persona. His mom was very comfortable with her body and her sexuality and she admitted she got a thrill when she used either to control people around her. Danny, who was still coming to terms with possibly being ace and had all the body issues of a bullied teen, only felt anxious when he tried to flirt. 

He crept through the air towards his mom, pulling strongly on his intangibility and control of his own temperature to make himself completely undetectable. He carefully watched the Bat for any sudden moves. 

“Catwoman-” 

“Don’t you ever get tired?” Selina asked, still playfully swishing her whip across the roof. “You’re so certain you’re right, even after months, even in the face of all evidence. Honestly you’re just like the Fentons. I know you’ve looked into them, think about that the next time you want to have me submit to your battery of tests.” 

Bruce tried to keep his emotions locked down, but Danny could see the micro expression even with the heavy cowl. The small twitch would have been a full flinch in a lesser man. Danny’s scowl deepened as he realized just how similar he was to the Fentons. He just hoped this time wouldn’t end with him strapped to a table. 

“Selina-” 

His voice had softened, but Danny saw his mom move her arm to the side, the signal they had agreed on. He grabbed her, passing his flight and intangibility to her as he allowed his invisibility to roll back enough to reveal his grinning mask. Bruce stiffened, his lips tightening in fury. He reached for some tool from his belt, but Danny wasn’t going to stay around to see what it was. He lifted his mom effortlessly from the roof, and let himself giggle as he rocked his head side to side as his invisibility rolled over him until just his smile was visible, before vanishing completely. 

He flew with his mom in his arms, finding themselves on the other side of Gotham close to Selina’s old penthouse. He set her down and pulled his invisibility back so they both appeared out of thin air. He knew the rictus grin on his mask and the cat’s eyes on his goggles were glowing brightly as his core flared in delight. 

“Amazing job, Chess.” Selina said fondly, pulling him to a hug before she pushed his cowl back so she could kiss his head. Danny held her tightly and let his core purr wildly to show his delight. She pulled back her own cowl, revealing her face and her tight black curls. She looked him over closely to make sure he was uninjured. “Cheshire, you and I are a team made in thief heaven. I look forward to watching your perspective as you went in.”

Danny smiled widely, and pulled his own goggles over his head, and lowered his mask. 

“It was great! I even made that trick shot I was practicing, brought the whole rack down onto his stupid fake vintage cars. Of course if they were real, they would basically shrug it off, but they crumpled! Ruined his whole collection.” 

Danny had started floating as he laughed through his retelling. He transformed with a thought, his ghost form matching his Cheshire costume more and more as the months went by. His tail whipped back and forth through the air as he excitedly paced back and forth above the roof they were on. 

“Danny…” He paused at the solemn tone in his mom’s voice. She had a sad tilt to her eyebrows that he had noticed she had occasionally when she looked at him in his ghost form. 

“Y-yeah?” His voice cracked a little, he was more trepidatious than he wanted to admit. 

“Danny, would you like a grave?” Selina asked. 

He felt like the word thundered through his head, and he found himself landing on the roof next to his mom, his mouth open.

[devildom-moss]

Roses for You (9)

This had all started when you noticed a link between a book on the language of flowers you had borrowed from Satan’s room and the current lessons from your Seductive Speechcraft and Magical Potions classes.

In Seductive Speechcraft, you had just reached a section on the effectiveness of spells using non-verbal communication: enchanting glances, dance, and offerings. Meanwhile, in Magical Potions, the professor had been discussing the significance of using specific quantities when concocting potions; they had spent fifteen minutes just providing examples – including adding petals from two different flowers when using them for a love spell.

You couldn’t resist discussing the use of flower language – utilizing the type, color, and quantity of the flowers – to specify the magical intent of an offering as a form of seductive speechcraft. Asmo and Solomon listened intently. The same idea popped into both of their minds, and before you knew it, everyone was looking into color and number meanings, searching for the perfect combination to convey their feelings for you and try to put you under their spell. The only rule for their little competition to charm you? Only roses are allowed.

Will you be charmed by their attempts?

Nine Roses - Barbatos

Word Count: +1,500 (sorry. I think my bias is showing.)

Eternal love

“Hey, Barbatos, why did you want to see me today?” You stood at the door to the Demon Lord’s castle.

Barbatos chuckled and stepped aside to allow you in. “What would you say if I told you I simply wanted to see you?”

“I’d say, ‘I’m glad you invited me because I missed you, too.’”

You missed the brief widening of his smile. He was delighted by your response, but the thought of someone walking into the foyer and seeing him practically fawning over you caused him to suppress that joy.

“Actually,” Barbatos started with a hint of something between hesitation and musing. “I was finishing up a task that I believe you might enjoy. Would you like to try your hand at making a flower arrangement?”

“I don’t know if I’d be any good at it, but it sounds fun.”

“Excellent. Come with me to the garden.” Barbatos turned, hiding the sudden appearance of a grin, and led the way. Perfect, he thought. It was no coincidence that you “caught him” in the middle of this particular task. He had worked hard to complete his necessary duties ahead of time so that he could spend the entire afternoon with you. This last task had been postponed until you were on your way with the hope that it would spark your interest – with the expectation that his plan would come to fruition. “I have a table set up in the garden where I was previously making arrangements. The flowers around the castle required refreshing. Although, as you can see, I’ve already completed a few.”

There was a vase slightly ahead of you on a table in the hall. You recognized the purple basil and black calla lilies, but there was something else in the arrangement – some alien- or Devildom-looking plant. It was a large dark reddish-brown, almost black, with petals that resembled wings – some pointed, demonic version of an orchid. Even stranger were the long, whisker-like tendrils that jutted out from the center. You’d never seen anything like it. “What type of flower is that?”

“I take it you mean the black bat flower?” Barbatos hummed and stopped in front of the vase.

“Is it native to the Devildom? It’s incredible. I half-expected it to growl at me as we walked by.”

“No, my dear,” Barbatos chuckled. “This plant is from the human world, but it tolerates Devildom conditions quite well; in fact, it flourishes here – much like yourself. I’ve heard about your recent interest in flower meanings, would you happen to have learned about any of these?”

“Well, I’m not sure if it’s the same for purple basil, but basil is usually a symbol of love, right?”

“It is now, although I’ve read that it once symbolized hatred. It was said to drive men insane. What an interesting turn of events. Both the calla lilies and the bat flower symbolize transformation, strength, and mystery. However, the black calla lily has a rather unique association.” Barbatos paused and turned to face you. His tail wrapped around the back of your thighs and pulled you closer to him. He held your gaze seductively and spoke, slow and heavy: “forbidden love.”

Barbatos had brought you here on purpose – both to see that particular arrangement and because the hall was quiet and not prone to foot traffic. He gave you a gentle smile that smothered the spark of heat you had felt in his eyes.

You found yourself searching for something to say – to cut the charged tension in a still-very-public part of the castle. “It’s a beautiful arrangement, Barbatos.”

Barbatos chuckled and shook his head. “Oh, dear, I lost myself momentarily. Shall we continue to the garden?”

He didn’t wait for a response before he turned and began to walk. You immediately felt his tail drop and encircle one of your calves, pulling you along with him.

The table Barbatos had set up in the garden was filled with a variety of flowers. You could see that he had nearly completed another arrangement before you had arrived. Barbatos added a few more hell roses and a sprig of black grass before he wrapped it carefully. “I’m going to place this in an empty vase. You’re welcome to use whatever you’d like to create your arrangement.”

“Will you display it in the castle when I’m done?”

“I’d like to, yes – if you don’t mind.”

You grinned to yourself as Barbatos walked away. The thought of Barbatos looking at an arrangement you made throughout the week as he went about his duties left you nervous but eager to please. Instinctively, you reached for a blue anemone. Sure, you probably should have considered what would suit the castle and the potential surrounding décor, but all you could think about was Barbatos. You added a few purple hyacinths, and cursed baby blue eyes, rotating the placement of each selection, but you felt that something was missing. The pale blue glow of hell jasmine called to you. Strange; the scent of hell jasmine was said to make a demon extremely needy. Why would Barbatos want to display these in the castle? That seems a bit dangerous. However, on closer inspection, the scent had been hampered significantly compared to other times you had run into this plant.

“Let me guess,” Barbatos spoke up as he returned to the garden. “You’re wondering if that hell jasmine has had an effect on me today?”

“Sort of.”

“Worry not. This variety has been modified. Its scent has no power over me. That honor is all yours today. It’s perfectly safe to use in your arrangement.”

“Oh!” You felt the heat rise in your face. You weren’t sure you believed him with all his sweet-talking. But that didn’t matter. If the hell jasmine was safe to use, it would make for the perfect final touch. You wanted to surprise Barbatos with your creative decisions. “Close your eyes, please.”

“As you wish.” Barbatos made no attempt to get closer and shut his eyes. You finished your arrangement and brought it to Barbatos, holding it out to him like an offering.

“Okay, you can open your eyes.” You watched as a look of pleasant surprise was sketched on Barbatos’s face. The smile on his lips filled you with an unfamiliar pride – so warm and encompassing as if you had performed a miracle. There was no restraint in that smile. “I made it with you in mind.”

“Oh my.” Barbatos brought the knuckle of his index finger to his mouth. “I beg your pardon, but would you indulge my selfishness and put your arrangement in my room? There’s an empty vase on the table near the door.”

“You want to display it in your room?”

“I would feel better knowing something so thoughtfully crafted by you was in my room. I’m afraid I would feel quite jealous allowing someone else to admire it. That is, I want the sole joy of seeing it and thinking of you each day. Is that okay?”

“Are you certain the hell jasmine has had no effect on you?” You looked at him suspiciously as if that would distract from the way he flustered you.

“I’m afraid not. This seems to be a consequence of thinking about you so much today. Now, will you do me a favor and deliver those to my room? I believe you’re adept at finding my room on your own by now,” Barbatos added a seductive tinge to the last sentence. He turned you towards the entrance and gave you a gentle nudge. The warmth of his hand lingered as you headed to his room.

When you returned, Barbatos was carefully wrapping a bouquet of blue roses and darkness thyme – likely both of which were cultivated by Barbatos. It was simple, but the blue roses were stunning, and their rarity was only complemented by an equally rare herb. Barbatos tied a silky blue bow around the bouquet and held it out to you with both hands – an oddly elegant gesture.

“Where would you like me to put these?” you asked.

“No, my dear, these are for you.”

Your eyes widened and you took a closer look at the bouquet. Nine blue roses. Nine was for a timeless, eternal love. Blue roses signified mystery and uniqueness, but they could also mean something unattainable or impossible. You frowned. “Eternal love is impossible?”

Sure, maybe Barbatos wouldn’t love you forever, but that message seemed a bit cruel.

“Not quite.” Barbatos laughed at you softly. Had his laugh not been so sweet, you might have been upset. “Blue may represent the impossible, but here it is – a dream come true. If I can be so bold, you are a dream come true – the only one I could adore like this for all of time.”

The frown fell from your face, and you were left with shock and shyness. Something must have gotten into him today. In truth, the thought of the others giving you roses only encouraged Barbatos to charm you as much as he could, and that meant he would need to bare his heart to you. Barbatos pulled you in close and kissed you with a sweetness that matched his words.

“For a demon such as myself, eternal love is a rather serious proposal; will you still accept it?” His thumb ran across your lower lip.

“That would be a dream come true.” It was your turn to kiss and fluster him now. Hopefully none of the little D.s would go into the garden that afternoon.

Lucifer (1) | Mammon (2) | Leviathan (3) | Satan (4) | Asmodeus (5) | Beelzebub (6) | Belphegor (7) | Diavolo (8) | Luke (10) | Simeon (11) | Solomon (12) | Thirteen (13) | Raphael (14) | Mephistopheles (15)

[officiallordvetinari]

As I awoke this morning I found myself troubled by a question: what positions would the main characters of the Wheel of Time play if they fielded a baseball team?

After much research and consideration, I believe I have my answer. Put your hands together for the starting lineup of the the Emond's Field Dragons:

Pitcher - Rand al'Thor. He's 6'6", which translates into a whole lot of leverage behind his fastball. Early scouting reports say he needs to work on his control, but once he does he'll be a force of nature.

Catcher - Matrim Cauthon. Catcher is a very demanding position, as they have to call pitches and position the infield. Mat's lifetimes worth of strategic thinking and his childhood friendship with the pitcher will serve him well here. In addition, the graceful movements of spear fighting may be an asset in framing.

First base - Perrin Aybara. This is the easiest defensive position, which means it often goes to the best offensive player. Perrin would have no trouble picking up the fundamentals of defense, but it's clear from the way he swings that hammer that his real strength is as a power hitter.

Second base - Lan Mandragoran. Above all else, a second baseman should be agile and have a precise arm, as they're the crucial hinge on which many a double play turns. That makes it the perfect position for a swordmaster.

Third base - Aviendha. Her training as a spearmaiden gives her the resolve under pressure to field a ball at third and fire it across the diamond to first before the batter can run the 60 feet to the bag.

Shortstop - Moiraine Damodred. Shortstops are sometimes called the "captain of the infield", responsible for tracking short-hit balls and coordinating the movements of their fellow infielders. Moiraine has experience taking charge in battlefield situations, and her warder bond with the second baseman turns the middle infield into a steel trap.

Left field - Elayne Trakand. Outfielders need to be able to cover a wide area quickly, and the left fielder additionally serves as backup for the third baseman. The lessons Elayne received as Daughter-Heir of Andor prepared her to juggle multiple responsibilities.

Center field - Egwene al'Vere. While center fielders may not direct their fellow outfielders to the same degree as shortstops, they are deferred to when deciding who will field a ball in between two outfielders' "territories". Egwene takes naturally to authority and would be comfortable making those decisions in the moment.

Right field - Loial son of Arent son of Halan. Fewer balls are hit to right field than left, so Loial would have plenty of time to smell the proverbial roses out in the literal grass, but when necessary he has the strength needed to get the ball all the way from deep right to home plate.

Designated hitter - Nynaeve al'Meara. Raw power, baby.

And the batting order:

Cauthon

Aviendha

al'Vere

al'Meara

Aybara

Loial

Damodred

Mandragoran

Trakand

[killersfool]

Chemistry | ELIJAH HEWSON

PAIRING: elijah hewson x original f!character

GENRE: mutual pining, high school days

SUMMARY: leah vazquez lives next door to the loudest band in the world—a band which includes the nightmare boy who’d asked her for help with chemistry homework. invited to a party by rob, a whole lot of truths come to light.

WORDS: 6.8k

WARNINGS: kissing, alcohol, mentions of smoking

Being next door to the loudest band in the entire world was enough to make Leah want to throw eggs into their garden. Every day, from the small hours of the morning to the late evening, she'd hear that bleeding guitars and those crashing drums. The summer holidays were meant to be a period of rest and relaxation but all she could hear were those three irritating boys attempting to cover Nirvana. She'd see them with their smiling faces and instruments, making their way to the garage every day. They resided at Rob's house. Leah's parents were friends with Rob's so there were many family dinners. This was the longest period of not having one. Leah was thankful.

Leah was sat at her desk, head pressed to a Chemistry textbook, trying to wrap her head around electron configuration. The whole lesson at school was filled with sarcastic comments. No one understood a word leaving the teacher's mouth. Funny thing was that Elijah Hewson was in her class. One of the idiots who made fun of her if she got an answer wrong. He'd blame a bad grade on anything but himself. His favourite pastime was talking, constantly speaking his mind, even if it wasn't necessary at all. Teachers loved him, girls snapped him, attempted to make him laugh. He sat down with all the 'popular' people. A huge table of liars and attention-seekers who looked down on everyone else. Leah would glance at them from her seat, see him on Snapchat for the majority of free periods. The only time he'd spoken to her outside of class was when he was confused on the Chemistry homework. She had been sat down in the study room, chair under the circular tables and textbooks scattered all over it. She was trying to simultaneously finish a sketch for art and do exam questions as revision. It wasn't going well.

Elijah Hewson pulled out the chair next to her, plonked himself down without even asking her if he could sit there. He dropped his backpack. Unzipping it, she gave him a glare, slid her headphone off of one ear. She muttered, "Make yourself at home." She wouldn't move her textbooks to give him room. Anytime she walked past him in the corridors, he wouldn't even bat an eyelid or turn to face her. Now, he was pulling out his day folder and pencil case like they were best mates. As if there was nothing weird about this at all. "You know there's about eight free tables, right?"

Elijah glanced up. Gum in his mouth, curls falling over his forehead, almost so long they were grazing the table. He hadn't heard a word she'd said. His airpods were in his ears, blasting music.

"Hewson?" She tried. She was debating running to the doorway, leaving all of her stuff there. She could make an excuse and hide in the toilets. They were grimy though. Most of the toilet seats had fallen onto the ground, none of the doors would shut properly because they'd all been messed with. The floor of each cubicle was always covered with liquid — probably piss. You'd think that now that they were in high school the hygiene would have improved but it was actually worse.

Leah was a lot happier in the peace and quiet of the study room. Now it was just her and Elijah. No one else. Too quiet. She was cold. It was a cool Winter day and wind was trickling through the half open window. She could hear younger students doing PE outside — bucket hall — all freezing in just shorts and a shirt.

"Oh didn't see you there," Elijah muttered. There was an obvious smirk playing at his lips and a lilting quality to his voice that he always used when attempting to be mischievous. He peeled his calculator from his bag and the dreaded Chemistry homework that had been driving Leah mad. An insane asylum would be her best bet at the end of the year. Why did she even choose the stupid subject? And, still, why the hell was this eejit still here?

"Do you get the homework?" Leah asked. She'd given up with being confused. Maybe he could offer her some guidance. He wasn't the greatest at Chemistry though. He'd barely scraped a pass in the last assessment.

Elijah bit down on the end of his pen, held it like a cigarette, pressed it against his lips a few times. Her eyes fell to his pink mouth: the cupid's bow, the shaving nicks on his chin, the shadow of a moustache above his top lip. Her artistic eye always overanalysed people. She'd never been so close to him before.

"Miss Lane's shite teaching fucked me up."

There it was. Blaming it on anyone but himself. The target this time was their teacher. Leah agreed with him. Miss Lane had squeaky shoes and an even squeakier voice. When she told people off, no one could take it seriously. Students would laugh under their breaths, hands over their mouths to keep her from seeing. At one point, Elijah pretended to fall over so that he could hide under the wooden table and laugh. He'd seen the layers of gum left beneath it, stuck his own one there to add to the collection.

"I thought you could show me how to do it, seeing as you know your stuff."

"I really don't."

"You really do." He flicked to the Chemistry section of her folder, pressed his finger onto the test they'd just done. "You got the highest mark in the class on this." He tilted his head, hair now splayed across his cheekbone. She'd never realised his eyes were hazel or how he tapped his shoes when he spoke — a nervous habit. Was he nervous?

"That was pure luck. The multiple choice questions were stupid. I guessed all of them. Just put CBA over and over."

"I guessed all of mine and got them wrong."

"That's rough." Leah sucked in a breath through clenched teeth.

She pulled out the homework from her folder, along with a whiteboard and periodic table. Elijah moved his chair closer to hers. Her head was close to touching his bare shoulder. He had a Joy Division shirt on, leather jacket hung on his seat and jeans that didn't comply with the dress code. His luck of being a teacher's pet and Bono's son meant dress codes hardly fazed him. The only time he'd been sent home was when he wore a crop top — 'midriff showing is distracting, girls and boys'. He'd kicked a chair in the cantine and dramatically slammed the door behind him.

Leah couldn't understand how he was warm. There were goosebumps all over her skin, every hair stood to attention. Elijah put his airpods into his case. She glanced down at his biceps, the sun-tanned skin, the beauty spots, the freckles, his large yet nimble fingers. The tiny airpods make them all the more gargantuan. Skin was flaking away on his index finger — that's how she figured he played guitar. He'd been picking at it, dried blood remained there. His veins were prominent and nails neatly cut. His hands were like the ones she'd draw in her sketchbook. She was analysing again — way too much.

"So, where do we start?" Elijah's voice cut her staring competition with this rather big mole on his arm short.

"What about the first question?" Leah smiled to herself.

"Never would've thought of that one. Wow." Elijah scoffed. He read over the inked words. "Spin diagram for Magnesium? What the?"

"I'll show you."

The free period was basically an entire hour of Leah drawing weird arrows in boxes, trying to get Elijah to grasp the topic.

She didn't meet his eyes for most of the time. She didn't like the look on his face. He was studying her weirdly. She hated when he'd slouch back on his chair, legs apart, head thrown back in frustration. Or when he'd yawn but really over-exaggerate it to the point where she'd roll her eyes and kick his shin to wake him up again.

By the end, he understood the topic better than Leah herself. He was teaching her at that point. Taking the whiteboard and showing her that she'd done the whole order wrong. They finally completed the homework, checked answers with eachother then called it a day.

"Do you get it now?" Leah said. She finally looked him in the eye. He breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He liked her dark eyes, her saccharine smile.

"Yeah, thanks." He packed his things away, drank a long gulp of water. He then asked, shoes bouncing again, "Are you cold?"

Leah could feel his gaze on her arms. Being part Spanish meant the great gift of dark hairs everywhere. At least they gave her some sort of insulation, Biology had taught her that.

"I'm fine. It's always a bit chilly up here."

Elijah stood up. He tucked his chair in, placed his fingers on the back of the wooden seat, stroking his jacket. She watched his fingertips, as he scrunched the material in order to pick it up.

The room smelt of him. His minty chewing gum was one of the strongest aromas. He carried such a particular scent along with him everywhere. It was as if there was a fairy hidden in his backpack, sprinkling his cologne in each corridor, each classroom.

He stopped, squeezed his lip between two fingers, played with the earring in his left ear. He wanted to say something but wouldn't spit it out. Running through all the possible responses to the question, a computer testing different codes, an enzyme trying to find its matching substrate.

"You can have my jacket," Elijah murmured, quiet. "It's a gift for all of your help."

"What? Forever?" She made a face, almost like she was going to throw up. That was the last thing she was expecting he'd say to her. She thought he was going to insult her, tell her that she looked like shit. Mornings were not her favourite time of day.

"If you want it forever?" He laughed, an actually hearty laugh that she'd never heard before. The glowing smile staining his lips was very different to his concentrated face before. The last time she'd heard him laugh like this was when they did a practical. A titration. He messed up the experiment at least five times and couldn't stop giggling.

"You could buy me something from the cantine instead. Them brownies are lush. I'm starving."

"I'll buy you something too. Just put it on. You might freeze to death."

Elijah had left the study room in a matter of seconds. Leah was still extremely and utterly perplexed. His jacket was resting on the seat. She looked around, made sure no one was there then put her arms through the holes. It was far too big on her. At first it was freezing against her skin but it gradually warmed up. His scent clung to it. His lighter had been left in the bottom pocket. And some cash.

Moments later, Leah's friend came running through the door, Polly. She was holding some tissues in her hands. Without a word, she plonked this tissued contraption onto Leah's desk and said, "Hewson gave it to me. Said it's for you. Since when the shit are you talking that bellend?" Polly had her arms crossed over her chest. She then looked at Leah's jacket. "You weren't wearing that in form. Is it his as well?"

"Poll..." Leah took a deep breath. "He was just being nice."

"Elijah Hewson? Nice? He'd throw paper aeroplanes at me and Rick every Music lesson and detuned my bass before the concert."

"That was a year ago." Leah didn't know why she was defending him. She was delirious. Tired.

"Well he's a player, you know that don't you? Snapscore's like five hundred thousand, dated almost every girl in our form—"

Leah put her head into her hands. She couldn't deal with this. Maybe he had been pretending. Maybe that whole thing had been a cruel game to him.

-

Leah's eyelids were heavy and drooping. Her pencil had broken, her pen had run out of her ink and her ruler had cracked into two separate pieces.

Then she heard banging. Drums. Guitar. Bass. Then that stupid jarring voice that her ears would somehow cling to. Nirvana was playing in her headphones, a way to drown out the terrible cover she'd heard the night before. Smells Like Teen Spirit by The Inhalers was bedlam. Pure bedlam. She needed Kurt Cobain to cleanse her ears. They were probably filled up with blood.

It had been months since the Chemistry incident. As she expected, he didn't speak to her again.

"Leah?! Rob's family are coming over for dinner tonight! His friends are coming too. I'm not sure if you know any of them. I heard Ryan and Elijah are lovely boys." Leah's mum had just announced the worst possible thing to ever happen. Jumping out of the window seemed like a viable option, or just locking herself in her room.

"You coming, Lee? It's paella, your favourite." Her Dad knocked on the door. "I know you don't like all their music stuff but they're nice boys. It would be good to get to know more people in your year, wouldn't it, sweetheart?"

Leah couldn't say no to her Dad. Or his cooking. "Fine. I'll be down in a second."

She heard the doorbell ring, then the click of the door opening. Greetings poured out of mouths and footsteps crashed all over the place. She had seen the three lads leave the garage, climb over Leah's garden fence and knock on the back door. Not scary at all. Definitely not the slightest bit worrying. She hated how perfect her view was from the window. She could see how long Elijah's hair had grown across his face and the white vest pressed against his frame.

Opening her closet, she saw that horrible leather jacket still hung up. She'd left the money and the lighter inside of it. She hadn't worn it since that winter's day and never had the chance to give it back to him. She didn't even know if he wanted it back.

She shrugged a cardigan over her dress then walked down the stairs. What's the worse that could happen? Well, for starters, Rob was showing Elijah the culmination of baby photos on the wall of the staircase. She worriedly ran towards them and pushed Elijah's shoulders to keep him away. He was finding it all quite hilarious. He was pointing to one of her crawling around as a baby, cookie monster toy sat beside her.

"Really funny, isn't it?" Leah sarcastically said. They were thankfully metres away from those pictures. "Almost as funny as you guys practicing for ten fucking hours a day."

"Geez louise, Leah. What's gotten you so riled up?" Rob's blue eyes struck her. He was so tall now. She hated it.

"Your shite playing that's what."

"It's not that bad." Elijah snorted.

"We are shite, Eli, she's right." Ryan appeared, the drummer. Leah had never spoken to him before. He was in her maths class.

Down the hallway, Elijah and Ryan had a prolonged discussion about whether they were good or not. Ryan kept telling him: 'there's a lot of room for improvement.'

"We need a lead guitarist. One that's actually good. Sorry Eli. You're alright on rhythm but lead..."

"I'm leng at lead. Shut up."

"Chillax mate. Did I strike a nerve?"

"Fuck you."

If not for the familiar scent of smoked paprika, Leah would've walked away from them. They were both sat at opposite ends of the table, fed up with each other. Leah's parents decided to sit in the garden to leave the four teenagers to their own devices. Rob was the only one making conversation. He was asking Leah about school and how she was finding her subjects. They weren't really close friends in school, but they'd gotten to know eachother through all the weird family gatherings. His buzz cut made her laugh every single time she saw him.

"Are you going to the party? Anna's one?" Ryan alerted Leah with a jab of his fork against his glass. A high-pitched note rung out.

"You really think I'm mates with Anna?" Leah had to put her cutlery down to laugh. She then started to scrape the rice around on her plate. She'd seen Rob's countless Instagram stories of her parties. Those red plastic cups and boys jumping on top of one another. She'd see all the worst people in her head, all bundled together in one sweaty room, twisting bodies dancing to terrible grime music. That was her vision of hell.

Ryan awkwardly looked between his friends.

"Uh.. we could bring you as a plus one," Rob offered.

"She was disrespecting our music ten minutes ago, is that really a good idea?" Elijah reminded his two friends.

Leah took a short sip of her coke, feeling the condensation of the bottle grace her skin. She watched the three boys whisper and argue. Her parents seemed to be relaxed in the garden, the complete opposite of the thick tension between the inner four walls. The sky was a pale shade of blue. Each passing cloud was larger than the last. There was one that looked a lot like Elijah. Even had the irritating strand of hair that he always left to fall over his forehead.

"I'll go if you put some decent music on." Leah could not handle the songs the partygoers had on their Instagram stories.

"Will always picks the music. He'll get pissed off if we change it." Ryan was unsure.

"Let's piss him off then." Leah downed the rest of her coke.

-

Anna's party was as messy as Leah expected it to be. Meeting Rob beside the park by Anna's house was already an ordeal. Her mobile data wasn't working properly and the massive house was in the middle of nowhere. The park had neon green swings with murky water dripping off of them. Leah felt bad for any kid in the neighbourhood. Although she doubted that anyone sane lived on that eerie, cobbled street. She was sure she'd knock on the door and a vampire would be there, floating midair with pearly white fangs. But no, it was Anna, the pick me girl of the year. Even when she had a boyfriend, she'd be all over the boys, whispering in their ears and putting on a baby voice whenever she wanted their attention. Leah couldn't comprehend the bee-like swarm of boys always huddled around her. Overhearing any of the conversations between them was enough to make Leah want to vomit.

"Rob! Hey!" Her baby voice came out as she trapped the tall boy into a bear hug. He looked uncomfortable, stood like a penguin. "And... Leah?"

"Hi." Leah tried to bring her hand up to wave but felt like a right numpty.

Anna could definitely see through Leah's fake smile but still said, "Come on in. The more the merrier I guess."

Music booming, teenagers jumping up and down, smell of alcohol thick through the air. The house was huge. Insanely. They were in the richest part of Dublin but still... Leah had to stop to take it all in. The multitude of people squished together made the house seem smaller. Cramped and sweaty. Leah could see faces from school every few steps. Most people there she'd never seen before. She didn't like it.

Rob led her through the kitchen, the living room and out to the garden. There was a swimming pool dug into the ground.

Dark, wet curls caught her eye. An iridescent smile. Elijah.

He was in the pool next to Ryan. They were splashing water onto eachother and messing around with floaties. Rob pulled off his shirt, trousers, leaving him in just boxers and jumped in. Cannonball. Water flying all over Leah's pristine, white dress. She bit back a shout or an insult. He laughed at the mess he'd created.

Elijah pulled himself out of the water. Leah wouldn't even glance in his direction — she could see how girls turned their hands to catch a glimpse. She didn't like how she found him beautiful. It was a problem. She would draw him on summer evenings. When her cluttered desk was looking down on her with disdain. There were times he'd leave the garage with a cigarette in hand, sat down on Rob's rope swing and blew smoke away. His silhouette would be dark but sometimes  —  when the fairylights strung along the fence lit him up at the perfect angle — she'd be able to see the intricacy of his features. She would sketch him. A way to drag her thoughts away from homework or any kind of stress pent up during the day. It had turned into an almost daily habit. It was the saddest hobby known to man.

She ran straight back indoors, into the kitchen and grabbed the first bottle she saw. Didn't read the label, didn't check the percentage. She'd never properly had alcohol before. It was strong and weird and disgusting. She almost drank the whole bottle before a wet hand pulled the bottle away.

"Holy shit, Leah. That's way too much." It was him. The fountain of her inspiration. The embarassing muse. The wet-haired, dog out of water, hazel-eyed boy who now had an arm around her shoulders.

"I can drink as much as I want, dickhead." Leah pushed him away. His white shirt was glued to his chest and a denim jacket clung to his shoulders. His eyes scanned along her face, checking she was okay. She was attempting to reach for another bottle. He stopped her.

"Could we have a walk?" He breathed. "That will clear your head better than this will." He shook the transparent liquid around, contents splashing.

Leah felt the hand on her spine. Her backless dress meant that his calloused fingertips were cold against her. He'd never touched her before. She could sense how his hand caressed her gently, massaging to calm her down. The drink was already making her senses more heightened, making her focus only on his touch, how his lips were moving as he whispered, how her shoes crashed against the floor. Her body felt too heavy and the room felt too big. The music was becoming more bassy, slowing down until it was like she was moving in slow motion.

Elijah didn't even wait for her response. He knew that she had to be taken somewhere quiet. He managed to guide her to the gazebo in Anna's garden. It was unoccupied, thankfully. He had to peek over the door to ensure that he wouldn't walk in on anything weird. Leah sat down at the end of the wooden hexagon, stumbling around before she plonked herself down, legs stretched out completely. Elijah sat down opposite her. He watched her hold her head between her hands and groan.

"Why do people like drinking that? It's —" She couldn't even speak properly. Her words were slurring, the lights above her were simply hues of colour, Elijah was a blur.

"You drank half a bottle of vodka, love. It's not the tastiest first drink." Elijah couldn't believe what this evening had turned into. The boys had been fools for dragging her along. She'd be much happier at home, doing whatever she normally did on a Friday evening. He pictured her sat down at her desk, headphones on her ears and paintbrush in hand. He would purposely leave band practice to see her through that thin piece of glass. His view was far from remarkable and his excuse was slowly getting less believable but he missed being able to see her every day. Across the cantine, across the chemistry classroom or at the weekly assemblies. He would make it his mission to look for her in any crowd — no matter how big or how small.

Leah, the smartest person he'd ever met, the most geniune person stood on the soil of this very earth (in Elijah's most accurate opinion) was now sprawled helplessly across the splinter-inducing wood, eyes glued shut and teeth chattering. Somehow she was always cold. Elijah couldn't understand her at all.

"Are you hungry?" Elijah attempted. He knew his chance of a response were almost nil. But he'd try anyway. Anything to get her to talk, to open up to him. He'd been an idiot for distancing himself from her for the past months. She was an angel. Especially with her flowing white dress and endless black hair, he couldn't look away, couldn't even take his mind off of her.

He pulled out a box of pizza from under his arm. He'd stolen it from the house before they went outside. He slid it across the wood. She took off the lid. It had pepperoni all over it.

"You know I'm a vegetarian?" Leah grinned at his kindness. He seemed so proud of himself. His features drooped down at her comment.

"Sorry," was all he could manage to reply. He closed the box and moved it away.

"You can eat if you're hungry." She nodded towards the pizza.

He scratched his head. "I'm stuffed. Just ate about five slices of cake. It's my birthday."

"Shit? Is it? Seventeenth of August, right? I still remember those primary school birthday hats they'd give us. I wish I had one I could give to you."

Leaning back, he watched her smile as she reminisced. Those days felt so close yet so far away. He could hardly remember anything about primary school. Maybe flashes of teachers, or the world book day's where everyone would come in the strangest costumes, fingers crossed they'd win the prize. The birthday hat was something that had completely drained from his head, down to the sewers of memory. But Leah bringing it up made him remember when the teachers forced them to do a 'birthday dance' infront of the entire class. It made everyone dread their birthday every single year. People would skip school just to miss it.

"Do you remember on your eighth birthday Bono came in for a singalong?" Leah couldn't think straight anymore. She was spouting random thoughts out now, just hoping to get a reaction out of him.

He rolled his head back, adams apple shifting as he scoffed. "Don't even."

"I'm never going to let you live that down."

Elijah knew that his face was warming up as Leah looked at him. She was staring. Eyes drifting along his skin, biting down on her bottom lip. Then she was crawling towards him, seemingly finding it very difficult to move and plonked herself next to him.

"I never gave you your jacket back," she muttered. Her head was on his shoulder, her hair smelt like roses, strands were grazing his collarbone. Part of him ached to pull her even closer, to press his lips to her forehead but he was frozen. "Do you still want it?" She looked up at him, nose on his chin.

"I did leave my lighter in it, didn't I?" His whole plan at the beginning had been to plant that lighter in as a kind of bait. He wanted to have an excuse to talk to her, to ask her if she could give it back to him. He never built up the courage to go up to her. He was left borrowing Rob's lighter that hardly even worked. His final plan was to ask her when they got back to school, or to jump Rob's fence and try to muster up as much Romeo energy as possible. He'd imagined himself climbing up the pipe to her window, confessing how he felt toward her, how much she made his heart strain and palpitate. He had his chance now. To use the bait he'd created. To follow through and actually be honest with her. To tell her how he hadn't stopped thinking about her since he got full marks on that homework, only due to her help.

"You did." She recalled. He was warm. His chin was stubbly, his perfect mouth was centimetres away.

"I think I should take you home." Elijah's final decision was to make sure she got a good night's sleep. She was about to drift off there and then. He would let her. But he knew she wasn't comfortable.

"No...no don't. This is nice." She closed her eyes. He pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around her. She traced his bicep softly. His cells weren't working. His brain wasn't working. She was killing him. Beneath her he was just a mess of flesh and bone, breathing into her skin, moulding into her touch.

He stroked her hair, fingers raking through the layers. Her dark eyelashes were long and blinking.

"I think I've got splinters." Leah pulled up her hand to find a thin piece of wood piercing her finger. It was swollen and red.

Elijah held onto her hand and tried to squeeze the piece out. It wasn't as easy as he thought it would be. She was seething against his arm until finally he caught it between his nails and threw it out of the gazebo.

"Thanks." She sucked onto her finger, draining the metallic flavour out. "I think that's our sign to get out of here. You should be in there having fun. It's your birthday. Go on. You're seventeen! You can listen to Dancing Queen and relate to it on a whole other level. I'm not ruining today for you."

"I'll walk you home first."

"No you won't. I'll go on my own."

"I'm going with you. End of."

"Hewson—"

"Come on. Get up. We can listen to Dancing Queen on the way there." He took out his airpod case from his jean pocket.

Leah gave up with arguing. He was being polite. Offering to keep her safe. It made her warm and fuzzy inside. In truth, if she'd tried to go home on her own, she would've gotten lost amidst the crooked streets of Dublin. It was hard enough to make her way their in daylight. Now, in the darkest part of the night, it would be all the more difficult.

Elijah helped her to the front door. He ignored any of the people called his name, only focused on finding the way out. It was hard to squeeze through the amount of people in there. He had to ensure he kept her close or he'd lose her.

"Eli? Leaving so early?" Anna caught the pair as he opened the door. She looked between the two of them with two raised eyebrows. "Is she drunk? She looks pissed. Holy shit. Are you okay taking her or do you need any help?" Anna had lost the baby voice. She actually sounded concerned... how strange.

"I'll get a taxi. It's okay." Elijah thanked Anna for inviting him. "I'll see you at school."

"See you. Make sure she gets home safe."

"I will."

-

Elijah had to carry Leah from the taxi to her front door. He was pacing back and forth with her in his arms, trying to figure what to say to her parents. He had to ring the doorbell about five times before they answered. Her dog was barking extremely loudly and kicking at the door. She looked so peaceful as she slept, her skin a ghostly white under the bright light of the entrance.

The lurid red door shot open to reveal two stupefied faces. They were both in pyjamas. Leah's mother grabbed onto her daughter, falling into hysterics with tears stinging her eyes, "Is she dead? Oh my God. Dear Jesus—"

"No! No, Mrs Vazquez. She isn't dead!" Elijah worriedly shouted. "She's just very tired." Definitely tired. Not black out drunk.

Her Dad took his daughter from Elijah with a kind smile. She was still wearing his jacket. "Thank you, my boy." His strong Spanish accent rang out though Elijah's ears like a sweet melody.

"No worries." He stepped away from the doorway, glad to see the family back together. The puppy had been biting his jeans like they were slippers. It was a wild beast. Probably not suitable for domestication. It'd be better off in a forest with a pack of wolves. It was tiny though. Pocket-sized.

When the door closed, Elijah sat down on the bottom step leading to the house. His head fell into his lap, his thoughts were far too loud. He wanted to bang his head down onto the pavement. He wanted to scream out curses up at the clouds. He wanted to lay out his heart on a silver platter and deliver it straight to Leah's bedroom. Everything was driving him crazy. The whistling wind, the flashing streetlights, the honk of cars at the roundabout.

He walked to Rob's house. Tomorrow he would become Romeo. Tomorrow he'd either fuck everything up or make things the slightest bit better.

-

Leah awoke with a a burning headache. She couldn't feel the pillow beneath her head or the duvet on her body. Her bedding smelt of Elijah. She was wearing his jacket. She was still breathing in that scent that followed her everywhere.

Then a knock at her window. She gasped and pulled open the blinds. She looked up. It was that face again. Hewson. He was outside her fucking window. How long had he been there? How the hell did he get up there? Too many questions. She didn't want to move. She didn't want to leave him there, probably not in a very stable position. She unlocked the window. He crawled in.

"What the fuck?" She rubbed a hand over her eyes. There was too much light shining into the room. She was a vampire. Sat down in her very own coffin. Probably just seeing hallucinations. Until she was proved wrong by the bed dipping under his weight. He'd made sure to peel off his shoes and throw them onto her floor before he jumped down. The springs squeaked, silence echoed.

Leah knew she looked a mess. Her hair was probably frizzy, eyebags made her look like a zombie, there was sleep in her eyes that she was trying to pick out.

"Thank you for taking me home," she said. Why was he looking at her like that? It was 9 in the morning. Grey clouds brimmed the sky. Birds sang in Rob's garden. A few were eating from his bird feeder.

In just a white vest and sweatpants, Elijah seemed so bare. He was always in jeans or band shirts. This was different. Too intimate. She was glad she wasn't in pyjamas.

"You're so beautiful, you know that?" He finally opened his mouth. She blushed beet-red, her eyes wide.

"Hewson, the actual hell?" She tried to wrestle with the fact that this was real life. That he was actually sitting only a metre away from her. That the eyes watching her weren't just part of a daydream. He had just said that. He had just scanned her whole frame and let those six words fall from his mouth like they were just milk to a cup of coffee, a sugar cube to a cup of tea. Something you don't even think about doing, something you just do without overthinking it.

"What's that on your wall?" He pointed up at one of the drawings above her bedpost. It was one of him. He was sat on the rope swing, smoke curling around him, lips around a cigarette.

She jumped to the side, leant back against it to keep it covered. This was not happening. This was not happening. She should've left him out there in the cold. Why did she even open that window?

"Is that me?" He tried to look over her shoulder.

"What are you talking about? You? Where?" She tried to laugh. It came out as a very nervous laugh.

He started to properly laugh. He tried to catch her off guard by throwing a pillow at her. She dodged it. That left the painting in perfect view.

"Elijah... it's not what you think it is." She saw him smile up to his ears. A cheshire cat. Elvis-like. Cheesy. His eyes crinkled at the corners, dimples forming. "You're just always there. I know it's creepy—"

"It's not." They were sat like they were the night before. But this time he had his head on her shoulder. "You're not only really fucking smart but also great at painting."

She was still blushing. More with every passing second. His hands were warm against her thighs. He just let one hand linger there. She stared at it. The dextrous fingers, the veins, the rings.

"Thank you," she managed to whisper. She kissed his forehead without even thinking about it. His heart was pounding. "Why are you here?"

"Why do you think I'm here?" He watched her grab her duvet, threw it over them. The whole room smelt only of her. He wanted to stay in that position forever. Feeling each movement of her shoulder, feeling her heartbeat against his ear, feeling her play with his hair.

"To embarrass me." She was referring to the painting. She pulled it off the wall and dropped it beneath her bed. Her plan was to throw it into the fireplace and watch it burn.

"That and something else." Elijah was now tracing over her silky dress, along her stomach, across her back.

"What's that?" She felt the weight of him drift away. He moved back to look at her.

"For you."

Then both of his hands were on her cheeks. They were cold. Her skin was boiling. Still bright red. He'd never seen her blush like that. Sure, whenever she got an answer wrong in class, she might stare down at the textbook and have a little splatter of pink graze her ears. But this, this was completely different. He lowered his head, parted his lips. He was taking his sweet time. She grabbed onto his vest and pulled him straight onto her, making their lips crash together in the movement. Hands on his waist, nose bumping into each other, his smile wide in the kiss. She couldn't believe what this had all turned into. Thinking was one of the most difficult things to do as Elijah Hewson pulled her onto his lap to get her even closer. His mouth fell down to her neck, peppering kisses along her collarbones, tasting her skin like it was a delicacy that had never once been tasted before.

"Leah! Are you awake! Breakfast is ready!" Knocks crashed on her door.

Elijah and Leah both stared at each other with complete terror in their eyes. She jumped off of his lap and dragged him straight into the closet, leaving him to pull his lighter out of the leather jacket. He also found that extra cash that she'd never used. He left it there for her instead of taking it.

Leah's mum gave her daughter a pointed look. "What was that about last night?"

"Nothing, Ma. I was just at a party. I got really sleepy."

"I bet you had fun with Elijah. You're always talking about him—"

"Ma!! No I don't." Leah snorted. Her words came out really loudly.

"Ever since primary school you've been talking about him. Don't lie, Leah. He's a handsome boy. I get it."

"Ma! Stop!"

"Breakfast. Chop chop."

Leah nodded. She stared at the closet. "Let me just get my clothes on."

Her mum looked around suspiciously. "Alright."

The door closed. Leah wanted to lock Elijah in the closet. She knew exactly what the look on his face would be when he got out.

He jumped out as quickly as possible.

"None of that was true. She's a compulsive liar."

"Sure, sure." He rolled out of the closet and jumped back onto her bed.

Then they were kissing again.

What he wouldn't tell her was that he had liked her since he was eight. Since the stupid Bono singalong. She'd wished him happy birthday as they stood in the lunch queue. Plastic trays in their hands, trying to look for their friends in the crowd of seated people, glancing over the dessert options with excitement. He had never known he could smile so much. Or so widely.

[txrribletwenties]

Death ≻ Eddie Munson x reader

Summary: even in death, Eddie’s with you.

Warnings: 18+ please. Description of injuries, description of dead body, ghosts exist, for some reason turns into a lesson, pretty much ignores 3/5 characters of the characters mentioned, not proofread in the slightest.

A/N: IM SORRY 😭🏃‍♀️

Finding Eddie's body wasn't an easy task. The first thing the group seems to notice is the smell (though, Eddie can't smell anything). Despite all the other terrible smells The Upside Down can produce, the smell is so overwhelming it causes Steve to vomit even after covering his nose and mouth as best he could.

It wasn't long before they finally found him, though. Dustin was the first to notice, then Steve, then Nancy and Robin. Dustin and Steve give the girls a look before their eyes darting to you. The girls seemed to understand what they meant because their next move was to stop you from walking any further.

The smell was traumatizing enough, they didn't think it necessary to expose you to your boyfriend's body too. "Move, Nance," were your first words.

"It's-"

"I know, Robin. I wanna see." Against their better judgement, the girls move, watching you pass. "I need to see."

He was clearly bit, his torso painted with blood. The bats didn't stop until they seemed fit, and it showed. His colorless eyes faced the sky as he lay still. Unmoving.

But Eddie could see you, even if you couldn't see him. He knew you were there, he could see the tears running down your face. He knew you were hurt, and yet he couldn't help. The first time in nearly a year that he wasn't there to help you through your pain.

Robin wipes your tears. "Hey," she says. "It's alright. You'll be alright, you know?"

Steve is reassuring Dustin in the same manner. The most genuine emotion you'd seen from the man in months. You can hear Dustin sobbing silently, trying to shield his tears from the others.

You smile at Robin and Nancy, pushing past them both to go to the boy. He looks away upon meeting your eyes. Steve looks to you in confusion as Dustin quickly wipes his tears.

"I'm sorry," Dustin blurts out. "I know you were closer to him than any of us, i shouldn't really be crying."

"It's okay to cry, Dustin." you sniffle, a small laugh leaving your lips. "Your feelings are just as valid as mine."

Eddie moves over to you, unable to explain how calm he is in such a moment. He reaches a hand out to touch your shoulder, and to his surprise, it rests comfortably on you. He watches as tears begin to fill your eyes again, and as you grab Dustin's hand, the same happens to him.

Maybe even in death, Eddie can watch you grow old. And it wasn't long before the realization hit him that you'd be doing it without him.

[torahoes]

(IDOLiSH7) Torao Mido - An Idol's Daily Life Rabbit Chat: Part 1 - Street corner batting

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Please note that I am not a professional translator. If you come across any mistakes, feel free to let me know and I will make the necessary corrections.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Good work today, Mido-san. I apologize for not noticing you earlier when you called out to me...!

Torao Mido: It's alright; I did call out to you pretty suddenly from my car. But I didn't think you'd be so startled that you'd jump like that.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Just as I noticed someone with a strong aura wearing sunglasses appear in a luxury car, they suddenly called out to me, so I wondered what the matter was...!

Torao Mido: I recognized you right away.

Tsumugi Takanashi: W- was I really that conspicuous?

Torao Mido: Yeah. If a woman in a suit is walking with heavy luggage on a street lined with luxury brands, heads will turn.

Torao Mido: At first, I thought the luggage was moving on its own.

Tsumugi Takanashi: I had a feeling that I was somehow drawing attention from the people around me… > <

Tsumugi Takanashi:

Torao Mido: You were on your way to the parking lot, right? Were you having a meeting nearby?

Tsumugi Takanashi: Yes! IDOLiSH7 has been given the chance to collaborate with a sports brand this time, so we had a meeting with the manufacturer!

Tsumugi Takanashi: We ended up receiving various samples during the meeting, hence the heavy luggage...

Torao Mido: Ah, they're releasing collaborative design shoes, aren't they? I heard from Haruka.

Torao Mido: I like that brand too.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Is that so...! Apparently, many of the IDOLiSH7 members also use that brand.

Tsumugi Takanashi: I heard that it's very popular because you can place custom orders.

Torao Mido: Since everyone has different foot shapes and instep heights, it's good to have something that fits their feet perfectly to prevent injuries.

Torao Mido: Depending on the intended use, it's also best to adjust the cushioning to reduce strain.

Tsumugi Takanashi: I see...! Especially with acrobatics, it does seem like there would be a lot of strain on the feet... > <

Torao Mido: It's a whole different experience once you put them on. Haruka recommended them to me, and now I can't live without them.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Isumi-san did...!

Torao Mido: He's knowledgeable about these things because of his extensive experience. I didn't have any dance experience until I joined ŹOOĻ, so I rely on him.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Eh-

Torao Mido: What's wrong?

Tsumugi Takanashi: Mido-san, you didn't have any dance experience!?!?

Torao Mido: Yeah. Is that really so surprising?

Tsumugi Takanashi: It's the most shocking thing I've heard recently...

Tsumugi Takanashi: Mido-san's dancing is not only dynamic but also graceful and powerful, and your acrobatics are so beautiful, so I just assumed you had been dancing since childhood...

Torao Mido: Not a bad pick-up line. I don’t feel bad being praised by you to such an extent.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Words like these simply are not enough...! Of course, it's thanks to your efforts, but it's also because you have such immense talent.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Were you naturally athletic, or did you undergo any special training?

Torao Mido: You're bombarding me with questions. Are you that curious?

Tsumugi Takanashi: I- I'm sorry... I just couldn't help but wonder how you learned to dance so captivatingly!

Torao Mido: Don't worry about it. I'm used to your questions. If you want to know something, you can go ahead and ask me.

Tsumugi Takanashi: Thank you very much!

Tsumugi Takanashi:

Torao Mido: Regarding my athleticism and lessons, right?

Tsumugi Takanashi: Yes, if you don't mind, please tell me...!

Torao Mido: I was naturally good at sports, and if I put my mind to it, I could do most things better than average. I was in the tennis club during my school days and received several awards.

Torao Mido: I didn't take any special lessons, but I used to go to the gym, so I probably already had the strength and stamina from the start. I didn't do anything particularly special after that.

Tsumugi Takanashi: I see... Perhaps it's because you had established a solid foundation in physical fitness that you were able to grasp things quickly.

Torao Mido: That could be it. Well, compared to other sports, both dancing and acrobatics become easy once you understand how to move your body.

Torao Mido: It's not that difficult.

Tsumugi Takanashi: To me, even a backward roll seems incredibly difficult…! I struggled with it back in high school > <

Torao Mido: A backward roll…?

Torao Mido: Not a backflip?

Tsumugi Takanashi: Yes. I found it difficult to roll properly and often ended up rolling sideways instead.

Tsumugi Takanashi:

Torao Mido: On the contrary, isn't that actually more difficult…?

Torao Mido: That's a talent in itself.

Tsumugi Takanashi:

End of Part 1.

[switch-writer]

i request some law hcs because i say so👹

Trafalgar D. Water Law Tickle Headcanons

A/N: Thank you both to my bestie and lovely anon for the request, BECAUSE I LOVE THIS FELLA. Law honestly is a very ominous character until he meets Luffy, so honestly, I love seeing him go from horrifying to goofy and panicked when Luffy is around. BUT THANK YOU. I have a lot of fun writing for him, and though it took awhile to get around to this, I appreciate the request. This is a little warm up since I’m about to finally write my squealing Santa fic at some point, but I’ll quit rambling! Thank you for the patience, and last of all. Enjoy!

• Out of the gate, Law is a man who prefers to tickle than to get tickled, mostly because his reactions are very silly when tickled and it ruins some of his image. But despite this, he gets tickled more than he tickles.

• When he does tickle someone (mostly Luffy) it’s out of retaliation usually due to the strawhats.

• His fingers are very fast and accurate, so any spot that maybe sensitive, he will find and he will make sure there isn’t any secret place where it tickles all the more

• He will smirk the smuggest smirk in the world whenever he tickles someone.

• “You know, doctor’s usually have the occasional sensitive patient, but you certainly are a exception.”

• He’ll occasionally tickle Bepo by rubbing his belly, and because of this, it became a habit. So sometimes when Luffy leans or lays nearby, he’ll mindlessly tickle him on his belly or somewhere else.

• That being said, if he wants revenge on someone, he’ll simply call out ‘room!’ And then he’ll be behind someone tickling them because he isn’t gonna let someone get away with tickling the surgeon of death.

• He over all is gentle.. unless provoked. Then he’ll go for any spot necessary and tickle it. Sweet spots and all. All in good fun however.

• He’ll usually stop once someone learns their lesson, then smirk as he watches whoever he tickled giggle before calming down. Although, he’ll occasionally pat their back or sit with them as they relax.

• As for the other side of things, he will be very defensive and flustered, asking what in the world whoever is tickling him is doing.

• This is a Habit he’s had since he was with Corazon, there was a occasion where Corazon would tease him by tickling him and Law would get defensive and pouty as a child. But that’d always be his first question.

• He’ll often try and bat at the hands tickling him, but in most cases, Luffy is tickling him and he finds it difficult to actually catch his hands.

• His laugh usually starts as a snicker, but he has a over all quiet, soft laugh, but a warming one. He does however have a hearty laugh when someone gets a weak spot.

• After the tickling stops, he will have a wobbly smile on his face for a minute, probably some light blush too. The smile goes away faster than the blush however since he tries to straight up fast for the sake of appearances.

• His legs will also kick a fair amount, which is probably also a habit from never getting tickled much since he was a child, so he just… reacts completely like how he would as a child.

• Law finds someone tracing his tattoo designs relaxing over all, but he’ll occasionally let snickers out because it’ll slightly tickle. Nothing too bad, just a snicker and a squirm.

• His weak/worst spot is just his torso as a whole, but especially around his belly and ribs, but at that point his sides share the same weakness. However, a honorable mention is his back.

• Traffy will often gasp when someone touches somewhere like his ribs and stare as if they just offended him to his core.

• But to end it off, unless there’s trust and he’s comfortable, you’ll have a hard time getting him to humor it. Sly when tickling, a little more bashful and stubborn when tickled.

• However, if it’s a close friend or a lover, or even someone like family (Corazon), he’ll… humor it. Maybe even enjoy it at times.

Hope you enjoyed!

[twisted-wonderland-shenanigans]

an idea, how about yuu getting a cold in the monster au? how would the staff react to it?

*going back through the backlog of asks to answer stuff I couldn’t think of a response for at the time* I really need to clean up my inbox and answer some of these things. Sorry for the delay! 😅

Anywho~!

Much like animals in our world, the monsters in the monster!AU have a tendency to hide when they’re hurt or sick due to an old instinct to hide away and “lick their wounds” so to speak. Nowadays though, monster magicians and witches cannot afford to stay sick or let injuries last longer than necessary due to their own stubborn nature and will seek aid. Of course, there are some who refuse to do so due to pride, so the staff (both living and ghostly) have learned to pinpoint the signs right off the bat so they can react accordingly.

So when the school’s resident endangered human stumbles onto campus looking like someone dragged them through the Underworld and back…welllllll…

Crowley:

It was another beautiful day, and just as he does every morning, the headmaster greets every student with a cheerful smile. And just like every day, the students ignore him–not that this bothered him. After all, he is a mature adult! Such trivial things didn’t bother him in the slightest. And at least there was one student who was surely happy to see him: “Ah, good morning, Yu–GREAT MERCIFUL SEVEN!!! Are you alright?!”

As shifty and mysterious as he could be at times, no one can say he doesn’t care about his students. So the moment he spots a sick Yuu looking like a member of the undead, he immediately escorted them to the nurse’s office for a check-up. He may have fretted over what the researchers might assume if they thought the school had been neglecting the human. That would be a blemish on the hospitality and care of NRC! (Calm down, Crowley, or you’ll start molting early. >.> )

Even if it turns out to be a simple cold, Crowley makes sure to visit them frequently to monitor their recovery. Whatever Yuu needs, he’ll make the arrangements: fresh flowers to brighten the room? Only the prettiest and most fragrant, chosen by the Pomefiore students for quality aesthetics! Soup for the cold? Of course the cafeteria ghosts know and can make the best soup for the soul to ease any cold! Clean linen? Changed out every day with pillows fluffed for maximum comfort!

When Yuu’s fever finally broke and they were able to recover, Crowley heaved a sigh of relief. Sure, part of it was from worrying about the backlash from the research institutions if Yuu took a turn for the worst, but he was genuinely relieved to know that Yuu was recovering well. Now, he just needs to make arrangements for a visit with a doctor to get immunizations. No need to risk the only human in existence to get sick from some illness not native to where they came from…

Crewel:

The moment Yuu stumbled into homeroom, he immediately turned them around and said, “Nurse’s office. Now.” His tone suggested there was no room for argument, and at this point, Yuu knew better than to disobey him. It wasn’t until a break between classes that he came to check on them, listening to what the nurse had to say and coming up with a plan to help them recover.

All throughout the day, the werewolf professor would check in on Yuu, bringing the nurse herbs and potions to help with the symptoms. He would bring their homework to them and spend time catching Yuu up on the lessons they missed, stopping when he noticed them struggling to focus so they could rest. If they wish to do after-school or weekend lessons, he will have a talk with the other teachers to make it happen.

Once Yuu starts gaining their energy back, he’s pleased to know that one of his pups is going to be okay. He is, however, going to make sure that they’re taking care of themselves.

Trein:

The moment he learned that Yuu was sick, he was brought back to those days when his daughters caught a cold. As a father, he knew how difficult it was to keep little ones (and sometimes teenagers) on bedrest. If Yuu happens to be one of those who can’t stand to be sick in bed doing nothing, he’ll bring them books from the library and even his own private collection for them to read. He may or may not have allowed their friends to slip in a comic book or two.

During the times after school or during breaks, he would bring Lucius along with him for some animal companionship. With paws kneading biscuits on the blankets and the sweetest purrs, the matagot will be happy to lend his assistance if it means Yuu will recover faster. Combined with Trein sitting beside them reading aloud from one of the books, it’s enough to keep Yuu engaged and resting without feeling the need to move around.

Even when Yuu is back to normal, he doesn’t mind still reading to them and Ortho whenever he and Lucius are in the courtyard. It’s been ages since he’d helped care for someone in need since his daughters moved out of the house, and he was proud to see them full of life again.

Vargas:

Yuu’s sick?! Oh, he knows just what they need to get back on their feet: lots of rest, soup, and water mixed with sports drinks for electrolytes!...what? Did you honestly expect him to force Yuu to try and do workouts or drink and eat the things he does when they’re sick? Absolutely not! He knows that a magician’s physical abilities can improve their ability to cast magic, but he understands that resting is important too.

“If I wouldn’t expect you to walk on a broken leg, why should I expect you to be at your best when sick or mentally exhausted?” he’d explained to the very confused human as he mixed water into a cup with their favorite flavored sports drink. “Maintaining your physical health is important, but knowing when to rest and recover is something you need to pay attention to what your body is telling you. You aren’t being lazy if you’re resting your mind and body. So focus on taking care of yourself first and foremost…got it?”

While he does make sure they get plenty of rest and nutrients in their system, he can help make sure they will have an easier time recovering by helping them stretch out those sore muscles using techniques he’d learned from a physical therapist. Even when they’re given a clean bill of health, he’s not going to just toss them back into exercising at full-tilt. Building back up to where they were before is going to be exactly what he has in mind, and he’ll make sure to get them there!

Sam:

Oh dear, the little imp has a nasty cold? Well that’s not good! Don’t worry, Yuu: Sam has anything and everything you need. IN STOCK! Thermometers and cooling patches for your forehead? In stock! Cough and cold medicine in liquid or capsule form? In stock! Air purifiers and hot steam vaporizers for those stuffy noses? On sale! Anything that Yuu could possibly need to be more comfortable during their recovery or things they used before, he’ll have exactly what they ask for or will find something close enough/better. That’s the Mystery Shop guarantee!

Even though he runs the shop, he finds ways to make time to visit and brings just the thing Yuu was going to ask for. How? Well, he can’t reveal all his secrets, now can he? After all, Yuu is one of his best customers, and he wants to see them back up to their mischievous selves!

He’s happy to have Yuu back in the shop once they get over their cold, bringing out their favorite snacks he’d saved just for them at a slight discount. Don’t forget about the bonus jam-filled shadow skull cookies he made–Yuu will be the first to taste-test a new product he plans to sell! On the side, he takes note of the items that helped Yuu’s recovery, making sure he has a way to get what’s needed in case of an emergency.