#(like he can manage but most times he thinks its better for his mood later on to just let himself go through it)

[godzexperiment]

given how nix isn't much of an person when does wake up from sleep/not an morning creature-

somebody making an inquiry in the morning? him just putting an finger up in an 'one moment' gesture and scrawling on his hand like 'for both our sanity give me some time to wake up damn'

[roosterforme]

Always Ever Only You Part 18 | Rooster x Reader

Summary: You missed the quality time you'd been spending with your husband as soon as it started to slip away. You were busy with work, and Bradley was being called upon again, just like he always was. But before he prepares to leave, your curiosity gets the best of you.

Warnings: Angst, swearing, fluff, oral, smut, talking about trying for a baby

Length: 5200 words

Pairing: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Female Reader

This was written to accompany my series Is It Working For You? along with a bunch of my one-shots and other series, but it can be read on its own! Check my masterlist for the reading order. Always Ever Only You masterlist. Gorgeous banner by @mak-32

As May became June, the temperatures got hotter and the beaches got more crowded, and your evening walks with Tramp became a little less frequent as a result. You also felt like your time with Bradley was starting to become a little more sporadic. Work and other obligations were starting to break into the bubble that the two of you had managed to re-form, and you kind of missed how cozy you'd been.

"I'll be home late on Tuesday, Roo. I have a meeting with Bickel."

"Mav asked me to teach on Thursday, so don't wait for me if you're hungry for dinner."

By the time you got to Friday night, you ended up at the Hard Deck, because everyone kept bugging you to go. And you knew that Bradley was proud of your hard work and the fact that your boss seemed to be lining you up to take over after his eventual retirement. And it wasn't like you weren't absolutely thrilled that Top Gun was entrusting Bradley with teaching their incoming students with more frequency. But you were just craving more of the intimate hours you got used to at home. With just Bradley and a bath with champagne followed by him reading from his notebooks. 

"You want another beer?" Bradley asked you next to the noisy pool table as you shook your head. Nat had already given you two, and you just wanted to go home already. You tried to socialize with everyone a little bit more. Fanboy was about to leave for a long deployment, so you made sure you gave him an extra hug or two. And then Payback showed up with the girl he was dating, so you chatted with her for a little bit. But after another hour, you were feeling antsy. 

Any day now, you were certain Bradley would be telling you he had been chosen for the top secret special detachment. And in just a few more days, he would be on base in Lemoore until the judge made a decision regarding Admiral Dean and Slayer. And there was nothing you could do about either of those things. 

You were also pretty sure you were almost done ovulating right now in spite of your best efforts to try not to think about it. And the past few days had been a bust with how busy the two of you were. The last thing you wanted to do was push Bradley to have sex when one or both of you were tired or clearly not in the mood for it. But there was a tiny bit of doubt that was creeping in, making you feel like this was a wasted month. But on the other hand, just looking at him right now was making you warm. You knew it was probably just your hormones, but you wanted him and his attention all to yourself.

Immediately you set your empty beer bottle down and wrapped your arms around your husband as he talked to his best friend. He rubbed your back as you pressed your cheek to his chest, already feeling a little better. You didn't care if Nat heard you; she was already Bradley's sounding board for so many things. So you smiled at her and then looked up at him as he paused with his beer most of the way to his mouth. 

"Bradley," you said, your voice a little needy even to your own ears. "I love you, and it's been a really long week, and I just kind of miss when we were spending so much time together. Can we go home now and relax?"

Bradley handed Nat his half empty beer and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Can we finish talking about this later?"

"Absolutely," Nat replied with a smirk. "Goodnight, you two."

Then he laced his fingers with yours and led you out of the bar and onto the deck where he immediately picked you up for a piggy back ride. "Why didn't you say something sooner? I thought you wanted to come out and see Fanboy and do the whole Hard Deck thing tonight."

"I kind of did," you said, kissing his ear as he carried you to the Bronco. "But it got old fast compared to being at home with you. It's just been a long week, and I missed you. And I know you'll be in Lemoore in a few days, and then the special detachment is coming up, and-"

"Hey," Bradley said firmly as he set you down next to the Bronco. "I'm right here, and I'm more than happy to take you home and stay there for the rest of the weekend. I'd love to do that, in fact."

You wrapped your arms around his neck and kissed him. "Maybe you can call Nat tomorrow? And finish your conversation with her then?"

"Maybe," he replied. "Or maybe I'll be too busy with my wife. Either way, it works for me."

He buckled you in with another kiss before he climbed in and zipped the short distance back home. Then you made a sandwich for a late night snack and cut it in half to share with him. He lifted you up onto the counter and finished his in three bites, and you felt so much better being at home alone with him. You finally felt like you could focus. 

"Are you still hungry?" you asked while he downed a glass of water and watched you finish eating. 

"Not for a sandwich, Sweetheart." His voice was raspy, and the fine hairs on your neck and arms were standing on end as he took a step closer. 

"Oh," you whispered as he leaned against the counter with his hands on either side of your thighs. You ate the last few bites slowly before you asked, "Are you going to tell me what you're hungry for? Maybe it's something I could get ready for you?"

He groaned softly as he kissed the side of your neck and whispered, "I wanna eat your pussy, Baby Girl. Will you let me?"

An hour ago, you had been feeling overstimulated and annoyed. Now you were unbuttoning your shorts and whining your husband's name. Next time you wouldn't wait so long to tell him you just needed a few minutes alone with him so you could feel better. 

"I'll take that as a yes," Bradley said as he sank down to his knees in front of you and helped you out of your shorts and underwear. He spread your legs wide and ran his index finger back and forth across your clit. "Let me enjoy this perfect pussy, and then I'll read to you from my notebook in bed."

He peppered a few kisses on your thigh, then his mouth was all over you. Your fingers gripped his hair as you tried to stay upright while he buried his face in you. "Roo," you gasped as his mustache hit just the right spot. You rocked gently against his face as he licked long stripes up and down before letting his pretty lips settle on your clit. He knew exactly how to get you off, but right now, he was taking his time. 

"Fucking gorgeous," he whispered, looking up at you and smiling before kissing you everywhere. He fucked you expertly with his tongue, and you were afraid you were pulling his hair too hard, but he didn't stop. 

Soft, needy sounds gave way to you begging him to let you come. "Please, Daddy!" 

He grunted and fucked you with two fingers while he sucked on you in a gentle, steady rhythm. The pressure was just right. His rough mustache was perfect. You came, tugging on his hair until he was standing up. His cheeks were rosy, and his pupils were blown wide, and his face was wet from a mix of your pussy and his saliva. 

He was the most handsome thing that ever existed, and now he was kissing your lips with that mouth that tasted like you. This time you were a little gentler as you combed your fingers through his hair while he rutted against you. 

"You just needed a night in with your Daddy. You feel better now?"

"I really did need you," you promised. Then you softly asked him, "Do you want to fuck me?"

He was panting slightly as he muttered, "Of course I do. You're my perfect wife."

You undid his pants and pushed them down a few inches, and he was right at your entrance, ready to go. But he was hesitating, his cheeks growing a shade darker as he swallowed hard. "I'm not gonna last."

He was just that turned on from going down on you. "I don't care," you promised him. You were so relaxed and sated, you kind of felt like you could melt into a puddle on the kitchen island. And then he was thrusting inside you, his hips rolling and pushing your thighs wider. 

He wrapped his hands around your waist and shook his head, and soon he was muttering that he was about to finish. So you leaned back on your elbows and planted your feet on the edge of the counter and said, "I was a good girl all week. Give me a cream pie?"

Your husband stroked your rooster tattoo with his right thumb as he fucked you harder until you were struggling to keep your feet planted in place. "Oh, shit," he growled when he came. Once his movements had stilled, he withdrew from you and smiled. "That's a beautiful cream pie, if I do say so myself. We do some of our best work in the kitchen." 

You were both giggly and a little bit messy as Bradley carried you to bed. When he flipped to a random page in the notebook, you curled up against him. "What am I supposed to do when you're gone again? We have no idea how long you'll be in Lemoore. And who knows about the special mission either."

He sighed and kissed your forehead. "As far as I'm concerned, Lemoore should be cut and dry. I'll drive up with Nat and Bob, and we'll all read our statements. And hopefully that's it."

"And hopefully Dean and Slayer get fucking reprimanded to the letter of the law," you added.

"Well, that too," he said with a laugh. "But I'll be back home quickly, and we don't even know if I'll get selected for the detachment, so let's not worry about that yet." Then he cleared his throat and started to read from his notebook.

"I can't believe how much time I wasted with other women. The few minutes of satisfaction did not outweigh the fact that I didn't really want to get to know them at all. And maybe even worse, the fact that I could tell they thought I was only good for one thing. The more I think about it, maybe I really only was good for one thing."

You cut him off with a kiss and said, "I don't really like this page. I don't like it when you're hard on yourself."

Bradley looked at you with soft eyes and smiled. "Want me to read something else?"

You wrapped your arms around him a little tighter, but you said, "No. Finish this one."

He cleared his throat again and continued. 

"At the time, I guess I thought I was living in the moment, and that I'd have these experiences to look back on someday when I was older. But now I don't like thinking about it, because the main thing I remember is that I was selling myself short in every way. What's the point in having meaningless sex over and over again when what you're actually craving is attention and affection? What's the point in kicking someone out of your bed after an hour when your skin starts to crawl, when all you really want is to find the right person to keep with you all night long?

I don't understand how my wife is so gracious. I really don't get the way she can look at me and see something worth her precious time. But I'm so thankful she does."

You snuggled against him quietly, your thoughts swirling. "Roo? I don't understand why you didn't just try to take me home with you after we met."

Bradley snorted and chuckled as he set the notebook aside. "You mean when I couldn't stop staring at you when we were on base working together? Or you mean the night when we first talked at the Hard Deck?"

You closed your eyes and considered the difference. Jake had asked you out during work hours two days after you met him, but you were already distracted by Bradley at that point. And maybe you'd have let Bradley take you home from the bar, but then you probably would have never gone on a real date with him. 

"I think I would have gone home with you from the bar," you said softly. "If you'd asked."

Bradley's fingers dug into your body as he said, "Then you would have thought I was a joke just like every other woman. And maybe that's why I didn't try my shitty pickup lines or any of my moves on you. Yeah, you and I were flirting, but everything I did and said to you was sincere, because I could tell I was getting your genuine undivided attention. You weren't only looking at me like I could take care of you physically for an hour.  And that was a very rare thing."

"Oh," you sighed, crawling fully on top of him now. You smiled and kissed him until the concerned crease in his forehead smoothed out. "You always make me feel like you knew we would get married someday as soon as you looked at me."

Bradley rubbed his hands up under your shirt. "I think I subconsciously hoped so, Sweetheart. But I had to play the limited cards in my hand just right to even stand a chance."

You were starting to get sleepy now, and his rough hands felt so good everywhere. "What would you have said to me if you just wanted to hookup?" you asked, laughing as he groaned. 

"You don't want to know, Sweetheart. You would have probably laughed in my face and walked away, because I was using the same dumb tactics since I was twenty four."

You kissed his sternum as your mind once again swirled with information. "This is all very intriguing," you murmured as you started to doze.

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

Bradley was waiting on the porch with you after work on Monday evening, his arms wrapped around you as you kissed him. It was a five hour drive up to Lemoore, and Nat was on her way to pick him up. 

"Call or text me when you get there," you said between kisses as your fingers teased and tugged at his hair. "Even if it's late."

"I will," he promised, kind of no longer content to just be making out with you. There wasn't enough time for anything else, even though you were moaning softly into his mouth and letting your hands explore the front of his body now. "Baby Girl," he warned. The last thing he wanted was an erection when he had to leave you in the next few minutes. 

But you just kissed him harder and said, "I love you," and now Bradley was thinking about retiring and spending every night with you for the rest of his life. 

"Fuck," he grunted when he heard Nat's SUV. When he opened his eyes, she was careening into the driveway behind your shitty little car. His best friend was such a bad driver, he wasn't exactly sure why he and Bob agreed to put her behind the wheel today, but he certainly wouldn't mind if Nat totaled your car right now. She came to a screeching halt mere inches from your bumper. At least that disappointment was enough to stave off his boner. 

You walked Bradley to the driveway, and Bob put the passenger side window down so you could chat with them while Bradley put his garment bag in the trunk along with your small overnight bag he was using. If he wasn't back by Wednesday night, he was going to be so pissed off. 

"I made you guys cookies and some blueberry muffins," you told Bob, handing two containers over. Bradley snuck up behind you and pressed himself against your rear end as you tried to have a normal conversation with his friends. You ended up just saying good luck before turning to face him. "You're obnoxious," you whispered. 

"I know. It's just because I love you so much," he replied with a smirk, earning another heated kiss before you pushed him toward the back door. "I'll let you know when we get there."

Bradley had to push snack wrappers and other assorted trash onto the floor with a grimace so he could buckle his seat belt. Nat turned to look at him. "You and your wife are so gross," she said with a laugh.

"Not as gross as your car. Hey, any chance you can put it in drive instead of reverse and then floor the accelerator?" he asked, only half kidding as he looked at your car.

"No," Nat replied as she backed out. "She'd never forgive me."

Then the three of them waved to you, and they were off. Bradley tried to have a muffin without making a mess of the crumbs, but he watched as Nat just brushed them onto the floor while she drove and ate. "You guys think anything will even happen to Dean?" she asked with her mouth full. 

"If everything is good and just in the world, then yes," Bob said in an even tone. 

"I fucking hope so," Bradley added. "If for no other reason than the fact that they are making us go up to Lemoore."

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

On Tuesday, the courtroom was packed with people who were there to make statements against Admiral Dean. There were so many people in fact, that Bradley was surprised this man had been allowed to fuck up this many missions for his own agenda before he ended up in front of a judge in a military courtroom. The benches of witnesses were jammed as Bradley squeezed in next to Nat, and the room was so warm, he didn't know how he'd manage all day in his dress blues. 

"Look at everyone," she whispered as she tugged at her collar. "We'll be here all week."

Bradley had to listen to the two lawyers argue for a bit, but once things started rolling, he was starting to get a solid picture of what was going on here. Admiral Dean moved from the Atlantic Fleet to the Pacific Fleet with a small reprimand after showing clear favoritism to the pilots out of Naval Air Station Key West. He'd cost an aviator her life among a laundry list of other fucked up things, a fact that made Bradley's somach turn. He nudged Nat's leg with his, thankful his friend was still here even though she looked like she was half asleep. 

But once Dean had been placed in Lemoore, things somehow got even worse. Bradley listened to a statement from a pilot who felt like he had been forced into early retirement by Dean. Then there was a weapons systems officer who said she'd been passed over for promotions by Dean because she tried to call him out on his behavior. 

When he, Bob and Nat were called up with the others who had been in the air with Slayer back in April, Bradley had to stand there and feel the glare from two sets of eyes burning into him as he gave his honest testimony of the events of that day. He didn't hold back. He talked about the fact that he had been named the spare when he would have never gone off course like Slayer did. He made sure to make his point when he said everyone in the air was at risk simply because Slayer had been selected for the mission over him. And he ended things by pointing out that by the time he got to the scene of the dogfighting, some of the others were already nearly out of ammunition and fuel. 

He made eye contact with Dean and then Slayer once he was finished, and then Bob was called up. And then Nat was called up. And then all of the others as well. The details that were being recounted could all be pieced together to give an honest picture of what happened that day. Dean should have been squirming in his seat, and Bradley was delighted to see that he was as the day wore on and on. 

Bradley's stomach was growling loudly, and he was annoyed when the judge said, "Let's all reconvene tomorrow morning for final statements and a decision. Everyone is dismissed for now."

"We have to stay another night?" Nat whined, yanking at her tie on the way out of the courtroom. "Just strip the asshole of his rank right now."

Bradley tended to agree with her. What was the sense in drawing this out any longer? He could have been on his way home to you, but instead he was picking up takeout for dinner and walking it back to his tiny hotel room across the street from the barracks on base. He inhaled his dinner while he texted you some updates, and just when he was hoping to call and maybe have some filthy phone sex, he got a call from someone else. 

He sighed and answered. "Hey, Mav. What's up?"

"You're still in Lemoore?" 

"Yeah. Until at least tomorrow," Bradley grunted. 

Mav paused for a beat. "I wanted to tell you in person, but tomorrow night won't give you as much time to prepare. You've been selected. For the special detachment. You'll have to fly out of Miramar by Comanche on Monday morning."

Bradley's heart was pounding with anticipation and nerves. "Where am I going?"

"That's all the information I have. The clearances for this thing are tight to say the least. When you get back down here, you'll need to talk to Admiral Simpson and Admiral Bates immediately."

"Fuck," Bradley whispered. "Thanks for the call."

He sat in silence for a few minutes, wondering if he should call and tell you right now or wait until he got home. He collapsed back on the bed, knowing this was the kind of conversation he'd rather have with you face to face, but it would be much worse if you thought he was trying to hide anything from you. He reached for his phone. 

After one ring, he heard your voice. "Roo." You sounded so sweet, he could picture the way you must have been curled up in bed reading by now. "Are you alone?"

"Yeah," he grunted, rubbing his face with one hand. 

Your soft laughter made him want to touch himself as you said, "Can we talk about how much I want to suck your cock right now?"

"Fuck. Baby Girl. Wait."

Your voice took on a different tone entirely. "What's wrong?"

"Maverick just called me. I'm going on the special detachment. I leave Monday." When you asked him for details, he had none to give you. And when you asked him if he was happy, he didn't really know how to respond. "I think... relieved is the right word for how I'm feeling. I don't want to leave you again, but I do feel like this is something I needed."

And then you told him that you were proud of him.

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

You had a missed call from Bradley plus a new text message when you looked at your phone the following afternoon, but you couldn't even call him back. You were sitting between Cat and Commander Bickel for a video conference with a group in Annapolis. Video conferences were the fucking worst invention. You didn't want to have to look at that bald guy in Maryland picking his nose on a huge screen. And you certainly didn't want to have to listen to this other idiot talk about things that had nothing to do with your lab for hours on end. 

The only good part was the catered lunch, but even that prevented you from calling Bradley back. You looked at the most recent text he sent you saying Dean and Slayer had been sentenced and that he was on his way home. You sent him back a thumbs up. The details would have to wait until later. 

"Come here," Cat said, giving you a look as she jerked her head to the side.

"What?" you asked as you tried to eat your sandwich before the conference started back up for the afternoon. You had been alternating who you ate lunch with when you made it to the cafeteria, and you'd also been trying to give her and Jake plenty of time together this week without being the third wheel. 

"I'm not worried exactly, but... Jake has a lot of women texting his phone," she said bluntly. "Should I be worried?"

You were kind of stunned, not that you really paid much attention to what he used his phone for. "He has other women texting him?" 

Cat nodded, and you thought it wasn't fair that someone that beautiful should look so insecure. "Most of the messages are from phone numbers he hasn't saved in his contacts. And I didn't go snooping, but he's not trying to hide it. He just leaves his phone out, and then I see them."

You felt a little sick. "What are they saying to him?"

"Hey Jake, it's Brittany, haven't seen you at the bar. Or Jake, call me if you want to come over. Or my personal favorite, Wanna come over and fuck?"

"No," you gasped. "Oh my god, Cat. There's no way he's hooking up with anyone else. It's probably just some residuals."

She shrugged and picked at her own sandwich. "Well it's a lot for me. And this is kind of the reason why I didn't want to get involved months ago," she whispered, looking sheepish. 

"I'll talk to him."

"No." She shook her head. "Then he'll know I told you, and I don't want to make him mad at me."

"He won't get mad at you, Cat." You wanted to be reassuring, because you really were sure he wasn't sleeping around. "Is he being sweet to you? And Jeremiah?"

"Yes," she replied without hesitation. She closed her eyes and whispered, "We slept together for the first time last weekend. It was... it was so good. And he's great with Jer. Like a natural." When she opened her dark eyes again she looked less calm. "I'll talk to him myself."

Then Bickel called everyone back to their seats. "The conference is picking up again," he said in such a monotone voice, you loved him even more for hating this meeting. "Could have been an email," he muttered, and everyone from your lab erupted into laughter as you took your seats. 

You used the minute of confusion while everyone moved around the conference table to text Jake instead of Bradley. 

I sincerely hope you have your text messages under control. 

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

Bradley had already been home for a few minutes when you ran in after work. "Well? What happened?" you asked while you hopped around inside the front door as you removed your boots one at a time.

He was stretched out on the couch staring at the ceiling. "Just give me another minute. Nat's driving did a number on me."

But you strolled over and laid down right on top of him which made him laugh. "I don't want to give you another minute. I missed you."

"I missed you, too." You kissed him and Bradley ran his hands down to your lower back. "And you know I love your ass in your uniform pants."

"What happened with Dean and Slayer?" you asked, not letting him indulge just yet. 

"Well, Dean will not be retiring as an Admiral, and Slayer is on a year-long leave or absence with one third pay."

You smiled instantly. "They stripped Dean's rank?"

"They sure did, Sweetheart. And they are going to force him to retire without benefits."

"Damn," you whispered as you kissed his chin. "He had it coming. They both did."

"Now onto more important things," Bradley said. "Two nights sleeping on that shitty hotel room bed made my back hurt."

"You poor, sweet thing," you crooned softly. 

"I know," he murmured. "I require a bath complete with you and some champagne. And then I'm hoping you'll welcome me back to our bed in the warmest way."

"I think that can be arranged." You got up and started to unbutton your uniform shirt on your way to the refrigerator. "We have one bottle left."

When you turned back, he was already gone, and you could hear the water running in your bathroom. "Seriously?" you asked as you ran in there to find him naked as the tub filled. 

"What? I missed you a lot."

The special detachment was going to feel like forever, you just knew it. And you'd be surprised if he'd be allowed to have contact with you at all for the duration. But that wasn't the only thing that you'd been thinking about this week. After he left for Lemoore, you'd read his notebook from cover to cover, and while you were certainly curious, you didn't want to make him uncomfortable. 

You slipped into the tub and into his open arms, the water just almost too hot to handle as he popped the champagne bottle and took a sip as it overflowed slightly. You straddled his thighs and pressed the bottle to your lips as he started a playlist on his phone. 

"Roo?"

"Yeah, Sweetheart?"

He set his phone down and pulled you close as you said, "I read your notebook while you were gone."

"You'll have it memorized soon," he replied with a chuckle as he kissed your shoulder. 

You took another sip of champagne before handing him the bottle. "I keep thinking about how you said you used to pick girls up before you met me, and..."

He raised one eyebrow as he drank, and then he licked his lips. "Yeah?"

"Well, I'm still curious."

He laughed and shook his head. "First of all, I was a bit of a mess before I realized I stood a chance with you and cleaned up my act. You already know that. And second, there's no way you'd have gone for any of my bullshit, I can almost guarantee that."

"But like, what were your go-to lines? What were your moves?" He tipped your chin up and looked at you closely. "Come on. Just humor me."

"God, Baby Girl. I'm sure it was all really quite embarrassing. Especially when I was younger."

You kissed his cheek and then his lips and you could feel him start to stir against your thigh. "Could you try it on me?" you asked softly. "For fun?"

Bradley's cheeks were pink and his lips tasted like champagne, and for some reason you desperately wanted to know what it would have been like if you met him five years earlier and he tried to get you to go home with him right away. 

He was stroking your tattoo absentmindedly beneath the water as he eventually asked, "What exactly did you have in mind, Sweetheart?"

"Well, there's this bar..."

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

I have been excited about the next few chapters for such a long time! So happy you're here! Thanks to @mak-32 and @beyondthesefourwalls

PART 19

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[isa-ghost]

amfmn missa.. p please.. please mother … feed us

I'M BEING ENABLED PPOVERHEAT

He's an actual grim reaper. That's where he's disappeared to so often in canon, reaper duties. It's a very demanding job, you know.

Doesn't stop him from feeling terrible about being gone so often though. He misses his husband and kids and hates how often he's out of the loop :(

Fr though Phil and the kids make him so so happy after spending countless hours working such a sad job. It's also partially why he sings and makes art. That brand of fun is catharsis for the soul.

He has all his canon weapons but I ALSO gave him a reaper deathscythe. And boy is he gonna use it. Fucking AWOOGA MissaSinfonia when he's angry.

Btw as a reaper he can FEEL souls. He can see their power, their condition, feel the surface level emotions and personality of its owner. This will come in handy later in the fic. ;)

As per the post I made asking for Missa appreciation so I can characterize him properly: He's undyingly loyal, he fights hard and loves even harder, he's protective, silly, and goddamn can he flirt.

All his wet cat behavior is a result of getting too overwhelmed by The Horrors. He's seen A Lot as a reaper. But somehow Quesadilla Island and all its... Everything. Always manage to show him a new brand of What The Fuck he's never even imagined before. Hence all his screaming and weeping when he's caught up on what he's missed. Like how tf else is he supposed to react??

Somewhat attached to that, he and Phil rlly were a match made in Federation Heaven bc they both have issues with self-doubt despite being insanely skilled and sharp-witted. Missa is better abt it than Phil though. His only acts up when he messes up a lot or just. Doesn't have a clue how to handle a situation where it's dire that he does. It's more of an insecurity about being unprepared and failing his loved ones than it is a doubt he has skill. He KNOWS he does, he hates when it's not enough. That's how he differs from Phil, who thinks he has none at all.

Btw when you fuck with the people he's protective over, he gets PISSED. We're getting a LOT of pissed off Missa in AMFMN <3 Ofc there'll be a lot of reaper tears too, his husband is suffering and there's little he can do about it. :( But ohohoho when the sad turns into rage. BARK WOOF. Eventually he decides EK is catching these hands and scythe.

He also shakes hands with his husband on being a self-sacrificing little shit. And. Yeah this is gonna happen later in the fic. (He's not dying dw dw)

You have no idea how excited I am that I basically get to build his dynamics with Fit, Etoiles, and Bagi from scratch. I'm so hyped. People are welcome to reply with this with any crumbs we have of their dynamics in canon but afaik they've rarely interacted outside of very minor moments, so AMFMN will largely be a sandbox for me to establish what I THINK they'd be like. Which in my fic plan so far, is largely taking each character's personality and applying how I think they'd react to a situation, and how that would look when two of them are interacting in that situation. Ex: at one point Etoiles has to comfort Missa bc he's just having a ROUGH time with this saving Phil stuff. But Etoiles is NOT a comfort guy. So he does his Etoiles thing: hearing Missa out while also cracking his usual brand of jokes in an attempt to lighten the mood.

I also have a plot point planned with him and Bagi when shit is hitting the fan the hardest and OUUGHHH. That self-sacrificing shit am I right.

God I'm being so mean to him specifically in AMFMN though. Ender King is a sack of shit, he knows exactly who to harass most using Phil's body >:/

See in my AMFMN Fitza headcanons, I said they're each other's confidants. Which IS true. However, no one in the fic gets the honor of Phil FINALLY communicating with someone about his issues other than his husband. Missa is the person he caves and confesses things to. Missa gets the HC Deity lore and what's been happening to him lately. This is actually what Chapter 3 is :D

Also I am so sorry but I'm sliding a Missa Romantic Love Confession attempt into the fic and it gets interrupted by The Horrors. But yeah Missa is romantically in love with Phil, he just respects that Phil sees things platonically. He still wants to communicate his feelings though.

[husbandhannie]

home, home, home, home

pairing: woozi x reader

word count: 1.1k

warnings: some relationship insecurity, but this isn't exactly angst, one(1) barely present sexual reference (no details at all)

a/n: svt's home is actually really inspiring when you're in the mood

taglist: @leejungchans @junhui-recs @itsveronicaxxx

jihoon’s distracted, and he knows it. given soonyoung’s concerned gaze, he knows it too.

“we can pick this up later”, his friend offers, “we have time”.

“no, it’s okay”, jihoon responds, not sounding nearly as sincere as he should, “i said we’d do this”.

it’s true. as much as he rolls his eyes at soonyoung’s “tiger agenda”, he promised his friend a tiger-themed song for International Tiger Day, and jihoon is a man of his word. he can’t just stop for today, as much as he desperately wants to.

“we have more than a month”, soonyoung insists, “how about we continue tomorrow? after gym?”

jihoon sighs. he knows his mind is focused on something else today, knows that he can’t help his friend today. he bids soonyoung goodbye as he leaves his studio, and it’s a testament to how preoccupied he is that he doesn’t roll his eyes at soonyoung’s illicit smirk.

you. he’s got you on his mind.

and no, it’s not the way soonyoung thinks.

you haven’t texted jihoon in the last 12 hours, and he’s losing his mind trying to figure out why.

to most people, this might not be a big deal. after all, most of those hours were in the night — the period of the day in which people generally sleep. but you almost never sleep before 2 AM, and neither does he — and the two of you always text during the night. always.

so understandably, jihoon is a little freaked out about the lack of messages from you. his texts and calls to you have gone unanswered, and he’s hoping it’s not on purpose.

as he manoeuvres his car through traffic, he tries to think of the last time the two of you met. it was two — no, three — no, wait, four days ago. you had dropped by his studio for dinner, and mentioned feeling overwhelmed with your master’s thesis. he was working on a track, he remembers.

maybe he was distracted. maybe it dawned on you that he wasn’t available enough, that he wouldn’t be there for you when you needed him the most. maybe you decided to cut your losses and ditch him.

the logical part of his brain knows that that’s very improbable. the two of you talk, and you have always told him when he did something that bothered you. the other part of his brain, however, has been almost waiting for this to happen.

yes, you’re busy too, and yes, you dislike big flashy dates as much as he does, and yes, you prefer night-ins spent just talking — but maybe you realized something, maybe you decided that you deserve better.

the significance of your presence in his life has never hit jihoon so hard, and he’s hoping that he hasn’t fucked this up.

he doesn’t think he’s ever made the journey from your building’s parking lot to your floor so fast — he’s racing through the stairs to the second floor, and for once he doesn’t dwell on how your landlord should cut down your rent because the elevator is somehow always under repair. actually, he’s not thinking about anything but you — and how he feels like the ground under him might give out any second.

he’s felt this way before, back when his group was new to the industry. he remembers the uncertainty, remembers the feeling of dread. he didn’t think he’d ever feel it again, least of all in a romantic relationship. this is what happens when you find a home, he thinks.

he has to stop himself from pressing your doorbell the second he stops in front of your apartment. he manages to wait for about twelve seconds while he catches his breath, before giving in, lightly panting.

the door opens and you emerge in your blue pajamas, your eyes squinting at his figure. he’s woken you up.

“jihoon?”, you blink, a confused smile making its way to your face, “what are you — “, you stand up straight, and he knows you’ve noticed his sweaty forehead and quick breaths, “everything okay?”

“yeah, i, uh”, he stutters for a moment, because he hadn’t thought about what to actually say to you, “you weren’t picking up my calls”.

seriously? he does a mental face-palm. “you weren’t picking up my calls?”

“just came to check if everything is okay” there. that sounds more reasonable.

“oh?”, you move to let him in, closing the door behind you while you answer, “ah yeah! i had a couple of drinks last night with my team, and came home and passed out. left my phone outside, i think”.

oh. jihoon feels the knot in his chest loosen up. he hasn’t fucked his up. you’re still here, he hasn’t lost his home.

“sorry about that”, you continue when he doesn’t respond, “didn’t mean to worry you”.

“no, it’s okay”, he offers, smiling when he notices that you’re wearing your pajama shirt inside-out, “i wasn’t that worried”.

it’s a lie, but you don’t need to know.

“anyway, i’m just going to chill out today”, you say as you pull out your coffee cup, “maybe cook a little, read a book”, you turn to him with another cup in hand, his cup. “wanna have coffee before you go off for work? it’s soonyoung’s tiger song for today, right?”

“he ditched me today”, jihoon pretends to be annoyed, but he can’t help the smile that grows on his face when you laugh, “i can hang around here, if that’s okay”.

“ofcourse”, you smile, and jihoon has to hold back from pulling you into a hug. you do it for him though, wrapping your arms around his waist and sighing into his shoulder. “i missed you”.

jihoon holds back from telling you the truth about his work today. and about the tensed car ride here. and how he ran up the stairs of your defective building. and how he hopes you’ll never get tired of holding him like this.

he’ll tell you later, he knows. later, when it’s not too freaky to tell you what you mean to him, when he’s sure he can say it out loud in words that make sense. later, when he’s sure he’s your home, too.

for now, he just wounds his arms around you and pulls you even closer.

“i missed you too”.

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Psycho Analysis: Buffalo Bill

(WARNING! This analysis contains SPOILERS!)

Back in 2019, I started Psycho Analysis with a review of one of cinema’s most overshadowed and underrated villains. Now that I’m better at this, I've decided I'm redoing those old reviews, giving them a fresh coat of paint, fitting them into the modern Psycho Analysis style, and updating the scores. I figured there’s no better place to start than with good ol’ Jame Gumb.

Jame Gumb (yes, Jame, he doesn’t have an “S” in his name) is the enigmatic serial killer from The Silence of the Lambs known as Buffalo Bill. He’s left a trail of flayed women in his wake, his motives unknown, and it’s up to Clarice Starling to stop him with a little help from a smarmy cannibal asshole. He’s the perfect sort of twisted, perverted freak you’d hope to find in a grim, gritty detective story. In fact, he almost seems a bit uncontroversial and unremarkable in terms of villains, doesn’t he?

Oh, if only. Unfortunately, there are aspects of Bill’s character that have made him the second most controversial villain of 90s cinema after Ray Finkle from Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. And we’re going to discuss all of that, because the big question when discussing Bill ultimately isn’t whether he’s good or bad, but is he good despite the unfortunate implications he ends up carrying due to what is and isn’t adapted from the book?

Motivation/Goals: Bill just wants to play dress up. Unfortunately, his idea of dressing up involves skinning women and then sewing said skin into a woman suit he can wear to dance about in his underground dungeon, penis tucked between his legs. To accomplish this Ed Gein-esque goal, he uses the playbooks of other killers like Ted Bundy to lure in unsuspecting women of considerable girth, traps them in a well in his basement, and forces them through a strict skin care regiment until it’s time to kill and skin them.

All of this is just incredibly fucked up, and also isn’t elaborated on to quite the degree the novel does due to Bill not being a character we focus on to gain real insight into. The full reveal of his plan is a shocking twist, but we don’t have the full psychological scope of his actions that was laid bare in the novel; while it doesn’t diminish Gumb in my opinion, it does leave the door open for some… problematic readings of what he’s up to, which we’ll discuss later.

Performance: While I don’t think I could possibly say he is an actor who manages to achieve the lofty heights of Hopkins, Ted Levine is still absolutely fantastic in his role. He’s an actor who always manages to inject his characters with a sort of unsettling air; just look at his brief appearance in Shutter Island if you need proof of this. Those skills are put to good use here, as he manages to make Gumb truly unnerving, and arguably far more realistic in his depiction of a serial killer than Lecter is.

Final Fate: After stalking Clarice Starling through his blackened basement while wearing night vision goggles, the tables are turned on Bill and the hunter becomes the hunted as Clarice unloads her gun into him. It’s a rather fitting death; as he preyed on women at their most vulnerable, it only makes sense that a woman strip him of all his power when he appears to be in control.

Evilness: I really don’t think there is any good argument against Bill getting the full 10/10. I mean, the man skins women so that he can wear their skin as a suit. How much fucking worse can a person even be in a story like this? It says a lot that Lecter comes off as more reasonable and less evil than the guy (even though this is decidedly not the case).

Best Scene: You know what it is:

And it’s even Jay and Silent Bob approved!

Really gotta compliment the song choice here; Q Lazzarus’ ominous dance tune “Goodbye Horses” forever had its image altered by its use here, but it really heightens the mood and feeds in to the unsettling nature of Bill’s dance. You can’t hear the opening notes of the song without this scene immediately coming to mind. And to think, its inclusion was all because she happened to pick up director Johnathan Demme in her taxi during a blizzard and showed him her demo tape.

Best Quote: From the above scene, Bill drops one of the most famous serial killer quotes in cinematic history:

“Would you fuck me? I’d fuck me. I’d fuck me so hard.”

Final Thoughts & Score: Buffalo Bill is horrendously underrated as a villain, though clearly there are some out there who appreciate him (Seth Green for example, who based Chris Griffin’s voice in Family Guy off of Buffalo Bill’s). That being said, the movie unfortunately ends up dipping into problematic territory as by excising most of the elaboration from the novel, Bill can unfortunately be read as an unflattering depiction of a trans woman.

Now you and I know that isn’t true, and anyone else who has read the book knows it isn’t true, but do you really think the average moviegoer in the early 90s cared about that? They see the freaky man dancing around with his schlong tucked away, wearing a woman’s skin, and find it unsettling and grotesque. It is incredibly easy to see how someone could see this as something akin to a villain in a crappy JKR detective novel, and it really didn’t have to be that way because the book really goes out of its way to not demonize trans people; while a bit outdated by modern standards, the book explains that trans people are not inherently violent and that Gumb is merely deluding himself into believing he is trans as some sort of warped justification for his actions. It even pointing out he was rejected for gender reasignment surgery. The movie has a few lines, but that’s kind of disappointing compared to the original novel, isn’t it? Then again, perhaps over-explaining would lead to the same criticisms the ending of Psycho gets, where laying things out for the audience in a way that tries not to demonize marginalized individuals is seen as tacky and unneeded.

Considering that Gumb was inspired by real life killers and their motivations (particularly Ed Gein, who has a higher number of fictional characters inspired by him than he does victims) and because I read the book, I don’t necessarily find his portrayal all that offensive, but I am a cis guy. If you do find his character tasteless, I won’t exactly blame you. It’s a rather unfortunate side effect of the transition from book to film that we lost the details that would ameliorate the problematic image of the character. With all that said, I still think he gets an 8.5/10. He’s certainly not as iconic as Lecter is and he’s too problematic to score any higher, but he is a very effective villain for the film he’s in and Levine’s performance is chilling and entrancing.

If nothing else, his existence led to the greatest open RP of all time. That’s gotta count for something.

[quitealotofsodapop]

I love all the ideas and your response has given me some more to chew on for this au ty. (I might have already sent this but I'm not sure it sent but if it did i am sorry for the double ask)

[Wukong spending the Journey getting hit by all the symptoms of pregnancy during those 9-14 years.] the morning sickness is def the worst for him.

[Many foes back off just by the tired firey glare in the King's eyes.] his presence alone is usually able to get most of them to back off, but for those who were still going to risk trying a tired "I am running on 2 hours of sleep, crippling isolation and lonliness, and I haven't been able to keep any food down for three days, I am not in the mood" glare is enough to sen them running for the hills.

[Wukong never managed to tell Macaque about the Egg in that lifetime.] this fact breaks Wukong's heart, and it breaks Macaque to when he later learns that was with child the whole time because having a peacful life and a family was all he really ever wanted.

[He's convinced that the Egg's presence at the Samadhi Fire was what caused the Rings to Split and hit Ao Lie.] I was thinking that during the Samadhi fire ritual the egg suddenly started "kicking" and despite his attempts to not let it affect his performance the pain is what causes him to slip, allowing the ring to split. he absolutely blames himself for this.

[By isolating himself, he accidentally causes his body to *turn down the heat* and extend the process even longer.] he's gonna be so mad when he finds out thats one of the reasons it took so long. but maybe it was for the better, with no support group it would have been difficult to raise the egg on his own. the egg was "no troop, these are not prime baby raising conditions, i stay here longer", like giving Wukong time to find a safe and loving situation to give birth in.

[he geniunely believed that keeping MK whilst the Stone Egg was still draining life force could kill the cub. So SWK is forced to give the little toddler up to save his life.] again, as unfortunate as it is, perhaps for the better. even if not being adressed for the right reasons at the time Wukong knew he wasn't in the position to be caring for someone so young at that point, and the fact he took measures to ensure that MK still got a stable and loving home to grow up in says a lot about how even if he couldn't provide for MK he already loved him. the lack of being in the right headspace to care for an infant is also probably another reason for the egg to "turn down the heat", not able to be mentally there for child, child says in womb till he can.

[When him and MK finally reunite, its a little awkward but MK immediately understands the reason for the Monkey King's retirement.] does MK remember Monkey King, or is it a "I just met an actual god/my fav hero of legend and their pregnant" kind of awkward?

[MK, thinking its a bad breakup situation: "oh ok. I guess you're owed some long-overdue paternity leave, huh?"] this is funny if you remember the fact that this likely wouldn't have happened if it weren't for Wukong and Macaque actually having a bad break up, causing Macaque to leave and Wukong to lose the one thing keeping his body from triggering the egg making process. in a way, it is a bad break-up situation, just not exactly in the way MK thinks.

[MK only asks about the schematics on the Egg after Wukong makes a comment about being "like this longer than even Lao Tzu's mother".] Wukong def brags that he's had the longest pregnancy out of any immortal now.

[He returns to Pigsy's that evening silent with a horrifed look on his face.] the rest of the gang notice, they ask, MK explains what Wukong told him, and now everyone is silently horrified for the rest of the night.

[The Spider Queen can sense that theres a new life within the King, but she decides its an issue for after the takeover.] Wukong is kinda surprised when she doesn't instantly try and use it against him, she just responds that she still has some honor. this does not stop her from draining his power though. Wukong's far more concerned about a certain other demoness present learning about his egg...

[DBK frees himself, not only from the fear of losing his wife and his son, but also out of fury that Wukong had been hiding his condition for so long!!] he is not happy to learn that Wukong put his egg at risk with Samadhi fire situation and by fighting him, or that Wukong had hidden it at all from him as his sworn brother. and also with the webs draining Wukong's power it was putting the little one at risk, can't let that happen either, not if he has something to say about. DBK def learns about it because he overhears the deeply concerning conversation between SWK and LBD while their tied up, him being tied up close to Wukong and all.

[PIF demands a proper baby shower when she hears about it from her excited husband later.] PIF sitting at the dinner table, reading a book and eating while she waits for her husband and son to come home: why do I hear loud footsteps getting rapidly closer? DBK busting open the dining room door with Red Son tucked under his arm: DARLING WE'RE GONNA BE GODPARENTS!!!! PIF & Red Son: WHAT? cue a very excited bull king explaining everything to them

[but becomes concerned when his Sun refuses to fight in any way that leaves his stomach exposed.] protecting a specific part of the body usually means there's a vulnerability there, but Wukong didn't fight like he was injured, Macaque knows what that looks like and that wasn't it so now he's confused. the only other kind of vulnrability he could think of invovling one's stomach that would make them seem bloated as well as make them want to get away from the fight as fast as possible is if he was pregnant, but that can't be the case here can it?

["The Shadow Play" becomes more a plan to trap the Monkie Kid gang for answers. MK spills the beans. Macaque stares blankly for a minute before yelling in frustration. It's too much emotional baggage to process right now!] he lays awake for nights on end trying to figure out if its really what he thinks it is with the little evidence he has, and then he just can't take it anymore and sets up the play. trapping the gang in his lantern and threatening MK until he spills, MK does and even though an answer is what he wanted it takes a moment to process that he had been right, then he lashes out when more questions came to mind. how? when? for how long? who's the other parent? MK frees his friends while Macaque is lashing out and they make a break for it, they escape before Macaque can threaten more answers out of them.

[now with the additional threat that she will harm the Stone Egg if Macaque fails her again...] Macaque might not have answers about the egg, but it's still Wukong's egg at the end of the day. sure just the other day he'd been totally fine with the idea of killing the guy but now... was there still hope he could have the life he wanted with his Sun? even if he couldn't he could never bring himself to knowingly harm his former lover's unborn infant. Wukong ofc doesn't know this at first, and gets really worried about Mac getting involved. he doesn't want to have to choose between him and his egg ever again, but he will if he has to. the problem is avoided entirely when (much to SWK's surprise/confusion) Macaque straight up acts like doesn't exist while hunting the gang in s3. for this subtle blessing SWK is relieved and grateful.

[Macaque breaks the King from his possession by casually placing a curious hand on his swollen stomach, smiling in a way Wukong hadn't seen in centuries. "I know," is all that is said as the two monkeys allow their foreheads to touch.] it's such a simple thing, but it's a certain type of soft kindness he hasn't felt in years, that he missed very deeply, the domesticity of it, makes him feel like his moon really is his again. he bursts out crying and almost sends them both to the ground when he collapses into Macaque for a hug.

[LBD is unexpectedly destroyed by the Stone Egg itself. She did not count upon the Egg recognising her as a yummy source of spirtual energy as she was possessing it's parent.] egg was hungry, and SWK was feeling drained after being possessed, LBD was right their and strong and had hurt the egg's parent. so LBD gets nommed on. naturally.

[MK is a little disturbed, but glad that the demoness is gone-gone.] the can't see it happen, but they all feel an absurdly powerful force emanating from SWK suddenly tearing apart and absorbing LBD's soul. everyone's a little shook up by that one. Macaque: did- did the egg just- SWK frozen on spot, with a nervous and tight expression: *exasperated inhale* yeah... everyone else: oh gods there was also a little concern that eating LBD whole soul would have consequences.

[Until the newly unpossessed Monkey King doubles over in pain and cries for the Bodhisattva to help him. Guanyin is on the scene in seconds, glaring at her little brother angrily. Half the gang stare jaws dropped at what is happening while the rest are panicking.] everyone was chilling, settling down and gtting some food after everything, SWK was feeling the most content and happy he had in ages as he refused to anywhere other then glued to Macaque's side, and the egg was like, "I just got a massive meal, and the whole troop is here now, guess it's time to come out now". Wukong surprisingly casually sits up and tells Ne Zha to go get Guanyin, NOW, being the patron god of infants, he quickly realizes whats going on and bolts for the south sea, the others clue in and start freaking out at this point too. Gaunyin is not happy at SWK for putting himself and the egg at risk with both the Samadhi fire (again, they also tried to warn him off it the first time) and with fighting LBD alone, but thats a conversation for after the egg is born, hatched, and healthy. Tang's fanboying over meeting the Guanyin is stifled only by the painc of egg on the way.

[After many hours of painful labor with Macaque clutching his hand for support, Wukong *finally* greets his baby for the first time.] Wukong is def squeezing so hard at one point that Macaque thinks his hand is either gonna break or pop off, it doesn't do either, but it is numb by the end of it. Macaque gladly would do it again if it meant getting to be there when the egg was born and hatched. Wukong def jokingly tells his newborn that she "sure kept them all waiting".

[Her dark fur is hard to ignore. As well as the ice-blue eyes that stare between the two monkeys with wonder. And the little excited chirps she makes that sing the tune of Wukong's favorite songs.] the ice blue eyes are from the last minute bone demon meal ofc, but what if the dark fur actually comes from Wukong's longing to be with macaque as a family again, and those feelings during early pregnancy were so strong it changed the infant's appearence in order to fit not just Wukong but his desires/emotional needs (that being having the family Macaque always wanted with him). Macaque def cries when she has dark fur like him, makes him feel more like he's possibly a bio parent. Wukong is def in love with everything about his little one, down to every little sound she makes. I like to think he would talk to the egg whenever he was alone while pregnant, and was also always humming to them, maybe the infant somehow knows some of those tunes he was humming and tries to mimic them fresh out of the egg.

[Yuebei Xing is celebrated across the many Realms as the first Stone Monkey to be born from a Stone Egg in milennia. Gold Star comes down from Heaven in person to bless her arrival.] they jokingly thank Gold Star for being too busy to oversee Wukong's punishment, because if he had Wukong likely wouldn't be holding the most precious ball of fur in his arms right now.

[singeing Azure Lion's fur as he goes to take the Jade Emperor's throne. All present, including members of the Brotherhood, laugh at the coincidence.] it's hard not to laugh, given the coincidence. the only one not laughing is Azure, who just saw his life flash before his eyes.

[Yuebei's whole family are willing to *destroy* the divine animals if even dare touch a single hair on her little head.] knowing Azure, he's either fantasizing about Yuebei being Wukong and his infant, or plotting how to use her for blackmail. or both. either way Wukong's none too happy to learn who's got their hands on his little one.

[The retrieve Yuebei after they enter the palace and see the three usurpers beaten to a pulp. The infant monkey rolling around on her butt as she giggles. Azure begs the crew to "please take her back".] Azure was perhaps a little too lost in his triumph and day-dreaming to notice the ultra powerful infant he was holding beginning to grow restless and playful, one of his many mistakes. especially seeing as she had little to no strength control at such a young age.

All in reference to the core "slow boiled stone egg au" post.

You did send a less detailed version of this ask a few days ago, I just hadn't gone through my inbox enough XD

I love the detailed responses though! It's nice to see so much interest in my silly aus!

[the morning sickness is def the worst for him.]

Based on my previous ironic pregnancy headcanons, Wukong occasionally gains a food adversion to his fave fruit ever; Peaches. Some days his brain/body just decides "Eww no. bleh. Spit it out right now" and the nausea hits him hard. Wukong is dismayed whenever it happens.

["I am running on 2 hours of sleep, crippling isolation and lonliness, and I haven't been able to keep any food down for three days, I am not in the mood" glare is enough to sen them running for the hills.]

[-this fact breaks Wukong's heart, and it breaks Macaque to when he later learns that was with child the whole time because having a peacful life and a family was all he really ever wanted.]

[the egg was "no troop, these are not prime baby raising conditions, i stay here longer"] + [the lack of being in the right headspace to care for an infant is also probably another reason for the egg to "turn down the heat", not able to be mentally there for child, child says in womb till he can.]

Pretty much yeah!

Stone Monkeys only have this backup for the absolute last resort when things are at their worst enviroment-wise. No mate, no troop, no support system, no mental health = Egg ain't moving. Think of it like the formation of a geode - it can do it either over a natural couple of centuries, or in a few months with intervention.

"Asleep" Stone Monkeys who are still buried know that they're unlikely to ever be recovered, but their egg can still be found by other troops and hatch in response to socialization even thousands of years on.

However, "Awake" Stone Monkeys with an Egg cooking need to have an active support system in place for the baby's development to progress faster/less riskily. By shuting out the outside world, all Wukong did was accidentally set the Egg to "sleep mode".

Sadly, even if Wukong was wrong and his body identified baby!MK harmlessly as a troop member - SWK simply wasn't in the mental headroom to raise a whole baby without someone to help him.

[does MK remember Monkey King, or is it a "I just met an actual god/my fav hero of legend and their pregnant" kind of awkward?]

The second one mostly. MK honestly can't remember his earliest memories beyond the sight of SWK's egg fragment + possibly Nuwa, and thats with supernatural help.

In a slightly sad note, it's possible MK *remembers* being held by someone soft with a round belly + gold eyes. He assumes throughout his life that this person was his birth mother before he was given up/orphaned.

[this likely wouldn't have happened if it weren't for Wukong and Macaque actually having a bad break up]

MK is right in his own way XD

[Wukong def brags that he's had the longest pregnancy out of any immortal now.]

Wukong's been carrying the egg since the Journey days, about the Tang Dynasty (690-907 AD)/irl Xuanzang's departure in 629. So that Stone Egg been slow boiling from anywhere between 1394 to 1116 years. 0_o

Either way SWK has beaten Lao Tzu/Zi's mom (pregnant for 62-80 years), and def brags about that fact to whatever immortal will hear.

[DBK def learns about it because he overhears the deeply concerning conversation between SWK and LBD while their tied up, him being tied up close to Wukong and all.]

DBK overhears LBD making threatening references to Wukong's conditon and immediately interrupts her villainy bs to yell at his sworn brother.

(inside the giant Spider Mech) LBD: "All will fall into place soon. Even with the unexpected additon of your... future heir." *guestures hand around SWK's stomach* DBK, furious ans still wrapped in web: "WHAT!?!? HEIR?! SUN WUKONG!! Are you so reckless that you'd fight even when your unborn child could have been harmed!?" Wukong, wrapped in less-tight web: "Not the best time DBK. I can handle it." LBD: "Quite. Then again it is all in char-" DBKm interrupting: "REALLY BROTHER?! YOU DIDN'T TRUST ME TO KNOW!? If I was aware of your condition - I would have never dared to invoke your anger! Even my beautifully ruthless wife would agree with me!" LBD: *glares at DBK in annoyance* "Ahem." Wukong, ignoring her: "I couldn't let you guys know! Look, I've been fine on own for centuries now!" LBD: "Exc-" DBK, super-concerned: "CENTURIES!?! WERE YOU WITH CHILD DURING THE RITUAL!?!" *DBK busts out of his bindings and gently grabs SWK* DBK: "LADY GUANYIN WILL TAN BOTH OUR HIDES WHEN SHE HEARS ABOUT THIS!" LBD: *gives up and leaves*

[DBK busting open the dining room door with Red Son tucked under his arm: DARLING WE'RE GONNA BE GODPARENTS!!!!]

After the initial shock wears off, PIF immediately summons a catalog to look for baby shower supplies. This is a monumentous occassion! She ofc assumes it's Macaque's fault (she's not wrong XD) and that this might be her future sworn niece/nephew! She simply must organise everything for her idiot sworn brother and his mate!

Red blinks in confusion before confronting the Monkie Kid gang about it later. Mei demands PIF's contact details right that second so that they can swap party ideas.

[even though an answer is what he wanted it takes a moment to process that he had been right, then he lashes out when more questions came to mind. how? when? for how long? who's the other parent?]

Even with knowing how Stone Eggs works, Macaque has such a mental 404 error at the news that he's reduced to yelling garbbled questions at the gang until they leave awkwardly.

[...was there still hope he could have the life he wanted with his Sun?]

Macaque spends most of S3 trying to bat away any thoughts/predictive sounds of a happy domestic life him and Wukong cna have together.

[it's such a simple thing, but it's a certain type of soft kindness he hasn't felt in years, that he missed very deeply, the domesticity of it, makes him feel like his moon really is his again. he bursts out crying and almost sends them both to the ground when he collapses into Macaque for a hug.]

I just love this image. The possession being broken by Macaque expressing softness, his vunerability, to Wukong. And the possessed King snapping out of it since he's so conflcitingly overwhelmed by the joy of having his Moon back again + the weakness he feels.

[egg was hungry, and SWK was feeling drained after being possessed, LBD was right their and strong and had hurt the egg's parent. so LBD gets nommed on. naturally.] + [the can't see it happen, but they all feel an absurdly powerful force emanating from SWK suddenly tearing apart and absorbing LBD's soul. everyone's a little shook up by that one.]

Yuebei's first immortal kill is in fact LBD, preformed before she was even born. Once the switch "flipped" on the possesed SWK, the Egg recognised LBD as both a threat to her parent and a tasty source of Dao, hence; nom-nom-nom.

All thats left behind of the ancient bone demon is a picked-clean skull. The Ten Kings and Yama feel this hungry act from beyond the Realms and wonder *what* creature could have created such a great power vacuum.

[the egg was like, "I just got a massive meal, and the whole troop is here now, guess it's time to come out now".]

Ah, a fellow party crasher, just like her baba. Wukong and Macaque can barely enjoy the bowl of noodles they've stolen (in good humor) from MK when Wukong's face just drops from a shift in his body.

[Tang's fanboying over meeting the Guanyin is stifled only by the painc of egg on the way.]

Tang: "Oh gracious Buddha! The bodhisattva Guanyi herse-- oh gosh this is a lot grosser than I was expecting..." *gets woozy and hides face in Pigsy's chest*

[but what if the dark fur actually comes from Wukong's longing to be with macaque as a family again] + [Macaque def cries when she has dark fur like him, makes him feel more like he's possibly a bio parent]

Oooo! Wukong's emotional need to be reunited with his mate was so great that it impressed upon the Stone Egg itself.

Imagine how much crying would be involved if little Yuebei just so happened to be born six-eared as well? Macaque and Wukong would never stop sobbing over how cute their baby is!!

Macaque is still very much assumed by the demonic/celestial/mortal public not in the know of Stone Eggs, to be Yuebei's other bio parent. Hard to refute their claims when the little Monkey Princess has such lovely midnight-dark fur and glowing ears.

[I like to think he would talk to the egg whenever he was alone while pregnant, and was also always humming to them, maybe the infant somehow knows some of those tunes he was humming and tries to mimic them fresh out of the egg.]

Thats so super adorable I love it! <3

Wukong loved talking to the Egg when he was on his own on the island. He'd talk to it about what his old Pilgrim brothers were like, what happened in Heaven, his early days on the mountain, and how much he wishes to be there to see all the little havoc's she'll cause in the future. He def recorded a tape + wrote letters to Yuebei before she was born ala "For Steven" in Steven Universe... just in case his immortality didn't work in the end.

Babies can hear things going on on the outside irl as early as 14 weeks along - it's how they become acclimated to the voices of their family. Little Yuebei spent so much time in the "final run" hearing show tunes, action movies, and the voices of Wukong's new found family/troop that she thinks theses are all "good noises"!

As Yuebei looks around at her "troop" she tries matching a "good sound" to them. Everyone is just aww-ing at her tiny chirping mimicry, and burst out laughing when she gets to Pigsy and makes a deep sound they swear sounds like "freeloader!".

Her pre-natal eavessdropping does however, lead her to fall asleep to the heavy metal soundtrack of the Monkey Cop series. XD

[Azure was perhaps a little too lost in his triumph and day-dreaming to notice the ultra powerful infant he was holding beginning to grow restless and playful, one of his many mistakes. especially seeing as she had little to no strength control at such a young age.]

Yuebei decided that "Kitty" wasn't playing with her, wasn't holding her right, and wasn't even singing to her! And she wanted to make her frustrations known.

I love these mass responses, even if it takes some time for me to reply. Ty so much for your interest!

[miabebe]

Christmas With Seventeen

Scenarios of what I think Christmas season will be like with the Seventeen members :)

A/n - this is my first time writing fluff, I don't do fluff, like ever. Guess I'm in a mood this holiday season. Mild suggestive if you squint hehe. It's not proof read, specially since I'm a day late with this lol, will fix the tenses and mistakes later, sorry!

Seungcheol - Christmas Homebody

Seungcheol absolutely loves Christmas. He would be so excited the days leading up to it. He loves accompanying you to shop for decorations (of course he makes sure to pay for every last thing). He loves noticing even the small things you look and smile at so he can buy and gift them to you (the man truly spoils you). He loves watching you decorate the Christmas tree and loves it even more when you ask him to help put the ornaments up where you can't reach.

But the colder it gets, he turns into a homebody, preferring to stay in rather than going out, like he promised he would this year. As compensation, he obediently sits and binge watches your favourite rom coms (that he too obviously loves and secretly cries through). What he loves most is when the two of you cuddle under the sheets by the fire place, in a way that allows him to place soft kisses behind you ear time and again. This was all he ever wanted.

Jeonghan- Christmas Adventurer 

Jeonghan hates the winter cause the cold is truly not his best ally but when it comes to an adventure, he's always down. Jeonghan loves making precious memories so taking you to the skii cabin that he used to go to as a child is just another way for him to make a great memory even better. (Plus, he'd also get to show off his mad skills on the slopes). That being said, the man still hates the cold so do expect the mornings to start with a lot of never ending whining of wanting to stay in bed, wrapped up with you.

Once you manage to drag him out though, drowning him in thick layers of clothes, he's unstoppable and a totally different man - excited, mischievous, hurling snowballs at you, tackling you into a snow fight filled with kisses and giggles. In the evening, when the whole family gathers in the lounge for a lego building competition, he's his most serious self, and you watch him, smiling to yourself over a hot cup of chocolate.

Joshua- Christmas Dinner Host 

Shua is truly a people's person. He's always celebrated Christmas quite traditionally given his childhood in the US. For him, its all about family and company so he's definitely down to host a Christmas dinner in his house. There's Secret Santa, drunk friends loudly singing carols and everyone is just having a good time. He doesn't like watching you spend so many long and tiring hours in the kitchen cooking up a feast so his dinners are always a potluck.

Oh and of course, there's always a dress code - Joshua needs a little madness in his life so costumes is where he lets himself get crazy. Last year, everyone had to dress up in their ugliest Christmas sweater and this year too he's surely up to not good, you just don't know what yet. What you do know, is that nearing midnight, once he kicks everyone out, he'll come back and throw himself onto you in the bed, kissing you softly before the two of you fall asleep, tired but happy.

Jun - Christmas Dancer

Christmas isn't really a huge deal for Jun. He's just happy to get a few days off to celebrate some festivities and spend some time with you. Come Christmas he's taking you out to your favourite restaurant which he reserved weeks ago. After that, he takes you for a surprise - a night of salsa dancing downtown. The two of you dance for hours, laughing and spinning away. He loves watching you move in the dress you've been dying to wear, stealing little kisses whenever he can. He can also see all those other men glance at you more than often but he doesn't care - He knows you only have eyes for him.

At the end of the night, when your feet cannot take the heels anymore, he offers to give you his shoes which you promptly reject, it would be too cold for him. So instead, he decides to carry you till the train station on his back, your arms tightly wrapped around him, only regretting his decision when you start playfully whispering graphic and inappropriate things in his ear.

Hoshi - Unconventional Christmas

Hoshi doesn't follow trends, he sets them. For him it's all about standing out, making new traditions, thinking out of the box. That's why there's an upside down Christmas tree and Christmas gloves instead of stockings in your house. Though there are some (cringey) traditions he strictly follows like wearing matching pajamas while video calling both your families. Of course he was  disappointed when you rejected his tiger pajama idea yet again but he was still happy to wear the red and green ones you bought.

He also likes to sit you on the kitchen counter and cook something you like, definitely with your instructions and guidance. When you clean up for the night, surprisingly, he's not giving you company. Instead, you discover, he's busy building a blanket fort in the middle of your living room, filling it with pillows, fairy lights and a mini projector. You're not really sure what movie you watched that night. Not with the two of you busy with hands roaming around each other amidst the sheets.

Wonwoo - Christmas is all about You

For Wonwoo, any holiday is a good opportunity for him to engage in some of his more favourite activities like gaming for hours on the end. But he knows how much you love Christmas so this holiday is entirely yours, he'll do whatever you want. This year you dress him up to match your outfit and take him to the Christmas market, roaming from stall to stall, dragging him excitedly. Not only does he sweetly follow you, carrying all the excessive shopping you've done, he also makes it a point to capture every reaction of yours on that camera of his.

His favourite photo is probably the one of you looking up at the night sky in awe at the first snow of the year - you look so damn beautiful, he can just keep watching you for hours on the end. When he notices you slightly shivering, he wraps you in his jacket, pulling you close. The soft kiss you give him on his nose gives him all the warmth he needs.

Woozi - Christmas at work

Christmas for Woozi doesn't necessarily mean a holiday. Of course the company gave him the week off but he has deadlines to meet. On Christmas day though, he mentally prepares himself to leave earlier than usual but you know, like always, he'll get too immersed in his work and forget the time. You decide to bring Christmas to him instead so when he wakes in his studio on Christmas morning, you're already there, decorating the place, earning his fond smile.

The two of you spend hours there, you watching him work and him making you listen to some of his tracks in progress. He loves the way your eyes shine when you listen to his songs, that's why you find yourself being pulled into his lap, lips trapped in a deep kiss. When he pulls away, much to your surprise, he asks to head back home. He was serious when he decided to wrap up his work earlier than usual - He wants nothing more than to be with you, in the peace of your home, alone.

Seokmin - Handmade Christmas

Seokmin loves the little Christmas traditions you follow - buying a new ornament for the tree every year, making your very own Christmas wreath and baking that delicious log cake you always make without fail. This year he wants to switch things up a bit so he's been going to classes for a while now, learning pottery and clay modelling secretly. He gifted you the most beautiful handmade coffee mug for Christmas (knowing your habit of having a cup first thing in the morning) but he has more in mind - he wants the two of you to sit together and make this year's new ornament for the tree.

He guides you, teaching you patiently but also laughing at your little mishaps and failings. The lesson ends with a new angel figurine hanging on the tree and the two of you smothered with clay and paint on the floor under it, laughing against each others lips. It makes him all the more happier when you slide him a scarf that you made, after weeks of secret knitting classes.

Mingyu - Christmas Cooking

Of course Mingyu is the most excited about the food and booze when it comes to Christmas. He's been working on his own batch of cherry wine for weeks now and wow does it taste amazing. He's also got some mulled wine that he started making, but that's for after dinner. Speaking of dinner, he loves switching up the menu every year and on this year's list are mostly desserts, which means hours of baking together. He absolutely loves the little icing and decorations you've done on the gingerbread cookies - that crazy creative side of yours always amuses him.

Obviously he's also made a huge Christmas playlist and is blasting them on the speakers through the day. He's also randomly pulling you into the living room for a dance, making sure the two of you somehow, end up under the mistletoe so he can sneak in a few mandatory kisses. It's only when you're both slightly tipsy and settling into the couch for the night that he considers it to be a successful day.

Myungho - Artsy Christmas

Well, if there's a new exhibition in town, of course Myungho was going to take a look. Except, the last day was exactly at the time his year end break started, which meant he only just missed the chance to see it. When he messaged the organisers that he was sad to have missed their show and would love to catch them next year, they immediately responded saying they were willing to open the exhibition one more night, just for him. And you too of course.

That's how on Christmas evening, the two of you found yourself having a little museum date, with the whole space all to yourself. For a while he walked around excitedly talking about the history and artists of various pieces but the night eventually ended with some horribly inaccurate but hilarious impressions of paintings. Safe to say, the both you have new wallpapers on your phone now - a picture of him kissing you in front of the painting of a lady who looks mortified.

Seungkwan - Christmas with Family

You were pleasantly surprised when Seungkwan surprised you with 2 plane tickets to go back and see you family this holiday. He was familiar with your family through phone calls and video chats but he still hadn't met them in person and you weren't sure if Christmas was the right time for that considering your whole extended family would be home. You hoped for the best as the two of you got home, but honestly, there could be nothing better than this.

He fit into your family perfectly -  everyone loved him, they were always laughing when he was around, even the family dog seemed to always want to sit by him. Your favourite moment though was watching him sitting in the middle of your many nieces and nephews, reading them a whole bunch of Christmas tales. When he looked up and smiled at you, you sent all the kids off for dinner, pulling him for a deep kiss before softly suggesting the two of you go off to start a family of your own.

Vernon - Christmas Overseas

Vernon didn't think Christmas would turn out like this -  Flying into Paris on the Christmas morning, attending the brand event in the afternoon and the after party at night - it was not a part of his plan at all. The only good thing that came out if it was that you agreed to join him. He was glad the two of you had a chance to fly in a private plane early in the morning. And that you were cozily sitting next to him along the run way. And that you looked so absolutely stunning in that black gown his team put you in for the after party.

That's why after he made an appearance and posed for a few pictures, he softly held your hand and lead you out, escaping silently from the paps. Then he called for a horse carriage fit for royalty, claiming you look like no less than one and sat, his arm wrapped around you safely. As you drove into the night, snow falling prettily, he left soft kisses on your neck, sighing that he was so happy you're here with him.

Dino - (Un)planned Christmas

Dino had been dying to get out of the country for days now. He knew you too were sick and tired of the cold and were in desperate need of a retreat. That's why for the year end holidays, he planned a trip to Greece, knowing it was on your bucketlist for years now. He made sure to plan the perfect vacation, the right blend of touristy things and relaxing activities.

On Christmas day though, he didn’t forget to give you his gift - a lovely blue dress for a special dinner. He also rented out that convertible you're always talking about (in the exact same colour as the dress he got you) and drove you into the sunset, blasting the mixtape that you gifted him. It was absolutely perfect, just the two of you in your own world until it began pouring rain, forcing him to quickly pull up into a nearby shelter. But when Dino watched you getting wet, enjoying the rain on your own as he tried to fix the hood of the convertible, he gave up and joined you, laughing as he ducked away from your water attack and pulled you into a long kiss.

[applepiesandalibis]

So. A couple of posts ago I mentioned writing an explanation of why I adore each TPC album for a different reason (a thing that makes this specific album unique for me). Nobody asked for it. Here it is.

The first one, Young Bodies Heal Quickly holds a special place in my heart mostly because of its vibes. And also because I listened to it in the hard times and it really helped me to deal with some things. It manages to depict many different emotions and feelings perfectly: such as fear, anxiety, anger and in the end it even becomes really comforting, makes you feel safe and calm even if the rest of the album feels like the world is ruining and you're absolutely helpless. I really love how it contains both very energetic and very calm songs. I mean, pretty sure all of their records do, but here it's more noticeable and I like that contrast. ALSO, something about the voicemail sample with that agressive instrumental as a background... I just find it incredibly cool for whatever reason. In general, YBHQ has some of the coolest samples.

Hide the Kitchen Knives... Well, I don't listen to that one a lot, sadly :( Mostly because it's not on spotify (at least for me, heard some lucky people have it there) and it's not very comfortable to listen to it on other platforms. Still, I like it for — yet again — its unique vibe, cool instrumentals (God Forgive Us All is just..... mwah /pos) and also some thoughts John expresses on this record. I find the whole concept behind it very interesting.

God Bless Your Black Heart for the story it tells and the fact that absolutely everything on this album is connected. Makes my neurodivergent brain happy, I will NEVER get tired of (over)analyzing it and yapping about it. John said he worked very hard on this one and it really shows!!! I associate a lot of good moments in my life with GBYBH (even though the album itself is pretty dark) and Said the Spider to the Fly will always be one of my favorite music videos to ever exist. It means a lot to me and I rewatched it hundreds of times.

Then, Now You Are One Of Us, which has its SpOoKy atmosphere that is actually trying to hide a very hopeful message behind itself and no, I will NOT shut up about this. Plus, again, the samples are just perfect. It was the first album of theirs I heard and it really made me realize how good this band is. I know how cringy this probably sounds, but it actually changed my life and it only gets better with each listen.

Ctrl-Alt-Delete-U is just crazy. In a good way. I mean, a 40-minute song that is mostly just one phrase being repeated over and over again? Who do you think is eating this up? That's right: me. All of the other songs are great too, of course. I can't fully understand the concept behind this album tbh, but that's what I like about it.

Someday This Could All Be Yours is, as I previously said, the one I listen to the most. The natural disasters concept is something that really got my attention at first and the lyricism on here is INCREDIBLY good. Every song has its own mood and its own 'personality', which makes me want to came up with a character for each one of them (I already have a bunch of TPC based OCs, but still). Also I'm a big fan of the suffering that thinking about Vol. 2 brings me into👍🏻 /hj

And, of course, their older stuff (...And the Machines Are Winning, Essays on Frantic Desperation, singles like Dilbert, a Man If You Will, etc.) deserves being mentioned too. I feel like these guys were really vibing while recording this! The lyrics aren't that deep as they are on later records, sometimes you can't even understand what John is saying, but the instrumentals are amazing. John straight up tortures his guitar sometimes; it makes such a cool sound though, so it's totally worth it. They had a very great start and I love older TPC just as much as newer!!!

Obviously, I can't just not mention Nighty Nite in this. Dimples gives me a nostalgic feeling, but at the same time it's so dark and can easily make you anxious. My fav track from it is definetely Meaningless. Ironically, it makes me feel like life does have a meaning. I don't know. And again, the lyrics are very good here.

Until the Horror Goes is also very nostalgic, but in a slightly more positive way. John said this album is mostly about getting older and dealing with adult life and it does depict this feeling very well. It also has a really pretty cover — my favorite after the GBYBH one. The songs on it are catchy, I know them all by heart. The instrumentals are yummy too (take Animal Rites for example, it scratches my brain in such a good way). I like the more electronic sound it has and I think it was a good way to end John's career as a musician... (sobs)

TL;DR: The pAper chAse is the best band in the entire world and they have never released a single bad song. I love all of their records like they're my children (or even more, cause I don't really like children... you got the point). End rant.

[leclerced]

I feel like, of all the other guys, Max is the saddest/in the most withdrawal from not having Bunny around when she pulls back to just Lando and Oscar

he was around first, goddamn it, and if he had known he could just *ask* to be her boyfriend, he definitely would have done that ages ago, long before Oscar even entered the conversation

part of him feels like it’s a personal rejection, not only because of the feelings Bunny knows he has for her (she knows that what he’s muttering under his breath when he cums inside her is that he loves her but she doesn’t want to broach that until he says it with his chest) but also because of everything he’s done for all of them - the parties, the lingerie, everything

one day she runs into him at the supermarket in Monte Carlo or something like that and they’re actually alone together for the first time in a month or three and he asks if he can just hold her for a minute and that’s how Bunny manages to stay warm in the ice cream aisle

-〽️

um go away. (pls dont) im gonna cry im in such a max mood ive been watching nothing but max edits on tiktok before i sleep

bunny just waiting for him to talk about his feelings but he doesn’t before they pull the plug on things and like. i think she’d ask for one more night w him to say goodbye and she’d barely make it out of his room before she breaks down crying and the boyfriends are in lando’s room for the night and she’s supposed to join them but she goes to oscar’s and cries alone bc she can’t feel things for max anymore. both of them hiding feelings bc it’s too late. she’d plan on going back to them but cries herself to sleep and they just assume she decided to spend the night w max but when they see him the next morning he looks like shit and they ask where bunny is and he’s like idk she left me. and the words have a deeper meaning than just leaving his room.

oscar searching for her and finding her curled up in his bed alone, willingly sleeping alone for the first time in months bc even her boys couldn’t make her feel better.

max avoiding them for awhile bc he doesn’t know what how to act around them anymore but then months later has a bad race like maybe gets crashed out and he immediately seeks her out and can’t find her and is more disappointed. goes to his driver’s room and she’s already there laying on his couch. she just opens her arms and he lays with her and finally he gets to enjoy being around her for the first time in months. neither of them say anything and eventually someone comes to get him for an interview and she’d look so sad watching him leave but he wouldn’t realize it’s because she misses him, he thinks its just because she feels bad for him for being crashed out.

he wouldn’t even know how to ask them to hang out bc that used to mean fuck but now he just wants to be around her bc that’s all he can do. ill SOB. bunny and him cuddling all the time after he stops avoiding them and him secretly (not) being in love with her but not saying it bc he doesn’t want to overstep. but its worse once they’re almost back to normal bc he has to see her every day and think ab the chances he didn’t take every time she’s cuddling into him.

[kltsuneudon]

Someone Who Cares

Jeong Yunho x gn!reader

you can always count on me to write (mildly) obscure au’s. happy birthday yuyu <3

this is a final fantasy ateez au bcuz i keep thinking of it hehe

warnings: angst, general violence, major character death, semi happy ending dw, major final fantasy 7 original game spoilers don’t read if you’ve somehow managed to avoid them and want to keep it that way.

The first time you met was in the Gold Saucer. For once, you weren't alone. The group had finally decided to settle down for a little bit and splurge, a little fun and rest was much needed. While you wanted to go to Costa del Sol, mentioning off-handedly that you had never been there before when Wooyoung brought the location up, the rest of the group decided the Saucer would be a better (and slightly cheaper) rest stop this time, wanting to indulge in the games and rides. Grumpily, you trailed after San and Yeosang heading towards the Wonder Square. Yeosang was eagerly talking to San, casually fishing for information about an apparent argument the blonde had with Wooyoung before arriving here. Since you had only recently joined the group, you found yourself half-listening, not wanting to hear anything you weren't supposed to. Instead, you focused on everything else around you, which wasn't a difficult thing to do. The bright flashing lights, colorful screens, and loud music easily distract you from anything and everything, leading you to bump into something very large and plush.

“Oof!” The sound expelled from you as you bounced off of the thing and onto your ass. Your awkward noise drew the attention of San and Yeosang, who finally noticed how far you trailed from them.

San was quick by your side helping you up. “You good?” He asked nervously glancing between you and the large thing you bumped into. Slowly, the large thing turned towards you, revealing that it was a comically large fluffy yellow chick. Face to face with San, the blonde let out a cute coo noise which you quickly stored in your mind for later.

“Sorry about that!” A high-pitched voice from on top of the chick suddenly spoke. 3 sets of eyes quickly traveled upward to locate the voice. Sitting atop the giant chick was a fluffy golden dog wearing a pirate costume.

Quietly, Yeosang gasped behind you and San. “A Maltese! So cute!”

The dog tilted its head to the side. “Maltese? I am a golden retriever!” It pauses for a moment before striking a dramatic pose. “My name is Tyudeongi! I'm a fairy, puppy, fortune-telling machine! And this is Bbyongming!” It pats the giant chick he sits on top of while its fluffy tail wags eagerly. “Would you like your fortune told? Ah, but don't hold it against me if it doesn't come true!”

Yeosang eagerly grasps onto San's arm. “San-ah! Let's get our fortunes told, please?” The brunette beams at the blonde causing his cool composure to quickly crumble. (You completely understand why).

The three of you stare up at the puppy as he begins to dance and spin atop the fluffy chick. Suddenly, Bbyongming squawks and dispenses 3 slips of paper from its beak, Tyudeongi quickly snatching them up. He glances over them before leaning over. “For you, you, and… you!” He exclaims while handing the papers out. You try not to think of how the robot's eyes lingered on you for a moment.

San blinks at you and Yeosang. “Um. You wanna go first?”

“Do not be afraid of competition.” Yeosang reads. “Huh. What do you think that means?” You and San share a knowing look (Wooyoung) before you offer a shrug. Yeosang seems stated by that and motions for San to read.

San's face scrunches as he silently reads over his fortune. He glances nervously between the two of you before reading. “What you pursue will be yours, but you will lose what you hold most dear.” He lowers the fortune without saying anything more, the 3 of you sharing worried looks. “Um, how about yours, (yn).”

“Yeah, ok.” You answer quickly, hoping to pick the mood back up again. You look down at your fortune before reading aloud, “The love of your life will appear in front of you unexpectedly!” … “Huh?” San and Yeosangs eyes remain locked on you, and you can feel your ears turning red.

Yeosang claps, “Oh that's a fun one!” San nods in agreement.

You scoff. “Yeah… Doubt that's true though. There's no one like that for me. Just as strange as yours, haha.” You awkwardly try to pivot from the topic, hastily shoving the slip of paper into your pocket.

Tyudeongi yips from his perch. “Aw don't be so down, you never know what the future might hold!”

***

Lazily, you lounge on your back in a grassy field, observing the blue cloud-filled sky while some of the others slowly set up camp. You hoped Hongjoong remembered not to let Mingi set the fire this time, as the flame-oriented magician accidentally got a little overzealous with it last time and singed half of the tents. Lost in fiery Mingi thoughts, you don't hear the approach of little paws next to you.

“Do you see any shapes?” Tyudeongi had been traveling with the group for over a month now, insisting on coming along after your meeting at the Gold Saucer. Originally San was completely against it, Yeosang having to convince him. Eventually, he came around when Tyudeongi revealed his (and Bbyongming's) magical prowess. He wasn't joking about the “fairy” part of his introduction.

“Maybe that one looks like a chocobo.” You offer, you're not really paying attention to the clouds. Behind you, you hear Wooyoung let out a shriek and you feel the warmth of fire. So they did forget.

Tyudeongi hums. “That one there,” he motions with a fluffy paw, “it's like a Moogle!”

“A Moogle, hm… Do you think they're real?”

The puppy tilts its head to the side, “Well I'm real so they must be!”

“But you're a robot…” You trail off not wanting to insult him (was that possible?) “I want to see one, one day.” You hear more chaos behind you but tune it out, imagining a future full of fluffy Moogles.

“You will!” Tyudeongi's tail wags wildly. “I can see the future, remember!”

You laugh. “Ok.”

***

The silence in Cosmo Canyon could not be louder. The 7 of you awkwardly set up camp for the night, no one wanting to talk after Mingi's emotional past had been revealed. Once again you found yourself away from the group, sitting towards the edge of camp wanting to remain in solitude. But when does that ever happen?

“What are you thinking about?” Tyudeongi, or rather, the person controlling the puppy, has him ask. It was something you had caught onto recently. The puppy had been around for a while at this point and he often liked to spend time with you, it led you to notice his quirks maybe faster than the others. Tyudeongi had a handful of automated responses and phrases programmed which he often cycled through with the other group members, but with you, you noticed he often had more to say. It was as if his autopilot had been turned off. You didn't tell anyone.

You sigh. “Just Mingi. I hope he's doing ok.” The anguished look on his face as he left the cave floated around in your memory.

“He's a strong person. This may hurt him for a while, but he will recover and grow from this.” The puppy makes his way over and settles into your lap. You mindlessly stroke his fur. “The most you can do right now is make sure he knows you're there for him.”

Another sigh leaves you. “I know. I just… I don't know if I'm very empathetic. It's like I care but, I don't know. I feel like it's not enough, like part of me is missing something more. Like there's something wrong with me.”

The puppy looks up at you. “(yn), you are an extremely empathetic person, they all know that.” You know it's the person on the other end controlling what he says by how serious Tyudeongi's tone has become. “There's nothing wrong with you and it's ok that you feel that way. They're lucky to have a friend like you.” It feels strange to hear all of this coming from a dog.

It's silent for a while. “Thank you.” You manage to get out. The puppy shifts around in your lap.

“How about a fortune to cheer you up! You brighten up everyone's day!”

You let out a chuckle. “That's not a fortune, Tyudeongi.”

You weren't sure dogs could pout, but he certainly was. “Ok, how about… someone out there cares about you very much!”

***

Alone again, this time crying. Everything was so stressful, between the reveal that Tyudeongi was a Shinra spy sent to watch your group and then Tyudeongi straight up dying only to come back to life as another robot barely an hour later… Your emotions were shot. You hated that puppy now. But did you? He was, no, is your friend. Even if what he did was unforgivable. The mental image of his little body being crushed under all of that rubble wouldn't be leaving your mind any time soon.

“You're crying?” The new Tyudeongi bot spoke behind you.

You sniffle. “Go away. I don't want to be near you.” You won't even look at the dog.

“(yn)...” The controller is back. “I know what I did was wrong and that I don't deserve yours or any of the other forgiveness, but-”

“No, you don't deserve any of that and I don't want to talk to you either! I trusted you, but you were using us.” You quickly get up and storm away towards Mingi and Jongho, not sparing the robot a single glance back.

***

Lately, it seems the tears never really stop. And now, you truly think they never will. Yeosang was gone, and there was nothing that could be done. Maybe if you had been faster, if you had gotten to San sooner. Then Yeosang… You let out another painful sob, the pillow beneath you fully soaked from how long you've been crying. Suddenly you feel a light weight lean against your back.

“I know you want to be alone, but I'm here for you if you need it.” A deep voice speaks through Tyudeongi. The man on the other side.

You sob again. “He's gone. Yeosang. I can't believe…” You can barely speak through your hyperventilating.

The robot further leans into your back, nuzzling its face into you slightly. You won't admit it, but it's a comfort you need. “I know.” His voice is wobbly like he's been crying too. “Really, would any of us be doing this without him?”

The thought of having to go on without Yeosang only made you cry more. His comforting, gentle presence was one of the things that kept the group stable. To continue your journey without him felt wrong, but to stop where you were completely felt worse.

“I'm so sorry, (yn).” He was crying now, which only made you weep more.

***

San was missing and all hope was lost. The planet was doomed to die a painful death as the calamity from the sky loomed. And you and the rest of your group were taken prisoner by Shinra. Alone and curled up in the corner of your cell with your head down, you wondered how the others were, if you were all doomed to die here. Maybe there was no hope. Maybe hope did die with- Your spiraling thoughts were interrupted by the sound of your cell quietly being opened. In rushed a tall man in a black suit fit with high black boots. You don't move from your spot. If he's there to kill you then so be it.

“(yn).” The deep voice is familiar. “Please, you have to get up.”

You spare a glance at him. You don't know him. “What do you want…”

His face is nervous. “I'm getting you out of here. They're demanding a public execution of the team.” Your blood runs cold. “Please, we have to be quick.” His hand is warm on your back as he ushers you up.

“Wh… What? Who are you?” You don't fight him as he begins to move you out of the cell.

He ignores your question, nervously looking left and right before (mildly dragging) leading you down the hallway. “Hongjoong and Wooyoung should already be on the copter getting things together. I sent someone to get Seonghwa, Mingi, and Jongho as well.” His grip on your hand is strong. He pauses at a corner and peeks around the side before pulling you along again. “Jongho should be able to fly the thing out of here and then you'll all be safe…” He mutters to himself.

There's a commotion at the end of the hallway and the man curses quietly under his breath, pulling you to the side and using his tall form to block the soldiers running by view of you. Your eyes widen as you look up at him, it sets in how tall he is. “Who… Who are you?” You try again.

He looks down at you, his big brown eyes softening as he scans your face. “Someone who cares about you very much.” The response leaves you breathless, or maybe it's all the running you've been doing. Either way, you find yourself charmed by the tall, mildly awkward man. Suddenly, you're outside in an airport hanger and the previously mentioned helicopter is there, all your friends accounted for. Jongho reaches out for you and effortlessly the man with you passes you into his arms. “Ok, you should be good from here.” He yells above the sound of the helicopter starting. The vehicle shakes before lifting off the ground and you begin to feel hands pulling you away from the open door.

Startled, you reach out for your mystery savior. “Wait! You're not coming with me?” You screech, the helicopter already several feet off the ground.

You can see a group of Shinra soldiers beginning to run up to him, shouting his name, but he stands his ground. “Tyudeongi, take care of (yn)!” You think you hear him shout before he truly begins to fade away, pulled away by the guards, becoming a little dot below you. Your heart feels heavy.

***

It was on the day before your team's so-called ‘final battle’ that you finally saw the man who saved you again. San had made a triumphant return after the team's escape and after a thrilling pep talk, you all went your separate ways to briefly make your peace before your potential end. You had decided to return to Kalm, your home, and briefly reminisce on the journey. Alone, you found yourself at the top of the famous Kalm clocktower gazing out on the sunset painting the town, remembering when you first met San and Yeosang there. Leaning against the railing, a heavy sigh leaves you before you can even think of stopping it.

“It's a nice view.” A deep, familiar voice speaks from behind you, startling you. Once again, you're face to face with the mysterious black haired man that saved you and the others from the Shinra prison. He's dressed more casually now in some baggy clothes, face fit with a pair of glasses. “Something worth saving.”

You stare at him blankly, unknowingly gripping the railing tighter. “Yeah.” It's quiet. He approaches the railing, leaning against it next to you. His eyes never leave the view of the town. You clear your throat. “So… You're the one behind Tyudeongi?”

He finally turns to face you. Your heart briefly skips a beat when your eyes meet. “Ah, yes. I control him sometimes and see through his eyes.” He lets out an awkward laugh. “I'm Yunho, by the way.”

“Yunho.” You repeat. “It's nice to finally put a name to the voice. I'm-”

“(yn).” He quickly answers, leaving you looking at each other in shock.

“Oh. Right.” He's known you for much longer than you've known him. It's quiet again. “I didn't get to thank you for saving my life. That day… When you didn't get on the helicopter with us and I saw those guards dragging you away… I thought you…” You don't finish the thought.

“I didn't want to abandon you.” You make note of how he says ‘you’ rather than ‘everyone’. “But I couldn't leave just yet, I had some more loose ends to tie up. I… I did regret it though, after seeing your face when you started to take off.”

You sigh, getting ready to say things you don't want to. “Why did you do it anyway? You're Shinra, a high-ranking executive Shinra worker, too, based on how you were dressed and all. You betrayed us before without batting an eye. Why the sudden change in heart?”

He stares at you for a second, his eyes searching your face before he returns to looking at the Kalm skyline. “I did betray the team and it's my biggest regret. I shouldn't have done it but I was still so scared of Shinra… I have no excuses.” He looks at you again. “But, I mostly wanted to change because I met you.”

You feel your face heating up. “Me? Why me?”

Yunho smiles. “You're so different from everyone else. You stand up and fight for what you believe, unlike me. It was your determination and honesty that made me want to change.”

“This sounds like a confession.” You feel your hands shaking and you suddenly can't meet his eyes. Despite this, Yunho's gaze never leaves your wandering eyes.

He laughs. “Ah, well, I guess it is! San did say to make our peace before we maybe die so…” His ears are turning red. “I guess Tyudeongi's fortunes are accurate after all since I am the person who appeared in front of you unexpectedly. You may not love me now, and you never may, but I love you, (yn). And I don't want you to feel alone again.”

You're speechless, you had forgotten all about the fortune. Yunho suddenly finds great interest in his shoes and he fidgets awkwardly. All those times Tyudeongi would join you in your solitude made sense. “Yunho.” He stands straight up, nervously looking down at you. “You're right. I don't love you… At least not now. But if we survive this whole thing, I'd really, really like to get to know you better. Then maybe…”

His smile is like the sun. “Of course. Let's make it through this together then.” He offers you his hand which you quickly take.

“Together.”

[casualheizouenjoyers]

coffee shop || genshin hcs

venti, kazuha, tighnari, and heizou in coffee shop scenarios 

venti - barista

works morning shifts

every day you come into your favorite coffee shop

and everyday venti plays the most random selection of music

It goes from an upbeat pop song to a classical song played on the piano to a rap song to a heavy metal song to a-

I think you get the point

always doodles on your cup and puts hearts around your name

you once asked him what kind of coffee he likes to drink

man responded with the most complicated order ever

plus it had like

six shots of espresso in it

( no wonder he’s so peppy in the morning )

if come into the shop in a bad mood, he will do whatever he can to make you feel better

he always makes sure you leave the coffee shop with a smile on your face

heizou - customer 

he always comes in during the most random times

to be fair, he’s normally busy solving cases

you’re his favorite barista because your drinks apparently taste the best

you tell him its because its made with love

he’s always subtly flirting with you

you originally didn’t pick up on it until one day he asks you out and you realize he was flirting with you the whole time

it’s fine he thinks your obliviousness is cute

you thought it was a little embarrassing 

he tends to ask you to surprise him when it comes to your drink

other than that, he likes oat milk vanilla lattes

once you started dating he took his coworkers to your coffee shop just to point you out to them and swoon over you

kazuha - barista

works in the evenings

probably does closing shifts

because he works later in the day, he doesn’t get as many customers

pulls a stool up to the cash register and writes poetry when there’s no one there

knows your order by heart and makes it a few minutes before you come in

always happy to chat with you

literally the cutest

normally has his sleeves rolled up and wears a little black apron

prefers hot coffee to iced coffee

likes white chocolate mochas

beidou once visited him during the time you normally came in

and not so subtly whisper yelled asking him if you were the person he keeps talking about

the next day he writes his number onto your cup

tighnari - co worker

you & tighnari have worked at the same coffee shop for a while

you are extremely devoted to coffee making

and tighnari? 

hes just trying to get side money so he can pay for college

so you’re a little pissed when he gets the manager position, and you don’t

you’re not mad at him but

you cant help but get a little snappy when you work with him

you get a little surprised when he comes back at you with the same energy

his go to drink is a plain black coffee 

“You can’t even steam milk properly, Nari!” “Sorry, I don’t take criticism from someone who isn’t even a manager, “ 

sometimes he brings his little sister collei and she sits at a nearby table and does her homework

he turns a blind eye when you sneak her pastries from the displays 

is genuinely so soft for you he just wont admit it to you

[what-a-weird-rose]

RoseKiller: The Things You Do (Make Me Crazy)

Pairing: Evan Rosier / Barty Crouch Jr.

Rating: E

Prompt: Choking

Word Count: 1.4k

There is a long mirror on the wall of his office, stretching from the ceiling to the floor; it was too big to fit anywhere else, not to mention a strange addition to the rustic look of the rest of the bar. Barty liked it, he liked looking through it during the wee hour of the night and seeing his father’s face staring back at him. Perhaps it was strange, his need to see his father in himself when he was half-way high, or drunk, or both. The crazy thing about it was, really, Barty wasn’t sure when it started, all he knows is that from the moment he can remember he reveled in seeing his father’s face on his own, doing terrible things.

Maybe that was the problem with the whole picture, Barty could never let go. His father had quietly disowned him -gave him a good chunk of cash and sent him away- and clearly had no intention of reaching out, but Barty just couldn’t. He loathed the very idea of letting the resentment die because, at the end of the day, the resentment is what kept him going most times; when the dark was too chilling and the loneliness too overbearing, the resentment of his father kept the embers stirred.

Even now, as the night dwindles into very early morning, Barty finds himself lost staring at himself -his father- in the massive mirror.

There is a knock at his office door, he says nothing.

The door opened and Barty makes no effort to look at who decided to ignore the obvious brooding energy in favor of annoying him, not like he doesn’t know already.

Of all his friends -the ones he considers friends and not stepping stones to bigger things- Evan is the one with the least patience for Barty’s moods. Often, he outright ignoring them in favor of doing whatever it was Evan dragged him into on those days.

“Good morning, hot-stuff,” Barty snorts as his swivel-chair is spun around, “brought you breakfast, sexy.”

“Disgusting,” Barty says derisively, digging his hands into the flimsy paper bag Evan holds out.

“You get stuck with Dorky and McKinnon for a day and then tell me how you’re planning to cope with the things you’ve seen.” Evan nods to himself, as if trying to convince his own brain that he’s in the right -he’s is, no one should be subjected to Dorcas and Marlene’s hot-garbage flirting.

“You mean you don’t think I’m really ‘hot-stuff’?” Barty pouts, exaggerated in the motion as he dunks fries into a half-melted milkshake. Evan shakes his head vigorously, though Barty is unsure if its in reference to his comment or his fry-milkshake crime. “Thanks for the food, babygirl.”

“Ew. Never call me that again, toad.” Evan recoils, pulling his feet up to rest on the plush of the chair he must have pulled in from the hall. “They’re so fucking nasty, hot-stuff, I don’t know how they manage it.”

Barty nods, throwing his legs out to rest precariously on Evan’s socked feet. “Who stole your shoes?”

“Nargles.”

“Of course, pesky things.”

Evan stretches out in the chair, shoving Barty’s gross mostly-decayed-but-decent-enough Sketchers’ off him. “Those things are so gross, Barty.” And he laughs, as though Evan can’t see his hot pink socks through the holes.

“But without them, I can’t see in the dark,” Barty whines petulantly, stamping his feet on the ground to demonstrate his point, waving his arms around as the soles flicker to life.

“Get a flashlight ‘fore you give me tetanus.” Barty smiles wide as he stands, lifting his arms up high. “When’re you leaving tonight?”

“Wanna take me home?”

“Better than you going with some crazy with a vendetta.”

“One time, Ev. It was one fucking time.”

Evan watches as Barty moves across the room to stare into that mirror of his. He watches as the muscles in Barty’s back shift as he scoots the thing over to access the safe; he says nothing as Barty unlocks the metal box.

“Pandora wants you to come to breakfast tomor- later this morning,” He can’t see it, but Evan can certainly feel Barty roll his eyes, “don’t blow me off, and don’t blow her off either. They’re getting worried about you.”

“Panda send you then? Wanted to make sure ickle Barty was staying out of trouble?” Evan feels the moment Barty stiffens, as if prepared for a fight.

“Either you meet them somewhere they choose, make niceties, and convince them you’re fine, or I tell them your half-homeless and living mostly out of your boss’ office.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“Fucking test me, Crouch, see how close to wouldn’t I’ll get.”

Evan’s hands are warm and soft around his neck, holding tight around his airways- Barty feels high.

Evan licks the side of his face, moving one of his hands from Barty’s neck to his arm, where he pulls one hand up and toward his face. He bites and licks Barty’s inner wrist before setting the hand in his hair.

“Tell me what you want, baby.” Evan says, like last time, and every time before that.

“Take me somewhere nice, Ev.”

Evan tightens his grasp over Barty’s neck, shifting his body if only to get more leverage. He pushes backwards into the wall until there is even less no where for Barty to go- not that he’d want to.

Evan kisses his jaw, scraping his teeth along the skin as far as he can get before he runs out of space to mark on Barty’s face. His hand loosens, moving off of Barty’s neck entirely to join his other to pin Barty’s wrists against the wall. Evan’s mouth works quickly, licking stripes of sweaty skin and kissing the crevices between Barty’s jaw, neck, and shoulders.

Barty throws his head back, whining loudly as Evan licks along his collarbones.

“Fuck you, make me cum.”

“Shut up, Barty, no one wants to hear you whine.”

Evan releases his hands and spins him around speedily, before grasping at Barty’s neck once again and sending him back into that quiet submission they both seemed so fond of.

Evan takes the opportunity to bite into the back of Barty’s neck, sucking the skin into his mouth enough to definitely leave a mark. Good, he thinks as his free hand unbuckles Barty’s cheap belt.

Barty jerks his hips forward in some half-hearted attempt at getting friction against the wall; Evan gives his bare ass one good slap in retaliation.

“What have they done to you to make you so fucking impatient.”

“They don’t dally around with foreplay, that’s what.”

Evan rolls his eyes, feeling around Barty’s ass until he finds that puckering hole.

Barty whines louder than before as Evan’s index finger drags along the sensitive skin.

“Fuck me, whore.”

“Shut up, slut.” Evan grips hard on Barty’s neck, and deeply enjoys feeling the way Barty’s gasps around it, trying desperately to get something, with such little luck.

Evan reaches out toward the bag Barty brought in with him, scrambling around inside it until he finds the little bottle of cheap lube.

He squirts the clear gel on the plump of Barty’s ass before smearing it onto his fingers.

“Have you been good, pretty?” He feels as Barty desperately tries to nod, or speak, or anything, and revels in how little he manages. “That’s right, you haven’t, shame that. But I suppose, since I’m so nice, I’ll give you a treat anyways.”

He gives no other warnings before shoving three fingers into Barty’s ass, confident enough in the other’s innate ability to be stretched at all times.

Barty cries, though its choked and scratchy sounding.

Evan soothes him by nuzzling in his hair, though they both know its more patronizing than anything else.

He pumps his fingers in and out, splaying they out at random intervals before calling it a day. Evan scoops more lube off Barty’s ass before stroking his cock, setting up the angle, and shoving in all the way at once.

Barty thinks he might really cry at that.

Evan makes quick work of configuring the angles, setting the pace rough and quick, finding his now-free hand loss in Barty’s hair, tugging and petting.

Barty moans and grunts and groans, though all sound decrepit and pitiful from behind Evan’s large hand.

Evan’s pace is relentless, setting them up for a quick end regardless of anything Barty does. And as they always seem to do at the end, Barty cums first, fast and hard and all-consuming, right before Evan follows, quieter and more deliberate as he fills Barty’s hole.

“Ugh, now I have to sit in your car with cum in my ass.”

“Sucks to suck, cuntface.”

[angel-wings-and-tattoos]

i am, in fact, in a steddie mood today. however, if you look at my account for more than 2 seconds then you're aware that i'm incapable of writing anything without stonathan in some way, shape, or form so today! we will be looking at platonicbff!stonathan. i love stonathan with my entire heart and its to the point where i like literally any dynamic you can put them in. like i think i'm into platonic!stonathan equally as much as platonic!stobin. which is saying something bc i am actively head over heels in love with robin.

what i want to look at today is protective jonathan when it comes to steve. in a perfect world (correction-in a somewhat plausible perfect world bc, let's be honest, in my perfect world we actively get footage of jonathan and steve fucking but that's neither here nor there) season 5 develops steve & jonathan's relationship, him and nancy break up amicably, and steve and jonathan become best friends.

but back to the steddie i promised earlier.

----

eddie doesn't know how it happened. one day he's accused of murder, alone, and stuck in a boathouse and less than a month later here he is. staring at steve fucking harrington sleeping less than five feet away from him.

the very same steve harrington that apparently is the sole reason he's even awake in the first place. when the trio had stumbled onto dustin and eddie, steve had gone into full action hero mode. using his lifeguard cpr training he had managed to get eddie breathing long enough to haul his ass back top side, breaking one of eddie's ribs in the process.

eddie doesn't remember any of it.

that isn't for lack of trying on his part. eddie is approximately two seconds away from breaking into the hospital's security footage because, if robin's story is true, he wants to keep the video for the rest of his life.

according to her, it was awesome, munson, you should have seen it! he had you in a bridal carry like a godamn rag doll. he burst in the front entrance and started yelling at them like i've never seen him yell before, ever! even that one time dustin fucked up the paint on his car. the nurses recognized you and for sure didn't want to help but apparently there's only so much you can do in the face of steve harrington throwing the mother of all shitfits. the second he started threatening to call his dad they all kicked into gear. it would have been funny if i didn't actively think you were dead at the time. sorry! but you really were super still and you weren't groping steve, like at all, so i assumed that we'd lost you forever.

(eddie pretends to be offended by that last bit, but he also concedes that if steve picked him up right now he can't promise he would keep his hands to himself)

after eddie was taken away on a stretcher, steve had nodded, mostly to himself, and promptly passed out. onto the cold, hard, tiled floor of the hospital entryway. they hauled him on a stretcher as well and he was put up in a room somewhere down the hallway.

that lasted for about four hours.

or, more accurately, that lasted until steve woke up again. after throwing what robin called less a shitfit, more a temper tantrum this time, he managed, even in a pain-induced haze, to convince the hospital staff to put him in eddie's room.

that fiasco was 3 days ago.

currently, steve wasn't unconscious anymore but his injuries were pretty badly infected. turns out nancy's shredded t-shirt wasn't exactly the most sterile thing on the planet. they had him on a steady stream of antibiotics and pain meds. eddie himself hadn't been awake for more than 15 minutes or so at a time (each of those times, robin had excitedly looked up from her vigil at steve's side and recounted new things she decided he had to know at that exact second).

until now.

as eddie blinks awake, he is aware of three things.

he's never been this thirsty in his entire life. it feels like he decided to dive mouth first into a container of sand.

if he didn't know any better, he would say that jim hopper is standing by a chair near steve's bed. but he does know better, jim hopper is dead. so. great. now he can add hallucinations to potential side effects of evil upside down bat bites.

directly next to the mirage of a police chief, sits jonathan byers.

that last thing wouldn't be as weird if said byers wasn't holding one of steve's hands and sitting far closer to the bed than the nonentity behind him.

(eddie isn't sure why the hand holding is more distracting at the moment than the fact that robin is actively laying in steve's bed with him, burrowing herself into his side like she's attempting to meld them into one person.)

he blearily watches as jonathan softly tucks a stray piece of steve's hair behind his ear on the side of his head that's not currently resting on the top of robin's.

eddie decides that he is on far too much pain medication to be thinking this hard.

groaning, he attempts to sit up enough to reach the water pitcher next to his bed.

"whoa, munson. take it easy," the ghost of legal trouble's past shuffles over to help eddie by pouring some water into a small paper cup. eddie watches him, wearily taking the cup from him. the water was cold to the point that it almost hurt, but it still beat the hell out of having a dry throat.

"ar'n't you 'posed t'be dead?" eddie slurs. his tongue feels like it weighs about ten pounds. the (poltergeist? revenant? wraith? eddie's mushy brain can't think of a better word for a dead person that can pour him water) figure before him scoffs.

"nice to see that you're still charming as ever. it's a long story, kid, i'm sure someone else will fill you in later. besides i'm guessing you have maybe 5 minutes of peace before one of those kids finds out you're awake and, inevitably, starts screaming about it loud enough to break glass," hopper sighs, hands coming to his hips in a remarkably similar echo of steve. eddie has absolutely zero thoughts about that, thank you. the chief moves towards the door, placing a hand on the handle.

"however, buckley hasn't left harrington's side for the last 4 days. if anyone scares her awake now, i don't think she'll ever go back to sleep. i'll hold them off for the night, but the second the sun comes up, you're on your own."

hopper looks from eddie to jonathan, who nods in acknowledgement without looking away from steve for more than a second or two. eddie watches as he closes the door behind him and disappears from view, leaving jonathan and eddie sitting in silence.

eddie coughs.

fidgets.

looks at byers.

coughs again.

okay, let it be said that eddie isn't great with awkward silence. but, in his defense, what the fuck is he supposed to say to jonathan byers? he didn't even know that him and steve were friends, much less holding-hands-in-a-hospital-bed-friends.

"so," eddie starts, regretting opening his mouth the second jonathan looks at him.

"so," jonathan repeats quietly, looking like he's holding back a smile as he does, "you're eddie munson."

eddie doesn't like the way jonathan is saying his name. it has an odd tilt to it, like he's mimicking what someone else has said to him. eddie admits that it's not the worst way his name has ever been said, but it makes him swallow uncomfortably.

"gu'lty 's charged, man." eddie's voice comes out considerably clearer than before, shifting from sounding completely shitfaced to minorly tipsy.

there is an extremely awkward moment where eddie has no idea where this conversation is going. jonathan is back to staring at steve, still practically cradling one of his hands between the two of his.

"he talks about you a lot, you know," eddie doesn't know, but he also doesn't interrupt, "it's always 'eddie said this', 'this is eddie's favorite song', 'eddie rented that movie'. he talks about you almost as much as he talks about robin."

jonathan takes a breath, drumming his fingers on the back of steve's hand. his gaze stays on steve as he talks, still quiet enough to not wake up either of the teenagers sleeping next to him.

"he's a good guy, you know. underneath the whole asshole jock façade. i don't know if you remember, but he almost killed himself trying to save you. i'm not sure how he was even able to stand when you guys came in, much less march in here like he did carrying you in his arms."

still idly toying with steve's hand, jonathan's gaze moves back to eddie. his fond expression dims into more serious territory as he visibly contemplates the second part of his impromptu speech.

"i'm not the greatest at talking about my own feelings, i'm more than aware of that, but i won't hesitate in saying that steve is important to me. no idea how, why, or when it happened, but he just is. somewhere along the line he decided that your opinion is important to him and i need you to understand the weight of that. steve has been independent his entire life, sometimes to the point where it's detrimental to his own health. i don't know if he realizes it completely, but he's basically imprinted on you like a baby duck."

eddie swallows nervously as jonathan maintains steady eye contact. the two men are quiet for a moment before jonathan seems to mentally switch tracks, "you seem like a good guy. steve obviously adores you and it sounds like the kids do as well. from what i've heard, you almost died to save dustin's life. i appreciate all of it, i really do. that being said, if you do anything to hurt steve then none of that matters anymore. i think i'm speaking on robin's behalf as well when i say that we really do like you as a person, but steve's wellbeing comes first."

as stated earlier, eddie is on far too much pain medication to be thinking this hard. if his head wasn't so foggy, eddie would think he's getting a shovel talk.

by jonathan byers.

about steve harrington.

who apparently "obviously adores him".

yeah, it's definitely the pain killers.

eddie clears his throat again as he heavily sinks back against his pillows. "i'm not entirely convinced that 'm not hallucinating this entire conversation, byers. but yeah, i understand. kinda owe him my life now, i guess, so it'd be pretty shitty of me to hurt the guy's feelings or whatever ya think i'mma do," his speech was improving the more he talked, but it was getting harder to keep his eyes open.

jonathan seems content with that statement for the time being, if his attention switching back to steve and off eddie is any indication.

eddie falls back asleep shortly thereafter, leaving jonathan as the only person awake in the small hospital room.

________

i think i'm going to add more from jonathan's pov but for now just be aware that jonathan and steve both know that steve is practically in love with eddie. jonathan is very protective of the people he loves and steve is in that circle. as far as this little snippet goes, i don't think stonathan was ever a romantic thing, and there was never any hard pining involved but they do care about each other deeply. i like to think they kept in contact when the byers moved to california. it started with jonathan and nancy getting into a fight and the only other adult person he could call to check on things was steve. he wasn't sure if steve would even respond, but he ended up not only answering all of jon's questions but seemed to genuinely want to know how the rest of the byers' clan was doing.

this turned into weekly phone calls, which turned to twice a week, which eventually turned to calls at all times of day all week. they're basically besties who gossip and talk shit on the phone all the time. when the byers get back to hawkins it shocks everyone but robin when jonathan parks his ass next to steve's bed and refuses to move.

i just love stonathan ok!!!! i will die on this hill. steve deserves people who love him and care about him!!

Edit: now on ao3!! <3

[justsomeoneintoomanyfandoms]

HIIII!!!, can I have a Percy Jackson and a Demon slayer matchup plz

my name is Rex, ima just do bullet points cause they are easier for me and also gonna dm a pic of me cause im kinda shit at describing what I look like🧍🏽‍♀️

Age:17

Gender: Non-Binary

Pronouns: They/Them

Skin Color:carmel or like a neutral tan

hair: changes a lot, my natural hair is a curly mullet thats like faded blonde. But right now they are red Faux locs

Body type: I dont really know you to describe it but its like a chubby hourglass/thicc? I have hip dips on me though🧍🏽‍♀️And I have a large chest

Height: 5’4 short king🫡

Personality:

MBTI: ENFP

- I like to hang out with my friends a lot and can be very social at times, but then social battery runs out and im tapped out

- I take pictures of everything cause I just like having a bunch of memories

- Im always sleepy cause a I stay up super late, so sometimes i show up to school in PJS

- Im really into visual art. I want to be a fashion designer in the future, and I just like fashion in general

- Speaking of fashion I have a bajillion aesthetics, I can’t pick one to stick with so I try em all

- I can get pretty insecure sometimes about myself, but then 3 seconds later im like “Im the hottest bitch here” its very odd

- I have Anemia so i get nauseous and dizzy easy which sucks

- I also have ADHD so i can ether hyper focus, get hella distracted and space out, or get really overstimulated

- I can get fired up about issues or stuff I care about very easily, like its a bunch of bottle uped feelings spilling over

Thats kinda it for me🫡

Hi Rex! Thank you for your request! Sorry it took so long. I hope you like your matchups!

In Percy Jackson, I match you with...

Will is a lot like you in that he’s social while also having a social battery that runs out quickly. He’s good at hiding it but social situations wear him out easily.

Knows lots of tips and tricks for helping manage ADHD, both from a medical perspective and first-hand experience. He’s also really good at helping you with your anaemia.

Loves looking over your latest creative project. Whether it’s a fashion design or something more traditionally artsy, he likes seeing your creativity come to life.

Will also loves hanging out with you and an assortment of friends. He also loves making memories and being able to share them with those he cares about. Life as a demigod is dangerous and often short so he wants to make the most out of every day.

Please take lots of candid photos of him. He’s really photographic, even if he’s aware of the camera but when he’s oblivious, he seems almost ethereal.

In Demon Slayer, I match you with...

Much like Will, Tanjiro enjoys hanging out with you and his friends. He’s got a more resilient social battery than most but is happy to follow your lead and have a break when you need one.

Your personal cheerleader! Tanjiro loves everything about you (yes, even your mood swings) and will tell you how much he cares about you. It’s hard to feel insecure when someone’s constantly hyping you up.

Thinks your tendency to hyper focus and then get easily distracted is endearing. If you’re focusing on something for too long, Tanjiro will make sure you take a break and have a drink and something to eat.

Really soothing when you get overstimulated. He’ll move you away from whatever has caused your overstimulation and sit with you until you’re feeling better.

He’s got a relaxing presence that isn’t overbearing. Sometimes when he’s sitting with you, it feels like there’s no one there. But be rest assured, Tanjiro’s there if and when you need him.

[all-eyes-lead-to-the-truth]

All Eyes Lead to the Truth | Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man (4x07)

He flings open the tempered glass door of Montgomery & Glick Publishing, ready to start another day of reading, and most likely, rejecting multiple writings from wannabe authors. And of-fucking-course, his publication office is a mess. Old donut wrappers, empty paper cups, and probably a hundred different discarded story drafts wadded up and tossed at overfilled trash bins litter the shag carpet of the office atrium. 

“Good mornin’, boss,” Davey Jones says with a lit Morley balancing perilously on his bottom lip. 

“No, it’s not. It’s a pigsty in here,” Albert Montgomery Godwinkle glares in disgust at the men working under him, as if that could teach them some goddamn manners. Maybe he should fire them all and hire more women. “Your editing better not look this bad.”

A chorus of apologies and excuses resound around the room. Nothing new there.

“And how many times do I have to say no smoking around the manuscripts?” Albert huffs and waves a hand in front of his face, trying to clear the fog of smoke thicker than his reading glasses. The noxious smell pisses him off almost as much as trash around here does. No wonder he’s in a perpetual bad mood. 

“Hey boss, we got a few new submissions waiting for your read-through,” Davey adds as he stubs out his cigarette. “I put ‘em on your desk. And hey, that first one from D.C. is a real doozy.”

Davey chuckles and Albert rolls his eyes. Everything’s a damn joke to that kid. 

“Get back to work, Jones,” he sighs, and shuts his office door behind him.

It’s only nine in the morning and his day is already shit. His wife hates his unyielding work schedule, his kids can’t seem to stand him, and this struggling publishing company has become his only joy in life. Though the joy has been hard to find. Reading a halfway decent manuscript for once might actually put a smile on Albert’s disgruntled face. 

Cautiously hopeful, he grabs the first printed manuscript from the top of the pile called TAKE A CHANCE: A JACK COLQUITT ADVENTURE, by Raul Bloodworth, and reads.

Two hours later, Albert skims down to the bottom of the last page, reciting its final words aloud: “I can kill you whenever I please… but not today.”

What the hell?

Albert lets the stack of pages he’d just wasted too much of his life reading flop atop his half eaten breakfast. 

“What the hell?” he repeats. Out loud this time, because silently doesn’t quite capture his frustration properly. He grabs the corded phone on his desk and punches in his publishing partner’s number. “Yeah Glick, come to my office. You gotta see this.”

When Sammie Glick finishes reading Bloodworth’s excerpt on hero hitmen, he barks out a horse laugh only a man who smokes a pack a day and drinks a bottle of whisky a night can manage. “Jesus Christ, you sure that ain’t a comedy piece?”

Albert groans. “Unfortunately, yes.”

“Bloodworth is a catchy author pseudonym, though, I’ll give him that.” Glick chortles into his coffee cup. “Are you gonna write the rejection letter or am I?” 

Albert slams his hand on his desk in indignation. “This is a serious publishing house! Not a lowbrow rag idolizing some governmental conspiracy adventure with… with I don’t even know, goddamn alien ass implants.”

His partner chokes on a mouth full of dark roast. “Alien ass implants? Really?”

“No, but somehow that would’ve improved the plot.”

“Didn’t we get a similar submission a while back about some end of the world mumbo jumbo? Project Doomsday, I think it was called. By a guy named Alan Kurtzdial?” Glick snaps his fingers in recognition. “Alvin Kurtzweil. That’s the name. I remember because his story was about as whack-a-do as this one.”

Albert scrubs a hand over his face as he mentally prepares to reject this crap. Holding up the first page of Bloodworth’s manuscript labeled, “Part I: Trust No One,” he scoffs. 

“And to think, I held out hope to not look at any more trash today…”

Dear Mr. Bloodworth, I have recently had the unhappy and unfortunate experience of reading your manuscript: TAKE A CHANCE: A JACK COLQUITT ADVENTURE. My advice? Burn it! It stunk like rotten tomatoes not even my dog would eat off the floor. That, Mr. Bloodworth, is called a simile. You would do well (God forbid) not to litter your next manuscript with too many of them. In addition, I felt the plot of TAKE A CHANCE to be preposterous, the characters unbelievable, the ending lame, and the writing, frankly, crap. Needless to say, Montgomery & Glick Publishing declines your manuscript. Please, DO NOT send this piece of trash to another publishing house. Very Sincerely, Albert M. Godwinkle

Read the rest of All Eyes Lead to the Truth on Archive of Our Own

@monikafilefan

[peace-coast-island]

Diary of a Junebug

Milk tea and cupcakes at the little cafe by the sea

I think I found a new favorite cafe and it’s not too far from the camp. Happy Flour Cafe is a new-ish place that opened last year but for some reason I never got a chance to check it out until now. They’re known for their milk tea and cupcakes, both which can be super sweet, but they managed to balance them out.

Their milk tea is the right balance of tea, milk, and sugar - not too sweet or diluted. They also have a massive selection of teas so I’m definitely gonna try out as much as I can. Their cupcakes are also really good plus they have a lot of unique flavors. Depending on your mood, you can choose between sweet or savory.

I’m glad that we finally got to check the place out. I’ve heard of the cafe before but forgot about it until Sayo brought it up as it was on the way to the camp. So it’s been kinda our thing to visit the cafe for a midday break to chill and get to know everyone better.

Kayo made good on her promise to try and bring the agency to the camp - well, three of them. Though Kayo’s number four as of last week, which the others say is and isn’t really a surprise. Besides, this outing was kinda a spur of the moment type of thing. In other words, it was a “kidnapping” of sorts with help from Raiden and Kaiji.

The “victim” of this so-called kidnapping happens to be President Kiyowara, also known as the Boss or the Master. He seems intimidating at first but he’s actually easy to get along with - that is, if you don’t get on his bad side. There’s a reason why people highly respect and sort of fear him. After all, he’s known for his martial arts prowess and sword fighting - some which he created himself - so he’s not someone you’d want to mess with unless you want a death sentence.

Like Sakura, Kiyowara’s also an important figure in Tangwei. As the head of the Skyline Dusk Agency, he’s one of the Five who serve to protect the city and maintain its peace. Only he and Akara, the head of the city, survived the Great Calamity a few years ago. Galen has two successors - Kaiji and Elle - while government affairs had one and a lesser known faction was completely disbanded. Kiyowara also happened to be there when Sakura sacrificed herself and he was the one who took Kayo back to the infirmary afterwards.

Before founding the agency, Kiyowara was known as the lone wolf. In short, he was extraordinarily skilled and people exploited him for that. It’s pretty much a similar story for most in the agency. Then he met Akinori, an orphaned and homeless kid who was gifted but lacked an understanding of the world around him. The two ended up working together on a case and soon became a formidable duo.

Akinori has been described by the others as eccentric. He’s super smart with the ability to deduct as well as determine possible futures. There’s no exaggeration when they say he’s a genius. Sayo says he can be a bit childish in terms of his attitude - mainly because Kiyowara kinda spoils him - but he really is the heart of the agency.

Sayo was taken in by Kiyowara and Akinori about a year after the agency was formed. Her powers were exploited by a doctor during a conflict as she was forced to constantly heal injured soldiers all for the sake of some fucked up experiment. She had been recruited by that doctor under the assumption that she was using her powers to help people. Like Akinori, she had also been orphaned and homeless, so at the time she didn’t really have other options. Eventually, as the soldiers lost their minds from being revived so many times, Sayo had a mental breakdown and was tossed aside. Sometime later, the doctor wanted her back again, only to lose to Kiyowara, a former acquaintance who was appalled at how Sayo was treated.

From there, the agency grew in terms of size and rank. The third member was Kun, who was originally Kiyowara’s successor. Sayo has now taken that position - it was only temporary at first, but as capable as the other members are, she’s really the only one aside from Kun with strong leadership capabilities. Akinori would be a good candidate but he doesn’t really like being a leader, preferring to be the right hand man instead so there wouldn’t be as much pressure.

The agency is pretty much like one big family. Along with Akinori and Sayo, the President has also taken in Ari and Sonny, though unlike the other two, they live in the apartment with other agency members. Ari originally lived with Amane and decided to stay there instead of moving in with Kiyowara and the others. When she was ill, Sayo had temporarily roomed with her and while she enjoyed being closer to the shops, the dorms can get a little hectic - and she’s one of the more unhinged members, or so they say.

As for the other agency people - Ari, Tai, Sunny, and Tanoto - they all have plans so they couldn’t make it. Ari and Tai are off somewhere doing whatever - Akinori reassured the others that they won’t get into too much trouble as long as they avoid getting arrested. Not sure what that means but apparently that’s nothing usual since it’s Tai they’re talking about. Sunny and Tanoto are out of town visiting family, so nothing out of the ordinary there.

Kayo has pretty much been an informal member of the agency for years. Sakura and Kiyowara were close friends and she was the one who kinda influenced him to take in Akinori and later Sayo. As a result, Kayo sees those three as extended family. She said aside from Atsushi and Kaiji, Kiyowara was one of the very few who understood Sakura in terms of being gifted and cursed. That’s part of the reason why she’s been hanging out with the agency more often, to keep an eye on the President.

With Kayo being Kayo, it’s hard to turn her down because she’s so earnest. As expected, the events of the past couple years has been hard on the agency, especially for Kiyowara. Sayo and Ari had mentioned that they’re a bit worried about him as the stress has been piling on for him, especially with Ari out of commission. Along with work, he’s been dealing with personal stuff that’s taking a toll on him too.

That’s why not only Kayo’s an official member of the agency, but why she and the others decided to “kidnap” him. Kaiji and Raiden were in on it too, especially after that scare they had a couple weeks ago during a meeting with Akara which resulted in Kiyowara spending a night in the emergency room. Akinori and Sayo seem to blame themselves for not noticing the signs, though no one holds it against them since there’s so much going on.

That’s probably why they sorta act like Kioywara’s gonna break or something, much to his annoyance. He’s snapped at them a couple times for being too overprotective, only to quickly apologize afterwards. Again, no one can really blame both sides for acting the way they are - I surely wouldn’t know what to do.

Now that I’m starting to get familiar with the agency, I’m beginning to see the impact of Sakura’s death on Tangwei City as a whole. The disaster resulted in a huge upheaval for the city - changes with the Five, the sorcerer revolt, Raiden’s brother - they’re still cleaning up the messes from all that. So I guess in a way, they can’t really ever move on from it, and that’s just something they’ll have to live with.

Unlike the other two major events, Sakura’s death was inevitable, just not the circumstances. She was well aware of her limited lifespan, but there’s only so much you can prepare for that. For someone who supposedly refused to get close to other people, I’d say she got too involved. Not that it’s a bad thing - in fact, it’s the best thing for someone like her - and that complicates things because you tell yourself not to get too attached, only for it to end up like that.

Well, it’s not entirely her fault that people happen to be drawn to her and are concerned about her wellbeing. Some said she can be cold and detached but I can understand why. It’s because she doesn’t want to set herself up and get hurt - or more precisely, hurt other people. To think if people like her grandma, Atsushi, and Kaiji didn’t exist to keep her from spiraling, maybe the curse would’ve overtaken her much sooner.

The fact that she was different was what made her be able to connect with other outsiders. Raiden said she was one of the few who understood her brother’s motives even though she found them extreme. She was one of the few - probably only - who was considered Kiyowara’s equal. She’s the reason why Kaiji’s alive as she was the only one could talk him down and redirect his anger when he became blinded by vengeance because she also understood. Amane and Ari wouldn’t have pulled themselves up from the ground if it wasn’t for her.

It’s like her very existence is what allowed her to reach out in situations that defy logic and reason. If anyone knew suffering, it was her. I think it was Dainn who called her anomaly, a miracle that shouldn’t exist, but she did, and she managed to break the cycle. He also wouldn’t have survived because of her, something he said he stopped questioning as to do so would seem ungrateful.

Sakura was fated to be a tragedy but she didn’t want to be remembered like that, so she gave it her all to make sure she was the last one standing even when all options were exhausted. That was why Raiden and Qingmei were drawn to her, because she defied logic just by existing. She definitely didn’t intend to be somebody other than an ordinary person, but by doing so is a radical act in itself.

Still, even with all she accomplished, there was always that emptiness, that feeling of never being enough, and that was something she was never able to overcome. That’s why Kayo is always trying to find the bright side of things - not in a toxic positivity sort of way I think, more like a realistic optimistic type. Sure she’s young and can be a bit too idealistic, but she’s definitely not naive. Raiden says it’s not so much about finding happiness, it’s more about finding meaning that’s Kayo’s after, which I think makes more sense. She wants to understand happiness so she can hold on to it.

One link to happiness Kayo has discovered is friendship. Sure, it sounds cliche but having a good support system goes a long way. It sounds hard to believe but Kayo used to be intimidated by Kiyowara. Then he started to change after taking in Akinori and Sayo, becoming more like a human rather than a sword fighting lone wolf. The Skyline Dusk Agency wouldn’t have existed if Sakura, Akinori, and Sayo hadn’t managed to get Kiyowara to put down his walls and let people into his life. It’s amazing what forming connections and bonds with other people can do.

And at long last, much to Kayo’s relief, it seems like Kaiji and Kiyowara have finally become friends. Back then, when Kaiji traveled a lot, they barely interacted, and even when they did, Sakura was always there. Raiden was also confused about why it took that long too as they seem to get along well. Akinori deduces that it’s because both of them were afraid of getting close to each other because it was too painful, which makes sense. The aftermath of the disaster has been pretty much a blur to everyone, especially for them because of their positions as one of the Five.

Kayo says that the sword farewell - when she and Kaiji were able to communicate with Sakura’s remaining consciousness for the final time - marked a big step, not only for herself, but also for her father and Kiyowara. A few days after, she told Kiyowara about what happened as she felt he deserved closure too. Sometime later Kaiji reached out to Kiyowara for some assistance with a job and since then they have been hanging out together.

Like Kayo, Raiden, Akinori, Sayo - and the rest of the agency - are glad that Kaiji and Kiyowara are getting along well. Akinori and Sayo also say that Kaiji managed to talk some sense into the boss after he ran himself into the ground, so they’re grateful for that. He’s still a bit uptight but Kaiji’s there to make sure he doesn’t wind himself up.

They both have a lot of burdens to carry, so it’s nice to have someone who understands. Kayo cares about them immensely and they would tear the world apart if something were to happen to her. Sakura, Amane, Kun, and Lucy are gone and the rest are still here, and to respect their memories, they will keep on living, because that’s what they wanted.

Read on AO3