#(plus what his old owners did to keep him in line)

[bloo-the-dragon]

Mer au eclipse and ruin = sillies

just a grouchy robot with mental and memory issues and his emotional support roommate disabled mer with physical issues!

[starlightwritcr]

I can fix him, literally. (Android au!Sukuna)

(@poe-daydreams this is for you <3)

warning/s: Minors DNI, Smut, exhibitionism but not really? idk how to describe it, light degradation, use of "whore", Sukuna's two dicks

Imagine android!Sukuna used to be a popular fighter in an underground fighting ring. Key word: used to be. He went up against Jujutsu Technology's newest Gojo model, S4T0RU (or Satoru, as most fans call him), but suffered a humiliating defeat at his hands. This caused heavy damages on Sukuna which led to his owner throwing him out to the trash. After all, why keep the old model around when the latest model was far superior?

But you didn't believe in such. You were surprised to find a Sukuna model in the trash at the back of a dingy building. Who in their right mind would throw away a million dollar android in this economy?! You took the android in, seeing as how the previous clearly didn't want him.

It was a challenge to repair the Sukuna model but as someone who used to work for Jujutsu Technology, you were able to do it. His mind chip seemed to be working fine. It was just the external parts that suffered heavy damage, which should be easy enough to replace. All it took was ordering spare parts online and giving it a new coat of paint to match his original model's tattoos to make him look good as new!

When android!Sukuna's systems started operating again, he woke up from sleep mode and saw you. You explained that you fixed him up after finding him in the trash. There were still some tests to run, just to see if there would be any possible bug fixes needed.

In true Sukuna fashion, he wasn't very cooperative at first. This wasn't your first rodeo though and managed to convince him to do it so that it could be over with. It didn't come as a surprise to you that a fighter android would be aggressive. Plus, the Sukuna line was designed with that personality to elicit reactions from audiences when he trash talked his opponents. It was pretty much just how he was designed.

While running the tests on Sukuna, you decided to check his memory file to see what happened before he was thrown out. You saw how badly he got beaten by the S4T0RU model.

Perhaps it was a strange thing to do, but you empathised with the android. Getting abandoned and replaced would be painful for any regular human after all. Even if Sukuna was an android, it wasn't uncommon for androids to develop a capacity for human emotions. This tended to be the case for fast-learning androids.

So, you kept him around. Sukuna wasn't too pleased about it but it wasn't like he had anywhere else to go. He was rough and brash at first, blowing a hole into your finances with how much fuel he needed to consume. He calls you soft for treating him like he's human.

But despite the difficulties, despite the insults, you couldn't bring yourself to abandon him. You'd be no better than the person that replaced him so easily. You taught him how to navigate human life, dealing with human emotions, all the essentials needed. Soon enough, you noticed a change in his behaviors. Sukuna hovered around you, never leaving your side. It was almost like he was attached to your hip.

In a way, Sukuna did what he was created to do. He became a bodyguard of sorts, protecting you from creepy dudes whenever you went out. His trash talking feature especially came in handy during gossip sessions where you just had to vent about a rude coworker.

android!Sukuna found a new purpose in you. It was odd going from being a fighter android basking in cheers from the audience to being a companion android protecting his owner like a guard dog. But perhaps this life was more meaningful than his previous one. He'll never admit that though. It's only through his actions that you understand how he felt.

Feeling your touch on his synthetic skin felt even more exhilarating than all the cheers from the audience he's received in his fighting career. Sukuna cursed at himself, realising that he's become whipped for you. He was lucky that it was you, the person who's never abandoned him.

Sometimes android!Sukuna can be pretty possessive. You worked with repairing other androids so deep down, there was a fear that you'd find another android you liked more and replaced him with it. Even if he knew you wouldn't, there was a lingering fear that was deeply rooted ever since he was abandoned.

The height of Sukuna's possessiveness came to its peak when you brought home a sex android from the S4T0RU line. Its previous owners had a really good time with it and accidentally damaged it. You were baffled by this, seeing as how Jujutsu Technology usually equipped its Gojo models with tough materials. They must've went really wild with it.

While repairing it, Sukuna pulled you close. He glared at the S4T0RU model that was in sleep mode. You gasped as his fingers slipped into your clothes, going up your thighs.

Your cries of pleasure echoed against the walls as Sukuna fucked you in front of the android. His hands held you tightly, keeping you in place while he drove his synthetic cocks into you.

"When did you get two dicks?!" "Shut up and take them, whore."

You felt your brain turning to mush while he rearranged your insides with his thick cocks. Sukuna smirked in satisfaction when he knew your attention was completely on him and not that android on your work desk.

[lady-of-endless]

Risotto Nero romantic headcanons (sfw+nsfw)

Author's Note: Sorry for being an old-school romantic and writing headcanons like these, don't come at me. I wanted to take my time with Risotto as he is so complex. I really hope that those are not too far-fetched. I hope you'll enjoy it! The lovely gif is not mine, I'm thanking the owners for it.

P.S. Prosciutto will be next. I just have to calm down from the feels I have for the husband, I mean Prosciutto.

SFW

- The most beneficial context for your relationship is for it to start off as a partnership, a team. This way, you go through many critical and dramatic experiences together and that will only bring you closer and strengthen your connection. Even after confessing, this dynamic remains, you are still a team, watching for each other.

- Everything about him indicates a slow burn. From obtaining his trust first and then his heart. Even after those two are won, he's still reluctant to the new dynamic. He will never deny those feelings even if he thinks that someone in his position should. Risotto is not just rationally intelligent but also emotionally intelligent so he knows that such desires of the heart cannot be stopped. He doesn't deny the feelings but he suppresses them. He knows how complex those emotions are and that's the problem, it complicates everything around him and you. But little by little, he starts giving in and surrendering to his love.

- At first, he analyzed you only from a strategic point of view (regarding your abilities and how you can work with his team) and in time, it escalated into a deeper and more emotional point of view. Because of this and because Risotto values other opinions and perspectives from his teammates, he seeks advice. No, he won't ask directly but he'll be more attentive when the others talk about you. However, the only one who Risotto might ask for an opinion is Prosciutto because he shares some morals and principles with him. Surprisingly, Prosciutto will put his rational arguments aside a little bit because more than the respect and admiration he holds for Risotto, he wants him to experience this sort of happiness.

- Risotto will not know how to react when receiving your affection, at first. There are many thoughts and morals that don't let him receive affection right. Many of those thoughts are regarding his line of work. He has made peace with the fact that he's not a good man, that he doesn't deserve good things. He's okay with it now, he did what he had to do.

- His preferred love language is acts of service. He's used to doing things for others (but even so he doesn't see how selfless he is) so acts of service are his way to show his feelings. He would do anything for his close ones so for you, his loved one, he would die for you, kill for you, protect you, anything, you name it. Plus, Risotto is always very observant and because his interest is your well-being, he pays extra attention to your needs. About receiving, it can be anything. Again, he doesn't see himself worthy of love.

- He rarely smiles so when you finally catch a glimpse of this rare occasion and compliment him, Risotto is lost. Any sort of comment like this will have him feel things he never felt before, in a good way. As a result, he starts smiling softly more at you in privacy.

- If you get severely injured on a mission, he still keeps his composure in your presence while helping you, patching you up, and even trying to heal you with Metallica. He's serious while doing it but it will be the only time in which his hands start trembling. After helping you, while you rest, he's still there watching over you fully neglecting his need for rest. As you sleep and he looks at your injuries, that's when his composure breaks. The guilt he's feeling is heavy in his heart, thinking how this way of life is not what you deserve and it's his fault.

- He's capable of many things, he's also a strategist but that doesn't mean that he doesn't have moments in which it all gets too much to process. That's where you come to the rescue. He doesn't want to pass his difficulties to you so it will take a lot for him to let himself tell you what's wrong.

- Secrecy and subtility are a must. But he'll get you (he'll make it), a dainty and thin silver bracelet with a charm that resembles some sort of blade. Whenever he's thinking of you and wants to let you know it, you'll feel that bracelet move a bit from his magnetism, as a reminder.

- As subtle as he thought he was, in time, every member of La Squadra will know what his feelings are towards you. Melone was the first to notice the way Risotto looked at you. Since his discovery, Melone couldn't keep it for himself and since then, they all started behaving suspiciously. They smirk every time you talk to Risotto about missions and other formal details, they try to let the two of you alone more, and so on.

NSFW

- Contrary to popular belief, he's not rough (not every time at least) or freaky behind closed doors. His usual and favorite approach is slow and deep. He likes to take his time with it as he sees sex as not just a way to get pleasure but a moment of deepening the connection you have already.

- He never wants to use sex as an outlet for his pent-up frustrations and stress but if you give him the green light, he might give into it when things get too much to bear. But he still holds back a little bit, worried about how rough he can easily get. If you're into this rough approach as well and it's noticeable, he'll feel less guilty but still careful.

- He can go on with the foreplay for hours. Risotto likes to feel the tension build. Enjoying the reactions and the growing desire gives him the most pleasure, more than the act itself. Because of this, he might sometimes slip into trying orgasm denial with you.

- At first, he doesn't see the point of experimenting with kinks because he's so touch-starved. He only needs you. However, gradually he will start asking you for consent about some ideas he has. Watch out for your hands. If you get them close to the metal bars of the bed, your wrists will get caught in metal bindings in the blink of an eye.

- Quiet in the beginning but soon you'll see him losing his composure and start grunting and growling close to your ear as he buries his face in the crook of your neck. Not only that but you'll hear sweet words of affirmation, unheard before as he gets lost in the feeling of you.

- Aftercare is obligatory. It always gets intense, sometimes even rough, and he's aware of his size too so calming you down and taking care of you is both a way of showing his gratitude and also a duty (don't get this one wrong, he sees the act of aftercare as important as the rest of his duties, that's it). The aftercare always ends with him holding your hand and kissing it as another silent expression of his gratefulness and adoration for you. It's his unbreakable habit.

- He has to admit, he likes to mark you. Not in a possessive way, that's why those marks will only be on parts that are not usually visible. But because he loves the image and concept of your skin reacting to his affection. You can leave marks on him as long as they're not visible, again, it's about secrecy and subtility. He might feel a bit proud, just a bit, when he looks in the mirror at the scratches you left on his back.

- Doesn't get bored of being on top. After all of that slow burn and build-up of your deep connection, of course, he wants to look into your eyes when you both let yourselves be engulfed in the pleasure. Might even get a little mischievous with it when he's in a good mood. "If you look away, I'll stop."

The only situations in which you are the one on top are when you simply ask for it or when you tell him you want to help him relax. Hearing those words coming from you while you start touching him with care and warmth is going to be the death of him.

- Not a fan of quickies. He needs the whole thing. As mentioned before, he needs to feel the tension built and loves taking his time with it. But also, above all, he wants to treat you right so a quickie will never be enough for this.

[hotmessmaxpress]

This is SHITE but it's writing so I'm holding it out to you like a cat bringing its loving owner a dead mouse.

Vale doesn't admit it until they're back together, having reconciled. They're still tiptoeing around the heavy baggage of their past, only acknowledging it when it's unavoidable.

They're in bed, sweaty and bare, and Vale is tracing the lines on Marc's face. He gently slides the tips of his fingers down, from the crinkles at the edges of Marc's beautiful eyes to the smile lines that bracket his lips. His fingers continue down, running gently over his tanned neck and strong shoulders, down the scars on his arm until he can tangle their fingers together.

"I'm not as young as I used to be," Marc says, laughing with a touch of the plastic stiffness he uses with the media.

Vale senses that this is an important moment.

"You're beautiful," he says, somewhat lamely but with total honesty. Marc is beautiful. He always has been and will always be.

He is definitely different than their last attempt at a relationship, if you could call it that, though. Then again, Vale has changed just as much.

Marc laughs stiffly again, glancing away.

Vale frowns.

"I know you aren't as young anymore," Vale adds, treading carefully. "I am not either."

"You were never young," Marc teases, and Vale is relieved to find that Marc has relaxed, and lost his plastic tone. He's genuinely smiling now, though it's a small smile.

Vale pretends to be affronted, scoffing.

"I have eternal youth."

"Immaturity," Marc corrects.

That startles a laugh out of Vale, who can't argue. Marc has always been overly mature for his age, but even now he seems older than he is. Vale knows Marc has been through a lot, though his brain carefully doesn't think about the role he had to play in all of it, and he reckons that makes Marc seem older.

"I was worried--" Marc says, then pauses.

Vale bites his tongue and waits. Marc is clearly trying to find the words.

"You thought it was sexy that I was so young," Marc finally settles on. He says it with careful neutrality, tone light, but it still feels like an accusation.

Vale considers arguing, but he and Marc have been working on honesty. He can't bring himself to lie.

"I did."

Marc hums. Vale waits for him to say more, to explain what he's feeling, but he doesn't. It makes Vale anxious; he feels like he's done something wrong.

"What are you thinking?" he prompts, finally running out of patience.

Marc chews his lip, playing with Vale's fingers.

"I was worried that you would be bothered by how old I've gotten."

Vale laughs, and then corrects himself when he sees the flash of hurt across Marc's face. He sees Marc's defenses go up, and he soothes him with a kiss to the spot on his face where his eyebrows have now knit together.

"No, no. I laughed because you are not old."

Marc is still frowning. Vale sees Marc's youth in the way he pouts, in the way his jaw flexes as he chews the inside of his lip.

"You are older," Vale says. "But that's life. We grow and get older. I will love you when you're old."

"When I'm old you'll be ancient," Marc bitches, still frowning.

Vale laughs again.

"Yes. And?"

Marc glares at him. Vale is clearly not making him feel better.

"Okay, fine. I thought it was very sexy when you were so young and I was getting old. It was sexy to see how you looked at me so innocently. Now you are not young or innocent, but you're still sexy. You are unbelievable. Everything about you makes me want to keep you in my bed forever."

He presses a kiss to the corner of Marc's lips.

"Plus, I am in love with you."

Vale hopes Marc understands what he's trying to convey. The first time they tried this, Vale wasn't ready to be in love with Marc. He wasn't ready to admit that Marc loved him. This time he's made peace with it. This time he wants to be with Marc for the rest of his life, regardless of how old they are.

Marc seems to understand him. He kisses Vale sweetly, then pulls back to stare into his eyes. He must be satisfied with what he sees, because he finally smiles again.

Vale leans down to kiss Marc again.

"Okay?" he asks, just to be sure.

"Yes," Marc says, sounding relaxed. "I love you too."

[megamindsecretlair]

Be My Little Darling - Chapter 8

Chapter 7 Chapter 9

Pairing: Loki x Black!Fem!reader / Plus Size reader

Warnings: 18+. Minors DNI. You are in charge of your own reading experience. Angst. Oral (male receiving) Soft Loki, use of magic, and heavy mentions of survivor's guilt, negative self-talk, violence.

Summary: Loki is the exclusive owner of the hottest club in New Asgard. Dubbed the Nine Realms, each of the nine rooms represent a different realm. You are his second in command, working the floors and ensuring everyone is having fun. When you arrive to open the club, you find Loki in his office. You intended to help him, but nothing ever goes according to plan when dealing with the God of Mischief.

Word Count: 4,311k

Masterlist

A/N: WHEW! This drained me LOL. In a good way, I slept like a baby after this. This is definitely one of the heaviest things I've released into the wild. Also, sorry babes! I'm going on vacation next week so no new chapter next week. I was going to try and type something up and save it as a draft, but no go. Too hectic at home. You can definitely use this chapter to tell me your theories! Who do you think the saboteur is? When will Y/N give in? Can Loki's patience outlast Y/N's stubbornness??? Likes are always awesome. Please consider commenting and reblogging to help support writers!

Taglist: @cantstayawaycani @braverthanthenewworld @monaeesstuff @chaos-4baby @dayjlovesromance @soft-persephone @mybonafidefeelings

It was no secret that you had trust issues. You did not trust how quiet it had been from the saboteur. You did not trust that the person just gave up their reign of terror. You didn’t care for the silence. Every shadow was the saboteur. Every delivery had an air of doom. 

You were on edge and it made the others on edge as well. It had been a few quiet weeks since the last surprise from the person out to hurt Loki and by extension, his club. And you realized that the more you thought about it, the more the person won. This was what they wanted. For you all to cower in fear, jumping at shadows and mistrusting the person next to you.

Fuck that. You knew every person here. Inside and out. You were not going to go on a witch hunt. Loki wanted to, desperately. It took all of your concentration to keep him at bay and keep the club running smoothly.

You looked over your notebook, running through the calendar for the evening. You were due to have a large party in the Helheim room. Your heels echoed in the quiet space. You liked to arrive early and have a bit of peace to yourself before the hustle and bustle started. You were able to collect your thoughts for half a second, before the complaints started.

You ran through the list of special requests. You rolled your eyes. Those were always fun. Not. Loki promised decadence and your every fantasy fulfilled. That translated to entitled assholes who thought that they could treat the waitstaff like personal servants and entertainment. You grabbed a pen from your pocket to make a note for yourself. You had to talk to the waitstaff and bartenders to cut the party off if they got too rowdy. You’d deal with the consequences.

You passed by Loki’s office on your way to yours. The door was propped open. You put your hand on the cold doorknob ready to close it when you peeked inside and saw Loki sitting at the desk. He was rubbing his jaw and staring down. 

You knew he’d sense you in a moment but for a brief second, you watched him. You watched the angles and lines of his face. The sharp turn of his nose, his downturned mouth. His jacket was off and hanging over the edge of his chair. The sleeves of his black shirt were pulled up revealing pale flashes of his forearms. His long, delicate fingers were clenched in a fist. 

He looked like a statue made real. One of those old statues built long before your time that decorated the palace where Loki resided. The ones that were carved from real artists. Who turned cold, unyielding stone to breathing moments of life. The humans on Midgard had similar statues in their museums. 

The kind where detail was paramount. Fingers dug into skin, clothes were draped just so, and faces held that serene pain you often found on Loki’s face when he thought no one was looking. 

You pushed into the room. Loki didn’t stir. You walked up to the desk.

“Loki?”

Loki took a deep breath as if you roused him from a dream. “Darling,” he said. His voice was deeper and raspier than normal. 

“Have you been here all night?” You asked.

His desk was littered with paperwork. His once neat desk was cluttered and haphazard. It was so unlike him that you stared at it in shock. You looked back at him. His hair was dry and lifeless. It hung on his shoulders but there was none of the ethereal otherness to it. 

“Has the morning passed already?” He did not sound like your Loki. He sounded tired and unfocused. 

“Did you sleep here?” You looked around the room and noticed that his couch remained untouched. You made him keep a blanket draped across it for decoration purposes but also in case he wanted to take a nap. He thought you were joking. He could just conjure one up. But why waste the effort?

“Sleep would imply that I closed my eyes and rested. I assure you, no such luxuries were forthcoming,” he said. He rubbed his eyes and you crossed behind the desk to get closer to him. You grabbed his chin and made him look at you. 

You cursed softly at finding his eyes red. He smirked at you. At least the bastard hadn’t lost that.

“Worried for me, Darling?” He asked.

“This is what the saboteur wants.” You looked around his desk once more. Sure enough, there was the card he found on top of the ale delivery. He glanced at it too and his frown returned. You turned him once more to look at you. “They win if we let our guards down and obsess. This is no way to live. We’re constantly on the defensive.”

He smirked once more. “That’s why I spent the evening reviewing security measures. Whoever this person is, they know how to sneak past them. I planned to add more today.” 

“You need to go home and get some rest. You’re no good to anyone like this,” you said.

“Is that an invitation?” He asked.

You rolled your eyes. “If I take you to bed, it will be with your full faculties. Not…whatever this is,” you said. Even you knew to tread lightly. You’ve seen Loki on rough days. This went beyond rough. 

Loki looked…defeated. Which was impossible. Gods weren’t defeated. Certainly not your dark prince. He chuckled and leaned back in his chair. He spread his legs, one knee bent and the other thrust in front of him. His office chair was his throne and you were a lowly peasant seeking an ounce of mercy.

But damn if he didn’t look delicious. Damm him. Sleep-deprived looked good on him. Everything looked good on him. He sat there as if he were ready to entertain noblemen or hold court. The dark circles under his eyes gave him an roguish air. 

“If you take me to bed?” 

“If,” you confirmed.

“Don’t you mean when?” 

“I never say anything I don’t mean, Loki,” you said. 

“And you don’t deny what has been said between us. I say you’re mine and you’ve yet to correct me,” he said. 

You pursed your lips. Was he right? Had you never denied him when he claimed that you were his? You thought back to your recent interactions and you realized with a start that it was true. You never corrected him. A slow grin crossed your face.

He held up a finger. “Don’t try to start now. No lies between us,” he said.

Your grin faded. Irritatingly enough, he was correct again. There was no use lying. While you weren’t quite ready to say the words, you were his. No other man did it for you. No other man consumed your waking thoughts and your dreams.

You sighed and crossed your arms. “Off to bed, Loki. Alone,” you added before he could come up with another dirty remark. He chuckled and looked you over. 

You wore your signature fishnet stockings and form fitting dress that hugged every curve you had. It stopped mid-thigh but rode up with every movement. You stood with your boots crossed at the ankle and Loki took his time looking you over.

The heat in his eyes must match yours. A pillow appeared at Loki’s feet. A plush black pillow from the looks of it. “On your knees,” he said.

“You can’t be serious,” you sputtered. It was one thing to ogle each other. But he had been up all night obsessing. You stood up straight and glanced at his still open door. 

“I never say anything I don’t mean, Darling,” he said with a smirk. 

Your lips parted as he threw his words right back at you. You bit the inside of your cheek. Indecision froze you to the spot. It was getting harder to resist him. Harder to not give in and say the damn words. 

You woke up feverish now. Every night this past week, you woke up in a pool of sweat with dark images of Loki floating through your mind. You dreamt of him in between your thighs, wringing pleasure from you as a musician plucked music from a violin. You dreamt of his lips on your neck. His breath in your ear.

Your night clothes stuck to you now as you woke up drenched in sweat and arousal. Always, you were denied. As if he commanded your dreams as well. That he would not let you have one ounce of peace until you gave in. Until you surrendered. And you were running out of excuses to say no.

It was maddening. This sick twist and pull between you. But you couldn’t stop. Found that you didn’t want to stop. You liked driving him crazy. You liked that he drove you crazy. He was consuming you inside and out. It would be too easy. Far too easy to grovel. 

“I won’t repeat myself, Darling,” he said. 

His office had a window behind him. The sun rose on the opposite side so there was only ambient light slashed across his features. It highlighted the shadows across his cheeks and his nose. 

You bent at the knees and he tsked. “Slower,” he said.

You walked closer and then looked at him in his gorgeous crystal blue eyes. You kept eye contact as your hands slid over his knees. His thighs. Two can play this game. He’ll not dominate you completely just yet.

You used him as a crutch to sink softly to your knees. The pillow was incredibly soft. Like kneeling on marshmallows, the funny little concoctions that humans made. You stayed up right, blinking at him. 

He smirked and reached out with one hand to trail his fingers across your cheek. You nuzzled into his warm palm. It smelled like him and whiskey. He trailed his fingers over your lips. 

“Please me, Darling,” he faintly commanded. 

You leaned forward and unzipped his pants. You pushed it down far enough to free his hardening cock. This, this you could do. You could please him and remain your own person. You were his in all but that. You could not give all of yourself to him. Not when he was incapable of doing the same.

You watched him and his expression didn’t change. Oh but his eyes. His eyes were narrowed, cataloging everything that you did. You smiled at him and your tongue darted out to catch the single drop of precum beading on the tip of his cock. 

You trailed your hands up and down his dick, trying to learn him. Learn his sighs and hints of encouragement. You alternated increasing pressure and letting go to learn what he liked. You’d done this before but it was like you did it for the first time again. He smirked at you when you got it right and the thrill of pleasure went down your spine. 

He widened his stance when you bent your head down and took him into your mouth. He sighed as you slowly licked him up and down. Last time was a frenzy. A desperation to get as much of him into your mouth as possible. 

This time, you were able to tease him a little. To lick the underside of his dick and enjoy the way he jerked in his seat. He chuckled. “Remember Darling, whatever you do to me, I do in kind,” he said.

You paused as you thought about just how badly you wanted to tease him. But that meant that he’d only tease you back. And he was infinitely better at it than you were. It dawned on you that you may never best him. Never beat him at his own game. He was always a step ahead. Planning, plotting, scheming. 

You let him go with a wet pop and used your hand to stroke him. Perhaps you can’t win. But you’d enjoy trying. 

You grinned evilly and put your mouth back on him. Sucking in the salty, heady taste of him. More pre-cum flooded your mouth and you greedily sucked it down. Loki was not selfish with his pleasure. He hummed and cooed whenever you did something he liked in particular.

His moans made you go faster, take him deeper. You took him anyway you could get him at the moment. You sucked and licked and slobbered all over him. Chasing his pleasure and taking none for yourself. It wasn’t enough to satiate the burning flame inside of you. It would never be enough.

You needed him inside of you. You burned with the ache every time you went to bed. There were moments when you were finally alone in your office and you indulged in the fantasy of him not needing those stupid words. Of him getting so worked up that he just stormed into your office and took you right then and there. 

Your panties were already flooded. Soaking through with each swipe of your tongue against his tip. Distantly, you remembered that his office was still open. The thought of nearly getting caught made you take him deeper than before. 

Loki groaned and stroked your cheek. Your hair was pulled back this time, so there was nothing for him to move out of the way. Instead, he gripped the back of your neck and pulled you down faster. He drove his hips up to meet your eager mouth.

“My precious Darling, fuck,” he moaned. “You’re so sexy with my cock in your mouth,” he said. 

You made a noise but it was muffled by the slide of his dick in your mouth. Your gagging filled the quiet office. 

“That’s all it takes, is it? My cock in your mouth? My cum down your throat?” 

His dirty words made you wetter. You were pitifully mistaken. You thought one more taste of him would hold you over? That it would quench the need inside of you? You had no idea. You would never get enough of him. Never.

Your hands were braced on his thighs for leverage. But since he took over fucking your mouth, you moved one hand up to fondle his balls. He groaned deeper, a rumbling bass in the back of his throat like thunder on the horizon. 

You played with him, giving him just enough pressure to give you that look. The look that said he’d fuck you into the ground if he could. He’d swallow you whole if he could. He’d consume you from the inside out and not think twice about it. He pumped your head faster. 

Your jaw ached but you didn’t care. You wanted his pleasure. You sucked harder and he yelped. Hot splashes of cum coated your tongue and you swallowed him down. He shoved one last time, hitting the back of your throat and making you truly gag this time. You coughed around his dick and he released you. 

He caressed your jaw, your cheeks. He placed kisses around your sweaty forehead, your lips. He licked himself off your tongue and groaned. “I like the way I taste on your lips,” he murmured. 

You kissed him back, threading your fingers through his hair. It was still smooth, though dry, but you just liked touching him. Being connected to him. The thought alone chilled you to your bones.

Loki sensed the change in you. “What is it?” He asked.

You shook your head. “Nothing,” you said. You heard the panic in your voice. Try as you might, you couldn’t will yourself to calm down. It was a stray thought, nothing more. So what if you liked touching him? 

So what? Only that you wanted to keep doing it. You wanted to crawl into his lap. No, you wanted to crawl deeper. You wanted to climb inside of him and live there. You wanted his heart. You wanted his desperation. You wanted his obsession. You wanted his rage. His passion. You wanted to dance in the flames that burned within him. And it scared the ever living shit out of you. 

“Don’t pull away from me. What is it?” Loki gripped your shoulders and shook you. You shook your head. Words were clogged in your throat. You gripped onto his forearms to keep from flailing around. 

Fear jackhammered inside of you, pumping your heart painfully against your chest. You needed air. You needed away from him. You never ran in your life, but today was a day of firsts. You pulled away from him but he held onto you. 

“Tell me!” He yelled. “Tell me what happened!” 

“Let go,” you said through clenched teeth. 

“I swear by the gods in Valhalla…”

“No!” You thrashed and slapped at his shoulders. You didn’t want to hurt him. You just needed away. Time to collect your thoughts. Sex was muddying your mind and he hadn’t even been inside you yet! You needed time to rebuild that wall. 

Loki grabbed your face and made you look at him. He made you see him. In return, he saw you. His eyes softened as he gleaned what you didn’t want him to see. He had no right to see. 

“Fuck you!” 

Loki leaned down and kissed you, pressing you into him and not leaving you room to escape. “You have to feel it, Darling. You have to,” he said. He pulled you into a hug. Your arms were trapped against his broad chest.

Still you struggled and bucked like a wild horse. “You have to feel it,” he said. His breath fanned across your ear.

You didn’t want to feel it. You liked the icy interior of your heart. You liked the cage you set it in to keep from feeling everything too much. The minute you opened it, the minute you let it free…it hurt too fucking much. 

Loki held on to you. His arms were like a cage around you, encasing you. Your hands fisted his shirt. You wanted to shove him away. You took ragged breaths, your face crushed against his chest. 

He wasn’t letting go. You couldn’t win against him. Not by strength, not by wit. It was futile to try. You slumped against him. A keening whine leaving you. Tears stormed down your cheeks and ruined his shirt. The dampness spread and plastered against your face. 

Oh gods…it hurt. All of the ways that you tried to keep it in these past five years. The way you neglected yourself. Became a version of you that your siblings needed but didn’t appreciate. All the ways you stepped up to the plate, taking on more and more responsibilities. 

You collected burdens like a child collected seashells. The more you took on, the prouder you felt. You were handling it and handling it all without a problem. You bragged about being overworked. You bragged about not having a life outside of work and home. Look how responsible you were!

You liked that you clapped yourself on the back. It was a thankless job looking after your siblings after your family was gone. The bouts of fatigue were just because you worked too much. Not because you were grieving. Silly little feelings like that didn’t apply to you. You didn’t get to grieve.

The moments when you first woke up and were disappointed was harmless. Everyone experienced that. The moments when your heart seized, thinking back to the look on Thanos’ face. How he split the ship in two. You were shoved on one side with no idea what was going on. 

You would stand there, frozen. Clutching your chest as if he had killed you instead. You didn’t deserve to be there. Yet every day, the alarm sounded. You got out of bed. You did what needed to be done. 

You took this job to care for your siblings. You worked your ass off to earn more, do more, be more. To be useful. As long as you were useful, you could buy time. Time to find your family so that they could take over. So that they wouldn’t need you anymore. So that you could finally repay the life debt you owed them. 

A soundless scream left you. Loki rubbed your back, whispering something you couldn’t hear. Didn’t want to hear. 

It felt selfish wanting him. You had no right to him. No right. Your life was not yours. You were living on borrowed time. You were a placeholder. Holding space until you found your family. It wasn’t right, receiving pleasure. 

Things like laughing and kissing for the hell of it weren't for you. Things like running your hands through his hair, your heart soaring knowing that you made him smile, trading witty banter. All of it. You didn’t deserve it.

“Yes, yes, you do,” Loki’s voice penetrated the deep fog you descended into. Had you said it out loud? 

Loki called you by your real name. You knew that he knew it but he only used it once, when you first introduced yourself. To hear it on his tongue was too much to bear. 

You sniffled and he leaned back far enough to look you in the eyes. “I ruined your shirt,” you said. Like you ruin everything else. Your makeup, snot, and tears stained his shirt. You’d have to take it to get cleaned.

Loki growled and a beam of his magic passed over him, erasing your filthy fluids. “It’s just a shirt. I can make a hundred more.” He wiped your tears away, his thumbs passing right below your eyes.

“You know it wasn’t your fault,” he said.

You shook your head. It was your fault. You stood on the wrong side of the ship.

“Eyes on me,” Loki said. He waited until you finally blinked up at him. “It was not your fault. I was there too. I mourn for them too. You’re here because the gods willed it so. Because I will it so.”

“Loki,” you whispered. Your voice was rough and it burned with every inhale.

“No. Haven’t you punished yourself enough?” He asked.

“It’s never enough,” you admitted. “Nothing feels satisfactory,” you said. 

“You keep moving the goalposts for satisfaction. You create impossible hurdles for you to cross. And then blame yourself when you can’t see the end in sight,” he said. 

Fresh tears welled in your eyes. “I don’t know how to stop,” you said.

“I know. I know,” Loki said. He smiled at you. What a mess you probably looked like. You came in here with your armor intact, bossing him around, and ordering him to bed. But you were the one sobbing on the floor, stripped raw. 

“Let me in and I’ll help,” he said.

“It’s not fair…”

“Let me worry about how I choose to spend my time, Darling. I choose you. I choose your burdens. Your sorrows. I am a god. I can carry it,” he said. 

You sighed and wiped your face. There was no use fighting him, so why bother trying? You nodded. Gods help you, but so far he hadn’t let you down. He was there. Day and day out just like you were.

He already had so much to deal with. Now you were one more thing added on. On top of the stress of dealing with the club and the saboteur. Guilt ate at you like a vulture pecking a carcass. How could you even begin to repay him? 

Loki placed one last kiss to your lips. He lingered, his soft lips against yours. Sounds started to filter in from the club. The employees were starting to arrive. Loki kissed your forehead and released you. 

You missed his arms instantly as you got to your feet. The pillow disappeared and Loki zipped himself back up. He stood up and ran his fingers through his hair. “We’re not done, Darling,” he said.

“I know,” you said with a deep, wonderful sigh. The kind of relief that came after a good cry. Or a good fuck.

Shrill screaming tore your eyes away from each other. You passed a hand over your face and your makeup was pristine one more time. Besides a few wrinkles, no one would be able to tell what occurred here.

You and Loki left his office and raced down the hallway. Honey stood outside of her assigned room and screamed and screamed. Why was it that she was always in the middle of it all? 

You turned to the room…except the oppressive heat of the Helheim room greeted you. What the hell? 

You checked adjacent rooms and it was more of the same. The rooms were all switched around. 

“Motherfucker!” You screamed. 

Again, acidic guilt soured your gut. While you were busy crying like a baby, the saboteur struck again. Just waltzed in without a sound. And switched entire rooms around. 

On the outside of the room that Honey and a few other employees gathered around. There was another card. Loki plucked it from the wall and flipped it over before handing it to you. 

“Vengeance,” was all it said. 

You were going to find whoever was doing this and you were going to rake them over hot coals. You were going to find the nearest frost beast and help curb stomp the evil, vile coward. 

Magic burned beneath your skin, ready to become any weapon you chose. 

“They will find that vengeance is mine,” Loki said. He was uncharacteristically quiet. His eyes locked with yours. “It’s ours,” he said.

You nodded and handed him back the card. Damn right it was both of yours. There would be no hole to crawl into, no hell to flee to, no cave to hide in, that you wouldn’t find them and erase them from existence.

Count your fucking days, bitch. 

Masterlist | Chapter 7 | Chapter 9

[miss-starlet]

♡ SKZ Finding Out You Are A Witch ♡

Summary: Maknae line finds out you are a witch, but there is a little twist!

Note: I actually wanted this out before Halloween, but life had other plans haha. Hyung line coming soon!

Warning: Mention of magic, Mention of other magical creatures, A cat familiar in Jeongin's part, Seungmin calls the reader his girlfriend in his part, while reader in Jeongin's part refers to themselves as his girlfriend.

♡Jisung♡

Jisung had his suspicions after dating you for a few months. Everything from you snapping your fingers that turned off the lights to your mysterious moonlit garden activities had raised questions. Plus, you were just too perfect. So, he decided to confide in the only supernatural person he knew.

"I'm telling you, Seungmin, I think, no I KNOW my girlfriend isn't human."

Seungmin, slightly exasperated, responded, "Gather some evidence, until then, I can't help you." He waved Jisung away, clearly too tired to deal with him.

Listening to Seungmin's advice for once in his life, Jisung was going to find out what you were. He followed the worn out cobblestone path to your cottage, hoping to find you there at home. He knocked on your door, and you welcomed him inside.

"What brings you here, baby?" you asked.

"I need to see something," Jisung replied, heading to the kitchen, grabbing a glass, and filling it with water.Jisung had two theories in mind, either you were a witch or a mermaid, since he'd never seen you near water. Not wanting to risk you melting if you are a witch, he cautiously poured a small amount of water on your hand.

You didn't react as expected, so he sighed in defeat, slumping onto the couch. "You know witches don't actually melt when you pour water on them, right? You should have learned that in magic class."

"Haha, very funny," Jisung replied, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"Did my boyfriend fail Supernatural 101?" you teased, pretending to gasp dramatically before falling on the couch next to him.He looked at you, and suddenly, everything fell into place.

You were a witch.

"Sungie, you knew all along, didn't you? If I could tell you were a supernatural creature, then you should have known too."

"Wait, you thought I was like you?" Jisung's eyes widened in shocked.

"Well not a witch, but y'know... a vampire" He shook his head. "A demon then?"

"Nope! 100 percent human!"

"Oh lord, I'm dating a human." You mumbled to yourself.

"So you went to hogwarts?" He said, smiling big.

"No baby, I didn't."

"Can you teach me?" He asked just as excitedly.

♡Felix♡

You were in the midst of sorting your ancient spell books when Felix unexpectedly arrived. Startled, you quickly tried to stash the items away, but Felix caught a glimpse of an open page in one of the books - a page filled with ancient symbols. He stayed quiet letting you think he didn't see anything.

However, once he got home, Felix's curiosity (more like nervousness), led him to research what the scary book was. After numerous Google searches, it led him to an old, almost rundown bookstore nestled in a forgotten corner of the city. Felix described the symbols, and the owner of the shop gave him a dusty spell book-all centered around the creatures of the sea.

He quickly made his way back to your apartment to confront you. After all you both made a promise not to lie or keep secerts from each other.

He gave you the book and asked "What... what is all this?"

You were surprised and hesitated, searching for the right words. "Felix, I should have told you-" you began, your voice trembling.

"Are you... a witch?"

"Yes, I am, but that's not why you're here, right? You're upset because I've been found out."

Felix's confusion only deepened. "What?"

"Look, Felix, I know your secret too. I know you're a mermaid. The book had spells on how to protect you." Felix's eyes widened at your unexpected confession.

He struggled to find the words, clearly caught off guard. "A mermaid? But that's..."

"I'm sorry for not telling you sooner." You said softly, sitting the book down on the coffee table.

"I'm not a mermaid."

"What?! Your love for the sea? Your extreme knowledge? Your beauty? It just made sense." You trail off.

"Well I do have a degree in Marine Science."

Realization dawned on you, mixing with a tinge of embarrassment. "So, the things I thought were signs of being a mermaid were just... your love for the ocean and your expertise in marine life?"

"Don't forget my extreme beauty," Felix said teasingly.

"Are you upset that I didn't tell you? About me being a witch and everything?"

Felix shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. " Of course not angel. But my sleep would've been much better without stumbling upon all that scary stuff in my research trying to figure it out."

♡Seungmin♡

You were quite nervous to talk to your boyfriend. You were entirely convinced that he already knew about your status as a witch, just as you were absolutely certain that Seungmin was a warlock.

The reason you were nervous was because what if he didn't? What if he perceived you as just another human? Would it alter anything in your relationship? But you were going to get past your fears, and ask him tonight.

"I have everything for the movie night!" Seungmin excitedly announces, strutting inside your room with a grin on his face.

"Min? Do you know that i am a witch?" You ask softly, voice shaky.

"Do you think I didn't know?" he asks, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"No, no- I knew, but do you have a problem with it?"

"Y/n, I have converted my apartment to your needs. Do you think I use all them herbs lined on my wall to cook? If I had a problem with you being a witch then I wouldn't."

"It's...It's not yours for your own practice?" He shook his head. "Where's your own stuff?"

"What do you mean? Why would I have my own magical stuff?" He asked curiously.

"You not a warlock? I was so sure..." You said somewhat disappointed.

"You thought I was?" Seungmin hands pointed to his self "A warlock?" He laughed before looking dead serious.

"Wow, my witch girlfriend is upset that I'm human?" He says teasingly.

You grinned mischievously, eyes twinkling. "Maybe I just expected a little magic in my boyfriend," you teased back.

"But who needs spells when I've got you?" You added playfully, pulling him closer. "Let's make our own kind of magic, shall we?"

Both of your laughter echoed through the room, before you pull him into a sweet kiss.

♡Jeongin♡

Jeongin arrived home earlier than usual, as he stepped inside, he caught you in deep conversation with your cat, Dickson.

"What are you talking about, Dickson?" You mumbled, "You are being unreasonable to the evidence." Dickson meows back like he is answering you.

"Jeongin is definitely a werewolf; it just makes sense."

Jeongin's mouth hung slightly agape. First thing first you thought he was a werewolf? Second, you were chatting with your cat as though it could provide answers. Well, the cat did meow in response, but it was still a curious sight.

"Y/n."

"Oh, Innie, you scared me. I didn't hear you come in."

"Why on earth are you talking to Dickson like it's a person?"

"Well..." You smiled sheepishly, not really knowing what to say. You were not too sure if your boyfriend understood that witches could talk to their familars or not.

Dickson, simply stared at Jeongin, seemingly unimpressed with the 'werewolf' infront of him. Jeongin noticed Dickson's gaze, and offer his hand for the cat to sniff before petting him. Dickson let out a disinterested meow, before jumping out of your hands and heading out of the room.

"Does he not like me?"

"Baby, I have something to ask you."

"If it's what you were asking Dickson, i'm not a werewolf, love," he reassured, grabbing your hand gently "Why on earth would you think that?"

You glanced at him, embarrassment clear as day on your face. "I've seen you do things that made me wonder sometimes, especially with how you handle the full moon," you admitted, trying to justify your suspensions. "I might have jumped to conclusions. Sorry," you said, feeling a bit foolish.

Jeongin wrapped an arm around you, drawing you close. He leaned in, planting a soft kiss on your forehead. "No worries y/n. Besides magical creatures don't exist. "

"Did you forget that your lovely girlfriend exists?" Jeongin pulls away from you slightly, looking confused. "You don't know?" You asked, and he shooked his head.

"Well I guess one more cat to let out the bag, I'm a witch."

"Do you sacrifice children?" Was first question that tumbles out of Jeongin's mouth. He didn't mean to say that, but it slipped out.

You pull away slightly this time, face showing a mix of confusion and annoyance. "No Jeongin, no I do not."

Jeongin felt a little silly and started to laugh. " I'm sorry, i don't even know why i asked that. It's just this whole thing is kinda weird. " Seeing the look on your face, made him feel terrible. " But, I still love you."

"Love you too." You said relieved, and slightly amused by the whole exchange.

[augustinewrites]

happy diluc day!

like every year, you’ve placed yourself at the head of diluc’s birthday party planning committee. 

and like every year, diluc pretends not to notice you and adelinde giggling and scheming whenever he leaves the room. (it’s his house, and he’s the darknight hero. not much gets past him.)

it’s not as if he feels the need to intervene. you know him well, and know how to plan a party to his liking. not overly gaudy or crowded, with good food, good drinks, and good people. 

the guest list is always impressive. you - and by proxy, diluc - have made a lot of friends from beyond mondstadt the past few years. 

you hug each one as they come in. the gentleman from wangsheng funeral parlour, the yanshang teahouse owner, the lord and lady of the kamisato clan, and the akademiya scribe, to name a few. diluc shakes each of their hands and thanks them for coming as he welcomes them into his home. 

the traveler also makes an appearance. diluc greets she and paimon heartily, glad to see old friends. 

at least until she mutters, “i’m sorry.”

he glances down at her, confused. “sorry for wh—”

“hey, girlie! wait up!”

he immediately stiffens when he glances up to see who’s called out to her, and you grab diluc’s arm, keeping him grounded and rooted in place when the fatui harbinger comes trotting up to him.

“master diluc, right?” he asks, grinning as if he isn’t seconds from death. “happy birthday, sir!”

“what is he doing here?” he demands, looking between you and the traveler. 

you wring your hands tightly. “i— i just gave lumine a plus one, i didn’t think that she’d bring—” you look to lumine, who sighs.

“we’d just finished our weekly foray at the golden house and he just invited himself along…”

“that i did!” the harbinger grins, casually throwing an arm around her. “i’ve always wanted to meet the infamous diluc ragnvindr. you know the fatui still tell stories of the red storm?”

“i suppose i didn’t do my job if there are still people around to tell stories,” he scoffs. 

“well, you did something right, because if it weren’t for you, i would have never gotten the eleventh seat!”

diluc can feel you fix him with a hesitant gaze. to this day, he’s only shared a fraction of what he’d done during his time…abroad. 

the harbinger is lucky you’re here, keeping diluc’s hands away from his throat. 

“don’t worry, master diluc!” paimon chimes in, obviously attempting to dissolve the tension in the foyer. “paimon will keep her eyes on him and make sure that he stays out of trouble!”

“you’ll be neck deep in mint jelly in a few minutes, don’t make promises you can’t keep,” the traveler scolds. 

“don’t worry,” the harbinger says, holding his hands up in surrender. “if i wanted to do anything nefarious, i would have already. i’m just here for my girlfr—”

“you’re not my boyfriend.”

“not yet.”

“not even in your dreams.”

“like i said, not yet.” 

diluc watches the two in confusion. what in teyvat was he seeing right now?

“excuse us,” you cut in, interrupting their bickering and smiling as you tug diluc away from the group and into the linen closet.

“are you okay?” you check, a deep frown on your face. “i’m really sorry, i didn’t think a harbinger would show up. i can kick him out—”

“it’s fine,” he tells you. “there’s no need to make a scene. it’s highly unlikely he would try anything here, surrounded by the knights, and with so many high ranking people around. and if the traveler trusts him…” 

your nod is followed by an awkward silence, one diluc feels the need to break. “listen, what he said about snezhnaya–”

“diluc, it’s okay–”

“it’s not, i need to be honest–”

“no, you don’t,” you cut him off firmly. “i’m not going to make you tell me what you did, and i’m certainly not going to make you justify it. especially if whatever you did means that you’re here with me right now, celebrating your birthday and not– not buried under the snow somewhere in snezhnaya.” 

he doesn’t think you’ve realized you’re crying, tears gathering on your lash line as you turn away. so diluc pulls you in, letting you cling to him, using his thumb to rub small circles across the back of your neck.

“let’s get out of here,” you mutter. “somewhere harbinger free, just for a few minutes.”

“where do you want to go?”

“every year i have adelinde set something up just outside the vineyard,” you admit with a small smile. “i know kaeya and venti drive you crazy sometimes, so i thought just in case…”

“that’s smart,” he smiles. you really have thought of everything. “should we really leave in the middle of my birthday party?”

the two of you collapse into a fit of giggles, diluc looping and arm around your waist and pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

"ready?" you ask as you grip the door handle. he nods, and you both run through the winery sneak away from the party and into the vineyard for some very much needed alone time.

BONUS

“oh no. oh no no no,” lumine mutters when mona introduces her to her plus one: a vahumana scholar from sumeru whom she’d been corresponding with as of late. 

“something the matter, traveler?” scaramouche aka the balladeer aka wanderer, aka hat guy asks, sending her a smirk that she wants to wipe clean off his face. his amusement only grows when he sees his former coworker by her side. 

“hey there,” childe greets. then, after staring rather shamelessly, “you look…familiar. have we met?”

[blues824]

A GN!Kyoya Ootori!Reader in the world of The Remarried Empress; they're the third born of a high-ranking noble family, sworn to their Empress as a secretary of sorts. They're very smart and know things they probably shouldn't; they immediately know Heinrey and Queen are one in the same, they quickly figure out the Western Kingdom's plan, they even know Rashta's little secret.

The very definition of powerful, someone you don't want to be on the bad side of. They know how to play the game of nobility efficiently, having been overlooked for all of their life in favor of their older brothers. Their every move is carefully calculated to fall favorably in the Empress's path.

If you're not careful, they'll make sure any transgression against Her Majesty will be your last.

Preface: You are the secretary to the Imperial Family, but was originally hired by the Trovi family to establish goodwill between the Ootori’s and the Trovi’s. When Navier became Empress, you were suggested to fill in the position because of your skills, experience, and overall competence and resourcefulness.

Sovieshu

He felt threatened, if I’m being honest. You knew way too much about their personal lives to his liking, and he did not like it at all. Every single interaction you had with His Imperial Majesty was one of a professional but tense atmosphere.

Whenever he feels like you’re getting a bit too sarcastic, he doesn’t hesitate to remind you that your position is beneath him and his wife and that you have no right to do anything against him. However, you point out that you were willing to extort Rashta’s secret because you were above her in social status.

And Sovieshu knew that he couldn’t do much against you. Your family not only funded the police, but you also owned the police as well as the hospital of the Eastern Empire. Plus, you often held charity events for the poorest citizens in the Empire, so you were well-loved by the people.

However, just like how you knew what buttons to press, he did as well. When he feels like you’ve been too out of line, he often invites your entire family so that he can ask your brothers about their accomplishments in the name of the Imperial Family just to rub it in your face that you worked for both Navier and himself.

Rashta

If you thought Sovieshu felt threatened, you should look at his young mistress. Not only did you know of both her secrets (the one of her being a slave and the one of her child not being the Emperor’s), but you often blackmailed her for help against her old owner.

You’ve even made it clear that you would use your power within the nobility scene to really make her reputation plummet for than it already has if she ever thought of telling Sovieshu about your little ‘business transactions’, as you liked to call them. Even Duke Ergi has told her not to get on your bad side because you knew how to navigate through nobility than he did.

The thing is, she first thought you were kind and just reserved because your family did a lot for the minorities within the Empire, only to find out that you were willing to stab anyone in the back if it meant that Her Imperial Majesty would be satisfied, as your family was notorious for your loyalty to the Trovi Family.

Sovieshu can tell that there has been some tension between you and Rashta, but the two of you refuse to say anything. You say that there might be some awkwardness because of your dedication to Navier, but you keep her secret just like the two of you agreed.

Navier

She held both you and your family in the highest regard. You have been her friend since early childhood, so it was no surprise to anyone that you ended up working directly for her. Your dedication and loyalty to her proved to be beneficial not only for herself, but for the palace and Empire as well.

You have abilities that she doesn’t. You have the support of the people due to your family’s history of running charity and fundraising events for the children, widows, and the poor. You were also considered what people would call ‘absolutely attractive’.

Whenever she found herself in a messy situation, you were the first person she would go to. For example, you were the one who devised the entire plan of Heinrey being present in the courtroom as Navier agreed to the divorce so that she could immediately request to be remarried to the Crowned Prince of the Western Kingdom.

Speaking of, you totally knew about their love affair, and you were completely supportive of it since Her Imperial Majesty was genuinely happy for the first time in a very long time. You were like the best friend who was very supportive, but would murder someone whoever hurt her.

Heinrey

He has most definitely heard of you, and he saw you as a challenge he would need to overcome if he wanted to be with Navier. Upon meeting you for the first time at the New Year’s Ball, you had told him that if he were to hurt Her Imperial Majesty, you would call some of your connections to properly deal with him.

Now that that was out of the way, though, you were in full support of him attempting to court the Empress. You often informed him on what she liked and disliked, what time would work best to drop in as Queen (trust me, he was surprised when you did this because he didn’t know that you knew his secret).

You were the one who had put him in the courtroom so that he could request a marriage to her from the High Priest right after she got the divorce. You were the one who helped them both out of the Empire along with Ergi. You were the one who had used the police force that your family owned against His Imperial Majesty so that they could escape.

Heinrey was happy to hear that you made it out alive, and made sure that you had a relatively safe trip to the Western Kingdom. You quickly became one of his most trusted advisors, offering the most useful advice as he was trying to turn the Kingdom into an Empire. 

Kosair

You both had known each other since childhood, and he was completely enamored by you as you were with him. You both made an uncharacteristically childish vow to be wed to each other and establish an even firmer bond between each other as well as between your families. 

As he was away, you both kept an open correspondence and never stopped writing to each other. Navier could tell that you were excited when she told you that he was stopping by for a visit, although you really didn’t show it. Your work was done even quicker than before, you ordered the servants to tidy up the guest room, etc.

When he did arrive, he gave you a kiss on the cheek as well as a hug as a greeting. You spent as much time as you could with him, and offered some advice to channel his anger. You were his voice of reason (picture the relationship between Kyoya and Tamaki, but Tamaki is angry all the time).

The main reason why you had moved to the Western Kingdom with Navier was because Kosair was there. Through a letter, he had asked you to come with him so that you could give him your handkerchief before he left to fight for the WK subjects, and to marry him so that you could do that for him forever… and you accepted his proposal.

Kaufman

You both had met each other at the New Year’s Ball, and he had to admit that you were very mysterious and alluring. You both were very powerful nobles, and you were the one to properly introduce him to Her Imperial Majesty. Honestly, he was more interested in you, and even asked you to dance so that he could talk with you.

During his stay in the Empire, you both had gone on multiple walks, and he liked how you always tried to keep a professional attitude towards everything. You both thought that it was the best way to carry yourself, as you didn’t see anything beneficial about being too emotional.

When he consumed the love potion, you were the first person he looked at because you were there as well. You tried to help him to the best of your abilities, but he mistook all your actions for affection. You laid the back of your hand on his forehead to see if he had a fever, he thought it was an act of love and tenderness. You offered to take a walk with him through the garden so that he could get fresh air, he thought you wanted to spend time with him.

The day he had to go back to Luipt, he asked you to come with him. However, the plan to get Navier to the Western Kingdom was about to take place, so you told him that you had to stay back for a little bit. He placed a kiss upon the back of your hand, telling you to stay safe and go to him once you were ready.

[nerdieforpedro]

Get a room you two and BONE

Part two of the Roc & Doc Series

Tim Rockford x plus size OFC (Doc)

Rating: Mature only because of some of the banter.

This blog is for readers 18+ MDNI

Word Count: about 2.7k

Summary: It’s been a month since “The Case of the Vanishing Pens” had been solved. Things have changed somewhat between Tim and Doc. Are they both okay? Turns out, friends can suck sometimes.

Warnings: bad TV references, teasing, theft, angst?, mention of murder and STD, friends being menaces, the trench coat, bad singing, a murder threat (affectionately)

Notes: Originally, part two was going to be 7k of words. 😅 That was way too long so we’ll have a part two and three. I am working toward something. We’ll all find out when I get there. I’m fond of trench coats now. 😎 A huge smooch to @lady-bess who beta read for me and had some hilarious commentary. 🤣

The top item from the “what should go missing next” poll is in here! The runner ups are in part three. 🤭

Dividers are by the ever lovely @saradika-graphics

Main Masterlist / Tim Rockford Masterlist / Rock & Doc Series

You and the detective had dinner three times a week and tried to alternate who pays. Tim had you pay the first time but he insisted on paying the others. It’s been a month since “The Case of the Vanishing Pens.” You told Tim that his jokes were as old as Columbo. He was not amused. Tim told you that he’s a classic like Columbo, and you need to show respect. And honestly, he’s more like Kojak - able to find a parking space anywhere in LA. You choked on your shrimp fried rice while sitting in the passenger seat of his car, he patted your back to try and help the piece of shrimp go down, it eventually did. 

“You’re not bald Rockford. Are you starting to go bald? Is that why you think you’re like Kojak?”, you asked, "going to start rocking three piece suits with a briefcase?”. Tim’s face freezes and he squints his eyes. 

“I will kick you out of my car and leave you at this restaurant Doc. Don’t joke about a man’s hair.”

“You wouldn’t dare, Kojak would never. If you’re going to be mad about it, don’t compare yourself to a famous bald TV detective. Stick with Columbo Rockford.” The two of you grinned at each other. Since the pen incident, it’s become even easier to joke with Tim. You feel you’ve grown somewhat closer to him, but you still won’t ask him anything personal. He doesn’t ask you those types of questions either. It crosses an imaginary line you both have drawn for yourselves.

Tim had told you that you didn’t need to pay, he’d been teasing you for stealing his pens, though he still doesn’t fully buy it was just about a menu. You had also told him, “no, we’re both city employees getting shit pay. We gotta split it, Tim.” He laughed and reluctantly agreed. So the two of you started alternating tabs. Why would you offer to pay when you clearly have some unnamed grudge against him (in his mind anyway)? Is this a ‘keep your friends close and enemies closer’ sort of deal? 

The answer doesn’t come to him as he finishes the last of his egg roll, some duck sauce is on his chin in his beard. With a moist towelette you pull from the depths of your tote bag, you dab his chin and succeed in getting the sauce off and making Tim re-evaluate what your end goal is. It’s too soft of a touch as you could have pushed his face as part of your teasing but you didn’t. You’ve given him small hip bumps in the autopsy room or even in your office. Those don’t feel intimate like this, maybe it’s because it’s his car or the lack of space. It’s dangerously close to the line he’s drawn in the sand with you. It’s times like these that Tim is thankful you don’t notice him clearing his throat or keeping his cafe brown eyes on you as you slurp your noodles. He’s thinking too much again.

Rockford ensures that you get back to your small car you call ‘the blueberry.’ The car suits your personality. It feels loud, quirky but not over the top, much like its owner. He never leaves before watching you pull out of the parking lot and make the right turn at the light. It’s then that he begins his own drive home. He sometimes has an inkling to text if you got home alright but he’s never texted you outside of work. Except the two times he picked you up tacos… alright, maybe it was four times, but limited to food options. Why is it so weird? 

Rockford sighs at the orange streetlights ahead of the hood of his old Ford Crown Victoria. His mind is on you again, but it’s just because you spend a lot of time with each other and you look a hell of a lot better than any of his other partners. Well, you’re not his partner but it kinda feels like it when he talks out cases with you. Stevenson is a solid partner, but he’s wet behind the ears and still learning quite a bit. You, on the other hand, listen. Look at him with genuine interest with questions that tell him you were indeed hearing him. Tim is in his driveway wondering if you’ve already walked up the two flights of stairs to your apartment. He knows you like music but what else do you like?

“Shit.” Rockford gets out of his car and enters his home, dropping off his trench coat and shoes near the door. He stretches out on the couch and flips on the TV. There should be something to watch. An episode of Kojak is in progress with him parking perfectly, getting out of the car, bald head shining with a three piece suit and his briefcase. “What are the chances…?”

As promised, you brought him 4 boxes of pens over the months you’d been eating take out with him. He had nowhere to stick them and wondered if you were pranking him; you were not. You just felt bad about taking his pens for so long. You overdid it a bit, you explained and offered to hold some of them in your office. Tim declined and made room on the top of one of his file cabinets. Seeing something that you’d given him made him smile softly, before turning to face you, he cleared his throat and put his hands on those hips of his, saying he had work to do. You nodded and told him you’d see him around, you were sure there'd be more bodies to look at before long together. The detective sat at his desk and looked at the reports he needed to finish up, they suddenly seemed tedious. He’s wondering if he should have told you it would have been alright if you wanted to stay for a bit. Could have spoken to you while working on them to make the time go faster. Your absence is an issue for Tim. He’s got too many of those already.

Tim stopped by later in the evening to update you on what happened with the arsenic case. Turns out, the victim’s girlfriend had convinced him to become a pescatarian for better health. The girlfriend found out that the victim had two other lovers and had given them the clap (gonorrhea) in addition to her. The three happened to meet in the same clinic where they were getting tested. She had contacted those two after getting diagnosed as the name was different, but the physical description was the same as her boyfriend. It was then that the girlfriend started dosing his food to kill him. She told Tim and the other detectives that she wanted to watch him slowly die. She apparently laughed as they were taking her away in handcuffs. 

You are engrossed in the details. Tim tells you the entire thing from beginning to end, he adds in tidbits from his notes that wouldn’t be in any of your reports. Despite looking like he was tired of everyone’s bullshit ninety percent of the time, the detective was rather animated in explaining the case to you. He walked back and forth in your office and then placed his hands on the back of a chair while leaning in to go over how the dots were connected between the seemingly unrelated people. If the man wasn’t a detective, he should be a voice actor or teacher…you’re sure there’s a suitable profession you’re forgetting in between the options, whatever would warrant people listening to him for a while. 

Toward the end of Tim’s colorful retelling, Kim, one of the clerks and a friend of yours, stopped by the office. She was watching the two of you, rolling her eyes as she crossed her arms. She would have made a joke about you getting yourself in Tim’s trench coat but knew you wouldn’t forgive her for saying it in front of the man that you swear you only have respect and adoration for. Kim had tried to get you to understand your feelings, to at least see that you may want to spend time outside of work with the famed detective. The time may include an actual date at some point.

You’d always told her that it was because he’s always been respectful toward you, and that he came by your office when he didn’t need to. Like today. Kim was sure you hadn’t asked for any follow up on the case, yet here Rockford is telling you about it and you’re giving him all his attention. It’s annoying to watch the two of you. Sure he might be older than you, but it’s less than ten years and she’s sure he doesn’t talk to his ex-wife at all. At one point the precinct did think they were going to get back together shortly after you’d become the new medical examiner five years ago but nothing ever came of it. Not that Kim kept that close on an eye on things for you.Thankfully, there’s only been rumors of maybe some women here and there. Detective Rockford is one who stays holster deep in murders and crime. Kim did have to agree with you on one thing, those holsters are a damn good look on the man. She understands why your eyes linger on him. Kim preferred her men to be on the skinny side so she could toss them around a bit - she can be a bit rough at times.

Waiting until Tim seemed finished with his story, Kim knocked on the open door so the two of you would hear her. 

“Hey Doc, Tim. What are you two crazy kids up to? Making some more dinner plans? Going to take it a step above take out and go to a place where there might be seats inside the restaurant?” The detective bit the side of his jaw which Kim was quick to notice and smirked. Like how does she not notice how bothered he is when anyone interrupts him speaking to her? Maybe Tim liked her stealing his pens? Hmm…that’s an idea.

Your face hardens at your friend’s joke and you start nervously pressing your hands together. At least it wasn’t the trenchcoat one she likes to make, thank goodness. Tim looked back at the door and stood up, shaking his head. 

“Hey Kim. Just knew Doc would want to hear how the case turned out. I’m going to head out Doc. I’m going to go make sure Stevenson isn’t still working on the homicide from last week. He makes fun of my chicken scratch, but he types slow as hell for someone fifteen years younger than me. Good night Doc, don’t steal anymore pens. I know she’ll be your accomplice.” Rockford nods, gives you a smile and once at the doorway, cuts his eyes at Kira before leaving. Your friend slides by Tim as he exits and plops down across from you and snickering. 

“Did the famed detective get a bit pissed at me because I came between him and his dear Doc? For shame and I guess I did know you were taking his pens. To be fair, I did tell you to stop several times.” She playfully tapped her own hand as if she was being reprimanded. You sat back in your chair and shook your head. She’s been teasing you about this for as long as you had stolen that man’s pens well after. Tim didn’t tease you as much anymore. Well, sometimes, but only when you got in the car and he asked to see your hands to make sure you didn’t remove anything from his glove box or console.

“Could you just drop it? Please…what did you come here for Kim?”. 

“I came to remind you that this weekend is our friend’s engagement party. And before you start,” Kim reached out and took hold of Doc’s hand, “you’ve RSVPed, we bought an outfit a few weeks ago just for this party theme and I could give this back to one such man in a trench coat after you go.” Kim’s free hand exposed a little black book that Tim often carried everywhere for his notes. Your eyes are wide, it’s bad enough about the pens but it’s a funny joke now. His book?! 

“Dammit Kim, you need to give it back now!” Kim is shocked at your growl and lets go of your hand, holding tighter to the book. 

“No. You give it to him and say it fell out of his pocket or something. He has fifty places in that trench coat I could have been. I honestly think he likes it when you take his stuff.” She stood up and so did you, were you really going to fight her over this man’s book? “The fact that you’re this upset, proves my point. You need to talk to him, stop just watching him, have him take you to a place where you order and eat inside and maybe go to your place or his and-”

“Don’t finish that sentence. Just give me the book and maybe he won’t push for me to resign or be in a different county or something for harassment.” Your hands are on your head, running through how badly this could go. No matter how nice Tim is, taking that book is almost as bad as taking his tie or holsters. It’s a part of him. Though it would be kinda cool if you held it for a minute. No…no. You can’t go into that rabbit hole. That is reserved for when you’re in your apartment in your PJs and are sipping on some hot chocolate with some cookies. 

“You just need to bone….be on the desk and bone…maybe he keeps the trench coat on while you bone…I know he’s wearing the holsters when you bone…maybe you pull the hair he still has while you bone…you grab his biceps while you bone…”. Kim is singing horribly off key and if you weren’t so frustrated and anxious you’d tell her to shut it. But you need a laugh to release the tension in your body so you do, doubled over on your desk. Kim drops the black book before you and kisses your forehead.

“You just need a push to talk to him and you're already a bit of a thief. Just slip his book in his car the next time you two eat and talk to him. It’s not like people in the department don’t date. That’s how the captain met his wife.” She pats your head. “They fought over a stapler, she threw it at him. He said she had an excellent throwing arm. Love was in the air.” Kim did a jazz hand flourish and you look up, rolling your eyes.

“I would rather not be violent with the man. And I will not…bone him. Gah, you made me say it.” You shake your head and sit back and sigh. “Just please don’t push it. Can I just stay in my safe little bubble, please? Daydream about the man, why can’t I do that? Why will you not let me do that?” 

Kim sat back down and crossed her arms, sucking her teeth, “Real talk right now Doc. It’s not your job title that keeps you from talking to Tim. It’s that you’re scared that he might actually reciprocate your feelings and you may have to be in a relationship with a grown man with baggage, can hold a conversation with you and will be able to hold it down in the bedroom.” Your hands cover your face. You’re not discussing this at work. No…but you are. “Stop acting like you haven’t thought about it.” Kim laughs at your discomfort and embarrassment, but pauses to sneak a peek at her phone. “I would drop more truth bombs at you but I have to go. Tony’s here to pick me up. I will see you tomorrow and this weekend. Maybe one day you’ll have your detective use his investigative skills under a dress like that.”

“Please go to Tony before I have to call and tell him you're on my slab.”

“You’re too busy trying to find a way into a trench coat to worry about murdering me. Take care getting home.”

“I will never tell you anything again. Good night.”

Part One

Part Three

Keen moots who may want the trench coat on with nothing else 🧥:

@alltheglitterandtheroar @sin-djarin @morallyinept @yorksgirl @bitchwitch1981 @heareball @megamindsecretlair @angelofsmalldeath-codeine @magpiepills @yorksgirl @mysterious-moonstruck-musings @avastrasposts @clawdee @pascalsanctuary @readingiskeepingmegoing @rhoorl @inept-the-magnificent @grogusmum @agentjackdaniels @pedroshotwifey @laurfilijames @frenchiereading

[ashintheairlikesnow]

okay Ash but older nanda and Jameson comf? If he'd lived? Pleeease? Just a snippet. A headcanon. A crömb. -theo-

@boxboysandotherwhump I totally forgot you had asked for me to do this AU so so long ago. Found this old ask abandoned in my inbox and you were PROPHETIC.

Continuing the AU, the last chapter (plus a link to the first) is right here.

-

CW: Intimate whump, some derogatory language, dubcon, some, uh, choking

For a long time, there is only the sound of each of them breathing. Jameson is ragged, rasping at the edge of a sob as he pulls himself back into control, his fingernails digging into the soft leather of the reclined passenger seat. His heart pounds, blood rushing past his ears.

Nanda's breath is nearly silent, far more even. His chest is warm against Jameson's bare back. Even through his expensive fucking shirt, though, Jameson can feel his heart pounding, too.

"What..." Nanda trails off. Jameson has never heard him sound so stunned. Nanda always plans for every angle.

But he didn't plan for this one.

"... what do you mean, someone else?" His mouth moves against Jameson's hair, sending a shiver down his spine. "Are you fucking the woman you live with, pet?"

My name is Jameson. I just told you that.

He bites the words back before they can make it out.

"N-no, not her. Fuck no. No. Absolutely... Absolutely not." He shifts, managing to get his shirt off the rest of the way, stop it from keeping his wrists tangled. It gives him an excuse for how his voice shakes - just from the effort. Only that. "Someone else. Different house. Someone... Someone else."

Nanda is quiet again. He's quiet for far too long. Then, he shifts back inside the tiny space. "Roll over. I want to see your eyes."

Jameson swallows, obeying the easy command with a little curl of warmth. He tips his head back against the headrest, looking up at Nanda, his beard and the line of his jaw beneath the silver and gray. The way the muscles in his arms seem written even more in stone. Nanda eases himself back down, and his weight feels reassuring and terribly final at once.

"Who is it?" His voice is mild. Spoonful of sugar tinted pink, sweetness and salt on Jameson's tongue. He could drown in the taste of Nanda's voice. Used to feel like he did drown, under voice and hands, tied up in ropes and brought to the good kind of screaming.

"... They're called A-Allyn. They, they ran away like I did. Well, not the-... Their owner died, too. They... They understood that I missed you..."

He reaches a hand up, hesitantly, trying to touch Nanda's face. The older man's big hand snaps up to close painfully tight around his wrist, forcing it back down.

"I wasn't dead," Nanda says mildly.

"I already told you, I didn't exactly goddamn know that-"

"No, you were dumb as rocks the one time I could have used the brains we both knew you had." Nanda's voice stays mild, but the insult stings regardless.

"I'm-... not-"

"Oh, you're not? You didn't know how to check a fucking pulse, but you're not dumb, huh? You ran off instead of waiting or calling for help but you still love me, right? Hell, you fuck someone else, but you're not a slut anymore. Isn't that what you're saying?"

Jameson's wrist feels like it creaks as Nanda tightens his grip further and further. The man's other hand drops down to unbutton and unzip his own pants in quick jerky motions. They're down low off his hips in seconds.

Jameson grits his teeth against the pain, refuses to be seduced by it. Or by the way Nanda punctuates the accusations by rolling his hips, the low warmth remaining stoked back into a flame.

God, he feels so hot.

They're both burning.

"If you were d-dead-... Ah! I would have lost you when they took you out of my head, I already s-said that-Jesus that's fucking good-"

His other wrist is grabbed now. He tries to pull it away, but they both know he isn't trying very hard. Nanda's mouth drops to graze against his. To catch him in a kiss, brutal and firm, until he's whimpering and rocking his hips like some mindless fucking idiot, like he used to do.

Nanda chuckles bitterly, pulls back and listens to Jameson's angry hiss at the sudden loss of connection. "If there's someone else, why did you get in my car when I came for you?"

He swallows, closing his eyes. Nanda's burn too much for him to take. Those hips roll against his again and he meets them with his own, arches his back, lets legs shift apart to welcome Nanda between his thighs. He could come from this, if it goes on long enough. "I don't-... I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"No! Fuck you, no I don't know! You were dead and now you're here and I, I forgot who I am for a second, but I'm-... I'm not that anymore, and I want-... I want to-..." God, he feels it so much, his skin is all raw nerves and sensation. "... I want-"

"You want me."

Nanda had let go of his wrist at some point. He only realizes it when that heavy hot hand closes around his neck.

His breath stutters, gets lost trying to find his lungs. His head spins as the hand tightens, he feels his Adam's apple move against Nanda's palm. "Wait-"

" I spent all these years trying to find you, pet-"

"Jameson," He rasps, barely able to force the word out in a whisper. "Use... Use m'fucking name-"

"Fine. Jameson." God, it sounds so good in Nanda's voice, his own name tastes perfect in his tongue when Nanda is the one to say it. His eyes nearly flutter shut at the simple pleasure. "I have been searching for you-"

"Doing a shit j-job of it, could've used your help a couple y-years ago when I was in some asshole's dog cage-"

"Let. Me. Finish." The grip on his throat tightens even more. There is so little room for him to breathe, chest heaving. He never moves his hands to try and push or fight, though. He knows this tone, the look on Nanda's face. "However you feel about someone else... I looked for you. And I found you. I searched every goddamn corner of California trying to figure out where you fucked off to, and I find you all fucked up for someone else, another pet, huh?"

"I... I loved you... I still-" His voice catches, his throat clicks when he swallows. His eyes are wide, and he sees the anger in Nanda's and wonders why it used to thrill so much more to see it than it does now. "But I-... grieved-... Rebuilt, built n-new... life... I, I fucking deserve to l-live-"

Nanda's lip curls. But he doesn't say anything while Jameson fights for enough air to speak again. They're both still hard, still moving together, and the pleasure mixes with the pain in his throat and the dizzy lack of air, crossing all his wires and leaving him squirming in helpless unwanted arousal beneath Nanda's familiar perfect weight.

"I... deserve s-someone... who l-loves me... back-"

He expects mockery, black spots flashing bright like camera lights around Nanda's face as his vision starts to go, tunneling in on those eyes.

He sees, in the center of the closing tunnel, the whites of Nanda's eyes.

"Please-... If you e-ever... loved m-me-... Please, fuck, please s-say-... it..."

Nanda's thumb pushes against his windpipe as he kisses Jameson. Their mouths open to each other, and Jameson's arms move, finally, only to grip onto Nanda's shoulders. An anchor as he drowns on land, fighting for air.

Then the grip loosens.

Jameson's head pounds as he groans, his throat aches as he gulps air desperately. He'll be marked, bruised. He's been bruised there before. "N, Nanda-"

Nanda's head drops to Jameson's shoulder.

"... Nanda?"

A pause.

"You stupid thing. Why would I have looked so long for you if I didn't?"

[sullustangin]

Fluffy February (Catching Up) Day 21: Reward

SWTOR

Time: Years into the future

Words: 868

A/N: A Dr. Oggurobb fic has been been fighting to emerge. His dignity demands it, as do his remarkable achievements. And now I have multiple plotlines. Here's a bit from the end of one of them. I have like 4 bouncing around in my skull, and this is the first to escape.

~~

It took Dr. Juvard Illip Oggurobb a moment to realize what he was looking out.  Intel holos. More accurately, holos taken of …something that had only been theoretical to this point.

“Captain,” he said, in a hushed tone.

Eva Corolastor put on that guise, that casual and carefree smuggler façade.  “Always wondered what Lippi thought was so great about Tiisheraan.  Decided to make some real estate investments – on your advice, indirectly.”

His laughter caused his entire body to rise up and down, the skin rolling with the laugh.  “But…  but how did you --?”  For once, only once! in his life, he was speechless.

“Your full-scale, fully rendered walk-through of your dream laboratory is taking up ten terabytes of data on Odessen’s mainframe,” Theron Shan informed him.  “It’s not causing any problems, but its presence is… noticeable and significant.”

“Plus we use it to make wargame sims.  The tiki bar on the roof is a great hide,” added Aric Jorgan, who was very much into his cups with the party punch, strong enough to set a Hutt back on his haunches.

“We keep the sim, you get your well-deserved reward.  Happy retirement, Dr. O!” Eva’s words triggered another round of toasts.

Again, Oggurobb laughed and stared in disbelief at his retirement present from the Alliance…more accurately, from its primary investor and owner of the planet: the Voidhound.  Eva.  Captain, by any other name. 

~~

It was in the silence after the party was over and most of the debris cleaned up (there were still a few stubborn streamers and pieces of confetti on the floor) that Dr. Oggurobb received an unexpected visitor.

Oggurobb certainly didn’t expect him to approach or reproach him.  “What’s this I hear about retirement?”  Bowdaar demanded.

Oggurobb’s eyebrow ridges elevated.  “You prepared the festivities – you are well-aware –”

“How old are you anyway?  Less than 300?”  Bowdaar crossed his arms, disapproving.  “You are in your prime, much like myself.”  He thumped his chest once.  “225 and counting.”

Oggurobb decided to put aside his data transfer operations to address Bowdaar.  “I deserve peace.  I am not warrior as yourself.  I have achieved much in my life.  I have helped save the galaxy.  I have saved the population of planets.    I have won the Bao Dur Science Prize seven times –”

“Including two here,” Bowdaar reminded him.  “And one of them was from an article about her little ones surviving.”  He harumphed.  “Thank you.”

Oggurobb shook his head.  “No, that incredible defiance of the odds was all the Captain.  With extensive assistance from our operations manager.  It is inconclusive whether my assistance was of any significant impact in that regard.”

“And so you think you are done?” Bowdaar challenged him.  “Don’t you doctors write follow-ups and sequels?”

“Yes.  But I am done with being in the line of fire.  I am finished with miracle-making or having the galaxy hang on my every experiment or theory.”  Oggurob looked at the slowly rotating graphic of Tiisheraan.  “A quiet life –”

“Isn’t for you.  You’re not like one of those Hutts on those barges, getting fat and lazy as the years crawl on,” Bowdaar argued.

“…no.  It never has been for me.”  Oggurobb frowned into the holo.  “…there was always talk of my sister.  That she was the reason I was restless.  The reason I never felt complete.  That there was something more to do, for she had not… in anything.”  There was some motion, a sigh or a shudder or something else Bowdaar could not translate from Hutt body language. 

Bowdaar had heard of the little Hutt girl who’d called this now prestigious doctor “Lippi,” a name only used by Eva now, on occasion, when the mood struck her (and Dr. O was in dire need of moral support). 

For all that Juvard Illip Oggurobb was, his sister – no kajidic name permitted to her – was not.  They were supposed to both be Illip, but only he was allowed to grow to be. 

“So what would she say to do with your reward?” Bowdaar asked. 

Oggurobb tilted himself up toward the ceiling, in thought.  “Oh, she’d never let me retire from this place.  Too interesting, too many people – how could I ever go to some overgrown garden and waste away with my droids, ever-growing mold?” Then he shook his head.  “The symphony of Odessen and its lifeforms will continue without me, acting as its occasional conductor.”

“But it is better with you in it.”  Bowdaar rolled a shoulder.    “And the Hutt section is empty without you.”

“Yes, the Captain’s adventures have assured that would be the case.”  Amused, Oggurobb slithered across the floor.  “I do wish to visit Tiisheraan.  Establish my laboratory there. Work there.  For it is beautiful, and the best innovations are developed in such places.” 

Then Dr. Oggurobb looked around the lab here that had been built to his specifications, in secret, and where so many glorious advancements had been marshalled, for the betterment of –

“Did she send you?” the good doctor asked the Killer of Kashyyyk. 

There was no clear antecedent.  There was no reply.

There was an alteration to Dr. O’s flight plans to make it a round trip, rather than one way. 

~~

A/N: Yes, Aric is totally using Dr. Oggurobb's Virtual Barbie Dreamhouse to play Call of Duty: Star Wars edition.

~~

@fluffyfebruary

[pinkpruneclodwolf]

Wired Take—Chapter 2 is About Nature v Nurture.

Why Savanclaw chapter is about siblings relationships

Before I get into why Chapter 2 is about Nature v Nurture we're gonna unpack the Savanaclaw chapter and why it was actually the hardest chapter for me to grasp because of

1: How short it was—

21 episodes compared to Heartslabyul's 28, Octavinelle's 39, Scarabia's 41, Pomefiore's 69, and Ignihyde's 89.

Listen, I'll give Savanaclaw the benefit of the doubt when it comes to Pome and Igni bc they're later chapters meaning Yana had time to put more than enough effort, but Heartslabyul having 7 more episodes (plus the strong ass start from the Prologue) and Octavinelle having 11 more episodes feels weird asl, especially when you consider how iconic the Lion King is. Becoming the highest grossing movie in 1994 (it beat out Jurassic Park) not to mention the Lion King Broadway that's been running for 24 years, rakes in 1.6 mil a week, and has a gross value of 9 billion and counting.

And you're telling me it's the shortest out of the chapters??? Be fucking fr.

2. How the characters were characterized in a way that you'd have to read the next chapter (or personal stories) to grasp the fundamentals of those characters.

Cramming three hyenas into one boy was a choice and some change but I'm willing to say that Ruggie is a solid ass character, could there have been more? Absolutely. But Ruggie is holding his own pretty well.

Leona actually gets more characteration through Vignettes, Personal Stories, Events, and other chapters and I appreciate it because he was done dirty.

In his own chapter.

But Jack, the one non-Disney character and based off the wolf-dog in White Fang, written by Jack London. The story is about how the wolf dog is rescued from his abusive owner and slowly becomes domesticated through patience and compassion to a point where he protects the father of the man who adopted him.

And 3: How Leona's motivations were ruined because of how much his story ties into Scar's.

Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with Leona after Savanaclaw (bc he had his magical mental breakdown and came to terms with the fact he'll never be king... not) and the sure as hell isn't anything wrong with a "what if" version of Scar who didn't kill his brother and attends school where he can pretend he's king for little whilst that it looks like he's got his shit together and isn't fighting the constant inferiority complex that gets fueled whenever he's sees Malleus exist a likkle too hard...

However, in the face of Riddle (based off the Queen of Hearts) and how strictness ties into his character, how—despite relying on rules—he's actually pretty mischievous, how his mother essentially played God with his life from his very conception until he got to Night Raven and sharing motivations with the protagonist.

In the face of Jamil whose life was decided to be less than Kalim's because of the longstanding history of his family being subservient to the Al-Asim's to a point where his family told him not to overshadow Kalim, but even so he still yearns to be greater than who he is and be able to show the world that his life has as much of the same worth as Kalim's.

In the face of Azul (based off of Ursula) who had been ostracized to a point where he refuses to return to his original form, still keeps every secret, problem, and trait of his childhood bullies who wants to burn away the last vestiges of who he was before NRC yet is still ruled by his old world...

Leona falls short. His motivations are rushed, his backstory a watered down version of Scar's, and his OB scene barely memorable besides the cool ass fit.

Chapter 2 upsets me because Lion King came from Disney's Renaissance era, was the highest grossing moving of 1994 meaning people lined up to watch Mufasa die in a theater to a point that an entire generation is defined by remembering that one scene in that one movie.

Vines and memes centered around the scene and people shaking and crying and throwing up more than Simba did in the damn movie and you mean to tell me Leona rode on those coattails and still flopped????

The Devil is a damn liar.

In an effort to make Chapter 2 less eldritch than it is in terms of incomprehensiblility, I've decided to come up with a better explanation (and fix it) for Savanaclaw.

Only the real will understand.

1. How Short it Is.

I mention how Savanaclaw is the shortest chapter in the game, which is insane considering the game has no sense of time-frame—I would say the Overblots span over a month, but Octavinelle proves this wrong when Jade says "you were the one spying with Riddle the other day" in the JP translation which means Leona's Overblot was the "fastest".

But that makes no sense considering it takes, 3 days~ (making a timeline up) for Jade and Floyd to propose Yuu confront Azul, and when Grim and Yuu take Jack's proposal the Savanaclaw students literally say "Aren't those the guys that trespassed on our dorm the other day?!"

Savanaclaw takes place in October and Octavinelle takes place in November, if I recall most midterms start after 5 1/2 weeks into school, especially in colleges, meaning from the last two weeks in November should be prime time... And this is for a college, not a Highschool, and while NRC is based off of UK schooling they don't refer to the Mid terms as Finals because BrE doesn't have midterms, they have end of the year examinations and this is considered a recent development. [Though I cannot speak from the Brits I just read through a couple articles I will be linking below]

So, yes, I know that Octavinelle starts with Yuu and Grim waking up and then taking the exams but like,,,,, I refuse to believe charas are saying the other day and referring to a week or so ago.

Time is a social construct but it's a prevalent one for a damn reason.

Anyways, why is Leona's Overblot the fastest? Riddle starts accumulating Blot early on because it's a tutorial Chapter to show what you'll be dealing with, Azul doesn't start accumulating Blot around the time Yuu offers Ramshackle as collateral. (Or am I misremembering???) Which becomes a track record as Jamil, Vil, and Idia start accumulating Blot nearing the middle of the chapter and everything starts derailing into Overblot and it wasn't even Idia accumulating Blot, it was Ortho.

Leona does accumulate Blot but it's after the dorm leader meeting which is directly after Ruggie is shown to be the culprit which still threw me off.

The rant about not being told he couldn't be number one should've been reserved for a one on one conversation or after said convo.

I physically cringed when he started off his rant with that bc it sounds like he's in cahoots with whomever is causing students to be injured, he's lucky no one in that room took a moment to process what he said—ntm Azul reacted with interest when he proposed an alternative to defeating Diasomnia.

Leona got as far as he did not bc he was displaying smarts or cunning but bc the ppl around him were dumbed down/not paying attention to his words. Which is crazy since Leona is propped up to be NRC's top student in academics and he's sitting here in front of someone who discovered and honed their Unique Magic at 10. Merman who got bullied to the point of obsessively studying magic and discovering it naturally. A world class actor and model who knows multiple languages and multiple sports, and genius enough to create a poison strong enough to take the Dorm Leader spot of Pomefiore. Kalim who has (possibly) been advised to be very careful of his surroundings due to multiple assassination attempts, a genius who made a robot in his brother's image. Crowley who runs the show essentially throwing his motivations on the table.

Like,,,, get a fucking grip, save the villain monologing for after you're sure you've won.

Thing is, this goes on for the entirety of the chapter—The fakeout of Ruggie seeming like he's the one accumulating Blot since he's doing all the leg work and Leona throwing out his plans for anyone to hear, the whole point of Jack confronting Leona stems from the first year overhearing his conversation lmaooo.

You can throw your hat in the ring and say that Leona doesn't care. That he genuinely believes that he or Ruggie will get caught and stopped feeding into his complex of "if there's no immediate reward what's the point?"

But why the hell would start by injuring students for funzies if he thinks at a moments notice he'll get caught? Why go on a monologue ab how the Great Seven secured their positions through wisdom and cunning and have the table of Dorm Leader's (besides Idia) rallying behind him if he thinks Crowley will just pull him aside and call him out??

The math ain't mathing.

But it will.

Some events in the chapter need to be reordered.

Jack should approach Leona and tell him about the students dropping like flies—I genuinely believe that Leona should've allowed some students in Savanaclaw to get injured, it looks suspicious if the only dorm not suffering from losses is the one that wants to win the most.

Leona should dismiss his concerns or imply that he'll start investigating the matter and when Jack leaves, cackle evilly with Ruggie to set up the chapter.

You could bump up the Meeting scene but I'd keep it where it is, why? Because Azul can say, "due to recent injuries, if you want to swap students out of your previous roster it will be an additional fee; submitting your Magift forms late will also cost you."

This would imply that the dorm leaders already put in their Registration Forms and the process of changing students can be difficult because the VIP guests, Newsbroadcasters, and scouts will have to be informed of the decision.

Again, that villain monologue Leona through it was insane work, like he was the only one praying on his downfall. So I propose a different monologue:

"Denying students the chance to be number one?"

"You expect Savanaclaw, founded off the Tenacity of the King of Beasts, to lay on our backs and let that monster stomp all over us and our dreams?"

"Magift isn't just about physical prowess. Technique, magic; that lizard only relies on two of those components."

This is Leona's complex talking bc Sebek says that Malleus summons mountains and thunder during Magift because it's all based on spectacle. Think of it is the U.A. Sports Festival in MHA, it's all about spectacle and showing off in an effort to get noticed, which emphasizes another point:

The whole reason Leona is even doing this is bc a part of him believes he owes his dorm members a win. He assumed the Dorm Head's position and since then has lost to Malleus and thus cutting down the opportunities his dorm students can get, thus saying he will never be a true king.

Again, I said that if the scenes were played out right it could've been subversive. We still don't know who would OB between Ruggie and Leona (exactly like Jamil and Kalim) because after the meeting two Blot splatters appear and Ruggie attacks two students.

A lot of people have even said Ruggie should've been the one to Overblot bc Cjapter 2 trivialize Leona's struggles with never being King, relegated to a spare heir who will never see the seat because Cheka is sitting there.

His magic is said to be the manifestations of his people's fears: drought, famine. It wasn't a Unique Magic he discovered like the rest of the OB group, he was born with it.

Imagine your first display of magic being met with disgust and horror while your brother's UM (discovered later in life) is met with praise.

Play it up!!!

Leona has a good grip on his magic but with Overblot let him melt some stairs! Let him dry out the air! Let him have a conversation with his Brother (over the phone/face to face) and turn a door handle to sand/leave a trail of sand in his wake!!!!!

Have students complain about the growing frequency of sandstorms at Savanaclaw, how dry the air feels, have Jack's cacti nearly die!!!!

Stand up Savanaclaw damn!!!!!!

2. How the characters were characterized in a way that you'd have to read the next chapter (or personal stories) to grasp the fundamentals of those characters.

JACK, FIGHT BACK

RUGGIE, STAND UP

LEONA, GET UPPPP!!!!

The Chapters are there to help sell a character, to make you roll for them and get you invested in their arcs and growth throughout the story.

So why in the hell....?

Lemme ask yall this: Who are your fave characters in twst? What attracted yall to them? What was your fave chapter? What characters stand out to you?

I've scoured the twst tags and I've noticed that Savanaclaw ranks lowest amongst the people. Or they are never properly characterized in headcanons/yumeships.

Ofc we can chalk it up to the rampant racism that is within twst—I've seen yall hcs of Savanaclaw being smelly and full of jocks as if these students don't have heightened senses and would probably be the cleanest dorm in Night Raven, beating out Pomefiore.

Or the fact that yall characterize Savanaclaw students as only violent despite the fact they are a martial artist dorm (which requires discipline) as well as a dorm that is the major contributor in Magical Shift leagues (which is like football, you need good grades to even touch HS football not to mention College Football).

But I digress on that—Savanaclaw isn't popular bcccc the chapter was asinine.

Like I said, you'd need to read the charas Personal Stories/Vignettes to get a grasp on them whilst other chapters and characters (besides Pomefiore, Rook, Vil, and Epel are hard as hell to grasp, I tried to do a case study on Rook and was sniped twice)

Personal stories are meant to expand on a character and their themes, yet that's all Leona, Ruggie, and Jack can rely on bc they were written with failure on the brain and defeat in the heart.

The way Savanaclaw should've gone was characterizing Leona.

Someone who has a dichotomous relationship with his family, friends, kingdom, and public perception, the weight of being the black sheep, the scapegoat, ostracized for a power he was born with to a point that he gives up. He's stuck in a cycle of hubris, self hatred, procrastination. He wants to be praised bc he was denied it for so long, stuck in the shadow of the golden child that is his brother, his chance to be accepted swept away by his nephew.

When he graduates he will have nothing to return to but upholding an image.

He is stuck.

That right there is grounds for a reasonable Overblot. Bc I'm sure anyone has felt those feelings before—played those roles before.

And somehow Savanaclaw fails to show that and Ruggie steals the spotlight.

Thing is, I'm not even against Ruggie Overblotting bc the hyenas do eat Scar at the end of the movie.

However.

As much as I fw Ruggie Obing, I'm trying to fix Savanaclaw lmaooooo.

Anyways, Ruggie also is stuck.

Born in poverty with possibly no prior education, he has no mother his father abandoning him and the only person raising his us his grandmother, it's been implied that Ruggie's been picking up odd jobs prior to Night Raven—meaning he's lied about his age and the rich simply did not care. Children in poverty grow up with adult eyes, wisened up to the world in an effort to survive before the hole that is poverty consumes them. Adults hold child eyes because "hope" is the only thing keeping them going, Ruggie knows that one day he will look to the world with "hope" so having Night Raven choose him out of all kids is his golden ticket, surrounding himself with rich kids, mooching as much as possible until he can live a comfortable life...

That's also grounds for Overblot, especially when you consider Leona throwing everything back at his face and nearly strangling him to death.

His golden ticket turning to dust before his eyes.

No wonder yall fw Ruggie Overblotting, that boy was putting in the legwork!!!!

Jack is objectively the most normal mf in the TWST cast, I see yall try so hard to project Trey as normal and it's laughable bc the dude who literally asked to be ignored is the sneakiest mf in the cast, beat out by Rook and Jade.

Like Jack is easily overshadowed in the chapter and after. Only working when hes bouncing off of another character which is crazy bc he's based off of a feral wolf that slowly gets domesticated through compassion and kindness (a reason why he easily warms up to Yuu) him being all about just actually could work in his (and Yuu's) favor when you consider the fact that Yuu is the most proactive (read: forced) in stopping fighting Overblots.

Yet his character is never truly explored, even in his vignettes. Which is crazy work bc, like I said in a previous post, when Jack assumes he's in the right when that Justice comes into play he will shake you down.

He does it with Leona, Ruggie, Azul. FLOYD AND JADE LEECH BOTH??? Like that boy is a force to be reckoned with and somehow,,,,,,

Like I'm grateful Portfest is giving Jack crumbs but this should've been implemented, especially if you're going to sell what is essentially an Original Character in a game that focuses on Disney villains...

Which brings me to Crowley, who is also an Original Character based off of a real person—Aleister Crowley. A real life occultist who was dubbed "the wickedest man in the world." And that mf has been the basis for so many theories, esp popular ones like him being behind Mickey's entrapment in the mirror (it's going platinum in my delusions lmaoo).

So,,, why the hell is Jack?? Getting the short end of the stick??? See where Yana messed up was not expanding on Jack, Ruggie, and Leona.

The entirety of October is dedicated to Magical Shift they have enough time to plan, revamp, and execute Leona's plan. I honestly wanted Leona to come down on Malleus like he did to Azul, and THEN recreate the scene where Mufasa dies.

Thus leading to my next point!:

And 3: How Leona's motivations were ruined because of how much his story ties into Scar's.

Gonna give a strict rundown on what happens in Savanaclaw before we begin unpacking what should be changed and why:

As we know Savanaclaw starts of with Ruggie snatching the cutlet using his UM who then gives it to Leona, and they talk about his status as second Prince. Skip to the Dorm Leader meeting—which is where things pick up for Leona before dropping off the side of a cliff— he explicitly is against Malleus being inducted into the Hall of Fame, rallying the other dorm leaders (Excluding Malleus, obvi) and Crowley concedes.

Ruggie then breaks two other students' bones before prancing off, leaving Yuu to be tasked with investigating the strange circumstances behind the injuries. In that time Trey gets hurt and so Adeuce, Cater, and Riddle investigate those injured and on the possible hitlist to be injured.

In that time Yuu is taught Magical Shift, a game that while on the surface seems focused on brute strength and force ends up being a strategic game that has flashy spells to Wow the crowd.

Jack later ends up listening in on Leona and Ruggie discussing further plans. Fast forward and Yuu and the Investigation troop find out crucial evidence that points to Savanaclaw, but with no solid information they can't fly off the handle.

Thus leading to the final showdown: Ruggie procures a performance enhancing potion and recreates the march that killed Mufasa but—oh? It's all Cater clones? Heartslabyul warned Diasomnia and the other dorms in advance? Leona gives up and Ruggie tries to knock sense into him? The Investigation troop and Lilia give him a stern talking to?

He Overblots.

This is a pretty frustrated retelling of the chapter but I want to reiterate that Savanaclaw is the SHORTEST CHAPTER IN THE GAME and Leona only has a handful of scenes in the entire chapter, if I said he had 3 major scenes (EXCLUDING HIS OVERBLOT) you would assume I'm lying but 16-20 is a whole four episodes where he just ISNT THERE but you wanna know who is?

Ruggie and Jack.

I'm going to maul a small family and eat a couch.

It's not like Leona needs to show up to tell that his actions are harming everyone, other chapters have full on episodes where the Overblotee isn't there, however, it's that for everytime Leona isn't there Ruggie is—a sponge that soaks up and steals Leona's thunder and leads many to believe Ruggie is the one who should Overblot instead.

And the thing is, I want to say I don't care about how long Savanaclaw is because impactful storytelling doesn't need to bee stretched across say,,,,, 89 episodes but I can't lie, I believe many more people would rock with the Savanaclaw trio the way the rock with Octatrio if they had just a couple more episodes, a better vision and maybe coherent plot too.

But here are some things I'd change.

Emphasis on VIP guests, many royal families (especially Kingscholars) and scouts/recruiters. If Magift is supposed to be anything like College football it'd make sense that there would be an emphasis on recruiting and scouts as well as scholarship and internship opportunities. Savanaclaw is basically an all you can eat internship Hotspot, having Diasomnia usurp that means that internship/scholarship opportunities are becoming unevenly distributed

Sebek said that Malleus can summon mountains and thunder during Magift, meaning that Magift is about spectacle, which again harkens back to recruiters, internships, and scholarships. Magift is a big sport in NRC bc it showcases the overflowing potential and thus puts NRC in a position for more funding.

I mentioned VIP guests and royalty. Maybe Leona's brother is one of those guests? Maybe Cheka shows up? Maybe Falena attempts to reconnect with his brother through a sport he enjoys after years of being apart and nearly no contact? Maybe Cheka sneaks off more into NRC and is indentured into the Investigation Squad? Maybe Leona feels more pressure because not only is Malleus in line to be put on the throne but his Dorm might get washed in front of Falena and thus exacerbating his fears of being less than his brother? Maybe, maybe, maybe.

MORE 👏🏾 SCREENTIME👏🏾 FOR 👏🏾LEONA👏🏾 Have Leona have a dichotomous relationship with Ruggie, keep the audience on the feet and guessing who the hell will OB, I don't know ab twst en players but b4 the translations we had a TimeLoop theory and Leona Overblotting instead of (who we believed should've OBed) was essentially the golden puzzle piece when it came to those theories, entire theses and theories were built off the back of Leona OB being an error/change in the Timeline. Having the story alternate between those two? Twst jp theories wouldve carried over frr.

@/najmaviper already said this, but have Leona use his UM as a way to vent!!! Show that his grip is slowly loosening in the face of all these problems arising? Show that even with him learning to leash a UM that the pressure has his grip slipping!! That the divide between managing the innate magic he's been born with is growing thinner and its harder to grasp something that melds into a foundational problem!!!

Ruggie! Like I said society would advance just off principle of the Savanaclaw fake out! Make it look like Ruggie's gonna Overblot while also balancing the many reasons why Leona should OB as well!! Bc the hyenas ate Scar it would make sense thematically that Ruggie should also hold some burden of Overblot as Chap 6 said that it can have an area of effect and there have been instances of ppl OBing by proxy!!

Savanaclaw needs to be longer.

Now that we've gotten all of that out of the way. Here's my analysis for Savanaclaw.

Nature v Nurture—The Eternal Struggle of the Wild.

As we all know, the wilderness is a dangerous place to be in. To be vulnerable in the elements could very well cost you your life.

That is exactly why Jack London's White Fang, while not known, is still a profound body of work bc of the topic it tackles—The struggle of man v nature.

But we aren't talking about just the struggle of man v nature, we are talking about the struggle of man and nature, where animal and human begin and end and mix and blend.

It is through that that I present to you my analysis on Savanaclaw as a whole.

Leona, as we all know, had been ostracized and stuck in the shadow of his brother since the day he was born—this further exacerbated by the fact that not only are they born a decade a part (ten years apart) but their roles had already been decided.

Falena was destined to be king, and as such was whisked away into learning how to lead his country—to continue the reign of Kingscholars and make sure that balance and harmony would prosper in Afterglow Savannah.

Because of that, I believe that they never truly had a chance to bond—one always running away and the other always standing still; aimless.

It didn't help that Leona was a progidy, that his Unique Magic that he'd been born with essentially being a culmination of his people's fears— "I am your hunger, I am your thirst."

We know that when Scar had assumed the throne he'd allowed a disproportionate amount of hunting that led to food running scarce—I'd assume that Twst!Scar had such a devastating impact on Afterglow Savannah that droughts would forever be associated with him—I also believe that there is still an area of land in Afterglow Savannah that has yet to recover.

So, to be associated with someone who'd killed his brother for the throne, to be associated with droughts and famines, and to have a personality that wasn't favorable you could see now that Leona was doomed from the start.

Because it didn't just start with him being denied kingship—he was denied something essential.

Compassion. Attention. And love.

We can see that Leona doesn't yearn to be king, but rather he yearns for what he should've gotten as a child—recognition. Instead of his efforts being deemed less than his brother's by right of him being king and him being the spare what Leona really yearned for was to have that same attention on him.

Just for a moment.

And if I said that Leona's scar could've been borne from that want—that need to be doted on, to finally be free from his brother's shadow and not be compared to him would I be wrong?

Because at the core of it, what Leona was denied subsequently is what he begins to abhor. We see this when, despite many students of Night Raven coming to him when they face a problem, he actively avoids them. Despite his grades literally being a selling point at NRC you see him not trying at all to come to class. Despite him overseeing on of the most competitive sports in Twisted Wonderland, you see that he doesn't put in that same effort divided to Magift as he does his PE class (as seen in his PE vignette)

Because why strive for something that you know will not be given to you? Why put in effort that will be overlooked? Why do anything at all if there is nothing you can do?

But I wouldn't go as far as to say that Leona is entirely apathetic—moreso inert in his position in life. He was supposed to be the spare king, a thing to look forward to, but as of Cheka his role is now essentially moot. His achievements as a Magift player overshadowed by Malleus, who has been considered to be inducted into the Hall of Fame for his achievements—Something that Leona probably has already done and more but bc Malleus beats him out in sheer magic factor you can see why there'd be some bitterness in that.

He doesn't have to strive to be a king, but he wants to bc thats the closest he'll get to his brother and, in spite of his self sabotaging ways, ultimately have purpose in life.

I do not believe that Leona is lazy, but rather because he believes he has "no place" in life he finds himself meandering through it.

Savanaclaw is the best and worst that happened to him—because for a moment, he was separated from his title as second prince, for a moment he had a purpose.

Only to have it snatched away.

It's why I think that Malleus and Leona are direct parallels of each other at points. First v Second Prince, Treasured v Discarded, Fae v Beastmen.

Because the struggle of human v nature, the struggle of human nature, and the struggle of instinct are all things that have been written and talked about.

If Leona was raised better he'd be able to handle the disappointment, the dejection, and the shortcomings he faced. But that is an if scenario, and we know that if he were a better Beastmen he wouldn't have Overblotted.

However, for all his carefully crafted apathy we know that Leona still wants—we see that when he objects Crowley's proposal to induct Malleus into the Hall of Fame by arguing that everyone should have a chance to best him. Because to be in Savanaclaw is to have Tenacity, to claw for what you want regardless of birth order and predetermined circumstances.

In the end, we know that Leona has a competitive streak and clear cut goals—he wants to come out on top regardless of the odds.

And as we know, lions are group hunters, while reliant on their female counterparts male lions still have to hold their own.

The clear cut goal is—hunt and catch prey. There's nothing more and nothing less to be added.

And yet, his defeatist attitude always wins out in the end. A reality check that Leona had known since the beginning yet to hear it from the mouth of someone who, by virtue of being in Diasomnia and thus closer to Malleus (someone who would win by default), sends him over the edge.

Either way, even after his Over Blot I believe it's important to note that Leona does not truly change who he is fundamentally—its an act of defiance, because in the end he still gave it his all even if it was underhanded, even if it meant he'd possibly injure Malleus in the process.

In the end, after all those years spent being inert and constantly shifting gears to please that competitive streak in himself while also doing the bare minimum, he learns to go at his own pace.

He learns that he can't strive for a goal without truly, actively chasing after it. We see this in Chap 3 where he participates in Savanaclaw Magift training even mentioning that there is a RSA v NRC tournament coming up and that gives him the drive to train for it.

It might not be satisfactory, the fact that Leona hadn't drastically changed like Riddle and Vil had but it's a change that fits him. Because he'd lived his life wanting to have the odds play in his favor while actively sabotaging himself with his own defeatist mentality.

He doesn't change for the sake of changing, but rather he changes for himself and to make it easier to better 'hunt' for his goals.

[sporktato]

Continuing to be in Hell (or, more Ghost Ideas)

I have Ideas about a few Ghost-centered GhostSoap fics that I do not have the time or energy to currently write, so please accept these meager offerings in their place

1. Obligatory sickfic. I feel like I haven’t seen enough/any of these, and the potential is delicious. Please it’s obligatory this is also a request for someone else to write this too. The fever-induced flashbacks, etc, caretaker Soap, the flavours are melting in my mouth

2. Obligatory coffeeshop/flowershop AU BUT I’m making it more traumatic.

I’m thinking Price runs 141 Coffee (@bluishfishfood has an absolutely wonderful coffeeshop AU comic that I’ve sold my soul to and it is my inspo for this)

There’s a flowershop down the way that’s been closed as long as Soap and Gaz have been working at 141, until one day Gaz is like “Hey did y’all see that tall grim reaper-looking dude going into the closed flowershop? Wonder what’s up with that?” And Price books it over, because he knew the owners of Beth’s Flowers before, and he knows there’s only one Riley left, a tall grim reaper-looking dude, and maybe he’s excited maybe he’s scared, what the hell could Simon be doing in his dead brother and sister-in-law’s old shop?

Still deciding how Price and Ghost know each other, cause still debating how angsty with Ghost’s backstory I want to go. Could be very in line with comic canon with Roba and everything, and Ghost just got discharged after because he’s unfit for duty (which Price would know him through SAS). Could be just tragic car crash or something and maybe Price was one of the cops that dealt with it or something. Or could be somewhere in between, where the Riley family was just wrong place wrong time and got targeted by some fucked up people for no reason at all, and Simon had managed to be in the right place at the wrong time and missed the break in, the fight, the gunshots reported by the neighbors, the bloody beatings, and the torched house to destroy the evidence. There are murderers in this world, and entire families die. Maybe Price was a cop on that case too, and took Simon in for a bit after, till one morning Simon was just gone. And Price looks for him, but the kid was always a bit of a ghost, and Price can’t blame him for finding some corner to blow his brains out in, but he can blame himself - so he retires, opens a coffeeshop once he goes stir crazy, and suddenly Gaz is telling him Simon Riley is back.

Anyways Price shows up expecting nothing and anything, and sure as shit Simon Riley is standing in the middle of Tommy and Beth’s flowershop. He’s decided to try to reopen it, maybe sell plants as well as cut flowers (things you can root and grow and keep alive - there’s uh some symbolism there)

It still takes ages for Soap, Gaz, and the others to actually meet Ghost - Price can still see the cracks in Ghost and keeps his idiots on a tight leash, only letting himself be the one to run across the way every day to drop off a tea (on the house, of course).

Eventually, they meet, obviously. Maybe Soap’s closing up the late shift, and turns around and suddenly there’s a fucking demon in front of him - of course it’s only Ghost, in all black with a skeletal medical mask and skeleton gloves and hood up and somehow didn’t ring the bell over the door on entrance - but Soap had already shit himself.

Basically this one is just about healing, Ghost remembering his family without getting pulled down by them, and hey if there’s a mouthy barista just down the way that writes stupid as shit jokes on your cup it’s a plus as well.

3. Undercover Mission. Basically I’m gay uhhhhhhhhh They have to infiltrate some high end gala or something but it’s a group/person the 141 has dealt with before and “Everyone there is gonna recognize our faces, Price”, “Well there’s one face they’ve never seen”. Cue a pissed off but holy shit fucking sexy Ghost stepping into the room in formal wear and no mask and basically I just want Soap to have the biggest gayest crisis of his life and then have to be on overwatch for Ghost and be forced to continue to stare at Ghost’s ass and his face and his hair and his forearms holy shit watch him through a scope as Ghost makes the mission his bitch (and if Soap gets possessive watching assholes talk to/flirt with his unmasked and unarmed Ghost, well no one has to know (Soap’s dick definitely knows))

4. Supernatural AU. Same military setting as normal, but supernatural beings exist.

Price is a therianthrope (i.e. human that can turn into different animals). His go-to is a bear, but will also change to hawk pretty often for scouting. There’s a handful of other more normal animals he’s pretty good at, but bear is the most comfortable for him.

Gaz is a werewolf (this may or may not be mainly for the cat and dog jokes Soap can and will make).

Soap is an empath, and a very powerful one. This isn’t in any of his files because a lot of people are against empaths doing the hard and dirty work groups like the 141 does - they’re worried empaths might be more susceptible to flipping sides, and to torture, or may crumble from all the death around them. They’re usually in overwatch positions like Laswell’s, able to help with their abilities without actually being a “liability”. At beginning of fic, no one in 141 knows he’s an empath, though he doesn’t exactly hide it anymore, he just also doesn’t broadcast it. He can also manipulate others’ emotions, and force them to do stuff even if they don’t really want to. Still working on what to call it, but only powerful empaths can do it, and it’s usually a very slippery slope. Soap’s very careful with his Commands, partly because he’s very aware how terrible it can be to be Commanded, partly because it’s a surefire sign of a powerful empath and he is still trying to fly low, partly because his older sisters would kick his ass if any hint of a Command slipped out when they were all younger, but mostly because that’s just not who he is.

And Ghost? Oh boy. Ghost was born human, but is now a hybrid, which is a mess of issues. Hybrids cannot be born, and to create hybrids is illegal basically everywhere in the world, so basically just by looking at Ghost you can tell something happened. He’s now part big cat (yes I’m making catboy Ghost stfu), and has the ears, tail, sharp canines, and senses of a feline, and makes sure to hide all of it. His eyes also look just the slightest bit off, but with the mask you don’t notice. (I’m also thinking about giving him little Wolverine-ish claws that retract in and out of his fingerpads but are very painful and bloody to do so). In case it isn’t obvious, his forced transformation was a result of Roba. In case it isn’t obvious, the amount of trauma this bad boy can fit into him is Massive. He’s a monster now, but not even a normal one, no, he’s the only monster that’s still literally illegal. His issues with seeing himself in the mirror. Hiding the ears, the eyes, the tail, etc in his Ghost getup. The trauma potential... Going into fic, only Price knows he’s a hybrid

Everyone finds out about Ghost being a hybrid and Soap being an empath in a span of minutes at the end of a mission one time. Soap had rigged a bomb to give them cover to get the hell out of dodge, but something went wrong with the fuse and it goes off way too early. Not early enough to ruin the mission, or frankly even to seriously injure any of them, but Ghost, for some reason, goes down hard. Luckily, Price is with him, and drags his ass to exfil and into the copter, but he’s acting like he took a piece of rebar to the lungs and Soap can’t figure it out but fucking hell if Soap himself isn’t feeling the nauseating pain Ghost is putting off. Soap doesn’t know what’s wrong, but he knows he’s never felt Ghost hurt in this way before, and he knows it’s his fault.

Quickly enough, Price rips the bandaid off for all of them, pulling Ghost’s mask off in one short action, and the first thing Soap sees is cat ears, and the second is blood. It takes longer than it probably should for Soap to put together the pieces, and even longer to remember that cats have some of the most sensitive hearing among mammals, and that Soap’s faulty bomb ruptured Ghost’s sensitive eardrums and then some.

And boy if that copter isn’t a mess for a while after, cause Ghost is in a lot of pain and his face is bare and his team knows how much of a freak he is etc etc etc, while Soap is the one actually crying because Ghost is in a lot of pain which means Soap is too (and maybe those higher ups were right about empaths being useless in the field) and Ghost is in that pain because of Soap and also Ghost is a hybrid which means something bad happened etc etc etc

In between crying Soap is just like “Is now a bad time to tell y’all I’m an empath???” And Price, who is trying to assess Ghost without Ghost literally killing him for it, just pauses, and very tiredly goes, “Yes, Soap, it is actually”. And Soap goes, “Oh, okay, forget that then”, and goes back to crying on Gaz.

It all turns out fine in the end, Soap makes a bunch of cat and dog jokes, Gaz is bummed that they have an all supernatural TF and can’t brag about it, Price goes full Dad on them all, and maybe Ghost learns he’s still capable of being loved, who knows

If you’re still here thank you holy shit I didn’t mean to write that much... If anyone wants to yell about these please feel free

One day I’ll write at least one of these...

[veryimportantsparkles]

Here's the current team! Dillia, BellaBella, and Maria had their designs already but Steely, Hopscotch, and Daniel are new. I did them as lil chibis because it's faster and easier. Every one of them is a remembered, resurrected Pokemon from my old gen 2 game, except for Daniel, who was this cartridge's sacrifice when I reset the original file.

Dillia - Strong and reliable and a little bit edgy. I've always thought of the Totodile line as inherently feminine because mine was a girl, but they're still big crocodile monsters. She's tough and ready to fight, hanging at the back of the party to step in if the others can't win a battle.

BellaBella - The most reliable Vine Whipper in early Johto where everything else just has Tackle. A battle prodigy who walks fearlessly into danger; sometimes her confidence gets her into trouble. She seems pretty and ladylike but has bad table manners. Bella and Dillia are both messy eaters and everyone else thinks it's gross.

Maria - Easygoing and forgiving, waited very patiently to reach the name rater when I accidentally gave her a boy's name at first. Enjoys jogging at night. Thinks she should do something new with her hair but never decides on a style.

Steely - I remembered having a Pidgeot with Steel Wing but couldn't recall a name, so 'Steely' is a half-remembered resurrection. He doesn't remember much of his previous life, but he's pretty sure he always lived a happy, uncomplicated existence. He likes battles and strives to get better at them, but doesn't come off as an aggressive guy.

Hopscotch - I absolutely knew I had a Jumpluff in my champion team but that he was useless. I just needed someone who could use Flash and he was terrible in battle. He also didn't have a nickname...that I can remember. Hopscotch is content with a life on the sidelines but I'm a better trainer now (and moveset options are much better in 4th gen) and I might be able to pick a moveset that brings out his full potential.

Daniel - I got my Soul Silver cartridge used, and its original owner was apparently named Daniel. He last saved his game in the middle of Union cave, with a Bayleef and 4 underleveled catches. I shuffled those Pokemon into my Platinum cart and left Soul Silver with one resident, a Slowpoke named for Daniel. In my new file, I've recaught him.

Edmond's namesake left behind a fully completed game. Edmond grew up in the shadow of someone who knew what he was doing. Daniel...might have been a little kid? Or simply someone who quickly got bored with Pokemon. Additionally, most of my 'world sacrifice' Pokemon have some kind of unhappy memory from being deleted then reformed. But in this Soul Silver run, my entire team is made of resurrected Pokemon from a dead Game Boy cartridge, so that's not special. Plus, this time I picked a Slowpoke, a species well known for experiencing pain on a five second delay.

So I think Daniel might not have noticed I deleted him? I'm dreading the day he figures out what happened but for now he seems to be a happy enough kid. This team of longtime companions have reunited and their task is to carry young Daniel up through to the championships to honor his sacrifice and stabilize the world. I hope they can raise him well.

I gave him a jacket modeled after his namesake's starter Bayleef, as sort of a protective charm to carry him through. Maybe I'll choose to trade that Bayleef back in to keep him company? I don't know, I have options.

And a side note: I don't remember what my original 6th Pokemon was, in the slot Daniel is occupying. I think it MIGHT have been a Magmar, but I'm not sure. I'm just going to play through the game and see if anything jogs my memory.

[estellamiraiauthor]

The Stars May Rise and Fall: The Annotated Re-read (Chapter 34, aka the end)

Well, here we are at the last chapter!

As always, spoilers under the cut:

So. The last chapter, which I actually wrote before the second to last chapter because it was easier. There’s no conflict here, just my boys finally getting to be happy together.

Rei has moved… and if you’re willing to wait until this chapter, I think this is the BIGGEST sign that he’s made some significant changes to his life for the better. Moving out of that apartment that’s practically haunted with memories of Saki and now of Teru? That’s HUGE. Plus the place he moves into is bright and has windows that aren’t blacked out and is accessible, and it’s just such a better place for him mentally and physically.

And of course he buys the piano from the previous chapter because it’s fate, dammit, and puts a photo of Saki on top of it, with Teru’s blessing… because just because a loved one isn’t with us anymore doesn’t mean they’re no longer a loved one, or no longer a part of their family… and I do think Rei and Saki WERE a family, even if the law wouldn’t let them be so on paper.

So, Rei and Teru can’t legally be married either, but they do what they can to make sure that they are both legal owners and residents of the new condo, and that either of them will inherit the other’s wealth if something were to happen.

One other thing that some same-sex couples in Japan do is adult adoption, which makes the younger partner legally the adopted child of the older partner. The system itself is mostly for people who have family businesses or assets that they would like to keep in the family, or a family name that either has a lot of value or is maybe very rare that they want to preserve, but who don’t have children of their own or whose children died, married into other families, went into a different profession, etc. I’m not sure if Teru and Rei would do this. I think Rei would want to, because one of the biggest benefits is that you become each others legal next-of-kin and can make things like medical decisions. I think Rei would want to know that if he were ever in a situation where he was unable to make those decisions for himself again, that Teru would be the one making the call. But I’m not sure Teru would love the idea just because, you know, he doesn’t want to be Rei’s SON, he wants to be his HUSBAND. So, it might be a choice they’d make eventually, but I don’t think they’d be rushing to do it at this point in time.

And then they go to visit Saki. I don’t really think there’s a lot to comment on here—it’s all there on the page?

I know not everyone loves the last line: “For as long as they had, until the seasons turned.” Some people have said that it implies that they didn’t live happily ever after, but that wasn’t really the intent. It was just to say that nothing lasts FOREVER, but that knowing That doesn’t make it LESS of a happy ending. Even if they grow very, very old together and die in each other’s arms at age 100 (and 115? See, already looking pretty unlikely), that still isn’t FOREVER. The relationship WILL end someday, because everything does. But that makes it MORE beautiful, not less.

And the book actually ends with “The End”. I know a lot of writers add “The End” when they finish a draft, but I never did. I only added it when I was ready to publish and (more or less) happy with the path I chose.

And that concludes my way-too-long annotations! Thank you for sticking with me till the end!

[princessdreamie]

Divorced Billionaire Heiress part 30

QUICK INFORMATION!! This part was supposed to come as part number 27 (the party arc was to happen after this one.🫥🫥)but totally slept in it while the family was on my neck. So i accidentally posted it pretty late but i hope it still is good enough as a follow up LOL. That means i only need to write 2 chapters if i feel better until then. Just pretend that this happened a day or 2 after Se's party. Happy reading and apologies for any spelling errors

Fa's solituin to Mel's problem was to go to some second hand shop, that was pretty run down. Mel couldn't believe that he brought her to this place. Not to mention that it was very far away from their usual shopping spots. But her bf convinced her to try it for one time once she caved in.

the owner of the place was sleeping at the counter but on the table was a sign with the message: Pleas get what you want and pay up. Dont try anything stupid, i have cameras in here.

„Charming”, was all Mel could muster at the sign b4 she looked around the place. Not much going on on the shelves but eventually she found some nices fake gems and a few useable hair clippers. The price for each of the articles were pretty low so she took some extra since she might need those for other design replacements.

Not long after their pay, Fa invited Mel to go on a drive to cool off their heads. He Certainly needed it after all the constant takes of voice lines. And it took a strain on his vocals. Mel laughed at his reasonings but still agreed to his idea.

A few days later at the big kids school

C & Fa talked about the upcoming wedding for Mt and Co. C and the rest of his family was Automatically included as an important wedding guests. E was not going to appear at first, until S sat him down and gave him a scolding for not supporting his closest friend. Fa was attending as well as Mel's plus one. As the designer of the brides accessories she had to make it to their wedding. And Mel would never leave Fa out on any parties that were mostly inclusive.

It would also increase her popularity in the designer world. But there was a rumor going around that only a few of the Stanton family were allowed to attend. Mainly Na's parents & Fl. Co wanted to give J & K a chance to know them better. Lv was not coming but he wished them well regardless. It was just a surprise that the old Fl was invited to this event but he wanted to go with his youngest grand daughter and forget about the Bu drama for a while. But his other children were not invited. Not Gr, not Mav, or even N & Ct.

The ladder was unexpected since their family was very idolized by the public still. Even after the whole fiasco their son put them through.

„As long as i dont have to see Br or hear anything from her, i wont mind”, was all C had to say to his friend. Fa could understand his reluctance on meeting the girl. They started a cold war between them and he was not going to bribe him about the details. Fa showed C a few photos on what Mel was working on. C was not surprised. Her stuff was pretty good and had no worries that she would make it big once the time came.

Back at the stanton house

Fl asked one of the staff to order a gift for him to give to Mt & Do as a wedding present. He was trying very hard to keep his mind of things and not to imagine what Bu was up to. While he knew that the boy had problems he was his grandson nonetheless.

Na came to visit as played in their backyard for a while with her friends. This time she brought some friends with her (Le, Lo & Mi). T had other things to do. The old man didn't have a problem with it. Even tho Lo had to deal with an awkward atmosphere whenever he was alone with the old guy. It was no secret that they knew who he was and what he did while he was friends with Bu.

But the girls made him feel welcomed while they had some fun.

To their bad luck, Br came for a surprise vist, which was more of an escape from her parents than a nice gesture. Her friends didn't have time to hang out and the mall she usually Frequented has a renovation going on. But she soon regretted her decision once she saw the other kids on the lawn.