#Although yeah I still can’t figure out my own type

[lieutenant-amuel]

Are you into MBTI?

Yep! I can’t say my knowledge is really impressive, but this topic fascinates me!

[the-east-art]

hello!! I hope you don’t mind me asking this, but do you have any good gf fic recs? I really like your sister’s one so maybe ones with similar vibes to that? :D

heck yeah! *to the tune of Stunkle Bunkle* East gives Gravity Falls Fic Recs!

idk if i can say for sure what does or doesn't have similar vibes to Pines Paradox, but I can tell you fics I like! Although legally if you like a fic I recommended you have to tell me 'I read that one and liked it' so I can feel like I'm getting a good grade in fics recs. One last thing: I'm not really a shipper so these should all if not mostly be gen. (if you want to see my entire list of bookmarks fics you can check out my ao3

Pines Paradox - BrownieFox

Ford's research is interrupted by his estranged brother showing up on his doorstep with a kid who claims to be time traveller. Meanwhile in the present, Stan and Mabel try to figure out how to get Dipper back to the right time. There will be secrets revealed, old wounds readdressed, and above it all a one-eyed demon watches with interest.

East: the primer. the blueprint. The one I do all the fanart for. Obv you have already read it, but in case this list gets around to other circles outside of my own, I want to put this one up first. Dipper gets stuck in the past BEFORE Not What He Seems.

Adrift - Jamesneatojourney

Stanford wakes up on the deck of the Stan O'War, concussed and alone

East: intense and dramatic - I'm kind of a sucker for Stan whump and that's what it is paired with REALLY good Ford POV

Pines! Pines! Pines! - hellmandraws

A collection of my various Gravity Falls fan comics, previously posted on Tumblr. The main focus tends to be on the Stan twins.

East: MUST READ COMICS. Hops all over the timeline, mostly focusing on Stan and Ford. Explores a bunch of aspects of their relationship, of the years they spend alone. It's the beast stuff out there.

putting the dog to sleep - parsnipit

ford can’t stop thinking about old yeller that night, staring up at the glow-in-the-dark stars on their ceiling. he couldn’t do it, he thinks. he couldn’t ever shoot his own dog, no matter what. “well,” stanley says pragmatically the next morning, pretending like he doesn’t care as much as ford knows he does, “since he was sufferin’ and all, it was really better for him to be dead, wasn’t it? not much point in being alive if your whole life is terrible and you’re a danger to everybody you ever loved.” something cold and sharp takes up residence in ford’s stomach. he doesn’t like hearing stanley say stuff like that. he doesn’t like it at all. “i wouldn’t do it,” ford insists. “no matter what, i wouldn’t. there’s always another way.” “heh. yeah, i bet you’d find another way, brainiac,” stanley teases, reaching over to muss ford’s hair. ford swats him away. stanley can make fun all he wants—ford still spends all night thinking about cures for rabies.

East: OUTRHGDSGD the old yeller analogy that runs through this one shot absolutely kills me - I'm such a sucker for these types of metaphors. It uses quotes from the book to set the stage the the different sections and it drives me crazy in the best ways.

Things You Can't Take Back - thesnadger

It's Nineteen Seventy-Something. Stan is running from his mistakes, when he suddenly encounters the last person he ever thought he'd run into out here. What is he doing in Columbia, so far from Glass Shard Beach?

East: dare I spoil the twist? I won't. Read it. One of my all time faves.

Persist and Dwell - fencesit

Wendy pauses with her hand on the door and then says, "Hey, Soos—you ever notice Stan doesn't really...touch things?" He probably should have seen this coming, but the problem with deliberately not looking at things is that they have lots of chances to blindside you. In hopes of avoiding this conversation, Soos says, "I haven't noticed that." "Okay," Wendy says. "So. I'm going crazy, right?" "Dude, you're too smart to be crazy," Soos says, "but he totally touches things. He handed you money like five minutes ago."

East: What if Stan was lowkey-highkey haunting the shack?! THIS IS SUCH A GREAT IDEA. I really wish that there was more for this au or this idea

Deja Vu - interlude

Stan and Ford get stuck in a time loop on the day of the portal incident and are forced to work through some things.

East: Through the lense of a timeloop, watch the brothers have their struggles, and find that with infinite time on their hands there is nothing else for them to do but to eventually work things out (and maybe deal with how to get out of the loop). ITS GOOD SHIT

The Sacrifice of Stanford Pines - Jugare

Instead of sending Stan a postcard, Ford leaves Gravity Falls to find his brother. But to his shock, Stan is not nearly as willing to help as Ford thought. Everything goes south quickly.

East: I love this fic. The act of Ford going and finding Stan rather than having him send a letter gives these characters more time to interact before they arrive at the Shack, changing the course of fate. A top tier fic.

Under The Ice - castielrisingabove

What if that phone call the Bill-possessed Ford made to Stan actually went through?

East: short but to the point. A fun thought experiment and I think does a good job portraying both Stanley and Ford.

Sleight of Hand - impish_nature

Stan the magician!

East: Stan, post weirdmageddon, shows off his sleight of hand and his magic tricks. Ford POV. If you like the idea of the things lost in the cracks of memory after the series finale, or at least while Stan recuperates, you'll like this.

Unexpected but not Unwanted - impish_nature

Ford struggles as Stan remembers.

East: the tentative movements towards being a family, being brothers again, post weirdmageddon. shamelessly soft.

I Am A Selkie On The Sea - scribefindegil

The twins may be able to use the same sealskin, but only the one born with it is the true selkie. At least, that's what Ford's been telling himself for the past 40-odd years.

East: This series in general is really good. I like how the selkie skin is used to unit and to tear apart. My one gripe is I wish we never found out whether the skin belonged to Mabel or Dipper, and it was left for the reader to decide (and to decide if that even matters)

Too Late, Too Soon, Not Enough - IncomingAlbatross

(Another take on the missing scene in the Fearamid, featuring protectiveness, promises, and some long-overdue emotional progress. Also Stan being annoying on purpose.)

East: one of my favorite depictions of this scene. Does a good job with Fords POV and writing Stanley

why can't we just teach kids swears? - untrustworthyglitch

“Anyway, what’s in my kitchen that needs kid proofed? I keep the liquor in the high cabinets, where the kids won’t be able to reach,” Stan says. “Plus, the gun in the breadbox isn’t even loaded. Probably. I think.” Soos sighs. “I have my work cut out for me.” Or, in which Stan's niece and nephew are coming, and it's up to Wendy and Soos to fix Stan's life and habits.

East: A good fic, but more than that I really love this idea of how Soos and Wendy helped Stan get the shack ready for the kids.

Protective Instincts - ShyEye

Stanford decides to do some out of house research one late full moon night. He returns home only to almost instantly be attacked by an unfamiliar monster that maybe isn't as unfamiliar as initially thought.

East: I just love werewolf Stan au okay?

The Other Portal - Haberdasher

AU where, when items are lost in the Bottomless Pit, they come to Ford… regardless of his current location in the multiverse.

East: A good fic, but more than that it's a really fun idea! I wish they had pushed the implications of this even more (especially with the bottomless pit episode)

Off-Season - anistarrose

Winters running the Mystery Shack are difficult, but two unexpected guests improve Stan’s day.

East: cute oneshot. I'm a big fan of timetravel oneshots that are from the pov of the person who ISNT the timetraveler. Dramatic (or in this case tbh just very cute) irony.

In the Shadow of Death - A_Zap

It all started with the grim. Now it seems like every time he turns around, Ford finds yet another death omen hanging around his brother. Seriously, what exactly is going on with his brother that death constantly seems to follow his footsteps? A 5+1 fic of the death omens that adopted Stan and he adopted back.

East: It all comes together in the final chapter, trust me.

Changing Tides - Ariasune

When their dæmons settle, they'll be grown up. At least, that's the general idea.

and

Post-script - Ariasune

Poindexter, your deed is in the safe -- Wendy can open it for you -- don't worry about the mortgage, that's been paid off. Sorry about messing your life up again. Bye. PS - the milk is about to go bad, so you should use that up.

East: DAEMON AU DAEMON AU I'm such a sucker for these kinds of aus. Changing Tides focuses on canon, flipping between when the Stans were kids and the time of the show. Post Script naturally happens after the show. They're both good and dramatic.

Raising Stakes - Mary P Sue

East: heck, my copy and paste stopped working for some reason, so no summary for you. This is a vampire au and it's good! Create characterization, pretty clearly written either while Mystery Trio was a big thing or inspired by it. Carla fans get your juice.

[sirianasims]

Chapter 43.9

I arrive at GeekCon both sweaty and with a vague sense of unease. The stifling heatwave has turned the city into a pressure cooker, and it feels foreboding, like something terrible is building and about to break free.

I’m greeted by my own face by the door, advertising the panel that I’m supposed to be on this morning. I never got comfortable seeing myself like this, I prefer it when they just use the logo or my masked promo pictures. At least today is the last time I’ll appear as Llama Man in any official capacity, and then…

Then I don’t know.

But there’ll be time to figure that out later, right now I’m about to see Julia again. I can’t believe it’s only been a year since we met, and I have no idea how she feels about me right now.

I spent most of the night in my hotel room tossing and turning, thinking about what I’ll say to her, but I still don’t have a plan. I just want to apologise for ending things so abruptly.

It really wasn’t my best work.

She said she just wanted to be with you. And then you dumped her.

I groan inwardly as I scan the faces of everyone I see. There’s no sign of her, but the cosplay competition isn’t until later, she may not have arrived yet.

I wonder if she’ll refuse to speak to me at all. I wouldn’t blame her, but she never seemed like the type to carry a grudge. I just want to see her and make sure she’s not too upset about how things ended, something I should have done months ago.

I need to make sure she doesn’t hate me. I can’t handle if she hates me.

I guess I’ll have to play it by ear, although Lee would tell me that’s not my strongest suit.

I leave my jacket in the wardrobe and linger a bit, fiddling with my VIP bracelet. The gallery’s air-conditioning is working overtime, and it helps a little with the heat but I still feel uneasy. My eyes are drawn to the bathroom door.

If this was a movie, Julia would come out of the bathroom right now, exactly like last time. Our eyes would meet. A beat, as the camera cut from her face to mine, both of us too surprised to speak. I would recover first, tell her that we can’t keep meeting like this, and her face would crack into a smile. Then she’d leap into my arms and I would kiss her like there were no tomorrow.

Get it together, Romeo. She’s not kissing you ever again, you’re going to be lucky if she even speaks to you. Focus. You’re at work.

At least I’m not in full costume this year, I would probably have died from heatstroke. And it would have made me feel silly trying to have a serious conversation with Julia.

I decide to take a quick tour of the convention floor before the panel starts.

Even though it’s still early in the day, there’s people everywhere. Some tabletop role-players are recording their podcast on location, kids are running around, and several people are dressed up despite the heat. I wish Julia had shown me pictures of the costume she was planning so I knew what to look for.

A woman with long, red hair makes me do a double take, but I know it isn’t Julia before she even turns around, the way she moves is wrong. I know every inch of Julia’s body and this isn’t it. Everything Julia is, the way she walks and talks and laughs is imprinted on my brain, and it feels like I should be able to locate her by telepathy, by following some sort of invisible string tying me to her.

“Uh, Mr. Romeo! Sorry, hello.”

“Oh, hey. Edmund, right?”

The young man beams, clearly pleased that I remember his name. His booth was next to mine last year, we talked about old movies. I wish I could introduce Julia to him, she would have loved to discuss Cow Plant Love with an expert.

“Wait, you do know him? I thought you were lying!” The teenage girl next to him sounds somewhere between impressed and angry.

“Yeah, why would I lie about that? Sorry, sir, this is my sister Liz, she’s a big fan of Llama Man.”

“Can I have your autograph? I collect them, I already got the Coolala guy and the Freezer Bunny lady this morning. Oh, and can you make it out to ‘Lizette’, with a Z, please?”

“Of course. That’s a very cool costume, Lizette with a Z.”

“I made it myself! It’s Michelle from Doherty’s Revenge, have you seen it? The one with the zombie gym teacher?”

“Oh? Haven’t heard of it, do you think I should watch it?”

“You have to, it’s so good! I used to think it was actually really scary but now I just think it’s funny. Me and Edmund watch a lot of like, retro movies with dad, we even watched the really old Llama Man movies once. I’m gonna tell my dad I met you, he won’t believe it!”

“I’m flattered. Thanks for the movie recommendation, I’ll make sure to check it out.” I hand her the autograph before waving goodbye to Edmund who mouths a silent thank you.

Retro.

I know everything seems ancient to a teenager, but the word tastes like dusty VHS tapes, like lava lamps and shag carpets, like mid-century kitchens. This is my demographic, I suppose, nostalgic dads and their excitable kids.

Julia is not in the panel crowd either, but I guess that would have been too much to hope for. I would probably have found her presence too distracting anyway.

I know one of the other panellists, Mei Zhang, the iconic voice of the Freezer Bunny for over fifteen years. We’ve met briefly at conventions and even on a few gigs, but never really got a chance to speak much.

The third panellist is a young man named Andy Okeke, who seems to be voicing a few Voidcritters as well as a bear-like creature I’ve never heard of. It’s his first time on a panel, but he’s already annoyingly good for his age, and I can imagine him having a pretty impressive career at the speed he’s going.

I answer the same questions I’ve answered a million times before and try to find some sort of comfort in the fact that it’s the last time. As much as I loved my job, it got repetitive after almost a decade. Maybe I should get that number for Sierra’s agent, try to get back on screen. Maybe I’ve grown too complacent, stagnant.

Finally, the questions dry up and the last people leave the room, and just like that, I’m free from my contract. It doesn’t feel like freedom, though, more like a free fall.

“Hey, Romeo, wait up.” Mei stops me by the doors.

“How are you doing? It must be so weird.” She shakes her head. “I don’t know what I’ll do if they ever retire Bunny.”

“You’ll still have others, won’t you?”

“I know, but I’m known for Freezer Bunny, not for… four or five Voidcritters. I can’t even keep track of their names, which is ironic since it’s all they ever say.”

I’m not sure how to respond so I just nod. I’m impatient to get to the cosplay competition, but I don’t want to be rude.

“Mei, it was great seeing you again, but I’m in a bit of a hurry, actually.”

“Sure. Would you – would you want to grab coffee some time, though?”

Shit. Before Julia, I would have gladly followed Mei home tonight, maybe we’d even go on a couple of real dates before things fizzled out as they normally do. But right now, every muscle in my body is telling me that I have to go, to move, to be somewhere else.

“Sorry, I’m, uh. Maybe another time, I don’t…”

The giant poster of my face is judging my lame attempt at stringing together a sentence, and I’m painfully aware that the woman behind us has been sweeping the same spot for a minute now, pretending not to eavesdrop.

“I’m a big girl, Romeo. If you’re not interested, that’s fine.”

“Right. I am sorry, though, it’s not…” I mumble something politely incoherent and more or less flee the room.

Fuck. One year and I’ve completely lost my touch.

I hurry up the stairs, the competition must be just about to end. I can see through the doors before I even reach them, all of the contestants are on stage – and she’s not there.

I stand in front of the doors, frozen, arm still outstretched. This doesn’t make sense, she loves this, she told me about the costume she was planning, she should be here.

There’s no time to dwell on why I so desperately need to see her again, what I would even say to her, the only thing left is fear.

What if something has happened to her? Would I ever know? We’re not together anymore and we have no friends in common, no one who would think of me or assume I’d want to know if she got hurt or sick.

She could be dead. She could be dead and I would never know.

I’m vaguely aware that I’m spiralling but I can’t stop, I feel dizzy. The heat and the lights and the people, everything is too much and I can barely see.

Somehow my feet carry me outside, to the very same bench where we talked for hours on that first night. I try to breathe, deep breaths, but the air is too warm and feels thick.

My hands shake as I log into the anonymous account I made during a moment of weakness after she blocked me, and I pull up her social media in the hopes that she posted something recently, anything that can reassure me that she’s fine.

Relief floods through me when I see the timestamp on her latest updates. San Sequoia Aquarium, just a couple of hours ago. But the relief dissipates quickly as I scroll through the photos.

Nestled between fish and family pictures, there are two selfies with her friend Marten.

I stare at them, suddenly feeling numb.

Her eyes are shining like stars in the lights from the tanks. She’s smiling, and so is he. His arm is around her, possessively, and there’s a hint of triumph in his eyes that I don’t like.

He seems to be carrying her on his back in the other photo, and the thought of her legs wrapped around him awakens an urge to tear him away from her that is almost suffocating.

If they’re not already dating, it’s a matter of time. They would probably have gotten together a long time ago if I hadn’t been there. A petty part of me wonders if he was really being her friend or just biding his time, waiting for me to fumble, but that’s crazy. I barely know the guy. Actually, I don’t really know any of Julia’s friends, I just have a vague idea about their names and who they were to her.

I wasn’t a very good boyfriend, was I?

I told you it was better this way.

I’ve kept reminding myself that I didn’t make a mistake, and here’s proof at last. This was meant to be, they were meant to get together, I just happened to get in the way. He’s been a good friend to her, nice and considerate, while I only brought her chaos and pain.

I was so worried that Julia was wasting my time, but all along, I was the one wasting hers. She deserves better, I know this, but it still feels like I lost her all over again.

I put away the phone and take a deep breath of the scorching air. And then I reach for the tiny, secret corner of my heart where I was nursing my last hope of getting her back and stomp it out.

beginning / previous / next

[hysterotic]

I know you said no to requests but I was hoping to see your take on how baji acts like when he is interested in someone > < hopefully we can see that in your upcoming chapters ❣️

i might’ve said no to requests but i can’t resist when it comes to keisuke.. i’ll try to keep this as canon as possible while still feeding you<3 this is for final timeline keisuke baji.

𝑯𝑶𝑾 𝑲𝑬𝑰𝑺𝑼𝑲𝑬 𝑩𝑨𝑱𝑰 𝑨𝑪𝑻𝑺 𝑾𝑯𝑬𝑵 𝑯𝑬’𝑺 𝑰𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑫 𝑰𝑵 𝑺𝑶𝑴𝑬𝑶𝑵𝑬 :

one thing about keisuke that gets me weak is how confident and cocky he is, he doesn’t come out as obnoxious and very look at me! look at me! even though he has some flashy tendencies, but not the type to give you the ick (ifykwim). so when it comes to the person he’s interested in (you) he is NOT shy and very straightforward with his feelings.

although he never really had any romantic experiences or crushes before (that we know of) so i’d think he’d be pretty confused on why he’s interested in you, he wouldn’t even realize that he is and he wouldn’t go to his friends for advice either cause he knows how annoying they could get. but if any of them paid close attention to him they’d notice how different he seems when you’re around. he’s more quiet and observant, his eyes are almost always stuck on you. they could hear him muttering little things to himself whenever he’d stare at you and take a pretty good guess on what’s going on in his head.

“fuck, why am i getting so distracted for? this is stupid.”

“there’s nothin’ special about them, why am i losing my cool?”

“goddamnit. don’t have time for this.”

speaking of staring.. that man is shameless. he doesn’t care if you catch him staring, he actually likes it when you lock eyes with him and held your gaze, and he’s never breaking it off, like he’s daring you to look away, and you know his stares are intense. (clit throbbinggg lol). i’d describe his stares to be more assessing than leering. you’d catch his eyes roaming all over from head to toe during a conversation with you or if one of his friends are talking to you and he’s around “they’re always there, in my line of sight. what am i supposed to do about that?”. although in your point of view it looks pretty daunting since he has an intimidating rbf, but what you won’t catch is him checking out your tits / ass. just cause he’s shameless doesn’t mean he’s not a gentleman, although he has his moments where he does stare, what can i say? his eyes likes to wander.

trust that his mom will definitely know about you, (depending on how your relationship with him is like) she’ll ask about you to him and he just brushes it off with :

“mom, don’t do this to me.”

“you need to quit beating around the bushes and ask them out.”

“it’s not that easy, damn.”

“language!”

he will not make a direct move! at all! he’d expect you to figure out that he’s interested in you on your own, not because he doesn’t take rejection well, he just prefers not to be rejected, if you like him back, most likely you’ll end up pursuing it more and he’ll run with it. if you don’t, he’ll just sit there with his mind running all about you til one day it just dies.

i did say he’s straightforward but he’s not the type to approach and be like “hey, i like you, date me.” right away, he’s the type to claim you before you even knew that he likes you. not in a “you’re mine.” way, but in a way where he would scare off / beat up every guy that tries to confess to you or heck, even considers liking you. he’s very protective and possessive when it comes to the person that bugs his mind 24/7.

do you know that one little cliche trope where the guy prevents the girl from having any type of romantic interest because he likes her but refuses to tell her so he just keeps her single for years? yeah, that’s keisuke baji with you.

and god does he love it when your physically uncomfortable when a guy is hitting on you, a real good excuse to casually insert himself in between you two with no explanation, no apologies–he is just there, and the other guy quickly gets the hint cause, come on, this is keisuke baji.

he might say something like, “you really gonna waste your time with this guy?” to the poor dude’s face, without even looking at you. he’s confident enough to make sure every guy knows where he stands, even if he doesn’t say it outright. nobody’s fucking with you like he does, which might spike up some dating rumors but he doesn’t care.

he’s very attentive when it comes to you, from the way you did your hair differently to the small changes in your mood, he’s hyper-aware of your presence, even when he doesn’t seem to be paying attention. if you look uncomfortable or upset, he’s the first one to pick up on it.

if he does end up telling his friends about you, they’ll start talking to you more often and dragging you around with them, especially kazutora or manjiro, not much from chifuyu since he knows keisuke would be a little cranky over the fact that his friends are bothering you, (even to the point of luring keisuke and you somewhere remotely romantic that a group can do to not make it seem suspicious.) he doesn’t complain that you’re there, more like a “they shouldn’t be around guys like us.” but from your point of view it looks like he’s annoyed by you being around.

you might notice that whenever you’re out with them, he’s always positioned himself between you and anyone else that might get too close, (or at least in his line of sight), it’s not overt, but it’s clear that he’s marking his territory in his own way.

in rare occasions, the most affectionate / intimate thing he could do is him noticing that you always get this specific snack / drink from the vending machine, and as your hanging out with him and his friends and walk past one, he’d stop and grabs himself a drink, including yours. only disappointing thing about that is that he also grabs kazutora and chifuyu one so you don’t really feel special, sometimes you do catch him buying you and only you something, telling you to shut up and take it / grunts after you thanked him for it. (he’s so cuteee) :

“not cravin’ iced tea anymore?”

“oh! no i just can’t have cold drinks right now.”

unfortunately when you associate yourself with people like them you’ll get targeted by other gangs, you start to notice a pattern on how it’s always, always. ALWAYS, keisuke that comes and saves you :

“how come it’s always you that comes and saves me?”

he ignores you, muttering to himself. “tch, fuckin’ warned those guys that having you around would only cause trouble.”

“what?”

“piss off, will you? quit letting them drag you around, it’s not your crowd.”

“but-“

“don’t argue with me, you’re not cut out for this, and i’m not pulling you out of another mess.”

yeah, he scolds you, a lot. but i promise he means well.

the only thing that’s “player” about him is his habit of leading you on, only because he’s not exactly sure what he’s feeling about you, does he just think your cool? is he actually attracted to you? is this all a misunderstanding? who knows.

but all of that isn’t for nothing, keisuke is not the type waste his time to fuck around and play with your feelings, sure he has the tendency to be inconsistent and impulsive whenever he’s trying to achieve something but he will not be with somebody he’s not 100% sure of, it takes him awhile to get there yeah but he doesn’t wanna regret his decision, keisuke’s not the type to rush, he’s also not the type to give 2nd chances either, so if anybody fucks him over in any way he’s done.

[lawchwan]

they love me because i'm a woman! (law)

summary: a headcanon on how our beloved law would be as a woman requested: @makemake22 reader: gn!reader disclaimer: law is just being her fine self, suggestive content, the hearts crew are lowkey perverts but its done in a comedic way not in a violating way genre: headcanon, fluff, suggestive a/n: ugh i love fem!law so much. i wanna write another adaptation of this, so if you want a part 2 or a whole fic of this lemme know.

crossposted on ao3

what a woman she would be...

you know that song, Foxy Lady by Jimi Hendrix? I feel like that would be her theme song, not joking.

not to be biased, i feel like she would be a stunner without meaning to, much to her dismay.

she does not want to the symbol of her existence through her beauty or her sexiness.

although she never cared for labels, Law would rather be known as what the government calls her by the surgeon of death than the colloquial and dehumanizing description that men give her—hot tattooed surgeon with tits.

she fits the hot big tiddie goth mommy type, which everyone swoons over, including her own crew.

She could never deny their loyalty, she loves them as much they love her (which she’ll never admit to), but at times she absolutely can’t stand her crew—especially the male ones—when they would ogle their eyes at her figure until she raised her voice.

"Right, so, you're assigned to bathroom duties—Shachi, stop staring at my chest" Law spoke sternly, her eyes still glued down at the chart in front of her. Shachi jumped from his place, wide-eyed back to her unfazed expression. "what—how'd you know I was looking?!" he protested. Law simply rolled her eyes at him and shook her head, "Because you always do." she sighed before walking away.

Moments like these happen way too often, and if it were not for her love of her crew, she would’ve killed them a long time ago.

Ikkaku has her moments of admiration as well, but she's still the only crew member who understands her pain of being sexualized and not being taken seriously as a woman in a male-dominated field like piracy.

Bepo also gets it, but he doesn't fully grasp the idea as not only is he a mink, but a male at that. Hey, at least he got the spirit.

However, with her being the only female crew, Ikkaku still maintained that respectful captain-crew member boundary and simply looked up to Law, rather than maintaining a closer bond. (although, I'd like to think that fem!Law would have a soft spot for her and look after her like an older sister would since losing her little sister but that's neither here nor there)

Furthermore, she uses Bepo whenever she gets her period, and her cramps are aching her.

That’s just a headcanon for me, which you can disagree with me if you want, but I feel like she’d be extra sensitive on those days, and just would not care at the moment. She almost turns to a whole different person whenever she’s in her menstrual cycle.

Fem!law walks in one day while her male crew were playing in the lounge room, tears welled up and a slight pout coming out of her lips as she approached Bepo. All eyes were on her, as they await any order their strict hot captain would give out. She attempts to maintain her cool but her hormones are acting up. “Bepo… can you please come and cuddle with me? I’m in so much pain.�� Law asked, her bangs falling forward as to divert eye contact from her crew. Bepo sympathetically gave her a tight lipped smile and nodded, “yeah, sure, captain, lets go…” he cooed as he got up from his seat and carried her bridal style while she place her head on his shoulder and her arms around her midriff. And that resulted in a roar from the male crew, both swooning over how adorable their captain is and from jealousy, wishing that they could be in the mink’s place instead of him.

Naturally, once the pain wears off and can be on her own, she goes back to her strict self and goes after any of her crew who calls her cute and give them any harsh duty if they speak of these events.

”I liked the old Law better” they would claim.

Fem!law, like the real Law, is cold and aloof, yet the difference is that she happens to be more maternal than she actually seems, especially towards her crew members.

She could be seen scolding them like a mother would.

"Check it out, boys, I finally caught Law's shirt that she wore yesterday—OW!" Penguin's devious choice of words put him into trouble as he felt an aching pinch by the ears as his head was pulled and pushed by the source holding his ears. "How many times have I told you to stop putting my clothes on auction?! I know money's tight, but I'm losing shirts to wear! You cannot keep going like this..." Law scolds him further as her fingers pinched harder making Penguin wince in pain. "Okay, but that would be so hot seeing shirtless around polar tang—OW! OW! I was joking, please! I was only kidding!" Shachi took another pinch as well.

"Law..." Bepo walked into Law's office with a pout. "What, Bepo?" She spoke without looking up. Bepo walked in, simply just showcasing his cut finger. Law simply shook her head as she opened her drawer, "kitchen duties?" "Yes... I cut myself opening a can..." "How the hell did you—Ugh, forget it just give me your finger..."

Now we've touched on how she acts with her crew, let's get into how she'd be when she has a crush.

Fem!Law would be the type to be very hard to read when she has a crush.

Almost like she never wants to admit that she has a crush.

When she took a peep at you, her heart almost skipped a beat, and she didn't know how she would act around you.

Unfortunately, she'll more than likely act really cold towards you. Not her intention, she just simply does not know how to confront her feelings.

That maternal instinct that you heard of made you believe it was a rumor. You felt like she didn't care about you, which hurt you a little bit the longer you stayed.

You began developing feelings and she was pushing you away without her knowing about it.

Meanwhile, fem!Law is going through her own turmoil with you.

Even though she’s cold, the fact that she runs away from any interactions with you pains her to a deep end.

Just like masc!law, she has repressed a lot of her emotions thanks to her trauma and losing her parental role.

she had developed attachment issues that takes time for her to open up.

but that’s something neither of you would open up about and the relationship remain like this for a long time…

characters are owned by oda. i will not tolerate nor accept translation, reposts on other websites, or plagiarism. divider made by mmadeinheavenn.

[14thcommander]

☆. cw: fingering, praise, dirty talk, canon, soft!hange.

You can feel Hange’s presence all over you. 

Their fingers run through your body like they’ve done a thousand times prior: with passion, ecstasy. Hange has never half-assed anything in life, and loving you wouldn’t be any different. 

“That’s it,” They purr, voice soft and breath warm against your face. “open those pretty legs for me.”

And you do – how could you not? With chocolate eyes looking into your soul, pleading for your love, and simultaneously thanking you for your own very existence. With only a fireplace – outside of your tent – illuminating the both of you, Hange looks even more ethereal and intense. You know that look, dripping from their eyes.

Worship.

Your legs spread, obeying their command. Tongues of fire lick your body, as if the Earth has opened itself, a witness to you and your lover. Clammy hands, curious fingers: Hange traces their digits over your clothed heat, smiling at the way you buck your hips towards their touch.

“Easy, I’m gonna give you what you want.” They whisper, with their plump lips against yours. Hange tastes of whiskey and pride – the taste of victory, on the tip of their tongue. Your love is the proof of that, a celebratory act after a tough battle, although there isn’t a time in which your love making isn’t intense and passionate. 

With teeth and tongue, Hange kisses you once more. A single digit finds its way towards your entrance, gathering your juices. You moan, and they swallow your sounds. Your fingers gently rake your lover's head, gently caressing through their messy brown hair. 

“More, please.” You beg, voice barely above a whisper, as you gently hook a leg around their waist. 

Two fingers move in and out of your cunt, curving gently against your gummy walls. Waves of pleasure travel through your body, and Hange is all you can feel: their scent – pine and something else you can’t quite figure –, their touch – hot and soft, heavy and gentle – and their voice. 

“Anything for you.” They mumble, against your – now puffy, from all the kissing and biting – lips. 

Your ears burn at their words, at their praise. There’s something so enticing about being at their mercy, and having them take care of you like this. Their fingers move faster, more precisely now. Your own fingers find their way towards your lover’s messy nest of hair, gently pulling on it – and earning a low moan in return. 

It was an exquisite type of cat and mouse game, and you loved every second of it. 

“‘M close.” You confess, and it comes out more like a warning. 

“That’s it.” Hange mumbles, their free hand gently grabbing your jaw, forcing your face into a pouty expression. “Look at me when you come, say my name sweetheart, I know you can do it.”

The bubble of warmth that was once growing in your lower abdomen finally explodes, as a white hot feeling travels through your every nerve – it feels like your body is short circuiting, going into sensory overload. Still, your partner has yet to cease their movements.

“Give me one more, yeah?”

[miniwheat77]

Lime Green. (Soap.)

!CW! NSFW, fluff, flirting, babiessss (sorry if I missed any.)

Lime Green is the mix of apple flavored liquor that sat in your glass, it was sweet, almost too sweet. His eyes have been drawn to you since you came inside the bar. He’s been eyeing you all night. It takes a good buzz for him to finally approach you, needing the liquid courage. You’re sat at the bar with your friends when he comes up to you, and the flirty smile you give him as he comes over tells him everything he needs to know already.

Lime Green is the color of marker you’d written your number on his hand with. He sees it the next morning, waking up with a pounding headache. You weren’t the type of girl to take someone home on the first night but didn’t hesitate to give him your number. He waited until mid day to call you, which caught you off guard. You figured he’d text you. He talked sweet over the phone, convincing you to go on another date with him. This was going to be the first of many dates, but you didn’t know it yet.

Lime Green is the color of your fluffy socks he’d bought you. They’d come in a pack of 5, all different neon colors. They were meant to be a joke but you actually wore them. Not knowing just how much it meant to Johnny. Although, your tone of voice when you called him over had him worrying, rushing to get to you. Only to find you standing in the doorway, tears streaming down your face. Grief too much to handle after having lost someone close to you. Johnny was there by your side for every single second of healing. Picking you up and bringing you up to your bedroom so you could cry it out with him there.

Lime Green is the bright keychain attached to the keys of your new house, the realty company printed in bold white text over the green. The countless hours of moving the both of your houses into one, starting your lives together officially. You’ll never forget the way he picked you up and spun you around in the empty living room. Excitement too much to handle for him. “This is so amazing.” He smiles, looking around. “Yeah, it really is. I can’t believe this is happening.” You laugh.

Lime Green is the color of that dreadful maternity shirt his mum had gotten you to wear for your baby shower, hearing Johnny complaining about how his shirts are always dirty because none of your own clothes fit you. You cried when you put it on. He tried not to laugh, it doesn’t look bad, but you think it does. After the baby shower, you stood in the mirror, picking apart your outfit. “Come here, lass.” He rolls his eyes, sitting at the end of your bed. You waddle your way over to him. “I think you look perfect. You could wear the most awful color out there and still pull it off.” He smiles. You roll your eyes. “You’re so full of shit Johnny.” You sigh. He pulls you in close, running his hands down your pregnant belly. “You look beautiful. I mean I prefer you in nothing, but..” he laughs when you punch his shoulder.

Lime Green is the color of the Halloween Costume your son sprints around in, you’re sweaty and tired. You’ve got a baby on your hip and a little boy that keeps tripping you up, leaving toys all over the house. “Johnny! Come on! We have to take him by your mums house or she’ll be upset.” You yell out to him, he emerges from the stairs, wearing a costume similar to your sons. “Dad!” He yells, slamming right into Johnny’s leg. “Steamin’ Jesus, you’re gonna take out a knee my boy.” He laughs, lifting him up. You turn away to finish dressing your daughter. When you turn back, you hear your son laughing hysterically and Johnny is holding him by his ankles upside down. “Good god, you’re gonna kill him.” You roll your eyes. He sets him down. “No, but. Look at you.” He smiles, taking your daughter out of your hands and looking at her. “Look at you, my little princess.” He smiles, rubbing his nose over hers, hearing her giggle. “A lil ladybug hm?” He smiles, setting her down. She waddles off, your son nearly knocking her over. You sigh. “You look beautiful too.” He smiles. “Thank you, you look.. amazing.” You poke his toned stomach through his superhero costume. “Yeah right. I gotta be doing something right, no way we’d have two of these little ones running around if it wasn’t true.” He winks, seeing you roll your eyes. “Oh yeah. The costume just does it for me.” You roll your eyes. And actually.. I think you mean three.” You laugh, looking down. It takes him a second. “Wait… what?” He asks. “Are you serious?” He moves closer, seeing you nod. He pulls you in for a kiss, rubbing a hand over your stomach. “We should be the incredibles next year.” He smiles. “Oh my god Johnny!” You roll your eyes.

[nani-nonny]

The Request - a tiny snippet of how Big Mama’s Assistant sees the Hamato turtles

Word Count: 600+ words

“Masky.” A ridiculous nickname the Hamatos had graciously “bestowed” upon Frida because she refused to tell them her name. It would be a breach of contract if she revealed too much of her identity. She can’t associate herself with them, it wouldn’t do her any good.

But at this moment, she sincerely wished she had never met them.

The Orange One is a bother, with his large eyes akin to a baby deer. Eyes so full of empathy and concern for her bleeding torso. Everything in his body language tells her how much he cares and how worried he is. She can tell from the fidgety hands to the slightly bent knees as he tries to make eye contact through her mask.

“We can stop for a minute, if you need it. I think Leo has some stuff to help stop the bleeding. If you would just let him—,” the Orange One tries again, but Frida has lost more than enough patience in the past half hour of his incessant spiels of “helping” her.

“I said, ‘I’m fine’,” she reminds the box turtle harshly.

The Purple One remains as indifferent as ever, to which she’s thankful for. At least one of them has the decency to keep distance. Although, she was never fond for the aloof type, as his nonchalant tone rubs her the wrong way.

“Yeah, Mikey, if she wants to bleed out to death, let’s not stop her. We can finish the mission without her,” the softshell says in a dry tone as he checks his phone.

Frida clenches her jaw and forces herself to stand tall. A voice in her head reminds, Stand tall, my dear. Never give anyone the opportunity to look down on you.

She can’t afford to seem weak. Not especially in front of these fools. She knows what they’re capable of, but she doesn’t know them personally like they do each other. She may be able to hold her ground for a while, but a solo fight against four is too much, even for her.

She feels eyes locked on her, that familiar yet eerie feeling of being watched. She has felt this all her life, nerves heightened to their greatest under the unwavering, watchful gaze of Mama. Her gaze flicks to the figure standing in her peripheral, the blue aura emanating from them that her mask allows her to see.

The Blue One. He’s all too familiar to Frida. His immature demeanor all the way down to his watching eyes. He’s far too similar to Mama. And it unnerves Frida. It makes her feel on edge, waiting for the moment she’s given an order. Waiting for the next line to cross on her never ending list.

His eyes are conniving, planning.

It makes her hate him the most. Despite this, he’s the easiest to interact with. Simply because of how familiar it is…

She turns to face him, making him know how aware she is of his eyes. She stares back at him for a long moment, challenging his gaze with her own. She searches for changes in the blue aura that surrounds him, any flicker of the blue electricity. Anything in the truth of his heart that wavers.

But it remains still. Even as he smiles and sticks his tongue out to childishly mock, “Let’s see how you feel ten seconds from now when you pass out.”

Frida doesn’t give him the satisfaction of her reaction, turning to the Red One for some sense of responsibility and maturity. “What’s our next move?”

The Red One is the most sensible of the bunch, although that doesn’t say much… but he’s willing to have an actual conversation without resorting to ridiculing her every move. He’s as mature as a 17 year old can be, it takes every fiber of her being not to groan aloud when he joins his siblings in their childish antics.

But to her disappointment, the snapper shrugs.

How these children were capable of holding back the Krang invasion is unknown to her. They’re undisciplined and unruly, immature and idiotic in their attempts at fighting. It’s annoying having to pick up their slack, frustrating being the only one capable. But, as much as she dislikes them and wishes she never met them, she needs them. She needs that miracle handiwork, even if it kills her in the end.

[mxrtixnzwrld]

🩵 “when i’m coming down” 🩵

pairing: osomatsu matsuno x reader

summary: osomatsu may be greedy, lazy and altogether kind of a scum bag but there’s always one person who doesn’t mind. he wants you so bad he ended up in front of your house in a drunken stupor.

tropes: one-sided attraction, pining, first kiss, drunken confessions, confessions

warnings: alcohol usage, may be a lil ooc

Knock Knock Knock

“Y/n! Y/n~!! Open the door!” Osomatsu yells from outside your door.

Knock knock-

You open the door to see a plastered Osomatsu leaning against your door. His face burned a bright red as he held a grin on his face.

“Are you okay?” You asked helping Osomatsu to your couch lightly kicking the door shut. This wasn’t the first time he came to your house when he was drunk. To be honest he never gave you a reason when you asked either. He always derailed the question with another absurd topic to match.

“You care so much about me.. why?” Osomatsu asked staring off in front of him. The tension in the room rose making you stand up to find him a blanket and pillow.

“Because you’re my friend Osomatsu, friends care about each other.” You sigh into the still air. Crickets chirped outside as silence once again filled the room. Just friends.. yeah.. that’s what you guys were. You knew deep down you wanted more but Osomatsu usually verbalized what he does and doesn’t like; not saying that he said you’re not his type but.. from what you seen you aren’t his type either.

“Yea but why? What do you like about me specifically?” Osomatsu said getting up from the couch and grabbing the blankets from out of your hands gently. As he took the blankets he looked to you with an unrecognizable expression.

“Well Osomatsu, I think you’re the funniest of your brothers, I like how you’re usually blunt and straightforward and deep down I can tell you’re really caring.” As you answered he slipped into silence before walking back to the living room with the blanket he had took from your hands. Although the more silence seemed to seep through every crack of your house you stopped and thought.

‘Osomatsu is usually more upbeat and cheerful.. even when he is drunk’

You continue looking through your cabinet for a spare pillow for another 5 minutes before heading back in the living room to see Osomatsu already comfy on the couch spread out. His right leg hangs off the couch as the other is planted on the couch, the blanket draped over him and the couch.

“Hey Osomatsu are.. are you okay? You usually don’t ask stuff like that when you’re drunk?” You asked for Osomatsu to look you in your eyes with his drunken, indescribable stare.

“You’re so out of my league,” Osomatsu bluntly sighs before continuing to flip through channels. Your face flushed at his comments. You continue to stand behind the couch as he finally picks a show trying to figure out how to respond to him.

“You’re so fuckin fine! I’m surprised you aren’t dating so rich fuck or someone as hot as you,” he continues seeming to carry off on his own. The more he spoke the more he revealed.

“I’ve wanted you for so long now,” he sighed focusing on watching the show. You stand there and watch it for a little bit before Osomatsu begins shuffling around.

“Are you gonna stand behind me like a creep or are you gonna sit?” He laughed catching you off guard. His words process before you finally move to sit where he made room. It started out somewhat normal before you yawned.

“Are you tired, I’m about to crash if you wanna just sleep with me.” He said with his usual grin plastered on his face. Your face begins to heat up growing in redness and warmth. You hear the couch shift before hesitating.

“Please y/n, I can’t get you out of my head.” Osomatsu muttered low, almost desperate enough to sound like a whimper. You fold laying with him on the couch so your back was pressing against his chest.

“..what do you mean osomatsu?” You said trying to process what he had said to you. You stare off thinking about it until his arms gently slip around your waist. Way different than the way he would touch you when he’s sober. Osomatsu was a pervert at heart and when he was sober he certainly showed it. He never groped you or anything but sometimes you noticed his hands would slide just above your ass and put his head on your shoulder.

“.. talk about it in the morning,” he mumbled moving closer to cuddle with you. Tension had you strung high at first until you sat and realized how much you loved Osomatsu’s touch, his confidence, the way he kept your attention, and his warmth he always seemed to have. As you drifted off to sleep you hear Osomatsu’s soft mumbles in your ear.

Birds chirp as daylight shines through the living room curtains. You squint your eyes at the sudden bright light realizing you were still in Osomatsu’s arms. The red flush on your face returns as you look up that the clock.

8:54 am

You yawn and attempt to stretch before escaping Osomatsu’s grasp. From the times before he automatically assumes you’ll make food for him, which you would, but you also have to make more of it because of his gluttony. He loved your food, especially after drinking the night away and sleeping it off on your comfortable couch instead of sharing with his annoying brothers.

You crack your back before sleepily stumbling your way to your bathroom so you can shower and brush your teeth. In your shower you thought more about what he said. He wants you, he can’t get you out of his head, he walks all the way to your house knowing it’s farther than his just to go to sleep.

You get out of the shower, steam filling the room and slip into your room to get dressed for the day. After you had finished your morning routine you began cooking omelettes for you and Osomatsu.

“Aww look at you make me food like a house wife,” Osomatsu snickered in as he walked to your side to watch you cook. It’s another thing he always did that seemed like it served no purpose. You know he’s not watching to learn. None the less you flush at his comment and push away from him playfully.

As you season the egg osomatsu breaks away to look through the cabinet for anything to snack on. The two of you sit in silence with nothing but the sound of you cooking and Osomatsu rummaging in cabinets being heard until you broke the silence.

“Oso was.. everything you said to me.. true? When you came home yesterday?” You ask, worry painting over your face as you hear him stop moving for a moment. It was something so small, so minuscule but it made his chest flutter. You said it like this was his house too.

“Yeah… are you mad?” Osomatsu asked before closing the cabinets. He watched the expression on your face.

“N-no.. I was actually hoping you were telling the truth.” You sigh a shaky breath feeling all of your nerves tighten all at once at his response. You hear nothing until Osomatsu moves to push you against the counter. He wasn’t rough but you could tell there was desire motivating his action. As the small of your back pressed against the counter he towered over you with a wide smile.

“You’ll be my girlfriend? Finally~” he said moving his face closer to yours.

“You know how to kiss?” Osomatsu asked for you to nod. He rushed to finally close the gap between the two of you, his hands exploring your waist and find their way to your ass before squeezing.

You taught him how to kiss with tongue. Originally you were the dominant one but the tables turn when Osomatsu finally catches on to the momentum. The two of you separate after a while and catch your breath as the two of you looking into eachother eyes, Osomatsu’s traveling down your body.

“Do you think the kiss was good enough to get me food~?” Osomatsu asked for you to sigh and chuckle.

You laugh and nod sliding past him to continue cooking. He follows but instead of there being distance his arms wrap around your waist as he looked over your shoulder at what you were doing.

Bonus Scene

“Guess who just tongued his girl down!!” Osomatsu yells as he slams the doors to his parents house open.

A collection of sounds come from his younger brothers, from groans to sighs, all being unhappy with his volume.

“Osomatsu you don’t even have a girlfriend-“ Choromatsu rolls his eyes and goes back to reading his manga before it’s snatched from his hands and replaces with Osomatsu’s phone.

“Read and weep virgin loser.” Osomatsu says proudly. He watched Choromatsu’s eyes widen as he reads the texts.

“You’re dating y/n??? How’d you even bag that??” Choromatsu yells as the other brothers gather around the phone to read you and Osomatsu’s text messages.

•.•.•.•

oso: You wanna come to my house today right?

y/n: yea are your brothers home?

oso: no

y/n: ur lyin, karamatsu just sent me a picture of his clothes in the closet.

oso: .. they don’t need to be here

y/n: relax I’ll be with you anyway 😭😭

oso: .. as long as I get to see you lookin all sexy

y/n: goodbye oso😭 I love you

oso: I love you and your sexy ass too ❤️

•.•.•.•

“… lucky bastard.” Ichimatsu sucks his teeth and mutters before going back to what they were doing. They would’ve thought of a plan to break them up but.. y/n knows them too well.

Author Notes: Hey guys!! Nexus here, please don’t mind my writing.. haven’t written in a while but I’m picking it back up. Lmk what you want to see next. Reblogging and sharing is very appreciated, I love you all and I’ll continue to write for my other characters.

©mxrtixnzwrld. do not copy, modify, translate, repost any of my work! reblogging is greatly appreciated!!

[bunny-eats-fox]

lost on you | part XVI

MIYA ATSUMU X PLUS SIZE, FEMALE READER

words count : 5633

chapter warning : blood mentioned (nosebleed)

<< XV

-----------

With a heavy sigh (because why could your brain never shut up?), you knew, no matter how often you told yourself, you would finally end it - for real this time! - you never would. Because, despite you constantly worrying and overthinking it, you secretly (or not so secretly) loved the attention Tsumu gave you. The way he made you feel loved and desired… even if he was faking it, probably, still made you feel special just for once. Even if you would never know his real reason and even if you were a little scared that, in the end, maybe he only did it to hurt you as a revenge for how you treated him the past years, you didn’t have it in you to end it. Though, when the day would come – and it inevitably would – when he would break this weird situationship off, you weren’t sure if you could handle that rejection.

Though despite knowing all that, you wanted to get “loved” for just a little longer, even if it was just a fake love; you wanted to indulge in the fantasy of “dating Osamu”, or whatever at that point, and continue the relationship  you had. Even if it meant more pain in the end, when it all would inevitably crumble to pieces.  You never imagined you would accustom so quickly to the way things were between you and Atsumu now, but being touch- and love-starved sure helped a ton with that. Although it sure was a little bit embarrassing and you wondered if he ever found you desperate…

Regardless, the whole “you would totally end it all for good this time” was yet another empty threat you told yourself to feel better about your childish little sarcastic comment you made.

“Hey, Senpai!”, Ruka’s sudden greeting made you jump. You were so caught up in your own thoughts, you didn't even hear her come inside.

“Ruka! What are ya doing here?”            

“Thought I’d come and help ya.”, she grinned and immediately got to work to fill up another tray with cups of water.

You were speechless for a second, but then quickly turned to her properly. As much as the thought of them dating honestly really annoyed you (and you hated that you couldn't even figure out why the hell it did to that extend), you had to apologize to her for being so sarcastically rude like a toddler.

“Thank ya Ruka, and I’m sorry. I… was really childish just now. The whole Osamu-Mia thing, ya know…it’s been rough, but that was still uncalled for, so I mean… if ya like Tsumu, we could try something an-“

“Oh my God, (Y/n)-senpai, noooo.”, she immediately waved her hands then crossed them to show an X, emphasizing her next words even more with that gesture, “Aaaabsolutely hell to the fuck no! Atsumu-senpai is objectively hot, yeah, and generally a nice guy and a great Senpai and friend, but that’s literally it. He is SO not my type. I don’t harbor any feelings for him that would go beyond friendship. His chaotic ass is someone else’s problem one day, deeeeeefinitely not mine.”, then she laughed and teasingly elbowed you.

“I just wanted to tease ya a little and it worked, hahaha. It’s okay. Ya didn’t hurt my feelings or anything.”

“Oh… Rukaaaaa”, you whined and then pouted, “Ya so mean, teasing me like that.”, then playfully and gently elbowed her back.

“I didn't think it would work on ya, Senpai, since it’s Atsumu-senpai, ya know? Or could it be… ya actually liiiike-”

“What no!?”, you hastily refused and laughed nervously, “Hell no. I mean.. like yer said, it’s Atsumu. His chaotic ass is someone else’s problem one day, not mine. I don't even like him like that, like yeah he is nice and funny and all, but still he’s my best friend, just that. I mean, we even shared a crib together, so I can’t even imagine feeling anything more than friendship for him, ya know?”

You knew damn well that Ruka did not buy that at all, her raised eyebrow and the suppressed grin didn't do a good job at hiding that either. But, she simply nodded in agreement and turned back to her tray.

“Mn, I totes get that, Senpai.”

With a small sigh, you were glad she just accepted your awkward way of explaining to her that you absolutely did not harbor any feelings for the older twin. Well, despite some sexual feelings, but that was normal, given the friends-with-benefits thing you’ve got going on, but other than that? You did not feel anything!

Thankfully, by the time you were done, both of you giggled again as you walked out of the Ryokan, each carrying a tray with cups of water.

Simply glad you didn’t make things awkward between Ruka and you, you walked back to the beach. Your conversation continued as you walked and you were simply happy you could forget about the weird situation you were in for a moment. Truly… only for a moment though.

As you walked to the spot with the volleyball net, the boys were in a heated battle still, but Ruka didn’t care at all. With a cheerful “(Y/n)-senpai and I are back, guys!” she got the attention of everyone. Well, no. She got the attention of one – only one.

The moment Atsumu heard your name, he physically couldn’t stop himself from turning his head. Since, the moment he realized you were gone, he had slightly less fun playing against his former team mates. So, naturally, when he heard you were back, he wanted to confirm and look for himself.

Oh, how foolish of him.

He watched as your face went from a smile to a panicked expression in just a second when you looked over. The next thing he heard was your frantic “Tsumu look out!” and when he inevitably looked up, there was no time to react as the volleyball landed directly in his face.

Now, it wasn’t just lightly served over the net. It was a full blown, full force spike from his brother that hit him right in the face. Safe to say, the force of the spike knocked him off his feet and he fell backwards into the sand, his hands immediately covering his aching face. A wave of embarrassment, and also pain, brought tears to his eyes.

“Miya-kun are you alright?!” Mia immediately yelled and ran up to him. Ugh, her voice made the throbbing pain even more unbearable.

When he glanced up, she, as well as the others, circled him as he laid there in the sand. Just hearing her “That looked really painful, are you alright!?” annoyed him so unbelievably much and he really wanted to shout at her to shut the fuck up for once and leave him alone. However, the moment he heard your “Tsumu! Ya good?!”, he didn’t feel that bad anymore.

“Yeah…” Though, when he finally moved his hands from his face, it probably didn’t look “good” to you and he probably knew why, when he felt something warm trickle down his nose to his lips. Tsumu witnessed something beautiful that moment when you, who stood further away, immediately pushed through Suna and Samu plus appendage (Mia) - as they stood closest to him - and shoved Osamu’s girlfriend to the side that way. She squeaked, stumbled and dramatically fell against her boyfriend. If only you would rush to see him without that worried expression on your face.

“Okay, come on. Sit up. Now.”, you said, grabbed his hands and pulled him into a sitting position. The blood immediately dripped faster and his knee-jerk reaction was to hiss a “Fuck!” and tilt his head back, but you knew better.

“Head down! Or do yer wanna drink ya own blood, idiot?”, you said and pushed his head down so the blood freely dropped onto the sand. Even that made his heart jump. After all, weren't you just worried about him? How was he not supposed to be happy about that?

Everyone just quietly watched once you plopped down in front of him, probably because they had such accidents back in high school and you had handled those as well, so they didn’t interfere with your work. Slowly, the circle disappeared, also thanks to Ruka who tried to bribe them with the cups of water. Though, all of that didn't matter to Atsumu any longer when you gently cupped his unscathed cheek and slightly turned his head.

“Do ya feel dizzy? Think yer can stand? Let’s see... Yer cheek’s all red and it seems like ya have a cut on the lip…Nose looks good though.”, you inspected his face and even though he knew it was the worst timing, Atsumu felt a little… shy? Because you were so close and also worried about him. It did make his heart flutter a little.

“Nah, not dizzy. Should be fine.”

“Okay, let’s go back though, just to be safe. That was no light spike, we gotta observe and make sure ya don’t have a concussion.” 

“Don’t worry so much, (Y/n), he’s an idiot with a head of steel. Honestly, I hope the volleyball’s okay.”, Samu made light of the situation.

“Samu!”, you immediately looked up with an angry scowl, making his twin visibly flinch and Atsumu thought he heard a small “My bad.”, before you turned back to him, “Let’s go.”

Akagi, Suna and Aran had to quickly look away, because that was awkward. Ruka was just stunned, because throughout all the years she knew you, she had never heard you talk back to Osamu like that. At least not in that sort of tone, usually you would have playfully “exhorted” him, but never meant too seriously. Samu looked a bit embarrassed and uncomfortable, since you would usually laugh at his stupid remarks to make fun of his brother.

But, no one was probably as shocked, to be quite honest, as Atsumu.

He wondered if anyone was capable of hearing his heartbeat because of how fiercely it thumped inside his chest. Atsumu didn’t even know what to say, he just let himself get pulled up by you into a standing position and accepted his t-shirt as a cloth for his blood. Even though he stumbled for a moment, he quickly gained back control over his limbs and was able to walk normally.

You had never told off Osamu before. Especially not in regards to him and that was even more amazing.

“Thanks.” That was all he managed to say, but you just shook your head and made sure to walk closely by his side, just so he wouldn’t suddenly stumble and fall.

The walk back to the Ryokan was wrapped in silence.

“Wait, lemme get the sand off ya or aunty will be livid if we drag that inside.”, you said once you reached the Ryokan and quickly started brushing it off. It showed him once more how comfortable you had become with one another, when you didn’t even think twice about it and patted the sand off his butt and worked your way down his legs to his ankles.

A small shiver ran down his spine, but he kept still otherwise. Who knew all he had to do was get a volleyball spiked in his face for you to be so cute and couple-y with him?

After that procedure, you went inside, snuck past his aunt, so she wouldn’t unnecessarily worry, and got back to your room for the week. Once you pulled out the big towel on the futon, so he could sit down, you looked at his face again.

“Okay, the bleeding has already stopped, so that’s a good sign. Do ya still feel okay? Not foggy or dizzy or anything? Vision’s good?”, you asked him all sorts of questions and Atsumu just nodded.

“All’s good. I’m getting a headache though, but I think that’s inevitable after getting spiked that hard. Otherwise, I’m a-okay.” He even gestured the “Ok”-sign with his fingers as he grinned a little.

“Good. Tell me if anything changes though. We don’t wanna risk anything.”

“Mn.”

Atsumu watched as you got a little something from your suitcase. When you came back to the futon, he realized it was a small emergency pouch.

“Always prepared, huh?”, he teased you and you just playfully slapped his arm with the back of your hand.

“Good thing I am always prepared for something to go wrong, huh? Ever since we were little, ya would get into a fight with Samu or do something else stupid and hurt yourself.”

Now that it seemed he was okay, Atsumu was happy to see you were visibly more relaxed and teased him back.

“I know. Thanks for always being prepared and helping me out.”, he earnestly said.

“It’s okay… I guess that’s my cross to bear being friends with two hotheaded idiot twins.”, you dramatically sighed and in the end, you both chuckled before you properly tended to the wound on his lip.

For a few moments, he was quiet as you dabbed disinfectant solution on his lip and cleaned the small cut. Then he said, “Thank you, though. Not only for that, but also for standing up for me against Samu.”

“Eh, I wouldn’t call it “standing up” per se, he just said something stupid that was totally unnecessary in that situation, but yeah. No problem.”, you smiled at him so cutely he seriously couldn’t help himself anymore.

Thus, he interrupted your cleaning and leaned forward, kissing you fully on your lips, even if his stung a little. Sadly, you pulled back almost immediately. However, not because, as he believed, you were uncomfortable, rather because you were worried.

“Oii ya dummy, doesn’t that hurt??”

“Mnnn…”, he playfully tilted his head back and forth to ‘think’, though then he grinned, “A little. But it’s fine, I wanna kiss yer fully or … do ya hate it…?”

“Well it did feel a little weird and the disinfectant’s kinda gross…”, you got a little quieter at the end and before he could even say something, you had already cupped the cheek that was spared from the spike and leaned in for another kiss.

Atsumu was confused at first when he felt your touch, but the second your soft lips brushed against his, he was smitten. Reaching out to cup your own cheek, he pulled you in closer. He didn’t care about the slight burn, all he felt was that twinge in his stomach he always got when his feelings for you were about to explode. Seriously, he was just so happy, despite getting spiked in the face.

When he pulled back, Atsumu couldn’t contain his stupid happy grin. Though you just sighed and playfully shook your head with an eye roll, before you got back to treating his small wounds.

“So, do yer wanna take a shower to get all the sand off and then lie down?”, you asked while you put away your emergency pouch again.

“Mnnn maybe. My head’s kinda hurting and sleep would probably fix it but I dunno, I don’t wanna stay inside. You?”

“Yeah, I mean it’s such a nice day, but I mean, ya should probably really rest up after that hit. I honestly think I’ll just do my nails if I already have the time. They do be looking a little ugly because of all the exam stress. And I did bring my polish and stuff… Mhnn…”

He watched as you inspected your nails that were usually painted, though now most of the polish had flaked off. Atsumu knew, because it was an open secret he loved looking at you, so of course he also noticed the little details. Besides, he absolutely loved it when you had freshly painted nails, because it just looked so good with your hand wrapped around his co-

“So? What d’ya think? Wanna join me outside for a painting session or wanna stay here and rest up until the others come back from their hike?”, you interrupted his naughty thoughts and he immediately got bashful, as if you had just caught him in a very risqué situation.

Coughing a little, he tried to calm down again and then looked up to meet your eyes.

“Yeah I’ll join ya. Just gimme 10 minutes and I’m ready.”

15 minutes later, you and Atsumu sat down at one of the benches the Ryokan offered as a form of relaxation. He sat across from you, watching as you put your nail polish and other things onto the table.

“Ya know… I’m actually happy that happened.”

“Excuseee me, (Y/n)?”, he dramatically exclaimed and faked a shocking expression.

“No!”, you laughed and softly kicked his shin, “I didn’t mean it like that. I wish ya didn’t have to get injured for that. But ya know… getting away from Mia and Samu, just... having a little time to breath and think. I feel like everything that happened in the last like two months is insane and happened in such rapid succession. I mean, them…then the thing we’ve got going on, final exams, this trip. Like it’s crazy how quickly time flies, really.”

With his head leaning on his arms that rested on the table, he could only nod and grumble in approval. A lot did happen in such a short amount of time, but, his goal was still clear: Make you fall in love with him and forget his brother. No matter how long it took or how much he would get hurt in the process, if you would confidently and with all your heart choose him over Samu one day, he could die happy. And if one day, you chose someone else as your partner, he would stop trying, but until that day, Atsumu was not ready to give up.

“All good? The stank of the acetone is not too bad?”

The way you worriedly asked him was just adorable. He shook his head with a happy little smile adorning his lips, “Everything’s fine.”, and then he continued to watch as you removed the old polish and prepped your nails.

Honestly, as he watched you file and shape your nails, he wondered if you would do it to him as well. More jokingly than anything, Atsumu then reached out his hand and shook it a little as he asked with an amused undertone, “Can ya do mine, too?”

For a second, you seemed confused, which was to be expected, but he didn’t think you would euphorically take his hand and nod in excitement.

“Hell yeah. Ya know, my secret dream was always to become a nail tech, if uni or something didn’t work out that was like my backup plan, so I’d actually love to do that. Can I paint them too?”

You looked up with a sparkle in your beautiful eyes – that’s when he knew he could never possibly say no to that.

“Sure, I mean I asked and a little bit of polish doesn’t hurt.”

“Awesome. I did bring my forest green polish with me ‘cuz I thought it’d matched with the vibes around the Ryokan pretty well. It does have some sparkle to it though…”

“I don’t mind, gimme.”

Quite honestly, watching you smile and be so happy about this, truly made him the happiest. After all the shit you went through over the last weeks, seeing you ecstatic like that warmed his heart. If he knew he could make you happy just by offering to get his nails painted by you, he would have done that sooner. And to top it off, he could feel your touch as you held his hand and worked on it, so this was truly a win-win situation for him.

“Ya know, I always thought you had pretty hands before, but looking at them this closely… yer really taking good care of them, damn.”, you giggled as you got to work.

“Yer thought my hands were pretty?”, he teased you instantly, because if not, you might have heard how his inner self was kicking his feet and screaming like a little girl because of that simple statement.

Safe to say, you immediately got shy and grumbled, “Kinda…”

“Geez why did ya have to make this weird now?” And his punishment quickly followed when you pinched between his thumb and pointer finger.

“Ow, ow, ow! I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’m just happy.”, he chuckled and whined at the same time.

Why were you so fricking adorable all the time?! You would be the death of him one day.

“Yer so cute…” Atsumu didn’t even realize at first that he hadn’t just thought this, he had also mumbled it. And he only realized that when you kicked his shin again and embarrassingly whined, “Shut up, seriously! No one thinks that besides you, yer so weird!”

But, of course, you had to go ahead and grumble so cutely; though it was surely almost over for him when you looked through your eyelashes all ‘angry’ and then back to his nails again with a little pouty “Hm!”.

Atsumu was so happy, he miserably failed at hiding his stupid happy grin, hence why he buried his face in his still resting arm. The slight stinging and burning of his wounds was the only thing that confirmed that he wasn’t dreaming. He knew you had gotten closer, but witnessing it like that in every interaction you two had, made him so giddy - like a little kid who got a basket full of candy each day. Even if you weren’t a couple (yet) and even if he had to wait many months more, just knowing the relationship you once had as best friends was almost back to where it was, still felt like a big accomplishment to him. Because, despite wanting to touch you, kiss you and just shower you with love, getting back to just doing stupid shit and laughing with you, teasing each other and playfully bicker; all that was also something he had missed a ton.

“I’m so glad we got closer again.” Atsumu said quietly with a blissful smile on his lips.

For a second, you stopped and he felt your eyes on him, hence he looked up and smiled directly at you. When you returned the gestured and smiled at him as well, his heart did a small jump.

“Yeah, me too. I truly forgot how much fun we used to have. I wish I would have never realized my feelings for him, then maybe… we could have stayed that way forever. I got so awkward with Samu and I definitely hurt our friendship with that, too…” You suddenly stopped working on his hand and he realized your glazed eyes once he looked up. “Haha sorry, uhm …”, you fanned yourself, hoping not to start crying.

“I’m sorry Tsumu, really.”, you said with a quiver in your voice, “For how I treated ya. It’s really okay if you actually hate me.”

Quickly, he jumped up, completely ignoring his headache at this point, and rushed around the table to hug you, almost knocking you off the bench due to his force. Thus, you could only hold onto him and accept the tight embrace.

“’s fine. Yer apologize so often and I already told ya it’s okay. I would never hate you, you idiot! Besides…”, he pulled back a little and gently wiped away your tears, “I was never mad or anything, just sad we had this rift between us. So yah… it’s okay now. Really.”   

You looked at him for a second, before he had to hold back a small chuckle when you buried your face in his t-shirt again.

“Thank you. And sorry I got emotional. Our friendship has taken such a weird turn, I… sometimes still don’t know what to think of it. And I’m scared yer gonna use it to take revenge on me for how shitty I’ve treated you as my friend.”

“(Y/n), I… would never. Do ya seriously think so low of me?”, he whispered and hugged you almost a little painfully tight.

“Then… can you tell me the real reason… Why you asked me that time to sleep with you? Why you wanted us to start pretend dating?”

When you looked up to meet his eyes, it took his breath away, but not in a nice sort of way. Because, truthfully, he was a little too stunned to speak. There was no way in hell he could tell you the truth yet. The thought that he might like you, probably never even crossed your mind. Heck, he just found out you basically thought he still hated you secretly.

“I…It’s uhm…”, he stumbled over his words and quickly avoided eye contact, “It’s a little complicated… But I told yer before, right?” Atsumu grabbed your cute, chubby cheeks and kissed you, not caring that any minute his aunt or your friends could come around the corner and see you two. “I already told ya I didn’t ask out of pity or anything, I… just want to help yer get over Samu. Even if it’s a weird way to do that.”

Tsumu couldn’t even take his own lie seriously, but somehow, you seemed okay with that and just nodded. Tough he wished he could read your mind, he couldn’t look into that beautiful little head of your and so, the setter was just happy you accepted his horrible lie. Instead, he squeezed your soft body and snuggled you, simply content that you even allowed him to do that, because a few weeks ago that would have been impossible.

However, as beautiful and intimate that moment felt, it was soon destroyed by a voice that made him gag, “We are baa-AAAACK!?”

It sounded sweet at first and then quickly turned into shock when she saw you two in this tight embrace. Honestly, Mia’s reaction was quite funny, but Atsumu was bracing himself for your inevitable shove, however… it… didn’t come? Instead, you lowered your arms without any haste and then wiped away your tears.

“Ahw no, everything okay, Senpai?”, Ruka was genuinely worried when she was your tears.

“Yeah. Tsumu and I just reconciled and I got a little emotional.”, you smiled and somehow, the boys had a relieved kind of look on their face. Well, they had witnessed your relationship with Atsumu decline over the years, so they were probably just happy for him.

“Soo what were you two doing, hm? Miya-kun, are you sure you’re okay? Shouldn’t you rest up, hm?”, Mia gave herself air and he seriously couldn’t stand it.

“Aahhh damn it, I wanted to do my nails before y’all got back!”, you then exclaimed all of a sudden and Atsumu, who had just fobbed her off with a “Yeah, yeah ‘s fine.”, added, “And mine!”

“Y’all were doing nails?”, Ruka immediately dashed to the table, “Me too, me too.”

You had let go of him again, which was a little sad, but he resisted the urge to go too far and accepted it. Instead, he sat down beside you on the bench while everyone else also came over.

“Can I see the color?”, Rin asked and you immediately gave the polish to him.

“Ya said yer bf’s a nail tech, right? I’m so jealous, imagine yer lover can get yer nails done for ya, I’d love that.”, you giggled and Suna just blushed a little and sat down on the bench opposite of you and Atsumu.

“Yah, he always wants to do something on mine but I just don’t really like the feeling of something on my nails, so yeah… He gets pretty disappointed at times.”, he chuckled and quickly, the conversation had once again reached a nice flow when Aran started talking about his fiancée’s nail, which then turned into Kita telling his story about how he had to maintain his grandma’s nails because she couldn’t properly clip and file them herself without her wrists and fingers aching afterwards.

So, this small insignificant thing turned into a whole conversation and Atsumu completely forgot to ask why they were already here (didn’t they want to walk around the village and hike up the mountain or something?) and instead, he enjoyed the atmosphere. Hanging around with his friends after such a long time truly was just really a joyous experience. Besides, watching Mia out of the corner of his eyes, struggling to fit in and contribute to the conversation was hilarious to him.

That’s what she got for imposing on your trip!

“Sooo.. what happened to the hike? Already had a tour through the village?”, you then asked once the conversation had calmed down again.

“Well you see-“

“Osamu-kun and I were pretty worried about Miya-kun, so I said I wanted to get back and check on you. Right?”, Mia interrupted Omimi rudely and then turned to her boyfriend for support.

It’s only been the second day, but Atsumu could feel the tension between everyone else and Mia and it certainly got worse every time she opened her mouth.

“Yah, I didn’t mean to spike it so hard, sorry bro.” Osamu reached out his hand and ruffled his twin’s hair.

“Mnn, it’s fine.”

Atsumu shooed his hand away and then frowned.

“Honestly, my head’s kinda killing me so… I might get inside and get some rest if that’s okay with y’all?”

Everyone nodded with a sound of approval, though before he could stand up, he felt your hand on his that stopped him for another second.

“Ya feel dizzy too? Lightheaded?”

He inwardly squeed and felt a heart-squeeze. He loved you so much, he just wanted to scream it from the rooftops for fuck’s sake! Ugh!

“Yah a little maybe, can ya help me? Or I might hit my head again.”

And he totally milked it, but when he saw the little glint in your eyes, he knew you probably weren’t too disappointed.

“Sure. Just a sec.”

“Maybe yer should tell yer aunt and get it checked out though?”, Aran suggested, however, Atsumu quickly waved his hand in a dismissive gesture.

“Naaahh. If it gets worse in a few hours I’ll think about it. For now, I’ll just rest until lunch and it should be perfectly fine.”

“Well, if ya say so…”, Akagi begrudgingly said with a worried face and everyone else seemed to be a little worried about it as well. Though Atsumu assured them that everything was fine if he would just get some rest, besides…

“I’ll have (Y/n) in the room with me if anything were to happen, so ‘s gonna be fine.”

With that, Atsumu didn’t want to hear any more and they understood, but of course, one person didn’t really get the hint that it was enough.

“Are you sure (Y/n)-chan can help you? What if you really have a concussion and you have to vomit or something? Or you get a seizure?”

“Don’t worry Mia, the only person who could get through to this stubborn idiot then would be (Y/n) anyways.”, Osamu tried to calm down his girlfriend. He was either really oblivious and naïve or straight up dumb, because even Atsumu found it ridiculous at this point how “worried” Mia was about him.

“But-“

“’s fine.”, he repeated and interrupted her. Atsumu looked down on her as he stood up, enjoying it just slightly how she flinched under his unamused gaze, “Like Samu said: All I need is (Y/n) anyways if anything were to happen.”

“Oh my God, yer so fucking dramatic Tsumu. Shut up and come on, I thought ya needed rest?”, you walked past him and playfully “angrily” slapped his shoulder (to mask your shyness possibly?).

In the corner of his eye, he only saw Ruka and the guys exchanging a look that said “Daaaayum”, before he followed you. Or rather, you had waited for him and then went alongside him to make sure he wouldn’t suddenly really get sick or anything.

Successfully, you and Tsumu snuck past his aunt, so again, she wouldn’t get worried seeing his little injury. Thus, once you reached your room for the week, you sighed a little and put your nail polish back into your little bag. He did feel a little guilty you couldn’t paint your nails.

“Sorry, let’s do ‘em tonight if the weather allows it?”

“Ah yeah, no problem. It was unfortunate timing. But damn, ya ran away from Mia again, even though sHe WaS sO wOrRiEd AbOuT yOu.”, you mocked her and then laughed when you looked up and saw his face that also displayed pure annoyance.

“She should worry about her own damn boyfriend and leave me the fuck alone.”, he mumbled and suddenly plopped down behind you.

“Nehh?”, he hugged your plush form and whispered, “Let’s rest together, yeah?”

You looked behind you and were confronted with his puppy eyes, which, with the blue bruise on his cheek and the injured lip, were even more effective (he hoped at least). For a moment, he watched your internal struggle, before you just sighed and nodded.

“Fine. Let’s rest together, but this time sir – no touching or anything, yer just gonna rest for real, capiche?”

“Aye, aye ma’am.”

You looked at each other for a moment, before you both inevitably had to laugh.

Yeah.

He loved that.

The mood was just great.

Atsumu knew he had never been closer to you before in his life than in that point in time. And no Mia or someone else was going to get between you and him, not after he had finally closed that rift again after so long.

Whatever happened from now on, he just felt it everywhere in his body, his soul and heart: He got so much closer to his goal and he was not accepting any setbacks anymore.

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

next part (XVII) >> || masterlist

all characters canonically under 18 are always aged up in explicit nsfw situations ; english is not my native language so i apologize for any mistakes

Tag List: (🥺💕)

@kelly-fushiguro345

[jasontoddsmommyissues]

Daisies

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Femme!Henderson!Reader

Summary: Eddie comes to school acting strangely and you’re determined to figure out why 

Warnings: Mentions of parent death and mourning, allusions to suicide and abuse, Eddie's guilt/insecurity, swearing, reader uses she/her pronouns, Reader is Dustin’s sister but no physical descriptions are used and you can read it as an adopted sibling if you want

A/N: I’ve had this idea forever and finally finished it! But yeah, please do mind the warnings, there’s some heavy stuff in here. 

My Master List | Ao3

You hum to yourself as you gather the necessary supplies from your locker. It’s a cold, gray day in late fall and a chill hangs heavy in the air. Normally this would bother you more, but you’re currently swathed in an oversized flannel Eddie had left at your place the other day. 

Admittedly, you and Eddie haven’t been together all that long, but in that time, you’ve grown extremely close. The two of you just fit together in a way you never have with someone before. Most people in Hawkins don’t really get Eddie, but you like to think you understand him in a way that a lot of people can’t, or maybe just won't take the time to. 

That’s how you know, when he comes trudging into English class several minutes late, that something’s up. Eddie being late to class isn’t exactly out of character on its own, but him blowing you off is. You like to think you’ve been a good influence on him, his tendency to cut class has certainly lessened with you around. You almost always walk to your shared English class together, usually with Eddie practically hanging off of you, so him not showing up without telling you is odd. 

“Mr. Munson, you’re late”, Mrs. O’Donnell says, affixing him with a stern glare. 

“Sorry”, he mutters, making his way to his desk. That’s strange too. He’s usually got a clever remark lined up for these situations. 

You look over at him as he plops down at his usual spot beside you. He doesn’t say anything to you, probably because Mrs. O’Donnell has started back in on her lecture, although he normally wouldn’t let that stop him. 

Your immediate thought is that maybe you’d upset him somehow, even if you can’t imagine what you possibly could’ve done. The last interaction you’d had with him had been perfectly normal, and even if it hadn’t, he usually was the type to speak his mind, especially to you. 

Maybe you’re over thinking things. Maybe he was just running late. He’s never exactly been known for being organized or having good time management skills. 

You try to tell yourself that, but as the class period wears on, you get more concerned. Normally Eddie spends class making faces at you and muttering snarky comments about Mrs. O’Donnell’s lecture under his breath. He’s quiet today, doesn’t look over at you, just stares ahead, though you can tell from the distant look in his eye, he isn’t paying attention to what Mrs. O’Donnell is saying either. 

Your worrying makes class seem to go on longer than usual. It feels like a miracle when the bell finally rings.

“Hey”, you say to Eddie as he gathers up his stuff, “I missed you earlier.”

“Hm?” he says, “oh yeah, sorry. I was running late this morning.”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah of course, why?”

“I don’t know, you seem kind of…off today.”

“I’m fine”, he insists. 

You don’t really believe him, but it doesn’t seem like he’s planning on talking to you about it, so there isn’t anything else you can do. He’s still quiet when he walks you to your locker. You get your books and lean in to give the customary kiss on the lips you always share. Usually Eddie would respond enthusiastically, but he just kind of stands there this time. 

-

You don’t see Eddie again until lunch, and that ends up being more of the same. The rest of the table is engaged in a lively discussion that Eddie only occasionally adds to. You try to get him engaged in the conversation, but every question or comment you shoot him is met with a limited response. 

None of the others seem to notice, or if they do they don’t mention it, but then again you suppose a gaggle of teenage boys can’t be expected to have an outpouring of emotional awareness. You notice, though, and it's highly concerning. Whether Eddie’s mood is somehow related to your relationship or if it’s something else causing it, it’s clear he’s going through something right now. All you really want to do is find some way to help him, but without knowing what’s going on, you’re not sure how to do it. 

-

It’s not a surprise when Eddie doesn’t appear at your locker at the end of the day to walk you to your car. Truthfully, you’re a little hurt by it, but try to remind yourself it might not be because of anything you did. 

You don’t see Eddie, but you do see Jeff and Gareth walking by, and decide they’re probably your best bet at figuring out what’s going on with your boyfriend. Maybe he mentioned something to one of them. 

“Hey”, you call, walking over to them.

“Oh hey”, Jeff greets. 

“Do you guys know if something’s going on with Eddie?” you ask, “he was acting really weird today.”

“Oh yeah, I’m not surprised”, Jeff tells you, “he sometimes gets like that this time of year.”

You frown. “What do you mean?”

“You don’t know?” Gareth asks. 

“Know what?”

“He probably wouldn’t want us telling you this”, Jeff explains, “but this is right around the time his mom died.”

“Oh”, you say. 

Logically, you know that Eddie’s mom isn’t in his life. He’s made an off hand mention or two of his dad being in prison, but you can’t recall him ever bringing his mom up. It’s really not something you’ve ever thought about before, but it does make sense.

“Yeah. He was a little kid when it happened but sometimes, when it gets close to the anniversary, he gets a little weird”, Jeff informs you, “Don’t worry, he’ll be back to normal in a day or two.” 

You give him a little nod before walking off. Dustin is already waiting for you in your car when you get there. As you start the ignition, your mind races with thoughts of Eddie. 

Jeff and Gareth didn’t seem all that concerned, but you’re not so sure. You honestly feel a little bad for thinking Eddie’s behavior was somehow about you. Maybe this is normal for him, and maybe it is only temporary, but it’s still extremely jarring to see your normally energetic boyfriend behaving so strangely. 

By the time you’re pulling into your driveway, you’ve come to a decision. Dustin climbs out of the passenger seat, but you don’t follow his lead. 

“Aren’t you coming?” he asks. 

“You go ahead”, you tell him, “I’m gonna go to Eddie’s. Be back later.”

He gives you a confused look, but ultimately just shrugs and heads inside while you pull back out and head off towards Forest Hills Trailer Park. 

-

Thankfully, Eddie’s van is parked in front of the trailer when you get there. You knock on the door and wait patiently for him to answer. 

He does, after a moment, looking surprised. 

“Uh, hey”, he says, “what are you doing here?”

“Well”, you explain, “you seemed so off today at school. I wanted to come and make sure you were okay.”

“I’m fine”, he insists once again, “you don’t need to check up on me.”

“Eddie”, you admit, “I know about your mom.”

He deflates slightly. You almost expect him to get angry that you learned this detail behind his back, but instead he just sighs and steps to the side, gesturing for you to come inside. 

“I feel bad”, you say as he leads you to his room, “I know you probably would’ve told me if you wanted to talk about it. I just, I was worried because you were acting so weird and I asked Jeff and Gareth so they told me.”

“It’s fine”, he says, motioning for you to sit down on his bed, “I didn’t mean to worry you. I was just distracted today.” 

“You don't have to apologize”, you say, hopping onto the bed while he walks over to his desk and starts rooting around for something. 

“No. It’s stupid”, he says, “I mean, I was 7 when it happened. It shouldn’t, you know, affect me so much.”

“You lost a parent”, you reply, “I think you can be forgiven for still being upset about that.”

Eddie just shrugs, like he doesn’t quite believe you. He walks over and sits down beside you, handing you what you realize is a worn old photo of a young woman. 

“Is this her?” you ask, but the answer is obvious. Her soft, plush lips and big brown eyes? They’re just like Eddie’s. 

Eddie nods. 

“She’s beautiful”, you tell him. 

“Yeah”, Eddie says wistfully, “I always kind of wondered what she was doing with my old man. I mean, I know why. ‘Cause of me. But I just…she was young and beautiful and she could’ve had anyone. Why’d she pick him?”

You gently rub his shoulder. You don’t have an answer for that. 

“Anyway”, he continues, “she um, she took a bunch of pills one day. I came home from school and she was…she was gone. I mean, I don’t really blame her or anything. Things were rough. Her and dad fought a lot. He was a drinker and he’d always be out all night doing who knows what. He had problems keeping a steady job, so we had a lot of money trouble too. I guess it was all too much for her.”

“Oh my god”, you say, “that’s awful.”

“I used to be kind of mad at her, you know”, he sighs, “I know she had issues and stuff, but I just…I hated that she left me alone with him. My dad I mean.”

“I’m really sorry you had to go through that”, you tell him softly. 

“I’m not mad anymore”, he assures you, “I just miss her now.”

You run a hand softly across his back. You’ve never seen Eddie like this before. It’s honestly a little overwhelming, because you know this isn’t something he’d tell just anyone. He’s putting an insane amount of trust in you right now, and you wish you could do more to help him. 

“Do you ever go see her?” you ask after a moment, “I mean, is she buried in town?”

“Yeah”, he answers, “but I don’t…I haven’t been in a long time.”

“Do you want to?” you say, “I mean, you don’t have to or anything. But I’ll go with you if you do.”

He thinks about it for a moment, and you worry you might have overstepped your boundaries, but then he lets out a sigh. 

“I guess we can, yeah.”

-

You buy a nice bouquet of daisies on your way to the cemetery. Eddie clearly doesn’t know anything about flowers, but he does recall his mom having daisies in her garden and liking them a lot. 

He wasn’t kidding when he said he hasn’t been in a while, or so you assume because it takes a little bit of effort for him to locate her grave. 

The grave itself is well kept, but bare. You take a second to read over the inscription on the headstone. 

Pamela Eileen Munson

January 11th, 1947-November 15th, 1973

Beloved Wife, Mother and Daughter

Eddie, for his part, just stands there, clutching the bouquet awkwardly. You start to feel a little bit of guilt creeping in, then. Did you make a mistake by convincing Eddie to come here? You know some people find comfort in visiting the graves of their loved ones, but maybe he doesn’t.

“Um…hey mom”, he finally starts, “I uh, I’m sorry I haven’t visited in a while. I’ve been…busy I guess. My band is still going. We play at the Hideout every week. We don’t get much of an audience, but hey, it’s a start.”

You grab a hold of Eddie’s hand and give it a gentle, encouraging squeeze.

“Oh, and Hellfire Club”, he continues, starting to sound a little more enthusiastic now, “I’m still running that, too. I still, um, still haven’t graduated yet but I’m working on it. Let’s see, what else?”

He looks over at you and a small but genuine grin starts to creep over his features. 

“I have a girlfriend now”, he says, but his eyes are still on you, not the grave, “she’s…she’s amazing, Mom. She’s beautiful and smart and puts up with all my bullshit.”

His arm wraps around your shoulder and he pulls you in close, pressing a small kiss to your temple. 

“You’d like her a lot”, he says, addressing his mom once again, “in fact, it was her idea to come visit you. I wish you could meet her.” 

As quickly as his smile comes, it’s fading again, and you think you can see tears starting to gather on his lashes. 

“I miss you, Mom”, he says softly, “I love you.”

The two of you stand there for a little while longer, your head on Eddie’s shoulder and your hand gently rubbing his back. Eventually he turns to you. 

“I think I’m ready to go”, he says. 

“Alright”, you reply, “how about we grab some dinner? I’ll buy.”

“You don’t have to do that”, Eddie replies. 

“No, but I want to," you insist. 

A hopeful warmth blooms in your chest when you see Eddie’s grin return, timid but definitely there. 

-

“She loved music”, Eddie recounts as the two of you chat over burgers and milkshakes, “she played piano and she was always listening to her records.”

You smile softly. 

“And she loved gardening too”, Eddie continues, “she was always in the yard. She used to have all these bird feeders and she’d just watch them from the kitchen window.”

“She sounds amazing”, you reply. 

“She was”, Eddie tells you, “I always feel kind of bad, you know? I mean, she gave up everything to take care of me and I repaid her by being a fuck up.”

“You’re not a fuck up”, you assure him. 

“I mean, I’m a third time senior who deals drugs to high schoolers”, Eddie counters, “I know there’s not a lot to be proud of here.”

“Of course there is”, you tell him, “I mean, you’re an amazing guitarist, and you’re super creative. Plus, it’s really sweet how you look out for Dustin and the others. Surely your mom would be proud of that.”

“I guess”, Eddie replies. 

You reach across the table, taking Eddie’s hand in your own and gently rubbing a thumb over it. 

“She would be”, you insist, “you’re an amazing person, Eddie.”

“Maybe”, Eddie sighs, “I just…I can’t help feeling guilty, you know? Her marriage was Hell. My dad was a fucking drunk and half the time didn’t even come home at night. Probably sleeping with other women. And when he was home, he was always angry about something. I saw him hit her a few times.”

“That’s awful”, you say. 

“He-he used to say it was my fault. That if it weren’t for me, she’d still be here…”

There’s tears starting to well in his eyes. You squeeze his hand, your heart stinging at the pain in his voice. 

“It’s not your fault”, you tell him, “you were just a kid. You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m sure she wouldn’t want you to blame yourself.” 

“She wouldn’t have married him if it weren’t for me”, Eddie mutters, “she wouldn’t have been miserable if it weren’t for me.” 

“Eddie”, you insist softly, “don’t put that on yourself. It’s not your fault things happened the way they did.”

Eddie doesn’t argue, but you can tell by the look on his face that he doesn’t believe you. To most people, Eddie is the very picture of confidence and bravado. Few people get close enough to see beneath all of that. In the time you’ve gotten to know him, though, you’ve come to understand that Eddie has constructed that persona for himself, a carefully crafted suit of armor he wears to protect himself from the world. The words he’s heard from both his peers and his father, they’ve chipped away at him, deep down. Much as he plays it off as him not caring, there’s a part of him deep down that does. You understand now, why certain things bother Eddie so much. Being told he was somehow to blame for his mother’s death, that had to be painful, that had to leave some lasting marks. 

You’re struck in that moment with how profoundly intimate it all is. You know it couldn’t have been easy for Eddie to open up this much to you and you know it means a lot. 

“I um, I’m ready to go now”, Eddie says and you agree, standing up to deposit your food in the trash can. 

“So, um, thanks for all that”, Eddie says as you walk back to your car. 

“Don’t mention it”, you say while the two of you climb in, “and Eddie, you know you can talk to me about anything, right? I won’t ever judge you or anything, I promise.”

“I know”, Eddie says and there’s the faintest glimmer of a tear in his eye and you lean in and press a kiss to his lips. 

-

“Want me to wait around until Wayne gets home?” you ask Eddie. 

“You don’t have to”, Eddie says, “he’s working a double so…”

“Are you sure?” you offer, “I could always call my mom up and tell her Vickie’s cat got put down and she needs emotional support.”

A smile breaks out on Eddie’s face at your proposal. 

“Are you sure you won’t get in trouble?” he asks. 

“Nah”, you say, “I really am helping a friend in need. I’ve got some emergency underwear stashed in my car, so maybe I can just borrow something of yours to sleep in.”

“Yeah”, Eddie agrees,”that sounds good.” 

-

Wayne gets home from his shift in the early hours of the morning. As he walks inside, he’s greeted by the sight of you and Eddie, passed out on the couch, while some movie plays on the tv. He shakes his head, letting out a fond chuckle before preparing for bed himself. 

[whysamwhy123]

For the WIP thingy: Tell me more about Business/Pleasure! And happy b-day 🖤💜🖤

VAMP, thank youuuuuu!! Although, whoops, you picked the super embarrassing thing I'm currently working on, so here's my SHAME! Since I'm perpetually stuck in Rarepair Hell, this is inexplicably a Ricky/ Christian fic annnnnd it's a Sugar Baby AU-type-thing because that's just my trash, OK? I started writing this without any real context, just vibes, and while I don't have everything figured out, I have soooo many ideas for where this could go, even though I probably won't end up writing it because it would need to be smutty and that's very much out of my wheelhouse, but THE VIBES! A little snippet under the cut for anyone who's actually interested!

‘’No shoes in the bedroom,’’ he says, matter-of-fact.

Everything about Christian is so stern and cold. It makes Ricky want to try a little test of his own. A little resistance, just to see how he’ll react. Maybe not the smartest move on his part, but sometimes Ricky can’t resist the urge to break the rules.

He gestures to the boots that Christian’s still wearing. ‘’Do those not count?’’

Christian narrows his eyes at him. Okay, so he definitely doesn’t like having his authority challenged - noted.

‘’My house, my rules,’’ Christian says, folding his arms again. ‘’Either the shoes go, or you go. Your choice.’’

In lieu of a verbal answer, Ricky keeps his gaze focused on Christian as he kicks off his loafers. The corner of Christian’s mouth curls upward ever so slightly. Oh yeah, he can work with this. This guy thinks he’s in control, but Ricky knows better. He’s got a good feeling about this.

‘’Better,’’ Christian says, unfolding his arms. He beckons Ricky over with a single finger. ‘’Come here. Now.''

[skayafair]

Ep 31 random thoughts

At first I was like "isn't it supposed to be gut-wrenching (whoops sorry), why is it comedy" but it came along!

Wow Arthur, digging your own grave with passion, aren't you.  Although I like the display of those little moments everyone has but most choose to forget about - the ugliest, the most shameful ones. Arthur didn't have this choice in his nightmare, but I also appreciate the attitude. "I'm not scared I'm pissed" is a good one in this case. Arthur's getting really used to all the horrors, not that easy to scare or control anymore. It's satisfying to hear, but I'd also like to applaud the brutal honesty.  On the one hand it's useless to pretend in front of a being who's inducing and watching your worst nightmares, who's making you drag yourself through dirt - what's the point, it already knows. On the other hand - it still takes some balls to admit all this baggage.

(Making it really easy to hate him, right, and I actually agree with every James' word here, that punch was well-deserved.) 

(But I also listen to Malevolent not because I like Arthur but because he and all the rest is interesting.)

(John and Yellow - yeah I like those guys tho)

The doubts in John - good, actually, I think John himself would be relieved. He hates lying to his friend, or, rather, being good at it. Knowing he isn't should make it a bit easier.

And I think I like Scratch  it's a really good monster, and this episode was one a the very few that actually made me tense. Scratch is terrifying, and I can't explain exactly why. Probably has to do with digging one's psyche. That sickening nightmarish terror - it's there, it turned out really well. I think this is the type of horror that can actually rattle me and weirdly enough, I enjoy the feeling.

Also I envy Arthur with being so sure he controls his dreams because they are his. Idk pal, if it's some otherwordly (probably) being who's inducing them, the rules may be different and I'd consider this option (which would have probably killed me). So yay! You go man! Confidence and pure spite! Admitting past mistakes is a good thing, but one should know when to stop beating themselves up about those and go on with their life, taking those mistakes into consideration. Looks like hitting the bedrock and still getting back up really helped Arthur to deal with his past and face some aspects he couldn't before. That's a good thing.

But I also have to say this - Arthur having a thoughtful monologue on the nature and essence of the evil while digging a grave was hilarious. You're supposed to be out of breath or you aren't really trying, man! Figures it's a dream, wouldn't have been able to do so irl.

But also. Why the widow's caves were the only place he refused to go so stubbornly? Because he really didn't want to wake up and John's voice was the loudest there? And the prison pits weren't even brought up. Weird.

Knew I was missing smth! First - John is "gold". Aww. Second - "nothing golden is supposed to stay" - not hehe, abandonment issues strike again.

And. Scratch mirroring John in the end with all that "you are my favourite, you let me out and showed the world outside, it's thanks TO YOU" - how soon are they going to catch up and how fucked up will it turn out?

After reading some fandom reactions: y’all I don’t think Arthur wondering if he was happy his daughter wasn’t in this world anymore was “moving on”. I believe he didn’t move on from that loss at all. (”I hope you find your girl” doesn’t sound like that at all.) It was what it was - an ugly little moment when he felt relieved he didn’t have any responsibilities and could be free and do whatever. He wasn’t just letting himself enjoy life - one can do this in any circumstance - but specifically tying it to “because no one was depending on him”. It happens. It’s ugly but it does. It’s not a thought, it’s a feeling, and feelings cannot be controlled or morally schooled. Counsciously Arthur despises those moments but seems to accept them now as they are (which I think is the right way to address them.) I’m no therapist tho, so of course I may be mistaken.

And also I doubt all the words the “mirrors” have said to Arthur in this episode were his own. I think some parts were from Scratch, especially the last - “Larson’s” - ones.

[bluepenguinstories]

Remoras Full Chapter LXXVIII: Island in the Sun

When I thought I had alone time with Ray, I tried confiding with him.

He was in the back, seated at his desk. His usual hangout spot. He enjoyed the occasional peace and quiet, and was able to gather his thoughts. We often sat together and chatted about this and that. Just whatever happened to be going on. We’d rub each other’s backs, get high, and take naps, sometimes on the other’s lap.

Before I spoke up, I looked around every corner. Paranoia just wasn’t my style, but I couldn’t help the sense of dread Aion and Ananke’s presence brought.

After seeing no sign of them, I said:

“Hey. About what those two said –”

“About them being members of The Flashbulb?” He looked up and asked. Even though he wore a dull expression, his eyes shone just the same as when he was in a more delightful mood. I knew I wasn’t dealing with the frazzled, cabin fever Ray.

“Yeah. Do you think they’re dangerous?”

“I don’t know,” he shook his head and groaned. “Aion is...I’d like to say I know him well enough, but that’s simply not true. I think he took not being known as a point of pride. Guess now that he’s here, that pride is biting me in the ass.”

“Heh,” I chuckled and sat on top of the desk. “Just when you think you know a guy…”

“I don’t know much about The Flashbulb itself,” he continued, “besides what Tony told me. He sold them as being small fry, but you saw Remora’s reaction: dead serious.”

“Yeah, but she’s the type to take most things seriously, even if she doesn’t think things through all the time,” I pointed out.

“Same could be said about you.”

“No way! I’m still carefree!”

We both laughed, but that laugh was short lived. That feeling of dread wouldn’t leave.

“I can’t help worrying about the presence,” I admitted, “I fear they’re up to something. Didn’t I tell you about how I met Dr. Faust before?”

“You did. I didn’t take the time to visit, but I appreciate the information you sent me. I trust your judgment, hun. I’ve felt like they were up to trouble the moment they walked in. I just wish I had more of a gauge on Ananke. I know even less about her than I do Lucky.”

“Well, if Aion makes being unknown a point of pride, Ananke seems to do it effortlessly. Although she was the one to admit to her former affiliation when Aion was reluctant to do so.”

“Now why would she do something like that?”

“Maybe she doesn’t see it as something necessary to hide,” I suggested.

Ray opened his mouth, but before he could speak, a familiar figure emerged from around the corner. Sharp-dressed in a striped suit and white gloves, with his combed-over brown hair (and the black undercut).

“Oh look, it’s the lovebirds!” Aion smiled wide, as if he had just got done laughing hysterically at one of his own jokes, “hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

Ray and I gave each other a knowing glance. When I looked back at Aion, I smiled back.

“Not at all! Hope you’re enjoying your stay!”

His expression turned sour.

“Yeah, let’s cut the crap: I know you two were talking about me. Don’t you know that’s rude?”

Ray slipped something in the back of my jeans pocket as I leaped off of the desk.

“Sorry, force of habit. Ray and I have a tendency to talk about anyone who stays with us.”

He scoffed, though it seemed like he was trying to attempt a chuckle, maybe to save face.

“Well, you know, there’s no need for secrets. I’m an open book, after all! Just as me anything!”

His smile returned, but I wasn’t convinced.

“I may have to take you up on that offer later,” I said before walking away.

The night the triple A team arrived, Ray and I discussed them once already. We were laying in bed that night and under thick, orange tartan covers.

“Looks like your old friend finally showed up,” I opened up the conversation.

He turned over away from me. Taking the opportunity, I stroked his small back. On the dresser across from the bed was his fake arm. Most of the day, he wore it around, but in private, he’s long confided how burdensome it actually was. He would say things like, “it’s clunky and I can’t really hold things well with it. It’s easier to just use the one arm than try to bother with it.”

Even if most were unlikely to care, he still wore it around in front of others out of some sense of pleasing others. He would never admit to being concerned about what other people thought of him, but he still liked to conduct himself in a palatable way.

“It’s so weird,” he groaned, followed by a soft sigh as I stroked his neck.

“I can only imagine.”

“I’ve known him as a con artist, a drug dealer, a thief, and a pleasure seeker. He always did like making up fake symbols and implying there was more to him, even when he’d admit there wasn’t truly anything there. That fake amusement park didn’t surprise me in the least. But hearing how he had a secret lair in the mountain full of esoteric information, I just don’t know what to make of that.”

“Neither do I. I’m just hoping the information on angels can help solve our Cronus problem.”

“Was it really enough?”

I didn’t reply. I couldn’t, because I just didn’t know. Rather than being optimistic about our problems being solved, it just seemed like Aion and his entourage brought with him more problems.

“That’s not the only weird thing. So many years...why now?”

“You asked that before. I’d say there’s probably a reason, but I just don’t know what.”

“It’s hard. You never really knew him. Then again, I can’t really say I knew much more.”

Such a conundrum.

I sat in the dining area at a stool next to the bar area. I had poured myself a glass of whiskey. It would soon have one of two effects: either calm my nerves or fire them up. I couldn’t really say which I needed more right now, but hopefully the whiskey would know what I needed. I took a sip: strong, bitter, almost like swallowing hot coals. My face twisted and my lips puckered.

“Aw, fuck it,” I rasped with a smile, and downed the shot glass in one swift gulp. That’s how it was meant to be drank anyway, right?

I gut up and poured myself another shot. While doing so, I looked around to see love in the air: Calen and Cael at one booth, Remora and Demetria at another. Several rows down sat Cybele next to the ever-sorrowful Achlys. I couldn’t tell what they had discussed the other day, but already it seemed like they were well acquainted. They held each other tight while Cybele took a moment to wipe away Achlys’s tears. Behind them were Prosperina with the head of a sleepy Hecate resting on her shoulder. Prosperina’s eyes were darting around and her face was red.

Our eyes met.

I downed my second shot, then shrugged, as if to say, it’s your relationship, own up to it.

Honestly, I didn’t know if they were in a relationship or not. Same went for Cybele and Achlys (doubtful when they just met, but apparently Cybele slept with Nemesis when they just met too. Maybe Cybele had more game than I thought). Calen and Cael probably were.

“Love is in the air, all except for mine and Ray’s. All because Aion keeps interrupting us. Then again, maybe I should stop focusing on him so much,” I said to myself.

“Indeed. You should focus more on me,” uttered a low, passionless voice.

I was startled so bad that I leaped where I stood and dropped the shot glass, watching it shatter across the floor.

“Fuck!” I panicked. I knew I’d need to sweep that up. That could wait, though. I looked up to see Ananke stood in front of me with a black tank top on and golden straps.

“Did you get the liquid courage you needed?” She asked, glancing down at the floor.

“C-Can...can you not?!” I huffed in a near-shout, the nerves dancing around me. Oh, the heat sure was rising now. I wasn’t drunk (it would have to take at least two more shots for that) but I sure was something.

“I can not.”

“I would like some privacy! Can you PLEASE respect that?”

“Very well,” her eyes flitted and she turned away, “but be aware, I’ll be awaiting you soon.”

Ugh. Of course. If it wasn’t Aion, it was her. Just what was her deal?

Once she was out of sight, I grabbed the nearby broom and dustpan from the closet and scooped up the broken glass. Each shard carried with it a distorted version of my reflection. Almost like I was walking through a house of mirrors.

I ducked behind the bar and checked the note Ray slipped into my pocket. I unfolded it and read:

“They may listening in on our conversations. Try talking with others, and hopefully they can relay things back to me.”

Looks like I wasn’t the only person paranoid. What a relief.

I put the note back in my back pocket.

Well, may as well put that advice to use.

It wasn’t an ideal situation, but even if we had to work through a middleman, the need for discretion was vital.

When I stood back up, I watched Cybele get up and shake Achlys’s hand.

“I should probably head back before it gets dark. Do you want to follow?” She offered.

“I would love to, but I don’t want to be a burden,” Achlys said with her weepy voice.

“You wouldn’t be a burden at all, besides, I’m sure Nemesis would love to meet you, too!”

Achlys looked down.

“I don’t know. You’re the only person I’ve felt this good around despite my sad state. Anyone else...feels like too much. Ah! But sorry! I don’t mean to harbor such troublesome feelings!”

“It’s okay. I don’t think she’s such a bad person, either, though.”

“I’ll think about it,” Achlys said and began to sob once more. She blew her nose into her thick, gray woolen sweater.

“Well, talk to you later!”

Cybele waved away, then left.

I should have seen her off, said something. We were pretty close, right? Or at least, I thought so. Ah, but I suppose at the time I figured it was fine: after all, she was making more friends, and might even be starting to have a love life. That’s cause for celebration, right? I didn’t need to interfere with that all the time.

But I would like to grill her about it later, I made a mental note to do just that.

Witnessing their farewell gave me another thing to note: who other than Ray had knowledge on Aion and Ananke? Why, Achlys, of course! She’d at least be able to tell me something.

I approached her and her foggy eyes turned to me. That too filled me with dread, but I should have known better: hearing what happened to her made me more sympathetic than anything else. Being afraid of her sight was just disrespectful, wasn’t it?

“Hey. I don’t think I’ve taken the time to chat with you yet. How are you doing?” I asked her.

She looked down and closed her eyes.

“I scare you, don’t I?” She asked, while tears still fell through her closed eyelids.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’m used to such a reaction. I’m glad it’s just that, and not that you start crying because of me.”

The urge was there, I wouldn’t lie, but I think the whiskey was working to hold back any tears that could have escaped me.

“Don’t worry, I don’t cry so easily.”

“Neither did I,” she replied. “Most people look at me in fear, pity, or sorrow. Cybele is the ‘pity’ category. But for some reason, I don’t mind that from her. I feel...lighter, because of her.”

“Hey, I’m happy for you. I’m glad she’s having such a positive influence.”

She opened her cloudy eyes and tried to work up a smile. Her lips shook, but before they could curl up, they fell back to a frown, and she sobbed harder.

“I’m sorry,” she moaned after wiping away her tears with her sleeve, “I’m glad to have her around. But it’s still not easy.”

“I can only imagine. Having to witness such an angel and all.”

“I know it was my fault...I just wanted to help.”

“Hey. We make mistakes. Sometimes ones that affect us our whole lives. That doesn’t mean your life is ruined, does it?”

Ugh, I say that, but do I really believe that for her?

I leaned down and hugged her. She reached out and sobbed into my chest.

It was only a few seconds, and I didn’t know if she wanted to be touched, but after letting go, she looked up.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“You’re not a bad guy, are you?” I asked.

“Ah!” She jumped, startled, “I...I...I didn’t want to be bad. Truly.”

“No, I don’t have any reason to believe you are. Even though you came from that company, I don’t sense any malice from you.”

“Still, I don’t want to be seen as a victim...I was warned, after all.”

“May I ask you something?” I sat down across from her.

“I don’t know. What?”

“What do you know of Aion and Ananke?”

“Ah...I’m sorry if you were expecting something. I only knew that they were studying angels right before I was transformed by one. They always seemed to keep to themselves and didn’t consider me important enough to reveal anything to me.”

I slumped down. Not the information I was hoping for, but I didn’t want to seem to disppointed.

There’s gotta be something...how come even the ones who spent time with them don’t know much?

“So you don’t know why they came over here?”

“Dr. Faust, he said he really wanted to see Ray. An...Dr. Paracelsus, she forced me here. If it were up to me, I’d have crawled into a cave and died there. I don’t know why they insisted on me coming along when they don’t care about me.”

“God...that man really is obsessed with my husband. Does he have no better reason to come here?”

“He probably does. I just don’t know what.”

“Damn it. I don’t usually care so much about new people. I like to think I’m friendly with anyone. But I swear, if those two wish harm on anyone here…”

“I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have minded helping if I knew more.”

“I bet it has something to do with angels,” I crossed my arms and growled.

“Ah!” Achlys perked up. Well, ‘perked’ was probably the wrong word, but it seemed like she had one of those “eureka” moments.

“What is it?”

“That would make sense. Knowing their research, that must be it.”

I got up. There was only one other person I could think to brainstorm with. It probably wouldn’t yield much more results, but it was worth a try.

“Thank you for spending time with me, Sunny. Truly,” she looked up.

“Anytime,” I told her, and had to wipe up a few tears of my own. Either she really did have an effect on me, or it was just hearing those words of gratitude that moved me. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever know.

Before I made my way over to Remora, I felt a clammy hand grab my arm. This time, I wasn’t startled in the slightest. I looked down and saw Hecate with her hood up and her bright eyes looking up.

“Sunny?” Hecate asked through yawns.

“Yeah?” I yawned as well. What could I say? Yawns were contagious.

“What’s Ananke’s deal?”

“I’d like to figure that out, myself.”

“She seemed interesting, but she told me I don’t practice real magic.”

That struck a nerve. What right did she have to diss someone as cute as Hecate?

“Your magic is the realest! Screw her!” Prosperina declared in Hecate’s defense.

“She told me that you’re the most interesting one of all, Sunny,” Hecate continued. “I asked why that was and she said that, ‘she’s not magical in the slightest, but she understands magic,’ what does that man?”

“Beats me,” I huffed. “She’s been eyeing me for a while. It’s concerning.”

“You know all about magic, too!” Proserpina came to Hecate’s defense as well.

“Thanks. I don’t doubt my abilities. I was just confused why she would say your name, Sunny.”

“She must find me pretty important!” I remarked and tried to grin about it. I wasn’t used to having so much focus put on me, and if Ananke didn’t irk me, I might have been more pleased about the attention.

“She said you were the most important one here.”

My face tightened and turned red.

I brushed my hand in front of my face.

“That’s simply not true. Remora’s the most important, I would say. Even besides Remora, there’s Demetria, who’s racked up more victories than I have. Although maybe I had similar stories to tell in my prime. I can’t remember. Then there’s Ray, who gives everyone a home and formulates plans. He’s really good at mediating conflict.”

“Do you have self-doubt?” Hecate asked.

I was taken aback.

“Not at all!” I gave a haughty laugh. “I’m fine with my position! I’m carefree! I go on adventures! Do I really need anything more?”

I said that, but my chest tightened. I couldn’t blame the whiskey, as I only had two shots.

I couldn’t even help Remora when she was dealing with Nemesis. In the end, she settled it herself.

Whatever. There was no need for such insecurities. It didn’t fit my image.

“Don’t worry,” I told Hecate, “whatever’s going on with that Ananke woman, I’m sure I’ll figure it out.”

Again, I said that, but I wasn’t even sure what I was supposed to figure out.

My only other lead right now: Remora.

I approached their table.

Yet another couple I was going to have to interrupt.

I’m happy for you two, really…

They were seated together, both eyes closed, hands on the table and connected. Their heads were resting on each other. Despite the gap in height, they made it work somehow. It really was an adorable sight, except…

God, if all you couples are going to do is nap, couldn’t you have done so in bed? Why go out here to rest?

I clapped my hands together real fast and the two jolted up awake.

“What the hell, Sunny? Do you know what time it is?” Demetria rubbed her forehead with her palm.

“Yep! It’s mid-afternoon! Still plenty of daylight!”

Remora stared down at the table. There was a plate with a half-eaten sandwich. She looked rather disoriented.

“Do you think the sandwich is still safe to eat?” She muttered.

“Yeah, you’re probably fine. You can even take it with you.”

“Huh? Take it with her?” Demetria blinked and looked around, “what do you mean? Where is she going?”

“Not sure yet. Remora, do you know anywhere we can talk in private where we won’t be listened in on?”

“Is this about what I think it is?”

“What? What do you think it is?” Demetria asked.

“Sorry, Dem. Can I borrow your girlfriend for a bit?”

“Borrow...her?”

“Yes. I’d like to talk to her elsewhere. If that’s okay with you two.”

Demetria puffed her cheeks and blew out hot air.

“Yeah. I’ll be fine.”

“I won’t be long,” Remora smiled and ruffled Demetria’s hair. Her arms flailed about but she didn’t really seem to mind.

Remora got up and took her sandwich with her. What a relief.

We each grabbed jackets (well, Remora was already wearing one, so she just doubled up). My jacket was a thick yellow and blue polka dot one made from goat hide, while hers was a thin, dark purple rubber jacket, underneath of which was a bright orange felt jacket. We headed outside where we were met with bright, blue skies. Even with the blankets of soft, white snow mixed with the hard stone and small patches where grass grew, it was fairly warm given the climate.

“So, you have a place in mind?” I asked while walking behind her. She took bites of her sandwich and didn’t answer until the sandwich was almost gone.

“I do. I can’t promise we won’t be followed, but I’m confident we won’t be listened in on.”

“That’s half-reassuring.”

We continued on. In the distance I saw the cliffs where Khaldaia was hidden inside. There was also the hospital in full view. I wasn’t sure how much longer we were going to go. I couldn’t see any particular place in the distance.

“Can you turn around?” Remora asked.

“Oh, sure.”

I spun around until my back was turned to her. I looked around, checking around the hospital, the cliffs, and big hills. No sign of anyone. Not a silhouette, nor outline.

There’s also not any sign of Aurora’s train. I miss her and her crew even though they showed up to Hera’s party.

“See anyone?” Remora asked.

“Not as far as I can tell.”

“Good. That doesn’t mean there isn’t anyone out there, but I’m less concerned if you can’t see them. And if anyone tries a sneak attack, you should be able to see them coming a mile away.”

“What if they have a gun?”

“Huh. Never considered that possibility.”

Fwoosh! I heard the sound of sliding metal.

“You can look now,” Remora informed me, and facing her again, I noticed that there was a small hole.

“What is that, a half-made igloo?”

She squinted.

“No. It’s more like a burrow. Come down, there’s a ladder.”

She went down first, and I followed after. It was pitch dark, and I imagined all the creepy crawlies that could have been lurking, whether in the dirt or the stony ground. I knocked on the wall next to the ladder and heard a metallic clank.

Once down, she flicked a switch on one of the walls. It lit up to reveal a soft orange glow which shone above a queen-sized bed with two soft, white pillows, and a lion-print blanket over the mattress. Beside it, was a nightstand, and against one of the walls was a dresser.

“A bedroom?”

“Yeah.”

Unlike the silver, metallic wall that rested behind the ladder and along the ceiling of the burrow, the floor itself was wood tile, as was the wall of the bedroom.

“You know, we could have gone in one of the rooms of the basement back at the diner. Had I known this was what you had in mind, I’d have just gone downstairs.”

“Too risky. The walls here are soundproof. No outsiders should be able to hear us.”

“What’s this place for, anyway?” I asked. It was clearly a bedroom, and nothing else. That much I knew.

She walked over to the bed and sat at the edge of it. She leaned herself against one of the boards that made up the bed frame. I noticed that the headboard, behind the pillow, was carved with a heart shape in the middle.

“Good. Just how I left it,” she smiled to herself before looking up. “Ah. About this room...while I like you guys and see myself still staying there for the time being, I’ve grown to miss living on my own. I don’t yet have the materials to rebuild a house for myself, but I had just enough for this little room. Whether I build something above ground or add to this, I’m not yet sure. I was also thinking, when the time comes, I’d like to see if Demetria would live here with me.”

She’s planning on leaving sometime in the future? I mean, I know it’s right for her, and she’s always been pretty independent. Not exactly the best cook, but she did fine enough on her own for a while as far as I can tell. Gee, I’m going to miss seeing her every day.

“I’ll still visit every day,” she said, as if she heard my thoughts, “I also don’t know when I’ll be ready to move in here. I’ll probably make an announcement when I’m ready.”

“Wow. I’m impressed. And that’s super sweet about wanting Demetria to stay with you. Look at how far you’ve come,” I held my arm out and gave her a thumbs up.

She nodded.

“It would only be fair to ask her.”

“You really love her, don’t you?”

“Yes. Just as you love Ray.”

“Well...this isn’t about him…” I looked away and gave an awkward grin.

“Isn’t it? I figured you were concerned about that Aion guy. I imagined you must be jealous of the attention he’s been giving your husband.”

“I admit, there’s some jealousy. But you’re only half-correct: I’m worried that Aion and Ananke might be up to something dangerous, and that something could very well put us in harm.”

“You figured that out?”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t trust those two, either. Knowing what I know about The Flashbulb, a former member is nothing but bad news. Two former members are even worse news. They may put up a harmless facade but I doubt either one are to be taken lightly.”

I was glad that Remora saw the same signs that I did, but that didn’t ease my worries as much as it should have. There was still that sinking feeling of dread.

“What do you think they could be up to?” I asked.

“I don’t know. I doubt it’s on such a small scale, but if it something huge, I can imagine us being collateral.”

“What kind of people are Flashbulb members? I only heard about them once or twice before. It’s a world I’ve never even stepped foot in.”

“They’re mad scientists who see the world as a program to tweak and test around, with no concern for any consequences. After all, what consequences are there when you can just reset time?”

“That’s hard to visualize.”

“Don’t worry about the image. Although the organization is no more, even former members are something to be wary of. Some may be innocent, even victims of circumstance. But many are sure to uphold the same goals that they had while in the company. That man, Aion, claims to fit into the latter category.”

“What about Ananke?”

“I can’t get a read on her. I feel it’s safer to lean on the ‘dangerous’ side until proven innocent.”

That didn’t give me any more confidence than I had before.

“I keep telling myself that I need to figure out what they’re up to so I can put a stop to it. But so far all of my leads have been crumbs at best, and the answer’s not coming to me on my own. I feel like I’ll fail, that I’ll be too late, and lose again. If that happens, I’d still be as useless as I’ve always been.”

“What’s this about being useless?”

“It’s true, isn’t it?” My fists shook. It wasn’t cold down there, but I shivered just the same. “When we went adventuring to get away from Nemesis, she still found us and you two still fought. It was too early, and almost ended in disaster. I couldn’t make things right with my daughter even after trying to. It was too little, several years too late.”

“Are you kidding? If you hadn’t punched her out, I may have died earlier. True, I still ended up fighting her a third time and almost losing my life on my own, but I’m grateful that you stepped in. As for your daughter...I don’t know. Those kinds of things are complicated. It’s still important that you tried. Isn’t that what you told me? Not to mention, I saw you talking things out with Achlys. She may have been a former member, but she seems less on the dangerous side, and I think she appreciated what you did.”

“Still, anyone could have done those things.”

“Who cares about that?!” She shouted and I took a step back. I wasn’t used to her raising her voice.

I blinked.

“Remora? Are you mad?”

“I just hate to see you being like this.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s just as I said, though: who cares if someone else could have done what you did? It’s the fact that it was you who helped, isn’t it? Besides, that’s not even wholly true: Demetria couldn’t hit that hard. Tigershark, maybe, but I doubt Nemesis would have wanted to fight at all if Tigershark was there. Ray definitely couldn’t hit that hard, and at best he’d try to talk her down. True, I still fought her with you there, but she’d have wanted a fight sooner or later, I just opted for sooner.”

She continued:

“Ray could have helped Achlys with his words, but he’s been just as stressed as you have. That you talked to her is what matters.”

“I just feel like I’ve done the least out of everyone. Then there’s Demetria who’s racked up many accomplishments. I am proud of her, but also...I just wish that I was doing more.”

“Look, Demetria is great. But she’s not the only person that matters. During our fight with Cronus under the diner, she couldn’t take him on her own, even though she wanted to. It was only through our combined efforts that we were able to do so. If anything, I’d say Ray did the least back there, save for some quips.”

“Thank you for saying so. I wonder if all these insecurities are because I’m getting older. I don’t think I have many more adventures left in me.”

“I don’t know what it could be, but I wish you’d stop. It doesn’t suit you. Do you think it suits you?” She looked up and smiled.

I chuckled.

“No, I guess not.”

We headed back up. Once we reached the surface, I stopped dead in my tracks.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and turned on the camera. Upon zooming in, I confirmed my suspicion: a hidden passage opened up along the cliff side where I entered Khaldaia. There was a golden glow emanating from the entrance.

Aion must be in there. At least if I can’t see him, I doubt he’ll see me.

“Sorry, Remora. I’ll catch you later. Opportunity is knocking.”

“Who?”

“I’ll tell you when I get back. Let me know if you find out any more information.”

“You as well.”

I ran off in the direction of the cliff sides and turned back to wave frantically in Remora’s direction. She gave a short wave in turn, then walked back in the direction of the diner/hotel.

I ran around the corner. I couldn’t tell how much noise I had made, but I could only imagine a lot: my heart pounding against my chest, my burning nerves, and the heavy footsteps as I sprinted my way there. All I could do was hope that I wasn’t heard, but that wasn’t even a certainty.

My back hugged against the wall. I slowed down my breathing until my heart returned to a more steady pace.

I closed my eyes. I could have checked my phone, but the sudden movement could have given me away. As such, I had no idea how much time had passed before I heard the soft, steady footsteps of someone leaving the entrance.

“Hey Ananke. What’s going on?” Aion’s slick voice echoed.

Is he on the phone right now?

I could only imagine.

“Wow. The device is on the island already? Damn, guess it’s really underway now. I will say, I feel rather cruel about it. Soon everyone will be going away. Say, where’s that island at, anyway? Oh, south from here, just off the shore? Cool. I could probably swim my way there, but eh...I don’t wanna. I think for now I’ll just go back to the hotel and pretend like everything’s still fine. Ray will be less worried that way, right?”

I flared up, and I swore I must have blown smoke out my nose.

Rather careless of you, Aion, I thought as he had just given away the game. If I could stop this device...whatever it was, then boom! Crisis averted.

I still waited at the corner until the crunch of his footsteps went from faint to inaudible. As soon as I could no longer hear movement, I peeked out and saw a faint silhouette of him all the way at the door of the diner.

Whew. Looks like I wasn’t spotted.

While sprinting toward the island, I started fizzling out. I leaned over and stopped to catch my breath.

I used to be able to sprint for days, I wanted to whine. But there was no time.

Or at least, I thought there would be no time. But despite still having much more ground to cover, I spotted a familiar brown and red striped train with its multiple cars skating about.

I jumped up and waved my hands around. The train turned in my direction and tooted its horn. A wide smile spread across my face as the train screeched to a halt just a few paces away from where I stood. It was close enough to catch a strong whiff of the smoky exhausts exuding from the steel trappings of the train’s head.

I ran around to the side and one of the carts slid open: there stood Aurora, legs spread, arms crossed. Her big puffy strawberry red hair, and her big chest, along with her raised chin gave her a commanding presence. Goofy as she may be, she really was a respectable bandit leader.

“Sunny! The hell you doing out here?” She demanded.

“I sure am glad to see you, Aurora.”

“Why, ready to join my crew?”

“No. When did I ever say I’d do that?”

Aurora puffed her cheeks and scowled.

“Fine, then, what do you want?”

“I need you to give me a ride somewhere.”

“What’s in it for me?”

“Nothing. You’d just be helping out a friend.”

“That’s sweet, but I got mouths to feed and places to rob. This isn’t the kind of train you board to hitch a ride on.”

“Please?” I leaned up close to her. Her cheeks flushed a sickly pink.

“Let’s leg wrestle for it. If you win, I’ll take you where you want to go. If I win, you gotta ditch that husband of yours and join my crew!”

“Really? Leg wrestling?”

“We couldn’t before because you had that knee injury, but we gotta prove whose legs are stronger!”

“I don’t have time for this…”

I reached my hands up to her cheeks and pulled her down and gave her a big, fat kiss on the lips.

“There. Now take me to the coast,” I commanded.

Aurora huffed and her cheeks turned a deeper read. After a few seconds of being breathless, she grinned and turned around.

“We’re heading to the beach!” She announced.

Her whole crew cheered from inside and I stepped into the boxcar.

The whole ride there, I’d poke my head out the window to see how much closer we were. Allison, the navigator of their train, handed me a pair of binoculars and I had been using them to check. Not to mention, the rush of air brushing against my frizzy air was pure bliss.

“So what do you need to go to the coast for, anyway?” Aurora asked as she stood over me while I sat at one of the booths in the train.

“There’s an island. Something’s on the island.”

“What is it?”

“I don’t know. But I’ll find out once I get there.”

“I swear...you and your Remoras...is that a good name for your crew? Remoras?”

“I don’t mind.”

“You Remoras always going off of hints and hunches without ever looking into details. Well, I’d say the Remora Remora herself does, to an extent, but no, she doesn’t even do that all the time, does she?”

“Our group’s usually the type to go with the flow.”

“That’s a little dangerous, don’t you think?”

“What can I say? We’re dangerous people.”

“Tch. No shit,” she muttered, then yelled out:

“HEY. ANYONE GOT ANY POWDER DONUTS?”

“I do, boss!” Boomed the voice of a burly, bald man with an attire that I could only describe as a burlap sack.”

“Thanks, Frankie!”

When we reached the coast, the train skidded to a halt right before the icy beach. Just across from the beach, I saw a small, rocky landmass.

I jumped out from the car and raced out to shore.

“YOU OWE ME!” Aurora shouted from behind.

“Put it on my tab!” I yelled back before leaping into the water.

It only took a few strokes against the current before I landed on shore. All my clothes were soaked and I shivered with such a fury that I wondered for a moment if Remora ever shivered as hard.

I searched around for any such device. Behind the stone which protruded from this small thing that I wasn’t even sure qualified as an island, there were smaller palm trees with coconuts, and tall grass behind the palm trees.

“What the hell?” I whispered.

A tropical island in a frigid place like this?

Part of me was excited at the prospect and my mind went wild, like what if there was a hidden lair somewhere on the island, or there was a buried treasure besides whatever the mysterious device was.

Before I could search within the tall grass, however, a voice called out behind me:

“You just can’t help but interfere, can you?” It was a low voice, with some of the words blending together, yet I still heard it all clear as day.

I turned and saw in the bright blue sky a dark figure with mechanical limbs enveloping her. Said limbs were large, and just as dark.

“Nemesis?” I thought for a second, even though I should have known better. It didn’t cover the user’s entire body, and I blinked a few times before realizing I was staring at Ananke herself.

“Not far off. Her suit was a modification of her father’s. Mine was a prototype that would form the foundation of that very same suit.”

What? How does she know all that? And does that mean…?

Before I could finish that thought, she dived in with her fist toward me. I leaped out of the way just in time for her fist to land in the sand and the impact caused a flurry of sand to fly in every direction. I shielded my face and she charged at me, propelling herself forward with the blue flame which ignited the boots of her mechanical limbs.

I turned to the right side toward the jungle just in time to pull out my trust whip: Stella.

I flicked it at her, but to my surprise, she just swatted it away.

“Did you expect to poke me with such a thing?” She chuckled out a deep, low laugh.

“How? It’s an angel weapon! It should have damaged your suit even somewhat!”

“Ah, but you see, this suit is purely mechanical. I should know, I built it myself.”

She kicked her leg up and I tried blocking it with my own, but the weight of the machine attached to her struck me much harder and I almost fell to the ground.

I flicked Stella and watched it transform into a baton. I tried to hit her with it, only for her to catch my wrist before the baton could even touch her, and she pushed me into one of the palm trees. My spine and the tree met each other in a heavy, unholy glory.

I forced myself back up, propping myself up with the baton, wincing all the while.

“So we’re fighting so I can’t get rid of the device, huh? Is that it?”

She tilted her head.

“I said already that you’re the most important. It only stands to reason that you should be the first one dealt with.”

“So what? I know too much, and now you gotta kill me?”

I rolled my eyes. I couldn’t say I’ve never been in such situations, I just didn’t expect to be one today of all days.

“Kill you? No. Just deal with you.”

As if I wasn’t confused before, she just had to make it worse.

She readied her fist, and this time, Stella transformed itself into a pair of knuckle braces. Our fists met at the same time, but even with my added protection, she was forcing me back down. I dropped to one knee, but refused to yield as I leaned in and pushed my way through, using my other arm to support my fist.

“It...doesn’t matter...no matter how much of a disadvantage I’m at,” I tensed up and tried to get as many words out as I could, “I will find that device!”

She smiled and let show a few of her thick, gray teeth.

“The device is right behind you,” she said before activating the booster on the soles of her boots and knocked me back to the ground.

Rather than simply fall onto the ground, however, I felt a rush of air, and my heart started making leaps and bounds. It reminded me of those dreams where I’d fall off a cliff or go skydiving without a parachute. Except here, I didn’t even feel like my body was moving at all.

I closed my eyes, but it did me no good, as I ached so desperately to scream. But while my mouth forced itself open, I could do little more than gasp for air.

That was the last thing I remember before coming to.

When I awoke, I was still lying on the ground. I opened my eyes to see a dark, purple sky.

Not only that, I shivered on the icy sheet of the arctic tundra.

“Huh? I’m back here?” I asked in a hoarse voice.

I picked myself up and noticed Stella was still attached to my knuckles. As I stood, I saw Ananke in front of me, this time in a dark gray parka with her hood up. In her hands was a black briefcase.

“What’s going on? How did I get from that island to back here?”

She stood silent for a moment before answering.

“You are in a separate timeline. I was able to alter the coordinates as well.”

I felt like crickets were hopping across my skin, especially my face.

“You’re...you’re joking, right?”

She shook her head.

“The plan was for you to get sucked into the time travel device alongside me. That you listened in on my conversation with Aion only made things easier for me.”

“So that conversation was bait, is what you’re telling me?”

I looked around. I didn’t see the tall hotel that was once a diner, or even a hospital or that small mountain range. It could have just been that I was in a different place, but there should have been some kind of landmark, right?

“Why would you do this?” I asked.

“Aion considered you the greatest threat to what is to come. I wished to enter an alternate timeline since the beginning. It just so happens that I could afford one little favor and bring you along.”

“Take me back. Now.”

She shook her head again.

“That won’t be happening. I hold the device and I intend to keep it in my possession as it’s necessary for my own plan.”

“But I can’t stay here! What about Ray? Remora? Demetria? Tigershark? What about them?”

“Consider this an act of mercy: soon, they will all die. By being here, your life is effectively spared. I didn’t have to bring you along, but I thought you of all people would understand the meaning behind the act. I may have been wrong.”

“But you said Aion considered me a threat! So if I can return, I can stop it, right?”

She turned away.

“Time to make some new memories. As for me, I’ve got somewhere else to be.”

I tried chasing after her, whether it be a futile attempt to pin her down and wrestle the device out from her hand or what, but before I could take a single step forward, her briefcase unfolded and the mechanical limbs covered her once again. She soared off into the air before I could so much as touch her.

She disappeared into the night sky without any way of knowing where she could have gone off to.

I dropped to my knees.

It still didn’t feel real to me. I expected that I would soon get up and find the diner/hotel once again, and everyone would be there. But even with the icy night chill and my still-damp clothes, I couldn’t bring myself to move. Not even a single tear moved from my eyelids.

[cj-furry-shipper]

I’m going to be in the process of revamping my Helluva Boss/Hazbin Hotel self insert. It’s not going to be too much of a change but it’s going to refine some of the rougher edges of this design. This includes removing the sort of, for lack of a better phrase, “twink curve” the self insert has and making it so the body type closer resembles my actual body type, including slightly more broader shoulders. Not that that’s the reason for the change; it’s mostly because the only version I have of my si is pretty jagged in quality atm.

That being said, some people have questions concerning why my character has such a human face. Although he isn’t the first character to have a sort of normal human face in terms of structure (Alastor and Charlie for example) my character retains very normal facial structure and tone and color and lacks any animal ears or demonic markings. But that’s only because that human face isn’t actually his real face.

For context, he is a fallen angel. I don’t know how exactly fallen angels work specifically in the canon of the show, but what I do know is that this is what I want my SI to be. Figuring out the “how” can be adjusted as more information is revealed and I can change the process accordingly. (In addition to this, although it’s commonly said in general Christianity stuff that humans don’t become angels when they die, they become saints, humans aren’t supposed to become demons when they go to hell either. However, in the setting of hazbin hotel, sinners are a class of demon. Because of this, it isn’t too far fetched to think that a saint can be considered an angel classification. Also the wiki says humans can be angels so yee.)

That being said, what I’m wanting to emphasize is that true form is of the shadowey figure. Essentially, that shadow face with the white eyes becomes what his actual face is when he’s in heaven (and remains his true face in hell). It represents how during his life he spent most of it trying to be what other people wanted him to be. He never developed his own identity and struggled with hobbies, social interactions, etc because he spent his whole life doing what his family and “friends” wanted him to do. He didn’t have a sense of his own individuality. In fact, no one on Earth even knows that he’s bisexual with a slight male lean. That’s something he kept completely private until he was killed and went to heaven.

His interactions with IMP when he was still a normal human (I’d assume this involve whenever IMP went to the human world) helped him on the right path funnily enough, but it didn’t change the fact that he still struggled with his own identity. That’s why, upon his death, even when he became an angel at some point in heaven, he still had a shadow with glowing eyes for a face. He still felt like a shadow of what he thought he was supposed to be.

So, when he finally decided to go to hell for reasons that he developed on his own, he became able to wear the face he remembered having like a sort of mask. So at the very least, he has a way of showing his identity. It is him taking his first real step since he made a decision that could have grave consequences to his well being, but he did come to make the decision on his own.

So yeah, tldr, the human face he has is technically a mask he manifests, and the “mask” resembles the face he had when he was still a normal human.

Just figured I’d put this here in case anyone was confused is all. Especially since I have I’ll keep this aspect of him canon throughout future posts with him and Loona.

Oh and another side note, not sure how fallen angels’s abilities can be expressed, but I would like it for my character to be able to traverse to the other rings. I know that sinners can’t do that, but so far no information has indicated whether fallen angels are forced to abide by the whole “must stay in the pride ring” rule that Sinners have to abide to.

Currently, my character is able to go down a couple levels of the ring, but with each descent he gets much weaker. The lowest ring he can go to is Lust, but if he stays there for too long he dies and respawns in the pride ring (we know that sinners can only be perma killed by angel weapons. Whether they just respawn in the pride ring or some other thing occurs has yet to be indicated. I am just working with the information we know so far).

[crispy-jpeg]

Something You Know About Me

TW: none, really

Notes: a silly little short story for a project i'm working on.

Sypnosis: You hop into a call, just for a few seconds, so you can get to know each other.

——————

“What’s your favourite color?” “Oh, we’re doing 21 questions now?”

Ezra laughed a bit, amused by the idea. “If I say yes, will you answer?” “I mean, ask away, I have no problem with it. As long as you let me ask questions about you too.

“An answer for an answer?”

“Mhmm. You know, its hard to not be curious about you.”

“Really?” You gave a stupid smile. It hit him in a way that he didn’t expect.

“Yeah, isn’t it natural to be curious about a hot guy?”

Ezra felt his face heat up. This isn’t good. If he didn’t catch himself, he might start getting attached to you. Well, that didn’t sound quite as bad as he made it seem, but he still knew that he couldn’t afford to trust it. Still, coming from you, it almost felt like you were serious…

“Oh- Ah. Uh…” His hand reached up to cover his face. He tried to avert his eyes, hoping you wouldn’t notice. His brow creased subconsciously.

You laughed, then. It had hit him like a punch to the gut.

“W-Well… Well, all I know is that I want to get to know you. I’m just as curious about you as you are of me, I assume.”

“Alright then.” He watched as you stretched, presumably preparing yourself for whatever he wanted to ask you.

“Let’s start with something simple. I did ask you for your favourite color earlier, didn’t I?”

You nodded. “Right. Well… Hmm… I don’t think I’ve ever thought about it before. I’d say blue, but that’s kind of boring, don’t you think?” “I don’t think so. Blue’s a good color.” “And an easy color. Anyone could pick blue. How about… red? Like your hair?”

He stopped and stared, fidgeting with his hair.

“My… hair?” “Yeah! Red’s a pretty color on you. Or… yellow? Like your eyes?”

“Are you just… picking colors that you see in front of you?”

A wider smile grew on your face, and you averted your eyes with a mischievous grin. You leaned your head on your hand as he furrowed his brow. “...Oops. You noticed? Haha… I wasn’t lying when I said I never thought about it before. Can’t you ask me a different question?”

Ezra sighed with a slight hint of drama to his tone, giving in and moving on.

“Alright, alright. How about… hm… What to ask…”

“How about I ask you a question?” 

Ezra blinked in surprise before straightening up.

“...Alright. Go ahead.”

“Awesome.”

Ezra watched in confusion as you reached into your drawer, pulling out a familiar looking poster. It was from a rather short-lived tv show, one that Ezra knew well.

“...Oh my god.”

“Tadaa!! I used to watch this show… like, religiously. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you at first.”

“That poster- I- How- It only had two seasons!”

Ezra laughed in disbelief at the poster as you presented it proudly to the camera.

“I found this online! Probably a fanmade one too, cause I don’t think you appeared until halfway through the second season. But look! There you are. See?”

You pointed at a figure at the bottom, his red hair distinct amongst the darker colors he was backed up against. “Yeah. That’s- I mean- Wow.” You laughed, and Ezra could feel himself flush a little.

“Anyways. I guess my question is… What was it like filming the show? Is that a weird question to ask?”

“No, no, you’re good. I don’t really mind questions like that. I’m sort of used to those types of questions from interviews and stuff.”

“Oh really~? Guess that’s to be expected from Mister Big-Shot over here.”

You flashed a toothy grin, causing him to snicker a bit.

“Pfft. Now… hmm…”

He started with the positives, like how his fellow actors were pretty nice and forgiving to a rookie like him. He also listed a bit of the negatives, like how hot it would get sometimes on set or when the director was having a particularly rough day. Along the way, you chimed in with your own opinions on certain topics. Ezra found it charming when you went off on tangents during your conversation, and although you weren’t really paying attention when you spoke, he gave you a look of affection that really could only mean one thing. The truth was, he enjoyed hearing you talk. It showed a side to you that Ezra wouldn’t have known about otherwise, and that small fact pleased him. 

“And personally, I think it’s kind of stupid. I mean, I’m sure they’ve got talented writers, but…” “...But you think they could’ve written Cynthia better?” “No, it’s not that, it’s just… they could have made her death make more sense!”

You gestured violently with your hands, causing Ezra to laugh at your passionate reaction. He shrugged, leaning his head on his hand.

“Actually, I don’t think it was up to the writers in the first place. The actress who played Cynthia didn’t want to be a part of the show anymore, and she was leaving rather abruptly, so the writers had to figure out how to…”

He trailed off, vying for the right words to explain it. “Explain the sudden exit?” “...Well, as best as they could, anyways. That’s also why my audition was so last minute.” “Wow…” You nodded along, fascinated by the extra information you received. “Guess you really lucked out there, huh? I think you were a really good actor, for the short amount of time you were on the show.”

“I like to think its one of the better experiences from when I was first starting out.”

“I think so, too.”

Ezra glanced at the corner of his screen, blinking in surprise at what he saw. “Oh. It’s already getting pretty late.” “Huh? Really?” You glanced at the corner of your screen. “Oh, wow, you’re right. I didn’t even notice. Oh my god, I can’t believe you were supposed to ask me questions and I spent the whole conversation talking about Lottery… I am so sorry.” Ezra smiled, chuckling to himself.

“Don’t worry about it. In a weird way, I actually got to know more about you just by listening to you talk. For example, I now know you get very intense when you talk about the things you like.”

You snorted, clearly finding his idea of ‘knowing more about you’ to be amusing. You rolled your eyes, yawning a bit.

“I still feel bad,” You mutter, drowsily. “We can still get back to that first question you asked, at least before I go to bed.” Ezra perked up. “Really? Well then, I’m curious. What’s your favourite color?” You pretended to think about it for a bit, then smiled. “Red. Definitely. And it’s not because I’m naming things I see. Red’s the kind of color I find myself drawn towards the most.” Ezra tilted his head. He knew you said red as a joke before, but saying it now as your serious answer did cause some questions to be raised. “You find yourself… drawn to the color red?” “Yeah! That show has an overall red-ish color scheme, not to mention red flowers are always my first pick… And…” You glanced at him, your smile reaching your eyes. “Your bright red hair definitely drew me towards you.” “Ah-!”

You laughed, your grin never fading. He furrowed his brows and averted his eyes in embarrassment, pressing his lips into a firm line. 

“God, it’s way too late for this… Look, I’ll, um, talk to you tomorrow?” He glanced at his screen anticipating your answer. You saluted in some sort of strange goodbye greeting. “Of course. Good night!”

When the call ended, he felt his face heat up even more. At the end of the day, he was grateful to get to know you better, even if it meant enduring the random out of place compliments and occasional bold comments.

You were a strange one, weren’t you?