#And so helpless to effect change

[sorryiwasasleep]

The Dead Sea is dying and I feel exactly like I did when I learned about the Great Barrier Reef dying

[theramblingvoid]

I'll be honest I never really gave Tim a second thought on my first listen through, but on a relisten I've realized that yeah actually that's me. That would be me. I too would get really frustrated and angry and make a million bad sarcastic jokes if I was trapped in The Office That Makes You Die Badly and could do nothing but wait around to die badly in the office. And also still had to fill out timesheets. I mayhaps would also lose my composure just a little actually.

[priisakilljoy]

They gave her a choice. She choose.

INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (2022 - ) I I Could Not Prevent It

[andhumanslovedstories]

There was an interesting situation at work recently. I'm gonna keep it vague for privacy, but basically the husband of a patient threatened to shoot hospital employees after he perceived they were ignoring his wife's situation. Which, looking at the case, people were like, yeah, this patient was in prolonged discomfort and had delayed care over multiple shifts due to factors that weren't malicious but were careless. Basically, the task that would have helped this patient was classic "third thing on your to do list." It had to be done, but it didn't need to be done urgently. The impact of not doing this task likely wouldn't be felt on your shift. The work of doing this task would require the coordination of a couple different people. Very easy to just keep pushing it back, and because it wasn't an emergency (until it was), it just kept being pushed back.

You could do a root-cause analysis of the whole thing (and we have) to really break down what happened, but ultimately the effect was the same as if the neglect had been malicious. I'm sympathetic to the husband, as were a lot of people in this situation, because, yes, hospital staff dropped the ball in a way that meant the patient was in unnecessary pain and discomfort with delay of care for over a day, despite multiple requests from patient and family to address the situation. The husband reacted emotionally to a situation where he'd felt helpless and ignored. Institutional neglect ground away at him until he verbally snapped.

And the way he snapped was to tell staff, "I'm going to come back with a gun and shoot you all for what you've done." Which is about as explicit a threat as you can get. Does he get to keep visiting the hospital after that? How do we be fair to him, to the patient, and to the staff? He probably didn't mean it. Right? But how do you ignore a statement like that? If he does come back and commit a shooting, how will you justify ignoring his threat? But does one sentence said at an emotional breaking point define him? How much more traumatic are we going to make this hospital stay?

A couple years back, I worked on a floor a few hours after a patient had been escorted away for inappropriate behavior--by the way, you can't imagine how inappropriate the behavior has to be for us to do that. I have never seen another case like this. That patient said he was going to come back with a gun and shoot nurses that he identified by name. This didn't come to pass. Whether that was because the patient didn't mean it or changed his mind or was prevented or simply was not mentally coordinated enough to follow through on the plan, I don't know. I do know that shift fucking sucked. I remember the charge nurse telling me that it wasn't our jobs to die for our patients. If there was shooting, she told me to run.

There was another situation recently involving a patient in restraints. I despise restraints. I think the closest legitimate use for them is in ICUs for stopping delirious patients from ripping out their ventilators, and that should still be a last resort. I discontinue restraints whenever I inherit them, and I am very good at fixing problems before restraint seem like the only solution. Having said that, I work in a hospital that uses restraints, and so I am complicit in their use. Recently I walked into a situation involving restraints with zero context for what was happening, just that there was a security situation involving a patient who had been deemed for some reason to lack capacity to make medical decisions. They were on a court hold and a surrogate med override, which means they cannot refuse certain medications. The whole situation was horrible, and I've spent the days since it happened thinking about every way I personally failed that patient and what to do different next time.

At one point, the patient called one of the nurses a bitch, and the nurse said, "hey cmon, that's not nice," and the patient replied, "if you were in hell, would you call the devil a nice name?" And yeah! Fair! It is insane to expect people who are actively being denied their autonomy to be polite to us as we do it.

Then there was another patient on the behavioral health floor who got put in seclusion. It's so frustrating, by the way, that staff put them in seclusion because it would have been extremely easy to avoid escalating the situation to the point that it got to. But the situation did escalate, and by the time the patient was locked in a seclusion room, they were shouting slurs and kicking the walls. Other patients were scared of the patient even when they were calm because the patient talked endlessly about guns, poisons, bombs, etc. When I checked in with the patient in the seclusion room, they called me a cog in a fascist machine just following orders. And I was like, yeah. Fair.

Another patient: one night when I was charge nurse, I replied to a security situation where a patient trapped a staff member in the room and tried to choke her. The staff member escaped unharmed. She told me later that the patient had been verbally aggressive to her all day, but she hadn't told anyone because she knew he was having a bad day, she didn't want to get him in trouble, and she didn't think anything was actually going to happen. She said, "Patients are mean all the time."

And another case: I had a different patient with the ultimate combination of factors for violent agitation--confused, needed a translator, was hard of hearing so the translator was of little use, in pain, feverish, scared, withdrawing from alcohol, hadn't slept in two days, separated from his caregiver who had also just been hospitalized--the whole shebang. He shouted at us that we were human trafficking him and could not be reoriented to where he actually was or that he was sick. I tried all my usual methods of deescalation, which I am typically very good at. I could not get him to calm down. He had a hospital bed where the headboard pulls out so you can use it as a brace during compressions. He ripped that out and threw it at the window, trying to shatter the glass. At that point, with the permission of his medical surrogate and with help from security, I forcibly gave him IV medication for agitation and withdrawal. He slept all night with a sitter at his bedside to monitor him. I pondered when medication passed over the line into chemical restraint, but I stand by the decisions I made that shift.

Last one: I had a different patient who was dying who had a child with a warrant out for arrest. We didn't know for what, and no one investigated further because no one wanted to find out anything that might prevent this person from visiting his dying parent. Obviously, "warrant for arrest" could mean literally anything, although it was significant enough that security was aware of the situation and wanted us aware as well, but I was struck by how proactively the staff protected his visitation rights and extended him grace. Everyone was very aware of how easily the wrong word could start a process that would result in a parent and child losing the chance to say goodbye to each other.

In the case of the husband who threatened a mass shooting, you'd be surprised how many of the staff advocated for him to keep all visitation rights. After all, the patient wanted him there.

Violence--verbal, physical, active, passive, institutional, direct, inadvertent, malicious--pervades the hospital. It begets itself. You provoke people into violence, and then use that violence to justify why you must do actions that further provoke them. And also people are not helpless victims of circumstance, mindlessly reacting to whatever is the most noxious stimuli. But also we aren't not that. You have to interrupt the cycle somewhere. I think grace is one of the most powerful things we can give each other. I also think people own guns. Institutions have enormous overt and covert power that can feel impossible to resist, and they are made up of people with necks you can wring, and those people are the agents of that unstoppable power, and those people don't have unlimited agency and make choices every day about how and when to exercise it. We'll never solve this. You literally have to think about it forever, each and every time, and honor each success and failure by learning something new for the next inevitable moral dilemma that'll be along any minute now and is probably already here.

[wanders-in-wonderland]

Countdown

I startle awake and I find myself strapped down, on my knees, with my legs straddling a sybian and my arms tied tightly behind me. There are more ropes wrapped around my knees, keeping my body pressed firmly against the machine. I’m naked and I can feel the ridges of the machine pressed harshly against my bare core, the pressure forcing my clit to bear full contact against the smooth material of the machine.

My eyes dart around the room as I struggle uselessly against my bindings. The room is so dimly lit that I can hardly see a few feet in front of me.

“Help! Please! Someone help me!” I scream into the empty space, my voice filled with desperation and fear as the gravity of the situation hits me. Suddenly, as if in response to my plead, lights pierce through the darkness, illuminating everything to full brightness.

I gasp and instinctively squeeze my eyes shut, the sudden light a harsh assault to my senses. When my vision finally adjusts enough for me to look around again, I feel a surge of terror when I see the set up around me.

There are several cameras and microphones laid out surrounding me, clearly set up to get 360 coverage of me. Directly in front of me is a massive screen that show the live camera feeds and I feel a shiver of fear creep down my spine when I see how helpless and vulnerable I look, naked and strapped down. On the bottom half of the screen there’s a blinking red light with the words Livestream Disabled flashing. My stomach clenches when I realize that the live footage of me, tied up and naked like this, could be livestreamed to who knows how many people across the world.

Tears well up in my eyes as panic starts to settle in. I let out a soft sob, wanting nothing more than to curl into myself, away from everything around me. “Please, don’t do this! Please let me go!” My voice is choked with tears and fear as my futile struggles against the bindings are coldly captured by the cameras and my begging is met with absolute silence.

All of a sudden, the machine I’m straddling roars to life. I scream as my back instinctively arches to try to reduce some of the sensation with no effect. The ropes around my legs force my entire weight to sink onto the machine, pressing my pussy mercilessly against the now-vibrating sybian. The vibrations are steady and I feel them wash over me as my clit takes the brunt of it all.

I gasp as the sensation starts to build and my mind wrestles with the juxtaposition of fear and pleasure. The rumbling vibration of the machine is drawing out soft moans and whines from me as I feel the sensations mounting. I writhe as much as I can but there’s nothing I can do to slow the onslaught of pleasure that is very quickly overwhelming me. There’s nothing else in the space around me to distract me from what’s happening to my body, though I’m not sure there’s anything that could distract me right now.

I try my best to shift my weight to take some pressure off my clit but there’s no leverage for me to move my body. I let out a desperate whine as I feel myself getting closer and closer to cumming. My mind is scrambling as I’m trying to rationalize everything that is happening, being strapped to a machine and forcibly brought to an unwanted orgasm. I can’t hold back any longer and I feel my orgasm wash over me, my eyes fluttering shut as I my clit pulses and my pussy clenches. A moan escapes me as I writhe atop the machine, my hips grinding into the vibrations as my release tapers off.

The machine mercifully slows underneath me, the vibrations coming to a halt as I pant, trying to catch my breath and regain my bearings. When I glance up again at the screen, I feel a new wash of terror grip me as I register a few changes.

There’s a new line of text under where Livestream Disabled is written. It says Countdown to Livestream: 1 of 5. It takes me a moment before I register the meaning of the words: if I cum 5 times, the livestream turns on, showcasing my naked, shaking, cumming body to the entire world. I realize that whoever set up this cruel situation has every intention of forcing me to bend to their will so that I helplessly and reluctantly cum my way into putting on a show, my own body betraying me. I don’t have time to process any further before the sybian turns on again, this time at a much higher frequency.

A cry escapes from my lips and my body lurches as I desperately try to escape the stimulation. It’s too soon since my first orgasm and my clit is tingling with sensitivity. The machine doesn’t care as it relentlessly batters my body.

I’m trying to take deep breaths, to distract myself from the vibrations wracking my body. My clit feels hypersensitive and I silently beg my body to please, please don’t cum again.

I can feel myself getting closer and closer to a second orgasm and I’m doing everything in my power to hold it back. I’m determined to hold out, to not let this demented situation bend me to break. The pleasure makes me gasp and whine, my clit turning into a focal point of unadulterated ecstasy. The sound of my own ragged breathing fills the air as I’m drawing in desperate deep breaths to try to calm myself. It’s no match against the machine beneath me as it increases in intensity and I lose the shred of command I held over my body. A scream is wretched out of my throat as I cum.

The text on the screen changes in response: Countdown to Livestream: 2 of 5.

I let out a choked whine and I’m grasping at straws as I beg into the empty space, hoping, praying for a miracle to make this all stop. “Please,” my voice is shaking, “Please, help me. Make this stop, I’m begging you, please!” There’s no miraculous rescue in response to my pleading. This time, there’s not even a break between orgasms. The vibrations only kick up a notch, pulling a gasp from my lips.

“No, no, no, please! Please stop! I don’t want this!” I cry out, unable to stop myself from begging even when I know it’s useless. There’s no sympathy for me. I feel the horrible pleasure start to build again. My hands clench into fists and I dig my nails into my palms, gritting my teeth as I will my body to ignore the pleasure. It didn’t work earlier and it doesn’t work this time. My sheer will is no match against the machine bending my body to its wants. I shatter into a third orgasm, the pleasure rushing through me so intensely that I feel my head spin.

Countdown to Livestream: 3 of 5.

I jerk and struggle uselessly against my bindings. I feel the vibrations start to slow and I gasp in relief as my body comes down from the high it was forced into. There’s a growing feeling of despair as I realize I’m only two orgasms away from the livestream starting. And it doesn’t look like I have any hope to withstanding the pleasure to hold out for much longer. As if on cue, the machine restarts its vibrations.

The previous orgasms have pushed my body into overstimulation and my clit feels raw with pleasure but there’s nothing to give me a break. My pussy is drooling over the sybian, clenching and pulsing as pleasure makes me a slave. I’m being pushed higher and higher as I focus every measure of my mind to holding this orgasm back.

My teeth dig into my lip as I try to ground myself in the pain and my eyes are screwed shut. I teeter over the edge but out of sheer will, I hold myself back, begging my body to comply. For a moment, I manage to force my body to obey, curbing the pleasure. Then, the vibrations increase again.

I let out an anguished cry as the pleasure rushes through me, shattering all of my efforts at containing myself. I feel my cunt spray my release all over myself, my body locked in the throes of my orgasm. The sounds exploding out of me are a combination of pure pleasure and sheer torment.

Countdown to Livestream: 4 of 5.

I’m one orgasm away from the point of no return and the terror of being broadcasted to the world makes me want to cry. The vibrations pick up speed and there’s a sense of resigned acceptance that washes over me as my body obeys the machine and begins to inch towards my final release. But this time, it’s so much worse than I could’ve anticipated.

The sybian batters my body as it has with the past four orgasms. It expertly and unrelentingly drives me higher and higher in my pleasure, pulling moans and gasps out of me as it works. My body is barreling towards another all-encompassing orgasm when suddenly, all of the stimulation cuts off just as I’m about to cum. I let out a loud gasp as my body jerks in response to the loss of pleasure. I don’t understand. I was so fucking close and it all stopped. My eyes dart to the screen but there’s nothing there to explain what happened. The words Countdown to Livestream: 4 of 5 seem to taunt me.

My body slowly creeps back from the edge, my breathing stabilizing as the haze of pleasure slowly fades away. And then, the machine restarts. The vibrations are harsh and intense against my clit and I cry out as the previous pleasure suddenly slams back into me. Before long, I’m letting out gasping cries as my body once again is at the very precipice of pleasure. Again, it all stops. I can’t control the whine that slips out. I should be happy. Whatever is making the machine cut off at the very last second is obviously saving me from the livestream starting but the deep, primal, needy part of me wants to cry at the pleasure that’s being withheld from me.

The cycle continues when the machine restarts. At the very last moment, when just one more second of stimulation would push me over the edge, the machine stops. This time, I cry, hot and desperate tears falling down my cheeks.

I can’t even bring myself to care about the livestream anymore. I’m so fucking close, so desperate for the pleasure that I would sell my soul to cum. The last four orgasms do nothing to curb this insatiable desire that’s built up since the edging began and I’m mindless with need. My cunt is clenching around nothing, my clit throbbing in time to my heart beat but there’s nothing I can do to push myself over the edge. I feel my orgasm fading away and I let out a needy whine.

A few moments later, the sybian starts up again and a lewd moan slips from my mouth. My back arches as the pleasure washes over me, the previous edging driving me so close to the brink that even a few seconds of vibrations are enough to push me to the edge again. But again, the machine stops.

“Please! Please, I’m begging you, I need to cum. Please let me cum! Please, I need to cum.” My pleas didn’t work earlier when I was begging for the pleasure to stop and they certainly don’t work when I’m now pleading for an orgasm. It’s a cruel joke to make me such a slave to pleasure that I’m begging for my own demise.

The unrelenting cycle continues as the vibrations resume. There are incoherent babbles of desperation spilling from my lips as the pleasure mounts. Again, I’m held at the torturous edge as the machine plays my body like a familiar instrument.

Again, the vibrations cut off just as I’m about to cum. I scream. “Please! Please let me cum, just start the livestream, please, I just need to cum!”

It seems that I’ve said the magic words because the machine beneath me restarts with a fervor. I barely have time to draw a breath in when my orgasm slams full force into me. I shatter into unrelenting, all-encompassing pleasure as my cunt squirts out my release. Every single cell of my body is flooded with ecstasy and my consciousness shatters under the force of it all.

When I regain my senses again, I glance up at the screen and see the fated words reflecting back towards me: Livestream On, Countdown to Livestream: 5 of 5. I can’t bring myself to care when the machine underneath me increases its power and my eyes roll up as my overstimulated body is forced to react.

[sirgawainofgalifrey]

Not to knock on Wrightworth or other Phoenix ships but people like to make most of Phoenix's actions have a romantic undertone and really miss out on the fact that he'll just about die for anyone he considers a friend.

Like he took on a clearcut murder case with zero experience (what's a cross-examination lol) because he was friends with Larry in school.

He STRAIGHT UP ATE GLASS AND METAL for the girl he was dating and was willing to ignore that she'd murdered someone.

He changed his whole ass career to get in contact with Edgeworth again just to make sure he was okay emotionally (and for other reasons that people like to ignore just for making it all about Edgeworth), even though they literally were like in 4th grade together for like half a year.

The first case he defended Maya was almost entirely because of Mia, because he didn't know Maya yet.

Literally EVERY CASE that he defends Maya in he's going above and beyond all reason and logic to prove that she's not guilty.

Him literally going against all reason and evidence and Edgeworth's own admission in the Edgeworth case to prove he's not guilty.

HIM LITERALLY ONLY TAKING ON THE SKYE CASE BECAUSE EMA AND LANA REMINDED HIM OF MAYA AND MIA.

Him literally in the Engarde case willing to compromise all his principles to get a murderer off the hook to save her (they give you the option of going with pleading that Engarde is innocent, even though it doesn't effect the outcome).

Him literally running across a burning bridge at night over a huge cliff to make sure she's alright.

All I'm saying is I think the writers more intended to characterize Phoenix as someone who is willing to do almost anything for people he cares about (even if he acts like a grumpy asshole most of the time), more than emphasizing any one romantic relationship.

(I also think that's why he took Edgeworth faking his death so hard, and was so pissed at him for it. Like he felt betrayed and helpless at Edgeworth commiting suicide, mad (at Edgeworth and himself) that Edgeworth thought he couldn't come to him for help, when he would do anything for him. And then he finds out he was deceived, and couldn't understand how anyone could do that to someone they care about, like it's not in his friendship vocabulary ((also the fact that Edgeworth had confided in Gumshoe and not him that he was still alive, meaning he trusts Gumshoe more than him as a friend.)) It all comes down to Phoenix being betrayed that he's not trusted and his devotion to his friends not returned.)

Anyway sorry this is so long I hope it makes sense.

(also I've only played the original trilogy)

[concerningwolves]

i am so so gently asking abled storytellers to try this little exercise: consider that maybe the main character doesn't miraculously get through traumatic event number 8277 with minor injuries. maybe they don't make a full, narratively-convenient recovery. there are tangible, long-term effects on their health. they are disabled. there are lots of ways to be disabled, and you can pick whatever makes the most sense. the point is that because they're the main character, they have to stay at the heart of the narrative. what happens to your story after that? just for the sake of this exercise, you're not allowed to have them spiral into helpless depression, or collapse under self-loathing, or turn their story into a quest for a cure or an uplifting recovery narrative. think it through instead. how can you tell this story with the character's disability? what needs to change? are there any reasons why these changes can't happen?

at the end of it, you might change nothing. but I think this is worth doing, because sometimes you'll find that the reason you didn't want your character to have a limp, or lose a limb or sense, or have some kind of SFF-appropriate fantasy disability is because of internalised biases. those are worth challenging & i truly believe that creators miss out on richer stories when they view disability either as a fate worse than death or as nothing more than a catalyst for tragedy.

[faesdreaming]

cardinal concept

yandere platonic batfam with a resurrected reader

a/n: because as much as i love neglected reader, dead (then alive again) reader just has so much potential

the dynamic duo, batman and robin. bruce wayne and dick grayson. then, you came along; a result of bruce’s irresponsible coupling with a young woman he’d long since forgotten about. you grow up in the nastier parts of gotham with your mother, where you’re forces to grow up faster and become more mature, until she has an accident.

after you’re mother’s untimely death, you find yourself under his care. bruce is hesitant and unsure, he’s already struggled with raising dick. he doesn’t want to fail you too. he dances around telling about batman until you happen upon the batcave, at your insistence and a few instances of you following them, he relents and lets you join.

suddenly, it’s batman, robin, and cardinal.

bruce is initially unsure what to do with you, even after you become cardinal. unlike with dick, who needed to become robin lest he go down a darker road, you’re only cardinal because of him. it draws out an agonizing guilt, causing bruce to practically coddle you. but you’re emotionally intelligent, in a way bruce isn’t, you’re able to communicate with soft words and gentle reasoning instead of shouting matches and tearful pouting like your brother. you’re his angel, his sweet, understanding angel. it reminds him of his own mother. you’re kind, empathetic disposition is everything bruce needs in his life. because yes, to him, your brother needs his guidance. but bruce needs yours.

as for dick his relationship is with you as simple as this: he’s the big brother and you’re the little sibling. you can fight and argue, but you two always make up and head off to snuggle or play. you’re bond grows stronger the more time you spend on patrol— having each other’s back, getting into trouble with batman— or at school— although you’re in a younger grade, you still see your big brother at school and go to him when you have problems— or at home— snuggled up, watching a movie and eating snacks provided by alfred— you two are extremely close.

you’re little of family of four— including alfred, of course— is tight-knit. you fight and argue but always make up and you’re always there for each other.

until dick becomes nightwing and a scruffy teen named jason todd joins you. as close as you are with your older brother and father, you bond with him far quicker. maybe it’s because of how close you are in age, or maybe it’s because of your shared past experiences.

the family dynamics shift and change, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. dick grows more distant, going off with the titans. but that’s to be expected, he’s grown up now. you still visit him, of course. and he still pops by to see you. bruce, you notice, softens, almost. he’s grown accustomed to parenthood. jason is your favourite change, though. a sibling close in age, but still younger, so can justify (playfully) bossing him around. your family isn’t perfect, but it’s yours and you love it.

then, jason and bruce start fighting. dick goes off world. a fight with bane leaves you injured and out of commission. it’s just a rough patch, you tell yourself. until, suddenly, jason’s birth mother contacts him. something’s off about it. you want to tell your dad, however, jason is adamant you shouldn’t. reluctantly, you don’t, opting to go along with him just in case.

your gut, as it turns out, was right. you’re injured and unable to do much as the joker captures you and jason. you’re helpless to watch as your brother, your sweet baby brother, is beaten mercilessly with a crowbar. your voice is hoarse from screaming during your own beating and your body is sore, but despite it all, you still rasp out pleas to let your brother go. one child will be effective enough. the joker can spare one. of course, in his cruelty, he doesn’t.

you’re left aching, battered, and bruised. the ticking of the bomb serves as the count to your death. jason, brave jason, tries to gather enough strength to get up. and maybe, just maybe, he could escape if he weren’t focused on trying to save you. he won’t listen to your pleas for him to go, to leave you behind. he’s adamant upon accompanying you to your doom.

you hear the final ticks. with all the strength you have left, you move towards him. you cannot save yourself. you cannot save him. all you can do is die beside him. pressing your forehead to his, the last thing you see is your little brother’s face before the final tick sounds and the ensuing explosion consumes you.

and that’s the end of it, your journey, your life. you’re buried alongside your brother in a sombre ceremony, your uniform cased in glass as a memorial to bruce’s failures. he becomes angrier, loses himself. he’s lost two of his children and is fighting with his only remaining one. dick, is utterly furious, with himself and bruce. he blames bruce. for letting his precious siblings die, for starting them all of this heroic crusade. he blames himself for not being there, for being distant with you and jason.

alas, time marches forwards and batman needs a new robin, in the form of one tim drake. he’s a clever kid, one way too smart for his own good. one you used to babysit while his rich parents were away to earn some extra cash. it wasn’t right, leaving him with no one his age to play with. so, when you could, you’d come over. you’d soothe his loneliness. and for that, he’s forever grateful.

your influence continues beyond your death. for you life has impacted so many. barbara gordan, for example, who viewed you akin to a little sister. who fought alongside you as batgirl. you were loved by many as (Y/N) Wayne. your friends and family still hold candles for you. even as they accept your lose, they never stop fully grieving for you and the lost potential brimming inside you. then, there are those who you impacted as cardinal. as a hero, you saved numerous lives, including that of one stephanie brown, who will forever feel indebted to you and strives to become just like you.

the justice league, who knew you as one of the first sidekicks, who functioned like extended family, mourn deeply for your loss and offer sympathies to your father and brother. they will remember you and your tenacity, carrying on their pursuit of justice with you in mind. certainly villains, such as poison ivy and even harley quinn, are enraged with the joker. while you could occasionally be a pain, you were their favourite kiddie hero. and of course the likes of selina kyle and talia al ghul, your father’s paramours, women who became like family to you.

cardinal will be forever immortalized in the hearts of heroes and villains alike, your legacy of compassion and kindness living on in memories transformed into stories, your death a testament to sacrifice and love and heroism— except, that isn’t how it ends, is it? no. your story doesn’t end with your death, it’s how it begins.

and your real story begins by waking in the constricting confined of your casket, bursting out with inhuman strength, fueled by the adrenaline boost, and digging your way out of your grave, the cool mud giving way to harsh ground until you break through the service. that night, that stormy gotham eve, is the day you are reborn.

you flee then wander the streets of gotham until you regain your mind. you remember, you remember everything and you, you don’t want to go back. not to your family, not to your friends, not the life you once knew. you were given a new life. and this life, you would live for yourself.

sans your old attachments, you live encumbered, untroubled by past woes. yet, you seem to forget your festering memory, the mark you’ve left on people. you forget that while you may be willing to leave your old life behind, they aren’t as willing to let you go. especially when they learn you’re within reach.

[fishnapple]

Your effect on them

(lover/partner/future spouse)

How does your presence in their life affect them? What change do you bring into their life?

This is a general reading meant for multiple people. Take only what resonates and leave out the rest.

Your feedback is much appreciated. If you find the reading resonated with you, leave a comment, I’d love to know 🎐

About me | Masterpost Book a reading with me - KO-FI (Read this post : personal reading)

ROSE QUARTZ

The strongest effect you have on them is an invisible one that runs underneath. The one that you might not even be aware of it. It's a subtle psychological one that tugs on their heart in an inexplicable way. This person is interested in spirituality, but they're cautious about it. They can be emotional, they feel emotions deeply, but they don't probe and ask questions to seek the roots of those emotions. They just feel but don't really want to know why they feel that way. But the connection with you will change that. The emotions they feel for you would be too pervading and strong that they can't ignore the question of why they feel that way towards you. They will want to analyse their feelings deeper, they will look at the concept of fate with more curiosity, they will start to believe that there might be an invisible force that pulls the strings behind the scene after all. In a way, they can feel a little bit helpless in their attraction towards you. So they might retreat into themselves more often, become more quiet and pensive.

The way you show your emotions or just something you're musing about in passing can have a profound effect on their mind. They feel like you've taught them something just by being open and being yourself. Your words have a cathartic effect on them, especially when they feel emotionally vulnerable. You make them consider more meanings to life than before, you make them believe in things that they thought were too far out of reach or too "out there" for them. It can sometimes feel almost like a therapy session for them when they are talking with you.

They usually believe in a slow burn connection, the one that needs lots of time to get to know each other before actually falling in love. But they will feel a spark with you from very early on. It's sudden, the love attraction just exists right from the beginning, like a puppy love, or an innocent crush you had for your classmate when you're a child. You make them want to just be in love, forget all the stuffy rules and expectations that society has put on dating, and just savour the connection. While physical attraction does play a big part, what's underneath is a feeling of fatefulness that create this instant attraction, as if deep down, they subconsciously recognise you as their lover from many lifetimes ago, even when they're a hardcore realist who only see the present.

SODALITE

They feel like you're the gate that lead them to another world, a bigger world. This person is probably quite closed off and very private. They don't like to open up to people and usually just want to keep to themselves. Almost like they revel in their solitude. They might be someone who likes to do things alone, sit in the dark, meditate, and try to figure out the secrets of life, all while presenting a very ordinary and quiet image. Their world may feel too dark and heavy for them to share with others, for fear of overburdening and scaring others away. But you show them that's not true, that opening up doesn't mean scaring people away, as long as they're with the right people. You make them want to reach out more to the world and enjoy life with a lighter attitude.

The biggest influence you have on them is you helping them solidifying their self so that they're confident enough to pursue greater goals. They may sometimes look up to you as a teacher. You make them become more ambitious and want to master their life more, to have more independence and control, instead of being swayed from side to side by external circumstances. You bring a shift to their psyche, awaken a deep desire to be themselves. They probably act more brave and honest when they're with you. Because they feel stable and hopeful with you. The stability you give them is not heavy and restrictive, it's actually freeing. They know that you will always have their back, you give them love generously, never hold back. That kind of unconditional affection and support make them want to do the same for you, to be the same source of dependability and strength for you.

Your personality and demeanour are different from them, even opposite of them, it's like day and night, you're the day, the sun, they're the night, the moon. Your presence could bring a shock to their life, they're not used to your energy, the kind that is so open and vibrant. Your values might be different, but instead of creating obstacles, they actually complement each other well. Instead of becoming defensive and withdrawn, they become more open-minded and are more willing to look from a different perspective.

For someone who's more reserved like them, they could feel like a fish stuck on land sometimes when they're with you, especially in a social situation. But with each time their insecurities creep in, you will chase them away with your assurance. And with each assurance, they become more brave and confident in the relationship with you. They would probably become more social than before, more relaxed and playful. They might not be the type to openly pursue someone when they're attracted to that person, but because of the security they feel with you, they will be more bold in their action, more decisive. They might even do something atypical of them, like showing off or telling corny jokes to get your attention.

CARNELIAN

Your effect can be felt strongly by them even when you're physically distant from each other. This might come as a shock for them. This person is probably someone who's practical and more interested in the physical world than the unseen, mysterious spiritual world. They like everything to be concrete and touchable. They like to hoard material possessions and can be materialistic. But at one point, they're going to get tired of all these possessions, they feel weighed down, stuck. But they probably won't know the true reason for this unsatisfactory feeling they're having. They will keep searching for the answer. And you will be the answer, your presence and your absence, both will bring a shock to their system. You trigger this person in both the soft way and the hard way. You guys would meet in a transitional period for both of you. You arrive right when they begin to seek a different path to change. The relationship with you will be the catalyst for their new life.

They find themselves confused by you a lot. When speaking to you, they would stumble on their words, make vague remarks that are atypical of their communication style. They also talk in a softer voice to you, or stay completely silent just to hear you talk and take in your words. They find your words to be very eye-opening. They can talk about any topics under the sky with you and find great compatibility and acceptance. They find themselves daydream more, fantasise about the what ifs, about the future, they begin to take a more philosophical approach towards life, where they consider both the practicality and the emotional satisfaction of their choices and actions. It won't be surprising if they also begin to take more interest in religious and spiritual matters.

Also travelling will be something they love to do with you, you just make them want to move, to explore what life has to offer. The trips they make with you will have a profound effect on their inner self. They could have some self restrictions and fears that they hide deep within. But when you travel together, be it a physical trip or a mental, emotional, or spiritual one, they will gradually release those restrictions little by little. There's this sense of abundance and sharing when you're together that they feel deeply safe and secure, so much that they can feel a burning desire for a lasting commitment with you.

OBSIDIAN

You feel like a companion, a lover from the past comes back to them in this lifetime, though they wouldn't necessarily think about past lives or any thing too spiritual, they probably feel a very nostalgic and familiar sense when they see you. Your love for each other just feels right and good, simple and logical, as if meant to be. You're similar to each other, yet opposite in many different ways, this create a balanced dynamic that when one is lacking, the other can fill that gap and vice versa.

There's something unselfish about the way you feel for each other. You both don't keep your love to yourself but would spread that love to everything, everyone around you, it feels both universal yet of your own. It's like when two people love, they also make positive changes to everything around them, they make their surroundings better, whether consciously or subconsciously. When they're with you, they will want to reach out more to people, to be more social , and to connect with people. You open their social circle, they, in turn, open your heart more. You guys probably like to joke and be flirty with each other through words, you make them want to express themselves creatively through verbal means, and also gestures, playful touches. There's focus on romance here, they feel very loved by you, in turn, they also want to give you that same love, it's very reciprocal and equal. You can feel like both a best friend and a lover.

Their energy before meeting you can be self-serving. They're used to focusing on themselves and their development more than others. They would choose themselves and their happiness first and foremost. But with you in the picture, they will want to share, to be there for you and be a part of a team, they would want to put your needs above them. This shift happens due to the change in their mindset. They are getting more mature along the progression of the relationship. There could be some hardship and obstacles on the road to each other. There could be sudden separation due to external circumstances or sudden change of life direction that requires both people to stay flexible and strong. Your presence will be a constant during all these. Your resilience and unwavering devotion will become their beacon of light. They might idealise you a lot. Every word, every gesture of yours means a lot to them. No matter how small and helpless they feel in front of life's many challenges, they also know that you will be by their side always, and that's enough for them to want to work harder, to gather their strength and face anything bravely and be there for you.

[theramblingvoid]

I'll be honest I never really gave Tim a second thought on my first listen through, but on a relisten I've realized that yeah actually that's me. That would be me. I too would get really frustrated and angry and make a million bad sarcastic jokes if I was trapped in The Office That Makes You Die Badly and could do nothing but wait around to die badly in the office. And also still had to fill out timesheets. I mayhaps would also lose my composure just a little actually.

[bull-shit-suji]

not that this is a particularly profound take but imo the dadbastian trope IS pretty applicable in canon if you just like. Look at it from a slightly skewed angle.

it's not that i'm coming at this in a "sebastian is gradually changing for the better and learning to empathize with and/or regard o!ciel as someone he genuinely cares for" way because, as much as that narrative is fun and angsty and Just So Happens to make sebastian a little easier to relate to, it clashes with how calculated he canonically is.

that being said! he absolutely is changing. his character arc revolves around a realization that the tactics he's comfortable using aren't good enough, and this goes wayyy beyond undertaker being two steps ahead of his "punch first, ask questions later" instinct. everything sebastian does is catalyzed by a belief that, no matter how treacherous the situation becomes, he'll be able to figure it out with little to no effort given his superiority as a supernatural entity.

ciel and sebastian's dynamic prior to emerald witch relies on this ethos. ciel has a goal and views sebastian as the sole avenue through which he can accomplish it because he's a demon. ciel feels unsafe and views sebastian as his only source of protection because he's a demon. all sebastian has to do to maintain this dynamic is be scary and generally infallible which, surprise! are natural dispositions for him.

enter BOC, in which this dynamic is challenged during ciel's initial asthma attack. this is the first time sebastian is relatively helpless to keep ciel alive - he has to defer to a human doctor because there's literally. Nothing he can do. which is then paralleled by ciel's second flair up.

there's a reason ciel's asthma is referenced again in this scene. there's a reason sebastian looks so skip-happy while carrying out ciel's order of burning that bitch to the ground. he doesn't have to question his abilities! he doesn't have to alter the dynamic! he can keep flexing his demon powers anytime shit hits the fan and ciel will always come crawling back to him.

sebastian's fatal flaw isn't just that he's muscle-brained - he's also stubbornly, willfully ignorant of his own weaknesses. sure, he was completely useless in preventing ciel's asthma back at the circus, but that's fine, who cares! he gets to fall back on his strengths and ignore how powerless he actually was.

welcome to BOA! for context, prior to this arc, sebastian rarely, if ever let ciel see him expending any kind of effort, i.e. he's in a constant battle with the servants to keep the manor from descending into chaos and purposefully tries to hide it. this isn't just a butler aesthetics thing, it's also an "I'm a demon and everything is easy for me" thing, to the extent that sebastian continues attempting to uphold his unflappable demeanor when he's quite literally on the verge of collapsing.

sebastian's tactics aren't all that's challenged in BOA - his entire persona gets irreparably damaged. ciel sees him be outsmarted. ciel sees him injured and genuinely struggling to keep the former safe. this should be very bad news for their dynamic;

except, it isn't.

ciel responds so positively that it makes sebastian Yapper Of The Century michaelis momentarily speechless! he then immediately tells ciel to cut that shit out, thus deferring once again to a dynamic that's rapidly crumbling before his eyes and ignoring how effective his accidental appeal to pathos was in retaining and even strengthening ciel's attachment to him.

which leads me to emerald witch, aka the cataclysm for sebastian's change. on top of undertaker being a constant, underlying threat to his food, sebastian ONCE AGAIN has to deal with said food's delicate mortality.

obviously, sebastian is all out of sorts, but his expressions / the way he's framed when he's alone (or not being perceived) absolutely floor me. he looks genuinely distressed after speaking to the other servants. he's drawn in these bird's-eye and wide-shot views while in the forest, creating an isolated, pensive atmosphere and illustrating him (a big, bad demon) as nothing short of small.

he's conflicted. which is weird, right? this isn't the first time his food has gotten sick. moreover, ciel isn't in any active danger - he's having a PTSD response. sebastian is not stupid, he knows this, and should be either confidently reminding ciel of the power he wields or threatening to eat him right then and there; and yet! he waits multiple days before reverting to these (historically effective!!) responses.

it's not just that he's a picky eater - this is sebastian, for the first time in the series, recognizing how fragile ciel's attachment to him is. he's doubting himself. his food no longer views him as its only source of safety, has rejected him, and it's entirely due to sebastian's own negligence.

he's been ignoring his weaknesses. he's been reliant on ciel looking past multiple instances of helplessness in light of how terrified the kid is and how powerful sebastian makes him feel. it's not a coincidence that ciel's near-death experience was exacerbated by sebastian disregarding the former's symptoms to go beat up a werewolf (leaving him ALONE in a foreign, SUPPOSEDLY CURSED castle) until those symptoms, literally, hit him in the face.

it doesn't matter how incapacitated ciel is - sebastian's presence should be enough to calm him, and it isn't, and it's his fault.

this is where sebastian really starts to change. (mind you, the chapter following ciel's initial rejection is titled "That Butler, Change", so do with that what you will.) though we aren't told this explicitly, i think he looks to instances wherein something other than fear drove ciel's attachment (BOA), as well as to the only person ciel would let near him while panicked (finnian, who ciel appears to be closest with amongst the servants and was projecting onto out of grief for his twin). he dials back on the demon vibes. he slowly begins altering his rhetoric.

enter blue cult!

remember what i said about sebastian not wanting ciel to see him struggle? to be cognizant of his weaknesses? as much as the situation was largely out of his control, it's interesting that sebastian allowed his expression to convey upset given that he views emotion of any kind as a weakness.

this isn't to say his sulking isn't genuine - i like to think his clinical narcissist brain was about to pop at the mere thought of not being praised; but! when put in context with his nature, his façade, how every single thing he does is calculated, especially around ciel, this Wildly out-of-character expression gains a new meaning.

another example after ciel returns from getting his blood thieved:

two things: one, sebastian is learning! he almost verbatim references his mistake in emerald witch, meaning he had to have acknowledged it between then and now. two, he does this verbally, explicitly, thereby allowing ciel to witness his panic AND be made aware that sebastian is capable of failure. he could have marched back into the music hall and wrangled the s4. he could have said "ah shit, that's not good, let's go find a doctor". instead, he rambles on about how this is all his fault to a degree that's so excessive it's kind of comical.

and you know what! i don't believe a goddamn word of it. it is so significant that he immediately switches gears after his instinctual big-scary-demon reaction. the sebastian we knew at the beginning of the manga would NEVER let ciel think he was genuinely upset or flawed to the extent of endangering his charge, as that would directly contradict ciel's perception of him as perfect, strong, and safe.

sebastian is thus playing on the dynamic shift that occurred in BOA: he is encouraging ciel to view him as a (rarely!) imperfect being who is struggling to maintain a façade. as someone willing to go to the ends of the earth for him, to care for him, to defy his nature for him, because there are now far too many factors beyond his control to rely on fear alone.

honestly? it's a masterful execution. sebastian's tweaks to his persona are subtle: he gets a little sillier, he offers more praise (under the guise of banter), he tries to make ciel feel bad for "leashing" him.

(i wasn't going to include these panels but. dude. the way he backtracks after the initial comparison between himself and elizabeth only to start pontificating about what the "heart" wants. that is such a purposefully dual-ended rhetoric and insane to hear from mr. evil personified.)

he even displays an artfully-skewed version of grief upon finding angi's body (again, that emotion might have been somewhat genuine, but it feels intentional that he chose to express it with ciel in the room) to foster belief that he is capable of like. Caring for people?

circling back to forces beyond sebastian's control, here are two examples of sebastian's reaction to r!ciel's return:

oh BABY. "neither you nor my love are real"?

on-the-nose dialogue aside, sebastian's expression between these panels had me stumped for years. it would make sense for him to convey sympathy to convince ciel of said "love", HOWEVER it's odd that he would continue to do this despite not actively being perceived while in the carriage. something about this feels a little too genuine - especially considering how he's visibly tweaking throughout all of r!ciel's reveal chapters. as much as looking distressed/concerned is likely a conscious decision, i don't think he's fabricating the emotion entirely.

which leads me to: why does sebastian feel the need to alter the dynamic? sure, it was precarious at best and ran the risk of ciel not liking his pet demon all that much, but there's no imminent danger in that. ciel needs sebastian to achieve his revenge and sebastian has made himself out to be the only dependable, constant person amidst ciel's friends/family inevitably leaving him, AND has a trump card of total autonomy over ciel's soul.

... unless, of course, one of the family members he'd lost miraculously came back from the dead, the exact family member sebastian had eaten right in front of him, and was attached at the hip to a creature familiar with sebastian's flaws far before the demon was ever aware of them, that has proved itself more than capable of killing him.

oh he's concerned alright; there is a very real chance that ciel might back out of the contract. he's forgone his revenge before while in a similar trauma-induced headspace; only, this time, sebastian would be powerless to stop him. in truth, at any point since BOA, his meal could have run off to undertaker and there would have been shit all he could do about it. sebastian was slow to acknowledge this, granted, but up until EW there had been virtually no reason for ciel to do something like that.

now there are reasons. and girl, not only is sebastian concerned, i think he's a little scared.

he's functionally lost all ground in keeping ciel dependent on him. it's no longer enough for ciel to regard sebastian as a maliciously convenient product of circumstance - he has to form some other connection.

so, sebastian blurs the line between servant and guardian. he plays on associations he'd established in the past: nagging over ciel's health, taking over his studies, complimenting him, disciplining him, crafting his own form to look remarkably similar to vincent (and no, i don't consider this an instance of same-face-syndrome, look at their bangs. tell me that's not intentional). choices once made out of cruelty, out of a desire to worsen ciel's emotional turmoil, now repurposed to convince him of a devoted, endearingly-demonic parental figure and hoping this will be enough should there come a time wherein ciel is given a choice between two blasphemous falsifications of his family.

sebastian pivots hard. he avoids relying on his supernatural abilities unless absolutely necessary, despite countless opportunities to do so, to the extent where you almost forget he's not human. he does not leave ciel's side. he lets himself appear dirty and exhausted. he allows ciel to see how uncertain he feels, how helpless he is, knowing the true reason will be lost in translation because ciel is a child, and no matter how conscious that child is of sebastian's nature, he will instinctively revert to seeking out a parent.

the whole "butler aesthetics" shtick flies right out the window at the end of 147. i cannot physically articulate how improper it would be for a servant to grab his master's face and scold him. in front of company. you know who does that? a parent. this is straight up panic on sebastian's part. he is willing to run the risk of acting uncouth in order to brand those fatherly associations right onto ciel's underdeveloped frontal lobe.

and. and this might just be speculation. but.

it's working.

i cannot think of a single goddamn reason for ciel to do this. you wanna know something? his excuse is complete horseshit. sebastian is dressed as a butler, something passengers in a first class train compartment would recognize instantly. even his undercover persona of a valet wouldn't warrant tea with an aristocrat. as much as i'd like to believe ciel is in on the charade, i can't find any evidence nor does it seem realistic that he, a child, would fully grasp that level of manipulation, regardless of how mature he acts.

oh, hey, sebastian's being a little cryptic with that snowfall line. i bet it's completely random and he's never made weather-themed references in any of the prior arcs!

this is. One page. after ciel tells him to take a day off in BOA. he is directly referencing the first time he was made aware of how effective a disingenuous father-son relationship could be.

in BOA, he appears slightly ruffled by the dynamic shift, as this endangered the status quo. in the train car, he's absolutely ecstatic. look at him! that's his "I Just Manipulated This Preteen Sooo Good" face. he looks like an animal. he looks like he's about to turn into a werewolf and jump for joy.

tl;dr: dadbastian is actually so insanely viable, but not in the way you'd think. sebastian in undoubtedly changing, but this isn't an accident or a product of him learning to love or care in any capacity. he is perpetrating the illusion of change, of personal growth in a creature that cannot posses a real identity, thereby humanizing himself in ciel's eyes to keep his food from slipping out of his grasp and it's working so unbelievably well that he's managed to fool a good number of kuro's readers too.

[queen-of-diamonds-xo]

Qatar Heat Pt.2 (OP81)

Oscar Piastri x female! Driver! Reader

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Summary: part two of this fic!

Watching his teammate rolled away as he battles with unanswered questions. Oscar is rushed away and confronted by his manger Mark Webbar- where the pressure you endure come to light.

Warnings:

Mentions of a weight clause for reader, a bit of tension, both of you are still idiots just a little bit more aware of your feelings

A/N: okay here it is! I’m so sorry this took so long your girl has been in a massive funk lately but finally getting this out feels so good. I hope your enjoy, the themes in this may be a little strong but your girl can’t help writing about supportive men speaking up for woman’s advocacy!

Masterlist

🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🍂

Oscar felt helpless as he watched your body being strapped onto a gurney and rushed away. Cameras flashed around him in a dizzying swirl, sharp questions slurring together in a meaningless blur of noise.

“Oscar, what’s going on? What did she say?”

“Mr Piastri, any comment on what you just witnessed?”

“Mr Piastri, do you think women are cut out for formula one?”

That last one ran deep down Oscar’s spine, his eyes narrowing slightly as he tilted his head at the reporter. Almost daring them to repeat the question.

His movement towards the man was blocked by the weighted pressure of Charles' hands on his tensed shoulders, blocking his attempt at confronting the sexist reporter. His fists clenched by his sides as he scoffs one last time in the man direction, turning his attention to the swarm of McLaren personal surrounding you.

His steps towards you were held back, Charles’ voice ringing through his ears. Charles hands pressed into Oscar’s shoulders, effectively blocking the man’s advance. He felt hopeless, his feet sinking into the heated tar like mud- his strained voice fading into the chaotic swarm of noise.

He was quickly forced away, McLaren support surrounding him as they guided his staggering steps into a closed off room. Their words not registering as his neck strained, desperate to catch one last look at you as the door to the motor home is locked behind him. Oscar’s hands rested atop his helmet, thankful for the privacy it provided as a strangled, broken plea escapes his parted lips. His chest straining as his mind runs away from him, still focused on his teammate, the girl he would do anything for.

He is ushered into a still conference room, the silence a welcoming change as the door clicks.

In seconds Oscar was left alone, his blood thundering in his ears. He heaved with weighted breaths as he paced the room. A consistent back and forth as he replayed your words in his mind, battling with himself to not go running out the door after you.

His hand fighting with his helmet, rushed movements yanking the suffocating weight from his head. The pounding remained consistent as the protective gear hung heavily in his hands. His sick covered gloves a stomach churning reminded if the pain McLaren had caused.

He replayed the events in his mind, running through the memories- a desperate search for answers in every fleeting moment he had shared with you.

So.. she got her period- that he saw sure off.

They forgot to fill her water at the hottest race of the year and-

They forgot?

Engineers don’t just, forget these things.

His cheast tightens with a whole new kind of anger. The one ran deep, an icy flow in his veins that squared his shoulders and tightened his jaw. He narrowed his eyes as he tried to remain control of his breathing.

But if they didn’t forget, they.. did this on purpose?

His eyes narrowed in a pointed gaze.

But.. why would they do this?

He made his way out towards the door, leaving his helmet forgotten and his gloves tucked into his coveralls.

gripping the cold brass in his hand, Oscar took a moment to breathe. Allowing his breath to catch, the shaking in his hands steadying.

Nothing good will come from approaching this in anger. No, he needs to be calm and consistent. He needs to lay out the facts and the evidence for the world to deliberate.

He needs people to know the truth. Not for himself, and definitely not for the team.

But for you.

The girl who came speeding into his life, messing up his sim times with her sarcastic commentary. Sending his heart racing with every second glance, his stomach shuffling with nerves when you laugh, low and controlled, at his jokes.

The one who always stood with composure and grace when people throw brash and sexist comments your way.

The one who shut them up with race results and unteachable talent that left the whole paddock (world) silent.

The one who left him breathless in every sense.

He wasn’t going to stand by and watch as the very team who did this to you, made up excuses and lies- letting the world slander your racing ability.

This wasn’t personal- it wasn’t about you

Just… your ability as a driver.

Yeah, sure. That’s how he will rationalise what he’s about to do.

The door opening caught him by surprise, stepping back slightly as the person sleeked into the room. Standing tall, blocking Oscar’s escape.

Oscar eyes narrowed at the older man in front of him, his manager and mentor Mark Weebar.

Oscar arms crossing against his chest as he rejected the man’s presence, not at all in the mindset for a post race debriefing right now.

Mark stood unwavering in front of the door, mimicking Oscar’s stance watching the young driver intently. His eyes daring Oscar’s to speak first, a smirk itching on Marks features at Oscar’s indifferent expression. Waiting carefully for mark to break the silence first

“Before you go out there, there are some things you should know first.”

Marks gaze met Oscar’s, the older man’s face hanging low. His shoulder weighed with the knowledge of a terrible truth. One he truly didn’t believe Oscar was ready to hear- At least not in his current state.

Marks movements were slow, hesitant as he extended out his arm. His hand clutching a stack of papers, jerstering for Oscar to take them.

Oscar’s hands shook as he gazed the papers, they looked identical to his racing contract with McLaren. The only difference being your name staring back at him.

He thrust the papers back towards Mark, the pile burning in his hands. His eyes gone wide as he stared accusingly at his manager;

This was your racing contact.

He couldn’t have this! He couldn’t read this- he could be fired, or worse.

“I’m not asking you to read it. I’m giving it to you, to leak to the press.”

Oscar wished he heard the man wrong, but at Mark stood unwavering, he couldn’t help but stare down at the stack. His gaze a mix of horror and intrigue.

“Now, you didn’t hear this from me. But-“

Mark oaused, taking a moment to steady his shaking words. His eyes refusing to meet Oscar’s.

“There’s a part of her contract- a… a weight clause.”

The stack of papers fluttering to the floor paused Marks words.

Risking a looks up at Oscar he watched the driver's eyes burn with fury, a blaze igniting as his body started to shake.

Oscar’s eyes closed with his teeth biting hard into his lip, the metallic tinge of blood meeting his taste buds. Every bone had gone ridged, hairs on end as his body practically buzzed with anger.

“Zac insisted on it.”

The two men's eyes met, Oscar’s burning with dark fury.

“They didn’t fill her water for today race, did you know?” Oscar’s voice was calm, head tilted to the side, eyes tracing marks frame. Sizing up the older man.

“I-I didn’t think that they would actually go through with it.” Mark admitted in a whispered confession, eyes closing and he’d lowering in shame and defeat.

Oscar’s foot collided with his helmet, the crack of the plastic visor evident as the headgear crumpled against the wall, sliding with defeat and landing on the ground.

Outside the motorhome, All post race celebrations were forgotten as drivers were whisked away by their teams. Being fed perfectly constructed statements about the incidents of today's race.

With the victor in intensive care, and her teammate and fellow pole sitter missing- there wasn’t much to be celebrating in the first place.

The paddock buzzed with uncertainty, all attention drawn to the McLaren motorhome. The building sitting unerveringly still, no one in or out as reporters and photographers fought for a glimpse inside.

Oscar kept the papers tucked into his race suit, mind steady as he opened the door.

Being met with a wave of flashing lights and incomprehensible questions. Everyone talking over themselves, begging for Oscars statement. He walked slow towards the group, holding up his arms to gain their attention.

“I’m not here to answer questions, just to deliver the facts.”

Oscars turns towards the McLaren motorhome, Mark posted at the door giving him a nod of encouragement. Blocking Zacks attempts to breach the compound to silence Oscar. Zacks fists pounding on the glass echoing behind him, the principals shouted threats silenced.

“It was brought to my attention, that during today’s race y/n’s drink supply was left unfilled. On purpose.” He make sure to put emphasis on that last part. Fighting with his voice to stay steady, praying it doesn’t crack.

“Now I don’t think i have to tell you just how disgusting, not to mentions dangerous that is. But that isn’t all.” Oscars unzips his race suit, the stack of papers being pulled from the confines.

“This-“ he holds the papers high in the air with a shaking arm.

“This is my teammates race contract. You will find a highlighted section on page three. this section outlines the details of my teammates weight clause. Stating, and I quote ‘If driver y/l/n is found to be in breach of the weight limit- set by McLaren- she will be met with immediate reprimands including but not limited to; one race ban, denial/push back of upgrades, limited access to sim testing and/or immediate dismissal from the team.”

Oscar paused as the crowd in front of him erupts. Anger and confusion evident in the air as reporters shout for answers. His eyes locking with a female reporter, her hand brought to her mouth in shock. Her eyes wide with disbelief and she shakes her head.

“I will not stand aside as my teammate is silenced. I will not stand aside while McLaren jeopardise her heath and wellbeing, all for aesthetics.” Oscar’s voice raising into a shout, allowing the words to fly from his mouth with heated passion.

“My teammates body autonomy has been signed away, now under ownership of a formula one team. Y/n lost consciousness after the race as a direct effect of the deliberate decision not to fill her drink supply orchestrated by and under the direct supervision of Zac Brown.” Oscar finished his statement by handing your race contract to the press. 

Seizing his opportunity to sneak away while they clawed at the papers, desperate to capture images of the alleged passage. Oscar stands behind the motor home. His hands racking through his hair.

A wave of panic hitting him hard. His throat tightens as he chocked on a sob, his eyes burning with hot tears. His body screamed at him, muscles strained and tired. His jaw ached from clenching it. His hands hurt from his nails biting at the skin. His mind swirled with anger and confusion, unable to think straight.

“That was one hell of a statement Piastri.”

You voice broke him from his spiral, smooth and sweet like caramel. He looked at you with shock and disbelief, his movements stalled as he raked his sore eyes over your frame. Lent casually against the wall, one leg propped against the exterior of the motor home, the other planted steadily on the ground. One hand cluchting your side as the other hold a cigarette. Oscars eyebrows raising as you take a long drag, your eyes closing as you allow the smoke to invade your lungs.

“I didn’t know you smoke?”

The question caused a surprised laugh to slip past your lips. Followed by a sharp and deep couch, it rattled your frame. Leaving you hunched over for a moment. Flicking the but away from you as you step away from the wall. Making your way towards Oscar. Your steps slow and shuffled as you approach the man.

Now face to face you grab his hand, Oscars heart skipping a beat. His eyes refusing to meet your heated gaze, scanning the area behind you.

You step closer to him now, your breath fanning over his face. His eyes closed as he inhaled the stained aroma of cigarettes and Gatorade. Your hand rests on his chest feeling the reparative rise and fall with each breath. The other is placed over his shoulder, the action tensing the man’s body and his eyes closed. Not daring to move and inch, his fingers twitch by his sides.

“It’s going to be hell, once Zac finds us.” The words are quiet. A whispered moment of uncertainty as your eyes trace over Oscar’s face. Raking down his nose, following each freckle down to his parted lips.

His eyes opening just to meet your heavy gaze, the air surrounding you gone thick. His tongue flicking over his bottom lip, swallowing his nerves as he raises a shaking hand. His rough palm resting gentle on your cheek, his thumb tracing over the smooth skin.

He chuckles low, a deep rumble in his chest. A white flicker of a small grin and his froth teeth capture the light of the setting sun. The golden glow slowly warming your tangled bodies. The drum of noise carried away by his smooth voice, low and controlled as always

“Yeah well, I’m not letting you go through hell alone.”

He leans in closer, his lips brushing yours. He eyes still swirling with uncertainty as he hesitates to close the distance. A brief wave of panic overtaking him as his mind catches up with his actions. His limbs burning just as he was about the pull away, you put him out of his misery.

Your hands curling around the back of his neck, coming to rest in the nape of his hair. Using the leverage to pull him down, your lips connecting. The kiss burns, so many words unspoken on the tips of your tongues. His swirling around yours as you lean into him, allowing his arms to wind around you. Your weight easily supported by him as you allow the world to slow.

🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂🤍🍂

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[yandere-sins]

Yandere!Mydei caring for a depressed darling

a/n: Tried to do something new with the type of headers I do. Not quite yet close to the aesthetic girlies but I don't hate it! Anyway, I'm now a diagnosed ✨depressed✨ and life's been up and down lately, so I wanted to write for my current comfort character ♥

Characters: Yandere!Mydei(mos) x GN!Reader Warnings: Yandere, Possessiveness, Obsessiveness, Kidnapping, Depression

❥ Mydei likes to return to you doing something. He likes to find you taking a bath (scrambling to get some clothes on when you hear the door unlock) or reading a book (sighing because your reading time is effectively over), stuffing your mouth like an adorable little animal with food, or even wreak havoc if you must (and he gets to put you back in your place). It excites him. It makes taking a rest so much more enjoyable, and he needs to see you thrive in this environment he created for you. Knowing that it's his place that you live in satisfies the homesickness he suppresses, as he can live vicariously through you. Coming home to you asleep—or at least trying to—isn't quite what he has in mind for a greeting.

❥ He's not too pleased to have to wake you up or make you at least acknowledge his presence. But he will, of course, do so however his mood commands him to. Sometimes, he grabs the blanket so you end up rolling out of bed; other times, he spoons you from behind, applying more and more pressure to your body until you react. Or he calls out to you and pokes you until you're finally up. Just this time, everything he does seems to affect you less. Like you don't care. Like you can't care.

❥ When you do finally get up, he immediately notices the changes in you. He can't pinpoint what exactly is wrong. Still, everything from your sluggish demeanor to the faded light in your eyes gives him clues to an unsolvable puzzle. He doesn't like it. Mydei asks you what's going on with you, his repeated questioning getting annoying fast, but your shrugging your shoulders and being dismissive isn't cutting it for him. He will test for a fever and belittle you for not taking care of yourself as you should as he tries to find any wounds that could cause you distress. Clearly, you've been up to no good and probably worn yourself out. Mydei is so obsessed with finding the cause that he can't see the forest for the trees.

❥ Frustrated and angry at you since he doesn't know what is going on with you (this could just be another one of your ways to challenge him), he storms off to take care of his own needs for a little while but eventually does return with your favorite food. Even though Mydei has to get you out of bed again—which he does unapologetically and ruthlessly by picking you up regardless of your state of awareness—he forces you to have a meal with him. He gets even more upset when you barely touch your food. He keeps piling more items on your plate, but you just sit back after a few nibbles, unwilling to consume more. It's grating his nerves, but even more so, it raises a sense of discomfort in him that he never felt with you before. Even when he had to fight you, wrestle you to the ground, and force you to obey his whims, he never felt like this... somewhat... helpless. It's uncomfortable and distressing, and Mydei doesn't want to think of the memories these feelings remind him of.

❥ You, not objecting to being placed on top of him like a weighted blanket for the night, is the final nail in the coffin. You hate it with a passion when he picks you up and moves you like a doll, especially if it initiates more body contact than you feel like having with him or being placed in an awkward position. But you don't even tell him to stop or push your hands into his chest, giving him a reason to wrestle with you for a bit. Instead, your behavior keeps Mydei up all night after he pulled a blanket over you two, and you actually have the audacity to fall asleep on his chest without any complaints, not knowing the agony he's going through. But fine! You want to not interact with him? Well, that gives Mydei the opportunity to do whatever he wants with you.

❥ So, in the morning (later than he usually gets up), he forces you to bathe with him. You do tense up and try to get away from him, but he won't let you. Having your hair washed by Mydei is not a gentle undertaking, as he scrubs the soap against your scalp seemingly without an ounce of care. However, when some tears fall, he at least makes an effort to be more careful with the rest of your body. You'll be surprised to witness how he is still able to learn from his mistakes despite forcing you into this relationship with him. But even if it isn't how he's used to doing things, he tries—for you. The same goes for brushing your teeth (he'll use his tools for you unless you do it yourself), combing your hair (washing was enough torture, although he's reaching for the comb almost too quickly for you to decide if you can manage it yourself or not), and putting fresh clothes on (which takes a lot of time as he ponders what you should wear that day).

❥ Mydei's special care doesn't stop there as you are getting carried or dragged around all day by him—no matter where, except for the place you had been forced to call your "home". Into meetings with the other Chrysos Heirs (which everyone is very surprised by since Mydei never allows them to visit you and keeps you all to himself usually), onto the training grounds (where he was nice enough to bring your book along in case you were bored, but he ended up checking up so much on you that his training was cut short), and to restaurants three times that day, so he could make sure you were eating right. You've never actually got to hang out so much with him outside his place, and he had never shown any interest in you learning about his daily routine, either. So, although you can't appreciate the change as much in your current state, you do enjoy being outside and doing something (even if it isn't what you want to do).

❥ Even though he kept his eyes on you all day, your lack of trying to complain to someone about Mydei's treatment concerns him. Usually, you'd try to tell everyone your tale of being forced into a relationship with him the few times he took you outside, always causing a scene with him in the streets. But you seem to lack the energy for it. For anything, really. You're still barely eating and even allow him to reach for and take your hand at any given moment, which he enjoys but is only half as rewarding as when he has to fight for the right. You even stopped struggling whenever he picked you up, instead slumping over and resting in his hold. And you sigh a lot, reaching up sometimes to wipe away tears that threaten to fall. If he wasn't concerned the day before, he definitely is now.

❥ It can't be helped, Mydei doesn't know what to do. So, despite grumbling about how he can't believe all this, he takes you to a spot no one can see you two in. Somewhere, the sun will shine down on you despite it being evening, and he sets you down between his legs, leaning you against his chest before resting back against a wall, too, soaking in the sunlight. It doesn't take too long until the silence gets to you, emotions swelling inside you until they burst out in tiny sniffles. By the time you are turned into a sobbing mess, Mydei is hugging you tightly against his chest, letting your tears run down his skin. He's neither hushing nor reprimanding you, rubbing your back calmly instead and letting you cling to him even if your nails dig into his flesh. The part that suppresses all of the uncomfortable feelings inside of him locking them away and burying them deeper every time they act up, doesn't understand what is happening. Mydei put them away to keep himself clear-headed and fighting at all times. But the other part—the one ruled by his heart that loves you so very much—feels for you, wishing he could just take care of whoever and whatever made you feel this way. He longs to have your feisty, adorable self back and wishes he could prove to you how capable he is in protecting you. Still, instinctively, he knows that it wouldn't be this easy.

❥ Mydei is not admitting to being part of the problem. He's not allowing anyone, not even you, to tell him that. But he will be the one to help you fix whatever issue you're having. You will follow his routine, and he will adjust it so you think of anything other than the thoughts in your head that torment you. If he can provide you with a new experience, he will. If buying you a hundred new books, he will. Ice cream for breakfast? Just say the words. He'll stay behind from some missions, no matter how hard he itches for the fights, just so you aren't as lonely. He'll do anything—anything—so he doesn't have to come back to find you this way again. So that he doesn't encounter this condition that he doesn't know how to fix. A condition no one taught him how to take care of and which he doesn't acknowledge in himself.

❥ Despite not getting any softer than this, Mydei does show you a tremendous amount of care the next few days. He drags you to many more outings, but there are also a lot of planned rests in between. You get to meet the others, and sometimes, he sees your smile return, however short-lived it is. Mydei goes out of his way to make you happy, never saying it out loud but showing through actions that he cares. He lets you roam the market by his side or even allows you to hold a weapon once or twice (under his strict supervision) when you show interest in it. He does stop you the few times you try to tell someone what is going on because losing you isn't an option, even if you seem to think it is. There is no way he'd ever let you go... but he does want you to feel better again. Having you wither away had never been the plan, although he reflects that sometimes it could have looked that way to you. He's not going to change his ways in the future, but he will provide you with what you need as long as he can give it to you.

❥ But the first time you get upset at him again, his heart makes a massive leap in his chest, trying to burst out. Mydei wants to rip it out from beneath his rips so he can throw the stupid thing at you, hoping you'll finally realize how bad his feelings are for you. Just having a glimpse of the you, he loves, back is enough to satisfy the ache that had risen over the time he had to watch you live in your depressive state. And sometimes, when you two fight, he even lets you win now. Mydei can spare a night not smothering you beneath him as he falls asleep spread on top of you. Letting you push him off and wearing the very temporary bruises like marks of endearment on his skin. His love becomes increasingly undiluted, especially when you show him the fire returning to your eyes. Your tongue, too, tastes better once it's sharp again and he has a reason to shut you up. Even though he carried you around for a while, seeing your body move around on its own is like a mesmerizing dance that he watches with rapture, and it raises his appetite for you like never before.

And you will never know how much effort he puts into keeping it this way for the rest of your time together.

[mydearlybeloathed]

── 𝐁𝐎𝐑𝐍 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐃 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐈𝐑

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: you loved to tease zoro, even if he seemed like he couldn't care less about you. zoro couldn't help but worry over you, hating how careless you were. a trip through the frozen mountains proves to be quite the test on your friendship.

𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: zoro x gn!reader

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 11k

𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭: NOT beta read, requested, zoro is bad at crushes, kristoff-anna dynamic, canon typical violence, frozen au???, the plot outran me

𝐚/𝐧: i blacked out and woke up to this, now i will return to the void wence i came. until next time lovelies 🫶

Zoro was doing his best to act cool, and in this weather it wasn’t hard, but damn he hated ice.

Every step he took sunk into a foot of white snow, seeping into his boots and freezing every bit of his body. Not even the heavy coat you bullied him into could stave off the biting cold.

He shielded his eyes from the sun, gleaming off the ice yet never melting a thing, and huffed. His breath crystalized in front of him. The snowstorm had been brutal, blinding him and his crew as they trekked up the slope. When the snow cleared, the whole crew was gone.

Well, not entirely gone. That would've been too good.

“I’m never—” he nearly tripped face first into snow “—gonna hear the end of this.”

A bright chuckle to his right only dampened his mood further. You stomped along beside him, looking very content with the situation. You laughed against the harsh wind and grinned at the sun. “At least I managed to find you in the storm. You’d be a total lost cause if I hadn’t.”

You knew you were treading thin ice, so to speak. Zoro’s taut brow said that much. But teasing him was just too fun. Zoro tutted. “Only reason you found me was ‘cause you grabbed by shirt like a leech.”

You bumped his shoulder, gazing at him warmly. “And wasn’t that lucky.”

“Just—quit distracting me. I’m tryna’ find the others.” He trudged a bit harder and a bit faster to get ahead of you, using all his willpower to ignore how you snickered at his expense. Oh, how you got on his nerves. Each and every one, gotten. It was a feat not even the stupid cook could surpass you in. 

You just—you were so careless. With everything. Your punches, while effective, were blind and unforgiving, mostly to yourself. You laughed at the worst of times, doing a terrible job of choking it down so he would always catch your eye and be forced to crack a grin as well. In every fight he couldn’t stop himself from scanning the battlefield just to make sure you weren’t being an idiot like usual. And usually, he found you right at the center of the conflict with this look that just terrified him to no end. 

You had no clue when to quit, evident even now as you rushed to keep pace with him. Yet for once, you didn’t say a word, allowing the silence to roll in as flurries of snow began to float down from the sky. Zoro sent you a suspicious glance just to see a wistful smile on your face. Careless. 

It was in the way you ran ahead of him to jump in the piles of snow, laughing in his face when he told you to be careful. How you looked him in the eye as you tested the strength of a frozen lake while he stood with a set jaw. How you took his hand and dragged him with you to look at something shiny, only for it to be another damn icicle. 

Maybe it wouldn’t bother him so much if he didn’t feel your safety was all on him. If the thought of you getting hurt didn't shoot him years back in time to the moment he felt the most helpless he'd ever been.

Soon, the moon hung high over your heads.

Zoro barely acknowledged the change, head ducked and pace set, headed up the mountain without any hesitation. He didn't even register the distant howling until your were shaking his arm.

He finally stopped to look at you, your lips pursed in frustration. “Zoro, we should find somewhere to rest.” 

He sighed like he wanted to argue. Surely you could find the others at the peak of the mountain before sunrise if you just kept going. You glared just slightly. “The locals back in town said there were wolves up here. I’d rather not have to waste energy dealing with them… and you look tired.”

“I'm not.” Nonetheless, he followed your final pull on his shirt and followed you off the beaten path between the two long streaks of tall pine. 

Your hand remained on him while you took the lead into the near woods, scrutinizing the area for anything harmful or useful. Your eyes were wide open, smile nowhere to be found, until you froze and zeroed in on a target. Zoro followed your gaze. A small bluff rose up out of the earth ahead, creating an arched hollow underneath its ledge. 

“There,” you decided, dragging him behind you. For some reason, he let you.

He sat down at one end of the cover and watched as you dropped your bag to the ground and quickly started on a fire. Zoro leaned back, brows furrowed while you worked so intently. Your lips pursed as you nearly glared at the small flickering flame, as if daring it to go out, cupping your hands around it protectively.

The fire curled higher and higher, a thin plume of smoke dissipating above it. He was about to make a snarky comment about how the wind would just snuff it out, when he realized he couldn’t feel the harsh gusts at all. The wind was blocked by the bluff. He hadn’t even noticed, but you had, apparently.

You moved to sit beside him, putting a good bit of friendly space between you, and sighed heavily. It wasn’t a sound he was used to hearing from you—he was used to hearing you snicker and tease—and he found he didn’t like that kind of tired sound at all.

Wordlessly, you rested your head back for just two seconds before you shivered and turned to rifle through your backpack. Zoro leaned to get a peek over your shoulder, jerking back into place when you whipped around and threw a blanket at him. He grunted, annoyed, until he registered what he was holding. You pulled another one out for yourself, neatly folded against whatever else you had stored away.

“You just,” he started, looking at you weirdly, “happened to have two?”

You gave him a look just as weird as you wrapped the blanket around your shoulders and head. “No. I brought two. That one’s meant for you.”

Suddenly the blanket was the strangest thing he’d ever seen, analyzing it like it might come alive and bite him. His gaze rose to meet yours. “What?”

“Someone’s gotta make sure you don’t freeze.” You had the nerve to roll your eyes. You tried to be subtle as you shifted closer to him, the now gentle cold seeping into your bones still. He caught your eye and held it firmly. Your tongue passed over your lips as you grinned softly. “Might as well be me.”

You said it carelessly, like he knew you to be, like this small act of sincerity wasn't shortcircuiting his brain. He scoffed and stared at the blanket some more, hesitant before he gave in and draped it on his shoulders. He swallowed down a yawn, his face barely moving at all, but you noticed some small chip in his cool anyway. 

“I’ll keep watch, you rest.” It’s not a suggestion. The way you push back your shoulders and stare out into the dark says enough. It irked him.

Maybe three minutes he stared at you off and on, not even trying to pretend to be sleeping, his face pulled unpleasantly. Around minute four you sighed and let your head tilt to the side, settling Zoro with a soft expression. 

“Something on my face?” you asked, rubbing at your cheek roughly. Zoro buffered, his blinks slow whilst you grew increasingly self-conscious under his stare. It was like he looked into your very soul sometimes, and you doubted he had a clue. Finally, Zoro shook his head and turned away.

Now you watched him. He did his stubborn best to keep his eyes open out of spite, but you were right, he was exhausted. His eyes soon fluttered shut against his will, bringing a small smile to your face.

You could admit you liked him when he was like this: quiet, peaceful, pretty. It was only when he opened his mouth that he became the brute you so loved to disturb, if only because it was the only way you could excuse your constant desire to talk to him. And when he seemed to loathe every small moment in your company, teasing was your best option.

You scoot just an inch closer to him, simply testing the waters. Zoro doesn't move at all, his chest continuing to rise and fall with every harsh breath he took. So with the wind as your excuse, you moved till your shoulder rested against his own, your eyes on his face watching for any sign of disturbance.

He couldn't snap at you now, you thought, trying desperately to not smile too wide as you leaned your head back. Zoro might hate you when he was awake, but you could ignore all of that at the moment. You could forget how you were nearing the end of your patience with his careless words and glares, the way they pierced your heart, and set your gaze watchfully on the snow covered forest in front of you.

If you accidentally fell asleep only an hour later, Zoro would never know.

જ ⁀ ➴

Zoro woke up to a flurry of snowflakes in the morning, his nose twitching as one melted on his face. He rubbed his eyes, grunting away the remaining sleep, and blinked away the blurriness.

He glanced around to demand why you hadn't woken him so you could sleep, the words catching on his tongue when he found your blanket on the ground beside him.

It lacked something very important: you.

He jumped to his feet and hit his head against solid rock, tipping over with a curse and scrambling to his feet with his hands in his hair. Zoro spun around, calling your name once, twice. No reply. Just the peaceful fall of snow and empty white all around.

"Stop!" The swordsman whipped around lightning fast at the sound of your voice, a squeal echoing soon after.

His Wado drawn in a flash, Zoro shouted your name and bolted around the bluff and up a small hill, ready to gut whatever damned thing had the nerve to attack you--

You threw your head back with another laugh, face brighter than it had ever been when you laughed at him, and Zoro froze in place.

There you were, safe as can be, giggling as you fed a massive reindeer another carrot, its tongue tickling at your palm. The reindeer, and the large sleigh it was tacked to, wasn't what had his grip tightening around his sword.

Some guy towered over you, one arm leaned on his sleigh as he gave you this dazzling smile. You wiped the reindeer spit on your pants, your laughter falling short when you caught the soft look the guy was giving you. Zoro could see how you grew nervous under his stare even at a distance, awkward smile dancing across your lips and eyes bashfully averted.

You did a double take, catching sight of Zoro standing there stiff as a board, and your whole face lit up like a Christmas tree. You left your new friend standing there and bounded toward him, not noticing that his frown was more scowlish than normal.

"Zoro!" You beamed and reached to grab his arm. "Sorry I disappeared, I was--"

"You--you can't just run off like that!" He stepped back and glared at you, his cheeks flushed and brows drawn.

You flinched like he had slapped you, hands coming to rest against your chest defensively. You voice was small, your eyes wide. "What?"

He knew he was overdoing it, but your smiling face directed at that stranger flashed behind his eyes. And the memory of how terrified he'd been at the possibility of you being hurt...

"God, you're gonna get killed doing stupid shit one day and I won't be there to stop it!" Zoro's hand shook as he readjusted it on his sword. "Just--just use your head for once in your life!"

One step, two steps. You backed away from him bit by bit till you stood a good foot away from him, your lips parted as you breathed in sharply.

"Hey now, no need to get heated." That guy approached with his hands lifted slightly, a good-natured grin on his face. He locked eyes with Zoro as he came up beside you and dared to set a hand on your shoulder. Zoro had half a mind to cut it right off.

"I wouldn't underestimate your friend here," he was saying. "They're the one who saved me and my reindeer from some wolves last night, actually."

Zoro blinked at him, mouth opening and closing quite like a fish until he zeroed in on you and your growing confidence. "You... what?"

"Yeah." Your eyes darted up to his, blazing fire behind them. "Must've been a fluke, huh, since I was doing stupid shit. Oh! I'll be sure to let you know next time I gotta go piss, wouldn't want anything to happen to me since I'm such a fucken idiot, right?"

You were gone before he could process half of that, but he knew he had massively screwed up even before he turned to see you kick up a pile of snow and whisper scream into the air. Zoro, rigidly at a loss, startled at the reminder of the man's presence when said stranger stepped into his peripheral.

"I don't know what that was," he said, almost like an apology even as he looked at Zoro with thinly veiled contempt. He held out a large, calloused hand. "But I'm Hans."

Zoro's narrowed gaze darted from the hand to the man it belonged to before ignoring it entirely. "Roronoa Zoro."

Hans' complexion paled drastically. "R-Roronoa?"

Any satisfaction Zoro had jumped out the metaphorical window with your stormful return donning your backpack. Frustration simmering behind your every move, you trudged past the two men and threw your pack into the back of the sleigh.

You dusted snow off your gloved hands. "Hans is taking us up the mountain. Say thank you."

Hans looked as if he wanted to be anywhere else and Zoro looked like he wanted to put him six feet under the snow. Still, he was honestly terrified of the dark look in your eyes, so he conceded a reluctant, "Thanks."

"His reindeer's name is Vladimir," you said from your new place atop the sleigh, rearranging equipment to make room for someone to sit.

"You want me to--"

Your eyes instantly grew stormy with a don't test me kind of look. Zoro's jaw snapped up, yet even in the face of your anger, he had his limits. You didn't press further, ignoring him entirely and choosing a seat at the front of the sleigh.

Hans glanced between the two of you nervously while he effortlessly jumped into his sleigh and took the seat next to you, taking up the reins connecting his reindeer, apparently named Vladimir.

Zoro glared into your back as he stepped up too, looking down at the sea of scattered equipment in the sleigh's bed, and settled down in the empty space you had made.

The reindeer huffed and started up a steady pace, heaving the sleigh behind it effortlessly. And so, the four began their journey up the mountain. Zoro watched Hans steady your shoulder when you jolted with the movement, and decided that he hated everything to do with snow more than he'd hated anything else.

"So," he broke the silence five minutes in. "Hans. What're you doing here?"

You shot him a glare to which he rolled his eyes. Hans remained oblivious. "Oh, uh, right now I'm sellin' firewood in the villages down the mountain."

Zoro cast the many tools a curious glance, noticing the lack of actual wood. "Huh."

"Hans is the official wood deliverer for the whole kingdom," you blurted, eyeing Zoro out of your peripheral. "You must know these woods like the back of your hand."

The man practically fluttered under your praise, his cheeks blooming a pretty pink that had Zoro's eyes rolling. "Somewhat. I grew up here, but there are some spots I still don't know by heart."

"I bet you hardly ever get lost," you prattled on while checking your nails innocently. You shot Hans a charming smile. "I bet not even a snowstorm could knock you off track."

Hans couldn't help but chuckle bashfully, rubbing at his neck. "I guess you could say that. It's been a while since I've been lost, at least."

"Maybe you could give Zoro some pointers." The man in question shot you a harsh glare you couldn't see, too busy batting your eyes at the guy melting under your gaze. "His internal compass is a little... nonexistent."

Zoro's scoff was definitely loud enough for you to hear, yet you ignored it entirely in favor of shooting him the most infuriating wink. He wondered how much the cook would kill him if he tackled you into the snow.

A tense silence fell upon the three of you, only broken by the reindeer's occasional huffing, when Hans cleared his throat. Both you and Zoro's eyes darted to him at once.

"If you don't mind me asking, you're part of the Strawhat Pirates, right?" At your nod, he turned his attention away form the snow, even dropping the reins to his lap. "I heard in town that you guys were here. I was surprised to run into two of you. Thought your crew would've made it to the peak by now."

"Got lost in the snowstorm last night." Zoro beat you to answering, ignoring your sharp look. "The others should be dealing with the issue up there."

Hans nodded. "Probably. I can't tell you enough how grateful the townspeople are. Once the witch is taken care of, the snow should begin to fade."

You shifted to face him entirely. "About this witch. Do you believe it? That it's really a witch causing the freeze?"

Hans' sigh materialized in the air. "I'm not sure what I think. All I know if that someone is up on the mountain, farther than anyone is willing to go, and they're angry." He returned his focus ahead, grip on the reins tight and unforgiving. Something foggy rose behind his eyes. "The storm started when they made themself known. That's all I know for certain."

He was lying about something, you just couldn't place what. Whatever the case, Hans knew more than he was letting on, the tightness in his body language said that much. You chanced a look behind you, meeting eyes with Zoro, and he held a similar look of skepticism. You shared an understanding, then you remembered you were mad at him, and stuck your tongue out before whipping back around. Zoro sighed heavily.

"You're lucky I found you, actually," said Hans. "I was headed this way anyway, so it's no trouble taking you up the mountain. 'Sides, it's the least I could do."

You resisted the urge to glance at Zoro again, if only to see if he was curious too, but held your ground and settled for biting your lip in thought. As kind and as handsome as this Hans guy was, you were growing more and more cautious the longer he spoke.

The faster you could get up the mountain and rejoin your crew, the better.

જ ⁀ ➴

Hans was there you catch you when you stumbled off the sleigh, his charming grin awkward as he asked, "Are you all right?"

Your cheeks grew warm as an unflattering laugh left you. "Fine! Yep, I'm good. Heh..."

Zoro rolled his eyes and jumped down as well. He glared up at the tall mountains up ahead. "You said our friends should be up there?"

Hans nodded once. "Should be, if they went the right way. We have to go on foot now, the pass will get too rocky for the sleigh soon."

You rubbed your hands together, smirking at the trek ahead of you. "Sounds good. Honestly, Luffy's probably already beating her ass as we speak."

Your guide's brows furrowed then. "Actually--"

"If he has started, then we better hurry," Zoro said, one hand on his swords as he set off.

Hans turned to send his reindeer back down with the sleigh, patting the creature's nose fondly before pointing him away. He watched his friend trot a ways away before adjusting his pack on his shoulders and moving to catch up to Zoro.

You walked at a gentle pace, taking the moment to observe the beautiful landscape around you. The woods had given way to a steep uphill climb laid between tall jagged rock towering on either side. The pass up the mountain grew narrower the further up you went, and indeed rocks and fallen trees blocked the path here and there.

Not even five minutes in you were slumping over in agony.

"How'd we even make it so far on foot yesterday?" you complained loudly, rubbing at your eyes and making your vision blurry for a moment.

Somehow, Zoro was walking beside you now, a fair distance between you. Hans was leading the way around a large boulder. The swordsman scoffed at you. "You begged me to carry you for most of it."

"And you wasted the opportunity by refusing me, I remember," you lamented sarcastically, matching his energy with a roll of your eyes.

Hans glanced back with some concern, glancing between you and Zoro like he was afraid one of you would erupt, and trudged forward with new determination.

You sighed deeply. Teasing Hans wasn't fun anyway once Zoro started ignoring you--and even less fun when he completely fell asleep on the sleigh.

It was like he could care less what you did or what you thought of him. And when you cared so much, well, it drove you mad. No matter how you tried to ignore it, his attitude hurt, and that was no one's fault but your own for caring at all.

"Hans," Zoro broke the tension. "Why're you headed up the mountain? Thought you said no one goes this high 'cause of the witch."

For a long moment, you wondered if Hans was going to ignore him, exchanging a confused look with Zoro when your guide's shoulders tensed. Hans fixed his expression and smiled. "I left something up here some years ago. Might as well take the chance to get it back while I'm helping you."

Only when Hans' back was turned and he pressed on ahead did you sidle up to Zoro and say in a conspiritory whisper, "Well, that was cryptic as fuck."

He nearly smirked before he was shooting you a look. "I thought you were ignorin' me."

You pursed your lips and whipped forward. "I am, you asshole."

"What is wrong," he barked at your profile. "I snap at you all the time. What's so different now?"

"Nothing!" You sent him a scathing look, dark enough that Zoro faltered, just for a moment. You were seething. "Maybe I just got tired of taking it."

And with that, he was staring at your back again. You marched up to walk in step with Hans, who was doing an ass job at pretending not to listen.

Zoro couldn't keep the absolutely miserable expression off his face. If any of his crew could see him, he'd never hear the end of it. Zoro could hardly believe it himself: he nearly missed your teasing.

The thought itself tripped up his feet. He remained lagging behind the rest of the trek, eyes glued to the back of your head, lost in his thoughts until he almost walked right into your back.

You and Hans stood at the edge of a ravine, staring down into the dark depths below and then at the rope bridge stretching across what had to be at least ten yards. The rickety thing looked like it could snap at any moment, the ropes tying it to your side aged and frozen. Daunting, to say the least.

"Don't worry," said Hans, his tone only slightly faltering in its confidence. "I used to take this bridge all the time, it should hold all three of us if we distribute the weight well enough."

"You're joking, right?" Zoro scoffed. You gave him a sour look in response, and promptly moved to be the first to step out onto the deathtrap.

"It looks fine," you lied, chin held high. "Let's just get going."

Hans made a sound suspiciously like a yelp and yanked you back by your wrist. "Uh, let me go first."

You stepped out of the way for him, cheeks slightly warm, narrowing your eyes at a smug Zoro. You huffed in his face. "What?"

"Nothing," he smirked. Zoro made to follow after Hans, leaning into your ear as he passed. "No need to try an' impress me."

He left you floundering behind him, nothing even close to a complete leaving your lips. The bridge jumped with your footsteps when you ran after him, a finger poked into his back harshly.

"I was not trying to impress you." You walked on your tiptoes so you could shout the words in his ear, only drawing another infuriating laugh out of the swordsman. "I'd rather impress anyone before I impress you! Not like it'd be hard, moss for brains!"

"Ooh," Zoro said with a glance over his shoulder. "Touchy much?"

"You--!"

"God!" Hans suddenly whirled around, hands in his hair, crazed look on his face. You and Zoro froze instantly. "I don't care about your lovers quarrel! You're gonna get us killed if you keep jolting the bridge!"

Your jaw practically hit the ground. "Woah!"

"Lover huh?" Zoro's cheeks burned, his shoulders drawn back and tense.

Hans cut off any protests you had with a single finger. "I don't care! You wanna get up that mountain? Shut up."

He turned around just as quickly, his steps carefully placed even as he radiated frustration.

You avoided Zoro's eyes though you felt them zeroed in on your face. You gently pushed against his shoulder, muttering, "Just keep walking."

At the halfway mark of the bridge there was a gap where two wooden boards used to lay, but was now a one way trip to the bottom of the ravine. Hans and then Zoro stepped over it effortlessly, barely casting a glance downward. The longer you stared at it the wider the gap seemed to be.

No matter how you pushed yourself, your hands stayed planted on the ropes either side of you and your feet wouldn't move farther than a few inches. You couldn't tear your eyes away from the seemingly bottomless abyss down below... but suddenly, a rough hand appeared in front of you, forcing itself into your focus with its broad help and burly appearance.

Heart stuttering, your eyes darted up to meet his. Zoro stood on the other side of the gap, solid and sturdy, his eyes quickly averted the longer you stared at him. Zoro cleared his throat and reached out further for you. "We're losing daylight."

You blinked rapidly before nodding, placing your hand tightly in his, taking a deep breath, and taking a large step over the gap. Your eyes close against your better judgement, foot slipping just slightly as another hand roughly steadies your shoulder.

And then, he's snapping in your face again.

"Wha--don't close your eyes, idiot!" You clench your teeth, already set off, and whip open your eyes. Zoro looked... concerned. Instead of angry like his voice suggested, his brows were drawn taut and his mouth twisted into a frown.

You faltered for all of one second before you shook it off. "Why do you even care?" You pushed past him and set forth quickly.

Zoro let you by easily, a million different emotions rushing through his head until he settled on exasperation, as he so often did, and the words left him before he could catch them. "You're careless."

You stopped mid step, sending his heart racing with adrenaline. Shit, was all he could think. You turned slowly, something shiny in your eyes as you glowered at him. "Careless?"

He didn't have time to backtrack or double down, whichever way he chose. Snap.

Your expression fell in an instant. The sound of a gradual cracking. You turned back to where Hans should be, finding him standing safely on the other side of the ravine, his face sheet white.

He gasped. "Run!"

Zoro had shoved your forward before you could catch sight of the ropes tying the bridge down snapping little by little until the way you came began to plummet down.

"We're not gonna make it!" you shouted desperately, feeling the way the bridge tilted backward. The other side was still too far away. This was it.

Something snapped in Zoro, his arms enveloping you in a single swoop, ignoring your shouting, forgetting all his fear. All he saw was you, falling to your death, and so he jumped. He threw you as hard as he could before his momentum ran out, and he was plummeting to his doom.

You screamed and flailed your limbs, barely registering what had happened. Hans and the edge of the ravine grew closer and closer, yet not close enough--your front half rammed into the ledge, knocking the air from your lungs. Hans gripped your arms and started to haul you up just when your head caught up to your body.

"Let--" You braced your feet against the ledge. "Let me go!"

You broke from Hans' grip and flew back, your name falling from his lips as you descended like a bullet. Moving on instinct, you shoved a hand into your backpack and gripped the shell buried deep inside, shedding the whole pack an instant later.

Zoro, resigned to his fate, was ever so surprised to open his eyes to you hurling yourself into him. "Y/N--!"

"Grab onto me!" He didn't hesitate. The moment his arms wrapped around your middle you slammed your fist onto the apex of the dial, a blast of air rocketing you right back up into the sky. You held it down, petrified it wouldn't be enough, Zoro's loud ass screaming in your ear.

The dial fizzled out, the pair of you flying in a near graceful arc before another round of expletives fled Zoro's mouth as you once again felt your organs rearrange themselves with another sudden drop.

You landed on Zoro's chest, his arms locked around your waist, your interlocked bodies bouncing and tumbling on packed snow till you rolled to a stop battered and bruised.

The world rang in your ears, but you still lifted your head to assess the state of your friend. He groaned, looking up at you bleary eyed. "Are you okay?"

Zoro buffered, blinked, and shot up. His hands closed around your arms a bit too tightly, his eyes scanning your face as anger clouded his face. "What the fuck was that?! Why would you--why did you--"

"Oh, shut up!" You shoved him back just as harshly, breaking free your arms. His back hit the snow as you knelt over him, blazing down at him. "Like you were any different, you ass! You don't get to sacrifice yourself for me!" Your hand clawed at his shirt. "I won't let you!"

The silence was deafening. Zoro swore your voice echoed off the empty white snow. You heaved, a wild look in your eyes, hand still clutching him like you might decide to punch him. Zoro couldn't help but think it: you were beautiful.

You released him like you were disgusted, falling back on your knees with this broken expression. You scoffed and pushed yourself to your feet. Zoro watched your eyes go unfocused on the space behind him, waiting for the ball to drop on bated breath.

"And for the record," you said slowly, quietly. "Someone who's careless wouldn't have thought to bring a breath dial."

You turned, voice rising against the wind. "Someone careless wouldn't have made sure you don't freeze to death." Your fists curled, the air crackling with your anger. You whirled on him, eyes shut lest he see the pain they reflected. "Quit trying to act like you a give a damn about me! I know you don't care!"

You hated how your shoulders shook. You hated how afraid you felt. But most of all, you hated how he just sat there, dumbfounded. You blinked down at him, lashes fluttering to fight against the burn of tears. You had to get away from him, away from his silence. "Forget it."

"I'm sorry."

You made it six whole steps before he said it, his voice softer than you'd ever heard it. You nearly refused to believe it was him. You didn't dare to turn around, to breathe. "What?"

Zoro's answer was a series of harsh breaths. His lips moved but words failed to rise no matter how he tried to force them--he didn't know what to say. His hands raked at the snow, freezing his fingertips painfully so. He thinks you scoffed before your foot moved to take another step, and suddenly it didn't matter what he said.

"Wait. I... you..." Zoro lumbered to his feet. "I'm... sorry. I've been a dick."

"Tch." You refused to turn around. All your resolve would crumble it you looked at him.

"You're not careless, not all the time," he said, holding his breath when you shifted from foot to foot.

"You're just saying that." You shook your head despairingly. "Zoro, why else would you think so lowly of me?"

Zoro froze, blinking wide, and trudged toward you without thinking. He rounded you quickly and held you in place with a single look. "Is that what you think?"

Startled, you nodded, unable to look away from his bewildered expression. Luckily, Zoro looked down at his feet before you had the chance to combust.

"I think... highly of you. But I--I just worry."

You dared to think his cheeks turned pink when he said it. Your confusion only grew. "About me?"

He gave a gruff nod. It took him a moment to continue, his eyes searching the empty area to the left. "I think so much of you, that if anything happened, I wouldn't forgive myself. If you..."

Now you moved to catch his avoidant eye. "Zoro, it wouldn't be your fault if something did happen to me. And... well, I guess I'd like it if you had a bit more faith in me, y'know?"

You chanced a smile when Zoro simply stood there. "I know I goof off a lot, but who is it looking after you most days? Me. You never did thank me for the blanket, and I handled those wolves by myself, and I saved your life just now! I've proven myself more than enough times..." You poked his forehead when his eyes went unfocused, bringing his attention back to you. "So put a little trust in me, Zoro."

With a thousand little thoughts reflected in his eyes, Zoro nodded firmly. "I will. I do."

Your smile didn't exactly meet you eyes yet, but he would work on that in the future. Zoro hardly remembered why they were there in the first place anymore, lost in staring directly into your eyes till it was just on the verge of being weird. Hans appeared suddenly, running up a hill and breathing wildly.

He tripped over snow when he saw the two of you, hitting the snow and staring between you with the most exasperated look on his face. "You're--You're crazy! How on earth are you still alive?!"

"Y/N," Zoro said. You turned to see what he wanted only to realize that was his answer. Zoro grinned. "Y/N saved us."

You let out an unpretty laugh, cheeks burning as you hid it behind a cleared throat. "Whatever. How far did we fly?"

"Like--" Hans waved his hands around "--a long way." He finally calmed his breathing down enough to get up and approach you. "I guess this is just a short cut. We're closer to the peak--"

He paused in brushing the snow off his clothes, face going pale, his eyes set high in the sky. You and Zoro locked eyes and turned at once, spotting it instantly. The snowstorm circled like a whirlpool around the highest peaks of the mountain, right over the area you assumed you were meant to go.

Hans walked between you and Zoro roughly. "Let's go."

Again, you looked at Zoro, concern now plastered all over your face. He met your eyes steadfast, a level of certainty in his stance that assured you that your crew would come out on top, as always.

જ ⁀ ➴

"Nami!" You sprinted at her the moment you turned the corner and saw her. You, Zoro, and Hans had enetered the elaborate palace made of ice maybe five minutes ago, following Hans down one of three hallways like he knew exactly where to go, as if he'd been there before.

You didn't have the chance to dwell on the oddness of it, too concerned with the sight of Nami contained inside a cage made completely of ice. To her right, Sanji's entire lower half was frozen mid-kick, his face taken by relief at the sight of you. Behind him, only Robin's head remained visible above a pillar of ice. Her hands were stuck inches apart, as if she was just about to use her devil fruit powers before getting put on ice.

"Sanji? Robin? What happened? Where are the others?" You met Nami through the bars of ice, taking her frigid hand in both of your gloved ones. You cursed softly. "Nami, where're your gloves?!"

"One question at a time," she gritted out through a shiver. She looked blue in the face despite her puffy coat. "It's hard to think in this cold."

You released her hand when you felt Zoro's presence by your shoulder. Grabbing his arm, you nodded at the cage. "Can you break it?"

"It's just ice," he scoffed. Zoro shot you his best cocky smirk and unsheathed his Wado.

Nami fled to the farthest corner. "You better not cut me!"

While Zoro dealt with the cage, you moved to flutter around your other friends, worried eyes blown wide. You approached Sanji first and laid a tentative hand on his elbow. His teeth chattered even as he gave you a charmingly warm smile.

"'M glad you're--all right," he managed to say. His hand, still hidden by a glove, rested atop yours. "Was afraid m-mosshead would get y-you eaten."

"We found a local, he helped us find our way here," you assured him, moving to Robin with increased terror. "Robin, how do you feel?"

Her brow ticked just slightly, lips curled downward. She strained, probably trying to break free, before her head fell forward. "Chilly."

"I don't want your help, marimo!"

"Whatdya mean?! You gonna freeze here, huh?"

The conflict was solved by shattered ice before you could whip around. Sanji fell backward with a snarl and scrambled to his feet just as quickly. "You coulda cut my leg off!"

Zoro dared to smirk at him. "Whoops."

"Zoro," you hissed. His face fell instantly, head whipping around to look at you. "Help Robin."

But the swordsman appeared more hesitant this time, sizing the ice block holding Robin's body warily. "I just, I dunno how I could slice it without slicing her too."

Hans let out something like a grunt and marched up with a torch from his backpack. He lit it on fire with a match and shoved it into Nami's hands. "Just melt her out until it's soft enough to break."

He settled Sanji with a somber look. "Where did he go?"

Sanji, though miffed with his flippant tone, pointed a finger at the large doors at the end of the hall. Now that you looked around, you seemed to be in some sort of entryway.

"Hans!" You raced to stop him from just storming in guns blazing, grabbing his sleeve harshly. "What are you doing? This witch is-is dangerous! Let us handle it and--"

"This," he growled, ripping himself from your grip, "isn't yours to handle. I helped you find your friends, not get out before you get hurt."

Whatever else he had to say was cut off by the telltale sound of Luffy's voice bellowing from the throne room, "GUM GUM--PISTOL!"

Sanji and Zoro flanked your shoulders all at once. "Our captain is fighting whatever the hell is in there," said Zoro. "Long as he's in there, this remains our fight."

Hans measured the three of you up with a resigned scoff. "Fine. Just stay out of my way."

He went on ahead, leaving you and the boys to follow his trail. You leaned into Zoro, whispering, "I don't think this guy's a woodcutter."

Zoro scoffed lightly, daring to grin at you despite the unknown in front of you. "Sorry you had a crush on him?"

You gasped, reeling back your fist to collide with his arm only for him to catch it and laugh. His face had the audacity to light up in the most beautiful way, his eyes crinkling and smile wide.

"I--I didn't have a crush on him," you hissed.

Zoro released your hand too softly. "Please, it was obvious."

"I was trying to--" You clamped your mouth shut and faced forward sharply, horrified you almost let that slip. He didn't say anything more, but the satisfied look on his face made it seem like he knew.

Sanji gagged as Hans approached the throne room doors, his eyes glaring into the man's back. "Darling, you have questionable taste."

You let out a resigned huff and caught Zoro's eye, your cheeks warming all of a sudden. Honestly, you had to agree.

The strange man threw open the doors, mouth opening to announce some grand speech probably, but was unfortunately cut off when your captain barreled into him and sent them both hurtling backward.

Hans coughed, pressing his hand to his side, and sat up quickly. Luffy groaned underneath him, his stretchy legs tangled in both of Hans'.

Calling out his name, you ran up and grabbed under his arms, pulling him away from the fake woodcutter. Luffy's legs slithered as they untangled from Hans, which was a disturbing feat to witness.

"Almost had 'im," Luffy muttered, jaw setting.

With a glare in your direction, Hans rose to his feet and dusted off his clothes, setting one foot in front of the other, words rising to the tip of his tongue until he lifted his gaze and saw the young man standing between the large doors.

"Hans," the apparent witch gasped, his voice echoing off the ice. One after the other, Usopp and Chopper peak around the corner behind him.

He took a step forward, all his plans and speeches forgotten. "Jack."

Luffy, now standing beside you, scratched his chin. "Who's that guy?"

"Our guide," you blurted, head tilted. "Is that really the witch?"

"Yup."

"Kinda... anticlimactic."

"Yuh huh."

Both of the strange men whipped around at once and shouted, "Shut up!" They froze, glancing back at each other, and fell still once again.

From the other end of the hall, Nami's voice carried, "What's happening?! Is Luffy winning?!"

"Not sure!" you called back.

"Wait." Zoro approached the pair still staring at each other blankly. "You know the witch? Why didn't you say that before?"

Instead of answering, Hans cracked a grin. Surprisingly, the witch did as well, musing, "They're still calling me that?"

"It stuck," Hans laughed. "Not particularly wrong."

The witch, Jack (apparently), scoffed in reply. His gaze swept over the lot of you, all geared to attack should the moment come. "What exactly brings you and these... pirates to my palace, brother?"

Your jaw fell instantly. "Brother?"

Hans turned back with all the ease in the world. "I didn't lie to you. I just didn't exactly tell you the truth." He swept a hand across his chest in a simple bow. "My full title is Crown Prince Hans."

"Oh shit," you awed.

"I don't care who's your brother!" Luffy pushed up his sleeves, ready to fire another punch at any moment. "I came to end this winter!"

"So did I!" said Hans, his face falling solemnly. He faced the witch once again. "I meant to come sooner, but you've hidden far up the mountain."

Despite the tease in his brother's voice, Jack visibly tensed, taking a wary step back. He shot Luffy an almost desperate kind of glare. "I told you, I don't know how!"

Somehow, the room got colder. Hans stepped forward every time his brother backed away, a tender hand outstretched. "Yes, you can. If you just come back with me, we can figure it out. Together. Like Mother and Father wanted."

"You..." The ice all around began to fracture little by little. "You came all this way for nothing." The witch tightened his fists and breathed out a sigh. "Hans, I don't know what you thought would happen. There's no ending this winter... not without killing me."

The brothers exchanged an icy look, before Jack released a gentle laugh. "But you already knew that, didn't you?"

"I--I didn't come here to kill you," Hans insisted.

They continued like that, back and forth, the air getting stiffer and the cold growing harder. Spirals of ice crept up along the walls like vines. You stepped closer to Luffy, casting a glance back at Zoro and Sanji. Usopp and Chopper had snuck around and joined them.

Good. Everyone was in one place. Escape could be possible, probably.

"Hey," Luffy murmured, leaning closer to your ear. "I'm gonna knock Witch-Guy out."

You gripped his arm in a vice. "No. You--"

"He's gonna hurt your friend." Luffy shook you off easily. His usual playful attitude was gone, replaced by that rare, frightening seriousness.

You followed his gaze. Hans was backing his brother into the throne room, his eyes pleading, his hands reaching. The wi--Jack was curled in on himself, flurries of snow enveloping his head and sparks of ice flying off his arms.

Sanji's hand rested on your shoulder, gently tugging you back. "Love, get away."

The sound of Zoro unsheathing his sword met your ears--a sound you'd know anywhere--and you saw Jack raising his hands over his head, shouting something drowned out by the sudden gusting wind.

Everything happened very quickly.

Luffy, rushing forth with a fist drawn back. Hans, ignoring the ice hitting his face, reaching out for his brother. Your name falling from Sanji's lips.

And you, somehow, lunging at Hans just as Jack was knocked back by Luffy's fist and a blast of ice shot out from his splayed hands. You would have landed on top of Hans if you hadn't been sledgehammered in the back and rocketed to the side.

All the freezing cold from before could be considered warm compared to this. A cough forced its way from your lips. Your hands quivered as you struggled to push up off the ground, falling back onto your side. A faint ringing in the back of your mind overpowered the voices calling out to you.

You blinked and your face was being held by two warm hands, the kind of warm that made you want to be engulfed in it entirely. You blinked again and the ringing faded as you registered Zoro's face in front of you.

"--ou okay?" His voice wasn't meant to be that soft, you thought. Zoro was anything but soft. It just didn't suit him. Still catching the breath that was knocked out of you, you barely noticed when he drew you closer to his body.

A tight tingling festered in your chest, your hand clawing at the area, trying to scratch a deeply set itch. Zoro caught the motion, his hands moving from your face to your back, pressing into the spot you'd been hit.

"Ow," you groaned. "Cut that out."

The swordsman released a sigh at the sound of your voice. You could still bitch at him--that was a good sign.

"What even happened?" He looked like he was biting back words, mouth opening and closing uselessly until Sanji appeared over his shoulder.

He took a drag from his cigarette and puffed it out fast. "That witch hit you with ice." Sanji's set jaw softened. "Are you all right?"

You could still move your fingers and toes, and now that was ringing was gone you could feel you strength slowly return. You managed to sit up on your own. Zoro didn't move away by an inch, eyes on you like a hawk.

"I'm okay," you assured them. With Zoro's help, you stood to your feet, ignoring the quake in your knees. "Cold, but okay."

Neither of them believed you, obviously. Sanji's skeptical eye was pulled away when Hans clobbered Luffy on the head. He rushed over to put the guy back in his place while Chopper tentatively approached the knocked out Jack with his first aid kit.

In truth, you'd been lying through your teeth. You barely withheld the the shivers threatening to wrack your body. Cold didn't begin to describe the sensation crawling from the pit of your chest.

Zoro called your name and the sound alone caused your mask to slip, just a bit. He saw, of course, grabbing you by your shoulders and staring directly into your eye, like he could will the truth out of you.

You smiled casually, hands moving to shake him off in vain. He needed to stop looking at you, because dammit, it was working.

The fight in you faded more and more the longer his hands warmed your shoulders and his steady gaze warmed your face. Suddenly, you let the fatigue cloud your eyes. You leaned into his hands, eyes fluttering, shoulders jerking. "Zoro, I'm really cold."

That was all he needed. Your feet were swept off the ground, his arms enveloping you, his warmth defending you against the incessant chill.

Zoro rounded on the bickering group and felt his patience snap. "Hey!"

All eyes on him, he couldn't help the stagger in his breath. He held you closer to his chest as if it would do anything to help you. Zoro didn't have any idea what was wrong with you, this magic shit wasn't his cup of tea, but he could be pissed really well, especially when it came to you. So he zeroed in on Hans and locked his target.

"What the hell did he do?!"

Hans' eyes drifted down to your form, fully shaking now that you stopped pretending, vainly attempting to hide from the cold the further you curled into Zoro's arms. "They... they were hit with the ice?"

Sanji gripped Hans by the collar fiercely. "Saving you from that lunatic!"

Hans pushed back at that, hand shoving Sanji back by his chest. "Jack isn't a lunatic! He didn't meant to do any of this! He's cursed!"

Zoro marched up to him, towering over the man. "You think I care? What did that ice do?"

All Hans could do was stare at your contorted face in horror, shaking his head quickly. "I don't... Jack wouldn't..."

"Set them down!" Chopper ran over, his hooves clopping across the ice. Zoro begrudgingly knelt to the ground and rested you in front of the little doctor. Chopper pressed his stethoscope to your chest, his eyes flickering to your face. You forced open your eyes.

"It's probably just a cold," you murmured.

The way Chopper's ears flattened against his hat said otherwise. Nami and Robin approached at a run then, gasping one after the other at the sight in front of them. Chopper got in your face and mumbled something the others couldn’t hear, but it made your frown deepen before you gave him a nod. He worked his little hooves and unzipping your coat, unbuttoning the front of your shirt, and parting it just enough to see a sliver of your skin. 

Zoro was the first to see it, yet he didn’t gasp like Chopper or curse like Sanji or ask what was happening like Luffy. He just… stared, like he didn’t believe what he saw. The ice started at the center of your chest in a starburst shape, reaching out in tendrils that grew ever so slowly the closer he watched them. 

You peeked down at your chest and reacted much like Zoro, silent as your eyes rose to meet his. You winced as you sat up, resisting the urge to clutch your chest, and looked at him so dearly. The clouds in his eyes parted briefly when you grabbed his chin.

“No,” you commanded. Zoro blinked helplessly. “It’s not your fault.” You dropped your hand and somehow found it in you to grin. “I was just being--careless, right?”

Maybe he was right to worry after all, you mused to yourself, missing the way Zoro’s whole face crumbled, all his certainty drained out of him.

Zoro leaned away from you sharply, and you would think he was glaring at you if you didn’t know his actual glare so well. "Don't do that. You're turning to ice. Don’t you dare try an' comfort me.”

Again, your eyes were drawn to the star on your chest. Your lips quivered now, your body fighting against the cold and longing for the warmth Zoro had given… Though, if you let yourself think it, the cold chill started to feel warm against your skin. A sickening warmth. The ice was creeping up your collarbone.

So you ignored it entirely. You ignored everything, everyone, hearing death approaching the door. You leaned back on your hands and burned his image into your mind. "I can't not comfort you. It's, like, my self-appointed job."

Nami was choking behind her hand, you think. Chopper waved his hooves helplessly, wracking his brain. Usopp stood behind him, his jaw agape, eyes far away. Sanji stood a pillar next to Robin, each staring vacantly into space, albeit with an extra shine in their eyes. 

And Zoro refused to look at you. "Why?" he demanded.

"Someone's has to,” you said so simply. “So I look out for you. I guess sometimes… y-you worry me as much as I worry you.”

No one said anything after that, as if they could say anything. A sense of the inevitable filled the air and stole everyone’s voice. You fought to remain sitting, not wanting your last moments to be just lying down and taking it. Which made you think… “Should I choose a good pose?”

The joke didn’t land, apparently. No one laughed at least. The only reaction you got was from Zoro, his face whipping up to give you the sharpest glare he’d ever given you and—he reached out and hugged you. You don’t think he was breathing, his arms wrapping around you and dragging you close in one swift motion. 

You’re certain you’re cold to touch, your skin had to be freezing, but he held you anyway, clutching you closer every few seconds. Your surprise faded fast along with all your bravery, and you buried your face in his neck, hugging him back with all the strength you had. You could feel the ice reaching your neck now.

“Idiot,” he hissed into your skin. “You—No, you’re not, I… I’m sorry. I need…” Your hands clawed at his hair, His fingers dug into your sides. You let him speak, unsure what you would even say in return, when his voice met your ear quietly, “I think I’m in love with you. You can’t go.” 

He needed you to know. To understand. If possible, you gripped him tighter. Like a lifeline. His lips grazed your hairline, the fear radiating off of you snuffed out by the sole feeling of being loved. Funny. Just a day ago you were half convinced he hated you. And now? You had no doubt in your frozen heart that Zoro, despite his edges, despite his harshness, loved you.

The cold was its warmest now. Chopper had warned about the symptoms of hypothermia. You didn’t have to open your eyes to know the ice was spreading faster now, it had to be turning you to ice while you wrapped yourself around the swordsman. You’d die listening to his heartbeat, the sniffs of your friends, and… Chopper’s sharp gasp?

“It’s…” His hooves clipped as he danced in place. “It’s melting!”

That was a shock. You ripped yourself away from Zoro so fast you knocked his head with your own, the pair of you wincing in tandem. Sure enough, when you looked down at yourself, the ice was melting before your very eyes, soaking into your skin and clothes. “The hell?”

“Y/N!” Your captain launched himself at you and sent you back to the ground. He wrapped his arms around you threefold, dragging a delirious laugh out of you. “You’re not an icicle!”

“I’m not!” you cried, ruffling his hair. Nami collapsed to her knees beside you and forced Luffy off before nearly choking you in a hug. 

“But how?” Robin posed the question even as she sprouted a hand from Nami’s back and gave your cheek a fond pat. 

You were only standing for a few moments, your hands tight in Nami’s, when Sanji nearly knocked you and over again as he hugged around your neck. Teetering on your feet, your eyes found Zoro again. Your smile infected him, his lips tugging upward.

Zoro’s face fell abruptly, his hand moving to his sword as he stepped toward you. You turned quickly in Sanji’s arms, his hands sliding off your shoulders. Hans stood close. He stared at your chest, your face, at Zoro. “You…” His brows met in thought, watching how Zoro rose to defend you, how your eyes never left his face very long… and it dawned on him all at once. “He loves you…”

The words seemed to break the moment, your crew casting the swordsman a nervous glance. You did too, wondering if—fearing that everything was going to go back to the way it was. Zoro would say sike and everyone would laugh in your face for ever thinking he would ever—

“Yeah,” Zoro snapped, eyes dark. “So back off.”

You sputtered, cheeks hot. “Zoro!”

But Hans didn’t care about that, his gaze faraway, his feet taking him backward step by step. “Love… I know what to do.” He smiled and darted back to the lump of his brother that was slowly gaining consciousness. “I know!”

“Weirdos,” Luffy decided, his cheek suddenly resting on your shoulder. 

You burst into another round of laughter. His cheek was warm against you. Never again, you thought, would you ever take warm things for granted. “Captain, can we get outta here? Since he, uh, knows whatever he knows now?”

The faster you could get in bed, the better. Luffy laughed through his teeth. “Sure! These guys are getting on my nerves.”

Usopp set a solid hand on your shoulder, his waterline glimmering in the light. He fought viciously against a sniffle. “I wasn’t worried. I knew you’d pull through.”

You choked down a laugh and squeezed his hand. “Thank you. Though I do wonder how exactly I’m alive.”

“Who cares?” A gruff voice spoke from your right, Zoro’s face appearing in your peripheral. His shoulder brushed yours tenderly. “You’re alive. Let’s go.”

Luffy threw a fist in the sky and bounded back down the hall. “To the ship!”

You made to run after him when all of a sudden you were airborne, a cackling full sized reindeer swooping under you legs and taking off with your on his back. Your hands flew around his neck with barely stifled screams. “Chopper!”

All he did was giggle and completely ignore your protests on account of very recent “doctors orders” to stay off your feet. You cast a look over your shoulder like a plea for help. Your friends were running after you, some more enthusiastic, most struggling to stay on their feet. 

The winter air hit your face as soon as you left the castle, the crunch of Chopper’s hooves on the snow music to your ears. Not far down the mountain Luffy slingshotted himself onto Chopper too, his arms wrapping around your middle and his laugh loud in your ear. The others were yelling for you to slow down now, but Chopper didn’t listen—not till he tripped over a lump of thick snow and sent the three of you tumbling to the bottom of the slope. 

You rolled onto your back, chest heaving, heart full. The snow crackled with the running of the crew. Luffy and Chopper’s laughter filled the air. When you opened your eyes, the sun was blocked by Zoro’s broad shoulders. Oh, how the little smile he tried to hide just melted your mind. With a wave of your hand you gestured him closer. 

Zoro bent his legs, resting his elbows on his knees in a crouch, angling his head quizically. You twined your index finger through his, loving the little blush rising to his cheeks. 

“Did you mean it?” you asked in a short burst of bashfullness. 

Though his eyes avoided your own, his finger tightened around yours. A torrent of emotions whirled through his chest as he recalled how vulnerable he’d let himself be. It was dangerous, you were dangerous… but he’d never had a problem flirting with death before. “I meant it.”

Your placed his hand on your cheek. “It’s requited, just so you know.”

Zoro huffed a laugh, tentatively running his thumb over your jaw. “Good.”

“C’mon you guys!” Luffy and the others were already continuing the walk down the mountain. 

A flash of mischief flashed through Zoro’s eyes before he grabbed your wrist and hauled you up so quickly your feet left the ground. He steadied you with his hand son your shoulders, his forehead hitting yours as he snickered under his breath, stealing all your breath away.

“You dork,” you muttered, turning on your heel and walking off without him. It wasn’t long before his shoulder brushed your own, his steps in line with yours, his grin matching yours in delirium. 

જ ⁀ ➴

It took all night to reach the bottom of the mountain. You could have stopped the night, gotten some rest, but the idea of shot down by everyone instantly. You were all eager to get back to the Merry as fast as possible.

You rubbed at your eyes, yawning as you passed back through the village, headed for the icy docks just as the sun broke the sky. 

Chopper tried to convince you to just head below deck instead of helping with the rigging, but you’d assured him with a single smile that “I’ve never felt more alive, Chop. I’ll be fine.”

So he begrudgingly left you alone, keeping an eye on you while you kept an unabashed eye on Zoro. You tied off a rope without ever looking down at it, too busy stealing glances at the swordsman across the deck. He wore that damn smirk on his face, like he knew you were staring even with his back turned. You didn’t really care if he knew, not looking away when he met your gaze and dared to wink at you.

Your whole face went up in flames. This new side of Zoro was sudden and brash like you’d never known before. Your adrenaline spiked simply thinking of this strange new normal your near-death had created. It caught you offguard. Made you nervous. You loved it. 

She noticed it as the ship drifted into the harbor.

“No way!” Nami laughed and raced from the helm to the side of the ship. She leaned over and pointed off in the distance. “Look! Look!”

You joined her side and saw it at once. Starting out at the tallest pinetrees towering high in the forest beyond the village, the fallen snow began to rise little by little into the air, collecting in a flurry of ice that soared over the whole valley. From the ship you could see the people leaving their houses and gathering in the streets, their jaws falling as the icicles melted off their buildings and the frost disappeared from the foliage. 

The further the ship sailed the more you could take in how the whole island burst to life, the green of the trees fighting through the cold as the ice erupted into speckles of light in the sky. The sunrise illuminated the land basking in summertime for the time in a long while.

“Guess he did know how to fix it,” you said to no one in particular, not very surprised when you turned your head and found Zoro by your side. You could used to having him there, you think.

“Amazing,” he awed. He caught your stare and cleared his throat, cracking his neck and looking anything but nonchalant. He paused a moment, thinking, then, “You… didn’t actually like him, right?”

You laughed right in his face. “Please. He’s not my type.” Your hand ran from his shoulder to his bicep as you looked up through your lashes. Zoro stiffened, blinked fast, and choked on nothing all at once. 

“Right, yeah.”

Nami’s face was something between disgust and nausea. “I liked it better when you two fought.”

“Yeah, yeah.” You waved her off absently, eyes zeroed in on Zoro with one goal in mind. You stole his hand and started to drag him away, into the depths of the ship where hopefully, no one would need you for a long time.

Zoro followed without any hesitance, though he did raise a brow as the route to your room became clear. “Uh, what’re we doing?”

You pushed open the door to the girls’ quarters and let loose a heavy sigh. “Sleeping.”

“And I’m here because…”

You shot him the tiniest grin. “Moral support.”

As if he could argue with that. Zoro shook his head fondly, squeezing your hand and taking the lead further into the room. You moved around each other as if you’d done this a hundred times; he turned his back when you changed, you turned when he did. You held up the covers on your mattress with only a small bit of anxiety, paling in comparison to the flush taking over Zoro’s face when he lay down beside you. 

You faced each other for one minute before you decided you hated it and rolled over so your back was to his front, a good berth of space between you. Awkwardly, tentatively, Zoro’s hand hovered over your side until he went for it and tugged you agaisnt his chest. Instantly, warmth covered you. You grabbed his hand and held it to your chest, memorizing this feeling so you’d never forget. 

Sleep found you quickly, fatigue weighing down, Zoro’s mere presence lulling you into a dream you didn’t remember in the morning, only knowing that, as you rolled over to fin him already awake, the dream was filled with nothing but warm thoughts of the sea, the crew, and Zoro.

𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭: @100520s @kryscent @kultofkorii @dreamcastgirl99

[muletia]

miniformers is taking over my brain. I need to cuddle mini Starscream, bumblebee, Megatron, and knockout and kiss their little foreheads, Aghdfbsjfhsb I’m going insane

𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐯𝐨𝐥. 𝟑 ༘⋆✿

bumblebee, starscream, knockout

word count: 1250

A little manipulator (affectionate), who has absolutely no objections to using his charm to coax a few kisses or cuddles out of you

Bee knows he's adorable. He’s well aware of the effect his big, puppy-like optics have on you, and if he really wanted to, he could ask for absolutely anything, and you’d agree without hesitation. So it's no surprise that when he gets shrunk down, you find yourself completely incapable of refusing him anything

At first, however, he approaches the idea of using this to his advantage with restraint — at least until he fully accepts that being tiny is his new reality and that he has to learn how to deal with this new perspective. He stays close because he feels most comfortable in your company and can hide behind you whenever Optimus' towering height suddenly becomes overwhelming

Exploiting your bursts of affection comes later when he realizes just how hard it is for you to resist showering his entire face with kisses and scooping him into your arms at every possible opportunity. He enjoys this reversal of roles, especially since he used to be the cuddle-bug in your relationship. Of course, that doesn’t mean he’s going to give up hugging you on his own terms — you often find yourself with a few extra pounds clinging to your leg whenever Bee feels like getting some affection

All it takes is for you to get momentarily distracted — maybe you’re trying to discuss this strange height-changing situation with Ratchet, sharing your observations and thoughts, when Bee is already tightening his servo around the sleeve of your shirt, demanding your attention. It's convenient and much more effective than verbally calling for you because the moment he tugs at your clothing, he’s guaranteed a kiss or a pat on the helm

He follows you everywhere and wants to be a part of all your plans for the day. You could be working, and Bee will still be cuddled up against you, finally able to sit on your lap without worrying about crushing it. I can totally see him crawling under your hoodie too, trying to get even closer to you, to experience a level of closeness he never could before

He won’t mind staying like this forever if it means receiving affection from you at every possible moment <3

He bolts before you can even let out a single coo in his direction

Starscream absolutely despises this new state of affairs. He’s become defenseless, easy to overlook, far too vulnerable to aggression from other bots who, in this form, could wipe him out in a nanoklik. He’s fallen to the very bottom of the food chain, which means that under no circumstances can he let himself be seen

He’d like to hide from you too, and from your untamed need to treat him like a sparkling, but the most he can manage is transforming and flying up to a higher level, where he can observe you safely from above without having to endure your cooing about how "cute" and "adorable" he is

That doesn’t mean he’ll stay silent, oh no. You’re going to hear plenty of complaints and theatrics, dramatic laments about the horror of remaining in this pitiful form forever, and screeching about how humans can possibly function while being tiny all the time. He’ll also expect sympathy, tears even, shed over his misfortune, so don’t think you can just ignore his unproductive, egocentric monologue. The moment you stop paying attention, he’ll call you out for it, accusing you of not caring, of being selfish — do you even want to help him? Or do you secretly hope he’ll stay this pathetic size forever just so you can continue tormenting him?

He just needs some time before he exhausts himself with all the dramatics and the consequences of his sudden size change finally catch up to him. The helplessness, the inability to fend off sudden threats, the need for support, because there’s no one else he can rely on but you. And so, he descends from his safe height and returns to you, warning you that he absolutely refuses to be treated like a sparkling

It’s a shame that his whole independent and self-sufficient facade crumbles the moment you press a kiss to his forehead, right at the base of his red crest, and coo sweetly, murmuring that you just can’t help yourself. Starscream manages one more outburst before another kiss silences him a little. And the next one makes him temporarily abandon all plans of immediately finding a way to return to his normal size

Perhaps he can allow himself to be adored by you for just a little while, can’t he?

That little while seems to stretch into eternity as you pull him close, hugging him tightly, unable to resist with such an adorable mech right in front of you. And maybe, just for a moment, he lets himself feel loved, without having to initiate touch himself, completely absorbed in the affection you pour into the touch-starved void in his spark

Unfortunately, he quickly remembers that while you make him feel safe, he can’t allow himself to stay in this form. No matter how wonderful it is to be wrapped up in your arms, he needs to return to his normal size — not just to match his ego but also to protect you and have any chance at victory

He hates this whole situation just as much as the rest of them — until he realizes you’re much more willing to give him attention in this form

Knockout values compliments from you and absolutely loves receiving them. He relishes every second of your attention, using it to stroke his enormous ego. Especially since, normally, you’re not too eager to spend time with him after he so boldly barged into your life and unilaterally decided that he was the most important part of it

So this sudden shrinking? It’s an unmissable opportunity for him to bask in the attention you now lavish upon him — even if, after a while, your incessant cooing starts to grate on his nerves when it’s not about his attractiveness but rather about how “cute” he is. Could you go back to praising his exquisitely polished finish? He didn’t spend all that time buffing himself to perfection just for you to completely disregard it in favor of fawning over his “adorable” faceplate

And while he drinks in your compliments like the finest energon, your constant, relentless attempts to touch him with your dirty, greasy human hands? Those are much less appreciated. You’re smudging his flawless paint job, leaving fingerprints all over him. Do you really have the patience to keep polishing him over and over again? Surely, at some point, you’ll get bored of trying to hug him and smother his entire faceplate and helm with kisses, right?

But when your wave of affection actually subsides, Knockout suddenly realizes that he appreciates your attention in all its forms. He immediately goes on the offensive, dynamically trying to draw your focus back to him, even if that means sacrificing his freshly polished shine and straddling your stomach just to pin you down and squeeze a few more kisses out of you

Oh, and by the way, he's definitely taking a few selfies with your phone. Just in case he ever needs to blackmail you with his “adorable little face,” as you so fondly called it, should you ever refuse to visit him on the Nemesis

[propertyofwicked]

DIAL DRUNK - LN

summary - lando had always been her rock, her best friend whose laughter brightened her darkest days. but when she drifted away after starting a new relationship, lando was left confused and heartbroken, eventually discovering the painful truth of her struggles and the depths of his unwavering loyalty.

warnings - mention of toxic + somewhat abusive boyfriend (not lando), fighting, alcohol - happy ending (cos im not mean)

please stay safe and dont read this if any of these warnings will effect you! i will be back with a new post soon! look after yourselves <3

✧ my inbox is open ✧

masterlist the playlist

lando norris had always been the light in her life, the best friend who made everything better with his infectious laughter and unwavering support. their bond was unbreakable, or so he thought. but when she started dating her new boyfriend, everything changed. she stopped answering his calls, missed their regular meet-ups, and slowly drifted away. everyone was surprised when she stopped showing up to races, or when she no longer appeared on lando’s instagram - both in pictures and the comments.

lando was confused and hurt, but he respected her decision, believing she was simply busy with her new relationship. and even if he only heard from her when she sent a text to congratulate him on a race result, he was just happy she was still supporting him from wherever she was.

the first time she hadn’t attended one of his races, he had texted her afterward, "missed you this weekend, hope everything's okay." her reply came hours later: "sorry, got caught up with something. next time for sure." but there was no next time. race after race, her absence was palpable.

the missed calls were harder to ignore. at first, she would call back with an excuse. "sorry, my phone was on silent," or "i was out with friends, lost track of time." but soon, she stopped calling back altogether. lando's messages grew more worried, but he tried to keep them light. "everything alright? feels like we haven't talked in ages." the responses were always brief, vague, and unsatisfying. "yeah, just busy. talk soon."

then came the day he saw a picture of her and her boyfriend on social media. they looked happy, but something about her smile seemed off. forced. he left a comment, something friendly and supportive, but she didn't reply. she didn't even like the comment. lando felt a knot in his stomach. something was wrong, but he didn't know what, and she wasn't letting him in.

the isolation gnawed at him. he missed their late-night conversations, the way they would laugh until their sides hurt. he missed her being the first person he called with good news, and the one who would cheer him up when things didn't go as planned. it was like a piece of his life had gone missing, and he had no idea how to get it back.

one night, after a particularly tough race, lando found himself dialling her number, despite knowing she probably wouldn't answer. the phone rang and rang, and just as he was about to hang up, she picked up. her voice was a whisper.

"lando, i can't talk right now."

"what's going on?" he asked, his voice breaking. "why are you shutting me out?"

there was a long pause. he could hear her breathing, could almost feel the weight of whatever she was struggling with.

"it's... complicated," she finally said. "i'm sorry."

"complicated how?" he pressed.

"i can't," she whispered. "i'm sorry." and then she hung up.

lando stared at his phone, feeling more lost and helpless than ever. what had happened to her? why was she pushing him away? he couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong, but without her willing to talk, he had no way to help her.

the texts and calls grew less frequent. she stopped liking his posts, stopped commenting on his photos. it was like she had disappeared from his life entirely. the only sign he had that she was still out there were the occasional texts after a race, short messages of congratulations that felt hollow and distant.

each time his phone buzzed with one of those messages, it was a bittersweet moment. he was glad she still cared enough to reach out, but the emptiness of her words was a constant reminder of how far apart they had drifted. he missed her more than he could put into words, and the pain of her absence was a constant ache in his chest.

he truly didn’t expect to see her that night, especially not stood at the bar of a busy club that he and max had gone to, and not stood alone.

“y/n hey!” he called out, approaching her quickly and taking her in a quick embrace as he tried desperately to ignore the way she flinches and stiffened her posture.

“hi!” she replied, smiling at him nonetheless.

“how have you been? i feel like i haven’t seen you in a while.”

“i’m ok - how are you? still reeling from your first win?” she replied again, her posture softening as the bar tender handed her a glass of white wine. again, lando tried to ignore how different this was - he’d never seen her drink anything other than a malibu coke when they went out.

“i guess you could say that,” he responded happily, though not without noticing how different she looked - the was smaller, and her natural smile was gone, replaced with this horrid fake grin he had only seen on a handful of occasions, “who are you here with?”

“oh! i came with mich-”

“michael. and you are..?”

the voice had interrupted her, and her shoulders peaked up in anxiety once more as her boyfriend stood behind her, his frame towering hers slightly. he had his hand stuck out, in attempt to greet lando as if he had no idea who he was. he did. in fact, lando was a sore spot in his and y/n’s relationship.

“lando,” he replied, though neglecting to shake his hand, “i’ll leave you to it. come say hi before you leave,” he added, before turning swiftly on his heel to re-join max and a few others of their friends who had joined.

and as his drinks kept flowing, so did his thoughts. lando’s eyes were drawn to the table she sat on, looking out of place surrounded by michael and his friends. this wasn’t the y/n he knew, but he feared this was the new her, the her who was no longer his friend, no longer the girl that would spend hours with him doing everything and nothing at the same time.

lando wasn’t quite sure how drunk he was, not until he was stumbling to and from the bathroom, his vision clouded but not enough to distract him from the fact that y/n and michael had left their booth, and yet he wasn’t surprised that she hadn’t come to say goodbye. he himself thought it best to call it a night and head back to the comfort of his flat.

but then he saw them. she was arguing with her boyfriend, tears streaming down her face as michael was yelling, his grip on her arm tight and aggressive.

"you've had a face like a slapped arse all night," he snarled, his voice low but seething with anger. "you refuse to enjoy yourself unless it's your idea. you're so selfish."

"i'm not," she pleaded, her voice breaking. "i just... i don't feel comfortable here."

"oh, really? you never feel comfortable anywhere unless you're in control," michael spat, shaking her slightly. "you ruin everything."

"that's not true," she sobbed, trying to pull away. "please, michael, just let me go."

"no, we're going to sort this out right now," he growled, his grip tightening.

lando's heart pounded with a mixture of rage and concern, quickly finding himself pushing the door to the club open, barely allowing the cold night air to engulf him before he was striding over to the couple.

"hey, let her go!" lando demanded, stepping between them.

"this is none of your business," michael sneered, not loosening his grip.

"it is when you're hurting her," lando shot back, his voice steady but eyes blazing with anger. he could see the fear in her eyes, and it broke his heart.

"lando, please," she whispered, her voice trembling. "just go."

"i'm not leaving you with him," lando said firmly. "not like this."

“leave it, lando. i’m fine, i promise,” she continued shakily.

“oh yeah - defend him. as per fucking usual y/n,” michael yelled once more, letting go of his grip on her arm to push her back, the two men watching as she stumbled, almost losing her footing. lando stepped quickly, grabbing her waist softly, but enough to steady her once more.

“you ok?” he whispered to her, waiting for her to nod quickly at him then spinning around to face her boyfriend once more. before he could open his mouth to speak, michael’s fist was swiftly approaching lando’s face, to which he only missed slightly - only briefly making contact with his cheek as lando dodged the hit.

“right. so that’s how we’re playing this? cool,” lando announced, no longer trying to keep his calmness at the forefront of his mind as he raised his own fist, landing a punch square to the man’s face, driven by a protective instinct, months of pent-up frustration, and, quite potentially, the alcohol streaming through him. someone called the police, and before lando knew it, he was being pulled away, handcuffed and led to a police car.

“sir - your emergency contact is still not answering our calls - is there anyone else you’d like us to call?”

lando's heart sank, feeling like he had truly lost her.

“who did michael call as his emergency contact?” lando asked the officer, ignoring his previous question.

“we can’t disclose that information,” the officer responded with a sigh, but looked around the room quickly before adding a hushed, “it wasn’t her. if that helps.”

lando nodded at him quickly, trying to think of anyone who could come and pick him up from the station.

“try my friend max - his number should be in my phone somewhere,” lando told him to which the officer turned to go and retrieve his phone from evidence having not needed it before as he remembered y/n’s number like it was his own name. as the officer handed him his phone, he hesitated.

“listen,” he began softly, “someone who won’t even pick up the phone... are they really worth a potential assault charge?”

lando felt a surge of anger mixed with a deep sadness. “yes, she is. or at least, the version of her that i knew was worth it,” he said firmly. “she’s been through a lot. it’s not her fault.”

any rational person would not be defending someone who had ghosted them for months on end. he was overwhelmed, sad, angry - but rational? he was far from it right now.

the officer nodded, seeing the determination in lando’s eyes. “alright, i hope things work out for you both.”

“mr norris? your ride is here,” a new officer announced an hour later, handing lando a bag of his personal belongings before sending him through the door. stood face to face with max in a police station was not his idea of a nice night out.

“come on, mate. let’s get you home,” max said, smiling sadly at him as he led them to his car, “so, when’s the court date?”

“there isn’t one, luckily,” lando told him, buckling himself in and leaning into the seat in exhaustion, “injuries weren’t severe enough and he didn’t want to press charges.”

“lucky, indeed,” max hummed, “can i ask why?”

“you can ask. do i have to answer?”

“no, i guess not.”

“good.”

the car ride was silent from then on until they arrived at lando’s building, bidding each other goodbye quickly, before parting ways. lando swore the elevator was slower at 3am as he returned to his apartment, exhausted and disheartened.

as he approached his door, he saw her sitting on the door matt, her makeup ruined by tears. she looked up, eyes filled with sorrow and regret.

"lando," she choked out, standing up. lando didn't say anything at first, shocked that she was really here. he just pulled her into a tight hug, holding her as she sobbed against his chest.

"it's okay," he whispered. "i'm just glad you're here now."

they stood there for a long time, wrapped in each other's arms. finally, she pulled back, looking up at him with red-rimmed eyes.

"i'm so sorry,” she started again, pushing through her tears, “does it hurt?” she asked him, her fingers running softly over the slight bruising that dusted his cheeks.

“oh this? this is nothing - you should see the other guy,” he joked, trying to ignore his own pain, desperate to see her smile.

“i don’t think i want to see the other guy ever again,” she replied remorsefully.

“why did you do it, y/n? why did you disappear? why did you change?”

“i-i didn’t mean to. i didn’t want to lando, really. i didn’t,” she defended, “but he would just get so jealous, so angry, any time i spoke to you, or about you. he would say things. about me. about you. things that hurt. and i just kept thinking that maybe it would get better. maybe it would stop.”

“but it didn’t,” lando added for her, trailing off slightly. she didn’t respond verbally, rather, she merely nodded at him.

“oh y/n,” he sympathised, “you should’ve said, i could’ve done something. anything.”

“i just- i thought he liked me y’know. i thought maybe after a while he’d come around. and then he would guilt me into missing your races, or delete your messages from my phone. i never meant to ignore you lan, i promise,” she sighed, tears still cascading down her face, “can you ever forgive me?"

"there's nothing to forgive," lando said softly, brushing a strand of hair from her face, "you were in a tough situation. i'm just sorry i couldn't help you. god knows i would do anything to help you, angel."

she nodded, tears still falling, but there was a small, hopeful smile on her lips. "thank you, lando. for everything."

“come on, you want a cuppa?”

“always.”

“there she is,” he smiled at her widely, “there’s the y/n i know.”

the two shuffled inside, and lando made her a cup of tea just like old times. they talked for hours, about everything and nothing until any awkwardness from their separation dissipated into the night, until the sun began to rise. the start of a new day.

"i missed you," she whispered, her head resting on his shoulder as they sat together on the sofa, their skin illuminated by the orange tinge of sun peaking through the large windows.

"i missed you too," lando replied, gently kissing the top of her head. "and i'm never letting anything come between us again."

“tell me about miami,” she asked after a few moments of silence.

“ive already told you 3 times tonight.”

“i know, but i want to hear it again,” she whined, “i’ll never forgive myself for not being there.”

she smiled as he began to talk again, feeling safe and loved for the first time in a long while. they stayed like that, wrapped in each other's presence, knowing that whatever came next, they would face it together.