#Black Mermaid Foundation

[laurastudarus]

There are sports, and then there are sports. Extreme athletes push themselves beyond perceived limits, flying, diving, and running farther than it seems the human body has any right to go. And thanks to the X Games, Red Bull events, and even the Olympics, they’ve been given platforms to shine, allowing athletes like surfer Bethany Hamilton and snowboarder Shaun White to become household names.

(read more)

[sanakiras]

LIAR, LIAR!

PAIRING — kim mingyu x fem!reader

❝ AND THE DANCE FLOOR IS FILLING UP WITH BLOOD, BUT OH LORD, YOU’VE NEVER BEEN SO IN LOVE! ❞

WORD COUNT — 13.5k

SYNOPSIS — in a dramatic turn of events, a rich businessman is found dead in his lavish estate, and the authorities believe it was no accident. as the detectives dig deeper, they ultimately end up with two key suspects: you, the businessman’s very own daughter, and your sworn enemy, kim mingyu. as the time progresses, tensions rise and secrets spill — and the truth has the power to either bring you closer together or tear you apart.

TAGS — murder mystery, rich rivals to partners in crime to lovers, whole lotta plot, explicit sexual content, somewhat graphic depictions of death, everyone and everything is dysfunctional™, mentions of suicide, unrealistic circumstances, moral compass is nowhere to be found, angst, medium long hair!gyu bc self-indulgence, tsundere-ish reader again guys sorry i love her so bad, mentions of parental neglect, this ended up so long help

♪ verydeadly - wolves (kanye west cover),, low - dancing and blood,, vessel - red sex,, florence + the machine - mermaids,, zayn - bordersz,, mikky ekko - who are you, really?,, q - alone,, danna paola - tenemos que hablar,, blue foundation - eyes on fire (4 ave version),, summer camp - i want you

NOTE — one of my favorite episodes of going seventeen remains bad clue 2020, i loved mingyu’s role in it and i could totally see him portraying darker/morally grey characters and rock tf out of it so. i wrote this solely based on that idea. the music recs above are also really nice to get into the vibe! enjoyyyy :D

[ RETURN TO PART ONE ] ✧˚ · .⋆ ★ [ TWO ]

viii. I LOVE YOU LIKE A DRUG

november has a harsh cold to it that goes right through the skin of your cheeks. with your long black coat and matching gloves, you walk through the city, heading towards your lawyer’s office.

it’s been a few days since you last saw or talked to mingyu. you’ve been thinking about the kiss constantly, unable to stop it from clouding your mind. it’s hard to believe you hated his guts for years and completely changed your opinion on him within months — he took you by surprise on that. which you’re not sure how you feel about.

it’s as if his handprints were etched into your skin. you can still remember exactly how it felt, where they were. more importantly, perhaps, you know what your mind keeps leading to when the memory runs through your head.

that you want nothing more than for him to put his hands on you again. you want him so much that you have to clench your fists and tell yourself to get it together.

the universe must like to mess with you, as you receive a text from him at that exact moment. stopping in your tracks on the street, you’re just about to read it when you feel a hand on your shoulder.

once you’ve looked up from your phone, you see the devil himself standing there with a meek little smile on his face, which has you scoffing when he greets you. “hi.”

his dark hair is slicked back as he sports a thick winter jacket, jeans and black shoes. god, he’s handsome. why is he so annoying?

instead of responding to his greeting, you just speak your mind. “what’re you doing here?”

“chan mentioned you had an appointment in the neighborhood, so here i am. i wanted to see you.”

“why?”

“what, am i not allowed to visit my partner in crime?”

you purse your lips. “i thought we both agreed on discretion regarding our relationship.”

“and what kind of relationship is that?”

“an understanding.” your response comes out colder than anticipated, but you stick with it. “look, gyu, what we did… we probably shouldn’t do it again.”

he seems surprised. and a little disappointed, which he hides very quickly, but not quick enough.

so he pouts at you, doing his best not to dwell on it. “okay. any particular reason?”

you inhale sharply, trying to give him the best possible excuse you can come up with. “we agreed to keep it professional, didn’t we?”

“we did.” he nods, speaking in a way as if he were focusing on something else. “is that all there is to it? or do you have another reason?”

his gaze is playful, which makes you smile as you look down at your feet for a moment. “i’m sure you can fill the blanks.”

“interesting choice of words.”

“god, you’re such a perv.”

mingyu laughs when you punch his shoulder, his hand comfortable on your lower back. you don’t swat it away, utterly contradicting your previous words, but you can’t find it in yourself to care that much.

two days later, you’re over at his apartment, continuing your research where you left off last week, and you’re not sure if you’re imagining things, but it feels like there is a palpable tension in the air. soft rain taps against the windows while you’re looking at some security footage his friend seungkwan sent over about an hour ago.

with the two of you sitting beside eachother as you’re looking at the screen of your laptop, you find it difficult to focus on the footage, because you feel electrified by his mere presence. it’s ridiculous. he accidentally brushes your knee with your hand, and you feel a rush going through your body. a candle is lit on the table — his tan skin looks beyond beautiful, his brown eyes piercing through yours like never before.

you want him.

you. want. him. and no one else.

it’s driving you nuts, and as if he can read your mind, he begins to talk about it.

“i haven’t been able to stop thinking about our kiss.”

while the footage keeps playing in the background, you bite your lip, sucking in a breath. “gyu.” you say his name in a near scolding manner.

“do you like me?” he suddenly turns his head to face you, which feels borderline intrusive. like he’s able to see everything that’s going on in your head and heart.

it steals your breath, making your voice sound somewhat strained as a result, and you can’t even bring yourself to lie about it any longer. “i might.”

“i like you. a lot.” he says, and when you think he’s getting closer to you, you stand up from your seat, doing whatever you need to do to get it back together. you don’t want him to know how you really feel, so you clench your fists in your place, your back facing him.

“what does it matter? we’re nothing more than partners. that’s all there is to it.”

as you shake your head to yourself, he gets up as well, moving to stand behind you. “is that why you kissed me?”

“it was just the heat of the moment.”

“you’re a good liar — but not that good.” mingyu shamelessly eyes your body up and down, and when you look over your shoulder, he meets your gaze with something that appears to resemble pride, in a way.

arrogance, perhaps.

for whatever reason, that ticks something off in you. “you want me to be honest? fine. i don’t want to like you, mingyu. i didn’t want to enjoy that kiss. i’ve spent years hating you to the bone, and changing that opinion on you feels like betraying myself.”

he blinks at your sudden and blunt confession, but it’s honest and clear to him.

then he nods in understanding.

“just… hypothetically, if i said i wanted to kiss you again, what would you do?”

you notice a clear difference in his tone, his breathing, his eyes dropping down to your lips — oh, he’s fucking turned on. he knows you want him as badly as he wants you. you both know it.

“i’d tell you it was a one-time thing.”

he gets closer to you, eyelids hanging low and the hint of that damn smirk tugging at his mouth. “how about one more? for good measure. just to get our rocks off.”

the proposition is almost laughable, yet you selfishly find yourself agreeing. “just once?”

“just once.” the palm of his hand cups your jaw, and you know you’re done for when you lean in first, causing him to smile triumphantly right before his lips lock with yours.

this is what you’ve both been yearning for the past week. now that you have it, it feels like drugs, almost — addicting.

you kiss him with vigor, and his tongue slips into your mouth, leaving you aching for more. it’s when his hand pulls you closer by your waist that you force yourself to back away from him, both you and him gasping for air.

“gyu, we were supposed to—”

“keep things professional, i know,” he breathes out, his forehead resting against yours as if he has to make the biggest decision of his life, “but i don’t want to anymore.”

his hands are still on your waist, trailing down to the flesh of your upper legs, and he squeezes it, feeling sick at the idea of someone touching you there that’s not him.

“need you so bad. please — let me touch you.”

looking at his desperate form for a moment, you internally decide to go for whatever your body wants — and that’s to have him tonight.

so you roll your eyes, pulling him to you by his black t-shirt, your hands on the back of his neck before he can comprehend it. he hoists you up by the back of your thighs, taking you to his spacious bedroom.

your back touches the soft bed within seconds. his hands continue to glide up and down your body, and he subtly puts his one hand underneath the hem of your shirt, fingers touching your warm skin, and you almost forget to breathe.

mingyu feels your fingers pulling at the waistband of his jeans, and he relishes in how eager you are. he kisses your neck and moves lower painfully slowly, causing you to writhe underneath him, because you need him now.

it’s certainly a first for you to have such a need and desperation to fuck someone. and for him, of all people. if you had known about this in the morning, you wouldn’t have believed it.

but then again, the tension has been brewing between you two for years, reaching its highest point over the last couple weeks.

maybe he was onto something when he suggested for you to fuck him back in the strip club.

his lips are touching your bare stomach, and you show a hint of dominance by undoing the buttons of your pants and shoving down your panties, putting your hand on his head to guide it between your legs.

and he just lets you.

he takes your pants and underwear from your ankles and discards the pieces on the floor, hands on the back of your thighs once more as he pushes them to lean over his shoulders.

the first few seconds are spent basking in his excitement. his heart races when he looks you in the eye, and he grins to himself before diving in.

for some reason, he feels this primal urge to prove himself to you, to make you feel good like no one ever has before.

whatever the hell it is that made him have such a massive change of heart, he doesn’t know.

but he does know one thing — he worships the ground you walk on.

so to hear you gasp and whine for him when he eats you out only spurs him on to keep going, to make it dirtier and messier and keep having you moan his name.

mingyu encourages you to pull on his hair, and with each strand being pulled, he grows harder in his pants. he moans at the pain, humming against your pussy while his tongue is buried inside you.

you’re grinding against his face and he hums again, loving the feeling. “rub it in my face, baby, ‘s so good—” he babbles as his cock is rock-hard and throbbing against the fabric of his jeans, and he rubs his hard-on against the matress to get any kind of friction.

over the course of the years, even while hating him, you wondered if he was good in bed.

you didn’t think your question was going to be answered by first-hand experience.

he’s not only sickeningly good at providing pleasure — he seems to get off on it, too. your fingers clamp on his long strands of hair, thighs around his head, almost suffocating him, and even when you hit your first climax, he just keeps going. his tongue moves as if you’re not completely crumbling before him.

with a sudden sensitivity hitting you, you have to pull his face from your pussy, and he looks at you with lust-blown eyes and your wetness smeared over his lips and chin.

yeah, you fucking like him. jesus.

the little fang-shaped teeth he has show themselves when he grins at the mess he’s made of you. “want me to go again?”

“would you?”

“i’d keep going for hours if that’s what you want.”

pressing your lips together, you inhale deeply, ‘cause he looks like he means it, too. “well, as great as that sounds, i want you in me. now.”

he would’ve had a damn field trip eating you out again, but he certainly won’t complain, because he’s about to bust in his pants from just looking at you. his eyes return to your figure when you take your shirt off, dick twitching when you unclasp your lacy bra and show your completely bare body to him.

“are you just gonna keep staring?” you ask teasingly, and he needs a few seconds to get his brain running again, chuckling at your words before he removes his own clothes, pushing you back to lay you down.

“can’t help that i like what i see.”

you’re about to give him a witty retort in return when you feel the tip of his cock at the entrance of your hole, pushing forward just the slightest bit, and your lashes flutter at the sensation. he bites his lower lip at the feeling, a sudden intensity hitting the both of you.

then he pushes himself inside, inch by inch, achingly slowly. your brows scrunch together and you throw your head back, manicured nails digging into his bedsheets.

“hah—gyu—” you mumble, tension setting into your shoulderblades as he stretches you open, and you’re so tight that he feels just as suffocated as you do.

“fuck, you’re fucking tight.” he huffs out, utterly savoring your wetness wrapping around him. “can i keep going?”

at hearing the question, a breathy laugh escapes you. “how fucking big are you to have to ask that?”

“well, ‘m only halfway in right now, baby.”

fucking hell. the look on your face is borderline horrified, because jesus, you’re gonna need to adjust to him.

he lowers his chest to hover above yours, and your hands immediately move to his back, nails aching to dig into his skin. he’s only focused on your face now, and he pushes himself in all the way, watching your face contort in pain and pleasure.

your body stiffens for a second before it relaxes, and he has to hold down the urge to start moving. “that’s it. took me all the way in,” he mutters, and you nod to yourself, accidentally clamping down on him, at which he groans.

the first movements are small, slow — gentle. you release long, dragged-out moans that are the single hottest thing he’s ever heard. but he needs more, needs to get rid of the little voice in his head to fuck you hard and stupid.

he pulls out almost entirely before slamming back in, and the erotic whine you let out is just too good to his ears.

so he does it again, again, again. he fucks you to the point a different part of him takes over, ruthlessly seeking the pleasure and pain that gets him off like nothing else. he likes it fast, hard, and deep, and by the looks of it, you do too.

you’re clinging onto him with every thrust, every kiss, every moan, and he loves it.

mingyu moans, eyebrows knitted together as he’s hypnotized by the feeling of himself sheathed all the way inside you. “take it — take my fucking cock.”

“mhm. a little harder — please?” you beg, and if he wasn’t in love with you yet, he certainly is now. how on earth do you look as gorgeous as you do whilst half fucked-out, still needing more?

naturally, he gives in to you, doing whatever you ask of him. he fucks you harder, his grip on your waist tightening with each thrust.

you come to one conclusion — you don’t think anyone’s ever fucked you this good.

his mouth latches onto your tits, sucking at your nipples, and you bring his head up to kiss him again. it’s sloppy, and his movements begin to slow a little, your wetness dripping down his cock. “god, you’re fucking perfect.”

“want more, gyu. i want you to cum in me.”

“you—” he stutters out, “you want it?”

nodding at him, you even push yourself against him, his cock sinking just a little deeper into you.

so he fucks you as hard as he can until he feels himself hitting that blissful climax, continuing to roll his hips and stuff you as full of him as possible. then he sits up with a thin layer of cold sweat on his back, and he pulls himself out as slowly as he entered you, watching drops of cum seep out of your hole.

“so much for professional.” you breathe out, after which you both chuckle, and he leans in to kiss you again, and you get on top of him, taking charge, and he shivers in anticipation.

the night becomes an increasing blur with every kiss, every touch, every thrust — it’s hard to say what time it is or how many times you’ve gone at it when you finally let yourself sink into a deep sleep.

when you wake up beside him in the morning, you watch his sleeping form, your heart flutters.

it’s bizarre how he’s made you feel a kind of love you didn’t even know existed before. a feeling of great complexity and intensity that’s settled deep into your gut whenever he’s near.

as if he’s become a part of you that you can’t let go.

checking your phone, you know it’s time to get up, since you’ve got an important agenda today. yet when you try to silently slip away from his bed, you feel a warm hand on yours.

“don’t go.” he pleads, his voice lower and raspier than usual from sleeping. there’s a certain desperation in his now open eyes, and it affects you.

“i have to. appointments i can’t cancel, you know what that’s like—”

but he’s not talking about your day.

“i’m afraid of people leaving me,” he suddenly admits with a shaky tone, “and i like what we have. i like you. i guess i’m scared that… this was just a one-time thing, ‘cause it wasn’t for me. i don’t want to go back to what we were before all of this.”

processing his words, you nod, touching his cheek, reassuring him. “it wasn’t a one-time thing for me, either. you have me, i promise.”

“okay.” he gently smiles at you, his fingers caressing yours, and you lean in to press a kiss onto his lips, which he immediately reciprocates.

you give him a quick goodbye after putting your clothes on, and he’s left smiling to himself in bed while you walk out of his apartment with the same expression.

but you should know by now that all good things come to an end — one way or another.

ix. WHO ARE YOU, REALLY?

the two weeks since your first time sleeping together have been nothing but excitingly ignorant bliss. in between his meetings and family commitments and your meetings regarding your father’s business relations, you’ve been meeting eachother in the middle at every opportunity, the investigation of your father’s death fading into the background bit by bit, getting lowered on your list of priorities.

none of your friends are aware of your relationship – since it’s a secret, and neither of you have really labelled it yet – as far as you know, anyway.

being with him is comfortable to you, and surprisingly enough, he’s the first person who’s made you feel like you could breathe properly after the chaos that your father’s death caused.

“do you really have to go out at this hour?”

“yeah, unfortunately.” he presses a kiss to your lips before pulling his shirt on while you’re still naked on his bed. “i’ll be back as soon as i can, but you don’t have to wait for me, okay? it’s probably gonna take a while.”

with a sigh, you nod, pouting a little. “okay. i’ll probably go take a shower and head home after.”

he kisses the top of your head this time, and it all feels awfully domestic.

but it’s a good feeling.

mingyu takes in the sight of your bare face and body covered in nothing but his sheets, and he feels like things were meant to be like this. like you two were always indirectly tied together, and now this is your reality.

“you’re allowed to stay as long as you want. i’ll call you later, baby, yeah?” he hums against your lips, and you nod, wanting nothing more than to pull his shirt off and drag him back into bed with you.

“mhm. you should go, or you’ll be late.”

he chuckles, his mouth grazing the top of your hand before he exits the room, slinging his bag over his shoulder and leaving you alone in his apartment.

after taking a short nap, you decide to get up and take a quick shower.

this might be the first time you’re completely on your own in his place — so you feel like checking out what he’s got lying around here.

it’s not because you don’t trust him, truly. you just like to snoop around a little, out of curiosity.

you peek into his drawers, his closet, his personal things, except for what he’s got kept under lock and key.

what intrigues you are the clear scratches on the floor by the cupboard. everything in his apartment is perfectly clean and clearly well taken care of, so this makes you raise a brow.

you figure the scratches were made by moving the cupboard to the side, so you do the same thing, trying to see if there’s a particular reason for it.

it’s hard to contain a scoff once you lay your eyes on what is apparently hiding behind it.

a safe hidden behind a cupboard. seriously? did he take inspiration from your father’s office or something? this is starting to get a bit weird.

the safe seems to require a code with six digits to be unlocked, and since the system and mechanics seem on the older side, you doubt it would send off any signals if someone tried out a wrong code.

biting your lip, you give in to your curiosity, and try out a few codes.

a popular choice for codes are always birthdays, often loved ones, and since mingyu is a complete softie in that regard, you figure it might be worth trying out.

you remember his father’s birthday from the tombstone at the graveyard where your father was buried as well. his mother celebrated her birthday last week, so that’s easy.

unfortunately, neither of the codes work.

fuck, what was his sister’s birthday again? you don’t remember. then an idea pops up in your head – she probably made a birthday post on social media at some point. you search the username and scan her profile, and within a minute, you’ve found it.

with your phone in hand, eyes going from the screen to the rotating dials, you enter the code, and the sound of a clicking lock causes your heartbeat to quicken.

it worked.

throwing your phone onto the bed, you open the safe, several items catching your eye.

there’s quite some things in there considering it’s such a small space. some stacks of money, a few vials with clear liquids in them, a gun, a passport with his photo but a different name – what the fuck is this? his backup plan to start a new life in case he needs it? that’s close to paranoid, especially for a guy who seemingly has no enemies.

behind the piles of dollar bills, you find a few old-fashioned cassette recorders stacked up, each of them numbered from one to ten.

as your curiosity gets the better of you once more, you take the recorders out of the safe and put them on the floor, where you sit down to listen to whatever’s on them.

you click the button at the back of the device, noise beginning to crack through the small speaker.

“i know recording myself confessing to something as grave as this could be my downfall, but… it’s something i need to get off my chest. i need to.” your hear him inhale sharply. “i’m setting a plan in motion that will lead to someone’s death. it’s not something i’m proud of, but he’s threatening my family. i don’t know what else to do.”

your eyes widen as you listen to the rest of the tape. he’s talking about killing your father, using a poison to take him out. once it’s finished, you look for the second tape with shaky fingers.

“getting it done shouldn’t be hard. the real issue is having an alibi, and if necessary, i need someone to put the blame on. the death of someone as important as him will draw attention, so should they assume he didn’t die of natural causes, they’re gonna want to convict someone. i can only think of one person who fits the criteria — his daughter.”

it’s like the confirmation you’ve been waiting for. this is what he’s been hiding all this time. of course he didn’t want to help you without an ulterior motive.

your heart breaks the moment he says it. just how much of a fool have you been?

“we’ve always hated eachother. looking back, i’m not sure how it started, but it did. she’s the only one who could have a solid motive. i don’t want to frame her, or anyone for that matter, but if the police decide it’s not an accident, i’ll have no other choice. maybe her lawyer can find a way around it.”

tape three.

“the plan is to pretend i have a lead on the killer when i’m actually planting fake evidence to make her seem like the culprit. i talked to her in the graveyard today, but she completely lashed out at me. it’s hard to tell who she hates more — me, her father, or herself. though i didn't know her hatred for me ran this deep, nor that she was this lonely. i kind of feel for her.”

tape four.

“she just agreed to be my date to the gala next week, though she's certainly not thrilled about it. understandably so, i guess. she's quite intimidating when she’s mad. maybe i should take notes, seeing how she always stands so firmly on business.”

tape five.

“i didn’t think she’d go as far as to go through my room. she’s more determined than i gave her credit for. god, i could barely keep it together when she said whoever killed her father did her a favor. it’s maybe the only good thing about this whole mess. i wanted to scream, tell her that it was me who did her that favor.”

tape six.

“leave it to her to interrupt a stripper’s lap dance and take me with her instead. the man taking money out of her father’s account was hired by me — i needed to subtly prove to her that it couldn’t have been me, ‘cause i was at the other side of the city when it happened. i was curious to see if she’d take the bait, and she did. she mentioned something about wanting someone who would let her be… uninhibited. it scared and surprised me; mostly because i want the exact same.”

tape seven.

“we broke into her father’s office together. it was… thrilling. exciting. she keeps surprising me with how daring she is. somewhere underneath that hard surface hides someone who’s aching for adventure, i think. maybe we’re more similar than i thought. and she’s so clever, i just—i like her. like, platonically, of course. we work well together. i should probably be more careful, try not to get too close. who knows what that might lead to.”

tape eight.

“i kissed her. i fucking kissed her. well, she kissed me first, but… i kept it going. not just a little peck, no, a full-on makeout session. it was… the type of kiss they talk about in the romance novels. i’ve never felt that big of a need to kiss someone before. and she’s so gorgeous, too. i wonder if she’s thinking about it as much as i am right now.”

tape nine.

“wonwoo says i have feelings for her, in a way. i… i feel like there’s no going back if i acknowledge it. but there's something about her, it's like... i'm not sure. like she and i are on the same wavelength. we’re so different yet so similar.”

tape ten.

“the police are tightening their grip. they wanna name the culprit, and fast. i’ve thought of turning myself in, but i’ll ruin the family name if i do that. my mom and sister will be cast out if that happens. and then there’s… her. god, she’s become so special to me. i can’t go through with it — i can’t. the idea of losing her makes me feel suffocated. fuck, i don’t know what to do.”

and just like that, you close your eyes for a moment.

everything falls into place.

putting the final tape to the side, your cheeks are wet from the tears that have been silently rolling down your cheeks ever since you hit the first play button.

he doesn’t really like you — of course he doesn’t. he’s just using you for his own gain, to cover up his crime.

it’s then that the heavy sobs come out. you utterly fall apart, feeling weak and manipulated and alone.

terrifyingly alone, more than ever before.

but you force yourself to stop crying by telling yourself that you won’t allow him to use you anymore. you need to be steps ahead of him now that he’s not aware of you knowing this information, so you wipe your tears away and play all the tapes again, but this time with your phone making recordings of each one of them.

overcome by your emotions, you feel ready to throw up.

whatever you’re about to do, it’ll probably come back to bite you in the ass later, but you don’t care. not anymore. everything’s already gone to hell anyways.

when mingyu arrives at his apartment a few hours later, it’s empty. he frowns when noticing that your clothes and things you had lying around are all gone, but shrugs it off, believing you probably had a good reason for taking them back home.

but when he calls you the next day, you don’t pick up. you don’t answer any of his texts. your staff by the gate tells him that no visitors are allowed into the driveway, meaning he can’t even get to your front door anymore.

something’s happened. he just doesn’t know what.

long after he’s had his dinner, the rain comes pouring down from the dark clouds in the sky, thunder rumbling in the distance as you make your way to the front door of mingyu’s apartment.

he instantly notices something is very wrong once he lays eyes on you. you look like you’ve just gone through hell and back.

you let yourself in before he can say anything, so he closes the door behind you, confusion painted across his face. “i’ve been calling you — what’s going on? did something happen?”

oh, the question immediately pisses you off even more than you already are. this is about to be fun. “well, you’d know.” you grumble.

“know what?”

“that you killed my fucking father.”

the words strike like lightning. you finding out about the truth certainly wasn’t part of the plan, and since you seem so convinced, he doesn’t have much faith in trying to convince you of his innocence.

when his surprised expression fades, you finally see the truth written all over his face. his jaw is clenched tight, lips pressed together into a thin line, and he suddenly looks very guilty. “how… how did you find out?”

“the tapes. who the fuck records their own confession to murder? were you trying to get me to find out?” you rhetorically ask, eyes blazing fire.

mingyu huffs to himself. he knew he shouldn’t have kept those tapes — fuck.

“look, i—” he swallows, attempting to mend the situation, but you don’t let him speak.

“no. you’re going to tell me exactly what you did and why you did it. you owe me that much.”

he flinches, closing his eyes for a moment, lowering his head, his way of showing he accepts his defeat. “your dad… i always thought he wanted me around because he liked me, but after all those years, that turned out to be a lie. i found out he was blackmailing my mom with evidence of my father’s wrongdoings before his passing — fraud, embezzlement, all of that. we’re talking millions of dollars here. the damage it would’ve done to my family if that ever came out… it’s something i had to prevent. hell, i wouldn’t be surprised if he was the one behind my dad’s car accident. so i did what i thought was necessary.”

you can only scoff. “of course. how noble of you.”

“i’m sorry.” he tells you, but it’s a lie. your father was a despicable man, loved by no one. not really, anyway.

“if you’re going to lie to me, at least do it well.” you scold him, turning away from him for a moment, looking at the rain outside through the large windows of his apartment. “how did you kill him? i wanna hear you say it.”

“can’t we talk about—”

interrupting him, you turn around, the pistol from his safe in your hand, and it’s pointed at him. he anxiously awaits your next move.

“don’t make me ask again. i don’t particularly feel like repeating myself.”

he shudders at the view of the gun pointed at him, but does what you tell him to. “i poisoned him. he had no idea, didn’t suspect me at all. i told him to go home, so he’d die there.”

“where i would be, too. perfect plan, huh?”

“the plan was to make it look like a death from natural causes. the poison would be out of his system by the time the authorities were to perform the autopsy on his body — but then they found him dangling from the ceiling instead. that wasn’t my doing, so i figured the poison got to him to the point he wanted a quicker way out. you were there, with a reasonable motive. i panicked and made a choice.”

inhaling sharply, your eye twitches. “you chose to frame me.”

“i was going to.”

“oh, give me a break. don’t start acting like you care about me, now.”

“except i do. it was different in the beginning — but then i just—i didn’t remember why i hated you. i couldn’t even fathom a possible reason to. i started liking being around you, and you felt it too. i know you did, you said it yourself.” he pleads, getting closer to you, not giving a damn that the barrel of the gun is touching his chest at this point.

a tear escapes your eye, but your anger is still there. “you know what the thing is, mingyu? i don’t even care that you killed him. hell, if you had come to me after our interrogations and confessed that it was you, i would’ve thanked you. what i care about is that you took advantage of me when i was vulnerable, and that you made me feel like i mattered to you when you were all just doing it for your own gain.”

it’s like you’ve ripped his heart out of his chest. he wishes he could make you understand that you’ve made him feel more alive than anyone he’s ever met, that you’ve grown to mean so much to him in a ridiculously short span of time. that he’d go to hell and back to protect you now.

“you matter to me. more than anyone else.”

all you can do is let out a sarcastic fit of laughter; you don’t trust a single word that comes out of his mouth. “i need you to tell me something. did you sleep with me because you actually wanted to or because you felt like you had to in order to manipulate me to get closer to you?”

he seems appalled at what you’re implying. “of course i wanted to. all i ended up wanting was you—”

“don’t you fucking lie to me!” you burst out angrily, at which he flinches, but his frustration brings him to confess his true feelings.

“it’s not a lie, because i’m in love with you!” he raises his voice in desperation, “i don’t care if you shoot me right here, right now. it won’t change how i feel about you.”

your heart shatters even more, because he sounds so genuine, yet it doesn’t make you feel the way it should.

the words should probably bring some kind of twisted comfort, but they feel like a gut punch instead. you grab your chest to stop yourself from hyperventilating. “at least i was right at the beginning. the golden boy is a fucking murderer. you’ve played your part well, i gotta admit.”

he watches you breathily laugh and cry at him, and all he can do is stare back at you with teary eyes and a guilty face.

“please don’t say that.”

“why? does it hurt, hearing the truth?”

“i swear to you—”

you shut him up by pushing him backwards with the pistol against his chest. “you know, when you bothered me after the funeral, when i had my breakdown, i wanted nothing more than to cave in your skull with a rock. looking back, i should’ve just done it. would’ve spared me this whole mess.”

surprisingly enough, you simply put the pistol back in your jacket pocket, but mingyu is just as if not more afraid of you. your gaze is the harshest, coldest, meanest he’s ever seen it. all you do is look at him and he crumbles.

and yet he still wants you. he knows you hate him to the bone, you detest every part of him, and he still. wants. you.

and he intends to show you that, because he’s willing to throw every last shred of pride and dignity he has let out the window if it means you’ll show him you want him even the smallest bit. “i’ll prove it to you. if you ask me to turn myself in, i’ll turn myself in. i’ll do it, for you.”

god, he seems so genuine in it, too.

your breaths are ragged, and you feel like you need to get literally anywhere else, out of the suffocation that is this room with him in it. you barely even noticed he’d taken a hold of your hand until now.

“i can’t do this. just—just let me leave.”

he does.

the moment the door slams shut behind you, he has to grab the nearest object to hold himself up, leaving him wondering what the hell just happened.

x. WHEN IS A MONSTER NOT A MONSTER?

the following days are spent anxiously pacing in his apartment. what is he supposed to do? what should he say to you? what should he tell the press, that he’s innocent? guilty? what should he tell his family? that he killed a man to protect them and their reputation? would they even look him in the eye if he confessed?

he waits and waits and waits for his arrest to come, for the police to barge into his home and take him away to a cold, dark prison cell — yet the day never comes.

personally, he wonders if you’re waiting it out to make you feel as shitty as you’ve probably been feeling since the day you discovered his true colors.

nearly a week after the fight between you, he decides he can’t take it anymore. he needs to see you.

you doubt you’ve ever felt as miserable as you’ve felt these past days. it’s like you’re torn between hating mingyu for taking advantage of you and hating yourself for being stupid enough to fall for it. to fall for him.

because no matter how much you want to deny it, you did.

something you desperately needed was a distraction, which is why you ended up accepting wonwoo’s invitation to the event his father is hosting tonight at his estate just outside the city. with your little black dress on and hair perfectly styled, you down a glass of champagne next to wonwoo, who looks a bit concerned. “everything okay?”

the noise of chatter and soft music in the background only overwhelms you more. “yeah. i just… haven’t had alcohol in a while.” you mutter a bullshit excuse, not really caring whether you sound believable or not.

“i get it if you don’t feel like being here right now, with everything that happened recently. i can take you home if you want.”

“and miss out on your father’s celebration?”

“there will always be another one.” wonwoo shrugs, looking at you like nothing else in the room matters. he has a little smile playing on his lips that’s far too gentle — you almost feel undeserving of a gaze that loving.

but you don’t hold eye contact with him for long, because the source of all your current problems suddenly walks into the room — and he looks good. criminally good.

the red suit with its low neckline draws even more attention to him than usual, along with several expensive pieces of jewelry adorning his wrists and fingers.

“he’s here? that’s strange. he said he wasn’t coming.” wonwoo mumbles, and you do your best to keep your composure and hide the sudden anxiety that blooms in your chest.

“shame. the party was just getting good.” you scoff to yourself, replacing your empty champagne glass with a full one.

it’s then that mingyu’s eyes find yours, and even while politely saying hello to the elders greeting him, he keeps sneaking a peek your way, as if to try to get away from the people surrounding him to get to you.

oh, fuck no. you’re not in the mood to talk to him right now.

“i’m just gonna go and use the restroom, okay? i’ll be right back.” you say to wonwoo, hoping to find yourself a spot in the shadows where you can properly get some air.

you hardly catch his response as your legs are already moving on their own, as far away from the man in red as possible.

passing through a quiet hallway, you find yourself finally alone at the bottom of a staircase, and with no one else around, you sit down on the first few steps, a sigh escaping your mouth.

“did my appearance surprise you?”

as you recognize his voice, your blood runs cold.

looking behind you, he’s standing at the top of the stairs, his hands in his pockets. he appears surprisingly relaxed, even if his fingers slightly tremble against the fabric of his trousers.

“you have some nerve showing up here.”

mingyu purses his lips. “why don’t you come up a couple steps?”

when you finally meet his gaze, his heart skips a beat. your brows are knitted together. “why would i do that?”

“because we’d be on the same level. equals.”

“is that what you want?”

“i think you already know the answer to that.”

biting your lip to yourself, you get up on your feet, heels clicking on the creaking wood with each step. once at his level, you look at him with hostility – he only shows intrigue.

“why haven’t you given me up yet? it’s been a week.”

“i have my reasons.” you shrug, the anger remaining in your features. “what? scared i’ll ruin your reputation?”

his tone suddenly changes into something more desperate, emotional. “i just want to know what you’re gonna do. if you wanna turn me over to the police, fine. but do something, please—”

“you’re not in a position to be making demands.”

“i’m not demanding, i’m asking.”

“go fuck yourself, mingyu.” you snap at him, looking around you before lowering your voice. “what did you think was going to happen when you came here tonight? that i would just let you in on everything? the last thing i owe you is an explanation.”

as the tension continues to rise between you, the argument causes you to step closer to eachother.

his chest heaves out of frustration, because you make a more than valid point, but he still has his own interests at heart. “i know that.”

“so then why show up tonight? don’t bullshit me, i know you’re not here for wonwoo.”

“are you? what are you doing here?”

“what the hell is your problem?” scoffing at him, you intend to push him by his chest, but he grabs your wrists instead.

“you are my problem.” he breathes out angrily as if he were confessing his sins, his hands remaining on your skin. “everything fell apart because of you.”

“if you’re actually trying to pin this on me, i’ll hit you in your fucking jaw until it bleeds.”

he only pulls you closer. “and i’d let you. do you still not get it?”

his grip on your wrists falters, and he softly rubs over your skin with his finger, and you hate your body for reacting to it.

christ, you think to yourself, has he been standing this close to you this whole time?

the smell of his perfume plagues your senses, and a feeling you can’t quite place washes over you when you catch him looking at your lips, and you realize his one hand is slowly gliding past your waist.

are you really going to let yourself fall into his trap again?

“everything okay?”

the words aren’t uttered by you nor mingyu — wonwoo peers up at you from your former spot at the bottom of the stairs.

of course he’s been sensing that there was something going on between you the moment you showed up at the strip club, but this clearly confuses him, since you’re still supposed to hate one another.

fuck. how much of the conversation did he hear?

mingyu hesitantly releases his hands from your body, and you take a step backwards, both of you focusing on wonwoo. “yeah, i’m fine.”

as if to make the situation even worse, the fucking inspector that’s leading the investigation appears behind wonwoo, curiously looking at his two main suspects standing side by side.

the situation feels suffocating. wonwoo points at the older man, “he was looking for you. that’s why i came to see if you were here — i didn’t know you were, um — occupied.”

“i’m not occupied.” with the way you completely disregard mingyu’s existence, it’s almost as if he weren’t even here. you make your way down the steps, smoothening over the fabric of your dress and taking a deep breath to get a hold of yourself again.

the inspector glances at mingyu one last time before asking you if he can talk to you privately, which you agree to.

mere minutes later, you’re standing in a secluded room, far away from the rest of the crowd, arms crossed over your chest, a dim light flickering on the ceiling above you.

“i wanted to talk about the investigation.”

“talking to me off-record again? this isn’t a good look on you.” you sneer at the man, who puts up his hands before his chest.

“i know. but it’s for a good reason.” he defends himself, at which you frown. “i have a proposition for you.”

“which is?”

“i need your help catching the person who killed your father.”

pursing your lips together, you let out a bitter chuckle. “like i would know anything—”

“you were just speaking to him, actually.”

the weight of his words makes your eyes widen. this is the first time he’s expressing who he believes is the culprit, after all these weeks.

your breath hitches in your throat. “you think mingyu is guilty.”

the inspector nods at the conclusion you’ve drawn. “he’s smart, i’ll give him that. but not invincible.”

“what will you do? do you have evidence against him?”

“i have enough that makes me sure that it was him, but not enough to defeat him in court. he’s rich and uses that to his advantage.” he explains, sounding almost hopeful. “so that’s where you come in.”

“me?”

“what i need is evidence that even he can’t work around, no matter how many people in the system he chooses to bribe. you told me the nature of your relationship was sexual — i don’t need to know if that’s true or not. but i’ve noticed he seems fond of you these days. you can use that to get him caught. we can’t let him get away with it.”

his voice rings through your ears, sounding like a convincing whisper. biting down on your tongue, you clench your fists, the predicament you currently find yourself in making you wish the ground would just swallow you whole.

you subtly glance down at your phone for a moment.

the evidence is right there, on the phone in your hand. you’ve recorded all the tapes with your phone — the confession, murder weapon — it’s all the evidence needed. you could give it right now and everything would be over.

yet not a single word comes out of your mouth.

the inspector sighs, offering you a final sentiment. “be careful with him. people can be deceiving.”

and with that, he exits the room, leaving you alone with the voice in your head.

your next moves are crucial. you know what you’re about to do is risky, but it’ll be worth it. it has to be worth it.

once you’ve left the inside of the estate through the backdoor, the event continues for the evening while you ponder over the choice you’re about to make in the backseat of the cab.

shrugging off your coat as you enter your home, you still in your movements when your eyes find the stairs — the spot where the police had to cut down your father’s cold, dead body.

with your gaze remaining on the former crime scene, you press on mingyu’s number to call it.

he picks up faster than lightning, but you don’t allow him to speak.

“meet me in the city tomorrow. 10:30, outside your mother’s firm. don’t be late.”

you hang up right after.

fuck, you should really sell this place. the fact that your father’s wandered around here is more than enough reason.

that he died here as well isn’t great either, but that’s really a minor detail.

with your arms crossed, you scoff, a half-smile that’s almost smug sitting on your face. “if only your death had welcomed us sooner.”

the next morning, you lean your head against the wall of the building you’re meeting at, a cold wind blowing through your hair as you’re sunken deeply into thought.

it’s comfortably quiet, honestly. you’re fond of this type of weather, the white, grey-ish sky, the breeze in the air, some rain on occasion.

you glance at the watch on your wrist — why the fuck is mingyu still not here? what possible reason could he have to be late when this is what he was practically begging for?

just as you’re about to grab your phone from your pocket to call him, someone pulls you by your arm and drags you into the alley beside the building.

“what the fuck!?” you huff out, and then you finally get a good look at the person who grabbed you.

of course it’s him.

“i’m sorry.” mingyu breathes out, his usually neatly styled hair now messy, several strands hanging loose in front of his forehead, the stress visible in his features.

to be together like this feels messy yet weirdly intimate. a few strands of your hair are caught between your lips, and you feel his breath on your face, his hands on your body, even your hands find their way back to him.

as if it’s natural.

“what the hell are you thinking?!” you hiss at him, pushing his hands off you, backing yourself as far up against the wall as possible.

“someone was following me, i was — i thought you’d lured me here to turn me in.”

“you—” is all you can push out of your throat before a sigh leaves you. of course he’d think that. god, what a mess.

burying your face in your hands, it feels like you’re both on the verge of a complete breakdown. both lost, not sure where to go, not sure what’ll happen next.

you thought you’d found a sense of direction in eachother, but that fell apart like a house of cards hit by the wind.

naturally, it begins to rain right when you’re talking to him outside. sighing to yourself, you gesture for him to come with you to your car in the half-empty parking lot, which he wordlessly agrees with.

it’s pouring by the time you’re both seated, the heavy rain rolling down the glass windows of the car.

it’s completely silent between you as you sit beside one another, staring dead ahead at the street.

your voice is hoarse when you tell him your verdict on the matter.

“we’re gonna cover it up.”

mingyu turns his head to look at you in disbelief, but you don’t move a muscle. “… what?”

“i believe i’ve told you i don’t like to repeat myself.”

“no one in their right mind would do that. no one would help me cover it up.” he exhales, eyes moving rapidly as he tries to process what you’re proposing to him.

“no one in their right mind would commit murder, either, but that certainly didn’t stop you.”

well, you have a point there.

“just tell me one thing,” mingyu asks, hoping you’ll look at him, “why? why do this for me?”

he could cry the moment you do meet his eyes. it’s like he sees a different version of himself staring back at him. “because you did the right thing. i would’ve done the same. well, except for your little affair with me.”

with his heart beating against his chest, he gently touches your hand. “everything i told you was true. it may not have been real in the beginning, and i’m sorry for pretending back then, but it’s real now. i swear that to you.”

you bite your lip. “give me one good reason why i should believe you.”

mingyu can taste his tears at this point. he needs you to believe him, he needs you — and that is terrifying but addictive. “the tapes. you can have them if you want.”

“i don’t need them. they hold no value to me.” you already made copies of them anyway.

“then what can i give you to prove myself?”

“nothing.” you immediately cut him off, eyes blazing fire, but even mingyu can see you do share that sadness that he does, mourning the loss of your connection. “from now on, we avoid contact over the phone as much as possible. you’ll destroy the tapes, the poison — get rid of all of it. we’ll work together until we’ve covered it up, and after that, it’ll be like whatever we had never existed. we’ll be nothing more than strangers to one another.”

“how on earth would we go back to strangers after what we did?”

“by never talking to eachother again.” you respond, swallowing the rising lump in your throat, fingers twitching from feeling suffocated. “get out. you can come over to my place tomorrow, and we’ll… figure out how to handle everything.”

mingyu looks at you, and he knows you won’t let him in again, certainly not now. so he nods.

he thinks of what to say, yet nothing comes out.

so he leaves you in your car without saying another word, walking away with nothing but his mistakes on his mind.

xi. I HATE YOU LIKE MY OWN REFLECTION

“so, what do we do now?”

“our best shot is to try to frame someone else, then take them out of prison after the conviction and pay ‘em good money for it.”

mingyu cocks a brow at your choice. “so you wanna go and do the exact same thing i wanted to do?”

you can’t help but glare at him. “yes, just without the manipulation. don’t think for a second i’ve forgiven you, or that i will in the nearby future, because i can assure you that won’t happen.”

well, so much for trying to get into your good graces again. “noted. so, how do we, um… find a suitable victim? someone who won’t rat us out.”

“my contact in the police force has sent me a list of all the other suspects. we pick someone, threaten to kill them if they don’t cooperate. easy.”

mingyu finds your lack of filter both intriguing and scary, like a switch was flipped and you’re suddenly ready to undertake even more violent measures than him. but then again, he was hiding quite some things too. “okay.”

it’s two days later when you’re holding a now former member of the housekeeping hostage in your spacious private parking garage.

“you can’t make me do this! this is insane!” he cries out, and you roll your eyes, holding the gun in your hand as easily as you’d carry a bottle of water.

you simply shrug. “it’s not impossible.”

“i’ll lose everything!”

“probably. but you’ll also gain a lot of money, enough to get you a comfortable life elsewhere in the world.”

“no, no, i’m not doing this. you can’t make me!”

mingyu looks to you for permission, you grant it with a nod, and he takes your gun to hit the guy in the face with it. you sink down to bend your knees, lowering to your victim’s level.

“i don’t think you get it. either you agree to do this, or you’re not making it out of these walls alive. trust me, if i have to shoot you, i will.” you sternly tell him, attitude changing from casual to threatening.

your partner in crime, who’s still holding the gun, is beyond impressed. he briefly thinks it over —has this part of you always been hiding underneath the surface?

“or maybe it’s your family i should start with? i’ll pick it apart, one by one.” you suggest, feigning innocence in your voice.

it’s then that the man is finally forced to accept your offer, after which you smile triumphantly and tell him he can go home like nothing happened. mingyu watches the change in your behavior, leaving him wondering how the hell you’re the same person he’s come to know over the past months.

but it hardly changes his now deeply-rooted affection for you.

a few days later, you’ve successfully orchestrated your plan and set it in motion, with the man from housekeeping supposedly coming forward with his confession tomorrow.

it’s late at night when mingyu’s still over at your house, and he asks if he can open the bottle of vodka standing on the counter.

“sure. whatever.” you mutter, the stand-offish demeanor you used to hold up around him before getting to know him having returned.

he doesn’t like it. no, scratch that — he can’t stand it.

so he pours you both a shot. “i’ve been thinking about something.”

“well, that must’ve been exhausting for you.”

hilarious. really. he chooses to ignore your sarcasm for now. “in the car, you said i did the right thing. that you would’ve done the same.”

“and?”

“do you really not… hate me for killing him? at all?”

“no.”

“you hate me for… lying to you about it.”

“no.”

his brows knit together. “so…”

“again, don’t take this as a compliment, but i really thought you were smarter than this.”

“i’m just… confused on your stance on the whole thing. that’s all.”

taking a breath, a bitter chuckle leaves your mouth. “i hate it when people make fun of me, like — that’s the worst thing you could do to me. and you tried to get to know me, work with me, pretended to care for me, all while secretly knowing that it wasn’t genuine and you were going to put me in prison. and after i found out, it felt like you were just ridiculing me, for… i don’t know. giving in to you so easily. for being desperate to have at least one person actually care about me the way i thought you did.”

he processes your words with the heavy burden of guilt weighing on his shoulders, while you take another shot of alcohol.

well, he fucked up. miserably.

“when i created the plan to frame you, i… almost held a grudge towards you, like you did to me, for a reason i couldn’t even think of. i was going to be putting someone i hated in prison. a sacrifice i was willing to make for the people i loved. but you completely blew me away. as time progressed, i… couldn’t fathom i used to hate you, or even disliked you. even if you don’t accept my apology, i need you to know that i never… never made fun of you. and i’m sorry for hurting you in the way that i did.”

his heartfelt sentiment gets to you, and you hate it.

“even if i did accept your apology, what then? we’ll just move on with our lives as if this whole thing never happened either way.”

now that you’ve unintentionally given him a sense of hope, he downs another shot of vodka to give himself courage. “it doesn’t have to be like that.”

“what?”

“i still want you.” he breathes out, mentally saying fuck it and deciding to finally be completely honest with you.

the words seem to have caught you off-guard, after which you scoff at him once you realize what he’s saying. “you’re not serious.”

“i am,” he replies without hesitation, following you in your tracks when you stand up, “and you know what i think? you still like me, too.”

“no i don’t.”

now that you’ve turned around to him, you realize how stupid of a move it was to do so. with every step he takes forward, you go back, but there’s only so much room before you hit the wall. “you’re not being very convincing.”

“gyu—”

“i like it when you call me that.”

at a loss for words, you look behind you to find you’re nearly out of space. “i don’t like you.”

“and here i thought we were both being honest with eachother.”

god, all he does is look at you and you feel willing to let him touch you again. he made you feel so good — you liked him so much.

mingyu feels it. he sees you fighting with yourself in your head, so he figures all you need is just a little push to get you back where he had you, to be able to kiss you and hold you and call you his.

with his left hand, he tucks a strand of hair behind your ear, and within a second, he’s pushed his mouth against yours.

fuck, it’s been only two long weeks since he last kissed you, but it felt like forever. this feeling, his touch — you doubt you’d ever be able to feel that with anyone else.

but something in you is still fighting back.

you muster the will to push mingyu away, and he licks his lips from the gloss on yours. both of you panting heavily, you shake your head. “no. we’re not doing this.”

“what? something we both want?” he breathes out, chest heaving up and down.

“something we shouldn’t.”

“why not?”

“because i’d never forgive myself for giving in to the guy who was gonna frame me for murder.”

he merely shrugs, downplaying the situation for his selfish interests. “we hated each other back then. you’d have done it too, you said it yourself.”

his words are true — but it still hurts.

“you’re a liar.” you say to him, and he knows you’re only saying it for one reason — to convince yourself to not give in to what you really want.

“yeah. and so are you.”

that is what momentarily causes your brain to shut down. “what?”

his hand cups your jaw. you can feel his breath on your bare skin, his gaze on your body, shamelessly checking you out before he meets your eyes again. “what we had was real. you make everyone else in my life seem like… nothing.”

“oh, so i’m special, huh? or are you just trying to get back into my good graces so i don’t rat you out?”

his eyes keep lingering on the skin of your cheeks, your neck, exposed collarbones, and he doesn’t even look you in the eye while answering. “you can do whatever you want. i’ll still want you once i’ve gotten out of prison.”

god. he’s really that into you?

“gyu…” you mutter, almost pouting, and he holds your face, nodding as if he understands.

“i know, i know—” his breathing is unsteady as he confesses every dirty little sin on his conscience, “i like being a little selfish, y’know? even when one of my friends mentioned something about liking you, i didn’t tell you, ‘cause i wanted you.”

you’ve got a feeling who he’s talking about. “so what’d you say to him?”

“i said you had something going on with someone else, which wasn’t exactly a lie, since you were on top of me that same night.” he barely allows himself to finish the sentence before kissing you again, putting all his vigor into it, and you decide to indulge both him and yourself this once.

he pushes you up against the wall, and you shove him away again, holding onto the cupboard beside you when you both catch your breath.

“what if i like him better than you?”

“you wouldn’t.”

“why? ‘cause you’re so likeable?”

“because he’d never accept you for who you really are, and you’d find him boring,” he tells you as a possessive streak overcomes him, “just like no other girl would ever want me and i only want you.”

“so i should let you have me because no one else will. what a compelling argument.”

“no. because you want me.” fucking hell, he’s pretty sure his sex drive has never been this high before. “so have me, baby. please — i’m all yours.” he rasps, pressing a kiss so chaste to your lips, they barely touch. his hands burn on your skin.

“maybe i will.” you mumble, which elicits the smallest smirk from him.

he rubs up against you. “you make me insane.”

“pretty sure you already were.” is the last thing you say before kissing him, finally giving in to the feelings you still hold for him.

the sudden motion takes him by surprise, but he regains his composure to kiss you back within seconds. you make him feel so sickeningly good, he practically worships the ground you walk on.

mingyu is always tactile, be it with his friends, family, or in this case — you. his hands are practically glued to your body, pulling you as close to him as possible.

and normally he likes to take his time when it comes to sex. but he’s just so hot right now that he needs some kind of friction, some kind of release. so he lifts you up to take you to your bedroom, where he wastes no time to plunge his fingers into you.

“fuck—gyu—”

this is all he wants. to hear you moan his name like that and watch you writhe underneath him while his cock throbs as he rubs it against the bed.

“you look so pretty like this.” he grins, curling his fingers to watch you squirm and feel you clench around him.

jesus, his pace is high. higher than any other time he’s done this before. the pressure in your stomach builds so fast that you’re almost overwhelmed by the feeling, at which you instinctively reach down to hold his wrist, but to no avail, because he keeps going.

“say you like me back and i’ll make you cum.”

even through the pleasure he’s giving you, you manage to pull your mean attitude back up. “are you that desperate?”

not only does he seem completely unaffected by the snark in your voice — he might even like it.

“so what if i am?” he shrugs, his fingers moving in and out of you while he kisses and sucks on the skin of your neck.

when he moves onto your jaw, he suddenly hits the right spot inside you, and your eyes roll back, a dragged-out moan escaping you.

“bet that feels good, hm?” he whispers, his fangs showing when he smiles slyly, “c’mon — say it. i’ll make you feel so good, baby.”

right after the words come out of his mouth, he threatens to take his fingers out, and you grab his wrist once more, this time to keep him as close as possible.

“fine — i like you.”

like a war general who just won his greatest battle, he’s beaming at your confession. “good. put your legs over my shoulders.”

well, he certainly is determined. he’s back in his previous position in no-time, now with your legs up, and you try to not clench your thighs around his head too much as his digits piston in and out of your hole.

your orgasm hits you within what feels like a minute, and mingyu keeps going even when your legs are shaking and trembling on his shoulders.

the drag of his cock inside you is heavenly. he’s a big man, and you always need to adjust yourself to him, but fuck is it good.

you always like the slower strokes best, he’s learned. slow and deep, to make you feel every inch of him, and he can bury himself in you to the hilt every single time.

“god, you’re always so tight.” he has to suck through gritted teeth to not completely lose it, ‘cause you’re clenching down on him so much that it almost hurts.

“that’s ‘cause you don’t fuck me enough.”

“we should fix that, then.” he responds, sliding his cock in and out of the pooling wetness between your legs, and as the minutes go by, you continue to find yourself in his arms, your body plastered on his.

it’s the ringing of your phone from the nightstand that pulls you out of the erotic haze.

mingyu turns his head to the side, the dark strands of hair hanging beside his head as he’s still hovering above you.

his chest still heaves when he picks up the device to show you the caller id. “you never did tell me what he wanted to talk to you about.”

all you can do is chuckle — a sound that comes across as if you know more than he does. “he’s onto you. thinks you’re guilty. not far from the truth, is he?”

throwing your phone to the other side of the bed, he pushes himself a little deeper into you, loving the way you have to bite your lip to suppress a whimper. “and he wanted you to give him evidence, i bet.”

“he did.”

“did you?”

“since you still have the freedom to fuck me — take a wild guess.”

this time it’s him who lets out an arrogant laugh. “i knew you liked me too much.”

“i could still do it, y’know.”

“oh, i know you could.” he bites his lower lip before kissing you so vigorously again — as if you’re the air he breathes.

xii. ROUGH HEWN BY UNFORTUNATE EVENTS, AND GIVEN BREATH BY NECESSITY

with the noise of the fireplace crackling, you stand by the window of your mansion’s spacious living room, staring outside as you’re anxiously rubbing your fingers over your collarbone.

the man you and mingyu forced to act like he was guilty of murdering your father has supposedly confessed yesterday morning, and yet you’ve still heard nothing. which is strange.

extremely strange.

“they could still be interrogating him.” mingyu tries to ease both your and his own nerves, but you shake your head, your back still facing him.

“something’s wrong. if it were convincing enough, i would’ve heard something. fuck.”

he gets up from the soft couch to wrap his arms around you from behind. “we just gotta be a little more patient. the guy knows what’s at stake should he mess it up.”

letting out a sigh, you nod. “yeah, i guess you’re right.”

just when he’s pressed a kiss on the top of your head, the doorbell rings — whoever that may be.

mingyu remains in his spot by the window while you go ahead to check who’s visiting you. your breath is almost stolen completely from you once you see who it is.

“coming to visit me at this hour?”

the inspector gives you a fake smile in return. “it’s important.”

so you let him in, keeping up the nonchalance in your attitude. mingyu raises a brow at the older man walking into the room, and he crosses his arms over his chest.

“i had someone coming into the station yesterday — one of your father’s former staff. he confessed to the murder.” the inspector begins. “unfortunately for him, i said i’d already figured out who the culprit was, and so i sent him back home.”

“someone confessed and you didn’t think about telling us?” mingyu questions angrily, and you really have to force yourself not to show how impressed you are with his acting skills.

the other man in the room is less impressed. “why would i tell you something you’re already aware of? you orchestrated it.”

oh, shit.

as your eyes widen, it’s quiet for a moment.

“i really hope you have actual proof to back this accusation.” mingyu sneers, clearly hostile towards the man while you silently take a few steps back, slowly hiding yourself more in the shadows by the walls.

“traces of poison were found in the reports of the autopsy. it was disregarded at first because of the small amount, but i eventually began to consider it evidence when i discovered you recently purchased that exact formula from a dealer who’s been on our radar for a while.”

the hairs on your neck suddenly stand upright. is this it? is the person you’ve grown so attached to actually going to get arrested?

“thing is, if i were to arrest you, you’d probably be let go. i know you both have contacts in the police force as well as the justice system, i almost caught someone messing with the autopsy results — but despite that, i know the truth.” the man nods to himself. “and that is, mr. kim, that the only charge against you is attempted murder.”

mingyu seems confused. “attempted?”

“the poison didn’t kill him. you’re guilty of something, definitely, but you’re no murderer.” the inspector’s gaze suddenly shifts from your partner to you, a deep frown setting into your forehead. “the only player in this game that wasn’t making any sense to me was you.”

“me?”

“you know, in my many years in this line of work, i’ve found it a rarity to have a suspect possessing such an… inscrutible expectant stillness. the gears in your head are constantly turning, but no one’s really sure what it is that goes up in there. you’re an enigma.” he says to you, and you listen to him with a raised brow.

as you remain silent, he continues. “at the event a few weeks ago, when i spoke with you, i came to you and told you i suspected him to be the culprit — the man you’ve hated from day one. the opportunity to make him go away was practically given to you, yet you did nothing with it.”

scoffing at him in disbelief, you tilt your head. “that’s all you have against me? baseless speculation?”

“not exactly baseless. see, the autopsy report showed one more thing — he was choked before the hanging. your father was unconscious before you put that rope around his neck.”

it’s so quiet, you’re pretty sure the two men in the room are able to hear your heartbeat at this point.

mingyu turns to look at you with a puzzled expression, and you finally decide to drop the façade you’ve upheld for so long.

“oh, so what?” you shrug, finding the accusation bothersome at best.

the sudden change in demeanor catches mingyu completely off-guard. he can’t fully comprehend what’s going on here. “you—you killed him?”

you press your lips together. “whatever you used on him wasn’t enough to kill him, but it was enough to make him violent. he came home that night just—fucking losing it. stumbling over everything, his eyes were all red, and he yelled at me because he thought i was the one who poisoned him. ‘cause naturally, he’d never suspect you. my father was one to hit me on the cheek whenever he was really angry with me, but he’d never gone further than that. the poison must’ve worked him up so much that he lost rational thinking. so he began to accuse me of trying to kill him, after which he tried to choke me, but i managed to throw him off, and he passed out. and i figured it’d been enough of his torture, so… i hung him in the stairwell to make it seem like a suicide.”

the inspector nods knowingly. “you murdered him in cold blood.”

you’re quick to respond with your defense, though you don’t really care anymore. “did you not hear the part where he tried to kill me?”

mingyu looks like a kicked puppy when he processes your confession. “so you’ve been lying to me this whole time?”

the words elicit a scoff. “that’s real bold, coming from you.”

“but you—you agreed to help me figure out who your father’s killer was. why would you do that if you did it?”

“at first i didn’t, as you know, but you were just so fucking persistent. so i figured i could try to divert your attention from me. i was going to convince you that it was a suicide. then i hear the tapes, you admitting that you poisoned him, and everything made sense. but hey, at least i wasn’t trying to frame you.”

the jab directed at him makes him feel guilty again. “so we both did it.”

“in a way. though i’d argue it was somewhat self-defense. i mean, he came onto me, tried to kill me—”

“you made a mistake and you know it.” the inspector interrupts, making you roll your eyes as he scolds you. “you should’ve called the police. but you didn’t, you just decided to hang him instead!”

“he deserved it!” you retort, displaying the clear hatred you’ve always felt towards anyone who tried to defend the man who raised you. “i don’t care what you think. and you said it yourself — i have everyone in the justice system on my payroll, if necessary. threatening to kill a family member or two also works like a charm.”

it’s silent for a few seconds after you’ve revealed this side of your true nature, and the man just stares you in the eye before grabbing a device from his backpocket.

when he clicks on the button, you already know what it is.

he recorded the whole conversation, and you already know he can’t be bribed, so this is a real problem — because it’s the one piece of evidence needed that will destroy you both.

“you do realize how stupid it was to come here alone, right?” you ask rhetorically.

“what, will you kill me too?” he asks, and when both you and mingyu deadpan a stare at him, he knows the answer.

he’s not getting out of this room alive unless he forfeits the recording.

when you and your partner in crime exchange a glance, the inspector attempts to make a run for it, only to be tackled by mingyu once he’s reached the door.

one last sacrifice.

the sound of a blade piercing through skin makes you jump, your fingers twitching.

blood begins to trickle down his body, after which mingyu pulls out the knife and pushes it in once more, higher up in the chest this time.

“oh, jesus—fuck!” you gasp to yourself when you feel the bloodsplatters hitting your face and neck, and mingyu rips the blade from the inspector’s body, letting it fall onto the carpeted floor.

you both stare at the freshly created crime scene, and you pinch the bridge of your nose, mostly just annoyed at having another crime on your hands.

“well, that is unfortunate.” mingyu sighs, after which you press your lips together, looking up at him.

“understatement of the year. did you have to stab him that quick?”

“sweetheart, he would’ve locked us both away if i didn’t.”

“i guess so.” locking the front door to ensure no one can enter, you cross your arms. “so. are we burning, burying or dumping him in a lake?”

mingyu stares at the body on the floor before locking eyes with you, and it’s like making a silent deal — that you’re in this mess together, and only together can you come out of it, as bloody and violent that road may turn out to be.

well, at the end of the day, you suppose your father was right about one little thing.

you and kim mingyu are, indeed, good together. just not in the exact way he imagined.

after all, love can exist even in the murderous heart.

thanks for reading! let me know if you enjoyed it x

® SANAKIRAS — do not repost, remake or copy my work in any way whatsoever. translations are not allowed.

[rafesbangs]

maybe rafe finally seeing mermaid!reader's house and, like all her random trinkets and bobbles and clutter, and lowkey being on his kook ass bullshit, but secretly, he's actually really fascinated and intrigued by it all

౨ৎ ˖ ࣪⊹ mermaid!reader shows rafe around her house he acts a little judgey…

warnings: kinda some angst if you squint, fluff (yay) and a tad of classism unfortunately.

a/n: first fluff fic yayay also i adoreeee this req. this is so mermaid!reader and rafe. sorry it took so long to answerrrr & sorry its kinda short ahhhh, im not great at fluff i'll admit so this is good practice. (i hope this is what you wanted <3)

you nervously picked at your nails as you waited on your porch, swinging slowly in the crochet hammock that took you weeks to make. rafe's mercedes pulled into the little dirt driveway and your attention was quickly stolen.

"hey baby" he grinned as he slinked over, rolling his shoulders back to stand taller even though you already think he's the height of buildings. you hop out of the hammock and smile sweetly as he scoops you up for a hug.

"missed you" he mumbles into your hair before planting a kiss on the top of your head. a gesture, he knows, means the most to you. he releases you from the hug with a smile and you grab his hand softly, "missed you most. now come, i'll give you the tour"

he let your little hand drag him into your house. a sudden heat came over your face as you pulled him through the front door, realising how scared you were of rafe's kooky-judgment. you could see it in his demeanour, he was definitely thinking about how small the place is. how some of the wood is kinda rotted on the walls and how rickety the furniture looks. your little shack home was nothing like even the poorest of kook's homes.

you let go of his hand and put both of yours behind your back nervously, looking at the ground as you opened your mouth, "this is my living room kitchen area..." you stated. weakly gesturing to the room with an old tan leather couch that was fraying on the edges, adorned with crocheted, fluffy and wool beachy-themed blankets. the kitchen was tiny, 3 by 2ft and but the algae-green benches and the white black-splash with ocean themed detailing gave it some character.

rafe nodded curtly and glanced around, wordless for a moment, "its... small wow, you weren't really joking about it being a shack.."

your pursed lips turned to a frown quickly and you slowly crossed your arms in front of you, looking up at him disapprovingly as he continued to glance around. your jaw cocked to the side, "yeah some of us kinda pay for everything themselves which includes their house.."

his eyes went a little wide before he looked back at you, noticing your chagrin at his attitude towards your home. "no baby i'm just saying like- you don't deserve to live in a hole..." he quickly says, hands darting out in defence as he speaks but he only annoyed you further.

you roll your eyes, "come on. i'll show you my bedroom." you lead him up some open stairs to the left of the living room, bedroom was kind of a strong word, it was more like a half-loft situation since it technically had a door.

you swing it open and walk in, smiling proudly at your room, its completely filled with sparkly trinkets and decoration, your own little haven.

rafe cautiously followed you in, his eyes wide as he was clearly mesmerised by your cute little space. everything, from roof to foundation, was covered in things. crocheted 'fishing net' hung from the ceiling with little starfish and sparkles on it, jewellery boxes with coral and blues and greens sat all over the place, sparkly light pink and blue mesh fabrics hung from your ceiling above your bed, which was also adorned with whimsical bedsheets and pillows, like a canopy. every photo frame looked handmade with shells and little stones, all over the room dried coral and crystals sat in bowls or bunches. there was even a used tea cup on your dark stained wooden bedside table/cabinet (that was also spilling out all your mermaid-like clothing pieces) that was shimmery and shell themed.

"huh..." rafe began as he picked up a few things that intrigued him, you furrowed your brow, ready for more insulting words to spill from his lips but his face softened into a grin and he looked at you.

"your house is very you." he grinned, as he put the trinkets down carefully in their rightful spot, you looked at him with confusion in your eyes. "cute and mermaid-like, very... mmm, unconventional. but... i'm sorry for before, i... do like it here."

you tilted your head to the side with a forgiving smile before walking up to him and pressing your lips to his, he smiled into the kiss and held the small of your back and your chin, deepening it.

you pulled away first, "i know you're my big bad kook boyfriend but its okay to think my dingy little shack is cute, even for the cut." he chuckled a little and nodded before kissing the end of your nose.

"you're pretty cute, for a pogue" he smirked, his arms still around your waist as he leaned back, waiting for a playful smack.

and you delivered, scoffing and hitting him across the arm. he faked a wince and pretended all hurt as you rolled your eyes, "and you're pretty sweet for a kook."

[gabessquishytum]

My Little Mermaid

A Sandmankinktober Story!

This one was inspired by prompts Beach Sex and Hands and Monsterfucking. It's also a fill for A3 - The Little Mermaid on my Dreamling Bingo.

If you'd like to join in with Sandmankinktober you can find the prompts here!

Rating: Explicit. No major warnings apply. Monsterfucking, interspecies sex, inhuman appendages, public sex, undernegotiated kink.

---------

There's something under the pier.

The shadows blend the rotting wood into soft brown smudges. It's hard to see where the black water begins, and the black sand ends. It's dark down there, and cold. The sun doesn't reach far and the only brightness comes in the form of the salt, crusting on the foundations of the pier.

There's something very white and very still, lurking in the water. The flesh of it shines wetly when it breaches the surface. Long black hair snakes out into the sea, almost invisible in the darkness. Two large eyes bleakly survey the surroundings. They blink slowly in the pale white face. It's hard to tell the difference between boredom and hunger.

Mermaids are not pretty things. If you know anything about the deep, deep ocean, then you'll know that nothing pretty lives down there at all.

The long white body drifts close to the shore and grasps one of the pier's support beams with what could be described as a hand. Webbed tendrils, akin to fingers, sink into the rotten wood. The thing under the pier is three times the size of a human man, and infinitely stronger. It survives a pressure at the depths of the ocean that would squash a person flat. It prefers to eat its prey live and squirming.

“Hi, darling,” Hob Gadling cooes to the mermaid. He comes clattering down to the shore, tripping over his own feet in his haste. “Did you miss me? I know, I know, I'm late. Traffic was a nightmare.”

A faint, watery hum emits from the mouth of the creature as it lifts head and shoulders out of the water. It makes Hob look like a child's doll as it leans over him. Very delicately as though it has been practicing, it places a kiss on Hob’s forehead with a soft sucking sound.

Less delicately, it lifts a tendril-like finger and wiggles it down the back of Hob’s beach shorts. There's another wet noise as the appendage slips between his arsecheeks and immediately enters his hole.

Hob makes a remarkably restrained shriek and grabs a handful of his assailant's bedraggled hair. “Dream! That is NOT how we say hello on land. Gahhh.”

His protests die out into a series of whines and pathetic keening sounds, as his knees buckle. He falls into the shallows, face down, but Dream is kind enough to keep him from inhaling a lungful of seawater. Instead Hob finds another tendril in his mouth. He can only breathe through his nose and suck desperately on the appendage while Dream chuckles wetly above him.

The finger in his arse is like jelly, like seaweed, and like glass. It finds his prostate with alarming ease and begins to torture it, pressing and massaging, bullying and soothing the nerves until Hob is almost sick with the overwhelming arousal. The finger in his mouth pulls on his tongue and runs over his teeth in a way that feels almost condescending. 

Hob doesn't even particularly want to cum, face down underneath the pier with sand in his eyes. But then again he has a distinct feeling that he might die, if Dream doesn't make him cum. The dichotomy is far too baffling to dwell on. Fortunately, Dream presses one finger tight against Hob’s prostate, and the other to the back of his throat. He has no choice in the matter, and he cums in his shorts – before he even has time to enjoy it, another one of Dream’s appendages is fishing around and somehow slurping the cum directly from the slit of his cock.

Dream makes another damp humming sound that might be approval. Very carefully he sets Hob upright on the driest part of the sand, and presses another strange sucking kiss to the top of his head. Hob gazes up at him, still dazed. He lazily twists a few strands of the long wet hair around his fingers.

“We really do need to work on our communication,” he sighs. His voice is a little hoarse, but the salt water will ease it. Dream may be a deep sea monster, but he's full of little surprises, like the perfect sore throat remedy. “But I can't exactly complain about that, can I?”

The thing under the pier spreads its teeth into a big smile.

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Iceberg Siren pt 3

**a little Sunday morning treat for you all! Hope you enjoy!**

Jason stood in the corner of the ballroom, holding a delicate flute of champagne and scowling at any socialite who tried to approach him. Damian was standing next to him, suit impeccable, scowling even harder than Jason.

Bruce had dragged the whole family here, as it was a charity gala for orphans that the Wayne Foundation had set up. Damian had spent the evening before arriving arguing that he ‘wasn’t an orphan’ and ‘shouldn’t be forced into this farce of an evening’. Jason was just bitter that he’d been pulled away from an evening of patrol.

With a sigh, he patted Damian on the shoulder and then made his way out into the throng, smiling politely at the old money that poisoned the city as he made his way towards Bruce, who was holding court on the other side of the ballroom.

Also approaching the philanthropist was the Penguin, with a sparkling date on his arm. Said date patted Cobblepot on his arm before separating from him, turning in Jason’s direction with a smile.

“Mind lending me a dance? Boss has business he wants to talk about, and I’m bored.”

Jason blinked, holding out his empty hand almost on autopilot as the young man in the glittering silver and green dress came towards him. A waiter appeared at his elbow to take his champagne flute, and Danny Nightingale, Iceberg’s Siren, smiled at him.

“Of course! You look- stunning.”

It was true- Danny’s dress, with thin straps and a deep cowl neck, clung to his figure attractively, fanning out into a mermaid skirt at his knees. It was a satiny silver, with tiny green crystals sewn in that caught the light and reflected back thousands of sparkling pinpricks. He wore a dripping necklace of greenish white crystals, and a his black hair was swept back to reveal matching earrings.

Jason found himself staring into Danny’s eyes a mite too long to be appropriate when Danny smirked at him.

“Thanks, Red. Shall we?”

With his mind racing, trying to remember half-finished dancing lessons from Alfred, Jason escorted Danny to the dance floor and took position with his other hand on Danny’s waist. The crystals shifting underneath his hand felt oddly cold, almost like ice, but Jason put it down to his own nerves acting up.

They waltzed for a few moments in silence, Jason focusing on not stepping on his partner’s dress, before Danny spoke up.

“I’m not fond of these things. Rich people showing off that they have money.”

“Me neither.’ Jason muttered in response, accidentally catching Tim’s wide stare from across the room. ‘Just out of curiosity, how did you know it was me?”

Danny laughed, a bright, tinkling noise that made Jason’s cheeks warm.

“You stand out in a crowd.”

“You’ve only seen me in a mask or helmet before.” Jason frowned a little, noticing Dick and Cass also watching from their respective clusters of sycophants.

It was another few moments of silence before Danny answered.

“You’ve died. That leaves pretty distinctive marks to those of us who know where to look.”

The song ended before Jason could think of an answer, and Danny swept away without another word, returning to Penguin’s side with a genuine-looking smile.

“Todd.”

Damian appeared at his side, staring very hard in the direction Danny had left in.

“What, brat.”

“Who was that and why were they cozying up to you?”

“A friend.”

“Looked like more than that, Little Wing.” Dick appeared from behind, a grin on his face that promised mischief. “Timmy’s already looking him up.”

He felt Batman’s eyes on him, and turned to see Bruce’s piercing stare over the heads of the crowd, and Cass up on tiptoe, whispering into his ear.

Jason slid into his safe house through the window, wincing as his suit caught in the wound on his side. Angrily, he unlatched his helmet and threw it across the room. Sloppy. He’d been sloppy, and he’d gotten hurt because of it. If he’d only listened to B- no. No, if only he’d been more careful in the first place, this wouldn’t have happened.

Jason groaned, already planning the best way to get back at his ridiculous family.

~~~

Danny was being followed, and he knew it. The person following him didn’t seem hostile, but he was never sure in Gotham.

Honestly the city wasn’t that different from Amity Park, what with how vigilant he had to be on a regular basis.

With a sigh, he turned a corner and let invisibility wash over him, moving to the side so his follower would appear.

Soon enough, they did. It was a teenager with a hood pulled up over his head. When he looked around and couldn’t see Danny, he clicked his tongue and then held a hand up to his ear.

“Oracle, I lost the target near the divide between Robbinsville and The Bowery- do you have any cameras?”

By the way the young man reacted, whoever he was talking to had replied in a negative- Danny had chosen this alley because the only camera aimed toward it was broken.

“Curses. We will never find Todd’s paramour if this continues this way.”

It was all Danny could do to keep from laughing. This was about the gala a few weeks ago, where he had dragged one Jason Todd into a dance, dropped the ‘you died’ bomb, and then left the poor man hanging.

Was it unkind of him? Probably.

Did he really want to talk about such things while wearing a tight dress and heels? No.

The teen left the alley, and Danny popped back into visibility. It looked like it was time to find the half-formed halfa.

~~~

Gotham’s underworld had become bolder and bolder the longer the Joker was silent. He knew they weren’t aware the clown was dead, but their willingness to cause trouble in territories that weren’t theirs was starting to grate on his nerves.

He peeled off his domino mask, dropping it on the table carelessly, before shrugging out of his leather jacket. He flung that across the couch, and then made his way into the bedroom to change out of his other gear.

He’d finally gotten his kevlar off and started patching himself up in the bathroom when there was a knock at the door, and something told him he needed to answer it. He did so, shirtless because he didn’t particularly care if Dick saw his scars, and with a frown because he was in pain.

It wasn’t Dick.

Danny Nightingale stood there, shuffling nervously, one hand carding through his riot of black hair.

“Hi. I think we need to talk.”

~~~

Danielle “Dani” Phantom was bored. Frostbite had pronounced her sufficiently stabilized, and she hadn’t yet sussed out where her original had ended up.

He was a petty dingus for leaving her behind to have fun on his own. Well. Not really. He’d banned all ghosts from their home dimension for their safety, and then he told Dani to ‘rest and recuperate’ like she was some sort of invalid.

Melting was only a disability if she let it be one.

“Princess Danielle.”

She turned to see Clockwork floating behind her, swapping through ages like some demented PowerPoint.

“I have a place for you to go.”

“Is it where Danny is?”

Clockwork tilted his head to the side.

“It is a place you will find joy.”

Dani put her hands on her hips and glared at the unhelpful jerk.

“Don’t want joy, I want-”

Clockwork lifted a hand, and Dani felt herself falling through a portal.

She landed on her back on the concrete of a tall building, the bright sun almost blinding her after having spent so much time in the realms.

“-my brother.”

[stalkerofthegods]

Poseidon's Deep dive 

Poseidon is a great god, I learned many things while researching him, things I would've never guessed! He only came by once because of the obvious mentions and mentions of his ephipets and he was very respectful! He is amazing, so please don't judge him so fast off of myths, myths are just old ‘fan fiction’, here you go Poseidon devotees

Herbs • Celeary, wild celery, pine trees, mint, moss, 

Animals• Bulls, horses, pegasus, dolphins, tuna, boars, rams, hippocampus, lambs, minotaur, seagulls,

Zodiac • Virgo and Libra (zodiacs of August)

Colors • sea colors, black, deep blue, any type of blues, gold. 

Crystal• aquamarine, abalone, ocean jasper, coral, pearls, sea pearls, black pearls, pink pearls, larimar, ammorine, any crystals associated with the sea, or looks like the ocean or what reminds you of him.

Symbols• tridents, boulders, headbands, wreaths of celery leaves, billowing cloak

Diety of•  Mediterranean sea, the sea, earthquakes, storms, water, horses, Atlantis (the city under the sea he drowned because they angered him), floods, tsunamis, pegasus, and protection of palaces (At Pylos and some other cities, he was a god of the underworld and his cult related to the protection of the palace.), springs, the foundation of buildings, vegetation, inland water, healing (at the city tinos he was worshiped as a healing god), sailor, drowning and shipwrecks, epilepsy

Patron of• sea, earthquakes, storms, water, horses, Atlantis (the city under the sea he drowned because they angered him), floods, tsunamis, pegasus, and protection of palaces (At Pylos and some other cities, he was a god of the underworld and his cult related to the protection of the palace.), springs, the foundation of buildings, vegetation, inland water, healing (at the city tinos he was worshiped as a healing god), sailor, drowning and shipwrecks, epilepsy

Offerings• Bull meat, imagery of bulls, bull horns, perhaps horse feed (he is the god of horses), a rock (in some myths he made a horse out of a rock), fish, meat, wine, tuna, fishnets, boar meat, ram meat, seaweed, celery, a plant, celery, food shaped of horses (ex- animal crackers, cookies, cakes), coffee, duck-shaped things and imagery of ducks (not dicks), juice, barley, mint chocolate, salt, ocean water, Honey, sea glass, fish stew, clam chowder, conch shells, cloaks, seashells, starfish, toys/art of dolphins and fish, shark teeth, sand, ship in a bottle, gold and silver objects, sticks and rocks from water and the beach, seagull feathers 

Devotional• Work on a farm to take care of horses (ex-cleaning their stalls, brushing them, and changing their feed) in his honor, go fishing, take care of pet fish, tame horses, go riding horses in his honor, go walk along the sea, go horseback riding across the beach, pick up trash on the beach, donate to ocean conversation in his honor, coral reef conservation his name, donate top local disastor programs in his name, clean up, lakes, rivers, riverbanks, sing in the shower in his honor, watch ocean videos and listen to wave sounds, visit aquariums, ask him to help bath and weather spells learn marine biology, work with mermaids and siren and the fae in his honor, learn about local coral life, learn pollution in water, do map- making for ur area or fantasy lands, take life gaurd lessons, Sailing knots, learn about Sailor sayings, learn about Boats/sailing, learn His genealogy/Myths, learn Water magick, learn about Seagulls, Dip your feet in the water if you can’t fully emerge yourself, Go surfing/parasailing/jetskiing, go boat rinding, Go canoeing/kayaking, Splash in puddles, drink water, learn how to scry with water, keep your of your pets weater bowl clea, encourge others to drink water, Learn proper storm precautions, Learn what causes them, Pray to Him for safety for yourself/others, Participate in storm relief clean-up, learn CPR, make sand castles, make paper boat, recycle, dedicate your water bottle.

Ephithets• Ælikóhnios/Heliconius/Ἑλικώνιος/ΕΛΙΚΩΝΙΟΣ, 

Æmbýlios/Empylios/Ἐμπύλιος/ΕΜΠΥΛΙΟ - at the gate, Ænnosíyaios/Ennosigaeus/Ἐννοσίγαιος/ΕΝΝΟΣΙΓΑΙΟΣ - Earth-shaker, 

Æpakmónios/Epakmonius/Ἐπακμόνιος/ΕΠΑΚΜΟΝΙΟΣ - an epithet of Poseidóhn in Viohtía, Æpóptis/epoptes/ἐπόπτης/ΕΠΟΠΤΗΣ - overseer/watcher, Aglaotríaina/Ἀγλαοτρίαινα/ΑΓΛΑΟΤΡΙΑΙΝΑ - he of the bright trident, Alídoupos/ἁλίδουπος/ΑΛΙΔΟΥΠΟΣ - sea-resounding, Ánax/Ἄναξ/ΑΝΑΞ - Ánax is king, Baructupos - See Varýktypos, Eftríaina/Eutriaina/Εὐτρίαινα/ΕΥΤΡΙΑΙΝΑ - of goodly trident, Empylios - See Æmbýlios, Ennosigaeus - See Ænnosíyaios, Epakmonius - See Æpakmónios, Epoptes - See Æpóptis, Gaieochus - See Yaiíokhos, 

Heliconius - See Ælikóhnios, Íppios/ ἵππιος/ÍΠΠΙΟΣ - a horseman/protector/horses, Kharitóhpis/charitopes/χαριτώπης/ΧΑΡΙΤΩΠΗΣ - graceful of aspect, Kronios - the name used by the Latin poets, Kyanokhaitis/kyanochaites/κυανοχαίτης/ΚΥΑΝΟΧΑΙΤΗΣ - dark or blue-haired like the sea, Kymothalís/cymothales/κυμοθαλής - abounding with waves, Neptune - Neptune is the Roman name for Poseidon, Nethuns - Nethuns is the Etruscan name for Poseidon, Nymphayǽtis/Νυμϕᾱγέτης/ΝΥΜΦΑΓΕΤΗΣ -leader of the Nymphs, Orsotríaina/Ὀρσοτρίαινα/ΟΡΣΟΤΡΙΑΙΝΑ - the wielder of the Trident, Poseidóhn/Poseidon/Ποσειδῶν/ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ - "I bind the feet.", Pontomǽdohn/pontomedon/ποντομέδων/ΠΟΝΤΟΜΕΔΩΝ.- lord of the sea, Sæmnós/semne/σεμνός/ΣΕΜΝΟΣ/σεμνός - revered/august/holy, Seisichthon - See Seisíkhthohn, Seisíkhthohn/seisichthon/σεισίχθων, ΣΕΙΣΙΧΘΩΝ - earth-shaker, Semnos - See Sæmnós, Tæmænítis/Temenites/Τεμενίτης/ΤΕΜΕΝΙΤΗΣ - I have no explanation of where it is derived from or meaning so bear with me, Temenites - See Tæmænítis, Yaiíokhos/Gaieochus/γαιήοχος/ΓΑΙΗΟΧΟΣ - he who holds the earth, γαιήοχος/γαιηοῦχος - earth-moving/earth-carrying, Varýktypos/baructupos/βαρύκτυπος/ΒΑΡΥΚΤΥΠΟΣ - loud-thundering.

Equivalents (alike but not the same) • Neptune (roman), Sobek (egyptation)

Signs they are reaching out• seeing his symbols, having a sudden interest in him, seeing his animals, having a pull towards the water and the ocean, being interested in his children, mermaids, and sirens

Vows/omans• marriage vows, to rule his kingdom under the sea.

Number• 8

Morals• lawfully neutral

Courting• Amphitrite

Past lovers/crushes• AMPHITRITE, APHRODITE, ASTERIA, DEMETER, 

HESTIA (was wooed by Poseidon and Apollon. But she, declaring her desire to remain a virgin, retired to the palace of Zeus and kept her maidenhood.), THETIS, ALKYONE/Alcyone, ANIPPE, ARETHOUSA/ Arethusa, ASKRE/Ascra, BEROE, EIDOTHEA, EURYTE, HALIA, KELAINO/Celaeno, KELOUSA/Celusa, KHIONE/Chione,

KLEODORA/Cleodora, KORKYRA/Corcyra, Medusa, MELANTHEIA, MELIE, MIDEIA, NYMPHE KHIAS, NYMPHE TARENTINE, PEIRENE, PERO, PITANE, THOOS, NERITES (a male lover)

Personality• He is pretty nice if he likes you, devotes can say he's serious and stoic or that he's nice and just cares if you're okay, I think he can be really sweet, but I've never met him or seen him talking myths or my friends/people in the community talk about how he is, I like him tho! you have to remember he isn't his myth. I would personally read his myths, there was so much that i learned that i wouldve neevr guessed of him.

Home• Under the sea in a mansion

Fact• He had feats in his honor that women were not allowed to attend, he raped Medusa and Demeter in some myths or he 'seduced' them, he's the second youngest and second oldest of the Olympians,  As Poseidon grew, he fell in love with Halia (the beautiful sister of the Telchines), and fathered six sons and one daughter, Rhodos, Aphrodite attempted to make a stop at Rhodes on her way to Cyprus. Poseidon and Halia's sons denied her hospitality, so Aphrodite cursed them to fall in love and rape Halia. After they had done so, Poseidon made them sink below the sea

Curses• tsunamis, droughts, sending sea monsters, drowning cities, earthquakes, your home falling apart, drowning, seizures due to epilepsy, your daughter falling in love with a bull. 

Blessings• During an earthquake your home stays intact and okay, 

Roots• It is said that he was from the Greeks from the start but he could have originated from the Pelasgians or the Minyans.

Parentage• Kronos and Rhea 

Siblings• Zeus, hades, Hestia, Demeter, hera

Pet• his hippocampus pulling his chariot.

Children • AIOLOS/Aeolus - The god of the winds, he was a son of Poseidon and Arne. ASOPOS/Asopus - The god of the river Asopos of Argos, he was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Pero or Kelousa (but most accounts say he was born to Okeanos and Tethys like the rest of the river-gods). ATHENE/Athena The goddess of warcraft was, according to some, the daughter of Poseidon and Tritonis (contrary to the usual account in which she springs fully-grown from the head of Zeus, This is a myth from Libyan Mythology whose native gods were identified with their closest Greek counterparts--Athena and Poseidon.). DAIMONES PROSEOOUS Six spirits haunted the sea caverns of the island of Rhodes (Greek Aegean), They were sons of Poseidon and the sea-goddess Halia.

DESPOINE/Despoena- The goddess of certain Arkadian Mysteries She was a daughter of Poseidon and Demeter. PROTEUS An elderly sea-god who was the son and seal-herder of Poseidon. TELKHINES/Telchines - Sea-daimones and powerful but malignant sorcerors of the Aegean Islands who were buried beneath the sea by Zeus. According to some accounts, they were sons of Poseidon and Thallatta (though these accounts seem to identify or confuse them with the Rhodian Daimones Proseoous above). TRITON A fish-tailed sea god He was a son of Poseidon and Amphitrite. AITHOUSA/Aethusa - nymphor princess of Boiotia (central Greece), She was a daughter of Poseidon by the Pleaid Alkyone. BENTHESIKYME/Benthesicyme - sea-nymph queen of Aithopia/Ethiopia - She was a daughter of Poseidon and Amphitrite, HEROPHILE a nymph daughter of Poseidon and Aphrodite, 

KYMOPOLEIA/Cymopoleia - A sea-nymph or giantess daughter of Poseidon. OUREA/Urea - A nymph of the Troad (Asia Minor), She was a daughter of Poseidon loved by Apollon, RHODE/RHODOS The goddess-nymph of the Island of Rhodes (Greek Aegean), She was the wife of the god Helios and a daughter of Poseidon by one of three goddesses--Amphitrite, Aphrodite or Halia. ALOADAI/Aloadae - Two giants from Alos in Phthiotis (northern Greece) named Otos and Ephialtes attempted to storm Heaven, They were sons of Poseidon and Iphimedeia, ANTAIOS/Antaeus - A king of Libya (North Africa) who slew travelers to his country to roof the temple of Poseidon with their skulls...He was the son of Poseidon and Gaia the Earth, EPHIALTES A giant of Alos in Malis (northern Greece) who, with his brother Otos, attempted to storm Heaven.. He was a son of Poseidon and Iphimedeia, KHARYBDIS/Charybdis - An immortal giantess who was chained beneath the Straits of Messina where her inhalations formed a massive whirlpool. Kharybdis was the daughter of Poseidon and Gaia, KHRYSAOR/Chrysaor - A giant king of the island of Erytheia (in the Atlantic Ocean) and/or Iberia (Spain). He was a son of Poseidon and Medousa. LAISTRYGON/Laestrygon - The eponymous first king of the Laistrygones, a tribe of man-eating Giants. He was a son of Poseidon,

ORION A sea-walking giant of Hyria in Boiotia (central Greece), born of Poseidon and Euryale, or the earth, fertilised by an ox-hide soaked with the urine of the three gods Poseidon, Zeus, and Hermes.

OTOS/Otus - A giant of Alos in Malis (northern Greece) who, with his brother Ephialtes, attempted to storm Heaven. He was a son of Poseidon and Iphimedeia, POLYPHEMOS/Polyphemus - A kyklops (cyclops) giant of Sikelia (Sicily) (southern Italy). He was a son of Poseidon and the sea nymph Thoosa, AREION/Arion - An immortal horse owned by the heroes Herakles and Adrastos, He was the son of Poseidon and Demeter, born following their mating in the shape of horses, KHRYSOMALLOS/Chrysomallus) A golden-fleeced, flying ram who spoke with a human tongue. He was a son of Poseidon and Theophane, 

PEGASOS/Pegasus - An Immortal, winged horse owned by the hero Bellerophon. He was a son of Poseidon and Medousa, sprung from his mother's severed neck, ABAS A king of the island of Euboia (central Greece) and Eponym of the Abantes tribe who joined the expedition of the Argonauts, He was a son of Poseidon and the Nereis Arethousa.

AGELOS/Agelus - A king of the Island of Khios (Greek Aegean). He was the son of Poseidon and a Khian Nymphe, AGENOR A king of Phoinikia/Phoenicia (West Asia). He was a son of Poseidon and Libya.

AIOLOS/HELLEN/Aeolus A prince of the island of Ikaria (Greek Aegean). He was a son of Poseidon and Arne but was raised by the Ikarian king Metapontos and his wife Theano, AKHAIOS/Achaeus A king of Akhaia and Sikyonia (southern Greece) and eponym of the Akhaian tribes. According to some, he was a son of Poseidon and Larissa (though others call him a son of Xuthos), ALMOPOS/Almopus - The eponymous king of Almopia in Thrake (north of Greece). He was a child of Poseidon and Helle, 

ALOEUS A lord of the town of Alos in Phthiotis (northern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Kanake, ALTHEPOS/Althepus A king of Troizenos in the Argolis (southern Greece). He was a son of Poseidon and Leis.

AMPHERES A king of one of the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical island in the Atlantic Ocean, He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite.

AMPHIMAROS/Amphimarus A lord of Mount Helikon in Boiotia (central Greece) or Khalkis in Euboia (Central Greece),+ He was a son of Poseidon. AMYKOS/Amycus A brutal king of the Bebrykes tribe of Bithynia (Asia Minor). He was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Melia.

ANKAIOS/Ancaeus A king of the island of Samos (Greek Aegean) and pilot of the celebrated ship Argo, He was a son of Poseidon and Astypalaia (or, according to one author, of Poseidon and Althaia).

ANTHAS The eponymous founding lord of the town of Anthedon in Boiotia (central Greece) and/or king of Troizenos in the Argolis (southern Greece) and founder of the town of Antheia, He later also founded the city of Halikarnassos (Asia Minor). Anthas was a son of Poseidon and the Pleaid Alkyone. ASPLEDON The eponymous founding lord of the town of Aspledon near Orkhomenos (central Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Mideia. ATLAS A king and overlord of the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent of the Atlantic Ocean, He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite. AUGEIAS/Augeas A king of Elis (southern Greece) who was, according to some, a son of Poseidon (but other accounts make him a son of Helios, Phorbas, or Poseidon's son Eleios).

AUTOKHTHON/Autochthon A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean, He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite. AZAES A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean, He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite.

BELLEROPHON A hero and prince of Korinthos (southern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Queen Eurynome. BELOS/Belus An early king of Egypt (North Africa), son of Poseidon and Libya. BOIOTOS/Boeotus A prince of the island of Ikaria (Greek Aegean), He was a son of Poseidon and Arne (or Antiope) but was raised by King Metapontos and his wife Theano. BOUSIRIS/Busiris A king of Egypt (North Africa) who sacrificed foreign visitors to the gods, He was a son of Poseidon and Lysianassa (or, according to some, of the Naias Anippe). BOUTES/Butes - An Athenian lord (southern Greece) who joined the expedition of the Argonauts. According to some, he was a son of Poseidon (most, however, say his father was Teleon). DELPHOS/Delphus The eponymous lord of the town of Delphoi in Phokis (central Greece), According to some, he was a son of Poseidon and Melantho (although he is usually called a son of Apollon).

DERKYNOS/Dercynus A co-king of Liguria (in southern France) with his brother Ialebion Both were sons of Poseidon. DIAPREPRES A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean, He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite. DIKTYS/Dictys, A prince of Elis (southern Greece), son of Poseidon and Agamede. EDONOS/Edonus The eponymous king of Edonia in Thrake (north of Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Helle. EIRENE/Irene A woman from the Island of Kalaureia in the Argolis (southern Greece), She was a daughter of Poseidon and the Nymphe Melantheia. ELASIPPOS/Elasippus A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean. He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite. ELEIOS/Eleus The eponymous king of Elis (southern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Eurykyda.

EPHOKEUS/Ephoceus, A son of Poseidon and the Pleaid Alkyone (the name is probably a corruption of Epopeus, the king of Sikyon.).

EPOPEUS A king of Sikyonia (southern Greece). He was, according to some, a son of Poseidon by either Kanake, Oinope, or Alkyone (others called him a son of Aloeus). ERGINOS/Erginus, A lord of Miletos in Karia (Asia Minor) and one of the Argonauts was a son of Poseidon.

ERYX was A king of Elymoi in Sicily (southern Italy), According to some, he was a son of Poseidon (others, however, claimed he was a son of Aphrodite and Boutes). EUADNE/Evadne, A princess of Arkadia (southern Greece), daughter of Poseidon and Pitane. EUAIMON/Euemon A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean, He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite. EUMOLPOS/Eumolpus A king of one of the lands of Thrake (northern Greece), He was carried off at birth by Poseidon to be raised in the land of Aithiopia (in Africa) and ended his life fighting on the side of the Eleusinians in Attika (Central Greece), Eumolpos was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Khione. EUPHEMOS/Euphemus A lord of either Hyria in Boiotia (central Greece) or Psamathus on the Tainaron Peninsular of Lakedaimonia (southern Greece), and one of the Argonauts, He was a son of Poseidon and Europa, daughter of Tityos (or possibly Poseidon and Kelaino). EURYPYLOS/Eurypylus, A king of the island of Kos (Greek Aegean), was a son of Poseidon and Astypalaia. EURYTOS/Eurytus One of the Molionidai, siamese-twins, and princes of Olenos in Akhaia (southern Greece), They were sons of Molione and Poseidon (or her husband Aktor).

EUSIROS/Eusirus A lord of Malis (northern Greece), son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Eidothea. GADEIROS/EUMELOS/Gadeirus/Eumelus A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean. He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite. HALLIRHOTHIOS (Hallirhothius) A lord of Athens in Attika (southern Greece). He was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Euryte. HIPPOTHOON/HIPPOTHOUS A lord of Eleusis in Attika (southern Greece), son of Poseidon and Alope. HOPLEUS A lord of Thessalia (northern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Kanake. HYPERES/HYPERENOR A king of Troizenos in the Argolis (southern Greece) and founder of the town of Hypereia, He was a son of Poseidon and the Pleaid Alkyone. HYRIEUS The eponymous founding lord of the town of Hyria in Boiotia (central Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and the Pleaid Alkyone. IALEBION A co-king of Liguria (western Europe) with his brother Derkynos, Both were sons of Poseidon. IDAS A prince and hero of Messenia (southern Greece) who was, according to some, a son of Poseidon and Arene (most, however, say his father was king Aphareus).

KAUKON/Caucon A prince of Olenos in Akhaia or Kaukonia in Messenia (southern Greece), a son of Poseidon and Astydameia, the daughter of Phorbas. KELAINOS/Celaenus The eponymous lord of the Phrygian city of Kelainos (Asia Minor) was a son of Poseidon and the Danais Kelaino.

KENKHRIAS/Cenchrias A lord of Korinthos (southern Greece) and Eponym of its harbour Kenkhrai, He was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Peirene. KERKYON/Cercyon A barbaric king of Eleusis in Attika (southern Greece) who, according to some, was a son of Poseidon and the daughter of Amphiktyon (but others claimed he was a son of Hephaistos or a mortal named Brankhos). KHIOS/Chios The eponymous first king of the island of Khios (Greek Aegean), He was a son of Poseidon and a Khian Nymphe.

KHRYSES/Chryses A king of Orkhomenos (central Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Khrysogeneia. KROMOS/Cromus The eponymous founding lord of Krommyon in Korinthos (southern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon. KTEATOS/Cteatus One of the Molionidai, siamese-twin princes of Olenos in Akhaia (Southern Greece), They were sons of Molione and Poseidon (or her husband Aktor). KYKHREUS/Cychreus A king of the island of Salamis (southern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and the Naias Salamis. KYKNOS/Cycnus A king of Kolonai in the Troad (Asia Minor) and ally of the Trojans in their war with the Greeks, He was a son of Poseidon and Kalyke whom his father made invulnerable to weapons. LAMIA A queen of Libya (North Africa), She was a daughter of Poseidon (or Belos). LEKHES/Leches A lord of Korinthos (Southern Greece) and Eponym of its harbour Lekhaion, He was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Peirene. LELEX The first king of Megara (southern Greece), who emigrated to Greece from Aigyptos (Egypt in North Africa), He was a son of Poseidon and Libya. LEUKON/Leucon A prince of Athamantia in Boiotia (central Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Themisto, the wife of King Athamas (though most sources say the king was his natural father). LYKOS/Lycus (1) A man who was transferred to the Islands of the Blest by Poseidon, He was a son of Poseidon and the Pleaid Kelaino (or according to others of her sister Alkyone).

LYKOS/Lycus (2) A lord of Dirphys in Euboia (central Greece) who with his brother Nykteus slew Kreon and seized the throne of Thebes in Boiotia (central Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Kelaino daughter of Ergeus. MEGAREUS A lord of Onkhestos in Boiotia (central Greece) and later king of Megara (Southern Greece), Some say he was a son of Poseidon and Oinope (though others say his father was Onkhestos, Oinope's husband). MELAS A lord of the island of Khios (Greek Aegean), He was the son of Poseidon and a Nymphe. MESSAPOS/Messapus The eponymous founding king of Messapios (southern Italy) who was an ally of Turnus in his war against Aeneas. He was a son of Poseidon.

MESTOR A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis--a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean, He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite.

MINYAS An extremely wealthy king of Orkhomenos who, according to some, was a son of Poseidon (though others say his father was Khryses, Aiolos, or Orkhomenos). MNESEUS A king of one the ten kingdoms of Atlantis (a mythical continent in the Atlantic Ocean), He was a son of Poseidon and Kleite. MOLIONIDAI/Molionidae A pair of Siamese twins named Eurytos and Kteatos. They were princes of Olenos in Akhaia (southern Greece) and later co-rulers of the neighboring kingdom of Elis. The Molionidai were sons of Molione by either Poseidon or her husband Aktor. MYGDON A king of the Bebrykes tribe of Bithynia (Asia Minor), He was a son of Poseidon and the Nymphe Melia.

NAUPLIOS/Nauplius The eponymous founding lord of Nauplia in the Argolis (southern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Amymone.

NAUSITHOOS/Nausithous A king of the Phaiakoi (Phaeacians) of the island of Korkyra (north-western Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Periboia. NELEUS A king of Pylos (southern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Tyro. NIREUS A lord of Thessalia (northern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Kanake. NYKTEUS/Nycteus A regent of Thebes in Boiotia (central Greece) who seized lordship of the city with his brother Lykos. Nykteus was a son of Poseidon and Kelaino the daughter of Ergeus. OIOKLOS/Oeoclus A lord and co-founder of the town of Askra in Boiotia (central Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Askre.

ONKHESTOS (Onchestus) The eponymous founding lord of the town of Onkhestos in Boiotia (central Greece), He was a son of Poseidon.

PAION/Paeon The eponymous founding king of Paionia (north of Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Helle. PARNASSOS/Parnassus A lord of Phokis (central Greece), He was a son of the Nymphe Kleodora and either Poseidon or Kleopompos. PELASGOS/Pelasgus The eponymous first king of the ancient Pelasgian tribes of Arkadia (southern Greece), According to some, he was a son of Poseidon and Larissa (though others call him a son of Zeus or Earth-Born). PELIAS A king of Iolkos in Thessalia (northern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Tyro. PERATOS/Peratus A king of Sikyonia (southern Greece), son of Poseidon and Kalkhinia.

PERIKLYMENOS/Periclymenus A son of Poseidon and Astypalaia, He was probably the same as the Argonaut Periklymenos, who is usually called a son of Neleus (and so a grandson of Poseidon). (The error-prone writer Hyginus probably included him by mistake in his list of Poseidon's sons).

PERIPHETES/KORYNETES/Corynetes, A bandit of Epidauros, Argolis (southern Greece) who slew passerbys with his club, was slain by Theseus. According to some, Periphetes was a son of Poseidon (but others say Hephaistos). PHAIAX/Phaeax The eponymous first king of the Phaiakoi (Phaeacians) of the island of Korkyra (north-western Greece), son of Poseidon and the nymph Korkyra. PHINEUS A king of Salmydessos in Thrake (northern Greece), He was, according to some, a son of Poseidon (though others say his father was Agenor). PHOKOS/Phocus A lord of Tithorea in Phokis (central Greece) and an eponym of the region, He was a son of Poseidon by the wife of the Korinthian prince Ornytion (Ornytion is also sometimes called his father). PHTHIOS/Phthius The first eponymous king of Phthiotis (northern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Larissa. POLTYS A king of Ainos in Thrake (north of Greece), He was a son of Poseidon. PROKUSTES/Procrustes A bandit of Attika (southern Greece) who used to force passersby to fit exactly into his bed--by amputation or stretching. He was a son of Poseidon, Prokrustes was also named Damastes and Polypemos. SARPEDON A prince of Ainos in Thrake (north of Greece), He was a son of Poseidon. SKEIRON/Sciron A bandit of Megaris (southern Greece) who kicked passers-by off a cliff and into the jaws of a giant turtle. According to some, he was a son of Poseidon (though others say his father was Pelops, Pylas, or Kanethos). TAPHIOS/Taphius A pirate king of the Taphian Islands (Greek Aegean), He was a son of Poseidon and Hippothoe. TARAS The eponymous first king of Taras (southern Italy), He was a son of Poseidon and a Tarentine Nymphe. THASOS/Thasus The eponymous first king of the island of Thasos (Greek Aegean), According to some, he was a son of Poseidon (though others identified his father as Agenor or Kilix).

THESEUS An Athenian hero and king of Attika (southern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Aithra, though King Aigeus believed he was the father. TRIOPAS A king of one of the lands of Thessalia (northern Greece), He was a son of Poseidon and Kanake.

Appearance in astral or gen• a mature man with a sturdy build and dark beard holding a trident, dark skin with a beard and usually wearing a blue toga and blue eyes.

Festivals • At Corinth, the Isthmian games were an athletic and music festival in honor of the god. Athens held a feast for him in August, Athens held a vegetation festival where he was worshipped. Mycale in Ionia has a festival where they sacrifice a bull to him.  Ephesus in Ionia where a feast was held in his honor where the cup holders were called "bulls". Kalaureia was a temple dedicated to Poseidon where the region was also his so they would hold a feast and the members of the council would meet up in the temple and sacrifice a bull. Tainaria, where the participants were called Tainarioi, the sacred sanctuary of the god, was built in a cave in the Tainaron peninsula. Onchestos in Boeotia the feast held horse racing. in Sparta held the race Gaiaochoi and the temple was built beside a Hippodrome. Epidauros A fest in the month, of Poseidon, was celebrated in honor of Poseidon. In Helos The fest Pohoidaia was celebrated in honor of Poseidon, and the festival included athletic games and competitions. In Thuria Fest Pohoidaia was celebrated in honor of Poseidon, It included athletic games and competitions. In Mantineia in Arcadia, Poseidon was worshipped with the surname Hippios (of the horse), The fest included the athletic games Hippokrateia, The temple was holy and the entrance into the cella was not allowed. Pallandion in Arcadia Poseidon had the epithet Hippios (of the horse) and the fest included the athletic games Hippokrateia. In Lesbos A festival in the month Poseidios was celebrated in honor of Poseidon. In Myconos held a fest, he was worshipped as a god of fishing and women were not allowed. Demeter received offerings in the same fest, indicating that Poseidon was also the god of vegetation. In Tinos, A great fest called Poseidonia was celebrated in honor of Poseidon, The temple included great banquet halls, indicating a large number of participants Poseidon was worshipped as a healer-god.

Season • august

Status• One of the twelve Olympians is in the Big Three 

(the 3 kings of the world, hades (underworld), Zeus (overworld), Poseidon (sea)) He is a god, was in the Titan war, and was one of the majority that helped.

What angers them• insults, not keeping ur bargaining end of the deal, stealing, and insulting the sea or family. 

Planet• Neptune

Tarot cards• The chariot, King of Cups, and the king

Remind me of• drowning, kracken, aquareims

Scents/Inscene • Mrryths, frankincense, ocean, and rain scents.

Theres too much text so websites will be put in comments 

I use resources, I do not own the info, and most deep dives have UPG (that I use in my work.) And I only take some information from sources. I am 14, this is my hobby, I am learning but I spent many hours and days on this, and I am always open to criticism. I have been doing worship for 5 years. Please know you can use the info, I do not sue, but I will take action if this work is used without permission and not put as a resource if used in any work. without permisson and not put as a resource if used in any work, for the public.

[when-wax-wings-melt]

Sokeefe Week 2024 Prompts!

Sokeefe Week begins on January 1st and ends on January 7th, but creations will still be accepted and compiled for months after the date!

Prompts:

Day One: Royalty

This is a good day for soldier/poet/king in any combination, if you are so inclined. Thief, rebellion, bodyguard/knight, servant, arranged marriage/alliance, ball/cotillion/coronation, whatever you please!

Day Two: Escape/Return

Maybe Keefe is running away, or maybe you’re exploring a swap where Sophie does instead. Maybe it’s literal, or maybe they’re finding an escape in each other, or something else. Secret hideouts, Unlocked/Stellarlune fix-it, prison break, breakup/second chance, anything you want! Escape can be about running away, cowardice, terror, or acceptance. It’s about leaving, but can also be about coming back.

Day Three: Meet-Cute

First date (blind date?) or coffeeshop au, maybe their friends introduce them in college or school or work, same class first day of school, or even a rewrite of the canon first meeting?

Day Four: Enemies

Rivals in school or work, competing cafes or stores or businesses, opposites attract, born and altered and raised to hate, Neverseen vs Black Swan... you could probably slip some soulmate action in here too.

Day Five: Lies/Truth

Think about foundations. This is a good day to explore childhood, confessions, and secrets— all of which Keefe and Sophie have in multitude. Tearful or sweet or angry, this day can be about broken promises and kept ones. Growth and stagnation: two things that very clearly define our lovely ship.

Day Six: Fix-It

Is there a scene in canon that doesn’t fit? The characters don’t feel right, the scene is slightly off, the situation isn’t realistic? This could apply to any time Sophie and Keefe have a scene together or any time they didn’t: what can you change to explore new possibilities?

Day Seven: Free Day

Whatever you didn’t do before, do now! The possibilities are endless: soulmates, tattoo artist/flowershop, artist/musician, nightmares/dreams, cowboys, mermaids/pirates, mythology au, historical au, crossover fic, injuries, healing, dragons/shapeshifting, switched bodies or abilities, human au, college roommates, and anything else that comes to mind!

Guidelines:

Tag your host when you create writing, art, animatics, poetry, gifs, aesthetics, moodboards, songs, playlists, or anything that happens to inspire you! Tag the post with #sokeefe week 2024

Take the time you need to complete the prompts, no matter what the “dates” are!

Reminder: The prompts and ideas are suggestions, not constraints. Go wild!

[t4tails]

Hi my name is Merliah Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way and I have long sandy blonde hair (that’s how I got my name) with pink streaks and magenta tips that reaches my mid-back and icy blue eyes like limpid tears and a lot of people tell me I look like Barbie (AN: if u don’t know who she is get da hell out of here!). I’m not related to Gerard Way but I wish I was because he’s a major fucking hottie. I’m a mermaid but my legs are straight and white. I have pale white skin. I’m also a princess, and I'm looking for my long lost royal mother after experiencing these weird changes while surfing (I’m seventeen). I’m a goth (in case you couldn’t tell) and I wear mostly black. I love Hot Topic and I buy all my clothes, including my tail covers, from there. For example today I was wearing a black corset with matching lace around it and a black leather collar, fishnets (literally) and at least 3 belts. I was wearing black lipstick, white foundation, black eyeliner and red eye shadow. I was walking outside Oceania. It's under the sea so there was no sun, which I was very happy about. A lot of preps stared at me. I put up my middle finger at them.

[theresattrpgforthat]

Hello! I read through the Wicked Ones rpg and really enjoyed it. Do you have any recommendations for games where you play as the bad guys? Preferably larger books.

THEME: Bad Guys

Hello friend! From monsters to villains to just plain ol’ bad dudes, let’s see what we got. I tried to stay away from one-page RPGs, but I can’t guarantee how long some of these books will be.

SLA Industries, 2nd Edition, by Nightfall Games.

In the World of Progress, the corporation SLA Industries rules all. Employing Operatives to enforce, extend and maintain their power base, SLA controls a multitude of worlds - industrial, franchise and resource - with planet Mort at its core. As Operatives execute the company’s will, new threats emerge through the cracks of the city walls, turning Downtown into a battleground.

You, the SLA Operative, are fighting for fame and fortune against a backdrop of a crumbling reality. Operatives feed the always-on televisions with a gaudy media of wall-to-wall death and dismemberment. Operative life is all about climbing the corporate ladder and earning sponsorship deals and notoriety along the way.

In SLA Industries, you’re not exactly villains, but you’re not good people either. You work for an evil corporation, in a world of evil corporations, and you’re extending their reach for a chance to climb the corporate ladder. SLA Industries is reminiscent of trad games in terms of its complexity; character creation consists of spending points to improve abilities, and you can improve some of your character abilities by introducing flaws in other areas. Because of the roots in its game design, I’d expect a longer book to read through here.

If you want to learn more about this game, you can check out the game review for it on Cannibal Halfling Games!

Seven Deadly Sirens, by Litza Bronwyn.

In this game, you play one of seven types of mermaids and roll with seven deadly sins to power your basic and special moves in order to summon ships, lure men to you, devour their hearts, and collect their treasures. Fun, flirty, indulgent, and a little chaotic, this game is perfect for a night of raucous debauchery or an afternoon of silly adventuring.

This game is definitely on the shorter side, but I really really like the idea of using seven deadly sins as your source of power. This game is Powered by the Apocalypse, so expect something interesting to happen even with every dice roll. Unlike common PbtA games, you pick from a communal list of moves to define your character, rather than picking a playbook. The core loop of this game will involve luring men off of boats, killing them and raiding the boats for treasure.

Here, there be Monsters! By Wendi Yu.

here, there, be monsters! is a rules-lite response to monster-hunting media from the monsters' point of view. It's both a love letter and a middle finger to stuff like Hellboy (and the BPRD), the SCP Foundation, the Men in Black, the World of Darkness games and the Urban Fantasy genre in general. It is an explicitly queer, antifascist and anti-capitalist game about the monstrous and the weird, in any flavor you want, not as something to be feared, but to be cherished and protected.

Play as a diverse crew of monstrous, anomalous or just generally odd beings, fighting against those who would use, abuse or even annihilate you. Create and populate your own supernatural underworld, abnormal gang and extra-dimensional haven. Hunt monster hunters! Punch nazi occultists! Eat the rich! Protect each other! Fight back! Here, there, be monsters!

This is 164 pages of monstrous fun, in which your characters are likely treated like bad guys by the society around them, even if they’re not really villainous themselves. It gives you a chance to revel in your monstrosity, with 100 pre-made character backgrounds for you to peruse. One content warning: there is quite a bit of art revolving about bodies, in various forms (this is a monster game, after all). This isn’t meant to detract from the work - in fact, it perfectly communicates the tone of the game - but it is something you should be aware of before you buy.

Blood and Sacrilege, by Tom Clark.

In a Dark Fantasy setting based on the Early Middle Ages of England (The Dark Ages), you play as a brood of vampires bent on toppling the humans’ reign over Brackenstow. Here you'll find a country ruled by mortals, with vampires lurking in the shadows of society. It wasn’t always this way though; vampires founded Brackenstow and after a hard fought war, lost it to the mortals they once enslaved. 

Nearly a century after the vampires were defeated, legal rights to the kingdom are still squabbled over by the country's self-proclaimed leaders while bishops and ministers fight for their own influential positions. The vampire threat looms on the horizon… But the power vacuum left by a leaderless kingdom has taken it's toll on the stability of the land, leading to civil unrest and the more immediate danger of war. 

Now, with humans on the brink of societal collapse, the vampires peer out from the dark, and the broods that have laid in wait for so many decades start to execute their long-laid plans.

This looks like a game still in the works, but it sure looks promising. As long-defeated creatures of the night, you see a chance to take back a kingdom you once owned. Forged in the Dark games are all about projects that the group has to work consistently at in order to succeed, so expect plenty to read, especially if it’s inside such an established setting.

Villainous Fucks, by Keganexe (@keganexe)

Villainous Fucks is a tabletop roleplaying game designed for 2-6 players, about doing petty crimes as The League of Villainous Fucks, and ruining the day of Superheroes and Cops alike (and truly what's the difference). Villainous Fucks runs on Spencer Campbells incredible LUMEN System, and is inspired by the best Villains across media. LUMEN is designed for quick, tactical combat, and Villainous Fucks dials it up to 11 for the best in zany comic book style action.

If you are interested in ruining the day of do-gooders in over-the-top comic book action, and if you like your combat to be satisfying and punchy, you want Villainous Fucks. Instead of skills, LUMEN uses approaches: how your character does something is more important than what exactly they do. Is your villain Brutal, Cunning or Quick? My favourite little tidbit from Villainous Fucks is the characters’ stance on Cops. Villains believe that All Cops are Bastards, and All Superheroes are Cops. If you like revelling in doing crimes, then this is absolutely worth checking out.

Games I’ve Recommended Before

Monsterhearts 2, by Avery Alder. (Teenagers with great monstrous potential)

Spire: The City Must Fall, by Rowan Rook & Decard. (You’re sympathetic terrorists, but you’re still terrorists.)

This former request that asked about playing mind flayers and similar monsters.

[n1ghtm4r3-p01s0n]

The Ultimate Emo/Scene Name List - WARNING: Long post, and make sure you read the trigger warnings!

Having trouble coming up with a name for yourself? Do you planning on using a part of your real name but can’t find a word to go with it? Well, worry no more!

Today, I’m here to provide as comprehensive a list as possible! I’ve scoured the internet, and some sources have some problematic suggestions. So, my goal is to break down possible names into easy to understand categories. Obviously, this will be a VERY long list, so keep that in mind. There is also a section purely made up of words used in the past that are to be used/reclaimed at one's own risk/discretion due to the words being used to oppress or belittle various minority groups. I will also be sharing my sources at the bottom for stuff I used from online, alongside any trigger warnings that may be needed. Without further ado, let’s go! Also feel free to reblog with suggestions to add!

TRIGGER WARNING: Some of the suggestions include elements of horror, violence, weaponry, gore etc.

Animals

Rex (as in T-Rex)

Stegosaurus

Wolf/Wolfe

Kitty

Bunny

Lynx

Hawk

Eagle

Moth

Spider

Raven (also applicable to pop culture - see Raven from Teen Titans and Raven Queen from Ever After High)

Claw/Clawed

Fang

Animal

Beast/Beastly

Carnivore/Carnivorous

Jurassic (as in the Jurassic Period, also applicable to pop culture (see Jurassic Park))

Snake

Chameleon

Jungle

Hyena

Cheetah

Fossil

Sabertooth

Skink

Deer

Vole

Weasel

Ferret

Moose

Ermine

Shrew

Mouse

Rat

Corvid

Magpie

Pigeon

Bee

Wasp

Butterfly

Tarantula

Velociraptor

Serpent

Viper

Cat

Rattlesnake

Cobra

Bat

Monsters

Vampire

Werewolf

Zombie

Monster/Monsta/Monstar

Ghoul

Demon

Angel/Angelic

Reaper (also applicable to foods (Reaper Pepper))

Ghost

Fallen (as in Fallen Angel)

Curse/Cursed (in reference to witchcraft)

Hex (in reference to witchcraft)

Boo (common saying associated with Halloween and cartoony ghosts)

Bone (in reference to skeletons)

Sacrificed/Sacrificial (in reference to religious rites)

Dead/Deadly/Death/Deathless

Immortal

Alien

Extraterrestrial

Anomaly/Anomalous (also applicable to pop culture, in reference to the SCP Foundation)

Damned

Eerie

Creepy

Exorcism/Exorcist

Ghastly

Imp

Succubus/Succubi

Incubus/Incubi

Undead

Abominable

Devil

Supernatural (also applicable to pop culture, reference to Supernatural TV show)

Paranormal

Sacred/Sacrament

Specter/Spectre

Banshee

Poltergeist

Siren (also applicable to music, see Sleeping with Sirens)

Dragon

Dragon Slayer

Kraken

Archangel

Starship

Halloween

Dragon Slayer

Angelface

Mermaid

Pop Culture

Jigsaw (as in Jigsaw from the Saw franchise)

Ghostface (from the Scream franchise)

Krueger (as in Freddy Krueger from Nightmare on Elm Street)

Myers (as in Michael Myers from the Halloween franchise)

Voorhees (as in Jason Voorhees from the Friday the 13th franchise)

Chucky (as in Chucky from Child’s Play)

Lala (nickname for Draculaura from Monster High)

Hyde (as in Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde)

Lestrange (as in character who shall not be named from franchise by TERF author that shall not be named)

Lockhart (another character from the franchise mentioned above)

Coraline (as in Coraline by Neil Gaiman)

Jinx/Jynx (League of Legends character)

Blitz (Helluva Boss character)

Loona (K-Pop group, Helluva Boss character)

Shadow (as in Shadow the Hedgehog)

Killer/Killa/Kyller (as in Jeff the Killer)

Grim/Grimm (as in Grim Reaper and the Brothers Grimm)

Eldritch (as in Eldritch Horror)

Eevee (from Pokemon; you can use any Pokemon you like)

Hellraiser (as in the film by Clive Barker)

Jabber (as in Jabberwocky from Alice in Wonderland)

Wonderland (as in Alice in Wonderland)

Jedi (from Star Wars)

Necronomicon (Evil Dead franchise)

Avenger (in reference to MARVEL's The Avengers)

Scourge (see Warrior Cats and Sonic Comics character)

Zelda (from Legend of Zelda)

Skellington (as in Jack Skellington from Nightmare Before Christmas)

Phantomhive (as in Ciel Phantomhive from Black Butler)

HelloKitty (Sanrio character)

Akira (anime film of the same name)

Memetic (term used by the SCP Foundation)

Blackheart (as in the Ghost Rider villain)

Colours/Shades

Crimson (Red)

Black

Neon

Rouge (also applicable to pop culture)

Ruby

Violet

Indigo

Cyan

Blue

Rainbow/Rainbows

Porcelain

Green/Greene

Weapons/Violence/Semi-NSFW

Blade

Razor

Knucklebuster

Uppercut

Scar (also applicable to pop culture, Lion King character,)

Eyeball (body part)

Torture/Tortured/Torturous

Torment/Tormented

Fatal/Fatality (also applicable to pop culture, Mortal Kombat)

Brutal/Br00tal/Brutality/Brutally

Berserk/Berserker (also applicable to pop culture, see the anime 'Berserker')

Chainsaw

Hacksaw

Bear Trap

Grenade

Bomb/Pipebomb/Timebomb

Dynamite

Acid/Acidic

Heroin

Marijuana/Mary-Jane

Cannabis

Alcohol/Alcoholic

Booze

Vodka

Brandy

Whiskey

Blood/Bloody/Bloodied

Flesh

Gore/Guro

Raw

Casualty

Crackhead

DrugAddict

Erotic/Ero/Erotica

Explosive

Execute/Execution/Executor

Beheaded

Decapitation/Decapitated

Flailing

Gutting

Handgun

Hangman

Homicide

Hostage

Hurt (also applicable to emotions)

Pain/Pained/Painful (also applicable to emotions)

Jackknife

Laceration/Lacerations

Attack

Murder/Murderous/Murderotic

Massacre

Assassin/Assassination

Regicide

Cannibal/Cannibalism

Cyanide

Pothead

Suffocate/Suffocation

Steroid

Puncture

Violence/Violent

Wound/Wounded

Bruise/Bruised

Serrated

Gruesome

Autopsy

Asphyxia/Asphyxiation

Curbstomp

Assault

Battery (also applicable to technology)

Annihilation

Addict/Addicted/Addiction/Addictive

Arson/Arsonist

Ambush

Crucifixion/Crusifixion

Tequila

Beatdown

Throwdown

Arsenic

Collision

Manslaughter

Bite/Bites

Plants

Belladonna

Nightshade

Wolfsbane

Rose

Lily

Sakura

Toadstool

Thorn (also applicable to pop culture, see Thorn of the Hex Girls from Scooby Doo)

Hazel

Foods

Cupcake/Kupcake/Cuppycake/Kuppycake

Strawberry

Lollipop

Candy

Cocoa/Kokoa (alternatively; Coco/Koko)

Chilli

Cheyenne (as in Cheyenne Pepper)

Cookie

Pumpkin

Jawbreaker

Jerky

Juicebox

Caffeine/Caffeinated

Treat

Macha

Skittles/Skittlez

Ambrosia (also applicable to mythology (food of the Greek gods))

Smoothiecake

Smoothie

Teacup

Slushie

Coffee

Sugar/Sugarrush

Space

Luna

Stellar/Stella (also applicable to pop culture, Helluva Boss character)

Nova

Mars

Pluto (also applicable to mythology, Roman counterpart to Hades)

Galaxy

Meteor/Meteorite

Nebula

Stardust

Star

Mythology

Persephone (Greek Goddess)

Hel (Norse Goddess)

Fenrir (Norse God)

Thanatos (Greek God)

Baba/Yaga (Slavic folklore character)

Artemis (Greek Goddess)

Freyja (Norse Goddess)

Cerberus (Greek Creature)

Hades (Greek God)

Loki (Norse God)

Medusa (Greek folklore character, can also reference the piercing)

Satan (Ars Goetia demon)

Beelzebub (Ars Goetia demon)

Athena (Greek Goddess)

Lucifer (Ars Goetia demon, Bible figure)

Technology

Error

Hack/Hacker

Analog

Digital

Malware

Virus

Corruption/Corrupted

Java

Machine

Mechanical

.exe (or similar file extensions, such as .sai, .txt, .rar, .szs, .psd etc)

Robo/Robot/Bot

Animatronic

Electronic (also applicable to music)

Automaton

Automatic

Systematic

Syntax

Emotions

Heartbroken

Heartless

Depressed

Lonely/Loneliness

Hopeless

Helpless

Ache

Envy/Envious/Envied

Hatred

Jealous/Jealousy

Lust/Lustrous

Shock/Shocked/Shocking

Panic/Panicked/Panicking (also applicable to music, see Panic! At The Disco)

Cowardly (also applicable to pop culture, Courage the Cowardly Dog)

Rage/Raging

Scared

Confusion/Confused

Wrath/Wrathful

Minerals/Crystals/Metals

Onyx

Amethyst

Obsidian

Titanium

Steel

Sulphur

Mercury (also applicable to mythology)

Uranium

Garnet

Pearl

Topaz

Quartz

Iron

Silver

Jewel

Gem

Crystal/Krystal

Diamond

Amber

Azure (also applicable to colours/shades)

Elements/Natural Phenomena

Blaze

Fire/Fiery

Flame

Hellfire

Ember

Poison

Venom (also applicable to pop culture, Spider-Man character)

Drowned/Drowning (also applicable to pop culture (Minecraft mob) and weapons/violence)

Hurricane

Typhoon

Tsunami

Earthquake

Tornado

Storm

Thunder/Thunderstorm

Blizzard

Dust Devil

Toxic

Volcano

Eruption/Erupted

Electric

Spark

Frozen

Hail

Ignite/Ignition

Lightning

Magma

Night

Sunset

Twilight

Aurora (as in Aurora Borealis, can also be applied to music if you wanna reference the singer AURORA)

Inferno

Frost/Frosty

Music

Metalhead

Melody

Megalovania (song from Undertale)

Brightside (song by the Killers)

Hatsune/Miku (in reference to Hatsune Miku)

VOCALOID

Synthesizer

Orchestra

Symphony

Rave/Raver

Rock

Anthrax (also applicable to 'Use at Own Risk')

Bring _ The Horizon/_ Brings The Horizon (reference to Bring Me The Horizon)

_ Eat World (reference to Jimmy Eat World)

Jitterbug (phrase used in 'Wake Me Up Before You Go Go' by Wham and title of Hachiya Nanashi VOCALOID track)

Jitterdoll (niki VOCALOID track)

Serenade

Breakdown (also applicable to 'Use At Own Risk')

USE AT OWN RISK

These are names that have been used in the past BUT often rely on oppressive stereotypes involving women, mental illness/disorders, LGBTQIA+ people, Indigenous people and so on. Some of these are also just straight up mental/medical conditions and medications. I would advise only picking one of these if it is a term you wish to reclaim for yourself. Do so at your own risk.

Insane/Insanity

Delirious

Demented

Psychotic/Psychosis/Psychopath

Nuclear

Bitch

Whore

Crazy

Hallucinate/Hallucination

Haywire

Suicide/Suicidal (also applicable to pop culture - see Suicidal Sadie CreepyPasta)

Mania/Manic

Maniac/Maniacal

Paranoia/Paranoid

Savage

Mad

Fag/Faggot (only reclaim if you are LGBTQIA+)

Mental

Xanax/Xamax

Schizophrenia/Schizophrenic

Dementia

Genocide (added to here and not to 'weaponry/violence/semi-NSFW' due to the current genocides happening in the world)

Warfare (added here for the same reason as above)

Asylum

Amphetamine

Hooker

Neurotic

MISC IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER

A

Accidental

Axis

Ambitious

Amazing

Apocalypse/Apocalyptic/Apokalypsis

Abyss

Abdomen

Amor/Amore

Ambition

Apparel

Atomic/Attomick/Attomik

Atrophy

Alluring

Asshole/Asswhole

Abrasive

Atelophobia

Arachnophobia

Abstract

Adorable

Anonymous

Audacious

Antorcha (Spanish for 'torch')

Avenge

B

Baby

Bang

Blah

Boom

Brigade

Bombard/Bombardment

Blast

Biohazard/Biohazardous

Beauty/Beautiful/Beau

Bow

Bottom Jeans

Barbie

Babycake

Babydoll

Break/Breaks

Brave

Bacteria

Bandaid/Bandage

Blackout

Bittersweet (also applicable to foods and emotions)

Barbaric

C

Catastrophe/Catastrophic

Claustrophobia/Claustrophobic

Crash

Chaos

CreepyPasta

Crunch/Crunchy

Chuunibyou

Coward

Chick (also applicable to animals)

Carnage (also applicable to pop culture, see Spider-Man villain)

Chaosbaby

D

Daring (also applicable to pop culture)

Devious

Darling

Disaster

Daydreaming

Destruction

Doll/Dolly

Decay/Decayed/Decaying

Dark/Darkened

Deceit/Deceitful

Daily

Dial

Deutschland

Danger

Destroy

Discord

E

Ecstatic

Ecstasy

Emergency

Extreme

Echo

Exposure

Enchanted

Endanger

Enigma/Enigmatic

Epidemic

Endemic

Egotistic/Egotistical

Entropy

EatsZombies

F

Frightful

Foul

Foe

Futile

Flash

Flicker

Feeble

Funeral/Funerary

Forsaken/Forsakened

G

Girly

Gab

Gangster

Glitter

Gorgeous/Goregeous

Gluttony

H

Havoc

Hazard

Heartbreaker

Heist

Hiatus

Hoax

Hyper

Heart

Horizon

Hollywood

I

Impolite

Immature

Ill

Iris

Infection/Infected

J

J'Adore (also applicable to pop culture, see Jade J'Adore from Bratzillaz)

Jailbait

Jaundice

Jaywalk

Jeopardy

Jingle

Jive

Joint

Jubilate/Jubilee

Junction

Juxtapose

K

Katastrophe/Katastrophic

Krunch/Krunchy

Kawaii

King

Kitching/Keching

Killjoy (also applicable to music, see My Chemical Romance)

L

Lush

Loathe

Lovely

Lucky

Legendary

Light (also applicable to pop culture, Light Yagami)

Luz (also applicable to pop culture, Luz Noceda)

Love/Luve/Luv

Leper/Leperacy

Litterbug

M

Macabre

Macroscopic

Mafia

Magnetic

Malady

Malice

Mutiny

Malediction

Marauder (also applicable to pop culture - won't say the name but you know what franchise this was popularised in)

Medical

Membrane

Mesmerize

Metallic

Mortician/Mortuary/Morticia (last one applicable to pop culture, in reference to Morticia Addams)

Mortified

Mystery

Myth

Mayday (also applicable to popculture, see Mayday from No Straight Roads and the Helluva Boss character Verosika Mayday)

Malevolent/Malevolence

Millionaire

McCrackin

Monstrawrface

Miracle/Miraculous (also applicable to pop culture, see Miraculous Ladybug)

Morgue

N

Ninja

Notorious

Nocturnal/Nokturnal

Naughty

Nasty

Nihilist/Nihilistic/Nihilism

Nightmare

Necro

Necromancer/Necromancy

Necrotising (in reference to Necrotising Fasciitis)

Nefarious

Neuron

Nerd/Nerdified

O

Overdrive

Original

Outcast

Odd

Obscure

Obsolete

Obsession

Oblivion

P

Prince/Princess

Punk

Plastic

Parable (also applicable to pop culture, see The Stanley Parable)

Pandemic

Pirate

Q

Queen/Queenie

Queer

Quack

R

Random

Revenge

Reckless

Royal

Riot

Rebel

Rude

Rawr

Rad

Rotten

Ravenous

Ruthless

S

Sabotage

Scary

Silly

Sadist/Sadistic

Sahara

Salivate

Spectacular

Synthetic

Supercharged

Surrender

Stethoscope

Sublime

Sterile

Stealthy

Spinal

Spiffy

Sinister

Scoundrel

Scandal

Shell

Scene

Spookbat

T

Tears

Tragic/Tragedy

Terror

Trick/Trickster

Temptation

Terrible

Twisted

Trash

Tenacity

Trauma/Traumatised

Temptress

Tuberculosis

U

Unusual

Ultimate

Usurper

Urban

V

V.I.P

Vendetta (also applicable to pop culture, see V for Vendetta)

Velicious

Victorious/Victory

Vandal/Vandalism

Vain/Vanity

Vile

Vortex (also applicable to pop culture, Helluva Boss)

Void

Vengeance/Vengeful

Valentine/Valentines

W

Wacky/Whacky

Wicked

Wonder/Wonderful

Wise/Wisdom

Wreckless

X

Xtreme/X-treme

Xx/xX

XoXo/XOXO/X0X0

X-ray

Y

Young

Z

ZigZag

Zero (also applicable to pop culture, see Nightmare Before Christmas character)

SOURCES

http://esgbeauty.blogspot.com/p/scene-names-directory.html?m=1 (TRIGGER WARNING: site listed actual genocides as name suggestions (e.g. Holocaust) or elements related to genocides/wars (e.g. Kamikaze) - view at your own discretion. For this list, I opted to remove these suggestions as I think these are remnants of the edgy humour of the 2000s that is best being left behind.)

Some of these suggestions came from my friends and members in Scem0 K1dz (Discord server).

https://thescenebible.blogspot.com/2021/10/blog-post.html?m=1 (Currently working on slowly adding anything from here.) TRIGGER WARNING: A lot of names involve mental disorders, medical conditions and medications. I will be including some of these, mostly in the 'Use At Your Own Risk' section.

[themakeupbrush]

Some of the items by donated by designers for the Disney create100 auction. The items and experiences were inspired by Disney films, and the proceeds benefit the Make A Wish Foundation

Cinderella's Slipper by Swarovski

Necklace by Schiaparelli, inspired by the Rescuers Down Under

Mickey Mouse Shirt by Maison Margiela

Oliver and Company "Georgette" Mask by Wiederhoeft

Little Mermaid-inspired fine jewelry set by Prilly Latuconsina

Archival Mickey Mouse Sweatshirt by Marc Jacobs

Portrait of Kate Moss as Tinkerbell, using Charlotte Tilbury x Disney makeup

Namor-inspired shoe by Christian Louboutin

Polo Princess Gown by Tommy Hilfiger

Fantasia-inspired garment by Marco Ribeiro

Little Mermaid-inspired dress by Harris Reed

Gown made of archival Mickey Mouse reprints by Camilla Franks

Plate dress featuring Ratatouille themed dishes by Leeann Huang

Luggage Trunk and collectible leather characters by Coach (includes tour of Coach archives and custom Coach handbag)

Black is King Bodysuit worn by Beyonce

[monsterfucker-showdown]

characters in the showdown!

I will be posting the brackets for part 1 soon

Characters in bracket

Part 1

Venom from Vemon

Sidon from BOTW

The Creature from The Shape of Water

Cthulu from H P Lovecraft

Ursula from The Little Mermaid

Rem from Death Note

Undyne from Undertale

Pyramid Head from Silent Hill

Dracula from Bram Stroker

The Kraken

Charon from Hades

Bowser from Super Mario

Goliath from Gargoyles

Harpy Eda from the Owl House

Smaug from The Hobbit

Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean

The Snatcher from A Hat In Time

Demona from Gargoyles

Emperor Belos from TOH

Billy from Hocus Pocus

Lunar Guardian Warwick from League of Legends

Slender man

The Xenomorph from Alien

zoe from monster prom

Medusa from mythology

Red Prince from Divinity 2: Original Sin

Winged Lion from Dungeon Meshi

the devil from the arcana

the high priesttess from the arcana

Angel of Death from Hellboy 2

punitto moe from overlord

zenberu gugu from overlord

shasuryu shasha from overlord

Yog Sothoth from hp lovecraft

the snake king from SnakeMan

jotunn from the ritual

William Birkin mutant form from Resident Evil

Hammerhead Sharkman from Hammerhead: Shark Frenzy

Radu from Seventh Son

Ghost Rider is from Ghost Rider

Drake from Blade Trinity

Sharktopus from Sharktopus vs Whalewolf

Felix Rosa the whalewolf from Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf

Scylla from Mamula

The Trench from Aquaman

Tao Tei from The Great Wall

White Spike from The Tomorrow War

Subject 20 from Forbidden World

The Gill-man from Creature from the Black Lagoon

surtur from Thor: Ragnarok

raiju from pacific rim

otachi from pacific rim

trespasser from pacific rim

knifehead from pacific rim

scunner from pacific rim

ink from bendy

the projectionist from bendy

Death from Discworld

Heavy from Alien Outpost

Leshy from COTL

Brooklyn from Gargoyles

Broadway from Gargoyles

monster x from godzilla final wars

gigan from godzilla final wars

Leomon from Digimon

Garudamon from Digimon

cave of wonders from Aladdin

azhdaha from Genshin Impact

osail from Genshin Impact

The Behemoth from Final Fantasy

Apollomon from Digimon

The Werewolf from the Doctor Who episode Tooth and Claw

The Beast from the Doctor Who episode The Satan Pit

Yugo Ogami from Bloody Roar

Venom possessed Thor from avengers assemble

Lake Yokai from Sailor Moon

Wither storm from Minecraft Story Mode

frankenstein's creature from mary Shelley

Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas

sloth from bayonetta

malphas from bayonetta

madama khepri from bayonetta

madama butterfly from bayonetta

labolas from bayonetta

gomorrah from bayonetta

diomedes from bayonetta

alraune from bayonetta

Hunson Abadeer from Adventure Time

Gummy from Gummy and the Doctor

Ln'eta from Sucker for Love

The crow mauler from fear and hunger

Te Ka from Moana

Alastair Crump from Haunted Mansion

Creeper from Minecraft

Springtrap from fnaf

The Headless Horseman from Sleepy Hollow

Clem from Buffy the Vampire Slayer

The Tuunbaq from the Terror

Indrid Cold's Mothman form from The Adventure Zone Amnesty

Urskeks from The Dark Crystal

urZah from The Dark Crystal

SkekSil from The Dark Crystal

Shina from Bloody Roar

Roxanne from fnaf security breach

Yautja from Predator

Undersea Gal from The Nightmare Before Christmas

Uranus from Bloody Roar

Gado from Bloody Roar

Shenlong from Bloody Roar

Rengar from League of Legends

Lunar Guardian Nasus from League of Legends

Jon Talbain from Darkstalkers

Angela from Gargoyles

Minotaur from greek mythology

spot from across the spiderverse

Lord Arum from The Penumbra Podcast

Abathur from starcraft

The Beast from Over the Garden Wall

Ultimecia (final form) from FF8

M'aiq the Liar from Skyrim

MELON from Beastars

Garrus Vakarian from Mass Effect

Carnage from Marvel Comics

Blaidd from Elden Ring

Jzargo from Skyrim

Durnehviir from Skyrim

zinogre from monster hunter rise

scp 2521 from scp foundation

Part 2

werewolves from skyrim

the rajang from mhr

dimple from mob psycho 100

Maximus Lobo from X-Men

Bill Cipher from Gravity Falls

The Red Bull from The Last Unicorn

Lord english from homestuck

grim from the grim adventures of billy & mandy

the lorax

Stricklander from Tales of Arcadia

Darkness from Legend

Mr Mirrors from Fallen London

Kokushibo from Demon Slayer

Moon presence from bloodborne

Simone Lenoir from Scooby Doo on Zombie Island

Peitha from Guild Wars 2

the grinch (jim carry) from how the grinch stole Christmas

the aliens from space invaders

clickers from the last of us

goomba from Mario

the wendigos from until dawn

Sheeva from Mortal Kombat

The Stalk from Saga

Mileena from Mortal Kombat

King Ghidorah from Godzilla: King of the Monsters

kolivan from voltron legendary defender

spriggans from skyrim

Red Guy from dhmis

Dragon from Shrek

Mothman

The Pale Man from Pan’s Labyrinth

The Faun from Pan's Labyrinth

King Boo from Mario

Cerus from Guild Wars 2 Secrets of the Obscure

Orthax from The Legend of Vox Machina

The Balrog from The Fellowship of the Ring

Hexxus from Ferngully

beast from beauty and the beast

Lady Dimetrescu from resident evil village

Discord from My Little Pony

Narinder from Cult of The Lamb

cheshire from bayonetta

Asterius from Hades

The Emperor from Baldur’s Gate 3

lynels from botw

Sully from Monsters Inc

Paarthurnax from Skyrim

Ryuk from Death Note

Hermaeus Mora from Skyrim

Hellhound from Supernatural

Astaroth from Soul Calibur

Nemesis from Resident Evil 3

the faceless old woman who secretly lives in your home from Welcome to Night Vale

Audrey 2 from Little Shop of Horrors

astel, naturalborn of the void from Elden Ring

Kang and Kodos from The Simpsons

Licker from Resident Evil

Mr. X from Resident Evil

Mouth Of Sauron from Lord of the Rings

Laudna from Critical Role

Wiggly from Black Friday

Count Orlok from Nosferatu

Harry the werewolf from scary godmother

Barnaby from Billy Bust Up

Pride demon from dragon Age inquisition

Raziel from Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver

Draco from Dragonheart

The Unusual Hilichurl from Genshin Impact

Serleena from Men in Black II

The Devil from Good Omens

Koh from A:TLA

The Enderman from Minecraft

Medusa from Greek Mythology

Enjou from Genshin Impact

Roz from Monsters Inc.

Swamp Thing from Swamp Thing

Cheetah from Wonder Woman

Killer Croc from DC Comics

Juggernaut from Deadpool 2

Hellboy from Hellboy

Hraesvelgr from Final Fantasy XIV

e. aster bunnymund from rotg

Toothiana from rotg

Lorelai from Vainglory

Amael from Vainglory

Phinn from Vainglory

Toothless from HTTYD

Papa Titan from The Owl House

The vampire from the Halloween Ring Pops box

Odahviing from Skyrim

Ganondorf from Tears of the Kingdom

Randall from Monster Inc

Papyrus from Undertale

Mettaton from Undertale

Jack from Jack in the Box

WereGarurumon from Digimon Adventure

Stormfly from HTTYD

zubeia from the dragon prince

Revali from BOTW

Mipha from BOTW

Red Dragon from Dungeons and Dragons

Black Dragon from Dungeons and Dragons

Silver Dragon from Dungeons and Dragons

Brass Dragon from Dungeons and Dragons

Baphomet from Dungeons and Dragons

Count Strahd von Zarovich from Dungeons and Dragons

Lolth from Dungeons and Dragons

Asmodeus from Dungeons and Dragons

Demogorgon from Dungeons and Dragons

Chernabog from Fantasia

Glamrock Freddy from fnaf

Mind Flayer from Dungeons and Dragons

elijah volkov from camp here and there

Abe Sapien from the Hellboy

The Wood Sprite from Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio

Battle Beast from Invincible

Skelly Schelemeus from Hades

Kugo Sakamata from BNHA!

Genn Greymane from World of Warcraft

Dragon form Zhongli from Genshin Impact

Francoeur from A Monster in Paris

Childe foul legacy form from Genshin Impact

The Corinthian from The Sandman

Death from Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

Kaiju No. 8 from Kaiju No. 8

Sabrewulf from Killer Instinct

Piccolo from Dragon Ball

Sans from Undertale

[tsaritsa]

ana my beloved my heart my love!!! in your most recent writing, what has been your favourite scene/line/dialogue you've written? (or all three 👁️👁️) also do u have any aes/moodboards for ur hp fic?? i cannot wait to devour this fic when it releases 💖

oh emma u know how to ask the most bestest of questions.

Malfoy is chatty when he is as high as a kite. She learns a lot. He tells her about Malfoy Manor, the ghosts that linger in the stone foundations, the way the grass never really grows under the grove of willow trees by the adjacent lake. The first time he remembers seeing magic. The first time he created magic: just a few sparks in protest when Narcissa had given him an outfit that was apparently a crime to fashion. The fashion sense of a four-year old, he admits, curling his body towards her on the floor, starlight hair falling into his eyes like meteors. He tells her about the worst of it too. The way his father would tremble with rage, the whispers of the portraits following him in sixth year whenever he dared to return. How the nightmares began to follow him home, culminating in an oil slick of a tattoo embedding itself into his being. Hermione’s fingers hover over the ink, curiosity and revulsion warring it out plainly on her face. Did it hurt? Yes.

this piece had been a tadpole in my brain for the last year or so and although i didn't intend for the space metaphors and similes to be so overt, when they flow into the prose like this i know i've made the right choice for themes and general ~aesthetic. i want the scenes where they're high off their faces to be so gossamer and blurry (vasalined to fuck as @dairogo and i were laughing about a few nights ago!) there's such a tragedy and horror to space: it is a gaping maw, we know so very little, and yet there is beauty in the most destructive of the physics we know of. black holes? objectively terrifying. but so fucking gorgeous at the same time.

this fic very much has that dark academia feel to it, although there is this underbelly which is rooted in a bit more southern gothic than british gothic alone. ethel cain and her work is def playing a part to how themes are developing in the story, as well as how i want that story to be told. this book i'm reading about the cannibal mermaids has a similar kind of slant in a way: the horror is already there. it's up to u to decide to look into the abyss.

[violetjedisylveon]

The Moon Finds A Flower

moonlilyshipping Pokémer AU chapter 1

Summary: Lillie crashes her boat out at sea while trying to take Nebby away from the Aether foundation, she thinks it's all over for them. She doesn't know that she just so happened to crash in the territory of a Pokémer.

Word count: 2.5k

Warnings: angst/torture at the beginning, Lusamine is a bad parent, injury, life and death situations

A/N: I saw really cute Moonlily MerMay art where Moon/Selene (I call her Moon) was a Lumineon based mermaid and I ran with it. So Moon is technically a Pokémon here.

Ages are different, Moon, Lillie and Hau are 14, Gladion is 16, and Nebby is pew years old.

Pokémer AU Masterpost

____________________________________________________________________________________________

All she wanted to do was help.

She had just wanted to help Nebby.

She didn't want anyone to get hurt.

She wanted to cover her ears, the screams were unbearable, but she couldn't move.

She couldn't look away from the torturous sight in front of her.

The deep blue, almost black, and shimmering white fins spasmed out.

The sleek, scale covered body convulsed involuntarily, writhing in pain.

She screamed into the water as Lillie just stood there and watched.

The vice grip on her shoulder tightened, making her aware of the chilling presence behind her.

A cold hand grabbed her face, forcing her to keep looking forward. A poisoned, honey sweet voice cooed behind her.

“See? This is what happens when you step out of line.” The cold hissed.

The cold left her, staring at the pain she caused. It was all her fault.

I never should have become her friend. I should have stayed away and told her to go back where she belonged.

XXX

It was all over for her.

All the risk she took in stealing Nebby from the labs was going to be for nothing, they were both going to drown.

Though drowning is probably a better date than whatever awaited Nebby. Lillie thought as she frantically tried to maintain control of the boat in the stormy seas. Nebby wriggled in her bag, panicked and in pain from the experiments.

Tears filled her eyes, she grabbed the bag and held it close to her, sinking to the floor with the knowledge that it was hopeless.

She squeezed her eyes shut and prayed to Arceus that their deaths would be painless.

Her boat collided with a large rock.

Everything went dark.

XXX

Moon jolted awake at a loud noise traveling through the water. Cautiously, she peaked out of her cave, looking up towards the dark, stormy sky.

Maybe a human got caught in the storm. She thought.

Humans got caught in storms all the time, they were quite dumb despite everything they could do.

Her hip fins fluttered anxiously at the thought of more humans showing up near her territory.

Her cave was situated in a narrow ravine surrounded by rocky and coral filled waters on all sides for miles, humans didn't come here often, and they never came down far enough to reach her cave. The rocks and coral stretched over the ravine opening, interlocking in a complex maze of sharp, fragile stone and coral, making it far too risky to reach.

A panicked, weak cry reached her fin like ears.

A Pokémon was in trouble.

The cry came from the same direction as the crash… She frowned, biting her lower lip.

It was a risk, a human could see her, if they did she could sick an allied Pokémon on them, but it was still a risky move.

Mom always warned her against going near crashes or anything human related. It was always too dangerous for her.

The Pokémon’s cries grew more panicked.

It sounded like a little, scared thing, not made for the seas, not ready to die.

This is going to end badly. Moon thought as she swam out of her cave.

She swam up, twisting through the maze of coral and stone easily, her slime coat allowed her to slide between the tight spots without getting scratched.

Once she was above the coral maze, she scanned the rock spires for signs of where the boat had crashed.

The boat was already below the tumultuous waves. That made her job easier.

She approached the boat cautiously, there wasn't any blood or bodies yet, either it had a smaller crew or everyone drowned and the bodies were stuck.

Her ears flicked at the annoyed, worried squeaks from her friend, quickly coming up behind her.

The little Popplio swam over to her, angrily chittering about how she shouldn't have left the cave without him. He tucked his snout into her side, she patted his head soothingly, Poppy was an anxious little fella.

“Someone needs help.” She whispered.

Poppy glanced at the boat, he glared and shook his head aggressively. Moon rubbed his head sympathetically, Poppy really didn't like humans, he never elaborated on why, maybe it was his coloring.

Her little friend looked different from other Popplio she had seen, his fur was a deeper, more purple blue, and his neck frill was a light pink.

“It's a little Pokémon that needs help, like you did when I found you.” She said.

Poppy frowned at her, crossing his flippers. She rolled her eyes.

“I'm going to help them.” she announced, swimming towards the boat.

Poppy stayed out for all of three seconds, the little guy was a bit of a scaredy cat. He stuck close to her side, brushing against her hip fins as they swam into the ship.

It had the mark of those boats others said were constantly coming and going from the fake island. Those humans were bad news, they kept poking around the various reefs she hunted at.

A flash of light caught her attention.

A part of the boat was sealed, air bubbles were leaking from it at a rapid pace, the weak flashing came from there.

Moon peered into the space through the dark glass, a long cylinder bag was where the light came from. It sat inside a perfectly round air bubble, and a human girl was holding tightly onto it.

“Hello?” She called through the water.

The light flashed rapidly in response, the patterns didn't make any sense to her, it was a whole bunch of gibberish.

“Do you need help?” She asked.

“Yes!” The Pokémon in the bag squeaked.

Moon glanced at the girl holding the bag.

“What about the human?”

“Yes! Friend! Safe!” they squealed.

“If you insist.”

Moon slammed her tail against the glass, bracing herself against the sudden pressure release. She swam into the cramped space, hesitating at the edge of the of air bubble.

“Can you make the bubble smaller?” She requested.

“Mom can't breathe!” They responded.

“The human is your mother?” Moon wondered.

“Help! Can't teleport in the water!” They shouted.

“Okay, I'll get you to the surface.” She told them.

She reached her hands into the bubble, snatching the girl by her waist and pulling her out of the bubble, dragging the bag with her.

Moon shot for the surface with rapid, strong flaps of her fins. She broke the water's surface, holding the girl's head above the water. 

Her gills shut as her body adjusted to being out of water, instinctively, she started drawing air from her mouth. She thrust herself out of the water and onto the rock the boat had crashed on for their collective safety.

She set the girl down on the least jagged part of the rock she could find, humans, she was fairly certain, didn't have a slime coat to protect them. 

Out of curiosity, she removed the girl's large hat. She wanted to see the face of the girl this Pokémon considered a mother.

Thick, straight blonde hair framed her pale face, her skin was soft and smooth, she didn't have a scratch or a scar on her.

Moon smiled to herself.

She's very pretty.

The bag rustled, bringing Moon’s attention away from the cute girl.

“Are you alright little friend?” She asked, reaching to open the bag, somehow.

The little Pokémon let out a weak ‘pew’ type sound, and the bag started to glow again.

Moon yelped in alarm as the glow turned blindingly bright, she squeezed her eyes shut, it felt like she was flying.

The light suddenly faded, she opened her eyes long enough to see that she was falling through the air, with the girl and her bag.

She grabbed onto the girl, curling her tail around her, spread her hip fins out and braced for the impact of their fall.

Her body slammed into the water with a loud smack. She couldn't feel her tail but the sight of her fins twitching out of the corner of her eye was enough to signify she wasn't paralyzed.

Her back brushed against soft sand, her face was still above the water.

We're on a beach. She realized.

As the feeling came back to her tail, she unwrapped it from around the girl.

She heard a small sound, felt the girl shift from her place curled against her body.

Looking down, brilliantly vibrant emerald green eyes met her own pink ones. The girl stared at her with wide eyes.

Moon realized she hadn't let go of her yet, she was still holding her in a tight, protective grip.

She'll feel my scales!

Thinking quickly, Moon shifted, turning her singular tail into two human legs.

Moon didn't like to transform much, she didn't have any trouble doing it, it was pretty easy to change and maintain, she just didn't have much reason to risk everything by pretending to be a human. That's what got her mother killed, she got too close to humans.

Silently, she hoped the girl wouldn't try speaking to her, she couldn't speak to humans.

Thankfully, her eyes slipped shut again and her head slumped against Moon's chest.

Moon let out a sigh of relief.

That's a bullet dodged.

She sat up, using one hand to prop herself up, the other securing the girl, she looked around.

Her initial thought was correct, they were on a beach.

A familiar beach.

Mom lives on this island.

That was as good a place as any to go for help. Mom could speak to other humans.

Moon rose out of the water unsteadily, she hadn't used her legs in a long time. She held the girl bridal style, tucking her bag and hat between their bodies, then she began to make her way out of the water.

It's good the storm chased all the humans inside. Moon thought.

She glanced around the beach, it had changed since she'd last been here. There was a lot more stuff now, she didn't know the exact direction to go to get to Mom’s house.

It was much brighter too, a big shift from light being filtered through the water.

The moment Moon stepped out of the water, she felt different.

Her powers had a limit now, they had always had one but she was always being recharged by the ocean. She was still close enough to recharge her powers, only far slower than she was accustomed too.

Just don't get cut off, as long as I can get back I'll be fine. She thought.

She walked unsteadily towards the darker part of the beach, Mom lived on a darker side of the island, close to the water and temple, she remembered that much.

The sand stuck to her legs, she scrunched her nose at the hated sensation, she wanted her slime coat back.

The beach had a strange path in it now, stacked stones leading up to what was once a cliff that Mom had her own way down. At least she was close to Mom’s now.

She heard something, sound was weird out of water. Her hearing wasn't as good either. She turned in the direction she thought it was coming from.

A human woman was approaching her, she started waving once she realized she'd turned around.

“Hey! Are you alright over there?! Did that blast hurt you?!” The woman shouted to her.

Moon walked in the woman's direction, passing the girl off to this human would wash her clean of this entire situation, she wouldn't need to visit Mom, she could get back to Poppy faster. Her little friend was probably worried out of his mind by now.

She stopped a few feet away from the human woman, her hair was white but she wasn't old. The woman looked her over, like she was sizing her up. Moon fought the urge to growl, humans were different from Pokémon, they showed aggression differently.

“Are you okay? Do you need a towel?” the woman asked, pulling folded fabric out of her bag.

Moon stared at it, glancing at the woman in confusion.

“To cover up? Aren't you cold?” The woman explained awkwardly.

Moon didn't think she was too exposed, she had the flowy piece of black and white patterned fabric that she tied around her waist to use as a sack, that was currently covering her leg area, and she always covered her chest with something, though what she was wearing was likely somewhat see through. Maybe that was the problem.

She shook her head and held the girl out to the woman.

“Oh my! What happened to you two?” The woman gasped.

Moon shook her head, she didn't know anything other than the boat crashed in her territory. She gestured towards the girl in her arms, silently begging for this woman to take her.

The woman gave her a concerned look.

“Do you know her?” She asked.

Moon shook her head again.

“So you don't know what happened to her and you don't know her?” The woman prompted.

Moon nodded.

“Is she hurt?” The woman asked, shifting her focus to the girl in her arms.

Moon nodded, holding the girl out to her again. This time, the woman took her from her outstretched arms, she ignored the weird feeling telling her to grab the girl she didn't know back, instead handing the bag to the woman.

She gave the woman a smile, humans liked those, right?, and turned to leave.

“Wait, are you hurt? Do you have anywhere to go?” The woman asked, taking a step towards her.

Moon shook her head, smiling in what she hoped was a reassuring way. She racked her brain for the signs Mom taught her so they could talk way back all those years ago.

She remembered quickly, smiling as she tapped the side of her nose with her pointing finger three times*.

The woman frowned, brow furrowed in deep thought, then her face lit up with understanding.

“Your mother lives around here?” she asked.

Moon nodded, pointing in the general direction of Mom’s house. She smiled, waved then headed off in the direction of Mom's.

She felt the woman's eyes on her even as she began to climb the slope, the feeling only faded once she was over the hill.

Moon dropped into the tall grass on the cliff’s edge, peering down at the woman on the beach, the other Pokémon didn't bother her, she was too tough for them.

The woman was staring after her, considering following her, humans were too nosey sometimes. Luckily, the woman didn't follow her, instead turning away to take care of the girl. Moon breathed out a sigh of relief, resting her chin on the ground.

She waited a while longer, just to be sure the woman didn't come back and the beach remained empty, then she slipped back down to the beach, into the water. She swam out in her human body, checking for any sign of recording, before diving down, allowing herself to change back to her natural form as she swam against the seafloor.

Poppy must be so worried. She sighed, the little guy wouldn't let go of her for weeks after this.

Moon swam faster, trying to leave her questions about the strange girl and strange Pokémon with the island.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

*I believe that three taps with a pointer finger to the side of the nose is the sign for mother in Hawaiian Sign Language(HSL), I got that from this website https://www.listenandlearnusa.com/blog/hawaiian-sign-language/Cause I wanted to have Moon use HSL whenever she does communicate with people outside of the more vague gestures, but it's an endangered language and so finding sources on it is pretty hard, that really sucks.

Pokémer have the ability to change their forms, as long as they are close enough to the ocean to maintain their power, and have human legs/lower halves; they don't speak any human languages, but they can speak to Pokémon, they stay mute even in their human forms.

Moon's Mom and mother are different characters here, Mom is the mom character in the games, she's not Moon's biological mother, her bio mother is dead

I hope you all have a good day, whatever that is for you!

VJS Out!

[cooking-with-hailstones]

Went to see the live action little mermaid at the behest of my family. I wasn't planning on seeing it (I'm not a big fan of the Disney Live action remake trend) but I was pleasantly surprised. Here are my thoughts:

Pros:

-The actor playing prince Eric was fantastic. Probably my favorite part of the movie. Great actor, gorgeous singing voice, brought a lot of life to the character that I genuinely enjoyed. I wish him well in his career!

-On that note: prince Eric's song "uncharted waters" was awesome. Great addition. Also very fond of the "for the first time" song Ariel has on the surface.

- The romance between Ariel and Eric felt a lot more organic. The little things that they added to their characters, a couple of extra scenes, made the connection between them feel real and genuine. They laid a foundation for a realistic relationship with shared passion and interests. Also Jonah and Halle had great chemistry.

-It was genuinely beautiful. I know we've seen the trailers and gifsets and gone "Eugh, that looks tacky" but in the theatre it looked so beautiful and vivid and real.

-The HAIR. The underwater HAIR. How did they animate that so well??? It looked amazing!

-Melissa McCarthy as Ursula: great casting. She WENT for it and it was super fun. Daveed Diggs as Sebastian was also delightful.

Cons:

- Halle's acting dramatically improved once she was "on the surface" and not against a green screen. I totally understand why but it was a little off putting for the first half of the movie.

-They commit the same sin as every movie nowadays: dogshit audio mixing. I mentioned that "uncharted waters" song? Had to go listen to it again after I saw the movie because I couldn't understand half the words. We've gotta hear the crashing waves instead of the dialogue I guess. 🙄

-Genuinely disliked the scuttlebutt rap. It felt so out of place. Just like "well Lin Manuel Miranda is writing and Awkwafina and Daveed Diggs are here, so let's shoehorn a rap into this"

-I'm sure there's a way Flounder could have been cuter. Give me a chubby fish dammit.

- When Ariel was touching all the jellyfish stingers, I viscerally cringed 😂

- (insert every single one of the usual critiques of Disney Live action remakes here)

Overall, I enjoyed the movie. I'm still not a fan of the Disney Live action remakes but this is a good addition to the canon.

(also I didn't touch on this because it's been discussed to death but I do think casting a black actor to play Ariel is unambiguously good 👍 Halle did great in the role)

[abookishdreamer]

Character Intro: Aplistos (Kingdom of Ichor)

Nicknames- The Golden God by the people of Olympius

Listos by his friends

Darling by his girlfriend

Age- 44 (immortal)

Location- Skyline district, New Olympus

Personality- He's confident, arrogant, & sure of himself with an enviable drive. He has a tendency to be selfish and unapologetically blunt while also looking down on others who don't meet his high standards/expectations. He's currently in a relationship.

He has the standard abilities of a god except shapeshifting. Being the god of avarice his other powers/abilities include limited chrimatakinesis (not to the level of Hermes, his ex-girlfriend, or current girlfriend), limited chrysopeia, supernatural thievery, limited illusion generation, hoarding inducement (temporarily in others), spending inducement (temporarily in others), obsession inducement (temporarily in others), and being able to sense & manipulate the greed in others.

Aplistos' main abode is his apartment on the top floor of The Chrysaor Courts, a luxury high rise apartment building in the Skyline neighborhood of New Olympus. The interior design is sleek and modern with a touch of olympian opulence. An ostentatious Imperial Gold chandelier dripping with woven diamonds hangs from the ceiling of the main hall. There's a spa room, an in-studio movie theater, a large walk-in closet that measures almost a 1,000 sq ft with the walls being painted in 24K gold paint, and most of the flooring is white oak with Imperial Gold & platinum accents. There's also leather furniture, marble & platinum furniture pieces, a state-of-the-art kitchen with stainless steel appliances- including the most expensive refrigerator (that has a 40,000 drachma price tag), and his bedroom- which has his exclusive mattress (stitched with real silver & gold) and the Imperial Gold/black opal bedframe. Aplistos is also overseeing the construction of his mansion that's being built in the state of Olympia. It's said that the foundation is being built on top of a major goldmine. He often shuttles back and forth from his place & his girlfriend's main apartment.

He has an animal companion- a dragon named Chrysarion that's widely known as "The Golden Flame." The beautiful beast is covered in gleaming gold scales and has cream colored wing membranes. Chrysarion is Aplistos' mode of transportation when traveling great distances or when he wants to make an entrance. Aplistos loves feeding him pounds of vintage cote de boeuf, which the dragon cooks himself with his fire!

Aplistos normally gets around in his car- a cream & gold high tech seamless machinery complete with custom high end finishes inside, a champagne fridge, and Imperial Gold spinners. His personal driver- a harpy named Aello drives.

A go-to drink for him is champagne. He also likes classic martinis, whiskey sours, gin & tonics, vodka shots, jack & cokes, beer, mojitos, and manhattans. Usuals for him from The Roasted Bean is an olympian sized dark roast coffee & a large iced tea.

Aplistos starts off his mornings with a high intensity workout at the gym before going home for an appointment with his personal masseuse, a mermaid named Aquaria. He'll sometimes go to the Gold Rays tanning salon for a quick tan.

He loves the breakfast made by his personal chef, a mortal man named Giles. A typical one for Aplistos is eggs benedict along with pain au chocolat topped with warm rhubarb compote, mushroom & fatina tartines, and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. He also likes when Giles makes his famous garlic & herb parmesan biscuit breakfast sandwich (that has scrambled eggs, black olives, smoked ham, and scallions).

Aplistos' list of people he cares about is a short one. It includes his younger sibling Aerin (goddess of the ethereal), his current girlfriend Orthosia (goddess of wealth), her son Chrysos (god of gold & riches), his ex-girlfriend Evimería (goddess of prosperity), and her son Caerus (god of opportunity & luck). Everyone else is met with general indififference.

He hates tattoos & ridiculous piercings.

One gift Aplistos likes is the flask his girlfriend gave to him. It's made of platinum and white gold & his covered in diamonds!

Not much is known (publicly or in the pantheon) how he came into his wealth. It's generally rumored that it started from his dealings in the black market.

Aplistos takes meticulous care and great pride in his physical appearance. His body is in peak physical shape, his hair effortlessly coiffed, his nails & facial hair neatly trimmed, his skin free of imperfections with a flawless golden glow, his teeth brilliantly white, and his clothes expertly tailored & wrinkle free.

His favorite frozen treat is vanilla vodka ice cream topped with lots of champagne whipped cream & edible gold leaves.

Evimería was Aplistos' first real serious relationship, their love growing over time. He was always grateful to her for being the first to see the good in him- that he was more than the "avaricious materialistic god." Aplistos enjoyed being a father figure towards her son. Things shifted when Aplistos started to prioritize work & gambling over his relationship. Sometimes, it'd be several weeks before Evimería saw or heard from him. The end began when Aplistos agreed to watch Caerus while Evimería went to a business meeting. Aplistos was also entertaining a small poker party so he sent Caerus to his bedroom to play video games. He was horrified later on when he opened his bedroom door. He saw one of his dresser slightly opened and Caerus laying on the floor unconscious with a ring of lotus dust around his mouth. Aplistos gathered Caerus in his arms, got on his dragon, & flew to the hospital where a doctor was able to treat the lotus dust toxicity. Evimería quickly rushed to the hospital when she got the news and was totally distraught. She slapped Aplistos a few times and ended their relationship.

A guilty pleasure for him is a slice of pepperoni hot honey pizza.

Aplistos fell hard and fast for Orthosia. He appreciates the fact that she wants them to maintain their independence even though they're a couple. He was the first to say "I love you." Aplistos also looks forward to the rare instances where she shows her vulnerability. For Orthosia's most recent birthday, Aplistos gifted her with a bra (and detachable belt) from Diamond Ave.- with 24K gold hardware, diamond straps, and it's adorned with over 6,500 precious gems including diamonds, blue topaz, purple garnet, pink morganite, & yellow citrine.

He supported Aerin during her transition. He found it interesting that she didn't opt for changing her name to a more feminine sounding one.

He loves listening to rock, hip-hop, and electronic music.

For other work/means of income Aplistos models for/endorses Platinum Alchemy (Zeus' men's fashion brand) and Shadow Specs. With his own personal endeavors, Aplistos has released a signature cologne aptly titled Emmonos. The fragrance notes include mahogany wood, coffee, roasted barley, & black vanilla. Another detail is the black opal bottle. The 8.4 oz bottle sells for 1,300 drachmas! He's also an executive producer on his girlfriend's upcoming business reality TV show titled Griffin's Den.

A favorite sweet treat of his are the glamour doughnuts from The Luxe, a high end eatery/shop. The doughnut is filled with champagne jelly, glazed with dark chocolate and passionfruit syrup, and is then dusted with edible gold & diamond dust. A price for one is nearly 2,000 drachmas.

In the pantheon Aplistos is friends with Neicus (god of debate & appeal), Apólafsi (god of enjoyment), Dolos (god of deception & treachery), Isorropía (Isorro) (god of duality, balance, & equilibrium), Apate (goddess of fraud & deception), Felis (Titaness of cats), Psionikós (god of the mind), Aisa (goddess of lot & fate), Favian (god of philosophy), Hybris (goddess of insolence, hubris, & reckless pride), Dyssebeia (goddess of ungodliness & impiety), Helios (Titan god of the sun), Epimetheus (Titan god of afterthought), and Priapus (god of fertility, vegetable gardens, livestock, sexuality, & masculinity). He also greatly admires Pseudologos (god of lies), who was also his official mentor.

Aplistos was the official mentor to Zelus (god of envy, jealousy, & zeal).

At the spa he loves getting the liquid gold facial.

Aplistos has been enjoying hanging out with Chrysos. They often frequent the Golden Grove country club to play golf.

His all time favorite meal is double grilled caviar stuffed salmon drizzled in lemon butter sauce and garlic rice.

In his free time Aplistos enjoys tanning, working out, sunbathing, football (soccer), poker, surfing, clubbing, tennis, playing pool, swimming, shopping, dining out, & golf.

"Greed is a bottomless pit which exhausts the being in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satisfaction."