#But since I read their World Underneath story I feel like they would both still obscure their face

[multifandomsimagine]

Imagine going to an amusement park with Sylus, Luke, and Kieran for your birthday

— Birthday Present for @cantstoptheimagines —

"Boss, she cheated!" Luke cries out, throwing a hand over his forehead and jostling his sunglasses as he does so. Acting like he's in great despair, Luke falls back as if he had fainted and Kieran stretches out his arms to catch his older brother. He lets his head flop to the side, his black face mask covers his face but you know that he's probably hiding a smile underneath it.

Quick to follow his twin's lead, Kieran fans his brother's face with his hand as he begins to wail. "Luke, no! Don't go into the light!" Though you can't see his face because he was donning the same sunglasses and face mask as Luke, Kieran was probably putting on an award-winning performance.

Holding the crow plushie the stall owner had given you for winning the duck shooting game, your eyes narrow as you stare at the twins, letting out a huff at their theatrics though a smile threatens to break out on your face. "I didn't cheat! I shot that last duck fair and square. It's not my fault I was quicker."

You turn to face Sylus who is walking a few steps behind the three of you, his arms crossed across his chest and an amused look on his face. Standing in place so he could reach you, your free hand rests on your waist. When he reaches you, your eyes meet his red ones and he raises an eyebrow at you, waiting for you to speak. "You saw that I didn't cheat, right Sylus?"

Grabbing his chin with one hand, Sylus lets out a hum as if in deep thought, and recalling the incident that happened just a few minutes ago was huge trouble. His eyebrows furrow and his eyes jump between the three of you. A smirk grows on his face at how each of you stares expectantly at him, eager to see who he would side with.

"I don't know, kitten. I think I recall you pushing Luke during the game."

Your eyes widen at Sylus' statement and you let out an indignant gasp. You throw the plushie at him which he catches with ease as he lets out a loud laugh at your offended reaction. "I did not cheat! I'm a Deepspace Hunter on the Alpha Team. Why would I need to cheat in a shooting game? I'm a genius with guns!"

Crossing your arms across your chest, you face Luke and Kieran with a determined look on your face. Then let's have a rematch! I'll show you that my win was not a fluke." Turning to look at Sylus, you stick your tongue out at him, ignoring the way he chuckles at you. "And that I don't need to cheat to win."

[intrepidacious]

❤️ a good time!

tat!bucky’s favorite (or least favorite) thing about twelve

… why not both?

cause and effect

chapter summary: How Bucky fell in love with Twelve: Slowly, and then all at once.

pairing: bucky barnes x time witch!reader

word count: 1.8k

warnings: light angst and negative self talk (this is bucky y'all); some light pining 🤭please note that my blog is rated 18+. minors dni. ageless/empty blogs will be blocked without warning.

a/n: i've literally had this one in my drafts for about two years and i hadn't actually planned on posting it for a while yet but i did promise distractions. and i missed him. i always do.

this is part of the time after time universe but can be read as a teaser and/or a standalone 💚

Bucky’s relationship with time has been fractured ever since a cold day in January that stole away the life he was headed towards and turned him into the monster underneath a child’s bed.

It’s hard to feel good about the concept of time travel once a lot of your own time has been taken away from you. Even now, there’s only so many things in his life he has control over; like the fact that he’s actively choosing to go back to therapy now, or that he’s able to keep a pet for the first time since he was thirteen years old. Stupid little things, like what kind of food he wants for lunch or whether he should take the stairs or the elevator.

Every single one of these things he’s fought for tooth and nail, clawing his way out of the past and carving out his own space in reality again, struggling, trying, hanging on like he wasn’t able to all those decades ago.

He’s probably still failing.

Some days, clinging to the present is tense and brings him nothing but grief. Sometimes, it feels like he’s going to have to mourn the past forever, whatever might have been; and maybe that’s his sentence.

He wouldn’t have wished it on anyone. He deserves worse.

And then there’s you.

Flickering in and out of time, constantly moving, changing in the time it takes him to blink.

It’s infuriating to him, the way you get to use your powers. The way you don’t need to think about consequences, because they don’t have to be permanent, don’t have to be something you need to live with for the rest of your life. To you, time has always been something that can be changed with a single snap of your fingers. Whatever you do can just as easily be undone.

Once you decide you’ve seen enough, you can just take the scene from the top.

And you’re so stubborn.

You’ve already seen how this goes on if you let it, and so you’re always right, end of story. There’s an ease to your steps because of it, a nonchalance in every movement, and it makes Bucky’s blood boil to see it so plainly.

With all the good that you could do, you choose to do nothing instead; to stay out of the picture entirely and burn through your powers just because you can, wasting them all on things that don’t mean anything.

How many lives could you potentially save?

Instead, you consume disturbing amounts of caffeine and then continue to provide running commentary to the world around you based on things that, to him, never happen at all. "Do this", "don’t do that", "take the other one", or, his absolute favorite, "don’t make me fix that".

Why not? he wants to ask, say, demand. Why not fix all of it?

It takes a while for him to realize that all of your fire means you’re burning from both ends. In fact, it takes Becca.

"You should bring her by sometime," she tells him on a rainy afternoon. "While I’m still alive and kicking."

His little sister just turned ninety-eight. Her kitchen sideboard is filled with black-and-white pictures reminding him of all the things in her life that he missed, arranged in perfect little wooden frames.

"And why would I do that?" Bucky asks, scowling at his cards.

"Because you keep mentioning her," Rebecca says dryly and whisks the cards onto her pile with quick fingers.

"You gotta be kidding me," he groans, noting down her points. "And I don’t."

"Do, too. I don’t remember you being this terrible at this game."

"Because I haven’t caught you when you’re cheating."

"Exactly. It’s embarrassing." She wins the next trick, too. "How’s Tuesday?"

"Am I clairvoyant now?"

"I was thinking lunch."

"No." Finally, he gets a couple of points down. When he glances up at his sister again, she’s looking at him expectantly and he sighs. "What?"

"You can’t fault me for being curious," she says. She has just as many opinions as she did when she was sixteen. Her eyes are still the same, too, the same shade of blue as his and the same glimmer of archness as their mother.

"Don’t you think it’s weird?" Bucky says, finally giving in. "The whole … time thing?"

"I think it’s very weird, but so’s you returning from the dead and kvetching about it." Her eyes narrow when he starts to protest. His mouth closes again. "Besides," she continues, shuffling her hand around, "it doesn’t sound all that fun."

"To have the power to never make mistakes?"

"To have to live through every mistake twice without anyone knowing."

Something about her words strikes him like a match, and so he tilts his head and squints at her and thinks that maybe, just maybe, he’s got it wrong.

That you carry not only your past, but all the futures you’ve seen that never came to be; all the what ifs having turned into answers.

And he thinks, how nice. And then he thinks, how horrifying.

It’s a thought that follows him over the next couple of weeks, and it starts reframing your interactions for him, in a way.

"Will you stop staring at me," you say without looking up from your book.

Honestly, he can’t. He’s still trying to pick up on it, the split second between before and after, that little change of your posture, your hair, your face, that tells him more time has passed for you than it has for him.

It’s more of a feeling than anything else, something right at the back of his mind telling him that something is different if he concentrates on it enough, but he’s never sure what it is. And he doesn’t like that; not one bit.

So Bucky crosses his arms and leans back. "Why?"

A flash of irritation makes your nose twitch, even though you still refuse to meet his eye.

"It’s rude, for one."

"Noted." He waits for the two that never comes. "Anything else?"

And there it is. A blink-and-you-miss-it kind of moment, like the air shifting around you ever so slightly, a certain knowing glint in your eyes when you roll them and get up.

"Annoying!"

He can’t help it. He wonders what your original answer was.

***

Bucky’s relationship with time changes slowly, the deepest cuts carefully mending themselves until looking back doesn’t feel like getting his bones ripped apart anymore, until he looks at you on a cold day in January and realizes he’s fucked.

At first, he hopes that it might be a fluke. A trick of the light, maybe, or seasonal allergies. That’s the reason why his eyes are drawn to your face as soon as he enters a room; the closest source of discomfort always the thing he seeks out first. That’s the reason why his chest constricts like that.

But the truth is, he knows this feeling has been building slowly; he’s just been unwilling to admit it.

Something soft and delicate has started to nestle in that gaping hole inside his chest, unbothered by the walls he’s so carefully built up.

He’d never planned on you.

Fuck, if he’d known in the beginning, he might’ve …

No, he thinks. He wouldn’t have changed anything.

Because you’re too good for him, anyway, and he knows it. Smart and strong and funny and gorgeous and capable of things he’s not sure he’ll ever fully comprehend; and it’s worse than that, because he knows you now.

You’re grouchy in the mornings and you make terrible jokes when you’re nervous and you have a strange feud with his cat and your smile makes him want to put his fist through the wall because what is he supposed to do with any of this?

He’s not made for this dance anymore. That part was taken from him so long ago, and he’s delusional to think that anything or anyone could return it to him after all the bridges he’d been made to cross and burn. Why would someone like him deserve to be given tenderness anymore in this life? Why would anyone want to try?

But that foolish thing blooming inside him feels a lot like hope, despite of what he keeps telling himself.

There’s just something about you that keeps pulling him in, and honestly, he’s tired of fighting it. Then again, the thought of you feeling the same is nothing short of ridiculous.

He’s not the same guy as he used to be. Hell, sometimes he’ll look at old photographs and barely recognize himself.

He remembers life before, and maybe that’s what makes this so hard. He remembers talking to pretty girls, their bright smiles, their soft skin underneath his hands. Good times were easy to come by, even though life was hard in a different way, then. But he was good at it; acting on his feelings alone used to be simple, fun, second-nature almost.

It’s different now.

It used to be different only once before, and look where that’s gotten him.

No, he can’t say anything. Not ever; or not yet, at any rate.

Sometimes, though, Bucky lies awake at night and listens to the rain knocking against his window, and he remembers how much easier falling asleep used to be when he had someone next to him and his mattress didn’t swallow him alive.

He’ll remember the dark circles under your eyes and wish it could be as easy as asking, too. He wonders if there’s a universe you remember where he tries, but he doubts it.

These days, he knows his mind again. And it’s not a burden he wants to share.

You have enough to carry on your own.

Maybe, he thinks as he stares up at the ceiling at three in the morning, maybe there’s still a certain comfort in your powers, in knowing all the possibilities, but it also means constantly losing something that’s real; always mourning the life that isn’t.

He can relate to that.

And maybe that means you can relate to him, too, at least a little bit.

It’s odd, how comforting that last little thought is to him.

When he does eventually fall asleep, you make your way into his dreams, too, sometimes. Those times are the worst.

You’re you, and he’s him, and there’s a sort of "us" in the both of you that doesn’t exist in real life. So when you let him lace his fingers with yours and press your lips to his forehead and it feels easy, that’s usually the point when he wakes up, heart tumbling over itself, right hand tracing the ghost of your touch, always too much, never enough.

He knows it’s not real.

He knows it’s just an indulgence; selfish, really.

The problem is that whatever small hope has decided to settle in his very core is impossible to kill, no matter how much he pushes it down; and he’s not sure he wants to lose it again.

Secretly, silently, serendipitously, you make him have faith in the future again.

But it’s not time for it yet.

if you want to read more about these two (plus a lot of time related shenanigans), read the main series here. or check out the rest of my bucky fics, that's also an option 💚 i don't do tag lists but you can follow @intrepidacious-fics for update notifications

[narcjsistx]

𝐔𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃 | kaiser x reader

— part twelve

plot: kaiser comforted you after a bad and slow breakup, but what will happen now considering what you two shared? is everything still unexpected or is there something you both simply have yet to realize?. fluff shit 'cause yeah!!

words: 3.2k (3203)

extra: it will probably become a multi part story, tell me if you're interested in a part thirteen!

𝐌𝐘 𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 ; take a look, trust me!. you can find the other parts of the story by searching in the section dedicated to bllk

If revenge took so much time, you weren't sure you wanted to take revenge against Gabriel and possibly Ursula. You had been spending all your time calculating your ex's steps in great detail for a month now, trying to find the tip of the iceberg that hid a world of mistakes underneath; but you couldn't find this tip, and you were starting to lose hope. You knew for a fact that Gabriel had a lot of secrets that the more hidden the worse they were, but you couldn't figure out where to start to unmask these secrets of his. You can't help but admit that he's a smart person, and he's definitely trying to use this potential to hide all his mistakes

After that night, Kaiser had decided to take his vacation early to enjoy some time with you, and in his humble opinion you yourself needed your boyfriend to work better and send Gabriel to hell. It was Kaiser's cute way of saying he wanted to be around you, you knew, but it made you laugh to imagine him as if he were at home planning some sort of murder with his soccer ball. Besides, since you had that hysterical crying fit, you had never found yourself without breakfast ready in the morning and someone to take you to and from work. Some paparazzi had intercepted Michael in the car, but so far you were not in any other current scandal. If they had started something you would have simply shut everyone, the media and the entire world, with yet another excuse

You pick up the phone, retrieving it after hours in the hands of the stylists, who have used your body for at least four consecutive hours with the clothes of the next fashion show. Today in the agency there are few models, you and a few others scattered throughout the entire building; Ursula should be in her office and there is no trace of Gabriel since this morning. It's a pretty boring day, the next show is still far away and many prefer to stay home and come in the afternoon, if they have to. You could have stayed in the arms of your beloved boyfriend in your soft and warm bed, but if you really want to find out something about Gabriel you have to be around all the time

And if that means wasting hours you could spend with Kaiser, you'll do it for now. You sighs, checking messages you've received

mihya ♡

— Return home at least for lunch is not an idea, right? — 12:08

— I take that as a no, schatz — 13:10

you — I was busy, sorry love — 13:20

— I had guessed it. But for dinner I want to order from that french food shop that disgusts you, so be ready — 13:21

you — Obviously I'll eat before I return home, disgusting boyfriend — 13:21

— You are hurting me badly. You might not find your favorite socks when you get home — 13:22

you — MICHEAL KAISER TOUCH THOSE SOCKS AND I SWEAR TO GO BACK TO ITALY, I SWEAR — 13:23

— You're always so sweet, schatz. Any news on your evil plan of destruction? — 13:23

you — None other than I'm thinking of giving up. That bastard seems to have everything hidden so perfectly, my god. I thought I had learned to read he at least a little after years, but apparently not. I'm thinking of just making up something far away that he might have done and making it the news of the century. It looks cool — 13:25

— You could say he cheated on you, manipulated you, maybe even slapped you once, and you wouldn't even be lying — 13:26

you — I don't know whether to be amused by the fact that you're absolutely right or to feel stupid for letting him act like that — 13:27

— The one that make you feel better, or the one that make you come home to me now — 13:27

you — Mihya :(( — 13:28

— Shall I pick you up then? — 13:29

As you are about to write 'yes' to Kaiser you notice someone passing by you, proceeding towards his destination with a certain hurry. You look up, noticing that that someone is Gabriel, who strangely did not bother you as he usually does. His face is a bit worried, and his pace is hurried as he begins to climb the steps that lead directly to Ursula's office. He has a folder in his hand, from witch a sheet of paper accidentally slips out, ending up on the steps

You put your phone in your pocket, making a mental note to answer your boyfriend. You walk a few meters away from Gabriel, who disappears from your life as soon as he passes the highest staircase. You run to the place where the paper fell, pick it up and sit for a moment on a nearby step, taking a long sigh. The last time you had to deal with secret papers you almost risked ending your friendship with Kaiser, but in the end the result is having him as a boyfriend. Will it bring you luck this time or not? You ask yourself this because, deep down, you know that this paper is important, maybe really important. You yake a little preparatory sigh as you begin to observe

The sheet is presented with simple data about the models and their paychecks. For some more information are written, such as their age and how long they have been working for the agency, but reading it you cannot find your name. You reread the paper several times, but you can't find yours. Why, even though you work here, you are not on the list of models?. You search for the name of some model you are more or less friends with, and at the bottom of the description of one you find a somewhat strange sentence

"Alleged friend of X. Seen with her more than a few times, probably they have an informal relationship. Seems to know about X's situation, possible collaborator. She might ask for a raise, a higher position at the next fashion show, or a transfer to another agency"

You reread the sentence several times, not fully understanding it. What should she be a collaborator for?. Also, she's a model who's been in the agency for a short time, and you're the only one she has any sort of relationship with. You'd like to avoid thinking about it, but you think X is a code name they gave you, for who knows what reason. You turn the sheet over, and in the white part you find a small erased note, still half legible

"She simply asked for a pay rise and more vacation days during the christmas period. She will provide information via messages during the day. X should have told her about deleted and maybe some details about her old deleted"

The girl in question then spoke, but on what topic? If it's really you X, you've never told this girl anything personal, except some old stories from when you were in other agencies, but those have nothing really important. Did she lie?. You get up from the step, walking towards Ursula's office with a cautious step, hoping not to find anyone on your way. Arriving in front of the door you look from inside the crack to see if there is anyone, but you are surprised to see absolutely no one and to find the door open, which is strange considering that Ursula is very reserved. You inadvertently find yourself opening the door, being careful not to let anyone nearby see you. You look in the office, but while you are looking on her desk you hear voices, two that you recognize well, talking; you think they are coming from the corridor, but when you check you don't find anyone. You go back into the office, and noticing the door of the personal bathroom slightly open you are convinced that the voices are coming from there. Cautiously you hide behind the wall that separates the bathroom from the office, trying to figure out why they are in the bathroom and why they are Gabriel and Ursula in question. Maybe you have seriously found the last thing you needed to unmask Gabriel, or at least you hope

"So?"

"You saw the papers I gave you, right? She has few relationships here, with the other models. The only one who agreed to talk said she'll call me tonight or send me messages, but I don't know why I can't find the paper where I wrote it... maybe it stayed at my house. I don't really care, I just need to know that I'll finally have some material in my hands"

"And will it be enough?"

"I suppose so, after all the media doesn't take much to ruin a person, and she's not in such a good situation already. Give me a week and you'll get what you want too"

"I've been waiting for two years, Gabriel. I'm fed up, if it doesn't work this time I'll do it my way, and you know my methods aren't exactly legal"

"Trust me, you'll get what you want and I'll get what I need. I just need to get those messages tonight and by tomorrow you can already say you're her"

"Now I really like the way you talk"

"Maybe you already love me but you don't want to admit it"

"Let's go step by step, I'll think about that later"

"Do as you wish, darling. Just think that from tomorrow Y/n will no longer be her but you will be her. The dream you have been living for will finally come true, and that slut will end up in some forgotten place. No longer the stylist, but now the model, my dear Ursula"

You are petrified, hearing their words. Even without knowing the situation, you already know that those two are doing everything they can to get you down once and for all, probably using something much more powerful than scandal.

"No longer the stylist, but now the model. And you, dear Gabriel, no longer the founder, but the general boss"

You pick up your phone, going to Kaiser chat to start a voice message. You need to record, you know you need to if you want to get out clean off this situation. You're ignoring the tremors that are plaguing you, because now you really need to concentrate, it's for your final win

"Anyway, I really don't believe it took two whole years to get to this point. On the one hand, I'm also sorry I treated her like that, it wasn't that bad... she's nice, more or less. But if treating her this way means I get where I want to go I don't care, or maybe I never really cared about her"

"Two years because, I don't know how, she withstood the scandal. I suspected she would swallow it completely, but evidently she still has some tricks up her sleeve. Then I can't imagine what's going on between her and her fucking best friend, the famous soccer player I mean, Kaiser Micheal. Will they fuck?"

"Maybe yes, maybe no. I honestly don't know if she hasn't let anyone else touch her after me yet"

Oh well Gabriel, you have pretty high hopes. You and Kaiser had fucked a few hours after you broke up, let's say you hadn't wasted any time

"You're just a junkie, Gabriel. You ruined that poor girl for your own interests!"

"Are you speaking, Ursula? Destroying someone who has never done anything to you is not exactly good behavior, dear. Being obsessed with the idea of Y/n just because she is actually a successful model, something you couldn't become, is a bit of bad behavior... you even went so far as to ask her beloved boyfriend for help"

"And you destroyed her to become the boss of the TraumLaufsteg, silly"

You've had enough, you get up and leave the office in a hurry, running as fast as you can towards your dressing room. Everything is so damn clear to you, finally something has formed with a logical thread, and damn, this time you even have the proof. You don't know how for two years you didn't notice anything, but finally everything is clearer to you; you won, really won. You arrive in your dressing room, closing the door behind you as you rush to the couch, once again taking up the chat with Kaiser where your most precious evidence rests. You sigh deeply, listening to the audio of less than 5 minutes, where Gabriel basically unmasks himself together with Ursula. You notice that Micheal has viewed the message, and because of the emotion you can't even write, so you opt for a voice message

"Mihya... we'll talk about it at home. But trust me, trust me, this time I've really won, this time I can make him look like a monster, this time I can seriously-" you say excitedly, but you turn when you hear footsteps in the hallway that you would recognize anywhere. The door to the room opens, and the smiling figure of Gabriel makes your blood run cold "Am I disturbing you?" he say "What the fuck are you doing here?" you say, getting up from the couch, and he shrugs "Nothing big. I just think you listened to too much" he says, as if he hadn't just dropped a bomb. He saw you, you don't know how, but he saw you. But this time it won't be a problem to be there, this time you decided that he won't hurt you "I heard, oh yes I heard, you piece of shit" you say taking a few steps forward "How good, my sweet Y/n. She still knows how to spy and listen" he say giving a small laugh, but grabbing your chin "So, what would you like to do? Who would believe the naive girl who everyone believes betrayed the genius of Italian fashion? Do you really think your opinion counts so much compared to mine?" he asks, mixing seriousness with a hint of sarcasm. You don't look down, but you suddenly have a little plan in mind, if everything is happening as you think "Gabriel... god, I hadn't thought of that. You're not entirely wrong" you say, faking a surprised and sorry tone, while you lower your gaze, as if you want to make him feel superior. He raises an eyebrow, smirking when he sees you so defeated, so naive and innocent "You see? You know it too"

Showing yourself weak might help the plan you just came up with. You hate to do it right now when you were showing yourself strong, but if the outcome is what you imagine, you have to do it

"And this time you want to send me down too. How did I not notice that..." you say mortified, and he seems to be convinced "You're so stupid, you don't act so strong when Kaiser's not around, right? Look, I guess you guys fuck, or maybe I don't even know, but I don't care. This time he's not around" he says smiling "And you are the umpteenth brainless and alone with a badly used potential. You could have remained silent in your place and lived at least another year without me having done anything to you, we would still be a couple and only then would I have spoken against you. And yet no, you acted like a bitch and unleashed a huge mess, coming here in Germany"

Gabriel continues, caressing your face "It was never my intention to hurt you, sweetie. The first year was beautiful between us, remember? We lived well in Milan and you paraded like a professional model, even though you had never been in the industry that much... good times. But then you found out about my first cheat, but you didn't leave, silly girl, because you loved me so much. And so, while you were growing in fame, I suddenly became 'Y/n's boyfriend' and no longer the fucking founder of the biggest Italian modeling agency of the moment, and it bothered me darling, it bothered me so fucking much, because I fucking created you. And so while I was looking for some German stylist to open a fashion agency in Germany I met Ursula, who coincidentally was so obsessed with you. She who has always walked the catwalk never got your fame, and she got fed up with creating clothes but not wearing them, and she wants to be you so much, amore mio. So while she became the boss of the TraumLaufsteg, keeping my identity a secret, I continued to cheat on you, and you always noticed everything, baby. The goal was to push you down as much as possible, I would become the official boss of the TraumLaufsteg, which I would later merge with my Italian agency, since Ursula would finally become a model and could give me the role. Because I depend on you, but you depend on me, slut. And if that meant making you the shittiest person in the world, painting you as a traitor, I would have done it. And I did, because I knew you would go down and I could finally take over as the boss of the TraumLaufsteg. And yet you got back up even after the scandal, and I don't know how"

Finally, everything is clearer to you. Gabriel's words come out like a raging river, and you don't know if you're still looking sad, because inside you're dying of happiness. You knew it was shit, you knew it damn well, and he admitted it. You loved a piece of shit that has now exposed itself, without him knowing it. You had been stupid, so damn stupid to let everything slide, but you finally had everything in your hands

"So you admit that you cheated on me...?" you ask sounding desperate, and he nods happily "More than you can imagine. You're gorgeous, I can't lie, but you're more type for a long term relationship, and in the fashion world relationships between people last as long as a fashion show. I've probably been with seven or eight different women... maybe a few more" he says thinking about it "And you painted me in front of the media as a monster" you say, returning to the main topic. He shrugs, sighing, "Give the media what they want, right? No one would ever imagine you would cheat on me, but remember, my opinion carries some weight. I've made up so much bullshit about you that I can't even remember anymore, but look where you are now... you're about to sink. And I love this thing"

You sigh, falling dramatically to the floor as you cover your face "I can’t believe this…" you say, but you’re hiding a laugh. It’s all working out, it’s all worked out, you’ve got it all. Gabriel chuckles softly, giving your hair a light caress before leaving the room "Sorry again, sweetie. Don’t make me feel too bad, good fall into hell"

He leaves, the room is finally empty and silent again. You stand up, moving towards the couch where the phone is still open, and the audio in Kaiser's chat is still recording, and Michael's online

You won. You fucking won

tag(s): @rroxii ; @kittenish0 ; @bungoustraydogsno1fan ; @sabrina-senpai ; @vannilaa16 ; @kaz-0e (if you want to be tagged tell me!)

[ameliemaaaee]

Acting Like I Can't Read Your Mind

Prologue

Chapter Information Summary: When a news report shakes Y/N, Spencer is there to support her. Pairing: S.R x F!Autistic! Reader. Category: Angst/Comfort. Content Warnings: Anxious!Reader, reader straddles spencer. Word Count: 1,677. Read on AO3

Story Masterlist - Prologue - Chapter 1 - -

The sound of your slippers pattering, and the tie-cord of your dressing grown trailing softly against the cool hardwood floor behind you filled the quiet room. You rubbed your eyes as golden sunlight beamed in through the large windows, reflecting off the avocado green walls, and creating a hazy glow that highlighted films of dust on the bookshelves that encompassed the rooms.

The criss-cross of sunlight was warm against your skin as you bathed in it, plopping yourself elegantly down onto the leather sofa, it squeaks against the bare skin of your legs as you leaned forwards plucking the latest newspaper from the stained wood coffee table in front of you. You settle down into the sofa, pulling your legs up underneath you and thumbing the pages slightly enjoying that book-ish scent that was released as you flicked the soft, worn pages of the newsprint.

Despite it only just being a reasonable time for any normal person to be awake the newspaper was already obviously read repeatedly if the dogeared, and creased pages were anything to go by. One page stood out as being well-loved in its short lifespan, if the small ink smudged on the page, and creases on the corners where the reader had fiddled anxiously were anything to go by.

As you settled on the warm leather, taking a moment to enjoy the sunlight, you pulled your legs up underneath you, getting comfortable as you began to scan the pages of the newspaper slowly, searching for something interesting, something good going on in the world.

You felt a sense of content as the room fell into silence, with only the sound of distant turning pages, and breathing to accompany your own.

The sound reminded you of many Sunday mornings, where you prioritised being present, being still, being together.

Throughout your relationship with Spencer Reid, it had become apparent that constant conversation, constant socialisation could very quickly become draining despite the fact there was no one else you’d rather do it with. You’d since made an effort to spend time together, without words, without conversation, and without the pressure of the dreaded social cues that plagued every other aspect of your lives.

It reminded you of days where your relationship was secret; tentative; and to both parties, seemingly unrequited.

Where you struggled with, the pressures that relationships placed on your under practiced social abilities, and Spencer had to battle the expectations placed upon him by others.

It reminded you of stolen glances in the hallways, of coffee cups filled to the brim with creamy hot chocolate that would make their way onto your desk in the most mysterious breech of FBI security ever seen.

It reminded you of discovery, of curiosity, and of exploration. It reminded you of that feeling that you get in the pit of your stomach when everything you ever wanted was on the line.

-

You sighed contentedly, breaking the streak of only small breaths, purring, and pages flicking.

“What are you feeling?” It was a question Spencer often posed you, one he used when he knew you couldn’t quite piece your emotions together in your own mind, one that initiated a conversation filled with meaning, and emotion.

“I’m not sure.” It was your rehearsed answer, the one that you used when it felt stupid to say out loud; Spencer knows this.

“Mhmm” The shuffling of leather breaks up the sound of his voice as slippers shuffle across the floor towards you.

You lift your head from the newspaper you haven’t even got around to opening. Your eyes meet hazel ones, brimming with compassion, and something else you can’t quite place.

Spencer had a way with you, he always has done, even since you joined the team Hotch had vouched for you two as a pair, working together as professionals; a way that seems so distant to you both now.

He sits down beside you, maintaining your space, allowing you to come to him; and you do. You shuffle out of the beam of sunlight and into something even warmer, even better.

As you relax into Spencer’s side, he furrows his brow as he notices what you’re reading.

“You don’t normally read the newspapers I pick up.” He says it as though it’s a statement, because it is. He knows everything he needs to know from your actions, not your explanations. A leftover skill from his days at the BAU you suppose.

“I have an odd feeling today.” You say simply fixing your gaze on the sheets as something catches your eye, a familiar combination of letters jumps out at you all of a sudden, amongst the graphic, chaotic front-page headlines.

“The BAU is mentioned.” It’s almost quiet enough that you don’t expect Spencer to hear it, but you can tell by his stiffening he does. He quickly relaxes however, as the flicking of pages close to your ear resumes.

-

Grocery Store Hero Blows Whistle on FBI’s Shady Tactics! Shock and Outrage as FBI's Behavioural Analysis Unit Caught in Controversial Operation Written by: Otis Vilea

In a bombshell revelation that's shaking the nation, a Facebook Live video posted on Monday, April 21, has exposed the FBI's Behavioural Analysis Unit (BAU) using highly questionable investigation methods. The footage, which has gone viral on various anti-government Facebook pages, shows bestselling author and FBI agent David Rossi tailing an unidentified woman out of a suburban grocery store as she runs desperately to her husband, Elias. The video has ignited a firestorm of public outrage, with citizens decrying the invasive tactics displayed by the BAU. This scandal couldn't come at a worse time for the FBI, as government distrust has been on a sharp rise since 2020. Privacy concerns are at an all-time high, and many are asking: just how far will the FBI go to solve a case? Rossi, known for his riveting crime novels as well as his role within the FBI, appears to have stepped into a real-life controversy, bringing to light practices that many find disturbingly intrusive. In the footage, Rossi is seen shadowing the woman as she races through the aisles, ultimately making a break for her husband, Elias. As the video circulates across anti-government platforms, the public is left questioning the ethical boundaries of their protectors. What kind of example is the BAU setting for the very people they have sworn to serve and protect?

-

“Spence-“ You gasp, flinging the paper down into your lap, the fluttering of pages interrupting your groan as you turn your head, your eyes meeting his.

“This is bad… really fucking bad!” Your voice raises an octave as you break his gaze and stare off into space unable to process what you’ve just read. Spencer frowns as he watches you go somewhere in your mind, but he doesn’t interrupt, he lets you process what you’ve just read.

You knew that the BAU had been busy, Emily’s messages , or lack there of pretty much summed it up. You hadn’t seen more than 5 times since you took a sabbatical to teach at Georgetown just prior to the pandemic in 2020.

Never in a million years did you think you’d be seeing your former FBI unit, and coworker mentioned in such a scandal, not with Emily Prentiss now sitting at the helm of section chief.

“I wonder what they’re thinking right now.” You whisper, picking up the paper and tossing it back onto the coffee table. Spencer’s gaze is fixed on you as you watch the pages flutter across the table, landing on the hardwood floor on the other side.

“Y/N.” Spencer says slowly, pulling his arm around you as you hear something plop down on the coffee table. Your gaze remains fixed on the table edge where the paper disappeared.

“Y/N-“ He whispers into your ear this time snapping you out of your reverie. You jump slightly before meeting his gaze, feeling a blush rise on your cheeks. You feel him study you slowly, trying to work out why your reaction was so out-of-character.

“It’s alright my love, they pull through.” He says slowly, tracing a finger over the reddened tops of your cheek, tracing across the bridge of your nose.

Your eyes fall to his discarded copy of ‘War and Peace’ practically falling apart on the leather couch beside him. You nod, refusing to meet his gaze as you feel his hand trail down under your chin, lifting it up ever so gently, forcing your E/C eyes to meet his.

“Have you spoken to any of them recently?” Your question was timid, you’d hoped that maybe he had, but at the same time that meant that they had chosen his messages over yours. Spencer’s gaze trails away from you as he thumbs the pages of his dilapidated book.

“No.” He says simply before gazing back at you, a half-smile crossing his face.

You studied his eyes for as long as you could, without feeling uncomfortable. You noted the small specs of green that littered his eyes, and that glimpse of concern he felt at your earlier reaction, before returning your gaze to his lap.

You felt Spencer’s arms slowly snake around your waist, letting out a squeak in surprise as he hastily pulls you into his lap, making putting your eye level at his.

“Look at me.” He says simply and you do as you’re told, holding his gaze, whilst trying to ignore the butterflies that ran rampant in your tummy. His left hand trailed down from your waist, resting on your hip as he scooted you forwards more.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” He leans down his breath tickling the hairs behind your ears as he whispers trailing his right hand up to your jaw, his thumb trailing the blush that decorated the high points of your cheekbones.

His lips met yours softly, his hand cradling your jaw, his touches ever so soft. You could feel his eyelashes fluttering against your skin as you melted into him, any stress you had simply melting away. Spencer made you feel that funny feeling. Spencer made you feel safe.

Spencer was safe.

Story Masterlist - Prologue - Chapter 1 -

Authors Note: Hey guys! This story is such a bare-bones work in progress but i was just too excited to post it for you guys. Criminal Minds Evolution is blowing my mind and I wanted to imagine a situation with an established S.RxReader relationship.

I hope you enjoy <3

A x

[kokoch4n3l]

˗ˏˋ stay in my memories ࿐ྂ “‘cause it’s still on my clothes, everything that I own and it makes me feel like dying”

summary: It's been about 10 years since you last saw him. since any of you last saw him. but tonight as you're back from the after-party of Mitsuya's show you walked, Mikey shows up at your apartment. drunk.

notes: based on memories by conan grey. lowkey a self-insert lol. please read the warnings before you read !!

warnings: mentions of past violence, mentions of past sexual relations, toxic relationships, body image issues, oc is skinny!, mentioned/implied eating issues/disorders(ARFID), mentioned and talk of weight issues, alcohol use, weapons(guns), intoxication, Mikey being the bitchass ex that comes back when you're finally healed, insensitive!mikey, not edited

pairing: bonten!mikey x model!oc

word count: 2787

Her back hits the elevator wall as it moves up stories. It’d take a while for her to get to her floor. It was right underneath the penthouse after all. She worked hard for the money so she deserved to live in a nice place like a luxury high-rise building. The penthouse was unoccupied at the time she moved in and the owner had even given her the offer of it but it was huge. The place would go to waste as she lived alone, no longer rooming with Tachibana Hinata who had moved back in with her younger brother. She sighs and stares up the ceiling of the elevator and sighs tiredly. Her body ached but not as much as her feet did in the heels she was wearing. “Fuck” she mumbles and pulls them off her feet

She rolls her ankles as she stands back up straight, holding her heels in one hand. After an obnoxiously long elevator right, she finally reaches her apartment. Typing in the code, she enters and leaves her heels on the rack and locks the door. Her apartment is empty just like it should be. She had gotten used to being alone after middle school ended and everyone was too busy with their lives. It was middle school when Tokyo Manji Gang had disbanded and although she wasn’t a part of the gang(for very obvious reasons), it felt like the world was ending. But that wasn’t the end, a meteorite had crashed down on her when Sano ‘Mikey’ Manjiro cruelly broke her heart a week after the captains buried the time capsule. She never saw him again after that. She didn’t want to. She even declined Kawargi Senju’s request to join Brahman just so she didn’t have to see Mikey. She didn’t care that all of Mikey’s old friends were trying to bring him back or whatever that meant. It wasn’t her problem. Mikey broke her heart and very clearly stated he didn’t want anything to do with her so she wasn’t about to be hard to get rid of. “In today’s news, Japan’s most wanted gang, Bonten, has been—”

She tunes out the news and switches to another channel playing reruns of Naruto. She gets up and heads over to the large floor-to-ceiling windows and draws the curtains open, revealing the vast view of Tokyo in front of her. Another tired sigh leaves her. She’s still in that mini dress Mitsuya made for her for the after-party. Mitsuya held a fashion show for his new line. Many famous people attended and many famous people walked the runway, including her. It was about 5 years ago that Mitsuya had encouraged her to start modelling along with Hakkai. Now both of them were pretty famous. Her life was going pretty well. She had a steady stream of money coming in, multiple brand deals coming her way and she no longer felt like actual shit. So when Mitsuya asked her to be in his show she agreed right away. The show was a success and things were going really well till the end of the after-party when she overheard Mistuya talking to Draken about Mikey not having shown up. They invited Mikey.

Sano fucking Manjiro was a wanted criminal at a high-profile fashion show.

Not to mention that they didn’t even tell her that her ex was invited. 

Sure it had been 10 years and even if she was over it, she’d rather not face him again. It was stupid to her that Mistuya had even wanted to invite Mikey especially since put them all in 2-3 day-long comas 9 years ago. But boys were stupid and they always forgave each other even after the biggest of problems. Her and Mikey’s past relationship was probably just a second thought so she didn’t blame him too much and got over it fast(but that didn’t mean she wasn’t pissed). She ended up leaving the after party a bit earlier which is how she ended up back at her apartment. It’s lonely but thankfully not cold. She should probably take her makeup off or maybe eat something but the kitchen seems to far and the view in front of her— even though she’s seen it a hundred times— was too pretty to look away from. She rests her forehead against the cold glass and sighs, her warm breath creating condensation on the glass. 

BANG BANG BANG

She groans internally. Whoever was the door might as well be kicking it down with how loud and hard they’re knocking on it. She pushes herself off the glass and starts to walk toward her door, passing by the few frames of pictures from her childhood.

Pictures of Emma and Baji. Pictures of Mikey. It had taken her a while to get over him but it had been 10 years and it no longer hurt to look at the pictures. She hadn’t put up the ones with just him and her in them but the group ones instead. She looks through the peephole first and sees no one. She furrows her brows and without thinking opens the door. She takes a few steps back as someone stumbles in. She doesn’t see their face at first. She’s greeted with the strong scent of alcohol and a mop of white hair. “What the—”

Her door is slammed shut and the intruder looks up. Her heart stops. Well not really but it felt like it. There, barged into her apartment was Sano fucking Manjiro. “Hey baby” 

Her heart drops. “Mikey…”

“Uh-huh, it’s me” He brushes past her and walks further into her apartment like he owned the place “Nice place”

She bites harshly at her bottom lip to stop herself from cursing this guy out(which she was going to do until she saw the gun tucked into the back of his pants). “What are you doing here?” She asks, hesitantly following behind him

Mikey heads over to her kitchen and opens her fridge, rummaging through it the same way he would when they were together all these years ago. She watches in silence but also looks around for her phone to either call the police or maybe Draken to come help. “Mistuya invited me to his show… Lost track of time and couldn’t make it” He says and pulls out a bottle of Korean alcohol, peach flavoured Soju

She runs her fingers through her hair. “And what does that have to do with me?” She asks as Mikey slams her fridge door shut and takes a seat on the tiled floor while she stands before him

He unscrews the metal cap and carelessly throws it at her the same way he would when they would go through her dad’s alcohol collection and secretly drink from it when they were together. “Since I missed the show, thought I’d come see the star” Mikey takes a swing and his eyes scan her up and down “Mistuya made that dress f’you, yeah?”

Her heart is beating fast and so hard it’s hurting her ribs. The dress was short. Longer from the back, covering her butt at least but shorter at the front, showing off her long legs as Mitsuya said. It hugged her form with the corset styled lacing at the back of the dress. “Yeah he did…”

There is a moment of silence between them. She needs him to leave. It was so stupid that Mikey was back. Even worse that this guy was cosplaying as Izana. His haired bleached platinum and cut short. He even had that stupid Hanafuda tattoo on the back of his neck. She feels angry but before she could say another, Mikey speaks first “you gained weight… You look good”

She instantly feels sick. “Shut up”

Mikey smirks as he takes a swing from the glass green coloured bottle. “Is that still a sore topic for you? I thought that now that you’re a model you—”

“Please just shut up” She pleads

She’d rather not hear this again. Not after so many years. She used to have a problem with eating. It’s not that she had an issue with how she looked or something like that, she had an issue with food in general. “You’ve got food in your fridge though. You’re eating well” Mikey murmurs, his hand reaching up to hold her thigh “not sickly skinn—”

“Mikey” She mutters clenching her fists “stop it”

Mikey just smiles and it infuriates her. How dare he come back after 10 years and do this? Say this? “Can you leave?”

“No”

“What do you mean, no?”

Mikey is still smiling like nothing is wrong. Through the dim lighting she sees his dark circles and unnecessarily pale skin. He looks like death. “Come sit”

He doesn’t give her much of a choice when he pulls her down. Her knees make contact with the tilted floor making a thud sound and she hisses in pain. Mikey puts the bottle of Soju down next to him and coos gently, putting his hands on her knees and rubs them to ease the sudden pain. “Sorry about that, got carried away” he murmurs, voice all sweet

Now that she’s this close she can smell the alcohol on his and his cologne. Her head spins as Mikey adjusts her position with ease, letting her legs drape over his lap. “You need to leave” She tells him, watching him pick up the Soju again and drink from it, keeping his free hand on her quickly bruising knees, rubbing them

“I don’t think so” Mikey says with a shrug “and it doesn’t look like you want me to leave”

She doesn’t think she’s ever met someone more delusional than him. “No. Actually I want you to leave. You baradged into my house. Get. Out”

“Is that how you treat all your ex-lovers?” Mikey questions, a playful smile on his lips “oh wait, last I heard little miss model has been single since we broke up. Don’t you wanna get back together? Don’t you miss me—”

“Nope”

“You answered pretty fast so I’m guessing that’s a yes”

She pulls her legs away from his lap and scoots back to create some distance between them. Mikey’s eyes darken as she moves away, looking a mixture of disappointed and some other emotion. “I need you to leave” She says more sternly this time 

Mikey just takes another swing of the bottle, giving her the same look as he would when they were younger when he wasn’t in the mood to listen. He was a criminal. A ruthless gangleader who had the country under his boot but here he was drinking her soju on her kitchen floor acting the same way he did when he was 14. “Mikey—”

“Manjiro… You called me Manjiro” He cuts her off it makes her mad

“No, Mikey” She says, trying to make her voice as stern as possible

Mikey raises his brow. “No?” he repeats

“No.”

They both stare at each other for a moment. “Why not?” Mikey asks, his blunt nails taping against the glass of the now half empty bottle in his hand “It’s been 10 years, has anything really changed?”

His eyes are glossy red and pale cheeks a bit flushed. She surprised he isn’t drunk yet. Perhaps he built up his tolerence over the years. She shifts, sitting in a side saddle position on the floor so she didn’t put any more pressure on her still aching knees. “It’s been 10 years” She repeats narrowing her eyes at him “You can’t just come back out of nowhere and expect me to welcome you back with open arms… I’ve made something of myself. You can’t come back out of nowhere and ruin it for me”

She feels so angry. He wasn’t allowed to do this. “Please don’t ruin this for me”

Mikey doesn’t say anything for a moment. He’s just staring at her like he’s oblivious to what she’s saying, like he doesn’t understand what she means. Mikey just takes another gulp of the peach soju and her eye twitches. “You had to show up today to ruin things” She says with anger “I wanted to put you in the past ‘cause what you did traumtized me but you’re not letting me do that!”

Mikey is staring at her like a lost puppy, sipping at the soju like it’s water. “I’ve moved on but you’re back here sitting in my fucking kitchen not listening to a word I’m saying”

It was like talking to a damn wall. Mikey wasn’t listening and going off on a rant would just be her wasting her breath. “Drink” Mikey holds out the bottle to her

She’s angry. So fucking angry but the bottle was her own, bought with her own money when she went to Korea a week ago for a photoshoot so she takes it from him and takes a large gulp. It was bitter for some reason. She can taste cigarettes on the rim which was probably from Mikey and it pissed her off even more. Hours pass and it’s soon 1 am. “Mikey I can’t say goodbye if you stay here the whole night” She tells him

They’re still on her kitchen floor and now on their 3rd bottle. She watches Mikey about to light a cigarette but she slaps the stick out of his hand. “No smoking in my house” she hisses

Mikey frowns but shrugs, stuffing his lighter back into his pocket. “But I don’t wanna leave” he murmurs, reaching out to hold her waist, dragging her closer to him with ease across the tiled floor “I want you back”

Her now completely bruised knees make contact with his the side of his thigh and she puts her hands on his biceps in a poor attempt to either pull away or push back from him. Mikey squeezes her waist for a moment then slides his hands lower to her hips then her bare thighs, squeezing her there. “You know you were pretty when we were younger but you’re even prettier now” He says with a sigh “you look so pretty with the weight gain—”

She digs her nails into his clothed biceps. “I don’t want to talk about that”

Mikey cocks his head to the side. “But ‘m complimenting you”

“I don’t like these kinds of compliments”

“You’re a model” He murmurs, his hands sliding back up to her waist and squeezing again “you shouldn’t have become one if you didn’t like people talking about your body”

“No one talks about my body the way you do” She says with a frown “I don’t like how you do it”

Mikey chuckles lowly. The same condescending way when he dumped her 10 years ago. “That’s not a nice thing to say to the guy that’s trying to woo you back”

“You’re not being nice in the first place. You fucking bardged in” she digs her nails more into his clothed skin but he doesn’t flinch “I promise Mikey, the ending between us will always be the same. There’s no good reason in make believing that we could ever exist again”

Mikey still doesn’t seem to hear her. He simply lets go of her waist and slides away from her. When she thinks he was getting up to leave, he surprises her by laying his head on her bare thighs instead. This was infuriating. “Mikey have you dated anyone since then?”

“Yeah” he says, grabbing one of her hands to put it in his hair “But none of them were pretty like you. No one’s pretty like you…”

She doesn’t say anything. “You don’t wanna get back together but can’t we be friends? I missed you” Mikey says, his voice barely above a whisper this time

He sounds sad but she won’t give in. This wasn’t fair. “I can’t be your friend or your lover” Her voice is a mere whisper this time “I can’t Manjiro”

Not with what he did now— it would be detrimental for her career if the public found out she was friends with Sano Manjiro, the man reining terror of Japan and the surrounding countries little by little— not with how he broke up with her, not with how he talked to her, not with the constant uncertainty of if he’d leave her once again. She wouldn’t put herself through that again. “Manjiro I can’t be the reason we hold back each other from falling in love”

She feels something wet on her thighs. 

Mikey— Manjiro is crying.

She sighs. She might as well let him stay for as long as it takes.

Just till he pulls himself together.

And hopefully, till then, she doesn’t give in.

[medakakurokami]

I finished over 100 visual novels, here’s a long post with some recommendations

Last month I hit 100 Finished VN’s over on the VNDB and I thought I’d shoot out some recommendations while the Steam Summer Sale is going on (even though some of these aren’t going to be on Steam)

I already have finished up some stragglers and caught some shorter titles so it’s up to 104 Finished, but all the better. I have been reading some VN’s since 2015, but it really became a hobby and a genre I was invested in during Covid lockdown in 2020. I had trouble getting into some of the popular titles, but a couple of games that were lesser known at that time really blew me away that year and I started digging more into the medium. I still have a lot to try out and other classics I’m still interested in trying, but here’s a top 10 I’m confident in recommending to most people, at least the kinda people that would follow this blog. A few of these recommendations are actually multi-part series, but hopefully accessible all around.

Planetarian ($10 on Steam and Switch, ~$5 on sale)

This is a very late entry onto this list but I think it’s an easy recommendation. This is a very short 2-4 hour visual novel that got a well received 2 hour movie adaptation in 2016, but it was strong enough that even while knowing the plot everything still hit hard. It is a story set 30 years after an apocalyptic event destroys most of the world, as a human junk-trader comes across a planetarium with a somehow-still-functional robot named Hoshino still performing her daily duties after 30 years without customers or coworkers. It can come across as a bit saccharine, but it is a quick, well made, and effective tearjerker.

Narcissu 1st & 2nd (Free on Steam)

Narcissu’s first two parts are pretty compelling stories to do with suicidal ideation within the scope of the terminally ill. Which is to say they’re also real tear jerkers, and pretty open about some harsh self-reflective emotions. They both have stellar endings, and can be quite immersive despite the very limited artwork (if the screencap looks weird, the game’s art exists within a narrow strip on the screen, with a sentence or two reading out the story underneath it). Maybe the least accessible on this list, but a $0 price tag makes it easier in some sense to get into.

Umineko no Naku Koro ni / When The Seagulls Cry (~$50 on Steam, $30 on sale)

Umineko you’ve probably already heard of, and here’s me recommending it. Umineko comes in two parts, on Steam referred to as the Questions Arc and the Answers Arc. Despite the split, the overall story follows the events of a certain day on Rokkenjima Island in 1986 as a family meets to discuss their inheritance and their family’s mysteries. Unbeknownst to them they are soon haunted, over and over again, by the revenant of the Golden Witch said to live in the woods of their family’s island.

I’m in the minority of preferring the Questions Arc, where well written and deeply human characters find themselves in deeply inhumane and nonsensical scenarios. The Answers Arc back seats some of that to start delving into an esoteric explosion of clues and backstories, and was still very entertaining even if I was more invested in the episodic stories than the overarching mystery. This may also be seen as inaccessible, $30-50 for a slightly older title and over 140 hours long on average playthroughs, but it is deeply absorbing.

Witch on the Holy Night a.k.a. Mahoyo ($40 on PS4 and Switch)

Mahoyo is me and Nasu’s marriage counselor, it really made me see the good in him. It follows a young witch co-habitating with her magic colleague and the puppy-like boy that unwittingly steps into their world at risk to his own life, just as unexplained apparent murders are witnessed in their town.

This could possibly be a higher level recommendation, though it was apparently intended to have sequels and you can somewhat feel that in the isolated feeling of its main conflict. Despite this, the game is definitely worth experiencing for its classy charm and extremely well made action sequences that at times make you forget you’re not watching a full anime film. It’s also a showcase of Nasu’s strengths in writing character interactions and comedy, and he finally lets Show take over and stops Telling you piles of mage society worldbuilding quite so often. It is also has some of the highest quality production value I’ve ever seen, second maybe to...

Marco and the Galaxy Dragon ($20 on Steam/Switch, less than $10 on sale)

Marco and the Galaxy Dragon is an explosive opera of art, energy, color, and of course music. It follows the orphaned Marco and her dragon compatriot Arco as they hunt for treasure across the cosmos, finding their way to Earth on the hunt for Marco’s mother.

If Umineko’s 140 hours seems steep, Marco has you covered with a quick 6 hour rundown of a rebellious orphan fighting back against her space alien menace to find her own sense of place and identity in the universe, along with ALL the friends she made along the way. If Mahoyo feels like an anime film sometimes, Marco actually just has fully animated FMV cutscenes that are fun as hell and have their own unique artstyle to the VN itself. Thousands of pieces of artwork and a 52-track OST fill the game’s short runtime with no cut corners and and overflow of passion from the devs. Honestly even if you don’t want to read it go buy it, it’s cheap and they earned it.

White Album 2 (You’ll have to be creative to find this one)

This is the only recommendation that’s currently only available in an adults only 18+ Rating for the English translation. That being said, it’s one of the few erotic VN’s that felt justified in its pornographic scenes. The story is split into two releases: Opening Chapter and Closing Chapter.

Opening is a short and powerfully delivered love triangle narrative following Haruki, Setsuna, and Touma as their hastily formed 3-man light music band falls into itself with feelings. It’s charming but gut wrenching and sweeps you into its drama very effectively before kicking you on your ass in the end.

Closing Chapter is a long and drawn out disassembling of their lives as they fail to heal from the wounds of the relationships seen in Opening. It, to great effect, takes the readers own experience with how fun and passionate the Opening Chapter was, and shows how trying to cling to halcyon days can make us so dispassionate about our present lives. Painful stuff! Good music, too.

The Princess, The Stray Cat, and Matters of the Heart 1 & 2

a.k.a. Noratoto ($40 on Steam for both, ~$15 for both on sale)

This is a very personal recommendation, and maybe one more easy to make on this blog where many of my followers might be receptive to sincere but slapstick ecchi comedy as art. Every route is highly different however and to me, some are pretty average for galge, while others stand out as amazing. The comedy writing as well feels like it was written by someone with actual comic writing experience, and not just regurgitating the usual ecchi manga jokes.

The general premise of Noratoto is the protagonist Nora, being transformed into a cat by Patricia the princess of the Netherworld, and he must reverse this curse via a kiss before it becomes permanent. A benign fairy tale premise, but one that somehow gives way to underlying stories about existence and finding purpose in families and where that leaves those without families or with abusive or divided families (it is from the same developers as Marco and the Galaxy Dragon, and the themes of finding identity without family match up very closely). Uniquely it is a visual novel written somewhat in 3rd person, narrated by a motherly voice as if the VN was being read to you as a bedtime story.

Like I said, it is dependent on route and some come across as your usual ecchi gal-game schtick, but some stick out, and if every route was as high quality as Nobuchina’s in the 2nd game, it would probably be my favorite visual novel.

The Original Ace Attorney Trilogy ($30 on most platforms, $10 on sale)

You’ve almost certainly heard of Ace Attorney already and have most likely played it. This is me telling any Ace Attorney fans reading that the original trilogy still reigns supreme (regardless of Turnabout Big Top). This is also me telling anyone who has held out on trying Ace Attorney to try it, and to start with the original trilogy.

Obviously this trilogy follows the Meme Man Himself, Phoenix Wright, as he defends the innocent and brings the guilty to justice acting as both lawyer and his own main investigator. While each case presents a unique mystery, the original trilogy has an underlying arc that reaches from beginning to end with a massive conspiracy that Phoenix has to breach to bring justice to the perpetrators and resolve the memory and regrets of his beloved mentor.

These games have some speedbumps as you may be banging your head against the wall trying to find the right evidence, but the experience that breaks through does so with gusto, succeeding on what it sets out to be: games that make you feel like you’ve brought justice to the world.

Utawarerumono Trilogy ($40/60 each on Steam, trilogy bundle $62 on sale)

Utawarerumono was my first proper visual novel, and it set the standards pretty high. I’ve posted about it several times in the last few years, and it remains one of my favorites. It is a labor of love on the part of the developers (the same developers as White Album 2), who developed the latter two games over the course of several years and have made this the spearhead of their company for the time being. Which makes sense, since it is about war.

The first game follows a masked man who is given the name Hakuoro waking up in a rural village with amnesia, confused about the strange population of beast-men living there. Despite not understanding his situation, his ingenuity brings the village prosperity. When the local lords try to put the village under their thumb, Hakuoro and the villagers are able to turn the tides against them. Their village grows into a kingdom as Hakuoro seeks the mysteries of himself and the world around him.

The latter two games pick up some twenty years after the conclusion of the first, and follow a man who is given the name Haku, waking up in the woods with amnesia confused about the... you get it. He is met by Kuon, a young girl on her way traveling to the capital of their nation of Yamato. Haku graciously accepts her help getting out of the cold woods, and decides to join her to the capital. As events play out, Haku finds himself under the direct command of the nation’s leader the Mikado, and carries out missions on his behalf as the nation continues to drag itself into war and conflict and Haku also seeks the truth of his identity.

These games are expansive in scope while still putting a large focus on the day-to-day lives of its characters. Around 100 hours across all three games it is impressive how much story it manages to fit in, but the pacing does bounce around between sweeping conflict and sleepy conversations. It is also in part, a strategy RPG game with the battles in the war being controlled by the player. These are decently made, especially well in the third game, but don’t ask too much of the player and the story remains the main focus and biggest portion of the runtime.

The House In Fata Morgana a.k.a. Fatamoru

($40 complete version on PS4/Switch, ~$40 main game + expansion on Steam)

I’ve gushed about this enough on this tumblr, I’ll keep it brief.

You are a formless soul who is led by the hand of a mysterious maid through the doors of a mansion on an unknown plane of existence. Through each door lies a story of the house in a different era, all following people bound together in ways that leave them cruelly and violently undone by the end of their stories. The connection between these stories, the mystery of the house and the supposed witch that resides within, and the mystery of You the wandering soul all slowly unravel in a bloody show of catharsis and soul. The game is dripping with traumatic poetic text, grating beautiful music, and all of its atmosphere geared toward being oppressive yet enticing. One of the best things I’ve read.

Honorable mentions:

Va-11 Hall-A and Endless Mondays get shout outs as some of the best Original English Language VN’s I’ve read, with cool artstyles and a mature cast they manage to be fun and relatable. Va-11 Hall-A delivers a great arc for its protagonist and Endless Mondays has great dialogue on the threat of automation of creative industries.

Grisaia Trilogy and Hatsumira are both absolutely raucous trilogies that are a lot of fun. Not wholly recommendable to all, Grisaia has some strong moments and a hilarious unique cast but is a mess overall (but we love Michiru). Hatsumira is a bit more consistent, a more stable and fantasy-oriented Grisaia.

A.I. The Somnium Files duology are detective games with highly divisive endings, but great comedy and characters that make them very easy to get through and enjoy the whole way to the end. It’s just a toss-up whether you’ll like that ending.

Sakura Wars games are finally being translated, and they are a great showing for anyone who wants to try some classic dating sim stuff but with some pizazz thrown in with the setting and mecha combat.

The Tears to Tiara duology by the same developers of Utawarerumono and White Album is also one to keep an eye out for. The first game's definitive version isn't available in English and the second game is stuck on the PS3 and no longer available digitally, but if they ever come out on Steam they are worth your time.

Nanairo Reincarnation and Kinkoi: Golden Loveriche are also two solid ecchi comedy galge. Both have surprisingly deep and genuinely heartbreaking underlying mysteries and conclusions.

I still have a lot I wanna read, Planetarian is the only Key novel I’ve read. On the docket are Labyrinth of Galleria, Little Busters, the 9 -nine- series, and Kara no Shoujo and White Album 1 releasing on Steam this year. Some classics I didn’t mention are Fate/Stay Night, Muv Luv, Steins Gate. Muv Luv I read Extra and enjoyed it, but never pulled the trigger on reading the rest, I may at some point on a whim. Steins;Gate I played through half of on PS3 and now my PS3 is in the closet, the VN is really good and has a unique atmosphere to the anime, buuuuuuut knowing the plot has made it hard to want to restart on PC or another console. Steins;Gate is good, if anyone is reading this far and hasn’t seen the anime or read the VN, do it.

[stayevildarling]

I’ve been in a Mina & Delia mood as of late. I found a bunch of prompts that reminded me of them! Could you maybe write a short story or fic or something with Mina, Delia and reader with some of the prompts? It’s okay if ya can’t. Thanks! “Something is clearly wrong” - “I’m fine” - “No, just a bad liar”

“You’re so moody” “And you are so whiney”

“Hey! I’m not a baby” “Oh I beg to differ, darling.” “But that’s alright, you’re our baby”

“Do you still love me?” “If you ask me that again, I’m going to start saying no.”

“Oh please don’t cry, honey. I didn’t mean it, I was just kidding.”

Cordelia Goode x Wilhemina Venable x Reader- Between Spells and Cramps

A/N: thank you so much for this request! I‘m sorry for how long this took🤍

tags/tw: female reader, established poly relationship, mention of period, mention of painkillers, mention of blood, reader being a hormonal and whiney baby, hurt/comfort

word count: 2k

taglist:

@lunaticwhittaker , @billiebeanhoward , @lanawinters-ily , @kenzbro , @minaslittleone , @httpfiftyshadesofgay @whitelotus00 , @ninaahelvar , @paulsonsratched , @vintagepaulson , @isle-of-earle , @grilledcheeseandguavajelly , @lucyintheskywithxanax , @fanfics4world , @mymiraclewitch , @hazard-to-myself , @awritersometimes , @wastdstime , @p1pecleanerwitheyes , @queen2234 , @ihartnat , @lifebyinez , @ahsatanizgay , @blu3dimples , @stepintomyworld

The day had been long, starting unpleasantly as you woke up, already able to feel that you started your period and upon checking seeing the red confirmation on the sheets. You sighed, forcing yourself out of bed and heading for a shower, hoping the warm water would soothe your crampy muscles and help with the nausea that started settling in. Afterwards you quickly changed the sheets, heading for the washing machine as the thought still embarrassed you, despite having been with your girlfriends for years and them never judging you for those things ever.

After, you began your usual tasks, starting in the greenhouse where you prepared everything for Cordelia‘s potion class in the afternoon, sorting out the witches lunch before doing some cleaning around the academy. You didn‘t have any classes of your own to teach today but you still wanted to make yourself useful, despite feeling horrendous. But you wanted to give something back to your busy girlfriends, both already at work and moving mountains while you didn‘t want to waste away in bed. By now you would have already had your usual lunchtime call with Wilhemina, afterwards bringing the supreme some coffee and snuggling on her lap for a while, while she worked but you didn‘t feel like interactions today, your mood particularly low.

You decided on a short break, settling in the comfort of the library that no one really used aside from you and your redhead girlfriend, you snuggled into the sofa in the corner of the room, blanket around your lap and hot water bottle pressed against your sore stomach before trying to read a book. However, the pages and words blur into one and before you know it, you fall asleep, the world and pain subsiding for a while. By the time Cordelia finishes her potion class, seeing the academy neat and clean, the bedsheets changed and noticing the girls had their lunch as well as dinner already being prepared, she begins worrying a little, not having you seen you yet today other than in bed early this morning when she left.

Yet the lingering reminders of your kindness are spread across the academy and when she hears from Wilhemina about not hearing from you yet either, she begins wandering the academy halls. Eventually, she finds you in the library, asleep with a book on your lap and she can‘t help but smile fondly at the sight, seeing you so comfortable, unaware what was hidden underneath the blanket and how much you had been in pain since waking up. Your periods had often brought you down, both mentally and physically but you never really spoke about it with them, knowing with how much the supreme goes through on a daily and how much Wilhemina struggles with her pain it didn‘t feel fair. Cordelia remains by the door for a moment, not wanting to wake you up, but the concern lingering in her eyes. Still, she lets you rest knowing how much you had done today already.

By the time you wake up, your breathing hitches as you realize it was already beginning to get dark outside, quickly scrambling to your feet before making it downstairs. You find Cordelia in the kitchen, finishing the dinner preparations that you had made, Wilhemina beside her as she must have returned moments ago. „Hi sweetie“ Cordelia greets you, walking up to you as she places a soft kiss on your forehead. „Are you okay? I haven‘t seen you all day?“ she frowns and you nod quickly before shooting her a smile. She returns to the cooking before Wilhemina pats her lap, offering you to sit but you opt to sit beside her, snuggling into her chest, worried about leaking again.

They notice your silence during dinner and Cordelia tilts her head to the side as her eyes find yours „Whats wrong darling?“ she frowns, seeing you mostly pushing your food from one side of your plate to the other. „I‘m fine“ you mumble again, your feelings all over the place as your hormones begin ruining your mood, the day already having started off terribly so far. They exchange silent glances as Wilhemina takes a good look at you, seeing the way you are clearly in pain, the woman knowing all about that and how to hide just that. „Something is clearly wrong“ the redhead counters, causing you to sigh in response. „I‘m fine“ you try again, your leg bouncing up and down as you refrain yourself from snapping. „No, just a bad liar“ Wilhemina mumbles, causing you to look at her with an expression that neither of them could read exactly.

The three of you sit in silence before Cordelia breaks it, seeing you forcing your eyes closed due to the pain. „Alright enough, what‘s wrong?“ she demands, her features and tone leaving no room for arguments as you look down. „I‘m just on my period“ you whisper, barely audible but loud enough for the both to hear. And right there they notice that you never really told them about when you are, how you always seem to take care of them whenever they are in pain, running Mina a bath or fixing up some healing potions when Cordelia was feeling under the weather. They both frown, wishing you would have said something sooner.

The silence after your confession feels heavy, the concern evident on their fearures. Wilhemina narrows her eyes slightly before studying you closely. „Why didn‘t you tell us earlier?“ she asks, her tone soft but firm. You shrug, avoiding their gazes „I didn‘t want to bother you, you both deal with enough as it is. I‘m fine“. Cordelia sighs at your words, still patient „Sweetheart you‘re allowed to lean on us too, that‘s what we are here for“ she tries gently. Wilhemina crosses her arms, her sharp gaze cutting right through you. „You‘re always running around taking care of everyone else. When are you going to let someone take care of you?“.

Your lip quivers slightly at her words, the words cutting you deep considering Mina equally struggled so badly at the beginning of this relationship and how gently you and Cordelia coaxed her away from that. Your frustration spills over, stomach hurting badly as you sigh „Well maybe I don‘t want to deal with being fussed over right now. God! you‘re so moody, Mina“. Wilhemina raises an eyebrow, a smirk tugging at the corner of her lips, clearly enjoying seeing you like this for the first time ever. „And you are so whiney, darling“. Her answer pulls a slight laugh out of you, the tension cracking just slightly. Cordelia shakes her head with a soft chuckle, stepping behind you and wrapping her arms around you. „Alright you two, let‘s focus on the fact that you‘re clearly in pain“. Wilhemina‘s smirk softens into something warmer as she reaches for your hand. „Cordelia is right, go lay down and let us take care of the dishes“ she opts.

„But“ you try to protest but they aren‘t having it. „No buts darling“ Cordelia iterrupts, giving you a pointed look. „You have done more than enough for today, go rest, that‘s an order“ she speaks and you sigh exaggerated before mumbling „Yes Ms Supreme“ which causes her to chuckle lowly. Wilhemina chuckles as she guides you to the living room and to the sofa „And for the record darling“ Mina murmurs as you settle in „I only get moody when you‘re not taking care of yourself“. You nod, understandingly before meeting her eyes, suddenly feeling vulnerable „Mina?“ you ask before she turns around, about to join the supreme. „Yes little one?“ she asks and your puppy eyes meet her before you ask „Do you still me?“ you ask which causes her to frown. „Of course I do little one“ she speaks softly, pressing a kiss to your temple before leaving you to rest for a moment.

You find the remote, surfing to some channels before finding one of your favorite shows and getting comfortable on the large sofa. By the time your girlfriends return, you find them with a little tray, some tea, water, painkillers and your favorite snacks as Cordelia sets it down by the table in front of you. „Thank you“ you frown, feeling bad for your earlier outburst as Wilhemina passes you another hot water bottle and you hold it against your back, the cramps currently settling there. The supreme sits beside you as Wihemina opts for her armchair, it being better for her posture.

„What you watching sweetheart?“ the supreme asks as she puts you in her lap, letting you snuggle closer to her. „She‘s watching that medium show again, bet you she has a huge crush on that one“ Wilhemina teases causing Cordelia to chuckle as the redhead smirks, seeing you side eye her and barely able to resist your own smirking. „Is that so?“ the supreme teases, seeing your mood lighten up by Mina‘s humour. There is silence for a little while as you snuggle up in Cordelia‘s lap, the blonde looking at you like you are her absolute everything, which you are. She hovers her hands above your back and stomach, slowly easing the cramps which causes you to sigh in relief, finally not feeling in pain anymore. „Delia?“ you whisper, loud enough for her to hear but not the redhead. „I‘m sorry about earlier“ you apologize, guilt settling on your features as she simply smiles at you. „It‘s not a big deal darling“ she assures, booping your nose before you glance at her with puppy eyes. „Do you still love me?“ you ask which causes her to frown before kissing you. „Yes darling, always“ she assures, honesty reflection in her brown eyes.

The three of you stay in the living room for a while before heading upstairs, beginning your usual evening routine as you settle into bed. Wilhemina offered to do your hair, which you ended up agreeing to, the guilt still heavy as you feel terrible for how you had snapped at them, specifically her. „Mina I‘m sorry“ you apologize again „I shouldn‘t have snapped at you like that“ you glance at her as she combs through your hair gently. „Little one, I snap all the time at everyone“ causing you to chuckle as that was undeniably the truth. „All done“ she smiles before you glance at her „Are you sure you still love me? you ask, both hormonal and vulnerable. „If you ask me that again, I‘m going to start saying no“ she smiles as she turns around to get ready for bed herself. She misses the way you missed her smile, suddenly tears flowing down your cheeks, your period defintely messing with you today.

She doesn‘t notice at first but when the first sobs breaks through the room, their head immediately snaps towards you as her features tense. „Oh please don‘t cry honey, I didn‘t mean it, I was just kidding“ she says, quickly making her way over. The two of them settle beside you as you snuggle up on Mina‘s chest, the woman holding you close as Delia holds you closer too. „Someone‘s being a very hormonal baby today“ Cordelia chuckles as she glances at you and you pout. „Hey I‘m not a baby“ you pout in fake annoyance which causes the supreme to giggle. „Oh I beg to differ darling“ the supreme teases which causes Wilhemina to join in „But that‘s alright because you are our baby“.

And undeniably you are their baby, despite your usual strength, despite usually being so strong and composed. They would make sure to treat you just the way you treated them whenever they are feeling down. Both of them held you through the night, smiling at you by the time you finally fall asleep and settle, the supreme glad she managed to soothe the aches a little. And Wilhemina content that she finally managed to get you to allow them to look after you, her baby, always.

[2demondogs]

Im not sure if you'll write this at all since the situation isn't really canon to the story but something you can encounter while playing rdr2.

But may you do headcanons on how Arthur would act after his encounter with Sonny and how he would open up abt it with Reader?

I don't see a lot of people mention or talk about what happened, but I'm sure if the player encountered Sonny that Arthur had something going on afterward.

If you're not comfortable with this ask please just ignore it. Thank you!

I actually had a fic planned about Arthur confiding in Hosea, but I had to scrap it because it gave me PTSD flashbacks every time I opened it instead of comforting me T-T. A little better mentally atm so I will face the discomfort 'cause genuinely fuck the way this fandom treats it, when they talk about it at all.

Gender-neutral reader. Could be platonic or romantic since u didn't specify either.

This one is probably gonna be very triggering so I put most of it underneath a read more from where it gets such.

Content Warnings: PTSD, SA aftermath (w/ implications of drugging), Arthur thinking not great things about himself. No descriptions of the assault.

Arthur instantly closes off. He's used to not talking about why he's in a bad mood, regardless of how easy it is tell he's in one, and he spends the first week afterwards angrier than he's ever been. After Bill's comment upon his return to camp, he feels it's pointless. Everyone knows, apparently. Everyone knows, and no one gives a shit.

He feels raw in a way he's never felt before. His body's never felt quite impassable — bullets, knives, fists — but there's a sense of violation that's crawled under his skin and taken nest there. He feels raped. His skin feels stained. He's both exhausted and paranoid. Arthur hasn't touched a drop of liquor and he has had his tent flaps closed since. He doesn't smoke his cigarettes until the withdrawal makes his hands shake, and then he smokes more than he has since he was twenty-something. He can't escape the fear of being drugged again. He still has no idea what Sonny gave him, besides the worst hangover of his life.

The pain doesn't ease the feeling of exposed nerves, either. Once the physical soreness passes, there's lingering aches and migraines any time he tries to recall it. On the worst evening since, his body screamed as bad as if it were happening all over again and his head throbbed for the next two days. Arthur especially does not like that he doesn't remember things his body does remember, and so vividly. What else has he forgotten?

Regardless of how close you and Arthur are, Hosea is the first one he tells. Mostly, Hosea is the first one to ask why he's so sour. He's always relied on the man when he wasn't sure what to do, and he's never been more unsure of what's even going on with himself. In the end, Arthur he feels worse after talking about it for a reason he can't grasp. It isn't even close to the first time he's cried on the man's shoulder, so it can't be shame for having done it.

As far you're concerned, Arthur seems abnormally hot-and-cold. He doesn't want to be around you (or anyone), but some days he wants nothing more in the world than your presence. He doesn't offer to go on trips out of camp. He doesn't want you patting his shoulder, but sometimes you can feel the urge to embraced radiating off of him. He doesn't leave camp much for the first weeks at all, unless he's shoved out by someone in the name of earning keep, and the rest of the first month he spends away without an invitation to you.

He tells you sooner than he'd've liked to. His ideal would've been never, or maybe a few decades from now. You're clueless, though, and reasonably concerned and upset that he's been acting strange and not telling you why. At first it's purely out of worry, but it's sooner or later tinged with a bit of your own hurt. Arthur's always been kind to you, and it's not like him at all to act like polar opposite men day-to-day.

Arthur could easily lie, but you deserve better than that. You've always been good to him. Still, he doesn't tell you everything and likely never will. Sometimes he regrets telling Hosea as much as he did, because speaking it aloud only makes it seem less like a nightmare. (He realizes he's angry because Bill took the privilege of denial from him and tossed him straight into grief he doesn't think any human being is ever prepared for.) He's as confused about it as he was at first, and isn't sure what the answer is when you ask what he needs from you.

Eventually, he does want comfort. Admitting it was the terrifying part, though trusting anyone with it is just as bad. But that fear is drawn out, and so it's a little easier to stomach once he's faced with it. He is especially defensive if you make a wrong move, though he tries not to take it out on you. He knows what he's keeping inside, even if it would be easier if you could read his mind. That said, one wrong word and he will likely never talk about it with you again.

The idea of killing Sonny floats around. Any time he thinks of it, though, he feels the pain again. It doesn't stop him, and then it does; it frightens him, and then it doesn't. Maybe once things have settled in his gut, he'll be able to. He speaks nothing of it, but he's not sure he could ride anywhere near the cabin without experiencing one of the shaking episodes that took him his first nights spent camping on his own afterwards. And at the end of the day, Arthur isn't sure if he didn't deserve this.

[myriadlabrynth]

Misc Kiridai Random Ramblings/Headcanons

These were catching dust in my files. I wrote most of these years ago but never got around to posting them. I still agree with them for the most part.

Hanamiya

Likes visiting second-hand bookshops since he tends to find more obscure novels.

May dabble in learning foreign languages in order to read certain works in its original language, in order to get the full, nuanced context he may not get from a translated copy.

Early bird.

A light sleeper.

Enjoys logic puzzles or games from time to time, things that get his mind working.

I’d like to think that Hanamiya and Hara tag-team with their respective committee positions, considering their “line of work” with the roughplay, I would think holding down both the disciplinary and health committee would be useful, at least internally at Kiridai anyway.

Furuhashi

Huge fan of organic scented candles, (he can tell which ones use artificial scents); He frequently lights one up during the evening. He only likes ‘natural’ scents, none of those pungent dessert scented ones, though he doesn’t mind the ones that smell like toasted bread.

Early bird.

Prefers more  “monotonous” or repetitive work. The kind of tasks where he can work in silence and sort of zone out. He can just work in peace, organizing a myriad of books in the library or watering each of his flowers. The lack of inconsistencies or thought required is therapeutic for him. 

Enjoys going on early morning strolls through the park. Usually alone but at times, with his younger sister. The woodsy ambience is refreshing, especially when there’s the smell of rain from the previous day. The two of them are often drawn in by unwalked trails. He holds his sister’s hand whenever they reach unlevel ground that they have to climb up or down.

Occasionally falls asleep to videos of soothing sounds like thunderstorms or gentle water; doesn’t always need it, but if he’s feeling restless one night, it’s there.

He’s the type where something usually has to affect him for him to care about it, he’s not really one to put himself in other people’s shoes.

Hara

Dislikes mint chocolate ice cream, though he never tried it, just sounds disgusting(the type who think it’s like eating toothpaste(spoiler alert: its not))

A night owl.

Guilty pleasure is soap-cutting videos. He once tried to cut some soap himself, but long story short, it's a good thing he is part of the health committee.

One reason he enjoys music games at the arcade is because he loves the moment where he zones out/goes on auto-pilot but his fingers unconsciously play perfectly anyway(if you’ve played rhythm games, you know what I’m talking about)

My headcanon for Hara’s eyes changes a lot, but at the moment, I think Hara just has regular/average eyes. Originally grew his hair out for the sake of avoiding eye contact. He gets amused seeing people speculate just what exactly is underneath his bangs, when in reality, it’s nothing special.

A repeat from my intelligence analysis, but I do believe Hara’s grades don’t reflect his intelligence, and that he's way smarter than he let's on.

Yamazaki

Sort of a Mom-friend, to an extent***. He’s a friend who worries too much and a tad of a stick in the mud, it’s why he isn’t good at scheming.

Night owl.

Loves trying out international cuisine. Won’t tell anyone, but he enjoys a mukbang here or there(which piques his interests in non-Japanese food)

His tolerance for spiciness is out of this world.

Huge dog person. Tries to resist waving at every dog he passes when he is hanging out with the rest of Kiridai, though he occasionally caves in, earning a snicker from Hara(who doesn’t mind greeting the dogs)

Being the youngest sibling means that he takes great pride whenever he is older than someone. As shown when he called Kuroko a brat, even though Kuroko is only a year younger.

I get "I may be an idiot, but I'm not stupid" vibes from him.

***In Kurofes, Fujimaki actually says “... mother-like/like a mother” when describing the way Yama scolds his friends and is like the "straight-man" of the group, so is it even a headcanon lol,

Seto

He sleeps because he can/wants to sleep, he doesn’t stay awake if he doesn’t need to be. The ending shot in season 3 which showed Kiridai at the park, shows Seto yawning, probably because it was a casual outing, aka something not that important. We’ve seen Seto where he is perfectly awake, if it's something he deems necessary. 

Not really an early bird or night owl.

His body knows when he HAS to get up, so the way someone tries to wake him up doesn’t matter. He doesn’t budge when Yamazaki kicks him because he knows he’s not a starter. On the flipside, he wakes up immediately when Hanamiya just calls out to him, because he is being added into the game, so he has to get up.

Sleep pranks don’t work on him, like drawing on his face. He’ll wake up before it happens. (Hara is on the team so of course he has to be aware)

Similar to Furuhashi, in his frequent walks, he likes treading through unknown territory.

He prefers basic espresso coffee, but doesn’t mind if there’s a dash of chocolate or even peppermint if he’s feeling adventurous(overly sweet drinks that are like 75% cream/chocolate/whatever are a complete no no though)

Not a headcanon but I still can’t believe it's canon that Seto plays online games.

I was reading the stats again and its still kind of funny that kiridai has a better teamwork stat than even shutoku and yosen (which makes sense but I will never get over kiridai's team synergy)

[cursed-spectre]

Okay, let's do this one last time.

"Hi. My name's Spectre, and welcome to the cube. Here, you can ask questions to me, Ai, and Cassidy."

Don't forget me.

"They can't hear you."

"I'm a strange shadow thing, but I'm still a girl, and use she/her. Uh, by some strange er- miracle, I guess, I'm, uh—"

"She's dating Tera and Kiara from @ask-elliot-doorman-fam."

"I was getting there! Ugh, but yeah."

"So, Cassidy."

"No."

"Since you decided to speak up,"

"NO."

"Why don't you introdu—"

"I SAID NO!"

"I'll go!"

"That works."

"A-hem. Greetings, everyone. My name is Ai Morgenstern, and I'm the daughter of Spectre. I'm also a girl and use she/her. It's so very nice to meet you all. Hehe, I hope we can be best friends."

"..."

"Cassie?"

"Ugh, fiiine, I'll do your stupid introduction."

"Yay!"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Cassidy. She/her. Bye."

"..."

"What? Hey don't look at me like—...fine. And wipe that grin off your face, shadow."

"I'm Cassidy. I use she/her like everyone else in this damn place. Seriously, Spectre. You couldn't have made a son and not a daughter? N-no, I didn't mean it like that Ai.

Our pronouns are they/them.

You can be quiet. I am not saying I use they/them just because you're here. We aren't—I'm just gonna ignore you."

I wish to answer questions.

"What?"

The Rebooted demands questions.

"You don't have a vocal voice. That would be impossible."

Then you can speak for me, fwiend.

"... I'm going to hate this, I just know it."

"She's a nice girl."

(Mod Stuff underneath Read More)

So yeah, this is my RP blog. My personal blog is @spectral-squid, and I'll usually use (blue text in round brackets.)

As for rules,

Suggestive stuff is fine, and I'm okay with certain nsfw stuff, but I retain the right to give a warning if I don't like where something is going, as well as just stopping a chain if I feel it's needed. I will try not to do that, though. I don't really like to.

I won't tolerate straight up homophobia, transphobia, racism, etc. Clearly fictional stuff like regarding Spectre's views of drones are fine, but if you are genuinely any of the above mentioned, I would rather you not interact. I myself am Transfem, so transphobia especially is not something I'd like to deal with.

I try to answers any asks I get, but sometimes one may go unanswered if I literally just can't find a way to respond to it. I'm very sorry.

Tags

The general #(Character) answers tags will be there.

Tags using "cursed" with the exception of cursed jelly, cursed doughnut, and cursed jelly doughnut will refer to me as a mod, not a character.

"#cursed gallery" is used for art of Spectre and co, both by me and by fans if I see it.

"#tales of a spectre" is used for short stories that show a bit of background into the lore of Spectre and her world.

"#cursed snippets" is used for short scenes within The Cube.

"#character trivia" is used for small bits of trivia regarding characters.

Some quick details (totally not because I always forget)

Spectre's human and drone forms are around the same height as V.

Ai is the same height as Uzi in the show, being smaller than the average worker drone.

Cassidy is almost N's height. (Yes, she is taller than Spectre.)

[deepflourishrosesstories]

A Crown & Masks

Male! Oni x Female! Reader

Warning: Medieval-ish setting, friends (master-servant relationship) to lovers, slight angst if you squint, mostly fluff

Word Count: 4.6k

Synopsis: The tension between you, the eldest princess, and the chief guard of your dynasty has been growing for years. What would become of you and the chief guard when you have a secret rendezvous out in the forest?

A/N: This story is set in the same world as Swords Clashing and Weaving Through Complications, and the reader will be the eldest princess featured in the latter story! There will be lots of overlaps so it may be a good idea to read the two series as well! I guess there's more plot than usual, but honestly, this may be one of my favourite stories I've written so far, so I hope you guys enjoy it!

Also, it's my longest writing so far and per usual, it's not proofread

Part 2

“My princess.”

Your heart fluttered at the deep, grovelling voice from behind, making your hair stand up almost as if you felt the breath up at the nape of your neck. Exhaling slowly to release your tension, you merely glanced at the black oni for a brief moment to give him a nod of acknowledgement, before turning around to your desk once more to read the paperwork your father had assigned to you.

“Ryugen.” Pushing the vermillion-coloured square stamp onto the paper, you placed the completed form onto the tall pile at the corner of your desk and brought another document before you with a sigh. “Is there something you need to report back to me?”

“His Majesty asked me to check on you.”

You quietly snorted. You were currently inside your resting quarters with a single bright candle to light up the words in front of you, too tired to work in your office with your formal attire on. Of course, your father knew you were working in the late hours of the night.

As for the chief of the Xaenait royal guards, he was standing with a perfect stoic posture behind you—his large arms crossed and hands tucked into the loose sleeves of his kimono, a traditional clothing that Ryugen wanted to continue to wear from his village, with his sword neatly secured on his waist. His shining coal-black skin gloriously blended well with the black fabric that he adorned, so much so you had to stop yourself from staring at his pretty collarbones and his prominent Adam’s apple that had a faint glow on them from the flickering flames around the room.

Instead, you looked at his face, disguised with a grotesque white mask of a grinning face; its black mouth stretched widely to the ears with jagged teeth lining inside, and a chunk of skin protruding under its eyebrows, which was curled downwards in a mocking snarl. A single, sharp cone-shaped horn peaked out of the mask on the split middle of his forehead—glinting like a radiant white pearl that signified his race as an oni. Underneath the mask, you could see the startling golden eyes that never failed to make you feel like being torn apart under them when you met Ryugen’s sober gaze.

The curiosity that ate you every day of his actual face was so great, yet you couldn’t bring yourself to ask him, or even order him, to take off his mask since you saw the uncomfortable tension on his shoulders when someone else asked that question.

Ryugen cocked his head to the side, upon seeing the pile of paperwork which you completed and still yet to look at.

“If I may ask, what is the paperwork for?”

You pinched and rubbed the nerves between your eyes tiredly as you answered, “They are requests from the merchants who wish to partake in the establishing trade route between Xaenait and Slainem.”

“My understanding of it is that it is an arduous proposition for both empires to come to an agreement.”

“They are wishing to seal the negotiations with a marriage vow.”

Ryugen gave a low hum. “It is not quite like you, my princess, to push an arranged marriage to execution.”

There it was again, that unconventional form of address that was kept for you when the two of you were alone, never once hearing him say to your sisters. It was such an intimate way to address you, something that has been kept for years of knowing each other, yet it was never mentioned by the oni on the meaning or intention behind it, always staying silent in amusement when you confronted him about it.  It was a constant, painful reminder that he will never be yours and you can never be his—though you have always kept your affection towards him a secret to even begin with. Although it may be inappropriate to let him call you that, you never once stopped him, wanting to at least treasure that signature of affection.

“Is there another reason behind the marriage?” he asked.

Staring out at the window into the dark landscape of the bamboo forests outside the palace, a smile bloomed softly at his inquiring voice that you found quite endearing from his usual stoic composure; and also from your distant memories of your youngest sibling, Lei, and her adorable interactions with the youngest orc prince, Karguk.

“Although my little sister does not recall, she and the youngest orc prince were quite close when our family last visited the Slainem Kingdom when we were little children. I am certain that fate will pull them back together once more.”

“And if your prediction fails?” he asked. “What will become of it when they fail to come to an agreement?”

“My father and the Slainem king are simply ‘hoping’ for it, Ryugen. In order to strengthen the promise,” you replied dryly. “We have faith that the bond between the emperor and the king, as well as our people, is enough to achieve this negotiation, even without the camaraderie of marriage.”

You shut your eyes tightly at the sudden tense pain behind your eyes when your sight landed on the characters written on the paper. You faintly heard Ryugen ask the lady-in-waiting for a warm cloth, dismissing her with a polite thank you as she scuttled away clumsily, probably from fright at his usual chilling demeanour that can be seen when he is out in the field.

“I recommend you to take a rest out of those paperwork for the night, my princess. From what I have heard, you have been working the entire day reading those papers.”

“Perhaps,” you said, yet ignored his advice and continued to hold the document in your hands as you read over them.

Ryugen sighed at the sight, too used to but also exasperated at your stubbornness. As a mere guard, he knew he didn’t have a say on your decisions, but his body was twitching to simply scoop you up and place you on the bed so that you would immediately call it a day and sleep peacefully for once.

Just then, the lady-in-waiting came back with a plate of warm cloths that were neatly rolled up, to which the oni respectfully gave a curt bow at her as he accepted the plate from her. Once the door shut behind him, he walked over to your chair and placed the plate on an empty space of the desk and took the cloth to unroll it.

You saw the soft steam coming out of the cloth and Ryugen’s silky black fingers holding it before you felt the warmth of it under your eyelids as they were placed on your shutting eyes. Feeling the gentle caress of his hands on top of the cloth, your body instantly relaxed at the sensation and you leaned back against the chair in peace.

“Thank you,” you murmured.

Ryugen hummed as he silently watched you slowly drift off to sleep, only to try your hardest to wake up. “Are you willing to go to sleep now?”

“I guess so.”

He let out a deep rumbling chuckle, which you cherished from how rare it was for him to laugh, letting the gentle, muffled sounds tickle the shell of your ears.

“I will take my leave then,” he said, patting your head gently.

Heart racing, the sound of footsteps and the click of your door opening made you take off the cooling cloth away from your head and you stood up to see his tall frame hovering on the door.

“Ryugen.”

He stopped on his track and looked back to you, waiting for you to reach his place where he stood when you walked towards him. Once you stood before him, you had to crane your neck to look at him in his piercing yellow eyes from below his towering stature.

You offered a small smile. 

“Thank you for the cloth.”

“Of course. Have a good night, my princess.”

He gave a final bow, a hand on his sword before he swept away once more to leave the door. 

The urge to grab his wrist, to feel his supple skin and to tell him to stay was too much, so you simply told him good night as well and forced yourself to close the door behind him.

———

It was decided later that your youngest sister, Lei, was to travel to the Slainem Kingdom to deliver the orc king a letter from your father. Because of how carefree Lei was, always out in the field riding her horse and training with her sword, she had no idea what the letter secured in her pouch contained, and neither did she know the agreement your father had written—that if her visit to the Slainem Kingdom were to be fruitful and if it was under his daughter and the orc king’s son’s wish, he will accept the courting for the two to be wed. You couldn’t help but roll your eyes and laugh that this engagement proposal was like a little prank from the two good friends between the Xaenait emperor and the Slainem king, who remembered the bashful yet bold interactions between your sister and the youngest orc prince who were inseparable when they were just but little children.

Now that the day had arrived, your anxiety and worry for her spiked and you rummaged through her luggage just in front of the gates to make sure that she had everything for her trip.

“Do not even dare to forget your extra waterskin and food supply,” you warned Lei, eyes narrowing as you stared up at her from where she was sitting on her white stallion. “You need to keep in mind and fix your tendency of skipping meals when you get overly excited.”

“Relax!” she said with a grin. “I’ll be mindful and careful, so don’t worry.”

Ercus, your personal tiefling guard, tapped your shoulder to keep you calm as he gave a broad smile at her. Ryugen narrowed his eyes at Ercus’ hand on your shoulder, to which the tiefling, noticing it, grinned and put his hand away from you—you were too preoccupied with worry to even realise it.

“Have fun, Your Highness,” Ercus gave a respectful bow.

“I will Ercus.”

“Lei,” your middle sister, Lin, interrupted, “you forgot this.”

Lin opened her hand to show a knife wrapped in a vibrant vermillion handkerchief, to which Lei looked at it curiously, then your youngest sister widened her eyes and smiled. 

“That’s my knife!”

Lin rolled her eyes affectionately and handed it to Lei. “I checked your room after you left, knowing you’ll forget something.”

“You’re the best Lin.”

“I know, I know. Now go before she fusses over you more,” she said, gesturing at you.

You narrowed your eyes at Lin, who smiled teasingly at you, but simply watched Lei tap her horse, trodding away towards the gates.

Ryugen, who was waiting at the gates, nodded at her politely. “I hope you have a safe trip, Your Highness.”

“Take care of my sister while I’m gone like you always do,” she said, smiling cheekily from her horse down at you upon seeing the frustrated furrow on your brow.

“Understood.”

Ryugen gave you a tender smile under his mask, and although you couldn’t see it, you could tell the shift in his demeanour that left your heart racing under his gaze. Ignoring the feeling, you glared at your sister and pointed an accusing finger towards her.

“You should take care of yourself, you little—”

Ercus turned you around so that you would stop your rage towards your youngest sister. “She’s only worried about you. And she says to have a safe trip to the Slainem Kingdom.”

You huffed out a breath and turned around to give her a warning look. “If you do not come back alive, I will personally search for your soul to kill you again.”

Lei gave a chuckle and hopped off of her horse to rush you and Lin into a bone-crushing hug.

“I love you. I’ll miss you two a lot.”

“Have a safe trip and have fun,” Lin said quietly.

Relaxing at the embrace, you sighed and wrapped your arms around your sisters, burying your nose in the crook of Lei’s neck. “I will miss you too. Have a safe trip.”

“Mmmm.”

Once you broke off, Lei went to say her goodbyes to your parents as well. As she walked away, Ercus stalked over to you, giving you a light bump with his shoulder mischievously.

“I’m sure Ryugen will take great care of you,” he laughed.

You raised a brow sceptically at him. “Are you trying to slack off on your duty as my personal guard?”

“I’m sure you don’t want little old me sticking around you constantly when you have that big, scary fella over there.”

A sigh tore through your throat in exasperation, annoyed that despite your best efforts at keeping your adoration towards the oni to a minimum as possible, it was futile when it came to your siblings and close friends. Glancing over at Ryugen, you caught his startling eyes that petrified you to a stop. Before you could look away, he gave you a quick nod and turned away.

Giving up on your attempt at acting ignorant, you grumbled a simple, ‘shut up’, knowing that it was a waste of your energy to fight against Ercus who understood you like the back of his hand.

“Ryugen was always quite fond of you ever since he first joined the royal guards,” Ercus said, chuckling at your attempt at ignoring him.

“He did take good care of us three,” you agreed, to which Ercus frowned at the slight digress of interpretation on your hand.

Ryugen joined the Xaenait force when you were slowly nearing your coming of age, where your insecurities and responsibilities as the future ruler of the dynasty were laid too heavy on you, feeling constricted every day. His appearance in the palace was a shockwave—after all, oni was a very rare species of demon, choosing to keep it to themselves for most of the time. Not to mention that the black onis were the rarest and believed to be the strongest, high-ranking of them all. All of the people were quite scared of him for his cold, stoic composure, yet he quickly rose in rank as the chief guard of Xaenait and gained the trust, respect, and admiration of others—which in response offered more chances of seeing him around you.

When you first introduced yourself, you asked about his age, curious and cold-headed enough to boldly indulge yourself in a conversation. He answered that he was no older than you—perhaps two years or so older in human age—telling you that the growth of an oni was similar to humans, except for the difference that they live older.

Since that conversation, you and Ryugen greeted each other every time you saw each other, with a pleasant smile on your end, and a soft tone in his voice to his usual monotone words. One thing that you found was obvious between your interactions with him, however, was how he took you under his wing like a caring older brother. He will always warn you to sleep early with an amused light in his eyes, ask one of the servants to get you blankets when he finds you in a library during the cold season and gifts you snacks from the kitchen whenever he has the chance. As years passed, your soft spot for him turned into something deeper, something you acknowledged to never attain as your status as the heir of the throne—all these interactions with him gradually clenched your heart in longing.

“Her Highness is heading off to the Slainem Kingdom!” Ryugen bellowed once your youngest sister was ready, snapping you into reality. All the soldiers present on the palace grounds outside gave a salute in response. “Wish her Highness a safe journey.”

All the guards said their blessings and they all gave a deep bow at your sister, who smiled graciously before heading off outside the gates where her journey begins.

———

You were at a meeting with your father and the officials later that day, discussing the establishment of the trade route that was happening across the kingdoms and dynasties that were all in close ties with each other. The meeting was held at one of the chambers—your father sat at the end of a long table and you sat diagonally next to him with all the officials lined up. Ercus was standing behind you as a personal guard and Ryugen stood behind your father as the chief of guards. Today was the meeting on the trade route to the Arathia Kingdom, of which you were planning to depart, to act as a diplomat to come to agreements on some terms with their government.

“Ryugen,” the emperor of Xaenait called out to the black oni from his seat.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Ryugen replied, bowing deeply at your father.

“Would you be open to escorting my eldest daughter to the Arathia Kingdom?”

Your eyes widened slightly at your father’s proposal, and you looked up to where Ryugen was standing to gauge his reaction. Unlike the Slainem Kingdom that your youngest sister has travelled to alone, the Arathia Kingdom was further away from Xaenait, with a need to sail across the ocean for a good while. And since you were the eldest sister, it was necessary to have extra protection; Ercus was automatically a part of your escort, but you didn’t expect your father to ask Ryugen as well.

Ryugen glanced at you before nodding at your father. “It will be my honour to escort Her Highness, Your Majesty.”

A deep exhale escaped your lips from holding it in unconsciously, and you nodded at your father who sought your agreement.

“I will be happy to have you on our journey to Arathia, Chief Guard Ryugen.”

“Thank you, Your Highness. I will promise you a safe journey.”

“I know you will.”

———

Another night was almost approaching, and you were once more in your room, taking a look at the never-ending pile of documents and books to learn more about the trade route of Arathia. The sun was setting, casting a bright orange light across the room like a crystal. A knock was heard and you answered, thinking it was one of the maids that brought a cup of tea for you.

“My princess, why are you working whenever I check on you in your room.”

Intaking a sharp breath of surprise, you shut your book and took a look back towards Ryugen. He closed the door, and you saw the glimmering skin of his muscular chest that peaked under his clothes. Shaking your head to get rid of all these thoughts, you looked up to see that Ryugen was already staring at you

“Apologies for my sudden appearance, my princess.”

“Did my father send you here again?” you chuckled in amusement.

“No,” he said, a lilt hinting at his voice. “I was worried that you were overworking yourself again.”

You yawned and stretched your arms above your head. “Well, I need to finish this in a couple of days. I might as well complete all of this earlier and rest.”

Ryugen came up to you and placed a hand on your shoulder. You froze under his touch, more so when his face neared you.

“My princess,” he whispered next to you. “You need to rest.”

“I-I—” You cleared your throat. “I am fine, Ryugen.”

There was a small pause on his end before he gave a sigh. You furrowed your brows and looked at him, jumping slightly when you realised that his mask was closer to you than you realised.

“I am tired, my princess. If you would enlighten me with your presence, could you accept my humble request to rest with me?”

Feeling heat rush through your cheeks, you tried to remain your calm and gestured at the couches and cushions in your resting chamber. “Be my guest, Ryugen.”

An unexpected laugh bubbled out of Ryugen and you widened your eyes at him. The oni brought his hand to your cheeks, albeit hesitantly, and rubbed soothing circles on them that tickled from how gently he was touching you, making your head spin like you never felt before.

“No, my princess,” he chuckled. “I want you, out of these paperwork.”

“But—”

“I will come and pick you up after supper.”

That was all he said before he walked out of your room silently, leaving you there in shock and confusion. Rubbing your temples, you tried to stop the prominent pumps of blood that were rushing through your veins that echoed in your head distractingly.

“Damn you, Ryugen. Now I can’t focus on my paperwork.”

———

Supper went along as usual, although the loss of Lei and her bubbly personality was something that toned the conversations down quite noticeably. No one noticed your nerves, except for perhaps Lin, who gave a quizzical look at you from the constant tapping of your feet under the table. As it came to a close, you said your good night, reassuring everyone that you would sleep early for tonight, and unhurriedly, yet nervously, walked towards your room.

In front of your chamber door, Ryugen awaited your arrival, perking up at the sound of your soft footsteps.

“Did you enjoy your supper, my princess?”

“I did,” you said. “Where are we going, Ryugen?”

He gestured you to the room, and you raised your brow and opened the door, entering your resting chambers with him falling in the tail.

“My princess,” he said, making you crane your neck to look up at him, “would you be against spending time together outside?”

“Outside?” you mused. Trailing your eyes out to the window, you could only see the endless blackness of the night with some flickering flames for the guards stationed outside, three storeys below you. “I… would not mind…? But I do not see how we can go outside during curfew hours…”

While you were saying this, you apprehensively watched Ryugen open the big window of your room that you were staring at, letting the cold air of the night drift inside.

“What are you doing?”

“We are sneaking out, my princess,” he said bluntly, a mirthful smile in his voice.

A surprised silence followed after, your lips parted while you stared at the oni with wide eyes. Ryugen walked over to place his thumb just under your bottom lips, the flat of his black claw gently pushing your plush skin to close them together. A blush rose across your cheeks and you tried to hide it by pivoting away from him and approaching the now open window.

“Through the window?”

Ryugen now stood right in front of you with his back to the window, as he outstretched his calloused hand towards you and leaned down to your ear.

“If I may,” he murmured.

You were unsure of what to expect next, but you nodded, offering a nervous smile and placed your hand on his large palm. A small yelp escaped you as he gently pulled you towards him and scooped your knees from underneath with his other arm, strongly bringing you off the ground in a bridal carry.

“R-Ryugen?”

“Hold on tight, my princess.”

Wrapping your arms around his neck, you buried your face into his chest to stop the scream that almost tore through your throat as Ryugen placed one firm foot on the windowsill and jumped out of the room. That uncomfortable feeling of your heart being pushed up by gravity felt like it lasted forever until you landed on the ground, to which Ryugen stood on his two feet so sturdily you almost forgot that he jumped out from four storeys above.

Catching your adrenaline-rushed breath, you looked around to see that you were a fair distance away from the palace, where just in front of you, the bamboo forest lay ahead in a mysterious veil.

“You… you could put me down, Ryugen.”

From the moonlight, you could see the deep shadows on his mask, grinning down at you hauntingly as Ryugen studied you. Without complying, he started to trod across the grass, quickly finding ground on a hill.

“I do not want you to hurt yourself walking here.”

You were about to assure him that you were fine, having trained countless years, both day and night, to prepare for any battlefield with your sisters, but you thought against it—you quite enjoyed the warmth radiating off of him. So, you simply nodded, trusting his sight in the darkness, and tentatively leaned your head against his chest. You felt his heartbeat under your eat, thinking that they might of have raced a little bit faster under your touch.

“I forgot how reckless you can be,” you whispered to him, making sure to keep your presence discreet.

He tilted his head. “Am I?”

You snorted in amusement at how he oblivious he sounded, and let the comfortable silence wash over you two as he walked up the hill, where you soon found one, beautiful sakura tree standing tall and powerful on top of it.

Once you were right at the trunk of the tree, Ryugen kneeled down to one knee and let you down on the grass, making sure you were seated comfortably against the bark and sat next to you with his arm brushing against your shoulder. You found yourself almost resting your head on his arm but stopped yourself—instead, you watched quietly as he pulled out a small lantern from the sleeve of his kimono and lit it up with a match.

“Why did you exactly bring me here, Ryugen?” you asked, watching the flame flicker instead. Although you didn’t want to admit it, his mask was still quite intimidating after so many years, especially under the firelight.

Ryugen paused for a moment, seeming to find his words. 

After a while, he replied, “I already said it, my princess. I wanted for you to take a rest.”

You let out a little sigh, realising that he was trying to avoid telling you his real intentions. “But you did not have to inconvenience yourself carrying me here.”

“Did you… did you find it bothersome?”

You could hear the slightest insecurity quiver in his voice. Despite all the kind and considerate gestures he always offered to you, you always forget the awkward difference between you two—you, as a human, and him, as an oni. 

“No, no, no.” You shook your head, giving him a gentle smile. “I appreciate your thoughts and actions, Ryugen. Thank you.”

He hummed in response.

Glancing at him, you bit your lips nervously as a question arose from how comfortable the atmosphere was. Thinking better of it than the consequence, you asked. "Why do you keep your face hidden behind a mask?"

His body tensed at the question, just like you saw before all those years ago. It slightly hurt you to see that, thinking that he would at least feel a little more comfortable with you than that servant who asked the same question years ago—after all, the trust you built between him was something you prized. Nevertheless, the guilt was greater than the pain and you patted his shoulder, hoping to make him relax.

“Nevermind, Ryugen. Do not dwell on it so much. I am terribly sorry for the question.”

“My deepest apologies, my princess.”

Shaking your head and reassuring him once more, you leaned back against the bark of the tree, shutting your eyes tiredly as sleep threatened to fall upon you.

“Ryugen… would you carry me once more back to the palace if I sleep?” you asked drowsily, voice almost inaudible from how foggy your mind was.

Feeling his calloused hand lay on your cheek and the other arm delicately circled around your waist, you jolted awake slightly from surprise; heart beating faster as he tenderly brought your face to his chest to rest against him.

“Of course, my princess.”

From his body, you felt the deep rumble of his voice that pleasantly echoed through your entire body, to which you unconsciously smiled and leaned in closer to him.

“Thank you.”

Letting sleep befall you, you spent the night resting on him as you enjoyed the gentle rhythm of his chest moving as he breathed—his arm around your waist keeping you warm against the cool air in one of the best sleeps you had in your life.

Check out my other stories set in the same world! (It might help with understanding some of the overlaps mentioned in this story)

Swords Clashing (Orc x F! Reader)

Weaving Through Complications (Tiefling x F! Reader)

Over the Treacherous Ocean (Naga x F! Reader)

[boredandwiredkitty]

Listening to old favorite songs and getting some inspiration to write again.

For the longest time ever and and still a bit now I've been into omegaverse. Found some of my favorite kinks from it. Im a little ashamed to admit. I always wanted to incorporate it into some of my own fics and have made a few but I have yet to publish any of them. Maybe I will after this one.

I also highly recommend listening to the song as you read my little drabble. You don't have to but it might help you see the headspace I went in while writing. I really wanted to explore a bit more of the feral side of wheeljack. What if you both tried to deny what you both wanted. That push and pull. It all began as one scene in my head and the song morphed it into the whole fic that you see.

This is part one since I accidentally made it too damn long of a two part story

As always Minors DNI! This is a 18+ rated fic with NSFW! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

This fic does contain most omegaverse themes so if you're adverse to that this might not be for you.

Reader is AFAB if you're wondering.

Heavy panting and heavy footfalls were the only things you could hear over your pounding spark.

Stuck again in the same dream that you get time to time. You were always running. You weren't quite sure why. Was it to something? Was it from something? Was it both? Only the pull in your chest urged you forward. Unsure if it was fear or inclination.

Just as you were about to stop and turn to see if something was behind you the rug was pulled from under you. Abruptly feeling the sensation of falling.

You awoke with a jolt. Clutching the bed underneath you confirming your stability. You were not falling nor needing to run. Everything's fine.

Sort of.

You only got that dream periodically. Right around every time your body goes through a particular change.

The limiters were off and all hell was about to break loose.

As familiar symptoms began to creep throughout your frame trepidation mixed with it.

You couldn't calm your rapid spark as your internal temp was faintly yet steadily rising. The damn dream was always a warning. A premonition of sorts.

"Please dont" You murmured to yourself. Though it was futile. You didn't know how to stop it once it was set in motion. Especially without outside help.

But who were you going to ask? With such sensitive information no less? Was there anyone you trusted enough to ask for help from? Let alone even know HOW to help you?

It was the early hours of morning before the world seemed to wake up. Dawn had yet to break over the horizon. It wasn't much time but just enough to either find help or put enough distance between yourself and a certain other.

You weakly swung your legs over the side of the bed. Becoming even more aware of your incoming heat. You even wondered if it was coming too fast.

Did shockwave have something to do with this?

The first couple of times this happened was back in shockwaves lab. Every time you started showing noticeable signs he would quickly administer some sort of drug and it would seem to vanish without a trace.

The first time it happened you were obviously concerned and immediately went to the scientist with complaints of your new alarming symptoms. The uncomfortable warmth paired with mental fog and a strange urge that burned through your body. The urge to go looking for someone so strong it overpowered everything else. You didn't know who or what but you felt like you had to find what your body needed so desperately. A feeling like you absolutely depended on it for survival.

The unconcerned tank mech only stared at you in response with his one glaring red optic when you approached him that day. Only to turn silently and cluncked to a place in the lab to began working on something. Not bothering to utter a single word to you. Not too long after he arrived with a needle loaded up what you guessed was more energon mixed with something else due to its ever so slight opaqueness.

You squirmed and questioned how he couldn't just make it into something you could drink.

"This is more effective. Injecting it directly into your bloodstream will nullify your heat immediately."

"Heat?" You asked him incredulously as he pushed the plunger carefully.

"Yes. It seems are you are beginning your first heat cycle. No matter, I have made a temporary cure for your cycle and you shall be back to normal operation in a moment."

You winced as the fluid entered your body. You hated the invasive cold feeling of liquid forcefully entering your veins. "Will it be gone permanently?"

"No. It will only prevent symptoms this cycle. Do not worry. Your systems are still functional. You just are no longer under the affects."

"Great to hear." You stated sarcastically as he moved away to go back to his current project. He was looking at a strand of CNA next to a strand of human DNA. Probably another part of your cyberformation project.

After that every heat you had; depending on how quickly your symptoms set in; he would either give you the injection or a ingestable variation. You hated the injections but you had to admit it was much nicer that relief was almost instant. The medicine would take much longer and sometimes waiting for the symptoms to dissappear was unbearable. You would not let yourself drop to degrading levels around the emotionless logic fueled scientist. You would rather die before it got to that point.

Now you sat up in the darkness of your room back at autobot headquarters. Without shockwave or any medication to get through this.

You wanted to ask ratchet for help but you didn't know if he had anything to help you or even knew how to make it. Given your circumstances it was probably only shockwave that knew.

Ratchet knew of your technorganic body but he was still learning of all its ins and outs. It was only fairly recently that you showed him shockwaves handiwork. You were patient as he would carefully examine you and run different tests to see the extent of the cyberformation. But you doubted if he knew anything about your current predicament.

You stiffly got up. There's no harm at trying.

You walked out in the dimness of the base and found the medic looking over some files.

"Hey ratchet." You quietly called out to him careful not to startle the poor older mech.

His helm quickly turned to you noticing your weary looking frame. "What are you doing up?"

You suddenly felt bashful. "I um." You squirmed under his worried gaze. "I'm getting my heat cycle. And I'm hoping you could help me."

The flush over his face made you realize you should've been more clear. "I do not think I would be the right mech for such a task. Why don't you ask w-" He began before you cut him off from saying his name.

"Nonono! That's not what I'm saying. Can you give me some medicine to alleviate the symptoms?!" You exclaimed while waving your arms frantically in front of you.

"You want me to make a medicine?" He queried.

"Yes. That's what I meant," You confirmed back.

Ratchet stood there in deep thought for a moment. Murmuring to himself before looking back up at you.

"I'd hate to ask but what would shockwave do when this would happen? Or is this the first time?"

You shook your head. "Shockwave had different remedies. Sometimes it was an injection. Sometimes it was a medicine that I would drink. It depended on how bad the symptoms were." You told him truthfully. Hopeful he would find something.

"What exactly are your symptoms?"

Your eyes darkened. What a unpleasant question.

While you spent your time here you noticed something you never would've back at the lab. Something you would only have realized once EXPOSED to it.

The mech that plagued you. That you were injected with their energon. Repeatedly. Invading your veins to begin the cyberforming process. Their biomatter mixed with yours. How your body called out to theirs as if they were a homing beacon. You were a moth and they were the flame.

You took a deep breath. Attempting to calm your fretful spark. Trying to figure out how to tell him. "I start to feel a bit feverish." You began and ratchet nodded at you in acknowledgement. Silently urging you to keep going. "I get mental fog. My body feels a bit weaker than usual," You continued. Watching as ratchet was listening intently to every word you said.

Ratchet gazed at you probingly as you stopped listing anything else. "Is that all? Are you sure you're not having any other symptoms than that? Because if that were the case it could be something else besides a heat cycle."

You scowled. "No" you grumbled. Feeling defeated at confessing this out loud.

You raised your head to look ratchet better in the optics. "I get the most desperate and embarrassing URGE for a certain autobot."

You watched his optics widen a bit. "Who is it?"

You bit your lip as you felt a sudden tug in your spark. "Who do you think?" You snapped defensively.

Ratchet nodded in understanding. "I'll see what I can do but I cannot guarantee that I will have anything ready by the time you fully get your heat. In that case what do you want me to do?" His voice was professional. Like any medical practitioner.

"Send me away." You quickly spoke with a sweep of your arm. "Just get me out of here before something happens! I don't care where. Hell, inject me with whatever concoction you come up with! Anything to stop this heat from happening! I'll even drink the nastiest medicine you make!"

Ratchet jolted back aghast. "Are you sure that's what you want? Do you not want to try anything else?"

You nodded solemnly, "What other choice do I have? I don't want to inflict my heat on anyone else."

"Has it affected anyone before?"

You wrinkled your nose in thought. "Not that I'm aware. It never really seemed to bother shockwave. But that mech is rather stoic so it's hard to tell. Maybe the vehicons if I'm further in my heat but I'm usually isolated from most others."

Ratchet turned to start typing on his console. "That could either be because either you don't produce pheromones to attract other bots or.." He trailed off as he typed. Then looking over at the exit of the hangar. "That you affect only ONE mech. Given your symptoms that you described."

You choked on your spit and deadpanned. Currently the said mech was out on a mission. But when they come back what will happen? Will he be unaffected or completely taken over and forced into rut? Was that something you wanted to take chances on? It was getting harder to tell as clouded thoughts started to flit through your mind. Maybe it would be interesting to see if he would react. But what then?...

"If you wish to stay somewhere else after they get back I'll be sure to move you before letting them return to base."

You nodded politely. "That would be preferable thank you."

With that ratchet extended a servo to which you climbed on as he took you to his medical work station.

You tried not to put up much of a fuss as he did various scans. Typing different things on his monitor.

"Will you be adverse to me taking an energon sample?" He asked gently.

You made a face. You hated injections and getting fluids drawn. "I'd prefer if you didnt." You grumbled honestly.

"Unfortunately it would be much harder to get an accurate suppressant made if I don't get all the information that is stored in your genetic makeup."

You grimaced. Aka he needed your blood. If he didn't have it it would be as useful as taking a shot in the dark. You really wanted to avoid needles as much as possible though.

Ratchet sensed your unease. Being shockwaves captive is no joke. He didn't want to think about what that mech put you through. "Don't worry. I'll apply the techniques that nurse Darby taught me in case I ever had to help with the kids."

He then activated his holoform and brought out a small kit for drawing blood. "I'll try to make this as painless as possible."

You tried to be still and not fight ratchet so much but you couldn't help but flinch away when he brought the needle close to your arm.

"Why don't I turn on the TV so you have something to distract yourself." He asked you gently while moving the needle away.

You tried to sit up straighter. "I don't know. I'm not used to having a distraction. I don't know if it will work."

"Here." Ratchet then removed his holoform and picked you up. Placing you on the couch and turned on the TV. Setting it to a low enough volume. "Do you want to talk about anything?"

You now we're settled next to ratchets holoform again as you faced the TV on the couch they had for the kids. Some early morning cartoons were playing that you remember seeing as a kid and felt a wave of nostalgia wash over you. A sense of familiarity as you stared at the screen.

"It's kinda hard to find anything to talk about anything right now." You gave a light chuckle. "The brain fog is slowly taking over." You confessed still focused on the TV.

"Is it bad?" He asked as he carefully pierced your skin with the needle and watched you wince.

You shook your head. "Not that bad yet. But I bet it's only going to get worse."

"Probably." Ratchet agreed as he continued focusing on drawing your energon mixed blood. "But I will do my best to prevent it."

"Thank you. I appreciate it."

"You're very welcome." He told you with a smile. "How are you feeling besides the heat? Any issues with the cyberforming?"

"None that I'm aware." You stated. Glancing over to look at him for a moment. Doing your best to not look down at what was happening with your arm.

"Well while I have a sample I'll be running some tests to make sure everything is doing alright. I'll probably have June look over at your panels as well."

"Sounds good" You told him. Noticing how he was already moving to stand up. "Done already?" You asked incredulously.

"Yep. Already got enough samples for testing. You're good to go."

Samples? As in plural? You looked down at your arm and saw a little bandaid, then to his hand where he held five vials of your mixed blood.

"No way!" You whispered in astonishment. Reaching out to hold one of the warm vials in your hand. "This is so trippy." You laughed as you lifted it up to examine it closer. Trying to use the light from the TV to see through the vial.

"Wasn't too bad was it?" Ratchet asked as you handed him back the vial.

"No you did good. But I wonder if me going into heat is particularly to blame. I think I'm starting to go mentally numb to my surroundings."

"I'm going to go start running the tests. You can sit here for now. Let me know if the symptoms get worse or if you need anything."

You nodded and watched as he left. You couldn't help but wonder why you didn't feel anything with anyone else. There was no pull. No longing. No lust. Nothing. Which you were thankful for. But you felt nervous how bad it would get with HIM in proximity while you were going into heat. His lingering scent was already making you feel the warmth between your legs.

"Maybe I will ask smokescreen to take me out somewhere to keep me out of the base." You mumbled to yourself. He was a good and trusted friend. With that thought and uncomfortable feeling coiled in your gut. Like the thought of being alone with someone else repulsed you. Which made no sense since you were fine being alone with ratchet. Maybe because the scenario is different?

You couldn't make heads or tails of it. It was getting harder to think deeply. So you just relaxed as you started to watch the next show that played. Numbing your mind to everything but the screen infront of you.

As you went through different episodes the more you felt the warmth radiating from your body. Did your spark always sound this loud? What were you doing again?

You moved to stand up but then remembered you were waiting on ratchet. How much longer till he would be done? How long do normal cybertronian heats last? How long does it usually take for symptoms to get bad?

You were about to call out to him to ask when you realized he had already been calling your name.

You blinked at him. "Um, yes?" You asked stupidly.

"They are requesting to return to base. Do you want to go somewhere real quick?"

Your mind lagged. Go?... Go where? Where will you go? Making a decision felt difficult.

Your mouth fell open but no words came to mind. "I dont....." you trailed off. You couldn't think. All you could think about was how uncomfortable you felt and how your clothes felt too warm. You wanted to cool off. A cold shower sounded nice right now.

"Shower" You told him.

Ratchet looked at you incredulously. "What?.. nevermind," Ratchet sighed shaking his helm. it seemed your heat was coming on faster than expected. It was only a matter of time before you would be incoherent. He needed to find somewhere for you to stay in the meantime. but housing a technorganic in heat would be no easy feat. Considering this would be your first time fully going into heat. Who knows how your body would handle it. He wanted to keep you close by to check on you. Since it was obvious you weren't producing any pheromones that affected him. He was your physician and he wanted to help in any way he could.

He quickly picked you up and activated the ground bridge. Rushing you out to the barracks to get washed up. Maybe a hygiene ritual will help cool your symptoms. Even if for a bit. At the very least it would dampen the intensity of your pheromones for short amount of time.

He set you down. "Let me know if you need anything else. I will have Fowler be helping you." And with that he swiftly dissapeared back to the hangar.

You blinked as you just staired at the direction he went. Your mind trying to keep up. What just happened?

You shook your head and slapped your cheeks. Trying to regain your senses.

Shower. You were here to shower.

You went inside and found a stall. Pulling the curtain you stripped your clothes and hung them on the divider wall. Maybe a shower will help. You could only wish silently to yourself as you turned the knob.

Back at base ratchet arrived as everyone was stepping through the bridge. First Magnus strutted in. Looking completely unaffected followed by smokescreen who also seemed completely unaware of any potential pheromones in the air. Leaving ratchet to muse that maybe his hypothesis was right.

It was when wheeljack walked through he staggered. Seeming to be completely thrown off the moment he entered the base. With bulkhead looking over at him concerned.

"Whoa Jackie. You alright?"

The white wrecker blinked in a daze before coming to his senses. "Yeah. I'm alright."

Ratchet could only hum in thought. So he WAS right. You could only affect wheeljack. So all he had to do was keep you both separated. Since that seemed to be your wish.

Wheeljack spotted the medic seeming to be in deep though and walked over. "Whatcha working on?" He couldn't help but notice the closer he got the stronger the smell. Was it ratchet? He had to wonder and find out for himself.

"I'm just going over (name)'s charts."

He looked at the screen to see a strand of CNA mixed with DNA along with another strand of CNA next to it. "Is something wrong?" He couldn't hide the worry in his voice.

"No nothings wrong per se. Just looking over some things for her since she asked." Ratchet stated while typing on the screen before turning to the wrecker. "Why? Is something the matter?"

Wheeljack looked caught off guard again. "Nah its just..." He paused for a brief moment. Thinking of what to say. "It's nothing. Just wondering." He then looked around. "Is (name) around?"

"She just went out. She will be back later." He stated and turned back to his work. The faster he can make the suppressant the faster your symptoms will dissappear. As well as your pheromones.

Ratchet didn't even realize wheeljack was halfway out the door before he frantically called back to him. "And where do you think you're going?!"

"Just out for a moment. I'll be back." He stated without turning around. Causing poor ratchet to bristle over his flippant retort.

"I need you to stay here for the time being. The others may require backup." Ratchet snipped

"Awe c'mon doc. I just got here. Don't tell me you're going to send me out again." He complained loudly. He was desperate to see if you were the source of those enticing pheromones.

"I just might now get back here!" The medic snapped at the white mech. "And stop calling me doc!"

You were standing there just letting the water drum over you. The coolness seeping into your skin. The running water helped with the uncomfortable warmth you felt but it didn't help the thick fog your mind was swimming through or the absolute urge to go looking for the mech that your body was calling out for.

You rested your head against the cool tiles of the stall. You wanted these symptoms to go away. If only you were back at shockwaves lab. He would administer the shot without a second thought. You should've grabbed some medicine before you escaped. You figured if the scientist felt emotions he would be laughing at your predicament right now. Or maybe. This is exactly what he wanted. But why?

Subconsciously your hand had found itself between your legs. Fingers sliding inside the place that ached as your mind wondered to your wrecker. Your fingers didn't offer much but the thoughts of it being him helped. A stifled moan caught in your throat when you heard a sound outside and decided you were in there long enough. It not like you weren't in the desert right now or anything and that water was not usually something of abundance. Nor should you be entertaining such dangerous ideas.

You lamented on how the coolness quickly left your body and struggled to dry off and redress.

You left the showers to find Fowler waiting for you. "Ratchet informed me you weren't feeling right and had me look over you for the time being. Is there anything you need?"

"Something cool. Or maybe a nap." Or maybe a third that shall not be mentioned.

"Would you like me or one of the bots to take you into town to get some ice cream then?

Your eyes lit up for a second as a certain wrecker crossed your mind before you quickly dismissed that thought.

"I'm not sure." You told him truthfully.

You didn't know what you wanted. Nothing sounded appealing to you. All except for the carnal urge to find the white lancia and make him yours. To sink your teeth into him. Intertwine your body with his. To feel his spark beat against yours. But such an intimately deep and primal urge scared you. You were scared of the unknowns. You were still intigrating yourself into team prime. Slowly becoming comfortable with everyone around you. Being thrust into a situation like this was alarming.

"I'll just hang out in a different hanger and try to get some rest." You told him. All in all you didn't feel like being around anyone. Well all except one mech. But you weren't ready for that. You were starting to remember him better. Rekindle your close friendship. Such a commitment was not something to take lightly. You would do your best not to give in.

You ended up at an adjacent hangar and the others were polite enough to lend you an office to crash in. They even were kind enough to lend you a pillow. Once you seemed settled in enough on the small couch Fowler left to go back to his own office.

"If you need anything just give me a call." Fowler told you before leaving.

You hummed in acknowledgement and watched him dissappear from the doorway. Closing the door behind himself. Leaving you by yourself with your thoughts all over again.

You wanted to rest. Even with the malaise wearing down your body you wouldn't be able to relax. Not with the desire to seek out relief plaguing your hazed mind. Picking and nagging at you. But you wouldn't be caught dead pleasuring yourself in public like this.

You laid there for what felt like hours. Trying menial mental tests to keep you sane. You feared the moment you slipped up you would lose control. But as time ticked by your mental awareness shrank to next to nothing. Even your short term memory started to fail. It was getting to the point you would get up to leave. Only to stop yourself when you remembered just WHY you placed yourself into quarantine to begin with. Then found yourself pacing as you battled your own body. It felt like chains were constricting your body. Hot, heavy, and extremely uncomfortable. All with that mech on the other end tugging at you to come closer.

You didn't want to be caged up any longer. You've had enough of that back with the decepticons. The air was too stuffy. It was getting harder to breathe. You were sure soon the walls were going to start closing in on you.

You walked out to notice that the hangar was vacant. All military personnel had already left for the most part. How long were you in that office? Was it already night? There's no way. You stepped out and felt unease wash over you. It was uncomfortably quiet. You had gotten used to the hustle and bustle of hangar E. How there was at least one living being in the hangar at all times.

You left the hangar quickly. Not wanting to stay there much longer. The silence was suffocating.

What you weren't expecting was finding yourself wandering mindlessly over to the outside of hangar E. It was dark outside but like usual inside the hangar it was relatively lit. You wanted that familiarity. Something about it was calling you. Or maybe it was your instincts. It was getting harder to tell. You didn't even know what you were doing or why you were even there in the first place. Your self controll must really be slipping now.

You shook your head. You wanted to ask ratchet but thought better than to just waltz right in. You needed to go back before making a mistake. Turning to trudge back to the hangar you found yourself unable to take a single step. You would go back; Only that you had to conveniently forget which one you had actually stayed in.

Fuck.

You wanted to cry in frustration. What were you even doing? Where were you? Why were you still so freaking warm. And where was ratchet with your suppressant. "Just hurry up with the damn suppressant already!" You cried out to no one in particular. Well no one in earshot. At least that's what you thought.

The scent. Oh Primus the scent that started filtering into your nose. It made you feel weaker. it made the heat of desire burn hotter, stronger, heavier. A vice tightening with every vent. Like a starved animal. It clouded everything out of your mind. You turned around and was met with the sight of wheeljack standing just outside hangar E.

Just as you opened your mouth to say something you clamped your hand around it. No! Don't draw him closer. If you do you will lose the very shred of self control you had left.

He spotted you and began to make his way to you.

At first you stumbled towards him. Drunk off of his scent. It coaxing you sweetly while pulling you in. Calling to you. Beconing. Only for you to regain your senses enough to run.

And run you did.

To be continued...

Part two

[stayxlix]

off the deep end. (01)

~(part 1) the sun and his moon~

pairing: rebel!felix x reader (f)

genre: non-idol au, post-apocalypse/dystopian au. wc: 8.2k

series rating: 18+ **minors do not interact**

chapter warnings: violent mature themes, mentions of murder/execution, death, oppressive government, fighting, gunfire, angst, suggestive content, brief mention of parent death, parental neglect, language, mentions of hunger/starvation, please lmk if i missed any!

a/n: this is my first time posting any of my work, so any thoughts/feedback are very much appreciated and welcome!! i’ve had the idea for this in my head ever since the maxident trailer came out so everyones vibe in this is based on that (with some inspiration for the whole setting/theme from the scars and miroh mvs because i love them both so much). i really want my work to be a kind of escape, and i have big plans for this one :) i hope you enjoy ♡

~series masterlist~

“there's an old story of the sun and the moon. the sun, who loved the moon so much he died every night to let her breathe. the moon, that sacrificed herself every night so that the sun could rise. maybe we were too much like the sun and the moon. deeply in love but too different to exist side by side.”

It had been a long time since he felt the sun against his skin like this. It was comforting, like an old friend, as the warmth fell against him through a break in the heavy fog above.

"Felix!" Chan came up behind him, breaking the silence. "I've been looking for you man. I think we've got something this time. Something big, but it'll take all of us and it wont be easy."

Felix stayed facing the sun. He closed his eyes and lifted his head toward it, resting his hands on the rough surface of the rooftop beneath him. Tuning out the older boy, just another moment was all he needed. Just a few more breaths, a few more beats of his heart. The wind pushed the hair out of his eyes. His freckles becoming darker with every second. Sometimes, on days underneath the sun like this, he wished he would melt away in it. On darker days he wished for the fog to consume him. He wished and he wondered. Was there anything more to this life? Would there ever be?

Felix breathed in deeply once more, letting it out slowly. His eyes were still closed but he could feel Chan beside him now when he spoke.

"I'll do it."

The world you knew today was very different from the one that you read about in books. You read them over and over again until you memorized the pages. Books filled with stories of nuclear wars and the unforgiving nuclear winter that followed, destroying nearly everyone and everything that had existed before. You read handwritten journals that described buildings so tall they were blanketed by the clouds above. They told tales of clear skies and green forests with creatures like aliens, moving pictures on tiny boxes meant solely for entertainment, and something called the internet that held the answers to any question you could ever imagine. All of that was gone now, kept alive by the images created in your head when you read those books. Sometimes you wondered if any of it had ever existed at all.

After the wars, the remainder of the world was condensed and split into 9 districts. As far as anyone knew, the only thing left outside of the 9 districts was barren land that held nothing but stories, carried by ghosts of the past. The 9 districts had been run by your ancestors for generations, currently under rule of your father. They were shaped in large rings, with District 9 at the center, also known as the "Inner Circle". The Inner Circle was where your father's palace, army, and the most wealthy members of society were located. The other 8 districts surrounded the Inner circle and each other, stretching miles upon miles until District 1. At the edge of District 1 stood a wall rumored to be a thousand feet high. It encompassed all 9 districts and therefore everything that was left of the world. Nobody knew what was beyond the wall and nobody dared to find out.

Ever since you were old enough to understand what it meant, you had hated being the daughter of the most powerful man in the world. The horrible things you had seen your father do kept you awake at night. The people he had executed, suspected of conspiring rebellions against him, lived on in your mind. Some of them barely older than you, some younger. He was all you could remember, your mother having died before you were old enough to know her.

For your entire life your father had told you that he did the things he did because he had to. He was only protecting you and the people he was responsible for, so he said. Another way he "protected" you was by keeping you hidden from the world outside. You grew up without any idea of what lie beyond the walls of the palace in District 9. To everyone outside, your existence was nothing more than just a myth.

As you got older, your father started to teach you things like how to fight, lead, maintain order, and hold a position of power through fear. Most importantly, he taught you that love was weakness, which is probably why he never showed any toward you. In a world like yours there was no time or opportunity for friends and certainly not for love. It wasn't like you were completely inexperienced though..There had been nights spent under the protection of darkness in hidden corners of the palace that involved racing heartbeats and forbidden touches. They were nights shared with guards in training or kitchen hands that you barely knew and none of them ever stayed. You didn't let them, for fear of what your father might do to them if he found out. Love was weakness, so you vowed never to let it get that far.

You did everything that was asked of you because you had no reason not to trust your father. Because you had no reason to question the things he told you about how the world works. Because blood is supposed to be able to trust blood, right? And he was all you had ever known, so you followed him blindly. You let him mold and shape you into a carbon copy of himself, until you couldn't ignore it anymore. A sinking feeling deep within you that what you understood about the way the world works was very wrong.

Lately, something had changed within you. You started to crave the truth. You needed real answers to your questions about the surrounding districts and it became clear that you weren't going to find them inside the palace walls. It was then that you decided you would do whatever it took to get them for yourself.

You knew the walls of the palace like the back of your own hand, including the labyrinth of underground tunnels beneath it. You had played in the tunnels as a child and were later taught to use them in an emergency in case a rebellion against your father were to succeed, not that he would let that happen. He was a busy man and spent the majority of his time locked away in secrecy behind closed doors, in the company of his most trusted military generals or advisors. Although he kept a close eye on you, he couldn't be with you all hours of the day and neither could his guards. With all of the training you had received, you were quite good at hiding from them when you didn't want to be found. When you have to be hidden from the world, you get used to blending in with the shadows. You become good at it.

As a result, over the past few weeks you made it a habit of sneaking out at night through the tunnels, beyond the palace and the Inner Circle. Under the protection of darkness and your hidden identity. In doing so, you were finally able to uncover some answers, although you had a feeling you had just barely begun to scratch the surface of the truth.

From the moment you stepped foot onto the cracked streets of the surrounding districts, it became very clear that the things you had always thought to be normal were a luxury beyond District 9. Despite having been kept hidden for your entire life, you knew that you had been born lucky. You just hadn't realized how lucky.

Wherever you went, light from burning fires flickered through the darkness in between broken walls, keeping people who huddled inside them warm. The guilt reached through you to your bones when you met dirty faces and sunken, tired eyes in the shadows of the night.

You hadn't expected the deep rooted hatred that the people had for your father in the surrounding districts, but you quickly came to understand it. You learned that the majority of the resources produced by the other districts and the little that was farmed from the desolate land was collected and kept for District 9. It was distributed among it's incredibly selfish inhabitants, which also happened to include yourself, although you didn't know it until now. They were considered the most "important" members of society, while those beyond were left to survive off of the bare minimum.

The people blamed your father and the generations of your family before him. They blamed the fortunate society members of District 9, and if they tried to rebel they would be labeled as traitors and publicly executed under the order of your father. They had a right to be angry. You were angry for them. You had no idea that this is how things were and you probably wouldn't have believed it until you saw it for yourself. The colorful picture your father had painted of a loving people who looked to him to protect them, take care of them, and keep them safe turned black in your mind.

The farthest out you could make it on foot in one night was District 7. Much beyond that and you wouldn't be able to get back to the palace in time before daybreak. You were also hesitant to go any further because of the possibility of what, or who, lie waiting in the districts beyond. You heard enough from rumors in passing about dangerous clans and bands of thieves who roamed the more remote districts. They wouldn't hesitate to cut the throat of an innocent for a piece of bread, a pair of shoes, or just because they felt like it.

Of course, Districts 8 and 7 didn't compare to the Inner Circle by any means, but at least some skeleton of a society lingered there. Many of the buildings still stood, although their walls were weathered and broken down. Thick grass wove in between cracks like stitches holding them up. Some buildings housed small "shops" where families would trade or sell anything they could scavenge the material to make, just trying to earn enough coins for scraps of food or a blanket to keep warm. There were "schools" held in large dirt fields where children used sticks to draw in the mud. There was a tavern that you liked to visit in District 7 that was almost always empty, but the beer was…drinkable and the bartender was kind.

There was no running water so it had to be collected on foot. No electricity. No rent to pay because nobody owned homes, they just settled where they could. Trading coins between each other for whatever goods they could get their hands on. The roads were so weathered and broken that it didn’t really matter that there were no cars, aside from the occasional military vehicle that passed through the landscape carrying your fathers guards. Always patrolling, always watching. You had a few close encounters with them on your outings, although you had managed to remain unseen thanks to the shadows cast by the moon.

Many of the people from the outer districts spent their days in fields, growing whatever they could from the desolate land. They were paid sparingly by your fathers guards when they came in military vehicles to collect the produce. Many of them didn't work at all, trying to survive and live off of the land themselves. Some travelled on foot between the districts to scavenge for anything to keep their loved ones alive. But it came with a price, the further out you went the more dangerous and less civilized things became. The less life there was, no matter how many humans you ran into. At the edge of it all lie District 1, mostly made up of prisons that held those lucky enough to be left alive by your father. Although, you had a feeling that if you asked them they wouldn't consider themselves very lucky at all.

Tonight, you made your way out through the tunnels wearing clothes borrowed from your only friend Jisoo, a palace maid that you had grown up with. As soon as you stepped off of the palace grounds, your ears were met with only the sounds of your heavy breathing and your feet as they hit the earth. You were a good runner and welcomed the fresh air as it burned your lungs. You ran miles until you found yourself somewhere in District 7 once again. It was a little further out than you usually went, in an area where you probably shouldn't have been.

You stopped at a quiet candlelit tavern with a hanging sign that displayed scribbled writing promising "fresh" water and beer to those that could spare a few coins. The only other person in the small space aside from the bartender was an older man with a gray beard and tattered clothes, slumped over across from you at the other end of the bar.

You stayed a while before tossing the bartender a handful of extra coins to pay for the man’s drink, and a very generous tip. Before he could inquire further about how a young girl like you had come to possess so many coins, you got up and exited the building through the missing doorway. The moonlight welcomed you and the gentle breeze felt good against your skin, sticky from air that was always humid and thick. It was rare to feel a breeze at all so you dropped your hood, closing your eyes. You put your head up to let it settle against you. The light from the moon shined so bright through the clouds that you could almost feel it on your skin, reaching out to envelop you.

After a moment you continued on, leaving your hood down, it’s not like anyone would recognize you anyway. You turned the corner and found yourself at the entrance of a quiet alley where the gravel crunched beneath your feet. Thoughts ran back and forth through your mind as you desperately tried to come up with any way that you could use your position to help the people outside of the Inner Circle. It seemed impossible. You could try to reason with your father but as soon as you revealed what you knew and how you came to know it, he would probably lock you up forever. After all, there were very few people that knew of your existence and you doubted that anyone except for Jisoo would miss you…

“Shit..” you mumbled to yourself after realizing that you had gotten so lost in thought you hadn't been paying attention to the time as it passed. You were definitely going to have to sprint now to make it back to the palace in time before the sun began to rise and someone noticed your absence. After stretching your already tired legs, you turned to start the long journey back but before you could take another step, a dark figure came running around the corner into the alley at full speed.

When he saw you he stopped in his tracks, sliding on the gravel. Underneath a yellow hanging lantern and the light from the moon you could make out the surprise on his face. He obviously hadn’t expected to cross paths with some girl alone in the middle of the night on the way to wherever he was going so quickly. His entrance was so abrupt and brought so much tension to the air that you froze in place, staring back at him with your mouth open slightly.

The boy was wearing a hood, his face partially hidden in the dim glow of the lantern. Despite that, he seemed to be around your age and even in the shadows his features were undeniably attractive. He had dark hair with long strands that fell loosely into piercing brown eyes. You noticed a black bandana wrapped tightly around one of his arms, however you couldn't bother to take your eyes from his to get a better look at it.

You stood facing each other, both unsure of your next move, when a group of voices echoed from somewhere in the distance. The voices were followed by muffled footsteps drawing near. Shifting uncomfortably, the boy in front of you quickly untied the banana wrapped around his arm and put it into pocket of his black hoodie. The pounding footsteps and harsh voices behind him turned into shouts that grew louder with every second.

With swift movement he turned to look behind him and then back to you. As if something gave him an idea, he began to walk toward you. Your eyes widened further with every step he took, until there was less than an arm's length left between you. You didn't even have time to reach for the knife hidden in your waistband before he took his hood down and grabbed your shoulders. His touch was surprisingly gentle as you let him push you slowly into the wall behind you. Still breathing heavily from the chase and even closer now, his breath fell hot against your lips. Trapping you underneath his gaze, he kept his eyes on yours for a moment as if he was searching for something in them, before lowering his head. Without warning, he crashed his lips onto yours.

Your first instinct was to shove him off of you but the way that his soft lips moved against your own, the way they tasted, had something inside of you craving more.

You had been kissed before but never like this.

The men who had been chasing him finally made their way to the entrance of the alley where they stopped. His back was to them but you could see them well enough through half lidded eyes to spot your family crest on their uniforms. They were your fathers soldiers with large guns held in their arms. You wondered what they could possibly be doing out here in District 7 so late at night, chasing after the boy who currently had his lips pressed tightly to yours. Whatever it was, it didn't look like they were planning to let him live once they caught him.

Before they had time to recognize you, or the boy they had been chasing, you put your fingers in his hair and pulled him closer. He followed your lead and moved his hands to your waist, deepening the kiss and completely blocking their view. Cold rings on his fingers pressed into bare skin where your shirt had lifted up slightly. His tongue ran across your bottom lip and you tightened your fingers in his hair. A deep sound from somewhere within his chest escaped his lips when you pulled on the roots.

The kiss had absolutely consumed you. It was captivating, magnetic. So much so that you had forgotten your surroundings entirely, until you heard movement at the front of the alley. The guards must have decided that you were just two drunk lovers who had stumbled out of the nearby tavern moments before, because after one of them shouted something that you couldn't quite comprehend over the pounding of your heart in your ears, they began to move again. Raising their weapons and storming off, leaving you alone with the boy in the alley.

The kiss lasted a little longer than it needed to before you pulled away, pushing him off of you, taking note of the way his toned muscles tensed underneath your hands. You just hoped it was dark enough that he couldn't see the way your cheeks flushed.

He seemed a bit surprised and you were sure it was because he probably hadn't expected you to kiss him back, especially not the way that you did. After turning to make sure that the soldiers had gone, he looked back to you. Your faces were still only a few inches apart despite you breaking the kiss, and his appeared as though it had been hand carved by some higher power above. It was the first time you had looked at his features well enough to appreciate the freckles that decorated the soft skin underneath his eyes. Eyes that held a sort of intensity that you couldn’t even begin to describe.

There was something in them that pierced all the way through you to your soul. A kind of familiarity almost, that you couldn’t quite discern, but god did the way he was looking at you right now make you certain you would have done anything for him in that moment. No matter the cost. He hesitantly brought his thumb up to run it over your bottom lip, wiping his own saliva and the kiss off with it. You thought briefly that he might lean down to kiss you again and you probably would have let him, although you'd never admit it.

Instead, he spoke.

"Thanks." His voice came out barely above a whisper but it shattered the silence.

It was much deeper than you had expected, sending chills up your spine. You also detected the faintest hint of an accent, leading you to believe that he wasn't from anywhere around here at all. Accents varied the further out you went from the Inner Circle and his was noticeable with just the one word.

He lingered for a moment there with his thumb on your lips before stepping back, pulling his hood up. Without another word or giving you the chance to respond, he turned to go.

His pace picked up into a jog as he made his way around the corner, out of the alley, and back the way he came. You stood there staring into the darkness until the sound of his footsteps faded into the night, trying to make sense of what the hell just happened.

Only his taste on your tongue to remember him by, along with a sinking feeling that your world would never be the same.

It had been exactly 2 weeks since you crossed paths with the boy in the alley and it had been exactly 2 weeks that you hadn't stopped thinking about him. The unfamiliar sense of safety that you felt underneath his piercing gaze. His freckles that you took note of only after your faces were just inches apart. His plush lips and the way they felt against your own. His voice. You traced your fingertips along your lips, moving them down to where he had gently gripped your shoulders before leaning down to kiss you. When you closed your eyes you could feel his touch, permanently burned into your skin.

You hadn't gone outside of the palace grounds since that night for fear that you'd see him again. Or maybe you were afraid to admit that you hoped you would. Why had he been running from your fathers guards? They wouldn't have been there unless it was serious as they only became involved in something when it was directly related to your father and his orders.

Did you do the right thing in helping him to hide from them? Right and wrong were so muddled in your head at this point that you weren’t sure if it even mattered anymore. You weren't even sure if you were capable of doing the right thing considering the blood that ran through your veins.

One thing you were sure about is that in that moment something was pulling at you to keep him safe. Something bigger than right and wrong.

Sighing, you got out of bed, the sky was still dark in the morning hour, the palace ground cold under your feet. Today wasn't just any day, it was one you had been dreading. It was the day that your father had planned to throw a grand ball at the palace where he was going to finally reveal you to his most trusted advisors and the rich society members of the Inner Circle. Up until now, the only people who knew of your existence were within the palace walls. The staff, your father's army, guards, your trainers and tutors, all sworn to secrecy. Up until now, you were a ghost in the palace, regardless of your position as his daughter. But that was about to change.

Your father had decided that it was time for you to have a larger part in ruling the 9 districts beside him, and to do so you would need to be officially introduced to the world.

Was he finally going to tell you the truth? That he wasn't the righteous leader that he claimed to be, but a ruthless monster who stole resources and left innocent people to fend for themselves beyond District 9. Would he tell you the price he continuously paid to destroy anyone and anything that threatened his authority?

No, he wouldn't. As long as he lived, he wouldn't.

Even though he wanted you to stand beside him now, you knew that it was just for show. Even after your face was revealed, your influence in how things were run would remain nonexistent.

You had accepted it. You accepted the fact that all you could do for now was play along until you could come up with some way to use your position to help the people outside, but you didn't even know where to start. Sure, becoming leader of the 9 districts some day after your father was gone would allow you to change things, but you didn't have time to wait that long. They couldn't wait that long.

Letting out a frustrated groan you rubbed your temples, feeling a headache already coming on. You just had to focus on tonight and get through the ball despite the fact that the thought of so many eyes on you, permanently associating you with your father and his regime, made your skin crawl.

You stepped into the corridor outside of your bedroom after freshening up and gave a small wave to Jisoo who looked even more stressed than usual as she buzzed by you. Her arms were full of lavish decor to set up for the festivities. As you moved through the palace, staff hustled around you making their way to the grand hall where they were setting out desserts alongside rarities including fresh cuts of meat, cheeses, and drinks with real fruit in them. It made you sick to think that nearly everything being used to set up for tonight had been taken from the surrounding districts. You wished you could give it all back to them. To the starving families. To the old bartender who had been kind to you in District 7. To the boy with the freckled face that you kissed in the alley outside of it.

You wondered what life was like for him. Was he hungry? Did he have somewhere safe to sleep at night? A family to protect? You shook your head as if the action would help you to physically push him out of your thoughts.

But he was persistent.

The day passed quickly and before you knew it you were being poked and prodded into an extravagant red gown with a tight corset that made it difficult to breathe.

"I dont understand why we need to make such a big deal of this..” You complained to Jisoo as she put the finishing touches on your hair after the others had left.

"You know...I bet your father is going to keep an eye out for potential suitors…" she trailed off, giving you a soft smile.

“What do you mean?" you inquired, eyes wide. And Jisoo laughed.

"For marriage! He's going to want to pick someone for you who will be an asset to your family in the future. To help you keep the districts in order after he's gone. I hear there's plenty of matches lined up and just wait until they see you."

She was right, you did feel pretty in the dress despite how incredibly uncomfortable it was. But how could you even pretend to care about any of this right now, let alone marriage to some stranger who, for all you knew, could be even worse than your father. If that was even possible.

"Before tonight my existence was just a rumor..How can any of them want to marry me!?" you asserted.

"When your father is…." she trailed off again clearly trying to come up with the right words to use. "-when your father is who he is, do you think it really matters to them who you are?"

One thing about Jisoo is that she was never afraid to tell you what she thought. Unlike the rest of the staff in the palace, who walked on eggshells around you because of their fear of your father.

You fell silent after that, contemplating her words. After putting the finishing touches on your hair she gave you a tight hug and left to allow you a moment to yourself before the ball. You wondered what your life would be like if you were married and your goal of finding some way to help the people outside felt even further away.

Somehow the boy from the alley made his way back into your mind. A life with him certainly wouldn't involve tight corsets and suffocating lies. But then again, you didn't even know him. He was just a fleeting moment. A glimpse of something beyond the life you had always known, and while your lingering thoughts of him were a welcome escape from reality, they would fade with time.

He had probably already forgotten about you.

Later that evening you stepped out atop the grand staircase overlooking the great hall. Although the space had always been one of your favorites, it was exceptionally breathtaking tonight. The hall was like a breezeway, connecting two main parts of the castle. It was made entirely of glass, including a glass ceiling that you could see the night sky through. The warm golden lighting and massive chandelier added to the beauty of the space underneath. You noted the higher than usual number of armed guards on duty as they lined the hall, dressed in black with large guns rested in their arms.

At the start of the event your father had joined you at the top of the staircase above the growing crowd below. He was as stoic as ever in a sleek black suit and it was the first time you had seen him in a few days. He was always so busy that it wasn’t rare for a week or two to go by without speaking to him at all. Lately he seemed even more distracted.

Shortly after he joined you he began to speak to the crowd below, thanking them for their presence tonight at this monumental occasion. Voice commanding, expression devoid of all genuine emotion. Although tonight may have looked like a celebration on the outside, it was all business to him, all everything ever was. You looked out over the citizens of District 9 gathered below in their flashy outfits and eccentric hairstyles. Some of them wearing the only jewels and diamonds left in the world. You cringed when they clapped and cheered for you, the future leader of the 9 districts.

It was going to be a long night.

After the speech ended (and the exaggerated applause died down) you reluctantly made your way down the stairs. You maintained composure just as your father had instructed and he tightened his grip on your shoulder if you spoke too much to the eager guests. You were to come off as refined and elegant but authoritative and commanding, like him. It was of the utmost importance that you portrayed that tonight as it was the first time that you were meeting with anyone from the public and you needed to earn their respect, not that you actually cared what they thought of you. You would never be allowed to show the side of yourself to them that you showed to Jisoo. You rolled your eyes to her across the room behind your fathers back throughout the night, sharing silent laughter, as she made sure that the guests glasses stayed full of wine. Jisoo was your only friend and the only one who really knew who you were, but even she didn't know everything.

As the hours dragged on you were paraded around and introduced to all of the most important faces and names in District 9. You thought your wrist might actually fall off if you had to grab onto one more sweaty hand of a boy your age far too eager to touch you and personally introduce himself to your father.

Just as you decided that you physically couldn't take it any more and were going to need to find a moment to slip away before you actually lost your mind, the lights flickered.

They flashed on and off for a moment before going out completely.

The hall fell dark for no more than 10 seconds, illuminated only by the moon and the candles dispersed throughout. Haunting silence flooded the space.

When the lights returned whispers began to spread through the hall like wildfire. Your fathers guards shifted uncomfortably, hands falling to their weapons. You noticed a few of them make it a point to pick you out of the crowd, locking their eyes on you. Your father was across the hall where he had been engrossed in a conversation with a short man sporting a leopard print coat that touched the floor. You watched him scowl and excuse himself from the man, moving with urgency toward a small group of guards nearest to him, not bothering to look for you.

Before you had a chance to process what happened next, a deafening sound spread across the hall like thunder. The vibration was so strong that it shook the floor beneath your feet, shattering a pane of glass from the ceiling above. It was as if time had stopped with all eyes trained on the falling glass and then, like turning on a switch, the pieces shattered against ground and chaos ensued.

The next thing you registered was what sounded like muffled gunfire, followed by the glass walls of the hall shattering to pieces around you. Smoke began to fill the room from cans that were thrown in from the darkness outside, through broken spaces in the glass.

Shortly after the smoke began to collect, six..seven..maybe eight figures dressed in all black with bandanas covering the lower halves of their faces appeared. They rushed in through the broken glass walls, as if they had materialized from the night itself. The intruders moved swiftly, yelling to each other although their voices were barely audible over the screaming civilians.

You fixed your eyes on the bandanas they wore. Why did they look so familiar? Who were they? Where had they come from and how had they even gotten onto the palace grounds, let alone inside it??

Thoughts spiraled inside your head, too stunned by the scene before you to let you move. You caught sight of large guns held by two of the eight boys, one with a stocky muscular build and one that appeared to be leading the group. It was even more surprising when you observed a group of your father's guards run up and make contact with the boys, tossing a couple of them their own guns. You blinked rapidly but it did nothing to erase the scene that played out in front of you. The palace was easily the most heavily guarded place in all 9 Districts, but it had never occurred to you that any of the guards would dare double-cross your father.

Maybe not everyone was as afraid of him as you had thought.

Had they been the ones to help the boys gain access tonight?

The smoke flowed in waves around you, growing heavier as more cans were dropped into the hall from backpacks that a couple of the younger looking boys wore. Civilians screamed and cowered under tables in fear while you stood with your eyes trained on one of the boys in black whose figure looked a little too familiar.

You had to give it to them, the smoke was a smart cover on their part. Visibility in the hall had become so low that your father's men were holding back from shooting at the boys, for fear of striking a civilian.

You kept your eyes trained on the eight as they rushed toward the grand staircase, turning over tables and shooting occasionally at expensive looking objects and the glass around you with their borrowed weapons. They weren't aiming at people and didn't seem to be trying to hurt anyone. It was almost as if they just wanted to spread fear, feeding the chaos. Fights broke out between your fathers guards and it was incredibly confusing because you couldn't be sure which side any of them were on at this point.

Between the smoke, fighting between guards, occasional gunfire, and scrambling civilians, the boys succeeded in making their way to the top of the staircase. When they did, you witnessed two of them break from the group, the apparent leader and his well-built counterpart from earlier. As if it had been carefully scripted, the two quickly left and broke into a run heading deeper into the palace.

The guards below remained focused on each other, your father nowhere to be seen. The six boys left at the top of the staircase turned and pulled out objects from their backpacks. The objects they withdrew looked like tubes that they opened to slide out large banners. Each banner was dropped over the staircase landing, and together they displayed a message. The words painted in red.

TURN EVERYTHING UPSIDE DOWN

THERE IS NO PLACE FOR YOU HERE ANYMORE

THIS IS OUR DISTRICT NOW

Your eyes widened and you turned to look for your father, a guard, anyone, to see some kind of reaction but at this point the air was so thick that you could barely make out the writing on banners that had been dropped. The only reason you could see them through the smoke was because you were so close to the bottom of the stairs. It was obvious that the banners were meant to remain to be seen when the smoke cleared. It was a message to your father and the citizens of District 9, a message to you.

Just as quickly as they had dropped the banners, the remaining boys were joined by the other two, returning from wherever they had gone within the palace. They shared a quick word between themselves and with a command from their apparent leader, they began to urgently make their way back down the staircase.

Civilians continued to scramble and claw their way around you in panic. Emerging from the smoke, a large burly man covered in purple silk robes ran into you while trying to make his own escape. He crashed forcefully into your shoulder without looking back, causing you to stumble on your dress. Unable to regain your balance, you fell into the person running by you on the other side. They caught you before you hit the ground, letting out a deep grunt when you collided. When you looked up to meet their eyes your mouth dropped.

The air was ripped from your lungs when you made eye contact with the boy who had kissed you in the alley two weeks ago. He was dressed in all black like the others, with a bandana covering the lower half of his face and a heavy weapon strapped to his back. Even with half of his face hidden, you would have recognized the look in his eyes anywhere. He quite literally hadn't left your mind since that night, and here you were in his arms now.

He was one of the eight.

Still in disbelief, you moved quickly out of his hold, standing up to get a better look at him. He didn't seem to recognize you at first but when he pulled down the bandana to take a breath you saw his expression change from confusion to realization.

You held his eye contact wearing the same dumbfounded expression on your face and you knew. You knew. There was no doubt in your mind that it was him. His freckles had been revealed when he pulled down the bandana, the same one he had been wearing around his arm that night you first met. The dark brown hair that fell down into his eyes was pulled up at the back. When his gaze fell to your family crest on the necklace you wore, realization that he hadn't just kissed some random girl that night but the daughter of the most powerful man in all 9 districts spread over his face. You swear you saw the faintest hint of a smirk make its way across his lips when he looked up at you.

His eyes held a different sort of intensity compared to when you first met. There was something dangerous within them now and although you had been confident that he wouldn't hurt you that night in the alley, you weren't so sure that was the case anymore.

For a moment he looked as if he was going to say something to you. Hip lips parted slightly but before he could speak, one of your fathers guards came up behind you and grabbed your arm tightly, pulling you with such force that you jerked back. The guard pushed your head down and began to drag you with him. You struggled in his grasp to turn your head, watching as the boy from the alley stepped forward. He seemed to briefly contemplate following you, but again before he had the chance to move any further, another one of the eight emerged from the smoke. They began shaking his shoulder to gain his attention.

"FELIX! Can't you hear me?! What are you doing?! They're everywhere man we need to go NOW"

Felix.

Snapping back to reality, he quickly replaced the bandana over his face and tore his eyes from yours. They turned to make their way back to join the others when the boy, that you now knew to be named Felix, narrowly dodged a bullet as it whipped by his head. You moved to see where it came from and yelled at the guard who had hold of your arm moments before, his gun now raised beside you.

"Are you crazy?! You could hurt a civilian!"

Of course, you didn't actually care much about the civilians scrambling around you. It was just that you swore you felt your heart stop when the bullet barely missed Felix's head.

The guard ignored your words and went to aim at the boys again but before you even had time to think about what you were doing, you moved and stepped in front of him. The cool barrel of the gun pressed against your skin. You turned around where Felix met your gaze again. His eyebrows arched in surprise, obviously taking note of you putting yourself between him and the gun. To anyone on the outside it would have looked like you were protecting him.

Were you protecting him?

You mouthed "go" and if you had blinked you would have missed the nod he gave you in return. Without wasting another second to risk being shot at again, he spun around, following his comrade into the smoke. They moved quickly out of sight with a herd of your fathers men running after them. Many of the guards from earlier that appeared to have been working with the boys lay motionless on the ground now.

The guard beside you dropped his gun and replaced his death grip on your arm, dragging you with him once again. He was furious that you had ruined his shot, however he still had the chance to do something worth being recognized by your father if he was the one to get you to safety.

You looked back at the hall in the hopes of catching one last glimpse of Felix, but he and the others were already long gone. They would have escaped back the way they came, through the shattered glass walls, with your fathers men close on their heels. They were probably being hunted right now in the darkness outside.

Please. Please just let them make it out.

You begged with your thoughts to whatever higher power might be listening in. You couldn't explain it but you needed them to make it out alive. For some reason, the thought of a lifeless Felix joining the other bodies that lay motionless on the ground made your stomach churn.

The thought of him being dragged back alive for your father to deal with made it worse.

The guard turned a corner with your arm still in his grasp and the sounds from the hall faded with every step you took. He made his way down the corridor before throwing you into a room at the end, locking the door behind him. You shook the knob but it was no use. Sliding your back down the door you sat crumpled against it, your red dress spread out around you.

None of it made sense. Why would the boys risk their lives to send a message? Then again maybe it wasn't about the message at all. You remembered when two of them left the group after making it to the top of the stairs, heading briefly into the palace. Had the banners and the chaos they created actually been meant to act as a distraction? If that was the case, why had they really been here tonight? How had they even come into contact with your fathers guards outside of the palace and how had they convinced some of them to betray him?

Why was he with them?

Felix.

His name rolled off of your tongue. He was the enemy. You knew that. You should know that. But something made you step in front of a loaded gun to keep him safe tonight.

Maybe you weren’t on opposing sides. After all, you didn't really have a side anymore anyway…Not that he would know that. As far as he knew, you were just like the rest of them.

After what felt like hours of sitting on the floor with your head in your hands, you were about to doze off when the lock opened with a swift click behind you. You stood immediately, backing away when the door opened and you were met with the same guard from earlier who had locked you in the small room.

“Its over. I’ve been instructed to take you to your quarters until further notice. The palace is on lockdown.” He motioned for you to come out, clearly irritated that he had been the one sent to collect you.

“My father-“

“-is alive” he cut you off. “And no, I didn’t tell him what you did getting in front of my shot like that. Stupid girl. It would have been worth the civilian risk to get at least one of those bastards,” he huffed.

Did his words mean that they made it out alive? You made a point to mask any trace of concern in your voice when you spoke.

“They got away?” you paused before adding “all of them?”

“Yes all of them. All eight. They had a vehicle waiting just outside of the palace gates and they were gone before we could get to any of ours. How the hell they got access to one of our vehicles and convinced some of our own men to double cross your father nobody knows. At least the traitors got what they deserved.”

You shuddered looking away. The men that had betrayed your father must have known their fate was inevitable, and yet they thought whoever those eight boys were and what they stood for was worth sacrificing their lives.

You turned back to the guard as he spoke again, putting on your best attempt at masking the relief that washed over you when you heard the boys had made it out safely. All of them.

“As for the eight rebels we will find them. Under order of your father we will find every single one of them and I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes when he gets his hands on ‘em. Now come on, I said let’s go.”

The tone in his voice told you that you weren’t going to get anything else out of him right now, he wasn’t exactly your biggest fan to begin with, so you stepped out through the doorway. Your footsteps were the only sound, echoing throughout the eerily silent corridors while the two of you made your way through the palace. Up stone steps, you walked deeper in the direction of your bedroom.

Only one thing remained on your mind as you replayed the events of tonight over and over in your head.

Him.

Felix.

You couldn’t ignore that from the moment he disappeared tonight, part of you desperately hoped you would see him again. You were afraid the same part of you would be willing to do whatever it took to make sure that you did, and that terrified you more than anything in this world ever had.

Part 2

[baby--charchar]

I don't think Charlie would allow herself to regress all that much; she carries the weight of this world on her soldiers and feels like she can't let others down by becoming too 'needy' or helpless.

But because of all the bottled up stress, her regression would look VERY little and come with lots of tantrums/meltdowns. She would probably be the fussiest little baby out of any Hazbin regressors and need lots of loves to be able to soothe and relax into her headspace.

Her demon form probably slips out when she's getting worked up. Maybe she's upset over Vaggie trying to put her down for a nap, or an untimely pull up change during playtime, or Lucifer trying to get her to eat just a little bit more at supper. When her horns and claws come out and that demon shriek gets going, then OOF, her caregivers know they're in for a time. She's probably given one or two power kicks with her little hoof feet when she was REALLY upset, but she never means to hurt anyone. She just gets so swept up in her feelings and gets a little overreactive. It doesn't help that with such a tiny headspace, the only words she can muster up are "NO!!", "UH-UH!!", 'Dada', and 'Veevee' (Vaggie). Not very useful when you're trying to tell others what you need.

When she's REALLY determined to get her way, she just starts scaling the brick wall in the lobby to get away from everyone (again, those little goat hooves of hers coming into play. Vaggie thinks they're adorable but SUCH a pain sometimes). Vaggie's nervous about flying up to grab her since her wings are still healing, so she needs to call Lucifer to come get her whenever that happens. He can scoop her up quickly and hold her tight against all that thrashing and crying while they fly down.

Her regression isn't all bad; it's not all just tantrums and tears. But it usually has to start out that way to get her in the right headspace to be taken care of. Once Vaggie and Lucifer got her though, they know just what to do. Blankets on the floor to play on while Disney movies run on the TV. A cinnamon apple candle burning just out of the baby's reach. Soft stuffed animals, crayons, and drawing paper strewn about. Her favorite outfit; loose black leggings underneath her red, knee-length dress with long sleeves. Lucifer makes sure she has a paci or teether clipped onto her dress at all times in case she gets to chewing, plus keeps her favorite sippy filled with apple juice. He's also extremely playful, and loves to do anything that gets his baby girl laughing. He has special silly voices for each of her stuffies, reads her story books with SO much enthusiasm, and if nothing else works, blows raspberries onto her tummy to get her to crack up.

Vaggie gets to cooking whenever her baby is little. She feeds her good, home-cooked meals, usually Salvadoran comfort foods like pupusas and soups. She hand feeds her every bite and wipes her face down if she gets messy. She's almost always in charge of diapers and baths, which Charlie strongly prefers over her father. And while she loves and trusts both of them to take care of her, Vaggie truly is her rock when she's little.

[nacho475]

Xavier Thorpe x Female (Mermaid) Reader

Plot Summary: You are the prettiest mermaid and siren who attends Nevermore and you are dating Xavier the tortured artist and he falls in love with you, he witnesses you being bullied by Bianca and her siren group, hope you love this story❤️

“You felt like an outcast like you didn’t belong with the other sirens or anyone from your peer groups and you felt you couldn’t trust anyone to discuss your problems to at your new school at Nevermore except for Xavier who was your closet friend there. One day you fled from Nevermore and back to Jericho River forever and never came back and this broke your heart but it was the only way you wouldn’t feel broken it was your real home.”

“Bianca Kent and Divina were sitting and chatting at a picnic table. “Y/N would never fit in with us, she’s not as beautiful as you and I am I right Divina?”Bianca said. “Y/N? Absolutely not” Divina said giggling. “Yeah she’s a joke and she can’t even hold a proper key in singing at our choir meetings” Kent added. Xavier overheard their conversation and this angered him hearing both girls and Kent talk bad about you like that because you guys are close friends so he went to confront them. It broke his heart knowing you were being bullied by them so he did something about it. “Hey! What did you say about y/n?!” Hey bro mind your own business Kent said “No! I overheard you guys talking garbage about y/n” Xavier said angrily. “What’s it to you?” Divina asked. “Yeah, do you have a crush on her?” Kent said. This caused Xavier’s face to turn red and blush. “I think he does” Bianca taunted. “Shut up Bianca!” Xavier said then he left to go find you.”

“It was finally sundown and Xavier searched the woods for you. “Y/N?! Where are you?!” Xavier called but there was no answer. He walked deeper into the forest until he made it out and that’s when he saw you sitting on the docks so he ran to you and sat down next to you. “What are you doing out here sweetheart?” He asked. You had your head down crying. “What’s wrong y/n?” Me! You said. “No honey there is nothing wrong with you, you’re so beautiful” No I’m not, ever since I started attending Nevermore Bianca and her friends have been bullying me everyday and she tells me all the time that I will never fit in with her and the other sirens. “I know I heard her conversation earlier with her friends and that’s not true about you at all, she is just jealous of how beautiful you are and ever since our breakup she is still insecure and takes it out on us” Xavier said.”

“You continued crying from insecurity and that’s when you felt Xavier’s arms wrap around you. “Shh hush baby it’s okay I’m here for you” his voice was so soft and soothing. “I love you for exactly who you are I don’t care that you are different from the rest of the mermaids, you are very special to me dear please don’t change. You are the most beautiful mermaid out of all of them and I would rather spend the rest of my life and moments with you darling” Xavier told you. “You mean that?” You asked “Of course” Xavier said then he put his hand underneath your chin lifting your face to meet his eyes then he kissed your lips and you shut your eyes and you both locked lips then parted them then he cupped both you’re cheeks with both his hands and softly stroking them then he ran his hand across your tail gently while smiling at you. “Do you like that? Your tail is so pretty sweetheart and you are the prettiest thing in the world” Xavier told you, “Thanks” you said blushing. “I love you so much beautiful” he whispered “I love you too” you said.”

The End

Hope you liked the story

thanks for reading 🩷

[saurongorthaur9]

The Light of Her Hair

Rating: T

Summary: That day on the banks of the Glanduin, Galadriel accepted Sauron's offer and became the Light Queen: his lady and his bride. Centuries later, the Dark Lord has a luxurious gift for his queen, for there is nothing more that he loves than worshipping the light of her hair.

This story can be read also on AO3 or FFN.

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It was not uncommon for Sauron to caress her hair, but today he'd been doing it more than even he usually did.

Galadriel sat beside him on her black throne, to his right as she ever was. There she sat, strong and beautiful and terrible – the Light Queen as her lord's slaves and servants called her in reverent whispers. Clad in the black breastplate that he had forged for her, but dressed underneath in brilliant, flowing white, with her golden hair long and loose, she had been shaped by him into the vision he had showed her upon the ocean's surface so many years ago, the day she had agreed to be his queen and consort.

In contrast, he sat beside her dressed all in black. Black robes, black armor, and Morgoth's reforged black crown on his brow: the Dark Lord of Barad-dûr and Mordor, her lord, her king, her husband.

She had watched as he bent all of Middle-earth to its knees at his feet over the last centuries, by force of his armies, by the sweetness of his tongue and the deceptive fairness of his face, and by his rings. They had worked just like he told her they would, bringing the order and perfection he had so craved to every corner of their world. Sometimes, she hated him so much that it felt like love, and other times she loved him so desperately that it felt like hatred, but the two had long since become so mingled that she no longer knew how to tell them apart.

But now both hatred and love were forever overshadowed by her insatiable craving for everything that he was and by her exultation in the power that flowed through her because of him.

You bind me to the light, and I bind you to power.

It had not been a lie. But then, she had learned that Sauron did not lie. Sometimes – oftentimes – the truths he spoke carried hidden or twisted meanings, but he did not lie.

An emissary from Near Harad knelt before their thrones now, bringing a proposal from his chieftain about new trade routes. Now that there were no wars to fight and there were no longer any free peoples of Middle-earth to subdue, it was matters like these that occupied most of the Dark Lord's time when he held open court. Sometimes, she wondered if a day would come when he would grow bored with the perfect world he had so meticulously crafted.

As the emissary droned on, she felt his fingers slip into her hair, gently twining the golden locks around his hand. He stroked and twisted languidly, casually brushing out every tangle and imperfection, and she felt the backs of his fingers glide against her shoulder and her neck like a trail of liquid fire. She didn't look at him but knew instinctively when his gaze settled on her, for it seared against her skin and she could feel the bond of their wills turned towards her.

His fingers traced around her ear, stroking the downy curls of hair that rested there, as he answered the emissary and dismissed him, then silence fell over the great throne room finally. Sauron leaned back in his throne, still toying with a single long lock, and she did not need to see his face to know that he was smiling.

"Another day in a peaceful and healed world," he said. He tilted his head to the side and grazed his forefinger along her hairline. She felt the warmth of his skin and the cool touch of metal trailing down her flesh. He always touched her hair with his right hand, the hand that bore his Ruling Ring. He had never said it aloud, but she knew it was his greatest triumph: seeing the gold of his precious Ring and the gold of her precious hair brought together in his hand.

His finger traced around the taper of her ear, rubbing his Ring along its curve, then he withdrew his hand with a sigh that might have been something akin to contentment. "Shall we retire for the day, my light?"

She looked at him then and smiled, the cold smile of the Light Queen, even as her eyes hungrily soaked in the sight of him, so lordly and so beautiful in his place of power. "I should like that very much, my king."

He took her hand and raised it to his lips, brushing a scorching kiss across her knuckles. "Then come. I have something prepared for you."

Hand-in-hand, the Dark Lord led his Light Queen up through the winding staircases and through the great halls of Barad-dûr, until they reached the topmost tower where their private chambers were located.

Their suite was a large collection of rooms: a visiting chamber for the rare times when they were hosting a guest important enough to be invited to the very pinnacle of the Dark Tower, a private sitting room, a study where Sauron conducted his business of ruling Middle-earth when he was not in his throne room, a lush bedroom with a great black-canopied bed and a window that looked out across Gorgoroth, and a lavish washroom beyond.

As soon as they stepped into their chambers, Galadriel sensed the subtle change in her husband's demeanor. Although now he almost always wore his elven form, with his long, blond hair and eerily blue eyes, when he was alone with her, she could feel his presence more as Halbrand than the cold, aloof Lord of Mordor. When he smiled at her, it was with Halbrand's old warmth and the crinkle of Halbrand's eyes. It made her heart beat faster just to see the glimmer of the man she had first fallen in love with, wrapped up in the exterior of the man whom she had come to desire with all her being.

He pulled her through the sitting rooms to their bed chamber, his fingers still twined with hers and his fiery eyes hungry.

"The embassy from Near Harad brought us a fine tribute," he murmured, pulling her in close until he was able to slip an arm around her waist. "New slaves, spices, rich fruits from the south. Among the wares were several items I have been looking forward all day to bestowing upon my queen." He leaned forward, his lips grazing hers tantalizingly. "I had servants prepare everything for us."

He glided around her, and the next thing she knew, his fingers were undoing the clasps of her fitted black steel breastplate. Reverently, he slipped it off her, leaving her with the curious floating sensation of no longer bearing its weight. Next, he removed her crown, a black circlet set with priceless red gems, which he had forged with his own hands in the depths of Orodruin. She sighed as he moved directly behind her, brushing her hair over the front of her shoulder as he did so, exposing the bindings of her silk gown. Leaning in, he pressed his lips to the exposed slice of skin between her hairline and the top of her dress, and she shivered with pleasure and yearning. He continued to kiss her nape as he carefully undid the bindings and the dress loosened around her. With the same careful veneration, he reached slowly down, gathering the fabric in his hands, and drew it up and over her head, leaving her standing bare in the middle of the chamber.

He did not touch her though, only took her hand again and with his strange smile that even now she found enigmatic, he led her into the washroom.

The heat and moisture wrapped around her immediately as they stepped together into the huge sumptuous washroom. A magnificent mirror, which Sauron had long ago commissioned from Rhûn, filled the opposite wall, reflecting the image of the two of them – her pale and bare, him still fully clad in black. The center of the room was dominated by a great bath, more of a pool, with marble steps leading down into it. It was filled now with steaming water, heated by furnaces below, and the surface of the water was scattered with hundreds of black rose petals. The fragrance of it swathed Galadriel in a luxurious aura.

"Let me worship you as is only right for the Queen of all Middle-earth, my light," Sauron murmured in her ear.

Her body trembled in answer to her longing for both him and the adoration that the most dangerous and powerful being in the world was so willing to pour out at her feet.

She stepped down into the water gracefully, the soothing heat instantly washing away any stiffness from the day spent in her throne at her lord's side. She sank down into it to her shoulders and rested herself backwards as he slipped a silken pillow under her head to cushion it against the hard rim of the bath. Every muscle in her body relaxed as she listened to the soft clink of metal as he removed his own breastplate and bracers, then she watched with soft lust as he loosened his outer garments and pulled off his black velvet robes, leaving him in only his fitted under leggings. Despite the warm water, a shiver not born from any chill worked its way down Galadriel's spine. She did not know how it was possible, but after three centuries of being his queen, his unearthly beauty still mesmerized her. She watched, gaze both lazy and hungry, as he collected some items from the black marble cabinet on the far side of the room before approaching her and kneeling down behind her at the bath's rim. He placed his right hand tenderly and possessively on the crown of her head. "Rest, my light, and let me bestow upon you the reverence you deserve."

He lifted a clay jar, covered in the twisting runes of Harad, and uncorked it. Instantly, a sweet, spicy perfume wafted about Galadriel, caught up in the steam of the water that magnified the scent a hundredfold. Sauron tipped the jar, spilling a golden liquid into his hands. Leaning over her, he began to lather the aromatic oil over her body, starting with gentle strokes under her jaw, then down her neck, then over her shoulders, working it into every inch of her skin with his clever fingers. Her head lulled back against the pillow, and she felt her crown brush against his lap. He reapplied the oil, and then his hands were working down her arms, all the way to her fingers, first one, then the other. Finally, he was leaning over her further so that his long hair brushed against her face, and his sweet-smelling oiled hands caressed along her collarbones and over her breasts until the tips of his fingers were swirling in the rose-studded water.

He adjusted himself, drawing even closer so that her head now rested fully in his lap, and then his large hands were scooping up great handfuls of water. He held them over her, like a priest making an offering to his goddess, then opened his hands to allow the water to flow over her hair and shoulders. Again and again, his hands dipped and poured, and Galadriel felt the weight of the liquid clinging to her hair as the trickles of it ran in rivulets behind her ears and down her neck and shoulders.

Sauron began to sing as he continued to wet her hair, a strange melody made of words in a tongue that Galadriel did not understand, but beautiful nonetheless. She could feel him swaying slightly to his own tune, and she sensed his power weaving between them, almost as tangible as a physical embrace.

Finally satisfied that her hair was adequately soaked, he chose another jar, which was filled with another fragrant liquid. He lathered it onto his hands, still singing, then began to caress her hair with ardent passion, working the spiced soap deep into the golden locks.

It had long ago ceased to matter to Galadriel whether it was longing or loathing she felt at his touch. His hands were her world now, and they felt as familiar as her own. They formed a rhythm that matched the rhythm of his song as they worked up and down, a pattern so soothing that she felt her eyelids droop, and a blanket of warm, wet peace settled over everything. Everlasting peace. That was what he had promised her when he made her his queen and bride. Everlasting peace and power to her heart's content. And Sauron did not lie.

His power curled around her ever more tightly even now and she sank willingly into it.

His song changed, and now his power was flowing through her, incandescent against her skin and weaving through every part of her body and spirit, more intimate than any lover's touch could ever be. He was inside her and all around her, the very air she breathed, a kiss that went deeper into her than anything else ever could. His power filled every fissure of her being, pooling inside her, making her shudder with pleasure and the thrill of his touch.

His power flowed into her hair as his fingers continued to stroke her locks, and it ignited the sleeping light of the Two Trees that resided in the flowing gold. Light, pure and powerful and beautiful beyond the thoughts of mortals glowed brilliantly from her, and through their bond, she felt his fierce, worshipful exultation as he gloried in the radiance of his queen.

Then, his hands were scooping into the water again, slowly, slowly rinsing the fragrant Haradrim soap from her gleaming hair. His song changed a final time, still the same language but a new tune that wove a gentle, sensual path around them both. Her light dimmed.

It could have been minutes or it could have been hours – Galadriel did not know. Sauron had that effect on her, where the two of them seemed to slip together into a place where time had no meaning. But at last, he was evidently satisfied that he had washed out her hair to his standards, for his hands fell still. She felt him lean forward, and he pressed his face fully into her freshly-washed hair, still pulsing with faint light, breathing it in deeply and turning his face this way and that to feel her locks against his skin as entirely as possible. But then, too soon, he was pulling away and she felt his absence as a cold, grey despair creeping around the edges of her world.

She heard the soft rustle of clothing as he discarded his remaining garments. Then the water sucked and swirled about her as he lowered himself into the bath beside her. He lifted her easily and slid into the place she had occupied, then settled her in his arms, her back against his bare chest. Under the warm water, his long legs pressed against hers, his thighs flush against her hips, his larger, lither frame seeming to envelope her.

She leaned back, basking in the sweetness of his embrace, and laid her head against his shoulder. His left hand stroked her hips beneath the water and with his right, he began to sultrily comb her hair with his fingers. As he did so, he nuzzled his face against her cheek, pressing possessive kisses along her jawline and teasing at the very corner of her lips. "Galadriel," he murmured. "Galadriel, my light."

Her hair spilled around them both, flowing down over his chest and her shoulders. She could still feel him glorying in it through the bond of their wills that connected them, in the light of her hair that she knew was worth more to him than all the lands of Middle-earth over which he ruled and more than any tribute from Elf, Man, or Dwarf.

Somewhere deep, deep down, she knew that she should have resisted him that day upon the banks of the Glanduin, that she should have refused his offer, and that perhaps if she had, Middle-earth might have stood a chance against falling into his hands. But that part of her had grown cold long ago.

For truly, there was nothing else as intoxicating in the world as having her light utterly worshipped by the Lord of the Rings himself.