#CALL THE GEEK SQUAD

[reverselayupz]

a power play goal? on national television? Morgan Geekie you legend

[arifuretaboy]

little michael (original flavor) doodle. what is he about to tell you? probably not anything good!

[thenotoriousscuttlecliff]

So many now go on as if shows being cancelled after a single season is some new Netflix exclusive, but the entire history of television is filled with shows that were cut down in their prime, sometimes after only a couple of episodes had aired.

[potential-fate]

Might actually get my computer back on Tuesday. Hopefully.

[bluesidez]

Gym Rat Miguel Part 12

content warning: Miguel is very dramatic in this one, mentions of food

word count: 4k (SHOUTOUT TO MY BETA!! @slushycoookie 🩵)

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DISCLAIMER: This story is not canonical. 😒 Most, if not all, of the characters used are OOC. I literally can not stress this enough.

GymRat!Miguel who tries not to dwell on the fact that it’s been just about a month since he’s seen you. It’s the middle of the week and if he thinks about it too much, he’s going to go crazy.

It feels odd because you’re on the same campus as him. You’re not across the country. You’re not out of the country. You’re literally a short walk or drive away and neither of you have time to see each other.

He’s considering printing your pictures out and walking around with them like a forlorn lover looking for his lost soulmate. It feels like he’s back in his bedroom staring at your pictures for hours like a man at war aching for home.

He’s exhausted all of his options.

The couple-lunches have all been rain-checked, the weight of your workload trapping you in the Art building.

Your sleep schedule was terrible, if the late night TikToks and reels were anything to go by. He knew you had morning classes too so he could only assume you’ve had a few hours of sleep during the weeknights.

The weekends were for rest and he didn’t want to disrupt yours.

Your dorm tracked visitors which means he’d only have a few hours with you before curfew if you were even there.

GymRat!Miguel who misses you so bad he’s temporarily replaced his gym playlist for the one you gifted him.

His face is set hard, feet heavy as he sprints over a curved treadmill. After a few minutes he stops, takes a small break, and runs again.

Even the melodic and somber voice playing over a groovy piano couldn’t soothe his thoughts.

His heart rammed in his chest as sweat trickled down his face, his tank drenched and clinging to his chest.

Just a few more sprints to go.

GymRat!Miguel who slides the ear of his headphone off because Xina is standing in front of him, blocking his path.

“Anymore sprints and you’re going to pass out,” she hands him a towel.

“Maybe I want to,” Miguel grumbles, nabbing the towel and rubbing his face like someone spit on it.

Xina grabbed her ponytail and pinned it up, loose hair sticking to her neck. “Don’t say that. It’s not funny. I can only manage pulling your body to the entrance to the gym.”

Miguel snorted.

GymRat!Miguel who fills up the time that he used to spend with you to get to know his friends and meet others.

This meant having game nights with Peter and Ben. They were so close, not really, to convincing him to join their DND parties.

If he wasn’t with them, he was occasionally calling The Geek Squad and catching up. A Friendsgiving date was now tentatively on his calendar because of it.

Of course, his robotics team was still going steady. Aaron was interesting, if nothing else, and Margo was like the little sister he never had.

Then, there was checking up on Gabriel like a Tamagotchi. Was he eating ok? Did he need some money? Is he trapped in the subway? Did a rat eat him?

Gabriel had sent him a screenshot of his contact with his name being changed to “Mom #2.”

Miguel only scoffed and told Gabriel his name was going to get changed to “pain in my ass.”

The newest development, however, was Xina. Her transferring here felt like middle school when they used to be attached at the hip.

They had their programming class together two days out of the week, biweekly study sessions, and the occasional late night excursion.

It also explains why she’s eyeing him from the stairmaster while he heaves over the handles of the treadmill.

GymRat!Miguel who thanked Xina as she handed him his jug of water. He sat up from the bench to let her take a seat.

“So,” she started.

“I’m not helping you hack your professor’s dashboard. While you could do it, it’s not a good idea and quantum physics isn’t that-“

“It’s not that, you dick,” Xina pinched his side. “It’s you. What’s up with you?”

“Nothing is up with me.”

“Miguel.”

“Xina.”

“Now, you’re being a brat. Something is definitely wrong.”

Miguel picked at the peeling Game Over sticker on his bottle. He needed to tape it down or he’d lose it.

“I miss her.”

“Miss who? Your mom?”

“What? No. I miss my girlfriend.”

It was quiet between them, the sound of chatter and the clanking of equipment filled the white noise.

Xina tilted her head, “That bad?”

Miguel nods.

“When’s the last time you saw her?”

He takes a dramatic breath, “Our anniversary date. Last month. I feel…”

“Like you can’t function? Like it’s hard to think?”

“Is that pathetic?” Miguel winces. “I have a feeling you’re going to say that it is.”

“No, I don’t think that.”

Miguel pouts as he looks up. Xina shrugs and slides her hands on down her leggings.

“Remember the times I went boy crazy? All the times I came crying to you after they screwed me over, even when you already warned me they weren’t good guys? I think you deserve to be crazy about your girlfriend.”

“Thanks,” Miguel blinked. “You were way too nice to those first guys.”

“I learned though, didn’t I? I know a good guy when I see him, now,” Xina pushed at Miguel’s shoulders with hers.

“And now those self-defense lessons won’t go to waste, right?”

Xina snorted as she recalled the time she managed to flip Winston on his back at Miguel’s instruction.

GymRat!Miguel who watches Xina’s eyes grow in shock when he tells her how long he’s been dating you.

“Dang,” Xina stops in her tracks. “A year?”

Miguel puffs up his chest and stands a little straighter, a confident stride in his step, “One year and counting.”

“That’s,” Xina turns and waits for a car to go by. She readjusts her gym bag. “That’s awesome, Hare-Hare.”

GymRat!Miguel who feels the mood shift by the time he drops Xina back off. He’s not sure what’s brought it up, but now he’s nervous about upsetting her more.

He taps on the wheel, after he pulls into a park.

“You sure you don’t want me to get you anything? You don’t need to go anywhere?”

Xina unbuckles her seatbelt, “Nope. All good. See you tomorrow?”

“Yeah,” he watches her close the door before he can even finish. “See you.”

GymRat!Miguel who obliges when Xina texts him the next day to switch up their study session location.

Miguel wanted to keep the busy calm of the 1st floor of the library but Xina insisted on giving him a change of scenery.

“It’s good for you! You stare at the screen all day when you’re coding,” Xina slams Miguel’s car door to which he sneer at her for. “You need to look up and smell the coffee sometimes.”

“You just want a reason to not do your work.”

Xina turns around and walks backwards in front of Miguel, “And that’s completely fine. We should live a little.”

She trips over the edge of the sidewalk with a yelp and Miguel is quick to catch her, the panic on his face evident.

“See,” she grins as she pulls herself up by Miguel’s shoulders. “Living!”

GymRat!Miguel who lets Xina order for him while he finds a table.

The cafe was bright, white wood accenting the walls with vines and plants adorning the area. Salmon pink brought a pop of color to the sandy-looking tables and fairy lights hung in the corners of the room.

Miguel’s eyes grew as he saw the variety of desserts on display, his mouth itching to take a bite.

“No, no, no. Go away. I’ll pick something you’ll like,” Xina blocks Miguel’s lingering eyes.

Miguel clicks his teeth, “If it’s not good, I’m going to be really upset.”

“I doubt it.”

GymRat!Miguel who walks deeper into the cafe. He’s dodging ceiling plants left and right, but he’s sure that the best seats are in the furthest of the building.

He shuffles around a corner, eyes adjusting to the sun coming through window.

He blinks a few times and takes in the spacious area.

That’s when he sees you.

He walks fast, the strides of his steps wide.

The closer he gets, the stronger the smell of peaches builds. The sun was shining down like it granted Miguel one the greatest gifts of his life. Its rays danced across the spot that you're in.

He gets to your chair and pulled it out with ease, the sound disrupting the hushed corner.

A pen falls to the floor, voices are cut short, and arms are flailing but Miguel’s nose is buried deep into your neck.

Your arms tighten around his neck and your voice skips across his ears.

“I-” a kiss across your face, “missed you so much.” Miguel looks at you like you hold the stars in the sky within your palm.

“You scared the shit out of me, Miguel,” you say with no really malice in your voice. Your thumbs run across his cheeks, watching as he beams at you. You kiss him once or twice, heart fluttering as your feet dangle in the air.

“I hope there aren’t many people picking you up in the middle of establishments,” Miguel mumbled across your lips.

“Guys, there’s people staring at us,” a voice creeps in from the side of Miguel.

Miguel’s eyes follow it to see a deer-looking kid with hoodie pulled up over his ears.

“Who is this?”

GymRat!Miguel who is introduced to Miles, your freshman classmate that you’ve taken in.

He’s sitting across the table nodding along to you as you rave about Miles’ work. The entire time, his right hand didn’t leave your left one.

“So,” Miguel chimes in when there’s a pause. “Have you both been coming here a while?”

“Nah, I just dragged her out here recently. She never leaves the art building when a deadline is near. It’s kind of depressing-“

“You know, Miles.” You're holding back an eye roll. “There are times when you could just not talk.”

“No, actually tell me more,” Miguel insisted, attentive.

GymRat!Miguel who hurries to help a struggling Xina when she rounds the corner with a tray full of goodies.

A cinnamon roll, a lemon tart, a tall purple drink, and some warm tea is placed on the table while you and Miles clear the area.

You sit up straighter to watch Miguel pick up the tea cup and blow over it. “Tea? No milk with a pinch of coffee?”

“Amor…”

Xina looks over to his cup, “Did you want something else?”

“No, this is good, I haven’t had this in a while,” he takes a sip and hums while explaining to you. “I’ve been on this sweet drink kick since she let me try her frappe last year.”

“That’s rich because you always hated it when I got those.”

“To be fair, you downed like four of those in one day. I’m surprised your body didn’t go into shock.”

“I don’t know,” you shrug. “Four in one day must have meant you were going through it.”

Xina smiles and nods her head, “Exactly. And I told him-”

“We’re not doing this,” Miguel grumbled and stabbed his fork into his roll. “Four was way too much and she was bouncing off the walls all day just to crash and throw up on my shoes.”

“I said I was sorry about that!”

GymRat!Miguel who cuts pieces of his dessert to feed to you. You look at him incredulously as he insists on giving you bite after bite.

“Is it good?” Miguel asks chewing his own piece. You nod and he grins, happy in the bubble he’s created.

When Xina reaches for his plate for a piece he slides it away with ease, a move he knows too well.

“Why can’t I have some? I bought it.”

“You didn’t even ask!”

“Neither did she!”

Miles leans over to you, “I feel like I’m watching a fight between me and my baby sister.”

Miguel is pushing Xina’s hands away from his plate while she laughs up a storm. You think that it does mirror something like Gabriel and Miguel’s relationship, but something about Miguel isn’t the same.

GymRat!Miguel who continues his Tom and Jerry act with Xina even when the food is gone.

They were bickering over some formula that you couldn’t begin to figure out by yourself. To Miguel, it’s easy. To Xina, the setup makes no sense.

“How did you survive Ivy League without me?” Miguel asks as he reaches over and erases an error on her page.

“Like I do anything else, with peace.”

“So what you’re saying is,” Miguel points his pencil at Xina, “you hate me and I am not needed for problems 4 through 10.”

“No!” she panics, pushing his pen back to the paper. “I need you to start this one. I don’t understand it.”

“We just did one like this, though. It’s just the imaginary number all over again.”

Xina groaned and slumped in her chair while Miguel just turned back to his on work.

GymRat!Miguel who peers up from his computer to watch you work. You eyebrows pinch as your wrist moves across the large sketchpad in front of you. Your hand is moving fast and you’re so focused. Miguel hasn’t seen you like this before. In your element.

He leans his head on his hand, cheek squished and staring at you like he’s never seen you, like you were something to be admired.

You were pretty today, a sweater with some cartoon on it and some jeans that flared out at the bottom. Your bunny necklace was dangling around your neck and your glasses were falling down your nose.

You push them back and a smudge of charcoal from moving Miles’ artwork gets on your cheek.

“Stare at her any harder and she might grow something freaky,” Miles whispers.

Miguel falters and grabs a napkin, leaning to wipe your cheek, “She has something on her face.”

GymRat!Miguel who tries to be even more discreet as he watches you fill up the page. It’s mesmerizing seeing what you come up with.

He’ll type a little bit then look at your sketches, he’ll click a few links then look at your face. Sometimes, you would catch him looking and smile at resulting in his heart picking up.

Occasionally, Miles would ask your opinion on something and you would give him pointers, the two of you discussing something about focal points and rule of threes.

Miguel just wanted to put his stuff up and listen to you all day.

“What are you working on?” Xina asks, her voice breaking the silence. She’s staring directly at your drawings, fingers tapping against her notebook.

You perk up and flip your pad around, “It’s some ideas for one of our bigger projects! The theme is reinventing a classic, so I’m thinking something like a spin on Lady Godiva with a haunted theme and darker palette. Or The Fallen Angel with a bird’s eye perspective of him on the ground.”

You took a breath and flipped the page, “And then there’s The Kiss which I wanted to actually do a glaze to really give it that ‘mosaic’ look.”

Miguel leaned in with Xina to take a closer look.

The sketch was exceptional to say the least. Miguel wasn’t too sure how the original painting looked, but your drawing detailed a woman wrapped in these angular, moving shapes. Her face was angled up and a far-off look adorned her features. To her right sat a man whose lips were on her neck and his attention solely on her.

It was soft, yet strong. How you managed to put so much intimacy onto a single page was beyond him.

The feeling of it was familiar and when he looked up at you, he knew.

Miguel opens his mouth, “It’s..”

“Boring.”

“Beautiful.”

He turns to Xina with a frown on his face as she flips back to the front page.

“I mean, I think one of the other two is better, you know? More of a twist on the originals. The last one feels safe.”

The table is quiet as Xina’s comment marinates. She’s flipping further into your book and Miguel promptly snatches it from her and closes it a bit harder than he needs to. Miles shifts in his seat, chewing on the straw of his drink.

“Can you explain why it feels safe to you?” your fingers pick at a nail.

She looks up, “Well, don’t you want to stand out? Out of the others, I don’t think this one is that unique.”

“The point isn’t to stand out,” Miles chimes in. “The assignment is about remixing a classic and all three of these do that pretty well.”

Your smile is small, “Thanks, Miles.”

“So which one do you think is better?” Xina asks.

“The last one,” both Miles and Miguel say.

“It carries the emotion of the original while also bringing more focus to couple rather than the abstracted cloth. You can see the love between them in a way that the original doesn’t have and it’s not even painted yet,” Miles talks with ease. “But! That’s just my opinion.”

“I think it’s powerful,” Miguel hums. “You should go with that one.”

You nod, thumbing over the corner of the pages.

GymRat!Miguel who watches Miles nearly fly out of the cafe.

Something about catching the bus to go see a friend perform.

“Poor thing,” you mumble. “He didn’t even buy the tickets yet.”

GymRat!Miguel who can almost see the stress coming off of you in waves the later it gets in the evening.

“Are you alright?” Miguel places his hand over yours.

“Yeah, I think I need a nap.”

“Need me to drive you back?”

“No, it’s fine. You need to drive Xina back.” You start to pack up. “I brought my car anyways.”

Miguel follows your movements, hands putting his laptop up as well.

He hurries to pull your chair out and you thank him with a quiet voice. He follows you from the table to the door to your car. The scene is almost comical the way he’s in your peripheral.

“Will I see you again soon?” Miguel leans on the hood of your car, body practically falling onto you in the driver’s seat. “We gotta set up a date.”

“I’ll see what I can do, baby,” you rub his face and kiss the kicked-puppy look off of his face. “I’ll text you once I get back.”

“Please.”

GymRat!Miguel who throws his backpack in the backseat and slumps over the wheel once he’s certain your car was down the road.

“What now?” Xina patted Miguel’s back. “You miss her again?”

Miguel just dug his head onto the horn, the effect alerting anyone within 50ft radius.

“Ok, ok,” Xina yanked him up by his shoulders only for him to drop back down again. She sighs and grabs the back of his head with a slight yank to his hair.

Miguel swats her hand away with a grit to his teeth and a pinch to his brows.

Xina only holds her hands up with a grin lining her lips, “Calm down.”

“You’re really annoying me today.”

Xina drops her hands and her smile falters. Miguel straightens up with an apology on the roof of his mouth before Xina picks back up with joy.

“What I think you need is an awesome rager for your birthday.”

“No.”

“Why not? It could be fun!”

“I’m all partied out until next year.”

“Not even with your friends? People from your department? A couple of classmates? The robo nerds?”

“That’s robo rockstars to you.”

Xina laughed and buckled her seatbelt.

“I think it could be great, seriously. We’re doing it.”

Miguel only groaned and turned on the ignition.

GymRat!Miguel who wanted to use his Sunday for relaxation, a cheat day, maybe a game or two with Gabriel, Peter, and Winston.

Instead, he’s lying on his bed listening to Xina rant about one of her roommates using the sink as a trash can.

“Like we have a ridiculously expensive trash can that’s less than a foot away from the sink. It’s a simple spin and drop.”

“Ok, I get this is really gross, but don’t you have other friends you could bother?”

Xina pauses, and points her finger at him, “Hey, I’m here to help you out. If I wasn’t here, who knows how down in the dumps you’d be.”

“This isn’t helping me.”

GymRat!Miguel who answers his phone while Xina has managed to pull Peter into a game of Overcooked on his Switch.

“Hey, Ma.”

“Miguel! How do I connect your father’s computer to the TV? He found a movie that we could watch but the screen is so small.”

“He found a movie but can’t connect cords?”

“Just answer the question, mijo.”

Miguel sits up, prepared to spend at least forty minutes trying to explain what an HDMI cord is.

“Yeah.”

Xina gasps, pauses the game leaving a displeased Peter, and hops into the corner of Miguel’s phone.

“Hi, Mrs. O’Hara!”

“Hola, mi dulce niña! Hace mucho que no te veo. ¿Que tal te ha ido?“ (Hello, my sweet girl! I haven’t seen you in a long time. How have you been?)

“Más o menos, pero me alegro de verte.” (So-so, but I’m happy to see you.)

“No, Xina! ¿Qué tienes?” (What’s wrong?)

Miguel just plopped the device in Xina’s hand, “I like how you both started a conversation on my phone.”

“We’ve got important things to discuss,” Xina waved him off while she and his mother continued to fawn over each other.

Miguel just slid off the bed and joined Peter.

GymRat!Miguel who doesn’t get his phone back until curfew hours are around the corner.

Xina and his mom discussed everything from reality TV to recipes to her time up north. Xina left happier than when she came in which Miguel didn’t mind. He just wished he could have had the room to himself.

GymRat!Miguel who doesn’t see your message until he’s about to go to sleep.

“Baby”

“Let’s do something together on your bday”

Miguel unpeeled his eyes and typed swiftly.

“YES”

“YEESSSS”

“Best birthday ever already”

“Someone’s excited”

“I haven’t even said what we’re doing yet”

“What are we doing”

“Tell me please”

“Pleasepleasepleaseplease”

“Mmm”

“No”

“It’s a secret 🙂‍↔️”

“I can wait”

“That you are”

“Sometimes”

“😗”

“But mi luz I think Xina is trying to plan something too”

“Oh”

“Should we raincheck then?”

“NOOOOOO!”

“I can do both”

“I’ll literally split myself in two”

“You don’t have to choose”

“My gift is small”

“I want you to have fun on your special day”

“Can you come to the party?”

“I don’t want to miss it but I’ll have to see”

“If anything it’ll be much later”

“As long as I get to see you I’ll be happy”

“Good night bebé”

“Night!”

"Love you"

“Love you more"

divider by: @plutism 🩵

a/n: I have no notes other than school is starting back up so my posting schedule will be even more irregular. 🤠 Please bear with me.

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[thesesoldierboysarebi]

TF141 Types of Men they like Most (all of them are bi)

Ghost: looks-wise, he likes two types: a man who can keep up with him athletically— in other words, a fellow soldier— or a twink. He can’t resist a skinny academic type. I hc that this is because his first boy crush in secondary school was this adorable nerdy kid with big oversized glasses who tutored him in English and history. You never forget your first crush. As for personality, Ghost likes a man who’s gonna be a bit of a shit to him. Annoy him. Call him on his bluff! It’s good for him. But he also likes a sweet man, sweet and nerdy like his first crush. Maybe he’s just a nerd lover, who knows.

Soap: Johnny, like the rest of his squad, is never ever going to beat the allegations of blue collar/soldier men being attracted to alt/punk/goth types. So he tends to fiend over quiet, sultry type of men. He’s fine with them being bigger or smaller, but Emo and goth guys can Get It. Tragically, however, Soap’s only so far been able to successfully take home fellow gym rats. But he has hope! As for personality, well. He likes the more quiet and introverted type of guys to contrast with his loud, boisterous personality. But he won’t say no to a fellow sunshine boy.

Price: he realized quite late in his life that he was bisexual, so he’s had quite an exploratory period to try and determine what kind of men he likes. Generally speaking, he tends to veer towards fellow bears and older gentlemen, because he’s a little concerned about just how many twenty-something twinks and femboys he attracts, like a fucking porch light attracting moths. It’s ridiculous to watch when he steps into the gay bars. He’s flattered, boys! But he doesn’t want to date anyone more than eight years under his age. However, he has dated a young artist and goth or two. Physically wise, he likes someone shorter than him because he likes being the Strong One in a relationship. Personality? Same as with women, someone emotionally mature and kind who knows what he wants. And maybe mouths off to him to he can do some brat taming.

Gaz: oh, Gaz loves a himbo. He watched the Disney Hercules at a tender age and that Wonder Boy has lived in his brain rent-free ever since. He also likes nerdy types, like Ghost, and their taste in men often aligns without realizing it. He just likes a sweet, kinda dumb guy. In fact, for a while, I hc that Gaz harbored a small crush on Soap for similar reasons— before it became clear that Johnny MacTavish was just a little too rambunctious for him to handle. But yes, Gaz likes a well-built guy, likes fellow soldiers, likes another guy he can geek out about favorite movies and shows together. For Gaz, it’s a little more comfortable for him to develop a friendship with a man before pursuing a relationship. However, on occasion, Gaz can and will fiend for a dilf the way he fiends for milfs.

[katyawriteswhump]

Freestyle love (Steddie holiday drabble)

Written for @steddieholidaydrabbles, day 22 prompt, Sports AU.

Nobody ever wanted Eddie Munson on their swim squad, and uni competition was no different. Until Steve Harrington decided to play by the rules.

WC: 966. Rating: T.

CW: none really. Tags: Enemies to lovers, whump, university/college AU.

***

"Munson's freestyle times smash half the teams.'" Steve pushed his wet hair from his eyes, double-checked the stopwatch. “He’s in."

"That science geek pond-scum?” asked Steve's swim co-captain, standing with him beside the pool. "No way. You read the numbers backwards again, Harrington?"

"Shut up. I’m calling this one."

When Steve broke the news, Munson pulled off his swim-cap and a mass of dark, damp hair tumbled out. “One of your teammates said my tats automatically disqualify me,” said Munson.

“That’s bullshit.” Steve actually found Munson’s freaky tattoos bizarrely compelling. Oh, and the body beneath—all lean rope-like muscle, not massive shoulders, but a decent swimmer’s physique. “We need you. You beat most of the sports scholarship guys.”

“I know.” Munson shrugged. “And you can take my place on your dumb squad and stuff it up their buttholes.”

“What the heck, man? Why did you trial, if you don’t want in?”

“To show you over-privileged frat-house dicks you ain’t special. I qualify every year—you’re just the first knucklehead to notice. Anyhooo.” He poked his tongue out stupidly. Steve planted his hands on his hips and couldn’t glare harder. “I’m off to Who Soc.”

“What Soc?”

Munson’s shoulder clipped Steve’s as he passed—possibly an accident, but he nearly toppled Steve into the pool.

“Screw you, man! Crawl back to your den of Satanist freaks, like I care.”

“Yeah?” Munson poked out his tongue again, wiggled his fingers. “Hexing you, Harrington. Oooooh, bet you’re pissing yourself.”

***

Eddie had simply been getting one back for the little guys, against all those over-pumped numbskulls. 

He still felt bad when he heard what happened at the inter-state semis—some moron dived into the pool on top of Harrington in the shallow end, breaking his leg.

It bugged Eddie. So much he wound up visiting Steve at the hospital.

When Eddie sidled into Steve’s room, Steve’s pale face—peeking from behind his plastered leg in traction—said it all: What the heck?

“Hey,�� mumbled Eddie. “Guess I’m the last person you expected.”

“On my list of expected visitors, you were somewhere below Elvis.” Harrington seemed pissed. Also genuinely bewildered.

He was still sexy as hell.

Especially now Eddie couldn’t find it in his cold, metal-loving heart to hate the guy. Mmmm, and was it kinda wrong to wanna lick those well-muscled arms, and picture him shirtless… even when Harrington glowered at him from a hospital bed?

Eddie raised his palms in half-hearted surrender. “I owe you an explanation. I’ve been doing swim trials since Middle School. My time is always good—the place I grew up in was right by a lake—yet nobody ever gave me my place on the squad before. This face never fits.” He gurned a silly grin. “Then you went and flew in the face of all the laws in the universe and offered me ‘in.’ I guess it... blew me away.”

“I was only following the goddamn rules.” Steve grumpily puffed his flatter-than-usual hair from his eyes.

“Yeah, and I was a dick, and the Hex thing was dumb. I didn’t really… you know…”

“I don’t blame you for my stupid accident.” Steve rolled his eyes. “Contrary to popular opinion, I'm not a complete moron. I'm scraping a pass in English Lit, okay?” As the atmosphere softened, Eddie shuffled nearer Steve’s bed. “Good job. Who's gonna keep me here on a sports scholarship now?”

“Sorry, man.”

“Jesus, it’s not your fault!” Up close, Harrington looked exhausted, possibly even in pain, with dark smudgy shadows around his eyes. “You know, you can do something to make this less shit.”

Eddie’s heart squeezed oddly—gratefully? “What?”

“Take my place in the squad.” Steve mumbled toward hands clasped in his lap. “I recorded your times, made it official. The place is yours to claim. I'd tell the team myself… if any of them came to visit.”

“You’re kidding?”

“Nobody’s got time for a swim co-captain who’ll never swim competitively again.” 

A lump clogged Eddie’s throat. Harrington’s face worked strangely, too… Shit, shit, shit! Eddie reached out, tentatively squeezed Steve’s shoulder. Steve looked up sharply, eyes large and liquid. Damn, the boy was tense.

“That stinks,” said Eddie.

“Yeeeah.” Steve’s laugh was shaky, while Eddie’s mind raced: 

“Dude, I’m in a ton of non-sports societies. D & D, model-making, Who Soc… Uh, maybe not that one for you. I can bring a few of the guys and gals here, see if you get into anything.”

“I don’t need YOU to find me friends.” Harrington’s spikiness proved short-lived. He unleashed a resigned sigh: “Look, man, I’m not exactly in the mood for parties, but… If you wanna come back… that would be cool.”

Suddenly, neither of them could look at each other. Eddie’s face was burning. Could he actually be into me?

“Tho��� if you’re not fresh from swim practice when you arrive, I’m not interested, Munson.”

Eddie hooted: “You blackmailing me?”

“I can play dirty, ya know, buck expectations, too.” Steve went in for the kill. He smiled up at Eddie, a proper, hot-as-hell smile, which reached his too-pretty brown eyes. 

Is he hitting on me?!? Eddie gawked like a goldfish.

“See you tomorrow?”

***

On the day of the national finals, Steve watched from the stands. When Eddie slammed home for victory on the final leg of the freestyle relay, Steve was on his feet—okay, propped by his crutches—cheering his head off.

As soon as Eddie could get away, he clambered, wet and dripping, through to the rear of the stands and planted an even wetter kiss on Steve's lips. Steve threw his arms around his boyfriend. It was great to finally be with somebody to whom only the real things in life mattered. 

"Love you, Champ," he whispered in Eddie’s ear.

"Love you, too." Eddie kissed him again.

Victory had never felt so hot.

***

Thanks for reading :) Also part of my steve whump fic series (mainly steddie) on ao3

[incorrectbatfam]

Have the Gooners had any direct or indirect encounters with any supervillains?

Interviewer: Tell me why you want to intern at LexCorp.

Booker: LexCorp? The ad said something else.

Interviewer: LexCorp is our parent company.

Booker: I see.

[later that day]

Booker: *finds an ad for criminals wanting an intern*

Booker: Well, it's either this or LexCorp.

Booker: *applies*

———————

Riddler: Behold, my ultimate puzzle!

Riddler: *clicks a remote*

Riddler: Why isn't the screen working?

Henchman: It's the new software update. I'm calling tech support.

Henchman: *calls*

Mac, on the other end: Best Buy Geek Squad, how may I assist you?

———————

[a year ago]

Gene's coworker: Hey Gene, can you do me a favor?

Gene: I would, but I'm totally swamped with this one guy's tax returns.

Gene's coworker: Which one?

Gene: Someone named Harvey Dent. There are so many discrepancies, it's like he's living two lives.

———————

Milo: *driving*

Milo: *sees a pedestrian*

Milo: *slams the brakes and honks*

Harley: Hey, I'm walkin' here!

———————

Otto: Morning, Basil. The usual wash?

Clayface: *nods*

Otto: Sounds good. I'll get your car clay-free in half an hour.

———————

[two years ago]

Cobblepot: Bartender, another drink!

Molly: Sir, I'm afraid I'm gonna have to cut you off.

Cobblepot: Who owns this lounge? Who's paying your salary?

Molly: Fine, what'll it be?

Cobblepot: Our finest red wine, of course.

Molly: Good choice.

Molly: *slips a sedative when he's not looking*

Molly: Here you go. Have a good night.

Cobblepot: What?

Molly: Nothing.

———————

[three years ago]

Talia: For this drill, I want to focus on distance. Team A, take the turrets. Team B, you're on the ground with arrows.

Kellin: *grabs a bow*

Talia: And... fire!

Kellin: *fires an arrow*

*arrow hits an oil lamp*

*lamp falls next to Ra's*

*cape catches fire*

———————

Blaise: *googles how to make his weed plants grow faster*

Blaise: *clicks on a video*

The video: Good afternoon, gardeners and plant lovers. I'm Dr. Pamela Isley and today I'll be showing you how to...

———————

[three years ago]

Scarecrow's assistant: Sir, one of your employees wants to see you.

Scarecrow: Send him in.

Rob: Dr. Crane, I'm Rob Steeler. I'm one of the people who intercepted that shipment containing the last ingredient you need for your new fear gas.

Scarecrow: And what do you need?

Rob: Can these other guys step out of the room? It's kind of personal.

Scarecrow: *waves them out*

Rob: *points a gun at Scarecrow*

Scarecrow: Somebody's feeling fearless.

Rob: Your new formula cost me the love of my life. I can see you reaching under your desk for some fear gas and I'm telling you right now, it won't work because the thing I'm most afraid of already came true.

Scarecrow: So you seek revenge.

Rob: Tempting, but no. I want an out—from you, your organization, and your operations. I don't want you or any of your big-shot Rogue connections to come anywhere near me or my family.

Scarecrow: And if I refuse?

Rob: *shoots the wall behind Scarecrow*

Scarecrow: Very well, have it your way. Best of luck finding any semblance of success. You and I both know you will live and die a common thief.

Rob: We'll revisit that when we meet in hell.

[stillaclownlol]

I'm making Tyler x Logan propaganda but for now take another ship ask thingy whatever (shoots my fucking brains out) <3

This is also...long... 🫠

PRE-RELATIONSHIP

1. How did they first meet?

They knew *of* each other since elementary school, but they met officially when they got grouped together for the Savannah project.

2. What was their first impression of each other?

Tyler: Nerd. Wished he'd stop mumbling all the time, it pisses him of.

Logan: internal crying. Jocks are scary lahdhosjdjd- (thought he was handsome tho)

3. Did any of their friends/family want them to get together?

They had never thought about them like that haha. Logan pretty much periodically told the whole squad except Tyler 💀 so they were all like very subtly encouraging him. Taylor was VERY excited. Aiden would be SO obvious about it but luckily Tyler is kind of oblivious. Ash and Ben are just watching the whole thing go down.

4. Who felt romantic feelings first?

Tyleeeeeer. Dork.

5. Did either of them try to resist their feelings?

You know they would 🤡 Whatever let me have my angsty gay pining leave me alone 😭

6. If you had told one of them the other would be their soul mate, what would they think?

Logan: He would combust into flames and melt into a pile of stuttering and blushing.

Tyler: he'd probably punch you.

7. What would their lives be like if they had never met?

No phantom dimension! Tyler would probably get a baseball scholarship to some nice uni and Logan would get a scholarship cuz he's super smart. I think they'd be alright but probably a lot more emotionally stunted

GENERAL

1. Who initiated the relationship, and how did it go?

Tyler because Logan Gen/ thought he was straight so he'd legit never brought it up. Ngl Logan prob got injured and Tyler was just ranting and confessed on accident hihi ❤️

2. Did they have an official first date? What was it like?

I think yes. I think Logan would ask him and they'd do smth very low pressure :) Go out to eat somewhere (not a fancy place) and then walk around the park or smth until night time, so Logan can geek out about the constellations. Normal friend stuff...but they both know it's a date so they're freaking out. Then Tyler holds his hand and- *slams my head into a wall*

3. What was their first kiss like?

Awkward. They bumped their foreheads together since they tried to do it at the same time. Tyler instigated it :)

4. Were they each other's first anything?

Logan: Tyler's first kiss (with a boy) and first relationship

Tyler: Logan's first kiss (In general) and first relationship

5. What's their height and age difference?

Tyler is 187 cm (he did not get those short boy genes lol) and Logan is 164 cm, so I think that's like, 9 inches? Tyler was born in August 2000 and Logan in December 2000, so only 4 months.

6. What's their relationship with each other's families? Do they share a friendgroup?

You know they share a friend group lmao.

Logan gets along very well with Marianna :) she thinks he's super sweet and he doesn't mind her eccentricity. Taylor loooooves having Logan as a "brother in law" ^_^

Tyler's relationship with James and Mary is...testy 💀 they don't mind the fact that he's dating a boy but they HAVE heard Logan venting about how insecure he is in the friendship because he thinks Tyler hated him. Tyler doesn't really appreciate being reminded of all that and the fact that they might antagonize him. They're working on it for Logans sake.

7. Who takes the lead in social situations?

Tyler usually, he's not afraid to call somebody out on their shit :) Logan is better at mediating tho.

8. Who gets jealous easier?

Logan is more insecure than jealous. Tyler is just normal jealous 🤡 he's a little itty bitty bit possessive...👍🏽

9. Who whispers unsuitable things in the others ear?

Technically Tyler does, but not like, on purpose. They might just be out somewhere and some guy will be being mildly irritating or whatever and Tyler will mutter "this fucking clown" to Logan. Logan is always "!!! Ty!" Lmao

LOVE

1. Who said "I love you" first?

Logan! He definitely cried while saying it too haha. I think Tyler would say it back...after kissing him mwah mwah.

2. What are their primary love languages?

For Tyler absolutely acts of service. It's what he's used to haha. Likes to cook for Logan and help him around the shop (while James and Mary are watching him like a hawk) :) Receiving, tbh, he just likes when Logan wants to spend quality time with him.

Logan...also acts of service; for a long time he valued himself on how useful he was to somebody and its still how he evaluates his relationships. He helps Tyler with homework he doesn't understand, helps him with chores around the house, etc. He really appreciates words of affirmation, makes him feel more secure ^_^

3. Who uses cheesy pick-up lines?

In the beginning it was Logan, he bought a book and everything 🤡 he always fumbles the delivery tho help him. After a while Tyler says them cuz he likes messing with Logan and watching him get flustered lol.

4. How often do they cuddle/engage in PDA?

It is 2016 in Georgia, they don't engage in any PDA 🤡 as if Logan needed another reason to get harassed. They like cuddling in the privacy of their houses tho, but just the standard amount ^_^

5. Who initiates kisses?

Tyler will generally ask Logan to kiss him, since he's a little awkward about initiating.

6. Who's the big and little spoon?

Tyler is pretty protective so he likes being the big spoon, but if Logan asks he's also fine with that. He likes rubbing Ty's stomach due to the injury he got there U_U

7. What are their favorite things to do together?

Logan: STARGAZINGGGG. Nothing makes him happier than infodumping :D Ty likes listening to him anyways so. He also likes going to Tyler's games cuz, you know, he wanna be supportive and all that. Plus he thinks he looks sooooo cool while playing.

Tyler: Something chill, he's like, consistently tired lmao. He just likes spending time with him, he doesn't mind if they're just laying down studying or listening to music, or just talking to each other.

8. Who's better at comforting the other?

Tyler is, surprisingly. When Tyler is upset he's just generally mad and needs to cool off alone, plus Logan isn't really good around people who are angry haha ":). When Logan's upset he tends to be more teary eyed, so Tyler just hugging him and reminding him to breathe is enough.

9. Who is more protective?

Tyler 🤡 I don't think I need to elaborate aldhoshd

10. Do they prefer verbal or physical affection?

Tyler: physical because verbal affection flusters him a lot.

Logan: verbal because physical affection flusters him a lot.

....Help them, lol

11. What are some songs that apply to their relationship?

*Points to Red's Spotify playlist*

(This doesn't really make sense but Campus by Vampire Weekend reminds me of them by proxy because I was listening to it while I drew them lmao)

12. What kind of nicknames do they call each other?

Logan: Will usually call him Ty. "Babe" if he's up to it haha. When they're older he probably calls him the usual ones like honey or sweetie :)

Tyler: probably something real cringy considering that carrot-top nickname he gave Ash. I mentioned Starboy and Cielo before. I think he'd call him "Bizcochito" (porque le quiere comer a besos jajajajaj)

13. Who remembers the little things?

They're both very detail oriented so they remember all those things.

DOMESTIC LIFE

1. If they get married, who proposes?

Since gay marriage was legalized in June 2015, for most of his life Logan pretty much never thought he would be able to get married. So he proposed to Tyler. Was crying profusely the whole time and dropped his cards haha.

2. What's the wedding like?

They couldn't find a church that would bless their marriage even tho Mary and James had asked for it. So they just got married at city hall. BUT they did have a super big after party with all of Tyler's extended family >:) Logan has no idea what "gringo" means but he's not thinking about it too much.

3. How many kids do they have, if any?

It was really fucking hard to adopt one :") one girl because I said so and this is my list

4. Do they have any pets?

They have a few cats because for a long time they couldn't adopt any kids. It's good for Logan's enrichment, even though the cats don't really like Tyler lol

5. Who's the stricter parent?

Tyler loses his temper easier, but he's also way more likely to indulge their daughter so like, he is stricter, but he's not very consistent about it lmao. Logan is better at disciplining Tho.

6. Who worries the most?

They're both worrywarts kkkkk Tyler a little more tho, it's the ✨️anxiety✨️ kicking in.

7. Who kills the bugs in the house?

Tyler will scream if he sees a bug so 🤡 Logan is very used to bugs because there's usually a few in the plants, so he'll catch them and throw them outside.

8. How do they celebrate the holidays?

Tyler isn't really big on holidays, but he'll help Logan put up decorations and stuff if he wants to. They generally go visit their family and friends U_U

Tyler does celebrate Día de Los Muertos as an adult tho, he spends most of the day at his dad's ofrenda. Logan is there for moral support, and they'll call Taylor and Marianna if they can't come over for any reason.

9. Who's more likely to convince the other to come back to sleep in the morning?

Tyler's naturally an early bird and Logans a night owl, so Logan will pull him back into bed haha.

10. Who's the better cook?

Tyler's the better cook and Logan's the better baker.

11. Who likes to dance?

Tyler! He's a bit reluctant to admit it tho, but he's a good dancer and he loves pulling Logan by surprise to dance bachata or cumbia hihi

[x-bluefire-heart-x]

Acting Like Teenagers

Here is the next chapter for Dating App. Things get a little more heated between Rafael and Miss Librarian.

Warnings: Nothing much, a little heavy petting and make out session.

Master List

Prompt List

One , Two , Three , Five , Six , Seven , Eight, Nine, Ten

So far it had been a boring day at the library but it was looking to shape up a little. You had just gotten about six boxes and if they were what you were hoping? Well, you were just about jumping in excitement. You had managed to convince the boss to allow a monthly theme, chosen by different staff members to start with and then allowing the public to have a say, where you would have a table or two dedicated to books that matched the theme. There would also be some activities throughout the month as well, aimed to provide people with the opportunity to learn more about whatever the theme was. Since you had come up with the idea you had been given the first month. Your chosen theme was Mythology, specifically Greek.

The boxes were some decorations as well as some new books and you were about to have a day filled with making the tables as well as starting to prepare the some of the activities. You had already handed out a list of the activities you and a few other librarians had brainstormed. Which included some amazing colouring in pictures of the Greek Gods and Goddesses, as well as some demi-gods with a few pieces of information about them. An adult activity planned later in the month was a trivia night, coming in costume optional but highly encouraged. Without even thinking you pulled out your phone taking a picture of the first box you had opened.

‘I am about to have an entire month geeking out over books inspired by or that have some Greek Mythology themes, plus getting to teach kids about the stories of the Gods and Goddess…though highly edited to make them child friendly!’

You sent that message to Rafael along with the photo. You paused for a moment, realising that the first thing you wanted to do when you found out these boxes where for your monthly book theme was share your excitement with Rafael. You drummed your fingers on the box in-front of you trying to decide to if you wanted to deal with that particular realisation or leave it. You sighed as you opened the next box, mind still juggling the two options before the title of a book caught your eye and the excitement was back tenfold allowing you to happily ignore everything else.

--

‘I am about to have an entire month geeking out over books inspired by or that have some Greek Mythology themes, plus getting to teach kids about the stories of the Gods and Goddess…though highly edited to make them child friendly!’

Rafael felt his phone vibrate against his leg as he stood in the squad room, listening to the detectives run through the latest update in the current case. He pulled it out, the detectives very use to him doing so, he looked down at it, smiling the moment he saw your name. That smile softening from the excited upturn when he read your message, he could imagine the way your eyes would light up when you opened he boxes and if you had been speaking these words how your hands would have been gesturing excitedly around you. Rafael hadn’t even noticed that Amanda had stopped speaking, drawing everyone’s attention to him, all of them sharing looks when they saw the way he was looking at his phone.

“Counsellor?” Carisi asked. Rafael forced his eyes away from his phone, the look dropping away from his face in a second when he realised that they had all seen it.

“Who’s on the other end?” Finn asked leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest.

“I have no idea what you are insinuating,” Rafael tried to deflect. “Rollins, you were saying?”

“It can wait,” Amanda grinned. “I’ve seen you pull a lot of faces Barba, but never one like that. Plus, the fact that Liv prevented us from contacting you the other night.”

“And yesterday at lunch we also were not allowed to call you,”  Nick added. Finn and Carisi nodded along, while Olivia was standing back. Rafael had spent the better part of yesterday afternoon filling her in on both dates he had with the you. She had to stop herself from overreacting at times, she had no idea that Rafael could be so adorable. She really wanted to meet you, if only to see Rafael’s reactions to you in person. And maybe sneak a few photos.

“Sometimes, I hate how good you all are,” he grumbled. “It was someone I have been on two dates with. She messaged me about something she’s doing at the library she works at, she’s excited about it and wanted to share it.”

“She seems adorable from what Rafael has told me,” Liv finally interjected. “And she’s very pretty. Will keep him on his toes that’s for sure.”

“Okay now I need to know everything,” Amanda grinned taking a seat next to Finn.  

“We do have a case,” Rafael gestured to the boards around them. “Shouldn’t we focus on that?”

“We’ll get back to that,” Finn unsurprisingly added his voice to the conversation, his grin speaking volumes. Even Nick and Carisi were sitting there with grins on their faces, Rafael sighed knowing full well that if he wanted to get back on track he would have to talk.

“Fine,” he agreed. “Just one moment.” He looked back down at his phone, your message still opened there. The team all shared a look, grinning at each other the minute Rafael’s face changed back to that adorable soft expression.

‘You’ll have to tell me all about it at lunch. I expect photo updates, Miss Librarian.’

--

You had just finished unboxing the first two boxes you had opened, making sure to correctly catalogue them and mark them off against the invoice. You had started separating them into different piles for each of the planned activities and the books.  There was another pile of some of the decorations you would be taking home to work on, some drawings to colour in, some posters and banners to put together and paint. You were excited. You had just started opening the next box when your phone lit up from where it was on the table.

‘You’ll have to tell me all about it at lunch. I expect photo updates, Miss Librarian.’

“Fuck this man,” you muttered. “How can he be this amazing?”

“Ooh, you talking about the man you went on that date with?” your friend Lily asked as she came into the storage room.

“Yes,” you whined. “He likes how I get excited about books and he didn’t look bored when I rambled to him. I sent him a photo telling him about the plans for this month and he said I’ll have to tell him about it.”

“You lucked out with him,” she said. “I’ve had no luck with men. How old is he?”

“Well, he’s 45,” you said twisting a strand of hair around your finger.

“Ooh girl, I’m so proud you didn’t change the age range,” Lily nudged you with her shoulder. “Have you matched with any other interesting men?”

“No idea,” you shrugged. “I didn’t look at any of them after matching with Rafael and since we exchanged numbers after dinner the other night I haven’t even looked at the app, even turned off notifications for it.”

“Ooh, you got it bad for him already huh?!” she gushed.

“It definitely seems that way, I mean the first thing I wanted to do after opening these boxes was message him, which I did with zero thought,” you blushed a little admitting that. “Plus, well, our first kiss was pretty fiery, even as tame as it was cause we were in public. I mean the man also kissed my knuckles after our first date, at which he also pulled out my chair and helped me out of my coat and then back into it. And he says what he thinks, he literally ran to meet me for our second date, apologising for being late, even though he messaged me telling me he would and it was only ten minutes.”

“Take a breath,” Lily laughed. “Fiery huh? Thought you didn’t believe in that kinda stuff.”

“Well, Rafael might have me rethinking it,” you grinned.

“Maybe I need to increase my age range,” Lily said tapping her chin in thought.

“I mean it might be worth it,” you agreed.

“When are you seeing him next?” Lily asked helping you with the next box.

“Tomorrow, for lunch,” you answered looking back at your phone. “Just gonna respond to him, let me take a photo of what we have. He wanted photo updates.”

“Sounds like he’s got it bad as well,” Lily giggled hoping out of the way to let you take a shot of what you had pulled out so far.

‘I’m looking forward to it. You might regret telling me to send photo updates, I’m notorious for sending a lot! Here’s the loot from the first two boxes!’ you attached the images and sent the messages.

“Alright, I want all the details while we finish this,” Lily informed you. “So get talking.”

“So pushy!” you laughed. “Alright, well, his name is Rafael, he’s an ADA for the Special Victims Unit.”

“Wait, Special Victims, they deal with sexual based crimes don’t they?” Lily interrupted.

“Yeah, he said it was confronting but rewarding work,” you nodded. “He warned about long and hectic working hours in his profile but I’m not bothered. The work he does is important.”

“Very important, so can we assume from that that he is potentially a feminist?” Lily asked. “Which I think is important.”

“I also think that’s important,” you nodded. “I haven’t asked him but I have a feeling he might be. He asked if he could kiss me before he did, which I know doesn’t automatically make him a feminist but I figure it’s a good sign.”

“Hm, we’ll gather some more evidence before making a final decision,” Lily determined. “Alright, keep going!”

You shook your head in amusement at your friend but obliged her none the less. Rafael had Liv, and you had Lily, it had been with her that you had had one too many cocktails and downloaded the app that lead to you Rafael so you figure she should get some details.

--

Rafael was sitting at his dinning table, taking a break from his work. He was trying to work out if it would be worth it booking somewhere for lunch tomorrow. After he had filled in the team things had suddenly became hectic as another victim turned up. He had hoped that you two would be able to meet at a café but he really hoped that you meant it when you said you were happy to have lunch at his office. He had just picked up his phone to message you when a series of alerts popped up. All messages from you. One quick text and a number of photos.

‘Keeping my promise of photo updates.’ The first photos included pictures of potential ways you were thinking of displaying the books. The next series were photos that looked like they were taken in your living room, it showed banners and posters with some of the Greek Gods and Goddesses, half of them painted and the others blank. One included a photo of you with a paint brush and some paint on your nose as you held up a completed picture, a proud look on your face. Rafael laughed as he saved that photo, putting in the folder with the photo you had sent the day of your first date.

‘They all look amazing, you didn’t mention you enjoy painting,’ Rafael sent back. He bit his lips before sending another photo. ‘I hope you are alright with me saving some of the photos you have sent.’

God he hoped he hadn’t made a mistake.

--

You had just finished the banner you would be putting up at the entrance of the library. You somehow gotten a little paint on your face, but instead of removing it you left it there, knowing that you would somehow get more paint on yourself, as you always did whenever you painted. You sat your brush to the side, to start cleaning up but before you could start your phone vibrated.

‘They all look amazing, you didn’t mention you enjoy painting.’

You smiled as you read Rafael’s message. You were about to start responding when another message came through.

‘I hope you are alright with me saving some of the photos you have sent.’

You grinned at his confession, you thought it was cute that he wanted to save your photos, you figured he meant the photo you sent of you in the park and most likely the selfie you just sent. You weren’t bothered by him saving them but you liked that he didn’t hide it.

‘Thank you, I don’t do it often but I enjoy it, mostly I just paint landscapes. I’m fine with you doing that, so long as I can do that same if you send me any photos.’

--

‘Thank you, I don’t do it often but I enjoy it, mostly I just paint landscapes. I’m fine with you doing that, so long as I can do that same if you send me any photos.’

Rafael grinned at your response, he found himself wanting to watch you paint. Maybe he could suggest going back to where you guys had a hot chocolate in the park so you could paint the trees, maybe even that bridge. And he was happy that once again he hadn’t made a wrong move with you. He stared at the last part of your message, he realised that for all you two had messaged each other he hadn’t sent you any photos. He didn’t tend to think to take any, hell all of his photos on the app had been ones that Liv had taken. But at this moment he wanted to send you something, he glanced at himself in the mirror his hair was a little dishevelled, and he still had part of his suit on, he had removed the jacket and unbuttoned his vest, with his suspenders showing underneath, his tie was loosened and he had unbuttoned several of his shirt buttons. Since his last two risks had proven to be good ideas he trusted this risk would be the same.

‘I would like to see any, if you let others view them. It wouldn’t be fair for me to deny you the chance to save photos of me, when you allow me.’ He sent that with a photo attached.

--

You had just finished cleaning up, scrubbing the paint off of your face and your hands when his next message came through. You almost dropped your phone when your saw the photo he had attached. You thought he was handsome at dinner, you thought him distractingly charming at your second date. But at this very second you thought him insanely and unfairly sexy. He wasn’t as put together as you were use to, but you thought it suited him, plus the fact that you could see the suspenders under the vest he wore and his shirt had enough buttons undone that you could see some chest hair. You immediately saved that photo. You finally read the message he had sent with the photo.

‘I would like to see any, if you let others view them. It wouldn’t be fair for me to deny you the chance to save photos of me, when you allow me.’

You never really let others see your work, but maybe you could eventually allow Rafael to see some of your pieces. You found your eyes focusing back on the photo as the kiss you shared with him kept replaying. You honestly hoped that lunch would be at his office tomorrow so you could kiss him again, without having to worry about the public. As you were looking at the photo again another message of his popped up.

‘I think lunch might have to be at my office tomorrow if you are still okay with that. This case has just become a little hectic.’

“Well, this works quite nicely for me,” you grinned. “Now the question is do I buy something or make it?” You had a quick look in your fridge and pantry to see if you had something that could be made and eaten cold. You could keep it in the fridge at the library and carry it the lunch bag you got with a block. You had the ingredients for your chicken, pasta salad. Perfect. You pulled your phone out to respond to his message about lunch. You decided you would bring up the photo then

‘Absolutely, still okay with that. I’ll make something for our lunch then.’

--

You double checked the address Rafael had given you for his office before walking into the rather intimidating building. You wore some snug jeans, a sweater with the front tucked in and a leather jacket over it. You had a beanie on and a scarf to deal with the cold as you travelled from the library to his office, you had a little make up which you didn’t normally do for work, however you forewent lipstick. You carried the lunch you had prepared for Rafael in your little lunch tote.   

“Can I help you?” a gorgeous woman questioned you as you looked around checking to make sure you were in the right place. This building was massive and you had almost gotten lost trying to find Rafael’s office.

“Oh, um, I’m meant to be having lunch with Rafael?” you lifted your tote up a little. “I’m-”

“Chica,” Rafael’s voice interrupted you as he walked out of his office to greet you. “Thanks Carmen, you can go for lunch.”

Carmen smiled at the both of you as she clicked a few buttons on the phone and the computer before leaving. You turned to give Rafael your full attention and you were not prepared. Rafael was in a full dark blue suit, with a silver tie and vest to complete the look, his hair was perfectly styled. He was in his element and he was even more attractive for it.

“Hey,” you didn’t mean for your voice to sound so breathy but this man just kept knocking you for four. An image of you running your fingers through his hair, messing it up as you finally got him to let that fire you had seen a few times in his eyes loose ran through your head, causing your cheeks to heat.

“Hello you,” he grinned taking a closer step to you, his hand raising but stopping before touching you, a question in his eyes. You stepped closer, moving so his hand was sitting on your waist and tilted your head a little looking up at him from under your lashes, he squeezed your hip gently as he placed a kiss on your cheek. “Come inside.”

His hand moved from your hip to the small of your back as he lead you into his office, closing the door behind you. Your eyes widened a little at it, his desk sat in between two windows with a bookshelf filled with fancy looking books behind it. It was covered with folders, papers and books. There were several other windows along the wall opposite the entrance letting in plenty of natural light. The office was neat and tidy. Rafael led you to a couch just inside the door with a coffee table in-front of it, and laying on it was a dozen yellow daffodils. You stopped just short of the table, mouth opened in a small ‘o’, as you turned to look at Rafael as he took your lunch tote from your hand, placing it on the table to pick up the flowers.

“For you,” he smiled a little shy. “I know you said you were fine with having lunch here but regardless.”

“Rafael, they’re lovely,” you took the flowers from him, stepping close to place a kiss on his cheek before smelling them. “Thank you.”

“Only the loveliest for you,” he said, a flood of heat hit your cheeks at that. The two of you sat close on the couch as you placed the flowers back on the coffee table.

“I made a chicken pasta salad, I hope that’s okay?” you asked starting to pull out the containers and some forks, as well as some drinks. “I also picked up some lemonade.”

“That’s perfect,” he grinned picking up the container you placed in-front of him smelling the food. “Smells delicious. Thank you for making this.”

“It’s not a problem, I enjoy cooking for people,” you told him taking a bite. The creamy sauce perfectly balanced against the seasoning you had used on the chicken. “Especially people who gift me with a…distractingly gorgeous photo the night before.” You hadn’t noticed that Rafael had taken a bite of food until he coughed before taking a mouthful of lemonade. “Sorry.”

“You don’t sound it, chica,” Rafael coughed. You finally looked at him but couldn’t tell if the red in his cheeks was from inhaling his food or your comment. “Distractingly gorgeous?”

“Hmm,” you nodded. “Almost dropped my phone.”

“Sorry,” Rafael shrugged.

“Sound so sincere counsellor,” you laughed nudging him with your shoulder before slumping back against the couch, grinning at Rafael as he looked at you over his shoulder, his eyes roamed over you taking in how comfortable you looked in his office. You had taken your jacket off and placed it on the coat rack without prompting. He followed your example and sat back, the side of his body pressed tightly against yours. The warmth from him sent a curl of pleasure through you, settling just behind your stomach.

“I take it you saved it?” Rafael asked after eating a few mouthfuls.

“Oh quicker than you could blink,” you admitted, you decided to be even more open and honest than you normally would. Rafael deserved it after all the open honesty he had shown you. “It was very distracting. To be honest, I hoped you would tell me lunch would have to be here.”

“Really?” Rafael asked, eyebrow raised. You watched him eat for a few moments, taking a little pride in the look of satisfaction on his face as he enjoyed your meal. You waited for him to swallow his next bite before answering, not wanting to cause him to choke again.

“Yep,” you popped the ‘p’. “Because, I didn’t want to bring the photo up over text and…I was hoping for another kiss…”you trailed off as Rafael froze with a forkful of chicken and pasta half way to his mouth. He sat forward on the couch putting the container down and took a drink from his lemonade, before he turned to face you still sitting forward. He reached to take your container from your hands, both mostly empty of the meal. He took hold of your hands, bringing them to his mouth to trail kisses down your fingers and across your palms, he stopped to mouth at your wrist, his eyes never leaving yours. A fire starting to burn in those green orbs. The heat inside you started to build, the warmth flooding your veins.

“Another kiss?” he smirked. “And you wanted that to specifically happen in my office because?”

“You really need to ask that?” you replied, pointedly looking at where he was still lacing your wrist with kisses. He removed his mouth from your wrist, lips curling at the edges.

“You want a little more then the first time?” he continued to tease. Your breath had kicked up a notch, you can’t remember the last time something so little as kisses on your wrist and a look had you so worked up. You nodded, unable to get your voice to work. Rafael tsked as he reached out to cup your cheek, one of your hands still trapped in his. “Words, Amor. I need you to use your words.”

“Yes,” you whispered, pleasure curling to a throb in your pussy, his voice was soft and gentle, but still a little dominant. A perfect combination. “I want a kiss that would be indecent in public.”

“Your wish is my command,” he growled leaning close to you.

His hand moved from your cheek to rest on the side of your throat, his thumb stretched enough to tilt your head up. The hand still holding yours placed your hand on his shoulder, freeing his hand to hold your waist. You wrapped both your arms around his shoulders drawing him closer with an impatient whine when he just hovered above you. Rafael grinned for a second before he claimed your lips. The angel was a little awkward, given that he was still a little forward on the couch not wanting to overcrowd you. The kiss was definitely more passionate then the first, the hand on your waist squeezed in time with the little noises he pulled from you as he alternated between kisses and little nips to your bottom lip. He ran his tongue along yours, asking for permission without breaking away from you. You grinned into the kiss as you parted your lips, a moan pulled from the both of you the kiss deepened. You wanted more. You surged forward, trying not to break the kiss, your hand coming up to run through his hair as he wrapped his arms around your waist. He allowed his body to fall back against the couch pulling you with him, you swung a leg over his lap to straddle him

“Rafael,” you moaned as he broke the kiss. His hands trailed up and down your back as he started to kiss along your jaw, being careful not to leave any marks. You tilted your head to the side giving him more access to your neck as he started kissing down it until he got to the collar of your sweater where he started kissing along the skin just above the collar and back up your neck nipping briefly at your ear lobe. You pulled at his hair drawing his mouth away from your neck, you crashed your lips back to his, the passion and heat building as Rafael slipped a hand under your sweater and the other moved down to squeeze at your ass. You ground down in his lap, pulling a rough groan from his chest before he pulled away staring up at you.

“Chica, I still have meetings after this lunch,” he chuckled. “I have to look presentable.”

“Such a shame counsellor, I’m sure you can calm down but your hair might be a little harder to fix,” you grinned kissing him on the nose as you tried to fix the mess you had made of his hair.

“Hm, not so sure I can, what with you so nicely perched on my lap like this,” his voice was husky filled with lust to match his black blown eyes. But there was a soft look in them as his hands moved to cup your face, his thumbs stroking along your cheeks, before he moved to nuzzle his nose against yours. His hands sliding down to hold your hips, as he pressed a quick kiss to your lips.

“It would appear we are at an impasse,” you giggled as you smoothed your hands down his chest. “I also need to tell you something.” You pressed a kiss to each of his cheeks. “You look very handsome today.” You leant your forehead against his. “And I have greatly been enjoying each time we meet. And each time we message. Yesterday when I sent you that message I didn’t even think about it, I just knew that I wanted to share my excitement.”

“Amor,” Rafael whispered, his eyes staring up at you in wonder at your statement. “I have found myself looking forward to hearing from you. To finding a reason to message you, and find a way to be able to see you.”

You grinned down at him, your whole body warm from the happiness that surge through you. You had hoped that you weren’t alone in how you felt, and to hear him say it, it made you insanely happy. You pressed your lips to his again, over and over, giggling a little as Rafael’s hands tightened on your hips. You felt his lips curl into a smile against yours as you slowed the kisses down, claiming his lips in a slow sensual dance. His hands moved to run up and down your thighs, causing a shiver to move through you, as they grabbed at you.

“Rafi,” you whispered as you pressed your lips to his jaw before running your nose along his jaw nuzzling into him. “I’m-” you were interrupted by a nock on the door.

“Mr Barba,” Carmen’s voice called through the closed door. “You’re next appointment is here.” The two of you pulled apart, a look of shock on both your faces.

“Give me five minutes Carmen,” Rafael answered his hands back on your hips as he gently nudged you back. “Sorry, Chica, times up.”

“Pity,” you pouted but moved off of him, straightening your sweater before you started packing up the lunch you brought him. His arms wrapped around your waist, lips pressing a sweet kiss to your neck as he squeezed you close.

“I’ll message you as I can throughout the day,” he promised as you turned in his arms.

“Hmm, that’s sweet,” you smiled at him. “I’ll take what I can, but I understand how busy you are.”

“You are already too good to me,” he released you to try and fix his own appearance, sending you a wink as he flattened his hair. You took your jacket back folding it over an arm that held the flowers, your tote bag hanging in the crook on your elbow, as Rafael walked you to the door, pressing one last kiss to your lips. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Real soon,” you agreed. “Don’t work yourself to hard, Rafi.” You squeezed his hand before he opened the door.

You walked out with him on your heels, you could feel his eyes following you as you past by a large man in a suit who was holding a briefcase. You felt your phone vibrate in your pocket as you left the building. The flowers continuously drawing your eyes, the warmth of happiness never leaving you.

‘You still need to tell me all about your theme at the library, Chica, I hope I will be able to arrange a time where we can have dinner again.’

You grinned all the way back to the library, you needed to speak with Lily. You were tossing around the idea of asking him over to your apartment for dinner. Wondering if maybe it was too early to ask if he wanted to stay the night but if your little make out session was anything to go by it wasn’t.

[allthingsfangirl101]

Late Nights – Special Agent Timothy McGee

"We will see you two tomorrow," Gibbs said. "Don't stay too late."

"They're staying late?" DiNozzo smirked at me and McGee. "How come?"

"Vance asked Y/L/N and me to go through our computer security system," McGee explained.

"There have been some attempted hackings and the Director wants us to fill in the gaps," I added.

"So our NCIS Computer Geeks get to stay behind and code together?" He teased. "I am so sorry I cannot stay and help."

"Yeah," I scoffed. "You're Grin of Sadness gave you away."

"Have fun," DiNozzo said sing-songy as he grabbed his backpack and left.

McGee and I shared a look before turning our focus back to our computers. A few minutes later, Gibbs walked in and placed a coffee on both of our desks.

"Thanks," I smiled.

"Thanks, boss," McGee said.

"Don't stay too late," Gibbs reminded. "I still need both of you bright and early tomorrow."

We laughed as Gibbs left. Without saying anything else, McGee and I started going through our security system. About an hour later, I heard McGee sigh as he stood up and started stretching out his back.

"You okay over there?" I asked with a small laugh.

"I forget how tense my shoulders get when I'm coding."

"I keep telling you," I sighed, "when you get focused, you tense your shoulders."

"I know, I know," McGee sighed. I couldn't help but let out a small chuckle when McGee walked back to his desk and sat down with a sigh. "I can't help it," he shrugged. "It's like your scrunch face."

"My what?" I scoffed.

"When you get focused," he pointed out, "you scrunch your lips up to your nose, making this pouty-scrunch face."

I sent him an overly exaggerated scrunchy face before spinning my chair back to my desk. I went back to work but McGee didn't.

"How come we always get stuck with the overtime?"

"Probably because DiNozzo only knows how to find the naughty sites and Gibbs can barely turn his computer on," I chuckled. I smiled when McGee rolled his shoulders, trying to stretch out his back. "How about another coffee? I'm buying as long as you can hold down the fort."

"I think I got it under control," McGee chuckled as he put his hands up in defense. "As long as you bring me one back."

"You got it," I winked as I headed to the elevator.

* * * * *

The conversation was still fresh on my mind as I walked back into the squad room. I numbly walked over to McGee's desk and handed him his coffee.

"Thanks," McGee smiled as he grabbed his coffee from me. I hummed in response, not entirely having found my voice yet.

I felt his eyes on me as I walked back to my desk. I sat down and started pulling up the next level of code. I scanned through it and started patching the holes I found.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"I'm fine," I said, clearing my throat. McGee stood up and walked over to my desk. He leaned against it and waited for me to tell him what was going on, but I didn't.

"Y/L/N," he elongated my last name. He jokingly started poking my face with his finger as he repeated, "Talk to me. Talk to me. Talk to me."

"Will you stop?" I sighed as I swatted his finger away. "I hate when you and DiNozzo poke my face."

"It gets you to open up when you're keeping things from us," McGee chuckled as he finally stopped poking me.

"You make it sound like I'm always keeping things from you guys," I said, leaning back in my chair and folding my arms across my chest.

"Only your feelings," McGee shrugged. "Fess up, Y/L/N. What's going on?"

"When I was getting us coffee," I sighed, slowly opening up, "I got a call from Eric."

"The boyfriend mad you're working late?" He asked gently. His small smile fell when my eyes filled with tears. "Oh," he whispered. "I'm sorry, Y/N."

"He made me choose," I said, my voice breaking.

"Choose?" McGee repeated. "Between what?"

"Work and him."

"Damn," he said under his breath.

"I love my job," I said, my voice still soft. "And I love our team. I've worked hard to get here. I'm proud of what we do. But Eric. . ."

"You don't love him?" McGee asked.

"I don't," I whispered. I put my head in my hands and let the tears fall.

"I'm so sorry, Y/N," McGee said gently as he wrapped his arms around me.

"Was I a complete idiot?"

"Absolutely not," he said instantly. "You deserve someone way better than Eric. You deserve a guy who's proud of the work you do here. A guy who would be okay the few times you've had to stay late. A guy who lets you talk out a rough case."

"A guy who brings me dinner when we're working late?" I asked under my breath. We slowly pulled out of our hug, staring into each other's eyes. My voice was barely audible as I added, "A guy who always has my back?"

"A guy who would rather he got hurt than you did," McGee added. Before either one of us really knew what we were doing, we leaned in and pressed our lips together. Things slowly progressed as our lips moved in sync.

"You just broke up with Eric," McGee said as we both breathed heavily. "You should take some time to get over him, Y/N. Especially before jumping into a new relationship."

"You mean, especially before breaking Gibbs's rule #12?"

"Yeah," McGee chuckled, "before that."

[ariadne-mouse]

Omg if they leave, would Evoroa be the first Ruidian to visit visit Exandria (as opposed to Reiloran Geek Squad IT calls). I would love that for her

[thedeadhead]

SPOILERS FOR WIZARD WITCH AND THE WILD ONE ARC THREE IF NOT CAUGHT UP

————

As a warlock I make my bread and creature butter off of being a third party, so here’s my current analysis on the teams at play based on current information:

Team Wizard:

I was REALLY let down by the wizards for their subterfuge and taking advantage of Ame’s trust of Suvi, but now that we understand more of the character of these other witches, I’m comfortable being pro-wizard again. I will say this music box plan is something I as a professional would never do; since I could not afford to burn a bridge like that (and I don’t have a giant fucking bass pro shop pyramid to protect me and my arcane geek squad). Pour one out for the wizard Straw.

Wait no

Team Witch:

Tell you what gang, I don’t need an aura effect that makes people do saves or go bananas, cause ol’ Mr. Z has this thing called manners. Plus I’m just so darn charming anyways. Indri; fuck your ice castle, I hope the coal spirits unionize and Nief becomes their union rep. My favorite witch is still Ame.

Eursalon;

On the right path, loved the pancake doodle— like a cherry on top to two wildly different stories. Wonder if paintings could cause magical effects if he put his breath into them. Unless that’s not how that works.

Ame:

Get Tof to unionize the other spirits; that’ll slow indri down

Suvi:

I want to be so mad at the wizard Sky but I soooooo get it dude and why she’s doing what she’s doing. But I can hate SteeI really reallllyyy wonder what her best friend Stone would have to say if she saw her give this order to the child she trusted her with.

Fox:

Way to go cool dog

[bypandoramaxum]

journey through the reefs [an atwow series] chp. 4

summary: as a friendship between you and Ao’nung began to flourish, your determination at getting him back to the reefs heightened as a new revelation stood right before you.

[prev] [next]

pairings: ao’nung [25] x fem!human!reader [20]

word count: 4.4k

warnings: depictions of violence, swearing, blood, death, implied execution, human experimentation, Thomas’ sad backstory, Quaritch (again...).

taglist:  @jakesully-sbabygirl @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @eywas-heir @myh3artttt @sweetirilly @fanboyluvr @henhouse-horrors @ghostlyworld @bratsukisworld @yevyyevs @erensbbg​ @zoetrope1997

a/n: due to being away for the holidays, I didn’t managed to get this up earlier as I wished, so apologies for that. but please, if you can, take some time out of your day to read this and I hope you enjoy!~

»»————-　.　————-««

Ao’nung.

You weren’t sure whether the name held any meaning to it, but that didn’t matter at all when it rolled off your tongue so effortlessly, almost as if you knew him your whole life.

He still didn’t talk much with you, responding with either one-word answers, grunts or occasionally a nod or a shake of his head, be it the wariness was still evident, but nonetheless, he didn’t seem fed up with your questions and rambling.

Instead, he found himself listening to you attentively, picking up on your little quirks, such as talking with your hands the more your exuberance started showing, or how your eyes brighten up after earning a small response from him. He appreciated having some company, a friendly and gentle one at that.

While still in the midst of talking his ear off, you paused for a moment before slapping yourself mentally at the fact that he was still injured, and you sat there chattering about God knows what when you could instead treat his wounds while you were still here.

You proceeded to get up from your seated position, about to head towards the two scientists when all of a sudden, you felt a large hand grabbing your wrist in a firm grip. You winced at the sudden manoeuvre, turning your head to Ao’nung’s direction to see him looking at you with what you could only describe as sad puppy eyes that longed for comfort. You couldn’t help but melt at the oddly endearing sight.

“Stay.” Ao’nung pleaded. He didn’t know what came over him to do what he did, but all he knew was that he didn’t want you to leave.

“No worries, alright? I’ll be back, I just need to get something to treat your wounds.” you reassured him calmly, as you brought your other hand to soothe his softly.

“[Y/N], is everything okay in there? I’ve alerted the Recom squad, so they should be here any minute.” Thomas informed, speaking to you through the intercom.

“Oh goodness! Why would you do that? I’m not hurt, he just doesn’t want me to leave.”

“And that’s exactly why I called them? Have you forgotten that we need you alive and well?”

“I’m aware of that, you geek. Haven’t you considered that maybe the poor guy’s just terrified? And here you are, sabotaging my progress of gaining his trust.”

“Okay, okay, fine! I’ll explain everything to the colonel once he and his team get here. Now tell me what you need before I change my mind about having him apprehended.”

“Why don’t you start by getting me a first aid kit so I can get started on these wounds that was inflicted on him?”

Thomas responded by huffing out a sigh and rolling his eyes before heading somewhere to get what you requested.

You cursed under your breath before turning back to face Ao’nung, flashing him a warm smile as you continued soothing the back of his hand.

“It’s going to be okay. Just relax for a little bit, and we’ll get you in good shape again.”

He seemed quite pleased with your words, allowing himself to let go of your hand albeit reluctantly. He couldn’t explain the feeling that he had for you, but he felt safe in your presence despite not being comfortable with sharing too many words with you as of yet. Your sweet and alluring tone of voice, your comforting demeanour, your patience, and your kindness…

…yes.

He could get used to this.

A few moments later, Thomas returned to his station, with the first aid kit in hand. He placed it in the drawer and slid it into the room. You went over to it and picked it up before jogging back to place yourself in front of Ao’nung. You opened up the kit and began prepping to treat his facial wounds first. You used a tweezer to pick up a cotton ball and dipped it in an antiseptic solution. With the tweezer in hand, you got up to your knees to match his seating height and faced him.

“This is going to sting a little, okay? But it’ll help your cuts to heal better.”

Ao’nung eyed the antiseptic cotton ball suspiciously, almost as if the sight of it offended him. The liquid that soaked the cotton ball was a yellowish brown, and the smell that came out of it was piercing, making him crinkle his nose in disgust. You took note of this and let out a small giggle at his expression.

“Doesn’t smell that great, huh? But trust me on this, would you?”

He glanced back at you, looking into your hopeful and promising gaze. He could feel heat blooming into his cheeks and ears, which embarrassed him enough for him to look away shyly. He closed his eyes and gave you a curt nod, signalling you to go for it.

With that, you began your work by starting off with the cuts on his face. He slightly grimaced at the stinging sensation on his cheekbone, but soon relaxed a little as you began tapping the cotton ball on other parts of his face. He still let out small winces here and there as you worked on other areas, but not to the point of interrupting your work.

In the middle of it, he opened his eyes to watch you tend to the injuries on his torso. The pain from earlier had subsided to a near numbness, allowing him to relax at your touch. He watched your expression that was etched in full concentration, making sure to not miss a single bruise or scratch. He admired your meticulousness, which was a quality possessed by his mother and younger sister, the two strongest women in his life.

“Are you… Tsahik?” Ao’nung suddenly uttered, breaking the peaceful silence.

Hearing his voice speaking in a clear sentence, although short, had you looking up at him in surprise. This whole time had been you starting off any interaction between you two. But here he was, making an attempt at getting to know you. You beamed at his words, almost forgetting the question he asked.

“Oh! Ts-Tsahik? No, I just happen to have some basic skill in healing. Always comes in handy when the situation calls for it.” you replied curtly.

You had learned about the roles of a Tsahik from your parents’ video logs and research textbooks. Only a selected number of Na’vi, usually a female one, that had undergone proper and extensive training can be selected to take on the title, otherwise, the rest are just regular healers within the clan. The responsibilities of a Tsahik doesn’t just stop at aiding the injured and ill, they are also known as the interpreter of the divine being the Na’vi called Eywa, who was basically their version of a God, or Goddess. Each clan had one Tsahik, who usually led the clan alongside the Olo’eyktan, or clan leader. The Olo’eyktan and Tsahik, in many instances, are mated to one another, but that wasn’t always the case for every clan.

The tranquillity of the room returned as you continued to finish up the bandaging of his torso and arms. Once you made sure that he was all set and done, you sat back down on the floor and admired your handiwork.

“I’d say I did a pretty good job. What do you think?” you asked as you looked up at him.

Ao’nung pondered for a moment as he looked at the bandages on his body. The feeling of the fabric felt so foreign to him since he wasn’t used to being this covered up. But he supposed that this would help him heal his injuries, he could probably deal with some slight discomfort for a while.

“Thank you, [Y/N].” he replied gratefully.

“It’s my pleasure, Ao’nung.”

Before any more words could be exchanged, the door to the room slid open, revealing Quaritch and his squad behind him. The tension in the atmosphere grew as they marched right inside to where you were sitting. Ao’nung started snarling at the sight of them, but you did your best to calm him by placing a hand on his knee.

“Well, sweetheart, I hope you and the big guy over here are friends now, ‘cause I’m going to need some info, and quick.” The colonel commanded as he dragged you back up on your feet.

Seeing you being treated so roughly made something snapped within Ao’nung, as he instinctively lunged forward in an attempt to defend you from the fake demon Na’vi. Despite the spiked collar choking him and drawing blood, he almost didn’t seem fazed by it as he continued slashing the air, trying his best to stop the colonel’s harsh treatment towards you. You cried out to Ao’nung, hoping he would stop, but it seemed that your cries had fallen on deaf ears.

“Woah! What do we have here? Now, what did you two do while we were gone? He seems a little possessive of you.” Quaritch snickered as he eyed the large Na’vi, who was still snarling at him.

“All I did was talk to him a little and patched up his wounds. Nothing else, sir.” you responded nervously, not too fond of the implication made by the colonel.

“Well, as long as you’ve gathered intel, I don’t care how you did it. Now let’s get you back to your cell.”

As you were being dragged out of the room, Ao’nung continued his rampage, roaring out obscenities towards the colonel and calling out to you. His desperate cries filled your heart with guilt and pain, you turned to him and looked at him with a melancholic gaze.

“Can… Can I just… say a few things to him? Just to reassure him a little.” you pleaded with the colonel.

Quaritch watched the scene before him as he sighed exasperatedly.

“Make it quick.”

Not wanting to anger the colonel any longer, you quickly made your way to Ao’nung, and with that, he managed to tone down his frenzy just a little to not scare you away.

“Ao’nung, don’t worry about me, alright? I’ll be okay. We’re going to be apart for just a little while, I’ll be seeing you again soon. I promise. In the meantime, please don’t get yourself hurt.” you expressed gently to Ao’nung as you patted him on the shoulder.

All he responded with was the same sad puppy look that he gave to you earlier, before looking down and nodding hesitantly. He sat back down onto the cold floor, and watched you leave the room with the fake Na’vis rushing you hastily.

Once you were out of his sight, he pulled his knees towards himself and buried his face in them. The pain around his neck was nothing compared to the pain that he felt in his heart. He didn’t understand why he was even feeling like this for someone he should consider an enemy. A sky demon, or a tawtute, which he referred to people of your kind. But he didn’t believe he had it in him to call you as such. You deserved a title that suited your demeanour and tone of voice, something that he could get used to calling. Perhaps…

Syulang.

Flower.

Yes, that was it.

The perfect name for his newfound friend.

»»————-　.　————-««  

“You useless fucking bitch!”

Another blow struck you down as Z-Dog continued screaming bloody murder and yelling obscenities at you, watching you cough up blood before delivering a kick to your back.

The other squad members just watched on with matching scowls on their faces, equally irritated at the fact that you had been in the same room with their subject for about a few hours and all you had done was patched him up a little and chatted with him about whatever. If it were up to them, they would’ve had you and Ao’nung killed in with just two pulls of the trigger, but unfortunately for them, they received strict orders from Dr. Aragon to make sure that both you and Ao’nung were kept alive, just until they got all the intel they need at least.

While seeing you getting your ass handed to you was a pleasurable sight to the colonel, Quaritch decided that he would rather not have to explain your sudden death, which prompted him to step in between you and his fellow comrade.

“Come on, sir! Just let me at her for a little longer.” Z-Dog exclaimed, clenching her fist tightly.

“As much as I liked to see more of that, we need her alive, Z-Dog. There’s no use when our spy is dead, so back off for now.” Quaritch demanded as he pushed her back away from you.

Z-Dog huffed in vexation before storming out of the holding cell to God knows where, leaving the remaining recoms to deal with you. Quaritch slowly walked to your pathetically curled up form on the floor before squatting down to meet your eyes, almost glaring into your soul.

“Now, sweetheart, I’m not sure whether you think this is some type of game, or whether you’re fucking with us, but whatever it is, you better start getting your shit together or I’ll have you begging for mercy once we’re done with all of this.” the colonel commanded, his tone of voice dark and intimidating. “Do you understand?”

“Yes…. Yes, s-sir…” you uttered weakly, your half-lidded eyes suggesting you were losing your consciousness.

“Let’s get out of here.” Quaritch gathered up his team and left the cell, leaving you alone and cold.

As you felt yourself drifting in and out of consciousness, all beaten and battered up with bruises and aches littering your body, your rage from before slowly but surely started to bloom again. How unreasonable could these hooligans be? How do they expect you to gain any info with just a few hours to work with? While Ao’nung was surely getting more comfortable in your presence, his minimal participation in conversation was still clear to you that he wasn’t interested in sharing anything with you as of yet.

No worries, though. You were going to go by their rules and play their game just like how they wanted you to. However, you made sure that you were going to play it better than them, and hopefully reap the rewards of it towards the end.

During your train of thoughts, you almost failed to notice the door to your cell sliding open as Thomas walked in with a first aid kit in his hand. He looked down at you pitifully as you stared at him with a tired gaze. Kneeling next to you, he had you propped up against the wall as he began cleaning and tending to your wounds. This greatly confused you as he was Dr. Aragon’s right-hand man, causing you to be sceptical.

“I know you don’t trust me, and I don’t expect you to, not after everything of course. Just here to keep you alive and well then I’ll be on my way.” Thomas stated as he patched you up.

“I don’t believe you came all the way over here just to do that. You would’ve sent a medic here instead.” you retorted, chuckling a little.

Thomas just looked at you, slightly stunned before sighing dejectedly as if disappointed he got caught on. At this point, there was no reason to hide anything from you as he was part of why you were here in the first place. He felt remorseful and responsible of you, seeing you brought here against your will at such a young age and having to be put through heinous conditions.

No. He couldn’t bear to see someone else go through the same thing he did.

Enough was enough.

“So far, there had only been two human occupants of this holding cell. You’re unlucky enough to be the second one in here.”

“Oh yeah? Well, who was the first?”

Thomas hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“You’re looking at him.” he said, gesturing to himself.

As you stared at him in astonishment at his confession, you opened your mouth to say something, although you quickly shut yourself up again, unsure of what to say about that.

“Yeah, you’re probably wondering how I ended up on their side, when I was put in the same position as you’re in. I remember being brought here too, as well as having the same respiratory procedure done on me all those years ago. Getting thrown around like I was some ragdoll, and having myself a Na’vi cell mate that I was forced to gain intel from and sell out in the end.”

“You mean… you can breathe Pandoran air too? I thought I was the first success case from that surgery.”

“That was because one of my lungs collapsed during recovery. Since then, I still have to continue wearing a mask. At that time, research for the procedure only started six months before my arrival, which looking back, was not even close to being sufficient. Putting my lungs back together really took a toll on me, both mentally and physically. I almost didn’t make it, but by some miracle, here I am, sitting here and chatting up a storm with you and sharing my life story.”

Thomas gave a small hearty laugh at that, which brought a slight smile to your features. Though, you continued to ponder on what else went on in his life.

“About your Na’vi cell mate, what were they like?”

“Oh, him.”

A downcast look glazed his features, although he still maintained his smile. It almost made you feel bad for even bringing it up.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” you quickly apologised, looking away in embarrassment.

“No, it’s fine, kid. It’s just… I get a little sad when I think about him. But if anything, guilt is definitely up there on what I’m feeling.” he reassured. “His name was Zäpe. The first time I met him was here, he got thrown in a lot later after me. Like your friend, he tried to kill me as soon as he laid eyes on me, kept banging on the glass for hours on end.”

“And how did you respond?”

“I didn’t. I just hid under my bed like the coward that I was.”

The both of you exchanged laughter at that.

“When did you two start becoming friends?” you asked, curious about the dynamic between the two.

“Well, it took a while, really. In the beginning, all he responded was with growls and snarls anytime I would try to interact with him. But as time went on, he soon started showing signs of trust in me. Eventually, we got to a point where he was telling me about life in the reefs and oceans, even sharing stories about his family and friends. It got to a point where I really considered him a brother, almost.”

Recounting all those happy memories made Thomas beamed, but it soon faded away as he recalled how it all ended.

“But of course, all good things had to come to an end. Although, I wish it didn’t end how it did.”

“Why? What happened afterwards?” you nervously questioned, afraid of what you were about to hear.

“He was from the Ta’unui clan. Their lands harbour a very rare but valuable form of unobtanium, the most sought after by the RDA. My role at the time was to get him to reveal where the spirit tree was, as that was where majority of the unobtanium was located. He eventually did tell me where it was, saying he was going to bring me there one day when we escaped.”

Tears were starting to brim around Thomas’ eyes, a choked sob nearly escaping his throat as the horrible memories flooded in.

“I was then forced to make a difficult decision. Either I reveal the location of the Ta’unui spirit tree, or the entire clan perishes. The thought of having an entire clan’s blood on my hands didn’t sit right with me. While I knew Zäpe would ultimately hate me for it, I told the RDA everything. I couldn’t bear the idea of my best friend dying.”

“That must’ve been so rough. I can’t even imagine how Zäpe must’ve felt when he found out.”

“He did more than just find out. He suffered the consequences of it.”

That statement sent shivers down your spine. Just what the hell happened way before you or Ao’nung’s arrival?

“The moment he found out about my betrayal; he was dragged away by a bunch of soldiers into a heavily guarded room. And the next I knew, a single gunshot resonated from it. I never saw him again.” Thomas confessed begrudgingly, his face contorted in shame and guilt. “It was also the day I saw how atrocious the RDA can get. I can never forget the look on his face when he realised, I turned my back on him, despite it being out of my control.”

“How… How did you get out of that mindset? What made you work for the RDA in the end?”

“I tried ending it all after Zäpe’s death. I saw no point in continuing living this hell. While nobody was looking, I stole some toxic substances from the lab and snuck it back into my cell. Just as I was about to down that thing, it slipped from my hand and spilt all over the floor. Since then, any attempts at killing myself was futile as there would always be some form of interruption. I took that as a sign that Zäpe wanted me to keep on living, as if to punish me by making sure I continue to remember my wrongdoings in my day-to-day life. Eventually, due to my role in assisting the RDA, I got recruited as an apprentice for Dr. Aragon and long story short, managed to climb my way to become his second-in-command.”

“But do you actually… truly feel loyal to the RDA? To Dr. Aragon? To Colonel Quaritch?”

The question had led Thomas to something that he wished he never had to face ever again. While the RDA was still one of the reasons why he wasn’t dead yet, at the same time, the idea of pledging loyalty to an organisation that was built on greed and destruction weighed heavily on his heart. No matter how much benefit this line of work brought him, he couldn’t consider this living. They took everything from him, anything that he ever loved and treasured. All he could hope was that they didn’t strip him of his empathy, which he was afraid was soon dwindling with time.

“You can only pretend for so long, kid. That was all I’ve been doing up until this point, swearing my life to this entire operation even though I never truly believed in it once.” Thomas revealed as he looked you deeply in the eyes, showing that he was speaking the truth. “If you want any chance of getting out of this shit hole, you’re going to want my help, and as hard as it it, I’m going to need you to trust me.”

“But wait! What about… Ao’nung? I don’t wish for him to suffer the same fate as Zäpe. If anything, I’m not leaving without him. Wherever I’m going, he’s coming with me.” you exclaimed.

Thomas sighed heavily and looked away as he spoke up again.

“I may have a plan for that. Come see me before your sessions with him.”

»»————-　.　————-««  

Ao’nung was brought back to his cell a little after Thomas had left. Seeing him again felt like a breath of fresh air, and even more so when it didn’t seem like he sustained any new injuries. The injury on his neck was bandaged up neatly as well, you silently thanked whoever took notice of that and had the courage to even patch him up.

The Na’vi shared the same sentiment upon laying eyes on you, rushing up to the glass barrier eagerly to get a good look, but the happy glint he had immediately switched to a frown as he took notice of the bandages you adorned as well. Knowing that you must’ve received similar treatment that he endured made him distressed and sick to his stomach. While the abuse was traumatising, his physicality still allowed him to withstand multiple heavily blows for a good while. But with your small stature, they could’ve hurt you even worse, or perhaps…

…they could wound up killing you.

A few knocks on the glass barrier snapped him out of his thoughts, and looking towards the direction of the sound, he saw you flashing a small smile as you gave him a slight wave, to which he responded by mimicking your actions and returning the gesture.

“How are you doing so far? They didn’t hurt you again, did they?” you asked him, slightly concerned for his wellbeing.

“I’m fine. A male tawtute helped me with my neck.” Ao’nung replied as he pointed to his neck. “He said he helped you, too.”

With that, you mentally thanked Thomas for his help despite him probably fearing the giant Na’vi.

“They hurt you badly, like me. Why?” Ao’nung questioned, his face contorted in confusion and anger.

While you wished you could reveal the reason to why you received similar treatment as him, you decided it would be best to keep this information to yourself for the time being, fearing that once he knew the truth, you would be thrown back further from square one. For now, it was best to avoid any question he had regarding of the RDA’s treatment towards you.

“Don’t worry about me, alright? I’m not important at the moment. The only thing that matters to me right now is getting you back home safely, and preferably in one piece.” you declared confidently. “I can get you out of here, but it can’t be done with your support. It’s important to get on their good side, so do as you’re told, and you may have a chance at leaving. Got it?”

He pondered at your words for a moment as he was debating with himself mentally on what to do. He hated the thought of being pushed around and commanded by a bunch of sky demons who have no place in his home, but at the same time, if a little bit of obedience could earn him even a sliver of freedom, he supposed it couldn’t hurt to do so. Besides, once they let their guards down enough, it could present a perfect opportunity for him to strike.

“Understood, [Y/N].” Ao’nung expressed. “Can you promise me something?”

“Of course! What is it?” you chimed in.

“Once we leave…

…I’ll show you my home.”

»»————-　.　————-««

a/n: and there you go, chapter 4! this actually didn’t take me too long to write up, but I didn’t have access to my laptop for a few days, and couldn’t make my edits. hopefully, I’ll have chapter 5 up real soon, but until then, stay safe, y’all!~

like and reblog if you enjoyed!~

© bypandoramaxum. do not steal, modify, repost or translate any of my work.

[spicysix]

Person A kissing person B in the rain with eddie munson? ❤️

a/n: yeah she's back, the absurd number of italics is here babes. no warnings, all fluff, gn reader, hope you like it ♡

word count: 1.6k

↳ requests are open!

(un)lucky

“Yup, no. Not gonna start,” Eddie growled, punching the steering wheel and letting out a long line of curses. “C’mon, man, seriously? Today? Of ALL days? Today?” he kept asking himself, the van, or God - whoever the fuck was or wasn’t listening.

He rested his hand against the steering wheel, a car passing by him - parked at the side of the road - through a puddle on the pavement, throwing a wave of water onto his door and window. He stood like that for a few minutes, breathing in and breathing out to the rhythm of the storm outside, trying to calm himself.

Sun was setting, he had a terrible day at school - Carver and his gaggle of idiots didn’t leave him alone all fucking morning - and all he wanted was to come home and shred some loud riffs on his Sweetheart, or plan a bloodbath into one of his campaigns.

But noooo, because his old fucking piece of metal of a van had to go and decide to die on the side of the road in the middle of the biggest storm Hawkins had seen so far in the year.

It was the unluckiest day of his life.

There was absolutely nothing he could do, though, no one he could call, and no way he was getting out of the van into that storm, so he just rested back against the cushion of his seat, crossed his arms against his chest and. Waited.

Maybe he dozed off because suddenly he was startled by someone knocking on his window. His neck snapped at how fast he looked to his side, the storm had calmed down into a normal rain, almost a drizzle now. And knocking on his window, hair damp and lip quivering, was you.

You. A band geek, played some kind of percussion instrument and was never seen without your drumsticks, always tapping onto any surface available in your way. Best friends with Hawkins High resident queen Chrissy Cunningham, but had always refused to mingle with the bitches of the cheer squad or the assholes of the basketball team - Eddie actually saw you cursing the daylights out of Jason Carver’s entire family in the middle of the cafeteria after he broke Chrissy’s heart or whatever. A huge fucking nerd, always first to raise your hand to answer a teacher’s question at classes, but was also always sitting on the desk beside Eddie’s all the way back in the classroom in every class you shared. The library’s employee favorite person, and once you left half your books behind and rented some fantasy books for Eddie because he had so many unreturned books already that he wasn’t allowed to borrow more. And he wouldn’t have returned those too if their return hadn’t been an excuse to talk to you.

He was so into you it was painful. He was so into you it was downright embarrassing.

You were still knocking on the window, eyebrows pinched and lips downturned in a grimace, and he finally came back to reality and rolled the glass down.

“The fuck you’re doing there, dude?” you asked and your sarcastic tone was, somehow, like angels singing in his ears.

“Van broke down,” he answered with few words, unlike him and his long monologues, but he always seemed to lose his words around you. “No one to call, Wayne’s already at work, Gareth’s taking his sister somewhere, the other guys don’t drive. There was a storm,” he explained better, looking around you and trying to find your car. Did you have a car? He didn’t even know.

“I know there was a storm, dude, I’m literally dripping,” you retorted (obviously you didn’t have a car, god, Eddie, you’re so stupid), and his eyes widened.

“Jesus, do you wanna come in? You’re gonna catch a cold or something!” he was already opening the door, but you laughed loudly so he stopped his actions and brought his attention back to you.

“I’m already soaked, Ed, not gonna change much.” He fucking hated that nickname, didn’t let anyone call him that. But, from you? It was almost like you were calling him ‘love’. “C’mon, my house is just around the corner, you could call a tow from there. I could borrow my dad’s car and take you home.”

Now you were the one opening the door and stretching your hand to him in an offer. He took it instantly, and you pulled him to the street, cold rain hitting his skin and making him shiver instantly. But he didn’t care, ‘cause his hand was on yours and you were smiling at him.

Fucking Christ, he was a goner.

He closed the van door behind him, and you walked a few steps before releasing his hand. And his mind lingered on those few seconds of touching you, his fingers numb from the softness of your skin, his hands shaking but not from the cold that was taking over his body because of the rain. You looked over your shoulder in his direction, a smirk still on your lips, and he followed you like a dog, your body like a magnet to him, and whatever command you gave he’d accept.

“So, uh… You came from school in the rain?” he asked, just to hear your voice again, jogging a bit to catch up to your pace and walk right beside you.

“Yeah, don’t mind a little wetness.” You winked at him and he almost choked on air. “You’ve been there too long?” you asked back.

“I honestly don’t know, I took a little nap.” He shrugged and you laughed. “You must have a strong immunity if you’re walking around on storms like that.”

“C’mon, dude, I don’t walk around on storms every day,” you snickered, “it was just this special occasion. Plus! If I didn’t walk home, I’d never find you and you’d be there until god knows when.”

“Always a bright side, huh.” He bumped his shoulder into yours and you beamed at him. He hoped the sound of the rain hitting the pavement was loud enough to cover the thumping of his heart. “Bad side is that now my hair’s all frizzy and it’s gonna get knots all over,” he complained, running a hand through his bangs.

You turned left on a street. He followed.

“Who would’ve thought, metalhead and cult leader Eddie Munson, such a vain dude? Worried about his hair.” You were still smiling at him, he knew you were teasing, and he couldn’t stop his own smile from growing wider at every second.

“Hey, it takes effort for it to look so effortlessly good, okay?” He bumped against you again, praying he wasn’t imagining the ting of electricity buzzing through him from the touch.

You stopped abruptly, his breath got caught in his throat, and he went down on a spiral.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, he made a mistake, he was going overboard, he wasn’t respecting your limits, goddammit Eddie why must you be so much, too much, all the time?

You slowly turned your body to face him as his mind went through a billion thoughts per second.

“Yeah, it looks pretty good,” you said, voice lower, a kind of sparkle in your eyes he hadn’t seen before as you seemed to assess something on his hair. Your hand reached up, touched his curls, went further and grasped the hair on his neck. “Real pretty,” you repeated, and his mind went blank.

You were approaching him, your other hand pulling him closer by the hem of his jacket, and he could feel his entire face blushing, his eyes widening, you were so fucking close-

“Is this okay, Ed?” you asked, that fucking nickname he loved only when you said it, the tiniest space between you and him, your breath tingling his mouth, and he nodded fervently.

“Fuck yes,” he answered and you smiled, and he could still feel your smile when your lips finally met his.

His hands reached your face, cupping each side of your jaw, and Jesus H. Christ, your skin was so warm even under all the cold rain that’s been soaking you for so long. And your lips were so warm as they glided over his own, and your fingers were so fucking warm as you scratched his nape. How the fuck were you so warm all over?

And he could die right fucking now and he wouldn’t even notice because he was already in Heaven.

Not that he would go to Heaven when he died, but that’s beside the fucking point-

You were kissing him, tongue now poking at his upper lip and he opened up his mouth to let you in, of fucking course, and you were both shivering and none of you cared because he was heating up from the inside out and you were hugging his waist as his hand got lost in your hair and absolutely nothing could ruin this for him.

A car passed by through a puddle on the pavement, throwing a wave of water on both of you, and you parted from him with a gasp and he still didn’t fucking care, because your hand grasped his and your skin was so warm.

He cackled loudly, head thrown back and mouth wide open, and when you looked at him you had a raised eyebrow and a huge grin on your lips, and he tugged your hand and started walking again.

“Maybe we should do this somewhere dry,” he proposed, and you didn’t seem to mind his assumption that the kissing was going to continue, ‘cause you walked alongside him showing the direction to your house.

“I don’t mind a little wetness, to be honest.” You winked at him again and he laughed again, bumped his shoulder to yours again, you beamed at him again and he could do this forever.

Fuck, it was the luckiest day of his life.

[katietdm-4077]

ATTENTION DUELISTS

I JUST THOUGHT UP A COOL ASS YU-GI-OH AU WITH SPRINKLED IN PRIDESHIPPING, BUCKLE UP FOR THIS RIDE-

I call it...

The Wings of Light AU

So we all know that Yami Yugi intercepted the blast of fire from the Winged Dragon of Ra during Mai's duel with Yami Marik(ima call him Melvin in this post. If you know, you know) to save her and Joey, right?

I got to thinking. Yami is a Pharaoh, and therefore has a tight connection with the Egyptian Gods, even if he can't remember his past. What if Ra, seeing Yami's courage and strength as he shields his friends, recognizes his Pharaoh's selflessness despite being under Melvin's control, and rewards it?

Ra uses the last of the flames in his attack to transfer a portion of his power to Yami(which will store itself in the Puzzle when Yugi is in control). As Yami falls to the ground after protecting his friends, burns mar his back past the burned remnants of his clothes(seriously, how the actual hell did his clothes NOT burn in the anime? WTF kind of material is the jacket made of?).

But what's startling is how the burns are shaped exactly like wings.

Yami is dragged back to Yugi's room so his friends can look after him, and Kaiba, while in awe of Ra's power, has this strange feeling inside him. That something is transpiring that they all cannot see.

Kaiba duels Ishizu in the background(you know the duel) while Yugi's friends tend to Yami, who's burning up with a bad fever as Ra's power tries to settle into his body. He refuses to give Yugi control in order to protect him from the pain, but only hurts himself.

Kaiba returns from his duel, shaken by the visions of his past and feeling split in two, like his past and present selves are trying to coexist at once. He wonders if this is what Yugi deals with, mind flashing back to Yami's collapse, and something unknown compels him to check on Yami. Obviously when he turns up in Yugi's room, everyone gets suspicious, even more so when Kaiba says he was simply checking in.

Joey, of course, demands a more concise answer, and Kaiba admits it; "I came to check on the Pharaoh"

Deadly silence follows. Kaiba has just admitted Yugi and the Pharaoh are two different people. Kaiba of all people is coming around. Kaiba reluctantly admits what happened during his duel with Ishizu, he himself feeling torn apart into two identities, on of past and one of present.

At that moment, the wing-shaped burns on Yami's back start to glow, diverting their attention, and they feel Ra's power filling the room. Melvin also senses Ra's energy and comes skulking out of the shadows to see the weakened Pharaoh. He sees an opportunity to take out the Pharaoh, but Kaiba, ever alert, detects Melvin and steps forward to defend Yami(He doesn't understand why he's suddenly so protective, but fuck it. If Yami dies, the Geek Squad will NEVER let it go and Kaiba does not want to deal with that nightmare, tyvm.), demanding Melvin leave at once.

Melvin simply knocks Kaiba aside with the power of the Millennium Rod, and Kaiba strikes the wall, more visions appearing(having been triggered by the Rod's power), and he cries out in pain.

His cry somehow reaches Yami, and something inside the unconscious Pharaoh snaps and he's suddenly awake and hellbent on dealing wrath to whoever just hurt Kaiba. There's a bright light, and suddenly Yami is tackling Melvin to the ground, huge golden wings having sprouted from his back, identical to the Winged Dragon of Ra's wings. The room feels warm like the sun, and Yami exudes a calming, yet powerful energy as he demands Melvin leave at once or suffer severe punishment.

Melvin flees the scene, not knowing why the Pharaoh now has Ra's power when he still holds the God Card, but he's determined to find out why.

Meanwhile, Yami calms down, and realizes the pain of his burns are gone, and turns to check his back, and sees the wings that he's sprouted. He realizes it's Ra's power, and while he's sure anyone would be excited and honored to be bestowed such a gift, he's also afraid. What did this mean for Yugi? Would Yugi be able to handle Ra's power?(Luckily, they quickly discover the wings and Ra's power are only present when Yami Yugi is in control, as Ra recognized Yugi is still too inexperienced with magic to handle such a gift of power yet.)

Kaiba, who is regaining his composure, is completely floored by Yami's wings, finding himself...drawn to the Pharaoh in some way. Not liking having feelings, Kaiba hastily thanks the Pharaoh, before fleeing himself, clearly shaken. Joey of course calls Kaiba ungrateful, but Tea shakes her head and says Kaiba looked scared. Yami feels weird, hoping it's not him Kaiba is afraid of.

THAT'S AS FAR AS I'VE GOTTEN WITH IT BUT IM DEFINITELY GONNA WORK ON WRITING A FANFIC ABOUT THIS ONE AFTER I FINISH THE ONE I'M ALREADY WORKING ON.

(also if anyone wants to make art of Yami with Ra's wings I HIGHLY encourage it because that's just a cool concept all on it's own)