#FISH EXPERT HERE. HELLO?

[puppet-purgatory]

CANDIRU. IT’S CALLED A CANDIRU.

[dekariosclan]

Hello my friend!

So we all know how amazing and wonderful Gale is, how kind, good, caring and funny he is. He is, in so many ways, a perfect man.

He is, however, only human. I have the tendency to idealise him, and forget this.

My question to you is - what do you think his flaws are? Both generally and as a husband/life partner.

💜

Ohhh I love this question so much ❤️ I am a hopeless romantic, and I adore Gale’s charming, sweet, loving adorkableness! He is truly amazing—but I can confirm NOBODY (and no relationship) is ever 100% perfect.

The thing about a long-term committed relationship is that, while your partner’s charms make the relationship wonderful, their flaws are what make it REAL. And that’s just as important.

So let’s talk about our charming Gale’s less-than-charming aspects, shall we?

[warning: this went from a short & concise answer to a rambling dissertation, please prepare yourself accordingly! Also I know this ask/answer was supposed to make Gale a little less perfect and help lessen our obsession, but uhhhh, I seem to have veered hard in the opposite direction 😂]

———

First off: The Pomposity™️ (I’m not 100% certain that’s even a real word but you know what I mean right) So we all know that by the end of the game, (human) Gale has come to accept himself as he is, and decided to henceforth be known as ‘Gale Dekarios, a most brilliant wizard of intentionally limited reknown.’ He’s come a lonnng way in cutting down his ego, but let’s be honest: some of it will never truly go away. And that’s fair, because he IS brilliant, and he IS talented, and he IS extremely passionate about magic.

…but it’s tough to remember all that and give him a pass when that usually-oh-so-adorable-finger-in-the-air is now aimed at YOU, as he declares that ‘after all, he IS an expert on [*insert topic here*] because he WAS awarded [*insert scholarly award here*] from the one and only [*insert impressive Blackstaff Academy professor here.*]’

And all you wanted was for your opinion to be taken into consideration regarding the wine selection at dinner.

———

Second: The Disarray / Messiness. Gale has a brilliant mind, one that he applies full throttle to any and all situations: concentration on magic spells, lance board strategy, calculations, poring over ancient tomes, and even figuring out how to cook something edible out of rotting fish heads and some moldy cheese (no veggies, though!)

The problem is, while his mind is brilliant and he will keep it laser-focused on his chosen subject at that current moment, from a day-to-day perspective he is straight-up scatter brained with all the things he has his hands in. We can see this in his vision of his tower: BOOKS. BOOKS EVERYWHERE. Some stacked in piles, some shoved onto shelves, some left open on the page he was reading when he got distracted, etc.

We also get confirmation of this from Tara in the epilogue:

Tara: The way he leaves his potions in absolute disarray—I know for certain he wasn’t raised in a barn, but you’d never know it.

It’s one thing to have books & potions & scrolls scattered throughout his library and sitting room—you have no complaints against that, you HAVE moved in with/married a wizard, after all—but to find them in the kitchen, wine cellar, even occasionally stuffed into your own wardrobe? It’s a bit much.

TLDR: Our rizzard is a hot mess.

———

Which leads us into perhaps his biggest flaw: The Fussiness.

So about all those books everywhere, on everything, all at once? You didn’t try and ARRANGE them or organize them for him, did you?…You did?! Oh, gods! No, no, he had an ORDER to them, you see, and he knew that the exact spell he needed could be found in the third book down in the stack next to the piano, page 453, why did you ever decide to move it?

Well, you explain as patiently as you can, it was in the way, and frankly you could tell from the dust on it that he hadn’t touched it in several yea—

BY ELMINSTER’S ELBOW, did you ALPHABETIZE his illusion scrolls??! Oh, for the love of—!

You get the picture.

There would undoubtedly be moments when you found yourself fully exasperated by this man and his exacting, fussy nature.

———

All that being said: true fights would be rare.

The occasional huffy remark or quickly-forgotten gripe would occur now and then as in any relationship, but a real, anger-filled argument? With heightened emotions and hurt feelings? Rare indeed.

The only thing bigger than Gale’s brain is his heart. And while his mind is dedicated to a great many things as mentioned above (magic studies, lance board, etc) his heart is 100% dedicated TO YOU, and you alone. So on those rare occasions after a fight has occurred, it does not take long for him to come down from the heat of the moment and realize, oh, hells, he’s been an ass, hasn’t he?

He knows you love him. His anxiety about not being enough for you has long since disappeared, and he’s calmed his worries that you would ever leave him, but still…there’s always a lingering concern that maybe you’ll grow distant from him after an argument.

If you are in the wrong and he is certain of it, he will be stiffly polite until you offer an apology, and then he will be taking you in his arms, kissing you passionately and telling you ‘all is forgiven my love, let’s never speak of this again’ (and trying hard to hide his relief that you apologized first, because he was not sure how long he would be able to hold out and stay mad at you.)

If HE is in the wrong, though? And you are truly mad at him? And he knows he really stuck his foot in it? Oh, boy.

You’ll be treated to an apology so eloquent it would make poets weep, and it will come packaged with hand-holding, pouting, pleading, and Gale getting down on his (bad) knees.

And if you’re still mad at him after that?

Well, then you’ll have to complete a gauntlet harder than anything Shar could ever throw at you. You’ll have to try and stay angry, explain your anger, AND explain to Gale why he won’t be easily forgiven, all while looking directly at this:

And this:

AND THIS:

…

…needless to say you will be failing, and hard.

Not that you mind, because the make-up sex will be absolutely phenomenal. Gale doesn’t just want to repair your loving bond after you’ve had an argument, he wants to improve it. Which requires much study and experimentation, of course.

And for awhile afterwards, all will be bliss again.

…until you find a pile of scrolls shoved under your side of the bed, and some open books scattered across your dresser, and you decide it time to do some organizing. ———

So yes, my friend. Gale definitely does have some flaws, and at some point they WOULD drive you crazy in any sort of relationship you have with him. Gale is wonderful, Gale is loving, but Gale isn’t perfect!!

…but when he takes you in his arms after you’ve made up, and his mouth is hungrily devouring yours, and he’s murmuring words of adoration against your skin as he trails his kisses down your neck, chest, hips—

Nevermind! I take it all back. He’s perfect. 😂

[moonydustx]

Hello Moonydustx. I hope you're well! I really like your stories, your way of writing is very pleasant to read. I loved what you wrote for Kid and Killer, I love those two men! In fact, I'm totally in love with Kid Pirates. 💖

I was wondering if you could write something with Kid 🧲 . I so need to fluff with him. I know he likes to show off that he's cruel and ruthless, but I'm SURE this bad boy is also a very big fluffy guy capable of a lot of love. He named his boat after his first love - this boy is a great sentimentalist, absolutely!

Here's my idea: reader is the newest recruit to Victoria Punk. Kid is suspicious at first, but discovers that she's a true virtuoso at the piano and that her voice is the most beautiful he's ever heard 🎹🎶. (We all know that Kid loves music.) See where I'm going with this, Moonydustx 😏😉? Kid will slowly fall in love with the new recruit, but won't understand what's happening to her at first, and it'll drive him crazy. Reader is not insensitive to the captain's charm but is very intimidated even though she respects him a lot.

If this inspires you, I'd love a lot of fluff, cute stuff. Slightly spicy, if you like. We like it spicy, let's be honest but right now I need cuddles.I hope this is understandable, English is not my first language. Thanks if you've read this far and I'll be grateful for life if you accept my challenge. 💚🥰

let me start with: I'VE BEEN DYING TO BE DYING TO WRITE THIS.

YES YES AND YES you are absolutely right, I really have this vision of Kid being a sweetheart.

I wish I had more time to write more and more about this story, I think it would have the potential to be something bigger, you know, something with more chapters perhaps? But I wrote more about the cute part than the spicy part in this one, I hope you like it anyway

Old ghosts

Eustass Kid x F! Reader

wanings: mention of Kid's missing arm, phantom pains, very brief mention of smut (nothing explicit). Regarding the medical and musical parts mentioned: I'm not an expert in any of them, I apologize if I make mistakes.

Your light humming was still stuck in Kid's mind. How your dress fell down your body and your legs flailed against the counter as you hummed a song about Roger's old promise. That was the first sight of you he had.

The second was you standing a few meters away from him, waiting for an answer, while Killer acted in your place.

"She could be a good crewmate." Killer pointed out, both of them staring at your shrunken form, even though you were standing. The bloody arms. "She knows how to fight, knows how to defend herself and can still be good company for our ears."

"Hm…" a growl escaped Kid's reddened lips. "What do you know how to do?"

"Whatever you need." Your voice was firm, even if it was low. "I just need a roof over my head."

"And that blood?" He approached, taking one of your hands and bringing it up to eye level with him. "It looks fresh."

"One of the richest men in town tried to have their way with me." you pointed out, still firm in your words. "I had to kill him. Now, I know they will hunt me if I stay here."

"Right." Kid walked away, turning to Killer. "Find her a task and also a place for her to sleep."

With one last look in your direction, Kid walked away and left you in Killer's responsibilities for the day. In the following days, you barely saw Kid and when you did, he didn't have the friendliest of expressions. The man was intimidating, as were all the rumors about him.

You expected that it would take time to adapt to pirate life, that that world would be immensely cruel to your existence. But there were happy days, days when you would get together to chat and drink, days when you would spend hours fishing.

Little by little, the captain seemed to attract your attention more. He was still a thick shell to dig through, but there was a certain lovable side to him. Infamous jokes, an unshakable ego, a affection for his crewmates that wasn't noticeable to outsiders. In your eyes, being in Kid's presence was inviting, even if he would never pay attention to a new girl.

Kid was reluctant to let other members join out of nowhere, he liked to understand who would step on his ship, what their motivations were. But every justification Killer gave about you joining the crew was ignored. Not ignored, but pushed away somewhere in Kid's mind. The only thing he saw was you a little while ago, humming in a bar. Almost hypnotizing him.

In the first few days, he chose to remain watching you. It wasn't possible that the heavens had sent you there just to please his vision on dark days, you must have something to hide. As the days went by, he realized you didn't.

As the days went by, Kid felt even more mesmerized, seeing you happily doing your tasks in the distance, hearing your voice hum throughout his ship. On one of these nights, when everyone was drinking, he chose to leave early. Lying in his bed, your voice from afar guided him into a deep sleep, like he hadn't had in a long time.

You gradually became a comfort to his eyes and ears, however, for him to get closer would be like holding a delicate rose amidst so much metal debris. Something so sweet, so delicate seemed beyond his reach.

The room you shared was dark in the dead of night and your whispers and turbulent awakenings didn't seem to bother the others present. Another night, another nightmare.

With the idea of ​​refreshing your mind with some water, you didn't expect to find the crew captain, leaning on the edge of the table, his amputated arm stuck in a bucket of ice.

"What are you doing up at this hour?" Kid screamed as soon as he saw your presence in the kitchen.

"I just came to get some water." you explained, reaching for a glass and filling it. You could feel his gaze burning towards you. "Everything is fine?"

"Sure." he grunted, but soon his expression changed to something more serene. It was just the two of you, there was no reason for him to leave it out. "Since I lost this arm, sometimes I have some strange pains. It's like it's still there you know, but it's not."

"Phantom pains." you pointed out, moving a little closer to him. "They say there are many pirates and soldiers who suffer from this."

"Are they saying something about the cure too?"

"I do not think so." You smiled, even if discouraged. "But there are some methods that can help. I mean, just time really helps you deal with it, but some things can distract your mind."

"And can you help me?" his words came out almost automatically, preventing him from stopping them.

"I believe so. I don't have much experience in this, but I have an idea of ​​something that might help." still hesitant, you approached him and took out the ice bucket, placing it aside.

The touch of your hand on his amputated limb made him almost recoil, but your hand was gentle, delicate and in this way you dried the remaining water on his skin.

"Do you mind if we go to my room?" He asked and saw you nod.

The two of you walked in silence to his quarters and with only the moon illuminating the room, it was difficult for you to get caught up on the details.

"Lie down" your voice came out as a whisper and Kid promptly answered. You took the sheet spread there and covered the end of his amputated arm. "Don't look there."

It worked for you, somehow maybe it would work for him. You could feel his eyes practically burning towards you, but you still hadn't found the courage to look back at him. The feeling inside you was strange, different, and at the same time it felt good.

"Close your eyes." you asked and he just grunted, unwilling to follow your little request. "Captain…"

"Aren't you going to do anything?" seeing you agree with him, Kid closed his eyes.

The first thing he felt was your fingers running along his arm, which hadn't been injured. A light, almost imperceptible touch. Sometimes you allowed your fingers to barely touch him and sometimes you let your nails trace a firmer path. You allowed them to trace their way to the back of his neck and then back to his fingertips, intertwining and releasing them. In order to replace the awkward silence between the two of you, you began to hum a calm song, which made up the atmosphere along with the beats of the sea against the ship.

At first, Kid felt tense and still had traces of pain. But little by little the pain in the member that no longer existed seemed to disappear, being replaced by the small goosebumps that you caused on his skin. What he used to try to open his eyes and analyze you became an arduous task. Feeling your skin against his, Kid fell asleep, leaving that uncomfortable pain in the past.

After that day, you felt different. Seeing him trust you to the point of sleeping in your presence made you feel somehow be seen, even if the thought of him not wanting anything to do with you because you were a newbie still haunted you.

One of the afternoons when the ship was docked, you returned to the Victoria Punk only to find a huge piano there.

"What is that?" you let your finger run across the keys. "Is so beautiful!"

"A thanks." Kid appeared behind you, watching you sit on the bench in front of the instrument. "You helped me the other day and I remembered I saw you playing one of these at the bar, I thought you might like it."

"Serious?" you immediately jumped off the bench and hugged Kid, who was surprised and barely had time to respond to the gesture. "I loved it! Emma, ​​come see this!"

You shouted for other crewmates, who soon gathered and listened to you explain how it worked and even teach how they could play a simple song. Moving away a little, Kid watched until his first mate appeared.

"Do you still regret me convincing you to let her stay?" Killer asked.

"At no point did I say I regretted it." Kid pointed out, feeling judged by his friend.

"I know that look, Kid." Killer commented and only saw Kid staring back at him, trying to understand what he was saying. "I haven't seen that look on you in a while, but I'm glad to see it."

"What's with that look?" he asked cynically, seeing Killer start to walk away.

"Last time I saw you looking at someone like that, we chose the name of this ship."

Kid tried to push away thoughts about you after hearing that. But it was intoxicating, inevitable. It was as if your presence and voice were all he was looking for at that moment.

It didn't take many nights for the same discomfort to torment him again, just as it had done a few days ago. His footsteps almost sank the kitchen that morning as he decided whether to ask for your help or not.

“Hi,” you caught his attention, appearing like a mirage. "If you walk any further, you could sink the ship."

"That's not my intention." he pointed out, mustering up some courage. "The pain is back a-and…"

"Do you need my help?" you asked and giving up, he just nodded.

Again, the two of you walked in silence to his room and the whole process was repeated, he lay down, you hid the amputated limb.

"How did you know this would work?" he asked before your fingers even found his skin.

"A lucky guess." you replied, noticing his attentive gaze in your direction. "How can I explain? Well, I have some past problems too, especially when I'm surrounded by too many people at once. It's like suddenly everything becomes too much at once." His eyes followed your every movement, trying to get to know you even more. "That's how I discovered music. Every time I feel like I'm on the edge of that precipice, I use it to get my mind off it."

"As a distraction?"

"Exactly, as a distraction. Take me to a good place." You explained and saw him nod. "I believe that maybe touching and feeling what is still here will make you forget a little about what is not, make you go to a good place."

"It makes sense." he limited himself to saying.

"Let's start?"

Unlike what happened last time, your eyes met Kid's and this time his eyes seemed intent on you. Your hands traced gentle lines on his arm, trying to remove that pain that bothered him so much. Even looking at you, you could notice that Kid wasn't there, not mentally. He seemed focused on a thought that stunned him.

"A berri for what you're thinking." you only heard a nasal laugh come out of him.

"Are my thoughts worth that little?" he asked and you immediately denied it, a shy glow on your face.

Even though it made butterflies in your stomach just thinking about it, you couldn't deny how much you liked it when his eyes were directed at you.

"I can tell you have something on your mind." your hands moved away from him, resting in your lap. "Did I say too much? Do you want me to get out of here?"

"No… You said that helping me with this pain would be like a distraction, right? Take me to a good place" you agreed and Kid continued. "Can I propose something?"

"Of course, I want to be able to help you with that."

You watched Kid lean on his arm and sit down, just a few inches away. Analyzing your every expression, his hand touched your face and unlike every other time you had imagined, the touch was gentle. Even his calloused and trembling hand was still like a piece of the finest silk sliding across your face.

It was inevitable not to lean on his touch, not wanting to feel Kid's hand against your skin even more and it was just that sign he was waiting for.

His lips touched yours lightly, waiting for you to give in to his desire - he had no idea how much of that desire was yours too. What was just a seal of lips soon became an intimate dispute between the space in your mouth, tongues tangled as you involuntarily felt your body lean even more towards Kid.

His fingers were tangled in your hair, slowly leaving strand by strand behind, sliding down your back and pressing firmly against your waist. You knew that Kid was strong, you had been there long enough to see him fight enemies, but a surprised gasp left your lips when you saw that without any effort and with just one arm he managed to tag you - basically guide you - to get to you on his lap.

The kiss became even more heated and you could feel that in addition to the heat, the red paint on his lips had disappeared, probably mixed with your lips.

"Captain…" your low voice whispered, in a struggle to use your hands to push him away. You didn't want to, but the shred of rationality in you knew it was necessary. "Captain, I'm sorry…"

"No, no. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that." He moved away just enough to look at your face, your legs were still on either side of his hips, his intimacy was hard against yours, which was certainly soaked. Rationality, too early for that. You tried to hold on to that thought. "I'm sorry."

"It is alright." your cheeks burned at the way he looked at you. "I liked it, I really liked it. I just didn't want to go that far."

"Noted." he looked at you like a cute puppy that had been lost. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure." your hesitant voice stated and you saw him lay down again, this time, he pulled you and placed you on top of the source of his pain, hiding the arm that no longer existed. "Captain?"

"Just stay here for a while, will you?" He asked, hesitant to hear you deny it. "I mean, if you don't want to, I won't get mad. It's just… I like your presence. I like how you're always helping someone here, or how your eyes light up when someone's telling you some of the things we've been up to. by the sea. I like the way you touch me and damn, your voice just like an angel." he whispered the last part, like it was too much for him. "Just stay here, a little longer."

"Of course captain." you whispered back and reached up, placing a light kiss on his cheek.

Nestling even more against him, your hand that used to caress his arm, got caught in his hair, in a delicate cafuné, while you whispered a song in his ear. Little by little, Kid fell asleep trapped in your arms and that night, you wouldn't insist on leaving his embrace.

[fanaticsnail]

Honey Glazed

Chef Zeff. I love him, and I won't apologize for my adoration.

Warnings: hypothetical discussions regarding cannibalism, drinking.

Word Count: 2,500

(Coming from real life conversations and experiences in both my and chef-husband's hospitality careers; you'd be surprised at how much the thought comes up regularly in conversation. Yes, can confirm: chef's flirt like this)

It had been a particularly difficult shift; balancing your managerial roles like an expert plate spinner in a circus.

On one plate, you had a wait staff member needing consolation in the ‘cool room’ to manage their mental breakdown over a particularly rude patron dining in the circular wooden floor. On another, you had to talk down Patty from storming out onto the floor not only in defence of the aforementioned wait staff member, but due to the fact they sent their food back to the kitchen with the proclamation that their meat was undercooked and “bloody”.

Round and round you balanced the dynamic of pure professionalism with engaging with the variety of patrons, serving the dishes presented by the team of chefs, and managing the rapport with the staff with a cheery disposition under the ever watchful eyes of the braid-bearded, head chef Zeff. He would often gaze longingly at you, admiring how truly blessed he was to have you as his queen of the front of house, his warrior of waitressing and his confidant in comradery. And to think, he nearly didn’t hire you.

-------

From the amount of profiles and resume’s he had received from his request for a front of house manager, your resume stuck out like a gem incrusted tiara amongst a pile of dulled rocks. Ex-convicts, reformed pirates, seasoned managers and members of his own staff putting their names forward for the position; all eclipsed by your resume.

You were young, younger than he would ever consider thrusting into the role but older than his blonde apprentice. Kind, gracious and innocent were the three words that flew into the mind of the braided ex-pirate captain.

“Found someone yet?” the young Sanji asked him with his own frown rising to his face.

“Not yet, little eggplant,” he grouchily informed him, placing your resume back to the side of the table and away from any of the other candidate profiles.

“Well, hello,” Sanji said as he took the sheet within his hands, “this is the one, chef.”

Zeff again shook his head, flittering through the tattooed and scarred front of house manager resumes within his hands, muttering a simple: “no.”

“Why not?” the teen Sanji asked him, his eyes wide as he thrust the paper back into Zeff’s pile, “she’s beautiful.”

“That’s exactly why not, kid,” Zeff said again, pushing the resume away from him and back onto the table; “she’s not meant for here. Too pretty, too young,” Sanji shook his head as Zeff continued; “she’d be chewed up and spat out before she’d be able to manage the guests, let alone the staff.”

Sanji let out a small angry growl and fished your resume back and thrust it once more into Zeff’s arms; “humour me. Wait staff are meant to be pretty, it’s the chefs that are hardened criminals. If she’s applying to work on Baratie, it shows she has the balls to run the front of house looking the way she does.”

Zeff locked his eyes with his young apprentice, finally clasping the paper once more in his fingertips and looking it over in consideration. Sanji did have a keen eye for quality, travelling over from his appreciation of food to his appreciation of other areas of his interests.

You were perfect. From your vast experience to the way your uniform clung to you. He just needed to ensure your personality would match up to your role; and with one den-den-mushi call, he was completely smitten with you and offered you a full-time job immediately.

Flirty, fiery, charismatic and professional; exactly everything he didn’t know he wanted flittered in with the qualities he needed in his front of house counterpart. You were the one he wanted.

-------

You sighed, throwing your head backwards to relieve the tension gathered after waving off your closing floor staff for the evening. You leant your hips against the lit benchtop of the pass; the kitchen island closest to the door where chefs and wait staff would meet their hands in service.

“You gonna hang around for knock offs, sweets?” Zeff asked you from his place leaning against the frame of his office door with his arms crossed over his chest. You lulled your head to rest itself on your shoulder and smiled with your eyes barely parted.

“Yes, Chef,” you offered him an exhausted, two-fingered salute as you drew enough energy and willpower to push yourself forward from the pass. Zeff began his stride over to meet with you, his hand brushing with the small of your back to escort you through the entrance of the kitchen and up towards the fish-mouth lounge. You shot him another half-smile in thanks for his attention, a twinkle forming back within his own gaze in appreciation for your gratuity.

He remained close as he approached the bar with Patty falling his grasp of several bottles and sloppily attempting to pour beer from the taps into the wrong kind of vessels. A groan fell from your lips and your back dropped, defeated at the sight that lay before you.

“Get out of there, Patty,” you ordered him with a smile, making your way behind the bar and away from Zeff’s hold on your body, “stick to the food. I’ll get you lot your knock offs.”

“Don’t forget about yourself, honey,” Zeff ordered you, his uneven step making his way over to the till to begin his inventory duties to complete the close of the night. You nodded at him before beginning to assemble a variety of drinks while overhearing the chefs discussing something amongst one another in hushed tones; brows furrowed, lips passionately fleeing words in whispers.

The three major instigators in conversation were Sanji, his eyes widening and hands gesturing to different points of his torso before trailing them down towards his stomach; Patty who was shaking his head with a frown and gesturing to his shoulder blades while hissing out between his lips; and Carne who was just watching the conversation falling between them standing concerned and confused.

You approached the chefs with their knock offs: a red wine for Sanji, a flagon of ale for Carne and a dry whiskey for Patty while keeping another red wine to the side for your head chef to retrieve once he had done inventory.

“There you are, lads,” you uttered with a sigh as you held the drinks forward, your left hand reaching behind your neck as you relieved it of the tension with circular motions beneath the ministrations of your fingertips, “knock offs: done.”

“What are we drinking tonight, love?” Sanji arched his brow upward and pursed his lips suggestively. You leant forward against the bar in response, your elbows and palms lying flat as you brought your face closer to his.

“You’re drinking a cabernet sauvignon-,” you whispered an inch away from his lips, tilting your chin upwards; a pink blush immediately rising to rest on Sanji’s cheeks, “-and I’m,” you pulled away from his face with a small giggle, “having a black Russian.”

You fished your fingertips within the short glass, pulling out the stem of the bright red maraschino cherry and plopping the syrupy fruit on your tongue; wrapping your lips around it and breaking the stem away with a ‘pop’. The three chefs in front of you held their gaze, completely transfixed by your suggestive movements.

This was your favourite part about working at Baratie. The rapport and flirtatious engagements between the front of house and the back of house was the driving force to keep you motivated as you navigated through the shift. After chewing and swallowing the amoretto-forward fruit, your warm laugh fell contagious amongst the four men; Zeff shaking his head off while continuing jotting down his varied notes.

“And all of you-,” you placed the stem of the cherry into the compost bin located below the wooden surface, “-were talking about cooking with human again, weren’t you?”

An apprehensive blush rose to the three chefs in front of you, ashamed of their unbridled conversation.

“Look,” you began, shaking your head, “there’s too much variety in your body shapes and muscle density. You’ve got to focus on just the one of you or you’re never going to make cohesive progress in this completely hypothetical situation.”

“Oh?” Sanji began, raising his glass away from his lips while taking his bottom lip between his teeth; giddy about your willingness to join in the conversation, “so who should we choose to hyper-fixate our cooking practices on? I’m all ears, love.”

You laughed at him, a shrug adorning your shoulders and mouth down-turning in thought, “what about me?”

The chefs all down-turned their mouths in thought, eyes falling to your body as you adorned a slightly more dressed-down version of your uniform. You laughed, held out your arms and gave a small turn in response to their ponderance.

“Will I suffice?” you arched your brow up as you made your rotation back towards the three chefs once more.

“You’ll do nicely,” Carne nodded, turning his body atop the stool to bring his body to face Sanji next to him and Patty behind him, “thoughts, gentleman?”

“Smoked on an open fire,” Patty nodded, gesturing to your body. You chuckled, raising the cool liquid to your lips and taking a small drink as you rested your back against the wall of the bar.

“Smoked?” Sanji questioned him with an elevated tone, “what, and ruin the natural sweetness of her body and unable to crisp up her beautiful skin? Look at her! Whole-smoked?”

“Oh, and what would you suggest; Sanji?” Carne spoke up, prompting the blonde to first turn to him and frown before bringing his attention back towards your body.

He raked his eyes from your ankles, dragging his gaze slowly up your thighs and settling on your stomach. His tongue flicked out to dampen his lower lip in thought as he drew his sights to your breasts before falling to your arms. You giggled at his attention, almost regretting your decision to open your body up to extreme examination.

“I’d take my time,” Sanji began, gesturing to a variety of points on your body, “cut the different portions and begin reductions at the same time as preparing your body to not only be smoked,” he grimaced at Patty before turning his eyes back towards you, “but also honey glazed.”

The four of you all chuckled at the conversation falling between you. Zeff, finally having completed his inventory, made his way back towards his key staff members and collected the red wine glass from the counter besides you.

“Care to weigh in, chef?” you asked him, eyes half-lidded and your signature smile falling to your lips, “if you had my body to enjoy,” you gestured down to your torso and legs, “how would you prepare me for consumption?”

Having no prior context to the conversation falling between the four of you, Zeff found himself get slightly flustered under your brazen disregard for discussing cannibalising your body. You widened your eyes and shook your hand outwards defensively with a laugh.

“Hypothetically speaking, chef,” you breathily laughed in defence of your prior suggestion, “we were talking about how you chefs would go about preparing human. Thought I’d volunteer my flank, ribs, legs, shank and rump,” you playfully slapped your left ass cheek with a giggle, “for continuity’s purposes.”

Zeff hummed thoughtfully, raising his glass to his lips with another glimmer of adoration behind his eyes at how truly accustomed you were to engaging flirtatiously with himself and his staff. He sampled the vintage over his palate, rolling the bitter liquid over his tongue and whistling it through his lips to oxidise the wine to savour the flavour. In response, you rose your black Russian back up to your lips and take the final gulp of the liquid and lay the glass upturned against the bar sink.

“Go on, chef,” you encouraged him, doing another small twirl in front of him, “lay it on me. I truly don’t mind.”

Sanji smirked as he witnessed the flirtations engaging between you and Zeff. He was well aware of his favouritism of you, potentially harbouring more than simple affection for you as his manager. You were a part of the crew, a major part of running smooth operations; Sanji would think Zeff daft to not harbour a semblance of infatuation with you.

“There’s a lot I could do with your body,” Zeff smirked with his left brow arched upwards, causing a small tingle to rise up in anticipation of your next words. The head chef stepped forward, placing his glass down to the side and reaching with his right hand forward to claim your left.

He moved his bearded jaw towards your arms, slowly raking it upwards while inspecting your flesh; uttering: “braised in red wine, spice and liquid smoke,” his lips travelled up to your shoulder, halting at your arched neck, “roasted with a mirepoix and pesto butter.”

Your jaw hung slack with a small smile falling to your lips as your eyes watched your chef remove himself from your body and twirl you away from him; tracing his fingers down your spine, “I’d either crack these separately,” he trailed his hands over your ribcage and leant in towards your ear, “or I’d keep them as a solid rack and tenderise them with a firm massage with coarse sea-salt to bring out your natural sweetness.”

A blush crept up towards your cheeks as you felt his arm come around your body to bring itself against your thigh and clutch it firmly in his wide hands; “but this,” he steadily shivered your flesh under his strong grasp, “this would be my absolute favourite. I’d stud it with cloves, cross-hatch and cure it,” his breath tingled against your neck as his lips traced the shell of your ear, “and I’d glaze it with a sauce as sweet as you are, honey.”

An unintentional gasp fled from your lips at his words. You admit to yourself, you enjoy the odd flirt from time to time with the staff; but this particular interaction with your boss felt unlike any flirtation you had engaged with him prior. Your whole body tingled in surprise and shock at how Zeff so intimately spoke to you, even though it was words so completely unhinged as how to cook you appropriately.

Zeff chuckled and withdrew his hand from your thigh and made his way back towards the wooden bar; reopening the cabernet sauvignon bottle and filling his crystal glass once more before offering the neck to Sanji’s empty one.

“Anything to add, boys?” Zeff asked his team from his spot behind the bar, you remaining stunned before shaking off your stupefied state and bringing yourself beside Zeff and beginning to make your second black Russian to continue to rid your body from the rise of heat.

“Yeah,” Sanji added, raising his glass to his lips, “you’d probably fuck it all up with oregano.”

[winxfairyliveshere]

josko is apparently an experimenting cook, which makes sense cause he used to work with his dad in the fish market, and he loves to game and always has snacks beside him. he seems like such a wholesome guy, but deep down i’m there’s a whole different josko with his significant other

wowww actually can we elaboate the last part!? wdym by a whole different? im curious 🤭🤠

After this message i thought what can i write about cook josko,dig into youtube for what can i find.At the end i found a yt video with eng subs which made me so happy. There are so many videos about him but no subs :( I mixed the infos i got into here.

Thank you anon for the idea 💞

As i got closer to the apartment building, i turned off music. The valet was there, i smiled at him and gathered my stuff.

"Hello Miss Y/S/N."

"Hello, thank you so much. Have a nice day."

I walked to the door, personnels were in ground floor interacting with residents. I fastly passed everyone and started to wait for the elevator. The excitement made my legs move. I couldn't stand where i am, walking back and front. Nearly two weeks ago Josko called me and said "I need to take a video for my new partnership. It will be in my house and i want you in it too. To be honest it will be a good memory in the future, like showing it to the grandkids." Those words made butterflies fly in my wholeee body. Even though we are together for two years and engaged for four months, we still have that connection between us, still feel the same way when i saw him for the first time in Split. I was in there for a trip, taking photos of the glamouros Diocletianus Palace and i heard a voice "I can take your photos if you want, the sunlight makes everything beautiful in this hours. You seem you don't need much but." He acted like a real photographer back then, making me change poses and other things which made me feel odd. I felt like i was under of a giant spotlight.

"Thanks, so polite of you." I swiped amongst photos, they were really good. Golden hour making my face shine, freckles that so obvious you can count them.

"I told you." said Josko while smiling. We had a short chit-chat over there. He had a short beard comparing to now, his curls were resting on his forehead so charmingly. He told me there will be a festive in city centre tonight, giving me hints he will be there. I got the message and said to myself "Why not? He is cute." Also do i need to mention his eyes? In that golden hour? This was our beginning. That sun is still up, never set, warms me constantly, making me feel free, enjoying myself. I trust myself more, I know i can do everything because my life won't be in dark, it will be bright always. Ding, doors are open to hall.

I turned my back to the mirror before stepping out of the elevator, fixed my hair and clothes. "Agh, i paid hundreds for this concealer and still looks cakey!"

"Hi!" My eyes got bigger when i saw my fiancee. "Did you download a tracker app in my phone or something?" He started walk towards me, streching his hands out. As soon as i got near him, i jumped on his arms. "So what is the answer?" I picked my phone, held it closer to his brown eyes. "Where is it?"

"I opened the door for taking the trash out. Sound of the elevator stopped me. And yeah, my guts are right, you are here." He hugged me, placed a warm kiss in my neck covered with my hair.

"Aren't you have guests in your house? You forgot to throw your trash out, leaving them alone and hugging me in the hall. What a bad host you are."

We went inside together, "technologhy people" were in living room and kitchen. They were nearly done with setting up cameras, microphones, lights. I stepped over cables a few times. A lady with a brush roll and Josko were sitting under a light. Isn't it just a youtube video? About Josko's daily life? Why all this stuff? Anyway, i am not a expert on this, i should control my face and my inner voice.

✨

"Don't get fooled by him. He only went fishing one time in his life."

"Do i have to fish regularly because my dad is fisher man? What can i do? That is not suitable for me." he expressed himself with a fun voice and gestures. "I went once and it was enough for me."

"He likes eating them not catching them."

"What about cooking? Is he a bad one or?" question was for me.

"Well, i can not say that. When he wants, he cooks quite good. He goes for healhty recipes like umm, cheesecakes or brownies--"

"Yes cheesecakes, you know she never cooked one." I rolled my eyes and stepped in front of him, blocking him with my body. But he poked out his head over my shoulder. "Cheesecakes are challenging."

"But i should give her credit. She cooks my favorite food burek very well."

"It is a Croatian dish i guess?"

"Yes. It's one of my faves also, he likes it with cheese, i like it with potato."

"And she makes them sooo delicious." he wrapped his arms around my shoulders. I caressed them. Long beard of him was digging into my skin.

"Do you prefer your mom's bureks or her's?

He immediately released his arms, turned his back to sink. Everyone, including me, started to laugh loudly. While i was laughing, i put my hand on his back unconsciously.

Josko turned to camera and scratched his beard, said "I think we are done here, let's go to gym!"

"Can you please give us a answer?"

He only moved his lips, no sound. "No."

✨

I hope you guys liked the fic. Feel free to send me your ideas, it can be about Ruben too, or your thoughts about them! We can discuss 💖 Thank you so much! Have a nice day or night or morning 😁

[not-so-allegiant-general]

Gingerpilotweek2024

Day 4

loyalty, family, connection to animals

Poe breathed out slowly. Millicent jumped from Hux's knees to his.

"Oh... Hello, princess." He forced a smile petting her " I thought you hate me."

"She is trained." Poe blinked and looked at Hux.

"Trained for what."

Hux cleared his throat.

"For... Hm... She can tell if someone is in distress and help him to calm down." Poe stared at Hux for a minute and then looked down at Millicent.

"Well, thanks, princess. I guess I am a bit nervous. " He sighed, taking a deep breath.

"Just hug the cat, Dameron." Poe picked up Millicent slowly and hugged her, scratching behind her ears. "We don't have to do this."

"I want to and we are already here..."

"Is it about me?"

"No. Maybe... A bit, not only. It's about me... I haven't seen him for a long time and I... I guess I just don't want to disappoint him... Again. I don't know. It's just... Difficult." Hux hummed "What?"

"Nothing."

"Come on. You want to say something."

"Many things, but I won't.

"Armitage."

"No."

"Oh come on... Hux..."

"If something goes wrong... I am somewhat of an expert in... Dealing with fathers."

Poe gasped positively horrified and punched him in the arm.

"Hux no!"

"You wanted to hear what I have to say... "Hux raised his hands defensively. " I didn't want to say it!"

"Yeah, I guess that's on me. That's off the table... We are not killing my... You know what? Anyone. You... We are not killing anyone. Understood?."

"Yessir." Hux sent him a wry smile and Poe shook his head.

"Fuck." He rubbed his face. He felt a hand on his arm. Hux sat down next to him. Poe leaned on him, petting Millicent. "I just don't know how to fix it. We didn't talk for so many years and I... you know what it's like.... "

"Dameron."

"What?"

"I have no idea. "

"Right. Shit, sorry... I just really want it to go well and I am scared that he will react like Finn."

"Then it is about me. I can stay here."

"No. I love you. If he can't accept it then I am not interested in being in touch"

"He is your family."

"You are my family, Armitage. " Hux looked at him surprised "What? It's true." Poe smiled.

"It's not. We are not related." Poe chuckled.

"But we are in a relationship, right? I love you, Hux. You are my home and my family. No matter what others will tell."

"Even your father?"

"Yeah. Even him. I am a responsible adult, so he doesn't have much to say... I guess he never really had much to say. I didn't let him." He sighed.

"Responsible is not a word I would use to describe you." Poe chuckled.

"No? What would you use?"

Hux snorted.

"Stop fishing for compliments, Dameron."

"Come on. Indulge me." Hux sighed.

"I... Well... Caring, honest, reckless, persistent, brave, daring, handsome..." Poe smiled hugging Millicent tighter.

"Did you hear that? He thinks I am brave and hot." Hux snorted " Thank you, Hux. I just want to let you know that you are even braver and hotter than me"

"I am most certainly not."

"Of course you are. I am going to repeat it until you will believe me. Even if it takes all my life"

Hux smiled faintly.

"I will take that as a promise."

"As you should."

[montammil]

PLZ PLZ PLZ just one drabble where marshall and the other two have Stockholm and Lawrence takes them for like a 'family day' 😌 ofc ignore this if you want<333

Sorry this is short, even though I'm inexperienced in more wholesome writings (if you ignore the Stockholm syndrome LOL) I still love writing them! Thank you for the request :D

TW: Stockholm syndrome, parental whumper, infantilization (treating and referring to adults as children)

...

It took a lot of convincing from Marshall and Sadie both to talk Lawrence into taking them to the aquarium today. Lawrence never liked taking them outside their home, for several reasons, but Sadie was an expert at giving him puppy dog eyes and begging enough for whatever they wanted.

Lawrence wasn't too worried about them getting recognized--it had been a few years since their disappearances, after all. He just hated the idea of risking their safety. The outside world was a cruel place.

"Remember to always stick together," Lawrence told them as soon as they pulled into a parking space. It wasn't too crowded, thankfully, but they still had to park quite far from the entrance. "If I see any of you wandering off, we're going straight back home."

Marshall smiled larger than he had in months. "I hope they have penguins!"

"You'll find out when we get there," Lawrence chuckled, opening his car door.

Lawrence led the way inside with Sadie clutching onto his left arm and Marshall clinging to his right side. Nathan lagged behind, walking a bit slower than the others.

Despite preferring being in the comfort of their home, even Nathan felt relieved they could finally do something fun together (that wasn't the same daily routine).

A change in environment, no matter how small or uneventful, was refreshing for the three victims. They've spent enough time trapped within that house.

"Hello," the receptionist greeted. "How many?"

"Four," Lawrence replied, offering a polite smile. He pulled out his wallet and began fishing out enough cash to pay. The four were given bright green wristbands, which they secured on each of their wrists before proceeding inside.

Sadie looked around in awe, grasping Lawrence's arm again. "What are you most excited to see, Dad?"

His heart warmed whenever his kids referred to him as that. "Hmm... dolphins, probably. Though I'd love to see an octopus too. How about you, kiddo?"

"I'm happy with anything! It's all so cool," Sadie marveled, taking it all in.

Marshall still clung onto Lawrence tightly, but with less enthusiasm than before. He seemed more nervous now. "There's so many people..."

There really wasn't, but it was definitely more people than the poor thing was used to nowadays. They could have gone on a weekday to lessen the crowd, but the aquarium would be practically filled with screaming kids on field trips.

Nathan scoffed. "You're the one who was demanding we go here."

"Nate," Lawrence scolded, then turned his attention back on Marshall. "If you get too overwhelmed, we can always take breaks or leave early, okay, baby?" His gaze fell on Nathan. "That goes for all of us. This is supposed to be a good experience--I don't want anyone getting stressed out."

"Look! Piranhas," Sadie called, pointing to an exhibit at the entrance of the tunnel.

Lawrence kissed the top of Marshall's head before taking a few steps forward towards it. He gestured for Nathan to come closer too. He wanted them all to stay in sight.

As much as he trusted the kids wouldn't run off (or try to report him to staff), old habits died hard and he couldn't help but feel slightly paranoid in public. It was rare for his anxiety to affect him--only when his children were involved would he ever worry.

Marshall cringed. "Why do they look like that?"

"I think they're cool," Nathan muttered.

Sadie pointed to the sign. "It says they're actually not as bloodthirsty as movies portray them as. I guess I'm not surprised." She made a face. "They still freak me out a little though." She rushed on ahead, ignoring the exasperated sigh Lawrence gave. "Ooh, there's seahorses over here! That one's pregnant, I think." She gestured to the obvious one. "He's so cute."

Lawrence chuckled. "Seahorses are probably one of my favorite animals. It's nice seeing one in person."

Nathan shrugged. "I think they're overrated."

"There's more exhibits this way!" Sadie exclaimed, running down the hall.

"No running," Lawrence reminded her. "We aren't in a rush."

It was both funny and exhausting to him how different they all were; Sadie was running ahead, Marshall was clinging onto him, and Nathan could barely keep up in favor of trudging everywhere.

Not that he didn't like it. After so long treating them like children, they were finally acting like it.

"The penguins are here!" Sadie called in response. Marshall gasped and ran ahead too. Nathan kept at the same pace, unaffected. Penguins must not have been very high on his list.

Only once when Lawrence had the two in their line of sight, he slowed down to Nathan's pace. "Are you okay, sweetie?"

"Yeah," Nathan muttered, keeping his eyes focused on the floor. He no longer got angry and embarrassed at the terms of endearment.

It took time for the kids to adjust, but now even Nathan would say 'love you' back to him from time to time. Only if he was feeling particularly loving towards Lawrence, however--which was pretty rare. Regardless, Lawrence was proud of him either way.

Lawrence glanced back at the other two for a brief moment, just to make sure they were still there. "Is there anything in particular you want to do after this? We'll probably only be here an hour longer at most."

Nathan played with the zipper on his jacket. "You'll say no."

"Maybe," he admitted. "But I'd still like to hear it." Despite being so controlling of them, he really did love hearing his kids talk.

"It's stupid, but I was wondering if we could stop by an arcade. There's one across town. It's alright if you don't wanna. I don't even care anymore, honestly." But it was easy to tell it was a lie. His cheeks were red despite the nonchalant act. "You probably hate games, anyways."

Lawrence snorted. "Nate, I'm not ancient. When I was a teen, I practically lived in the arcade."

"That was thousands of years ago," Nathan smirked. He peered over to see Marshall pressed up against the glass of the exhibit, watching the penguins play around while Sadie read the facts about them displayed nearby.

It was like they completely forgot the other two were even there. Maybe that was better. He secretly loved their company, but it was rare he got one on one time with his dad.

Lawrence pinched his cheeks. "Watch yourself, brat," he teased, "we can go but don't make me change my mind."

Nathan swatted his hands away playfully, letting a giggle escape his mouth. He tried to keep quiet, so Marshall and Sadie wouldn't overhear, but it didn't matter much anyways. They weren't paying attention to him or Lawrence at the moment. "I'm excited to introduce you to Street Fighter."

"Oh, please, you weren't even alive when that game released," Lawrence rolled his eyes fondly. "C'mon, let's go catch up with the others." The pair began walking over to join Marshall and Sadie who were already moving on to the next exhibit. He stopped behind them. "Ooh, electric eels."

Sadie shook her head. "Those are actually moray eels. Moray eels have cuter faces, electric eels have flat, weird-looking heads."

"Like you," Nathan snickered. She shoved him in a playful retort.

"There's the Nemo's," Marshall rushed towards the clown fish and leaned into the glass.

"'Nemo's?'" Lawrence cooed at how adorable he was.

Marshall glared at him in a mock pout. "You know what I mean! If you didn't make me watch that movie a million times, I'm sure I would've called them clown fish." He stood normally again and wrapped his arms around Lawrence, burying his face into his chest. "Anyway, I'm ready to go home. I'm so tired already." This was the first time in a while that he walked this far.

He was met with a kiss on top of his head. "You were such a trooper today. Thank you. Nate and I are gonna go to the arcade after this, but I can drop you off at home." He glanced at Sadie. "Do you want to come to the arcade with us or stay home?"

"You can drop me off at home too, I'm, also kind of tired. Can we check out the gift shop before we leave?" she asked.

Lawrence grinned. "I think it's obvious by now I spoil you all."

[absolutebl]

Hi, ABL!

Could you give me some show recommendations? I'm going into surgery next week and will be bedridden for a couple of weeks after that. Basically, I'll have a lot of time on my hands. What better way than to fill that time with QLs?

I like the dark Japanese stuff (Pornographer, The Shortest Distance is Round, Dangerous Drugs of Sex, etc.), high heat (Bed Friend, KinnPorsche, etc.), suspense/mystery/thriller (Manner of Death, 4 Minutes, Not Me etc.), and all the angst (I loved the angst in Unknown).

I mostly watch shows from Thailand, Japan, and Taiwan because I like their vibes (unless it's dead fish kissing, lol), but I'm open to try other countries as well.

Your expert guidance would be much appreciated.

Have an amazing day!

Best of luck with the surgery. But also, how fun to have some time to watch things!

Dark BL

(Like the Novelest et al)

High Heat BL

(Like KinnPorsche)

BL with Suspense & Mystery Elements

(Like Manner of Death)

High Angst BL

(Like Unknown)

Just for S&G here's:

Just to be on the safe side, some I'm gonna rec right away?

The Sign (heat + all the sub genres you coudl want)

Laws of Attraction (mystery, drama, ridiculousness)

The On1y One (ANGST!)

[gaysparkler]

And yet I quickly might arrive / Where my extended soul is fixt

Early romance moment... Read on AO3 Title from Andrew Marvell's "The Definition of Love"

There was a small, shy knock at Pénthos’ door—and had they been doing anything other than staring mindlessly at the fish swimming on the other side of their window, they would have missed it. They didn’t doubt the magical nature of the Fade, but was their room somehow submerged underwater, or was this an illusion that would end and begin again, in a loop?

“Come in,” they replied eventually, not leaving their contemplation, hoping to catch the loop. Or—prove that the room was underwater. Somehow.

“Hello, neighbour,” Emmrich’s voice rang behind them. Pénthos couldn’t help but to turn around at the sound of it, a smile already on their lips.

“Emmrich!”

Pénthos stood from their couch to meet him halfway, though the nervous flutters of early romance kept them from reaching for him, so they left a small distance between them. Face flushed, they turned their attention back to the large window.

“You’re the Fade expert,” they said, bumping into Emmrich’s shoulder as they walked back to the couch. “Do you think we’re actually underwater?”

They sat down next to each other, legs almost touching. Emmrich brushed imaginary dust from his thighs as he settled; Pénthos crossed theirs.

“I would not discredit it entirely—the Fade works in mysterious ways, to be cliché about it. I suppose we’d need to test it, somehow. However,” he chuckled, “I would not recommend it.”

They smiled. “And that’s your professional opinion?”

“As professional as it will get.” Then it was Emmrich’s turn to lean on them playfully. “Which possibility would you prefer?”

Pénthos blinked up at him. “Preference doesn’t seem very scientific.”

“Not everything has to be. The Lighthouse is a marvellously impossible place. Science need not apply. Maybe this room was even shaped by what lies in your heart.”

Emmrich’s smile was warm and kind. Eager. Pénthos ducked their head forward and bit their bottom lip as they felt their heart skip a beat.

“I think…I’d like to believe we’re truly underwater. And…the light reminds me of the green flames of the Necropolis,” Pénthos said quietly. “I hadn’t been back until we met.”

Emmrich leaned ever closer to them. “Do you miss it?”

“You said you envied me for my travels, but…Emmrich, I miss it terribly. There’s something…comforting, simple, about a Watcher’s purpose. When I left the Necropolis, I felt like I arrived in a world that didn’t understand the very being that I was.”

Pénthos would never be able to get a number of things out of their mind from their travels, but what haunted them was the way so many people looked at his facial tattoos and pointed ears, the constant and literal demonization of spirits, the misunderstanding of their gender expression. The world outside the Necropolis felt so…hostile and determined to reject what it did not understand.

Emmrich sought out their hand; Pénthos laced their fingers together.

“I cannot imagine what that must be like,” he said, compassion written across his features. Pénthos gave him a small, defeated smile, and a shrug of their shoulders. After a moment, they looked back to him through the curtain of their hair partially hiding their face, spying the fond look in his eyes. They straightened up and cleared their throat.

“You’ve only seen the window—can I give you a tour? You were kind enough to show me around the lab.”

He softly gasped, “I would love to!”

Their hands still linked, Pénthos walked Emmrich around the room and pointed out their scant personal items strewn here and there: the Ever-Turning Orb, their final project made during their magical training, still perfectly tuned though it had been created over a decade ago, the (probably counterfeit) elven scroll a peddler rewarded them with after saving his caravan—when Emmrich asked about provenance, what was written across the parchment, Pénthos had no answer, which only served to confirm its false nature, but they were attached to it at this point—the mirror Varric had given them what felt like ages ago, and—

Pénthos did not doubt that Emmrich was interested in everything they had been showing him, but the urn of Baron von Markham did get more of a reaction than anything else.

“The leader of the undead rebellion?” he exclaimed. “You have his urn?”

They feigned nonchalance, though they knew how rare it was for remains to ever make it out of Nevarra. Kind of like Watchers, they figured.

“I suppose Myrna thought it would be a good reminder. To not act so…rashly.”

“Oh, I do believe the reaction was disproportionate. What disorganization this uprising would have caused! And to think of the paperwork…”

They couldn’t help but laugh—of course that’s what Emmrich would be worried about; not the destruction of the undead, not the possibility of corpses invading Nevarra, but paperwork. Ever the pragmatic.

“An ungodly amount, to be sure. I hesitate to even imagine,” Pénthos chuckled, before concluding the tour with a sweeping motion of their free arm: “And here we are! You’ve seen it all.”

“You don’t have a bed?”

They indicated at the green couch in front of the meditation altar while Emmrich settled his hands on their waist.

“This is enough,” they replied. Not like they got a lot of sleep lately, anyway.

“Well, it’s not quite—”

“Emmrich.” Pénthos tapped against Emmrich’s chest, right under his skull collar pin. “The only thing I’ve seen in your laboratory is a slab for bodies.”

Emmrich made the face characteristic of every time Pénthos had flirted with him: raised eyebrows, a slight widening of the eyes—though the teasing smile was new since their talk by the balcony.

“You make a compelling argument.”

Pénthos shuffled closer until they were squarely in Emmrich’s arm, a proper embrace. Partly because they relinquished that closeness, and partly to hide the blush creeping on their face due to the praise.

“Thank you for visiting,” they said, still hidden. “I was—getting in my head. No good usually comes from that.”

Emmrich hummed, “I rather like your thoughts, my dear.”

He leaned back slightly to grasp Pénthos’ chin, his gold bangles clinking delicately with his movement, and angled their head up so their eyes would meet. They could feel their cheeks still warm and their heart fluttering, but did not dare fight Emmrich’s gentle direction, not when they saw the smitten smile on his face.

“You’ll come back?” they asked, hopeful.

“As long as you’ll have me,” Emmrich replied, and Pénthos dived right back in the embrace.

[jollyyoshi]

Remarkable Cats!

Hello there everyone and here are some of my drawings of some cats! The first one you see is Kelley and the second one is Smokey! Do you see how the smoke is coming out of Smokey’s tail?

This is really my first successful drawing of an animal. I drew a sea bass before but fish have easy anatomy lol. Cats are absolutely lovely creatures! This really isn’t something I put a ton of effort in. It’s just a sketch practice to expand my art abilities! I encourage y’all to draw cats if you’ve never done it before! There would definitely be a stark difference between a seasoned cat drawing expert and my artwork.

Kelley is noticeably a little stiff and almost lifeless but that’s because Kelley is actually a stuffed animal. I would say Kelley looks more lively in real life. I was too lazy to transform Kelley into a more realistic cat. I failed.

[traineecryptid]

NPSS Weibo Q&A (20240831) Part 8

This is a Q&A session held on Weibo. People will tag their questions with the hashtag #南派三叔藏海花在线答疑# (#NPSS Zang Hai Hua Online Q&A#) and NPSS will look through the tag to pick some to answer. The event started at 1500 hours on 2024 August 31st.

Folder with screenshots and big compilation google doc is here. Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here. Part 3 is here. Part 4 is here. Part 5 is here. Part 6 is here. Part 7 is here.

20240902

1233

Why do people say that Tianshou is angsty? #Web Drama Zang Hai Hua# #NPSS explains Tianshou# [Video] 

1508

Q: I want to know if there are two forces of Tianshou, both good and bad sides respectively: Gate guarding Tianshou (good) and Lu God's Tianshou (bad). 

A: You're a little smart.

1509

Q: Shu, if little Zhang Qiling was in a tomb one second and transmigrated into his Yucun self the next second with his feet in the same foot bath as Wu Xie’s, what would his first sentence be?

A: A demon!

1510

Q: I will watch Zang Hai Hua for you… Don’t stop answering, okay…

A: I’m still persevering.

1511

Q: A-Bing, did you know that Zang Hai Hua will stop updating for 3 days? Do you still want your Heat Index or not! (T/N: Heat Index is the ranking/ trending-ness of a drama.)

A: I’m not the boss. It’s not my decision to make!

1537

Q: Hello, Xu-laoshi. Since you said that you won’t be writing “Yucun Biji” anymore (If there’s going to be 9 more Yucun Biji published, then you don’t have to read this post because Yucun Biji is my favorite out of the entire series), can I beg you for an Altay Biji? I wish to see the Iron Triangle’s nomadic life: Menyouping riding a motorcycle to Ürümqi to buy stuff (could also go from a summer ranch to some village). Wu Xie would be in charge of raising cats and dogs and chickens and goats and cows. Pangzi would be in charge of steaming lamb and barbecuing lamb chop. When they don’t want to herd the animals anymore, they can plant sunflowers. Wu Xie can use his architectural talents and build underground houses and learn a few Kazakh words…  

A: I’ve been to Altay. The life there is like the original series and not Yucun.

1540

Q: Laoshi, Sir, Genius Writer, do you know how amazing the Flowery Night you wrote is? How did you do it? Are you Team Experience or Team Imagination? Has a beautiful god descended in the middle of the night and kissed the keyboard you wrote Flowery Night on?

A: Those who understand Flowery Night are experts.

1553 Q: I just took a nap and Shu got online. With the drama updates on hold for three days, will you chat with us for three days?

A: On and off, I guess. I’m deathly busy. I want to cry.

1554

Q: Sanshu, Sanshu, what is the one thing that Xie Yuchen and Hei Xiazi did that angered the other the most? Please tell me.

A: That would be enough for ten books.

1858

Q: Would there be one day where the Iron Triangle gets poisoned after eating some unknown mushrooms?

A: It would if Xiaoge isn’t around.

1858

Q: Shu, would there be updates for Queen’s Banquet? Approximately when would the updates start? Wu Xie is about to go moldy being stuck in that hole.

A: Soon. I need to pick a good desk.

1900

Q: Sanshu, Sanshu, does Wu Xie have any children appropriate de-stressing methods? The kind that can be broadcasted.

A: Standing in the rain?

20240903

0509

Q: The cat didn’t survive but if the cat did survive, would Xiaohua keep it? Or would he give it to Xiazi to raise?

A: Xiaohua wouldn’t interfere with the cat’s karma.

0510

Q: Shu, I really went to Louwailou to eat their West Lake Vinegar Fish during 817. The taste was unforgettable… The restaurant was full of Daomis. Do you have anything you would like to say to the Daomis who have been violently beaten up by the Vinegar Fish?

A: I’ve heard that every fish that was made into a Vinegar Fish has died in vain?

1259

Q: No updates for three days, you could say that this is a version of Three Days in Silence.

A: You sure know how to meme…

and here's part two if today's double update! we've caught up to 3rd September now! hooray! and this is 120 posts (less than 120 questions)... theres... an amount to go... but! whittling! making progress! yay!

[jopetkasi]

Hello, friends!

My sincere apologies for the lack of posts lately – work has been non-stop. For those of us in logistics, the period from October to December is all hands on deck. We’re not just making the usual single parcel deliveries; we're moving crates of merchandise around the clock.

This time, I found myself behind the wheel of one of our delivery vans, making my rounds around Manila to deliver goods to various stores. It’s been an exhausting routine, working from sunrise to sundown with barely four hours of sleep in between.

But hey, I’m not complaining—just sharing the reality. I’m still incredibly grateful that we have a business that keeps running, putting food on the table, and employing people.

A special shout-out to my cousin Anton, who saw how tired I was and treated me to a nice lunch at a restaurant in a mall in Manila. He owns a shop there, and when he found out I was out delivering goods, he insisted on inviting me for a meal.

On a lighter note, not all of my time has been spent on labor. I finally got a break when Chris invited me sa Alabang Town Center for dinner and a movie – Wicked to be exact. But I’ll admit, I was so exhausted that I ended up dozing off halfway through the movie, only to be woken up as it ended

Speaking of Chris, he already introduced me to his family, and I felt pretty welcomed—well, mostly. His mom, though, was a bit… interesting. After gently caressing my cheeks, she looked me up and down and called me "ya puy," which is Chinese for "fat." Now, I’m no expert, but I’m pretty sure that’s not the usual greeting.

I tried to stay cool and told her it was actually a compliment, because you know, chubby cheeks = prosperity. But deep down, I was mentally adding “discreet insult” to my list of things to Google later.

But hey, we’re even now. She does Botox, so her face is about as expressive as a brick wall. We both have our “issues” to work on. 😅

and since we are already discussing physical traits, I asked Chris if he finds me attractive - I mean, compared with his ex-partners, I am mediocre, basic. but hey, it felt worth asking….

Me: "Do you find me attractive?"

Chris: "Babe, did you skip your medications again?"

Me: "Nope, just fishing for compliments. sige na!"

Chris: "Would I be here if I didn’t think you were special?"

Me: "Cool, so I'm panget."

Chris: "I didn’t say that! I love your eyes, your cheeks, and the way you smile."

Me: "Mmm, consolation prize. Thank you"

Chris: "Alright, your turn. What do you like about me, physically?"

Me: "you are dumb with a big dick"

[onestevetogo]

The Hobbit: An Abridged Journey

Frodo- What are you doing, weird uncle?

Bilbo- Weird uncle things.

Frodo- I’m out.

Bilbo- Where are you going?

Frodo- Why? Are you writing a book?

Bilbo- Yes.

Earlier

Bilbo- *Smoking weed*

Gandalf- I’ve found you in your natural hobbitat.

Bilbo- Wat.

Gandalf- It is decided.

Bilbo- Mmmm fish.

Dwalin- I don’t like you.

Bilbo- Hwa?

Dwalin- Gimme some fish.

Balin- Your cheese stinks.

Bilbo- Whothewhat?!

Fili- I’m a background character!

Kili- I have an elf fetish!

Bilbo- …Wat.

Bofur- I’m a jolly boy!

Bombur- I have a serious unaddressed eating disorder!

Gloin- My son is a main character!

Other dwarves- We’re here for the quota!

Gandalf- :D

Dwarves - Bilbo is a wimp with good food.

Bilbo- A band of foreign home invaders just ate all my food!

Gandalf- You’re being really rude to my friends, Bilbo.

Thorin- I want the thing.

Gandalf- All we need is an expendab- I mean, “expert” burglar to steal the thing. This is our most reasonable course of action.

Bilbo- Nothing reasonable has happened in the last four hours.

Bilbo- *Wakes up*

Bilbo-…

Bilbo- Baggins.exe has stopped working.

Bilbo- Took.exe initialized.

Bilbo- *Sprints fast enough to outrun a group of mounted riders*

Not orcs- *Howling like orcs*

Bilbo- Oh no! Orcs!

Fili and Kili- They’re gonna getcha!

Thorin- Dumbasses, that’s not orcs.

Balín- btw Thorin killed Azog.

Bilbo- Ah! My king!

Thorin- Shove it, wimp.

Not orcs- Haha! We were orcs the whole time!

Radagast- Poison! Spiders! Nature has neither of these things!

Spiders- Hello new friend! We just moved here and-

Radagast- Foul creatures!

Spiders- Wow, rude.

Gandalf- Something ate this farmer.

Thorin- Good thing I’m not a farmer.

Gandalf. -_-

Fili and Kili- We lost the ponies.

Bilbo- How do you lose ponies? Where did you leave them?

Fili and Kili- By some trolls.

Bilbo. -_-

Trolls- Ponies!

Bilbo- Expendabexpert burglar on the job.

Troll- Hey look! A people!

Bilbo- I’m an Expendabexpert burglarhobbit!

Dwarves- Leave our Expendabexpert burglarhobbit alone!

Trolls- No.

Dwarves- Drat!

Troll- I have no idea how to actually rotisserie meat!

Troll- I eat clothing!

Troll- I like to sit on my pancakes!

(You’re my friend if you get that reference)

Bilbo- They have worms!

Troll- Yew wot???

Troll- Oh gross, worms! Oh well, back to snot soup.

Gandalf- PAIN!

Thorin- Where’d you go?

Gandalf- Spent the night with my good friend Old Toby. Let’s get some swords.

Bilbo- These swords are way too small for the trolls.

Balín- You think they used them as swords?

Bilbo- : |

Bilbo- :((

Gandalf- This one’s my favorite!

Radagast- Beard Daddy!

Gandalf- What’s the shizzle my wizzle.

Radagast- Spiders!

Gandalf- Oh fizzle!

Wargs- *Warg sounds*

Gandalf- Orcs are on the hizzle!

Radagast- I’ll outrun them! At least until I come down from that primo weed you gave me.

Orcs- It’s dwarf season!

Wabbits- What’s up, doc?

Orcs- It’s wabbit season!

Dwarves- *Scurrying sounds*

Dwalin- We got away!

Kili- I can fix that.

Gandalf- I found a hole!

Elrond- Welcome to Rivendell.

Bilbo- Civilization!

Bombur- Food!

Kili-Elf booty!

Gandalf- Read this.

Elrond- It says you’re in trouble.

Galadriel- Why hello, Beard Daddy.

Gandalf- :D

Saruman- My oeuld friend.

Gandalf- :,D

Saruman- You’re a pothead and Rads is a shroomhead.

Gandalf- I’m a pothead with friends. Anyway here’s a knife.

Elrond- Don’t like that knife.

Saruman- Back up, wtf did you just say to m-

Galadriel- Thorin is Thorout!

Gandalf- Thorry.

Dwarves- The hills are alive with the sound of violence!

Hills- *Comitting mountaincide*

Mountain- *Dies*

Dwarves- We’re alive!

Bilbo- I’m alive!

Thorin- You’re a wimp and I don’t like you.

Bilbo- :(

Goblins- Free dwarves!

Goblin king- Before we kill you, I will sing you a song.

Balín- Could you skip to the part where you kill us?

Bilbo- I found a hole.

Gollum- Goblinses!

Goblinses- *Dies*

Bilbo- Hey look, Jewelry!

Ring- What the what?

Gollum- Bagginses!

Bilbo- If you want to eat me, you must answer my riddles three.

Gollum- I lost my precious!

Bilbo- This precious?

Gollum- I lost my Bagginses!

Bilbo- *Sneak skill increased*

Thorin- I told the hobbit he shouldn’t be here and he left! >:(

Bilbo- Who’s the wimp now?

Azog- Still you.

Gandalf- PAIN!

Azog- VADOK!

Everyone- Egad!

Thorin- *Flashbacks*

Azog- *Flashes*

Thorin- My back!

Bilbo- If you want to get through me, you must answer my-

Azog- Die.

Eagles- *C*****g*

Azog- :O

Dwarves- We’re alive!

Bilbo- We’re alive!

Thorin- We’re best friends now! Let the internet shipping begin!

Bilbo-…Wat.

Smaug- I smell plot.

Credits

[dragonmasterhiccup]

Hello! I’m new to your blog and I love it! I think you do great with the characterizations of the different characters and I hope you don’t mind but I wanted to submit an ask no share my critters 😂 I can’t resist a chance to share my scaly babies.)

Hey Hiccup! I’m from the future and in my modern time we can have fish as pets, I personally tend to live by the fish are friends not food rule but not everyone does if you’re wondering. These are my pet fish they are very friendly and love to beg for food as well as get attention. I have them semi trained they respond to my voice at least. What’d you think?

"Hey there! Fish as pets, you say? But they're still widely a part of what people eat? Huh, that's pretty interesting! There must be certain fish for eating, and certain fish that qualify as pets, right?"

"I must say, while I'm no expert, they do look to be happy! And they respond to your voice? That's incredible! Here, in Berk, fish aren't seen as much more than food, I'm afraid. If I ever come across any orange fish though, I'll have to make sure to spare them!"

[taniavttv]

Happy Birthday to Our beautiful Insect Hashira Shinobu Kocho🥳🥰💖💗🦋🌸

February 24th

Here are fun facts about Shinobu

🦋Her Zodiac Sign is Pisces

🦋 Shinobu is the fastest Hashira

🦋 Shinobu is really good IQ

🦋 Gyomei saved her and her older sister Kanae

🦋 Shinobu Tsugoku is Kanao

🦋 Shinobu created Insect Breathing

🦋Her favorite food is Ginger Tsukudani

🦋 She's the insect Hashira

🦋 Her hobby is to listen and telling ghost stories

🦋 Shinobu is an expert in Pharmaceutical

🦋Shinobu has a pet gold fish

🦋 Shinobu wears her sister's Haori to remember her and Keeps a smile as well

🦋 Shinobu is short but even though she is not tall enough to cut a demon head off. She created a poison of Wisteria that is lethal to them

🦋Shinobu is always seen smiling but she fake smiles it's because deep down she is angry and hides her true feelings

🦋 Shinobu Tsugoku is Kanao

🦋 Happy Birthday to Shinobu

Hello Everyone, It's Taniavttv I hope everyone one is doing great☺️🥰I know I haven't been posting as much I have alot of school work to do and I am busy most of the time but I plan to try and post as much as I can. So as you all know I post Demon Slayer Funfacts when it's a Demon Slayer character birthday so I decided maybe I can write a story Y/N celebrating their birthday so I will ask you guys opinion on the poll Thanks☺️. you can submit a request anytime Their Open always and Thanks for Reading my stories - Taniavttv 💗🌸

[aruanimess]

Hello! Do you have any random headcanons for Annie, Armin or other AOT characters that you like? Have a lovely day!

Hello, anon! (Sorry for taking my time with answering, I had a lot of thoughts)

Such a lovely question! I do indeed have many headcanons about AruAni and other characters I enjoy. I've shared some modern hcs about Armin and Annie specifically here too, if you wanna check them out.

Since you're giving me the opportunity to share some more though, let's do post-canon hcs instead. I think it'd be a nice change.

Armin cooks, Annie eats.

I know Armin is a busy man, but I'm positive he likes to take a break from his packed schedule to make a treat for his girl. Sure, he's not the best cook ever, but he tries and every dish is created with care and love poured into it. Annie enjoys the attention (and the cooking) quite a lot, too, so it's not like she's planning to stop him any time soon.

Armin's curiosity reaches unprecedented highs.

With the whole world at his disposal (well, what's left of it), Armin is finally free to go wild. He wants to learn it all and learn it all NOW! At first he turns to Annie for trivia regarding the outside world, and it's a sweet moment of bonding for them, sharing information about the world as they get to know more and more of each other as well. Soon, however, Annie is no longer enough. She's a surprisingly patient teacher, but she simply can't keep up with the level of detail Armin wants to go into, and frankly she doesn't care enough. So she urges him to find another tutor.

And Armin doesn't find one. He finds fifty.

Turns out, no one is an expert in everything, and Armin wants to know E V E R Y T H I N G. From exotic animals to foreign policy, to current tech, to theology, he's curious about it all!

Of course, a sane person cannot retain this much information, so what ends up happening is Armin going from one hyper specific interest to the next at an alarming rate. Jean and Connie worry about him initially (surely their friend is finally losing it), but when they eventually confront him about it, he confirms that he just enjoys the ride more so than the actual knowledge. "Most people have learnt bits and pieces while they were growing up," he says, "I have a lot to catch up to, but I'm not beating myself up about remembering it all." Jean and Connie are appeased. As long as he takes care of himself and he's happy, there's nothing else to fret over.

Annie takes up a sport.

Listen, martial arts are well and good, but there's only so much effort you can put in them when you're not in active danger. Annie maintains her training regimen for a while, but without a purpose it turns stale and repetitive. Still, she enjoys the physical activity and the challenge, so she's pretty bummed about it, until someone (probably Pieck) suggests she start playing a sport.

I'm not sure what exactly would fit her best. A solitary sport is more in line with her personality, but perhaps a team sport would help her build relationships and come out of her shell a little. I kinda want to say badminton, but I might be thinking that because I'm partial to it myself.

Mikasa is living her best cottagecore life.

After her return to Paradis, Mikasa would be in mourning, so I think that in order to heal mentally she'd choose to live somewhere relatively secluded. In my opinion, a cottage much like the one she shared with Eren in the paths and the one she lived in with her parents would be preferable to her than living in a city, where everyone would demand her attention.

During her time living alone, she takes up every hands-on hobby imaginable: fishing, hunting, crocheting, knitting, foraging, cooking, making preserves, making yarn (and yes she has sheep in this scenario), chopping wood, whittling etc. She goes to the town every week to sell her creations and buy what she can't make and everyone is in awe of her talent and dedication. It's a great way to keep her mind from drifting to a dark place and, as an added benefit, it's quite the conversation starter, so she ends up forming bonds with her neighbors as well.