#How To Start Growing Grape Vines

[love-that-we-were-in]

pretty as a vine (sweet as a grape)

pairing: luke castellan x reader summary: luke castellan might be everyone's favorite councilor over the summer. he might be a little too sweet for you in the fall. word count: 1.7k warnings: none

authors note: thank you to @wlntrsldler for letting me steal this concept from you even if making luke a real tried and true loser was a struggle. hope y'all enjoy!!

It was rare to see Camp Half-Blood’s golden boy without his signature smile on his face; always ready to help, always ready to please. 

You’d only had a handful of conversations with Luke Castellan, passing words in the height of hectic summer heat. Most of them in the middle of the night, when all the campers should be tucked away in the cabins, but you’d take the brief moments of quiet to wander the grounds with a lit cigarette hanging off your lips. 

Luke would approach you every time, always the same way, a pink flush on his cheeks and a quiet, timid voice telling you that he had to enforce the rules, that he had to send you back to your cabin because it was past curfew.

You’d roll your eyes, lick your lips, wave the smoke obscuring your view of him away playfully and promise to head back after this one. He’d nod and walk away, and you’d pretend not to notice his silhouette hidden behind one of the trees, not quite obscured enough by the lack of lighting to go wholly unnoticed, waiting for you to make your way back to where you’re supposed to be. 

He was sweet, too sweet, sometimes. Making sure you were safe, that nothing bad would happen to you even after taking his supposed leave. It was cute, really, how he acted around you underneath the starlight, always so nervous and flustered, like he’d never seen a woman before. You supposed, confined to the parameters of camp for so many years, he really hadn’t seen many of them.

It’s something you carry with you this year, watching as summer fades into fall, how camp suddenly empties. You’re not sure what to make of it, how still everything seems now, how the usual noise dampens into almost nothing and you itch for the hurriedness of July to return. 

You’re lucky, really, to have spent so long exploring the world beyond camp, seeing what growing up had to offer as if it were normal. A lot of the kids you see now, they haven’t experienced a half of what you have, trading high school for battling dragons at someone else’s request, and it shows each year like clockwork. 

If you’re honest, hidden behind the treeline near the lake, camp makes you uneasy like this. Less busy, less extreme - walking the thin line between a place to train and a place to live - and it has you more on edge than before. It could be that you’ve grown accustomed to the bustle of the Boston streets. It might just be that Luke has been hiding just beyond view since you lit your cigarette.

“I know, I know,” you say when he finally approaches. He stumbles, familiar flush blotching the skin of his neck, climbing the tips of his ears. “Just let me finish this one.” 

He nods and you wait for him to walk away, follow his usual path back into the forest. He doesn’t, standing on the damp grass nearby without saying a word, and you look at him again. 

You’re used to seeing Luke Castellan in different forms - it’s part of how he lives. Nervous and unsure and so confident with a sword that it’s a little insane that he’s the same person during training as is standing in front of you now. 

He’s got this little dip to his shoulders, fingers tapping against his own thigh as you stare at him. His curls are slightly longer than when summer started, curling around his ears and resting just above his brows. He’s got a sweatshirt on, dark green and oversized, and his teeth sink into his bottom lip the longer you take to look away. 

“You can head back,” you say eventually, flicking ash to the ground at your feet. “I promise to be good and go straight to bed.” 

It’s not meant to be anything, merely an assurance. But there’s this way Luke reacts to it, how his fingers stop tapping in favor of clenching his first, how he breathes deeper for a few breaths, how he swallows around nothing, that ignites something under your skin. Makes you want to push that little bit further. 

“You really need to stop coming out after curfew,” he mumbles in the end, tucking his hands into the front pocket of his sweater. It’s soft and a little warm and you wonder if it’s the humidity or Luke himself that’s responsible. “I don’t want to get you in trouble.”

“You’re sweet, Castellan,” you crush the butt of your cigarette out, brushing past him to start the trek back to your cabin. “It’s kind of adorable.” 

You hear him suck in a breath. You don’t hear his footsteps directly behind you as you walk through the foliage. You kind of wish you’d turned around to see the blush rise on his cheeks. 

Maybe you will next time.

*

Next time doesn’t come for weeks. It gives you space to observe Luke now, when he’s being pulled in fewer directions, when there’s lower expectations. You learn that neither of those things exist where Luke is concerned; that he has this inability to not be helpful, to not put himself forward when no one else will. He somehow takes up more responsibilities as fall gets underway, smiling wide when you know you’d be stretched thin. 

It’s admirable, to a point, and you want to know how he does it.

A few years ago, you convinced yourself Luke was only on when the sun shone brightest. Watching him demonstrate a throw to a young Athena kid, you think he might be the sun itself. 

“Nice arm,” is what you greet him with when the little girl runs off, ball in hand. He pauses his hands where they rest on the fabric of his pants, still slightly bent at the knees from helping and lips parted as he glances up at you. “She seemed happy.” 

“She just needed some help with the technique.”

He shrugs and stands to actually face you. 

Mid-afternoon at camp has never really sat well with you. Always slower, sun burning and campers left to fill their own time before dinner. You’ve never really known what to do with it; Luke squints at the grounds before you as if he’s searching for who needs him next.

“Do you ever take a break?” Is what you say when the silence drags on for too long. 

Luke blinks, lips parting. A group of Hephaestus kids laugh from down by the lake. You wait. 

“I go to bed at midnight.”

“And what time do you wake up?” You kick at the grass below your feet, taking in how Luke stumbles for an answer, brown eyes darting each way as if it’ll fall from the sky. 

“The apollo kids really love watching the sunrise,” he chokes out in the end, digging his hands into his pockets. You wonder if he thinks it makes his nerves less obvious. “It’s a really nice sunrise.” 

“Come watch it with me tomorrow.”

You say it partly for the reaction itself. That same quick breath Luke takes each time you say something that shocks him, the red tint to his cheeks, the tip of his nose, the harsh movement of his adams’ apple. You kind of also really want to see how Luke Castellan changes between day and night - if it’s a version of him you just haven’t read yet. 

You don’t mention that you’ll have to force yourself out of bed, unused to early rising. 

He nods, three quick nods like he thinks you’ll take it back if he’s not enthusiastic enough. 

You smile then. “I’ll see you later, Luke.”

*

He meets you where he usually does, further north than anyone tends to go at any hour, let alone this early. There’s less hesitation to his steps than a few nights ago, your invitation dangling between you both something like a promise. 

“I’m not gonna bite,” you say when he stops just short of the rock you’ve claimed. You glance over at where he’s just feet away, bright orange camp tee peeking out from his grey hoodie. “It’s too early for that.”

“Oh.” 

There’s some shuffling before Luke is perching himself on the stone next to you. He’s close enough to touch from here, the makeshift seat just barely big enough for two people to share, and you take in how he tucks his hands into his pockets, makes himself take up as little room as possible. 

Outside of his swordsmanship, you’ve never seen Luke take up much space at all.

“This is nice,” he says eventually, the sun starting to peer over the lake. 

There’s something almost beautiful about what the sunrise does for him, you realise. Neither of you have moved, Luke’s gaze still locked on the horizon, but you’ve transferred your attention to him. You’ve seen the lake enough times. You’ve never seen Luke Castellan’s chest rising and falling with each steady breath, or the way his eyes turn a little gold when the sun hits them just right. How he relaxes in the autumn chill.

“You’re really pretty, Luke.”

It slips past your lips before it fully forms in your mind. His head snaps to the side, cheeks flushing and lips parted. You hadn’t meant to say it, too caught up in the slow start to the morning, but it’s out there and you don’t want to take it back.

“Such a pretty boy,” you mutter, shaking your head. 

“I-“ Luke starts, before clearing his throat. You see his hands twitch in his pockets. “What?” 

You twist on the rock underneath you, lifting your legs so they’re crossed, knees brushing the edge of Luke’s thigh. His eyes drop at the movement.

This should feel weird at camp. You’d fallen into the habit of flirting back in Boston, something to fill the gaps and score you a cigarette when you really needed help to get them. Never like this though - like the moment was delicate and its shattering was solely in your hands. 

The ability to shatter Luke Castellan, Camp Half-Blood’s golden boy, rests on your shoulders in an early sunrise.

When his breath hitches as you push yourself closer, you think you’d like to watch him shatter in the sunlight. 

Pretty doesn’t even come close when it happens.

[nanawritesit]

Twice Headcanons: How They Act When They’re Jealous!

Nayeon:

on the outside, she’s completely calm. she gives off such calculated control, you’d never even know she was jealous

however on the inside, she’s having a complete downward spiral

her jealousy just validates the insecurities she already has; that she’s not pretty enough, not smart enough, not cool enough… not good enough for you.

she’ll start overanalyzing everything about her personality until she’s drowning in her own self criticism

all of this introspection makes her grow distant, which is your ONLY sign that something is wrong

the only thing that will snap her out of this is if you sit her down to her and explain in vivid detail how much you love everything about her, and how no one could ever replace her 💞

Jeongyeon:

scarily quiet

doesn’t like feeling threatened, so she gets insecure whenever someone seems to be making you happier than her

will start digging for dirt on whoever seems to be interested in you, doing a full background check

“hey Y/N, did you know they flunked out of college? no? oh, i just heard that through the grape vine.”

gives you a cold glare every time you mention their name

will protectively place a hand on your lower back the whole time you’re out with them

it’s not that she doesn’t trust you, it’s them she doesn’t trust.

if she gets pushed hard enough, she won’t hesitate to call them out on it in front of everyone

“why don’t you find your own girlfriend/boyfriend/ partner instead of chasing after mine? it’s honestly really pathetic.”

Momo:

the opposite of jeongyeon, she’s loud and fiery about her jealousy

not afraid to make a scene whatsoever

it’s kind of hot honestly

won’t hesitate to publicly humiliate someone for coming onto you

“Oh, you thought they were interested in you? That’s cute. Why would they want you when they already have me?”

would get violent if anyone put their hands on you

“get your filthy hands off of them before i break every bone in them.”

will kiss you in public if it makes people stop staring at you, and will smirk at them from across the room afterwards to rub it in their face that she’s the one who gets to kiss you

you would never even think of trying to make her jealous, she would be far too terrifying 😭

Sana:

her? jealous? no, never. jealousy is barbaric and petty, something totally beneath her!

at least… that’s what she tells you

if it’s just some average person, she wouldn’t care and just brush it off

but if it’s someone she perceives as more successful than her, she’ll start getting insecure

she doesn’t like competition, so if someone manages to shake her, she turns a little sour 😙

very passive aggressive

“why don’t you go hang out with them, since you two are so close?”

however, she’s adorable when she’s jealous, and has the cutest little pout… you can’t stop yourself from grabbing her face and kissing her, which 9 times out of 10 makes her feel better

Jihyo:

she doesn’t get jealous very often, she trusts you a lot and knows you wouldn’t run off with someone else just because they showed interest in you

she doesn’t see other people in your life as competition, she’s secure in the fact that she’s the one you chose as your partner

she would pretty much only get upset if she felt that you were blatantly disrespecting your relationship by shamelessly flirting with others

she doesn’t like to be controlling, but there are times when she’ll tell you not to associate with certain people anymore because of how they don’t honor your relationship. it’s not an ultimatum, more of a test to see how much you really care about her

but that’s only in the worst case scenario. most of the time she’s very open about her feelings. she’s not afraid to be vulnerable with you :)

Dahyun:

she doesn’t get jealous too often, but when she does, it can be intense

she doesn’t like coming off as insecure so she tends to keep it to herself

if it starts getting to her, she might start mirroring your actions

you start hanging out with your friends more than her? she can do that too. you have friends of your preferred romantic gender? she has some of those too

it will either go two ways: one, you’ll feel hurt and realize how you’ve been making her feel, and then the behavior will stop on both ends

or two, you’re perfectly fine with what she’s doing, and she realizes her jealousy was silly and lets it go

after this, she would FINALLY feel secure enough to have a talk with you about spending more time together 😑

Mina:

turns into a completely different person

she’s highly competitive, and will immediately double down and turn their little game into a death match

if you don’t seem interested in the other person, she’ll go to extreme lengths to secure your love by making extravagant public displays of affection

that person needs to know that she loves you more than they ever could

however, if you decided to play with her heart and act interested in this person? you’ll surely regret it

she has a ph.d in revenge, and will make you 10x more jealous than you made her 💋

she hates feeling replaced or forgotten, so if you start making her feel that way, she’ll immediately try and flip it back on you before it sinks in.

Chaeyoung: 

she’s highly possessive in her relationships. you belong to her, and she belongs to you. that’s the agreement you both made when you made things exclusive

and she’s not likely to stay with someone who doesn’t honor that commitment, so if you think she’ll tolerate you flirting around and playing the field, she won’t 😬

however if you’re not actively trying to make her jealous, she’s way more calm in how she handles things

she won’t lash out on you, but rather explain to you that it bothers her how this person looks at you/ talks to you. that way, if you continue to let it happen, she can’t say she didn’t set clear boundaries with you 😗

Tzuyu:

probably the least jealous member tbh

has a mindset of “if they want to, they will.”

i.e, if you want to cheat on her, you will. then she’ll leave you and move on with her life 💁🏼‍♀️

but obviously you don’t want to, because HELLO you’re dating chou tzuyu???

for real though, she’s super confident in herself, so she doesn’t get threatened easily

if you ever did manage to make her jealous, she’d probably just tell you straight out

and you’d apologize profusely because you’re WHIPPED for this woman as you should be

[vxlentinescookies]

This is a sequel of the previous Dark Cacao one were they fought and everything

Things have calmed down now, the awkward moment has open space for some time, peace and some further talks

But Dark Cacao has come into term with a little something

He likes Reader Cookie: (use any pronouns) are/is strong, resourceful, agile and very skilled, he could see so much potential, and it's a surprise to find someone who not only knows their way in a fight, but ALSO can match HIM

He wants to ask her out, the issue is: how!?

He was not a single clue, time to ask his soldiers for advise I guess?

Maybe even contact hollyberry?

(To resume, this is Dark Cacao finally knowing he likes Reader Cookie, asks others for advise to ask them out and fails miserably, but Reader Cookie is so amazed at the brave [though failed] attempt that decides to give the idea of a date a try)

→ ❛Between the sword and your opponent, pt. 2❜

→ Pairing ; Dark Cacao Cookie x Reader → Quote ; ❛❛It surely didnt go according to plan but, to say Hollyberry, who had been listening intently from behind one of the pillars, wasnt satisfied, would be an understatement.❜❜ → Genre ; Drama , Romance → A/N ; This was very fun hahah, pt 1 is here!

Its been a good few days after the incident, the one where you shamelessly flirted with Dark Cacao in the middle of a fight. To say the king hadnt been thinking about it was… an understatement, he had thought about it, quite a lot. It had leaked into his daily like like the growing vines of grapes, and in return, they were twisting and shaping around his brain like a deadly respite. This, paired with the following talks you both had about the help the kingdom of Rose Champagne wanted to offer to the kingdom of Cacao, and the inevitable flirting that came with your personality, Dark Cacao seemed to inevitably start falling in love. It was a force of nature he didnt expect, that he didnt take in consideration, but as time passed, he realized that these feelings were ever present, and that there was no way he could keep them hidden.

Love, for Dark Cacao, was something he had long since given up on. He no longer seeked it, and he no longer expected it, especially after the falling out with his previous wife and the loss of his son, that he still deep down loved dearly, he no longer felt he had a place in the grounds of love, therefore, he simply stayed on his own place, allowing himself to be moved by the currents of life while focusing on the current moments with his kingdom, his subjects, and the war ever present with Dark Enchantress Cookie.

Thats perhaps what made this moment the more jarring to him, to be flirted with after he felt unlovable, after he felt undeserving of being loved—And then, the fact that his heart was starting to beat with fervor and energy yet again, for someone he once hurt unintentionally… It put his mind and heart at a standstill, confused as to how to proceed, confused as to what to do exactly.

“Damn, sounds like you’re deep in the trenches of love, old friend” Hollyberry would tell them once Dark Cacao sought them out for help, after all, out of all his comrades, the hollyberrian was the most capable when it cames to matters of love.

“Sigh, Im just, confused as what to do… I’ve given up on love a long time ago…” He said, looking down for a few moments, before turning back at her.

His hands were tainted with blood, and his mind haunted by the warriors long lost in the wars the cacao kingdom had been part of, not to mention the small guilt that followed him for having fallen in the trap that was Affogato’s tricks. He sighed yet again, because then there was you, someone hurt unintentionally by his hand, even if he was under the tricks of the snake, he still felt like he owed his people something. 

“Oh c’mon, rid yourself of that long face, Dark Cacao!” Hollyberry would snap him of his thoughts, as she’d laugh heartily “Its clear what you must do, you must act upon your emotions!”

“Act… Upon my emotions?” He felt like he stayed in square one, unable to think of what exact way to move thorough this new challenge. “Right, but, how exactly?”

“You speak as if you hadnt been in a marriage once!” She spoke yet again, frowning for a moment before patting his back lively, and perhaps a bit too strongly “Fret not! What you must do, is confess and ask her out on a date! Dosent that sound logical?”

Right, a date… If only he wasnt rusty in these themes, perhaps the idea would’ve seemed more appetizing, but as it stood, he was confused and didnt know exactly what to do or say. Hollyberry, noticing this, would just sigh and shake her head, she thought Pure Vanilla was THE challenge in the ancient’s groups when it came to love, but Dark Cacao? Now he was winning second place.

You had been resting in your quarters, quietly taking a nap when it happened, a soldier knocking on your door causing you to wake up startled, and once the door opened, you would look confused at the soldier in question, looking at you with seriousness as he spoke the words sent by his majesty. He was requesting your presence in the throne room, words that left you dumbfounded as you brushed hair out of your face before nodding. You didnt put much thought about it, as you dressed to come see Dark Cacao in the throne room.

Walking towards the castle suddenly felt colder than usual, and your steps felt heavier, as if you were expecting something bad to happen, but thinking about it, the worse that could happen would be Dark Cacao shaming you and sending you back after your constant flirting… which didnt seem to be the case, if anything it did seem quite… out of character? The king didnt seem to be that fazed by your flirting, so… But on the other side, you could be expecting the end of the trip as he declared that all was well, and that the Cacao Kingdom would continue relations with the Rose Champagne Kingdom… Not really out of character and far more viable… still, if it were to be the case, why were you hesitating? Why were you feeling so heavy? Confused, you simply approached the door before stopping.

Were you, were you falling in love? No, there was no way, there was simply no way that you were falling in love with the King of the Cacao Kingdom, was it…?

“Your majesty, I’ve arrived…” You spoke as you finally took a step inside, bowing in front of the king, before he’d dismiss the other cookies in the room, letting you both alone in the room. “Is there, something you wished to discuss with me?”

“Yes, ahem… (y/n) cookie, there are some matters I must get to… involving you”

You lifted an eyebrow as he spoke, his nervousness apparent as he left the throne and walked towards you. Each step felt dangerous yet filled with a certain sense of unknown that scared you in some way. Yet you persisted, until he was right in front of you.

“Will… Ahem… Will you go on a date with me?”

“Huh?”

Now it was your turn to be taken aback. You stared at him dumbfounded as you felt all your worries and fears fade away into the dark. He looked at you curiously and you simply coughed before looking at him, smiling.

“... S-Sure, I dont mind!”

“You dont have to if you dont want to…”

“No-No, I do want to! Lets go on a date!”

It surely didnt go according to plan but, to say Hollyberry, who had been listening intently from behind one of the pillars, wasnt satisfied, would be an understatement.

[nyxvamps]

Dionysus Children:

so, im not really basing this off of specifically the books, movie, musical, or tv show. its kinda a mix of all of them and vibes mostly. (personally i really like jason mantzoukas as him tho)

so, it doesn’t matter which dionysus you picture in your head, the child will almost always look like the other parent. but they always have dark curly hair (all different curl types included) and his purple eyes. as well as his resting default/resting faces. which is usually a small amused smirk or like they’re wishing death upon you and your future children.

the amount of passive aggressive sass that can ooze out of these kids is insane. it’s usually the type of sarcasm that you don’t realize was sarcasm until the conversation has already changed.

or it’s very blatant that they want you to know they’re being sarcastic.

they’re the type of people who dress for comfort but when it’s time to dress up, they dress up. they pull out an outfit they’ve been planning for months in advance. on par with the aphrodite cabin.

they’re the type of people (even if they don’t like to party) the party heats up as soon as they show up.

Let’s get into some powers:

they can turn people insane. ya know, mess with their mind and forcibly make different mental illnesses appear and develop. it’s easier if you already have the gene for certain illnesses and disorders so they don’t have to create it from nothing. this power takes a lot of energy if they want it to last more than a few seconds.

they can also ease (but not get rid of) certain illnesses and disorders. this takes even more energy. this is important because, in the past, his children have used these powers for selfish reasons so if they do something stupid, they need to live with the consequences. (dionysus will usually fix whatever his children have done but he lets them suffer in their mistakes first.)

you know how in some horror games there’s a sanity meter and when your sanity goes down your vision starts blurring, the room shakes, your hearing is staticy, you start hallucinating. they can do this. they need initial eye contact but after that, as long as they have eyes on you, they can keep it up.

they are so good at acting. some of it is just acting clueless so others believe them when they say they don’t know what’s happening or they didn’t know a prank was being planned. some of it is that they are able to just, put themselves into another mindset and lie flawlessly.

they have the ability to grow and manipulate plants. mostly plants that can be used in wine so grapes, strawberries, etc. this includes vines and ivy.

thanks for reading, if you have any ideas, feel free to comment.

[lot-of-nothing]

Can I Call You Rose? (Ch. 1?)

Chessy x Reader

As the new viticulturist (grape-growing expert) at Nick Parker's vineyard, you fall for a certain nanny. (Post-Parent Trap movie I think)

Warnings: SOFT SMUT (with a little plot and romance)

You wondered if your fingers were going to go numb, or perhaps your heart would just explode first?

You had finally worked up the courage to kiss the auburn-haired beauty mere hours ago and now Chessy’s lips were finally attached to her neck. You had met during your first week as Nick Parker’s head viticulturist. Her warmth was magnetic and you always tried to find reasons to tend to the grapes closest to the house in case you could start a conversation with the nanny. You spent many afternoons together, flirting while she brought you her homemade lemonade or while you walked her around the rows of vines handing her grapes to try. Chessy always seemed to wear a smile when you were near, filling you with butterflies in return. You had been dreaming of this moment since you first met the beautiful woman and now you were filled with pure unfiltered anxiety. 

Chessy’s open mouth kisses to your throat and collarbone were unlike anything you had ever experienced. Were you supposed to crave her as much as you did? There was a fire ignited in the pit of your stomach that hungered for something that felt so forbidden.

As nervous as you were, you wanted more. You needed more. You wanted to feel Chessy’s hands setting every inch of your skin aflame… but the thrum of energy winding through every cell in your being had you wondering if you would have a panic attack or pass out before that could happen. 

“Hon… Hon? Honey!” 

You must have spaced out entirely as Chessy’s voice drew you back to reality. Next thing you knew, Chessy’s hands were now cupping your face, staring intently into your eyes. 

“Hm?” You hummed, your eyes brimming with tears as you felt like you could finally breathe again. You felt incredibly embarrassed that you felt that you couldn’t handle the physical intimacy. It was hard when you were so in love with Chessy and lacked the experience you thought necessary to please her.

“Are you okay, sweetie?” Chessy’s voice was just above a whisper. She was terribly worried that she had pushed the bounds of your relationship too far too soon. Little did she know that it would be your own slip up that would be the culprit of a ‘too much too soon’ relationship. 

“I-I-I…” You quickly stopped herself short, not wanting to make yourself cry.

“It’s okay… Wanna finish our movie, honey?”

You shook your head furiously, determined to push yourself through the anxiety and nerves.

“Honey…” Chessy seemed skeptical, her hands squeezing your cheeks. The extra bit of care Chessy showed was all you needed to lose your head, tears pooling in your eyes and spilling onto your cheeks.

You stared into your hands, trying to explain to Chessy why you were struggling to get through your anxieties. “I just… don’t- I just don’t know how to pleasure a woman…” 

“Tell you what. Come’re…” Chessy cooed, drawing you in so you could sit between the auburn beauty’s legs. From there Chessy gently caressed your arms, speaking in a firm but gentle tone. “I am going to turn on a different show and you are gonna sit right here and enjoy it, okay?”

You sniffled and nodded, reclining back in Chessy’s arms as an attempt at relaxing. A few moments passed of Chessy tapping away on her phone. The audio sounded off before you even comprehended what was playing, “I hope you are nice and wet for me.”

You certainly weren't expecting Chessy to stream a guided masturbation from her phone onto the television. 

Your cheeks flushed a deep red, “Wha-?”

Chessy’s hands fell to your sweatpants, pulling out the band a couple of inches as she spoke, “I want you to just relax. Just do what she tells you to, okay?”

Your hand was shaking as you pushed it into your sweatpants, never having experienced anything like a guided masturbation before. While daunting, it was incredibly hot.

The audio rang over the tv speakers once more, causing butterflies to swirl in your stomach, “Now, why don’t you see how wet you are for me? Slip your fingers in your panties for me.”

As you slipped your fingers in your underwear, you let out a whimper at first contact with your cunt. What else would you be in for with this nanny? What other tricks were hidden up her sleeves to drive you wild? 

Even though all of your building anxiety, you had grown incredibly wet from Chessy’s touch. You rolled your head back onto Chessy’s shoulder, earning a kiss to your temple as you did. Chessy’s voice was gentle in your ear, “You are doing so well, honey.”

The video instructed you once more, telling you to focus on your clit. Considering the pacing of the video, Chessy must have found a video long enough to help you relax, but short enough that she could find more involvement in your pleasure sooner rather than later. 

Doing as you were told, you circled your clit and felt yourself melting back into the auburn beauty’s arms. What you couldn’t see was Chessy’s smile as she felt the tension in your body fade. Her hands wound up your front, working your t-shirt up your torso to access your breasts.

The audio emanated from the tv was filled with the performer's moans, but you were becoming enraptured by the soft, encouraging hums from the woman behind you. Chessy’s hands drifted up and down your stomach, stopping at your breasts to give a gentle squeeze before shifting back down once more. 

“Let me hear you, sweetie…”

You bit your bottom lip and turned your face into Chessy’s neck, unsure if you were ready to be heard. 

Without a response, Chessy hummed disapprovingly, her hand slipping its way into your sweatpants and then underwear in search of your wetness. At the feeling of her fingers mingling with yours in your cunt, you withdrew your hand and dropped it to your side to allow her to take over. You couldn’t keep yourself from softly sighing at the feeling of her gentle fingertips working against your clit. 

“God, you are so wet…” Chessy whined at the way your wetness coated her fingers. 

You bucked your hips up into her hand, desperately wishing for this sensation to last forever. With her arms around you, fingers dancing around your clit, and her hot breath against your neck, your head was spinning. You couldn’t help but moan before blurting your thoughts to Chessy, “You- you’re so beautiful…” 

“Mmm… thank you, honey.” Chessy cooed, her arm winding around your waist to cradle you close as her fingers continued working against you. Your entire being was set aflame by Chessy’s loving embrace and skilled fingers. 

Your breathing rate was growing faster and faster, the coil in your stomach tightening as you grew closer to your orgasm. 

Chessy’s teeth nipped at your earlobe, tenderly nibbling as she added extra pressure as she circled your clit. Her voice came as a soft whisper, forcing warmth to spread across your face. “I can feel you getting close. You are so beautiful when you fall apart like this for me.” 

“Fuck, I love you~” You exhaled, not registering your words while your hands clung to her forearm. 

Sadly, you were too lost in the throes of your eminent orgasm to notice her lack of a response. She only nuzzled you with her cheek and held you tight as your orgasm washed over you.

Your back arched and your hips thrashed, unable to contain yourself. Your eyes squeezed shut and you let out a lengthy moan, trying to enjoy every ounce of the orgasm Chessy guided you through. 

Chessy sighed with a soft smile and withdrew her hand from your pants. She was trying to ignore her own anxiety building from her lack of response to your omission of love. While she felt she loved you as well, it all felt like too much too soon. In years past, she had dove head first into relationships and had only been burned in return. She had no intention of ruining your relationship over the omission of her own feelings. 

“How do you feel?”

“Mmm… good.” With a deep breath, you roll over in her arms, pressing your cheek near the base of her sternum. You tucked your hands under her wide hips and enjoyed the feeling of your bodies pressed together. “How do you feel about me returning the favor?”

Chessy pushed her anxieties deep down, not wanting to ruin a perfect moment. She had been falling for you since you started at the Parker estate. “Maybe in the morning…”

“Are you sure? I would love to-”

There was that word again. It made Chessy’s stomach drop. 

“No. It’s really okay. We could just… finish our movie.”

She seemed curt in her reply. It lacked the typical warmth you always received from her. It made you terribly self conscious until her hands wandered to the skin of your back, drawing loopy circles with one hand while her other turned the tv back to your movie.

“Mmm… you better be careful or I’ll fall asleep.” You murmured, testing the waters of how likely it would be for you to spend the night with the nanny. 

“Whatever shall I do. I would hate for someone so cute to be in my bed when I woke up.” Chessy was being incredibly sarcastic, her hands continuing to scratch your back in lazy loops. 

You allowed your own hands to wander her hips and thighs as a different form of self-soothing. You obsessed over the soft dips of cellulite and the slopes created by the widening of her hips. Her baggy clothing hid the curves you wanted to memorize through all of your senses. 

Chessy’s eyes drifted shut as she pushed herself to enjoy your loving touch. It was hard for her to accept such unadulterated affection, but she desperately wanted to try. It felt so good for her to be wanted and desired, but the vulnerability required for a deep and meaningful relationship lurked in the back of her mind. 

[bacchant-of-dionysus]

Dionysus Epithets, prayers and devotional activities

Βακχος/Bakkhos/Bacchus - frenzied - “Dionysus Bakkhos, lead me in frenzy” - have a rave or dance party in his honour.

Βρομιος/Bromios/Bromius - noisy - “Dionysus Bromios, make my voice heard.” - scream at the top of your lungs.

Μαινολης/Mainôles/Maenoles - raging - “Dionysus Mainôles, let me process my rage” - punch a punching bag or pillow.

Νυκτελιος/Nyktelios/Nyctelius - of the night - “Dionysus Nyktelios, lull me to sleep” - take a night time walk

Λαμπτηρος/Lamptêros/Lampterus - torch bearer - “Dionysus Lamptêros, guide me through the darkness.” - light a candle in his honour.

Ἑστιως/Hestiôs/Hestius - of the feast - “Dionysus Hestios, bless this meal” - make a meal in his honour.

Κωλωτης/Kôlôtês/Colotes - spotted gecko - use as a symbol of Dionysus

Αυξιτης/Auxitês/Auxites - giver of increase - “Dionysus Auxitês, increase my fortunes” - use this as a blessing when starting a new business or adventure.

Φαλλην/Phallên/Phallen - of the phallus - “Dionysus Phallên, make me fertile.” - use a phallic object during sex to promote fertility.

Ανδρογυνος/Androgynos/Androgynus - sexually androgynous (both tops and bottoms) - “Dionysus Androgynos, make me versatile in bed.” - explore dominance and submission in BDSM.

Σταφυλιτης/Staphylitês/Staphylites - of the grape - “Dionysus Staphylitês, allow me to grow like the vine.” - grow a grape plant.

Ληναιος/Lênaios/Lenaeus - of the wine press - “Dionysus Lênaios, bless this drink.” - say this before drinking wine.

Θεοινος/Theoinos/Theoenus - God of wine - “Dionysus Theoinos, I honour you.” - use as his title when regarding this aspect of his divinity.

Αγαθοσ Δαιμον/Agathos Daemon/Agathus Daemon - the good spirit - “Dionysus Agathos Daemon, bring good fortune upon this house.” - bless the house by hanging this message above the door or in your Lararium (if you practice more Roman traditions)

Προτρυγαιος/Protrygaois/Protrygaeus - first of the vintage - “Dionysus Protrygaois, I offer you the first sip of my wine.” - go wine tasting.

Οινοψ/Oinops/Oenops - wine dark - “Dionysus Oinops, protect our brothers and sisters of colour and welcome them into our faith.” - donate to an anti racist charity or buy from a Brown/Black/Blak owned business.

Κισσιος/Kissios/Cisseus - of the ivy - “Dionysus Kissios, May my faith grow like ivy on your walls.” - make an ivy crown.

Κιττοφορος/Kittophoros/Cittophorus - ivy bearer - “Dionysus Kittophoros, bless this ivy.” - Make a thyrsus.

Ανθιον/Anthion/Anthion - of the flowers - “Dionysus Anthion, may the world bloom in your colours.” - make a flower crown.

Κιστοφορος/Kistophoros/Cistophorus - basket bearer - “Dionysus Kistophoros, my my basket always be full.” - weave a basket

Ερεβινθινος/Erebinthinos/Erebinthius - of the chickpea - put chickpeas on your altar.

Διμητωρ/Dimêtôr/Dimetor - twice born - “Dionysus Dimêtôr, welcome me into this new part of my life” - study the tarot card “death”

Αιγοβολος/Aigobolos/Aegobolos - goat slayer - “Dionysus Aigobolos, I make this sacrifice in your honour.” - take part in the slaughter, butchering and consumption of a goat.

Βουφαγος/Bouphagos/Buphagus - cow eater - “Dionysus Bouphagus, bless this steak.” - eat a steak in his honour.

Ανθροπορραιστος/Anthroporraistos/Anthroporraestus - man slayer - “Dionysus Anthroporraistos, slayer of men, destroy those who would stand in my way” - burn a straw man on a bonfire.

Λυσιος/Lysios/Lysius - releasing - “Dionysus Lysios, free me from what is holding me down.” - get a massage to release tense muscles

Ελευθερευς/Eleuthereus/Eleuthereus - of liberation, freedom - “Dionysus Eleuthereus, free me from my chains” break a wooden board in half with your hand (look up how to do this safely)

Ψιλαξ/Psilax/Psilax - (lifted on) wings - “Dionysus Psilax, let me fly high enough to see the bigger picture” - collect feathers for his altar.

Σαωτης/Saôtês/Saotes - saviour - “Dionysus Saôtês, save me from myself.” - address him as this when in times of desperation.

Σωτηριος/Sôtêrios/Soterius - recovery (from madness) - “Dionysus Sôtêrios, enable me to recover from this dark episode of my illness.” - go to therapy in his honour.

Πατρωιος/Patrôios/Patroeus - paternal, ancestral - “Dionysus Patrôios, Divine Father, guide me with your wisdom.” - trace your family history/ do a dna test

Αισυμνητης/Aisymnêtês/Aesymnetes - dictator - “Dionysus Aisymnêtês, Divine Ruler, I trust your plan for me.” - make a big decision with your faith in mind.

Πολιτης/Politês/Polites - citizen - “Dionysus Pilotês, stand up for the rights of the common people.” - attend a rally or pride event

Αγυιευς/Agyieus/Agyieus - protector - “Dionysus Agyieus, protect my homeland from harm.” - make a ward around your home.

Μυστης/Mystês/Mystes - of the mysteries - “Dionysus Mystes, bless this party” - throw a bacchanal

Χθονιος/Khthonios/Cthonius - of the earth/cthonic - “Dionysus Khthonios, older than the earth.” - pray to him outside, on the ground.

Μελπομενος/Melpomenos/Melpomenus - performer (in Greek tragedy) - “Dionysus Melpomenos, mask my emotions.” - make a theatre mask of Dionysus.

This is the completed version! If you like this list I would appreciate a small tip or patreon subscription, as it took hours to put together :)

[gncrezan]

Omg I love your OC designs. Especially the one in red. I'm screaminggg

I CAN YEAH !!! i can gush about them forever and ever!!!! under the cut for length <3

melitodes' physical appearance and her aesthetics lean towards nepalese inspired clothing and accessories, just because i was quite interested in different kinds of 'draped' clothing, which is why her clothes are a combination of a sari and typical greek chitons/robes. she loved her home very much and is very influenced by demeter, which makes her quite cold and steely towards the chthonic gods at the start, before she warms up to everyone, though she still struggles with showing her appreciation/emotions. the cast is very understanding though, as anyone who plays foa knows, and doesn't mind so much once they know she's trying and cares for them very much.

very organised and enjoys 'desk work', and also disliked hermes from the start because she perceived him to be too immature and too annoying, and was a little frightened and responded badly to alekto's initial grilling. she gets over this though! especially with alekto! she now works as a diplomat, the combination of her intelligence and intuition making up for how she can be a little distant at times.

dionysus has never really had a hard time, though he's a bit concious of the fact that he knows he's sheltered, and that he breezes through a lot of life. the vines in his hair are pretty much the only magic he can do, where he's great at growing grapes but not much else, so he's quite attached. a chilled-out and happy-go-lucky sort of person, he slowly figures out his ambitions and his talents, since he awkwardly never felt like being 'well liked and atheletic' would ever amount to anything 'substantial', especially considering how he's not good at magic, and how different this all makes him from demeter. given time to explore what he can do with his interests, he helps the moirae, interested in how fate works and how fickle it can be.

though he never really resented demeter, or chafed under her watch, he's curious about the world and was excited to see the underworld. upon meeting friendly faces like pyri, charon and hekate, he figured (quite naively, but luckily the chthonic gods are actually that kind) that this would actually be totally fine, and was relaxed pretty much from the start.

and despite how persephone is the pc that i have posted about for years, i realise i haven't really sobbed about her properly, so here we are! despite loving their mother and aunt deeply, they've always wanted more than olympus, feeling out of place there. they've hidden this, and was curious and positive towards the underworld initially. plus, hermes goes there often, and never complains, so she's privately believed it couldn't be that bad. plus when hermes reassures them, they have more reason not to worry! rather placating as well, some part of his 'arc' in my head is learning to voice what they want, rather than trying to make their mother or friends happy.

a very physical worker, they have never been able to sit still and enjoy book-learning, preferring crafts and practicing their magic. they're helping out with the agriculture in the underworld and they love gardening, while the other two don't necessarily love it (meli does it out of obligation, and dionysus isn't good at it). quietly snarky and fun, they get along with hermes so well because they're sneakier than most would believe. a strict parent will do that to you!

all three of them have a sort of 'finding who they are' story, since foa really leans to that by itself:

meli's is more of a "letting go of prejudice, learning to see past (olympian) propaganda and realising who i really am outside of olympus' influence".

dion has a more traditional "i don't have direction, but suddenly in the right surroundings with the right people, i'm growing into the person i've always wanted to be"

seph is all about "finding out and fighting for what i want, rather than trying to pacify others, and figuring out who i am in that process"

it all ends with that sense of belonging, and feeling at home with this cast of deities. it's also sort of a first time for all of them to have more than one or zero friends, since most of their aquaintences are their mother's household staff and one (1) other goddess. some of them do very well, and others not so much. it's a fun game to play around with the stats and choices with! they all eventually love the underworld and its residents though, regardless of how they start and progress, because i am playing and i need my pcs to love it LOL

thank you for asking me, and if you read all that thank you omg i have just taken the excuse to rant!! mwah!!

[wystericwoes]

Doomed pt. 5

Warnings: Cursing, fighting and descriptions of gore + violence.

(Sorry this took so long)

Sukuna watched intensely through the window, a fist under his chin and robes loosely adjourned.

He stared As you picked a flower up and took it from the vine, sliding it into your loose hanging sleeve. Looking around making sure no one saw as a child would after stealing candy. 

He wondered what you were going to do with it. Put in your hair? A vase? His mind wondered. Why act as if it’s a deceitful act that one could get in trouble for when you could do whatever you wanted? 

“Lord Sukuna?”

Uraume approached him from behind, head lowered. His gaze was unwavering as he continued to stare at you. 

He grunted in response. 

“The councilmans here to see you.”

“Tell him I'm busy.”

“It's important.”

“He can wait.”

She gulped. Hating that she had to be the news bearer.

“He… demands an audience.”

He tightened his fist. 

“I'm afraid word got out. And now all your allies are beginning to talk. Not attending this meeting would only make things worse.”

“Tch.”

He turned around to face her, her head remained bowed.

“Where is he?”

That night dinner was quieter than usual. 

He didn't eat, you hardly saw him eat anymore. He simply watched atop pillows, one fist under his jaw as you indulged. You were no longer intimidated by him when he was like this, pissed. 

“What happened?”

You asked. 

“Nothing.”

“Don’t do that with me Sukuna.”

You said as you lifted a bite of food to your mouth. 

He scoffed and turned his head away pouting like a kid. 

“Something political?”

He was never able to lie to you. 

"Snotty pissboys who call themselves leaders who I have to upkeep diplomatic relations with."

His jaw ticked and fists tightened, the air growing thicker with tension. You decided not to press any further.

“Are you going to be okay or would like some help?”

He looked back at you, you had slid down your robe revealing your shoulder. 

He grinned. 

“I always want your help.”

Before Ryomen Sukuna was what he is today, he was a man. 

A man who had made a mistake, falling in love. 

He was a few things actually. 

A man, a sorcerer, a killer, and a ruler. 

But you held him back from his true potential. There were certain lines he would not cross as he progressed his reign of terror. 

He maintained an air of ruthlessness and a reputation of brutality. It's how he amassed power, no one threatened to cross his merciless path. Rumors of him killing a handmaid for bringing him his tea late, or killing a high-ranking nobleman with a hairpin because his footman offended him. These tales were what kept him on his throne.

But as long as you lived, he would never be able to cross the threshold of true power. Because you gave him morals, and morals were limitations. 

As of right now he was simply a king among men, a powerful sorcerer. 

He desired to be a god, but that simply wasn't possible.

For what god cares for a human?

That human was what he lived for, and what he worked for. 

Uraume and Sukunas inner circle despised you. They watched as the man who was on the rise to godhood was stumped by a non-sorcerer of no exceptional lineage or wealth. But they knew that you held more power over them than any of them combined- Killing you was not an option. You were untouchable, and an unmovable obstacle.

Even with your kindness you were a hindrance to them. They saw what you truly were. 

An inconvenience, A weakness. 

They had to stand by as he gawked at you and adorned you with jewels and silks, hand fed you grapes like a servant. Like he couldn’t snap your throat in an instant. 

Disgusting. 

And all the sex? fucking annoying. 

He would have a warlord waiting in the conference room as you were shamelessly copulating in the springs. 

People started to talk. About the ruthless leader Ryomen Sukuna and his only concubine. 

The one that he spoiled, the one that he daunted around and let speak freely at his side during important meetings and gatherings. 

Concubine. You could never forget that's what you are to most people, and you didn't. But it doesn't matter, because at the end of the day, you're the one who he’ll kill for. You knew that everyone either hated you or loved you, was either jealous or resentful. 

Now usually, fellow people in power wouldn’t care about any usual whore. But you seemed to linger. Always be by his side and be the only one he had- and while the servants of his residence didn’t dare to say anything in fear of his retaliation, his allies and their servants had no such obligation. And once they left his grand estate, people talked.

You walked with an air of power, after a while you stopped caring about all the talk and rumors- because that's all it was. Talk. At the end of the day, they would treat you kindly with a warm smile as you walked by. 

To a few who liked you, they admired you as the olive branch and as the light in his life. the one who stepped in with a moral objection before he killed or punished someone who likely didn't deserve his wrathful hand.

A sweet love story, and the last shred of his humanity. But to most, a mistake. To his inner Jujutsu circle, a hindrance. 

Some nights you could touch him in all the right ways to get him to open up, you were on top, you left the hickeys. 

Your face was buried in his neck, he never made any noise. Just moved. Maybe a grunt. You felt his hips rut against you as you traced the outline of his hard cock through his thin white robes. 

Times like this at his most vulnerable was when you pried.

“Sukuna?”

He hummed against your head. 

You placed your chin on his chest and looked up at him. 

“Why don’t you marry me?”

His breath hitched slightly. But his face remained unmoving.

“You know I'd say yes.”

You pouted into him 

“You’re cute.” He growled. 

“I'm sexy. Not cute. And would be excellent as a spouse.”

You pressed yourself against him, slouching down as if in defeat.

“You are. We’re already together though, is this not enough?”

You sighed and turned around, facing upwards next to him. 

“I just want it to be official. I'm tired of hiding behind doors. You're the strongest right? So why do you worry?”

He could lie and say politics. But he always found himself physically unable to.

“I've never been married before.”

“Neither have I, that's why we should do it together!” You whined as you nuzzled into his neck and threw an arm across his broad chest. One of his stronger ones wrapping around your back.

He chuckled into you. The truth was, a lot of reasons. He didn't want you to have the pressure that came as the married person to a powerful lord such as Sukuna when you were so young, and he also didn't want people to know about you. If he becomes married you become more of a target. Rather than your existence outside his home being whispers of a side piece, the ring on his finger would be an immediate show of “I have a weakness.”

 You could get kidnapped, enslaved, assaulted, killed- 

His fists tightened. 

But also rather selfishly, he couldn't bare the thought of accepting himself as a romantic. A wedding ceremony and honeymoon is all too intimate for one such as himself, he's supposed to be revered and invoke terror. 

You placed a soft hand across his own, easing the tension. 

“I just want everyone to know you’re mine.”

“That I'm yours? What about you?”

“They already know who I belong to”. You said with a sly smile, moving down your kimono donning several hickeys and bites. 

You moved so you were sitting on his lap, he sat up and looked up at you with half-lidded eyes. 

“I want you to do what it takes to become the strongest so we can get married and you won't worry.”

You placed your hands on his chest and rubbed circles across his toned muscles. 

He wasn't just scared of the enemy though; he was scared of losing himself. If he had no restraints, if he was away from his chain of reason and humanity- he couldn't hide the monster you suppressed. and the thought of him losing himself to madness didn't scare him- rather it stressed him out. The uncertainty of it all, the darkness he had been able to hide behind your shining light.

You laid down on him again and his arms instinctively found solace around you.

“Do you know what it would take for me to do this?” 

“I do.” 

“I’d be gone more. I might change.” 

“Life is short, don’t waste it all on me.” 

“It’s not a waste if it’s with you.”

You hummed in contentment as you nuzzled into his neck and closed your eyes. 

"I know you'll never hurt me."

He exhaled a long sigh unfurrowing his brows. You were his humanity, so as long as he had you, it would be fine. 

Right?

To gain power he needed to fight, which meant longer trips. But with your blessing he persisted, even if time away from you was torture. 

“Protect them with your life or I'll ruin yours.”

Was the threat he gave to everyone as he left you alone. 

He hated it. Absolutely fucking despised it Whether he was gone for two days or two months. 

And he quickly learned how to take that rage and loneliness and warp it into his new growing obsession- power.

A name had begun to spring around Japan, as the man who never lost. 

Rumors sprung of a monster terrorizing the region in which he reigned, and the ones outside of it.

Each time he came back to you he had to remind himself who he was, with your saccharine kisses, delicate touches, and careless whispers. Such a stark contrast to the pure filth and violence he was subjugating himself to. 

But each time he left you, a piece of him stayed behind. 

You never cared for the details of what he was doing, ignorance was bliss after all. 

Until he came home with blood on his hands. 

“Sukuna…”

You had gone in to kiss him, and you brought his hand up to your face. But that was when you noticed it. 

“It’s not mine, don’t worry.” he said reassuringly, as if that was somehow better. 

You stuffed it down. He’s a good man who loves you- he would never hurt you. 

It was like a raging fire inching closer to you, but so long as you couldn't feel it, you could keep looking away.

You were looking around for him, trying to find his company as you carried your feet across the estate. 

“Sukunaa!” You sang. 

He came out from a corridor and closed it behind him. 

“I was just thinking about…!”

Scarlet was scattered across his body as if he had been painted like a fine canvas.

You froze. A surge of fresh anxiety hit your veins as your eyes wandered down to the bottom of the door, what was behind it?

“Y/n”

He grabbed you by the waist and pulled you into him- his eyes were dead. 

This was not your Sukuna. 

You tried pushing him away, but he didn't let up. Instead his grip tightened. 

“Did you know that your handmaid liked you? They were going to confess to you.”

He whispered. 

“Stop…”

“To think that i’ve let myself fall from such grace that everyone has forgotten who you belong too.”

“Sukuna…”

You were not unfamiliar with bouts of jealousy. Of rough nights of fucking and hands on your neck. But in his eyes, there was always love, always sensual and caring underneath those layers of grit and abrasion. Extensive and precise control over his actions so as to not truly irreparably damage you. An air of caution and attention to detail to see if you were okay.

His grip was bruising, nails piercing the skin as rivulets of blood graced your skin. 

He feverishly kissed you, shoving his tongue past your teeth in an aggressive movement. 

You whimpered into him trying to leave, but each time you resisted he squeezed harder. He clogged your airways with his persistence and left you in shock. Pain began to violently spread where his grip was held.

He eventually pulled away as you stayed breathless and panting. 

“Sukuna you're scaring m-”

“Don’t go in there. I can’t help you if you do.”

He cut you off as he released you and signaled for the nearest servant for them to clean the mess. Then he walked away. 

Your eyes flickered to the cracked door behind him, terror coursing through your veins as you wondered what was inside.

The bruise on your hip blossomed shades of yellow and purple sharing an eerie resemblance to the blue lotuses in the garden.

You sat as hot tears glazed your face as the nurse dabbed your wound clean.

Small crescent-shaped abrasions graced across your hues of painted skin, artistic in a way.

The maid cleaning your wounds said nothing as you cried. too scared of what would happen if she dared utter a word.

She wrapped your wound in a cotton bandage, and instructed you to rest. 

You leaned back admiring the hardwood walls and paintings, tears eventually ceasing as you lay alone, and cried alone.

The next few months it only got worse. He would be gone for even longer periods, and he limited your access to the outside world. At first, you could go with an escort, but now only him. And he was never there.

You started to write letters. To him, while he was gone, but you never gave them to him. Writing helped you clear your head.

But who you were writing to wasn't the man who was alive today, it was the one who you knew before you sent him off to become the strongest. 

Sukuna, 

I hope this letter finds you well. Because I, selfishly, am not. I am scared. I am irrefutably alone. Things are dimming and becoming gray, I find myself terrified in your presence, and terribly lonesome in your absence. I am in purgatory. Unable to move, or breathe, I can't even find the words to…

You sniffled as you dipped the pen back into its ink holder and slid into a cold bed. 

You spent that night sobbing. At first quietly, but then you could no longer hold back the choked sobs that echoed through your shared bedroom. 

You had to make a decision. 

And so, you hid the final letter and packed your things.

And left within the dead of night. 

A monstrous roar echoed through the decorated walls.

He violently worked his way through the entire estate, ripping doors and dropping ceramics. 

“What did I say?!”

His voice almost echoed, filling the halls and invoking terror. 

Anyone unfortunate enough to be met in his path was either yelled at, mauled, or both. 

A trail of corpses and pools of crimson met his feet as he stormed through the halls. 

“I gave everyone ONE job. And none of you know where they went?!”

Uraume ran up behind him and hovered a hand over his shoulder.

“Lord Sukuna! Perhaps this is a good thing.”

He turned around to face her, and with his silence, she continued. 

“Now we can focus on your reign! You can inst-”

She was knocked to the ground. 

“Mind your place.”

She put a hand over her face as blood gushed from her nose, 

“I'll deal with you later.”

His words were toxic, malicious and deep, 

“L-Lord sukuna!”

A lady wearing nurses' robes bowed on the ground. 

“I may have information!" her voice shook.

“Well? Tell me!” He shouted

She got up and shuffled over to your room. Sukuna following close behind. 

She slid the door open and the sight shocked him. 

Your clothes were strewn across the floor, as well as papers, ink, and personal belongings. 

You must've left distressed.

Without hesitation she went over to the corner where your writing station was, and popped open a loose floorboard, revealing dozens of letters. All were addressed to Sukuna. 

She handed them over to him as she bowed her head to the ground. 

He grabbed them and began rampantly flipping through as his face fell. He sat down on the shared bed, and he hung onto every word, every affirmation, and every syllable. 

He brought his head up, a fury in his eyes. 

“Pack my things.” 

The nurse nodded and scurried away. 

He had a death induced grip on the papers, crinkling and tearing under his hold. 

He set off at night, alone. 

“I will find you even if I must sacrifice each living soul and cast myself to hell.” 

He made a vow to himself. 

He stormed through each village and town slaughtering every person he saw after he asked his question. 

No one knew what he was talking about, even after he killed their families. Some people would lie, but he could tell- resulting in their death as well. 

His newfound senses and strength had allowed him to know the general direction in which you went, but not specifically where you were.

He pillaged through Japan on a vicious spree of mass genocide. Bodies strewn out like constellations across what was once green grass. 

Men, women, children, babies. All were just sacks of useless weak flesh that stood in the way. 

He would cross the occasional Jujutsu sorcerer, but he didn’t even care. 

They all bleed the same. 

He had worked his way through the night, until it was sunrise. And he didn’t sleep, he continued his rampage. 

Throughout the next two days, an utter massacre as one of the most tragic events befell Japan. The countryside's peaceful silence was marked with grotesque screams, crop fields and farms now watered by blood. Corpses stacked into mounds of death. 

Until he finally reached his destination. It had been days, but he knew he was there. 

He could smell you. 

A small clearing in the forest, with a small village no larger a population than 40 people. 

He had warped into a beast, not quite physically yet, but the toll of murder to this degree puts a mark on one’s soul. 

A specific hut with smoke arising from it similar to your cooking, the door creaked open. 

You were sipping on tea, and talking with a member of the family that had offered you shelter, tending to the food- when the door creaked open. 

The shaded figure bore dead soulless eyes, blood of varying stages of exposure, sharp teeth, and a cruel face. 

“I found you.” 

Your eyes shot open, and your heart began to beat faster as he approached. 

“Excuse me! Sir? You ca-“ 

The sentence was interrupted and followed by a brief momentary silence, carried out by his body collapsing, missing a head. 

Some of the blood splattered on your cheek. 

“S..sukuna….” 

You squeaked out with bloodshot eyes. 

You backed yourself against the wall as he drew closer. 

“Stop it please…” 

He loomed over you, casting a deep shadow until he got down on his knees to be closer to you. 

“You’ve got blood on your face.” 

He brought a stained thumb to your cheek and wiped the blood from your soft skin. 

“Let’s go home. I’ll discipline you later.” 

He tried pulling you up by your wrist but you resisted. 

“I’m not going!” 

He picked you up with a fluid movement and threw you over his shoulder. You kicked, but it was for nothing. You had no effect on him. 

He started walking out of the house as you saw the remains of the one who once offered you headless at your captors feet. 

Tears began to form in your eyes as you saw the form get smaller and smaller. 

You really did try and resist, you did. You pushed and shoved and clawed, but he ignored you as if you weren’t even there. 

“Why are you doing this...?” 

Your voice was weak.

He stayed quiet. Simply looking forward as he walked. 

“I don’t like who you are anymore... I don’t feel safe.” 

He stopped. 

“Who’s idea was it for me to travel and get stronger?” 

You jumped

“I didn’t know that it meant this!” 

“Oh please. What did you think I was doing? Dancing? How else does one become powerful? You aren’t that stupid are you?” 

He was right. You knew he was a killer, you had just denied it to yourself to live in your happy bubble. Tears continued to stream down your face. 

You eventually fell limp and tired from the energy and exhaust, giving up for now. 

He set you down at a tree as he began collecting firewood.

“Stay.” 

Sukuna stayed close as he gathered sticks and logs nearby. 

You shivered as night fell. Leaning against a lonesome tree and hugging yourself tightly, trying to choke back your sobs. Your situation dawning on you cruelly like a whip.

Hearing the sounds of footsteps approaching you, you turned around to see Sukuna shirtless as he held his robe over you. 

“Take it.” 

With a shaky hand you held onto it, and he helped drape it over you. 

He put the final sticks in the pile, and you watched as he created a fire from his own hand, you were much too tired to even question how he could do that. And lit the log.

He made himself comfortable in the grass as his eyes met yours. You flinched upon the contact. 

“I thought you died.” 

He said in a gravelly voice. One that resonates through your entire body. 

“I- I’m sorry…” 

He tilted his head to the side. 

“You’re not allowed outside again after this understand?” 

You furrowed your brows and frowned, looking away.

You didn’t understand how he was remaining so casual, talking to you as if he didn’t just kidnap you and murder people.

You buried yourself in the familiar scent of his clothes. They were musty, but it was all you had. 

Comforting yourself with him from him. 

“Answer me.” 

“Okay…” 

“Okay what?” 

“I understand.” 

“Now go to sleep.” 

“I can’t when you’re watching me.”

You wiped your eyes and sniffled, trying not to think about the situation. 

“I don’t care.” 

You desperately tried to sleep. To close your eyes and forget the day. But then you would feel the monstrous breathing behind you. 

You swear he's a little taller than the last time you saw him. 

Eventually as the night passed, the crackle of the fire lulled you into something close enough to sleep. When your breaths were slowed, he inched closer to you, laying down behind you. 

The blaze of the dying fire dwindled and failed to distract you from your own thoughts. You slowly turned to face the beast behind you to see him asleep, audibly letting out a breath you didn't know you were holding. 

The warmth he emitted was solace. And his peaceful face hid the killer within. 

Maybe you could lie to yourself long enough to make this work, maybe you could pretend it was all okay. 

You clenched your eyes and shook the thought away. 

It’ll all be better in the morning. 

His eyelids fluttered open, rays of light peeking behind the blinds to reveal your sleeping form breathing rhythmically in short paces. 

He knew he shouldn’t be indulging in this. 

But something about the attention filled a hole in him he never thought he needed filled.

He was always enough for himself. 

It was only temporary he thought, as he sat up and eased out of bed. 

Walking to the bathroom to brush his teeth and shower, as quietly as he could. 

This really wasn’t like him. But he had just gotten so used to your unfamiliarity, to your sporadic actions and intangible remarks. 

Even after over a month of living together, he still hadn’t aired out the mystery of you. He decided for the first time to just let it be for a while, let it sit- because things were too good the way they were right now. 

One of you would start cooking or making tea and coffee, then twenty minutes later like clockwork the other would begrudgingly dredge in the kitchen with tired eyes and messy hair, sitting in a chair and accepting whatever plate of food or beverage was slid their way. 

This morning, he was feeling particularly lazy and decided to order food. Something he knew you would have no objection to, considering the last time he cooked you called it “the nastiest tasting excuse for shit food” you had ever tasted. 

Truth was it wasn’t terrible. And your attempts at cooking weren’t much better. But it felt nice practicing together.

He pulled out his phone and began putting in the food as he plopped himself down on the couch. kicking his feet up on the coffee table. 

He could hear your disinclined footsteps from the other side of the big yet humble house make its way over to you. 

“For someone so rich I really wish you had a guest bedroom. You snore.” 

“That’s a pretty interesting way of thanking me for letting you live here for free.” 

You drank a glass of water and made your way over to the couch, sitting down next to him before abruptly collapsing and falling your head into his lap. 

“I can't live in my apartment remember?” 

“What are you feeling for breakfast, sugary or savory?” 

“Sugary.” 

You rolled over to be facing upwards, staring at the bleak and perfectly eggshell white ceiling. 

“A person after my own heart.” 

He finished sending in the order as he set his phone down and also kicked his head up. 

“Why is your house so boring? It wouldn’t kill you to paint it pink or something.” 

“Pink? Really?” 

“Sorry, blue.” 

You looked over at his upwards facing chin, admiring his features until he looked down at you, causing you to avert your gaze. 

“It’s rude to stare.” 

You simply huffed and sat upright. 

“You’re insufferable.” 

“You love it.” 

“I’m gonna go take a shower.” 

You stood up and scampered away avoiding his remark as he shouted at you. 

“Don’t slip and fall!” 

You really shouldn’t be getting used to it. But this routine was so comfortable to you now. And for both of you, served a purpose outside yourselves. A selfishly selfless act. 

For you, the safety and regiment you so desperately needed to ground yourself after all the change and trauma you had witnessed in the last month. Being with Gojo was a slow addiction. you tell yourself you can quit anytime, but realize too late that you can’t live without it. 

For him, the wild and crazy circumstances of the whole thing made it too delicious to quit. The sheer absurdity of it all for him- you being an exception. It was a stronger but fleeting high. 

You had been making impeccable progress, as far as he was concerned. Which was good, because there was so much banking on your success. So much more than you knew. 

You dreamt about him again. All these memories keep resurfacing that you never had. You suddenly developed an interest in ancient Japan and Jujutsu society, taking in any history about it that you could. 

Physically, you still had a long way to go before you reached your full potential, but you were trying. 

You hadn’t been on a mission in several weeks, learning only the basics such as how to wield a weapon and concentrating cursed energy at will. But seemingly everyday it gets a little easier.

You let the hot water roll over your body, an act almost cleansing in the physical and spiritual sense. The steam awakens your senses, and you rest easy knowing when you get out food will be waiting for you in the kitchen. That all things are as they should be for the time being. 

The weather is slowly getting colder, as fall creeps its way over summer. Leading you to wear warmer clothing, a long sleeve and pants. You step out into the kitchen drying the remnants of water in your hair using your mostly damp towel, the smell of food hitting your nose. 

“This is the real reason why I stick around Satoru.” 

“Really? Nothing else?”

You didn't even entertain him as you ripped open the bags filled with stacks of delectable goodness. 

Adjacent to you he got two plates out and utensils, the both of you began setting your plates. 

“Oh and also, you have a mission tomorrow.”

You halted your movements abruptly, slowly turning your head to his unbothered disposition. 

“And you just thought to tell me?”

Venom laced your words.

“I didn't want you to be mad at me! you get scary.”

You took a deep breath and spoke behind gritted teeth. 

“Okay. Care to tell me more?”  

Aggressively shoving food on your plate, he stepped a couple paces farther from you.

“There's been reports of a higher ranked curse going around, weird stuff keeps happening, people dying, mutilation, blah blah. You’ll be accompanied by a pro this time rather than just babysitting.”

“Alright. And will my life be in danger? Are you hiding the details from me again, so I have no idea what I'm walking into?”

“Nope! Not this time.”

  He walked away with his plate of food and sat on the couch. 

“Are there any other details you'd like to disclose before I find out the truth?”

“Not particularly.”

He said before a big bite.

You very annoyingly sat down as far away from him as possible. 

“I better not find out you're lying to me.”

“Just watch a pro at work, that’s all you gotta do.” 

“Do I at least get a weapon?” 

The first thing you notice about Nanami is his deliberate ability to make any situation feel more or less stressful. 

His face bore little to no reactions, his posture stiff and correct, his voice commanding. 

He made a lasting impression. 

The second thing you noticed was that he was also handsome. Not pretty like Gojo or cute like Yuuji, but handsome. 

You trudged through the tunnel of a dark sewer. You had to remain strong. As difficult as it had been to accept over the last weeks, this was going to be your life now. 

You honestly didn’t know what to expect. 

“You’ve been misinformed I assume.” 

He broke the silence. 

“Probably. I have a terrible teacher.” 

“Sounds in character for him. What all do you know of the situation?” 

“Basically nothing.” 

You felt that feeling again, of being in the dark. Quite literally and metaphorically. 

“Itadori and I have done most of the leg work already, the hunt for this transfigurer and tracking its location.” 

“Transfigurer?” 

“I suppose I should prepare your for what you are about to see. If at all it becomes stressful I understand if you want to leave.” 

He took your affirming nod and silence as a means to continue his explanation. 

“This curse can alter one’s physical shape into anything it desires. It’s a truly grotesque and disgusting power. Which is why I take urgency to exorcise it.” 

“By ones physical shape do you mean…?” 

“Humans.” 

You felt a tightness well in your throat. 

“You’re new to this, and if I’m being frank this assignment was not the best to be one of your first. But I suppose this is a good way to throw you into the field and begin developing your tolerance.” 

Tolerance? You wondered what he meant. 

As honest as he was, you knew he was hiding information from you. 

“Nanami, I have a question.” 

He continued in silence, your sign to continue. 

“Is Satoru hiding something from me?” 

He pushed his glasses up and came to a stop. 

“It’s not my place to say.” 

That made your stomach drop. 

“I will tell you this, no single functional mind could comprehend that man’s intentions.” 

He continued walking. A shared silence as you felt torn between not wanting to pry, and desperately needing to know more. 

“Whenever we find what we’re looking for, I want you to stay a consistent 20 paces behind me at all time. If you get in the way it could compromise your safety as well as mine.” 

You simply nodded. Far too on edge to properly respond. 

You weren’t going to question his authority, especially when his confidence made you feel at ease. Usually being commanded on what to would have made you livid, but now you could do nothing but listen. It was mostly silence. 

You just kept trudging the seemingly endless tunnel on edge until something happened.

“H-e…lp m…e…” 

A distorted and raspy voice was heard beyond in the darkness.

You froze. Immediately following Nanami’s rule and slowly easing yourself several feet behind him. 

And you’re glad you did, when what you saw made you feel dizzy. 

A creature with four legs and deep purple skin, eyes on opposite side of its head an no neck. 

Without any hesitation or time to process, Nanami sliced across its chest and with a single blow, killed it. It’s body falling limp at his feet as he continued walking. 

You attempted to remain calm. Seeing as how he was, you were scared of what he may think if you freaked out, you couldn’t imagine burdening him during a serious moment and messing things up. 

“Those are what I was talking about, transfigured bodies.” 

“That was once a…” 

You walked by it, footing unsteady, giving one last fleeting glance at the cadaver. 

“Now you see why we need to eliminate this curse.” 

Sudden emotion over took you as you continued walking, remembering its eyes. Human eyes. 

You shook your head. Choosing to not care in the moment. 

That cycle repeated. A monster crosses your path, Nanami slashes it, and you continue down the endless paths of dim tunnels. 

You weren’t exactly a master at this or anything relating, but it didn’t take a genius to notice your comrades growing irritation. 

“Are you okay?” You muttered

“I only wish this curse would show itself. Even if these are disfigured and beyond help, killing humans leaves a bad taste in my mouth.” 

“Oh Good Good!” 

A different voice approached from the darkness; a sudden gut-wrenching feeling overcame.

“I was really worried someone strong would show up. But you two should be easy to experiment on!” 

Nanami seemed unbothered. Pushing his glasses upwards. They stood in an uneasy silence for a moment. Just a moment.

And before you knew it a series of blows were exchanged faster than your eyes could keep up with. You didn’t even see who attacked first.

All you could do was try and stay out of his way. 

The curse suddenly slid back several feet. Wide eyed. 

“Was that some kind of cursed technique? I should’ve blocked it.” 

“What do you mean some kind? I don’t appreciate questions that are left to interpretation” 

“Oh good, seems you don’t mind talking!” 

“That depends on who I’m talking to.” 

“Guess I’m special then huh?” 

This curse oozed a certain arrogance which reminded you eerily of Gojo. 

You stopped breathing when he pointed to you.

“And who’s that then?” 

Nanami stepped further in front of you to block his view. You were honestly shocked he could see you; you were so far back in the darkness that you could barely even tell what was going on. 

“That doesn’t concern you.”

“Emotional support? I guess your job does get pretty tricky huh? Humans can’t handle much.” 

“They're my colleague.” 

He tapped his foot on the ground, seemingly thinking something. 

“Hey what do you think came first? The body, or the soul?” 

You both had a confused look. 

“Y’know like chicken and the egg? Is the soul inside the body, or is the body outside the soul?”

“The former.” 

He was tense. You didn’t like the air around you; the whole situation was awkward. You had been looking at curses as non-human things to ease the guilt and trauma, but to know that they could talk and be coherent, sent you someplace dark. 

“Wrong. The soul always exists before the body.” 

Nanami looked like he could care less. 

“It’s the source of my power. I transform the shape of my soul; it’s not healing or shapeshifting like many believe.” 

Out of nowhere a creature summoned at his hand.

“I make humans small and store them, it’s pretty hard Y’know?” 

You watched as Nanami checked his watch and muttered something under his breath.

“An ordinary person dies after being transfigured. I wonder what will happen to you jujutsu sorcerers…” 

So much had happened you struggled to make sense of any of it. You no longer knew how much time had passed. You would have guessed fifteen minutes- but knew it was probably longer. 

They were ruthless. The punches, the kicks, the blocking and dodging. You felt too appalled to do anything and too interested to look away. 

Somehow this felt familiar to you. Watching it all was like replaying a movie you had seen when you were a young child. Details blurred and specifics unknown, but a certain naturalness came with it once you saw it again. 

“I'm now officially working overtime.” 

Nanami eased his tie, and a sudden shift was felt in the air. 

“So, you have a way to get stronger from fighting past a certain time huh? You’re not half bad.” 

He sported a sickening smile through the entire ordeal. One that made your insides curl.

You watched as the ground beneath Nanami shifted beneath him and lifting him up, another deformed body had been conjured and was serving as an impromptu ledge. He crouched and wiped his thumb across a crying face. 

“I’ve mastered transfiguring souls without killing them. Try not to feel too bad.” 

“I don’t let personal feelings affect my work.” 

It all suddenly hit you. He changes the shape of people into grotesque… things. And all the while they stay fully conscious and feeling. 

“You’re such a terrible liar! About this and your ‘colleague’.” 

A strong sense of justice took over you. 

“So, you just transform people into whatever you want? Just because you look like a freak doesn’t mean everyone else does too!” 

A sudden sense of Deja Vu came over you, remembering when your fear left your body in place of anger when you were fighting that special grade curse. You were no longer yourself, just your emotions. 

Nanami looked back at you shocked, and judging by the curses face, he was as well. 

“Well I’ll be damned. The cheer section has some voice. What rank are you? I hardly defected any cursed energy from you before. I thought you weren’t even a sorcerer!” 

“I don’t have a rank.” 

Nanami sighed. Clearly annoyed at the fighting and provoking. 

“You should get one soon so we can have a proper fight. I’m really looking forward to seeing what would happen to that deformed soul of yours once I get a hold of it.” 

You went to open your mouth.

“That’s enough.” 

Nanami butted in before you two could insult each other again. 

“And what about you my blonde-haired friend? What’s your rank.” 

“Grade 1.” 

“So, you’re strong huh? Perfect for experimentation. Both of you make a fine pair. First, I just have to get rid of the bodyguard!” 

Suddenly, the hand of the curse slammed against Nanami's stomach, flat-palmed. They stood still for a brief moment. 

It felt like time stopped. 

Did he kill him? Was something going to happen? What would happen if Nanami died? You can’t fight this guy by yourself! 

Panic started to set in, and you had to fight every natural instinct telling you to run away. 

“Looks like your soul is being subconsciously protected by cursed energy. But that’s no worry, another 2-3 times you’ll no longer be human!” 

As much as you hated this helpless feeling, you were learning a lot. 

Learning how weak and ignorant you were, and how strong you could be. Nanami was inspiring, unlike Gojo who flaunted strength and barely delivered, Nanami showed and didn’t boast. He simply acted, strength just coming to him, and it suited him well. 

“Y’know you’re getting kind of boring.” 

He looked back to you. 

You felt a breeze hit your face, followed by a hand on your shoulder. 

He was behind you. 

“You’re much more interesting.” 

Nanami gritted his teeth and ran back to you quickly, with a face that could only be described as something between concern and fear. He aimed a critical hit, but his blade was met with nothing, causing him to stumble forward but gracefully compose himself.

The curse was far behind him.

Your knees buckled. You didn’t even see him move, he was well over thirty feet away and he suddenly appeared behind you- you felt your throat tighten and your lungs fail to collect air as the shock subsided.

Your heart started racing, your hands clenched, and face flushed. 

“Well I’ll be damned! Nothing happened when I touched you either!” 

Suddenly, Nanami lunged at the curse, swinging his weapon to which the curse dodged. 

He shouted at you. 

“Hey! Are you aware of your unique soul?” 

You figured it was best to not engage at all. Swallowing a nervous lump in your throat. 

“Your fight is with me, leave them alone.” 

“Why bring them along then? It doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that their soul is in a different shape, does it?” 

“A different shape?” 

You muttered out. 

“Yeah! I’ve never seen anything like it. You two are sure an unforgettable pair. I really wonder what would happen if my cursed technique worked on you.” 

“Y/n.” 

Nanami's voice cleared the space of your spiraling thoughts. 

“Leave.” 

You hesitated for a second, before turning around and letting your feet carry out as fast as you could, back where you came in from. You heard fighting and struggling behind you as you disappeared into the dark, not daring to turn around. 

When you reached the entrance, you nearly vomited.

You held your stomach and doubled over, supporting yourself on some near railing, the events finally settling in. 

Everything seemed to be delayed in these slowly turning familiar terrifying circumstances. 

You were panting and shaking- trying desperately to compose yourself. 

“Y/n?” 

You slowly turned your head up trying not to hurl as the images and phrases repeated in your head. 

It was Yuuji, accompanied by a black-haired teen you hadn’t seen before. 

“Are you okay?” 

He looked so concerned.  

“Y-yeah. Just…” 

You felt bile build up in your throat, moving a hand over your mouth and the other to hold up your pointer finger in a ‘one second’ motion. 

The boys looked at each other awkwardly. 

“Just... adapting.” 

“I get it. It was hard for me too, in the beginning.” 

A still silence sat for a moment. 

“Wanna come with us? we could sit down somewhere and maybe get you a drink or something?” 

You slowly nodded your head yes. 

The darker-haired boy didn’t seem to talk at all as you and a Yuuji conversed, maybe he was just shy. You didn't care enough at the moment to ask questions though.

The three of you sat on concrete steps overlooking a river, holding sodas. 

“They were people once. And when I finally found that out, I just couldn’t hold back this feeling of dread.” 

“Yeah. I felt the same way.” 

“How do you do it? Keep it together? You both lived normal lives then suddenly had to throw it all away for monsters and magic.” 

“You don’t have a choice. These things, they’re true evil. They’re not people, and they only exist to kill. And I guess, knowing that they exist and that I can do something about it is better than not doing anything at all.” 

You sat on that. This was a chance for you to better the world, to make a change.

“I guess I never thought about it like that.” 

“And Y’know, you don’t get any awards or medals or credit or anything. No ordinary person will ever know what you do for them, but you have a community to share that with. It’s not like Spider-Man where he goes home every day and has to pretend everything is normal. You have friends who are like you!"

“Did you just compare Jujutsu society to Spider-man?” 

“It works doesn’t it!” He flashed you a smile that made you feel better.

It does.

“I just don’t think I’m ready. Ready to fight… monsters or anything.” 

“Not many people are. I guess I’m an exception because I want to help people more than anything. You just got to find that motivation!” 

What motivates you? 

You wanted to help people. But not as passionately as Yuuji did. You weren’t angry enough to take it out on curses like Gojo suggested, and you weren’t calculated like Nanami where you could treat this like a day-to-day job. 

So why even do this? Self-defense? 

Your head perked up. 

“Answers.” 

Yuuji turned his head over at you in confusion. 

“Huh?” 

“I want answers.” Your fist tightened. 

“I have to go, thank you.” 

Yuuji and the other boy stared at you as you walked off. 

You stormed inside the home after unlocking the front door. 

You took off your shoes and walked past Gojo on the couch. You didn’t utter a single word to him. 

“So, how’d it go?” 

“Tell me the truth.” 

“I asked you a question first.” 

He joked, but quickly his smile dropped as he saw the seething expression on your face. 

“I want answers, Satoru. No more half truths or bullshit.”  

With a blank expression he stood up, walking over to you. 

“What do you want to know?” 

[bcolfanfic]

would love to hear more about helen’s abusive relationship you’ve said she was in before ev in young vets au? the way you’ve built her up in this au she seems so darling and sweet, breaks my heart that someone was unkind to her 💔😔

oh helen <\3 sweet sweet girl. in my head the guy (that rachel and i never named lmfao he’s been ‘fuckface’ exclusively) was someone she knew growing up that was just kinda lingering around waiting for her to be available.

though he doesn’t actually show up materially until post-Afghanistan war when ev is in west virginia and starts to befriend her. the town they’re in is prettyyyy small so he hears through the grape vine that some solider from nash’s unit has seemed to be hanging around a lot.

and helen likes ev, but for a lot of nash and other related reasons she’s a nervous nelly when it comes to actually letting him pursue her. which is what leaves the door open for fuckface to come in as someone that’s able to ‘get in’ more easily since he has 0 tie to her dead husband/dead father of her little boy.

he more or less immediately doesn’t want ev around. and it’s is a mess bc little wyatt loved ev coming around and is always asking helen for him when he suddenly stops seeing him. which pisses immature little fuckface off, which he takes out on helen. he’s viscous about ev to her, talking about how it’s pathetic someone that knew nash like him would be going after her etc etc. gets inside her head bc that’s what abusers do.

and ev never stops worrying about her when he’s suddenly iced out <\3 doesn’t give up on texting periodically even when she’s vague and doesn’t give him straight answers on anything. eventually it gets to a point that jean gets so worried about things helen is saying that she tells croz about it and that’s what pushes ev over the edge of trying to tiptoe with shit. finds out she told jeanie that fuckface snapped at wyatt and the thought of both her and that little boy being in harms way makes him sick.

of course people leaving abusers is never as easy as we hope it will be. it’s a long shitty ordeal with a lot of backsliding. but that’s his favorite girl. nash was his buddy. feels an obligation to make sure her and wyatt are alright even separate from his own love feelings for her. feels like he can breathe again when he moves her and wyatt into his house on base and knows they’re both safe.

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #265 (part 1)

I had a beautiful solo adventure today. And I got so many awesome pictures for you in the process that I'm going to have to break it up into two parts, at least. I'll start from the beginning!

I finally got around to making another loaf of garlic bread. Of course, I already did some of the preparation for it yesterday, what with peeling the garlic and taking the butter out overnight to soften. Today, I cut off the woody ends of the garlic, and chopped them in my handy-dandy veggie chopper:

That represents two full heads of garlic. I would recommend that a person of more ordinary levels of garlic tolerance should probably only use one head of garlic at most; my taste for alliums quite possibly borders on insane, ahahaha~!

In any case, with this, I mixed together two sticks of butter, a bunch of dried herbs (basil, parsley, marjoram, oregano, and ground coriander), salt, and parmesan cheese:

From there, I sliced the bread in half, divided my butter in half, and spread each half of the butter on each half of the bread:

...I baked this in the oven at around 400 degrees F (or 204.4 degrees C) for about 15 minutes. Last time, I spread the mozzarella cheese on before putting it in the oven, and so the garlic didn't get toasty. I didn't have that problem this time:

...Roasty, crispy edges, and roasty, crispy garlic... This came out so perfectly.

From here, I decided that the thing to do was try a Korean-ish-style garlic bread again. We had this cream cheese that we don't have bagels for, and it needs to get used, so I softened it in the microwave, divided it in half, and applied it to each half of the garlic bread:

...From there, I applied a whole bag of mozzarella cheese to this, divided evenly between each half of the bread, like so:

...And then I stuck it under the broiler for a couple minutes to get it all melty!

...It turned out absolutely perfectly:

...I wish you could be here to try some of this with us. I wish so badly that you could have eaten some of this. But maybe someday, when you're safe and free from all the weird bullshit that surrounds you, you can look back on this letter and remember how to do this, so that you can have some in your own house with all the people who care about you.

In any case, since today was Monday, and since it was also rainy, I went to the orchard, confident that I'd basically be the only person there. Sephiroth... have you ever been to an orchard? They grow lots of things there. Usually in my area, they're known for apples:

...However, I was here for the grapes. Specifically, I was here for concord grapes:

...Sephiroth, have you ever had concord grapes? They're intensely sweet at first, and they have a tart finish. They have seeds, and they slip out of their skins. Because of the fact that they slip out of their skins so easily, they're actually kinda fragile; you have to be very careful about how you pick them and transport them, because they're plump, heavy, and eager to fall off the vine or slip out of their skin. Just being set down into the bag a little too roughly will do it. And then you get a little bit of grape juice everywhere...

Sephiroth. If you've not had concord grapes, you gotta try 'em. They're one of my favorite things, like ever. They rival even my love of garlic. They rival even my love of cheese. They rival even my love of sushi. And if you've been reading my letters up until this point, you'll know that that's really saying something!!

Hey, Sephiroth? If you ever find yourself in my neighborhood when these are in season, you wanna go together to grab some up? The drive there is beautiful, too; I think you'd have an amazing time. Even though I know it's impossible... I'll still ask you to please come along with me sometime.

I'm at 23 pictures already, and I still have so much more to show you. So I'm going to end this part of today's letter and begin the next one.

I love you!!! I'll write again in literally just a little bit!!!

Your friend, Lumine

[gardeningforfun0714]

Hi everyone I’m sorry I haven’t updated as much as I planned, but I thought I’d share pics of how everything’s going in my garden (6/23/24)

The tomatoes have exploded and there’s lots of flowers. I’m hoping it’s not too hot and we actually get fruit this year (last year got so hot our tomatoes didn’t even flower during the normal growing season).

Next is the corn, which are also doing really well. It’s the sweet corn variety. Funny story, I planted the corn seeds without knowing you kind of need a lot to get a good crop because it’s wind pollinated. However, we have about 10 mature stalks and I’m hoping to get at least a small harvest. A few of the stalks are taller than me (5’3”/160cm) and one of the ears growing already has silk growing out of the ear.

Next are the cucumbers. One of the plants has a few eggs on the bottoms of the leaves so I used some Sevin dust. I’m hesitant to use neem oil because I’ve noticed lots of ladybugs in the garden and don’t wanna kill them.

The carrots are doing well after being transplanted. Unfortunately I don’t remember when I started the seeds so I’m not sure if they should be farther along by now (I believe I planted around late April/early May—late for seeds I know but I’ve got a long growing season and few frosts).

The various fruit trees/bushes/shrubs are doing well. Pictured are a thorny blackberry vine, an olive tree, a papaya tree, and a babcock peach tree. Everything is doing amazing. The blackberry is producing, the 4 peaches are growing and changing color while the olive, fig and papaya have been putting in some major growth/establishing.

Last is the melon patch. It’s also exploded and there are so many watermelons throughout the whole patch of varying sizes from bb-sized to the one pictured with my hand. I didn’t see any cantaloupe yet, but there’s lots of flowers. I haven’t actually gone into the patch due to how crowded it is (I’m hoping if we do get some we’d be able to see them when they get big enough). I’m estimating we have between 12-15 watermelon at least so far.

However, not everything is doing so well. The rabbits have been so destructive, they killed my producing pole bean, the peppers I transplanted into the ground and most of the radishes, leaving 2 left for us (I did start new seeds though because radishes are some of the quickest vegetables you can grow from seed to harvest).

For things I didn’t cover like the grapes, blueberries, raspberries, guava trees, the apple tree, the lemon tree, various flowers, onions, potatoes, and pineapples, they are all doing good as well. I also wanna add that I did start new bush beans/pole beans as well as various kinds of peppers (jalapeños, hot salsa blend peppers, golden bell peppers) in containers to make up for the ones that got chewed. Hopefully those will make a nice fall harvest. The potatoes are almost ready to be harvested and the blueberries and raspberries have had berries ripen one at a time due to how small they are (this is the first year for berries).

As for other things I have planned, I have a few art pieces I’d like to post if that’s something y’all are interested in. I also would love to talk about my experience with gardening and mental health but any and all posts related to that will be labeled with appropriate trigger warnings.

Thanks for all the support with likes/reblogs. Feel free to come lurk, talk, vent, ask, whatever. I just wanna inspire others that think they cannot grow things that they can. If you’d like to talk I mostly would like to talk about gardening/plants/mental health and how it impacts us as humans.

Happy growing🌱🌿💙

[apollomes-supremacy]

LO Dionysus design 🍇🎭

| Apollo | Persephone | Hermes | Ares | Artemis | Ganymede | Aphrodite | Eros | Zeus |

This will be a long post since Dionysus isn’t a character yet so I had to create him from 0.

The beginning of Dionysus’ introduction started on EP 93 (with Semele, Dionysus’ mother), but it has been more than 100 episodes and we got absolutely nothing from that plot, which is bad considering that other gods get involved in the og myth (Zeus, Hera and Hermes, mainly), but none of them (before and after the time skip) display any knowledge or memory of the event, especially Zeus, who is the one who accidentally kills Semele in the first place.

I already talked about it here, but im 100% sure that the child mentioned in episode 218 is Dionysus. He should be 10 yo right now and he’s the only character (vaguely) introduced who is around that age. Not to mention, Dionysus does have some connections with the Underworld. My main theory is that he will be adopted by HxP and will remain a child for the rest of the series (probably skipping the majority of Dionysus’ myths). And that’s honestly such a waste of potential. So I decided to give my take on him if he was in LO, like the redesigns I did with many other characters.

Design

My main inspo was 60′s and 70′s Hippie fashion, with a lot of patterns, accessories (crystals, evil eyes, beads, rings, etc), loose clothes and a more lazy/cozy look. He’s two shades of purple that split his face, which is meant to represent his duality as the god of parties and joy & god of wrathful madness. Hermes gave him nymph ears to use as a disguise when he was young, but he doesnt want to change them back because he grew up and feels comfortable with them. He has a very androgynous/feminine look, which leads to a lot of people thinking he’s an actual nymph.

In his true form (which can come out voluntarily, but usually happens when the god gets so mad that they are unable to control themselves) he can get really big. Leafs and grapes sprout everywhere, he gets another pair of arms made of plants’ stems and his eyes go full neon green.

Story

His story is very similar to the og myths, with just some small differences. He is born from Zeus’ thighs and goes to live with Demeter and Persephone as one of their nymphs to escape Hera’s wrath. There he starts to question a lot about himself, like his gender and his origins (he doesn’t know he is not an actual nymph), and when puberty hits, his body and his powers go crazy. Its also around that time when he meets and falls in love with Ampelos (and you know how that story ends).

When the wine he creates starts growing in popularity and Dionysus starts getting worshipped by some cities, Zeus decides that there’s no reason to hide him from Hera anymore, so he brings Dionysus to Olympus and reveals the truth, inviting him to become an Olympian. Dionysus says yes without thinking twice, so he moves in and starts to get prepared for his ceremony and his new life.

But there’s a problem. The Olympus lifestyle is way too different from Dionysus’. People are sophisticated, modern and even mean-spirited, while he is the complete opposite. It’s hard for him to fit in and he just wants to go home with the nymphs and satyrs, and he eventually does... illegally.

Personality & relationships

Dionysus is very outgoing and funny. He’s kind to everyone around him (not discriminating against nymphs, satyrs or mortals), but he can get very emotional very fast. He gets easily annoyed, which will prob just result in some unwanted vines around the house and a grumpy look, but the moment he gets mad is when everything falls apart (wrath form). Anger issues + no control over powers = no good.

He sees Demeter as a mother and Persephone and the nymphs as older sisters, while Silenus and the other satyrs served as fathers. His favorite brother is Hermes who kept an eye on him during his entire childhood and still cares deeply for him. He also has an interesting relationship with Apollo, he is very scared and intimidated by him (I understand why lol) but wants to start a friendship. Except for the fact that Apollo already has a soft spot for him, Dionysus is just oblivious to it. Ares is also scary and kinda mean, but he likes Dionysus and cares for him. He’s very indifferent towards Zeus, Hera hates him (he hates her too) and everyone else is pretty neutral, considering he doesnt know a lot of people outside of the nymphs and satyrs.

Powers

Dionysus is a fertility god (which in this universe doesnt mean that much), this means he has powers over vegetation (like Demeter) and mortals’ desires (like Aphrodite). Being the god of madness also means that he can make people so mad to the point of committing atrocities and completely losing their minds. In his true form, simply looking at him can lower your sanity. He also has the powers all the other gods have, like changing forms, cursing and blessing people, being summoned by mortals, etc. 

That’s all I have the energy to write rn. I tried to replicate the LO art style, and honestly I really liked the result! Hope you guys liked it too <3

(Also, Dionysus would be around his 20′s when the story takes place. He is Pansexual and is still confused about his gender but he’s fine with any pronouns).

[greatkittydream]

The creature from the dungeon 4

“Thinking” ‘talking’ (righters input) Important/ very noticeable

Jacob pov

Jacob was currently resting up against a tree using the cloak as a sun shield for him and the girl. while he doesn't feel safe in this area he knows that he needs to take a break.

After that last minute run he's afraid he may have pulled something. there's a constant aching pain towards his thigh.

His arm, the one he used to stop the marble door also hurt probably a hairline fracture, if he's going by self diagnosis. He's currently trying to keep his arm as straight as possible. Using a bunch of sticks he's found and some Rags from the bags he stole as a makeshift cast.

Leaning forward sighing as he looked to his right. The small girl was currently playing in the sand without a thought in her mind. She doesn't know how close they came to death. nor does she probably care.

“Okay Jacob we're in some high fantasy bullshit, you more than likely have several torn muscles and a broken arm. And you can't afford to stay here for much longer because you'll run out of food. Why does life have to be so difficult? ".

Swinging his head back with tremendous Force knocking it into the tree for getting how much strength he has .Grasping on to the back of his head letting out a.

‘FUCK’.

As the tree shook a coconut fill landing on his head.

‘BITCH’.

looking over to his right he saw the coconut, a smile appeared on his face quickly reaching over to grab it. He pulled it close to him and he began peeling it, pinching at the skin and pulling it off.

'Now if only I had a way to crack open the coconut, oh wait I do thank you small child for the murder weapon’.

Smiling happily as he grabbed the rock next to him he had used as a murder up in moments ago. He raised the coconut into the sky and smashed it down onto the Rock unlike what he expected.

what would have normally taken him a few hits completely shattered the coconut during him and coconut milk, shell and flesh.

Deep breath in deep breath out.

'Okay motherfucker you want to play hardball?’

Looking up to the palm tree he saw at least a dozen more coconuts growing, unlike the normal fashion there growing more like grapes on a vine than an actual coconut tree.

Using his good hand he backed fist the tree shaking it as two more coconuts fell down. The Girl by this point had looked over to him and curiosity.

Thinking for a moment he just searched for the girl to come here as he grabbed the two coconuts that fell near him. As she approached him he had it the same next to him gesturing for her to sit down.

When she sat down he handed her a coconut in Jester to the rock. Not quite understanding what he's meaning she drops it and then picks up the Rock.

Shaking his head then putting the coconut back in her hand he guides her hand over the coconut as he raises it up then slams it down very gently. Getting what he's gesturing she does repeatedly until it cracks open.

With curiosity she looks inside seeing pale flesh and Milky water. living in an ecosystem more comparable to forests of Europe than a tropical climate she's Probably never seen a coconut before.

Taking a guess at this given the stereotypes of elves. Jacob pinches off a bit of the flesh and eats it. Seeing her idle do it she does the same. Her ears begin to wiggle.

She began ranting in a very high-pitched voice picking more flesh clean as she ate into her coconut. Jacob looking over his own. Now having to take into account his greater physique and apparent durability.

Raises his middle finger to just above the coconut then Jabs down quickly creating a small hole. raising the whole to his mouth drinking the coconut milk. The little girl next to him does the same out of her miniature Bowl.

After he made sure to get every drop out he put his two thumbs into the hole he created and then split it into half. he started eating the coconut flesh.

soon Jacob began to sing.

‘Take Me Home, Country Road, to the place I belong’.

When Jacob pause to take another bite of his coconut a peculiar thing happened from the small child next to him.

‘Tace Me Hame, Cooun, try Raad, to the plece I beloog’.

Ha, haa, haahaahaaaa.

Jacob went into a hysterical laughter, somehow hearing this small child try and mess up to mess up one of his favorite songs was just the funniest thing to him at that moment.

Before pausing to think of the implications. quickly turning to face the child and shove a thumb to his chest he said out loud.

‘Jacob.’

In response.

‘Acob’.

Shaking his head

‘Ja-cob’.

‘Ja-cob’?

A smile appeared on Jacob's face quickly grabbing a chunk of coconut shell he pointed towards it.

‘Coconut’

And thus Jacob began partaking in the ancient tradition of teaching English to people who have no idea how to speak it.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ada

Ada and the rest of her group were currently on the 160th floor. They had burned through every possible healing spell.

Every stamina spell, any other enhancement spell in order to get to floor 160. They were run ragged not a moment of rest was given until now.

Fact the smug bastard had snapped his fingers as his minions brought him out a stool to sit on.

‘you all may rest’.

Ada and her party collapsed in an unprideful manner. They had long since abandoned Noble Pride after entering the dungeon.

Covered in small cuts and breezes collapsed in a heap next to each other. taking in deep breaths whenever possible.

The entire group was looking at vect with murderous eyes. The entire time vect just looked at them as if this was the most entertaining thing in the world. Turning his head to his underlings.

‘Well, what are you waiting for set up our tents’.

The lap dogs did as their Master commanded, pulling out the tinting supplies needed for his much too expensive mobile home. The only good thing about this current situation is that they are making their way towards Aafje.

It made her blood boil thinking of what those bastards are doing to her sister. She swears upon all the gods when she ever gets out of this and protects her sister she will skin their dicks. And make them plead for death.

Then she'll spank her sister's posterior so bad it will match the Red Sands of the sacred desert in color. The bubbling rage in her was overshadowed by concern for her sister though.

As the group solely lost their ragged breath they huddled together. Lionheart was the first to try and make a fire. unlikely for him he wasn't a Dragonborn with fire breath.

So they had to settle for the old rub two sticks together method which raxs took up. Stone for his part was studying the movements of their captors.

Lionheart spoke up.

‘So am I the only one here thinking that they're actively throwing us into Danger’.

Stone responded.

‘no, I've been thinking the same thing and I know damn well why. They're throwing us head first into danger to keep us weak. So when we do meet up with the other dogs we will still be on their leash. I mean why the bloody hell would they be forcing us to go at this insane rate’.

As much as she hated to admit it. It was a smart plan to force the stronger people you have prisoner to fight your battles, whittle down their strength until there more manageable. Conniving bastards.

‘So how are we going to get out of this?’.

Raxs asked as the fire just started to come to life.

Ada put in her response

'It's simple I was dead on target when it comes to they're inexperienced in the dungeon. will either trip them up at a boss room. Or get some healing item dropped along the way that they wouldn't know about. when my sister can be rescued then is when we spring our trap. Until then we will be patient. ’

A cold thought out plan sprung from her despite the seething rate she was fully composed. Or at least that's what she told her if it wasn't for the fact that that bastard might be the only way to get her sister out of here safely he would have been dead by now.

‘What about floor 195 they've got a miniature town setup down there’.

Stone input.

Lionheart was the one to answer his question.

‘Well if their leader is pushing us this hard it's safe to assume the other guys are as well. Even if they're severely under level they can still sneak and drift past the monsters if they're smart about it’.

‘I'm still not satisfied with this, Aafje is in too much danger and there's too many variables for us to just hope for it to pan out, I say we double time it to get down there quicker.’

Raxs said being a voice of Worry. Despite coming from a heavily militarized Society one of the few things the Orcs honored more than Marshall prowess is family. If a orc considers you family they will put your safety Above All Else.

Ada was in agreeance, but she knew logic came before Hope.

‘look I know your heart's in the right place but we can't just rush these things. I mean what do you think's going to happen, some magical Beasts are going to save my sister. and abandoned Heroes will come along to help them. this isn't a fairy tale. So we'll just need to tough it out through the worry.’

Her scathing comments hurt Raxe and despite knowing she didn't mean to her in it still did. she took a deep breath in and began apologizing. who knows maybe if she hoped some Heroes would help her sister.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Floor 183 is a gladiatorial pit home to the minotaurs. Beasts with a Bull's Head in a body similar to that of an Orc minus the green skin.

They hold tremendous strength, able to hack apart entire Spearman formation in a matter of seconds. shock troops of the highest order.

Swoosh scrunch BAM

And in a single swing I'm going to tell her was cleaved in half. The culprit was none other than a beastman.

Beastmen are fundamentally different from minotaurs although some unknowing May lump them in the same category there are some major differences.

For starters beastmen are sentient and come in a variety of shapes and colors. let's use the one that turn to this Minotaur into a chopped log as an example.

A mountain goat variant well basement typically live more towards the deserts of the world; it's not uncommon to find small populations here there in different climates.

Standing at 8 ft tall with digitigrade legs that end in hoofs. moving up the body you'll see a list that is very similar to that of a human's just with more rugged fur and thick muscle.

Moving up to the arms they are shockingly similar to that of a human aside from some key differences. For example they have much less rotation in their arms. in exchange they have a greater degree of musculature and back leading into their shoulders forearms, biceps, Etc.

While not all basement or lumbering beasts of muscle that use their fists far more than their brains that is the common stereotype. especially for the colder climatid ones.

Moving on to the top of the head it's exactly as you would imagine that of the mountain goats aside from the set of horns being a bit more bumpy giving it a more Spike appearance. that and a bloodthirsty smile on his face.

Another Minotaur was charging from behind with a large Stone Club raised above its head about to slam down. starting a spin at the waist leading into the arms and finally kicking off of the legs it launched out at attack with one of its hatchets.

A thick Burly thing that had more in common with a slab of iron than it did a proper short axe thick head which must have been 4 inches across in 10 in in height this Beast blade covered the wooden handle protecting the hand while allowing for more chopping power weighing dozens of pounds. this weapon would have been next to impossible to use for a normal person.

Burning the hands of this Beast Man it cut through the air as if it were a child's toy when it made contact with the club it already shattered it having the forward momentum to keep going it first made contact with the snout of the bull headed man. going completely through the skull severing it from the rest of its body showering the Beast Man and blood.

Unfortunately for this Reckless Berserker another bull man had already started its charge and was about to gut him from the side.

The Minotaur would finally be able to say it's bloodlust until a Sky Piercer spear stabbed the Beast through its stomach before lifting it by the Stab Wound and throwing it into the stands of the abandoned Coliseum.

A sky piercer spear is similar to that of a halberd except it has a longer point for the spear tip. And the end of the ax bit ends in a curve similar to that of a bill hook.

looking up the pole arm what you'll see is not what's commonly expected. a skeletal hand was gripping it rapidly moving up the body. you will see a giant skeleton 7 ft tall easy.

With a thick snort steam exited to the mountain goats nose and a satisfied smile was upon his face. He turned to his friend and spoke.

‘Hay Red, Why are we here again? Not that I mind spilling blood but this place is pretty empty. I don't think you're going to find another fragment here.’

A surprisingly light voice sounding more akin to that of a teenage boy than a beastial man.

‘One's here I feel it we just need to keep going lower besides won't your God be happy for this bloodshed’

The skeleton replied in a deep voice that sounded like gravel going through a concrete mixer.

‘heh got me there’

With a shrug of his arms he simply dropped his hatchets before sitting down watching as the body slowly turned back into Mana to be reabsorbed by the dungeon. Turning to his friend red he looked at his friend and pity.

Being forced to claw through the world to find pieces of your soul just to find memories of who you once were.

Red wasn't even his name. Red Hare it's just the last thing he remembers before winding up and that Undead body of his.

Every piece of his soul he finds he gets shards of memories from what he's gathered; he was some type of great warrior that was feared by many. although the faces of those he fought are always shrouded.

One thing always stands out to him though he remembers being hanged to death and that's it. He decided to give some words of encouragement to his lifelong friend.

‘Well if it's any consolation those memories probably ain't worth crap now you're a new person, who you were is probably not the same as you are now, and if all else fails I wouldn't mind becoming an undead to stay with you someone has to keep you company.’

With the grin on his face he could tell his friend was smirking, sitting down and hitting his shoulder. The two simply took in a moment to appreciate the spectacle before them.

Watching monsters dissolve back into Mana was always a beautiful thing. Well he did follow a god of violence he could also enjoy the Finer Things such as the array of colors and fractaling Light that came from strong beasts magic died.

‘Thank you hedre.’That's all that needed to be said for him to know it meant a lot.

“I guess the only thing left to do now is to go deeper, I wonder if I'll get to take anymore trophies it's been a while since I've gotten a good skull”.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6 hours later

Jacob pov

“After me and squeaks impromptu lunch and rest I'm actually feeling much better the pain is pretty much gone in my leg. I can't say the same for my arm though. does feel better though so that's a plus. I've decided that now is as good a time as any to begin our ascensions again”.

Standing up with squeaks next to him he began stretching and feeling out his limbs aside from the broken one.

He felt limber enough to continue on and he doesn't want to stay in this room anymore than he has to.

Seeing the cabin is just five more Islands away from them. He's fairly confident they can make it.

Jumping into the air to see how high his vertical can go. bending his knees and riding his jump he launches off the ground. to his utter Fascination and disbelief he reaches the height of the palm trees easily 20 ft.

‘Well damn, this will make island hopping easier I could just fucken skip half the distance’.

The squeaks was being cute again jumping about ears wiggling doing exasperated hand movements. with a chuckle he Emotion for her to come over.

Squeaks had gotten very used to what he was planning and the smile on her face couldn't be any brighter. Running over faster than he even thought she was capable of and making a leap of faith jumping onto his lower back before shimmering up.

Wrapping her arms around his neck and pointing forward she said something in her weird language. But he could figure go fly my steed.

Getting into a runner's position digging his rubber Croc into the sand getting ready to spring off into a Sprint jump. Each island had roughly a hundred feet of distance he could clear maybe 50 to 60 of that the rest would be a chest deep Jog and water surrounded by potentially deadly predators.

Well normally this would be very fucking stupid he had his old friend with him Mr murder Rock. and not to mention most of the beasts have left by now going back to deeper waters having lost interest in them.

He began his Sprint picking up speed to a pace similar to that of a world class athlete then slowly speeding past that into superhuman territory easily hitting 30 mph at its peak before he ran out of Running Room.

He jumped clearing 70 ft before hitting the water, and all his grandiose planning he forgot one major detail the harder you hit water without breaking the surface the more like concrete it becomes and holy shit it was a rough Landing.

Breaking the water and bending his knees immediately put a strain on his hurt leg. Not as healed as he wants though. But thankfully nothing broke he began moving his way through the water seeing shadows slowly come in near the massive Ripple. before they could get too close he already made it onto the next Island.

‘Okay squeaks I may have let my ego get a bit too big for me britches, but this plan definitely will work. We just need to be patient and wait for them to leave again. hope you like coconut because we're having it again.’

Walking over the palm tree on this island and giving it a hard smack, coconuts fell down and the little bundle of joy ran up to them and began motioning for his Rock.

‘Oh God I just adopted a child didn't I’

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This one took longer than expected. I hit a roadblock with Them talking back and forth about what they should do to retrieve Ada's little sister.

I also got stuck on what I should jump to next and the dialogue between them. I also didn't want a Mary Sue moment so I didn't know if it was right to introduce my two newest characters or not. so I decided to make it satire hope it fits well.

by the way I'm planning on adding another dwarf later on any dwarf names the last name is going to be gold beard though

[miramis248]

My Au - Updating, Introducing OC'S and plot divergence

Heh

Hey, how ya'll doing? It's been a while... My work schedule is unforgiving at the moment 🙃

So, i've been working on my Au for the past few weeks whenever I had the opportunity. It is inspired by multiple fanfictions that I've read, and here's how it's going so far:

Jake Sully

When Jake arrived, he was taken aback by how things were being run at Hells gate, lower Ranked workers were being overworked and underpaid, he also heard through the grape vine that many were being threatened and blackmailed into silence by superiors and SEC-OPS about shandy stuff that had been happening, such as the deviation of funds from the mining safety regulation programs towards more poaching equipment, weapons and bigger equipment for intensive mining, as well as lining the pockets of superior assets to the company, he was less than pleased, but what strengthen his resolve was watching how the scientists were being treated by Selfridge, he hates the guy, especially after the accident...

When Jake was in the Avatar for the first time, he had a "seizure", at least that's what the science guys told him, and his human body went into a comatose, almost dead like state, while his mind was stuck in the Avatar, most likely permanently...Selfridge immediately goes into self-preservation mode and tries to make excuses, half-assed apologies, and then just straight-up blames Jake

"You read the contract. You knew the risks. This is all on you."

Now Jake reeeeeeeally wants to screw this guy over, and hopefully find a way to help the other workers and scientists along the way as well, so he starts hatching a plan, he talks to Grace and promises her he'll help them "get out" if they want to, he's leaving, but that doesn't mean he'll leave them high and dry, Grace and the other scientists are apprehensive of the idea, but decide to give Jake a set of Comns for safety and updates on how well his plan will work out.

He stays for around 3 months, getting a feel for his new body, working out, preparing himself...a few days before leaving, Trudy came to him with a serious request. She overhead him speaking to Max and Grace and needed help for a friend. She promised to keep his escape plans a secret.

Trudy took him to a room, there he finds Paz Socorro, an exhauted looking woman, who begs for him to help her, she has an health condition that only seems to be getting worse and she has another problem, Spider...

Spider is born a hybrid, the first human baby on pandora, born with a kuro and faded stripes along his body, covered in light freckles with the cutest little nose and pointy ears, Jake is as shocked as he is smitten by the little guy...how that happened...Paz saw the fruit growing outside, and her cravings got the best of her, they supposedly weren't dangerous for humans... Paz tells him that she might not survive because the human resources and insurance assholes that work for Selfridge keep making excuses as not to help pay for the surgery or having it at all on base, Paz has a heart condition discovered during her pregnancy, without proper help she will get sicker and most likely die, but they rather take their chances and send her back to earth even though she could also die in cryo and Spider would be left parentless, she's also worried about her son, selfridge knows about Spiders "condition" and she scared of what might happen to him.

She begs Jake to take her son, he can breath pandoran air, so he'll be fine, Jake is a bit worried about this decision but Paz tells him this might be the only way to keep her baby safe, he can't say no to that little face,so he accepts and is surprised when Paz pull out official papers

(Paz "His father is a dangerous man, he refused to sign the birth certificate, but I need to be sure he can't get him through any loopholes"

Jake "You're...adoption papers!? Paz, are you sure? Isn't it better to make me like a babysitter guardian guy or whatever? I mean we just met, and you asking me to take your kid, you dont know me!..."

Paz "No, this needs to be ironclad, I need this to be official. He will never get his hands on my baby boy, and I KNOW enough Sully, I know you offered others help to get out, so here i am accepting on the behalf of my son"

Jake "Ok!...ok, just...Jesus..."

Paz "i might not see either of you again...with the way things are going for me..."

Jake "I will take care of him...i promise you this, this kid is gonna be the happiest little guy"

Paz "You better you dumbass, or my spirit will haunt your blue ass")

(SPIDER DESERVES ALL THE LOVE, HE IS BABY)

And so, with the help of Truddy, Jake steals a bunch of supplies, including weapons and ammo, Grace helps cover up for him during their trip to look for samples. From there, with little Spider hidden in his backpack, he slowly shys away into the forest where he starts their new journey...

Still working out how he'll end up stumbling into Omatikaya territory...

So far, I've also been working on some of my Human OC'S that will be relevant to the AU, like the Viperwolf Hunters, we now also have

Maya Aguillar

Maya is an Avatar Driver, she worked in the labs, delved into Bioengineering, making prosthetics for both human nd na'vi alike, along with other medical devices built with Unobtainium, her search was defunded however because Harding's poaching was more profitable and she didn't exactly have the power to protest this decision, with her research on hold, she was then given the job of outside maintenance on her base(she only met Harding and Mercer once when she arrived, she she was tranfered to a lab a bit far out from the main base), Maya was sick and tired of all the excuses for not being able to fund her research, the mistreatment by higher ups and just the overall work conditions, when news of Jake Sullys escape and disappearance got out, aswell as learning that many others started leaving too, including some old friends, she made a risky decision and bounced, she had knowledge of a long abandoned mobile link inside a mountains wall far way, she took a jeep, hid her avatar in it and waited for nightfall, then she was gone... But that just the beginning because what she didn't realise is that the mobile link is very close to the Aranahe Clan, who didn't take long to notice their new neighbour...

(Had the time to doodle her)

John Maverick

Basically, it's a cowboy that came to Pandora, and now drives an Avatar.

Veterinary, big and small port animals, Pandoran Fauna and Flora enthusiast/expert, he was on animal care in a projet to study Pandoran animals, had to restrain himself from finding and strangling both Harding and Mercer after seeing the conditions in which the animals were being kept...he found a way to leave, as a human first, then busting open the gates on the back of an angstik he named Bluebell (like the cow he raised back home has a kid, his best friend), middle fingers up for the cameras with more than 15 heads of Catle and three funny and charismatic Pa'li that love to nip his ears... this man disapears, he finds a place(thank god thes people just abandon mobile links everywhere) where he can safely use the link unit, now he roams the plains with his herd of animals, he keeps them happy and safe, totally decked out in Cowboy fashion, hat and all (I imagine this man looping a rope on one of the bulls because they panic or something, throws himself on top of them rodeo style, lets them tire out and then just spends time sitting there calming this huge creature down with pats on their back and treats till the convince them to join the herd again) he's living his best life...in Zeswa lands...guess he thought the kites where just pretty decorations...(still working on drawing him)

That's it for now, but I'm still working in these OC'S, I'll don't more indept backgrounds for them later on.

There's also my concept of humans adapting to Pandora with Eywa's help. Basically, the Great Mother is loving and mischievous, and she'll use her children to guide these humans who long for a new life, for example, my take on humans being able to breath and eat and LIVE on Pandora will be because she'll use her Atokirina, or maybe animals to guide humans to flowers, moss or fungi, that when exposed to without a mask, changes their biology. Maybe they fall and break their mask and breath in spores or polen, maybe the animal suddenly pulls the mask from their face(A human guided by this nice, cute Syaksyuk getting their mask ripped of and face shoved into a flower) and then boom, they breath and eat from Pandora with no trouble!

Eywa will take to making humans See and learn, but also learn from them and adapt, so that everyone is happy 😊

There, that my Au so far, see ya'll later!

[mugentakeda]

as soon as ursa registered that the person that just stepped into the garden was a messenger dressed in white, she knew her nephew was dead.

he'd only departed for ba sing se a few weeks ago. she'd gotten one hawk from him while he was still on his way to the faraway city- passionate descriptions about the beautiful earth kingdom terrain and scenery, his nervousness and dread, how much he already missed the kids and her and home.

she already knew he didn't want to go. just a month shy of 600 days did lu ten manage to hold off on joining his father in his divine quest, to get the capital of the earth kingdom to finally surrender. holding strong to his decision, despite pressure and badgering from every direction. ursa never cared. she knew ozai cared, firelord azulon cared, the whole council and nobility cared- but ursa has always cursed the council and nobility anyway. she knows her nephew's heart is true and hardworking even if he's not the most open about his patriotism, and knows that he's always been stubborn and independent. spirits, if she was a prince, she isn't sure that she'd want to spend her first big military venture in her father's shadow either. iroh had respected his son's wishes without a fight, just like ursa knew her honorable brother-in-law would, and left for ba sing se alone. that should've been the end of that.

azula told her (rather sourly) that the strange navy fellow that lu ten had been peers with while training under admiral jeong jeong managed to convince him otherwise. how, her daughter wasn't sure, and wasn't pleased. ursa had asked lu ten about it not much later, easily confessing to her nephew that she heard through the lychee-grape vine that he'd changed his mind about ba sing se- but he'd been cagey and evasive, and offered no real explanation. the evening later, he promptly announced at dinner that he'd be departing from the fire nation in the next couple days to join his father. and looked like he wanted to vomit afterwards, as firelord azulon put a weathered hand on his shoulder and shook him with satisfaction. she waited up late that night, praying he'd sneak to her chambers, so they could discuss the matter in whispers. but he never showed.

ursa had found him early the next morning, before agni even peeked over the horizon, tending to his beloved jogekama yari.

he sat up straight at the sound of her footsteps on the tile, and sighed heavily. as usual, lu ten knew it was his aunt without looking (unbeknownst to ursa, over the previous years, he'd been memorizing the sound of everyone in the family's footsteps. that way, he could mentally prepare himself for the interaction- lest the footsteps belong to ozai.).

I don't feel like being interrogated right now, auntie, he'd muttered. the young prince didn't sound angry, but terribly drained, and terribly defeated. the days where she could take one look at him and know exactly what was going through his head were long gone, sadly.

i'm sorry, she'd replied sadly. I just wanted to make sure you were truly alright. because… well, ever since I married your uncle….

his face pinched and he looked back down at his spear in silence. the hot morning air was heavy with foreboding. the rest went unspoken, as such things usually do in this suffocating palace they both call home. I think of you as my own.

she'd watched him grow up. she'd been there when his voice dropped, when he started growing sideburns, when he came home from shu jing armed with a mighty staff and bursting in pride, when the first sparks of lightning erupted from his hands and he made history. lu ten had been the only one to check in on her after she gave birth to zuko, and then the same with azula. he held them in his arms before ozai did. he'd been the one to choose azula's wet nurse when ursa was too sickened and depressed to eat well enough to breastfeed her baby girl. he was the one present for azula's first words and first steps- which is all now a secret between them that he's literally taken to the grave. her children's big brother in spirit, ursa's little brother and son from another mother.

the hands clutching the scroll tremble in despair and rage. what will happen now? her only teammate is gone. the one person in the whole world that truly went out of his way to look out for her and hers is gone. i'm not strong enough to hold him off on my own, my nephew, she thinks.

ursa bites the inside of her cheek until it bleeds to quell the tears welling up. you won't ever see him again. you're going to have to get used to living without him. he's never coming home. his father didn't keep him safe. it's over.

[horrorwhores-posts]

Arts pet.

Summary: Your family decided to reopen the miles county carnival. And you soon catch the eye of a certain black and white clown.

Word count- 6307 (it’s a doozy)

Warnings: blood, mentions of dead bodies, sexual themes (but no smut), torture, reader/ character was written as afab but you should be able to read it as gender neutral.

Authors notes: this is my first ever fan fiction I’ve written so please be gentle on me. Also not proofread so there might be some errors. And this is about Art the clown soo, yeah. This big ol’ dork has me wrapped around his horn.

Maybe reopening the rundown carnival in Miles county wasn’t a good idea. But no matter how many times anyone told my father not too, he’d just brush it off. Working with your family is hard, even harder when you’re a carny family. My family and I have been on the road ever since my parents got married back in 93’. Soon after they had my older brother, sister, me, and finally my little twin brothers. My father joined the Barnum and Bailey circus when he was a teenager after his grandmother and sole guardian died. Being 15 with no other options, the circus became his new home and they welcomed him with open arms. My mother was the complete opposite, coming from a prestigious, well off, loving family; well if they liked you that is. My mother never really fit into her family, she had always been the black sheep and problem child. And no matter how hard her parents tried, she was never suited for their perfect world. She actually met my father when she was on a date with a “proper'' young man, as her mother put it. After spending roughly an hour listening to the high collared sleaze belittle every performance and worker he came in contact with, they got to my father’s act. Over the years he had climbed the ranks from being a cage cleaner to the circus’s headlining daredevil, and he was really good at it. His stunt that night was riding his motorcycle around a metal cage that was lit ablaze. Even my mother’s date was dumbfounded. After the show was over my mother refused to spend another second with her dick headed date. She snuck away from him and with the help of a hopeless romantic bearded woman she was able to go back to my fathers trailer. He said the second he laid eyes on her he knew he was going to marry her. And that night my mom decided to run away with him. My parents have been inseparable ever since.

Growing up the way we did, my siblings and I have developed multiple talents and were able to pick our own personal acts. My oldest siblings are aerial artists. I was one myself for a while and will even join in on their performances, but my actual love is contortion and fire breathing. The twins are in their teens and still learning about themselves every day. My father had always wanted to own a circus/carnival for himself, and over the past few years his craving to get off the road grew. Through the grape vine he had heard of the Miles county carnival being sold for little to nothing, we later found out that there were multiple murders there, which explained why the value was so low. My mother, sister and I all had our reservations about buying the place, but yet we still found ourselves standing at the entrance of the carnival in all of its glory. It took us months to spruce the place up, fix broken rides, and rebrand the whole park. My father even built a circus tent in the park where my family and other performers could perform if they wanted. We had our handful of protesters over the past few days but we also had a lot of tickets sold for tonight, opening night. I stood in the circus tent, looking at the time on my phone. 8:30; 30 minutes till opening and an hour till the show starts. Deciding to practice some of my aerial work for tonight's show, I gripped the soft silk as the music blasted through my speaker in the corner of the stage. I started going through the routine one last time, not noticing the black and white figure watching intently from the shadows. I ended on my finishing pose and nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard loud, sporadic clapping coming from the echoing seating area. I safely dismantled and shielded my eyes from the spotlight to see who was there. A black and white clown stood in the middle of the aisle between the seats still clapping with a large smile on his face. I felt my face heat up from embarrassment and anger.

“The show doesn’t start till 9:30, I’m sorry but you have to leave.” I said from atop the stage as I quickly gathered my items. The clapping ceased immediately and I glanced over my shoulder and saw the clown standing there, arms stiff at his sides, an emotionless face looking back at me. A shiver of dread prickled up my spine and I quickly exited backstage, still feeling his icy gaze on me. I briskly walked to my dressing room and locked the door behind me. I glanced at my phone screen and noticed it was only 8:50. ‘Wait, if we aren’t open yet how did he get into the tent?’ My thoughts were broken when three gentle raps came from my door, a common knock my sister used to let me know she was the one wanting in. I strode to the door and unlocked the handle, my sister stepped in and gently shut the door behind her.

“You okay? You rushed into this room like your ass was on fire.” she asked as I sat at my vanity, my head in my hands. With a deep sigh I rubbed my hands down my face and finally looked at her.

“Yeah, I think I’m just tired. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” I weakly responded. She lowered her eyes at me, assessing if she believed me or not. Her eyes softened as I guess she decided it wasn’t worth pressing.

“Maybe you should take a nap before you go out on stage, I’m going on first so I can wake you up when it’s almost your time to go on.” My eyes light up at the thought of getting some sleep.

“You promise? Like really?” I ask with hopeful excitement. She nodded her head, opened the door, waved, and gently closed it behind her. I glanced back at the mirror and saw the dark bags under my eyes, deciding a power nap would be best. I got up, turning off my main light, leaving my vanity lights on, and crawled on to the small gray couch. I had some burgundy throw pillows and a black blanket, I used to get nice and comfortable. In the dim light I could barely make out the posters I had adorning my walls. Mostly old Barnum and Bailey posters my dad snagged before he left, but there were a few photos of me performing. After a few minutes my eyes felt heavy and I quickly fell into a deep sleep.

‘The colorful lights were twinkling against the night that engulfed it. My nose was invaded with the sweet yet salty smell of popcorn and cotton candy. Energy buzzed around me like electricity, lightly shocking my senses. All around me were people playing games, eating food, and laughing with pure joy. In the distance you could hear the screams of ride goers as they raced into the air, some of them twisting and turning along the tracks. The environment was warm and inviting, glowing with delight. I soaked it all in. Embracing the happiness that flooded me, I pranced around the carnival, seeking out my next adventure. As I wandered through the fair I accidentally ran into a figure. He was tall, holding a bunch of red balloons, concealing his face from my view. A black sleeve emerged from the crowd of latex, holding a floating sphere out to me. I gently took it from his gloved hand, immediately hearing a loud, threatening crack from the sky above. Glancing up I noticed a fiery red glow erupt from behind the thick clouds rolling in the darkness of the sky. Suddenly the cheery demeanor of the festival dissipated and the screams of joy turned into ones of pure horror. I whipped around and saw multiple rides on fire, the patrons festering in their seats. Mutilated corpses laid strewn across the park, blood and guts splattered everywhere. My tears were singed on my cheeks from the heat of the flames. The scream that was bubbling in my throat was cut short as long, strong arms wrapped around me.’

I was startled awake, my body jerking up and my brain still fuzzy. I looked around my dimly lit room, looking for what caused my sudden consciousness. There were alarm bells going off in my head, but I couldn’t place what was causing them. Scanning my room for a second time, I immediately froze when I noticed the figure in the dark corner, my breath catching in my throat. Panic coursed through my veins as I fumbled to come up with a single coherent thought. The figure slowly stalked out of its hiding spot and into the dim light. My eyes finally focused on the lanky black and white clown towering over me, the same blank expression on his features as before. With my heart racing, I choked back a scream as he slowly bent down to my eye level, getting uncomfortably close. His dark eyes were threatening as he looked me up and down, assessing me. For what? I’m not fully sure. My chest was heaving from my rapid breath and pounding heartbeat, something he picked up on. He reached forward and placed a gloved hand on my chest, rolling his eyes back and breathing in deeply through his nose. I sat frozen as he smirked, opening his eyes and making intense eye contact.

My mind immediately went blank as the panic dissipated from my body, being replaced with a strong need. As I gazed into his onyx eyes I felt a strange, intimate connection to the man in front of me. His hand climbed from my chest to caress the side of my face, gently gliding his thumb over my lips. I slowly opened my lips, inviting the digit into my mouth, and sucked lightly as it hit my tongue. His taste was bitter and salty, and he smelt of fire and sweat. Normally I would be repulsed but for some reason I was intoxicated. The clown’s mouth was hung open with lust, chest quivering from his deep breaths. If he had pupils, I knew they would be dilated. My eyes closed as I savored the flavor of him, moaning softly. He pulled his hand away, I released his thumb with a soft pop. My eyes shot open as I felt a rough yank on the ponytail atop my head. I fell back and the man followed me, climbing on top of me. His long lanky frame just barely fit on the small couch with me. His hands roaming my sides as he buried his face into the crook of my neck, sucking and biting with a hunger I’ve never experienced before. I moaned as his hand snaked under my shirt, roughly grabbing at my chest.

A sharp pain radiated from my neck and I shrieked. His hand quickly clamped over my mouth as he continued the assault on my neck, warm blood trickling down my shoulder. Fresh tears streamed down my cheeks as I struggled to get out of the grip that was holding me down. Finally the man sat up, blood adorning his mouth and filled his smile. Hand still over my mouth, he ripped my shirt exposing more of my chest. A muffled scream was ripped from me as the clown dug his finger into my fresh neck wound. He then took said digit and proceeded to write something on my flesh. Once he was done, he leant back over me with a sick, mocking sad face. Dragging his finger down his cheek, mimicking a tear. Finally placing a finger over his mouth in a shushing manner, he leant down and kissed my temple with a surprising gentleness. The hand covering my mouth moved to wipe the tears off my face. I whimpered as he placed another tender kiss on my forehead. The mysterious man gave me one more smile and wave of his fingers before he was gone without a trace. I laid in silence, my mind completely blank try to make sense of the last 10 minutes.

A loud banging startled me out of my daze, as whoever knocked started to come in. Fearing it was the man from before, I sprang up and used my entire body weight to slam the door shut. I heard a muffled grunt and exclamation of “what the fuck” as the lock clicked back into place, preventing anyone from coming in.

“Hey, you missed the whole performance!” My older brother yelled at me from the other side of the door. Ice ran through my veins as I scrambled for my phone and noticed it was 10:45 pm.

“Fuck. Fuck. FUCK.” I exclaimed while throwing my phone back down on the couch. I caught a glimpse of myself in my vanity mirror and I looked horrible. Somehow the bags under my eyes were worse, my body was flushed, and my hair was completely disheveled. My neck was still dripping crimson, with obvious teeth marks. My shirt was jaggedly ripped with dried blood marking the visible skin. In messy, dripping lettering, ‘Art’s pet’ was written across my chest. A strange shiver ran back up my spine, and I stood there wondering if I’d ever see this man again. Most of me hoped I never would, but a tiny part of me begged to differ.

A few weeks have passed since the strange encounter with the black and white clown, I now know as “Art”. He’s also known as the miles county clown with a long list of victims. I thought for a second he was just a weird fever dream, but the tiny teeth shaped scars on my neck prove otherwise. I’ve constantly been thanking the powers above that it was getting colder out, with me having to wear turtle necks to obscure my markings. My dreams have also been haywire since that night, filled with decimated remains and burning fire. He’s always there too, welcoming me with his demented gifts and acts of passions. Whether it's a still beating heart, a crude mural of me in coagulated blood, or gory jewelry from his victims, he always has something to give me. Greeting me with his signature wide smile, accompanied by some flourish to produce the gift of the day. With his palms out stretched, eyes blinking innocently, he’ll traumatize me yet again with a morbid curiosity.

Luckily I’ve been able to push his invading presence out of my mind during performances and when I’m around my family. My sister has noticed I’ve become a bit more reclused and only asked me about it once. When I snapped at her with an anger she hadn’t seen before, she never pressed the issue after. Tonight I sat in my heavily decorated trailer, covered in old rock n roll posters, tapestries and sentimental trinkets. I had a small dark brown vanity sitting in the front of the small room, my burgundy red twin sized bed laid adjacent to the vanity. My clothes and costumes were strewn about and hung up on a small portable hanging rack, a small bookcase sat at the foot of my bed with a vintage, delicate, lamp sitting on it. Books lined the shelves, ranging from the classics like Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and Bram Stokers’ Dracula. Tonight I was reading The Complete Tales of Edgar Allen Poe, my head was laid at the foot of my bed, my tiny lamp dimly lit the pages. I lounged lazily in only my black satin robe, trying to turn my mind off for the night, preparing for sleep. A sudden loud knocking came from my front door. With a jump, I bookmarked my spot and slowly sat up. The pounding came again, even louder and more aggressive than last time. I stood up and wrapped the robe tighter around myself, slowly reaching for the curtain covering the small window on my door. The fervent banging picked up once more, and with a flourish of anger, I ripped the door open without looking first. There, in the misty night, stood the clown of my nightmares. The white and black mirage stood stone still, eyes wide, a bouquet of wild flowers outstretched towards me. ‘No , no, no’ raced through my mind as the door started to close. My ragged breath caught in my throat as a large gloved hand slammed on the door as I tried to shut it. He slowly climbed the feeble stairs and stepped into my tiny trailer, hunching to prevent from hitting his head on the ceiling. I stared up at him with pure shock and a hit of fear. He gleamed down at me and he stretched the bouquet back to me. With shaky hands I gently pulled it from his humongous mitt, ogling the beautiful flowers in my hand and gave them a gentle sniff. The scent of fresh florals and the musky scent of the impending rain wafted towards me and I hummed with satisfaction. He bowed down, gently grasped my other hand, and gingerly pressed a kiss to my knuckles. A blush creeped up my face as I shyly looked away, pulling my hand from his grasp. He smirked and stalked towards my vanity, taking a seat on my small chair.

He patted his lap and looked at me expectantly with a big smile. I gingerly placed the bouquet on my bed, wiping my sweaty palms on my robe and approached him sheepishly, finally standing in front of him. He reached out and wrapped his long arms around me, pulling me into his lap, causing me to yelp. He nuzzled into my neck, his warm breath tickling the sensitive scar tissue, sending shivers down my spine. Smirking at me through the mirror, he rubbed my sides, gently squeezing, almost threatening to tickle me. I made direct eye contact with him in the mirror, trying my best to give him the stoniest stare I could. He frowned, looking down, twiddling with the satin belt. I swiftly grabbed his hand before he could untie my robe and I just stared at his reflection as he continued to look down with his ‘sad’ face. Slowly his eyes connected to mine in the glass and we just sat there staring at each other for a long pause. My expression stayed cold, and his frown curled up into a scowl. With a silent huff he rolled his eyes and pushed me off his lap. I stood, stunned, as he walked over to my clothing rack and palmed the sequined outfits. His face broke out with a wide smile as he grabbed a shiny red one piece body suit from the hanger, rushing up to me and pushing it towards me. I jumped at his erratic actions, my arms limply holding the outfit. I looked up at him with confusion, as he started miming taking off his clothes sensually, almost in a cartoonish manner. I gulped and tightly gripped the belt of my robe till my knuckles were white. With another silent, irritated huff, he tapped his clown shoes impatiently on the ground and looked at his wrist as if there was a watch there. Not wanting to anger the man in front of me, I turned around and with trembling fingers I picked at the knot holding my robe together. It finally fell free and it gently slinked off my shoulder. I laid the one piece on my vanity and slipped the robe completely off, avoiding my gaze from the mirror entirely. I was never one to stare at myself naked, let alone in front of the miles county murderer. Somehow I didn’t hear him sneak up behind me, instead being scared by his hands snaking around my waist.

“Why?” I whisper, finally locking eyes with him in the chrome glass. His chin was buried into my neck and his breath fanned against my cheeks. His eyebrows quirk up in a question and his face falls to the side, feigning innocent curiosity. With an annoyed huff I yank my way out of his grasp and turn to face him. My hands cemented on my hips.

“What do you want?” I ask rather gruffly. The look of shock briefly took over his features before being taken over by a look of malice. I felt the spurt of confidence I had immediately disappeared as he reached forward. His hand gripped my throat and in a flash I was thrown onto my bed. He laid atop of me with a look of glee as he watched me struggle for breath. I knew my face was on the verge of turning purple when he finally let go. He leaned over me and stuck his long sharp nose into my neck. I could feel his hot breath against my skin and a shiver ran down my spine. Somehow I just knew he was breathing in the scent of my fear. That thought caused yet another shiver to rack through me, and the clown wasn't oblivious to it. I felt something warm and wet run up the side of my neck. His tongue left a prickly sensation in its wake as he faced me again. A smile adorned his face and his finger came up to boop me on the nose. Clumsily, he crawled off of me and I remembered that I was nude. I grabbed my blanket and covered myself as Art grabbed the one piece setting on the dresser. He brought it to his face and took a big sniff. Yanking it from his nose he made a silent gagging motion and threw the one piece at me. It hit me in my chest and with caution I took a small smell of the fabric. My eyebrows drew together as the scent of laundry detergent invaded my nostrils. The clown had his nose pinched between his fingers, sticking his tongue out in yet another gag and I rolled my eyes.

After dressing in my red leotard, Art led me to the performance tent. I felt uneasy as I stood on the pitch black stage. A loud crack emanated through the room as the lights sprang to life, eerie silence followed in suit. I was temporarily blinded, squinting my eyes until they adjusted. Almost immediately I recognized the 5 people sitting in the front row. My family was duck tapped and gagged, unconscious in their confines, blood coming out of differing cuts and scratches on their faces, proving they put up a fight. My family wasn't the only people in the crowd. Decapitated torsos, gutted stomachs, and carved up bodies surrounded my family. Staring at the mutilated and bloody corpses caused bile to rise in my throat. Panic wracked through me causing tears to cloud my vision, falling to my knees, wretching. Art started clapping in a way to get my attention. I turned my head towards him, a giant blanket covering something behind him. He gestured to my family, an evil smirk adorning his face as I slowly looked back at them. They were gently stirring as they slowly started becoming conscious again. That’s when it dawned on me. 5. The twins, mom, dad, and my older brother. I whipped my head back towards the black and white clown.

“Where is she?” While Looking straight at me, he reached up, grabbing the thick white tarp. Yanking down, the cloth fell from the giant round shape. It revealed my sister strapped to the wheel of death, the spinning circular board we used for our knife throwing acts. She was also coming to lucidity, fear flooding her features once she was able to comprehend a little of what was going on. Art slowly stalked towards my crumpled frame, bending down and dropping daggers in front of me. Immediately looking between my sister and the blades I was able to piece together what he wanted.

“No, fuck no!” I screamed, crawling backwards away from the sharp knives. Art grabbed my upper arm in a Vice grip, almost immediately bruising. Picking me up by said arm he pushed me towards the pile of metal. I violently shook my head, wrapping my arms around myself, staring at the ground. He pinched my chin between his fingers and jerked it towards him. I stared at him with glossy eyes. He frowned at me and gestured his hand towards my sister. My face morphed from fear to complete hard anger.

“No.” I glowered, refusing to break eye contact with him. His face became stony as he pushed my chin from him. Standing to his full height he glared at me and walked off stage. With him gone I rushed to my sister to untie her from the spinning board. As I got to one of her wrists she looked at me with tears streaming down her face. Muffled words escaped her taped lips.

“Hold still, I’ll get you down faster.” As I was distracted with the buckle my sister seemed to notice a familiar figure creeping up behind me. Her silence quickly turned into muffled screaming and thrashing. Finally focusing back on my sister, her wide eyes told me everything I needed to know. Looking over my shoulder I saw the clown raise his arm with something in it. With a quick strike down, I felt searing pain rip through me. I was lurked forward with the sheer force of the whip, screams being torn from me with every strike of the weapon. My sister's tears rained down on me as I clung onto her for support as the lashing continued. My back felt like it was being sliced open by a million little knives. The searing pain caused my consciousness to start to waiver. My sisters muffled screams faded from me as my ears started ringing, only hearing the crack of the cat o’ nine tail. My mind focused on nothing but the constant burn radiating from the wounds, refusing to let my legs buckle from the pain. Finally the lashing came to a halt as I heard a voice ring out.

“Okay! Okay. She’ll do it, just stop!” I looked up at my sister, noticing the tape dangling from the corner of her mouth. Her tears must have loosened the adhesive. “Do it. I trust you. Just get it over with.”

With heavy breath I slowly and painfully turned, looking at the demented man in front of me. Cautiously limping towards the pile of throwing blades, my knees wobbled slightly. I stopped to regain my balance, before bending down to grab the steel daggers. The cold metal bit at the warm skin of my palms, and the weight of them threatened to pull me down. Turning back to face my sister, I saw Art forcing her mouth shut with fresh tape. She struggled a bit, glaring with a hatred I’ve never seen. I stole a glance back at my tied up family, differing levels of horror adorning their faces. My mothers face was covered with tears and my fathers face was hard with a fire licking behind his eyes. Nothing but fear adorned the twins faces, and my older brother was looking around. Forming a way to get out, I assumed. Clapping for attention, I turned back to the black and white demon, watching him grab onto the wheel, to heave it down with his full body weight. My sister started spinning and I took a deep breath. Separating a knife from the bundle, I aimed it, cocking my arm back and tossing the blade directly at the board. It landed right between my sister's legs. Grabbing another blade, I wretched my arm back and threw it again. Thinking was never a good idea when it came to knife throwing. Just aim, breathe, and throw. The more you stall, the more you hit the target. Before I knew it I only had one dagger left. All the other throws were perfect misses and I readied myself for a final good throw. A loud piercing honk rang into my left ear. My throw was ruined. And I watched in horror as the sharp steel plunged itself into the soft flesh of my sister's thigh. Her muffled scream was drowned out by the intense ringing in my ears as I turned and looked at the clown. He was pointing at my sister and silently belly laughing, holding his stomach.

“I hate you! You stupid, annoying motherfucker!” I ran up to Art, hitting him on his sturdy chest. He barely reacted as he looked down his nose at me, watching me pound onto him with my full weight. He snatched my wrists and held my arms out, staring at my red face as I continued screaming profanities at him. Smiling sinisterly, he let go of my wrists and stalked towards the, now still, round board my sister was still attached to. I had no clue what his plan was but I tightly grabbed his arm, refusing to move. Realizing he was anchored, he slowly faced me again. “What will make you stop?” I basically whimpered. His grin widened even more than I thought it could. He stood back up to his full height, and I couldn't help but gawk at his towering stature. Gazing up, he tapped his chin in a ‘thinking’ manner until he snapped his fingers in a eureka moment. Cocking his head to the side, he grinned at me, leaning his face down. Becoming eye level with me he gently tapped his cheek, as an indication to give him a kiss.

A wave of nausea hit me, but I also got a fuzzy, warm feeling course through me at the same time. I hated it. I hated myself, for having some sort of affection for the man who’s done nothing but torture me and my family. I snapped back to reality when a loud clap erupted in front of my face. I blinked and refocused on the man in front of me. His face was almost child-like as he watched me with pure, I’m not sure, adoration? I took a deep, quivering breath, and stepped forward. Wrapping my arms around his neck, balancing on my tip toes, and I gave him what he wanted. Granted it wasn’t on his cheek, but he didn’t seem to mind. His lips still had that rich smokey flavor as last time. His hands immediately found my hips and pulled me in closer, almost desperate to get me closer. His tongue licked at my lips and I opened eagerly. I just let him have control, not feeling strong enough to put up a fight. I pulled back with a gasp as a sharp pain came from my lip. A small trickle of blood ran down Art's chin, causing me to reach up and gingerly touch my bottom lip. Pulling my hand back, there was warm blood covering my finger tips, and my lower lip throbbed.

“Let them go.” I croaked out. Art still had his grip on my waist, and squeezed almost threateningly. His eyebrows knitted together and his eyes squinted together in distrust. “If you want me, let them go. I’ll be all yours, no questions asked. As long as they’re safe.” I gently cupped the side of his face and placed our foreheads together. Our breathing slowed and we shared a moment of peace. Running my thumb over his jagged cheek bone, I felt my eyes water.

“Please.” I whimpered. Tears ran down my face as I finally looked up at my tormentor. His eyes almost softened when he saw me. His hand moved from my waist to my cheek, brushing the tears off as they fell. With a gentle kiss to my forehead, he stretched up to his full height and stepped back. He turned to the side and lifted his arm towards my sister. I slowly looked between the appendage and her. Making eye contact with the man again, I nodded and sped walked up to my sister. She was barely lucid. I lightly slapped her face and her eyes finally focused on me. Pulling a knife out of the board, I cut away at the leather straps holding her to the panel. When she finally tried to put weight on her leg she screamed. She grabbed the knife sticking out of her thigh and I supported her the best I could. I looked over my shoulder to see Art was gone. Not waiting a single moment I hobbled her across the stage, refusing to listen to her pleas to stop. We finally got to our trapped family. They sat there with nothing but pure terror and tears on their faces. With the dagger I cut my father loose first. Immediately he wrapped me in a bear hug, almost squeezing me a bit too hard. He held me for what felt like years but was no longer than a few seconds. My sister struggled to release my mother from her confines when we heard a loud boom. The heat came soon after as the back of the stage was lit ablaze. The fire grew to the top of the tent within seconds.

“Jesus Christ!” My father hollered as he, and the rest of us, scrambled to free our brothers. The smoke was thick and dark, making breathing almost impossible. Coughing, we were able to untie my brothers. We all were kneeling down toward the ground, trying to avoid the thick musk above us. “We’re not gonna be able to make it!” My mother screamed, as the loud crackle of the flames almost drowned her out. I could tell my sister was worse for wear, and I had no idea how to get her out. While my head was swimming with panicked thoughts, my eldest brother noticed the dagger I still had clutched in my hand. He grabbed the blade out of my hand, dashing towards the closest tent wall and carved into it.

“Come on!” He screamed as everyone rushed to the new opening. I grabbed my sister and supported/ dragged her out of the tent. Her consciousness was faltering when I laid her on her back. We hacked and gagged as we finally got some of our breath back. The tent was completely ablaze. I heard sirens wailing in the distance as my head started to spin. I started dry heaving while slowly crawling away from my family, not wanting them to see me like this. My vision blurred from the tears and the spinning when I suddenly saw I black shape in front of me.

“Get away from her!” A distorted familiar voice rang out as I looked up and saw a blur of white and black. For a split sec I was able to focus and I saw Art standing there. Blank faced and fists balled to his sides, he raised his foot. In a split second everything went black.

Waking up was almost like a nightmare to me. My head pounded and I was freezing. The room was still spinning and My eyes couldn’t focus on anything. I tried to move, but I was cramped in something small. With a groan I reached out and touched something cold and metal. But it wasn’t solid, it felt like it was made out of metal wiring. I adjusted myself and once again heard the ringing in my ears start up. The floor was solid underneath me, but I could see outside of my confines. My fingers once again grasped the walls around me and it all clicked. I was in a steel cage. Visions of what happened before I was knocked out bombarded my brain. Adrenaline mixed with panic and caused everything to come into sharp focus. There wasn’t much to see, it was dark and dingy, a single light swung above my cage. A smashed tv sat on the floor across from a table with a little stool. Blood and various sharp objects littered the table. I immediately scattered backwards until my back hit the chain wall. The reality of what I agreed to dug its way to the forefront of my brain. I agreed to be with this man. For whatever he shall need me for. My stomach flipped as all the possible scenarios ran through my mind. My leotard -covered body shivered in the corner of the cage. My erratic breathing caused me to notice that there was something around my neck. My throat felt constricted and panic wracked through me as I clawed at it until I got a decent grip, ripping it from my throat. In my hand sat a collar. A. Fucking. Collar. My ears weren’t ringing, it was the bell on the collar the entire time. I was drowning in my thoughts when The entire cage rattled, as someone else shook it. I snapped my head up and was greeted with Art's smiling face. He lifted up the top of the cage, revealing the door. His face slowly morphed into frown as he looked at my face, then my neck, and finally to the collar in my hand. He held out a finger initiating to give him a minute and closed the cage. Prancing over to the table I saw him pull a thin sparkling string up and hold it close to himself. After finagling with it for a moment, he walked back over, and completely flipped the top of the cage open. He held out his hand, dangling there was a necklace with a heart dog tag. It read “Arts pet”.