#I NEVER WANT TO TOUCH THE OVERLAY BUTTON EVER AGAIN

[pitchcom]

carcar - obsessed

[asimpletroll]

(A) (M) Chisaki Kai X (O) (F) Reader

You?

You were the Omega who had been stinking up his base for the last month?

YOU?

"-so sorry, so so sorry, I didn't see you, I was looking for Eri, Rappa startled her again, I swear I didn't mean to bump you-" You babble at Chisaki, close to your heat and scared of every Alpha in the base at the moment. You don't realize how his eyes have zeroed in on you, you're too busy cowering against the wall, trying to apologize and make sure he doesn't hit you, or worse.

"Be quiet." You immediately shut up, your throat feeling constricted even though he didn't use his Alpha tone or his Quirk on you, you look at him with watering (e/c) orbs as he strides over, taking off his coat slowly. "Your slick is dripping. I'll have someone else look for Eri, you need to get to your nest."

"...I...I live in the barracks, I-I can't-"

"Then come with me." He wraps an arm around you with care he never uses, making sure to keep his coat (you're so small it drops nearly to your knees, and Chisaki is swooning on the inside at how cute you look) between the two of you and wrapped securely around you so that no one else sees your current...predicament.

Chisaki notices your fear increasing, almost every step towards his private wing making you pump out more and more fear in your scent.

Normally, he can't even smell you, which is mildly disappointing to him because you smell citrus-y and a little sweet, but it was always very subtle and clean.

Now, all he could smell was your fear, and the urge to hole you away from everyone and everything was making him very twitchy as he opens the door to his wing.

You instinctively pause upon the threshold, your Omega screaming that this means this Alpha likes you, that it was time to Mate. Chisaki waits for you patiently, knowing the battle you're fighting and being fascinated by the micro-expressions racing through you. Your pupils twitch slightly in every which way, your ears perk and shift a little with noises, and your nose wrinkles a little (like the bunny he had as a child would) as you get particularly stressed.

"I cannot find you someplace comfortable if we loiter for much longer." He finally speaks up and tells you, you flinch a little, but follow his unmentioned command of 'hurry up' and almost bump into him again as he closes the door.

As soon as it shuts, lights flick on, and this time he gently wraps an arm around your waist as you spook. He gently lets you recover from your heart attack adjust to his touch, then guides you past several rooms that reek of other Alphas to you, and the locks on the door along with how reinforced they are tell you all you need to know about what might be in those rooms.

"I am unfamiliar with creating a space for a Heat, but I understand you require lots of blankets and soft things?" Chisaki asks you lowly, he spots the tiny hairs on the back of your neck rising, and your own scent smells sweeter, even with the fear overlaying it.

"Yes." You whisper, and try to hide (due to his lack of comment, you guess you hide it) the fact that you get mildly horny at just his voice.

Chisaki is amused by this, mostly by the fact that your entire face had turned red and was a very clear indicator of your dilemma to him.

"Why are you so afraid, Omega?" He asks you conversationally, as if he had by total and complete accident of course not dropped his voice several octaves just fool with you. You repress a shiver, and he grins under his mask, a very feral and smug grin, as he gently inhales your sweetened scent a bit more.

"M-My parents...they didn't...didn't want an Omega...didn't want me...so they would destroy my nests...even before I was revealed to be Quirkless..." You murmur quietly, timidly almost, to him, and he feels himself harden at how perfect you were for him.

"Why would they do that? Children smaller than four years old require softness or they are in danger of chewing something into pieces or eating it whole." Chisaki keeps his voice low, loving how you try and repress another shiver, and your pheromones almost choke him as he tries to gently sniff them again.

If you two didn't find an appropriate area soon, he may simply take you to his den, which would be twice as dangerous for the both of you.

"I...I don't know...it was...mildly better...after my little brother was born. He was a boy, an Alpha too, and he had a Quirk." You tell him, trying to make your clenching pelvic muscles stop their ridiculousness. Chisaki is too busy rolling his eyes to notice that you're starting to hold on to his coat a little tighter to try and hide the fact that your pants are officially soaked through.

"Oh...they're those types of people..." Chisaki says, his voice the lowest yet in barely-withheld rage, and a pitched whine escapes you before you wrap a hand around the base of your throat. Chisaki almost walks into a wall in surprise, you immediately sidestep as he steadies himself.

"I'm sorry-" You immediately return to the babbling mess you were in the hall, trying to appease him when even you can tell he isn't angry, in fact, if the crinkles by his eyes are any indicator, he's smiling under his mask.

But you're scared. And horny. So you run your mouth without thinking, apologizing frantically before he gently wraps his arm around your waist, he gently tugs you close to him, you keep your eyes averted and lowered to the floor, but he removes his face mask entirely in order to kiss your forehead gently.

You clench the hand around your throat tighter as he re-places his mask back on his face, he then runs a hand through your short hair tenderly. You look up at him from under your eyebrows, your lashes dark and long and thick as they frame your gorgeous (e/c) orbs.

"You simply startled me, there is no reason to apologize." He rumbles to you, his voice much lower now as his Alpha starts to really push for some attention. He watches with amusement and arousal as you clench your legs together, the slick now dripping low enough for him to see it, even with his jacket around you. "But may I ask you something?"

"Y-Yes, sir." You squeak, Chisaki goes from hard to full-blown, raging erection, you can barely hear him inhale, a very subtle noise that doesn't quite click in your mind until he presses the two of you together.

"...have you ever had an Alpha before?" He purrs, your eyes nearly roll into the back of your head and all the fear leaves you immediately as you melt into him. "I'm guessing not."

"N-None o-of them-" You squeak slightly in indignation as Chisaki plucks you up from the floor like a ragdoll, gathering you into his chest and not minding your wet and sticky slick soaking into his chest. "-None of them ever w-wanted a Q-Quirkless Omega."

Chisaki is immediately disappointed, not in you or anything about you, but at the rest of society for letting such a sweet and pure thing sink so low as him.

"They were fools then, and did not deserve you." Chisaki turns down a hall, and it's getting very hard for you to not nuzzle him. His musky, beautiful scent was everything you've ever liked, blended together in such a complex way you couldn't describe all of the unique notes and subtle tones of it. Chisaki notices you eyeing his neck and gently presses your face into it, you let out a startled, but pleasantly so, squeak, and he purrs for real this time at the adorable noise.

Your slick surges and you let out a much higher-pitched purr, leaning in against him as he opens a door quietly, the hall light flicks off and leaves you in darkness before Chisaki gently closes the door with his heel. You've buried your face in his neck, blinding yourself to the fact that Chisaki has brought you to his room, his den and haven.

At least, until his no-longer-gloved hands sneak their way under his jacket, undoing a single button on your shirt to lay themselves on your bare waist. You gasp softly in surprise, moving your face from his neck just enough to give him a startled look.

He nuzzles you, closing his eyes and leaning his back against the door as he openly relaxes, holding you close while gently fondling your slightly-chubby-but-not-noticeably waist.

"C-Chisaki?" You squeak, one of his hands immediately rolls your shirt up and off of you, you squeak again in surprise, but he tossing your shirt and his coat haphazardly onto the floor. You immediately cover your breasts, your face once again blushing strongly, and he quickly does away with his masks as well, hanging them on a hook by the door as he gently turns your face to his by tenderly grasping your chin.

"I want you, Omega. I want you, (Y/N)." He rumbles, striding forward as you turn into a flustered, slicking, horny mess in his arms. His voice is like pure sex but only the deep, tasteful, romantic parts of it.

You mewl a little as he gently places you on his bed, but he rests his arms by your head and kisses you deeply, swallowing anymore noise with tenderness and care. You forget about your embarrassment as he gently move his lips against yours, his cock straining against his pants and pressing up against your legs a bit as he leans over you.

"Do you want me also?" Chisaki murmurs to you once the two of you run out of air to suck from each other's lungs, you immediately wrap yourself around him tightly. "Do you want me like I want you, (Y/N)?"

"Yes, Chisaki, yes I want you-" You don't get another words out as he kisses you again, his hands easily finding and undoing your bra before starting on the buttons of his shirt. Once you run out of air, he starts kissing the underside of your jaw as you pant quietly, he has to pause (his frustration visible) in order to pull his shirt off. You immediately touch the intricate, but traditional tattoos on his arms, pecs, and (you're willing to bet) his back. "You're so pretty, Chisaki."

"So are you, (Y/N), you just don't have art to paw at." He purrs as he descends on you again, you happily undo his tie for him as he kisses you, and the fact that you fumble with it from the distraction of kissing is adorable to him, and he can feel a small wet patch grow do to his leaking precum. You two pause again, and he attacks your throat and neck with powerful sucks and languid swipes of his tongue as you grind your clothed sex against his.

You gasp quietly when he whips your bra across the room, but he gently fondles one breast and you turn into a melty mess again. He chuckles, happily going back to his network of hickies trailing down your throat and across your shoulder. You happily tangle your hands in his hair, pressing him against you further with soft mewls of encouragement.

"A-Alpha, stop teasing!" You finally reach your breaking point, Chisaki almost rips your dress slacks in his immediately eagerness to get them off of you, you giggle a little and he blushes, burying his face in your neck before you tempt him out with kisses to his cheekbone and nose and the tip of his ear.

Then he actually rips them, his face morphing into one of shock and embarrassment as you giggle loudly and nuzzle him. He mumbles a hasty apology before eagerly pulling them off you, taking your panties with and tossing the mess by the foot of the bed before crawling up your body and trailing lazy kisses up from your bellybutton.

"Why are your pants still on?" You tease, kissing his nose before he can reply, he nips your bottom lip playfully, stilling feeling you up as you squirm gently.

"So impatient, (Y/N)." He teases right back, gently tugging on one of your nipples, you steal another kiss from him as he other hand (that is not forming a bruise on your nipple, not at all, no siree) trails down and teasingly circles your puffy little clit. You gasp in surprise, and Chisaki happily presses forward and slips his tongue and one finger into you at the same time. You melt into a happy, horny, submissive puddle under him, causing him to let out a deep and rumbling purr as he explores your mouth with fervent heat and dominance.

He gently explores your opening too, feeling you flutter around that single digit and getting painfully hard in his pants as he stretches you around a second finger. Your slick makes it easier, but it's still painfully obvious that you are still new at this. (So is Chisaki, but he's hoping you're too horny and heat-addled to realize this.)

You eagerly spread your legs a little, beyond ready for this part as your fingers once again find their way into Chisaki's well-kept hair and tangling it. You moan as his two fingers start to gently stretch you, you can feel Chisaki smile into the kiss a little before it goes from 'romantic exploring' into a creature of teeth and tongue and lots of purring from you both.

Unfortunately, Chisaki knows that you still need prepping, and as much as he enjoys the savage kiss, he separates to let you breathe and whimper and mewl as he continues to stretch you. (Both of you think this is taking a while, but this hasn't even been ten minutes since your butt hit his mattress.)

You surprise him when you nip his ear, but he happily turns your head and sucks on the tender skin underneath one of yours, returning you to the panting, mewling puddle. Your slick has surged so many times, his entire hand is covered up to his wrist, and he hasn't even gotten knuckle-deep yet.

"Such a messy Omega, (Y/N), look at what your naughty cunt has done to my hand." Chisaki purrs absolute filth into your ear, and your eyes roll slightly as you let out a porn star-worthy moan, his hips grind up against you exposed inner thigh roughly as he lets out a possessive growl. "Tell me, my messy Omega, who's making you so wet?"

"You, Chisaki, you are, Alpha!" You mewl, he slips a third finger in, starting to actually move deeper into you as you moan again, he happily continues to dirty-talk in your ear, telling you that this would have happened a lot sooner if you had told him that you were an Omega, he would have gladly bent his little nanny over his desk anytime. Or maybe he should've made you Present yourself to him, without any pesky suppressants to quell your scent, then he would've seen what a messy little cunt that hide itself in such a clean, proper suit would've been capable of.

Or maybe he should open the door, let the entire base hear you get railed.

You dissolve under him, not realizing that he's dissolving right with you, pulling his head closer to you as he finally extracts his fingers and simply Overhauls the rest of his clothes off. (Speaking of, where are your shoes? You swore you had them on in the hall, but your feet are bare now.)

"(Y/N), this may sting." Chisaki whispers into your ear, his head nudging your entrance gently, you tuck your face into his neck tightly, but you aren't afraid, simply nervous.

It does sting, but only enough to make you gasp a little, and that gasp is mostly from shock at Chisaki's sheer size. His girth and length were both big, and while he knows you've never had an Alpha before, this still made his already huge ego blimp.

"Chisaki, Alpha, you're huge." You pant into his neck, he struggles to fit himself into you, and you can feel the veins throbbing against your walls as he slowly sinks in, inch by inch, and you mewl once he reaches your G-spot. You pant against his skin as he slowly bottoms out in you, you can feel him twitching inside of you, but you were seeing stars anyway. "A-Alpha-"

"Sh, (Y/N), you need to adjust, Omega." He purrs into your ear, but his cock twitches strongly inside you at the thought of wrecking you severely, to where no man or Alpha could ever satisfy you again. "You're like a vice, Omega, you're squeezing me so tightly. What will happen when I blow my knot, hm? You're so small, I could break you in half with it."

You let out a sinful noise that Chisaki can barely recognize as an orgasm as you sink your teeth into his neck a little. You wrap your legs around his slim waist, anchoring him to you as your walls try to milk him through your orgasm.

"I can't wait for that sound to be my name, to hear you scream so hard the walls rattle-" This kick-starts his dirty-talk again as you slowly calm down, occasionally he shifts his hips, stimulating you just enough for you to know he's teasing you again. You actually clamp down on him and he buries his face in your shoulder with a groan that could make millions, and he slowly grinds against you.

"Naughty Omega, you naughty, naughty Omega." He rumbles from your shoulder, you pant happily in his ear, every deep, slow roll of his hip making you see stars all over again. "I should punish you for that, you naughty thing."

"Then punish me." You pant in his ear, the lick up the shell of it as he groans again, pushing a little harder against you this roll, "Punish me Alpha, make me regret teasing you."

Chisaki rumbles, he drags his hips out, and you expect another languid roll that hits all the right places, but he slams into you like a bullet-train instead.

You try to gasp in surprise, but he smirks against you skin, and that is the only warning you have before he starts pistoning his hips into yours at barely-human speeds.

"Gladly, Omega."

~

You open your eyes, sprawled out across Ch-Kai's chest, your face nuzzled under his chin softly as he continues to sleep while fully sheathed in you. You blink slowly and lazily a few times, trying to remember what day it is, and yawn quietly as you ponder. Kai shifts under you slightly as he stirs, you gently press your face back into the comfortable position you two had.

"How long have you been awake, (Y/N)?" He purrs at you, gently nuzzling you back as you yawn quietly against his throat. "Not long, sleepy-head?"

"Of course not, or I would've brought food." You sit up a little, your fresh Mating Mark stinging slightly as part of the coverlet falls off that shoulder. Kai gently licks it, you hum and kiss the side of his face gently. "If my math is right, today is Kurono's turn to make breakfast, he usually does something simple, like Omurice."

"Yes, but breakfast requires getting out of bed." Kai mutters, gently pulling you back down on his chest, you muffle a laugh at him as he settles his chin on the top of your head. "What? Eri was right when she called you the perfect cuddle-partner, as it turns out."

[moonlitceleste]

who could ever leave me darling (but who could stay) - pt 2

Part 1          Part 2          Part 3

Ages are as follows: Marinette - 16 Damian - 18 Tim - 21 Jason - 24 Dick - 28 Bruce - 48

Marinette immediately starts sketching ideas for the outfits

The Wayne Gala would be a great place to reveal herself as MDC as well, so she had to make this perfect

Once she showed Jason her ideas and got his okay, she started right away

Hand-sewing everything was painstaking, but she was determined to make everything perfect

She was nearly finished with the outfits when it was time for her flight to Gotham

She showed up and got settled into her apartment with Jason’s help

The next few days were spent holed up inside her apartment before finally putting the finishing touches on her dress a few days before the gala

Back on Jason’s end, he dropped the metaphorical bomb that he was bringing a guest right before he headed to Mari’s apartment to get ready

He left before they could ask any questions, completely aware of the uproar and chaos he caused

Jason showed up with perfectly tousled hair, wearing an elegant black suit and a white dress shirt

Marinette wore a side braid with sparkling crystals woven throughout

Her dress was completely white; a risky move for someone as clumsy as her, but worth it nonetheless

It was off-the shoulder, the bodice covered in crystals that were scattered and dispersed across the skirt

The bottom portion of her dress was composed of a short, solid white skirt which served as an under layer for the sheer fabric she placed on top

The overlay skirt shifted as she walked and exposed her legs thanks to the slits that were in it from the sewing process

Despite all the details on her dress, it looked light and effortless; almost like an angel

Marinette had a momentary freak-out in the car—”What if they hate me! I’m going to trip, or spill something, or say something stupid and then I’ll be banned from Gotham forever and then I’m never going to see you again!!”

Jason managed to reassure her and calm her down

The first to spot them when they walked in was Dick

He raised an eyebrow at their intertwined hands--”Isn’t she a little young for you, Jason?”

To his credit, he managed to refrain from lunging at Dick and settled for rolling his eyes

“This is my sister, Marinette”

Dick drags them to where the Batfam are mingling

Robin and Black Bat are on patrol that night, but Marinette meets everyone else

Bruce totally knows she’s Ladybug

Tim recognizes her right away as Marinette-Dupain Cheng since he’s such a huge fan of Jagged Stone

Him and Dick fangirl even more when they find out she’s MDC

Stephanie and Barbara ask her who her favorite vigilante is

Her response is immediate--”Red Hood”

They ask why, and she says she’s never seen him up close but he’s done tons of good and seems like he actually, genuinely cares about people

Dick shoots a look at Jason--”sounds like someone has a little crush”

Marinette grumbles and adds that “Red Robin, Spoiler and Black Bat don’t get enough credit”

Jason and Marinette dance together, and the Batfam definitely take pics

When the night ends, they say their goodbyes

Jason reassures them that they’ll be seeing her around a lot

He drops Marinette off at her apartment, and the rest of the Batfam head home

Damian and Cassandra hear Dick gushing about Jason’s “adorable sister”

“Tt. If her relation to Todd is any indication, she’s likely as moronic as him.”

He can’t deny his curiousity and asks if anyone has done a background check on her

Strangely enough, Bruce warned them to not go looking into her background--”I’ve already checked; she’s clean. Jason won’t want you snooping around his sister’s business.”

One glance around told Damian he wasn’t the only one who found this suspicious, but orders were orders

The next few days were full of Jason leaving the manor for extended periods of time to hang out with his “sister”

True to his word, he brings her around to the manor one day

She gets Tim’s measurements for “an MDC original, free of charge”

Jason teaches her how to shoot

Alfred the cat has takes a liking to Marinette—”No fair! Alfred doesn’t like anyone!” Maybe it’s a Ladybug thing.

A storm starts, and Bruce insists that Marinette spend the night at the manor

Jason and Marinette are snuggled on the couch watching a movie when Damian walks in

It’s an awkward introduction; he gives her a nod of acknowledgement before walking away

The next morning Damian wakes up to see Marinette wearing one of Jason’s button-ups, making pancakes and animatedly talking to Tim and Dick

Jason barges into the kitchen, yawning. “What are we doing today, Cupcake?”

“Well, I was thinking of checking out Gotham Academy. I’ve heard good things about it and I’ve already applied for a scholarship!” she chirped.

There was a beat of silence—”Pixie, you know Bruce owns GA, right?” “...”

Tim frowns—”Aren’t you only 16 though?”

Jason responds for her—”She skipped two grades.” (Side note: It’s implied in canon ML that Marinette and Adrien have both skipped a grade. Also, have you seen some of the Lucky Charms she’s gotten?)

Tim is suitably impressed and asks if she’s taken an IQ test

This has only made Damian all the more suspicious of his brother’s “sister”

TAGLIST: @dood-space​ @fusser90 @laurcad123   @professionalfangirl1738

[avengerscompound]

Running to a Standstill - 2

Running to a Standstill: A Captain America Fanfic

Masterlist PREVIOUS //

Buy me a ☕ Character Pairing:  Bucky Barnes x Steve Rogers x F!Reader

Word Count:  2342

Rating:  E

Square filled: None for this chapter

Warnings: none

Synopsis: While on the run from an unknown organization trying to take your son, you meet two super-soldiers.  While they try to help you get to the bottom of who is hunting you and your son, feelings come out and admissions are made that make your personal life even more tricky.

Chapter 2

Steve had expected to meet you out somewhere casual.  He hadn’t really been thinking about this as a date-date.  More a casual meeting to try and get to the bottom of what you were hiding from.  He’d agreed to let Natasha and Clint organize the venue and convince you to meet him there because they knew you better.  He’d been given the address and name of the restaurant and he’d dressed in his usual casual wear of a blue button-down and tan slacks and when he’d shown up, he suddenly felt very underdressed.

The restaurant was lined in hardwood, and decorated with pots of fresh herbs and copper cookware, giving it a rustic farm feel, but the floor to ceiling wine racks that took up three walls and the fact most of the guests were wearing suits or cocktail dresses said that it was anything but homey.

He arrived before you and was taken to a booth table under some wine barrels, that’s boxed seats were covered in cushions.  He was just looking over the menu of items - some of which he’d never even heard of before and all had prices that made him glad for the 60 years of back pay the army had owed him -  when you arrived.  You were wearing a champagne cocktail dress with a gold lace overlay and around your shoulders you had a red wool shawl.

Steve stood and greeted you with a kiss on the cheek, waiting for you to sit before he did too.  “You look beautiful,” he said.  He realized that it probably sounded ingenuine - the kind of thing you just say to someone on a first date - but he meant it.  He’d thought you were attractive the day he met you, even in the hoodie and jeans that were stained with grass and had a patch where it looked like either you or Geo had dropped ice cream.  Tonight you looked stunning.  The dress was flattering to your figure and you looked radiant with your hair and makeup done for a night out.  Mostly he loved the way you smiled.  You seemed excited to be out on this date with him, though a little nervous.

“Thank you,” you said.  “I can’t even remember when I last went out on a date.  I was surprised when Natasha said you were interested.  So I wanted to make the effort.  Who knows when I will get to again?”

“Hopefully it won’t be that long,” Steve said genuinely.  Not exactly meaning that it would be him that took you out, but realizing that’s exactly how it sounded when you smiled and picked up your menu like you were trying to hide how excited you were.

Natasha and Clint had obviously made you think this was a real date and even though he hadn’t come here tonight thinking the same thing, he decided that he should treat it the same way.  Besides, maybe Clint and Natasha knew something he didn’t and the two of you might be a good match.  Maybe you’d be able to distract him from his crush on Bucky that was never going to go anywhere at the very least.

A waiter came over to take your drink orders and with a little discussion, the two of you decided to share a bottle of Merlot.

“So you haven’t been out with anyone for a long time?”  Steve asked as he browsed the menu.

You shook your head and looked up at him over your menu.  “Not since before Geo was born.  I bet you date a lot.”

He shook his head.  “You know,” he said.  “I think this might be my first real one.  I mean… don’t get me wrong, I’ve had relationships, but they always came out of my work and we never made it to the dating part.”

“Wow, no wonder you picked this,” you said.  “Of course you’d want to make it special.”

“Oh,” he said. “This was Clint and Nat.  I guess they’re playing match-maker.”

You laughed.  “This is so not a Clint and Nat place.”

“No,” he chuckled.  “Well, maybe Nat, but she’d be working an angle.”

You laughed and the waiter returned with the wine.  He poured a small amount for Steve to try.  He had no idea what made a wine good or not, so when it didn’t taste like vinegar Steve gave a small nod and the waiter topped off both glasses.  He took both your orders.  Steve went with a dish that had ham, mozzarella, and truffles, followed by a steak because at least he recognized what they were.  You were a little more daring ordering spugnole as a starter, followed by tagliatelle.

“So why don’t you date?”  You asked, taking a sip of the wine.

Steve let out a breath and shook his head.  “Time mostly.  Never had the time to actually date,” he explained.  “But it’s not only that.”

You put your hand on his and smiled softly.  “What else is it?”

“I’ll tell you what,” Steve said, giving your hand a small squeeze.  “I’ll tell you my story and you tell me yours.”

You seemed to mull the question over for a moment.  “I’m worried that if you know, that will attract their attention.”

“You know that doesn’t make any sense don’t you?”  Steve reasoned.

“Maybe.  But,” you said taking your hand away.  “This is the longest we’ve ever managed to stay in the same place.  I’m expecting them any moment and if you decide to try and find them, then they’ll know it’s because of him.”

“We can keep you safe.  And Geo.  It’s what we do,” he said.

You let out a breath.  “You go first.”

The waiter came out with the starters and when he left again, Steve took a bite of ham and chewed it slowly, focusing on the smokey, salty taste.

“Are you avoiding?”  You asked as you collected some mushrooms onto your fork.

“Maybe a little,” he said.  “I guess there’s a lot of factors.  I don’t know how much you know about my past but I wasn’t always this.  I was small.  Really small.  And sick.  I had a long list of medical issues.  I was bullied a lot.  No one really looked at me as a possible romantic partner.  And I suppose I did go on dates back then, but they were double dates Bucky organized and there was always this supreme look of disappointment on the face of the woman he brought them to meet me.  Like they expected me to look like him.  I was a letdown.  I think it affected me in a lot of ways.  When women look at me now - like …’

“...They used to look at Bucky?”  You suggested.

“Yeah,” he agreed.  “That.  Well, I can’t help but think about back then.  And then I wonder if they like me for me.  I need time to get to know people and that doesn’t work out in the real world.  Only with people in mine and then work gets in the way.  Plus…”

He stopped talking and considered if he had it in him to admit this last piece.  The bit about how he had feelings for his best friend.  He hadn’t admitted that to anyone.  Not Bucky.  Not Nat.  Not even Sam.  He had said he’d tell you his if you told you yours, and it was only fair to keep his side of the bargain if he wanted you to do the same.

“I have had a crush on Bucky for a very, very long time,” he said.

“Oh my god,” you said, dropping your jaw.  “Does he know?”

“No,” he said quickly.  “I didn’t want to make him feel awkward.  He was always a real ladies man.  And now… he’s healing and I doubt his sexuality has changed,” Steve explained.  “And please know -” he reached over the table and touched your hand again.  “I like women too.  The relationships I’ve had have been with women.  It’s just… you know?”

“No,” you said. “I mean, yes.  I get it.  It’s okay.  I know how you feel.”

He let out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding.   “So… it’s unrequited. But I think I do a lot of comparing people to him, which isn’t healthy.  A couple of people have made the cut, but in the end, things weren’t meant to be.  So maybe I’m not supposed to have that.  Which I guess is another thing.  I once had someone tell me that I was nothing if I couldn’t be a soldier.  And I think it got to me.  This here -” he gestured around him. “- is a level of normal that I don't often allow myself to have.”

You nodded and took a drink from your wine.  Not a small one either.  You swallowed the dark liquid like it was water and when the glass was drained you filled it again.  “You didn't hold back did you?”

“I said I'd tell you mine if you told me yours,” Steve said.

You nodded and leaned back against the back of the booth.  “Yes.  I suppose you did,” you agreed.  “It’s long.”

Steve shrugged.  “For once, I have time.”

“When I went to college, I did lots of stupid little things for money.  I sold blood.  I tutored high school kids.  Just any little thing to give me some money to cover my bills.  One day the biology department had these posters up for an experiment.  It paid a lot.  You got $100 if you were accepted.  And if you made it to the end they'd give you $7500.  So I signed up.  I figured that whatever they were doing was probably safe if it had gotten to the human trial stage,” you explained.  Steve couldn't exactly criticize your reasoning.  He'd signed up for some pretty extensive human experimentation himself.

“I was accepted and once a week I'd go in with a group of about thirty other people and we’d have some injections and then we’d be tested.  It was a little odd.  The injections were painful and the tests were strange.  They'd ask us to try and reprogram a computer. Then try and guess what cards they were holding up.  We’d go on a treadmill for a bit and lift some heavyweights.  Then we'd be sent home,” you explained.  “I made friends with most of the other people but I also met the man I'd end up marrying.”

You stopped talking when the waiter approached and cleared away your plates and didn't start again until he'd bought out the entrees.  Steve waited patiently.  He knew there was no point in rushing the story.  “After about six weeks things started to happen.  John, my husband was running much faster than should be possible.  And I was guessing every single card correctly.  It never lasted.  By the following day we were back to normal, but every time we had an injection it was more.  By the end of the experiment, I'd get those shots and be able to hear every single thought of every person in the building.  Even the ones people don't want you to hear.  The intrusive thoughts you don’t even want to be having.  John could run at the speed of light.”

You drained your glass again and topped it off again and Steve leaned over and took your hand.  “What happened?”

“Project got canceled and we were told we were free to go.  We got paid our money,” you answered.  “Only one day I heard… In my mind… These people… I think they were government agents, coming to take us.  The injection hadn't completely worn off yet.  I told John and he packed a backpack, scooped me up into his arms and we ran.

“It was fine for a while.  We changed our identities.  Got cash-in-hand work.  No one came for us.  Then I got pregnant and when Geo was born the equipment went haywire.  When he cried it broke every machine on the floor cried along with him.  They wanted to keep him there to be tested but we knew what would happen so we ran again.  Only those people found us.  They killed John.  I got away.  But I've been running ever since.”

“Do you know who they were?” Steve asked.

You shook your head.  “I have no idea.  They never thought of anything that linked them to an organization.  Just things that made them seem like authority figures.  Official.  You know?”

Steve nodded.  “I understand.”

“If they're official, like the CIA you can't help me,” you said with pain in your voice.  “You're a private militia.  You have no authority.”

“I see my role in this world as exactly the person who steps in when the government is mistreating its people,” Steve said.  “I promise.  We won't let anything happen to you or your son.”

You nodded and seemed to make yourself smaller.  “I wish I could believe that.”

“You can trust me,” Steve said.  When you didn't say anything Steve caressed the back of your hand with his thumb.  “Do you know what Geo’s powers are?”

“I think they call it technopathy,” you explained.  “He has an affinity with machines.  Sometimes he can even communicate with them.  It’s come in handy actually.  I don't like using him like that but he can make ATMs give us money.  Change car titles to our name in the system.  Have our names changed.  Erase record of us.  In emergencies, it has helped us get away.”

“He would love meeting Tony,” Steve said.  “Maybe the two of you should move to the tower for a while.”

You shook your head fervently, “No.  No.  Too high profile.  I feel safe where I am.  Clint and Nat keep it safe and it's just some apartment block.  No one looks twice at it.”

Steve nodded and drained the last of his wine.  There was a lot to process and a lot of work to do.  He'd need to find out who was after you first and foremost. He just wished there was a way he could convince you the safest place you could be was under his watch.

// NEXT

[fatoujallovv]

so here’s my disclaimer: I hardly know what I'm doing. This is my glued together homemade giffing method that I’ve created over months of just random experimentation and bits and pieces from all kinds of tutorials. there are probably better or more correct ways to do a lot of these things! this also isn’t a completely universal tutorial, some of the specifics are geared towards giffing skam, specifically skam france. 

I gif in photoshop cc 2020 on a macbook. Some things like keyboard shortcuts and little things about the photoshop interface will probably vary if you are on a pc/ other version of photoshop! 

this is very long and very unprofessional, but I hope there is something in here that someone will find helpful!

we’ll be going from this:

to this:

up to date as of October 25, 2020

downloading clips

selecting what part you’re going to gif

cropping

my action for resizing, converting to a smart object, and sharpening

coloring

exporting and setting the delay

tldr tips

1. downloading clips

4k video downloader (which you can get for mac or pc here) is great for things posted to youtube, especially from skam france because all the clips are on their youtube with no weird geoblocks or anything! it’s really easy, you just have to open the clip in youtube, copy the link, and go into the program and hit paste link. I like to put on smart mode first and set the destination folder so all my clips go into the place I want. 

There is a 30 video per day download limit, so if you’re thinking you really want to gif lots of stuff from the show, and want a big chunk or a full season it’s definitely worth hunting for a mega or google drive with full episodes to download because it’s just less hassle! I might come back to this post later and compile a list of all of those, but for now if you type “[remake] no subs google drive” or “[remake] no subs mega” into a google search, you’ll probably find something! the all of skam website has no subs for several remakes, but not all!

If you don’t have enough space on your computer to be keeping full seasons, I know there are methods to get screencaps without having to download (generally for giffing movies and regular tv I think this is a common method), but I’ve never done it so I’ll redirect you to this tutorial that explains it! you should probably just go there for the whole thing tbh it’s much more coherent than this, but I digress. 

2. selecting the piece of the video you want to gif

now that you’ve got your episode or clip you’ll want to just open it in photoshop! if you go the screen capping route the way to do that is a bit wonky, so you can keep following the tutorial I linked above and join back in here at coloring if you like!

if the timeline at the bottom doesn’t pop up automatically you can go to window > timeline and turn it on! now you can use the scrubber bar thing to find the moment you want to gif! 

The advantage of this over screen capping is you can scrub with more precision. the arrows circled in blue below let you jump only one frame, where in screen capping I'm pretty sure you can only go by ten second or one minute intervals. 

I usually drag the scrubber as close as I can to the start of the shot/moment I want to use, fiddle with the arrows circled in blue below to jump forward or back one frame at a time until I'm at the first frame I want. I move the left grey handle to the scrubber and then I hit the play button and let the whole shot/moment play. Pause and repeat the shuffling with the arrows until you’ve landed on the last frame you want to use and move the other grey handle. 

the moment you want to use should be between your handles (it’ll look like what I have circled in red), and if you hit play, you should see the thing you want to gif playing on loop above the timeline. the speed will probably be weird, but we’ll deal with that at the end. 

now I recommend doing command or control + s to save your gif as a psd (photoshop document). this is a working, editable file which means if photoshop crashes you can open your file right back up and keep working as long as you’re hitting command or control + s at regular intervals as you work. later we’ll go through exporting in gif format that can actually be uploaded to tumblr.

3. cropping

next I crop out any logos or black space at the top and bottom. Just click on the crop tool on the lefthand side of the screen, drag the edges and hit enter when you’re done. you can of course crop out more than just that, but regardless of what you crop out, now is the time to do it. 

you can set an aspect ratio for your crop at the top of the screen if you’d like to be positive that all the gifs in your set will be the same:

4. my trusty action: resizing, converting to a smart object, and sharpening with one click

Now is when I use an action I made that does all the resizing, converts to a smart object, and sharpens. I’ll take you through the steps so you can conceptually get what’s going on, but I highly recommend using the actions window to record your process as you follow along so you have this action as well. It easily shaves at least 5-10 minutes off of the whole process, and these steps will be the same every time. 

here’s how you make an action: go to window > action and open the action panel. click the plus symbol to start recording a new action:

in the window that pops up, give it a name and hit record:

now just continue with the steps below, and it will save them!

first you flatten frames to clips (I think it says flatten to layers on older versions of photoshop). this is in the menu at the top right corner of your timeline:

next you convert to frame animation by clicking on the symbol in the bottom left, circled in red:

if there is more than one thing in the frame animation, delete the extra one. you don’t need to keep the last one but it won’t let you remove it until there are other frames in there. also go into your layers and delete video group 1 and its contents. don’t ask me why these steps are necessary, I don’t really know, but I’ve noticed it sometimes gets wonky if you don’t do this:

now you want to make frames from layers and delete that first frame that was there before:

then we return to the timeline: 

use command + option + a (control + alt + a for pc I'm pretty sure) to select all layers and then right click within your layers window and select convert to smart object. It’s important to convert to smart object after you go back to the timeline, or the gif won’t move:

next I resize. gifs for tumblr should be 540 pixels wide. for recording your action you should just go into image > image size and only change the width to 540 in case you ever have gifs cropped to different aspect ratios. don’t touch the height, let constrain proportions figure it out!

now, here’s what our base gif looks like, no sharpening, no coloring:

now to sharpen. go to filter > sharpen > smart sharpen. this is up to personal preference, but my go to settings are:

this is what we have after sharpening:

now is when you can stop recording your action. 

just press the stop button in the action window:

this action is pretty much universal and after I select the moment the gif will be and crop however I want, I use it on every gif I make!  so although this initial setup is tedious, now you’ll never have to do these steps again, and the process is magically much quicker.

5. it’s time to jump into coloring!

I typically start with exposure and sometimes some brightness/contrast. with really dark gifs like this, you kind of have to make it worse before you make it better. I did this:

now the gif looks like this:

we have some static and some ugly bits, and this is where selective color comes in to fix it! boost blacks like this:

and now your gif looks like this:

the skin tone is looking a little sickly and weird, so I go into the yellows and reds in my selective color layer to fix it! I also messed with the greens here because I didn't want color in the background (that part is totally optional and just up to your preference):

now we have this:

to really take the color 100% out of the background, I did one more separate selective color layer for cyan (again, I just felt like it but this is optional!):

and now the finished gif:

there’s lots of fun extra things you can add like text and tints and overlays and all that I won’t get into, but feel free to reach out for help on those types of things! 

this gif was certainly not the most complicated to color. some ridonkulously dark clips (*cough cough* vendredi 20h27 *cough cough*) take tons and tons more effort than this and a lot of the time you’ll want to use color balance layers and vibrance layers and all of that to mess with your coloring. 

with all of this coloring business, I really just learned by doing. I don’t know all the technical purposes of each type of adjustment layer, and I tend to stay away from curves just because I find them confusing and annoying. The bottom line is that you should always experiment and find out whatever coloring works for you and run with it! I’m sure every gif maker you talk to does things at least a little differently! 

I highly recommend taking the time to go through all the types of adjustment layers and just move the sliders around to see what they do! That’s honestly one of the best ways to learn and decide what you like!

6. now to export and adjust the delay!

the keyboard shortcut for exporting on mac is command + option + shift + s, control + alt + shift + s for pc, otherwise you can go to file > export > save for web

my settings are here:

the settings only need to be configured once! otherwise just hit save and follow the pop ups to choose where to save and what name you want to give your gif. Since you saved as a psd way back, that will be the name it’s automatically given, but call it whatever you want!

then I adjust my delay by opening the gif I just exported (not the psd, the .gif file) and using one of my delay actions. I’ve made an action for each delay between 0.05 (real time) and 0.08 (really slow mo for certain super short shots, typically for more ~artsy~ sets). 

all my action does is select all frames:

adjust the delay (which will differ based on whether you want them slowed down and by how much): 

for reference, this is a 0.05 delay:

and this is a 0.08 delay

now you just export the same way you did before! 

remember if you’re recording this as an action, you don’t want to touch the file name, just say yes when it asks if you want to replace the file. if you always save your gifs to the same place, your action will now enable you to override any gif with the incorrect delay with the correct one with one click!

7. tldr: the main tips

for downloading 4k video downloader works well for non geoblocked youtube videos, the all of skam website is another place you can look to download with no subs, here’s the screen capping method if you don’t want to download

The main way I combat dark lighting is to bump exposure to the right, gamma correction to the left, and then enhance black in a selective color layer. The amount of these three adjustments will vary gif to gif. I know lots of people use curves, but I find them really confusing for some reason, so this is my method! As my graphics teacher likes to say: there are always at least 3 different ways to reach the same result!

there’s a little bit of additional coloring on this one, but here’s another before and after example so you can get an idea of how those steps get you a better lit result without making the lighter parts super over exposed:

besides those three steps, you have free rein to use the other selective color channels, as well as color balance, vibrance, hue/saturation, etc. to restore color that was lost or to change the colors altogether! mess around with it and have fun experimenting!

7a. bonus coloring tip: 

sometimes you can make use of selective color to completely alter an isolated color in your gif. You can get very adventurous with this, but here's a simple example of changing blue tones to teal (I got away with these gifs being longer because they were in rows of two in the set I posted them in. I'm too lazy to trim frames so I can put them here at 540 px without going over the 10mb limit so just ignore the quality ok):

7b. actions, actions, actions! 

if you find yourself doing a certain thing over and over, always record it as an action. the amount of time they will save you is honestly really impressive. 

You can duplicate actions, so, for example, if you have different sharpening preferences for different shows or scenes, you can duplicate your gif process action and go into the steps, double click smart sharpen, and alter it however you want! 

This could also be good to do for the different widths for tumblr if you ever do sets with rows of two or three! Duplicate actions is also how I made my actions that set delay at 0.05, 0.06, 0.07, and 0.08!

when in doubt, always make an action! it’s worth minimizing the tedious bits of the process as much as possible so you can focus on the fun part of seeing your awesome gifs come to life! any little task you find yourself doing often, make an action!

and for now that’s all I have. if any of this made no sense, if you want to suggest a correction or addition I could make, if you’re ever curious how I did something on any gifs I post, or if you have any other sort of questions, feel free to send me an ask or a dm! if I can’t answer your questions I’ll be happy to try to direct you to someone who can or a tutorial to help! again, I'm no expert, not even close, but I hope at least one person will find one thing in this mess that helps. 

[always5hineee]

Profit Margin- Chapter 6: Hidden Treasures

Chapter warnings: none

Word count: 1300

-----

       It took Y/N more than a few minutes to make herself presentable. She started by drying her hair, taking the time to style it how she normally would, which wasn't as easy a process as one would expect. After that, she begrudgingly applied makeup. It wasn't that she didn't like it, (although she believed that no woman should be expected to wear makeup), she just didn't like the idea of getting ready to be... well, sold.

       Once she was satisfied with that, she looked to the dresses. On the one hand, she didn't want to satisfy Hendery by wearing the blue dress. Just the thought of it tasted poorly in her mouth. Lucas did warn her against crossing him, though... And on top of that, he had insinuated that she was too big to fit in it. What a jerk. Glaring at it, she grabbed it by the collar. It couldn't hurt to try.

       Pulling it on and wiggling into it, she adjusted it by the waist, twisting the garment left and right. She didn't want to look in the mirror... Finally, she drew her eyes up, looking over herself. The dress was tight fitting at the top, with a strange, semi-translucent lace texture. That being said, it still adequately covered her personal areas. That same lace cloth wrapped around and turned into the overlay for the skirt, which was long in the back and party length in the front. The whole thing was a deep, royal blue, complementing her skin tone much more nicely than she expected. It tied with an asymmetrical ribbon around the waist, made of the same, matte blue fabric as the main skirt. It was beautiful, and she hated it.

       She had never been too confident with herself. She had her high and low days. Some days, mirrors weren't that bad, and others, she wished she could blind herself after looking at her image. She hadn't worn a dress in a while. Seeing it intricacies, the fitting, it made her hate herself. She knew it should be the least of her concern, considering the situation, but she couldn't help it. She had to stave off the urge to cry for fear of ruining her makeup.

       At this moment, she heard a knock on the door, a sound with a familiarly heavy weight.

       "Y/N? Are you almost ready? It's getting kinda late."

       "I, uh..." She swallowed, trying to get rid of the shakiness in her voice. "I need to put shoes on."

       "Oh! I forgot. Here, we'll come pick you out some." She didn't want to leave the room. After a moment, he called again, quieter this time, as if soothing a frightened animal. "Y/N?"

       "Y-yeah, I'm coming." She forced herself to reach for the doorhandle, every cell in her body fighting against her will. She knew Lucas wouldn't open the door on her- she had to go. She grabbed the handle, pulling down faster than she could psych herself out. He was standing a few feet away, just enough to be out of the way. Making eye contact, he looked her over.

       "Good, it fits perfectly. You look great!" A day ago, she would have loved to hear that from him. Now, it was just unsettling, if not depressing. "Now let's find you some shoes!" He led her to the back half of his room, where there were two smaller openings. The first was a single black door, and the other was a set of double doors. He moved to open the double doors, holding one open so that she was able to walk in freely before him.

       It was dark inside, but it smelled like perfume and laundry detergent. The room felt airy... What was this? He wasn't going to try anything, was he? No, if he were planning on it, he would have done it by now. So what, then? He said they were going to get shoes, so- Just as she thought though the logical steps, he flipped the light on, lighting up the space.

       The room was much longer than she expected, but only had room for one person to walk down the center comfortably. The walls were completely lined with all types of female clothing. There were dresses, skirts, blouses, a few pants and shorts, some... undesirably creepy garments as well. Underneath these hangers, there were rows and rows of shoes. It was incredible- it looked bigger than any dressing room she'd ever seen. Could she even see the end of the hall? How big was this building in total?

       "Everything's organized by size. Do you know what shoe size you might be?" She wasn't completely sure, but she took her best guess, and followed him as they walked down. Eventually, they stopped as Lucas faced her towards the left, gesturing down to the shoes.

       "Alright, this is what we've got around that size. There aren't many colors that don't go with blue, but I'd maybe stick to black or white?" She looked down quickly, just picking out whatever shoes fell into her line of sight.

       "Just the black flats are fine." He laughed a bit weakly.

       "That's uh, not gonna fly. You're gonna want heels, or else Hendery's gonna pick your shoes for you. You do not want that." Looking down as well, he knelt, picking out something. As he did so, he pulled out a bench from under the hanging clothes, something that she hadn't seen until he did so. Stepping back, he silently offered her the place to sit down. She did so, watching confusedly as he knelt at her feet. As he grabbed her ankle softly, she stumbled.

       "I- I can do that myself-"

       "It's not appropriate for a lady to kneel or open her knees in front of a man. It's no trouble, really." He slipped it onto her foot, finally giving her a good look at the shoe. It was black, fitting the shape of her foot with a sleek, strapped design. Honestly, there was barely any shoe at all. Over the main strap, there was a dainty black velvet flower.

       "It's a touch-me-not flower." He said as he buckled the shoe on the side, noting her stare. "I mean, the real scientific name is mimosa... pudica, I think? Don't hold me to that. Anyway, they're really pretty, I think they suit you." A touch-me-not. How ironic. He easily did the other shoe- it broke her heart to think about how many people he'd done this to. How many girls had been through this closet, made up in that bathroom? How many had made it out?

       Standing, he offered her a hand to get up. Reluctantly taking it, she stood, trying to get her footing. She hadn't worn heels in a while, either. They weren't unfathomably tall or thin, but it was still uncomfortable. He let her hold onto his elbow as he led her to the elevator, evidently not concerned with her running away. He shut the door behind him, taking her up. The buttons were still unlabeled, but as far as she could remember they were going further up than the conference room floor.

       "Where are we going?" She asked.

       "Kun's office." So she was right, that hadn't been his office. She knew it would be too bare. "He takes the clients up there, it's a bit nicer. Obviously it's very official, but it's more welcoming than the meeting rooms." She had so many questions. Why did he live in the basement? Where were the others? Was this their permanent home, or a functioning base that outshot from the original? Who would be there? What was the client like?

       She didn't have time to ask anything before the elevator doors slid open again.

Go to Chapter 7

[ineffable-endearments]

Spoken Affirmations

Rating: Explicit Words: 2462 Pairing: Aziraphale/Crowley A short story about a praise kink. I will add the AO3 link to the comments.

=

The erotic dimension of their relationship is still quite new when Crowley accidentally discovers just how much Aziraphale loves to be complimented.

It starts when they’re fooling around, and things aren’t decided - they could end up fucking wildly for the next eight hours or they could end up snuggling the night away at this point; they’ve only got to the kissing-and-petting part yet. The windows in the bookshop are covered and they’re on the couch in a one-armed embrace, their other arms crossed over as each puts a hand between the other’s legs in an effort to out-tease through their clothes and figure out what they’re in the mood for tonight.

And though it’s a bit early to tell, considering what’s going on in their pants so far, it seems they’re both up for a long cunt-stroking, perhaps with several climaxes each. The human parts they’ve manifested this time are known for being able to do this, no miracles required.

The lights are low but Aziraphale has a bright twinkle in his eye anyway, because he always does. He’s all wispy gold, warm shadows, soft lips. And he is so, so happy. Crowley is blissfully overtaken at being in the center of such joy. After seeing, over and over, the felicity they’re allowed to share, Crowley is shedding defenses he hadn’t even realized were affecting him. It’s like letting Aziraphale see his naked soul when he’d once hidden it even from himself.

Maybe this is how such sentimental words slip from Crowley’s tongue.

“Angel.” Crowley is enthralled, murmuring dazedly in the presence of Aziraphale’s grin in this brief, heady space between kisses. “You’re just incredible. So lovely...”

At a wide-eyed look from Aziraphale, Crowley realizes he just said that out loud.

“Ah! I mean-- Hmm. Was that a bit much? I don’t have to...”

“No, no!” Aziraphale says in a hurry. “Don’t apologize! I very much enjoyed hearing you say that.” He gives Crowley what is certainly meant to be a reassuring smile.

“Is...is it good?” Crowley asks, hoping. Aziraphale is looking at him in a way he normally does much later in the proceedings, with flushed cheeks and an open mouth.

“Well, yes, of course,” Aziraphale breathes. “Extremely. Obviously. Very good.”

Crowley frowns a little. “Are you alright, then? You seem startled.”

“I suppose it’s just,” Aziraphale whispers, “when you said that, it hit me rather hard. In a very nice way.”

“Oh.”

“Ah. Yes.”

“...Oh.” Crowley, inspired with a wickedness that has nothing to do with Hell, lowers his voice to something more roguish. “Have I never given you a proper compliment before?”

“Certainly, you have,” Aziraphale says, “but so forthright, and like this? With your hands on me?”

Crowley supposes that must be true. Although he’s always tried to show his love, he could never, ever state it outright before Armageddon, and even since, it’s been hard to shake off the anxiety of putting his feelings into words after being under Heaven and Hell’s thumbs for so long. Speaking of Heaven and Hell, though, knowing how badly Aziraphale has always wanted to be good and how utterly approval-starved he must have been with the bullying arseholes in Heaven…

Well. Crowley isn’t going to bring their rancid vibes to his lovemaking sessions with Aziraphale. But he thinks he understands. He blinks slowly, deliberately, working away from the cold mood Heaven always puts him in, reaching for Aziraphale and his warm soul.

“Guess lounging around with you all the time is just giving me a bit of extra courage lately,” Crowley says casually, hoping his voice doesn’t waver with emotion, because even though Aziraphale would just love that, he’s about to embark on an effort that will require a bit of composure. He employs his “tempting” inflection. “Would you like me to...keep going?”

“In what way?” Aziraphale asks, wiggling with perhaps a bit of excitement and a bit of nervousness. “Are you saying we just...sit here? And you say nice things about me? Surely that would be awkward?”

They’ve still got their hands on each other, stilled from all the chit-chat.

“I’m sure I can come up with something else,” Crowley says, willing the tone of his voice to be like dark red velvet and hoping his ability to wax poetic kicks into high gear pronto if Aziraphale says he wants this. “I could keep touching you, too, during. If you’d like.” He swallows, a nervous tell.

Aziraphale strokes Crowley contemplatively, driving him quietly out of his mind, as he ponders. “I know I would enjoy it, as long as you promise me that you would,” Aziraphale answers.

“Oh, trust me, I’d love it.”

Aziraphale gives Crowley that shy, radiant smile that means he’s done something right. (Unfortunately it also makes him want to shut up and fuck immediately, but they’ve got all night.)

Crowley goes back to what he was doing before, rubbing Aziraphale’s body through his trousers, but kisses into his neck instead of his lips as he searches for ways to begin talking.

“You know, I never did compliment your cologne,” Crowley starts, pushing that confidence through despite feeling it’s a rather weak start.

“Oh?” Aziraphale breathes. At least he doesn’t sound like he thinks Crowley’s words are weak.

“Yes.” Bless it, how do you make it sexy to talk about smells? “It-- it’s earthy, I like that. And a little sweet, because of course. It’s you. And that, ah, slightly spicy overlay, you know, because...because it just suits you. Earth with a hint of sweet and a dash of spice.”

Aziraphale nudges Crowley’s head until he’s at the right angle for stealing a kiss. “Really,” he says. “Spicy? Me? The one you complain about sitting around all day reading?”

“You know I’m teasing you,” Crowley says. “Fun to get a reaction out of you. Anyway, yeah, you got that spark to you. You won’t even admit it, but it’s there, being stubborn like the rest of you.” Crowley swallows, still not entirely over his nerves. “Kind of inspiring, really.”

Aziraphale, the blush in his cheeks deepening, lets out a tiny gust of laughter, eyes closing in apparent pleasure as Crowley increases the pressure with his fingers. His smile gives Crowley an idea.

“Your lips.”

“Hmm?”

“They’re-- well, they’re lovely. D’you do that on purpose? Such a bright, kissable red.”

Aziraphale leans forward, bashfully hiding the big grin on his face against Crowley’s neck. His breath is all tickly. “Oh, no, it’s not on purpose.”

“Sexy as fuck when you’re going down on me,” Crowley adds, smirking into Aziraphale’s curly locks.

“So that’s what it’s about,” Aziraphale teases through a whisper. His fondling of Crowley has stilled again, too busy making little cadenced advances toward Crowley’s fingers with his hips, though he’s still offering neck-kisses. Crowley misses the pressure on his own clit, but it’s a very good sign that Aziraphale is too consumed by arousal to focus on anything else.

“No, that’s not all there is to it, of course not. No, even if I never got to touch you again with any part of me, they’d be just as lovely.”

Aziraphale makes a high-pitched groan from the back of his throat. He’s hot and humid between his legs, and despite the thickness of those trousers, Crowley would like to believe it’s more than just sweat from his own hand causing the wetness.

“But also,” Crowley murmurs into Aziraphale’s hair, “please don’t stop going down on me. You’re very good at it.”

“I don’t believe you need to worry about that,” Aziraphale says, lingering with his tongue on a kiss to Crowley’s throat. “You like my corporation? Are there other things you like about my corporation?”

“Well of course there are other things. Your eyes, for one.” Ah, great, he’s chosen the most clichéd body part imaginable.

“My eyes?”

“If I were some kind of romantic,” Crowley says, “I’d compare them to, perhaps, a line of poetical nonsense like…” He remembers he’s trying to pleasure Aziraphale, and that Aziraphale actually enjoys hearing these things from him. “...Like the ocean when the sun comes out for the first time after it’s been raining.” When Aziraphale looks up and the eyes in question widen with wondrous skepticism, Crowley adds, “That’s honest. I mean it.”

Aziraphale takes a deep breath, chest heaving against Crowley’s. “This is wonderful,” he whispers. It is not lost on Crowley that he pushes his hips up to press yet harder against Crowley’s fingers.

“Alright, you know what? You’re entirely beautiful. There’s a softness about you. You're lovely to touch. And you're so comfortable to hold.” Crowley squeezes Aziraphale tighter, closer (as if that were possible) with one arm. He also subtly increases the pressure into Aziraphale’s lap with his other hand.

“Ahah,” Aziraphale pants, rolling his hips forward; Crowley increases the speed of his rubbing. There's a smile in the middle of Aziraphale's kiss. “You know my body is essentially whatever I choose for it to be…”

“Knowing it’s part of what you’ve chosen just makes it even better,” Crowley says. He lifts his hand, pulling a needy whine from Aziraphale. “Mind if I…?” he asks, brushing at the button along the waist of Aziraphale’s trousers.

Aziraphale pulls back to look Crowley in the eye again. “Please,” he says desperately, and does not wait to help push his trousers down.

Finally brushing his hand through the curly, golden hair Aziraphale has between his legs and getting to touch his labia almost discorporates Crowley. “Oh, you feel incredible,” he moans, drawing his finger lightly along the soft cleft of Aziraphale’s slit. He’s practically dripping, slick with arousal. It may have been painted on his face before, woven in his voice, playing in the saline taste of his skin, but this is something else.

“What do you mean?” Aziraphale whispers. How doesn’t he know?

“You’re very soft and warm and-- and really, really wet, oh, fuck, Aziraphale.”

“It’s good for you?”

“Yes. Fuck yes.”

“How? How do I...how do I please you, just by sitting here, aroused?”

Okay, Aziraphale is no virgin - they’ve been messing around for a little while now and his understanding of the pleasures of the flesh is well-established. But he wants to hear it, and Crowley is here to please. “It’s because...because I can feel how much you want this. It’s one thing to be told. It’s another thing to feel it.”

“Yes, I do, I do want,” Aziraphale very nearly whimpers, thrusting upward once. Crowley obliges, letting his fingers slide between Aziraphale’s soft labia. Crowley himself finds his hips restless, craving relief, something to rut against; he, too, is soaked, the slick feeling in his pants almost a distraction. Almost.

To be fair, Aziraphale is kind of trying. He fondles lightly between Crowley’s legs; he’s just busy being indulged.

“You’re-- oh, I have to say it, angel. You’re good. You’re so, so good.”

“Thank you, thank you, Crowley, oh--”

Crowley fingers Aziraphale’s hot entrance, careful, listening to his angel’s hitched breathing. Aziraphale is soft and open, slippery and ready. Crowley slides a finger inside, catching Aziraphale’s clit with his thumb.

Aziraphale fixes Crowley with that particular lusty gaze from beneath his eyelashes, the one he’d brought out early the first time Crowley complimented him this evening. “Please do go on,” he breathes. Slowly and with care, Crowley adds another finger, positioning his thumb so he can keep rubbing Aziraphale’s clit while he beckons forth an orgasm from deep inside his cunt.

“You’re radiant,” Crowley whispers. Being deep in this moment, deep in Aziraphale, gives him the courage to bear himself in ways he never can outside. Still, his voice trembles. “The way you enjoy living and all the experiences of this world. It just pours off of you, your whole presence. I could never imitate it, even when I had your corporation.”

“Mmmmmmmm,” Aziraphale hums. “Crowley, you-- oh, you’re so brilliant...” He tries to kiss Crowley again but manages only to brush their lips together, his head tipping back as he focuses too much on his pleasure to properly kiss.

Crowley won’t ruin the mood by using Heaven’s name right now, but privately, he thinks this is what Heaven would be if it really was the best place in the universe. Aziraphale offers a louder noise, a crooning of Crowley’s name, as Crowley nips playfully at Aziraphale’s earlobe and finger-fucks him vigorously, whispering to him, whispering things that he hopes will help push him to his climax.

“See, watching you enjoy yourself is-- it’s divine and decadent, exquisite in a way I can’t describe.” Crowley rubs his own thighs together. Perhaps he could describe it better in a moment of clarity, but right now, he’s hazy with love and lust for Aziraphale, for his catching elation, for his heaving chest, for the gasp on his ruby lips. “The love you have - for everything,” Crowley clarifies, “the way you enjoy existence, it’s contagious.”

“Please, please keep going, and thank you. Absurd, it’s absurd how wonderful you are…” Aziraphale trails off with a honey-smooth moan.

“I’m supposed to be the tempter here, but you’re the one who taught me about pleasure.” At this, Aziraphale bites his lip and splays his fingers to clutch at Crowley through his trousers, never letting go of that one-armed embrace. “Oh, you sweet, lovely hedonist, just by inviting me to indulge with you,” Crowley murmurs. “Showing me the pleasure of fine food and drink, entertainment and,” he lowers his voice to something more lascivious, “fine company. You gave me the world, angel.”

“Oh, Crowley, you...you spoil me. It’s you who gave me…oh, oh goodness...”

Words are hard to find, so caught up is Crowley in the desperate desire to share Aziraphale’s orgasm and so fascinated is he by the way Aziraphale smiles just a little bit when he’s about to come. Nonetheless, he does manage to articulate a thought as Aziraphale finally spends the tautness in his body, reaching his completion with a happy sigh and the telltale fluttering pulse of his cunt around Crowley’s hand.

“Listen, you deserve this,” Crowley hisses. “You’re so, so good, you deserve an eternity of orgasms, if that’s what you want.”

Aziraphale takes a few deep breaths, starting with a gasp, smoothing himself into a calmer respiration, the roses in his cheeks splotchy with spent energy, sweat on his brow. He kisses Crowley lazily, humming his satisfied bliss. Crowley has the thought that he’s going to spontaneously combust if he doesn’t get to come soon when Aziraphale puts his hand to work again, still looking a bit tranced but beaming with mischief all the same.

“An eternity of orgasms?" he asks flirtatiously. "My dear, I hope we can take breaks for tea and biscuits in between.”

[world-of-horrors-au]

Horrors AU - Sick Justice

A different kind of traveling show has come to town, a taste of propaganda in a world of pain and genocide. A memorial to those who have been victims to the monsters they call Horrors. This isn’t honor, this is desecration. 

---

"Are you going to the memorial exhibit?" They'd asked her.

"The what?" It took a moment to understand. "Oh." And she'd set down her phone. "The Victim's Memorial? I didn't know it was here."

Her co-workers had nodded, shared private glances.

"Yes. It's our turn."

Our turn, they'd said. Memorials for the Victims traced from town to town, carrying boxes of painful memories, exposing 'truths' to the world. It was propaganda, of course. Most things were. There was no law stating you had to go to the Memorial, no government consequences for staying away. But it was patriotic to go there. People could notice if you stayed away for no apparent reason. So she went alone.

The Memorial was in the Civic Center. It took up most of the building. Briar, dressed in black, stood before the sign in front of the door, letting it sink in.

THIS IS A GRAVEYARD

A MOVING COFFIN

WITHIN ARE THE MEMORIES OF THOSE WE HAVE LOST

AND THOSE WHO HAVE STOLEN FROM US

SHOW OUR FALLEN RESPECT

TOMORROW YOU MAY JOIN THEM

Underneath, they listed the rules: quiet voices, no children under thirteen, no running, no photos. Breaking the rules could lead to a fine between $25 to $500. 

She passed the sign and entered.

Inside, a chill wrapped around her exposed forearms. They said Memorials were cold as death, because it preserved the artifacts better. A wall blocked the exhibit from sight, forcing you to turn a corner to get to it. Coating the wall were tiny photos, hundreds of them, more even, each of a known victim. Some were family photos, yearbook pictures. Others were reconstructions of John and Jane Does.

Briar scanned the wall, and shivered. None of her victims were there. No one knew what she had done yet.

Turning the corner exposed the whole of the exhibit. Human figures, fake walls, headphones on stands, drawings and things Briar couldn't even see yet. A black curtain separated the two halves of the exhibit. Wrapping her arms around herself, Briar stepped on through.

Human bodies stood against the wall. No, machines, animatronics maybe, but lifelike ones. Their skin was smooth and matte, fleshy pinks and browns on their cheeks and arms. Their sightless eyes blinked. As she stepped closer, their faces moved to smile. Above them stood a sign: HEAR THE VOICES OF THE DEAD.

She stood before a Hispanic woman. The eyes of the machine looked down at her, the face crinkling with artificial mischief. On the stand, the name was written, with more text describing her life. Beside the text was a button. Briar pressed it, and the lips began to move.

"My name was Isabella Blanco." The voice could curdle blood. "I lived in Michigan, where i was raised since my family moved when I was ten. I loved anime, pranking my friends, and playing the violin. I was killed in my mother's house. My organs were taken from my warm body, and my liver stuffed in my mouth. I was awake when they took out my eyes and put them in my mother's jewelry box. I screamed for help but my neighbors were dead, too. They left me to die, and I did, but they left my throat intact. That's why you can hear me. This is my story, this is my voice. Even though I am dead, I can still speak. Now my story lives on through you."

The voice ended. Briar relaxed her hands, uncurling them from their fists. She'd clenched them so hard, they almost bled.

Technology was amazing, wasn't it? For the sake of giving a voice to the dead, they reconstructed the throats of corpses, manipulating them until words were born. An exact replica of the person's voice when alive. But it was all wrong.

Briar went down the line, listening, averting her eyes from the machines'. A man in New Mexico, a woman in Iowa. Two children in South Carolina. More. More. And the rest of the Memorial would be worse.

Artifacts in the center. Photographs of victims. Pottery, drawings, blankets, more, made by the victims, loaned by their families. Smiling faces by each item, with a small description of their fate. People could call it ghoulish, and they'd be right, but who would ever speak up against a Memorial? It would be like speaking against the dead.

Someone else, a woman, walked the exhibit with her. Briar listened to the squeak of sneakers on the floor. She caught a glimpse in a reflection on a glass case, a dark haired woman all in black. Whatever the other was looking for, Briar almost hoped she wouldn't find it.

In front of the black curtain was another sign.

BEHIND THE CURTAIN LIES EVIL,

PAIN AND SUFFERING.

HERE ARE THE STORIES OF TORMENT

AND THE STORIES OF JUSTICE.

WHAT YOU SEE WILL HURT YOU

WHAT YOU SEE WILL GIVE YOU HOPE

DEATH IS NEVER THE END

Briar hesitated. I don't want to see this, she thought. But she'd promised the others she'd tell them what was here. Only BEN had seen the inside of a Memorial, and he'd never seen behind the curtain. They stayed away because if they went, they would destroy the entire exhibit, and the fallout from that might wipe their kind into extinction. So here she was alone. Alone to look evil in the face as she did every day and night.

Her fingers curled around the curtain. She lifted it up. Moved it to the side. 

Behind the curtain were relics of the Horrors. From the human perspective, of course. No bodies, but signs explaining the murders, the captures and executions of Horrors. The bodies in the photos were covered with white sheets. Funeral photos of coffins, wreaths, grieving families burying their dead. The screens on the walls rotated images of federal agents working together with police. A tv stand showed a quiet replay of news reports of Horrors being arrested.

There were knives here. Guns, taken apart under glass. Claws ripped from the nail bed. Ropes and chains and torture tools of all types. They lay under glass, with the names of the ones they once slaughtered.

For something that claims to offer hope, Briar thought with a swallow, they're really enjoying themselves.

Sick, sick pleasure. Under the screens on the wall were death masks of her people, their faces twisted with agony. In a cage was a heart, preserved with plastic. The sign below it said DO NOT TOUCH. Would she have even thought about it if there wasn't a sign? Of course not. Maybe they even wanted you to touch it. 

She wasn't going to.

There were touch screens on one end of the room, each with headphones. Briar lingered, her finger hovering over the screen. The screen read, THE TRIUMPH OF JUSTICE. Pressing the button brought up a list of names. Names of dead Horrors. Her stomach churned. She pressed one at random. Scanned the pages, the information about the murders, the capture, the show trial. The execution… 

They had videos of the executions. Beside the text the Horrors struggled, fighting against the ones who dragged them to the scaffold. Their screams of rage, of fear, echoed from the headphones that rested on the stand. The chains clicked as they wrapped around ankles and wrists. The machines began to pull…

She slammed the back button but it was too late. The screams locked into place in her head. They wouldn't leave. They'd never leave. She'd hear them for weeks when she slept, agony overlaying the background of her unconscious. Their fingers would flex, their faces bulging in agony.

God damn your justice, Briar thought, her body shaking. God damn your justice to hell. I'll bring your entire species to hell. 

This was not justice. This was never about justice. This was about revenge and domination. Their hope was built on mutual hate, a hate that was shared by her kind, and theirs. This hope, this Memorial, was propaganda to make the public accept cruelty towards something no human could understand. If there was ever a chance to live together in peace, humans killed it with the Three Days law. They killed it along with Jane.

It hurt. It hurt because it wasn't fair. It hurt because it was fair, tit for tat, one genocide for another. And she was just one person who couldn't do anything.

I need to get out of here, she thought, and headed for the curtain.

Halfway to the exit, a woman spoke.

"She's not here."

Briar stopped, looking over her shoulder. The woman she'd glimpsed stood before a list of names, brown eyes scanning through them. Before Briar could speak, the woman turned.

"Did you see anyone named Lauren?" The woman asked.

It took another moment for her mouth to work.

"I… I don't think so. I'm sorry," Briar said.

The woman turned back to the names. Her face was a cold line.

"I hoped maybe you'd seen something I didn't," the woman said. 

"I-"

"She's probably in another exhibit. And that's fine. I'll see her later." The woman looked back at her, and something in her gaze made Briar's stomach drop. "I guess I'll see you later, too."

Briar took a step back.

"Won't I, Briar?" The woman said.

She ran. Ran out the exit, out of the building, past the smokers and the man in the business suit, to her car. No one stopped her. The woman didn't follow. None of that comforted Briar at all. Eyes followed her until she was safe in the arms of her family once again.

[deanofwhumpuniversity]

Writer’s Month 1: Tattoo Parlor/Flower Shop AU

This is obviously an AU, sorta kinda character study thingy. It’s not whump, it’s just me practicing; however

Content Warning: Tattoos, blood, needles, nonconsentual tattoo mention

The bell over the door rang as Reynan pushed into the little shop. He found himself in a tiny lobby, just a desk and some chairs, leading to a hallway of curtained-off booths. The art on the walls was modern, and everyone in the drawings was fully clothed, not the image he’d had in his mind of a tattoo parlor. He could hear faint buzzing coming from at least one of the little partitions, and he didn’t want to call out and interrupt anyone in their work. But the bell had summoned someone’s attention, and he soon heard solid yet gentle footsteps approaching from the hall. Their sound was clear but not heavy, tapping on the linoleum like a shoe somehow made entirely of heels.

“What can we do for you?” The voice was ever-so-slightly modulated, but low and smooth, and Rey turned away from a drawing of an astronaut to see he’d been greeted by a green and black android. The robot wasn’t feigning humanity at all, no synthetic skin or hair, with a viewscreen for a face. Two arms, two legs, and a head, unlike old-fashioned worker drones, but Rey could see one of its arms ended a few inches below the elbow. Not in a messy way; no circuits protruded, and the edge was smooth and clean, as if perhaps it had been designed that way.

Rey took his time assessing the creature before answering, not bothering to hide his mild curiosity. “I was wondering...um. I’d like to get a tattoo covered?” He didn’t know if all shops would do coverups or if he’d need to go somewhere special. But he’d had the day off and finally pushed himself to just go inside and ask. He knew surprisingly little about tattoos, despite the one inked across his left shoulder.

The robot seemed to be sizing him up as well; an LED square appeared on its viewscreen and bounced around for a few moments, its odd tracking reminding Rey of a dragonfly. “You work...nearby? I have seen you before. Many times.” The square became a spinning circle, and the robot’s attention was faraway, as though it was seeking the answer itself rather than expecting Rey to furnish one. “The flower shop, down the strip,” it said finally, viewscreen clearing.

“Yeah, the florist; but I’ve never seen you in there.” His tone was mildly suspicious; he’d remember if he’d ever seen this android before, and he was generally good at spotting if he was being watched.

The robot actually laughed at this, and despite the cascading sound seeming a bit like two voices at once, its tone was friendly and disarming. “I see a lot. I remember everyone. I don’t mean to, I just...do.” It shrugged its metal-plated shoulders, then swept its truncated arm toward the back of the shop. “I have time now, if you know what you want.”

This gave Rey pause. The android was an artist? Not just a shop attendant, a cleaning bot, a secretary, but an actual tattooist? He considered this a moment before he realized, if he wanted someone making clean, even lines on his skin he couldn’t do much better than a machine. He started down the hall, and the robot followed, directing him into an open partition at the end.

Inside the android pulled the curtain and gestured for Rey to sit on a faux leather chair, covered in a long sheet of paper like something from a doctor’s office. It crinkled obnoxiously as Rey fidgeted to get comfortable, and he tried to tell himself this was something the tattooist must be used to, and what did a robot care anyway?

“So what were you thinking?” The robot asked conversationally, as it pulled open a cabinet and drew out sheets of parchment and tiny pots of color.

Rey reached into his pocket, twisting in his seat and crackling the paper. He withdrew an embroidered chevron patch and held it out, grip somewhat tight, as though he wanted the robot to only look, but not touch. “It’s my regiment. I want it over -” he shrugged off his button-up, leaving only his tank top “-this.” His bared shoulder revealed a barcode underlined by a small stylized sword. He spoke more rapidly as he explained, “I’ve served my sentence, it’s ok for me to remove it. I’m allowed --”

The android raised a hand to silence his protestations. “I don’t actually care about Accord Forces protocol. It’s no problem.” If focused its attention on the patch, and a line of light scanned up and down his faceplate, scanning the image into his saved files, as though he could tell Rey wouldn’t want to surrender the badge to him. “I’ll have to make it dark, to cover the black, but it’s nothing I haven’t done before. Unless you’d like me to laser the old one off? You’d have to let that heal though, before getting it tattooed over.” It tilted its head, waiting for Rey to choose.

“No, it’s fine. If you say it’ll cover, I’m fine with that.”

“Excellent.” It flipped a few switches on an autoclave sterilizer, and a few wisps of steam escaped as the box’s seal released. The android slotted the end of his shorted arm into a circle of metal on the machine’s front face, and Rey heard a bit of whirring and a mechanical click, before the robot withdrew his now-whole limb from the autoclave. The hand and wrist looked the same as its other arm in color and design; but then the artist opened a sterile package and slotted a grouping of needles into a barely perceptible hole in its first finger.

“Wait! You mean, right now?” Rey wasn’t sure if he was losing his nerve, or if he’d simply expected there to be more to the process. His only experience with tattoos so far hadn’t been a fun one, after all. “Don’t we need to discuss payment, or something?”

The robot picked up a cartridge of ink and pressed it down into a socket in its knuckle until it made a quiet pop. “I don’t generally charge for coverups, to be honest with you.” It turned it’s attention back to Rey, and could see on his face that his concerns weren’t entirely assuaged. “I mean, if you really feel like paying me…” the spinning circle returned to its faceplate as it considered a moment. “Flowers.”

“Flowers?” The request was unexpected, bordering on absurd, but Rey felt the tension release from his shoulders as his nervousness was replaced by confusion. “What do you want with flowers?”

The android paused -- not in a human way, breathing, thinking, considering; but completely, unmoving, with its darkened face turned toward Rey’s. Nothing played over its screen, and he felt he may have made a mistake while he stared into its blackness. Then, just as quickly as it had ceased motion, it started up again, fiddling with its arm as it replied. “I like flowers,” it stated flatly. A bit of emotion returned to its voice and it continued quietly, almost wistfully “I like...beautiful things.”

After a quiet moment, it pulled up a chair and leaned over Rey’s shoulder, holding up its hands over the skin and looking into his eyes as if waiting for him to announce he was ready. “Don’t you um, trace the picture or whatever?” This earned him another soft laugh, and strands of light began to stream out from the robot’s screen, creating an overlay of the chevron on Rey’s skin. “Oh,” he breathed softly. The android remained still, needing permission, and while its attention was clearly on creating the detailed light display, Rey could feel a weight like eyes on him. He nodded his assent, and the artist began.

The pain was the same sharpness he remembered; all the needles moving together creating the feeling of a single blade slicing into him. Rey looked away for a moment, and the sensation seemed to grow worse. Without being able to see, his mind imagined the circular, color-filling motions were grinding and spiraling down into his flesh to paint his very bones. He forced himself to look back at his shoulder, relieved to see that the needles were still there, bouncing along his skin. Barely any blood welled from the punctures, and the android’s arm moved with a laserlike precision that shouldn’t have been surprising, but was completely fascinating, and he found his focus drifting as he watched the artist move.

“Alright.” The robot said simply, startling Rey out of his fugue. The android was wiping at the tiny spatters of blood and ink on his arm, and applying a large square bandage. That was it? It was already over? “You can change this in a couple hours. I’ve got some care sheets at the front desk with cleaning instructions.” The android stood up from its chair but stayed close as Rey got up, as though he expected him to faint.

When Rey was able to get up and gingerly pull his button-up back on, the robot waved his arm toward the curtained doorway. Rey exited and started toward the lobby, realizing the android wasn’t behind him. A click and whirr sounded from the partition, then the robot stepped out into the hall, again minus one hand.

Rey wasn’t sure exactly what to do now. Should he run off to the shop and get some flowers immediately? Should he shake the robot’s hand? What was the procedure for this sort of transaction? He realized he hadn’t asked if the artist had a name; surely it had some kind of designation. Inkbot 2000? He tried not to snicker aloud at that thought; he didn’t figure the android would appreciate it. Before he could offer any sort of awkward farewell, the robot was handing him a sheet of paper labelled “Care Instructions,” and plucking a business card from a little holder on the desk.

“Come back if you need any touch ups or, of course, anything else. You did well. I’d say I like green but that’s every sort of flower, isn’t it?” The robot’s head was tilted in a way that somehow implied a smile.

Rey simply nodded, taking the offered items and mumbling “Appreciate it,” before making his way out the door. He was halfway to his car before he checked the business card. It declared the address and phone number of the shop, and across the top, in a large green font like the display on a digital clock, was what he assumed was the artist’s name: Celadon Argos.

[chancellormatt]

Voltron Rewrite Episode Fourteen - The Noose Tightens

Emperor Zarkon stares down at the altean colony with glowing eyes. Most of the alteans are training, sparring with weapons or carrying materials. 

A door opens behind, and in walks Sendak. He approaches, coming to a stop just behind Zarkon. The Emperor doesn’t turn to face Sendak.

“...we still have not heard word from your son.” Sendak finally says.

“I am unworried.” Zarkon replies evenly.

“Sir?”

Zarkon chuckles. “I’m quite certain that boy hates me. And yet, he also seeks my approval. He’d never run, and he’ll never work up the courage to turn on me. I have no doubt that at this moment, Lotor is seeking a way to redeem himself. And he does his best work when he’s been properly motivated.”

“I see.” Sendak says thoughtfully. “But you are aware that Raimon is also with him?”

Zarkon chuckles deeply. “Of the two of them Raimon is even more unlikely to betray me than my son. I tested him quite thoroughly, to be sure. He completely under my domination. That man wouldn’t turn on me, not for any reason. If I asked him to, he’d slaughter ever man woman and child in this colony. I’m certain he only joined Lotor to keep an eye on him. It’s nice to have loyal pets, don’t you think?”

“Yes, my lord.” Sendak agrees.

Zarkon continues to stare down at the alteans. Sendak begins to grow agitated.

“...my lord, would you not like a better view? Our military has some fine displays that I’m sure would bring honor to you.”

“I don’t know about that. It's begun to grow on me.” Zarkon nods to the alteans. “I have half a mind to destroy them right now. And yet, at the same time, I find myself feeling a certain sense of satisfaction.”

“Satisfaction?”

“Because they serve me. Think about that. Some of Alfor’s people managed to survive and now they are mine. And there isn���t a blasting thing he can do about it. They even fight against his own daughter. Ironic, don’t you think?”

“Certainly.” Sendak says.

“Alteans.” Zarkon shakes his head. Pitiful creatures, every one of them.”

Sendak hesitates. “...except for the Lady Honvera, of course?”

Zarkon’s eyes finally shift away from the scene to bore into Sendak. “...of course.” He stares at Sendak several moments longer. “Was there anything else commander?”

“There is nothing, my Lord. I apologise if I’ve bothered you with my presence. I shall return to my duties. I believe Lady Honerva required my assistance with one of her machines.”

Zarkon waves a hand, dismissing him. Sendak exits, leaving Zarkon to resume staring down at the alteans.

***

Princess Allura stands in front of the Blue Lion, a determined expression on her face as she stares back at the other approaching Paladins.

“Everyone ready?” She asks, more than a trickle of urgency in her voice.

“Yeah, yeah!” Lance calls back, dashing up to Red. “We can’t all get ready in like thirty seconds like you.”

“We’re ready, Allura.” Keith says, stopping just in from of this own Lion. “...are you?”

“Of course.” She replies immediately.

Keith catches her eye. “You sure?”

“They’re my people, Keith. I was, quite literally, born ready.”

He hesitates for a moment, then nods. “Alright then. Let’s go.”

***

The Five Lions of Voltron, along with the repaired Atlas, fly out into a dense debris field. Broken and twisted metal drifts through the cold vacuum of space, forming  an ocean of broken starship parts.

“Real mess out there huh?” Hunk remarks.

“Yeah what are we looking for again, Allura?” Lance asks.

Allura leans forward in her seat, squinting at her viewscreen. “...that.”

“Huh I don’t see anything.”

“I got it, Allura.” Pidge says tapping away at holopad. “Some geniuses around here can’t use their eyes.”

“Thanks Pidge.”

Lance just rolls his eyes. A holographic overlay appears on all of the paladins’ screens.  It shows a bright circle around a large piece of debris, which appears to be half of a destroyed cruiser,  that has a small light shining on and off it's side.

“So...it's shiny?” Lance asks.

“Try a code, Lance. Check out the pattern.”

The shining goes on and off again in a complex but noticeably repetitive pattern. 

“Huh,” Lance says, sitting back with a sigh. “Guess I’m just being the team idiot again.”

“It's okay, that’s part of what makes you cute.”

“What?”

“What?”

“If you two want to stop flirting, we’ve got a mission to do.” Keith cuts in.

“We’re not-”

“I wasn’t-”

“Yeah, yeah. Allura? I’m guessing your silence means you recognize that code?”

“...yes.” She says after a moment. “It's an invitation to come closer.”

“We sure this isn’t a trap?” Hunk inquires.

“No, but that’s what we’re here for.” Shiro replies, giving a wave from the atlas. 

“Not to mention that we can launch into Voltron at a moment’s notice.” Keith adds.

“If you say so…”

The Five Lions, with the Atlas just behind, approach the wreckage of the ship. As they grow closer they can see that the light is coming from a sizeable hole in the hull. A sole figure in a space suit stand in the hole, holding a device projecting the light.

“There’s our new friend.” Keith says.

Allura stares at the figure, her Lion hovering just a few dozen feet away. The figure turns off it's device and wave. Allura takes a breath and nods. “Alright I’m going down to meet. Alone.”

“But-”

“I don’t want to spook them. Please. If it's just me they’ll feel more comfortable.” She reasons.

Keith looks as though he might continue to object, but finally he sighs. “...fine. We’ll be right here if you need us.”

“Thank you, Keith.”

With that, Allura exits her Lion, floating out into the field. She activates her jet, moving towards the suited being. She enters the darkened opening, and lands on the cold metal of the floor.

The suited being touches a button on the side of it's helmet, causing it to turn translucent. It's Luca. 

Allura’s stance relaxes, and she gives a slight smile. “Hello. I am Princess Allura, daughter of King Alfore, and Paladin of Voltron, and you have no idea how happy I am to meet you.” She offers her hand, trembling slightly from anticipation.

The other altean nods slightly. “I am called Luca, and the pleasure is mine.” She shakes Allura’s outstretched hand.

Allura hesitates, then sweeps her gaze across the darkened ship interior. “Where there not two others with you in the message?”

“Worry not. They are...nearby.”

“I see.” Allura said uncertain, but shaking off the ill-ease. “So then, please tell us how can we help you and the rest of your people.”

“That will take some time to explain…” 

Though Allura does not see it, Luca taps a small button on her suit’s belt.

***

“What do you think they’re talking about?” Matt asks, from the bridge of the Atlas.

“The fate of an entire species, I’d guess.” Shiro says flatly.

“Oh good. Nothing too heavy, then.”

Shiro doesn’t laugh but he does crack a half-smile. “Just keep an eye on that scanner.”

“I know, I know. But it’s been all clear. There’s nothing, not a blip since we...wait a minute.”

Matt suddenly leans in close to his screen. “Uh oh.”

“We got company?”

“What do you think?”

Bursting out from behind a larger chunk of debris, flew two silver robeasts.

“Guys!” Shiro calls over the comm.

“I see ‘em!” Keith replies. “We’ve got to hold them back, Allura isn’t in her Lion!”

“I think we can do that…” Shiro says narrowing his eyes. 

He drives the Atlas forward, barreling towards the two robeasts. He throws both hands forward blasting the robeast. They deflect the blasts with the spinning of their polearms. Then they are trading blows, two giant machines against one. The Lions are quick to support, however, blasting the robeasts from all angles, hindering their efforts. 

***

Allura watches the machines clash. It is only a moment later when she turns pained eyes over to Luca.

Luca hold her gaze, unflinchingly. Allura opens her mouth as if to say something. She never gets the chance. 

Out of a hidden panel in the side of the ruined ship comes the Dark Red Lion. 

“Hello Princess.” Prince Lotor says, pulling his Lion above the hole in the ship. The Lion’s mouth opens.

Allura has only a moment to react. 

“Look out!” She cries, shoving Luca backwards.

The Lion’s mouth blast hits the floor beneath Allura. A bust of energy erupts below Allura flinging her sailing backwards into a wall. She gasps struggling to maintain consciousness. The Lion reaches down again with an open mouth, but this time to swallow her into its hold. 

“Trivial…” Lotor remarks.

However before he can get ahold of Allura something smashes into the side of his Lion. Lotor goes tumbling, but quickly rights his Lion. Keith in the Black Lion shoots towards him, wings activated. Moving too fast to dodge, the Blakc Lion smashes into Lotor’s for a second time. 

“Did you think we’d go down that easy?” Keith asks.

“Not really.” Lotor sneers. “It's always something with you lot. Luca I’m a little...preoccupied. Secure the Princess for me...Luca?”

Luca is too busy staring over at Allura from where the Princess threw her, well clear of the blast. Struggling Allura rises, letting out a pained caught. She sets her gaze in on her Lion, which still waits in empty space, activates her suit’s booster and jumps for it.

“Luca!?” Lotor repeats.

“R-Right.” Luca struggles to tear an energy pistol from a hidden compartment in her suit. She takes aim at Allura, but hesitates. 

“Stop her Luca!” Lotor shouts.

Luca fires. He shot misses the mark by several dozen meters. Allura slips safely inside her Lion.

“...sorry, I failed.” Luca reports.

Lotor sighs over the comm. “...plan B it is, then.”

***

Allura fires up her Lion’s engine and it bursts into motion.

“Sorry about the delay! I’m ready!”

“Alright then…” Keith and the other Paladins pull back away from the Lions. “...form Voltron!”

The five Lions assemble the mighty form of Voltron. Lance tears out the sword, and they charge at the robeasts. 

***

Prince Lotor watches the shining form of Voltron attack his robeasts, and smiles. 

“Raimon...activate the Komar.”

***

A panel on the top of the wrecked ship, revealing Raimon surrounded by the great metal arms of a machine, encircled by druids on platforms. Bolts of black and purple energy begin to strike between the druids. They begin to direct the increasingly violent energy at Raimon who stores it in a large orb between his palms. Finally the crackling shadow energy reaches it climax, and Raimon releases it. 

The stream of black energy wreathed in violet light reaches out for Voltron and the Atlas. It snatches them inside the grips of twin tendrils of midnight. 

“AHH!” Lance cries. “Wh-what is this!?”

“It's...the Komar!” Allura manages to get out.

“Here! H-how?”

“...i-it doesn't matter, it’ll drain Voltron!” Keith yells. “We’ve got to...t-to stop it some...somehow…” his voice fades with each breath.

“We’re not...doing much better!” Shiro reports, alarms going off all over the screens of the Atlas’ bridge. Matt frantically types away to little avail. 

The energy slowly dies away, leaving Voltron and the Altas lightless and drained.

“C-come on guys we need to get Voltron back online.” Keith says panting. “Just...just like before...”

The Paladins struggle, but to little avail.

***

Lotor cackles with mad-laugher. “It worked! Raimon it really worked!”

“It did.” Raimon confirms. “However another shot is not possible.” he stands amidst several fallen druids. “This is not the original komar and the process drained too many of the druids.”

“We shall work quickly, then.” Lotor declares. “Finish this.”

The robeasts level both of their-staff blade and as one, swing at Voltron. Violet blades of energy slash, and the Paladins scream as Voltron shatters back into five Lions.

***

“We’ve got to do something!” Shiro yells, willing the Atlas to move.

“Well sorry to say but we’re about as useful as a boat in the desert!” Iverson grunts. “We’re operation off of our backupbattery’s auxiliary power. It's a miracle we still have oxygen, much less be able to fight!”

“Matt?” Shiro asks hopefully.

The boy is staring at the floor, thinking.

“...the engine.” He says carefully. “It's a dual cycle balmeran crystal system…” Matt’s eyes widen and he dashes to the back of the bridge, throwing open a service shaft.

“Where are you going?” shiro asks.

“To get this thing moving again. Or blow myself up. One of those.” And with that Matt is down the shaft.

***

Keith is helpless as he watches Lotor move his Lion right up to Allura’s and grabs hold of its neck. Keith throws his throttles back and forth to little avail.

The robeasts close in to grab the remaining Lions.

Keith closes his eyes, gripping his controls tightly. “Come on Black…”

***

Matt hangs on the side of a mechanical sphere with countless wires and cables spreading out from it. He tears open a panel, exposing two large crystals within parallel fixtures. Matt puts his feet on the lip of the panel and extends his staff. He takes a breath.

“Really hope this doesn’t kill me.” 

Then he wedges the staff behind the fixture of one of the crystals and starts to pull. He heaves. “Come on you…”

The crystal in it's fixture suddenly lurches into movement, slamming into the other crystal. There is a spark of blue energy. The crystals start to glow. Matt grins, then as the crystals glow brighter, he swears and leaps away from the panel.

A blast of blue light erupts where he stood a moment ago. A blue fire continues to rage from the panel. Matt kicks the panel close and lets out a sigh of relief.

“That’ll give us at least a few minutes, make it count!”

***

“Thank Matt, we’re back!” Shiro exclaims, lights all along the Atlas coming back on.

He lauches the Atlas into motion, pulling back it's fist for a wild punch. The nearest robeast barely has time to rear back before the Atlas slams it's fist into the mecha’s face. The robeast spins backwards, while the other brings it's weapon up to face the Atlas. The Atleas lets out a pair of blasts from its hands. The robeast blocks with a spin of it's staff but is pushed backwards. Four Lions hang in space between them.

“...retreat.” Lotor finally says, pulling his Lion back, Blue still held in it's jaws. “I will not risk my prize...”

***

“Come on…” Keith urges, squeezing the throttles even more tightly. 

Outside, the Atlas tries to reach Lotor’s Lion but is intercepted and thrown back by the robeast. They fire arm blasts at the Atlas, doing little damage, but keeping the other mecha distracted.

Keith struggles to ignore it all. He takes a long deep breath. Then another. Then another. Suddenly, Keith opens his eyes. The Black Lion’s eyes shine as it bursts back to life. Keith immediately throws both throttles forward, causing the Lion to explode into motion. 

He races for the Dark Red Lion, pursuing at blinding speed. The robeasts start to move to block Keith. 

“You aren’t getting away with her…” Keith says narrowing his eyes. He drives his throttes as far as they’ll go. The Black Lion’s wings appear, and it easily races past the two robeast. Keith is a split-second away when Lotor spins his Lion around and activates it's cannon. 

The only thing Keith has time to do is widen his eyes. The blinding blast takes Keith dead center, rocketing Keith back into a massive chunk of debris. The metal cracks and warps as The Black Lion gets buried into the mass.

 “Not-” Keith coughs. “-not done...yet!” he throws his throttles forward one more time, only to be struck by yet another blast. Keith looks up to see the Dark Blue Lion blasting Black with ice, cementing it in place.

“Better luck next time Paladin.” Lotor says, as the two Lions turn to leave, followed by the robeasts. 

The Atlas makes as if to follow, but a shudder from deep within it's core, signals that the machine has reached its limit. 

Keith can only watch, beaten, as their enemies disappear into the distance, taking Allura with them.

***

“Sire, Prince Lotor and Raimon are approaching.” Senak says. “Lotor sent only a short message ahead: I have one of them.”

Emperor Zarkon, staring out at the altean colony, smiles. “Tell them to land on the surface. I want to see this.”

***

Lotor drops the Blue Lion onto the scarred surface of the colony moon. He lands his own Lion with one claw onto Blue’s back, ensuring that it will go nowhere. Finally the mouth of his own Lion pops open and Lotor climbs out. Raimon lands his Lion just behind, exiting a moment later.

Zarkon stands on the cracked ground, waiting. Sendak and Honvera are just behind him. Lotor and Zarkon gaze at each other for a tense moment. 

But then, Lotor bows his head, and lowers himself to one knee. “...father, I bright before you the enemy’s Blue Lion and it's Paladin.”

“I see.” Zarkon says, impassive. “Show me this Paladin.”

Lotor glances over at the Blue Lion. “I suspect that she will save us the trouble of waiting…”

As if on cue the Blue Lion’s mouth opens and Allura leaps out, bayard transforming into a spear. With furious eyes she makes as if to charge at Lotor. The sight of Zarkon stops her dead in her tracks. She freezes, resolve sputtering as she took in the sight of the emperor. 

“...Zarkon.”

“Emperor, to you.” Zarkon says, a rare smile touching his lips. “So the daughter of Alfor lives in this reality. Princess you have no idea just how...fascinating it is to see you.”

His gaze sweeps over Lotor, then Raimon. “You two did well.”

Lotor hesitates. “...I must confess, I had hoped to capture all five of the Paladins as well as their Lions. I cannot claim this as a total success.”

“Indeed.” Zarkon agrees. “But this will have to do. After all Voltron cannot be formed with even one Lion missing.”

“Yes!” Lotor says perking up. “And I’m certain her comrades will attempt a rescue!”

“Of course. A prime opportunity for a trap. You have done well Lotor.”

“Thank you...father.” Lotor replies with more than a hint of pride.

Allura, regaining some of her composure, narrows her eyes at Zarkon. “You will not trap my friends so easily. They are clever and brave and strong. All the things you pretend to be.”

Zarkon lets out a hollow laugh. “Your friends will be blinded by desperation. That will make them easy to manipulate. And I do not much care how clever or brave you think I am not. But…” Zarkon narrows his eyes and takes a step forward. “...do not ever question my strength. Or you will find it's the last mistake you make. You live by my mercy. Now hand over your bayard, or I’ll have it taken from you.”

Allura grits her teeth and stares down Zarkon. She doesn’t break her hateful even as she deactivates her bayard and shoves it at Lotor. The Prince snatches it, looking bemused.

  “Good. So she does know how to follow orders from a better.” Zarkon turns his back. “We’ll go now. I want to show something to Alfor’s heir.”

Zarkon starts walking without further word, Honvera and Sendak following. Lotor smirks at Allura before turning to follow his father as well. Allura’s gaze turns out to the landscape as if considering making a break for it.”.

“Do not run.” A gruff voice says from behind.

Allura turns to face Raimon, staring at her through his dark helmet. 

“Who are you then? I know all of Zarkon other lackeys. Were you never important enough in our reality?” She sneers. “Then again maybe you are someone under that helmet. Does Zarkon make you wear it or are you just that ashamed of showing your true self?””

“I am a servant of the Emperor. Nothing more.” Raimon says simply in his gruff tone.

Allura’s eyes narrow further. “I have you to thank for blasting me before, don’t I? When I was opening teleduv. You were piloting that lion that hit me.”

“I do what the the Emperor requires of me.” 

“And I don’t suppose thinking for yourself is involved anywhere in there?”

“No.” He says flatly, and shoves her forward. “Move. You are keeping the Emperor waiting.”

Allura shakes her head disdainfully, but starts walking.

***

“Behold Princess, your people.” Zarkon waves a hand over the sight before them. They stand on the edge of a platform overlooking the altean colony. Even from this high the forms of individual alteans can be seen, walking, working, training. The statue of Lotor stands above them all.

Allura takes in the scene looking both amazed and horrified. Her eyes are glued to the people of the colony and she reaches out a hand as if to touch the distant forms.

“...it hurts doesn’t it?” Zarkon says leaning down next to her. “Being so close to your people but unable to help them.”

Allura steps back disgust on her face. “Save your jabs Emperor Zarkon. You only destroy pure things like them to make yourself feel powerful. Because you hate that there’s a void inside you that will never let you care for people like I do.”

Zarkon chuckles throatily. “It must be easy, thinking of your enemies as incapable of things like love.”

“What have you ever loved besides yourself?” Allura demands.

Zarkon turns narrowed, glowing eyes on her. “I loved Diabazaal.”

Allura is caught off-guard by the answer. 

“It was hard, abrasive, and cold.” Zarkon goes on. “And it was home. And your father took it from me.”

“He saved the universe-”

“He was a coward!” Zarkon suddenly shouts. “Too scared of progress to let it run its course!”

“Just because your arrogance and lust for power-”

“Lust for power!?” Zarkon bellows, he leans in very close to Allura, and when he next speaks he is quiet. “I went into that energy field to save my wife. Because of your father I came out homeless. But I’ll tell you one thing, I did change that day. I would never let anyone take one of my possessions ever again. Not one of my planets, not one the people that belong to me and most certainly not Voltron. You think I only care about power? You’re right. I tried friendship and compassion, and I learned that trusting someone to your back only gives them a better position to shove a knife in. Power is what I trust in, Princess. Because my own power is the one thing that has never failed me.” He lets out a bark of a laugh. “You want those alteans? You should have been strong enough to take them from me. But you aren’t you’re weak, just like them.”

Allura clenches her fists struggling for a retort. “Perhaps I haven’t beaten you. Perhaps I can’t. Not alone. But I’m stronger because of my comrades. My friends. My family. We will beat you because we believe in lending strength to each other. While you’re just alone.”

“Alone?” Zarkon smiles. “Do I look alone?” He spreads a hand across the other Dark Paladins, “As far as I see, you are the only one alone here. Even they are with me.” He waves another hand to the alteans below.

“They only serve you because of either fear or lies!”

“And why do people serve you and the other Paladins, Princess? 

“B-because we’re fighting for freedom and peace!”

“Freedom and peace…” Zarkon shakes his head. “You’re not different than them.” he gestures to the alteans. “Look at them. If I asked them what do you think they’d say? They believe in a noble and just cause, and are willing to fight and die for it. For freedom and peace. but it's a lie. All a lie. Your cause is the same, but since your stupid like them, you just haven’t realised it yet.”

“No, you’ve just twisted their good intentions to your ends.”

“And what does that matter? I did it because I could If you could turn them against me you’d do it in a heartbeat, would you not?”

Allura starts to speak but her voice catches. Zarkon shakes his head once more.

“Pathetic. Just like your father. Always spouting rhetoric, never committing to it. In the end he only did what was good for himself, just like me.”

“My father was not like you!” Allura nearly screams.

“You're right! Because if he was like me he’d have been strong enough to stop me! But he was weak, just like you’re weak. That’s all this comes down to. You can’t beat me, because you don’t have the power to do it.” Zarkon sighs, shaking his head once again. “...and now I think I’ve grown bored of this conversation. I have to plan how best to crush your friends without them slipping away again. Show the Princess to somewhere out of the way where my ears won’t be disgraced by her voice.”

Zarkon turns his back to her and starts walking away. Lotor motions for her to follow him in the opposite direction. Allura starts to follow Lotor then stops, looking back down at the alteans, then over to Zarkon. Finally she looks back at Lotor, or more specifically, the bayard at his belt. She closes her eyes and concentrates. The bayard becomes energy and reforms in her hand.

“How’s this for strength?” She shifts the bayard into a spear and launches herself at Zarkon’s back. The spearhead is inches from the Emperor’s back when it is knocked aside by Raimon’s blade. The Dark Paladin stands there, longsword outstretched, as firm as stone.

Zarkon turns back around, smiling. “I was hoping you would try that.” He holds up a hand staying Lotor, Honerva and Sendak, who’d been moving to restrain her.  “Do not interfere. Tell you what Princess, if you beat Raimon, you can leave a free woman.”

“Father-” Lotor begins to object.

“-Quiet. This is something I dearly want to see.”

“Fine. But once I’m done with him, I’ll take you down too, Zarkon.” Allura says not taking her eyes off Raimon.”

“You’re free to try.”

Without further prompt Allura thrusts her spear at Raimon’s head. He knocks the spear aside and kicks her backwards. Allura stumbles back, but quickly rights herself. Narrowing her eyes at Raimon, she launches a series of attacks against the man. Raimon deflects and turns away all of her strikes, never so much as taking a step back. Allura grows more determined, he thrusts becoming a blur as she assaults Raimon’s guard from every angle. Once again, Raimon efficiently blocks every single strike. 

Allura makes as if to thrust once more, but at the last second, pulls back shifts her bayard into the energy whip and lashes it at Raimon’s head. He ducks low, the energy whip triling overhead. Raimon replies by throwing out one hand, and firing a bolt of blue quintessence. 

Allura’s eyes widen and she barely manages to get a hand up in time. Quintessence crackles against her hand, and she stumbles back, nearly falling. Raimon lowers his hand, the glow fading from it. 

“You’re altean.” She says with narrowed eyes.

“Oh he’s much more than that.” Zarkon says.

“It doesn’t matter. You serve Zarkon of your own will, so I’ll stop you.”

Zarkon laughs.

“Something funny?”

“Nothing, nothing. Don’t let me interrupt your fight.”

Allura lashes her whip at Raimon again, this time going low. The Dark Paladin jumps over the whip, but Allura doesn’t stop there. She continues to lash the whip over and over, forcing Raimon to duck dodge and weave around the glowing tether. Just as it looks like her whip will hit Raimon dead center he pulls his sword up and the whip wraps around the blade. Allura tries to pull the whip back, but Ramion yanks his sword back at the same time, winning the battle of leverage. Allura goes stumbling forward, right into Raimon’s waiting fist. She hits the ground, dazed.

“Enough.” Raimon says quietly, looming over her.

“Never.” Allura growls leaping back up. She shifts her bayard back into a spear and thrusts it at Raimon’s chest. He knocks the spear aside, but Allura lets go with one and and thrusts it palm-first up at his face. Raimon catches her by the forearm easily.

Allura however, smiles, then takes a breath. Blue quintessence crackles from her fingers and blasts Raimon in the head. Sparks fly and the now-cracked helmet flies across the room.

Allura smiles with self satisfaction. Then her smile fades and her eyes widen. Allura stumbles back, as if struck. Her mouth opens and closes, taking several excruciating moments to form the word caught in her throat.

“...father?”

No longer concealed by the helmet, the face of King Alfor stares back at Allura. 

“...I am no one’s father.” He says monotone. He stares at her but there is no light behind his eyes. “My daughter is long dead.”

The last thing Allura sees is her father’s fist swinging towards her face, accompanied by the sound of Zarkon laughing.

[the-old-40sbuckybarnes]

You Mean, Like a Date?

Summary: It’s 1942, and when Steve decides to get really drunk, he realizes he might like Bucky as more than a friend.

Pairings: Preserum Steve Rogers x Bucky Barnes

Word Count: 2,765

Warnings: drinking, some angsty feelings and some internalized homophobia, but mostly fluff! :)

A/n: this is my first time publishing a fic!!!! apologies in advance if it’s terrible but i just love stucky so much!

Steve always liked the color red. He admired the way it gleamed amidst all of the patriotic paraphernalia that lined the streets of New York. He loved the way it reminded him of the crimson dress with gold buttons that his mother would wear only a few times during the year, for special occasions. But most of all, Steve felt proud when he saw the color red, staining his hands as he wiped away a bloody nose. He wasn’t afraid of a fight, and dark red blood courtesy of his neighborhood tormentors only emboldened him to fight back.

However, right now, Steve never wanted to see the color red again. He sat alone at a bar just down the street from his tiny Brooklyn apartment and glanced down at a thin piece of paper that detailed his personal information and health records, overlayed by a big, ugly, stamp in bright red ink that said, “DENIED.”

Though Steve was by himself, the bar was teeming with activity. On this Friday night, tall, muscular, handsome men decked out in shiny uniforms were dancing and laughing with their girls before they were to be shipped off to war. A roar of laughter erupted from a group of friends beside him, and Steve winced in annoyance, immediately holding up a finger to signal for another drink. Steve watched intently as the bartender uncapped a frosted glass bottle of beer and slid it over to him. Steve wasn’t much of a drinker, because well, he was as small as men were made, and alcohol tended to destroy him from the inside out. But this was Steve’s fourth rejection from the US military. The war was still raging on overseas, and Steve woke up everyday with a sense of guilt. He felt utterly useless. As he downed his fifth(or was it the sixth?) Budweiser, an “I Want You,” poster taped to the wall mocked him.

The handsome jerks at the bar continued to have a good time, quite ostentatiously, and Steve was about to just pick up a six pack from the store and drink by himself at home, when a forceful clap on the back and a smile that spread like butter prevented Steve from furthering his downward spiral. Speaking of handsome jerks…

“Hiya, Stevie,” crooned Bucky Barnes. He plopped down on the barstool next to him and ordered a whisky. “What’s a guy like you doing in a bar like this?” He teased.

Steve was half relieved, half annoyed to see his best friend interrupt his pity party. Bucky always cheered Steve up, but that was usually through constant pestering and jokes that Steve didn’t feel up for. Steve was just too tired, too drunk, to convey anything but a mumbled, “fuck off,” to which Bucky promptly laughed in response.

“Jesus, this one’s gotta mouth on ‘em,” He mocked incredulously, and Steve rolled his eyes. “What, you got rejected by the army so now you’re trying to be a sailor, starting with their damn vocabulary?”

Though Steve was pissed because of his rejection, a smile broke out on his face. Scratch what he was thinking earlier about not being in the mood-- no matter what the state of his misery way, Steve loved Bucky’s attention. He loved it when Bucky was around. His presence was so warming, and Steve just couldn’t believe he had doubted Bucky’s ability to truly make him feel better.

Unfortunately, Steve didn’t exactly have the capability to be articulate right now. So instead of saying something along the lines of, Hey, Buck, I really appreciate you spending time with me. You always make me happy, “Mmmm, fuck youuuu.” Was all Steve could say with agrin and a drawl.

“Deep down, you know you love me,” Is all Bucky said back plainly, a smile on his face, realizing the fact that Steve must have been drinking for a while if he was cursing this much.

Steve didn’t know if it was the alcohol or his ever present anger towards the entire United States Military, or what, but his heart surged when Bucky smiled back, his charisma practically radiating onto Steve like sun rays on a hot day at Coney Island. Steve half giggled- half snorted and absentmindedly reached out a hand and caressed Bucky’s face. Well, it was more like him patting his cheeks softly the way a grandmother did with a newborn, except way more drunk. “Bucky, Buck, course I do Bucky, hm, you’re blushing! You’re blushin’ Buck.” Steve slurred out, ruffling Bucky’s hair with his other hand.

“Okay, crazy,” Bucky chuckled back, reaching to remove Steve’s clumsy hands, when the pad of Steve’s thumb brushed the corner of Bucky’s lip. Bucky froze, hands caught on Steve’s wrists gently and looked into his eyes. Steve was looking back at Bucky, his bright blues accentuated by the dilation of his pupils, courtesy of the all the beer in his system. The encounter couldn’t have lasted more than a few seconds, but it felt like forever for Bucky, who could feel his heart beating in his chest. Steve, even in his intoxicated state, could feel a radiation of energy between them. Suddenly, Bucky blinked his way out of his entranced state and cleared his throat, setting Steve’s hands back down. Steve watched Bucky shift his eyes around the room, before downing the last of his whisky and smiling, like nothing had happened. What had happened anyways? Steve could barely even remember where he was…

“Well, Rogers, I’d say you’ve had enough to drink, but watching you drunk is really fucking funny,” Bucky waved at the bartender. “Another round on me?”

***

“I mean, you should’ve seen the guy’s face, Buck, he didn’t even look at me for more than five seconds and I knew his mind was already made up. “

Police sirens wailed in the distance and a light drizzle fell atop Steve and Bucky’s heads. The streets of Brooklyn were quiet, but not yet silent as the night faded into early morning. A hum of action constantly surrounded the burough, and it was comforting to the two men who trotted down the road.

“I mean, at least let me take the goddamn test, like the other fellas--a fair shot! Gimmie a fuckin’ fair shot before you say no.” Steve half exclaimed, half slurred into the air, and Bucky laughed in response, mostly because Steve always got really cute and frustrated with he was drunk.

The two had been walking for some time, because though Steve’s apartment wasn’t far from the bar, Bucky had to nearly drag the kid home, as he was far too drunk to make the journey alone. Bucky was drunk too, no doubt, but compared to his smaller friend, he could handle his alcohol. Steve continued to ramble on as they finally made their way up the stairs of the apartment complex. On instinct, Bucky reached for the hidden spare key, knowing his friend wouldn’t be able to produce his own at the moment. Bucky turned the knob and ushered Steve inside as the rain picked up into a steady fall.

“You know, I think you should go, Buck, an’ pretend to be me. You’d for sure pass their little test, huh?” Steve though out loud resting against the countertop. Bucky stood opposite to him, resting against the oven, though there still wasn’t a whole lot of room between them, given the small size of Steve’s kitchen. A dim overhead lightbulb illuminated the pair amongst the dark apartment.

“Though, it wouldn’t be long before they saw your handsome face and then recognized my name and then… well they’d figure it out and then we’d both go to jail.” Steve managed to get out, eyes cast downward to the tile floor.

Bucky let out a small scoff and smirked. “So you think I’m handsome, huh?” He replied, his voice low and hoarse, almost suggestive in the silence. He thought back to their almost intimate encounter a few hours ago that had him caught up in Steve’s eyes and slightly shaken for the rest of the night. He wanted to say something more, though he didn’t want to scare himself, or Steve with the feelings that were creeping up on him.

Steve took tentative steps towards Bucky, the sound of his soft, but ragged breathing filling the air, and soon Steve was mere inches apart from Bucky. Looking up through his eyelashes, Steve outstretched a hand, his dainty fingers gently cupping one side of Bucky’s face, for the second time that night, though this time, Steve was driven by a sense of purpose. A surge of warmth pulsated through both men’s veins as they were brought together. Bucky, swallowing thickly, allowed himself to relax as much as he could beneath Steve’s touch, comforted by the fact that they were no longer in a crowded bar with eyes everywhere, but he was still tense.

“Yes,” Steve finally said quietly. “I do think you’re handsome,” Though he was still incredibly drunk, his words felt sobering as the sound of rain pattered on the glass window pane. “So handsome.” Steve almost gasped out with a slight laugh. If it hadn’t been for the incessant pounding of his heart that traveled to every inch of his body, Bucky might have been able to produce something beyond the slight curl of his lips that emerged after Steve spoke.

Steve’s mind was foggy, and he felt disoriented from reality, but he felt compelled to follow through with what was about to happen. Pushing himself up on his tiptoes, Steve’s eyes fluttered to a close. Bucky’s soon followed, as he lowered his neck to reach Steve. The two reached each other ever so slightly. Their lips danced atop each other, like ghosts, hesitant of the next move that could forever change their relationship. Steve used his other hand to fully cradle Bucky’s face, partially to make the moment more intimate, but also because he so desperately wanted to draw Bucky closer.

With that, Bucky decided to plunge himself into the kiss, wrapping his arms around Steve’s delicate body, and holding him carefully as if he was all that he needed. The kiss was passionate and warm, with Bucky taking control and savoring the touch and taste of Steve’s soft lips, that were exploring the sensation of a kiss for the first time. An aura of innocence and excitement surrounded the two men, in the way only the experience of a first love could create.

That was until Steve began to feel more things he never had before. Heat and tension filled his body, sending a feeling through him like nothing else. His lips parted slightly, and a soft, almost inaudible sigh laced with pleasure escaped him. But he didn’t have the opportunity to enjoy it any longer. Steve was abruptly pushed away--gently-- but the very action of it felt cruel.

Bucky had broken off the kiss. He was exasperated and worried. His wide, but sad eyes met Steve’s confused ones. Bucky shook his head and then swallowed the lump in his throat.

“You’re drunk,” He said, almost spat, trying to keep his voice form wavering, because for some reason, tears were brimming in his eyes. What was going on? Bucky knew he wasn’t like this. He never got emotional. He was strong. But gazing upon Steve beneath him, with flushed lips that had just been on his, Bucky was frightened by the fact that he wanted to kiss those lips again. Maybe if I pretend he’s a girl… Just close my eyes and imagine someone else… Bucky thought to himself, trying to reason with the impurity in his mind, but he shook it away, knowing it would be in vain. “Steve, you’re drunk. This is wrong, a-and you don’t want it. I know that.”

“Bucky-” Steve began, feeling defeated. Even drunk, he understood the rejection.

But Bucky just pushed past Steve, slinging on his jacket he had absentmindedly taken off as he came in. “I’m sorry, Stevie.” He said at the door, trying to be as firm as possible, but the tender nickname had slipped out. Bucky took one last look over his shoulder at Steve, standing sad and confused beneath the light, and then stepped into the darkness.

***

The chilly mid-November rainfall had no effect on Bucky, who was fuming as he hustled back to his own apartment. Bucky was a jumble of emotions. He was conflicted at his enjoyment of the moment he had just shared with his best friend, but angry at himself for indulging in such a wrong action. But he had liked kissing Steve. He really had. Bucky realized he had been falling for Steve for all of these years, it just took until tonight for him to realize it.

But Steve was so incredibly drunk. He probably didn’t even mean it… And even if he did, well, Bucky wasn’t going to do anything while Steve wasn’t in a proper state of mind. Bucky felt like he had to push Steve away, no matter how much it had pained him. He reached home, his mind still a mess of guilt and pleasure. Bucky’s last thought before drifting off to sleep was of Steve’s lips.

***

Steve awoke the to though of Bucky’s lips. A lazy smile brushed across his face as soft morning light filtered in through his windows. Unfortunately, as soon as that happened, last night’s memories flooded his mind. Steve thought about kissing Bucky, but groaned as he recalled his rejection. Pulling himself out of bed, he turned the radio on and began to freshen up. A sense of wonder surrounded him as he pulled a clean shirt over his head. Steve had kissed Bucky last night. And for a little while, just a little while, Bucky had kissed him back. A broadcast of war updates and death tolls hummed from the radio. Steve thought back to the kiss, the softness in Bucky’s touch, and the safely he felt wrapped in Bucky’s arms. If Steve couldn’t make a difference overseas at war, than he sure as hell was going to make one here at home.

***

A sweaty, heaving, Steve Rogers stood on Bucky’s doorsteps a few minutes later. Bucky, standing over the threshold and holding the screen door open, was shocked, not only to see Steve given last night, but because the asthmatic looked like he was about to faint.

“Can I come in?” Steve panted out.

“Yeah, jeez, sure,” Bucky chuckled, hoping Steve didn’t remember last night, but also hoping that he did. The two took to the kitchen once again, Bucky grabbing a glass of water for Steve. “No more alcohol for you, Steve, I mean--” Bucky started, trying to feel out the situation, but Steve cut him off.

“I’m still a little hungover. But I’m not drunk anymore, Buck.” Steve said, quiet, but brave, just like himself. This time, it was Bucky’s turn to walk over. Steve’s big blue eyes intoxicated Bucky far more than all the beers he had last night. Doubt resurged in him, but Bucky pushed it down. He wanted this, he knew he did. For the second time in less than 24 hours, they were inches apart.

“And I still think you’re handsome. I still want to kiss you.” He whispered, looking up at Bucky. Steve bit his lip, fearful of being rejected again, but at the same time, wanting his best friend again so badly.

Within a matter of seconds, Bucky’s lips collided with Steve’s again, as tender as ever. As the two explored the kiss, they carefully held each other, mouths fitting seamlessly together in a nimble dance. Steve’s heart fluttered as one of his hands softly gripped the base of Bucky’s neck, resting in his overgrown curls. For one, brief, beautiful moment, neither Bucky nor Steve cared that they were kissing another boy. Because all they wanted was to be with each other, and right now, they were.

Bucky smiled into the kiss, his lips curling as he pulled away slightly and opened his eyes to find a tiny, bubbling Steve Rogers. Bucky caressed Steve’s jaw and tucked a strand of blonde hair behind his ear.

“I guess this is the part where I ask you if you wanna see a picture or get a shake or somethin’?” Bucky murmured, cocking his head.

Steve blushed fervently, raising a curious eyebrow at Bucky. “You mean, like a date?”

Bucky grinned and pulled Steve in for another kiss, their lips lingering over one another. “‘Course, Stevie. Right down to the part where I gotta pay for everything, huh?”

[lilacmoon83]

Dreaming Out Loud

Also on Fanfiction.net or A03

Chapter 91: The Reckoning

Emma looked at herself in the mirror with a lot of uncertainty. Despite being born a Princess, she had never worn a full scale ball gown before. She knew that if she had been raised by her parents that she would have worn her first at a very young age and become acclimated to such, because that was the norm in their homeland, especially being the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming.

Had there been no curse, her mother would have been Queen and her father King Consort. And she would have been a Princess. All that was gone now, but on this night, the three of them were getting a piece of that life that was stolen from them back. She glanced at her mother, who she could see in the mirror behind her. Snow was already tearing up, as Emma turned to her.

"You look so beautiful," Snow said, as she sniffed. Emma had chosen a dress in her signature color, fiery red, and Snow had put her hair up in a beautifully intricate french twist.

"Thanks Mom," she said shyly, as she looked back at herself.

"You do too, Mom. Dad's gonna faint," she replied. Snow had chosen her signature color and her gown was a creamy white with a shimmering gold overlay, lace, and embroidery. The sleeves were off the shoulder, complete with a sweetheart neckline.

"Wow…" David uttered, as he and Henry came into the room. He stared at his wife and daughter in awe, as he went to Emma first and gently hugged her, cupping her head.

"Emma...this is everything I've always wanted for you," he confessed. She smiled.

"I know…" she said, as she then picked up her copy of the sonogram photo they had just given her.

"And this is everything I want for you and Mom," she assured. He smiled and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Emma turned and took both of their hands on hers.

"We may not have been able to be together all the time, but I remember being raised by you in the dreamscape," she said tearfully.

"And that's why I can say that this baby is the luckiest little person in all the realms, just like I am, to have parents like you," she added. That did and they were both teary, as they hugged their daughter between them. Snow laughed and wiped her tears.

"I'm going to ruin my makeup," she mentioned, but David was already looking at her like she was by far the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. This wasn't really new, for she was used to him looking at her this way, but damn if she would ever tire of it or the way he made her feel.

"You are so beautiful…" he uttered. From anyone else, such a simple, yet often cliched statement might sound just that; cliched or insincere. But not when he said it. He took her hands in his own and kissed her tenderly. As he pulled back, it was her turn to do some admiring. He had chosen a deep crimson tunic, trimmed and embroidered with gold threads and accents, with black leather pants and boots.

"You're looking very handsome yourself, my love," she purred, as they kissed again.

"Guys...I love you, but seriously the making out in front of me is not cool," Emma complained. Their lips parted, as they grinned at each other and Persephone walked in.

"Oh...Snow," she uttered, as she approached, wearing a shimmering lavender gown with a straight neckline and very thin straps, complete with elegant jewelry.

"You look beautiful, Mom," Snow complimented.

"So do you and Emma," she replied, as she presented two silver barrettes in which she had put real snow drops on.

"May I?" she asked her granddaughter. Emma shrugged and allowed Persephone to clip them on either side of her head. Then she presented a flower crown made of snowdrops and approached her daughter. Snow smiled and allowed her to place it upon her head.

"You can wear Eva's tiara if you would rather," Persephone told her, but Snow shook her head.

"That tiara will always be special to me and I will always cherish it, but the snowdrops are perfect. They tell everyone that I'm your daughter and I'm proud of that," Snow answered. Persephone teared up and hugged her fiercely.

"I love you so much," she told her.

"And I love you, Mom," Snow replied, as they prepared to leave. They found Eli waiting for them by the cars outside and he took a moment to marvel at them.

"You are all simply stunning," he said.

"You look very nice yourself," Snow replied. He had chosen a dark violet tunic and she was a little surprised that he was not wearing a crown to signify his official station.

"You're not wearing a crown," she mentioned. He smiled.

"I decided that I didn't want to, because I'm not a King and that made me realize how unburdened I felt for the first time in my life," he confessed.

"Tonight, I am going to this ball as your father and it is a far greater honor than any royal title," he added. Snow smiled and hugged him at that.

"Shall we, my darling?" David asked, as he held his elbow out and she hooked her hand on it. He held out the other elbow and smiled, as Emma hooked her hand on his other elbow as well.

"In Hades place, until we find him, will you allow me to escort you?" Eli asked. Persephone smiled and nodded, as they followed.

~*~

Zelena peered around the corner, as they hid in the alleyway alongside the library building. Hades was with her and they were both dressed for the ball, however, the thick manacles around his wrists and ankles ensured he was not a willing participant.

"Trusting the worm to do anything right is foolhardy," Hades warned.

"Shut up," she snapped, as Hermes finally caught up to them.

"What took you so long?!" she spat.

"I'm sorry, but snatching one of these things wasn't easy, even from those idiots that follow Circe like blind lambs on the way to slaughter," he mentioned. Hades snorted derisively.

"It's funny that you make that statement, when you're a sheep yourself. You follow whoever you think may possibly gain power and lodge your nose firmly up their…" Hades spat, but she cut him off, before he could finish the insult.

"Enough…" she snapped, as she examined the plasma weapon.

"Perfect...this will do nicely until we get that magical cube," she said, as she tugged Hades along and they marched into the library. Robert and Happy, who were on guard, had no time to even scream, as she fired the weapon at both of them. Happy was tossed into a bookcase and Robert into the wall behind him, effectively rendering them both unconscious.

"Too easy," Zelena commented, as she tugged Hades into the elevator with her and handed the weapon to Hermes.

"Blast anyone that comes in and lower us down," she ordered, as the elevator door closed and slowly began to move.

"This is a mistake, Zelena," Hades warned.

"Stop trying to reason with me...it's not going to work," she replied in boredom.

"I won't stop trying!" he growled.

"Because you don't realize what you're about to do and the dire consequences it could create," he admonished.

"Once you cast this spell, there is no way to determine how different things will be or what might occur. You might retain your memories as the caster of the spell, but you could be cursing yourself into a life worse than the one you have," he explained.

"There is a reason that not even Zeus broke this particular rule and believe me, he broke every other one in the book," he continued. She sighed.

"Your concerns are duly noted, but kindly shut up now," she snapped, as the elevator touched down and she pulled him along, as she lay eyes on the containment cube. With practical giddiness, she pressed the activation button on the device and instead of the magic being released, it was easily sucked into her pendant, as she held it to the cube. It glowed bright green and she put it back on, as she felt the magic flow through her every vein. She grabbed Hades by the arm and brought her face close to his.

"Buckle up...it's time for me to get my happy ending and watch everyone else's burn," she hissed, as they disappeared in a puff of green smoke…

~*~

They entered Cronus' palace and saw that he was standing in the receiving area to greet everyone, with Phobos by his side. He seemed very welcoming and eager to prove himself to the town. But Persephone didn't buy it for a second. However, she was ready to play along with his game and do this dance that he was insisting they do. And if he was responsible for something happening to Hades, then she would make him pay the same way she made the Swans pay.

"Ah...Persephone, as always, you are breathtaking, as is your lovely daughter. It is no secret as to why she is referred to as the fairest of them all," Cronus stated, as he bowed deeply to them, but his gesture only made her more suspicious of him.

"Lord Cronus," she greeted coolly.

"I was quite troubled when I heard of your scuffle with those dreadful outsiders, but I am very pleased to see that you are both all right," he said, looking at Snow and Charming.

"We appreciate that," Snow answered diplomatically, as they moved through the atrium and into toward the ballroom.

"That was pretty uncomfortable," David murmured to her.

"Mmm...I'm still confused as to why he is trying to endear himself to us," Snow murmured back.

"Because you two have the favor of the people," Regina answered for them, as she sided up to them in in a black and purple gown that was indicative of her days as the Evil Queen. However, while the color scheme echoed that time, the design of the dress was decidedly softer, indicating to Snow that she really was trying to re-invent her image.

"She's right," Persephone agreed.

"Do you think he knows how the Swans died?" David asked and she knew he wasn't necessarily referring to Kevin, but rather Jessica.

"Oh, I have no doubt. Phobos might as well be like a parrot on his shoulder. He's fluttered around this entire town and beyond, gathering Intel, and then delivering it to his Master. To what end for him...I'm not certain," Persephone replied.

"Grams! Gramps! Moms!" Henry interjected, as he arrived with Neal. Emma smiled at him, as did Regina, as they greeted him with hugs.

"Looking sharp kid," Emma commented. Neal had taken him with him to pick out attire for that evening and Emma was glad that he got to share that with his father, just as she had gotten to share picking out her own gown with her mother.

"Thanks. This is so awesome!" Henry exclaimed, as he was enamored by all the sights and sounds.

"I don't know about that…" Emma deadpanned, making Neal chuckle.

"What? Emma Swan doesn't care for balls?" he asked sarcastically.

"I don't know...it's just that my parents always go on about these things. I guess I just don't quite get it," she replied, just as they entered the ballroom and her words died on her lips, as she witnessed the synchronized dance taking place and couldn't deny how elegant and magnificent it all suddenly seemed.

"You were saying?" he teased.

"Shut up," she responded, nudging him playfully.

"Hi Henry!" Grace said, as she hurried up to him in her dress with Jefferson and Amy following. They approached with Belle and Rumple, who was surprisingly not dressed in black and rather in a blue formal coat that was something like a Prince would wear, while Belle wore a golden dress.

"Whoa...the Dark One can wear a color other than black," Jefferson commented. Gold rolled his eyes.

"I told you I'd get some smart ass remark about this coat," he muttered to Belle, but she only smiled.

"Well, I like it," she said, as they followed Snow and David into the ballroom.

"Wow…" Henry said in awe, as they watched the dancing.

"Well, shall we, my darling?" he asked, as he bowed to her and held out his hand. Snow grinned and accepted, as they moved onto the dance floor and proceeded to join the waltz.

"Are you and Dad going to dance too?" Henry asked to Emma.

"You're as bad as your Grandma Snow and Grandpa Gold when it comes to the matchmaking, kid," she responded.

"Oh come on...let's do it," Neal prodded, as he held his hand out to her. But she was apprehensive.

"I don't know how to dance like that," she whispered in protested. He chuckled.

"But I do...relax and just let me lead," he replied, as he took her hand and led her onto the dance floor, as they began to dance. She saw her parents grinning at them out of the corner of her eye and then him grinning indulgently at her. She rolled her eyes.

"Okay fine...this is pretty cool," she admitted. Henry beamed at his parents and then looked up at his other Mom.

"I'm glad you're here too, Mom," he said. Regina smiled.

"Me too, Henry," she agreed.

"It's been a long time since we've danced like this," Snow mentioned and he smiled.

"It has...and it's nice to do this again. But if I'm honest, I think I enjoy our casual gatherings at Granny's a bit more," he admitted. She bit her bottom lip.

"You read my mind," she agreed and he pressed his forehead to hers.

"That's good...cause soon there's gonna be a baby and we're gonna be one of those boring couples that stays home every night," he teased.

"Oh, but we will never be boring, my love. And I will relish spending all my evenings curled up in your arms on the couch with our baby," she replied, as he smiled and kissed her passionately.

"Yes...a baby. I haven't had the opportunity to congratulate you, fair Snow," a very unwelcome voice said. Their lips parted and David held her protectively, as Deimos held them in his steely gaze.

"You...stay away from us," Snow hissed.

"Oh, you need not fear me, Princess. All that nastiness is behind us, I assure you," he leered.

"Like hell is it," David growled, but he only smirked smugly.

"I was hoping you'd allow me to cut in and honor me with a dance," he stated.

"Never...just being in your presence makes me want to retch, so you can imagine how sick I'd be if you actually touched me," Snow spat in disgust.

"Yet you let this peasant put his hands all over you. You are a Goddess...and he is…" Deimos started to spout, but she cut him off.

"My husband. He is my husband, my true love and the only man I will ever want. He is everything you are not," she countered with vehemence.

"Step the hell away from my daughter and son-in-law," Persephone growled, as she came to stand before them.

"Good evening Persephone...it's interesting to see you alone. Where is your other half?" Deimos goaded. She narrowed her gaze, wondering if he was involved. Hades had righted a wrong by sending Deimos to the Underworld, only for Cronus to later revive him. But Deimos was as bloodthirsty as they came and it made sense that he might seek revenge.

"What do you know about Hades' whereabouts?" she asked. But he ignored her question.

"I was simply talking to your lovely daughter and you rudely interrupted me," he answered instead.

"Oh, you're quite done talking to her and if I had my magic right now, you'd be nothing but ash," she warned. But he only chuckled.

"Really? And how is that? You're powerful...but not nearly enough to end me," he boasted.

"Deimos...you will stand down now," Cronus ordered.

"I am tired of being denied what should be mine, My Lord. Surely you understand," Deimos replied defiantly.

"She is not yours, you psychopath," Emma growled.

"Deimos...I will not ask you nicely again. Do not make me have you removed. If Princess Snow does not wish to have anything to do with you, then I forbid you to get anywhere near her," Cronus said. Persephone looked at him with a suspicious gaze.

"Your threats might carry more weight if you had an ounce of magic behind them...but you don't and I am by far the strongest man in this room...easily," he surmised.

"Deimos...I know you are a bit thick, but to disobey our King is utterly stupid, even for you," Phobos interjected, as he approached and tried to pull his brother away. But that was a mistake, as Deimos wrapped a hand around his brother's neck and began to choke him.

"You died once for me...and I can easily see that you die again by my hand, dear brother," he growled, as all around him gasped in horror. But he suddenly dropped Phobos, as a thousand volts of plasma coursed through his body. Phobos gasped for air and stood up, brandishing one of Circe's plasma weapons in his hand, as his brother now quivered like a fish out of water on the floor.

"You may be strong, but you have no brains. When I saw this weapon being used by Circe's simpletons and magic disappeared, I swiped one, because I knew it would be the only way to keep you in line without magic," he stated, as he turned and bowed to Snow and David, which surprised them.

"I know you are mistrustful of Lord Cronus, Your Majesties, but know that you are under his protection now," Phobos stated.

"Why would he protect my parents?" Emma asked her grandmother.

"I'm not sure. Phobos has never been evil...but it is odd," Persephone replied, as equally suspicious as her granddaughter.

"Guards...please escort Deimos to a cell in the dungeon," Cronus ordered, as he was taken away, allowing the festivities of the ball to resume.

"Why defend us?" David asked bluntly and skeptically. Phobos offered a thin smile.

"I may be the God of Fear, but I do not abuse my station as my brother does. Deimos is a parasite and I intend to protect people from him this time around," Phobos offered. They accepted his answer for now and cautiously returned to dancing, as Snow blew out a breath.

"Are you okay?" David asked. She nodded.

"I can take you home if you want," he added. But she shook her head.

"No...let's not let that evil monster spoil our evening," she replied. Little could they know though, things were about to go from bad to worse. After another dance, Cronus took to the stage to address the town.

"I just wanted to take a moment to thank everyone for coming this evening and I hope it has been as enjoyable for you as it has for me," he stated.

"I think we can agree that we must work together in facing those that are here to threaten our way of life. I know many of you think that I myself am a threat and came here to take over the town," he continued.

"But I threw this ball tonight to assure everyone that this is not the case. I seek only a peaceful life and I defer to this town's leaders, our fair and lovely Mayor, Snow White, her beautiful and strong daughter, our Sheriff, Emma Swan, and our Mayor's courageous husband and our deputy, Prince David," he added.

"I am confident in their leadership and that of the new leader chosen to lead the Gods...our dear Persephone. And in protecting this town against Circe and her outsiders, I offer my help in seeing that she does not further disrupt our lives," he finished to applause, just as the ballroom doors slammed open.

"Except Circe is about to be the least of your worries," the redheaded woman stated. Snow narrowed her eyes and she vaguely recognized this woman as someone she had exchanged pleasantries with once at the diner. But she had Hades with her, whom she had in chains, as she pulled him along and glided into the room. Her pendant glowed and the guards that rushed her were picked up and tossed away.

"She has magic…" David uttered.

"Zelena…" Persephone uttered.

"Mother...you know her?" Snow asked.

"I know of her...she is Zelena. The Wicked Witch of the West from Oz," Persephone replied. Emma looked at her incredulously.

"Seriously? She's real too?" she asked and Neal side-eyed her. She sighed.

"Yeah, yeah, daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, Everything's real," she answered for herself.

"Hades…" Persephone uttered, as she started toward them, but Zelena waved her hand, freezing her in place.

"I'm sorry...I was going to tell you she was here and expose her. She decided she had other plans," he apologized.

"How did she get here?" Persephone asked.

"Ruby Slippers...and she's going to cast the spell," Hades responded.

"What spell?" Regina asked.

"Oh, I'm so glad you asked that...sis," Zelena replied, causing shock and gasps to reverberate throughout the room.

"Sis? You're not my sister...I have no sister," Regina refuted.

"Wrong again...I'm the child that Cora conceived from a one night dalliance with some insignificant peon and then dumped in the woods. Had a twister not picked me up and carried me to Oz...then I'd probably have died there in the woods," Zelena revealed.

"You are the child Cora was pregnant with when she met me?" Leopold interjected, as he stepped forth. Zelena smirked.

"Yes...until Eva opened her big mouth and ruined everything," the redhead growled.

"But thankfully, all of that is about to change," she said, as she raised her hand. Panic and screams ensued, as the floor cracked and she created the pillars she needed for her spell.

"What is she talking about?" David asked.

"Time travel...she wants to go back," Hades answered.

"That's impossible...it defies the laws of magic and she knows it," Rumple hissed.

"Hello Rumple...so good to see you again," Zelena purred.

"You know her?" Regina asked incredulously.

"You knew about her?!" Regina roared.

"I never expected her to escape Oz, dearie. She always had vast potential, but she's insane," he answered. Belle gasped, as she suddenly appeared just before them.

"You know as well as I do that, with the right ingredients, that what I want to do is possible," she replied. Rumple gently prodded Belle toward his son for safety.

"In theory...but we both it won't yield the results you want," he warned.

"We'll see," she hissed, as her pendant glowed and he was stricken still, as she used her magic to extract the energy from his mind that she needed for her first talisman. Rumple shuddered and convulsed as she did so.

"Rumple!" Belle cried, as Neal held her back and they were all stunned when a golden brain appeared in Zelena's hand. She smirked gleefully, as she placed it on the first pillar.

"A brain…" she stated, as she glided around the room, until she came face to face with her younger sister. The two women stared at each other, both marveling at their similarities, despite only being half siblings. But Regina gasped in pain, as Zelena's hand went into her chest and ripped her heart out.

"A lot of people in the room might say this is karma for you," Zelena commented, as she placed the heart on the second pillar.

"A heart…" she stated, as she continued her journey around the room and the moment her eyes rested on Snow, David unsheathed his sword.

"No David!" Hades pleaded, but the Prince didn't head his warning and rushed the witch. Zelena smirked and stopped is blade with her bare hand, thanks to magic. David stared at her in disbelief and she smirked smugly at him.

"So brave...so courageous," she goaded, as she snapped his blade and used her magic to shove him away. He collided with the wall and Snow rushed to his side.

"Charming!" she cried, as Emma followed her to help her father up. They watched, as the witch picked up the hilt of Prince Charming's broken sword and placed it on the third pillar.

"Courage…" she stated, as she returned to the center of the room.

"Now for the final ingredient...a product of true love," she said, striking fear into Snow and David's hearts, as she approached.

"Zelena...the baby isn't even close to term. Your spell won't work the same without their infant," Hades warned.

"If you think you're going to get near my baby sibling...then you have another thing coming," Emma growled, as she stood in front of her parents. But Zelena smirked evilly, sending a cold chill down Snow and David's spines.

"I didn't say I needed the baby...I just need a product from this particular true love," she hissed. David's eyes widened and he reached for his daughter, but she disappeared before he could touch her.

"NO!" he and Snow screamed. Emma reappeared on the final pillar, unable to move, and stared tearfully at her parents.

"EMMA!" David cried, as he ran toward her, but Zelena stopped with magic and began choking him. He lost consciousness and she tossed him away.

"Charming!" Snow cried tearfully, as she crashed beside him, gently lifting his head into her lap.

"Zelena...using Emma versus using the baby could seriously alter the results of what you want! This will not end up the way you think!" Hades pleaded.

"He's right...using the Savior in this will almost certainly ensure your doom," Persephone added.

"I'm willing to take my chances. I've done my research...and regardless, this spell will allow me to go back and stop Princess Eva from telling my mother's secret. Then I will become Queen," Zelena stated.

"You're going to kill my sister?" Eli asked in horror. But she only shrugged.

"It's a small price to pay and I doubt she'll really be missed. Take heart though...you'll get to become King," she replied, as her pendant glowed and the spell was activated.

"No...Emma!" Snow cried, as Charming came around. He got to his feet and they ran toward their daughter, despite the flails of energy that were threatening to now blow them back. A tear slipped down her cheek.

"I love you guys…" she said tearfully.

"Mom!" Henry cried.

"I love you kid," she said, Neal held him tightly and looked at her.

"Emma…" he cried.

"I love you Neal…" she said, as the four pillars glowed with blinding green light, thanks to Zelena's pendant and she cackled evilly.

"It's happening!" she said gleefully. Snow and Charming looked at each other with broken, sorrowful stares. He kissed her fiercely.

"I'll find you...nothing will stop me, certainly not some witch. I will always find you," he promised, as he held her and the glowing got brighter. Neal cried out in horror, as Henry disappeared.

"Henry!" he and Regina cried together.

"Don't worry sis...you're next," Zelena said, enjoying it immensely, as she watched her sister fade away.

"Regina…" Snow cried, as she looked at her mother, who was huddled with them.

"It's going to be all right, snow drop. David is right. He'll find you and so will I," she promised, as she turned to Hades.

"I'm sorry...I couldn't stop her and I should have come clean with you sooner," he said, choking back tears.

"I know that you love me...and I know you thought that maybe going back might fix all the things you did. But you don't have to, because you've changed and I love you too," she said tearfully, as they kissed.

"Zelena has not won. This isn't over...we'll fix this. Somehow...I believe that now," he said. She smiled and nodded, as she looked at her daughter and son-in-law.

"It's true love...they'll save us, even if they don't it yet," Persephone reasoned. And with that, they all disappeared…

[3hakisebooks]

Draft Dashboard Review

Draft Dashboard is a powerful dashboard analytics for users to manage their daily fantasy sports and recaps successfully. This software keeps track of your choices and then analyzes the data to the team and, anything you’ve ever encountered. It offers a daily fantasy sports football, baseball, basketball, hockey, soccer, MMA, and the e-sports racing for real cash prizes. Project Dashboard is an acceptable offer, with more incentive to sign up for leagues guaranteed prizes, overlay, freerolls and other fantastic bonuses.

About of Draft Dashboard:

Instantly Optimize your daily Fantasy Football lineup and Create Winning compositions for a few seconds! With Daily Fantasy Tools. It shows the players with the best value, best statistics, defense games and much more! Daily Fantasy Sports is a relatively new concept. It basically takes the traditional sports like fantasy football and creates competitions that last for one day, instead of the entire season. In addition, you can prepare any player you want, as long as you can stay within the salary Cap you are given. Use the given specified DFS range Optimiser Skyrocket your daily fantasy football success on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel! Draft Dashboard instruments show the most important information visually. Green lights are the most appropriate statistics and forecasts. Instantly optimize your daily fantasy recaps, using advanced statistics and intelligent algorithm. Sign up now to try our line of DFS Optimizer!

Aspects of Draft Dashboard

Visual Stats – This tool analyzes a live game and player data and shows you the above information visually.

Lineup optimizer – It easily finds the players with the most touches, receiving targets, rush attempts, production, value, and more!

Fantasy success – This software crunches numbers around the clock, analyzing 1,000’s of data points to determine the best players.

Find sleepers & studs – This tool finds players who produce the most points and get the most scoring opportunities.

Player watchlist – Players you want to keep an eye on can be added to your watchlist, and we’ll notify you the second there’s an update.

Draft network – Share and discuss draft lineup cards with others on the network, get advice and discuss players and games, live.

How Unique This Draft Dashboard?

Available 24/7: Whether it’s a game night or 4 am, talk with other members no matter what time of day, every section of our site there is a discussion, discussion of the players, teams, or even specific upcoming games, get tips and insight on the part of others in real time. There is constantly a discussion going on in the instrument panel, and you can always join in or sit on the sidelines. Share your picks, chooses to see others. When you make a draft map in our system, you can choose whether you want to keep them private or share them with other members on the site.

Lightning-fast player research – The player research that used to take you hours is now only a click away. It makes things super easy for you and put all of the research in one place, and we make it simple.

No More Calculator: With this Draft dashboard software you won’t ever need a notepad or calculator again, it works even for the most complicated player and fantasy point calculations instantly, and make them available to you in your cute and easy dashboard, all at your fingertips with no hassles.

New Tools – It makes the tools for members. Recently Dashboard launched a brand new feature, a 3D game visualizer which lets members view upcoming games from overhead and see the players.

Pros:

The draft dashboard is one of the largest providers of daily sports leagues.

Multiple 24/7 live player news feeds.

Up to the minutely detailed injury reports.

You are never alone; Draft Dashboard is always ready for discussion.

Super detailed player depth charts.

The Draft dashboard has all the fantasy data you could dream of.!

Cons:

No offline availability.

Conclusion:

Overall I strongly recommend this software. The Draft dashboard is used for playing in real money and daily fantasy sports leagues. The Draft dashboard software works everywhere, on your desktop, phone, and tablet. Whether you’re at your desk or relaxing during the day of the game, This software is designed to work wherever you need it with access to every one of our tools. When you arrive on the site, you’ll see a bright orange button labeled “SIGN UP.”

CLICK HERE TO GET STARTED RIGHT NOW!!!

[eirikrjs]

Tenkai can’t catch a localization break (SMT4A Eng. thoughts)

YHVH has been defeated FOR LITERALLY NO REASON again--but this time, in English! It’s been almost two years since I played the Japanese version of Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse and so there were few surprises waiting for me here. Still, as I’ve been making my way through the game I’ve been jotting down things that caught my attention:

First time I’ve noticed that Japanese honorifics are inconsistently cased, e.g., “Kushinada-hime,” but “Kikuri-Hime.” Should be lower case. Like, you wouldn’t type “Sumisu-San.” I don’t remember this in SMT4, but it would have to be since Atlus USA generally doesn’t touch demon tables that have already been translated.

But, uh, maybe they do mess around with them again. Girimekhala’s name has been reverted back to the “Girimehkala” spelling. MEH

The game points out that the signs in Naraku, written by Samurai, are in English. If you look at the texture they certainly are written in roman characters but are gobbledygook. I never thought about it being definitively English because it’s never pointed out that what’s on the texture is meant to be diegetic. But since language choice other than Japanese must have been the influence of the angels on the citizens of Mikado, why would they choose English instead of Hebrew or Latin?

Bucking my own recent magic build trends, this time around I stuck every stat point I got into Dexterity, because I knew you’d eventually get the pierce-all passive. It worked out pretty well, I gotta say! With a +2/-2 buff differential and Charge, Riot Gun was doing almost 10k damage. Here are my current stats:

Dagda chastises you (specifically “humans”) for eating, yet in actuality he’s a god of sustenance. Like, he owns a magical cauldron that never goes empty? How did they mess things up this badly???

There are additional conspicuous double entendres found in the Maruo questline prior to Mara’s appearance I never saw posted on Miiverse, ones even slightly cleverer than Mara’s own. Was that really because there wasn’t a giant green penis on-screen to make the wordplay obvious?

Almost every player I’ve DDS’d with has been Japanese. A couple times I’ve tagged the same player in back-to-back downloads. After 300+ cards, my rankings are, in order: Shiva, Krishna, Alice, Satan, Angel (82), Demiurge, Odin, Izanami, Mastema, White Rider. Could be worse! And no Mara?! I thought he was, like, the most popular demon EVER. Oh, he was judged most popular on a social media platform? So I guess if effort or money are involved his popularity takes a dive Fridays after five, it seems. 

The narration is extremely patronizing. It sometimes describes things you literally just saw visually, like Asahi being eaten. Do they think we’re all in junior high school or something? Oh. Ohhhhh.

Do stores shortchange you when selling relics? I just noticed I was getting about 10k less than the value listed on the field overlay. UPDATE: Later on I save scummed outside of a shop and found that yes, the price you actually get for relics not only deviates from the overlay value,  it fluctuates from visit to visit. Why???

[Suzaku Shot], [Genbu Bomb], [Baihu Rounds], [Long Rounds]. Really. Really?

Oh, would you look at that: all the violent and aggressive Japanese gods are just that way because they are worried about the state of Japan. Izanami just has the best interests of her children in mind. How virtuous!

Seems kind of arbitrary whose souls got sucked up by Shesha and whose didn’t. Though it was hilarious how unconcerned Fujiwara was about the large group of supposedly precious humans who were partying outside of his command center just minutes before; he notices just one guy who’s zombified and goes “yo, this guy’s fucked up.”

Let’s all say it together: INANNA. IS. NOT. A. MOTHER. GODDESS. You can insert the clap emojis yourself.

During the Mitra battle, Toki disses his “truths.” Facile smacktalk, yes, but when you think about it (always a dangerous game to play with Maniacs Team games), Mitra with his contracts and whatnot still represents what were once evidently human truths and viewpoints for the ancient Indo-Iranians, like how important it was for people to keep oaths and the idea of a divine overseer and dispenser of justice. That’s not to say these concepts should be free from criticism, but if you want to ignore what gods really represent and are a bad writer, you can make them look as dumb or evil as you want! Look, it’s amazing I even noticed this because Toki is one of those “instantly depress the X button” kind of characters for me.

The post-Vishnu-Flynn scene where the Scooby gang agrees to kill YHVH is just as cringeworthy as expected, particularly because it’s accompanied by the cheesy anime Kinshicho underground theme; that’s almost as “great” as the instance when the theme plays while you can inspect the body of the dead child lying directly across from your room. That’s a Top 10 SMT Moment right there.

Everything about YHVH’s Universe is even more awful once you can fully understand the dialogue. Also, the last time I went through the dungeon fresh it was before they patched in so many extra warps; seriously, there were at max like 1 or two per Brane (I think). Now they basically act as breadcrumbs, at least for the first couple Branes.

The gameplay is still a lot of fun and fusion is pretty rad in tandem with the affinity system. Just a shame about everything else, including when the gameplay becomes a slog from bloated dungeons or inflated HP totals and MP costs!

Lastly, Flynn’s sword got stuck in mid-air:

“Baiting” a “pole,” huh? Looks like Mara has some up-and-coming competition!

[awesomelephuoclocblog-blog]

Pixamattic Review – The speediest customer getting visual gadget ever?

https://lephuocloc.com/pixamattic-review/

Introduction

Pixamattic Review – The speediest customer getting visual gadget ever?

Pixamattic Review

Is it precise to state that you are scanning for a Pixamattic? On the off chance that it's not all that much difficulty check my of the Pixamattic Review. I will show you the extraordinary focal points of this thing.

Introduction

This was past the domain of creative mind … starting in the relatively recent past! Think about how conceivable it is that you'll make dynamite, apparently charming substance to ask more likes, offers, snaps and buyers.

Getting your own exceptional and new visual substance arranged in brisk time has become an industry WIDE issue. You may don't have the innovative, concentrated, and style ability to make the benefit visual so openings pass you by a day to misuse.

Or then again… you may have the partner, promoting expert, maker, or web engineer that sticks you on a Ferris wheel, makes you insane for a significant period of time, returns with a structure that doesn't satisfy your wants …

Or then again most exceedingly horrible still … it's copyright!

So genuinely, we get it and this explains why you don't have the business you really need. You either loosen up past your customers brisk all together that they CLICK and BUY else you could lose them until the cows come home! The reality of the situation is NOTHING on the web gets more thought than mouth-watering VISUAL DESIGNS.

Directly, you can finally lift your status, authority, and legitimacy and get those snaps, leads, and arrangements speedier than whenever in late memory.

This item effectively attracts authentic people in your claim to fame with your visual substance, building trust, and responsibility to get you more advantages on complete autopilot. Your visitors get eye getting substance in various plans, making it mind dead simple to make the move you need.

Additionally, this is what influences it far superior… To imagine making UNLIMITED arrangements for your group so you get more arrangements… Plus SELLING those structures to your clients for 100% advantages?

Believe it or not, you can do just that. Access the item underneath… And get leads and arrangements, brisk and basic.

Note, if you purchase this thing by methods for the association in my review, you'll get some unprecedented remunerations from me worth up to $ 50,000. It can work with Pixamattic, helping your business go further later on.

Look down to see the accompanying bit of my review, I will give you how remarkable this thing is.

What is Pixamattic?

Pixamattic is that the World's #1 fake clever originator and electronic life computerization programming that changes how you make, appropriate, post, and offer bewildering quality, capable level visuals, right away.

You will get faltering and eye getting visual substance that is expected for you and your picture normally. This helps with pulling in, attract, and convert your leads into bargains and paying customers.

Pixamattic Review – Key Features

Automated thinking Design Generator

With this dazzling development, you ought to just pick your arrangement, enter your substance. Moreover, in only a few seconds, the item offers you piles of new, one of a kind intends to look over.

Pixamattic Review

Drag N' Drop Creator and Editor With Stunning Visuals

You can quickly and successfully make one of a kind structures without any planning or adjust AI-made plans with just a tick, a drag, and a drop. In like manner, you can make designs in seconds that make you proud.

Pixamattic Review

1 Click Marketing

By virtue of this component, you can introduce in a brief moment your substance through online systems administration media or schedule your appearances for each moment of consistently consideration. So you can drive traffic and arrangements 365 days out of every year, regardless, when you're resting or amidst an escape.

Pixamattic Review

1 Click Automation

You can promptly sell your things and organizations snappier with 1 snap sharing, set-n-neglect booking, and without hands introducing on casual associations for FREE traffic.

A tiny bit at a time Video Tutorials

You gain permission to the astonishing video planning material to get you from zero to profit in record time.

Numerous Features

You can browse a wide extent of text styles, photo channels, embellishments, surfaces, outlines, and clear overlays, to make something truly shocking!

Endeavored And Tested Professional-Grade Templates And Photos

It offers you 150 endeavored and accepted capable amazing organizations with proportional literary styles and effects so you can go from thought to appropriating speedier than whenever in late memory.

Dumbfounding Support

This is a touch of elevating news for you. Despite the way that everything with this item is direct and novice kindhearted, if you slow down out or need help with the item, essentially let them know and they'll glad to help you with getting going.

THE AMAZING BENEFITS

Unlimited Visual Campaigns

With Pixamattic, you hold the alternative to disperse and pass on unlimited and impeccable visual messages the way where your customer need, today. Besides, you can have your first mainstream fight arranged and getting you new leads and arrangements in just 60 seconds.

Vast Products and Services

Pixamattic, which is a unimaginable visual substance creation mechanical assembly, will deliver unlimited representations for your business so you can quickly utilize the force of casual networks with the desire for complimentary traffic in 1 snap. So selling with visual substance has never been easier.

Unlimited Customization and Combinations

You can upgrade your presentation and reach with various structures, endless concealing, and setup mixes to get different plans of people who center around differentiating sorts of mediums.

With 1 snap you'll incorporate layers, change the edge, establishment, crop, resize, concealing, printed style, size, and undeniably furthermore delivering eye-getting, fantastic visual substance to offer your group the structure and feel they need.

Free Clicks, Leads and Sales

Pixamattic is overhauled with worked in social sharing. Thusly, you can grow customers and your advantages with free mainstream traffic from the best casual associations like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Free Backlinks

Google needs to become familiar with a fragile making of latest backlinks, and with Pixamattic's arranging limit, you'll keep your SEO running on autopilot.

100% sans hands Viral Traffic

You can interface your arrangements to your things and offers. Besides, when your arrangement courses around the web, a sensitive stream of traffic and arrangements can transform into a heavy slide.

Even more basically, you'll further adjust by people sharing your visuals to season up your range to outline you extra money.

NO DOWNLOADS OR INSTALLATION

You can make your Pixamattic account in your program in minutes. No fiddly downloads, no patches, and no troubling trading between screens.

Disperse Everywhere

You simply download your arrangement, sans watermark, and use on your blog, website, eCommerce store, email, PPC campaign, or wherever else you like.

About the creator

Pixamattic Review

Pixamattic was made by Brett Ingram and his accessory Mo Latif. Brett may be a veteran online sponsor with a noteworthy decade-long of comprehension. He has furthermore accumulated more than 25 best in class things during his work, for instance, EngagBot, VideoFXPro, InstaZign, etc.

His things are reliably amateur cheerful and contain a huge amount of historic features; thusly you can expect a comparable outcome from VSLCreator.

How Might it Use?

With Pixamattic you can without a very remarkable stretch start in 3 phases:

Stage 1: START A CAMPAIGN

A.I. Controlled VISUAL CREATOR.

You have unlimited open doors for Social Media covers, flags, ads, coupons, blog plans, and that is only the start. Fundamentally snap and turn your appreciation to staggering, capable plans. (ZERO structure or concentrated aptitudes required.)

Stage 2: SET CONTENT AUTOMATION

1 CLICK PUBLISH, SCHEDULE, BROADCAST and SYNDICATE TO FACEBOOK, TWITTER and LINKEDIN

Post endless viral visual substance so your visitors interface with, snap, and buy your things or organization. In 1 snap, incorporate your associations, and gives "others" the capacity to share, like, tweet to expand your introduction, build your reputation and exponentially build up your advantages.

Stage 3: ACTIVATE FOR PROFITS

Start YOUR AUTOMATED SALES MACHINE.

Pixamattic now gets the chance to work attracting new visitors, associating with them, and making your arrangements. Simple! Instantly impact various especially centered around and addictive customers alongside your new substance which will fan out rapidly working for you 24 hours consistently, 7 days reliably.

Besides, THAT'S IT. Totally PUSH BUTTON EASY TO PROFITS.

Pixamattic is your own structure bunch promptly accessible that make high evolving over, maker jewels you are satisfied with. NEVER retreat on the Ferris Wheel with assistants, makers, marketing experts, or designers.

NO got the chance to use distinctive programming, applications, contraptions, and instruments.

NO got the chance to buy stock pictures, photos, direct photos, portrayals, or images.

NO convincing motivation to share others' substance and get them bargains.

NO got the chance to post, convey, and coop to online life organizes independently.

pictures

Pixamattic, effectively attracts REAL people in your forte alongside your visua

https://lephuocloc.com/pixamattic-review/

https://lephuocloc.com/

[butwhatisit]

butwhatisit’s rambling guide to using Slack for social groups

 (because you and your mutuals need somewhere to hang)

The short pitch : Basically, Slack hosts user-created private networks of chat rooms that live in the cloud.  It’s made for businesses, but it can super easily be used by actual humans.  You can upload and share pictures and files.  You can add things like collab sketch boards and Spotify integrations and dad joke generators.  Oh, and did I mention that the basic version - which has everything most people will ever need - is free?

My IRC group migrated there three years ago, and it’s been great for us.  It fills that niche really well, what with the multiple rooms on a single network.  Plus, there’s a program or app for basically everything.  Windows? Linux? Mac? Android? iPhone? Windows phone?  Yes to all - and it works in browser if you don’t want to install anything.

It’d be great for online D&D groups (dice roller app, private messaging for DM asides, separate rooms for IC and OOC chat), tumblr mutual crowds (rooms for various fandoms, general chat, sketch apps for art stuff), and other stuff.  It’s not gonna be perfect for everyone, but it might work for you if you wanna stay connected with a smallish group of people.

If you’re interested and want a walkthrough, check it out - I got you covered behind the cut.  (Sorry anyone for whom keep reading cuts don’t work - this post is so goddamn long.) 

Let’s get started.  If you click that link, you’ll be at a page with two options - log in to an already existing workspace, or create your own.  I’m going to assume this is your first workspace, so click that second link.

First, it’ll ask for your email address.  Once you plug that in, it’ll email you a code to make sure you’re really you.  Check your email, then enter the code and you’ll get to the next section, where it asks for your name(s).  Now, it says it wants your full name, but you can put any damn thing in that space, and it doesn’t have to be in a first/last name format.  It also asks for an optional display name.  As an example, say you’re wanting to use this Slack to keep touch with your tumblr mutuals.  You could use your first name or a nickname as your “real name”, and then your tumblr username as the display name.  There’s a tickybox for “can we send you emails” - I always turn it off, because I’m that way.  Next!

Password time.  I am sure you can handle coming up with one on your own.  

Slack will ask you what you’re using it for - work, school, shared interest group, or other.  For social groups, you’ll want “shared interest group”.  It’ll ask you how many people you have in your group - just make your best guess.  After that is the part where you name your workspace.  After you’ve given your group a name, click through.  Slack will see if that name is available as a slack URL, and if it is, it’ll fill that in for you automatically in the text box.  If it’s not, it’ll suggest something else.  In any case, you can delete it and write your own, if you’d rather.  One more click!

Congrats!  You now have a workspace!  It’ll ask you if you want to invite anyone - you can fill in some email addresses now, or wait until later.  The process is the same no matter when you go about it.  

There are apps and programs for Slack, so you can run it on pretty much any device, but we’re going to demo this in a Chrome browser window.  So what are we looking at?

Okay.  The blue bar at the top is just asking you if you want to enable desktop notifications.  If you click the X, it gives you three options - enable them, ask again later, or never ask again for this computer.  Make your own best decision here.  Once you decide, the bar goes away.

The left taskbar has all the working parts.  There’s the name of the workspace - in this case, Cephalopod Apocalypse.  If you click on that:

You get a menu with a bunch of options.  

There’s your name and icon - clicking on that will open a taskbar on the right that shows your directory entry - your name, icon, role, and what time it is where you are.  You can get to your “Edit Profile” screen here, which will bring up an overlay where you can change your profile photo, full and display names, add a job title, change your status (what you’re doing right now, basically), add a phone number (who does that?), set your time zone, and add a Skype account.  All these things are optional except the full name (which as previously noted, does not have to be your name).  Bottom right has the cancel and save buttons, and you can also click the X on the top right to get back to the previous window.

You can also change your account settings by clicking the gear, which opens a new tab entirely.  That’s where you change stuff like your authentication preferences and email address.

The little downward arrow opens a menu that lets you change your settings and preferences (again), view your files, set yourself as away (that turns off the little green dot by your name) or active (turns on the little green dot) and copy your member ID.  I do not have a single clue why you would want or need to do that, but hey, it’s there.

Back to the main menu bar.

You’ll note that under your name and icon there’s, again, all the same options for setting a status and changing your settings.  They sure do like to make sure you can change stuff.  

Then there’s the name of the workspace again, plus it’s icon.  (I did not set one for this network, which is really a shame.)  Clicking on the name/icon does not do anything.  You can invite people to your network by creating an invite link or inviting them via email, and both those options show up if you hover over that option.  

“Manage members” opens up a new tab that lets you see the members list.  The list will show you the name(s) of the people on the network, their email addresses, whether they are a member or owner or admin, active or inactive, that sort of thing.

Workspace settings is another new tab thing that’s pretty self-explanatory.  You can change your workspace name, URL, icon, and a lot of other things that we don’t need to go into here.

There’s been a lot of text, let’s look at that picture again.

Customize Slack brings up a new tab with the settings that let you add new emoji, customize the default chat bot, add or remove loading screen messages, change your workspace icon, and come up with that workspace’s list of five quick statuses.  (People can always make their own, too.)  If you set a status for yourself, the emoji for it will show up after your name in the user list.

After that is “Manage apps”.  Apps add integrations to your workspace, and free plans get up to ten.  A lot of them are gonna be business related, sure, but a lot of them can work for other stuff.  There’s apps that let you post quickly customized screenshots, there’s shared whiteboards for drawing and note taking, there’s dice rollers for when you can’t make choices.  There’s apps that make quick polls, apps that tell dad jokes, apps with cat or dog facts, apps that insert memes or gifs... there’s lots of crap you can do here.  It’s worth browsing the directory and seeing what might work for you.

Analytics and Billing aren’t much use for social groups.  Paying for Slack adds in some security measures, more storage space for uploaded files and chat archives, that sort of thing, but it’ll cost you bare minimum like seven dollars per user per month.  For what we’re doing, we don’t need anything behind the paywall, so let’s move on.

There’s the sign out link, which is self-explanatory, and then the links where you can switch to other workspaces (for me, my IRC crew and my other test Slack).  There’s an option at the bottom to “Open the Slack App”, which brings up your program/app installation options.  I’m not super keen on the app for myself, but it might work for you.  Looks pretty much the same as the browser window, anyway.

Let’s go back to the main menu again.  

After the workspace name, that little bell brings up the notifications menu (snooze options, do not disturb hours, general notifications options, etc.).  By default, it has DND hours set between like... ten and eight.  If, like me, those are your prime work hours, you’ll probably want to change them or turn DND off entirely.  

All Threads - In chat, you can post a threaded comment under someone else’s comment - like a direct reply to a specific thought, even if it was posted like an hour ago and the conversation moved on since.  I’ll explain this more later.  Anyway, this link will show you all the threads you’ve been involved with.

Channels - The little plus sign lets you create one, the hashtags show you the names of the existing ones.  Every workspace has one channel that everyone, by default, is in and cannot leave.  It can’t be deleted.  You’re stuck with it.  It starts out being called “general”, but you can change the name and description any time you like.  There’s also one other channel created at the start, defaultly called “random”.  This one you can delete, or rename, or whatever, and you can set people to end up in it by default or not.

Channels are like your individual chat rooms.  If you and someone else are writing a sweet coffee shop AU, you could have a channel for that.  Could have a channel for just tech stuff, or just gaming stuff, or whatever.  If you don’t want multiple channels, you can just delete the random channel and funnel everyone into general forever.  You do you, gang.  

You can also make private channels and invite people to them individually.  (Maybe it’s a secret coffee shop AU).  Private channels don’t show up in the channel list unless you are in them, so nobody else will know about your secret AU shame.  You can tell which of your listed channels are private by the little lock icons where the hashtags would normally be.  There’s no way to make a private channel public later, so when you start a new channel, keep that in mind. 

If there are new messages in a channel since the last time you’ve looked at it, that channel name will show up in bold.  Also, in Chrome, if there are new messages in Slack a little blue dot will show up next to the favicon in the tab list.

Direct Messages - By default, this is basically a list of all the people and bots on the network.  In my demo Slack, it’s just me and the Slackbot.  You can direct message anyone on the network by clicking their name.  You can even direct message yourself, if you want.  Nobody’s judging you.  Everyone in the list will have their own little active/away lights so you can tell who might be around for messaging.

Invite People - unless you change the settings, pretty much everyone can invite people to the workspace.  Works the same exact way as in the other menus.

Apps - opens a small version of the directory in an overlay instead of a new tab.

Real quick, let’s look at the channel and message options.

At the top is the channel name.  Under that is a star - if you click that, it “stars” the channel and then it’ll show up in the left taskbar above the main channel list.  Next to that is the number of people in the channel (next to the little head icon).  Then there’s the number of pinned items - you can pin individual messages to mark them as important - and then the channel topic.  If you hover over the topic, you can edit it.

After that is the phone icon, which does nothing in the free version, and then the channel details button, which opens a right sidebar that gives you access to channel highlights, pinned items, the member list, a list of uploaded files, and notification preferences (again).  

The gear is channel settings, and it lets you jump to a certain date in the channel’s history, invite people to the channel, mute the channel, add apps, blah blah blah, settings.

Then there’s a search bar, where you can search the network for stuff.  There’s ways to narrow your scope to messages just from certain people, or during certain dates, or whatever, and all those pop up when you click on the search box.

@ brings up the activity screen on a right sidebar, which shows you all the messages where someone has @’d you, or reacted to something you said.

The star brings up a right sidebar that shows you all the messages and files and things you’ve clicked star on, so you can find them again fast.

The three dots brings up a menu that will let you look at a list of just your uploaded files, all the uploaded files, the user directory, a help tab, a tab for new Slack news, and a list of keyboard shortcuts.

Now, last thing, I swear - let’s look at individual message options.

Okay.  So there’s my icon, and then my name, and the time the message was posted - 9:09 PM, in that case.  The star next to it is what I’d click to save it to my starred items list.  On the right side, the emoji+ button is for if you want to react to the message with an emoji.  Slack comes by default with a whole set of the things, and you can add your own custom ones as well.  Once you react to something, that emoji will show up under the message with a little (1) next to it.  If you hover over it, it’ll tell you who reacted to the message with that emoji.

Then there’s the word bubble, and that’s what lets you open the thread for that comment.  It pops up a right tab for that comment, and then a text box for your threaded reply.  You can reply just in the thread - in which case it’ll just show up in channel as “1 reply” and you’ll have to click the comment to see it - or there’s a box for “Also send to” the channel where the comment was, and then it’ll show up in channel as “replied to a thread: The message you’re replying to” and then your reply.  Like this:

See?  The squirrel is the reaction.  There are two replies listed, one that you’d have to click to see, and one that’s in channel.

In the actual message box there (the one at the very bottom, with the +, the “message general”, the @, and the emoji), the + button allows you to upload files from your computer, make a separate text post you can then share with the others, or write some code.  The @ allows you to direct message people or channels.  The emoji lets you... add emoji.

I think that’s pretty much everything you need to know.  Honestly, Slack has a ton of nested windows and help screens, so anything that isn’t here is probably covered somewhere in there.  Is Slack gonna replace tumblr?  Hell no.  They fill totally different niches in the world.  But if you’re looking for a way to fill the gap that AIM, IRC, and super active forums have left in your life, it might be just the thing.