#I almost stopped after 'stepped off the branch' but I thought that would be mean

[bbcphile]

WIP Wednesday

I'm finally back with more MLC long fic snippets for you! FDB is carrying a wounded and barely conscious DFS on his back and is about to attempt to use qinggong to get them out of the tree DFS had collapsed in. (You can find all previous excerpts here.)

**

Slowly, making sure the additional weight on his back didn’t unbalance him, he planted one foot up on the branch and shifted his weight. He brought his other foot up to join him, clenching his core to stay stable.

He looked down at the ground below. He hadn’t exactly used qinggong from heights quite like this before, and certainly not while carrying anyone else or without the use of his arms, but presumably  it was the same idea. He cleared his throat. “Ok. Here we go! Hold on tight.”

“Wait,” a-Fei croaked in his ear.

Fang Duobing froze immediately. “What is it?” 

A-Fei shook his head, his hands fumbling until his left thumb was positioned immediately over the nailbed of his right hand’s fifth finger. Then he jabbed his own Shaochong acupoint with his thumbnail with a force that would have made anyone else cry out in pain. Fang Duobing gaped at him as a-Fei kept digging into the very sensitive point, with a faint, barely audible hiss as the stubborn man’s only reaction. 

“Wait, you were about to faint?” Fang Duobing yelped. Oh Gods, if his arms had slipped off of him while they were in the air and he’d fallen backward, a-Fei could have hit his head on a tree branch, or worse! Thank goodness he’d thought to use the acupoint to restore consciousness. “Here, scoot higher up so you’re draped more over my shoulder! That way, even if you let go, you’ll stay–”

“–Stop. Talking,” a-Fei snapped, his breathing labored. “Fix your technique. Or you’ll shatter your leg.”

“Oh.” Fang Duobing winced. Apparently there was more of an art to this than he’d realized. “What am I doing wrong?”

A-Fei’s answering sigh was so much heavier than he was. “Your qi is too slow. And the proportion is off. Put more around your feet and ankles. Start now and increase it as you approach the ground.” He took a deeper breath. “And you’ll need your arms,” he said, his scowl audible.

Fang Duobing shook his head and forced himself not to press them closer to his sides. “I can’t. You need them more!” A-Fei could already barely move from exhaustion; it was unthinkable that he could support his legs on his own. And even if he could, they’d both seen how poorly he responded to being that close. The emotional toll alone would be–

“–Do it,” a-Fei growled through clenched teeth, “or you’ll splatter us on the forest floor. Right arm first. Now.”

“Fine! But you better not fall, ok?” Fang Duobing’s voice shook slightly despite his best efforts. He slid his arm out from under a-Fei’s thigh and lifted it far enough away that a-Fei wouldn’t bump it as he changed position but close enough that he could catch his leg if a-Fei didn’t have the strength after all.

Slowly, jerkily, and with less grace than a-Fei had ever before exhibited, a-Fei extended his leg and wrapped it tightly around Fang Duobing’s waist. 

Fang Duobing stayed as still as possible, hardly daring to breathe.

A-Fei swallowed and dug his thumb harder into his Shaochong acupoint. “Left,” he gritted out. 

They repeated the process, a-Fei’s foot, then leg, then entire body were trembling from the effort by the time he was fully in position. If a-Fei was breathing, it was too shallow for him to feel, despite their proximity.

Fang Duobing swallowed. “You’re sure about this?” He tried desperately to ignore the fact that a-Fei’s groin was once again pressed tight against his lower back. This was absolutely not the time to–

“–Hurry and fix your qi, brat,” a-Fei rasped, his voice shaking almost as hard as the rest of him.

“I’m trying!” Fang Duobing pushed his worry and other feelings for a-Fei aside as much as he could and closed his eyes. He imagined his qi spinning faster and faster through him, on separating some to cushion his feet, ankles, and knees while the rest kept circulating.

“Arms,” a-Fei prompted, and Fang Duobing stuck his arms out to his side, feeling the qi race through his fingertips, ready to slow his descent.

“Now,” a-Fei snapped, and Fang Duobing opened his eyes, shifted his weight, and stepped off the branch.

Time slowed. Fang Duobing felt it drag against him like the air currents they flew through. A-Fei hissed other instructions at him–faster qi, lean back, not that far, bend your knees–as the forest floor grew before them. 

“Palms,” a-Fei growled in his ear. 

Fang Duobing sent out a large pulse of qi from each palm straight at the ground, just before his soles hit the floor. 

His ankles and knees twinged slightly with the impact, but that was all.

They were safe, because a-Fei had helped.

A-Fei, who had been on the verge of fainting, who had just had a qi deviation, and a panic attack, and who could barely move or speak moments earlier because of whatever horrors had haunted his mind, had used a resuscitation maneuver to force himself to save them yet again.

It wasn’t fair. A-Fei deserved rest, not having to push himself to and past his breaking point once more.

Maybe, now that they were back on solid ground, and would soon be back at Lotus Tower, they could give him the safety and comfort he needed.

And maybe, just maybe, he’d accept some of it.

[alexandriasarchives]

Almost

Daryl Dixon x Female!Reader

Summary: You and Daryl had been best friends for years. You have had years of unspoken feelings and “almosts”. After leaving the prison and finding a cabin on the way to a supply run, you finally find out if Daryl feels the same way.

You had taken notice of Daryl as soon as you joined the group all those years ago. You saw what seemingly no one had. You had always wondered if he'd ever taken notice of you in the same way. There's been countless times when you go to sneak a glance his way and his eyes are already on you. Endless moments of hands and shoulders brushing ever so slightly against each other, stolen glances at each other's lips, dozens of starry night skies while laying in the damp Atlanta grass. Countless times where you thought an “almost” would become a “finally”.

You snap yourself out of your thoughts because, here the two of you are gearing up at the prison, getting ready for a supply run that would probably take a day and a half to even get to the destination. He looks amazing as his strong arms reach up to close the trunk of the car.

“Ya ready?” he looks over to you curiously as he can probably tell your head is somewhere else.

“Yeah lets get on the road” you say nonchalantly as you round the car and go to open your door. Before your hand can reach the handle Daryl's broad frame quickly comes into view and he reaches out to open the door to the beat up Honda without making eye contact. He's done this before, another overly kind gesture that could possibly mean more and makes your head spin wondering if he actually could feel in some part the same way you do. You smile at the thought and him and get in the car speechlessly, not wanting to create something out of nothing and potentially ruin the friendship you've cherished for years.

He walks over to the driver side door, opens it and gets in. He puts the keys in the ignition and the engine comes to life. The gates slide open for you guys to head out to the main road. The trees pass by along with the occasional walker as you get consumed by your thoughts. The stories you've shared with each other, the secrets. There seemed to be only one thing you couldn't tell this man and it's that you are irrevocably in love with him.

People automatically assume you're together, with all the time you spend together, the way he seems to soften and get comfortable around you, and as Carol likes to call it “the lovesick looks”. According to her, your affections are reciprocated, but you could never dream of making a move until you have full confirmation from him. Your friendship was something you were not willing to put on the line, what you two have means everything in a world like this.

This is torturous. You break the silence.

“You know we're going to have to stop, you can’t drive all night…it's not safe” you say masking your concern for his well being with a priority for safety.

He turns his head to look at you and it almost seems like he's taking you in for a second, his eyes roll up and down your frame and he replies simply, and matter of factly as he turns his attention back to the road

“I'll be fine…” he continues hesitantly “...Yknow id never let anything happen to ya” he looks over once again, he's dead serious and your heart is racing. Is this the moment?

Before you can decide what to say he continues “But if it makes you feel better we can i guess…”. You both start looking for places to stay as you are driving by. You spot an A frame cabin in the distance and lightly shove his shoulder and point in that direction to get his attention. He backs up and pulls off the road. You both step out of the car and instinctively start covering it with branches and bushes.

“Should be good enough, cmon” he says while gesturing forward for you to follow his lead. Something that had been carved out through a lot of bickering over the years. While you follow him up through the trees to the cabin you can't help but notice his broad shoulders, how they've muscled over the years, how they swing while holding his crossbow in one hand. How serious he is about keeping the people he cares about safe. You felt lucky to be included in that circle, and selfish that you wanted more.

You walk up the wooden steps and he turns around to stop you from continuing up with him to the door. He bangs on the frame of the door a few times to gather any attention of walkers while you survey the area for any strays. When he can't hear anything moving inside He goes inside and quickly clears the quaint cabin. He comes back out, naturally bounding down the stairs and says,

“I can't hear nothin movin in there, we’ll stay here. Leave at sunrise.” He says while picking your bag up off the ground and carrying it inside for you without saying another word. You're frozen for a second, your previous thoughts coming to haunt you once again. You quickly snap yourself back to reality and rush up the stairs to catch up and see your abode for the night you.

You take in your surroundings. It's cute. It's a loft style place with a tiny living and dining room as soon as you walk in. With a kitchen a bit further back, the stairs against the wall lead up to a full sized bed that you can see from the door when you first walk in, guarded by a railing.

Besides the dust and panicked “the world is ending” clutter it is very much livable. Something that you'd remember where it is just in case you needed a safe house in the future. You follow Daryl's lead and start looking through cabinets to find something useful before you settle in. There's some leftover canned food in the cupboards and while rummaging through what's good and what's not you feel a slight nudge on your back. You turn and Daryls holding out a book, presumably what you just felt on your shoulder.

“Looks like something you'd like…” He was the most observant person you'd ever met. You told him about this author months ago. He remembered. Why did he remember?

“Thank you…” you say, not being able to help but softly smile at him “...That's really sweet of you…”

His eyes dart between you and the floor seemingly not being able to maintain eye contact with you. Does he feel it now? The heart fluttering, the warmth in your stomach, the rise in heat, the tremble in your throat, legs like jello. You think he might when he goes to say something but simply closes his mouth, turns his eyes towards the floor and almost painfully walks towards the door. He pauses with one hand on the frame and the other with his crossbow. He turns to look over his shoulder and says

“I'll be back, gonna find us somethin to eat…” he says, but there's something in his voice that you're trying to place as the door closes behind him.

Longing.

What if he does feel the same? It's almost as terrifying as if he doesn't. You can't take the not knowing anymore. The “almosts”. An hour or two passes, it's dark now and you're lost in your book as Daryl opens the door, some small game strung over his leather clad shoulder.

He closes the door behind him and stops in front of it, taking in the scene before him. You had started a fire in the small furnace and were curled up with your new gift on the couch. You see him looking over everything and you, like he almost doesn't know what to do next.

“hey…“ you say softly breaking him from the thoughts you could see you could tell were racing behind his eyes.

“Hey” he responds after a second, looking so deeply into your eyes you think you might break right then and there.

All that can be heard is the fire cracking until he sets the small game down and walks towards the old couch that you're sitting on. It creaks as he plops down beside you and the couch dips so you're even closer than you think intended. He kicks his boot clad feet up onto the small table in front of the couch and actually lounges back. He breathes deep and is seemingly relaxed, something that you consider rare for him. You take him in, he looks amazing, strong arms folded behind his head which is laid back, his broad body trails down to his crossed feet on the table. He's immaculate.

“Tell me bout it…” you almost miss what he says as you're too busy checking him out when he continues amidst your silence. “Your book… tell me about it”

You immediately beam a smile at him, ecstatic that he would actually care to hear about something you like so much. You begin delving in with as much detail as you could spare. He is looking at you so sincerely and contently, the moment is filled with such warmth you could explode. One hand is now stroking his chin as he listens intently to every word, soaking up every syllable you say. His eyes are all over you.

“...And that's all I've got so far, i can't wait to finish it” you say taking a deep breath from the monologue you just went on and look from your book to him with a smile. He's looking at you with that look again.

Longing.

Your knee brushes against his outstretched leg and you swear you feel actual sparks. Your eyes flicker down and then back up to see he has not relented his gaze in the slightest

“What is it?” you say.

He shrugs you off with a grunt. You put your book on the table and face your entire body towards him. Knees brushing against him once again. Trying to show that he has your full attention and it isn't going anywhere. You match his eyes and say

“c'mon … we always tell eachother everything” his mouth is slightly agape and you can see his chest rising and falling deeply almost as if he's nervous despite his still relaxed position on this small couch.

He shifts slightly but his gaze doesn't falter.

“You look nice today…” he says lowly and then continues “you always look nice… i jus dont say it enough…” your breath is taken away in that very moment. You can't tell if this is real right now.

“You do too..” you say barely above a whisper, absolutely breathless. This is when he turns his attention to the furnace, you swear you saw a slight blush tinge up his neck to his cheeks. He takes an audibly deep breath and stands. He looks over to you once again and says

“We should get some shut eye, got a long day tomorrow…” You're stunned. If that wasn't the moment then maybe there would never be one. “... I'll take the couch, you take the bed”

You're snapped back into reality once again

“Why don't we share it? I mean we're both adults, besides how often do you get to sleep in a bed that isn't behind bars” you say with a chuckle trying to mask the pang in your chest at another “almost”.

He's stunned in his place at the proposition and you're thinking that maybe you crossed the line when he lets out a simple

“...Sure”

He looks at you hesitantly but follows you up the stairs and you each take a seat on either side of the bed. Now it seems both of you don't know what to do and you're starting to think that maybe this was a bad idea. You take the lead and slowly lay on your back so close to the edge the wind could probably blow you off. He follows your lead and does the same and you're both laying there staring at the ceiling on your backs as the light from the fire flickers on the angled ceiling above you.

Even with you both doing your best to give each other space his broad shoulder is brushing against yours and you feel his pinky graze yours. You suck in for air unable to catch your breath from this innocent touch.

When suddenly you feel his warm, rough hand enclose over your own.

Both of your heads slowly turn to face one another. You're both searching each other's eyes for something.

Permission.

His eyes land on your lips. You realize this is the moment. His eyes meet yours again and you scoot closer to him. Your faces are now inches apart. His chest is rising and falling deeply once again, he's nervous but he lifts his head and moves himself closer so now your lips are only inches apart. You lean your forehead against his and bring a hand up to rest on his cheek. You run your thumb along his lips and swear you feel him shudder beneath your touch. His eyes are darting across your face searching for any hesitation.

“Ya sure?” he says quietly and gravelly. Almost desperately.

“Yes..” You say immediately, breathlessly, and full of certainty. “...Are you?” you continue

“Have been for a while now…” He says while leaning in to lock your lips.

The kiss is soft and hesitant. His slightly chapped lips mold with yours perfectly. You're both testing the waters of something long unspoken. His hand moves to the back of your head , pulling you as close as possible, threading his fingers through your hair as he does. For a second your mind flashes with all the “almosts” and when you pull back for the air you desperately needed you see your “finally” in his eyes. You're both absolutely breathless and buzzing from each other's touch.

He leans his forehead against yours and shuts his eyes for a second almost as if to process what's unfolding before him and says

“I thought this was something i couldn't have… that i didn't deserve.” he opens his eyes and the vulnerability that's there is a rare sight, something you know he doesn't share easily. He looks at you so longingly and dare you say lovingly that you can feel your heart stutter.

You shake your head vehemently in absolute disbelief over his words and raw honesty. You slide your hand that was on his cheek to his strong chest and feel his heart beating beneath your palm. It's steady but fast.

“Ya better than all this, better than me … i know that” He says as his lips twitch into a faint, almost sheepish smirk. He momentarily averts his head and eyes to the ceiling. You move your hand back to his cheek and softly turn his face to look at you again.

“You don't get to decide that…” You say while stroking his cheek and pushing his hair out of his eyes. “You've been everything to me for so long. I don't care what kind of world we're in. I want you. Just you.” You whisper the last part against his lips. He breathes deeply in for air desperately trying to fill his lungs back up with air from the girl who stole it from him. He’s utterly taken with what you just said, what he desperately needed to hear from you for years. He's never felt or had love like this. It's almost overwhelming for him. His eyes have a gloss to them and they say everything that you've been needing from him for years.

He softly and slowly grabs your waist to turn you from your back, to your side to face him and he does the same so you're fully pressed into his wide, strong chest. Your legs tangle together and of all the times you both had dreamed of this moment, this is somehow better.

[xxcallmemaryxx]

oooh I loved the lil blurb of vampire vessy! we need more of him! and that artwork by ghostly is absolutely gorgeous.

what if one night he sees you crying in your home :( you're curled on your couch wrapped in a blanket and have something on the TV, but you aren't really paying attention because you're so lonely and sad. you can't stop the tears from falling or the sobs from stop shaking you.

he watches you from his perch in the tree outside your window, like he does every night, but he's in agony. he wants to soothe you. he wants to hold you. he wants you to know he's here for you.

but you're still unaware of the sweet creature outside your house, who yearns to be near you. the glowing red eyes that look at you with such adoration.

BANGER ASK BANGER ASK

here have some extreme vessel yearning

Under the cut ~ <3

He is distraught. His fingers curl into the branch below him and lead settles into the pit of his stomach. Being here is supposed to bring him joy. Watching you with curious adoration sparks feelings in him he hasn’t felt in decades. If his heart could beat, he knows it would race every time he leaves the manor to come visit you. And this time started out no different, except the moment he settled into his favourite tree, he almost fell right back out of it again. You’re stuck on the couch, tears slipping from your eyes and barreling down your cheeks faster than you can wipe them. He watches you roll onto your back and stare up at the ceiling with complete hopelessness. And it rips him to shreds.

He’s so close, you are so close. There’s nowhere near enough room on that couch for you both but he swears to Sleep he’d make it work. He gets lost in the thoughts of hiding you away within his own chest. Pressing your face into his frozen skin and staying there. Of kissing you, so softly. Of holding you against his body for as long as you’d let him. He’d stay there with you long after the sun rises if you wanted him too. He’d risk it. He really would. It terrifies him beyond belief how easy of a decision it would be to make but he can’t even find it in himself to care.

But he can’t. He can’t scoop you up off the couch and bury you beneath him. He can’t quieten your thoughts. He can’t wipe your tears for you. He knows he can do it faster than you can, they wouldn’t even make it half way down your face if he had any say in the matter. And it’s here in this tree he remembers what it feels like to be devastated.

He can’t even let you see him.

It’s been a long time of learning to accept the kind of monster he is. A hunting machine. Forced to kill just to survive. And it took even longer for him to teach himself he is more than just his fangs. But they are him. And it’s times like this he remembers just how unfortunate his existence is.

He’d never EVER hurt you. Ever. But he’s positive he’d scare you. He can’t help the way he looks now. His skin sunken and ghostly, weapons for teeth on full display all the time, lanky and thin. He’s not exactly the epitome of warmth.

But fuck, he’d try. And he’d make it happen too. He’d defy the meaning of life itself and be your rising sun.

His own cheeks are wet.

You don’t know it, but he cries with you.

You don’t know the love that is calling for you just outside your window. You don't know the love that yearns beyond words for you every single night. You don’t know the love that would defy all else just a few steps away.

But Vessel does. And it’s like he’s dying all over again. Because he knows all he’ll ever be is the shadow in the tree.

He stays there all night with you. Watches you cry yourself to sleep and in turn, doesn’t move an inch until he physically can’t stay there anymore. He makes it back to the manor, he always will, but he takes himself right to bed and cries himself to sleep staring at his ceiling.

He dreams of you.

Looking at him with nothing but a smile. It’s a simple dream, a simple desire, silly almost… but if the worst you could give him is a smile, he’d do everything he could to keep himself safe.

.

.

.

Thank you for this ask I’ve been thinking about it since the minute it landed in my inbox.

And thank you for reading!!!

I love you!

[tkwrites]

The Invitation - Jack Hughes x platonic ofc

Photo from Pinterest

Title: The Invitation

Author: Tory / @tkwrites 

Relationship: Pre-established in the Snapshots Series - Platonic Jack Hughes x  Quinn’s GF Sarah Roberts  

Warnings: None

Summary: In which Jack extends Sarah an olive branch 

Word count: 625

Comments: Just a little blurb to set up some more off-season adventures. 

The Invitation

A Quinn & Sarah Snapshot

A week and a half after Quinn left for Michigan, while walking to the train station from the aquarium, Sarah’s arms felt like lead.

They were moving labs, and despite “going paperless,” they still had hundreds of files she had to box up, move, scan, and hopefully shred - if Dr. Forrest would allow them to actually go paperless. She almost told him he could keep all these damn papers at home if he wanted the backups so bad. If she knew she wouldn’t be the one moving them, she would have.

Her phone trilled, and she was so thankful for the airpods Quinn had given her. Digging her phone from the depths of her bag felt like too much of a burden. 

Siri informed her, “Michigan,” was calling. 

Dread flooded her limbs, and she stopped dead on the sidewalk, making the crowd part to walk around her. 

“Call from: Michigan,” Siri said again. 

Taking a steadying breath, Sarah tapped her right earphone to answer the call, “Hello?” 

“Hey, Sarah?” 

Recognizing the voice only calmed her racing heart by a tick. 

“Hey, Jack. Is everything okay?” 

He seemed surprised by her concern, “yeah, everything’s fine.” 

Sighing, she began walking again. “You’ve never called me before, so I thought Q was hurt or something.” 

“Oh,” Jack said, rubbing the back of his neck. He hadn’t thought about how she would interpret him calling. He hated talking on the phone. 

“What’s up?” 

“Oh, um…” 

Good god, what was he even doing? He had to wait until she was off work to call her, and now, he was in a corner of the bar patio, hoping no one in their group would come looking for him. 

“I was calling you about Hawaii,” he blurted. 

“Oh.” 

“I, uh,” he took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. “I think it would be good if you could come for part of it. Like, the second week or something?” 

A smile broke over Sarah’s face, “really?” 

“Yeah, I mean Quinn would love it, and my mom keeps talking about all this stuff you know, so it would be good for you to be there part of the time.” 

“That’s really nice. I would love to.” 

Of course she was sweet about it. She was sweet about everything. 

A pause passed over the phone, and Jack heard the city muffled through her headphones. 

“Anyway,” he said after a minute, “I was thinking it could be fun to surprise him. I’m talking to Kylee to surprise Luke, too.” 

“That’s really sweet, Jack.” 

“Don’t sound so shocked,” he admonished. He loved his brothers. If he could make them happy by buying a few plane tickets, he would. 

She laughed, “no, I guess I shouldn’t.” Still, she was surprised to have the kind of consideration that Quinn often talked about directed at her. It was a turning point she hadn’t expected to reach with Jack for a long time. 

“Anyway, I'll buy your ticket. You lived on Kauai, right?” 

“Yeah.” 

“We’re doing that the second week. I’ll send you the details.” 

“Okay. Can you send me the dates now so I can request work off?” 

Right. She had to ask about stuff like that. He forgot that most people didn’t have the summer off.

“Yeah. I will. Listen, I have to go, but we’ll talk more.” 

Sarah stepped onto the train, feeling a little out of sync but grateful all the same.

By the time she got back to her apartment, Jack had texted her a set of dates and asked her when she could fly. It was going to be awful to keep it a secret from Quinn for the summer, but it would be fun to surprise him. She’d never seen him surprised. She wondered how he would react. 

Want more Quinn & Sarah? Check out the Snapshots Masterlist

To read all my fics, check out the Fanfiction Masterlist

©2024 tkwrites. I do not give consent for any of my work to be copied, re-posted or translated here, on Tumblr, or on any other platform.

[sadienita]

[1:01] “Joong, where- ugh!” You groaned as you spun around to find Hongjoong way behind you yet again. You were meant to be on a cute date, a first date in fact, because after a year of pining Hongjoong had finally mustered up the courage to ask you out. Despite his clear nerves it had been lovely.

Or mostly lovely.

Because despite taking you out to lunch and then to a cute cafe and now for a walk in the park, he had also brought his camera along. And he couldn’t seem to help himself, stopping at every pretty sight to snap a photo, not to mention about fifty photos each from the cafe and restaurant of your food.

It was cute really, but it did mean his attention kept wandering. If you didn’t know him well it might have been rude. But you knew how shy he could be and you could see how nervous he was even if he hid it well. So you simply gave him a smile when he met your gaze with a confused “huh?”

“I’m walking alone.” You chuckled.

“O-Oh, sorry.” He mumbled, scurrying to meet you. He looked even cuter as the blush on his cheeks matched the pink on the tip of his nose from the cold weather. “I got distracted.”

“Was it a good picture?” You hummed.

“Yeah I think so, I think I have at least a few good ones from today. It’s nice that it snowed.” He gazed over the hedge at a few young girls making snow ducks at the side of the walking path. “Everything looks pretty when it snows.”

“Even me?” You teased.

“Y-You always look pretty.” He said quickly. When you glanced at him he was blushing harder. You nudged him with your arm and he looked at you.

“You’re pretty too.”

“You’re just saying that cuz I said it.” He countered.

You put a hand over your heart. “I swear I’m telling the truth.” You reached over to pinch his nose which made him jump. “You’re adorable.”

“I think you just like teasing me.” He muttered.

“I liked teasing you before you asked me out.” You said. “It‘s familiar. It should comfort you.”

“It does the opposite.”

You stepped in front of him, stopping him as you grinned at him. “Do I make you all nervous now, Joongie?”

A blush rushed up his cheeks as he ducked his head. “Why did I think confessing to you was a smart idea?”

“Do I make your heart race?”

“I should have known you would just torture me.”

“Bet you wanna kiss me, don’t you?”

Hongjoong grabbed his camera again, forcing it between the two of you, almost as if creating his own little bubble to withstand your teasing. “Let me take your picture.” He said.

“You didn’t answer any of my questions.” You laughed. He nudged you backwards.

“You already know I like you, do I have to admit to everything?” He mumbled.

“It’s more fun if you do.” You said, wandering down the path as he found you in his viewfinder.

“Don’t I make you feel the same way, anyways?”

Yes. 

Yes, I feel butterflies in my stomach everytime you call my name.

Yes, I feel my heart racing a mile a minute each time you look at me.

Yes, I want you to kiss me.

But you couldn’t just say those things out loud.

“You make me feel…” You thought for a moment as you gazed up at the snow covered branches of the tree. “Make me feel-”

“Wait! Don’t move!” Hongjoong’s sudden exclamation made you jump a little but you held still after that, hearing the snap of his camera shutter. It went off a few more times before you looked at him, ending with him getting one more of you looking right into the camera. You could feel the heat warming you from the inside out as he shyly brought the camera down. He looked so pretty, the shy smile on his face, cheeks and nose tinted pink. The way he looked at you had your heart hammering in your chest, like you were his whole world.

“Sorry, you- it’s a really good picture.” He cleared his throat, tone hopeful when he spoke again. “What were you saying? About how I make you feel?”

A smile tugged at your lips. You didn’t say anything in response, instead waking back down the path towards him. Hongjoong let out a yelp as you dug your fingers into his scarf and pulled him in, pressing your lips to his in a sweet kiss that made your heart feel like it had an entire fireworks display going off.

When you pulled back Hongjoong looked just as dazed as you felt.

“You make me feel love.” You hummed, before kissing him again.

[arcielee]

the sword & the salver

paring: Suguru Geto x reader summary: Prince Satoru Gojo sends his trusted general, and friend, across the kingdom to retrieve the girl who saved him when he was a boy. You loathe the idea of having your life uprooted on the whim of some faraway prince, and General Suguru Geto is determined to see through his prince's command, by whatever means. word count: 3.4k+ warnings: AFAB reader, Gojo being Gojo, some miscommunication and missed moments, and more pining for funsies! author's note: Thank you for all the comments and reblogs! They give me life. 🥰 Also, I forgot to mention that Atsumeru means to collect or gather. Enjoy! [Snippet below source.]

Chapter III ~ More Than Words

almost eighteen years ago

The cry for help was wet and shrilled, a kind of panic that rippled through you, echoing from the river that curved through Hoshi. 

It was your first moment away from the fretful eye of your father, a blessed reprieve under the trees as you poured over the book he had gifted. Its pages detailed the history of herbs and its healing properties, your newfound passion. You looked up from it, eyes squinting unsure of the noise you heard until you spotted the frantic flail of arms. 

A boy struggling to stay afloat, being pulled by the swollen river.

Your brow furrowed. No one would dare cross the river, especially after the heavy rains that washed away the recent bloodshed–though the iron smell remained, heavy and haunting. 

He will surely drown, you realized. There was a large tree that had fallen across, and you knew it was your only hope to try and save him. You closed your book, bounding to your feet, divots carving into the still-damp earth as you ran the dirt path alongside. Your mother’s shawl streamed behind you, catching around, but it did not falter your steps. 

“Help me!” You heard him scream, choking on another mouthful of water.

Ahead, you saw the tree was wedged by the rocks that lined both sides of the river; though the branches had grown brittle, you hoped the trunk remained steady. “I am trying!” You kicked off your shoes, quick but careful as you moved towards the center. You peeled the shawl from your shoulders and wrapped it around a thicker branch jutting upwards, a sharp tug to secure before you knotted the end.  

“Grab this!” You yelled as his head bobbed above, hoping he could hear you over the rushing white crash of the current that was pulling him.

Your silent prayer was answered as it left your hands, guided by the gods themselves. The fabric went taut and you braced yourself, pulling hand-over-hand as he held onto the other end for his life. 

When he hit the trunk, he clawed for hold, a fistful of your skirt that nearly dragged you in. “Stop!” You shrieked, losing your balance and falling to your knees, burning against the bark. “I am trying to help you!” You reached to grab his shirt and he used the momentum to himself up, draping over the tree. 

You felt exhausted. Your legs ached, dangling lifeless off the sides, bruised and bloody knees soothed by the water lapping up and soaking your torn skirt. The boy was shaking with deep, shuddering breaths that wracked his slender frame. 

“Thank you,” he rasped after the last of the river expelled from his lungs, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Thank you for saving me, but–please, don’t tell my mother.” 

At first you thought him mad, as you could not understand what he meant���how could you even know who she was–until you truly looked at him, seeing the bluest eyes with a piercing desperacy, wide and pleading. 

Prince Satoru Gojo. 

You were awestruck. “The prince cannot swim?”

He scowled, and you ignored it. You pulled him to his feet, unsteady but demanding, moving back to the river bank. He was compliant, his fight swept away in the currents, following you to first retrieve your book before you marched him back to your home.

Evening was pulling over and you saw your father was waiting for you outside, tall and lean, the severity of his face twisting with his worry. Your stomach dropped, but he soon recognized the azure infinity of the prince’s eyes–a well-known royal trait–and ushered you both inside. 

It was only after he cleaned up that the prince seemed to possess a regal air about him, despite how the clothes borrowed hung on his lithe frame. He was a few years older, very lean and with a boyish charm that now replaced his panic from earlier. He was gracious to your father and very well-spoken, just as you would expect royalty to behave. 

You watched him, your curiosity knitted between your brows. You had asked your father why he, the future heir to the Tengen Kingdom, would even require anything from your humble home. 

Your father had shushed you. “We will always help anyone in need,” he reminded you, “no matter their station in life.” 

When supper was served, a broth to warm the bones, the prince ate as if he was starved. A silence settled over the table, punctuated by the cutlery. Your skepticism could not be masked and your eyes narrowed onto him, brimming with questions you could not keep to your chest. 

“How did you fall into the river?”

The warning look from your father was set aside; your attention was solely on the prince. Prince Gojo returned your gaze with a smirk curling on his lips, welcoming the challenge, and you wondered how often he was ever told that he could not do something in his privileged life. 

“I was trying to get away,” he offered, another spoonful to fill his mouth. 

You would not be deterred. “Get away from what?”

“From things you could not understand.” 

You scoffed. “Swimming lessons, my prince?” 

Your name came out as a warning, low and lethal, and your father’s sharp eyes bored through you, silencing you. Your jaw ticked, your lips pursing as you looked back at the prince and the celestial blue of his eyes dancing, daring you. 

His tone was even. “There are obligations that are expected of me and I no longer wish to fulfill them.”

“I suppose this is for the best then, for you to wash away.” You could not stop yourself. “A cowardly prince would make for a cowardly king.”

He was red. “You dare call me a coward–” 

“Enough.”

Your father had no need to raise his voice, his gravelly tone was commanding in itself. Your eyes fell in front of you and your cheeks were warm with his chastising tone. 

The silence returned, thicker, denser than before, rolling over to ensnare the attention at everyone sitting at the table before your father spoke again. “Cowardice is only the result of seeing what is right and choosing to do nothing,” he reminded you.

The prince looked at him, the endless ocean of his eyes shining bright. Your father then continued, “I believe the gods often give us what we need and never what it is that we want. And a great king is determined by the resilience he wields with every daunting task that he will face.” 

You looked to the prince and saw a pensive change, a consideration in the cerulean cosmos of his gaze that was observing your father. It shifted his posture, his shoulders lifting with a new acceptance that steeled his jaw with a determination unearthed. 

The prince did not look at you, nor would he speak to you again that night. The next morning, he was gone, his mother arriving with the cavalry to bring him home. 

And Prince Gojo went without complaint. 

+ + + +

present day

The thought dawned on you along with the rising sun, the same as it had been the day before with its unyielding gold pouring over. Your body was sore, tear-wearied and bundled in the furs and the blanket that still held onto Suguru’s scent. You blinked, watching the smoke curl up from the fire pit and looking over to see Mimiko grazing at her leisure by the river’s edge, her ears flickering on alert. 

I have to see it for myself, you decided. It was the only way to accept what happened, to help the raw ache that still rattled inside your chest. 

The air was crisp against your face as you walked back up the knoll to see the damage that was done by the fire. Below was Suguru, kneeling at the blackened border of what had been your home. Embers were still glowing towards the center, smoke rolling over in intermittent waves above the ash and whisking away with the autumn breeze. You could see the tension lining his shoulders as he stretched to sink two fingers in the ashen edge. 

You stayed quiet, moving closer, ignoring the pulse of dull pain at the sight. Suguru looked up at you with the same careful consideration shining in his eyes, following your steps as you moved towards what was left of the fireplace, stones still stacked and most of them cracked. 

Start anew. Your eyes washed over before you pulled out a felt pouch and kneeled to collect some of the black charcoal. “A healer has her reasons,” you called over your shoulder; you could still feel his eyes, but you could not bring yourself to look at him yet. 

Suguru said nothing, only a hum, and your eyes moved onto something protruding from the soot. Your steps were mindful, the earth still warm beneath the soles of your boots, and you tentatively touched it with your toe. It cracked in half and you saw the familiar gleam of agate from the mortar your father gifted you. 

A soft, surprised sound spilled from your lips and you kneeled again, your fingers unburying and flitting to find the pestle unbroken. You moved towards the river with the pieces in your hands. 

He shadowed after your steps, keeping a respectful distance, his curious gaze watching as you removed your boots and knotted your skirt around your knees. The water nipped to the bone as you waded to your ankles, squatting to wash away the ash that covered your hands, cleaning the stone until its dull gray shine showed again; you pressed the two halve together, a perfect fit. 

It made you smile. “I think I will see about getting them gilded together whenever we arrive at Hoshi,” you said, turning to show Suguru.

He shifted with a fleeting relief that you were finally looking at him, but his expression turned pained, almost dumbfounded with what you said. “You still wish to go?” 

You could have laughed. “What other choice is there? If anything… well, first we must go so you can be relieved of this errand the prince sent you on.” The words needled through your throat and you quickly swallowed it. “I will decline the prince’s proposal and then I will request an audience with the queen to see about a possible restitution.” 

Suguru raised his eyebrows. “You say this as though you expect that she would give you such a sum.” 

“Perhaps she will pity me.” You shrugged. “But the queen has helped in the north before with every time the men from Ryomen cross over.”

It was not what he was expecting you to say. His jaw steeled, alarm flashing across his face, but his tone remained controlled. “How often does that happen now?” 

As long as you could remember.

The violent shift from the bordering kingdom in the north only began once Sukuna claimed the crown. His first act as king was to disregard the border policies that had been respected for the last century. He swore they were made as a blatant prejudice against his people, and rallied against the Tengen Kingdom, stating they were selfish with how they hoarded. 

The queen responded with an envoy, an invitation to expand her charter market. He returned only their heads, a trademarked expression, his sense of entitlement beginning its ugly and violent reign. 

Skirmishes began flaring, slowly pressing inwards until the battle of Hoshi was fought some years later. It was bloodied, brazen, but won at a cost that carved out your heart with the death of your mother, amongst many others.

In fact, both kingdoms were nearly crippled from the casualties. 

Sukuna and his men were beaten back to the borders, and he would not attempt another full blown assault for almost a decade–a war fought and lost on Tengen land, beaten by a young man with an enchanted sword that swayed the favor. 

“My father lost his life on that day.” Suguru did not lament with his words, just a fact stated as he offered you his hand. You could feel the callouses from his sword, and his warmth pulled you back onto the river bank. You did not want to let go, but he did, taking the pieces you had washed to carry them for you. “My father had served the queen faithfully and helped win that battle, but his injuries were too severe.”

Your empty hands unknotted your skirts, grabbing your boots and following after as he continued. “The queen took me in with the hopes that I would be a good influence on Satoru. But as you know, he ran away later that week.”

“I am glad he went back.”

A smile shadowed on his face before he asked. “How did your father die?”

With the gold given by the queen, your father decided to return to the north and set up his practice. Meanwhile, Sukuna grew restless before his cruel cycle repeated as before: pillaging and raiding, crippling the Tengen kingdom village by village. While most fled, your father remained to offer aid to anyone who needed it, but when his healing prowess was learned of, it was not long after that your village was attacked. 

Your father had been captured and then killed. Sukuna had his head sent back as an ill omen, but his body remained on display, placed on spikes for the birds to peck at. You had buried what you had of him by the river, shaded under the banyan trees. 

Suguru paled, his voice soft, “I am so sorry.” 

“I am too.” You felt the urge to reach for him, to feel the warmth of his hands again. “I am sorry for what you lost as well.” 

He shifted his stance, uncertainty flittering, still cradling the pieces to his chest. “But with the fire–” 

You stopped him. “We are not having a battle of plight, Suguru.” War had broken you both, you wanted to say, and that just as he found that sword to carve his own legacy, you were determined to rebuild again. 

But instead, you said, “I actually wanted to thank you.” Your boldness burned your face, something that recurred under his steady gaze. 

He stopped and turned to look at you; you sighed to soothe your nerves. “I was… rash last night. I was not thinking clearly. It just felt as if I had lost my father all over again. Seeing all of this,” –you gestured around, eyes flitting back over the soot and ash– “I realized that he remains with me through my actions, that he lives within the pages of the book… the one that I showed you.” 

Your words were spilling, almost rambling, but this time it served as a sense of comfort for you, of reassurance spoken out loud. Suguru stayed quiet, allowing you to gather your thoughts, and you felt a shiver up your spine from the ardent amethyst of his eyes. 

“So, thank you, Suguru,” and you finally looked up at him from beneath your eyelashes, “for everything, for what you did for me last night.” 

Your composure was forced as the blood roared in your head from how your heart was beating in your chest. You studied him, deciphering every shift in his features: his look of surprise, at first, but it came and went with your heart beat. His jaw tightened, a rose dusting to his cheeks and his brow furrowing above the swirling cogitation of his purple gaze. 

He said nothing, but began to walk again. You watched him for a moment before following after. 

Back at the camp, Mimiko looked up with a whinny greeting. Suguru moved to pack while you cleaned yourself and laced up your boots. It was decided the buggy would remain behind, and you climbed in the back to pull down the herbs–turmeric and echinacea and lavender–pressing them between the pages of Atsumeru before tucking it back into your satchel.

“Hoshi is about eight days away on foot.” You were startled to hear his voice after the long beat of silence that settled between. Suguru moved to take your bag and secure it to Mimiko’s backside. “And she won’t be able to carry us for long distances.” 

You moved closer to her, your palm flat as offering for her to smell. Mimiko lowered her head for you and you followed along her jaw, reaching to scratch behind her ear. “I do not mind walking.” 

“Have you ridden a horse before?”

“Not since I was a girl.” 

Suguru patted Mimiko and she preened under his attention, turning her head away from you. “We will take it slow with her, but today we should ride. I think we could use the break.”

This was true. You could feel how your body was pulling away, still able to complete the motions but your mind was fogging with a creeping exhaustion, the emotional drain of last night and this morning now weighing heavily on you. 

You were also grateful that Suguru seemed aware of this without you having to say it out loud. 

He stepped towards you and your blood began to warm again. “May I?” he asked you, and it spread through your chest. You were too dazed to understand what you were agreeing to, but he was careful to take your hand and place it on the saddle.

“I need you to hold this tight.” His low murmur guided you as he moved your other hand towards the cantle. He then kneeled in front of you, his hands knitting together to cup your foot and help you aback Mimiko, lifting you as if you weighed nothing. 

“How do you feel?” he asked once you were seated. 

You were still burning from where he had touched you, and it was prickling over your skin. “Tall,” you decided to say and Suguru grinned, moving to pull himself up and settle behind you. 

It pulled the air from your lungs–his chest solid against your backside and his warmth grounding you. He wrapped an arm around your waist to hold you, the other reached for the reins. “You all right?” His voice tickled your ear and you tried not to squirm, but just focused on breathing again.

You gave a quick nod. “Yes,” your voice was tight. 

As Mimiko trodden along, you felt a serenity with how the rest of the day peeled away. The ease of conversation you had shared with the general in the prior days was exchanged for a comfortable silence, but you did not mind this. As night fell over, earlier with the season change, you relaxed against him, growing heavy. Suguru tightened his hold on you in response. 

“We should probably stop for camp.” 

You blinked slowly as he stopped Mimiko. He climbed down first and reached to help you down. “You may be sore,” he warned. 

It was a new ache that shifted into your bones, a painsome stretch as you stumbled down, your fingers grasping onto him. His hands never left you, his palms gripping into the small of your waist to keep you upright, and his touch lingered long after your feet were steady on the ground. 

You looked up at him and Suguru let go at once. “I am sore,” you admitted with a nervous laugh, your blood burning again. 

He moved away from you, from the main road to find a clearing. As you gathered branches, Suguru dug a pit for a low fire to allow some warmth. He hesitated with the bedding before he set aside the furs for you and took the blanket for himself. 

As you watched him, you felt the bubble of words spilling before you could stop them. “Perhaps it would be better if we slept side-by-side again…” you faltered, silencing as he looked at you. 

His eyes were as dark as the night that swelled around the fire. The amber glow showed his tongue pressing to his lips, a tension returning as he considered what you said. “We would stay warmer, closer together,” his voice was low, unsure with how you would respond. 

Heat licked up your spine, though you begged to sound nonchalant with your reply. “It makes sense,” you paused, smothering the eagerness curling in your stomach. “Winter is coming and the nights will only get colder. It also might be some time before we even come across a proper place to stay the night.” 

His face relaxed and he piled the layers before getting underneath. He lifted them enough to invite you and you crawled under. Suguru pulled you back into his chest, covering you both with the furs. 

A smile touched your lips, a soft sigh as you fitted against him, as though you belonged. 

taglist: @sugurubabe @alwaysfreakingout @paprikaquinn @yeehawbrothers @witchbybirth

arcie's navi | jjk masterlist the salver & the sword masterlist

[hotteoki]

pirate king (j.y.h)

pairing: pirate jeong yunho x fem reader

genre: strangers to lovers, alternate dimension, pirate au

wc: 4k

cw: mild language, weaponry

notes: i wrote this with the layout of the ateez ship in mind (the one in the 'illusion' mv but with blond yunho cause he 4+4 the halloween ver of deja vu

xtra - tysm @woosluv & @ssaboala for beta reading for me! <33

"all eyes on me now! if you still doubt mine, it's too pointless. we're still young and wild, we gonna find new world to be mine!" yunho's fingers moved along the quote carved into the compass he's had since who knows how long.

yunho's head was lifted up forcefully by hongjoong's pointing stick poking his forehead. "you're going to get lost later on the island if you don't listen to me right now," hongjoong tilted his head, stepping back to the blackboard. "captain, i mean this in the nicest way possible, we've been over this, like, six times in the span of a week. we'll be fine," yeosang called from across the room as he tapped his telescope against his other palm, still dodging wooyoung's outstretched arms every now and then.

"you all say this but i know one of you is going to get into some shit and i'm going to have to be the one to clean it up," hongjoong sighed, dropping his pointer onto the ground lazily, "okay, come on, let's get off the ship. remember the plan, and wooyoung, stop trying to kiss yeosang's face. you can do that when we come back."

yunho kicked the ladder down onto the dock, stepping off the ship first. the crew split up, him going into the left path trailing into the cave. they all knew exactly what they were looking for, and the lengths each and every one of them were willing to take to get it.

it was peaceful until a rustle attracted his attention. yunho paused, pretending to re-lace his shoes, his eyes darting to his left, the direction where the sound had come from. when it was calm for the following minute, yunho slowly stood to continue his journey, putting on an oblivious façade, his hand subtly inching for his sheathed cutlass with every step.

yunho wasn't stupid. he's had enough experience to know not to doubt his senses at any cost. true to him, the snapping of a branch immediately heightened his senses. he swiftly cut through the thick, tall grass, eyes meeting with ones belonging to an innocent doe.

as the doe ran off, yunho only noted then how it was running along the path he was on. the cogs in his head whirred in confusion as he wondered why a deer wouldn't run away from a potential predator, rather in the same direction as him. that thought never escaped as he trudged on, praying the cave he was walking towards would appear before him faster.

and lo and behold, there it was.

if yunho hadn't been looking for it specifically he would've missed it entirely. it blended in perfectly with the shadows of the swaying trees, outgrown weeds guarding the entrance, vines crawling around, all leading straight into the depths of the cave.

peeking into the darkness, he checked every corner, sharp eyes darting here and there. finally, they landed on an unusual glimmering spot. yunho stepped closer, cautious of the fact he was now exposed to any potential predators hiding deep in the cave.

he was about a meter away from the shining rock when he realised it wasn’t a rock at all. it was an hourglass etched into the cave walls, almost like the cave was built around it over the years. he breathed out a light sigh of relief upon feeling the grooves of the rock nearby. it wasn’t etched in that deep. he could easily pull it out with a bit of help.

he allowed himself a few more minutes of admiring the hourglass. the cromer, its name was. an hourglass with the ability to lead them to an alternate dimension, where they could escape this timeline that caused each and every one of them so much pain and loss.

after stealing books from other pirates, following leads from old legends, tracking down their ancestors' footsteps, seonghwa had finally found a map hidden deep in the journals of an unknown pirate, their initials and writings long faded within the centuries. the joy the crew had felt when they located the hourglass after years was a night yunho could not forget.

just as he was about to turn back and find his crewmates, yunho was greeted with the sight of the very doe blocking his exit. when it was made clear that the doe had no intentions of moving at all, yunho unsheathed his cutlass. this was no ordinary animal.

his theory was proved right when a gust of wind blew against his face. removing his hand from his face and opening his eyes, he tried to conceal his shock. where the doe had stood before was a girl about his age.

“you’re a shapeshifter.” you raised your eyebrows at his statement, “obviously.” “i thought they didn’t exist anymore after hunters hunted them down ages ago,” yunho still had his cutlass held in front of him, wary of this new stranger. “yeah, i know. that was centuries ago. there’re still a few of us left, but most of us don’t want to be found.” “you’re not one of them, though,” yunho pointed out.

“and with good reason,” you stepped closer as yunho stepped back. sighing, you held up your hands in surrender, “do i look like i’m going to attack you or something?” “you can never be too careful,” he shrugged.

“i’ll tell you an easier way of getting that hourglass without taking this cave down.” yunho’s arm faltered, “what do you mean?” “this entire island relies on the life within the roots, the air, the animals, you know, all that shit. you break this cave the entire island goes down with it. you and your crew would never make it out alive.”

he swallowed. he wasn’t sure if you could be trusted. shapeshifters were known to be tricksters, always up to no good. what if you were playing with him and he could’ve saved precious time taking the hourglass instead of talking to you? after meeting your impatient eyes, he finally decided to play it safe.

“what do you want in return?” “get me off this island,” you replied instantly. the lack of hesitation in your voice made yunho believe you’ve had thought about this for a long, long time. he sucked in a breath through his gritted teeth. the crew couldn’t just find an extra person for charity. they were already rationing their supplies amongst themselves, adding another person might as well be a goodbye to their albeit uncomfortable but familiar living.

“take me with you or no hourglass. your choice,” you crossed your arms, tone firm. yunho swallowed again, putting his cutlass away and rubbing a hand on his face, “you’ll have to talk to the captain.” “fine, then take me to him.” “you can’t just-” yunho wanted to scream. despite being a pirate since birth, he’d never experienced a situation like this, and he wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do.

“you know what? fine, let’s go find him,” yunho pursed his lips. he knew for a fact hongjoong would never agree, but how else were they supposed to get the hourglass? it wasn’t like they could just bow their heads and march back onto the ship and off.

reminding himself of the crudely drawn map in their meeting room, yunho walked for what felt like hours with the intensity of your glare burning the back of his head. he thought he could drop onto his knees and thank the heavens the second he saw the familiar back of hongjoong.

hongjoong darted up at the sound of foreign footsteps, swinging his pistol at your face out of instinct. “she wants to speak to you,” yunho deadpanned, annoyed at the situation he was currently in. hongjoong lowered his pistol slightly, aiming at your chest now, “what do you want?” “i’ll talk when you get this pistol out of my face,” you frowned.

“i’m the one with the upper hand here, you really shouldn’t be making demands.” “considering i’m one of the remaining residents of this island who knows what you’re looking for and how to get it without dying, i don’t think you are.” hongjoong made a face, “and how do i know you’re telling the truth?” “you pirates. always so nervous about everything you see,” you paused, “i want to get off this island, you can help with that, and in return i’ll give you the hourglass.”

yunho looked for a reaction from hongjoong. when he was met with none, yunho was almost disappointed over the fact that his captain was considering his answer. “okay then,” hongjoong put his pistol away, “lead the way.” yunho felt his cheeks flushing at your cheeky smile. sure, he disliked you and your cocky attitude, but he wasn’t blind. anyone could tell you were gorgeous.

“i told you guys one of you was going to get into some shit. now look who’s cleaning it up?”

≡☆

it took a while for the entire crew to be gathered in the tiny cave the cromer rested in, all squished together to get a look at the hourglass while poor mingi stood on his tiptoes at the mouth of the cave. yunho watched in awe as you lifted your hands up, determined to keep his eyes open, only to be slapped with another aggressive gust of wind blowing in his face again.

he blinked cautiously, not realising his eyes had shut involuntarily. yunho vaguely felt his breath hitching at the infamous hourglass held in your hands. the gentle glow of each individual grain amongst the heaps of sand shimmered, tugging on his attention, while contrasting with the simple and plain metal supporting the phials.

��so?” you shifted your weight, waiting for something to happen.

and something happened indeed.

one look from hongjoong was all the crew needed as san shoved you to the ground, with seonghwa snatching the cromer from your grip and tossing it to jongho, the rest sprinting back to their ship. yunho followed his crewmates swiftly, but not before throwing his head back and yelling a quick “sorry!”

in his defense, he was sorry. just not sorry enough to feel guilty about it.

he nearly crashed straight into wooyoung’s back as he skidded to a sudden halt, confused as to why they stopped. sitting on the edge of the ship, legs swinging with an unamused expression, was you. but how…

“you really think you can outrun a doe? how self-centered.” hongjoong stared right back at you, irritated, “you can’t come with us.” “then i’ll take that back.” “i’d like to see you try,” he retorted, pistol now in hand again, “you can outrun me but can you outrun a bullet aiming straight for your head?” you huffed, “i’m not asking you to adopt me or anything, i just need you to drop me off at the nearest island.”

“bullshit. you’re saying you want to go from one island to another?” jongho scoffed from beside wooyoung. “i can’t leave this place without company. please just-” you sighed, and yunho could tell you felt defeated, “please just take me with you.” if he didn’t feel guilty enough, he definitely felt bad now. “cap, maybe we should take her.”

hongjoong gave him an odd look, clearly bewildered, “you were the one who insisted on leaving her.” “yeah well, i kinda feel bad for her now. she’ll stay with us for a few days maximum then we’ll just drop her off somewhere,” yunho briefly glanced at you, lowering his voice now, “i mean, maybe she really can’t leave. what, are we just going to dump her here?”

“i say we make her a deal,” yeosang chimed in, “she can live with us until we locate a nearby island, but if we arrive and it ends up being a bad one, she can’t argue and climb back aboard.” hongjoong nodded approvingly, “yeah, that sounds good.”

yunho watched as your face lit up when he repeated their deal to you. he silently swore to himself to always bring happiness to you during your stay if it meant he could catch a glimpse of your endearing smile again.

≡☆

yunho had volunteered to wrap up the cut on your arm you earned from san’s shove, despite seonghwa usually being the one to tend to the crew’s injuries. he led you down the stairs and to the medical room (which, really, was just their meeting room with a medical kit placed on the table), kicking away scraps of used bandages to the corner, praying you didn’t see them.

as he sat you down opposite him and began prepping the bandages, he began to wonder about you. where were your parents? how did you manage to come onto the island? why did you not have friends? what-

“you look like you have questions.” his gaze snapped up from your arm to your eyes, “no i- well, yeah, kind of.” you laughed lightly, “it’s okay, i get it. i’d be confused too.” yunho hoped you took the redness tainting his cheeks as embarrassment from being caught rather than his giddiness from your laugh. he motioned for you as he got started on wrapping your arm.

“i used to live on a different island, where my parents were. i met this guy, chan, and after being friends with him for a year or so, he offered to take me on a trip with his seven friends. i agreed. i honestly don’t know why i did. it was a spur of the moment thing. i followed him to the docks, where his ship was. turns out he’s a pirate and he’s the captain, much like your crew, actually.

“they said they wanted to go find some ‘treasures’, i just assumed they were joking around. they said they wanted to find an hourglass, i think one of the crew, hyunbin or whatever, said it belonged to his father. i remembered having heard some legends about it, and offered to lead the way. we searched for months, and finally found it on this island.

“when we arrived, they began arguing over who got to have it; they all had a different timeline in mind. someone wanted to go find their dead parents, someone wanted to rescue their girlfriend, it was- it was a lot,” you closed your eyes, throwing your head back, “we weren’t even from this timeline, for fuck’s sake! they fucked with the cromer as soon as they got their grubby hands on it, knowing damn well it was a full moon! i don’t even know what happened, to be honest, either that, or i can’t remember. it doesn’t matter. i don’t want to anyway.

“i think it’s something to do with the stupid hourglass. my theory is it passes down ownership to whomever it deems worthy to hold it, eliminating the past owners. that’s how i ended up alone. i tell myself they each left one by one, but it still bothers me how cursed magic like that exists. i don’t know, the whole thing’s really messed up. i guess being the holder gives you power to hide or expose it to others, because, well, as you saw, i could play around with its surroundings.” yunho hummed, taking in all the information.

he tightened the knot on your bandage, breathing out through his nose and rocking on his chair, “well, now that i know a lot about you, ask me anything you want.” “anything?” you lifted your head up again, eyes wide. yunho smiled, “yeah.” you leaned forward, head resting against your palms, “how are you so cute?”

yunho began spluttering, rocking a bit too far back on his chair, nearly falling over until you grabbed his hand, laughing at his reaction. as soon as he steadied himself, he yanked his hand away, feeling like his entire skin was on fire. you had a proud grin on your face, “i’m playing with you. though, really, you are cute.” he was genuinely convinced right then and there that you were the human form of heaven itself with the way his heart was palpitating.

the only dilemma yunho was having with himself was the fact that you couldn’t stay with them.

he liked to think that you shared the same thought as him.

≡☆

somehow, hours later, yunho found himself next to you on the beach, admiring the sunset from afar. “i haven’t had company in ages,” you commented, “it’s nice. especially since it’s you.” yunho had really wanted to kick his feet and giggle over your bold words, but he opted for a light chuckle.

“do you ever miss your old timeline? or dimension, or however you say it,” he regretted his words instantly at the sad look on your face. “all the time. i had a boyfriend, you know? he tried to stop me from going. i ignored him out of spite because of the amount of arguments we got into before i left. they were mostly to do with chan, he never trusted him, and neither should i have.”

yunho ignored the new, strange sense of jealousy he was feeling, and placed a gentle hand on your shoulder, “you wouldn’t have known.” you only gave a weak smile in response. “so tell me about your boyfriend.” you stiffened up slightly before relaxing again. if yunho wasn’t staring at you, he would’ve missed it entirely.

“well, he was the sweetest guy i’ve ever met. people compared him to a puppy all the time because of his energy,” you hesitated, “he had dyed blond-ish hair, a cute smile, a great sense of humour. he was tall, and was really popular. he always knew just how to cheer me up when i was down. he was considerate, caring, kind, he was everything.” yunho felt himself slowly getting upset. how could he ever compare to him? he sounded perfect.

“jealous?” you teased, nudging him. “not at all,” yunho rolled his eyes, playing with his compass again. he watched your eyes lower onto the very object, a soft look in them. “of course you still have it,” you murmured. “what?” yunho furrowed his brows. had he heard correctly? “it’s nothing.”

≡☆

nighttime rolled around and eventually all of them gathered around; yunho had found himself subconsciously scooting closer to you, landing himself a knowing look from mingi.

while your eyes connected with the flames yeosang started minutes ago, yunho couldn’t help but admire every inch of your carefully sculpted face. it was funny, wasn’t it? how he, at first, hated your overconfident demeanour, your demanding character, your addictive voice, your adorable laugh… huh. maybe he’d never hated you.

“so are you guys going to hide it now that you have to wait to use it?” you tilted your head curiously, and yunho wanted to choke a fistful of sand down his throat to contain the squeals that were threatening to bubble up with how absolutely beautiful you were. he shrugged, “most likely.” “the full moon’s in three days. where would you hiding it for three days?” “up san’s ass,” wooyoung laughed, before getting smacked by san.

yunho couldn’t bring himself to laugh at wooyoung’s immature joke. not when he now knew that he never had a chance with you to begin with.

but hearing your contagious laughter made him think of how lucky he was to have met you at all.

≡☆

“i know you, yunho, and i know you like her-” “like is an exaggeration.” seonghwa rolled his eyes, “just listen to me. she’s not going to be staying with us for long, and if you keep giving yourself a chance to get to know her, you’ll end up getting heartbroken.” “but isn’t that the point? maybe, when we use the cromer and get to a different dimension, maybe we can be together there…” he trailed off at how ridiculous he sounded. “that’s not how it works, and you know it,” seonghwa’s tone was now stern, almost to the point of telling yunho off.

“she clearly likes me too, can’t we at least enjoy the little amount of time we have together?” mingi tossed an arm around yunho from behind, “i say go for it.” “of course you’d say that,” seonghwa tsked, before continuing, “i’m asking you, as part of your crew, and your friend, to think this through.” “i am thinking this through!” yunho insisted, “i’d rather go through a heavy heartbreak than leave her with a bunch of ���what if’s. i really do like her, seong-”

“no, you’re thinking this with your plan of finding her in a different timeline. yunho, you can’t do that. do you know how risky that is? ignoring the fact how we’ve only known her for a day too!” “of course i know,” he hissed, “but i don’t care how risky it is. i’m doing it.” “love at first sight, some might say,” mingi patted yunho’s shoulder. “oh, don’t get him started on love now,” seonghwa groaned. “love is a stretch, but i definitely find her interesting enough to want to be with her.” “just say you like her, yunho. everyone and their mothers can hear your giggles at night in your room,” hongjoong teased.

yunho’s face flushed, “i don’t giggle!” with that, he left the tiny crowd and stormed off to the meeting room. to his surprise, you were sitting at his regular seat, examining his compass. he left it there?

“so you want to be with me?” you raised an eyebrow, running a thumb over the quote the same way yunho does. “what- no?” yunho scoffed, taking a seat beside you. “i heard you guys. you get loud when you’re defensive. it’s okay, it’s cute.” yunho was at a loss for words. grasping for straws to change the topic, he gestured to the compass, “why did you say something like ‘i still have it’?”

you grew silent, and yunho thought you hadn’t heard him. he was about to repeat his question when you opened your mouth to answer, “i knew you, jeong yunho.” he flinched at the full name coming out of your mouth, “how…” “in my timeline. i knew you.”

you had the same stiff posture as you did on the beach, and yunho recalled what you were talking about during that time, “your boyfriend…” “yeah.” suddenly it all made sense. the dyed blond hair, the puppy personality, tall… yunho had heard every single one of them.

“we were together?” his voice was barely above a whisper. you nodded sadly, a bittersweet smile plastered, “i never got to say sorry for not believing you.” “well, at least i got an apology now,” he wrapped his hand around yours, the compass in between your interlocked fingers, and the cromer, your chance of a new happily ever after, placed on the table just centimetres away.

networks - @kflixnet k-labels kbookshelf neverendingdreams-net straykidsland @k-films

[starsnores]

Ok so. I wanted to share a wip of what I was working on for the prisoner au fic. I do really wanna write more for it, I’m just. Very stuck. Writing things and then deleting them, really chasing my own tail. Writers block? I feel like I’m very bad at stringing the little scenes or ideas I have together into something bigger. But I do like how this next part was coming out and idk. Part of me hopes that talking about it more will encourage me to work on it. Bc I liked talking about my aus and stuff and I haven’t in a while. This is supposed to be a very, very rough start to the next chapter.

Rough fabric chafed his chitin. The clothes he’d been given were almost as threadbare as the old tshirt now lying on the floor at his feet. He had scrambled away from the clown, locking himself in the ablution chamber. He didn’t know how long he’d been standing there. Rummaging through the drawers and cabinets hadn’t turned up anything useful, would have no way to hide it if he had, didn’t even have underwear to tuck something into. Karkat wondered if they still had his things or if it had all been incinerated already. He could hear gamzee on the other side of the door, moving with slow heavy steps, evidently not worried about him, at all. How long could he stay in here, avoiding the inevitable. He couldn’t stop the clown from dragging him out if he wanted.

The door hissed as it slid open, and the first thing he saw was Gamzee perched on the back of the couch. In the time that Karkat had locked himself in the abultion chamber he had changed, dressed in an initiate subjugglator uniform, boldly patterned but far less ostentatious then other branches of the cult. It made the sharp angles of his body appear that much more dangerous.

Gamzes eyes flicked toward him, and the fine hairs on his neck stood on end.

"You done, motherfucker?"

Karkat crossed his arms over his chest, still feeling naked, "Yeah. You’re r leaving?”

"We got shit to do. C'mere."

"What do you mean ‘we’?”

Gamzee was already stalking forward something in his hand. Karkat flinched back but Gamzee moved faster, dropping onto a knee and grabbing his foot, throwing him off balance. Karkat reached to steady himself on the first thing his hands could find, tangling his fingers in Gamzee’s wild hair.

He was gently laced into a pair of sandals, and he tried not to shiver at the feeling if cold calloused hands cupping his ankle.

"Never knew they made fuckers as tiny as you."

Karkat thought about ripping the curls from his head.

When he finished he herded Karkat out of the front door. The door clicked as it slid shut behind them. “That’s it? You’re not going to put me on a leash or something?”

The clown shrugged. “Ain’t really got to. You can wander off if you’d like, just don’t think most juggalos would take to kindly to a mutant poking around where he shouldn’t be.” He turned down the corridor and, after a moment, Karkat followed.

The further Gamzee took him out of the hab blocks the more crowded it became. He had never seen so many of the cult in one place, had avoided seeing this many at all costs. Most didn’t seem to notice him. Something less than not caring, their eyes bouncing off of him as he trailed behind gamzee. A few, though, stared openly. Like they were trying to peel back his skin.

Hiding his blood color was habit, but he hadn’t felt this conscious of it in perigrees. Too much time spent alone, maybe.

He tried to keep pace with Gamzee, his long strides carried him far even at his leisurely pace, and karkat was still fatigued by his injuries. He felt like he was chasing after his lusus again. He hated it.

[acrazyartist]

Thought to Be Dead AU

Submas Angst technically? I think.

Accidentally made this while daydreaming. Oops. Anyways! I’m willing to answer questions about it

This is my first time posting something like this so 🙏 please be nice…?

————————————————

One day, there’s a newcomer to the Hisui region. Someone that was supposed to be familiar and welcomed with open arms from another.

But wasn’t

And what happens when one remembers fragments of the good and the other remembers fragments of the bad?

————

Ingo, every time he visits the Icelands to visit the Pearl Clan Settlement, a Zoroark always tries to lure him in. It has become habit, clockwork. Ever since the very first day of being in this land.

He has come to detest the illusions, never able to reach the terminal at which his lost memories are for the face he’s shown every time. The illusions have become too much with how certain they are to happen, almost as if he is a beacon of shining light to the Zoroark

One of these times turned wrong. Eventually. Ingo was tired of it, frustrated and tired of seeing a face he could not place a name to and was always a lie. And he fought back against an illusion in despair, saying some things he would never repeat to the actual face of the person he misses so dearly, after firing off an attack from his Gliscor, who in the moment trusted its trainer to not think twice.

He returns back to the Pearl Clan Settlement after, tired and just wanting rest. He has always assumed it was the same Zoroark or the same pack. It was too much to where he had to tell Irida

So she scouts it out with Gaeric and another few. Just to see if it bore a death or they had to prepare for a possible counter attack.

In the spot where Ingo had fought back against a so called Zoroark she finds something. But does not find the Zoroark, instead she finds a single white scrap of fabric with a brown line that is very like Ingo’s coats but white tainted with blood and the splat of blood staining white snow red dragging along further into Zoroark territory.

Horrified, they realize Ingo had not killed or even driven off a Zoroark… but rather a person. Zoroark’s do not bleed that shade of red, nor do they leave items behind if they perish.

They know he means well, and that Ingo is not the first to have done something like this, in a sense… but it would kill the man to know he had done something to a human being.

Irida gives the final say, they will not speak of this. Only say they gave the Pokemon a proper rite, and nothing more. That life was in Almighty Sinnoh’s hands now, it was too dark out and it was too dangerous…

They do not notice the Gear Station emblem that had a scrap of fabric, hanging from a lonely branch.

If only.

————

Meanwhile deep in the Icelands, someone stumbles to a stop, hands clutching their chest and head as bitterness and confusion roll off them in waves.

Emmet stands alone, the only reason he’s even still moving in the freezing cold and leaking blood is the simple thing called; The Indomitable Human Spirit.

How could he? He cared! He looked and he… he did, didn’t he? Everything felt so fuzzy at the moment but he pushed on. Had to find shelter. Had to patch his wounds. Had to live

He would not die here, may he be damned if he did.

Something else found him before he found anyone else, a few lone Zoroark’s on a hunt. While weary of humans and bitter, this one seemed different.

It smelled like them, bitterness rolling off it in waves with the blood that soaked the snow. It reminded them of their deaths.

He even looked like them! White and red, or something akin to red. He must’ve been one of their own using an illusion, right?

But he still smelled different. Perhaps humans could persist after death like they could if bitter enough? They did not know, but it continued wandering despite the somewhat grievous wounds it bore.

Eventually, one of the Zoroark approached him, curious. The human looked startled for a moment, taking a step back before the Zoroark simply held out a paw.

It accepted without hesitation, and with that, the Zoroark’s whisked the human that seemed like them off to their den, to treat and care for.

————

The human lived. It learned fast and healed fast too.

That was good. It became one of their own soon enough. It carried bitterness that did not wane. They made a mask for him, to let him know and be known that he was one of theirs.

After all… when your memories become scrambled and all you remember is the bad and being taken in by beings of bitterness…

It makes you like them.

Living on just the pure bitterness.

————

And Ingo was left none the wiser, for now.

But he thinks he’s haunted.

He keeps finding carved items, and other belongings. He could swear the Zoroark’s are following him to the highlands and leaving items behind…

In that same illusion.

[in-the-shadow-of-the-blog]

Under the Mistletoe with Garreth

Summary: It's Christmas, and there's mistletoe everywhere! Except... anywhere MC goes with Garreth? (Garreth Weasley x f!MC)

Rating: PG

Words: 700

—

All over Hogwarts, students were hanging mistletoe. Above doorways, halls, staircases, and classrooms, anywhere they might be able to steal a kiss from the object of their affections.

Yet everywhere MC seemed to go, it was nowhere to be found. Though she tried to walk with Garreth in places she thought it would be, but whenever they were out together, it was as if it had all simply disappeared.

MC decided to follow the example of other students and take matters into her own hands. She met Garreth outside the common room, as they often did since they started courting, and he immediately noticed what she held.

"What are you doing with that?"

Garreth's eyes shifted suspiciously as he looked at the mistletoe in her hands.

"Er... I was just going to hang it in-"

"Don't!" Garreth exclaimed. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I mean... Can I have it? I need it for a potion."

MC raised an eyebrow. "You can't get it somewhere else?"

Why was it so important to take it away from her?

"I, uh... Need a lot of it. It's a complex potion."

"Garreth, are you the reason mistletoe has been disappearing all over Hogwarts?"

"No."

Garreth's cheeks matched his hair as he realized he'd answered far too quickly.

MC folded her arms. "Garreth, what are you up to?"

"Nothing!" Garreth held up his hands, insisting on his innocence.

MC wasn't convinced. She could almost hear Professor Sharp yelling already.

"Well, I best be off," Garreth announced with an awkward smile. "Don't forget! You promised to go foraging with me tomorrow. Horklumps and such."

"I haven't forgotten."

"Good!" Flashing a cheerful grin, Garreth grabbed the mistletoe from MC's hands. "See you then!"

MC blinked at the blur of red hair and black robes as Garreth disappeared into a throng of students.

—

"Garreth, where exactly are we going?" MC ducked under yet another branch as he led her further into the trees.

"Don't worry, almost there!" Garreth's cheery voice called back. MC wasn't sure he was so chipper. It was an overcast day, absolutely freezing, clouds heavy with a promise of snow. But Garreth's attitude was more like a summer's day: sunshine and soft breezes and warmth.

"I'm pretty sure there are more convenient places to find horklumps," MC mumbled.

"Come on, MC! Where's your sense of adventure?"

"Back at Hogwarts, where it's warm."

"It'll be worth it, I promise. Just in this clearing."

Garreth sped up, running ahead. "Garreth! Wait!" MC cried, trying to keep up.

MC finally burst from the trees and into the clearing, coming to a sudden stop. What in Merlin's name...?

"Ta dah!" Garreth announced, grinning at MC's reaction.

In the clearing was an arch completely covered in mistletoe. The leaves swayed in the frosty air,

"Garreth, what is this?"

"Well, at first I just didn't want anyone stealing your heart under the mistletoe. Then I was waiting for the right time. After that... I got a little carried away." Garreth took MC's hand, pulling her closer to the arch.

"So you were never even working on a potion?"

"Sure I was." Garreth waggled his eyebrows. "A love potion."

MC laughed as she stepped beneath the mistletoe arch, eyes shining. "Come get your kiss, then."

His hands found her waist, and he leaned in with a smile. "I think all this mistletoe entitles me to more than one, don't you?"

MC arched a playful eyebrow. "Oh, really?"

"Mhmm." Garreth brushed his lips against her cheek. "One here... and here... there..." Her forehead, temple, the frozen tip of her nose.

They were both smiling when Garreth pulled her close against him. He leaned back to look into her eyes.

"And here, of course." Garreth pressed his lips against hers.

Warmth bloomed in MC's chest as their lips met, her heart fluttering. She wrapped her arms around his neck, no longer feeling the cold like she was before.

They finally parted, hearts racing, breathless. Garreth cupped MC's cheek, stroking her rosy skin with his thumb.

"Do you want to come visit my family with me for Christmas?"

MC couldn't help but grin. "Yes. I'd like that."

"Excellent!" Garreth beamed. "This will be the best Christmas ever."

He leaned in for one more kiss, not letting a single moment under the arch go to waste.

—

Masterlist

[anony-man]

Chubformers drabble #188!

Characters: Orion Pax & D-16 (& Darkwing- TF: One)

Word count: 1.7k

They shouldn’t have been in there, but they were, thanks to Orion. They also shouldn’t have had whatever the hell it was they were going to be drinking, but they did… also thanks to Orion.

Had it not been for the burning curiosity in D-16’s processor as he was tugged along through empty halls and creeping past barracks after hours, he would have been saying “frag no!” to whatever new and dangerous (and exciting and intriguing) thing his fellow miner had gotten into this time. Alas, curiosity was his greatest weakness, and Orion made a very convincing companion.

D-16 had been deep in the throes of a recharge cycle when Orion’s obnoxious digits tap-tap-tapping away at his helm. His irritation was long worn down by his friend’s excitable energy and tendencies for mischievous fun, and this time, he hadn’t even had time to ask what the adventure of the night was going to be before he was being dragged off.

The room wasn’t occupied, and it wasn’t a room D-16 had ever occupied. He recognized it almost immediately as yet another branch of the “off-limits” section of the underground cave system, which told him just as quickly that whatever mess Orion was getting them into, it was one that definitely wouldn’t have been approved by the cogged bots in charge. With a ceiling higher than their drills could reach and a space big enough for dozens of miners to stand in, he almost couldn’t even begin to imagine what was in store. As always, he didn’t need to—Orion was already one step ahead.

“Okay, hear me out,” he said, his expression as animated as his servos were wild. One servo was held up to stop D-16 in his tracks while the other servo reached back to grab… something. “I know we aren’t technically supposed to be refueling outside of certain hours for whatever strange regulation reasons, but I found this cool new energon—“

“You stole this cool new energon, you mean?” D-16 cut in. He already knew this was going to be good.

“Yeah, yeah. Found, stole, whatever. Anyway…”

Both bots fell silent as Orion held a cube up in the air. It was pink; bright bright pink. It was also…

“Is that fizzy?” D-16 asked, his optics going wide. “Like… fizzy fuel fizzy?”

Orion’s smile grew impossibly wider. “Yeeeeup. And we’re gonna drink it.”

His processor was still groggy, but for a moment, D-16 almost regretted tagging along for this. Fuel was fuel, fizzy or not. He knew Orion had been planning on heading out into the city for a few hours before coming back to recharge himself. Cutting his trip short and risking getting caught for something as silly as fizzing energon seemed a bit ridiculous.

He rubbed at his optics and sighed. There must have been a catch… there was always a catch.

“And…?”

“And we’re going to have a burping contest,” Orion said. “Sounds pretty fun, right? Are you in?”

Ah, there it was. For the briefest moment, D-16 balanced the risk of getting caught in the act with going back and getting some more recharge. It would mean leaving Orion to his own devices, of course, and after he’d been so kind as to come all the way back and bring along something new for them to try, it almost felt wrong. He’d never had fizzy energon before. He’d also never had a burping contest, and both sounded pretty great.

With a shake of his helm, D-16 took the cube held out to him. What would a little bit of fun hurt?

“You’re a strange mech, you know that?” he chuckled. “Slag, why not.”

It wasn’t the strangest thing he’d ever been roped into, but Primes above, it was still up there near the top. Orion liked to have fun, and he liked to bend the rules. On that note, it always seemed that having fun and bending the rules was much more exciting when someone else was involved… and that was where D-16 came in. He tore the lid from his cube and gave it a sniff, wrinkling his nose at the sweet smell.

“Last minute plans when I was walking past the big shots. Thought of you and couldn’t resist.” Orion grabbed his own cube. The lid popped off with an audible snap, and he knocked it back in one go. “Ahh… sure hits the spot, though, right?”

D-16 took a sip. It tasted as sweet as it smelled, and the small mouthful was bubbly enough to burn the second he tilted the cube back. He let it sit on his tongue before swallowing, and judging by the snicker from Orion, his grimace didn’t go unnoticed.

“Yeah,” D-16 said. “Sure it does.”

By the time he’d finished his first cube, Orion was already onto a second one. The fizzy sensation turned into a tickle in the back of his throat. His tanks felt the same, and as he reached for his next cube, he felt the familiar sensation of a belch slowly rising up his throat. His instinct was to stifle it, but even past the fist he held to his mouth, a gargled bit of sound escaped.

“Uuuurrp!”

“Oh, come on, Dee,” Orion teased as he held out another cube for his companion to take. “You can do better than that.”

Orion paused, one finger lifted as he pounded his chest with his other servo, before tilting his helm back and unleashing a louder belch.

“brRAAAAAP!”

“Psh.” D-16 shook his helm. “Showoff.”

The goal had been set, and despite the weird sensation of bubbles fizzing their way down his throat and the gurgle of his fuel burbling away in his tanks minutes after being ingested, D-16 downed another cube. He went for a third, too, but paused halfway through to offer up his own attempt at one-upping Orion’s work.

“OUURRRP! Ohh… spicy,” he winced, his fist still pounding against his chest. “Ahem—uRRP!”

“Now you’re getting it,” Orion said. “There’s plenty more to drink, pal. Try to keep up.”

They went back and forth for a time, and as D-16 grew more confident, his intake grew a lot quicker. Orion was struggling to keep up the pace before long, and while he was stopping every few sips to bring up his own measly mouthfuls of air, his opponent was letting things brew.

The stage had been set after D-16 polished off the last of their lot, and as the empty cube tumbled to the ground, he pounded his fist against his chest again. This time… no luck. He grimaced, pounded a little harder, then looked up at Orion with a strangely scared expression.

“Urgh… slag,” he cursed, the fisted servo opening up into palming at his gut and assessing the damage. “Okay, too much… too much.”

The fuel wasn’t intoxicating, and it wasn’t overly indulgent, which left Orion looking stumped and feeling worried. He took a tentative step forward. “You good, Dee?”

“I dunno.” D-16 felt up his chest and clutched his belly. “Feels kinda weird. Is it supposed to feel all… uh… sloshy?”

Orion didn’t get a chance to respond. Either their competition had been too noisy or the guards were making the nightly rounds, because before he could make an attempt at hiding them both out of sight, the entrance of the small room was filled with the looming form of the one mech neither bot wanted to see that late at night.

Darkwing was there, and boy, did he look mad.

“What is the meaning of this horrible racket I hear?” the cogged guard growled, “and why in Sentinel’s name are you two miners in here unsupervised?!”

There was no perfect solution to approaching the question. Every answer they could have given would’ve landed them in more trouble than they were already in, and with D-16 feeling out of sorts, Orion was left to handle it on his own. It was fine, of course. He could handle it… he was just very, very bad at doing so, given his track record.

“Oh,” he said, shuffling ever closer to D-16’s side. “Um. You mean… you mean us? Me and Dee?”

Darkwing was silent. He did not look amused.

“Well, we uh… we found this energon, uh, unattended and out of place, and… I mean, usually the rules say… ah…”

D-16 cut him off with an iron grip snatching up his arm, and it didn’t take a genius to guess exactly what was going to come of the silent warning. Orion fell silent as he shot his companion a nervous glance, but from Darkwing’s end, it appeared as nothing more than petty stalling.

“And what, pray tell?” the cogged mech pressed. “Please, explain to me the ridiculous story behind your stupid, stupid decision to ignore curfew, drink unrationed energon, and—“

Primus, Orion could have sworn the room shook from the sheer force of the belch that came out of his fellow miner. D-16’s optics were blown wide and spittle flew from his denta as he lurched forward and opened his maws wide, releasing the deepest, richest, and noisiest sound either of them had ever heard in the span of their time online. It was as long-winded as it was satisfying, and by the end of it, he could hardly help but sigh in relief and release Orion’s arm in favor of patting his belly.

“Woah,” Orion said, his optics nearly as wide as D-16’s had grown. “Good one.”

Darkwing, on the other servo, was not so impressed.

“Primus help me, if you both don’t get back to your stalls and put an end to this disgusting display…!”

He needn’t say more, in the end. As he was gearing up for a full-on tirade, the two miners scurried their way out of the room and left him standing in the dust. The evidence of their nasty fun was left behind in the form of empty cubes lying on the floor and the strange smell of sweet, sweet energon lingering in the air, and as much as he tried, the poor guard couldn’t bring himself to follow after them. Instead, he merely hung his helm and sighed.

“…miners. Fragging miners.”

[kookaburra1701]

WIP Wednesday - Wives of Shor I: Moth to Flame

❤️❤️❤️tagged by @dirty-bosmer and @thana-topsy ❤️❤️❤️ tagging @gilgamish @nientedenada and @tallmatcha

Fandom: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Rating: T (entire fic is E) Category: M/M Pairing: Kaidan/Lucien Flavius Genre(s): Romance (bodice-rippers my beloveds), bildungsroman Other main characters: Inigo the Brave, she/her Breton LDB

Summary: A scene from near the beginning of the fic - Kaidan has something he needs to do before the party sets off for Bleak Falls Barrow. Lucien Flavius is by Joseph Russell, Kaidan is by Liv Templeton, and Inigo the Brave is by SmartBlueCat.

25 Last Seed, 4E 401 Whiterun's streets were shrouded in mist, the few lanterns still burning at this hour casting halos of light in the gloom when Kaidan stepped out of the Bannered Mare. Tucking his cloak around himself, he walked quickly towards the stairs leading to the Wind District. Given how long it took Lucien and Pascale to prepare themselves in the morning on the road, he estimated he had a good hour at the earliest before they made their appearance at the stables.

The lanterns on the doorposts of the Temple of Kynareth were lit, and the door was unlocked. The inner atrium of the temple itself was lit only by the votive sconces flanking the shrine of Kynareth at the far wall. Not wanting to disturb any sleeping patients or clerics, Kaidan moved around the outside of the atrium, but did not find what he was looking for.

"May I help you, child of Kynareth?"

Kaidan whirled, coming face to face with Danica Pure-Spring, who was holding a lamp and had clearly just risen from bed, her robe ungirdled and hair thrown over her shoulders in long twin braids.

"I did not mean to wake you at this hour Sister, I apologize," he whispered. "I came seeking Kyne's blessing."

Squinting at him in the dark, a flicker of recognition crossed Danica's face. "You're the one who brought poor Hadvar to the jarl - so you're accompanying him on that errand of Farengar's?" When Kaidan nodded she said, "I would be happy to give you a blessing." Danica turned and walked toward the Shrine of Kynareth at the far wall of the temple. "I have a traveler's amulet for you as well if-" She stopped talking and turned to look at Kaidan quizzically when she realized he was not following her. "Is something the matter?"

Kaidan glanced around the Temple. It looked just like every other temple of Kynareth he had seen during his travels in Cyrodiil and beyond.

"I would like a blessing of Kyne, Sister."

Understanding dawned on Danica's face. "I see, I see. I don't get asked for those much, especially with the Gildergreen...well. Unfortunately with the expansion of the healing wing the shrine to Kyne we had outside was removed, and never replaced. But we will do it properly, don't worry. The Goddess of Storms doesn't need anything made by man's hands to work her wonders. Meet me under the Gildergreen, and unsheathe your blade."

Nodding once, Kaidan turned and left the temple.

He almost kept walking past the twisted, scarred trunk of the Gildergreen. He must have incredible depth of hubris to ask for Kyne's blessings after turning his back on all of Brynjar's teachings - and instead of doing it properly, he was going to be doing it in the middle of a city, under a dead tree, with a priestess who prayed to Kynareth.

Despite these thoughts, Kaidan took off his cloak and knelt beneath the Gildergreen's boughs, facing the Throat of the World. He carefully unsheathed his nodachi, placing the scabbard in front of him, and laying the bare blade across his legs.

Below him, the buildings of the Plains District seemed like islands in a sea of thick fog, and to the east the first blush of dawn was chasing the stars away from the horizon. A lark began to sing in the branches above him.

Repeatedly Kaidan tried to still his thoughts and center himself, but every time he attempted to begin a breathing exercise, his thoughts would turn to Brynjar, and a sharp pang of guilt would lodge in his chest.

"Are you ready, my child?" Danica approached, her vestments in place and priest's cowl now covering her sleep-mussed hair.

"I- I don't know, Sister."

Danica paused, but did no speak, waiting for Kaidan to continue.

"I haven't prayed to Her in...a long time. I don't know if Kyne will hear me."

For a long moment, the only sounds were the rushing of water in the aqueducts and the lark still heralding the dawn, heedless of the two humans below his perch.

"It's not my place to say what She will or will not do. But-" Danica moved to stand before him and placed her hands gently on his hair as Kaidan bowed his head. "I am reminded of the story of Keeper Ormi, who turned her back on Kyne when she thought the Goddess had abandoned her sons in war. She was so given over to grief that she turned to daedra-worship, and became a hagraven. She desecrated Kyne's sacred trees, and led her priestesses astray. And yet the Goddess welcomed her back when she repented, and returned her to human form. Do not presume to have done such terrible works that She is unable to grant you Her peace."

Danica's words brought some measure of comfort, and Kaidan was able to quiet his doubts as she began the blessing.

"Widow of Shor, Blessed Warrior-Wife, May this man's blade be as swift as your storms, And sharp as your winds.

"Sister-Hawk, he is your sword and your shield, Use him to safeguard those under his care." "Mother of Men and Beasts, Do not draw your veil against him as he travels, Bring peace to the wild things, that they will not bare their fangs to him."

"Kiss-at-the-End, if he should fall, May he meet you with honor untarnished, And carry him safely to Shor's Hall."

As Danica finished Kaidan felt her place something over his neck. When he opened his eyes and looked down, he saw a small scrimshaw pendant hanging from a leather thong, covered in flowing spirals and flanked by two hawk talons.

The last time he had seen one of these was when they had burned it with Brynjar's body.

He stood suddenly, knowing he had to leave immediately if he was to retain any of his dignity. "Thank you, Sister."

"Your journey awaits," Danica smiled at him. "Wind guide you."

Kaidan refastened his cloak and pulled his hood up as he descended the stairs, leaving the Gildergreen and Danica behind. By the time he reached the main gates, his cheeks were dry and the amulet was safely tucked under his tunic, the weathered bone warm against his heart.

[prince-rowan-of-the-forest]

We'll Save You (1/4)

----

Janus finds himself stumbling into problems like one stumbles over rocks on the road, except some problems are a little worse than others.

But when he finally stumbles into someone who isn't like everyone else Janus' had met so far in this unforgiving world, he thinks that maybe there is some merit to the world after all.

----

| Ao3 | Next Chapter -> |

Fic Warnings: implied + referenced abuse/torture. trauma, an oc character generally being creepy. referenced past starvation

Pairings: pre-established prinxiety, pre-romantic anaroceit.

Word Count: 4054

Notes: Hellloooo @anaroceitweek day 1 here - yes I'm tagging myself and participating in my own event shut up.

Ao3 is down so I can't post on there just yet, but I will later! So! Yeah!

My plan is to continue this fic with a few of the other prompts from this week if I can get the writing done in time, but I might not lol, they may be late. I really want to draw Roman from this au after I described him-

Also I'm flying by the seat of my pants for this fic (wtf does this phrase actually mean lmao) so I have planned NOTHING lol

----

“Hello there little one,” said a whispering voice in the back of Janus’ mind that sent shivers down his spine. He ignored it, resolute, you weren’t supposed to talk to the voices in the forest, “My my, aren’t you far from home?”

Janus growled in the back of his throat, pushing forward. If he didn’t acknowledge the creepy voice speaking straight into his brain, then it would go away and leave him the hell alone. 

“What is such a little thing like you doing here in our woods anyway?” The voice sounded thoughtful, and Janus could almost picture a being putting a finger to their chin in curiosity with it.

He shook his head to get rid of the image and kept walking at his almost-too-quick pace, pushing back a branch, ducking under another one, stepping over the poisonous plant, keep going. 

“Careful where you step,” The voice crooned, almost mocking, Janus couldn’t resist the urge to glance around at the area. No one was there, he glared at the empty space anyway. 

“Why such a look, little one? I’m only trying to help,” The voice said, growing a little louder and slightly more persistent, the tone was almost a whine, but somehow Janus could tell that whatever was talking to him wasn’t genuinely upset.

“Shut up,” Janus muttered, pulling out a compass as he stopped for a moment, he groaned, finding he’d gone off course a little, turning and heading in the right direction.

“You shouldn’t be here,” The voice seemed to tease, “The woods are no place for a little mortal like you.”

“Yeah, well, don’t really have a choice do I,” Janus hissed at the empty forest around him, before slapping a hand over his mouth and sighing. Well, now he’d done it. 

“Oh how precious!” The voice seemed to laugh, “What are you running from, little one?”

“Nothing,” Janus snapped, “None of your business, whatever you are.”

“But it is my business, see,” They said voice punctuated with a cackle that had Janus paling, “Because you just stepped into my circle!”

“What,” Janus whispered, panicked now as he heard a whooshing breeze and suddenly the voice was gone. He looked around him, alarmed, to find that he was in fact standing in a circle - of pink and yellow flowers and mushrooms. He cursed, looking around again, this was a fairy circle, and he was stood in the centre of it. 

A strong, icy breeze whipped through the forest, tugging at his cloak and hair before settling again. Janus needed to get out of this circle before… but he couldnt’ seem to move his damn feet.

“What a surprise!” Someone said behind him, the voice sounded eerily similar to the one that had been speaking in his head, “Why, I haven’t had a visitor in years, welcome to my circle, little one.”

“Let me g-” Janus hissed, turning around only for his jaw to drop, the word he was speaking being cut off halfway through. 

Standing mere inches behind him was a person who could only possibly be fae. They smiled at him, the look on their face was something that might have been inviting, possibly even warm, if he took it at face value. 

Instead, he saw the undertones, something unnerving, and almost sinister. 

“Won’t you rest, little one, you’ve had such a long journey,” They said, cupping his face with their hand, he could already feel himself sinking to the ground, compelled by the siren-like melody of their words, “Yes that’s right, just rest, and tell me, what is your name, little one?”

Janus opened his mouth to reply, to answer, despite every part of him screaming no, to stay awake, to keep his name locked close to his chest. As his vision went black, he knew he wasn’t lucky enough to be so strong-willed. 

—-

Running. 

He was running. 

Where to? He didn’t know, where from? He shuddered to think.

His legs burned, the muscles screaming at him to stop, to rest, take a break, his mind whispered. He couldn’t take a break, if he stopped they would catch him and bring him back. His lungs burned too, every breath feeling like sandpaper in his throat, he kept going despite, kept pushing as he flew through the forest, the trees and the grass and plants barely able to hold him back for a second. 

It wasn’t the same forest he had been in all those years ago when he’d been escaping something that felt so far away from him now. So inconsequential and yet still able to shoot another bolt of adrenaline down his spine. He kept running.

No, this wasn’t the same forest. This one was luscious, almost too saturated - enough to hurt Janus’ eyes if he looked close for too long. This forest was filled with critters he didn’t know how to name, that he’d never seen before. It was filled with floating orbs of light that kept his path glowing ahead of him even as night began to fall. 

Janus ran until he crashed into something solid. His eyes were starting to blur from exhaustion at that point, and when he hit… whatever he had run into… his legs buckled and he simply sank to the floor, trying to pull air into his lungs. He didn’t know how far he had gotten, he only remembered the last stretch of the journey. But he felt like he had been running for hours. 

Someone was speaking, and Janus felt a dull stab of panic in his chest, someone was here, would they take him back? Had they come for him?

He tried to push himself up so he could run again but found he could barely even push himself up from the ground. When his arms gave out and he collapsed again, he was caught by an arm, a strong, warm arm, that pulled him into some kind of hold. His mind was too hazy and tired to really register what was happening as he was lifted into the air and carried away. 

—-

“What the fuck is that.” 

“A mortal!” Roman said, “I think.”

“You think?” Virgil hissed, pacing, “You just- You just brought in what you think is a mortal? To our house?”

“It ran into me!” Roman protested, “And then collapsed - and it looked so scared, I couldn’t just - leave it, Virge, you know that.”

“Well what are we supposed to do with it now?” Virgil said, gesturing widely to the mortal who lay sleeping in their shared bed. He wasn’t in the best shape, not by a long way. He was scrawny, with barely any meat on his bones. He wore clothes that covered his arms and legs, though they were ripped in places and too big. Knotted, messy blonde hair covered their still tense face. 

Roman took a deep breath, “I supposed we… look after it?”

“You’re serious?” Virgil said, groaning, “Why don’t we just drop it outside of the nearest fairy circle back into the mortal world?”

“Virge,” Roman said sternly, “First off, I think it’s a he? We’ll have to ask when it- he- wakes up, second, we don’t know where he came from, or how long he’s been here - we can’t just drop him off in the mortal world! He might be centuries and miles away from when he came in!”

“So?” Virgil said, crossing his arms, “Since when was that our problem?”

“Shush,” Roman hissed, raising a hand, “I think he’s waking up!”

“Ro- what-” Virgil hissed back as Roman rushed over to the bed, watching the mortal intently as he slowly blinked open his eyes. There was a moment of silence - so much so that even the room seemed to be holding it’s breath - before the human finally noticed Roman.

And Virgil felt such a strong bolt of fear surge through the room that he almost doubled over - a hand to his chest. The human scrambled from the bed, backing into the corner of the room on shaky legs and putting as much distance between himself and Roman as he could. 

Roman went to step closer, before Virgil intervened, grabbing the back of Roman’s blouse and dragging him back a few steps all while breathing heavily. 

Being able to feel other being’s fear was a useful power, but when it was so strong that it almost hurt it made Virgil wish he could turn it off. 

Virgil wondered what had happened to this human to make him so scared. 

“He’s terrified,” Virgil whispered to Roman, before letting him go. 

“Of what?” Roman asked, eyes wide. 

“You, I think,” Virgil said, “Maybe me too, not sure.”

“Stay away-” The human said raising a hand when Roman turned back to look at him, “What- do you want from me?”

Roman considered, for a second, before taking a deep breath, “Nothing.”

The mortal seemed shocked by that. Shocked enough to near collapse against the wall, ending up sitting on the plush carpet in the corner of the room. 

“...Nothing?” He asked, voice small.

“I didn’t bring you here to take from you,” Roman told him, trying to keep his voice soft but firm, Virgil remained silent, watching the exchange over Roman’s shoulder, “I brought you here so you could rest safely, that is all.”

“You’re not… you’re not with them?” The mortal asked.

“Who’s ‘them’, sweetie?” Roman asked gently, before sharing a worried glance with Virgil.

“The ones who gave me these,” The mortal said, sounding almost sad, though Virgil could still feel the fear radiating from him. Moments later he brushed his hair from his face, holding it back so that Virgil and Roman could see the marks imprinted there. 

Virgil gasped, covering his mouth with a hand. On the left side of the mortal’s face - from hairline to chin - was what looked like scales. Virgil knew better, though, the mark only looked like scales. 

“Vee,” Roman whispered, “You look pale.”

“That-” Virgil started, before looking at the mortal, who shrank back under his gaze and let the hair fall back into place, once again covering the mark, “That’s a brand, Ro.”

“What?” Roman yelped, “I thought those…”

“Weren’t a thing anymore? Yeah, so did I.” Virgil said, glaring at nothing, though the mortal shrunk back just a little more - probably because of his tone. 

Roman took a deep breath and nodded. “Of course, we need to… find out who did this-”

“A noble of the winter court,” Virgil answered, voice coming out a near hiss, “I recognise her mark.”

“Don’t send me back there,” The mortal spoke up, before slapping a hand over his mouth when both faeries turned to look at him, “Please.”

“No,” Roman shook his head, “I don’t think we will, right, Vee?”

“No, we won’t send you back there,” Virgil agreed, “whatever cruelty you have experienced under her will not follow you here.”

Roman hesitated, before tugging on Virgil’s sleeve to get his attention, before whispering, “You know we’ll be killed if she finds out we have him here, right?”

“You think I don’t know that?” Virgil sighed, “Buh… knowing that she had him- I can’t send him away knowing that.”

“Okay,” Roman nodded, “then we need to figure out what to do.”

“Of course,” Virgil said, looking back at the mortal, “Hey uh- is it okay with you if we ask a few questions?”

The mortal stared at him and Virgil could feel his fear strengthen the longer they looked at each other, eventually he concluded that he wasn’t going to respond. 

“Do you… not want to talk to me?” Virgil asked, frowning, the human nodded slowly, “Is it because… I’m winter?”

He stared at Virgil for a long moment, before whispering, “You- feel like she did…”

“Okay, yes, probably because I’m winter, then,” Virgil mumbled, “Would you rather talk to Ro?”

Virgil gestured to their partner who waved with a smile.

“Okay,” The mortal said eventually.

“Would you like me to leave?” Virgil asked.

“Please?” the mortal responded, Virgil nodded. He patted Roman’s arm before turning and leaving the room without another world.

—

“Okay,” ‘Ro’ said as soon as the other one left the room. All Janus’ attention was suddenly on the faerie in front of him. He was tall, with golden skin and hair like a bright bonfire. His eyes were like pools of liquid silver - not even mentioning the tawny wings on his back, similarly coloured feathers in place of ears too. He was… beautiful, and had a very different presence than the other faerie he was with, and… her. 

Janus tried to take a few breaths, he needed to answer the faerie’s questions if he wanted to get through this alive - and he had to answer them correctly if he wanted to get out of this without being hurt. 

“First,” He said, “Are you a uh- I don’t know mortal gender terms-?”

“A man,” Janus answered the question he was pretty sure Ro was asking, before continuing when the faerie tilted his head, blinking in confusion, “um, I use ‘he/him’ pronouns?”

“Wonderful, that’s what we assumed,” Ro nodded, Janus relaxed just a little, okay, that was the right answer then, “Now, do you have something you’d like to go by? Something we can call you?”

Janus tensed, he knew the question would come up, but that didn’t mean he liked it any more. Giving his name to a faerie was a mistake he’d made once, and he knew that as soon as he did it was all over. Ro would be able to control him, it would be just like before all over again. Of course, that was why they hadn’t hurt him yet - it all made sense, how nice they had been, they needed his name to use him. 

He must have hesitated for too long, though, because Ro frowned, “Just a nickname, sweetheart, I’m not asking for your true name.”

“You’re… not?” Janus asked hesitantly, he wasn’t sure if he was allowed to ask questions in return, but… he needed to know.

“I’m not,” Ro nodded, folding down to sit cross-legged on the plush carpet across the room from him, “Your true name is to be freely given to those you trust, and I know you don’t trust me yet.”

Janus didn’t say anything to that for a moment, he didn’t acknowledge that second statement at all, though he was sure Ro knew it was true, “...Deceit - you can call me, Deceit, or Dee if you want.”

“Okay Deceit,” Ro said, smiling, and oh how charming was that, “You can call me Ro, or Prince, my partner is Vee, or Anxiety, if you prefer a more formal nickname.”

Janus nodded, Prince and Anxiety, he could remember that. 

“Next question, how… old are you?” Prince asked, “No- that’s a useless question the numbers mortals use mean nothing to me, um, are you of maturity?”

“What uh- what do you mean?” Janus asked, frowning in confusion.

Prince sighed, “Are you - an adult? Or a youngling?”

“Oh,” Janus said, “An adult, I um - when I was - taken - I was 24 but… I don’t know how long it’s been.”

“That’s okay.” Prince nodded, “And good to know, next question, what’s your favourite colour?”

…Out of all the questions Prince had asked him so far, this was the one that surprised him the most. Why on earth would the faeries want to know what colours he enjoyed? Surely that information was useless?

“Yellow,” Deceit answered truthfully - he had learned quickly that lying to a faerie was one of the biggest mistakes a mortal could make, “And, um, I like black too.”

“Brillant,” Prince grinned, revealing teeth slightly sharper than average, “I’m partial to a nice red, myself, preferably crimson but I do like a lovely scarlette as well - Anxiety tends to be more drawn to purples, what’s your favourite animal?”

“...snakes?” Janus said slowly, his favourite animal was something he’d never particularly had to think about - especially not recently. 

Prince nodded, seeming… thoughtful. About what, Janus had no clue, but he seemed to be lost in whatever thoughts he was having. Eventually, he went to say something else before cutting himself off with a displeased hum and a frown. 

“Is everything… okay?” Janus asked, trying to work out what was going on. Prince had been all smiles almost the entire time since Anxiety had left, the abrupt change had his guard straight back up. 

Prince took a deep breath, the wings on his back shuddering and stretching out a little with it, Janus couldn’t help the way the feathers caught his eye - they looked incredibly soft. 

“She probably gave you faerie food, right?” Prince asked, Janus paled as hazy memories flooded his mind, a hunger that turned to sharp pain that turned to a hollow emptiness that had almost killed him. Right at the beginning before he lost whatever fight he had then he’d resisted, getting up after every kick or burn, She’d punish him every time he refused to eat, and eventually - when he’d been too weak from hunger and pain to even move - he’d given in and taken the apple she’d offered him. 

He still remembered how she had laughed when he’d bitten into it. He could almost hear it now, crisp as footsteps in snow but crackling like lightning. 

Janus couldn’t say anything around the lump in his throat those memories brought with them, instead he simply nodded sadly. Prince frowned in sympathy, his hand twitching as though he wanted to reach for Janus, though he didn’t move closer. 

“And you know what that means?”

Sucking in a deep breath, Janus recited what had been drilled into him a thousand times, “That I cannot leave this realm, I can never return home and that I belong now to the fae and the faerie realm.”

Prince sighed again, seeming sad, “You can leave.”

“What?” Janus asked, eyes wide.

“Theoretically, you’re not actually bound to this land, but… all it means is that mortal food won’t satisfy you anymore. You don’t have to stay here, but you do need faerie food, so… it’s an effective way to keep mortal trapped.”

Janus couldn’t do much but nod. He never knew that, but if he couldn’t survive without food from Faerie was there really point in escaping anyway?

“Was there anything in particular you liked?” Prince asked sadly, as if he actually cared that Janus was stuck here, which Janus couldn’t fathom being true, he knew faeries couldn’t lie, but he was sure they could fake emotions. Panic seeped in as he realised he didnt have an answer. The food she gave him was good, but he always felt dirty eating it, it always made him guilty and sick. He was never able to really enjoy any of it. 

“I don’t…” Janus started, trailing off, “I don’t know… I was never allowed to…”

Prince raised a hand to cut him off and Janus shrank back into the corner just a little, pulling his knees up closer to his chest, Prince sighed, “It’s okay, we can try things and figure it out, are you alright?”

Janus nodded, trying to relax just a little in his corner. 

“I will warn you now, neither I nor my partner know much about mortals, but we will- actually,” Prince paused, considering for a second, “Do you know about promises?”

“Fae promises?” Janus asked, Prince nodded, “Just that they’re binding- like deals- she tried to make me make them.”

“Did you?”

“No,” Janus said. Prince seemed to fully droop in relief. 

“I want to make a promise to you,” Prince said, slowly, clearly watching for Janus’ reaction, he just stayed still, staring right back, “I promise that I will not intentionally cause you harm, physically or emotionally, in any way. I promise to protect you to the best of my ability against anything or anyone who threatens you, and- I swear that you will be safe here, in my home, for as long as you wish to remain.”

Janus gasped as the feeling of magic washed over him, though it felt nothing like the magic he’d experienced before. This magic felt like a summer shower, warm and light. It wrapped around him, feeling almost comforting in it’s presence. When the sensation died down Janus thought he could smell woodsmoke. 

“How do you know I’m worth such a promise?” Janus asked quietly, unable to keep the astounded look off of his face. Roman had promised not to hurt him, and he knew how promises worked, did that mean he was safe? From Roman, at least, Anxiety hadn’t made such a promise. 

“Because you have been hurt,” Roman said, “By one of my own kind, you have suffered and you are scared and you deserve to be safe,  you should be allowed to heal, besides, you are a guest in my house, it would be horrifically rude if I let something bad happen to you.”

Roman’s wings flared out as he spoke, as though him being rude is the worst possible offence he could commit. Janus couldn’t help but smile, wondering if maybe this wasn’t going to end quite as horribly as he may have expected. Roman stood up, slowly taking a step closer to Janus, and when he didn’t flinch back he took another. Janus frowned when Roman extended a hand to him, but eventually reached up and took it, telling himself again that Prince had promised not to hurt him. 

With a gentle tug Janus was hoisted to his feet, though almost immediately he tripped - his legs still jelly-like and shaking from all the running. Instead of falling to the ground, though, Janus tripped forward into Roman’s chest. He yelped and pushed himself away as quickly as he could without falling straight to the ground. Prince was still holding his hand - and now was also stabalising him with a hand on his shoulder - and even despite what had just happened, the faerie was still smiling. He actually looked a little like he was trying not to laugh. 

“Lets get you somewhere you can rest, shall we?” Prince said, still actively trying not to chuckle as Janus frowned at him, “And we’ll get you some food while you do.”

“Okay,” Janus nodded eventually, feeling a yawn bubble up inside of him and repressing it as much as he could. He had become a master of hiding when he was tired, fatigue was never taken kindly. But Prince was telling him to rest, so maybe he could lie down for a short while…

The small part of the house Janus got to see as they travelled from the bedroom he had woken in to a second bedroom was immense. The ceilings were tall and vaulted, decorated with patterns and murals that looked hand-painted. The windows that adorned the hallway were open wide, letting in a cool, refreshing breeze scented with summer flowers while deep, floor length, maroon curtains swayed in the wind. The decor was a mix of reds and purples, with accents of silver and gold. Despite the size of the space, it almost felt… cozy. The carpet beneath their feet was clean but well trod, like this area of the house was frequented often. 

In comparison, the room he was led to was plain and felt spacious in a way that made Janus feel a little uncomfortable. Paranoia poking at the edges of his mind as he glanced around. There were a few doors, one that he could see lead to a balcony and the other that they’d come through, as well as two more that lead who knows where.

The room was decorated to the bare minimum, a plain white bedspread with a few decorative red cushions. The walls were still adorned with silver and gold, but the patterns seemed more simple and muted in here than they were outside. Prince lead him to the bed - where he found the sheets were wonderfully soft and felt lovely against his skin - and told him to rest. 

So rest he did, once Prince had left the room and the door clicked shut - he listened for a long moment and was surprised to hear no lock, he really wasn’t trapped here - Janus finally laid down, clutching one of the decorative pillows to his chest as he tried to fall back to sleep. 

----

General tags: @full-of-roman-angst-trash @reptilianrapscallion420 @your-local-random-dino @cutebisexualmess @glacierruler @roseianxiety @bella-bugatti-frogetti-baguetti (if anyone wants to be added, let me know!)

----

[bridgyrose]

Heres a fallen Petals prompt for you:

V9 but, only Ruby fell, taking Cinder with her, into the Ever After. And for added longevity, Cinder's maiden powers dont seem to work in Ever After.

Have fun~

Ruby coughed as she pulled herself out of the water and onto the sandy beach, still a bit disoriented from her fall. Last she had remembered was grabbing onto Cinder and pulling her down with her in hopes that her teammates and her friends would be able to survive and help get others to safety, and yet, she still felt like all she had done was fail. Failed to keep Atlas safe, failed to keep Salem away from the lamp. 

She finally rolled over to look up at the sky, taking a deep breath to try to relax. It wasnt the first, nor would it be the last, time that she had been separated from everyone, but it was certainly the first time that she had no idea where she was or even if her teammates were okay. She pulled out her scroll on instinct to check her teammates’ aura, only to groan when she saw the “No Signal” message. 

Without further delay, Ruby picked herself up and started to make her way deeper into the forest by the beach, almost dragging with each step. Nothing had gone to plan, but at least no one got hurt because of her. At least, not that she was aware of. Neo was still left up there with her teammates and while she knew they could handle her, it was still a worry in the back of her mind. 

“Stupid vines!” 

Ruby paused as she heard Cinder’s voice, looking around to find her. She heard her call out again and followed the sounds of her grunting as she tried to free herself from a mass of vines that seemed to curl around her. 

“Get off of me!” Cinder tried to cut through the vines using her grimm claws, only to watch the vines start to grow back and wrap around her wrists. “I’ll tear through you if I have to!” 

Ruby sighed and shook her head as she made her way to the vines. “You might as well quit struggling, you only seem to be making it worse.” 

Cinder glared, but stopped trying to move. “And what do you know? You’re the reason we’re here in the first place!” 

Ruby winced and took a breath to try to push that thought out of her mind. “And if we want to get back, we’ll have to work together to figure out where we are and how to get home.”

“And why should I trust you?” 

“Because you dont have a choice.” 

“I could kill you here and be done with you.” 

“And if you do that, then you’ll have to traverse this place on your own.” Ruby looked around for a sharp stick to help cut Cinder out of the vines. “And if you kill me now, then you’ll be alone. And you’ll never make it back to Remnant.” 

Cinder frowned. “And what makes you think I cant get to Remnant without you?” 

Ruby picked up a branch from the ground and snapped it to give it a point. “For one, you’re still struggling to get yourself out of those vines, which means you cant use your maiden powers to help. And two-” she stabbed at one of the vines and paused as it recoiled and then wrapped around the stick. “-I think this might be a trap.” 

“You think?” 

Ruby took a step back as the vines started to make their way to her and wrapped around her legs, pulling her into the tangled mess with Cinder. She struggled to free herself until she heard shouting coming closer. She tried to ready herself as best she could, only to pause when she saw a few mice come out from the brush. 

“Our trap worked!” one of the mice called out. “We can finally fight back against our predators!” 

“Your predators?” Cinder let out a growl as she asked. “So let me get this straight: we fell into a trap that was set up to protect mice?!” 

“Hunter mice!”

“Hunter mice…” 

Ruby sighed and started to struggle a bit. “Can you let us out? We didnt realize this was your trap and we uh… we’re not actually here to hurt you.”

The hunter mice looked the two over before finally relenting to cut the girls out of the vines. 

Cinder rubbed her wrists and glared at Ruby, then started to walk off. “I’ll find my way back.” 

“We dont even know where we are!” Ruby looked between the hunter mice and Cinder before finally groaning and following after Cinder. “Where are you going?” 

“To the tree,” Cinder said as she pointed to the tree that seemed to loom over everything. “Its at least tall enough to give me an idea on how to get out of here.” 

“And you’re planning on going alone? What if there’s something out there that tries to kill you?”

“Why do you care?” 

“I…” Ruby paused as she tried to find an answer, but couldnt. Why did she care if Cinder ended up killed wherever this place was? Without Cinder, she and her team could finally stand a chance to stop Salem since she’d never be able to get the Beacon relic without her. Though, that did mean if she died… She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Because… of the maiden powers.” 

Cinder frowned. “That’s why you care?” 

“Yes… no…” Ruby lightly punched a nearby tree. “Why does this have to be so complicated?” 

“The only thing that’s going to be complicated is getting back home-” Cinder paused and sighed when she pushed away a bit of grass and found herself overlooking what she could only describe as a child’s imagination. “-because we’re dead, arent we?” 

Ruby walked over next to her and looked over what she could find. Nothing seemed to make sense anymore as she started to recount everything. “The hunter mice, the tree…” she paused and started to look for anything else familiar. “We’re in the Ever After.” 

“The Ever After?” 

“Yeah. This is all like the story from the *Girl Who Fell Through the World*. All we have to do is follow the story-” 

“Follow the story?” Cinder scoffed. “And how do you know that’ll work?” 

“I dont, but Alyx made it out through the tree and its our best shot on getting out of here together. I… I dont have Crescent Rose, and you dont seem to have your maiden powers. So either we work together and get out of here, or we run into the Jabberwalker and run into further trouble because neither of us can fight it.” 

“I’ll take my chances.” 

Ruby hesitated. “And where are you going?” 

“To find my way to the tree. Alone.” 

Ruby sighed and dropped to the ground, starting to feel lost. She still had no idea how to get to the tree and even if she could, she still didnt even know how to get home from it. She wiped a tear from her eyes and paused as rain started to fall around her. 

“Dont cry,” a small voice called out to her. “I can help you get to the tree.” 

“You… can?” Ruby asked as she watched a small mouse make its way to her. “What’s your name?” 

“Name?” The mouse paused and sat down. “I… dont actually have a name. I’m still looking for my purpose.” 

“Then would it be alright if I give you one?” 

The mouse nodded. 

“What about… Little?” Ruby asked as she held her palm out. “Do you like that?” 

“I do,” Little said as they made their way onto Ruby’s hand. “And what do I call you?” 

“Ruby.” Ruby sighed and put Little on her shoulder. “And you’re sure you’re okay with taking me to the tree? It looks like its a long way.” 

“I dont mind at all. And maybe I’ll be able to find my purpose along the way.”

[mayday-jd]

holy shit this movie was amazing.

welcome back to me watching all the trolls movies in (almost) one sitting with breaks in between to process the colorful trip I'm on rn

TROLLS 2 WAS VERY GOOD

from the great writing in the world building, themes and characters, designs and sound of the other trolls and generally this movie being short but fun makes it a blast to watch

so I'd give it a 9/10 which makes this the best trolls movie out of the whole trilogy

now onto my thoughts

—————

• so first off let's talk about my main man branch

did ever mention how I love this guy?? 😊

but what I love most is him in this movie because wow this man is head over heels for poppy lmao

and ofc there's some other stuff but let's talk broppy for a bit

so I already watched trolls 3 so ik how branch and poppy's relationship looks like in the future but this movie is also an important step in their relationship because there's a massive problem here :

poppy does not listen to anybody.

"I've always been by your side since the moment I've met you" - poppy (trolls 3)

while that is true here it's more like branch goes along with wtv poppy's doing because he's absolutely smitten and so he ends up doing all the listen and bending to what poppy wants while she doesn't give back any of that to branch or anyone else around her

one of the turning points for branch in the movie is after they go to the funk kingdom but the seeds to that change are planted when hickory tells branch that he's doing all the listening not poppy

so they argue and get separated until they reunite at the end of the movie

but that's more for when I talk about poppy and oh boy do I have some things to say. . .

I also like that, contrary to poppy's kind of judgy reaction to the other trolls, branch is all for the music trolls' lifestyles and music

it's shown more in the dance battle between the kpop and the reggaeton trolls but there's also a comment he makes when he hears the sad country song at lonesome flats

"It's kind of sad, but life is sad sometimes. So, I kind of like it."

meanwhile poppy immediately thinks that the country trolls are miserable and don't know how to have fun

but again that's for when I get into poppy's turn 😒

which speaking of.....

• I wanna say that I am by no means a poppy hater

that said this girl has been on my NERVES for the majority of this movie (WHICH IS A GOOD THING!!)

so when poppy gets told about the other trolls' existence by her dad she's excited to get them all tgt cuz she thinks barb genuinely wants to unite all trolls and not yk assimilate them or anything

so she sets off on a journey to meet barb, give her the pop string and have a massive party with all the trolls

but really she's not doing this just because of that no no no

poppy's insecure about being a bad queen

and makes it everyone's problem.

because when her, branch and biggie make it to symphonyville, the land of the classical trolls, they're told and literally see the carnage left by barb, poppy's quest changes

now she wants to save everybody and stop barb from turning everyone into rock trolls

because that's what a good queen would do right?? she'd get rid of the problem entirely instead of going back home and protecting her ppl who are literally under her care because that would be giving. up. 🙂

so let's not listen to biggie or branch who are telling her this is a terrible idea because that's simply not what poppy wants to hear since they're against her totally awesome plan

now let's talk about my favorite section of the movie

[my-own-walker]

Someone You've Never Seen Before

A Kyle Spencer Fan Fiction

frat!kyle AU, fem!main character, sexual themes, mature language, use of drugs and alcohol, frat boy antics

6.

The afternoon sun peeked through the leaves of the tree I laid under. The dancing light cast shadows on the ground that fluttered and shifted with each gust of wind. I stretched out on a blanket situated a few feet away from the base of the giant oak tree. Its trunk seemed to stretch up into the sky for miles, from my vantage point. The twisted branches intertwined to create a beautiful pattern. I breathed in fresh, crisp fall air as another breeze washed over me.

"Hannah," Kyle spoke, breaking me out of my daze. I turned my head to the right and looked up at him. He smiled at me before stroking my hair idly. "I was just making sure you weren't falling asleep on me."

I giggled softly and reached up to my head, putting my hand on top of his. "I was looking at the tree."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Here, look," I instructed, patting the blanket beside me. "Lay down and look up, you'll see what I mean." Kyle scooted over and laid down, blonde curls splaying like a golden crown around his head. "Look at how the branches weave together."

"It's pretty," he replied simply. "Not as pretty as you, though." I blushed, turning my head to once again face him. He propped himself up on his elbow and leaned down to kiss me. He stopped, suddenly.

"Hannah," he said.

"What?"

"Hannah," he repeated, louder. "Hannah!"

My eyes shot open at the sound of Lily's voice. Her hands grasped my arm tightly, shaking me awake. I sat up slightly to signal to her that she could stop manhandling me. Words couldn't quite come to my lips just yet.

"Christ, Han," Lily groaned, stepping back and grabbing my phone off of my nightstand. "Can you turn this shit off? Damn!"

I didn't even hear my alarm going off. Wordlessly, I grabbed my phone from her and unlocked it, tapping the necessary items to shut the racket off. My eyes still felt bleary, reality still not quite setting in. 

"Sorry," I croaked. It was about all I could manage.

"Are you even okay? Jesus," she asked, annoyance still coloring her tone. "You're still in jeans, babe."

I looked down, and to my own shock, found that I was still in yesterday's clothes. I stayed up almost all night reworking my horrible poem. I didn't even give myself time to get changed after getting home. I took breaks only for food and the bathroom, but even still I wasn't happy with the final product.

"I stayed up late doing homework," I replied, finally looking Lily in the eyes. She wore a light layer of makeup. Her hair was up and held back with a bright pink cloth headband. She was dressed and ready for class, in total contrast to me. "What time is it?"

"9:30," she answered. "Your alarm's been going off for like two hours. I think you missed your class." 

"Yep, I fuckin' did, huh?" I sighed, flopping back heavily onto my pillow. "This is so backward. You're going to class and I skipped mine."

"I have to today," she replied, sighing as well. "It's our first exam. Yay, History of American Education!" She was entirely sarcastic, of course. She sat on the edge of my bed and put her hand on my arm.

"I had the weirdest dream," I whispered, looking off into space. "I was on a date or something."

"Oooh, with who?" Lily teased. For a second, I couldn't quite remember. In the way that dreams tend to leave your head as soon as you open your eyes. Then, it dawned on me. My eyes widened slightly.

"Y-you know, I can't really remember," I stammered, too embarrassed to admit the truth.

"Well, that's boring, then. I thought you were going to say something funny like Leon or Channing Tatum," she complained, standing to leave.

"Ew, Lily," I cringed. "Channing Tatum? Really?"

"What? He's disgustingly handsome," she returned, beginning to walk out of the room. "You're like, the only girl that doesn't think that. It would be so funny if you had a sex dream about him."

"You're so fucking gross! Leave!" I cackled, throwing a pillow at her as she walked out the door. 

"Bye, love you!" she called back.

"Love you," I grumbled in reply, turning onto my side. I stared at the wall across from my bed, straight at the David Bowie poster I had hung up. He stared back at me with his piercing bi-colored eyes, his bright orange hair blazing majestically. 

Oh, David, I thought. I think I'm fucked. 

+

Before long, the sun set and it became time to walk over to 1024 Broadway Street.

Just come over at 7. 

I stared at the text Kyle sent, reading it over almost every minute. I was afraid to be too early, but I also didn't want to be too late. I also, for sure, did not want to see him after the dream I had. For some reason, I had this funny feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I thought about him. The same feeling I had when he was about to kiss me in the dream.

I couldn't quiet my thoughts about him on the entire walk to the Kappa Lambda Gamma house. It was agonizing. I intentionally wore a pair of athletic shorts and an oversized sweatshirt for the little meetup. The signals in my mind were already fried, I didn't want to confuse them further by wearing something nice. My caveman girl brain would mistake this thing for a date, given the night prior's events. 

The house was a red brick colonial with black shutters and white, rounded-off windows. The fraternity's Greek letters, cut out of wood and painted a dark blue, sat just above the doorway, just in case any of the guys got lost, I assume. When you're piss drunk, having your frat's symbol emblazoned onto your house like a bat signal should give you a higher success rate of getting home. 

I had been in the house before. Or at least, I was pretty sure I had been there before. Like I've said before, I went to a lot of parties during my time at Tulane, thanks to Lily. Kyle's frat didn't host often. They were on probation after a few unsavory incidents in the house left people injured or harmed in some way. It had been a long time since I even walked near the KLG house.

Too afraid to simply walk up to the door and knock, I stood on the sidewalk, a few yards from the house, and pulled out my phone to text Kyle to come get me. Before I could even open the messages app, though, I heard a voice call my name. 

I looked up quickly and found Kyle standing on the porch, waiting for me. He must have had the foresight to realize I'd be unsure of how to even approach getting inside. He gestured for me to come closer with his hand. 

"Come on in, I didn't want you to get lost," he called to me as I rushed closer. "It's a big house."

"I can see that," I quipped, raising my eyebrows. I walked through the door Kyle was holding open for me and stood awkwardly in the foyer, waiting for him to show me where to go. Kyle turned and looked at me, pausing for a moment, almost as if he was waiting for me to lead the way.

"Oh- uh," he stuttered, "you can follow me." He paused awkwardly again before sliding past me. The house was strangely quiet. I followed him up the large set of stairs on the left side of the foyer, taking care to not trip or something and further my embarrassment. In all honesty, I couldn't even fully look at him. I should have still been seething from his stunt the day before but instead, I was weirdly nervous.

He turned left and led me down a hallway, stopping about halfway down in front of a door on the left side. 

"This is me," he uttered, opening the door. "I'm one of the lucky ones that didn't get stuck with a roommate." He stepped in and waited for me to follow suit before closing the door, turning the latch on the doorknob to lock it. He must have seen my face change to one of discomfort. "Just so my brothers can't barge in and be weird," he quickly added.

His room was surprisingly well decorated. His bed sat lofted in the right corner of the room with a grey-striped bedspread tucked neatly into the bed frame. His desk was nestled under the bed, lit with a small desk lamp and the light of his computer monitor. A chest of drawers sat in the left corner of the room right below a small window, which was adorned with dark blue curtains. Closer to where we were standing was a small couch on the right side of the room, and a TV stand with a small television atop it on the left. In the center of the floor laid a grey wool rug. The walls were littered with various posters and flags, including a Tulane flag and a Beatles poster. 

"Abbey Road," I remarked, pointing at the aforementioned wall hanging.

"One of the best albums of all time," he answered, walking to his desk. He pulled out the chair and sat on it sideways so he could face me. 

"Best song on it?" I challenged, not fully believing that he'd actually listened to the album.

"How can I pick just one?" he smirked. I was sure I found him out. Anyone who actually listens to an album for sure has a favorite. "The entire B-side of the record from 'You Never Give Me Your Money' on is brilliant."

I was stunned. "The medley, huh?" I muttered. "I like 'I Want You.'"

"That's a long one," he chuckled. 

"I prefer The White Album, though," I replied. I still stood stiffly in the front of the room. I didn't want to sit in his furniture, for fear of what he might have done on them. Kyle turned to grab his books out of his backpack, so I took the opportunity to step forward and plop down, criss-cross applesauce on the ground. The rug was soft, thankfully. I slung my bag off my shoulder and looked down to open it. 

"You can, you know, sit on the couch," Kyle remarked smartly. "You don't have to sit on the floor."

"I know, I just, work better this way." A lie. But a harmless one at that.

"Well, I feel bad that I'm in a chair and you're not," he declared, sliding out of his chair to join me on the rug. "We're just brainstorming so I don't need a desk."

+

We spent an hour talking through the project and its requirements, making a schedule to meet every Thursday night to get little pieces done. The final project acted as our final, rather than an exam, so we both agreed to take it seriously. I was silently thankful that someone so good at Calc would be contributing so much to my final grade in the class. 

"Now," Kyle started, setting his math notebook aside. "I feel like I need to get something out of the way." 

My stomach dropped. "Y-yeah?"

"Your poem," he replied lowly. My stomach fell even further. "I want to apologize for that. I shouldn't have been so rude."

"No, it's fine," I began. "It was kinda bad."

"I don't know why I said anything."

"I get it. But I'm an English major. I should write better," I continued. "I rewrote it a bit. I was struggling with it, honestly." I appreciated the apology. It was big of him to own up to what he did. It was likely because we'd have to see each other regularly and be civil to do well on the project. I didn't care the reason, it just made me happy to know he had a sliver of a conscience.

"Can I try to help? I actually like poetry," he asked. "I also listen to a lot of music and that's like poetry I think." I grabbed my bag and rummaged through, pulling out the small spiral notebook I use for ideas and brainstorming.

"What do you propose? It's due tomorrow," I responded. Kyle shifted to lay on his stomach, resting his chin on his hands. He looked off into middle distance, eyes cast toward the door. 

"I just think that writing about eyes is cliche like I said. What was the prompt again?"

"Love. Just love. Fucking vague, right?" I snarked. 

"God, yeah," he sighed. "I think... I think if you want to describe loving someone, like parts of them, you should pick unique things. At this point you shouldn't scrap the whole poem, just tweak it."

"Yeah, I agree, again, considering it's due tomorrow."

Kyle inhaled sharply and turned onto his side, still staring off, rather than looking at me directly. I sat, pen perched over the notebook paper, waiting to write his ideas down. Even if I didn't use them, I still valued other people's takes on things. 

"Talk about, oh, I don't know. Their clothes. How they express themselves. How they stand out from a crowd. Or the way they scrunch their face up when they stretch." I started scribbling his words down quickly. "Her crooked smile, or the way her eyes flash when she gets passionate about what she's saying. The way her hair is always getting in her eyes, or how she pushes her glasses up her nose when they start to slip down."

I don't know when it happened, but I slowly stopped writing, transfixed by his words. The detail with which he described some imaginary person left me flustered. You could tell he knew what true love was.

"Maybe," he continued, "write about how you love when she finishes your thoughts. Or how she taps her pencil on her face when she's thinking."

I do that. I thought.

"Should I keep going?" he asked, interrupting my thoughts. I looked up at him, finding him staring directly at me. I met his deep brown eyes, which were now sparkling and bright. He sat up to look at my notebook. "No good, huh?"

"Oh, god, no it was great," I stammered, still looking into his eyes. "Sorry, I just, my pen ran out of ink."

"Hah, that sucks. Was that helpful at all?"

"Immensely," I breathed.

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