#I for some reason struggled really bad on the arms :C

[asterias-corner]

HYRULE HYRULE HYRULE HYRULE NSNFKEMCKC GRHRGRGR (for drawing request)

IN. A. TINKERBELL. COSTUME

thank u :3

SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG

Men in dresses, this man, does NOT have a snatched waist, or tits, but we love him either way <3

[python333]

soft spot — python333

— — — —

synopsis you've been having a bad day, and ghost feels like being extra nice to you. plot twist you're an age regressor and him being so nice is NOT helping.

relationships platonic agere cg!ghost & gn little!reader.

characters ghost.

word count 6.7k.

warnings a victorious reference, age regressor reader, usage of c/n [call sign/code name], 2nd person pov [you/yours/yourself]

note please feel free to attack me as much as you want if this is inaccurate. i don't even care if it's not constructive criticism. i am begging for everyone's thoughts and opinions on this!! this is also the longest oneshot i think i've ever written!

“Having fun there?” 

You turn in your seat and find Ghost leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed and one eye slightly wider than the other—an indication that his eyebrow is raised. 

“Not really,” You answer, setting down your gun. You’d been disassembling it, trying to take your mind off of the slowly growing headache that’s been building up for the past few hours. You don’t think it’s a migraine or anything, but it still bothers you greatly. 

“Yeah, no, I can tell,” Ghost chuckles, pushing himself off of the door frame and walking over to you. He eyes your gun for a moment, the magazine already removed as well as any live rounds left in the rifle ejected, and the bolt locked to the rear. You were only maybe a quarter of the way through your disassembly, even though you started around thirty minutes ago. 

For some reason, you woke up upset today. You were too tired, you felt awfully sluggish, and there was a throbbing pain clustered in the back of your eyebrows. So, in short—you were reasonably very upset. It showed visibly in the way your eyes twitched every so often, and in the way you felt the need to pinch the bridge of your nose to distract you from the pain that was still building up behind your brows. 

“What’s going on?” He asks, leaning on the table. 

“I have this headache that won’t go away,” You respond, sighing as you move your gaze from your gun to Ghost. You can barely see it, but from his eyes you can tell that his face scrunches up beneath his mask. He knows a thing or two about bad headaches, being someone who frequently gets migraines himself. 

“Have you taken any meds for it?” You shake your head ‘no’. Ghost holds up a single finger in a ‘one moment’ motion and rummages through the pockets on his tactical vest for a moment, before he pulls out a small bottle of ibuprofen no bigger than his palm. He hands it to you. 

“Here.” You blink at it for a moment. 

“Thanks,” You take the bottle gingerly and Ghost nods, watching you as you struggle with the child-proof lid for a second before getting it open. You shake out a small tablet, one the size of a low-dosage aspirin, and pop it into your mouth. You don’t have much of an issue dry-swallowing it, and it only takes one attempt before you successfully swallow the tablet.

“You’ve been feeling pretty bad this whole week, haven’t you?” Ghost frowns underneath his mask. 

You think for a moment before nodding, “Yeah, I guess. I think it’s mostly just stress.” 

You know it’s not just stress. 

For a while now, you’ve used something called ‘age regression’ as a form of stress relief. You don’t know exactly when it started, but you do know that it was before you were recruited for the 141. And originally, you made a promise to yourself that you wouldn’t regress while on base, and you kept that promise for maybe a month before you broke it. 

You think it was Ghost that was the trigger, actually. You can vividly remember the first time you regressed while on base; you had just finished talking to Ghost, and he called you something—you think he called you something similar to ‘kid’—that made a flip in your mind switch immediately. You can remember excusing yourself from the conversation quickly, leaving your lieutenant slightly confused but otherwise unbothered by the strange action. 

And, worst of all, you can remember being in your quarters and practically burrowing under your blankets. You were curled up into a fetal position, trying to fight the urge to suck on your thumb or at least chew on something, but ultimately lost the fight and succumbed to your urges. You spent maybe a few hours like that, wide awake when you just wanted to try and sleep it away, thinking about that interaction you had with Ghost over and over again. 

You’re not stupid. You know that Ghost has some sort of soft spot for you—albeit, you don’t know exactly how soft that soft spot is, but it’s definitely soft. Soft enough that he goes the tiniest bit easier on you compared to other recruits, soft enough that he spares you more time than he does for others, and the most obvious of all—he initiates most of your conversations. 

Contrary to popular belief, he’s not the scary super-soldier most people think of him as. Sure, maybe he is kind of scary, and maybe his mask does jumpscare you when you’re doing missions in particularly dark spaces sometimes, but other than that he’s not scary in the slightest. If anything, he’s awkward. Awkward enough that he’s almost never the first person to talk to someone—except for you, of course. You don’t know why he acts so differently around you, but you don’t complain about it. 

“That’s rough,” Ghost looks down at you with concerned, empathetic eyes, “Sorry you’re so stressed. Mind me askin’ why?” 

“I don’t, but I also don’t know why I’m so stressed,” You huff out, even though you know the answer completely. You stand up, “I think it’s just me being sleep deprived. I’ve been having the tiniest bit of trouble falling asleep lately.” 

“You should’ve told me earlier,” Ghost tuts, “I have melatonin.” 

You give him a confused look. “You do?” 

“‘Course I do.” 

You blink at him for a moment before sighing, “Could I have some then?” 

“What’s the magic word?” You give him an unimpressed look, ignoring the way the words make your stomach twist, and his eyes crinkle in a way that lets you know that he’s grinning under his mask. 

“Could I please have some melatonin?” 

“The magic word was lotion, but I’ll let it slide,” Ghost hums, “There’s some in my office. I’ll grab it for you later.” 

“M’kay,” You look over at the door, unintentionally zoning out as you do. Your vision goes unfocused as the throbbing pain behind your eyebrows grows and something else grows inside of you. 

Jesus. Why can’t you choose any other time to get the urge to slip into a younger mentality? Why does your headache have to make everything worse for you? Why does Ghost have to be so nice and helpful? 

“Hey,” Ghost frowns, tapping a finger on your shoulder to snap you out of whatever trance you’re in, “[c/n]?” 

Oh God. 

Your eyes—that you try desperately to keep neutral—meet Ghost’s, his eyes soft and his eyebrows dipped downwards in a confused manner. His eyes are searching, flitting over you, trying to find something. The way he looks at you makes you want to squirm, and you can’t help but just slightly shuffle in place. 

“Are you sure you’re okay?” He asks, voice as concerned as his look. That should be the breaking point for you, but you remain as big as you can be, and nod affirmatively. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” You try to assure him, hoping you don’t sound as nervous as you feel, “I think I’m just a little tired.” 

Ghost doesn’t look convinced. 

He puts a hand on your shoulder, the act like a hammer putting another dent in the wall you had put up. The leather of his glove is warm even through the thick material of your shirt, and it feels like hot metal against your cold skin, the clothing covering your shoulder be damned. 

“You can tell me if you’re not okay,” He tells you—what is he doing? Does he know something I don’t?—while his thumb starts rubbing circles into your shoulder, “I feel like you’re more than a little tired.” 

You stay silent for a little bit. You don’t know how to explain yourself, the words seeming to liquify and leak right out of you, making you speechless. He seems to notice this, sighing and letting his hand slip down to your hand, holding it and giving it a quick squeeze. 

“I think,” He looks around for a moment before turning back to you, “that we should head to my office so that nobody can bother us, and then you can tell me all about how you’re feeling right now. Does that sound okay?” 

You nod wordlessly, not trusting yourself to talk with how heavy your tongue feels, and you let Ghost lead you back to his office. It’s only a hallway away, but that’s still enough time to overthink everything that could possibly happen. How does he know something’s wrong? What gave it away? Did I do something bad? What did I do? Wh—

The creak of his office door opening snaps you out of your thoughts, and Ghost steps aside to let you enter his office first. Hesitantly, you take a few steps inside, and you hear the door click shut behind you as Ghost walks in. He takes your hand again, making you look at him as he guides you to a chair. 

You sit in the chair that’s in front of his desk, and he quickly drags out the chair that’s behind it so that it’s right next to yours. He sits down. 

He’s looking at you expectantly. 

“Uh.” You’re not sure what to say. He’s looking at you so reassuringly, it’s hard to keep yourself sitting upright. 

“I know something’s wrong,” Ghost says, leaning forward the tiniest bit, “I need you to tell me what’s wrong so I can help you.” 

He’s got to have at least some idea of what you’re experiencing, You think, trying to form some sort of explanation, He’s being so… weird? 

You swear there’s some other word you could use, but your vocabulary feels so limited, and you would mentally curse if you could because you know that now your explanation is gonna sound weird. You can’t use the words you want, you’re gonna be forced to use simple words, ones that can’t convey exactly how you feel. Words that—and it physically pained you to admit this—were childish. 

You can explain your situation. Just, now it would be more… blunt. And short. And also you’d feel like killing yourself afterwards. You won’t, obviously, but you can predict that you’ll come very close to doing so.

Okay, I have to say something because Ghost is looking more and more worried the longer I stay silent. 

“I feel…” You trail off for a moment, trying to get your thoughts in order for the next two seconds to actually say something that makes sense, before continuing in a far less confident tone, “… small.” 

The moment the words leave your mouth, you regret it. Ew. Ew. Ew. What. Why? Why that word? It leaves a sour taste on your tongue and yet you can’t think of any other word that would better suit how you feel. Still. Ew. 

Your thoughts are a jumbled mess ranging from fleeting thoughts of disgust to thoughts lodged in the back of your mind begging you to go anywhere else just so that you can stop having to have this conversation. This conversation requires words bigger than you have access to, and a sort of control over yourself that you can’t grasp. You can feel your hands twitching, wanting something to hold onto, anything to keep you distracted from the overwhelming urge to just regress. 

Ghost blinks. He didn’t expect that answer. 

“Small?” He repeats in a questioning tone, eyebrows furrowed, “I mean, compared to me, I guess you’re kind of short—” 

“No, no, not like short small,” You try to clarify, feeling just slightly discouraged by Ghost’s confused words, “Like…” 

You struggle to find the words that properly describe how you feel, only finding words like small and little in your current vocabulary. Your findings are making you increasingly upset, and you can feel your face start to grow hot with frustration and embarrassment. 

Oh my God. 

“Like…?” Ghost nudges your knee with his, trying to encourage you to talk, “I’m not leaving until you tell me.” 

There’s still a level of care in his words, no matter how confused he seems, and that adds all the more struggle to your predicament. Not only do you not want to tell him, but you can’t describe how you feel in a way that’s acceptable for someone your age to describe anything. At least, not in a way that you deem acceptable for yourself to describe anything. 

You’re far too old to be describing yourself as small. 

“[c/n]?” Ghost nudges you again, and you blink at him. Your eyes are flickering all over his mask, going anywhere but his eyes, since eye contact with anyone would make everything significantly worse for you right now. 

“It’s just—” You try to take a deep breath but your breath hitches. Everything is starting to make you feel so frustrated, and you’re starting to think that you might just throw a tantrum if you can’t do at least one thing right. You try to find the words you want to use but your throat is disobediently closing on you. Your mind feels like straight mush, and the quickly softening look that Ghost is giving you isn’t helping you at all. 

To your horror, in your inexplicable inability to talk in the way you normally do, you let out a small whine. It sounds obnoxious to your ears, and worst of all, sounds like something a little kid would do. 

You put your head in your hands, the quickly reddening skin of your cheeks getting cooled by the cold of your palms as you try and hide your face from Ghost. You can picture how he looks right now—somehow more confused than earlier, possibly annoyed, weirded out—and all those mental images make you bite your tongue to prevent another noise. 

“What was that?” You don’t answer him. 

To your non-answer, Ghost sighs, and you think, This is it, this is where he kicks me out of his office, oh my God I’m gonna get dishonorably discharged and he’s gonna give me a really mean look on my way out—

“Look at me.” You shake your head negatively. 

“Why not?” He sounds so confused, it makes you want to cry. There’s still a level of worry in his voice, and it adds to the fog that builds up in your brain. 

You move your face just slightly up so that your eyes peek out from above your fingertips, your hands covering the rest of your face. Ghost reaches out both of his hands, and ever so gently removes your hands from your face, uncovering your red cheeks and your lips—the lower of which quivers, like you’re about to cry. He notices this quickly, and you can practically feel the level of his worry shoot up. 

He doesn’t say anything, instead just holding your hands in his for a moment, before he sets them down into your lap. He looks at you, concerned, and asks, “Is it hard to talk right now?” 

You nod. His gaze shifts to his computer, and then back to you. 

“I’m gonna go look a few things up really quick, okay? I’ll just be right over there,” He nods over to the space behind his computer, “and I’ll be right back here in a few seconds.” 

You reluctantly nod again, and Ghost gets up from his seat. He grabs the back of the chair and drags it back around behind his desk, sitting down in it and powering on his monitor. It turns on almost immediately, much to his relief, and he goes to his browser and searches up a few things. You can’t tell what he’s searching up, only hearing the clacking of keys and the occasional final click that indicates that he’s hit the enter button. 

He stays there for maybe a minute or two. It’s a long few minutes, and you can feel yourself slipping more and more the longer he stays at his computer. And the more you feel yourself slipping into that younger mindset, the more you start to crave Ghost’s attention. 

The way his eyes are glued to his computer starts to irritate you. You’re aware that he’s doing something important, he must be, because why would he be so intent on looking something up otherwise, but still—you manage to feel the tiniest bit jealous of the computer. You know you’re too far gone when you can’t find it within yourself to realize that you’re jealous of a computer. 

Your eyes linger on him and he must notice this because he looks up from the screen of his monitor and looks over at you. As if he can read your mind, he reassures you, “Just a few more seconds.” 

But you said you were gonna be back in a few seconds a few minutes ago. 

You don’t voice your thoughts. Instead, you nod, because God forbid you annoy Ghost with your need for attention now when he’s being so patient with you. He looks at you for another moment before going back to his computer and looking something else up, this time with a little more fervor. 

Another few seconds pass and, true to his word this time, Ghost stops and gets up from his chair. He walks over to you, and your eyes follow him intently. He kneels down in front of you.

He looks hesitant to say something to you. That’s a first. That adds to the exponentially growing blob of fear that lives inside your mind, one of the only things that’s still prominent in the fog that conquers your brain. 

“Are you…” You feel like you know what he’s gonna ask you. You’re bracing yourself for the question, and he looks like he’s bracing himself just to ask it. 

“How, uh,” He’s trying to find the right wording, and you’ve never been able to relate to him harder than you do in this moment, “How… do you feel right now? How old?” 

How old? You don’t really like that question. As much as you like that you’re now getting attention, you’re starting to remember how little you actually enjoy this type of attention. The question is pretty vague, but at the same time so specific, and you’re almost ashamed to know exactly what the answer is. Or, at least, you would feel ashamed if there was room in your mind to feel so. 

“You said you feel small, right? Not like short small, just small?” He sounds more unsure of himself now, and you don’t think you like seeing him so reluctant to say something, “I looked up what it means to feel like that. Took some time, but I got to some person’s… website, and the person who wrote it was talkin’ about feeling like that. Something about regression, feeling a little bit younger than usual?” 

He’s being so awkward about it, and while you typically find his awkwardness funny, now it’s anything but that. 

“Uhm,” Your voice comes out as a mumble and you see Ghost perk up at it. You don’t know what to say. For a moment, you’re silent again, before you get over your embarrassment for a quick two seconds and force yourself to say, “Four.” 

“Four?” Ghost asks, before quickly realizing, “Right. Four. You feel four?” 

You nod, and your hands instinctively start moving back up to cover your face. Ghost swiftly grabs them, keeping his grip gentle as he keeps them from reaching your face. 

“Hey, don’t try to hide again,” He says, tone softening as he holds your hands, “everything’s fine, okay? Do you— what, uh— do you need me to do anything? Do you want me to leave you alo—”

“No!” You quickly answer, a little surprised by your own volume, before you clear your throat and answer in a much more quiet voice, “Don’t leave me alone.” 

“Okay, okay,” Ghost’s thumbs rub across the back of your hands, a soothing gesture that makes you the tiniest bit more relaxed, “what do you need?” 

You sniffle, and you can see an immediate look of panic cross Ghost’s eyes. You don’t know how well he is with crying children, and don’t want to impose such a situation on him, but you also can’t stop the tears that begin to well up in the corners of your eyes. 

“Hey, don’t cry,” He borderline begs, “everything’s gonna be okay, okay? Please do not cry. Take a deep breath.” 

You try to take a deep breath, you really do, but your breath just hitches and gets caught in your throat. It only makes you more distressed, adding to the urge you have to just disappear. Ghost notices your failed deep breathing and lets go of one of your hands, before taking the other and holding it to his chest.

You can just barely feel his heartbeat, his thick tactical vest and gear in the way of it, but you can still feel it. Ghost takes a deep breath, holding it for a second or two before slowly exhaling. 

“You copy me, okay?” He tells you, his words an order but his tone suggesting otherwise. He takes another deep breath, this time hoping you’ll follow his lead, and you do. 

You try to breathe with him, your hand on his chest helping, but your breath keeps getting caught in your throat. Ghost notices this, but continues his breathing anyway, hoping you’ll catch on soon. You do, thankfully—after a few more attempted breaths, you finally manage one almost identical to Ghost’s. The next few after that go similarly, and that’s when Ghost decides you’re alright to take your hand off of his chest. 

“I need you to tell me what to do,” He says, keeping your hand in his hold, “or at least tell me how all of this works. I want to help you.”

 You really don’t want to tell him what you need right now, but you also don’t think you have a choice. 

Wordlessly, you stand up from your seat, balance just slightly off-center before you quickly get your footing right. Ghost watches you, not moving, before you tug on his hand to try and urge him to get up as well. He obliges, getting up. 

“What—” You interrupt him by taking another step forward and letting your head thump right into his chest, ignoring the itchy uncomfortable feeling of his vest against your face. You don’t bother to wrap your arms around him to at least try and form some sort of hug, preferring to just smush yourself into him and hope for the best. 

After a moment of stunned silence, he wraps his arms around you. 

“You mind if we move behind my desk so I can look up some more stuff on all of this?” He asks, voice quiet, “Unless you want to just tell me?” 

“Desk,” You simply mumble into his vest, making him nod. 

“Alright, but you’re gonna have to stop hugging me for a second,” Ghost warns you. You reluctantly step away, and Ghost smiles softly down at you, bringing his hands away from your back and instead holding one of yours. 

He leads you behind his desk, and lets go of your hand before sitting down in his chair. Pausing, he quickly realizes you have nowhere to sit, and thinks for a moment before getting back up. He drags his chair just slightly to the side and looks back at you. 

“Sit down,” He nods to the chair, “It’s only gonna be a minute or two, alright?” 

You nod, hesitantly moving to sit in the chair, not really liking how far away from Ghost it is. It's not that far, You try to rationalize, I’m gonna be fine. 

Ghost can see your hesitation and tries to work as quickly as he can, grateful that he didn’t turn his computer off earlier, typing away on his keyboard. You don’t care to see what he’s looking up, more focused on looking at the time on his monitor. 21:44. 21:45. The time ticks by and even though it’s only been a few seconds you already want Ghost’s attention again. His attention has actually turned into good attention, and that’s the type of attention you’ve been craving for the past week. 

The clock reads 21:47 once Ghost is done, and he powers his monitor off this time, the small whirring the device makes dying down to a low hum before going completely silent. He turns to you, and somehow can sense that you need more attention. 

“Am I not paying enough attention to you?” He teases you, making you conflicted on whether you should be annoyed by the teasing or happy you’re finally getting attention. As if he can read your mind, he chuckles, and kneels down to your level. 

“I’m gonna give you as much attention as you need, alright?” He promises, “I just need you to stay in this room.” 

— 

Ghost watches you nod non-verbally, and it only adds to his softening expression. 

He’s always had a soft spot for kids. He knows that you aren’t technically a kid, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t still see you as one. You’re young for someone in the military, much less someone in this 141, and now that he’s found out that you’re an age regressor, that you’re a little—well, that doesn’t help how he sees you at all. 

He thinks that maybe the reason he has such a soft spot for kids is a few encounters he’s had with them in the past. He’s seen far too many in compromising positions while on missions; positions like being held hostage, being held as prisoner, or just generally being mistreated or even just living in bad conditions. 

He looks at you, and he just sees another one of those kids. 

He sees how you act around him. He’s not stupid. When he talks to you, you’re actually engaged in the conversation, compared to when anyone else tries to talk to you—maybe excluding Price, or Soap, or Gaz, heavy on that maybe—you’re more likely than not brushing them off every chance you get. You’re standoffish with everyone else, but with him, you’ll always accept any conversation he initiates. 

He can also see the way you look at him. It’s like you’re looking at your idol, or your savior, the way you look up at him. He can see that curious glint in your eyes when he tells you about a recent mission, or when he tells you anything, really. He can see when you try to mimic how he holds his weapons, and when you try to copy his techniques. 

He remembers catching you one day in the shooting range trying to mimic how he aims at the targets—looking through your scope with one eye closed, the other focused only on the dot centered on the scope, taking a deep breath in and out before shooting, and keeping the gun exactly like that even seconds after the shot’s been fired. 

In fact, the copying has gone from guns to melee weapons recently. Ghost swings only his forearm when he uses a knife, thumb resting on the very end of the knife’s handle, and entire arm stiff as he does. He does a slow windup when behind someone, a fast one on the off-chance that he’s in front, and buries the weapon to the hilt in whoever’s flesh he’s penetrated. He’s already seen you do the same on a recent mission. Not only that, but he caught you using a knife almost identical to his. 

And now, you’re still looking at him like that—except, different. Sort of like how a kid might look up to their parents. 

“What do you feel like doing, kiddo?” He asks, hoping the pet name isn’t too much. 

From the way your eyes light up, he suspects it isn't. 

“Mmm…” You hum, thinking for a moment, before requesting, “Coloring?” 

“Coloring, huh?” Ghost looks around for some blank paper and some sort of marker or pen thick enough to act as one, but can only find some highlighters. He turns to you, frowning, “Sorry, but I don’t think I have any paper, kid. Anything else you wanna do?”

You shake your head, and Ghost is just about ready to jump off of a bridge before you point to his arm and repeat, “Coloring.” 

He looks at his arm for a second, confused, before he remembers a conversation the two of you had a month or so ago. 

“If you ever wanna get tattoos, I know a guy in Brighton,” Ghost said, reclining his chair back so that he can lay down in it. You were sitting across from him in front of his desk, fiddling with one of his pens. 

“Good to know,” You hummed, “You have any tattoos?” 

“Yeah,” You perked up at his admission, and he sat up for a second to roll up the sleeve of his shirt. He wasn’t wearing his usual gear, only one of those standard issue army-green shirts. 

“Here,” He pointed to a large tattoo covering his whole arm like a sleeve, a few designs you could point out to yourself being a skull, a few Roman numerals, and some kind of scythe. 

“Very emo,” You commented, making Ghost snort, “I like it.” 

“I’m glad,” He rolled his sleeve back down. 

There’s a lot of blank space in the tattoo, despite it being a sleeve, and he can already tell that you mean you want to color in that space. He thinks about it for a moment, a fleeting thought of is that even safe? crossing his mind before he ultimately decides that he doesn’t care and would rather kill himself than see you disappointed because he denied your request, his own health be damned. 

“Alright,” He hums, grabbing a few highlighters from a mesh cup on his desk in the colors pink, yellow, and blue, “Go for it.” 

You give him a small smile and if he cared about if he’d get ink poisoning two seconds ago, he sure as hell doesn’t care now. You gingerly grab the highlighters from his hand, your grabbing not too secure and sort of clumsy but secure enough that the markers stay in your hand.

You hold them with both hands, and it makes Ghost realize how small your hands are—sure, you could hold the highlighters with one hand, but he’s glad you aren’t because now he can admire just how small you are as a whole. 

You set the yellow and blue down on his desk, making sure they don’t roll off for a moment before uncapping the pink and hesitantly holding out a hand for Ghost’s arm. He rolls up his sleeve and obediently holds out his arm for you, watching curiously as you press the cold tip of the highlighter to his skin. You’re starting by coloring in the skull a neon pink, much to his amusement, and you’re starting in the dead center of its forehead. 

You’re so much more quiet than you usually are when you’re little, and you’re so much more hesitant, it makes Ghost want to just wrap you in a blanket and keep you safe and in his sight forever. 

Your tongue slightly pokes out from between your lips as you concentrate on coloring in Ghost’s tattoo, making him grin beneath his mask. The ink of the highlighter doesn’t stay within the black bounds of his tattoos at all, but he doesn’t care one bit, and he doesn’t think you care either. You finish up the skull quickly, and move onto the scythe that’s right next to it, this time capping the pink highlighter and grabbing the yellow. 

Ghost is pretty sure this is gonna stain his skin for a day or two, but he couldn’t care less.

He can’t help but notice how much more relaxed you look in your regressed state. More at peace, he should say. There’s no longer a hunch in your shoulders, your eyes aren’t twitching from your headache, and you’re not bouncing your leg like you usually do when you’re sitting down somewhere. It’s like any anxieties you had pre-regression had evaporated, like slipping into a younger mentality had taken away most of your worries, if not all of them. 

He also can’t help but wish he could see you like this more often. Not necessarily the regressed part, but the relaxed part. Well, maybe the regressed part too. You’re being such a sweetheart right now, he doesn’t think he’ll be able to live through this experience. 

“You having fun there, darling?” Ghost asks, his grin evident in his voice. The corners of your lips quirk up at the pet name and you nod silently, and now Ghost is starting to think you’re actually trying to kill him. You’re being so uncharacteristically shy, and you’re being so quiet, and you’re just being so sweet. 

It seems you’ve moved onto the blue highlighter now, coloring in the last bit of his tattoo. He doesn’t think he’ll ever wash it off—or, at least, he wouldn’t if he had a choice. He knows that he has to shower sometime soon, but surely he can put that off for a bit, right?

Once you’re finished with your coloring, you cap the highlighter, and set it down next to the others you’ve discarded. You turn Ghost’s arm the tiniest bit towards him so that he can see your work better. 

“‘s it good?” You ask quietly, watching intently for Ghost’s reaction. He looks over your coloring job and hums approvingly. 

“It’s amazing, I love it,” He assures you, smiling down softly at you, “You did great.” 

You seem to preen at the praise, and you take your hand off of Ghost’s arm, moving to put in your lap. You’re keeping yourself very contained, Ghost notices, Why? 

He’s snapped out of his thoughts when he hears you yawn, and you quickly move to cover your mouth as you do. He’s reminded that it’s almost twenty-two hundred, and while that usually wouldn’t be an issue for him, it’s an issue for you. You originally came to the 141 as someone who had a sleep schedule almost as fucked up at Ghost’s, but soon developed a habit of going to sleep somewhat early considering the training you had in the morning. So, now you get tired anywhere from eighteen-hundred to twenty-one hundred. After that, your only goal is to find somewhere to sleep. 

“Sleepy?” You nod tiredly, making Ghost coo, Ghost, the man who quite literally haunts some people’s nightmares, coos at you, “Aw, of course you are, sweetheart. Pretty sure it’s way past your bedtime by now.” 

“Nuh uh,” You deny, making Ghost chuckle. 

“‘Nuh uh’?” He asks, amused, “What d’you mean ‘nuh uh’?” 

“No b’dtime,” You shortly elaborate. 

“Ohhh, okay,” Ghost feigns realization, “You think you’re too big for a bedtime, huh?” 

“Mhm. Way too big.”

“I dunno about ‘way’ too big,” Ghost hums, checking to see if the highlighter on his arm has dried before he pulls his sleeve back down. “You seem pretty little to me.” 

“No,” You whine, dragging out the ‘o’, “Not lil’.” 

“Hmm… you sure, kiddo?” Ghost asks, “So if I ask you if you need to go to bed, you’re gonna say ‘no’?” 

That makes you hesitate, and Ghost almost thinks he’s won, before your own pettiness wins and you nod affirmatively. He raises an eyebrow at you. 

“Alright, well, you’ve gotta sleep at some point,” He says, crossing his arms as he leans back in his chair. 

You think this over for a second, and he watches as you look over him for a moment before looking down at his lap, then looking back up at him. He can already tell there’s some sort of plan forming in your mind.  Wordlessly, you get up, and Ghost does nothing to stop you as you decide to just plop yourself down into his lap. You straddle his thighs, moving until you’re sitting comfortably on him, and then let yourself slump forward so that your face is resting in the crook of his neck. It takes him a moment to process what just happened, before he laughs lightly and wraps both of his arms around you to keep you in place. 

“Oh, okay,” He grins, resting his chin on your shoulder, “you just wanna cuddle with me until you fall asleep? Is that what this is?” 

He feels you nod against his neck, and his grin grows as he rubs one hand against your back, trying to soothe you to sleep. He doesn’t say anything else, not wanting to distract you from your attempts to sleep anymore, simply letting you stay slumped against him. Your breathing wasn’t too fast-paced to begin with, but as you relax even more in his arms, he can feel your breathing even out. 

You’re falling asleep fairly quickly, and the only complaint he has is that he didn’t get to spend nearly as much time as he wanted to with you while you were awake and regressed. 

Once he’s sure you’re barely awake, he murmurs, “You’re such a sweetheart, you know that?” 

— 

You don’t know how long it’s been since you fell asleep, but you’re woken up by the slight rustling of clothes, and then you feel yourself moving up. 

Your mind still feels foggy and you can tell you’re still somewhat in that younger mindset of yours, but now you’re significantly less bothered by it than you were before. You’re awake enough to be aware of what’s happening, always having been a light-sleeper, but not awake enough to know exactly what’s happening. You don’t dare open your eyes, and try to keep your breathing even—though that isn’t much of a challenge. 

That headache that had been building up earlier has fully disappeared, thank God, and you no longer feel the tension in your shoulder that you’d been unconsciously carrying. 

You can sort of feel someone’s arms snaked under your back, and you know that you’re being moved somewhere. Quickly, you remember that it’s Ghost carrying you, and that you had fallen asleep on him, much to your embarrassment. Or, at least, it would be much to your embarrassment if you had the mental capacity to feel embarrassed about that right now. But you feel so comfy and so safe that it really doesn’t matter to you right now. 

You can hear the clicking of Ghost’s boots against the concrete floors of the hallway, and he’s carrying you off somewhere; you imagine that somewhere to be your sleeping quarters. He’s walking pretty fast, not hurriedly but still at a somewhat fast pace. 

Soon, he reaches a stopping point where he has to awkwardly put one leg up to support your back on his thigh as he quickly reaches one arm out to turn the knob of the door to your sleeping quarters and pulls that arm right back to support your back again. He sighs as he puts his foot back down, kicking open the door and walking in. 

He’s quick to reach your bed, and he pauses as he considers what to do. You can practically hear him thinking, wondering how he’s gonna get you under the covers while he’s still carrying you, and for a second you think about showing him you’re awake so that things are easier for him before he sets you down on the bed. 

He pulls the covers up and stops when he reaches the part your body covers, and picks you back up, before dropping you right back off where the blankets have been pulled away. He pulls the covers back over you. 

After a few moments, you think he’s left the room, before you hear the rustling of fabric and feel him leaning down. He gently presses his lips to your forehead and pulls away after a second or two, before quietly mumbling, “Night, kiddo.”

He stays there for a moment before you hear his footsteps leave the room, and then the door clicking shut behind him as he leaves the room entirely. 

You’re quick to fall asleep after that.

[lunicho]

(send riize asks to @angeltsan)

{𐙚 10:43} l. anton + l. sohee

♡ 3.8k | dom!anton, subby inexperienced!sohee, fem!reader, cuckholding, oral (f!receiving), premature ejaculation, unprotected sex (don't be like them), cumming inside, cum eating, anton is kinda an asshole, sohee is kinda pathetic

♡ a/n: DON'T READ THE LAST SENTENCE OMG ITS SO BAD IM SORRY,, im so bad at ending fics,,, anyways its been tew long since i wrote smth new so feast my loves,, i've kept y'all starving fr (i'm sorry) also new fic layout 😝😝 gonna be updating stuff on my blog so yeahhh.

you'd been with anton for a while. over that time you've come to learn a lot about him and things that he likes. of all the things you've learned, this might be the craziest one. 

a momentary silence fell over the room as you looked down at your hands, fiddling a little. you crossed your arms over your chest and thought hard. “okay wait.. you wanna do what?” 

anton tried to explain again, his voice quiet, “well sohee likes you.. and i know you like him and i'm okay with that.. i think we should let him have sex with us.. at least once.” 

you continued thinking, “i mean yeah i like sohee, but i don't know if i like him like that.. a- and how long has he liked me?” you were sort of struggling to wrap your head around the whole thing, the idea of sohee liking you as more than a friend never crossing your mind. 

“the same amount of time i've liked you, we both wanted you originally.. i just ended up being the one to make it official.” you frowned a little at this, suddenly feeling bad for sohee. you don't know if it was pity or if you really wanted this but something in you wanted to say yes to the whole idea. 

you weren't vanilla by any means when it came to sex but bringing one of anton's close friends into your bed was a little daunting, the idea of being the reason to ruin their friendship scared you. anton contrasted from you, he had a very calm demeanor about the whole thing, this both intrigued and intimidated you. 

“okay, we can do it..” you looked up at anton from where you sat, watching his eyes light up. he placed a large hand on the back of your head, just his gaze made you feel small. with his other hand he hooked a finger under your chin to tilt your head upward, leaning down to place a kiss on your lips. his kisses alone could take your breath away.

when you first got with anton he was nothing like this. he was shy, awkward, and honestly just overall submissive to you but the more you got to know him and the more confident he got, his personality began to really come out. he's still like that sometimes but the way he kisses you, the way he carries himself at times, even the way he fucks you is so different.

you whimper under your breath, pulling away slowly moments later, your teeth tugging at your lip gently, “so when do you want to do this?” you gazed up at the boy, your arms wrapping around him as you wait for his response. 

“i'll bring him over.. we can kind of feel things out you know? maybe watch some movies and have some snacks beforehand?” you nod at this, a wave of nerves washing over you, “what if something goes wrong? like what if you and sohee aren't friends after this?” 

anton chuckles at you, his cocky demeanor making you press your legs together. “we're still friends after i got the girl he wanted, what makes you think he wouldn't want to be friends after this? i’m practically doing him a favor.”

you nod at this, it's somewhat true, but you didn't want to let it bother you, anton was relaxed about it and this was his friend after all so you were okay with it.

you'd never paid much attention to the way sohee interacted with you until now. the way his hands would pull away extra fast when you'd hand him things, the fear of accidentally touching you taking over him. you even noticed the way he stared at you when he thought you weren't looking, you'd caught him out of the corner of your eye a few times now. 

you brought a bowl of popcorn over to the coffee table that was in the middle of your living room. the tv was on, waiting for commands from the remote.

sohee sat alone on the couch to the side of the one you were on, the bottoms of his  feet facing the tv and he kept his eyes trained on the screen, or at least that's what he wanted you to think. you see him now though, zoned in at the way he stares at your leg that's poking out of the blanket or how he just stares at you while you reach for another handful of popcorn. 

you were sat in anton's lap, his back leaned against the arm of the couch while you laid on your side cuddling into his chest. you couldn't help the way your gaze wandered to sohee, curiosity flooding your mind. you'd never thought about him differently, he'd always just been anton's friend but you'd be lying if you said you still thought of him that way now. 

you wondered what he'd look like naked, how his lips would feel on yours, how it'd feel to have his and anton’s hands on you at the same time, the thought made you squirm slightly in your spot. 

“mind wandering?” you turned to anton with a smile, your head gently nodding. anton adjusted you in your spot, your back now flush to his chest. there was a small blanket lazily thrown across the two of you, the fabric covering your lap slightly. 

anton's hands were gentle on you, big but delicate. you weren't looking at the tv at all anymore, your mind focused on the feeling of anton's hands on your body. he drags his hands across your waist and hips, fingertips slightly sliding across the waistband of your shorts. 

he'd specially requested for you to wear this pair of shorts, it happened to be his favorite pair and apparently sohee's as well. the two of them seemed to have a lot more in common than you originally thought. anton also specially requested that you “forgot” to wear panties tonight. 

his hand easily dipped into your pants, two of his fingers falling to your wet hole. he firmly dragged two fingers up your cunt, wetting it fully in the process. you breathed out of your nose, your legs opening up more for him. 

his pointer and ring fingers push your lips apart, his middle finger lazily flicking your bud up and down. neither one of you faced the tv at this point, anton placed lazy kisses on your shoulder while you soaked up the pleasure. 

anton speaks in a barely audible murmur into your ear, your eyes slowly peeling open at the sound of his voice, “let's show you off, call for him baby.” 

you nod along with what he said, your mind already feeling foggy. he dips both fingers into your hole, his long slender fingers curving up into you, “s-sohee..” 

he visibly perks up at the sound of your voice, his body stiffening. he was trying so hard to mind his business, you and anton moving around was so hard to ignore. he suspected something was going on but the sound of the movie drowned out the slick noises of your pussy. 

anton moved the blanket off of your lap, his fingers thrusting in and out of you harder than before. “wanna come see the pussy you've been dreaming about?” anton's tone is dripping with lust and cockiness. he's smiling at sohee, his free hand moving to grab a handful of your breast. 

your hand grips onto the arm he's fucking into you with as you feel yourself getting closer, you squeeze your eyes shut, a string of moans escaping your lips. 

sohee's frozen where he's at, already embarrassingly hard all of this is too much, he can't believe what's unfolding in front of him. 

the sound of your moans as you cum on anton's hand catches sohee's attention, he admires your beautiful expression, the one he'd daydreamed about for so long. 

your breathing is ragged, your head leaning back on anton's shoulder as you catch your breath. he let's go of your breast and uses that hand to gently grip your throat, his lips peppering kisses on your cheek as he pulls his soaked fingers out of your shorts. 

he rubs the backs of his fingers against your lips, your mouth opening for him. he slides the pads of his fingers down your throat, leaning to your ear once again. “invite him over.. let him play with you.” 

you lift your head off his shoulder,, your shorts sticking to your slick. “wanna come over here? wanna sit by me?” you pat the spot in between your legs, almost like you're calling over a puppy. sohee hesitates, his eyes trained on you. 

you could tell sohee was a bit more like anton used to be, again, shy, timid, a little awkward, and definitely not as dominant as anton is now. 

sohee nods weakly, walking over to you, unable to look either of you in the eyes, especially not anton. he didn't expect for this to somehow be so humiliating for him. he sat in front of you, shivering when he felt your hand gently rub down his arm. this made you smile, “relax hee.. i don't bite.” 

sohee let out a shaky breath, his eyes finally meeting yours. you brought your hand up to his cheek, caressing it gently. anton stood up as you did this, his hands moving to your shoulders. when he moved you readjusted, one of your legs resting gently on sohee's lap. 

you could feel how hard he was under your leg, his breath hitching in his throat when you put the slightest bit of pressure on his cock. you noticed how small it was, especially in comparison to anton's but you thought that was so endearing, smiling at the idea. 

anton leaned down to your ear, his whispers tickling you slightly, “show him how you kiss me, how you make me feel good..” he places small nibbles and kisses from your ear down to your shoulder. you shut your eyes at this, a shiver falling down your spine. his firm hands grip onto your shoulders, lightly massaging them in his grasp. you sigh contently at the feeling of anton's hands on your body. 

you open your eyes again, they immediately meet sohee's pretty round orbs. “you alright if i kiss you?” you look down at his lips, suddenly noticing how pretty and soft they are. you smile and chuckle a little, noticing a few crumbs of popcorn on his lips. 

you cup his jaw in your hand, your thumb wiping away at the bits of popcorn. he wordlessly accepts your question, his head nuzzling into your grasp. you pull him in, the taste of salt spreading across your mouth when you swipe your tongue along sohee’s lip. you're quickly able to take control of the kiss, one of your hands moving to the back of his head. 

he pushes into the kiss, his body moving forward. sohee's desperate in the way that he kisses, the passion is definitely there. you can tell he's been waiting for this moment with the way he's carrying himself at this point. 

your hand snakes into the hair on the back of his head, your fingers taking hold of the strands there. you pull him away from you, a smile creeping into your face at the way he whines at the feeling of you tugging at his scalp as well as the loss of your lips. 

at this point you're more into this idea than you thought you'd be. you don't yet let go of sohee's hair, your gaze trailing up anton's body until you meet his eyes, his stare filled with satisfaction. 

“should i let him fuck me ton? don't you think he's waited so long, so patiently?” your gaze falls back on sohee, his eyes are unconsciously pleading for you. you let go of his hair, your hand caressing his face again. 

anton nods at you with a shrug, “i mean, he won't be able to fill you up like i do. his cock is so tiny, don't know if he'll even be able to make you cum.” you notice the smile that tugs at the corner of his lips, his smile widening at the sound of sohee’s sad whines. 

“be nice ton! i'm sure he can make me feel good anyways, it's not always about size, right hee?” the boy nods eagerly, another whine leaving him at the nickname you call him. “i- i can do it! can make you feel so good!” he's both shy and desperate in the way he speaks to you, you're getting impossibly wetter by the second. 

anton chuckles to himself again, his hands moving to readjust himself, he's so hard by this point but he's holding himself off. 

he gets behind you once again, his hands grabbing onto the bottom of your top. he pulls it over your head, leaving you with your bra on. he tosses your top onto the table, his eyes staring at sohee. 

sohee, although still fully dressed, feels naked under both of your gaze. he'd never seen anton have this look in his eyes before. he focuses back on you and the way you're laid out before him. 

“go on hee, take my shorts off.” your gaze is heavy on sohee, performance anxiety slowly trickling in. you cuddle back into anton, fingers intertwining with his as they rest on your chest, your legs open in front of sohee. 

with a shaky hand, sohee reaches for the waistband of your pants. he looks so cute right now, shyly moving your shorts down your body. you lift up to help him take them off your legs, the piece of clothing falling to the floor.

sohee bites his lip at the sight of your glistening pussy, swallowing hard as if his mouth was watering over it. “can i.. can i taste you first?” his voice is small and shy, but his fingertips run along your thigh, making you breath out a small moan. anton snorts at this, already knowing how it’ll play out. he leisurely runs his free hand up and down your body.

you nod eagerly at his question, your hole clenching around nothing. sohee notices this as he adjusts his position, laying on his stomach in front of you. luckily the couch is a little bit longer but one of sohee's legs still hangs off the couch, the other resting against the cushion but he doesn't mind. 

you think he looks a little silly but don't pay it much mind, finding him too pitiful to laugh. his thumb shyly runs up your slit, his big eyes looking into yours for a second. he smiles to himself, his excitement evident. 

although he asked to taste you, he actually wasn't too sure what to do, he tried to recall what he'd seen in porn videos but his mind was blank. anton noticed this and he smiled about it a little. 

“you don't even know what to do, huh?” anton knows sohee lacks experience, technically he’s not a virgin, he did have sex once before but it wasn’t much to talk about. sohee shakes his head, his facial expression making you pout at him. 

“do what feels right, me and ton will help you, okay?” you try to reassure him, giving him as much encouragement as you could. anton rolls his eyes slightly at the fact that he was volunteered but he agrees with you anyways. 

sohee musters up the courage to do something, his lips nibbling at the skin of your thigh gently. he places small kisses along your skin, his lips finally resting on your clit. you're full of anticipation, wondering what he'd do next.

a confused expression plays on your face, the movement sohee's doing with his mouth feels strange and unfamiliar. you try to decipher what doesn’t feel right, “think you’re using too much lip sohee, use your tongue.” 

he lifts his head again and nods, eager to learn from you. he sticks his tongue out, dragging it along your pussy, you suck in a breath at this, nodding to sohee. “there you go, such a good boy. anton struggled with this a bit too when we first got together.” your words encouraged sohee but were a bit of a blow to anton. sohee snickered quietly at this, noticing the way anton looked a little annoyed.

his nerves start to subside by this point, allowing him to think a little clearer. the tip of his tongue drew circles on your clit, earning a moan from you. your noises made him more confident, encouraging him to try new things. he sucks on your clit now, finding out what you like each time. 

“such a quick learner, sohee..” the soft praises that fell from your lips got him more riled up than before. you noticed his hips begin to rut into the couch as he ate you out. your hips rolled against his tongue, sohee’s whines vibrating against you. 

anton has his hands in your bra, his fingers playing with your nipples. “gonna cum y/n?” you moan in response to anton's question, your head nodding quickly. anton's fingers pinch at your sensitive buds, adding to the overall feeling. 

sohee humps the couch, his orgasm building up too quickly for him to keep up with. you moan out, your hips stuttering against his tongue. 

he slurps up your juices, his hips stilling too early as he cums in his pants. a frustrated sigh falls from sohee's lips as he accidentally ruins his own orgasm, still painfully hard. 

you sit up after this, eyes locking with sohee's, “want you to fuck me hee, wanna see what you got.” sohee's mind is cloudy, his body moving quicker than his mind can. he stands up off the couch, removing his shirt before running his hands through his hair. 

you move to help sohee out, your hands eagerly untying his pajama pants. when his pants fall down you're immediately met with the sight of his red, dripping, cock and it makes you smile up at him. 

“no underwear? must've been so eager..” you grab his length in your hand, the size easily fitting in your grasp. 

you look at it like you're investigating something, “did you cum in your pants baby?” sohee nods, suddenly feeling embarrassed again but you praise him instead, telling him how cute he is. 

you lay flat on your back now, inviting sohee between your legs again. anton is standing again, now removing his own clothes 

sohee hovers over you, one arm hooking under your leg. your hand caresses his cheek again, “fuck me pretty boy.” 

he presses into you, his hips quickly becoming flush with yours. he leans down on his elbow, his face close to yours as his hips begin to rut into yours. 

he wastes no time picking up a steady pace, his desperation taking over. his hips snap against you harshly, both of you moaning continuously.

you kiss sohee, eyes shutting tightly at the feeling of him. he's so caught up in the sensation, no thoughts in his mind right now. he feels his orgasm bud in his stomach, pulling away from the kiss. he nuzzled his face into your neck, his cum shooting into you.

“m’ sorry, so sorry!!” sohee's voice is apologetic and whiny as he speaks. you laugh quietly which catches sohee's attention, he slowly lifts his face to look at you. “it's okay, gorgeous, you're alright.” 

anton sighs, hand gently stroking his length in his grasp. he’s had enough of watching the two of you, this was his idea after all but the thought of you being left unsatisfied has him almost losing it. “let me show you how to really fuck her good.” 

he takes sohee’s place, positioning you with your ass in the air. its moments like this where you’re reminded how strong he is, the way he slightly lifts you by your hips. he spreads your pussy lips apart, the sight of sohee’s cum dripping out of you making his cock twitch.

“fuck..” anton’s big hands grip your ass cheeks firmly, just the feeling of his hands anywhere on your body makes you so needy. you reach for sohee, hands guiding him to the spot in front of you, where anton was sitting before. you grip onto sohee as you feel anton’s fingers dip into you again. sohee watches intently as anton pleases you.

the sound of your pussy rings in your ears, the slick squelching making excitement bubble in your stomach once again. anton rubs the tip of his cock against you, groaning at the feeling of you. he lines up with your opening, pressing his length into you. he slides in relatively easily because of how wet you are. you begin to feel full already, his full length not in you yet.

your hips push back on anton, moving side to side so he enters you fully. you moan at the feeling of him stretching you out. you lick your lips as you eye sohee’s smaller cock in front of you, red and leaking once again. your hand makes a fist on his length, pumping it once or twice in your grasp. sohee’s sensitive by this point, you can tell by the way his body shudders at the feeling of your hand on him.

anton's thrusts are rough and deep as he fucks into you, your body jolting forward with every hit. you muffle your moans on sohee's length, the tip of his cock tickling the back of your throat. 

sohee thrusts into your mouth as he chases his high, one hand in your hair, head thrown back in pleasure. 

your fingernails dig into the skin of sohee's hips as you feel anton repeatedly hit your sweet spot. anton smacks your ass persistently, the sting causing your eyes to roll back. 

you pull off of sohee's length, pumping him in your hand as you moan out. you come undone first, unable to catch your breath as anton continues thrusting into you. 

sohee cums next, his hand grasping onto your jaw so he can place your lips back on his tip, his cum shooting into your mouth. anton follows shortly after, his thrusts slowing down as you feel yourself being filled up once more. he slowly thrusts into you a few more times, his hands gripping you hard. 

when anton pulls out of you he admires your cunt, the sight of you dripping once again, this time with his cum makes him feel good. you hold sohee’s cum in your mouth, sitting up and turning to where they both can see you. anton loves to watch you swallow his seed so it only seems right for you to do it for the both of them. 

you open your mouth, showing the cum that pools on your tongue before you swallow it, sticking out your tongue to show them that you swallowed it. anton grins at you, kissing your cheek lovingly, “such a good girl.” 

sohee watches you, his feelings for you getting stronger, maybe he shouldn't have agreed to this after all, but he can’t go back now.

[purerae]

Hey, Love your fics! Can you do a SFW (or NSFW if you’re feeling up to it) alphabet about the playboy yandere (or the jock)?

╭────༺♡༻────╮

YANDERE!PLAYBOY // SFW Alphabet

A/N ;; Thank you so much!! i’ll start off with the SFW alphabet for kieran and then do the jocks! I may do the NSFW alphabets later on<3.

╰────༺♡༻────╯

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

Very affectionate to you if you’re in a relationship. Mainly likes physical affection and will always be touching you in some way. (Hand around shoulder, arm, thigh etc)

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

would NOT be a good best friend. The only reason why he’s friends with you is because he’s in love with you 😭 with his other ‘friends’ hes not reliable at all, doesn’t really care for them, just keeps them around because it makes him look good. But with you, He just pretends you guys are in an established relationship (delusional king fr)

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

He’d be the be the big spoon 101%. Holds you quite tight, his body temperature is always cold so that might be a negative.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

He has really bad commitment issues but with you he’d want to settle down really quickly. If you wanted him to move into your house hed do so in an instant, or if you wanted a new house/flat? he’d have the documents in hand.

Average at cooking, he wouldn’t burn the whole house down but he also wouldn’t make a 5 star meal. Horrible at baking though. Hed struggle to clean because he’s used to others doing it for him

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

With his past girlfriends, he’d either ghost them or be very straight up and rude if they don’t get the hint.

With you? Even if you were the worst person in the world, you’re not going anywhere LOL.

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

To be honest, I think he would find marriage stupid and useless, What’s the point of some words on a paper showing you’re in a relationship?

BUT, if you even slightly wanted it, then he would get married and give an extravagant wedding also inviting literally everyone he knows so he can show off the relationship. Or he’d get married with you, if he can see that you’re slowly getting tired of him, He’ll bring it up suddenly and will not give you an option to say no.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Emotionally, He tries hard for you, but sometimes he takes things like a joke too far beccause he’s used to lacking empathy. But if he notices you’re upset, he’ll apologise and practically go on his knees for you

Physically, He’s gentle but sort of man-handles you?? Not in a rude way but he’d move you with his arms instead of telling you to move or always initiates physical contact even though you may not want it.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

LMFAOO IM SO SORRY BUT HED BE THE TYPE TO BE LIKE “aha Y/N, where’s my hug at?”

joking (probably..), Hed always want to be the arms above and he’d hug you very tightly, close to the point where it’s hard to breathe. While hugging you, he’d sway your body side to side (idk if that makes sense)

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

As soon as you say yes into being his partner. Or maybe even before that.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

Gets jealous very very VERY easily. If he sees you hanging out w another man, he’d jealous so fast. ESPECIALLY if that man made you laugh.

When he’s jealous, he doesn’t show it angrily or sadly. Yeah he’s angry, but he just flirts more with you, grows more protective over you and doesn’t show the aggresive side to you, but rather the perpetrator.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Loves to smother you in kisses, His kisses are rough and hard, almost to the point where it hurts. He tries to always have a flirtatious personality but sometimes when he kisses you, you can feel the desperate aura around him. Almost as if he thinks you’d disappear if he let go. He likes kissing you everywhere, but does it more on the lips and your forehead. He’d love for you to kiss his cheek and biceps the most.

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

I think this is the only time where you could see Kieran being slightly awkward. He’s a lot more calm and toned down around them. He wouldn’t actively try to communicate with children, but if they approach him, he’d try his best to listen and answer. (He would prefer them not coming to him though.

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

It’s cute. Mornings are the rare times where he has his guard down and is overall just sweet. He loves it when you stay in bed for an extra five minutes and would hug you tightly, and whisper sweet nothings into your ear along with soft kisses. He’s quite vulnerable during the mornings and you can really feel how grateful he is to be with you.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

This is the SFW alphabet so unfortunately i can’t say what he’d normally do :(.

But on the more quiet nights, He’d like to hug you, while he’s the big spoon and wait for you to fall asleep before he would try too. If he can’t fall asleep he’d gently try to turn your body around and stare at your face (a bit creepily) before he’ll grow tired.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

Very very slowly. He’d know your whole life story before you know a portion of his. If you never asked I don’t even think he’d reveal his backstory. But if you were to be quite stubborn about it, he’d tell you everything and more.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

With you? Extreme amount of patience, but may get frustrated with your lack of attention to him.

With others? He doesn’t care about them enough to get angry at them. But if it affects you in any way? Consider that person dead.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

Every single detail. Even the things you didn’t tell him. Focuses on you like it’s the most important subject ever.

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

1. When you finally laughed at his cheesy joke/pickup line

2. When you finally said yes to his confessions and kissed him

3. this whole moment.

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

If he sees you speaking with someone who he views as a threat? They’d be on the news in less than a week.

Would protect you by constantly being by your side, low-key overbearing but whatever.

He’d rather protect you than vice versa. But he would like to be protected by your reassurance once you guys get into a steady relationship. Even if he is very confident, he does think bad scenarios sometimes.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

Tries extremely hard. Knows everything about you so would but a gift you had wanted for a long time, or if you didn’t know you wanted but once he gave it too you, you’d be shocked at how much you’d needed it. Dates, anniversaries etc extremely romantic, he has a lot of money to spend and would spend it all on you. Even when you guys aren’t dating he’d go all out.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

his whole personality LOL

kidding, he gets jealous really quickly, he would kidnap you if he could tell you REALLY weren’t interested in him, He has no empathy for anyone other than you, he would essentially do anything for you if you asked (beside leaving you alone.)

since he is a yandere, I feel like the relationship would get toxic on Y/Ns side after a while. He’d still be enamoured whilst for you, it could begin to get tiring. (Or not LOL)

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

He knows he’s good looking. He has a small routine but other than that he just lets his looks carry him.

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

He’d be a goner without you. Ever since he met you, there’s not a single time where he doesn’t think about you. If you were ever to disappear? He’d search the whole world for you and wouldn’t stop. He cannot live without you.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

Owns a letterman jacket in every colour.

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

He likes anything that you do.

But with other people, if they act like they know him when they clearly don’t. Most of the school acts like that, that’s why he doesn’t like anyone but pretends too.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)

Wraps his arm around you tightly. If you wake up before him, you’re trapped. He’s a light sleeper so he’d wake up if you moved a tiny bit. But would pretend to still be asleep so he could cuddle you a little more.

purerae<3

[undeadcannibal]

141 team +könig with reader that scratches at their arms and neck till they bleed please:]

Summary: How Task Force 141 and  would react to a Reader that scratches at their arms or neck.

Genre: Headcanons, request(s) Characters featured: Price, Soap, Gaz, Ghost, and König

Warnings: mentions of scratching, etc.

A/N:  I got you, Anon. Spent my adolescent years struggling with that T-T Hopefully you enjoy! And as always, thank you for the request! <3 I tried giving everyone a bit of a different reason as to why just for a bit of variation. I hope that is alright. c:  ( Gif credit: xxx )

Gaz―

He catches you in the middle of relieving the itchiness of your forearms, taking a moment to realize what's going on before he tries to encourage you to stop in a calm and soft manner. 

He won't freak out, he'll just ask what's up, really just wants to ensure you're okay overall. 

Much like John, he won't pry for an answer if you truly don't want to give one, buuuut that doesn't mean he'd stop worrying about you. 

You mention that it's nothing too serious, it's unfortunately something you resort to in times of major stress. 

He doesn't pretend to understand what you deal with, but he's there to help regardless. 

Personally, he likes helping you take care of yourself. He won't hold it against you if you can't help but give in to scratching. 

Let him patch you up so he can tell you jokes or stories to distract you from thinking about everything, even if only for a little while. 

Soft but calloused hands drifting up your forearms carefully, making sure not to hurt you too much as he helps clean and patch you up. 

Do well and he says he'll give you a kiss as a reward for good behavior~ 

Ghost―

He notices something's up quickly. Whether you prefer to hide the marks of not, he wastes little time in asking you about it. 

He'll bring it up when the two of you are alone, or are at least out of earshot of anyone else. He won't want to embarrass you, but he'll be curious. 

I think Simon would ask a lot of questions at first: "What happened?" "Why do you have the impulse?" and "…Does it hurt?" or "Does it bother you much?" because he'd want to know why before helping. 

You mention that you struggle with allergies a lot, and in turn, sometimes don't realize just how bad it's gotten until it's too late. 

Unfortunately, the entire insides of your forearms suffer the most and as a result, are covered in large patches of scabs from previous bouts of itchiness. 

He wouldn't have noticed it had you not needed to pull up the sleeves of your shirt, revealing them to him. 

After you give him your answer, he won't say much, but I can see him silently telling you to stay put. He disappears only to return with a first-aid kit. 

While he might not fully understand what you're dealing with, he does help care for your wounds and patches you up. Even reminding you to change the bandages daily just in case you need a reminder. 

He might not be the best at helping heal others, but he does try to be there for you in his own ways. 

Price―

The first time he notices the marks on your neck, his eyes are widening and his jaw is clenching, numerous conflicting emotions rushing through him all at once. 

At first, he's unsure of the best approach for you, but eventually decides to just calmly ask you the next time the two of you are alone. 

Price doesn't want to pry -- he won't force an answer out of you if you haven't told him on your own time. So, he simply asks if he can help. 

If you choose to let him, he'll sweetly - and silently - tend to your neck and recommend some personal remedies since he's had many types of wounds over the years. He likes to joke that at his age, he's got an answer for everything. 

If you do decide to let him in, he's all ears: listening to you without adding in any unnecessary comments. Waiting until you explain that you struggle with a skin condition - have since you were born - and when the weather changes, that can be the worst for it at times. Sending you into a fit of resisting and giving in when you can no longer bear it. 

Like Soap, after he hears this, he does his best to try and help you. Whether that's gently reminding you to resist scratching as much as possible, or helping you care for it afterward. It doesn't matter. 

John just wants to help. 

Ooh, also asks if you'd like to borrow one of his scarves, just in case you'd like to cover up. If not, he doesn't take it personally. 

Soap―

At first, I can see him thinking the marks are possibly hickeys from afar. Once he realizes that its actually marks from you scratching at your neck, he's quick to apologize for his assumption. 

Afterwards, he'll soften his approach. Speaking quietly to you, bringing you somewhere where the two of you can have a private conversation over things. 

Like Simon, he's a curious man. He just wants to understand why. Though, he'll also understand if it's something you're not comfortable discussing. 

You mention it's a horrible habit you've struggled to break throughout the years, but even so, you're working on it. 

Either way, he just wants to make sure you're okay.

He helps patch you up if you allow him to. 

After he makes sure you're taken care of and tended to, I can see him wanting to help distract you if he can as well. 

He'll make sure the two of you do something that will help you keep your hands occupied with tasks. 

When he can, he helps keep you too busy to scratch, if he can help it, and if you're willing to put up with him. 

Please do, he just wants to be a sweet and helpful man~ 

König―

His eyes widen when he catches sight of the marks on your neck. At first, he's worried someone else hurt you and frankly, is out. For. Blood. Until you explain otherwise. 

If you choose to let him in as to why you scratch, he'll nod silently, letting you know he understands. 

If you let him know that the marks on your neck are from you scratching - for numerous reasons you don't delve into - König is silent for a while. Taking in everything you mentioned before nodding quietly. 

He doesn't get upset or hold it against you. 

Similar to Ghost, I personally see him as the strong and silent type during moments like this. 

His anxiety makes him worry and overthink any response that comes to mind, so he ends up not saying anything. Afraid that he'll say the wrong thing and accidentally offend you. 

Still, despite the silence, you can tell he means well. 

His large hands are a bit rough from years of warfare but even so, he touches you so gently that you barely even notice. Or care for that matter. 

Allowing him to tend to your wounds helps the both of you; it reassures you that he cares about you in his own ways. And, he likes being able to care for you, even if he can't really help stop you from scratching at your own skin. 

Really, he just likes to be as helpful as he can possibly be.

[hearts-hunger]

evergreen — part two

Read on AO3 | Masterlist | Cabin Fever Masterlist | Join my taglist here!

Series Summary: Jake takes you on your first vacation to the cabin the gang stays at every year. When memories of past relationships loom heavy, will this vacation send cracks through the foundation of safety and trust you have in each other?

Chapter Summary: You're trying to let the past stay in the past, but Jake keeps making it difficult.

Pairings: Jake x Reader, Josh x Baby, Sam x Danny | Genre: fluff, angst, emotional h/c | Word Count: 4.4k | Warnings: smoking, sexual innuendo, mentions of infidelity

A/N: Hehehe more Jake being and idiot and Sparrow struggling emotionally. We're in for a little more before the end, but at least Baby and the boys are there for them ♡

You woke to a late morning sun, dappled daylight shining as well as it could through the trees growing right outside the window. Jake was on top of you, as he always was, his legs tangled with yours and his arm snugly around you, his face tucked into the crook of your neck. You absently brushed his hair back from his face, trying to take stock of yourself as you became aware of a vague, constant achiness.

Oh, right — margaritas strong enough to down a grown man, one cigarette too many, sleeping in a bed you'd felt completely uncomfortable in. All that was why you felt like you'd been run over by a truck. You needed to shower and take something for your headache and get out of this bed you hated with every fiber of your being, but you couldn't face trying to move just yet. 

Jake stirred and moved closer to you, if that was possible.

“Sparrow,” he mumbled. “You awake?”

“Yeah,” you said. “Hi.”

“Hi yourself.” His morning voice was deep and raspy. “What the hell did we drink last night?”

“The whole liquor cabinet.”

He gave a soft laugh that trailed off into a groan. “Yeah, I guess so. You feel okay?”

“Oh, I feel super,” you said. “How do you feel?”

“Like roadkill.”

You snorted. “Sexy.”

He propped himself up a little, looking down at you with a scrunchy, dazed kind of smile. 

“If you say so,” he said. “That reminds me. We were gonna do some swashbuckling last night, weren't we?”

“We sure were,” you said, “before you passed out.”

“Right.” He gave you a quick smooch good morning, as he always did. “Sorry about that. I can make it up to you right now if you want.”

You gave a doubtful hum. “We need to shower. And brush our teeth.”

“Oh, come on,” he coaxed. He kissed your neck. “Napoleon told his wife not to bathe for three days before he came home and ravished her.”

Though you usually wouldn't have minded some sweaty, tangled-up morning sex, there was no way you were doing that in this bed. 

“Too bad you're not Napoleon,” you said sweetly.

He didn't get the hint, perhaps too absorbed with kissing your collarbone. He was still dressed in his clothes from the day before, but you were in nothing but your underwear; you couldn't exactly blame him for exploring what was usually available for his enjoyment, but no part of you wanted him to touch you like that in this bed.

“Jake,” you said, gently pushing him off you. “Let me up, babe.”

He did, respecting your less subtle cue but giving you a wry smile. “You must really not feel good,” he teased.

It wasn't your hangover that was killing your libido, and you were a little annoyed that he didn’t know that. You sat on the edge of the bed, touching a hand to your pounding head.

He ran a soothing hand over your back. “You feel sick, honey?”

You didn't answer that. You did, but you didn't want to tell him why. You wanted him to use his brain and figure it out himself.

“I’m gonna go shower,” you said. You blindly grabbed a shirt from the drawer, and it happened to be Jake's “I'm the reason all the rum is gone” tee.

“Oh, now you’re just teasing me,” he said with a smile.

“I'm not teasing anybody,” you said, and you surprised yourself with how harsh it was.

He raised a brow. “Okay, sparrow. I’m just messing with you, baby. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable.”

You wanted to say that not meaning to didn't make it any better; in a way, it made it worse. Where did he keep his brain sometimes? You felt it was stupid for him to be so oblivious, or maybe you should be thankful that he was. If he wasn't thinking about Izzy, why should you be?

You gave him a half-hearted nod, raw with guilt and discomfort. “Okay. I’m just... not in a great mood. Sorry.”

“You’re allowed to not be in a great mood,” he said kindly. “Go get a shower, honey. You want coffee?”

His gentle care for you wore down your frustration. “Yes, please.”

“Okay. It'll be ready for you when you get out.”

You gathered up some clothes and headed for the upstairs bathroom, but you heard the shower running in there already, so you made your way to the downstairs bathroom. Sam was in the basement fooling around on the mellotron, and you were mildly embarrassed to be seen in your current state of undress.

“Sorry,” you said bashfully. “Just going to shower.”

He squeezed his eyes shut. “All good.”

You laughed. “Thanks. You're a gentleman and a scholar, Sam.”

“Oh, I try.”

You took a long time in the shower, letting the hot water ease your many aches. Even from the basement, you could smell the promised coffee brewing, and you came into the kitchen to see Jake and Danny working on breakfast.

“For you, my dearest,” Jake said, handing you a cup of coffee made just the way you liked it. “Danny reminded me that we're switching rooms, so I went ahead and moved our stuff.”

“Oh,” you said, pleasantly surprised and relieved. “Thanks, honey.”

“Sure.” He kissed your cheek. “I’m gonna go shower. You look like you're feeling a little better.”

“I am,” you said truthfully. All of your worries had been very quickly assuaged with a simple room reassignment, and you felt a huge weight come off of you.

He smiled. “I'm glad, honey.” He slapped a bottle of ibuprofen into your hand. “Eat up.”

You huffed a laugh and boosted yourself up onto the counter. Danny was working on pancakes, his hair up in a claw clip and a dishrag over his shoulder.

“Thanks for mentioning the room thing,” you said.

He smiled. “No problem, sparrow. I didn't say why, just asked him if we were still switching. I'm sorry you had to stay in there last night. You could have moved our stuff.”

“He forgot, and he was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow,” you said. “I figured it was easier to stay put.”

“You're a good man, Charlie Brown,” he said. “I’d be climbing the walls in a room Sam had been in with his ex.”

You gave a rueful hum around a sip of coffee. “I almost was. He wanted to get into some... extracurriculars, shall we say, just now, but you can probably figure out how that went.”

“Not the way he pictured it, I imagine.” He added to the growing stack of pancakes. “He still doesn't know why you don't want to be in there?”

You sighed. “I guess not. Maybe I should be glad he’s not thinking of her, but I can't get her out of my head.”

“Who, me?” Baby came into the kitchen wearing one of Josh’s shirts and sleep shorts. “Sparrow, tell me it's me. I need an ego boost.”

“Girl, I'd rather it was you. But no, it’s Izzy.”

She looked over at you as she made herself a cup of coffee. “You didn't tell me you were into masochism.”

You and Danny laughed.

“They stayed in Jake’s old room last night,” Danny explained. 

Baby's expression scrunched. “Oh, ew. Why?”

“Ask the genius,” you said wryly. “I guess it just didn't occur to him.”

She sighed and leaned against the counter. “Well, the Kiszka boys aren't famous for being the world's most observant on some things. Are you switching rooms?”

“Yeah, we kicked Sam and Danny out,” you said. Danny walked past you to take the plate of bacon to the table, and when both you and Baby reached out, he stopped and let you take some.

“Go round ‘em up,” Danny said. “Everything’s ready.”

You did as he said, and when you were all gathered at the table, the six of you enjoyed a leisurely breakfast peppered with mentions of how bright the sunlight was and requests to pass the ibuprofen. Jake sat next to you, one hand on the back of your chair, his thumb occasionally skating across your back in a soothing motion. That was one of your favorite things about him: those little, unobtrusive touches that told you he was there, that he was tuned into you even if he wasn’t talking to you directly.

“I heard you working on something earlier, Sammy,” he said. “Sounded very orchestral.”

Sam gave him a lopsided smile. “Yeah, it's just something I’m messing around with. Maybe a cool opening for Josh's ‘Heat Above’ song.”

“You want to put the mellotron on that?” Josh asked, animated.

“I was thinking kind of like Age of Man,” he said. “I can show it to you if you want.”

Josh was up out of his chair and down to the basement before anyone could stop him, if they'd been trying to, and Sam followed with a proud smirk on his face. All four brothers tried to impress each other with their new ideas, and you knew that Sam was pleased with Josh’s eager anticipation to hear what he’d been working on. 

At the other end of the table, Danny and Baby were talking about their plans for a Chopped-style cooking competition. You and Jake sat in companionable silence, nursing your coffee and enjoying each other’s closeness.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” he said after a moment. The sun caught in his hair, bringing out the hint of red in it. “I really was just teasing. You know I don't want anything from you that you don't want to give.”

You touched his cheek. “I know, honey. I shouldn't have snapped at you. I’m sorry too.”

He gave you a gentle kiss. “Love you, sparrow.”

You smiled. “Love you too, Jakey. I think I’m gonna read out on the porch for a little bit. You wanna come and be bored to death?”

He breathed a laugh. “If you want me to, sure.”

“Or you can go jam,” you offered. You patted his chest. “Actually, go do that. I know you'd rather be playing music than watching me read.”

He considered that. “Okay, what if — and here's another one of my theories — I bring my guitar out and play while you read?”

“Again, not a theory,” you teased. “But sure. If you want to, I’d like that.”

He left to get his guitar and you grabbed your book and refilled both of your coffees, heading out to the porch swing. He came out with a throw blanket and his acoustic guitar, and he tossed the blanket at you and managed to cover your head with it.

“Ah, I get it,” you said, your voice muffled. “You don't want to see me while you hang out with me.”

He chuckled and rearranged the blanket so it lay over your lap. “Sorry. My toss was a little over-zealous.”

He sat next to you on the swing, playing an aimless tune that eventually made its way into Jackson Browne's “These Days”. You tried to focus on your book, but his voice was so warm and soft as he sang that you couldn't help but watch him play.

He noticed and looked over at you, giving you a bashful smile. “What?”

“Nothing,” you said. “I just like watching you play.”

His cheeks pinked. “Lucky you got a guy who does nothing but play guitar.”

You smiled. “Yeah, it is lucky.” You watched as he effortlessly picked out the solo in skillful, intentional movements of his fingers across the strings.

“You know this is kind of our song,” you said.

He nodded in that distracted way you liked, when he was focused on playing but still listening to you. “Yes ma'am. I remember.” You'd danced to this song at the wedding where you’d been reunited last winter, the same wedding where you’d finally done something about the feelings both of you had had for each other even after years of being apart. 

“You know the words,” he said. “Sing with me.”

You blushed. “Oh, I dunno. I'd rather hear you without me screwing it up.”

He shook his head. “Your voice could never screw anything up, sparrow. Sing with me.”

You couldn't say no to him, not when he was so sweet to you. He started the next verse, and you offered a quiet, tentative harmony.

“Well I’ll keep on moving, things are bound to be improving these days.”

His smile was impossibly tender. “See? I told you. Beautiful.”

You leaned close and kissed him, slow and gentle and so in love with him.

“Say you love me,” you said softly.

He touched his nose to yours. “I love you, sparrow. More than you could ever imagine, and more than I could ever tell you.”

—

He went to join the guys downstairs after a while, and you felt a warm glow in your chest long after he’d left. You didn't know why you’d been so upset about the whole Izzy business — of course Jake was just being oblivious, and there was no malicious intent in his absent-mindedness. You decided to put the whole thing out of your mind and not let the idea of her intrude on your picture-perfect vacation to a beautiful mountain cabin with the ones you loved so dearly.

Putting a bookmark between the pages of your novel, you ventured inside after a bit to find everyone downstairs. Baby made room for you on the couch and shared her gummy worms, and you snacked contentedly while the boys worked on a song that wasn't entirely coming together.

“I don’t know, it feels a little boring,” Danny said. “It need something like — ” He played a driving beat on the drums, making ample use of the cymbals. “Something brighter.”

“It’s a ballad,” Jake said, shaking his head. “A love song. It just needs the bass drum and the toms, maybe.” He strummed a few chords, and Sam scrambled to join him on the bass. You watched, amused, as Jake was wholly absorbed in playing the tune at a blinding volume while Danny didn't play a single thing. 

Jake looked up. “Yeah, like that,” he said.

Danny lazily twirled a drumstick. “Well, I wasn't playing anything, so...”

Jake gave him an abashed smile. “Oh. Well, maybe it doesn't need any drums. It's just an acoustic thing.”

“You’re cranked up to the loudest, crunchiest tone possible,” Danny pointed out. “Play it on acoustic and I’ll see what I can do with that.”

Jake sigh was half irritated groan. “Maybe we should just scrap it.” He tied his hair up in a bun, and you knew he must be getting frustrated — Jake never put his hair up when he was playing unless he was fed up with it and needed a little less sensory input.

“I don't know, man,” Josh said. “It’s not terrible. I like the chord progression.”

“Okay,” Danny offered, “what if i build up with the drums, like start off with just the bass and come in later on the snare, but keep it soft, and give it a few splashes? Or — ” He extended his hand to Sam, and somehow Sam knew to toss him the egg shakers. “I’ll do some kind of maraca thing, and you can do a beat on the body of the guitar like that Iron and Wine thing.”

“So many things,” Sam teased. “Is that the technical term, Daniel?”

Danny shook a maraca at him. “Yes. Don't question the master.”

Sam put up a hand in surrender. “I wouldn't dare.”

Jake unplugged his guitar and slung the strap over his head. “Let me think about it for a minute. I might decide I hate it.”

His brothers were content to let him take a break, changing tacks to work on the song Sam and Josh had played around with earlier. It was obviously missing a guitar, but it didn't sound half bad with the mellotron and a bright, splashy drum beat to accompany Josh’s voice. 

Jake all but collapsed on the couch next to you. “Hi.”

You smiled. “Hi, honey. Rough day at work?”

He ran a hand over his face. “I guess. That song’s not my best work, but I thought we could try it.”

“Don’t give up on it,” you said. You handed him a gummy worm. “Here. A little something to take the edge off.”

He snorted. “Thanks.”

You brushed back a few wayward strands of hair that had missed the bun. “When did you write that song, anyway? I don't think I've ever heard it.”

“Sometime last year,” he said. “Summer before last, I think. I don't know.”

You tried to ignore the creeping doubt that you'd promised yourself you were done with. “Before you met me?”

“Well, not technically,” he reminded you. You’d been friends in high school before you’d lost touch for a few years. “But yeah, before we got together.”

“Right.” You hated the uncertainty in your tone. “And it's a love song?”

He sighed. “Trying to be, anyway.”

You bit the inside of your cheek. A love song that he'd written before you were together, presumably with someone else in mind. Izzy, namely. You felt a nudge from Baby, and you interpreted her sympathetic look to mean something like I’m sorry he keeps being stupid and you can't really blame him for it at the same time.

You let out a long breath. You knew you couldn't hold his past relationships against him, but it didn't exactly feel great to know he was working on an old love song he’d written for her. You wondered how terrible a girlfriend you would be if you told him to scrap it like he wanted to.

You steeled yourself. No, you remembered, you weren’t going down that road. The past was in the past, and you’d let it stay there, where it belonged, buried six feet underground.

That was a little morbid, granted. You didn't want Izzy six feet under, though you did wish for some karmic payback for the pain she’d caused Jake. But it wasn't yours to deliver, so you'd support this song if he really wanted to make a go of it.

You patted his thigh. “Come play some Pac-Man with me.”

“Ooh, me too,” Baby said, getting up to go with you to the game on the far side of the basement crowded with a pool table, a pinball machine, and a foosball table. Jake followed somewhat reluctantly, but you knew him; he couldn't pass up an opportunity to beat the pants off of you in any game. He was usually successful, except in spades, which he was terrible at for some reason; then, he always insisted on being on your team and letting you carry the two of you to victory. 

As you played, he tried to give you pointers, but you were resigned to being awful at it. 

“Come on, honey,” he laughed. “It’s kinda like skipping stones, remember? All in the — ” Your Pac-Man dissolved and died. “All in the wrist.”

You let him have a go, and he was much better at it; you and Baby watched intently as he moved up a couple levels before he lost. 

“Damn,” he said, looking at the high scores. “Who's that at the top? That was one of us, right?”

He looked to Baby, and she fidgeted a little beside you.

“I think... I think it was Izzy,” she said cautiously.

He didn't say anything for a moment, and you listened with baited breath for how he would react.

“Huh,” he said finally, his tone as even as could be, as if revisiting a pleasant memory. “Yeah, I think you're right.”

As stupid as it was, you couldn’t stop the hot spark of frustration that flared to life in your chest. 

“Guess she knew all about the wrist technique, or whatever,” you said flatly.

He shrugged. “I guess. She was good at that sort of thing.” He stepped aside to let Baby play, and she glanced over at you with an uncertain expression.

“You want to get beaten in foosball too?” Jake asked you, a playful smile on his face.

“No, thanks.” You turned to Baby. “Does Josh have any cigarettes hidden away somewhere?”

“Yes, and I’ll show you where,” she said, “because it’s a dumb hiding place where he thinks I won't get at them.”

She gave you a conspiratorial smile and looped her arm around yours, abandoning her game. 

“You’re gonna die!” Jake protested.

“Sparrow needs me,” she said tartly. “Besides, who cares about a score on Pac-Man?”

You were glad she could sass him when you couldn't quite get up the nerve to, and you let her lead you upstairs to the room she and Josh were sharing.

“Holy shit, is he dumb or what?” she asked, rooting through Josh's backpack. She put on an affected voice. “Oh, she’s so talented and good at that sort of thing that you're bad at. What a moron.”

You couldn't help but laugh, thankful for her lighthearted tone and collusion with you in your frustration. She reached elbow-deep into the backpack and finally found the pack of cigarettes, holding them up triumphantly. 

“Ha! Take that, Joshua.”

The two of you went out to the porch, leaning against the railing as you smoked. The air was chilly and fragrant with pine, and you closed your eyes and let the breeze soothe your riled emotions.

“Am I overreacting?” you asked. “Maybe I’m making a big deal out of nothing.”

She shrugged. “I don't know, sparrow. I was lucky Josh never brought anyone else here.”

You blew out a thin stream of smoke. “And Josh never had any serious relationships before yours, did he?”

“Not really, which is also lucky.” She looked a little wistful then. “We were too busy pining over each other to worry about anybody else, I think.”

Though you’d all been friends your last year of high school and the summer after graduation, you knew Baby had practically grown up with them. You hadn't been surprised to find out that she and Josh were together when you met up again last winter, and it also didn't surprise you that they'd spent a long time secretly in love with each other without saying it.

“Did you ever have a crush on the other guys?” you asked. “Even just a little thing?”

Her smile was telling. “Not really. I guess I thought Danny was a looker when he grew out of his awkward middle-school phase, but I like my guys a little shorter and weirder.”

You laughed. “I guess we have similar tastes.”

She flicked her cigarette. “In that way, yeah. But Jake and Josh are as different as night and day, you know that.”

“Sun and moon,” you said, remembering with fondness the comments you'd seen on social media posts featuring the twins.

She smiled. “Yeah, sun and moon. Sometimes a dumbass sun and moon, but hey.”

You sighed and put your cigarette out. “I don’t know what to do. Sam said I should tell him.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that advice from him before,” she said wryly. “Tends to be solid, but it’s easier said than done.”

“No kidding.” You heard the sound of Jake’s guitar join the song drifting from inside. “Would you tell Josh? If he was doing something like this?”

“Well, I'd like to think I wouldn't have to,” she said. “But... yeah, I would. I trust Josh. And I trust Jake, and I know you do too, even if he’s being an idiot.”

You scuffed your shoe against the railing. “Yeah.” You did trust Jake; you trusted him with every part of you, even the most vulnerable ones, and he’d cherished and honored that trust every time it had been put to the test. Why was this time so hard for you?

Baby gently bumped her shoulder against yours. “Why are you scared to tell him? You know he’d understand how you feel.”

You crossed your arms over your chest. “I don't know.” You hadn't talked to anyone about this before, not even your best friends who would surely have listened and given you advice, but you wanted to try and talk to Baby about it now.

“We’re out of the honeymoon phase, I guess,” you said. “Not that that’s a bad thing, and not that I expect us to break up or anything, but...”

“It's hard,” she said kindly. “I get it. The first time Josh and I had a big fight, a few months after we got together, I cried the rest of the night. I went super crazy and catastrophized the whole thing.”

That was a familiar feeling. You'd bickered more with Jake these past few months than you ever had when you first got together, and sometimes it had devolved into an actual argument. You hated it, but it was a natural part of relationships.

“I’m not used to that sort of thing,” you confessed. “Me and Jake... this is my first serious relationship, and I don't know what the hell I’m doing. I want to marry him, and I think he’s that serious about me, but... he was probably that serious about Izzy too.”

She didn't say anything for a moment, and you felt your heart sink. “He was, wasn’t he?”

She sighed. “I don't know. I won't lie and say he didn't love her. And I guess she loved him too, as much as you could love a person while still being able to cheat on them, which maybe isn't much.”

She put her cigarette out. “Jake’s like a totally different person with you, sparrow. He lights up like a firefly whenever you're around. I didn't know if he’d ever recover from Izzy, but he has with you, and he loves you like you're his heart.”

You swallowed around the tightness in your throat. “Really? You're not just saying that?”

She took your hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “No way, sparrow. You know me — I’m a straight shooter. And you fit with us like you were made for us, just like you do with Jake.”

You squeezed her hand back. “I love you.”

Her smile was a little wobbly. “Aw, sparrow, I love you too. I'm so glad you're in our family.”

“Me too,” you said softly.

She kissed your cheek. “I think Sam’s right. Go talk to Jake. You’ll feel better, and Jake will stop being so dumb, and then you can have super great celebration sex.”

You laughed, really laughed, and she laughed with you.

“You know I’m right!” she said. She gave you a gentle push towards the door. “Go get ‘em, tiger.”

You stopped at the door and looked back at her.

“I’m really glad you're my friend,” you said.

Her smile was warm and very kind. “Me too, sparrow.”

taglist: @viagvf @allieisacrybaby @itsafullmoon @spark-my-nature @anthemheatwave @xserenax-13 @musicspeaks @mountain-in-springtime @stardustsecret @alwaysonthemend @madneedshelp @josh-iamyour-mama @dannythedog

and some cabin fever besties who were excited for this one :)  @shutupdevvie @gold-mines-melting @earthlysorrows @brooke-gvf

join my taglist here!

[sugusat0us]

drag racer!toji hcs

wc : idk :3

content : fem reader, modern!au, no curses!au, suggestive (?) content (reader strips), toji calls reader "minx" and "doll", reader is described to be smaller than toji, slightly oblivious reader, profanity

notes : read this for some context ! drag racer!toji *vibrates* i need. . . to expand on him. . .

whenever you seem upset about something, toji always tries to cheer you up. he may not be a man of many words, but he always finds other ways to lift your spirits.

after a bad day, you decided to hang around toji's mechanic shop. he's always had a keen eye, so it's no surprise that he picked up on your somber mood quite swiftly. he decides to swing by the break room and grabs two cold cans of your favorite drink. "here, thought this'd cheer y'up." he says, reluctantly offering you the chilled drink with a sheepish expression on his face, avoiding your gaze. "how'd you know i even like this?" you ask, gratefully accepting the metal can that began to sweat under the summer's heat, pressing it to your warm cheek. "saw some empty cans of it when you dropped off y'r ride off to get it detailed," toji replies as he settles his large frame beside the set of stairs you were seated on. "you know," he begins as he cracks his own can open, "y'should keep that ride of yours cleaner. s' a stunner of a car, that's for sure." but his words seemingly go in one ear and out the other. the fact that he remembered such a small detail about you makes you forget whatever had upset you earlier.

rivals to lovers. . . mayhaps. . .

one day, you and toji got into a small argument over who's smarter out of the two of you. so, to settle the quarrel, you both decided on taking one of those completely-bullshit online tests.

as you were diligently taking this "free iq test," you couldn't help but notice toji repeatedly clicking the "c" option. . . for every single question. jokingly, you asked, "why are you choosing 'c' for everything? do you wanna lose?" with the biggest shit-eating grin spread across his scarred lips, toji replied, "well, when in doubt pick 'c', right?" in that moment, your expression changed from shock to amusement. shaking your head and laughing, you couldn't believe that of all people, toji was the one you couldn't get over.

unsurprisingly, toji is really street-smart

one time, the cops raided a race that you and toji were supposed to participate in. as you were hurrying to get to your car to make a quick getaway, you noticed toji struggling to open the door to one of his older cars that he chose to race in that night.

"fushiguro! leave it, we don't have any time!" you shout at toji over the loud commotion and sirens. "they're gonna tow my ride!" toji growls back, growing more impatient at the stuck door handle. "you're worried about the wrong thing right now. just get in my car, shiu'll figure something out! he always gets everyone's shit back if the price is right." you reason. toji notices how your tone only grew increasingly concerned, so he begrudgingly complies. "fine, fine. i'll go with you. jus' drop me off at the shop. or swing us around the spot for a bite, all this crap has got my stomach grumblin'." he sighs as he ducks down into the passenger seat of your car, clicking his seatbelt on. you raise a brow at his notorious freeloader suggestions. "your a real piece of work, fushiguro, y'know that?" you joke as you pull out of the crowded meet-up scene. "s' only fair! you don't ask a guy out and not buy him some grub," he huffs, jokingly crossing his arms across his broad chest and turning to face the window. "that is definitely not what the saying is, and i definitely did not ask you on a date!" you exclaim, exasperated. toji really is something else.

another time, you stopped by toji's shop hoping he could walk you through an oil change on one of your older cars. the truth was, you already knew how to do it, but you just wanted to spend some time with toji.

"tojiiii?" you called out in a sing-song tone, but he was nowhere in sight. it wasn't until he heard your honeyed voice ringing through the shop that he hopped off his ass and jogged over to greet you, his cheeks stained with grease and his white tank top and jumpsuit covered in it. not that you were complaining, but you wished you could see him wearing his jumpsuit properly instead of with the upper half tied around his well-defined torso. "wha'sup doll? why're you here dressed up nice?" he asked, resting his hands on his hips as he scanned your smaller frame. "thought you could show me how to do an oil change on one of my older cars. . . but i completely forgot how messy this place can get. i shoulda worn something else, huh?" you nervously grinned, not prepared for the possibility of rejection. "oh, yeah! no worries. f'sure i can. i got some spare jumpsuits and tanks you can change into. don't worry 'bout it." your request initially shocked him, but he grew excited at the opportunity to both spend time with you and teach you something. "seriously?! you're the best, toji!" you exclaim, gratefully taking both of his large, calloused hands in yours. toji blushes. "don' mention it. it's nothin'." he replies before retracting one of his hands to run down his face, unable to believe the effect you have on him. he starts to lead you down to his office so you can change into some more appropriate clothing, but he forgets that your hand is still in his. the skin-to-skin contact is short-lived as he lets go of your hand to unlock the office door. "here're the smallest jumpsuit and tank i got. lemme know if y'need anything-" he says, turning to hand you the clothes. however, he soon gets choked up mid-sentence as you've already started stripping your top off in front of him. "yeah! i'll get you toji, don' worry." you reply, your voice muffled from behind your top. clearly, you don't understand the effect you have on toji. "what're you doing, you minx? i'm still in here!" he splutters as he clambers out of his office, both his ears and neck now warm. "fucking christ. . ." he groans, making his way towards the washroom to cool down his face with some water.

after that entire fiasco, toji often played pranks with you while you were under your car changing its oil. he does all sorts of things, from splashing water on the lower half of your frame that hangs from under the car to dragging you out by your ankles. he's so annoying (affectionate).

tags : @yunymphs @prttyangelz @maeby-cursed

© 2023, sugusat0us

[eisforeidolon]

Hellers are twisting Jensen's words around because they don't like what he said,

"He doesn't think Cas's confession is something that needs to be solved. Cas said what he needed to say. It was a long time coming, it was heartfelt and beautiful. But there's nothing to solve. Dean took it in and then lost one of his closest allie and friend. The acceptance of that happened when Dean sat on the floor. He lost one of his brothers in arms and one of his closest people. When they come back, it just understood."

First, a sampling of posts with screenshots and links of some of the creative reinterpretations they're already self-soothing with, for context: [X][X][X]

It's bad enough now, because we already knew they were obsessed with cherry-picking things completely out of context and twisting themselves in knots to insist D/C, a totally real most epic romance ever was obviously happening off-screen the whole time. Because that's totally how storytelling works!🙄 So why wouldn't they insist Jensen saying Castiel's dying blather doesn't need a resolution means Dean already turned into the YA romance protagonist from their fanfic realized he was totes in lurve with the angel and reciprocated offscreen! See, no resolution needed! The thing is, though, I believe Purcon is one that has a stricter video policy so I expect this to end up even more broken-telephoned in a couple of months when there's no video to dispute whatever they're making up by that point, which I expect to be pretty wild.

What Jensen reportedly said fits exactly into what Castiel actually said in Misha & Beren's tapdancing on the line of legit queerbaiting the audience Castiel's goodbye speech. The whole climactic reason the Empty could come take the angel away was because he realized that just ~*feeling feelings*~, without having anything come of it, was enough. Regardless of whether you interpret those feelings as romantic love or the kind of all-encompassing self-sacrificing love the Winchesters have, feeling that way about somebody is happiness in itself (even if they don't feel that way about you). So yeah, whatever kind of love you read that to mean? There's nothing to inherently resolve there. Castiel put his feelings out in the universe, and Dean listened and moved on with his life. The thing that was "a long time coming" was Castiel's resolving his struggles as an angel living among humans trying to understand emotions and friendship. It's "clear text" that Castiel said I love you (whatever kind of love you interpret that to be).

Hellers are the only ones who desperately need there to have to be a resolution to that scene, because the only interpretation in which a followup would be necessary? Would be if Castiel's speech was romantic AND Dean also had romantic feelings. They can pretend they suddenly don't understand what a resolution is or that one magically (like the entire rest of their supposedly canon ship) happened off-screen so it'll be already happening in the revival as much as they want. It doesn't change what the scene actually was or what Jensen actually said, any more than the rest of their waffle ever has. They're just happily lying to themselves and each other all over again, setting themselves back up for more eternal disappointment. It's like a Peanuts comic strip, except they are both Charlie and Lucy with the show and creators as the football.

They want to crow about Jensen not explicitly saying the scene wasn't about romantic love somehow being him changing his mind (again), but that's absurd. He knows some people interpret Castiel's feelings as romantic and are very invested in the angel being a queer character. Putting aside whether what's in the text deserves that, going out of his way to tell them they're wrong about someone else's character? Would be a really bad look given the sensitivity of the topic. And he doesn't need to do it anyway, because whatever Castiel's ~*feelings*~ are, it says nothing about what Dean does or doesn't feel. Which he directly says is that Dean lost "one of his closest allies" "one of his best friends" "a brother in arms" "one of the closest people to him". It's pretty clear - if you don't tie yourself in knots pretending he's sending you secret signals about what he REALLY means if you only listen to half the words he said.

[angelsworks]

Little Witch The last kingdom x reader

Chapter 4

Next Chapter -> H E R E

Series Masterlist -> Here

Type: Series

Summary: You recover from use of your powers. Later you have a vision where you meet someone from your past.

Warnings: 18 +, suggestive situations, etc

Uhtred moves toward your small form. Crumpled on the ground.

“Are you sure you want to do that mate?” Finan asks, still keeping a great distance between the two of you.

Uhtred turns to look at Finan with an eyebrow raised.

“I mean, what if she gets you with her mind powers.” Finan’s voice has an edge of mockery. But his concern is real. He’s just seen you melt a man’s mind without touching him. He’s not convinced you won’t do something similar to Uhtred. Even in your sleeping form.

“What harm can she do while asleep?” Uhtred remarks. If you could do something like this while at their camp, it was worth noting that you chose not to.

He’s feels more certain you have good intentions towards him and his fellow warriors. While he was not entirely convinced of your innocence, his reservations towards you dwindled. Having no trouble picking you up or being near you more now.

He could see now that you were nothing like Skade. He could see why men feared Skade, her outward appearance matched her inner intentions. Yet with you he sees no reason to be scared. Well not until a few moments ago. Compared to Skade your vision was much clearer and your power was clearly stronger.

Fate had sent you his way for a reason. Now he was sure he would accept it. Fate had not been kind to him recently. He argued that this might be a some sort of present from the gods. A way to make up for all of the bad.

He crouched near your body. Your breathing soft, as you lay on your side. Your tattered dress covered in dirt. Both old and new.

Uhtred brushes a piece of hair out of your face. Taking the time to observe the peace on your face, that he sees only when you sleep.

Finan sends a look towards Sihtric and Osferth. Realising that any advice he gave to Uhtred about not thinking with his cock, clearly went in one ear and out the other.

The feelings among Finan, Sihtric and Osferth were almost unanimous. They’d seen the disruption and trouble Skade had left. They expected the same from you. Yet watching you today changed some of their perceptions.

They had decided you couldn’t be truly evil. Not when you went out of your way to save Osferth. At a tax to your own health.

They had decided to no longer judge you based of your appearance. You may look small and weak physically, but they were forced to stretch their ideas of strength after watching you force a man to his God with just a look.

The one perception that did not change was that you were dangerous. If they were not friends with Uhtred, they would see him as dangerous. Dangerous because of his immense strength and skill both on and off the battlefield.

You were dangerous because you were both a witch and a stranger. They had no stories shared with you, no memories, no battles. They didn’t know the first thing about you. Not even your name.

Uhtred reached his arms underneath you, picking you up and carrying you to his horse. He struggled little as he mounted his horse with you in his arms. Positioning you to straddle his lap, leaning your head on his chest. Drawing his own cloak around you.

Your body was limp. Even with the dead weight he thought your body too light. Your dress hid your shape. Though the contact between his chest and your body allowed him to realise how small you really were. As his arm held you close he could almost feel your bones through the thin layer of skin covering them.

He would make sure you were fed properly from now on. If you were to stick around he wouldn’t want you weak.

The horses went back into formation as they walked down the road again. Finan beside him. Osferth and Sihtric behind. All being extremely quiet.

“What will become of her?” Osferth asks, voice gentle. Mind contemplating your fate. Fate that now in rested in their hands.

Uhtred thinks about it, “she stays with us, but we will still be cautious of her. Know now she is no fake.”

“So have you decided to keep her then?” Finan’s question makes him snort. The sound making you stir beside him.

“A witch this powerful,” he looks down to you once more. “I would be foolish not to.”

Your mind is blank. Emerged in darkness.

A dull light emerging from the darkness works to break your unconscious state. The drowsiness of your mind begins to agitate you, as you struggle to escape it. You feel your mind try to awaken but your body is still numb. You try to move your arms, lift your lids, stretch you toes. All prove fruitless.

Slowly, the drowsiness begins to clear and your mind begins to sharpen. It feels as thought knives are being pushed through your skull as you begin to wake up. The pain solicits a groan, which passes your lips. Breaking the seal between them.

As you stir you are made acutely aware of your surroundings. The sound of horses hooves surround you. Your body is rocked forwards and backwards, a motion you match to being on a horse. Your face feels the cold of the wind, yet your body does not. A thick cloak covers you.

Your nose is filled with the scent of wood, leather and musk. The last scent makes your eyes flip open. You see the detailing of Uhtred’s chest plate. You comprehend the position your in. Practically wrapped around Uhtred’s front, face pressed into his chest, while his arms wrap around you and hold the reins. They act as barriers, securing you in place.

You want to feel embarrassed but your main concern is the pain radiating from your body. It was the same when you killed one of Steffens men. It made your body weak and drained your energy. The feeling was in no way pleasant.

This time you were already so weak before you killed the bandit. You weren’t sure what energy you had left to drain. All you knew was the pain you felt was worse than the last time and if Uhtred wasn’t holding you up, you’d lost likely be on the floor.

You groaned again as you moved your head to look at Uhtred.

“Easy witch, you move any more and you’ll fall from my horse.”

You said nothing as you stilled your body. Trying to remain as still as possible. While practically balancing on his lap.

While the position is not proper, being so close to someone else brings you comfort. You can’t remember the last time you had a hug or any sort of intimacy you enjoyed.

Reality breaks and you remember now more clearly, what you’ve done. How disturbed Uhtred and his men must be. They must think you’re the devil himself. Evil reincarnated.

You wonder why he holds you so close. So you can’t escape? Are they planing to turn you in? To take you somewhere worse than their care?

Your already laboured breathing gets impossibly harder to push out.

“I’m sorry.” You whisper pathetically. Trying to steady your panic.

“For what little witch?” Uhtred’s tone does not sound angry. In fact, this is the calmest you’ve heard him be.

You focus on the sounds and smells around you. Trying to ground yourself. You focus on the gentle sway from the horse, the cold on your face and Uhtred being so close. It creates a dream like calm. One that helps you to try and speak without crying.

“For killing that man.” Your eyes are focused on the trees as they go by.

“He planned to do the same to Osferth.” He points out.

Yet still you feel uneasy, guilty even. For exposing your dark powers to them. Making your relationships with them more strained, if not broken.

“I’m sorry I killed him the way I did.” You murmur. Not quite sure he’d even heard you.

Uhtred sighs, not sure what to say to you. While he’s starting to realise how powerful you truly are, he sees that you are no Skade. The thoughts leave him feeling conflicted.

“Try to sleep witch. We will speak later.” His words do little to reassure you from your doubts. Regardless you try to fall back to sleep.

Your exhaustion is apparent once again, when your body slips quickly into a limp state. Your eyes closing. Your nose filled with Uhtred’s scent. And finally you go back to sleep.

At some point in your sleep your mind becomes awakened with colour.

A bustling market filled with people becomes clearer. You see Uhtred beside you. A rope wound around your wrist is attached to his own. Tethering you to him so you can’t run away.

The picture turns to an alleyway off to the side of the market. Down it you see a figure adorned in a dark blue cloak. The cloak is familiar. It’s not until the hood is pulled down that you see her. Astrid. The sight is enough to fill your heart with joy. It’s a welcomed difference from the previous dread and panic you felt.

The next time you wake the sky is grey. Not with night, but with a muggy morning gloom. A camp has been made around you but it’s deserted. The fire put out. Small bowls and other items lay around it.

You take a deep breath in as you try to sit up. Your side aches. The feeling making you wince. You are glad no one is around. You can’t think of any convincing lies for your injuries.

The cloak is still wrapped around you from yesterday. You find your ankle tied once more to the floor. The sight making you sigh.

On the other side of camp, out from the trees Osferth emerges. He sees you awake and gives you a weak smile. He walks over to the camp, packing away the bowls and other items on to the four various horses.

Finally he comes over to you, hesitant. He crouched in front of you. Looking deep into your eyes. As if searching for something.

Even though he doesn’t consider himself a monk anymore, Osferth still feels he is a holy man in his soul. His previous life has set expectations for how sin and evil will appear to him.

Before he talks to you he looks in your eyes. Searching for any indication you are evil.

He sees a frightened girl, eyes wide. Trying to appear braver than she is. He sees a girl who saved him, despite their poor treatment of her.

“Thank you for saving me.” You nod. Voice weak. Unsure what to say to him.

He pulls out a flask, offering it to you. Without appearing too eager you take the flask. Pulling at the top and taking a large swallow. You don’t care what the liquid inside is. Water, ale, whisky. It could be poison for all you know. As long as your spit stops tearing your throat at every swallow, you’ll die happy.

Thankfully it’s just water. You’re tempted to joke about it being holy water, but feel that with Osferth it may be true.

With the flagon half empty you hand it back to him.

“Thank you.” The water had done wonders for your throat. Words now coming out smoother than before.

He tries to reciprocate your smile and does so poorly. It’s clear he still, like the others, has his reservations about being near you.

Soon after Finan and Sihtric return. Regarding you with impartial gazes, not saying anything. They pack up any items left around the camp before preparing to saddle up.

You don’t notice when Uhtred comes beside you to untie your ankle. Instead lost in thoughts of Astrid and seeing her again.

“Witch, you ride with me.” Is all he says before picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder. The action jostling your sore body. Your bite your lip to hide your moan.

He places you on his horse and climbs behind you. Taking the reigns and setting off. Once again in front with Finan.

You doubt a piece of rope could be put between you and Uhtred with how close you are. Your ass directly in front of his crotch. The rock of the horse bumping you gently together. The feeling of it making you blush.

It would be a long ride to town. At least you know you would reunite with Astrid.

[donutsupremacy]

Pocky Game

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Summary

"Hey, [Choice of Character]! Wanna try this new treat with me?"

Warnings

Pocky Game and the rules are likely inaccurate lol

Male characters only

Included are HALF of the male characters (A-K)

Organized from name and region

Mostly all fluffy

I didn't specify the flavour, so just pick ur favourite pocky flavour

Steamy ones marked with (⚠️)

Some cussing

1000% Ooc

Written during Version 3.5

Part 2 will be made eventually

A/N: YES I KNOW POCKY DOESN'T EXIST IN GENSHIN— yet.

For the sake of this imagine, just pretend that the regional chefs made it

Charachers specifically included are (Not in order);

Albedo / Al Haitham / Ayato / Baizhu / Bennett / Capitano / Childe / Chongyun / Cyno / Dainsleif / Diluc / Dottore / Gorou / Itto / Kaeya / Kaveh

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Mondstat

"When Sara created it, she also made a new based on it. She said that it would be best to play it with a partner, so... would you like to play a game with me?"

Albedo

➷ Both of you are in Dragonspine and it was c o l d.

➷ You explained Albedo the rules as best as you could, ignoring the freezing wind nipping at your skin.

➷ Albedo didn't mind games, he played with Klee all the time. And when you said; 'The loser is delcared when they break the stick, or gets kissed by the opponent' Hah, giving you a small reward doesn't sound so bad~

➷ So, you placed the stick in between your teeth, pointing at the other hand excitedly for your boyfriend who wasted no time and joined you

➷ You were struggling, specifically because of the weather. No matter how close you were to the torch, you could be standing on it and still freeze to death. And since you were shivering a lot, that made the treat move around, the fragile stick nearly breaking.

➷ Still, you were determined to NOT lose. So you sucked it up and slowly chipped your way to his lips, not realizing you were close to kissing him.

➷ Noticing how cold you are (and how you're about to win), he pulled you into his arms while taking a large chunk of the stick, a sly smirk evident on his face when you began to panic over the close proximity between you and him.

➷ You lost when you absentmindedly took a much bigger bite than just chipping a tiny bit, your nose grazing against his. And at that touch, you instinctively broke the stick by biting down on it and turning away to hide your blushing face.

➷But Albedo's not gonna have that so he just pulled you in and simply kissed you on the lips, affectionately holding your warm cheek.

➷ "It seems we have a winner. But I am unable to taste the treat flavouring's... would you mind if I steal another taste from your lips?"

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Bennett

➷ Dawwww idk if you being excited was cuter or him accepting immediately is more cute.

➷He wouldn't really try to win, his bad luck can just automatically make him lose anyway. But since you'd probably get upset if he didn't try, it wouldn't hurt to look like he's trying to win.

➷ So there you guys sat under the large tree of Windrise, a stick in your mouths and chipping away at the treat, slowly inching your way to his mouth.

➷ But then you'd chicken out. About 6 rounds in.

➷ Bennett thinks it might be his bad luck doing this, because you kept breaking the stick instead of kissing him (which he at least wanted since he wouldn't win anyway), and this was the last pockey stick you had.

➷ Well, good things come to those who don't wait around. Too bad that doesn't work for him.

➷ So right before you could even break the stick, it was his turn. What he did was this; Take a huge bite foward and headbutt you instead of actually connecting lips with you.

➷ You fell backwards, into the water as you were both playing close to Windrise's river. Bennett obviously panics and attempts to rescue you despite the river's being shallow. You got slapped in the face by 5 fish tails but you were eventually 'rescued'.

➷ This was pretty normal honestly, but you weren't mad... The reason your face is red was because you failed to kiss him again because he headbutted you.

➷ "I-I'm sorry about my luck, [Name]. We shouldn't have played so closely to the river of all places, that's my fault for being so careless... Huh? Why did I hit you? It wasn't on purpose!... U-Uhm... Ahaha, I guess you could say my plan kind of backfired?"

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Diluc

➷ Obviously, he'd think this game is pretty childish. I mean... it's just kissing with extra steps.

➷ He was writing a letter in his mansion when the maids suddenly arrived with you in tow, excitedly asking him to play a game with you. He'd turn you down first, stating he's busy (it's just a letter Diluc smh). You still managed to convince him, saying 1 round only takes less than 30 seconds if both players aren't a bunch of cowards.

➷ He also cursed himself for choosing such a cute S/O.

➷ So, he decides to play just 1 round. He stands up and leans over the table while you happily planted the stick between your mouths.

➷ He's quite fond of spending time with you, it's hard to make time for you when he's pretty busy, working nearly 24/7. So, just an excuse to be with you juuuust a little longer, he took smaller bites.

➷ Normally, he's not a coward, obviously. But when your lips inched towards him ever so slowly, that bravery and confidence of his diminished into nothing. His face flared up, eyes looking everywhere but you, his small bites turning into lil' nibbles.

➷ You noticed, of course. The corner of your lips tugging into a smirk at how shy he looked, you wanna milk this situation a little more hehe~ You decided to nibble instead of biting now, he was much aware of you, and very much embarrassed.

➷ This one game was torturously slow, to know that your lips were so close, yet, so far away. He just wanted to bang his head on the table, he's kissed you several times, why does this game meant to kiss you be so... embarrassing?

➷ Eventually though, curiosity got the better of you, you bite the stick and moved foward, head tilted a little. And now, your noses were touching, lips barely close enough to graze eachother.

➷ At that point, he realized he was just craving for your lips. But in the heat of the moment, he breaks the stick off, much to your disappointment.

➷ He stutters as he tells you the game is over, you wanted one more game but Diluc just says maybe later. So, you sighed and prepared to leave. Noticing how sad you were, he decides; "Fuck it" and stood up from his chair, the chair legs scraping against dhe floor loud enough to make you flinch.

➷ To fulfill his desire, he held your cheeks and planted a rushed but passionate kiss on your lips, you nearly withdrew from the suddenness— but then you melted into it.

➷ "...A-Ahem, there. You may leave now, I still have matters to attend to... What's with that expression? I only promised one game. If you want more, you can return here at night."

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Kaeya ⚠️

➷ Lol as if he'd turn a game like that down, especially when he sees how excited you are

➷ Half competitive, half teasing. He'd try to fluster you and win, with an additional bonus of getting you shy and riled up.

➷ Damn he's good.

➷ And right when you're about to finish the whole box of Pocky, you had enough if his endless flirts and dirty jokes regarding your mouth on a stick. So what did you do?

➷ Instead of breaking away like usual, you decided to grow some balls and grab his shirt, pulling him foward to lock lips with yours. Victory was now yours, and your prize?

➷ A very long and steamy make out session between the two of you in his office. The puzzled guards outside could only hear shuffling, as he quickly pins you against the wall, a thin string of saliva connecting the tip of your tongue to his.

➷ All that riling up was worth it. Now, you're caged between his arms and the wall against your back, you've fallen to his unplanned trap. But you didn't mind spending a few extra... hours in here. Curtains closed and doors locked, of course.

➷ "What's wrong? Can't handle a simple little kiss? My, my, you've grown rather rusty in this, haven't you... Is it because I haven't been around lately? Aww, sorry love, i've just been doing a lot of unnecessary paperwork. Here, let me make it up to you; First, i'll remove that pesky clothing of yours, yeah?"

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Liyue

"I know Xiangling's cooking can be... odd, but I promise; this one actually tastes amazing!... And, she even included a little game to it!"

Baizhu

➷ Dammit, Qiqi, leave the love birds alone!

➷ You both let the child stay, the pharmacy was pretty empty at the moment since it was getting late. Perfect time to persuade him into a game of Pocky.

➷ He'd never let his beloved S/O down, so, as you'd expected; he agreed. But even for a little game he'd stall out time a bit more, asking you for a bit of help before finally playing a round with you. He likes making things... unforgettable. In a romantic way.

➷ So, picture this; You and Baizhu sitting on the steps of Bubu Pharmacy, the dark blue sky with a sea of shining stars, the gorgeous sight of Liyue Harbor nearby illuminated with golden lights.

➷ Qiqi sitting on your lap or beside you, drinking coconut milk and watching people stroll around Liyue Harbor while Changsheng rested peacefully around your lover's neck.

➷ You took a moment to just absorb the tranquil atmosphere, you forgot just how beautiful Liyue can be at night.

➷ As soon as you faced Baizhu, he already had the stick in between his lips, waiting for you with that charming smile of his. No tricks or jokes were played, just the two of you slowly inching towards eachother.

➷ Despite it being your turn, the two of you leaned foward together, sharing a loving kiss.

➷ "I thank you for stopping by... Seeing you truly makes my day, it makes any mortal's life worth living. I know our love will last just as long as immortality could."

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Childe ⚠️ (I wrote this before deciding to put the Fatui, so just pretend like Childe is still in Liyue or smth lol)

➷ He thought those were chopsticks and when you took a bite he immediately tried to do the heimlich manoeuvre lol

➷ You explained to him that these were a new treat as well as the game's rules before you offered him one. He absolutely loved it and asked for another one— to which, you placed one in between your mouth and said "Come and get it" tauntingly.

➷ You challenged him, he's not gonna back down. His confused expression turned to a determined one, he was gonna win one way or another. You, on the other hand, got your competitive spirits turned up because of him.

➷ Unexpectedly, neither of you flinched at the touch of your lips, only declaring the other as the winner and quickly asking for one more round. None of you are gonna be the winner until the last bite. When it came to the last stick, both of you were just nibbling away an inch, until an imaginary light bulb went off above your head.

➷ You made your eyes half-lidded, placing a hand on his chest. Obviously, he jolted at your touch, but quickly gathered his composure. But when you slowly slid your hand down, you felt every bite he took grow harsher and harsher. Until he realized what you were doing.

➷ This is a way better prize than just a little kiss.

➷ You were both in his office, with you sitting on his lap, and that just allowed him to do absolutely anything to you. So he quickly broke the stick to turn you around, ignoring the fact that you won, and quickly pinning you from behind with your chest pressed against the table.

➷ Bent over and helpless, you realized what you had gotten yourself into. The harbinger's velvety laughter was heard right next to your ear, his gloved hands groping at your sides.

➷ His hand slowly glided down your sides, moving over to rub your thighs. A shiver ran down your spine as he plays with your clothing, staring down at you like a predator playing with it's prey. When a moan drew out from your lips after grazing a finger across a particularly sensitive area, that only fueled his hunger for you, and the desire to hear more.

➷ "You think just because you got the last bite means you're the winner?... Very well then, how about I give you your grand prize? Or should I say... my grand prize?"

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Chongyun

➷ I hope you placed that pocky in a fridge before finding him cuz he likes it c o l d

➷ Chongyun surprisingly feels a little hesitant, afraid that the game itself could get him to pass out from getting flustered. How did you both start dating without him passing out from excitement every time he sees you??

➷ However, you had already requested Xiangling to make a mist flower flavour for him, even if it could taste bad for you. But you made it specifically for him! How could he decline your offer?

➷ Despite your protests saying that his safety and comfort is far more important, he continued insisting for one round. Sure, he's afraid, but he wants you to be happy. And if getting a kiss from you makes you happy then hell fucking yeah.

➷ It took about half the box before he could finally stop getting dizzy at the close proximity of your lips, he still shakes like a leaf, but at least he's not passing out anymore.

➷ So to at least make him a little more comfortable, you decided to just nibble the smallest inch you could for every round.

➷ He was thankful for your patience towards him, he thought he might've made you frustrated for not controlling his excessive yang energy.

➷ And it was worth it once he finally reached the end, eyes sealed shut as the two of you shared a very short, but nonetheless cute kiss together.

➷ Right before he passes out with you having to drag him back home, you took care of him after that, frantically apologising for making him faint.

➷ "A-Ah, there's no need to make a fuss about it, [Name]... I genuinely had a fun time, even if I felt a little stressed. N-Not that I disliked being so close to you!... I always feel better when you're around."

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Inazuma

"Anna asked if I could taste test it, but then she told me it would be more fun if I had a partner to try it out with... Why don't we have a bite or two together?"

Ayato

➷ At first he declined, cuz it's not boba

➷ Eventually, he agreed, informing Thoma that he would take a small break with 'The lord's beloved'. Now, you two are alone in the room with the blonde pyro wielder standing guard outside, ensuring you two are left undisturbed. What a wingman.

➷ He chatted with you first, it's not a rush after all, he enjoys sitting across from you and hearing you babble on about your day before coming to visit the elder Kamisato sibling. Sure, he's busy, but will always make time just for you.

➷ After making sure you're comfortable, he moves next to you and briefly examines the treat, amused when you picked [Flavor].

➷ He placed a hand on top of yours, enveloping your hand in his warmth. You placed the Pocky treat between your lips and leaned foward for him, allowing him to plant his mouth on the opposite end.

➷ You were shy at first, yes, but calmed down when he slipped his hand underneath your, holding your fingers in a careful manner. His thumb brushing against your fingers, soothing you.

➷ It was over before you know it, you weren't even sure who was the winner as you both leaned foward at the end together, sharing a deliciously sweet kiss.

➷ "Such a rich and sweet flavor... Or perhaps, your lips must've contributed to the taste? Ahaha~ Don't be so flustered, you truly are the sweetest being in the world."

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Gorou

➷ He got worried thinking Yae Miko tricked you into this idea mwheheheheheh

➷ You needed to reassure him that Yae Miko had nothing to do with this. Unless you want to then you're l y i n g to him, but you're not in public so it won't give her any satisfaction since she can't see him suffer anyways.

➷ He took a taste test before hand, making sure it wasn't actually poisoned or anything. That fox has him very paranoid.

➷ One little nibble and he ate the whole stick, tail wagging left and right excitedly, his teal eyes sparkling happily. He looked so cute, you cooed at him, petting his fluffy golden hair affectionately while wiping away any cumbs on his smiling lips.

➷ Just to play and tease him a lil' bit, you lifted one pocky stick up and waved it in front of him. His eyes shined, ears twitching and tail swaying, asking you for it.

➷ You giggled and planted one end in his mouth before you took the other end. If the treat wasn't satisfying enough for Gorou, then receiving a lovely kiss from you just enhanced it drastically.

➷ After a couple more, the two of you cuddled, his cheek nuzzling yours.

➷ "Thank you for the treat, [Name]! It tastes absolutely amazing! Are you... perhaps— going to buy some more in the future? If you are, could we share it together? It'll greatly improve our morale and relationship!"

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Itto

➷ You decided to feed Ushi some first and that made Itto jealous

➷ Itto was more than happy to accept your offer, stammering over his words enthusiastically while you just watched him happily babble about winning the competition. Which eventually turned to him boast about a recent beetle fight that he totally won.

➷ You didn't have the heart to interrupt him, he looked so cute and you just let him ramble on before he realized he got off track.

➷ After an apology, you offered him one stick, letting him taste test. Of course, he absolutely loved it! So he asks for more, to which you proposed a game to.

➷ The winner has to buy more for the other! And that sure as hell motivated him enough to win. But you're just gonna let him win anyways, you don't want him to use Kuki's mora.

➷ Ya'll ever have those moments where you're both a little shy and super excited at the same time? Yeah, that's how he feels rn. He's a little shy at how close you were, but he's really excited to play a game with you.

➷ Of course, you let him win every round, with the first few rounds ending in him giving you a skittish kiss. Which soon turned into him giving you a biiiig smooch on the lips. 100% worth it!

➷ "Hah! I win! What did I tell ya', Babe? The One and Oni Itto never loses! But, hey, don't worry about it, let's call this is a draw, yeah?... Buuuut you also did promise the winner would get us some more... What? Yeah, I did say it's a draw... I know a draw means there's no winners or losers, but if there's none, then what are we; losers and winners at the same time? Win...sers??? Hey, th—"

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Sumeru

"Lambad was asking if I could collect any feedback on this treat, he even made up a whole game about it... do you wanna kill two birds with one stone and play the game while tasting it?"

Alhaitham

➷ Kaveh was asked to leave, enough said.

➷ For you, he'd gladly put his book down and go through with whatever nonsense you wanted to do with him. You're not annoying, thankfully, so he'd let some of your shenanigans slide. Seeing as this is just a quick harmless little game, he'll humour you.

➷ Once you grew flustered and broke of the stick, he became addicted to that reaction if yours and asked for another round.

➷ Ignore Kaveh's tantrum outside as you struggle to not break the stick whenever his lips were getting closed to yours, the way you hid your face whenever you did break it amuses him more.

➷ Eventually though, once the box was done, you didn't win a single round as you would just break the stick last minute. You've kissed him a dozen times, so why was kissing him this time so difficult?

➷ He then gave you his opinion on the treat, saying the taste could add some certain spice and got back to his book. But you stayed there for a couple of seconds, looking at the small empty box with an upset expression.

➷ It didn't take long for him to figure out why you're so sad... and he knew how to cheer you up, with the one thing that always made you smile the brightest.

➷ When you got up, he wrapped one arm around your waist and pulled you onto his lap, the other arm still holding the book with his eyes glued to the pages.

➷ He closed the book again and leaned in, eyes closed as he locks lips with yours. Your hands pressed up against his chest, feeling his muscular body keeping you warm.

➷ "There, you wanted that the whole time, didn't you? There's no need to be so shy, we've kissed multiple times before. We don't need a whole game revolved around the concept of our kisses or our relationship's intimacy... Though, I wouldn't mind playing it again sometime."

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Cyno

➷ Is this your way of asking him to... stick together? Mwehehehehhwhehwhehejsbheuqbduqbfibwk

➷ Cyno does not get flustered easily. But you couldn't resist seeing that faint red tint on his tanned cheeks, it's a rare sight and you know this the perfect opportunity to see him blush again.

➷ Cyno's a smart boi tho, he already knew your little scheme because you kept insisting to play the game instead of just tasting the treat alone. You're also not very convincing.

➷ Meh, why not. He shrugs his shoulders and pointed at his lips, allowing you to slip the treat into his mouth as you bit the other end.

➷ The tables have turned when you realized he was just staring at you plainly, unfazed by how close you were to him. When your noses were touching, all of a sudden— you're starting to regret this idea.

➷ You were the one who broke the stick, covering the lower part of your bright red face as you stammered out how bad of an idea this was and that you should leave now that you received his feedback. You begged him to not tell a single soul about this.

➷ Now he's the one pouting when you didn't reciprocate the kiss. He blocked your way, his tangerine coloured eyes staring at you in expectancy.

➷ It felt like a whole decade went by, just the two of you silently staring at eachother, and the sound of your heartbeat thumping loudly in your ears.

➷ He was kind of worried if he scares you enough to the point you actually turned into a statue. But when he placed a hand on your flushed cheek to ask if you're okay, your brain short-circuited and you quickly pecked his lips before fleeing.

➷ He stood there for a good minute, blinking slowly, before turning his head to your direction where you were gone. You were fast, he'll give you that.

➷ "[Name]?... Huh, maybe I should corner them a little more often. That blush on their face... no wonder they were incredibly persistent to play this game. Still, it seems like they didn't want to... stick around. Heheh. Heh. Heh."

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Kaveh (⚠️)

➷ Criticising the box design was the first thing he did lol

➷ But other than that, he'd gladly accept the offer. Unlike most of the gambling he did, he wouldn't be able to lose this one either way. Unless you're the one chickening out last minute and breaking the stick. Of course, you wouldn't do that, riiiight?

➷ So the two of you played a couple games, most of which he happened to lose willingly because he wanted to smooch you on the lips. Can you blame him? You're so intoxicating, you could make him escspe all his problems with a single kiss!

➷ And then Alhaitham comes in hueheuhejqbajqbdo

➷ He didn't seem fazed about this at all, just went in to pick up a file left on the table. But he did criticise about the two of you being too ballsy, saying that anyone could come in and witness 'a traumatic event'.

➷ Kaveh actually threw a book towards the male, who caught it expertly. Before he yelled at the scribe to leave, to which he happily did after jabbing a teasing statement towards you two.

➷ He groaned, rubbing his temples in annoyance. You cooed at him softly, petting his silky blonde hair and giving him reassurance.

➷ Seeing as he was still tensed, you decided to pepper his face with lil' kisses. He giggled, before pulling closer, arms wrapped around your waist as he also began littering kisses all over your face

➷ Soon, those sweet little kisses turned into a very long and passionate make out on his bed, with you straddling his hips and his hands gripping your waist.

➷ When the two of you pulled away, you could feel the tent in his tight pants throbbing against your thigh, the arousing heat in your abdoment was just as unbearable.

➷ The box of Pocky long forgotten and left on his table, nothing but eachother left in your minds that were clouded with lust.

➷ "Ah... You know, maybe you could stay here for a little while longer, I have been craving for... something with you~ Bah, who cares about that annoying scribe? Let him know you and I are having an intimate time together... something I know he'll never have for the rest of his life, hah!"

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Capitano (These parts are rather short due to lack of confirmation regarding certain information)

➷ Does his helmet thingy have a mouth for him to eat???

➷ Both of you are in his office, and since it's just the two of you, he'll lift it up and allow you see his face. Everytime he does this, you quickly sneak a peck on his lips, he enjoys it. A lot.

➷ He'll have you sit on his lap (or on a spare chair) as he does his work, but he'll multitask and play the game with you while he's at it.

➷ The two of you already locked the door, so no one's gonna ruin this lovely little moment between The Captain his Beloved.

➷ He's quite busy, so he'll pretend to win while in reality; he's more interested in getting kisses from you than the treat.

➷ "No need to fret, my expedition won't be starting any time soon. At the moment, all there is left to do is simply filing out certain recruits to their designated nations... It bores me, but with you, my dear... Not even my loyalty for the Tsarita can overpower my love for you."

Dainsleif

➷ This is gonna be set AFTER the journey with the Abyss Twin, but I won't mention which twin it is so feel free to use your imagination! (I'm not too into the lore so forgive me if I get if inaccurately)

➷ Betrayal is a painful feeling to endure. Dainsleif learned that first hand after an intense battle with you now former blonde companion. But in the end, trying to convince the now leader of the Abyss Order was futile.

➷ You helped Dainsleif retreat from the fight, after bidding your old companion a tearful goodbye. The two of you decided to take a rest at Mondstat, to recharge and plot your new journey to stop the Abyss Order.

➷ While resting at Cat's Tails, you stopped by Good Hunter to restock on some food supplies and was offered a little trade off. Sponsor her new treat and receive said supplies. Even telling you about a cute little game about it.

➷ You started off with Dainsleif, of course. You've been dating for a bit but haven't smooched yet. So, this is the perfect opportunity!

➷ He agreed after taking a quick taste test, while everyone was busy playing cards, you two were petting kitties to regain your energy and playing the pocky game.

➷ He sees no point for the game's existence, but to see you smile or get flustered after sharing a kiss with him, he thinks this might be his favorite game now~

➷ "Ah... They've got fur all over my cape too... Hey, stop laughing, you've got fur all over your clothing as well. You've distracted me with the game, of course I wouldn't notice the cats rubbing against me... Though, I think it was pretty worth it."

Dottore ⚠️

➷ Ehe

➷ You're half Dottore's assistant and half Dottore's Test Subject, but he performs less excruciating tests on you. He finds that you're an interesting specimen, emotionally, mentally and physically. Metaphorically too

➷ You barged into his office one day and sat in his lap, he's used to it so he didn't flinch at all, only continuing with his ongoing experiment.

➷ While he's off mixing concoctions, you're explaining a treat you made that's based off his favorite flavour and your's, it was the least you could do since you're bored and you've missed your blue haired freaky doctor boyfriend.

➷ Amused, he agrees to a game, but wants to test out... a small hypothesis. He thought of it as you're wriggling around the small tent formed in his tight pants.

➷ So, he pulls you in with the stick between your lips and his, he made sure to press you firmly downwards and onto his erection. In return, you playfully grinded against him, elicting a velvety chuckle from him.

➷ One thing led to another, and you forgot who won, it's just you underneath him and him towering over you with his coat taken off.

➷ Lips locked together, your fingers running through his soft curly blue hair. Bless the poor souls outside as he rubs himself against you, you teased back by letting out a loud shameless moan that only made him crave to be inside of you once more.

➷ "It seems like my hypothesis is correct, to my conclusion; it seems as though my little test subject as grown... restless, at the lack of intimacy i've given. Let's see how you'll fare against me in this part of the 'procedure'."

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A/N: I'll be going on a smol hiatus, the beginning of my exams are coming up and I want to make sure I don't suffer getting last place in class— again. Either way, i'll chip in a few paragraphs if I have some spare time

Oh, and if you're wondering; Yes, I'll be including pulcinella, specially for oh-so my good friend who I won't name but call Sticker <3

[Part 2]

[soapels]

HEYYYYY, I saw your requests open and I thought why not trying it. So, could you please please please write something with König and like, they're training or something and the reader or König (dc about who's going to do it) does that move that you take down the other person but you sit on their lap if you're not fast enough. And they're like panting from training.

I have more things in mind, so I'll be here for a while 😁

grim reaper

könig x female reader

content: slight suggestive themes, sfw, konig is down bad for reader but also a bit cheeky lol

hii nonnie! hehe i didnt know if u wanted sfw or otherwise, so i ended up somewhere right in the middle- or teasing at the latter, at least 😳 lol but i hope u enjoy!! i really love this idea so much! i wanna do this eventually with alejandro too ♡ good day! c:

all hearts, comments & reblogs are very appreciated!

König’s a tough guy.

Big, solid, more of a fucking mountain than a living breathing man, to be entirely honest- and it certainly don’t help when you put a gun in his hand- or worse, when his eyes are set on you.

Those shimmering blues are pretty, you can’t help but think even as he slowly rounds the mat with you. So pretty that they might succeed at distracting some poor bastard behind enemy lines, make them believe it’s an angel come to save ‘em from war rather than a ravenous, feral beast responding to the dinner bell.

There’s a reason he wears a hood.

All grim reapers do.

The air is somewhat thick between the two of you. Growingly tired. A healthy amount of sweat beading below your lighter fatigues.

You’re both a panting mess of missed punches and a few exchanged, light jabs. You managed to score a low kick at the back of his calf- perhaps your hardest hit yet- and it’s probably why he’s limping now. Just slightly.

It must still sting a bit, though. Because his delayed dodging time is enough for you to swoop in and pull the rug right out from beneath him, immediately pouncing on him as he falls.

Eager, you’re overwhelmingly eager to finish sparring, because while it’s fun being pitted up against Konig (he’s your favorite partner for these sessions), you’ve been at it for closer to an hour and supper will be served soon.

Straddling his waist, you pin his brawny arms back over his head, your smaller fingers struggling to wrap around his thick wrists.

He’s so much bigger, so much stronger, such a pain in the ass to immobilize.

And still, pinning him down on the mat, your hips anchored firmly over his- you know with one mindless buck, jerk, or thrash on his end, you’d go flying.

So it’s a mercy, really, hair hanging over your head and almost touching the tip of his nose, that instead of that- perpetuating the session and perhaps stinging your pride- Konig merely lies there beneath you.

Accepts it and you.

Lets out a little, breathy sort of giggle.

“Ah, you got me.” He surrenders, yet your hands must be completely deaf to his words because they don’t loosen at all.

His broad chest shakes with every heaving breath he takes, jostling you both, but it’s only when you feel him make an uncomfortable shift beneath you that you truly realize just how exhausted he is.

Blues eyes glinting tiredly through the holes of his hood, holding an odd little twinkle to them as he runs them over you— nervous, but curious, too.

So, so curious.

As if common sense hits you, you let a playful grin finally carve into your cheeks. “Did I?” You ask softly, and his head tilts some at you. “I’ve got the feeling you could switch our positions easily, if you really wanted to.”

He’s vaguely jittery, your sparring buddy, but when you make that mindless comment, for reasons beyond you, König visibly flusters, jerking his chin the other way.

His cheek rubs against the mat through his mask, mumbling a polite rebuttal.

“Y-You underestimate yourself, Y/n… You knocked me right off my feet! Isn’t that good?” His gaze does find yours again, then- quietly, “…I think you are good…”

It’s your turn to giggle.

The sound is pleasant, the sort of sound that he’d play on repeat if he could. But… those are feelings that the brute of a man is vaguely aware are offhanded, and certainly not the kind you divulge to your comrade.

So he nibbles on his lips, though you don’t see, and keeps quiet on it.

“Well, thank you, König,” your cheeks are a bit warm, either from tussling with him or just the fact that it’s him and not anyone else, you’re not so sure.

“I think you are good, too.”

Oh.

Oh.

That feels nice to hear… And your mouth looks so pretty when you say it, too.

You are beautiful, the man steadily comes to terms with- in one staggering, full gust of wind beneath you- you are so beautiful and you are straddling his hips and you said with your own tongue that he is good in your eyes.

You don’t know just what possesses him when he turns to you after, letting a nervous, yet deft hand rake the entirety of his hood over his head. But the truth is that he also doesn’t know why- or anything, to be fair, in that brilliant, awing moment- just that you are the prettiest girl he’s ever seen and he loves sparring with you and he can’t fully stop himself in time from saying—

“Yes,” he admits. “For you.”

And you are so startled by his sudden spur of confidence, and also the hint of a cheeky grin curling at his lips, that you are silent for a moment.

Stunned, perhaps.

An addicting, bubbly sort of feeling rises between you.

…S-Something else does, too, but lower— poking persistently at the start of your tummy.

You blink owlishly at the belated realization. So does he, all blue and hopeful yet also, apparently, growingly excited.

You clear your throat, slowly sliding off of his lap, praying to God your buddy doesn’t see the evident stirrings of something smitten on your face.

“H-How nice,” you murmur. And you mean it.

The both of you stand up, inconspicuously brushing off the fronts of your thighs, trading off see you in a bit’s and good spar’s, the male following shortly after you- sort of like a lost puppy- towards the shower block.

Washing off sounds nice- even better, settling down at the cafeteria and digging into his meaty portion of dinner- but to be entirely honest, he’s still basking in the sweet afterglow of his small (yet no less revolutionary) victory.

…Maybe he ought to let you win more often.

[garden-of-joy]

John "Soap" MacTavish SFW alphabet

This time the alphabet is for our favourite Scottish boy, Foap! I hope I didn't make him too OOC

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

Johnny will smother you with affection. He'll kiss you, hug you, compliment you, the whole works. Even when you two aren't together, he's still very supportive and friendly, always making sure to be a ray of sunshine. He loves it when you feel loved and cherished- so that's his most important mission.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

Johnny is a great best friend. He'll constantly want to hang out and for some reason always have something new to talk about.

He'll always take you to the craziest shit- sometimes you wonder just what does he do in his spare time to know all those places. He's just got so much energy and vigor he wants to share with you, so every going out with him will leave you tired but happy that you got to spend time with him.

He's also a really dedicated friend. Regular hangouts are a must, and he's definitely taking initiative in inviting you. Even if you start to irk him in some way, he'll be patient and try to work it out.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

Johnny LOVES cuddling, but can't keep still for more than 5 minutes. He tries, honestly. It's just that he's beaming with energy and once he's been embracing you for a while he starts to itch with energy. But if you catch him when he's tired, he's not struggling in the slightest.

He prefers being the big spoon, taking you into his arms and wrapping around you. He'll place his chin on top of yours and be ready to pass out. Even then, he's not against the idea of you being the big spoon. He loves relaxing in your embrace and snuggling so close to you, then placing his head on your chest and listening to your heartbeat. (Also makes it more likely for him to keep still if he's not tired)

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

Johnny does want to eventually find his special someone and settle down, then adopt at the very least 5 dogs.

As for cleaning, no. He's not good. He's not tidy in the slightest. His desk is a mess and there's several documents and files on the floor. He's not going to let his surroundings be filthy obviously, but they're not clean or ordered in the slightest.

DO NOT EAT THIS MAN'S COOKING. I repeat, DO NOT EAT THIS MAN'S COOKING. Out of the 141 he's the only one eligible for giving you food poisoning. He can screw up having to boil water somehow, and he's not permitted in the kitchen under any circumstance. Last time anyone ate this man's chilli, the 141 had to cancel two missions due to explosive diarrhea.

🚨🚨 DO NOT EAT THIS MAN'S COOKING, I REPEAT, DO NOT EAT THIS MAN'S COOKING 🚨🚨

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

Johnny has a lot of experience under his belt and he knows what to do. He will try to work things out with you at first- if it's something he's done he'll learn and improve. You're his lovely bonnie, he doesn't want to push you away, even if it's on accident. If it's something you've done, he'll try not to be mad for too long and then he'll help search for a solution together.

If it doesn't work and the best solution for both of you is to part ways, then he'll probably still be friends with you. (given the offense isn't very bad)

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

He is fully ready to be committed and to even marry you if you want. He doesn't feel the need to marry you, you still have his heart regardless. That said, probably after 2 years of being together he'd propose to you, just to set your connection in stone, but even then he'll just throw it out as a suggestion more than anything. Since Johnny is such a friendly bear the marriage will last.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Johnny is very gentle. He gives the nicest hugs and you'd swear his fingers are made of silk with how he handles equipment and you.

Even though Johnny doesn't suffer fools when it comes to the army, he's still much nicer than most higher ranking people. He won't cuss out a recruit if they misplaced something and he'd be much more charitable.

When it comes to you, you can swear this man is a golden retriever with how lovable he is. He'll always make sure you're comfortable and happy, giving you his signature goofy smile. Even if you get into a fight, he'll apologise for raising his voice and try to sort the issue out, to make sure you're happy and so is he.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

Hugs are more Soap's speed. Long drawn out cuddles don't bode well for him, but he is very likely to surprise you with a back hug while you're just going about your business, his muscular arms wrapping around you and pulling you in. He'll hold you close for a couple of moments and let you go.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

Soap's pretty quick to confess. After he's had some time to straighten out how he feels about you, he'll definitely be quick in his confession. He knows there's no guarantees in life and that there's a chance you might not love him back, but he'll put his feelings out there, just so you know. But if you confess first, he is over the moon with happiness and joy. Usually he is the quick one, but for you to be even quicker? He is awestruck.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

It's pretty hard for Soap to get jealous. He knows social cues and is aware that even if you're talking to someone else, this doesn't mean you're cheating on him or something. Even then, he might come near just to take a quick drop on what you're talking about. It's more out of curiosity rather than jealousy. He won't impose himself on you, you're a grown person and can decide for yourself, after all.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Soap loves to kiss. He's definitely a bit of a wild card, it depends on his mood how he'll kiss you. He can either give you a nice lazy kiss, going low and slow on you, but most of the times he wants the other kind. The kind that makes you feel he's about to devour you whole. He ravenously swarms you, taking your head in his hands as he lets out the heaviest pants he can, exploring every little corner of your mouth so hastily you might think he's rabid. Well, when it comes to you, he is.

Another favourite kissing type of his is small kisses on the cheek. He'll giving you a lot of those too. When going to work, for groceries, or simply going out of the house- he'll always stop by and kiss you on the cheek or neck, or the top of your head, or your lips. He's definitely prone to showing affection this way.

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

Johnny strikes me as the type to have a couple of small brothers and sisters, and a mountain of nieces and nephews. This man knows how to behave around children and is practically a babysitter for all ages. He can have the little ones watch him for hours as he tells them stories about the military- leaving out the improper parts of course. He isn't annoyed by children and can definitely handle himself. In fact, he loves telling his "little wee rascals" stories.

But he doesn't want to have kids, at least not for now. He wants to climb the military ladder a little, wisen up. He thinks he's too young and while he's great with kids, he won't be able to handle raising one just yet. Besides, he wants to be sure he can survive out there in the field and return after every deployment. He doesn't want to leave you alone, but he especially much doesn't want to leave you alone while having to raise a family on your own.

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

Johnny is actually pretty calm during the morning. Sleep is weighing heavy on him and he isn't fully woken up yet, so when he's at home with you he loves to pull you close to him and lay your head on his chest. He'll wrap his arms around you and not let go, drifting off to sleep. Or, he'll drag himself over to you, doing the same. He'll put his head on your chest, nuzzling into it lovingly, coiling his arms around your torso and intertwining his kegs with yours, sighing contently as he feels himself drifting off.

But if he can't sit still as per usual, he'll slowly get up, trying not to wake you. He'll make you some breakfast (nothing cooked, just simple things like say, a sandwich), brew you a coffee or tea and wake you up with breakfast in bed.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

Johnny can sometimes hog blankets, but he's relatively good to sleep around. He usually doesn't wake up during the night, but he can sometimes snore. It's not very bad, and it's not the whole night, but he still sometimes lets out long drawn out snores that you'll need to get used to.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

Johnny doesn't really have walls you need to break like with Simon, but he's not going to spill everything all once. He'll tell you stuff as he remembers it, mostly because there's some cool stuff about him that doesn't enter his mind on the regular. Overall, he'll talk to you about himself and gradually tell you more, but he's not going to make you wait about it.

Another thing is, you'll have to poke around for him to remember things. Ask him questions and be curious, Johnny loves telling you all about his work. Or, as much as he can.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

It depends on who's getting on his nerves. If it's you or the 141, he almost never gets truly angry- maybe a bit pissy, but that's about it. He's also patient, so a recruit not understanding something and needing multiple explanations won't set him off if the recruit is actually trying. But when he senses genuine disrespect or when someone wants to make him mad just to get a kick out of it? Oh, he's steaming. The kind of steaming that makes even Price flinch when Johnny sets off and tears the other guy a new one.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

Johnny will definitely remember things that are important to you, but he also sometimes tends to be forgetful about little things. He doesn't do it on purpose, he simply forgets some stuff that isn't very important or eye catching. If he thinks he might forget something important though, he will write it down in his journal. (right next to his drawings of you, because OG Soap could draw very well, and I'm sure modern Soap can do it too)

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

He remembers the first time he tried to draw you. A little out of your sight, but still able to see you clearly. The light hit your face just right and his hand glided along the paper like it was water and the picture turned out so good. He took it out of his journal and always carries it around with him, close to him to remember you.

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

Johnny is fairly protective of you, even though he knows you can keep yourself safe. He'll still stand relatively close and be ready to fistfight God if need be. He'll make sure to point out shady individuals and help you out of unpleasant situations, even if it is simply by being there. Then again, he's not overprotective. He knows you can handle yourself, but wants to make sure you're safe firsthand. It's not because he doesn't trust you, but because he values you.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

Johnny does it all. He likes organising your dates and anniversaries so he can surprise you everytime. And honestly, it's always crazy. He always makes it a fun time, and it's usually, 90% of the time perfectly safe. That said, he loves it when you do the same, plan it all out and surprise him with it. He doesn't mind if it's not as crazy as his arrangements, he loves anything you put on his plate.

For more regular dates and such though, he likes to split planning 50/50. That way, both of you have fun and are not left out to variables and inconsistencies. He especially loves it when you show him your favourite places.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

Johnny can be very forgetful. And it's not "forget our anniversary" forgetful, it's "forget to take out the trash" forgetful. He doesn't do it on purpose, he just forgets small things. Which is usually fine, but its is enough to make some very inconvenient situations. He also sometimes doesn't focus on what you're saying to him, meaning anything you ask him to do will simply roll off his ears. Again, he doesn't do it on purpose, it just... happens. So next time you're talking to him, make sure he's listening.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

He's somewhat concerned. He keeps himself in good condition, and is overall hygenic. But he's not extremely in-depth, just enough to look good with simple steps. The one thing he spends actual time on is his mohawk. He makes sure it looks perfect, nicely trimmed and no stray hairs. His efforts pay off, even though he doesn't put in a tremendous amount of effort in.

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

No he won't. But mainly because he has an ace up his sleeve; He'll quietly steal a small insignificant object of yours. A keychain, a little trinket, etc. that reminds him of you, so when he's lonely and needs you, he'll take it out and look at it, thinking about you. It helps him feel better. (More on this in the next one)

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

I know I already mentioned this, but he can draw. Like, very well. He has an entire folder of your pictures from different angles and lighting. It's his reference folder (it's his simp folder) that he uses when he wants to draw you and you're not around (it's for when he wants to feel you in heart when he's away). Surprisingly enough, he gets a little shy when you ask him to show you his drawings, but he won't hesitate much. And his drawings of you are so good, he gets your proportions just right, you seem almost alive on the pages.

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

Something that never, ever fails to get Johnny roiling is when someone is an asshole towards staff. At the grocery shop, a restaurant, a theme park, it doesn't matter. He knows that these people barely get paid enough for their job, a swarm of entitled customers is the last thing they need. It's a big ick for him. It's like something awakens in him, and he feels the urge to almost protect the other person.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)

Johnny sleep talks in his sleep. He doesn't even know it, you'll have to record and show him. He always mutters incoherent words, names, etc. It's especially strong if he's dreaming about something or he was stressed the day before, but he usually just grumbles out sweet nonsense in his sleep. He doesn't toss around in bed, and sleeps relatively calmly next to you. The only issue is that he sometimes hogs blankets when he's cold, but he usually runs hot like a furnace, so that's not an issue.

[fandomwe1rd0]

Wrote some wholesomeness between Rick and Morty because I love writing about my favorite codependent little freaks <3! Kinda experimented with a new writing style, adding some (corny and unfunny) humor, and kinda like talking to the reader at times. Let me know what y'all think!

Rick was driving his spaceship, they just went on a long adventure that took multiple days, Rick groaned, ugh, he knew he would have some explaining to do to Beth when they got home. He knows that he promised that the adventures wouldn't be longer than a day, or that Rick would ask if he knew the adventures were going to be longer a day but it was out of his control! Did they think that he wanted to take Morty on adventures that took multiple days! No! He sighed, shit, what was he so angry for? He was occasionally glancing over at Morty, the poor boy was struggling to keep his eyes open and Rick groaned "You can sleep." Morty said "W-wh-what? N-no I'm not tir…." Rick sighed, the boy couldn't even finish his sentence, he was a bad liar. "I'm not a mon-burp-ster," Morty mumbled "C-c-could've fooled me." Then Rick gave him a glance that said "Watch it." and Morty stayed quiet, scoffing and crossing his arms. What was with this kid? He's been extra sassy and bratty on their adventures, what was his problem? "Jeez Morty, you're always so grumpy, you on your period or something!" Morty scoffed "Gross." Rick's head tilted, he guesses he didn't expect a high-energy reaction, since the boy was looking like he would knock out any second, but still, it was less fun. Rick sighed "As I was saying before you rudely interu-burp-pted me, I'm not a mons-burp-ter, well- I'm not that much of a monster, so just go to sleep and I'll w-burp-ake you when we get home, okay buddy? We got a way to go anyway." Morty mumbled something incoherent.

About a minute later, Rick felt a weight on his shoulder, he looked down, and saw Morty's tiny hands wrapped around his arm. He scoffed, of all the places Morty could sleep, he thought the most comfortable spot was his shoulder? Rick just rolled his eyes, how was he supposed to focus on driving this way, he wasn't going to shake the kid off though. What? It wasn't because he cared! It's just that…if he woke the kid up, he would be even more grumpy and bratty, yeah that's it. He saw some drool coming from Morty's mouth as he let out a soft laugh, how gross, Rick thought, somewhat fondly as he rolled his eyes. Still not the grossest thing he saw or at least knew that the kid did. He was a hormonal teenager, after all. But Rick prefered not to think about that for obvious reasons. He occasionally glanced at Morty, making sure he didn't move around too much when he was driving the car, he didn't want to wake the kid up- Oh c'mon quit making that face! This wasn't because he cared okay!? Like he said, the kid would be all grumpy and bratty if he woke him up beforehand, so stop trying to imply things!

Eventually he got home, it was dark out, about what Rick expected, the kid was still sleeping, Rick sighed as he picked the kid up. He winced at how light he was, he was lighter than a 14-year-old boy should be. The kid really needs to eat more, he really doesn't look his age. He wasn't suprised when people thought he was 12. He probably had the average weight of a 12-year-old, because he was definetily lighter than a 14-year-old should be. He's gonna keep an eye on his eating habits. He had to make sure he ate more, but of course he wasn't going to force him. He was probably going to just try to lightly encourage him to eat more, Morty always ate up encourage and praise, soaking it up like a dog. I mean he couldn't force him if he wanted to. Oh don't give him that look! He wasn't going to do it! What was he some kind of monster? ….Actually on second thought don't answer that. He hauled Morty over his shoulder, this was the easiest way to carry him, not that anyway was particually hard, he put his hand on the back of Morty's knee to steady him, as to not wake him up. Oh shush! This wasn't because he cared! Totally! He was just being practical, that was it!

He carried Morty to his room, holding onto him gently, and placing him down on his bed softly, not wanting to wake him up. He tucked Morty in as he tried to hide the fond smile on his face cough poorly cough Morty's body was so relaxed, his eyes closed in such a calm way, his eyebrows relaxed, his jaw slack, with some drool coming from his mouth, he heard his light snoring. Morty was really tiny, he had a baby face, he was so short, and his head was massive in comparison to his body, which was pretty tiny. He also had these big doe eyes, he definitely did not look 14. He quickly realized that he got lost in thought, and looked over at Morty's sleeping body, so relaxed, he never got to see him like this on their adventures. He was always running for his life and very stressed out, Rick would be lying if he said he didn't feel bad about some of the shit he put the kid through. He was definitely more desensitized and saw things that probably some adults haven't seen. Maybe he should stop...but he can't do that! He needs- He stopped that line of thought. Gross, he needs. He doesn't need anyone, he was Rick Sanchez! All he needed was himself and his flask, whatever, save it for therapy. Rick exhaled, ugh, listen to him, casually talking about therapy, he used to not even respect it, now he was paying for sessions, whatever. Rick looked over to Morty, he heard Morty mumbled in his "Love you, Grandpa Rick." Rick let out a silent gasp, but then he smiled, kissed Morty's forehead, ruffled his hair lightly, and went out, quietly closing the door behind him.

[canadiansummer]

SFW ALPHABET

Pairing: Dmitri Antonov x Reader / Enzo x Reader Summary: What it says on the tin. Warnings: Mild angst for some questions and some really mild suggestiveness. It’s pretty chill for the most part.  Note: Gender neutral reader, or at least gender’s not emphasized. I’m also trying out a new formatting style that I picked up on another blog of mine that I like, but anyway. I wanted to put something out since I’m swamped in coursework and I’ve been meaning to get back to my long-fic on here. I’m pretty sure these lists have been done before, but I have my own headcanons so why not. Of course, these are my opinions so your milage may vary. I also altered some questions since I didn’t like/vibe with them. This can also be taken as a reader-insert, though sometimes I use ‘you’ in a non-specific way. Anyway, I hope you enjoy! The spicer version will be up in a day or so!

18+ version (coming soon.)

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

He’s more affectionate than his first impressions might make him seem. Early into knowing him, he might be a little distant physically, but eventually he might get more comfortable with showing affection. In a platonic sense, he tends to go for quick pats–a hand on a shoulder as he passes, throwing his arm around a shoulder if he’s feeling playful, a reassuring squeeze on your shoulder if he’s trying to be comforting. In a romantic sense, he can be pretty affectionate. Especially in private. Pulling you in for a kiss by a piece of clothing, hugs, lingering touches and caresses. Though, regardless, he’s a little awkward about PDA and is more reserved on that front.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

Loyal, a kind of ride-or-die type of person. Dmitri’s lost a lot of friends and family over the years for various reasons, and his parents both had hard upbringings and lost a lot of people. While he isn’t exactly icy about it, letting someone in close to him is hard for him at points. So, if you end up in a ‘best friend’ situation, Dmitri has definitely opened up to you and trusts you deeply. While he’s not prone to coddling or is the best shoulder to cry on at points, he’s a very solid friend and he’s there for you in ways that matter.

As for how that friendship would start, it would start kind of slow unless a situation makes that unlikely. He’s kind of charming, witty in a pretty dry sort of way, and can hold a conversation decently enough. Dmitri isn’t bad company, but he’d end up being the type of person you’d see and talk to every once and a while. That is, until you manage to catch him in a moment of free and stress-free time and once he realizes he likes your company too, he’d start to go out of his way to interact and things would progress from there.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

As much as he’d struggle to admit it, yeah. It kind of ties into how he is with affection, so he’d be more prone to do so in private. Having your weight at his side while sitting beside you or you leaning back into him can be comforting for him. He doesn’t really acknowledge it or even fully grasp the feeling for what it is, but solitude is something he’s become very numb to. So, it is often a nice reminder of how nice it can be to have someone he can actually be like that with. 

As for how, it depends. If it’s upright, he’ll rest his arm over your shoulders or upper back and likes it when you lean your head on his shoulder. Dmitri’s got restless hands, though, so he might end up playing with bits of your clothing (strings, zippers, ect) or hair as he does so. Laying down/sleeping he tends to prefer to be the big spoon, starting out with an arm wrapped around your middle and legs tangled with your own so your back is pressed against his chest. Though, once he’s fallen asleep, he either ends up rolling onto his back or just kind of slings an arm over your middle.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? What would that look like?)

Yes, in the long run. Though, he wouldn’t fully know what that would look like. All he knows is that he’d like to be doing a different profession and be able to be more involved with his son, otherwise a lot of it would end up being compromises with you. While he certainly wants/needs money, it’s mostly so he can leave (be that the life he currently lives or his home country in general) but in the long run he just wants to live somewhere calm (and preferably where the government isn’t watching your every move, but y’know.)

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

Face-to-face. If it comes to a point where things are unsalvageable, he’s definitely made that known beforehand and has tried to fix things. He’d end up hating himself if he broke things off over the phone or something, as painful the process would be in person.

F = Fights (What are arguments like with them? How do they resolve disagreements/fights? What are some things they would have a hard time forgiving?)

Dmitri’s temper is pretty slow-building–if anything, he seems pretty calm if not a little biting and it can be a surprise if he gets physical. He definitely has had his moments, though with loved ones he tries to avoid physical confrontations and has tried to break people apart if he senses that fists might be swung between family/friends. If you were to get into an argument with him, Dmitri kind of closes off. Tight expression and body language, clipped answers, bitter sarcasm before trying to distance himself or physically leave for a while if he’s able. 

As for resolving issues, if it’s something he is solely at blame for, he’ll try to approach it and talk about things when tensions aren’t running so high. If it’s something you’re both at fault for, it can be a little more difficult to navigate but in the end he just wants it resolved because the stress will get to him after a while. If left alone for too long, it’ll shift into bitterness and/or resentment and he doesn’t want that. 

In regards to what he finds unforgivable, that can be a bit of a gray area. He’s done his fair share of morally questionable/objectionable things in his life, and he would be way too aware how hypocritical it would be of him to get on a high horse about some things. Yet, he has lines he doesn’t want crossed. Harm to him or his family is pretty major, he won’t stay in a relationship with someone who’s cheated on him, etc. His forgiveness could be earned in some situations, but others he would struggle to let go of.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

This can be another sort of gray area, given his (former) profession but one-on-one he’s more gentle than you think. He won’t really treat anybody like they’re made of glass, but he has his moments of genuine tenderness both physically and emotionally. Yet, it can depend on the situation. If it’s clear you’re under some sort of emotional distress, he’s not going to go out of his way to make that worse and he’ll try to be as gentle as he can be. That can be echoed physically, too, unless the situation doesn’t allow him the time.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

(I’m going to sound like a broken record but–) It depends. Sudden hugs from strangers or aquaintances that he doesn’t know well, he wouldn’t be a huge fan of being hugged by them. Though, with people he’s close to, he actually doesn’t mind them and will usually return them. In a platonic sense, he doesn’t mind a quick one in greeting, but if you’re in a deeper relationship with him then him initiating them might be a little more common. 

In general, his hugs are tight. Not rib crushing, but enough to not make you feel like he’s waiting for it to end. Gives your shoulder(s) a shake when he parts if it’s a particularly excited one. If you’re seeking comfort from him, he’ll hold you closer to him, a hand on the back of your head or just wrapped around your shoulders. If he’s seeking comfort from you, Dmitri acts more reluctant and almost embarrassed he’s putting you in that situation, but he’ll relax almost as soon as you return the embrace and hold you tight. Probably doesn’t say anything for a good while.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

It takes him a while. Dmitri married quickly before he really understood if he actually loved his wife at the time or not, and he’s not too inclined to repeat that. So, once he ends up saying it, he means it and it’s probably after a good while into your relationship.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

His jealousy is a lot like his anger, though he’s not prone to jealousy too often. However, he definitely has his moments. It’s not to point where he’d lash out or try to ruin anything, but he gets quiet and closed off. He doesn’t say much if you interact with him and he can get pretty agitated when he can’t leave the situation. Eventually it fades and he’ll shake it off as him being childish, but from time to time he might get a little peeved or, if you’re in a private and more intimate relationship, he might make it hard for you to pay attention to anybody other than him for a bit…

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Firm, confident. He cups the sides of your face/head while he does so, especially if it’s just a quick one. Sensual ones are slower, more drawn out and he likes to pull/hold you close to him. He tends to go for your lips, naturally, but he enjoys kissing your neck and will kiss the back of your shoulders, shoulder blades, or along the spine if your back is to him. On him, Dmitri really likes to be kissed along the jaw, below his ear or down his neck. If you want his attention, that’s a good way to get it. Sometimes, he doesn’t mind being kissed on the chest, palm/hand, or shoulders.

L = Little ones (How are they around children? Would they want one(s) of their own?)

He’s pretty decent around children, and younger children he entertains pretty easily enough. Dmitri enjoys it in short-term interactions, but he wouldn’t exactly want to run a daycare out of his home. Given his experience with Mikhail, he’s at least somewhat familiar with being around a child and is more relaxed than he was in the first month or so after his son’s birth. Older children/teenagers is where he struggles, though, and feels intimidated from time to time (and would rather take that admission to his grave.) 

As for wanting more of his own, Dmitri’s pretty happy with Mikhail. Given him having to leave him behind while he fled to America, he would be too focused on getting him to safety to really think about having another. When things are settled, though? Maybe!

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them? What is it like to wake up with them?)

Dmitri’s an early riser, it’s rare that you wake up and he’s not already awake or starting to wake up. If there’s nothing to do, he might stay in bed with you, even if he doesn’t fully fall back asleep. However, if there’s something to be done, he can get a little too restless to just lay around for too long. Catch him in the right moment, though, he’ll probably be open to cuddle in bed for a while before he has to shower and get up fully. Mornings can be particularly restless, so he can be a little hard to convince to lay around for a bit.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them? What is it like falling asleep with them?)

Usually it’s relaxed dinners (unless the situation says otherwise) and he’s more likely to spend more quality time with you at night. Unless he’s just exhausted, but even then he might hold out until he can pull you to bed with him. Pillow talk is pretty common and he takes the time to catch up with you or gets pulled into a prolonged conversation. As the night drags on, he gets more cuddly and kind of space-y, and loses his train of thought pretty often once he gets tired enough. At that point, he probably just pulls you into him and mutters his goodnight, leaving you to drift off or listen to his breathing even out.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

It takes a while for Dmitri to really open up about himself, and most of the time you get to know him in bits and pieces. He picked that up from his family, considering even as an adult he still doesn’t know a ton about his parents or his family line, even though I headcanon that both are still alive. However, it’s definitely a sign of trust if he starts talking about himself at length, especially if he dips into childhood, his time in the military, etc. He’s more prone to listen to other people’s stories than he is to share his own. So, it takes a while before you hear more personal details about him.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

While he doesn’t exactly have the patience of a saint, he is not all that quick to anger. He’s learned how to act that way, but in reality it takes a genuine effort to actually piss him off. There are a few buttons he doesn’t like pushed, but it can be hard to move him from scoffs and sarcasm to his quiet anger.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

Dmitri’s a details guy, but he’s not exactly a walking encyclopedia of knowledge on the people he knows in his life. He definitely remembers the important stuff, the deeper conversations, but sometimes he may forget something in passing or get a detail about it wrong. However, he does remember an impressive amount of details about certain people, memories, etc.

R = Romance (How romantic are they naturally? Is it part of their personality or do they have to try? Do they have any specific love languages?)

Dmitri’s not exactly a born romantic, but he’s certainly charismatic enough and he definitely puts some thought into any romantic gestures. He’s primarily a ‘physical touch’ person when it comes to love language, which does clash with both a sort of insecurity in him about that along with a bit of a cultural thing that he picked up from his mother and father. From time to time, you may know he’s actively trying to be romantic, but other times it might just happen as he goes.

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

He’s pretty protective, though not exactly overbearing. If it’s clear that you’ve got yourself in a situation that could turn sour or dangerous, he isn’t likely to just stand back and watch. More often than not, he’ll try to get between you and another person/group, but he’s also willing to back you up if you need him to. As for how he wants to be protected, he doesn’t really want to be in any specific way. He’s very appreciative of support and assistance if he needs it, but he’s a little too headstrong in a certain way to let himself hide behind you or anybody else.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

Dmitri definitely tries to put effort into the things he does, especially if he’s doing them for you. His dates are usually thought out unless it’s just a casual night out, and he definitely carries over the same energy for anniversaries. Any gifts he gives tend to be more on the practical side over flashy/showy. Not only does he enjoy knowing that you’d get continued use out of a gift, he’s also used to those types of gifts from his upbringing and he’s found the value in them. If he gifts you something, it’s guaranteed he’s thought about it beforehand.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

Well, his smoking is gonna catch up to him in his later years if it hasn’t already. If we’re talking personality or lifestyle habits, Dmitri can oversell his confidence in a situation and it can lead to poor judgment of character or missing red flags that he always kicks himself over in hindsight. He can be overly biting in his remarks if he’s angry and can be a little rough with his teasing/sarcasm, which is usually him not feeling the room or situation before speaking.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

Not overly so? He does groom himself and takes care of his appearance to an extent, but there were plenty of points in his life where he couldn’t really afford to put much thought into his appearance. Plus, he’s worked mostly in places where he’s wearing a uniform, so he’s not really cared too much about clothing style and hasn’t explored much until he has the time and freedom to do so. However, he does maintain his facial hair and his hair in general.

W = Wedding (Would they pop the question first? How do they feel about marriage?)

Yes, possibly. Again, if he’s even thinking along those lines, he’s probably been in a relationship for a good while and is sure where he stands with his feelings. Though, you could take him off guard and ask first if you wanted, but with his experience in jumping too soon into a marriage he might be put on the spot. Dmitri is not bitter about the prospect of marriage, and while he’s lived for a while with the idea that he might not end up married again, it hasn’t left him cynical all that much. Of course, his previous relationship has complications, but if the feelings are there then he may be open to getting married again.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

All the books Dmitri got smuggled in that are in English are written all over by him–seemingly disjointed notes in Cyrillic in the margins, underlined and circled words in the text, etc. This is because he used them a lot when teaching himself English, as finding someone to speak it with was a challenge most of the time. It took him a lot of time and patience to get his fluency to where it is.

So, all of this to say, if you wanted to learn how to speak his native language, expect writing to feature pretty heavily. Though, he’d be a patient teacher.

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

Dmitri isn’t prone to staying in overly toxic relationships–if there’s more fighting than he can handle, he won’t stay and will break it off. He values confrontation and airing issues so they can be settled, but if nothing changes, he just figures he’s not a good match. Given the tension he’d experience in America during this time period, hostility and suspicion doesn’t get you far with him. Jealousy can be a hit or miss, as he can understand it to a degree, but it might eventually bleed into the first bit about fighting and incompatibility.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habit of theirs?)

If given the choice, Dmitri tends to settle into sleeping on his stomach, pillow over his head or his arm curled under it. If it’s comfortable for you, he doesn’t mind you using his back or shoulders as a pillow or you resting against him in that position. He can be a light sleeper sometimes, but the closeness can be comforting to him sometimes.

[breakfastteatime]

Alrighty friends, here we go, Breakfast Tea's Battle Scars Review. Putting it under the cut because spoilers, and also my levels of spiciness are at maximum. Lots of swears ahead! I don't tend to write book reviews (hi, unpublished author over here) but, uh, this is for science!

For the record, I have NO IDEA how these tie-ins are commissioned. So, for example, I don’t know if the author came up with the plot and it was okayed, or if she was told “do something with A, B, C and D and make it a book” so I appreciate that she probably didn’t have as much freedom as a fic writer.

Also, yes, I did get to the point where I was skimming chunks of the book, so if I'm factually wrong, feel free to correct me, but know that it won't make me like the book any better because my issues are layered and numerous👍

Also also, this is pretty stream-of-consciousy so go with me, okay?

Finally, there’s *one* spoiler that I’m guessing will tie into the game re: Greez.

Okay, let’s GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Plot Summary (warning, I haven't done a good job summarising it hahahahahahahaaa)

The plot is - the crew go to break into a Haxion Brood base because reasons. While they're there they find a bunch of stormtroopers, one of whom is actually Fret, who wants to defect because she's sick of the Empire. Merrin is instantly attracted to her which, okay, sure, fine, to the point of becoming completely giddy around her. Also, Merrin's been struggling with her powers because of all her trauma from Dathomir (a very good a legit reason but, uh, didn't we do that with Cal in the game ANYWAY AHEM) but DON'T WORRY, SHE JUST NEEDS TO HAVE SEX WITH THE RIGHT PURPLE LADY BECAUSE SHE’S ANGRY AT THE EMPIRE TOO AND SEX WILL SOLVE ALL OF MERRIN’S WOES AND LITERALLY ALLOWS HER TO ACCESS HER MAGICK AGAIN WOO! Oops, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Fret then reveals she's not actually a stormtrooper but used that as a disguise to escape because don't you know it, she's got intel that will lead them to something called the Shroud, which will essentially make anyone who has it invisible. Think cloaking technology from Star Trek. That's the best comparison. So, if the rebels have this, they'll be able to undertake sneak attacks, but if the Empire has it, BAD NEWS. ANYWAY, the crew go to the person Fret’s working with who claims he’s anti-Empire too and he’ll use the Shroud for good and everyone agrees they’ll go get the schematics and bring them to him. Off they go and find said Shroud schematics after Merrin totally gets her powers back after receiving some sexual healing (no, really), only to discover the Shroud’s schematics aren’t written down but are instead secure in Fret's oops-not-dead lizard girlfriend Irei's head... and she's vaguely Force-sensitive because OF COURSE SHE FUCKING IS. Oh and the Fifth Brother is here too because he naturally wants the Shroud and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

The Mantis crew are all totally at odds with each other because it turns out despite living and working together for years they’re all after totally different things but have never said anything until now, which would be interesting if Fret wasn't there being all self-insert OC. And anyway, don't worry, the crew gets over it. Oh, and Greez loses an arm protecting Cal and Cere from the Fifth Brother about halfway through.

Uuuuh what else….??? Oh! Right, Fret’s dealer dude. They realise he’s bad, they defeat him. Boom. Can’t be arsed to go into more detail than that (also I was totally falling asleep reading this part, my bad???).

Fret and her ex(?) get back together (kinda??), leave the Mantis after the whole Shroud thing and the Fifth Brother are dealt with, Merrin opts to not go with them and Fret’s like “Oh, yeah, I see what you have with Cal” and Merrin’s like “??? Cal’s like that with everyone.” Interpret that at your discretion.

OH OH OH and Cere totally goes off to find some Jedi circlet thing that is LITERALLY A VIDEOGAME ACCESSORY USED TO BOOST STATS which is (unintentionally??) hilarious but fuck that it’s so completely lost in the rest of it, as is a lot of Cere’s desire to create a legacy for the Jedi.

The Good!

Hooray for LGBTQ+ representation!

Fight scenes are good when the action is happening.

Cere's characterisation is okay???? Like out of all of them, she feels the most in character... kind of???????? I get her motivation, and it feels fairly close to what I think she's gonna be up to in the next game. But her decision to… wait… sorry, this was meant to be positive. ARGH! Alright, let’s move on…

I really like the concept that, since the end of the first game, they’ve all been on the run from the Empire and the Haxion Brood. Excellent concept! I’m guessing Survivor will give us more.

I also really like the concept that the crew all want different things.

SPOILER!!! Greez loses an arm. This scene was pretty good and believable – Greez wants to save Cal and Cere and he makes a terrible sacrifice to do so.

The Everything Else

👎 Wish that LGBTQ+ rep was in a better written book. I do read romance sometimes (or, more accurately, books in which romance occurs) and I am not opposed to instant attraction. But I like it to be a bit less fire-hose-of-HAWTNESS to the face. It basically feels that Merrin has a week-long relationship with someone in which sex solves all her problems??? There's a lot of stuff in this book about why Merrin can't go to her actual friends with this (she's a Nightsister, dammit, and no one can understand how she feels but Fret is angry like Merrin is, therefore instacrush, lust, sex and AAAAARGH), but wouldn’t it be much more narratively satisfying if the people who support her through her troubles are the ones she has long-term relationships with??? Near the end Cal does become this person to her but it feels a bit awkward. Almost like he’s stepping up because Fret left. 👎 Merrin’s struggles here, while absolutely understandable, feel like a rehash of Cal’s entire journey in the game… except Cal sorts his shit out one way, and Merrin shags her way to better mental health. I mean, get yours, Merrin, but it feels like an odd choice, because… 👎 Fret, Merrin's love interest, feels like such an author self-insert it actually made me uncomfortable. Lady, I don't wanna read your fantasies!!!

👎 The plot doesn’t have room to breathe because there’s too much going on. And while I’m here, the Shroud feels completely universe breaking because while the prototype they wind up making is a fake and becomes a bomb, the fact that Irei designed it to hide herself (she’s Force sensitive, remember??!?!?!) means it could potentially work and literally change the Star Wars universe... But Irei’s a total non-entity in the rest of canon sooooooooo this universe breaking macguffin is pointless, making the plot largely pointless??? Or did I miss something when I got to the skimming part? WHATEVER. The Shroud thing… Aaaah, I’ll get back to that later… 👎 There’s too much authorial voice masquerading as the characters. In other words, I didn’t hear the characters, I just heard the author coming through loud and clear. (and okay, yeah, every time I have a character suddenly be British makes me guilty of this too BUT I like to think it’s not as bad as this. HEY! LET ME HAVE MY DELUSIONS ALRIGHT?!). For example, Cal goes off on this whole *thing* about the Fifth Brother's hat, which doesn't feel like him at all. At no point in the game did he go off about Trilla’s helmet (which he compares the Fifth Brother’s hat to) or trade really petty insults. He has his whole bravado thing going on, but not “dude, your hat looks STOOPID.” Seriously, it’s about a page of him being uncharacteristically cocky and sassy (more on Cal’s characterisation later). This authorial voice tendency makes everyone feel the same, especially when you’ll read one thing in Cal’s POV, move onto Greez’s, and Greez will think the exact same thing. There’s very little differentiation in character voice. The banter is BAD.   👎I'm not saying JFO isn't funny because it has some lovely moments (“Wait, do you have feet?”), but they are light touches. This book's 'humour' is like having an anvil dropped on your head. This is the book where subtly came to die until the VERY end where there’s some nice moments with Cal and Merrin… except it’s ruined by Cal CONSTANTLY thinking about how he needs to protect his family… Which brings me onto… 👎 This book is so repetitive. If Cal referred to the others as 'Family' one more time, or someone else said they wanted to make a dent in the Empire’s hull, I'm not sure my e-reader would've survived. I actually counted btw – pg 77 of my ebook edition has the word family on it 7 times. SEVEN TIMES. The word crops up 39 times overall and once I noticed it, I couldn’t stop. The phrase ‘making a dent’ appears 9 times and again, once I noticed it, I couldn’t stop. Oh editor, where are you?

👎 It’s also inconsistent in its storytelling. For instance, there’s a moment where Merrin and Cere go off on a mission together and Merrin reflects on how well they always work together… and then later on she goes off with Fret and is like “It’s so nice to not be alone for a change!!!” And while this is probably in reference to how her and Cal tend to approach missions from different angles (literally – above and below), it’s one of those instances where something here needed editing – e.g. actually Merrin and Cere have never done a mission together, therefore that’s nice, and so when she goes off with Fret she can be like “wow, twice in one day! I could get used to this!” It’s shit like that made the whole thing so frustrating. 👎The structure is bad. Midway through an otherwise good action scene, the POV character will stop to think for so long they would have been killed. It really disrupts the flow of the battle. The pacing just screeches to a halt. It’s the same whenever the characters reminisce on the events of the game, but I’ll come back to that. Stick a pin in it! 👎 The book also does a several days later flashback that wrecks the pacing. We’re at this moment of tension – they’re about to break into a compound but oh no – the access codes from Merrin’s girlfriend don’t work because GASP she lied about abandoning the Empire! Cue tension! Cue drama! Cue… romance in a ‘several days earlier’ flashback. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH. Honestly, poor, poor Cal the first time he gets to use his own room again. Echoes EVERYWHERE. He’s gonna go as red as his hair every time he looks at Merrin and everyone’s gonna get the wrong idea. Sorry, what was my point? OH RIGHT! Pacing! Pacing BAD.

👎 BEEDEE WUN. Get. In. the. Fucking. Bin. 👎 Speaking of our beloved BD, he is here, but he's referred to as 'Cal's droid' or Cal is referred to as his master, which... no. Absofuckinglutely NO. At one point, Merrin (who presumably has known BD for 2-3 years at this point), thinks of BD as Cal’s ‘strange but cute little droid’. WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT?! They are friends. Best friends. Cere, when thinking of the crew, her family, states there are "four and a half people" on the crew. BD IS NOT HALF A PERSON, AND ALSO OH GOD THE HISTORICAL CONNOTATIONS OF THIS ARE SO BAD, HOW THE HELL DID AN EDITOR NOT PICK UP ON THIS?!?!?!?

👎Cal's characterisation is NOT good. He is so inconsistent outside of I MUST PROTECT MY FAMILY. MY FAMILY, THE CREW OF THE MANTIS, WHO ARE MY FAMILY. I WILL DIE TO PROTECT THEM, MY FAMILY, THE ONLY PEOPLE LEFT TO ME THAT I LOVE, THE MANTIS CREW. Which, for the record, works as a motivator for him, but not when it’s done with all the nuance of a sledgehammer to the knees. When Merrin's busy having sex in the engine room (you know, where Cal sleeps, the guy with psychometry), he is initially naive to the point of stupidity. “Oh golly gosh, Merrin’s sealed the door, I guess that means her powers are coming back!” He was on Bracca for 5 years. I think he knows what goes on behind closed doors. When he realises what's happened, he is both totally blasé (the Jedi don’t have relationships so he’s never thought about it), and also jealous in a way that can be interpreted in one of two ways, depending on your shipping leanings. He's either jealous because Merrin is HIS woman (oh, no, sorry, I mean GIRL. Fucking HATE it when adult women are called girl), or he's jealous because Fret is inserting herself into HIS FAMILY, THE CREW OF THE MANTIS, THE FAMILY HE WILL DIE FOR when she’s a lying liar who lies. He’s *so* petty he refers to Fret as a ‘gal’ which, again, UUUUUUUUUUUGH. Oh, and he's seen an echo revealing Fret to be a liar, but he's not going to disclose it to the others because he doesn’t want to hurt Merrin when she’s finally happy and able to use her magick again and yet Fret might be about to kill his family, the crew of the Mantis, the people Cal will literally die for. Because they’re his family. PICK A MOOD, CAL. Actually, wait, I’m not done with what’s been done to Cal…

His characterisation makes me want to weep. He gets annoyed with Cere for wanting to find a Jedi relic despite... the entire... first game... being... about... this... exact... thing????? I think the author was going for “well, Cere wants to create a legacy for the Jedi so their history is not lost to time!” whereas Cal wants to (say it with me!) ‘put a dent in the Empire’s hull’ which, okay, there’s an interesting contrast, but Cal is someone who is inherently linked with the past so why is *this* the conflict between these two? It’s not quite working for me, probably because it’s just not central enough to the plot. If *this* was what we dug into, it would probably work really well. Unfortunately, we’re not here for that.

Cal also says shit like “What’s the problem here, team?” like he’s in middle management.

👎 The book is set somewhere between the two games and is purposefully vague, which *would* work if these characters *felt* like they'd spent years together instead of the author telling us they have. Relationship-wise, it feels like we're maybe a couple of months out from the game because the book wastes so much of its word count going back over events from the game… which happened years ago at this point! My guess is it was written with people who hadn't played the game in mind, which again just makes the pacing suffer. Plus, we’ve got five people who’ve lived together for years (they’re a family, a crew, they love each other like family, they will DIE FOR EACH OTHER!!!!!!), and yet all of them see their mission differently. Y’all have been at this for YEARS but it’s only now that you realise you’re not united?! This would work if we were closer in time to the original game… but years down the line?! And again, this is a GREAT concept! SO much to work with there… except we’ve got sexy purple lady and lizard lady in the way of what could’ve been an amazing character exploration of CHARACTERS WE KNOW AND LOVE. STICK ANOTHER PIN IN IT!

👎 The author struggles to integrate game mechanics into a n ovel. BD-1 will just randomly hand Cal stims because hey, I guess that’s what he does in the game????????? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 👎 The author hasn’t heard of show, don’t tell. Stop bloody telling me that Cal loves his family and show me – give me a scene where they sit down for a meal together. Give me a scene where Cal sits with Greez after he’s injured. ANYTHING that shows me rather than smashes me over the head with one of the 39 uses of the word family.

👎 Cere really randomly refers to Cal as her Padawan when he’s busy getting his arse handed to him by the Fifth Brother. Cal’s honest, he knows he didn’t beat Trilla because he was stronger than her, but this is YEARS later. Has he not gotten stronger in that time? SIGH. Also, Cal might be mentored by her but he’s not strictly speaking her Padawan? Okay, now I’m just nitpicking… 👎 WAIT, ONE MORE! Cal refers to Master Tapal as Master Jaro. That just irritated me.

How I’d Rewrite It

So, let’s take the pin out and examine the lack of character exploration (except for Merrin who we do get to have a good look at in a weird way). The main issue I have with this book is Fret and Irei get in the way of what could have been a really good character-building piece for the five characters we know and love from the game.

So, wanna know how I’d write it? Simplify and FOCUS:

The Mantis crew are infiltrating a Haxion Brood base because they’ve gotten their hands on a precious Jedi relic that the Empire are also after. While there, Cal and the others find the relic but are attacked by the Brood and the Empire. A defector (Fret) finds them and says the Empire is using the Fifth Brother to hunt for the Shroud’s schematics and its inventor (Irei), who’s in hiding. Fret gives them the name and location of the broker who will pay the crew for retrieving the Shroud and Irei – a man linked to the Rebellion known as Luthen Rael. He’ll also give them Irei’s location. While trying to escape, Fret gets shot and killed by the Brood or the Empire or WHATEVER and the crew feel somewhat obligated to carry on with her mission because the Shroud is a double-edged sword. Cere’s hopes of starting her great Jedi legacy have to be put on hold, Merrin’s still worried about her powers because she’s lost and doesn’t know if she’s getting the vengeance she seeks, Greez thinks finally Cal’s going to stop going for bigger and bigger gambles, Cal’s excited to be doing something really important, and BD-1 is happy to see a new world and meet new people. Also, there’s no breaking into anywhere without him, and they need to move fast.

Great, we’ve got our ticking clock – get the Shroud before the Fifth Brother!

However, because the crew’s been run ragged due to being hunted by the Brood for so long, they’re starting to make mistakes and Cal’s taking bigger and bigger risks with little pay out, so the crew goes into the mission at odds with each other. After BD hacks his way into the systems and locates Irei, Merrin gets her to safety. Cal and Greez get hurt when they go up against the Fifth Brother because Cere, convinced she needs to try and save him from the dark side because he too was once a Jedi like Trilla, tries to save him and it backfires horribly. They all manage to escape and get to the Mantis, fall out because they all want different things. They take the time needed to figure that out and reunite, take Irei to Luthen (they get out just in time when the Fifth Brother comes back again), Cal and Merrin fight him off together because Merrin’s got her powers back because she has a purpose again (working for the Rebellion) and off they go to the next adventure.

Your subplots are essentially the same:

Cal wants to stick it to the Empire and help as many people as he can, while keeping his family safe, however he needs to understand that doing this randomly is essentially pointless (which… okay, I have issues with this too but if I go off on that you’re never getting the next chapter of the Big Fic. I’m working with what I got, friends!!!)

BD-1 is just happy to go wherever Cal goes so long as he gets to scan new stuff and slice new systems!

Cere wants to build and protect the Jedi’s legacy by gathering everything she can of their history. She *is* tiring of the seemingly hopeless battle against the Empire and *wants* to put down roots, and she *needs* to be honest with Cal about this (who, once he got over his “you can’t leave me, Cere!” initial reaction would be absolutely fine with this??? HEY, WORKING WITH WHAT I’VE GOT!)

Merrin wants to regain her powers, and she needs to come to terms with the terrible trauma she experienced, but she can do this not through what is ultimately a fling, but by being honest with Cal, Cere, Greez and BD and working through it with her family. You tie it into the plot by having them working for the Rebellion, which means Merrin finally feels a purpose because it’s through the rebels she sees that she’s not the only one who suffered great loss and, like them, she can do something about it. And hey, maybe she hooks up with Irei in a much subtler and less SEXUAL HEAAAAAAAAAAAALING way because she wants to.

Greez wants to stick with his family, but he needs to be honest with Cal and say if they’re going to keep doing this whole kicking it to the Brood and the Empire, they’ve got to be smarter about it.

Basically, by cutting out all the OC bullshit, you focus on the crew we all know and love from Fallen Order without some rando OC being there to FLY THE MANTIS. Get the FUCK out of there! If I didn’t think Fret was a self-insert before, her getting to fly the Mantis sealed it for me.

There is a GOOD CONCEPT buried in the depths of this book. It’s just, y’know, not to my taste.

Alright, I think that does it for now. PHEW! That feels better ^_^

[rederiswrites]

I'm slowly piecing together the fragments of Erik's mind--the childish ignorance contrasted against the hypercompetence of a leader and killer trained by vicious necessity. The clumsy desperation to be good struggling against a deep sickness he doesn't understand.

Here is an early fragment of the high-stakes struggle to make something coherent out of his soup brain:

___

He was afraid to care for things. He was desperate to care for things. Some days, the contradictions felt like they were tearing him apart. 

The squirrel haunted him. He had felt nothing but admiration for that little creature, so sweet and lithe, and then he had destroyed it. He hadn’t wanted to. Hadn’t meant to. Had no recollection of deciding to, no moment when he could have decided not to.

He was afraid of the things he knew, and the things he didn’t know. He couldn’t remember who he was, but it was hard to convince himself that he’d been a good person, when he knew clearly how to dismember a corpse, which targets would lead to a clean kill and which would leave the victim suffering for days in sepsis. 

What he didn’t know was how to resolve an argument without blood. How to hold a conversation without giving offense. How to make his own food or do his own laundry. It had been a tenday of blithely assuming the problem would resolve itself before Shadowheart informed him that he stank and he would wash his clothing now, immediately. It had taken Wyll watching him walk into the river fully clothed to realize that he didn’t know how.

He knew how to give orders in battle. How to disappear into shadows. But he had to be gently shown how to clean his own underpants, as ignorant as a babe.

He didn’t know the whole, but the parts that cropped up were never good. It wasn’t good when you unthinkingly announced that your favorite meat was dwarf. It was bad–very bad. And it was bad that he’d recognized the smell of spit-roasted dwarf as soon as they’d entered the goblin camp, and it had smelled so good.

But still–there was the little voice that told him it was bad. He knew these things were bad. Something in him was good, surely, or where did the voice come from? He clung to that with frightening desperation. It was a quiet whisper, whereas the Urge was a hand around his throat, a clap of thunder. But it was there.

He had begun to say it out loud, to amplify that little voice. Sometimes he had to whisper–the others already thought he was crazy. They were right, of course, but it served no purpose to amplify their belief. Sometimes the voice sounded like Gale, sometimes like Wyll, sometimes it was broken and confused and purely Erik, only his weak little voice. His conscience, Wyll said. If so, his conscience was very poorly trained. Sometimes, the whisper was nothing more than “Don’t kill. Don’t kill. Leave now.”

But tonight the whisper came too late. It was a wail, a dirge. 

“I didn’t mean to! I don’t understand! I didn’t–I didn’t want to.”

The others were gathering around him in the dark. He could feel them there, but all he saw was the bard’s broken, mutilated body. Her pink hair clotted black with blood. He’d gathered her up, cringing at the way her arm flopped, ripped out of joint. He held it in place, cradled it against her chest, and almost she could have been sleeping. If you didn’t look at her eyes. He rocked her in his arms, keening.

“She was so good! She was beautiful! She was kind.” He sobbed, aware that his face was a mess of blood, snot, tears…a child crying over a slain pet. Only he was the child and the wolf both.

“I didn’t want to. I don’t understand.”

___________

It was after Alfira that they had Dammon make the shackles. It was Erik’s idea, but only Karlach really objected. He knew the others secretly wanted them. He wanted them for the same reason–so that they could sleep at night, with a monster at their fire.

Dammon looked askance, but he made them without asking questions. Erik supposed that time spent in the Hells would teach you to leash your curiosity. He supposed that Dammon understood well that there were some things it was better not to know. 

The left shackle interfered with the bow string, but the right he wore at all times. He let it chafe. Let it be a physical restraint on the Urge, a constant reminder that he must control himself. The shackle was his conscience, the physical embodiment of that little voice.

The right shackle was his own self-restraint, thin and poorly trained. The left was the acknowledgment that sometimes that wasn’t enough. That he didn’t know if it could be enough.