#I have no clue what my goals are this year other than making it through the next year of college so lol

[hinaliix]

Some doodles to start the year off 🫶

[wemustgatekeepwooyoung]

Don’t be a stranger, stranger.

synopsis: after being all closed up in the mole hole you call home for weeks, you decided, even though you declined your best friends’ (Choi San, Song Mingi) invitation some hours ago, to go out all by yourself for a drink. You in fact did not stay alone that night, as Jung Wooyoung, a complete stranger caught you in his eye. Two weeks after you still thought about the man that kissed you so nastily in the bar’s bathroom stalls and ,unluckily for you ,you did not have his number to repurchase anything. Unfortunately though, people are people and people know people so nobody’s a complete stranger in the end.

genre: romance (strangers to lovers?), fluff, smut, a bit of angst*

pairing: Jung Wooyoung (non idol) x Fem Reader

word count: 7,7k

content/warnings: *mentions of reader going through a tough period, pet names (dove,darling,beautiful,baby,lovebug...), alcohol consumption, switch!wooyoung/reader, oral sex (face riding-f receiving), bondage, sort of love confession?

author’s note: HELLO THERE! God this took me longer than I first expected, sorry about that! I had covid while writing most of it and I had to take a better look at it once I felt better :P I still am not sure if I like it, my friend made me post it as I kept ranting about it lol. Sorry again if there are any grammar mistakes as eng is not my first language! ALSO, as I posted some days ago already, I have many fic ideas that I haven't even started preparing yet. Truth is, I'm trying to get myself in uni, so it's exam season for me and I don't have the time nor the mental capacity to process anything. In addition, I won't be that active! Requests are still open and will probably stay open as it's a new challenge for me. Hope you enjoy this one, bye bye <3

“Oh come on Y/N! Stop fooling yourself by thinking that you’re having fun doing nothing all day and end up rotting in bed. You’re too pretty and young for that anyway. Come out with us instead! We’re best friends us three and we haven’t hang out for two full weeks for fuck’s sake ”

“Thanks Mingi but I’d rather rot in my own bed than be around anyone right now. Or at least around anyone I know and anyone that knows me. I get your frustration and I’m sorry. I promise I’ll make up for it to both you and San.”

“Okay, I won’t push you. I just hope this method you’re using is actually useful to you and that you don’t end up choking on your own misery again”

“I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me. Have fun and drive carefully okay?”

“Okay. See you around, hopefully” Mingi commented and you couldn’t help it but laugh at his temper.

“Okay, bye then”

“Bye!” he said in a charming voice and you hung up

You’ve been going through it all lately, absorbing pressure from everything. Work’s been shitty and you keep grieving for your unaccomplished goals in life. Your parents still making a fuss about you not being a responsible adult, which you of course are, at the age of twenty two! If you weren’t you wouldn’t have been able to survive alone in this reality.

It is what it is and that’s been your motto for the past… Wait, how long has it been since you last went out? You don’t have a single clue. Did Mingi say two full weeks? Shit. You really do need to charge your social battery.

But what will it be? Charging your social battery or relaxing in the comforts your beloved bed provides you with? ‘Why’s life so hard?’, you thought and then you felt stupid that you felt that way over a stupid dilemma.

You’ve always been like that though. Always the dramatic one. Even in your friendship with Song Mingi and Choi San all these years. You’re like their little mature baby, as they’re both two years older than you. But you being mature generally doesn’t mean that you won’t make your own life feel like a kdrama series and ,like Mingi said, choke on your own misery to feel something.

You really do need to feel something though. Something other than tiredness from overworking yourself, other than empathy for the wrong people and to top it off, something definitely other than this big bulge in your heart caused by loneliness.

Mingi was right. You do need to go out and clear your head a bit. Maybe you should give him a call, they’re probably still out at your usual spot.

It’s been two hours since you thought about going out and you’re still clenching on the possibility of you doing it, instead of actually doing it. Why’s it so hard for you anyway?! You used to be every party’s favourite party animal, along with the other two of course. But why’s it so hard now? Is it because it’s late or because you’re just too bored to even get up?

And then, right when you thought that you’d never get up, you started missing it’s taste on your tongue. All you need right now is a very serious and dirty Martini. It’s just what will do the job perfectly and hopefully help you get yourself off.

So, now looking like a 90s elegant goddess with your plump lips, your slightly curly hair and your silky black dress, you called a cab and decided to be a bit extra with everything.

The bar you wanted to sit at is a bit too wild today but you won’t let that ruin your night as you already made too many compromises with yourself to get here. So, what you did was wander around in Seoul's streets for some time, searching for a new promising spot. The music was what led you to this specific one that you decided to enter right away.

After doing so, everyone started checking you out immediately. That didn’t annoy you one bit ,as it would normally, even though you absolutely hate those horndogs living around you. That’s probably because all your remaining mind space is covered with images of your order ready to be swallowed right in front of you.

Isn’t your lust for alcohol kind of sexual? Is our little dove horny other than lonely, or is it that your horniness was beclouded by the banner of ‘loneliness’ from the start? Damn, you really want to get dicked down, don’t you?

“Move! Let the lady sit!” a drunk man shouted and emptied a barstool for you to sit on, even though the one beside it was already unoccupied.

You thanked him with a smile and turned over to the barman that was already checking you out by the moment your eyes met his.

“What can I get you sunshine?”

“I’m not sure about the sunshine part, but I’d really like a Martini.”

“What kind?” he tried to specify as there are indeed many ways to enjoy a Martini.

“Well, there’s only one option to meet up with such hour’s demands, right?”

“Dirty it is then” he understood your statement and began the process of preparing it for you.

During that one minute that made up your order’s preparation time, you took your chance and started browsing the place. You never thought you’d ever visit a place like this in Seoul. It’s classy and really close to your taste in hang-out spots. It’s a nice jazz bar, filled with people your age and older dancing around, laughing, cheering and making toasts on their future which is something you and your two best friends always do.

You’ve missed them but you know they totally understand that where you stand now is only temporary. They both really respect and trust you and that’s two things that you can feel for certain when you’re with them.

But now is the time to relax and enjoy your time alone without having to rot in bed, exactly like Mingi said on the phone earlier. It’s your time to shine like the brightest color in this bar, just you and the company of your tasty dirty little friend.

“Here you go beautiful. Your beloved Martini’s on the guy over- Where’d he-“ the barman claimed and started looking for the man that spent money on your drink

Not even five seconds later, the barstool next to you got occupied by this stunning man and his sexy eyebrow piercing. He fixed his leather jacket and smiled at the barman before turning to look at you.

“Your drink and all the possible following are on me. Hope I didn’t scare ya”

“You didn't scare me at all. Thanks for the offer, I’m having this one today and no other.”

“Whatever pleases you” he said and took a delicate sip from his glass, what looks like to contain plain whiskey. Hot. “I liked the choice you made with it” he said and gave your glass a look-over.

“Really? I think it’s pretty ordinary”

“You can never go wrong with ordinary, right?”

“That’s right!...”

“You’re making it seem rare though cause I haven’t seen the combination of a good dirty martini and a pretty girl like you here before”

He does have a way with words, you can give him that. And he’s gorgeous too. His features are elegant and precise, just how you like it. He might even be the prettiest guy you’ve ever talked to, objectively speaking.

Maybe that's because of the bar’s lighting choice that seems to expose the uniqueness of his nose and the brightness of the sparkle in his cute button eyes. Or maybe it’s his charming smile that makes everything else feel blurry in this tight space you’re sitting and enjoying your night out.

“Well, you’re right. I haven’t been here before and dare I say I’ll surely come again.”

“How come? Your aura fits this place perfectly”

“My what? Can’t hear you well sorry!” you said and made him chuckle softly

Your heart almost skipped a beat by how close to you he got so that he made sure you heard him the second time.

“Your aura darling.”

“Oh! What about it?”

“It’s catchy” he said and made a cute little shake with his hands

“Catchy?” you wondered almost bursting in laughter after repeating his exact movement

“Yeah, you caught my eye from all the way back there and I can't even see that well without my glasses. You're glowing” he bluntly confessed and increased the tension in your eye contact.

''Do you say this to every girl you meet?''

''Almost, yeah. But the aura thing is the new adaptation I made just now on my usual script'' he affirmed your point and readjusted his sunglasses to hold back his front hair strands better

''Tell me about the next victim's reaction to it when you have it proposed for the first time, yeah?''

''So, you want to meet again?'' he asked and made you laugh while you were swallowing the slightly bitter sip you took from your drink

''I can’t say that that confidently but it depends.”

''On what?'' he asked and leaned closer to you, his elbow flat on the counter and his hand balancing the weight of his head.

''On how quickly you get me on my last nerve''

''And what if I manage not to?''

''Then we'll both enjoy our time together. Perhaps.''

''Sounds good to me! So, tell me more about you.''

''What is it that you want to know, Mr.-''

''It's Wooyoung''

''Fine.'' you said with a sigh, '' What is it that you want to know Mr. Wooyoung?''

''Just Wooyoung is fine. You didn't tell me your name though''

''I'll think about telling you when I assure your business with me, is that okay?''

''Sure thing, whatever has you feeling more comfortable''

''Right... So what'd you wanna know? If you don't answer this time either, I'm going to assume it was about getting my name on your list''

''That was one part of it but there is also another. Are you waiting for somebody?''

''No, luckily for you and unluckily for me that just wanted to enjoy my Martini alone, I'm not waiting and don't need to wait for anybody''

''Okay, I shall leave you alone then-'' he said confidently and stood up, ready to actually respect your solo night out, an action which made you see your interest in him clearer.

''Shouldn't you test my patience first since you took your chance already? Unless you want to give up on me that easily'' you suggested like you were pitying him but instead you were pitying your desperately horny self.

He smiled and sat back down before removing his jacket, all left with a plain black t-shirt covering his muscular torso. Once he carefully hang it on the side rail of his chair, you noticed the exposed and veiny skin on his arms. Shit, who is this man and how is he so good looking? Are you seriously thirsting over a stranger? Since when could you not resist your touch deprivation nor your imagination?

You closed your eyes and shook your head negatively, trying to control your hormones and hopefully shake them off too. You must not fuck with someone that you met just this night, you know that's not you! But you can't help but want to, I mean, who would judge you? Mingi and San would probably agree with you on the matter of Wooyoung being the most fuckable man you've ever held a conversation with. But holding just a convo with him isn't enough for you right now. You want him to hold you against the wall and ruin you like the little slut you are. You don't want to know about him nor him to know anything about you. Fuck actual words, you just want to speak in body language. What you also don't want on the other hand, is him getting your comfirmation to 'hit it' right away. You want to test him.

''Am I getting to you?''

''I wouldn't say that. I'm a hard person to please'' you said and you did not lie. You are a very hard person to please. Mingi and San have arranged several dates for you these past two weeks just to get you off your mind and finally out of your house. Numerous guys are head over heels for you but you always refuse the deal or never show up. And now? What the heck is happening to you now? Why's this random guy, Wooyoung, and his pretty little mole under his left eye so irresistible?

''Then guide me through it''

Oh he definetly knows what he's doing and you're letting him. Girl get your shit together and go play bunnies already. Besides from letting him, you're also making it clear that you're enjoying his boldness, even if that boldness has a taste of indirection in it, making the whole situation ironic. You're both dirty talking at this point but choose to go sideways. Maybe you like the tease and the slowburn, what can one say!?

''Why? Aren't you confident in your own skills?''

''You think I have skills?''

''I never said that but I don't doubt it either. I'm a physical learner''

''I thought so''

''So glad we're both making assumptions about each other in these fifteen minutes of talking.'' you said and took another sip of your martini

''Mhm, glad we're mutually glad about the thing you said you're glad about. Moreover, I have an interesting ,I'd say, proposal to make.''

''What could that be?'' you asked while staring at the ceilling, mocking Wooyoung that way. The familiar sound of his laughter followed your mockery and made you look at him, somewhat invested.

''It involves us two, voicing our assumptions out loud''

''Where?'' you clearly misunderstood what he had just said, lost in your own dirty thoughts.

A devilish smile was formed on his face, along with an eyebrow raise and a slight head tilt.

''Wow sugar, I thought you being hard to please would make this take longer but if you insist-''

''I didn't insist pfff- what was it again? Your name?''

''Wooyoung''

''Oh right that's the one! You think you have a way of getting things go your way but you're not the only brat in this bar, there's another one sitting right in front of you''

''Hm, someone will have to back down sooner or later though, won't he?''

''You're right on the male pronoun. I'm not familiar with backing down''

''What about bending down? Are you familiar with that?''

''Let's not go down that path right away. You haven't even finished your whiskey yet'' you teased and in just a blink of an eye, the remaining whiskey in his glass was consumed. He drank it all at once with a big swallow making his eyes tear a bit. Cute, you thought. He's as desperate for some pussy as you are for him to fuck you. That makes the situation more ideal and fair than it was before.

''Okay. What's the first assumption you made about me?'' he asked with a grin on his face, still wanting to give you the message that he's the one in charge of the wheel

''Hm, let's see. If I consider the fact that you're confident, a natural entertainer and that you value freedom and can’t stand being tied down, I'd assume and I think I'm rather correct, that you're a Sagittarius'' you said and ate the olive that had been soaking in your drink for so long without breaking eye contact

He got shy and scrached his nape in shock.

''You're right about all of it. Almost all of it”

''Oh my! Are you a Taurus?''

''No, you made no mistake in the zodiac part.''

''Then where was I in error?''

''Your error was found in the false fact considering me not enjoying being tied down''

''Oh c'mon! Do you really have to make everything sexual?''

''What can I say sweetheart, it's in my nature! And I think that's another thing we share''

''Maybe we do, I guess we won't be finding out soon as it's your turn to bring your first assumption about me to the table''

''I knew you'd like this game! Kinky. Mine was not as clever as yours was, I guess it was filled with more realism than cleverness. You see, what I assumed of you when I first saw your pretty figure from all the way back there, was that you surely had a partner. I still can't get my head wrapped around the fact that you're single''

''Single by choice!'' you exclaimed, surprising yourself

''I don't want to push you into saying something really personal. I'm sure you have your reasons to have acted this way. I'm also sure that there's also a reason behind you not wanting to get to know me personally, cause you haven't asked me a single question about myself yet. Again, there's no pressure, I'm really enjoying your company and our time together, we don't need to have it continue if you don't want to''

Damn. Did this man really figure your emotions out after knowing you for so little and with no content of you and your life at all? And that's when you realised... This is all you've been searching for since the night started! Someone to make the effort to understand you and actually do. What a miracle he is, truly. Is he majoring in psychology maybe? Are you suddently into getting to know more about him and his personal life or is one tripping?

''Another assumption I had about you was that you are a player and that you enjoy wilding out with random girls at bars. I don't think that's true anymore. What are you actually like Woo?'' you finally decided to be open about your interest in him and ask him a direct and personal question. You acting bratty-like isn't fit for all circumstances anyway.

His face lit up and he let out a big sigh that turned out forming into a loud chuckle.

''I'm honored by your question, really. I'm a simple guy, I enjoy making people laugh and I also love dancing''

''Do you make people laugh with your dance moves?'' you joked and he teased you by touching your nose gently

''You'd be surprised by my moves. Everyone loves Jung Wooyoung, the sexy performer.''

''I'll have to assess that myself, can't trust other people's opinions''

''Agreed, I'd also like to know about your opinion on 'em''

''Then what are you waiting for? Show me”

''Right now? I too had a question to ask y’know!''

''Save it for later then'' you said, implying that you're down for a 'get together' after today's night is over.

He smirked in understandment, got up, looked at you like he was about to devour you any moment and grabbed your hand. You laughed as he made you run your way to the bathroom stalls, making it easy for you to comprehend how badly he wanted you.

Once you reached the bathroom's doorstep and crossed it's border, he placed his hands directly on your hips and pushed a door open before attacking your lips.

Oh my! He's nasty! He surely know his ways around a woman and you're not God's strongest soldier. Of course you're mad he's stolen the wheel right from your claim, but his kisses have you so weak that you might as well let him keep it. You want him to keep it.

Another thing about him that you're now experiencing for the first time, is that him being bold is also shown in his sexual interactions. He's not shy to envelop the whole room with his filthy sounds and you absolutely love the melody they produce in conjunction with yours.

His embrace on your hips started to tighten before he reached his left hand behind and to lock the door. You broke the kiss to catch your breaths and both smiled while having your foreheads connected.

''May I?'' he asked while holding onto both your dress' shoulder straps. You nodded in agreement and he pushed them down right away, exposing your bare tits and having your dress fall on the ground, leaving you just with your pretty panties.

''Love the no bra look'' he joked and started to squeeze them, bringing your own beautiful moans on stage for him to welcome

''Slow down they'll hear us''

''Is there anyone you know out there?''

''No''

''Anyone you care about perhaps?''

''No''

''Then let's give them the concert of their lives baby, what do you say?'' he said and pinched your nipple, causing your volume to rise a couple of scales.

He pushed you further into the stall so that you were all helplessly stuck in it's corner, pressing onto you even more while sucking hard on your already aroused nipples. He got all the assurance he wanted by the way you told him how good it was in between your vocal escapisms. He then reached for your lower pleasure-seeking parts, therefore you felt his fingers trace your wet cunt above your soaked panties.

''I knew I got you good'' he said making you roll your eyes in disbelief of his still increasing confidence.

The worst part is that he has every right being confident, even on such a level. Nobody's ever made you that sexually frustrated before. It might just be that you possibly are under the Martini's spell ,but c’mon now, lying to yourself won’t work again.

You’re under Wooyoung's spell and you know it without minding at all, nor wanting him to stop. You're actually glad it's him and not some dude San and Mingi tried to hook you up with. And why is that? Because even though you trust them, you know that there's no other better judge of people than you. You were hesitant at first but now here you are not wanting to hesitate no more and wanting him to totally unravel you.

He rubbed steady circles on your clit, making it hard for you to hold still on your own. You wrapped one arm around his nape, pulling on his hair a bit, while the other slipped under his black t-shirt wanting to finally feel his muscles.

You both moaned, you on the feeling of his soft skin and his fingers pressing you harder down there and him with the way your pretty hands traced down his torso and went over to his waistline, ready to unbuckle his belt single handedly.

With a quick motion, he stopped everything he was doing and trapped both your hands momentarily in order to stop your incoming action. You looked at him full of confusion and his face got serious. He began to unbuckle his belt on his own, wrapped it around his hands and tightened it with his teeth. Finally, he sat down on the floor, head falling back on the toilet's closed seat.

He looks so pretty and slutty that you want to take a picture and keep it among your most precious jewelry. You smiled and put your hair behind your ears before bursting into laughter.

''What a good boy you are all tied up and sweeping the floor with your clothed ass! What for?''

''Sit on my face baby. Please''

Hold on. Have the tables turned already? Anyone would think that that's the case, he's begging for you to choke him with your pussy lips after all, how can it not be that?

''Please baby I need to taste you. Sit on it'' he repeated, looking absolutely stunning with his hands tied up like this and with the veins on his neck and arms becoming even more visible.

How could you say no to that nose? You absolutely adore that nose. You might as well have fallen deeply in love with it and the way it hits your clit while he sucks all your wetness off before reproducing it.

''Oh my god Wooyoung! Don't stop! So good-'' you managed to make up your sentence in between your loud moans and trying not to crush him under you, even though that's what he wants most.

His erection cannot be denied any longer if it ever could have been to begin with. His dick's so hard that it's now noticable ,not just on it's own but also by the way Woo's making slow and passionate thrusts in plain air.

It doesn't seem to cause a problem though, as his main goal is for you to cum on his face, tremble around him and choke him with your wet thighs that he so desperately wants to lay slaps on. Too bad he didn't think about it when he was tying himself up like the poor rope bunny he is.

Once he stopped tongue fucking you for a moment to catch his breath, you wrapped your fingers tightly on his hair and repositioned him, causing his glasses to fall from his head.

You're grinding on him, completely out of this world. His high pitched moans, his warm breath beneath you and his kitten licks while you're getting yourself off on him by rocking your hips in a slow and passionate rhythm, sends shivers down your spine and makes Wooyoung see stars. He's about to cum in his pants, untouched, just completely pussy drunk.

He didn't want to cum alone though, he wanted to share the experience, so he sped up the pace of his tongue on your clit. Your grip on his hair tightened, giving him the confirmation he needed that you were so close to finally letting go and reaching your highest with the stranger that paid for your Martini.

And that confirmation became a happening, an explosive one to be more precise. He twitched in his pants as you painted his ethereal face with your sweet liquids he so enjoyed devouring these past few minutes. You were both so high on pleasure that you didn't even notice the barman knocking on your bathroom stall's door.

''Hey there lovebirds, sorry to interrupt but the cops are to arrive soon due to the music being too loud apparently. I'll have to call it a night before they get here so-'' he said and placed Wooyoung's jacket on the door handle from outside ''Goodnight''

And on that note, he left and went back to his post. You looked at each other, both breathless, fucked up and dizzy.

Once you almost stabilized your system, you helped him up and freed him from his own enslavement. In return, he slapped your ass instinctively as you bent down to pick your dress.

''Holy fuck, I wanted to do that for some time now''

''Too bad you tied yourself, even though it was a pretty good sight''

''Glad you enjoyed it'' he said and smiled while helping you put your dress on.

When you crossed the bathroom's border for the second and last time this night, the barman blinked at the sight of you two and started applauding before waving goodbye. You bowed in reply and left the bar with Wooyoung accompanying you, contrary to how you first got there.

''So, I still got those questions I have to get answers out of you.''

''Yeah, I want to think of some questions to ask you too''

''I'll treat you to dinner, what do you say?'' he proposed, eyes focused on your lips again.

''I'd rather we prepared it together at my place. I'll send you the address''

''Yeah that sounds more convenient. See you around then beautiful'' he added his final line of the night and pecked your lips goodbye. “WAIT” he shouted abruptly breaking the street’s silence which almost made you piss yourself.

“Yeah?”

“What’s your name?”

“Oh. You’re right. It’s Y/N!”

“Okay! Goodnight Y/N”

“Goodnight Wooyoung.''

...

When you reached your appartment, it was like reality struck you down again. When you were accompanied by Wooyoung, all your problems seemed to have had drifted away.

“But now, looking back on the mountain of cigarette butts on my ashtray, I’m reminded that I can’t just keep avoiding all my problems. Instead, I have to take action and face them somehow. That’s what I’ll do starting from tomorrow!” you proudly announced and placed yet another such butt on that mountain.

“Good for you! But now that you’ve got all that figured out, will you finally let me, your favorite mountain, take some rest? It’s 5 a.m, how are you that energetic?” San let out his frustration in between sighs, since you woke him up just to state your philosophical thoughts on how life basically works.

“I’ll tell you another time. Goodnight sleepyhead, see you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, that might happen if you stop clenching on your door handle”

“I will dummy, don’t worry. Sleep well” you said and he hung up without saying anything. You’re happy he even did you the favor and answered so you don’t mind at all. You need to get some sleep as well. It’s not an easy trip visiting and returning back from your highest point, heaven, anyway.

…

“Did your hair get longer?” Mingi looked at you surprised before sitting back down on his chair and handed your coffees over to you and San.

“Oh stop it you! Just because you haven’t seen me for a month doesn’t mean I changed that much!- Did I though? Is it bad?!”

“No, you’re the same small baby we love and cherish” San said and squeezed your cheek

“The same small SHITTY baby you mean” Mingi added in between coughs and received a death stare by San

“So… Any news?” San broke the ice and both you and Mingi laughed. For different reasons but you still laughed.

“How could she have any news to present when she was rotting in bed all day, going out only to empty her trashcan?”

“Actually… I’d like to talk about a certain topic…”

“Does it have to do with what you told me that night on the phone?” San remembered the conversation you had held two weeks ago, the night you last saw him.

It pains you and it’s been fucking your mood up for the past two weeks that you’ve had no contact at all. How could you have had any though, he didn’t even ask for your number! You really fooled yourself thinking you had saved it somewhere, that’s why you proposed dinner at your place that day. But he never tried sneaking it in your purse nor simply giving it to you directly.

You’ve been devastated and you couldn’t search for him as you don’t even know his last name. There were zero possibilities of you finding him and you thought that talking it through with your two favourite people would help you develop your new coping mechanism.

“Sort of”

“Are you going to fill me in? I have no idea what you’re talking about” Mingi said and took a disguising sip from his coffee cup, sharing a very loud noise with everyone sitting at the coffeeshop.

“Alright, remember that night you wanted to fuck that red head and then you found out that she was a lesbian?” San explained the timeline to Mingi based on their side of the story and Mingi nodded so that San would continue “Well, Y/N called me in the middle of that same night and woke me up to tell me about her remarkable life philosophies!”

“Wow! Y/N, I hate to break it to you but that that philosophical outburst wasn’t your ‘mc moment’. We all have those from time to time”

“Guys, my life philosophies are not what I want to talk to you about! Something else happened that night! Someone, to be completely honest”

“DID YOU CALL YOUR EX AGAIN?” they both shouted and stood up, forgetting about the fact that you’re having this conversation in public.

“Calm down! I did not call anyone. That’s the problem. I didn’t get his number”

“Whose number?! Do you have an imaginary boyfriend again? Are you in need of a prescription? Did loneliness turn you completely mad?!” Mingi asked angry and worried to the core but he didn’t even let you explain!

“Gosh Mingi, will you shut up and let me tell you about it?! If you want to be angry then go be angry by yourself, San will listen”

“San always listens” San said with a complaint hiding behind his wide smile

“Okay, go on. I will zip it”

“So, after I cancelled on you guys, I decided to go out by myself and I fucked this guy-“

“YOU FUCKED A GUY?!”

“She’s not a lesbian San, not everyone’s a lesbian. Only the girls I like apparently. Go on little one, I’m invested in your gossip”

You let a small sigh and got caught off guard by the waitress picking up your ashtray and emptying it in the plastic bag she was holding. You gave her a soft smile and when you turned back to look at your friends to continue your speech, you were greeted by a so greatly-missed choice of styling.

Fuck, you missed that eyebrow piercing so much as if it is your alleged husband coming back home from the military. He was already hugging San when you caught your eye on him. Thus, he had exceeded your notice on him right away, wasting no time to stare at you with that beautiful smile you rode like a total slut two weeks ago.

He was wearing the shop’s uniform and had his long hair tied in a small low ponytail, his strands falling in front of his face causing a problem for him again. Too bad he doesn’t have his glasses to hold them behind this time.You laughed at the plot line of your thoughts, catching all three’s attention. You two broke contact only to just reconnect it even stronger than it was before. The other two took turns in towards who to look at.

With a deep shy and some steps to get closer to you, he decided to speak up.

“How’s the coffee?”

“Tasty” you affirmed his currently questioning disposition “Did you make it?”

“That’s right. I would’ve been more artistic in it’s making if I knew that you’d be the one having it.”

“That’s okay, just the fact that you took the energy to make it does the job for me”

“Glad you’re enjoying it” he teasingly said, repeating his own words that had you stunned that night, right after his face riding session. On that note, he turned around and went back inside as his duties as a humanised coffee machine are calling him.

San and Mingi’s jaws were dropped on the floor because they could feel you two’s tension, without being updated on the context yet.

“Y/N honey, can you explain one thing to me?” Mingi’s face got all serious as he placed both hands on the table “How do you and my beloved mate Jung Wooyoung know each other?”

That's it! That’s His full name!

“Well… I kinda sat on his face two weeks ago in that bar’s bathroom stall...” you said bluntly and San’s laugh could probably be heard from really far away

“Of course you did” Mingi said trying to cope with this amusing new information he just received

“Well, I would too. Never had the chance to” San supported your horniness’ random spike, receiving wide stares from you and your other bestie because of it “What? I’m just being honest, he’s always been hot. So what now? What are you thinking of doing now?”

“Well, I don’t know.”

“Go ask him to fuck during his break time. He’ll be more than pleased to”

“What? Why’d you think I’d want to fuck him again Mr. Song? And why now of all times?”

“Well, I talked about both of you, not just about you Y/N. You two seemed like you were ready to ruin each other right in front of us, right San?”

“That’s right” San added and crossed his legs “You have to get his number this time”

“I can’t just go and disturb him while he’s working to ask for his number! Besides, I’m sure you two can just give it to me. He’s your friend, isn’t he?”

“No. You’re not having it that easy! I’m sure he’ll give it to you without question. Just go and take it!”

“San, I haven’t seen him in two weeks and we were both drunk that night. We had just met too! It’ll look weird if I just go and ask for his number”

“So you riding his face with the view of a fucking bathroom stall isn’t weird? You passed through that phase I’m sure you can pass this one too and go fuck somewhere. Moreover, it’ll be a chance to get you out of your dump again” Mingi played dirty with that one

“Agreed.”

“Fuck stop getting me unnumbered guys!”

“What can I say, it’s duty calling us to help you get your shit together. Go claim your man before anyone else does” Mingi said and put his jacket on

You looked at San but he just gave you a little supportive push towards the door. You can’t go back now and lose this opportunity right? It’s the moment you’ve been looking forward to happening. He’s right here and you can use it to your advantage! What could possibly go wrong?

You’re just stressing over the possibility of him not have given you his number on purpose that day. Cause, how could he forget? How could he forget after leading you on so well? Were his intentions simply for a ‘one night stand’? Why’d he ensure you continuity though?

Nah, he’s not having it. You deserve an explanation, a really good one. He can’t just go and hit on you on a random Saturday, grab his portion and then not pay the deserved way.

With that on your mind, you walked towards him, watching his every move carefully as you approached his aspect.

“Missed me?” he said without even looking at you. He just so gently wiped a cup dry, your eyes focused on his grip.

Unbelievable. You’re unbelievable, so desperate for his attention that it’s making you angry. ‘He’s just another man, get your shit together Y/N’, you thought to yourself. But is he just ‘another man’ to you?

“Won’t you say anything? Not gonna ask me how I’ve been?”

“There’d be no reason to do that If you’d given me your number!” you mumbled

“What was that?” he said and finally did you the favour to look into your eyes

He completely melted in those five seconds of eye contact. He was ready to leave everything behind, grab your hand and go spend time with you, anywhere you told him to. But you, you were taken over by anger. You could feel the frustration caused by his absence drive you insane. You wanted to slap him for being so unbothered but you knew that’d turn both of you on. So what can you do?

“Huh?” he asked again as you seemed distracted and forgot to reply to his question or rather chose not to.

“Oh forget it Wooyoung. Good day” you said and sprang out of the cafeteria

Right when the air hit your hair, Mingi and San knew by the look on your face that something didn’t go according to plan. They ran after you only to be greeted goodbye as all you wanted then was to be alone and try to ‘fix yourself’ as you said.

You’re disappointed. Totally disappointed. Why? Oh, the answer’s simple. It’s that you should’ve accepted the fact that the acting in a movie is still acting, no matter how real it comes out. It’s not really life. So, what felt like a movie to you that night was fake from the start.

Hypocrisy was what bonded you and Jung Wooyoung together in your little head. What you do want is was felt real but isn’t. He was never really interested in getting to know you, he didn’t even look at you until you seemed frustrated! He just asked all these questions that day to light up the mood, that’s why he was sexualising everything. Wouldn’t he want to look at you if he’d truly missed you? You were the one who couldn’t take your eyes off of him, how could he not put the slightest effort after declaring his statement that time, that including him being so into you?

‘It’s just another man, you’ll be fine’, you thought to yourself again. On the other hand, there’s still this other part of you in your little head that keeps telling you to go back and ask him straight away, ‘Did you just want to have it served to you once and never again?’ but you won’t be doing that. Your ego’s too high to go this low with your actions.

You began to walk faster than before as you slapped yourself hard enough with your thoughts to want to have them erased.

You can’t believe it. How could he? No, the true question is ‘How could you Y/N?’. How could you let yet another man play with your feelings when you knew his intentions from the start? This one’s different. No, all he wanted was to get his portion and leave the rest to the table to rot. Fuck, how could I’ve been so stupid?

Footsteps and footsteps and footsteps and footsteps and-

“Fuck, why’d you run off like that? Do you not care about my lungs nor our situation at all??” he asked with his hand on your shoulder, breathless and with sweat dripping down his forehead.

You removed his hand from your shoulder and you turned around to do what you’ve been doing for the past five minutes, walking and avoiding your feelings.

“Oh c’mon Y/N! Are you really that apathetic?”

“Sorry? I was right there, you didn’t even look at me once and I’m the one called out for being apathetic? Please-“ you said and tried to walk away again before he sprang in front of you, stoping your motion “Will you please stop whatever you’re doing? Stop acting like you care so much to the point that you’ll get yourself in trouble, cause you don’t “

“How’d you come to that conclusion?”

“You’ve made it very clear Woo. You didn’t try to keep in touch, you just wanted your dose and that’s where you put your period when you got it.“

“I didn’t get my dose though”

“Oh, I see. Let’s blame the neighbours for calling the cops and interruptinh our private session now, that’s all we have left to blame and do anyway”

“No, we haven’t done everything yet. I haven’t asked you what I meant to ask you. That’s why I ran all this way, putting myself in trouble for doing so. I might lose my job for this but I don’t care. But for you, I do care. So, why’d you not give me your number since I didn’t? That’s the real question”

He’s got a great point there. Not once did you think about it, why’d you not do it? Were you scared? Were you humiliated? Were you anxious? Were you-

“I simply thought we’d exchanged it already”

“So how could you have the right to forget about it and forget about me so easily? I went mad all these days, waiting for you, at the bar. You never showed up. Why’d you not show up?”

You then could recognise the purity in his eyes that you fell in love with that night. That excessive desperation that made your insides tangle. You know you fell hard for him, that’s why you let it slide, that’s why he’s not in fact ‘just another man’ to you. How could one be mad at him?

“I don’t know… After thinking I’d never see you again, I got closed up in my house once more. I didn’t want to go out and meet someone else. I didn’t want to meet anyone to be completely honest.”

“You shouldn’t do that! You’re too pretty to be hiding yourself in there. It’s also unhealthy.“ he said and made you smile, finally. He looks so proud and relaxed, like he was waiting for this moment. Just seeing you smile felt like the sun finally showing up after being hidden in the clouds. In other words, you’re that small sparkle that brightened his shitty day. It worked as a confirmation for him, your smile, as he understood how much you actually lovestruck him.

“So it wasn’t just a ‘one time thing’ for you?”

“Do you think I’d sweat that much If it was just a ‘one time thing’ for me? My legs don’t work well, fuck, I have to exercise more frequently” and yet came another laugh that sounded like melody to his ears “Oh, by the way- This is for you” he said and put a small and cutely folded paper in your back pocket.

What a tease he truly is and how you love it.

“Was that our receipt?” you teased back while approaching him closer than you already were.

“It’s a surprise. I’ll tell you about it when we have that cooking session we talked about yeah?”

“Okay, I’ll call you. I promise.” you said as you knew exactly what that little billet doux contained.

“Okay lovebug, I’ll be waiting” he said and let himself completely loose once he felt your touch on his cheek, before your lips met in a tender kiss.

He really can’t control himself around you. Same problem as on your first encounter. He wrapped his arms around you and held you close, not seeming like he wanted to let go.

“I’m so glad I found you again Y/N. Would you have came to the bar to find me? Did you think about it?”

“I did but didn’t have the courage to. I’d probably meet you through Mingi and San though someday. I wish I knew sooner so that I’d keep in touch”

“Yeah, but we will now!”

“That’s right but for now, you need to go back. You’ll lose your job”

“Shit, I totally forgot about that.” he said and panicked. You smiled as he kissed your hand after hugging you. “So… I’ll be going now okay?”

“Of course.” you replied and waved him goodbye, him too.

You got lost in your own thoughts again, which this time were formed with his not probable urges. Your mindset is now set in a new theme, under the name ‘Jung Wooyoung’. Wow, you really are a lucky girl.

“Don’t be a stranger, stranger!” he shouted, blowed you kisses from afar and began to run towards the cafeteria’s direction.

[moongothic]

So a few weeks ago I ran into this, old, old Crocodile meta post from 2015, the OP of which hasn't been active on Tumbr (at least on that account) since 2018. And this post (along with some of the OP's other posts) has been living in my head rent free since then.

There was just something there about seeing these old meta posts, completely detached from the current state of the story, the fandom and the Crocodad Propaganda... It just made for a truly refreshing read, but they also had such great observations about Crocodile I hadn't even thought about or noticed*, and somewhat most importantly... validating my own feelings/observations about things I've been kind of afraid to vocalize myself lest I apper completely delulu. Like I dunno I do worry sometimes if I'm just reading into things too much just to make massive reaches to get The Reading of the character that happens to support the Crocodad theory specifically, instead of trying to get a more objective reading instead. So seeing someone else make either those exact same or similar observations nearly 10 years before I did is so validating, and really just made me want to discuss some of those things.

*(Like this whole post about how "DON!" is often used to add emphasis and show the true beliefs of characters, and how Crocodile doesn't really say things with a DON!, almost like his heart isn't in most of the things he does or says. I dunno it was such a good read)

Sidenote: I do want to quickly comment that I don't agree with the OP on some of their readings about stuff, and more importantly, due to the age of the both the original posts and the OP not being active anymore, I didn't want to, like... Treat them as if they just posted it recently and interact with the posts as such. (I dunno, when people go digging through my decade old main blog and start reblogging shit I posted in like 2014 it just. I dunno, it's just kind of uncomfortable. Like you're allowed to browse my past but I wished people let my ancient cringe stay in the past. But that's just me) Like for example I feel like OP has a fundamental misunderstanding what being "trans" really even means (thus I don't agree with their take on trans Croc), but again, OP's take is old and so I don't want to hold it against them. They could have grown since then and come to better understand what being trans means, and regardless of that they don't have to buy into the theory either. And I absolutely do not want anyone to start trying to pester them about it or anything (again, they posted these things nearly 10 years ago), regardless of if they're still active or not. But yeah, that's why this is a whole separate post rather than a reblog with commentary.

So OP in their post speculated how in this moment (chap 206), based on the face he makes and the serious look he gives to Luffy, Crocodile seems to find the idea of someone being willing to die for someone else's sake absolutely incomprehensible, as if he's trying to wrap his head around the mere concept. That, or he used to know what it was like to hold someone/something that dear to you, but has long forgotten what it was like

Rereading this arc a while back I couldn't help but to take notice of this panel too and that unusual, somber(?) look on Crocodile's face. But because I'm a Crocodad Truther, of course I couldn't help but to feel that this was a face of recognition, of Crocodile understanding Luffy exactly in this moment, that willingness to do anything for a loved one. Especially because I have been speculating Crocodile might've been doing all of this with the goal of nuking the World Government out of orbit to protect his long lost baby boy (it's just that he simply finds Luffy's insistence on protecting this random ass princess from a random ass country he has zero ties to ridiculous, as opposed to like, doing all of this to protect immidiate, close family)

So again, despite the different reading it is validating as hell to see someone else think this panel in particular was odd. But the more I thought about it, I did kind of start leaning towards OP's reading. Now this one was originally pointed out by opbackgrounds, how in this scene (chapter 196) while Crocodile is meant to be laughing and mocking the royal guard for "throwing their lives away" to protect Cobra, he isn't actually smiling. We don't even get to see his full face with his eyes blacked out, so we don't get to see Crocodile's true feelings in this scene

And that does kind of reframe what he says in the second panel. For a long time I wondered if the implication was that Crocodile does actually value people's lives more than he lets on (especially with his seeming willingness to blow up a million people in a violent, orchestraded coup), just having a "small sacrifice for the greater good" kinda outlook (as we know, casualties can't be avoided in war, Croco and Luffy both agree on that) (where as I would IMAGINE Dragon having a more "no sacrifices, we have to save as many people as possible" kinda principle)

But now, looking at these two moments together, and knowing Crocodile has trust issues for unknown reasons, there is also that option that, perhaps... No one has ever shown that kind of loyalty towards him, a willingness to follow him to the grave or support him, to stay by his side? And if so, maybe, in these two scenes, Crocodile does recognize that kind of deep loyalty and trust and love, and has to cope with the fact that he has and may never experience it himself, that he's doomed to be alone, surrounded only by people who "respect him" out of fear (something that could be extra painful while knowing someone had just recently betrayed him by leaking his info to ruin his plans/after figuring out it was Robin, his very literal partner in crime. Like talk about rubbing salt into a wound).

And y'know, that is an extremely sad reading and I feel so bad for my poor little meow meow (that man needs a hug so bad), but also that doesn't really add to pushing The Crocodad Agenda, which is very unfortunate. Especially because I feel like between the two readings, Crocodile recognizing loyalty no one will ever show him (and being hurt by the fact) feels like a more comprehensive and simple reading, than if one is about him showing he doesn't fully believe in what he's doing is right and the other about him relating to Luffy on a deeper level.

But then, as OP pointed out in their post, for the entirety of page 2 of Chapter 207 while Luffy is keeling over from the poison finally kicking in, Crocodile looks like he's fully letting down his walls to express genuine relief, as if the those beliefs Croc had carried and convinced himself were true were just confirmed

What're his beliefs again? That trust in others is worthless, and you can not afford to have ideals if you're weak, great strenght being the only thing that allows you, if not straight up justifies you, in doing whatever you please? Now, maybe it's just me, but if Crocodile was showing relief here over his belief that trusting others is worthless after being reminded time and time again of the love and loyalty the Strawhats have for each other and the Alabastan kingdom has for everyone in it (etc)... I dunno, I feel like that would be kind of weak, if that's where Crocodile's internalized beliefs were wavering. But if Crocodile's whole Utopia-plan had been about destroying the WG to protect his baby boy (and release the whole world from the WG's oppressive rule while he's at it) at whatever cost, while he deep inside knew what he was doing was fucked up beyond belief... Yeah, Crocodile trying to convince himself what he was doing was "justified" would make sense. Him having his beliefs potentially even waver a little bit through out this whole ordeal would make sense. Crocodile in this moment experiencing relief that what he had told himself was the righteous would make sense.

Everybody remember's Doflamingo's speech from Marineford, about how history is written by the victors and its them who decide what is right and what is wrong- the winner becomes "justice" itself. Vegapunk kind of called back to this concept during his broadcast too, and yeah, Crocodile did kind of introduce us to it back in Alabasta. If he had won, he would have been "justified" in what he had done, because it'd be him who'd be deciding what's right and what's wrong.

Now I don't really have anything else to add to that post in particular (though I absolutely love the reading on the Crocodile vs Robin part and now that I've read it I can't unsee nor disagree with it), but OP did make a separate post speculating about some of design decisions Oda made regarding Crocodile, starting with discussing the logo for Baroque Works. And they pointed this out

Bro wrote this in 2015, they have no idea, oh my god, dude had no clue whatsoever

So quickly looking that one up and yeah, wings have sometimes been used to represent the sun (most commonly with the sun, as a winged sun?) and yeah, that actually has a lot of meaning in the current state of the series re: God of Liberation the Sun God Nika. But what's more is that this is actually the SECOND time we're actually finding a way to link Crocodile to sun-symbolism, the other being Crocodile being a reference to the Egyptian god Sobek (protector god, god of military, go to Wikipedia), who has an alternative form (/fusion with Ra) called Sobek-Ra, where he is a sun god. And what was Crocodile trying to do in Alabasta if not falsely "liberate" the country from its original rule. Also worth noting is that seemingly the winged sun was most commonly used in Egyptian iconography, so if Oda ever did research Egyptian mythology for inspiration in Alabasta (which, considdering the sheer amount of Stuff in the story as a whole is more than likely), then it is very possible he could have read about the winged sun and used it intentionally.

But what I do find interesting is that, yeah, wings kinda are a symbol one would considder "heroic" or related to "freedom". And, as I have been going on and on about, if Crocodile's ultimate goal in creating his funny little "utopia" was to overthrow the World Government and "free" the whole world of their rule. Like. That really lines up with the whole symbolism with the sun and the liberation and the freedom and shit, like. Why does it line up so neatly good dear god

I dunno how to end this post, these were just a few little things that I had been thinking about after coming across OP's blog and, yeah, just wanted to discuss them.

Again, OP hasn't been active for years, but if they did suddenly come back please don't bother them or god forbid harrass them/try to get them to change their mind about trans Croco. Just don't start shit, please.

End of post byeeeeeeee

[bugs1nmybrain]

Bipolar!Shigaraki Tomura Headcanons

I'm writing it. Because I CAN

Before I start, I am writing these headcanons as someone who has been diagnosed with Bipolar Type 1 for almost three years now. I frankly could not care less if people don't think he has Bipolar Disorder, I'm writing this for my comfort and that of others who either have Bipolar disorder or just resonate with the idea that Tomura does.

and I'm also very aware of Bipolar Disorder being stigmatized as something that affects "bad" people. I'm not trying to suggest this, but that Tomura is someone who is neglected of treatment.

Warning: Bipolar disorder as title suggests (Tomura's symptoms relate to type 1 more), talks of depression, mania, psychosis, suicidality, etc, angst?

Tomura has never been given a formal diagnosis and likely has no clue that he has bipolar disorder himself. He doesn't know much about it, either, other then the stereotype that people with general mood swings are "so bipolar."

The doctor knows, AFO does too, but for them, they see it as more ammo for their arsenal to make sure Tomura's life is nothing but agony. He's never been treated with medications or therapy. Nothing.

Because he isn't medicated, his episodes are pretty strong. His manic episodes sort of blend in with his everyday behavior to a lot of people.

It's during this time that he finds himself planning out grand operations against the heroes. Some of his ideas seem unrealistic and not well thought out. They're more just ideas thrown around, and he jumps to gather people and means to carry out his goal before actually having a calculated plan.

He's up all night doing this. But if he's not, he's likely gaming. He huddles up in his room with multiple cans of energy drinks (as if he didn't already have way too much energy).

(semi-canon) will text his comrades at godforsaken hours either asking, demanding, or just rambling about stuff. If he gets an answer, the recipient often finds themself confused because Tomura just talks and talks and talks, and when he's in the heat of some plan or project he doesn't really stop to compose his sentences or even take a damn breath.

He impulsively buys things, like copious amounts of in-game purchases. Or DoorDash. If he's feeling reeeaaal bold he'll go for a whole-ass gaming console if he can, even if his current one is perfectly fine. Or assembling as many thugs as he can and feeling generous enough to overpay them when they definitely don't need the amount of money he's giving them.

You can see how when AFO was arrested, his lifestyle shifted in this regard.

Tomura is already an irritable guy, and so his mania can make it worse. He gets very overstimulated with all of his sensations that little things, like accidentally stubbing his toe, can make him mad as fuck for a good thirty minutes.

He also gets very paranoid about others. When he talks to people, he's already convinced that they are tricking him somehow and he'll read every cue he can to confirm it, even if the proof isn't even there.

Even when he's out in public and by himself, he thinks everyone is mocking, judging, and looking at him. That also comes with being the most wanted villain around, but that's beside the point.

When something finally goes his way, he is HAPPY. Sometimes the League will catch Tomura smiling his face off for no apparent reason (odd for him), and will ask what's up, only for Tomura to CACKLE back with, "ehehAHAH NOTHING!! THAT's just IT!"

They look at each other like, but just let him go about his day. They'll later hear him giggling to himself in his room, and sometimes talking to himself. He'll deny and just tell them he was on chat (his devices are not open and he is standing in the middle of his room).

Because he's not medicated, his mania can trickle into psychotic symptoms. Especially if he's going through more stress than typical. He hears voices that tell him mean things. Sometimes they're the voices of his dead family.

And because he doesn't sleep much, he sees detailed shadows and things moving that aren't. It disturbs him, but he accepts it and tries to just push on. But sometimes if he hears voices more than he'd like, he gets sad and has to grip his head and whisper "shut up shut up shut up" to negate them.

He's delusional, too. AFO's grooming and constant monitoring of his whole life have definitely emphasized his distrust of everything around him. Sometimes he'll think that the people he's gaming with online are secret hero spies trying to get him to reveal himself. He also has a fear that someone is watching him in every location, and he'll think that even the silliest things are cameras or microphones, or that those around him are also spies. Later on, it becomes paranoia that his master is everywhere.

Then comes the doom of depression

For Tomura, he's technically always depressed. But when he goes into a depressive episode, he's pretty lifeless.

He's complacent about his goals. Sometimes he'll get a tiny idea that makes his brain go !, but then he thinks of all the planning behind it and immediately slouches down on any nearby furniture

He'll lay in bed for a long period of time doing nothing. Sometimes he'll try to play a game on his phone but he gets bored quick.

Tends to eat more during this time because it's the only joy he can get. And he gets bored. He is SO BORED

Anhedonia is a bitch

His brain dwells and rambles, yet his thoughts don't make sense to him? He's constantly thinking about how fucked up his life is, how better other villains are, and how much he hates All Might and heroes altogether. He tells himself that if it wasn't for all of that he wouldn't feel this way (relating to the depressive episode).

It overwhelms him and he tries to sleep it off, but he's somehow so depressed that he's UNCOMFORTABLE. His itching gets bad.

He is very suicidal during this time and hurts himself to try and subside it. If you asked him his reason for living, he'd tell you "to see this world crumble." But he's too busy crumbling in his bed.

Psychotic symptoms can occur during his depression, too. Especially if he hasn't slept.

His lack of medication usually causes him to swap back to mania somewhat soon (2 months or so). He definitely has rapid cycles.

Because his condition isn't managed, his brain is sort of in an in-an-out stance when it comes to his literal sanity. He has moments where he can definitely be level-headed (he gets rrly confident when he notices it) but when his anger and stress fuel him more than usual, he spirals and quite literally sees red. Sometimes he can't even tell if he's dreaming or not. Often mistakes the date and day of the week.

:(

I might write a fic of the reader comforting bipolar tomura. I don't think I've ever seen a fic like that for any character.

[zorosjuicymelonsx]

Finding You

A/N: Welcome to Chapter 7 ya'll!

I was torn between two gifs to use for this chapter (its getting harder to pick) but like can we please take a moment to admire Zoro in this gif? I just imagine he doing this when Y/N catches him staring and he's like 'oh shit act casual' 🤭💚 I loved writing this chapter so much, I really got in my feels and hope you guys enjoy reading it. I'll be back in two weeks with the next chapter. I need some extra time to catch up with planning and writing the next chapters 🥺✨

Chapter Seven Previous Next

Hours had passed since Zoro sent himself to train in the Crows Nest. His body cocooned with sweat and his arms began to numb as he swung his heavyweight barbell over his head for the thousandth time. He knew it was overkill but he didn’t know what to do with himself. In his head; you were just you with no mental attachments but he couldn’t understand the yearning ache he felt around you in his heart. He had remembered only one memory that he would never admit he replayed in his head often in the hopes other memories would spur to end the vicious war his mind and heart were playing with each other. 

Eventually Zoro forced himself to drop the heavyweight barbell. As the weight hit and he brought himself to sit, he grabbed the towel he had nearby to wipe off the excess sweat. Satisfied with the moisture to dried skin ratio, he closed his eye to clear his mind and zoned in on his breathing. 

“Focus.” He mumbled to himself in the hopes it would help. 

In the thick of the silence and his ongoing mental confusion, he did not anticipate that his mind would take him back to recapping the entire day he’d spent with you, flickering through the outfits you’d tried on and your smile on constant display throughout despite how sour it ended with the dirtbag at the bar. You had shone brightly in the dimness that was his mind. 

He opened up his eye to look down at his hands, bringing his attention to the hand that bruised your wrist. The guilt he felt then returned and twinged his heart.

“For fucks sake.” He spoke irritatedly, clenching his fists for a few seconds. He gave up on meditation as a whole and laid himself back on the floor in defeat letting his mind go into the mental tangent he’d fought so desperately not to have since leaving you on the deck. 

The words he spoke earlier were still bothering him. He had no clue where it had come from, having no recollection of prethinking the words before they came out. He couldn’t fathom what was going through your head after hearing him say the words. Remembering the surprised look on your face, he was appreciative that you tried to change the topic to keep him calm. 

‘I called her my wife.’ He thought over it. It was the first time he spoke the words and solidified it into existence. 

Is it possible that somewhere deep down inside he felt more for you than he could mentally wrap around his mind?

————————————- ⚔️✨ ————————————

Somewhere in the vast sea of the New World, a large dark ship hidden away sailed miles behind the Thousand Sunny undetected. The very capitain of the ship Enver who had invaded the Straw Hats sat in his captains quarters going over every plan he could think of to get closer to you and achieve his goal without compromising his plans or crew.

“We failed to capture her. I can’t seem to comprehend how we keep missing her at every chance.” Enver spat, his teeth gritted as he scrunched an old map he had in his hand out of anger. He hadn’t anticipated you would actually find the Pirate Hunter, the last few years he had spent tailing you and waiting for the right moment to make his move and reintroduce himself. 

“What do you want to do about Roronoa?” Enver’s first mate Jacob stood beside watching the demise on his captain's face. 

“I’ll admit that we underestimated just how strong the Straw Hats are. We need to lure her away from them to have a chance. Especially him. I don’t like how strong he’s become since the last time I met him.” Enver stood from his chair, moving away to glare out of the window in his quarters with his arms folded. 

“Would he regain any memory of her?” Jacob questioned. Enver sighed out frustrated at the small possibility but shook his head to disagree. 

“He has no memory of her whatsoever. I made sure to remove every trace of her from his mind during our fight in Shimotsuki.” Enver affirmed to himself. 

“It would’ve been easier to wipe hers completely rather than his.” Jacob mumbled out. This set off Enver. He turned and with a few quick strides grabbed Jacob by his shirt and slammed him against the wall nearest to them. 

“I’ve already explained this to you a hundred times: Roronoa was blocking my way when I had planned to wipe her memory after their wedding. I had to get rid of him to even stand a chance to get closer to her. Even then, she left to look for him.” Enver angrily spat out before releasing Jacob. He regained his composure knowing how easily riled up his captain can get. No matter how angry Enver became and took it out on him, Jacob owed Enver his life for saving him when he was poor and pathetic back home. He brought him back to life and purpose. He would do anything to ensure his captain's goals are met. 

“It won’t be easy but I can’t take much more of this. I need her.” Enver mumbled out, turning to look back through the window and live in his head of fantasies of everything he wanted to do to you.  ————————————- ⚔️✨ ————————————

The next week you could say was…weird. You noticed Zoro seemed a bit more observant with you. Whenever you were at the table in the galley with everyone for food or if you were training on deck, you could feel Zoro’s gaze on you. You’d be lying if you say you didn’t love the attention you were getting from him but at the same time you didn’t want to give yourself false hope that maybe he could feel the same way you do. You couldn’t explain the hug or the way he referred you as his wife in the bar. He had been sporadic in the past and when you did question him then he just gave a ‘felt like it’ reason. 

For that, you chose not to overthink it but you’d already spent an embarrassing amount of time questioning Zoro’s intentions despite drawing no conclusions from them. 

You were officially put on your first night watch. You’d arranged for pillows and blankets to be comfortably placed in the Crows Nest, courtesy of Sanji and Robin for helping you set it all up. Sanji had also made you an assortment of your favourite snacks with plenty of beverages to keep you full and satiated throughout the night. 

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay by yourself up here Y/N-chan?” Sanji asked with a hint of worry in his voice. 

“Of course Sanji, don’t worry.” You said assuringly as you patted his shoulder to comfort the cook. You would have considered it a sweet moment between the both of you but seeing Sanji lift up his blazer to sniff where you patted him definitely changed that for you. 

You waved bye to Robin and Sanji, settling into your warm furnishing whilst picking up a book you had ready to read. You were not used to the silence that settled in around you, finding comfort in having background noise but you were also appreciative of it from time to time. As you opened the book to begin reading the adventure book Robin had recommended to you, the sound of the hatch could be heard opening. On instinct, you frowned as you immediately dropped the book and reached for your sword only to see a head of green pop through. 

On realisation it was Zoro, you breathed a sigh of relief before you released your grip from the sword with a smile now etched on your face. Zoro had closed the hatch behind him, walking a few steps forward to stand in front of you whilst awkwardly observing your setup. 

“You look cosy.” Zoro mumbled.  

“Well well well, what brings you here Zoro? Surprised you found your way here.” You teased, smiling at him whilst he offered an eye roll. 

“The stupid cook kept whining about you being up here all alone and I couldn’t sleep so..” Zoro slurred the last few words out. Knowing the swordsman's sleeping habits made it hard to believe but you gave him the benefit of the doubt. 

Zoro won’t admit that he’s gotten used to sleeping next to you. He didn’t want to migrate back with the others, having gotten used to the sounds of your gentle breathing as opposed to the loud snores Luffy breathed out on a nightly basis. 

“Would you like to join me?” You offered as you lovingly patted the space next to you. Zoro looked at how comfortable you were under the blankets, nodding before untying his swords to place them next to yours and crawling to sit next to you. He sighed a breath of relief before digging in his sash and pulling out a bottle of sake. 

“Of course.” You mumbled out giggling before going to pick up your book and attempt to start reading it. 

A minute of silence passed and you’d expected to hear the sound of gulping but heard nothing. You looked up from the page to see Zoro staring at you intently, the unopened bottle still grasped firmly in his hand. 

“Does it bother you?” Zoro asked. 

“Does what bother me?” You asked, feeling confused by the nature of his question. 

“My drinking habits.” You let out a small ‘ah’ in understanding. You shook your head to disagree.

“Not at all, you’ve always been like this since the start. Wouldn’t change a thing. I’m sorry if I made you feel anyway.” You said with guilt laced in your voice. Zoro grunted before opening the bottle of sake and taking a few chugs from it. You returned to your book and you both sat in comfortable silence for some time. You managed to get through the first chapter of your book before bookmarking it and picking up your beverage to take a sip. With your thirst quenched, you put your drink back and turned to see Zoro’s eye closed and his breathing evened out. You knew he wasn’t sleeping and you decided to ask him the one question that's been nagging you since you arrived on the Sunny. 

“Can I ask what happened to your chest?” 

Zoro opened his eye to see you looking at him, your eyes beaming with curiosity. He forgot that you didn’t know what happened to him. 

“Challenged Mihawk.” He said in two simple words. Your eyes widened and you soon changed your seating position to now face him entirely, your smile widening. 

“You found him?!” You asked excitedly, taking your drink back in your hands to centre your excitement. 

“Y-yeah, how did you know? Did Robin tell you or?” He asked, confused. He hadn’t expected your reaction to be this animated. You laughed before taking another sip of your drink. 

“I mean we are married, duh of course I would know. You were always so excited to tell me how you would find him and challenge him to take his title. Plus, you promised Kuina afterall to be the world's greatest swordsman.” The mention of Kuina made Zoro’s eye widen with surprise. 

“Kuina?” 

You nodded before crossing your legs to sit more comfortably. 

“I was devastated when she passed away, everyone was. She was amazing and an example of how being a woman shouldn’t stop you from achieving your dreams. Heck, she’s even given me a lecture to grow a backbone.” You smiled, your voice was filled with both humour and sadness that she was taken away so early. 

You sighed, looking away from Zoro and down at your lap. You sighed before clearing your throat. 

“I wasn’t supposed to but after the funeral, I was walking through the dojo to get my bag when I heard your voice coming from the room you were in with Koshirou. Seeing you like that…I remember how sad it made me. You could tell you took it the hardest out of everyone and when I heard you say you wanted Kuina’s sword, I felt somewhat relieved it would be in good hands. I’m glad you’re treating Wado well. She would be proud of you.” You shyly confessed. You hadn’t told him this even before he lost his memory. 

Pain seared back into his head, Zoro closed his eye grunting as he captured his head with his palm leaning forward. He knew what this was and didn’t fight it. He welcomed the memory into his head despite the infuriating ache that came with it. 

‘The memory took place from a different perspective; he was himself as he was currently and stood somewhere as if he was in observation.

“Honey, what's that you’re holding behind you?” 

Hearing your voice, Zoro turned in the direction of where it was coming from to see you. 

You giggled as you approached Zoro who stood by a tree. He assumed it was the forest back home as he watched a younger version of himself walk to you with something wrapped behind his hands. He saw himself now stood in front of you and leaned to give you a quick peck before bringing the gift from behind him to offer it to you. 

He saw you beam while you perked an eyebrow before accepting his gift. You unwrapped it and saw a sword. He recognised the sword to be the same that you carry with you now. He saw you gasp and display the biggest grin on your face. 

“Please accept this. I wanted you to carry something from me to remind you that I’ll always be by your side.” He saw the smile bright on his face. He made a note that you both look younger, assuming this is a much older memory. 

“I love it, thank you.” You blushed before tiptoeing to kiss him. He felt himself blush seeing how he watched himself grab you to pull you in closer to deepen the kiss.’

…..

“Zoro???” 

He was shook out of the memory, the pain dulled down as he opened his eye to see the worry in your eyes. His eye wandered to the sword that you had propped next to you. It was in pristine condition and felt his heart swell with pride. He wasn’t ready to leave the memory, he wanted to see more. 

“Are you okay? What was that?” You questioned him, panic laced in your voice. 

“n-Nothing, I think it's for the sake. I drank it a bit too quickly.” He mumbled out. You felt some relief hearing this despite the fact you’d spent the last minute trying to call out for him. You only realised then it wasn’t the first time he’d shown this kind of pain and made you question whether you should disclose this to Chopper or not. 

“I hope you’re not mad about me listening to the conversation you had about Kuina’s sword. I’m sorry, I know it's not easy to talk about. I just held onto that for years and felt now was the right time to talk about it.” You rambled guiltily as you fidgeted with your drink in your hand. 

Being brought back to reality, Zoro hadn’t expected anyone to know about his breakdown with Koshirou. Being a child and losing someone who you looked up to would affect anyone. He didn’t know what to say or do other than grunt in acknowledgement, turning to look at Wado. The sword will always keep him grounded, reminding him of his shared dream with her. 

“It's fine, we were kids. You didn’t know better.” You looked at him before nodding to yourself. You then saw the sake bottle was still in his hand and you reached over to take it away from him. 

“Maybe lay off this for a bit.” You said before laughing and tucking the bottle behind you. For once, Zoro didn’t argue and willingly accepted letting you take it. 

Silence filled the room again as you leaned back and returned to your book. Unknowing to you, Zoro used the silence to process the memory as he looked across the room. He never remembered ever seeming so…happy. The way he smiled at you in the memory, there was so much life in it. The way you looked at him with so much care and content. Seeing the both of you together somehow began to make more sense to him. He recalled over the last few weeks how easy it was for him to just converse or sit in comfort with you. Your kindness, your will, your selflessness. It didn’t go unnoticed by him. 

Zoro turned to look at you to observe you, seeing your eyes sparkle as they glided across the page along with the words. His eye trailed down from the gentle slope of your nose to the suppleness of your lips as they slightly pouted out in concentration. He then took in your face as a whole and the way your hair sat to bring your whole beauty in together. He fought back a blush, allowing the tips of his ears to reddin. He’d previously acknowledged your looks but seeing you as you are now… 

‘You’re beautiful Y/N’ 

“Everything okay?” 

He didn’t notice you were staring at him puzzled. The swordsman feeling embarrassed he’d been caught staring harder than he anticipated nodded before looking away to stare at the wall. 

“How did you get your devil fruit powers?” Zoro asked, hoping to change the subject now looking down to his lap as he pinched at his haori. 

“You finally want to admit it's cool?” You joked. Zoro looked back up at you, smiling as he scoffed at your ridiculousness  before shaking his head at you. You hummed in acknowledgement of his question, taking your time to collect your thoughts before you told the story for the first time out loud. 

“I stole the fruit.” You admitted your second confession of the night. 

Now this made Zoro laugh out loud. 

“Now that I wasn’t expecting to ever hear from you.” He said as he stared at the growing redness of what seemed to be a mixture of embarrassment and shame. 

You’d never told anyone how you obtained your fruit, choosing to keep it to yourself in case the very people you robbed decided to go on a widespread manhunt for you. 

“What? You don’t think I’m capable of doing bad things?” You defended, knowing you didn’t look the type to steal. In all honesty, you wanted to live a life as honestly as possible. Unfortunately, the last few years had opened your eyes to accept that sometimes you had to be dishonest to survive. 

“Alright, I'm invested now; why’d ya steal it?” Zoro continued encouraging you. 

You placed your drink down, wiping your hand from the moisture that collected from it on the comforter. You leaned to lay back down, your head sinking into the pillow before sighing out and looking at the ceiling. 

“After you disappeared and I made the decision to travel out and find you, the biggest con was the travel was taking too much time. Not a lot of ships as you know come to the village and finding my way around islands became a chore. A few months into my journey, I was in a bar resting and planning the next place to go to look for you when I overheard a couple guys on my right bragging about a devil fruit they stole from a group of pirates. They spoke about the fruit and how it was rumoured to give the user the ability to travel through holes to go to different places at your will or by chance. I was intrigued and desperate.

I made the choice to take a risk and steal it for myself. I followed them to where they were staying and thankfully they were so drunk and passed out once they got to their own ship. I snuck onboard and looked around for it. It was really hard to see since it was dark but I eventually managed to find a box that stuck out like a sore thumb and when I opened it; I saw the fruit. 

I knew that there was no guarantee it was the right fruit and I would lose my ability to swim but if it meant I got this advantage then so be it. I ate the fruit, bare in mind it was the most disgusting thing I’ve ever eaten in my life.” 

This made Zoro laugh again. You smiled before continuing. 

“I ate every last bit of that fruit. I managed to leave the ship without being detected and decided to flee the island itself just in case anyone else may have seen me sneaking on the ship to begin with. I chose to travel to a quieter island, one where there weren't a lot of people and where I could have some privacy to practise using the fruit. The fear of just being on the boat knowing one wrong move and I’d drown is scary as hell. I wasn’t ready to die just yet. 

I spent a LOT of time practising how to use my new abilities. It was a huge challenge and it took me about a year to summon just my first hole. The first island I travelled with my new abilities I unfortunately ended up being on an island with cannibals. They really tested my stamina. I was forced to use my ability again to travel back and because of that I found out the consequence of using the holes more than once in a day. I ended up spending three days barely conscious and recuperating completely alone. I don’t even want to get into the time I landed on Marijouse Island and was almost sold into slavery.” 

“I hate that place, some guy didn’t want to admit he wanted directions and had the audacity to point a gun at me.” Zoro mumbled out bitterly. 

“I mean look where I am now. It was worth it.” You said brightly to lighten the mood. 

“Did you have doubts you’d never find me?” Zoro questioned. 

“I did at one point. It was about two years into travelling when I had second thoughts. I was exhausted. I was running low on money, my father refused to help me. Lily had started her life with her new husband and children and I couldn’t bare the thought of burdening her. 

I didn’t give up because I knew that I would spend the rest of my life thinking about how much I would regret not getting any closure from you. I couldn’t bear the thought of starting another life with someone else. I couldn’t get over you and I don’t think I could love anyone as much as I love you. I respect you for having your ambitions and I had planned to stay by your side as you worked towards becoming the world's greatest swordsman. If I had to sacrifice myself to make sure you continue and achieve that, I would do it in a heartbeat.”

Zoro was stunned in silence as he stared at you. 

“Well that was a lot, haha.” You breathed out feeling somewhat lighter. 

“i-I don’t know what to say other than I’m sorry.” Zoro mumbled.

“Why are you sorry?” 

Zoro was silent, gathering his thoughts together before answering. 

“Don’t you feel you wasted the last few years just because of me?” Zoro looked at you intently. You looked back harder, your mouth thinning at his question. 

‘Was he trying to make you feel that you wasted your time over him?’ You thought to yourself.

“Zoro, I want you to listen and listen well. If I had to go through all of it again, I would do it. I don’t regret anything I did if it meant I could be here now.” You grinned. 

Zoro's heart became erratic. 

‘There it was again, his heartbeat.’

Ba dum, ba dum, ba dum. 

‘Why?’

Ba dum, ba dum, ba dum.

The longer you both held each other's gaze, the faster his heartbeat became.

Zoro concluded that his heart reacted because of you. 

Ba dum, ba dum, ba dum.

The ache he felt to be close to you and protect you till his last breath. He felt the gentle rising and falling of your steady breath as you both sat so close to each other. 

Ba dum, ba dum, ba dum. 

How your eyes were so gentle and full of hope. 

Ba dum, ba dum, ba dum. 

How your skin was so soft whenever you’d held his hand. 

‘Is this what love feels like? Is this it?’

And it was.

At that moment, Roronoa Zoro had accepted that he was in love with you. Despite struggling to mentally understand his feelings, he decided that his heart had won the war.

————————————- ⚔️✨ ————————————

A/N: God I am a sap for romance, writing the last line made my heart go BA DUM BA DUM BA DUM 😭❤️

[thecatundertheladder]

You know what? Fuck it. Morro is alive in my fsm lives au.

He got all the way into Fsm's tomb (which is actually just an over-the-top storage facility) before Fsm caught him.

When Morro was first taken in by Wu he was in awe. I mean it's not every day you're offered a place to stay by the son of God. But he doesn't know much about Wu or his family, nor does Wu think to tell him.

Over time, Morro works out that Wu isn't human. It's the little things at first that make him unsure of his dad's sensei's heritage. A low, draconic hiss there, a quick, barely noticeable shapeshifting mishap there. But Morro is still insecure about his place in the monastery, so he doesn't mention it. However, the truth of Wu's dragoni status comes to light when Wu serves himself a slab of raw meat for dinner, still dripping with blood. Naturally morro, who got served dumplings, freaks out.

Morro: Why are you eating that?!

Wu, confused as to why he's getting asked this: Because I'm technically a carnivore?

Morro: What!?

Wu: You know, because I'm half dragon and half oni.

Morro: No?!

So Morro finds out one "secret" about Wu and his family. And Wu even starts using his true form every now and then. Unfortunately this incident doesn't make Wu stop to think that if Morro doesn't know that Wu isn't human, then he probably doesn't know a lot of other things, such as the Very Important Fact of the First Spinjitzu Master being alive. For Morro, the Fsm's "death" is only confirmed when Wu offhandedly comments that he might of realised that Morro didn't know he wasn't human sooner, if his father wasn't almost certainly in the Departed Realm. (Wu's reasoning behind this was that Fsm tends to be in their true form more often than Wu)

When Morro runs away to prove that he's worthy of being the green ninja, he doesn't actually set out with any particular goal in mind. Rather, the idea of finding the Fsm's tomb comes about after hearing rumours about it in a few of the villages he passed through. In one of them, he even overhears two men talking about how allegedly "not even the First Spinjitzu Master's son's know where the tomb is" (Garmadon and Wu actually don't know where the storage facility is located, as the only time they've ever been there the Fsm teleported them straight into it and straight back out again). It's this comment that gives Morro the idea: if he can find the tomb, something that Wu himself has failed to do, Wu will have to make him the green ninja! And so Morro sets out to find The Tomb of The First Spinjitzu Master.

Meanwhile Wu is having a crisis trying to remember if running away for months at a time was normal human behaviour. Because his draconic instincts are seeing this as normal (I hc dragons to have very large territories that they let their hatchlings run amok in) but his oni instincts are screaming at him to find his pup student. And of course Morro is human, so he's not sure what he should be doing. In the end, however, Wu will always be more dragon than oni, so his draconic instincts win out and he settles down to wait for the return of his hatchling student (though if he needs an few calming teas a day and stops nearly all communication with the outside world that's nobody else's business).

Morro actually does achieve what so few have before, and finds the tomb after months of searching. He then proceeds to one up everyone else and get inside, even without the clues, doing this by using his power over the wind and knowledge of spinjitzu. Morro then decides to do what any teenager in the tomb of God would, and starts to explore. But the cave system that it's in is complex and dangerous for mortals, so Morro quickly gets lost.

Fsm, meanwhile, had come to their storage facility to do some much needed organisation (listen, there is thousands of years worth of stuff in there. Fsm is half dragon and has the hoarding skills to prove it). While they're moving through the caves sorting random items they hear a disturbance a few tunnels over (dragoni hearing for the win!) and go to investigate. It's there that he finds Morro on the verge of a breakdown.

Morro, who was not expecting anyone else to be in the tomb nearly has a heart attack, because there is a massive being with wings and sharp horns and talons staring down at him. He panics and gets ready to fight. But the more he observes the being in the cave with him, the more familiar it seems. After a few seconds, it clicks, the being looks like Wu. And if the being looks like Wu, and it's not Garmadon, then there's really only one person it could be. But that's impossible, isn't it? But all the same, Morro relaxes a bit.

Morro: You're the First Spinjitzu Master

Fsm, wondering why there is a small child in his storage facility: I am, yes.

Morro: But you're dead! We're in your tomb!?

Fsm, now wondering why this small child has traces of their son's scent on him: This is a storage facility. And I'm not dead, who told you that?

Morro: Well - I mean - Wu said you were most likely in the Departed Realm!

Fsm: And I was, but I can leave it at any time. I'm a god afterall. Anyway, how do you know my son?

Morro: Wu took me in and trained me, and he lied to me and told me I was destined to become the green ninja. But I've found your tomb, surely that makes me worthy. You can make me the green ninja!

Fsm: Of course you are not the green ninja. It's not about how worthy one is. It's the fact that you are mortal, you simply wouldn't survive carrying the power of the green ninja. Besides, if it makes you feel better, you can already do something I cannot. You can control wind, something that no one since Wojira herself has been able to do. I assume that's why Wu thought you might the green ninja. I do apologise, it's my fault he's not the best at communication.

Fsm: You should return to the monastery. Wu is worried. He sees you as his son, you know, he will be happy that you are safe.

Morro: How can you know that when you didn't even know who I was.

Fsm: Omniscience is something I can chose whether to use or not. Now, I believe it is time for you to leave. Come, I will lead out of the caves.

So Morro and the First Spinjitzu Master leave the cave system. Morro has had his ego boosted since he can do something the First Spinjitzu Master can't, and is less angry about being not the green ninja. He's still angry at Wu, of course, but he misses him all the same. Besides, this way he can yell at Wu in person again.

Morro doesn't go back immediately though, instead he takes a few months to gather his thoughts. As he travels through the villages and cities of Ninjago he occasionally helps people out, and starts to get a sense of what being a ninja is all about. So by the time he actually reaches the monastery he's mostly cooled off, as well as lost some of his arrogance. However, he does still have a speech to give Wu that involves several apologies about how he acted, along with an section that explains the pressure that Morro felt Wu put him under.

He doesn't get a chance to actually say the speech until a few days after he returns home though, as the moment Morro steps through the gates he is greeted by his touch starved dragoni sensei parent, who immediately whisks him away for cuddles. And Morro, equally touched starved, simply can't bring himself to stop it.

Fsm, on the other hand, is absolutely thrilled that they now have a grandson to dote on.

(Thanks to @coolprofessorbagelwinner for the little tidbit at the end)

[sawyerslvt]

Johnny or Leland? | Episode 4

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This is a choose your own ending story. I have also included links to porn in this series, for better visualization ;) I haven't been feeling in a very 'writing mood' so please excuse the lack of episodes + this short one. I'm working on the endings but I can't get myself to love what I'm writing at the moment. I don't want to release stuff I'm not proud of. Hope you understand <33

Word Count: 1,346 Warnings: MDNI, abuse

It’s difficult to keep track of time when you have no clue what time of day it is. You feel like it's been days, maybe weeks? Johnny brings food and takes care of you like he said he would. You fail to see what the end goal is. Is he gonna kill you? Is he planning on releasing you or… is this it? Being held captive in his basement, keeping you alive but you don't get to live life. You’ve grown really fond of him, he’s the highlight of your day whenever he walks through that door. Sure, he’s the only human interaction you get, but it wasn't bad human interaction, certainly doesn’t feel like a hostage situation.  He’s kind and gentle. He sits down and eats with you, youre talking and laughing. If the circumstances were different, you would be head over heels in love with the man. And of course, he fucks you real good. Sometimes he’s rough and other times he’s slow, passionate and loving, making you wonder if he’s as fond of you as you are of him. 

Johnny can't stay with you all the time and he leaves you in the cold and dusty room alone. He brought you a blanket and pillows to keep you company and warm when he’s away. But other than that it was painfully quiet. Sometimes you swear that you hear Leland calling for you. It echoes in your head but when you call for him, you don't get a reply. You know it's your mind playing tricks on you, hallucinating, but you miss Leland. You’re scared of what might've happened to him. With your time alone, you find yourself thinking about him a lot. His playfulness, laugh and charm was burned into your mind, stinging more and more. It's not rare for you to cry as you imagine him holding you. You remember his desperate screams as you were pulled away by Johnny. You hate how complicated everything is. You hate that you can't decide between the two men when the answer should be so simple. 

Your thoughts get interrupted when you hear the familiar door open again. It's Johnny and he’s holding your breakfast… or lunch… or dinner, you're not really sure which meal it is. It feels like your mind goes blank whenever you see him, you shoot him a warm smile and get up to greet him. You walk over and balance on your toes to give him a kiss on the cheek, he has to lean forward a little to have you reach him. “How did my woman sleep?”. Based on his question, you assume maybe this could be breakfast then. “She was lonely without her man to keep her company”, you make a pouty face and cross your arms. You were playful in your tone but you were serious. It was always so miserable and scary sleeping alone. He has slept with you a couple times but recently says he’s too busy to spend all that time with you. You hold some resentment, but you’re happy he’s back. 

He puts your plate on the ground by the mattress and comes back to give you a big hug. He holds you in his arms for a while without saying anything. Your head is pressed against his hard chest and you hear his heartbeat. “I missed you so much today, I couldn't even do my work proper… You were on my mind too much” his voice is low, like he hates admitting it to himself. You smile and look up at him, giving him a quick peck. He turns the quick kiss into a long and passionate one. He’s cupping your face with both hands and making out with you like he hadn't seen you in years. You welcomed his kiss, you had missed him too. His touch was enough to make you feel like you're floating. But you keep getting flashes of Leland. He’s haunting you. The more you enjoyed Johnny's presence, the more of Leland you saw and you think a big reason is because you think Johnny is the cause for something bad having happened to him. 

At the very least… you have to know. You have to find out what Johnny did to him. Is he still in that room waiting for you to come back? Does he think youre dead or did his mouth dig his own grave? Making Johnny kill him? You had so many questions and all of them could be answered by the man kissing you. You break away from the kiss and look down. “What’s wrong, doll?”. His voice is concerned and his brows are furrowed as he tries lifting your chin to make him face you. You reject his touch and continue looking down, you know he’s getting more and more worried. “...w-what did you do to him?” Your voice is soft and quiet. Johnny is so good to you, so kind but you're scared the mention of his name will make him snap. He sighs. “what i did to who?...”. He’s not asking cause he doesn't know, he's asking cause he’s testing you. You don't care if he snaps, you have to know. “...W-what did you do to Leland?”. His name was like a trigger and he grabs your face, harder than he’s ever done before. “Don't you ever utter his name. Besides, why do you care? You have me. Am I not enough?”. He squeezes harder with that last question, he’s hurt that you would bring him up. “you… y-you’re hurting me Johnny”, your voice is soft and careful. “Answer my question”. His voice is weak, he’s hurting and demanding for you to validate the feelings he already has for you, thinking you felt the same way towards him. “you’re more than enough”. Tears are streaming down your face at this point. It was true though, he was enough but that didn't erase the feelings you had for Leland. 

His grip loosens and he steps away from you, putting his hands behind his head, then on his hips. He’s pacing back and forth not knowing what to say or do. “Why do you fucking care about him anyways? You met him the same damn night you met me. You've spent more time with me than you did with him”. You don't know what to say, you don't even know what he wants you to say. It's a question designed to trap you no matter the answer. “I don't care about him… i- i just don’t…” he interrupts you. “Well obviously you do care, otherwise you wouldn't bring it up, would you?”. His voice is angrier than it's ever been and for the first time, you're scared for your life in his presence. “I’m sorry… it won't happen again” Your voice is weak and you try hugging yourself to calm yourself down, a form of self soothing. “Damn right it won’t happen again… I mean FUCK” He kicks your food that was laid on the ground. The food goes flying and the plate nearly hits you but you manage to dodge just in time. You hug yourself harder, trying to shrink yourself. Maybe if you stayed still enough, he wouldn't see you. He walks over to you and the sight of him angrily approaching, makes you backup a little. He grabs you by your hair and gets close to your face. His grip is hard and he’s hurting you again. “You’ve lost food privileges, I'll be back in a week”. He lets go of your hair and almost throws you away like he was disgusted seeing your face. He starts walking out of the door and you run after him crying, grabbing his forearm trying to pull him back. You don't care even if he slaps you, you didn't want him to leave you, especially for a week. You don’t care about the food, you want him. “Let go” he says simply and pulls himself from your grip and locks the door behind himself. You fall to the ground crying hysterically.

Previous Episode ♡ Next Episode

credit for dividers: @kyunlouy

[diyasgarden]

I always think about how in the Applebees scene where Tashi makes the joke to Art asking if he thought she'd kill herself after the injury, because in all honesty it wouldn't be surprising to think she would. She lost the life she planned for herself that day. I think anyone in her life would be worried for her. Now imagine being her best friend who is in love with her during this time....

No longer a danger to herself or others / She made up her mind and laced up her shoes / Yelled down the hall but nobody answered / So she walked outside without an excuse

You'd be lying if you said she weren't worried. There was always this nagging feeling that something would happen. That you wouldn't be there for Tashi and she'd do something rash she'd never be able to fix. The injury made her erratic, unaspiringly. She tried to push you away, but you'd never leave her. Weeks turned to months and months to a year. It was the end of the semester and it was time to go home. It's a week before you need to leave when you get the call. Her voice confident and strong as she tells you she is going on a road trip. For a moment you feel as if you've stumbled into the past and you're too stunned to answer. She says she's leaving this Saturday, and to come if you want, before hanging up.

She could do anything she wants to / She could do whatever she wants to do / She could go home, but she's not going to

At first you thought she wanted to go on a road trip back to her home, but you were mistaken. She isn't sure where she wants to go, but she knows she wants this. A part of you wants to her it's stupid to just pack your things and drive without a destination, but she's your Tashi. If she wants this, you won't stop her. You'll go with her. Her eyes gleam as you put your things into the car. A hint of determination you used to see in her eyes while she walked on to court. It's not as bright as before, but it's there. You have to bite back the grin that forms as you watch it form. Ever perceptive she notices, raising an eyebrow while looking in your direction. You shrug, as you put the last suitcase in. She rolls her eyes, and that too sends a wave of reassurance through your body. It wasn't the Tashi you'd always known, but it was closer to her than anything you'd seen the past couple of months.

So she picks a direction, it's ninety in Memphis / Turns up the music so thoughts don't intrude / Predictably winds up thinkin' of Elvis / And wonders if he believed songs could come true

She decides on driving towards Memphis. Ambitious considering it's on the other coast, but who are you to say no. You put down the windows and blast music. You both sing along as you both take turns driving. There is no talk of the injury or her lost career, just you and Tashi in the moment. You feel your heart flutter every time you look over to see the wind blowing her hair back.

I'm asking for it if they do / Doesn't know what she wants or what she's gonna do / A rebel without a clue

For the first time since the injury, you heard her talk about the future optimistically. She didn't talk about it like some burden she'd have to live through, but as if she wanted to prepare for it. Be ready for whatever came next. You'd go back and forth discussing what she may do now. Business? Law? Medicine? Deep down, you had a feeling she'd never stray away from tennis. She'd make a great coach and you knew she'd become one soon. You had a feeling she knew this too, but it never stopped these conversations. It was fun to pretend and you'd do it for ever long as she wanted.

So we spent what was left of our serotonin / To chew on our cheeks and stare at the moon / Said she knows she lived through it to get to this moment / Ate a sleeve of saltines on my floor, and I knew then.

The trip is just you driving from city to city, but you never actually make it to Memphis. Not that either of you were surprised or disappointed at that. It was never the goal of the trip. Was there even one? You're unsure but as you spend the day laughing with Tashi in the car and spend nights staring up at the moon with her, it feels like this trip was successful. You feel as if whatever was the goal of the trip has been met. Maybe the goal was just to make her smile. Or make her feel whole again. The thought of those things make you feel whole as well.

I would do anything you want me to / I would do anything for you / I would do anything, I would do anything / Whatever you want me to do, I will do / Whatever she wants, whatever she wants

When you both admit it's time to return to normal life and start the drive back, a peaceful silence overtakes the drive. You feel hopeful for her. You feel good for her. Maybe Tashi would never be the same, but she'd be fine. You could rest easy knowing that. When she thanks you for going on this trip with her, you have to fight the urge to laugh. Doesn't she realize you'd go anywhere she asked? Maybe she doesn't, but you do. You'd do anything Tashi wanted you to. Now and always.

[kitorin]

"What's a possession of yours you associate with your lover?"

Meguru ponders a bit at the question, clearly deep in thought. You place down the card, one from the bunch of 'Questions for couples' game Yoichi had gifted you recently. They're fun, ranging from deep, personal ones to lighthearted ones which were ultimately a matter of simple preferences. Apparently, they bring newer couples closer together (keyword 'apparently', Yoichi's only validation is his own knowledge).

You wait patiently— though fun they're not all easy, most questions were accompanied by a pause to contemplate. You've both considered giving up a question or two, simply because there was too much to think about (those resulted in a ramble or two, they're barely articulate but interesting to listen to nonetheless).

"Got it!" He smiles with triumph, as if he'd just won a prize or scored a goal.

"Omamori! The one my mum bought me this year." You know exactly what he's talking about; the Japanese amulet she'd purchased in Osaka during an art exhibition. Pink brocade silk bag adorned with cherry blossoms in a darker shade, the temple's name written in golden kanji on one side— with the other having success on it. It's so pretty, he carries it around wherever he goes, either the white string tied to his bag or placed securely in his pocket.

You weren't sure what he'd say, but a good luck charm certainly didn't come to mind.

"Why? Is it because I'm pretty?"

"Not really."

"You're so lovely, Meguru." Sarcasm laces itself with your tone. If not that, then you're even more curious about what it could be.

"No, I mean, I can't compare how pretty you are to anything else in this world, really." It's almost miraculous how he went from seemingly insulting you to making your face flush with flustered embarrassment. "But that's not the main point. This omamori." He reaches into his pocket, stroking it but leaving it there. "Is a lot more special than any other one." There's his grin, the one that competes with the sun because of how warm he is.

Nothing really comes to mind. You know they 'expire', some people believe they do every year, returning them to the temple for the staff to burn it in a ceremony. Others believe that they last forever. That doesn't serve as a clue anyways, whichever Meguru was, he kept them around either way.

You yield, too impatient and curious to think much more about it. "I give up."

"It's because we started dating this year."

"Doesn't the kanji say it's for career success?" There's no correlation between it and you, you have nothing to do with his position as an athlete, or with soccer as a whole.

"I didn't mean it like that." Meguru pulls you in for a hug, nuzzling his chin into your shoulder. "You're my omamori."

You feel as if it's the other way, he's always defending you; being the first to stand up for you verbally or fighting without hesitation even if the opposing party was for no match for you in the first place. Remaining silent, you wait for him to clarify.

"You've always helped me feel at peace. You protect me from those scary thoughts that have kept me up for nights. You protect me from loneliness." His hug grows tighter, as if something was going to take you away from him. "Thanks to you I don't have to rely on some imaginary friend to keep me company."

Your fingers run through his hair, soft and messy from rolling around during his nap from earlier. "Then I hope you'll let me continue doing so."

"Of course." Meguru kisses you, the sweetness of him and pineapple lingering on your lips. "I love you."

Those three words are no foreigner to you. You've uttered them to friends, family, and even strangers on the internet. But with intimacy those very same words metamorphose into something different. The allure of romance places weight onto them, the weight of upmost importance.

That doesn't mean you find it too heavy.

"I love you too, Meguru." You go for another kiss, the saccharinity of his lips being strangely addictive, something about the taste of him mingled with pineapple is so intoxicating.

Three simple words, yet known to possess so much significance. They say it's a frightening confession to make, a powerful declaration of adoration and vulnerability. Much like any component of love, it comes with uncertainty and the fear of being deprived of reciprocated feelings.

Not for you though, the words come off both of your tongues smoothly, as if you were born to do so. There's no signs of hesitation or fear, or worry— just faces flushed with bashful scarlet and kisses honeyed with adoration.

( Guess the card game wasn't lying when it said it'd bring you closer, nor was Yoichi )

Tagging: @yuzurins

© kitorin : do not repost, plagiarize, change, or translate

[yaqamole]

I have a Piratalia AU and I'm making it everyone's problem now.

Here's the rundown

The year is 1685

Piracy is alive and the world full of adventure. The Caribbean is beautiful and full of opportunity for the right person. Whether born into it or forced into it by god willing strength, it offers the chance to live a life unimaginable to the average person.

The idea of magic and treasures beyond comprehension seem a tale of the past. There are no gods, there are no hidden cities, there are no mystical objects waiting for the right person to find them. Right? All that matters are the battles between pirates and navymen. The most grand of wealth comes from the subjugation of others or is stolen from those who inflict pain unto others.

Wrong.

The Book of Chaos, the Four Pillars, El Dorado, and God's Fist beckon the sailor who is foolish enough to chase after them. But they are well hidden of course, Information all stored away and held as prizes and relics by the navy after navy and pirate after pirate. Such power was never meant to be known. Skilled men would have to find a way to claim these clues for themselves without giving themselves away. Skilled men would have to know that there is something worth searching for to chase after.

But the prize for finding them is well worth the sacrifice and fight. Wealth beyond comprehension, wishes to godlike beings, blessings from the gods of the people in the islands and coasts, and status of being a king above kings are all tempting offers that only need the right sailor to find them.

May the most skilled of sailors be blessed with these gifts beyond comprehension.

---

I have taken some liberty and made up some mythological objects for this AU as you may be able to tell. But it's so fun! I'm doing this AU with friends but I will mention my babes

Antonio is of course a pirate in this AU. How could he not be? Arrogant, prideful, selfish, and cruel, he is a skilled pirate who holds well on his own.

Egotistical, selfish, and cruel, Antonio has a god complex like no other. The man genuinely believes himself to be above all other men. He is a selfish, whorish man, who chases his own ambitions and prioritizes them above all else. He chases thrills and he reaches for all that he wants without a care of what it costs others. He is cunning and a skilled liar. All that he managed to do exemplifies his goals of serving himself. Still, he is an easily jealous man. He does not like sharing his things and he especially hates finding out that the people he has claimed as his own toying with others.

He has yet to find anyone that makes him turn his attention away from his ambitions in any meaningful way. His attention has always been on gaining more and more and never stopping the reach for further in life.

Despite his unsavory personality, he is a loyal man to his crew and would find any reason to defend them. He is a skilled captain and has won their loyalty in return. He is not the type to turn against them or put them through hell, so he does not fear the idea of mutiny. It is not a concern he will ever have to deal with. He values his position and knows better than to screw over the men who can and will kill him if he dares act out.

Lorenzo is an opera singer who lives and performs in Cuba!

Sarcastic, quick-witted, and playful, Lorenzo lives to tease. He can be a bit stuck up, a bit rude, and perhaps even spoiled, but he is a loyal friend and a romantic on top of everything.

He is a joyful man despite his abrasive demeanor and he cares very deeply for various causes and movements. He is someone who secretly engages in the move for change, being careful so as to not lose what allows him to do so.

Lorenzo tends to be more rude when irritated and can get more hostile with men. He is much more polite to women and is quite the charmer with them. This does not prevent his heart from growing attached to men. Not that he will easily confess to such a thing.

If you talk to him on a deeper level than what he is presented as by white audiences, you will see that he is not entirely pleased with his role and life and were it not for specific people, he might throw it all away.

anyway do y'all want to hear more about this AU?

[veeenix]

i have to rant about this or i might cease to exist. 

lokius...

for one, i love queer ships (canon or not) but i also like to stay true to the show i’m watching, and i personally don’t have a big problem with sylki (just a little underwhelmed with it if i’m being honest). but the more i look at loki and mobius’ relationship, the clues and that damn song, the more it feels actually plausible that this could turn into something real.

i’m going to somewhat rank these from 1 downward, 1 being its probably coincidental, down to this is too spot on to be nothing. all while i sip leisurely at my tea.

1. “i’ve studied almost every moment of your life..”

it kind of speaks for itself. its a pretty simple bit of dialogue, and most likely doesn’t mean all that much, but what is mobius’ fascination with loki variants? this is higher on the list mainly because mobius has been assigned this case, he's a detective and its his job to dig deep, he's consumed by his work, therefore it isn't strange for him to know so much about loki's life on the sacred timeline.

2. the tie adjustment scene

trust me, i'd love to put this lower on the list, but theres one thing that makes me believe this is-- albeit disappointingly-- a coincidence. it was improv. maybe that, for some people, is more of an indicator of canon lokius, that tom hiddleston felt that that scene was being led in such a flirtatious direction, however, this scene was more his following along owen's playful presence on set, which just makes it kind of sweet. but this is one of my favourites scenes, regardless of the intention behind it. loki will always be a flirt, after all.

3. loki's bisexuality

as much as i would have loved to see more on loki's sexuality-- perhaps slightly more explicitly given his status as the god of mischief-- i'm not going to hate on sylvie and loki, because that would simply erase the existence of bisexuality, hetero-presenting relationships exist and to deny so would again, erase the meaning of bisexuality. however, the ending of season 1 does raise some questions. loki and sylvie's separation sets up the future of marvel, it needed to happen, so this might not mean much at all and we now know that season 2 will focus on loki searching for sylvie through timelines. but how purely queer would it be for loki to realise some stronger feelings toward one agent mobius, and perhaps loki and sylvie's relationship was something that was meant to stay platonic, who knows? this is considerably more fanon than my other theories, but i had to include it, given that to me, its a reasonable arguement. lgbtq+ characters need to be introduced and this was kate herron's goal from the beginning. she also said that she hoped marvel went further with this new information and explored more thoroughly. forgive me for this more outlandish inclusion, but it has been on mind for awhile now.

4. the presence of the dagger / "love is a dagger..."

we all know this one, we've all screamed over it and we all hope it means something more than just a coincidence. with marvel's history of in-depth attention to detail (comic references, foreshadowing years prior to a movie's release), it feels a little too purposeful, doesn't it? again, i'm trying to keep rank these into something somewhat believable with viable evidence, so something i will mention is that loki has lacked any close friendships his whole life. gaining a relationship like this would hold deep value to him, and parting ways would likely pull forth some deep bittersweet emotions. platonic love is arguably more important than romantic, the need to be understood without judgement and that is what both mobius and loki have given each other. the tears in loki's eyes during this scene is a clear indicator of their care for each other, but whether that goes deeper is unclear.

my thoughts fluctuate on this one. for one, its simply so beautiful and meaningful to loki's development (and mobius') that whether its meant platonic or with an underlying romance, feels like it hardly matters, because it holds as much meaning either way. "love is a dagger", it appears in so many forms throughout the series: mobius giving loki his daggers, only for them to be taken away by B-15 a second later, this hug scene and loki and sylvie's fight in the citadel. its so prominent in this scene, its hard to dismiss, yet marvel fluctuates so much with their details that its hard to tell if this was intended the way i'm seeing. regardless, its beautiful and definitely a worthy inclusion.

5. the lokius song / mobius' apparent jealousy

lets get one thing straight, natalie holt is an amazing composer and i will back that to no end with my spotify wrapped this year, trust me on this. so when i first started listening through the second album, like a true neurodivergent kid, i was memorising every song name and i have to say, i lost it a little when i saw the name of this song. natalie confirmed that sif and loki had a 'thing' during the point that the time loop scene was set, so one cannot dismiss the possibility that she could know a little more about the prior scenes than we realise. i was skeptical when i first saw people's impressions of these scenes, after all, they had all reunited after loki technically betrayed mobius, so it was understandable that mobius wouldn't exactly be pleased with the circumstances that they're meeting again. but something about the way he looks at loki and sylvie when he's leading them down the hall, he just looks kind of heartbroken and disappointed. again, this could have been the result of loki's betrayal, if the way he calls him a bad friend is anything to go by, but the substance of this scene holds so much in it. and his little rant about loki and sylvie's "twisted romantic relationship" breaking his reality, hits a little hard. maybe this wouldn't have meant much if it hadn't been with that bloody song, because tell how just an angry, hurt mobius = lokius? it can be jealousy regardless of romantic feelings, friendships feel it too, but this feel a little more substantial.

worthy inclusions:

sylvie's "he cares about you" comment in the void, and loki's near dismissal of it.

loki falling asleep in the archives, he trusts mobius.

am i the only one that finds it cute how loki hangs out at mobius' desk while mobius is off doing other work?

conclusion:

look, i'm going to be honest here, i grow sceptical of my own arguments at times. these are very minor things, and i didn't even realise they were pushing loki and sylvie in the direction they were until they kiss (in other words, i'm a little oblivious), so i want you all to take this with a grain of salt. i like to stay true to the actual characters and their makers, i don't have unrealistic expectations and i am no director, actor or screenwriter. i am not saying how i think the next season should go, i just wish it could go to in this direction to some degree. i have my doubts, but my hopes too. regardless, i'm just happy to see these characters at all!

this is what so many seem to forget. there may be restrictions (cough cough disney), but everyone working on these shows and movies have put their hearts into it and i want to appreciate that for what it is! this doesn't mean you aren't entitled to your own opinion, of course you are! but just remember the show/characters you've fallen in love with and if you didn't have them at all. i'm overjoyed to see loki with a close friendship after so many years of watching him being proverbially kicked while he was down. ultimately, loki and mobius' friendship (and possible romance) is what technically saved loki and that's something beautiful in and of itself.

I don't think its impossible! but i keep an open mind for both directions their stories could take.

[brightdarkness-2013]

Chapter 20: Hang On! Here Comes Another One!

Summary: With Barricade gone Prowl struggles and Jazz talks to Prowl about his family

Prowl had taken to searching for comfort from Blaster and I. We tried to be there as much as possible, but we had to leave at some point and there were times when we couldn’t be there during the day. Blaster had his own goals and I was pulled away on a patrol or rescue. Or of course there was the forced family gathering for us richys for show. My sister just ate it up. Holidays were tense and they were pushing me to get a ‘real’ job and of course father hinted at pulling strings to get me into a good college. Besides that and heading home I was with Prowl. Prowl spent the rest of that time in his nest. Hiding from the staff and his neighbors who tended to watch him more intently since his escapes. He only ate at night now or when Blaster and I came. He only took what we gave him during the day. At night he’d take it into his nest and the only evidence we had that he was actually eating at all was the fact that he was throwing the bones out of the tank and onto the floor in front of the tank. He had made it easier for us previously by moving the bones off to the corner far off corner of the tank as he preferred things clean, but this was new.

We had to go down into the tank to check the nest previously as he had been just bringing the fish into his nest and leaving the bones in there and we had no clue whether or not he was eating at all, but after the second time that happened he had started tossing it out and onto the floor. It was a pretty straight forward sign that he wanted to be alone and didn’t appreciate anyone snooping around his nest. He never acted out violently or really glared at anyone, but he got his points across just fine without any real aggression or threats.

I sighed as I sat on the feeding platform with Prowl laying with his head in my lap. This had been a norm since his stubborn asshole of a pod mate got himself killed. We would just sit there until I had to leave. He didn’t move or make a sound. Sometimes I would talk and other times I had carefully placed music playing. Then there were times where we would just sit in silence. Sometimes Blaster would join us and other times he didn’t. There were times I’d come to find that Blaster had beaten me to it. We’d pull out the loose and dying scales since he hadn’t been doing it himself lately. This was much worse than back in the cove.

“I know you’re hurting and all, but this whole hiding all day isn’t good for ya either. I kinda get where you’re coming from if ya believe it or not. Sure no one in my family has gone and died besides a great grandfather that I never knew, but I do in a way.” I spoke absentmindedly that morning. “I know that despite how my sister acts I’d do whatever I could for her. It’s a very complex feeling really. I mean I know that if I told her not to do something that she’d go and do it anyway and when she realized that I was right she’d never bring it up. We don’t and probably never will have a relationship that’s even close to half of what ya had with Barricade and the rest of your pod as we have been practically ignoring each other for since we hit our teen years, but I’ve done some things for her. I’ve pranked every ex boyfriend that she’s ever had just because she is family.”

I sighed again as the cool sunlight fell on us through the dome above. Prowls newfound little fan club was watching us. It was a usual things now, but I had to wonder what was up with them. They had threatened and went out of their way to either ignore Prowl and Barricade or try to aggravate them, but now they just watched quietly. I pulled out a few loose scales that just barely hung on to his side. It was quiet.

“It’s kind of sad. We used to be so much closer. Maybe I do it for what we used to be. We, as richys, tend to have our friends picked out for us. We bonded on hating our forced friends. Hiding from them and doing whatever we could to ditch them so we could do what we wanted to do. I remember we hid in the attic in the far corner behind all these boxes for hours. Back then she wasn’t afraid of the spiders and their webs so it was fine. We sneezed from the dust and giggled as we talked about what they were doing downstairs as we played board games we had stored up there. We were home schooled back then and were stuck with private tutors and we were all we had.” I paused to take a breath as I lost myself in the memory of what we lost. “We did everything together back then. We had to literally beg and pester our parents every chance we had to get to go to an actual school with other kids. That wasn’t often as our parents just left us with the two maids. They were more than enough for us from the way they think. Less money and having one each following us and cleaning up our messes and feeding us and it was fine in their book. They really only had us because it was expected of them as people in high society I think.”

I was probably an embarrassment. I hummed to myself a second. I already knew they didn’t like my working here. They were either pissed or thinking about disowning me. They never threatened it before, but from how they were never around I wouldn’t put it passed them. They had no doubt forgot about us when they were on business. We didn’t exist really unless it was for some gathering the way I saw it.

“When we finally got into a real school, of course that was after the argument that we didn’t want to go to a high quality school with our forced friends, that was when we were forced apart. For the first time we were separated and we had to socialize with others. It took some time, but we made our own friends and… Well we drifted apart. It was subtle at first and before we knew it there was this… Rift between us. It was like there was this wall and any attempt to break it down was awkward and we just quit trying. Her friends fed off her high status and money while mine couldn’t care less. Nat... She started playing dress up for mommy and daddy and followed their little plans and I… Well I’m here.”

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[frootertooter]

Loose thoughts/somewhat of a messy personal analysis Year One Scarecrow bc my god it's been eating at my brain cells, but also I find it a little bizarre that I can't find a single analysis of the comic available??? So uhh strap in bois it's unstructured yapping time B')

Oh yea just to preface: I've not read any of the other Year One comics yet? I have no clue if the others are actually connected?? While reading this tho, everything felt like it was a standalone comic so I'm looking at it as such

Parallels between Crane and Bruce: Two of the most important things to both Scarecrow and Batman throughout the story are their usage of fear and control. Both using it as means for vengeance. When either happen to lack control, they may get more aggressive. For Bruce it could be lashing out more than usual at criminals, while for Crane it's smashing a table out of spontaneous anger. What differentiates the two however is that for Crane, fear and control are meant to punish those he felt have personally hurt him- a method taught and learnt through the abuse he received from his Grandmother.

For Bruce, his entire original intent in becoming Batman was to help others, and he uses intimidation/punishment as a tool to achieve that goal. Lamar in ways serves as proof of the effectiveness within the story that it has indeed worked. Bruce throughout the story however, can't realize that difference until the moment he finally meets Crane, and finally confirms the killer's "insanity". It becomes a major internal obstacle for him, and an insecurity that weighs heavily on his mind. (I mean imagine hunting a serial killer and slowly noticing how similar the two of you are,, I don't think it'd weigh lightly on anyone's conscience, let alone Bruce Wayne's of all people ksdfs- In ways it's also really similar to Arkhamverse's and the adjacent A Serious House on Serious Earth's Joker? With how they try and "prove" that Batman is just as insane as they are by attempting to repeatedly break him?)

Robin: Grayson as Robin throughout the story serves as a person to ground Bruce when he begins to start silently spiraling- questioning him, but never actually holding him back. I just really like how Grayson and Bruce's relationship is written within this comic. They're really close and crack jokes with each other, but it's revealed Grayson's been silently harboring internal fears of Bruce/Batman for a while. All completely unknown to Bruce until Dick's struck by the fear toxin. Throughout the story, Grayson sees Bruce's tactics and it's pretty clear both visually and through text that he seems to disapprove? Yet even then, he can't seem to bring himself to outwardly stop Bruce, supposedly out of fear? Despite that tho, Grayson still clearly cares about Bruce and tries to help him out, as seen in that discussion between the two where Bruce starts having his insecurities get to him again. (Also the way Dick is written here really reminds me of my boi Timbo from TNBA, and my favourite episode where he has to stop Bruce after he got dosed by Scarecrow's no fear toxin kdfkd- I think I'm just biased towards stories where robin isn't afraid to sass/take down Batman when needed??)

guhgh.. the way Bruce hesitates while asking Grayson if he's afraid of him...........

The final portion of the story is where it breaks down for me however, because I can't tell what exactly certain scenes are trying to convey? Which is why I'm also kinda making this post, bc I haven't found any other analysis of this comic that explains it/ this comic at all????? (Please if someone else reads the comic and gets it, tell me bc I'm,, just confused??? and I can't seem to find anything on this comic????)

Post-Bruce finding out Grayson fears him somewhat in a "god-fearing kinda way", I don't get why he becomes so aggressive with robin? Perhaps it's because he already had a plan in motion to catch Scarecrow and didn't want Grayson to interfere?? But then why not tell him the plan if that's the case???? And what's up with Bruce pinching Grayson's neck?? or the pinch paralleling the next domestic abuse panel? (My best guess is that it's meant to be a transition??? But if that's the case, I dunno odd choice imo)

And my final bit of confusion is why the fear toxin still affected Batman briefly if he made it so that it would work "specifically and only for scarecrows"???? Because that couldn't have just been a pretend fake-out if we see Bruce hallucinating his parents right?????

Overall tho, love this comic's story and art- Sean Murphy's angular, straight-edge, grittier, yet dynamic artstyle lends itself to the story so damn perfectly it's wonderful- Not gonna delve into it, but the visual parallels between the flock of crows and bats, and both Bruce and Crane reaching for the book were so cool to me dkfkd,, or the way Murphy's artstyle conveys Batman's brutality when taking people out mghhfghgj- Always a massive fan of these short story/series comics

[asfodelle]

As tragic as it is to see He Tian battle so hard to get out of what his family has decided for him, I’m gonna be screaming into the night about how sweet it is to see the other three be dead set on not leaving him behind.

Jumbled thoughts incoming

And like, it makes total sense at this point. Mo has been looking for He Tian like a compass seeking North whenever he’s not on sight and ZhengYi are Loyalty Personified but I love that all three not only wait for him, but take an active role to go and look after him. (And it’s Mo leading the operation!! And He Tian sees it!! And that he’s touched by it!!) They could consider he’s with his family and to not intervene, ZhengYi could be leaving together but nope, they were four when they arrived, they’ll be four when they leave. Which also makes me wonder if Jian Yi already has an idea of what could be going on, he’s already got kidnapped, is somewhat aware of his family’s endeavors and how they’re tied to He Tian’s. 

We’ve often seen both He Tian and Jian Yi being alone, pensive, surely burdened by what their future could entail. So far, we’ve had a better view into He Tian’s mind and where the antagonists want him but not a clue (unless I forgot them) as to what happens to TianShan during high school or when they’ll meet again precisely. Narratively, it would make sense for He Tian to leave now that they’ve made their bond official through the piercing but ya know, let me hope that they still have cute moments together before the big sad hits.

Almost on the contrary, the timeline for Jian Yi is set in stones but the motives and the amount of knowledge Jian Yi has about his fate at that point are a bit more blurry and more complex? (Like it would appear his mom and his grandpa have contradictory goals, maybe neither he nor his mom know what'll happen because why would he even enroll in high school?) And it might be wishful thinking but I badly hope pushing ZhengYi into comic relief has a purpose for the story more than just being a way for them to be included during the TianShan focused arc. Maybe Jian Yi is in a phase where he’s hiding his own anxieties and fears behind a facade of naivety and cheerfulness? All things that could return to hit him in the face when he sees He Tian can’t escape no matter how much he tries. 

To return to him, I have no idea whether we’ll still see what happens to He Tian once he’s separated from the rest but there’s a possibility we’ll have parallel storylines, him alone on one side, the other three on the other, and part of me would love to see that and learn more about his family dynamic but there’s also the possibility that he’ll just vanish for us readers, just like he’ll vanish from Mo’s point of view.

No clue how it’ll unroll because let’s be honest, TianShan is what caught a lot of the more recent readers and if we’re a little cynical, maybe the author doesn’t want to just cut them up completely for a very long number of chapters. I could totally see visual parallels of them alone in their respective rooms, we don't even know if they'll go completely no contact for years but if they do, it'd be harsh to just... not see He Tian anymore. Though Old Xian has very very often decided to not show us everything, so I wouldn't rule that option out completely.

Either way we’ll get long chapters of sad lonely Mo??? Thinking he was abandoned soon after coming to terms with his feelings??? Who still decides to keep the piercing and the guitar and to keep working hard????? So no matter what I’m getting my heartstrings played with but if we could have a little insight into the He family as a compensation and heavenly sent ZhengYi development, I wouldn’t mind it. 

[jazzythursday]

Prompts: Nightlight | Drifting | Dried (1489 words)

Wylan is tired

Nightlight runs off of the oil lamps and the club signs that line the streets, spilling out of open doors and casting the wet cobblestones in tones of yellow and gold.

Wylan is cold.

He drifts through the streets of the Barrel like a spectre, like he’s invisible. Like the cold canal water has seeped straight into his bones, and he shivers for too many reasons to count.

He’s not dead.

It’s an absurd thought to have, even more absurd because he’s so surprised by it.

I’m not dead. I think my father tried to have me killed. It didn’t work.

Jan Van Eck is not a man who takes well to not getting his way. If he’d wanted Wylan dead, Wylan has no clue how he managed to avoid it.

It makes him consider that this all might have been some misunderstanding. Maybe father hadn’t meant for him to die. Perhaps he had intended for Wylan to reach Belendt. Maybe his men were simply confused, or they could have been hired by some other party, someone else with a vendetta to settle.

Maybe, perhaps, could have. Who is he kidding? Miggson and Prior are loyal to his father, and no one else hates Wylan enough to even bother with killing him. How could they, when he’s barely left the house in years and his father has only ever exposed him to the public to parade him like a symbol of his good intentions as a humble family man, a single father and a dutiful Ghezenite.

No, this was—it had to be—there were too many coincidences, there were too many factors, and all roads led back to the same answer.

I’m not dead. I think my father tried to have me killed. It didn’t work. Over and over again. It didn’t work.

It makes a funny sort of sense, considering that the only goal his father has ever fallen short of achieving is Wylan himself. Eternal disappointment and failure, no matter how much he poured into Wylan, no matter how much he tried. Wylan failed his expectations as a son, and he failed his expectations tonight as well. It didn’t work.

His father always said his greatest talent is causing problems.

I’m alive.

Wylan is not, if he’s honest with himself, quite sure if that’s a good thing.

He might die of hypothermia anyway, if he doesn’t find somewhere to rest soon. He’s soaked through. His wet hair drips down his forehead and his boots squelch with every step. Already he feels close to collapse, weight dragging him by his joints and lungs wheezing from inhaling water and swimming for hours and also, probably, being nearly choked to death.

Weak, his mind whispers, what are you going to do with a life you’re not strong enough to live? Wylan is too tired to answer it, too cold to care anymore. A numbness deeper than the chill has been slowly setting in since the terror of Prior’s hands around his neck had first left him for exhaustion, and Wylan wants to sink into it like a blanket, protecting him from the harsh bite of wind and the dark night. If he’d cried, he hadn’t been aware of it, and when he touches shaking fingers to his face they come away dry.

He thinks of putting each foot in front of the other, walking as he has for hours, and nothing else. There are too many feelings, too many thoughts, and he has a hunch that giving into them now might just bring him to his knees right here on the pavement. Might finally break him. He clutches the straps of his bag in his hands like his life depends on it, like they’re the only things holding him up.

“Boer, buddy, no need to get handsy, you only need to ask nicely.”

“That’s enough, Fahey, you’re done for the night.”

Wylan stops, he turns to see a man being led out of a club by a bouncer, practically dragging him by the collar of his coat. The man grins like he and the bouncer are having no more than a friendly chat, hands held loosely up and top hat tipping to the side as he tilts his head.

“But the night isn’t done with me, Boer. You wouldn’t deprive her, would you? Me and the night, we have plans.”

“Not here you don’t. Go home.”

“But I’m feeling lucky! Kaz will understand. Come on, one more game, and then I’ll be out of your hair for good, on my honour.”

“Don’t speak of honour where none exists. Times up.”

With that, the bouncer pushes the man roughly off the step, only to stumble gracelessly into the street.

The thing is, Wylan may feel invisible, but his body is as solid as ever, and that’s proven to him as the man’s momentum sends him forwards and directly into Wylan. It knocks them both off balance, and they go careening downwards like a clumsy sack of potatoes. Wylan yelps, back hitting the ground with a harsh slap of wet stone and knocking the wind out of him. The man follows, falling just shy of collapsing on top of him, hands and elbows bracing against the slick ground and bracketing Wylan’s shoulders. He groans as Wylan’s knee jerks up and hits him, tangling their legs together.

His chest rises and falls in heaving and shaky pants. His shoulder hurts where it’d hit the ground, his satchel digs painfully into his shoulder blades. He’s been moving for so long, and now that he’s stopped, everything aches even worse.

Wylan stares up, stunned, and the man stares back. A sound that is not quite a whimper and also not not a whimper emerges, unbidden, from Wylan’s throat.

All at once, the man snaps back into action as if he’d never been still at all. “Sorry. Sorry. I’m—Saints, here, let me—” he pushes himself carefully off of Wylan and offers him a hand. Wylan, still too stunned to do anything else, takes it. The man pulls him up and then braces him as Wylan sways forwards into him, unsteady on his feet. His heart is pounding, his legs are jelly, and somehow, Wylan still finds it in himself to be embarrassed, because even in the low lamplight, the man is the most attractive person he’s ever seen, and Wylan must look like a drowned rat that’s been dragged through the mud.

He takes a sharp breath and it rattles in his chest, making him cough. The man looks at him with open concern, probably noticing for the first time the state Wylan is in. The bruises he’s sure wring his neck, the dark purple under his eyes and blue tinge of his lips.

“Are you alright?”

And, Wylan may be stupid and foolish, but he knows what the Barrel is like. He knows the kinds of things that go on here, knows that there’s absolutely nothing about this situation that’s advisable or safe. But Wylan is tired, and cold, and despite all efforts to the contrary, he’s alive.

And the beautiful man has kind eyes.

Wylan bites his lip, and shakes his head.

“Do you need some help?”

He does, doesn’t he? Yes, Wylan definitely needs help. But he doesn’t respond. This is supremely stupid, and he knows it. There’s no guarantee that kind eyes make a kind person, and there’s every likelihood he could be robbed for what little kruge he still carries and then dumped for dead.

Seeming to sense this, the man smiles, softer than the cocky grin he’d given to the bouncer.

“I promise that looked worse than it was, by the way. Boer likes to play, forgets his own strength. Ask anyone around and they’ll all tell you l have dodgy luck with the cards, but my other references will check out.”

Wylan nods, though he isn’t sure he quite follows.

“I’m Jesper,” the man—Jesper, and Wylan thinks the name suits him—says. “Jesper Fahey.”

“W—” Wylan coughs again, and his voice sounds as ragged and waterlogged as he feels. “Wylan.”

“Okay, right. Hello, Wylan. Now that we’ve been acquainted, need some help?”

“Why?”

“Well, I did accost you in the street. My fault entirely, by the way. Look, can I just—can I walk you anywhere at least?”

“I don’t have anywhere to go,” Wylan whispers pitifully. He looks down at his water soaked clothes. At the space between Jesper’s boots and his. His bottom lip is starting to tremble. From cold or the impending collapse of all his crumbling walls, he doesn’t know. He can’t make sense of anything beyond the cold in his bones and the sense that he is finally too broken to ever be fixed.

A hand squeezes his shoulder gently, and Wylan looks up and into the incongruously kind eyes of this strange but seemingly lovely man. Jesper Fahey.

“Okay, that’s—okay, we’ll sort that out first.”

[ivy-loves-chocolate]

What am I to you?

Note: ok so this man is living rent-free in my mind for a while, so why not make a fic with him? Also, I notice a pattern here since most of my obsessions are blond men 🙈. I'm not decided yet if I wanna make a mini-series or not;

Pair: Erwin Smith x F!Reader;

Story: Erwin knows about the crush you have on him and one night he decided to confront you about it. This is an AU where Erwin got the injection instead of Armin.

Tags: fluff.

After the latest meeting with Kiyomi Azumabito, Erwin decided to retreat to his office so he could think about their next move. He's always been calculated, and precautious, making plans for every outcome possible. As the commander of the Survey Corps, there was always a heavy amount of responsibility hanging over his shoulders, as he had to fulfill his goal of finding the truth about the Titans. The truth, however, didn't set him free; it only made the burden he carried much heavier. His goal changed; now he had to protect the humanity inside the walls and further fulfill his duty, not only as the commander of the Survey Corps but also as the possessor of the Colossal Titan.

He viewed Armin's death with regret, as the kid was brilliant, and he would for sure make a great commander someday.

Erwin likes to write down important details in a journal because he might discover some clues or get some ideas as he writes or reads them later. There was a lantern near him that lit the table and the pages in a soft, yellow light. There were others scattered around as well, which illuminated the room in a warm light. The room was silent, and only the sound of him writing could be heard. That was until someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," he said calmly. Through the door, one of his soldiers appeared.

"Bad time?" she asked, noticing the commander was busy.

"Not at all, how can I help?" He said this, closing his journal and turning back to face the soldier.

"Well, I was thinking about the meeting with Kiyomi..."

She was lying. All she was thinking about was her commander. Every day she would think about Erwin when he wasn't around, and when he was, she tried her best to get noticed by him. She was smart and capable, with great leadership skills, but there was so much she needed to learn. Noticing her potential, Erwin spent some extra time with her.

She didn't always have a crush on him. In the beginning, she used to admire him like the rest of the scouts. She looked up to him; he was her mentor, but over the years this admiration turned into a feeling she could barely control anymore: one of love. It clouded her judgment, and she began to see him more as a man, a partner, rather than her commander and a titan shifter. Dealing with these conflicted feelings was draining her, and as a result, it weakened her performance as a soldier. She began to miss important details, and to be careless, leaving her to wonder if Erwin realized something was wrong.

However, she didn't dare to see if it was true, and instead, she acted like nothing was wrong while burying her feelings for him, hoping they'd go away.

As usual, she came into his office under the excuse of a serious discussion about the meeting with Lady Azumabito.

"What about it?" Erwin asked, not taking his eyes off her.

"I just don't think it's a good idea to follow Zeke's plan, and for many reasons. He doesn't seem like a person you can trust, not to mention he killed most of us back in Shiganshina." She said it as she shyly approached Erwin, who was listening carefully. "And I don't understand why the person who almost wiped us out a year ago suddenly wants to help Paradise Island. Something is off." She sat on an armchair that was near Erwin's desk.

"I understand your concern," he said, his eyes fixated on you. Even if there was some distance between you, you could still feel his dominant presence as if he were near you. Maybe it was something about his gaze that never seemed to move from you, or maybe it had to do with your feelings. In reality, Erwin was the same, but it was you who changed.

"I'm as worried as you are, y/n," he added, "there are many people who depend on us. However, we can't deny any of their help."

Even after all these years under his command, his response still shocked you. You opened your mouth to talk, but you closed it immediately. Erwin noticed, causing a smile to appear on his face.

"If you think about it, the whole world wants us dead. So what's left other than to trust these people who come to our aid? Of course, I don't want to follow Zeke's plan to activate a small-scale rumbling, but maybe we can convince Kiyomi to adopt a plan that doesn't involve one."

"That sounds better," you said, relieved. "She seemed very interested in our iceburst stone reserves. Maybe we can start with that?"

"Good point, but I feel that you are not here to discuss a strategy," he said as he leaned forward in his chair. His blue eyes were looking at you with curiosity and a hint of amusement.

"What do you mean?" you said, trying to keep it together.

"Well, I noticed your lack of focus lately. Also, you used to come up with solutions to the problem, and now you come up with more problems." He said it with a slight annoyance in his tone.

"It's...it's because of the situation we're in...you don't find out every day that the world is against you..." So he did notice that something was wrong with you, but did he also notice it was because of him?

"That's true, but are you sure there isn't something else bothering you?" His words were so gentle, and you could tell from his tone that he was worried about you. Still, you panicked, and despite your calculated nature, you began to talk nonsense.

"Yes commander, I'm sure." The situation was becoming awkward, and you'd usually stop by now. "I don't have a reason to be upset, I mean I have, plenty, but I should do something about it. Anyway, how are you dealing with the situation?"

"Don't change the subject," he said. "And I'm fine, thanks for asking."

A short, awkward silence followed until Erwin spoke again.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you have a crush on me."

Just like that, he blew up your cover, pulling you into foreign territory. You should've known that this day would come, as the commander has an eye for details.

"What?" you said in a forced shock tone, "Listen, maybe you need some rest too because you talk nonsense right now."

Erwin maintained his stoic expression, which made you more anxious because you couldn't read him at all. You didn't know if he was disappointed, angry, relieved, or if he felt the same way or not.

As you got up, you began to talk again.

"I'll go now, commander, I need some rest. There's been so much going on...." Your words were more and more incoherent as you noticed the commander approaching you. He walked slowly towards you as if he didn't want to disturb you—or, better said, scare you. You stopped talking when there were mere inches between your bodies. He was so close that you could smell his natural musk, see his expression wrinkles, and watch him frown.

"What am I to you, y/n?" he asked determinedly.

"I-you, you are my commander..."

This closure triggered your fight-or-flight instinct. He could be very intimidating when he wanted something, but you never thought he'd be like this with you, hence your lack of confidence. Still, you find him dangerously attractive. You got lost in your words, and you desperately tried to get out of this situation.

"You don't seem so sure about that." Because he was taller than you, he had to hunch a bit to come closer to your face. One inch was enough to make your legs weak, thus marking your defeat. One rebellious strand of hair over his forehead was enough to make you imagine dirty stuff, like how good he’d look on top of you or how his hair would feel in your hand. Being so close to him also made you want to kiss him. You could already feel his lips pressing on yours.

"Commander…" you said. As if Erwin read your mind, he grabbed your arms and pulled you closer to him, as he pressed his lips over yours. His action shocked you, but what shocked you most was how soft his lips were. The kiss was gentle, and he remained idle, waiting for your response. Before you could wrap your hands around his neck and kiss him back, Hange burst through the door.

"Erwin! You'd never guess... Oh, did I interrupt something?" She said, her cheeks becoming visible red from embarrassment.

"No, I was just leaving," you said as you quickly got past her. You left the room without looking back.

"Oh, Erwin..." Hange began to laugh. "Don't break her heart like you did with the rest."

"I'll do my best," Erwin said, smiling. "Got something for me?"

"Yes, it's about the Founding Titan..."

Once you arrived in your room, you began to walk back and forth in the small space as you start overthinking. You felt joy, anxiety, excitement, and shame all at once. You hoped that the commander would forget about this incident and pretend like nothing happened. At least this is what you planned to do, but you should know by now that Erwin doesn't leave things unfinished. For the rest of the night, all you could think about was how good he looked in that warm light and how soft his lips were.