#I really like but am somewhat intimidated by the way that the author seems to operate on the expectation that people will just say no

[m4sc4r4]

Also thinking about this one

[pascaloverx]

BORN TO DIE

Summary: In a tense political setting, a Targaryen bastard working as a prostitute is summoned by Prince Aemond to the Red Keep. Aemond wants her to approach his dragon, Vhagar, as a test of her worth. Although he plans for her to claim another dragon in the future, her immediate challenge is to survive Prince Aemond demands while trying to stay alive.

Author’s Note: This work is set in the world created by George R.R. Martin, as depicted in his book Fire & Blood, and none of the characters belong to me. The story will follow some events from the series House of the Dragon (2022), but with changes to fit the fanfiction narrative. Therefore, it will not adhere strictly to the series' storyline. This fanfiction is a work of fiction and may contain inappropriate language, adult content, and violence. Readers be warned. I hope you enjoy the story and interact with it. I apologize if there are any errors in the High Valyrian sections; I used a translator and am unsure of its accuracy. Thank you and happy reading.

AO3 LINK ONE

PREVIEW

Walking through King's Landing is exhausting. Your life as a bastard has not been easy, especially with the struggle for the Iron Throne. Unsure of which direction to take, you have tried to be invisible to the Targaryens while working in a brothel to survive. This morning, you were summoned by a royal messenger on behalf of King Aegon II. You thought it was a joke, but soon realized you really had to go to the Red Keep. You are taken to whoever summoned you like a little mouse sneaking through the sewers until you reach the surface. Perhaps they don't want to publicize that a prostitute is being brought in for a private conversation with the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms.

"I heard that my presence here had been requested. But I didn't imagine I would be summoned by Prince Aemond," you say as you enter the room indicated by the messenger and come face to face with Aemond One-Eye. He looks a bit more intimidating in person, but in a way, it's not a bad kind of intimidating. Just surprising.

"Ao kostagon enter, bastard." Prince Aemond commands with a certain skill. But you are somewhat worried that he might know you are a Targaryen bastard. So pretending to be oblivious seems to be the wisest course of action for now.

"This is a lovely place. An extremely enchanting castle. However, if you summoned me here for a conversation in another language, I will be a nuisance to Your Highness. Since your request for my presence proves ineffective, perhaps I should leave immediately," you say, trying not to show any hint of fear. You are a prostitute, accustomed to pretending all sorts of things. As you hesitantly move toward the exit of the room, where you are alone with the Prince, he doesn't seem to fall for your ruse. He throws a dagger in your direction, which grazes the corner of your cheek before embedding itself in the door, which is closed.

"Do you intend to waste our time here? I know you speak High Valyrian, and honestly, I’m hating your attempt to deceive me, gundjabo." He speaks while watching you turn, somewhat irritated by his actions. However, the One-Eyed Prince seems very proud of his deed. He is speaking in High Valyrian to you, probably to test you, but you feel that if you do not meet his expectations, the dagger will find its final mark and you will die.

"If you know that I can speak and understand what you are saying in High Valyrian, Your Highness, tell me, what use would a prostitute be to you? Do you, by any chance, have some secret desire in your chambers that requires a different language?" You might lose your tongue for speaking this way to the Prince Regent, but anger got the better of your temper, causing you to suggest that he brought you to the Red Keep to exchange heated vows in High Valyrian, which is nothing but folly.

"Your mouth would be much better sealed forever. But I need you for a mission, so for once, be less of a deceitful prostitute and serve your King," Prince Aemond says as he moves across the room, seemingly trying to reach you. You, however, despite your nerves, manage to grasp the dagger embedded in the door. Now, he stands just a few steps away from you, while you hold the dagger that could have gravely wounded you.

"I think this is yours, Your Highness." Your eyes meet the Prince's gaze. One eye reveals a hint of surprise, perhaps even pride, confirming that you can speak High Valyrian. The other eye, covered forever, conceals something deeper—perhaps resentment, perhaps fear. He approaches slowly, as if analyzing your behavior; likely wary of being harmed. But swiftly, his hand moves over yours, pulling the dagger from your grip and into his own.

"Follow me," is all he says as he sheathes the dagger somewhere in his attire and opens the door. You don’t fully understand his intent, but you know you don’t want to provoke Prince Aemond's wrath. At least not in this way. You follow him quickly, while the Prince seems to be almost racing toward one of the castle’s exits. He mounts a horse with enviable precision. You watch him, still unsure of your role in his sudden departure from the castle. He adjusts his long hair and then extends a hand toward you. You stare at him for three seconds before hearing him grunt in your direction. Seemingly as impatient as possible, he nearly falls off the horse while trying to grasp your arm, but he manages to hold onto it after the first attempt—holding your arm, not falling off the horse.

"Where are we going, Your Highness?" you ask, feeling your hair whip in the wind, as you notice a few people—probably servants of King Aegon II—passing by as if you’re inconsequential. Another grunt from Prince Aemond makes it clear that if you don’t get on the horse, you might be risking your well-being.

"I intend to test you before revealing your purpose. Now I suggest you come with me, or I’ll be forced to find another bastard to replace you and order your death." Prince Aemond seems astonished by your reluctance, forcing you to follow his commands. But really, there’s no other option. You leap toward him, being propelled onto the back of his horse. He begins to gallop with astonishing speed, so fast that you’re compelled to wrap your arms around his waist. He gives a slight turn of his head, looking in your direction, which startles you and almost makes you fall off the horse. However, this seems to amuse Prince Aemond. Before you can react, it seems you’re arriving at a location. A place certainly surrounded by nature, which gives you a comforting feeling despite the unknown. That is, of course, until you notice a massive dragon ahead. He brought you here to become dragon food.

"As flattered as I am by the importance you place on feeding your dragon well, I must say that a prostitute who speaks High Valyrian will not be any more special than any other meal given to your dragon," you say as you dismount the horse, struggling a bit. Prince Aemond is too absorbed in admiring his dragon to notice your struggle to get off the horse.

"Vhagar is a female dragon. And keep your mouth shut for a moment. You’ll soon understand your purpose here," Prince Aemond says, drawing closer to Vhagar. She, with her head lowered, lifts it from amidst some branches and foliage to see who is approaching.

"She is quite impressive. But I don’t understand why I was brought here, Prince Aemond. Is there a reason I need to meet your dragon?" you say as you follow the Prince toward the dragon. Vhagar emits a somewhat shrill noise, making you stop for a moment to look at her.

"I’ve heard that my sister plans to raise an army of bastards. I thought I might at least try to have one bastard on my side. There is a dragon, which has been confirmed to be available to be claimed. I want you to claim it for me and fight alongside your King." Prince Aemond speaks with vigor, as if discussing a great triumph that is to come. You look at him reluctantly, struggling to accept such an absurd proposal.

"You brought me here to force me to interact with your dragon. So if I don’t pass this test, I’ll be eliminated one way or another," you say, looking at Prince Aemond with some anger. He remains indifferent to whether you live or die. He just wants to ensure that he isn’t wasting his time chasing an illusion.

"I'm glad you're not as stupid as you seem. Now, stop wasting our time and go on," he says, as impatient as ever, stopping midway between you and Vhagar. You let out a nervous laugh, not quite believing that this is how you're going to meet your end.

"Likyri, ȳdra daor sagon zūgagon." You speak with a certain precision as you approach Vhagar. It’s not as if your job is to claim her. But if she accepts you, you might be able to prove useful to the Prince. And if you’re useful to him, you’ll be useful to the King. You move your hand forward to signal Vhagar that you are there. You are a nobody to her, but you appear alongside her rider. You look into her eyes, trying to stay steady as the dragon raises part of her body in your direction. She seems to be still assessing who or what you are.

"Gīda, Vhagar. Ao ȳdra daor jorrāelagon naejot zūgagon nyke." You try to calm her, speaking in High Valyrian or at least the most you’ve learned. You’re somewhat terrified when you notice that your hand is on Vhagar. It seems she has allowed you to touch her, perhaps mistaking you for a previous rider. The reasons for the dragon allowing your touch may not be particularly relevant. What matters is that now you’re at risk of becoming dragon food, as Prince Aemond certainly seems very enthusiastic about the fact that you’ve touched, and are still touching, his dragon.

TO BE CONTINUED...

[smuttycentre]

EXTRA CREDIT

M/n: Male Reader

Word Count: 1,604

Summary: Your hot teacher that you’ve been dreaming about all day asks you to stay behind. He has to give you a private lesson to catch you up from daydreaming.

Warnings: gay sex, teacher kink, cum in ass in condom, cum in mouth, swallow

GIF not mine

Author note: This is my first one-shot. Feel free to give critiques and enjoy.

You look at the clock. Only 10 more minutes until the end of the day and you can go home and have a wank over Mr. Saltzman. He was particularly sexy today, wearing tight trousers where you have been staring at the outline of his crotch all day. His shirt was tight and you could see his muscles pumping out and looking so strong.

All of a sudden you were snapped out of your trance and feeling the eyes of the class on you. You are called on to answer a question but you wasn’t listening. Mr. Saltzman knew this and was looking at you with a half-smile on his face. It made you mad that he picked on you but at the same time you wanted to rip his clothes off to punish him.

“See me after class m/n” Mr. Saltzman said showing you his dreamy eyes for a second longer before returning to teacher.

The bell rang a few minutes later and everyone scurried out the room with their books. You looked around awkwardly waiting for everyone to leave. Mr. Saltzman was sitting at his desk marking some paper.

Once the classroom was empty, you got up out of your desk and went over to your teachers desk. “You wanted to see me” you ask.

He looks up and his face gave the half smile he gave before. “Ah yes m/n. Daydreaming in my class again. This isn’t the first time.”

His tone of voice was somewhat stern and deep, as much as it turned you on, you felt intimidated. You stuttered over your words as you tried to apologise.

“I don’t want to hear it.” Mr. Saltzman said firmly. “We will have to do something about this.”

He then got up out of his desk and walked to the classroom door. He turned the lock and pulled down the blind. There was no longer any windows looking out, and none looking in.

“Mr. Saltzman?” You said shakely not knowing what was about to happen.

He turned towards you from the door and his face looked even more perfect than before. His tan was radiant and showcasing his stubble and jawline. You start to sweat a little.

“Please, call me Ric” he said with his deep seductive voice. “We’re going to have to find a way to get your grades up. If you’re not paying attesting in class, I suppose I will have to give you private lessons”

He walks over to one of the desks in the classroom and sits on it facing you. He lifts his hand and gestures you towards him. You don’t even have to think about it, it is as if impulse has taken over and you are already right in front of him.

You feel frozen. Waiting for him to do something. He leans forward so you can feel his breath and he whispers “Kiss me”.

You look at him. You look into his eyes as if to ask them if they were lying. You think to yourself “am I dreaming” but before you know it you are leaning in, slowly, and then your lips touch.

His smooth lips, as if from instinct of touching yours started moving, taking control. You feel every muscle relax and you trust him completely.

Neither of you have come out for air but you just keep kissing and moving around trying to explore each other as if you each had a secret you wanted to find out.

You finally gave in an backed away for air. This didn’t last long as Ric followed your movement and won the battle. His tongue entered you and you felt your heart skip. Ric was exploring your everywhere with his tongue and you liked it.

After what seemed to be a lifetime you grabbed the back of his neck and you forced his face into yours. This took Ric by surprise and with that you took dominance and started to explore his mouth with your tongue. Ric smiled at this. He liked it.

Not wanting to let go Ric pulled away. “Wow, you’re really working towards that A” He smiled and started to take off his shirt. You gave him one last kiss before he took the shirt off which covered his face a second. This was too long for you so you started to make up for it.

You kissed his lips, moved down to his chin and then around to his neck. You stayed here for a few kisses whilst also smelling him. You don’t want to forget his manly cologne. Ric couldn’t do anything but allow you to smother him with kisses. He guided you with his hand on your head.

You pushed him back so he was laying flat on the desk as you smother him lower and lower. You got to his left nipple and started kissing it softly. You then began to lick it and turning your head so you could see Rick’s face as you pleasured him.

You then moved onto his right nipple and began to suck it. This was what you have been dreaming of. You then move down his hairy body and got to his stomach. You start rubbing his body while he started to unbutton his trousers.

He was taking too long so you slithered your way back up to his face and met with his lips again. This time it was more familiar, more passionate. You took off your own shirt and shoes whilst doing this.

By the time you were done Ric’s trousers were undone and down towards his legs. You walked round the table and stood by his feet. You ripped his trousers so that all remained on your teachers body was his socks and his black underwear.

You slowly drift your hands from his legs to hips. You look deep into his eyes and his into yours. “I want you” you said.

“Go on then, show me how you study” Alaric said with his smile. You move your hands to his underwear as your head gets closer. You can see even more clearly the shape of his dick.

Without wasting more time you slid his underwear’s down to reveal his 6 inch cock. It was already so hard and pointing straight up. It wanted you. You wanted it. You slowly took his entire dick in your mouth.

You swirled your tongue around and started to suck him off. You could hear his moans. Moans for you. While sucking you started to move your hand back up to his nipples and started to twist them. Alaric yelled even louder so much so your instinct was to put your lips on top of his to shush him. You didn’t want anyone in the school hearing him.

After a second of Ric looking at you lustfully, you resumed the blowjob and twisting of the nipples. Knowing that Alaric was so turned on and pleased was pleasing you.

After a while, Alaric lifted your head to his. He kissed you and got up off the desk. “You might want to take your bottom half off for this next task.” He walked over to his teachers desk and went into the bottom drawer. He pulled out a condom packet.

You saw this and eagerly got fully undressed. Your dick fully elevated pointing straight towards Alaric. He looked at you in the eyes as he tore the packet with his teeth. “Who wants it?” He said with the open packet between his fingers.

“Well, I guess since you’re the teacher, you have to show ME how it’s done” you said. He smiled yet again and said “Alright”

He took the condom out of the packet and put it on his penis. He then came back to you and sat on the desk and laid down.

“Come on then. Simple question: Where does the penis go?” You smiled and him and started to climb onto the desk.

You faced towards him as you slowly lowered yourself into his member. You stared at him as you felt him inside you. The pain turned you on so much that you started bouncing up and down instantly. You lowered towards his face and kissed his whilst both moaning from pain and pleasure all at the same time.

His dick felt so good inside you. The constant thrashing against your insides made you moan and grab onto his pecs. He enjoyed this and held onto your waist and back.

Up and down. “Fuck yes m/n” as he grabs on tighter and and holds you down whilst he cums inside your ass. Although he has a condom on you can feel every thrust his penis makes as it ejaculates the cum inside you.

You get off him and he looks like he’s got some news. “Lesson one is almost complete. I just need to see what you learnt from today.”

You’re confused as he gets off the desk and starts to kneel right in front of your dick. He looks at you and then looks at your dick and says “Show me what you’ve learnt”

You smile and laugh a little as you agree. You shove his head into your penis and he starts blowing you. It’s so wet and warm and you start to feel your penis erupt. You then shoot five loads into the back of Mr. Saltzman’s throat. His eyes are looking at you as he sucks you a little more before swallowing your entire load.

He gets up and holds your chin. He give you one final kiss and says “Good lesson today. Same time next week?”

[milaisreading]

I don’t normally make requests so sorry if this sounds stupid but can you do one where the manager is like the biggest fan of Leonardo and Pablo and whenever someone mentions their names their like, Aren’t they so dreamy?

Thanks! Again sorry if this sounds stupid

Author: hope u like this one🩷 thanks for the request 🩷

Warnings ⚠️: Reader uses she/her. Requests are open

⚽️Blue Lock belongs to:Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomura ⚽️

"(Y/n), can you please give me that water bottle?" Rin asked, not looking up from his shoes, but all he got was silence from the girl and then he heard a few giggles. The boy looked up at her in confusion, only to find her on the phone.

"What happened?" Rin asked, hoping it wasn't a boy or someone else making her laugh.

"I am sorry, Rin! I will bring you the water bottle, but look! Leonardo Luna posted a video and it's so funny!" At the mention of the blonde Spaniard, Rin grew agitated and nervous.

'Does she like that asshole?!'

"He is so dreamy~ I wish I got an autograph from him and Pablo Cavasoz back when they were her." (Y/n) pouted.

"You are a fan of theirs?!" Rin asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, who wouldn't be? They are so good on the field, handsome and seem like nice people. I wish I didn't avoid them like a plague when I saw them last time."

As (Y/n) continued talking, she didn't notice the way Rin's face turned into a horrified one. Pablo Cavasoz? Sure, he can handle him since he seemed somewhat nice, but Leonardo Luna?! No way will he let that man steal her attention.

"Haaa..." (Y/n) sighed as she read a football magazine Anri bought her. Bachira and Kurons raised their eyebrows and looked down at her in confusion.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, you have been staring at the magazine for 30 minutes." Blushing at how obvious she was and shook her head.

"I am alright! But recently Cavasoz had an interview here in Japan, and the pictures they took of him are so good! Look at him!" The two looked in boredom at the pictures and nodded their heads. Bachira was fighting so hard not to grab the magazine and rip it apart.

'Only I should get this reaction from her! Not this freak!'

'What's so great about him? He is so stoic and boring.' Kurona thought.

"He looks so good! Look at his cheeks!" The two let out silent groans as they saw the awestruck look on (Y/n)'s face.

"What are you two talking about?" (Y/n) raised an eyebrow as her and Hiori sat down with Reo and Nagi to eat lunch.

"Nagi was talking about the time he played against the World 5 team." Reo explained as Nagi nodded his head.

"Yeah, that Adam Blake is really no joke when it comes to his speed. Silva's strategies were very intimidating as well." The albino said as the two nodded their heads.

"Don't forget Loki, that dude is a real beast. Imagine facing him at the World Cup." (Y/n) added in as the other three nodded along.

"What about that Luna and Cavasoz guy? They are pretty scary too?"

"And arrogant, especially the Spaniard." Nagi rolled his eyes and was about to continue speaking, but Hiori interrupted him.

"(Y/n)... re you alright?" The boy asked as Reo waved his hand in front of her eyes. She had that weird, dreamy look in her eyes as she sighed.

"Ahhh~ they are so talented. You can forgive the arrogance honestly." The trio looked at her in shock, knowing that (Y/n) usually doesn't tolerate that behavior from them.

"What? (Y/n), I thought you hate arrogant people." Nagi raised an eyebrow, a little bit annoyed at the look she had.

"It's alright~ they are cute when they act like that." (Y/n) giggled as jealousy started to rise among the trio.

'Are we losing to some assholes now?!' They thought.

"Baro, can you please not argue with Aryu and Chigiri?" (Y/n) raised her eyebrow as he yelled at them for not picking up their hairbrushes.

"No! It's disgusting!" (Y/n) sighed and shook her head as Chigiri poked his tongue out at Baro, all the while he kept hiding behind (Y/n). Her phone rang and (Y/n) turned her attention to it as the three argued.

"Hello?" She answered, expecting either Anri or Ego to be on the phone.

"What?!" She yelled as the three stopped yelling and looked at her in confusion and worry. Her face was all red and she had some weird glint of excitement I'm her eyes as she nodded her head.

"Yes! Yes! Everything is under control! I will go and prepare the bedrooms, Teieri-san! Will they need anything else?! Special food? Extra blankets?"

"Who is she talking about?" Baro wondered.

"I don't know... but why does she look soo..."

"So in love?" Chigiri finished Aryu's sentence as all three cringed at the idea.

Anxiously, the trio saw (Y/n) hang up and jump in excitement.

"What happened?!" Aryu asked nervously as (Y/n) turned to look at them.

"The World 5 team will visit us again! I can now ask for pictures with Luna and Cavasoz! Hopefully they will be alright with it..." (Y/n) said a little nervously as the three froze up.

"What?! Why are you so excited to see them?" Baro asked.

"Have you seen them?! Both are so handsome and talented, who wouldn't freak out!" (Y/n) thought as she was about to cry from happiness.

'Not them! Not those two!' Aryu thought as his eye twitched in annoyance while Chigiri was about to cry.

'What about me?'

[hermitknut]

Historical Preoccupations

Hi!

So I decided a few years ago that my history + geography knowledge was dreadful and I wanted to work on it, and I've been doing that slowly. But after getting into the Nine Worlds books by Victoria Goddard, I've been reading a lot about the history of the Pacific Islands, Polynesia, and the Pacific Ocean generally, as well as related topics.

I approach everything I read with a certain amount of caution, as I am not a historian (and don't have all the tools to mind to figure out how reliable my sources are, especially as I am in the UK and most of them are not coming from the actual area in question), but it's been an enjoyable ride so far!

I thought I'd throw together a list of all the things I've been reading / have on my to read shelf with some thoughts on them. I can mostly only tell you about how readable/accessible/interesting the text is, so please don't take this as any comment on accuracy/lack of bias.

I'm making a pinned post for my tumblr that will link to this, and I'm going to try and update it as I read things.

Sea People by Christina Thompson

This was the first one I read, and I really enjoyed it! I think there's a bit of a light touch on the impact of colonialism, but her writing style is very easy to read and I found the way she approached the history very helpful. She does start with European contact, but she goes through each point in history and what they thought the history of Polynesia was and why, with what their biases brought to it. Which was fascinating!

Voyagers by Nicholas Thomas

This was a drier read than the Thompson, but it covered roughly the same historical span and helped add a different angle in a few places. The illustrations/photos were very helpful, too, and it's broken up into small enough sections to keep it moving.

Blue Machine by Helen Czerski

A slight step to the left, topic-wise - this is about how the ocean works, how it effects the world, and how people and animals use it. It opens and closes with the author's time sailing near Hawai'i on an outrigger canoe, and while some of the science went over my head, most of it was really interesting and gave me a much more layered picture of what's going on in all that water.

Pacific by Philip J. Hatfield

I've just started this, so I'll add more to this description later; but this is a beautifully illustrated book that is going through the history of the area in small slices. So far it's very readable, and is helping me settle some of the knowledge I've been learning in my mind.

Upcoming reads:

Sailing Alone by Richard J. King

Another slight step to one side, this is a collection of stories of solo-sails seems fascinating - hopefully it's as interesting as it looks!

A Brief History of the Pacific by Jeremy Black

One of several "brief history of [ocean]" books by the same author, seems quite short and will hopefully be a good simple overview before I tackle...

Waves Across the South by Sujit Sivasundaram

I'm somewhat intimidated by this one because it's ~500 pages, but hopefully I can tackle it this year, because it does sound really interesting, and like it's going to go into some greater socio-political depth than my previous reads. Fingers crossed!

Oceania: The Shape of Time by Maia Nuku

The first art book I've ever owned! I think it's going to go into more technical art detail than I'd usually read, but that's probably good for me in the branching-out sense. And it's a beautifully made book, heavy on the photographs and images.

Under consideration:

I'm not letting myself buy any more until I've caught up, but these are some of the other titles I know about (and am eyeing with varying degrees of interest - I definitely want the Low, though I'm currently having trouble sourcing it).

The Happy Isles of Oceania by Paul Theroux

Hawaiki Rising by Sam Low

Come on Shore and We Will Kill and Eat You All by Christina Thompson

Wayfinding by M R O'Connor

Wayfinding by Michael Bond

I'd love to hear any suggestions of titles on the topic, particularly anything from Polynesian authors!

[theamityelf]

I am once again thinking about Shuichi flirting with Makoto via talking about book characters

(YES.) (Follow-up to this post.)

"Yeah, he's my favorite character," Shuichi is saying.

They're sitting on nice, sunlit benches out on the school grounds. His hat is askew; he always turns it to the side, when he's reading, so the shadow cast by the bill of the cap doesn't block light from hitting the page.

It makes it easier to see his face, when he wears his hat like that. To see the shades of blue in his hair and the gold of his eyes. (Silver, in some light, but right now gold. When asked, Shuichi just says they're gray.) He's blushing a little; Makoto supposes that talking a lot makes him shy. He doesn't seem to be as shy with his classmates. In fact, Makoto has overheard him arguing with some of them, or correcting others, plenty of times. But talking to one's own class is different than talking to upperclassmen. Makoto himself isn't really all that intimidating at all, which is probably why Shuichi's been talking to him more. He's glad. Makoto always looks forward to hearing what Shuichi thinks about the book they've been reading.

The fact that one of the book's most boring characters is apparently his favorite is just another example of Shuichi having a fascinating take on things. "Really? What do you like about him?"

Shuichi glances up at Makoto, from the page, and his blush deepens. His gaze drops again. Shy. But he answers, with a smile, "I really love that he's always helping the other characters and listening to them talk about their problems, and...I know the author mostly uses his character to contrast with how interesting all the other characters are, but I think if the story focused on him more, we'd find out he's really interesting, too."

"Wow. That's a cool way to think about it. Even if he's not working for a top secret spy network like the others, he might be just as interesting if we could see the story from his perspective."

"Or even just spent enough time with him. As a character, I mean. If the main characters talked about him more, instead of just bouncing their problems off him or asking him for favors or hiding behind him when things go wrong..."

Makoto watches Shuichi get into the discussion, intrigued by the passion he's directing toward the open book in his lap. The last time he saw that trace of indignation interrupt Shuichi's shy disposition was when he heard about Kyoko inviting Makoto to a crime scene to introduce him to a few people he later found out were murder suspects. (Apparently, she wanted to see how they acted toward Makoto, since he was within the demographic of people the murderers most liked to kill.) Or the time he found out about Mondo inviting Makoto to a "bros night out" that turned out to just be a night out for Mondo and his gang while Makoto stayed behind at Mondo's house and answered the door when the cops came knocking and then Mondo snuck in through the back window and the cops asked if Mondo had been home all night and- Well, Shuichi just has a somewhat rigid moral compass. Makoto counts himself lucky he's never found fault with anything Makoto's done, so far.

"You really like that character," he observes, amazed.

Shuichi's intense look relaxes into a sheepish smile. "Yeah, I...I do."

"It would be a different kind of story, if it were about him," Makoto muses. "Do you wish we were reading a different book?"

"No, I like the story a lot. I just...The story is better because he's in it, and I feel like the characters and even the writer don't know that."

"I'm sure the writer does. How could they make a character that you like so much and not know it?"

"Sometimes...people don't notice that kind of thing."

Makoto turns that thought over for a second. "So, what would it look like if the writer did know how great the character was?"

Shuichi meets his eyes. "Someone might say something, maybe?"

"One of the characters? I guess that makes sense."

For a second, Shuichi presses his lips together, seeming to decide whether or not to say what he's thinking. Then he opines, "I think he and the investigator should spend more time together. I mean, the investigator is different around him than he is with any other character. He's softer, like maybe he feels differently about him than he feels about his partners or...his classmates...at the spy academy..."

Makoto has to smile at the timid but determined way Shuichi approaches his point. "So, you ship them? That's shipping, right? Hifumi taught me that word."

"Y-Yeah, I...I ship them."

"They could be good together. I mean, they've only talked to each other twice in the book, but they were good conversations. The investigator was willing to tell him about his dead wife; that's not something he told anyone else."

"Exactly! And...I think they could...take care of each other."

"Have you ever thought about writing fanfiction?"

"Huh?" Shuichi looks slightly startled by the question, like he's been woken from a dream.

"Fanfiction. Hifumi writes it, and I think you might enjoy it if you tried. You clearly have a lot of thoughts about the characters and...Hey, you don't have to be embarrassed! Did I say something wrong?"

Shuichi is hiding his blushing face behind the book, almost knocking his cap off his head. "No," he says into the spine. "I just, uh, didn't mean to get so into it."

"But it's cool to be so passionate about things. That's one of my favorite things about you."

Shuichi lowers the book just enough to peek at Makoto's face, then hastily hides behind it again and stands up. "Okay, I think I've got to go. I just remembered I owe Kokichi ten thousand yen." He runs off.

"Bye," Makoto calls after him, half-fond and half-confused. Why do so many of their book discussions end with Shuichi running off like that?

[caffedrine]

Translation: Clover no Kuni no Alice - Guardian Game - Chapter 1: The Tower that Disappeared, The Tower that Appeared

Summary as copied from Wonderful Wonder World wiki: Alice Liddell was dragged into a dangerous world by a man with rabbit ears. She wished to remain in the Country of Hearts with the Guardian of Time Julius Monrey in the Clocktower. But one day, she wakes up to find herself in the Tower of Clover! Nightmare - the head of the Tower and Gray his subordinate show lost Alice the way. Alice who is bewildered by the sudden "Move" is offered a kind helping hand by Gray.

Author: Nana Fumidzuki

ISBN: 978-4758040785

After opening the door, Alice Liddel froze for a moment.

(What on earth is this place?)

She had thought that the Land of Hearts itself might be like a dream, but meeting this silver-haired young man felt like being in a 'dream within a dream'.

In Alice's mind, the Nightmare was simply a character within her dreams.

Yet here he was, seated in a room filled with proper furnishings, not in some ambiguous, strange space where he always seemed to be, whether above or below. Since he was here, it must be a dream, but for some reason, it felt very real. His outfit was also quite formal and not dream-like at all. Seeing him dressed like this made everything feel even more bizarre. The only things that hadn’t changed were his appearance and his pale complexion. The Nightmare looked at Alice with the eye not covered by his eyepatch. "It's been a while. You don't seem to be doing well as usual."

"You look… as unwell as ever."

Watching the Nightmare, who was not floating in mid-air but comfortably seated on a sofa, puffing on a pipe, left her utterly speechless. Seeing his pale face with a pipe made her too astounded to say more. "My poor health is standard for me. Don’t worry about it."

That wasn’t what she wanted to discuss, she wanted to ask what was going on with the strange door that seemed to call out to her as if he was standing in front of her like a normal person. And more than that... what had happened to the clock tower where she had originally been? Where had her roomate, Julius Monray, the master of the clock tower, vanished to? She was left in total confusion.

She couldn't help but worry about how the somewhat eccentric guardian of time was doing. Yet it was frustrating that neither the Nightmare nor the man standing beside him seemed to notice Alice's bewilderment.

(Is this really… not a dream?)

With the Nightmare, a dream demon, right in front of her, it was hard to think this was reality. She was pretty sure it wasn’t a dream, but observing their nonchalant attitudes toward this bizarre situation made her start to doubt.

(But this person seems normal, at least. Setting aside the strange Nightmare…) She shifted her gaze to the man.

Alice noticed that this man, standing next to the Nightmare, was also wearing a suit, but it was more practical in design. However, knives were strapped all over his clothing, giving him a rather intimidating impression. He, too, was smoking. While the Nightmare was smoking a cigar, this man held rolled tobacco, not a pipe.

The man directed a sharp gaze at Alice. For no particular reason, she felt oddly tense under his scrutiny. Moreover, it felt off that the Nightmare was with such a capable-looking man.

As if reading her thoughts, the Nightmare pouted irritably. "There’s nothing strange about it. I am capable."

"I've never seen you display any capability, though."

"I have displayed it!"

"And if you were truly capable, wouldn’t you have a different attitude seeing me standing here at a loss in this situation?"

Initially, she hadn’t thought that far since she was still half-asleep, but if this was real, the Nightmare, who had summoned her here, had a responsibility to explain the circumstances.

"By the way, this isn’t… a dream, is it?"

"Ah, yes. This is reality. You can see that, can’t you?"

"I never thought you actually existed in reality." Even in her dreams, Alice was astonished by the Nightmare's complete lack of realistic abilities and immaturity, but now that she was face-to-face with the real thing, the shock was significant in many ways.

"Am I really that forgettable…? What a misfortune..."

"There’s no way you could be forgettable. If anything, you’re too memorable."

"So, in other words, I’m an unforgettable man to you." Alice let out a deep sigh. How could one misinterpret things so badly to come to such a conclusion? There was no way she could forget such an oddball.

However, even though he should have been able to read Alice's thoughts, the eyepatch-wearing Nightmare nodded knowingly and chuckled.

"Ha, I am, indeed, an impossible man. Right, Gray?"

There was no doubt he was misunderstanding the nuances of Alice's thoughts.

Just as she was about to retort, the man, who was called Gray, spoke up. "Nightmare, you are certainly an impossible man."

Unlike Alice, Gray seemed to completely understand her words. Nightmare, clearly in a foul mood, glared at Gray.

"Don’t agree like that! I meant I’m a cool man who attracts women!" It was almost child-like for him to become upset over someone agreeing with him.

"I understand, but you’re really not cool at all. That’s a problem in itself. Besides, it’s great that you showed up, but you won’t do any work and avoid going to the doctor..."

"I didn’t just show up; you dragged me out."

"Who was it? Who told on me! Cough... cough That I skipped another doctor appointment?"

"You shouldn’t do things that lead to someone needing to tell on you in the first place. It’s ridiculous to run away from the doctor when you’re this unwell."

Nightmare and Gray began to argue, leaving Alice to the side.

It felt almost like a mother scolding a toddler.

(Shouldn't introductions usually come first in situations like this? You called me here, so isn’t this a bit much? How long are they going to ignore me? Why do these people just continue their conversation without caring about anyone else?) As she mentally voiced her complaints toward Nightmare who had pulled her here, he flinched slightly.

"Wha… What is it?” It seemed he was frightened by the ominous atmosphere of Alice’s thoughts.

"What do you mean, 'what is it'? It’s an introduction." At this rate, she would have to pose all sorts of questions in front of Gray, who was meeting her for the first time, and depending on the situation, she might have to question or complain to Nightmare. She wanted to avoid that if possible.

From his attitude, it seemed Gray held a significant position supporting Nightmare's work and had considerable influence. It wouldn’t be wise to ignore someone like him.

"Alice, haven’t you become even stronger than before?"

"You should get a bit stronger too. You look worse than before; you’re pale and sickly. Just introduce me already."

"Ah, this is Gray Ringmark, the lizard."

After a brief silence, Gray finally spoke. "Um, nice to meet you." The lizard tattoo on his neck seemed inappropriate for such a competent and earnest man, but Alice chose not to mention it and lightly bowed instead.

Although he was a bit gruff, he did not seem rude, and his raspy baritone was pleasant to listen to.

"I’m Gray Ringmark. Nice to meet you."

"Sounds like you could provide quality leather. Mr. Lizard."

The term "Ringmark" refers to a large lizard that produces the highest quality leather, characterized by its 'ring marks'.

Gray frowned slightly. "Just call me Gray."

"Alright."

Seeing the Nightmare trying to suppress laughter beside her, it seemed many enjoyed teasing him. He must have experienced being called "Mr. Lizard" in a negative way before.

In this land, those with various powers and authority, often referred to as "role holders," tended to tease those who were weak. However, there was no need to do that when she wanted to keep the conversation as friendly as possible.

"I’m Alice Liddel. Nice to meet you, Gray.”

"Ah, nice to meet you.” While he didn’t have a smile, he was certainly gentlemanly.

"By the way, I’d like to ask… where am I right now? Where is the clock tower?" The interior of this room was based on a gentle green color, unusually soothing for the Land of Hearts. It was decorated with furnishings themed around clover leaves and the club from playing cards, creating a comfortable impression. Alice had never seen a place with such an interior since arriving in the Country of Hearts

Additionally, she was confident she had never encountered the eerie stairs with the talking door that she had seen upon opening the door to the clock tower. Nightmare lowered his eyes apologetically and tightened his expression.

"The clock tower has moved."

"What...?"

"It moved... What about Julius?"

The Julius Monray that Alice knew was not the type of person to move out without leaving his roomate behind.

Gray spoke in a quiet voice. "The clockmaker has moved, and the clock tower along with him. This is the place where the clock tower was. It no longer exists."

Alice couldn’t even produce a voice from her throat; only breath escaped her. "What do you mean...? Did Julius leave me behind and go somewhere?"

"That’s not it. The clock tower has vanished entirely." She didn't understand what he was saying at all.

"Did some land development take place while I was asleep?"

Nightmare and Gray exchanged glances, as if deciding who would speak to Alice.

It was Gray who opened his mouth. "It wasn't that land development was progressing, but the terrain has changed. The clock tower was included in that change."

"The terrain... has changed?"

"Yes, since it moved. The terrain wouldn’t change if it hadn’t moved."

She couldn’t wrap her head around it. When she thought of moving, she imagined packing up and greeting the neighbors, tasks like that. She couldn’t connect the words she was hearing, which seemed to evoke thoughts of geological upheaval. But the idea of moving so drastically didn’t make sense.

 (Could it be that Julius got involved in some kind of incident, and the Nightmare is hiding it from me...?)

Alice was worried that she might be panicking, perhaps trying to cover it up. As she looked at the two of them with that thought in mind, the Nightmare sighed.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

"How could I possibly believe you?"

"Then let me show you."

With a snap of his fingers, a holographic image resembling a map appeared. Unlike a printed map, it seemed to have a realistic color palette, and if she looked closely, she could almost see the trees swaying in the wind.

"Huh?"

In the Country of Hearts, aside from the clock tower where Alice had been staying, there were three other factions.

The Mafia, run by Blood Dupre, the Boss of the Hatter Family; the Castle of Hearts, ruled by the Queen of Hearts, Vivaldi; and the amusement park, owned by the Marry Gowland. In addition, there was also the clock tower, which was maintained by Julius Monray, who was supposed to remain neutral.

That was how it was supposed to be.

She recognized familiar places such as the Castle of Hearts and the Hatter Mansion. However, as she tried to trace the locations where her other friends lived with her eyes, she felt something off.

The scenery around the clock tower and the appearance of the tower itself were different. Just as Gray said, it was clear that a different building stood in the place where the clock tower used to be. Moreover, the area where the vibrant amusement park used to be had turned into a large forest.

Upon closer inspection, the scenery around the Hatter's Mansion and the Castle of Hearts was also subtly different. "Why... is the scenery changing!?!?"

"When you move, the scenery changes. It’s only natural when you move."

Certainly, this world was a strange place where day and night transformed chaotically. However, it was the first time she had heard that entire places could switch like this.

"The tower moved somewhere?"

"No, we didn't move. It’s the land that has moved." There was no point in pondering too much. Everything was different from the common sense of Alice's world.

She didn’t understand how the system worked, but it seemed that since the 'land moved,' her residence in the clock tower and her cohabitant had completely vanished. That much was certain. "To them, we moved. To us, they moved. Just like a clock, the land changes too."

"In the world I lived in, even if the clock moved, the land never changed or rotated."

"It sounds like you were in a peaceful world. But here, the land changes as well." The more she heard, the more incomprehensible it became.

"The fact that the clock tower has moved somewhere means... my home has disappeared, right? What am I supposed to do now? I can’t deal with this anymore. This has to be some sort of sick joke, right?" The pitying gazes from the two only intensified her frustration.

“I’ve had enough of the land changing and moving... I don’t want to hear any more. Isn’t there a way to return to the clock tower?”

The two remained silent for a while. Eventually, the Nightmare spoke.

"For now, you don’t need to worry about where you’ll stay. There are plenty of rooms, so don’t hold back. Feel free to stay as long as you’d like, just like in the clock tower."

"But..."

"This is the place where the clock tower used to be. If another move happens, it might return to a clock tower again."

"Maybe" was far too unreliable. Feeling frustrated, she fell silent, unable to find appropriate words.

"Gray, please prepare a vacant room for her. Alice is tired."

"Yes, Nightmare..."

"Alice, I’ll guide you."

"...Alright."

As she tried to shake her head with a forced smile, she felt her balance waver. Gray’s arm supported Alice’s unsteady body without difficulty.

"You shouldn’t push yourself. Let me help."

"I'm fine."

"Alice, if there’s anything we can do for you, just let us know."

"...Thank you." Nodding slightly at the Nightmare’s kind offer, Alice began to walk with Gray.

*

Gray walked slowly, protecting Alice as they moved.

Feeling her thoughts quickly heating up in silence, Alice forced herself to speak.

"Hey, Gray?"

"What is it?"

"...Are you the Nightmare’s... subordinate? He doesn’t seem like the kind of important person who would have subordinates."

"Nightmare Gottschalk is the master of Clover Tower and the lord of the Country of Clover. You could say he is an important person, and I am his subordinate. You seem to be a friend of Nightmare, but please don’t speak ill of him too much."

"What!? "

Nightmare Gottschalk—such a heavy name.

Master of Clover Tower.

Lord of the Country of Clover.

He is a person who commands this capable-looking man.

None of these fit her image of the Nightmare at all. "I’ve only known the Nightmare in my dreams, so I couldn’t imagine that he has a physical form and lives a normal life."

"I’m not sure if it’s normal for someone as sickly as him to be running away from work, though." Gray smiled slightly. He usually had a cold demeanor, but when he smiled, he appeared more gentle than she had expected.

"By the way, you said this is Clover Country, right?"

"Yes."

"How is Clover Country different from Heart Country? Parts of the land have moved to Clover Country..."

"The land didn’t move into the vessel called Clover Country. It’s determined what kind of country it becomes based on the combination of places it moved from."

"Like combinations of playing cards?"

"Yes, that might be a good comparison."

Until they arrived at the room, Gray succinctly explained enough for Alice to understand that there wouldn’t be any problems as long as she stayed in the tower. He informed her that the land was unstable after the "move," so she should be careful while walking outside, as well as details regarding meals and other matters at Clover Tower—plenty of information.

"Thank you, Gray."

"No... it's nothing..."

Gray briefly looked away as if troubled, but then continued walking away.

After watching him walk down the hallway for a few seconds, Alice entered the room assigned to her and closed the door.

Looking down from the window, she could see the Hatter's Mansion and Heart Castle. From this perspective, although there was a difference in height, the locations weren’t that different compared to looking down from the top of the clock tower.

(When looking just at the buildings, everything seems the same as before...)

Looking at the scenery made Alice remember the time she was taken by Peter White and brought to the Land of Hearts.

While waiting for her sister, Lorina, to get cards for a game in their garden, Peter suddenly appeared and took her to the Country of Hearts. To make matters worse, he forced her to drink something resembling medicine through a kiss, compelling her to participate in a 'game'. She had received almost no explanation about what kind of game it was.

The only thing she understood was that she could return if she filled the small bottle she had drunk from. With that knowledge alone, Alice was left behind in the clock tower.

It was Julius, the master of the clock tower, who helped her, grumbling all the while. Although he was taciturn and somewhat eccentric, he still awkwardly cared for Alice, which gave her the determination to live in the Country of Hearts.

While living in the clock tower, she became acquainted with people from other factions and made a few friends. (But...)

The view she saw from above, which was different from the image shown to her by the Nightmare, reminded her of the scenery she would see when looking down from the roof of the clock tower. However, even though the same buildings were there, it still felt different. There was an unsettling feeling.

She remembered that although the Hatter Mansion and Castle of Hearts still existed in the Country of Hearts, the amusement park had vanished. (I wonder how everyone else is doing?)

There might be some acquaintances who had disappeared just like Julius. It was highly likely that those living in the amusement park, like the Marry Gowland and Boris, had also vanished.

Having just been shown to her room, she couldn’t help but feel concerned. Alice stepped out of her room, walked quickly down the hallway, and descended the stairs.

"Oh!"

She spotted Gray walking further down the stairs, and a small voice escaped her. Gray turned around and stopped, and Alice hurried over to Gray's side.

"Is something wrong?"

"I'm worried about how everyone else is doing, so I thought I’d go check."

"I don’t think anything too serious has happened, but... since the land is still unstable, it's better to be cautious."

"I will be."

"Honestly, you should wait until things settle down a bit, but if you're concerned, I can't stop you. Go on."

"Thank you." Alice gave a light nod and then walked past Gray, picking up her pace.

*

"Wow, this feels strange." Walking through it, the sense of discomfort was even more pronounced than when she looked down from the window.

Amid the familiar scenery, she could see unfamiliar buildings and streets, and as she walked, paths she had walked many times before abruptly ended and connected to different roads.

Because it was mixed with sights she knew too well, she felt even more confused. Alice struggled to navigate the path and finally reached one of her intended destinations, the Hatter's Mansion.

The reason she initially headed to the Hatter Mansion wasn’t particularly significant. The paths near Clover Tower were unlike those of the old clock tower, and she had little confidence in walking toward an unknown direction without recognizable landmarks. So, she simply chose to go to the one that was easier to reach from a distance: either the Hatter Mansion or the Castle of Hearts.

"...Somehow, the scenery near the gate feels a bit different too." Looking around, the surroundings seemed strange, with parts that were the same mixed with those that weren’t.

"Wow! It’s my big sister! Did you come to see us?"

"Welcome, big sister! Did you come to play with us? We’re so happy, brother!" Familiar voices of the twin boys sounded, and they came running with large axes in hand, smiling as they hugged Alice while still holding the axes. The gatekeepers of the Hatter's Mansion, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, would hug and cling to Alice every time their eyes met.

"Whoa, stop...! Get away a little! You're going to kill me!" An axe swayed dangerously close to Alice's face and head. Every time they expressed their affection, it felt like her life was on the line.

However, suddenly Dee and Dum's bodies were pulled away from Alice. To be precise, it should be said they were yanked off.

"Hey, you little brats. Stop bothering her! Get away already!"

"Elliot!?"

Just after a thud echoed from the twins' heads, Alice found herself free.

The one who freed Alice was a tall young man with rabbit ears, Elliot March. His fierce expression and robust build suited him as the second-in-command of the Hatter Family Mafia. However, when you looked at the ears that expressed his emotions so straightforwardly and bounced about, he somehow appeared oddly cute.

"Geez! What are you doing, Chicky Rabbit!?"

"To use violence against innocent children is the lowest! You violent rabbit!"

"I’m not a rabbit!"

In contrast to the way they had been sweetly clinging to Alice, they started throwing insults at Elliot. This was how it always was. Although Alice felt a sense of relief at their typical antics, the very normalcy of it left her feeling somewhat let down.

(I can't think that "the move" was just a fantasy of mine...)

There had been times when she wanted to doubt her sanity after coming to the Country of Hearts, but this was the first time she questioned her sense of geography. Yet seeing everyone so unfazed by this "move," she felt as though she must be the one in the wrong.

Alice let out a small sigh.

"Miss, I was surprised to see you still here. I thought you had moved along with the clock tower." Suddenly, a lazy voice called out from beside where the twins and Elliot were causing a ruckus.

"Since when have you been there?"

"I've been here since you arrived. I was going to say hello, but my gatekeepers began to tumble over each other, so I decided to observe for a while."

"...You should have helped. I thought I was going to lose my head."

Standing there was Blood Dupre, the boss of the Hatter Family.

As his nickname suggested, he was a man wearing an incredibly conspicuous hat, and from his lethargic demeanor, one could hardly imagine he was the head of the Mafia. His enthusiasm was rarely directed toward anything other than tea, and even as Alice was in mortal danger, embraced by the axe-wielding twins, he remained unconcerned and composed. This was, of course, not due to any disregard for Alice; it was simply his lazy personality.

Since his trusted aide, Elliot, handled nearly everything, there was no need for Blood to step in.

When Alice looked at his well-groomed features, she furrowed her brow slightly.

While Blood himself bore no fault, his face bore an uncanny resemblance to that of her first love, whom she had parted ways with before arriving in this world, and every time she saw it, complex feelings would arise. She didn’t want to place expectations on her friend's appearance, but she couldn't shake the uncomfortable feeling.

"More importantly, since you didn’t move along with the clock tower, I assume you have nowhere to stay now?"

"I’m currently staying at Clover Tower." She didn't express the conflicting emotions that brought her there.

"Ah, I see. Being alone in an unfamiliar place must be lonely."

"Even though it’s a strange place, Nightmare is there too, so I'm not lonely." Alice smiled.

"And the lizard who acts as a caretaker seems like a decent person. He’s the first genuinely normal person I’ve met in this world." While Julius, the master of the clock tower, and Merry-Go-Round, the owner of the amusement park, were somewhat normal in this world, Julius was eccentric, and Merry-Go-Round had a catastrophic sense of music, placing them on the level of oddballs in Alice's previous world.

However, Gray seemed like someone who would be perfectly normal even in her old world.

"Are you talking about Gray Ringmark? The lizard who respects his boss immensely?" Elliot asked with an oddly serious expression.

"...I don’t think Gray respects Nightmare that much... Do you know him?"

"I know very well. I’m definitely better than him!" Was he talking about fighting skills or popularity?

As Alice pondered, Blood spoke up with an exasperated tone.

"Miss, that’s nothing you need to concern yourself with—it's a boring and trivial matter. Please just leave it alone." She recognized this expression; it was the same one he wore when Elliot was showering him with praise. She didn’t understand why he made that face, but it seemed best to change the subject. "By the way, what brings you here, miss? You came all this way despite the terrain still being unstable. Something must be going on."

"What do you mean... I’m worried about you all! The clock tower and amusement park disappeared, Clover Tower appeared in place of the clock tower, and the terrain changed drastically. I thought something must have happened to you... But I'm glad if you're all okay."

She couldn't bear to have her sense of normalcy shattered any further. Perhaps it would be best to retreat at this point.

"I'll check out other places too. Something might be happening elsewhere."

"Be careful out there since it's still unstable." Elliot smiled brightly.

"Thank you. I will be careful." Alice nodded and smiled back.

"Sister, there are mice in the forest, but they’re dirty, so don’t get too close!"

"Mice are stupid and easy to bully. We often take our anger out on them for fun."

"R-Right... You shouldn’t use animals as toys." The thought of a forest filled with mice sent a chill down her spine, but she couldn't ignore her curiosity about what had happened to her friends from the amusement park, so she had to go.

"Alice, if you ever grow tired of life in Clover Tower, feel free to come here anytime."

"Thank you. But I’ll try to manage as best as I can."

For now, she had almost no knowledge of what Clover Tower was like, but since Nightmare would be there, she wanted to stay in a place that would remind her of the clock tower. Alice waved goodbye to the four who were seeing her off and then set off toward the Castle of Hearts.

The Castle of Hearts had also changed slightly, with the garden looking different. Alice could see Queen Vivaldi of the Heart Castle outside in the garden with several maids, some of whom seemed familiar.

"Vival..."

Just as Alice was about to call out, she suddenly heard a voice from her blind spot.

"Alice! I was worried you had vanished along with the clock tower, but it seems you were just bounced out!" Startled, Alice turned around to see a white-haired young man with rabbit ears running toward her.

This was not Elliot, whom she had just seen at the Hatter’s Mansion, but Peter White, the white rabbit chancellor. With glasses that gave him an intellectual appearance, he embraced Alice with an exaggerated pose that seemed out of character for him.

Reactively, Alice punched Peter and pulled herself away from him.

However, Peter was not the type of rabbit to be discouraged by such a minor setback. "I’m so lucky! The fact that you were bounced out and remained here... It’s so moving! I’m so happy I might just lose it! I love you! I want to make you as happy as I am... Imagining you happy because of me makes me too happy to handle!”

"Feel free to pass out right there." When conversing with Peter, Alice could hardly expect to communicate effectively. It seemed that due to his excessive attachment to Alice, he interpreted her words entirely according to his own convenience.

"Anyway, why are you surprised that I'm still here?" As she maintained distance from Peter, Alice changed the subject.

"That’s because..."

"Ahahahaha!" From a different direction, she heard a bright laugh that contrasted with Peter’s continued attempts to cling to her. "Haha! You’re being delightfully annoying, Peter! Alice is getting overwhelmed!"

Alice wasn't surprised at all.

The elusive and whimsical knight Ace could appear from anywhere at any time. He was often seen around Heart Castle, so she was somewhat accustomed to both Peter and Ace. Ace, known as the strongest knight of the Heart Castle, spoke with his refreshingly bright smile directed at Alice.

"If you don’t like it, you need to act, not just talk. Animals often won’t understand words."

If it were anyone else, the words might have sounded a bit different, but when Ace said it, it always had a slightly ominous feel.

(Wow, he has his hand on his sword.)

If Peter kept clinging to her like this, it would seem like Ace was ready to cut him down.

"...Right. I’ll be more careful next time." Although Ace was difficult to read emotionally, she could tell that he was particularly irritable today, suggesting that stirring him up any further could lead to trouble. "Anyway, you were surprised that I’m still here. Why exactly?"

"I thought you had moved with the clock tower. Normally, those affiliated with a place move along with it. Since you were close to the clockmaker and so familiar with the tower, it was surprising that you remained while that rabbit was so happy."

It seemed Vivaldi had come over after hearing the commotion between the two. Dressed in a gorgeous gown befitting her resplendent beauty, she showed a radiant smile.

"Vivaldi!"

"To hug such a cute child is truly out of place. I could very well chop off your head." Though she frowned and glared at Peter, she eventually let out a sigh.

The cruel and beautiful queen executed those who irritated her without hesitation, yet even in this world where life was cheap, it was difficult to kill the powerful figures known as "role holders." It seemed she decided that executing someone for a change of pace was not feasible.

"Right now you're in Clover Tower, which appeared instead of the clock tower, correct? I always wished for you to stay at the Castle of Hearts. Alice, why don’t you take this opportunity to move to the Castle of Hearts? With such a unreliable man as that master, everything must feel precarious."

"Well... it's true that Nightmare is unreliable and sickly, but he's a good person, and besides, his subordinate Gray seems capable, so it’ll be fine."

"How dull. But if anything happens, just come here anytime."

"Thank you."

The people of this country, despite Alice being an "outsider," all seemed to have a fondness for her. She had been taught that "outsiders" were perceived that way, but after spending some time in the Land of Hearts, it seemed that even once she became a resident of this country, the affection everyone directed toward her remained unchanged.

"Well then, I’ll be going soon. I was worried that something terrible had happened to everyone due to the 'move,' but it seems fine."

"Ah, Alice... you were worried about me, weren’t you?"

"Nobody is worried about you. You were worried about me instead."

"Ahahaha, I wish that were true."

Feeling reassured that there was still no change in their attitudes, Alice took her leave.

*

Next, she thought she would head into the forest she had never set foot in before.

As Alice was walking, she heard Ace's voice from behind her.

"Huh?" When Alice stopped, Ace was quickly upon her. Even after running, he showed no signs of being out of breath.

"Hey, Alice! What a coincidence to meet you here!"

"Coincidence... are you perhaps following me?"

"No, not at all. I heard you talking about the dagger-wielding lizard a bit ago, and it made me nostalgic, so I was going to visit Clover Tower. I thought I’d ask you to join me for some training."

"If you’re headed to Clover Tower, it's best to take the path by the castle, or... oh, wait... that won't work, will it?"

"Oh, I thought this path would be fine... That’s strange." Ace was notoriously bad with directions. He could easily get lost even going to easily recognizable places, and Alice had come to understand this from her past interactions with him.

"I’m going into the forest now... It’s my first time going there, and if you’d like, want to come with me? We can return to Clover Tower afterward."

It made complete sense that Gray practiced martial arts since he was always equipped with a dagger, but Ace's talk of "training" felt somewhat ominous. She deliberately shifted the subject. In a country where people tended not to listen to others, changing topics was an important conversational skill.

"Ahahaha, that sounds good too. The forest sounds fun, so maybe I’ll join you."

"Have you ever been to the forest? I want to know what it’s like."

"Well, it’s a pleasant and fun place. There are lots of animals too."

If the time of day didn’t change, she would be able to stroll through the forest under the blue sky. It was sad that the amusement park had vanished, but perhaps she could enjoy a pleasant walk before returning. With those thoughts in mind, Alice walked toward the forest. When Alice arrived in the forest, she saw a figure on a sunlit path.

A delicate-looking boy dressed in a green coat that blended in with the trees was running toward her. However, something seemed off.

"Nyan, nyan, I'm scared of the kitty!" He was almost in tears, fleeing from something.

"Huh...?" As she tried to see what was happening behind the boy, Ace quickly approached without hesitation.

(Does he intend to help?)

For just a moment, she thought that, but Ace's reaction was unexpected.

"Why, if it isn’t the Mouse!"

"Yikes, knight!" The boy, called the Mouse, seemed so shocked that he leaped backward, right where he had been trying to escape. Though they were acquainted, it seemed they didn’t have a very peaceful relationship. "Why… why is this happening? This is the worst! There’s a kitty coming, and now there’s a knight... I’m scared, I’m scared!" The boy seemed to be in a panic, running around, but this time he got caught not only by Ace but also by someone who had come up from behind him.

"Nya-hahaha! Gotcha, Pierce!"

The 'kitty' that had arrived was someone Alice recognized.

Dressed in flashy pink fur, it was Boris Airay. He was the Cheshire Cat who had been staying with Marry Gowland, the owner of the amusement park. When she had visited before, they had built a somewhat friendly relationship, often showing her gun collections and letting her ride on rides he had modified on a whim.

For some reason, Boris was brandishing a knife and fork, looking extremely delighted.

The boy’s frightened eyes were clearly focused on that pair of utensils. He might genuinely think he was going to be eaten.

"Help! I hate kitties! I really hate them!"

"I understand, so just stay back."

"Y-Yeah..." Despite looking older than Alice, he seemed rather unreliable.

Protecting the tearful boy behind her, Alice turned to face Boris.

"Boris... didn’t you move in with Marry Gowland?"

"Alice, weren’t you supposed to move in with the clockmaker? It seems you were bounced back too."

"...Then that means... are you also bounced back, Boris?"

"Yeah." Boris smiled as he put the knife and fork into his pocket. "I’m just a freeloader and an outcast, so I was bounced back."

"I see..." She had thought she was managing well with Julius in the clock tower until now. Yet the fact that she had been ‘bounced back’ was still sad. No matter the reason, being left behind must be quite lonely.

Seeing Alice’s downcast expression, Boris smiled encouragingly. "But you’ll definitely get used to Clover Country. If you ever feel lonely, you can always come play with me. You can even live with me."

"Huh?"

"The forest is cozy. There are plenty of interesting places, and you can chase around mice for fun."

"No way! I’m scared of kitties!"

"Boris, stop it. This kid is terrified. Ace, don’t scare him suddenly like you did earlier."

"But it’s fun, you know. Cats are supposed to chase mice."

"I didn’t mean to scare him, though." Neither of them seemed to have any consideration for the 'Mouse' boy.

"Huh? I don’t even know this kid’s name yet..." When Alice turned around, the boy gave her an innocent smile. Upon closer inspection, she noticed his round ears and the drooping tail behind him.

"My name is Pierce. I’m Pierce Villiers, the sleeping mouse!"

"Nice to meet you. I’m Alice Liddel. Now that I think about it, I feel like when I visited the Hatter’s Mansion, Dee and Dum were talking about mice..."

"Yeah, the twins!! They're coming here!! No way! Not again... Ugh, everyone is bullying me…! " Pierce ran away, still half-crying.

"Sounds like he’s really been oppressed. Poor thing."

"Even if you say he’s poor... that kid is in the Mafia. He’s a member of the Hatter Family."

"...Huh?" Could someone so tearful and bullied really survive in the Mafia? It was hard to believe.

However, Ace smiled and confirmed Boris's statement. "What the cat said is true. Mouse is a member of the Hatter Family. He’s a well-known entity even among external organizations."

Though she had no idea what kind of work he did, it seemed Pierce had a background that couldn't be judged by his unreliable behavior. Alice sighed deeply.

"Alice, I’m going to chase after him again, so see you later." Boris began to sprint after the silhouette of Pierce that was still visible in the distance. He quickly pulled out his knife and fork as he ran.

"The forest... is quite a hectic place, isn’t it?"

"Ahahaha, wasn’t it fun? Now, shall we head to Clover Tower?"

"Right."

Judging that it would be quicker to go through the forest path from this position, they entered the woods. After a while, Alice stopped in her tracks.

"What’s wrong?"

"I can... hear a voice."

It wasn’t the voices of Boris or Pierce echoing around. There were voices calling from all directions.

"Open the door."

"Give it a try."

"You can go to another place."

"Come on, turn the knob..."

Doors were plastered against the trees and also resting on the stumps everywhere.

Just like the distorted staircase she had seen when exiting the room in the clock tower, doors were attached to the trees.

"Ace, can’t you hear... the voices?"

"Do you also... hear it?" Ace didn’t seem disturbed by the voices he heard.  Even though he could hear them, it felt like he accepted this eerie calling as something perfectly normal.

"This door can take you to the place you want to go. It’s a door that will lead you to the place you desire the most. The voices can only be heard by those who are lost."

"Lost...?"

It was only natural to feel lost.

Having abruptly 'moved' from a place she thought she was familiar with in the Land of Hearts to Clover Country, it would be unnatural not to feel confused.

However, when Alice heard Ace's words, she felt a shiver of something akin to dread. Opening the door might lead to something unpleasant. The very notion of her "most desired" place could result in something dire depending on what it entailed.

"Alice, where do you want to go?"

"Ace..."

The directionally challenged knight laughed and began to walk away.

He should have been taking her to Clover Tower as promised, but Alice's legs wouldn’t move.

Gradually, Ace's figure grew more distant from Alice.

By the time she could no longer see him, the sky had turned to twilight.

Even though she thought that time had changed, Alice stood there for a long while, continuing to listen to the door's calling voice.

[cato616]

NEGOTIATING OVER US (part three)

roman roy x fem reader

note: im glad actually at least a few people saw the other posts i was honestly expecting none at all, so yey thanks <3

summary: you're expecting to go back to see roman today; are you hoping to experience something like yesterday with him? or are you planning to have a normal "negotiation" (since of course you know you don't want to seel) day. Keeps you excited

content: some spicy spice and well as always degrading treatment from roman

You're pretty anxious about today, cleaning over every single table of the café every ten minutes and at the same time, taking orders, you really make those tables shine by the way; you're waiting until Liza arrives so she can start her shift and you can be gone already. cleaning, coffee, cleaning, coffee, cleaning... LIZA! she finally arrived and you dropped the rag when you were about to clean the counter for the third time, you really had to put your mind on something else because this types of meetings makes you impatient.

"hey Liza!" you waive at her. "You seem really happy to see me" she said to you with somewhat of a worried face. "yeah! i gotta be somewhere and i wa-" "you want me to cover the next few hours" Liza interrupted you finishing your sentence. "yes! you can't say no, i am your boss tho" you laugh with her. "where are you going this time?" she asks in a friendly way. "just having a date with-" "oh!" Liza adds mid sentence seeming amused, you continue. "... with the roy family" you say. "oh..." Liza's face changed to disappointment. "yeah... they're still trying to make me sell" you said to her while you start to put your coat on; since Liza is one of the few people that knows about the history of the café, when you said that, she felt a little blue about it. "so, are you... going to sell?" She asks you pitifully. "I don't want to sell Liza... im just, meeting them anyway... roman always came here, i am now going over there" Liza nods with her head smiling at you and then waiving goodbye when you start leaving.

You start walking over your grand meeting with roman roy, and just by knowing that, it makes impatient all over again, you can't think about it until you get to arrive there, so you put your headphones on and start listening to music to escape your mind a little bit.

You're a block away from the building, and my my, it looks even bigger than last time, you start having a lot of vertigo by just looking at it.

Here we are now entering hell. "good morning hey, im here to see roman roy?..." you had to ask the receptionist since you couldn't go up in an elevator without authorization. "uh... yes, you may go" she kindly directs you to the security guards who would let you go in with their key cards; very intimidating men, feels like they destroy animal plushies just for fun. you walked really fast into the elevators, those big guys had some scary faces too, who hired them? never mind, that makes sense.

You're in the elevator, breathing, in and out. You can't help but to feel nervous about these places; these people makes you drop huge gouts of sweat over your forehead, and under your armpits, that's why you needed to relax first. 'ding.' You arrived at your floor, it's time to shine.

Right after you set a foot outside the elevator, you look up, and you see roman waiting for the same one. You stared into each other's eyes at first and even for a millisecond you felt you wanted to say something different by just looking at him, but you immediately great him like an every day person. "hey roman, good to see you" you unintentionally stretch your hand to him, he obviously doesn't copy you and do the same thing instead looks down at it as he feels grossed out by the gesture, and starts laughing, of course. "oh yeah yeah mrs. princess come on in to the castle" he stretched your hand in an ironic way while making a silly voice. "don't greet me like that, I'm not the fucking president of the united states." You two start walking to his office and well, you looked very solemn by his attitude, but deep inside you did felt a bit embarrassed, you never actually did that when he would stop by your shop the other times. "(you sigh) always so delighted to see you roman" you sarcastically tell him. He opens the door for you to go in. "yeah don't worry darling, i know that you hate me and blah blah blah". You sit down on those sofas he had in his office, and after he said that you zone out and start to reflect about it, i don't think I've actually ever hated him, i said the words but never felt it.

You zone back in when he suddenly sits on another seat in front of you, there's a bit of silence, there's words that are trying to come out of your mouth but you're worried how much it would change the atmosphere in the room. "i've... never actually hated you... by the way." Roman seems astounded by your comment, he has a slight smirk on his face. "oh wow, really? you're the first one then" he then suddenly starts to make deep eye contact with you; you're the type that can't stand eye contact for even a second, so your eyes start to wonder somewhere else to avoid him; oh shit no, not down there, look up! look up, the window, perfect, stay still. Of course roman noticed your anxious look around the place, and those accidental wonder eyes you gave him. "what? what you looking at? a plane?". You're now tired of his teasing at this time of the day, and get to the point.

"i only came back here to tell you once more that i won't ever sell my coffee shop" you told him very confident, you felt good about yourself after saying it; he smiles at you as if he believes that you don't know what you're saying. "what?" as you start to feel on edge by his silence and his smirking, that unfortunately makes the insecurity come back to your body, damn you, roman you bully. "maybe for now let's say you don't wanna sell, sure" he's making you feel confused and irritated with his stupid superior complex. "i am not going to sell roman" you said to him very serious this time. "I've told you about it already" you remind him about your story. "oh yeah boo-hoo sad backstory-" You struggle to feel confident at times, but you don't let people like that in your life, he really does feel like he's better the anyone else. "I'm leaving, hope you have a good day you little shit" you rapidly get up from your sit almost about to leave the room. "okay waitwaitwait stop". roman didn't even felt like getting up but he did like saying wait very fast. "i don't know why i stopped, but of course that you roman tend to be fucking selfish, egocentric, and a bitch, but who knows why, i forgot about that" you yelled.

Quietness fills up the room; your face is hulk red and his is blue; he looks down, defeated. "pff, wow, i thought you said you didn't hate me" You couldn't believe that he felt sad about it, however, you were deeply fighting your inner self, started to feel a little regretful. "oh so apparently you're the victim, nice one" you sarcastically put your thumbs up to him. You paused, he didn't say anything. You didnt want to at the moment, but deep down you wanted him to feel remorse; you felt like you should be civilized about it. "just try to say sorry perhaps and we can then, continue our day"

He starts to get up very slowly from his seat, his eyes gradually starts to direct themselves from the floor to then your eyes, he's now very delicately getting closer to you. Your face meets his face, you stayed very still, not a word coming through your mouth. His eyes slightly start to shift, left to right, like if he's trying to decipher what your eyes are telling him. then he quietly says, "i am, sorry... i didn't say, anything about our meeting, last night". You froze.

Although you were pretty aroused by that meeting yesterday and actually wanted to have something like that happen again, the adrenaline; you weren't very good at confronting it. So now you felt it became harder to breath, while your heart was beating faster. "You want me to say something about it?" He wanted you to respond as of course you were at the moment, unavailable, your mind is currently out of thoughts. "um.. a-about, what?" you continue to not admit the events. "I'm not stupid- you fucking want me, don't you?"

continue

[nova-starcutter]

based on your answer to the fight to the death poll and this blog’s theming i am gonna go ahead and guess that your discord icon is something to do with the lor

whats the deal with magolor anyways

1. Yeah, it’s one of my favorite frames of any cutscene ever.

(Just as a little bonus before I get to the second part of your ask, that little “Lor gets unexpectedly close to the viewer for no apparent reason” sequence is actually what made me headcanon her as nearsighted. Originally it was just a “soft” headcanon that I had no intention of entirely subscribing to but nowadays it’s actually become one of my favorites.)

2. Ok so there’s a whole lot of ways that can be interpreted and it is almost 2 AM as im starting this so I’ll go with just one for now and elaborate on others if asked. Halcandra— at least the part of it where he lived— was hardly the sort of place anyone would reasonably choose to live in, let alone try to have a family or raise kids. Resources were scarce, dangers weren’t, and really the primary types you’d find staying there were those who wanted to live out their lives away from civilization, criminals hiding from authorities, and those who just wanted to be somewhere less permeated by the government’s influence and prying eyes. As a result, Magolor never really knew anyone close to his own age growing up, on top of just not knowing many folks aside from his parents to begin with. Though his upbringing was otherwise relatively positive— on good terms with his parents, well-educated, given opportunities to learn and practice various skills and hobbies, etc— not having peers to connect with and grow alongside did leave him somewhat socially stunted.

One of the ways this manifests is his maturity, or seeming lack thereof. He has the experience and knowledge to act like an adult at this point, but never really had the social cues to begin doing so. Like that guy in highschool who still acts like a 6th grader in senior year while everyone else has moved on to bigger and better things. Of course his perspective has changed after what he’s gone through, but he’s always going to act less mature than other Halcandrans his age would be expected to.

NOT 2 AM UPDATE: The above doesn’t mean he can’t convincingly act like he had a normal/actually existent childhood, the main indicator that he didn’t would just be that he never brings up his personal life back on Halcandra, definitely treats Kirby as his very first friend ever™️, and doesn’t really have a distinct hanging with friends mode vs interacting with peers/colleagues/etc. In other words he kinda treats everyone the same, exceptions being Lor and people he either actively dislikes or finds intimidating. This can definitely be offputting for some because often comes off as him not being genuine, akin to someone using their customer service voice at all times, but no he is in fact just Like That™️. It does certainly help him a bit when he’s actually scheming, given that his normal already comes off as dubious plottingcore, with the trade off that he’s always the first person everyone suspects when shenanigans are afoot. This guy can never win at Among Us

[theratboyking]

Softly Into The Night

Chapter Two: Hide Us In Shadows

Author's Note:

So this is over Eight thousand words and took way longer than I thought it would take, but I think I actually have a basic idea of where this is going. I think I'll have the next chapter ready sometime next week. I'd love to hear what you guys think. I hope you guys enjoy :)

Pairing: Cardinal Copia/Reader/Papa Emeritus iii (this will also have eventual Copia/Terzo but that won't be for a while) (This is also a slow burn so it's gonna be a while until we even get here)

Word Count: 8.0k

Summary: Demons are real, angels exist, and my father is the Prince of Darkness. A dream I can’t seem to wake up from. And two mysterious strangers that seem to have a connection to me. What could possibly go wrong?

Chapter Summary: I know what my being here means. I know what Lucifer told me and to an extent, I know what’s expected of me. I knew I was in a way being hunted for reasons I am not really sure I understand quite yet. But hearing Nova’s words. The walls I have been trying to keep up since yesterday were crumbling right before my eyes.

Warnings: 18+ (this is going to get be a wild ride folks,) Slow burn, Idiots in love, kinda soulmates? poorly translated Italian (I am sorry to all the Italians out there) fluff, angst, this is a ghost fic so you know religious trauma, some chapters will like get kinda deep in the religious philosophy but maybe not depending on the direction this goes, eventual smut (Chapter will be labeled)

AO3 Link

&lt;-Previous Next->

The winding halls of the Abbey seemed endless, the dark architecture intimidating to look at. Our footsteps echoed as Sister Imperator led the way down the hallway - I was trying desperately to not fall behind. She walked at a breakneck speed for someone at her age… It was honestly impressive. 

The silence between us was suffocating. She had not spoken to me since we left the hospital wing other than, “Follow me.” I didn’t know if she was trying to be respectful or just really didn’t like me. After yesterday I don’t think she’s ever going to “Like me.” 

I sigh, my mind drifting back to yesterday. It was almost impossible not to think about everything that happened in general. With everything that’s happened, I’m surprised my thoughts aren’t running rampant. No, my mind kept drifting back to them…

 I barely knew them but they had taken up most of my thoughts since this morning, hell maybe even most of last night. After everything, it was hard for them not to. In a weird way, they were the only reason I was not having an absolute breakdown. Everything had changed over the course of a night but oddly I wasn’t as scared as I probably should be. 

 After Terzo was able to get the wing cleared and the shattered glass had been cleaned up - The three of us spent most of the day going well into the night talking. They took turns telling me just about everything they could about this world I was now a key player in. To my absolute shock and somewhat horror, I had somehow managed to end up somewhere deep in rural Europe in one of the oldest Abbeys of the satanic church. It's a sort of haven for many of the followers of their church. Legend has it that apparently Satanas himself blessed the church to protect his followers from the witch trials.

   There was a whole underground world that I had no idea existed and I had been thrown into the middle of it. Just about anything that I thought was nothing more than bedtime stories or old wise tales to tell children had turned out to be real. Vampires, demons, ghosts, and just about anything you can think of were more than just myths and legends.  The church itself used ghouls to ensure the safety of what Terzo called “Lucifer’s favorite bunch of sinners.”

The church itself was also one of the oldest to worship the satanic religion. There was a lot of history here that Copia was more than willing to tell me all about. The church went back hundreds of years and had seen a great deal. Terzo even came from a very long line of leaders of sorts for the church, he was especially the antipope of Satanism. Copia explained that he was a high-ranking cardinal within the church himself. It was well into the night when Trezo mentioned that the church had a sort of band to promote the teachings of the church and to get people to join and he just so happened to be the frontman of the band - Something he was rather proud of. This was arguably one of the most pleasant yet strangest things I had heard all night. 

I really couldn’t tell you when it happened but with them, it didn’t feel like time was passing. It felt almost like we’d done it a million times before. At some point, our conversation turned from them explaining this world's wonders to me, to us telling stories to each other. I couldn’t help but open up about myself. I found myself telling about moving around a lot as a kid, how I didn’t have my license till I was in my 20s, and about how I always carry rosemary in my pocket because my mom always did it. 

They would interject from time to time. Trezo talked about how he had two older brothers. He talked about his band and about his ghoul. Copia talked about the rats that he keeps in his room and how each has their name (and he was not shy in telling me each and everyone's name.) Somehow he managed to become a treasurer for the church despite claiming how horrible he was at math. There never really was a moment of silence that night. They were easy to talk to. By the end of the night, it felt like we were old friends merely catching up after not seeing each other for a long time. 

  Arguably being the highlight of the evening was Trezo's confession to carrying a kazoo in his pocket, he said it was because he loved pissing his older brothers off - And he was more than pleased to prove it, giving an in-pronto performance in the wing. I couldn’t help the smile that formed on my face. It almost got him kicked out by Sister Beth. She was ready to kill Trezo by the end of the night. It took a lot of convincing from Copia to let them stay

They stayed with me even after I fell asleep only leaving early this morning - Saying something about how they had to lead mass this morning. Terzo mentioned something about how Primo had to leave for Italy to take care of some church business. Before leaving Terzo had sent for some ghouls to have a room prepared for me. I’m shocked that Sister Beth even allowed me to leave the clinic. But after much convincing from myself and the boys, I was finally able to leave the hospital wing. It probably helped that she seemed to be in a rush to get everything for her departure for Italy as well. She had given Terzo quite the earful to behave while she was gone. 

Despite the mess, I had found myself in, they brought me a sense of security and comfort I had never felt before. Terzo and Copia told me I was safe here and I couldn’t help but believe them. 

That leads me to where I am now - I couldn't help but wish they were able to stay with me… Walking down a random hallway in a church from a religion I didn’t know existed, let alone that I was a key player in a lot of it… In a country, I have never been in before… With Sister Imperator … Alone… 

I shuddered at the mere thought. Maybe I wasn’t as ready for this as I thought I was. I was honestly starting to get scared that she was gonna kill me. There were fewer doors the further we went but it wasn’t darker down here. The windows were huge letting in streams of light it was oddly cozy in a way. We continued for a few more minutes before she abruptly stopped in front of one of the doors.

  It looked like the door would swallow me whole - It looked like it was something out of a painting. It was a stark contrast to anything I have ever seen before. It was made from a dark work with accents of gold from the metalwork. It was intricate in its design, the gold swirled around the wood, begging to be open. I just didn’t know what would be on the other side and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to find out. I don’t think Terzo would do anything to hurt me; Copia wouldn’t either. Sister on the other hand I wasn’t too sure.

As if sensing my hesitation, Sister scoffed, throwing the door open. Entering the room as if she owned the place. I mean did she? I wasn’t sure what her job was, conversations with her didn't seem to go further than a few words before she would quickly go silent again.

“This is where you will be staying.” Ever one for politeness wasn't she? 

I hesitated before following her into the room. My breath gets caught in my throat. 

This is not at all like what I was expecting, I really don't know what I was expecting, but this was not it. The room was open and rather spacious. There was a little kitchen area before it led into what looked to be a sitting room. There was a small table next to the window. The chairs flipped upside down and rested on top of the table. A decent size couch was pushed against the back wall and a stack of books lay on the side table - A folded note rested on top, Secondo wasn’t joking. My eyes drifted around the room before landing on another door.

  “There are some boxes of clothes in the bedroom that Papa was very generous to have delivered here.” Sarcasm was clear in her voice as she gestures to the door I was staring at.

My cheeks heated up at the mention of Terzo. I could feel her eyes roll as she began to walk away, “I will leave you to get yourself situated.” 

She stopped a moment before she completely left the room, “Oh I almost forgot. One of the ghouls will be by later to drop off that runt that was also left in our care.” She shot me a cold smile “Hope to see you at dinner my lady.” with that she left, leaving me alone in the large space.

  I stand there for a second taking everything in. It’s still hard to believe that this was happening, this feels like something out of a novel. Things like this just don’t happen. Yet here I am. Angels were real, demons existed, and my father is a king of hell. I still feel like I’m going to wake up at any moment in my run-down apartment and I’ll go about my day like normal. No matter how hard I tried I wasn’t waking up. Taking a deep breath to ground myself, I start my journey to the bedroom. 

I gasped at the sight. I had never seen anything this regal in all my life, it felt like I was staying in a castle. The bed was enormous, placed front and center on the back wall. The bedpost practically went to the ceiling and had a dark curtain wrapping around it. Several boxes of varying sizes laid on the bed. I ventured further into the room, taking everything in. The fireplace was not far from the door, made of dark marble, and had a fire already lit inside of it. Towards the back of the room by the bed two large doors lead onto a balcony, the afternoon sun flowing in from the door. 

Throwing myself onto the bed, I couldn’t help the squeal as I got swallowed up by the fluffy blanket on the bed. Never in my life had I ever felt something so soft. I turn my head remembering the boxes Terzo had sent.

I prop myself up noticing a letter laying on top of one of the boxes, curiously picking it up. The paper was thick and smooth to the touch. It was accented in black a wax seal binding the letter shut. Cautiously I tear it open, the rushed cursive thick on the page immediately grabbing my attention.  

Mia signora, I hope all clothes are to your liking, it would be a shame to only have you in the sisters’ dresses during your stay with us. I took the liberty of having the place stocked for you. I hope you enjoy your time with us, bella. If you need anything at all or just someone to talk to, I’m just down the hall. 

Terzo

I reread the note a few times over. Did he go through all this trouble just for me? My face burned and the flutter in my stomach grew to a swarm. I felt like a high schooler all over again.

I set the note down on the bedside table, beginning to tear into the boxes. I was at a loss for words. Various fabrics one after the other; black, red, purple, and white all mixed in the piles. There were more clothes here than I have ever had the privilege of knowing. It was more than what I knew what to do with.

 I fall back into the bed, the canopy almost made it look like there were stars above me. I look back to the note Terzo left. This wasn’t even all of it. Laughing in disbelief clenching the note close to my chest. A strange sense of home overcame me letting my eyes drift close. This wasn’t exactly what I expected when Lucifer told me about this place. 

The silence was a welcome from the chaos that was yesterday. I was exhausted. I could feel myself starting to drift off. It was short-lived; however, the sound of tapping echoed around the room breaking through the quiet. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a small black figure on the balcony. A raven had landed on the door handle. He only stopped when he saw I was looking toward him. He lets out a cry almost like a command. 

Springing up from the bed I throw open the doors stepping out onto the balcony. The cold air instantly hit my face and any hope I had of sleeping left me with the warmth of the room. My visitor who had made his way railing looked at me almost like he was expecting something.

  “Hello, little guy.” I reach out to see if I could pet him. He responded by putting his head into my hand. 

“Where did you come from?” 

He only looked at me as if I should know. Cawing a few times - looking at me expectingly. I chuckled at the strange creature, “I don't suppose you have a name, do you?” He looked up at me, nestling himself further into my hand.   

“How does Jasper sound?” He responded with a loud caw in my direction jumping around on the railing. “Jasper it is.” Letting out a little laugh at his enthusiasm. 

He seemed content enough, his gaze turning towards the courtyard my room seemed to overlook. The day was quiet, save for the birds without a care in the world. Jasper had made himself comfortable on the ledge looking out onto the landscape with me.  

The wind rustled the trees. The different shades of yellow, gold, and red shine bright against the sun. I could see a few of the members of the church walking between the buildings. There were a lot more people here than I thought there would be. The sound of the church bells rings out as the siblings rush to where they need to go.  Out of the corner of my eye, the bright colors of flowers stood out. A garden was nestled between the edge of the grounds near the forest. A greenhouse rested in the middle, I could barely make out the blurs that were people tending to the gardens. It was surprising to see something like that here, but it oddly fits. 

Never in my life had I seen anything like this.  Most places mom and I stayed were the farthest thing from comfort. We made do with the little bit of money we had and it showed in some of the places we had ended up at. Hell, even my last apartment wasn't this nice. I felt like a princess whisked off to some far-off land. In a way, I guess that's what happened. The cold breeze bites at my face. I close my eyes taking it all in. I never knew I could feel this at peace anywhere, even if it was for just a moment. 

I didn't even hear the sound of the door opening before a voice broke through the silence. “Your highness?”

  “Jesus Christ!” I scream. Gripping the railing to steady myself, leaving dents in the metal. Jasper, the traitor gave a loud cry before he flew away not wanting to stick around to see who had intruded on us.  

“Not quite.” the shorter of the two interjected. There was something off about his voice. It was deep and something was captivating about it. It was enticing to hear but it didn’t sound entirely human either.

  Jumping around to face who had entered my room. They didn’t look like any of the other members of the church I had met so far. One was taller than the other. Both of them were dressed in all black but what stood out about them was the silver mask that adorn their faces. A set of horns rested on top of their heads and each had a tail that swayed with each gust of wind. They looked almost human if it wasn’t for the fact that they almost looked like they were made of smoke. A dark mist surrounded them, flickers of dark blue flashing through it. They were unsettling and didn't look like they were breathing. I didn’t fear them though, I was more annoyed than anything else. After everything that happened, I could really use some peace and quiet right now.

  “Dose no one from hell know how to fucking knock!” Taking a deep breath trying to steady my breathing. 

“We did.” The taller of the two finally spoke up. His voice was deeper than the other and it was a hell of a lot more menacing.  He had his hands crossed over his chest. He seemed amused by my outburst. “I’m Omega. I’m one of Papa’s ghouls.” he bowed slightly clearing his throat - looking to the other ghoul he was with.

“Shit. sorry.”  He scrambles to bow, unsure of what else to do. Omega seemed to be getting a kick out of torturing the other ghoul.  

“This pipsqueak is Nova. He was the ghoul who came in with you, something about how Lucifer entrusted him with your safety.” He put the last part in quotations. “Papa sent me to check in on you, make sure you were settling in alright.” He jabbed his thumb in the direction of Nova, “figured I could kill two birds with one stone and introduce you two.” 

Nova didn't seem to have any outward reaction but the aura around him flared, red making its way onto the previous black. It was gone just as quickly as it was there as he looked at me, bowing slightly “Your majesty it’s my honor to serve you.” 

“Ok…” My eyes dart between the two. I could feel my face heating up with each passing moment. “Please just (Y/N) is fine. No need for any of the formalities, it makes me feel weird.” I whispered the last part. 

The mask gave away little to what they were thinking or feeling. Omega chuckled, grabbing onto Nova's shoulder - shaking him slightly. “I told you, you have nothing to worry about.”

Omega radiated an air of mischief. It practically took up the aura around him. He said he was Terzo's ghoul right? I mean it makes sense that he was. I could practically imagine the mischief they would get into. 

Nova on the other hand was the complete opposite. Unlike Omega, Nova looked like he had never been out of hell a day of his life.   He seemed nervous - like he wasn’t here out of his own free will but rather because he was told he had to be. He was rigid and stoic. Nothing about him looked natural, I don’t even think he was breathing.  

“Not to sound rude but what exactly do you two want?”

Nova became even more rigid if that was possible. His eyes? Falling to the floor, “Well you see your majesty...”

“(Y/N)”

“(Y/N)... I’ve been tasked to watch over you. Your safety is my top priority.” He snaps to attention, his masked face coming to meet my confused stare. 

“Well as great as that sounds, I’m going to have to pass on that.”

  “Your highness, I ask that you reconsider. It’s not safe for you to be alone, we don’t know who knows about you…”

“It’s (Y/N) and no I don’t think I will.” My arms came to cross over my chest. 

We were starting to get under each other skin. It was obvious in the way his body started to get taller and his tail looked more like an agitated cat. There was no way I was going to let up though. After everything I need to process it all - And they were not the pair I particularly wanted to do that with. The idea of having a demonic being present for that didn't sound very appealing. They were the very thing I was trying to run from, at least for just a little bit longer

.  Omega looked like he was having the time of his life - He looked like he couldn’t take anything seriously even if he wanted to. His tail snapped from side to side sporadically - He was practically buzzing. Bright flashes of yellow fly out of him the longer he watched the scene unfold before him. 

 “What’s the worst that could happen? I just need the afternoon. Besides don’t you have other ghoul business or whatever it is you do? I’ll be just fine.” I try to reason with Nova.  

“Don’t you realize the gravity of the situation here?” 

I cut him off, my temper flaring slightly. “The point of me being here was so that I would be safe. I don’t partially feel comfortable being watched 24/7 by a demon, ghoul, whatever you are.”

  A flash of red goes through the aura around him, his stoic appearance crumbling down, “Do you have any idea what is out there looking for you? The lesser creatures that would kill you for just a fraction of the power you possess. The angles whose entire mission is to kill you before you can even think. Your father entrusted me to keep you safe and I don't particularly want to face the wrath of Lucifer.” 

 Silence fell in the room, I really didn’t know how to respond. I really could run from the situation anymore. Nova’s words replay in my head - My thoughts starting to run wild. Was I even safe here if what Nova was saying was true? I don’t think Terzo and Copia would lie to me though. But still, Nova’s words hung heavy in the air. Did I rush into this? Was I even given much of a choice? I was given a choice of life and death and a whole world I was integral in without even knowing it. There was still so much I didn’t understand and I can’t run for that anymore. I was living with a target in my back. I was starting to lose it, the overwhelming burning in my body was becoming too much. It was like both of them could sense it. Puffing up like a cat. 

Omega broke the silence, cutting through the tension of the room. “In case you’re wondering I’m just here to make sure you make it to dinner.” 

 Nova and I both turn our attention to him. “What?”

The overwhelming need to be alone was suffocating. Clapping my hand together, trying hard to not show my fear or how exhausted I really was. Taking a deep, shaky breath I exclaim, “Well, as lovely as it is to have you both here… There’s a lot I have to do. Lots of boxes to put away.” Chuckling nervously - looking anywhere that was not them. Clearing my throat. They look at me showing no sign that they were ready to leave.

  “I’m sure you have other things to attend to…” still nothing “I’m going to take a shower and then put these away, sooooo…” I begin to escort them out of the room. “I think it’s time you guys leave.” 

I start to push them out, desperate to get out of the conversation. Omega was in a state of shock, I don’t think he had ever been thrown out of a room before. Nova refused to move his feet, I was the only force getting him out of the room. 

“Your majesty… I…” 

“It’s ok, I’ll be fine for now. Come back tomorrow!” 

“Are you sure you don’t want me to stay to show you the way to the dining hall?” Omega rushed out. The door comes closer into view.  

“NO! No, it’s ok. Really it is. It was nice meeting you two,  Nova I will see you in the morning. Have a goodnight.”

  I shut the door. Sliding down the door, a long drawn-out breath left me. In a way, I know what my being here means. I know what Lucifer told me and to an extent, I know what’s expected of me. I knew I was in a way being hunted for reasons I am not really sure I understand quite yet. But hearing Nova’s words. The walls I have been trying to keep up since yesterday were crumbling right before my eyes.  

I sat like that for way longer than I care to admit.       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The sun was beginning to set by the time I finally dragged myself out of the room. It took me way longer than it should have to leave the shower. Terzo wasn’t lying when he said everything was fully stalked. It was well needed and hell After everything that’s happened to me in the past week. It took everything in me not to just throw all the boxes to the floor and crawl into bed and sleep another week. 

 As pleasant as that sounded right now -  The need to eat outweighed my wanting to hide from my problems. At least for one more night. My mind was still in unrest. The full gravity of the situation had finally hit me like a ton of bricks. I was here and I was safe at the moment but the main question right now was ‘what comes next?’ 

I have no idea what exactly it is I am capable of, especially after the incident in the Hospital Wing yesterday. It was hard to not think about it. Not even mentioning the fact that just about everything I thought I knew about the world was built on top of secrets. I have no idea what was out there or even the lengths that they would go through to get to me. Was Nova right? Was I really safe anywhere? Everything I thought I knew was flipped over on its head.

  While some of the burning questions I had in my childhood had been answered, I was left with more questions than I had answered. Mom and Lucifer had said that I had been going under the radar for years and even then I still attracted the occult to me. But now I’m flying with no filter was Sister right? Was I just a beacon for anything that wish to see me dead? Who’s to say I can even stay here for long before someone or something finds me?  

  The headache I’d been nursing since that faithful night showed no sign of leaving and exhaustion was starting to creep in. My thoughts showed no sign of slowing. I look around the halls trying to find anything that even looked remotely familiar.  At this point the sun had almost completely set, the only light source in the hallway being from the sheer endless amount of candles this place had and the moonlight that was shining through the windows. Despite how beautiful the architecture was - This place was creepy when you had no idea where it is you were going. 

 It had to have been close to an hour by now and I was hopelessly lost in the depths of the Satanic Church; who knows what was being stored here. I was half tempted to just say fuck it and turn around. The luxurious bed was screaming my name. I could just get breakfast in the morning. Maybe Omega or someone could show me how the hell to get around here.  

 Just as I was about to abandon my quest and turn around - The corridor began to get brighter. Actual light fixtures were installed down here. Toward the end, I could make out a doorway getting brighter and brighter the closer I got - The sound of footsteps getting louder the closer I got. Someone else had to be down here with me. Let’s just hope they’re also not lost. 

Picking up speed, I cry out, “Hey! Wait! Can you help me!” 

The light was almost blinding by the time I came crashing into the large hallway. The air was knocked out of me as I ran face-first into whoever or whatever was down here with me. I close my eyes bracing for the hard floor as I stumbled backward.

It never came. 

Hesitantly opening my eyes slightly, I could see a gloved hand holding my arm in a vice grip. It was the only thing keeping me from crashing to the ground. 

“Mia cara, are you alright ?”  The owner of the voice I was becoming all too familiar with was filled with confusion and a hint of worry, questioned. A wave of relief passed over me.

  “Ooh cardinal, funny running into you here.” I chuckled awkwardly, looking anywhere that wasn’t his eyes.

  “What are you doing down here, cara?” 

He hadn’t let go of my arm. I finally land on his face. My face was burning at this point. His mismatched eyes were looking down at me. Even now they still held the warmth from the night before. His body was pressed up against mine preventing me from falling to the floor - the warmth was a welcome comfort. If I wasn’t dealing with the embarrassment of literally running into one of the few people who were welcoming - I wouldn’t want him to let go.  

   “I got lost trying to find the dining hall or at least the kitchen at this point.” I managed to squawk out. My face burns hotter and hotter with each passing second.

As if being knocked from a trance himself, he was quick to get me to my feet letting go of my arm. I shutter slightly from the warmth that quickly left my body just as quickly as he did.  Now he was the one looking anywhere but at me.

 “I’m sorry to tell you this but dinner ended about quite a while ago. As for the kitchen, sister keeps that under close inspection, too many ghouls and siblings wandering in for a midnight snack if you catch my drift.”  He laughed at his own joke trying to make light of the situation. “I thought Terzo sent Omega to show you the grounds?”

 “About that…” rubbing the back of my head, not really sure how to explain myself. I wasn’t really sure where to start if I was being honest or if I really wanted to get into it right now.

“I had a couple of things I wanted to do beforehand. He wasn’t able to the whole time.” the floor here was becoming my friend, I was looking at it like it was the most interesting thing in the world. I wasn’t convincing but I didn’t want to burden him with everything currently going through my head.

He didn’t seem fully convinced but decided not to press further, “ Do you need some help getting back?” 

I’m not sure why it surprised me, both he and Terzo had been nothing but welcoming since I got here. “Ooh it’s fine don't worry about it, I can just go back the way I came. I’m sure you have someone waiting for you or something else to attend to.” 

“Nonsense, bella. Not many people are waiting for me on any given day except for Terzo. I’m sure the il dolore nel mio culo will understand.” 

“I don’t want to cause you any problems, more so than what I already have.” 

“You are no trouble at all cara. I’d be more than happy to escort you back. Maybe find you something to eat?” His face was starting to match mine his cheeks were starting to be dusted in a rose color. 

“No, it’s ok seriously. I’ll be fine, I can just go back the way I came. I can just get something in the morning to eat.” I try my best to be convincing, but my stomach had other plans. At the mention of food, my stomach let out a guttural growl. Fuck maybe I was more hungry than I thought. 

“When was the last time you ate something, cara?”

  “Yesterday… When Sister Beth brought us soup” I sheepishly explained. 

“Did sister not give you something to eat this morning?” 

“Sister Beth tried to but she was so busy and I honestly wasn’t all that hungry anyways… there’s just been a lot on my mind today and I didn’t want to be a bother so…” the words die in my throat. Copia’s gaze was only filled with more worry and I couldn’t help but feel a little guilty, I didn’t want to worry him anymore.

  He looked away slightly like he was thinking about something. Finally, he looked back at me determination making it to his face, whatever it was he was not going to take no for an answer. He cleared his throat and nervously began to ask, “Well… if you’d like I could make you something back at my place… there’s a little kitchen in there and I’m sure I have something that I could make you… Unless of course you just want to go to sleep… but you probably should go to sleep on an empty stomach, it’s not particularly healthy. Especially after everything that you’ve just been through…”

“Cardinal…” the smallest of smiles beginning to form, there was something about him that made him endearing to listen to. He genuinely just wanted to help. 

“But then again, you're not entirely human so are you even hungry?” He continued. 

“Copia…” 

“If you are interested I do make a mean Rigatoni, even Terzo agrees, and he’s as picky as they come…” He kept rambling. 

“Copia!”  He finally stopped, his gaze finally snapping to meet mine. His body goes stiff as he twiddles his thumbs.

  The smile never left my face, “I would like that. If it really is no trouble.” 

He looked like he was signing out in relief,  “Of course, bella. It’s no trouble at all.” stepped to the side gesturing for me to start walking. 

“Why thank you.” I chuckle before I move, Copia following close behind.We fell into a comfortable silence. The halls remained empty, if I didn’t know any better I would think this place was abandoned.  I couldn’t help but take in the abbey. With Copia it’s not as intimidating, it was beautiful. The halls don't seem to go endlessly to God knows where when there is someone who knows where they’re going.

My eyes drift over to Copia. Heat rushed to my face as I took him in. I suppose this was the first time I had really taken him in. I never noticed how much taller he was compared to me. His face angled in just the right places.  He was handsome, he had to have known it. His hair was pushed back and out of his face a few pieces falling into his face - he looked like he was tired, but it was something he wore well. He looked like he had a lot of late nights but there he didn’t look like he was tired. I was in no way discreet as I mapped out his face. His lips were the last thing I landed on. They were plump and looked a little chapped from the cold. I just wanted to reach up and kiss him.

Wait, what? No. No… I shouldn’t be thinking that. We just met. He and Terzo had been nothing but kind to me and I couldn't fuck that up. I hadn’t even realized that I was staring until he turned his head slightly in my direction. Snapping my head back in front of me the blush across my cheeks only deepened. 

“Do a lot of people live here? I don’t think I’ve seen anyone since yesterday…” I finally broke the silence. Mentally slapping myself for the question, hoping he didn’t notice me staring. Little did I know that he was also staring at me, having a similar dilemma. 

He looked deep in thought for a moment “Not as many as there used to be. Some still do but they’re probably all back in their dorms for the night… The ministry is open to anyone who wishes but they are free to come and go as they please…” he pauses for a moment before continuing, “Besides, not many wander down these halls except for me, not many siblings are dying to be working down here with me. I was honestly surprised to see you down here. ”

“What can I say, I have a knack for getting horribly lost, I’m just glad it was you I ran into.”  

He laughs slightly, “I can see that. I’m more than happy to have the company, especially if it’s una bella ragazza come te.”

“You’re too kind, cardinal…” 

“I only speak the truth, cara.”

I hope he didn’t notice my cheeks burning from his comment. If he did he once again didn’t say anything. The faintest of smiles on his face as he looked over at me. 

“I hope you are settling in well here.”  Copia continued. 

“For the most part. I don't think I have ever had that big of a bed in my whole life.” The  end turned into an awkward laugh  “This all doesn't seem real if I’m being honest with you.” 

“I can imagine.” He paused, his head turning in my direction. “This must be a lot for. I was lucky enough to be raised in this world, I couldn’t imagine what might be going through your head right now… If there is anything I can do to help you adjust, just ask topolino. ”

I don’t know what possessed me, but I was feeling bold. “A friend would be nice.”

I giggled as he fumbled over his steps, his cheeks turning a bright red as he tried to regain his footing. His eyes were wide as he turned to look at me. A silent question passed between us. I could only smile in response, slightly nodding my head. 

“Okie dokie, mia cara.”

A moment of silence passed between us. His eyes stared into mine, a fire erupting in my stomach. It felt like it would set me ablaze but I couldn’t bring myself to look away.

“Thank you for staying with me.” I wasn’t sure if he could even hear me. 

“No need to thank me cara, I can just imagine how overwhelming this all must be for you.” He cocked his head to the side. His lips upturned into the slightest smile - his eyes holding nothing but warmth in them.  

“I hope you might be able to call this place home.” He seemed to hesitate for a brief moment, like he had something else to say but didn’t. I wasn't going to push him. We fell back into silence, simply content in the other presence.

At this point, the sun had completely set. The candles that lined the halls cast shadows across the wall. The painting that was in the main hallway seemed to become less common the further we went. The walls seemed just a bit more familiar. It wasn’t long before we made it to what I assumed was his room. 

“Home sweet home.” He opened the door to reveal his room. I’m not sure what I was expecting as I walked into the room. His room was similar to mine. There were candles all over the place. A small TV sat in the corner facing the couch. A few potted plants lined the counter in the kitchen. Some were half dead, but it looked like he was trying his best. 

The sound of squicking caught my attention. In the corner of the room - closer to what I’m guessing is his bedroom - stood a decent size cage. Inside were close to a dozen rats, all varying in different color and size. 

“Ooh, my god.” I squealed, making a beeline for the cage. 

They all get close to the edge of the cage - Curious to see the newcomer. Upon closer inspection, quite a few of the rats were missing something. A few were missing legs, one was missing an eye. Despite their circumstances, they all looked more than happy to be there. 

“These must be the rats you were talking about, right?” I laughed, turning my head so I could see Copia. 

He stood by the door looking slightly flushed. He looked like he was in a daze.  My question just barely snapped him out of it. 

“What? Ooh sí, sí! They’re the ones I couldn’t realise back into the Abbey when they healed.” 

He makes his way over to me. Bending down to the same level as the rats.  They only got more excited now that he was there. His body heat radiates off of him, it took everything in me to not move closer to him. He goes to open the cage, picking up the one that was missing an eye. Petting his head slightly before Copia brought him closer to me. Looking like a proud parent showing off his kids. 

“This little guy is Rizzo.”

The little guy stands on his hind legs looking at Copia. He seemed hesitant to even come near me.  Sniffing my hand before walking into my outstretched hand.   

“Hey there, Rizzo. Aren’t you just the sweetest?” Bring him closer to my face. He sniffs up my face deciding that I was not a threat, squeaking out his approval. He looks back at Copia and back at me - Curling himself into my hand.

“He likes you, bella.”

   Handing him back to Copia, “I have a way with animals as surprising as it sounds.” 

“I don't think it's that surprising.” his voice still soft. The look he was giving me was making my stomach do flips. The feeling from the hallway came back with a vengeance. “I think they have a way of judging people for who they are.” 

Our eyes meet, and a sort of understanding passes through us. Neither of us really sure if we should look away or if we even wanted to. I’m not sure which of us started to close the gap. The space between us was getting smaller and smaller. My eyes flutter close waiting to feel his lips on mine. 

“Copia. Figlio di puttana!” The voice was muffled soon followed by the sound of the door flying open interrupting the moment. 

We jump from each other. Trying to get as much space from the other as we could, looking anywhere else but the other.

  “First you miss dinner, then you miss our meeting, and now no one can find il nostro bellissimo ospite and where have you been…” The slightly panicked voice of Terzo rounds the corner stopping when he noticed us standing there.  “Ooh… am I interrupting something?” The signature smirk I was growing fond of made its way to his face. 

“No, not at all…”

 “Sai sempre quando scegliere il tuo tempismo…” 

 Our words overlap each other. The blush on our faces did little to hide what just happen. 

“Sí… whatever you say...”  Terzo throws himself onto the couch. His eyes shifted from Copia to me, a more genuine smile making its way to his face.

  “I missed you both at dinner.” He starts, his voice soft. He sounded like he was sure if he should be saying it or not. “My apologies if Omega misbehaved. I instructed him to be on his best behavior.” 

“No, it's seriously my fault. I was the one who was running behind and then I got lost trying to find the dining hall. If it wasn’t for Copia here I would probably still be aimlessly wandering the halls.” 

“Forgive me I would have shown you the way myself, but duty calls.” 

“It’s seriously all good. Besides I’m getting food out of it. I count that as a win.” 

At the mention of food, Copia seemed to be reminded of what he was going to do, to begin with. Muttering out a quick pardon he makes his way to the little kitchen.

  Not sure what else to do I take a seat on the couch as far from Terzo as I could. I didn’t want him to see how flustered I was. I was also trying to not dig myself further into the hole I was all but falling into. 

“I don’t bite, bella. Unless you ask nicely.” He winked. The bastard was enjoying how flustered I was. 

“Be nice.” Copia's voice left little room for argument. He pointed the spoon in his hand at Terzo who lifted his hands in mock surrender

I relaxed moving closer to him. Terzo had his arm thrown back on the couch. It felt like last night again. It didn’t feel forced instead it felt like this was a normal occurrence. 

“So how was your first official day out and about,  bella?”

“Eventful to say the least. I’m pretty sure Sister Imperator is plotting my death as we speak.” I try to make light of everything. 

“Don’t pay her much mind, tesoro. As scary as she can be, she’s practically harmless these days.”

  “I should also thank you for the room… and the clothes… and I guess for actually letting me stay here.”

“No need to thank me bella. It’s not every day we have such an esteemed guest here, let alone one as bellissima as you.”  He said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

By now I should just be used to what they’re doing to me, my ears still being from both of their constant compliments. 

“Well still… I should thank you both. You’ve been nothing but kind since I got here… you’ve honestly made this a lot easier than I thought it would be…” The room felt like it had gone completely silent. I refused to look anywhere else than the tv in front of me. I kept my hands in my lap trying not to show how nervous I was.

  I could feel him stiffen slightly before relaxing. Taking my hand in his, I jumped, meeting his gaze. His eyes were just as hypnotic as Copia’s, I could find myself staring into them all night. He had a soft smile on his face. This was the most relaxed I think I’ve ever seen either of them since I got here. As selfish as it sounded I wanted to stay like this for as long as I could. The way that they looked at me made me feel like they were casting a spell on me. 

“I would have it no other way, tesoro.” 

My head came to rest on Terzo's shoulder. It was getting increasingly harder to ignore how tired I was. His arm hesitantly came to pull me closer to his side. The warmth of his body did little to help - Neither did the steady beating of his heart. I could feel my eyes becoming heavy. Their banter continued and as crazy as it sounds a part of me felt like this was what I was always missing. This was the most relaxed I had been in such a long time. My breathing started to slow and I could fight it off anymore. Finally, I let sleep take me.

  Translations: mia signora- My lady bella- beautiful mia cara- My dear Cara- Dear il dolore nel mio culo- the pain in my ass Una bella ragazza come te- A beautiful girl like you Topolino- Little mouse Sí- yes Figlio di puttana- You son of a bitch il nostro bellissimo ospite - our beautiful guest  sai sempre quando scegliere il tuo tempismo- You alwasy know when to pick your time Tesoro- treasure Bellissima- Beautiful

[sunny6677]

Spookytale

(An Undertale x Spooky Month crossover)

Chapter 21: An Unexpected Trial.

Summary: After an incident involving the whole town getting hypnotized(besides Skid) and falling into a hole, all of them find themselves in a place that will change their life forever.

TWS: NONE.

————

Toriel's eyes flashed open, her red velvet gaze flickering with that of a thousands pangs of pain. As if those very words had hurt her soul. Hesitantly, she replied in a puzzled and almost hurt manner, "What? This.. this is your home now."

Jack's expression, along with a few others, flashed with guilt. Jack looked down at the wooden floor, and spoke in the softest manner he could, "...look, Toriel, we—". And yet, he did not finish his sentence, for he was then interrupted by Toriel's voice speaking. Her voice sounded uncertain, as if it would break any moment. She spoke slowly, while trying to force herself to smile.

"Um... would you like to hear about this book I am reading? It is called 72 Uses For Snails." Toriel awkwardly said, closing her eyes as if to try to ignore the very subject the group had in mind. As if to remain blind to it, for it would hurt less if she did so. "How about it?"

"...well, yeah, that is interesting. But.." Streber slowly said, as if to try and help with the situation himself. Each and every single one of them only looked on with somewhat regretful looks, for they did not know how to approach the situation. Like fire, it hurt so. Like a flame being tossed at their very heart, it hurt so. For it felt like their heart was burning just having to do this.

"Look, Toriel. That's interesting and all, but we need to know how to exit this place. We can't just stay here." John interrupted, gesturing with his hands. His tone came across as firm, as if to set his own authority onto Toriel so he could get his point across. Toriel looked down at the ground, her eyes widening. Her velvet pupils held a look of sadness, fear, and something else. Though no one could quite make out what it was.

Toriel then slowly stood up from her chair, her figure looming in the dark cozy glow of the room. Some gulped, and took a step back. For even if they knew she wouldn't hurt them, she was still very large. And it was hard not to feel somewhat intimidated.

"Toriel?.." Kevin looked up at her from where he stood in the group. She remained silent for a few moments more.

She then spoke in a strange tone, as if forcing herself to talk, or as if repressing some emotions. She finally spoke among the silence, among the soft crackling of the flames in the fireplace, "..I have to do something. Stay here, everyone." As she stood, she slowly slipped off her glasses, and set her book down on one of the arms of the chair.

John tried to speak, "To—Toriel—"

Before he could even finish, she rushed out of the room at a brisk pace, seemingly heading for somewhere else. There was a quietness among the group. None of them were quite expecting that to happen, for they hadn't thought of her reacting this way. "...mom? Where is she going?" Skid innocently asked, looking up at Lila. Lila looked down at him, and slowly replied, "...I don't know, son. I don't know."

"What do we do now, officer?" Jaune inquired, arching a brow. "Yeah! Did you really think she was gonna react well to that?!" Roy snapped, speaking in a somewhat raised voice. For whatever reason, he seemed unreasonably angry. Though his look immediately returned to that of resigned shock once John shot him a look. Not a look of offense, but just a look of something that couldn't be defined.

"..I'm not sure. But.. all I know is that we can't stay here. Which means.." John sighed. "I guess we gotta go after her."

"...well, okay. But.. where do you think she went?" Ross asked, seeming to be a mix of genuinely curious and and concerned.

John paused for a moment. He then looked in the direction he saw her going. He could have sworn he saw her go down the staircase. "Well.. I think she went that way, so.. I guess we're goin' that way."

————

Before any of them knew it, they rushed down the staircase, at a brisk pace. They had to be quick, for they didn't know what she might have been doing. Or what she planned on doing. For she had made no explanation, and she gave only a look of resigned emotion. "Toriel?" Susie called out as they slowly stepped into the rather small basement.

They had stepped into what looked to be a long and narrow dark purple hallway. There appeared to be some white tendrils of fur scattered in some corners. And the walls appeared to be oddly fuzzy. It felt oddly enough like they were inside of a rug, with the textures of both the wall and floor.

But immediately, the group took notice of the already familiar and large figure standing in the middle of the hallway. It was of course Toriel, who seemed to be walking up until Susie called out her name. Toriel remained still in the middle of the hallway as the group quickly caught up with her, their footsteps crashing and crashing down onto the ancient floor.

Ethan hesitantly spoke, as if trying to contribute to the situation the best he could. "...Toriel?" The silence grew, making it sound as if they were all in a void. A bead of sweat slightly trickled down some people's faces, and some hearts pounded a little faster. The group was beginning to grow anxious.

Finally, Toriel spoke up. "You wish to know how to return back to your "homes", do you not? Ahead of us lies the exit of The Ruins. A one-way exit to the rest of the underground."

There was a brief moment of silence.

"...I am going to destroy it." Toriel finally said, her tone darkening. "No one will ever be able to leave again. Now be good, everyone, and go upstairs."

Toriel began to rush forth. The pounding of several hearts quickened, and John's eyes widened. She would destroy it? But.. he had family! Everyone he was with had family! Why was it that she would forcibly keep them here? John raised his voice, saying, "Wha—Toriel—you can't just do that! Come back!"

John immediately began to follow after her, his feet scrambling behind himself and making several thudding sounds. Others followed behind him, protesting softly as well. "You can't just keep us here, Toriel.." Ethan said quietly, though his voice remained unheard. ("Susie? What's going on?" Pump asked worriedly. Susie gave no answer, for she had none.)

"Toriel!" John called out, harshly following behind her into a farther part of the already narrow hallway. He was growing somewhat agitated. Who was she to think that she could just keep them all locked up here? Why was she even keeping them all here?! Why was she even trying to?!

Before John could speak again, Toriel stopped in her tracks once more. She finally spoke again, this time sounding even darker, "Every human that falls down here meets the same fate. I have seen it again and again. They come. They leave. They die."

"Wh—What?.." Lila was heard uttering out of her own shock. Some of which had even uttered the same thing, for there were more shocked people than just here. Each and every one of them had begun to feel anxious, for Toriel hadn't acted like this up until now. For she hadn't said anything like that, up until now.

"You naive humans.. if you leave The Ruins.. They.." Toriel clenched her paws slightly, "...Asgore.. will kill you."

"I am only protecting you, do you understand? Go back upstairs." Toriel said, speaking in a suddenly firm tone. Her once soft tone sounding almost as if she were royalty giving a command. For she was a worried queen, and they were her naive subjects. She then rushed foward into the darkness again.

Robert silently repeated in his own puzzled fear, "..Asgore?"

John did not answer, only grumbling slightly for a moment. Before calling out again, "Toriel! You cant just keep us locked away here! What do you mean we'll die if we go out there?! Who's Asgore?" He rushed after her, and like ducklings following a mother, the group rushed behind him as well.

They rushed into the darkness, into the unknown of this very basement. And as they entered, they saw her figure again, barely turning a corner. Though she stopped again, having a firm expression on her face. She seemed almost intimidating right now. But as it also seemed, this was near the exit of The Ruins. They were nearly there, and she was in their way.

Jack tried speaking. "Toriel, wait—"

"Do not try to stop me. This is your final warning."

Before any of them could even speak, she rushed behind the corner.

There was a shared silence among them all for a moment.

They all then looked at eachother, a look of Determination flashing on their faces.

And, as if they didn't hear her, they rushed after her anyway. They turned behind the corner, and before them, there was the exit of The Ruins. And before the exit of The Ruins had been.. Toriel. The room was fairly average sized, having brick walling like the rest of The Ruins. And the exit had been a large purple door with an odd symbol on it, a symbol that almost looked like the one on Toriel's dress. For what did that mean? None of them knew. All they knew was that they had to leave. And she was in their way.

With her back turned to them, Toriel spoke up before any of them could, "You all want to leave so badly?"

"Toriel.. we have to. We can't stay here. We all have life's up on the surface. As great as it is to have you looking after us, we can't stay here." John said, gesturing with his hand. Silence fell in the room once more.

"Hmph. You are all just like the others." A look of a slight idea of what she had meant by that flashed on Kevin's face, and his eyes widened. They held worry, concern, and even fear. But what had it been that he realized? Or what had it been that he thought it was?

Toriel finally said, "There is only one solution to this."

She then raised her tone, as if to command it, "Prove yourselves."

She raised her head. "Prove to me that all of you are strong enough to survive."

It had immediately set it in what she meant by that. She.. she wanted to fight them all. She wanted them to fight her, just so they could prove that they were strong enough to survive the wrath of The Underground. Or.. Asgore's wrath. Whoever he had been.

Before any of them could even speak, a blazing fire formed in the air. John had forgotten.. she had fire powers. And now.. she was going to use it against them all. Even the children. But.. surely she could not. She was too sweet to. Then why was she doing it?

More fires had formed next to that fire, forming a line of them as she turned around to face them all. A look of concentration and Determination formed on her face.

If they wanted to leave, they would have to fight her.

If they wanted to see their family and friends again, they would need to fight her.

And so, at that thought, John stepped foward, taking on a defensive stance. Despite his hesitation, he knew that this is what he would have to do.

He knew that they would all have to fight her. And that was what he would be willing to do. Just to see his daughter again. Though he wasnt too sure if anyone else would be willing to fight Toriel. But he knew deep inside, that they all had enough Determination to do it. He knew that they could all do it, he had faith in them.

He just had to somehow convince her that they could survive down here, and make it back to their homes.

/////////////////

Pretty short, but oh well. I'm tired anyway.

[faecorvus]

Salutations to the Cosmos

So who am I, anyway?

At night, I write: typically mlm urban fantasy, which can range in tone from YA to erotica, depending on the particulars of subject matter. And of course, I read to keep myself somewhat sane.

By day, I'm a college student, which currently involves writing papers, occasionally making bad art, taking pictures, and dreaming of being organized enough for those pristine academia aesthetics to be representational rather than aspirational.

But mostly I'm a writer. I'll admit: the constant entreaties to start building your author brand get wearying, introvert that I am.

And yet there is wisdom there, of course. If I trust myself enough to believe that I have something worth saying, than I must also trust enough to believe that it is worth saying to more than my thin web of social ties. Creating engagement with others is thus a worthy goal. However, I admittedly find the act of 'marketing oneself' distasteful. Tumblr seemed like the less-intimidating social network to dip my toes into in that regard, being free, less overtly about marketing, and not requiring me to make videos.

I don't really have a syllabus for what this endeavor will contain, to be forthright.

But my goals are mostly to positively interact with others, have a place to post some of my short fiction about college boys with questionable coping skills, that generally languish as I work on my novel. As well as to have a place to talk about writing craft, whatever that may look like. To deconstruct narrative, redefine the attributes of a hero, compare the varying methods of laying out a story. Perhaps to discuss what books and resources earn their keep and which do not, to consider the tropes I am enamored of, and the ways in which they function in the arc of a story.

Tldr: I'm a queer, introverted nerd trying to move my online community beyond texting. I'll probably write friction, and write about writing fiction or reading fiction, and maybe even about being queer while writing and reading fiction, or my dozens of interests and side-hobbies. I'm far too ADHD to have a niche.

I'm also trying to do Nanowrimo when I have a paper comparing the propaganda styles of different Roman Emperors due on Monday, and various other assignments to juggle.

So at heart I am a creature of chaos. Typically a raven, to be specific.

[peculiar-time-traveller]

Headcanons: Working with Dodge at Dot's diner 

Warnings: None

Author's note: English isn't my first language, so even though I have already written stories in English before and I consider myself fluent speaker, I can still make mistakes that I can even not be aware of. If you have any constructive feedback, if you spotted something that is grammatically/lexically incorrect or if something just sounds clumsy - feel free to let me know through my inbox or in comments! I will really appreciate that, your advices can help me become better writer and improve my English skills.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Since you never wanted to get involved in Panic you knew that you had to take up a summer job somewhere in Carp if you wanted to go to your dream college.

When you started looking for a job you really didn't have many options, no one was hiring new employees except Dot's diner.

You knew that Dodge worked there, but you hadn't spoken to him before - in school, he was kind of an outcast and you were a bit shy so you two didn't have a chance to have a real conversation.

But you knew him by sight and had to admit that you always found him attractive.

On your first day working at Dot's, you were worried that he would get annoyed with you for having to explain to you how everything worked there. Besides, you had always perceived him as a bit intimidating before because he seemed so unapproachable .

But from the moment you walked into Dot's, he was very patient with you - teaching you how to make the best coffee you've ever had, how to prepare the cold drinks and dishes served in the diner. When you happened to forget how to do something, he carefully explained it to you again.

After a few days, you began to really enjoy spending time at Dot's, working there with Dodge. Sometimes, when the diner was already closed, you both would grab your favorite sodas and just sit at the bar, talking about your plans for the future.

At first, Dodge was distrustful and somewhat suspicious of your willingness to talk to him - that's the way he's always been with people, but you truly wanted to be friends with him.

For a while, he was almost certain that you were a judge in Panic, who was just trying to learn more about his life and his weaknesses.

But you were really persistent and eventually, step by step, you won his trust and convinced him that your intentions were sincere and that you just wanted to be friends with him.

Gradually you became Dodge's best friend - actually his only friend at Carp. You were the first person in town he told about his rodeo hobby and about his family.

The two of you began to really enjoy each other's company, one cloudless night you even went to the roof of the Dot's with some blankets to sit on and watched the stars over the Carp.

But back to working at Dot's. While you were doing your daily tasks, whether serving customers at the bar or just cleaning tables, sometimes you glanced at Dodge just to admire how good he looked.

After a while, you surprisingly often would catch him glaring at you too when he thought you didn't see it.

Soon you realized that you not only found Dodge attractive but you actually started to catch feelings for him.

One day you came to work ready to confess to Dodge that you like him, but he surprised you. After a long day spent serving clients and thoroughly cleaning the whole diner you two were sitting at the bar sipping iced tea. Suddenly he asked if you wanted to go out with him next weekend.

You were genuinely shocked, you just managed to ask him simply: "Are you … are you taking me on a date?" You immediately regretted that you were so blunt. You were sure that he would think you had gone crazy.

He just smirked.

"If you want it to be a date, I am all in."

His words left you speechless. That evening, coming home from Dot's you were beyond happy and looking forward more than ever to another day at work with Dodge.

[loopy-froots]

Childhood Friends

Brahms Heelshire x afab!Reader

Author: @loopy-froots

Word Count: 3261 (WOW wtf…)

Slight request by @leahromanof : small age gap (Brahms is 26-28 and the reader is 20)

Summary: The Reader grew up very close to the Heelshire family, as their parents were business partners with them. However, after the fire incident, Brahms and the Reader took some space from each other. While the Reader knew Brahms was still alive, they didn’t know under the circumstances he was. When a sudden tragedy strikes their family, the Reader is left with no home. The Heelshire family offer their home with welcoming arms, but much has changed between all of them since they have last seen each other.

Warnings: 18+ ONLY, swearing, slasher x reader, smut, virgin/unprotected sex (masc and fem), abusive parents (fem), insecurities (on both parts), slight age gap (6ish years?), a slight size kink (if you squint?), etc.

Author’s Note: I wasn’t too sure what to write for the age gap so I hope this is good enough!!! I also threw in a lot of personal needs I’ve been having, so I hope y’all don’t mind! Feel free to let me know your thoughts!!!

~~~

*2nd Person POV*

You couldn’t believe this was happening. You were finally going to see your beloved childhood friend, Brahms Heelshire, again after close to ten years of separation. You wished this was not under these circumstances, as you never intended to cause your family such turmoil.

“Y/n! Come in, why don’t you?” Mr. Heelshire exclaims as he opens his front door. He must have seen you walk up their driveway. You can see Mrs. Heelshire inside, but she shares a concerning expression. Trying to brush it off, you step inside and am greeted by the warmth of the house. It was a terribly chilly winter day, and the walk there exhausted you.

“Come, dear! Let me get you a cup of tea to warm you up! You look rather frozen!” Mrs. Heelshire snaps out of her funk and laughs al0ng with her husband. Their jovial attitude makes you feel rather welcomed and loved.

“I cannot thank you enough, Mr. and Mrs. Heelshire… I… I’m terribly sorry that this all happened… especially so suddenly…” You look down with embarrassment.

“Nonsense! We’re always happy to have you, Y/n! Our home is yours!” Mr. Heelshire smiles at you, but you get a somewhat urgent vibe from him. You’re not sure how to feel about it, but you figure since they’re being ever so kind you were in no position to question.

“Now, dear… why don’t you tell us exactly what happened… Perhaps we may help with your parents’ situation?” Mrs. Heelshire gently suggests, but you shake your head in disagreement.

“Unfortunately, I’m not sure that’s possible… you see, I recently came out to my parents as non-binary… they’ve never been overly supportive of that kind of stuff, but I knew I couldn’t hide myself any longer…” You explain shamefully.

“Oh my… that is a rather difficult predicament, hm? However, we want you to know that we fully support you… in fact, our own Brahms considers himself genderfluid,” Mrs. Heelshire shares, which honestly makes you feel less alone.

“Really? I… I had no idea… Thank you, but speaking of which… where is Brahms…? Does he still live with you?” You wonder.

“Oh, um… yes… he does, but he’s grown to be rather… timid… so he doesn’t always come out when people are visiting…” Mr. Heelshire explains swiftly, and you try to understand. You don’t fully know what he’s been through, so who are you to judge his social anxieties?

“That’s alright. Well, I just hope he knows how excited I am to see him again…” You confess, causing a surprised reaction from the Heelshire couple.

“Really? Well, that’s certainly wonderful! I’m sure he'll become more open to meeting you after he gets used to you being in the house…” Mrs. Heelshire states with a gentle smile, and you nod your head in agreement.

With that, you are then taken on a tour of the house. You’re shown areas you can and cannot wander to, and you mentally note each location that’s off limits. You’d never want to make the Heelshires uncomfortable, despite how curious you were. They show you to your room, which you immediately recognize as Brahms’ childhood room.

“Oh wow! This looks exactly how I remembered it!” You giggle.

“I’m glad you’re fond of it still, as Brahms insisted you take his room for your own… comfort…” Mr. Heelshire shares, but something tells you he’s not entirely being honest. However, you ignore the feeling bubbling up in your stomach.

“Well, feel free to unpack your things dear. As we mentioned before, we are planning on going on a trip within the next few days. So it will be just you and Brahms for a while…” Mrs. Heelshire reminds you, and you shiver slightly for some reason.

“Oh, yes… Well, I hope the two of you enjoy it!” You politely respond.

~~~

“Goodbye, dear! And remember, follow the rules and you’ll get no trouble from our dear Brahms!” The Heelshires bid you farewell and leave in their cab. Closing the door, you sigh in relief.

“Alright, follow the rules… I can do that… it’s the least I can do since they were so kind as to let me stay for a while…” You motivate yourself.

“Y/n…” A sudden familiar, childlike voice echoes through the house. You looked around to see who it came from, but you saw no one. It had to be Brahms, right? Who else could it have been, but where was he?

“B-Brahms?” You sheepishly call out. You hear no answer and suddenly feel quite stupid. Maybe you just heard the shifting of the house or imagined someone was calling your name?

“Alright, focus… first things first, making some lunch… hopefully he’ll come down to eat with me…?” You hope. You could’ve sworn you heard another childish giggle somewhere, but you try to shake the skittish feeling building up. You quickly make whatever you feel like for lunch, desperate to finish so that you can call Brahms down to eat.

“Um, Brahms? I… lunch is done… if you want some?” You yell throughout the house, but you hear no answer. Finally feeling defeat, you turn back to the kitchen and notice that one of the plates of food has disappeared.

“How did he get to it without me noticing?” You ask out loud. Every instinct within you tells you that something was wrong, but you tried your best to give the man some time to adjust to the new living situation.

“Y/n…?” In the middle of eating, you hear a now more adult version of the voice you heard earlier. You drop your fork in surprise and frantically look around for the source. You then see a tall and scruffy looking man standing at the end of the dining room. He was holding the plate that is now empty, and you figure that must be Brahms. He was very odd looking, in all honesty. He wore a porcelain mask that resembles the type of little dollies you used to keep as a kid.

“Oh, um… h-hello, Brahms…?” You try to be friendly towards him, despite the creepy feeling you got from him already. However, him not answering causes the suspicion to form again.

“Um… did you enjoy the meal I made for you?” You try to spark a conversation, but Brahms nonverbally nods in response.

“That’s good! I’m… glad…” You smile awkwardly at him, but his masked face remains expressionless. You shift uncomfortably in your seat, and Brahms notices the tense state you’re in. He begins to step closer to you, and sets his plate on the table. Sweating profusely, you wonder what he’s doing. He steps closer and closer to you until he’s directly in front of you. While you sit, he towers over you. You’d never admit it, but he’s very intimidating. However, you try your best to be polite.

“Is… everything alright, Brahms?” You ask innocently. He just stares at you, though, never saying a word. When you were about to get up and try to walk away, he grabs your arm and pulls you into him.

“B-Brahms…?!” You exclaim as he squeezes you in his broad arms. He’s rather warm, but trembling. Your heart relaxes when you realize he only wanted a hug.

“Y/n… nice to see you again…” He finally peeps out. Your cheeks heat up, but you lean into the embrace. The two of you just hold onto each other for a few moments, enjoying each other’s presence.

“Good to see you, too! I was worried you were upset with me for coming back after such a long time…” You try to pull away and look him in the eyes, but his grip keeps you there.

“Mm, no… not upset… lonely…” He breathes into your ear, sending a chill down your back. He was… lonely? That makes you feel bad… really bad… how could you leave him like you did after the incident?! It wasn’t completely your fault, as you parents were the main reason you stayed away. They told you what a dangerous person Brahms was, and they forbid you from being influenced by him in any way.

Additionally, your parents never liked how fond the two of you seemed towards each other, despite the slight age difference you had. Brahms was only six years older, and to you it didn’t matter for terms of friendship. However, your parents saw the attraction Brahms had towards you right away. As children, it only developed into a little crush, but the older the two of you got the more obvious it became, to the adults at least. You seemed quite oblivious to his attempts to woo you, as you had just thought he was being friendly.

“I…I’m sorry, Brahms… I should’ve… I wish I’d have… I’m sorry…” Tear well in your eyes as you look down from his gaze. Your focus then shifts to the ever growing bulge in his pants that you hadn’t noticed before.

“It’s alright… happy you’re here now…” Brahms strokes your hair with his free hand, and he leans into you. You feel him stroke your neck with his nose, seemingly trying to get a reaction out of you. Completely frozen, you felt unsure of what to do. All of the sudden, your head’s ideas clicked and made you realize the years of yearning he’d been doing for you.

You’d be lying if you said you didn’t still have feelings for the boy you grew up with. You always admired how protective he was of you. You never admitted your affection towards him, though, as you thought he might react negatively. To you, the age difference acted as a barrier, but to him, it seemed he didn’t mind in the slightest. All he’s ever known was his love for you, despite the age gap. However, is this still the same boy as before? You probably barely knew him anymore. Then why were you getting so flustered over this simple interaction?

“Brahms?” You look back into his eyes with a curious glint. What was he planning with you?

“Hm?” He nonchalantly answers.

“Are you…?” You start, but then feel too embarrassed to finish.

“Yes,” He agrees without needing you to explain. You feel him jerk his hips into your stomach softly, desperate to get some friction between the two of you. As intoxicating as he was being, you still felt unsure of your stance with him.

“I’m not sure I want to… I mean, this is so soon… don’t you think?” You try to reason mainly with yourself to try and stop this from happening. With that, Brahms stops and pulls away from you with a pout.

“No?” He questions with sweet eyes.

“I… yes…?” You try to stand your ground with yourself again, but it’s no use. Brahms’ heartfelt pleading turns you to putty in his hands.

“Please?” He begs. With that, you finally agree, and he’s onto you. Groping all up and down your sides, front, and back, he feels every inch of your body as if he’s desperate to find something in you.

“Brahms… wait…?” You stop him again, realizing you hadn’t seen his actual face yet. You politely ask him to remove his mask, but he visibly slumps.

“Why…? You… don’t want to see me…” Brahms insecurely explains, but you shake your head.

“I do! Please…?” You whine as he continues to feel up your back. Brahms hesitates slightly, then agrees. With that, he slowly removes the porcelain from himself. This leaves his bare, burnt, and uncertain face into your view. You’re unsure of what to say at first, as your feelings are conflicted. However, you quickly decide to go with what your heart felt.

“You’re so handsome, Brahms…” You confess with a sheepish smile. He doesn’t respond, though, almost as if he’s debating what to say as well.

“Mm!” You moan through a sudden kiss he placed on your lips, making Brahms smile to himself in the kiss. He loved the way you reacted to his touch. He quickly realized you were feeling the same towards him, and that gave him the confidence to continue. You rapidly grew a certain heat in your pelvic area, but the feeling was still unfamiliar to you. Only on the rare occasion did you allow yourself the pleasure, but you felt guilty for it every time.

“Slut… whore… useless daughter…” Your parents’ past words radiate in your head, and a panic washes over your body. Brahms senses your inner conflict again, and stops once more.

“Y/n…?” He gently asks to see if you’re alright. Tears well up in your eyes as the guilt of disappointing your parents consumes you.

“I’m sorry, I just… my mom and dad would be so upset… I just feel so… lost…” You admit, and Brahms wipes your cheeks with his calloused hands.

“Mm, screw them…” He chuckles darkly.

“But…” You try to argue, but he shushes you instead.

“They’ve never been good to you, Y/n…” Brahms shares, and it confuses you at first. They’ve always given you food, shelter, and anything else a child would need.

“But they… they mean well…” You try to reason it out, but he still disagrees.

“I’ve been watching, listening to how they treat you your whole life, Y/n… the way they scream at you, gaslight you, disappoint you… that’s not love… that’s abuse…” Brahms whispers with a broken heart for you. The pain of realization hits you, but you try to muffle your cries with your hands over your mouth.

“I’m so sorry… I know how hard it is… but I… I want to love you… really love you…” He kisses the top of your head sweetly. His words fill your heart with hope that you might not be miserable the rest of your life.

“Really…? I mean, I would love that… but I don’t want to force you into anything…” You self doubt yourself.

“Absolutely. I mean, hell… why do you think I was doing all of this?” Brahms wonders, and you suppose he’s right.

“Yeah, true… I’m sorry, I just feel bad… but thank you, I’d love to… y’know…?” You admit with a shy grin, which he immediately returns.

“Good,” He smirks and kisses you again. This time, the kiss was much more desperate for the sweet result. Brahms shows no mercy for you this time as he begins biting your lips. Your little gasps invoke a strong sense of pride within him. He was making you feel this way, and he alone would make you feel good.

“Hm,” His deep voice rumbles in his chest. Your eyes flutter open and shut, unsure of how to go about this situation. Squirming around awkwardly, you then feel Brahms grab your waist as he lifts you up and onto the table.

“Ah! Brahms...?!” You yelp in surprise.

“Take off your shirt, Y/n.” He demands, already sliding his hands underneath. You timidly follow his instructions, removing your shirt and bra from your body. Brahms looks down from your face and onto your breasts. He adored them, so he ran his hands over them as he gave each nipple a cheeky pinch.

“Oh, Brahms…” Your eyes close in bliss, but he snaps your attention back to his eyes.

“Look at me,” He suggests sternly.

“O-okay…” You do as he wishes and stare deep into his icy eyes. He’s tender and gentle, but he still makes you feel so small next to him.

“You’re so pretty, Y/n… I’ve always loved you…” Brahms brushes a stray lock of hair out of your face, giving him a better view at your beauty.

“I have loved you for the longest time, too, Brahms… I just never knew how to tell you…” You try your best to express your feelings, but your past experience with doing so has never been easy for you. Each emotion you shared ended in an argument with your parents.

“I’m so glad… please…” Brahms pleads, leaning his forehead against yours. He didn’t have to finish for you to understand what he wanted.

“C’mere…” Your sudden burst of trust hits the two of you like a train. Brahms roughly attacks your neck with his lips and teeth, nipping at all your sensitive areas. Exploring each and every inch, he scopes out which areas you like best.

“Mm, Y/n…” He whimpers, rubbing his needy cock against your body. You had neglected it for far too long, and you wanted to give it some love too.

Lowering your hand down to his member, you stroke him through his pants. Pre-cum leaks from his tip and soaks through his underwear slightly. His moans fill your ears with sweet misery. The lack of being inside of you was killing him, but he wanted to take things slow for you.

“Ah, Y/n…! Please! I’ll be a good boy!” He begs you to allow him entrance, and you agree. Instantaneously, he pulls his clothes off and prepares his painfully hard cock to slide into you.

“Oh! You feel… so tight…!” He didn’t tell you, but this was his first time as well. The first feeling of being inside of someone, especially when that someone is you, was the best feeling he’s ever felt. He couldn’t help himself but pump in and out of you. He tried his best to go slow, but his selfish excitement got the better of him. However, you were far from upset by this.

“Ah! D-don’t… stop…!” You plead with him, and he obliges. Slapping his body into yours in a rhythmic motion causes you to quickly feel that coil in your stomach tighten around him.

“F-fuck…! You’re gonna make me…!” As quickly as it started, your love making ended. The two of you came together simultaneously, and everything felt perfect to you. However, Brahms felt a wave of guilt.

“I… I’m sorry… I wish I had lasted longer… and I shouldn’t have pressured you into this…” He goes on and on about all the things he could’ve done better, but you then stop him with a chaste peck on his lips.

“You were perfect. Thank you,” You lovingly look into his eyes. He searches for any sort of regret, but when he finds none he settles into your arms.

~~~

MY REQUESTS FOR DRAWING AND WRITING ARE STILL OPEN!! FEEL FREE TO SEND AN ASK/MESSAGE WITH YOUR IDEA!!

[ruki--mukami]

(Hi Admin! It's nice to meet you! I've submitted asks on some old accounts of mine, and I just love the way you portray Ruki, your writing is amazing. I've always wanted to start a Role-play blog, but I've been kind of nervous. I've been role-playing for years, but I haven't done so on Tumblr before, anyways I really am looking forward to future interactions with you, and I hope you enjoy them too. Also I hope I didn't make this too long, I wasn't sure how much to write.)

Ryoutei Academy was quiet today, aside from the normal student chatter, lockers opening and closing, and the footsteps of people running trying not to miss the first bell to class. When it did ring everyone rushed inside their classrooms. Emily walked through the hallways with a schedule in her hand as she looked around at everything with curiosity in her eyes. She felt a little lost, she had only been on land for a short time, so everything was sort of new to her. After getting turned around in the big school multiple times, she had given up. She'd tried to ask for help but everyone seemed to be busy and when the bell rang, there was no one left to help her.

Thankfully though she ended up right by the library, reading was something that she had come to enjoy, the stories that humans wrote were always so fascinating. In water you couldn't really read books, nor could you enjoy them with any sort of technology. But despite that, she did know how to read, she came across multiple human writings on the walls of shipwrecks and old stone tablets. Of course, she had come to land to produce children like any normal race, however mostly out of curiosity. Upon arriving on land she had read a few books that she loved, and now she had just found a whole library of them.

After a few minutes, her eyes locked on a beautiful man, and a slight blush spread across her face as she admired him for a few minutes. Emily watched as he read his book looking so focused, but after a while, his gaze shifted from his book and onto her. His steel blue eyes locked onto her, she felt a shiver run through her body, but also she felt strangely warm at the same time. “Ummm, sorry for staring, I just was looking for someone to help me out. I can't reach the books I want on the top shelves. S-so do you mind helping me?” Emily couldn't help but stutter slightly the blush still evident on her face, his gaze was so intimidating, she could barely look him in the eyes. Despite his intimidating presence, she managed a smile smile.

"It's quite alright. From the looks of it, you seem somewhat lost. Is it possible you're the new transfer student I've heard of at this academy? If so, then it's only natural you'd require help."

After nearing the uppermost shelf, Ruki reached for the book she wanted with ease, promptly handing it to her as he set his own tome against the pocket of his lattice school uniform pants. Upon closer inspection, the scent this young woman emitted resembled neither a human nor any demonic race he has met thus far. Faint hints of marine notes as well as spoondrift permeated the air around them, or so the Vampire thought. For now though, he intently observed the other's coral-colored tresses and refulgent eyes, well aware of the effect his mien tended to have on people.

"Here you are," he said once the book rested in her hands, secretly finding the florid hue of her pallor and the way she refused to meet his gaze slightly enticing. "I'm Mukami Ruki. And you are? Based on the book you wanted me to get for you, I can only assume your taste in literature is rather… peculiar. Not that I'm complaining, of course. In fact, meeting other avid readers is a pleasure of mine. It's rare to meet frequent visitors of this library, much less those who investigate their collection despite their short time here. There are plenty of authors with similar works that I'd like to recommend to you if you end up enjoying this particular book."

Subtle ticks of a clock's minute hand filled the otherwise eerie silence Ryotei's library was known for around this hour, indicating to the Vampire that class would soon begin. Seeing that the enigmatic girl held a paper in her hands, he assumed it was none other than her schedule. Curious, he glanced down, then back at her taupe hues.

"Since I've already been informed of someone new joining our class, then that must mean you're a third-year, much like myself. I was just about to head for the classroom after my excursion to the library, so you're welcome to join me there if you'd like. It would be most uncouth to arrive tardy, even if you still have yet to learn your way around these halls."

Beckoning her towards the library's double doors, Ruki headed for the exit, engrossing text in hand. While he would've preferred to spend his time finishing the chapter that piqued his interest, he certainly didn't mind acquainting himself with potential prey. Hidden behind a seemingly ordinary visage lied a parched throat and sharp ivories that punctured through flesh like paper, but he exercised self-restraint as always, feigning a gentle smile.

"Follow me."

🧩 Ah, thank you so much and welcome to Tumblr!! When I first received your ask, I was actually so pleased to read through every word of your message and this starter! It truly warms my heart I was able to inspire someone to make their own blog here on Tumblr, and let me tell you, you're doing a great job. Your writing style flows smoothly and was very fun for me to read. I look forward to our interactions as well and Emily seems like such a sweetheart—even though this is my first introduction to her, I'm already very intrigued and drawn to her. Also don't worry about the length, I accept asks of just about any length whether it's a one-liner or it's multiple paragraphs long. Take care and have a great rest of your day. ^^ 🧩

[maddieinwonder]

The Seventh

Slight Spencer Reid x Fem!BAU!Reader

Genre: Fluff

Warnings: None at all

Word Count: 1.6k

Plot: Reader hears a lot of rumours about the BAU before she applies to join the team. (Part 2 here!)

Author's Note: I love the idea of the BAU being notorious in the FBI, because honestly, they totally would be! And I would be lying if I said I've never crushed hard irl on a mysterious genius boy...

Masterlist

------------

Before you decided to join the BAU, you had heard all kinds of gossip about its members. It was a hot topic among your colleagues, but you could hardly blame them for the shameless act, when you left one ear open for it yourself.

Professionally, if they weren't called the BAU, people called them the "serial killer guys", since they couldn't seem to escape them in their cases. But among your lunch group, they were called "The Seven".

It was an embarrassing name in your opinion, too easily implying that the BAU was elite, untouchable. But the more you learned about them, the more you thought there could some truth to it.

Number One was SSA Hotchner, the unit chief known for his stone cold attitude. You heard a rumour that he once threatened the BAU section chief without so much as batting an eye. Anybody else would have been fired on the spot, but it seemed that Hotchner was so unrivalled in his job that he was asked to stay anyway.

Hotchner's opposite was SSA Rossi, who seemed to be the more "human" of the two, but that didn't make him any less intimidating. He was famous both in and out of the FBI, having built the BAU from the ground up, and written multiple best-selling books about criminal analysis. Why he decided to return to the BAU was a mystery to everyone, but you had a feeling he actually missed it.

Then there was SSA Prentiss. Everyone's consensus was that she seemed nice, but ultimately professional. People theorised that her political upbringing made her into a politician herself, but you once saw her in the BAU office laughing so hard that tears started rolling down her cheeks, and that's when you decided she couldn't be as stiff as the rest made her out to be.

SSA Morgan was the one everybody liked, on a shallow level at least. All your fingers and toes weren't enough to count how many people you knew had a crush on him. You've seen grown women visibly swoon when he walked by, which was partially hilarious for you, but also partially embarrassing for womenkind. You could see the appeal, somewhat, but he wasn't your speed.

Your favourite was JJ. Jennifer Jareau was the BAU's communications liaison and the only one you'd dare call a friend. You'd worked with her on multiple cases in the past, and in fact, she was the one who recommended you for the new position. She's a complete sweetheart, but you also knew that she once headshot an unsub right in the BAU office to protect Penelope. That fact only increased your admiration for her.

She was also the one to introduce you to the BAU's infamous technical analyst. You had heard of Penelope Garcia prior to that, but she so rarely emerged from her office that you almost thought she was a myth. The real person was unlike an FBI agent at all, always donning some combination of bright colours, feathers, and/or sparkles. Most people who'd seen her labelled her as a weirdo, but there was something about her, a sense of positivity, that you loved.

Last but not least, the one that slipped under everyone's radar, Dr. Spencer Reid. People didn't talk much about Dr. Reid because, well, there was nothing really to talk about. He was the youngest person to ever join the FBI, had an IQ of 187, and you thought he was far too pretty to be doing a job this terrible, but that's where the conversations usually ended.

Everything that could be said, envied, or admired about the genius had simply been covered already, and he offered no new fodder for the gossip trolls to chew on; he rarely left the office, he didn't mingle with the other departments, and frankly, everyone thought he was socially awkward.

Yet, you found yourself continuously coming back to him in your thoughts. Maybe, subconsciously, you wanted to join the BAU so that you could figure him out.

The first time you met Dr. Reid, he was giving the profile of an unsub to the larger team. His words sped by so quickly, yet with so much insight and detail that you found yourself scrunching your face in concentration in order to get it all, and that impressed you.

You had always been a quick study but you instantly knew that Dr. Reid would be a challenge, both professionally and personally, and you hadn't even got to know him yet.

As you submitted the request to join the BAU, you admit that the excitement of that challenge was at the forefront of your mind. And when you were called into SSA Hotchner's office a few months later, the thought rang in your head even louder.

"Agent Hotchner, you called for me?" You asked at his door, suddenly feeling timid in the face of your potential boss.

"Sit down, agent," he said without looking up. As you took a seat, he opened a file that was undoubtedly yours and looked up. His eyebrows were furrowed, but if what you'd heard about him was true, this didn't necessarily mean anything bad. And you were right.

"I have your test results with me," he began. "Firstly, I'd like to congratulate you for scoring the highest in your class." You swore he almost cracked a smile.

"I've also heard a lot about you. Your boss had many good things to say about your work ethic, your field experience, and your commitment to justice," he continued.

Now it was your turn to smile.

"But I want to know the real reason why you want to join the BAU." Your smile faltered slightly, something that you're sure Hotchner would pick up on.

He leaned forward in his desk, purposefully applying pressure on the situation, and you let out a quiet breath in preparation.

"The reason I wanted to join the BAU may not be new to you, but I'm looking for a challenge. I want to make a change." You started. "I understand that those two may be contradictory principles, but I believe I can grow and do a lot of good with the BAU."

"And what if the job gets too much for you?" He asks, a flicker of emotion that I didn't recognise crossing his face.

"I'm prepared for that," you said determinedly. "I may not know what this job will take from me, but I'd like the opportunity to prove that I can grow from it, sir."

Agent Hotchner eyed you for a moment before standing up. "Very well, then." He reached out his hand. "Welcome to the BAU."

You looked at his hand for a second, the shock barely registering, before scrambling to your feet. "Thank you, sir! I won't disappoint you!" You shake his hand grinning.

"And next time, just call me Hotch." He said, this time smiling amusedly at your enthusiasm.

"Got it, and thank you again, sir." You said, excusing yourself from his room with a noticeable skip in your step.

You tried to cool yourself off walking back to your department to share the good news, but the excitement proved too much to hold in when a familiar voice calls out to you.

"Hey babygirl, considering you just came out of Hotch's office with a smile, I'm guessing you're going to be our newest teammate."

You turned around, trying to swallow your giddiness, when you realised that person was none other than SSA Morgan.

"Agent Morgan," you stuck out your hand in greeting. "Nice to meet you, and yes, I am."

"Derek." He corrected, grinning as he shook your hand. "Looking forward to working closely with you."

"Just call him Morgan. Don't need to get too close to this player." SSA Prentiss nudged Derek out of the way, raising her hand to meet yours. "I'm Emily Prentiss."

You giggled at their closeness.

The rest of the introductions quickly followed, including hugs from JJ and Penelope, and a starstruck moment when Rossi left his office to personally welcome you to the team. But there was one person whom you hadn't formally met yet.

Dr. Reid had finally separated his head from his work amidst the commotion (plus a very strong encouragement from one Mr. Derek Morgan to "go get her, pretty boy") and walked up to you, a nervous gait in his step.

He stuck his hand out to your surprise, having heard that the doctor was a tad germaphobic, and shook yours. "Dr. Spencer Reid," he said. "But you can call me Spencer, everyone else does."

"Nice to meet you, Spencer." You tried out the foreign name on your tongue. "Honestly, I'm quite a fan of your academic papers. I'm looking forward to working with you."

You knew the genius was a bit awkward, but he instantly turned beet red at your words and retracted his hand. The thought that this was the first time somebody had complimented him this way made you a little sad. But you thought his reaction was incredibly cute, and apparently so did the rest.

"Pretty boy, pret-ty boy, is that how you should react around a lady?" Derek sing-songed, putting his arm around the poor genius' shoulders, tugging him down.

JJ shot you an apologetic look for her childish teammates, while the rest joined in to poke fun at Spencer. Although he was frowning, his voice betrayed no hints of annoyance. Clearly they were all very close.

You laughed along, feeling a growing warmth in your chest, and wondered if you'd be a part of this family in the future.

But first, you’d have to get used to being the Eighth.

------------

(Part 2 here!)