#I say all of this as a woman and a fan of red dead cause I also scare myself

[freyjaofredemption]

Ngl, women who are fans of Red Dead Redemption 2 scare me so much. Like, wtf do you mean you only ride female horses in game, so you can listen to Arthur say, “Yeah, that’s a good girl,” and “Easy girl, you’re okay,”? What do you mean you compiled a list of those audios?? WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THE AUDIOS?!? WHY DO YOU HAVE ARTHUR MORGAN ASMR?!?

[uglypastels]

Caught Me Slippin' | escort!eddie au

(a/n) yes, this fic is based on the Kiss Quotient, and, therefore also Pretty Woman. Thanks to everyone who voted on the poll for me to work on this fic. I had a lot of fun with it! So, even though its a bit all over the place, haha, I hope you still like it.

If you want to see more of this fic, please send an ask and we can chat about it but Do Not Ask For Part 2. This is a One Shot.

Summary: [modern!au] feeling insecure about your skills in bed, you decide to find someone who could help you learn. Except, when the guy actually shows up, a mistake seems to have occurred. Fortunately, you're both quite adaptable (or, at least, you try to be), and the night quickly takes off into unexpected territories.

Word count: 13.2k

Warnings: SMUT. MINORS DNI. 18+ ONLY. dual POV. rich!female!reader. shorter than Eddie. self-consciousness. slight miscommunication - quickly resolved. swearing. drinking. awkwardness. [mention of infidelity, side characters]. non-monogamous relationship. smut. male sex work (obviously). slight dom! Eddie. inexperienced!reader. mentions of bdsm- bondage, sadomasochism. nipple piercings. nipple play. fingering. oral (f receiving). light pussy slapping. Eddie has an innocence kink. I'm probably not representing sex work 100% accurately, but this is [fan]fiction. You should always take it with a grain of salt. + apparently, kind of angsty, idk i guess I'm dead inside.

if you think I'm missing any warnings, please let me know, and I'll add them. if you do not like the sound of any of these- then this is not for you. do not read.

All the errors left unlearned, oh

But I am the luckiest guy

Not the loneliest guy in the world

- David Bowie, The Loneliest Guy

What the hell were you doing? 

Sitting at a bar, which was mistake number two. One of many, for that matter. The third was ordering a drink you knew you wouldn’t drink but had picked when panic swooped over you as the bartender walked up. The red liquid looked quite pretty, but you could smell the alcohol the second the girl put the glass in front of you. An attempt at a sip was made, and you brought it to your lips, but the bitterness overwhelmed you. 

There was one thing you had gotten right, and that was at least picking a bar that wasn’t crowded. The music played at just the right volume, and people kept to themselves, to their booths and their tables. You tried to let your mind wander off, not to overthink– that would only cause more anxiety– but it always went back to what the people around you were talking about. You never meant to be nosy, and you never butted in… but it was entertaining what random strangers had to say to each other.

— You’re shitting me. 

— No, I’m serious. Sarah told me herself. She walked in, and there he was, fucking their pool boy. 

The table behind you erupted in a chorus of gasps. 

— Poor Sarah, though. 

— Yeah, well, she had been sleeping with her yoga instructor. 

How were people so comfortable talking about such things in public? Where everyone could listen in? You almost felt bad for this Sarah that her complicated marriage was being shared with the entirety of this small bar, surely then retold all across the city.

You glanced around you, side to side. The bar counter was quite long, with enough space for eight barstools to stand next to each other. Besides yours, four more were occupied. Having opted for the last chair, you were worried about someone sitting on one of your neighbouring chairs, but luck had been in your favour.

That is, until he showed up. 

Your first, and probably, the biggest mistake that you made that night.

♤

From the second that Eddie sat down beside her, he could tell something was wrong. He always could with such things. As well as assume what might have been the cause of the problem. 

Her eyes widened, nearly doubled in size, as he sat down next to her. He couldn’t have made a mistake; she had sent what she would look like and be wearing, and the description was accurate. She should have known what Eddie would look like as well; that’s basically what the whole selection was based on, look, and yet… the way she stared at him… he had the urge to wave his hand in front of her to make sure she wasn’t going into shock. 

‘Hey,’ instead, he opted for a kind smile as he leaned against the bar, asking for a quick confirmation of her name, and took a moment to take her in properly while she defrosted and returned to reality.  She was cute, to his surprise, definitely not the type he would usually be coming across these nights. Pretty and young, but mostly, shy. The bar was definitely not in her comfort zone, and he had picked up on that the second he noticed het sitting there, back stiff in nerves, drink untouched except for the little straw she stirred around in circles mindlessly. At first, he thought, maybe it’s all an act. The shy and naive girl next door, he was into it, but no. Now he knew better; she was terrified. 

A few seconds later, when his eyes moved back up to her face, she spoke her first words. 

‘Who are you?’

♤

There had been a mistake. There must have been. Whoever the guy sitting next to you was, he was not the guy you had paid for. 

Jesus that sounded so stupid. How could you have been so dumb thinking it was a good idea to hire a guy for the night. As if that would make you feel better, make all your problems disappear. 

The man blinked in confusion. Your reaction had clearly been a surprise. As he stumbled over his words, you took him in quickly. 

Long brown hair fell over his shoulders in messy waves. He had layered up, but not for practicality. You couldn’t see how the leather jacket or the denim vest over a thin t-shirt would help him against the evening cold, not to mention his ribbed jeans. Overall he looked like he had been directly cut out of an 80s rock magazine. Sure, some women must be into that kind of look; you couldn’t even deny he was pretty attractive, but it was not what you had wanted. Not for now. You needed something simple. Comfortable. Easy.

Those large rings and metal chains were most definitely not comfortable. Or simple. Or easy. 

Oh god. 

♤

‘I’m Eddie,’ he stated, hoping it would clear something up, but her confused stare didn’t falter. ‘Didn’t you book…’ Eddie knew all the people around him were poking their noses into everyone’s business, so he tried to pick his words wisely, ‘... the appointment?’ Fuck, did he walk up to the wrong girl? He knew it would have been too good to be true to get an actual girl his age. People always lied on these forms. He was ready to apologise and walk away, but she answered. 

‘I did.’ Her eyes wavered again over him. ‘But not you. There must have been some kind of mistake, I–’ 

‘Is everything good here?’ The bartender walked up, towel across her shoulder, her piercing blue eyes digging right through Eddie. Her question had been directed at the girl, and she nodded quickly. 

‘All good, just a little misunderstanding.’ 

‘Alright then,’ The bartender sent Eddie another suspicious look before heading to the other side of the counter to take another order. This was fucking fantastic. Yeah, just great. 

♤

‘Ok, so who did you think you were meeting?’ Eddie asked when the woman behind the bar walked away, slightly backing away from you, letting his shoulders fall.

You tried to remember the name of the guy who caught your attention last evening. Would the name mean anything to Eddie? You didn’t expect all these guys to hang around together...

‘Shit, yeah, ok, that makes sense.’ You could see all the puzzle pieces coming together behind his eyes. ‘He’s out on a date tonight as well. They must have sent us each other’s… wait,’ he quickly grabbed his phone. 

♤

Eddie searched through his emails. It didn’t take long to ignore the few spam messages he had gotten since this morning. And there it was. The booking confirmation he had received. Having gotten them so often, he had read it on autopilot, not even realising that his own name was missing. All he had needed, he thought, was his client’s information. But there it was, literally the first two words of the email: Dear Steve… 

Oh, the office would have a field day with this. 

But some of him also could not wait to ask Steve how his date went. 

♤

‘Yeah, they fucked it up,’ after a few seconds, Eddie had turned his phone around to show you an email. Even though you only needed the first two words to understand the mistake that occurred, you took the time to read as much of it as possible to make sure it was real. From what you could tell, it seemed legit. Just what business operated solemnly through emails… and apparently, not even automated ones. 

‘I’m really sorry for the inconvenience,’ Eddie apologised as he pulled his phone back and placed it into his pocket. ‘I can call the office and get you a refund. I promise you that this is usually nothing of the standard we usually operate at.’ You appreciated his professionalism. Despite never thinking you were that judgemental, perhaps you had actually judged him a bit too harshly at first glance. And he was quite attractive… 

‘No, wait,’ you stopped him before he could dial the number of his boss, or whoever was in charge. ‘Uhm… did your… friend… send you something? About his date?’ Steve was now, of course, also on the wrong job. Eddie looked up at you for a second, before glancing down again at his phone to check his notifications. 

‘No, haven’t heard anything from him. I guess the other person didn’t seem to care which one of us they got.’ he chuckled, which surprised you. Did other people not care about who they slept with? You get to pick a person for a reason, don’t you? 

‘I don’t need a refund.’ You stated after a short moment. Eddie glanced up once more.

‘Are you sure? It’s a lot of money–’ 

‘No, I mean, I would like to continue the night… with you.’ This was, for sure, getting out of your comfort zone, right? Being adventurous, getting a life, all that shit your friends nagged you about for years. Eddie smiled with the corner of his mouth. 

‘Alright then, would you like to get out of here?’ 

‘Yes, please,’ you let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully, the volume in the space picked up quite a lot as more people entered, drowning out your conversation, but it was getting a bit too much for you. ‘Just… one minute.’ you stood up, heading to the bathroom, but Eddie called your attention for one more second. 

‘You forgot your purse.’ he looked down at the ground where your bag was lying. You gave him an awkward smile and picked it up before making your way to the back of the bar.

Closing the stall door behind you, you wished for some decent internet; thankfully, it wasn’t the worst. You didn’t bother trying to be quick about it. There was no doubt in your mind that he knew you were looking him up online. With shaking hands, you typed in the name of the agency where you had found Steve. They had a list of all their “models”, as they nicely labelled them, and you scrolled through them. There was the guy you had planned on spending the night with. You had picked him because he looked sweet, and hot, obviously, but with enough cockiness thrown in the mix to tell you he knew what he was doing. And the little sales pitch the website had written up for him to sell the fantasy worked well. You didn’t bother rereading it now, but it was something to do with “the sweet jock that knows how to take care of his girl”. It was extremely cheesy, you were more than aware of that, but cheesy was good. It was safe. 

Your friends would have probably laughed at you. 

They probably would have picked out a guy like Eddie. 

Speaking of the guy waiting for you at the bar, you found his profile. First thing first, the picture. That was definitely him; you recognised the unruly dark hair and brown eyes. He had several photos posted in his profile, like most of the men on the website, and they were of semi-professional quality: self-taken, but with a very nice camera and lighting. He had put effort into his presentation. First, there was the portrait, showing his handsome face, shirtless but cropped to the shoulder, revealing enough of the silver chain around his neck but not showing what was actually hanging off it. 

The following picture was a full-body pose, with clothes on that were not significantly different from the ones he was wearing now. No denim vest, but a different leather jacket on top of a black shirt. Dark denim jeans with a belt, buckled by what looked like to be steel handcuffs… had he been wearing that tonight as well? 

Your throat tightened up as you swiped to the next post, which was, of course, the obligatory nude. All the “models” had to have them, since that was basically what people paid for. If it wasn’t for the fact that the site saw itself as one of the “classier” agencies out there, the naked pictures would have been the only ones available. You, for one, appreciated the variety. 

Eddie was posed on a bed, on his knees. With one hand in his hair, and the other over his thigh, he didn’t leave anything to the imagination. Despite not even looking at the camera, the smug smile on his face told you he knew exactly what he was doing. He got you looking, and he knew you liked it. Yet, what you couldn’t stop looking at were the tattoos that covered his pale skin. Dozens of them, at least, varying in size and style, covering most of his arms, upper legs, ribs…

You scrolled on, remembering he was still waiting for you outside, but the next picture didn’t make anything better. 

It had been a session shot. You had stumbled across similar ones on your initial look at the website. The men posing out the act of some kind of intercourse. Different positions, different actions, whatever described their style in the profession. For Eddie, that included the shot of a naked woman in bed, the same bed in which he had taken the previous picture. Her limbs were spread apart, tied to the bed corners. Her eyes were covered with a black and white bandana, and the rest of the features tightened in bliss as Eddie was positioned between her legs. His mouth was right at her core. If that wasn’t enough, he had put some props up on display next to the woman; some extra handcuffs, a vibrator and what you assumed to be a flogger. 

What the hell were you getting yourself into?

♤

She returned after a few minutes, and Eddie could immediately tell his assumption was right. The poor thing couldn’t look him in the face. She sat back down on the barstool, holding onto her purse, lip between her teeth and eyes on anything but him. Yeah, she had looked him up. 

In all honesty, he thought it was a good thing. He didn’t care for people who didn’t do their research into things. Saying that, as quite a spontaneous person, you couldn’t jump into things head first all the time. Sometimes, it was important to test the waters. Make sure there were no sharks swimming around.

‘I paid for your drink,’ Eddie remembered. She looked at him, stunned. 

‘Oh, you really didn’t have to.’ Did she seem apologetic? 

‘Please, its the least I can do, for, you know, being the wrong guy and all.’ He smiled, hoping she would return the favour. The corner of her mouth curved up the smallest amount, still quite unsure of the situation. 

‘Really, I–’ she was ready to get her wallet, most likely pay him back, but Eddie stopped her by placing his hand over hers. That made her freeze, look back up at him. Eddie felt two pairs of eyes on him. Hers, and the bartender behind him, most definitely reassessing the whole situation. Everything about this evening was going to shit. He could probably wave his perfect 5-star rating goodbye, it wouldn’t be the end of the world, but he for sure as hell was not going to get put on any registers tonight. However, trying to seduce a stranger into bed with him when he is so clearly not the type for this girl… why was he even trying so hard?

He didn’t like using the term “vanilla”, it got too much of a bad rep, but that is what she seemed to be. Her clothes weren’t flashy, not even considering for “outgoing”. She wasn’t the type to go out and hook up, let alone get an escort. He wasn’t surprised she had decided to go for a guy like Steve. But Steve wasn’t here; Eddie was. He now had the job of taking care of this girl in any way she wanted him to.

‘Ok, shall we?’ She took a deep breath as she got up. 

‘Are you–’ maybe they should talk about this? He didn’t want her to do anything she wasn’t comfortable with. 

‘C’mon,’ next thing he knew, she grabbed Eddie by the wrist and whisked him off the barstool, dragging him along outside. It was early in the year, but late in the evening. The air was crispy, and the wind blew harshly. Eddie had definitely not dressed warm enough for the night, but that would have been an understatement for her. She would freeze in a few minutes. 

‘I got a room in the hotel just across the corner,’ she spoke, rather determined. Some people might have mistaken it for confidence, but Eddie saw the other signs. Her clenched jaw, her consistent avoidance of eye contact… she was putting on a brave face. And that’s how people get into situations they don’t want to be in. 

If it had been warmer, he would have stopped them on the street, but he had to get her out of the cold, so he let the girl drag him across the sidewalk to the hotel's entrance. It was big. The warm lighting reflecting off of all the decor, giving it a golden glow. 

She did not stop walking until they reached the elevator. She clicked the button, and the arrow above the doors pointed down. The numbers slowly descended from 14. 

‘I know you looked me up.’ Eddie started, having no idea how to introduce the topic fluently. 

‘Ok.’ She was biting her lip nervously. 

‘So I know you know what my usual gig is.’ They both watched the numbers go down. 7… 6… 

‘So we’re on the same page.’ She glanced up at him; he could see it in the reflection of the metal doors. 

‘I don’t think we are.’ The elevator pinged open as Eddie said so. They walked inside. 

‘What do you mean?’ She finally looked him in the eye, only momentarily, but he saw that some of her fear slowly faded as she pressed the button to her floor. 15. 

‘That, yes, I usually am pretty rough with my clients,’ he couldn’t hide the smile on his face, but could anyone blame him? He enjoyed his work. ‘But that’s because they want me to be rough.’ He looked at her intensely. Not to intimidate her, but to show her the seriousness of his words. ‘I don’t do anything that you don’t want me to do. You paid for an evening with… well, not me, but it’s all the same. If you get your money’s worth from a good pounding, I’m more than happy to oblige. From cuddling and watching a movie? All fine by me.’ 

♤

It’s all the same. 

But it wasn’t, was it? They weren’t all the same. 

‘What about you?’ you asked just as the elevator opened on your floor. Eddie let you walk through first. Now, you couldn’t look away from him, letting your head almost spin around a whole 360 to get your glance at him. 

‘What about me?’ He had his hands in his pockets. Suddenly there didn’t seem to be anything scary about him. His hair was soft. His jacket, while not exactly winter-weather proof, looked cozy. The patches on his vest were hand sawn. With an image of him sitting at home, sewing them on, one by one, you got a sudden urge to ask about them, but who did that? Surely, in your situation, questions like that were out of bounds. 

‘What do you like?’ 

‘That doesn’t matter,’ he chuckled, which confused you. 

‘Doesn’t it? I might not be the most knowledgeable about the whole sex thing, but… shouldn’t both people involved be getting off? Doesn’t that make it better?’ You had reached your door. Weirdly, from having focused on the conversation as you walked, you didn’t feel any nerves unlocking the door. The room was dark, and you switched the light on. The nerves still didn’t bubble up. You could do it.

‘I suppose so– wait, you’re not a virgin, are you?’ 

You shook your head no. 

‘Ok. not that there is anything wrong with that. Everyone’s living life at their own pace, I just don’t feel comfortable with that kind of responsibility. No one’s first time should be with….’ 

‘A professional?’ you raised your eyebrow, suggesting a possibly more classy term for what he wanted to say. 

‘Nice.’ He smiled, and made his way over to the bed. You watched him get comfortable on the edge as you took off your light jacket. Your arms were freezing from the cold air outside, but the hotel room was cosy. Not to mention, the nerves were heating you up once more by the second. This was it. Eddie spread his legs wide, almost calling for your eyes to look at his thighs and how they stretched the material of the jeans. 

When your eyes moved back up to his face, you were terrified to see that he was staring right back at you, devouring you with his gaze. He definitely saw you checking him out. But it was becoming harder to concentrate when you looked at how his large hand grazed over the faint stubble on his face. 

‘C’mere,’ he said with a nod, and thoughtlessly, you followed his order. Eddie took you by both hands once you were close enough and placed them on his shoulders, then let his hands settle on your waist. His eyes found yours for a quick check. When you gave him the green light with a smile, he immediately mirrored it and asked: ‘what were your plans for this magical evening?’ He briefly tightened his grip on you and kept moving his hands up and down lightly as you tried to respond. As if that wasn’t hard enough with his eyes staring deep into you. 

‘No, uhm, nothing special.’ You didn’t need special. Special meany complicated, and you just needed someone to help you out with the basics. 

‘Making it special is kind of my one job, you know,’ he pulled you in for a hug so that his face was only a few inches away from your stomach. His arms now enveloped your frame, hands comfortably positioned over your ass. A complete stranger was hiking up the hem of your shirt, touching your bare skin underneath it. ‘So, what is it that you want?’ When he pulled up enough of your shirt to actually reveal the skin underneath, he placed a soft kiss on your side. That feeling alone felt electric. He kept on leaving fluttering kisses over your middle. It was a strange sensation as well as a pleasing one. So simple, and yet it had a great effect that you couldn’t quite explain. 

Your eyes fluttered shut as you tried to concentrate on Eddie’s question as his kisses continued. What did you want from this night? But should you tell him the complete truth? Wasn’t there some way to avoid the embarrassing details? Then again… how could he ever help you with your needs if he didn’t know what they were?

‘I want…’ you gasped lightly when his teeth grazed your skin. For some reason, that pushed you over the edge to just put everything you worried about out there. You were already here, in this hotel room, with him. Fuck it. 

♤

‘I want you to help me be good at sex.’ 

Eddie didn’t mean to stop. He saw in her reaction that that had been the wrong thing to do. She must have seen his widened eyes and taken it for judgement, while really, it had just been a small surprise. He wasn’t exactly used to people asking him to teach them how to have sex. 

‘Sorry, uhm, nevermind. Just ignore me.’ She scratched at her neck while looking away. That won’t do. Eddie had to fix this before they would do anything else. 

‘No, wait. Let’s… let’s talk this through for a moment.’ He led her by the hand and let her sit on the bed next to him. ‘Get comfortable. Is there anything in the minibar?’ he noticed the small fridge in the closet across the room and hoped she would understand his question to ask permission to use the service provided in the room. 

‘Go ahead, take anything you want.’ 

‘Living large, are we?’ He cocked his brow before making his way over to the minibar. The selection of drinks was quite understated for a place like they were in. two cheap beers, a small bottle of champagne and two sodas. From what he had gathered at the bar, she didn’t seem to be a big drinker, so he grabbed a beer and a soda can. ‘Here.’

‘Oh, thanks.’ She didn’t look up at him as she took the can from him. Fuck, what was she embarrassed for? He doubted she would speak up in the conversation by herself, so just started out with a question. ‘Why do you think you need help with sex?’ She said she wasn’t a virgin, so she’s had experience. With a glance at her hands, he saw no ring or sign of regular wear of one. That, of course, didn’t exclude the option of a boyfriend or a partner. Maybe even a guy she just wanted to impress. The possibilities were endless, and for some strange reason, at the thought of her having sex with someone else, a strange feeling started gnawing at Eddie’s guts. 

‘Because I’ve had sex a few times and so far it’s been awful.’ She sighed. ‘But I know that, to get better at it, I would have to go and endure endless dates to find a guy who would want to sleep with me, but then what if I do meet a great guy but just put him off because I’m shit in the sack?’

‘Don’t you believe that, if you did really find the right guy, he would help you? Or not even mind your alleged lack of skills “in the sack”?’ Eddie asked, taking a sip of beer. She just looked at him with a look that told him everything. Right. Men are egoistic scum. She had a point.

‘Sorry, you must think I’m insane.’  She tapped on the top of the can. The metal ticking sounded hollow in the quiet room. 

‘I really don’t.’ If it wasn’t for the fact that he had a moral spine, he would have happily told her about some of his other clients. 

‘Yeah, but I’m just wasting your time talking your ears off with absolute nonsense,’ she tried to laugh at it, lessen the tension. 

Eddie leaned over the bed on his elbow. ‘Don’t you know that escorts are the new therapists?’ 

‘Wasn’t that bartenders?’

‘I brought you your drink, didn’t I? Call it a 2-for-1 combo deal.’ He put his beer in the air for a toast and took another sip. ‘And I was serious earlier. You already paid for the whole night, so I’m all yours, sweetheart’ He hoped that didn’t sound dismissive. The last thing he wanted to do (again) was to upset or offend this girl, who genuinely looked and seemed amazing. The idea of her not being able to find someone for herself, having to go down the process of finding someone like him to make her feel good… 

‘Are all the guys at your agency this nice?’ she looked up from the lip of her can, bringing his mind back into the room.

‘No, Steve is a giant dick,’ Eddie laughed.

‘Right, while you have one,’ she teased.

‘Ha. Funny.’ He pointed at her in appreciation before taking a sip of the beer. ‘But I suppose you’re not wrong.’ She had seen his pictures; she knew what he had in stock. He wondered what she thought of it– sure, she might not have been ready for his regular repertoire, but that didn’t mean “never”.  But what he wanted to know the most, which felt like the biggest surprise, was what did she think of him? For the first time since he started this gig, he wondered what she thought of his appearance. Did she like his tattoos? Was his hair too long, maybe? Were his clothes too shabby? Perhaps it was because she had not actually picked him. She had chosen Steve.

Oh, Stevie. They couldn’t be more different. 

‘Are you sure you’re ok with me… being here?’

♤

‘I am.’ You didn’t know what else to reply to that question. Of course, the night was not going anything like you had expected. Until two hours ago, you were planning to have some alright sex with, what you could describe as a “regular hot guy”. Instead, you were on the bed, fully clothed, drinking a coke next to a Metallica reject. Was it too late to still do any of the things you had initially paid for, or was the mood entirely ruined? Did people recover from going into highly personal and dramatic tangents in front of the escort they had hired? 

‘Ok, cool. Just… making sure. Fair warning, I might do that a few more times through the night.’ The idea of still having an entire night to spend with Eddie made you really happy. Even if you didn’t know what to do with him in this small room. With a large king-sized bed in the middle, and not much else but the essential hotel decor, the room was perfect for exactly the reason you had booked it and not much else.

Just as you thought it was getting a bit too quiet between the two of you and had wanted to speak up with a question, Eddie opened his mouth to say something as well. So you also simultaneously apologised and let the other person say their piece. 

‘No, go ahead,’ you nudged him. Whatever he had to say would probably lead the conversation better.

‘I was just wondering, when you said “help be good with sex”, which aspect are we talking about here? Just regular? Oral? Foreplay? Like, what are we talking about here?’

‘Uhm, pretty much everything.’ You winced at yourself. So far, all your attempts at intercourse had been not great. It always felt awkward and uncomfortable. The guys would get what they were there for and didn’t feel the need to wait around for more. And if it kept on happening, then the math was simple, wasn’t it? Just look at what the overlapping factor was in all the situations. It was eventually your friends one night, after a few bottles of wine, who suggested the idea of just hiring a guy to teach you what to do. It would be so much easier. No feelings, and they know what they are doing. Foolproof plan. 

And somehow, you still managed to make things complicated and weird. 

♤

‘Now see, I don’t believe that,’ Eddie smiled. There was no way she didn’t know how to do anything. Especially since most of it was just pure instinct. There is a reason why people call it “messing around”, and it’s not because of any guide or formula that one should be working off of to get it right. 

‘Well, then you should ask the other guys.’ Again with that little smile, trying to undermine her own feelings. 

‘No, fuck them. I bet they didn’t even make you cum.’ He accused. Her lack of response was enough of an answer. Eddie could bet his entire wage that she thought it was her fault they didn’t get her to climax and that… that actually pissed him off. How often had he had his clients tell him how their husbands, the men supposed to take care of them, never bothered to fulfil their one simple and honestly fucking delicious duty? A thought sparked in his mind, and he couldn’t keep back the grin that sprouted up with it. 

‘What?’ she asked at the sight of his smile. 

‘Have you ever?’

‘Ever what?’

‘Had a climax?’ 

‘Oh,’ the way she got shy talking about it, to Eddie’s embarrassment, turned him on. The best thing was they didn’t even have to play pretend. ‘I mean, I think?’

‘You think?’ He raised an eyebrow. 

‘Yeah, sorry,’ she cleared her throat, ‘Uhm… I’ll just be right back.’ And having said that, she ran to the bathroom. 

As she closed the door, Eddie pondered on the idea of undressing. It would speed things up, possibly breaking the icy wall that closed her off. With one naked person in the room, it was hard to think about much else, which meant less to worry about. But he didn’t think she would actually appreciate it. No, she needed to take it slow. And he would happily guide her through it all. 

♤

You splashed some cold water in your face. There had been no reason for you to run out of the room like that except for being a total chicken. The way Eddie was so open and comfortable, talking about all of that… brought out a new fear in you. One you didn’t know you had. One you couldn’t even identify. You just knew you had to get out from under his gaze. Those big brown honey-glazed eyes. 

Why the hell did you leave the room? He was sitting so close to you. Your legs were nearly touching. He still sat with his legs spread, basically inviting you to get between them. And what do you do? Run away. 

You splashed some more water onto your face. 

There wasn’t much makeup on your face to begin the night, and whatever you had left of your mascara and blush was wiped off with the towel you grabbed. One more look in the mirror to ensure no grey ink streaks down your cheeks, and you were ready to get out again. 

Just one big breath in. and out. 

The bathroom door handle moved silently, and you pulled the door open to be met with Eddie’s chest. He was standing right in front of you. 

‘Oh, hi.’ 

‘Hey, just wanted to make sure you were ok in there.’ He knocked on the door frame in a delayed manner for extra effect. Knock knock. You noticed he had taken off his vest and jacket. Just in his t-shirt now. The sleeves ended right at his biceps, revealing the sleeves of tattoos he hid underneath all those removed layers. 

‘So are you alright?’ he asked when you didn’t respond to what he had said earlier. The question pulled your thoughts out of the clouds and your head up to look him in the eye. 

‘Yeah, yeah, just…’ your mouth was extremely dry. One more second and no words would be leaving it ever again. It was just gonna have to come out now. Then, with a quick exhale,  you admitted. ‘I’ve never had an orgasm.’ From Eddie’s reaction, it didn’t seem to have been any news to him. Like it was the most normal conversation, which, given his job, it probably was. You tried to ignore the thought of him and the many women he must have helped. 

‘Well, I would be more than honoured to change that for you.’ He took a step forward, and the proximity forced you to look up at him to see his eyes. 

‘Is that a rehearsed line?’ Apparently, your one outburst of truth led to the pandora’s box in your brain, and now you couldn’t shut up, saying the first thing that came to your mind. And unfortunately, it was still filled with the images of him with other people; him making all of them feel ecstatic. 

Luckily, Eddie laughed at your presumption. His head tilted back, and when it came back down, and his eyes were once again locked in with yours, his lips pulled up into a smirk. One of his hands found its way up to your cheek before he leaned in. you were ready for him to kiss you, but instead, his breath lingered over your skin. So close that you should have been able to touch him, and maybe you did. Because there was something that made your mind a thick haze, impossible to navigate through. Everything spun around you except for Eddie.

‘So what if I did rehearse it?’ his words hit your jaw as he hovered over you, then whispering directly into your, he asked: ‘What if I’ve already planned 10 different ways in which I want to make you writhe underneath me? Would you mind that?’ Would you mind? 

Whatever for? 

In a shaky breath, you spoke the only thing you could think of at the moment. 

‘Kiss me.’ 

♤

Eddie didn’t need to be told twice. 

He must have been grinning like an idiot, and he could only hope it didn’t put her off as he brought their lips together and kissed her. Deeply. Passionately. 

The hair around her face was slightly wet, as was her jaw, telling him she had just spent the last minute splashing water in her face. She tasted sweet, like the coke she had been drinking earlier. 

Her hand crept up to his collar, shyly grabbing at it and pulling it down, revealing the slightest inch of the tattoo on his clavicle. Not that she would see it, having closed her eyes the second their lips connected. 

Eddie let one of his hands find its way back to her waist. Holding on to each other, they stumbled back onto the bed. She let out a whimper as Eddie’s knees hit the edge of the bed, and he fell backwards, taking her right down with him. 

It was a slow tear-away, leaving both in a haze. Eddie watched her sit up straight, straddling him and keeping him locked. If she moved, she would feel how hard he was getting. 

‘I assume kissing was not on the agenda of the lesson?’ He brushed some of his hair out of his face. 

‘Well, if you have any tips–’ she tugged at the bottom of her shirt. A nervous habit, probably, but all Eddie could think about was how he wanted that material as far away from her as possible. 

‘You’re joking, right?’ She must have been. The kiss, though brief, had been… he felt alive after it. His chest was tight as he caught his breath. ‘Fuck, c’mere.’ He pulled her right back. It might have only been one kiss, but it had been more than enough for him. He was already hooked. 

♤

His lips were slightly chapped, but not in any way to make you feel uncomfortable. Nothing that some chapstick before going out into the cold couldn’t solve. You could smell the bitter beer he had just drank, and despite the drink having been cooled, it brought a warmth out in you. This heat swam over your cheeks and the parts of you that he held close. His hands were now back to playing with your shirt. The material was creeping up over your stomach, up up up…

♤

‘Can you take your shirt off first, please?’ she asked nervously once the second kiss parted. Her small voice sent sparks flying down Eddie’s body, directly to his dick.

‘Yeah, ‘course.’ All he could do was smile. She shuffled down his legs to give him space and remove the shirt. There was no way she didn’t feel how tight he was getting in his trousers, but she didn’t show any reaction to it, eyes focused on his chest. Eddie looked down at himself. He had almost forgotten about those. 

‘You have piercings?’ 

He kept on forgetting to update his pictures on the website. It was such a hassle. Taking the time to plan it all in, preferably with someone else, so he could have some action shots. There was the editing, and then he would have to send them into the office so someone could actually upload them… he just couldn’t be bothered. As much as he was meant to keep his clients aware of what they were paying for, it was selfish of him to love their surprised reactions. Just now, the way her eyes immediately locked in on them in surprise. How her hand lightly fought against reaching for him. 

‘You can touch them. It doesn’t hurt.’ He took her hand and placed it right over his chest. She immediately regained control over her body, and her finger lightly traced over the silver bar. Eddie’s body tightened for a second in bliss. ‘See? It feels fucking good, actually.’ He hadn’t meant to whisper the words out or for them to be so shaky. It was supposed to be a light joke to keep the tension away, yet it pulled the atmosphere down to something intense and sultry. Hopefully, it wouldn’t scare her away.

But she smiled and leaned in again for a featherlight kiss. Fuck, she could kiss. It was like a gift from the gods themselves. A little piece of heaven. If this was how she kissed every guy, Eddie couldn’t comprehend how they didn’t line up for more. And then her hand kept moving, slowly tracing the ink on his body. Her fingernails grazed over the drawings. Perhaps it was a placebo, but he had always considered the tattoos to be more sensitive than the rest of him. The soft touches made him shake in need of her. 

‘What do you want me to do?’ he asked, nearly out of breath, mind spiralling with everything he wanted to do to her. He couldn’t keep it in a straight line anymore. Meanwhile, he was supposed to be the professional here. Meanwhile, she expected him to teach her… he was absolutely fucked. 

And then her following words only made his situation worse. 

‘Just tell me what to do, Eddie.’ Somehow, he missed the exact moment when her lips travelled down to his jaw. It must have been some kind of joke– there was no way this incredible woman did not know what she was doing. 

‘Fuck, baby.’ He groaned. He actually groaned. Eddie never did that during his sessions. It just wasn’t something he thought he could do with his clients. It turns out he had never been this turned on by any of them.

It made sense. How often did he think up hour scenarios before meeting the ladies? How often did he imagine he was with someone else? He had thought that maybe, because of the rules of his job and the frequency of his sessions, that maybe sex just wasn’t really anything for him. Not that he didn’t enjoy his job or regretted ever going into the business… money was good, and he was good at what he did. Yet, it was still a job. And jobs could often tire a person out. Maybe he had become desensitised to it all. 

But this proved all of his theories wrong. He was entirely in the moment. Aware of everything that was happening between him and her. Nothing between them was new, or necessarily exciting, and yet it felt like nothing he had felt before. Nothing but kissing sent him down a road he could never return from. 

And now she wanted him to tell her what to do. Yes, in the teaching context, he understood. But was she even aware that this would not be that far from the ordinary things he did in his sessions if they had just removed that context? Just add in some leather and handcuffs. 

‘Take your clothes off, baby.’ He spoke softly, not wanting to roll back into his regular role. This wasn’t that, he reminded himself. He didn’t want it to be that. 

When she started to pull her shirt up, he quickly took over. ‘No, wait, go slower. Take your time.’ Fuck, please take your time, he internally cried out. He didn’t want this night to end. It all felt like a dream, and he didn’t want to get dressed and wake up. He didn’t want to leave because once he did, coming back was not an option for him. 

♤

You followed his instruction, slowly pulling your shirt over your head. Focusing on him. Looking at him prevented you from getting too much into your head. After all, it was hard to think or worry about anything with someone like him, half-naked, under you. You traced his tattoos. They were all black and white, the ink scratchy and uneven on most as if done at home.

Not precisely stick and poke, but not from a studio either. A pull at your heartstrings made you think of how much money you had paid. How much he needed that money… See, hard to think of your own insecurities when looking at him.

Eddie moved up to lean on his elbow. You were sitting still for too long; he must have sensed something was off. With a gentle touch, he stroke your bare skin. You were both shirtless, though you still had your bra on; his hand was sneakily moving up to the strap over your back, ready to unclasp it.

‘What’s going on in that pretty head of yours, sweetheart.’ It must be some kind of trick he was pulling, something he learned over his experience on the job because of the way your whole body fluttered at the sound of the little nickname… it must be a trick. But there was nothing you could complain about either. 

Once again, your mouth worked faster than your brain, and before you could tell yourself to shut up, you answered with the first question that came to your mind. ‘Do you do anything else… besides this?’ a second later, before he even had the time to react, you butted in with your own response. ‘That is probably way out of bounds. Sorry–’ 

‘Only a little bit,’ he was taking it lightly with a chuckle. Clearly, with no intention of stopping what the two of you had been doing, he littered your jaw and neck with kisses between his answer. ‘I’m in a band. But garage gigs don’t exactly pay the bills.’ You felt him tremble with a laugh against your neck. Eddie had by then sat up and kept you in place on his lap with a tight hold. As he kept kissing you, you let your body speak for itself, closing your eyes and trusting your instincts. Somehow you knew what felt right and what didn’t. Your hips moved of their own accord, grinding against Eddie. You tried not to think about what you were doing, knowing you would just start to freak out and freeze. Instead, you thought of Eddie on stage with his band, imagining him in all the different positions, trying to figure out which instrument fit him best. 

As if he could read your mind, he said, ‘I play guitar.’ His hand had now officially made its mark on your bra, grabbing the backstrap, and wringing it until it unclasped.

‘That’s hot.’

‘Yeah?’ The bra snapped open. Eddie took it upon himself to slide the straps off your arms. You threw the item off to the side of the room, and Eddie didn’t waste a second to bring his attention to your breast.

♤

Had no one ever touched her properly?

All that Eddie did was kiss her tits, and she was almost coming undone. He felt a pang of terrible guilt on behalf of his entire sex. How the fuck did no one make her feel good… not only that. How did men make her feel as if she was the problem? That she had to step her game up and learn. If he ever got his hands on one of those assholes– woah. Calm down. 

♤

‘Yeah,’ you gasped out the small word. ‘So- so hot.’ It was hard to keep a sentence straight when he had his full attention on your nipples.

One preoccupying his lips, while the other was cupped by his large hand. He was rough in his touches, pulling and squeezing, but not in any way that felt too much. On the contrary, you needed more. More of him. 

He switched from one breast to the other in his movements. Then when he pulled away, he kissed you again. Then, he looked you in the eyes, a false seriousness covering his features. 

‘So, let that be lesson one: foreplay. Extremely important before any kind of sex.’ 

‘But… I didn’t do anything?’ You blinked. It was true, wasn’t it? He had been doing most of the work; meanwhile, you hadn’t done anything for him. But Eddie frowned.

‘Oh, baby, you did plenty.’ His hand reached down to his own trousers. ‘You feel this?’ When you hesitated, he took your hand to guide it over his crotch, where you could clearly feel the outline of his dick. ‘Yeah, that’s all you, sweetheart.’ He was so cocky, so confident. 

He kept on talking. ‘And let me ask you one more question.’ For this, he leaned in to almost whisper the words against your hot skin. ‘Are you wet?’ 

‘I don’t know.’ 

Eddie clicked his tongue in disapproval. ‘I think you do know, but let me check then, hmm?’ You weren’t sure how he did it, but he brought you underneath his body in one fell swing. You were now lying on the bed, and he slid down to sit on his knees at the end of the bed. ‘Professional opinion and all, right?’ 

‘Right.’ You hid your face in your hands to laugh. What the hell had you gotten yourself into?

Eddie reached for your hands, making you look down at him. 

‘I wanna see your pretty face.’ But, God, speaking of pretty faces, his smile might have been one of the most beautiful sights in the world. He could have been a model, probably… and yet… 

You didn’t want to look at him, however, when he started unzipping your trousers. The button opened up, and you heard the zipper move down, releasing the tension of the material around your waist. Eddie tapped your hip, telling you to move them up. Once you did so, with one big tug, he pulled the pants down to the middle of your thighs with one big tug. It took him three more to get them off entirely. The next second, the trousers were in the corner of the room, along with your shirts. 

‘Oh, baby,’ his syllables were long, dramatic, playful. ‘You are fucking soaking through these.’ You felt your back stiffen at the feeling of his fingers on you. Two, his pointer and middle fingers, slowly tracing down over the thin cotton. Then he’d roll them back up, letting his knuckles press the slit.

‘Fuck, can’t wait to taste you– can I taste you, baby?’ He asked, eyes pleading you for it. 

‘You don’t have to,’ you responded. The air in the room seemed to be turning colder and sent shivers over your arms. 

‘I know I don’t have to.’ Eddie scoffed, teasing. ‘Let that be lesson two then: if a guy doesn’t want his mouth near your pussy, then you shouldn’t come anywhere near his dick.’ He growled out the last words, and his hand had such a tight grip on your panties, that, with one quick move, he tore the material in two. 

♤

‘Eddie!’ she shouted. 

‘Shit, sorry.’ He got too carried away in everything. ‘I’ll pay you back.’ That’s when he glanced down; it was like his memory was instantly wiped. ‘Oh, fuck yes. Fuck you got the cutest pussy I’ve ever seen.’ He left a kiss a few inches above it and slowly made his way down. His fingers returned to the slow up-and-down motion he had done before, and each time, he let himself go deeper. Her body tensed up, and breathing hitched in her throat until it came out in a soft moan. 

‘That’s right,’ Eddie said before one last kiss on the most crucial spot. And this kiss lasted. After a few seconds, he practically made out with her clit, as his fingers entered her.

That is when her hand reached for his hair. The touch was enough to make him moan against her. 

‘Oh fuck,’ she moaned loud, eyes tightly shut in pleasure. Keeping his fingers deep within her, Eddie mused:

‘That’s right, baby. Does it feel good?’

‘So good.’ She dug her nails through his hair, nudging him on to continue whatever he was doing. 

♤

Even though you had not meant to pull at his hair, it was all much more of an impulsive action, Eddie groaned out against. He pulled you in closer, sending the vibrations from his body right through yours. 

You had expected, thinking up this plan of hiring someone to teach you sex, that it would be much more formal. That the guy would give you step-by-step instructions on how to do things, tell you everything directly, and you would follow. Maybe that is how it would be with anyone else, but with Eddie, he made you feel it. Without saying a word, you knew how to listen to him. Through his reactions, you knew what to do. His moans encouraged you to pull his hair, to close your thighs around him. Meanwhile, your response spurred him to go, let his fingers move harder, his tongue slick deeper through you. 

‘Fuck, Eddie, fuck.’ You felt that feeling inside you, the build-up. It wasn’t familiar, for you had only experienced it very few times, mostly on your own. This tension deep within you. It grew, quickly reaching its tipping point. 

Eddie’s free hand fastened itself onto your leg; he seemed to have lost himself in you. Then his eyes moved up, locking right with yourself. A part of you wanted to take a picture of what you saw in front of you and cherish the memory forever. His honey-brown eyes glazed in need of you. This spark of all-knowing deviltry. 

Your whole body tightened as you felt it coming, tighter and tighter, like a rubber band ready to snap.

But instead, Eddie let go of the band as he pulled away from you to accompany your last moan of his name.

A whimper left your mouth, and pleads were ready to follow it, begging him to not stop. Not now. Just a few more seconds. 

‘Lesson number three,’ he wiped his mouth– which was glistening in the room's warm light– with his thumb but never wiping the smug smile off his face. ‘Tease, tease and tease. The longer you keep them waiting, the sweeter their reward will be.’ 

At this point, you could not imagine it being so sweet, as all you felt was a horribly empty feeling, deflating your insides by the second. 

‘Everyone likes that?’ You asked.

‘Hmm, good question.’ Eddie got up to remove his belt. He made a spectacle out of it, sliding the whole strap from between the loops, then throwing it down to the ground. ‘It does probably depend on a person, what their limits are. How much they can last and take.’ Like a showman, he made you watch. Made you wait. ‘I’m sure some people would rather just get on to the final act.’ 

‘Not me?’ you asked as he pulled his jeans down along with his boxers.

Just like the picture. 

‘Hmm,’ with a pondering expression, he fell down onto the mattress beside you. ‘Not you.’ 

‘What makes you say that?’ It took all your willpower to keep looking into his eyes. He, however, wasn’t as courteous. His eyes roamed over your naked body as his hand found its way back between your legs. A quick snap. He slapped your clit lightly, but it was enough to immediately sent a spark through you, nearly bringing you back to the spot of tension. 

‘Just a hunch.’ He slapped you again. 

♤

She was so fucking sensitive. Like a little porcelain doll.

For good measure, and the fact he couldn’t get enough of how her body moved when encountering intense pleasure, he gave that pussy a third and final snap. Maybe he would have kept going, he certainly had not felt like stopping any time soon, but it was when her hand reached for his. Fingers around his wrist. Her eyes closed lightly, mouth parted just a tiny bit, enough for her to whisper his name. 

‘Eddie.’

‘What’s up, sweetheart,’ he leaned in his lips almost on her cheek again. She didn’t respond. ‘Lesson four: always use words. I don’t know what you really want unless you tell me.’ He left sloppy kisses over her face as he dictated. ‘So? What. Do. You. Want?’ He punctuated each word with a touch

‘Fuck me.’ 

‘Of course.’ He had expected her to play around with the words, make him pull it out of him, but no. So, he got up and reached for the wallet in his jeans. He should have checked sooner. This had been too much of a risk, but luckily, the silver foil stuck out immediately. 

She had sat up again to watch him rip the packaging open. 

‘You’re making me feel really unprofessional right now,’ he chuckled to himself whilst pulling the condom out. ‘I have a whole box in my bag with the rest of my stuff.’ He had planned to get it out of his car after meeting her at the bar, but then everything had gone a bit to shit, hadn’t it? 

‘I have a box… in my bag,’ she said, for some reason almost embarrassed. 

‘Someone’s eager, huh?’ Perhaps he didn’t help, but really, he was talking about himself. Eddie could immediately imagine himself being with her for the rest of the night, the entire fucking week if he could, but something told him that after this— that would most likely be it. It was better not to stretch a good thing out. She paid for him to teach her the basics, not exhaust her to her limits, perhaps scare her off of sex forever.

‘No, I just–’ did she notice he was joking? Either way, she hid her face in her hands, laughing at herself. Eddie took the moment that she wasn’t eating him alive with her eyes to get a few pumps in. it wasn’t even needed; he was rock hard; it was just a routine at this point. He let his head roll back a little back as his hand moved up and down, then got on with putting the condom on. 

♤

‘How should we uhm— how do you want—’ you looked for a good way to phrase it as Eddie got back into bed. 

‘Anything particular in mind you wanted to get a hang of?’ he asked. You shook your head no. Stupid. You should have done your research. Come more prepared. 

But could anything prepare you for Eddie? It didn’t seem likely. You could have come in with a four-volume guide, and he would have probably thrown it out the window and shown you a whole new world. 

‘Then we’ll just see where the night takes us, why don’t we?’ He positioned himself on top of you. Arms on each side of your shoulders, stomach hovering over yours. As you both breathed in, you could feel his muscles. He put his weight on one of his forearms as the other hand reached back down between you, moving his fingers in a circular, steady motion. 

Too occupied with how good his touch on you felt, there was no real thought going through your mind when you pulled his face closer to you, kissing him deeply. Your noses pushed against one another. Your fingers rooted down between his hair.  

Eddie spread your legs wider apart, creating the perfect position for himself. 

‘You ok?’ he asked, lips practically still on yours. 

‘Mhm.’ You hummed, but Eddie clicked his tongue, pulling away a few inches to look at you a bit more focused. 

‘Mm, remember rule four?’ 

You didn’t want to remember. You didn’t want to think. All you wanted, needed, was him inside you. But you answered: ‘use your words? Let them know what you want.’ 

‘Good girl,’ he kissed you softly. ‘It also goes for consent. Probably should have made that the first lesson, but what can you do? Make clear what and when you want something. If the guy doesn’t listen– I don’t know, kick him in the nuts.’ 

‘Got it.’ You nodded. 

‘So, let’s try it out.’ He didn’t move, just waited for you to speak. 

You took a deep breath. ‘I want you to fuck me, Eddie.’ 

‘There we go. Feels good, doesn’t it?’ His hand returned to rubbing your clit as he moved around above you, getting in the proper position. ‘Quick lesson five: it’s fucking hot when girls say shit like that. So don’t be afraid to get dirty.’ Slowly and carefully, he let himself sink into you. His length filled you up, spread your walls. It was a perfectly tight fit, making it impossible to hold anything in. 

‘Dirty and loud.’ Eddie stayed still, letting you get used to the feeling of him. ‘Don’t hold it in, baby, ok?’ 

‘O-ok.’ Your breath was shaky. Once used to him, you placed your hand on his chest. His hot breath burned your skin.

Eddie kept a slow pace, letting both of you ease into the rhythm of being together, but eventually, you felt your body loosen up. Finally, it wasn’t enough anymore. Was he holding himself in? Could he tell you needed more but was waiting for you to tell him? Teach you your lesson. 

‘More,’ the word was nearly just an exhale, but it was enough for Eddie. He kissed you passionately with a smile, and he plunged deeper inside you. From then on, his thrusts were harder, faster. He grabbed your leg and pulled it over himself. The new change brought in a whole new angle, letting you feel him through your entire body. 

The pleasure was intense, and beautiful. Your mind was scattered, so you didn’t even feel your teeth graze over your lips, locking in your voice. But Eddie noticed. 

♤

The second he caught it, something in Eddie’s mind switched on. As much as he tried to contain that part of himself, keep it away from her, he couldn’t. It was fucking primal. 

He thrust harder than he did before. His hand found its way to her cheek, squeezing it– not too tight, he pulled himself back quickly, but strong enough to show her he meant it– and his words came out in a growl. 

‘What did I tell you, baby? Don’t hold it in.’ A few more deep thrusts left both their bodies shaking with each move. ‘I want to hear every pretty sound that comes out of your mouth.’ His thumb pressed against her bottom lip, and, without another word exchanged, she parted those beautiful lips and granted him access. 

She fucking moaned around it and sucked her own juices off it. Could she taste the sweetness? He hoped she could. He was jealous of every person that ever got to taste it, but he quickly let that thought sink away as he had more pressing questions. 

‘Now, where did you learn that?’ He smiled when he pulled his thumb away, his hips only slightly rearranging the pace as he spoke calmly. 

‘Sorry, was that wrong?’ She blinked. Genuine fucking naivete. Eddie could barely hold it in anymore. 

‘Only in the sense that it got me this close to blowing my load before you got even close.’ He quickly regained his speed.

From that point on, she didn’t hold back. Her moans were beautiful. The sound of his name comes directly from the centre of her pleasure was like hitting the jackpot. If only he could live off those cute noises, he’d be the wealthiest man on earth. The luckiest. The happiest. 

What the fuck was wrong with him? 

But shit were her tits a sight for sore eyes. Looking at them, he couldn’t go a second without touching them. For a moment, he got scared he was too rough, but then the claws came out– almost literally. Her nails dug into his back. It would leave marks, and Eddie couldn’t wait to see them when he looked in the mirror the following day. 

‘Eddieee,’ it came out so shaky, so desperate. He could tell she was getting close. It took much less than expected. He had a thousand things in his head that he still wanted to do with her, show her, but even he realised then it was wishful thinking. His own words from minutes ago reverberated in his mind. 

You’re making me feel really unprofessional right now.

He was ready to burst, and it only took a few minutes in missionary. Usually, he could go for ages.

Then again, he hadn’t been this turned on in a long time. 

‘You close, baby?’ He asked and almost hoped to hear yes; Eddie didn’t know how much longer he could last, and if he came before her– he could never live that down. 

But she was lost in him, too far down to appropriately respond. That wasn’t good. Eddie slowed down a bit. ‘Hey, hey, you alright?’ 

♤

‘Yes,’ you took a deep breath, ‘please don’t stop. Not now.’ He was making you feel incredible. In a matter of a few minutes, you felt like you had reached the seventh heaven. Absolute bliss. 

But perhaps you didn’t feel how much you actually felt. As good as it was, this overwhelming sensation pulled you away from everything around you. When Eddie brought you back, with the softness of his voice and the touch of his hands, only then you realised how far down you had been.

‘Are you sure? We can take a break.’ Eddie’s eyes searched your face for any signs of trouble, but before he could spiral, you halted him. A few deep breaths were all it took for you to be present. 

‘I’m ok. Thank you.’ You kissed him. Whatever anyone would say if they heard about your plan, this was how you knew you had made the right choice. Or perhaps how you knew that the universe wasn’t always against you. Tonight, it brought you Eddie. Whether it was a freak accident or not, you would never regret the choices that led to it. 

Eddie continued what he was doing, giving you all his attention. To all of you. You didn’t feel like an inch of your body went down forgotten. Meanwhile, he was all you could think about. It was like the world around you dissolved. A fire could have burned down the entire room, and you don’t think you would have even noticed. Not with Eddie’s cock deep inside you. He didn’t falter. Each thrust was full of him, hitting the perfect spot. Mind-numbing, toe-curling and… 

Soon, you felt that feeling again. That tightness inside you. This time even tighter than previously. It was to be expected that Eddie knew what he was talking about. The longer the wait, the better the reward. And to think only a little time had passed since the two of you entered the hotel room. Not much time at all compared to how much you wished you could be with him. Was it insane? Probably, but you didn’t care.

You just wanted him, and you would take as much as he could give you. 

♤

Eddie could feel how close she was. 

It had definitely scared him when he saw how far down she had been, already blaming himself for taking it too far. He had been ready to pull the plug and return her all the money. It didn’t matter if her payment had actually gone to his account; he would make sure that his fuck ups were compensated. 

But she was fine. Like a little firecracker that she was, she kissed him, wiping his whole mind clear of anything but her. Her and that sweet, sweet taste. 

It didn’t take much longer for breathing to break up in quick succession. Moans got louder, likely uncontrolled, and her grip on his tighter. Her nails dug into his shoulder just as he loved it. 

‘C’mon baby, come on.’ He encouraged her to lose all of her control. Lose herself to the pleasure. She needed to know how it was to be treated right. He needed her to know. And he didn’t know how much more he could keep it going. His last few thrusts still reached the deepest parts of her, and got everything out of her he wanted, but he felt himself lose his momentum. With each second, it was getting harder to concentrate. 

‘Oh my god-’ she whimpered as she released underneath him with a high-pitched scream at that. As much as he wanted to hear all of it, he kissed her to mute it. There was no need for the neighbours to get concerned. 

Though from all the other noises they made, from how the bed shook and banged against the wall, they would make the correct assumption. 

Not much later, as she was still coming undone, Eddie let himself reel in the pleasure. Then, stilled within her, his lips on her neck now, he came. When he pulled away, he wished he could have left a mark on her, but he knew that would be a step too far. 

‘Thank you’ were the first words to come out of her mouth when he discarded the full condom in the trash. He wasn’t sure what to do now. He didn’t like feeling naked post-sex, but he didn’t want her to get the wrong idea. Maybe she expected more. If so, he could give it to her, but he just wasn’t sure– 

‘It’s my pleasure,’ he sat on the edge of the bed, just in reach to place his hand on her leg. They were both covered in sweat, naturally, but the cold was taking over. ‘You should get under the covers.’ The last thing he wanted was for her to get sick.

‘Right.’ She pulled at the corner of the blanket– always a much more arduous task than necessary in hotel rooms when they’re tucked in deeper than the pits of hell. As soon as she pulled the white sheet over her body, Eddie regretted his choice of words. It was probably the last time he would have seen her naked, and he didn’t even take a moment to appreciate what he had in front of him. 

He found his underwear, which was almost kicked under the bed. When he resurfaced, her face was full of worry. The furrow of her brows was enough to tell him that. 

‘What’s wrong?’ he asked as he covered himself up. 

‘I’m sorry.’ 

‘I don’t understand.’ 

‘I didn’t do anything. I asked you to help me figure this out, and we just–’ 

‘No, hey, hey.’ Eddie practically jumped into bed next to her. Cupped her face in his hands and made sure she looked at him as he spoke. ‘First of all, if this is how you feel, I should be the one to be sorry since I clearly didn’t do my job. So I’m sorry. But you have no reason to think you didn’t do well. This was amazing.’ He could only hope she knew just how much he meant his words. That she could trust a complete stranger with words as much as she did with their bodies. 

‘No, Eddie, it’s not that you didn’t teach me anything, but I– there’s still so much I don’t know. Fuck, I still have no idea how to suck a guy off.’ 

Eddie cursed under his breath. Just from those words, he could feel himself twitching against his boxers. This girl was going to be the death of me. She kept on talking. 

‘Would it be ok if we do this again? Not as an accident this time, I will book you.’ 

He wanted to say yes so badly. But he had to keep his mind clear as he answered. ‘I don’t think that will be a good idea.’ fuck. Fuck. Fuck. He wanted to punch himself in the gut. 

♤

‘I try to keep a strict one-time, no repeating clients policy. It makes the job much easier,’ Eddie explained. 

‘No, I understand.’ Having to do this with the number of people he does… you couldn’t imagine how that was. How other people would be with him, and what could have happened for him to make such a rule in the first place. 

‘I would say you should try Steve for real, but I don’t believe you need any “sex lessons”. 

‘Right,’ you scoffed away the comment, but Eddie was persistent. 

‘I mean it. I can tell that you have a whole talent in there for this shit. You just need to find the right guy to bring it out in you because whoever you’ve been in the past, clearly, they weren’t doing it right. Then you will learn everything else you want to learn by yourself. Basically like you did now.’ He gave you a kind smile, and you tried to replicate it. 

‘I did need you.’ You couldn’t look at him as you said it.

‘Ehhh– not so sure about that. For a while, I thought you just wanted me for my body.’ He fell over to his back, hand on his chest as if he had just been shot. ‘That shit can hurt, you know.’ He was so dramatic and made you laugh so easily. You had never expected anything like that to happen that night. 

♤

A body to adore was one thing, but he might miss her smile even more. 

‘Are you feeling alright?’

‘Why do you keep asking me that?’ She blinked. Eddie pushed down the anger he felt at all those morons that had not treated her right before.

‘Let that be your final lesson then,’ he pushed down another instinct, this time to make a cheesy reference that she might not get. There was no need to make the mood weird or awkward now. Eddie cleared his throat. ‘Lesson… what number are we on, six?– Lesson six: aftercare. Just check up on yourself to see if you’re able to carry on afterwards. While always quite vital, the more intense the session, the more important the aftercare. It keeps you stable.’ 

She nodded in understanding. ‘So, how would that look?’

‘Well, let’s see…. Are you sore? Do you need anything?’ Once again, he was mad at himself for going into this without his usual stuff. While his bag was mostly filled with toys that might be a bit too much for her, he also had plenty of shit to make her feel better if needed. 

‘No, I don’t think so.’ 

‘Ok, do you need something to drink? Eat?’ Before she even replied, Eddie lunged for the can of soda she had discarded on the desk opposite the bed. The bubbles would have mostly flattened by now, but it was still a liquid to drink. 

‘Not really,’ she said as he handed her the can and took a small sip. ‘Ok, maybe a little bit.’ They both smiled as she emptied the can of its last chug. 

‘More?’ Eddie asked as he tried to read it off of her. 

‘No, I’m good.’ Just like before, she started tapping on the can. Now empty, it sounded even more hollow. 

‘And was everything alright? I was scared I might have gone too far at one point.’ 

♤

The way you could see the genuine concern and worry in Eddie’s eyes made you want to wrap your arms around him, kiss him, and never let him go. To think that a few hours ago, neither of you was even aware of the other’s existence. That you weren’t supposed to be aware, that it was all a giant coincidence. And that after tonight… that would be all that it ever was. 

Here was this fantastic man taking care of you better than any other guy had. 

Sure, you paid him to do it, but something in you, call it a freaky instinct, told you that that was just who Eddie was. He wanted to take care of you. 

Maybe that’s why he went into the business. Who could really tell?

‘It was perfect,’ you told him because it was. 

‘Ok, good.’ He nodded, smiling shyly. It was the first time that night that you saw a crack in the confident front of the guy. 

‘Really, thank you.’ You reached for his hand, and his eyes followed it. He looked as your fingers lazily intertwined while you watched him.

‘You, uhm, you should probably go to the bathroom. Make sure you wash all of me out. Make it a standard practice, really.’

‘Will do,’ your voice wasn’t hoarse, yet you whispered. It suddenly became hushed in the room. It could have been quiet all this time, but it was then that you grew aware of it. 

You didn’t want to leave the bed, or Eddie, just yet, but you knew you should listen to his professional advice. Everything he had told you so far felt like the most obvious thing in the world. Maybe you also knew of them already, maybe did it too, but it only made sense when it came from Eddie.  ‘Don’t leave yet, ok? I want to say goodbye.’ The idea of him being gone when you came back felt gut-wrenching for many reasons, but all unknown. 

All Eddie did was nod. 

When you returned, he had just put his shirt back on. His belt was in his jeans loops but not yet fastened. Was it weird to watch him get dressed? It felt more like a thing real couples did, which you were far from. It felt stranger doing so whilst you were still completely naked, so you grabbed the fluffy white bathrobe on the bathroom shelf and pulled it on, tying it tightly around your waist. 

‘That’s me then.’ Eddie scratched the back of his neck, looking around, most likely checking if he didn’t forget something. A part of you hoped he did. He would realise it only hours later and rush back to find it. That this wasn’t the last time the two of you would meet. 

A girl could wish. 

‘Right.’ You put on a brave face as you made your way to the door. ‘Thank you again. For everything.’

All Eddie did in response was nod with a tight-lipped smile. 

The door was open now. He was already on the threshold. Compared to the soft glow of your room, the corridor's light felt jarring to your eyes. Just like that, it was over.

You could not believe this was the end. It ended as quickly as it started. A whole whirlwind of… everything, really. 

Before you could stop yourself, one last question burst through your lips. 

‘Is Eddie your real name?’ You immediately regretted your entire life, couldn’t believe you had done that. ‘I’m so sorry, just ignore me. I don’t know why I said that–’

But Eddie beamed. He took your hand in his. ‘As real as anything tonight was.’ and placed a soft kiss on your knuckles. He started walking before your wrist even hit your hip. 

You couldn’t watch him walk away, so you closed the door and your eyes before he went too far. A minute later, you cursed to yourself.

The whole aftercare thing- You never got to ask if he was ok.

Fuck.

the end.

thank you so much for reading!! if you want more of where this came from, check out my masterlist. - also made a lil playlist based on this fic, told through taylor swift songs

and please support your (not so) local creators by liking AND reblogging.

I would love to know what you thought of the story, so please consider leaving a comment, or maybe an ask or even an anonymous review ;P

you are also more than welcome to join the taglist. right here.

Eddie (smut, 18+) taglist part 1:

@spiderrrling @theglitterymess @dorianelizabeth @theletterhart @niyahwhoreworld @fopdoodle1624 @pastel-abyss-x @ghoulsgraveyard @lovesickollie @xbreezymeadowsx @ssanjuniperoo @nxrdamp @meaganjm @mischiefmanagers @capybergara @brother-lauren @h0sh1verse @ghostlyreads @croweaterr @ladyapplejackdnd @bilesxbilinskixlahey @kbakery @lizzylynch1 @liltimmyst @hellfire-state-of-mind @escape-in-time-x @sweetpeapod @the-a-word-2214 @eddiemunsonbby @mydearzero @overthewhiteclouds @wroteclassicaly @groupies-do-it-better @celestialsxturn @hoe4eddiemunson @inanausomewhere @scoops-harrington @fluffyharrington @billyhargrovesprincess @annikin-im-panicin @kaitieskidmore1 @yesv01 @princess-aries

[munsonsmixtapes]

Hi I hope you are having a great day.

I was wondering if you could write more about Eddie Munson dating a Swiftie.

- Swiftie anon

um yes absolutely!

I saw a tiktok where a girl was showing her boyfriend All Too Well (10 Minute Version) which is what this was inspired by. If I can find it, I'll link it here!

"So this one is allegedly about Jake Gyllenhall," you tell him as you put on the next song, turning it up since it's the one you really to see his reaction to.

"How do you know this?"

"The internet, baby. That's why I say allegedly because there's no actual confirmation that it's about him, but I mean, it's pretty clear that it is."

"This is ten minutes?" He asks as he looks at the little screen in his car that shows what song is playing.

Sure, a lot of the songs he listens to are much longer than that, but that's expected with the genres he listens to. It's not very common for a pop song to exceed five minutes so he thinks there must be a lot that needs to be said.

"Yes," you nod. "But I promise it won't even feel like. Oh, and there's a short film as well that we can watch later."

"A short film?"

Eddie doesn't know why that surprises him. Considering everything he's heard about this woman from you, it seems like she's always doing something and even though he's never really been a huge fan of hers, he can still appreciate how much she loves her job and how much effort and love she puts into each project.

"Yes! It really shows what their relationship was like and puts the whole thing into perspective."

The lyrics start and you're singing along, even going as far as pulling out a red scarf from your purse and wrapping it around your neck. Eddie looks at you briefly before turning back to the road as he laughs how committed to the bit you are.

You're singing along to the lyrics as Eddie tries to focus on them, pausing the song after only a few lines.

I walked through the door with you, the air was cold But something 'bout it felt like home somehow And I left my scarf there at your sister's house And you've still got it in your drawer, even now

"Pause," he says, trying to wrap his head around what he's just heard.

"He kept her scarf?" The whole thing seems so weird to him. He understands to an extent, but not enough to defend who is being sung about.

"Yes!" You reply. "He was even seen wearing it while walking around town, Eddie! There are paparazzi pictures."

"So weird," he shakes his head then plays the song again.

And I know it's long gone and That magic's not here no more And I might be okay, but I’m not fine at all

"This is so heartbreaking," he comments, really hearing the pain in her voice.

"And it only gets worse from here," you sigh, obviously already knowing what's coming.

And you were tossing me the car keys, "Fuck the patriarchy" Keychain on the ground, we were always skipping town And I was thinking on the drive down, "Any time now, He's gonna say it's love", you never called it what it was Till we were dead and gone and buried Check the pulse and come back, swearing it's the same After three months in the grave And then, you wondered where it went to, as I reached for you But all I felt was shame and you held my lifeless frame

Eddie doesn't want to admit it, but that part's made him feel something. Maybe it's just how heartbroken she sounds or how she talks about how she really seemed to love him and was proud of their relationship while whoever she's singing about just wanted to hide what they had away because he seemed ashamed.

He thinks about how he would never want to do that to you, how he loves to flaunt your relationship, even going as far as kissing you in public, not giving a single damn who's watching. So he doesn't understand how people can feel so ashamed of their partner.

And you call me up again Just to break me, like a promise So casually cruel in the name of being honest I'm a crumpled up piece of paper lying here 'Cause I remember it all, all, all Too well

"He made her feel like a piece of paper, Eddie."

"Brutal," he replies with a sigh.

They say all's well that ends well, but I'm in a new Hell Every time you double-cross my mind You said, "If we had been closer in age, maybe it would have been fine" And that made me want to die

"What was the age difference?"

"She was nineteen or twenty and he was twenty-nine." That makes Eddie's stomach churn. He's the same age and can't even conceptualize wanting to pursue someone as young as nineteen or twenty. That's a whole nine and ten years difference and that would definitely make for a power imbalance.

"Gross. And he's just saying that to make himself feel better. Because the truth is, he was going to end it anyway because it's clear that he doesn't care about her as much and she cares about him. The whole thing seems manipulative."

"See! I knew you'd understand." You love how much he's actually thinking about the lyrics and what they mean just like you do.

The idea you had of me, who was she? A never-needy, ever-lovely jewel whose shine reflects on you Not weeping in a party bathroom Some actress asking me what happened, you That's what happened, you You, who charmed my dad with self-effacing jokes Sipping coffee like you're on a late-night show But then he watched me watch the front door all night, willing you to come And he said, "It's supposed to be fun turning twenty-one"

"Hold on," he pauses the music again. "He didn't show up to her birthday party?"

"No," you shake your head in disappointment. "He didn't. And there's a whole song about that which we can listen to later."

And I was never good at telling jokes, but the punch line goes I'll get older, but your lover's stay my age

"Damn," is all Eddie can say in response to the line. "That was cutthroat."

The song comes to an end as the the car rolls up to your destination and Eddie just sits there, staring out through the windshield, clearly deep in thought. He then turns to you, still looking like he's pondering.

"Can we listen to it again?" He asks, which surprises you."

"Of course we can, baby," you reply and play the song again as you two sit in silence in the grocery store parking lot that Eddie had just pulled into. It seems like your groceries can wait. At least for the next ten minutes, they can.

[itsnotbird]

Orphic~ File 4

Indelible (adj) ; Impossible to erase or forget

Warnings: Extreme triggers! Talks of kidnapping, abuse, murder, labs, powers

Bucky!Barnes x Fem!Reader

Find previous part here

Masterlist

Sleeping alone is still a strange thought.

You only were in a room by yourself when you were being observed…or living through a punishment.

The empty and quiet walls of your new room have you missing the sleeping quarters of that damn place…wherever it is. You close your eyes, grunting as you desperately try and remember all the important things, names, locations, anything that would be more helpful.

There’s nothing but white spaces in your memory.

You huff and bury your face in your pillow. If you soften your breathing just enough, you could hear the overlapping huffs of the girls you once had a bed next to. They’re long gone now, all you know of them is how they look lying still and lifeless.

To say the least, you struggled through the night.

In the morning, you twitch and itch slightly as your body pulses for that fix it’s gotten so used to. If it were up to you, you wouldn’t take the infusion, but your body threatens to give up if it doesn’t have a taste, so Dr. Banner is your saving grace, administering a low dose that continues to get lower until you don’t need it anymore.

It feels like hell.

There’s clothes in your closet that you aren’t a fan of, shades of white and beige, pastel colors of blue and pink.

The things you would do for a pair of pants.

You throw yet another dress on, a different pair of knee socks and those red high tops…the only thing of yours they let you keep. You get lost on your way to the communal women’s bathroom, but you turn back around and find it.

“Good morning.” Wanda greets you as you enter. She’s in front of one of the mirrors, applying makeup.

You smile at the normality of it.

Brushing through your ragged hair, you can’t help but let out a frustrated sigh when it gets knotted again.

“You know, Natasha could help you with a hair cut if you’d like. Maybe a trim? Get rid of those dead ends?”

You look over at her and nod.

Like she was summoned, Natasha appears and is more than happy to assist.

You head to the meeting, free of a few inches.

“Haircut?” Tony asks as you sit down besides Nat.

You nod.

“Looks good.” He approves.

“Good morning, Blue.” Steve greets, causing question from the few Avengers that are in the conference room.

“Blue?” Sam questions.

“Yeah.” He shrugs. “Because her powers…are blue…look, she doesn’t remember her name and I’m not calling her by a number, Blue will have to work.”

You giggle to yourself, and Steve grins in victory.

“Ha! I was the first to make her laugh.” He calls out in victory as he sits down across from you.

“She’s probably laughing because you’re an idiot.” Sam claims, taking his own seat.

One by one, the rest of the team joins.

Headphones on your ears, you aren’t necessarily paying attention to the things around you. Not when Nat argues with the Captain, saying she’s taking you to get clothes and Steve claims you needed to stay here.

“She’s wearing borrowed clothes, looking like the girl from Buffalo 66. She’s a grown woman, and she needs pants.” Nat defends with a glare.

“What’s Buffalo 66?” Steve questions, now side tracked.

“Alright, enough.” Tony calls. “Nat, take the kid shopping, don’t let her you know…do anything crazy.”

That ends the conversation.

Bucky comes into the mix, black coffee in hand as he sits next to Steve…across from you.

“Haircut?” Tony asks, having deja vu.

Bucky just gives him a blank expression, then looks to you.

“What’s her deal?” He asks Steve, questioning the way you don’t bother to look up from your phone.

“Uh…we think it’s best if she doesn’t listen to this first part of the meeting.” Is all Steve says, then passes out files.

“Alright, thanks to our guest here.” He says, motioning to you. “We have a new case.”

Everyone opens their folders, then sorts through the few papers inside.

“The Ring?” Clint questions.

Tony brings up the projection of the information already obtained. “When Fury took E.T. over there, she told agents about this underground organization known as ‘The Ring’. It’s made up of the bosses who run it, their little henchmen, the scientists, and the subjects. It’s grown rapidly into communities all over.”

Everyone shifts their eyes to you, then quickly look away.

“How do they get the subjects?” Bruce asks, brows creased as he looks at the paperwork.

“They kidnap five girls at a time when they’re needed. Doesn’t matter who or where from. Then, they’re brought into labs, turned into guinea pigs for five years while they are conditioned. Their rules are strict, no talking in English, wait for permission to do anything. It takes a whole army for this, there’s teachers and doctors and head agents that are assigned to one of them.” Steve explains, then expands a picture of the brand that sits on the back your neck. “Each division has a symbol, each girl has a number. Blue was 505, she was the fifth of the five in her division.”

You can feel their devastation, it radiates off of them and seeps into your skin. You have the urge to tell them that pity won’t do you any favors, but your tongue stays still.

Natasha leans back in her chair. “What’s the goal? Create super humans for the hell of it?” She asks.

Cap continues. “Once they prove themselves to be exactly what they made them to be, they become hitmen for hire. Some gang leader needs an opponent out of the game? Well they go to one of The Ring leaders, pay them big money, then sit back and wait for the job to be done.”

The team shakes their heads, and Bucky feels his stomach twist. This feels all too familiar, like he’s watching a version of his story play out in front of him.

“What can she tell us?” He speaks, motioning to you then looks to the hologram in front of him.

Tony brings up a few faces of unfamiliar men, newspaper articles of missing children. “She was kidnapped when she was ten, pulled from her bedroom at night. The more she’s adapting, the more she remembers but as of right now, she can only tell us what’s in the files.”

They look further at the notes.

“They develop a relationship with these girls, they give them education, train them to use their powers properly. Each girl has a different ability, they’re all kept together and available for what ever hit they need to do.” Tony explains, his tone almost amazed and confused. “They don’t try to hide these girls, they carefully put them out in society when it’s sure they are rewired properly. They-they give them different aliases, have them play roles perfectly until they can take out their target.”

“If they’re trained so flawlessly…then why’d I find her in the street?” Bucky asks.

Steve brings up the photo of a man named Lawrence Antonov.

“This man was the scientist in charge of Blue’s division, by some accident, he injected them with a serum that essentially cleared their brains. It over powered the previous conditioning, the previous serums given so they would go along with what they were told to do. All of it, wiped clean. Unfortunately, important names and locations were also wiped clean from their minds.”

Sam groans. “It’s never easy, is it?”

Tony glares. “Yeah, tell that to the kid who was a lab rat for almost 15 years of her life.”

Sam sinks a little in his chair.

“Moving on.” Steve says, trying to defuse the situation. “Blue fought her way out, she remembers leaving a warehouse in Vermont, making it as far as she could before her body gave up. Bucky found her, here she is.”

You’re playing a game on your phone, making Nat look over and hum approvingly. “She’s winning.”

They all watch you with a strange look, then shift their attention back to Tony.

“So, Vermont is where we start?” Clint asks.

- - - -

It’s sometime after the meeting ends that you run into him.

Bucky curses to himself as you stop in your tracks, looking him over. He just gives a tight lipped smile and tries to walk past you. Though, as he goes, he can’t help but turn back.

“You’re cooperative, that’s good.” He says, then realizes how off putting that sounds. “I just mean with the case, you’re actually being helpful.”

You just blankly stare at him.

“Not trying to sound like a dick, that’s supposed to be a compliment.” He clarifies, then decides it’s a lost cause anyway. So he huffs. “You get the idea.”

A pleasant smile plays on your lips as he turns his back and walks off.

“Your hair looked nice before.”

Bucky stumbles in his step, then pauses, trying to see if he’s imagining it. As he slowly turns, you’re still standing there, headphones in hand, round soft blue eyes. He doesn’t miss the way you have some sort of twitch about you.

“Did you…did you just talk?” He asks, brows furrowed.

Instantly, your smile drops, afraid you’ve upset him. He sees the expression and panics.

“No, no, I didn’t mean- you just…don’t talk.” He sighs.

“You gave me a compliment, right? So I give you one back.” You smile once more. “Your hair looked nice before, but it looks good now.”

This is happening?

“Thanks…” He says, adapting to the odd situation. “Nothing major…I fixed it this morning.”

You nod.

The two of you stand there in complete silence for an uncomfortable amount of time before Bucky walks away again.

“James.” You call out one last time.

His ears ring.

Was he supposed to feel dizzy when you call his name?

“Yeah?” He looks back at you.

Your fingers curl into the sleeve of your sweater. “Don’t tell the others I spoke…I’m not ready for the floods of questions they’ll ask me.”

He lets out a little huff.

You thought about speaking to him before you did it, you could’ve stayed silent as always, but you trusted him to not be overbearing.

“It’ll be our little secret.” He says, nodding.

Next Part

[diabolik-boys]

How the Sakamaki boys react to have a paranoid s/o and see spirits all the time: like everytime see sees Cordelia's spirits smiling at her, and they screaming for help and crying and everytime says: "i am not her,am i?"

===== S/O SEEING CORDELIA CONSTANTLY SCENARIO =====

===== S/O SEEING CORDELIA CONSTANTLY: SAKAMAKI =====

=============== Shu Sakamaki ===============

"No. You are not her. But it's clear that my father has been plotting something to make you see her. If not her just causing issues on her own. We should probably go ask Reiji if something is up. Please try to calm down. We don't need you screaming and crying anytime you see her."

Shu is rather protective over his S/O, even if he doesn't outwardly show or express that. Obviously, though, he knows that Cordelia is not good news. He will do his best to start investigating why she is showing up this time around, as she usually likes doing.

Over the years, there have been many reasons why Cordelia shows up to brides/grooms. But he knows how to handle most occurrences of seeing Cordelia, and Shu will do his best to help his S/O calm down.

After conversing with his brothers and with Reiji, Shu will do his part and help out with getting rid of Cordelia once more, shall things take a turn for the worse. But also for the safety of his S/O, Shu will do what needs to be done to help.

=============== Reiji Sakamaki ===============

"Well, it is clear that there is something happening that is concerning for you to be seeing that woman. I must take precautions and warn my brothers about what is happening. Please tell me in detail what you are seeing concerning that woman. She is nothing more than a pest."

Reiji has red flags go off no matter the slightest indication that Cordelia is trying to interfere in their lives again. He is not a fan of the woman, especially since he knows the history of what happened extensively with his younger brothers and the instances she has gone after himself or Shu as well.

Concluding that he needs to do something to help, he will work on a drug to help alleviate and diminish the hallucinations of Cordelia, and will work extensively on trying to figure out why she is appearing again. There is always an underlying plan up her sleeve whenever she starts appearing.

For the safety of his S/O, Reiji will do everything possible to get rid of Cordelia, whether once more or anymore possible occurrences to come. Reiji cares deeply for his S/O, as well as the wellbeing for his younger siblings. He wouldn't want them to get hurt by that woman again, nor his S/O.

=============== Ayato Sakamaki ===============

"Ugh, I'm so tired of that damned woman tryin' to ruin my life. There ain't nothin' I want to do with that fuckin' woman anymore, and yet she continues to try an' ruin whatever good I got in my life! I'm gonna go talk t' Reiji, try an' get somethin' so that ya' don't hallucinate her anymore, alright?"

Ayato will of course be affected no matter how many times his mother starts interfering with his life. And he's dead tired of her showing up, no matter what meddling she is doing in trying to ruin his S/O's life or his own once again.

He will not be gentle about things. He'll demand answers and search high and low for reasons why she is appearing again. No matter how many times she comes back to try and cause chaos, Ayato will be strong and hard-headed in trying to get rid of the woman. He especially worries about Laito, as well as his S/O, once he is aware Cordelia is back trying to ruin things again.

Ayato will demand things of Reiji to help out and warn his siblings immediately. Things could get heated and chaotic, especially since a lot of times that Cordelia shows up, blood is shed. If it's only Cordelia's plans or even his father's plans, Ayato will figure it all out. There is nothing that he will not be willing to do to assure his S/O's safety and Laito and Kanato's mental wellbeing.

=============== Kanato Sakamaki ===============

"Hm. You are seeing my mother? How strange... Yet another bride/groom is being plagued by her. Maybe you can finally understand a little bit of what it's like to be me. I often hear my mother's voice within my head. It makes me angry. I suppose I should go tell my brothers... It seems this is just going to be another headache."

Kanato gets very upset even the slightest mention of his mother. He has a warped view of how his mother is, just like Laito. But more often than not, there is nothing but pure and unbridled rage. He will want to demand answers from his S/O first, and could almost start blaming them for things although Cordelia showing up is not his S/O's fault at first in defense.

After he'd calm down some, he'd go to his brothers and express that Cordelia once again is trying to ruin things and get her way as she always does. But Kanato isn't going to allow this to happen, and will ask for help although he really doesn't want to interact with his brothers that often. However, he will want to make sure Cordelia is taken care of and berid of for good.

Kanato will ask many questions, trying to garner answers of why she once again is showing up, and how to stop her from showing up again. He's tired of being reminded of her. He wants to keep his mother buried in the past. So, he will consult with his brothers, and do his best to find out why specifically she is back this time trying to hurt his S/O. The only one who can hurt his S/O is him, and that's all.

=============== Laito Sakamaki ===============

"Hm. You are seeing images of my mother? How annoying. I wonder what it will be about this time. Perhaps she just wants to continue hurting me by targeting you. I shall talk to my brothers about this, and perhaps ask Reiji to start working on something to help you not see her. I am very tired of having to deal with this woman..."

Laito gets affected the most by mentions of his mother. Anytime things are mentioned about his mother, you can see the expression change within Laito's face. It's clear there is much pain behind these expressions that Laito probably will never fully explain.

Regardless, he will be very annoyed and visibly tired of hearing that his mother is once again trying to get in the way of his life and especially by threatening his S/O in some way to make them hallucinate. He will warn his brothers, especially Ayato and Kanato, and will do his best to find out why, once again, Cordelia is trying to interfere.

He will settle with Reiji to create an anti-hallucinogenic medicine to help, but also will confide in him and Shu to ask if Karlheinz has anything to do with Cordelia showing up again this time around. He will want to find the reason why his S/O is seeing flashing images/Cordelia's ghost, and will want to put a stop to it as soon as possible. He would be more than willing to have bloodshed if necessary.

=============== Subaru Sakamaki ===============

"No, yer not her. But she's dangerous, ya' hear me? Don't you even interact with her. I'mma tell Reiji t' make some anti-hallucinogenic medicine. It should help. But even then, I'm gonna try an' get t' the bottom of this. She keeps on tryin' t' get in the way of things. And I ain't gonna let her hurt ya'."

Subaru doesn't take things concerning Cordelia lightly. Even if he doesn't show it, he cares for his brothers. He might hate them sometimes, but he does genuinely care about them. He will warn his brothers about the sightings of Cordelia, and will most certainly takes things very seriously for his S/O's wellbeing.

After consulting with Shu and Reiji, he will want to determine why Cordelia is showing up again, and will want to rule out every single possibility of why Cordelia has shown up in their lives thus far. And after that, he will want to rule out plans that his father might be meddling with as well. In order for his S/O's safety, he'll be more than willing to get violent and have bloodshed if necessary.

Much like his other brothers, he'll be dead tired of Cordelia showing up just to try and ruin things. He doesn't want his brothers to have to deal with this woman again, and he doesn't want his S/O to get hurt. Subaru will try to also come up with ideas and ways that they could stop having Cordelia show up for good, but he might not be successful. But he damn sure will try.

[jade-kyo]

Non-Red vs Blue fans guess the fake fact: results!

Find the og post here

Alright time to finally review the results! Correct answer is at the bottom of this post for those not interested in all of the results and explanations!

So the most highly voted option at 23% was Elijah Wood which I’m sorry to say is incorrect! Elijah Wood was a voice actor in the series. He played the role of Sigma! What this big name actor is doing in a random web series I have no idea but it’s still one of the wildest things to me.

Now the aspirin overdose comes in with 17.3% and got mentioned a lot in the notes and it is also incorrect. However I will admit to some poor wording on my part because it was actually an allergic reaction not an overdose. That’s a genuine oopsies on my part 😅

Florida sinking into the ocean gets a 10.1% and is also incorrect! The state of Florida does in fact sink into the ocean and it’s implied this was to cover up the disappearance of Agent Florida (who is also the guy who dies from the aspirin)

The gay guy, who’s name is Donut btw, becoming Jesus comes in with 8.3% and is in fact very real. He even walks on water. It was wild and tbh I barely remember it cause it’s from a season I dislike but it was too wild not to include.

With 7.2% I can say for sure that the giant killer robot is indeed dressed up in cute hats! Specifically a sombrero! Also the robots name is Freckles.

CPR for a bullet wound in the head gets 6.7% and is in fact considered effective medical care. Now I will say this later gets retconned and it turns out the guy didn’t actually get shot in the head the bullet just grazed him and his armor locked up making them all think he was dying- hence the choice of word being considered. The characters fully believe it but the CPR did not actually save him cause he wasn’t even hurt to begin with.

The crazy love triangle comes in with 4.7% and is also very canon and is exactly as it’s said. There’s literally just this insane love triangle for like two seasons- honestly the only love triangle plot I ever enjoyed.

With a solid 4% I can say that there is in fact canon mpreg! Hurray? Idk man this one’s exactly as it sounds. Dude got knocked up by an alien.

In last place with 2.5% of votes is the main character dying repeatedly. This is also incorrect. First off this guy is named Church which very funny on its own. Secondly it’s actually one of the first running jokes in the series how much this dude dies. Until it’s not a joke 🫠 also a few people pointed out RvB doesn’t have a main character and while I agree I felt it was simpler just to call Church the main character for this poll since it’s designed for people who haven’t seen RvB and I would argue that the majority of the narrative centers around Church even when he’s not there.

And now for the correct answer, coming in at third place with 16.1% is Caboose is god!

Now I will fully confess to being sneaky with this one. This is actually a joke made within the series but it is not true at all. Caboose is not actually god and the platypus is just that fucked up. I knew nothing I could come up with would be able to match the absurdity of this series so I decided to twist a few words so that way everything seemed equally fucked up.

And that concludes the poll! I will now leave you off with a few honorable mentions that did not make the Final Cut:

They have a Spanish speaking robot. None of them speak Spanish.

He’s a ghost but not actually a ghost but actually a highly advanced computer program

Woman has mega beef with an AI copy of her dead mom

The highly advanced computer program can’t aim for shit

The first 5 seasons were revealed to actually be a prolonged torture session

Dude chases his dead gf through multiple iteration of the same memory

Woman developed a sibling like bond with an AI copy of her extremely neglectful father

[madraleen]

Genshin Impact 5.1 Archon Quests - Jumbled Thoughts

-Just. Insane. All of it. Act 3 was so chill, so “oh yeah, middle act continuation of the story,” and then in Act 4 shit hit the fan. There’s no other way to put it. It was HARROWING. It was war. It was. It was ugly and urgent and relentless - as it should be, but I wasn’t expecting it to be. The dead bodies? The dead Saurians? The dead Dino? I was speechless, I felt the despair. When the Traveler insisted to Paimon that we’ll win, I was like “HOW? HOW?! And even if we do, look at how much we’ve lost already!” The more we had to fight, the more I got like “Stop, please, make it stop” - but in an immersive way. It was hard to play through. And imo JP dub Paimon sold the whole thing so well that she actually stressed me out, listening to her panic as I tried to investigate/fight - again in an immersive way. It was all really well-done, to the point that it hurt, emotionally. It was intense.

-MAVUIKA FOR THE WIN, SHE’S SO COOL. She’s so good, she’s such a good leader! And I love that her people are her friends, not her subordinates. I basically love the Natlan characters’ dynamics.

-THE FALSE SKY?!?!??!?! THE FALSE SKY?!??!?! AT A TIME LIKE THAT?? What was that, fragments of a moon maybe? And the red squares, reminiscent of the Sustainer???

-The God of Death??? The Night Lord that’s an Angel, and Seelies being devolved Angels??? THE LORE?!?!?! I am curious as to the dynamics between the Shades and Celestia, who has the upper hand so to speak.

-THE CAPTAIN AND MAVUIKA?!?! BEING SO CIVILIZED?? AND COOPERATING? I loved their conversations, they were so real, and I loved seeing the Natlanese working together with the Fatui for a common cause. I’m looking forward to finding out the deeper reason that the Captain wants to save Natlan. Also, this begs the question- if he ISN’T required to give the Gnosis to the Tsaritsa, if the Harbingers are supposed to put their own path before the Tsaritsa WITH the blessing of the Tsaritsa, how does the Tsaritsa select the Harbingers and what does she expect from them?

-So, based on what the Captain said, our sibling didn’t just happen to be there during the Cataclysm, they were part of the ruling class during the Cataclysm. (In my case) Lumine didn’t become the Abyss Order’s Princess, she was already a princess, during the Captain’s time. Also, wtf has Dain done that keeps him looking as he does?

-Citlali and Ororun were nothing like I expected. Xilonen is the coolest woman in Natlan. She’s so lazily kind. She has an air of “you’re inconveniencing me, but I’m so laid-back and good-hearted that I actually don’t mind.”

-Anemo characters can’t catch a break. They just can’t. I can’t believe they chose a sibling death OF AN ANEMO CHARACTER OH MY GOD! You’re not escaping the “has to have a dead friend/relative” reputation, Anemos, you just aren’t!

-Kinich, I love him so.

-Simulanka really told us “This is how Natlan will go.” Hindsight is 20/20. I wasn’t expecting two heroes with the same element though. 

-OKAY! Now let's save Mavuika somehow. Although I must say, the fact that we'll be separated from Paimon makes me anxious, idk. It scares me a little, I hope it's just a practical necessity.

[soanliawriter]

His touch makes you feel safe // Levi Ackerman oneshot (fluff)

You were never a fan of being touched, not because you're afraid of germs, but cause you had PTSD from guys thought you can trust, turn their lusts in and did things without your permission. But after meeting Levi, you crave for his safety and touch

Levi actually saved you from those guys you called "friends", seeing that you were uncomfortable and couldn't move from the shock of everything, you were dead on the insides of your "friend's" betrayal.

When you were taken care of by Levi's squad, everytime the men in his group tries to reach out and touch, you moved away and scream at their face to not touch you.

"Guys are all the same, don't you dare lay a finger on me!! Monsters!! I hate you!! I hate you I hate you I hate you!!" Tears running down your eyes as Petra, being the only woman in Levi's squad comforting you.

After what the others said to their captain, Levi doesn't blame you for having the strong hatred for men after what you'd been through. "Just leave her be, I don't know when she'll warm up to us, but we can't leave her like that" Levi says as everyone saluted at him and agreed with him.

A couple of days past, you went out of the bathroom, you weren't looking where you were going, you bumped into someone, feeling men hands on your arms you roughly and harshly pushed them away, hissing at the feeling of their hands on your bare skin, scratching the place where they touched you to the point it was turning bright red, making it bleed a little for your nails has gotten longer and sharper.

"Hey, hey!" You heard another man's voice as you pushed yourself away so they couldn't touch you, looking up to see it was the captain. Levi Ackerman.

"No!!"

"Hey I won't touch you. Just, stop doing that"

He said softly retracting his outstretched arms and back to his sides, eyeing your hands slowing down your scratches. You breathed deep in and out as, wincing at the pain from scratching too much and hard.

"I'm sorry those guys harmed you and traumatized you. They're being taken care of by the Military Police"

"Good, those men are monsters. I hate them, wish they can just die!"

"Hey"

You paused yourself holding a hand against your mouth as you looked him in the eyes before jogging across the hallway, heading to the roof top of the barracks.

Finding a wall, leaning against it sliding your whole body down, knees against your chest hugging them tightly, silently wincing at the pain on your arms, gripping them hard in the process too at how much you still have strong hatred in your heart.

You stayed there a bit, admiring the beautiful starry night sky, it calms you. The stars, moon, skies, it brings relief in your system. Sighing as you rest your head on top of your knees.

"Mind if I sit here?" Jolted in shock moving back a little seeing Levi again, you sigh looking at his hands to see he had a bucket of water and a towel, "what's that for?" Pointing at what he was holding, he puts it down, "let me treat those wounds" chills sent shivers down your spine at the gentleness this man as on you.

Nodding your head moving away a little more as he sat down beside you, "may I?" He asked outstretching his arm towards you, taken aback as you reach your hand for him to hold, closing your eyes shut as the water hit your skin, hissing at the pain making your feet squirm in place and finger twitching as Levi held you gently.

"Some of these will scar a little" he says softly before grabbing a roller bandage, wrapping it on your arm, noticing how he was meticulous at wrapping your arm, his touch was so gentle like a feather on skin, the entire time you were silent, so does he, taking care of your wounds.

When he finished patching your arms up, he hold them and caressed them carefully, Levi looked at you with half lidded eyes as you looked down at your feet.

"You're getting better"

"It's because.. you're not like those guys"

"Tch, I wanted to beat them up to death after what they're doing to you. The Military Police came right on time though"

"Thanks"

You said as you stood up and walked away, but before you could he stopped you, pulling away harshly at his touch looking back at him, he immediately apologizes before you walked away again, back to the room they have given you.

The next day approached, you still didn't go out of your room to eat for any form of touch from people, you want to avoid at all costs for the time being.

A knock was heard snapping your head towards the door, "who's there?"

"Captain Levi" you relaxed at the sound of his voice and hearing his name, "enter" you simply say hearing the door open, sitting up from your bed, hugging yourself as he placed a tray of mushroom soup, soft baked bread and mushed potatoes.

"I don't know what you like, so I got what looked appetizing"

"They look great"

"Taste not so much though. Eat your fill" he simply said before walking away to your door, but before he could leave you called his name out, he stopped in his tracks looking back at you, "stay.. please" you said with a small blush on your cheeks looking away, rubbing your bandaged arms.

You heard him sigh, taking a sit on your bed as his arms crossed over his chest, "eat, I'll take the tray out for you if you still don't want to leave this room" he says softly as you nodded taking a sit on the chair, smelling the food before taking a bite.

"This is better than those in the underground"

"I guess" he says as he admired you eating your fill.

Some time passes by and you finished eating, you looked back to him and nodded to him that's you're done, he stood up and grabbed the tray, "can I, accompany you?" You asked hesitantly, he looks at you before humming and gesturing you to follow him.

Smiled like a child before humming a song before following him out your room.

You did what you asked, you followed Levi around like an obedient pet, people was murmuring a little but you didn't care, started to warm up to the man too.

There's times you were getting distracted when Levi will softly hold you and shove you out of the way a little, he removed his hands at you, fearing you would push him away, but you didn't.

You actually smiled at him softly before holding his hand, he was taken aback but squeezed your hand before walking towards his office.

Weeks and months has passed, you were touched deprived, wanting Levi's touch throughout the day. He for some reason healed your trauma, but it's only when it's his touch and still uncomfortable with others, but you are getting better in terms of physical touch.

People started to have a rumor that you two were together even, by how close you were being to each other.

But Levi payed bo attention to them, he's glad that you were getting better as times passes by.

Craving his soft and gentle touches has started to get comforting to you.

He doesn't mind it at all.

[wasted-women]

ROUND 1C, MATCH 1 OUT OF 8!

Cause of Death & Propaganda Under the Cut:

Allison Argent

Cause of Death: Stabbed by a demon

Propaganda:

She's so cool! She fights with a bow and arrow, she has complicated feelings on her werewolf boyfriend and is allowed to work through that, she's best friends with another girl who's also a banshee (should've dated her) and one of her first scenes is her hitting a dog with her car and bringing it to a vet(she's a mess! She's caring)

she was the protag's girlfriend and only died because the actress had to leave the show. it left a hole in the show that they never really managed to fill, and she is only really brought up to say "let's do this, it's what allison would tell us to do" or "I wish she was here." her father stays on the show and helps them in her memory but he and the protag suffer and learn from it the way most male characters in this trope do. she is brought back to life in the movie but it was mostly an excuse to get the cast back together again and took place years after the show finished. I don't really feel that it counts since she died in season 3 and the show had 6 seasons.

Jenny Calendar

Cause of Death: Neck snapped

Propaganda:

Jenny is so beloved to me. She was sent to Sunnydale, California to watch over the vampire that killed her family (Angel), told that he was supposed to suffer for all eternity, but after he saved her life + after she spent some time with him and the people who cared about him, she realized that she'd changed her mind and didn't want anything to do with continuing a mission of vengeance -- especially since Angel's girlfriend Buffy was also the mentee/surrogate daughter of Jenny's boyfriend Giles! Messy! Despite this, when Angel lost his soul and it came out that Jenny had been sent there to watch him, Jenny was immediately blamed, even though she'd had no idea that Angel would turn evil and TOLD everyone as much! She decided to try and find a way to resurrect old magic and give Angel his soul back, and Angel killed her in retaliation. Parts of the fandom talk about Jenny's death like it was necessary/a good thing/a good writing choice, but I don't think it was. Jenny's death is talked about by the showrunners as "proving that anyone could die," and her dead body was placed in Giles's bed, surrounded by red roses, subsequently inspiring him to try to go on a suicide mission and kill Angel. When the kids are looking at a drawing of her dead body, one of them says, "Wow. Poor Giles." Her death is very clearly engineered to raise the stakes by emphasizing how sad it is for Giles to lose her, and before her death, nearly all of her scenes centered around being Giles's girlfriend/love interest. She was never given a chance to develop as a character, and the only backstory they gave her was designed to push her towards death.

Amber Volakis

Cause of Death: Organ failure after bus crash

Propaganda:

This show likes to introduce new casts of supporting characters and cycle through old ones (some of them leave, some of them stay in reduced roles, and sometimes they come back into a main role later, but sometimes they don't) and I do like that. Amber was probably one of the best ones introduced in the row of new characters in Season 4 and even stayed interesting after being fired. I wasn't a big fan of her dating Wilson but it wasn't the worst thing. And then she was killed off. And her death basically only existed to make Wilson sad, or House sad and "crazy", and just. I don't know. It sucked that her death even happened when she had so much more potential as a living character!

[heartfullofleeches]

Gumi Pop

Yan Candy Twins + G.N Reader

[Vaguely implied cannibalism, but they aren't human so it's up to interpretation]

"Cherry orrrrr blue raspberry? Neither really match with what I'm wearing, but they're pretty popular and I live to impress."

The soil is nice this time of year.

"Oh, oh! What about grape?... Mm, nah - Dunno if they changed the recipe, but the flavouring tastes like cough syrup now."

Moist and wet - the perfect place to hide... Let the worms and other nature forces find use for this sticky shell.

"Lemon is good.. but it feels too formal for a first date."

How could there be another place for him? How could you possibly love them after all he's done?

"Strawberry is another fan favorite as well as mine. Dress for the job you want as they say.... Gigi, I swear if you're doing that self deprecating monologue shit again I won't let you pick their locks like we planned."

The man immediately dries his eyes - a red smear ran across his translucent cheek as his sleeve covers his face. "Sorry, Lollie. It's just....we we've gotten so close to meeting them and I messed things up with my... accident."

Hopping off the roof of the car they arrived in, the woman pulls her brother into a hug - relieving him of the shovel in his hands. "Don't sweat it. Mistakes happen, and as soon as Y/n gets a taste of us it'll all be a thing of the past."

Giggling to herself, she pinches his cheek and plants the tool in the fresh mound of dirt - dumping the disturbed earth over the frozen face below. The pile lands center to his chest, soil and small pebbles filing the three, cylindrical holes punched right below his ribs. They'd be the first to claim his death was accidental. Readying a gift for the one they admired most in the human world, twins stopped by a convenience store a block away from your home to pick up the remaining products on their list. There really was no simple way to ease you into the idea of two sentient beings made of candy stalking you for years to learn the ins and outs of human society and falling madly in love with you along the way - but a gift basket was a start.

While Lolotte was gathering butcher knives and cards, her dear brother was in the back making himself presentable for the big meet. Unlike his siblings glossy shine and hard shell, poor Gumi was completely see through from a certain angle all the way down to his sugary skeleton. He was fortunate enough to not have any organs besides a heart, but for any unsuspecting person his appearance may still cause a fright and he didn't want to scare you away at first sight.

Gumi wanted to be cute and cuddly, just like the animal and snack his name derived from. Taking references from both, Gumi stitched together his own costume. It was really just a plush sweater with some ears and a tail sewed on, but the cute factor was high. He also fashioned a pair of paws out of his own bones and some gloves. The outfit was so adorable he couldn't help but put on a little show for himself in the mirror. Looking like a character right out of a picture book, Gumi took the liberty of acting like one as well. No way you could reject something so cute - right? Haha.. Haha.. ah..

Shit.

Turns out - mimicking bear noises in a store a location were they were apparently common wasn't such a good idea. Startled, the on staff clerk went to check out the noise fully unprepared for what he found. Equally as terrified, Gumi committed to the only logical course of action and slashed at the man before fleeing the scene. In another twist of events, solidified sugar was a lot harder and sharper than he thought and the cashier was dead by the time he had dragged his sister back to the scene of the crime. Without skipping a beat, Lolotte loaded up their items and the corpse into the trunk of his car for a quick drop off before they headed your way. The death count could've been a million times the size, and it still wouldn't have gotten in the way of her plans to make you theirs.

Gumi checks the time on his new phone. "It's getting late. We should hurry.. Plus the smell is getting to me."

"Not to worry, brother of mine." Lolotte fishes a knife out of her inner pocket and throws it in his direction. "I'll finish things up here while you go cut out your heart so we can finally wrap up Y/n's basket. You should be patched up and healed by the time I'm done, right?"

"Think so.... Thank you, Lollie." Clutching the knife to his chest, Gumi grins so hard his cheeks feel like they've spilt. "I'm so excited to finally meet them!"

He turns to the car - a sharp whistle preventing him from going far."

"Before you go, why don't you give me a preview of what you were doing in the bathroom?"

Wiping the newfound annoyance and former grief from his face, Gumi raises his wrists and bares his teeth - claws forever stained and a few missing their talon still buried in the organs of the man laud to an untimely rest as their feet. He quickly lifts his hood over his head as he puffs his chest.

"Rawr."

Sporting a grin of her own, Lolotte chuckles. "Oh, they are going to eat us alive."

[bonefall]

Do you have any plans with Petal? She was so interesting even when she played mom to Misty's kits, taking care of them even when Misty did not do the same for her and Fox, she was dealt a rough hand and I always said she deserved better than to be Clear Sky's Loyal Lackey forever

Petal is still a bit up in the air, but I DO know for certain a few things;

She is now a Tribe cat. BB!DOTC features a language barrier between Park and Tribe cats, so everyone in early SkyClan must come from the Tribe.

Fox Claw and Petal Claw will probably end up being part of the Claw Family.

Fox's death will need to be shuffled, since the set-up is so different. I do like Petal holding a grudge against the person forced to kill him, though.

I know for a fact that Red Claw is going to be part of this family; either a child of Fox or Petal. Acorn Swoop eventually has children with a member of the Claw family-- her canon love interest is Red but I'm not averse to making it someone else in this group.

Petal Claw is rewarded with the orphaned kits of Misty-- now a Park cat. Tensions are going to rise between SkyClan and the River Kingdom as a result of this.

However. Birch and Alder won't keep those names for two reasons;

Reason One, the more important reason, is that Park Cats are born nameless. They don't HAVE names yet-- just physical characteristics.

But also, SkyClan wouldn't allow them to keep the names either. So, Petal Claw will rename them.

I was thinking it COULD be Red Claw and Snake Claw, but I'm not sure if it's wise to fuse FOUR characters into 2 so hastily. So, I am still unsure.

In any case, eventually one of these kits will defect on learning they have family in the River Kingdom, curious to learn more.

Anyway, back to Petal Claw.

She will be doggedly loyal to SkyClan her whole life, Clear Sky's favorite soldier. She enjoys a lot of privilege within the Clan, and revels in her power and status.

She does eventually die for the cause-- probably in the First Battle, because Sparrow Heart needs room for an opportunity to become the next leader.

Petal Claw is also, unfortunately, a major reason Skystar becomes part of StarClan. She really is loyal to the very end, rallying his other dead supporters to clamor for him when he arrives.

Overall, Petal is an ambitious, scrappy, loyal cat who is a major recurring ally of BB!Clear Sky. She revels in what SkyClan can offer her, and the influence she weilds as a result of her devotion. Better to rule in Hell than serve in Heaven!

She's got an important role. If I wrote every cat someone likes defecting I wouldn't have anyone in SkyClan at all lmao

I do have to say though-- the little "bonus chapter" trying to frame Petal taking Misty's kits as "aww shes being so noble when misty didnt do it for her" frustrates me immensely. I'm VERY much not a fan of it. This woman was fucking murdered on screen for her land by a bloodthristy tyrant and Petal jumped foward to prevent the maniac from slaughtering babies too. The way it tries to take attention away from CLEAR SKY'S MURDER to make it about Petal "breaking a cycle" is just plain awful.

Even worse is how the books quickly shift to passive voice after First Battle. "After their mother Died." Mentions of Clear Sky murdering this woman dry up for a looong while until Milkweed.

So in BB I honestly have no desire to preserve that in any way. Petal Claw wanted the kits because a bigger family is a point of status, and the mother was dead now anyway. Someone needs to care for them-- and so it should be her, because she deserves it. Clear Sky agrees, happy that she will raise more cats who are loyal to him.

Thunder Storm will be witnessing this while he is training under his father; and I'll probably end up doing something with the fact that this means he has information that will be relevant to River Kingdom.

(Or perhaps the Wind Coalition. I'll figure out which one works better for political tension here.)

BUT at the very least, Petal Claw won't be getting fridged for Clear Sky's man pain like canon. Seriously what the fuck. What an awful way to send her out; dying of illness but having just enough strength to throw herself at Clear Sky's feet going "ouuuugh i knew youd saave me. Ur so strong and brave and amazing and cool and misunderstood and everyone on the internet who says mean things about you is evil."

We support women's wrongs here. She will die in BATTLE like she DESERVES

[archiveikemen]

『 Villain's Night 』 Story Event: Chapter 2

Jude Jazza

This is a fan-made translation solely for entertainment purposes with no guaranteed perfection. I do not own any of the original content. Please support CYBIRD by buying their stories and playing their games. Reblogs appreciated.

❥･• Warnings and FAQ

(This is the place—)

My body had followed William’s command and moved according to my desires, and so I arrived at the gambling house Jude was at.

Drunk Man: Hey, kitty, you look adorable. Meow for me.

Kate: … Sorry, I’m here to look for someone.

The crowded gambling den was filled with people dressed up for Halloween.

I reluctantly put on only the cat ears Alfons had given me, and blended into the crowd.

Apparently, the place was not just a gambling house for Duel Betting, it was also a brothel. The men present were eyeing the frightened women locked in cages, as if evaluating their worth.

(... Human lives are of lower value than money here…)

While feeling disgusted by the cruel scene… I continued looking out for the man I was there to find.

(— I want to find Jude as soon as possible.)

(But… what do I want to do once I find him?)

(I highly doubt I’ll be able to convince him to return to the castle without causing trouble.)

Despite those thoughts, my body moved on its own and kept looking.

(What do I desire? Is it to find Jude?)

(I don't know what it is myself, and yet my body is following this “desire”...)

(William’s ability is truly frightening.)

Kate: Excuse me… pardon, but is there a man by the name of Jude here?

Kate: He wears a black coat, has a sinister look in his eyes, and—

I asked around while scanning the crowd, unable to find him, and just then—

???: You’re Jude Jazza’s woman?

Kate: Huh…?

…

Jude: If you accept my terms, I’ll spare your life at the very least.

Jude quietly put the guards to sleep and entered the room before crushing the jaws of two or three more guards, he then threw the overbearing and unreasonable terms at the organiser.

Organiser: … Hahaha. Hey, calm down.

Organiser: Withdraw from Duel Betting and human trafficking, then give you all my earnings… don’t you think you’re demanding too much?

Organiser: Didn't you lose only a few thousand pounds?

Organiser: Besides, your employees are the ones to blame for it.

Jude: I don't give a fuck. Accept my terms or die.

Jude’s glare was sharper than a newly sharpened blade, making the organiser gulp.

Then, a subordinate rushed into the room and whispered something into the organiser’s ear.

In an instant — his eyes took on a triumphant look.

Organiser: — Looks like you’ve got a guest.

Jude: … A guest?

Brought in by two burly men, almost dragging her on the floor… was Kate who laid unconscious.

Jude: — Ah? Ꙩ_Ꙩ

Organiser: I heard that she wandered in here to look for you. A very brave lover, isn't she?

Organiser: So, what do you say? If you take back the terms you stated earlier, I’ll return this woman to you unscathed.

Organiser: Hmm? There's something in her pocket… oops, look what we have here.

Burly Man: HAHA! Bringing this sort of thing to a place like this… she’s a surprisingly slutty woman—

Burly Man: — Huh?

For a brief moment, the man blinked in confusion as if he didn't know what was happening.

His hand, along with Kate’s unconscious body, fell to the floor with a thud.

Burly Man: Wh– AAAAHHH!?

Jude: Negotiation failed.

Jude: I’ll spare the boss monkey. We have much to talk about.

Jude: Everyone else can die.

< timeskip >

Kate: ugh…

The first thing I heard after regaining consciousness was the sounds of groaning and sobbing.

(What… what happened to me…? I’m pretty sure I heard someone call out to me, and…)

Kate: Ggh…!?

The moment I got up, the horrifying scene before my eyes made my breath catch in my throat.

The floor, walls, everything was dyed red with blood splattered on them.

The dead bodies laying around barely looked like human beings anymore, they were mere red lumps of “something” thrown around like objects—

Standing in the middle of it all, was Jude.

(Jude…?)

Jude: Don’t worry, I’ll at least keep your artery intact. You can't pay me if you die from excessive blood loss.

Jude slowly cut his blood soaked sword into the legs of the man who appeared to be the boss of the establishment.

Organiser: F- Fine… ggh, I’ll give you the money! S-Sixty… sixty percent of my earnings… ugh

Jude: WHAT!?

Organiser: AAAAAAAAAA!

Jude: You don't need ears that can’t listen well, right? Let me cut them off for you.

Jude grinned, as though he enjoyed the sound of the boss’ shrieking.

Watching the cruel scene in front of me, a feeling of fear I had long forgotten came back to me.

He was a villain who lived in a different world from mine.

(And yet… here I am, witnessing this.)

(I keep wondering if he’s bleeding from anywhere.)

I didn't know what I wanted to do after finding him.

But, now, I knew clearly what it was that I desired.

(This is like a regular occurrence for Jude.)

Even if it was due to the traits given to him by his curse, or because of a promise he made with someone I didn't know…

(For this man who lived in the darkness while putting his own life at risk, this man who was always pushing me away from that darkness… I wanted to do something for him.)

Tonight, the cursed people were even more dangerous than usual.

(And yet… all I did was cause more trouble for him.)

There was an overwhelmingly large distance between the two of us.

(— I’m so frustrated.)

I bit my lip and watched as Jude tortured the boss for the information he wanted — and he finally sheathed his sword after thrusting it into the man’s heart.

Jude: …

(... I think this is the first time I’m seeing Jude use his sword.)

The usual Jude hurt others, but he never killed them so easily.

He would always say that it was much more efficient to exploit them for labour than to kill them, because killing them would cause him too much trouble afterwards.

– Flashback Start –

Victor: That’s right. As for the cursed person, they find it harder to control themselves… something like that.

Victor: It’s a dangerous night for both the cursed person and the people around them.

– Flashback End –

The pale moonlight shone through the window.

(Right now — Jude isn’t in his normal state.)

(It’s too dangerous to approach him.)

That was what I thought, and yet I found myself moving closer towards his bloodied back.

On this Halloween night, the cursed people were going mad—

And I, too, was going mad with desire because of William’s command.

Kate: Jude.

Jude: …

Jude didn't look back.

My hand lifted itself and grasped his coat.

Kate: … Are you hurt?

Kate: —!

Before I could finish talking, my body was suddenly pulled.

With a thud, I collided with him and a shock ran through my back, making me gasp in pain.

Jude: Why did you break your promise?

Kate: J-Jude…

Jude: You know what happens when you break a promise with me, don't you?

Kate: … ggh

It was hard to breathe with his hand tightly gripping my collar.

That hand felt nothing like the one that held my shoulder and drove the strange man away on the streets of London earlier that day. It was cruel and cold.

Kate: ah… ugh…

Jude: Ahh, did you break the promise on purpose because you wanted to be punished by me?

Kate: …? …!

He snickered when I hurriedly shook my head in denial.

Jude: You probably thought I’d let you off with a couple of threats as usual, Princess.

Jude: But I don't think that’ll be enough to satisfy me tonight.

Jude: “Trick or Treat”... I’m not going to ask you that.

Jude: — Ready to be ridiculed?

Jude’s amethyst eyes glimmered under the moonlight streaming into the room through the window.

[theerurishipper]

I think the Batman's sidekicks equal child soldiers comes from them being called soldiers. Bat books seem to embrace the 'war on crime' narrative more as they are more gritty. On top of this Batman is emotionally incompetent meaning he treats his kids more like soldiers than children sometimes.

It's also quantity of sidekicks. Like, Barry had Wally. He didn't have any other kid sidekicks at the same time. Batman has a solid army and it often feels like one. They often feel more militarized than other 'fams'. Also, he is too controlling and doesn't treat this solid army of children well. So obviously when a character mistreats everyone around them, people are more likely to see the flaws. A kid cheerfully fighting aside their adult mentor isn't going to get called a child soldier but a kid written with a more gritty undertone is (especially because of the war on crime stuff).

He also had the whole 'good soldier' memorial which says he kinda viewed Jason, a dead 15 year old he adopted, as a soldier. Even though they were portrayed as a father son relationship so this immediately damages the perception of his relationships with his other children.

Also, the Under the Red Hood Movie is an entry level media for Bat fandom. It starred Mr Ackles of Supernatural fame. There is a huge child soldier narrative in the treatment of Sam and Dean by their father so Supernatural fans are more likely to see these themes. So Ackles fans watching the movie and then getting into the Batfam stuff will obviously latch onto this.

Also, this is not the only incident in superhero fandom where certain characters are singled out as child soldiers for other characters. This narrative is also present in some parts of the X-Men fandom, especially regarding the relationship of Professor X and Cyclops. As it is another incident of an adult character 'rescuing' a child in need and (I can't think of a better word) indoctrinating them to their cause.

I think another thing is the fact the Bats do not have powers. So narrative of 'with great power, comes great responsibility' only actually applies to Batman himself with his obscene wealth. So the classic narrative of you have power so you have to help people with them doesn't apply here. Most of the kids he recruits could have relatively normal lives. Jason, whose fans propagate this take heavily, did not ask to be Robin. Batman gave it to him. I also feel that Starlin was trying to have an arc about why having a child sidekick was bad in the Jason's Robin run so Jason's fans are more likely to be critical of the child sidekick thing. It basically goes 'maybe I should not have had this child fight crime' (while Jason is still alive) to 'it's Jason's own fault he got himself killed' which looks really bad.

So it just feels like a lot of factors give more and more people these kind of takes in a way that doesn't apply to other characters. Wonder Woman mostly fights alongside adults. The Flash is also adult heavy (Barry, Jay, Max as in adults that started as adults). Shazamily is all near is age (argument for Wizard perhaps). Lanterns, adults. Arrow family are usually a bit older than the bats and get less attention. Ect.

For me the thing is that... this is fiction. Not a one-to-one direct reflection of reality. In real life, we would frown upon vigilantism as a concept, but enjoying characters like Batman and Superman requires some suspension of disbelief. The same idea should be applied to the idea of sidekicks in general, something that would be very wrong in reality, but is acceptable within the fictional world of DC. Admittedly Batman is usually more grounded than the other books, but it still is within the fictional world of DC, where having child sidekicks in okay. Where letting children fight crime is not inherently wrong, and what defines whether it's good or bad is the intent of the person training/raising them (Bruce or Barry or Oliver as opposed to David Cain or Slade Wilson). We need to view it through that lens, otherwise it's kinda just bad faith criticism.

Another thing to consider is that Batman is an emotionally withdrawn character. It's pretty clear that he did not consider Jason a simple soldier for the cause, or his death wouldn't have ruined him the way it did. And honestly, for every Jason is a soldier case in the Batcave (something he got yelled at for btw), there is a Bruce giving Damian a heartfelt speech about how his kids aren't soldiers. For every moment Bruce treats his kids like soldiers, there is a moment where he openly admits to how much he loves them. I suppose after a point of time it's all up to interpretations, especially since the latter are far and few between, but canon has been pretty clear that Bruce loves his children above all else, and that he doesn't see them as soldiers. That's actually been a plot point a few times, so I think it shouldn't be a question that he sees them as sons and daughter and not soldiers. After all, the whole reason he does what he does for them is so that they don't turn out like him. Him coming off as seeing them like soldiers is not because it's the truth of what he thinks, it's because he can't express himself.

I did say there are plenty of other reasons to criticize Bruce as a character, one of them being the fact that he behaves abusively to his kids. But that's not a symptom of them being child soldiers. My post mostly stemmed from me seeing a lot of criticism of Batman "throwing kids into tights and a cape instead of getting them therapy," and it's like, nooooo. He very explicitly did not do that. They chose the life. Most of them would have done it whether or not Bruce was there. The kids being crimefighters isn't the problem.

If the cheerful thing is what differentiates them from others, the Robins have had that with Batman. Dick and Bruce actually had great fun as Batman and Robin, for instance, before things went sour. Jason may have been given Robin by Bruce, but he also loved being Robin and said it gave him magic. The inherent idea of kids fighting crime is not the issue in a fictional world. Robin in itself is something of a child empowerment kind of thing, a genre staple, at least in the beginning. We don't go around calling every child protagonist a child soldier, do we? It would be an inherently unethical thing in real life, but this is fiction. We have to have some amount of suspension of disbelief when it comes to that, just like we do for the idea of vigilantism itself. Otherwise, we wouldn't have a story.

My take on it is this: there are no child soldiers in DC (when it comes to the sidekicks). Because it's fiction. Within the conventions of the genre, it's well and good for Bruce or anyone to let kids fight crime. Bruce being an abuser is a different conversation entirely, one that should not be derailed with accusations of him raising child soldiers. Those are not a thing in DC, and we would all be happier if we accepted that. My post was specifically about that, that Bruce letting kids fight crime is not inherently a bad thing within the context on the world they operate in. I made the OG post because I saw a lot of criticism towards Bruce for the very act of letting kids fight crime, not because of how he treats them but because he apparently indoctrinated and manipulated them into his war on crime, just criticism for the very act of him letting them do so.

I've also seen talk about how awful it is for Bruce to continue to let kids be Robins after one died, and I just have to say, do you not want Tim Drake and Stephanie Brown and Cassandra Cain and Damian Wayne and Duke Thomas and every other kid hero in the Batfam to exist? Because if Batman were to do the right thing, they shouldn't exist. But, again, this is fiction. It's a story about superheroes. As per the rules of the story, Batman needs a Robin. Someone was going to be created to fill the void, and it was Tim Drake.

And if we go down that route, what does this say about Conner Kent and Bart Allen and Cassie Sandsmark and the other heroes like them? Because if Bruce is in the wrong for letting kids fight after Jason died, so are the other heroes who allow kids to keep fighting after one sidekick died on the job. Was Clark Kent raising a child soldier when he allowed Jon to fight crime? And it's also funny to me cause again, Tim Drake practically forced Bruce to take him on as Robin, with the explicit blessing of former Robin Dick Grayson, and Alfred Pennyworth. Everyone else was already in the life, and Bruce just helped them out. They would have done it regardless of him. So, to frame it in a manner as though he forced them into it, or he didn't care that Jason died and that it could happen to them too is wrong.

Perhaps it's because Batman is the most popular DC hero, perhaps it's because he's had the most sidekicks, perhaps it's because one of them died, but it's still not a correct argument. Again, there are very legitimate criticisms to be made of Bruce, ones I can agree with wholeheartedly, but this is not one of them. He is toxic and controlling and abusive to his kids, but they are not child soldiers. It is that very specific thing that I am objecting to. And that's what I think a lot of replies to my post misunderstand, because they're conflating Bruce being abusive with Bruce raising child soldiers, and I while I agree with their general point, I disagree with the framing and the inferences made from it. And then there are the people who inspired me to make the post, who are just wrong.

So, I do agree with a lot of the criticisms of Bruce and a lot of your points! I can see where the idea comes from considering how Bruce treats his kids, but I don't think the correct takeaway is that they are child soldiers specifically. Victims of abuse from Bruce? Sure. Not child soldiers. I hope this makes sense.

Thank you for your ask!

Just... gonna leave this here...

[jamisonwritestf2trash]

minific :) hope u like it!! it doesnt have much of canon lore applied, and its Mann Vs Machine. Spy bein a dad when its far too late :(

----

The team had been split up when the robots attacked, and Scout and Sniper had gotten stuck together. Not that it was any issue for Scout, though. He figured the Australian wouldn't mind sticking with him for a little while, and so far, he hasn't left. But it's too quiet, even for someone like Sniper, the least talkative member on the team.

"Hey, you think the others are alright?" Scout looks at the marksman.

"Why wouldn't they be? They've better aim when close up than I ever bloody will." Sniper glances at Scout before returning his gaze to the hallway ahead of them. Broken robots lay littered about.

"Someone was here." Sniper frowns. "They must not be far."

"No shit, Sherlock-- is that blood?" Scout frowns, the red stain on the floor catching his attention.

"Yeah. Trail o' it, too..." Sniper frowns. "You follow it. I'll make sure there's no more of the bloody boltheads comin' down the halls."

"Gotcha." Scout quickly begins to follow the trail until he reaches the end of the hallway, where the rough smell of cigarette smoke fills the air.

"Ah. It's you." The voice of Spy says from the dark, and Scout flicks the lights on. Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn't... this.

Spy's injured badly. There's blood staining his suit in multiple areas, and what appears to be a gunshot wound to his upper body seems to be the main cause.

"Holy crap...!" Scout quickly snaps out of the trance he was in, and opens the duffel bag slung over his shoulder. He digs through it, pulling out bandages. Of course he'd forgotten the medkits. Fan-fucking-tastic.

"Scout, I am no doctor, but I don't think a simple band aid is going to heal a bullet wound." Spy glares at the runner.

"I'm tryna help you, man! Cut me some slack." Scout scowls, and Spy just sighs.

"Scout. Just... stop. I'm not making it out of this room alive. My leg is broken and I've been shot four times. It's a miracle I'm not already dead." Spy pushes the bandages away, fllicking his burned-out cigarette away with his other hand.

"Well... that's just morbid. I can use comms to get Snipes to find Doc?" Scout reaches for his headpiece, but Spy shakes his head.

"I want you to listen to me, boy. I don't want to be saved. I've accepted that I'm not going to make it out of here. It's better this way."

"Spy--"

"Shut up!" Spy raises his voice to a yell, before letting out a pained sigh, propping himself higher up against the wall. "Just... listen to what I have to say, Jeremy."

Scout's eyes widen slightly. He isn't wearing his dog tags, there's no way Spy could've known.

"How--"

"This will... sound familiar, I hope. I hate repeating myself." Spy lights a second cigarette. Hesitating. "27 years ago, I met a beautiful woman. She was everything I could've wished for... and we were happy together. As Tom Jones would say, I... dropped a 'sex bomb' on her. I was young then, and I ran from the explosion."

It all sounds so familiar. Had Scout heard this before? Where? When...? He can remember someone saying this to him...

Holy. Crap.

"You... You were the Tom Jones that I saw." Scout whispers. Spy just nods.

"I... It is one of my many regrets, leaving you and your mother behind. I was a coward. I suppose I still am, since it would seem I can only admit to this on the edge of death." Speaking is getting more difficult for Spy, and Scout can tell, hesitating before lowering his headpiece.

"Snipes. Find Doc. Hurry."

"Mate-? Wha--" The Australian's cut off as Scout tosses the headpiece aside, and Scout kneels at Spy's side.

"You're my dad. I-- I can't let you just... die here! There's... so much lost time to be made up." Scout starts unravelling the bandage. Maybe it's the shock stopping him from feeling the pain in his leg from a loose nail digging into his knee, maybe it's the sudden adrenaline rush. Doesn't matter. Spy needs to make it out of this alive.

"Jeremy." Spy's voice is calm, with the slightest hint of pain in it. Scout looks up at Spy, who takes his mask off.

He looks just like how Scout's ma had always described him, just... older, with streaks of grey in his styled-back hair and dark circles under his eyes that Scout had never noticed before. But they share the same blue eyes.

"I am proud to see the man you've become. You've made good friends. Your mother did amazing raising you." Spy pulls a photo from his suit pocket, holding it out to Scout. "Here. I kept this when I left. I always have it with me."

It's a photo of 2 year old Scout, with his mother and Spy sitting beside him, watching him open his christmas present: A baseball bat.

Scout looks back at Spy, his vision blurry. Spy smiles at him, whispering something in French that Scout can't understand, and Scout can see the life leave Spy's eyes.

"Dad?" Scout's voice is small, his eyes wide, staring at Spy's motionless body. He tentatively reaches over and shakes Spy's shoulder, but the Frenchman doesn't respond. He's dead. Forcing back a sob, he pulls the corpse into a hug as the sound of footsteps behind him come closer and closer.

Scout never got the chance to learn his father's name.

I AM SOBBING

THIS IS SO GOOD, I LOVE THIS! THIS IS JUST OUGH.

The angst got to me. I'm not gonna lie. This is so amazing, Anon. If you ever start writing these on your blog (or if you already do), please let me know because I will be your number one fan, I swear 💪

Thank you for sending this in. It is very much appreciated. Keep up the good work. You're an amazing writer, and I literally can't compliment you enough!!!

[mothman-dyke]

Writing all of this out does make me feel a little "pictures pinned to a corkboard connected by red string" but in the days following the election I find it less and less surprising that Donald Trump won. It's a confirmation of what we've always known to be true-- that society and America fucking hates women. (Obviously people of color, immigrants, gays as well but this is a post about misogyny.) And I allowed myself to maintain some hope-- that people were broadly well intentioned, that the majority of Americans would not choose, after everything, to bring him into office again. This hope was a mistake; it was a mistake back in 2016 when he was elected in the face of his misogyny and violence against women and it was a mistake this time.

we bear responsibility for this in many ways. Not least among them is the rise of a very specific strain of misogyny and woman-hate, one cultivated and spread in MRA, MGTOW, and incel circles, but in no way limited or insular. This brand of misogyny has become ubiquitous in our culture and crept into liberal, progressive, and leftist spaces, where we handwring about how really, men are the biggest victims, and the male loneliness epidemic, and meanwhile label any attempt at feminist thought or (God forbid) activism as white feminism, TERF-ery, etc. this misogyny, which we have, as much as anyone else, allowed to proliferate, is the bread and butter of male trump voters. (Take a peek at some of what those guys are saying on Twitter and threads!)

So the part of this where I start feeling very corkboard-and-thread is that I think the writing was on the wall for years and my big example of this? 2022: Depp v Heard. Remember that misogynistic hate campaign against a woman who dared to speak out about a mans violence towards her? Remember the #edgy tiktoks mocking her rape testimony, the sex toys mimicking her account of her assault, the endless mockery under the guise of "supporting male victims" (support which btw ended at Depp lol did y'all see them advocating for anyone else?) this huge cultural event embodies and reflects our attitude about women AND men. Fuck women who speak out! And we'll do anything for a man if he played a pirate in a movie that was good 20 years ago, or if he promises cheaper gas. Misogyny is the same and in that moment people across political parties came together to say "yeah, fuck women! Woman-hate is ok/good/funny/great!"

The other thing is just a rise in complete disrespect and dismissal for feminist thought, theory, activism in leftist, progressive, and liberal spaces. There is a real hostility towards feminists in these spaces regardless of the fact that many of them consider themselves pro feminist "safe spaces" feminists who have been raising the alarm about incels, men's rights activism, MGTOW, depp-fans, progressive misogyny, or just plain ol sexism have been written off as hysterical or characterized as bigots-- regardless of whether or not they are inclusive and intersectional, or even trans/women of color themselves.

We wanna think we have nothing to do with this but we do! We wanna think we didn't do this but we did! We have allowed woman-hate to rise and flourish and now we're upset with the results. All the while the same women who have raised alarms from the start, will be dismissed and told that our oppression isn't real or cause for concern in the face of the other, "real" oppression of others.

There isn't like a point to this it's just a shout into the void from someone who sees men bragging about how they own and control the bodies of women in America, and who has to live in one of those bodies every day.

The moral I am choosing is not to give up hope. It is that I will strip the blinders from my eyes. America hates women. America wants women in chains, unable to vote, barefoot and pregnant and beaten, raped, and dead. The moral I am choosing is that I'll continue to funnel my energy into my fellow women, of all classes races sexualities and abilities and do better. The moral is also that I'll stop even pretending patience for the patriarchal bullshit spewing from across the political spectrum.

[faceless-creature]

Hello. Welcome to my first post I hope it isn't too shit for your tastes. I know that he's an asshole but as my tag says, I'm mentally unstable. I don't condone any actions the characters I write about have done, I'm just here for fan service. So here it is.

Judge Claude Frollo X Fem!Angel!reader

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Claude was convinced that he knew what an angel looked like. He knew what you, his lover, looked like.

Claude was convinced that an angel looked like the most beautiful creature in the world, while demons looked hideous. He didn't know it was the other way around.

You looked very human, but only because you were always in human form, you never showed anyone in the land of the living your angel form.

You had a normal face, human body, and regular skin. But you had these large gorgeous white feathery wings, and two golden halos, crossed over one another. The wings often got in the way, they trailed on the floor behind you slightly and you have often smacked a few people with them, either by accident or because they stepped on them by mistake. The halo's would glow slightly in the dark.

Claude was so sure of his ideals on angles he had countless tapestries of gorgeous women in white dresses with beautiful wings. His ideologies only solidified once he met you.

The day that he met you was something neither of you had forgotten.

Frollo and some of his men were traveling to the outskirts of Paris to investigate a campsite that had suddenly popped up. Convinced it was a gypsy camp they set out to raid and purge it. They were very wrong.

Instead of being met with fearful gypsies, they were met with you. A woman with large angel wings and halos. A woman in a flowing baby blue dress with white crosses decorating the hem and a white and light grey corset. A woman with a soft, wistful, almost sounding lost voice.

The judge jumped off of his horse and approached you as you greeted the humans.

"Hello there humans. How may I help you?"

The men were flabbergasted when Frollo accidentally stood on one of your wings and, in surprise, it shot up and smacked him dead in the face, causing him to tumble back.

He stood up and stared at you as you folded your wings once again while apologizing.

"I'm so sorry dear human. My intention was not to cause you harm. Oh my are you alright, I swear sometimes these things have minds of their own."

The judge was flabbergasted at the sight of you. As soon as you set your wings back into place he got down onto one knee with his head bowed low. He then kneeled down on both knees, placed his hands down on the ground and laid his head on them and began praying to you. The soldiers did the same.

"Dear angel walking this earth please forgive me for stepping upon your holy wings and causing you harm. Please forgive me for my insolence of not bowing before you sooner. Please bless me with your forgiveness and light." He pleaded to you.

You thought he was weird. Very weird.

Over time the two of you became closer, before eventually falling in love with one another. You had managed to make him see the error of his ways towards the Romani people. He did as you said and made peace with them, after all, who was he to deny a messenger from heaven?

More time passed and Claude eventually proposed to you. That was when things around the two of you started to become odd.

Claude noticed that you had become far more possessive around this one woman. She wore a tight fitting black and red dress with far too much makeup for Claude to be comfortable with anymore.

She had long black hair and deep red eyes with flawless pale skin. He thought he knew what was going on with you. He thought you were jealous, after all the mystery woman did give him very flirtatious eyes and try to make him leave you for her.

Thinking that he knew the answer to your possessive behaviour as of late, he began showing you off more. He kissed your hands more, especially with the strange woman around. He bought you more gifts than usual and presented them to you in public. He thought that this would ease your mind about him possibly leaving you while simultaneously telling the woman he would never leave you for her.

But it didn't work. None of it.

The woman was more persistent than ever. And it was apparent to everyone that she was up to something. The more people focused on her, the more they would feel like she was dangerous.

One day, you had had enough of her. So you decided to expose her for what you knew she was. A demon. She had come to the land of the living to try and snatch Frollo's soul to drag both it and him to hell.

"Hello there judge~ How are you tod-" the woman started before being pushed away by your wings.

You stood between the demon in disguise and your soon to be husband, wings stretched out and puffed. The people around you stared in shock. You had never had such an angry look before.

Frollo was able to see over your shoulder as he stepped up to you.

"My dear, let us leave she is not worth your time." He muttered, trying to keep you from doing something that may end with you losing your halos.

"You must learn to stay in hell, where you came from you wretched beast." You spat at the woman.

"CRISTO!" You yelled. Immediately after that her eyes turned black.

She shifted back to her natural state. A woman with large horns and pitch black eyes with goop dripping from them. She lunged as people screamed in fear.

You too revealed your natural form. A large all white figure with four arms. Two more sets of wings grew from your back. Eyes open along your body, all with different beautiful colours.

The demon woman took one look at your angel form and froze with pure fear, before screaming in terror and erupted into flames as she escaped back to hell.

You turned to face Claude, he too looked terrified.

Everyone learnt a lesson that day. The images of angels were changed to look like the reality of their appearance. The teachings of the lord above became very different after you burnt all of their Bibles and replaced them with your Bible. The true Bible, the one that god himself had written.

"This is what a true angel looks like my love. We look like a terrifying creature, with many eyes, wings arms and other terrifying features to scare off demons. They look like what you think angels look like, in order to steal your soul" You spoke, your voice still wistful and lost sounding, but it was also distorted slightly.

When that happened people who loved those of the same gender were no longer shunned. Women's anatomy was taught properly. By you. A woman.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heya all. I hope that this wasn't too shitty. Let me know what other characters you want me to write about, and how you want the Y/N to be, and what you would like the story line to briefly be about.

Buh bye!