#I try not to fall in love with women but help me god I fail every time

[aboutcustardcreams]

not me listening to Jodie Whittaker on Spotify singing ‘yellow’ on repeat and imagining the cutest/fluffiest scenarios with her as the Doctor.

[lara4eclipze]

“teach me”

sypnosis; you weren't exactly dumb but we're lazy yet when she started teaching you your grades went up—what did she do to make that happen

cw; age gap! y/n is 19 Lara is 23 , mean , teasing , smut , face sitting , dirty talk ,spoiled and rich y/n, inspired by this

original idea;@ivemiese / thankss

ALSOO happy birthday my love Lara!! , I'm so happy she's turning 19!! , gosh heres a birthday fic for the rajberries!

to say you were failing was an understatement your grades were plunging down the toilet yet you didn't do anything to change it

your parents were rich anyways you'll get the company by 5 more years , there's no point in studying

well your parents cared about your grades , tutor after tutor yet nothing worked , either you were mean to them or they quit out of pity for you

"mom I told you already these tutors are just not helping" you pout to your mom knowing she'll always fall for it

"well I still got you one — my friend Mitra recommended her to me" your mom sighs

you grunt in frustration, running up to your room muttering some profanity under your breath

—ʚɞ

school was as boring as everyday , you hated this place I mean you went to a very expensive university yet you can't seem to find people you would like to interact with

"disgusting" you scoff as an student accidentally bumps into you

after school was as worse, well atleast now you can rot in bed or go in a shopping spree

"darling your tutor came early today , shes in you room" your mother says to you before going out the door

your mom associates herself with other housewives of rich men , you told her countless times she'll just get influenced by those big head women but she never listened

you enter your room after you change into some oversized tee and short shorts

"hi there" the girl waves at you , oh. my. god. she was hot , gorgeous , smart based on how she's supposed to tutor you and god she looked so fine

"hi..y/n's the name" you said sitting next to her , shamefully (or not so) you check her out , her waist was beautiful her finger were long you wonder how it will feel inside of you

"Lara — raj , anyways I'll tutor you math and science for about 4 hours today" she said , she noticed how you didn't respond so she tsks

well that's until she realizes what you were doing...

"hey didn't your mother teach you checking out people is extremely perverted... especially when they're older than you?" she said her voice lowering

"what? I didn't — pfft what?" you try to play it off but judged by the smirk on her face you knew it wouldn't work

—✧˖*°࿐

after the day she quizzed you on the topic to make sure you understood it

"2/10? are you serious?" she questions

"what?" you ask as if it's normal

"you answered me flawlessly earlier" she reasons

"well maybe I need motivation" you snap back

her gears were turning but an idea struck her

"alright then"

obviously the time was done so she had to go, what a great start you thought, Great thing your tutor now was not boring

admittedly she is hot , a hot nerd you thought to yourself

—✧˖*°࿐

you try to find her social media online and see that she was older than you

"23?, not bad" you sigh

she posted loads of pictures, videos she looked well off why is she wasting her time tutoring spoiled rich kids then?

—✧˖*°࿐

the next day you didn't go to school since you were just lazy, plus what were you gonna do there anyways?

sit down and learn where and when Picasso farted?

although excitingly your pretty tutor was still coming today , you decided to go the extra mile and get ready for her wearing some of your skimpiest outfits

"you look great honey" your mom pipes up as she leaves the house

now we wait , you slouch in your room waiting for her , until..

"hey" she enters your room escorted by your maid

"oh hi.." you said back , deciding to pull your top down a bit

her eyes trailed down , you smirk at her reaction, ahh the hard work paid off i guess

"can we do math first" you plead to her giving her your best weapon ,doe eyes

she reluctantly agreed , chuckling at your actions

god she looked amazing with her glasses , her pierced nose, you can't even focus on what she's teaching you

"do you get it?" she asks

"yes" you replied

"okay then let's quiz you..— you know since yesterday I saw how you looked at me , so let's play a game"

"for every score over 5 you get a special prize , if you get anything lower well it sucks to be you cause you won't get anything" the older says , your eyes lit up at the mentions of prize

"alright then" you said

—✧˖*°࿐

"9/10?.. pretty good" she purrs , god her voice was like heroin so addicting but so bad for you

"tell me when you don't feel comfortable okay?" she asks , fuck being confused you needed her in you NOW

"mhm" you hum out , your heart thumping in synch with her movements her hands in your inner thighs her other one flipping up your skirt

soaked , wet , whatever it was you just needed her so bad

she ties up her hair , some strands falling to frame her face , her breathing gets heavy , the view was amazing, shes quite literally face to face with your cunt ,

"fucking slut" she tsks as she pulls away your undergarments a string of your nectar connecting it to your cunt

"'m not" you were but it felt humiliating , in a good way cause as much as you hate to admit it her degrading you with that voice is just perfect

a beat passes by and her tongue , it felt perfect, gosh her tongue passed by your tight entrance every now and then

"fuck please!" you whine , you felt like you were gonna orgasm just by this yet you needed more

"greedy girl" she says in a condescending tone , mocking the way you whined for her

finally she enters your slick entrance , her tongue reaching places you never thought of

your head lolled back as you moan her name like a mantra , your hands entangled in her hair as you push her head

"right nghm there!" you moan as she hits a particularly gummy spot in you

she chuckles , the vibration sending shockwaves through you , your eyes seeing stars your mouth open drooling due to the fact you can't go a second without moaning or even whining for her

"you close? — your greedy cunny is sucking me in" the older says as she redoubled her efforts her nose bumping your clit every now and then

"shit please! let me cum!" yes it was pathetic, but it felt oh so right ,

"hold it in for me princess" she replied

"please"

"do it or you won't get to finish at all" she threatens , her voice lowering

tears start to fall on your face due to the pleasure, sniffling while moaning, that's new

—✧˖*°࿐

"oh darling are you guys done already?" Lara bumps into your mom as she was going out the door

"yes ma'am , glad to see her improve" the red head replied

"I'm so thankful for you , I haven't seen y/n get along with any of her tutor before" the older woman excitedly said

"must be special then" Lara teased

—✧˖*°࿐

"6/10? what happened honey?" The older asks looking at your paper

your frown at her , what are you gonna get now :((

"don't worry lets make a compromise" she stands up locking your door slowly she removes her top

her abs were on display begging you to ride them , her boobs were perfect to be gagged on

next down was her skirt , along with her socks , shit her thighs were beautiful you itched to touch her

as your hands tried to make its way to her waist she slaps it

"ouch" you pout at her

"study next time , stupid girls don't get to have the privilege of getting fucked mkay?" she pouts back , teasing you as you practically were about to cry

"i hate you" you mumble

"we both know you don't" she replied, wearing her clothing

—✧˖*°࿐

"surprisingly miss her grades had been better , see it was D last semester now it's a B" your professor explains to your mother

you couldn't help but grin , I mean is this who she calls lazy?

maybe you were lazy but never ever were you dumb

"okay spill it what do you want for that grade" your mother says whilst in the car

"oh come on do you think of me so lowly mom?" you rhetorically ask

"but since you insist , can you schedule more of my tutoring with Lara?" you said trying to fight off smiling at the thought

"oh—i expected worse" your mother chuckles

"is that a yes?"

"obviously!" your mother replied happily

—✧˖*°࿐

"stupid slut" she whispers as her fingers hit all the right spots her lips on your neck

getting a score of 8 meant that she'll finger you, a win is a win yet it intrigued you what will you get for 10

"head filled with me fuckin her she can't even respond" she harshly said as she pinches your clit , and then going deeper

"please mo-mommy!" you didn't even realized it slipped out of your mouth till it did

"my whore" she spits as she fingers throb in pain , not a minute passed and you were gushing around them , she chuckles as her fingers dripped in your cum

"suck" she said as she forces her fingers in your mouth , she maintained eye contact as you gag around her digits

"perfect" she said afterwards, she carries you to bed making sure you were alright

"I'm okay" you reassure her

—✧˖*°࿐

school wasn't any better today , but good enough you got to recite here and there

going home was another story , everything was loud due to the party your dad hosted for his business partners or what ever they were

"god!" you scoff , as you open the door you were pulled in by Lara who giggles

"heard you had a good day?" she teases

"now your stalking me? , how interesting miss raj " you hum back

"Oh please " she laughs

she settles your bag in the chair near your desk , sitting down

"ready for your quiz" she asks smirking , she knew what she was doing and it's driving you crazy

"yes I studied hard for this one" you replied

"ooh you might just get what you deserve..." she trails off , you spot her grinning as you take the quiz

—✧˖*°࿐

you don't know if it was a miracle or just a dream but you were buried in between Laras thighs right now having the meal you much deserve after a long ass day

her low moans and wet noises make you go crazy

"fuck baby , go faster" she moans

you chuckle going even faster , like an animal who was starved for weeks , her cunt was perfect sweet and savory soft and so inviting it sucked you in practically

maybe hours passed and you were still down there , she was overstimulated but who cares fuck everything

"baby too much-"

"but" you give her the doe eyes and here she goes losing again

"fine" she said breathlessly as she lays back accepting your tongue again , your face dripped with her cum which was too perfect for her to see

—✧˖*°࿐

"Mom! Lara's staying for the night!" you scream

"fine" your mother replied

"eek she said yes! , now which one first" you said laying out a plethora of straps

"are you joking?" she asks

"no , now which one this one's cute pink and white"

[therealcocoshady]

I also had an idea kind of similar to the arranged marriage plot maybe someone sets them up on a blind date… he keeps saying no but the person playing Cupid is very persistent and he ends up feeling obligated to go (idk, just a thought)

Oh, I actually had an thought about something similar to this, a while ago - please don’t mind me, I literally wrote this thing in less than 30 minutes and didn’t proofread. I just wrote it so that you’d get the idea.

After years of frustration with women and trust issues, Marshall has made peace with the fact that he’s going to end up alone. Even his friends have stopped trying to set him up on dates. Sure, they’d like to see him thrive in a relationship, and they can see how lonely he is, sometimes, but they also know he’s complicated. So they leave him alone on the topic. So he dedicates to his work and his role as a father.

And ironically enough, his girls are the only people that could get him to go out of his comfort zone. One of them is still in college, studying psychology. She has to do an assignment for one of her classes and she is searching for volunteers for an experiment on dating and relationships. The design is pretty simple : people sign up, fill some forms and answer questions. Then, an algorithm pairs them up for maximum compatibility and they have to go on a date, during which they will have to answer the famous 36 questions designed to make them fall in love. His daughter is a bit behind on work and she has to find one more volunteer. She doesn’t even believe in this whole thing, she just wants to pass the class. So she begs Marshall, who refuses at first. Because A) he doesn’t date and B) even if he did, he wouldn’t take part in an experiment, much less one involving his daughter in his romantic life. But she’s really desperate and she assures him that the whole thing is anonymous and clinical. « Please, Dad, it’ll take twenty minutes of your time. And who knows if they’ll even pair you with anyone for the date. I just need to pass the class and graduate. You’re the one who always insisted on me getting higher education ! ». Of course, he caves in. Because he did sacrifice a lot for his babies to go to college, and he’ll be damned if his daughter fails the class because of him. Plus, the people in charge of the experiment will probably see his answers and figure he’s a lost cause. Even science wouldn’t find a good match for him, right ?

Except that it does. Weeks later, he receives an email, informing him that he’s been selected for the second step of the experiment and that they’ve found him a match with 95% compatibility. At first, he figures he won’t go. With his luck, they paired him with another fifty-something man who’s just as lonely. No way this could be a woman. Not with the stoic and sarcastic answers he typed in the form. The email doesn’t even specify who they paired him with. They just ask if he’d be available for a date in two weeks time. Basically, it’s having coffee with the other person, answering the 36 questions unrecorded and then filling another form to describe the experience and say if yes or no they feel attracted to the other person and would consider actually dating them. He figures that, even though it’s anonymous, his daughter’s team wouldn’t have the data if he bails and he’ll be damned if his precious daughter doesn’t get her degree because of him. Of course he’ll bite the bullet and go on that stupid coffee date. Even if he’s paired with a 53 year-old name George.

But as it turns out, his date is not 53 year-old George. It’s you. You and your charming smile. You who agreed to take part in the whole thing because your little sister, his daughter’s teammate, begged you at the last minute. God, these college students need to learn how to do things in time and not to involve their family in their cringy psych classes experiment. You don’t even want to do this whole thing but when a charming man shows up, you can’t help but smile and introduce yourself, extending a polite handshake to greet him. He doesn’t seem too at ease in that little café, which you find odd because it’s actually quite lovely. Also, you swear you’ve seen him somewhere, but it’s Detroit and he’s a brown-haired, bearded, middle-aged man in jeans and a hoodie. Pretty generic. You’re not exactly surprised to have been paired up with someone older than you. You’ve always been told you’re an old soul, so of course « science » (or whatever software they used to compile data) would figure out that your perfect match is almost twenty years older. Anyway, you’re not really here for a date. You’re here for your sister to finally graduate. And you’re not one to refuse free Chai latte.

So the two of you exchange a few pleasantries, introduce yourselves and get to these 36 questions. You tell each other who you could have dinner with if you could choose anyone in the world, whether or not you have a secret hunch about how you will die… as it turns out, the thing is cleverly designed. The questions are increasingly personal and both of you end up sharing personal details, things you most definitely wouldn’t think of sharing with a stranger you were more or less randomly paired up with. By the time you reach the last question, you are looking into each other’s eyes, giving your undivided attention, leaning in. When you arrived, you were strangers but by the end of the date, you feel like you really know each other. More than some people you’ve known your whole life. And by the time it ends, you’ve had the time to notice how charming the wrinkles around eyes are, and you don’t find it too unsettling that he blinks a bit faster than most people you know. As for him, he hasn’t failed to notice that little birthmark near your eye, and the way your mouth twitches when you’re trying to think of the adequate word to answer one of the questions. You don’t know each other’s favorite color or the name of your first pet, but both know when the other last cried in front of someone else and by themselves and why. 36 questions and a cup of coffee later, and you’re not really strangers. You actually had a pleasant time. Too bad you reached the end of the questionnaire and it’s time to go. Too bad he doesn’t offer to take your number and call you. Too bad you’re too demure to ask for his. You wouldn’t have minded actually going out with him. Maybe even discuss that movie he mentioned in passing and thinks you’d like.

The two of you share a hug goodbye and agree that it was fun. You wish him well for his daughter’s wedding he told you he’s busy planning and he wishes you luck for that job interview you said you were nervous about. When you go home and it’s time to answer that final set of questions, saying how you feel about the experiment, you actually give the whole thing a solid 8/10. And when you’re asked if you’d actually date the person you met for coffee, you tick « yes » faster than you’ve ticked any box. You do the same when it asks you if you’d consent to the other person being given your contact info.

Weeks later, Marshall is ecstatic when his daughter tells him she got a good grade for that psych class and that she’ll be graduating with honors. He’s proud as can be. She thanks him profusely for helping her. « I know it’s a stupid thing. But hey, there are a few people who reported they had a good time. Who knows ? Maybe I helped someone find love. ». She has absolutely no idea that he is one of the people who asked for the other person’s contact info as soon as they were given the possibility. She doesn’t know he’s been on four more dates with you. People have been so used to him being single that it didn’t even cross his daughter’s mind. Not even when he mentioned he missed the last Lions’ game, which never happens. But she definitely gets a hunch when he attends her graduation ceremony and sees him smile to that beautiful lady who’s attending her graduation ceremony and came to greet him. « Oh, that’s my sister speaking with your dad ! », her friend says. « I convinced her to do the experiment and she told me she met someone charming. Can you believe it ?! ».

[thegreatestsandwich]

You fit in my poems like a perfect rhyme (Namor x f!reader)

(I swear to God, this man is everything and I love him so much that the fact there is so few fics about him is a sin)

Masterlist

Pairing: Namor x F!reader

Word count: 1.3k

Summary: Only Namor can appease your greatest fear.

Warning: Nothing really, well I really don’t think there is a warning, just fluff or my idea of fluff

A/N: Hi! I guess I’m still in need to have more fics of this man, I know I know, but I can’t stop! And this is going to be my fic for this week, sadly I’m entering my last two weeks of school so the projects are driving me crazy, I hope I can have a bit of time to answer your comments or write your requests (my inbox is open by the way, so if you have an idea, tell me about it!)

Coments, Reblogs and Asks are happily received!  

Translations:

In reina - my queen

Ba'ax yaan ma'alo'ob tu láakal? - Is everything alright?

In reina, táan a uts, le paalo' ma'alob - My queen, you're fine, the child is fine

Múusik’ - Breathe

Ba'ax ku máan k'aas yéetel le reina - Something is wrong with the queen

Cha' k - Leave us

Cha' k, waal mía, le yaan in wáantik bejla'e' - Leave us, my child, I will help her now

You bit your lip, a bit guilty as your thoughts pulled you away from the conversation with the older women from Talokan. You were getting frustrated trying to craft a simple basket. Apparently it was a tradition for new mothers to create one for your unborn child, a token of love.

You hated it. Your hands couldn’t move right, it was like that basket wanted you to fail from the very beginning. You could feel the eyes of the older women at your disastrous creation, too fearful to say anything to their queen, to the one that was carrying the heir of their K’uk’ulkan.

Your hands trembled a little as you put the basket on the floor, it gently float a bit against the waters but you were too frustrated to care. A fluttered in your stomach made you gasp, eyes opening in surprise at the feeling. You abruptly stood up, your eyes looking at your abandoned basket.

“In reina?” My queen. One of the women tried to gain your attention, but you were too scared to move. “Ba'ax yaan ma'alo'ob tu láakal?”  Is everything alright?

You kept quiet, your hands resting over the curved mound of your stomach. Something is wrong. You could feel the baby move but, wasn’t it a bit too early for that? Hot tears began burnin your eyes, caused by the confusion. Where was he?

You didn’t move, debating what to do, the women circled around you, a few of them touching your shoulders gently, trying to ease you, but you were far too gone to care. Confusion turned into worry, the tears falling freely as the flutter happened again, more of a tiny kick, you closed your eyes, too frightened to understand what was happening.

“In reina, táan a uts, le paalo' ma'alob.” My queen, you're fine, the child is fine. Soft hands cradled your face, forcing you to look at her. “Múusik'.” Breathe. She inhaled deeply, trying to force you to copy her movements.

You couldn’t focus on her, panic set deep inside you, the only response was to pushed her far from you and swam away. The screams were making you nervous, your eyes trying to find your husband, anyone that could help you. You clashed against someone, their hands carefully gripping your arms gently,

“In reina?” Namora asked you confuse, trying to understand what was happening. “ Ba'ax yaan ma'alo'ob tu láakal?”  Is everything alright?

“My husband.” You tried to get away from her. “I-I…need to find him.” You didn’t even noticing that you switched languages, too scare to notice.

Namora glanced down at your body, trying to locate the source of your distress, her eyes looking at your stomach, and she understood. With a nod, she held you closer to her body, pushing away any other talokanil away from you.

Your legs felt like they were filled with sand as you force your steps to match the ones from Namora, you manage to caught a glimpse of your husband sparing with the other ones, completely absorbed on that activity. You leaned against Namora and she held you, helping you to keep moving, determined to get you to Namor, no matter the cost.

“K’uk’ulkan!” Namora screamed but was ignored. She growled in annoyance, slowing down her rhythm, she gently sat you against one of the pillars, swimming harshly until she stood in front of Namor, catching the spear he threw to Attuma. “K’uk’ulkan,” She huffed annoyed. “Ba'ax ku máan k'aas yéetel le reina.” Something is wrong with the queen. Her head nodded towards your direction.

Namor’s gaze quickly turned towards you, seeing you completely in distress. “Cha' k.” Leave us. He told the others, he grabbed Namora’s arm, gratefully nodding for her assistance. Her eyes turned to you, hesitating to leave you alone in that state. Namor noticed. “Namora, cha' k, waal mía, le yaan in wáantik bejla'e'” Leave us, my child, I will help her now. He gently told her.

She nodded before swimming away.

He swam to you, kneeling on the floor and carefully guiding your head to look at him. “What happened, my love?” He spoke in English, fully understanding that you were not in the right set of mind to speak his language. “Talk to me.”

You hesitated, looking uncertain, “The baby.” You whispered. “Something is wrong with the baby.”

Namor nodded grimly, his arms grabbing both of your thighs and carefully standing up. “Let us go somewhere more private, we’ll worry about anything else when you breath some air.” You closed your eyes, hiding your head against his neck. Namor held you closer to his body as he ascended to the cave. You felt his hands shake against your body but decided to stay quiet. Walking out of the water and gently putting you on the bed, Namor decided to kneeled in front of you, taking away any part of clothing that prevented him of inspection ting your stomach.

“Tell me.” He softly said, his eyes searching yours for answers. “What happened?”

“I-I…” Your voice shook with fear, real raw terror.

His gaze lowered down your body to your round stomach. He hummed, motioning for you to continue. His hand laid flat on your stomach.

“There is something wrong.” You hiccupped. “I don’t understand what is happening.” You grabbed the hand that laid on your stomach, trying to find any comfort.

Namor’s face inched closer until he pressed his forehead against it, both of his hands gently gripping your hips as he nuzzled your belly.

“K’uk’ulkan?” You were frozen.

He began humming a soft tune, pressing his cheek to your skin. “My mother used to hum this song when I was afraid as a child, it always calmed me down.” He lifted his chin, eyes opening. The most beautiful dark irises looking at you, and only you. “I am here.”

You breathed a little easier and tried to calm down as you relax against him.

“I am the father of this child.” He whispered to you. “Whatever fear you have, I am here to help you scare it away.”

Your eyes filled with tears, “I…”

“You are not alone in this.” He placed his forehead against your stomach once again. “I am here.”

Namor’s calloused fingers caressed the skin over your stomach, so warm and so gentle that you closed your eyes at the feeling. He rubbed his nose against your stomach and began to hum again. The baby kicked in response. His fingers lowered and he lightly gripped your hips. “Was that the thing you felt?” He whispered.

“Yes.” You whispered back, “I thought something was wrong.”

Namor smiled, “That was our child trying to say hello to their beautiful mother.” He placed a kiss on your stomach. “But I believe, their strength manage to scare you a bit.”

You stayed still, allowing him to enjoy the awe of this beautiful moment. His fingers moved upwards, gently cradling your face with both of his hands, tugging you until he manage to kiss your lips. Your eyes closed at the action, your hands holding his forearms. Namor rested his forehead against yours.

“I’m sorry for scaring you.” You whispered against his lips. “I didn’t know what was happening, everything was too much that it scared me.”

“Want to tell me about it?” He asked, not opening his eyes.

“Just that stupid basked that I cannot manage to finish.” You sniffled, tears still falling from your eyes. “The older women were judging me.”

He gently laughed. “I can help you finish it.” He nudge his nose with yours. “I am good with my hands after all.” You laughed, trying to push him away but he only smiled in response, hugging you tighter. “I am here.” He repeated, placing another kiss on your lips. “We are in this together, I got you, everything will work out. I swear it on my life.”

And you believe him

[wileys-russo]

Heya! Hope you’re having a good day!

Could you do a Mary Earps blurb or fic where the reader meets her and maybe some team mates in a Karaoke bar and they end up duetting an ABBA song and falling for eachother? Thought of this when I saw the lionesses tiktok of her walking / dancing to voule vous 😭😭 if not no worries whatsoever!

voulez vous II m.earps

"oh no come on!" your best friend ivy groaned as the uber stopped outside your favourite karaoke bar, causing you to clap happily practically jumping out of the car as it was still moving with a gleeful squeal.

"once she's had enough alcohol you should know we always end up here." your other best friend archie grinned, thanking the driver and pulling her out with him as she groaned and dug her heels in.

"why are you being a buzzkill ive! few shots and you'll be up there front of stage and centre of attention like you love." you teased, squishing her cheeks in your hand as the three of you sauntered inside waving hello to the security guard you knew too well who hid a smile.

"yeah yeah yeah. you're buying first and second round then while i warm my voice up!" ivy grinned and shoved you toward the bar as you playfully rolled your eyes, flipping your friends off and turning around.

though you'd failed to realise someone was turning away from the bar as you did, causing you to practically tackle the poor girl to the ground in your haste for a drink. "oh my god i am so sorry!" you blurted out quickly with wide eyes, hurrying to your feet and almost slipping on the alcohol you'd caused her to spill as her hands grabbed you.

"you're fine love. no use crying over spilt milk...or vodka." the taller girl grinned, and you breathed a sigh of relief that she wasn't angry, face warm with embarrassment.

"please let me buy you a new drink. it's the least i can do!" you pleaded as her hands stayed on your hips and she agreed, hand moving to the small of your back as she guided you to the bar.

"can i get six shots of soju and..." you trailed off glancing to the mystery girl whose hand remained on your back, adding on her drink order.

"six? needing some liquid courage to hit the stage are we?" the girl teased with a pearly white grin and you couldn't help but feel something in your stomach stir as you properly drank her in.

"oh no i could crush any song stone cold sober. but my penance for dragging my friends here every weekend is the promise of free shots and the pleasure of both my delightful company and angelic voice." you smiled, not missing the way her eyes looked you up and down a few times, and you felt a sense of pride in the way they lingered on your exposed cleavage for just a moment.

"hey!" you gasped as her hand shot out, tapping the eftpos machine with her card before you'd even touched yours, mouth forming a small o in shock.

"call it payment for your angelic voice i'll be listening out for later." the taller girl smirked, clearly happy with herself as you shook your head. "deal. maybe even a duet? if you have enough of those. thanks...stranger." you winked toward her drink before you stretched up and kissed her cheek in thanks.

you smiled seeing a small blush coat her cheeks as you noticed your friends hovering close by and grabbed the tray of shots, leaving her behind you. "try not to knock anyone over this time would ya!" she called out teasingly before grabbing her own drink and heading off in the other direction.

"um do you know who that was?" ivy gasped as you all did your shots with a wince, returning the tray to the bar and settling into your usual table. "no? i knocked the poor girl to the ground when you pushed me to the bar." you rolled your eyes.

"mary earps. ring a bell?" ivy waited impatiently for you to react as you only stared at her blankly. "oh my god she's like one of the greatest goal keepers in the world she won the golden glove at the womens world cup! she starts for england." ivy continued as both you and archie continued to look on unimpressed.

"christ its hard work being friends with you both sometimes." she sighed with a defeated shake of her head. "we don't watch football! we can't all have life long aspirations of being wags." archie rolled his eyes.

"yeah well once i marry a rich footballer i won't need to slum it around here with you lot anymore, sounds like a win for me." she shrugged, a beat of silence passing before all three of you burst into laughter.

it was a few hours later and you finished belting out your fourth song of the night, duetting cher with archie as it was his turn to pick, the two of you finishing and taking a very drunken bow as you stumbled off the stage to applause.

archie dipping off to use the toilet and ivy having left a half hour ago, to even get her in there for an hour was win for you know how much she detested it, you hovered by the bar to get a drink.

"you know, you weren't lying about this angelic voice of yours." you perked up hearing a familiar voice, the tall girl from before appearing beside you with a grin, whose name you now knew to be-

"mary." she introduced herself right away, holding out her hand making you laugh. "what is this? the first day of school?" you teased, shaking her hand and sharing your own name as she pulled you a little closer into her body. "think you still owe me a duet." she grinned down at you.

and that was how you found yourself singing your heart out to voulez vous, almost unable to get the words out through your laughter at marys dance moves, the tall girl shaking and shimmying and popping her body all over the stage much to the amusement of you and her group of friends who cheered her on from the floor.

as the song came to an end mary grabbed your hand, spinning you around and dipping you as you let out another pelt of laughter and she hit the final note before pulling you up.

spotting archie waving furiously at you across the bar as you hopped off stage you thanked mary for the song and the drink, again kissing her cheek and darting away as she watched on, mouth opening to speak but you were already gone.

letting out a groan she collapsed into her seat, eyebrows knitted into a frown as her head fell to ella's shoulder.

"tooney. i think i just fell in love!"

~

turns out mary didn't have to wait more than a few days before she'd see you again, and she'd be lying if she said you hadn't been a constant thought in her mind ever since. and she was kicking herself for not getting your number.

which made her feel ridiculous given she'd had all of two interactions with you and only knew your name. but she couldn't describe it, there was just some sort of connection, an energy, like an invisible string that had drawn her toward you, and that made her want nothing more than to see you again.

alessia was down for the weekend visiting from london, and of course it was only a matter of time before the girls clusmy nature had reared its head and she'd smashed a wine glass.

mary being her usual motherly self had hurried to clean it up without a second thought, and having had a few glasses of wine herself head lead to ella driving them to the emergency room as mary found several shards of glass lodged in her palm.

"earps?" she looked up hearing her name, tapping alessia's leg as the blonde tiredly pulled her head off marys shoulder and slumped into ella, the time nearing one in the morning now as she left her friends behind.

"so, what seems to be the probl-" marys breath caught in her throat as the nurse entered the room, you catching her eye as the words fell short, your coworker giving you a strange look before leaving the two of you and returning to reception.

"well hi." you smiled in surprise, mary stammering out her own greeting as you appeared in front of her. "whats happened here then?" you gently grabbed her wrist, starting to unwrap the gauze ella had messily wrapped around her bloody palm.

"thought i'd test out what glass feels like? turns out, its very sharp." mary attempted to joke, hissing as you tenderly touched the swollen skin, sending her an apologetic look.

"i'll be sure to note that down for our medical research." you joked lightly, letting go of her and moving to grab what you needed. "oh fuck off!" mary swore quietly to herself with a wince of pain as you grabbed her wrist again, tweezers in hand as you started to pick out the small shards.

"so a little birdie told me these are quite important to you in your line of work." you smiled nodding to her hands, doing your best to distract her as she continued to wince in pain.

"oh nah, can always use these too!" mary joked, wiggling her ugg covered feet. "i'll be sure to take good care of you then, mary queen of stops i heard it was? can't believe i sang with royalty!" you teased, lips curling into an amused smile.

"i think its me whose the lucky one if we look at the current situation. but do you make a habit of knocking over future patients? were you just trying to take me down so i'd end up here and we'd meet again?" mary grinned, proud of herself as you let out another laugh.

"you've figured me out. my whole routine is to injure beautiful women i meet in bars so i get to con them into our first date being in the emergency room!" you gently ran a glove covered thumb over her palm, checking carefully you'd not left any remnants behind.

"i need to clean it, this is gonna sting." you warned softly, mary nodding and biting down on her bottom lip as you sprayed the cuts with antiseptic, wiping over them as gently as you possibly could.

"well we've avoided an amputation. england is once again in safe hands!" you smiled, patting her leg with your free hand and peeling off your gloves, moving to dispose of the glass shards as mary hopped down from the table.

"i think the entire country is now forever in your debt love." mary grinned as you ran her through some basic aftercare, opening the door as marys heart leapt into her throat, surely this had to be some sort of universal sign.

"um look with the risk of being too forward. could i maybe get your number? i'd like to take you out on an actual date, if you're open to that." she was quick to ramble out, her cheeks flushing bright red which made you smile.

"i think i could be persuaded. maybe we can step up from here and go to the hospital cafeteria!" you teased, grabbing a sticky note and a pen from reception, scribbling down your number and sticking it to marys shoulder making her grin widen.

"i think i can do even better than that."

[lyaswriting]

A Second Chance

Childe x Female!God!reader Reincarnation AU

Trigger Warnings: Blood, death, no beta we die like Rex Lapis

„I will return to you. Pinky promise.“

The whispered promise still lingered in her mind, where it had been for centuries, as Y/N walked through the park outside of a changed Mondstadt, quickly looking before crossing the street so she wouldn‘t be hit by a car, while taking a sip from her coffee. So she entered the park, that looked like it was a bit of a window into a past she sometimes barely remembered for how long it had been. Yet here she could still sometimes sit down and remember, occasionally still having to defend from a few slimes or other elemental beings, but to Y/N it was worth it, if only for the memories. Y/N had watched, as the times had changed after the fall of Celestia, after visions were no longer necessary to control elemental powers and after humanity decided to take matters into their own hands. She had watched as civilizations had risen and fallen, as people had embarked on journeys greater than they could imagine, as lovers had found their way back to each other, proving themselves that true love does exist.

And yet, Y/N thought, mine is the exception. As her lover had never returned, even though he promised. But he had tried, oh how he had fought to come back to her, but in the end it hadn‘t been enough.

And so, to make peace with the past or to not forget it, she didn‘t really know, she began writing down the stories, and adventures she had seen and lived. And she had written many about her once friends, as she felt each of their stories deserved to be told. And yet, as if to mock her once more, none sold better than the Story about the True Love between the Harbinger and the Goddess of Dreams. Although people often complained about the story having such a grim ending. But that was the harsh truth, that some stories did not have a happy ending.

If she listened into herself she could still remember their first meeting as if it had been merely days ago. She had just awoken from a slumber the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles had put her under, so she had decided to join Aether, the brave outlander, in his cause and traveled the world. That was when she had met the ginger haired Harbinger in Liyue, before the Rite of Descension.

In the Guili Plains she had fought some vishaps that had attacked her, she remembered, and was close to winning the fight, growing confident in her powers, as someone jumped into the middle of the fight, flashing two identical hydro blades, and before she knew it, the vishaps lay dead before them.

„Excuse me, but I had that under control!“, Y/N told the young man a bit rudely, who in return only put away the blades, and turned around slowly, grinning.

„Is that so?“, he said, looking her over before looking at her mildly enraged face.

„Yes. I was testing my fighting abilities, not to mention cutting in, jumping in without asking if I need help is rude.“

„I‘m sorry then. I can see now that you are perfectly capable of handling yourself. Maybe I can take you out to dinner, as an apology?“, he offered, while trying to look guilty, and failing.

„Do you always ask out women this way? Try to charm them after saving their lives?“

„So you do admit I saved your life?“, and he‘d smirked, oh that smirk.

„I did not mean it that way.“

„Of course you didn‘t“

„You didn‘t even tell me your name yet“, she bit back then, which he countered„And you didn‘t give me an answer“

„Fine, if you insist.“

„Perfect, I‘m Ajax by the way.“, he said, a dashing smile on his face, and equally smiling she answered,„Y/N“.

A little smile snuck onto her face, before it faded and she remembered how the whole story had ended. It had been centuries, and yet her heart had not healed. Some people you love so much that they leave a mark behind when they go, Zhongli had once said after the Battle against Celestia, familiar of the pain Y/N felt. And sometimes, he had said, they refuse to leave either, returning one way or another. But that was only wishful thinking, she knew, as she looked down at her hands, still almost seeing the blood that had stained them so long ago.

She‘d found the Harbinger after the battle, but instead of being fine like he promised, there was a gaping wound in his stomach, leaking blood just like the dozens of cuts on his body. His eyes had lighted up at seeing her, even if his smile was more melancholic as she kneeled next to him.

„Hey girlie.“

„What… you‘ll be fine. We‘ll get you to Barbara or Baizhu. You‘ll be fine.“

At that, he raised a hand to cup her cheek, making her look at him.

„Girlie, it‘s too late. Even if you…“, he coughed at this moment, she remembered, and he‘d coughed up blood, „even if they come… I used Foul Legacy for too long… my life is spent.“

„No, no, no… This cannot be. There has to be a way, I‘m a goddess, that has to count for something… I can figure something out, I just need time…“, Tears streamed down her face at this point violently shaking her, as she felt his breathing slow down, his voice raspy, „I wish we‘d have that time. But you, Y/N, were the best thing I could have hoped for. You were my dream.“

„Please don‘t leave me, I can‘t… I can‘t…“

„I will return to you. Pinky promise.“

Those had been the last words the Harbinger had ever said. And since then, every year she had returned to the park, to the same tree he had leaned against in his final moments, as if it could somehow make her feel closer to him.

That was when she heard it in the distance by the lake, fighting noices near the lake.

„If it is those damn hydro slimes again, I swear…“, she muttered under her breath, as she ran to the lake, already summoning her powers in her hand, throwing it at the slimes as soon as she saw them, apparently much to the dismay of their opponent.

„And here I thought I‘d get a little practice, but I guess not…“, the guy muttered.

That voice, that voice she had heard in her own dreams for a few hundred years now. It couldn‘t be, could it?

Y/N turned around, her heart beating so fast she would be scared if she weren‘t a goddess. And there he stood, as if he had never been gone, ginger hair tousled from the fight, hydro blades still in his hands.

„Anything particular you are staring at? Wanna spar perhaps after you destroyed my guinea pigs?“

He still had a playful tone, she noticed, but one look told her, that he didn‘t know who she was. Her heart sank a bit, before she caught herself, nearly laughing at the irony of their meeting.

„I… I‘m sorry, that was rude. I just thought someone might need help again and then I jumped in, completely disregarding your apparent dislike for help… I‘m sorry.“

„Apology accepted.“

„Even though, with those blades you wouldn‘t have gotten far against them, you know that right? Hydro vs Hydro and all.“

„Opinion noted.“

She laughed at that, an idea forming in her head.

„Opinion? You‘re welcome. But if you insist, may I take you out on dinner, to make it up?“

He studied her then, something seemingly pulling him in.

„I‘m sorry, I didn‘t get your name, did I? I‘m Ajax.“, and with that he stretched out his hand to her, which she shook, and smiled.

„I‘m Y/N“.

Ajax paused for a second, a feeling gnawing at him, as if he should remember something he doesn‘t, it was easy to read for Y/N, after all she had known him once before.

„Have we met once before?“, he asked, staring at her curiously.

„We kind of did. But I think you wouldn‘t believe me if I told you, it‘s apparently kind of a neverending story…“, she answered truthfully, looking into his blue eyes, full of life this time, and more mesmerizing than ever.

„Try me“, he said then, „maybe at that dinner you offered?“

And he smirked, oh that smirk.

And Y/N smiled too.

Maybe Zhongli had been right, that some people are bound to each other, and maybe Ajax had kept his promise too, he had found a way to return to Y/N.

[awkwardchick87]

Could I please get headcanons for chifuyu kisaki and mikey with a really attractive girlfriend who gets a lot of male attention

This is such a clever idea!! I am of course using the versions from the final timeline! c/w - afab reader, smut, oral (fem receiving) pet names (princess, baby, pretty girl) creampie.

Chifuyu, Kisaki and Mikey with a very attractive s/o

Chifuyu felt like he won the girlfriend lottery! You were so pretty and kind. Every time you walked into the pet shop, all 3 heads turned. Baji and Kazutora were always bugging Chifuyu, wondering exactly how he was able to land a girl like you. He was just as baffled as they were. If he was being totally honest, it made him a little self conscious. You always looked so effortlessly beautiful.

At the end of his work day, when he would go home to you in your shared apartment, his worries would disappear. You took off your makeup, wearing your favourite threadbare t-shirt and some shorts. Sitting cross legged on the couch, munching on snacks. He still knew you were the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. His friends should be jealous.

You were even more beautiful when he had you pinned under him. His fingers digging into your thighs while he pounded into you. "Whos this pussy belong to? hm?"

"You, Fuyu, s'all yours" barely a whisper while your boyfriend never stopped thrusting into you.

"Good fuckin girl. God you're so pretty" Chifuyu looked down at you, groaning.

Your fingers dug into the sheets under you, trying to ground yourself as you felt the coil tightening in your pelvis. "So close. Fuyu - fuck - please, don't stop"

He could feel your wall tightening around his length. "Give it to me princess. Cum for me"

Your mouth opened in a silent scream as your orgasm took over. Chifuyu never stopping his ministrations on your pussy, even while you thrashed under him as he painted your walls white.

Coming down from both your highs, his eyes skimmed your face, "You really are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen" as he planted a kiss on your forehead.

Kisaki had made quite the name for himself, which came with a lot of gold diggers trying to convince him that they loved him. You were different. Sure you had heard of the "TK&KO" group, they had stock in almost everything, but you had never seen a photo of the President or Vice President. Kisaki had decided, on that fateful morning, to walk down to the shop and grab a coffee for himself and his partner. He never meant to bump into you, spilling the coffee allover the two of you. He only offered to dry clean your clothes as an apology. He could not help himself when he asked for your number, and to dinner. He did not expect to fall in love with you. You were quite literally the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on.

You were shocked the first time he brought you to his office. He told you he worked for TK&KO, but he failed to mention that he was one of the top guys. You were so nervous making your way through the building, meeting the staff, and then meeting his partner, Kokonoi, who commented on how he was happy Kisaki was finally settling down, and with such a beauty too.

You knew Kisaki had a hard time trusting people, especially women who were as lovely as you. He almost didn't believe you when you said you had no idea who he was.

Now here, in his office, you were on top of his desk. His head buried between your thighs while he parted your folds with his tongue. Carding your fingers through his hair, you threw your head back, slamming it on the desk. Kisaki pulled his head out, "Tell me pretty girl, you love me?"

All you could do was gasp out a small "Yes" as his tongue went back to drawing tight circles around your clit. His finger pushing into your warm pussy, curving up to rub against your g-spot. You could feel him smile against your folds as your cunt clamped down on his finger. A clear stream splashing against his face and glasses while he never stopped eating your pussy.

Finally he felt you relax a little, breathing heavier as he pulled his face from between your thighs. "Kisaki, Wow. That was.." Your body was limp and you couldn't really speak.

"Yeah, I know baby. You did so good for me" he responded.

Mikey loved to show you off. He knew you were beautiful and he knew that he was lucky to have you. You were so pretty, standing behind the barricade, near Draken and his pit crew, during his races, and he especially loved showing you off when he won. He'd pull you close, dipping your body to kiss you while the crowds cheered and hollered for him.

After parties were spent with you tightly pulled beside him, wearing a dress that fit your body perfectly and showed off all your assets. He'd parade you around, making sure everyone knew you were his. He wasn't worried about you leaving him for someone else, after all, you'd been with him ever since you were teens. Long before he was a racer.

Mikey knew he was lucky to have you, especially after he had heard stories from other racers about girls who were only there for the money and fame, then dropped their men as soon as someone else came along. He made sure you knew that he loved you with every fiber of his being.

He had you in the bathroom, in front of the mirror, your dress hiked up around your waist while he pounded into your cunt from behind. The sound of your slick pussy and his grunts were all that could be heard. he had your back pulled flush against his chest, his hand on your throat. "Fuck yes, look how pretty you are taking my cock" he groaned in your ear before licking a strip down your neck.

Your eyes rolled back in your head as you felt the tip of his cock grinding against your walls. He always filled you up so perfectly. Your toes curling in your pretty heels, he knew you were close. The steady drip of your slick hitting the bathroom floor. Mikey angled himself just right, his cock hitting your g-spot perfectly as his hand reached down to rub quick circles on your clit.

You gasped loudly, the sound echoing off the walls of the bathroom, "Shhh, we don't wanna get caught baby." Mikey brought his hand that had been on your throat, up to your mouth to muffle your moans, never stopping his assault on your clit as he felt your walls tighten around his cock and your body trembled. Eyes rolling to the back of your skull, your hands reached back, gripping Mikey's hair, sending him vaulting over the edge with you. He bit the back of your neck to muffle his own moans while his cum filled you, mixing with your own slick, sending more cascading to the floor.

Mikey let go of your mouth and backed away, his softening cock leaving your hole with a lewd pop. "Fuck baby, look at this mess you made." Mikey chuckled.

Catching your breath, you replied, "Manjiro, you better help me clean this up." You pulled your panties back up and adjusted your dress. "We do not want to have to pay Hina and Michi back for making a mess at the wedding venue."

[arataka-reigen]

I've got some yuri recs for you!

Hana ni Arashi: Chidori and Nanoha are best friends, but unbeknownst their friends, they are dating! Which they try to hide from said friends while cute couple shenanigans ensues. Very fluffy. so so fluffy. Also they are together from the beginning of the series?! say what?

Beauty and the beast girl: MONSTER GIRL YURI!!!! I REPEAT MONSTER GIRL YURI!!! (also if you are in the market for monster girl yuri, the author has a lot of them)

The sheep princess in wolf's clothing: fluffy sheep princess with a wolf butler in a suit, need I say more? Just like the sheep princess, the manga is also extremely fluffy

Can't defy the lonely girl: honor student/delinquent yuri. let's go! for the sake of getting into a good college, our resident honor student decides to help out the teacher deal with a troublesome student, and yuri shenanigans follows.

Yuri is taboo for a yuri otaku: himejoshi achieves her dream of being enrolled in an all girls highschool, where she can observe all the yuri happenings to her heart's content, but what happens when sparks fly between her and a gyaru? This is a yuri manga, you know what happens next.

The moon on a rainy night: Okay slightly more serious than the previous recs. A young pianist meets a beautiful girl one night and goes to school the next day to find out that she is the new transfer student and that she is DEAF. Lots of commentary on how society treats deaf people and such. Really cool.

Even if it was once, I regret it: Miss girl is four months behind on her rent, what does the landlady say to that "Please have sex with me" Woah! Woah! It's not that kind of yuri. It's like really sweet. A little racy, but sweet.

Anemone is in heat: Another honor student yuri! Our girl finally getting over the shame of failing her highschool entrance exams but a her new school, who does she meet but the girl who caused her to fail the exams. Drama ensues.

That time I was blackmailed by the classes green tea bitch: I know the title is... odd. But green tea bitch is just someone who acts innocent but is secretly manipulative. I swear it's really fluffy.

A story concerning sweets: A hospital ghost and a patient falling in love. What could go wrong? Fluffy, but tragic, but fluffy.

School zone girls: All of the girls are so weird and idiotic... It's lovely. Also fluffy.

Our days under one roof: fluffy autobiographical yuri. Enough said.

Goodbye, my rose garden: historical yuri! just trust me. pls. I don't have braincells to type anymore but trust me.

Otherside picnic: outlier spotted! outlier spotted! It is not fluff! infact it's a bit gorey. Just a bit. AHHH! I love them. Might be my favourite yuri of all time. I am bouncing off walls everytime I talk about them. Weirdo women, my sweet beloved. But I know it is a bit strange and weird.So, proceed at your own discretion. But proceed. Just a little bite. For me. A tiny bite.

Enjoy your yuri charcuterie board! ＼⁠(⁠^-^⁠)⁠／

(I have SO MUCH more yuri to recommend, but I'm tried lol. So there will be more yuri recs, just not now. This is a threath)

Oh some of these sound so incredibly up my alley it's like they were written just for me. Himejoshi falling in love with a gyaru? Buddy sign me up. Ghost love story? God, that could be so good.

Thank you for the recs!! I welcome every new rec you might have!!

[liver-ology]

Robin is luxuriating on Steve’s bed, Steve is going through the stuff she brought.

Robin is talking about how her life is ending because she’s falling for her TA.

“Hey, can I try your eyelash curler?”

“Why?”

Steve opens and closes it a few times, studying the contraption.

“It intrigues me.”

“Fair enough. While you’re doing that, you should do an experiment for me. Curl one of your eyelashes starting at the tips, then the middle, then the whole thing, and curl the other one regularly and see if it makes a difference or if I’m just wasting my time doing it every morning.”

Steve captures just the ends of his lashes in the tiny torture device. He blinks a few times and doesn’t catch any eyelashes at all, but he manages.

“Jesus, how do you keep your eyes open this long?”

“You just gotta blink. But look away from the mirror when you do so you don’t have to think about the fact that your eye is actually still being held open and just rolling back in your skull, and you’re probably getting air dust on the underside of your delicate eyeballs that weren’t intended to be exposed to the elements like that.”

“Well that’s fucking helpful, thank you,” he snarks with one eye closed and one eye with the whites exposed to the dusty elements.

He finishes the three-step curl and moves on to the other eye, starting directly at the eyelid.

“Well dude, even if she does like you back, dating your TA is weird. Like that’s, like, some kind of power balance or something.”

“Imbalance. But yeah. I know, and I’m terrible and a super creep who should not be left alone with my beautiful and lovely TA, but also I’m going to fail this class and I do really need her help and I can keep it in my pants until the end of the class! I respect women, Steve!”

Steve inspects his curl experiment. He’s pretty sure they look exactly the same, but he puts his glasses back on to be sure.

“You’re wasting your time.”

“With Nancy? She’s totally straight anyway, right?”

“No, with your lashes. Nancy’s totally gay.”

He sits on the bed facing Robin so she can inspect the results.

“Oh God, they are the same. I’ve been exposing my eyes to so much extra dust for no reason! I’ll be blind by thirty!”

The dorm door opens. Steve tries to turn his head toward the sound, but Robin is gripping his face and pushing his glasses up into his hair, leaning closer to try and find any justification for the time she’s been wasting on mascara every morning. Billy freezes in the doorway, holding the door with his shoulder and his arms piled with textbooks and takeout.

He’s backing out when Robin turns Steve’s face toward the door, poking at his eyelashes.

“Fuck off, don’t poke me in the eye.” Steve escapes Robin’s hold and goes to hold the door open for Billy.

Billy puts the books on the floor and makes to leave with the takeout. “I’ll eat these somewhere else, let you lovebirds have the room.”

Steve and Robin both ignore this terrible slight. Steve grabs the eyelash curler again. “You have amazing eyelashes,” he accuses Billy, pointing the curler like a switchblade.

[ankmankpank]

Summer with 4*town🤍

♫ Real Love Baby by Father John Misty

Singing one of the band’s fuckboy songs with Aaron T. on the street, who you spent the weekend with. Not just with him, but his family since they invited you over. After the two of you played with his little brothers, helped his mother make dinner and grilled with his father in the garden, you lay down on his bed, limbs all over the sheets as you two fall asleep. Correction, you three. Which is, his smallest brother between the two of you, head on T.’s chest but legs on yours.

♫ Kids by MGMT

Going to a playground in the woods with Tae Young, the two of you trying to climb everything in there before you set up a picnic in the grass. Just you, him and the unnecessarily much food he bought. Though it ended up being just enough, since by his decision, you two ended up watching the sunset too by the beach next to the woods. And after the much tries of trying to get a good picture of the pink colors on the sky, you went home with him and slept on the couch. To be woken up to him kicking you in the throat, but that’s another case..

♫ Cold Water by Major Lazer

Going to the park because you asked Aaron Z. to play basketball with you. He has his own court at his house, sure, but yay other people!! He’s not so happy about them but decides to go with you, for you anyway. Deep down he knew that at the end of the day you would get tired of it anyway, no matter if he let you win or not. So, he can buy ice cream for you. And insist on paying, even if you shove the money into his hand he will put it back into your wallet when you’re not looking. Oh, and let’s not forget, he won’t forget the look on your face when he got twirly ice cream taller than his head, and ate it within ten minutes while walking home.



♫ Let Me Love You by DJ Snake

Going wall climbing with Robaire, him always laughing at you when you fall, but never failing to catch your hand in time if he’s close enough. If not, then he just falls after you, seeing no issue in starting over. You two have all day, he cleared his schedule for the day just for you! He goes shirtless after a while because it’s hot, but on the way to the car to put his shirt down, you two decide to go on a ride instead. Sunset, rich ass car, Robaire himself, you, perfect summer day.

♫ Ready or Not by Bridgit Mendler

You and Jesse had the idea of going into an adventure park for a long time, and finally living with it. Just the two of you, in shorts and sleeveless shirts, looking best on Jesse sadly, high in the woods. He goes first to tell you how to do it and how easy it is, though he also likes laughing at you being scared at some extra hard parts. He always catches you when he can, so it’ll be easier for you and you know he’s there, which is not hard to notice because fuck he looks hot. It was a long day of Jesse being sweet, then teasing because he saw how you looked at the women who were looking at him, but it was definitely good.

♫ Best Day Of My Life by American Authors

Going to the beach with all of the boys together, that being the only plan for the day. It being spent by watching Z. eat the ice cream what was longer than his head in one sitting(Ik I already mentioned this but cmon I just know this man eats bigass foods everytime he has the chance😭), Z. and T. throwing you into the water then laughing at you, Robaire putting sunscreen on you back GOD ROBAIRE putting sunscreen ON YOUR BACK before you two lay down and talk, catching fish with Tae in little trash cans you two bought just for that, poking the water and poor fishes with the reed with Aaron T., then at the end of the day, getting on Jesse’s jetski, hugging him from the back as he tells you stories about the members.

[letmetellyouaboutmyfeels]

It is deeply essential to me that there are alternating POVs in my fic because I absolutely REFUSE to let this show or anyone else LIE TO ME that this grumpy little koala would be confident and suave about getting feelings for this other character.

This man

was taken aside by his boss and told he was "too desperate" and that's why he failed at flirting,

has managed to completely not notice at least ten (10) women trying to date him,

spent an entire case bluescreening because he couldn't fake a relationship for SHIT,

once got offered a threesome and panicked so hard that his co-conspirator thought he'd had an aneurysm,

was asked to stay the night at someone's place "to help them feel safe" and he panicked, said he'd order them a security detail, and literally fled out the front door,

friendzoned a coworker so hard (by accident) that she transferred to another city.

This man, and I cannot stress this enough, gets everyone to fall in love with him by being genuinely kind and caring and a sarcastic little shit and then proceeds to either miss catching the ball completely or drop the ball so hard there's a crater where it made impact.

Anyway to quote @captainofthefallen who is bravely sacrificing herself for you all by getting the brunt of my madness, this is a case of "oh god I'm a disaster he thinks I'm a younger version of him this is unbearable" and then MOMENTS LATER in the koala's POV we get "oh my god he thinks I'm old and boring I'm gonna die."

NOBODY IS CHILL HERE. NOBODY. NEITHER OF YOU IS FREE FROM THE SIN OF ROMANTIC FAILURE.

[deandoesthingstome]

Night Moves

Chapter 4

Pairing: Walter Marshall x OFC (Alexandra Pierce)

Series Summary: When Walter Marshall is called to investigate a homicide by the railroad tracks, he quickly uncovers an unsettling pattern. Alexandra Pierce just wants someone to find out what happened to her friend. She has some secrets, too. And Walter’s going to uncover them.

Word Count: 4483

Series Warnings: In general, this series will depict assault, murder, stripping, hooking, rough sex, make up sex, fingering, oral (m and F receiving), p in v sex in various positions, self-loathing, failed relationships, smoking, drug use, drug addiction, general violence, and maybe some comfort. +18, Minors DNI

Chapter Warnings: Male masturbation, police interviews, more misogyny, a dead body, angry Walter, some dub-con fingering.

Disclaimers: I do not own Walter Marshall, Night Hunter (Nomis), or any other characters from that movie, but I do own this OFC (Alexandra Pierce) and these words. Do not repost as your own. Likes, Reblogs, and Comments are more than welcome. It’s how I get my nourishment.

Header made by me, with pics found from Pexel.com and the internet. Dividers are not mine, but check out the masterlist for credit.

Playlist:  Night Moves Songs 12 -16

Masterlist 

He was tired, frustrated, and not a little horny. 

The cause wasn’t the women he’d watched all night long. No. It was her. Fuck.

He peeled off the clothes he’d been in all day and stepped into the steamy shower, eager to wash the funk and dejection away. But in the midst of lathering, he made a fatal mistake and let himself drift back to the club, the way she looked on that pole.

Walter could feel himself tightening at the thought of her, the way she smiled, the way she moved on him, around him, her little joke. God, he wanted to show her how right she was. Wanted to see her lean back for him, hang her head off the side of a bed and stare up at him, waiting for him to put his cock deep down her throat. He was sure she could take it. Wanted to help her try anyway.

He wanted to feel her move beneath him while he took her apart bit by bit. He knew damn well the feel of his soapy hand clenched tight around his own cock could never compare to the warm, wet heat he could coax from her. Could never begin to imitate the urgent pulsing and noisy squelching of her tight, wet pussy begging him for more.

He’d love to hear that from her, love to make her burn for him, implore him to quench her desire…fuck.

Walter heaved a sigh as he leaned against the shower wall and let the water rain down on him, rinsing the soap and spunk away. He hung his head for a moment and thought about just what the fuck he was doing. 

Alex answers the buzzer on the first ring this morning. She’s been anticipating this visit ever since she listened to her voicemail after her shift last night. She was just finishing up the phone call with Detective Marshall to make arrangements to meet when Mrs. Travers knocked on the door to give her the business card and tell her about the scruffy looking young man who stopped by to see her last night.

“He needs a shave and a haircut.” Alex had laughed at that. She and Mrs. Travers definitely did not have the same taste in men.

When she opens her apartment door, she notices Mrs. Travers has opened hers, too.

“Do you want me to stay with you, dearie, while you talk to the detective?”

“No, that’s okay. I think I can handle it.” Alex smiles warmly and winks just as Walter steps out of the stairwell. He looks bigger than he did last night in the dark of the club and she clenches involuntarily, wondering if it truly translates the way she imagined it did when she sat on his lap. Then she remembers why he’s here and takes a deep breath, sighing it out slowly.

“If you’re sure, dear. I’m right across the hall.” Mrs. Travers waves a few fingers at Alex and sends a suspicious glance in Walter’s direction before she backs away into the apartment and closes her door. Alex can see her shadow fall over the peephole and she gives a little chuckle.

“Something funny?” Walter asks when he arrives at her open door, badge out and held up for her inspection.

“Just my guardian angel,” Alex replies, nodding at the opposite door and Walter turns just in time to see the shadow move away.

When he turns back, Alex has stepped aside, inviting him into her home.

“Can I get you anything? I have a pot of coffee on.”

“Thank you. Black is fine,” he states before she even asks. 

While she pours his coffee and refills her own, he takes a cursory glance around. There’s a laptop open on the sofa and a small stack of papers on the end table topped with a red pencil. The whole living room is covered in shelves overflowing with books and plants, sunlight streaming in to nourish them. There’s an actual record player next to a pretty solid sound system and he registers the low music playing softly in the background.

When she returns from the kitchen and hands him the mug, she gestures for him to sit in the vintage tufted armchair caddy corner from where she’s bending slightly to retake her spot on the mismatched sofa. He almost spits the drink of the coffee he’s just taken and sets the mug on the table in front of him.

“Oof, that bad, huh?” she grimaces, like she isn’t quite sure what just happened. 

“Uh, no. No, the coffee’s fine. You just, uh,” Walter pauses, not sure how to broach it. “You look familiar. Have we met?”

He can see her face register the recognition he’s hinting at and he knows he’s right but there’s something else. She clenches her jaw and sucks at her teeth for a moment, before she sets her own mug down and squares herself to him.

“My name is Alexandra Pierce. I’m a professor at the university. I reported my friend missing two days ago and no one gave a shit until now. I’m curious what’s changed.”

Walter is taken aback at her sudden anger and tries to figure out what will put her at ease. He sits back a bit in the chair, to add some distance in case his presence is intimidating to her at all. He’s heard that once or twice before. He also isn’t sure if he should just say it. He’s been working on an honesty-is-best policy, lately, trying to re-learn that lesson. But something about the way she bristled has him adding some caution to the line of questioning.

“Ms. Pierce, could you confirm some details for me? How do you and your missing friend know each other and where did you last see her?”

Alex takes a deep breath. She knows what he is asking. She also can’t imagine why a police detective would be bothering with an at home visit to gather details about a missing hooker unless he maybe actually gave a shit. She releases a little tension and goes for it.

“Alright look. I’m sure you’ve realized by now, but you and I met last night. Trixie works with me at Augie’s.” Alex watches Walter’s face and sees no change. He is stoic and thoughtful, awaiting the rest of her story. “To be clear, I am also a professor at the university. I work volunteer shifts at the clinic and that’s actually where Trixie and I first met.”

“Okay, good to know.” It’s all he can do not to drop his professional demeanor and show what he really thinks. “And what was she doing the night you think she went missing?”

“Well, I don’t know for sure, but I suspect she’d been trying to get a date.”

“A date?” Walter raises an eyebrow, intrigued at the possibility of a new lead. ”With whom?”

“Oh, maybe you misunderstand me. With anyone willing to pay.” Alex braces for it,  yet still no judgment radiates from him.

“Ah, gotcha,” he lowers his expectant eyebrows with a nod. “And any idea where?”

“She always talked about down near the tracks. At least that’s where she’d had success in the past.” Alex’s skin was crawling just thinking about it, but a slight shift in Walter’s visage gave her pause. “What is it?”

Walter takes a deep breath and wishes he’d brought Rachel with him for this interview.

“We found a body at the tracks two days ago and we still haven’t been able to obtain positive identification? Are you willing or able to meet me at the coroner’s?”

Alex blinks several times and Walter can see her lip quiver, but she sniffs and holds herself together to answer.

“My car wouldn’t start this morning. I’d have to take a cab.”

“I can drive you. It’s no problem.” Walter stays put, tucked back in the chair in case any sudden movement would scare Alex off. He waits patiently for her to consider what she’s about to say yes to. As he watches her face come to terms, his heart breaks a little for her because the body is very likely her friend Trixie. 

“Okay, yeah. Let me just shut a few things off and grab my bag.” 

She closes her eyes and lets out another long sigh, then stands and gathers up her laptop and the papers from the end table and shoves them into a canvas messenger bag along with her phone. She flips a switch and halts the record on the turntable before turning off the power completely, then grabs the mugs from the coffee table and sets them in the kitchen sink.

Walter stands now himself and heads toward the front door to meet her as she exits the kitchen and grabs her keys from a dish on an entryway table. He opens the door for her and follows her out, waiting while she locks the deadbolt. 306 opens again and the old lady he spoke with yesterday pokes her head out again.

“Now you aren’t arresting Alex are you? You said she hadn’t done anything. Where are you taking her?”

“It’s okay, Mrs. Travers. Detective Marshall just needs me to answer a few more questions and review some details with him. I’m fine but thank you for the concern.” Alex runs a hand up her neighbor's arm and gives her shoulder a squeeze. “You need anything while I’m out? I’ll be back later this afternoon after office hours, but I’m happy to stop by the store if you’d like.”

“Oh, dear. No. You just take care of yourself. Let me know if I should call anyone for you.”

Alex thanks Mrs. Travers and heads off down the hall after Walter.

Well that’s done. Yeah, that bus isn’t going to be found by anyone. Someone would really have to know what they were looking for and I’m the only one who knows what to look for.

Such a relief because now I can get back to it. Get back to what I should really be doing, which is teaching those sluts a lesson. So I’m going out tonight, maybe not as soon as I get back, but as soon as I can. I don’t even care if she’s home or headed out. 

All I know is I have to get this message out. I’ve kept it bottled up for too long. And the longer I wait to let it out, the likelier it is it’ll come out wrong. I do like knowing they’ll be waiting for me anytime. 

And I do sometimes think the more the merrier. But I have to be careful. The more I take, the darker it gets. And that’s how they find you. In the dark.

The drive to the coroner’s office is quiet and Walter can’t say he’s sorry for that. He doesn’t really know what to say right now. Asking about her work at the club seems out of line and unrelated to the case, though he’s curious about a college professor who feels the need to supplement her income with stripping.

And until they confirm identity, it doesn’t feel right to say he’s sorry for her loss, either. So he focuses on driving and tries ignoring the woman who seems like she wants to fall apart in the seat next to him. She’s working hard to hide it, but he can tell. 

When they arrive, he wants to ask her to wait so he can round the truck and open her door for her, help her down from the high seat, but she’s unbuckled and out the door before he even closes his. So much for chivalry. At least he can open the door to the building for her, and lead her down the hall to the elevator. Press the call button and wait. Let her in the cab first, then press the basement button and wait, staying as far from her as he can in the confined space.

She heaves another sigh when the door opens and he leads her down another hall, opening the door to another room. 

“Detective Marshall. To what do I owe the pleasure today?” a short, bald man greets them, sandwich in hand. 

“Chuck, we need to see the Jane Doe from the train tracks,” Walter says, straight to the point.

Alex watches the coroner drop his food on a white paper wrapper and shift a keyboard in front of him. He types quickly and stands as Alex hears a printer whirring behind him. He grabs the sheet, then steps into the examination room, separated from the office by a large glass window. She’s about to follow him when Walter puts a hand on her shoulder and holds her back gently.

“He’ll bring her to the window. You don’t want to go in there. Can you tell me if there are any identifying marks on her body, other than her face?”

“She has three tattoos on her left leg, and one on her right calf.”

“Great.”

“Wait, why ‘other than her face’?”

Walter sees Chuck pull the table up, so he gratefully ignores the last question and taps the glass, motioning towards the lower half of the body. He steps back, arms crossed and waits. Chuck pulls back the sheet and Alex moves her eyes from Walter to the body. It takes no time at all for her to recognize the markings on her friend and all her steely resolve melts with her to the floor.

“Fuck.” Alex is on her knees, head in her hands, mumbling to herself. 

Walter taps the glass again to let Chuck know they’re done, then sinks to his knees next to her. From here he can hear her admonishing herself.

“...never shoulda let her go alone…Stupid, stupid, stupid…How could you let her go? What were you thinking?”

“Hey,” he places a hand gently at her back and feels the stuttered convulsions of a sob about to break loose. “I’m so sorry. Can I get you anything?”

Before he knows what’s happened, her tears are flowing freely and she falls a little of kilter into his chest where he wraps his arms around her almost automatically and holds on tight while she sobs into him, still berating herself from what he can tell.

He waits a few moments, then speaks again. “Ms. Pierce…Alex, hey. This isn’t your fault. Some asshole is out there beating up women and apparently taking lives, too. This isn’t on you.”

Alex sniffs and tries to temper her sorrow, pulling back from Walter and wiping the tears off her cheeks.

“Oh but this one is on me. I knew there was a danger and I let her go alone. I should have just given her the money she needed to dig out of debt, but that would have thrown my research into a bad light and, fuck! How could I be thinking about myself at this time?”

“You’ve just had a terrible shock. You could be feeling any number of things right now. Let’s get you up and out of here. We’ll go get some coffee, calm down a bit.”

Alex nods and lets him help her up. She even accepts the tissue he’s pulled from the box on the desk next to them. She hates to be weak ever, especially in front of men, but something about Detective Walter Marshall makes her feel like he doesn’t see her as weak, even in this moment.

He’s about to turn away and lead her from the room when he sees a flicker in her eyes and a tremble in her lip. Without thinking at all, he reaches out and pulls her closer, wrapping his solid arms around her shoulders and hugging her tight. When the new sob breaks loose, he shifts a hand to the back of her head and holds it against his chest while her body wracks with tiny convulsions. He shouldn’t even be thinking about it.

Which is why it’s such a surprise when he registers a moment before it happens that Alex has peeled her head away from him and is now snaking her hands along the sides of his face and tilting her own up to him. Through her soft tears, he can see the plea and he wants to respond, aches to tell her it’ll be okay in the one way he’s always been good at, but Chuck is about to walk back into his office and if there’s one thing he doesn’t need right now, it’s anyone thinking he’s got a conflict of interest in this case.

He reaches back to put his hands over hers and pulls them down while he leans back just a bit and he tries to keep his face neutral because he doesn’t want her to mistake his frustration for rejection. And as if a switch has flipped, she is suddenly stepping back from him and it’s all he can do to let her go. 

“Oh, god, I am so sorry. That’s so… god, so out of line.”

“It’s fine, you’re fine. Please, don’t worry about it.”

Chuck slips in the room with his nose in a file, so he misses the obvious tension dissipating around him. 

“Let me just sign off on this form and then you can add this to the case file, Walter. Be just a sec.” Chuck sets the file on his desk and rummages for a pen under the stacks of paperwork.

Alex stares directly at Walter and he returns her gaze, breaking only when he notices the paper dangling next to him.

“Appreciate it, Chuck. I’ll be in touch about a release authorization for the body. Alex? You ready?”

Alex nods and turns to the exit, not caring in the least to thank the coroner at this moment. Her mind is reeling with thoughts of what comes next.

On the walk to Walter’s truck, she makes up her mind, and to his utter dismay, begs off the coffee date with the excuse that she needs to get to her office and start her day. She promises she’ll stop by later to finalize the paperwork for Trixie, but with a name, Walter doesn’t need anything else to search the database for criminal records he already knows aren’t there. 

He really needs more information from Alex, but she’s already rushing off to a bus stop before he can get her back in the truck and offer her a ride wherever she needs to go. Fuck.

Sasha is just about to approach the dude who’s been lurking on the edge of the train yard for about fifteen minutes, when blue and red lights flash, and he and the few other couples she’s been avoiding take off in a hurry. She curses the heels she chose for this endeavor. If she can’t walk across the parking lot gracefully, how was she ever going to hurry away now? She really hadn’t thought this through.

She’s still turned and attempting a half-assed escape when she hears a voice call out in anger.

“Alex! What the fuck?”

Walter claps a meaty hand around her upper arms and spins her to face him, rage radiating in all directions.

“Ow, let go!” Sasha twists a little trying to get free, but he’s not letting go.

“Why don’t you just get your ass in the truck?” he commands.

Walter pulls her to the truck, but instead of opening the passenger door, he traps Alex against it, arms outstretched and head bending towards her. He briefly wonders about himself, but the words out of his mouth are directed at her.

“What exactly do you think you’re doing?”

“Nothing that’s any of your business, that’s for sure,” she huffs at him.

“Alex .. or do I call you Sasha right now?” Walter growls.

“Oh fuck you,” she snarls, pulling the wig from her head. “Did you want me to get in the fucking truck, or what?”

“What are you doing wandering around down here dressed like this? You can't be here...looking like this... like....fuck.”

Walter loses the battle in his head and leans in, his mouth seeking hers with urgency. He drops a hand from the truck and grips her hip, grinding against her into the door. His hand slips from her hip and reaches the bottom of her already short skirt and he thinks he should probably stop, but she isn't resisting and he doesn't want to anyway.

He bunches the hem, his fingertips skimming the damp fabric between her legs and when she moans wantonly, he pulls the material to the side with one finger and slips another into her wet heat. He finally peels his other hand from the door and snakes it around her waist, holding her in place with his massive paw.

Her leg hooks around his thigh, widening his access and spurring him on. Alex holds onto his neck, keeping his mouth against hers and she savors his taste while he dips another finger inside her, pumping and stroking and searching for the spot that'll make her break for him.

He knows exactly when he's found it because she cries into his kiss before pulling back to beg him for more with her eyes. His jaw clenches involuntarily as he doubles his effort, fingers crooking and he's grunting right along with her whimpers and gasps, just short of insisting she let go for him.

When it finally washes over her, Alex drops her leg and almost crumples to the ground but Walter has her in his hold and doesn't let go, slowing his finger stroke while keeping a firm press on her clit with his thumb. He can feel how hard she got for him and it only enhances the ache in his own pants.

It isn't until he has fully withdrawn his hand that the shame seeps in. He doesn't want to let her go, but he can't look her in the face anymore. Can't see how she let him possess her like that or he might take this too far.

Walter waits a beat longer before he smoothes her dress back down her thighs, catching the fabric with his calloused hands and an odd little attempt to tug the hem further down her still- trembling legs.

He doesn’t step back until she presses his chest, but when he does she comes with him.

"Hey, are you...?"

"We should get in the truck." He interrupts and reaches around her to open the door, waiting silently for her to climb in, not daring to watch for fear he wouldn't be able to resist a touch or grope, thinking about just letting her lean over the seat so he could take her from behind...and, fuck.

He shuts the door a little harder than he intended and stands a minute trying to wrest the stiffness away before he shuffles around the hood and climbs behind the wheel. He's grateful she's looking away when he does so he doesn't have to see her watching him shift his jeans around.

The ride to her place is the longest, quietest drive he's taken since leaving the courthouse after the divorce. And, fuck, did he really not need the thought of Angie circling the cab right now, but at least his boner's gone by the time he reaches the back parking lot of her building.

Walter takes a beat trying to figure out exactly why he’s so angry right now. 

“Look, I'm sorry. I was way outta line back there. But truly, that was no place for you to be. What did you even imagine you would be able to accomplish down there?” 

“I just … fuck. I just needed to do something, anything. It’s my fault Trixie’s dead and…”

“First of all, it’s not your fault no matter what you did or didn’t do the last time you saw her, so knock that shit off right now. And second, you getting dead isn’t going to bring her back.”

“No one is doing anything!”

“No one is…? What the fuck did you think I showed up for? Do you think I have a GPS tracker on you or something? I was there to check out the scene. I couldn’t believe it when I saw your hair. I thought I was dreaming.”

Alex shifts in her seat, suddenly uncomfortable in her skimpy outfit sitting next to Walter. Every ridiculous vision she had about finding and confronting the killer suddenly seemed like the stupidest idea she’d ever had in her life, including thinking working at a strip club was a perfectly valid way to gather research.

“Do you want to tell me what you were doing?”

“You know what I was doing.”

“Yeah, but do you want to tell me why?”

“Not really.”

Walter exhales loudly, turning to look at her. She’s so beautiful, even in her anger. Maybe especially. It’s hard not to scan her body, since she has it on full display. And he’s already seen enough to know what’s hidden right now anyway. All but one secret spot he’s only felt.

Walter gives a little head shake to snap out of the fantasy he almost let himself have right there. She makes him crazy. Begrudgingly, he gets out of the truck to meet her around the front. She practically walks right into him, head down while she tries to sneak away without any more reprimands from him. He grabs her arms gently this time and holds her in place.

“Do you want a jacket to wear inside?” he asks, head dipping low to try to catch her eyes.

Alex blinks in shock. She expected another dressing down, not a peace offering. 

“That’d be nice, thank you.” She accepts the thin windbreaker he has in his hands and slips it on. “You want to come in so you can take it?”

Walter just nods and lets her lead the way. Alex doesn’t take off the jacket until he’s all the way inside her apartment with the door closed. She holds it out to him and steps just a bit closer than he needs to in order to take it from her. She doesn’t let go.

“Why do you care so much about me and my friend?”

Walter considers her question and answers as carefully as he can.

“I care about your friend because she showed up on my beat.”

“And me?” Alex almost whispers.

“You showed up on my beat, too,” Walter answers, taking another step closer and tugging the jacket and her with it right up against his chest. He wraps a hand around her neck, fingers pressing lightly and thumb shifting her chin up toward him. “I’d like to kiss you again now. Can I do that?”

She licks her lips and nods and doesn’t close her eyes as he leans in.

Chapter 5 

Taglist:

Anything: @kittenofdoomage​ @mayloma​ @sillyrabbit81​ @fvckinghenrycavill​ @kebabgirl67​ @beck07990​  @mysweetlittledesire @summersong69 @mollymal (I can’t tag you two, sorry) (Also throwing in a few from the old days for old times sake ;) @littlegreenplasticsoldier​ @anotherwinchesterfangirl​ @sebbytrash​ @feelmyroarrrr​)

Night Moves: @luclittlepond (I can’t tag you, sorry) @enchantedbytomandhenry @kingliam2019  @henryownsme @geraltsyenn4eva @littlefreya @identity2212 @marantha @angelcavill66 @sweetdreamsofgelato @jeremyrennermakesmesmile​ @liveoncoffeeandflowersss​

[shebeafancyflapjack]

The Old Guardian

Set in @idiotwithanipad 's Era Swap AU, where our OC's Amy and Silver, as well as Mary, are alive at the same time as Humphrey and Sophie.

Silver finds a new friend hidden in Bone Hall.

-

Once she'd swished up enough saliva in her mouth, Silver spat it onto the stain before scrubbing the fabric in cold water as hard as she could.

Getting blood out of ladies garments was nothing new. Mummy had been teaching her ever since her own moon blood had started. However, when it came to Silver's new mistress, it was not simply her chemise that had the odd bloodstain. The sleeves of her best dresses, her stockings and especially her gloves. Such a shame, his Lordship provided his daughter with such lovely clothes, even though Mummy thought them rather morbid.

Kneeling on the floor beside the tub, Silver decided to try practicing some of her French as she worked. It please her Lady to see how well she was improving and perhaps give her less cause to harm herself.

"Je m'appelle Silver." She whispered, "Je travaille pour Madmouselle Bone. Puis-je vous apporter quelque chose?"

Finally, after her knuckles were red raw, one of the stains had disappeared from the woollen.

"Ah! Tres bien!" She praises herself, moving to pin it up on the rack close to the fireplace for it to dry.

Only three more garments in the 'red' pile for her to deal with. God willing, she would have them done in time to help Mummy finish her work and have supper. Her Lady would not be returning from her outing with her grandfather until later that evening.

It might have been Silver's imagination, and granted she hadn't been working here all that long, but she had taken note of how much worse her Lady's moods were after spending time with that man. A man who had only looked at Silver once and made her blood run cold at how....hateful those eyes were. Just a glimpse, not something he made too obvious to Amy's parents.

Moving back to the floor, Silver rinses out the sponge and begins to work on her lady's petticoat.

"Bonjour, mon cheri. Je m'appelle Silver. Et toi?" She practiced.

"Je m'appelle Rogh. Bonjour, mon petite." Comes a deep, gruff voice from the chair in the corner. "Ca va?"

She stilled, just for a moment.

Then smiled, "Ca va, merci...Monsieur Rogh."

"Eh....Wha-?!"

Silver whipped her head around in time to see a bundle of fur and limbs fall off the chair in shock.

She let out a giggle as her startled companion scurried back behind the chair, as if the little piece of furniture would be plenty to block out his strange form.

Silver left the clothes to soak and picked up her skirt as she stood, making her way over to the corner.

The stranger's eyes widened as she approached, trembling a little. Like a hunting dog left out in the rain for failing its master.

She stopped; "Be not afraid. You knows I cannots harm thee."

The man, for he surely was a man despite his furs and bestial posture, kept staring at her in wonder, almost disbelief.

"Ehh...How? How...you see...?" He gestured with his paw as he talked, pointing to her and then to his eyes and then himself.

As if he were self aware of how limited his speech was.

She smiled, moving to sit down a good distance from him and cross her legs.

"My Granny called it The Sight. Said many women in our bloodline hath been blessed with it, right back to Eve herself." She said, "When I were five, my da dids take me with him on his cart to check the crops. Somethin' dids startle his mare and it bucked me clean offs, woosh!"

"OH!" The stranger exclaimed, already invested in her tale.

He shifted out from his pathetic 'hiding place' to settle on the floor.

"I dids land withs terrible force and all the skies went black. I was waitin' for the angels to come carry me up, I was. Even as my da did weep and call my name, I coulds not rise, no matter how I tried and ever so hard did I try, mister!"

"But...you no die? Girl...grow...big? Live?" He frowned.

"I dids indeed!" She giggled, "T'were a miracle, my strange friend. Just as I's was on the brinks of death, I heard my uncle Jim start callin' my name. But here be the rub, Uncle Jim dids die of plague but a year before my birth! And yet there he was, stood over me, tellin' me not to be a wicked girl and break my daddy's heart. So I's stayed! Two weeks in bed I rested and then, on the night of the Harvest Moon, I dids finally rise."

The man gave her a one-sided smile, as if he hadn't smiled properly for anyone to see in a long, long time.

"Now...girl see...dead?" He asked, gesturing to himself.

She nodded, proudly; "Hope thee not be offended. I has seen thee skulking abouts the place in the corner of mine eye since our arrival. But long time ago, Granny did tells me it best not to commune with spirits till they greet me first."

"...Me...greet girl?"

"You did! You say 'Bonjour, mon petite.'" She giggled, hands on her ankles; "I'm the only little one here, yes? Or were thee greeting the mices?"

He smiled again and shook his head; "Me...speak to...girl. No mouse. Not in this...room."

She tilted her head as she watched his struggle.

"Forgive me. Is English not thy native tongue? I's afraid that I still be but a novice of French..."

The man shifted, sitting more comfortably before her.

"It...stupid...words. Me been in....house." He waved his paws at the ceiling, "Many, many, many years...even b-before...first house...Words change so much....Too quick. They....fall out of head." He tapped his temple, looking a little sad. "Every time me learn, it change 'gain. And 'gain."

"And yet the French doth roll so smoothly off thy tongue?" Silver complimented.

He shrugged, "Spend many years watch Lady of House. She good teacher. Then she have Stompy. Me watch her teach Stompy, learn with Stompy."

"Stompy?" Asked the handmaiden, with a tilt of her head.

He let out a small laugh, "That what me call Little Lady. When she small, she get big cross with mum and dad. Run back to room go STOMP! STOMP! STOMP!"

Silver laughed at the image of her mistress making such a racket in whatever smart shoes they'd squeezed her feet into.

"I shalls have to tease my Lady withs that knowledge now." She smiled, moving back over to keep working on her laundry. "With hope, she wonts report me for cavorting with spirits."

That's if Amy even believes her. She doesn't seem to pay much mind to the religious beliefs her mother holds, she might think Silver's 'gift' a mere peasant's fancy.

Rogh's jovial expression faded as he turned his eyes to the bloodstains that she was having a far more difficult time now working out.

"Stompy no 'member Rogh 'nymore." He sighed, the look in his eyes breaking Silver's heart, "When she baby, she so happy to see Rogh. Me look over her cot as she sleep. Sing 'bout Moonah. Tell stories of tribe and old dead friends. Even when she learn to walk...we play chase down hallways...."

Another adorable image. Silver had seen babies spot the ghosts she saw and react to them. Such a shame most had to grow out of it.

"Then big Lordy Bone Man come one day." The wild man continued, his tone darkening. "Show me heir, he shout to son. Son bring Stompy to him. Lordy Man not happy she girl."

Silver scoffed, rubbing another wad of spit into the sleeve before shoving it beneath the cold suds.

"That be rich menfolk for ye. I's surprised Lord Humphrey be as kindly as he is." She commented. "...Did they try to have a son?"

Rogh shook his head; "Me heard Sophie Lady say to her nurse...'une fois c'était suffisant'."

"Une..." Silver frowned as she tried to translate each word, then nodded; "Ah. Gotcha."

Not that she had much attraction physically towards men, but she imagined if she did have to marry one, she'd find herself lucky to be paired with someone as kind and decent as her Lady's father. Lady Sophie was somewhat cold and blunt. Mummy believed that all French folk be that way, but Silver doubted that was the case. Maybe the world which be so cruel to daughters of Eve had turned her heart to ice to protect herself. And, possibly, Amy too.

"Doth thou know when...this started?" Silver gestured to the blood staining the water.

He winced, "Short after Lordy Man start take Stompy for 'private lesson'. First it just little pinch pinch under table and in bed. Then she start with pins when she learn to stitch. Then fork at dinner...Rogh give up trying to tell her to stop."

That was how the two of them had been properly acquaited. The young mistress appearing outside her cottage one evening while she was gathering wood, a needle in her hand, telling Silver to 'play' with her.

Even with the fear of what disobeying her betters could potentially mean for her and Mummy, she'd refused to break the girl's skin. Even now, after her promotion to being a Lady's maid, she refused to hurt her mistress more than a harmless pinch on the underside of her wrist.

"I dunno 'ow yous can bear its, darling girl." Mummy often said to her when she'd confide in her about it; "To have the child's dead eyed stare 'pon you as yous go abouts your work. It doth give me the shivers, it do."

"Everything doth give thee shivers, Mummy." She'd retored, earning a light swat on her forearm.

Having seen the spirits of the dead since she was five, Silver had seen far more disturbing sights than a somewhat bedevilled fancy girl. Old Tom who got cleft in twain by his brother's axe had been one to remember.

"'Ere..." Silver leaned in towards the wild man, "You thinks the old Lord Bone be what put the darkness in her?"

He nodded; "Bet best bit of Bum on it. She happy cub before he appear."

"Well...then I cans makes it part of me duties to help her be that's again!" She chirped, inspecting the dress once more and pleased to see it was finally rid of any dark red patch; "All clean!"

Rogh beamed; "C'est propre! Tres bien, Petite Lune."

Silver giggled as she added the dress to the drying rack.

"Little moon. I likes that." She said, "I'm glad we cans talk nows. There be others who is hiding away? Other than them pleasant folk in the cellar, that is."

He looked down, shaking his head.

"They no speak to Rogh. Last friend go...many year before Stompy mum and dad arrive...when they both still cubs."

Silver felt that tug in her chest again; "Yous been all alone? In alls that time? No ones to talk to you?"

He scratched at his arm, looking small and solemn.

"Not nearly 'long as last time...."

That only made it sadder.

Silver knelt before him and smiled, wishing she could take his hand.

"'Ere. As your French be better than mine, and English be my skill, mayhaps wes can tutor each others? My Lady is a good teacher but she cannots spend all her times teachin' me when her own schedule be so packed."

"Rogh teach Petite Lune?" He asked, "Oui! Hehe. Can me come to cottage?"

"As if you needs my invite. Don't thinks I ain’t already seen thee poppings thy head in to smell my Mummy's potato stew." She teased.

He blushed beneath that scraggly beard.

"It better than most muck in rich man kitchen."

"She'll be pleased to hear that." Silver grinned.

They were interrupted by the door suddenly opening, Lady Sophie standing in the doorway.

"Madame." Silver scrambled to her feet, clasping her hands before her, head bowed.

"Who you speaking to?" Her Ladyship asked in English nearly as poor as Rogh's.

Quickly, she digged out her most trustworthy lie for this situation.

"The Virgin, my good Lady." Silver replied; "I asketh her for strength ands loyalty in serving Lady Amy."

She made a point of naming Jesus' mother as opposed to simply God Himself, hoping to appeal to Lady Sophie's Catholic leanings.

"Hmm. Are those clothes finished?" She asked.

"As well as can be, m'Lady." She said, hoping she hadn't missed any spots.

Rogh stood near and uttered something against her ear.

Silver cleared her throat; "Y a-t-il autre chose que tu aimerais que je fasse, Madame?"

Her Ladyship's eyes widened in surprise.

"You are improving. Accent is atrocious, but is better. Tres bien." She praised, stiffly, "My daughter is due to return home soon. See that her chambers are clean and prepared for her. Then you may assist your mother until Lady Amy's return."

Silver curtsied; "Thank you, Madame. Merci."

She looked to her side, giving Rogh the smallest smile of gratitude.

Before Sophie could fully leave, she paused.

"Another thing. Draw a bath for my daughter before she sleeps tonight. I suspect Lord Bone has taken her to some foul smelling places again." There was a slight sad resignation to her voice, but with her back turned it was tough for Silver to read her face.

She wanted so desperately to ask....is Lady Amy safe with her grandfather? Did her Ladyship know how much contempt the man had for her daughter? Was she afraid to speak up about it?

But Silver knew that any attempt to involve herself in 'private affairs' would lead to a verbal slap, if not a real one. Never mind if she was given access to all of them as a servant.

"Yes, Madame." Is all she says. Then Sophie leaves.

Silver gestures for Rogh to follow as she goes to Lady Amy's chambers to fluff her pillows and open the windows to air the room out.

She nearly chides Rogh when he goes to jump on the bed like a child, but his feet don't seem to disrupt the spread of the sheets.

"What age ist thee? Thou look as old as his Lordship but thou acts like an urchin!" She sniggers.

"Me three and twenty! Uh, me think. Saw 'least twenty Big Colds."

"Winters?"

Rogh nodded, with a grunt, then sat on the edge of the bed, watching Silver work.

"I knew mine eyes not be tricked." She tutted as she dusted the dressing table; "Her Ladyship knows that blaggared be hurting my mistress too. Ooh if I coulds gets my hands on hims."

"Been there. Have tried ripping off neck." Said Rogh.

"I has my own ways, I do. Mummy donts always approve but times be desperate." Silver smiled as she picked up an apple from the bowl of fruit on a table; "Hmm. Not quite as good as a lemon but, t'was Eve's weapon to free herself from ignorance."

"What you say?" Asked Rogh.

"Oh, haha. Pay mes no mind, my dear friend." She smirked; "I just be planning a little curse."

His eyes widen; "C-Curse?"

She pocketed the apple in the inside pocket of her dress Mummy sewed in.

"You real...witch?"

"Wes prefer 'wise woman'." She said, "But there be those who calls us that's. Won't tell anyone's, will you? Mon cheri?"

He shut his mouth and mimed with his hand the motion to stitch it up tight. Not that there was anyone he could tell if he wanted.

"Merci!" Silver giggled, "Now I must go finds some nails and vinegar laced honey. Then I can lay this here token beneath Lord Bone's carriage cushion and let it take root."

"And how you know it work?"

"I probably won'ts. But at leasts I's can be sure it'll attracts a loads of bugs to 'hopefully crawl up into his britches!"

Both of them burst into fits of laughter at the thought.

If learning French wouldn't be enough to put a true smile on her Lady's face then informing her she'd placed a bane on her wicked grandfather just might do the trick.

[unassuming-octopus]

Radiant Shadow Prologue and Chapter 1

So.

Hello.

You can call me Hop. Or Ock. Both work.

And here I have something I am very excited to share with whoever wants to read it: Radiant Shadow!

This is a magical girl web serial written by yours truly, with cover art done by my good friend starfellmoth. Look him up, he's cool!

Anyway, here is the prologue and first chapter of Radiant Shadow. This'll update here, on my AO3 account, and on my Wattpad account when I get one of those.

Without further ado, I present the beginning of Radiant Shadow.

CONTENT WARNING: self-harm, suicidal ideation, near death experience, referenced transphobia

It began, as a surprising number of things do, with a little girl.

She didn’t know what was happening to her. She thought maybe she was going crazy. Or maybe God was trying to tell her something. The brilliant light dancing through her vision offered no answers.

Until one day, the monsters arrived. They crawled out of the darkness of wicked hearts across the world, laying waste to all they found.

The little girl realized what she was meant to do.

Radiant Splendor, the first of the warriors to rise up against the encroaching darkness, brought her light to the world. The darkness, previously undeterred by even the strongest of mankind’s weapons, began to retreat.

But soon, the evil became too much for the girl to fight back alone. And so, across the world, others came into their powers. Girls and women rose up as they were chosen just as the first was. Spirits of light, creation, and preservation, calling themselves Seelies, came to our world, empowering their human companions into heroic Radiants, to fight back the wickedness that crept ever closer.

These Radiants have valiantly fought to protect our world for decades now, and number in the thousands. New lights constantly rise and fall, ebbing and flowing with the darkness that constantly approaches.

The world is a place of life, love, and endless wonder. The Radiants fight to keep it that way.

Light before Darkness. Be the Light.

It was raining. Considering the circumstances, Amity couldn’t help but find it funny.

Everything was over for her. She knew it. She had been able to see it coming for ages, and she was too weak to stop it. And now, finally, everything had slipped through her fingers.

Her family had disowned her when she came out. She had hoped they would be happy, even if she knew they wouldn’t. Her parents had always said they had wanted a daughter, but when they found out they had one, she wasn’t what they wanted.

School had taken more of a toll on her than she could have feared. No friends. Her roommate was an obnoxious guy who looked at her in all sorts of ways she didn’t like. The dorms were a sensory overload hell. Add the classes she’s failing on top of all that, and she was surprised she was still alive. In more ways than one.

But throughout all that, there was Maxine. She was always there for Amity. They were going on 3 years strong, having gotten together in senior year of high school after a few years of awkward friendship. Amity had always thought that, despite it all, her and Maxine would be together. All fairy tale love story style.

And then Maxine found someone else. A man. As it turns out, Maxine wasn’t into girls. And Amity wasn’t even sure Maxine saw her as one. She was supposed to be the one. Max was supposed to be there for her. And now, no one was.

Amity was numb to the pain of self-harm by now. Her arms were bloody, and the razor in her fingers threatened to slip whenever she drew it across her skin. The fluorescent lights of the bathroom she had locked herself in hummed in a painful buzz, not that she could feel much of anything. She was a husk of what she once was. If she was ever anything at all.

She could barely hear the pounding on the door. Part of her knew she had been in here for what must have been far too long. People were probably worried about whoever was in there.

Were they worried about Amity? …No, they can’t be. Amity isn’t anyone worth worrying about. Not even something to be acknowledged. Something that sat in a puddle of its own blood, flowing into the grooves between the tiles of the floor and into the drain. Not that it could really notice.

Blood loss began to take the pitiable thing. No, not pitiable. Detestable. Unworthy.

It began to die.

Amity? Dear, please wake up. This is no place to die.

The voice was kind. Did… did it know what kindness was? It wasn’t sure it had ever felt it.

Yes, yes you have, dear. You have known kindness. You have known love, and joy. They may be lost to you now, but you will find them again.

Who was speaking? It wasn’t even sure how it could tell what the words were. How did it know what anything was?

Oh, my dear one. Now you’re just being silly. I am sorry I couldn’t come any sooner. Please, dear one, please, wake up.

It… she had a name. Her name was Amity. She could remember that. She could feel that. And she could feel… peace. A new numbness, not one of turbulent pain glazed over into a monotonous nothingness but… it was the easy flow of a calm wind. The sacred darkness of the night sky. The embrace of sleep.

And Amity woke up.

Air came back to her lungs in a deep inhalation. She could feel her heart rouse from near-stillness, her blood pumping and burning through her veins. Her body tingled with the soft pokes of pins and needles.

Amity opened her eyes. She still sat crumpled against the wall of the bathroom, and the pounding on the door had given way to someone trying to unlock it.

But the first thing Amity could truly notice was the lack of blood. She looked down, not yet stirred from the fugue she had herself in, and there was no blood. Not on the floor, not her arms, nor her clothes. Her arms are spotless. Not a cut or scar to be seen.

And her clothes, they felt… wrong. They were clearly too big. Her shirt nearly fell off, if not more getting caught on her bust.

Wait. Wait. Boobs!?

Amity’s eyes shot fully open, and she sucked in a gasp of air, and felt her body truly begin to get working again. Her hands zipped to her chest. Yep, those are boobs alright. Kinda… kinda big ones, too.  And her hands… they were smaller. Rounder.

Amity began to hyperventilate. Her new hands made their way to her face. It was round. Soft. Hairless.

Amity rose to her feet, and looked to her left at the mirror. The person looking back at her, she could barely recognize. Did she… had she gotten shorter, too!? And she, she was, heavier. Last time Amity had looked in the mirror, she had found a malnourished, sallow, filthy husk.

But right now, all she could see was a girl. A woman. And Amity realized that the woman she could see in the mirror was herself.

The tears began with a gasping sob. Her whole body shook as she fell to her knees, doubling over and hugging herself. And despite all that, her face was split by the widest smile she had ever smiled.

“Hello, dear one. Feeling better?” Amity looked up, and there, floating in front of her, was what looked like a pitch-black blot of ink, in the vague shape of a person, with a figure-concealing coat and wide-brimmed hat. Two little pinpricks of light sat where the eyes should be.

Amity sniffed, and held out her hands for the little figure to stand on. “…Yes. Yes, I am. Thank you, thank you.”

Amity wasn’t sure how, but she could tell the figure was smiling, even though it didn’t have a face. “No need, dear one. This was all your doing. Now, there is work to be done. And many people who will be very excited to meet you."

Amity rose to her feet just as the door was opened. When the small crowd that had gathered there saw inside, they all gasped. Amity heard their whispers – ‘Radiant.’

Yes. Yes. Amity was a Radiant.

She bolted outside, and for the first time in a long time, out there in the rain, she danced and laughed.

[hils79]

Hils Watches Goblin - Ep 5

It's interesting that the first time we see him properly in pain from the sword is right after he realises he's starting to fall in love with Eun Tak. There's definitely some sort of metaphor about his heart. Also, look at this gothic aesthetic. THIS is what I thought the whole drama was going to be like

Honestly I would watch a whole drama about Eun Tak helping ghosts, and them helping her too. All while her dork goblin boyfriend is in the background trying to be cool and impress her

She's so sweet. Filled up the fridge and then tidied the room too so the ghost's mother won't see all the mess

I love that he makes fun of the goblin and his relationship but totally fails as well. The are both such cringefail dorks

And now they're bonding over being cringefail dorks

Magically blowing out all those candles at once is definitely going to set off the hotel smoke alarm

This is such a stupid idea. 'I'll hang out with her until the first snow and then get her to kill me before I really fall in love with her and no longer want to die'. Absolutely no flaws there. Genius plan.

YAY! She's finally moving in with her boyfriend and her boyfriend's boyfriend. I wonder how long it will be before the grim reaper finds out that the woman he likes it Eun Tak's boss

I love that he's still acting like he wants Kim Shin to die. He's not fooling anyone.

These two arguing about interior design reminds me of that bit in The Man From UNCLE (movie) where Napoleon and Ilya are arguing about women's fashion

Grim Reaper looking positively scandalised that Kim Shin is inviting Eun Tak into his bed on the first night

Oh my god there was only one bed! Look at his little face he is totally trying to woo his way into the Grim Reaper's bed

Aww look at them having pillow talk in separate beds

Aww and now they're cooking together. Not sure I could stomach steak and salad for breakfast though

They are both so ridiculous and I love them

Aww now the grim reaper can call Sunny. I wonder how long it will be before he gets upset and freezes his phone

Aww he's asking Eun Tak to help give him a name. Why is this so cute?

I know you're busy studying but please kill me. I love that he's bribing her with tasty food and also respecting that she's trying to study for her exams

Is...is he wearing an agender shirt??

Aww she's flirting with the grim reaper to try and make Kim Shin jealous. You know what the solution to a love triangle is... (not that this is one but still she should be allowed to flirt with them both)

Eun Tak and the grim reaper are besties after one conversation. I love this

Grim Reaper is like 'this is better than any tv drama'

Look at this 900+ year old immortal hiding in his bedroom because he accidentally called himself Eun Tak's boyfriend

Yes, welcome not just to this restaurant but to the entire province of Quebec

Yes, that is definitely what will happen. Idiot.

[wolffdowntheworld]

The last of the soldiers crawl into place, pulling together their uneven joints with stretched and torn muscles that spasm and jerk. It pains me to see them this way, torn from their rest and tossed once more into the chaos that consumed them to begin with. Yet they are bound to do my bidding, and I am left with no choice but to call on them. They never asked for any of this, to be commanded as such, I never asked for any of this. Though I walk among them like a lesser god, I can't help but feel the guilt pressing in on me. I don't know who these men or women are, what they died for, what they believed in, or what they loved. None of it matters, death is the great equalizer, and I have pulled each one of them from the grave to abuse their tormented souls once more, deserving or not.

I can see a column of smoke rising in the distance, over the torn and barren wasteland that stretches before me. My eternal misery laid out in every stark detail. And there set against the smoke, against the dull glowing flames that light up the sky in a deep wine red, I see you. My best friend. My only friend. The one person I loved with the same intense passion that I hated the rest of the world with. Your fatigued form stumbles to the crest of the hill, and for a moment it seems as if your legs will fail you, and let you lay down in the dirt. I pray silently to an indifferent universe, pleading with it not to heal you, but to let you succumb to the rest you so deserve. Maybe it's selfish of me, to wrap my own interests in the guise of a gift to you; but if the universe were to grant either of us one last thing, I'd want it to be your rest. I watch you as you waver over the sizzling ground, the heat making small ripples in the air around you, making you seem bigger than you were. Instead of falling you stand up taller, you were always that way--stronger than me. Perhaps you were never weak at all, and I was just projecting the weakness I felt in my own knees as I raised my hand and gave the silent order to my legions of dolor.

For a moment I wonder if I will fade away, if all the exhaustion and pain will finally rend my soul from my body. My ears ring as the sound of your voice splits the air, the sound of something deeply broken, and I sit down. The tips of my fingers trace the edges of the stump that has caught me. The stump of what used to be a large and sprawling tree, the very tree under which we first met as children. I find that if I tip my head just right, I can feel the whisper of a warm breeze, and imagine I can still hear your laughter as we swing sticks through the air pretending to be knights on a distant plain in search for gold and glory. The glow of the flames surrounding me greet my skin like the sun on all those autumn days where we chased the last bits of warmth before the cold of winter set in. Romping through the grass hand-in-hand, and dreaming of hot chocolate and snow forts. I slip to my knees in the cold muddy ground, feeling the damp earth chill my skin, and I remember curling up together by the fire after a day in the snow, keeping each other warm and promising to remain friends forever.

I stagger to my feet as the battle rages on around me. My eyes search the horizon for another glimpse of you, hoping in equal parts to see you okay, or see you laid to rest. And all at once I see you sowing great swaths of destruction on my ranks. With each fallen soldier I can feel more and more of myself flake away. My fingers grasp at the air in front of me as I try to split the earth and call upon more unwilling souls, but I could no longer summon so much as a fleck of dust.

"Just do it," I whisper, "take all of it. Take all of me, take me with you."

One by one my soldiers fall, their agonized souls silenced once more as they crumple never to move again. Their souls do not get to carry on this time, they're gone forever, but I had to do it. I'd have damned every last one of them if I could.

At last you are only a few yards for me, gore dripping from your limbs as you stagger towards me. I fall to my knees. It was springtime the last time we held each other. If I squeeze myself tight I can almost pretend that I can still feel the warmth of your body keeping me safe, but by then the sickness had begun to sink in. You never told me what it was that did this to you, what you wished for when we visited that old well and bartered with the ancient spirits for power. I wish you did, so I could have wished to reverse it. Instead I selfishly wished for magic, my mind and heart filled with the imagination of our better days. My magic wasn't enough to stop the darkness that spread through you. You held on for so long, I was so proud of you, wrestling with the inner turmoil until it grew too large to contain.

I made a promise to you that spring. It was something of a habit of ours. Or mine. Always promising things in the spring. To always be by your side, to always forgive you, to always remember you, and then it was to stop the monster inside of you. You held my face in your hands, your eyes piercing the fabric of my soul as you told me to do whatever it took. I was too rooted in fear at the sight of the shadows behind you to do anything. I could kick myself for not getting a better hold on myself in that instance, to be strong like you were. I would have wiped the tears from your eyes and taken your hands in mine, and told you that we would conquer whatever this was, together. Instead, I just nodded and promised that I would do whatever you needed of me. I was a fucking fool. And then you left me. You, my greatest friend in all the world, you left me.

"You left me," I whisper to the dirt when your feet finally settle in front of me. I look up to find your eyes, but they're not there anymore. In their place are hollow black orbs filled with enough hurt and misery to blot out the galaxy. The fires have burned down to embers, and they sway and mix with the breeze around us to a melody only they can hear. It's just you and me left. Like it was always supposed to be. And I promised you that I would do everything I needed to in order to stop the monster inside you. Everything.

With every ounce of will I have left, I stand up. I squeeze my eyes shut, my mind reliving every moment we spent together; my adoration of your strength, your grace, and your compassion, and I let it flow through me. I feel my soul ignite, and the pain is almost unbearable, as if there's a part of my being that knows what I am doing, and is begging me to stop. I can take it though, for you. My life began with you, and it ends the same way. As the fuse ignites on the core of my being, I open my eyes and look at you one last time. And for a moment I am confused. I see you. I see the monster that was inside of you for all your life. The monster you wished to finally be out of you, but not like this. Suddenly I understand. I will take this monster away from you, I will destroy it, it will rue the day it ever took hold of you.

I can barely think now, as the last remnants of my own power tear me to dust. My mind races through my life, wondering how much to grieve and regret; I regret never seeing the signs of your struggles before it was too late. I was so angry at you for leaving me, yet I was never truly there for you. I acknowledge my duplicity, please, please forgive me--forgive me for everything. In the wake of my self-destruction I can only hope that maybe you have a chance to breathe, for the last few seconds of your life, one final sigh of relief. May our souls rest together forever, my dearest friend.

As a lich who controls a ever-growing undead army, you have no interest in taking over the world. You’re only intrested in fulfuiling your friend’ last request, which was to make sure that the thing they were turning into would never harm another person.