#I'm sleep deprived currently so we will see if this is as good as i think it is after I sleep

[noxtivagus]

i'm so sleepy 🥺

[james-bucky-barnackle]

I mean?

Synopsis: On a press tour with your co-star Sebastian Stan, the interviewer asks you a question about another film he did and the answer surprises him.

Pairing: Sebastian Stan x Actress!Y/N

Word Count: IDK I'm too sleep deprived to count.

A/N: Bro I am on a resurgence. Might just fuck around and continue writing more fanfics or whatever.

It’s another busy day promoting your new movie with Sebastian, The Road Trip. It's a funny romcom about two best friends going on a long trip to see another friend who your character is dating. Interestingly enough, the guy who plays him is Chris Evans. The interviews are currently being done in pairs, and you're with Sebastian.

You've always been candid, speaking your mind without feeling shy. Deep down, you're a bit of a pessimist, accepting things as they are. When you first heard from your agent that you were cast in The Road Trip alongside Sebastian Stan and Chris Evans, you laughed hysterically. The idea that you, an unconventional beauty, were chosen to be on screen with those two seemed surreal. You never really think about dating co-stars, which helps with acting in general. The media is impressed with how chill you are around A-list actors, and even though it hasn’t fully sunk in yet, the industry has started promoting you to that list.

The interview has been going on for about 15 minutes when another journalist joins, mostly asking about the experience of working with the cast.

“It’s my first romcom, can you believe it?” you say.

“First?!” Sebastian stares in mock disbelief.

“I know, right?!” You feign surprise.

The interviewer continues, “How does it feel to do something lighter and a bit comedic for once?”

“You mean, a movie where no one dies?” Sebastian covers his mouth at your response.

“I mean essentially,” the interviewer laughs. “Wait, no one dies?!” They nudge you playfully.

“I mean, I’m not sure, no spoilers,” you say, breaking the fourth wall and looking into the camera. Sebastian cackles. “It’s definitely refreshing. It feels like going to school for some reason. Like I don’t want to miss a class just because I might miss something wild happening.”

“What?” Sebastian glares. “What school did you go to?���

“I mean, aside from the learning stuff…” You grimace. “It’s fun, honestly. I’d love to do more romcoms. It’s very down-to-earth and just resonates with you so much. I don’t wanna get too cheesy, but I’m such a hopeless romantic—this is my jam.”

“Sebastian, how’s your experience working with Chris again, this time outside of the Marvel universe?”

“Wait, this isn’t in the Marvel Universe?!” you butt in. Sebastian again, fakes a loud gasp. You two laugh. This interview feels like it’s going nowhere.

“It’s totally fun, as Y/N mentioned—it really is like going to class. But most of my scenes are with Y/N, so she’s like the lab partner I’ve never had. Chris was always texting us, checking which location we’re going to be at, making sure we’re scheduled on the same day. It’s fun when we’re both on set.”

You nod in agreement. “Yeah, we’ve got a good rhythm going. It’s like having a little family on set. Plus, Chris is always the one who brings snacks, so that’s a bonus.”

Sebastian laughs. “Oh, absolutely. Chris and his endless supply of trail mix.”

The interviewer chuckles. “Sounds like you all have a great dynamic. Was there a favorite scene you both enjoyed filming together?”

You think for a moment. “I really loved the scene where we’re stuck in the car during that rainstorm. It was so chaotic, but we had a blast improvising and just playing off each other.”

Sebastian nods. “Yeah, that was a good one. The rain machine was going full blast, and we were just trying not to crack up the entire time.”

The interviewer smiles. “It sounds like it was a lot of fun. And the chemistry definitely shows on screen. Speaking of different roles, Y/N, Sebastian’s been in the movie Fresh where he plays a sociopathic killer who preys on lonely women pretending to be a genuine guy.”

“I don’t like where this is going,” you say, laughing, as Sebastian shakes his head.

“Would you, like Noa, fall prey to Steve’s antics?” This question gets a louder laugh from Sebastian as your face shows pure shock. You hold him back with your hand and say,

“I’ve thought about this, to be honest,” you start, looking at Sebastian as he raises his eyebrows, impressed.

“Oh, you have?”

You laugh and continue, patting his thigh and looking back at the interviewer. “Me and my friend talked about it a while back. And it’s frightening because I would’ve probably ended up on a chopping block.”

“Noooo!” Sebastian shouts, “I was rooting for you.”

“No! But, like, you are incredibly good-looking and charismatic. It would be hard not to give my number at the grocery aisle.”

He tilts his head at your response. “Surely not good enough to get yourself killed?!”

“You’d be surprised how far I’d even go,” you say, as the interviewer laughs with you both. “Oh god, I need to call my therapist,” you add, ending the topic with the three of you gagging.

“Might just have to talk to mine too, after hearing that.”

You can already feel TikTok saving this clip and turning it into a meme.

You notice, after you call Sebastian good-looking, he’s been eyeing you sideways and biting his lip. As if he’s suddenly gone bashful. You can’t help but feel a boost in your ego. Could it be that Stan is shy? You make it a point to tease him for the remainder of the interview.

“What’s something funny or unexpected that happened on set?”

“Oh, there were so many moments,” you start. “One time, we were filming this really serious scene, and out of nowhere, a bird flew into the set and landed right on Sebastian’s shoulder.”

Sebastian laughs. “Yeah, I had no idea what to do. I just froze, and then Y/N started making bird noises to try and get it to fly away.”

You laugh, nodding. “It took a good ten minutes to get back into character after that. Everyone was cracking up.”

The interviewer grins. “That sounds hilarious. It’s great to hear that you all had such a good time. Speaking of moments on set, were there any funny or awkward moments while filming the more romantic or intimate scenes?”

Sebastian raises an eyebrow, smirking. “Oh, plenty. Like the time we were shooting that kiss scene in the rain, and Y/N kept slipping on the wet pavement.”

You roll your eyes playfully. “Hey, it was slippery! You were the one who can’t stop laughing during takes.”

Sebastian laughs. “True, true. But come on, we both know it was because you were so nervous about kissing me.” You notice him biting back.

You gasp in mock offense. “Excuse me, I was not nervous! I was just...distracted by how ridiculously good-looking you are. It’s hard to concentrate when you have that face right in front of you.” He smiles uncontrollably again, feeling defeated by your nonchalance. He wonders, how are you so good at this?

The interviewer laughs, clearly enjoying the banter. “So, who do you think had the hardest time keeping a straight face during those scenes?”

You both point at each other simultaneously, then laugh.

Sebastian leans back, shaking his head. “Definitely Y/N. There was this one scene where we were supposed to be having this deep, romantic conversation, and she just couldn’t stop giggling.”

You nudge him playfully. “Well, you weren’t helping with all your ad-libs! You kept whispering things like, ‘Is that your stomach growling or are you just happy to see me?’”

Sebastian laughs. “Hey, I was trying to lighten the mood! And let’s not forget the scene where we had to stare into each other’s eyes for what felt like an eternity. I swear, Y/N, you blink more than anyone I know.”

You smirk. “Only because I was trying to avoid getting lost in those baby blues of yours.” At this point, Sebastian was laughing hard, but feeling nervous at your jokes. He secretly wished it were all real, his ears were red and hot. He’s already thinking of how to approach you after the interview and get himself out of the friend zone which he didn’t even thought he’d be in, having found a new interest in you. 

The interviewer looks between the two of you, amused. “It sounds like you both had a lot of fun with it. Do you think all that chemistry will translate to the screen?”

Sebastian nods. “Oh, definitely. I think our off-screen dynamic really helped make the on-screen relationship feel more genuine. Plus, Y/N here is an amazing actress. She made it easy.”

You smile, feeling a bit bashful. “Well, Sebastian’s not too bad himself. It’s hard not to enjoy working with someone who’s so talented and, let’s be honest, ridiculously attractive.” 

Here she goes again .Sebastian grins. “Right back at you. But let’s be real, we’re both just incredibly good-looking people trying to make a movie here.” The internet is gonna have a field day.

The interviewer laughs. “Sounds like a tough job! Any last funny or romantic moments you’d like to share?”

You think for a moment. “There was this one scene where we had to dance together. Neither of us are professional dancers, so there were a lot of missteps and toe-stepping. But it ended up being one of the sweetest scenes because it felt so real and unpolished.”

Sebastian nods. “Yeah, that was a great scene. It was supposed to be this perfectly choreographed dance, but it turned into us just goofing around and having fun. I think it really captured the essence of our characters' relationship.”

The interviewer smiles, clearly delighted by your stories. “Well, thank you both for sharing these wonderful moments. It’s been a pleasure talking with you.”

As you and Sebastian leave the interview room, you head towards the lobby where a few other cast members are mingling. The energy is still high from the fun and laughter of the interview. Sebastian nudges you playfully as you walk.

“Hey, remember in the interview when you called me incredibly good-looking and charismatic?” he teases, a mischievous glint in his eye.

You roll your eyes, grinning. “Oh, come on. Don’t let it go to your head, Stan.”

He chuckles. “Too late. I’m pretty sure I’m going to bring that up every chance I get now.”

“You would,” you laugh, shaking your head. “ It’s not like I was lying.”

Sebastian stops walking, turning to face you. “Well, thank you. And for the record, you’re pretty incredible yourself. Both on screen and off.”

You feel a warm blush creeping up your cheeks, putting a palm to your chest as if to continue the gag. “Thanks, Seb. That means a lot.”

He smiles, his eyes softening. “No, really, it’s been really great working with you. I think we make a pretty good team.”

“I think so too,” you agree, feeling a flutter in your stomach, you realize he’s actually serious now. There’s a moment of silence as you both just look at each other, the playful teasing from earlier now replaced with something more tender.

Sebastian breaks the silence first. “So, what do you say we celebrate wrapping up the promotion tour? Maybe dinner tonight?”

You raise an eyebrow, teasingly. “Is this your way of asking me out, Stan?”

He grins, a little sheepishly. “Maybe it is. What do you think?”

You pretend to think about it for a moment, then nod. “I think it sounds like a great idea.”

“Perfect,” he says, looking genuinely pleased. “I’ll pick you up at eight?”

“Eight it is."

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[thespacedragons]

Poem? Poem. Anyway have a thing. (Sorry if the format is hard to read)

I have scars from my kindness, wounds that can make it hard to breathe. I know I'd take each one again, even as I bleed. My kindness can be weakness, but it is also strength. The strength of knowing that you've helped, that there are those you've saved. Go ahead and use me, even with a dagger in my back, the next to ask for kindness will not find in me a lack. Take advantage of my kindness, for maybe you don't know, how much you needed kindness, to start to change and grow. My kindness may be weakness, but it is also strength, because I need my kindness to make me want to stay. Take advantage of my kindness, it's here for me to give, I'll make it when you need it, and help you better live. My kindness is my freedom, something I can give, even when it hurts, I find it helps me live. Be careful of my kindness, for I can't give too much, but should you give me kindness? I may self destruct. Be careful of my desires, because when you give I feel a rush, I want to take the kindness, but any feels too much. So feel free to take my kindness, my limits are not yet found, but beware of giving kindness lest gravity makes me hit the ground.

[tiredsmashbros]

SMG34: LIPBITE COMIC WIP UPDATE

oh boy... i know a bunch of folks are hyped for this comic... and boy oh boy are ya'll's prayers going to be heard... kind of... butt for the celebration milestone, and granted majority are from this comic, i thought it was best to give EVERYTHING that i have currently.

starting off STRONG with what you freaks most want: the completed pages. andddd yep that's it that all that i have done LMAO. i've been fixated on my own smg4 oc: tsb, and during the end of my summer was unfortunately fucked over by some personal issues that fortunately got resolved last minute good grief the anxiety prevented me from drawing the gays sigh... aNYWAYS LINEART WIPS!!!!

here are linearts i have completed / in the progress of!! want to aim like i did in the past by finishing up lineart first, and then speed through with color + minor rendering. the reason i have a few colored is to test out what it would look polished and my god... i have improved A LOT. THESE GAY PEOPLE GIVE POWER I AM NOT KIDDING BELIEVE ME IM NOT CRAY- anyways onto wip pages!

jumpscare: tsb stickman sketches. oh yeah. this is how i sketch and i blame sensei eiichiro oda /j. and in case anyone is unable to understand it {i don't blame u LMAO}, smg4 wakes up from the dream and is startled to see mario by his bed. they have a short convo before mario leaves, and we get a job to smg4 in the bathroom trying to put up a brave face. until the moment he leaves he's stunned due to seeing smg3 at his front door. will i elaborate more on specifics or unwritten dialogue? NOPE! gotta keep secrets to make it even more enjoyable at the end!!

currently at 13 sketched pages total, but this is probably gonna be reaching towards 20-ish pages, surpassing part two, but it will depend on how i come up with how to end it. additionally to confirm there will be a PART FOUR / chapter 3, to end this story. my goal is to have it done before i finish my senior year, or at least during the summer after i graduate bc good lord who knows whats gonna happen.

and lastly, before i end this crazy update, SCRAPPED PAGESSS!!!!!

CONTENT WARNING : NSFW SKETCHES !!!! PLEASE LOOK AWAY IF YOU ARE A MINOR OR DON'T LIKE THIS TYPE OF STUFF!!!

oh boy... dont draw comics while sleep-deprived at 6am... idek what i was even aiming with this ngl other than just for fun, but i scrapped it due to not being what i had in mind for the story. if it doesn't serve a purpose or narrative, its bye bye YEAH BYE BYE THIS IS THE CLOSEST NSFW UR GONNA GET FROM ME HAHAHAHAHA- i say that despite writing a nsfw jojo wattpad smh im only confident doing it in words good lord. btw not watermarking these bc i gen don't care since they're legit scrapped {left top part was kept and completed} so idk what to do with these. im just throwing it and walkin away

now to end with this update, i can hear your question, "when will this be done?" and to answer that question: i'm not entirely sure due to my heavy focus on my smg4 oc: tsb, but my best chance is postponing my oc lore a bit and complete this before november UOIYGJDSIUHJKDWSXYUGHJKCS but we shall have too see...

if you want to join the ping list comment on this post LMAO [click]

ignore below if you're not from the tsb birthday partydddjdhdhdjd

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thurs: smg34 is canon in the tsb universe / au. though most of their encounters are platonic or best-friendy-way, they eventually express their feelings to one another and start dating 3/4’s way of the tsb storyline arc. tsb is a supporter of his friend's relationship and admires and takes inspiration from their relationship heavily to input his future love life. yearning to be in a similar position... to learn what is to really love someone... or what it's truly like to be loved...

[heqvenlymoons]

That One, I Want That One

Based on @fleursroses 's incorrect quote! <3

This is being posted as a oneshot on both my AO3 account and here on tumblr for now but I'm seriously considering turning it into a multi-chaptered fic because how well it was received. Someone said it had rom com potential and I can see it 😭

Daminette One Shot | Crack Fic | AO3

Damian tugged on the collar of his great dane, Titus, trying to get away from his imbecile brothers. 

It was a futile endeavour, as his brothers merely sped up their walking pace, talking over one another. 

“Come on, Dami! We just wanna know,” Richard— Grayson, because he was currently being a nuisance— whined. 

Todd scoffed, waving around the toy Nerf gun he insisted on bringing. “You know what? The brat’s probably better off without a wife, god forbid whoever gets stuck with him forever. I bet you, the little shit’s gonna be the one blackmailing someone into being his wife if he sees fit.” 

“Fuck you, Todd.” Damian’s fingers itched to grab his katana and slit it over his idiotic brother’s throat but at last, his father and pseudo grandfather figure, Alfred, had confiscated the knives he tried to sneak out on their business trip to Paris. 

Drake sipped on his coffee, his head bobbing up and down as he struggled to stay awake, even as he mumbled an incoherent, “You’re never going to get an answer if you aggravate him like that, Jay. Although I’d still like to know as well.” 

He hadn’t finished his sentence when he stumbled into a nearby pedestrian, almost kissing the ground had Todd not grabbed him by the collar at the last second.

During the mishap, the coffee cup Drake was holding spilled onto the floor, seeping into the ground as he stared at it with mournful eyes. “My coffee!” 

Todd rolled his eyes, letting go of the sleep-deprived Drake’s collar with an unsympathetic pat on the shoulder.

Damian’s lips curved up to a smirk. Perhaps that would keep Drake quiet for a few minutes as he mourned his spilled coffee. 

Unfortunately, that didn’t stop Grayson or Todd from their irritating line of questioning his so-called ‘love life’. 

Damian glared when Grayson pulled out the puppy doll eyes, accompanied by his repeated question, “Come on, please? Just answer the question— what’s your ideal type?” 

“Repeating the question with that pathetic expression of yours does not make me any more inclined to answer your question.” Damian spotted a bakery up ahead and approached it, ignoring Grayson’s pout. 

Perhaps his dingbat brothers would behave themselves in an embellishment full of people, although that would be wishful thinking on his part. 

His brothers, of course, followed him and continued to push their relentless questions onto him 

Todd grabbed his arm, stopping him, a glint of glee in his eyes, no doubt finding amusement in his current predicament. “You know, we’re not going to stop bothering you until you tell us.” 

Damian’s brows furrowed in annoyance, knowing full well from experience that his brothers would not stop poking and prodding until he did what they wanted. 

Right now, they wanted to know his ideal type, and they claimed his answer was to sedate their ever-growing ‘curiosity’ when he knew they wanted to utilize the information to set him up with someone. 

He scowled, making his decision. He would tell them only to make them stop badgering him about the inane question but that didn’t mean he was open to the idea of a relationship with someone they chose for him 

“Fine. My future partner must be brave, strong, intelligent, successful and organized. You imbeciles better not utilize this information to set me up with someone or I will stab you.” He hissed, sending them his most intimidating glare for good measure. 

Todd dared to smirk at him. “Not likely, Demon Spawn. And even if we did, you won’t stab us. You’re all bark and no bite.” 

In response, Damian kicked him in the knee, making the older double over with a grunt. 

Before he could continue his assault, Grayson dragged him away, Todd spitting curses from where he lay on the ground in a starfish position, the Nerf gun on the ground beside him. 

Grayson was already wearing the contemplative expression he had on whenever he was about to do something stupid. “Okay~ that’s enough, little D. Back to what we were discussing, your future girlfriend has to be brave, strong, and smart, you say?” 

Damian gritted his teeth. “You are paraphrasing at best but I assume you already got the general idea because I am not going to repeat myself for your benefit.” 

He turned and before he could turn the door handle of the bakery to continue his dramatic exit (or in this case, dramatic entry), the door flew open and it would’ve hit him in the face had it not been for his quick reflexes.

The scowl reappeared on his face and he turned back to reprimand the person who dared try to attack him with a door to see a girl about his age, shuffling past his bewildered brothers in a hurry. 

Damian blinked, watching as the girl with raven-haired pigtails promptly tripped over nothing, crashing into the pole, the box she was holding fell from her hands and macaroons came tumbling out. 

He watched with interest as the girl mumbled out apologies to the inanimate object, picking up the fallen macaroons from the ground while she did and putting them back in the box. 

Snapping out of his daze, he handed Titus’s leash to Grayson before moving to help the girl, grabbing the remains of the macaroons from the ground and placing them in a neat row in the box.

He held out a hand for the girl to take, which she accepted with a grateful look and he pulled her to her feet. 

Getting a good look at her face, he was filled with a fluttering sensation in his stomach and he ignored it, thinking he must be coming down with a stomach bug. “Are you alright? That was quite a fall.”

Her bluebell eyes were blown wide, staring into his green ones with surprise. She broke the stare first, shaking her head before responding, “I’m fine! Thank you for your help, I’m sorry you had to see that.”

Her phone dinged and she yelped. “I’m sorry but I’m already late, see you around, mysterious handsome but kind person!”  

He opened his mouth to respond but she had already sped away, only catching sight of her red face as she turned.

His face heated as his mind caught up with her words. The girl was definitely something… 

He felt an arm going around his shoulders and he didn’t react, still staring in the direction the girl took off. 

“So, didn’t know Demon Spawn had it in him to talk to a pretty girl without scowling,” Todd drawled, the beginning of a teasing expression appearing on his face when he noticed the dazed look his youngest brother was sporting. 

Damian shoved him away, looking distracted.

Drake shook his head, mumbling, “I must be hallucinating, Demon Spawn would never willingly talk to someone, much less a girl.” 

“That one. I want that one.” Damian declared, unknowingly sending his adopted brothers into cardiac arrest at the words that fell out of his mouth. 

Grayson looked torn between looking wary and gleeful. “Uh… what do you mean by ‘that one’, little D?” 

Damian didn’t look at him as he pointed in the direction the girl ran off. “Her.” 

Todd’s jaws gaped like a fish, for once, speechless. 

Drake in his sleep-deprived state can only dumbly respond, “That’s not how it works, Damian. You can’t just go around adopting people.”

Damian finally dragged his gaze away from the direction the girl had long run off in, glaring at his brothers with his cheeks blazing red. “Not adoption, you imbecile.”

Not giving them the time to respond, he continued, a look of stress crossing his expression before he willed it away. “You lot have to keep Father from adopting her, it would cause complications.”

Grayson hummed. “She does meet the criteria, black hair and blue eyes.”

Todd seemed to have unfrozen, shaking his head in denial. “Wait wait wait, just wait a second. You’re saying, she’s your ideal type? You literally met her 5 minutes ago! I thought you said your future partner must be and I quote ‘brave, strong, intelligent, successful and organized’?” 

He prattled on, not paying attention to how Titus had taken to getting slobber all over his shoes. “No offence to her but she tripped over air and crashed into the poll in front of her. The clumsy behaviour caught your eye of all things? Are you sure you haven’t been abducted by aliens?” 

Damian glared, the red not receding from his face. He rounded on Drake. “Do a full background check on her, it is necessary for me to know everything about her if she were to be my partner.”

He paused, scowling. “Actually, I better do this myself. I need to know everything about her, it is better if you imbeciles stay as far away from her as possible. She does not need you all to monopolize her time.” 

He grabbed Titus’s leash from Grayson and headed in the direction of Le Grand Paris to do just that, leaving behind his shell-shocked brothers. 

Jason turned to his brothers, looking amused now that he had gotten over his shock. “So, who’s gonna tell him that stalking is not the right way to woo a girl?” 

[tomriddleslove]

Pt 2 - The one that you want.

✩Theodore Nott x Reader

Pt 2 to Hey, trouble (DELETED)

Summary: The one where just as things are beginning to look up, everything comes crashing down. Alternatively: Tension, Fluff, Angst.

A/N: This fic was written very sleep deprived so I ask you to bear with me. The second part is my favourite so just stick with it.

Songs: The Way - Mac Miller, Ariana Grande

Lover, you should have come over - Jeff Buckley

Promise - Laufey

NOTE: I accidentally deleted my account and did not have the first part of this mini series saved! I will probably rewrite it but there is some context you should know, so i’ll try summarise it as concisely as possible:

You and Theodore used to be really good friends when you first joined Hogwarts. Naturally, as you both got older, you changed slightly. Theodore came back one summer and he seemed completely different, he was not only incredibly handsome but he had generally flourished as a person. The girls all loved him and he found a new set of friends, essentially forgetting about you. Time skip a few years and you become friends with Pansy, and the rest of the group. Theodore greets you as though nothing has changed. You habour a lot of resentment to him initially, but realise you really do love chilling with the group and so you set it to the side. In the fic, you’re at a party and you head up to the roof. Theodore appears and you chat for the first time in ages. It gets a bit tense when you subtly call him out but you try brush it off as a joke. He noticed you at their quidditch practice earlier on in the day with mattheos number painted on your face, and he sounds a bit jealous. You assure him it was only for jokes, though you’re confused as to why he’d be upset. Theodore (internally ) alludes to loving you and you’re both emotionally stunted idiots in love.

AND that brings us back to now. Enjoy xx

Friday had finally come, and you couldn't think of a word that could place just how relieved you were feeling. Don't get it wrong, you hugely valued your education, and took pride in working hard, but at the end of the day, there's only so much history of magic one could tolerate before their brain tuned out. The surprise quiz you took in class today told you that you had reached that point many months ago. But it was ok, that was an issue for the future.

You click open the door to your dorm room, tossing your bag haphazardly to the side as you undo your tie, pulling it loose with a groan of relief. Pansy is sprawled out comfortably on your bed because apparently, yours was comfier (they were the exact same thing, she just couldn't be bothered to make hers in the morning.)

You flick a strand of hair that fell in front of your face with a dramatic sigh as you flop down onto the bed, lying perpendicular to Pansy as you rest your head on her lap. She has a half smile of amusement as her hand comes down to pat your head, eyes trained on her book. You raise a brow and shuffle up slightly to catch a glimpse of what she was reading.

You see the word ‘shaft’ once and that's all you need to see as you gasp with fake indignation.

“Pansy… Whilst I'm sitting here?” You groan and she grins, her face slightly red as she shrugs, shameless.

I mean, come on. You weren't a stranger to smut, but right in front of you? You grab the book from her hand and toss it across the room.

“None of that whilst I'm here. Your amazing and beautiful friend is vying for attention so focus on me.’ You say and she playfully rolls her eyes as she lies back on her bed.

“It's disgustingly hot. I can't be bothered for this year anymore. The days are as hot as hell depths and the evening has me freezing my nonexistent balls off.” Pansy moans, and you hum in agreement.

You’re grateful for your friend and her seemingly never-ending talent of speaking because you currently couldn't even muster the energy to speak.

“Do we have to go watch the boys today? Lila told me Madam Pince has charmed the library with a cooling spell. We could go there instead.” Pansy says, sitting up, and the idea is incredibly tempting. You live for nothing more than to get out of this dastardly heat, especially in the comfort of the library (Pansy and yourself had mastered the art of smuggling snacks in. The key was in making sure you triple-checked what you bought in, which you learnt after Pansy had accidentally sat on a Fizzlebees Exploding Sherbet last winter. The poor 1st year who had sat next to you was sure that there was some kind of attack and leapt under the nearest table.)

The mention of practice has your mind thinking back to your most recent encounter with Theodore. Just thinking about it again elicited that strange feeling in your stomach. You were, perhaps, close to a path of redemption (though it was more Theodore redeeming himself.)

With a sigh, you shake your head.

“We promised them we'd come. Besides, imagine the absolute havoc Mattheo will cause when he finds out we ditched for the library of all places. He would get us banned for a month, at the very least.” You say, and Pansy grumbles but ultimately knows you’re right. She sighs, muttering.

“Yes yes, I suppose you're right.” She begrudgingly admits and you grin, sitting up. You walk over to your closet, looking for something else to wear as you felt as though you were positively melting in your uniform. You flick through your closet, cursing the endless void that conveniently was full of sweaters and thick jumpers now summer has come. You dig around and find a pair of black denim shorts towards the back. You don't even know when you got them, but they fit and they'll do the job. You're thankful for the fact that you love the feeling of freshly shaven legs on your bedsheets, because heaven knows you would not bother to shave your legs for a man. You manage to find a green shirt, and you slip it on. It's nothing special really, but you weren't dressing up for anyone. You were long past those days now, you found that it was lovely not giving two shits. Pansy called it alarming, but you liked to think of it as… eclectic.

Pansy brings over her signature red lipstick (which you're sure only she can pull off) and holds your cheek in place to draw a number 10 on it, as standard practice. You reach up to grab her hand.

“Wait. Do 7 instead.” You say. She widens her eyes slightly and wiggles her brows as she looks at you.

“Oh? And why is that?” She probes and you playfully swat her, rolling your eyes.

“Theodore just asked me to. Besides we shouldn't inflate Mattheo's ego too much.” You respond a bit too quickly, and she has a shit-eating grin on her face. Pansy knows you well though, and she knows probing any further will only give her a stinging hex and nothing more, so she simply looks at you with a pointed look as she draws the 7 on instead. You watch as she traces the number 7 on her face too, adjusting her hair as she pouts and blows a kiss at herself in the mirror. You pointedly roll your eyes to tease her and she throws a pillow at you.

“Alright alright, you humble lady. Let's go.” You muse, holding your arm out. The two of you link arms as you descend down to the quidditch pitch. The sun is shining blazing down on you, and you feel uncomfortably hot and sticky within a few seconds of being outside. You truly weren't built for warm weather.

The grass on the pitch is a beautiful rich green and the sky is so picturesquely blue that it seems more like a postcard as opposed to real life. You imagine that this must be their favourite season; you had entertained the idea of watching one match in the winter season and immediately stopped after a gust of wind sent a bird flying into the girl sitting above you (You were sure it had given her that scratch on her cheek.) You couldn't cope with watching a match in such harsh weather, and you couldn't even begin to imagine how it must be to play in such conditions.

Idiots, really. They brought it on themselves. They definitely came to that realisation when they would be dragged out of bed at 5:00 am to go play in the freezing cold whilst you remained blissfully asleep under your warm covers.

You clamber up the stairs of the stands and curse under your breath. For all the beauty and wonders the wizarding world had, was it really that damn hard to have a few escalators here and there? You wanted to watch a practice game, not train to have the thighs of Hercules. You finally reach the top and shimmy down the benches with Pansy, leaning against the railing, The team was already up in the air, circling around whilst tossing the ball to one another. For all the grace and elegance Draco exuded on the ground, you couldn’t help but snicker when you catch the sight of him looking like he had slathered himself in red paint, all sweaty and grimacing; strands of his blonde hair clinging to his face.

“You alright up there Draco? Mummy forget to send you some sun cream?” You call out teasingly, and he sneers at you as Mattheo cackles, swooping down on his broom to greet you and Pansy.

“There they are!” Blaise says, a small grin on his face as he flies down to your level, joining Mattheo. You don’t even have the time to greet him because a loud gasp escapes Mattheo's lips, his hand coming out to grip your chin, tilting your face to the side.

“Traitors!” Mattheo says, eyes flickering between Pansy and yourself. You can't keep the grin off your face as you pry your face out of Mattheo's hands.

“Oh come on Mattheo. We love you all equally and need to express that love as such.” Pansy drawls, a taunting grin on her face.

“Fuck off, I'm the only important one,” Mattheo responds, puffing out his chest as he points to himself.

Blaise has to hold back from rolling his eyes, looking over at you exasperatedly. You exchange a glance with him and you feel your lips curl up into a small smile as you stifle a laugh.

“This was your doing! What did you do to them? Now I'm going to play like shit!” Mattheo whines, as he turns to look up at Theodore.

Theodore.

Your eyes flicker up and sure enough there he is. And god, how dare he look so good in this disgusting heat. His eyes are (and you have the feeling they were like that for quite a bit) trained on you, an unreadable expression on his face. He keeps his gaze on you, and you're sure at that moment he was trying to seduce your soul or play some stupid kind of mind tricks on you to have you thinking of him all day (it was working.)

His lips curl up into that godforsaken smile that borders on a smug little smirk. It has you embarrassingly weak in the knees and suddenly you're very glad it's hot, for you could blame your red cheeks on the heat. He flies down, tearing his gaze away from you as he comes close to Mattheo.

“Come on Mattheo, I’ve got an audience so I need to make sure I beat you embarrassingly quickly today,” Theodore says, egging his friend on.

“Yeah fucking right,” Mattheo says, turning to Theodore as the two engage in the most awful, embarrassing trash talk. You and Pansy exchange a glance and the two of you side-eye them with disdain.

The simple mind of boys managed to amaze you every time. Their attention span was impressively short.

Proving your point, Mattheo flies up to poke fun at Draco and Lorenzo, who both didn't seem to be holding up too well with the heat. You lean your elbows on the railing and stiffen slightly when Theodore flies up next to you. He hovers on his broom mid-air, resting his elbow on the railing in front of you. His face is incredibly close to yours, analysing your face with those sinful eyes of him which should be illegal because

Fuck, you were deprived.

“You wore it.” He says, and he sounds oddly breathless. You were assured by Blaise mere minutes ago that they had barely started practising.

Why did it seem so hard to speak? Why did Theodore seem so surprised? Why did you feel so bashful?

“You asked.” You respond, and his eyes search yours for a second before a smile tugs at his lips. His hand reaches out to cup your face, tilting it to the side as he looks at the 7 on your cheek.

Was this all it took for Theodore to touch you?

You’d have to start drawing 7 everywhere.

His fingers brush against your jaw, and you let out a shaky breath as his thumb runs along your cheek.

His touch leaves a fiery trail in its wake, and you are sure he has to be doing some sort of nonverbal magic because you feel as though you are going crazy. You resist the urge to let your eyes flutter shut because Theodore Nott simply has that effect.

He turns your head back and you stare at one another for a second more before he pulls back, and your mouth feels awfully dry.

“Mattheo smudged it.” He says, and his voice sounds slightly strained as he says so. You can't keep the corners of your lips from lifting slightly as you nod.

“Right.” You breathe out, looking at him. He grins, and this time you have to be sure you have not secured yourself a one-way ticket to the Janus Thickey Ward of St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, because you swear his eyes flicker down to your lips for a brief second before he leans back like he's been forced to do so, wordlessly looking at you once more before he grips the broom with one hand, effortlessly flying up to start practice.

You don’t even have the time to process whatever that was because your ever-eloquent and insightful friend speaks the very thoughts running through your head.

“What in the ever-loving fuck was that?” Pansy utters, eyes wide as she stares at the spot where Theodore was standing.

Amen to that, Pansy. What in the ever-loving fuck was that?

Your hand hovers over your cheek, ghosting over the place Theodore had just touched.

You part your lips to say something, but can't even formulate the words, and Pansy recognises that.

“Holy Shit! He- That-” She says, hands grabbing your shoulders as she shakes you. You're ashamed to say you needed it because you were sure you were dreaming.

“What's going on between you two? First, you’re wearing his number to the match. Then he's practically eye fucking you and you're both literally about to make out.” Pansy babbles and you roll your eyes at her dramatics.

“Oh calm down, Pansy. He barely looked at me, and he was just fixing it because Mattheo had smudged it. There's nothing going on.” She says and Pansy narrows her eyes.

“Oh yes, and I’m fucking straight. We both know that's a lie.” She deadpans, and you shake your head with an exasperated smile.

You couldn't tell whether you wanted to crack up with laughter or strangle the shit out of her. With Pansy, the line blurred more often than not. It’s why you loved her so dearly.

“Genuinely Pansy, nothing’s going on between Theodore and me. We used to be really good friends. That's all.” You say, with a tone of finality. She sighs, mumbling under her breath.

“….Painfully obvious”

“Both know that's a lie…..”

“Hopeless idiot…”

You shoot her a glare at her mumbling and she returns the sentiment with a pointed smile, enough to make you roll your eyes with amusement. You rest your head on her shoulder as the two of you watch the match.

The day Theodore had walked past you like you simply didn't exist was the day you swore to yourself you'd never, EVER, let yourself be good friends with him again. You stuck to your word always, yet this was proving to be one time where you didn't.

You prayed you wouldn't regret this, but alas, the universe is cruel at times.

The news of Draco’s father cancelling their annual summer holiday trip came surprisingly as great news to your groups as you all lounged in the library (which was as packed as it had ever been thanks to Madam Pince’s cooling charm. You all begged her to teach you the spell but she refused, and you were sure she kept it hidden to make sure people came to the library. Luckily for the group, you were one of the most conscientious students in your year, so you'd all get away with things due to the teachers favouring you greatly. A few other groups were kicked out immediately.)You all sat in a cosy arrangement in the far back end of the library. Pansy sat on the floor beside you, whilst you lounged in an armchair, feet thrown over one arm. Blaise sat on the other arm of the chair, with Draco and Theodore sitting opposite you. Between the armchair and sofa facing one another was a third sofa and a small round table. Mattheo and Lorenzo sat on that third sofa. Lorenzo stretches, sprawled out as he props his feet up on the table. You reach out and slap him with the book you were reading, and he cowers sheepishly as he puts his feet down.

“I was looking forward to summer in Versailles,” Draco complains, and you sigh. Would be nice to be able to go on such trips.

“Actually…” Pansy says, sitting up as though she’s just had an idea. Knowing your friend, you can't help but feel terrified about what's about to come out of her mouth.

“My parents have a beautiful holiday home down in France and they're going to Australia this year, so it's not being used. Why don't we all spend a week there?” Pansy says.

It's actually a very clever Idea, and a chorus of murmurs of agreement and nods echo throughout the group.

“That actually sounds good” Lorenzo says, and Blaise hums in agreement.

“I have family who live in France so they could sort out travel for us when we are there. I'm sure I can go.” Baise says and Pansy claps her hands excitedly, rubbing them together like some kind of evil genius (sometimes you were sure she was.)

“Draco, Theo?” Pansy says, and the mention of Theo's name has your eyes flickering up from your book. He's looking at you but the second your eyes meet he quickly looks at Pansy and nods, clearing his throat.

“Huh? Oh, uh- yeah.Sounds good.” He says. You lightly smile to yourself as you look down at your book.

“ I suppose I’ll tolerate it.” Draco sighs, and a chorus of groans escapes the group at his melodramatic behaviour.

“Oh piss off Draco, just admit you like us,” Mattheo says and Draco scoffs.

The boys very quickly once again get into a semi-play fight, and a stern hush from Madam Pince as she glares at the group of you sends them both sheepishly quiet. She walks away and it’s your turn to glare at the two boys.

“She may like me now, but if you two don't shut up she sure as fuck won't, and ill set your robes on fire if you force me to get through the summer whilst being banned from the library.” You spit, scolding them.

Mattheo and Draco both look down like children being chastised and Blaise has to hide his amusement as he nudges your shoulder, getting up.

“Right well, that's our cue to leave anyway. Have the real match tomorrow so we need an early night.” Blaise says. One by one everyone gets up, Pansy pushing off the floor with a sigh as she dusts down her skirt.

She turns to you, raising a brow.

“You coming?” She asks, holding a hand out and you look up, shaking your head.

“Nah. Gonna stay here for a while. Finish reading this.” You say, holding up your book with a weak smile. Pansy shakes her head with a smile, ruffling your hair (much to your dismay).

“My little neek. Have fun!” She says, and you flip her off at the comment. She grins, blowing a fake kiss back at you as she manoeuvres past the wooden bookshelves and out of the library.

You sigh and feel as though you're sinking further into the plush armchair, a pillow held to your chest as you read your book. Everything about the library was so pleasantly calming. The dim lights that cast dancing shadows of the book spines across the wall. The bibliosmia that you inhaled deeply as you lay for what felt like hours, reading whatever you could get your hands on. You’re so caught up in the allure of the library (Pansy might have a point, you definitely were a neek), that you don't even notice the presence of someone coming to sit down on the sofa next to you until the sound of the leather cushions sagging under weight draws your attention up from the pages of the book.

Seriously? Were you actually that oblivious? It was extremely alarming if you were.

You look up and see Theodore moving to take a seat on the sofa next to you. He stretches out his legs, his large frame suddenly making the space seem a lot smaller.

“Hey.” He says, and your lips quirk up in a smile as you speak.

“Hey,” You respond, folding the corner of your book.

“What are you reading?” Theodore asks, and you raise a brow.

Did he really have an interest in the book you were reading? A few years ago the Theodore you knew would never touch a book (though he would listen to you ramble on about them for an hour.)

But Theodore has changed, And so have you. He’s no longer the Theodore you knew, and the reminder turns the feeling in your stomach unpleasant.

You hold up your book, weakly smiling as you show him the cover. It was rather beaten and bruised, but you had owned this copy since your first year. You’ve reread it more times than you can count.

“Little women,” Theodore says, a small smile of recognition on his face. He remembered you, always walking around with that book. Theodore couldn’t comprehend what half the words in the book meant, but he remembered hearing you talk about it and thinking you were truly the most incredible person he had ever met.

That hadn't really changed.

“Mhmm. Must be my 5th time rereading it this year.” You say, with a small smile, and Theodore lets out a low laugh.

He's looking down at the table, and you admire the way the dim light dances along his features, making them look surprisingly soft.

“Love Jo all your days, if you choose, but don't let it spoil you, for it's wicked to throw away so many good gifts…” Theodore starts, gaze trained ahead.

“......because you can't have the one you want” You finish, quietly.

Theodore's gaze drops to his hands, fiddling with the threads on his bag. The air is thick with unspoken words. A quiet dance of regrets lingers in the spaces between your words.

"Little Women," Theodore repeats, his fingers tracing the zip on his bag. "I remember how you used to quote passages from that book like they were sacred verses. It was almost like a religion for you."

You can sense the undertone in his words—the acknowledgement of a shared past that now exists as a distant echo.

The silence that follows hangs heavy.

You shift uncomfortably in your seat, the worn pages of the book suddenly feeling like a fragile shield against the currents of emotion. Theodore's eyes, once familiar and comforting, now carry a hint of regret and a touch of something unsaid.

"Jo March was always your favourite," he continues, his voice soft, almost hesitant.

“Still is,” you say, and he nods, looking up at you. His smile is tight-lipped, and you fight the urge to reach forward and massage the furrow of his brow. He reaches into the side pocket of his bag, pulling out a book.

Little women.

You frown as you take the copy from him, flicking through it. There are scribbles and annotations all over the pages.

You hate the way you instantly recognise his handwriting - another testament as to how Theodore was weaved into everything you did.

Theodore takes the book back, his fingers lingering on the worn cover. He opens the book, thumbing through the pages, his eyes fixing on the annotations.

"I've been reading it," he admits, his voice a low murmur. "Annotating it. I wanted to see it through your eyes, to understand why it meant so much to you."

You watch him, and your heart clenches at his voice. At his eyes, At the way he speaks, and the way he keeps his head down. The realisation that he held onto this piece of you, even as you both drifted apart, is enough to send you into a spiral.

"I see you in these pages," Theodore continues, his gaze locking onto the annotated paragraphs. "I see you in between the lines, and in the words. I see you in Jo, I see you in the witty comments. Every time I read this, It's like a piece of you is still here with me."

A lump forms in your throat, and you swallow hard, trying to push back the tears that threaten to spill over.

Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry

“Every time I read these words, I feel like I'm back with you, even if just for a moment." He admits, looking up at you.

The devastation in his eyes is surely mirrored in your own.

You want to cry. You want to shout, because how dare he sit here, and speak of you with such reverence, and act like he cares for you when he had forgotten about you so easily? How dare he say he sees you in everything he does when he looked right past you when you stood in front of him?

How dare he act like he missed you when he didn’t?

You can't say anything. You physically can't, because every time you open your mouth it hurts. Grief clings to the pipes, scratching at your throat. It restricts your breathing, it gnaws at you.

Theodore looks at you and clears his throat, quickly looking down. You fail to make out the fact that his own eyes are threatening to spill with tears, as your own teary eyes cloud your vision.

It was always like that with you and Theodore.

Amid your shared tears, the unspoken suddenly becomes the unsayable.

He gets up, and he can't bear to look at your face because every glance of those tears in your eyes eats away at his heart. He grabs his bag and throws it over his shoulder, rushing out for fear of what you might say.

“See you” He murmurs, walking away. You can’t tear your gaze away from where he walks away even as his form disappears, and you swear the boy had taken part of your heart with him.

The quote “Fate was a cruel mistress” Never made much sense to you. Fate was beautiful even in its destructive nature. Fate was unstoppable, she didn't wait for anyone or veer away. You used to admire that about her. You found it to be a beautiful thing. Of course, it's because you also believe that fate would only wait for you. Wait that one extra second. Then, perhaps, Theodore and you would be on the same path. Instead, you were two, walking the same path only a heartbeat apart. As if time itself conspires to teach that love can occur in the same book, but pages apart.

You cannot love the beauty of her tenacity and cower from it too.

[makenoplans]

all gale banter! (that i am currently aware of)

hiii gale enthusiasts, i just spent the past few hours picking through videos trying to find all of gales party banter and transcribing it! check under the cut for verbose details

copied directly from the doc i transcribed this into so youll have to bear with the initials to denote who is speaking when! generally speaking, initials are a=astarion, g=gale, h=halsin, j=jaheira, k=karlach, l=lae'zel, m=minthara, s=shadowheart, and w=wyll

(except for two minsc quotes that are also m, both where he mentions his name so like... it's obvious)

transcribed with attention paid to particular noises characters make that aren't quite whole words and also words that are emphasized!

please let me know if youre aware of any banter ive missed!

warning: long

G: Karlach! A hypothetical question for you. If someone - not me, of course - detected a hint of romantic interest in them from another… unnamed individual, erm, what might that someone… do about it?

K: Whoever it is, just talk to them, Gale! And leave out the hypotheticals.

G: Talking. Right! I'm good at that!

A: So, Gale, how is your sad, hopeless pining going?

G: [Ach!] I'm hardly pining! Been a year or more since Mystra cast me aside!

A: Oh, my dear wizard, I wasn't talking about Mystra.

W: I used to believe the beauty of first love was unable to be surpassed, but Gale, you are so much more tolerable now that you've found your second.

G: I'll take that comment with the sincerity and good will I assume it was intended.

G: Have you noticed any attachments of the more, er, romantic variety flourishing in our camp, Wyll?

W: I think I'm not the right person to be asking. I can recognize a troll silhouette on a far horizon, but I wouldn't know a flirtation if you whacked me alongside the head with it.

G: I see you waste no time pursuing your quarry, Astarion.

A: Hmph! I rather thought I was a little slow this time. Usually they're begging me to dream them on the first night.

G: Tell me - you always woo your lovers with such patient attention?

A: As the vampire ascendant I can grant my lover immortality and bind them to me forever.

G: Hmm. I trust you speak of the bonds of love, not the shackles of servitude.

G: Am I to understand that you are in love now, Karlach?

K: I sure am. [heh] If there's hope for me, there's hope for anyone.

G: I'm surprised you're permitted to choose a partner outside of your own people.

L: We had to use and misuse each civilization in the stars in every way we know. I do not conquer by blade alone, Gale.

G: I can't imagine Mother Gith would approve. Doesn't she prefer us lesser species enslaved? Or eviscerated?

M: You've been smiling like a fool of late, wizard. Explain yourself.

G: I found love. Surely even you wouldn't begrudge me some happiness?

M: All I can say on the matter is that you were wise to lower your standards from the godly to the ghastly.

G: Tell me, Lae'zel: is it common for githyanki to fall in love?

L: Love? Is that this feeling in me, then? This passion to peel every layer of one's heart to see what light and shadows lurk there? I doubt I am the first githyanki to… to feel this way, but few would ever declare it. Githyanki have playmates, thrill partners but I've never heard anyone profess love, nor read of it in our slates.

L: Gale, I've heard you talking in your sleep. Your mate needs better rest for our journey.

G: And deprive them of the pleasure of hearing my nocturnal postulations? I'd never be so cruel. The mind absorbs much while we believe ourselves dormant. To lie beside Gale of Waterdeep is positively educational.

G: If you're feeling faint after your bout with Cazador, Astarion, I don't mind donating some blood.

A: Aha! Well, you're still full of that Netherese bile, I'll pass, thank you! Besides, I have someone else to nibble on, and they are delicious.

G: I'm glad to know you have a softer side, Minthara. I was beginning to think you rather… heartless.

M: Loving another is not soft, wizard. It is one of the hardest things a person can do.

G: So you admit you found love! Aww. How delightful. I'm happy for you both.

A: So, how was your night with Gale? Did you have a long, hard debate?

G: Ugh. Ignore him. Astarion envies the depth of a bond because he's of a shallower inclination.

G: So Astarion, I hear your relationship has taken on a new aspect recently.

A: My life has taken on "a new aspect." It's only natural that my relationships change as well.

G: Halsin! You must have accumulated considerable wisdom on matters of the heart in your long life. Anything you'd like to pass on to a… strapping, lovestruck wizard such as myself?

H: [hehehe] Dispensing advice on matters of the heart would be like swapping boots. What suits me may be a… poor fit for you.

G: Ah. Well. There's no faulting that logic. At least you didn't tell me to "be myself."

H: Oh no, perish the thought. That can be outright cruel advice to offer in certain cases.

G: Indulge me, Lae'zel, as someone unfettered by Faerunian beauty standards: how would you appraise my appearance?

L: Your beard looks like the hairy tufts upon the [surlon], the largest of wyrmkind that sliver our skies.

G: Hm. I suppose that's… a bad thing? No. Don't answer that.

G: Wild-shaping must sprinkle some spice on your love life, Halsin.

H: Heh. Indeed it does. Did you… never experience such delights with Mystra? I, uh, hear the gods enjoy taking on the forms of swans, horses, eagles and the like when… visiting with mortals?

G: Oh no, quite the opposite, actually! She mostly preferred our interactions to be abstract, and incorporeal. Most invigorating.

G: So, Lae'zel, have you ever been tempted to use psionics in your, uh, romantic endeavors?

L: Only once. Did you know, in low-gravity settings, githyanki can maintain aerial suspension for hours at a time?

G: Fascinating! I think the arch-mage Tasha described a spell with similar affect! I really must look that up.

G: I've always felt flames to be a rather perfect expression of love, Karlach. Passionate! Primal! Capable of bestowing the most life-affirming comfort - or - inflicting the profoundest damage.

L: That's… pretty nice. Never thought about it like that. But… now I will.

G: I've been pondering something, Lae'zel. Why is it that githyanki have bellybuttons, hm? When they hatch from eggs?

L: I did not grant you permission to gaze upon my midriff.

G: I- I wasn't gazing! Merely observing! Though that can hardly be said for a certain someone else.

G: Y'know, Karlach, there are other ways to express love beyond run-of-the-mill physicality.

K: Ugh! Are you going to try and teach me about exceptional uses for a mage hand or what?

G: W-well actually, I was thinking of poetry!

K: Oops. Sorry. But, uh, now that I think of it… is mage hand especially hard to learn?

G: Even shaped by shadow as it is, Sharran architecture has a kind of beauty to it.

K: Beautifully intimidating. This place was meant to scare people into submission.

G: There you go. Cutting right through the ephemera to the heart of the matter. Hm! Your finest quality, I think.

K: Uh. Here I thought I rubbed you the wrong way.

G: Nothing wrong with a bit of friction now and then. You help me keep my mind sharp.

K: Aw, thanks, pal! I think.

G: When we met, Shadowheart, your gaze seemed to linger in the distance on some unseen goal, some insubstantial purpose. But I notice now your gaze settles on something or someone much closer.

S: Is it that obvious?

G: Of course! There's nothing escapes a wizard's powers of observation.

A: I gave my return to Baldur's Gate a lot of thought. I never pictured this, though.

G: Ah, what did you have in mind? A quiet party? Toasting your own return with a few good friends?

A: Less "quiet party with friends", more "days of hedonistic debauchery", but otherwise… yes!

G: Hmm. Sounds like a recipe for disaster. But you know what? I'm learning to enjoy the taste of chaos. Count me in.

G: I've heard that in Baldur's Gate, "wizard" is also a term used for one who eschews their more, [hr-hrm] carnal desires. Is that true, Wyll?

W: Where are we going with this, Gale?

G: Oh, nowhere. Just think it's a rather cruel misnomer, not at all reflective of the glamor wizarding life affords.

A: So Gale, you laid with a goddess? You must have some sordid tales to tell.

G: Sordid? I lay with the Mother of Magic herself! What we had was… transcendent. Euphoric. Incandescent. Not sordid!

A: You actually made sleeping with a goddess sound boring. Hm. Incredible.

A: I am enjoying our walks together, aren't you, Gale?

G: Uhh… sure! In silence.

G: When you've loved a goddess as I have, people often think you less experienced in the way of romance.

S: She just lives on another plane! [heh] Only jesting. I'm in no position to judge, especially after what happened with Shar.

G: It's true for a time, I neglected the physical in favor of celestial euphoria. But our relationship was no less real for it.

G: I feel I've been rather hasty to judge you, Astarion. One heartbreak was quite enough for me, but to experience it as many times as you have… must change a person.

A: Thank you, Gale, but let us both hope that broken hearts are a thing of the past.

A: So, do you have loves waiting for you once this is all over?

G: You know what, that is not the easiest of questions for me to answer.

S: You mean just… waiting? Like a lovesick puppy?

M: Do you have elder siblings, wizard?

G: You're about to say something awful, aren't you?

M: In Menzoberranzan, after a house has two sons, every subsequent male-born child is slaughtered at birth, as it is useless, even for breeding. You have the aura of a third child about you.

G: The architect who built this must have been remarkable. Pity their vision didn't stand the test of time.

K: All's not lost. I mean, just look at this place!

G: You've quite the knack for finding the bright side of things, haven't you?

K: Hope keeps you going.

K: So Gale, got any book recommendations for me?

G: You can read?

K: Hmph. Yes, very funny. I can read. School put me off big, boring tomes. Sometimes I wonder what I'm missing.

G: Ah! Say no more. I'll find the perfect book for you. I might even lend it to you from my library in Waterdeep, ooh.

K: Ooh, something with magic please! And no devils!

G: Do you feel that? The darkness, pulling at the strands of the Weave?

K: Er, you'll still be able to do your wizard thing though, right?

G: Of course. Doesn't make the shadows less dangerous.

K: Joy.

M: Gale. Minsc worries you might send a fireball up his butt with all of this… stringy hair in your face.

G: Is that why you keep your head shaved? I assumed it was a custom of some sort.

M: Oh, no. Most warriors of [Rashinan] wear long battle braids weighed down with stone. Minsc can show you, when next we camp.

G: Thank you, but I'm more wizard than warrior. Not sure my scalp would stand up to such a plaiting.

A: Gods! We're not back, are we?

G: On the Nautiloid, no. This is a different nursery. Similar, but not identical. There's likely one in every colony.

A: I don't care what's in every mind flayer colony, Gale. Nobody does. Except you.

A: Ugh, another ruined temple full of foul-smelling beasts spoiling for a fight.

G: No mere temple. This was a monastery, devoted as much to study as to worship.

A: Oh, how ignorant of me. So it'll be free of foul-smelling beasts then?

G: Quite the opposite. Some monastic orders celebrated their pungency as proof of their devotion. "To think is to stink" was the motto of one ill-fated brotherhood near Arm. Oh! Huh, but you meant beasts of the life-threatening variety. Yes I'm sure it's teeming with those.

A: Moonlanterns to keep the curse back? Burly guards to fight off any monsters? I could get used to this place.

G: Don't get too comfortable. We shouldn't overstay our welcome in such a place.

A: No, of course! Why stay somewhere safe and comfortable when we could be in mortal peril?

H: Ah, Last Light Inn. Half aglow and lanterns lit. Just like a hundred years ago.

G: I imagine the vista was more idyllic back then. As were its patrons' chances of surviving the walk home.

H: [Grunt.] Still though, when you are expecting nothing but desolation, even a small glimmer of hope fills the heart. To think long ago, the druids feared this market down would grow into a city and threaten nature's realm… little did we realize what the true threat was.

G: Divination is a skill few can master. The rest of us must simply muddle along, content to view the past with a clarity the future rarely offers.

H: Perhaps I can yet turn hindsight into foresight, provided the curse is lifted. The better way for all. Whole generations were denied their chance to flourish… I must put this right, for them.

A: That orb seems powerful. What could it do once it's extracted?

G: Nothing good can come of it unless it is contained. Why.

A: It might be useful. Who knows?

G: I must tell you, Shadowheart, the bathing waters here leave much to be desired. The ablutions offered at the Temple of Beauty in Waterdeep were far superior - and, they have the most excellent soaps.

S: Hmm. I was wondering why you always smelled like a wealthy dowager.

A: From sweet woodland to stinking swamp. Can you do tricks like that, Gale?

G: Easiest thing in the world. Though I'd do it the other way around.

H: Brickwork and stonework. This place is far out of balance with nature, but the Oak Father will reclaim this all eventually.

G: Not too soon, I hope! I've a craving for a soft bed, a hot bath, and a large glass of Arabellan Dry. None of which I've ever found hidden under a log.

H: Hah, you may thrive, but what of other life? A city is no place for wild creatures.

G: Cities teem with life! Rats, pigeons, flies… they count no less, for all their more pestilent qualities.

G: The Society of brilliance has quite the reputation. Even Waterdhavian academics refer to their works from time to time.

S: They talk a great deal but do very little. Which may be for the best.

G: I take it you're not inclined to study the wonders of the Underdark?

S: Its inhabitants and cultures, maybe. Its fungi and cave slime, no thank you.

W: Ethel mentioned Netherese magic. What in blazes does that mean?

G: Magic from the fallen empire of Netheril. Ancient. Exceedingly dangerous. And quite unrivalled.

A: Wonderful. I'd hate to be destroyed by any common old magic.

G: Home and hearth, reduced to ruins. The shadow curse stole more than the light from this place.

H: That is why it must be stopped. Imagine a whole century of life and love denied the chance to ever take place.

G: A hidden shrine dedicated to the Moonmaiden herself. Even amidst this darkness, Selunites are stubborn enough to cling on.

K: Pretty beautiful, isn't it?

G: Look around you! Indulge your curiosity! Sorcerous Sundries is the finest purveyor of magical miscellany for miles around.

K: Where's the axes?

G: What they sell is far more precious than mere sword or shield! They sell knowledge! Ingenuity! The wisdom of mages past.

K: [yawns] Ugh, sounds like more your thing than mine.

K: Doing alright, Gale?

G: Oh, you know. Still alive and kicking despite being surrounded on all sides by an endless manifestation of… darkness and decay.

K: I feel it too. Here if you need a pick-me-up.

G: It strikes me that, for a mind flayer colony, there are remarkably few mind flayers about the place.

K: Squiddies have gone to war, is my guess.

G: On the Absolute's behalf? Now there's an alliance I'd've been quite happy without.

K: Aw, man, adventuring is thirsty work.

G: There used to be a monastery in this region known for producing a wonderful ale.

K: Ah, that sounds like heaven. Wait. Used to?

G: Oh yes, long ruined, I'm afraid. No chance of a frothing pitcher awaiting us there, but still. At least your thirst for knowledge is quenced!

K: Ugh!

W: It might seem a bit ramshackle, but this place is a boastworthy bar.

G: A bar is only as good as its cellars. Which vintages can we expect on its racks?

W: Here, a bottle is judged more by its ability to crack heads than the quality of its contents.

G: Ah. If that's the main criteria then I shall reset my expectations accordingly. Water it is!

K: We're not taking a boat to Baldur's Gate, right?

G: And give the Absolute free reign to use us as target practice from the banks? I think not!

K: Ugh. My mum always said the Chionthat was unlucky.

G: I don't suppose you've any clue where we are in relation to Waterdeep?

K: From this distance between Elturel and Baldur's Gate, I'd say… a long way away.

G: Ah. That will make getting word to my mother rather tricky. No matter. What she doesn't know can't hurt her. Not at this distance, anyway.

G: Nothing like a brisk stroll through the forest to invigorate the spirit.

K: I was just thinking the same thing! But… poetically.

G: And without so much as a stirring from our tadpoles.

K: A girl could get used to this.

L: These children and their pets lack discipline. Were they githyanki, I'd recommend further training.

G: Not everyone approaches the raising of their young with such militaristic vigor.

L: That is the very purpose of training. To determine which children shall be warriors, and which are suited to other roles. As for the unruly animals, they would make for nutritious marching rations.

G: Mm, that's certainly one way to make them behave.

L: These flowers are quite vivid, not to mention pungent. Not to my liking.

G: Are there no flowers in [tunirath]?

L: In the city of death, the m'lar cultivate the fruiting bodies that sprout from the corpses of the slain.

G: Huh. I'd rather get them from my florist in Waterdeep, if it's all the same to you.

G: That zaith'isk you mentioned intrigues me. Care to tell me a bit more?

L: An intricate device crafted by m'lar, our most gifted artisans. I am sworn to say no more.

S: Why must the Dead Three be so obvious and ugly with their decor? Blood and bones, bones and blood… Pointy nonsense. At least Shar had some panache.

G: As did Mystra's home on Elysium. Her ribbed vaults and buttresses created a magic entirely of their own… not to mention their pleasure domes.

S: Hah! Pleasure dome.

G: It's a perfectly legitimate architectural feature!

G: The road to Baldur's Gate is a long one. Who knows how long it'll take these folks to get there on foot.

S: If they make it. They're slow, vulnerable. Half or more will die long before Basilisk Gate.

G: Doesn't seem to trouble you a jot.

S: What good would it do for me to be troubled? We can't save them all.

S: You seem to know a good deal about our condition, Gale.

G: Everything, really. Not to put too fine a point on it.

S: A humble specimen, aren't you?

G: On occasion.

G: They're not mutually exclusive! The weave is served best with a dash of eloquence.

G: There's magic here, but it's of a rancid, impure form. Nothing like the true Weave at all.

L: This is why I appreciate a sharp blade to a ball of fire or a bolt of lightning. The Weave is inconsistent, unruly.

G: The Weave is constant, but its users - anything but. We must be on our guard.

L: A githyanki warrior hardly needs to be told that.

L: What is this? This place makes me feel sad, melancholy.

G: Ah, so you're susceptible to the tragedy of a broken home. Maybe you've more in common with us weaker beings than you thought.

L: There's no call to be insulting.

G: Not to diminish our efforts, but. Was rather simple getting here in the end, wasn't it?

L: The obstacles ahead prove to be higher still, which will make the pleasure of overcoming them all the more potent. Imagine the glorious din of it all, the streaming banners, the charging knights. The piles of severed limbs and heads.

G: Mm, I'd rather not, if it's all the same to you.

G: Whatever I expected to find lurking in this cursed gloom, it certainly wasn't this. A glimmer of hope amidst the darkness.

S: That's one way of looking at it. You could also say it's a prime target, the one pocket of light in the gloom.

G: Oh pragmatism, thy name is Shadowheart. You're not wrong, though. Best we keep our sojourn here to a minimum.

G: So! Shadowheart. Such a name implies yours is a difficult heart to find.

S: It's not that hard to find. Perhaps any difficulty is more telling of you, Gale.

G: I always wondered what a vampire's lair would look like. Can't say I pictured it being quite this… theatrical.

L: I find it surprisingly similar to Queen Vlaakith's aesthetic.

G: That makes sense. She does have a flair for the dramatic.

G: No day, no night. It's as though time itself has abandoned this place. Similar to the Astral Plane in some ways, wouldn't you say, Lae'zel?

L: Mm, hardly. It is said that the Astral Plane is threaded with light and silver, life-giving and wondrous in all directions. Nothing like this dismal abyss.

G: Tell me, Lae'zel, what is it like on the Astral Plane? Your home realm intrigues me.

L: Githyanki lay their eggs on other planes. They cannot mature in the Astral.

L: A tadpole nursery, as on the Nautiloid.

G: Quite right, so long as the attempt won't leave us similarly dismantled.

L: Caution is commendable. Boldness is extraordinary. In this case, I recommend the latter.

W: You're an impressive fighter, Gale. You should consider a new name.

G: I take it you have some suggestions?

W: The Wizard Wonder. Or, how about… the Master of the Weave?

G: Tempting, but I think we already have the maximum number of theatrical titles.

G: Pigeons, gulls, sparrows. These streets would make a fine hunting ground for a tressym like Tara.

M: In the Underdark, we have packs of winged hounds to deal with vermin like your precious Tara.

G: Flying hounds? Come now, you're pulling my leg. Aren't you?

M: Yes, I am. It is the bats that would make a meal of her.

M: Umberlee. Her clerics possess a nasty streak as wide as her oceans.

G: So their reputation suggests, especially among the good folk of Waterdeep. I'm curious to learn how you fell foul of them.

M: Blasphemy, said the temple priestess, but Minsc says do not give horns to your statues if you do not wish the visitors to try and make them toot.

G: Yes. That would probably do it.

W: I admire your courage, Gale.

G: Thank you! Any particular reason?

W: Between the orb and the bug, you've got more than your fair share of unwelcome passengers.

G: What can I say? Mother always told me to be a gracious host.

G: My, my. Well I'll say this for the bonecloaks: they know their mushrooms.

S: Perhaps they should expand their horizons. Too much time spent obsessing over fungi seems to leave them a bit, well… like them.

G: Oh, a byproduct of their profession. Few can spend a lifetime inhaling fungal spores without turning out a bit… muddled between the years.

W: This is it, Gale. Today, we annihilate the heart of the Absolute's power.

G: Entirely unnecessary. Though, if they are so inclined, I might be convinced to share a stanza or two of my own for inspiration! Whatever outcome of what's just ahead… it will be the stuff of legends.

G: I knew you were a graceful man, Wyll, but I hear you're quite the dancer, too! I've been known to trip the light fantastic myself. Mine was a popular hand at the annual Blackstaff's Ball.

W: I'd have loved to have witnessed it, Gale. I wager you are as elegant on the dance floor as you are on the battlefield.

S: What did you mean before, Gale? "A woman with shadows for eyes", you said.

G: Merely that if the eyes are the mirror to the soul, yours have dark curtains across the mirror. No offense taken, I hope.

S: Not necessarily. I haven't made up my mind about you yet.

A: Ever heard of a vampire called Cazador, Wyll?

W: I don't think so, no. Why? Friend of yours?

G: He's patriarch of the Szarr family. Nasty fellow, if the histories are accurate.

A: I imagine they are.

L: The right of these prisoners to die in mortal combat was stolen from them.

G: Hardly the worst atrocity the Absolute's committed.

L: One of many, but by no means the least. To die properly is a matter of honor.

W: This is no aimless horde. The Absolute's forces are organized. What do you make of it, Gale?

G: All enemies have some chink in their armor, no matter how much they like to believe themselves invulnerable.

W: And if we don't find any clear weakness?

G: Then we hope our mutual strengths are enough to dominate them. Or! We die nobly in the attempt.

G: I was wondering about your queen, Vlaakith. What tales of her reach us are terrifying. I suppose that's not how you would describe her.

L: Vlaakith is unity. Fear and beauty, life and unlife… eyes like onyx, teeth like daggers. There is none more perfect.

S: Sounds vile. I assume the meaning of perfect was lost in translation.

G: Moonrise Towers lies ahead. We're nearing the heart of the Absolute, I'm certain of it.

W: Then let us push forward, head high, weapons in hand, and turn this tower to rubble.

G: Your confidence is encouraging, but a little premature. Let's keep our eyes on the task ahead- or eye, as the case may be.

W: Who's in charge of the mind flayers, Lae'zel? Is there a squid king or something?

L: No. Each ghaik is servant to an elder brain. No king unites elders, only their collective tyranny.

G: A mind flayer monarch! Imagine that. Such a thing could shatter worlds!

K: Ready to enter the belly of the beast?

G: Ugh. It's the stairs I'm dreading.

G: No sign of tentacles so far.

S: The same. Except for a knot of worry in my stomach that's in no rush to go away.

G: That I can relate to.

G: The masons here thought they were building something to last. How wrong they were.

W: Perhaps it's a blessing that none of them survived to see it fall to the shadows.

G: No need for such a grim assumption. Halsin helped many to escape these shadows before the town was consumed.

W: Then some masons were more blessed still, if they could put their talent to use elsewhere. Perhaps some of their work even graces Baldur's Gate.

S: You seemed quite forward with your compliments earlier. We'd only just met.

G: Seize the day, I say. More now than ever.

S: Careful you don't pull a muscle in this place.

S: Isn't it so that every time you speak as you cast a spell, you're endeavoring to call upon Mystra? I'm surprised she still listens to you.

G: She has no choice. She's sworn to hear all magic users. Even me. I'm sure she at least stuffs her fingers in her ears to muffle my invocations.

G: The history of the city itself is captured in the archives here. A fascinating resource.

W: I wonder what those archives will reveal about us a hundred years hence.

G: Only the most excellent and complimentary things. With some encouragement from us, of course.

G: Look at this place. Such horrors defy description.

S: Silence can be best. Give it a try sometime.

S: What if this creche doesn't work out, Lae'zel? What if your kin fail you?

L: If I can reach the creche, my kin will provide. Any failure will be mine alone.

S: If you say so. Just don't expect me to put all my eggs in the same basket.

G: That expression must sound curious to a githyanki ear, given the way they're birthed.

G: Gods. Who knew such a vile abscess lurked in the bedrock of this city? The very stone reeks of misery and despair.

J: Mm. A sad shrine kept by the lunatic and the lost. The last time I was here, I promised myself I would die beneath open sky. I have not changed my mind.

G: Nor should you. Far better to feel a cool breeze on your skin than whatever foul expirations blow through these halls.

A: Eh, can't say I love what they've done with the place.

G: Unsurprising, really. Fanatical cultists tend to care more for ambience then aesthetics.

A: Hrm. Reason enough to put them all to the sword, I say.

A: Heh, what's this? A clever little hideaway. A little too clever, if you ask me. Watch out for traps.

G: Not just clever. Rather ingenious! Somehow its construction keeps the shadow curse away.

S: The end must be near. No regrets, Gale? You may have been better off staying inside this boulder.

G: Unlikely. Had I stayed there much longer, the orb would have reduced it to rubble. Besides, think of all the fun I'd've missed out on.

S: Fun? Well, yes… I suppose we did manage to make the best of things.

[honeykyeom]

white noise / track 2: smoke

pairing: lee seokmin x afab!reader

series summary: seokmin had always been there for you. after a rough heartbreak, you find out he’s there for you in more ways than just one.

series notes: uni!au, best friends to lovers, friends with benefits, 97 line antics, 18+

chapter warnings: alcohol & food mention, mcu mention (lmao), the gang actually goes to class?? (not really but), seokmin kinda being dumb, mingyu being pouty (what's new), the full gang!! FINALLY!!!!!, mostly slight angst (not sorry)

wc: ~5k

a/n: after much anticipation, the second track (even though i'm nowhere near done with the third LMAO)! thank you so much for all the renewed interest and love on the first track, i really really REALLY appreciate it. seriously it means the world!

read track 1 here!

Walking out of your shared English Literature class with Jinsoul, you grab your phone from your back pocket, the light from the homescreen illuminating your face even in the cloudy daylight. The weather matches your mind: murky and foggy, obscuring your clarity. As you focus on the LED screen, zoning out Jinsoul’s voice and looking through the endless notifications you received while in class, there was one that was still noticeably absent. 

No messages from Seokmin.

It’s been about a week since the party, since that fateful night, with no word from Seokmin. You were left alone the next morning, waking up next to an empty space and cold sheets. You sat up in your bed, your mind running a thousand miles a minute with the finish line nowhere in sight. You felt lost on the track, stuck on where you two go from here and no chance to speak with him about it. 

Did he regret that night? Was it a mistake to cross that line?

“Hey!”

You felt a sudden pain on your arm, breaking your attention from your thoughts. You look over at Jinsoul, rubbing the sore spot that she playfully hit. “What?” 

“Are you even listening to me?”

“...Yeah, of course.”

Jinsoul rolls her eyes, your dazed expression making it apparent that you weren’t listening to her rant about your class. “Okay, you’ve been out of it all week. What’s up with you?” She asks you, an earnest shine in her eyes, treading lightly on the topic.

You falter in your steps, unsure of how to answer her question. You wanted to tell her, air out your frustrations, explain the current predicament you were in and finally get the heavy burden that was weighing you down off your shoulders. Something in your brain stops you from doing that, however, leaving you to twiddle your fingers and your thoughts taking refuge in the back of your mind. 

You settle with, “Nothing. Everything’s fine,” in a meek voice, avoiding Jinsoul’s worrying stare.

She can tell that you’re lying, your entire frame sinking into itself; it’s not hard to see your demeanor changing, but she keeps her mouth shut, not wanting to overstep her boundaries. Even if she wanted to say anything, her own thoughts are interrupted with your smile and wave to Haseul and Yves, who are both meeting you halfway in the courtyard.

Haseul is the first to greet you back, running up to hug you immediately. Yves saunters, a smirk on her face as she sits at the table that’s situated in the middle of your group. You move your attention to her, continuing to hold Haseul in a tight hug with an eager smile. “So… how was your date with ViVi?”

Jinsoul is even quick to change the subject, her excitement for her friend showing in her bubbly appearance. “Oh my god, yes! Tell us, please!”

“It was good… We just walked along the river and went to a coffee shop that wasn’t too far. Wasn’t like an extravagant date or anything.”

“ViVi asked to see her again,” Haseul adds, ever the overbearing mother, embarrassing Yves with her admission. Squeals contribute to her embarrassment as you and Jinsoul berate her with questions and requests for more details and Yves is unable to hide her excitement, her own screams joining the group. You’re sure to be annoying the sleep-deprived students around you in the courtyard, but nothing can dull the joy in your circle.

“What are we screaming about?”

Your chatter is interrupted by the entrance of Minghao and Mingyu, sliding in beside Yves. You notice quickly that there’s a missing body from the usual trio, only adding to your anxieties of the day. Why is Seokmin avoiding me, you think as the two men join the group.

“We’re screaming about Yves’ date with ViVi,” Jinsoul responds, a laugh coming out of her lips as she excitedly recounts the conversation. Mingyu wraps his arms around Yves when he hears the news, joining in on the celebration and Minghao has a smile of endearment gracing his face, a clear sign of love that’s bursting through the seams.

“It was just one date,” Yves mumbles through Mingyu’s tight grasp, still grinning from ear to ear. “It’s not that big of a deal.”

Minghao interjects in the conversation, “So! You’ve been talking forever. It’s about time you two did something about it.” He brings his water bottle, which was encased in a decent amount of glistening water droplets, up to his lips and clears his throat once he swallows the liquid before he continues his sentiment. “We’ve seen how you’ve been around her. She makes you happy and that’s all that matters and we’re excited for you.”

A rare demure expression is seen on Yves’ face. A tight-lipped, shy and curved smile flashes as she responds quietly, “Yeah… It’s exciting.” Her body relaxes as waves of approval from the group assures her. She never needed your approval, nor does she ever ask for it, but you’ve seen her heart go through men and women, her confidence gliding through the acute pain she never spoke about. 

“Get more excited! It’s about time one of us got cuffed,” Mingyu comments, loosening his grip on Yves, but still keeping an arm around her shoulders and keeping her warm against his body. 

“Yeah, why isn’t it you, Gyu? Being a hopeless romantic and all that,” you retort, falling back into your playful banter with him to hopefully ease your own anxieties. 

“Why are you asking? Trying to cuff me?”

You scoff at his cocky expression, “You wish.” He returns your statement with a cheeky wink, playing up the faux attraction. The back and forth with Mingyu doesn’t make the thought in the forefront of your mind go away as much as you hoped. “Where’s Seokmin? Isn’t he in the same class with you guys?”

Minghao is the one to respond, “He said he had to leave for something. Not sure for what.. He’ll be at movie night, though.”

Okay, he’s definitely avoiding me, you think. He’s never been this MIA before, usually taking any opportunity to casually talk to the group but more importantly, you. 

The hole you were feeling in your life is greater than any heartbreak you’ve ever felt. No breakup, no fallout, nothing hurt like the slow disintegration of the friendship between you and your best friend, all because of a stupid decision. 

“Y/N?”

You look up to see everyone around the table looking at you expectantly. 

“I’m sorry. What was the question?”

“Do you need help with setting up for movie night tonight?” Haseul asks. “Minghao and I get out of class early so we can head over after?”

You bring your mouth up in a lipless smile, trying to muster all the happiness you can fake as you respond, “Yeah. Sounds great.”

At least you’ll see Seokmin tonight and maybe then you’ll get some answers.

“Have you guys noticed anything weird with Seokmin lately?”

Minghao stops setting up the blankets on your couch to catch your gaze, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. His expression matches Haseul’s, a slight frown forming when they meet eyes, trying to think about your mutual friend. Their heads come up empty, Minghao returning to look at you as he responds to your inquiry, “Nope. Everything seems normal to me?”

“Yeah, I haven’t noticed anything with him,” Haseul agrees. Her melodic work at making room in the fridge for incoming abundance of drinks fills the otherwise quiet room, the only other noise being the soft r&b coming from the television. She stands up from her kneeled position, slowly joining you at the kitchen island. “Why do you ask?”

Your body tenses, biting your bottom lip as your hands play with the plastic of the popcorn bags you’re prepping. The crinkling sounds fill your mind, playing with the static of your thoughts. You’re certain the pause is suspicious. Minghao and Haseul were naturally attuned to people’s emotions and you were no exception, no matter how hard you tried to hide them. You bring your focus away from the comfort of the plastic wrappers back to Haseul, attempting to steady your mind. “I just feel like he’s been avoiding me since the party. Like, outside of the groupchat.”

“That’s weird. Why?”

“I don’t know.” Lie.

“Did something happen during or after the party?”

“Not that I know of.” Another lie. 

Haseul’s hands rest on her hips, eyes downcast as she thinks over your responses. “Huh.” Her tongue comes out of her mouth, pointed out in thought and she looks over at Minghao, who has now joined the two of you at the kitchen island. “Minghao, did he say anything when he got back home?’

“Not at all. He made it back to our apartment before us and when we got back, he was already asleep.”

You were brought back to that night, after everything was said and done. 

You and Seokmin were quiet, his arm around you like a protective blanket, holding you against his chest. You couldn’t lie–his touch was comforting and while unfamiliar, not unwelcome. You two weren’t strangers to cuddling or being close, the behavior at the party making that evident, but this felt different. Maybe it was the obvious fact that you two crossed a line, a line that had been drawn in the sand for the both of you for the past two years–now, the small granules lifted in the air and swept away with the wind, blurring that already thin line.

Despite his own heart's pleas, Seokmin was the first to speak, his own voice small and faint. “I think I should go…  before the guys’ get suspicious.” His actions fail his words, not loosening his grasp. He wasn’t ready to go, not ready to leave your presence, but he’d rather rip the bandaid off now than later before he has to go back to reality–the reality that you two were just best friends and nothing more.

“Do you think they’d be suspicious? I mean you’ve stayed over before?”

He winces at your question, the hopeful lilt in your tone making his decision that much more difficult. He has to do this, he thinks. It’s for his own good. 

“I think it would be better if I go.”

Suddenly, there’s a knock at your door, breaking your memories and bringing you back to Haseul and Minghao, both of them still discussing the behavior of Seokmin. Their conversation stops when they hear the chatter of your friends behind the door. 

You leave the kitchen to open your front door, revealing the rest of your friend group, ready to join in on the festivities. Jinsoul is the first to enter, a bright smile gracing her face as she exclaims that she brought more snacks for the night, leaving the group with plenty of food to satisfy themselves. Yves and Mingyu are quick to follow behind her, carrying cases and paper bags. The clinking of glass and aluminum make it apparent that they did not disappoint with their task of grabbing drinks for the night. They greet you with loud howling, the excitement of the night and finally being able to unwind after a week of exams and assignments getting to them. 

You lock eyes with the lone straggler, the last person in the line of people joining you in your apartment. He keeps his cardigan close to him as he looks at you, a tight-lipped smile emphasizing the small dimple underneath his lips. You drink him in as you realize this is the first time you two have seen each other since that night. 

You almost forgot how attractive he was, the week apart making his features more prominent in your mind. 

“Hey,” you’re the first to crack the ice barrier between you two, hoping for it to thaw enough to make the night less awkward.

“Hey.”

You could cut the tension with a knife with how well this conversation was going. The air suddenly felt thick, so thick and dry that it sucked the moisture right out of you, causing you to swallow any saliva you could muster. 

Alright, you think. Here goes nothing.

“So, um… about that night-”

“Are you guys going to watch the movie from over there? Hurry up!”

Damn it, Yves.

Seokmin clears his throat and quickly moves past you in the door frame, joining everyone else in the kitchen to situate himself for the movie night. You watch him leave, turning around as your front door slams behind you. He grabs a plastic cup, opting for water for the night, much to Mingyu’s chagrin.

This is going to be much harder than you thought.

You didn’t think it was possible to care any less about the fight scene in front of you, but here you are. You thought that picking one of your comfort films, or one where you turn your brain off and ignore all the plotholes, would help with your uneasiness but the absence of a familiar warmth next to you makes your brain aware of how apparent the flaws of the MCU have always been. 

Mingyu’s big body acts like a heated blanket and the plush cushions of your sectional are comfortable enough for you to fall asleep if you wanted to. He happily took the opportunity to get close to you, saddling up to your side and enjoying Captain America trying to save his dear friend, Bucky Barnes and you wish you could do the same. It’s not that Mingyu’s cuddling wasn’t welcomed.

It just wasn’t Seokmin. 

You and him had always sat together during movie night, acting like two peas in a pod, attached at the hip. But now here he sits, on the opposite side of your couch fumbling his fingers with your fuzzy, lilac blanket. It’s hard to keep your attention away, trying to focus on your steady breathing as opposed to his movements. 

Soon as the movie dies down, Steve and Natasha breathing heavily on the doorstep of Sam Wilson, Seokmin stands up and wipes his hands on his jeans. Clearing his throat, he addresses the group, “I’m going to go to the bathroom.”

Although everyone moves their focus from the television, Jinsoul, who lifts her head from your shoulder, is the one to speak. “Do you need us to pause the movie?”

“Nah, you guys are good. It’ll be quick.”

Seokmin disappears into your bedroom, the door to your adjacent bathroom clicking shut. Everyone’s attention returns to the movie and you wish yours could do the same, but it was never there in the first place. You bounce your leg as the time passes, the scenes in front of you blending into one another. It’s not long before your mind settles on a decision, hoping for an end to this madness and before you can change it, you’re breaking away from Mingyu’s grasp and following Seokmin’s footsteps.

“Don’t wait up, I need to use the bathroom too.” You don’t even look back to see the group’s reaction or wait to hear their response before you’re entering your bedroom. 

Looking at the bathroom door, the harsh yellow glow of light seeping through the floor haunts you. The toilet flushes, the sound filling your own brain with water and your head gets fuzzy, almost like you’re underwater. The waves begin to climb, threatening to suffocate you.

It’s now or never.

“What the fuck?”

You slam the bathroom door behind you and you’re met on the other side with a shocked Seokmin. His hands were dripping with water, soap bubbles following the path of his veins that run down his skin. He looks at you incredulously, completely taken aback by your presence in the space that he’s taken refuge in from the increasing anxiety of your current situation. 

He knew it was only a temporary relief, but it was a moment to breathe–a moment away from you. He expected to have just a few minutes to collect his thoughts, regulate his breathing and try not to think about you being in his vicinity. What he didn’t expect was for you to break into that solace, infecting every piece of his mind.

“What are you doing in here?”

“Why are you avoiding me?” you ignore his question, rendering him speechless and babbling, trying to collect his thoughts. 

He walks over to your hand towel, the blues of the fabric bleeding dark from the water. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh ok! So, leaving me on read all week, walking away anytime I enter a room with you and saying 3 words to me face to face isn’t avoiding me?” Seokmin takes a deep breath, leaning against the faux marble counter. His eyes stay downcast, evading your accusing stare and he keeps silent. “You’ve been weird ever since last weekend… You promised nothing would change after everything.”

Walking Seokmin to your door, you keep his hand intertwined with yours. You can’t help but notice the change in atmosphere–the glow of your kitchen lights shine a more golden hue, the air around you has a different stillness and even the feeling of his skin on yours clashes with the usual relationship. It’s all subtle, but it’s enough to notice.

You stop in your tracks, Seokmin moving forward until you pull him back, not letting go of his hands. Biting your lip, you look up at him as he gets closer, eyebrows furrowing with confusion as to why you stopped.

“What’s up?”

After a beat of silence, you respond but your apprehensiveness remains, “Nothing’s going to change between us because of this… right?”

Seokmin’s eyes shine with sincerity and his mouth is slightly left agape as he ponders on his response. He’s never been one to be certain of the future, choosing to live in the moment and take each moment day by day–all with a positive attitude. Once he collects his thoughts, there’s  a finality to his tone, as if he’s never been more sure of anything.

He releases your hand, only to present his pinky finger. You chuckle at the silly ritual you two have, but at least you know he’s serious. 

“Nothing is going to change between us. Pinky promise.”

Seokmin can only stare at his reflection in the mirror, dirty water stains peering back at him. “I wanted everything to be normal,” he states, simply. 

“Well, why wasn’t it?”

“Because I liked it, maybe.” He breaks his gaze from the mirror and finally looks at you. The fine lines in his face are more apparent this close, like the stress from the past week had caught up to him. “I liked it. And I didn’t know how to tell you that or maybe, I didn’t want to admit it since it was just a drunk hookup.” Seokmin lets out a shaky breath, unsure how to continue, if he even should. The heaviness that has been weighing him down all week was lifted, his chest heaving from the truth that’s been released. 

You approach Seokmin apprehensively, closing the distance between you two. It isn’t until your hands are touching on the counter do you respond to him, ending the silence. “I liked it too,” you confess.

“Would it be bad to admit that I wouldn’t mind doing it again,” Seokmin’s voice is soft, afraid to break the glass of the situation. He keeps his eyes focused on your hands, not willing to meet your face again. The air around you two has shifted, a fluid current flowing between your hands. 

“Who says that we can’t do it again?”

He chuckles, shaking his head before he says, “The thing is I don’t want to stop.”

“Maybe I don’t want to stop either.”

Seokmin thinks he’s dreaming. When he looks at your face, there’s a playful spark in your eyes and the tone of your voice tempts him, as it always has. He could be imagining the smirk that tugs at the corner of your lips or the slight squeeze you give his hand and the small actions may cloud his judgment on how he should handle this situation, but he doesn’t care. He’s acting on pure adrenaline when he brings his hands to your face, connecting your lips together.

Everything about the kiss is different from the last time you kissed Seokmin. The shivers run down your body all the same but the soft nature of him has vanished, replaced with a fiery exterior. As his fingers leave your cheeks, falling to your waist and bringing your body closer to his, the touch kindles at your insides, your skin on fire. 

Your bodies meld together from the heat, pulling yourselves closer until it was physically impossible. Seokmin’s lips work feverishly, eliciting a moan out of you and your nails leave crescent moons on his skin from the grip you had on him. It all makes his head spin, somehow more than you already did. He was insatiable–confirming that last week, he was not only drunk on alcohol, but drunk on you. 

You feel like you’re floating, on the surface of a cloud, only to realize you aren’t 10 feet in the air when Seokmin pushes you against the bathroom door. His hands hold onto your waist tightly, making sure the impact isn’t too loud or painful. The only thing that fills the air is the heavy breathing shared between the two of you.

Between frantic hands and heated kisses, the two of you weren’t willing to break apart from each other. In the back of his mind, he begins to think of the others that sit in the room next door. 

He could stay like this forever, but he didn’t want anyone to get any ideas. Seokmin separates your lips, albeit reluctantly, and you’re quick to chase him, not wanting the moment to end. Labored breaths fill the humid air and your lips are red from the constant contact. Softening his touch, he brings his forehead to yours in a moment of solace, trying to clear the static in his mind and regulate his breathing. 

“We should get back to the others before they get suspicious,” he manages to get out through his dry throat. Seokmin’s voice is low, raspy and especially cautious, careful to keep his words contained to these four walls. “We should keep this between us.”

You only have enough sense in you to nod, agreeing to his statement. Head still foggy from the heat and dampness of the air, you finally open your eyes and respond, “I think so too…” You take a deep breath before you continue, “Don’t want to change too much.”

“It’s probably for the best.”

Seokmin internally winces at those words, the same ones that left his mouth when he had to leave your place last week. His statement cuts through his heart, exposing his flesh and reality–the reality that he’s helplessly in love with you, his best friend. 

Or best friend with benefits?, he thinks. There’s no way this won’t end in disaster.

But he can’t deny the lightness he feels or the way his stomach churns at the thought of holding you, kissing you, or having you moan his name amidst a dizzy spell from pleasure. The situation he’s bringing upon himself is selfish and foolish and everything he shouldn’t be doing when it comes to his adoration towards you, but your charm has him under a trance; one that he doesn’t know if he wants to leave. 

“I’m going to head back now,” Seokmin giggles with a shy smile, not taking a step away from you to do what he says.

“Okay,” you respond. Leaning off of the door and giving Seokmin room to leave, you return his smile with a coy smirk of your own. 

But before you can get too far, Seokmin pulls you back into him and brings your lips to his in another hasty kiss. It’s quick, it’s rushed and it still leaves you breathless all the same. It’s new territory for you two, deviation from a path you never thought you’d stray. It lights a fire within you to be exploring it with him.

He separates from you to say, “Okay. I’m actually going to go now.” His smile reaches his eyes, his signature wrinkles prominent on his face when removes his hands from your waist. “I just had to do that first.”

“Okay.”

“Bye.”

“Bye, Seokmin,” and with a giddy smile, he leaves you in the bathroom, the sound of a soft click of the door filling the air. The buzz of electricity from your lights adds to your daze. As you lean back against the door, feeling weightless from the pressure of Seokmin’s fingers through the cotton of your t-shirt, you think of how reckless this is and how destructive this could be–not only hiding it from your friends but how fragile it can make your friendship. 

It would be easy to go to a party and cling on to a random person for the night. It would be easy to bat your eyelashes and play with the hem of their shirt, adding a playful lilt to your voice and an air of mystery around you. It would be easy to lose yourself in the moans, chasing your highs and then easily forget each other, as you tried to do with Jaehyun. It would be so easy, so simple and so careful.

If everything could be so easy with someone else, why does it also feel even more effortless with Seokmin? As it always has been with him. 

Even through the carelessness or the secrecy, no random hookup made you forget like Seokmin had. His gentle worship and care of your body had you on cloud nine and seeing the galaxy. Your comfort was the most important thing to him, even after a few too many drinks. There was something about that night, something in the back of your mind, that guides you blindly through this winding road of uncertainty. You just hope that the road you were walking together doesn’t crumble beneath you.

“Sorry, you were gone for so long! I needed a new cuddle buddy.”

Of course, Mingyu couldn’t be alone for even just five minutes. When you return to the living room from the bathroom, Mingyu has his head on Jinsoul’s lap, her hands playing with the strands of his hair. He looks content, more relaxed than when he was on your shoulder, his huge body somehow compressed in the small space that you left. 

Jinsoul’s fingers stop their movements as she states, “I can move,” teasing the boy. 

“When did I say I wanted you to move?” 

Jinsoul chuckles at his retort, bringing her hand back to his scalp and a pleased smile returning to his face. You probably weren’t going to get your seat back if Mingyu’s comfort was anything to go by. 

“There’s room over here if you’re looking for a replacement cuddle buddy.”

Seokmin’s voice carries your attention, his smile hiding a sly intention that is imperceptible to the untrained eye. He does have tons of room. With Yves and Haseul huddled on the floor, a plush gray blanket covering their bodies, Seokmin is able to spread his legs on the sectional, taking up much of the left side. 

Nonchalantly, you shrug and give a casual grin, “I guess you’ll do.”

“Shut up.”

As you saddle up to Seokmin’s side, resting your head on his shoulder, slotting to him like a puzzle piece, you can’t help but notice the small side glances that Minghao and Haseul give you. The flash of confusion on their faces goes quickly, trying to wrap their heads around how the tense situation between you and Seokmin dissipated so abruptly. 

You’ll explain it to them later, you think. At least as best you can without giving you two away before there’s anything to begin with. 

With the movie drawing to a close, Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson on a search for their friend and the Maximoff twins revealed, the atmosphere has a much lighter and relaxed feel–the weird awkwardness and walking on eggshells between you and Seokmin gone. There’s retelling of old stories, laughs that could be considered embarrassing to most, and the playful banter that is signature to your friendship group dynamic. From the outside looking in, you would've never known there was a bump in the road.

And to your friends, they were none the wiser as to why Seokmin stopped talking to you or how you suddenly made up. They don’t know the hidden tension that his hand being on your thigh holds, looking casual enough to be considered normal affection.

“What time is it?” Minghao’s voice cuts through the loud noise, everyone turning to him. His shoulder slacks as he relaxes, leaning back and blending into the soft gray of the sectional with his oversized sweats. 

Yves reaches for her phone, the device laying face up not too far from her figure. “It’s like 11.”

“Ugh… I need to head home. I love your sofa, but my bed is calling me.” Jinsoul gently pushes Mingyu off her lap, making a pout form on his lips from the loss of contact. “Can we please go home?” Jinsoul addresses Haseul, hoping that her roommate is ready to return to their own apartment. 

“Yes, we can go.” 

“Minghao?” Mingyu looks over at his own roommate, a pleading smile on his face.

“Yeah, fine, let’s go,” Minghao stands from the couch and turns his body to Seokmin, the remainder of their trio. “You coming?”

Seokmin’s eyes flash between you and Minghao before responding, “I was actually going to stay and help clean up.” He addresses you when he asks, “If that’s okay?”

At first you think, why would you need help with cleaning? The group has never made much of a mess, especially with Mingyu around. The most that needed to be done was putting away the extra drinks and snacks, finding enough room in your pantry. But taking another look at Seokmin, you read between the lines, his eyes glowing and mischief pulling at the corner of his lips. No cleaning is going to get done, not immediately anyway. 

“Yeah, that’s fine with me.”

[lvrb0ts]

Playing rough🪵

!!NOT MY GIF!!

relationship: Sam Winchester and F!Reader

warnings: choking kink, ageplay(?), smut, kinky cuffs, oral (M receiving), maybe more.

word count: 1.7k

ib: Sam's version of "Do you want me to do it properly?" by @octoberclidan , but with extra spice??

DT: @samwsundercoverlover

After a nest of vamps nearly killed me and poor Sam had to save me while Dean waited in the car for us, I just wanted to roll in embarrassment's grave We get back in the car, and seeing Dean sleeping peacefully, me and Sam both decide to spare him the details, not beat for his mouth. So Sam starts up the car and asks, "How's your head?" He drives onto the rumbled road. The sounds of Dean's snores are the only thing making this silence just as awkward. "Barely making up brain cells, thanks." He chuckles and quickly glances at you, then back at the road. "Anytime. Just don't get yourself killed next time." I mumble at his words in annoyance, but I continue to watch the roads pass by. Once I get home, I flop on the couch and sigh, going to grab the remote to watch some TV while Dean showers, but swiftly, I feel Sam yank it out of my hand. "Dude! The fuck?!" I exclaimed, confused, "Tonight's my night for movie night, remember?" That smug look on his face makes me want to wipe it clean off. "Fuck off!" I yank it back, and he looks annoyed, quickly trying to reach over for it by climbing onto me on this small ass couch. "SAM! Get off of me! YO-YOU'RE TOO HEAVY!" I grunt, holding the remote out of reach. Just then, I feel him press his forearm on my neck, choking me. I gasp for air, but he pushes harder, trying to get the remote controller, unaware of his damage. "Sa-sa-sam, Y-yo-.." I try to yell out, but his forearm pinning me down leaves me out of breath. "Shit!" He blurts and pulls away immediately, allowing me to gasp for air. I take a few deep breaths and moan out a bit from the pain and somewhat pleasure he brought to my neck. I quickly stiffen as I notice the moan I let out, but he just stares, concerned. "Did he hear it? Was that loud? Why did I moan?" my brain asks every 5 seconds. "I didn't realize i–." "I'm sorry. Are you okay?" He kneels beside me, but all I can think about is whether he acknowledges that stupid noise I made. "I'm fine, Sam. Thanks." He nods, and I shamefully walk off. "Y/n," he calls out. "Y-yeah?" I turn around, still rubbing my neck. "Did you like it?" he asks, causing my eyebrows to furrow. "Li-like? Like what?" "Li-like the choking thing." He looks dead serious, but I laugh, still thinking he's unserious, and then a chill down my spine to my core stops the laughter. "I mean, from that moan you led out, it sounded like you liked it, and I know when a woman likes something, sweetheart," he whispers hoarsely, slowly walking up to me. His height against mine is making me feel a knot in my stomach tighten. "I know how to do it right. Just for you." The wetness he causes to ooze from my folds dampens the fabric of my panties, making my sensitive nub grow needy. "Sam, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to——" He cuts me off with a swift grip on my neck, making me look up at him he then says, "Shhh..be a good girl and listen very carefully to my next set of rules." I'm so taken aback by his sudden change—the feeling of heat rippling down my body into my stomach and out of my pulsing clit. I give him a nod before deciding to ask, "What about Dean?" He smirks and shakes his head, still gripping my neck. "Don't worry about him. He's not our current concern."

He reassures, now kissing the nape of my neck, his grip is stronger now. "But he's just two doors away." I breathlessly whisper, and he gnarls along my ear. "I said. Don't. Worry. About. Him." He remarks, his voice fully hungry for lust. "Go into my bedroom, and there you'll find a pair of cuffs in my drawer. Set them close by, then slowly undress yourself..as slow as you possibly can.. deprive me." He whispers into my ear, placing soft kisses on the back of my ear, still gripping my neck—not too hard but not too gentle. "You will then sit in a W position and cuff those pretty little hands behind your back. I'll give you all ten minutes to yourself to get yourself cute and pretty. Need more time?" He asks at the end, but I just shake my head. "Go." I feel him spank my ass, causing me to have a pep in my step as he removes his grasp from my neck. I start to walk over to his room and do as he says. I never once dared to go through his stuff, but the minute I open his drawer, I see several extra-large golden packets. I push past them, pick up the black fuzzy cuffs, and blush at how they compliment the lace set I currently have on. I continue to climb on the bed, stripping my clothes one by one. I can hear his anticipation from all the way over here, causing my cheeks to bruise in blush. I sit in a W position and cuff myself with my arms behind my back. I give myself a moment to adjust as the lace on my panties rubs my clit I hitch my breath, trying not to lean on it, but it's like this was intentional. Sam's heavy footsteps approach the door, and without warning, he opens the door. "That's my good girl." I feel him grab my chin to look up at him, softly brushing my tongue with his thumb. "You're so gorgeous." I feel my body shrivel in lust. He then pinches my buds through my bra and says, "Look at me." I look down at him, feeling my cunt get soaked by the second. He sucks on one bud, twirling the other with his free hand. I moan out loud, feeling pulses down my wet clit. "S-sam!" I cry out, and he covers my mouth. "Shhh..shhh..princess." He shushes me and sinks his hands into my panties. He grunts as he feels my slick pussy, and his middle and ring fingers rub my quivering nub.

"Fuck!" I muffle out; that shit-eating grin he has almost ruins me. "Awww, how cute! The way your body purrs for me, sweetheart, it's beautiful." I feel him uncuff me; subsequently, he hums into my ear, slowly lowering me on my back. Sam's tongue slithers from my ear to my neck all the way down to my pussy, wrapping his lips around my quaking nub and sucking it slightly, causing a loud moan. "Oh my god," he groans. I feel his fingers seep deep into me, making me arch my back with the continuous curls he makes and his continuous sucking on my vibrating nub. "You're so fucking tight, sweetheart." His words make my walls clamp around his fingers tighter and tighter. He moves up to his full height and points in front of him, and I immediately go to the edge of the bed where he is pointing. "What a good girl, already knowing her place." Sam pets the top of my head, causing a small blush to appear on my cheeks. I see him gesture to his belt, and I nod now undoing while on my knees. He leans over and gives my ass a good spanking, leaving a nice cherry-tinted blush on my ass. Once I unfinished his belt, Sam pulled my hands behind my back and cuffed them, depriving me of being able to stroke his semi-hard cock. He pulls it out and opens my mouth with his thumb. "I just want to take it all in. Please, Sam." I beg; I seem pathetic. "Hush and wait. The more you beg, the less dick you'll get. Understood?" I nod, but he yanks my neck, gripping it. "Use your words." "Understood, sir." Sam growls at the nickname. "Atta girl." He continues to tap his curved tip on my tongue, holding my head as if I were just a toy. He grunts, closing his eyes, making such a hot O face now getting rough with it, and fully inserting his curved length into my mouth. I gag, but take it all up to his base, and Sam holds it there for a few seconds before pulling it out. "Such a trained little girl. Who taught my little girl how to take cock like this?" He smacks my cheek, demanding answers. Before I could give an answer, he set a command. "Do me a favour; breathe in." I do as such, and he immediately shoves his cock into my throat, depriving me of oxygen and making my spit dribble between my still very perky tits. Sam holds my head, pushing his hard and curved dick pass my breaking point. It hurts, but fuck, I love it. He finally pulls away, and I spit out his precum, my mascara now sweating off. "That's exactly how Daddy loves seeing his little princess. A fucking hot mess. You're so small. That throat is so tiny." He continues these motions, but now grips my throat until he reaches his high. He stops just then before he nuts and decides to sit me on his face, uncuffing me to stroke his girth. "Hands are so small they can barely wrap around my dick. God, I love you." He sounds breathless. Sam laps my cunt as I now stroke his dick whilst shamelessly riding his face to my end, I'm barely able to do much due to my trembling. I feel the knot in my stomach get loose, and he wraps his forearm around my stomach, pinning me down on his face. Swirling my clit with the glory of a tongue. Sam finishes, but I don't pay much mind as I start to feel my stomach come undone. " I came down from my high after a while; everything sounded muffled, and I saw blur, but I turned to the left and saw Sam cuddling me, brushing my hair while I rested on his chest. "There she is." He smiles. "Did I wear you out too much, little one?" "A bit." I give a cockdrunk smile, and he kisses my forehead. "So, what does this make us?" I ask nervously. "What do you want this to be, sweetheart?" He continues to kiss my face, slowly creeping down to my collarbone. "I want to be more than friends." "Then it's settled, princess." Sam blushed and petted me, settling me to sleep.

A/N: didnt proofread this.. sooooo enjoy <3

[sharkboywrites]

could you make one by raihan x adoptive younger brother teen male Reader That he is a fire-type and rock-type trainer and that his partner Pokémon is a ponyta kanto Please …⁠ᘛ⁠⁐̤⁠ᕐ⁠ᐷ

Raihan With An Adoptive Younger Brother

A/N: I'm surprised I'm actually getting requests lol. I'm writing this half sleep deprived because I just saw spiderverse and it's currently taking over my brain

Male teen reader, platonic

Be prepared for many, many selfies. Like he doesn't go a half an hour without taking a picture for his fans

He thinks your ponyta is so cool considering they look different in the Galar region than Kanto

Unicorn or flame haired horse, take your pick on which one's cooler, but we definitely know which one Raihan is choosing

He constantly wants to battle, fun sibling battle after all

He records them and posts them on all of his socials because look how cool his little brother is

if you loose to him he'll joke about it but comfort you if you're genuinely upset

If he looses he'll be really pouty about it and then it's your turn to tease him

He'll make ambiguous sad posts on his story because he's that dramatic

Do you exercise? No? Too bad because now he's dragging you no his morning jogs

Need to exercise to be a good trainer according to him (don't look that up)

Can he ride ponyta? Pretty please? He's gonna do it anyway even if you say no, sorry

He'll learn the hard way that trying to ride a horse with fire for a main isn't the best idea

Sad posting to his story again because he burnt his hand

Because of his status as one of the highest ranked gym leaders, you grow pretty popular too

Now literally everyone wants to see and touch the fire horse

You'll also probably have to deal with fans and paparazzi trying to talk to you/get photos

If you're ok with it he'll be more lenient, but if it clearly makes you uncomfortable he'll shoo them away or take you somewhere else

His little brother needs to train so he can finally beat him in a Pokémon battle after all! (he's actually the one who lost and is pretending that it didn't happen)

The two of you probably have the joking-sibling fights all the time

Back and forth fake insults that leave the both of you dying of laughter

While he can drive you absolutely crazy sometimes, he's your brother and that's what brothers do

Currently trying to work on more requests, just a little busy <3, ty for reading and have a nice day

[mothgodofchaos]

Would it be wrong to ask for a pt2 to the vampire actor thing? Cause he's incredibly hot

Refusal

Took me a bit to figure out what I wanted for this, but I think I'm happy with this idea.

Part One

Vampire!Actor x GN!Reader, TW: slight tantrum Words: 793

You could not sleep all night, pacing around your room as you wait for anything positive to happen. It’s a bit ironic seeing the windows covered in iron grates, considering that they’re used usually to contain vampires themselves, although it does make you wonder if you’re the only person to be held in this room. The wardrobe is stocked with old fashioned clothing of many styles, and part of you feels a bit like a dress-up doll. Your body tries to collapse from exhaustion once morning comes, but you’re determined to stay awake and glare down your captor at breakfast.

There’s a quiet knock at the door, and the butler you learned to address as “Benjamin” opens the door slowly.

“Good morning, breakfast is prepared. Did you sleep?”

“No.”

“I don’t believe the master of the castle will be pleased to hear that, but I’d rather you hear that from him than interfere with your interpersonal affairs. I am simply here for a job. Well, up we pop then, your presence has been requested.” 

“I’m not going.”

“...I will relay the news.”

He disappears behind the door and you resume your sulking, sitting up on the floor. You hear distant yelling, followed by running up the stairs. The handle rattles as he struggles to open it, eventually busting it open and looking completely disappointed in you.

“And who are you to deny a formal request to be joined at breakfast? First you break into my house, then you don’t sleep, and now you refuse my food! I am trying to be nice! I could drain you right now and no one will ever find your body!”

Mark just looks at you expectantly, waiting for an answer. The directness of his statement kind of jarred you, not making you realize how much mercy you may actually be experiencing right now.

“I will… be right down…”

“Thank you! Apparently it’s just far too much to ask your home invaders to be a decent house guest. Motherfucking shit, you fucking egg.”

He storms back out of the room, robe flaring dramatically behind him. Benjamin peers his head in, looking at you a bit sheepishly. 

“Apologies, but my loyalties are to the master first, and there was no way that the day were to continue without his… outburst.”

“Do you actually enjoy working for him? Living up here?”

“To be honest, it’s better than the life I led before approaching him with my services. There used to be more staff, but they’re all gone now.”

“Did he eat them!?”

“No, they simply retired due to their old age. I took the route of vampirical infusion, so age is less of a problem for me.”

He pulls up his lip to the side, revealing small fangs.

“Well, I shall leave you to it. I do suggest changing into something else, those will be far more comfortable in the long term. Leave your washing in the bin over there and it will be laundered for you.”

“Umm… thanks?”

He departs without another word, softly closing the door. You look in the wardrobe, finding some combination of clothes that fit your tastes. You don’t quite know how to get it all on properly, and your sleep deprivation is certainly not helping with your coordination. Once dressed, you exit to the downstairs banquet hall where Mark is waiting for you. He looks up from his scroll, and absolutely beams when he sees you.

“Oh do you like them? I haven’t touched those in ages. A bit too outdated for my current tastes by a century or two. But I’m so happy to see them be worn again!”

You open your mouth to speak that it was Benjamin’s idea, but a finger to Benjamin’s lips and a wink makes you reconsider.

“I haven’t really worn clothes like this before, so I’m not particularly sure I’m styling these correctly.”

“Oh nonsense! A bit of tweaking here and there can be done, but it seems like for the most part you have them on as their designs intended. Here, let me help.”

He rounds the table, straightening your shoulders and adjusting your clothes without a second thought. It’s rather strange feeling his hands on you, adjusting your clothes and really making you feel like a dress-up doll. When he finishes, he stands back and clasps his hands.

“Much better! Although we’ll have to do something about those eye bags… a matter for tomorrow. Eat up, Benjamin’s cooking is rather worth it, one of many reasons I quickly agreed to turning him when he requested it.

“You’re too kind, sir.”

“Nonsense! Now everyone, eat!”

He’s a bit bossy, but honestly, you’ve been hosted by worse people. You just hope it doesn’t go downhill from here.

[hikennosabo]

#tristampparty day 10, episode 10: humanity

oh we're REALLY in it now. @tristampparty let's goooooo

wonder who these journalists are, who the sources are... oh, and the radio dj is masaya onosaka, as always!

AHHHH SEE IT WAS JULY IN THE FLASHBACK LAST EPISODE!! IT'S THE SAME CRACKED EGG SHAPE!!! IT'S JULY I'M NOT STUPID!!!! I'M NOT STUPID!!!! IT WAS JUST MY 3AM SLEEP DEPRIVED BRAIN!!!!

....

"whose side are you on?" count: 4

so not only do conrad and luida know each other, conrad knows exactly what luida is up to... he immediately knows who meryl is talking about even though she didn't say her name. have they been in contact at all over the past 150 years, i wonder?

vash's sneeze alerting the police is so funny. why is he so sneezy.

vash letting himself get shot... oof. ough. ouch. agh. (<- me taking poison damage)

the dramatic chord at the title drop... very foreboding. i like it.

...

my japanese isn't good enough so i can't tell for sure if wolfwood actually says "deer" (it doesn't sound like it, but the kansai dialect could be throwing me off) or this was just the translator using a metaphor without thinking about the implications. how does he know what a deer is. (he doesn't say "deer" in the dub, ftr)

conrad's exposition dump about his motivations is... a lot... he thinks he's doing good, working towards a better future, but meryl and roberto rightfully call bs lmao.

it's just... okay, we don't know exactly what happened with him and tesla. we only have the photo with the two of them, and the flashback to her discovery by the twins, but... it seems like this adaptation of conrad was combined with the other scientists on ship five. so now instead of conrad being the only ally to rem against the other scientists' experiments on tesla, he became the person who did the experiments in the first place. and that's just so... i don't know. to atone for tesla, he's... doing more unethical experiments?? he's doubling down??

knives is the king of hypocrisy and doubling down, too, and the king of the sunk cost fallacy... i'm not making excuses for knives, especially not for his current behavior, but he was very young when all this started. so it's easier to understand why and how he became the way he is. but conrad's a grown ass man.

he's trying to make humans more like plants, and the way he talks to meryl and roberto about knives it's clear that he views humans as an inferior species. and even when expressing regret over what happened with tesla, it's like he doesn't see Why what he did to tesla was Bad. if he truly understood that, he wouldn't be doing more unethical experiments in the first place. in his eyes, independent plants went from being below him (as something to experiment on) to being above him (as something humanity must aspire to) and it's equally dehumanizing (for lack of a better word). and now he views himself as above humanity; humanity is "imperfect" and in need of repair, and he's the one to... bring them salvation or whatever.

also i wonder if the kids in jars are gonna come back in the future as actual characters...

a plant-human hybrid with homophobia in her eyes...

i've said this before. i'll say it again. elendira ii is nothing like elendira i. she is a completely different character to me. it's not just her physical appearance, it's her personality, her emotions... wherever elendira i is i hope she's lounging with a margarita as her little sister/clone wreaks havoc or whatever.

i do think it's fun to see her shooting a bunch of nails though. i'll give her that.

i just don't understand her at all... she gets upset about being perceived as a child and plays a childish act to manipulate her opponents but also does genuinely act like a child sometimes? what is orange planning. why. giving her plant powers to explain her endless supply of nail-ammo is one thing but they added so much on top it's taking her in a really weird direction. give me trimax elendira back.

aaaand roberto's dead. o7 still not a character i'm super attached to but i appreciate his observation skills and his jokes.

"back then." in japanese he says "that time." i think he's talking about the flashback from last episode. maybe it's the very same plant he watched die in front of him.

oh the emotional manipulation... but i think knives is hitting some truth about vash, namely that he is driven primarily by his guilt (aaaand knives is just making that guilt worse). and it's something vash is afraid of acknowledging.

sinners with the capital S again!!!

the impression i get from knives and conrad's working relationship is that... conrad is helping knives with the plant dimensional stuff, and in exchange knives just kind of lets conrad do what he wants...? like i don't see why knives would care about conrad's "humanity enhancing" experiments - humans are lesser than himself, no matter what. even if they're ostensibly for the sake of lessening the burden on plants... just killing humanity would have the same effect and would be way faster. and his current plan is just ignoring humanity and gathering the plants not caring about how it affects them... because he doesn't care!

i dunno i've just seen people talk about EoM and their experiments and everything as if it's directly knives's fault, but i don't think he's dictating any of this so much as just... letting it happen. outside of anything that directly advances his higher-dimension-connection plan, i don't think he would care enough about whatever else they're doing. in the manga too, iirc, the cults that formed around knives weren't something that he made, it was more like they were formed around him regardless of his own input. ofc enabling it all is still BAD but all of this is more on conrad's shoulders than anyone else's imo.

this shot kinda fucks... very commanding. i like it.

this ended up being an unintentional observation, but we still haven't really seen a full view of knives's face in the present day. we see it in flashbacks, but every time knives has been on screen in the present his face has been partially concealed...

hey wait a second why is wolfwood back to being just "nicholas d wolfwood" in the credits

is it because his contract is finished?? man can they NOT keep dealing me psychic damage in the fucking CREDITS

can't believe we're almost to the end.... aaaaghghh...

[linkemon]

Life doesn't discriminate (Ash Lynx x Reader)

Friendly reminder that English is not my first language. You can check my Masterlists both in English and Polish here. Consider supporting me on Ko-fi. You can also check out my commissions if you’re interested.

Other oneshots can be found here.

"ɪᴛ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴʟʏ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ɪɴ ᴍʏ ʟɪꜰᴇ ɪ ᴀᴄᴛᴜᴀʟʟʏ ʀᴇɢʀᴇᴛᴛᴇᴅ ꜱᴏᴍᴇᴛʜɪɴɢ. ɪ ʀᴇɢʀᴇᴛᴛᴇᴅ ɪᴛ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴜꜱᴇ ᴜᴘ ᴜɴᴛɪʟ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴘᴏɪɴᴛ [ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ] ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪ ᴀʟᴡᴀʏꜱ ᴋᴇᴇᴘ ᴍʏ ᴡᴏʀᴅ." ɴᴏᴛᴇꜱ: ᴀᴅᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴᴀʟ ɪɴꜰᴏʀᴍᴀᴛɪᴏɴ: 1. ᴏɴᴇꜱʜᴏᴛ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴀɪɴꜱ ꜱᴘᴏɪʟᴇʀꜱ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ᴇᴘɪꜱᴏᴅᴇ 2.

"Life doesn't discriminate Between the sinners and the saints It takes and it takes and it takes" Wait for it, Hamilton musical

People at the hospital definitely have too much time to think. I should probably call you now.

I remember this day half a year ago. It was so hot that everyone on the streets of New York was practically melting. In fact, come to think of it, that was one of the main reasons I didn't move that day even though damn Dino called me. Mafia bosses don't like to be kept waiting but that's me. Anyway, as it turned out, it was good that I stayed.

— Have you ignored him again?! — Skipper shouted as he stepped through the doorway and then threw himself onto my bed with the force of a tornado.

He handed me a new newspaper. We're getting famous.

— This old man won't tell me what to do — I muttered. — Something new?

— You could say that. I think you should talk to [Reader].

— If she wants something, she can come to me. — I got up and went to the window.

— The problem is that she doesn't want to talk. I came to her place to watch the series...

— You know very well that I don't care — I interrupted.

I knew exactly what it smelled like. [Reader] had a ritual with Skip where they got together every week to watch a hopelessly typical sitcom. They invited me once and, to my delight, it was the first and the last. Apparently I'm too surly, I spoil their fun and ask too many questions. Since then, I've avoided Friday nights at the apartment, which isn't that hard. At least I don't have to listen to all the shouting from the floor above me.

— You don't understand — he insisted. — I came but she didn't let me in. She said she was tired and we should catch up in a week.

— And what's so strange about it? — I jumped on the windowsill.

— She never did that, even when she was tired. Plus, her eyes were swollen. She was 100% crying but when I asked her she started laughing. She won't tell me anything. You need to talk to her.

— You're being dramatic. She probably watched some romantic comedy again and is now roaring. And even if she didn't, why would she tell me if she ignored you?

— Because I'm not you. She really likes you, Ash. I don't know if you don't see it or don't want to see it. Anyway, it doesn't matter, just do it for me and talk to her, okay? — He got ready to leave.

— Fine. — I sighed. — I don't promise when but I'll try.

I was worried about her, although at that moment I probably didn't want to admit it to myself, much less to Skipper. Besides, I had the impression that something more was beginning to emerge between us and I had no intention of developing it. Anyone who found out would use it against me. I was afraid of what this might entail in the current situation.

The Machiavellian plan was precisely that I went upstairs at an ungodly hour, hoping that [Reader] wouldn't open and I'd get it over with. It sounded good, after all, she wasn't likely to be up at two in the morning. It's a pity that all my life plans (except those related to the gang) suck.

— Why the hell are you calling at this hour? — Her voice was hoarse.

She was still wearing the clothes she wore to work. Her hair, always tied in a ponytail, was messy. There was also a bad look on his face. She was rubbing her eyes as if she was sleep-deprived but it seemed like she was trying to hide the fact that she was crying.

— I came to talk — I said bluntly.

— Ash, maybe you'd kindly wait until tomorrow? — She started to close the door but I managed to wedge my foot between it, wedging it shut.

— No I can't. Let's get to the point. What's actually happening to you?

I entered the apartment practically by force and headed to the living room. As I expected, I saw a pile of tissues on the floor and a crumpled blanket on the couch.

I reached for the unfinished ice cream. Strawberry — tasted pretty good.

— Skipper told you? I knew that once I gave up on this marathon, he would go to you. — She sighed. — Nothing happened, I just had a hard day at work. Dealing with customers is not that easy.

— Great. Now I want the real version.

She looked at me reproachfully. Still, I felt I had the right to know what was going on. Since I'm already sharing with her this part of my life that I never confess to anyone else, she should be honest with me too. After she runs away from her father and lives on her own, she no longer recognizes practically anyone from the family apart from her cousin. Let alone confide in anyone.

— Someone stepped on your toes? Some girl went back to that guy who was hitting on you or something? Your cousin called you again and wanted to apologize for your father?

The only way to get an answer.

— They fired me! All right?

The anger was so visible in her eyes. Only for it to be replaced in a moment by something like regret.

— There was this guy coming last week. He started with inappropriate comments. Boss told me to serve him because it was his friend and he got angry when coworker came over instead of me. There has been nothing more until today. — Her voice cracked. — But when he tried... — A short breath. — I just instinctively punched him in the guts, just like you taught me.

Bitter laughter from her lips. I've never heard it before.

— I can lend you the money, you know that.

— And you know very well what I think about it. We're not going back to the topic.

It was grayish area. [Reader] shunned the money the first time I offered it to her. She wanted nothing to do with the gang in any form. I should have been included there too but apparently I was an exception.

— What will you do with it now?

— I'll try to find something. — She shrugged. — I have no other choice. I'm just begging you, Ash, don't get involved in this. Promise me.

I nodded.

What else could I do when she looked at me with those big doe eyes?

She snuggled into me as if I was the last person on Earth. Maybe that's exactly what it was like back then in her little world.

I kept my word and didn't interfere — Shorter arranged everything. I don't consider it cheating. Besides, my moral code has long since become distorted.

We got the job done quietly and naturally. Although "natural" in my sense of the word looked a little different than one might imagine. I poured in where needed, banknotes flowed, some blood flowed, and [Reader] got a normal job interview, a sufficient salary and flexible hours just right for the university. I also had a guarantee that no one would link it to me. The safer for all of us.

When she announced that she would leave us, I acted surprised.

She looked suspiciously in my direction but before I left I reminded her that I had promised.

Even before she left for university, I knew it wouldn't work out. I expected to end what hadn't actually started yet but I didn't anticipate how much it would hurt.

It was killing me to know that she would have a life in which I would no longer play the first fiddle.

I knew she deserved someone better.

Not a person who will never quite put himself back together.

Not a man whore trying to get out of this whole lousy world.

Not someone who has been taking the lives of others for over a dozen years.

Then, on the day she left, I promised her something one last time.

— You'll take care of Skipper, right?

— I won't babysit him.

— Pffft… — She let out something like a laugh mixed with a snort. — You know he takes better care of himself than you do. — Just keep an eye on him.

— Fine.

— I'll see you in six months — she said, walking towards the car.

Now I'm holding this phone and dialing her number. Someone has to do it. No police officer would be suitable for this. I know I'm the only one who should call. But that doesn't make it any easier.

It was the only time in my life when I actually regretted something.

I regretted it because [Reader] up until that point [Reader] thought I always keep my word.

I regretted it because up to that point it seemed to me that [Reader]...

—  Please leave a message after the tone...

[littleracha]

im currently traveling a total of 19 hours by car, only stopping for the night 😵‍💫

im so sleep deprived and achey (sickly person here) and can only think about binsung taking care of reader in this same situation :( im so soft and sad. could you write something similar please?

Oh, little duckie! That must have felt awful. I am currently on vacation and doing the same thing, so I understand completely.

Please rest up hun! Lots of water and remember to eat.

Sweet Baby Otter

Cg!Changbin & CG!Han x Little!Reader

The boys were finally on vacation! They worked hard to debut 5-star and worked long nights away from home to give their everything to the fans. However Changbin and Han both missed their biggest fan, their little one back at home.

You told them when starting this relationship that you understood they were idols. It wasn't news to you that there were going to be many days and nights where you were by yourself. You ensured them that you would be okay, that you would be brave without Dada and Mama. However, being brave can be so taxing, your little and big hearts missed them every night. Regressing was getting to be difficult because it just made you feel worse. You never told them though, they could never know.

You were fast asleep in your bedroom. In a chokehold was the otter stuffed animal they gifted you, his name was Otto. Soon enough you felt Otto being removed from your arms and you being gently lifted into the air. You woke up with fright and yelled for your Mama and Dada.

"Shhhh baby, oh sweetheart we are right here" Jisung tried to calm you down before a panic attack broke out. "Mama is right here sweetie, and Dada is holding you, look." You looked down to see Binnie's smiling face. "Hello little one, Dada missed you so much!" He said as he began to smother your face in kisses, making you squeal in laughter.

"Dada Stop, icky!" You cried out but both your caregivers knew you were loving it.

"Yeah Bin, stop torturing our little one. If she dies now she won't get to go on our trip" Han said with a twinkle in his eyes. He loved how you instantly perked up at the word trip.

"Where Mama? Where we go?"

"Well Mama and Dada have the week off so we were going to go camping at the beach!" Han said as he squished your puffy morning face. Changbin could barely hold you as you wiggled with joy and excitement.

"Otto go to?" you asked with eyes as big as the moon.

"Yes little otter, Otto gets to go!" Changbin answered.

The first half of the car ride was fine. You were full of excitement and the boys were loving it but after lunch and a mandatory nap, you were beginning to feel bad again. The trip to the beach was much longer than you expected. Your legs were going numb, being in the back was making you sick, the a/c was both too much and not enough and to make it all worse you really had to potty.

Binnie noticed you were awake in his mirror and greeted you. "Good afternoon sleepy sunshine, how was your nap baby?"

"It was fine" you answered in a grumbly tone, which caught the attention of Han now as well. He and Binnie shared a worrying glance before he spoke.

"Just fine sweetie? Do you want Mama to put you back down for another one? Maybe you just didn't get enough sleep." Your heart broke at how concerned he was but you couldn't help but feel irritated.

"No, I slept enough Han, it's nothing" Han?!?! Not Mama? Not Sungie? Not even Hannie? But Han? Now they were both worried.

"Baby what's wrong, you can tell us." Binnie tried to reason with you but you couldn't tell them, you wouldn't tell them. They would blame themselves and you didn't want that.

"Guys I'm fine okay? Just a little car sick that's all" the collected coo they let out bothered you.

"Honey, we could pull over"

"No please keep going"

"but if you are sic--" "I SAID I'M FINE OKAY!"

With that Changbin pulled the car over. You instantly went from annoyed to scared. You never made them mad before. Maybe a small time out here or there but never mad. What was he going to do? Tears began to well up in your eyes.

Your door was opened and stood outside were your caregivers. Changbin reached in and unlatched your seatbelt, pulling you into his arms. He didn't say anything as he rocked you. A warm hand snaked up your back and rubbed smooth circles. Han spoke softly.

"Baby we don't yell, even if we are feeling fussy" He placed a small kiss on your temple. "Tell Mama and Dada what is making our perfect angel feel yucky."

"Just sick Mama" The whole thing made you slip again. You slipped so easily with them. You missed them.

"Sweetheart we know it's more than that. Did I make you upset, did Dada upset you, little one" It was Binnie's turn to speak and you heard the hurt in his voice.

"NO DADA!" You were quick to correct him which earned you a calming shush from both of them. "I no feels good"

"Where baby? Here?" Mama pointed to your belly.

"And here Mama" You pointed to your head.

"Is our baby not feeling good in their own head?" all you could do was nod. "Oh my sweet baby, what is your mean head saying to you?"

"It says it misses yous and that it no regress because can't do it byself. It also no likes being sick and feels like pukey. And and and it tired and wants to sleep but road bad. It wants to be at beach with Dada and Mama and not alones in back of car." You finally let it all out with a sob into Changbin's shirt. You felt alone, even with them right now you felt all alone.

"Baby oh honey, sweetie look at Dada please." You looked up at Changbin with wet eyes, he wiped them as he spoke. "Our sweet little baby, Dada, and Mama missed you so much. We missed holding our baby and playing with you. Did you think we were ignoring you by putting you down for a nap? We would never baby. We knew the trip was long and that you were probably going to not feel well so we wanted you to sleep through it. We are so sorry little one." Once he was done speaking Han reappeared, you hadn't even noticed he left.

"Here you go sweetie" He handed you Otto and a paci. When you smiled back up with a soft thank you, Han's heart melted. "Mama is going to sit in the back with you okay? We can cuddle and play games the rest of the way! How does that sound little otter?"

"I like that Mama"

With that you all loaded back into the car, dry from tears and ready to hit the road. Soon rocks and trees turned into ocean. Your game of 'I Spy' ended as you got excited. You pointed out all the pretty things to Mama and Dada while they told you what they were. Changbin pulled up the campsite and checked you all in. Once set up, Mama and Dada walked you down to the water to watch the sunset. You all sat there for a while after and enjoyed the company. Soft snores sounded from between the two of them. Your sleeping state was so precious, you looked so warn out yet so peaceful. Han picked up your now sand-covered paci and cooed.

"Our sweet baby otter"

[goldenamaranthe-blog]

Pregnant Bees: Class pt. 1

Blake and Yang are attending a baby birthing class. Since their first child was adopted, they felt that it would be good for both of them to attend. Class is currently on a break.

Weiss: Honestly, I expected more from this class.

Velvet: Same. I feel like we went over a lot of this during health class back in Beacon.

Nora: I'm just glad the teacher gave us a break. I was starting to go crazy!

Pyrrha: Well, it is nice to have the refresher, even if I could have gone my whole life seeing how big of a hole these two are going to leave...

WVBN: (shudder)

Blake: Wait... Where did-?

A loud cheer sounds from outside and they all go check. Yang, Ruby, Jaune, Sun, and Ren are competing in a "Dad" Relay.

Weiss: What's going on?

Coco: Oh, the other dads wanted to test their skills and see who was prepared to be the best dad. They have a bottle prep and chug, pack-n-play assembly where they have to wear beer goggles to simulate being sleep deprived, a baby carrier wrap to see who can wrap a doll to their chest the most securely, and finally a stroller dash to the finish line.

Velvet: Why aren't you participating, Cocobean?

Coco: And miss recording this for our kids to watch? Absolutely not! Sun is taking over for me.

Teacher: Participants ready?! Set! GO!

Alright! Audience participation! Vote to see who succeeds in the following obstacles of the dad relay. I will update every week with the results. Whoever wins the most events will win the Dad Relay! Please share the poll so we can get more votes! I don't want this to be a full sweep in the end.

[anniebear-92]

Afterlife

Part One - Moving Day

Summary: After a long search you finally land eyes on the perfect property for your roommates' and yourself to rent. It's perfect! Large rooms, enough space for all of you, Ghost of the previous owner's son... Perfect!

Warnings: Cursing, Mentions of Death/Dead people. Adult humor but nothing too in depth.

Taglist (let me know if you would like to be added): @browneyedgirl22 @lukerycyja-reblogs

Previous Part: Prologue

Scrolling through ads listing rentals you sighed heavily.

"Toshi why is it so hard to find a decent place to rent anymore?"

Your lavender hair, sleep deprived friend lifted his shoulders in a short shrug. "Finding a place isn't the hard thing. It's finding a good area worth the money."

He wrapped up his spare capture scarf into the gym bag he was packing, another breath of air leaving your body. "I'm so sick of this. Why can't your boyfriend help again? He's the one moving with us."

A single snort was your response as he zipped the bag closed. "Kaminari couldn't find himself out of a wet paper bag, you really want to put him in charge of finding a rental?"

You eyed him while grumbling a No, letting the phone fall against your chest. "Yet you're dating the guy, going on a three month mission with him to boot."

He shrugged once more with a sly smirk on his lips. "You know, you should find someone too. Maybe you'd be less bitchy."

Narrowing your eyes at him to indicate he was on thin ice he showed both palms in surrender. "Sorry, sorry."

Picking the phone back up, you continued your search once again. A brand new listing caught your attention, a pretty decently sized house with a similar monthly price. There would be plenty of room for Hitoshi, his boyfriend Denki Kaminari, and yourself.

"Hey, look at this one Toshi."

You sat up shoving the phone in front of his face before his long fingers curled around the device and brought it to a more acceptable level. "House looks a bit familiar for some reason, Three bedroom, two bath... wow there's actually a nice sized yard." He scrolled a bit more to list the 'About the landlord' section that gave a brief history.

"Landlord information says it's an older couple renting out their family home." He tossed the device back into your lap before moving his gym bag from the table. "Where is it?"

You read off the address and he scratched the back of his neck in though. "That's a great neighborhood, why don't you give them a call and we can try to look today before I leave?" You nodded and clicked the link to call the landlord. The line beeped only a few short times before a click was heard.

"Mitsuki Bakugo speaking."

You smiled, glad a person actually answered after all the scams and wrong numbers listed on the site. "Hello! I was interested in viewing your home for rent?"

The conversation was brief, she indicated her schedule was open for the afternoon and you set up a time to view the home. She took down your name and contact information right before the call disconnected. Hitoshi had put away his bag with the other moving boxes littering the living space of your current apartment.

"You planning to invite Kami to see the place with us?" He shook his head in response, "No, he needs to pack and if him calling me or texting me every five minutes isn't enough of a distraction this would be. I think he also has a joint patrol with Red Riot during that time so he'll lay his head wherever I tell him to."

You let out a brief huff of air in amusement, pulling the sleeves of your shirt over your chilled hands. "It's two thirty now and we have two hours before the viewing, should we grab some food before we meet her?"

Hitoshi nodded while rubbing his eye, a short yawn stretching out his jaw. "Or do you need a nap first?" You teased, poking his side to watch him jump.

"Fuck off, I've been doing a lot of late night mission for Eraserhead. Ever since I took over as his lead sidekick he's been working me harder and harder."

"Kinky."

The glare he shot you could bore holes in your head if he wanted to, raising your hands in surrender before gathering up the essentials to leave.

The car ride to the restaurant you frequented was a short one, only being a few blocks from your current building. The hostess flashed a bright smile and welcomed us in by name before leading us to the usual table in the rear away from... people.

You chatted a bit here and there while waiting on your order, reminiscing back on how your friendship started.

After graduating UA you had applied to Eraserhead's agency. He had been your teacher for the first two years of your schooling, however before your third term began he had retired officially to focus on his agency. His retiring speech had cited the death of one of his previous students as one of the main reasons he just couldn't bring himself to teach any longer, however had decided to omit the name.

He had accepted your application and placed you underneath his lead side kick Hitoshi Shinso, who happened to be three years your senior. Learning quickly he shared similar outlooks on life and people, a bond was made. He was considerate at your hesitancy when it came to physical touch and had even told off a few who were too pushy at one of the few hero galas you chose to attend.

After only a year of being on the hero scene had been enough for you. The toll your body took from the backlashes of your quirk placed you in the hospital enough times that calling it quits was the only option. On top of retiring from hero life, the same month your parents had been hit by a drunk driver and unfortunately did not survive.

Histoshi had offered his spare bedroom to you when you had no where to go and had been living there ever since. The lease was now up as of a few months ago, hence your search for a new place.

"Day dreaming again?" His voice cut through your memories like a knife, yanking you back to present times. Your chopsticks snatched a dumpling as you shrugged. "Just, reminiscing how we got here."

"We drove here."

Eyes rolling so hard they threatened to fall out of your head you chewed a bit overly aggressive as your eyes narrowed.

"I was talking about how crazy it is we've been friends for so long."

He nodded while slurping up a noodle. "Yeah, dealing with you has been a trip. Heroing and living together, now we're possibly moving into a house together."

"You make it sound like we're the couple. I think Kami will be a bit upset that you're after me."

You winked as his nose crinkled in disgust, "You are a beautiful, intelligent woman and I love you the most, but please understand when I say... Ew."

Dropping some cash on the table for your waitress, you both made your way back to Toshi's car in the parking lot. It was getting close to the meeting time and the GPS indicated you were at least thirty minutes away from the house, cutting it close.

Taking the passenger seat you placed the phone on your thigh with the directions open so you could lead him as the designated navigator. You placed your chin in the palm of your hand as you leaned towards the window, watching the scenery whip by of busy walkways and large business buildings. The view took a turn as you left the urban life to a quiet neighborhood filled with trees, green grass and children running around parks.

"Certainly pretty here." You mumbled looking around. Catching the gaze of a long man peeking out from behind a tree, you gulped and averted your eyes rather quickly. After a moment peering back to see the man had seemingly vanished as if to thin air. Releasing the breath you held and leaning back against the window.

"Turn left at the next stop sign." The electronic voice sounded from your phone's speaker and the driver followed just before the voice sounded again.

"Arrived."

The car pulled up to the curb, your attention being drawn to the building beside you. A brick wall surrounded the home, a small gate was the only opening to a walkway leading up to the home you had only seen in pictures. The brick home sat higher in the sky than you thought, realizing it was quite the large home for what they were asking monthly.

"Are you sure we need all this space? This looks a hell of a lot bigger than the photos. Think this is another scam? The rent isn't mathing here."

Turning your attention to your companion he shrugged and started to exit the car. With a deep inhale your fingers popped the door handle and swung the door out to follow. A door opened on the car before Hitoshi's, a long leg sliding out of the car first with a long heel attached. A taller blonde woman stepped out of the car, her head swiveling before landing on the both of you.

The woman was gorgeous, unruly blonde hair cascaded down to her sharp shoulders, sunglasses sitting on her perfectly shaped face. Her heels that matched her fashionable outfit clacked against the concrete as she stepped before you while sliding her sunglasses up to reveal piercing crimson eyes.

Holding out a perfectly manicured hand her smile lit up her face even more. "Hello there, I'm Mitsuki. We spoke on the phone?"

Your eyes flashed to Histoshi's for the briefest of moments before he gave a barely noticeable nod that satiated your reluctance.

"I'm sorry uh..."

Hitoshi quickly slid in and placed his hand in Mitsuki's to shake firmly.

"Hello, I am Hitoshi Shinso and I apologize she is not one for touch. Quirk interference."

Mistuki's face dropped into shame as she shook Hitsoshi's "I am so sorry dear please forgive me."

You nodded with a small smile and introduced yourself with a small bow. She turned her attention to the home and opened the gate for you all to file into the yard.

"Please let me show you the house, it's quite cute if I say so myself!"

She began speaking a mile a minute, pointing out little things about the home here and there. We could tell from all the details she provided this had been her long time home. "We purchased this home back when I first married my husband. A few years here alone and then we had..."

Her voice trailed off as her hand pressed against the door frame to a bedroom, thumb trailing back and forth over the closest notch a few inches taller than herself.

"Anyway, let's continue." She listed off more facts about the home, monthly rent amount, when and how she expected it to be paid. She provided her contact information besides the number we already had should anything come up for repair or issues with the payment.

"Well, that's just about everything." She finally waived her hand at the end of the tour. The home itself was beautiful, bedrooms big enough that your friends would have their own space and we could even have a guest space should anyone need it. The kitchen was huge and had an island in the middle that you could totally see yourself drinking coffee or tea in the morning while tuning out the world.

"What do you two think? I think it's a wonderful home for a young couple such as yourself." You froze at her words, turning to the woman who had nothing but a genuine smile on her full lips. "Oh uh, Hitsoshi and I are just close friends. It would actually be his boyfriend, himself and I living here."

Her eyes widened with a gasp as she placed her hands together, "Oh dear I'm so sorry I assumed." She tapped the top of her head with her fist lightly, "Silly me."

I nodded indicating it was a non issue, "Would you mind, giving us just a few minutes to discuss?"

She smiled and nodded, disappearing upstairs into one of the darker rooms.

"What do you think?" You elbowed Hitoshi in the side, he startled a bit almost as if he had been asleep on his feet. "It's a nice house, great price and neighborhood is quiet compared to the city. I can see myself getting some real sleep here."

"You have zero standards besides where you can set your bed do you?" He shrugged as per his normal move once again, "You should be well aware of this by now."

After your short deliberation, you called out, "Mrs. Bakugo?"

Her head poked out of the room she had been in before making her way back down the stairs. "Oh sweetheart just Mitsuki. No need to be formal."

"We would like to take the house if you'd let us."

Her hands clasped together with a loud snap in the empty space. "I'm so glad! We've just been sitting on this house for so long deciding what to do with it and I can't wait to see how you decorate it!"

Required paperwork signed, deposit and first month's rent in hand, she dropped the keys into your open palm. She insisted to call her if there were any issues and as she gathered up the paperwork into a folder she hugged it to her chest and shook Hitoshi's hand once more while offering you a short nod of the head.

At the door she gave a short glance back and you swore you saw a flash of sadness cross her features before the door closed behind her with a snap. You tested the weight of the keys in your hand a moment before turning to your roommate.

"Well, should we start moving or wait for tomorrow?"

He titled his head for a moment in thought, "Better get started now or you'll be bitching to me that you had to move everything alone when Denki and I leave tomorrow."

A wide grin crossed your features. "Damn right."

It only took a few hours and a couple trips with vehicles to move everything from your old apartment to the new house. Hitoshi had called up Kaminari to let him know the new address, who in turn let him know that he had gotten someone to cover his patrol route so he would be able to come help move the heavier stuff.

Kaminari pulled up in a bright yellow sports car a few minutes later, the large pink decals on the front making it resemble the cartoon creature nickname his friends tended to use. His first reaction was to mention how the house looked quite familiar to him as well, before running off to "claim his room." Both he and his boyfriend then found themselves in argument over which room they would be sharing.

Hitoshi wanted the room on the far right as it was the darkest of them all, however Denki complained the room "Creeped him out" until finally with a huff his sleep deprived boyfriend gave up and accepted the room across the hall. You however were just fine with taking the dark room being quite the night owl.

Your blade easily slipped through the tape holding the box labeled 'kitchen' closed. Placing the pots and pans away in their new homes you decided to leave a few out for the dinner you planned to make soon.

The three of you sat on the floor with plate in lap, random lamps illuminating the space while you found yourself laughing to Kaminari's retelling of a capture gone wrong from the day before.

The both of them finished their food and thanked you for cooking. Due to their early departure scheduled for the next day they bid their good nights and you assured them you were fine with unpacking as much as you could later. Retreating to their room on the left side of the hall you were left alone in the sea of boxes that were yet to be unpacked.

You finished up washing your dish and placed it in the strainer before taking stock of the boxes still nearby that could be put away. A yawn broke through however since all three of you had stayed up as long as you could into the wee hours of the morning, catching up however you decided the boxes to could wait until the next day.

Grabbing a glass of water you made your way up the stairs to the door on the right side of the hall to your new bedroom. Stopping at the frame to turn on the light your eyes dragged up and down quickly in remembrance this was the door Mitsuki had paused at when speaking. Indented in the wood were several notches that lined from the floor to the ceiling periodically, stopping at the height just a bit above your own.

Height Notches? Did the Bakugo's have a child?

You raised your hand to touch the tallest mark with the tips of your fingers, whoever this measured was pretty gifted in height. With a hum of curiosity you finally flipped on the light and closed the door behind you. One of the first things that had been done were the beds since sleep was always Toshi's top priority, knowing no one wanted to sleep on the floor as well.

Taking a quick swig of water and placing the glass on the table beside your bed, you climb inside the covers and wiggled down until they enveloped you in a warm embrace. The warmth was short lived when a breath of cold air ran down the length of your spine, shivers racking your body as you shot upward to glance around with wide eyes.

Chewing on your bottom lip you looked around while praying it was your imagination. Knowing your quirk was hardly wrong however you sighed and laid down slowly while keeping watching for any sign of movements. After nothing showed itself for some time the relaxation seeped into your tired joints and you finally fell asleep with one final thought.

This house isn't haunted... is it?

The next few days flew by pretty quickly. You had said goodbye to Hitoshi and Kaminari the next morning as they left packed down with all their luggage. Box after box was emptied and the contents put away until only a few remained. They were clearly marked as either Toshi or Kami's stuff so you made the choice to shove the boxes into the guest room until they returned as not to dig through their stuff. They would be just fine there until the duo returned.

Your phone trilled from it's spot on the counter, the name "Inspector" flashing over the screen. Taking the call you were informed a cold case had crossed his desk and he could use some help tracking down the perpetrator with your "Special skills."

The skills he alluded to was your quirk Ghost. This gave you the basic abilities of an apparition, phasing through walls, items phasing through your body, invisibility... to communicate and interact with the dead.

Draw backs? No distinction between the living and the dead without specifically touching them first. Hence the innate dislike of physical contact or interaction in general. Since you never know wither the person you're speaking with is dead or alive you tend to... not.

This was the reason when you met Mitsuki for the first time you had looked to Hitsohi for quick confirmation that she was in fact a living breathing person that could be seen. Though you were sure no one was playing tricks it was always better to be safe than sorry.

Especially when the biggest drawback was learning what happens when you touch the dead for the first time. More times than not as soon as your fingers connected with any part of the person's body you would be thrown into their last few moments in life, forced to relive their death in a vision so real it was as if you lived it yourself. After a few accidental field trips, the fear of touching anyone slowly crept in. Though it did not happen every time for some reason, but it did happen more often than not.

The main reason you had decided to "hang the cape" of hero work as it were was the final drawback, the sickness. Overusing the quirk, interacting with the dead via touch, manipulation or speech would cause dreaded stomach aches that left you down for hours and sometimes days. Continued exposure led to vomiting, extreme dizziness from the switch between the planes of living and dead.

So at the ripe old age of 20 you decided enough was enough and retired officially from hero work. Though you still retained your license should you need it, freelance work helped pay the bills from time to time as a contractor with the police department for special cases. Paying surprisingly well when you were contracted for mostly simple things, Who killed you? Where did you bury millions? Settling disputes of wills by speaking with the dearly departed.

"No problem Inspector Tsukauchi, I'll be in shortly." Thumbing the end button you slipped the phone into your pocket when once again the shiver ran down your spine. Peering around you found no indication of any sprit even if you had been sensing the presence for days now.

Was it a residual from a spirit no longer on this plane? Did they recently cross over or abandon this haunt?

Retreating to your bedroom to fish the costume case from the back of the closet in order to change quickly and meet the inspector at the station. Now clad head to toe in the simple dark body forming material that allowed you to phase between worlds easily you were ready to greet this new case. You placed the mask around your eyes that concealed your identity for privacy means while grabbing the keys to your modest little car.

Hopefully this case will take your mind off the possible haunting of your new home.

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Well this is the first part of this multipart fic. I was going to make it longer but I feel like this was a lot thrown into the first part. Let me know if you guys don't mind the parts being longer? Next part to come in the next day or two :) Please let me know in the comments what you think so far.