#If I die I’d better be sent straight to hell than be put in a boring isekai setting

[tojiscrack]

IM BACKKKK

'yeah ykw, tumblr needs to come up with a feature that basically alerts us of when our asks are answered 😐 like why is that not a thing already?'

lowk it alr is but like it gets buried by my notifs 😭😭😭

'i wanna go to canada so bad ☹️ i heard that the british-accent privilege over there is a million times better than the british-accent privilege in america 🤧 i’d be favoured so nicely over there 🥴'

YOU HAVE A BRITISH ACCENT??? YOU'RE BRITISH???????? BRO GIVE ME MY JEWELS BACK!

but ur so right ab the britsh accent privilege thing tho. i was at a coffee shop and this one guy had a british accent and the entire staff was talkin ab it

'such a cutie patootie and does no wrong. i’ll defend my son till i die he’s older than me but idgaf.'

ACTUALLY???????? bro i started watching jjk when yuji was older than me and now im older than him... it makes me so emo

'i have a deep, deep hatred for that four-armed tarantula ‘cause of his random vendetta against my yuji 🌝'

BYE R U TALKING AB SUKUNA??? i was thinking ab this a second ago but yk how like sukuna is canonically yuji's uncle? YOU SHOULD IMPLIMENT THAT LMAOOOO... LIKE YUJI GETTING POSESSED BY HIS DEAD UNCLE OR SOMETHING HAHAHAHA

'omg trade dealllll! i do those with my friend so often but she does me dirty every time. i put her on an awesome sitcom, but she said she refuses to watch it until i watch saltburn.'

oh thats hell. that's so hell. i tried to watch saltburn and had to stop during the vampire scene....

'so i think m*les in the usa and m*les in the uk are different breeds, ‘cause when i tell them to leave me alone or give clipped, straight to the point, honest and dry responses, they go away 🌝'

no yeah here they love that kinda shit... it's how i got 2/3 of my exes i fear...

'whatever girlypop, i just know that from the way you speak, you’re gorgeous'

STOP ILY

'if you ever did go with him, it’d be those couples i see on the street and my first thought is ‘he makes me laugh’ ahh relationship.'

i'm ngl my justification for liking him whenever my friends asked was like 'no i dont find him physically attractive but he's rlly funny... and nice... and we talk a lot...' so...

'honestly, i’m being dramatic 😭 like the angst is bad and the ending MIGHT be bittersweet, but it won’t evoke tears.'

THAT IS STILL HEARTBREAKING. I NEED MERCUPINE TO HAVE A VERY EXTRA HAPPY ENDING...

'just think of malakai (i don’t think you participated on the kai hate train so i’m saying this with a grain of salt lmao)'

LMAOOOO i find malakai so fucking funny. he makes me giggle

'i’ve got the most plainest life ever. the most you’ll get that i can even strain to think of ‘cause that’s how little lore there is to me is that bad grades will put me in a coma 😔'

thats so real actually... except i'm a senior so my grades have been SHIT this semester... my 95 gpa is now barely a 91.... if i'm lucky...

'i was gonna jump a middle-aged man for being rude to my mum at home bargains?'

HELLO?? HOW DOES THIS JUST HAPPEN??

anyways life update! my friends r coming over for secret santa today and i requested literally nothing but instant noodles so i'm rlly hoping i get 25 bucks worth of instant noodles bc i rlly want them.

i got my person a little snoopy figurine THAT WAS 25 DOLLARS??? but it's so cute so i cant even be mad

HELLO AGAIN 😋❤️ (i love how we’re gossiping about ur love life and talking about random nonsense in between through my inbox and not dms LMAOOO)

THAT’S A FEATURE? omg that means everyone i’ve sent asks to is just ignoring me wtf 🤨

☝🏽😲 … 😐

never sending asks to entitled mfs ever again 🫨

‘YOU’RE BRITISH????’ — born and raised… unfortunately 😬 and i’ve literally never stepped off english soil 😟 bUT I’M NOT UNCULTURED I SWEAR 😭

‘i was at a coffee shop and this one guy had a british accent and the entire staff was talking about it’ — i’m literally gonna hijack a plane going to canada, i swear 😕

‘ACTUALLY????’ — omg not now, no it’s the same as you. like when i first started watching it, i was younger, and now i’m older, but i mean irl. like yuji’s birth year (alongside his friends) is around 2002-2003.

i was born a few years after that 🌝

‘it makes me so emo’ — i’m literally gonna go out into society as an emo one day just for the feels 😭

‘BYE ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT SUKUNA’ — WHAT OTHER ABNORMAL CREATURE IN JJK HAS FOUR ARMS? HE’S SO GREEDY, LIKE WTH DO YOU NEED TWO OF EVERYTHING FOR? 🤨👎🏽

‘i was thinking ab this a second ago but yk how like sukuna is canonically yuji's uncle? YOU SHOULD IMPLIMENT THAT LMAOOOO... LIKE YUJI GETTING POSESSED BY HIS DEAD UNCLE OR SOMETHING HAHAHAHA’ — oh i’ve got smth all right 😭 the second it came out in the manga that they were related, the cogs in my brain started moving so fast 🌝

‘i tried to watch saltburn and had to stop during the vampire scene’ — EW DON’T EVEN REMIND ME AGAIN 🤢 and ykw, you ended it at the perfect time bc it didn’t get any better the more the movie went 😭 i still can’t get this one scene out of my head and i’m not even gonna tell you what it is ‘cause you probably wouldn’t know it (seeing as you were wise enough to drop the movie before it came up).

‘i’m a senior so my grades have been SHIT this semester’ — senior in high school? girlypop, we’re in the same academic year group 😋 (seniors in high school are second year college students in the uk)

wait i’m not aware of how the us gpa system works. isn’t 91 still good???

‘HELLO?? HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN??’ — literally my exact reaction 💀 he kept saying my mum was touching him at the till, like this woman is married, why would she touch a homeless-looking-m*le like you? the standard he had of himself is way too high 😀

felt bad for his kid tho. he was silently watching me yell at his dad :/

‘anyways life update!’ — 😋

‘anyways life update! my friends r coming over for secret santa today and i requested literally nothing but instant noodles so i'm rlly hoping i get 25 bucks worth of instant noodles bc i rily want them’ — STOP I LOVE INSTANT NOODLES 😟 I LITERALLY BOUGHT TWO LARGE PACKS OF THE BULDAK HABANERO LIME RAMEN ONES RIGHT AFTER THE M*N INCIDENT 😭 lmk what you get for ur secret santa tho 😋

‘i got my person a little snoopy figurine THAT WAS 25 DOLLARS??? but it's so cute so i cant even be mad’ — no bc figurines shouldn’t be that expensive 😕 my catoru gojo plushie was like £15, and it’s not even that big so?? 😭

like i get it, it’s gojo, it should be worth a shit ton more, but i’m broke so spare me 🥴

they need to bring all these prices down bc rich ppl don’t even enjoy the same shit broke ppl do 🤨

[bnesszai]

It was 2 am in the morning and Chuuya was starting to understand why that stupid mackerel wanted to die all the time. Mori had sent them on a mission to get rid of some warehouses on the west side of mafia territory. Frankly tedious, and what should have been a very quick job.

But nothing was quick with Dazai.

”Chuuuuuuuya!,” the boy being hoisted over Chuuya’s shoulder started swinging his limbs, earning him a smack on the back. “Ow! This isn’t the rendezvous point you idiot! I thought you knew French? Or are you too dumb to understand rendezvous-“

“Stop talking dumbass.” Chuuya smacks him again, but doesn’t tell him where they were actually going. Anywhere but that depressing shipping container.

“Chibi’s reaaaaally mean for someone who took too long to blow up that warehouse.” That was half true. The plan was simple: take out the guards, blow it up and run. But at the last second Dazai ran inside the building, and Chuuya had hesitated to blow it up with him inside. Why?

“Stop talking or I’ll drop you.” Dazai was covered with scrapes and blood from the shrapnel, unfortunately still intact. As Chuuya entered his suite and slipped his shoes off, the other started laughing.

“You’re such a softie!~” Chuuya did in fact drop Dazai. On his bed. This earned a momentary, heavenly silence for the boy trying to rummage through all the medical supplies. “…you could have taken me to Mori’s.”

“Don’t be stupid. He’s too busy playing with Elise at this hour.” It slipped without thinking, but it was better than saying his actual thoughts. Than saying , ‘Mori can’t help you the way you need it.’

“And you think you can?” Dazai replied offhandedly, inspecting Chuuya’s room with a blank expression. The hour was quiet, and most of the sound consisted of Chuuya carefully cleaning Dazai’s wounds, trying his best not to hit a sore spot. But why did he care?

“It’s better than you whining.” More silence, as Chuuya finished up. For a brief moment their eyes met, and Chuuya could feel himself being pulled towards that nearly indecipherable abyss. As if he could hear the faint hum of Dazai’s heartbeat and the look in the boy’s eyes that screamed, ‘no one can save me, the closest would be you.’

So he looked away.

“Want a smoke?”

“Sure. Nothing cheap.”

“As if I’d get cheap!”

“I wouldn’t past you, slug.”

“And l wouldn’t put it past you to run into a warehouse that was about to be bombed, mackerel. But here we are.” He quietly pulled out a small lighter, flicking it open. “What did you go in there for anyway? Your will to live?”

“Hah, I guess chibi does have a sense of humor.” Of course he wouldn’t get a straight answer out of this asshole. “I went in for my wallet.”

“B.S.” Chuuya deadpanned. “Why do I even try with you?” He could have sworn he heard a small voice say “I don’t know.” But when he turned around the boy was messing with his scars absentmindedly.

“Chuuya needs to learn how to ask questions worth answering.”

“Like you’re any better.” This back and forth bantering lasted for a while, hell they were known for it to a few of their subordinates and seniors. But for once- “Why can you never give me a straight answer?”

“Because you already know what I’m going to say. I don’t feel like wasting my breath on a slug like you.” That was probably the best he would get for two emotionally stunted teenagers. Chuuya glances out his window. The light pollution was the least of his worries.

“Are you sure I’m human? I mean-“

“Of course you are.” The darker haired boy replied without a beat. He always knew a little more than Chuuya, and for some reason it never made Chuuya feel like he was painfully naive. Not like Shirase.

“How do you know?” It was a predictable question, they both knew. For some reason Dazai answered anyway. Albeit, with his convoluted reasoning.

“Because I can’t stand humans, and I can’t stand you. Therefore you must be human. Didn’t I explain this to you already?” With such conviction Chuuya almost believed it. He almost said, ‘I needed to hear you say it again.’

“I thought you didn’t want to waste your breath?” He watched Dazai’s uncovered eye slip open, a brief flash of something…viscerally honest before it slipped back into the void.

“I guess I have some to spare.”

HHHH YEAH OKAY HELLO. Did you know that they make me deeply unwell?? Did you know that the silent communication between skk and the trust and the touch makes me go absolutely feral? Did you know that Rai i think you knew that

[soir-rouges-esprit]

xxvii.f: Soul Quench, I drop my arms in a very low-effort way, as if they were dead weight ... “I know you're physically alive jackass … I meant mentally, emotionally … I mean you crawled out of a fucking rain canal! With Broken Fucking Legs!!! … anyone would be really fucked up after that … I'd be worried if you weren't a little rattled.” well then call a shrink, because I'm fine … I let out a large *sigh* and decompressed totally. I had to make a few choices in that moment while down there … some that reeeeally showed some colors, made a deal I'll probably regret, and sent Hell straight into the sky, unfortunately repeating another cycle of hate. What happened was I met with The Devil, he offered his claw-like hand once again … I took it … and now I'm here, and with that comes more than you can even imagine when it comes to stipulations. “What kind … of deal?” … I feel my eyebrows drop and tighten, to an angry disposition. A return of sorts … to let some limitations go, to freely exist once more, understanding my value and that of others in comparison once again … viciously … which will for certain open doors for me, big ones at that, but block the greater gate I'm wishing to travel through in the long run, the gate of peace and serenity. “Is that gonna … affect our relationship any? Are you returning to back then? Because I'm gonna be honest Red, I don't want to relearn that part of you … this newer shade, so much better.” She put her right hand on my shoulder. “I'm here for you, and I will hold that love like you do, I'll keep it safe within me like you say … you don't have to stop being … you … so just do as you do, and say it all out loud, give me all the details so I'm prepared, and lean on me, even if you don't want to … this is our deal, to stay stable … to not get lost anymore … no more storms.” My face relaxed, I rested my left hand over hers looked at her directly, and said. Don't fret Imp, I made a deal for sure … but I'm not a complete fool … our agreement was based on support, supplementing my lacking sectors, not to take over. Nothing will threaten our relationship, I will not … abandon you. She looked at me, smiled in cute totality, and put her hand back on the wheel, pulling away from my shoulder. “I know … you've done me wrong in the past, but you've always come to rectify that, stuck by me, and you never meant any harm to begin with anyway, just kicking rocks around and managed to ricochet some my way; realistically at my glass house, which isn't your fault any.” Thanks, M. “No need. it's like saying the sky is blue, making compliments towards you, they are merely factual.” Yet not insincere or meaningless, which has always been a part of your refreshing personality. She smiled again, this time big and wide. We got home, and she loaded me into my chair and wheeled me up to her apartment, where I'd stay. … … … Four and a half months pass. I finally, through healing and physical therapy/treatment, break away from my chair and crutches, to walking again, even lightly running. … … … I start to wake from sleep, I feel soft warm skin laying across my whole body, on top of me … feet and legs curled and wrapped up together, I open my eyes to see one very asleep and drooling a pool … Imp … we had one large furry blanket draped over us, that was the color of cyan with hits of white thrown in, I could feel her warm skin, heartbeat, and breath across my chest, I had my arms firmly wrapped around her, one hand resting on her upper back, the other firmly grasping her ass … I could feel her lower half flow between my fingers oh so gentle and softly, I’d say I was getting excited, however, my body had already beat me to it, with morning wood stiffer than good timber. I could die here I thought, no need to fight any fights anymore, so long this feeling and sight never faded away. But … the day as well more than a few unsightly individuals were going to be waiting for me … [To Be Continued]

[redpandajournal]

Say no to drugs and alcohol

Free anti drug ad i guess !

For weeks we suspected huge damage on one of my molars. 2 weeks ago, my dentist tried to get it fixed. i asked for local anesthesia and i felt pain even after double the dose. I chickened out and she sent me home. This eventful evening she inquired that i might have to get a root canal asap. Luckily after further examination 3 days later, it’s not yet reaching the roots so i can just get a filling.

I was relieved, because i had one root canal once when I was a teenager. It was botched because he straight up jammed the needle that he put to get my nerves and pulp out while it’s still damn alive! I have been through handful of medical procedures small and large, and no pain has matched that one. i will forever remember the trauma. God forbid if one day i get into hell and this is the eternal punishment tailored for me. I’d rather just die into nothing

She doubled the dose and i still felt pain everytime she put the drill inside my tooth. doesnt matter that i have been through worse, i still hate sitting in that room. I hate the sound of the drill, the cold water and the suckling hose they put in my mouth. I felt bad for her because she mentioned that it’s also nerve wracking and difficult to treat me because my body shakes. 

I put on music to disassociate and just daydreamed like usual so i  stared into the ceiling without listening to any of her commands. When it’s done she asked me if i was an alcoholic i have to be honest, and i said no maam i just eat tramadols from time to time. she threw me ‘no u did not just do that’ stare and i shrugged.

She said something along the lines of “ hey it doesnt matter if you only took one from time to time, think of it like antibiotics. your body can get immune each time you trained it at that dose. Even after years of you quitting, your body doesnt care.” So it turns out, i have lower pain tolerance than other people because i am using too many opiod pain killers for my head! except it actually isnt that many lol maybe i took like 1 or 2 for each month and it's not something that i ask regularly (because my neuro said that it’s bad for me  :( ) i ate it up each time, all the pain and the glory and the futile paracetamols straight into my gut. I have to apologize to those unlucky bastards who have gerd because i deadass thought that i am better built. turns out everyone gets something in the physical pain lottery and im no exception in this lifetime.  DONT DO DRUGSSS 

[tribow]

I’ve had enough of these godamn boring ass isekai premises. How in world are all of the isekai concepts set within nearly the exact same medieval western fantasy environment?? I’m gonna lose it. I get it, the genre is popular and you want to subvert it by turning the protagonist into weird things, or having the protagonist play a very specific role instead of making the protagonist be a power fantasy. Yet it never crosses anyone’s minds to change the up the kind of world people fall into!?

It’s always medieval western fantasy and maybe sprinkle some RPG stuff in there. Yeeahh, like Dragonquest and other classic RPGs. You can’t be that bad at world building that you have to use what literally everyone else uses right? Everything looks the same!!!

Where’s the isekai where the fantasy world is like a steampunk or solarpunk world? How about a world that is similar to our own modern society but OOPS there’s highly destructive monsters. What about an isekai suffering through an apocalypse when the protagonist arrives?? A world with very dense forest and massive trees the size of skyscrapers?? I’ve seen the floating islands setting used in some places why not have an isekai take place there?

What about other fantasy/mythology instead of western medieval? There’s some isekai that use medieval Japan, but you can go further than that. Have some heavy focus on youkai??? Oh! I dunno use Chinese mythology instead? Greek mythology isekai? The Mayans were on some wild-type shit you can use that as a basis.

Oh you want to use inspiration from games? Have ya seen the intensely intimidating atmosphere Dark Souls’ environment is? No one wants to try to replicate that? What about platformers? You got huge colorful worlds with those. What if someone got isekai’d into a party game? Hmmm? Has that not crossed anyones mind? What about the unsettling otherworlds aesthetic that something like Metroid has?

Why is it so much of it the same!??!? If you were put in any of these worlds how would you react?

[dreamerstreamer]

Pocket Knife Prince

Pairing: c!Technoblade x gn!reader

Summary: [Dream SMP!AU] You’ve liked Technoblade from the moment he joined Pogtopia, but you could never quite bring yourself to confess. Who knew it would only take a pocket knife and some potatoes to change that?

Warnings: minor cursing & one slightly out of pocket joke

Word Count: 4.2k

A/N: this a repost of an older story i had posted a while back. this story takes place back when technoblade was still allied with pogtopia. i hope you enjoy! <3

You huffed as you pulled yourself up another rung on the ladder, your arms straining as you did your best to keep yourself balanced. You still couldn’t fathom why Tommy thought it was a good idea to dig straight down.

“I’ll hit a cave, eventually,” he had told you as he grabbed a pickaxe, already starting to mine away at the space beneath his feet.

“Maybe,” you had said. “But what if you hit a lava pool? Do you really want to burn alive?”

“Oh, I have a backup plan in case I fuck up.” He held up a bucket of water, grinning at you. “Bam. Fucking foolproof.”

Yeah, sure, you thought to yourself with a grimace as you continued to haul yourself upward. You might not have died while digging down, but I might die while climbing up. 

Pausing, you reached behind you to adjust the strap of your back with a cry of frustration. This is way too heavy—I should have gone back earlier.

You looked back up again, squinting for a second before your eyes lit up. At long last, light! You were at least somewhat close to the entrance, now. “Just a bit more climbing,” you muttered to yourself as you reached up once more, “and then you’ll be able to take this stupid bag off.”

A few moments later, you gasped as you finally dragged yourself out of the vertical tunnel, standing up on shaky legs. Without even an ounce of hesitation, you swung your pack off your back, dumping it onto the dusty earth ungracefully. Your muscles practically screamed with relief as you rolled back your shoulders, a wide smile stretching across your face.

“Hey, boys!” you shouted, your voice echoing in the tall ravine. “Guess who’s back?!”

You heard some rumbling, then a tuft of blond hair peeked out from one of the overhanging pillars. “Big [Y/N]!” Tommy shouted, waving at you. “You took for-fuckin’-ever to get back.”

You stuck your tongue out at him, crossing your arms over your chest. “It’s not my fault we needed so much stuff.” You narrowed your gaze. “Also, your ladder idea sucks.” 

Tommy scowled. “My ladder idea is fucking genius, you bi—”

A new voice cut in. “Tommy, that’s enough.”

You smiled triumphantly as you watched Tommy immediately shrink back, his tone quieting as he grumbled defeatedly, “Yes, Wilbur.”

Giving him a quick ruffle of his hair, Wilbur strolled down the ravine’s cobblestone steps down to the bottom. He pulled his hands out of his coat pockets as he flashed you a grin. “Welcome back, [Y/N]. How was the trip?”

You offered him a weary but satisfied look. “Oh, you know. Dark. Dusty. The usual. But…” Bending down, you flipped open the top of your pack and pulled out a smaller sack, shaking it in front of his face. “…I got all that gold you wanted! There’s probably a little less than seven stacks in there, which will be plenty if we want to make some golden apples.”

Wilbur blinked at you, his eyebrows raised in surprise as a smile began to tug at his lips. “Not that I doubt you or anything,” he said, “but where in the world did you manage to get nearly seven stacks of gold?”

You shrugged nonchalantly, dropping the bag into his hands with a hum. “In a cave.” When he stared at you in stunned silence, you quirked a brow at him. “What? It’s not like it was hard.”

He was grinning now, shaking his head. “You’re batshit crazy, [Y/N]. That’s incredible.”

You smiled sheepishly at his words. “For the record,” you pointed out, “I didn’t do it all in a single day or anything. I was gone for, like, half a week.”

“That’s still really good work, alright?” He reached over, playfully punching your shoulder. “Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

You winced, shooting him a dirty look. “Ow, that hur—”

“Oh, you’re back.”

Your head whipped around at the sound of low, rumbling voice. Your frown vanished at the sight of Technoblade standing a few feet away from you, a basket of potatoes held in his gloved hands. You felt your heart swell and a bright grin replace your scowl as you bounced over to him. “Hi, Techno!” you chirped.

He smiled back at you, his gaze kind. “Hello.”

From behind you, Wilbur let out a distressed noise. “Jeez, you seem so excited to talk to him but barely batted an eye at me. Did you miss him that much?”

You stuck your tongue out at him, trying to hide the flush of your cheeks. “More than I did you.”

Tommy cackled as he walked by, adjusting the straps of the pack in his hands. “Ouch. Maybe you should get some ice for that burn, Wilbur.”

Wilbur grimaced, opening his mouth to retort when his gaze suddenly lit up. “Actually,” he said, turning, “speaking of ice, who wants to go with me to the Nether to destroy some of the SMP’s and Manberg’s ice roads?” A devilish grin split across his face. “I figured that it would slow them down a bunch and they’d spend less time focusing on us, so it’ll be easier for us to get into contact with Tubbo.”

You blinked at him, then sent him a teasing smile. “Wilbur, this might one of the only good ideas you’ve had since starting a drug cartel.”

“Thank y—wait, is that a compliment?”

“Man,” Technoblade sighed, rolling his eyes at him, “just take it as one and let your ego coast on that for the next six months.”

“Anyways,” Wilbur said, ignoring him and moving on, “who wants to come with me?”

You shook your head, shifting your weight from foot to foot. “No thanks. I just got back from a long, long mining trip. I think I’m due for some time off.”

Wilbur nodded. “Alright, fair.” His gaze moved to the figure standing next to you. “Techno?”

Technoblade simply raised the basket of potatoes in his hands. “Nah. I’ve got my hands full here.”

Wilbur made a face, a hint of desperation seeping into his eyes. “You can farm potatoes any time,” he said, his voice raising a pitch or two. “How about you just come with m—”

“Why don’t I just go?”

Wilbur froze, and he turned with a shaky smile. “A-Are you sure about that, Tommy? You sure you don’t just want to stay in the ravine with [Y/N]?”

Tommy shrugged, flipping the stick in his hand. “Not really. It’s not like I have anything better to do, anyways.” He nudged the pack at his feet. “I’m even packed and ready to go, too.”

Wilbur swallowed, and you could have sworn a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead. “You really want to come?” he added, sounding more and more uncertain with each word that passed his lips.

“I dunno, Wilbur,” Technoblade spoke up, quirking his lips at him, “but it almost sounds like you don’t want to bring Tommy with you.”

Tommy gasped, looking appalled. “What the hell, Will? Of course you want me to go with you, right?”

Wilbur turned on his heel, dragging a tired hand over his face. “Sure, Tommy. Let’s just say that.” He strode away toward the stairs, practically stomping his way up to the second floor. “Just give me a second to grab a pack,” he sighed, waving a hand behind him. “I’ll be down in like five minutes.”

Tommy threw his hands in the air, waving his stick. “Fuck yeah!”

Technoblade let out a quiet chuckle, turning on his heel. “Well, I’m gonna go back to farming.”

You glanced at him shyly, trailing after him. “Can I come with?”

His step faltered, and he turned to send you a fond look. “Always.”

Your heart lit up at the sight and you grinned, following him into the garden room. The entirety of the floor had been replaced with dirt, tiny streams of water weaving their way around the potato patches. You let out a quiet hum as Technoblade set the basket of potatoes on the ground, grabbing a hoe from its place on the wall and walking over to the makeshift field. Digging the blade of the hoe into the earth, he pulled back and repeated the motion until the soft, dark soil was exposed to the air. Leaning back against the wall, a soft smile crept onto your face as you watched.

You remembered when Technoblade first arrived in the Dream SMP, all those months ago. You had been sitting in the ravine, peeling an apple with a pocket knife as you chatted with Wilbur, when Tommy burst in with a deafening shout about “the blade”. Raising your head, you had opened your mouth to make a snarky retort, but the words died in your mouth the minute you laid eyes on him.

He looked like a prince—a handsome one, at that.

While Wilbur had jumped down to greet Technoblade with a friendly hug, you had simply stared at the newcomer, pocket knife in your hand and apple slice in the other. As Tommy brought Technoblade over to you and asked you to introduce yourself, you remembered that dizzy pink feeling rising in your chest as you blurted the first thing that came to mind.

“Want an apple slice?”

You had expected him to be confused, shaking his head and pulling away with a disgusted look. But instead, his gaze flickered to your hand.

“I’d rather have the knife.”

You had blinked at him for a moment, stunned, then burst into laughter, outstretching your hand with the pocket knife handle extended toward him. He had offered you a small, awkward smile back, gingerly taking the knife from you. When his hands brushed against yours, that hazy, rosy feeling swelled in your chest again.

Ever since that moment, you’d only fallen harder and harder.

It was difficult to put into words just what drew you to Technoblade. Of course, he was pretty, but you weren’t that shallow. He had an awkward charm to him, something that seeped into every aspect of his being. He was hardworking, determined, sarcastic, and oh-so very real. You couldn’t name one thing about him that you didn’t like, really. You loved his laughter that came in brief, giggling bursts. Every time he smiled, you couldn’t help but smile back. He never failed to keep you guessing, and you loved every second you spent with him.

You weren’t sure how far you’d fallen at this point, but you knew one thing, and it was that there was no going back.

“Hey,” a new voice said suddenly, pulling you away from your thoughts. You turned, watching Tommy stick his head into the room. “Can I have some potatoes for the trip?”

Your eyes shot to Technoblade, who paused for a moment, then nodded, gesturing to the basket at his feet. “Sure. You can have a couple.”

Tommy grinned, strolling in to lean down and pluck three potatoes from the pile. Standing back up again, he toed the basket, tossing and catching a potato in his hands. “Hey, Techno,” he said, “don’t you ever get tired of farming these things?”

Technoblade paused, patting down the dirt he had just covered another potato with. “Eh, not really.” His eyes flickered with contentment, and you felt your lips twitch. “I like it.”

Tommy frowned. “But,” he said, “it’s so fucking boring.”

You gasped, shooting him a glare. “Tommy! That’s mean.”

“What? Am I wrong?” He flung his arm out to point at the tilled dirt, clearly unimpressed. “All he’s doing is the same fucking thing over and over, again. We’re in a war, [Y/N]. Why can’t he just spar with me or something?”

You crossed your arms over your chest, deadpanning. “Tommy, the last time you sparred with Technoblade, you lasted less than ten seconds.” 

He grew quiet. “Okay, well, you didn’t have to put it like that, but—”

“What? Am I wrong?” you said, mimicking him.

A second passed. Then two.

“…touché, [Y/N].”

“Tommy!” Wilbur’s voice echoed from the top of the stairs, his head popping out from between the railings. “You ready to go?”

Without missing a beat, Tommy whipped around, rushing out of the farm room and slipping up the stairs. “I’m coming!”

A smirk tugged at Wilbur’s lips. “Heh.”

“Wha—oh, Will! That’s fucking disgusting.”

“But it was funny,” you called out after the youngest.

“Fuck off, [Y/N]!”

Beside you, Technoblade let out a laugh, his eyes curving into two crescent moons as he set down the hoe and picked up a shovel. With a fond smile gracing your lips, you took a step toward him, leaning down to take a closer look. There was something so endearing about knowing someone as powerful as Technoblade had a hobby as mundane as farming—farming potatoes, to be more specific. 

You liked it. A lot. You liked him a lot.

You wondered how much longer you could go without saying it aloud.

“Hey, Techno,” you murmured, watching his ears perk up at the sound of your voice, “could you teach me the best way to plant potatoes?”

He paused, his shovel planting itself in the earth as he turned to look at you, his lips parted in surprise. “Y-You actually want to learn?”

You bobbed your head, praying that your face wasn’t growing any warmer. “Of course. Fighting’s fun and all, but there’s more to life than just bloodshed.” You flashed him a bright grin. “Besides, an army needs food to fight!”

With a small grin, he gestured for you step closer. “You want to make sure you dig about six to eight inches down,” he explained, gesturing down the hole with his finger. “If you don’t dig deep enough, then the potato will be too close to the surface, and if you dig too deep, it’ll have a harder time reaching the top.”

You nodded, your tongue swiping over your lips in concentration. Technoblade let out a brief cough, turning away with a slight flush to his cheeks as he grabbed a potato from the basket next to him. “Then,” he continued, “grab a potato. You’ll want to cut it in half down the middle and plant it so the cut side is facing downwards.”

Sticking a hand into his pocket, he rummaged around for a second before pulling out a familiar pocket knife. Your eyes flashed with recognition as he flipped the blade open and sliced through the potato with ease.

“Is that,” you began slowly, your tone tentative and gentle, “my pocket knife? From when we first met?”

Technoblade’s hands faltered as he sliced, his gaze flickering to you with a bashful look. “It’s—um, yeah. Does… does that bother you?”

You immediately shook your head, waving your hands in front of you. “No, not at all! I-I was just wondering. I haven’t seen it in a while, that’s all.”

He lowered his chin, and you could have sworn his cheeks were pink. “I’ve been taking good care of it,” he admitted quietly, his gaze not meeting yours. “It’s important to me.”

You blinked, your heart beating faster in your chest. “It is?” you whispered.

He nodded. “It is.”

You wanted to curl up into a ball and squeal. It only took two simple words from him to send you into a flurry of awkward smiles and blushing whines. You couldn’t believe just how far gone you were.

Technoblade stretched a hand toward you, half of the potato he cut clutched between his fingers. “Here. You try planting one.”

With a shaky hand, you gently pulled the potato from his hands, nearly flinching at the feeling of his skin brushing against yours. Carefully, you reached over and set the potato face down like he had instructed. You pointed your hand toward the pile of dirt lying just beside the hole, about to start covering the potato when his arm shot out in front of you.

“Wait,” he said suddenly, making you freeze in place. “You don’t have gloves on. I don’t want your hands to get dirty.”

You sent him a small smile, waving a hand dismissively at him. “A little dirt never hurt anyone.”

He didn’t budge. “Please. Let me.”

That fuzzy feeling was back, and you pulled back. “Okay,” you whispered, your stomach swarming with butterflies as you watched him cover your planted potato with his hands. For someone who made a lot of jokes regarding human ethics, he was far more caring than he let on.

“Y’know,” you said softly, glancing over at him, “it’s really cool watching you do this, even if Tommy thinks it’s boring.” A small smile flitted across your face. “There are all these specific conditions that you have to know to have the most efficient farm with the best percent yield of potatoes—it’s honestly kind of surreal just how much brainpower actually goes into farming.”

Technoblade stared at you, his eyes reflecting something thoughtful and warm, and another thought popped into your head. You felt your cheeks begin to grow warm at the words swirling around your head. Swallowing the lump in your throat, you opened your mouth, again.

“I-I, um,” you began shakily, suddenly finding the scuff mark on your shoe very interesting, “I really hope you know how smart we think you really are. How smart I know you are. Because you are. Smart, that is.”

You must have been trembling, you could almost feel it. Why was it so hard to put your feelings into words? At this rate, you were never going to be able to confess how you felt. Just how much longer could you drag this out fo—

“Hey,” he said gently, his voice pulling you out of your thoughts. You turned your head, your lips parting as you looked at him in surprise. The moment his soft gaze met yours, a spark of electricity ran through your veins, and you shivered for an entirely different reason.

“Thank you,” he murmured, tilting his head at you. “I appreciate it.”

Suddenly, he squinted his eyes at you, his carmine gaze narrowing. “Oh wait, you’ve got something on your face,” he murmured, inching closer in to take a better look.

“Oh,” you said, a hand immediately darting up to your cheek, “that’s probably just some dust or soot or something. You know, from the mines.” You wiped at your face with the back of your hand, embarrassment shooting up your spine knowing that you probably looked dumb. “Did I get it?”

He frowned, pulling off his gloves as he leaned closer. “No, here let me just—”

Suddenly, his hand was on your face, your cheek held gently in his palm. Your heart came barreling to a stop, your entire body freezing like ice. 

He was so close.

The pads of his finger were warm and calloused, yet they held a certain softness to him as his thumb slowly swiped just under her eye, careful to brush away the dirt that marred your face. Like a moth drawn to a flame, you found yourself unable to look away from him, hyperaware of the goosebumps that shot up your sides as his gaze met yours. A prince—he really did look like a prince.

For a moment, the two of you simply gazed at one another, a silent question hanging over you.

Before you could stop yourself, you opened your mouth.

“Can I say something kind of crazy?” you whispered.

“Of course,” he whispered, not moving his gaze from yours for even a heartbeat.

You sucked in a deep breath, screwing your eyes shut. “I…” You swallowed. “I really, really want to kiss you, right now.”

A moment of silence passed, and you held your breath, tension digging itself into your shoulders. Oh, I’m totally about to get rejected. This was such a bad idea. What was I even thinki—

“Can—” He started then stopped, and you could have sworn his cheeks were pink. “Can I say something even crazier?”

You heart leapt. “Yeah, totally,” you breathed.

He turned back to look at you, and you felt something deep in your chest click. “I really, really want to kiss you, too.”

Your eyes flew wide, and you couldn’t stop the giddy grin forming on your face. Almost imperceptibly, Technoblade dipped his head down close to yours, his crimson eyes darting across your face as he took in your every feature. As he leaned closer toward you, a question silently flashes in his gaze. 

Can I…?

You smiled and nodded oh-so subtly, just for him to see.

Yes, yes, yes.

Ever so slowly, he leaned down toward you, and you felt your eyelids flutter shut. Just then, his lips met yours, soft and tentative like a deer taking its first, shaky steps. Electric ran down your spine at his velvet touch, your hands reaching up to wrap around his neck and touch his cherry blossom pink hair. His crown tumbled to the ground off his head, rolling a few times before coming to a full stop, but neither of you particularly noticed, far too enraptured with one another to care.

This was everything you could have possibly asked for.

A moment later, you pulled apart, gasping for air as the two of you gazed into each other’s eyes. His hair had been mussed by your touch, his lips parted and puffy from the kiss.

You didn’t think he could look any more princely, but he still managed to prove you wrong.

Clearing your throat, you cast eyes away in shy embarrassment. “I feel like I should also clarify that this means I like you,” you added in a rush, fidgeting with your hands. “Like, way more than I thought I could ever like a person.”

Technoblade let out a sigh of relief, lips curling at the corners. “Oh, that’s good. I like you, too.” Your heart did a backflip in your chest, shouting in celebration as he added, “I was sort of thinking we were just gonna kiss and never talk about it, again.”

You shot him a quizzical look. “I can’t tell if you’re being sarcastic.”

He sent you a crooked smile, but his gaze was fond. “Only kind of.”

You weren’t quite sure how many minutes passed in comfortable silence, both of you simply basking in the other’s warm presence. It was nice—this was nice. You wouldn’t mind staying like this for a while longe—

“—y it, Tommy, just say it!”

Your eyes shot wide open in panic. Across from you, Technoblade’s expression mirrored your own.

They were back.

“I’m telling you it’s okay, Tommy—you can call me ‘Wilby’ if you want to!”

Flailing your arms in a panic, you immediately began to backpedal to the other side of the room, Technoblade picking up his shovel and beginning to shovel as fast as he could.

“You’re still going off about this shit? Jesus Christ, I don’t want to call you ‘Wilby’, oh my fucking go—”

Wilbur crooned as they stepped into the garden room, “Aww, Tommy, my little gremlin.”

“Shut the fuck up, Wilbu—”

“B-Back so soon?” you prompted, pretending to have been looking at the potato field with great focus as you turned to face them.

Wilbur turned away from Tommy, the smile sliding off his face. He nodded with a sigh, adjusting the pack on his back. “We almost got to the portal, but Antfrost saw us, so we had to book it.” 

Technoblade paused his movements, deadpanning with an unimpressed tone. “Tragic.”

Tommy scowled at him. “Don’t sound so cocky, bitch. You didn’t have to outrun like, half of the SMP all the way back here without getting tracked.” Suddenly his gaze shot to the ground, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. “And why’s your fuckin’ crown on the ground?” he muttered, snatching it from the dusty floor and tossing it back over to Technoblade.

“No reason,” you said half a beat too quickly.

Wilbur’s eyes flitted back forth between you and Technoblade, taking in the sight of your flushed cheeks and Technoblade’s disheveled hair. Then, a sly, scheming smile crept onto his face. You gulped.

Oh, he totally knew.

“Tommy,” he said, the shit-eating grin still plastered to his face, “how do you feel about going on another trip with me?”

Tommy’s head whipped around, his eyes swimming with confusion. “Another trip?” he parroted.

Wilbur nodded, still smiling. “Yep. Another trip. Let’s get going, yeah? I’ve got something wonderful in mind.”

Before Tommy could even react, Wilbur had grabbed onto the handle of his pack, dragging him back and up the stairs. “Wilbur! What the fuck? Where are we even fucking going?”

“On a trip!” Wilbur sang as he trudged up the stairs with Tommy in tow. Throwing one last glance over his shoulder, he sent you a knowing wink. “You two have fun, now.”

You gaped at him as he walked off, Tommy still kicking at his heels when they vanished from sight. A moment passed in silence before you turned to look at Technoblade, again.

“He knows,” you whispered, half in awe and half in horror.

Technoblade grimaced back at you. “Oh, he absolutely does.”

A beat of silence fell over you. Your eyes locked onto his carmine ones, and something seemed to click just then, a smile crossing both of your faces.

Indeed, Wilbur had just provided you with the perfect opportunity.

Who were the two of you to not take it?

[bakugohoex]

Idk if you have heard of aot 2 final battle, and it's great if you do. It will help with my request if you know the ending. Can I request a Jean x reader where he meets her at Marley when he thought reader died? (You can ignore it if you want)

“you’r…you’re alive”

pairing: jean kirschtein x female reader

cw: language, flashbacks italicised, kissing, fluff

word count: 3100+

a/n: this was going to have some nsfw but i just couldnt find a place for it, it felt weird to just have it randomly through the oneshot lmao, also a thank you to @admin-in-residence for having explained the games ending to me

summary:  in which after risking your life to fight the titans, four years later having assumed you died, jean finds you in the most unlikeliest of places

↞ back to attack on titan masterlist 

Eren’s body laid limp in the cart, the dozens of titans ran closer and closer towards the horses. You saw Jean sitting breathless to the side, his soft eyes looking at the success of having Eren but the failure of bringing about Ymir. You watched the titans bombard through the trees, you would never make it out, you knew it, the people between you and titans getting smaller and smaller each time they killed someone.

You watched; eyes fixated at how close they were. There was little chance of success, you turned to Jean seeing him look with fear at the approaching titans. “I’m sorry, Jean.” At the sound of those two simple words he watched as you leapt out of the cart, using your gear to have a hold onto the trees, the titans that were just about to grab the cart were cut down by you. 

��Y/n, no, Y/n, get back here right now.” He shouted back at you, ready to join you but had seen how you had picked and fiddled with his gear. “For fucks sake Y/n, get back here now.” He watched at how the distance between you both grew. 

“I love you.” It was inaudible, he probably never even heard it, but he saw your mouth move, saw the words flow out of your mouth, tears welling in his eyes.

He sobbed, “Y/n...please.”

They had watched how you jumped out, how you had risked your life for it all, for them. Tears welled up through their eyes but all you could see was titans, their figures getting smaller at how the titans had congregated to you. You would die saving your friends and that was all you truly wanted to do.

“Y/n, wake up.” The sound of Reiner’s hand moved to your shoulder shaking you awake. You sat upright in bed, tears having pricked down your face, you watched the grown man sitting beside your bed, looking down at your smaller frame. 

“Nightmare.” He mutters seeing you wipe the tears away; you give a nod not meeting his gaze. “What was it?”

“About our past.” If all you murmured out, how could you tell him, 4 years later that you were still hung up on Jean. How you missed the boy and the future you two could’ve had, how you hated being in Liberio, how you wish he had left you for dead outside the walls. 

How dare he make the decision to bring you along, his stupid crush of you had gotten in the way? Even Zeke knew that and here you were in his house, where him and his family lived, acting like his lover, acting like you were another Eldian like them. You hated it, Reiner’s emotions got the better of him, you and him both knew that, and seeing the hatred the people outside the walls had for you, made you resent this hell hole. 

“Y/…” Before Reiner could even say anything, his mother’s voice had interrupted.

“Reiner, Y/n, are you both awake?” You hated her, hated her voice, her face, the way she called you all devils, you hated her. You would never grow to love her, you had hoped to have had a fake breakup with the boy, but the realisation you had nobody had dawned on you a couple years back and here you were. Still in his bedroom, sleeping beside him, you hated him even more than you hated his mother.

The disgust that you had at having to be near him, to have to pretend to be in love when all you wanted to do was slit his throat. Slit his family's throat, even his cousin who’s whole purpose stemmed from killing your people. She may have been a child, you knew she was a kid, but sometimes you just wished you could strangle that piece of shit. 

“I’ll wait for you outside.” Reiner muttered, seeing how you barely even looked at him. He remembered the first time meeting you, he, himself knew that he shouldn't have gotten infatuated with you. But at the sight of seeing you lay limply he had to take you home, care for you but all you had for him was aggression. 

You both barely talked now, the years hurting you both, he had gone off straight to the war with the Mid-East, forcing you to come and stay in the military base. He knew you'd hate it, but still you were made to stay. You wished he had just taken you back into the walls, but he was a selfish prick. 

You wore the trousers and shirt, having refused to wear the dresses that had been forced onto you. You didn’t care, the stupid armband around your shoulder that Zeke had gotten for you, it was an ugly thing. 

Reiner had told you about the festival in a couple days, you didn't want to attend, it seemed a bore. I'd much rather go out on your own, but the glare he had given in front of his mother had made you reluctantly agree. 

Stepping outside, Reiner glazed his eyes across your frame, even though he knew he didn't love you. He knew you had no feelings for him, and his teenager crush had made him bring you along when he should've left you to die. He couldn't confess it though, the risk of being found out would make his mother be turned into a titan and left to wander the land of Paradis. He watched you comb your fingers through your hair, a tired sad look on your face. 

“I’ve got to go meet Zeke today…”

“I’m going on a walk.” You mutter not caring about what he did in his day, he would never be the boy you had trained with, the boy you had fought alongside with. He just never would, and he had the exact same feelings towards you.

He nodded looking down, even with the boy of you growing in the years, you both retained some part of you from Paradis. A necklace clinging around your neck that you had refused to take off in these years. The one thing you had from Jean, you remember his face when he saw it and how he bought it with so much ease. How he moved your hair, kissing your shoulder with his tender lips and put it across your neck. 

The feeling of his lips and fingers would never return to you, you'd never see his face again. The face you had been through hell and back with, he would never see you, never know if you survived. Maybe you did regret fighting those titans, but the look and fear Jean had had sent an urge to protect him through you. 

Reiner’s mother gave a smile which you faked back at her, she spoke about her plans for the day and how Gabi had offered to come and help her in her free time from training. You hoped they’d both have an accident falling into the river, giving a nod, you spoke about needing to buy some stuff yourself but on the other side of town. It was easy to get away from the family, easy to walk away with your coat and shoes and leave with a tamed step.

There was always the fear of being caught, fear that you weren't an Eldian or even human. You had had those recurring dreams for the past four years, every day reliving a moment from your past. You wondered about your family, how they were, how your friends were and captain Levi. You wondered about Jean, what he looked like now, if he had become the leader you had praised him for being. 

You kicked a stone walking down the alleyway into the main street, gaining a breath of air. You scoured through the stalls and shop windows, it may be a disgusting place to be in with the humid air and ugly people. But it was a home for these people, a home that you wished to destroy. The sound of Eldians shopping in the district filled the air, you stopped beside a newspaper stand, looking at the new news of the day. Another piece of indoctrination, you smiled at the stall owner, putting on an act as you wanted to light the newspapers on fire.

A cold wash of air hit the back of your neck, you ignored the sensation, moving to the side for the person to get past. “Sorry.” If all the man muttered, you didn't look at his face, instead putting your hair up to stop the heat from attacking you even further. You couldn't see his face even if you had looked, the fedora covering half his face.

He looked down at you, watching as your fingers moved through your hair. He barely caught a glimpse of your face before catching the glint of the silver around your neck. The silver necklace with the rose pendant around it, the flower that he had bought the girl he had lost all those years ago. Trying to meet your eye, he knew it couldn't be you, you died, your body eaten up by the titans, but even then, he followed you as you left. Watching each turn you took, thinking that he was being coy about it all until he heard you stop in front of a boy. 

“Y/n, what are you doing so far out?” The boy spoke to you, Falco was a nice kid, better than Gabi any day but he had the same ideals in him. The same hatred for your people, how could you ever feel bad for him when he never considered your people’s feelings. 

That name, the name of his first love, the name of the woman he lost. But it couldn't be, the man kept at it, watching you converse with Falco before the boy ran off. “Are you going to keep following me then?” You finally spoke directed to the man, you still could barely see his face, but he could see yours now. As clear as day, you were his girl, his first love, his everything.

“You’r...you’re alive.” He stuttered still with caution, still vary of how you were even alive. He removed the fedora, meeting your gaze, you stared up at the man and you just knew you had been saved.

“Jean.” You whispered, he nodded before you ran up to him, his arms out as your body hit his own. Tears welling up in your eyes, as you sobbed to him, the way he soothed you, his hand in your hair. 

“Y/n, it’s really you, right?” He whispered softly, you nodded feeling his own tears prick down his face. “You’re really here?”

“I’m really here, Jean, wh...what are you doing here?” You whisper letting go of him, he had grown, the hairs across his chin were a lot clearer and his hair had grown. 

He met your own gaze, even if you were older, there was no showing it, you looked like the girl who had risked her life to save the scouts. “I...wait.” He met your gaze, “what are you doing here? Ar...are you one of them?”

“God no, Jean, I promise you know who I am, I’m one of you, you’ve met my parents and they weren’t from him, please believe me, I'll explain what happened, we just need to go somewhere safe.” You rambled out; Jean nodded putting his hand out. 

You took it with so much ease, it was unlike the times Reiner had put his hand for you and you reluctantly agreed. This time you were with the man you loved, the man who had finally found you. He led you past the allies and through the streets before arriving at a building, it looked more or less abandoned, but the lights were on and people were inside.

“This is gonna be a shock.” He whispers, you give a smile up to him, he had missed that smile of yours. The cheery grin you always had with your plump lips and soft touch you had with him.

He opened the door, leading to silence. “Jean did you bring the f…” Sasha stopped mid-sentence, all eyes fell onto you, even Hanje and Levi were in shock at you. “Y/n.”

“Sasha.” You whispered.

“You’re alive.” She ran up to you, tears brimming her eyes on her best friend being alive, hugging your frame as you hugged back happily. “But how, what are you doing here?”

She had let you go, allowing for you to breathe, “captain before you say anything, I’m not one of them.” 

You knew the glare Levi had given you, having seen it often all those years ago. But you had to prove your story, Jean led you inside letting you sit in front of both Hanje and Levi. Both having been silent after the interaction, “explain then.” Levi spoke coldly even if Jean was wary, he trusted your word.

“Let me save her, please Zeke.” Reiner’s voice boomed from the outskirts of the wall, you were listening into the conversation, after nearly being eaten by a titan, Reiner having swooped in. Your body leant against him as he tried to persuade Zeke.

Zeke looked cynical, the stupid boy having gotten a crush so easily and now using it against him, “leave her to die.”

“Zeke, for fucks sake, I won't carry out this mission until we keep her safe.” Zeke knew the risk of this, he took a sharp breath before nodding, Bertholdt could barely even look at you. Memories flashing through his head of your past together. All you could remember after that was being placed inside a cart, a blanket placed on top as you fell into a deep slumber.

These gaps in your memory had been a torment for you, the fact even Reiner refused to tell you what happened made you think the failure would fuel your hatred even more.

The sound of waves crashing was the first thing you heard, the sight of the sea. The sea that Armin had rambled out to both you and Jean months ago. “Finally awake.” You squealed your head hurting at the sight of Reiner meeting you, you had been lying against the ship, the salty air engulfing your lungs.

“Reiner, stay away from me.” You shouted ready to fight him, your hands up, but you had nothing to fight with. A one-to-one combat with him would be a sure win for him and he looked tired even. 

“Y/n, sit down, I’ll explain it all.” And that's what he did. He explained his past, Marley’s and the story of the walls. It felt like lies but having seen the sea now you knew it was the truth and after he had finished speaking you felt even more on edge.

“You haven't told her the best part yet?”

You looked up to meet a blonde hair man, his thick blonde beard and glasses encased his eyes. “Who the fuck are you?”

“Zeke Yeager.” That surname, you recognised it, you gave a hostile look as he continued speaking, “Eren’s older brother and the beast titan. Go on tell her then.”

“We...were taking you to Marley.” Your eyes widened.

You pushed him away from you, his arms having moved to comfort you, “You...you could've just let me go, let me stay within the walls, why Reiner? Why?”

“I had to protect you.” He whispered.

“Protect me, bullshit Reiner, i...I’m never going to see Jean again thanks to you.” Reiner’s grip moved to your face; he held your jaw tightly as you squealed at the pain.

“Jean never loved you, I do.” It was an inaccurate statement, but tears had welled up in your eyes before he let go, leaving you on the ground. 

You looked between the disgusted faces of your comrades; the way Jean’s jaw clenched at hearing what Reiner had said to you. How you had had to live with him and his mother, be around these people who hated you. He hated how you had had to share a bed with Reiner, act like you were in love with him. He hated how Reiner had stripped away four years of love for both you and Jean.

“We should’ve looked harder for you.” Hanje muttered lowly, you gave a small smile shaking your head.

“No, I knew what I was getting into when I went to go fight those titans, you guys thought I died. Hell even I thought I had died.” Mikasa puts a hand to your shoulder as you smile up at the girl, they all had changed, and they had realised you had as well. 

“We should explain why we’re here.” She spoke as you nodded all turning to Levi.

Levi looked down at you, he shook his head before speaking, “Eren…” By the end of his explanation you had been caught up to date on everything, knowing about Eren’s will and the letters he had been making Falco send for weeks now. “...this leads me to ask Y/n, are you still a part of the survey corps?”

You stared at your captain, taking a sharp breath, “I better have one of these cool black uniforms.” Sasha and Connie both smiled brightly at your comment, even Levi shook his head, you could almost see his upper lip twitch, but he had stopped himself. 

“One of the spares should fit you Y/n.” Hanje spoke aloud, in a matter of half an hour the plan had been explained and your job to remain normal before leaving just before the speech that would occur at the festival. “Welcome back Y/n.” 

You had gained everything that had been taken away from you, gained happiness and your love back. Jean had been quiet since you're welcome back, walking up to him and grabbing his hand softly as you gestured for him to follow you into an empty room. 

“I missed you Y/n.” You smiled at the boy, moving your body closer to his taller frame.

“I still love you Jean, I never stopped, every night I’d imagine it was you beside me.” You confessed, he looked down at your face. The same pretty eyes that filled with so much love, his hand moving to cup your cheek. On instinct, your face nuzzling into it, he softly brought his face down to meet yours, only a mere inch away from his own.

“I love you.” He whispered before capturing your lips on his own, his soft palm holding your face as his lips moved with yours, his tongue gliding inside with so much love and care. It was a happiness that you hadn't felt in years now, a happiness that could only be brought about by the love of your life. You had forgotten what it felt to be loved and now here you were, kissing the man you thought you’d never see again.

i’d really appreciate if you guys could leave a like, reblog or comment, thanks x

if you guys want to be a part of a tag list, just reply to any post and i’ll add you xx

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[shurisneakers]

shut in [10]

Summary: When your high profile mission goes terribly wrong, you’re forced to hide in a safehouse with a man you’ve never met before. With seemingly nowhere else to go, you’re forced to work together to figure out who is trying to have you assassinated before it’s too late. (Sam Wilson x Reader, Hitman AU)

Warnings: cursing, anxiety, ptsd, shooting, abuse

Word count: 2.8k

A/N: double digit chapter!!! like 3 parts to go everyoneeee woo!!

i also appreciate feedback so if you would like to, please consider dropping me an ask or comment ly guys!!

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Previous Part || Shut In Masterlist

The nostalgia was strong. 

The last time you and Sam were sitting like this, you were deciding on what to make of the bread supply that was now dwindling. The soup had ran out maybe a day or two ago and you were left with just bread, peanut butter and jelly.

You two had to devise an escape plan. You’d been there long enough and now with Sam making his first public appearance as Mob’s Most Wanted, even if it was for a good cause, there was no doubt that people would be after you.

“What if we go back to Ransone and let the rest sort itself out along the way?”

You made a note of it on the paper but you weren’t very convinced with the idea, not with the realisations you had made along the way.

“Do we know any other hideouts?” you asked instead, tapping the pencil against the paper.

“None that you don’t already know.” He chewed on his lip thoughtfully. “What are your thoughts on caves? Think we can make a bed outta some leaves?”

You wrote down ‘Sam’s cave idea’, just to humour him. Stupid, but more plausible than other options.

“If we make a run for it, what are the chances we’ll survive?”

“With law enforcement, civilians and gang members looking for us, I’d give us about-” you said candidly, “-two months. Three max.”

It wasn’t like you had no experience running from the state, but it was never on this scale. 

“We’d have years if it was only law enforcement, but we had to go get the entire fuckin’ mafia involved,” he huffed in annoyance.

An idea occurred to you that made you pause, but you hated it.

“What if we split up?” you suggested halfheartedly. “It’ll take them more time to find the both of us, if they’re looking for us together.”

When he didn’t reply, you looked up at him from the sheet in front of you.

“We’re not splitting up,” he began steadily, just as you knew he would. “The same people who are after you are after me. We need to stick together.”

“I know. I’m not saying we can’t meet again after that, I’m saying that maybe it’ll be easier for us to hide.”

He couldn’t deny that it wasn't the worst idea, but something didn’t sit right with him. He didn’t want to do it.

“Okay, then how do we find each other after that? When? I don’t have your email; fuck that, I don’t even have your number.”

“We’ll schedule it, I guess,” you murmur, trying to work out the logistics. “Whoever gets there late has to buy ice cream. And I’m particular about the flavour I like.”

You tried to lighten up the mood but he wasn’t having it, as much as he appreciated it.

“I don’t care if it’s more difficult,” he said slowly. “But I’d like us to stick together. Not until we’re out of this mess. Then if you want to never see my face again, which you shouldn’t because it’s beautiful, we’ll go our different ways.”

He was adamant about it, and you knew he’d argue and poke holes into the plan until it didn’t make sense anymore. You weren’t going to argue.

“Okay,” you accepted. “We stick together.”

A smile spread across his face which equated to one of triumph. “You got any other ideas?” 

“We stay right here and fight off whoever comes.”

It was dumb. This place wasn’t yours, and staying here would be a death wish. That didn’t stop you from saying it since neither of you were holding back on implausible ideas.

“This is our house now,” Sam added with determination, playing along.

“Damn right,” you affirmed, cracking a smile at him.

Bringing your attention back, you stared at the list. There is one option you wanted to explore but you weren’t sure if you could because you didn’t have the resources. But he may.

“You got any friends whose help we could use?” you asked cautiously, unsure of how this would play out. 

He continued chewing on his lip for a second like he was analysing all options, before nodding. 

“I got a friend. Well, my only friend,” he corrects himself. “His name’s Riley.”

“He got a place we can stay, this Riley?”

“He does. But I don’t want to involve him. He’s-” he paused, trying to find the right words to frame what he’s thinking “-he’s been through a lot.”

“We’ll leave him alone then,” you assured, realising that it must be a touchy topic for him.

Sam didn’t move on, though. 

“I’m all ears if you want to talk,” you offered. 

He pressed his lips together, giving you a tight smile. He looked like he wanted to say more but was holding back. You reciprocated, hoping it would give him some reassurance, noting how he exhaled softly.

“When I joined the cartel, I didn’t really have anyone to talk to since everyone was much older than I was. Riley was the first friend I made. He was a mouthy li’l one.” Sam smiled wistfully and you found yourself smiling with him. “He talked so much shit and he had the spunk to back it up but he never really got that far because no one wanted to test their luck with him.”

“We spent whatever free time we had together. He didn’t have a family so he and I-” he trailed off but you knew what he was getting at. “Ransone found out. Didn’t like anyone in his stupid squad becoming all buddies because if we turned against him, he knew he’d lose.”

Shared experience. You didn’t have any friends in the organization either; they were always separated from you willingly or by force. You wondered if that’s why you had taken such a liking towards Sam, knowing fully well that it was the first time in years you were able to be friends with someone without having to worry.

“He started pittin’ us against one another. Combat training, preferential treatment, just plain out sabotage. Riley’s the reason my back’s all kinds of fucked up.” He gave a short laugh. “Tried everything he could to make sure we’d stay away or even kill each other if it came to that.”

“But you didn’t.”

“But we didn’t,” he confirmed. “Ransone fuckin’ hated it, so one day, he decided that he’s going to finish it once and for all. Sent us on a fake mission so that we’d be alone together, then told us that only one of us could come back. One of us had to die or else both of us would. Some sick fuckin’ form of entertainment.”

It was exactly something that Ransone would do. Dramatic, vile and utterly despicable, just for his own joy,

Your eyebrows knit together when his eyes glazed over. 

“Riley, he- he didn’t even let me have at the gun. Just straight up chose for the both of us that he was going to be the one who died. He was so tired, of everythin’.” The muscles in your jaw tightened at where this was going. “He didn’t do it though. We figured out another way.”

You didn’t realise how tensed you were until you forced yourself to relax.

“Faked his death.” He shrugged. “It was the only way. Let Ransone believe he bled out and that I buried him behind the warehouse he sent us to. Shot him in the leg to make it look convincing. He’s still got a limp.”

“He made a run for it. Found himself a place in New Orleans, changed his identity, basically made turned into a whole new person. Ransone bought it for a while because I’d make it a point to visit the grave, leave some flowers and shit. Told him that if he messed with it that I’d put a bullet in his head and I was angry enough for him to see that I wasn’t kidding. I knew he’d figure it out eventually but I was hoping I’d get rid of him by then.”

“He lived in New Orleans for years. Never had a problem until recently.”

Sam paused for a second, but it gave you the time to pull up an old conversation you had with him.

“He’s the one Ransone threatened you with,” you connected the dots. “He’s the one he found.”

“Said he’d kill him if I didn’t take out Pierce for him,” his words were bitter, confirming what you said. “Sent me a picture of him in front of his house to prove it.”

“Fuckin’ hell,” you breathed, leaning back. Sam’s situation was more dangerous than you initially thought. Having Riley in the picture just made it more difficult to help Sam get out of the organization, especially since he was now leverage material.

“You asked me once what the scariest thing I had done was.” You didn’t get immediately what he was talking about until you remember the questions you had asked to get to know him better. “It was that. Getting him out of this life and trying not to get caught in the process.”

You didn’t know what to say.

“He’s the only family I got left.” The way his voice dropped made him sound so tired. “He’s already on their radar. If they find out I’m staying with him or that he’s helping in any way, they’ll kill him.”

You didn’t say anything, not like you had anything constructive to offer at that moment.

“That got dark real quick,” he remarked, the corners of his lips quirking upward.

Clearly he didn’t have anyone to talk to about this. To explain the entire thing from the beginning must have drained him completely.

“I’m sorry that you had to go through that,” you said quietly.

He paused for a second, looking like he was thinking to himself.

“Me too.”

______

The sky’s beautiful, you decide.

You could stare at the clouds for hours.

Which is what the both of you have been doing.

“If you fucking say it’s anything other than a dog, I’ll push you off the roof myself.”

“It’s clearly a penguin, Samuel.”

“I hate you.”

The cement was cool against your skin even though there was a blanket serving as a mediator between you and it. The sun nipped at your skin and your back was aching from staying in the same place for a prolonged period.

Sam tended to think better when he was outside, unconstrained by harsh white walls and artificial light. So you grabbed a spare blanket, a bottle of water and the ladder to haul the both of you to the roof. It was filthy, as you expected but you managed to tidy a part of it to the best of your ability before laying the blanket down.

“I know why you brought me up here, Y/N,” he piped up.

You just knew that when you needed some space, he often implored you to go outside. You figured the best way to help him was to do the same, not knowing what else you could have to give.

“Just wanted to let you know that I appreciate it,” he added.

Okay good. It helped.

“That’s a tree.” You pointed upwards, avoiding his gaze.

“You get three more seconds to change that answer to a table.”

“That looks nothing like a table. You’re delusional.”

He laughed, not offering a counter argument.

The outside did him good. He was calmer than when you first came here a few hours ago. He didn’t let his spite towards Ransone show very often, especially at this volume. Talking about Riley only reaffirmed how much he despised the man.

“We need to get out of here eventually, you know?” you mused.

You don’t want to. You don’t want to admit that saying it out loud made it worse.

��We do,” he sounded sure and you wondered if he ever felt bad about it too, “but we need a proper plan.”

The clouds shifted. It looked like a kid on a bike; not that you’d ever tell him. He would never agree.

“We need help,” you stated.

“We can’t.” You knew he’d say that.

“You know we do, Sam.”

“There’s no one out there we can trust.”

You liked that he used ‘we’. The only other times you had been referred to as ‘we’ had been for things so sinister, so violent.

His elbow was touching yours lightly. You wanted to move closer, press against him.

“There’s one person who might be able to.”

He turned to look at you questioningly. You did the same.

You waited till he figured it out on his own. His face shifted the minute it clicked in his head.

“No way.” He turned away, almost laughing out of bewilderment.

“It’s our only option.”

“Then we’ll find another one,” he began to sound more insistent, realising you were being serious. It was a crazy idea, you’d give him that, but it’s the only one you had that had a sure shot of working.

“We’ve tried. You’ve tried. There’s only one way,” you knew that getting annoyed wouldn’t get through to him and you also understood his hesitations. “He’ll help.”

“We don’t know that. It’s too fuckin’ dangerous.” He couldn’t afford that; not this late in the game.

“I know it. Lis- Sam. Look at me,” you commanded gently, and he obeyed reluctantly. “I understand that this is absolutely batshit wild, but I promised I’d help you. This is the only way I can think of. But I need you to trust me.”

He looked unsettled.

He didn’t have anything to go on. Only your word and his faith in you. He could say no and he knew you’d spend countless hours pouring over multiple options just to find another way. He could say no and you’d take it in stride and he wouldn’t have to worry about it. It wasn’t about trusting you, it was about not trusting the others.

But he could also say yes and let you take control, trust your instincts. You had never let him down before and he knew you wouldn’t now. He could say yes and help you work on one solid plan that had equal chances of failing as it did being a success, but it was something that you could be sure of.

“I’ll tell you this though, Sam. You always have a choice.”

He felt your fingers trace at his face patiently. He scooted closer, letting your bodies press gently against each other.

“Okay,” he whispered. “I trust you.”

He didn’t know if he made the right choice or not, but the smile that appeared on your face made him think that maybe he did.

God, he was done for.

___

“You ready?” you asked him.

“No, but what the hell; let’s do it.”

You let it ring right to the very end.

“Hello.” It seemed gratuitous at this point because you knew the conversation wouldn’t proceed with that.

“Code?”

“1993.”

“Y/N. Hello,” his voice came back loud and clear.

“Hey.” You snuck a glance at Sam. He was completely stiff.

“How are you?”

“I’ve been… good,” you admitted.

“Oh?” he sounded amused. “That’s a change.”

“Yeah.” You shifted on your feet awkwardly. “Listen, I need help.”

“Help with?”

“We need to get out of here. We can’t do it without you. I mean we can, but it’d be better if you lent a hand.”

“When you say ‘we’, you’re referring to…”

“Me.” Sam stepped forward towards the phone. You shifted it so it was between you.

“Oh, hello,” he sounded surprised, and he had good reason to be. “You know about-”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Y/N, you trust him?”

“Yeah,” you looked up at Sam, “I do.”

“Alright. If shit goes wrong, you’re both fucked. I’m not taking any responsibility.”

“We get that,” you sighed. “Can you help or not?”

There was a momentary silence on the other end as he thought.

“Tell me what you had in mind.”

“We got a hit.”

They turned away from their conversation with the person walking beside them at the interruption.

“This better be important.” They gestured to their companion who looked annoyed at being interrupted. He was too dangerous to have on anyone’s bad side but the agent didn’t care. This was crucial.

“Someone saw him. Wilson.” He was breathless from the flight of stairs he had run to come upstairs.

“Where?” They could hardly believe their ears, restraining to contain the excitement that was threatening to rise.

“A town, miles away from Pierce’s place. Said he roamed around looking for a store, bought some food and then left.” His eyes shone. “We think we might know where they are. A rough sketch at least. Couldn’t follow him too far because he kept checking.”

“Finally,” their face gleamed, completely discarding the guest they had and the confusion on his face. “Some good fucking news.”

“Do you want us to put a hit out on them?” The relief the agent felt was almost overwhelming. His partner may have died but it didn’t look like he was going to.

“No,” they said crisply, certainly. “This one’s on me.”

Next part

[gogglor]

Cap-Ironman RecWeek: What-If Wednesday

Time for another installment of @cap-ironman rec week! Today’s theme: AU’s.

I know AU’s in different settings are half the reason most people read fanfics, but they’re not really my thing on the whole. AU’s where different choices are made, or different events transpire? Absolutely. Coffee shops? Not my cup of... you know.

So, here’s my AU recommendations for mostly “turn left” scenarios. This time with an under-the-cut break so I don’t take over everyone’s timelines (sorry about that last post). Also with some summaries truncated for length.

Alone Like This

Author: GotTheSilver

Word Count: 7,452

Summary: Steve, post waking up, runs away from SHIELD, and Tony's the one who tracks him down.

Why You Should Read It:

First off, GotTheSilver’s been consistently and regularly putting out solid Stony since 2012 and not only are they not stopping, they’re only getting better. This writer doesn’t get nearly the fanfare I’d expect in Stony circles for someone who puts out this much good stuff, and here’s hoping this post can be a part of changing that.

While I am always a sucker for enemies-to-friends-to-lovers, there’s something to be said for stories where Steve and Tony hit it off right away. And watching these two very different people look at each other and see the same sense of being lost, then finding each other again is... excuse me, there’s something in my eye, ignore me.

Second Chance Lives

Author: raeldaza

Word Count: 43,872

Summary: Tony's gonna die of palladium poisoning anyway, why not join a pointless expedition to recover Captain America’s body? And after, well, why not dedicate his last few months to making sure an American hero settles into his new life? What else is he going to do, get drunk at parties?

Why You Should Read It:

This writer doesn’t write a lot for the MCU but when they do, dang.

“Tony is the one helping Steve acclimate to the new century before Avengers 2012″ is a whole genre of Stony fanfics that scratch an itch I didn’t even know I had before I started reading fanfiction, and this is one of the best ones out there. It’s got it all - Steve poorly coping with his PTSD, Tony poorly coping with his immanent mortality, some breathtakingly poor communication between the two most emotionally stunted men in the MCU, and a cat named Roomba. What’s not to love?

Should You Choose to Accept It

Author: elwenyere (look, you’re gonna be seeing a lot of them this week, sorry-not-sorry)

Word Count: 27,106

Summary: After a terrorist attack and a field operation gone wrong, the Avengers realize that Nick Fury's secrets are just the start of a much bigger mystery. Steve and Tony try to keep some things from each other as well, but that can't possibly affect the mission — right? Mission Fic + Getting Together (or Mission: Getting Together) that mashes up elements from Iron Man 3, CA: Winter Soldier, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season one, and Mission Impossible 3.

Why You Should Read It:

You can see my post yesterday for singing El’s praises, but what I really liked about this fic was how how damn creative it is. The CAWS/IM3/AOS mashup is everything I wished the actual MCU gave us and more, with well-developed characters and an exciting story to put them in. And because it’s El, you know the banter’s gonna be on point, the way the characters care for each other is gonna be emotionally constipated but touching, and the pacing’s gonna be exciting enough to draw you in and keep you there. Also, this fic doesn’t have nearly enough kudos so please go read it and fix that or I’m gonna have to try to hack AO3 and that’ll just be embarrassing for all parties involved.

What Happens In Vegas

Author: sabremc

Word Count: 161,951

Summary: “What the hell, Tony?” Rhodey demanded brusquely.  Tony winced and drew the phone away from his ear.  “You’ve got cops and Feds all over the hotel.  I’m watching you perp walk out of the police station on repeat on CNN.  They’re saying you tried to bribe Stern?  Fox News has you selling weapons on the black market, and God that picture they’re using is the one from Bali in ’09.   You look like shit.  They wheeled Stern out and put him in an ambulance, by the way.  Got some paparazzi swearing you decked the guy.  Now they’ve got ‘copters following it like he’s OJ.”

“Yeah, don’t worry, Sourpatch, I’ve got it covered.   Uh, though, I should probably tell you that, purely in the interests of national security and the greater good, I kind of had to fake marry that stripper-gram  you sent.  Thanks for that, by the way,” Tony added quickly.

Why You Should Read It:

If you’re deep enough into Stony to see posts like this on Tumblr, you probably know sabre’s what we in the business call a “big name author.” They’re prolific, they’re popular, and most importantly, they write words good (technical term). Seriously, sabre just keeps cranking out high quality stuff over and over again, raising the bar for the rest of us like a jerk (not really. I’m not bitter they write stuff so good I wish I’d thought of it first. Not at all.)

I never read stripper!Steve or stripper!Tony as a rule, but this came so widely recommended that I broke that rule and boy am I glad that I did. This is also the only fic on this list that’s a true-AU, with Steve being a non-powered vet from Afghanistan who left his army career to help Bucky and is stripping in Vegas to raise money for a prosthetic arm. He’s booked to do a private show for Tony, shenanigans ensue, and now they’re fake-married. This fic’s got some top-of-the-line banter and character development, but I particularly love it for its rich setting. Sabre paints a Vegas not just with strip clubs and blackjack tables, but KISS-themed minigolf, romantic dinners on the Eiffel tower, gaudy hotel lobbies, and making out on giant ferris wheels. It’s such a richly developed playground for the characters to play on, and through it, Steve manages to find a life for himself he’d given up on, and Tony finds multiple ways to show his kindness and depth of feeling for Steve. I know the word count’s long for this one but trust me, you’ve gotta read this fic.

Wait & Sea

Author: Lenalena

Word Count: 53,244

Summary: In which Tony and Steve get sent on an undercover mission aboard a cruise ship to make contact with Hydra. In this AU the military has kept the discovery and defrosting of Captain America a secret, so Steve and Tony have never met before. Yet they are to pose as newlyweds....

Why You Should Read It:

This one’s old and popular enough to be considered one of the “classic” Stony fics, and for good reason. Lenalena doesn’t write too often and not as much as they used to, but the fics they have up there are an absolute delight.

This is another fic that I skipped a bunch of times for being outside my comfort zone, but when I finally read it I saw why everyone’s so wild about it. In this story, Steve’s defrosted a bit earlier and not revealed as Captain America. He and Tony are sent undercover to sniff out Hydra shenanigans on a cruise and, because it’s fanfiction, they’ve got to pretend to be a married couple while onboard. There’s tons to love about this fic, but the things that bring me back to reading it over and over is first, Tony’s kindness and the way he’s attuned to Steve’s feelings, which... God, just inject “kind, observant Tony” straight into my veins, please and thank you. This is also another really rich setting for a story, and Lena knows how to fold the the hokeyness of the cruise into the seriousness of the mission and the depth of feelings Steve and Tony are finding for each other in a really beautiful, layered way. It’s funny, it’s heartfelt, it’s steamy, it’s gripping... why are you still reading this here? Go check it out for yourself!

Ashes to Ashes

Author: dirigibleplumbing

Word Count: 51,582

Summary: After regrouping following some surprise time travel, the world's heroes and sorcerers come up with a plan to protect the Mind and Time Stones by taking them into space in opposite directions. The result involves a lot more time loops than Steve would like, but at least they're getting a second chance to stop Thanos. (As well as a third, and a fourth...) And if Steve takes the opportunity to try to reconcile with Tony, too—well, they have the time, and Steve's going to make the most of it.

Why You Should Read It:

Dirigibleplumbing’s another name in Stony fanfics that does not get nearly as much fanfare as they deserve. They’re consistently a really creative voice in Stony fanfics and I always look forward to their stories showing me something new. Go read all their fics, I need more people to geek out with me over them.

I tend to limit myself on Steve-and-Tony-mend-things-after-Civil-War fics not because they’re not good, but because they’re so heavy, and also the Sokovia Accords have five hundred layers of crap in them that no good fic could possibly hash out well. This one, though? When you add in the Infinity War/End Game fixit? Poetry. Art. Music to my ears. DP wrote a really engaging, twisty story where it’s hard to predict what’s coming next, in spite of it literally being a pseudo-Groundhog day scenario. The characterizations are great, the story is engaging, and the feelings are big and sad and eventually happy. Go read it, you’ll love it.

I have tons of other recs for this category but this seems like a good place to stop for today. Tomorrow’s Alternative Media Thursday, and I’ve got some real gems I’ve been saving for that day (aaaaand possibly a self-rec or two ;)

[jisungsplatforms]

[Chapter II: The Red Beanie Cutie]

Pairing: Producer/Music Major! Han Jisung x Photographer! fem! reader

Genre: NSFW! Smut; non idol au, college au, strangers to lovers

Warnings: Mature Content! strong language, sexting, masterbation (m&f) + kinda guided masterbation (f), nudes/unsolicited pictures of *certain areas*

Chapter word count: 1.5k (relatively short chapter)

Taglist: @hyunjeongins @seungstarss @es-kay-zee @hyunjinsplaything @formidxble @freckledquokka (want to be added? send an ask or a dm! <3)

Min’s ho3: uh- hi? 👋🏻

this is minho’s “fine ass friend with the red beanie” 👁👁

shitshitshitshit SHIT.

Your mind was jumbled and your palms were sweaty. How the hell did I even get his number? You backtrack to an hour ago, back at the party….To when Minho asked for your phone.

...Minho…...

You bit your lip, trying to think logically. No no no. It’s probably not the red beanie cutie, Y/n. It’s probably just Minho being an ass again and pretending to be his friend. That’s it! At least...That’s what you hope.

Min’s ho3: uhh hello? you still there?

im hoping that this is the cutie who was babysitting hyunjin earlier lol

Your blood ran cold. You really didn’t want to believe it. No way was it really the red beanie cutie.

Me: If this REALLY is the cute boy with the red hat...send me a picture.

You sighed. This should prove something. Your phone ‘pinged’ a second later.

Min’s ho3: damn straight to the point, are you? youre a lot more bold than i thought

You shivered, turning red. As much as you wanted to fuck him, you didn’t want to look desperate.

Me: I meant an INNOCENT picture. Of your face, I mean.

Min’s ho3: uh- duh! that’s what i meant???

what did YOU think??

Your face burned at the thought of misinterpreting his “innocent” message.

Me: Just thought I had to clarify for you! Nasty

Min’s ho3: whatever you say, babe 😙🤪

You gave him a minute for him to respond, putting down your phone to give yourself a breather. You sincerely hope that this was Minho cause that option is MUCH better than accidentally texting the person you’re thirsting over. After about 30 seconds, your phone pinged twice. One from Min’s hoe...and one from Minho ho ho. Oh dear lord.

You decided to read Minho’s messages first. Tapping on his notification, the phone directed you to your chat, revealing the conversation you two had during the party.

Minho ho ho 😼: You’re welcome 😉

You were seriously panicking at this point. Your fingers tapped onto the keyboard like a madman. You didn’t know if you wanted to hug Minho or murder that bitch.

Me: shutupshutupshutup You did NOT

Minho ho ho 😼: Oh but I did, my dear best friend haha gross

Better play your cards correctly, sweetie. Just keep in mind...he asked for your number!

His name is Jisung btw! Be nice to him! He’s a shy, sensitive boy. I’ll kill you if you make him sad!

You ignored Minho’s last sentence and nearly squealed at the information, trying to play it cool. You giddily switched to Jisung’s tab. Huge mistake. You should’ve prepared yourself, at least a little. You knew he was hot but the picture he sent you? Oh boy. His hair, which you now know is blond under that beanie, was tousled, falling perfectly on his gorgeous face. In the picture, he was now wearing a grey hoodie and posed like a model, the expression had was absolutely fierce. Oh yeah, he knows he’s hot shit.

Min’s ho3: *image*

it’s a little messy. srry i tried making it a little nicer for you, you know. since you’re a photography major and all that.

Me: No, It’s fine!! I think you look hot! 👍

You wanted to slap yourself. Oh Lord, please end me. Your phone lit up with another text.

Min’s ho3: oh really? 😏

well i think you’re hot too, y/n 😉😚

AHHHHHH

Me: Wait how’d you know my name? And my major?

Minho’s ho3: uhhh you are minho’s friend right??? cause that’s what he told ME and i’m really hoping he didn’t give me the wrong number…

cause honestly. it is something he would legit do alkskdjks

Me: Rest assured. This really is Y/n the photography major

Min’s ho3: well y/n the photography major

i’m jisung and i think youre hot too

and not to be nsfw or anything but i’d like to fuck you too 😉😉

ohmygoshohmygosh. This is really happening. Taking the little bit of confidence you had, you texted him something you thought was bold.

Me: Oh really now? Think you can fuck me good, pretty boy?

Min’s ho3: oh baby i know i’ll have you seeing stars

fuck you so good you won’t be able to think about anything but me and me only

You had to put down your phone to take another breather. Now, not only were your palms wet but so was between your legs. You’ve never texted with anybody like this but there’s a first time for everything, right? Your dominant hand slid down to your pajamas to tease your clit over the cotton material. Shy, my ass…

Min’s ho3: wait wait wait. before we do anything, just let me confirm something

you are single, right? youre not dating hyunjin or anything??

You stopped your movements on your clit. Am I seeing this right? You reread the message a few more times before bursting out in laughter.

Me: HAHAHAHAHA NO WE’RE NOT

Hyunjin’s my best friend. Been friends since we were 5. Dating Hyunjin would be like dating your brother ew

Min’s ho3: LOL OKAY OKAY. just making sure

infidelity is NOT my thing

You were heart warmed. He made sure you weren’t with anyone before getting nasty. Which shouldn’t make you so touched, it should be a basic common courtesy, but nonetheless, it still made you happy knowing he’s a respectable person.

Min’s ho3: okay now that i know i can have you

do you still want to continue?

Me: Yes daddy ;)

Min’s ho3: oh fuck okay

since you left so early, we didn’t get to talk, beautiful

we could’ve been fucking right now instead of texting

Me: Well...we could do both

Your hand went back to your clit, this time reaching inside your bottoms.

Me: You make me so horny baby

I want you

Min’s ho3: already touching yourself babe? how naughty

I barely even said anything but here you are. playing with yourself like some desperate whore

You whimpered, putting more pressure on your clit. You were never that into degrading but with Jisung? You’d gladly take it any day.

Me: Please tell me what to do sir

Min’s ho3: finger yourself. only one finger tho

You removed your pajamas and panties and flung them to the floor. You rubbed your thigh with one hand and slowly moved it to your sopping core. Gathering your wetness, you fondled yourself before inserting your middle finger inside you. “Hmm...fuck,” you moaned. With your other hand, you checked Jisung’s text when you saw your phone light up.

Min’s ho3: are you doing it baby?

Me: Yes sir

Min’s ho3: really? good. keep playing with yourself

i’ll tell you when i want you to stop

You sighed, pumping your finger. You wanted to enjoy it but it wasn’t enough. You definitely needed something more than just one mere finger. You contemplated whether or not you should disobey Jisung and grab your dildo from between your mattress. But you also wanted to see how much he could make you cum with just his words.

Min’s ho3: one finger babe?

You moved your phone and angled it to show your pussy. You wanted to moan seeing your finger deep inside you. Snapping a pic and sending it to Jisung, you threw your phone beside you and started pumping your middle finger faster, circling your clit with your thumb. Immediately, your phone lit up again.

Min’s ho3: fuck baby you’ll be the death of me

you know what? add two more fingers for me, beautiful. you deserve it

You cried, slipping your pointer and ring finger into your core. Now you definitely feel a lot fuller. You pumped your fingers in and out, breathing heavily. You felt so dirty, taking orders like this from a man you barely even knew. There was something so erotic about the whole thing that it drew you closer to your orgasm.

Jisung, on the other hand, was going insane as well; who wouldn’t be when he’s sexting with the most attractive person he’s ever seen? His right hand pumped his cock like a maniac. He was sweating, biting his thin lips so that no noise can come out, potentially waking up his hyungs. He knew he would die of embarrassment if they caught him masterbating to someone he just met today-or just masterbating in general-but it was getting harder to control himself. Especially with that little surprise photo? Shit- he thought he was in heaven, feeling like he would cum in that moment. The sound of a notification from his phone made his grab it from his desk.

Y/n the cute photographer: Closr! I’m so fuckinf ckose

Wsnna cum si bad

Me: yeah? then cum fir me y/n

With Jisung’s permission, you let your release taint your once clean bed. You shook as you orgasmed, moaning so loud you were glad your roommate was out of town. Once you finished, you slowly pulled your fingers out, wincing when the emptiness kicked in. You laid like a dead fish, trying to catch your breath. Your orgasm was so intense that you almost immediately fell asleep. Almost. A notification from Jisung shook you out of your trance.

(3) new message(s) from Min’s ho3

Min’s ho3: *image*

look how much you drive me mad, baby

hm you’re probably tired now after hopefully cumming so much so i’ll leave you...goodnight, y/n! hope you sleep well tonight cutie 😚

You sighed in frustration. How dare he switch from daddy to baby so fast. How are you supposed to sleep when he sent you a clear, mouthwatering image of his dick and abs covered in his cum?

[PREVIOUS CHAPTER] 📱 [NEXT CHAPTER]

[legitlaur]

lightweight // harry styles boxer au pt. 1

boxer!harry x reader

Warnings: language, nsfw content (in future parts), violence

word count: 5k

summary: Harry Styles is a notorious boxer in London. He has been in a funk for a while and can’t stay focused in training or matches. One day he sees you. You change his perspective, and however the universe blesses Harry because he keeps bumping into you. 

a/n: this is a disclaimer if anything. All boxing and medical references are sourced from google. I don’t know much about either. But please enjoy some boxer!harry because he is currently my favorite harry

Sweat was dripping down my face, my hair was sticking to my forehead and my head wasn’t in the right mindset. I kept my hands up, I was playing defense this morning.

“Harry!” My coach, Sam, barked but not fast enough.

A gloved fist swung around and smacked me in the face.

I grunted in pain but stood my ground.

“Get over here man.” Sam shook his head in disappointment.

I walked across the ring to the broody man. I rested my arms on the ropes and opened my mouth wide. I was about to get a lecture and I wasn’t in the mood.

Sam took my mouthguard out and started pouring water down my throat. “What’s your problem today? You’re not hitting a single combination, and even on defense you’re getting the shit beaten out of you.”

A lecture.

“I know.” I panted, “I can’t focus today, something is going on. I, I. I just don’t know what.”

“Hmm. Why don’t you take a 15-minute break? Go outside, hopefully, the fresh air will do you good.” Sam untied my gloves and pulled them off.

I ducked under the ropes back onto the carpet of the gym. Even with my back turned to him I knew Sam was shaking his head in disappointment, but I didn’t care. I didn’t have any big fights lined up for the next few months, I was just training for the off-season. He must have noticed there was definitely something going on because he never let me have anything more than a quick water break.

A few people were in the bathroom when I walked in, but they left without saying a word once I made eye contact with them.

They feared me, as they should.

I was Harry Styles, one of the best boxers in London.

Some people liked to call it fear, others liked to call it respect. I didn’t care what it was, so long as I was in the ring winning.

I looked in the mirror of the rusted bathroom. My hair was getting too long, Sam was going to start getting on me to go to the barbers. I took out the little ponytail that rested at the crown of my head, it was coming apart and this was a shit practice anyway. A few curls landed in front of my eyes, I ran my hands through my sweat-soaked hair trying to push it out of my eyes.

“Make yourself worth it!” I repeated to myself.

I stared at my opponent. His hair covering half his face, his eyes had less determination in them. The bruise on his right cheek was finally healing. He looked tired, sad, and weak. Nothing like a champion.

I was staring at myself.

Somehow, I had become my biggest competition. My mindset was all wrong. I didn’t have the motivation and drive I had when I put on my first set of boxing gloves. The spark burned out. Something was missing.

I slapped my face and shook my head. After bouncing around a few times I left the bathroom and went straight to the front door of the building. I could hear the busy London streets before I pushed the door open.

A cool breeze hit my bare chest. I walked a few feet away from the gym to clear my head. I had my hands resting behind my head as I inhaled and exhaled the polluted London air.

I looked around at the people walking past. Most of them were either giving me a weird look because I was walking around shirtless in the street with both hands wrapped. Others knew who I was and were nodding at me.

My head was spinning, I wasn’t sure what was happening. I felt like I was overheating but freezing at the same time. The sounds of traffic were making me panic, I couldn’t get enough oxygen into my lungs. Something was wrong with me.

When my eyes landed on you, it left like the biggest fist to the gut I’d ever taken. The air that I couldn’t inhale was somehow knocked out of me.

You were the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen before. When you walked past me, it wasn’t the confusion, fear, or respect that you gave me. No, you gave me pity.

I looked into your eyes and felt peace and passion all at once. There was a mutual understanding of what I was going through. Even if I wasn’t sure what it was. I felt like we were staring into each other’s souls.

I turned around as you walked right past me. Not even giving me a second thought. Why would you?

I tried to keep my eyes on you for as long as possible, but you turned the corner before you could blend into the crowd. I was pretty certain a woman with your beauty and confidence would never blend into a crowd.

I pinched the bridge of my nose when you disappeared. I knew the chances of me seeing you again were slim to none. I never had much luck in my life, except maybe boxing.

You. The bizarre angel sent from heaven above to show me pity.

I didn’t even realize pity was what I needed until you showed it to me. I wasn’t sure how you’d shown it to me, there had been nothing but eye contact.

A dreary man in a suit bumped into me. “Watch where you’re going, man.” He gave me a disgusted look. It was probably deserved after my sweat got all over his blue blazer.

“Sorry," I muttered as I walked back into the gym. Sam was sitting at the front desk with his hand covering his face. He was getting more and more frustrated with me. My practices hadn’t been great recently, and neither of us knew how to fix whatever problem I was clearly having.

I didn’t know what came over me or why the next words came out of my mouth, but I had a feeling I would regret them soon enough.

“Schedule me for a fight.”

Sam's head popped up. His eyes were wide. “What?”

We both knew me getting in the ring for an actual fight right now would end with me in the hospital. I didn’t care, if anything I hoped it would inspire me to find some form of inspiration.

“I want to fight someone! Anyone!” I reiterated as I walked up to my coach.

“Are you sure you wanna do that? We both know you’re not ready for a real fight.” Sam offered.

I wasn’t sure, hell maybe this was suicide. I shrugged, “Why not? I haven’t had a real fight in months and it’s starting to show. The fans are losing interest.”

Sam nodded, “That’s true. Maybe this will get you out of the funk you’ve been in.”

“So you’ll schedule me for something soon?” I was getting a little too eager.

“Yes, but if I don’t think you’re ready for it I’m pulling you out.” He was already on his phone, probably trying to find me a decent opponent that wouldn’t ruin my title.

-

A week later I was in the locker room of the York Hall. I was getting my hands wrapped in preparation for my match that evening. I could hear the audience through the cinder block walls. Word had spread that Harry Styles was going to be back in the ring tonight. People from all over London were coming to see me fight. I had an audience, now all I needed was to put on a show.

Once Sam gave me a quick pep talk and I was in my gloves I threw on my robe. I waited for my walk-out song to start. It was my cue to head out to the ring.

The song “Death May Die” began, dramatic violin blasted through the speakers I stood up straight and walked out into the arena. The crowd erupted into cheers when they saw me. I kept my stoic face and didn’t interact with the fans at all. It was part of my act. Harry Styles was someone to fear after all.

Once I climbed up into the ring my team took off my robe and tried to get my adrenaline pumping. They pushed my mouthguard up against my teeth and climbed out of the ring.

“In the middle.” The ref called out.

I turned to face my opponent. Jack ‘JawBreaker’ Jones. He walked out to Machine Gun Kelly’s ‘Jawbreaker’ a little too pretentious if you ask me.

He was 6’1 and 150 pounds. His long blonde was tied back into a bun, I wasn’t sure how he managed to have such long hair while boxing. It was nearly impossible for me. I had long hair for a few years, but when I got serious about my boxing career I had to chop it off. Jones was rather tan for a Londoner, and he was chiseled out. From what I’d seen and heard he was a good boxer too. This would be an interesting match.

The plan to win was simple. Sam and I knew I had the better cardio, so we strategized that I would go with defense and tire Jones out. When he started getting too tired to keep trying for the offense I would knock him out.

We made eye contact, tapped gloves, and started the match. There were five rounds, each for three minutes.

Once the bell rang Jones and I started dancing around each other. Waiting to see who would make the first move. I did my best to keep my distance and not let him back me into the ropes. I had a longer wingspan than him, which meant I could be further away and still land a punch.

Finally, Jones threw a punch. I ducked and spun out of the way, keeping myself away from the ropes. He got closer again and jabbed me in the ribs. I fought back, swinging an uppercut to his face, and landing it right on his nose. Blood started dripping down his nose. I knew I didn’t break it, but I’d had a similar injury and I knew his head was pounding right now.

The bell rang through the arena. I finally heard the crowd again, realizing they were there watching. Just as fast as the round started, it ended and I was back in my corner on my stool guzzling water and listening to Sam tell me to go for Jones’ jaw.

Once the break was over, Jones and I were staring into each other’s eyes to start round two. So far he wasn’t wearing down as we anticipated. His cardio was pretty decent. The round started and Jones immediately landed three punches to my side. I groaned in pain but kept standing. I couldn’t let this wanna-be boxer beat me.

I inhaled deeply through my nose, my torso ached as the oxygen reached my lungs. I landed three or four punches to his side and arms, but Jones kept his hands up to guard his face the entire time.

We were in the fourth of five rounds, and I was out of it. I barely made it through the third round. I was up against the ropes getting the shit beat out of me. All I could do was keep my hands up to try and protect my face.

I had a busted-up lip, slip-open eye brown, and definitely a bruised rib. I had to take the defensive side this round. Jones had landed enough blows for the ref to call the match and the judges to easily declare him the winner.

I threw a few here and there as we bounced around the ring, but he was landing just as many punches. Before I knew it, I was back up against the ropes. My eyes were hardly open, I was trying to keep my gloves up but my arms were so tired and sore I couldn’t raise them high enough to keep my face out of the line of fire. My knees were beginning to wobble, I was going to blackout any second.

I turned my head slightly, that’s when I saw you again. In a crowd of hundreds of people, I saw you. Everyone else was a blur, you lit up like a Christmas tree. Your eyes caught my attention like a firework in the middle of a blizzard. You looked frightened but the concern and pity were screaming at me through your dilated pupils.

I don’t know how, but I felt an adrenaline rush kick in. I threw punch after punch right into Jones’s face.

Make yourself worth it!

With my mantra in my head, and you in the crowd I knew I had to finish off ‘Jawbreaker’. I flipped us, he was backed up into the corner against the ropes and I was slamming my gloves into his face, really going hard on his jaw again and again. The ref stepped in and pushed me off Jones.

I gave them a little space while the ref gave him his eight-second stand. When the ref yelled six, Jones fell to the floor. His knees gave out and his head crashed against the mat.

The crowd went wild and started screaming. There were chants of my name and boos from every corner. I went back to Sam, he took out my mouthguard and untied my gloves. Once my hands were free he had me follow a pen with my eyes. It was harder to stay focused on the pen than I cared to admit, but it wasn’t because my head was pounding from the beating I’d endured. It was because you were somewhere in the audience and I had to find you.

I’d won. Even in my darkest months I still had some grit in me. Perhaps it was only because my eyes somehow found yours in my weakest moment, or maybe it was the fighter in me finally resurfacing. The moment I thought I would end up on the mat with a concussion I ended up getting my arm lifted into the air and called a champion.

The title ‘Best Boxer in London’ still rang true.

I ran into the locker room, not bothering with any post-fight interviews or fan interactions. I wanted to get okayed by the paramedics, get showered, and get into the crowd to find you. I had to find you.

My legs were bouncing up and down while the paramedics cleaned up my cuts, and stitched me up. They took a look at my ribs and told me to take it easy for the next few days. My eyes were fine but I did have a gnarly black eye forming on my right eye.

The paramedics finally left, it had taken everything in me to let them take their time with the stitches and checking for a concussion. I flexed my hand muscles and frowned at the light purple bruising on my knuckles. Once I was alone in the locker room I stripped and limped into the shower. The hot water seared against my aching muscles, but I had a feeling this would be the only warm shower I had until I was able to get back into the gym.

Once the water ran clear again and was no longer slightly red, I hopped out of the shower and dried myself in record time. I was dressed in a hoodie and sweatpants, and back in the arena before Jones left the ring. He still had doctors looking at him.

The number of people still in the arena dwindled significantly from when I had won. I could only pray that you hadn’t left yet. Maybe with some grace from God, you would be waiting out the traffic of leaving York Hall.

I scrambled through the groups of people congregating together. I couldn’t describe you to anyone, I didn’t know your distinct features. All I knew was that when I saw you, I would know it was you.

I looked and looked, but you were nowhere to be found. I sighed through my nose and dragged my feet back into the locker room to grab my bag.

“Awesome job Harry, I don’t know how you managed to pull through in that last round. I was certain Jones was going to knock you out.” Sam pulled me in for a hug.

I wrapped my arms around him and patted his back then released him. I went to my locker and grabbed my duffle bag. “I had a random burst of energy I guess.” I shrugged and left the room before Sam could ask me any more questions.

I’d won a fight when I was at my weakest. Normally all I wanted to do was go get my earnings and spend most of it at the bar or club to celebrate. Today, I just wanted to find you. I wasn’t sure why you were so important, or why you had such an impact on me, but I needed to find out. I was determined to find out.

I went to the back office where I found myself at the end of every match. The bright lights in there burned my sensitive eyes. Inside the ring, the light was bright but the rest of the arena was pretty dark. I only ever focused on my opponent, the light was never an issue.

“Styles! Congrats man, that was an epic fight.” Jeremy, the owner of York Hall (and also the guy who organized all these matches) greeted me as I opened the office door.

I nodded, “Thanks, Jeremy.”

The tall skinny man stood up from his desk, “You know you brought in quite a fanbase tonight.” He picked up a thick white envelope and handed it to me, “There’s your cut. $1500.”

“$1500? I fucking won man, that fight was worth $2000 easy.” I threw my only good hand up in the air, “I knocked out ‘Jawbreaker’!” I raised my voice but added a sarcastic flare to Jones’ stage name.

Jeremy only shrugged, “I don’t know what to tell you, Harry. The business has been slow lately. Maybe it’s time to find some other way to make money if this isn’t enough for you.”

I grabbed the envelope, stuffed it into my hoodie pocket, and left the office before I did something I would regret.

I was fuming when I went down the stairs. I needed to get out of York Hall. This day had been a complete shit show, and on top of it all, I was getting paid absolutely nothing. Not to mention I had rent due, and Sam was expecting his next paycheck soon. $1500 wasn’t going to cut it.

I huffed as I pushed the doors open and walked out into the dark and muggy London nightlife.

“Took ya long enough.” A voice called out.

“Excuse -” I began to yell but clamped my mouth shut when I turned and saw who spoke. It was you.

You were leaning against the street lamp post on the corner. You were wrapped up in an oversized black trench coat, and your hair fell perfectly at your shoulders.

“Excuse me?” I finished the phrase and started walking closer to you.

“Knocking him out in the fourth round, when you should have knocked him out at the beginning of the third. Your head is out of the game, Lightweight.” You stated matter-of-factly.

“Lightweight? Is that meant to be some kind of insult?” I mused.

You shrugged, “What do you think?”

What did I think?

Only that the universe really thought I deserved something good in my life right now, because I was standing less than a foot away from the girl that had been stuck in my mind since the day I first laid my eyes on you.

I cleared my throat, “Have we met before?” It was a trick question, one you shouldn’t know the answer to. I wasn’t even sure if I knew the answer. We’d never officially met, I’d just been seeing you in my mind over and over again.

“Not officially.” You shook your head. “I’m y/n, y/l/n and I already know who you are. The infamous Harry Styles ‘Best Boxer in London’.” You used finger quotes on the last half of my name.

“What’s with the finger quotes?” I mimicked your actions.

“The best boxer in London should have knocked ‘Jawbreaker’ out in the third round. Not gotten his ass handed to him before a weak knockout at the end of the fourth.” You explained.

My lips formed a thin line, as much as I hated to admit it (even to myself) you were right. Sam worked hard to make sure I was guaranteed a win, but I almost lost.

“How do you know so much about boxing, y/n?” I tried out your name for the first time. It felt good rolling off my tongue. It was a beautiful and eloquent name for a beautiful and graceful woman. Very fitting.

You shrugged your shoulders nonchalantly, “I’ve been in the ring here and there.”

You’d boxed.

“I’d love to see you in action sometime,” I smirked.

“I suppose something could be arranged.” You stepped out into the street and lifted your arm in the air. Hailing a taxi. When a small black taxi pulled off and stopped you opened the door. “If we meet again, Lightweight.”

The taxi door slammed after you climbed in. I had a pit in my stomach when I watched the taxi drive off into the night. My initial thoughts were that I’d never see you again, but I’d thought the same the first time I saw you. Then against all odds, I somehow spotted you in the crowd at my weakest moment in the match; and I bumped into you while you were waiting for a taxi. I had a feeling I would see you again when I least expected it.

I didn’t see you again. Not for a long time. The morning after my fight with Jawbreaker every headline read something along the lines of:

JawBreaker gets his Jaw Broken by Harry Styles the Best Boxer in London

Sam called me and was freaking out. Apparently, I broke Jones’ jaw during the knockout. The media went crazy, and I was blowing up on the internet. I took the next two weeks off to recover - doctor's orders.

When I finally was able to go back to the gym Sam had me doing press and interviews instead of training. He kept telling me I had to have a name in the media to have fights to train for. I understood what he meant, but I had become a local celebrity overnight. I couldn’t even go into a local coffee shop without someone asking for a photo or autograph.

I’d come up with the tough scary guy persona to avoid this. I didn’t want to interact with people. I absolutely loved my fans, but most of these people weren’t boxing fans. They saw my knockout on social media somewhere and thought it was cool. They were not real fans, they were the trend followers.

After a month of not being in the gym, I finally had to sit Sam down and tell him he had to start doing what I paid him to do. Train me. He agreed and got me in the gym the next morning.

I spent another few months doing the most intense training of my life. Not to mention I now had a fight every other week. These random guys kept showing up at York Hall telling Jeremy that they could beat me.

They were easy fights, and they kept the cash coming in. I hadn’t had this many zeros in my bank account since I went bankrupt in college. Only this time, there was no negative sign.

I was in the best shape of my life, and my head was finally getting back in the game. I did everything I could to keep myself busy. When I wasn’t busy, I would start to think and get in my own head. That’s how I got to my dark place only months before.

Today I was finishing up my last set of weights before ending my workout with a quick sparking session with one of the gym’s trainers.

Once I put all the weights away properly and wiped the sweat off my neck and hands I went upstairs to the ring. When I got up there I heard a sparring match in progress.

Two women were in the ring. I couldn’t see much of their faces. Only what they were wearing and their skill. The faster and more agile girl wore a black sports bra and matching black shorts. She was able to throw a lot of punches, but the ones she did land were weak.

I started watching her opponent. She wore a white sports bra and lavender shorts. She was stronger and preferred to throw perfect punches. She landed every punch she threw. Overall the two of them were good boxers. I was impressed with what I’d seen.

Sam was a few feet in front of me watching. I closed the distance between us and crossed my arms across my chest. “Who are they?” I asked.

“Hannah Lee, and y/n y/l/n. They’ve been practicing here once or twice a week for a month now. They said it was just a fun workout, but I think with some serious training they could really be something.” Sam explained as he watched the match.

y/n y/l/n. There was no way. I knew you mentioned you’d been in the ring before, but seeing this sparring match. This was different.

“Did you say y/n y/l/n?” I asked as nonchalantly as possible. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but the chances of someone with the exact same name as you sparring in the same gym as me were almost 50/50.

Sam nodded. “Yeah, you know her or something?”

“Not really. We met once, at the ‘Jawbreaker’ match. She called me Lightweight.” I smiled as the memory of you insulting me ran through my head.

“Sounds like y/n.” Sam chuckled.

Did he know you? Had you been right under my nose all these months and I’d been too self-centered to notice? Would you even want to talk to me? Was I worthy of you?

Make yourself worth it!

I reminded myself of my mantra.

Sam and I watched in silence as you and Hannah finished up your session. You ducked under the ropes, someone I didn’t recognize untied your gloves. Once your hands were free you grabbed a water bottle and downed it.

Sam walked up to you and started making a conversion, I stayed by the stairs. There was a pit in my stomach from just thinking about talking to you again. I wasn’t sure how it would go, I didn’t even know what I would say.

“Lightweight.” Your voice could bring me out of trance, but your voice calling me - even if it was that horrible nickname - was enough to end my life.

“Really? You coulda picked any name and you went with that one.” I quickly shook my head in disappointment while trying to keep my cool. I blinked a few times and refocused on reality.

You were standing in front of me, unwrapping your hands. This was the closest I’d been to you in decent lighting. Your eyes were still as electrifying as the last two times I’d stared into them. You had the kind of eyes that made people feel like you were peering into their souls.

Your eyes remained focused on the white tape you were unwrapping as you spoke, “Lightweight suits you,” you shrugged your shoulders.

“Long time no see. Looks like you finally got to see me in action.” You quoted my eager words to watch you in the ring months ago. “I figured I’d be running into you soon enough. This is where you train, no?”

“Yeah, it is.” I wasn’t sure what else to say, I was still stunned that you were here and even more so speechless that you were more than decent at boxing.

Words started tumbling out of my mouth before I could filter them. “When you said you’d been in the ring here and there I didn’t realize you really knew your way around the ring.”

You kept your head down but I could still see the small smile that grew on your face. “Maybe if you weren’t so busy being a hotshot media magnet you would get your ass back in the ring and train with the rookies.”

You’d noticed that I had been properly training in the last little while. Maybe you’d be able to convince Sam that I needed time working on combinations for matches, instead of working in front of cameras for the press.

I threw my hands up in the air dramatically, “You hear that Sam? I need to get back into the ring with the rookies!”

“Cut him some slack, you’re not his only client ya know.” You defended my coach.

“Wait, is- is Sam training you for a match?” I asked with a little too much enthusiasm.

You nodded, “I have a really small one this weekend, if you’re not too busy being ‘the Best Boxer in London’ you should swing by.” You used finger quotes for my title again. “It would be really motivating to have a ‘pro’ there.”

“What is it with you and your finger quotes when it comes to my skill?” I rolled my eyes.

You picked up a small duffle bag from the floor and walked past me towards the stairwell. “Buy me a smoothie and maybe I’ll tell you.”

[aka-indulgence]

Take Me by the Hand

So I wanted to post this on valentines (it’s not exactly valentine-themed, I just wanted to put something out hjdsk), but decided it was better to post now -w- this is a little fluff fic for @yeosin-n!! She has a really cool au called underwaves, and of course she makes just wonderful wonderful stuff and i love them all- and then its an undertale au!!!! in the ocean!!!!! ahdjkshd I kinda instantly fell in love with it... and UW Sans (Naut) as well, so uh!! Here’s a fluffy self-indulgent fanfic!!

Naut (UW!Sans)/Reader :D!!

"heheh, ya look like a big duck, darlin'."

  You try not to make a frustrated noise at him (lord knows he's already having WAY too much fun with you) and choose to simply mumble to yourself quietly as you take step by heavy step towards the innocently splashing waves, as if taunting your predicament.

  "I'd appreciate some help right about now, I could do without the remarks." You snap (softly) at him as you waddle your way over the sand, your heavy diving equipment jostling a little with every step.

  Naut had been helpful enough to put all the weight on you, and you wanted no more than to strangle the grin off the bastard's face.

  He's lucky you're dating him and love him too much to do that.

  Naut only chuckles for a bit, in your face, and you're about to throw your flippers at him when his laughs finally die down.

  "sorry, sorry," Naut lets a few more chuckles out as he wipes the "tears" away from his top set of eyesockets.

  You could swear you saw his lower eyelights turned into hearts for a second…

  "couldn't help myself. ya sure are a cutie," he says, and you would've made a sound of indignation if you didn't see the flowers happily popping into existence near the hole in his skull, floating down as if a slow waterfall was carrying it.

  You're the one with the happy little flowers, you want to tease, but at the same time, you didn’t want him to hide it. It was cute and pretty, you loved seeing him happy and relaxed.

  Without realizing what he's trying to do, Naut's already by your side, going behind your back. Before you could ask him what he's doing, you make a "hup-!?" Noise when he hoists your tank up.

  "better?"

  He was.. helping you carry your equipment.

  "Y-yeah!" You startle (you're not sure why, but the fact that he's actually helping you makes you feel.. sentimental).

  "ok then, let's keep going,"

  With the help of Naut, the journey to the water’s edge wasn’t as painful as it was when you started trudging down the sand, and you eventually got about chest-deep in the water.

  Naut let go of your tank, keeping you steady while you fit your dive boots into the open heel flippers. You fit your mask onto your face, and Naut starts drifting into deeper waters, now bobbing in the waves (how do skeletons float…? Of course he came from the ocean but… it’s like he has invisible floaties on!). He snrks a little. You make a face at him (well, as much of a face you could make with a mask covering half your face).

  “What?”

  “heheh… nothing. ya just… ya kinda look like a fish? with the goggles…” He makes two C-shapes with his phalanges, bringing them up to his sockets. “oh glowing waves above, i just wanna pinch you.”

  “H-hey! Stay focused!” you fluster, holding your hands out to him as if he was going to bite you. 

  Naut chuckles. “yeah, you’re right… i can always pinch ya later.” he teases, and before you could protest more, he gestures with his hand. “ok, check your second stage first, and let’s swim slowly…”

  You give the purge button of your second stage a couple of times, before attaching it to your mouth, floating towards your sea-lover. You release the air from your BCD, and Naut takes you by the hand, gently guiding you into the water.

  Everything feels different as soon as you are completely submerged, the sounds around you switching from air to water; your surroundings turning blue in an instant. For a few moments, you can only hear the sound of your breathing, the bubbles burbling around you.

  “you doing ok?” Naut’s voice snaps you out of your momentary awe, sounding practically as clear as he does outside the water. “don’t forget to equalize the pressure in your ears.”

  The sand slopes down, and you tilt your head this way and that, giving Naut the ok signal when you think you’re good.

  He’s dropped his teasing and playing around as he slowly brings you away from the surface; you vaguely feel like someone with a blindfold on while someone else’s pulling you somewhere to show you a surprise. He has to keep looking behind him to make sure he doesn’t run into corals or sharks or whatever.

  Your world completely changes around you- not that you’ve never seen ocean scapes before, but actually being in it to see it for yourself sure is a special experience. You see your first fish, catching your eye as it darts away from below you. The sandy bottom keeps going down, and down, and down….

  … Until eventually, you reach a spot where it stops, turning into a plain of sand.

  Naut sits down- just, sits down on the sand, and it's so weird how he just so casually sits, legs apart below you, underwater. He tugs you a bit, pointing to the sand.

  You descend, knees hitting the sand with a soft ‘pwsh’... your hands inadvertently fall onto Naut’s ribcage.

  You see all four of his eyelights looking down, then lighting up, and you have no idea if he can see you blushing underwater-

  But thankfully, Naut knows to set his priorities straight, and right now it’s making sure your diving goes smoothly and safely.

  “good?”

  For a second, seeing Naut completely at home in this environment, you nod your head without thinking- shaking your head before giving him the ok sign.

  His grin grows and he laughs.

  Damn. Even underwater he still sounds smooth as hell…

  “heheheh… ok, bubbles. let’s get started then, shall we?”

  After about a minute of buoyancy practice, Naut kicked off the sand with his slippers (how did they stay on his feet under- you know what? Maybe you shouldn’t question the physics of underwater monsters so much), letting you follow him in your own pace.

  Not too far from the water’s edge, corals started sprouting out from the sand, and no longer than that, more sea life appeared. A rainbow of fish were milling about, shrimp and crabs skitter over the ‘living rocks’, and a sea turtle lazily swims by.

  Naut easily backpedals towards it, and it circles around him.

  Your eyes are taking in the underwater scene all around you with splendor; if you could smile, you would. It was all just so pretty, and your boyfriend’s over there becoming some sort of disney princess, as a few cleaner fish swim towards his skull. You don’t need to hold in your laughter on account of the regulator in your mouth, but your metaphorical smile gets bigger as you watch the tiny striped fish look around his crack while he’s completely unaware… he looks like he’s about to say something when his eyelights go out, as one of them starts nibbling.

  He flaps his hand like he’s swatting a fly away, and maybe you’re being tortured right now because you just want to let out a raucous laugh, purposefully shoving it in his face.

  “oh, of course, you’re entertained.” Naut lids his sockets a little, feigning annoyance, though the cute little flowers only continue to flow out of his skull.

  You want to gesture a “sorry (not sorry)” at him, but without knowing sign language, the most you could do is open your hands for a hug. He’s been wonderfully non-teasing the whole way down, and you think he deserves some credit, especially showing you… all of this.

  You’re thinking about how thankful you are to have him with you when you see his eyelights dart somewhere else with his grin turning mischievous. He points to the turtle still swimming nearby and asks “hey, what kind of turtle do you think that green sea turtle is?”

  … What.

  You blink at him a couple of times, trying to convey your “what kind of question” emotion you’re feeling right now, knowing he’s smart enough to realize what he just said-

  “hahahah, i’m joking i’m joking, i know it’s Chelonia mydas. c’mon, i’m no loggerhead.”

  w-

  …

  Loggerhead. Loggerhead sea turtle.

  …

  You raise your fist at him, and you hope he could hear your internal screaming at him. Looking at the way his sockets crinkle and his grin practically stretching from non-existent ear to ear, you think he can.

The dive was relaxing and pleasant, with Naut completely in his element, giving you the reassurance that you’ll be alright with him. He brought you to different parts of the reef, highlighting some of the animals similarly as to how he addressed the sea turtle.

  He brought you swimming closer to the seafloor, showing you clownfish in their stinging friend-homes, and with a straight face he said, “keep your friends close,” he put a ‘friendly’ arm around the carnivorous invertebrate, “keep your anemones closer.”

  You swam away from him then, closer to whee the sand starts sloping again. You met a singular jellyfish there, to which Naut poked away from you- it could just fit in your palms. You watch with mild glee as he gently poked it around… you know it’s a living creature… but wow did you want to bounce it and play around with it like a toy. He moved it away from you and sent it bobbing in the direction of the open ocean, and he turned to you to say “are you jelly you didn’t get to play with it?”

  You wanted nothing more than to show him a flat face, if you were brave enough to take the regulator off your mouth. You followed him back towards the reef, swimming through a large school of fish that parted as you did.

  “how you feeling seastar? i’m feeling fin-tastic.”

  He turned around to gesture at the school. “aren’t they like living artwork? so beautiful. i like to consider myself sofishticated, you know.”

  You almost couldn’t focus on the reef around you as you were both delighted and desperately trying to hide it from him, that you’re enjoying a diving buddy/instructor that could talk to you as you dive.

  You swam leisurely ahead of him, looking for more “landmarks” (sea… marks…?) to look at before you run out of gas, when you heard a rush of water behind you.

  You almost let the regulator out of your mouth when you see a huge eel flapping about near you, with Naut holding its tail end and keeping it from coming at you. He reeled it in towards him, holding its head.

  “don’t know what got into this guy. maybe your fins surprised him.”

  He goes silent for a while.

  “but i guess thaaat’s a moray for you.”

  Old jokes!!! He’s too much!!!

  You wished you could’ve said something to him so you weren’t simply being subjected to his continuous puns, but at that point it looked like you might just get that; when you saw that your pressure gauge showed less than 100.

  Naut quickly looked to you when you made a wave at him, giving him a 9-0 signal, trying to convey an “up?” as best you can.

  “oh. oh yeah let’s get you up, bubbles.” He said as he swam towards you.

  It was like- he had a switch for professional diving instructor and ‘regular Naut’. He quietly guided your ascent, slowly and steadily, making a stop below the surface to decompress, before finally swimming all the way to the surface and inflating your BCD.

  “Blah!” you ungracefully spit the regulator out, letting it sink into the water and take the mask off your face. “My teeth always feel weird afterwards…”

  “cus’ you’re clenching it all the time.” he floats towards you, putting an arm around you. “how you feeling, gull friend?”

  You open your mouth, only to stop when you realized what he said- as if on time, a seagull keows above you.

  You give him your best attempt at a seething glare, but you take a breath and smile, putting an arm around him as well. “You know what? That was really nice. I haven’t had this much fun in a while. … or really, I didn’t do that much before I met you. I liked this, Naut. Thanks for taking me out here with you.”

  You watch with satisfaction as Naut’s lazy expression and smug-ass grin fade away, his main sockets becoming wide and a light blush colors his cheekbones.

  Ha, gottem.

  “o-oh. you- yeah. i… you're welcome. anything for you, seastar. i’m glad you liked it.” his eyelights shift away from you.

  “Yeah… though not gonna lie, you really were a sun of a beach down there. Punning when you know I can’t say anything to you- it was like, water you doing!”

  “ha, yeah i know, it was-” Naut paused. And then he turned to you, seeing how smug and proud you looked of yourself.

  You watched how his eyelights dilated in his sockets, sparkling like sun rays dancing in the water.

  “heh… heheheh….” he chortled, “oh… don’t be mad now… it’s not a good idea to get too tide down to your emotions.”

  “Well- high tide or low tide, I’ll be by your side.”

  “better make sure you weren’t pier-pressured into that.”

  “Nah. I’m a girl who just wants some sun with my bonefriend!”

  He was smiling like a downright lovable idiot right now, eyelights shining like the sun.

  “hhhhoooh my god, i want to kiss you.”

  You give him a smirk.

  “Oh! So you’re feeling… naut-y?”

  Your grin weakens a little when Naut stops grinning, and his eyelights shrinking back to their regular sizes, shimmering. For a moment you worry if you said something wrong somehow, but your worry was unfounded- just moments later you watch as cute little hearts start coming out of his skull, with four of his eyelights turning into the same shape.

  “i don’t know why kissing’s naut-y, but it’s in my name-ture to be.”

  You’re smiling just as wide as him, ignoring how far he had to reach to make that pun. He closes his eyes and you let him lean in towards you, meeting him in the middle. He wraps his arms around you and kisses you while you reciprocate happily; bobbing in the waves under the sun.

[jd-loves-fiction]

➤”I’d like one order of Mando adventure angst with a side of fluff and a dash of spicy bickering. Enemies to lovers or friends to lovers flavor (whatever’s on the house) and a nice hot bowl of ‘there was only one bed’

Give my compliments to the chef”

➤ genre: Fluff, Adventure, Comedy(?), Enemies to Partners, Angst

➤ wc: 4.9k (holy shit might be my longest request🥴)

➤ 🌙 Requested: @batarella ❤

"Listen, buddy, I got here first." You attempt to reason with the wall of beskar currently pointing his blaster directly at you.

Maybe not the smartest thing to say when first meeting someone of his reputation, but he can only be doing this for one reason. 

He's after the bounty squirming nervously at your feet. And you're in the way.

Why else would he be out here, in the middle of a rocky desert on some faraway planet?

"Step away from him." The voice you hear startles you with its modulated dept. It's more surprising that he even spoke at all, given what you'd heard of the Mandalorian. Although his stature and the silent tension he brings with him is no doubt intimidating, you will not give up so easily after following this bounty so far out from the nearest town. “No.”

His visor tilts to the side, like a frustrated twitch, at your answer. “Maybe.” You rectify, which makes him raise his head in interest. “Do you have a fob?”

“No, I don’t.”

Not that it matters anymore considering yours is broken, but at least now you know he can't follow you if you make a break for it with the bounty. 

“How did you find us?”

“I have my ways.” You nearly roll your eyes at his cryptic response, not like you expected anything else from a Mandalorian.

“Do you know why they sent you?” Knowing your employers, you had a clue on what the reason was. They got impatient.

They’d been pretty determined to get a maximum time needed out of you. You’re almost sure you overstepped it.

But to send a Mandalorian? Seems like a bit much.

“They were afraid you’d run off. That you gave the bounty away to the Resistance.” Of course, those bastards can barely trust themselves, let alone a foreigner.

“Well I didn't, and I won't. So you can lower your blaster and we can do this together.” You offer amicably, not yet loosening your grip on your weapon upon his lack of movement.

“You’re out of time. Your deal is off.”

“That’s just-!” You're cut off by a shot buzzing past you.

"Last warning."

Your jaw drops. How can someone be so damn cold?

You raise your finger assertively, about to give him a piece of your mind, when you notice something move by his hip.

And it's green. With gigantic ears. And huge dark eyes that blink at you curiously.

Your head tilts, mirroring the creature. The Mandalorian follows your eyes to find you looking at the child he’s supposed to be caring for.

“Huh. And who is that cutie?” The blaster already pointed at you raises from where it had begun to slouch, alert and cautious. Noticing this, you readjust your grip on your own weapon.

You and the creature continue to study each other, until the Mandalorian pushes the brown bag to where it rests behind his body protectively.

“Are they yours? I mean, doesn't look like the ears would fit.” You speak just to make conversation, stepping closer with miniscule steps. His gloved hand tightens around his blaster, hoping to remind you that he can still shoot you point-blank.

But he hasn't.

"Can you really do much in front of a kid?" You challenge smugly, still advancing slowly. 

"He's seen me do worse."

"That right?" Another step. "You planning to shoot me today or would tomorrow work better?"

"Are you always this difficult? Just put the gun down-"

You jump towards him, hooking your foot around the back of his knee which makes him fall to the rocky ground immediately, dropping his blaster. Unfortunately, taking down a Mandalorian is no easy task, so he takes you down with him.

He throws his satchel to the side in the nick of time, it lands on a sand pile. His other arm grabs hold of you to pull you down with him.

You point your blaster at him as he lays beneath you, except it is no longer in your hand. Shit. He punches you in the face hard enough that something will turn black soon enough.

As you fall to the ground he gets on top of you, or tries, as you place your feet against his firm chest to keep some distance. You kick him in the helmet, silently thanking the stars your shoes are steel toed.

Your hand only scrapes against dry, red, sand covered rock as you search for a blaster, either would serve. Despite your momentary advantage in light of the Mandalorian’s confusion after being kicked, his hands quickly come down to cover your throat. You feel the creases in the leather as they’re pressed against your skin, and the beskar over the back of his hands against your chin.

But you still attempt to reach a weapon, a rock would do at this point.

Your arms flail wildly with no real direction, only the need to stay conscious, as if movement would help it. You do, however, notice that he’s purposely avoiding your traquia.

He still does not want to kill you. How sweet. Probably just wants to take you back to the bastards who hired you. They’d surely kill you, and much faster too.

Just as the spots in your vision start becoming overpowering, his grip loosens. You inhale greedily, desperately, gasping and coughing at the released pressure. 

You can see his visor move to and fro, searching for something. Once you look to the side, you the child safe in its pile of sand, so it can't be that. 

"Dank farrik! He's gone." The bounty. Right. Shit. 

"Now," you pause, heaving as your lungs struggle to fill up again, "what?"

He places his hands on his hips, thinking for a moment, before turning his visor to where you lay clutching your sore - but not yet bruised - neck. "I'm going after him."

"I'm sorry-?!" You cut yourself off with a cough as you sit up, feeling grains of sand make their way inside your boots and other places. "You're going after him? This is my bounty! I had him, and I would've been fine if you hadn't shown up."

He keeps his stance, probably glaring disapprovingly beneath his helmet. You huff at his unyielding silence, getting up in his personal space and jabbing a finger into his chest plate.

"I'm about to give you a piece of my mind, so you better listen very carefully. I had it! It was my catch. And from what I can tell, it still is. So you better back off, Mando." Venom drips from your lips as you glare at the tin can on his head as if you could put a hole straight through it.

He relaxes, raising his hands again peacefully, palms up, "Alright, I get it. But do you think they'd take him from you now? Let alone later when you actually catch him? They seem pretty vindictive."

"Well, what do you suggest? You're not going on your own."

"And why not?" He scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest as he leans towards you.

"You don't have a tracking fob." You retort, leaning towards him as well with your hands on your hips.

The Mandalorian pats himself down where he believes to have stored the small device, only to find all those pockets empty. "You little thief!"

"And you're a liar! Plus, you think I'd just let you take my credits? Come on, with your reputation, you should know better than that." You shrug and suddenly Din is acutely aware that the beeping now comes from your hip instead of his.

"Alright, fine, let's do it this way. We'll look for him together and once we catch him, I'll hand him in and we'll split the reward." He explains slowly, carefully, afraid to set you off. 

"Seems good to me." You speak resolutely, thrusting your hand forward firmly, expecting a handshake. 

His helmet tilts down slightly as he looks down at your hand, before he reaches out with his own. Just as the leather meets your skin - in a now less life-threatening way - a coo sounds from somewhere at your feet, making you both look down to see the little green creature looking between the two of you curiously.

You look back at it, mirroring it once more, before it smiles wide revealing its tiny little teeth and, oh, your heart might just actually melt. 

It's large eyes move down from your face, towards your hands.

You suddenly realize neither you nor the Mandalorian had let go of each other's hand and that a large grin has formed on your face due to the adorable baby. It is promptly wiped off as you pull your hand back just as he does. He looks away while you shrug at the child's inquisitive stare, unaware that the bounty hunter had been watching you and marveling at the bond you'd both formed already.

And so you set out together to look for your target, back towards town, where you had begun your chase.

He can't have gone far or in any other direction, not with the unbearable heat and certainly not while handcuffed. He'd die for sure, you just have to hope he's smart enough to know that. 

You walk through town with the fob in your hand, just out of sight. No need for unnecessary attention. The town is tightly crowded, much to your chagrin, so you move slow and are barely able to see over the moving bodies. There’s just too much going on, too many people moving back and forth, shoving past you rudely. If it’d been anyone else - not an experienced bounty hunter - you would have probably been knocked down by the last two men that had scurried past you in a rush.

Without warning, you feel a hand grip your bicep. You immediately ready yourself for a fight, before you realize it belongs to your associate. Once he has your attention, Mando nods towards the edge to the street, against red stone buildings, urging you to follow him. You do, nudging anyone out of the way as you walked against the crowd’s stream.

You’re about to shout over the noise to ask just what the hell he pulled you aside for, considering you’re running out of time, before you follow his visor. Right to a wanted poster of a very familiar scoundrel. From the Resistance? Wanted alive for 8,000 credits?

“That’s one big fish, huh?" You continue to shout in order to be heard over the crowd, which you immediately regret, looking around, paranoid. "Must be important." You comment to yourself. 

You look up to see the Mandalorian's back disappear behind the corner. You quickly follow, catching up to his long strides, "What are you thinking?"

He ignores your inquiry, continuing to practically stomp his way through town. "Hey. Hey!" You call out to no avail. Well, you asked for it.

You reach out, grabbing the man by the back of his cape, tightening it around his neck and making it so he had to lean back to follow your hand in order to keep breathing. Your heart beats faster at the rush of power you feel for a moment. "You better tell me what you're thinking, or this is not gonna work."

He taps your hand repeatedly until you let go, rising to his full height and you're back to feeling slightly intimidated as he stares you down, silently.

"I'm thinking that with a price that high you might actually take the bounty yourself."

"Why-?"

The tracking fob. The small object suddenly burned a whole in your pocket. 

"Oh come on! You were trying to kill me!"

Your voice raises, arms flailing about. You know you're making a scene, considering this street is so much emptier and therefore quieter than the main one, but for the moment, you don't care. Right now, all you want is to put Mando in his place. Something you know is foolish given that he nearly killed you before and could actually do it this time.

"Yes, but it's still stealing." He spoke with that know-it-all, I'm-better-than-you, tone that just gets on your nerves. Bastard.

You raise a finger in the man's direction, fully intending to continue this conversation and clear your name in his eyes - the reason why is unknown even to you - when a shrill giggle cuts through the air. You look to Mando's hip, where the creature (who's name you have yet to learn) sits, pointing ahead to the entrance to the cantina. 

Right at the man of the hour.

What? How?!

The man looks back at you and Mando for a moment, eyes widening as he recognizes you and the fact that this might be it.

Before he takes off running. 

You start running before Mando does, easily catching up to the stout man, who's no longer in cuffs. As you get too close to his liking, he takes out a blaster (that you know isn't his) and tries to shoot you in the head. Only to miss and hit your forearm instead. 

Hurts like a bitch, but it's better than death. 

Out of the corner of your eye you see a steel rope of some kind shoot out and wrap around the fugitive's leg, sending him stumbling face first onto the ground. 

Mando walks over to him, barely winded, standing over the panting man and blocking the sun with his body. You can only imagine the man's terrified expression. 

You quickly take care of your wound as Mando ties the man up enough that he can't move, wincing as you look at the damage made on your skin. The burning nearly stops the bleeding and it hurts so bad you can barely process it, so you don't think about it, you simply level your breathing while wrapping a cloth around the wound and hope for the best considering it's not too big. 

You clutch it to your chest as Mando approaches, pointing at your arm, intending to ask you if you're alright, but you move it to your side before he can. "Are you-"

"We should give him to the Resistance." You speak resolutely, holding back from wincing as your injury rubbed against your pants. It hurt even from beneath a (barely) protective cloth.

“I said ‘we’, so don't you start giving me shit, alright?” You tell him sternly after he crosses his arms, probably getting ready to call you a thief again. “You can't give him to the Resistance because they’ll arrest you, correct?” He nods.

“Well you know bounty hunting isn't exactly legal.”

“You don't have to tell me that, Mando.” You remind him firmly. “So, if we give him to them, we can ask for them to clear your name! And we’ll get double the reward. Two birds with one stone!”

“Do you really think they’d just do that?”

“If someone’s paying 8,000 credits for one guy and specifying they want him alive, then I’d bet they’d do anything to get him, even something as seemingly insignificant as clearing your name.” You explain, gesturing avidly as you do.

A long moment of silence passes before a modulated sigh crackles through Mando’s helmet. “Fine. I’ll go get the Crest.”

“Wait, woah woah woah. Why are you going? How do I know you wont leave me out here?”

“How do I know you wouldn't?” You take a moment to consider his words. He did lie to you, but you did steal from him in a way.

You look down in contemplation, eyes meeting the creature’s. Right, Mando has the kid, who probably isn't fit to be out in this heat for as long as it has.

“He got a name?” You point to the child, who smiles and giggles gleefully.

“Grogu.” You nod, sighing and rubbing your temples. Stars, it’s so hot it feels as if your brain is melting and you can feel a headache coming on.

“You can go. But I want you to swear on your,” You pause for a second, searching for the right word, “honorable code. Swear you’ll come back.”

“You-” The Mandalorian starts, before giving up on protesting at your determined stand, crossed arms and raised chin. “OK, alright. I swear that I’ll come back for you and the bounty. That we need.” He whispers the last part.

“Get to it then. I’m sweating bullets in this heat!”

You sit, back against a nearby rock, searching for as much shade as possible. You don't want to move the bounty back into town for a multitude of reasons, so now you’re stuck just outside of town. Sweat making your clothes stick and it gathers while the headache gets worse and more blood soaks your makeshift bandage, but at least it's silent. That's what you thought about 20 minutes ago, now, you’ve changed your mind.

“The hell did you do to get 8,000 credits on your head?” You ask suddenly, seemingly startling the man who seems to have accepted his fate already.

He sighs, probably just as bored as you, “I have some information they want. That's why they want me alive.” You purse your lips in interest, humming in understanding, before silence falls over you two once more.

Stars, it's hot.

You could cry from relief once you hear the sound of a loud engine getting closer and closer. The 'Crest', as Mando had called it. 

You grab the bounty by the shirt, hauling him to his feet rather roughly and shoving him towards the flying hunk of metal that had just landed. 

The ship. Mando doesn't come out to greet you. 

As the ramp closes and the air is blanketed in a sheet of silence, your mind starts to wander without your permission. You know he has to be handsome under there, what with his broad shoulders and slim waist, deliciously thick thighs and a wonderfully smooth and deep voice that seems to caress your very soul as you hear it. You caught a glimpse of his skin when you pulled at his collar, delightfully tan just begging for you to sink your teeth into it. 

Must be the heat. Surely that is the sole reason why you're fantasizing so vividly about a man whose real name you don't know, whose face you've never seen and oh, a man who tried to kill you. But didn't. 

Sick of your own thoughts and the loud snores of the bounty, you rise to your feet, climbing the ladder that leads to the cockpit. You wince as you put part of your weight on your injured arm, deciding to climb the rest of the ladder one handed instead.

“Are you decent?”  You shout through the thick metal door, hoping Mando can hear you inside the cockpit. When the heavy doors hiss and open, you’re sure he must be.

You sit down in the passenger seat silently, looking up at the stars above for a long moment. The mesmerizing, endlessly dark sky is all that you see at first, from being partially blinded by the fluorescent lights inside the Crest, before the stars come to you, bright speckles that dust the planetary systems all around you. Breathtaking. 

You look back in front of yourself to find Grogu already staring at you, head tilted with a smile that shows the slightest hint of tiny teeth. You smile, leaning forward with a raised brow. He leans closer to you, eyes lingering in the side of your face, the one already darkening from Mando’s blow, before dipping down to the arm you hold close to your chest. You let go of it immediately as he does, wanting to shield him from seeing the blood you know can be seen through the cloth.

The child steps closer, as far as he can while up on the dashboard. Mando has to be avoiding you, before he would've seen that movement otherwise.

It reaches out his small hand, squeezing his eyes as tightly as possible while the green limb twitches. You furrow your brows in confusion, what?

The ache on your skin lessens gradually, as if the wound was being lifted from your skin. You can feel it on your arm, it tickles as your skin connects itself around the wound while the burn disappears as if you’d just placed ice over it.

At some point, your eyes close, lulled nearly to sleep by the lifting of the pain, the feeling left behind makes your skin tingle with energy just beneath, your head feels light for a second, as if the blood moved from there down to heal the wounds.

When you open your eyes, you’re met with Mando’s visor trained on your face, silent in a way you can tell he’s speechless. “Eyes on the road, Mando.” You tell him cheekily, voice cracking unexpectedly.

He turns back forward, pausing his steering to pull Grogu forward and away from the edge, before his hands return to the commands. “So, is it far still?”

“No, just a few more hours. The closest Resistance base is just on the next planet.” His fingers flick switches and pull levers, before he seemingly puts the vehicle on autopilot and turns to you. “You can take the cot, you must be tired.”

You blink at him, “And what about you?”

“I’ll be fine.” He answers gruffly, not sparing you a glance.

“No, it’s gonna be a few hours, and you’ve been awake for about as much as me so if anyone is taking the cot, it’s you.” You argue back firmly.

He sighs, loosening the cape around his neck as a way to calm himself down, you and your selflessness.

“Alright. No promises that I’ll sleep though.” He acts like it’s a huge burden, as if it pains him deeply.

He takes Grogu in his arms and towards his sleeping nook. The small child smiles at you from over his guardian’s shoulder, and you smile back.

Once he’s safely put away and the bounty checked on, Mando leads you to a space just off the main hull space, where a bed - with the thinnest mattress you’ve ever seen - is pulled from the wall. Oh boy, you can already feel your back aching, but it’s better than sitting in the cockpit on those hard chairs.

So you lay down your weapons while he takes off the bulkiest of his armour. You lay down, curled on your side and away from him, knowing he’ll have to cuddle close to fit. You feel his warmth against your back, but you don't feel his touch quite yet, only the ghost of it. Your gut tightens with pity as you know he can’t take his helmet off. That has to be very uncomfortable.

The lights are dim enough that there is no shadow from your bodies on the wall. You can tell by the space he’s put between you, that he’s about to fall off.

“Are you scared of me, Mando? Can I call you Mando?”

“Sure and no.”

“Which one?” You ask mischievously, smirking to yourself while knowing full well what he meant.

He sighs in exasperation, so you let him be. For only a moment before you're back to being snarky. "Surely you've been this close to another human before, perhaps in a more compromising context."

"Yes and it's usually quieter." You think he might not realize what he just said.

You snort, "Must mean you're doing something wrong."

"That's not-! Just, get some sleep." He says tiredly, giving up on the banter you're pushing. You do as he asks, closing your eyes as you feel the heat of his body move closer to you.

You wake up to a rough whisper of your name and a shaking of your shoulder. Eyes open slowly, squinting against the light shining right at them, before something blocks it and eases your discomfort. The large hand on your shoulder doesn't yet move from its place, gently perched and waiting for you to wake up fully. 

You look up to see Mando's helmet over you, seemingly way too close (not that you're complaining), as you can clearly hear him breathe through his modulator. "We're here and we need to talk before you go in."

You follow him to the hull without question, stopping just before the door that leads to it. You rub the sleep from your eyes before blinking up at the bounty hunter, trying to nonchalantly fix your messy hair. 

And though he'd never tell you, he thought you looked adorable in that moment. Rosy cheeks, a faraway gaze, lips pursed to hold back a yawn as you brushed down your hair. He was certainly thankful for his helmet in that moment, considering the heat he felt crawling up his neck and settling on his cheeks. 

"Plan?"

You clear your throat before speaking, "Right. So, it's easy." You raise a hand to his face when Mando sighs deeply. "Simple, really. I go in, tell them I have the bounty and ask for a little something as compensation along with the credits. See? Easy and simple!"

"Do you think they'll take it?" It doesn't sound as skeptical as you would've expected from him. It's sort of hopeful. Even Mando has to admit to himself that getting chased around and having to avoid and run from x-wings at every turn, got pretty exhausting. 

"Let's try it before we start getting doubts." You tell him, determined. "Besides, nothing to lose if you stay hidden, right?"

The planet you landed on is small and green - perfect cover for a Resistance base. You walk along the dirt path leading to it and away from the Crest, coming up to a clearing where you can see the humongous metal doors of the base which seemed to have been dug into a small mountain. 

"Stop! State your business." A voice says through a speaker once you get close enough. 

"I've come to deliver a bounty!" You keep it simple, no use even attempting to be charming with these folks.

Not long after, the doors part to let someone through, who you presume is a general or something of the sort given their intimidating presence and the flock of guards with their weapons trained on you that follow them. 

"We have your credits. Thank you for bringing him to us." You keep your face neutral even as it urges to tremble beneath the pressure of their gaze. You feel the man in question squirm against the arm that grips his bicep. Must really not be a fan. 

"That is not all I want." The supposed general, no need to try and figure that out considering you don't want them to remember you more than necessary, raises a delicate brow. "I would like for you to clear someone's name."

"That is not what we agreed on."

"Yes, well, I didn't agree to it myself, so." You shrug, impressed that the general's face remains stone cold, especially considering how much they probably would like to dispose of you given you're dragging out this exchange for longer than what's really necessary. 

"You are in no place to make demands." One soldier tells you, pulling out his blaster and pointing it at you, getting more of a reaction from the bounty than from yourself as he flinches. 

"Oh, I am in the perfect place to be making demands." You tell him venomously, grip tightening on the man's arm.

"We have you surrounded."

"Just the way I like it." You respond with a wink just to hear the person's stuttering over the modulator on their helmet.

"Very well." The general calls out in order to gain their minions' attention, "Just tell me what name they might be under in our system."

"The Mandalorian. Mando for friends."

Epilogue

"Fuck! Shit, fuck! What was I thinking?!" You yell out in frustration, standing before what remains of your ship, the rest most likely taken by Jawas, who must be long gone by now. "Of course someone would take it apart, why not?! Oh, stars." You wail miserably, crouching into a ball in search of some comfort. 

"Hey, it'll be alright. Don't panic." Mando tells you gently after pulling you to your feet and grabbing your shoulders tightly to ground you. "There's two ways we can do this: we go after those Jawas, get your pieces and fix the ship or," Mando hesitates for a moment, fingers drumming along your skin as he turns the words over and over in his tongue until he feels as if he'll get them right once he says them. "you can come with me until you get enough credits for a new one. 4,000 might not be enough yet, but it's a pretty solid start."

His rare optimism brings a small smile out of you and makes your anger settle down almost completely. You'll no doubt have an even deeper hatred for the little shits, but you don't feel as if you'll punch the next living thing you see.

"I guess catching a ride with you can't be so bad, huh, Mando?"

[fangirlincorporated-blog]

The Lucky Australian

Authors note: the last part of this is from a reporter/interviewer POV

~~ 38 I Want You ~~

I don't need to try and explain, I just hold on tight

And if it happens again, I might move so slightly

To the arms and the lips and the face and the human cannonball

I need to, I want to come stand a little bit closer

Breathe in and get a bit higher

You'll never know what hit you when I get to you

Oh, I want you, I don't know if I need you

But oh, I would die to find out

Oh, I want you, I don't know if I need you

But oh, I would die to find out

 Aurora rolled over, fumbling for her phone on the bedside table, cracking one eye open she smiled when she saw Henry’s name on her screen.

“You only left 3 hours ago” she mumbled

“Still asleep?” Henry chuckled

“I was, you cant have missed me that much”

“Can you take my photos?”

Aurora rolled her eyes

“Cavill, you have asked me this almost every day since I met you-“

“I know but, the photographer hasn’t turned up, and I know you and love you, so I may have suggested you can do it”

Aurora sat up straight in bed.

“Henry, why would you do that?”

“Fucking hell Aurora, you’re fucking talented ok, and can you not give me that shit about me handing you a career and blah blah? I love you and trust you, I’d feel better if you did this for me, no one else. Please? I wont ask you ever again”

“Christ! Fine. You owe me” Aurora threw off the covers and scrambled out of bed.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make it more than worth your while” She could hear the velvet of his voice when he got into that mood.

“It’s the sex for photos scandal is it?”

“I’ve sent a car for you. Should be there in 5 minutes” Henry hummed into the phone.

Aurora hung up the phone, swearing as she ripped open her suitcase to find appropriate attire for today.

~~~~~~~~

One thing you notice about Henry and his girlfriend, is how no one seems to exist outside of their universe when they’re occupying the same space. Prior to Aurora’s arrival, all Henry could do was nervously pace around, he had told me about her and how talented she was “Something she would tell me is subjective” he says.

Aurora didn’t even make it through the door before Henry made his way over, like the moon had been pulled back into the world’s orbit. Aurora was not someone I expected. She grabbed a camera and sat down, prompting Henry to do the same, its odd seeing him so obedient in front of her, hanging one every word she does or doesn’t say, Aurora on the other hand didn’t seem at all fazed by Henry, more annoyed at being here.

“He woke me up” was all she said. So here is someone barely functioning as sleep exits her system.

Aurora quickly comes to life, firing off shots as they talk to each other, oblivious to anyone else in the room. The stylist has long abandoned trying to stop the conversation to get Henry to change, what I do notice though is how entranced everyone is by the two of them sitting in the middle of the studio, its like magic that no one wants to interrupt, they all see what Aurora is getting out of Henry, the photos that appear of the monitor are of a man in love, a man with no barriers with none of the stand offish, nervous energy that has most times plagued his other times in front of the camera. It always interesting to see how love changes people, and how it has changed this 6 foot something, hulk of a man that becomes kitten like with his girlfriend.

What we also notice is the proximity of them, they are always touching in some way, either consciously or sub consciously, legs touching, hands reaching for one another, his hand on her thigh as he pulls her closer, much to her annoyance as she tries to put distance between them so she can finish her task. It’s a failing exercise, one that Aurora eventually concedes to as Henry quickly kisses her. Their voices mingling as they talk, his deep baritone, offset against her soft australian twang.

Eventually she ends up on his lap, face to face as she tries to position the camera in front of his face, him pushing it away as he holds her, so she fires off a few shots.

“This is unprofessional Henry” Aurora admonishes him before untangling herself from his grasp, smiling at him. He looks heartbroken as she moves away. Not that he seems to care about professionalism for today.

“The one thing I will never tire of, is her reciting every line from bobs burgers. She loves that show, she’s so similar to Louise as well, its uncanny!”

What about Henry, is he sold on it

“It’s grown on me.” He smiles

Aurora joins us and we talk about photography for a while, what inspires her and what she prefers shooting.

“Live music for sure, I love the colours, and everything about it”

Even though this interview is for Henry, we talk a little more about her photography and her favourite artists.

“Oh my god, I adore Michael Bublè!”

“Wait, really? You never told me that!” Henry exclaims. “I’m sure I did! Wanna hear that story?” And suddenly they’re thrust back into their own little world, (the story is beautiful, but out of respect for Aurora, that’s being kept private).

Eventually, Aurora steers the conversation back to Henry and his interview, something he seems uninterested in, purely because he is distracted by his girlfriend. Eventually, Aurora surmises this interview is “being hindered” by her presence, (her words not mine) and extracts herself from the situation, giving Henry the excuse that she needs to check the photos and her photography equipment, she takes her camera everywhere I’m told.

Eventually, the interview wraps up and Henry starts searching for his girlfriend, I remark that he seems lost without her.

“I was” he says sadly. I ask him what he meant by that. He tells me about the days spent by her side when she was recovering in hospital.

He visibly breathes easier when she comes back into view, I say my goodbyes and exit, leaving them to align back into each other’s orbit.

[itsclydebitches]

I have to wonder how season 2 Crosshair is gonna start with anything other than him escaping execution. Dude murdered his whole squad with one known survivor who reports it to the General, who then says 'We were gonna kill him anyway, so just let him die here'. It's not like Crosshair has any sort of bargaining chip to justify the Empire not abandoning or executing him.

It may end up being important that (I think) the surviving squad member doesn't know that Crosshair killed his team, only that they're dead. She was off looking for Omega, came back, saw her dead teammates and the clones fighting droids, and (smartly lol) got the hell out of Dodge. I think her exact words were that Crosshair "lost control of the situation," which tells the Admiral that Crosshair failed, but not that he failed because of his own betrayal. Granted, I think she's also the one who approaches the Admiral earlier, saying she doesn't trust Crosshair's motivations when it comes to his former team, so there's already a precedent set that Crosshair's loyalty may be less than perfect. Still, the actual explanation of what went down doesn't reveal that Crosshair killed his teammates and outright betrayed the Empire, just that he failed to complete the mission.

So based on what stories have done in the past, I can picture a couple of different ways for him to return:

 Using the above, Crosshair straight up hides his shaky loyalties and frames the failure as just that: a garden variety failure. Perhaps he implies, though does not outright state, that his team's death came at the hands of TBB. A "Let the Admiral think what he wants" situation that benefits him.

The above + Crosshair emphasizing that TBB escaped. You know what kind of threat they are, Admiral, and though I failed before, I'm still your best chance at capturing/killing them. You need me. Crosshair believes firmly in his own usefulness — that ego — and he's not above working hard to convince others of that.

 Between now and the time of his return, the Admiral has, for whatever reason, reconsidered the benefit of having at least a few clones in his army and is thus pleased that Crosshair survived, no matter the iffy circumstances of that. Personally, my mind keeps focusing on the weird motivations here. Namely, this push to have a conscripted army when, as far as TBB shows, that's a bad option compared to what they've already got. We as the audience know that the Empire needs to reach the point where they've got stormtroopers with terrible aim (that's the OG Star Wars), but right now, outside of that meta context, the Admiral's choices come across as rather stupid to me. Gregor and TBB point out, "These are our replacements?" highlighting that conscripted soldiers just don't have the skill of clones who were bred for war. I can only assume that the Empire was spying on Crosshair's team the same way they did TBB when they were sent to execute the "insurgents," which means they would have seen that the clone, Crosshair, was the only one originally willing to follow their order of killing civilians. Crosshair had to kill the other guy/talk the rest of the team into following that command. And of course, that's largely due to the chip, circling right back to why the Empire would have removed his when it gives them perfect control over Crosshair, especially after bothering to enhance it in the first place. So say nothing of Crosshair's crazy skills, making him one of, if not the best, shooter in the galaxy. I feel like if they want the Admiral to come across as less foolish, all these points should resurface at some point like, "Yes, having an ally specifically bred for war, with a genetically superior makeup to enhance his ability, who can be put under literal mind control and who while in that state has already proven that he'll follow our commands when conscripted soldiers won't... that's actually a good thing for us evil people to have!"

The Admiral has totally written Crosshair off. Doesn't need him. Doesn't want him. But a new character is introduced who is interested and who, crucially, outranks him. So Crosshair is let back in as someone else's evil pet, setting up conflict within the Empire.

The above, but specifically through the lens of clones now being a rare and useful commodity. We know they grabbed Nala Se, so either she (if she regains some power) or her new scientist boss could insist that they keep Crosshair around as a genetic source/experiment/whatever. Especially since they don't have Omega yet. Could even be that Crosshair becomes a prisoner again, returning to fight for the Empire, but becoming their lab rat instead.

Crosshair deliberately does something to get back into their good graces. Something, something, saving the Admiral from a legit threat, or one of Crosshair's own making. A way to show off how useful he is.

 OR we do get a near execution that results in the same basic thing: Crosshair escapes, shows off his skill, all his would-be executioners are dead, he's the last one standing, and the Admiral is like, "Well then. Welcome back." You know when Rex is on the cruiser and goes "This will do nicely," Tech points out that it's not sterile, Rex pushes back that they can go to Kamino instead, and within a second Tech is going, "This will do nicely!" too? Same idea. It's easy to accept Crosshair as the best/only option if he does something to make himself that option.

Ultimately, I think how this goes down will depend largely on whether they want Crosshair back in the Empire's clutches or not. He's told TBB he intends to stick with the big power, but that doesn't necessarily mean the plot will allow for that. If the story wants Crosshair to continue being a willing Imperial for a time, prior to his assumed redemption, then yeah, I think it would be relatively easy to get him back in the Empire's good graces. It wouldn't necessary be the smoothest transition of all time, but as we've already seen in Season One — I don't totally follow why conscripted soldiers are supposedly better than clones, don't follow why TBB isn't trying to rescue Crosshair, don't understand yet why Crosshair won't clarify things about his chip, etc. — motivations in Star Wars can be... messy at the best of times. So if they just went, "And the Empire let Crosshair come back for ___ reason, don't think about that reason too hard" I'd be fine with that. But, if they want Crosshair to start his redemption now, one of the easiest ways to do that would be to stick him with a third party. Someone else finds him on the planet, perhaps someone neutral-ish like another bounty hunter, and Crosshair is given the chance to technically be opposed to his brothers because that's where they left things, but not actively working with the organization hunting him down. Plot-wise it would be relatively simple to put him in situations where he wants to return to the Empire, but can't just now, for whatever reason — they need to travel there, he hasn't thought up a means of getting back in their good graces yet, he gets caught up in another problem he needs to solve first, starts hunting TBB himself to return with that incentive, etc. — and that time allows him to start reconsidering whether he actually wants to go back, now that he's been forced to survive without them. An in-between space that will allow him to work towards the Light side again... even if I'd personally prefer for that to come about through his brothers fighting for him.

[primergon]

Hello! I’m so glad you decided to take scenarios and matchups ☺️ Could I get a matchup for a pseudo-parent please?

I’m a non-binary ace lesbian, but I can’t tell my family. I’m an INFJ who deals with anxiety and derealization issues. At first appearance, I’m told I come off as cute and unassuming but I’m scary as hell when angry.

I plan to go into biology (ecology, specifically) and work in helping ecosystems hurt by the climate crisis. Science has always been a bit of a guilty pleasure for me, but I don’t say it much because it makes me feel like a smart kid stereotype. Speaking of, I’m a very good student and have a record of straight A’s.

In the past I used to be very shy around other people, but I’ve been working on it and I’m simply just very quiet now. I’ve also been trying to work on my confidence, and one of my proudest moments was when I seperated from a toxic friend.

I used to suffer from some eating problems, but I’ve gotten through the worst of it. I’ve always been thick, and am starting to feel good in my own skin for the first time. Because of this, I’m getting interested in fashion and such. I like oversized sweaters and sweatshirts and I swear I’m about to break my combat boots from how much I wear them.

When I’m familiar enough with someone, I tend to have a dry, anti-joke sense of humor with a hint of self-deprication. Almost every friend I’ve ever had has said that they were surprised at how loud and outspoken I was when we got closer.

I’m very stressed almost all of the time and have a tendency to people-please, but if I get annoyed enough with someone I won’t hesitate to speak my mind. I also am extremely tired during the school year because I need more sleep than school allows me.

This is probably WAYYYYY too long, so I’m sorry in advance 😅 hope you have a good day!

+ additional details you wanted me to add: I completely love music. Like, I think I’d die if I couldn’t listen to music for more than ten hours. I love all kinds of music, and I’m involved with my school’s band. Marching, concert, pep, jazz, anything. I’m also a field commander for the marching band this year.

A/N: Hello Anon! No worries, as a fellow INFJ I understand that we tend to put in a lot of details and I enjoy that too so don't worry :) This will be my first time in making a (pseudo) parent matchup so I hope I don't ruin it, but I think idw Ratchet would make a wonderful parent figure for you.

1. As an INFJ, Ratchet understands you in the sense that he sees himself in you. You remind him of his early days in the academy: all the sleepless nights spent on studying and preparing himself for a future that once seemed uncertain. Ratchet started becoming protective of you when he heard you talk about school with First Aid. He catches on to the fact that even if you're a brilliant student, it doesn't mean you didn't struggle with anxiety. With a major like yours, it's hard for the medic to not feel proud and worried at the same time. While Ratchet was happy that you aim to make the world a better place with your major, he knows the kind of pressure that comes along with it: so one night he just sits next to you with an Energon cube in his hand and said ' talk.'

2. Eventually, the two of you fell into deep conversation, from your accomplishment as this year's marching band's field commander to your journey in parting ways with a toxic friend. It was nice to hear Ratchet tell you he's proud you made the right choice knowing it wasn't easy. He gave several sarcastic remarks here and there but you knew hidden underneath was a word of advice: cleverly concealed by someone who has a hard time expressing his emotions ( not that you mind. ) He left with " keep up the good work" and you knew from that moment on that he cares.

3. The thing about Ratchet is that he shows his support subtly. He knows about your interest in fashion - even if he, a Cybertronian, can’t fully grasp the appeal, Ratchet makes an effort in trying. So he sends Swerve and Brainstorm to your habesuite - “ C’mon, it can’t be any different from designing an avatar right ?” “Swerve the eighties called I think they want their fashion trends back.”

4. When you walked into the medbay, the old medic would compliment you. “Hold the test tubes properly, you don’t want to stain that nice sweater.” “Don’t let First Aid soil those boots of yours with the chemicals, it’ll be a shame.”

5. Every time you fall asleep in the med bay or Brainstorm’s lab, you would always wake up to a blanket around you. Whenever you ask either Velocity or Perceptor, they would smile and shrug at you as if to say ‘ you can thank Ratchet for that.’ Sometimes, others would wake you up, urging you to go back to your room to rest. “ Ratchet wouldn’t want you to hurt your back so he sent me to wake you.” You always return the blanket after, but every time you fall into a quick nap, you will never wake without it.

6. If not in the medbay or the lab, Ratchet would find you at Swerves. Either laughing with the minobot over a shared deprecating sense of humor or putting Getaway back in his place when he gets a little too disrespectful towards the other patrons. He would sometimes join you, staying to drink for a while before going back to work, all the while ignoring stories of him being a ‘party ambulance’ back in medical school. If he stays long enough, you find the courage to give him some advice regarding Drift, and the old mech would deny everything even if he made a mental note to every word you said. “ Gifts? Pft, you’re a sap.” “ Trust me, Ratchet! “

7. One time on shore leave, you were separated from your group, pulled away from them by the crowd passing through the markets. The local authorities you bumped into had asked for identification, but you knew as an Earth citizen, you didn’t have the proper permits. Before the officer could drag you away, Ratchet had stepped in, one hand shielding you - “ And what is your relation to the Earthling ?” “I’m their Sire. I have a permit to be here.”

8. The officer took one glance at Ratchet’s credentials before leaving. He didn’t bother to ask whether Ratchet was actually your parent or not ( which obviously was questionable ) instead you were free to go with no trouble. The whole time Ratchet was scolding you for going astray, you were smiling at the thought that he chose to lie as your parent, even if he could have lied about anything else. He could have called you his apprentice, the ship’s liaison, heck, he could’ve lied and said you were a prisoner. Yet, in the moment of danger, his first instinct was to protect you as his own. You had hugged him right there and then, stopping him in the middle of the bustling crowd. Hidden by the swarm of people, Ratchet finally caved in and returned the gesture.His worry was evident from the way he held you close.

9. After that, everyone on the ship treated Ratchet as your pseudo-father, and Ratchet went along with it. If someone wants to find either of you, they know where to look. All they need to do is follow the music playing from the med bay, your laughter should follow not far behind. 

A/N : I hope this was accurate Anon ! i hope you like it, i’m sorry it took quite a while <3