#Key Chain For Cheating Playing Cards

[jjenthusee]

Where We Are

Pairing: Jason Todd x Reader

A/N: honestly this has been marinating in my mind for a while because a while ago I saw @sunnie-angel post this small writing (linked here) and I wanted to write something for it, but I haven’t gotten to sit down and complete something :( BUT i finally sat down and wrote because i needed something as a break from my end of semester stress from school :D i would also recommend reading the linked post first so it gives some context and insight to why i was so drawn to it and how it heavily inspired this fic. ENJOY and like, comment if your comfortable 💐

Summary: How do you live with the memories of Jason after his death as Robin?

Tags: AAAANGST, have a nice day :)

Word Count: 1.6k

A boy.

Full of so much life and raw emotion, who stood against the worst of Gotham.

He saw so much of its poison. It struck him, filled his veins, but he fought every day against the pain. Only when he finally left did Gotham return its thanks.

Everyday was torture. The memorials, the photographs, the graffiti. Streets littered with “We remember you.” Every waking second was a reminder that he was gone.

No more late night chats, meeting at the library, leaning against his shoulder.

You can still taste the bile that consumed your throat when you opened your door to Alfred standing there with the most chilling expression. Once he said your name in such a matter-of-fact tone, you knew. Your heart ached the same way it did when your thoughts brought you back to your worst fears, maybe it ached worse but that memory is buried in the back of your mind.

You slammed the door on Alfred. Grabbing your phone, calling one of the most recent phone numbers in your call history. It rang and rang. Nothing.

You left voicemail after voicemail. Begging, yelling, crying into the ending message to pick up.

You couldn’t walk down the road that led to the same library you spent all summer with him. The humid air beating down on you before the air conditioning sent a chill down your back. Scanning your library cards, returning books, letting Jason give you recommendations.

The memory made your eyes water.

You did everything to avoid it all.

Taking the longer path to school, playing music in your ears loud enough to drown out the passerby’s conversations about how tragic such a thing could happen to a young boy, avoiding any sort of color that matched the suit he was so proud of.

The same one that took him.

The more you avoided, the more the image of him chased you. Billboards, coffee cups, baseball caps. Robin was everywhere.

Until you saw a memorial video that some Gothamite made on social media.

It broke you one more time.

You screamed and screamed until your voice couldn’t. He was gone. Your Jason was truly gone.

You couldn’t get mad at him cheating at board games, you wouldn’t hear his laugh, no more asking him to drop off food while he was on patrol.

The world took the other half that completed you.

When the pain numbed out and you felt the guilt of your actions, you apologized to Alfred. You got back on track for school, the world wasn’t better, but it didn’t weigh on you as much.

You finally took a walk down the road you didn’t dare look down. You held your breath when you crossed over the invisible line, taking you down a familiar path, but with only one pair of shoes on the sidewalk this time.

You walked with your hands clenched, before you found yourself in front of one of the small memorial stands. A tiny Robin keychain stared back at you. You paid the seller with cash and continued on your walk.

The air hung heavy in your lungs as you stopped. Coming face to face with Jason’s favorite gargoyle that sat in front of the library steps. You fought the tears with lowered eyebrows and a stiff expression to place the key chain on the base of the statue. You grabbed a permanent marker out of your bag to write in big bold letters, “We Remember You.”

It was sloppy writing, but it captured your unrelenting, unapologetic emotions that Jason had always told you was why he loved being your friend.

As the weeks went by, more tiny Robins appeared on the gargoyle. Flowers were placed and you finally listened to the city mourn your friend.

Eventually you graduated, took a job at the library because you didn’t know anything about your future into being a young adult. Life was simple, it was enough.

You finally felt some stability on the anniversary of Jason’s death before you heard talk of a new Robin. That a replacement had been made.

You were at a rage again.

When times were too tough or when you just didn’t know how to handle yourself, you called Jason’s phone. Leaving voicemails admitting how much you missed him, how mad you were that he couldn’t even wait until you were able to beat how many books he checked out at the library, now it wasn’t fair to continue the competition by yourself. How mad you were that they didn’t retire the Robin suit after he sacrificed everything for it.

You didn’t even question how his phone line was still running as long as you could leave more voicemails.

When your rage started to cool, you joined Alfred one morning while the cold air chilled your face. Alfred handed you a hot tea that you refused to take, but Alfred always managed to get his way. It brought a smile to your face when you realized Jason used to do the same thing.

You walked with him down your familiar path to work. Before Alfred could say anything, your body unconsciously walked up to a new park bench. It wasn’t worn, but freshly placed with a shiny plaque that you couldn’t move your eyes from.

“In memory of Jason Todd-Wayne, a son who is loved as much as he loved books.” You quietly read.

You couldn’t move. You didn’t say anything to Alfred as he handed you a handkerchief when you felt the tears drop down your chin. The two of you just stood there, admiring the wood, the brass, and the memories.

When Alfred said his goodbyes, you stayed there. Afraid to sit down, but afraid to leave.

You spent the following anniversary standing next to the bench, next to the one place that was so precious to your childhood. The fear prevented you from taking a seat.

By the next anniversary, you managed to sit on the bench. Alfred visited again, shining the plaque and wiping down the park bench. You didn’t say much, but it was comfortable and breathing wasn’t that difficult that year.

By the most recent anniversary, you were starting to spend every important milestone at Jason’s bench. When you got your degree in library science, you sat with your cap and gown. When you got a job promotion at the library, you came to sit and watch the sunset.

Life was content as you passed Jason’s bench and gargoyle on your way to and from work. It was a part of you.

One late night as you locked up the library, making sure all the part-timers and volunteers made their way out safely and secured the doors, you said goodbye to your coworkers as you made your way down the worn steps.

Your feet ached from the new shoes that didn’t support you enough, but your walk back to your apartment would be short to endure the pain. The fatigue could wait until you walked through the front door.

You trudged through the familiar path, passing the same trees, shops, gargoyle. Fifteen paces, another thirty, but you couldn’t continue to count your steps when you saw someone facing Jason’s bench.

A tall man, large build, covered in a large hoodie with the hood raised. Only a couple strands of hair stuck out the opening, but you couldn’t see a clear face.

It was eerie how still the figure was, the small fog of breaths were the only indicator that the person was living.

You quickly moved to the edge of the sidewalk as you distanced yourself from the large man. You held your breath as you briskly walked passed, but a small ache hit your chest. A tiny feeling, so minuscule that you tried to talk yourself into not looking back.

Why would you do that late at night in Gotham?

Two paces, five paces. You paused and turned your head over your shoulder.

They were gone. Only a clear yellow street light shining down on Jason’s bench.

Weird.

But you weren’t going to find out what that was. You paced back to your apartment, throwing your jacket off, letting your aching muscles relax on the couch. You sighed as you couldn’t get the figure out of your head.

By the morning, you woke up early to get some breakfast on your way to work. A quick drink and some food to help give you some energy. You said ‘Good morning’ to the owners, passed by other early commuters.

You held your warm drink, breathing in morning air and taking your breakfast to-go, until you sat at Jason’s bench. It had been a while since you got to enjoy a meal there.

You sat, listening to the birds, seeing morning joggers pass, kids making their way to school, and you finished your meal. You got up to throw your trash away and took one last glance at the plaque.

You memorized the phrase engraved on there, but still took the time to read through every word. You took your hand out of your warm jacket pocket and felt your hand graze over the cold brass, your fingers feeling the grooves and the strict maintenance courtesy of Alfred.

In one last sigh, you turned to get to work, tapping the base of the gargoyle before the steps, happily humming to the calm start to your morning. Then another ache hit you just before your last step.

You turned around, but all the people hanging around the block were further away, enjoying the company of others or taking a stroll. You glanced around, unsure of what you were looking for.

But your search was interrupted by the cheerful voice of your coworker making his way up the steps.

You pushed down the feeling of the unknown, but some days you always felt like maybe Jason was with you, maybe from his bench built in his memory or the fact that this place was important to the two of you, but you always knew you were going to carry a portion of Jason with you.

In some comforting way, you told yourself that maybe your Jason never left.

[a-d-nox]

lenormand cards: key phrases and an example of a card combo (part 2)

this is just a beginners guide to the lenormand. these are key phrases that come to mind when i think of the cards - NOT how they should be directly applied. they needs to be thought about situationally - the card / when it is in specific combos can change or alter its meaning in a reading.

child: innocence, nativity, spontaneity, seeing only the good in people, carefree attitude, an actually child, smallness, newness, beginnings, playing, immaturity, etc.

child + heart = young love, blind devotion, puberty, just happy to be around others, small joys in life, parallel play, nostalgia, an olive branch, etc.

fox: plotting, protection, security, stealth, deviousness, treachery, manipulation, deception, trickery, loyalty, work, routine, obligation, responsibility, duty, cons, etc.

fox + child = white lies, feigning ignorance/innocence, impulsive actions based on opportunity, pretending to be better than you are, avoiding responsibilities, etc.

bear: defensive, fierceness, resourcefulness, power, strength, courage, protection, maturity/matriarchy, stability, security, management, finances, investments, income, possessions, diet, food, etc.

bear + fox = protective yourself, a fierce loyalty, seven of swords energy, white collar crime, savings account, etc.

stars: peacefulness, tranquility, guidance, direction, happiness, hope, encouragement, perseverance, confidence, etc.

stars + bear = protecting your peace, the power of ones mindset, seeing a way out of the red / debt, etc.

stork: esteem, admiration, respect, babies, fertility, fruitfulness, productivity, birth, renewal, change, movement, new job, new home, new person in your life, extra money, improvements, pregnancy, adoption, new activity, new projects, progress, advancement, renovations, evolution, etc.

stork + stars = good self-esteem, becoming pregnant soon, encouragement from the universe to get a new job, don't lose hope in a project/task, etc.

dog: best friend, companionship, protection, loyalty, fidelity, guidance, sincerity, partnership, acquaintanceship, therapist, boyfriend/girlfriend, an affair, advisor, doctor, reliability, etc.

dog + stork = your best friend is pregnant, meeting a new friend, renewal of vows, a reliable new source of income, real estate agent, taking things to the next level in a relationship, etc.

tower: shelter, protection, confinement, imprisonment, government, corporation, judicial system, military, guarding, ego, ambition, isolation, guidance, schools, law, hospitals, high self-esteem, condos, movie theaters, office building, mall, airports, chain businesses, legal matters, bureaucracy, etc.

tower + dog = a sheltered friend, a friend you protect, roommate, an egotistical friend, water cooler encounters at the workplace, needing to visit the doctor for testing, etc.

garden: courting, public gatherings, harmony, beauty, relaxation, birthday parties, concert, play, movies, restaurants, public/private occasions, reunions, conferences, seminars, meetings, crowds, audiences, celebrations, abundance, etc.

garden + tower = little to no dating experience, solitude, hotel stay, movie theater, cafeteria, airport reunions, a convention, etc. 

mountain: immobility, resistance, standing still, endurance, blockage, obstacles, what must be overcame, challenges, delays, interruptions, burdens, postponement, procrastination, remoteness, faraway retreats, etc.

mountain + garden = stage fright, an enduring relationship, social anxiety, social burden, secrets, a rain date for an event, etc.

crossroads: options, choices, free will, multiple directions, doubts, hesitation, double lives, cheating, etc.

crossroads + mountain = analysis paralysis, the many ways to overcome an obstacle, challenges within a relationship ("where do we go from here"), etc.

mice: sickness, fast, smart, group work, damage, reproduction, stress, worry, restlessness, agitation, palpitations, anxiety, nervousness, apprehension, tension, fatigue, lost items, small problems, tediousness, repetitiveness, excitement, eagerness, agitation, etc.

mice + crossroads = options of treatment, anxiety, paranoia, worrying about doing the wrong thing or picking the wrong choice, decision fatigue, etc.

heart: love, passion, devotion, affection, emotions, connections with others, appreciation of others, happiness, joy, contentment, satisfaction, fulfillment, gratification, peace, harmony, delight, pleasure, enjoyment, kindness, charity, generosity, hospitality, feelings, desires, fondness, intentions, fidelity, etc.

heart + mice = heart break, a wave of emotions, instant gratification, manifesting, etc.

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[caps-clever-girl]

Pat Butcher 3, 13, 20 for the ask game hiiiii

PAT BUTCHER MY BELOVED <3

3: a song that reminds me of them: the classic sweet caroline. most songs in that range tbh, like come on elieene and walking on sunshine. also ANYTHING from mamma mia reminds me of pat and kitty in equal measure - as does the cha cha slide.

13: fave friendship: im torn between him and thomas and him and kitty. as much as i adore him and kitty, i think ill have to go with tom. tom is definately the ghost on the outside of the group, and its nice to see him have a genuine friendship with another ghost. pat encorages him a lot which is cute and their lil low-five in s4??? incredible. give me 1000 takes of that please.

20: a weird headcanon i have: pat is one of the ghosts that died with the most amount of items. (other is julian)

car/house keys. keyring of daley. keyring flint strike. (seperate to van and scouting keys which were in the van when he died, in the ignition) robin plays with his keys often, fascinated. especially by the flint.

wedding ring; on a chain around his neck. safety reasons when scouting! and he doesn't want it damaged. when he died he laments its not visible at all times and often takes it out and puts it on each morning, but after he finds out about carols cheating hes glad.

compass

swiss army knife

short pencil

hankie/pack of tissues

watch

wallet; some notes and a handful of change. credit card, debit card etc. membership cards. some little pictures that he treasures; carol and daley, daley as a baby in pats arms, daley at scouts with pat.

[whisky-whiskers]

starter for the wonderful @poisonedspider

When Husk reluctantly clawed his way from beneath his bedsheets that morning he never would have believed that he was destined to spend the day bound at the wrist to Angel Dust, porn star extraordinaire and general pain in his ass. Yet, there he was, sneering down at the metal handcuff clasped around his wrist — detesting the way it was, for all intents and purposes, a physical manifestation of the chains that the radio demon had him bound in. You see, the only reason he’d even been convinced to take part in this fuckin’ circus show was because Alastor had ordered him to ‘be a good kitty’ and ‘play nice,’ The hellcat was still seething from the comment, but powerless to do more than suck it up. If they could just find the key to their shackles quickly then this fucked up attempt at a bonding activity would be over and Husk could go back to his scheduled routine of sipping bourbon and napping behind the bar.

“This is bullshit,” the words, low and gravelly, grumbled out from Husk’s lips for what felt like the thousandth time. He wasn’t even part of all this redemption crap — but, oh no, the princess wanted everyone running around like morons and god forbid anyone tell her no. No, scratch that. God forbid Al told her no. You know, watching the radio demon bend himself into uncomfortable positions to serve the whims of Lucifer’s daughter would probably be amusing if it didn’t, so frequently, come back to bite Husk on the ass. Unwittingly, his tail began to flick subtly side to side in a clear indication of his brewing annoyance. Tired eyes flickered to the spider sinner that he’d been condemned to spend the day with. At first Husk wondered why, of all people, they’d paired him up with Angel but soon realised that the princess had purposefully formed the pairs with people who had unresolved issues. Well, except for herself, who was paired with her fuckin’ girlfriend — the nerve! Husk personally wouldn’t say that he had an issue with Angel, per se, because none of them knew Angel. It was hard to hold hostility towards someone that is hidden behind a mask. But then, he supposed that was the issue, wasn’t it? The fake persona.

Husk shoved his clawed hands roughly into the pockets of his slacks, ignoring how the chain between he and Angel grew taught as he did so. He pressed his lips into a firm, determined, line. Searching the whole fucking hotel for a key seemed like a fools errand. A clue might help? There was cards, some kind of magical shit, in the lounge that gave a task and promised a clue if completed. Or, they could just cheat…? “Fuck this…ya happen to know how to pick locks?” he levelled a wary look up at the spider, hoping and praying that, for once, he could just have a normal interaction without the incessant flirting and cheap sexual innuendo.

[playingcardsindiame]

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[skarlette1]

Swinging Too Far: Positive Affirmations

--The next chapter of the series Swinging Too Far.

I can do this, Satin Swinger thought to herself. I can definitely do this. The heroine took a deep, cleansing breath. How hard could it be to convince a supervillainess that you were cheating on your husband?

Not that she was actually cheating at all. Satin and her husband Steel had devised this plan together. Their work of rehabilitating the supervillainess Sersi Salivaria had hit a snag. They were running low on the special formula that protected them both from the enslaving pleasure of her super-powered saliva. To extend their supply, the Swingers had agreed to take turns teaching her the pleasures of pro-social behavior, one-on-one. To help seduce Salivaria, they were playing to her fetish for rule-breaking and letting her believe that each of them was cheating on their spouse.

From a logical point of view, Satin could see all the advantages. She even had to admit that last night’s inaugural session was really, really hot. Knowing Steel was having sex with Salivaria apart from Satin gave her quite a thrill. Plus, the taste of his still-saliva-damp cock when he returned in the morning was utterly divine. She wasn’t going to mind the repeated exposure to the villainess’s enthralling juices that would help her build up natural immunity.

Now, Satin just had to hold up her end of the bargain as well as Steel had. She didn’t expect a problem seducing Salivaria, the woman’s high sex drive had made her a prime candidate for the rehabilitation program. The problem would be convincing her that Satin was actually cheating on Steel. The two were so devoted to one another, how could anyone believe they would cheat? Satin supposed that if Steel had convinced her last night that it couldn’t be too hard. Steel had many talents, but he wasn’t a great actor. Maybe a villainess like Salivaria was used to people not being trustworthy and expected the worst of everyone. No matter, her rehabilitation would also help Salivaria with her trust issues.

For the tenth time, Satin made sure that her key-card to Salivaria’s airtight cell was fastened firmly to the lanyard around her neck. She smoothed her denim skirt, adjusted the ruffle on her flower print blouse, and took a single dose of the protective formula. One more deep breath to settle her nerves, and Satin headed in.

Salivaria had just finished her lunch. The dishes were neatly stacked in the corner of the cell to be retrieved by the helper robot. Satin had to admit it was a big improvement from the early weeks when Salivaria’s resentment at being imprisoned had her smearing food all over the transparent walls of her airtight cell. The rehabilitation was under way!

Satin punched in her twelve digit access code, stepped inside the airlock, then swiped her key-card to enter the cell itself. “Good afternoon, Sersi. I hope you had a nice lunch.”

Salivaria shrugged, lounging on her cot. “Better than the food in prison. Where’s your ball-and-chain? I thought we had a rehabilitation session.”

Satin sat across from her on the only seat in the small cell. “I’m so glad you’re keeping track of the sessions. That shows you’re invested in the program. Unfortunately, Steel won’t be joining us this afternoon. He’s, um … well, he’s resting.”

“Oh,” Salivaria’s lips curled into a pout. “Is resting code for he’s given up hope of reforming me?”

“No! Nothing like that. We both believe in you. It’s just that Steel didn’t get any sleep last night. He didn’t get to bed until nearly dawn. He’s sound asleep now.”

“He needs a nap so my session gets canceled? Just like a man,” Salivaria muttered, not letting on how much she was responsible for Steel’s nocturnal exertions.

Satin saw her opportunity to mention some supposed tension in her marriage. “Steel would never admit it, but I bet he was up all night playing one of his video games. It really bothers me how carried away he gets with those things!”

“Video games?” Salivaria raised an eyebrow. “You believe that? He left us high and dry for a game? That’s insulting to both of us!”

“I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by—”

“What he meant was to leave you to handle all his work, plus all of your own. And what about me? How am I ever supposed to be rehabilitated if he cancels my sessions so he can goof off?” Salivaria shifted closer to Satin. “It’s just like a man to depend on the women in his life to clean up after him. Honestly, Satin, I don’t know how you put up with him!”

You weren’t complaining about “putting up with him” last night, Satin thought. But the snarky comment faded from her thoughts as Salivaria licked her lips. The heroine had to swallow before she could reply. “He means well ... mostly.”

“Meaning well isn’t nearly enough. We need partners who actually do well. You asked me to think about my future after I’ve been rehabilitated, Satin, and I have. I think I’m going to swear off men. You’ve shown me that what I really need to turn my life around is the love of a good woman.” She reached out and laid her hand on Satin’s knee.

Satin could smell the sweetness of her breath. “It’s, um, good that you’re, um, thinking about the future. Real, um, good.”

Salivaria leaned closer, her fingers creeping under the hem of Satin’s skirt. “You could teach me all about how to please a woman, Satin.”

Satin could feel Salivaria’s warm breath on her face. Her heart pounded in her chest. “I … I, um, shouldn’t … not without, um, Steel.”

“You know what they say: You snooze, you lose.” She pressed her lips to Satin’s.

Every session, Satin couldn’t believe how good Salivaria’s lips felt. It was like her brain just couldn’t remember pleasure that was so profoundly intense. Satin knew that to be convincing, she should make some other weak protest of staying true to Steel. If she succumbed too easily, Salivaria would know this was a setup. Satin decided to pull away and say something … after just a little more kissing.

Then, Salivaria’s tongue touched hers. Satin moaned, her own tongue seeking out the warmth of Salivaria’s mouth. It held a whole world of pleasure to explore. As fingers slipped under her panties, Satin was surprised how wet she was already.

When those irresistible kisses moved to her cheeks, and ear lobes, and throat, Satin finally had a chance to speak. “Oh, Sersi. Ohhhh,” was all she could get out, each lick and nibble sending waves of bliss through her body. When those divine lips fastened around Satin’s nipple, she shrieked as an orgasm ripped through her body.

The next thing Satin knew, she was on her back gazing up at Salivaria’s naked pussy. She didn’t remember lying down on the cot, or taking off her panties, or spreading her legs, but the feel of the villainess’s tongue on her inner thighs was beyond words. If she didn’t protest soon, she didn’t know if she’d ever have the strength to.

When she felt the first brush of Salivaria’s tongue across her pussy lips, Satin couldn’t even scream. Her whole world just went white, hot, and silent with pure ecstasy. Each lick was like another climax, another step up a staircase of bliss that had no end. Over and over and over she came and came and came.

Satin awoke nestled into Salivaria’s bosom, her hair being gently stroked. “Um?”

“Thanks for the private session, Satin. Don’t worry about it. I’m certainly not going to tell Steel.”

Her eyes shot open at the mention of her husband’s name. She had to get back to him quickly. “Right. Right. I, um, need to go. He’ll be up soon.” She fumbled into her skirt and top, not even bothering to look for her panties.

Even with her superheroic strength, Satin found her knees rubbery as she rose from the cot. Staggering to the airlock, she swiped her key-card on the second try. She entered her numeric code wrong three times. Finally, she had to mutter each number to herself to be certain she was pressing the right keys.

Upstairs, Steel waited in their bedroom. “Are you okay, Satin? You were gone for hours.”

She flashed her husband a just-been-fucked grin. “Never better, lover boy. Kiss me.”

“I thought you said we needed to debrief before—” Steel’s words were cut short as Satin flung herself into his arms and pressed her lips to his.

The musky sweetness of his wife’s kiss sent a thrill of lust through Steel’s body. His knees went weak as his cock went hard. Satin guided him down to the bed and straddled him. Without breaking her lip-lock, she eased down his pants down and guided his rock-hard shaft into her dripping pussy. As Salivaria’s remaining saliva coated Steel’s cock, he moaned helplessly into his wife’s mouth. Within moments, the bliss shattered the hero’s self-control. He erupted with undeniable bliss, spurting his hot cum deep into his wife’s cunt.

As Satin shifted up to straddle her husband’s face, he luxuriated in the lingering taste of Salivaria’s kisses on his tongue, even as his softening cock twitched helplessly. Satin smiled as Steel licked and nibbled her tender pussy. Yes, she smiled to herself, I can definitely do this.

---

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[xe-company]

COLD CASE NO. 000000: THE STORY OF JOHN DOE is the fourth album released by boy group GHOOSTS. This album marks their newest and much awaited comeback from a year long hiatus. A few songs from their three previous albums were released in the tracklist of this 15-track full album. It brings back the theme of VHS and found footage from their debut album 'WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?'. It was released on their three year anniversary, OCTOBER 31ST 2022. It was promoted for three weeks and the album itself got the group 6 WINS on various music shows. 

TRACKLIST:

A (Mostly) Accurate Summation of Events as Experienced and Written by Eyewitness DEATHWISH TWO CAN KEEP A SECRET IF ONE OF THEM IS DEAD THE RIDDLER ROOM CHAIN OF CUSTODY GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT THE REAPER HOUSE OF CARDS DEAD MEN DO TELL TALES CHEATING DEATH TOXIC FRAGRANCE PLAY PRETEND SIXTH SENSE BAD COMPANY DIAL TONE [OUTRO]

PHYSICAL ALBUM:

The outward box is similar to a case file box that holds all the evidence and important documents that pertains to that specific case. Inclusions come in evidence bags. The idea is that this album is the beginning of the SPIRITS’ ability to try and solve the cases relating to each individual member; to try and decipher the lore. There is a chain of custody paper on the top of the lid where SPIRITS’ who buy the album can sign their name as if they’re doing a real investigation.

CONTENTS:

[1] CD DISC [1] PHOTOBOOK [107PGS] [1] LYRIC BOOKLET [25PGS] [5] PHOTOCARDS [RANDOM 5 OF 28] [1] SET OF CAR KEYS [1] COMPOSITION NOTEBOOK [1] PENCIL + PEN SET [7] MISSING MEMBER POSTER  [1] SET OF RED STRING [1] DINER MENU + RECEIPT [7] CRIME SCENE PHOTOS [1 PHOTO FROM EACH MEMBERS CASE] [1] TOWN MAP [3] NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS [MAY BE FROM THE SAME MEMBER’S CASE OR DIFFERENT ONES] [5] EMPTY EVIDENCE BAGS

[wedreamedlove]

MLQC Men Headcanon Notes

Now that I’ve spent more time with these men (it’s getting close to 2 years!) I wanted to share the general thoughts, themes, motifs, etc. that I keep in mind when I’m writing their character.

This is 1000% headcanon territory, so feel free to take what’s useful and ignore what’s not LOL but I’d also love to see people add in their own “character reference cheat sheet” to this!

(I’m especially curious because, due to being of Asian diaspora, I write best in English but my understanding of the characters come from CN/JP text). Incidentally, if anyone feels ANY of this when reading my fics, then that’s all I could ever ask for LOL.

LI ZEYAN

He is Capricorn² and, while the game doesn’t make explicit mentions to this, I associate the element earth with him because of this. He’s described with attributes like being steady, calm, and always in control. He is the epitome of an immovable boulder and things revolve around him, not the other way around. I like to draw on imagery of unbending steel and/or the stable ground.

Meanwhile, like the goat of his astrological sign, every step he takes to climb to his goal is assured. He doesn’t do anything spontaneous or without thought, so if he does lose control and act without thinking then it has to be a momentuous occasion. Basically, it’s really important to me that if I write a loss of control, then it’s likely to be the centerpiece.

Keeping in mind that his Evol is time control, I also like to try and subtly weave an atmosphere of how everything happens at his pace. Winter being his season only adds onto this because the world stills when it’s covered in snow; everything becomes muted, hushed, and slowed in this season.

The chemistry in his romance arc is how his pace and control gets disturbed, but he adapts quickly and learns to go along with these moments of whimsy. Or more like that’s his character development and how love changes him.

His canon (spirit) animal is the cat and lion. Felines go along very well with the emperor or noble archetypes he has in all his AU cards, because cats are stereotyped as being independent and haughty animals. He’s not big on PDA or excessive skinship, but he’s not disagreeable to them either. Too much stimulation and, like a cat, he’ll probably show exasperation. Ignore him for too long though and he’ll come to share his presence with you.

For me, his love is shown through quiet acts of service that don’t have any attention drawn to them. Him just being in the same room or giving his attention is how he emotes his love.

He’s quite low-key in his normal life so he doesn’t seem like someone who gets confused over commoner things, but there are also moments where he spends an enormous amount of money without blinking. If life can be made easier with money then why not, right?

Keywords: Calm. Steady. Earth. Immovable. Control. Exasperated Affection. Time. Cats. Literal Capricorn. Winter. Mature.

ZHOU QILUO

First thing that comes to mind is the sun and heat. Fire is his element and so I go for stereotypical imagery like flares of passion and burning bright. He switches expressions and moods at the drop of a hat and he’s a mood maker to the extreme, but there’s no hiding the way he shines with his love for his love.

However, because he’s also Helios, it’s really important for me to play around with dualities and explore the other side of this positive imagery. So, just like how the sun can bring warmth and life, it’s also a deadly laser something that can hurt people by blinding them or setting fires. It’s also fun to remember that the moon only has light from the sun’s reflection.

Game-wise, I believe Helios has been described with cold and ice imagery but, because I try to keep that imagery for Li Zeyan, what I like to consider instead is that extremely cold things can “burn” you too. Frostbite can also be called ice burn.

The sky is repeated imagery for Luoluo too, because of his eyes, but I’ll admit I’m still uncertain about how to interpret this for his character. Generally, the sky represents freedom but...? How I approach this is that the sky doesn’t discriminate and protects everyone below it (echoing his quote about how he protects the light in the dark).

On this note about the sky being welcoming, I view Luoluo’s love as one that accepts his love no matter what they’re like and he grows together with them (unlike the two adults, Li Zeyan and Xu Mo).

However, again, it’s super important to remember his duality and just because he’s a playful mood maker doesn’t mean he’s not able to switch into a serious and mature mode. He keeps his innocence and warm heart despite the darkness he’s seen and understands.

His canon animal is the bear which also makes me tilt my head. I can only see this as how bears are seen as both cuddly and cute, but also fierce and protective. He was also given a stag but... no one uses that LOL.

Keywords: Fire. Passion. Playful. Innocent. Little Sun! But Moon. Spring. Sacrifice. Darkness. Sky. Mischievous. Mood Maker.

BAI QI

Every single cell in his body is attuned to his love. You ever lose your phone and then, for the rest of the day, you feel as if you’re missing an important piece of yourself and you have intrusive thoughts wondering where it is? That’s him. You ever see something so cute you experience cute aggression and don’t know what to do with yourself? That’s him. You know those dogs that strain at their leashes on the streets because they want to go and greet you? That’s him.

It’s all about the yearning.

I know, I know, I wrote essays about how he can survive without his love and how he’s someone who carries both love and a greater justice BUT let’s not kid ourselves that he doesn’t revolve around his love like Jupiter around the sun.

Anyway, so the game shoves wind descriptions down our throats. It’s literally another vehicle for him to emote his love and, to be honest, I don’t do much with it other than use it for that. I talked about it extensively in my character essays, but I suppose I play with the irony of how he’s only free because he has a home can return to. [Loneliness SR Wind and Care Call] “Because I have a place for my heart, I can fly anywhere.”

I don’t believe the game emphasizes this any more than it does with the other men, but I try to always have a point of contact between Bai Qi and his love because, again, the yearning and vibrating with All That Love. He’s such a physical character (military archetype) that I also want to emphasize that in writing.

In addition, I’m all about him being the most feral of the men. Heck, his canon animal is the wolf which is great for both its stereotypical and non-stereotypical meanings, such as being a lone wolf and ferocious animal but also a pack animal that can’t survive on its own and needs a pack. Meanwhile, NW717 is described in-game as a monster.

Look, one of his signature descriptions in the game is resting his chin on or against his love’s head and nuzzling them. I’m not baselessly trying to push my kink I swear.

So, like how Bai Qi said in [Light Bath SSR: Tenderness Call] that maybe he only shows his gentleness towards select people (his love and mother), he’ll give the person he loves all the warmth of his being but, oh boy, I see him as being a beast who will remember his true nature upon being chained; the “chain” of love gives him the reassurance he needs to be truly free... in all its meanings.

Keywords: Ginkgo. Summer. Primal. Wind. Love is love is love. 3-Point Contact. Wolf. Yearning. Vitality. Justice. Freedom. Physical. Restraint.

XU MO

First, given how vocal I am about Elex’s changes, this is probably going to be the most drastically different section out of everyone vs. their English version.

Soft. Light. Gentle. Kind. Gossamery. Feathery. Ethereal. Faint. Whenever I write him, do I literally open up a thesaurus to find synonyms for gentle, light, and soft? Yup! LOL.

Fun fact, in CN and JP the word for “smile” and “laugh” is the same character and so sometimes there is ambiguity when translating if there’s no clear markers. The writers definitely had a word in mind when they wrote the scene, but unfortunately we don’t have the ability to check with them at every use and so sometimes it does come to subjective interpretation.

For me, Xu Mo is characterized by a lot of quietness. Game-wise, there are enormous usages of silence and descriptions of emotional fluctuations in his eyes so Significant Silences and Looks are a major thing with him and in my writing for him, which is why I always choose “smile” over “laugh” if there is any ambiguity in the line (I believe Elex leans towards chuckles).

On a similar note, the game also gives him a gigantic serving of descriptions that only ever use the word for “light, slight, faint, soft, gentle” in JP and CN. It gives him a very floaty and dreamy feeling, even if he’s doing something physical. So, it’s important for me to keep a similar atmosphere when writing and make everything feel as if it has to be shared in a whisper.

A bonus here is that it doesn’t require much to turn this ethereal feeling into a melancholic one, so you get that dash of angst that layers over everything. Leave a few things unknown here and there, incomplete actions, eyes that get averted and Boom. Angst.

Shifting gears, but if my imagery of Bai Qi’s love is like a tense, vibrating, and restrained chain of yearning then Xu Mo’s love is like a flood barely being held back by a dam. Knowledge of the quantity and weight behind the dam is terrifying, but it’s safe to be submerged inside it. Much like Luoluo and Helios, Xu Mo also has a dangerous duality in Ares and so I also like to play with this imagery.

So, on this point, I like to preserve an underlying sense of darkness (all-consuming possessiveness, etc.) and envision that he also wishes to stain his love in his colors, like a drop of ink on white paper and how it seeps into every fiber of the paper until the whole thing is saturated with him.

Incidentally, I’m reminded that—whenever possible and natural—I want to exclusively use water imagery with Xu Mo. The game supports this too! He is described with extensive water imagery and so I try to use water metaphors, analogies, and similes.

I try to make sure every sense is present, but I feel like the game emphasizes (especially with the red thread of fate imagery) that Xu Mo and his love are connected at a soul-deep level and so I always keep in mind a mental, emotional, and spiritual aspect.

Lastly, his canon animal is the fox (we ignore the black goat LOL) so contrasting his elegant, scholarly, and gentleman’s air with a black belly, teasing, and mischievous air is also important! Sexual but with, you know, class.

Keywords: Butterflies. Monochrome. Artist. Red Thread. Autumn. Melancholy. Water. Soft. Gentle. Light. Faint. Dreams. Spiritual. Fox.

LING XIAO

I’m getting more comfortable with him, but he’s still shrouded in so much mystery. If every one of the other men treat their loves with gentleness though Ling Xiao is definitely one who isn’t afraid of roughhousing. He’ll act first and then ask for forgiveness afterward, if needed.

But I like to keep in mind that, for all his roughness, he’s still a good kid at heart and when he saw MC’s skirt rising up when he tried to pull her over the fence he immediately stopped. So, a bit of a bully but without any humiliation.

Intelligent, strong, and dangerous but hiding all of that beneath a devil-may-care attitude and someone who does things on a whim. I don’t know what to do much with his canon animal being the shark except to attach it vaguely to this point and think that, as an apex predator of the sea, it does things at its own pace (somehow, it gives me the image that he likes to bite... but, uh, that’s probably just me LOL).

Keywords: Mercurial. Lightning. Sarcasm. Physical.

[bodyswapmischief]

Jiggalo In Trouble

Well, I don't fucking know what to do. You see ... this isn't my body. This morning I was a hairy, obese, 50 year old man. Not, this muscled, latino, bad boy you see now.

You could say my life was pathetically tragic. I grew up in a time and place where I couldn't be myself. I was gay but, stayed deep in the closet. I even forced myself to marry a woman and have 3 beautiful children. I had a decent life and most days I was happy. But, I always knew I was lying to the ones I love. Yet, I knew the truth could never come out. I had to live the rest of my life playing a straight man.

But, there was always one thing on my bucket list. I wanted to have a sex with a man. Just once, and I could die happy. I tried many times, with gay dating apps, but I always chickened out at the last minute.

But, then the opportunity showed itself. I was selected by my boss to go to Las Vegas, for a work related convention. I would be the repsentive for this branch at some booths, panels, and meetings that were going to happen.

It didn't seem to stressful. Working for the company for so long, I knew I would be able to handle it. But, what I was really excited for was the possibilites. "Whatever happens in Vegas; stays in Vegas."

So, I get there and I work at the convention. It was okay. I met some cool people. I networked. But, the long days always left me tired. I had no time or energy to look for a fast one night stand. Or maybe that was just an excuse for me chickening out again. Outside of the convention, I just spent my time eating at th hotels buffet and watching TV in my hotel room.

As the paid trip was coming to an end, I had a free day all to myself. It started off the same. I went to the buffet and ate till I was full. Then I waddled back to my room. Looking through my suitcase, I saw my special clothes I packed. In case I did manage to get the courage to do a one stand, I pack some leather gear. I sighed disappointed in myself for chickening out.

But, a thought popped in my mind. I might not have the courage to have sex with a stranger. But, I could walk around the casino dressed up as a fat leather daddy. I put on the tight leather pants. I put on a plain white shirt and leather vest. I looked at the mirror and smiled. Finally, I could express myself. I put on the rest of my gear and sighed. My heart was racing. And then I opened my hotel room door.

No one was around so, I walked into the elevator. Through the sound of my heartbeat, I was screaming inside my mind. "What the FUCK am I doing." As the elevator went down people started getting in. I wanted to cry, I was so embarrassed. But, nobody said anything. No one laughed or said something mean. Some people even smiled at me. I began to relax. I began to feel happy and maybe even sexy.

It felt like the stars aligned. And maybe they did. I went to see some shows. I ate at the buffet. I got compliments from guys. I got some numbers and some invites to clubs. I even danced with some guys at a leather bar. But, I knew I wasn't going to take the next step. I was still scared. And, it was getting late. With beer in my stomach and altering my mind. I stopped at the slot machines and put a coin in, before going to my room. And, luck really was on my side. As the machine lit up, it announced I won the 20,000 dollar grand prize. I was still drunk. Staff and other people surrounded me. They were cheering and giving me balloons, a crown, and the check to collect my winnings when I was ready.

I got up, still tipsy, and stumbled a little bit. People laughed and cheered little bit. The staff slide the check into my vest pocket. "Don't worry I got him." A hot young man came to myside. He used his strength to help me stand. He had tattoos on his arms. He was wearing a tight shirt and pants. A gold chain hung from his neck.

Everyone dispersed as this Latin stud led me to the elevator. "Okay, Papi, what room are you in." To drunk I just handed him my key card. He lead me to my room and laid me on the bed. He started taking off my clothes. I don't fight back. In my drunk mind this is the fantasy I always wanted. "Okay big boy, it looks like your going to get luck again tonight."

I can't see over my giant stomach but, I could feel him take off my pants then underwear. Suddenly, I felt him push my fat pad and start sucking my dick. He started off slow and I moaned with pleasure. He kept sucking using his tongue to play with the head of my penis. My breathing became heavier and the pleasure starts to sober me up. I felt my dick about to burst with cum. I tried to warn him but he ignores me. And, I shoot my load into his mouth. I gasped in ecstasy.

Suddenly, I felt a dick in my mouth. My mouth is covered with semen, as the dick keep pulsating with cum. I swallowed what I could and then took it out of my mouth. Right in front of me was a familiar sight. I saw my penis surrounded by my fatty pelvic region. From this outside perspective I could see how fat I really was? I look down and saw that I'm in the young man's body. My dick was rock hard and my body was now lighter and stronger. Adrenalin rushed through my muscles. Tattoos covered the body.

My body finally started talking, "Like what you see?"

"What did you do to me ... to us?"

"You see I'm a juggalo and I saw you ... a man who needed to get lucky, if you know what I mean. And, after tonight's big win down stairs I know you have the money to pay me."

"But... but.... I'm in your body and you ..."

"Oh, I have a fetish. I like giving men the opportunity to be me. I mean look at you now you are stud. You are turned on just by being in that body. Just existing in that body is orgasmic for you. So, that makes sex so much better, at least for me. And, then experiencing new bodies is always fun. I haven't been in a person this fat in awhile. And your breast are so sensitive. Oh, and this tight asshole. What do you say do you want to fuck yourself, with my body."

My old body spreaded its legs, revealing its asshole. My dick was raging hard. I slowly inserted my long dark dick. It felt so good. I started going a little faster. I watch as the muscles in my caramel body flexed and relaxed. The whole experience was hot. I started touching my old body the way I knew I liked to be touched.

"Fuck this is so good. Faster, faster, faster." My old body cried out. Feeling the strength of the muscled body, I go full speed. Both of our bodies were sweating, panting, moaning. Then everything stopped, as we both cummed.

We laid side by side, a big smile on my face. My old fat body started kissing my buff chest and then up my neck. "Let me freshen up, and then it's my turn to fuck you." He whispered sexually.

I watched as he struggled to get to his feet and then as he waddled to the bathroom. I laid there exploring my new body. My dick already getting hard from my excitement.

Then, I heard the front room door open. A man with a gun walked in.

"Fuck Enrique! Cover up or something." My heart racing, I grabbed a blanket and put it over my naked body. "Good, now this is you last fucking chance. The boss wants his money and necklace back"

"You ... you ... I'm... um." I try to talk but I can't think straight. The man walked closer and grabbed me by the neck. He started choking me. I tried to fight back. But, then he grabs me by the balls. He starts squeezing them. The pain is intense, I lay still. "Good now talk or I ripped out your prized possessions." He says as he pulls out a blade.

Then from the corner of my eye, I saw my old body enter the room. "Hey! Hey! Hey! Ryan leave him alone. It's me Enrique. He has nothing to do with this."

The man on top of me looks over his shoulder. "Really!? Your in that fatass. I guess it suits you for being such a pig in the first place." He laughed. "So, where's the boss's money."

"Here, I have part of it here. This guy just won it big downstairs. And, with access to his memories, I have access to his bank accounts." Enrique smiles.

The man begins to aim his gun at Enrique. "What ... what are you doing. I ... I have the money." Enrique starts to panic.

"What is your name," the man motions to me. "Andrew," I nervously replied. The man turns his attention back at Enrique. "No you don't have the money. You have Andrew's money. The boss is fucking tired of your shit. God! I've been waiting to do this for so long," with that last word Enrique, in my body, was shot in the head. Blood splattered on the wall and was quickly pooling on the floor. I saw in shock as my old body laid thier lifeless. What the fuck was going to happen, now.

The man walks to me and I prepare for the worst. Instead, he just ripped the golden chain from my neck. "Well it looks like it your lucky day. You got an upgrade on your body.." He said, as he looked down at me. "Don't worry about your old life. There is no going back now. I'll make sure your wife and kids get what you saved in your bank and I'm pretty sure the boss will throw a little extra."

"S ... so your just going to let me go?," I asked.

"Yeah, why not? You didn't do anything wrong., besides cheating. But, we've all been there. Plus, that body has made a lot of enemies so, you won't exactly have a peaceful life. Don't get me wrong the boss will spread the word of what really happened to Enrique, but some people just really like seeing the actual body dead. So, take your winnings and find some small town to lay low and start a new life."

A new life, one that was in constant danger. This seemed more like a punishment, but in a way I guessed I deserved it. I could never go back to my old life. I knew at this point there was no use in protesting. "What about him I pointed to my dead body."

."Oh, he was a pig in life. Now he's being tortured as a fatass in hell. But, if you are talking about the body; well we have people who will take care of that. So, I recommend leaving as soon as possible."

The man patted me on the back and started to leave. "Good luck with your new life. But, if things get to out of hand for you or you are in desperate need for a job give me a call." He places a business card on the desk, before he leaves.

Now, I'm sitting here. Memories flood my mind. I saw every bad thing this body did. Using that necklace, the man took, to rob people of everything they owned, even killing people in the process. I looked at my hands, then my arms, and then my muscular torso. I had my dream body, but at what cost. I look at this memories with disgust, I knew that I wasn't capable of those acts. But, it didn't matter, the memories felt so real.

I hear a buzzing sound and snap back to reality. I start putting on Enriques clothes and feel a cell phone. It buzzes again. LAST WARNING: Destroy this phone and get out of there now!. I easily snap the phone in half and submerge the broken pieces into a nearby glass with water. I take the the business card and walked out of the room. I didn't know where I was going. I just knew Las Vegas was no longer safe for me. I need to get some where far and collect my thoughts about what the fuck happened.

[esperwatchesfilms]

Saw (2004)

Fun Fact: The film's screenplay was written in 2001 as a calling card for director James Wan and Leigh Whannell trying to break into Hollywood. They shot a low-budget short based on a scene in the film, and this proved successful enough to attract the attention of Evolution Entertainment. They immediately formed a horror genre arm called Twisted Pictures and gave Wan and Whannell a small budget.

ESE: 90/100

50 +10 for Cary Elwes +5 for “Play Me” tapes +5 for using the drain stop to get the recorder +5 for the nod to Trainspotting +5 for Danny Glover +5 for the razor wire trap +5 for the candle trap +5 for the Jigsaw killer +10 for Michael Emerson +5 for the first Jigsaw survivor, Amanda +5 for Jigsaw doll +5 for reverse bear trap -10 for making her dig in the intestines of someone who was alive for the ky -5 for wasting time -10 for scaring Gordon’s daughter +5 for Detective Tapp’s obsession -10 for the most dramatic and obviously fake death ever -10 for cheating on your wife +5 for Ali Gordon getting herself untied +5 for Tapp intervening -5 for cutting your own foot off +5 for Adam beating Zep to a pulp +5 for John having been in the room the whole time -5 for your first action in this room being losing the key to your chain down the drain

[currywaifu]

𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: escape room 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩: minagi tsuzuru/reader 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: sfw 𝐰𝐜: 3.4k words, 3 images

𝐚𝐧: the combi of my love for this tsuzuru sr card + a certain enabler + my first time wearing handcuffs being in an escape room = the birth of this fic. it’s chaotic, but so is every escape room experience i’ve had. wtf is this fic.

One of the perks of having Tsuzuru as a boyfriend was that the two of you always found ways to have fun and go out on dates without spending a lot of money. Neither of you were big on splurging out a bunch of money anyway— not with you rather spending your allowance on necessities and Tsuzuru being the King of Part-timers™.

Watching community and college plays, having picnics, movie marathons, making dinner together, going grocery shopping, taking advantage of coupon sites, couples promos and happy hours to get great deals on things you wouldn’t normally be able to just for the ultimate discount...

It was domestic, it was homey, and it was Tsuzuru through and through; you loved every single second of it.

Which was why you were surprised when he suggested going to an escape room together.

“Those can be kind of pricey, right?” you replied, raising your voice slightly to make sure he could hear you despite the noise you were making in the kitchen. You turned the burner to high heat, scooching the veggies over to one side of the pan, melting the remaining butter in the other half.

“Oh, well, a friend gave me a 20% discount coupon. Apparently he didn’t need it anymore,” Tsuzuru’s voice was a little quiet coming from your phone’s speaker, and you quickly put down the soy sauce to adjust the volume before going back to the stove.

“I figured there was some kind of catch,” you replied with a soft chuckle as you continued stirring the veggies and sautéing the rice. “When do you wanna go? I know we’re both busy over the weekend, and that’s when we usually—“

Your hand halted its motions as soon as Tsuzuru uttered the word, “tomorrow.”

It wasn’t like you weren’t free, thankfully you only had one, albeit three hour, lecture during Tuesdays, but wasn’t he saying it a bit suddenly? It was a Monday evening, after all.

“Why tomorrow?”

Your boyfriend’s awkward laughter rang, but he remained undeterred as he explained to you his reasoning— going to an escape room would be a good way to get more writing experience, especially in terms of creating and feeling the ambience.

“Plus, not only is it cheaper if we go together, but the rates are also lower Monday to Thursday,” after a few seconds of silence on your part, he quickly added in, “and! And, we usually don’t have dates like this… so it’ll be fun, right?”

That thought process was so like Tsuzuru that you couldn’t help but smile.

Oh, the rice and veggies were already turning brown?

“You know what? I’m not even surprised,” you commented, adding and stirring in the rest of the ingredients. Ahhh, it was starting to smell heavenly, “by the way, have you had dinner yet?”

“About to. Excited to figure out what kind of curry we’re having,” a giggle escaped you upon hearing Tsuzuru’s deadpan voice, “are you almost done cooking?”

“Just about done!” after giving the rice a taste, you decided to season it with a pinch of salt and pepper, “thanks for giving me your fried rice recipe, by the way. Even though I’m the one cooking it, it feels like I’m about to eat something you made with love~”

As you were pretty much done with the kitchen, Tsuzuru’s exhale was a lot more audible to you. You could already envision the slight quiver in his tight-lipped grin and the way he would avert his eyes for a few seconds as he addressed you.

“Seriously, don’t be so cute,” he said, sounding a little exasperated, “sometimes I don’t know how to respond anymore.”

“A writer at a loss for words?” it was steadily getting difficult to keep the bubbling up amusement in check— you should probably be serving yourself dinner and accomplish your work for the night, but in the same manner it was always fun to flirt with the brunet. “When you put it that way, it makes me want to act even cuter for y—“

“Anyway!” you couldn’t hold back your laughter at his sudden interruption. Alright, that was enough for the both of you tonight.

“So are you free tomorrow?” he asked.

Well, who were you to be able to say no to that?

You completed signing the waiver the staff asked you to fill out, before turning to Tsuzuru.

“I forgot to ask, but which room are we playing? They have, like, 3 different ones here.”

Your eyes followed where Tsuzuru’s pointer finger landed— a simple but eerie poster in black and white, the three masks you could commonly see in craft stores plain and copies of one another, save for one thing. The first mask had gloved hands atop its eyeholes, the second had them covering where the ears would be, and the third had them placed over the lips.

Domain of Discernment.

“I don’t know much about it, but it’s one of the more popular ones. Apparently we’ll be held captive by some serial killer named Sire Maniac, and we’ll have one of our senses taken away,” he explained. Before he could potentially say anymore, one of the personnel went over to bring you right by the room entrance.

After giving a brief rundown of rules and some info about the room itself, she brought out an unused pair of foam earplugs and a blindfold. “Since there’s only two of you, we’ll be taking out the not being able to speak part. Both of you, choose who gets their sight or hearing removed for 50 minutes.”

You and Tsuzuru turned to look at each other, quietly discussing amongst yourselves which option would be more beneficial, coming to the conclusion that you would be the one to don the blindfold and he’d be the one with the earplugs.

“You might accidentally fall asleep if you had the blindfold,” you joked, “besides, I trust you to be able to guide me.”

Not one to be a killjoy or cheat, he plugged in the foam properly as you get your blindfold tied securely by the woman, making sure it definitely wouldn’t loosen up midway through the game.

When the both of you are within the room already, the both of you hear (well, Tsuzuru lip-reads) the woman say one more thing.

“After hand-cuffing you two and I leave the room, the timer will start. Good luck.”

… hand-cuffing?

With a sound of a click and seeing the door shutting from the distance, the both of you knew the timer would be counting down from 50 right about now.

You’re the first to speak up. You’re unsure where he’s facing right now, so you pulled your left hand knowing the pull of the metal chain would catch his attention, and you were right.

At the slight pressure on his right hand, he turned to face you with a hum leaving his mouth, and unexpectedly finding himself stupefied at the sight of you. You opened your mouth to say something, and he can excuse himself all he wanted that it was him not used to lip-reading yet, but he knew it wasn’t the truth.

He felt a little guilty, really. You both knew how flustered or embarrassed he could get around you, but how blissfully unaware you must be right now that his brain was literally mush because of your blindfolded self and how you were handcuffed to him. He, well, he never thought… no, he could never—

Time to kill that train of thought. Right now.

He should really be responding to you right now. What… what were you saying?

“You want me to describe our… surroundings?” he sighed in relief as you nodded. Okay, at least a part of him was still functioning properly. All he had to do was focus on that and not hyper focus on you.

The two of you were in a cell of sorts— barred, jail doors preventing your exit into a much larger room, which inevitably would lead to a door the both of you would escape to.

Though the jail room was significantly smaller, there were an assortment of items to sift and look through— boxes with and without locks, some papers scattered on a small desk, a lampshade that was left turned off, and a CD player were what stood out the most to him.

After relaying it to you, you pulled him again by your shared shackles as you asked him to read out what was in the papers—the first, a hint on how to figure out the number combination to unlock one of the boxes and a code decryption guide.

The second, a torn page from a “book” of either plants or poisons, based on the content and stylisation. Atropa belladonna, also known as deadly nightshade.

“Why are shade and floor highlighted though?”

Another pull on the cuffs. Another look at you— and trying not to be awkward about it as he combined his lip-reading with whatever the earplugs couldn’t block out of your voice.

“Shade? You said there was a lamp shade, right? Maybe a key or something is hidden under there?” you suggested, a pout set on your lips, “don’t know what the relevance of floor is, though.”

He didn’t have to look very far, the papers being situated on the desk beside the lampshade. It’s in his second time staring though that he realised something’s off with it. “You’re right, there’s something in the lampshade.”

When he lifted the bell-shaped cover, he’d come to find that there was no lightbulb in the first place, but a thin flashlight cleverly inserted within a vase. “If there’s a flashlight in the vase, then—“

“Shine a light on the floor!” you exclaimed, excited at the prospect of being able to move forward with the game, despite not being able to see.

Doing just that, he swished the flashlight left and right, verbally listing all the letters he could see.

“X, O, I, C, T…” you repeated, before trying to clap your hands (keyword: trying to, handcuffs say no), “the order is toxic! So the encrypt—“

“I’ll decode it ASAP,” Tsuzuru replied, immediately referring to the guide the “killer” oh so graciously left there.

“The passcode is… 420652,” he fumbled with the digits on the only 6 numbered padlocked box, before grinning, “alright, we got it!”

Another tug, and at this point he’s already aware that tug or pull on the cuff equals you having something to say.

“If they were gonna do a 420 joke, they should’ve inserted a 666 joke for the full eerie, creepy effect.”

Okay, just how was he able to lip read that perfectly? Was he just that used to the dumb jokes you made?

“I can just imagine your dream escape room— all the hints and puzzles are meme related,” the earplugs were unable to block your laugh, ringing through the room as he opened the box. A key, and a CD.

Knowing that between the two remaining boxes left, one of them needed a key so that was pretty much solved. The disc, on the other hand…

He called your name, you turning to face him based on the direction of his voice. “Since there’s a CD player and a CD, and unless I go really close I wouldn’t be able to hear anything—“

“I’ll listen carefully, no sweat!”

“I swear, if I hear the word wall another time, I will scream... and this isn’t even a horror room!”

The two of you came across your first real obstacle. Your audio just talked about poisonous vines growing on walls and other surfaces, while his box just contained another note that neither of you could decipher whatsoever. For five minutes, the two of you stood there, pondering.

Every once in a while, Tsuzuru would check the giant timer— currently displaying that 35 minutes were left.

“… honestly, just give it to me,” you suddenly spoke, Tsuzuru’s shoulders going up in shock.

“Give what?”

“The box! While we try to figure it out, I’ll use my nonexistent luck to just guess the passcode somehow,” you explained, feeling up the type of padlock it was “it’s just rolling everything around anyway until it magically opens.”

Within less than a minute, you had figured out the passcode.

“I’m—“ Tsuzuru trailed off, clearly just as shocked as you were. Your eyes probably would’ve been wide open right now.

“Eye… so this is where all my luck went,” you said, before shaking your head to refocus yourself, “okay! So inside the box is a… another key? It has buttons… car key?”

You hand the object to the brunet, who, upon taking it from you spared no second in his next actions.

“Wall,” he said out loud, pointing the car keys at the wall. With one press of a button, the wall, slowly but surely, opened to reveal another room. Though you couldn’t see it, the sound was loud enough to amaze you as well.

“Worm,” you breathed out, “pretty lit, not gonna lie.”

You wouldn’t know but the room was actually extremely dark, so not lit at all. Thank god he had a flashlight or else the handcuff + your blindfold + him not being able to lip read combo would be… particularly deadly.

The misunderstandings, he could already imagine it. Ah, well, for the writing experience.

“I don’t know what worm means, but yeah, lit.”

“Sorry,” Tsuzuru apologised as he bumped into you for the nth time.

Obstacle number two was unlike any other. It wasn’t another audio recording, neither a puzzle nor riddle.

“Ah, shit, sorry!” you shouted for the nth time, raising your voice as much as you could so Tsuzuru would be able to hear you properly.

This was getting ridiculous. You were able to figure out the meaning of an audio file after a few loops, while Tsuzuru got to work reading more clues and unlocking locks. The real problem, however, was since the room was dark and had limited space, the two of you tended to crash against one another even with what limited movement you could make.

You had to wonder— did the staff get some sort of amusement or feel any pity watching people stumble around in this room through the CCTV? It wasn’t so bad in the jail room, but this closet? storage? room gave you two a run for your money. How did other people get through this room, genuinely? Especially the bigger parties?

“… I have an idea,” Tsuzuru mentioned. You wait for him to tell you what it is, his hesitance confusing you. However, before you could have said anything, you felt his strong arms wrapped around you.

Was… was there an equivalent to a verbal keyboard smash? Even if you weren’t saying it out loud to save you the embarrassment, the fact still stood that your brain was legit going ztesxrdctijmoljhnge right now. Help—

“How does this… help?” you asked, still a little confused by his motive. He wasn’t really one for PDA, and despite the two of you being the only ones in the room the fact still stood that the escape room staff are probably required to glance at the CCTV monitors every once in a while to check up on you two.

“Since we’re… handcuffed, and there’s barely any space it’d be better to just stay together,” he explained as nonchalantly as possible, “sorry, it’s just for this room. We’ll go back to normal when we get to the last room.”

See, if your brain was working right now, you’d be able to think of a counter or a better solution— actually, if you could see right now maybe you could point out something about Tsuzuru’s face that screamed he was lying, but something about escape rooms just made your logic go brrr.

That, or you were just a simp for your own boyfriend.

… not gonna lie, the chances of it being both were pretty high.

“Makes sense. Can’t bump into each other when you’re already stuck together,” you said, already convincing yourself.

Sorry to whoever’s manning the CCTV monitor, it was their fault for handcuffing the two of you anyway.

Well, this set up wasn’t that bad. Other than, you know, getting to hug Tsuzuru, you were able to still keep doing your task while he did—

You heard the padlock unlock after your fingers pressed a certain combination of numbers. Pushing the device upwards, the cabinet doors opened as you removed the lock.

“It’s a digit push combination padlock! How are you doing this? Blindfolded?”

“I… I have guessing powers. For locks.”

“I’m considering robbing a bank or business with you now.”

“Awww, cute couple’s date idea!”

After two or three minutes of Tsuzuru doing some last minute riddle solving, the sound of jingling keys and him letting go of you let you know of one thing— you two were almost out.

With a writer compromising one half of the team, and an exceptional guesser and context clue figure-outer as the other half, you weren’t gonna lie— the last room was kind of anti-climatic to go through.

…

SIKE!

Every time the two of you ever accomplished anything, be it decrypting a message, unlocking something, or finding a hidden item the two of you still reacted to it— Tsuzuru being more on the shookt side and you being on the hype side.

With fifteen minutes to spare, only one thing was left to do— finding who Sire Maniac’s real name, and then decoding that name into number form so you could use it on the exit’s number pad lock. It was pretty obvious to you that you had to use the number equivalents of the name, but first… you needed to know the name.

“You sure you don’t want to try your luck?” Tsuzuru teased, procuring a huff out of you.

There were only two clues. The first was a letter to an A. R. Nicolas, detailing something about being thankful for a book.

Initially, the two of you thought that that A. R. Nicolas would be his real name, but clearly it was some sort of pen name based on the second clue— several torn pages from a book penned by the very same A. R. Nicolas the letter was addressed to.

It was clear— Sire Maniac and A. R. Nicolas were the same person, but what was his third identity? His real identity?

“What are the poisons on the torn pages again? Those usually have something to do with the answer,” you asked Tsuzuru. The sound of shuffling of paper entered your ears as he began listing them off.

“Ricin, amatoxin, tetradotoxin, chloropicrin, batrachotoxin… and arsenic.”

“Huh… arsenic is the only one that ends differently, lol,” you pointed out with a laugh, before it quickly died as the realisation dawned on you, “no fucking way.”

“Okay what the hell, I think you’re on to something,” Tsuzuru replied hastily, “because A. R. Nicolas, as in A. R. Nic. Arsenic.”

“Tsuzuru. Tsuzuru. Tsuzuru—“ you chanted, before laying out one last game-changer, “Sire Maniac. Is a fucking anagram. For I am Arsenic.”

With a speedy enter of the number 2773642, the two of you had achieved freedom.

“Not gonna lie, some parts of it were a little cliche, but… I had fun,” you told him, the two of you walking home together, “I felt simultaneously dumb and a genius at the same time.”

“Same to both, honestly,” Tsuzuru replied, before looking down at your hand linked with his. “Huh, haven’t you had enough of being stuck with me?”

You rolled your eyes. “I could say the same to you— didn’t you totally take advantage of us being handcuffed together? Or me being blindfolded?”

It was just a joke, but Tsuzuru’s sudden sputtering caught you off guard. Did… aha, no way, did he actually enjoy that gimmick?

“Tsu~ zu~ ru~”

“Whatever you’re thinking, that’s not it—“

“Are you sure? Because—“

“You’re misunderstanding something.”

“I’m just saying, it’s better to be honest~”

As the stoplight turned red, the two of you finally found the time to take a good look at each other. The laughter that erupted was instantaneous.

“Thanks for going out with me today,” Tsuzuru said softly, the blooming smile on his face impossible for you to not mirror.

“Thank you for inviting me,” you replied, “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

After a few seconds, the stoplight turned green, and the two of you continue making your way back home.

want to order again?

𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐞𝐬: ⤷ curium fairway (the person who sent arsenic the letter) is an anagram for “i am currywaifu”.

⤷ the “reader is good at guessing part” is just based off of me. being really good at guessing padlock combinations.  ⤷ the hugging part was based on my two irl friends (who are dating) hugging in front of the cctv

⤷ the “one sense gets removed” and “being handcuffed to someone” part is based on two different escape rooms i played

⤷ i wasn’t supposed to make a whole concept for the escape room with media and riddles... but i decided to finally make use of all the research i did before on poison. am i on a watchlist?

[justthehiddleswrites]

Should… | Tom Hiddleston x OFC (Emma Masters) | Chapter 7 |  …We Take The Leap?

Pairing: Tom Hiddleston x Emma Masters

Summary: Five years ago, Emma Masters just landed her first big acting gig on a soap opera. While it is not much, it is an opportunity to grow. While out celebrating, she meets up with a fellow actor, Tom Hiddleston. While she doesn’t recognize any of his work, the two hit it off. Before they know, they are getting hot and heavy in the elevator up to Tom’s room. Like ships passing in the night, the two never manage to meet again.Now five years later, Emma is a heavy hitter in the prime time drama world and Tom is a Golden Globe winning movie star. Their paths cross again but things have changed. Will they do what they should or fall to their deepest desires?

This Chapter:    Emma and Tom head over to confront Corrinne and are met with an unwelcome surprise. Will they get their happily ever after or will disaster strike again?

Warnings: smut, vaginal sex, fingering, drunk sex, oral sex, cheating, unhealthy relationships

-

Emma’s knuckles turned a pale white as she gripped the steering wheel on the way to Corrinne’s house in Pacific Palisades. Tom tried to reassure Emma but continued to mutter to herself the entire ride.

“I don’t understand. We’ve been friends. ARE. Are friends.”

“Darling…” Tom started as he rubbed her shoulders, trying to keep calm. “I am sure a perfect logical—”

“For one of my closest friends to sell me out to the highest bidder? What would that be, Tom? Because I can’t think of a single one right now!” Emma exclaimed, gesturing with gusto.

Tom winced as he placed her hands back on the wheel. “Why don’t we start with getting us there in one piece?”

“I’m sorry.” Emma sobbed, returning her eyes to the road.

The rest of the drive went without incident, with only the songs of the radio to distract Emma from crying. As they pulled into Corrinne’s driveway, Emma noticed a brand new bright blue Range Rover in the driveway, not Corrinne’s black BMW.

“I wonder if she has company?” Emma questioned as they both got out of the car. She looked at Tom. “Maybe it is better if you stay in the car.”

Tom shook his head. “I am not letting you go in alone.”

Now Emma reassured Tom. “I will be fine, two girls talking.”

Tom rolled his eyes. “Like that is not a dangerous proposition.” He threw his hands up as he got back into the car. “Very well, I’ll stay here, but leave the door unlocked.”

Emma nodded as she strolled up to massive oak doors at the front of Corrinne’s home. She used the spare key on her key chain to open the door. She closed the door behind her, making sure to not latch the bolt.

“Corrinne!” Emma’s voice echoed off the cavernous walls of the home.

Corrinne’s house looked as though the space belonged on the pages of Architectural Digest. With two ex-husbands and no kids, Corrinne could afford to keep things immaculate. The home always gave Emma the shivers. Too cold.

“Corrinne!”

Emma detected sounds coming from the master bedroom and made her way in that direction. The sounds grew more distinct. Corrinne sounded as though she was in pain. Worried, Emma barged into the room. Corrinne was not in distress. She found Corrinne entangled with none other than Bryce on the bed.

“What the FUCK is going?” Emma shrieked. The shrill tone of her voice startling the two lovers from their bliss.

“Emma?” Bryce questioned as he stood from the bed, the sheet falling away.

Emma chuckled as she wondered what she ever saw in Bryce.

“Em?” Corrinne responded, pulling the sheet tighter around her body. “What on earth? I can explain.”

Emma crossed her arms. “Go on. Explain to me why the gossip rags published a story I told you in confidence.”

“I..”

“Explain to me how you could throw four years of friendship down the drain.”

“Well…”

“Explain to me how long you have been fucking Bryce, who until four days ago was my BOYFRIEND!”

Corrinne sat on the edge of the bed, wordless. Bryce came to her rescue, crossing the room to stand in front of Emma, tugging on his boxers.

“Em, babe.” Bryce reached out to run the back of his fingers down her cheek.

“Don’t you dare touch me! How long, Bryce?”

“Six months.”

Emma nodded, blinking back the tears. She didn’t want the two of them to look at her breaking.

“Okay, I just have one more question. Did I ever mean anything to you besides a meal ticket?”

Bryce shrugged his shoulders. “You always looked nice on my arm in pictures. That is, when you didn’t eat too many sweets.”

As those words fell from his lips and into the air, Emma’s guilt or pain over the failed relationship fell away.

“Fair enough. Goodbye Bryce.”

Emma spun on her heel to leave but saw her arm trailing behind her. She looked over her shoulder to see Bryce gripping her wrist.

“Let go of me, Bryce.”

“Babe, don’t be like this. Corrinne said if we play our cards right we can get mid-six figures minimum and a couple of talk show gigs. You know I want to be on TV.” Bryce pleaded.

The tone of Bryce’s voice snapped something inside Emma. She reared back and with all of her training landed a solid punch right on Bryce’s jaw. He went down like a stone.

“I said don’t touch me.” Emma snapped at Bryce on the floor. “I am not your meal ticket or arm candy anymore, Bryce. Don’t ever speak to me again!”

At that moment, Tom burst into the room. His eyes darted between Emma standing over Bryce, now writhing on the floor and Corrinne, seated at the end of the bed in silence.

“What the hell is going on, Em?” Tom asked as he moved to put both his hands on her shoulders.

He looked over her to examine Bryce crumpled on the floor. He clutched his jaw and Tom noticed a small trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth.

“How are you doing there, Bry? It’s okay if I call you ‘Bry,’ right?” Tom taunted. “Are we done here, Emma?”

Emma turned her head to look him in the eye. “Yeah, I’m done here.” She acknowledged, her tears long dried up.

Tom pivoted Emma out of the room and out to the car. Once they got on the road, Emma realized her knuckles hurt. She shook her hand out as Tom drove the car. He caught the motion out of the corner of his eye. “Darling, did you hurt your hand punching Bryce in the jaw?” he said with a smile.

“Yeah, it stings.”

Tom examined Emma’s hand, her knuckles appeared swollen and red.

“Once we get back, let’s ice it and see how it feels.”

Emma nodded. “Damn, it felt good though.”

Tom smiled. “You may be singing a different tune in a few hours.”

Emma chuckled. “True, but I will never forget the sight of Bryce balled up on the floor.”

“That was a sight. Remind me to never make you mad."

Emma put her fists up in a fighting stance.

“Fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”

Tom’s laugh filled the car. “I believe the phrase is ‘float like a butterfly’.”

“Whatever. I am invincible.” Emma punched his arm. “Ow! What are you made of? Marble?”

“That is the rumor.”

As they pulled up to Tom’s hotel, a realization hit Emma.

“Shit, Tom, what is Howard going to say? What is LUKE going to say? He is going to kill me!”

Tom’s face paled, but he gave a weak smile. “I am sure he will get over it.” Tom swallowed. “Eventually.”

“Maybe we should call him and Howard. Soften the blow.”

Tom nodded. “Fine.”

They pulled their phones out and dialed their respective publicist.

“Howard?”

“Hello, Luke. So, funny story...”

The two of them told the story to Howard and Luke. About five minutes into the conversation, Tom looked at Emma.

“Yes she is here. Fine.” Tom pulled his lips into a tight line as he handed the phone to Emma. “He wants to speak to you.”

Emma gulped as they exchanged phones. “Here, talked to Howard. Hello, Luke.”

“I expected better from you, Emma. I expect this kind of fuckery from that BASTARD, Tom!” Emma held the phone away from her ear. Tom gave a pleading look and mouthed “sorry”.

“Yeah Howard, I’m still here,” Tom muttered in the background.

“Listen, Luke. I understand we upset you. But I considered it best to let you know as soon as possible as opposed to seeing it online. Now isn’t that preferable?”

Luke sighed. “I hate to admit it, but yes it is.”

Emma smiled as Tom looked over and frowned at her. “Thanks, Luke. I am sure you will want to speak to us again. Why don’t I give you my number too, in case Tom misplaces his phone?”

Tom continued to scowl at Emma. He did not like this one bit. His girlfriend and publicist getting along might cause him to behave once in a while. Emma recited the number and then said her goodbyes, handing the phone back to Tom.

“Luke? Mate?” Tom questioned as he put the phone back up to his ear.

“If you fuck this relationship up, mate. I will personally castrate you. You sodding twat of a bastard.”

Luke hung up with no warning and left Tom staring at the phone. He looked up at Emma, who wrapped up her own phone call.

“Luke likes you.”

“What makes you say that?”

“For starters, he has indicated that if I were to screw up this relationship, he would detach my testicles from the rest of my body.”

Emma smirked as they stepped out of the car. “You better be nice to me then.”

Tom smiled. “Do you have plans for me?” He slid his arms around her waist, pulling her tight against his chest. He lowered his head to kiss her lips.

“Perhaps. But we need to get upstairs.”

Tom grabbed her hand and dragged her through the side entrance of the hotel.

Emma moved towards the service elevator, but Tom pulled her into a nook of the hallway.

“Tom!” Emma gasped as he pushed her against the wall. “People can see.”

Tom nipped at her neck; hands ghosting over her curves before hooking one of Emma’s knees up.

“If you are quiet, they won’t notice.” Tom growled into her ear as her hands combed through his hair.

Tom bucked his hips into Emma and she bit her lip to suppress the moans of pleasure. Her hands slid down to cup his ass through his jeans.

“Mhmm.” she groaned as Tom cupped her breast through her shirt.

“Darling, with noises like that, I won’t last long.”

An awkward throat clearing interrupted them and they turned to see a gentleman in a suit staring them down. Tom let go of Emma’s leg and she straighten up her clothes.

“Perhaps the young couple would prefer to continue their activities somewhere more private?” he retorted without a hint of emotion.

Tom tugged on the hem of his shirt. “Of course, sorry for the intrusion.”

“Thank you, sir. Happens more than you think.” He gave them a wink as Tom led Emma down the hallway.

As soon as the door shut, they wasted no time getting back to the business at hand.

-

Over the next several days, Luke and Howard untangled the mess Bryce and Corrinne created with their web of lies and half-truths. A few receipts and phone calls put an end to any speculation of the two of them being a long time couple. A few papers tried to run with the story of Emma cheating on Bryce, spurred on by Bryce trying to capture every minute of fame, but it died out when a few of Bryce’s other dalliances came forward, destroying any sympathy for the man.

The press generated a lot of interest in their new project and the production company moved up the release date. It meant filming started next month; however, it also meant Tom needed to return to London sooner than planned to take care of things before filming began.

“Can’t you stay just a few days longer?” Emma whined as Tom packed his things into his suitcase.

Tom looked at her with a disapproving glance. “You recognized this was coming, Em.” He folded up the jeans and placed them into the bag.

“I know, but I didn’t expect it would go by so fast. When are you coming back?”

“In three weeks and then I am here for eight weeks filming.”

She frowned. “Can’t I just come with you?”

Tom chuckled. “You and I know that won’t work. You have obligations here and I have things in London to take care before I come back to film. With you.” He kissed her forehead. “Not to mention I would get no work done whatsoever because I would keep you in bed with me the entire time.”

Emma sighed. “Since when are you the voice of reason?”

“Since my publicist threatened my manhood.” They both laughed as Tom came around the bed to hug Emma tight against his chest. “And I have found myself someone worth it.”

Emma sniffled into Tom’s shirt. “Flattery will get you nowhere, Hiddleston.”

Tom ended the embrace with a kiss to her cheek. “How about bribery?”

Emma raised an eyebrow. “What did you have in mind?”

“Mind out of the gutter, darling. I offer you my most prized possession.” Tom held out a small parcel.

Emma took it with a questioning expression and as she unfurled a navy sweater. Her eyes lit up. “You remembered how much I love this one.”

Tom gave her a wink. “Many a fan girl would kill for that sweater. I do not want to find this up for sale on eBay.”

Emma snapped her fingers, mocking Tom. “There goes my retirement plan.”

Tom leaned in to kiss her lips, his hands combing through her hair. She sighed as they parted. “I am going to miss you.”

“I am going to miss you too.” Tom looked down at her, his eyes bright with tears. “Three weeks seems like an eternity.”

“I love you, Tom. I know it has been only a few weeks, but I love you.”

Tom kissed her with passion and heat. “I love you too, Em. Never doubt I love. Never doubt it.”

“Okay, Shakespeare.” She burrowed her face into his chest, tears falling onto his shirt. “When is your flight again?”

“In a few hours. Are you still up to driving me there?” He asked, lifting her chin to look her in the eyes.

“Yes.” she commented wiping away the tears. “I want every second to count.”

Tom nodded as he zipped up his suitcase and pulled it down to the ground.

“Ready, darling?” Tom asked as he opened the door.

“No, but that never stopped us before.” She took his hand in hers.

“No, it hasn’t.” He gave her hand a small squeeze.

[flowesona]

The Magician - Yandere! Jimin x reader

The Tarot Series

There was a strange emotion attached to the card dealer. It was almost bewitching how his fingers ran over the cards, causing all kinds of wild thoughts to anyone, man or woman, that watched him. His victim on that fateful night was a (Y/N) (L/N), one of the players in the semi-final round of a national poker tournament, playing for a large cash prize and global notoriety.

It just so happened that this woman was seated right next to Jimin as he prepared the game, and the moment that they made eye contact (Y/N) beckoned for him to lean in so she could speak to him.

“What’s your name?”

He looked amused, slightly surprised but completely cool.

“My name is Jimin, Ma’am.” He indicated towards the name badge pinned to his waistcoat.

“Well, Jimin, my name is (Y/N) and I would love it if you could deal me a royal flush.” (Y/N) giggled to her own amusement, whereas Jimin didn’t say a word, choosing instead to tear open the deck & shuffle the cards.

Not once during the first round did Jimin allow himself to glance at her for more than a moment, but he could feel that there was something stirring in his stomach. Of course he knew her before she introduced herself, he’d been following her presence on the scene for nearly a year, watching every match with an unmatched admiration and longing. But even with his insane luck of being able to deal at a match she was competing in, he knew it was impossible to get to know her. She was an expert player, way more significant than some simple croupier. When this match was over, she would simply leave to get ready for the grand finals, and his name would mean nothing to her.

‘Unless I do something.’

Cheating was awful. If he was caught, no doubt he’d be burnt at the stake. But if he didn’t do something, then the woman who’d he’d waited so long to meet would slip through his fingers.

By the time he was due to deal out the next round of cards, (Y/N) had a clear lead. But Jimin had to risk it all to keep her from winning, to keep her grounded. With that, he slipped out the emergency card he’d kept up his sleeve like a magic trick, and placed it just under the top card. The Ace of Hearts was therefore dealt to the man to (Y/N)’s right, and with Jimin’s risky move the game was set in his favour.

*.·:·.☽✧    ✦    ✧☾.·:·.*

Spying her defeated expression, Jimin approached her. He’d removed his waistcoat and undone his cuffs, hoping that a less formal look would appeal to her. Else, all had been for nothing. Risking his job, hell even his freedom. There could have easily been legal consequences to his interference, but the beautiful tears streaming down her face were worth it.

“(Y/N)?” He savoured the feeling of her name on his tongue, the vulnerable look in her eyes as she looked up in response to his call. “Can I buy you a drink? As an apology maybe?”

“Getting pissed after losing the tournament? Sounds like a plan to me.” The young woman sniffled, rubbing at her eyes. “I’m sorry, I look like such a sore loser.”

“You’re fine.” He responded, offering her his hand. “I’ve seen a lot worse.”

“I can imagine. God, some of the players can be pretentious pricks.” She smiled, taking his hand. 

“But not you. You might be one of the most wonderfully perfect players I’ve met.” The boost to her ego did not go unappreciated, as she blushed.

“Not good enough to win, though.” (Y/N) sighed. 

“It’s ultimately luck, isn’t it? You’re at a level where bluffing can only get you so far, and you need the cards to back you up.” Jimin commented.

“Are you lucky when it comes to poker, then?” (Y/N) had relaxed into the feeling of his hand around hers as he led her to the bar.

“Not really. I think my luck lies in love.” But Jimin knew that when it came to winning this girl, he needed a bit more than luck. He needed to be cunning, and keep his perfect poker face until she was his.

*.·:·.☽✧    ✦    ✧☾.·:·.*

“We’re closing in thirty minutes, okay?” Jimin nodded at the bartender, nudging the girl who was nestled into his shoulder. She didn’t even stir.

Jimin smiled, picking her up on his back and uttering a thanks to the bartender with a handsome tip before leaving with (Y/N) still slumped on his back. With one hand still supporting her legs he used his other to flag down a cab.

Once the cab pulled over, Jimin’s first priority was placing (Y/N) down on the seat gently and buckling the seatbelt before getting in himself and giving directions to his apartment to the cabbie.

“Your girlfriend had a bit too much to drink?” The driver commented with a snort as Jimin let (Y/N)’s head rest on his shoulder.

“Yeah.” Jimin replied simply. In all honesty, it was harder than he’d thought to get her to this point. She was a heavy drinker, but with cautious choices of drinks Jimin was able to outlast her and sober up in time.

The rest of the cab ride was silent, Jimin more focused on making sure (Y/N) wouldn’t hurt herself by accident. However, she seemed perfectly peaceful, sleeping like a baby. It was probably a cocktail of her depressive mood from losing the match and the gin he’d bought her that made her drunkenness so peaceful.

Arriving at his place, Jimin gave the cabbie a twenty before helping (Y/N) out of the car, lifting her up onto his back once again as he carried her up the stairs to his apartment. He dug about in his pocket, cursing until he found the chain with his keys to unlock the door.

He hadn’t exactly planned having (Y/N) at his place that night, and thus it wasn’t as tidy as he would have liked. Still, he would be able to tidy it soon, maybe (Y/N) would even offer to help. He decided to instead focus on putting (Y/N) to bed, sitting upwards with a glass of water and a bucket next to her should there be any hangover sickness. After he’d taken every precaution, he settled himself next to her, enjoying the warmth of her body next to his as he closed his eyes, content that his magic trick had been successful.

[sml8180]

Games

Day 12 of the YuleTube prompt list by @huffletrax

Games

All the Sides were sitting around the coffee table in the living area, some on the couch, some on the floor, all wearing Christmas sweaters. Janus was curled up under his heat lamp, wearing a pendant Roman and Patton had made in order to keep him from cheating during the game they were all about to play.

It had been Patton, unsurprisingly, who’d suggested all six of them gather for a game night. He’d said that since it was the holiday season, they should all do some family things, including a game might. So, they were all gathered and getting ready to play a game of Two Truths and A Lie -hence the pendant Janus had to wear, in order to keep him from doing his thing and easily detecting everyone’s lies-.

The group was about halfway through their game, and Remus, Patton, and Virgil had all already gone. Remus had lied about having a number of mice he’d been taking care of -it was a small lie; they were rats-, Patton had claimed that he’d never had any dirty thoughts about any of the others -Virgil had immediately called him out on it, bringing up the far-too-handsy makeout session he’d caught him and Remy engaging in just a few nights ago, which had caused Patton to sheepishly shrug and blush a bright pink-, and Virgil had lied when he claimed to only have three hoodies -Roman had disputed him and said that Virgil literally had an entire bar in his fairly large closet dedicated to different hoodies and jackets-.

Now, it was Logan’s turn.

“I have a deep appreciation for the sciences and poetry; I identify as a Cisgender individual; and I have a plush key-chain sized Space Core from the game Portal 2 which sits at my desk,” Logan offered to the group.

“It’s Two Truths and A Lie, Logan,” Janus stated.

“I am aware of this. One of those statements is a lie.”

“Well, one truth is easy,” Virgil stated. “You’ve had at least two rap battles with Roman, and you’ve literally got chart-accurate star placement on the ceiling of your room. Obviously that first one’s the truth.”

“That is correct,” Logan stated.

“And I know for a fact he’s got a Space Core on his desk,” Roman cut in. “I remember giving it to him because he was having trouble figuring things out for Thomas’ schedule, and I gave it to him so he could use it as a rubber duck to talk the issue through with.”

“That just leaves the issue of gender,” Janus mused.

“Oh my goodness, Logan, did I just-,”

“It’s fine, Roman. None of you were aware,” Logan stated, cutting the Prince off.

“The Brainiac’s not Cis?” Remus half-questioned. “Honestly, I kinda saw that coming.”

“You did?” Logan asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“It was more of a hunch,” Remus shrugged. “I may be chaotic, but I’m not oblivious. Sometimes you cringe just a little when we use He/Him to refer to you.”

“I thought I was a bit better at disguising my reactions…”

“To be fair, aside from Remus, I may be the only one who noticed,” Janus shrugged. “Though that’s more coming from my usual nature than anything else.”

“So… This is like, your way of coming out?” Virgil asked.

“It is,” Logan nodded. “I have been researching and in a way experimenting for some time and, well, I have found that the Agender label suits how I personally see myself.”

“Awe, Logan!” Patton exclaimed, crawling over and giving the logical Side a hug which was somewhat awkwardly returned.

“So, what pronouns are you going to be using?” Roman questioned, once Logan was finally able to worm out of Patton’s grasp.

“I have settled on They/Them pronouns. Simple, easy, and effective. It feels right,” Logan answered.

“I’m glad you felt comfortable enough to tell us this, Lo,” Virgil stated with a bit of a smile. “That takes a lot of trust.”

“I will admit, despite knowing that this is a highly accepting group, it was difficult,” Logan admitted. “The framing of this game actually helped, in a way. Knowing that you all would be able to identify the two real truths while working to find the lie that did not stand out at first made it a bit easier, and not having to phrase the statement directly, while still getting it out to start the conversation took a bit of the metaphorical weight off of my shoulders.”

“Well, this was a highly enlightening experience,” Janus stated. “Though we do still have two more sets to get through.”

With that, the group returned to the game they had paused. Logan felt more relaxed than they had in quite some time, and actually let themself laugh with the others when Janus gave a fairly obvious lie -that he could see in full color; most of the others knew that Janus was colorblind-. And they were actually the Side to point out Roman’s lie -that he didn’t have an outfit that was similar to the one Remus normally wore, but in his usual red and white; Logan had seen it while in Roman’s room to retrieve their planner one time-.

In all, the first game of the night went well, and Patton had several more ready to go, pulling out the Uno cards after they wrapped up. Logan smiled as they shuffled and dealt the cards to everyone, feeling at peace and accepted as they played games with their family.

[pesewla]

aight since this is a loaded question i’ll try to organize my thoughts haha... 

will they interact more?

YES, ABSOLUTELY. i have reasons too. several. buckle up

1. we still don’t know why tyki looks like nea.

ofc, this is more of a joyd/nea interaction than a tyki/allen interaction, but i also think learning the answer to this will be crucial for both tyki and allen understanding their noahs, their past, and each other better…

2. tyki and allen are highly paralleled characters.

heck, they first meet each other while both cheating at cards for basically the same reason - for their friends (allen to get krory’s clothing back, and tyki for the fun of it but also because his human friends need money to survive).

their main motive is emotion, not logic. tyki’s noah is driven by the need for pleasure, which he finds through killing and destroying, and tyki’s human side is driven by his love for eze and his human friends. and essentially all of allen’s actions are driven by his residual love and respect for mana. he restores his innocence purely to resume killing and freeing akuma, which he feels so much pity and sadness for because of his experience with mana. allen goes to the black order only because cross (who had ties to mana) ordered him to, not out of his own free will.

both of them recently experienced events that upheaved their allegiances and bonds. for allen, he was betrayed and basically left for dead by the order. for tyki, he’s just beginning to understand how little he knows about the noah’s past and goals; after meeting nea, he expressed a fervent desire to learn more about him, even if that’ll shift his whole world paradigm.

they both struggle with their light and dark sides. the only difference is that tyki finds joy in having both; allen is kind of in denial of his noah still, but he also expressed a desire to learn more about nea after the third exorcist incident.

so all of these parallels lead me to believe that, like other aspects of their character, learning the “truth” should come at the same time for them.

3. literally whenever tyki and allen interact in canon it sets off an unstoppable chain reaction of character development…

for tyki, his inability to get rid of allen led to tyki hardening his (questionable) ideals and putting more deep thought into his actions beyond just killing “for the fun of it”. tyki never thought about innocence at all before allen, which road points out in the ark. dealing with allen seriously forced tyki to consider why he was doing what he was doing, not just how it felt in the moment. even if he doesn’t change his ideals, putting more thought into his actions is kind of the first step towards autonomy & not just blindly listening to joyd.

for allen, tyki is actually pushing him towards a balance between light and dark. this was first hinted at when allen and tyki’s fight in the ark led allen to procuring the white sword from his arm. the white sword resembles nea’s sword, which he used to massacre the noah, but the difference is that allen doesn’t want to kill tyki. crown clown balances between the desires of nea (absolute massacre) and allen (who simply wants to go back to playing cards and peacetime). later on, tyki is the one who encourages allen to figure out just “what” he is, rather than trying to decide between his noah and innocence all at once. seriously, it’s so obvious that tyki is trying to help allen…

4. tyki has expressed in multiple ways that he’s looking forward to seeing how allen deals with his noah.

i doubt he’ll give up on that.

5. no other characters share the same experience as the two of them.

neither of them really understand their noahs, and they usually do so in tandem.

i mean tyki has been present in all stages of allen’s transition into a noah - first in the ark where he becomes the Musician, then in the alma arc where nea awakens, and then when he’s forced to leave the order…etc. so i think it’s likely he’ll continue to play a large part in how the chips fall there

the reason why there are several fics about allen being raised as a noah is because it is plausible. both allen and tyki are people that struggle against their nature and fate, and literally one of the only things separating them is how they were raised. so, they’ll continue to propel each other through their plot and character developments…

what will eventually happen between the two of them?

okay i’m not going to be overly optimistic here.

allen, for the most part, still sees tyki as an enemy or a threat. allen wants to spare tyki and for tyki to live, but that’s only because allen has witnessed his humanity - in other words, he thinks tyki’s noah is bad and tyki’s human side is good.

i think the main part of their development from here will hinge on allen changing the way he sees noah in general, not just tyki. it��s overwhelmingly clear that allen’s perception, and by extension the audience’s perception, of noah is skewed. we don’t have the full information on them, but i imagine they have motives outside of the “destruction and chaos” one-track mindset that was pinned on them in the beginning. most likely relating to the pillar.

it’s very likely that allen and tyki will, more or less simultaneously, learn the truth about nea and the “third side” of the war. allen will be forced to do so since he’s nea’s host, but tyki will most likely seek out the information, as he declared that he would. in this, both allen and tyki will be pushed more toward a “grey” area - coming from allen’s initial white “goodness” and tyki’s initial black “badness”. i have hope that allen and tyki will learn about these facts together. that would be pretty fitting.

as allen learns more about the third side of the war, he’ll be more accepting of tyki and see him more as an equal or, at the very least, another victim of the holy war.

tyki already basically considers allen a comrade or is willing to - even though he was ordered by the earl to protect allen, i don’t think he was faking the shouts of concern as allen took on apo lol. but as TYKI learns more about the third side of the war, he’ll likely stop pressing allen to give up innocence and decide “what” he is. i imagine he’ll sympathize even more with allen, even if joyd still hates him for being nea’s host…

what are your hopes for them?

okay now here’s my chance to be optimistic.

i really really want tyki and allen to have a conversation as equals. their interactions frustrate me so much - tyki has so much respect and admiration for allen but he’s always so coy! and allen, like i said previously, was only able to cooperate with tyki when he was emotionally panicked. otherwise, his “I’M AN EXORCIST” button flicks on and he’s forced to act tsundere.

please, please hoshino let them play another game of poker, just laughing and having fun. i want to see tyki humbled. i’ve been thinking this ever since their dialogue when fighting in the ark.

i want tyki to get mad at nea for possessing allen. i KNOW he’s thinking it. i want that “give the boy back” moment so badly.

i hope that someday they can talk about tyki destroying allen’s innocence. i don’t really think allen’s hurt about it anymore, especially since it was a key factor in his growth as an exorcist, but i wish there was like… some stage of forgiveness or repentance. not that tyki is capable of that, but hey.

other people have definitely said this - idk where the post is but i love that one - but having a meal together like tyki wanted??? that would be so symbolic and AH\

anyways i know this was pretty lengthy but i just think tyki and allen are excellent characters and their similarities and differences speak volumes in terms of the overall good&bad message of dgm. always too long winded. with loves

[cryptosnake]

Cryptosnake: the most anticipated NFT game of 2021

We are going to see the launch of dozens, if not hundreds of new NFT games in 2021-2023. In this article, I want to tell you about the only one that I sincerely wait to be launched. This is Cryptosnake.

Gameplay

If you are over 10 years old, you most likely have played snake, just like me. A simple mobile game that at different times has been adapted to different devices, from Nokia 6110 to iPhone 12. Different developers create something new, but the concept remains the same. You have a snake that has to eat bricks and grow. The snake must avoid collisions with obstacles and its own body. The longer the snake, the more difficult it is to control it.

By the way, the game is still alive. Slither io was one of the most played games on YouTube and Twitch a few years ago. For those who did not know, this is a multiplayer snake, where many slithers compete on the same map.

Cryptosnake's gameplay is also in line with this concept. You have a snake (NFT object) that should have bricks (SNAKE digital tokens). The main difference between Cryptosnake and a regular snake is that you can earn real money while playing. It's time to tell you how it works.

Play to earn concept

Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile assets. Top cryptocurrencies’ market cap exceed the capitalization of the official currencies of some countries. For example, the capitalization of Bitcoin is greater than the capitalization of the Russian ruble, and the capitalization of Ethereum is greater than the capitalization of the Norwegian krone. Despite their massiveness, they continue to be volatile. The reason is that their value is formed by demand, attention to them.

The concept of GameFi (DeFi technologies based games) is based on the idea that players can make game currency valuable by creating demand for it — just like real cryptocurrencies. In fact, in GameFi games like Cryptosnake, the game currency is cryptocurrency. You can withdraw it to Binance, exchange it for other cryptocurrencies, or withdraw it to a bank card.

When a new promising cryptocurrency appears, investors tend to buy it as early as possible. This will make it possible to capitalize on the growth of the exchange rate in the future. The play to earn games work the same way. The sooner you start playing, the more you can earn. The difference between cryptocurrency and GameFi tokens is that you are not investing money, but your attention and time spent in the game. This is a kind of mining.

Why am I waiting for Cryptosnake

Play to earn blockchain games trend begins in 2020. Cryptosnake is not the first and not unique in its concept. So there are many top NFT games. Why am I waiting for this one?

The answer is simple. Aside from the interesting concept and nostalgia, the key feature is profitability. This game is designed to earn more than any other DeFi NFT game. The reason is the diversified profitability. You can receive income from different sources (economy drivers) and sum it up.

The basic source of income is “feeding the snake”. This is how it looks to the user. At this time, the blockchain automatically credits tokens under a smart contract.

The starting value of the return (standard reward) is 60% per year. This is a percentage on the balance. Ethereum 2.0 staking works the same way. By accumulating tokens on your cryptocurrency wallet, you become a staker (a kind of miner in an environmentally friendly proof-of-work system that does not require computing power).

You can also increase your standard reward by accumulating bonuses: a bonus for the balance of the deposit (up to 40%), a bonus for the time in the game (up to 70%) and others. So the profitability can be grown even more.

Cheat tokens (boosters). Just like potions or artifacts in a game, they increase the snake's profitability. The easiest way to get a cheat-token is to buy it. This is a kind of investment.

Distribution of 30% of the first transactions of new players among the old ones. It works like a referral system, where every player receives a bonus, even if you didn’t invite anyone to the game.

SNAKE token rate growth. As the popularity of the game grows, so does the token rate. To further stimulate the growth of the rate in the blockchain, the burning of coins is provided.

Thus, Cryptosnake offers good profitability compared to other DeFi games. The percentage is so lange because of the desire to attract new players. The sooner you join, the more you can earn. Those who come to the game at the peak of popularity will no longer be able to make money so easily.

Follow the news and learn more about the project on the resources of Cryptosnake:

https://t.me/Cryptosnake_en

https://medium.com/@cryptosnake.game

https://twitter.com/cryptosnake_en

SNAKE Token

This token is based on the Binance Smart Chain. This means that SNAKE can be freely exchanged for other BSC currencies, including Tether (USDT), Ethereum, Binance Coin and others. The SNAKE course isn’t known yet. It will depend on demand.

Total emission: 10,000,000,000 SNAKE Initial Token Distribution: 100,000,000 SNAKE Staking Token: 9,900,000,000 SNAKE

The accrual of tokens occurs at the moment the NFT is broken, that is, at the moment the snake is destroyed. That is like breaking a piggy bank to get money out of it.

How to start playing Cryptosnake

For today, the game has not been launched yet. The release is scheduled for October 2021. Until that time, you can join the closed community. Active community members receive bonuses in the form of SNAKE tokens, which will be credited to their account after registration. I have already joined the Telegram community chat to follow the project's news and collect bonuses. If you'd like to join too, here's the link:

Also, investors will have the opportunity to buy game tokens at an early stage on the Pancake Swap exchange. This will help to boost the economics of the project in advance.