#SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO TELL YOU BUT THIS WHOLE MYTH OF FALL IS JUST THAT: A MYTH

[montanabohemian]

everyone who's like "ohmygod i hate summer and i love fall. fall is the best time of year!" it snowed here today. and will be in single digits (fahrenheit) for the rest of the week. so like. we got two weeks of summer and two days of fall. fucking awesome.

[arminsumi]

🔞 𝐀𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 | 𝟏𝟖+

𝐓𝐨-𝐁𝐞 𝐄𝐱-𝐇𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝 | 𝟐

<- 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯.

𝟑.𝟔𝐤 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 / 𝟕 𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬

��𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 : fem reader / Gojo Satoru / (Geto Suguru)

𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬 : your ex-boyfriend claims he isn't a playboy anymore, but is he being genuine? Another date with him leaves you a mess, and you end up asking his best friend out for coffee.

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 : angst, pining, drama, smut (cr**mpies, light degradation, name calling (sl*t and wh*re), c*nnilingus, bl*wjob in the backseat/risky), implied sexual relationship with Suguru

𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞 : Heaven and Back | Often | Wine Pon You | New Rules

You walk out of your bedroom gussied up, lips painted in a very specific shade of red.

And Shoko, laid on the couch tiredly, gapes in disbelief at you.

"Oh my god." she groans, "Please don't tell me you're going on another date with that playboy."

You act dumb, nervously touching your neck as you style your hair in the mirror some more.

"What?"

"You're wearing the Gojo Satoru lipstick."

You continue acting, "This isn't the 'Gojo Satoru' lipstick, I love this lipstick! I always wear this shade!"

She looks at you, dumbfounded by your acting, nearly laughing.

"No, that's the Gojo Satoru lipstick. I can distinctly recall his words; "That's my baby's lipstick on me." and how you giggled on his shoulder."

"Shoko, that was five years ago." you say, "It's fine. I promised him only one more date. He needs closure."

"He's had five years of closure." Shoko replies, "Angel, you're too good for him."

"He's changed!" you insist.

"No, he hasn't; I saw that look in his eyes when I saw you two on the couch. He's still a playboy, and he'll prove it to you soon enough." she says.

"I have faith in him." you say.

"How many times have I heard that?" she shakes her head, getting ready to have a smoke. "You know, Gojo Satoru has always gotten what he wants. That's why he's so fascinated by the new you; you're not giving yourself to him like you did back then."

"I have faith in him!" you emphasize. "God, just tell me I look good."

"..."

"Please. I'm nervous. He's high-class, you know. I feel like I'm going on a date with the president of the world."

Shoko sighs and heads towards the balcony to smoke.

"You look too good." she says earnestly. "He was right about that shade of lipstick on you."

Her compliment makes you light up significantly.

You fuss as you wait. Since Shoko asks, you tell her; "He ordered for someone to chauffeur me."

"Oh my god." she groans, "He's really buttering you up."

"But isn't it such a gentleman move!"

"... more like a rich boy flex." she mutters under her breath, stubbing out the end of her cigarette.

"Okay. I've got to go. See you later... um, unless I overnight by him, of course." you giggle dreamily.

"Condoms." Shoko says simply.

"He's got some."

"Bring your own, always."

"But I'm on birth control, and we've already — " you begin.

Shoko cuts you off, "I know, but have you ever heard about the whole "creampies make you fall in love" thing?"

"What?" you look dumbly. "Isn't that a myth?"

"No. Coming inside is affectionate. You're going to feel connected to him and then he'll dip when you become "too serious" for him. Just keep him at bay."

You give her advice consideration, and nod. "Okay, alright. I won't let him do it inside."

*****

While being chauffeured, you rehearse in your head how to greet your ex-boyfriend — but it doesn't help, because as soon as you're actually in his presence again, your mind goes blank and you start nervously touching at your neck and giggling to cope with his charm.

From the moment Satoru takes your hand and leads you into the restaurant, you feel like a VIP. It's such a familiar feeling; in your early twenties, when you and him dated, he showed you what it meant to be really rich.

And he was excited to shower you in lavish treatment, he loved to see you decorated in his diamonds and to see your bright smile on foreign beaches.

The effect he has on you is even noticed by the waiter, who tends to your secluded table on the rooftop. You and Satoru feel like you're in your own bubble.

"I'm serious." he says honestly, looking into your eyes.

"... you break my heart, then disappear for five years, and then come back asking for marriage." you shake your head, "Doesn't that sound insane to you? Can't you understand why I'm rejecting you?"

"I've changed."

You hum skeptically.

"Really." he tilts his head, he flicks his brow giving his expression that sad little look that really sells it for you.

"If we got married, how long would it last?"

"What do you mean? We'd be wed 'till we're dead." he grins.

You shake your head and smile at him, poking at your plate. A long silence passes.

"... let me think about it."

"... okay." his spirits lift. "But don't make me wait too long; I'm impatient." he teases.

"Too bad. I'm gonna take my time." you sass, biting a piece of meat off your fork to make a statement.

He grins at you.

*****

Food all eaten, dessert long gone. The night air feels good. Not like old times, but new times with an old lover. He knows he messed up, right? So why hasn't he apologized yet? Maybe, you theorize to yourself to justify him, maybe he's still thinking up an apology.

He stares at you from across the table, eyes hungry like a starved wolf.

"You look so good tonight." he says for the third time.

You giggle in response, "Stop..."

"I swear that shade of lipstick looks familiar." he teases, leaning over the table.

You can smell his cologne, and it entrances your heart.

"... is it?" you ask softly, pretending like you don't know what he's talking about.

He knows you're pretending, he thinks it's cute.

"You think it would look good on me too?" he asks.

You shrug like a ditzy princess, "I dunno. Wanna find out...?"

He's so quick to call the waiter for the bill, like there's a pressing issue that needs his attention.

But the only pressing issue is his hard-on pressing hot against his thigh.

*****

Giving his cock all your attention in the backseat of the car, Satoru forces his moans down so that his poor chauffeur doesn't hear through the screen divider.

You stifle a slurping sound, sliding off the tip of his cock slowly, and it makes him shudder hard. He closes his eyes, like that helps any, and tries to keep from cumming in your mouth right there.

Gojo knows your lipstick stains are going all over his cock, it drives him crazy.

Before he cums, you pull off and he mutters a small "Just you wait..." under his breath that makes you smile wide.

****

Kissy marks lead up his abs. Of course, he wants to take a photo — to preserve the memory.

"Hand here, baby. Good girl." he instructs, and in his voice right then you can hear how mature he is now, in comparison to the squeakier voice he had when you two first met.

He's not a boy anymore, he's a man. But very far from being your man, which he's trying to change.

"Lay back." he murmurs. "Spread your legs. Wider. Good girl."

Without saying a thing about it, he noses in between your thighs and shows you heaven is real, and it exists on Gojo Satoru's tongue.

"Fuck!" you clamp your thighs around his head, making him hum while sliding his tongue inside.

When you two first dated, he wasn't inexperienced — but he didn't quite know how to eat a woman out.

Five years is a long time to practice, and he definitely did. You can feel his sloped nose nudging against your clit as he kisses and sucks, sometimes nibbling softly with his teeth at your puffy lips.

Making you cum on his tongue is almost too easy for Satoru, he nearly laughs as he pulls away and licks your slick off his lips. He thinks it's a pity that he's at the wrong angle to see your eyes rolling back. But at least he sees how you throw your head back for him, and how you sound for him — like a cat, he loves it.

"Nice and messy for me now, huh?" he hums, connecting his body with yours as he crawls upwards and devours your lips.

"Mhm!" you whine, still unsteady from your orgasm, breathing frantically. "Satoru, I need you in me right now."

"Aw, but I was gonna — "

"Nowww!" you beg.

He sighs, "Can't say no to that face."

You watch intently, licking your lips, as he whips his belt off and takes his cock out. It's red from the tip down to the middle, where that familiar thick vein always catches your attention.

By your request, even though it confuses him, he squeezes his cock into a condom.

"What do you need, baby?" he asks, lowering his cock onto your pussy and rubbing it between your slicked lips.

You squeal as he flicks at your clit, then pinches your folds around his cock, making you realize his size in comparison to little you.

"I need you."

"Need me how?"

"Satoru!" you hiss annoyedly.

"I don't want to have to tease you, baby just say it."

"I want your cock inside me."

"Not nearly slutty enough." he shakes his head, drawing his cock back and forth, rubbing over your soft pussy. "You said to me in the car that you were a total, fucking slut for me, didn't you say that? Or am I imagining things?"

You start babbling, "Yeah! I'm a slut for you, I want it so bad!" you whine, "C'mon fuck me stupid!"

"That's better." he grins.

Just like how he always does, he presses his tip inside you so politely but then pushes it in too deep, making you curl like you're about to cum.

Satoru's not one to go slow for long, he'd rather pound into you hard and fast right away, to bring out that slut in you as quick as he can. Because right now, you're not nearly slutty enough for him, as he said — and he needs to see that side of you.

"Baby, get loud for me, come on." he grunts, shoving himself as deep as he can, reaching the spot that you know isn't the G-spot or your cervix, but something in-between.

"Fuck!" you almost cry, "That's so good, fuck me harder please!"

He grins, cheeky fangs on display, and goes harder until you can hardly handle it. You don't care if it hurts just a little bit, because you want to know that every inch of your ex's cock is inside you. Not just eight, eight and a half — honestly, he doesn't know where you put all of that, but he delights in watching it disappear into your hole.

"Look at you." he purrs, "How deep are you trying to suck me?"

It feels like he's going to split you in two. Sweat pours out of the both of you, bodies getting slippery.

As Satoru continues pumping his cock back and forth, in and out of you, he starts furrowing his brows together in focus — playful edge dulling as it always does when it feels good good.

"That's it, you fucking take it." he grunts, "Good girl, you're a good little slut for me huh?"

"Yeahhh I'm a good little slut for you!"

"Let me take the condom off, baby."

You know you're gonna hear it from Shoko if she knows, but in the moment you're too drunk on sex to care, and even reach back to strip the condom off your ex's cock yourself as he watches with a smirk.

"Good girl. Now flip on your side, like this." he instructs.

He slides back inside slowly, filling you inch by inch with a low groan — like he's falling in love.

And the sounds he makes as his orgasm builds up make you want to cum again, too. Each time he hits that strange spot between your G-spot and cervix, your visions sparks a little.

Hard strokes tip you over, and you lay there letting Satoru degrade you and call you a filthy slut. You'd be his anything as long as it felt this good.

"I'm so close." he warns, trying to savor the buildup.

"Cum inside me." you mewl, "Please."

"Yeahhh I'm gonna — fuck. Take my cum, be a good girl."

The broken moan he lets out as he creampies you is almost obscene. Satoru slows his thrusts as he shoots everything he has into you.

His jaw slacks, and he groans, "... prettiest little slut, aren't you? So filthy and pretty."

"I'm gonna cum againnn..." you whine, reaching down to rub frantically on your sensitive clit.

He watches you through the haze of his post-orgasm, slowly grinding his cock inside to get you there.

"Good girl."

"C-call me a slut again, please."

He laughs naughtily, "Fucking slut. Come on, finish on me. Make that cute face again, 'cute lil' whore."

Satoru always surprises you during sex in some way, this time you're surprised when he caresses your cheek as you cum. You shake and spasm, feeling each shock of your orgasm.

Panting and coming down from your high, Satoru cracks a smile.

"You were so loud." he laughs.

Reality hits you, "Oh my god, I didn't know I liked being called a slut so much!" you cover your face embarrassedly.

He rings out with laughter.

*****

After sex. What happens after sex? He's a gentleman, and that makes you tear up — not because he's a gentleman, but because he never used to be quite like this.

No, he never used to be quite like this. Even kissing you afterwards? Why was it, you wonder, that back then he couldn't love you as deeply as now, when you needed it most?

"What's wrong?" he asks.

You try to stop your crying, but it gets worse.

"Satoru." you say, sniffling, eyes pointed downwards, "I know it's been five years, but I'm still hurt."

He doesn't reply. Just awkwardly wrings his hands and sits at the edge of the bed, soft duvet covering his lap.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't really help."

"Then what can I do?"

"I don't know." you sniffle, "Go back in time and love me. You know, I needed your love back then more than I do now." you admit to both him and yourself.

Satoru purses his lips, thinking before he speaks — but then he ends up not replying at all.

Instead, he goes to wipe your tears. Something he always did towards the end of your relationship, because you were always crying.

"I should go home."

He jolts a little. "Oh. I thought you were gonna stay the night?" he croaks. Inside, he's dreading sleeping alone again.

"No." you shake your head. "I've got to stop fooling myself. We're not getting back together, you're not more than a playboy, we're not getting married — and sex with you is better than with anyone else, but a relationship can't bank on that, Satoru."

"I'm being genuine. I told you earlier that I was."

"How can I trust you?" you ask.

"Playboys don't propose marriage." he replies.

"But you're just joking about that!"

"I'm not!" he stresses, "The last time you loved me, I was just a boy. I'm a man now and I know what I want." he says roughly.

You both go silent. Then he starts speaking again, voice softer than before.

"I love you more every time I see you."

You don't say anything back. He looks stricken and confused.

"I'm gonna go." you say.

He purses his lips tightly, looking frustrated that he can't get through to you.

"I'll take you home." he says quietly.

*****

Shoko is just digging around in the freezer for therapeutic ice cream when you come into the entry way.

"You look dreadful."

"Thanks."

"Bad date?"

"The worst..."

"Still love him?"

"... yeah."

"Marriage?"

"I'm in love, not stupid." you reply.

Shoko chuckles. "Come on. Let's catch up on that series. I'm not on-call." she cheers for herself. "We can binge the whole thing."

"Shoko, where would I be without you?" you sigh appreciatively, flopping on the couch next to her, mascara smudged off and all.

"Staying the night with a playboy, probably."

"Can't argue that." you sigh, "Shoko, I'm so dumb for him, what do I do?"

"Wait. Strike at the right moment."

"I'm not a cobra."

"Buy a cobra. Let it loose on him."

"Your humor is so dark, Shoko. I love you."

"Love you more."

*****

Meanwhile, Satoru is with Suguru; who is listening to his sulking best friend.

"I'm so dumb for her. What do I do?" he groans, "Shoko's probably poisoning her against me as we speak."

Suguru thinks deeply. "Shoko..."

"I know!" Satoru nearly starts crying again. He's being so dramatic, it's hard to take him seriously. But Satoru almost never cries. So Suguru seriously thinks about solutions to his problems.

"Shoko!" Suguru realizes.

"I knowww!"

"No, Satoru, Shoko!" Suguru emphasizes, like he's just made a breakthrough, "Shoko is the answer to all your problems!"

"Ew. I'd never date Shoko."

"You're so dense. I'm not suggesting that. Shoko's her best friend, and she listens to whatever she says, like you listen to me."

"You have a point... I'm listening."

"See?" Suguru chuckles, "Now, here's what I think you should do..."

*****

"You want me to talk to Suguru?" you shake your head. "How would that help?"

"He's his best friend. If you want to find out if Satoru's no-good, you go to the best friend."

"Suguru would rather die than expose Satoru. They're not like regular best friends, they're soulmate best friends." you say, nervously touching at your neck.

Shoko shakes her head. "Are you scared to talk to Suguru or something? What actually happened between you two back then? You never told me."

You go silent and wide-eyed. Shoko's jaw drops open.

"No way. Holy shit. Oh my god. You and him...?!"

"... it was just once."

"Holy shit! Was this before, after or during you and Satoru together?"

"I'm loyal as a dog! It was after... I was feeling, um, revengeful, and Suguru was feeling lonely one night... so..."

"Suguru actually did that?! Did Satoru find out?"

"We promised to never talk about it again. You know... Suguru was so nice about it. I remember he laid me down and said "Don't worry, just cum on my tongue" or something. Ugh, he was so hot. He fucked the life out of me — I could barely fucking see straight after."

"Too much information!" Shoko plugs her ears.

You look up at the ceiling dreamily. "He's thicker than Satoru."

"My best friend is a slut!" Shoko cries.

"I am!" you cry back dramatically.

The two of you burst out laughing wickedly.

"To sluts!" Shoko toasts with an ice cream spoon.

You toast with her, "To sluts! The sluttier the better!"

"Are you gonna talk to Suguru, then? Or are you scared of your inner slut coming out?" Shoko asks.

"I'll do it. It'll be fine. I'm sure Suguru doesn't look as good in real life as he does in photos..." you reply.

You exchange a look with her. Immediately, the two of you stalk Suguru's social medias and —

"Seriously? Who doesn't have a single social in this day and age?!" You curse, only finding photos of Suguru with Satoru.

"That's just like him."

"Maybe he has a Linkedin."

"You're desperate."

"Yeah!"

"Wait, here's something...?"

You investigate further.

"It's private?!"

Shoko bursts out laughing with ice cream melting on her tongue.

"Comedy!"

"This is seriously annoying. I'm gonna friend him." you say.

Shoko looks at you. You look at Shoko.

"You wouldn't."

"I would."

"You're CRAZY."

"I am!"

"Let me watch, let me watch."

"Okay. I'm doing it."

*****

Satoru is mixing another over-sweetened, non-alcoholic cocktail to be sipped on as if he's drinking his sorrows away.

And Suguru? He's laying on the couch, ghosting social medias that he has no account with, happily enjoying a video of traditional cuisine when suddenly he sees the most outrageous, random, and bizarre notification from his mostly-dead private account.

He makes a suspicious side-eye, thinking it can't be real.

Friend request from @ 𝐘𝐍

@ 𝐘𝐍 wants to send you a message.

@ 𝐘𝐍 hey suguru 😊

"What the fuck." he whispers under his breath, blushing in a panicked kind of way.

Immediately, hot memories of you flood his mind. He sits more upright on the couch, glances nervously to check what Satoru was doing, then looks at your message again.

His heart races.

*****

"This is stupid. He's gonna leave me on read."

"Yeah. I forgot Suguru was notorious for that." Shoko sighs. "Operation: Suguru is a failure, then?"

"Yeah."

You set your phone down and continue binge watching a whole season of a trashy series on Netflix.

Your phone vibrates thirty minutes later. You check it without thinking, then scream so loud it startles Shoko right out of her zen-like Netflix mood.

"NO WAY."

"Is it him? What did he say?"

"He said 'hey'. He's online."

"Well say something!"

You panic, "What do I say?"

"Ask him for coffee! In a non-romantic way!"

"Okay."

wanna go for coffee sometime?

@ 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐢𝐞 is this about satoru or us?

it's about satoru

@ 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐢𝐞 riiight

i'm serious 😠

@ 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐢𝐞 because i wouldn't mind if it's about us

"WHAT." you scream with Shoko.

"REPLY TO HIM."

"I DON'T KNOW HOW."

"GIVE ME YOUR PHONE."

Shoko clacks her nails against the screen viciously, replying to him as you watch her type.

"That doesn't sound like I wrote it."

"Well sorry for being grammatically correct."

"Make it sound sillier."

"There."

Shoko sends it. You watch and wait with bated breath, ignoring the climactic scene on the TV because Suguru Geto was far more attention-grabbing.

"Oh my god." you clap your hand over your mouth. "Is that sexual? Is he being sexual?"

"I have no idea, Suguru's an enigma."

"Do you think Satoru is sitting with him? Are they playing us?"

Shoko shrugs. "I don't know, but I'd read that message if I were you."

You look back to your phone.

@ 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐢𝐞 sooo coffee where and when?

"SHOKO WHAT DO I DO."

"I don't know."

"SHOKO."

"I DON'T KNOW. I'M STUNNED."

"ME TOO."

"I bet Satoru is cackling next to Suguru right now."

"I bet not. Listen to how sultry he is! That's three o's in there!"

Shoko thinks. "Yeah, but Suguru is always sultry. I think they're pulling a joke on us."

*****

Satoru is dozing off while his best friend texts you. Suguru's not resisting his smirk; it's plastered on his face.

@ 𝐘𝐍 tomorrow? 2pm sound ok? 🙈

@ 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐢𝐞 sounds perfect.

© 𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐢

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐞.

[cremebrewlee]

7.

Sylus Myth spoilers

You don't bother calling him. Your phone is clutched hard in your hand, but you can't bring yourself to do it. You need to hear his voice in person, see him in the flesh, and feel him beneath your hands.

Your dragon. The other half of your soul.

A single girl running wildly through the N109 zone is a loud and easy target. It catches the attention of unwanted stares and halfway interrupted attempts at robbery. But such a noisy display quickly catches the attention of a crow even if you didn't know it. You didn't care though.

There's a tugging deep inside you, telling you which direction to go. Tears prickle your eyes and your lungs and limbs burn as you continue sprinting through street after street, dodging the N109's inhabitants, light and shadow passing you by in a blur until you find yourself at Onychinus' base.

Coincidentally--or perhaps it's due to the detestable hand of fate--Sylus opens the door in that instance.

"Kitten? I didn't expect to see yo--"

Sylus freezes when practically collapse into his arms. He's solid, unyielding, and most importantly, he's whole. There's alarm and numerous questions in his gaze. He slowly raises a hand, thumbing the corners of your eyes where they're still raw and ready to spill tears. The tender caress is almost enough to break you--it is soft, so very soft.

So very human.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" he whispers. "Did someone hurt you?"

You shake your head, take a bracing breath, heart and emotions slamming against your ribs in an attempt to leap out. Instead, your hands tremble with effort as they grasp his face and your eyes are heavy with unshed tears, but you refuse to look away from him.

Your jaw quivers as it tries to force the words, "I remember," out of your mouth. But nothing comes. The only thing that escapes you are little gasps as you try to restrain your the sobs welling up inside you.

Where words fail you, your actions will speak for you.

You lean in meaningfully, tightening your grip on his face so he can't run or misunderstand or laugh this off. However, a thumb against your lips stop you.

Sylus levels you with a look. His crimson eyes are dripping with worry even as they flick between you and your lips.

"Are you feeling all right? This isn't like you. You..."

You bite his thumb and Sylus flinches, pulling it away just enough for you to speak.

Mustering all the feelings you have regained, all the memories you have seen, you press it into your voice, into one word and utter, "Sylus."

Sylus' breath hitches and then his breath stops. His gaze meets yours more clearly now, and you can see him searching for something in your eyes. You see yourself reflected in his--yourself as you are now, and yourself as the sorceress he had once known. There's a tension in the air, a strange silence unbefitting the N109 zone as though the whole world was waiting for the conclusion to this story.

You whisper his name--your name for him--once more and draw him in. This time, he does not stop you as your lips meet. It's a gentle touch, barely enough to be called a kiss, but it is the human way of showing love that you never ever got a chance to share.

A kiss a lifetime in the making. There are no flowers or wide open fields here, but this kiss makes your heart want to burst. You keep it light and Sylus' lips remain slack against yours despite twitching like he wants something more.

You pull back, a smile on your face. Sylus looks at you, dazed, but cautious. In his eyes, eyes that no one else had dared to try to gaze into or understand, you can see the fragile sliver of hope tucked away and wanting to unfurl. The smile on your face grows bigger and tears begin to fall.

Your brave, young dragon with a façade of a monster but the heart of a lover.

"Sylus. My dragon."

Those simple words seem to spur him back to reality. "You...remember?"

You barely have to nod before you're pulled into another kiss--deeper and more desperate than the last. Your teeth clack together with each kiss, but he doesn't seem to care and neither do you, both of you making up for lost time. No words are exchanged between you both. Whether this is one of your dreams shared between souls or reality, you couldn't be sure after a while. All you know is that your breath is stolen from you, again and again by a greedy dragon who lures you into his chambers.

In this life, neither of you have tails to wrap around each other or horns to caress. You're tangled up in each other's limbs, holding each other close. His lips constantly press themselves into your hair, your forehead, anywhere he can touch.

His hand never leaves yours as if to answer your promise from so long ago.

---

i just need to get this out of my system. will probably rewrite it or something at some point but i'm bouncing between xavier angst and sylus angst and zayne angst.

[astonmartinii]

first impressions matter | george russell social media au

pairing: georgerussell x reader

george is meeting y/n's dad for the first time and all hell breaks loose

yourusername

liked by georgerussell63, mickschumacher and 31,634 others

yourusername: pops finally had the time off from his busy busy life to visit his one daughter (he was only in a good mood cause verstappen won)

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username wait ur telling me george's gf is a max fan

yourusername i am a george fan first and foremost but my dad is staunchly orange army... it's a point of contention

georgerussell63 can't wait to see you guys soon!

yourusername i miss you baby i'll be back in a couple days

username WAIT george hasn't met papa y/ln yet?

landonorris he's too scared

georgerussell63 wrong !! falsehoods !! he's a busy and important man

alexalbon you had your blood pressure tested after talking to him on the phone ...

f1

liked by yourusername, landonorris and 501,761 others

tagged: georgerussell63, maxverstappen1

f1: these two line up 1 and 2 in baku, who do you think comes out on top in the first corner?

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username wait isn't y/n's dad here this weekend? george better back off if he wants to live

landonorris i just sit back and observe

alexalbon i got $20 on george getting dumped this weekend

danielricciardo yeah i back this

username y'all see george's face when he realised he'll actually have to not hit someone ?

yourusername i have faith, proud of you georgie

georgerussell63 thank you !! finally someone believes in me in this comment section

yourusername any bullshit with max and my dad said he'll disown you before you can even join the family

maxverstappen1 i just watched him fall to his knees (say hi to your dad for me)

f1teaspill

liked by 12,566 others

f1teaspill: it all went off after the sprint when george russell and max verstappen came together, do you think george was being a "dickhead"?

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username get me a netflix camera in the y/ln household stat

username i was sat in the same grandstand as y/n's dad and that man actually nearly fainted

username i can't be the only one thinking that you guys are all just being a bit dramatic like people can separate sport from their own personal lives

username was george in the wrong? who the fuck cares i love the drama

username you guys know y/n wouldn't joke about the situation if it was really that deep

yourusername

liked by alexalbon, lewishamilton and 41,778 others

tagged: georgerussell63

yourusername: favourite boys in the whole wide world

view all comments

username i hate the way any joke in this sport immediately has to become an attack y'all hate fun

georgerussell63 was a pleasure to finally meet the man, the myth and the legend

yourusername welcome to the family georgie xx

username this is so so cute y/n is so lucky !!

alexalbon get in there russell always knew you could do it

georgerussell63 you literally asked me for my car collection in my will before i left for dinner

alexalbon is the offer still open?

georgerussell63

liked by lewishamilton, yourusername and 712,458 others

tagged: yourusername

georgerussell63: i think i finally passed the family initiation

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username now see why did y'all try to ruin this, this is cute as shit

username peep the signed max pic in the back though orange army stay winning

yourusername the pasta won him over i think

georgerussell63 i think it was much more than that

username now what does this mean....

username they know something we don't and i don't like it

yourusername

liked by f1, maxverstappen1 and 101,564 others

tagged: georgerussell63

yourusername: now we've all finally gotten round to meeting we can officially announce that the russell-y/ln family is about to get just a little bit bigger x

view all comments

username OMG DAD!GEORGE INCOMING

landonorris congrats you two

maxverstappen1 congratulations !!

username i cannot express how much i am not chill about this

alexalbon bagsy god father - congratulations xx

username the way they kept it a secret so long so they could tell y/n's dad in person

lewishamilton looking forward to meeting the little one

note: this is a real random one but lol i found it fun - also thinking of making one of those "buy me a coffee" accounts if anyone wanted to nice a struggling student xx

[wondeurwall]

Idk if u've seen rafayel's new oracle story BUT IT HAS BEEN PLAGUING MY MIND

"What if i make it up to you like this yeah?"

MAKE UP SEX WITH RAFAYEL.

TELL ME DO YOU THINK THEY'LL HAVE IT OFTEN?? But ones in a more playful sort of way not really full on arguments if you get what i mean 😩💗💗

oh my god please, nonnie, rafayel's oracle story is literally the only thing on my mind. i've been so unwell

i went in with one dream and spent everything i had because my luck is abysmal. and, the worst part?? I CAN'T EVEN BE UPSET ABOUT IT 😭🫵🏻 it wasn't what i expected. it's kind of funny ASKDDJKD!! i thought it'd be myth related. instead, i was blessed with rafayel.... kisses... 🥰

itty bitty nsfw 🔞 mdni.

rafayel would 100% down for playful makeup sex 😵‍💫💕 honestly, he'd pull any kind of excuse just to get you undressed and fucked out in bliss. he loves how pretty you look when you cum 💕 even more when he and you can get a good laugh in between because he'd appreciate lightheartedness in intimacy. after all, he wouldn't have sex with anyone else! he needs trust to do those sweet, silly things too, and he can only ever do that with you.

because i think he'd find a lot of fun with it, he'd do it often, but the sex doesn't necessarily need to be absolutely mind-blowing once initiated. banter is fun, even better when it leads to sex, but he just loves being close like that: naked and a tangled mess of limbs with the warmth coming from your body to his.

he's a night owl, so he's unintentionally ignoring your texts. maybe, even misses a few phone calls or immediately ends an incoming one, thinking it's an alarm he set up before. part of the day goes by and you're coming into his home to make sure he's doing alright. there's no use in pretending that you aren't upset. because you are upset! you didn't hear from him 💔 but, you find that he's just now out of bed after finishing a new piece of art.

"were you asleep this whole time?" you ask.

he rambles on about a sudden inspiration he had and that, "it'd be wrong to rest when the idea was too good."

you listen, nod, but truthfully some of his words go in and out the other ear. you frown at him. and, when he asks why you have that look on your face, you're quick to say, "i'm sure you can figure out why."

he knows. of course, he knows. he reads you well, just like you do him. then, his shoulders are a little hunched over, and he's laughing!

"i've really spoiled you," he says softly. his hands are on your hips the next second, pulling you close. "mm, why not let me make it up to you? i'm awake now, and we have the rest of the day to ourselves."

he lifts you and lays you on the couch. kisses you while he thinks about how many times he can get you gushing on his fingers and tongue before his cock.

OR, if you're the one making it up to him 🥹

accidentally spilling paint on a good shirt of his? you're panicking as soon as it happens. your hands move faster than your mouth, and you're halfway with unbuttoning his shirt before telling him he needs to take it off.

his laughter is what stops you. it dawns on you! but, to be fair, your thoughts don't have anything else besides: the shirt must be washed before it really stains.

"someone's being bold," he chuckles as your eyes meet. "did you plan this?"

"what?" and, the fabric drops from between your fingers. rafayel doesn't miss the way your gaze falls briefly, catching the sight of his bare chest, last 2 or 3 buttons barely laying over his abdomen. "me, ruining a piece of clothing that's probably over three times my budget? i don't think that's planning. it's called being clumsy."

your face feels warm. you take a deep breath, reach out to him, "c'mon. i'll wash it. take it off before the paint makes it unsalvageable."

rafayel clasps your wrist with his hand, steps into your space, voice deepening with a tinge of playfulness, "no, i can think of a better idea. how about me and you have matching clothes?"

he embraces you, gets you wearing blotches of paint too, and you want to argue. but, you can't find the energy to when one hand is guiding your head back and the other is tugging on your neckline. rafayel's lips move to your throat first. then, trails open-mouthed kisses along the rest of your neck, jaw, the base of your shoulder, before whispering, "it's a good idea, yeah?"

since you're the one to make a mess of his shirt first, he wants you riding him as compensation. to make him feel good? yes, sure, he loves that. though, the reason for it, most of all: he wants you using his cock like you own it. wants you aching and desperate for him. cum all over him, feel good because of him. nothing gets him going more than watching you bounce on top and moan his name so sweetly 🥰

© 2024 wondeurwall ☆ all rights reserved. please don't repost as your own, modify or translate on here or on other platforms. reblogs & likes are appreciated! ♡

[captainsophiestark]

The Richmond Vampire

Damon Salvatore x Reader

Masterlist - Join My Taglist!

Written for my personal fic writing challenge for 2024, Sophie's Year of Fic! Featuring a new fic being posted every Friday, all year long :)

Fandom: TVD/TO

Summary: Damon's come to retrieve his SO for involvement in some Mystic Falls drama, but unfortunately for him, they're not willing to miss their favorite class at Whitmore, which just so happens to be covering vampires.

Word Count: 1,699

Category: Fluff, Humor

Putting work into an AI program without permission is illegal. You do not have my permission. Do not do it.

"Hey! Babe!"

I stopped short of the door to my lecture hall, letting my classmates go ahead at the sound of my boyfriend's voice from behind me. I turned to find none other than Damon Salvatore heading towards me, weaving through the undergrads with incredible impatience.

"Hey yourself!" I called out to him with a smile. "What are you doing here?"

Damon huffed at the last college student in his way as they wandered past, before turning his attention to me.

"I need your help. We've got... business we need to take care of."

The smile immediately dropped off my face. I'd been dating Damon long enough to know that 'business' was code for some supernatural problem that had somehow managed to follow us out of Mystic Falls. I shook my head.

"No. No way, Day. I have class."

"Oh, come on," he said, rolling his eyes a little before taking a step closer to me, into my space. One of his hands came up to play with the ends of my hair. "Don't tell me I'm gonna have to convince you to cut class with me."

He lowered his voice, teasing and flirting at the same time, but I just put a hand on his chest to stop him moving any further.

"You know I love you, and if it was you in trouble, I'd drop everything to help you in a second. But I'm not missing my favorite class, especially not the lecture I've been waiting for this whole semester, just to involve myself in the latest Scooby Gang drama. Whatever it is, it can wait, like, two hours."

Damon opened his mouth to continue making his case, but I just gave him a smile and a wink, then pulled out of his grasp. I slipped through the door of the classroom before he could stop me and headed for a seat near the front. When I sat down, I wasn't surprised to see Damon following right behind me, settling a moment later in the seat next to mine. I turned to him with a grin.

"Last chance to leave before class starts. I can call you when it's over."

He turned to me with a fake smile I knew well.

"Nope. If you won't leave, I might as well stay here with you. Then we can leave even faster once it's over."

My smile only widened. "Alright. But don't say I didn't warn you."

Damon raised an eyebrow at me, but I was able to avoid answering him as our instructor began class, drawing my attention back to the front. Still, Damon didn't have to wait long to see what I was talking about.

"Alright, everybody, it's time for our much-awaited, headlining lecture for myths and folklore. Today... we're talking about vampires."

Damon didn't even bother to hide a snort, but I just grinned. Despite dating a real vampire, their place in mythology, folklore, and other storytelling had never lost its appeal for me. I loved reading and studying about them in all forms, and I'd taken this class largely for this part of the course. Having a real life vampire sitting next to me for the whole thing could only enhance the experience, as far as I was concerned.

"Everyone's heard a vampire story at least once in their life," the professor continued at the front of the class. "Whether it was Dracula, Anne Rice, or just second-hand knowledge of Twilight, as creatures, they're ingrained in our cultural conscious.

"However, not all vampires are the same. Stakes, crosses, cutting off the heads, garlic. Even whether or not sunlight will kill them, although sparkling is a bit of an outlier. Each myth of the vampire, or a vamprie-adjacent creature, has a slightly different description of exactly what makes a vampire. We even have our own local variety, with the myth of the Richmond Vampire existing for just over a hundred years now."

I leaned over to Damon, getting close enough to whisper in his ear.

"How many of these myths do you think you're responsible for?" I asked.

"All of them," he deadpanned, without even glancing over at me. "Except Edward."

Now it was my turn to snort. Luckily, my professor didn't notice.

"Today begins the unit of our class where we look at the permiation of the folklore not just of vampires, but of all the undead creatures that stalk the night. Is it simply a fascination with death that has led to most cultures telling a tale about some kind of undead creature, or is there something more? Something beyond the legends?"

"What do you think she'd do if you turned in a paper theorizing the vampire myths were mostly created and spread by this group of really old assholes we know?"

"Shh."

"Oh, so you're allowed to make little comments to me but I'm not allowed to make them to you?"

"Yes. That way I can make sure I don't miss anything I want to hear."

I didn't need to look at Damon to know he was rolling his eyes.

My professor continued her lecture, digging in a little on some specific examples of the vampire myth. I took dutiful notes, mostly blocking out the comments from my boyfriend, and eventually he settled for just doodling his own, much more sarcastic notes in the margins of mine. I smiled as he drew a particularly cartoonish fanged vampire. That'd make studying a little more fun in a couple weeks.

Damon managed to sit through the whole hour and a half class with me, all in all with much more patience than I'd been expecting. I should've known he was just waiting for his moment.

After class was dismissed, I quickly packed up, ready to head off with Damon to handle whatever ridiculous drama he'd wanted me to get involved with in the first place. When I stood with my bag, however, I found him heading for my professor at the front of the room. I frowned.

I walked quickly to catch up to Damon, hearing the tail end of his sentence as he shook my professor's hand.

"...incredibly interesting lecture to get to sit in on," Damon said, his voice dripping with charm and a fake smile plastered on his face. "Really, it was outstanding. The vampire myth is just so interesting."

I barely managed to stop myself from laughing out loud. For anyone who didn't know Damon, they'd likely be swayed by his apparently genuine interest, rapt attention, and dazzling smile. I'd seen him flip the switch to manipulative people-person enough that it didn't convince me anymore, although my teacher sure seemed to be falling for it.

"I'm glad you agree. It really is a most fascinating topic. You'd be welcome to sit in on future lectures, if you'd like."

"Thank you! I just might have to take you up on that. You know, I had a friend once who swore she saw a vampire in some small town bar around here."

My professor laughed. "I've heard of small town Bigfoot and Mothman sightings, but small town vampire sightings might be a new one."

"Right? I mean, I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but it's a little unbelievable to think a vamprie could be standing right in front of you, isn't it?"

I stepped up to Damon's side and discreetly elbowed him as my professor laughed. He just grinned at me in response.

"Well, it was almost as much of a pleasure talking to you as it was listening to your lecture," Damon said, holding out his hand again for a fairwell shake. My professor took it, and I caught the glint in Damon's eye as he shot the man a wolfish smile. "Take care. Don't let the vampires get you."

He chuckled again, giving both of us a smile as Damon finally dropped his hand.

"I promise, I won't."

Damon hummed and smirked while I fought through the most forced smile of my life as I hustled Damon out of the room, just barely managing to maintain a casual facade. The minute we cleared the classroom door, I turned to my boyfriend with a scowl.

"You laid that on a little thick," I said. Damon just scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"I don't know what you're talking about. You're the one who insisted on sitting through that class. I just decided to engage with the lecturer and the content a little more."

I snorted. "Yeah, sure. I take it you enjoyed yourself then?"

Damon grinned. "Very much."

"Should I be changing your name in my contacts to 'The Richmond Vampire'?"

Damon smirked. "That wasn't very subtle."

"Neither was a single word you said to my professor."

He huffed a laugh. "True. Then sure, if you really want to. Just don't ask me to help you test which vampire myths are true and which aren't. You already know real vampires burn in the sun."

"I promise not to use you as a vampire lab rat as long as you promise not to take a bite out of my folklore professor."

"Hmm..."

"Damon."

"Fine. I promise not to bite your folklore professor. At least not this semester."

I rolled my eyes, but decided to let that one pass without comment, at least for now. Damon gave me his real smile as he took my hand, and I sighed as I leaned into him, the two of us heading for the doors to the building together.

"So am I going to be hearing about your vampire mythology theories for the next few weeks?" he mused as we walked. I hummed.

"Probably, yeah. It's part of being there for each other, right? I get involved in your little brother's teen drama, you listen to me talk about vampires like they're not real, and like the Mikaelsons had nothing to do with the global spread of the myth."

"Sounds like a match made in heaven."

"I'll say."

Damon and I shared a smile, and as we reached the doors, he paused long enough to pull me to him for a long kiss. I smiled into it as one of his hands tangled in my hair. Damon could be absolutely ridiculous sometimes, but so could I. At the end of the day, we made a pretty damn good couple as a result of it.

****************

Everything Taglist: @rosecentury @kmc1989 @space-helen

TVD/TO Taglist: @elenavampire21

[unluckywisher]

Here we go. My "favorite" (note the quotation marks) parts of Beyond Cloudfall - Sylus' Dragon Myth, voice lines at the end.

Oh boy okay. I have a lot of scenes to go through so strap in.

Spoilers for Sylus' myth under the cut!!!!

Normally I would do the whole 'posting screenshots and commenting on them' thing, but since Tumblr is annoying with how many images you can put on a post, I'll just transcribe them. I've grouped them in categories, so just know that they're not necessarily in chronological order <3

Fun moments - I have to start with this or I will have a break down.

[They're both looking at a mural depicting a man slaying Sylus] MC: ...Of course, that's just the artist's take. You're much more handsome and imposing in real life.

MC, narrating: That night, the dragon places me with all the treasures he gathered. It's as if I'm one of them.

- MC PLEASE YOU JUST MET HIM AND YOU BOTH WANT TO KILL EACH OTHER WHY ARE YOU FLIRTING?????

Sylus: I'm also curious to see where a "sorceress" who consorts with a fiend thinks she can go.

- Let's be real here. Sleeping on top of a bunch of coins is not exactly comfy bro. LMAO

MC: Hey, do you have a name? Sylus (at this point, the story had been simply referring to him with the name 'Dragon'): Does it matter? MC: [...] What should I call you? Demon? Dragon? Or maybe... Drago? The Fiend gives me a cold stare. Sensing his boredom, I shut my mouth, but then I hear two faint syllables rumble from his throat. MC: "...Stayrus?" Or are you telling me to stay clear? Sylus: It's an ancient Philosian word [...]. MC: How about I call you by a name that sounds similar? Is Sylus alright with you? Sylus: Call me whatever you want. But don't expect me to respond.

- 'CONSORTS' LMAOOOOO they use this word a lot in the myth and every time it makes me laugh

I hold up a mirror from a stall. It reflects the face of the dragon. MC: Can you guess what I see when I look at you? He lowers the mirror as if he heard a childish joke. He leans closer. Sylus: At the very least, I'm a lot more handsome than I was depicted in that Fiend-Slaying God mural.

- ARE YOU KIDDING ME??????? HIS ACTUAL NAME IS SOMETHING LIKE 'STAYRUS'??????? MC WHY DID YOU BOTCH IT LMAOOOOOOOOOOOO toysrus

Sylus: You wouldn't use them if I gave them to you. Why are you interested in cheap things? MC: You actually measure worth based on monetary value? Sylus: There's another way?

- hfkdgfdhfjd MC I'm still in awe that you said that first with so much ease

Merchant: One piece of information or thirty gold coins for the bracelet. MC: For this bone bracelet? At best, it's worth- I'm about to start haggling, but when I look up, the dragon is already opening his pouch. A cascade of gold coins spills from his hand onto the counter.

- FHDUYSFGHJDFSJKHDASJKBDHSJD

MC: These, these, and these... Don't they all suit you perfectly? I quickly pick up a few, intricately designed accessories and shove them into the dragon's arms. Then, I stand on my tiptoes to hang a bone wind chime on his horn. Sylus: You-

- Old habits die hard, I see

MC: I fell asleep while waiting for you these past few nights. Why didn't you wake me up? [...] A gentle smile graces his lips. Sylus: Someone was dreaming and continued to say my name- MC: Hey...!

- HELP???????? MC LMAO ON HIS HORN, TOO???? XD

[MC is being judged] Sacred Judicator: First crime: worshipping evil and desire, showing no repentance, letting your heart fall to corruption... Second crime: Consorting with a Fiend and bearing its mark, tainting your very body with corruption... Third crime: Plundering wealth and embracing insatiable greed, actions steeped in corruption...

- HAHAHAHA EMBARRASSINGGGGG GIRL

Cute moments...

- god forbid women do anything smh

MC: (Besides... If he's going to treat me like a pet cat, he shouldn't be surprised if he gets scratched.) [Later, in another scene...] The dragon knows about my escape plan. Sometimes he even sits on the pile of gold, resting his head in his hands as he watches - He neither helps nor stops me. It takes me a while to realize he isn't just watching - he's studying me out of sheer boredom. Just like I used to watch a cat in the Sanctuary that kept trying to jump over a wall it could never clear. [And later, again...] When he's caught off-guard, I arch my back like a cat and pounce.

I sit in the dragon's lair and receive shiny trinkets every day. One night, a small mountain cat came in to play with me. It wasn't until later that I realized - there's no way a mountain cat could just wander into a dragon's lair on its own. ...Could the dragon be comforting me?

- So... Origin of MC being treated like a kitten, I see.

MC: [...] How did it feel when you grew your horns? Sylus: It was nothing special. The dragon sits back down, avoiding my gaze. Sylus: It hurt just a bit.

- Awwww???????

I cup his face in my hands and make him meet my gaze. MC: I just realized something these days. You don't understand a song's melody, can't see the beauty in patterns, and can't even taste the flavors of food. Is that right? Sylus: Dragons don't need those things to survive. He escapes from my hands, yet I detect a hint of awkwardness in his words. MC: You act mature, but you were sealed away for so long... Sylus, you're still a young dragon, aren't you? Sylus: ? MC: You only just learned how to hide your wings... I gently stroke the top of his head. Then, my hand glides down his prominent spine and reaches his tail. MC: But you can't hide your horns and tail. Are you an adult? Don't tell me you're just acting mature because you're worried about ruining your "fiendish" image. The dragon stays silent and flicks his tail away from me. He loops it around us, and it touches the small of my back. Sylus: Are you trying to say you've uncovered my secret? A defiant force gently pulls me toward the dragon's chest. Sylus: All right, let's assume there is a young dragon before you. What will you do? Eat it? MC: ... I'd tell it that we're doing something humans call "hugging". Sylus: Then do humans still hug each other even when they want to kill each other? Like us?

- I'm gonna be honest this scene should be with the rest of the angsty ones further down but by itself it's really cute

MC: Sylus, those gems and weapons are boring. If you want to cultivate my desire, you need to give me something rarer. This time, I want... I can't stand being the only one who's troubled by this thought. So, I demand something from him he can never own and will never offer. [Here, the game lets you pick between saying 'Your soul' or 'Your love'] MC: Your love. As expected, he looks surprised and then laughs. Sylus: A fiend's love? What are you going to do with something that doesn't exist? MC: If it doesn't exist, then it's even more precious. Sylus: Speak. What does it mean to truly love a person? Have you ever loved anyone before? MC: ...No, but I know exactly what to do. [MC kisses his forehead]

- THAT'S? SO CUTE? HE'S A SMOL DRAGON? HUG???

The body next to me is warm. I wrap the dragon's tail around myself and move closer. Resting my head on his shoulder, I drift in and out of sleep.

- MC is insanely proactive in this myth. She does NOT hesitate dude.

- I just thought this was a cute moment <3

AGAIN, CASE IN POINT, LOOK. SHE JUST GOES FOR IT. AND THEY MAKE YOU CLICK SO YOU FEEL EMBARRASSED:

Yooo!! The test to take the brooch might have been to try and jog MC's memory???

[After leaving a bitemark on MC's neck] Sylus: This will be the mark for the first time. Until this mark disappears, you will have two more chances to take my life. Prove to me that you can be stronger.

THE SONG!!!!!!!!!!

- Like...????? And the fact that in Midnight Stealth he pins her down, too............

Sylus: What's that sound? [...] As I sing the final note, I close my mouth and continue gazing at the distant lights in Tarus City. MC: A requiem for the departed. Sylus: Sing it again. MC: Haven't you heard someone sing before? Sylus: I've never heard you sing.

Sylus: Sing that song again. MC: It's boring without music. It sounds better with an organ accompaniment. Can you get one for me? Sylus: It's a simple matter. Consider it done.

- so originally it was sung, not just played...

[They found an organ and MC began to play the song] My performance ends, and the Sanctuary falls silent. Sylus: Why did you stop? MC: A requiem is meant to soothe the dead, but the souls in this place don't deserve it. They were sanctimonious enough when they were alive - I have no intention of praising their ugly souls.

- aaaand then that's that...

INTENSE moments (oof)

- And that's why Sylus never got to hear it in full.

One by one, red flames ignite as far as the eye can see. My surroundings are illuminated by their shimmering light. Before me is... An endless array of treasures and luxurious garments. MC: ... Sylus: You are not interested? MC: ...You'd give these to me? Sylus: Why not? You're also mine now.

Sylus: If you want something, just reach out and take it. In the flickering firelight, our shadows intertwine on the dimly lit wall. Sylus: Just. Like. This. Let your greed and desire burn a little brighter... His tail glides up my calf. Smiling, the Fiend leans in to whisper into my ear. Sylus: This is how you'll become worthy enough to be my meal.

- STOPPPPP YOU JUST METTTT I CANNOT STRESS IT ENOUGH WHAT IS THISSSSSSSSS

I hook my arm around the dragon's neck, stand on my tiptoes, and whisper in his ear. MC: Isn't that the place where you tried to eat me for the first time? Sylus: Do you wish to return for the sake of nostalgia?

- I think I'm beyond saving guys...

I press a silver knife against his neck. MC: Be honest with me. What do you gain from indulging my desires like this? I pin him down against a cushion. The knife and bleeding wound dissipate into crimson light particles as he chuckles. Sylus looks up at me. We can feel each other's breaths. As he raises his head, his nose gently brushes against mine. Sylus: What about you? What's in it for you to attempt an assassination with such a weak hand? Before the curtains, our eyes meet. The afterglow is reflected in his eyes which emit a surreal warmth. A strange flutter brushes against my heart, and a soft laugh escapes my lips. I return to my original spot before peeling a savoring a pomegranate. MC: You don't need to tell me. The greedier the soul, the more delicious it is. Am I mistaken? In any case let's hope it doesn't backfire on you. Sylus laughs. As I take out another pomegranate seed, he leans in and snatches it with his teeth. Sylus: Likewise.

- WHY ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT IT LIKE THAT WHISPERING AND STUFF HELLO????

MC: What I desire is... My fingers brush over the renowned painting adorning the wall. I turn, lift the hem of my dress, and sit on the sacred throne positioned at the top of the stairs. I point my toes, and in silence, I hook my leg around the dragon's as he reaches the last step. Just as he leans forward, I tug him closer. MC: To live freely and die without regrets. Our breath's mingle, and our heartbeats sync. Light ripples in his eyes, and his lips slowly curl into a smile. With a flick of his tail, he catches me off guard, wrapping it around my waist and pulling me in. Sylus: Are you aware of your soul's scent? He meets my gaze, leaning in provocatively. His breath teasingly caresses the pulse in my neck. Sylus: It's akin to a strong liquor topped off with salt... Forever boiling and never satisfied.

- THIS WHOLE SCENE HAD ME SCREAMINGG??

An inexplicable raging inferno surges within me. Indignant, I laugh. I open my mouth and sink my teeth into his hand. Sylus: Ugh...! MC: I don't believe in this destined archnemesis nonsense! Moonlight boils in his eyes. Sylus cackles. He lowers his head and bites my shoulder like a predator. MC: You! Pain spreads like fire. Then, Sylus extends his tongue, slowly licking the wound on my shoulder. It's as if he's claiming and soothing me. Sylus: If you want to push me away, now's the time. His tongue alternates between licking and biting, sending a strange, tingling sensation through my body despite the lingering pain. He slowly licks over my throbbing wound.

- I don't even know what to say anymore....

- THEY'RE BOTH? SO KINKY? HELLO? YEAH NO, FORGET WE WERE AT DEATH'S DOOR JUST THEN- TIME TO GET FREAKY

And now... Yeah... It had to happen... Angst...

Sylus: People are far more interesting alive than dead. If you truly want revenge, the best way is to keep them alive. Or would you say this world is the closest thing to hell itself? You can only feel pain when you're alive.

Figures surround them. He could fly her back to the dragon's lair. But tonight, he wants to walk a bit longer with her. Sylus: In the beginning, the dragon lived in a valley with other dragons. Amongst his kin, he was the only one with a human appearance. He mistakenly believed he was a normal person. But as he grew older, horns sprouted from his head and a tail from his back. He had never seen anything like this on someone before. He was scared, so he picked up a blade because he wanted to remove them. But the horns and scales would grow back, dripping with blood. It didn't matter how many times he cut them. After a long time, he finally came to terms with being a monster with horns... But then, the love of his life appeared. She showed him human love and companionship, making him think he could live like a human too. And slowly, without realizing it, he began to forget he was a dragon.

- When I first read this scene I was like 'YEAHHHH REVENGEEEE' but after finishing the myth.......... bro....

Sylus: Save me? Are you aware of the cost? Once we hold hands now, our lives will be bound together, along with our deaths. We must offer half of our soul to the other. They'll be merged... To forge an unbreakable bond. To share your life with a fiend - it might be a punishment worse than having your soul devoured. Will you truly not regret it? MC: I said I'll live, didn't I? No matter the cost. If following our hearts is a sin, then you and I must be the last of our kind in this world.

- Can you hear my heart shattering?

MC: Let's make a pinky promise. Sylus: Hmm? MC: To never betray each other. Sylus: Our souls are bound. We will never betray each other even if Doomsday arrives outside this Sanctuary. Even if the world crumbles. MC: This promise can't be broken. Sylus: This promise will never be broken.

- SYLUSSSS WAAAAAAA DON'T BE LIKE THAT T_T

His body lies quietly among the flowers. In his garnet-like eyes is my reflection. MC: Look at me... You're not allowed to close your eyes! My tears fall onto him as I lower my head. I allow him to place a kiss on my forehead. The dark-red glow in his eyes dims. Obsidian-like crystals crawl over the dragon's scales, slowly covering his entire body. My dragon is gone.

- ...let it sink in

- Listen... At least we can take some comfort in knowing... MC didn't kill him on purpose. He drove the sword to his chest himself, grabbing MC's hands. She didn't want to. That's a relief. Still fucked, but...

My beloved was born into apocalyptic terror. People cursed his existence, fabricated his sins, and celebrated his death. Only one person ever gazed into his jewel-like eyes, embraced his burning soul, and sang to him in the night wind. He had already etched the traces of his existence deep into my life... Yet his retaliation against fate pierces my chest like a sword. MC: Sylus... I curse your soul... He says the best way to punish someone is to let them live forever. MC: I curse your soul... To never fade away... You'll always be tied to me. Forever. This is my curse... Only I can... Grant you true death. [...] I feel something sprouting from my head like tender branches. Sharp pain pierces my spine as a dragon's tails replaces my tailbone.

- So... That's how he is alive in the present, and it's also the explanation for the Evol Linkage, I believe? It's really cool that she actually turned into a dragon, as sad as the scene is.

And of course, as always, my favorite voicelines:

[httpsaki]

kisses with kuroo ✧⁠*⁠。

fluff | sfw

one of the many ways he shows his love for you: kisses

warnings: mild profanity

the random kisses on your cheeks and all over your face that never fail to take you aback and make your heart flutter every time despite being in a relationship for quite a while now.

"i know what we should watch," you look over at the guy beside you who has been scrolling through netflix for about 30 minutes now, "minions."

"...but i kiss you every time one comes up on the screen." you can't help but laugh at his corniness, "you're such a dork." but who are you kidding? it's kuroo, of course he meant it.

"would'ya look at that, a whole battalion of them this early in the movie" he teases, pulling you closer to him with an arm wrapped around your shoulder and lips kissing every corner of your face as you accept your fate.

the kisses on your hand as he holds it, taking in the softness of every crease, fold, and knuckle of your hand against his as you melt at the warmth of his touch.

with no words exchanged, he holds your cold hand like it's second nature to him while you're walking around the streets of your neighborhood in the middle of the night alongside each other.

if you didn't know better, you'd think your hands are meant for him to hold. both your hands just fit perfectly intertwined with each other, it's almost crazy to you.

every time kuroo holds your hand it's the same scenario: he rubs his thumb on your skin, then lifts it up to his lips as he places a little kiss at the back of your hand, then drops it slowly and rubs his thumb again. like clockwork, he never fails to do it, and also like clockwork, you fall for it every damn time.

the kiss on the lips that you both do to shut the other one up that always leaves you annoyed, yet loved.

you and kuroo bond over being huge nerds. safe to say that when you're in the same room together, there's a 100% chance that there'll be a loooong nerdy yapping session.

you saw a video about megalodons as you're mindlessly scrolling through tiktok, lying on the couch with your head on kuroo's lap, "do you think it's possible that there's at least one megalodon that still exists that we don't know about?"

he replied immediately, "FUCK no." with a very dramatic exaggeration on 'fuck' earning an equally dramatic expression on your face as you sit up from your previous position, "why not? most of our oceans have yet to be explored. you know, the giant squid was just a myth before..."

he loves debating with you about random, nonsensical topics that you both will absolutely have no gain or loss if you win the argument or not. he loves seeing you get serious while explaining, just admiring you while having absolutely no understanding of what you've just said.

there he goes, smiling like a total idiot, waiting for the perfect time to get you. "...not until they discovered it a few years ago. it just tells us how—" you immediately shut up, not like you had a choice, when a pair of lips finally came crashing onto yours to seal them shut. "i love you, sweetheart, but if there was a creature that huge living in our oceans, we would know about it."

a fake kiss just to tease you and leave you wanting more, wanting him more, while he just enjoys the look on your face with absolutely no remorse for what he just did.

you were making breakfast when he suddenly came up to you with no words said. with a very serious look on his face that's quite literally unreadable, he slowly closes the gap between your bodies with you facing him, your faces only inches—no, centimeters away from each other.

the moment you close your eyes and wait for him to finally kiss you, he lifts his face, and pretends to reach for the cupboard above you, looking at you with the evil smirk. "oh, come on!" you complain, but he's so unbearably irresistible that you actually do wanna kiss him, so this time you pull him close. this time, it's not a prank anymore as your lips finally collided.

a long, passionate kiss that's more than the world for you. being in a relationship with kuroo is just another term for a lot of shits and giggles, but sometimes you do realize how unexplainably in love you are with him.

"can't sleep?" kuroo called, as he came up from inside the house to the balcony where you're standing. "hey," he called again, placing a hand on your chin in such a way that would make you face him, "what's bothering you?"

as you locked gazes with him, it happened again: the whole world slows down like it's only the two of you that matters. that's the magic of your love for each other, you almost already know what you both need at the very moment with just one eye contact.

slowly, he finally closes the gap between your lips. how do you even begin to describe this kiss? it's long and deep, like you haven't touched each other for ages. it's reassuring, it's calm; like all your burdens suddenly stopped weighing you down.

with his touch, you feel loved; and that is enough for you to know that you're exactly where you're destined to be: right next to the man that you'd adore forever that is kuroo tetsurou.

[miifu666]

Finally Doodled the Black Myth Oc, ive been hyperfixating on ARGHHH. I usually work on my other ocs but this is the first Oc i make thats probably more fluff and angst than angst no comfort... Letsss get to her/their Bio shall wee!!!

Suklha

A Centipede Deity, a replica of her former reincarnation, Kafkaesque. (She/Them)

They appear Feminine, so usual pronouns could be between they/her. They dont mind it as long as you're respectful.

They actually dont have a real name, the moment they woke up in a disheveled shrine, they found some scrolls and the only word they can read is "Suklha" which somehow has the meaning "Bearer of all forms, Goddess of Forms" so they took that as their own name.

Suklha also doesn't know how they came to be, one day covered in warmth they descended into the world. To be nothing but a seed created by Buddha, to discover, relive and replicate what their past self are like. To continue the samsara made specifically for her, a destiny for an otherworldly being.

Despite being born in an abandoned Shrine, they dont particularly feel at home. So they travel a lot, understanding nature and its functionality. Suklha use their own experience as knowledge, they noticed the more gentle you give to the world, the more answer it will give you.

They're a centipede deity, yet they don't know how the supreme strength and impregnable defense came from. Just because they've been hit by a large boulder plenty of times doesn't mean they can always dismiss it as a leaf. Thats how strong her fortification is, she can crawl out of being poured lava and a whole mountain unscathed.

They can easily blow a pebble that'll circle around the earth. The extraordinary strength and ability is such a feat. Even Yuan Fen had to take a few moments for himself. It's not Everyday you hear someone stronger than wukong himself.

Despite their counterpart being a calculative and cunning Deity, Suklha has the opposite personality (as my theory) they're shy, airheaded and aloof. They show how caring they are through acts of service and words, gentle hands giving you a homemade tea. While its warm, Suklha would tell you how proud she is for you to get through the journey this far.

If given the chance, i dont think Suklha would be that surprise meeting their more jesterly persona Counterpart. I think they'd be more amused, how such a difference in soul could be connected through fates.

They're a replica, of course, not the real deal. But its enough for Yuan fen and Wukong. Its enough for the broken shell of the monkey king to falter a bit and widen its eyes. Giving Yuan fen a chance to strike and ending the duel prematurely.

Even at the end, as the two destined relics combined. Suklha still feels a little loss, theres a harrowing feeling. They havent found "home", as their tears fall from the observation. Suklha saw the conjoined relic of Yuan fen and the broken shell handing out a fragment of some gemstone. They stared at it, confused.

Yuan fen gently pecked their lips with the fragment. As if telling them to swallow it, noticing this. Suklha slowly took the pieces and swallowed with a nervous hiccup.

The the power flooded in, small shreds of what used to be Suklha's ability came crashing into her mind.

Heaven hated them. Heaven HATED them working together, they planned a fake betrayal of the other so they could start a conflict within. Breaking their dreams of living a peaceful life together.

Is that why the monkey king left his shell? His unorganized despair at what's left.

Could they have their happy ending now? In this new forsaken life? While the previous one ended in heartbreak and dreams?

Artwork ©️ Miifu666

Writings ©️ Miifu666

[spencahreadreid]

and though the town was cold and wet.. S.R X R

-----------------------------

cute little snow fic with spencer!! fluff, gn reader, no y/n, no gender specifics. any issues, please comment or let me know, I'm open to requests and asks!

Maybe it was the excitement, you and your heart of gold, easily entertained by everything. It could've been the fact that you wanted to continue shaping the ice into 'people', either way, you failed to notice the way your hands were beginning to change colour in the low temperature. Not to mention, your cheeks, nose, ears, knuckles, practically your whole body. Under your large coat and Spencer's scarf, you felt mostly warm between multiple layers he'd begged you to put on, which led you to think it was okay to stay out longer.

So when Spencer came back outside to see you'd rejected the gloves to make more 'intricate' details into your current art, he wasn't happy. To him it looked like an oval with holes in the same formation as a bowling ball, but you claimed it was his face. He noticed the rosewood pink shade your fingertips were turning and crossed his arms over his chest. Standing in the doorway with that gentle and loving but also very concerned expression on his face.

"You know, hypothermia can develop in little as five minutes. If you're not dressed properly, your scalp, hands, fingers and your face are usually the first parts of your body affected-" You stood there almost dumbfounded, the same chunk of round ice slowly melting in your palm, watching him talk with the backdoor half open.

"Oh.. cool?" You could honestly care less about hypothermia, it was almost like a big myth a parent would tell you about so you would come inside. Your eyes never left him, and vice versa, except he was taking in your small figure halfway up the garden. You were trembling a little due to the lack of layers on your lower half.

"The elderly and infants are especially vulnerable, but it can take under an hour for a person to actually freeze to death if the conditio-" you had cut him off by dropping your sculpture and letting it fall, breaking into pieces under you. A new horrified expression came over you, brows furrowing and eyes widening with pure terror.

"What?! You didn't think to tell me that before I came out here with no hat on?" You walked closer to the door, to where he was standing and placed a hand onto his arm, where his wooly jumper was rolled up. He immediately flinched and shivered, pulling his arm away which made your lips curl into a pout.

"You're freezing, honey.. I think we should get you warmed up, hm?" His voice was as tender and gentle as usual, but he felt that if you refused he'd definitely have to be more stern next time. Without even thinking, you nodded, he opened the door fully and let you in before making his way through to the living room to start a fire. He'd been out there with you before leaving to go inside for 'paperwork' (he honestly just got too cold but you let him lie). After stripping off your coat and his scarf, hooking them both up you went to go meet him, rubbing your palms together as you walked through and sat on the carpet by his side.

Wrapping his arm around your shoulder, he decided to ignore the fact your hair was slightly damp from your earlier activity of throwing snow around. Letting you rest close for a while with the excuse of 'sharing body heat'. Soon he decided that hot cocoa would be a good idea.

"Keep your fingers close together, don't get too close to the fire because your hands are in a state where you won't realise it if they get too hot.." he stood up mid sentence and then continued, getting louder as he travelled further and then made it to the kitchen. "You can borrow a pair of my socks I left on the washed pile, they'll help you get warmer faster!"

You shouted back a thanks in response, slipping on the wool socks he'd conveniently left out. You knew deep down he'd left them there for you on purpose, but sometimes you got fussy when he cared too much. Almost like a child being told they need to eat all their veggies to be healthy, if anything like that came out of Spencer's mouth your face would scrunch into a playful scowl. You secretly loved it though, which is what made things better when your loving boyfriend returned with two cups of hot chocolate, both of them extra sweet.

"Warm fluid can help your body warm up, but only for a short amount of time. The temperature change would only be around 2.5 degrees and will only last for around twenty minutes, after that your body will return to the same temperature as before the drink."

The way he wouldn't stop just continuously info-dumping made you smile, he had a fact for everything, but by now it was more endearing than anything. You thanked him for the knowledge and gave him a kiss on the cheek, sending him into a blush, the same kind of pink yours had earlier.

"Are you feeling cold?" Drawing out the word 'cold' you smiled teasingly at him. He shook his head and paid you back with a simple kiss on the cheek.

"Humans blush because of adrenaline release, when you're embarrassed feeling a strong emotion, the blood vessels in your face dilate. It's controlled by the autonomic nervous system and it's an involuntary response."

Another snicker left you and the face he gave you almost read 'whats so funny?' it made you laugh a little more until he finally caught a case of the giggles alongside your own.

"So you blushed because the strong emotion was.. love?" You questioned while brushing up close to his side, voice teasing and almost sing-song.

"You could say that, yeah.."

[kindlysludger]

i know would you fall in love with me again had its impact with the ithaca saga's release but hear me out with i cant help but wonder (spoilers for ithaca saga below)

picture: you are telemachus, 20 years old. you came home from a diplomatic mission to suitors cornering you to kill, saying theyd use you as leverage against the old king- wait. leverage? did that mean- and before you can process it there is a man with your eyes, covered in blood, nocking an arrow. the suitors are dead. the man shakes. you see stories coalesce into scars, time worn across his cheeks and eyes. you don't know how to greet him, but you think its poetic, this way. him saving you. his bravery in you- somewhere. you cant help but wonder if he couldve taught it to you easier. of he wouldnt have pushed you too far. athena hides behind a pillar. you hug your father. gods, this is your father. a man made into myth your whole life. you could weep- and then you recall. hes asking you to prepare mother for his return. he cries as he tells you he is finally home. you cry too- but you aren't sure where it comes from. not yet. and then as you walk off- you hear him speak to athena.

things make more sense. you wonder if the man made of stories could tell you his. all the time away from you. you wonder and wonder. all of it is within reach now. your father is home. finally home.

home feels more like home with the suitors blood staining its floors. staining your fathers skin. staining your own skin. home feels like waves of relief, crashing down onto a family that had been apart too long. your mother is happy. you have so much time left for more Home. you are excited to find out what that truly means.

[mxtxfanatic]

3rd POV: A Tale of Two Novels

Sometimes I think about how expansive writing is even when using the same technique. Take for example the usage of 3rd POV in mdzs vs. 2ha.

In mdzs, 3rd POV is used to show readers what general society thinks about characters—who are the heroes, who are the villains, what gossip do we know, what are the tales people tell their children at night, etc.—as well as get into the heads of the actual characters to show us what they think of each other and themselves—the tales of Jiang Cheng's heroics vs. Jiang Cheng fantasizing about kidnapping people to torture; the tales of Wei Wuxian's "demonic nature" vs. his constant care for and willingness to teach those around him. In this way, even though we are usually sticking closely to Wei Wuxian and his story, we as readers are given the opportunity to piece together the truth behind these intertwining tales connected through gossip and myth-making for ourselves in the moments where the narration either zooms out slightly to expose a large picture or even completely falls into another character's orbit to reveal a glimpse of their true self to us. Therefore, by the time we get to the final arcs of the story, readers should be able to listen to a lay-person discuss a major character or event and accurately understand what of the things being said is true, what is unsubstantiated speculation, and what is maliciously-spread rumor.

2ha uses 3rd POV completely differently. On the surface, the 3rd-person narration serves to show us exactly how, though the beginning of Mo Ran's life was rough, he and those around him are actually well-meaning enough to change for the better and form healthy, loving bonds with each other. Similar to its usage on mdzs, the narration zooms out to show us that hey, maybe this event didn't go the way a character perceived it or hey, maybe Character A thinks this way because they misunderstood what Character B meant, and we know what Character B meant because we got to see inside their head briefly, as if it is softening up some of the characters in order to make way for redemption/repairing of relationships. Because of how the narration zooms in and out and flits back and forth between characters as we would expect with a 3rd POV, this completely blindsides us to how much Mo Ran being cursed with the Flower of Everlasting Hatred has actually completely tainted the whole of the narrative.

For any Adventure Time fan who's watched the Season 6 finale, that is what the curse is doing to the narration. For anyone who hasn't watched it, let me explain: in the paired episodes Hot Diggity Doom and The Comet, a comet is flying towards Earth, and slowly but surely, the color scheme is being saturated by purple. However, the transition is soooooooo sloooooooow that you don't realize that "wow, everything is purple now???" until suddenly the characters find themselves indoors and the color scheme snaps back to normal. The 3rd POV narration, in 2ha's case, is the color scheme. The curse is the comet washing everything purple. The difference with 2ha, though, is that it's actually in reverse: instead of things getting gradually more and more purple/corrupted, the narration begins to slowly but surely reveal the truth of everyone's characters and motivations until the purple completely melts away with the destruction of the last of the curse's effects, giving way for Mo Ran 2.0. However, the most diabolical part of this whole process is that without knowledge of the existence of the curse, we as readers wouldn't even have known that we had been seeing in purple the entire time! And this is where the 3rd POV truly shines in 2ha: because the story relies so much on the revisiting of flashbacks from different perspectives and reflections in an almost cyclical pattern, when we revisit certain "known truths" about the characters in the Mo Ran 2.0 section, we suddenly find ourselves going from normal view to looking at a mess of purple and going "wait, was this purple the whole time???" thus forcing us to re-evaluate everything that we were ever told about the story all the way back to the very beginning of it. 2ha uses the 3rd POV to trick readers into accepting a heavily skewed narrative as "objective truth." Because why wouldn't we see the 3rd POV as objective? That's what it's for! (Isn't it?)

In conclusion, both Meatbun and MXTX utilize 3rd POV as a reflection of what their novels are doing and how they want readers to approach these stories. Mdzs is a story about investigating the truth for yourself rather than relying on the word of others and reputation. Thus, the 3rd POV narration hands you multiple different tales and tells you to investigate to arrive at the truth behind the misdirections. 2ha, however, is about the inability to solve a problem or save yourself if you don't even know something is wrong to begin with. Taxian-jun takes his "defectiveness" as objective fact, as does the narration taking his cue, and thus do we. Mo Ran 0.5 takes his second chance to change things, and through his transition into Mo Ran 2.0, slowly redeems himself... until all of his past crimes come back to haunt him, anyways. It is only upon the discovery of the existence of the flower, the understanding that Mo Ran was cursed with it, and the realization that our 3rd POV narrative was only telling us what Mo Ran believed and remembered through the effects of the curse, that readers are finally given a glimpse of the truth of the story, and the characters—coming to the same conclusions—are finally able to save themselves.

[starry-bi-sky]

hi I saw your post about hadestown and bingge and I'm frothing at the MOUTH. I think like how shen yuan started hyperfixating on pidw bingge just fuking becomes a number 1 fan for the performance troupe. What other performances do you think Shen Yuan will xianxia-ify?

SAME. Aaaaaa im so glad you liked that post, im in a similar state over it <33 Bingge went in expecting a vaguely entertaining but ultimately mediocre show and instead got fucking SCALPED. Like instantly obsessed, unable to go back to the way he was before, completely unhinged <3

And aaaurrgh I have this design idea for the Hades actor where throughout the whole show, Hades is wearing a mianguan with so many beads hanging over the front of his face that you couldn't see anything above his mouth. His upper face completely obscured by his crown and the jewels/beads hanging from it. The picture of an untouchable, terrifying, powerful emperor.

But during Epic III, when Orpheus sings the first "la la la", Hades bellows "Where'd you get that melody!?" as he stands from his throne in rage. As he does, his mianguan falls from his head to the ground, revealing the full of his face for the first time. Revealing the face of an angry, scared man.

He doesn't put the mianguan back on for the rest of the show, and he's so expressive that it's no wonder he wore the mianguan all the time.

and as for your ACTUAL ask -- nothing too modern gets xianxia-fied! Hadestown was easy because it already had mythical elements due to being another myth. He just had to rewrite it in a way that would make sense in PIDW. And he doesn't xianxia too many musicals i think, some of them require too much outside context that would be too hard to translate.

Epic I think would be one that gets xianxia-fied, although that's one of the trickier musicals because Jorge has very specific musical motifs behind each character that makes it hard to translate into PIDW -- Hermes' is associated with the harp and the lyre but every time he's in a song he also comes with a very techno-disco-y (???) beat. Plus a lot of other technical aspects as well -- Scylla is the first to come to mind -- that SY's troupe doesn't have the manpower or funds for.

I think it could happen, though! It's just rather tough and it helps fuel SY's decision to keep the musical adaptations to a minimum AND to use musicals that aren't super modern. Hunchback of Notre Dame I think SY could get away with xianxia-fying. Anastasia too. I don't know many plays so I can't say what plays he could xianxia-fy, but he DOES write stage adaptations for some of the stories he tells his troupe, and finds that he really likes it!

It's surprisingly fun coming up with roles, lines, story beats, etc, trying to figure out how he could make this into that. Writing is fun, and the mental challenge that comes with even more so. He loves it!

He makes a stage play telling the story of Hades and Persephone -- albeit altered to fit into Hadestown, rather than the original tale.

And eventually he starts making up his own stories as well -- retellings of myths from PIDW and his world, and things he made up himself to tell certain messages. Rarely does he play a major role in any of these stage plays themselves -- much to Bingge's dismay. It's too much attention for his poor thin face to take! He most often just plays Orpheus. He prefers to stay behind the scenes during plays.

But you can always find him outside the theater when his troupe is in town! If they're not preparing for a stage performance, SY loves going out to tell stories to a crowd! It brings him a lot of joy to watch them sit on the edge of their seats, hanging on to his every word. He especially loves telling stories to children, they get so excited and their interruptions can get annoying sometimes, but its endearing.

And oh, he does love to sing. He's just so very shy about it. It's a miracle that his troupe managed to convince him to be Orpheus -- but that's probably why they waited until opening night to do it. People get so weird when he sings -- it makes him self-conscious. So he only sings when he's alone or around his troupe while on the road.

Oh yeah no, Bingge is OBSESSED with this group. Specifically one mister Shen Yuan who looks so very much like his old teacher, but ISNT him. He's not sure if Shen Yuan is a descendant of Shen Qingqiu's family line, or straight up the man's reincarnation, but at this point he doesn't actually care that much he just needs the man's attention.

It's actual so funny I think. I don't think fan merch exists in PIDW which is a problem, because Bingge WILL resort to stalking. He's going to orchestrate a fan meeting with SY mark his fucking words. He has to see what this man is like when he's not on stage -- is he as pure as the character he portrays? Or is he as rotten as the face he wears.

(It turns out to be the former, and Bingge doesn't know what to do about it. Kidnapping is high on that list. It is SO high on that list.)

[silverynight]

The dragons and the charcoal seller

There's a cave at the base of the mountain, very close to where Tanjirou's house is; people in the village never go near it because they say powerful dragons guard it.

Tanjirou is not afraid of the place; his mother always used to say no creature is evil and that they're only dangerous is you provoke them. Besides, Tanjirou has to go to the forest near that mountain because he needs wood.

Most of his family died a long time ago, except for his sister Nezuko and Tanjirou has promised himself he'd do anything to give her a good life.

So he needs to sell charcoal for a living; the people in the village know about his situation and they're kind enough to buy him charcoal. It's true, he has no competition, mostly because nobody wants to walk around near that mountain.

Tanjirou has never seen a dragon before; he has started to believe that either they're a complete myth or maybe that cave is not their permanent residence.

Perhaps they just come to visit this place.

One day Tanjirou is followed all the way up to the mountain; there's a man who is constantly asking Tanjirou to marry him, but Tanjirou has always refused him because Nezuko has told him (using hand gestures because she doesn't like to talk that much) that she doesn't trust him.

He can tell by the way he's dragging his feet that he's drunk so Tanjirou doesn't pay too much attention to him. When he's in the village, the worst thing he has tried to do is to wrap himself around Tanjirou, until an elder woman hits him with a broom to make him go.

"This time I'm going near the mountain!" Tanjirou tells him, turning around for a second. "The place could be dangerous in the state you're right now. You should go back home!"

"Not until you... accept my p-proposal!" The words don't come out very clear; he looks like he's about to fall at any minute, so Tanjirou considers for a moment to help him return to the village for his own safety.

"I'm sorry. I'm not looking for a spouse at the moment."

The man gets suddenly angry and launches himself towards Tanjirou, who barely moves away in time to avoid him.

However, the look on the man's face scares him. Tanjirou doesn't want to fight, especially because the man is clearly drunk, but he has no idea how to get him to leave.

Suddenly, the man starts chasing him so Tanjirou instinctively runs away until he finds the cave at the base of the mountain.

Tanjirou thinks he's going to leave, because he's one of those people who are constantly talking about dragons in the land.

"At least g-give me something!"

Tanjirou has no idea what he's talking about, but something tells him he shouldn't stop. He gets inside the cave when the man finally grabs him by the arm.

The only light is the one coming from outside, so Tanjirou turns around with his back against the dark tunnel.

"Please... we can still be friends. This isn't you!"

The man shoves him against the stone wall; fortunately, Tanjirou still has the empty basket on his back, so he doesn't get hurt, but the grip around his arm has started to cause him pain.

The man aims for his throat when they both hear a roar coming from inside the cave. The man is the first to see what's going on and he pushes Tanjirou down before rushing outside.

Tanjirou has never seen him run that fast before.

Trying not to upset the creature too much, Tanjirou turns around and finally sees the dragon; it's huge, its scales are turquoise and the eyes are just a shade lighter than the rest of it.

"I'm sorry for rushing into your house like this!" Tanjirou apologizes immediately. "I didn't mean to upset you, I was just trying to hide from the man chasing me. I'll leave you now!"

You don't have to. I won't hurt you.

Tanjirou blinks a couple of times, telling himself that he imagined the whole thing because there's no way he heard a boy's voice inside his head.

But the dragon looks at him with curiosity, before he does the thing again.

What's your name?

"I'm Kamado Tanjirou!"

So you can hear me! That's amazing!

Before Tanjirou can ask him what's so amazing about it, the dragon starts nuzzling him and Tanjirou can't help but chuckle. He's a very cute dragon.

Tanjirou keeps going back to the cave after that, but the next time, Tokito (the dragon's name) is not alone. This time there's a pink dragon that's even more affectionate than Tokito and both of them hiss at each other for a bit until Tanjirou decides to pet them both.

I found him first, Mitsuri!

But you can't keep him all to yourself! He's too beautiful for that!

To Tanjirou's shock, he finds out there are not two, but nine dragons that visit that cave in particular. Tanjirou ends up learning all their names and spending time with them.

There's one dragon, a white one with lots of scars on his chest, that looks like he's in a bad mood all the time, but always ends up purring when Tanjirou gives him headpats. His name is Shinazugawa.

Tomioka is the dark blue one; he doesn't speak that much, but he stares at Tanjirou very intently when the human talks about his family.

Rengoku is the one with the most energy; he's constantly wagging his tail and trying to get Tanjirou's attention. He doesn't know what personal space is so he always ends up with his big head on Tanjirou's lap. Well, at least part of his chin, because his head is huge.

Himejima is a blind dragon; the biggest one, although he has incredible hearing and always seems to know where Tanjirou is.

Mistaking him for a giant serpent once, Tanjirou got confused when he first met Iguro. But he's a cute dragon too, although he's very shy. He seems to get along really well with Kanroji.

Then there's Uzui, a platinum dragon who is constantly asking Tanjirou to marry him; Tanjirou knows it's just a joke though, because he's a dragon... although it surprises him how much he knows about human customs.

Kocho is the smallest dragon, but one of the fiercest; she's the one who's constantly scolding Tanjirou for not taking care of himself enough or coming to see them with tiny scratches in his palms.

They start bringing him gifts, mostly gold that Tanjirou uses to buy food and cute things for his little sister.

Speaking of Nezuko; Tanjirou has been thinking about introducing her to his dragons, he mentions it to them once and although they're more than happy to finally meet her, they ask Tanjirou to wait for a while first.

We need to show you something.

And just like that, Himejima starts shining and the next thing Tanjirou knows is that he's looking at a huge man wearing a very elegant yukata.

Then, the others shape-shift too.

For a few seconds, Tanjirou thinks he's dreaming; his dragons are now very attractive people wearing kimonos and yukatas and they look very happy for some reason.

"Hi!" He blurts out, blushing.

"You're adorable, Tanjirou!" Kanroji squeaks in delight before pulling him into her arms.

Then, the others hug him too, one by one; some of them give him forehead kisses, Rengoku presses a kiss against his cheek and Shinazugawa bites him a few times, although it doesn't hurt.

***

Since they can turn into humans; they decide to pay a visit to Nezuko themselves. Maybe it's Tanjirou's imagination, but they're a little bit nervous about it. He has no idea why, they're dragons and Nezuko is only human.

Nezuko greets them at the entrance and thanks them, using hand gestures, for helping Tanjirou.

The redhead is about to translate, but they seem to understand Nezuko just fine.

"Perhaps you're wondering if we're actually the dragons your brother has talked about," Iguro says then. "Do you need us to prove it to you?"

Nezuko chuckles and shakes her head.

There's no need. I believe it.

"Most of people wouldn't. Not everyone has seen a dragon with their own eyes." Tomioka cuts in, curious about Nezuko's attitude.

I believe Tanjirou. He wouldn't lie; he doesn't know how to.

Uzui chuckles then and the others nod like they understand and accept that explanation immediately. Then they look back at Tanjirou with a fond expression on their faces.

"Let's get inside!" Tanjirou mumbles, flustered and feeling his face like it caught fire. "I need to make dinner for all of you!"

Nezuko ends up helping him and they serve the table before kneeling in front of it themselves; for some reason they're constantly looking at Tanjirou.

They seem curious about their life there and ask a few questions to Nezuko about it; she answers using her hands and Kocho makes sure to tell everything she's saying to Himejima, like she did the first time.

Then, Nezuko asks her own questions in return, weird ones that make Tanjirou really flustered.

Do you love my brother?

"Nezuko! What kind of ques–"

"More than we love ourselves, more than anything." Rengoku answers honestly and none of them argue with his response.

Tanjirou turns completely pink.

What are your intentions?

"We'd like to marry him!" Kanroji says, happily. "But we'll court him first, like our tradition dictates!"

All of you?

At this point, Tanjirou wants nothing more than to cover his face.

"If that's what he wants," Uzui assures her. "None of us want to live without him and we're fine with sharing, but above all, we want him to be happy. So whatever he wants is fine with us."

Nezuko looks back at her flustered brother and smiles at him; there's no need for hand gestures this time. Tanjirou understands her.

"I... I'd like that. I want all of you to court me."

Nezuko starts laughing when Tanjirou gets attacked by them with hugs and kisses all over his face.

***

Rui's old village is on fire; his parents are dead and he's left outside his house crying and all alone.

But then the dragons come. There are two of them and there's a young man riding one of those.

Rui closes his eyes, thinking he's going to die too, but he realizes that the dark blue dragon is not breathing fire, but water and that he's helping the people in the village.

Then the man with dark red hair takes Rui in his arms and holds him like his mother used to do. He smells like a mommy too and he's warm.

"I'm Kamado Tanjirou, what's your name?"

"Rui."

"Just Rui?"

The little boy nods and buries his face in Tanjirou's neck, hoping he never leaves him. Fortunately, he doesn't have to tell Tanjirou what happened because the other villagers talk to him.

"Do you have more family, Rui?"

The little boy shakes his head and grabs Tanjirou's haori like his life depends on it.

"Alright. Take us home, Kyojuro-san."

Rui opens his eyes just in time to realize that Tanjirou is talking to the dragon with yellow and red scales.

The dragon nods.

Rui stays with Tanjirou and his sister; after a couple of weeks Tanjirou turns into Mommy Tanjirou and the boy starts calling him that out loud. The redhead doesn't seem to mind.

Turns out Mommy is a powerful witch or something because he not only has two, but nine dragons that do whatever he asks them to. They turn into humans and like to spend time with Rui's Mommy; they kiss him and hug him and even though the kid doesn't like sharing Tanjirou, he doesn't dislike the dragons and lets them spend time with his Mommy.

Besides, when that happens he often plays with his auntie Nezuko, who's great at hide and seek.

Rui understands quickly that the dragons want to marry his Mommy; he's okay with it because the dragons bring him presents and he realizes how cool it'll be to have dragon parents.

It's okay, because Mommy Tanjirou doesn't forget about him, he still cuddles Rui and kisses him on the forehead and tells him stories about his dragons before going to sleep.

Rui has a very cool family now.

***

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[wordsmithic]

Hi, sorry if this comes out as a ramble, but your Troy ask made me rewatch the movie (for the umpteenth time, lol), and it brought a lot of old feelings back, both good and bad. The good is how much I adored the Iliad as a child and that's something that still thrives today—since I was a kid, I loved Greek mythology in general, partly because I'm Palestinian/a fellow Eastern Mediterranean, so there is a lot of overlap in our histories, cultures, customs and myths, but the Iliad has always been a favorite. Hektor is my favorite character (and I love him and Andromache), but I also have an immense soft spot for Briseis... and now to get to the bad, rewatching Troy reminded me how a lot of people erase her and her role—and her romance—to Achilles in modern retellings. Now, I'm not going to argue which Achilles ship is the best (especially because that man is a hoe, if we're being honest), I don't care. My problem is the modern erasure of Briseis and the other women in Achilles's life that are romantically entangled with him being reduced to, "He's gay, actually." It reads biphobic if you believe him queer (Patroclus too, who had many named women concubines/slaves), first off, misogynist second. He has a son with his foster "sister," Deidamia, and in some versions even married. In the Iliad especially, Patroclus tells Briseis Achilles will marry her and Achilles himself refers to her as his wife/bride, stopping a whole war when she's taken, and she's even allowed to aid in Patroclus's funeral rights. In some versions, Achilles falls for Polyxena, and tries to make peace with Troy so he can marry her. In the afterlife, Achilles chooses Helen as his wife for some reason. Just... all these women, with complex situations and feelings, are all reduced or erased in modern tellings (and usually for a man/Patroclus), and it makes me want to scream. People use the excuse of, "We don't like the romantic situation they're in," but then claim to "better" it by... erasing or reducing these women and their complex roles and feelings from the story overall? Brieseis, for example, mutually loved Achilles and saw him as a husband... he also killed her first husband and brothers, and you can argue part of her love is out of the need for survival. Yet, she greatly mourned him when he was killed, too. And if exploring this complexity is still not your yum, what about Polyxena? Wouldn't she fit the girlboss archetype of using Achilles' affections to gain his trust, before stabbing him in the back (literally)? Or Deidamia, who's young and left at home, bereft of her husband and son? Heck, try and fill in the gaps how Achilles x Hellen happened, if you must. All these women have an important role in the story, and to Achilles, that could be explored—but people don't because they dismiss what's already there or don't know anything about The Iliad outside modern retellings (mainly The Song of Achilles). So, we get people claiming things that are untrue ("Achilles and Patroclus are exclusively gay!"... in some myths, they're actually relatives/distant cousins, fun fact 😭), and acting like they fixed something by "adding" onto "flat female characters" in a way that reads inauthentic and ignorant to the source material. I get wanting to prop up one's chosen ship, it's just the hypocrisy of promising to be more progressive in one area, but diminishing the progressiveness of another, that kills me. Anyway! Sorry for the rant, I just have a lot of feelings I wanted to share because of the movie and I know you've talked about all this before—it's just something hard to discuss on the internet without people coming down your throat 🥲. Anyhow, justice for Briseis, is my rallying cry, I love her so much, queen made a whole war stop for her and managed to escape from Agamemnon unscathed. Queen who launched a thousand ships to my heart 🫶🏻.

I'm glad you re-watched it! It's a beloved of many Greeks since the movie is quite epic and makes you understand some of the original's glory. Hector, Andromache and Briseis are some of my fave characters in the movie, and it made me also look out for those characters when they appear in the text.

Btw, I would love to know a Palestinian's pov on our shared traditions and myths, how do you guys learn the Greek myths, what parts of them have had perhaps an affect on your heritage and since when, etc! 😍

Briseis' situation is complicated one because many people won't catch the nuance of her living in a patriarchal society as a war captive and thus developing a strange co-dependence to her captors. In addition, the Homeric Epics are a work changed by time in the Greek society, as people added and altered stuff, so many storylines have been affected by other layers of patriarchal societies. So of course the notion of "slave girl mourning her captor's friend" would seem natural, because they probably don't consider a slave woman's POV. Or perhaps she was in the mourning because she had to be there as a woman "belonging" to the Greeks, and the text does not mention it explicitly because it a given for the era. (I don't recall the whole relevant text sorry)

I am not sure if the average author - judging by what is published in the Anglophone market - can handle the complexity of Briseis and other women in the Trojan war. For Briseis one could go for a romance there but they'd have to depict all of her psychosynthesis properly, so it doesn't come off as "Achilles killed my family but he is hot so I love him". To be fair, it is a challenging task but I am still sad that I haven't heard retellings that do this well. Such a retelling done well would be chef's kiss!

As you said, unfortunately, the writers for now focus on the couple Achilles x Patroclus which, ok, let's accept it since it's a ship and there is some background to it (although those guys are most likely 1) cousins 2) very close to each other like brethren in a way westerners misinterpret). I've enjoyed Song of Achilles and I am surely not against such works, but you are right that the female heroines are reduced to flat characters. A fandom full of women manages to be misogynistic - again. We shouldn't be surprised because misogynistic influences are very strong in our societies still, although many don't see it 😕

[utilitycaster]

Hi there! Do you think the Bells - and in particular Ashton's focus and indist a bit too hard on the fact that Aeor orb vision will completely change people's perceptions of gods? I tend to think that lot of people who somewhat know history are aware of the fact that Primes and Betrayers joined hands to destroy the city. As for common folk - it would be at also hard to believe that for example they would completely denounce Wildmother who is nature (all good and all bad. Bad as in destructive). I can imagine some folks reaction to this would be to feel scared, but then again. Those are Gods we speak about, not your friendly neighbors. What do you think?

So here's the thing: I've felt some of the depictions of what the average person knows this campaign have been...inconsistent isn't the right word, because, for example, the norm in the Menagerie Coast might not be the norm in Gelvaan and certainly isn't the norm in central Issylra, but also the party not recognizing the symbol of Asmodeus (for example) is something that's always struck me as like. people in the United States not knowing what a crucifix is. Like yeah those people exist - I've met very religious Jews in the US who don't know what day Christmas is other than "generally in late December" - but either we never met many of those people in Campaigns 1 and 2 and met them all in Campaign 3, or there's been some retconning (which...that's a complex discussion as to canonicity between campaigns, since the answer is, ultimately, it depends on the specifics and the magnitude and the source of that information, ie, if High Bearer Vord's creation myth is wrong that's valid because he's providing a specific perspective with plenty of bias, or if orcs were NOT created during the Calamity that's valid because unfortunately myths born of stereotype and bigotry are extremely common; but if Matt's drastically changing previously established truths of the world without in-world explanation, rather than just quietly dropping no longer relevant references as one-offs a la Ladueger, yeah that is bad storytelling and anyone who tells you it isn't is an idiot).

But actually that doesn't matter because here's just a truth about people: a whole lot of people in, for example, the United States in 2024, where 95% of adults have regular internet access, are fairly uninvested in much outside their basic day to day life, just, in general. This is going to be even more true in a world without that degree of information and interconnectedness. I think a lot of people are going to be like "ok and this thousand year old city being destroyed affects me how?" Not to get too cynical about it but think about someone whose experience with the gods is rather like what Laudna describes her youth as being: harvest festivals and wishing for rain. Like, if it's a good harvest this year, will they care?

I don't personally agree with this mentality irl, but groups of people on the whole are frequently resistant to change, do not want trouble, and want to be left alone. I think no shortage of people's attitudes will simply be "why is this motherfucker downloading the Downfall of Aeor Album to everyone's iPod when I am trying to eat breakfast." It won't even get to the point of "are the gods good or bad"; it will literally just be "who the fuck is broadcasting something? the MOON is fucked up? we have real problems?" Like, if people do not know the story of the fall of Aeor, someone being like HEY THE GODS CRASHED THIS CITY BECAUSE THEY HAD MADE A GOD-KILLING WEAPON is probably going to elicit a response of, again, "and I should care about this because? a fucking phoenix is strafing us, why are you doing a test of the emergency broadcast system?"