#She is putting up a front to these other people so she can't engage with them in a meaningful manner

[dunmeshistash]

G'day, I hope you are doing well.

Ever since I finished the story of Dungeon Meshi (all supplementary material included) I've been writing down bullet points on characters in addition to in-depth synopses as a way to tidy up my rather busy mind. To this end I've also greatly enjoyed reading other folks' interpretations of particular characters, as it gives me further insight into aspects of that character I may have glossed over.

However, there's one character I'm struggling to write a cohesive synopsis about, that being none other than 'miss enigma' herself, Falin Touden. I get that her whole shtick is that she's kind of a mystery, but I find myself drawing a lot of blanks when it comes to her as a character, and while I have nailed down some important bullet points, there are a lot of different interpretations on her, all of which starkly contrast one another. Though perhaps it's just the wording. Hard to say.

It could very well be that I'm being too dense i.e. perceiving "Falin is willing to risk killing others to save her friends." and "Falin, in the heat of the moment, when faced with certain death, was willing to face the prospect of harming potential passersby in a final Hail Mary to get her friends to safety." as entirely different observations. I have a hard time with those kinds of things.

With this being a hub for all sorts of observations, interpretations and cool trivia, I was wondering if you'd perhaps be willing to share how you yourself perceive Falin as a character, so I can compare notes and perhaps gain a more proper understanding of her as a character as a result. I know this question is very broad and kind of vague, but if you could spare the time I'd be most grateful.

Other than that, I wish you an excellent day.

Hello!!! I love Falin!!!!!

She *is* a mystery, we mostly know Falin through the perception other characters have of her instead of a direct deep look onto who she is, which I find very interesting. I think the best post I've seen about her (which as usual I can't remember where edit: someone linked it thank uu) I think called her perceived altruism/love "selfish" and I've been thinking about that ever since.

In that sense the way she cares so much about the comfort of people around her might be a way to keep *her own* comfort because she doesn't want to see other people suffer.

This girly died and came back to life from bones and the first thoughts she has is that she caused trouble for her loved ones

She probably has felt this way since she was a child, "because of her" that her family was torn apart "because of her" that Laios left, her mom was sick, her father had to send her away. (wasn't actually her fault but she might think it is)

I imagine ever since then Falin has done her best to not cause trouble and to make the people she loves happy, everything we know about her and the things she was doing was always for the people she loved, that's why I enjoy the post canon comic where Toshiro asks her hand in marriage again so much. The first time she considers accepting just because "might as well" while for the second time she finally wants to live for herself.

I think Falin herself has lost who she "really is" by trying to accommodate everyone around her and that's probably part of why we ourselves don't really know her, so much so that the most cynical character is uncomfortable around her (probably cause he notices Falin is "hiding" something)

I think Falin is quite the melancholic character to be honest, someone who has lost herself in self sacrifice and who is only now learning how to live for herself doing what she wants.

Both the teleportation scene and the bit about healing show "cracks" in the selfless front she puts out tbh. By context I don't think what she did was only due to "desperation of the moment" she says out loud "Even if I end up hurting others I want you and my brother to live on". She weighted out how much suffering she might cause and decided she wanted to save them anyway, and I'm sure in that calculation she knew that they would suffer because of her sacrifice too.

Falin is saving them for herself, I'm not great with words so this is all over the place and maybe sounds a little negative about Falin but the thing is, you cannot live your life for other people, you can't sacrifice yourself for other people's happiness, you shouldn't erase your own presence so others are happier and I think Falin is starting to learn that by the end.

I'd probably keep rambling without getting anywhere and missing a lot of more meaningful moments but I'll stop here, if anyone has recs for Falin analysis please share!

[hylemorph]

Anna and Friedrich in Nosferatu (2024)

In a previous post I mentioned how important I think Friedrich is in the story as a representation of the patriarchal ideal, and how it/he crumbles when confronted by everything that has been suppressed in Ellen (manifested in the unavoidable, terrifying form of Orlok). I also think he is a mirror to Orlok in some ways: he says twice how he just cannot resist Anna, he subtly frames his desire for her as an unwilling "affliction." He also defiles Anna's body and his sacred marriage vows by engaging in necrophilia, because his appetite for her is so consuming - he can't resist her even when she's not even there anymore. Ellen's necrophilic act with Orlok represents her unification with the parts of herself that are suppressed/rejected by the men in her life, good and bad. It's dark and fucked up but metaphorically transformative, and consent is absolutely central. Friedrich's necrophilic act involves no consent, no Anna, and it lacks any metaphorical power. He didn't accomplish anything, he just succumbed to his own horror and amplified it.

Friedrich's unhealthy approach to his relationship with Anna consumes them both, and I think this theme is especially evident in the way Anna's pregnancy is discussed. Friedrich tells Thomas that they are expecting but doesn't want it mentioned in front of Anna or Ellen, probably because it wasn't supposed to be public yet. In victorian times people would rarely confirm a pregnancy before the woman was "showing" both because it was considered a private matter and because miscarriage was way more common. But Friedrich tells Thomas early anyways, because he is excited and proud, which is understandable but also selfish in this context. Furthermore, Anna says that "little Friedrich" is "very hungry, just like his father" and later on after Orlok has fed on her, she passes it off as feeling drained by the baby. Even though she seems happy and loves her family, she associates pregnancy with being drained.

This alienated way of understanding parenthood is also evident in the way Friedrich and Anna treat their girls (Louise and Clara I think?) They obviously both adore the girls, but they ignore their terror and assume the monster they see in their room is totally unrelated to all the other scary shit going on, because they're just silly little kids imagining things, right? One girl literally says "I can hear him breathing under my neck!" and they beg Anna not to leave them alone at night, but they are just hushed and told that they're totally safe. It's exactly the kind of dismissal Ellen has been getting her whole life, and so it's not surprising that the girls are haunted by Orlok before anyone else. It's not enough to adore little girls, they will never be safe until they are heard and believed.

Anna as a character apart from her role as wife and mother is a bit harder to parse out, but I think she is also a mirror for Ellen. Ellen's spiritual power is the catalyst for everything that happens, and von Franz says that "in heathen times you might have been a Priestess of Isis." Anna's spiritual inclination is less obvious, but it's there: she seriously listens to Ellen and believes that she is perceiving something real, she just assumes it must be God. Later when she lets Ellen stay with her for the night, she says "God is with us Lenny, I know it." On some level Anna is also in touch with that supernatural, suppressed feminine truth, and she seems to see through the patriarchal facade that Friedrich represents to some degree. But ultimately Anna wants to convince herself and Ellen that the night terrors were just caused by Thomas' absence, and that Ellen just needed her husband back and all would be well. When Thomas does return and Ellen has her faculties again, Anna is very eager to put it all behind them; 'no more talk of demons please, let's just focus on Christmas and being a happy family'. Anna's downfall is that she puts all her faith in the Christian patriarchal narrative even when she can clearly see that there's more going on. Her faith in the Christian God contrasts Ellen's "heathen" spirituality - both women have an innate spiritual sense, but one is more willing to make it fit into the values of their society. Ultimately Anna was consumed by the horror of their alienated position in society just like Ellen was, she just died with less agency.

[burnttongueontea]

So, what is the deal with the world’s most conspicuously uneaten Eccles cakes? (A meta)

Well, I wouldn’t say it’s bad writing, not even the on-purpose-as-a-secret-message kind. I agree there is a visual ‘loose thread’ here that the creators wanted us to notice, but I don’t think the meaning has anything to do with Metatron or the eventual plan for S3. I think the eccles cakes are all about what’s going on in this episode with Crowley and Aziraphale, and they’re unsettling in exactly the way they’re meant to be, even if we might not register the full implications consciously on first watch.

On the most straightforward level, this shot is the punchline to a joke set up by Aziraphale and Nina in the coffee shop. Crowley orders six shots of espresso, bound to get him all worked up and stressy. Aziraphale, who desperately wants Crowley to be thinking clearly when he learns about the Gabriel situation, says to Nina: ‘What do you sell that calms people down?’ And she replies: ‘Eccles cakes.’ From this moment on the cakes are a visual symbol of what Aziraphale needs from Crowley right now.

That’s why they get so much screentime as we cross the road and go into the shop. Aziraphale won't leave those eccles cakes behind because he’s still hoping that Crowley will respond to the request they represent: Please stay calm, please be patient and listen to me with empathy.

But Crowley never does respond, and as he storms out we get that close-focus shot of the abandoned plate to make sure the subtext hits home. The cakes are framed sitting in front of the horse statue, brilliantly dressed up in Crowley's sunglasses, to remind us that they were brought there for him and he's dismissing them. (Crowley is the frantic horse who can't be managed!)

There’s another level to it, though, which doesn’t fully become clear until episode 6. The episode 1 meeting in Nina’s café is the first time that Aziraphale and Crowley share a scene in the present-day in S2, which means that the last time we saw them together was when they were dining at the Ritz. As viewers, we quickly recognise the visual language of their partnership: a table for two, a drink, a dessert. It feels familiar. But the food gets delivered and then nobody eats it. On that level, it is a set-up without a pay-off and it really niggles as you watch. S1 closed out their relationship with a happy toast after a resplendent dinner; S2 opens it with a snack that gets ignored. The dynamics of who offers food to whom are also off, atypical. It’s a sign of how things are going to go later on, hinting at the fact their dynamic is dysfunctional right now, even though it might seem OK on the surface.

Which brings me, finally, on to the other thing I’ve wanted to point out…

The punchline is that Crowley doesn’t eat the eccles cakes, but the really subconsciously disconcerting thing is that Aziraphale doesn’t. That he seemingly never planned to, and never orders anything for himself. In fact, we don’t see Aziraphale eat anything substantial in any of the present-day scenes in S2. The only things he consumes onscreen are sherry, tea, and a travel sweet. (Oh, and Manipulation Coffee, which is definitely a callback to Crowley’s disastrous sextuple-espresso.) We see him with food, yes, but primarily he wants to give it to other people.

For me this little detail of S2 – not something you even fully notice until you think about it – is a very telling understated cue in terms of Aziraphale’s post-Heaven state of mind. It's about what amuseoffyre puts so well in another meta: 'the whole series looks like he’s having so much fun doing silly human things, but there’s this brittleness to it.' At first glance, we see Aziraphale interacting with food and assume he is now living the happy Earthly life we wanted for him, but on closer inspection he's not engaging much in the pleasure of eating for his own sake. He gets a quick sweet pick-me-up on his way somewhere else in the Bentley - all alone - and that's it. He's too anxious, too busy, he doesn't have time. Crowley doesn't have time to invite him for lunch.

I find it fascinating that Gabriel gets a squillion cups of cocoa in this season, waxing all lyrical about them, and Aziraphale gets none. Aziraphale's mug becomes Jim's mug, even. And he mostly makes the tea to show Muriel how to blend in. In short, S2 Aziraphale is terribly preoccupied with looking after/managing others, and not taking the time to look after himself. Like the Maggie and Nina match-making, all that kindly treat-offering is displacement, displacement, displacement.

No wonder it all goes wrong.

[chrystal-ink]

Shadvent calendar Day 24

Shadow x GN Reader

Mistletoe

Shadow was never one for PDA. in fact you two barley held hands whenever other people were around if he could help it. however, tonight the cocktails were flowing and the spirit of Christmas was in the air.

The two of you had managed to miss each other all night. getting wrapped up in conversations with other people, giving out gifts, and avoiding the mistletoe hung ever so delicately in the living room for all to see. You were consciously avoiding it knowing that Shadow did not want to kiss in front of a room full of his closest friends, coworkers, acquaintances, and sonic.

Still he looked so nice in his tux and you knew that he had been eyeing you all night. but attraction or not you were going to respect his boundaries, you would just have to make up for it later.

Shadow on the other hand was craving the touch of your lips right about now. Denied their rightful place upon his earlier in the evening his distain for witnesses was thrown to the wind. You looked incredible tonight and the world needed to know that you were taken, that your lips were for his and his alone.

unfortunately he was caught up in a meaningless conversation with one of his coworker's and he could not get out of it. he had to do something and quick. signaling to Rouge he requested her to get him out of there.

Luckily they had been working together for so long that she understood immediately what he was trying to communicate. Not wasting a moment Rouge swooped into the conversation ending it with grace.

"What do you need Hon?"

"I need to get over to Y/N, I have a matter that needs addressing"

"Is this about those lips you've been staring at all night?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business bat, but yes."

"Fine, I'll help you, but you have to do it over there." She pointed to the mistletoe hanging in the center of the room.

"What? Why?"

"Why? well you two have been together for so long and yet I've never seen the two of you give each other more than a peck. I just want to make sure you're doing it right, for Y/N's sake."

"You are a pain you know that right?"

"Just looking out for you doll."

Shadow weighed his options for a moment, if he tried to make his way across the room he was sure to run into more people and have to engage in more meaningless conversations. it would take at least an hour to get to you, and even then he would have to wait for your conversation to end before he could even attempt to kiss you.

Still to kiss in a crowd was one thing, to do it with everyone watching was another.

He gritted his teeth it wasn't like him to shy away from anything and he wasn't about to start now. He needed your lips and fast so reluctantly he agreed.

"You wont regret this, I promise." Rouge responded happy her little negotiation worked. She took out her phone and texted everyone her plan, all they had to do was get you under that mistletoe by any means necessary.

❄️

You were mid conversation with Amy when her phone went off.

"That's weird who could be texting you right now? everyone we know is here."

"Don't worry about it, it's nothing." she reassured quickly putting her phone away. "Say, why don't we look for some more of those delicious crab puffs I think I saw some over there."

"umm okay, I guess we could."

But before you could actually turn to go the opposite direction Sonic interrupted your conversation.

"Hey Y/N How's it goin? Say, is that cocktail for me? Thanks!" He took your drink and bolted across the room before you even had the chance to react.

"Hey!" you whined before following after him, it was a confined space and with all the people there he couldn't have gotten too far.

You followed him almost to the center of the room before he stopped turning back to you your drink still in his hands.

"What's the big idea? you can't just do that at a party."

"I had it under control Sonic" Amy called finally catching up to the both of you.

"Yah, but I was faster."

"What's going on you two?"

"You'll see." sonic replied "Sorry about this" He gave you a gentle push. Stumbling backward you almost fell thankfully, a pair of hands steadied you before you could reach the floor.

"Hey." shadow looked down at you giving you a handsome smirk.

"Shadow? thanks, but how did you-"

"Everyone! looks like we have our first two lovebirds under the mistletoe!" Rouge announced "Why don't you give them a round of applause?"

You looked up and saw the offending branch right above where you and Shadow were standing.

"Oh no, we don't have to if you don't want. I know you don't really like this stuff." you apologized.

"Don't be ridiculous, It's tradition." Shadow said grabbing you by the chin. "And besides with the way you look tonight I want everyone here to know you're mine."

And with that he kissed you it was passionate, full of love and devotion. he was getting the touch he so craved and he didn't care who saw it.

Once your lips had parted and crowed died down a little you looked into his crimson eyes and smiled.

"You know, you could have just asked for a kiss my love."

"Yes, but I wanted to make this one special."

You giggled placing your hands on his chest.

"Well then love, You accomplished your mission"

You gave him another kiss each of you smiling against the other's lips before rejoining the party hand in hand.

[hisphoria]

high society, lhs

chapter 01, debut

synopsis: lee heeseung must find someone that will be willing to marry him just for the title. someone to marry him so that his grandmother can finally stop bothering him. while this isn't a hard thing for heeseung to do since almost every noble girl of the ton would be willing to marry him, he needs someone who has no interest in him. someone who will not bother him if he doesn't even speak to them as long as they aren't at some social event. and of course, he found that in you.

featuring: lee heeseung, sim jaeyun, park jongseong, park sunghoon, kim sunoo, nishimura riki, yang jungwon

genre: non-idol au, arranged marriage trope, enha as royals, victorian era?

content and warnings: cursing, drinking, sexual humor, some toxic mentality (considering the era i'm basing this on), and lotsss of angst

word count: 4193 words

taglist: @sumzysworld @tokkisann @sol3chu @yunjinhuhjennifer @capri-cuntz (still open! comment below if you want to be added)

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you hated it.

hated everything about all of these things that your parents were making you do. having to wear this and that, go to this event, and talk to these people it was just getting to be a bit much for you. nothing was entertaining or fun about having to approach old rich men at the balls and acting interested in their boring lives. you also knew just talking to them boosted their egos and they didn't need any of that.

"but mother i'm already engaged to nikolaos. the rest of the ton already knows this as well. i can't just be going around flirting with other men anymore." you pouted as your mother stood behind you tightening your corset and fitting your new dress for an upcoming ball that your estate was hosting.

your mother simply rolled her eyes as she tightened the corset even tighter making you suck in a breath. "i know you are but that does not mean you shouldn't try for better. maybe an even richer man will find interest in you." you debated on whether or not to continue arguing with her. you knew it was pointless but you still thought maybe if you said it enough, she would calm down a little. you were fully devoted to the idea of marrying nikolaus and to you nothing and no one else could change your mind about it. marrying him was something you had dreamt about since the age of ten.

your parents didn't understand this though. your father did a little more than your mother but he just goes along with everything your mother says so it was never up for debate. it wasn't that your mother wasn't letting you marry nikolaos, she was just holding on till the very last minute to see if you will change your mind and marry someone else. nikolaos isn't even unsuccessful, his family being of the high society just like yourself but to your mother is wasn't enough. she wanted someone for you that was in the highest society. preferably in the top ten richest and well known men that appear in the newspapers.

"i want you to be happy" your mother began as she started fluffing out your hair with some oils that she had put onto her hands, "i am not telling you to not marry for love but it is only a plus if you marry for love and money."

you sighed as you looked into the mirror in front of you. the fact that she made some sense to you was something you did not want to admit. obviously money and status was always a plus and you didn't agree with her because it was something you yourself sought out but you did understand why she pushed the idea so much. "right. i understand you mother" you said to her as you stood up from the chair and looked back at her, "but i am indeed happy being engaged to nikolaos. i have loved him for so long and he is a successful man. i will be fine with him."

your mother simply nodded, deciding not to push the subject any further for the day. she gave you a kiss on the cheek before leaving your bedroom and shutting the door behind her.

you leaned against the railing at the top of the foyer looking over the crowd of people down below. it was the day of the ball and you had waited about 40 minutes after everyone arrived to make your entrance. the later you arrived, the less time you would have to interact with the ton and that sounded perfect to you. brushing down your baby blue ball gown, you made your way over to the staircase. you took a deep breath before resting your hand on the railing and slowly making your way down.

don't close your eyes you thought to yourself as you made your way down. it was always so nerve racking. all eyes turning towards you and looking you up and down. hearing the whispers just made it all worse.

that's when you saw nikolaos standing by a tall round table that was surrounded by other noble men. his head immediately turned towards you with a smile and he made his way over to you to meet you at the bottom of the staircase. you felt your heart slightly jump at the action but you weren't sure if that was the nerves because everyone was watching or if it really just melted your heart seeing him.

nikolaos reached his hand out for you to grab before bowing slightly before you, "good evening y/n" he whispered out to you. you smiled at him as you took his hand and touched the floor with your feet. you grabbed onto his shoulder with one hand and leaned into his ear and whispered, "i was too afraid to come out here if you weren't here."

"your mother kept me occupied for awhile..." he sighed as he turned and looked over to see where your mother and father stood attending to the guests who walked through the door. "she probably thought you were here wandering around already and didn't want me to take you away from your socializing." you frowned at this, slightly bowing your head and shaking it.

"i'm so sorry nikolaos" you said as you looked up at him, "you know how she is." he nodded and smiled at you reassuringly, "i know i know. i'm not offended don't worry. maybe you should go and get to know more people?" he said as he directed his attention back over to the crowd. the highest nobles were all gathered at the front greeting my parents. your mother and fathers faces beaming at them, you could've sworn you saw dollar signs in their eyes.

that's when he appeared.

"is that... lee heeseung?" you breathed out as you peered over nikolaos' shoulder to see lee heeseung enter, approaching your parents with a polite smile and bow. he was a well known noble. the highest of all the nobles. he was probably at the very very top of the pyramid in the high society. you heard that his parents were practically nonexistent, leaving the entire estate and title to their one and only son. he only had his grandmother and staff living in the mansion with him. you had only seen him maybe two or three other times as he didn't appear at every social event so him showing up at your estate... it was shocking.

not only was heeseung a high noble but he was also definitely the most handsome noble. his silver hair was styled but you loved that he never slicked it back, it looked natural and some pieces of his hair fell perfectly over his beautiful face. silver couldn't be his natural hair color you had thought to yourself, his dark roots showing under the silver. he would probably look perfect in any hair color.

"you should probably go greet him, no? not saying hi to the duke when he attends your ball is surely a crime" nikolaos let out a small laugh. you cleared your throat and nodded, letting go of his hand and placing your hands in front of you. "i hate to admit that you are right. i must go" you bowed slightly before making your way over to where your parents stood at the entrance.

"oh! my dear daughter!" your mother exclaimed, throwing her hands up dramatically as you arrived beside them. heeseung stood in front of them with both of his hands behind his back. he wore a white button up shirt tucked into some black pants with a dark blue jacket over, the collar gold and decorated with different lines and swirls. he looked like a prince.

heeseung eyed you up and down before bowing before you, "good evening lady y/n. i was just thanking your parents for inviting me to such a well organized and beautifully decorated event here at your estate." he brought his head back up and looked at you with a straight face, not even a slight smile had appeared on his face yet his voice sounded like he meant the compliment.

you bowed back to him, "it is an honor to welcome you to my parents estate my grace. we very much hope that you will enjoy it." you smiled at him as you came back up, placing your hands before you as they had before. heeseung simply nodded at you, the two of you looking at each other in silence for a few seconds before your fathers voice interrupted.

"your grace, we have heard about your engagement to the lady cadence laselle. congratulations" your father said as he put a hand over his heart. heeseung breathed in at your fathers words. he looked to the side and then back to your father again, "it seems that is all everyone is talking about, no? a vow between two families many years ago does not just mean i will easily take her as my wife. although..." he said as he then shifted his eyes over to you, "i have heard your daughter is actually to be engaged to nikolaos."

your mother frowned a bit at hearing his words. you already knew she was disappointed that you weren't marrying someone with a higher title and hearing it from the duke just probably made it worse for her. if even the duke knows, there's no going back is there?

you shifted your feet slightly and cleared your throat, "that is right, your grace. i am fortunate enough to not be in a situation like yours."

oh god.

maybe you shouldn't have said that.

your mother and father looked over at you with wide eyes. silence filling the circle. heeseung looked at you, seeming unmoved but then he cleared his throat and looked away. he scoffed and shook his head, a small smirk appearing on his face.

you put a hand over your mouth, "your grace, i am so sorry i didn't mean-"

heeseung put this hand up and nodded at you. "don't worry about it. i do appreciate some honesty every now and then especially since no one says those things to my face and instead behind my back." you weren't expecting him to be so understanding. you had heard only good things about the duke other than the fact that he was a womanizer but he was still a duke and the fact that you spoke to him that way was pretty unbecoming. you didn't know this man at all to be saying something so casual to him, you weren't so sure why or how you said something like that so easily.

"we apologize for her" my mother started, "i know it's no excuse but she has been pretty stressed out with the engagement and everything." she smiled at the duke.

heeseung looked as if he was about to open his mouth when a couple approached your parents and whisked them away before anything else could be said about you, leaving you and heeseung alone in each others presence.

heeseung looked at you before he took a few steps forward, getting closer to you. you felt your breathing stop as he got so close, close enough to where his scent filled your nostrils and he smelled amazing.

he leaned into you, his lips coming close to your ear and he whispered, "i don't appreciate a lady like you having an opinion on my personal matters. i'd be careful if i were you and watch what i say next time... especially to me."

your eyes widened as he leaned back and smiled. he took a bow before walking away from you and disappearing into the crowd of people. your face flushed and you quickly looked around to see if anyone caught sight of the interaction between you and the duke but it seemed that no one was looking and that made you let out a sigh of relief. you looked back to see if nikolaos was where you had left him but he was nowhere to be found.

heeseung wandered out into the courtyard. bringing a cigarette up to his lips, he heard footsteps come up behind him. turning his head, he saw his most trusted advisor, jake sim approaching him.

"i was wondering where you had wandered off to." jake said with a raise of his eyebrow, taking stand beside him. heeseung pulled the cigarette out from his mouth, letting out a puff of smoke. he clicked his tongue as he looked over at jake, "i would've thought you'd be off somewhere chatting it up with a lady."

jake let out a groan and threw his head back slightly, "as much as i would love to be doing that right now, i saw that little situation you had with lady y/n and when i saw that you took off, i thought it be best to come and find you. you disappeared pretty fast though, it took me a while."

"you saw that?" heeseung asked as he reached his cigarette out to jake to offer it to him. jake looked down at it and took it from heeseung, bringing it up to his lips. "i did, yes. i'm always keeping an eye out. although, it seems that even lady y/n was shocked at what had come out of her mouth" jake said with a laugh, "i've been hearing many things about her actually. she's the talk of the ton currently not falling far behind you."

heeseung rolled his eyes, "maybe they should be talking about her instead of me. she's the one who is actually getting married... not me."

"speaking of" jake said as he looked off to the side, drawing out a puff of smoke. "it's interesting really, her engagement to that man. they've known each other since they were children but lady y/n doesn't really seem to be the type to be able to marry a man like that."

heeseung scoffed, "what would you know? have you ever spoken to her?" a spike of curiosity rising in heeseung. he wasn't usually interested in the marriages and engagements going on in society but he himself was having a dilemma of being pushed to get married and even if he didn't want to, he needed to know what options were available to him or not.

"i hear around." jake says with a slight smile on his face, "i pay a lot of attention to gossip. i am your advisor, i need to know what's going on." he crossed his arms over his chest as he looked up at the night sky, "i've heard lady y/n is a pretty independent woman. it seems to get her into trouble a lot, an independent lady like her is not something that most men are looking for. her fiance was one of few willing to put up with that. she's been very open about not wanting to just idly stand by like a trophy for her husband."

heeseung raised an eyebrow at hearing this information, "like?"

jake smirked, "oh so you are curious?" heeseung rolled his eyes at jake and nudged his arm. "she tries her best to be helpful around her estate. she's always helping her father with things. she doesn't like just helping her mother plan out the balls, she's even gone on work trips with her father. she likes to be involved." jake continued to elaborate.

"i see..." heeseung hummed. he threw his cigarette to the ground and put it out with his foot. "does she seem like a romantic to you? do you think she seems like the type of woman to be in her husbands business?"

"what?" jake asked he shifted his body to heeseung so he was completely facing him now, "is she your type? you know she's engaged. you can't exactly just swoop up in there and propose to her-" heeseung put his finger up to jake's face to shush him, "i just need to see what the deal is. if she isn't in love, i've got a chance to offer her what nikolaos will not offer her in their marriage. she seems to be the only woman who would leave me be in a marriage."

"you dog" jake snarled at heeseung, "you just want someone who could care less about you then?"

heeseung smiled at jake as he patted his back, "exactly" he said to him before he walked off, heading back inside the mansion.

two weeks went by of you trying to plan your wedding with your mother and younger sisters. you had all sorts of ideas for the wedding but your mother wasn't exactly the easiest to plan with considering she kept on holding it off every chance she got.

the constant planning and meeting with nikolaos and his family was starting to open your eyes a little more to things that you hadn't even thought about before you got engaged. yes, nikolaos is the sweetest man you know but that doesn't mean there weren't a lot of things that the two of you didn't agree on. nikolaos was a traditional man and he didn't seem to be willing to give any of that up... even for you.

"i don't understand why you can't just let me be involved in some of the business stuff" you frowned at your fiance, "you won't even let me make any decisions? how is that fair if it's a family business!''

nikolaos let out a sigh as he turned to you, "exactly. my family business. you will be my wife, not my business partner. you are meant to stay at home and make decisions at home. not in matters of business. that's not how things work. you are needed at the estate. who will make the decisions at our home if you're not around?"

you felt as if you had been hit in the chest when he emphasized that it was his family business. you didn't think he meant to intentionally be mean by saying it but he said it and meant it. even though the two of you were to be married, he didn't yet see you as someone who was a part of his family. this only further made you feel as if you were an object of decoration for him.

the two of you were having this conversation as you went for a stroll at the public park, members from the both of your families following the two of you from not far behind. all you could think to yourself in that moment was that you needed to get away.

you tilted your head up as you stopped and looked over at nikolaos. "i can't continue with this conversation because i'm afraid that if we do, i will be pushing you into the river." nikolaos' eyes widened at your statement as he watched you continue to walk, "i need to be alone now."

you looked back at your mother and one of your younger sisters then glancing over at nikolaos' mother, "i will be heading off to walk on my own. i'll be in the area, i just need to be alone right now." before any of them could protest you quickly walked off, making your way over to the small bridge that went over the water a bit away. you didn't want to be anywhere near them either.

you leaned against the railing of the bridge, looking over and onto the water. the water was so clear you could see all of the fish swimming around in it. you soon started to feel tears start to prickle your eyes and to keep them from falling you tilted your head back and let out a deep breath.

"not sure if the lady y/n should be off on her own, don't you think?" you heard a somewhat familiar voice say off to the side of you.

you turned your head to see heeseung standing at the end of the bridge with his hands behind his back. he slowly began to approach you with a smirk on his face, finding his place to stand right next to you.

you cleared your throat and bowed slightly, "your grace."

heeseung let out a low laugh and when he did you honestly thought you've never heard anything more beautiful. "formalities? you surprise me. seems you still have manners."

you lowered your head, turning your body to completely face him. "your grace, i am so sorry about that night i really didn't mean to offend you. i just truly... wouldn't wish to be in your position."

heeseung glanced at you before then turning to look down at the water. he leaned against the railing, placing his arms over it so his hands were now dangling over. "aren't you kind of though?"

"excuse me?"

"this marriage, it's something you thought you've always wanted. yet now your feelings are changing about it. or am i wrong?"

you scoffed at the duke. he looked down at the water completely unphased and you hated his arrogance about it. how did he even know about your situation anyways? you thought to yourself.

"i know things" he smiled, "i am the duke, no? i've got my sources of information. plus your heated conversation with nikolaos wasn't exactly low profile like you thought it was. i've done my research. i know the kind of man he is and the kind of woman you are" he said before he looked at you, "you'll be miserable."

your face immediately heated up at his words and you mentally cursed at yourself for it. he knew everything and he spoke of you as if he knew you and something about it made your heart do a million flips. you should have been weirded out, maybe even a little terrified but how could you be when this gorgeous man stood in front of you saying exactly all of the things that you were thinking?

"what are you saying, your grace? i am engaged. this isn't something i can't exactly back out of and i can't seem to change my fiancé's opinion on the matter." you said to him, desperately wanting his eyes to meet yours once again.

heeseung leaned back, placing his hands behind his back once again. his eyes found yours and he took a few steps towards you, "anything is possible, no? i propose..." he started as he reached his hand out and grabbed your gloved hand, "that you come and marry me instead."

you gasped at the contact and although you didn't feel him with your bare skin it was still something and feeling his thumb caress your hand was making you feel all sorts of unbelievable things. you looked up at him with wide eyes, "m-marry you? what are you talking about? you're already engaged and... why me?!"

heeseung pulled his hand away from you, "don't get me wrong my lady, this is purely business. i need to get married because my grandmother keeps pestering me about it and it would be good for the estate and my image. falling in love is not something that interests me at the moment and well you... you want a marriage in which your husband will let you do as you please, no? let you involve yourself instead of keep you home to bear his children. letting you have decisions in regards to my business matters is something i am willing to do."

right, of course. the duke was known as a playboy. falling in love was of course something he didn't care about, a marriage simply for his public image where his wife could care less about what he does in his free time is the ideal arrangement for him. while that wasn't something you were looking for and if anything, you thought yourself to be somewhat a hopeless romantic, a marriage to the duke seemed a million times better than a one to nikolaos at the moment.

you don't even think you were thinking clearly in that moment because without thinking for more than a minute you quickly nodded your head at the duke.

"i'll do it. i'll marry you."

[mildcharacterenjoyer]

Team Dark Head Pat Headcannons

Team Dark has many different ways of communicating, but body language and nonverbal gestures are the most prevalent.

The most intimate and profound gesture all three share with each other during particularly emotional moments, besides Shadow and Rouge's rare embraces, are head pats.

There are different types depending on who is administering it, receiving it, and what the situation is.

Rouge gives out most of the head pats for team dark. She only does it when she and her boys are alone or with people they fully trust. She will never head pat Shadow in Sonic's company or Omega in Eggman's. She might head pat Omega in Sonic's company, but there is a very select few she would dare head pat Shadow in front of. Eggman is not one of them, but Cream and Vanilla are.

Rouge has three different head pats for Shadow. The first one is gently resting her hand on top of his head for if she wants to get his attention at the start of an emotional moment between the two. It usually stays there and doesn't move until Shadow does. If he doesn't want to talk, he will turn away and she will remove her hand, but if he does he'll face her. She will smile at him and nestle her fingers into his quills.

The second one is for his restlessness and agitation. Whether it is because of lack of sleep or his regular frustration, she will put her hand out in front of him as an invitation to accept her help. He'll ignore the hand if he doesn't want it, as he knows she will leave it up for just a few seconds before lowering it back down then pretends nothing happened. If he engages with her hand in some way, she will brush along his quills from his forehead to his neck. He will relax into her touch and his negative emotions will fade into exhaustion.

The third head pat is combat related, administered during a time when exchanging words would take too long. It is when Rouge is passing by directly overhead of Shadow for some reason or another. She pokes at his head with different amounts of fingers depending on the message she wants to pass along. One finger: "I'm splitting off to infiltrate." Two fingers: "Enemy called in for reinforcements." Three fingers: "Omega's incapacitated again." Whole hand. "We should think about retreat." She also signals with just her hand if she can't reach his head.

Rouge pats Omega's dome at least once whenever she is resting on his shoulder. If she is referring to him in conversation, she'll pat twice so he can know he's being talked about. The robot likes to zone out to conversation not related to him, his teammates, or killing Eggman.

She will play his head like a drum to get his attention if he is purposefully ignoring an important situation or her. If he did an exceptional job at destroying something, Rouge will rub his head for a moment and praise his work. He short circuits every time and she finds it cute.

Sometimes Omega will get so angry that his other emotions that he hides inside of his rage begin to spill out. Rouge will hover in front of him with a worried frown on her face. If he doesn't try to swat her away or go elsewhere she will hold the sides of his face and rub her thumbs along the edges of his head. She knows he doesn't like any other emotion besides rage, so this is her way of helping him regulate through them if he so chooses.

Omega did not start head patting Rouge and Shadow until he grew to begrudgingly accept his friendship with his favorite meatbags. At first it was mimicry until he started learning from Rouge what she liked, what meant the most to her, and what times were appropriate. He can't keep denying his want for friendship when he's running his claws through Rouge's white fur.

Rouge isn't afraid to ask for affection. Head rubs and scratches is what she wants the most. The thief has a lot of tension from migraines around her temples and base of the neck, usually caused by Sonic, Knuckles, and any other idiots she had been around, sometimes including her own teammates. "Hey Omega. Be a dear and work out these knots that you caused today, please?"

He wishes to destroy his teammates' enemies as a way to show affection for them. He rests his claws on top of Rouge and Shadow's heads as tactical advantage over any enemies who might threaten them. Rouge loves it, when he's not touching her ears. They are pretty sensitive and off limits, unless she is unfairly giving him a hard time, then he will poke at them.

Omega did not offer head pats to Shadow at first. Shadow and Omega are very much alike in many ways, so he wasn't sure if Shadow wanted head pats from him until one day the hedgehog stood close enough to his claws that he was basically touching him. Omega rested his hand on his head and the hedgehog did nothing to deter him.

Omega has a hard time telling his teammates how much he appreciates them, so head pats are one way to display that affection. Shadow won't sit up on his shoulders very often, but Omega always feels something akin to happiness when he does. If they are in a safe environment, Omega will sometimes do a quick couple pats while he's up there. Shadow responds with his signature "hmph", but he'll be smiling all the same.

Rouge is usually the one to comfort Shadow during panic attacks or emotionally charged situations, but sometimes she isn't around. Shadow doesn't always feel comfortable relying on Omega for emotional support, but the times he does Omega never takes for granted. Omega will offer his hand and Shadow can choose to take a seat under it or chaos snap on top of it. Either way, Omega will rest his hand along Shadow's back and rub a thumb from his forehead across his head. If he's on his hand he will cup it so if Shadow curls up into a ball he won't fall off as easily.

The rarest head pats of Team Dark are those administered by Shadow, specifically the ones he gives to Omega. They are so few and far between that Omega forgets about them until Shadow gives him one. If in the heat of combat Shadow needs a higher terrain for something, he will spin dash over Omega and put his hand on top of the robot's head as an anchoring or leveraging point then continue on his way. It happens so quick that it throws Omega for a loop each time and he never gets to process the moment until it passes.

Omega gets angry about Eggman all the time, but there is a difference between hating Eggman and hating the abandonment issues he has which he tries to play off as just hating Eggman, but Shadow sees right through him. The hedgehog stands on top of his head and reminds him of who he is and that he's not alone nor is he currently abandoned.

The third head pat Shadow gives Omega has only happened twice and it was while they were sparring. When knocking Omega over Shadow will usually continue attacking, but twice he grabbed the pointed hood shielding above his eyes and noogied him instead. It renders Omega so confused and embarrassed that Shadow wins the spar right then and there. "WHAT?!" "No one will ever believe you." "NO!"

Shadow is much more affectionate with Rouge than Omega. Continuously saving her from threats that maybe she could have dodged herself, but Rouge doesn't mind one bit. It feels nice to know she is being cared for. After a stressful save or fight, if Shadow sees she is winded or even the slightest bit weary, he will brush her hair from the top and cup the side of her head. "Are you alright?" "All thanks to you, my hero."

Rouge gets frustrated whenever she loses a jewel, money, or something else worth value to her. She will stomp around fuming for hours. Shadow really doesn't like it when she is angry. To console her, he will stand next to her until she throws herself in his arms dramatically. She buries her face in his chest fluff and he will rest his chin on her head and promise her revenge or a heist twice the amount she lost.

Rouge is the most emotionally stable member of team dark, but even she has her moments of anxiety and depression. She doesn't break often and she will usually do it away from everyone, but Shadow can tell when her breaking point is close. He'll sit beside her if he can find her and hold out an arm to her. Like him, she won't always take his help, but when she does, he will hold her and run his fingers through her hair while she works through her own emotions.

Just...just more Team Dark being soft with each other. I NEED IT! Aaaaaagh.

[pricetagofficial]

Day 18: Snowball Fight

Pairing: Jason Todd x Reader

Warnings: Language, fluff, Snowball Massacre™️

A/N: Welcome to day 18! It has been a while since I have written for Jason, so I hope this lives up to it! Header by me, and divider by @cafekitsune

Masterlist

What had started out as a walk through Robinson Park, was not how things ended.

You and Jason decided it was a nice day to go out, and enjoy the snowy weather and each other's company. Lately, he'd been so busy helping the other bats in Gotham that he didn't have much time with you.

Both of you could feel that light tension, of weeks of not having longer than a few moments alone together. So this afternoon was long overdue.

Jason must have been so content, and honestly distracted by the time he spent with you he didn't notice the group of what he likes to call feral gremlins following you.

That was, until he got a snowball to the back of his head.

Turning on his heel immediately, Jason put himself in front of you effectively being the barrier for whoever threw that.

Peeking out around him, you looked up. "Jay, what happened?"

"Some fucker thought it'd be funny to throw a snowball." he grumbled.

"A snowball?"

Jason nodded, before he nudged you gently. "You see that log over there?"

Looking to your side, you saw the large snow covered log. Nodding in response, you gripped his hand.

"When I give you the sign, make a run and duck behind that. But first, be a doll, and make me a snowball real quick?"

You gave Jason an incredulous look, before you gathered a lump of snow and formed it into a ball before placing it into his hand.

"Thanks, Princess. The second this ball leaves my hand, make a break for it."

Jason looked around, his sharp eyes trained for moments like this. He knew they were there, even if he couldn't see them. But he didn't expect anything less from these people.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw it. Not waiting a moment, Jason turned and threw the snowball. Immediately, you took off running hearing a grunt of pain.

Jason was right behind you as a barrage of snowballs began to fly towards you. The second you hid behind the log, you began to make snowball after snowball helping Jasno get supplied for the sudden snowball fight you were drug into.

Peeking up, you watched as Jason threw another and nailed someone in the face.

"Gotcha Replacement!"

"Fuck you! We're not all snipers like you are!"

The laugh Jason let out warmed your heart. There was once a time Jason tried to kill Tim, and hated him enough to do it. Now here he was, engaged in a snowball fight.

Grabbing another, Jason threw it and nailed another person in the face.

"What the hell! That's not fair!

"Not my fault you can't hide in that purple monstrosity of a coat."

One by one, Jason nailed everyone in the face. Tim, Stephanie, Duke, Damian, Cass, Barbara he got in the shoulder out of respect. That, and she might actually kill him if he got her in the face.

There was only one person left, and arguably he was more dangerous than Jason.

Both of you were at the ready for the slightest tell of where he could be. You were so focused, that you didn't until a snowball was mushed on top of both of your heads.

"Gotch, Little Wing."

Looking up, you saw Dick with his million-dollar grin, and a mischievous glint in his eyes. A glint you knew meant trouble, and you did not want to be caught in it this time.

Quickly you crawled away as Jason turned and tackled Dick into the snow and began throwing it at him while laughing.

What was a snowball fight, turned into a snowball massacre, and was now just a snow fight between Dick and Jason.

Stepping to the side, you were soon joined by everyone else as they all had marks on their face from where the snowball got them, Tim's right in the middle of his forehead.

"So, how long do you think these two will be?" Duke asked.

You shared a look with everyone.

"Might as well tell Bruce they will be running a little late."

Duke looked confused. "Patrol doesn't start for another five hours?"

"Better make that really late."

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 101 (A Visit From Father Clement)

Early on Winterfest morning, Ash woke Conrad and his mother with excitement. They opened presents together by the tree, with Ash receiving a doctor playset from Father Clement and fantasy books by renowned authors like Layla Delarosa and Mercury Medley.

As a little genius, Heather Father Clement thought he might one day want to become a doctor, but she didn't voice her opinion as her son opened his gifts. The Landgraabs couldn't be upset if their precious heir became a surgeon - Nancy could turn Malcolm and Miko's infant daughter Bridgette into Landgraab Corp's CEO, instead.

"I like it, mommy. Surgeons make lots of money, too."

Heather forced a smile over her stunned expression. There was that Landgraab greed again. "You can be whatever you want to be when you grow up," she said. "No matter what you decide to be, I'll support you."

She would never push her son to be anything he didn't want to be, but she wanted him to know he had choices, even if Nancy talked about his future running her company as though it was a foregone conclusion.

As they got through presents, wiggly, happy Lavender woke ready to join the festivities. After a quick breakfast, the foursome travelled to Heather's childhood home in Henford to spend the day with her family.

Four-year-old Michael was curious about his older cousin, Ash, and the toddler followed him around for most of the day with their grandparents. Heather pleased her dad by cooking the grand meal - a fish dinner like they used to have growing up, since they always had plenty of fish with Daisy and Holly around!

"So now that there's a ring, when will there be a wedding?" Neal wondered brusquely. "Before or after he's done with his current case?"

Heather shrugged. She hoped it would be after, but she didn't want to talk about the case in front of the kids. "It's still too cold for a wedding. We're happy being engaged and we just want to enjoy the rest of the season."

"As long as I'm the best man when you finally make it official," said River.

"Whose? Mine or Conrad's," said Heather. She spoke for her fiance after he stepped into the bedroom to check on a napping Lavender.

River and Cassandra's youngest son, Sammy, fussed in his crib. He was hungry, and Heather waved off Cassandra to let her enjoy her meal. "I've got this. I saw the bottles in the fridge when I was making dinner." She was happy to focus on anything other than talk about her wedding.

The thought of being married didn't stress her out at all, but planning a wedding sounded like work. And she already had plenty of work.

Daisy turned to her daughter with a curious gaze. "Conrad will claim River, so who will be your sim of honour, Heather?"

"It should be me," said Hazel with a lighthearted grin. "I'm her Little Dandelion and we're friendship bracelet besties for life."

"She was Holly's sim of honour so Holly will probably be hers," reasoned Cassandra. "You didn't even have a sim of honour at your wedding."

"She hasn't asked Holly yet," said River. The conversation about Heather flowed as though she wasn't even in the room. "Holly keeps checking in to make sure she hasn't asked somebody else."

"I should just let everyone else plan the wedding for me," Heather joked, but she was only half kidding. "It would save me time I don't have to spare already. But it's Winterfest! Let's just wait for Father Clement and put off talking about a wedding until at least the new year. Ash sit down."

"I can't sit down, I'm too excited for Father Clement! I need to tell him about the toys I still want when I open presents at Daddy's place tomorrow."

River turned to share a look with his elder sister.

"Ash, I know you're excited, but Winterfest is more about spending time with people you love than it's about gifts," Heather said.

"I understand, Mommy. I love spending time with everyone, too."

"I know you do. And your cousin Michael can't get enough of you!"

"Yeah, he's alright even though he's following me everywhere." He was too young to mask the bored look on his face, and Heather frowned. She couldn't miss River and Cassandra's quick looks of disappointment and her heart sank.

The front door opened and a man with a long white beard and blue velvet coat entered with a friendly chuckle. Ash leapt up excitedly, with Michael tailing him close behind.

"Father Clement, Father Clement! Mommy said you'd come!"

The jolly old man nodded. "I always come unless there's a glitch in the time code!"

Ash laughed out loud. "Time code! That's a good one, Father Clement."

River leaned in to talk quietly to his elder sister. "He's schmoozing with Father Clement. Is he serious?"

"Happy Winterfest, young Ash. I have a gift for you!"

"No thank you, Father Clement. You can give mine to another kid who needs a happier Winterfest. Mine was the best already!"

Heather smiled, and Father Clement laughed with his gloved hands over his round belly. "That's a very honourable choice, young Ash, and I always make honourable Winterfest wishes come true."

"Thank you, Father Clement. Have you met Michael? He's my cousin, but you might not know him because he's a baby."

"I'm not a baby!" argued Michael, and Heather's smile faded a lot faster than it took Father Clement to take his leave.

The seasonal present-deliverer wandered around the Nesbitt home for a while, checking out corners, looking quietly for a fireplace the Nesbitts had never installed. But it never got cold enough in winter, and they didn't have the space.

Finally, after Ash and Michael had gone to bed and the clock struck one a.m., Father Clement walked out the front door for another year.

Heather fretted as she watched him go, worried it was more than the spirit of the season that made her son such a brat to his cousin. What was she doing wrong?

Her son was a Landgraab in name, but he would not become a Landgraab in spirit, too. She couldn't let it happen. ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start

NOTE: So ASH! I don't know about your own experiences with kids and the holidays, but I think a lot of kids at 5-6 get unrealistic expectations about Christmas and gifts and need reality checks when it comes to how the commercialization of the holidays can affect entitlement. Add in the fact he's got Landgraab entitlement swimming around in that brain of his, and this isn't meant to show Ash as a greedy little jerk, but more like a kid who's caught up in the gifts aspect of the holiday and needs a bit of a reality check. I think Heather might need to make time to 'volunteer with family' on an upcoming holiday.

As for how Ash is with Michael, that is a thing I can't explain and seems to be specific to Michael so far. Which sucks! But I guess all sims can't like everybody...

[eliza-and-her-monsters]

jb x reader putting up the tree and julien can't quite reach

Christmas Tree Farm

Julien Baker x Reader

Summary: Julien might’ve hated Christmas, but if there was one thing she didn’t mind to splurge on… it was the tree. Not one of those artificial ones either- a real one. The only problem was is that a lot of times the more majestic looking trees were double both of your sizes.

Contains: Engaged/old married couple banter and teasing, subtle fluff and subtle discussions of mascxfemme relationship dynamics!!

I know Julien not being able to reach is a very small part but I hope you enjoy regardless! 💚❤️

How many lesbians did it take to lug a 8” Christmas tree back towards the car? The answer was clearly more than two. Every single muscle and tendon and bone in my body seemed to burn as I shoved the wheelbarrow back in the direction of Julien’s red truck with a groan. “Julien, I think you’re taking this whole Sisyphus obsession too far!” I huffed.

“We can transfer this to actually be uphill if you’d like.” She shot back with a glare of her own. “It’s not even that far.”

“You push it then!”

“I’m pulling… which is arguably harder.” She spoke.

In true fashion I knew I was probably being a brat, in all honesty I almost admired her determination of actually getting a real tree this year. Even though part of me believed she was doing it in some act of protest in order to convince me that setting up a tree was hardly worth it. Something I would never do.

“If you’re trying to prove your masculinity it worked.” I sighed, crashing onto the excess inches of snow like it was some fluffy bed the moment we made it back to the truck. And compared to the work we had just done… it definitely felt like it.

“I don’t think I needed to prove anything, you clearly weren’t going to help chop that thing down.” She replied with a nonchalant shrug as she sauntered over towards me with a tiny smirk.

“Julien… do you want sex this month or not?” I nearly growled causing her eyes to fly open in shock.

“Good God, woman! A whole month?! That’s harsh!”

I knew what it sounded like, and if it was anybody else people probably would’ve thought the dynamic of said relationship was a little fishy. But in all honesty I couldn’t even remember my life before Julien, we had spent so much of it together. Your stereotypical childhood best friends to lovers to her getting down on one knee on my birthday to ask the age old question. It was just how we were. We bantered and ranted and laughed at each other and grew to exponential levels of annoyance at each other’s stubbornness. One of those things of course being the time of Christmas.

I had to admit I was surprised whenever she sprung up the idea of getting a real tree this year. Until the evening progressed and it started to feel more and more like an act of ‘I’ll show you!’ Either way though I’d be lying if I said the sight of her swinging that axe didn’t do something to me.

“Careful! Those are breakable!” I scolded the moment I heard her dashing down the stairs once we had settled in and got everything set up at home. A miracle in all honesty.

“Well there’s 5 thousand layers of ribbons and bows in here so they should be fine.” Julien said with a roll of her eyes as she sat the box piled high with various Christmas decorations in front of the massive tree.

“You know, the tree isn’t going anywhere. I don’t really know why we’re rushing.” I began with a clear of my throat as I shoved my aching body up to my feet.

“Most people get their tree up in one day though.” Julien stated, eyes following my hands as I plucked a piece of ribbon from the box and proceeded to throw it around her body like she was a Christmas present. “Y/n, baby, what are you doing? We have a lot to do.”

“Put the box down.” I practically whined as I pulled myself in closer to her and only proceeded to press against the box instead of her. “We have all day. I never thought you would be the eager one.”

“Well, I just wanted you to actually have a good Christmas since we were, kind of, really busy last year.” Her cheeks went pink as she finally let the box plunk on the floor. Giving into the ribbon she slid her arms around my waist, bodies finally pressed together as our lips met. A hint of nicotine mixed with apple cider still lingering on her breath and I caught myself wanting to lap every bit of it up.

“Well, I mean I could’ve done without the physical labor but it has been a pretty sweet holiday so far.” I shrugged once the two of us reluctantly parted and I knelt down to scoop up a shining green ornament.

“Aren’t you the one always bitching to me about this being an ‘equal partnership’ whenever we start branching too much into the whole ‘masc and femme’ roles?” She teased with a use of quotation marks.

“Physical labor has nothing to do with masc and femme roles, Julien, some of the most masc people I know would never think of getting a massive real life Christmas tree twice the size of them.” I scoffed with a roll of my eyes as I placed the Christmas bauble on one of the already fluffed branches.

“Well, I’m not most masc people… I wouldn’t mind being a lumberjack.”

“Oh if only you were born with the same height of your personality, you’d give all those basketball girls a run for their money.” I giggled a bit to myself, just in time to see my five foot nothing fiancée acting like she was doing just that. Or trying to audition for a ballet either one. “Julien! Get a fucking step stool for christ’s sake!”

I nearly flew behind her to catch her whenever she inevitably fell as she launched herself right off the floor to haphazardly more or less throw the ornament onto one of the taller branches. “It got up there just fine.” She said with a huff as she blew a loose strand of hair out of her face, bent over with her hands on her knees.

“You’re getting much to old to do that, you know?” I spoke with widened eyes as I stared down at her. “Now, since I have no interest in playing ballerina, I’m going to go grab a step stool that you’re welcome to use.”

“I might take you up on that offer.” She replied, body finally flopping on the couch behind her. So now she was finally tired.

Credits: Divider by @mikeykuns 💚

[oneforthemunny]

crossings |mafia!eddie munson x reader|

prompt: everything is new and exciting with you and eddie, but joyce can't help but worry about you.

contains: mentions of suggestions to drugs and violence. an au of eddie in the mafia so crime and dark-ish themes. nothing graphic in this, mainly just fluff and a little angst. I'll put a warning on here anyways of 18+ or read at your own discretion.

It started with a necklace. A simple diamond necklace on a dainty gold chain. Reserved and classy, but still far too expensive than you could afford on a receptionist’s budget. Joyce furrowed her brows when you first started wearing it, nestled between your collar bones delicately, glimmering in the sunlight when you moved. It was too pristine to be second hand, but still, she figured it might’ve been a gift, shaking it off.

Then came the bracelets. Three gold stacked bracelets that were very chic; very expensive. She only knew that because she saw them in the magazines, dangling off some tiny model’s wrist with the price inscribed in tiny writing off to the side. She’d snorted loudly, flipping the page with a huff. Who on earth would pay that price for a bracelet? One that could get you a decent car? Yet, you strolled in on Thursday with them adorned on your wrist- again, understated and simple, nonchalant. Like you weren’t carrying some people’s salary on your wrist.

Handbags, earrings, rings, shoes all followed. Every piece more expensive than the next. Joyce had started to wonder if you were embezzling from the bank, stealing out of the drawers. Until she saw him.

Eddie Munson strolled into the bank, which wasn’t unusual, but this time he wasn’t here for Charles. Oh no, he was here for you.

“Hi, Joyce.” Eddie greeted with a smile. He was always so polite, it made her stomach twist knowing that behind that alluring smile was a dangerous man. “How’re you today?”

“I can’t complain.” Joyce smiled back politely. “How are you?”

“Good.” Eddie said cooly, his eyes flicked behind her, lighting up. “Better now. I got a hot date for lunch.”

Joyce blushed at the information. “Oh? Who-“

She saw you giggle, purse- a new designer bag fresh off the runway- slung over your shoulder. You wrapped your arms around Eddie in greeting, squealing when he pressed kisses into your cheek. The way his dimples deepened, creasing deep into his cheeks, eyes lighting up when he saw you; it felt very sweet. Joyce almost forgot who he was for a moment. More importantly what he was capable of.

"I'll be back in an hour, Joyce. I put the sign up." You beamed at her, your happiness nearly infectious when you smiled over at her. Joyce hesitated for a moment, watching Eddie sweetly place his hand on your waist.

"Have a good lunch!" You called over your shoulder, pressed into Eddie's side, pushing the glass door open for you to step through.

Eddie turned, lifting a hand in a wave towards Joyce, a kind gesture that shocked her. She could barely raise her own hand back, watching them scamper out the door- two young kids in love. She remembered being like that before, the insatiable feeling to be with each other at all times. The whirlwind of love and adoration that followed, sweeping you up on a cloud of ecstasy, fogging your judgement.

Joyce could barely touch her sandwich, staring at the plastic bag in front of her. She ignored the other chatter around her, coworkers busily clambering about their days and droning subjects she couldn't bring herself to engage with.

She knew you had no way of knowing, you couldn't have. You weren't from Hawkins, you were Nancy's college roommate, brought here because of a job- this job. She wondered if you had told Nancy about Eddie. She had half a mind to ring Jonathan and ask, insist he tell his fiancé what her friend is up to; who her friend is hanging around.

Everyone knew the Munson's. Eddie's father, Wayne, Eddie, his mother. The distaste, snarl that usually followed with the name was all Eddie grew up with. His hoodlum of a father, who was a delinquent around Hawkins, got his mother killed. Wayne who was forced to take the boy in, and the boy. The boy they outcasted all his life, mocked and ridiculed, now, held all the cards. He had the power now. When people said "Munson" now, they didn't snarl or scoff. No, it followed with wide eyes, in a low tone, turning to make sure no one was listening. That was whenever anyone dared to say anything about Eddie at all, most content on pretending they were unaware of the dangers that happened in Hawkins.

Eddie was always a good kid, and even now, he took care of his city. He had established terror in the hearts of all his citizens, enough to keep them quiet and docile, let him keep doing what he needed to do; but he was always the first one to help when they were in trouble. No one came for his city, for his home, for his things.

Joyce knew Eddie was responsible for the boy's home being rebuilt. He'd had a 'meeting' with Charles and a few other big names around town after a few kids at the children's home had become sick from the lack of heating that winter. The children's home had requested renovations, but the city pushed it back- until it became a top priority practically overnight. Joyce knew it was more than a coincidence that it happened to become priority after Eddie's meeting.

Still, she worried that you didn't know the danger. Joyce was a wreck all day, contemplating if she should say something to you. She knew it was a risk, that if you reported back to Eddie it could lead to a world of hurt for her... for her family.

Joyce watched you all day. When you'd returned from your lunch with Eddie, he'd walked you back to your desk, all dimpled grins and tossing you a wink that left you flushing before he left. He promised to pick you up later, walking away with a small wave. "Have a good day, ladies." He'd purred lowly.

Hours later, Joyce still hadn't worked up the courage to talk to you. She'd tried, she had, but every time she'd call your name, you giving her a wide eyed, sweet look, her words caught in her throat. Choking and constricting around the request, before she'd just shake it off, laughing and blaming the weather for her scattered thoughts.

Joyce's eyes flickered from the clock on the wall, back towards you. You'd begun packing up, neatly filing papers away, and smoothing your agenda for the next day out. She bit her lip, rolling it in contemplation, pencil bouncing on her desk.

Five o'clock- closing time. You were already standing, peering out the window to see Eddie's Bugatti below. Joyce followed your gaze, shoving her own things in her purse.

"Wait!" Joyce called, much more urgent than she meant it to be. She called your name just as frantic, stopping you in the doorway.

"Um, could I talk to you for a second?" Joyce stammered, hands trembling when she shoved her things into her bag.

Your brows furrowed gently. "Yeah, of course. Are you alright?" You asked, tilting your head to the side. "Did I miss something in the paper work? I thought I stamped all the envelopes, but if I missed one I'll-"

"No, sweetie, it's not that." Joyce gave you a small smile, but her heart hammered so fiercely in her chest she could hear it in her ears.

Joyce pushed the door open, gently leading you outside. She caught the eyes of her coworkers, wide eyes and heads shaking in warning. They knew. Everyone knew. But what they didn't know was why Joyce would approach you with the subject. Put herself at that own kind of risk.

Joyce felt her stomach squeeze, turning to meet your confused gaze. "Joyce, is everything alright? Is it about the wedding? I told you Nancy can be a little stubborn about details, but if you're worried about something, I'll talk to her."

Joyce shook her head, eyes trailing behind you. The large ferns outside blocked her view, but she could still see him. Black button down, rolled sleeves, leaned up against the car finishing his cigarette.

"Sweetie, I-I..." Joyce let out a straggled breath. "What are you doing?" She asked lowly, eyes meeting yours cautiously.

Your brows furrowed. "What?" You asked. "Joyce, are you feeling ok? Do I need to call Jonathan or Will-"

"No," Joyce sighed heavily, placing her hands on your shoulders. It felt so maternal, shocking you a little. "What are you doing with Eddie?" She asked finally.

There was a silence between you, filling the space in a buzzing, defining tone. You blinked at her carefully. "Eddie?" You asked.

Joyce nodded fiercely. "Eddie... Sweetie, I know you're not from here, but-but Eddie... Eddie is not- he's-" She stuttered, shaking her head at herself, frustrated at her fumbling words. "There's things in Hawkins that are dangerous, ok? We all know it, but we don't know it, understand?"

Your face fell slightly, lips pursing slightly. You looked over your shoulder towards Eddie through the glass doors. Joyce's breath hitched. "And-And Eddie he's into those things." She said slowly, eyes watching you carefully. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

You gave her a soft smile, hands arching up to lay over hers, squeezing them gently. "Joyce, I understand." You nodded. "But Eddie is a very sweet guy."

Joyce blinked at you, in disbelief. She said your name in exasperation, but you held your hand up. "Joyce, I appreciate your wanting to worry for me, to look out for me, but," You sighed gently, looking over at Eddie. "I'm a big girl. I've got it handled."

"He could hurt you." Joyce muttered low, fingers squeezing you lightly in panic.

"He won't." You said firmly, head nodding back at her.

"Honey, I don't think you know what you're-"

"I don't think you know." You snapped, a little more defensive than you meant it to. The fear on her face at your tone, flinching back at the words made your heart drop. You sighed heavily, rubbing your temple.

You took a step forward towards her, cautious and holding your hand up in truce. "I know that you know some of Eddie's life, but you don't know Eddie." You gave her a sincere look. "Not like I know Eddie, and I can promise you, if I felt like I was in the slightest bit of danger, I wouldn't be with him. You don't know him like I know him."

Joyce didn't reply, mouth uncomfortably dry, heart beating far too fast in her chest. She felt like her knees might get out.

You gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze, offering her a small smile. "Thanks for looking out for me, Joyce, but I promise I'm ok." You turned, seeing Eddie checking his watch, eyes now watching the two of you inside.

You turned, waving at Joyce over your shoulder, pushing the door open. "Have a good one, Joyce! See you tomorrow!" You called cheerfully.

Joyce watched in slight horror, confused and awed when you wrapped your arms around Eddie's neck, his own gripping your waist, pulling you into a sweet, passionate kiss. He kissed you like he hadn't seen you in years.

He held the door open for you, letting you slide in before jogging around to the other side. He could see Joyce still staring, watching in amazement from behind the glass. His chest tightened, the carnal, protective need washing through his veins.

"What took you so long, baby?" Eddie asked, peeling off from the curb. "What were you talking to Joyce about?"

"The wedding. Nancy will not finalize details on anything, and Joyce is worried sick." You rolled your eyes playfully. "She wants me to talk to Nance, and I told her I'd try, but you know how Nancy can be? She's so stubborn and the more you push her, the more she'll dig her heels in."

Eddie relaxed, eyes flickering over to you gently. "She wasn't bothering you?" He asked carefully.

You furrowed your brows at him. "No." You giggled. "Just wanting me to play miracle worker for the wedding."

"Good." Eddie muttered, reaching his hand over the console to hold yours. "You remember what I said? You let me know if anyone starts bothering you." He brought your hand to his mouth, pillowy soft lips brushing your knuckles. It was so romantic, it had you giggling, positively giddy and drunk in love.

You leaned over, nose nuzzling into his clean shaved cheek, still smelling the nicotine on his lips when you kissed him sweetly. He slowed at the stop light, hands wrapping around your jaw to pull you closer, kissing you properly. When you pulled apart, your eyes were dazzling up at him, taking in his lopsided smile.

You knew there were two sides to Eddie. You knew there was. reason people feared him. You knew Joyce was right to warn you, to look out for you. You would do the same in her shoes. You wouldn't be able to understand either from an outsider's perspective.

They didn't know the Eddie you did. The Eddie that smothered you in so much affection, not just expensive material things, but sweet words that left your skin blushed with praise. He was passionate, about his business, yes, but about you too. An old school, intense type of love that you only saw on the screens. He was gentle with you, showing you a side of himself no one else saw.

You didn't want anyone else to. Selfishly, you liked that it was all yours. For you, and you only. Eddie was yours. Your scary man that everybody else feared, but not you. No for you, he was yours. Sweet and caring and protective; all yours.

You'd let them have their judgments. Their silent fears and worries about your sanity, about your safety. It was better that way, for both of you. You'd let them have their thoughts about Eddie, and you wouldn't try to change them, because that meant potential issues that neither of you wanted.

You'd let them think you were just with him for the lavish gifts. You'd let them think that you were insane. You'd let them think that Eddie was a threat to you. That he would hurt you or you'd get caught in the crossfire like his mother. You knew they couldn't help it, it was so easy to judge you and him silently, removed as far away from the relationship as they could. Yet the still casted their judgements in hushed tones and fleeting looks, too scared to speak on them, but too indulgent not to at least determine the outcome of your relationship. Mourn a fate that hadn't even happened. Predict a repeat of history without the facts.

"History repeating itself," They'd mutter to their friends in the quiet of their own privacy, head down but eyes cutting when the two of you would pass.

It was so easy to assume that, to brush it off that you'd both suffer the fate of his parents before him. Easy to judge when no one knew the facts or the truth. Opinions are easy to make with one sided, skewed facts. They were too scared to really try and know, to even try and see. But you supposed that was ok. They didn't need to know anyways.

Besides, none of them knew Eddie. Just like none of them knew you. Not the way you knew each other.

[a-little-ray-of-fantasy]

CherriSnake, as a couple, most likely wasn't in the plans, if you only saw the pilot, but honestly, I personally really enjoyed their dynamic in the show, regardless.

There's a reason why people shipped Cherri Bomb and Sir Pentious all these years: rivals to lovers is always a win. Plus, the confident, spunky powerhouse and the battle oriented, dorky edgelord? It really made sense!

So let's talk about them in the series proper!

Cherri Bomb was never against the idea of dating Sir Pentious. Maybe unimpressed by his awkward attempts, but never really rebuffed them.

If anything she kinda pokes fun at him for trying so hard with her: you say you're my arch nemesis, but then you try to flirt with me?

What, YOU want to make sex with me? Care to explain why?

They've been rivals for years by now, Cherri KNOWS Pentious tends to put up a front to impress, and most likely would've given him a chance if he had the confidence to be true about his intentions.

Sadly, this is Sir Pentious we're talking about: a very insecure man who struggles with socializing and pleasing others. So he blunders his own attempts at flirting to avoid being rejected by buying everyone drinks or wanting to have sex with everyone.

Speaking of that, Sir Pentious, of all people, wanting to have sex? It's really not him, it's not something he'd do under normal circumstances, but he's drunk, all his previous attempts have failed, so he might as well be bold. But even then you can tell by the way he says "Do a sex with me." that he has NO idea what he's talking about.

And she's quick to call him out. Again, not with annoyance but with humor.

Sir Pentious was completely out of his element here, and, being the insecure man he is, instead of going with his strengths (which we're going to talk about in a minute), he went for what HE believed Cherri wanted, and he payed the price: she wasn't impressed, he lost his chance.

Also, I totally believe that the reason behind his struggles to come to terms with his crush is also linked to the fact that... he's a man of science, war and machines! He just can't get a crush, it doesn't work like that! So of course he'd try to mask it!

Of course he engages with Cherri Bomb: she's his arch nemesis! Nothing more! He would never buy drinks for her specifically! ...except nobody will ever buy his lie, and he wouldn't notice how obvious he is.

Next time, we see Pentious trying, and fail once again, to confess to Cherri, but something has changed. He talked to Charlie about it. And while we don't see WHAT they've said to each other, we know for a fact that Charlie totally encouraged him to be himself and confess his feelings.

Heck, if you watch closely, Vaggie even puts a hand on Pentious' own as if to wish him good luck! She's really come to trust him, aw!

And this time, while Sir Pentious still is too nervous to fully confess his feelings, he still goes about it by actually sticking to his strengths, the reason why he fell for Cherri in the first place.

Sir Pentious is an inventor, a warrior, he works with machines. He has engaged in turf wars against Cherri for years and by now he knows her: she's destructive, unpredictable, and unstoppable. She most likely often beat him too, but both gave their all in the battle. And Sir Pentious definitely was impressed by that.

He's not blind, of course he finds Cherri pretty (and let's face it, she is!). But that's the reason he fell for her, something on his league he could recognize and actively engage in: her prowess in battle, her creativity with her explosives, and her determination. And he fully told her that, with clear admiration in his voice.

And this time, Cherri, while still a bit confused on how he's still being awkward about it, this time shows a positive response: she thanks him, she smiles, she genuinely appreciates his compliments.

Reminder that Cherri is much more upfront about, uhm, going out with people. She has slept around, did quick things, and if lore is still the same for her, her love life wasn't a happy one. She's used to have people wanting her for her body, or having surface level attraction to her.

But this is her long time rival, the one man she often faced in turf wars, the edgelord who always put up a front of a grandiose villain when he really was an awkward nerd from the Victorian times that was easy to rattle. And maybe she didn't develop feelings for him the same way he did for her, but it's clear she never held animosity against him. She does care for this lovable loser, deep down, so his compliments are genuinely appreciated.

So when the battle begins, and Adam has started showing the big guns, Sir Pentious gives a quick glance at his blimp, knowing what has to be done, and with the feeling there's a high chance he won't make it.

And so he does the one thing he's always been afraid to do. It's now or never: if he has to go down, he shall do it with no regrets. To heck with fears and insecurities: he loves Cherri, and this time he will show it the way he knows how.

An awkward but completely sweet kiss in the middle of the battle, as her bomb goes off in the background. A gesture that REALLY represents their bond.

Sadly it's short lived. Sir Pentious finally declares his love and runs away to save the day, but still emotional about what happened: the only request he has for her before the deed is simply to remember him.

And I'm positive Cherri will definitely remember this. Him, the kiss, the battle. Everything.

[sewinrat]

If you are/replace Sebastian includes;

*Reader is female mentioned but I could care less, you just have to be human. Have I done something like this before can't remember...

Oh you poor soul. You don't even know how you got in this mess. You were one day suddenly locked up in a plastic cage and this strange man bought you for an even stranger boy. Now you're stuck with them forever.

The closest you act to in terms of 'first meet' is close to Pomni. And yes you have went into the UNKNOWN and Luther had to pull you back but in this case, the unknown is much more dangerous.

And now you're trying your best to hide and run away from all of them in their weird crazy house of nonsense. Unfortunately you can't even hide well because Randal's dolls will always find you. Luther is another thing. You can't act out in front of around him or else you'll be a 'bad pet' and "that's not how girls supposed to act." His words not mine. Even if you've been put in the ridiculous jester outfit. You'd prefer if they put you in those discipline outfit forever if it means to leave you alone. It doesn't matter if you lose your body.

You got a high chance into being part of the family because Luther might want a little sister but let's not go there. This time.

The other two 'people' in the house, Nyen and Nyon, you thought you could trust but apparently not. You try to avoid them both, mostly Nyen because of the times he threatened you. Although Nyon doesn't do much, it's best to not engage in any way. Why am I describing things like this is your diary?

Actually you might have a diary. But hide them well or else everyone and I mean EVERYONE will read it if you misplaced it anywhere. Randal loves to snoop especially around you. Luther says it's to get to know you better but like a parent, he's a liar because if he reads anything he doesn't like, he'll punish you accordingly. Nyen can use it to manipulate you and make fun of you but Nyon reads it... And that's it. He doesn't do much about it but he's bold so he will gave it back to you even if it's open and in the middle of reading it.

After maybe weeks or even months if time manages to slip later because if you cannot make sense of time, how can you even know the time - you're getting use to it. Not comfortable of course but it's to the point where you aren't actively scared to even look behind you.

You know what, you should be just a little bit grateful that you are Randal's 'friend' while also being under him by being a pet because if you remember in Lucid 14, it shows that Randal likes to keep parts of his 'friends' as the bible recruiter dudes were leaving(But it could also imply that it's his first time doing it while alive or smth). So yeah that's one way to lose skin.

Ranfren Characters thoughts on You(ooc);

Randal: "Oh you met my friend?? Did she escaped again if you knew em... Eh impossible but since you know her, I KNOW YOU~!! A friend to my pet is a friend to mee now come here and let's have some funn." How did you get in touch with her- actually doesn't matter to Randal, more friends the merrier.

Luther: "Hm. Troublesome at first but oh well she's just getting use to her new home that's all so I won't blame them for that. Getting docile but still needs precautions." Somehow he treats you more of an experiment than a pet. Maybe you're those last options regularly people would consider to.

Nyen: He exited the interview because a reaction of the 'new' pet of the house from him is a waste of time to him. You're not worth his trouble. But he did said something about how fun watching you struggle when him and or his master catch you escaping.

Nyon: We couldn't find him to get an interview so we came to the conclusion that he has nothing to say about you. Maybe a little pity. That's all.

Bonus? Tsukada Satoru: "Ah she's quite cute but should keep a certain distance away from Randal. Hm? Jealous? In what way or to who exactly? Randal? Oh I could never. Randal is my best friend, I'm just protecting him away from her." Maybe if you play his heart well, he'll take more of a fancy to you.

[caashmoneynae]

MY MASTERLIST. <- click here for more!

❦

FAMILY AFFAIR.

JOEY BADA$$ x @thatone-girly 🤎

SUMMARY: in which Jo-Vaughn persuades Bianca to go on a family trip with him and their son. little does she know, the trip was a plot to get her back. ✨

❦

"𝗜 𝗟𝗢𝗢𝗞 𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗗 𝗧𝗢 𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗡' 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗬𝗢' 𝗙𝗔𝗜𝗟𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗜𝗥𝗦𝗧 𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬𝗗𝗔𝗬, 𝗚𝗜𝗥𝗟," Bianca chuckled, folding up the clean and dry colored laundry, as she shook her head and Nia laughed at her reaction, "okay, finish the story. tell me how the date ended."

"okay so, after him talkin' about himself the whole date and not even giving me room to talk, reply, add on to what he was sayin' — nothing at all, the waiter came and dropped our bill off. after he paid for our food, this muh'fucka' said "you the quiet type, huh?" and bitch... when i tell you it took everything in me not to yell at that man inside that restaurant with all them white folks in there," Nia exhaled dramatically, curling her ginger hair, as Bianca let out a giggle and folded her cropped tank top, "that man was literally about to have me lookin' like a crazy ass mad black woman! like, nigga, this ain't no Tyler Perry movie!"

"and i'm not bitter. i'm mad as hell!" Bianca mimicked, quoting a line from "Diary of a Mad Black Woman", as she and Nia laughed in sync and Nia slightly jumped from almost burning her hand with her curling iron.

"bathe him, feed him, clothe him... uh, stop makin' those bubbles," Nia quoted, pointing her curling iron at her phone, as Bianca giggled and sat the folded laundry inside the large white basket, picking it up and tucking it under her arm while she grabbed her phone and headed for the staircase, "it's safe to say that i ain't go home with him and i blocked him when i got home. i can't stand a chatterbox ass nigga that don't give me room to talk, B. i'm so glad i drove myself there because i'll be damned if i'ma let him see where i stay."

"preachhh. it's one thing for me to do all the talking and you to talk back or for us to evenly engage in conversation, but it's another thing for you to do all the talking and i ain't got one word in! that shit gets annoyin'," Bianca exclaimed, shaking her head, as she walked into Kamari's — her 5-year-old son — room and sat the laundry basket on his toddler bed, "so, where you 'bout to go? 'cause i know you ain't gettin' dolled up for no reason."

"i'm surprised Joey even let you date with how obsessive he is over you," Nia joked, smirking, as she playfully winked at her phone and Bianca chuckled while she put away her son's clothing, "but i got a brunch date with this lil' white boy on my roster. i ain't never dated outside my race before, so we gon' see how this go."

Joey — also known as Joey Bada$$ or just Jo-Vaughn — was Bianca's baby father and old boyfriend. they were like two peas in a pod until they broke up a week before his tour for his '2000' album started. there was no bad blood in the breakup because the two just felt like they had drifted away from each other and were no longer compatible. they remained friends and still kept in contact with each other since they had a son, and they co-parented so well that most people still thought they were together, which the two of them were grateful for because it kept the media off their backs.

neither of the two wanted to be posted on blogs just because they broke up, so they continued to front for social media like they were still together, even though you could clearly tell they weren't.

despite this, Bianca still tried to branch out and date other men, but it never worked out because Jo-Vaughn would always find a way to chase them away, and sometimes Kamari would chase them away as well. ever since April — specifically, after he dropped his R&B single "Fallin'" — he had been trying to get Bianca back, and so far his attempts had been unsuccessful because Bianca didn't feel a desire to return to him. sure, he was an amazing boyfriend and an even better father, but Bianca believed that the two were better apart than they were together.

as long as their son was happy, she felt no need to return to his father, despite his numerous attempts of trying to romance her and make her his again.

"listen... we don't talk about that, okay? i'm lucky i managed to keep the boy i'm talking to now," Bianca chuckled, shaking her head, as she closed Kamari's closet and shut one of his drawers while she picked up the laundry basket and headed to her bedroom, "and girl, it's like 5 o'clock in the afternoon, what you mean 'brunch'? but okaaaay, i see you with the white boy on ya roster! you better work, Kali!"

"you a whole fool! but like i said, we goin' to brunch, i don't care what time it is and neither does he," Nia laughed, unplugging her curling iron, as she pushed her curled hair behind her shoulder, "and if i know Joey like i think i know him, he gon' run ole' dude off next, trust me. wait, speaking of him, where my nephew? i wanna see lil' KJ before my date, he's my good luck charm."

the "ole' dude" Nia was referring to was Malcolm. he and Bianca had been talking for about two weeks and had been taking things slow since he had just gotten out of a relationship. he was sweet, caring, had manners, and was good with kids since he had two nieces, and that alone made Bianca fall for him harder every day.

there was no doubt in Bianca's mind that Jo-Vaughn knew about Malcolm, but since he had never brought him up, she assumed that he didn't know.

little did she know, she was completely wrong.

"K is with his daddy. you know this week was his week to have him," Bianca chuckled, sitting the laundry basket on her king-sized bed, as she began to put away her clothing, "they should be here in a few minutes tho', the sun 'bout to start settin' in about an hour or so."

"take a picture of him for me and send it to me 'cause i ain't got a few minutes to spare, i got a date to go on," Nia advised, chuckling, as she put away her now cold curling iron and grabbed her phone, "i'ma call you later on tonight to tell you what happens, and if you don't receive a call from me tonight, i got covered in snow."

"Nia, please get off my phone with that shit," Bianca laughed, shaking her head, as Nia giggled and playfully stuck her tongue out at her, "have a good time playin' with ya snowman, Ni'Ni."

"shit, hopefully. bye, mamas!" Nia smiled, waving her goodbye, as Bianca smiled at her and let out a chuckle before waving back to her.

"bye, sunshine." as the call ended, Bianca chuckled at her friend's behavior and she shook her head as she put away her undergarments, tucking them inside a drawer before her doorbell suddenly rang and her head raised at the sound of it.

shutting the drawer, Bianca grabbed the laundry basket and carefully jogged downstairs as she headed to the laundry room, sitting the basket in the corner of the room close by the dryer while she speed-walked to the front door. unlocking and opening the door, Bianca was immediately greeted by Kamari hugging her leg, making the light-skinned woman smile widely while she bent down to pick him up.

"hi, papaaa!" Bianca smiled, wrapping her arms around him, as she kissed his cheek and Kamari giggled in her arms, "you had fun with Daddy this week?"

"yeah! we played gamesss, went out to eattt, and— Mommy, i made some friends at the playground!" Kamari smiled widely as Bianca let out a soft chuckle at his enthusiasm and ran her fingers over his neatly braided black cornrows.

"that's good! i want you to tell me allll about it when i finish talking to ya daddy, okay?" Bianca asked, lowering the toddler back to the ground, as she looked up at Jo-Vaughn and held out her hand, signaling for him to put his backpack in her hand while she grabbed the strap of it and handed it to Kamari, "go upstairs and unpack your bag, and when i'm finished talking, i'll come get you."

"yes, ma'am!" as Kamari excitedly ran off towards the staircase, Bianca and Jo-Vaughn locked eyes, and she noticed a small flirtatious smile on his face, making her let out a soft chuckle.

"why you lookin' at me like that, J?" Bianca asked, chuckling, as she looked up at the 6'1 male and rested one of her hands on her hip.

"i can't look at you?" Jo-Vaughn playfully smirked, running his tongue over his lips, as Bianca raised her brow at him and the two soon laughed in sync, "nah, i'm just playin', girl, how you been?"

"you askin' me this like you didn't see me last week," Bianca chuckled, earning a soft chuckle from her baby father, "but i been good, what about you? and how was Kamari?"

"a week is a long ass time, B. but i been good too, and you know KJ ain't never no trouble. he has his moments when he gets wanna throw tantrums 'cause he can't get what he wants, but other than that, he was good. he spoiled just like his damn mama." Jo-Vaughn chuckled, slipping his hands into his pockets, as Bianca laughed and raised her brow at him.

"who spoiled his mama tho'?" Bianca asked, crossing her arms across her chest, as a small smile crept onto her face and she awaited his answer.

"ya mama and daddy did. that don't got nothin' to do with me 'cause i'on know nothin' about that," Jo-Vaughn jokingly shrugged, looking off to the side, as Bianca laughed and reached out to hit him, making him laugh while he grabbed her wrist, "a'ight, i spoiled you, damn. you out here tryna' get domestic and shit."

"because you lyin' like you ain't used to spoil my ass when we was together. and you wonder why 'Mari so spoiled... nigga, that's yo' doing, not mine." Bianca laughed as Jo-Vaughn laughed with her and let go of her wrist.

"if i have your permission... i wanna spoil you and him again." Jo-Vaughn announced, a smile on his face, as Bianca raised a brow and looked him up and down.

"what you got planned in your mischievous ass mind?" Bianca asked, leaning against the doorway, as she crossed her arms for a second time.

"i wanna take all three of us on a lil' family trip to Orlando. i know lil' man starts Kindergarten next month, so i wanna take him to Disney World before school starts, and i want you to come with us." Jo-Vaughn explained as Bianca glanced down at their feet in deep thought before looking back up at him.

"i'on know about that, Joey. i mean, it'll be good for him, but—"

"B, c'mon, man, you gotta' come with us. it ain't a family trip if he ain't got his mama. don't be like that, baby." Jo-Vaughn pleaded as Bianca cracked a small smile at him referring to her as 'baby' and she let out a soft chuckle.

"i told you about callin' me that, boy," Bianca chuckled as she pushed her black knotless braids behind her shoulder, "but i guess i'll tag along. for him, not for you."

"girl, stop frontin', you know you still love my ass." Jo-Vaughn chuckled, waving her off, as Bianca playfully rolled her eyes and softly chuckled.

"when we leavin'? and at what time?" Bianca asked, raising a brow, as a smile rested on her face and Jo-Vaughn smiled at her.

"tomorrow morning at 8. we flyin' over on my private jet, so go pack you and KJ a bag for the weekend and i'll see y'all tomorrow."

—

"all done, papa," Bianca cooed softly, smoothing the rest of the Vaseline on her hands on Kamari's brown-skinned face, as she gently kissed his nose and let go of his face, "go downstairs and lay on the couch. you can go to sleep until Daddy gets here."

"yes, ma'am." Kamari yawned softly, rubbing his eye, as he stood up from his bed and walked out of his room while Bianca rubbed her hands together to get rid of the excess shine the Vaseline had left.

surprisingly, getting Kamari up and ready at 7 A.M. wasn't as hard as you may have thought it was, and usually, it was difficult for Bianca to get him up early because he wasn't a morning person, but today was different. it was kind of challenging to get him out of his bed, but other than that, things went smoothly, which gave Bianca a slight shock.

nonetheless, she was grateful it didn't take him long because if it did, she most likely wouldn't have time to get herself ready.

walking into her bedroom, Bianca stood at her vanity mirror as she adjusted the zipper on her baby blue romper, her braids up in a ponytail and swinging easily with each movement her head made. while she adjusted her breasts in her top, her phone suddenly began ringing, and she walked away from the mirror as she walked to her bed and picked up her phone beside the packed suitcase, realizing that Nia was calling her and not Jo-Vaughn.

"good morning, sunshine." Bianca smiled, answering the phone, as she walked back over to her vanity and propped up her phone, seeing Nia's face pop up on her screen while she walked to her closet to pick out a pair of slides to put on.

"good morning, mamas— ooh, where you goin'?" Nia asked, noticing her attire and the bag on the bed, as Bianca chuckled and slipped a pair of her white Nike slides on her feet.

"Joey's takin' me and KJ to Orlando. i gotta' keep my voice down because he doesn't know yet, but he wants to take him to Disney World and wanted me to come along so it could be a family trip, so i told him i'd come," Bianca explained lowly, adjusting her feet in her shoes, as she walked over to her phone and noticed a smirk on Nia's face, "what you smirking for?"

"i'm not gon' say nothin' but this: when y'all asses come back from Florida, y'all gon' be back together. mark my words, B. you gon' forget allll about that nigga you talkin' to when you see ya baby zaaaaddy." Nia smirked, making Bianca laugh, as Bianca held onto her phone and shook her head, peeking out of her bedroom window and seeing Jo-Vaughn's car pull up in her driveway.

"whatever you say, Ni'Ni. just because i'm goin' outta' state with him doesn't mean i'ma go back to him. this is for Kamari, not us," Bianca chuckled, walking away from the window, as she walked over to her bed and zipped up her suitcase, "and speaking of him, he just pulled up. so, i'ma talk to you later on. make sure to run me in on what happened with Mr. White Chocolate last night."

"deny it alll you want to, B, i know him and i know you. he ain't gon' stop 'til he gets you back and you bound to fold underneath all that pressure, respectfully. it's only a matter of time, sweetness," Nia chuckled, raising her brow, as she adjusted the bonnet on her head, "but, i got'chu, i'ma definitely run you in when you get time. bye, mamas, have a safe trip."

"bye, sunshine, and thank you. i'll make sure to send you some pictures of your nephew to make your day." Bianca chuckled, smiling, as she pulled her suitcase off of the bed and rested it on the floor.

"you better. or i'ma hop on a plane to Orlando and beat yo' ass." the call ended after Nia's remark, and Bianca laughed at her statement as knocks sounded off at her door, making her smile slightly widen because she knew Jo-Vaughn didn't want to ring the doorbell in case Kamari was asleep.

walking downstairs with her suitcase and phone in her hand and her crossbody purse on her shoulder, Bianca sat the suitcase next to the couch and slipped her phone inside her purse as she walked over to the door and unlocked and opened it, revealing her baby father.

"i'm glad you knocked 'cause he's asleep." Bianca chuckled, stepping to the side and allowing him to come in, as Jo-Vaughn chuckled and cracked a smile at seeing Kamari asleep on the couch.

"i had a feelin' my lil' man was sleepin'." Jo-Vaughn chuckled, carefully scooping the toddler off of the couch, as Kamari gently writhed in his arms and Jo-Vaughn grabbed their suitcase, making Bianca furrow her brows.

"you gon' carry him and the suitcase?" Bianca asked, her facial expression resembling one of confusion, as Jo-Vaughn looked over at her and chuckled at her reaction.

"you carried him for 9 months, the least i could do is carry him to the car," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, making Bianca crack a smile, as Bianca let out a soft laugh and the two headed for the front door, "plus, you know i ain't never let you carry no bags, girl. especially if they heavy. you think just 'cause we not together no more that i was gon' stop doin' that?"

"just a lil' bit." Bianca chuckled, closing the front door, as she locked the door and tucked her keys into her purse while she walked to his car.

"well, you thought wrong, B. i'm a gentleman at heart, pretty girl," Jo-Vaughn flirtatiously smirked, winking at her, as he walked to his car and opened the back door, gently sitting Kamari inside while he buckled his seat belt and closed the door afterward, "and you bet not touch that door handle."

"yes, sir," Bianca joked, quickly putting her hand down since she was already reaching for the door handle, as Jo-Vaughn opened her door for her and Bianca smiled while she climbed into his passenger seat, "i done told you about that flirting, boy. but thank you, baby daddy."

"anytime, baby mama."

—

"ooh, nice jet." Bianca smiled, holding Kamari in her arms while his head rested on her shoulder, as Jo-Vaughn rolled the luggage to the plane and let out a soft chuckle.

"thank you, B. nice things don't come cheap," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, earning a small laugh from Bianca, as the two approached the jet and a man dressed in pilot attire walked out of the door, "B, this is Francis, he gon' be our pilot and our chauffeur when we touch down in Orlando. Francis, this is Bianca, my beautiful baby mama."

"it's nice to meet you, Ms. Bianca. i've heard so much about you," Francis smiled warmly, holding out his hand, as Bianca smiled back at him and shook his hand, keeping one of her hands on the toddler on her chest to keep him from falling, "if you don't mind me asking, who's the little guy in your arms?"

"it's nice to meet you, too! and this is Kamari, our son. he's not a morning person, so you'll probably see him awake once the plane lands." Bianca smiled, chuckling, as Francis smiled at her before his eyes landed on the bags in Jo-Vaughn's hands.

"i'll take those on the jet for you, sir, if you don't mind." Francis offered as Jo-Vaughn glanced down at the bags in his hands before handing them to the pilot.

"i 'preciate that, F. i'll make sure to leave you some tips before the day's over with," Jo-Vaughn smiled, watching him grab the suitcases, as Francis smiled and nodded his head before walking back up the stairs, making Jo-Vaughn look over at Bianca, "ladies first, right?"

"yeah, i'm glad you remember," Bianca joked, jokingly mugging him, as Jo-Vaughn laughed at her and Bianca made her way up the stairs, looking around at the interior of the jet with a smile, "oh, my God, it's gorgeous in here."

"i'm glad you like it. i was hopin' you did," Jo-Vaughn smiled, closing the jet's door behind him, "i know you probably wanna go back to sleep, so there's a bedroom back there for you and him to go. i'ma be back there in a minute."

"yes, baby father." Bianca joked, earning a laugh from Jo-Vaughn, as the two parted their ways and Bianca made her way to the back of the jet, opening the door of the bedroom and walking inside.

"oh, i just know this bed is comfortable as hell." Bianca mumbled to herself, looking at the queen-sized mattress, as she gently laid Kamari on the bed and took off his shoes, sitting them by the door while she took off her slides and placed them by his.

taking off her purse, Bianca sat it on the small wooden table next to the bed and unzipped it as she sat down on the bed and pulled out her phone, checking her notifications and going through them while she heard footsteps come closer to the room.

"made yourself at home?" Jo-Vaughn chuckled, a small smile on his face, as he closed the door and took off his shoes, leaving them beside Bianca and Kamari's shoes while he walked over to the bed.

"somethin' like that," Bianca chuckled, texting Nia back, as she turned off her phone and slipped it back inside her purse, "i can't wait to sleep on this comfortable ass bed. you picked a good ass mattress, J."

"you gon' be complimentin' me all day, huh?" Jo-Vaughn questioned, chuckling, as he pulled his phone out of his pocket and sat it on the other small wooden table on his side of the bed, "we got about a 4-hour flight anyways, so you'll be well-rested before we land."

"i just might, depending on what other surprise you got up yo' sleeve," Bianca chuckled, putting her legs on the bed, as she carefully grabbed Kamari and laid him between her and Jo-Vaughn, "and shit, i hope so. with how comfortable this bed is, it feels like i'm layin' on clouds."

"yeah, and you wonder why i bought it," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, laying on his back, as he rested his arms underneath his head and closed his eyes, "goodnight, baby mama."

Bianca chuckled softly and lay on the bed as she laid on her right side and her eyes gradually shut, "goodnight, baby daddy."

—

"Mommyyyy, wake up!" the sound of Kamari's enthusiasm-filled voice rang through Bianca's eardrums and she felt his dainty hands shake her by the shoulders, making a smile slowly spread across her face while her eyes fluttered open, "we're hereeee!"

Bianca's eyes locked onto her widely smiling child and she looked around the room to spot Jo-Vaughn, but he was nowhere to be found. assuming he was in the cockpit with Francis, Bianca let out a giggle at Kamari shaking her again, despite her being fully awake, and she wrapped her arms around his body while she sat up.

"your daddy told you where we were goin', huh?" Bianca asked, chuckling, as she smiled at the elated toddler and Kamari nodded his head eagerly.

"yes, ma'am. he told me we're going after we stop at the hotel." Kamari smiled, resting his hands on her shoulders, as Bianca reached into her purse and grabbed her phone.

"you know the name of the hotel, papa?" Bianca asked, turning on her phone, as she checked her notifications and Kamari played with the ends of her braids.

"yeah, but... i don't know how to say it. Daddy told me i said it wrong." Kamari explained, occupying himself with her hair, as Bianca chuckled and went through her unread messages, seeing some texts from Nia and Malcolm.

"it's the Waldorf Astoria hotel," Jo-Vaughn chimed in, walking into the room, as Bianca glanced up at him and Kamari looked back at him, "i was stuck between choosing that one and the Ritz-Carlton, but i made my decision about two nights ago."

"aren't both of those expensive 5-star hotels? don't be spendin' all that money at one time, J, i told you about that." Bianca advised, shooting a text to her friend and her talking stage, as she turned off her phone and slipped it back into her purse.

"as long as i'm makin' you and my son happy, i don't care 'bout nunna' that, B. and you know that," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, walking towards the bed, as he plopped down on his stomach beside Bianca and Kamari, "plus, it ain't like i'm not gon' get it back. the money flow don't stop, baby. ain't that right, K?"

"yeah!" Kamari smiled, watching his father raise his hand, as Kamari gave him a high five and Jo-Vaughn smiled at him while Bianca let out a laugh.

"you two are gonna be the death of me one day," Bianca chuckled, untying the black durag on Kamari's cornrows, as she removed the rag from his head and ran her fingers over his scalp, "where's Francis?"

"he went to go get the Rolls Royce so he can drive us to the hotel." Jo-Vaughn explained, watching Bianca slip their son's durag in her purse, as Bianca's brows furrowed and she looked over at him, playfully tugging at the gold hoop in his ear before reaching to remove his stocking cap.

"Jo-Vaughn, how much money have you spent?" Bianca asked, raising a brow, as she removed his stocking cap from his low-cut hair and ran her fingers over it while one of her acrylics slid through the side-parted cut in his hair.

"i'm not tellin' you all'at... you gon' be tryna' whup me." Jo-Vaughn defended, chuckling, as Bianca playfully rolled her eyes and the sound of a car horn sounded off from outside, causing Bianca to glance out of the bedroom door.

"Daddy, what's a Rolls Royce?" Kamari asked cluelessly, watching Jo-Vaughn get up from

the bed to grab his shoes, as Kamari climbed off of Bianca's lap and sat at the end of the bed so his father could put his shoes on.

"it's a car, little one," Jo-Vaughn explained, crouching down in front of him, as he grabbed one of Kamari's feet and slipped his shoe on, "remember when you saw that car on TV with the stars on the ceiling?"

"it's one of them?" Kamari asked in awe, his eyes lighting up, as Jo-Vaughn put on his other shoe and looked up at him with a small smile before nodding his head, "i wanna see!"

"Mr. Scott, i've prepared the car!" the sound of Francis's voice caused electricity to run through Kamari's little body, and he hopped off of the bed and ran out of the room as his eyes locked on Francis, who was standing by the door of the jet.

"Mr. Francis, does the car really have stars on the ceiling?" Kamari asked, smiling widely, as Francis looked down at him and smiled at his ecstatic face.

"yes, it does, little man. you wanna see?" Francis smiled as Kamari jumped up and down in excitement and quickly nodded his head.

"yes, please!" Kamari exclaimed excitedly as he and Francis left the jet, leaving Jo-Vaughn and Bianca there by themselves.

"his lil' ass gon' be bouncin' off walls all day long," Bianca chuckled, grabbing her purse, as she stood up from the bed and walked towards the door of the bedroom to slip on her shoes, "and i don't know how many times i gotta' tell you to stop callin' me pet names, especially in front of 'Mari. he's young, he could get confused."

"ain't nothin' for our lil' man to be confused about. his daddy loves his mama, that's all that is," Jo-Vaughn declared, a small smirk on his face, as Bianca slipped on her shoes and attempted to walk past him but Jo-Vaughn stopped her by wrapping his arm around her waist, "and i ain't stoppin' 'til i get you back, B, i told you that. you can resist it all you want, but by the time this trip ends, you gon' be all mine again, shorty."

Bianca stared into his eyes and her body tingled from his touch as she rested her hands on his chest and thought about pushing him away, but she soon got lost in her thoughts instead of acting upon them. his words sounded eerily similar to the words Nia had spoken to her this morning, and it made her wonder if Nia secretly was in on what Jo-Vaughn had planned, but knowing how Nia is, she wouldn't admit it unless it worked in her favor.

sooner or later, Bianca would eventually cave into Jo-Vaughn's advances. since the two were together for a few years, he knew all of her weaknesses, and he could easily use them to his advantage, which made Bianca slightly nervous.

one usage of one of her "worst" weaknesses, and she was bound to be bent over in their hotel room at the end of the night.

"whatever you say, Joey," Bianca mumbled, breaking their eye contact, as she felt

butterflies in her stomach and lightly removed his arm from around her, "stop tryna' romance me and let's go. Kamari ain't gon' be occupied with those stars for that long, J."

Jo-Vaughn chuckled and cracked a smile as he followed behind Bianca and the two made their way to the exit of the jet, his eyes trailing down her figure and stopping at her ass while he ran his tongue over his lips, "you got a point... but i know what can occupy me."

"Jo-Vaughn, i'ma slap yo' nasty ass with my purse."

—

"this room is beautiful... you really outdid yourself with this, J." Bianca chuckled, smiling, as the three walked into the hotel room and Kamari immediately took off running down the short hallway.

"i had to get the best for you and KJ, so i got a luxury suite. there's two bedrooms in here, a master bedroom and a kid's bedroom, so—"

"wait. one master bedroom?" Bianca asked, her brows furrowing, as Jo-Vaughn looked over at her and nodded his head, "so i gotta' share a bed with you?"

"you got a problem with sleepin' next to me, B?" Jo-Vaughn asked, chuckling, as the two made their way down the hallway and walked into the master bedroom that was across from the kid's bedroom.

"i'd rather sleep on the couch—"

"Bianca, if you think i'm lettin' you sleep on the couch, you must not know who you had a baby by," Jo-Vaughn cut her off as he sat their suitcases on the king-sized bed, "you not 'bout to sleep on that couch when this bed is sittin' right here, you heard? i'on know what typa' man you think i am, but i ain't the typa' man to let his lady sleep on the couch."

a sly smirk crossed Bianca's face at him fussing at her for wanting to sleep on the couch, and butterflies filled her stomach for a second time as she dropped the smirk from her face once she saw Jo-Vaughn look back at her and the two locked eyes while Bianca crossed her arms.

"yes, baby father," Bianca jokingly grouched, playfully rolling her eyes at him, as Jo-Vaughn chuckled at her and Bianca walked out of the room to check on Kamari, "Kamari Jahlil, stop jumpin' on this bed!"

Bianca laughed at seeing Kamari bounce on his bed and he giggled at her fussing at him as he slid off of the bed and walked over to Bianca, holding his arms up and signaling for her to pick him up.

"you wanna go look at the view with Mommy?" Bianca asked, smiling, as she picked him up and sat him on her hip while Kamari nodded his head and the two made their way to the living room.

opening the sliding door to the balcony, the summer breeze gently slapped the two in the face as they stepped onto the balcony, looking out at the clear blue sky and the warm sunlight shining over the sand and ocean across from them.

"it's pretty." Kamari spoke softly in awe, his dark brown eyes watching the sun reflect on the ocean, as Bianca smiled and nodded her head, removing her braids from underneath Kamari's arm and feeling them sway behind her head.

"it really is, papa," Bianca smiled as she heard footsteps behind her and looked over her shoulder, seeing Jo-Vaughn standing in the living room with his phone pointed towards her, "are you recording us?"

"maybe," Jo-Vaughn smiled, playfully winking, as he posted the video to his Instagram story with his song "Fallin'" attached to it and stuffed his phone into his pocket, "y'all ready to go to Disney World or y'all just gon' stand there and look at the view the whole trip?"

"i'm ready!" Kamari exclaimed, smiling, as he jumped down from Bianca's arms and ran over to Jo-Vaughn, making both of the adults laugh while Bianca walked inside and closed and locked the sliding door behind her.

"okay, Spongebob Jr, let's get you to Disney World."

—

"bye, Mickey!" Kamari smiled, waving goodbye to the employee in the Mickey Mouse costume, as the employee waved back to him and Bianca smiled at the sight, holding into his small hand while he clutched three of her fingers since her hand was too big to hold.

not only was the trip to Disney World enjoyable to Kamari, but Bianca and Jo-Vaughn enjoyed themselves as well. the family of three road rides together, took pictures, and even indulged in some of the food they had. despite underestimating how much fun she'd have, Bianca was starting to become grateful she agreed to come on the trip. though it was only for Kamari, she managed to enjoy herself as much as he did, and the smile on her face was almost as big as his.

though Kamari looked like Jo-Vaughn, it was safe to say that he and Bianca shared more mannerisms than he did with his father.

"you enjoyed yourself, papa?" Bianca asked, smiling, as she adjusted the Mickey Mouse ears on his head and the charm bracelet Jo-Vaughn bought for her at the gift shop jingled on her wrist with each movement her hand made.

"yeah! Daddy, can we go back one day?" Kamari smiled widely, looking up at his father, as Jo-Vaughn looked down at him and adjusted the matching Mickey Mouse ears on his head while he smiled at him.

"we can back for ya birthday next year, deal?" Jo-Vaughn offered, raising one of his thin brows, as he lowered his right hand down to him since he was holding onto his left one and held out his pinky finger, making Kamari's smile widen while his dimples poked through his cheeks and he locked his pinky finger with his.

"deal!" Kamari smiled as he and Jo-Vaughn gave each other a high five and Kamari looked up at Bianca while he held his pinky finger up to her, "Mommy, you're coming too, right?"

"of course, 'Mari. i wouldn't miss it for anything in the world." Bianca smiled, lowering her left hand down to him since he was holding onto her right one, as she locked her pinky around his and Kamari giggled in delight, the two sharing a high five while they approached the white Rolls Royce that Francis was sitting in.

"what else you got planned, J?" Bianca asked, averting her attention to her baby father, as she fixed one of her braids underneath her Minnie Mouse ears and Jo-Vaughn looked over at her, causing the two to make eye contact.

"you like boats?" Jo-Vaughn questioned, a small smirk on his face, as Bianca raised her brows and let out a soft chuckle in shock, watching him open the car door for her while Kamari slipped inside the backseat.

"Joey, you didn't." Bianca spoke in disbelief, getting into the seat next to Kamari, as Jo-Vaughn chuckled at her reaction and closed her door, walking over to his side and opening his own.

"i definitely did," Jo-Vaughn smirked, getting inside the vehicle, as he closed the door behind him and gave Kamari his Donald Duck plush while he looked up at Francis in the driver seat, "yo, Francis, you remember that boat dock i was tellin' you about two days ago? i need you to take me there."

"right away, sir."

—

"Jo-Vaughn!" Bianca gasped, her jaw dropping at the sight of the boat, as she looked over at him and noticed a wide smile on his face, "this is... oh, my God, it's so pretty!"

"and before you ask me about the price, i ain't buy it. i rented it for the day," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, holding Kamari in his arms, as the driver of the boat appeared before them and Jo-Vaughn bent down to dap him up, "wassup, bro. Bianca, this my homie Alejandro, he gon' be drivin' the boat for us. Al, this is my baby mama Bianca and our son Kamari."

"ah, so you the girl i hear him talk about often. it's nice to meet you," Alejandro smiled, his Spanish accent heavily audible in his speech, as he shook the woman's hand and looked over at Kamari before holding his hand up to give a high five, "hey, little guy."

"hi," Kamari smiled softly, giving him a high five, as he heard the sound of a dog barking and his eyes lit up, "you have a dog?"

"a baby French Bulldog, to be exact. you wanna see her, buddy?" Alejandro asked, smiling, as Kamari nodded his head and looked at his parents for permission, the both of them nodding their heads while Jo-Vaughn lowered him down onto the boat.

"Mala don't bite, do she?" Jo-Vaughn asked, holding onto Bianca's hand, as Bianca cautiously stepped down from the dock and into the boat.

"nah, she's a sweetheart. i made sure to train her well so she wouldn't attack non-threatening people," Alejandro assured as Jo-Vaughn stepped down into the boat and the sound of dog claws hitting the ground got closer to them, making the four of them look back and see the 2-month-old gray French Bulldog approaching them, "Ms. Bianca and Kamari, this is Mala, my dog."

Kamari smiled at the sight of the dog and approached the animal as Mala sat in front of him and looked up at him, watching him lower his hand down to her head while he pet her. Mala leaned into Kamari's hand and Bianca smiled at the sight as she pulled out her phone and started recording, making sure to get the adorable sight on camera so she could send it to her best friend.

"if you'll excuse me, i'll go start the boat."

—

"so you talk about me, huh?" Bianca asked, smirking, as she looked over at Jo-Vaughn and Jo-Vaughn chuckled, looking over at her while his arm rested behind her.

"it's hard not to talk about a woman that's heaven-sent," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, running his tongue over his lips, as he looked down at the floor of the boat and watched Kamari pet Mala, who was half-asleep in his small lap, "i still talk to my friends and my mama about you."

"Mama Scott still asks about me?" Bianca asked, her eyes lighting up at the mention of her ex-mother-in-law, as Jo-Vaughn looked over at her and nodded his head, a small smile creeping onto his face once he noticed the sparkle in her eyes.

"mhm. she still calls you her daughter-in-law," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, a smile on his face, as Bianca cracked a smile and looked out at the view, "when i told her i wanted to get you back, she told me she believed in me because she knew how much i love you. she told me "a man who truly loves a woman will fight for her", and it made me realize how much i care about you because i haven't given up on us."

Bianca felt butterflies flutter in her stomach for a third time and she looked over at him as the two stared into one another's eyes, their pupils dilating in love while Bianca's smile slightly widened. though she was talking to another man and going on dates with him, nobody could ever compare to Jo-Vaughn, and she knew this. she couldn't love another man as much as she loved him, but she had no shame in trying to see if she could find love in another person.

the men she dated after Jo-Vaughn were sweethearts and so was the one she was talking to now, but with how much time and effort Jo-Vaughn put into pursuing her, it seemed as if trying to date other men was practically a waste of time.

without either of them realizing it, their faces had gotten closer to one another's, causing Bianca's breathing to slightly speed up, and before the two could share a kiss, Jo-Vaughn moved his face back from hers, a small smirk on his face while he watched her mindlessly squeeze her thighs together.

"this motherfucker here." Bianca thought, feeling a pulse between her legs, as she wiped her sweaty palms on her romper and watched the man look out at the view.

"the view's nice, ain't it?" Jo-Vaughn complimented, changing the topic, as Bianca slyly pulled out her phone and opened her camera.

"it really is," Bianca added, glancing up at the scenery, as she raised her phone, "pose for me real quick."

looking back at her, Jo-Vaughn noticed the phone in her hands and he chuckled as he posed, making Bianca smile while she took the picture and went to her camera roll to see how it turned out.

"ooh, who that is? he look like he the man." Jo-Vaughn joked, a playful grin on his face, as he looked at the photo and Bianca laughed while she shook her head at him.

"don't get cocky, Joey."

—

"can i have a dog like Mr. Al?" Kamari asked, looking up at his parents, as the adults chuckled and Jo-Vaughn unlocked the door to the hotel room, opening the door and letting Kamari and Bianca walk in first while he walked in behind him.

"if you're good, i might buy you one for Christmas," Jo-Vaughn chuckled, closing the door behind him, as he watched Kamari walk down the hallway and Bianca walk over to the couch, "don't neither of y'all get too comfortable 'cause we leavin' in a minute."

"leaving? where we goin'?" Bianca asked, her brows furrowing, as Kamari peeked around the corner and looked at his father in slight confusion mixed with excitement.

"we gotta' eat, right? so i'm takin' y'all to The Palm." Jo-Vaughn smiled as Bianca's face dropped and her brows raised while Kamari's little brows furrowed and he looked between his parents.

"what's The Palm?" Kamari asked, leaning against the wall, as Bianca looked over at him.

"it's a fancy restaurant, papa," Bianca answered as she turned her attention back to Jo-Vaughn, "and it's extremely expensive. you don't listen to me at all when i tell you not to spend so much money, do you?"

"it's for a good cause, ain't it?" Jo-Vaughn asked, raising his brows, as Bianca playfully rolled her eyes at him and Jo-Vaughn chuckled at her, "now you and K go get dressed."

"Joey, i didn't pack anything that would fit the atmosphere of a fancy restaurant—"

"who said anything about what you packed?" Jo-Vaughn asked, a small smirk on his face, as Bianca's brows furrowed in confusion and Jo-Vaughn's smirk widened at the sight, "go look on the bed in our bedroom, B."

Bianca stepped away from the couch and made her way down the short hallway with Kamari by her side and Jo-Vaughn walking behind her as she walked into the bedroom and saw three dry-cleaners bags on the bed, a shoebox on top of each bag and making a wide smile cross Bianca's face while she looked back at Jo-Vaughn.

"what's all this?" Bianca asked, smiling, as Kamari walked over to the bed and ran his tiny fingers on the small bag of clothing, lightly tilting his head at it to see if he could make out what was in the bag.

"i had Francis go pick up some clothes and shoes for me while we was on the boat. while you and K walked down the dock, i was talking to him about restaurants i could take y'all to and he told me about The Palm. as you could tell by the three bags and boxes, i ain't pack no appropriate clothes for a fancy restaurant either," Jo-Vaughn explained, chuckling, as Bianca approached the bed and her eyes lit up once she realized the bag in the middle had a dress in it, "the first one's mine, the second one's yours, and the third one's KJ's."

"now, for the second time, get dressed." Jo-Vaughn playfully smirked, raising his brow, as Bianca and Kamari looked at each other before looking over at Jo-Vaughn.

"yes, sir!"

—

"...it takes time to look this good and you rushin' me?" Bianca exclaimed from the bathroom, adjusting her ponytail, as she pushed up her breasts in her dress and made sure her areolas and nipples were covered and not slipping out, hearing footsteps approach the bathroom door and immediately recognizing whose they were.

though Bianca was slightly taken aback by Jo-Vaughn remembering what size she wore in clothes and heels, she couldn't lie and say that he didn't have good taste. he knew what looked good on her, and it was evident due to the dress he had Francis purchase.

"girl, if you don't—" Jo-Vaughn cut himself off once he saw her and a smile crept onto his face as he analyzed her from head to toe and licked his lips at the sight of her, "i knew you'd look good in that dress."

"i'm surprised you still remember what size i wear." Bianca chuckled, adjusting the silver 'B' necklace around her neck, as she picked up her silver hoops and put them in her ears, her eyes landing on Jo-Vaughn through the mirror while she slightly smirked at seeing him be memorized by her appearance.

"i remember everything about you, B." Jo-Vaughn admitted, admiration shining in his tone, as Bianca's heart fluttered from his words and she looked away from his reflection in the mirror, looking back at herself and watching a big grin spread across her face.

"you do?" Bianca asked, grinning, as Jo-Vaughn looked at her through the mirror and nodded his head, "so, you remember how i reacted when you told me that "Love Is Only a Feeling" was about me?"

"man," Jo-Vaughn laughed, shaking his head, as Bianca laughed and turned to face him, "you cried like a baby when i sang that shit to you. i ain't know whether to keep singin' or hold you."

"and you did both. i still remember that moment," Bianca smiled, chuckling, as Jo-Vaughn smiled at her and Bianca soon started blushing, making her break their eye contact while she turned off the bathroom and grabbed Jo-Vaughn's hand, "now c'mon and let's go eat. i know K's probably hungry as hell sitting in the living room in his lil' tuxedo."

—

"you put 'Mari to sleep?" Bianca asked, walking out of the bathroom, as Jo-Vaughn stood by his side of the bed and put his phone on the charger, laying it on the bedside table while he looked up at her.

"yeah, i just laid him down. after he went to sleep, i took a shower in the other bathroom so i wouldn't bother you," Jo-Vaughn explained as his eyes scanned her attire before locking on her oversized shirt, "you still sleep in my shirts?"

"i never stopped. you left some of your shirts at my house, so i kept wearing 'em." Bianca chuckled, earning a smile from Jo-Vaughn, as she walked over to her side of the bed and grabbed her phone changer from her bedside table, plugging her phone up and sitting it down.

though Bianca scolded Jo-Vaughn about how much money he's spent, dinner was probably her favorite part of their eventful day. the family of three conversed, ate, and still managed to have smiles on their faces. after they ate, Kamari had gotten sleepy, and he ended up falling asleep in the car on the way back to the hotel, which resulted in Jo-Vaughn carrying him up to the room and giving him a bath before putting him to bed.

Bianca's bath had left her relaxed and refreshed, and all she could think about was crawling into bed and heading straight to sleep, but with Jo-Vaughn around, she knew it wouldn't be that easy.

"i remember one time i came home from tour and saw you wrapped up in one of my hoodies." Jo-Vaughn chuckled, smiling, as Bianca laughed and walked over to the vanity near Jo-Vaughn's side of the room, sitting down on the cushioned chair in front of the mirror while she grabbed her head scarf.

"i was lonely and it smelled like you, okay? don't bully me for that." Bianca laughed, wrapping her scarf around her scalp, as Jo-Vaughn chuckled and walked towards the end of the bed, sitting down on it while he looked at her with love in his eyes.

"i miss you, girl." Jo-Vaughn spoke with an unintelligible tone in his voice, a small smile on resting his face, as Bianca looked at him through the mirror she was sitting in front of and ran her fingers through her braids.

"how can you miss me when i'm right here?—"

"nah, B, i'm talking 'bout when we was together. i miss us. i miss how shit used to be. i know we ended on good terms, but sometimes i can't help but to think about what would've happened to us if we didn't grow apart. you would've probably been my wife by now," Jo-Vaughn admitted as Bianca's eyes broke his eye contact and looked down at her lap, "i miss hearin' you call me all them cute nicknames. i miss kissin' you, holdin' you, spendin' time with you... i miss being with you, B. not being with you feels like a part of me is gone and there's a void in my heart. you're the missin' piece of my puzzle piece, girl. without you, i'll always remain incomplete."

"Jo-Vaughn..." Bianca spoke softly, searching for words to form a proper response, as she looked up at him through her mirror for the second time, letting her eyes tell the story her mouth couldn't say.

"i know you miss me too, B. you been frontin' for too long and i can see through all'at shit," Jo-Vaughn added, standing up from the bed, as he walked closer to Bianca and stood beside her, "but there's one thing standin' in my way of gettin' to you, and i know you know what it is."

Bianca parted her lips to speak but no words exited her mouth as she looked up at Jo-Vaughn, confusion filling her mind before it abruptly clicked that he was talking about Malcolm. Bianca's mouth shut at the realization and she swallowed the lump growing in her throat as she watched Jo-Vaughn's demeanor change and she wiped her now sweaty palms on her thighs.

"h...how do you know about him?" Bianca asked, her voice as low as a whisper, as Jo-Vaughn chuckled and cupped her face in his hand, rubbing her cheek with his thumb while he leaned down to her.

"you think Kamari not gon' tell me 'bout the nigga you been bringin' around him?" Jo-Vaughn questioned, raising a brow, as goosebumps spread across Bianca's body and her throat became dry, "you forgot that you mines, mama? hm? or do i gotta' remind you?"

Bianca gently gripped her knees to keep herself poised and her breathing turned irregular as she looked up at her baby father and swallowed the second lump growing in her throat before parting her lips to speak, "...remind me."

—

Bianca's eyes rolled back as the bed rocked underneath her, a pillow wedged between the headboard and the wall to keep from making too much noise. Jo-Vaughn's hand rested on her mouth to silence her loud noises and the arch in her back deepened at feeling him roughly smack her ass, making her whimper in his palm while he grabbed a handful of her braids and pulled her back to his chest.

"you been frontin' all day, baby. now look at you. being a good girl and takin' this dick how you 'posed to," Jo-Vaughn cooed, a small smirk on his face, as he let go of her hair and rested his hand on one of her breasts, teasing and tugging at her nipple while he kissed her earlobe, "you missed me, pretty?"

"y-yes! oh, God, baby, don't stop!" Bianca whimpered against his palm, gently wrapping her hand around his wrist, as she rested her other hand on top of the one on her breast and her brows furrowed while her nipples hardened against Jo-Vaughn's touch.

who would've known that this would've been the end result of their first day on their family trip? Jo-Vaughn might've known and Nia knew off the bat, but Bianca? poor Bianca was clueless about what was to come later on.

"youn' know how bad i been missin' you, B. how much i craved havin' you like this again. i missed hearin' you call out for me and moan my name while i gave you this dick like my life depended on it. i missed feelin' you hold on to me as tight as you could because i was overstimulatin' you and you couldn't take it. i missed watchin' those tears roll down your face as i hit that spot," Jo-Vaughn spoke explicitly in her ear, kissing her earlobe, as he sneakily slid deeper and Bianca let out a squeal against his hand, "hearin' you say my name gives me the best ego boost of my fuckin' life, mama. the way you moan it, whimper it, whine it, cry it out, drag it out... the way it rolls off your tongue could make a nigga buss right then and there."

"Jo-Vaughnnnn..." Bianca whined, her hips slightly bucking at feeling him thrust from a different angle, as she gently squeezed his wrist, "you m-make me feel so g-good, Daddy..."

"just like that, baby. say my name just like that. you look so pretty when you say that shit," Jo-Vaughn groaned in her ear, lightly tugging at her earlobe with his teeth, as the speed of Jo-Vaughn's strokes sped up and Bianca's eyes rolled back for a second time, "you got me hooked on you, girl. and you think i'm gon' let another nigga experience this? you got me fucked up, B."

"can't no other nigga make you feel the way i make you feel, and you know that. so for you to prance around with all these niggas on ya arm like they could even top me is some fuckin' bullshit, yo," Jo-Vaughn growled, removing his hand from her mouth, as he wrapped his hand around her neck and roughly squeezed the sides of it, "they can't make you cum like i can, make you moan like i can, make you run from the dick like i can, make you squirm like i can, make you cream like i can... shit, them niggas can't even eat this pussy like i can, baby. can't none of these muh'fuckas' compare to me, and you know that, shorty."

"you let them niggas in my pussy? huh?" Jo-Vaughn asked, his tone aggressive, as he turned her head towards him, "and look at me when i'm fuckin' talkin' to you, shorty. show me those pretty brown eyes."

"n-no, Daddy, i swearrrr! i-i swear, i didn't give 'em yo' pussy," Bianca whimpered, her submissive gaze locking with his dominant one, as she bit down on her bottom lip to suppress her moans and she felt herself become wetter from his possessiveness, making a feeble whimper come from her lips while her eyes fluttered a bit, "i-i was keepin' it t-tight for you, baby..."

"aw, you kept it tight for me, princess?" Jo-Vaughn smiled sadistically, shoving his inches deeper inside of her walls, as Bianca's jaw dropped and no sound exited her mouth while she vigorously nodded her head in response, "you ain't let ya old niggas hit? not even ole' dude you with now? — and you know exactly who i'm talkin' 'bout, so don't play crazy. i'm glad he ain't get to experience it... shit, he wouldn't be able to handle all this good ass pussy even if you offered it to him."

"well guess what, B? i'm comin' back for good, so let that nigga know all this shit mine," Jo-Vaughn growled, smacking her ass and leaving a red handprint behind, as Bianca felt his tip aggressively smash into her g-spot and she gasped, her grip suddenly tightening on him while her brows furrowed, "make any type of loud ass noise and i promise you i'll leave you here wet and horny without a single orgasm."

Bianca quickly covered her mouth and her eyes rolled back as her inner thighs began tingling, pleasure coursing through her veins while she felt herself slowly being pushed into overstimulation. tears pricked at her eyes and muffled moans and cries fell from her covered mouth as her headscarf slipped off her head and onto the bed, making her quickly grab it and toss it on the floor so it wouldn't be covered in her juices.

"babyyyy," Bianca whined, her brows furrowing, as she rested her hand on Jo-Vaughn's toned lower abdomen and attempted to push him away, "i-i can't—"

"mm-mm, move yo' hand, baby. you know you can handle this dick, c'mon now. look at how good you creamin' around it, princess, and you tellin' me you can't take it?" Jo-Vaughn questioned, a smirk on his face, as he raised his brow at the woman and watched her slowly retreat her hand from his stomach, making his smirk widen while he watched her body temple, "there you go, mama, look at you. takin' this dick like a big girl. i knew you could do it, you takin' all of it so good."

"it's s-so muchhh," Bianca cried, tears slipping down her cheeks, as a sadistic smile found its way onto Jo-Vaughn's face for a second time and he lightly tilted his head at her, "y-you hittin' my spot, Daddyyy..."

"i wish you could see how pretty you look right now. tears rollin' down ya face, hand coverin' ya mouth, eyes unfocusin' and rollin' back... you look so fuckin' good with that fucked-out look on ya face, mama," Jo-Vaughn cooed, biting down on his bottom lip, as Bianca's legs began to tremble and her cream and wetness began coating her inner thighs due to how rapidly it was oozing out of her, "i'm the luckiest muh'fucka' ever, mama. as long as i got you, i'll be the happiest nigga on the plant. this fame and fortune don't mean shit to me if i ain't got you to share it with. you're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Bianca. and i'll be damned if i gotta' stand by and watch another nigga experience the way you make me feel. i love you too much to let that shit just ride past me."

"i-i love you so much more, Jo-Vaughn," Bianca moaned, both of her hands now covering her mouth due to how much intense pleasure was hitting her at once, as her eyes rolled back for the millionth time and she tossed her head back onto Jo-Vaughn's broad shoulder, "o-oh, my God, i'm 'bout to cum!"

"tell me you mines and i'll let you cum. c'mon, let me hear those words leave those pretty lips," Jo-Vaughn cooed, kissing up and down her neck, as Bianca roughly bit down on her lip to suppress the loud moan that wanted to exit her mouth and her grip tightened on her face, "if i don't hear you say it, don't even think about bussin', pretty."

"i'm yours! yours, yours, yourssss! please, please, please let me cum! i can't hold it anymore!" Bianca cried loudly, her loudness being muffled by her hands, as tears streamed down her face at a quicker rate and she sobbed into her hands, her orgasm practically screaming to be released.

"cum for me, princess. let it alll out on yo' dick. gimme all that good shit." Jo-Vaughn's words made Bianca's knees buckle, and she leaned onto him for support as sounds of her gushiness sounded out into the bedroom and her jaw dropped, her eyes rolling back and her back arching deeply while her climax hit her like a freight train. a squeal fell from her lips as she came, her walls clenching and unclenching around Jo-Vaughn's phallus and earning groans from him as it did so.

her body tensed up and her bottom lip retreated between her teeth as she bit down on it so hard that it nearly bled, her chest heaving up and down at an irregular pace while Jo-Vaughn's deep strokes began slowing down. he placed kisses on her neck, ear, and the side of her face as he stroked her through her orgasm, his grip loosening on her neck while he caressed her breasts. removing her hands from her mouth, Bianca let out a soft and heavy sigh and her body relaxed as her vision corrected itself while she stared at the ceiling, letting everything that happened marinate in her mind while she breathed in through her nose and out through her parted lips.

"you know i love you, don't you?" Jo-Vaughn mumbled against her neck, making Bianca smile, as Bianca chuckled and ran her tongue over her lips, letting go of his wrist and wrapping her arm around his neck while she rubbed the nape of his neck.

"I know, baby, I know. I love you too."

[phoenixfire-thewizardgoddess]

Okay but imagine mimzy joining the hotel as a resident.

Not because she believes in redemption, but a complex interplay between, needing to hide out from a high tier person she pissed off, knowing Al is too annoyed with her to just handle it like ususal after last time, and knowing that goody two-shoes Princess Charlie won't throw her out... so therefore Al won't either.

Husk would be furious, and one can only imagine how Al would feel.

I don't think he owns her soul, but we don't have a lot of information on that front. So he can't order her to leave... but if he did, and Charlie found out, it would jeopardise his standing at the hotel. Which had been shaky since the rebuilding, what with his injury limiting his already curtailed powers.

Charlie tries to be So Kind and Helpful and engage Mimzy in redemption activities. And maybe she does one, but Mimzy has Loud OpinionsTM the whole time which is fine. Charlie is counting to ten in her head. Because we don't yell at guests! :)

Vaggie had gone to Alastor after day two to tell him to covertly get her out of the hotel.

He replies, actually looking somewhat chagrined behind that smile, that he would if he could. But they both know Charlotte would be upset and work out why she'd gone... even if she was infuriating.

Angel was originally loving it. Mimzy does NOT know when to shut the fuck up about secrets she knows. And normally he likes that kind of person, it used to help him keep tabs on all sorts of people for Val before he was reduced to just an expensive hole on screen... and boy, wasn't that a depressing line of thought!

But after a bit, you get the feeling that harmless fun stories start to tip into deeply personal shit no one (especially not current or former overlords who had a lot of enemies that might take advantage of drunken story time to find a good place to stab the men in the back) deserved to have shared without their consent.

He knew more about Husk, and Alastor, and even that Rosie lady, than he could ever have dreamed... and it frightened him. Val could theoretically ask the right questions at the studio... and then everything would be forced out.

Angel had noted the tension in his hunky bartender and cervine hotelier recently, this broad was like a haemorrhaging wound full of secrets. She didn't care that her actions hurt people, or put targets on the backs of people she considered friends... the most dangerous kind of person. It was all justified in her head, because it turned out okay (for her) in the end.

He and Cherri had known a few, but none had her level of skill. So Angel knew how to handle a bird like her, just get her a bit tipsy and head her off to a more secluded table so her stories were just for him and sometimes Niffty. Not the other residents. At least two of which he assumed were under Vox... specially the slimy guy.

Sure, it's fun to know about the first time Mimzy met Alastor and how they'd dismembered a guy for aggressively flirting with both of them. Angel can admit he's still human enough somewhere in this body to lose it laughing each time Mimzy recalled how it'd taken Al three days to work out he had also been a target of affections. He'd thought the man was just naturally vulgar and handsy...

Because yeah, that tracked.

And perhaps the overlord wouldn't kill him for knowing that, 'cause at least it seemed Husk and Al were aware of his efforts to manage Mimzy and her MouthTM. Keep her from the others and do damage control when he wasn't at the studio. And sure, she also had interesting stories of her days as a sex worker, and an owner of her own brothel-slash dance club... turns out she had something similar down here, and no one disrespected her staff.

Watching something shorter than Lucifer manifest a bazooka from between those bazongas, especially a weapon longer than she was tall, had been quite An Experience. She thought his ability to manifest extra tommy-gun wielding arms was just as neat, so there was some genuine bonding there, to a degree.

But it was the other stuff, like... like how he now had to live with the knowledge that Husk had been so depressed he'd drunk himself into a stupour for the last years of his life. Or that Alastor had been so little when his mother was murdered, and then his father went 'missing' in a way that made Mimzy grin darkly and lick her teeth. No doubting where she got the cannibal sheen from.

Or that Husk's power had been torn down through outside influences, and left him... this. Or that Mimzy had managed to get both the men to play dress up for her dancers on at least one drunken occasion. And like, yeah, filing that away for later, but also it was the sorta thing a friend holds onto for their own memories.

He knew Husk purred when he was happy, and Alastor had a tail he hid because it was too cute for his image. Mimzy didn't skimp on details about when she'd spent time with the pair of them... or when they'd all done gods know what in a bloodsoaked cabin in a bayou somewhere when bloodlust overcame normal barriers and curiosity reigned. It was sorta hard to imagine... but Angel couldn't help but worry about how he'd feel if Cherri was out there spouting off about them experimenting to just anyone.

Like, Angel could do ladies, for the screen and double-pay when Val was pushing for more money. Had to learn that somewhere, right? Cherri was damn good at it, and she had no expectations, just laughed and made it easy for 'em both. Angel was good with body language and all, could usually work out what made people tick and that's why he was Good at what he did. But having a verbal guide, and someone who wouldn't judge if you mucked up, helped no end.

Val had at least been pleased when the films came out and got enough notoriety with a new demographic Angel hadn't been able to touch yet (heh). Not enough to keep forcing him to do that ongoing, but enough that if they wanted a curveball he'd be the pizza delivery guy getitng an enthusiastic tip from a hot straight couple on occasion to bounce the ratings.

Not to mention, some of his coworkers didn't fall under the female category, but had different requirements to usual, and now he knew how to make that work real well. So it'd worked out okay in the end. Those films were far more fun to make as well, now he didn't feel like he was fumbling. But the point was... that was his and Cherri's business.

And, Angel did feel like some of what Mimzy said shouldn't be aired. He got the whole... 'ace of some kind', vibe from Al, and Mimzy often liked to joke about teaching him things. That's not cool to go sharing around... Everyone starts from 0, you know?

Some people stay there their whole existences, and that was fine with Angel too. Same way he wasn't much for rockclimbing, and someone out there would rather die than go a day without it... to each their own. Good for them.

S'why he often diverted guests who were flirting with the overlord, the few brave enough that is, before the deer worked out what they were doing and ate them in the least sexy way possible. Although, based on that last scented-candle-dolphin looking sinner, Angel would bet twenty bucks they were into that shit and were hoping to provoke some kinda vore experience...

Either way, Mimzy was a wild fuckin' ride of a woman. She often switched between tales of insane hijinks (hiding bodies, stealing cars, fucking with the racist cops and causing general mayhem) to hard topics from life like struggling to make rent, her dancers coming home bruised and sobbing, the way their clients were mysteriously found devoured by alligators who often came when called by name but the pigs don't need t'know that you got me?

That Alastor had at least two pet alligators as a child who helped immensely with clean up and their names were hard to pronounce but the fuckers didn't like Mimzy much unless she approached meat-first. That line made Angel choke on his drink and she'd rolled her liquid black eyes fondly. Stating that she's still not sure why they hated her on sight but she bit one once when it smacked her with its tail... so perhaps that had something to do with it.

Before jerking the conversation to increasingly-wild tales of her nights dancing with first Al and then Husk in speakeasies when life was easy. Dropping into maudlin territory when she mentioned the confusion of her boys being sent off for the damned war so young and then coming back slightly different. Still fucked up like all of 'em... but changed. They told her some, but not everything, and suppressed whatever stressed them out at night with alcohol and chaos.

Growing nostalgic at her memories of Al's ma, and how she would be so kind to even weird white girls who pestered her son endlessly, despite the social stigma of the time. Mentioning that Ma used to make the nicest food, and always had something available at all time of day for the hungry child or jumpscare of a husband, who could arrive at any time. Mimzy actually whispered that she stopped eating there after a bit, unless she brought something to share, when she realised that they didn't have much and were including her n their planned meals.

Small ttowns, small incomes. And anyone who dared to be less than exemplary members of town, much less non-white, tended to get less than the minimum wage... because who was going to force the hands of employers to be fair? Who cared? Nobody, really.

Angel was particularly enthralled by the tales of frenetic murder. The way Mimzy spoke about helping Al hide the hacked apart body of his father, as the named allgators fought over the severed slop like he'd dumped an ocean of treats out for them.

Mentioning the way she learned to reset bones and bind wounds so well, 'cause of the brute... the time he'd even swung at her because as a white man, he felt he could even discipline another person's child. It wasn't unacceptable in those days, of course but...

Then dancing off into a tale of when she was fucking two guys in their crappy creaking car to distract from the fact Husk was rifling through their office files for dirt to leak to the local newspapers about the corrupt politician they served. As Al arranged for at least one of the men to end up in the freezer after she was done; they cost of meat was high, these days, and he'd roughed up Birdie one of the smaller dancers. He'd tried to do worse but Husk'd ejected the man out a window. Mimzy had gone to him and his pal under the guise of 'making amends' as if they'd been in the wrong. hah, the fools.

Least the pal was good with his tongue... she'd waggled her eyebrows at Angel, and threw a pointed wink at Husk who ignored her like his life depended on it. It was then Mimzy dropped the bombshell that while she'd suggested the plan of course, Husk or Al could've managed either role if they'd needed to. (And that little statement made Angel's brain buffer for a good few minutes, and the world went fuzzy as he waited for blood to return to the brain).

On some evenings, she fell into conversation about the mundanity of causing social chaos by shopping together or being seen hanging out with one another in bars, on what looks like dates, to pushing boundaries at the local parks and 'desecrating' whites only fountains... and then the full-blown argument the trio had had after spending ten minutes unsuccessfully trying to fold a fitted sheet whilst half-blitzed on ether. None of them had realised that the bottle had fallen on the floor and was pooling in the small room, until later on. It had made things interesting at least.

They'd stored that little item more securely in future.

To her memories of the prim way that Al learned to talk in french-creole from his Ma, and the loss (read 5 stages of grief) they experienced when he dropped his natural accent for the radio. That damned world english he needed to affect to be considered a faceless white radio host... because if someone found out the truth, then they would've gone a'lynching.

The stark sides of the times, black and white, and anyone or anything in the middle was somehow both more human than one side and less than the other. And how she was considered tainted for impinging on her own 'pure' heritage for being seen with first a half-breed and then a black man. The scandal of it still tickled her.

"Oh, sure," Mimzy would joke aloud flapping a hand nonchalantly. "It was the fact I had non-white 'friends' that soiled me... not the fact I was a hooker and a floozy, not the brothel or the dance clubs, not the occasional girlfriend I ruined for anyone afterwards cause I can lick the paint off a trailer hitch... not the fact I publically showed my claim on those boys so deeply anyone would be terrified to try flirting with 'em. And that's just the stuff people saw!"

She'd laugh, raucously and slurred from drink, hinting at the murder, mayhem and debauchery happening in the shadows of their day to day. How they would lure in a target with Mimzy or one of her dancers, or even Husk or Al depending on the preference, and get them alone... before taking them somewhere secluded.

Depending on the nature of their crimes, sometimes the targets would be left to wander lost until they died of exposure, othertimes they'd be mercilessly hunted through the bayou by primarily Al and sometimes the other two. Sometimes they'd be alive for days in the hidden shack. Sometimes... rarely, someone who deserved a pound of flesh would be brought with them for a quiet vengeance.

An intriguingly terribly kept secret, all the dancers knew, and they kept quiet. Mimzy sometimes murmured that she wasn't sure if Al would have even hurt them if they told... they were a small community, after all. And he, and husk and mimzy kept 'em as safe as they could for the time, the place and the nature of the work.

Angel finds himself wishing that he'd had that level of chaotic care in his life, because he might've not died to a random overdose on a grungy club's bathroom floor. Stomach and guts filled with the loads of faceless people who only saw him as a pretty face and a warm hole, not caring as he twitched his last. What if he'd been with people who would have seen him as Anthony? Who would've at least tried to get him help or held him softly when he died? Fuck, the morose thoughts that shit conjured were devastating.

He'd been a toy in life, and now in death Valentino had the rights to him. Husk'd torn down his persona so devastatingly and made him feel Seen in a terrifying way... and Al had turned down his sexual favours that first day (and ever since though those aren't really serious)... there was something about them that made him feel weirdly safe.

They would kill him sure,if he pushed them or betrayed them or put everyone in danger, but he never got the vibe that either male sinner would hurt him like Val. And THAT train of thought always fucked with his head severely... because these were/are Overlords. Worst of the crop and all.

But in another life, he could've had the security of one of Mimzy's dancers. Left him feeling all kinds'a ways.

The way she talked about it was nostalgic and fun. If insane. Couldn't have been weirder than being a closeted mafioso in the Familia, back in the day.

Alastor was the ultimate serial killer, finishing off victims and dissecting them as he would. But Mimzy recalled the joys of getting her hand in there and Husk always seemed to have a proud gleam in his eye as they spoke about this sort of stuff.

Angel admitted that he'd been more than a little fascinated, and maybe not all that altruistic when it came to listening in to Mimz and her chatter on occasion.

He knew Vaggie sometimes listened in, but grew disgusted quickly, and Charlie had eavesdropped on more than one occasion before getting overwhelmed - disgust, sorrow, the sudden realisation that none of her sinners had a singlular event of Bad Choices in life but more like a collective nightmare of trauma, pain, social pressure and decisions that brought them to Hell. That perhaps she wasn't so prepared to manage that with group hug therapy and Daily Affirmations as she thought.

Eh, she's got some backing from the medical sin, Sloth was it? Maybe they could get an actual psych up in here or something. Either way.

The real issue was stopping Lucifer from listening in to too much. That'd be like handing a molotov to an angry teen, because he and Al still hadn't really gotten over day one's big bitchfit of the musical variety. Funny as hell, but the sniping was getting more personal from Lucifer's end with just the right level of pain to actually hurt the deer.

Was the king a bit of a hot mess with mental health issues out the wazoo? Sure. Maybe he needed to hear that in a kinder way though. Not reminded of his not-great parenting by a smart-mouthed red twink with a god complex who seemed to be prodding for reasons Angel couldn't quite discern.

But Lucifer had started sniping back using some truly devastating tidbits from Mimzy's stories, and publically too. Which had been the main reason that the side wall had been replaced a total of eighteen times this month alone (not counting one incident of Cherri Bomb drunkenly panicking that the front door had been removed and they were trapped in the hotel, but she'd been fully zooted on some new stuff at the time and, well, her goal had been to save them, so...)

Angel had mentioned to Charlie that Luficer was being a bit of a dick, and gave examples that sincerely distressed her to hear, and she'd stepped in. The barbs had at least pulled back to general tanting, which saved the hotel and staff's sanity to some degree.

One just didn't live long if they made Yo Mamma jokes at the Radio Demon. Just putting it out there for future reference.

There was some truly dark shit in these stories, too. The times that Al, husk and Mimzy had been too late to get to one of the dancers... and all they could do was ensure the perpetrator was annhilated. The police had little care for some dead whore... much less the ones that might've gone spreading tales about the corrupt officer's own extra-marital affairs with them. Good riddance and all.

Sometimes the dancer had been working off-the-books, but often they thought they'd found The One for them, and it was just a cruel little lie boxed up in pretty wrapping paper. Either they wanted another worker for themselves, or someone who'd be grateful enough for the 'rescue' to capitulate to any depraved want from their 'saviour', whatever, whenever and wherever. Angel could sure fuckin' sympathise on that one.

There were times a target nearly got too far with Mimzy, hells even Al and Husk had had to play defense on a few occasions, when the others didn't arrive fast enough and someone decided Wait meant Make Me. Those... those felt too close to home too.

Husk refused to meet his eyes at those times; at first Angel thought it was outta shame, but after a coded not-talking-about-it conversation, it was more like... that Husk felt bad that he'd at lest known help was coming. But Angel never had that option with his fucking contract.

He tried to reassure Angel that there would be a way, but always fell silent.

There were takes of broken bones, black eyes, stab wounds and hooking bullets out by candlelight as the others pinned them down. It was... chaotic. Angel could feel himself there in those tales, he'd had similar experiences. The way your hands trembled as they pulled stitches through the flesh of someone you knew and cared for; hurrting them to help as they choked back a scream from the pressure.

Sitting beside someone in a strangling darkness, afraid that their stillness was more than just being knocked out; roving their chest with your eyes to check for breath, and sometimes reassuring yourself by searching for a pulse. It was... familiar. Or when it was your turn and you begged them to stop even just to say it, as someone pulled the blade out from you, hands roughly holding you down as they used burning antiseptic to try and keep you alive...

Those were the memories that fell deep into your brain and hopefully stayed there unless triggered. Memories of pain fade, of course, but sometimes things brought that mess back up. Like Mimzy's words. Husk hadn't needed to ask, just poured him a drink that he kept outta Vaggie's line of sight as he served it to Angel. They didn't make eye contact.

She'd flipped the conversation back to soemthing light-hearted, like the day a circus had come through their middle of nowhere hometown and that'd been a hoot. First time they'd seen any animals like elephants or tigers outside of posters or books, the few that had photos at least. Nearest zoo was in the larger city hours away... and who had the cash for that?

Mimzy spoke about the thngs they'd wanted to do, too. If there'd been time. Like seeing the beach... it'd always sounded so exciting in the books, and even a few of the films that had come out they could afford to see. The bayou was great and all, but... endless salty water and sunshine? It sounded like something from a fantasy.

They were going to go one day. That'd been the plan. When things were more stable... she'd drifted out of that one quietly, then flipped to an innuendo so crude Charlie (who was NOT eavesdropping) bit her fork too hard and had to spit the severed metal out.

There was a tale or two Mimzy came at a few times, but never quite finished. The first one was seemingly about finding out Al had died, and what'd happened... that was the first time Angel thought he saw the real Magnolia behind the Mimzy, the way her hands shook and that glass-sharp voice quivered... not describing exactly what she'd seen, like the words caught in her throat. But... enough to say it hadn't been clean.

The regret sat in her throat. Heavy and choking.

They'd buried what they could find, but... well. There wasn't much.

Husk and her, they'd fallen apart, then. Without the buffer of both being ticked off at Al, and equally endeared by his insane personality, they just clashed. The third voice that would redirect and frustrate and cajole and endear was gone...

Husk drifted away and found some woman in a few towns over. She thought they were happy or so Mimzy assumed 'cause there was 'at least a sprog or maybe two' as she put it. But that didn't last. And then he was dead too. She'd been talking herself into going to go drag his miserable drunken ass out of his house for months now and finally got around to mustering the nerve... only to find him Gone. That'd been a nightmare unto itself, she'd been furious with the fool for not daring to wait til tomorrow when she'd at least have closure.

And then... life continued.

The police started to come down harder on her dance studio, her brothel as people started to rile up about anti-segregation and doubled down on that bullshit all american way - the white way of living and all that bullhockey. She'd ended up alone, in the end... half her dancers jailed for indecency or other don't-tell-my-wife-or-ill-kill-you type charges, some took up with clients and their false honeyed words, and she couldn't do a thing to save them...

All those lives. The dancers, their kids, the whole system died... because the world wasn't ready for something like them. Not now. Not yet. And it turned everything sour... until the day she died. Too young for some; but much too long from her perspective, after everything.

All that was left was having chaotic fun until the ride stopped. Stealing cars, robbing the rich blind, fucking with people left and right, to feel something and to sow chaos in her wake.

They'd never forget Mimzy. And when someone recalled her, they'd never forget Al or Husk or her dancers, that was tied into the legacy after all...

At least they overturned prohibition before they ventilated her for pissing off some mobster family. She'd laugh about that, then skirt away to a funnier story or topic.

She was like a gobstopper, with things buried underneath that hard shell. Maybe one of those scary ones from Gluttony that started to reform from the core out if you left it alone for a few hours - stomach acid neutralised this, thankfully, cause Angel didn't mind using Beads on occasion but that sounded like laying an egg and he... wasn't usually up for oviposition films. They had other sinner stars for that.

Mimzy would swing into a non-sequiter so fast it felt like whiplash. Stories about her boys getting so plastered that she had to carry and/or drag them back to the backrooms of their club, and how the pair were nightmares when hungover. In different ways.

Alastor apparently decided that if he was suffering, then everyone should be, so he was always excruciatingly cheerful and loud and bright and Husk'd threatened to shoot him more than once. To which Alastor would jokingly tap his forehead and say 'I think a ventilation hole might let the demons in here out, so go ahead!' which... hadn't been funny no more, looking back on it, given how he died.

And Husk'd be this lump of misery that had to be dragged to the kitchen for greasy food to try and return himself to himself. Mimzy usually just felt furious at every miniscule sound until the headache died down with another glass of something strong.

And the stories of how life just kinda sucked back then. Pooling cash to work out groceries because between everyone, they could afford to feed them all til the next week's paychecks came through, but the dancers' wages came first, then rent and studio upkeep and attire. Drink prices could be negotiated for the right entertainment at the local speakeasy, you play an instrument and sing for a few hours, you can drink on the house to certain exceptions and all.

Then there was the... the not-talked about part. The racism, the bigotry, the intolerance of anything that wasn't white guy and white gal popping out babies (but even the idea of pregnancy was taboo for some weird ass reason and those poor birds back then ended up wearing big boxy dresses to pretend it weren't happening). Mimzy was always chuffed about the irony of the world they lived in back then.

Not to mention the whole cornflakes business, she nearly fell off her chair recalling that one. Husk'd snorted, and Angel had had a brief moment of heart-eyed haze over that...

"The what?" he'd eventually asked, slightly confused.

"Oh ya so precious, not knowin' but back in the day people got real fuckin' weird about fuckin', right? Don't need to tell you that, do I? But then you was a city boy, it was worse in the smaller places where people were so high strung it was a wonder not many went mad. But anyways, the whole sex for marriage thing was out there, and there was also the silly stipulation that even then having a good time or even a weird but okay fumble with your mr or mrs should be done only for making kids right? The priests championing that bullshit often ended up being secretly guilty of affairs or kid fiddlin' so we know why they got so heated about it." Mimzy explained, her words like an oncoming locomotive that couldn't be dodged now he'd switched the tracks.

"So's you see... even married you were supposed to control yaself. The time for fourteen kid families was over cause people weren't dying as babies and all no more, and even the post war population efforts were petering out... so they came up with the idea that bland foods equals bland thoughts. And somehow a guy made a cereal out of called cornflakes, and it became this big thing, you see, to be seen eating it. You young'uns call it virtue signalling." she snorts. "It was kind of like saying 'I could fuck but I ain't gonna 'cause I can control myself' and expecting applause. You know, I used to offer it to my dancers 'cause it was a quick meal you could buy cheap enough, and was pretty good with some milk and sugar or fruits. They loved the irony of it."

"Okay, yeah, that's funny... people were weird as shit back then. Did you know Pentious told me the Victorians, back when his ancient ass was alive, were super into sex and prudishness all at once? Was a real thing to get ya nipples pierced in those times... and seeing an ankle could give a man a life-threatening hard-on." Angel offers back, thinking fondly on the odd rants the inventor had gone on when they'd been drunk together... before the battle. Missed the snake nowadays. And not just 'cause he and Cherri had taken the guy's twin dongs for a test ride and wanted another ticket, neither.

"Right? Humans are humans all the way through. The more they push back on a topic, and make a fuss, the more I can see right through 'em. Cept the... whatchacall'ems, aces... and the archery ones... had a few dancers like that come through. Just legit didn't have interest, but didn't mind the activities involved... had some aros who were natural seductive types and could spin a romantic fantasy like you wouldn't believe. Or maybe you would, I've seen ya work, Angel. Always got top dollar for the illusion of intimacy. The rest of us, though, we're just animals that learned how to make taxes a thing and nothing got better from there." she shrugs.

Husk uncharacteristically had another tray of drinks delivered to them by Niffty. Which sparked a story about her meeting Niffty in life. It'd been brief, that first time, she was only very young... but her father had clearly been a piece of work.

Her mother didn't seem the kind of woman who'd been in the USA of her entire own volition, or perhaps the isolation of being the only person of asian descent in a world of scornful white faces was the issue, but she seemed nervous constantly. They'd seen the family come into town that first time., and the gossips were all abuzz about how such a wonderful man could choose someone... like that.

You couldn't not notice. Mimzy had been all for befriending the woman, making a point to pretend that Husk was her husband, so she understood it could be hard to be seen as just another interracial couple in these times. Her quick eyes noting the make-up too thick in some places and not enough in others. Asking questions without asking directly what was happening exactly.

Meeting the funny little girl who stayed quiet and removed the heads from her dolls as she played silently in the corner. Watching them with wide, fearful eyes as if she expected pain from every man in her vicinity. The marks of make-up present here and there, to make sure the teachers wouldn't ask questions.

You had to know to look, after all. And most people would turn away to avoid the truth of it in any case, who wants to know what happens over the picket fence? It was a family problem, we shouldn't pry!

[Those who got too loud, too nosy, tended to get lobotomised after all. Just about anything could be solved with a little brain damage!]

Keeping to yourself was all the rage!

Well, unless you're two nosy fuckers and their reluctant tag-along. They'd met little Niffty, and couldn't help but decide to intervene.

Unfortunately due to oversight little Niffty'd been huddled in a corner when they came for her father the night her mother went screaming into the street for help. Neighbours twitched their curtains closed even as the distraught woman ran past, a knife in her forearm where she'd blocked the blow that should have killed her.

Lucky thing that the trio had been heading out for 'work related puposes', huh? Lucky they were nearby to help and squirreling her with one of the sympathetic families nearby as an ambulance was called. They'd headed back to the house to deal with the culprit.

He'd died slow, in the household he'd ruled with an iron fist... but there'd been a moment of Ah, Bugger when it was discovered that the whole scenario had been seen. The police took hours to arrive, thankfully... and they only really took notice when it was discovered that the husband had mysteriously fled. 'Work stress' and 'family issues' were on the official report.

Little Niffty had been taken out of the home and brought to her mother by then. The police arriving to a home empty of life, and covered in blood. Thankfully, racism and misogyny worked for them this once... the police naturally assuming the small quiet woman couldn't have hurt her husband without a man's help. But all neighbours said she was a recluse with no friends...

Niffty never said anything, not to anyone but her dolls... and the police couldn't make sense of the statements she giggled at them. Putting it down to foreign nonsense and female hysteria and grief at the loss of her Daddy. Thankfully.

That shouldn't have worked. But it did.

Kept an eye on the kid for the next bit, or at least they sure tried. But life got in the way, then Niffty and her mum moved them to a city where things were safer. Where there were other people from their culture there, had established parts of the city even, so they had some sort of allies in this strange country.

Mimzy'd found it strange to see their little Niffty in Hell but then, when Mimzy heard what'd happened... ain't no surprise. Al had found her first, of course, she had begged him to look after her soul and he couldn't refuse.

Seems some asshole of a husband'd tried raising a hand to Niffty one too many times, and something had snapped in the lovely doll. Something about demanding clean home, clean life nonsense one too many times, and then she'd murdered him so violently it took three rounds from police to take her down.

In retrospect, Mimzy laughed, they might've given her the idea on how to dispose of unwanted baggage, unfortunately. Still, turns iut Niffty made the fucker drink bleach as he died, so perhaps if he was down in the Pit and Al hadn't found the miserable wretch yet,Niff's former husband had the sense to stay away. They'd get him eventually though.

Angel had had to leave for a shift, but that left his head reeling, finally putting together some pieces on why Niffty was like that.

Sure his body was doing all the right things during the taping of 'Hoes in the Garden: Fertilise my Crops' the newest farm-themed, dirt-inclusive film line for the Wrathian market... but his mind was busy putting things on a mental corkboard and using lots of red string.

Val had even been in a good mood for some reason, complimenting Angel on his performance, and suggesting he take the rest of the night off to rest his voice for tomorrow. Something about a cowboy themed shoot based on some imp festival where most of the competitors ended up pummelled. His role was to play the glorious prize and get railed over the largest fake pumpkin-o-lantern Angel thinks he's ever seen in his afterlife. Those sinners in the set design team needed a raise... or therapy. Maybe both.

Either way, he's a tad too tired to clock the unusual affection from Val. It hadn't even been a bad day at work, either. Just, a lot of takes from different angles, and by the time he'd done his fourth theatrical climax, a 7/10 for anyone wondering, Angel was ready for a nap.

It was later that he recognised something was up. Bit late then, though.

Back at the hotel after a shower and a 'five minute nap' that'd taken about three hours and left him muzzy, Angel had come down to find Charlie wringing her hands. Part of the lobby is SINGED, and he's pretty sure that wasn't like that when he got home... but he also didn't hear any alarms go off. So, this was a bit of a mindfuck either way.

"Look toots, it was an accident. Promise I won't try that again... just got curious, alright?" Mimzy is placating, but not apologising. It has the tone and cadence of an apology, but not the intent. Husk is glaring across the room, his wing the only thing holding Vaggie back from launching at the short sinner.

Lucifer is examining the damage to the ceiling with his wings out, and damn, Angel can't help but think about how fuckin' hot their King is when he's all... angelic. Like the opposite of Smiles, sorta... no idea how to categorise it, but they're like the opposite ends of the spectrum unless Lucifer goes all Devil.

So he'd taken to ranking hotness in the hotel on a bored day... try and sue him. Angel'd kill anyone who tried to foreclose on Fat Nuggets.

"Well, sire, is this something you can magic away with a snap or are we going to need to put effort into reinforcing the structure?" Alastor calls up to the King, manifesting without undue surprise at the chaos. "You might want to hurry on your proclamation, Niffty is near vibrating out of her skin with desire to clean the mess... and I need to know what we're telling her."

Indeed, the maid is a red and white blur in one of his hands, held just away from the body, and the impression of a darting eye is somewhere in the disturbing illusion.

"Oh, it's the layabout, come to actually get your hands dirty or just summon thralls for it?" Lucifer comments dryly, doing an unnecessary backflip to hand upside down right in Alastor's face. The sinner looks like he's debating biting it clean off.

"Hilarious, if only you put as much effort into your scathing wit as you do your daughter. Now the question remains am I releaseing Niffty or is this something you need to fix? Are any of the above floors compormised by the damage?"

The King pauses, and looks up again. "...no, they're fine, it's all superficial damage that canbe handled easy enough. I can just snap it back to how it was, you know, Niff...ty?"

The name isn't that hard to remember, but the king is clearly proud all the same. She pauses. "No, I want to, mr big bad boy!"

"Poetry." Alastor hums, and releases Niffty along with a handful of small dolls from his shadows. They take up cleaning under Niffty's directions. "We should leave them to it."

His head does a full one-eighty before his body follows, aiming right at Mimzy. Angel winces, shoulders tensing at the crunch. He's never gonna get used to that...

"Now, Magnolia, you are going to explain what you thought you were doing and why you shouldn't be thrown out of this hotel. Actually apologising for the damages you wrought would be the best place to start." He prompts, as his power surges green around them and little runes flicker into the air. Mimzy appears like she might have recognised she fucked up. Just a bit.

"Al, baby, you and Husky know sometimes I just get clumsy... it was an accident." she placates, waving it off but taking a step closer to Charlotte.

"Then apologise to Charlotte, and try to mean it. We both know you're only here because whoever you have bothered to the point of needing protection is unlikely to try and extract you from under the Princess's care. The least you could do is not destroy the place within the first few months of operation..."

She heaves a dramatic sigh, "Fine. Princess toots, I'm sorry I set a few things on fire and broke that statue, I didn't mean to. Your weird candle making positivity lecture thing wasn't ear-bleeding or excruciating to be part of either!"

"That's... okay, Mimzy. After all, we can fix this. But... I feel like maybe we might try a one on one talk therapy option to find out why you feel the need to cause chaos and ruin everything good in your life, but we can talk about that later. Okay?"

Mimzy looks about three seconds from slapping Charlie right across the face. "There ain't nothing wrong with me, you spoiled, priviledged little goody two-shoes. We didn't all come from some fuckin' ivory tower where everything was handed out to us, and that gave us weird quirks. So back right off with that condescending bullshit."

Vaggie is interjecting spear-first when it's yanked from her hands by an inky black tendril. "Vagatha, not every situation calls for the nuclear option. Or are you desperate to return to the days of killing off sinners for merely existing in a way you dislike?" Alastor snarls. Something about the situation has pivoted the Radio Demon's opinion in a heartbeat. Maybe it was the angelic steel pointed at someone who may somehow care for.

Strangely, Husk moves behind Mimzy and puts a paw on her shoulder. "Drop it Mim, she's not... ready to see things that way. And you do cause absolute fuckin' chaos wherever you go. No two ways about it. But... if things're that bad out there you need to be here, you need to learn to work inside the rules."

"Oh fuck you, Husk! Because we were always sooooo good at doing what society thought we should... huh? You two abandoned me, after everything we went through, so you owe me some goddamn backup when im dealing with princess privileged over there!"

"And how many more decades were you intending to keep rehashing that line? We've dragged you out of insane situations hundreds of time individually and together, Mimz, and you just seem to find another one. Sounds self-destructive to me... trust me, I'd know." said the alcoholic, shrugging. "Your afterlife though. But you don't get to disrespect Charlie like that and get away with it."

She pouts, deeply, and rolls her eyes. "Okay, fine. Look, Im here for my own reasons but it... ain't as bad as I said, Princess. I'm sure we can... find something to chat about, gal-to-gal, in your little therapy sessions. But you need to tone it down... no wonder people ain't flocking here, you're too..." she waves a hand at the radiating positivity and uncertainty. "That."

"What I believe you are trying to say, is that you have concerns about the qualifications of our dear Charlotte to provide psychotherapy, given her perspective on life is very... limited compared to that of sinners. And that she could not possibly understand the complexities of what being taken for mental health support in our time meant... or who would be targeted. Correct?" Alastor says, looming over her and ignoring Vaggie tugging her spear back from his tentacle.

Charlie frowns. "What does that mean? What was it like? The pamphlets I have show rehabilitation facilities and psychologists..."

That startles a laugh out of Angel. "Oh, Char-Char... even in my time... which was after those guys... it was bad. You either got drugged up until you couldn't feel a fucking thing or have a thought society didn't wantcha to have, or they shocked your brain until you were all blank potato inside. Oooh, there was also the chance they'd lobotomise you, get in there with what was like a big piece of metal andd just scoop out ya brain... or maybe you've be used for a psychotropic drug trial, so they can see what happens. Or they could just lock ya up or keep you in one'a them insulin comas until you died. It was fucked up... you're lucky these guys're even willing to hear you out about therapy 'cause we'd all have been targets for involuntary treatment in the day."

Charlie's mouth is hanging open. "That's horrible! Why would anyone do that? Doctors are supposed to help people!"

"They thought they were, Charlie. But this was also the time when there was one Normal set of people and the rest of the world was Wrong. So, when you see something as Less then... anything is fair game. You know they didn't use anaesthesia on animals or babies until the 80s right? Didn't think they could feel pain right." Husk grumbled, only pulling back when he saw Charlie was about to start sobbing.

"ENOUGH!" Lucifer boomed, pulling everything to a close and shoving the sinners out of the way in all directions with his wings as he went to comfort Charlie. "Honey, it's okay, it's okay there may have been some things that happened in human history that weren't great... but none of that is happening now! You're doing great with the sinners!"

"B-but they DID happen... and th-the-the sinners I'm trying to h-h-h-hell-help lived through it! No wonder we c-can't get mooooooore!" she sibs, and Vaggie is there, stroking Charlie's hair and making soothing noises.

Angel is hauling Husk to his feet, and turning to help pull Mimzy off off of Alastor, eyes warily watching the volatile Devil in the periphery. Sure, the Devil form was hot as well... but there was little rationality in there when Charlie was upset or in any way at risk of harm, even if only the emotional kind.

"No wonder she's sheltered, if that's how his high'n'mighty reacts to her gettin' a reality check. You're lucky I'm here, boys, I think there's some things a gal needs to share with your little redemptionist over there." Mimzy frowns, resettling her bazongas in the short attire and pumping her hair. "She's got moxxie, I like her, but this ain't gonna fix nobody. Not if she doesn't get the chance to hear the shit we slogged through to get here. Not everything in life is rainbows, and I'll be damned again if I let miss sunshine over there come at this the wrong way."

"Hey Mimz, you good? I know Al's bony but didn't think you'd landed hard enough for that level of blood." Husk prods at her dress, and she glances down. He frowns immediately, putting some things together. "Not yours. Shit, how long have you been hiding that, Al? Thought you learned your lesson on that shit after we ran into that mob family in 28."

For his part, Alastor was sititng up against the nearby wall, disgruntled from being so carelessly batted aside by Lucifer. All powerful arrogant angelic bastard. You could feel the anger simmering behind that smile... always had it out for authority figures, even in life.

Blood was clearly leaking from beneath his shirt, not that the deer was willing to acknowledge it. Mimzy sat right down on the man's lap, no hesitation, and Angel thought he was going to choke on his own tongue at the sight. Anyone else tried that, they'd be in pieces right now. Except maybe Husk... now he knew about that little dynamic. Or, maybe Niffty? But she was different, crawled all over the guy.

Angel was about 60% sure Alastor would laugh if he tried that under normal flirtatious circumstances, because that's the dynamic they've cultivated... but right now, he'd die. Straight up no hesitation.

"It's fine, Mag-... Mimzy landing on me when the melancholy mallard shoved us out of the way simply snapped the remaining stitches. It's nowhere near as dramatic as it looks, I assure you."

"Gotta be angelic of some kind if it ain't healed yet." Husk narrows his eyes, expertly deflecting the hands that tried to stop him from opening the topmost layer of coat. He'd clearly played this game before. "Thought something was fucked when Adam went to try and get Charlie, couldn't find you after..."

"Then you understand why it is vital such information is kept from the prying eyes of sinners who might run to another overlord with that information, yes?" Alastor snipes back, tone low to avoid drawing royal attention. His tendrils glitch but manage to grab Mimzy and pull her off him... only for the space to immediately fill with Husk. The bartender not even twitching an eye.

"You gonna calm down and let me see? I could tell the king we might need some help..." Husk grins, and Angel is shocked to see Alastor's ears go flat against his head. What the FUCK he thought those were like hair tufts?!

"Do it, and I tell everyone about what happened at Madame Rosary's speakeasy in 1932, and why we were banned."

"Says more about you than me..." Husk actually hesitates.

"Please. Smiles. I'll do anything to know what happened." Angel interjects, rummaging in his chest fluff for his mini first aid kit - always helpful when you worked for a guy like Val. "I'll suck ya di-..."

"Ah, Husker, it seems you already told him the story!" Alastor teased, as the cat's expression flushed under the fur. Mimzy smacked the overlord over one of his ears, earning her a wounded glare.

"Hey, you tell it properly or the hot spider guy's gonna think all the wrong things about that night. Now stop distracting so we can deal with this... and don't you dare shadow yourself elsewhere, or I'LL start talking about the nights in the cabin. I'm sure that fuckin' picture box'd pay top dollar for that information..."

Alastor begins to waver slightly.

Husk digs his claws into the man's injured side. "Hey, no translating into radio waves neither, you're predictable when you're cornered smart ass. It's why we-... forget it. This ain't good, and we need to get this sorted before someone sees, alright?"

"Sees what?" Vaggie asks, suspicious disdain dripping from the tone. Only to pull up short. "Did... did I do that?"

She darts her eye to the tip of her reclaimed spear.

"No." comes the clipped reply as Husk is garbbed by the scruff with a tendril and hoited into the air. Alastor shoved himself upright with less grace than normal, surprisingly even himself with the sudden complexity of the task. "I would ask you to ignore this little situation, and I will handle Mimzy's antics. Go see to your girlfriend..."

Vaggie tenses.

Alastor's tone softens. "Vagatha, on top of today's upset I strongly suspect that she is still quite burdened by the loss of her little dragon friend and the snake fellow. I have caught her staring at their respective monuments on at least four occasions today alone. There is more going on under the surface than she is willing to allow you to see... so I would kindly suggest you stop poking your nose into my business and go play loyal but loving knight to your princess."

"Fine. But not because you told me to."

"That's the spirit!"

"You're still so good at playing up the charm when you tell someone to fuck off, Al." Mimzy giggled, playfully batting him on the shoulder. "But enough about that, let's patch this up or I'm gonna go tattle to Rosie that you hid this from her and you know what she'll do."

Husk and Alastor's expressions went frighteningly blank for the barest heartbeat.

"That will NOT be necessary my dear Magnolia. If I find you shared this information, I will send you through regeneration myself."

"No you won't Boss. C'mon..." Husk says, reasserting normality with the one sentence, enough that even Alastor seemed to relax. "We can fix this up in the kitchen, they won't come in there. Don't think either of 'em have ever cooked without magic in their entire lives..."

Angel paused outside the kitchen, uncertain if he would be allowed in as well. The decision was made for him by Mimzy, who dragged the starlet inside by his lapels and sent a pointed glare at the now-watching royal family (and to-be, in the case of Vaggie). A real 'stay outta this' that meant business.

Realistically, it was like an ant threatening a god... but the point was, Mimzy had at least vaguely attempted to make a claim here.

Angel pauses as the doors swing shut, beacuse not only is the coat off but Alastor is allowing Husk to help remove the undershirt and this is more of Alastor than he's ever seen before. It's like seeing your PE teacher in a ballgown or something, sure it's possible... but you never think about it, so it doesn't really exist ni your universe.

Apart from the fluff there, and boy does he wanna compare to see if it's as soft as his own or Husk's. He vaguely wonders if anyone in Hell knows that... but then, he'd learned all sorts of shit about these three in the past few months. The kind of shit that blew his mind.

He thought his human life had been unusual, 'cause of the drugs and sex and mob violence... but it was only a different kind of chaotic nightmare. None of the affectionate one for all three musketeers type relationship these three had had going on, though. Would've been nice.

Vaguely, he hands over the first aid kit he'd found in his chest fluff. It had an enchantment on it to make it bigger on the inside, you could hide something palm sized in his fluff, easy enough, but you couldn't store much in it that'd be useful without a little magic.

Husk is already tugging the damaged bandages off, trying to be careful despite the urgency he was clearly feeling. A lot of the blood was getting to the sticky stage where it went glue like, and that always felt like a nightmare to pull off of fur.

"Fuck me sideways..." Angel murmurs, as the full extent of the injury is bared. There were signs of healing at the furthest edges, but the torn stitches frame the rest of the very much still angry and weeping wound from shoulder to opposing waist. The snapped cords had pulled and bruised at the skin, and there was this persistent Heat to it.

"Why, as we've established through viewing your delightfully bizarre show and tell submissions, my good fellow, I believe many others have beaten us to such a feat." Alastor laughs, and there's no disdain or cruelty in the tone. It's just a jibe. Like he does to Husk on occasion... cool, cool, so he's not going to be eaten for protein. Excellent.

Husk puts a paw right beside the wound. "Can you stop goddamn talking and laughing, you self-destructive asshole? The whole thing keeps gaping so hard I think your guts are going to fall out." There's a pause as he whips around to point at Angel and Mimzy, "Do NOT."

"That's what he said!" the pair chorus, and startle the other.

"Oh... I think we're keeping this one, he's got a helluva sense of humour. This the guy you're sweet on Husky?" Mimzy bats her eyelashes, grinning knowingly. "I see you still like 'em tall and gorgeous..."

Husk growls back. "Hey, can you do a little more helping and a little less trying to hook us up. And what do you mean 'still' name one other-..."

Alastor is actually looking at him with his ears partially down. "Are you saying I wasn't tall and gorgeous to you Husker? You absolute cad!"

Husk seems to be trying to work out if he's being played or the crazy bastard is serious. The grin is hard to work around until you start to notice Smiles' quirks.

"I'm pretty sure you're fucking with me, Al... but you know you were always stunning, you bastard. Well, actually, no. The only one who didn't notice was literally YOU... had to beat people off with a stick, me and Mim, not that you ever noticed." The cat rolls his eyes, handing an antiseptic pad over to Mimzy, and smiling as Angel intercepted it.

"You what now?" a burble of radio stations changing filled the air as the Radio Demon's confusion let his control slip for a moment. A sharp static screech rang out at the first touch of the pad to the wound.

"You. Were. HOT." Husk elaborates. "For a cocky motherfucker who liked to spread chaos and pick fights with people in bigger weight classes, just for the hell of it. You think I would've stuck around for all that crazy if you two weren't ridiculously attractive?"

Alastor lets out a dramatic gasp. "Why Husker, are you suggesting you only liked us for our Looks? How dare you say such a thing, reducing us to mere arm dressing you cruel cassanova! Mimzy be outraged for us both I don't have the bandwidth right now."

"Well what answer do you want? I can never tell with you." Husk sighs, exasperated, but in a fond way. "I never regretted the crazy shit you both brought into my life, or being with you, and yes you were attractive in life so that factored in. But when you died it fell apart. Happy?"

"I would be if-" Alastor pauses with a hiss as Angel carefully dabbed at a rather persistent trickle from the middle of the wound. "If you could stop using past tense about our general attractiveness..."

Husk's tail paused mid-twitch, ears alert. "What?"

"Hah, he didn't realise. Well, I find both looks appealing, but you know me... it's also about if the sweet inside the wrapper is just as good. And I knew you two had my back, back then... if not now."

"Okay, first of all Maggie, you start shit all over Hell and then run to us for help. It gets old fast, especially when we literally spent half our human lives doing that. You don't do as much reciprocating here. "

She waggles her eyebrows. "Oh, if you wanted me to get Reciprocal you should have said husky..."

"Not what I meant and you know it. When was the last time you pitched in to solve our problems, huh?"

She pouts and crosses her arms. "Hey, I helped with that fish overlord... and I helped confuse Vox enough that time to help you both break out of his clutches!"

"I-... yeah, okay, fair."

"And I';'ve been lookin' into something for Al for his dea-...mppph!"

"You know about that too? How the fuck...? Al, you need to warn me that Mimz knows, she's a potential leak for this mess." Husker rounds on the guy, and Angel feels the slight flinch under his hands. "I know you can't talk about it, but whatever the fuck is happening, you can at least give me some part of the mess to help."

"Why?" Alastor asks.

"Why?" Angel finds himself echoing accidentally, taking on a small pair of scissors to remove the remaining sutures. They're not ideal, but he'd used worse in his days as an impromptu medic in life and on the set. He feels eyes fall on him, and the heat of them is... it feels like a sniper dot for the intensity.

"I mean... he owns your souls right? Even if you did have some throuple type shit going on on earth, and it sounds like ya did, right now he Owns You. Why would you even care if the guy who owns you is on a leash, much less help him? Right now... this could be your chance to get your souls back,"

He startles as two different sets of hands grab his wrists, and mentally plays back the conversation. "Whoa, I don't mean I'm a threat or nothing I'm just... trying to figure this out. Cause I don't-... it wouldn't be like that for anyone else, I don't think. You get this golden opportunity for freedom AND power on a plate but you'restanding here throwing it away. I can't think of any other sinner who would. Hell, I've seen family betray one another for a sniff of this type of chance."

"That's the thing, Angel Dust, emotional bonds are far stranger and prone to logical fallacy than any other. They do not kill me or use this as a chance for freedom, because... I strongly suspect some part of them still cares if I live or die." Alastor chuckles darkly. "Long after I myself stopped caring. But, if you must know, their deals are not anything like yours. I made them to protect them. No one touches what belongs to the Radio Demon... and no one tries to gather a debt from one of those under my charge. Be it cash or flesh."

"You can see how it's fucked up to like, enslave your friends right? Friends? Lovers? Partners? Whatever ya are."

"Perhaps, but this is hell. Did you not also make strange decisions under the influence of affection? What would you do to keep Miss Bomb safe if you had the power to make deals? What of your piglet... or, hmmm, Husker here? Dont worry, I don't ask out of jealousy, merely curious." Alastor purrs, claws digging through the steel benchtop as Angel has to tug at a thread. "Steady on, my effeminate fellow... that's unfortunately very aware of your ministrations."

"Just say it hurts, Smiles. I've been there and have the season pass at this point for this kindsa shit. Nearly done, though." He pokes his tongue out the side of his mouth in concentration. "You know, this... heat... or whatever it is, I don't think it's normal. Might be an infection? Can angelic steel cause infections? I never knew anyone alive long enough after an Extermination to know."

"I... have no idea! There's the fun of it! But you can survive an angelic blade, it merely takes far longer to heal that you would expect. Quite the nuisance when other overlords are always sniffing around seeking weaknesses."

"Yeah, I can imagine it sucks being all powerful and getting humbled like that." Angel snipes back, suddenly angry. Not with Al, not per say, but the idea of Overlords in general just seemed to flick a switch.

"Being a run of the mill sinner may seem a nightmare, Angel, but there's hidden dangers attached to being an Overlord that I don't expect you to understand." Alastor frowned, tone... not patronising, but perhaps tired. "At the moment you look over your shoulder every time you leave a location to see what chaos the world is bringing and if it intends you harm. But you, a sinner with a claim on you, know that there will be likely retribution should someone hurt you... apart from the moth, that is."

"And what? You big guys have it worse?"

"No. No I'm saying that the same applies to overlords, but the people waiting in the dark are on another level. Everyone you meet wants something, Angel, and they are always watching to see you fail. Every deal brings power and a soul, but it equally means another one to watch over and protect. If you fall, they fall. And if you should gain the attention of the wrong person... things can jeopardise your souls."

There's a pause as Angel applies a numbing agent to the tattered skinaround and in the wound. Alastor seemed confused by such a gesture, clearly having braced for the matter to be dealt with otherwise.

"I'm not going to sew you up without giving you something, you weird ass deer... I know you overlords are tough but... you don't always have to be, right? Wait, hold on, have you been doing this yourself without even the decency of a panadol or two? You-..." it dissolves into some sort of italian then.

Alastor looks to Husk for a translation, sees the grimace, and decides not to ask. "Angel, even you benefit from being so known, from being Valentino's and part of the Vees. Not in a good eay, but there is a fear about what reprisal would exist if someone tried something not sanctioned by your overlord. There is a sick comfort in that, correct? If someone toppled your moth tomorrow, you wouldn't know anything about the person taking ownership of your soul... not how to appease them, or what they wanted. A level of fear and dread you haven't had to face for decades I assume?"

"Yeah...?" Angel asks, prodding at the area and noting the slight flinch. He puts more cream over the injury and waits.

"A good overlord, and I assume there have to be some out there, cares about at least some of the souls under them. For example, if someone harmed Niffty I would turn them inside out and hold their soul in their body until they had expressed enough sincere apology that they deserved the chance to die." The air went thick with scrambled distortion and symbols for just a moment, before it flickered out. "Why, they practically beg for death at the end, ha hah! In anycase, it is imperative for someone with souls under them to ensure they maintain their status. Both as a means of self-protection, and to keep those leashed to them safe. But every soul you contract may choose to harm you unless specified specifically otherwise in their deal... and even then a third party may be used or an injury that Could be Fatal can be imbued. It's all about the wording. And that's before you even consider the threat of other Sovereigns against yourself... and any hint of weakness results in everything crumbling."

"I get it, we're fucked no matter which end of the pyramid we sit on right? Just.. differently. I don't think I'd handle that sorta pressure, same way I don't think you'd switch places with me for anything." Angel shrugs, touching the wound again and getting no response. "Hold still, I was always good at my threadwork but flesh is always a little tougher than fabric you know."

"Husker, find out whatever is in that little kit of your paramour, and ensure that we order twice the amount of whatever was used. I would not like to hear that he ran out simply because his generosity outweighed his common sense."

"Sure thing boss..." Husk said, turning away the small smirk that was threatening to grow across his features. He leans in close to Angel. "That's his way of sayin' I think he likes you, and he appreciates the care you've shown. He's just a stubborn fucking ass about it, always has been. I think if he had a genuine emotional heart to heart it might kill him."

"Sounds like someone wants me to drop his soul from my list and let you manage your own debts, hmmm?"

"Nah, you won't." Husker grins. "You still love me, even after all this shit. Or you wouldn'tt put up with a fraction of the nonsense Mimzy and I get up to."

He received an audience booing for his troubles, but those ears were twitching as if unsure whether they wanted to pin back. Alastor seemed to think on his response before opening his mouth to retort...

The moment is ruined by the doors being blasted open and Lucifer strides in, flanked by Charlie and Vaggie. Both holding his arms and pulling as if to stop the King, but not exactly succeeding.

"Okay Bambi, we need to talk about your little degenerate friend-... what the fuck happened to you?" The king pulls up short, confused at the scene before him. Charlie gasps, and her eyes are filling with tears again before Vaggie can get there to assuage her.

"Nothing that requires your interference, your lowness, and rest assured I have spoken to Mimzy about maintaining her manners. She has agreed to make more appropriate conversational decisions in future... but let's be realisitic here, sire, this was going to happen eventually. Charlie has only ever known Hell, and the version you and... her mother... cultivated. Of course she wouldn't understand the complexities of human lives, of societies, and of the inherent power and control put in place even in systems made to help those struggling with various issues. Such as Mimzy and husker pointed out."

"Listen asshole, there's such a thing as easing people into terrible news, you could try it." Lucifer snarls back, eyes flickering to red.

"Forgive me, your majesty, but isn't Charlie older than literally everyone else in this room excepting yourself? That seems a long time to leave her ignorant... human history is a subject that will never end if you don't start teaching the fundamentals now. Why, ha-hah, if you think about it, each day passed adds more to the curriculum!"

"Did I like, knock you into a wall or something? Or is he generally this level of asshole even without a concussion?" Lucifer asked the room at large. Waving it off magnanimously, he points at the wound. "That's not going to heal for the next decade if you keep using basic first aid at it, there's Angelic Grace in it, idiot. For that you'd need, oh, well look at that... Me... to remove it."

"No, a decade isn't that long in terms of eternity, little majesty. I can wait." Alastor parries, noting that Husker and Mimzy have shifted slightly to be between them. Angel continues sewing flesh back together, warily watching Lucifer from the corner of his eyes.

"Fair enough, suffer then. But if your annoying thrall ever causes my Charlie that level of distress again, I end both of you."

"Dad, please, we just talked about this!" Charlie hissed. "I need to know this sort of stuff to help, and yes it was shocking and I was upset... but not for ME! For Mimzy and Al and Husk and Angel and the thousands of Sinners who went through that, who might be afraid of help because of their experiences in the past... and that's before coming to Hell. Imagine how they feel now?"

"I heard you, Duckling, but my point stands. There's a right way and a wrong way... and he's probably doing it for entertainment."

"Well so what? He's helped us, and fought for us and clearly it's my fault THAT happened..." she gestures at the wound. "So if all I get back is the occasional uncomfortable truth and an offer to have like, people for dinner, that's fine with me. We're okay, dad."

"What was that bit about eating people?"

"Oh unclench your tightness, it's a joke. I know sinner is an accquired taste..." Alastor waves off, and gets a silent look of reproach from Angel who nearly dropped the needle into the wound at the unexpected movement.

"Yeah, what's that taste like? Chiken, pork?"

"Ah, it differs from person to person..." A laugh track plays and the spider snorts, oh that was TERRIBLE. "And besides, my good arachnid, I would have thought of all people present you'd be well versed in having sinner meat in your mo-...mmmph?"

Husk had slapped a paw over the smart mouth, as Angel's fell open in shock. Had the overlord just seriously made that joke?

"Ignore him, he gets difficult when he's injured and you left the door open for that one."

"No, I mean, that was fuckin' hilarious and I didn't expect it outta Smiles. Where has this rude sense of humour been the whole time we've been livin' here?"

Mimzy scoffed at Al. "You still playing polite hotelier? Pfft, okay that's fair, miss pretty princess there might straight up die if you made one of your fancy word naughty quips at her."

"She's made of sterner stuff, ususally, I promise." Alastor mutters, as Husk removes the paw warily. Thinks better of it, and covers the man's mouth again before a pussy based joke escapes. He's suffering enough in hell without the terrible puns.

"Can you behave, Al? Some of us are having a heck of a day and that was before we find out you were hiding this sort of shit again." Husk mumbles, letting his shoulders sag and the wings droop a little. Mimzy would be vocal as hell about injuries, and Husk would be stoic until they were safely out of the firing line, but Al used to do the old 'oop, i think im feeling off' and then collapse on you bullshit. This was toeing the line here for husk's tolerance.

Lucifer rolls up his sleeves, after some pointed whispering from Charlie, and approaches. Alastor rears back snarling with all his teeth. Angel fumbles for the thread.

"Can you stop it there Short King, I'm nearly done and you're sending the patient into bloodlust."

"What? Oh, don't worry about it, I can pin him down easy enough... King of Hell and all. Overlords mean nothing to me."

Angel felt anger rise up, and noted the way Al stiffened. "hold up, ya Majesty. Might want to rethink that statement cause it sounded fuckin' awful, and pro tip... just cause you CAN doesn't mean you Should. Val can pin me down and pour acid in my face if he's mad, but it don't mean I want him to. He could also do it to put a bandaid on a burn he's given me. Same sentiment though."

That pulls Lucifer up short, and the angel frog blinks. "What? I'm just going to pull that Grace out, he should be thanking me?"

"You could try asking, or not making it sound like you're forcing yourself on someone... that kinda language is really fucking triggering when you've been there. And I know you've been overhearing Mimz here prattle on about their lives up top, you know full well that they've all dealt with being forced, being made to do something, even if it never got far. Like with me. The memory doesn't distinguish that... your brain tells your body to panic."

Angel finds he's furious at the King, and for what? Some words? The intent behind them? The fact that he felt Alastor shaking for just a split second before the Overlord overrode that reaction with anger?

"I didn't-..."

"You didn't think. No. I get that, it's just... you need to, though. Little things can send you into a spiral... I know you know what that's like. I've got eyes, Short King, you've been there too."

"Well, okay, I apologise for setting everyone off with my words. I'll use a better statement next time, okay? Now if the big bad overlord is done having all the regular sinners defend him, can he please be a big boy and let me get this over with?"

Oh, there go the antlers.

Husk puts a wing between them. "Just want to put it out there, your majesty, that being talked down to by authority and referred to as 'boy' or 'girl' as an adult is... something pretty common in our time. For It was the racism, you see. Might want to pull back on that too. Hard to tell in sinner form what everyone was before, but the memories don't fade out that fast. Still gets me heated under the collar when I hear it."

"Er, okay... then could the big angry deer please let me within like a foot of him so I can pull the Grace out, because you're functionally useless..." there's a very pointed pause, and you can feel a fight coming on, but it's suddenly clear his majesty has zoned out. Vaggie claps her hands near the King's ear. "What? Oh, what was I saying? There's something pressing on the wards... not sure what though."

Alastor closes his eyes, and grimaces. "Worry not, that's merely Vox seeking to play voyeur again. I will deal with it in a moment."

"Are you sure? I could swat him like That!"

"It's a matter of principle, if Vox is turned away by you, he will wonder why I didn't do it. And he will either come himself, or send another spy... and despite Charlie's best attempts, I'm not certain the next one will be swayed by a song about apologies."

"...fair. What was I saying? Something about that rendering you useless at defending the place? Whatever, I don't technically have to touch you, but it could help make it faster."

"...if you must."

In a painfully awkward 45 seconds, the King presses two fingertips to the still open portion of wound and concentrates until small globules of something metallic and bright begin to at the location. They seem to be expanding from unseen miniscule amounts over time.

Carefully pulling away, Lucifer calls the droplets to him, letting them sink into his palm and disappear. "Whew, okay, that was more than I thought. All gone though, so that mess will heal on its own at the normal rate. And if we're lucky, there'll be no Charlie the 2nd out of that one..."

Everyone pauses. "What?"

"Kidding, you should see your faces! It took a decade of concentrated energy and some very specific magic to create you, Sweetie, you were planned out more meticulously than the construction of any Ring in Hell. Just wanted to crack a joke, you're all so tense. Sheesh, touchy much today?"

"Please don't ever try comedy your majesty, your little clown outfit if more than enough..." Alastor retorts dryly. Angel carefully returns to the task of closing the wound the last two or so inches and ties off the thread. "Thank you my good man."

His expression glitches for a moment, before the lights flicker and something explodes outside. "Vox has been thoroughly removed from the premises, for now. Do pay attention to any update requests you may get on those infernal devices, the terms and conditions can allow Vox to use your phone as a portal if you agree. Not to mention they're all just pretty little spy cameras for him... though not here, thankfully."

Husk and Mimzy are passing a bandage around the too-thin torso, and the fact Alastor isn't protesting, means that this wouldn't be the first time. And he clearly knows he wouldn't win if he tried.

The minute it's tucked square away, Husk smack the overlord on the undamaged side of his chest. "Don't pull this shit again."

"Aw, don't be mean Husky... you know you love playing nursemaid." Mimzy titters, winking at him until the cat hisses back.

"I've got a whole costume for that if you wanna try that on for size...?" Angel offers, enjoying seeing two sets of animal airs flicker his way then flatten. "Oh c'mon, don't I get a little something for today?"

"You can have a date with Husker and the satisfaction of eating part of the moth when I get the time to kill him in a challenge. How does that sound?" Alastor offers vaguely, slipping his shirts closed and buttoning rapidly to the throat. "Try pushing the outfits again and I will have Niffty alphabetise your growing toy collection according to her own internal narrative."

Angel gasps in horror. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh but I would!" Alastor grins, sharply, and Mimzy laughs. "Now go and do something that isn't gawping at us, and I shall look over what we have in the pantry for dinner. Mimzy, you would burn this palce down and you will recall a no-cooking clause in our deal, so please vacate the area. But do try to ease up on the my dear Charlotte, and at least pretend to capitulate to her exercises... you are a resident after all."

She grumbles, crossed arms and petulant expression on full display. "Thanks I get for keepin my boys alive,I tell ya, no gratitude..."

Lucifer rolls his eyes, "Okay, enough of this... I'm going to check the small red one hasn't destroyed the hotel. Coming, Charlie? Vaggie?"

"Er, sure..." Charlie seems slightly shellshocked and leans against Vaggie as they follow her father out. "Today's been... a lot."

Angel rubs his arm, awkwardly. "So uh, you don't mind if I like take Husk for drinks or something? I never really worked out what your status is down here."

"Husker is free to do as he wants... and he likes you. I suppose I am rather fond of you as well, given how well you handle a crisis and your commitment to the hotel. Especially now that we can see the real you under that fake persona..." Alastor replies.

Angel can't help but chuckle. "Pot. Kettle. Smiles."

"True. How bold of you to sass an Overlord, Angel. You will be an intriguing addition... should you wish it."

"Like... as a soul on your chain when you kill Val, or to this whatever it is? Cause no offence, but I don't do broads outside'a films and when Val's holding me hostage for cash. And I dunno how I'd feel about all of you anyway, that's a lot..."

husk rolls his eyes. "He doesn't mean date us, just like, putitng up with them and dating me. If you want. They're kind of attached, even if it ain't official anymore... call it karmic bullshit or something. We can be exclusive if you'd like, though; I haven't messed about with them since before I died."

Angel let out an indignant squeak. "What? You got these two hotties here and you ain't even tried their demonic forms out for a test drive? Husk, Husker, Whiskers, baby, are you serious? I'm almost tempted to do it for you..."

"...please do restrain yourself, if at all possible, Angel. I think we've contaminated the counters enough for one day." Alastor responds, wiping down the same with an antibacterial spray Charlie insisted they utilise. "And if dearest Vagatha came in, we may just kill her from shock to see someone misappropriating the kitchen in such a manner..."

Angel needs a long moment as his brain pauses to absorb several creative visuals. "Uh.... I mean, I got time and there's still heaps in that cleaner, right? Maybe you could get Spooky Jnr to keep Vaggie out?"

"Oooh, I'm game if you are... won't touch ya, but I'll be here." Mimzy grins, taking in all of Angel.

Husk covers his eyes with a paw and groans. "Okay, for one, no one's getting up to anything in here because I think we'd all prefer to break in our sinner forms somewhere more comfortable than this. Two, you you fucking idiot are injured and we're not breaking those stitches again. And for three, this one is mine until further notice so back off..."

"Wait, wait, wait, NONE of you have gotten frisky in these forms?"

"There's never been a need, or a time when the three of us were on the same page and in a similar headspace." Alastor shrugged.

Mimzy rolled her eyes, "Listen, I've got a busy schedule so... I was getting to it. Also a lot shorter than I used to be so that took some getting used to."

"Not to mention SOME ASSHOLE disappeared for like 7 years without warning just when everyone was finally getting along and addressing the shit we needed to from our sudden deaths." Husker replied.

"There was a reason, I just can't say. Not yet, anyway." Alastor shrugged. "Why, did you miss meeeeee....?"

"...yes, you smug fuck, of course we did. Niffty was fucking beside herself it took Rosie and me to keep her from throwing herself at angels during Exterminations..."

The ears drooped. "Ah... well, if it's any consolation, I didn't choose to leave. It turns out you can be summoned by people in-..." the words crackles off into a forced silence. The shadow pointed upwards.

Angel felt his eyes blow wide. "No fuckin' way. Who could have the power to-..."

The answer jumped out at him, something from an earlier conversation about Charlie. The way everything hinged on her and pushing Lucifer away.

"It's... the other parent, ain't it? Of your not-kid, Charlie, right?"

"...you are too clever by half to be just a porn starlet, dear Angel."

Husk's fur bristled. "What's she got on you? Why give someone like that your soul?"

"Lack of choice. Like I said, I am familiar with angelic wounds."

"Healed by that person? Or made by that person?"

"Ah, husker, why not both? No need to dwell on it for now. There is nothing immediate that needs managing. You have a date with your arachnid... you still have your card?"

"What? Of course I do, you know I do why are you trying to distract me from this?"

"Because nothing can be changed now. So why worry? Feel free to have dinner out, I will leave portions of whatever I come up with in the fridge for you, should you decide to go dancing or some other exhausting outlet that means dinner is not quite enough."

Behind the deer's back, Angel and Husk shared a Look. Mimzy nodded at them, and Alastor tensed for reasons he didn't understand.

"Actually, I'd like to stay and see what you're making. My Nonna and Ma taught me a whole bunch of stuff but nothing like what you cook. You mind?" Angel offers.

"Its been a while since we all made a meal together... and I promise to keep an eye on Mimzy so she doesn't set anything ablaze." Husker adds.

"Hey, you don't complain when I offer other options for dinner..." Mimzy simpers, and the collective groan in the room makes her laugh so hard she almost falls off the bench. "Oh, c'mon, that was a good one."

"Yeah yeah..." Husk rolls his eyes and washes his hands. "What do you need me to chop up for this?"

Angel watches the process like a hawk, cheerfully asking to take on dicing the meat when he sees the overlord flagging as the repetitive motion wears on his wakening nerves about the injury.

Mimzy is exceptionally helpful and not at all a menace, as long as someone is paying attention to her actions the whole time.

It's not clear when the room filled with soft music, but it was nice. The aroma of a meal nearly done wafted about, and it took a moment before anyone noticed the deer had fallen asleep atop one of the chairs. Tucked into a corner, one elbow on the bench and his head resting on the hand attached.

The music emanated from him, somehow.

"Aw, fuck me that's cute..." Angel grins. He'd have to burn this into his brain cause if he took a photo it'd wake Al, and Vox'd have a field day with that kind of image.

"...you should've seen him when he was alive." Mimzy murmured back. "Cute, less red... just as easy to trick into exhausting himself when he was being stubborn about it."

"One of my best magic tricks was getting these two to look after themselves." Husk shrugged, huffing a chuckle as he plated up some of the thick, chunky stew. "Now dig in before it gets cold, and I'll drop some plates out at the dining table."

"You could get Niffty to-... oh, nope, she's found Al already."

Angel blinks across the room to find Niffty fast asleep in Al's lap. She hadn't been there a second ago and they were facing the only doors. So how...?

His thoughts slowed as he took a bite of the stew, and suddenly the starlet realised he might just have to join this crazy whatever it was with Husk and the others, just to get food like this everyday. If his Nonna was here, he's sure she'd want the recipe.

But, as good things in Hell often do, the moment was spoiled by the sound of his phone going off. He had work to get to.

Well, at least it was just some backcountry pumpkin-based fuckfest. Nothing he couldn't handle.

---

Or so he thought.

The minute he arrives, the chain manifests, dragging him into the dressing room set aside for Angel Dust.

He panics, mentally, trying to think about what he might have done or not done to get this response. Only to come face to face with Valentino AND Vox.

Vox leans forwards in his chair, grabbing hold of the chain and pulsing blue up the length. Taking temporary ownership.

"Now Angel, I understand you've been spending time with dear Mimzy, that little nightmare, and she's been sharing some fun factoids about the Radio Demon! Some of the others in the hotel were putting bits and piecces out there and our lovely Velvette collected that information on our behalf."

Angel felt his heart plunging into his stomach.

"Yesterday, all of that went silent... so I thought I'd go right to the source. The one who's spent a lot of time around her in the past few days if the photos are to be believed, gathering intel for us. That's what you were doing, right? Of course you were. You love Val, and want to make him happy."

"Yes Mr Vox, of course." he simpers automatically. "Anything for Val...entino."

"Of course, of course! And naturally, given your knowledge, and the heh radiosilence of the last day or so, I think it's only fair that I ask some questions to clarify. How does that sound? Could you tell me the truth, Angel?" Vox grins, looming.

Apologising, even as his heart begins to thunder and his stomach roil with the thick taste of shame and betrayal, Angel feels his smiling lips move. "Of course, Mr Vox... anything for the Vees."

"Good boy, Angel..." Valentino purrs, carding though Angel's hair. "Now tell my Voxxy what he really wants to know... does the radio demon have a tail?"

Angel could have cried from the odd thrill of relief such a stupid satement brought. Please let them all be so vaguely intrusive and easily answered.

"According to Mimzy, yes he does. I havent seen it, but she said it was like a deer's, but red and white and black."

"Is he really with that woman and the cat?"

"It's complicated, they had a thing when they were alive but I can;t get a read on them now. It's like..." he pauses, trying not to be seen as impertinent. "Like the Vees, you all move around each other just knowing how to work as a trio, but if no one was paying attention or you didn't need 'em to know, no one would know if you all shared a bed or whatever. You know?"

"...good answer. Now for the big ticket question... is Alastor still injured after fighting Heaven?"

Angel felt sick. Why can't he have one good thing? This was going to ruin any chance with husk, with Charlotte, and break the fragile trust he'd made with Smiles.

"Yes. He is. But the King did something to fix it, so I dunno."

"...Angel, does Alastor own his own soul?"

He pauses, as if thinking. "Mimzy didn't say anything about that sorta thing, you want me to ask indirectly?"

But that swirling eye was getting so wide, filling his vision.

"Oh, I think you might know some more than that, you just need help to put it together, huh? I know how smart you are Angel..."

"I... don't... think so... something... about... he said..."

"Good boy, yes?"

His mouth is moving on its own and he can't stop it. "Alastor... said something to... Husk... aout being summoned... elswhere. Didn't go by choice... seven years? Don;t know what it means."

"And who do you think owns the Radio Demon, Angel?"

"Think... hates Lucifer... loves Charlie... said something weird... other day... think... Queen?"

Vox's expression went from psychotically aroused to abolute malicious joy in a split second. He released the now dizzy Angel, who flopped forwards right into Valentino's waiting arms.

"Good boy Angel... very good boy. You've done so well." Valentino purrs at him, and Angel feels the hands travelling over his body to the places that tingled up his spine. It was clearly a Reward day.

"Well, that changes the game completely, my old friend..." Vox murmurs, as Angel is steered across the room to the plush couch and a half dozen hands toy with his every nerve. Vox watches detachedly.

If only he could warn them that Vox knew.

If only-... but he couldn't, not yet. The contract was in place for now.

Time to perform, and then get home.

As Valentino did his best to show Angel his pleasure for a task well done, Angel found his mind wandering back to thoughts about cooking earlier. And he vaguely wondered if there'd be stew in the fridge when he returned...

"Good boy, Angel..." Valentino whispered, and his body shuddered but his mind was already at the hotel.

"Thank you Daddy..." he whispers, just the right amount of breathless that got them likes on their online content.

"I think you can have a night off, see what else you can hear..."

"Oooh, you spoil me Daddy, I will, I promise!"

I will... kill you the first chance I get, Val. Promise.

He is halfways back to the hotel before his mind catches up, but he doesn't let the 'dazed lovedrunk smile #4' he perfected so well for the camera, drop. Aware of the surveillance cameras watching his route home.

When the doors close behind him, Angel collapses to his knees, and then Husk is there, and Angel is sobbing.

"What did he do? Angel, are you hurt?"

"No, No I-... he made me... the things I know... he wanted to know..."

"It's alright Angel, this was inevitable. I will handle this." Alastor advises.

"Not with that injury, mister!" Mimzy interjects.

"Wait, not tonight, they'll assume I said something. They know about your... tail... and you and husk and mimzy. They asked about your deal... I'm sorry I couldn't... his eye..."

"It is genuinely alright Angel, Vox has been obsessed for decades, its no surprise he found out. Merely a nuisance that I now must kill them all rather than one at a time."

"Okay, but not tonight... when we go to end them, I want them to have no chance to stop you. Can't do that when you're injured, right?"

"Hmmm, true. Alright, we shall pencil it in... next week sometime. Let's get you settled, we have some food set aside as you never finished yours." He glanced over the other. "Or perhaps Husker can escort you to your room for a quick shower, the effect that little eye trick has makes one feel quite in need of one..."

"Oooh, Husky, change your mind about the nurse costume? I'll take a spongebath anyday for you, Sister Whiskers..."

"Keep that up and I get Al to bathe you."

Angel felt his expression deepen into Lustful Thoughts #6 and there was a record scratch. "No, I shan't be available. Injured and all that..."

Mimzy howled with laughter.

"You lot are fucking crazy... I want in." His mouth says before his brain can catch up.

"Welcome to my nightmare, legs..." Husk groans, pulling Angel up and walking them towards the elevators. "Let's get you cleaned up and fed. We need to plan for next time the Vees pull this shit... you can get around questions with careful answers, you know?"

Mimzy paused on the way back to the kitchen, checking no one is around before she sidles up to Al. "You wanna go bang in the King's room, as a big old Fuck You to the guy?"

"Hmmm, tempting, but maybe later... I feel it would have more impact with more participants. And besides, we need to feed the spider some food and the right lines to use under hypnosis... so, let us focus on that for now."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine... but can I at least pet your tail in the kitchen?"

"...I have never understood your fascination, but I see no harm in doing so away from prying eyes."

He had no way of knowing that the covert selfie she took of herself in the act, which was then sent to Husk, would be intercepted by Vox and cause a three day power outage across the Ring.

Lucifer could never prove it was Alastor's fault, but he sure acted like it was until the lights came back on.

-----------

ENDish

this took hours of my weekend for no one to read but me

such a bizarre and likely ooc concept but... why not. at least i have some creativity returning!

[writing-in-the-impala]

Secret Smokes (Part 3)

Pairing: Teacher! Remus Lupin x Reader

Series Summary: When the reader bumps into the new DADA professor on the bridge in Hogwarts she begins to build a friendship with him all thanks to their shared feeling of not belonging and love for muggle cigarettes. Their friendship blooms while they both fight internal battles deciding what is wrong and what is right leading to a lot of fluff, angst, flirting and a rollercoaster of emotions.

Warnings: Swearing, Drinking, teacher-student relationship (but like it’s all legal chill), SLOWburn we’re in for a long ride

Word Count: 2038

A/N: Once again thank you for all the love this is a side blog so I can't reply from this account to you all below the post but I read every word I promise. You guys are the best ! Some people have asked about being tagged, yes I can tag you! So if you want to be added leave me a reply below and I'll tag you in the future parts and if you decide you want to be untagged just message me and I'll remove you it's okay I won't judge.

 | SERIES MASTER LIST (All chapters) |

Previous Chapter, Part 3, Next Chapter

Over the next few weeks you committed to showing up to lessons more often, you spent time with the Weasley's but you avoided getting into trouble. People started noticing the sudden change in your behaviour and dedication to your studies, Percy was very proud of your change in attitude and believed his talk with you helped you get there, you let him believe it but really it was all profesor Lupins doing. Unfortunately his class was the one you got the worst grades in, it was okay when you didn't attend and got bad grades but even with attendance they didn't grow it was your weakest subject.

Your evening smokes continued some days Lupin was there some he wasn't but he was there often some days he wouldn't smoke he would just be there to talk with you, your conversations turned deeper than they used to be as you got to know each other and you looked forward to them, you saw him as someone you truly connected with, yes the girly attraction was still there but what girl didn't find him attractive he had girls flirting with him constantly. It did make you feel uncomfortable watching the girls put bright lipstick on before entering his class and staying behind to ask him questions or for extra lessons, but he seemed to not mind and act profesional giving the girls extra lessons and paying no attention to their advances.

You had DADA last on Fridays which normally would've meant a lot of people not paying attention and aching to leave but profesor Lupin kept the class entertaining and engaging. It was a practical lesson, the ones your dread because with lack of practice you genuinely sucked at practical lessons. But you got through it and you were excited for the weekend to start, before you left the class Lupin asked you to stay behind. So you said bye to Percy and a few others telling them you'll join them later, you weren't worried that you'll get told off like with most teachers when they ask you to stay behind it was Lupin so you patiently waited for the last few girls to say "bye profesor" while walking out and then went over to his desk where he had sat down.

"What's up?" You asked as you approached his desk.

"Please, sit down Y/N." He said quite formally gesturing to the seat in front of him, now you were getting worried. "I'd like to speak with you about your grades." He paused and saw your face drop before continuing. "Now please don't think of this as a telling off, your attendance is better this year than any year before and I've heard great things from your other teachers about the progress you've been doing." He said but you still looked worried so he added. "You should be very proud of yourself Y/N." Which made you relax into the chair a bit more. "Nevertheless, I am worried about your grades in my subject as you're doing well in the theory side however it's using the spells in practice that you seem to struggle with. I know you've had a few hard years with the rotation of teacher, some worse than others, so it's not your fault you are in this position." He said all of this formally. "Although notoriously skipping classes for the last sexi years probably didn't help." He said with a small laugh as a friend rather than a teacher. "I want to help you, I've been speaking with your head of house about how we can improve your grades and we believe you need extra lessons, practical magic like this can't be learnt through studying alone in your dorm you need real practice. So I'm happy to offer you tutoring twice a week on Mondays and Wednesdays, to help you catch up." You sat silent still. "You don't have to do this, but profesor McGonagall and I do believe it is in your best interest." He added you just looked down embarrassed that you skipping classes has lead to this. "Okay Y/N I'm dying here please say something." He said casually addressing your silence.

"Thank you profesor." You said.

"How do you feel about my suggestion?" He asked.

"Embarrassed." You stated. "How so?" He asked I'm a caring tone. "I wouldn't be in this situation if I listened to everyone when they told me not to skip so many lessons."

"You're not the only student who will be receiving extra lessons, I have a small group of girls that have asked for extra time that I teach on Tuesdays. If you want you can join them so it's not just one-on-one if that's more comfortable for you?" He offered.

"But I'm the only one who actually needs tutoring. They only asked for it because they have a crush on you." You blurted out in your annoyance.

"Trust me crush or not some of those girls need extra lessons. Still after weeks of receiving them." He said honestly. "They're too busy staring at your lips to learn I guess." You said laughing to yourself, he gave you a gentle smile. "Y/N, you're a quick learner. You know the theory, with a little practice you'll be caught up by Christmas."

"Okay. As long as these lessons are done by 9pm." You said with a hint of humour.

"I would never let education get in the way of your nicotine addiction, I'm not a monster." He replied jokingly. "We have a deal." You say.

"Perfect, now enjoy your weekend." He said and you took that as a queue to leave. "And Y/N, don't let this overshadow all the effort you've been putting into your studies, you're doing amazing." He said whole heartedly.

"Thank you professor." You said leaving the classroom. You looked him as a teacher so if you needed anyone to give you extra lessons you were glad it was him.

You went straight to the great hall for dinner after your conversation with Lupin, Fred and George had a space saved for you next to them. "What took you so long?" Fred asked.

"Lupin is making me take extra lessons." You said solemn.

"Bullshit, you've been studying harder than ever."  Fred expressed.  "I know but I'm still behind, plus it's only two days a week and he said it'll only be until Christmas." You explained.

"I think it's a conspiracy." George stated. "Now why's that?" You ask amused. "They're obviously trying to keep you away from us so we don't pull any pranks." He expresses. "This has old minnie all over it." Fred adds sniffing the air comedically.

"Now that you mention it..." you say looking over at the teachers table watching Lupin and McGonagall speaking. "...Lupin did mention this being her idea."

"See! Merlin, Y/N we need to pull a prank now." George states. "Show them we can't be stopped so easily." Fred adds. "I don't know guys, I've been enjoying not sitting in detention."

"George, she's getting all soft." Fred states. "Now that's not okay." George replies and they both have a cheeky smile before they stand up and suddenly pick you up while you protest taking you out the great hall while you laugh and tell them to stop, you hadn't even had time to eat before the kidnapping and the whole school watched this happen but the boys didn't care. They carried you straight to the dorm room plopping you down on the sofa. "Y/N it's time to plan our first big prank of the year." George begins. "Perfect timing as well as we can go to Hogsmeade over the weekend to get any supplies we need."  You laugh and agree to the plotting, you plan a prank. It was to happen in the library, the plan was to hex every book, the books about animals would bite you, the books about history would disintegrate in your hands, the books about plants would be filled with soil and so on. You would obviously need to take all the real books and hide them but that wasn't a problem using the marauders map. You were looking at the map when you noticed Lupin was already standing on the bridge, you checked your watch and it was after 9pm already, he was just standing there you felt like you were missing out on seeing him plus you were scared he'd think you're ignoring him after your conversation earlier. "Boys I need to go, it was a pleasure scheming with you as always. I'll see you tomorrow." And with that you took the map, put it in your pocket and headed for the bridge. When you were around the corner you saw Lupin walking down the corridor in your direction, he must've finished smoking you thought. "Good evening professor." You said with a smile and me looked up at you with a grin. "Evening, Y/N. Evening stroll?" He questioned as if to ask why you didn't go to the bridge tonight.

"Just going to destress." You said showing him your pack of cigarettes.

"I forgot mine in my office I was just going to go get them." He explained, odd because he had been standing on the bridge for a while you think to yourself.

"You can borrow one of mine." You state.

"I'll give you two tomorrow." He replies turning around to walk with you. "I hope I wasn't too harsh on you today." He says as you walk after a moment of silence.

"You weren't harsh at all." You say with a hint of confusion.

"I didn't think you would come here today in all honesty, after the way you looked at me after class and during dinner." He said with a soft smile but you could tell there was some hurt behind there. "How did I look at you?" You ask.

"Differently." He simply stated, maybe because usually you look with admiration and a bit of lust while now you were looking at him like at a teacher for the first time.

"Well you are about to ruin two evenings a week for me by making me study." You remark.

"Is that how you see spending time with me? Am I ruining your evening right now?" He teased.

"You know what I mean, this Lupin isn't the same as profesor Lupin." You say adding emphasis to professor.

"I am the same person Y/N. If you're afraid that I'm going to be making you write essays and do homework you're mistaken, I promise I'll make the evenings fun." He says in his teacher tone. Maybe it was the mischievous energy from planning a prank that allowed you to say what followed maybe it was purely forgetting he's not your friend but you replied with. "Fun evenings? What does that mean?" You watched him swallow getting a bit uncomfortable and not knowing how to answer. "I mean don't treat it like a punishment. I'm just trying to help." Your brain went straight to replying with something inappropriate about getting punished but you held your tongue as you didn't want to push it too far.

"I hope you don't think I hate you, I really enjoy our talks." You say. I really only came here to talk to you, I feel like smoking on a empty stomach will make me feel worse." You we're over sharing now but he didn't seem to mind.

"I watched you get carried out by the Weasley twins before dinner, the whole school did." Lupin remarked unamused making your face go red.

"Yeah they were messing around and wanted to go talk as they said I've been too busy with lessons this year."

"They sound like a bad influence," He said sternly before pausing and thinking. " keep them around sometimes you need friends like that." He added.

"Profesor you're great at encouraging bad behaviour." You say laughing.

"Friendships like that are sometimes very important, if only you knew what I got up to when I was your age." He said with a soft reminding smile.

"And what would that be?"

"I can't say, I'm your teacher after all." He added a wink at the end which you didn't know the meaning of, but all you did know was you wouldn't find out anything more about his past.

NEXT CHAPTER | More stuff I wrote

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@thesoundresoundsecho @ahoyyharrington

[badgalsasuke]

Could you please explain to people how Sakura and Hinata, while different in personality, are both extremely selfish when it comes to what they want? Some people don’t understand that they are both fictional characters with no will other what what’s written for them, and character’s that are very much NOT girl bosses

Sorry for the delay, but sure.

People in the fandom seem to have this idea that Sakura and Hinata's writing is different from one another because they have different personalities, Sakura being loud and reckless while Hinata being quiet and insecure. That being said both show from time to time that their behaviour is centered in their desire to be acknowledged by the boy the have a crush on, Sasuke and Naruto respectively. So basically all there is to each girl is "getting the guy", that's it, there's no more to it so you can't really separate Sakura and Hinata from those ships because those ships are integral to their characters. So when their only goal is getting the boy they want they will come out as selfish.

In the case of Sakura we see it more often because she's a more important character than Hinata who doesn't quite appear as much in the manga, which I assume is the reason why most people in the fandom think selfishness is a trait of Sakura while Hinata is the "selfless princess Hyuga" lol.

How do we find selfishness in Sakura? We see it first hand when she makes fun of Naruto for being an orphan in front of Sasuke, another orphan, trying to look cool. Sasuke ends up calling out her behaviour

We also see it when Sasuke is about to leave the village and she attempts to stop him, but ends up comparing the Uchiha massacre and the loneliness this caused in Sasuke to her not having her crush by her side and how she'd be equally lonely, thus minimizing Sasuke's pain and trauma.

Another instance is when Sasuke becomes a war criminal and a bounty is put on his head and everyone gives up on him including Sakura and excepting Naruto. Not only does she gives up on Sasuke and never attempts to research about the uchiha massacre and doesn't know "the truth about Itachi" but she also feels she's the one that must execute him because it's "her duty" to save him from a life of darkness because SHE loves him.

One last example is Team 7 fighting against Madara where Sakura charges against the enemy with no plan whatsoever because she wants to be on par of Naruto and Sasuke and for the latter to notice her, what happens then is she's stabbed and has to be saved by Sasuke and Naruto, oh! and Sasuke ignores her so she did all that for nothing.

Now, how is Hinata selfish? this can be harder to pinpoint because as I previously mentioned her shy quiet personality and lack of appearancs in the manga seem to conceal it. But we see the selfishness through Neji. The Hyuga clan practices slavery and Hinata at no single point in the manga challenges this status quo (and that's why forever and always good for Neji for beating her ass up). Some of her fans try to justify this by claiming Hinata can't change the way her clan by herself, mind you she's the fucking heiress. Ignore the ugly Saori edit

ewwwww

We also have the fight against Pain that everyone told her not to engage with because she'd do more danger than good but she simply HAD to let Naruto know she had a crush on him y'know?? she obviously loses without even scratching Pain and almost dies but in the process Naruto loses control of the kyubii and we're later told it was a miracle he didn't kill anyone.

But it's still fucked up to think what would have happened to Naruto's mental health had Hinata died, wow you told the dude you loved him and he inspired you to come and fight and is the reason you're doing all this and now you're dead, can you imagine the toll this would have taken on Naruto?

Lastly we have Neji die. Kishimoto did say in an interview on FujiTV back in 2014 he used Neji's death to bring Hinata and Naruto together in that hand holding scene

so basically Neji, a far more compelling character than Hinata ever was, dies in favor of an underwhelming underdeveloped ship (then Kishimoto tried to do damage control by naming Naruto and Hinata's kids in honor of Neji). We also see Hinata's reaction (or lack of) by holding Naruto's hand thinking about how warm it is while Neji's dead body is laying right besides them.

So yeah, both characters are entirely consumed by their superficial infatuation towards Naruto and Sasuke but never attempt to get to know them. On top of that, as ninjas they never really improve their skills, like we see Hinata and her special jutsu she developed be worth shit because she still couldn't attack Pain and also Sakura get the Byakugou seal then charging against Madara and getting stabbed without scratching him.